DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the characters
Please R & R^^
Woken up by a soft shake at his shoulder, Rei opened his eyes. Morning already? But it was dark, and he was still tired. "Ngg…" With that soft groan, he closed his eyes again. Another soft shake at his shoulder. "What?" he mumbled now, keeping his eyes shut. A soft chuckle sounded.
"It's supposed to be your turn to be guard," a soft voice told him. Ruka's voice.
"Eh?" Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't morning, and opened his eyes with a soft gasp. "Ah… R-Ruka… Sorry, I guess I was still half asleep."
"No wonder, after yesterday," his beloved sighed. "I can still barely believe that Yuda and me really… Well, you know what I mean."
Rei wished he could say the same, but the lost and hopeless feeling of losing Ruka was still very real in his heart. "I truly thought I had lost you forever," he admitted. "It's still scaring me, that feeling."
For a moment, they just sat there, Rei still in Ruka's strong arms. Eventually, the silver-haired angel spoke again. "I felt the same after you nearly died. Trust me, it'll fade. But it won't ever fully go away. Every single time we're in a dangerous situation, I only want to protect you. And I know that's not necessary, and it only makes it more dangerous to myself… But I just can't help it." Softly, he kissed Rei's forehead. "I really hope you'll get over it completely."
The smaller angel only nodded silently, knowing for sure he'd never stop being scared of having to go on without his beloved one. He knew, though, that Ruka would only feel guilty about that, so it probably would be best not to tell him. After a long yawn, he pulled back from Ruka's embrace and looked at his beloved's face. It seemed slightly paler than usual, and he obviously was exhausted. "You look tired. Can…" As usual, he felt his cheeks heating up again. "Can I hold you while you sleep?"
"If… if it doesn't bother you… That'd be really nice," Ruka mumbled, almost shyly.
With a soft smile on his beautiful face, Rei sat more comfortably, and then allowed Ruka to sit down on his lap sideways. Almost immediately, the silver-haired angel snuggled against him and closed his eyes. Embracing him gently, Rei kissed the top of his head. "Goodnight," he whispered.
"Mmh… goodnight," Ruka mumbled, sounding half-asleep already. His head was pillowed on Rei's shoulder, close to his neck, and the purple haired angel felt the soft breath of his beloved against his throat. "Rei?"
"Yes?"
A soft smile. "You… smell nice…" With that, Ruka's body went limp and he obviously fell asleep. Leaving Rei with slightly red cheeks and a small but happy smile on his face. When his turn as guard was finally over, he carefully laid Ruka down and then laid down against him, falling asleep almost instantly.
Faintly, he realized he was dreaming. But no matter how much he wanted it, he couldn't make himself wake up. They were at the mountain again, Ruka and Yuda lying on the ground, bloodied and lifeless. Shin tried to make time turn back. But in this nightmare, it wouldn't work. Ruka and Yuda weren't saved. He'd had to go on without his beloved, lonely and devastated. The nightmare went on, apparently they had gotten the gemstone, and now they were at home. Rei was sitting in his room, lying on his bed, refusing to get up and face a world without Ruka. Shin was sitting next to him, on the edge of the bed, and Rei knew his friend was crying. He just couldn't force himself to even say something to help him.
The nightmare was so real, Rei felt the horrible grief and pain, and the guilt of not being able to help Shin, to make it through this together. His friend was practically begging him for help, begging him to say something, do something, not to be gone too. But Rei didn't move until he heard the blue-haired angel run off, the broken sobs echoing in the hallway. Somewhere, he knew he had to go after him, that something bad would happen if he didn't. Despite that, he still couldn't find the inner strength to do anything at all.
With a stifled sob, he woke up, the last moment of the dream still vividly in his mind. Fear, sadness… guilt. What had happened if he hadn't woken up? What would he have seen? He had a feeling it was better not to know, but he was still left with a bad feeling, and the urge to do something but he didn't know what. Right now, it seemed the most important thing was to get his breathing to slow down, and to stop the tears dripping from his eyes.
"Rei?" Yuda's worried voice almost startled the purple-haired angel. "What's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?"
"Y-yes," Rei admitted, trying to smile at him but failing completely. "But I'm f-fine now."
"You sure?" Yuda asked softly.
Rei only nodded, glancing at Shin. The blue-haired angel was still lying unmoving in Yuda's arms. While looking at the two, he suddenly spotted some wet trails on Yuda's face, though it was hard to see in the dark. "Yuda? How's Shin doing?"
"He… he's still unconscious." Yuda's voice was slightly trembling while looking at the angel in his arms. "I think he's just exhausted, but his breathing sounds so weak, and he's so terribly pale."
Now Rei was sure it were tears that made those trails on Yuda's cheeks. But it also made the scared feeling from his dream grow. Careful not to wake Ruka, he stood up and walked to Yuda and Shin, sitting down next to them. "Yuda…" Remembering how much he had needed to feel Ruka with him right after what had happened yesterday, he realized what might be the reason why Shin seemed so weak. "This might sound odd… but…" He tried to gather the courage to ask what he wanted to ask.
"Rei, anything that you think might help him, please tell," Yuda said softly. "I'd do anything to make him feel better."
"Well…" He felt his cheeks heating up. "D-don't get angry at me for asking, but… have you tried kissing him?" Yuda stared at him afoul. "I-I mean… I needed to feel Ruka with me so badly after what happened, but Shin fainted before you even woke up. He doesn't even know that his magic worked, so that might be why… why he doesn't even seem to be trying to wake up. B-but if you kiss him… that's such an intimate touch, that he might feel it, even while he's unconscious." Not daring to look at Yuda any longer, he stared at the ground. "Eh… I don't know if I'm right… But it can only make things better, I think."
It was silent for some time, making Rei feel increasingly awkward, but finally Yuda spoke again. "W-won't that be like taking advantage of him?"
"He loves it when you kiss him," Rei told him, his gaze still towards the ground.
Another silence, but a short one this time. "Y-you're right, I guess." Slow and gently, Yuda placed his hand on Shin's cheek, leaned down, and softly placed a long kiss on the smaller angel's lips. Suddenly, Shin moaned almost inaudibly, his eyes fluttering open for a moment. "Shin?" Yuda asked immediately. "Shin, are you okay?"
Though his eyes were half-closed and glazy, Shin did look at him. A soft smile appeared on his pale face for a moment. "Now I am," he whispered. "So tired… but… I'm so glad… you're still… with me." His eyes slid shut again, and his breathing got slow and regular. It sounded a lot stronger than it had moments ago, though.
Relieved, Rei let his breath escape, realizing he had been holding it in the entire time Shin was awake. "Seems like it worked…" he whispered, more to himself than to anyone else.
"Rei… Thanks." Yuda was still staring at Shin's face, tears dripping down his cheeks again, but now they were clearly tears of relieve. It made Rei feel a bit like an intruder, since he'd never seen Yuda cry like this before. "And… you don't have to look so awkward. You've always been a great help, with the relationship between me and Shin."
"Ah… Eh, you're welcome," Rei mumbled.
Yuda smiled. "Sorry to keep you awake, though. And I think Ruka's missing something right now."
"Eh?" Rei looked back at the silver-haired angel to see him mumbling something unintelligible in his sleep and then whispering Rei's name. "Aw…" Rei couldn't help but to smile at how cute his beloved one looked at that moment. "I guess I'll go back to sleep." Silently, he went back to Ruka's side. "Goodnight, Yuda."
"Goodnight."
At the moment Rei laid down against Ruka, the taller angel immediately wrapped his arms around him, snuggling closer. "Mmh…" With a soft groan, Ruka opened his eyes for a moment, looking at him sleepily. "Rei?"
"I'm here," the purple-haired angel whispered reassuringly. "Go back to sleep."
"Okay." Ruka's eyes slid shut again, and Rei felt him falling back to sleep. With a soft smile, he closed his eyes to, and also drifted off to sleep.
When he woke next morning, the first thing he saw when opening his eyes was Ruka's beautiful face, still fast asleep. His beloved was lying closely against him, Ruka's arms still wrapped around Rei's slender frame. It felt so warm and safe, Rei couldn't help but to close his eyes and just lie there for a few minutes longer. Still, he couldn't feel completely safe or happy right now. With a soft sigh, he opened his eyes and sat up.
"Rei?" Gai looked at him a bit worriedly, and Rei remembered that the small blonde was the last in line to be guard tonight. "You all right? You look a bit pale."
"Eh… I'm just… a bit tired, I guess," Rei mumbled.
"After waking up from hours of sleeping?" Gai chuckled. "Sounds logical."
Rei didn't even glare at him, he just pulled up his knees and rested his head on them. It wasn't normal indeed, to feel so tired after almost a full night's sleep. But thinking about all they had been through, and then thinking about having to travel all the way back… That was enough to make him feel exhausted, both mentally and physically, but he didn't want to tell Gai that. The blonde would make a joke of it, but on the inside he'd feel worried. They all had gone through this journey, so Rei felt he didn't have any right to burden his friends any more.
"Hey, there's still half an hour left before we all have to get up. Why don't you sleep for that time?" Gai suggested.
"Hm… But I'll only be more sleepy if I'm not awake some minutes before breakfast," Rei mumbled. "I'm fine." He didn't feel fine at all, and he was starting to get a headache, but it probably would get better soon, right? He heard Gai standing up and walking towards him. A bit surprised, he suddenly felt the smaller angel's arm around his shoulders.
"Hey, don't worry too much about everything, okay?" Gai said softly. "We've gotten so far, and all that's left to do is go back home. We'll make it, and I'm sure Shin will wake up soon, and everything will be all right."
Briefly, Rei wondered if it was Gai wasn't just trying to comfort himself. But either way, it made him feel a little better, and he silently leaned against the smaller angel for a moment.
Nearly an hour later, they went into the caves again. On this side, the slide wasn't as fast, giving them the chance to hold onto each other and end up in the same passage. Rei felt sick anyway, by the time the slide ended. Trying to hide it, which shouldn't be that difficult in the dark, he leaned against the wall for a moment. Almost immediately, he felt a warm hand grabbing hold of his.
"Rei?" Ruka's voice. "You okay?"
Why couldn't people stop asking him that? "Yes, I'm okay," he responded rather snappy. He couldn't bring himself to pull away his hand though, since Ruka's touch was undeniably comforting.
"Just a question," Ruka mumbled, sounding a bit hurt.
"Sorry, it's just…" Rei sighed, unable to come up with a proper explanation. "Never mind, shall we hurry?"
The walk seemed much quicker this time. Well, not having a concussion probably helped at that. Within three hours, they had reached the slide that led to the exit. "Seems like we'll have to fly," Ruka remarked, "Rei, will you take Yuda and Shin?"
"Okay." Getting some light from their wings, Rei and Ruka gathered their passengers and flew towards the exit. Even though it was mainly Yuda who was holding Shin, Rei still felt how limp and cold the blue-haired angel was. No wonder, if he had used so much energy that couldn't even shiver to get a bit warmer. Still, it'd be really bad if he'd catch a cold now, while he was so weak, and especially since they were still traveling.
If only Shin would be awake, maybe then Rei wouldn't feel so scared every time he looked at his friend. How Shin had collapsed into his arms, after saving Ruka and Yuda, that feeling he'd never forget. Despite the fact that the first thing on his mind had been Ruka that entire time, the immense fear that Shin would lose his own life while bringing the other two back wasn't easy to get over.
Carefully, they landed on the grass at the edge of the lake, and Yuda sat Shin down on the ground for a short break. The blue-haired angel slumped against him like some ragdoll, still completely unconscious. Rei had hoped that after Shin had woken up for a moment last night, he'd only be asleep. The way he laid in Yuda's arms though, and his pale face, told that his mind was further away than just asleep.
Silently, he sat next to Yuda, and carefully caressed Shin's hair out of his face. He hadn't even noticed anymore that his friend had lost the ribbon that usually held his hair out of the way. Shin didn't respond to the touch even a bit.
"He's so weak right now," Yuda mumbled, his voice trembling a bit. "What if he gets a cold or something?"
"You can probably heal the worst of it," Rei tried to comfort his friend, as well as himself.
"B-but what if I don't notice it in time?" Yuda's voice broke. "W-what if he…"
"He'll get better, I know he will!" Rei interrupted him, not wanting to hear the other option out loud. "You're with him the entire time, and at night he's being watched by whoever is sitting guard at that moment." Yuda only nodded, not saying anything.
"How are we going to get through the thunderstorms without putting him in too much risk?" Ruka suddenly asked.
"Gai, can't you make a tunnel or something?" Goh suggested.
"Too much distance, it would collapse halfway," the small blonde replied.
"What if we fly really quickly above the clouds?" Rei suggested.
"We'll be in more risk than if we walk," Yuda remarked.
"Yes, if we'd be running at average speed," Rei explained. "But the fact is, having one of us unconscious is going to slow us down, which make's running more dangerous than flying."
"Flying is faster indeed, but there's no way of getting through those clouds alive. And if we start flying at a safe distance, we'll be too tired to fly fast enough by the time we're there," Ruka said. "But we can try to fly just above the ground, right?"
"That could work," Goh agreed. "But carrying all of us will probably slow you two down."
"What if Goh, Yuda and me run and one of you carries Shin while flying?" Gai suggested.
"Remember last time you ran? Yuda and me can run, you're going to be carried." That remark earned Goh a glare from the small blonde.
"I'm not that clumsy!"
"You did trip, last time," Rei chuckled.
"Tch!" Pouting a bit, the cat-like angel stared at the ground.
"Rei? You probably want to carry Shin?" Yuda asked.
"If you trust me enough with him," Rei replied softly. "Ruka is stronger, so maybe Shin is safer with him."
"We're equally good at flying, so that should make no difference," Ruka remarked. "Besides, I can see you want to carry him."
"I know you won't let anything happen to him," Yuda agreed.
At the edge of the hills, Yuda carefully placed Shin in Rei's arms. Again, the blue-haired angel didn't respond. But at least Rei could hear him breathing softly, which was reassuring. Gai reluctantly allowed Ruka to carry him, grumbling something rather unfriendly about a certain brunette.
"Let's go," Ruka said, Rei and him spreading their wings at exactly the same time.
Compared to the last few chapters, this was a short one, sorry… I've been busy with work, since almost everyone at the farm where I volunteer is on vacation in exactly the same few weeks, and somehow I ended up promising I'd come work every day… XD Well, at least it's fun to work there.
Okay, back to the story, I think there was a bit too much conversation and too little action in the last part, but I hope it was fun to read anyway ;)
I'll update in a week^^