DISCLAIMER: Normal disclaimers apply. If ya don't know the drill by now,
you'll never know it! MuWHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! ^___^
Warnings: slight OOC-ness, future character deaths, heterosexual relationships(suffer, yaoi fangirls!) (A/N: Excuse that outburst..I don't know what came over me ^_^;;; I really have nothing against yaoi fangirls, honestly.)
Chapter Eight - Second Chances
Nagi had never seen Crawford look so sad. Crawford had been sitting on a chair beside his bed, where Solera was at present, his head in his hands. His glasses were on the bedside table, and he wasn't wearing a suit, just tracksuit pants and an open shirt.
"This is the girl you told me about 6 years ago," said Nagi, finally understanding, "You really like her, don't you?"
Crawford was silent, but Nagi already knew the answer. He left the room quietly and ran into Farf.
"Is Bengal okay?"
Nagi shook his head. "She's still out of it."
Farf frowned in thought, and walked away.
When Crawford saw he was alone again, he began to cry. "Solera, I didn't mean for this to happen.."
There was no answer. He watched Solera's chest rise and fall as she breathed. He reached out and pushed her hair out of her eyes.
// Do you mind if I join you? //
Crawford turned around and saw Schuldig standing in the doorway.
// No, come in. //
Schuldig sat on the other side of the bed.
"Schuldig, why do we compete for her when we won't be able to start anything with her anyway?"
"Heh, you know me, always persistent, no matter who it hurts," replied the telepath.
"If we'd stayed in America, none of this would have ever happened!"
"What's to say that even if we did stay in America, this wouldn't have happened anyway? Think rationally, Brad."
Crawford didn't yell at Schuldig this time. He knew he was right. // I don't know why, but I feel comfortable telling you these things. //
Schuldig was surprised at this admission from his leader and replied with a half-smirk. // Maybe it's because we share a common interest. //
Crawford glanced over at Schuldig, who was holding Solera's other hand. He then said, "I couldn't leave Japan because the team would fall apart, and Solera's bound to Weiss. I don't want what happened six years ago to happen again." He stood up, leaned over and kissed Solera's forehead. "I'm going to make myself a cup of coffee. Do you want one?"
"Yeah, why not?"
The two men walked out of the room.
Farfarello snuck in as soon as Crawford and Schuldig left.
"Ye have to stay alive," he said softly, "to make everything normal again. If ye die, Crawford and Schuldig will be weak, and Este will have them killed."
He thought she looked peaceful. "Like a real kitten," he mused.
Farf hadn't known love before, or not that he could remember, so he didn't really know how Crawford and Schuldig felt. He only knew that is this girl died, it would mean the end of Schwarz, and he'd be sent to some place he was sure he didn't want to be, from the tales that Schuldig told him.
Suddenly, Solera blinked and opened her eyes. "Where am I?"
Without warning, Farf picked her up and carried her to the kitchen. Schuldig jumped up, took Solera from Farf's arms and let her stand. He hugged her tightly.
"We're so glad you're okay. We thought you weren't going to make it!"
"Well, I almost didn't. I heard a voice telling me I had to stay alive for the sake of you two. I realised I'm still needed here."
"That voice....that voice ye heard was me."
Solera faced the Beserker. "You? But you tried to kill me last night!"
"Actually, it was three nights ago," Farf corrected, "But I've never had the chance to love someone. I didn't want to destroy Crawford and Schuldig's chances."
He retreated in the direction of his cell.
"I'll be back in a minute," said Solera, as she followed Farfarello.
He was laying on the floor of his cell when Solera came in. She knelt beside him, and he sat up.
"What do ye want?" he asked, heart pounding.
"I...I wanted to say thankyou, for keeping me alive," she stuttered, a little unnerved by her surroundings and the fact that she was even actually talking to the 'madman', "a..and I want to give you something."
Solera leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. Farfarello stood up and she stood up with him. She had to stand on her toes to continue, but she didn't mind. Farf deepened the kiss, not wanting it to end. To him, it was surreal. Solera pulled away eventually.
"What was that for?" asked Farf.
"I owe you my life, and it was only fair that I gave you what you never had," she replied, and headed for the kitchen.
"Yohji-kun, I'm worried about Solera."
The young blonde's smile was replaced with worry.
"We all are, Omittchi. But we all have a different way of showing it." Yohji shot a glance at Aya, who was staring out the window, cup of coffee in hand.
Ken was restless, and kept cleaning his bugnuks over and over. There was a knock at the door that startled the for of them. Omi opened the door, and there stood Taia.
"Hey Omittchi," she kissed him on the cheek, "hey guys. Where's Solera?"
"She's gone away for a while," replied Aya, still staring out the window.
"Oh. Well anyway, Grandpa and I were wondering, would you guys like to come to dinner? With all the extra money, we can afford to have a few extra people over."
Yohji Ken and Omi said yeas, but Aya declined.
"I'll stay here. I have a few things I need to do anyway."
"Alright then. I'll see the rest of you at seven. Ja ne!"
Yohji followed Taia downstairs. "Taia, wait up!"
She turned around. "Yeah?"
"Well, uh, I was wondering...Well, we've spent alot of time together over the past couple of weeks and, uh.." Usually Yohji knew all the right things to say around women, but Taia was different. She was special.
"Yes, I'll go out with you!" she replied, ecstatic.
"Great! Well, see you later then. I've gotta get ready." He kissed Taia softly, and went back inside. "Solera, don't be mad with me, and look after yourself." He went up to his room and closed the door.
"Crawford, why is she still here?" Amber demanded, scowling.
"If she's here, Weiss can't get us, and if they do, we'll threaten to kill her," Crawford replied, not looking up from his newspaper.
// Sol, you know he's just putting up a front so the others don't get sus. //
// I know, Kio. I just hope Amber won't take the killing part seriously. //
Schuldig chuckled to himself.
"Well, you treat her like a friggin' queen, and she's our enemy! So where are my crown jewels?"
Schuldig caught himself staring at the complaining teenager. Physically, she was attractive. Almond-shaped green eyes, and shoulder-length blonde hair. But he didn't like the fact that she felt she had to put others down in order to get respect. Schuldig certainly didn't respect her, that was for sure.
But I still want Solera, he argued with himself.
Farf sat on his favourite chair in the living room, the chair with the slashed-up upholstery. He didn't care. Usually he'd be taking his frustrations out on the chair, saying, "Take that, God!", but today he just sat there, his one golden eye looking intently at Solera. He wasn't quite sure why, but he felt drawn to her.
Solera caught him staring, and smiled at him. He looked away, embarrassed that he'd been caught.
"Brad, can I use your phone?" Solera asked Crawford.
Crawford nodded, and took her to his room when his phone was.
Solera, unaware that he was still in the room with her, dialled the number. It rang once, twice, three times, then, "Hello, Fujimiya speaking."
"Aya? It's Solera. I rang to let you know that I'm okay, and I'm being well- looked after. I can't talk long."
"When will you be back?" Aya let a little bit of concern slip into his tone.
"By next mission. I gotta go. Say hi to the others for me."
"Ja ne."
Solera hung up. The bedroom door shut, and startled her. She spun around.
"Brad! I didn't know you were still in here!"
"Sorry to startle you. Don't worry, I guarantee you'll be back with Weiss by your next mission. I just thought it'd be nice if you stayed here a while, you know, to pick up where we left off."
Crawford and Solera sat facing each other, and wrapped their arms around each other. Crawford pulled Solera into a laying position, and she kissed him on the nose. He tilted his head up so that his lips met hers. She opened her mouth enough to let his tongue slip in. Crawford pushed himself up against her, eager to fell to warmth of her body against his for the first time, and put his hands on his stomach, making her giggle at the slightest touch. Solera ran her hands over his firm stomach muscles.
"You look after yourself, don't you?" she mused.
"Well, it helps with this profession," he replied.
"I suppose it does."
They lay peacefully with their arms around each other, then Amber barged in.
"Crawford-san, Nagi and Farfarello are..." She noticed the position the two were in, and smirked. "Well, isn't this a pretty picture? Mr Takatori would love to hear about this!"
Schuldig came up behind Amber, and for some unknown reason, he kissed her on the cheek. "Come on, leave these two alone. They haven't seen each other for six years."
Amber was in shock, and she blindly obeyed Schuldig, who stuck his head back through the doorway and said, "You owe me, Crawford." He winked at them, "Have fun, Kinder!"
As soon as he walked away, Solera burst out laughing. "He hasn't changed much, has he?"
"No, he hasn't," Crawford replied, smiling.
They stood up, and Crawford was about to button up his shirt, but Solera said, "It looks better unbuttoned. Sexier."
"I could say the same to you, but you don't have any buttons on your top."
"Oh, poor you," Solera replied, mock-pouting.
Crawford laughed. "Come on, you, before I do something we'll both regret."
Solera sat between Farf and Schuldig on the couch.
"How are my other two favourite people today?"
Farf didn't answer, but Schuldig replied by hugging her. "I'm fine, but you seem happy, I wonder why...?"
Solera hit him. "Don't kid! Seems like you've got your eye on one of your own team members. Amber, was it?"
// Say nothing, Sol. My loyalties lie with you. //
Solera got serious. "Kio, come with me. We need to talk."
The two of them went outside. Solera allowed for silence to pass between them, and then she spoke.
"Do you honestly think that we could ever be together again without putting our own lives, and the lives of our teams in danger?"
"If it meant I could be with you, I'd chance it."
Silence again, then, "Farf likes you too. He's been thinking all about the kiss he got from a certain Weiss kitten a couple of days ago," Schuldig looked hurt, "Why did you do it?"
"I owe him my life! He saved me. You should be grateful as well, you and Crawford. He said he didn't want your chances of finding love destroyed. I thought he deserved that chance too. Put it this way, Kio, if he didn't say what he said, I wouldn't be alive, and there'd be no second chances for any of us."
Solera hugged Schuldig.
"Solera, who do you want to be with? If you choose Crawford, I can't say I won't be hurt, but I'll be here for you still."
"Don't make me choose, because it's impossible; I couldn't choose without endangering everyone involved!"
"Shh, I didn't mean to get you so riled up. Come here," Schuldig kissed her gently. "Come on, let's go back inside."
"So, she's okay?" Yohji asked Aya.
"So she says. Apparently, she's being 'well-looked after'."
Manx appeared in the doorway. "Maybe Schwarz have good intentions. If Solera once dated Schuldig and Crawford was her best friend, then maybe they won't kill her."
"I still don't trust them," said Omi, scowling.
"Settle down, chibi, you're beginning to sound like Aya!" replied Yohji.
Omi and Aya both glared at Yohji.
Manx said, "Omi, I'm not asking you to trust them. I don't. I just want you to have a little faith that Bengal will get back safely, that's all."
Ken was feeling more and more depressed, he felt like the team was falling apart without Solera.
Will Weiss fall apart? Will Solera cross over to the DARK SIDE? And will Crawford get Farf a new chair?
The answer to the last one is no. Poor Farfie! (
But in the next chapter, interesting things happen with Farf. To find out, you'll just have to wait until the next chapter.
But anyway, keep checking back for more chappies. Still another 10 to go, and then the sequel...
I've been busy!
Please Review!! Onegai?
~Blue Silhouette~
Warnings: slight OOC-ness, future character deaths, heterosexual relationships(suffer, yaoi fangirls!) (A/N: Excuse that outburst..I don't know what came over me ^_^;;; I really have nothing against yaoi fangirls, honestly.)
Chapter Eight - Second Chances
Nagi had never seen Crawford look so sad. Crawford had been sitting on a chair beside his bed, where Solera was at present, his head in his hands. His glasses were on the bedside table, and he wasn't wearing a suit, just tracksuit pants and an open shirt.
"This is the girl you told me about 6 years ago," said Nagi, finally understanding, "You really like her, don't you?"
Crawford was silent, but Nagi already knew the answer. He left the room quietly and ran into Farf.
"Is Bengal okay?"
Nagi shook his head. "She's still out of it."
Farf frowned in thought, and walked away.
When Crawford saw he was alone again, he began to cry. "Solera, I didn't mean for this to happen.."
There was no answer. He watched Solera's chest rise and fall as she breathed. He reached out and pushed her hair out of her eyes.
// Do you mind if I join you? //
Crawford turned around and saw Schuldig standing in the doorway.
// No, come in. //
Schuldig sat on the other side of the bed.
"Schuldig, why do we compete for her when we won't be able to start anything with her anyway?"
"Heh, you know me, always persistent, no matter who it hurts," replied the telepath.
"If we'd stayed in America, none of this would have ever happened!"
"What's to say that even if we did stay in America, this wouldn't have happened anyway? Think rationally, Brad."
Crawford didn't yell at Schuldig this time. He knew he was right. // I don't know why, but I feel comfortable telling you these things. //
Schuldig was surprised at this admission from his leader and replied with a half-smirk. // Maybe it's because we share a common interest. //
Crawford glanced over at Schuldig, who was holding Solera's other hand. He then said, "I couldn't leave Japan because the team would fall apart, and Solera's bound to Weiss. I don't want what happened six years ago to happen again." He stood up, leaned over and kissed Solera's forehead. "I'm going to make myself a cup of coffee. Do you want one?"
"Yeah, why not?"
The two men walked out of the room.
Farfarello snuck in as soon as Crawford and Schuldig left.
"Ye have to stay alive," he said softly, "to make everything normal again. If ye die, Crawford and Schuldig will be weak, and Este will have them killed."
He thought she looked peaceful. "Like a real kitten," he mused.
Farf hadn't known love before, or not that he could remember, so he didn't really know how Crawford and Schuldig felt. He only knew that is this girl died, it would mean the end of Schwarz, and he'd be sent to some place he was sure he didn't want to be, from the tales that Schuldig told him.
Suddenly, Solera blinked and opened her eyes. "Where am I?"
Without warning, Farf picked her up and carried her to the kitchen. Schuldig jumped up, took Solera from Farf's arms and let her stand. He hugged her tightly.
"We're so glad you're okay. We thought you weren't going to make it!"
"Well, I almost didn't. I heard a voice telling me I had to stay alive for the sake of you two. I realised I'm still needed here."
"That voice....that voice ye heard was me."
Solera faced the Beserker. "You? But you tried to kill me last night!"
"Actually, it was three nights ago," Farf corrected, "But I've never had the chance to love someone. I didn't want to destroy Crawford and Schuldig's chances."
He retreated in the direction of his cell.
"I'll be back in a minute," said Solera, as she followed Farfarello.
He was laying on the floor of his cell when Solera came in. She knelt beside him, and he sat up.
"What do ye want?" he asked, heart pounding.
"I...I wanted to say thankyou, for keeping me alive," she stuttered, a little unnerved by her surroundings and the fact that she was even actually talking to the 'madman', "a..and I want to give you something."
Solera leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. Farfarello stood up and she stood up with him. She had to stand on her toes to continue, but she didn't mind. Farf deepened the kiss, not wanting it to end. To him, it was surreal. Solera pulled away eventually.
"What was that for?" asked Farf.
"I owe you my life, and it was only fair that I gave you what you never had," she replied, and headed for the kitchen.
"Yohji-kun, I'm worried about Solera."
The young blonde's smile was replaced with worry.
"We all are, Omittchi. But we all have a different way of showing it." Yohji shot a glance at Aya, who was staring out the window, cup of coffee in hand.
Ken was restless, and kept cleaning his bugnuks over and over. There was a knock at the door that startled the for of them. Omi opened the door, and there stood Taia.
"Hey Omittchi," she kissed him on the cheek, "hey guys. Where's Solera?"
"She's gone away for a while," replied Aya, still staring out the window.
"Oh. Well anyway, Grandpa and I were wondering, would you guys like to come to dinner? With all the extra money, we can afford to have a few extra people over."
Yohji Ken and Omi said yeas, but Aya declined.
"I'll stay here. I have a few things I need to do anyway."
"Alright then. I'll see the rest of you at seven. Ja ne!"
Yohji followed Taia downstairs. "Taia, wait up!"
She turned around. "Yeah?"
"Well, uh, I was wondering...Well, we've spent alot of time together over the past couple of weeks and, uh.." Usually Yohji knew all the right things to say around women, but Taia was different. She was special.
"Yes, I'll go out with you!" she replied, ecstatic.
"Great! Well, see you later then. I've gotta get ready." He kissed Taia softly, and went back inside. "Solera, don't be mad with me, and look after yourself." He went up to his room and closed the door.
"Crawford, why is she still here?" Amber demanded, scowling.
"If she's here, Weiss can't get us, and if they do, we'll threaten to kill her," Crawford replied, not looking up from his newspaper.
// Sol, you know he's just putting up a front so the others don't get sus. //
// I know, Kio. I just hope Amber won't take the killing part seriously. //
Schuldig chuckled to himself.
"Well, you treat her like a friggin' queen, and she's our enemy! So where are my crown jewels?"
Schuldig caught himself staring at the complaining teenager. Physically, she was attractive. Almond-shaped green eyes, and shoulder-length blonde hair. But he didn't like the fact that she felt she had to put others down in order to get respect. Schuldig certainly didn't respect her, that was for sure.
But I still want Solera, he argued with himself.
Farf sat on his favourite chair in the living room, the chair with the slashed-up upholstery. He didn't care. Usually he'd be taking his frustrations out on the chair, saying, "Take that, God!", but today he just sat there, his one golden eye looking intently at Solera. He wasn't quite sure why, but he felt drawn to her.
Solera caught him staring, and smiled at him. He looked away, embarrassed that he'd been caught.
"Brad, can I use your phone?" Solera asked Crawford.
Crawford nodded, and took her to his room when his phone was.
Solera, unaware that he was still in the room with her, dialled the number. It rang once, twice, three times, then, "Hello, Fujimiya speaking."
"Aya? It's Solera. I rang to let you know that I'm okay, and I'm being well- looked after. I can't talk long."
"When will you be back?" Aya let a little bit of concern slip into his tone.
"By next mission. I gotta go. Say hi to the others for me."
"Ja ne."
Solera hung up. The bedroom door shut, and startled her. She spun around.
"Brad! I didn't know you were still in here!"
"Sorry to startle you. Don't worry, I guarantee you'll be back with Weiss by your next mission. I just thought it'd be nice if you stayed here a while, you know, to pick up where we left off."
Crawford and Solera sat facing each other, and wrapped their arms around each other. Crawford pulled Solera into a laying position, and she kissed him on the nose. He tilted his head up so that his lips met hers. She opened her mouth enough to let his tongue slip in. Crawford pushed himself up against her, eager to fell to warmth of her body against his for the first time, and put his hands on his stomach, making her giggle at the slightest touch. Solera ran her hands over his firm stomach muscles.
"You look after yourself, don't you?" she mused.
"Well, it helps with this profession," he replied.
"I suppose it does."
They lay peacefully with their arms around each other, then Amber barged in.
"Crawford-san, Nagi and Farfarello are..." She noticed the position the two were in, and smirked. "Well, isn't this a pretty picture? Mr Takatori would love to hear about this!"
Schuldig came up behind Amber, and for some unknown reason, he kissed her on the cheek. "Come on, leave these two alone. They haven't seen each other for six years."
Amber was in shock, and she blindly obeyed Schuldig, who stuck his head back through the doorway and said, "You owe me, Crawford." He winked at them, "Have fun, Kinder!"
As soon as he walked away, Solera burst out laughing. "He hasn't changed much, has he?"
"No, he hasn't," Crawford replied, smiling.
They stood up, and Crawford was about to button up his shirt, but Solera said, "It looks better unbuttoned. Sexier."
"I could say the same to you, but you don't have any buttons on your top."
"Oh, poor you," Solera replied, mock-pouting.
Crawford laughed. "Come on, you, before I do something we'll both regret."
Solera sat between Farf and Schuldig on the couch.
"How are my other two favourite people today?"
Farf didn't answer, but Schuldig replied by hugging her. "I'm fine, but you seem happy, I wonder why...?"
Solera hit him. "Don't kid! Seems like you've got your eye on one of your own team members. Amber, was it?"
// Say nothing, Sol. My loyalties lie with you. //
Solera got serious. "Kio, come with me. We need to talk."
The two of them went outside. Solera allowed for silence to pass between them, and then she spoke.
"Do you honestly think that we could ever be together again without putting our own lives, and the lives of our teams in danger?"
"If it meant I could be with you, I'd chance it."
Silence again, then, "Farf likes you too. He's been thinking all about the kiss he got from a certain Weiss kitten a couple of days ago," Schuldig looked hurt, "Why did you do it?"
"I owe him my life! He saved me. You should be grateful as well, you and Crawford. He said he didn't want your chances of finding love destroyed. I thought he deserved that chance too. Put it this way, Kio, if he didn't say what he said, I wouldn't be alive, and there'd be no second chances for any of us."
Solera hugged Schuldig.
"Solera, who do you want to be with? If you choose Crawford, I can't say I won't be hurt, but I'll be here for you still."
"Don't make me choose, because it's impossible; I couldn't choose without endangering everyone involved!"
"Shh, I didn't mean to get you so riled up. Come here," Schuldig kissed her gently. "Come on, let's go back inside."
"So, she's okay?" Yohji asked Aya.
"So she says. Apparently, she's being 'well-looked after'."
Manx appeared in the doorway. "Maybe Schwarz have good intentions. If Solera once dated Schuldig and Crawford was her best friend, then maybe they won't kill her."
"I still don't trust them," said Omi, scowling.
"Settle down, chibi, you're beginning to sound like Aya!" replied Yohji.
Omi and Aya both glared at Yohji.
Manx said, "Omi, I'm not asking you to trust them. I don't. I just want you to have a little faith that Bengal will get back safely, that's all."
Ken was feeling more and more depressed, he felt like the team was falling apart without Solera.
Will Weiss fall apart? Will Solera cross over to the DARK SIDE? And will Crawford get Farf a new chair?
The answer to the last one is no. Poor Farfie! (
But in the next chapter, interesting things happen with Farf. To find out, you'll just have to wait until the next chapter.
But anyway, keep checking back for more chappies. Still another 10 to go, and then the sequel...
I've been busy!
Please Review!! Onegai?
~Blue Silhouette~