Author's Note: I apologize for the long wait between chapters! But I had finals, my birthday, the holidays, and then the first week of the new semester to deal with. Also, I had a problem writing this chapter for some reason... Anyway, I'll do better in the future, I promise! ^_^
As always, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. If you have anything at all you would like to say, please don't hesitate to tell me.
Disclaimer: I don't own Cowboy Bebop or its characters. (I wish I did, though!)
That Day as Well
by jadelitfireflies
Two. (Sanctuary.)
His sight trailed restlessly up the walls, skipping over the carved figures of angels, before fixing on a point somewhere near the altar. This church was made of stone and was thus unshakeable, even if he tried to burn a hole in it with his eyes out of boredom. That boy sitting next to him, he was his brother, wasn't he? It seemed so abstract. Vicious. Well, at least it was obvious their father had named them. But - his father and another woman? That was impossible, he told the ceiling, but there he was, the offending proof's breathing resting hastily and angrily near his shoulder.
Since Vicious had started living with them, inhabiting the gray room next to his own, Annie had attempted to make him part of their "family," although Mao had appraised the boy at first and found him lacking. ...Family. Spike clung to the idea out of a type of spite. And Annie had sent them to catechism, because syndicate kids just didn't go to church. Unless they were blowing it up, or something.
So it seemed so useless, sitting there, even if Shin and Lin were there that day, as well. Spike slouched down until his clunky blue shoes could find a place on the pew ahead of him. Vicious sat in a frozen and rigid manner, a bit of hair bleeding into his eyes. They'd sat like that, of course, for the entire span of two hours - and consequently, the green-haired boy had learned the art of sleeping with his eyes open.
"The hell are you going?" Stirred by the movement next to him, he had noticed Vicious standing. He didn't answer.
"It's over, Spike." Shin jumped over the church pew to the displeasure of their teacher. "We can finally get out of this place," he murmured, stretching.
Lin was having problems copying his brother and got stuck halfway. "Where's Vicious?"
Spike shrugged.
"You should come over to our house! We just got a new puppy, and - "
"The orphanage let you have a dog?"
The two boys stared at him for a moment. Lin shifted into a sitting position while Spike inwardly winced... he'd been told not to mention that. He knew that. Nobody mentioned -
"Everybody takes care of it one day a week. Today's our day... we should probably go now, shouldn't we, Lin?"
His younger brother nodded, and they left.
"Shit." Placing his hands in his pockets, Spike looked around for his brother. If he wasn't in the sanctuary... there really wasn't anywhere to go but up to the choir loft.
So, slowly, he made his way to the stairs. It was dark in there, like a crypt - no one ever bothered to turn the lights on for street kids, especially when the orphanage was involved. Most light came from one, solitary stained glass window, and as the metallic sounds echoed about him, marking his passage, everything eventually became more visible. And then, in a way, more stable.
What was that - singing? He stopped to listen. Hn, it sounded sad. Well, he'd had enough of that. But who was singing it, really? Peeking over the rail, he saw her.
He just watched, for a moment, taking the sight of her in - her skin was flawless in the chapel light, golden-colored hair resting down the length of her back as she sung softly. She seemed to be waiting for something. The girl shifted from one foot to the other, then spinning, but in a way which made her seem... bored, or angry.
"Julia?"
Most people would have ducked, but he stood his ground. The choir mistress had come out of her office, turning the lights off -
"What are you still doing here?"
The girl - Julia, he noted - balanced on one foot. "I'm supposed to stay here... until someone picks me up..."
"Do you need a ride?"
Julia hesitated. "No, I can't. I'll... just stay here."
"Well, okay, then..."
Damn! The choir lady was headed for the stairs. He calmly walked up them, looking the other way, but all the while tasting her name in his mind: Julia, Julia. Should he talk to her? He could -
There was a crash. The girl - Julia! - turned, and so did he, to stare into the darkness of the corridor beyond the window. Who would be down there? It was just a storage -
Vicious.
Spike walked at first and then ran, cursing when he couldn't see so well.
"Hey," he shouted. "Hey! Ugh, where the hell's the door..."
"Come in, Spike."
A rush of cold air. His heart beat faster at that voice; he'd never tell him, but Vicious really did scare him. And in the darkness, he couldn't see a thing - frozen, all he could do was listen. Vicious was his brother, he reasoned... Sure, he was morbid, and really kind of violent, but he'd never hurt him...
From the side. A point of steel was pressed to his ribcage, not quite hard enough to draw blood, but... yes, Vicious was there. His eyes adjusted a bit. The other boy's face was twisted into a horrid grin.
He forced the words. "A - A new toy, huh?"
"It draws blood."
"Weapons in a church."
"That saint didn't need it. He's already dead."
"You stole it off a statue? How low of you."
Vicious moved forward. "God isn't complaining."
The green-haired boy smirked. "A little sacrilegious, aren't we, brother?"
A pause.
"What did you call me?!"
Spike began to back toward the window. Something in his voice sounded dangerous, and made his breath come in short gasps - Vicious couldn't actually kill him, could he? That was ridiculous. He could run faster, anyway -
He tripped on a ledge, and fell. Wincing, he looked up - and Vicious stood over him, the top of the sword placed at his heart. He swallowed.
"You can't be serious."
"Brother..." Vicious all but growled, narrowing his eyes. "We're not brothers, Spike."
A bit of blood dropped onto his face, and he noted it was not his own. He pulled himself backward until his shoulders rested against the window, and nervously looked through a clear patch to his right. It was a long way down.
"The same blood runs through our veins." With a flourish, the other boy placed the sword in a scabbard slung under his new coat, then leaning down to stare his half-brother in the eyes. "That is all."
As Vicious walked away, Spike passed a hand over his face, wishing he could erase the fear from it. He couldn't be afraid. Not Spike Spiegel; he couldn't disappoint his father -
But Vicious, Vicious was his son, too. Wasn't he? Wasn't he?
He stood up shakily, controlling himself, and let his eyes wander briefly over the city in the distance. Rain clouds. Buildings, and the tower-like structure built on top of Annie's little store. In the parking lot of the cathedral, Julia got into the passenger side of a classic red convertible, and in the sienna dusk light slowly drove away.
