*****5:The Night Revealed*****
Far from home, Tsuzuki Asato has arrived in Budapest, where a group of kindly nuns have been taking care of his partner, Kurosaki Hisoka, since discovering him at their door. They have put him up in a simple room above their monastery, and as Tsuzuki enters it, he sees that there is only a bed and a single chair for furnishings.
Such meager accommodations are all Hisoka requires, however, for the state he is in is nothing like the man he once was.
Seated in that small chair, the disturbed, young Kurosaki-kun is wearing crisp, white robes, has his head bandaged in white wrapping, and stares forward at nothing, as if in a horrific daze. The sight of him breaks Tsuzuki's overflowing heart, and the brunette rushes to his friend's side, dropping his bags as he attempts an embrace.
"Hisoka...?" Tsuzuki whispers, near tears and pure panic in how the blonde has yet to acknowledge him, even after he had clung to Hisoka's waist. "I came as soon as I could. They say you're in shock, that you've been through something so horrible you...can't even face it long enough to tell anyone what happened."
Kneeling in front of Hisoka now, Tsuzuki takes his friend's hands in his own, hoping to reach him through that meager touch, but the younger man merely continues staring.
"Hisoka...please, look at me." Tsuzuki sobs, no longer able to hide his tears. "Your eyes...they're so dead...as if...there's no life left in you at all. Please...tell me...what happened to you?"
When Hisoka once again fails to offer anything in response, Tsuzuki collapses into his tears, unable to hold his head up as it sinks into Hisoka's lap. As if this heartbreaking truth wasn't already enough to wake the dead, Hisoka actually stirs, lifting a hand to place atop Tsuzuki's head.
Tsuzuki jerks upwards, that comforting hand falling away as he sits back up. It wasn't just his imagination though; Hisoka had indeed moved. Perhaps there is still life in the young man, after all.
"They say you're well enough to travel." Tsuzuki smiles weakly, vainly trying to catch his partner's distant gaze. "And they gave me what they found of your things. There isn't much, but they did find your journal."
Opening the bag beside him, Tsuzuki's attention is drawn away a moment, forcing him to miss Hisoka's next movement. The blonde turns his head, and stares hard at the book Tsuzuki has removed from the bag. Green eyes widen in horror when his all too curious friend moves to open the cover.
"I don't know what to expect, but -"
Slam. Tsuzuki is cut off as Hisoka's hand covers his own and shuts the journal forcefully.
"Hisoka...?"
"Tsuzuki..." the young blonde begins, in an urgent but somber voice, even more dreary than that of the stern man he once was. "As friends, we have sworn to have no secrets between us, but...the madness I have been driven to has offered me one gift: the loss of memory. I can't remember anything of what happened to bring me here, but whatever dark secrets there are to learn, they are hidden in this journal. Take it. Keep it. Read it if you must. But never let me know. May this be the only secret between us as friends, but swear you will keep it."
The sound of Hisoka's voice had promised so much hope at first, but the fear and horror Tsuzuki now realizes his friend went through are enough to leave hope out in the cold.
Grimly, Tsuzuki takes the journal and places it back inside his bag. Once it is safely tucked away, he reaches up to take hold of Hisoka's hands again, holding that emerald gaze deeply with his own.
"To save you from having to relive what you went through...I promise to do what you've asked. I swear...on everything I hold dear."
Tsuzuki takes in a suffering breath, struggling to hold a smile as he stands, and gently lifts his friend out of that decrepit chair.
"Now...let's go home."
----------
Back at the home Tsuzuki so recently left, it is once again night, with a full moon shining impossibly red in the sky. Wakaba is asleep in her bed, restlessly tossing and turning, unable to find peaceful slumber in the midst of her strange ailment.
Ding. Ding. Ding. The clock chimes, continuing its melody until it has rung 12 times. Midnight. The time when all of God's madmen come out to play and turn the most righteous of men into creatures like themselves.
A wolf howls, not in the distance, but eerily close by, causing Wakaba to stir within her fitful sleep. It howls again, and she rises, not sleepwalking as she had a few nights before, but fully awake, and disturbed by the closeness of that animal's cry.
The window has been left partially open, though Wakaba is certain it had been closed when she first went to bed. Throwing back the sheets, she gets up and tip-toes over to it, quickly latching it closed once reaching it through the shadows. The curtains have also been pulled open, and she tugs at one end, drawing it back into place. When she reaches for the other side, however, she discovers that it is not what it appears to be.
"Kombanwa, Wakaba-chan." booms a liquid smooth voice from within the folds of dark cloth, and suddenly, Wakaba is spun, wrapped within what had appeared to be the other half of her curtain, but what is instead...a black cape.
Wakaba screams, struggling to free herself from this tall stranger's hold, but his arms are like iron, holding her in place as if she is nothing but a doll.
"Do not be frightened." he whispers into her ear. "Though you remember nothing, we have met already."
"TASUKETE!" Wakaba cries, ignoring his words of comfort. "GUSHOSHIN!"
"Your servant is indisposed at the moment. As are all of them, I'm afraid."
"TASUKETE, TSUZUKI!!"
"And your delicious friend is still away." he laughs softly, shattering all her hopes for being rescued. "We are alone, sweet Wakaba-chan. All alone..."
Suddenly, those vice-like arms release, and Wakaba breaks free, rushing instantly for the door. It is locked, laughing in her face as he had laughed, and proving that she is indeed a prisoner. Wakaba spins back around, but the dark stranger has yet to move.
"Your Terazuma-sensei has examined your blood and found it to be rich and healthy." he explains, slowly stepping away from the window to be bathed in the light of the moon. He is dressed all in black, but his skin is silky white, and his hair is like threads of spun silver. Even his eyes are like gems, glinting in the eerie light. "I am happy to say...I share your friend's diagnosis." He grins, licking his lips, and keeps his distance as Wakaba stands rigid, nervously reaching a hand up to her neck - the mark on her neck - as if it burns at the sight of him.
"What are you...?" she breathes, fighting back sobs under her breath. "What do you want from me...?"
The man stands taller, almost seeming to grow another inch through sheer will, and reaches out, freezing her in place with his gaze. "I want your fear." he speaks, his voice like a hiss in the wind. "Your fear, like a current, rushes through your body. Your fear makes your heart pound, your veins ripe and full. Your fear hemorrhages deliciously within you."
Swaying as if caught in a breeze, Wakaba is transfixed by his voice, lost in those haunting eyes, and though her fear remains, she no longer has control enough to listen to it.
"Come to me...Wakaba...and do what you know I desire..." His words flow like a river, truly hypnotic and impossible for her to resist.
Wakaba glides over the floor towards his outstretched hand and pulls her long, blonde hair back, exposing her neck as if to offer it up to his hungry, waiting lips.
The stranger smiles, lowering his mouth to that lovely neck very slowly, as if only to give her a quiet kiss. His lips curl back, however, revealing glistening, white fangs, and he bites into the tender flesh - amazingly gentle - causing her whole body to tense and shiver.
"This is nothing but a dream, Wakaba-chan." he instructs, licking traces of blood from his teeth once he has pulled back, and staring deep into her faded eyes. "You've been sleepwalking again. Poor thing. But do not worry, dear Tsuzuki will keep your secret. When you awake, you will remember nothing but the cry of the wolf...and the crash of the sea..."
He allows his voice to trail off, gazing at the trickle of blood from her reopened wound achingly. Then...in one ravenous motion...he hurls his head down, sinking deep into her throat. Wakaba screams, but all who could help are either too far away, or unable to do anything to save her.
----------
"I AM HERE, MASTER! I AM HERE TO DO YOUR BIDDING!" Watari screams, tugging wildly at his bindings.
The madman is now chained by his wrists as well as his ankles, and can only pull an inch or two away from the wall. After his unsuccessful attack on the good doctor, he was immediately tethered more tightly, for fear of the same - or worse - happening again.
Rushing into the cell, Terazuma skids to a fearful halt before getting too close, and casts a few quick glances over the cell, wondering what possibly could have set the lunatic off.
"What is it this time, Watari-san?"
"I PRAY YOU, MASTER, DO NOT PASS ME BY!" the blonde bellows at the ceiling, as if Terazuma doesn't even exist.
"Who are you talking to?!"
"WHEN YOU DELIVER YOUR GIFTS OF ETERNITY, PLEASE DO NOT PASS ME BY!!" he calls again, and then, in an instant, turns cheerfully to Terazuma, as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened at all. "You're up late."
"Nani...?" the frazzled doctor mumbles back, shaking off his obvious fatigue by running an unsteady hand through dark strands of hair. "Hai, I am, but...I...well...just listen to me a moment -"
"Even though she has yet to accept your hand, you keep a watchful vigil, aching to knock on her door."
"I am doing no such -"
"But we can wait, ne, Hajime-chan? Clever men that we are. We can wait for our sweet riches to fill our cups." Filled with sudden rage, he looks up to the ceiling once more and screams loudly, piercing his voice throughout the night. "DO NOT FORGET ME!" and just as quickly, conveying an uncannily lucid calm, he turns back to Terazuma. "We are the same, Hajime-chan. We both hold a common longing. You await the comfort of her bed, as I await my Master's gifts."
This admission ripples over Terazuma's skin, tying his tongue - and his stomach - in knots. "How dare you speak like that to me!" he cries, once he has regained his composure. "You twist and deceive, but still you are nothing but a freak! Do you hear me?! I will solve you, Watari-san. I *will* unlock your secrets. Now, I demand to know: Who is your Master!?!"
Erupting like an overflowing brook that trickles down the riverbed, Watari giggles happily, sliding down the wall until landing in a heap of chains and ragged clothing. "We are men...at the mercy of angels!" he laughs
"Answer me, Watari!"
"Terazuma-sensei!" GuShoShin suddenly calls from just outside the door, sounding very upset and rushed towards his impending message.
"Not now." Terazuma bites back, keeping his eyes on the infuriating blonde, who is now doubled over in his continued laughter.
"Demo...it's Wakaba-san, sensei. She's -"
But before GuShoShin can finish, Terazuma is already out the door and past him, rushing down the hallway to escape the building and reach his beloved's home.
Peeking inside the room, the fluttering bird catches sight of Watari still crouched on the ground, and shivers as he reaches in to close the door.
Watari smirks, and just before being once again locked away from all the world, he calls out happily, still with hints of laughter in his voice. "The unexpected always happens."
*****A/N*****
Fun, fun, fun! Next comes Professor Abraham Van Helsing (the part I played in high school, only as girl, since I am one, so I was Abigail Van Helsing) who is the owe so yummy TATSUMI-SAN! PLEASE REVIEW!! And thanks for the support so far.
Far from home, Tsuzuki Asato has arrived in Budapest, where a group of kindly nuns have been taking care of his partner, Kurosaki Hisoka, since discovering him at their door. They have put him up in a simple room above their monastery, and as Tsuzuki enters it, he sees that there is only a bed and a single chair for furnishings.
Such meager accommodations are all Hisoka requires, however, for the state he is in is nothing like the man he once was.
Seated in that small chair, the disturbed, young Kurosaki-kun is wearing crisp, white robes, has his head bandaged in white wrapping, and stares forward at nothing, as if in a horrific daze. The sight of him breaks Tsuzuki's overflowing heart, and the brunette rushes to his friend's side, dropping his bags as he attempts an embrace.
"Hisoka...?" Tsuzuki whispers, near tears and pure panic in how the blonde has yet to acknowledge him, even after he had clung to Hisoka's waist. "I came as soon as I could. They say you're in shock, that you've been through something so horrible you...can't even face it long enough to tell anyone what happened."
Kneeling in front of Hisoka now, Tsuzuki takes his friend's hands in his own, hoping to reach him through that meager touch, but the younger man merely continues staring.
"Hisoka...please, look at me." Tsuzuki sobs, no longer able to hide his tears. "Your eyes...they're so dead...as if...there's no life left in you at all. Please...tell me...what happened to you?"
When Hisoka once again fails to offer anything in response, Tsuzuki collapses into his tears, unable to hold his head up as it sinks into Hisoka's lap. As if this heartbreaking truth wasn't already enough to wake the dead, Hisoka actually stirs, lifting a hand to place atop Tsuzuki's head.
Tsuzuki jerks upwards, that comforting hand falling away as he sits back up. It wasn't just his imagination though; Hisoka had indeed moved. Perhaps there is still life in the young man, after all.
"They say you're well enough to travel." Tsuzuki smiles weakly, vainly trying to catch his partner's distant gaze. "And they gave me what they found of your things. There isn't much, but they did find your journal."
Opening the bag beside him, Tsuzuki's attention is drawn away a moment, forcing him to miss Hisoka's next movement. The blonde turns his head, and stares hard at the book Tsuzuki has removed from the bag. Green eyes widen in horror when his all too curious friend moves to open the cover.
"I don't know what to expect, but -"
Slam. Tsuzuki is cut off as Hisoka's hand covers his own and shuts the journal forcefully.
"Hisoka...?"
"Tsuzuki..." the young blonde begins, in an urgent but somber voice, even more dreary than that of the stern man he once was. "As friends, we have sworn to have no secrets between us, but...the madness I have been driven to has offered me one gift: the loss of memory. I can't remember anything of what happened to bring me here, but whatever dark secrets there are to learn, they are hidden in this journal. Take it. Keep it. Read it if you must. But never let me know. May this be the only secret between us as friends, but swear you will keep it."
The sound of Hisoka's voice had promised so much hope at first, but the fear and horror Tsuzuki now realizes his friend went through are enough to leave hope out in the cold.
Grimly, Tsuzuki takes the journal and places it back inside his bag. Once it is safely tucked away, he reaches up to take hold of Hisoka's hands again, holding that emerald gaze deeply with his own.
"To save you from having to relive what you went through...I promise to do what you've asked. I swear...on everything I hold dear."
Tsuzuki takes in a suffering breath, struggling to hold a smile as he stands, and gently lifts his friend out of that decrepit chair.
"Now...let's go home."
----------
Back at the home Tsuzuki so recently left, it is once again night, with a full moon shining impossibly red in the sky. Wakaba is asleep in her bed, restlessly tossing and turning, unable to find peaceful slumber in the midst of her strange ailment.
Ding. Ding. Ding. The clock chimes, continuing its melody until it has rung 12 times. Midnight. The time when all of God's madmen come out to play and turn the most righteous of men into creatures like themselves.
A wolf howls, not in the distance, but eerily close by, causing Wakaba to stir within her fitful sleep. It howls again, and she rises, not sleepwalking as she had a few nights before, but fully awake, and disturbed by the closeness of that animal's cry.
The window has been left partially open, though Wakaba is certain it had been closed when she first went to bed. Throwing back the sheets, she gets up and tip-toes over to it, quickly latching it closed once reaching it through the shadows. The curtains have also been pulled open, and she tugs at one end, drawing it back into place. When she reaches for the other side, however, she discovers that it is not what it appears to be.
"Kombanwa, Wakaba-chan." booms a liquid smooth voice from within the folds of dark cloth, and suddenly, Wakaba is spun, wrapped within what had appeared to be the other half of her curtain, but what is instead...a black cape.
Wakaba screams, struggling to free herself from this tall stranger's hold, but his arms are like iron, holding her in place as if she is nothing but a doll.
"Do not be frightened." he whispers into her ear. "Though you remember nothing, we have met already."
"TASUKETE!" Wakaba cries, ignoring his words of comfort. "GUSHOSHIN!"
"Your servant is indisposed at the moment. As are all of them, I'm afraid."
"TASUKETE, TSUZUKI!!"
"And your delicious friend is still away." he laughs softly, shattering all her hopes for being rescued. "We are alone, sweet Wakaba-chan. All alone..."
Suddenly, those vice-like arms release, and Wakaba breaks free, rushing instantly for the door. It is locked, laughing in her face as he had laughed, and proving that she is indeed a prisoner. Wakaba spins back around, but the dark stranger has yet to move.
"Your Terazuma-sensei has examined your blood and found it to be rich and healthy." he explains, slowly stepping away from the window to be bathed in the light of the moon. He is dressed all in black, but his skin is silky white, and his hair is like threads of spun silver. Even his eyes are like gems, glinting in the eerie light. "I am happy to say...I share your friend's diagnosis." He grins, licking his lips, and keeps his distance as Wakaba stands rigid, nervously reaching a hand up to her neck - the mark on her neck - as if it burns at the sight of him.
"What are you...?" she breathes, fighting back sobs under her breath. "What do you want from me...?"
The man stands taller, almost seeming to grow another inch through sheer will, and reaches out, freezing her in place with his gaze. "I want your fear." he speaks, his voice like a hiss in the wind. "Your fear, like a current, rushes through your body. Your fear makes your heart pound, your veins ripe and full. Your fear hemorrhages deliciously within you."
Swaying as if caught in a breeze, Wakaba is transfixed by his voice, lost in those haunting eyes, and though her fear remains, she no longer has control enough to listen to it.
"Come to me...Wakaba...and do what you know I desire..." His words flow like a river, truly hypnotic and impossible for her to resist.
Wakaba glides over the floor towards his outstretched hand and pulls her long, blonde hair back, exposing her neck as if to offer it up to his hungry, waiting lips.
The stranger smiles, lowering his mouth to that lovely neck very slowly, as if only to give her a quiet kiss. His lips curl back, however, revealing glistening, white fangs, and he bites into the tender flesh - amazingly gentle - causing her whole body to tense and shiver.
"This is nothing but a dream, Wakaba-chan." he instructs, licking traces of blood from his teeth once he has pulled back, and staring deep into her faded eyes. "You've been sleepwalking again. Poor thing. But do not worry, dear Tsuzuki will keep your secret. When you awake, you will remember nothing but the cry of the wolf...and the crash of the sea..."
He allows his voice to trail off, gazing at the trickle of blood from her reopened wound achingly. Then...in one ravenous motion...he hurls his head down, sinking deep into her throat. Wakaba screams, but all who could help are either too far away, or unable to do anything to save her.
----------
"I AM HERE, MASTER! I AM HERE TO DO YOUR BIDDING!" Watari screams, tugging wildly at his bindings.
The madman is now chained by his wrists as well as his ankles, and can only pull an inch or two away from the wall. After his unsuccessful attack on the good doctor, he was immediately tethered more tightly, for fear of the same - or worse - happening again.
Rushing into the cell, Terazuma skids to a fearful halt before getting too close, and casts a few quick glances over the cell, wondering what possibly could have set the lunatic off.
"What is it this time, Watari-san?"
"I PRAY YOU, MASTER, DO NOT PASS ME BY!" the blonde bellows at the ceiling, as if Terazuma doesn't even exist.
"Who are you talking to?!"
"WHEN YOU DELIVER YOUR GIFTS OF ETERNITY, PLEASE DO NOT PASS ME BY!!" he calls again, and then, in an instant, turns cheerfully to Terazuma, as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened at all. "You're up late."
"Nani...?" the frazzled doctor mumbles back, shaking off his obvious fatigue by running an unsteady hand through dark strands of hair. "Hai, I am, but...I...well...just listen to me a moment -"
"Even though she has yet to accept your hand, you keep a watchful vigil, aching to knock on her door."
"I am doing no such -"
"But we can wait, ne, Hajime-chan? Clever men that we are. We can wait for our sweet riches to fill our cups." Filled with sudden rage, he looks up to the ceiling once more and screams loudly, piercing his voice throughout the night. "DO NOT FORGET ME!" and just as quickly, conveying an uncannily lucid calm, he turns back to Terazuma. "We are the same, Hajime-chan. We both hold a common longing. You await the comfort of her bed, as I await my Master's gifts."
This admission ripples over Terazuma's skin, tying his tongue - and his stomach - in knots. "How dare you speak like that to me!" he cries, once he has regained his composure. "You twist and deceive, but still you are nothing but a freak! Do you hear me?! I will solve you, Watari-san. I *will* unlock your secrets. Now, I demand to know: Who is your Master!?!"
Erupting like an overflowing brook that trickles down the riverbed, Watari giggles happily, sliding down the wall until landing in a heap of chains and ragged clothing. "We are men...at the mercy of angels!" he laughs
"Answer me, Watari!"
"Terazuma-sensei!" GuShoShin suddenly calls from just outside the door, sounding very upset and rushed towards his impending message.
"Not now." Terazuma bites back, keeping his eyes on the infuriating blonde, who is now doubled over in his continued laughter.
"Demo...it's Wakaba-san, sensei. She's -"
But before GuShoShin can finish, Terazuma is already out the door and past him, rushing down the hallway to escape the building and reach his beloved's home.
Peeking inside the room, the fluttering bird catches sight of Watari still crouched on the ground, and shivers as he reaches in to close the door.
Watari smirks, and just before being once again locked away from all the world, he calls out happily, still with hints of laughter in his voice. "The unexpected always happens."
*****A/N*****
Fun, fun, fun! Next comes Professor Abraham Van Helsing (the part I played in high school, only as girl, since I am one, so I was Abigail Van Helsing) who is the owe so yummy TATSUMI-SAN! PLEASE REVIEW!! And thanks for the support so far.