Disclaimer: I don't own Weiss Kreuz . . . the closest I have ever been is
to owning the dream in which I dreamt I was playing soccer with Ken. I
don't own Tom from Shenmue either, and I'm not particularly sure I'd want
to.
A/N: For those of you who are feeling yaoi deprived, I have added some Aya/Youji. For those of you who don't like that pairing, I'm sorry ::bows:: but please give this chapter a chance. I find that they are a little like Heero/Duo, which makes them so fun to write because I have experience there, but it also makes them a little OOC . . . and, of course, once again, I warn you of more Ken/Omi shounen ai. Of course, if you have gotten this far, I doubt you disapprove ^^
Once again I must thank all my reviewers because you are all so wonderful!! Thank you so much for the inspiration!! ::hugs::
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I pulled the covers farther over my head, creating a new meaning to 'the blob' . . . It is now 'the unrecognizably human blob wrapped in a hotel comforter'.
I wish I could breathe.
"Ken-kun?" Omi's muffled voice drifted through the quilted cover. "Are you SURE you're okay sleeping on the floor?"
"Yeah," I answered, making the circular blob evolve into something more oblong and letting out a positively miserable sigh.
"I mean, it's really fine if we share, I promise I don't take up that much room." Omi tried again.
"No, it's not that," I answered, "I just- I mean I sometimes kick in my sleep, so I think you should sleep there. It's safer. I've slept on the floor before, so I'm really fine."
Wow. That excuse was actually credible . . . and not entirely untrue . . . but it still drives me insane that as much as I want to, I really can't sleep in the same bed as him. I would end up doing something stupid like- like kissing him, o-or putting my arms around him, and he'd obviously push me away and probably never speak to me again. That would seriously be suicide; suicide of the heart. And we're not talking about a clean cut. That would be complete and utter mutilation in pain beyond imagination. That's what it would be like to lose Omi.
"Well, okay, then." I heard him say wistfully, "I'm turning off the light." I didn't answer; merely watched as all light that was able to seep through the insides of the covers vanished with a 'click' from the outside.
It must have been fifteen minutes I lay there, taking off the cover every once and a while to freshen my oxygen supply, which grows terribly scarce under covers after awhile, you know?
I usually go right to sleep, but I can't help thinking about Omi. I suppose that just -looking- wouldn't hurt, right?
I courageously lifted the cover from my eyes and looked around the room that was coated in dark and read like a black and white movie. A streak of gray ran through the room from the window and onto the bed where Omi lay, content in his dreams. He was curled only slightly, but you could see his chest rise and fall. His mouth opened as if he was snoring, but no sound came out. He hugged his pillow closer.
He's so cute. Did I mention that yet? I just feel my heart pound faster, and I feel like someone needs to catch me as I float closer to the ground. I would give anything besides hell on earth to just be able to put my arms around him right now. With Omi sleeping, there is complete peace within my world.
And then there was fuzz.
Yes that's definitely the sound of fuzz. Electronic fuzz . . . the static you get when you're on the receiving end of a cellular that's going out of range. That's really strange. I'm sure Omi and I haven't touched the headsets we brought, so there's no way one of them could be on.
I looked around the room as I heard it again, trying to pinpoint its location.
Could this room be bugged?! No. That's impossible. Only highly skilled infiltrators could break into this big a facility without being caught. I don't even think that Schwarz could have done that. Their tactics are more like . . . destroy and devastate, not study your enemy and strategize. Well, except Schuldig, but a building is different from the human mind.
Where the hell is that coming from?
I got up and headed towards the dresser. It sounded like it was coming from the inside of the drawer. I opened it cautiously. I knew it! A communication device! The room is bugged . . . That complicates things.
I held the small, black electronic device and cringed. It HAS to be our enemy; and that enemy can't be Schwarz. They've found us out already. I'll have to tell Omi, but only after he's woken up and we've left the room, or if I figure out how to disable it. They're listening to my footsteps even at this very moment . . . now how to immobilize it. . . Omi's better at this than I am . . .
I turned the device over, and froze.
Taped to the back where the batteries were held was a small piece of paper, which read, 'property of Youji Kudou' followed by several hearts.
"You~~. . ."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
". . . PERVERT~~!!!" Ken's angry voice boomed through the speaker on the other end before there was a 'beep' and all connection was lost.
It caught both of them by surprise.
"Awww. . . I was expecting that to work for at least one more night." Youji grinned, "Ne, Aya?"
The red-haired man flipped the page on his newspaper, as he was reading in bed, only half-listening to Youji as he had been the entire drive to here. They left shortly after Ken and Omi had left. Aya sighed. This was all Youji's idea. It wasn't that he didn't want Ken and Omi to get together, because he certainly wanted the best for his teammates . . . no, he wanted them to be happy because they were his -friends-. However, he would never have concocted this and actually agreed; had it not been Youji who edged him into it. He knew this was going to happen from the moment Youji declined the mission, but would he have thought of it? Not in a million years.
That's perhaps, Aya mused, why he found Youji so amusing and . . . attractive. The man was everything he wanted to be. Well, with the exception of some things. . .
"I tend to agree with Ken," Aya announced stoically. Youji glared.
"You're cruel," he let the phrase trail off and hang in the air; giving the prospect a moment's thought, and later rejection, as he put away his spying materials that had relied on the sound device. In an afterthought, he turned around to look at Aya, "Hey, but they didn't find the camera on the shower curtain yet! Think we'll get some shower action?"
"And -you're- worse than the fangirls," the silent man half-smiled.
"Ouch, Aya. That's really harsh," Youji joked, but he meant what he said, "I'm just trying to help out a couple friends. How can I do that if I don't know how far they've gone?"
"If what you say is right, then it's only a matter of time before they find out, anyway." Aya raised an eyebrow as Youji said nothing, "Why did we need to come here?"
"Well you never know," Youji experimented, "Ken's too afraid of losing Omi altogether to confess anything, and Omi's way too shy and unsure of his feelings even though he's a terrible flirt. They need us to help them out a little from the shadows. Just because Ken found the device doesn't mean that he knows we're here, in the hotel. For all he knows we're still at home watching the shop . . . listening to what I THOUGHT they would be doing at night. . ." The blond pouted.
". . . but those only have a two-mile radius," Aya pointed to the speaker.
". . . but Ken doesn't know that." Youji smiled.
"He's not that much of an idiot."
"Wanna bet?"
A couple crickets sounded in the background.
"I'm afraid you're mistaken. Ken's far from being an idiot, but he's dense enough sometimes to seem like one," Aya resumed reading.
"Well, that's true, but he still might not make the connection," Youji chucked slightly as he got up. He was done packing up the now useless equipment, but keeping the plug connected to the video camera wiring into the television. He walked back over to the bed and crawled under the covers, where Aya had already become comfortable against the headboard, reading. The red-haired man waited a second before putting his book and his glasses down.
"You know what this means, don't you?" Aya moved in closer, so that his body was almost against the others and their noses were just touching.
"e?" Youji looked to his side, surprised at the expression his boyfriend gave him; he almost backed away, feeling a nosebleed coming on. There are so many answers to that question. They stayed there in a very intimate position for a couple of seconds.
"One of us is going to have to sleep on the floor," Aya actually smiled at Youji's expression. His gullibility was an endless form of entertainment. "Just kidding," Aya said, catching his lips gently as he turned off the light.
~~~~~~~~~~
Pancakes: you know there are many ways to look at them, if you think about it.
I fiddled with my untouched breakfast, bringing a bite into my fork and twirling it before my eyes, second arm connecting the table to my chin. Looking past it I could see Omi eating his own plate of pancakes.
I think. . . that Omi would be a strawberry pancake. He's really sweet and when he blushes he turns ruby red as a strawberry. Come to think of it, I like my pancakes most with strawberries. Omi likes chocolate chip. I guess that's because chocolate is sweet. He told me he likes sweet things . . . But chocolate can be bitter also, if it's dark. Chocolate has so many shades and not everyone likes all of them.
But I think people should give all of chocolate a chance. I mean, I'm sure it doesn't mean to be so . . . varied, and bitter sometimes, it just kind of . . . happened that way. A little bit like me. . .
Come to think of it, strawberries and chocolate taste really good together!! I wonder if Omi thinks so, too. What about Omi with chocolate? Yummm . . . wait!. . . NO! I'm not listening to my perverted mind. Not liiiisteniiiing~~!
Well, speaking of perverts, I can't believe that Youji actually thought that something would happen between me and Omi . . . That I would do something to him! Not that it necessarily would involve chocolate, but we're talking about ME here. Me! Why would I rape my best friend? WHY?! There is no way I would ever do anything like that! Okay, so he figured out the guy I like is Omi and he also set it up so that we would have to go on a vacation together . . . but he didn't have to go planting things around so if I ever did something (Which I WON'T!) that he would be the first to know. I obviously will NOT tell Omi. . . I mean, if I told Omi that, he would wonder why Youji would find any interest in bugging the room. Then, he might ask me and I would probably choke, give him a weak excuse, and he'd mangle the truth out of me. It's not like I can just waltz up to him and say 'Omi, I want you, and Youji thought there would be some action if we shared a room'. I promised myself that I wouldn't get mad at Youji again but after this . . . after this I . . . I mean I can't believe he would. . .
"Uh, Ken-kun?" Omi asked politely, pointing to my fork arm, which was still raised, "Are you going to eat anything?" my eyes turned to dots again and Omi sighed, "you've been acting so strange ever since we got here, and now you're not even eating. What's wrong? You should tell me now before it begins to affect our mission."
I looked at my plate, then to my friend. Okay, Omi is NOT a strawberry pancake.
"Ken-kun!?!" Omi raised his voice, a little annoyed, now. I smirked as a thought came into my head.
Or maybe . . . he IS. . .
"I was just thinking," I answered, smiling, and putting both hands on my chin teasing in direct thought, "You look cute." Omi's cheeks blushed in brilliant red.
Yes, he's definitely strawberry.
Wait? What did I just say? Oh my friggin' God! I just said Omi is cute?!?! Out loud!? TO HIS FACE!?!! Breathe, Ken, breathe. NOOO! Breathing . . . bad. Thor, God of thunder, bring thy wrath upon me now!! . . . . . . . Quick before he says anything~!
"S-Stop kidding around Ken-kun," Omi's smiling blush turned a darker shade.
"heh. heh," I choked, bringing my arm up to rub the back of my head nervously, flashing a concealing grin at the floor and kicking myself mentally, "Yeah, that's me. Sorry about that. Pretty bad joke, huh?"
Damn. I can't even look him in the eyes.
"So s- should we get started on the mission?" Omi asked, returning to his usual self, smiling and ready for work. There's no way I could help but agree.
"That's a good idea," I said weakly, glancing over, almost through Omi to the other side of the room. That's. . .
That's. . . red.
I looked harder.
No, it couldn't be! Could it . . .?
~~~~~~~~~~
"Aya!! You're giving us away!" Youji yelled in a whisper as he pushed Aya's head down among the leaves of the potted plant near the entrance of the lounge; their present hiding spot. "Your hair is just too colorful! It's ruining everything!"
Aya glared at his partner in crime at the mention of his hair as Youji brought the binoculars back to his eyes and ducked beneath the leaves. Positioning the binoculars just so that they would not attract any attention from the side which they were aimed at, Youji lifted a leaf that was blocking his view.
"Ah. There they are. The happy couple," Youji smirked, happy that Ken had stopped looking in their direction, "Both of them were blushing earlier so that's a good sign."
"No. That was a -normal- sign," Aya disagreed, "They always do that when they're alone together."
"Do I detect a sense of humor, Aya?" Youji raised an eyebrow, received a glare, and smiled at the silent one's reaction. His comment was true, of course. Ken and Omi always were blushing at each other. Omi looked as ripe as a tomato almost the entire time Ken was around. Youji and Aya figured that Ken thought Omi had always looked that way, which is why he never realized that. But then again, Ken doesn't realize a lot of things, so you never know. Ken blushed every once and awhile, but Omi was too busy fiddling with his hands or the ends of his sweater to ever notice anything unusual.
Youji, still absorbed in the scene unfolding before him, shoved Aya's binoculars into his hands, telling him that something was up. Aya obliged, sinking to a good spying position and putting the ends to his eyes.
Well, something was wrong, alright. Omi had left, and Ken was presently trying to figure out how exactly to make a napkin into a paper crane. This wasn't good.
"What the hell just happened?" Youji hissed, "Ken blew it. I just know he did, because he's sitting there like an idiot." A few seconds of silence passed, "Aya?! What do we do?!"
"Go home?" Aya suggested calmly and quite seriously.
"No! We've got to get them back together somehow! This whole week will be ruined if we don't do something!" Youji leaned against the plant pot and propped his chin on his knuckles in thought.
"It might be good that they're apart for a little while. It's clear both of them are stressed. Maybe Ken didn't do anything. Maybe Omi just had to leave to do some investigation. Investigation is not done in pairs. There is too much risk for information leaks." Aya suggested. Youji looked at him happily.
"Yeah you're probably right," he got up, brushing dead leaves from the indoor plant out of his hair, "So what do you want to do?"
". . . Ken's still playing with his napkin. Should we. . .?"
"No. He'll get over himself; besides, we're not supposed to be here, so let's go grab some lunch. I think there's a guy selling hot dogs over there," Youji pointed to the corner of the room where a Jamaican guy with dreadlocks kept calling everyone 'Ryo' and asking them if they wanted any hot dogs. (1)
Aya sighed. There's no use arguing with someone who won't listen. Somehow he had a bad feeling about leaving Ken alone, but then again, nothing could really happen in such a public place. So with that logic, he followed Youji away, careful not to stand or let himself be seen until they were far into the safety of the hall.
~~~~~~~~~
Omi said he had to go to the scene of one of the crimes to see if he could gather any information. I offered to go with him, but I suppose it's just as well that he declined. He doesn't want to be near me, so why should I force him to? He told me I should do some research around here, so I guess I should go ask some people if they've seen anything suspicious. I fiddled let go of my napkin as I sat up, defeated.
*Hello Siberian* The voice echoed through my mind and practically smirked as it did so.
What IS that? No, I'm not hearing voices. It's seriously there! That has to be mastermind! But what is he doing in my head?! That's his specialty. Great. First Youji, now this?! Aside from the issue of a tremendous infringement of my personal privacy, I'm pretty sure that this is really not a good thing.
'No,' I answered, irritated. Of course, all things that go around come around. There was tremendous laughter in my mind.
*That's what I like about you* the voice said between mental chuckles, *But I'm afraid I have only come about business*
'Business?' That doesn't sound good.
*Yes; in regards to your little friend, Bombay.*
I became angered at the tone he used when he spoke about Omi. 'What is it?'
*Oh? A bit snappy, are we? I suppose it's just as well. I do propose an honest game, though I don't know if you'll like it very much.* I waited patiently as the demon paused, *You see, I like you, Siberian. However . . . there is a very pesky obstacle in my path.*
This came as a bit of a shock. I had the feeling that mastermind- rather, Schuldig, liked me ever since the club, but I didn't know he was serious. Apparently he is, because he's talking about Omi. He's going to do something to Omi. I need to save him before any more of this is unraveled and Schuldig's knowledge is spread. At all costs I must not let Omi find out my feelings for him.
*Don't think I can't read your thoughts* the voice said cunningly, *so that's what you want. Don't let me stop you. I won't ruin your precious friendship, but I might just have to kill one of you.*
My thoughts were angry, 'we're Weiss, you forget. You'll have to kill all of us in order to get through even one of us'.
*Oh! But I already have that taken care of* he said cunningly, and I could almost see the smirk draw across his face, *as we speak your friends are being confronted as well. I have told them to hold off until I give the mental command.*
'Bastard' my thoughts hissed.
*Tisk. Tisk. You shouldn't foul mouth anyone who could kill your friends with a simple command. Precious little Bombay hasn't even realized that Berserker has been following him all the way to the accident site. When he gets there all I have to do is give the command. Your friend is unarmed, right?*
'Then why don't you kill me?' I asked, ignoring his last question. That was to Omi's advantage. Aya might not always carry his sword, and I might not always have my bugnuks, but Omi always has his darts just as Youji has wire. And damn, he just read my thoughts again, didn't he?
*Thank you very much, Siberian. I think that information will become very useful. In the meantime, why don't you consider this? I will call off all attacks, which have the potential to injure or kill one of your friends, if you agree to go out with me tonight.*
I froze.
The last thing I want to do is hurt Omi, and I'm being given a choice. As much as I would loathe the idea. . . that should not even be taken into account right now. I trust they can take care of themselves, right? What is a team without trust? But if I can save them by just going out for an hour or two. . . with a complete stranger. . . who might take advantage of me. . . I should do that for them, right? It seems like the right thing to do, however it does seem cowardly . . . but it could be argued either way. Wait? Why do I have to listen to this guy?! Why don't I just punch his lights out- oh, right, he's not really here, he's just in my mind. . . plus the fact that I'm unarmed and he probably has a gun or something. This is a really bad time to be caught alone.
I began to walk.
*If you take one more step I withdraw my offer. You're not answering my question* The voice said slyly.
I had already made my decision . . . and kept walking.
*Ah, my friend. I have tried to play fair, but now all rules are off. Love is just the same as war and I'm afraid you have made one fatal mistake. Omi will die.*
I cringed as I kept on walking, the voice growing distant with each step. I trust Omi. Omi will be fine. He's overcome so many obstacles, and berserker's not so bad when you get to know him. . . and I really am scared about Omi. I'm deathly afraid, actually, but it would be silly to accept Schuldig's invitation when the same situation will only arise again, and it would also mean that I do not trust Omi as a member of Weiss.
I do trust him. I would trust him with my life, so why can't I trust him with his own. True, I know something that he does not, but I know him and I know his skills. Schuldig specializes in manipulation. I will not be manipulated into mistrust of my own best friend's skills as an assassin.
It's alright, I'll just keep walking calmly out of the building and go to where Omi is. I'm sure that Aya and Youji will be fine because they're back home with Manx and Persia and the shop. They have all the materials at their fingertips. It's foolish for Schwarz to attack, there. However, in Omi's case . . .
*Good, you're afraid. That's very good indeed. Your fears will only turn against you in the end, you know,* the voice faded into almost nothingness, *In fact, they have from the beginning.*
I had already burst through the hotel doors in half of a run, unable to maintain a calm and reserved pace. Letting the burst of wind wash over me I stumbled into the snow. It isn't far to the place Omi headed. It's not that I'm worried for his life, but I feel that I need to be there for him. There's only one thing to do now . . . just keep running.
~~~~~~~
(1) For all you fans of the video game Shenmue, I present Tom the hot dog guy. This reference is in honor of him.
A/N: I'm so sorry this chapter sucks, but I couldn't figure out how else to weave in this plot . . . And I would really love a review if you have time to write one! They help me so much.
Thank you so much for reading!!
A/N: For those of you who are feeling yaoi deprived, I have added some Aya/Youji. For those of you who don't like that pairing, I'm sorry ::bows:: but please give this chapter a chance. I find that they are a little like Heero/Duo, which makes them so fun to write because I have experience there, but it also makes them a little OOC . . . and, of course, once again, I warn you of more Ken/Omi shounen ai. Of course, if you have gotten this far, I doubt you disapprove ^^
Once again I must thank all my reviewers because you are all so wonderful!! Thank you so much for the inspiration!! ::hugs::
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I pulled the covers farther over my head, creating a new meaning to 'the blob' . . . It is now 'the unrecognizably human blob wrapped in a hotel comforter'.
I wish I could breathe.
"Ken-kun?" Omi's muffled voice drifted through the quilted cover. "Are you SURE you're okay sleeping on the floor?"
"Yeah," I answered, making the circular blob evolve into something more oblong and letting out a positively miserable sigh.
"I mean, it's really fine if we share, I promise I don't take up that much room." Omi tried again.
"No, it's not that," I answered, "I just- I mean I sometimes kick in my sleep, so I think you should sleep there. It's safer. I've slept on the floor before, so I'm really fine."
Wow. That excuse was actually credible . . . and not entirely untrue . . . but it still drives me insane that as much as I want to, I really can't sleep in the same bed as him. I would end up doing something stupid like- like kissing him, o-or putting my arms around him, and he'd obviously push me away and probably never speak to me again. That would seriously be suicide; suicide of the heart. And we're not talking about a clean cut. That would be complete and utter mutilation in pain beyond imagination. That's what it would be like to lose Omi.
"Well, okay, then." I heard him say wistfully, "I'm turning off the light." I didn't answer; merely watched as all light that was able to seep through the insides of the covers vanished with a 'click' from the outside.
It must have been fifteen minutes I lay there, taking off the cover every once and a while to freshen my oxygen supply, which grows terribly scarce under covers after awhile, you know?
I usually go right to sleep, but I can't help thinking about Omi. I suppose that just -looking- wouldn't hurt, right?
I courageously lifted the cover from my eyes and looked around the room that was coated in dark and read like a black and white movie. A streak of gray ran through the room from the window and onto the bed where Omi lay, content in his dreams. He was curled only slightly, but you could see his chest rise and fall. His mouth opened as if he was snoring, but no sound came out. He hugged his pillow closer.
He's so cute. Did I mention that yet? I just feel my heart pound faster, and I feel like someone needs to catch me as I float closer to the ground. I would give anything besides hell on earth to just be able to put my arms around him right now. With Omi sleeping, there is complete peace within my world.
And then there was fuzz.
Yes that's definitely the sound of fuzz. Electronic fuzz . . . the static you get when you're on the receiving end of a cellular that's going out of range. That's really strange. I'm sure Omi and I haven't touched the headsets we brought, so there's no way one of them could be on.
I looked around the room as I heard it again, trying to pinpoint its location.
Could this room be bugged?! No. That's impossible. Only highly skilled infiltrators could break into this big a facility without being caught. I don't even think that Schwarz could have done that. Their tactics are more like . . . destroy and devastate, not study your enemy and strategize. Well, except Schuldig, but a building is different from the human mind.
Where the hell is that coming from?
I got up and headed towards the dresser. It sounded like it was coming from the inside of the drawer. I opened it cautiously. I knew it! A communication device! The room is bugged . . . That complicates things.
I held the small, black electronic device and cringed. It HAS to be our enemy; and that enemy can't be Schwarz. They've found us out already. I'll have to tell Omi, but only after he's woken up and we've left the room, or if I figure out how to disable it. They're listening to my footsteps even at this very moment . . . now how to immobilize it. . . Omi's better at this than I am . . .
I turned the device over, and froze.
Taped to the back where the batteries were held was a small piece of paper, which read, 'property of Youji Kudou' followed by several hearts.
"You~~. . ."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
". . . PERVERT~~!!!" Ken's angry voice boomed through the speaker on the other end before there was a 'beep' and all connection was lost.
It caught both of them by surprise.
"Awww. . . I was expecting that to work for at least one more night." Youji grinned, "Ne, Aya?"
The red-haired man flipped the page on his newspaper, as he was reading in bed, only half-listening to Youji as he had been the entire drive to here. They left shortly after Ken and Omi had left. Aya sighed. This was all Youji's idea. It wasn't that he didn't want Ken and Omi to get together, because he certainly wanted the best for his teammates . . . no, he wanted them to be happy because they were his -friends-. However, he would never have concocted this and actually agreed; had it not been Youji who edged him into it. He knew this was going to happen from the moment Youji declined the mission, but would he have thought of it? Not in a million years.
That's perhaps, Aya mused, why he found Youji so amusing and . . . attractive. The man was everything he wanted to be. Well, with the exception of some things. . .
"I tend to agree with Ken," Aya announced stoically. Youji glared.
"You're cruel," he let the phrase trail off and hang in the air; giving the prospect a moment's thought, and later rejection, as he put away his spying materials that had relied on the sound device. In an afterthought, he turned around to look at Aya, "Hey, but they didn't find the camera on the shower curtain yet! Think we'll get some shower action?"
"And -you're- worse than the fangirls," the silent man half-smiled.
"Ouch, Aya. That's really harsh," Youji joked, but he meant what he said, "I'm just trying to help out a couple friends. How can I do that if I don't know how far they've gone?"
"If what you say is right, then it's only a matter of time before they find out, anyway." Aya raised an eyebrow as Youji said nothing, "Why did we need to come here?"
"Well you never know," Youji experimented, "Ken's too afraid of losing Omi altogether to confess anything, and Omi's way too shy and unsure of his feelings even though he's a terrible flirt. They need us to help them out a little from the shadows. Just because Ken found the device doesn't mean that he knows we're here, in the hotel. For all he knows we're still at home watching the shop . . . listening to what I THOUGHT they would be doing at night. . ." The blond pouted.
". . . but those only have a two-mile radius," Aya pointed to the speaker.
". . . but Ken doesn't know that." Youji smiled.
"He's not that much of an idiot."
"Wanna bet?"
A couple crickets sounded in the background.
"I'm afraid you're mistaken. Ken's far from being an idiot, but he's dense enough sometimes to seem like one," Aya resumed reading.
"Well, that's true, but he still might not make the connection," Youji chucked slightly as he got up. He was done packing up the now useless equipment, but keeping the plug connected to the video camera wiring into the television. He walked back over to the bed and crawled under the covers, where Aya had already become comfortable against the headboard, reading. The red-haired man waited a second before putting his book and his glasses down.
"You know what this means, don't you?" Aya moved in closer, so that his body was almost against the others and their noses were just touching.
"e?" Youji looked to his side, surprised at the expression his boyfriend gave him; he almost backed away, feeling a nosebleed coming on. There are so many answers to that question. They stayed there in a very intimate position for a couple of seconds.
"One of us is going to have to sleep on the floor," Aya actually smiled at Youji's expression. His gullibility was an endless form of entertainment. "Just kidding," Aya said, catching his lips gently as he turned off the light.
~~~~~~~~~~
Pancakes: you know there are many ways to look at them, if you think about it.
I fiddled with my untouched breakfast, bringing a bite into my fork and twirling it before my eyes, second arm connecting the table to my chin. Looking past it I could see Omi eating his own plate of pancakes.
I think. . . that Omi would be a strawberry pancake. He's really sweet and when he blushes he turns ruby red as a strawberry. Come to think of it, I like my pancakes most with strawberries. Omi likes chocolate chip. I guess that's because chocolate is sweet. He told me he likes sweet things . . . But chocolate can be bitter also, if it's dark. Chocolate has so many shades and not everyone likes all of them.
But I think people should give all of chocolate a chance. I mean, I'm sure it doesn't mean to be so . . . varied, and bitter sometimes, it just kind of . . . happened that way. A little bit like me. . .
Come to think of it, strawberries and chocolate taste really good together!! I wonder if Omi thinks so, too. What about Omi with chocolate? Yummm . . . wait!. . . NO! I'm not listening to my perverted mind. Not liiiisteniiiing~~!
Well, speaking of perverts, I can't believe that Youji actually thought that something would happen between me and Omi . . . That I would do something to him! Not that it necessarily would involve chocolate, but we're talking about ME here. Me! Why would I rape my best friend? WHY?! There is no way I would ever do anything like that! Okay, so he figured out the guy I like is Omi and he also set it up so that we would have to go on a vacation together . . . but he didn't have to go planting things around so if I ever did something (Which I WON'T!) that he would be the first to know. I obviously will NOT tell Omi. . . I mean, if I told Omi that, he would wonder why Youji would find any interest in bugging the room. Then, he might ask me and I would probably choke, give him a weak excuse, and he'd mangle the truth out of me. It's not like I can just waltz up to him and say 'Omi, I want you, and Youji thought there would be some action if we shared a room'. I promised myself that I wouldn't get mad at Youji again but after this . . . after this I . . . I mean I can't believe he would. . .
"Uh, Ken-kun?" Omi asked politely, pointing to my fork arm, which was still raised, "Are you going to eat anything?" my eyes turned to dots again and Omi sighed, "you've been acting so strange ever since we got here, and now you're not even eating. What's wrong? You should tell me now before it begins to affect our mission."
I looked at my plate, then to my friend. Okay, Omi is NOT a strawberry pancake.
"Ken-kun!?!" Omi raised his voice, a little annoyed, now. I smirked as a thought came into my head.
Or maybe . . . he IS. . .
"I was just thinking," I answered, smiling, and putting both hands on my chin teasing in direct thought, "You look cute." Omi's cheeks blushed in brilliant red.
Yes, he's definitely strawberry.
Wait? What did I just say? Oh my friggin' God! I just said Omi is cute?!?! Out loud!? TO HIS FACE!?!! Breathe, Ken, breathe. NOOO! Breathing . . . bad. Thor, God of thunder, bring thy wrath upon me now!! . . . . . . . Quick before he says anything~!
"S-Stop kidding around Ken-kun," Omi's smiling blush turned a darker shade.
"heh. heh," I choked, bringing my arm up to rub the back of my head nervously, flashing a concealing grin at the floor and kicking myself mentally, "Yeah, that's me. Sorry about that. Pretty bad joke, huh?"
Damn. I can't even look him in the eyes.
"So s- should we get started on the mission?" Omi asked, returning to his usual self, smiling and ready for work. There's no way I could help but agree.
"That's a good idea," I said weakly, glancing over, almost through Omi to the other side of the room. That's. . .
That's. . . red.
I looked harder.
No, it couldn't be! Could it . . .?
~~~~~~~~~~
"Aya!! You're giving us away!" Youji yelled in a whisper as he pushed Aya's head down among the leaves of the potted plant near the entrance of the lounge; their present hiding spot. "Your hair is just too colorful! It's ruining everything!"
Aya glared at his partner in crime at the mention of his hair as Youji brought the binoculars back to his eyes and ducked beneath the leaves. Positioning the binoculars just so that they would not attract any attention from the side which they were aimed at, Youji lifted a leaf that was blocking his view.
"Ah. There they are. The happy couple," Youji smirked, happy that Ken had stopped looking in their direction, "Both of them were blushing earlier so that's a good sign."
"No. That was a -normal- sign," Aya disagreed, "They always do that when they're alone together."
"Do I detect a sense of humor, Aya?" Youji raised an eyebrow, received a glare, and smiled at the silent one's reaction. His comment was true, of course. Ken and Omi always were blushing at each other. Omi looked as ripe as a tomato almost the entire time Ken was around. Youji and Aya figured that Ken thought Omi had always looked that way, which is why he never realized that. But then again, Ken doesn't realize a lot of things, so you never know. Ken blushed every once and awhile, but Omi was too busy fiddling with his hands or the ends of his sweater to ever notice anything unusual.
Youji, still absorbed in the scene unfolding before him, shoved Aya's binoculars into his hands, telling him that something was up. Aya obliged, sinking to a good spying position and putting the ends to his eyes.
Well, something was wrong, alright. Omi had left, and Ken was presently trying to figure out how exactly to make a napkin into a paper crane. This wasn't good.
"What the hell just happened?" Youji hissed, "Ken blew it. I just know he did, because he's sitting there like an idiot." A few seconds of silence passed, "Aya?! What do we do?!"
"Go home?" Aya suggested calmly and quite seriously.
"No! We've got to get them back together somehow! This whole week will be ruined if we don't do something!" Youji leaned against the plant pot and propped his chin on his knuckles in thought.
"It might be good that they're apart for a little while. It's clear both of them are stressed. Maybe Ken didn't do anything. Maybe Omi just had to leave to do some investigation. Investigation is not done in pairs. There is too much risk for information leaks." Aya suggested. Youji looked at him happily.
"Yeah you're probably right," he got up, brushing dead leaves from the indoor plant out of his hair, "So what do you want to do?"
". . . Ken's still playing with his napkin. Should we. . .?"
"No. He'll get over himself; besides, we're not supposed to be here, so let's go grab some lunch. I think there's a guy selling hot dogs over there," Youji pointed to the corner of the room where a Jamaican guy with dreadlocks kept calling everyone 'Ryo' and asking them if they wanted any hot dogs. (1)
Aya sighed. There's no use arguing with someone who won't listen. Somehow he had a bad feeling about leaving Ken alone, but then again, nothing could really happen in such a public place. So with that logic, he followed Youji away, careful not to stand or let himself be seen until they were far into the safety of the hall.
~~~~~~~~~
Omi said he had to go to the scene of one of the crimes to see if he could gather any information. I offered to go with him, but I suppose it's just as well that he declined. He doesn't want to be near me, so why should I force him to? He told me I should do some research around here, so I guess I should go ask some people if they've seen anything suspicious. I fiddled let go of my napkin as I sat up, defeated.
*Hello Siberian* The voice echoed through my mind and practically smirked as it did so.
What IS that? No, I'm not hearing voices. It's seriously there! That has to be mastermind! But what is he doing in my head?! That's his specialty. Great. First Youji, now this?! Aside from the issue of a tremendous infringement of my personal privacy, I'm pretty sure that this is really not a good thing.
'No,' I answered, irritated. Of course, all things that go around come around. There was tremendous laughter in my mind.
*That's what I like about you* the voice said between mental chuckles, *But I'm afraid I have only come about business*
'Business?' That doesn't sound good.
*Yes; in regards to your little friend, Bombay.*
I became angered at the tone he used when he spoke about Omi. 'What is it?'
*Oh? A bit snappy, are we? I suppose it's just as well. I do propose an honest game, though I don't know if you'll like it very much.* I waited patiently as the demon paused, *You see, I like you, Siberian. However . . . there is a very pesky obstacle in my path.*
This came as a bit of a shock. I had the feeling that mastermind- rather, Schuldig, liked me ever since the club, but I didn't know he was serious. Apparently he is, because he's talking about Omi. He's going to do something to Omi. I need to save him before any more of this is unraveled and Schuldig's knowledge is spread. At all costs I must not let Omi find out my feelings for him.
*Don't think I can't read your thoughts* the voice said cunningly, *so that's what you want. Don't let me stop you. I won't ruin your precious friendship, but I might just have to kill one of you.*
My thoughts were angry, 'we're Weiss, you forget. You'll have to kill all of us in order to get through even one of us'.
*Oh! But I already have that taken care of* he said cunningly, and I could almost see the smirk draw across his face, *as we speak your friends are being confronted as well. I have told them to hold off until I give the mental command.*
'Bastard' my thoughts hissed.
*Tisk. Tisk. You shouldn't foul mouth anyone who could kill your friends with a simple command. Precious little Bombay hasn't even realized that Berserker has been following him all the way to the accident site. When he gets there all I have to do is give the command. Your friend is unarmed, right?*
'Then why don't you kill me?' I asked, ignoring his last question. That was to Omi's advantage. Aya might not always carry his sword, and I might not always have my bugnuks, but Omi always has his darts just as Youji has wire. And damn, he just read my thoughts again, didn't he?
*Thank you very much, Siberian. I think that information will become very useful. In the meantime, why don't you consider this? I will call off all attacks, which have the potential to injure or kill one of your friends, if you agree to go out with me tonight.*
I froze.
The last thing I want to do is hurt Omi, and I'm being given a choice. As much as I would loathe the idea. . . that should not even be taken into account right now. I trust they can take care of themselves, right? What is a team without trust? But if I can save them by just going out for an hour or two. . . with a complete stranger. . . who might take advantage of me. . . I should do that for them, right? It seems like the right thing to do, however it does seem cowardly . . . but it could be argued either way. Wait? Why do I have to listen to this guy?! Why don't I just punch his lights out- oh, right, he's not really here, he's just in my mind. . . plus the fact that I'm unarmed and he probably has a gun or something. This is a really bad time to be caught alone.
I began to walk.
*If you take one more step I withdraw my offer. You're not answering my question* The voice said slyly.
I had already made my decision . . . and kept walking.
*Ah, my friend. I have tried to play fair, but now all rules are off. Love is just the same as war and I'm afraid you have made one fatal mistake. Omi will die.*
I cringed as I kept on walking, the voice growing distant with each step. I trust Omi. Omi will be fine. He's overcome so many obstacles, and berserker's not so bad when you get to know him. . . and I really am scared about Omi. I'm deathly afraid, actually, but it would be silly to accept Schuldig's invitation when the same situation will only arise again, and it would also mean that I do not trust Omi as a member of Weiss.
I do trust him. I would trust him with my life, so why can't I trust him with his own. True, I know something that he does not, but I know him and I know his skills. Schuldig specializes in manipulation. I will not be manipulated into mistrust of my own best friend's skills as an assassin.
It's alright, I'll just keep walking calmly out of the building and go to where Omi is. I'm sure that Aya and Youji will be fine because they're back home with Manx and Persia and the shop. They have all the materials at their fingertips. It's foolish for Schwarz to attack, there. However, in Omi's case . . .
*Good, you're afraid. That's very good indeed. Your fears will only turn against you in the end, you know,* the voice faded into almost nothingness, *In fact, they have from the beginning.*
I had already burst through the hotel doors in half of a run, unable to maintain a calm and reserved pace. Letting the burst of wind wash over me I stumbled into the snow. It isn't far to the place Omi headed. It's not that I'm worried for his life, but I feel that I need to be there for him. There's only one thing to do now . . . just keep running.
~~~~~~~
(1) For all you fans of the video game Shenmue, I present Tom the hot dog guy. This reference is in honor of him.
A/N: I'm so sorry this chapter sucks, but I couldn't figure out how else to weave in this plot . . . And I would really love a review if you have time to write one! They help me so much.
Thank you so much for reading!!