Tainted White
- Truths Revealed -
By: Li'l Amethyst Angel

Summary:
Omi is not as happy as everyone thinks. Weiss never looks behind the smile, but what happens when his façade starts to crack? Will someone be there to pick up the pieces?

Warnings: OOC (dark Omi), angst, violence, swearing, mentions of self mutilation (cutting), shounen-ai and mentions of drugs.

Omi's POV

"Shut the fuck up!" I growl throwing darts, which become imbedded in the wall as Schuldig quickly moves away. I lunge for him, catching him off guard, and knock him to the floor. I brutally punch him in the face, repeatedly. I see blood start to trickle out of his noise and I manage to split his lip, causing crimson to trail down his chin. The rest of Weiss just stands by and watches in shock. They've never really seen me in hand- to-hand combat. Schuldig seems to recover from the surprise of having me jump him and kicks me off of him. He stands up smirking, once more. He got a reaction out of me, which is exactly what he wanted, but at this particular moment I don't really care that I gave him what he wished. It felt good to beat the crap out of the cocky redhead. There have been few times when Weiss could get close enough to do some damage to him. Schuldig wipes the blood off of his chin with the back of his sleeve, still displaying his maniacal grin.

"Aw, is kitty in a bad mood? I guess I'll take my leave, then. Bu-bye." With that the German disappears in a blur. Weiss doesn't bother to go after him. I collect my darts from the wall and we leave.

The car ride home is silent, questions running through everyone's mind. I can tell they believed Mastermind, after all he did give them proof, showing them my drugs. Ken is riding his bike home. I sigh, looking out the car window at the passing shadows. It's pretty late.

I think back to the encounter with the fiery redhead. I was recently thinking of the drugs, so I know it was on the surface of my mind. I'm not really surprised he knew, but I can't for the life of my figure out how he knew about the cutting. I always keep it buried in my mind on missions, knowing there's a chance Schwarz will show up. I don't want them knowing my deepest, darkest secrets. I always make sure my shields are up strong around it. I'm trained to sense when a telekinetic in sifting through my thoughts. I can always tell when someone is going through my deep thoughts. Why didn't I sense it this time. It doesn't make sense.

When we arrive home I find that Ken has already gotten there. I'm about to dash up to the sanctuary of my room, when Aya stops me, grabbing my arm.

"Is something wrong, Aya-kun?" I look up at him innocently and smile slightly.

"Omi, I think we should talk." Youji says. I don't say anything, waiting for them to start.

"Where did you get the drugs, Omi?" Aya is the one to voice the group's thoughts. I could lie. I could say that some punk at school gave it to me for me to try. I could still save my mask. My thoughts are interrupted by Ken.

"Did your new friend, Aki, give them to you?" He asks softly, almost timidly.

I freeze. How could Ken say that? Aki was everything good and pure. He was all white, not touched by anything. How could anyone ever associate Aki with the darkness that rules my life? I can't take the idiocy of the thought and snap.

"No, my fucking drug dealer gave them to me." I bark dangerously. Well, that shut them up. Everyone in the room seems speechless.

Youji is the first to speak, "Mastermind mentioned something about a dagger. Do you..." He trails off unwilling or unable to complete the question. I know I have lost my cover, my mask has finally shattered.

"Cut? Yup, since I was ten." I say casually, as if stating how long I knew how to ride a bike. I hear Ken take a sharp intake of breath. Youji looks down, his blond tresses covering his face. Even the aloof Aya reacts, his eyes widening. I look around at my shocked and obviously distressed teammates.

I scoff, "Do you really think I was a well-adjusted or happy kid? I was kidnapped, abandoned by my so-called father, and raised as a killer. I was murdering people well you were all still living out happy lives. Do you forget that I am the leader of Weiss? Don't you think there is a reason for that? I've been trained longer than all of you combined. I've killed more people than you can even imagine." I smirk. "All by the time I was eighteen. Being a teen is just so much fun." I finish my little rant and dash to my room before the others have time to even comprehend what I have just said.

Youji's POV

Fuck. I never knew the kid was so messed up. We all knew his past was screwed up, but it never seemed to affect him...besides the nightmares, that is. Now, I wonder if even those were all just an act. Omi did always have an eye for detail. I wouldn't put faking nightmares past his skill. He can be a whole other person, paying attention to every detail of that personality, making it seem so real there is no sign of the true Omi. Maybe I'm giving him too much credit. Maybe the rest of us just didn't look hard enough. Maybe we failed the kid.

Ken's POV

I am his best friend and I never noticed... or at least I thought I was his friend. Whenever I was doubting what we were doing or what I had become, Omi's smile always gave me courage, hope, and reassurance. The smile that did all that for me, was it all fake? My life has been full of lies. If Omi turns out to be another one of those lies I don't know what I'll do.

Has he been hurting all this time? Stupid, stupid, stupid. I should have realized something. I should have been there for him. He never really came to me with any problems. That right there should have made me suspicious, but I never thought twice about it. I always just thought Omi was naturally happy and cheerful. How wrong I was. Do I even know Omi at all?

Aya's POV

Maybe Omi is more of a Takatori than we thought. No, I shouldn't think that. The kid is just messed up. Who can blame him? I haven't been with Weiss long, but I thought that I knew my teammates fairly well. They are all much more open than I am, and Omi always seemed to be the most open out of all three of them. I can't believe that he's even more closed off than myself.

I shouldn't be that surprised. Omi has always been very good at under- cover missions. He seems to be able to play any part perfectly. I guess he was just playing a part around us, too.

Omi's POV

I hear feet thudding up the stairs and fists pounding on my locked door. I'm vaguely aware of voices calling my name and asking me to open the door. I don't pay an heed to the noises outside my door and open my window. A cold gust of wind rushes in, chilling me, even through my mission clothes. I hop out the window and soundlessly make my way down the sloping roof and jump off when it comes to an end. From there I run as fast as I can, never stopping or slowing, to the one place I know I will be safe from all others, the one place I can find comfort.

I arrive at Aki's door and start knocking furiously. I hear a groggy voice call "just a minute" through the door before it opens. I see my angel standing there and, without thinking, fling myself at him. He freezes for a moment, but then ushers me in and shuts the door gently behind me. I don't know what's come over me. He guides me to the couch and we sit down. Aki puts his arms around me, rubbing my back, while asking what's wrong. I look up into worried eyes. I didn't know a tear had leaked out until I feel Aki gently wiping away something warm and wet from my cheek. I try to swallow and feel a lump in my throat. My eyes become increasingly damp. I can't cry. I haven't cried since I joined Kritiker. Assassins like me can't cry; we don't have the need or the right.

"It's okay to cry." Aki cooed.

Unable to hold back any longer, I burry my head in his shoulder and let the hot tears flow. I cry. I cry for real for the first time in years. The tears before were all for show, acting, part of the character I played. These tears are real. Now that I have finally broken down I cry for everything I couldn't before. For my lot innocence, for all the pain I had to endure, for being trained to lack emotions, for never knowing love until now, for my mask being ripped off and crushed.

What feels likes an eternity later, I stop crying. I know I have to go back to the Koneko and face the guys, but I can't. I don't want to. Aki hasn't said anything besides a few comforting words to try to calm me down. I sit comfortably with his arms wrapped around me.

"You know you're going to have to go back eventually. I'm sure they're worried." Aki says softly. I know who he means and I know he is right. They're worried, but to be honest I don't really care.

"I know I have to go back, but that doesn't make it any easier." I haven't told Aki what happened and he doesn't ask, which I am grateful for.

"I know, baby." Aki says, in his gently, caring tone. He rarely calls me 'baby'. Aki only calls me that during very serious moments when he's trying to comfort or reassure me. Even though Aki doesn't know me that well, he knows me better than anyone else.

"Thanks for...this." I say, standing up, reluctantly untangling myself from his warm embrace. Aki smiles in return. I head out the door and slowly make my way back to the Koneko.

To Be Continued

Author's Note: Here is the next chapter after that cliff-hanger I left off on last time. How horrible of me to do that to you, ne? I've become attached to my original character, so I'm almost mad at myself for throwing in the little twist in the next chapter. Some heavy angst up ahead, so be warned. Please remember to keep reviewing!