Writer's Note: Special thankies to Cherry Delight for being full of loving support and energetic emails! ^_^ I love you!
This chapter took a LONG ass time to get out and a lot of it was due to…um…myself. Just a bit bogged down with everything. Apologies to you all!
Hope y'all aren't disappointed with the turn things have taken…
Mibu Saints brought to you by Leila's Joy
"So… anyone that you think is bad?" Sano asked in a flat tone.
"Well…yeah," shrugged Hajime. "Why not?"
"Because it's psychotic!"
The boys were seated at a card table in some grungy apartment. Their case of money was open and several stacks were lying across the table.
There was a knock at the door.
Very quickly, they stuffed the money into hiding and took up their weapons. Aoshi approached the door and swung it open, holding his handgun straight ahead of him.
"Oh, thank God," Megumi breathed. Heedless of the barrel pointed at her forehead, she rushed forward into the arms of her blue-eyed man.
Shocked, he held her with one arm and swept the hallway with his trigger hand. "Goddammit," he cursed, pulling Tokio in by the sleeve. "What are you two doing here?"
Meg lifted her face from the front of his shirt and peered up at him. "We thought you boys might do something stupid after you got out of that jail. Me and Tokio went by your place and when you guys weren't there, we thought we'd try Sano's."
The younger man scratched his scruff uncomfortably. "Actually, this is my girlfriend's place."
"Fucken freeloader," scoffed Hajime.
Tokio blinked in the poor lighting. "From the looks of things, I'd say Megumi was right. What do you need guns for?"
The silence and exchange of looks was long and uneasy.
Sano gestured to the ratty couch. "Um…maybe you ladies should have a seat. I'm having a hard time undertanding this, too."
Sitting between the women, the young fighter watched as the Omitsu Brothers set and straddled chairs in front of them.
"Hajime," Tokio began sternly, "this had better be good."
Her significant other leaned an arm on the backrest and smirked slightly at his brother. "Me and Aoshi have decided it is time to punish the wicked for their transgressions."
"And to do that," Aoshi said, "death is the only option." To emphasize his point, he snapped a fresh clip into his pistol and felt its weight.
Megumi gasped, tears springing in her eyes. "But Aoshi…you can't just go around killing people, even if they are bad men!" A hand flew to cover her mouth in sudden revelation. "Oh my god…you're not going to…to me, are you? I've fornicated!!"
Amused, Aoshi gingerly flexed his fingers before moving to sit at her feet. Meg's hand was lying on her lap and he curled his fingers around her soft palm. "Megumi…you do not think that makes you a bad person, do you?"
"I…suppose not."
Bringing her hand to his lips, he kissed it gently and rubbed the back of her hand against his cheek. "But you're still sexy as sin."
Meg grinned. "Only the best for my little devil."
"Oh, puke!" growled Hajime, "You two should just get a fucken room! Go at it like bunnies like you always do!"
Turning to glare at his brother, Aoshi retaliated darkly, "Just shut up, Hajime!"
Through the tension between the twins, Tokio watched them silently, her hands primly in her lap. "I don't understand…you want to kill people…for good? I think I'm going to be sick."
"No," Saitou answered. "The only thing that's sick is good men going home to their families…they turn on the news…know what they see? Child molesters, murderers…rapists—they're all getting out of prison."
Aoshi's angered voice joined in. "Mafiosos…getting caught with twenty kilos…getting out on bail…same fucking day."
"And you know what everyone's thinking?" Hajime mused.
"Someone should just kill those motherfuckers."
"Kill them all. Admit it, even you've thought about it," smirked Hajime.
There was a long, dragged out silence that followed.
"…you guys should be in every major city…" Sano said at last.
Suddenly standing up, Megumi wrenched her hand from Aoshi's. "No! I won't be a part of this! You all need help!"
Her blue-eyed man stepped in front of her. "Meg, stop."
"I'm in nursing school right now. Does that mean anything to you?" She dodged the hand he tried to place on her shoulder. "God, Aoshi! I can't even believe you'd say something like that! What about…this?" she asked, her hand sliding along the metal cross laying against his chest. "What about your faith?"
"The laws of God are higher than those of man."
Before Meg could react to his words, Tokio's body convulsed violently on the couch next to Sano. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as the muscle spasms caused her form to sag to the floor. Everyone rushed to the woman's side, her breathing was already frantic.
Hajime was about to lift her head to keep it away from the floor and couch edge when Tokio jerked into a sitting position and grabbed the unsuspecting man's turtleneck by the shoulders. An unearthly voice seemed to choke out of her small body, sending shivers through the woman's muscles and making the temperature in the room drop ten degrees.
"Never shall innocent blood be shed…yet the blood…of the wicked shall flow like a river. The Three shall spread…their blackened wings…and be the vengeful, striking hammer of God."
As though with great effort, Tokio's entire body tensed and breath left her as the Voice did. Immediately, she sucked in a great gulp of air as though it were the first time she had breathed in ages, her chest expanding with every gasp. Sweat had beaded on her forehead; her pale lips were cracked against her gray complexion and slowly, her pupils came back. She was shivering when Hajime put his arms around her, still stunned to have his girlfriend whack out on him.
Megumi retrieved a blanket and draped it over her shaken friend.
"Ha.jime. I'm so cold," Tokio managed to rasp. "Keep me safe. Please…"
*
Two Hours Later That Night
"Are you sure your girlfriend won't mind us all being here?" Meg asked.
"Christ," Sano said. "That woman's on every drug known to man."
It was a somber evening as everyone gathered around the table for pizza. Hajime had stayed close by Tokio's side after her episode and the woman was being uncharacteristically quiet. No one had spoken of the incident.
"By the way…" Aoshi wondered. "Where is she?"
Sano let out a breath. "Who the fuck knows? Probably blowing some guy for coke. If only she's blow me, ya know?"
Megumi and Aoshi sat near each other, but did not interact much. It was as though they couldn't stand talking to each other but at the same time, couldn't bear the idea of not being within touching distance, should anything go down.
Meg rolled her eyes at his coarseness. "Oh yuck. You're so disgusting, Sano."
"She's a deep-throater, what can I say?"
"You can shut your fucking mouth in a lady's presence, cockface!" Hajime snarled nastily.
Aoshi watched as the two men continued to squabble. He became increasingly aware of his girlfriend's sluggishness. The half-eaten slice of pizza stopped on its way to her mouth and slipped entirely from her fingers. Her head slumped groggily onto his shoulder and he found himself having a hard time containing the small smile tugging at his lips. It was hard to stay mad at the little vixen.
"DAMMIT," roared Sano, slamming his fists on the table, "STOPE BEING SUCH A—" A deafening shot suddenly rang through the room and blood splattered against the wall in a heavy spray.
Meg jumped at the sound just as Aoshi tackled her to the floor and covered her slight frame with his. Hajime pulled the shell-shocked Tokio beneath the windows and hugged her to him. Sano was busy screaming at the top of his lungs and knocking chairs over.
"HOLY FUCK!! OMIGOD! SHIT! WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED??"
Aoshi looked up from his position on the floor at the blood on the wall. "I can't believe that just happened."
From beneath him, Meg lifted her head to get a look at the tufts of fur still floating to the tiled floor. "…you shot her cat?"
"I didn't shoot anyone!" the fighter denied, shaking his head. "…Is it…is it dead?"
Hajime's nostrils flared, never a good sign. "Is it dead? There's fucken blood all over the wall and you want to know if it's dead?? OF COURSE IT'S FUCKEN DEAD!!! YOU FUCKING SHOT IT!!!"
The woman in his arms stirred at the sound of his heated voice. Her glassy eyes almost seemed to focus as she lifted a hand and brushed them against his lips.
He blew out a frustrated breath. "Christ. You are such a fucking moron."
Megumi thought she was so mad at him…and yet, feeling his big, strong hands softly stroking her hair…
They were hands that were capable of murder, that had already taken life. She found it so hard to believe that he could be so gentle with her…as though he was content to stay like that with her forever.
I would be happy if you stayed with me forever…
Meg squirmed beneath him until she had rolled onto her back to face Aoshi. She could feel their clothes catching and pulling at each other with every inch that she slid against him. Still a little high from the adrenaline rush, Megumi stretched her fingers up his ribcage, enjoying the feel of each ridge along the way. Her lips curved into a sexy smile.
"Mmmm…you know, Oshi-chan," she said, "I'm not mad at you."
Her hair fell in a wild cascade against the floor, all pitch black and gossamer. How he loved her hair. He only shook his head, allowing his bangs to fall and sway over her.
She purred against him. "I had no idea my man was so gallant…"
Aoshi knit his brows in confusion.
"Oh yes…you must be the most gallant man I know!" Cupping his cheeks with her slender hands, Meg scrunched her nose daintily and playfully shook his face. "Quite a brave thing that you did, love."
He was smirking now, his eyes gazing directly into her brown ones. "Brave?"
She was still a little dizzy from the sudden drop in latitudes and she deliberately inhaled to bring their bodies that much closer. "Yes, brave, my valiant soldier!" Unable to bear simply toying with him any longer, Megumi pulled him by the neck and eagerly kissed him. How could he resist kissing her back with fervor? He could not.
"Mmm…you smell so good…" she hummed.
Aoshi broke away after awhile and nuzzled his nose against her ear. "You would look so good in red satin right now…my minx. Think of all the different ways…"
Sano gaped at them. "God! Do I really not exist to you guys?? Holy shit!"
"Try to stay awake while he fucks you this time!" glared Hajime.
Aoshi merely ignored them and went back to tonguing his girlfriend while giving everyone else the finger.
From within the circle of Hajime's arms, Tokio raised her head and seemed to focus on the couple rubbing against each other.
"Eww! Yuck!" her voice boomed out of nowhere. "Were they sex talking in front of us the whole time?? What the fuck?"
Hajime was startled by the woman's sudden moment of clarity. He shifted her body to look at her face. In a matter of hours, her eyes had grown old. They had a haunted look, wide and vacant and no longer innocent. He brushed her cheek with his long fingers.
"Hajime…what's wrong?" her concern wrapped its tendrils around his senses.
But he only slid his hand to the back of her head and rubbed the tender flesh there.
Tokio clasped the front of his shirt in earnest. "Are you okay, Hajime? You're not hurt, are you?"
"Tokio…" he said in a quiet voice, pulling her closer to rest his forehead on hers. "It's my turn to worry about you, now."
"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON??" Sano bellowed. "ARE YOU GUYS ALL TURNING INTO COMPLETE PUSSIES SUDDENLY?? WHAT THE FUCK?" When silence only answered him, he kicked a chair into the table. "Fuck you guys, I'm going to bed!"
*
The Next Morning
Sano padded into the living room, a new pair of khaki slacks on his strong legs with a crisp, white shirt, which he was buttoning up at the moment.
He looked at Megumi and Aoshi asleep on the carpetbag LAZ-E-BOY. Aoshi's chin resting against his chest, his eyes lightly closed and his hair falling forward. Meg was strewn across his lap, her legs thrown over an arm of the chair. Her long hair and head were cradled against his shoulder.
Hm. Glad they were able to keep their clothes on last night, Sano thought bitterly. He turned his attention to the other couple sleeping soundly against the couch. Hajime was sitting on the nappy carpet, his back leaning against the lower part of the couch and his head thrown back against the cushion. The front of Tokio's body was pressed completely against Hajime's side, her head resting in the crook of his shoulder. One hand had curled its fingers around his rosary and lightly caressed the beads.
Sano's eyes were drawn to a very male hand slipped casually into the back pocket of Tokio's jeans. Turning to go, he stubbed his toe on a desk and bit back all the good curses he knew. When he glanced back, he saw that Aoshi and Hajime were watching him with narrow eyes.
"I'm going out," Sano murmured.
Gently, Aoshi lifted Meg and slipped out from underneath her so that he could follow the young fighter out the door.
*
They were walking through the apartment's parking lot, the walls lined with bricks. The sun was beginning to warm up and chase away shadows.
"No…it's not true," Sano said, tightening the tie in his red bandana. "They need me."
Aoshi slipped into his black overcoat. "Think about it. They send you in there and…" he let his voice trail off.
Sano stopped and fixed Aoshi with narrowed eyes. "You don't think they set me up, do you?"
The brother's silence told him what he needed to know.
"No…he wouldn't do that to me! They need me!"
"He?" Aoshi raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Papa Sou! He told me…"
"Sano. You had a fucking six-shooter. You think they didn't know there were nine men in that room?"
"He told me two guys, in and out!"
Aoshi's low, careful voice suddenly rose. "He told you what you needed to know!" He paused to regain his composure. "Listen. He had to of known you were going to get the big guy…maybe one other, but he knew you weren't getting out of there alive."
"I'm the funny man!"
Aoshi only stared at him impassively.
"Goddammit!" Sano kicked the brick wall next to him. "I've been working for that bastard since I was a kid…doing his dirty work…getting him coffee, sandwiches, newspapers…fuck, I even did that backstabbers laundry!"
The young fighter paced frantically. "This was supposed to be my big break! I'm one of them, goddammit!"
"You don't know for sure if they sold you out…but there's a very good chance."
"If I find out that I was double crossed…I'm gonna track that fucker down and he can just suck my pathetic dick! …And I'll even dip it in wasabi so the sick motherfucker can get a taste of home while he's at it!"
Hajime was walking toward them now, his strides long and purposeful. "Did you tell him?" he asked his brother.
"Of course," Aoshi replied.
"Well then, what the fuck?"
Sano looked at him with annoyance. "What?"
Hajime pointed a finger accusingly. "You're going back to the goddamn Sekihoutai, aren't you! I can tell! Stupid sonuvabitch, they want you dead! Are you dense??"
"Hey! I'm just heading to the coffeeshop downtown, that's all!"
Hajime's eyes flashed before he gripped the younger man by the lapels of his shirt. "You stupid fuck, you're going to your goddamn Sekihoutai diner! Is it so hard to believe they don't care about you??"
Sano shook him free. "Fuck it. I'm leaving." Over his shoulder he yelled, "And bury the fucken cat!"
Hajime bellowed at his retreating back, "Fine! Don't come cryin' to us when no one goes to your funeral, ya dumb fuck!" In frustration, he kicked the shit out of the wall. "Fuck!"
*
The girls were awake when the brothers came in. They cleaned up the bloodstains together and Hajime dug a grave in a little patch of dirt next to the parking lot. There, they held a small ceremony for the feline who had not suffered before passing on to the next life. Hajime's eulogy went as follows:
"You were fucking cat…but you died with dignity," before making an offering of cigarette ashes.
*
And God…despite popular belief, welcomed his child into his kingdom.
*
End Notes: *cough* A slightly different track than the movie took. Lol. I kept bursting out in giggling fits when writing, so I hope that it shows.
Lol…I was thinking about that Simpons episode where the minister tells Lisa that Snowball will not go to Heaven because pets aren't allowed. Jerks.
I love how things get all sappy and romantic and then reality hits and it's like, 'Oh yeah…there are other people in the room…"
Anyway. THIS IS MY UPDATE!!! ^_^ Ah…feels so good.
4-16-04