Garnet & Amber
XO'MagickMoon'OX
Heartbroken …
Koryu flew over the rooftops of Japan, the land below him blanketed with a pale blue. Next to nighttime, this was his favorite time of day, those hours just before dawn when the night sky is washed with light, turning it a dusty blue. The still-sleeping world is painted with a soft, divine light, and all is peaceful and still. He loved this time.
Soon he neared the Kudo residence. How long had it been? Thirty years? It seemed like an eternity. He hadn't set foot within twenty miles of the Kudo property since leaving those many years ago. He had set out to relieve the pain in his heart … and he'd succeeded.
Sort of.
The pain was no longer insufferable, but bearable, tolerable enough to the point that he was sure he could see Shuichiro and Kohaku together without his heart aching.
And finally he could return to his normal routine of bullying the angel he missed so much.
But as he neared the Kudo residence, something didn't feel right. He shivered, and it wasn't because of the crisp October breeze. Something was wrong. He was sure of it.
He landed softly on the cool, dewy grass, his wings disappearing as he did so. The breeze ruffled his silky raven hair and blew it around his face. He pushed it from in front of his garnet eyes to better survey the area. All was still, just like the rest of the neighborhood.
So why did he still feel like something was terribly wrong?
"Koryu?"
The startled demon turned suddenly upon hearing the familiar voice. Kohaku sat in the shadows on the porch, her arms wrapped tightly around her shivering body. She watched him with amber eyes, sparkling with surprise.
Koryu smirked and folded his arms. "Hey, bubblehead!" he said softly.
Kohaku stood. "What are you doing here? W-Where have you been?"
"I took a little vacation," he responded nonchalantly. "And now that I'm back," he shrugged, "I'm returning to my old routine, which usually involves you."
"I-I haven't seen you for so long!" Kohaku said. "Why were you gone for such a long time?"
"I … I was … enjoying my vacation," Koryu answered, not as smoothly as he'd liked. Changing the subject, he said, "So how're the lovebirds doing … Hisui and Kokuyo?"
"Fine. They don't like to be disturbed when their door is closed," Kohaku said.
"I'll bet." Koryu laughed. But then his expression grew ever so slightly more serious. "And Shuichiro? How's he?"
Kohaku turned her head. "He … He …" she stammered quietly.
Koryu paled. "He didn't die again, did he?"
The other shook her head. "He moved," she said finally.
"'Moved'?" Koryu repeated dumbly. "What do you mean 'he moved'?"
"I mean he got married and moved away!" Kohaku almost shouted.
Koryu was taken aback. "But … But … weren't you two … aren't you … supposed to …?" He was at a loss for words. A thousand questions were buzzing through his head.
Weren't they supposed to be together? Didn't they love each other? Did she really wait a hundred years for him for nothing? How could he do that to her? How did that happen?
Then he saw the tears in the angel's eyes. "Kohaku," the demon breathed.
She stepped forward off of the porch. His breath caught, and his heart began to race. In this light, the blue pre-dawn glow, she looked even more beautiful than he remembered. Her pale hair shimmered like stardust, her amber eyes illuminated and shining with tears. Her skin looked like porcelain, her lips as pink and soft as cherry blossoms. She was slender and lithe, moving with a grace he didn't remember her having before.
Another thing he noticed, with a start, was that it was not yet day …
And she was in her original form.
"Why … Why aren't you small?" he asked, taking a wary step backwards.
"Oh, well," Kohaku averted her gaze. "I requested from Him … one small request … to be able to stay in this form all of the time … to fit in better with the human world … and so that it might be easier for Shuichiro to love me. After all, our relationship would've been difficult if I had been small every night."
'If I had been small every night' … is she implying that … she and Shuichiro …? Nah. Not Kohaku … she's too innocent. "And he gave into your request?" Koryu asked.
The other nodded. "I think He knew that Shuichiro would leave me, so He answered my request out of pity. So merciful is He –"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah … 'forgiving', 'merciful', 'loving', 'caring' … I know, I know." Then, rolling his eyes, the demon muttered, "Too damn nice if you ask me."
"Koryu …" Kohaku stepped forward.
"Heh?" He turned to her and noticed that she was trembling. She had been trembling before, but he had thought she was just shivering from the frosty air.
She stumbled forward, and he caught her. He gasped. "You're …You're so … cold."
She laid her blonde head on his chest, still trembling.
"What the –?" Koryu didn't know what to do. His heart was pounding.
"Koryu," Kohaku whispered, lifting her head to meet his eyes. "Koryu … I missed you." The tears fell down her face. "Why? Why did you leave? I needed you!"
Kohaku gasped as the words tumbled out of her mouth. She regretted blurting them so quickly and bluntly, but she knew that the truth behind them was sincere. As much as she thought she hated him for always teasing her, she had missed him. She had needed him when Shuichiro had broken her heart.
"I … uh …" Koryu wrapped his arms around the angel's cold and shaking body, still at a loss for words.
"I was so alone. I needed you!" Kohaku began to weep, her body wracked with sobs.
"It's okay," Koryu found himself saying. "I … I'm here now." He pulled Kohaku closer to him, enveloping her in his warm embrace. Soon her sobbing quelled to silent tears. Again she laid her head on his chest, breathing in his sweet scent. He smelled like night rain. Koryu buried his face in her soft, golden hair.
Despite the warmth of being held in Koryu's arms, Kohaku was still deathly cold, still shaking uncontrollably. "What's wrong with you, Kohaku?" he whispered. "Are you sick?"
But he knew that angels and demons, medically speaking, couldn't fall ill. It had to be something else, something having an unhealthy effect on her.
Kohaku felt dizzy. She closed her eyes, her world beginning to tip. "Koryu," she whispered.
Her body went limp in his arms. "Kohaku?" He looked down at the angel. She was breathing heavily, erratically. She didn't respond. "Kohaku!"
Koryu rushed her inside. He laid her down on top of her bed and tucked the covers tightly around her. Something was wrong with her.
She needed help.
And soon.
---
"Kokuyo! Hisui!" Koryu pounded on the door of the two's room. "Guys!" He was trembling with fear and anger. He didn't really know why he was angry … maybe angry at himself for not being here for Kohaku … angry at that damned Shuichiro for leaving her …
And angry at Hisui and Kokuyo for not hurrying up and opening the door.
"What is it?" came Hisui's voice.
"Come out here!" Koryu demanded. "NOW!"
He heard the rustling of sheet and robes, the ex-archangel's soft footsteps on the floor as she made her way across the room. Moments later, she opened the door a crack.
"Oh! Koryu!" She opened the door wider. "How nice to see you after so long!"
"Hisui –" Koryu began before Kokuyo interrupted.
"What do you want?" he growled angrily as he appeared at Hisui's side. "Why are you interrupting us so early in the morning?"
"It's … It's Kohaku!" the panicked demon blurted hurriedly. "She's sick!"
Hisui's face grew frightened. Even Kokuyo looked slightly concerned. Hisui said, "What? Where is she?"
"She's in her bed. I … I put her there after she fainted," Koryu explained, pulling Hisui from the doorway. She stumbled forward and followed the demon. Kokuyo sighed and grudgingly went after them.
When they got to Kohaku's room, they found the angel breathing strangely, pale and shivering, her skin cold as ice, yet a fevered sweat dampening her face. Hisui pulled up a chair next to her bed and sat down. She inspected Kohaku's condition, trying to use her natural healing touch to reach out to the angel in her unconsciousness, shatter the darkness in her mind with her light.
But Hisui couldn't do anything for Kohaku except diagnose her condition. She couldn't even wake her up. "It's emotional strain that's causing this," she told the others.
"What the hell does that mean!" Koryu cried a bit exasperatedly.
"She's talking about her broken heart, dumbass," Kokuyo snapped irritably.
Koryu stuck his tongue out at his cousin before turning back to Hisui. The former angel said, "When Shuichiro left her, Kohaku went about her day as if nothing was wrong. She tended to her chores and smiled frequently, but she cried at night when she thought nobody could hear her.
"She's suppressed her pain for too long … and it's finally catching up to her. On top of that, she had no one to heal her broken heart," Hisui continued. "Without venting her anger and pain in the proper way, and with no one to truly console her and heal her heart, it's come to this." She motioned to the weak Kohaku.
"Why? Why did you leave? I needed you!" Kohaku's words echoed in Koryu's mind. He bowed his head, clenching his fists angrily. Then he looked to Hisui. "But you two were here! Couldn't you have done anything to help her?"
"We tried," Kokuyo said. "But we're not the ones who can help her. Ah, hell, we probably made it worse. Her seeing us together and happy just reminded her of how alone she was."
"But will she be okay?" Koryu asked.
Hisui forced a smile. "Oh, she'll probably be fine with a little rest and –"
"Stop sugarcoating it!" Kokuyo interrupted briskly. "You know very well that she could die."
Koryu froze. It seemed as if time were standing still. Then, he burst, "DIE!"
Hisui nodded. "If her condition does not improve, she could very well …"