Disclaimer: Not my characters, obviously, hence fanfiction.

Author's Note: This chapter is a flashback, obviously. Chapter Three picks back up on the present. Thanks to Mixie and moimoi-chan for my reviews! Cookies for you all!

A Sort of Abandonment

by Uisge Sgriobhaiche

The circumstances were different that time.

We were not fleeing, no one on our trail- not the target's associates, not the cops. The mission had been more than successful.

Schwartz had no where to be, either. They were merely there to finish us once and for all.

That was fine with us. We were all in top condition, ready for a fight after the surprising simplicity of the mission.

Omi had the underhand against Prodigy, as always, but it did not slow him much. Mastermind was not at his best, giving you quite the advantage, Yohji. Ken and Berserker both equally dangerous, they were matched well.

And Oracle. He and I were both ready to fight to the death.

Y

I took Schuldig down, no problem, really. It was obvious he wasn't in top fighting condition, and I had him unconscious in no time. I would have finished him, but Omi cried out, being brutally beaten by Nagi.

I hurried to his aid. No one was going to beat on my chibi without me having something to say something about it. Nagi was thrown off by me slamming into his side, and Omi hit the ground with a thud, moaning. He got up quick though, trying to ready his weapon. Between the two of us, Nagi would be no problem.

A

Abyssinan had set in. There was no Aya, no Ran, only Abyssinan. Consumed by fury and rage, fighting, craving a kill.

Oracle felt it, too, you could tell. There was nothing, neither of us were aware of anything but each other. The bloodlust was maddening.

We fought, God how we fought.

An intricate dance of death. Nothing in the world except the two of us, our surroundings nonexistent.

He grazed me with a bullet, I cut a deep slice in his side.

He fired again, but I knocked the gun as he hit, slamming my katana against him, not marking him, but knocking the wind out of him. He swayed for a second, roaring in pain, attacking me.

His visions helped him, but my reflexes were equally helpful to me. The fight could last for an eternity.

Y

There was... pain... sudden and sharp... taking breath... blood, all over... my hand... breathing rapid... sharp... hard... as if my lungs... wouldn't work... but it was my stomach... bloodstained hands... but it was... my blood... where had... where had the... bullet come... from?... Schuldig, unconscious... not him... Farfello... engaged in... battle... no guns... not Nagi... Crawford... had to be... Aya... must have... dodged... bullet...

Pain... unlike... anything...

Hard to stay... awake... hard to... fo-

A

It is an odd trait, I suppose, but it is what keeps me alive. I am one body, and my personality has split into many. There's Ran, dormant (maybe even dead), waiting on his sister to wake up. There is Aya, once hellbent on revenge, no other goal in life, now being taught what it is to live by Yohji. And there is Abyssinan. The fighter, the guardian. He holds the walls up, protects me... when we go into battle, he takes over.

Abyssinan may have been focused on Oracle, but I heard Yohji yelp in pain, and I was instantly aware of him. Aware of the fact that I wasn't in control, Abyssinan was. But I could see my Yohji.

I watched, in absolute horror, no way of fighting Abyssinan. I watched, saw Yohji sink to his knees, the pain twisting his face in horror. I knew that the bullet was the one I knocked aside. I had shot Yohji.

I tried to react, but Abyssinan kept his focus on Oracle. Nagi, knocking Omi to the side, slamming something into Yohji's head. I couldn't help him, the craze Abyssinan was in...

"Aya," his lips moved, and I heard the whisper. For all the screams and yells I had not heard, I heard the barely audible whisper.

That was all it took for me to shove forward, knocking past Abyssinan. I slammed into Oracle, my strength all behind it. Oracle went down, his gun flying out of his hands. I ran, as hard as I could, past a bloodied Ken and an equally bloodied Farfello, and I was at Yohji's side.

He lay unconscious.

Nagi was yelling something, Crawford had them retreating, was dragging Farfello away, Schuldig being helped by the boy.

I held Yohji's head in my lap, my hand running through his hair. Ken and Omi fled, on my command. The ambulance was on its way. I would make up a story when the cops questioned me. But for now, I had more urgent business.

"You have to hold on, Yohji... I'm right here, I've got you... it's going to be okay," I was whispering, checking the bandage I had made from my shirt. It was tight around his waist, attempting to stop the blood flow.

The ambulance came, and I held Yohji's hand the entire ride, whispering the promises I swore that I would never make. We were assassins, and there would be no forever. No happily ever after. No growing old together. But I made the promises, begging him to hold on.

He had saved me once, saved me from self destructing... he was the only one I could open up to. He kept me human.

They took him away, bandaged me up, and left me to wait in the waiting room. The police came.

I made up a story. He and I had been at the movies. Yes, together. Yes, officer, both of us men. We must be gay, then, you're right. Hey, it's not the 1900s anymore, homosexuality is becoming more and more acceptable, isn't it. (Bastard, fucking cop, shut up shut up shut up). We were walking back to our apartment, and a man, a mugger, jumped us. I struggled with him, he shot Yohji, hit him in the head while I was lying there trying to get up, ran off. The other pool of blood? (Schuldig, no doubt, he had left quite a pool) It came from where I moved Yohji.

Luckily, they had already run tests, and Yohji and Schuldig apparently had the same blood type.

Birman showed up, checking on me before lying to the nurses. She was Yohji's sister, and she was let in to see him. I wanted to be in there, wanted to be holding Yohji's hand, but I was here. Out in the waiting room, the fucking waiting room!

She came out, her face blank.

"Aya? He..." her voice, cracking.

Nononononononononononono... she held me while I sobbed, uncharacteristic and unstoppable. She drove me home, back to the Koneko. Ken and Omi were waiting.

Ken held me back as I raged, held my fists where I couldn't hit them, kept the katana out of my reach. I retired to my room, sobbing until Abyssinan took hold of us, and I was hollow.

Y

I woke up, not one hundred percent sure of where I was. A hospital, obviously. A woman, and a doctor, speaking in hushed tones.

"What happened? Who are you?" I asked, looking toward the girl.

"You don't remember anything?" She asked, looking fearful.

I shook my head no, and then...

...I woke up, again, still fuzzy, head pounding. The doctor was gone, but the girl was there.

"Yohji!"

"How do you know me? Where is Asuka?"

"Oh, Yohji... you don't remember me? Birman? Your sister?" she asked, her face falling.

"No... I, where's Asuka? We were going into the warehouse, and then, I'm here..."

"There was an accident with Asuka, Yohji. You've been unconscious for a long time. She, she died Yohji."

She filled me in on everything .The drug dealers in the warehouse had been onto us, taken me out, then killed Asuka. There was more to that, but she didn't tell and I didn't ask. She told me that the doctors had predicted that I would wake up a week before, and, in light of the bastards burning down my apartment building, she had taken it upon herself to find me a small house and a room mate, since she was busy and couldn't take care of me like I would need to be cared for. An American, named Kaili Williams, really sweet girl.

I accepted this, trying to understand how I had lost so many years of my life, and my Asuka...

I couldn't understand how my wounds were recent if I had lost years to the coma, but she spoke with the doctor, asking him to explain. He had nodded, explaining that for some reason, my body refused to heal while I was unconscious. Now that I had woken up, the wounds should start healing. It wasn't unheard of, apparently.

I let my sister take me to my new home, I met my roommate, pretended to be happy and thankful, but I was hollow.

To Be Continued

Author's Note: The chapter didn't turn out how I wanted it to, but I figured it would help if you knew why Yohji was missing and having odd dreams of Aya. Leave me reviews and I'll post more!