I do not own Chrono Crusade, it belongs to Daisuke Moriyama. The characters are being borrowed without permission for entertainment purposes only. So don't sue me, you won't get much anyhow.
This story takes place before the team leaves for San Francisco. After that it takes a sharp left into my own Alternate Universe. I will be using elements from both the Manga and Anime. Enjoy. C&C is appreciated.
Text Key:
() -- thoughts
'bold'-- sound effects
Speech -- Chrono/Demons in true form
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Black Sabbath
Part Four: Embrace
By: Anime Otaku
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"Love can be anywhere. It comes and goes unexpectedly. If it comes, embrace it. If it goes, let it go. Trying to hold onto something that doesn't exist anymore will only cause pain and hurt. Not only to you, but to those around you."
-Mary Magdalene
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Grand Plaza Hotel, New York, 1924
Gabriel stepped off the elevator and onto the third floor of the extremely high-class, and high-priced, hotel. He walked down the hall, glancing every now and then at the number written on the piece of paper he had in his hand. Finally, he came to the door and checked the paper one more time, just to be sure.
(Room 318. Here we are.)
Stuffing the paper in his pocket, Gabriel knocked on the door and waited. The door opened moments later and whatever greeting Gabriel was going to say got logged in his throat.
Standing before him was a very beautiful, young brunet. She was wearing a VERY skimpy cream silk teddy, leaving practically nothing to the imagination. The Angel's mouth dropped open as the woman leaned against the doorframe, her eyes half-lidded and full of lust.
"Well, hello there," she said, tongue darting out to lick her lips hungrily. "I didn't know we were expecting company."
Gabriel made a choking sound in the back of his throat when the woman reached out and ran a hand down his chest. He could practically feel the lust radiating off of her.
"You know, most people say that 'three's a crowd', but, I think I could make it work."
Gabriel's eyes glazed over and he nearly became a stuttering mess as he was led inside the room by the woman, who shut the door behind them.
"Darling, we have some company," she called out.
There was a chuckle from the bedroom. "You're not harassing the bellboys again, are you?"
"Oh no, I found a real MAN to have some fun with," she said, licking her lips again
The owner of the second voice emerged from the bedroom moments later, dressed in a red silk bathrobe. He grinned when he saw who the guest was.
"Ah, Gabriel, so good to see you again. Come in, sit down. I was just about to eat breakfast."
When he didn't get a response from the stationary Angel, Lucifer knew that as long as his female 'guest' was here, they wouldn't get anything done.
"Okay, my dear, party's over. Me and my friend here have some business to discuss."
The brunet whined. "Aww, but I was hoping to have some more fun."
Lucifer smirked. "We can have fun again another time. Right now, my friend and I have some very important business to discuss."
The woman pouted. "Well, all right."
The woman returned to the bedroom and came back moments later, fully dressed. Lucifer walked her to the door and before she left, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Thanks for the great time. You know where to find me if you want to have some more fun. And bring that friend of yours with you next time. I can have one of my friends show him a good time as well."
Lucifer chuckled. "I'm sure you could."
The woman left and Lucifer shut the door, shaking his head in amusement.
(Humans are so easy to manipulate,) he mused.
Walking over to the stupefied Angel, Lucifer looked into his glazed over eyes. He waved a hand in his face and snapped his fingers a couple of times, getting no response from him. Sighing in annoyance, the ex-Angel grabbed his former friend by the front of his shirt and dragged him over to a nearby table and, not so gently, sat him down at it.
Lucifer seated himself across from Gabriel and grabbed a piece of toast from the breakfast tray that room service had brought up earlier. The toast was halfway to his mouth when Gabriel finally started showing signs of life. His hands clenched into fists, his eyes came into focus and mouth snapped shut, jawbone clenching.
The Devil sighed and mentally started to count down.
(Five... four... three... two... one... Now.)
"Have you no SHAME?"
Lucifer jammed the toast into Gabriel's mouth, effectively stopping the Angel from launching into a sermon-long speech about the sins he had committed.
"No, I don't," he said, casually leaning back in his chair. "And you've obviously forgotten who you're talking to."
Gabriel pulled the toast out of his mouth and practically threw it at the grinning Devil. "I haven't forgotten who I'm talking to."
"Good. Then we can get down to business. I have some information for you that you'll find interesting."
"I would hope so," the Angel said, reaching for a glass of orange juice. "You haven't given me anything in over a month. I was sure that you had decided to forget everything and run away."
"Oh, ye of little faith."
"When it comes to you. Oh, most defiantly."
Lucifer was shocked. "My, my. Is that sarcasm I detect?"
"Will you just shut-up and give me your report," Gabriel growled.
The Devil shrugged. "All right, but you might not want to drink that, I don't exactly have any good news."
Gabriel snorted. "How bad could it be?"
Lucifer looked around the room then leaned in close, as if he was conveying some great secrete. "Something or someone is pulling Crayak's power into this world."
There was a gagging noise then Gabriel spit out the juice in Lucifer's face. "WHAT?"
"I told you I didn't have any good news," the Devil said, calmly wiping his face with a napkin.
"How long has this been going on?"
"Um, about a month."
Veins popped out of the Angel's head. "And why haven't you done anything to neutralize the problem?"
"Well, it's been kinda hard since something -- or, should I say, someone -- is making it hard for us to zero in on its location."
"Crayak." Gabriel leaned back with a sigh, placing a hand over his eyes. "You're right; you didn't have any good news. Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"
"Something similar to this happens all the time."
The Angel looked up. "What do you mean?"
"Believe it or not, this world has thousands of holes that connect to Crayak's power. Let's call them 'vents'. These vents started appearing about fifty-four years ago and are constantly spewing forth Crayak's power into this world at a certain time every day. Most of them have been sealed by the Magdalan Order, but there are still a lot more out there that haven't been found."
"Fifty-four years ago?" Gabriel said. "That's when Pandemonium's head was taken by Aion."
"Correct. If I remember correctly, the largest of these vents is located here in New York City. Central Park if I'm right."
Gabriel looked as if he was about to faint. "Why haven't I ever heard of this before now?"
Lucifer shrugged. "Probably because there all so small -- and got sealed so quickly -- they got overlooked. Also, the power doesn't stay in this world. If there's noting for the power to anchor itself to, it simply disappears back into the vent. You know, like a geyser almost."
"I see. Yes, I suppose that would make sense. You said the Magdalan Order knows of this power. Do they know of its origins?"
"No, they don't. The humans have their own theory on Crayak's power, which they call 'miasma', and where it comes form. Luckily for us, that theory is wrong."
Gabriel nodded. "That does make things a lot easier for us in the long run."
"Too true. But, what I want to know is, who or what could be powerful enough to contain Crayak's power."
"That is the million dollar question," Gabriel said.
"Well, we know it's not a human, they would die after coming into contact with the miasma."
"Could it be one of your demons? Remember, you were able to create them by using some of Crayak's power."
Lucifer sternly shook his head. "No, definitely not. Pandemonium and I made sure that could never happen."
"So now what? Do you have any plans on how to neutralize the host?"
"Do you mean neutralizing the host right now, this very day?" Gabriel nodded. "No, I don't. But..."
The Angel cocked an eyebrow. "But what?"
Lucifer sighed and looked the Angel in the eyes. "It's a dangerous plan. And if it doesn't work, we won't live to regret it."
Gabriel nodded to show that he was listening.
"All right. The only way I see us putting a stop to this problem is to let Crayak possess the host-body, then destroy it the second he does."
"Are you INSANE?" the Angel bellowed. "We can't do that! I can hardly believe you're even suggesting we do this!"
"We don't have much of a choice!" Lucifer shouted back. "As long as Crayak is still trying to possess the host's body, he's going to hide it's presence from us! Hell, I was lucky just to notice the power surge when it first appeared!"
Gabriel put his head in his hands. "There has to be another way. There just has to be!"
"I wish there was," Lucifer said. "But, I don't see any other options left open to us."
"We're going to be taking a very large risk in doing this. If we fail, we won't get a second chance."
"I know," Lucifer said, looking out across Central Park. "None of us will get a second chance at anything."
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Eden, the Sinners' Paradise
Joshua sat on the edge of Eden and hummed to himself as the wind blew around him and ruffled his light blond hair. He always loved to come to here, it made him feel like he was on top of the world. The only drawback was a certain hyperactive, overly-energetic cat-demon named Shader. The moment he, Aion, Fiore and Genai arrived, she had pounced on him, squeezing him so tight that he thought he heard something within him crack. It had taken him a good ten minuets to get Shader off of him before he could get some time to himself.
After the death of Rizelle, Aion had decided to move everything to Eden in order to prevent the Magdalan Order from finding them. They had been snooping around San Francisco and were getting dangerously close to finding their location. The first one to leave had been Shader and all of her equipment. It had taken her a full month just to move it all from the beach house. Aion, himself, Fiore and the last of the Sinners had brought up the rear. The second he stepped through the gate, Shader had pounced, holding him the way she had the first time they had met each other.
(Never thought I'd have to run from Shader again,) he mused. (Even though she saw me almost everyday at the beach house, she grabbed me like I had been gone for years.)
Joshua smiled at the memory of his first encounter with Shader. His humming soon became singing as another memory surfaced. A memory of warm sunny days, late afternoon picnics, and the childish games he would play with the two people he had looked up to, respected and loved the most.
Chrono, and his sister, Rosette.
"None sing so wildly well
As the angel Israfel.
And the giddy stars (so legends tell),
Ceasing their hymns attend the spell
Of his voice, all mute.
"Tottering above
In her highest noon,
The enamored moon
Blushes with love.
"Yes, Heaven is thine; but this
Is a world of sweets and sours;
Our flowers are merely-flowers,
And the shadow of thy perfect bliss
Is the sunshine of ours."
"That was beautiful, Lord Joshua."
The teenage Apostle blinked and looked behind him, a smile coming to his lips. "Hello, Fiore. Listening to me sing again?"
"Yes. I hope you don't mind."
Joshua shook his head. "Not at all, my dear. But I'm rather surprised you don't get tired of that song. It's the only one that I know and I sing it all the time."
"I could never get tired of listening to your voice, Lord Joshua," she confessed.
Joshua felt his cheeks heat up. "Heh. You sure know how to make someone feel appreciated, Fiore."
Fiore noticed the slight pink in Joshua's cheeks and bowed her head. "Forgive me, Lord Joshua, I did not mean to make you feel uncomfortable with my comment."
"There's no need to apologize." Joshua held out his hand to her. "Would you care to join me? I'd like to have some company."
Fiore took his had and sat next to him, her feet dangling off the ledge. The two sat in comfortable silence, watching the clouds pass by and the sun as it started to set, painting the sky orange and purple.
"Tell me, Fiore," Joshua said, breaking the silence, "how long have we known each other?"
"Exactly four years, three months and twelve days," she answered automatically.
Joshua couldn't help but smile. "And in all that time, you've always been beside me. Even during the worst of my fits."
"It is my duty, Lord Joshua."
Joshua frowned. "Your duty," he echoed, his voice cracking slightly. "Is that the only reason you've stayed with me so long? Because it's your duty?"
"No. I have another, more personal, reason." Fiore took one of Joshua's hands in her one and gave in a squeeze. "I stayed because; I wanted to be by your side. Always."
Joshua smiled and squeezed back. "Thank you, Fiore."
Fiore smiled and leaned in close, resting her head on his shoulder. Joshua was a bit taken aback by her sudden forwardness, but smiled none-the-less and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close.
"Fiore," Joshua murmured after a moment of silence.
"Yes, Lord Joshua?"
"When I've helped Aion achieve his goal, and I'm reunited with Rosette again, I want you to meet her."
"Are you sure that is what you want, Lord Joshua?"
Joshua nodded. "It is. You'll like her, Fiore, I'm sure you will. And I'm sure Rosette will love you just as much as I do."
Fiore blushed and bowed her head. "I-If that is what you want..."
Joshua reached out and put a hand under Fiore's chin, tilting it up so he could look into her chocolate-brown eyes. "It is. I would like that very much, Fiore. Very much indeed."
Fiore drew in a breath, her blush darkening. There was something different in Joshua's eyes. Something she had never seen before. Something that was directed towards her. Fiore felt her heart speed up as Joshua leaned in close, his eyes drifting shut. Her own eyes closed when his lips met hers, softly at first, then increasing in pressure when she didn't try and pull away.
Fiore softly moaned at the increase of pressure and the fire that erupted inside of her. She wanted to whine in protest when Joshua abruptly pulled away, his wide, ocean-blue eyes staring into her own half-lidded, chocolate-brown ones.
"Fi-Fiore, I'm sorry! I don't... I don't know what came over me! I didn't mean to force myself--"
Joshua ceased his babbling when Fiore pressed a finger to his lips, effectively silencing him.
"Please do not apologize, Lord Joshua. There is no reason to. This is something you wanted, was it not?"
Joshua's face turned magenta. "Yes, it was. But I still shouldn't have--"
"Then it's all right," she said, her calm voice cutting off his own panic-filled one. "You cannot force yourself onto someone who wanted the same thing."
Joshua blinked. "You wanted it as well?"
Fiore nodded. "And, if it pleases you, I would like to continue."
Smiling, the Apostle reached out and put a hand behind Fiore's neck, pulling her close until their noses were touching. "That would make me very happy," he whispered before sealing his lips over hers.
Fiore moaned again and returned Joshua's kiss with equal passion, the fire erupting within her once again. The two continued their embrace as the sky turned black and the stars started to come out one by one. The havens seemed to smile down on the two as they sought comfort in each other, temporary filling the hole in both their hearts.
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Aion frowned as Joshua and Fiore shared their heated kiss. As he watched the two, he remembered Viede once commenting that 'people who are missing something were drawn to each other'. Now more than ever, he believed that. But, for some reason, Fiore and Joshua's closeness was bothering him. Why was that?
"They really are cute together, aren't they?"
"Gah!" Aion recoiled in surprise and gripped is chest. "Damn it, Shader, why do you have to be so sneaky?"
The cat-demon shrugged. "Sorry, it's my nature. Nothing I can do about that."
Aion returned his gaze to the two humans as they stood and, hand in hand, walked down the steps towards the living areas of Eden. Aion frowned again.
"Stop it!" Shader suddenly snapped, jerking Aion's attention back to her. "Don't you dare look at them like that!"
The Sinner raised a pale eyebrow. "Like what?"
"You KNOW what I'm talking about," Shader nearly screamed, her voice thick with emotion. "You looked at Chrono the same way when he started getting close to Mary! Remember?"
Aion flinched and looked away, folding his arms over his chest. "Of course I remember. How could I forget Chrono's betrayal?"
Shader's mouth dropped open. "Betrayal? How could you call what he did 'betrayal'?"
"He refused to follow a direct order that I gave him. He strayed from the path--"
"He did no such thing!" Shader finally shouted, tears welling in her eyes. "He was only searching for another one! One that wouldn't put Mary's life in danger. And for whatever reason, you couldn't see -- or didn't want to see -- that same option! And because of your narrow-mindedness, Mary was killed and Chrono is slowly dying! Don't you feel any kind of regret for it at all? He's your brother, Aion! Your brother!"
"I know that, Shader!" Aion raged, whirling on the cat-demon, his violet eyes flashing. "I know that Chrono is my brother! I know that better than anyone! We were hatched from the SAME EGG! But he questioned my orders and I couldn't have my sword going against me. I did what I did for the sake of our dream." Aion took a deep breath and leaned against the doorway to the observatory. "I have no regrets."
Shader took a few deep breaths, trying her best to calm down. "I'm sorry, Aion," she said, cat ears drooping. "I didn't mean to yell at you like that. It's just that, I've had this on my chest for fifty-four years and..."
The cat-demon drifted off when Aion placed a hand on her head and scratched behind on of her ears. "It's all right. I guess you have every reason in the world to be mad at me. But what's done is done and it can't be undone. All we can do now is move forward. Right?"
Shader sniffed one last time and wiped the wetness from her eyes, nodding in agreement.
"I'm glad you agree with me." Pushing himself off the wall, Aion walked down the hall halfway before he stopped. "Listen, Shader. Just because I don't have any regrets about the decisions I made, doesn't mean I enjoyed making them. Chrono may have been one of us but he's not anymore. He's our enemy now. And the sooner you accept this truth, the easier it will make things."
Shader waited until she could no longer hear Aion's footsteps before she slid down the wall and drew her legs close to her chest, resting her head on her knees. After a few moments, she lifted her face to the starry sky, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks.
"Sorry, Aion," she whispered. "But, I can't think of Chrono as an enemy. I just can't. If you're going to kill him, you'll have to do it without my help."
Rising to her feet, Shader wiped the tears from her eyes and headed for her room, intending on getting a full nights worth of sleep for once.
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Magdalan Order Headquarters, New York Branch
"Chrono, It's me. I'm coming in."
The fully grown demon didn't even so much a flinch at Azmaria's whispered warning. Even as the young Apostle quietly entered his room and sat down next to him on his bed, he didn't so much a bat an eyelash. He just continued to stare blankly at the wall, showing no signs of life at all.
"Would you like me to fix your hair?" she asked, trying to get some kind of reaction out of him. "I know I'm not as good as Rosette, but it's better than just letting it fall completely out."
Again, she was answered with silence. Determined not to let that stop her, Azmaria moved to her knees and positioned herself behind Chrono, untying his ribbon. Although not as skilled as Rosette was at fixing his hair, she still managed to make it look decent.
Moving to sit next to him again, Azmaria looked up at Chrono's face and sighed dejectedly. It was hopeless. Ever since the attack on the convent by Rizelle a month ago, a gap had opened up between Chrono and Rosette that put the Grand Canyon to shame. While Rosette had immersed herself in her work to hide her pain, Chrono had shut himself off from everyone. He never left the Elder's hut anymore and his once fiery-maroon eyes were now dull and lifeless. And Azmaria was afraid that if this kept up, Chrono would become nothing more than an empty shell of his former self.
"How's Rosette doing?" Chrono suddenly asked, his voice scratchy and dry from almost a month without use.
Azmaria blinked in astonishment. This had been the first time the demon had spoken to her ever since his self-induced exile from everyone. Quickly regaining her composure, the Apostle hurried to think of an answer before Chrono shut himself off again.
"To be honest," she said, lowering her eyes to her lap, "I don't really know. On the outside, she still acts like Rosette around everyone. But... other times, when she's alone or thinks no one is looking, I can see a great amount of pain in her eyes. I've even caught her crying in her sleep a few times."
"I... see," was all he said.
Azmaria mentally slapped herself for letting that last part slip. Chrono was going through a hard enough time as it was, he didn't need to hear about Rosette's nightly crying sessions. How she cried uncontrollably, his name escaping in between sobs and the pocket watch clutched tightly in her hands. The Apostle was jousted from her thoughts when the mattress suddenly shifted.
"Chrono? Where are you going?" she asked the demon as he walked towards the door.
The Sinner didn't say anything. Instead he quickly left the room without another word.
Azmaria sat rooted to her spot, barely believing what had just taken place. Chrono had talked -- he had finally talked! And he had left his room. She didn't know where he was going, but she hoped it was to find a way to patch things up between himself and Rosette.
Smiling to herself, Azmaria hopped of the bed and started to leave the room when something caught her eye. It was Chrono's jacket. In his hast leave, he had forgotten to take it with him. Grabbing the piece of clothing off the floor, she quickly left the Elder's hut and scanned the grounds for Chrono. She caught sight of his violet hair before it disappeared into the main building.
Tucking the jacket under her arm, Azmaria took off towards the building, hoping to catch up to Chrono before he got too far.
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"Come in," Sister Kate called, glancing up from her paperwork. "Chrono? What are you doing here?" she asked, once the demon walked in and came to stand in front of her desk.
"I need to talk with you, Sister Kate. It's very important," he said, his voice still slightly scratchy.
"Of course," she said, putting her pen down. "How can I help you?"
"I think... I think it's time that I left the Order."
Sister Kate sighed. "I thought this was going to happen. Am I safe to say that this decision was brought on due to the fact that the Contract between you and Rosette is broken?"
Chrono was shocked. "You knew?" Sister Kate nodded. "How long?"
"Only for a couple of weeks. I had a suspicion that something was wrong when Rosette started going on missions without you. But it wasn't until I saw that the pocket watch she always has with her was dead that my suspicions were confirmed."
Chrono shook his head. "All this time and you said nothing. Why?"
Sister Kate thought for a few moments before saying, "I suppose it was because I wanted to see if the two of you could fix things by yourselves."
Chrono chuckled dryly. "I guess things didn't turn out the way you had hoped?"
"No, they did not," she said, sadly. "Tell me, Chrono, what will you do when you leave here? Where will you go?"
"I still want to help Rosette find Joshua and stop Aion, but... I can't do it from here anymore. My presence here is doing nothing but causing Rosette pain. So, I'm going to San Francisco as originally planned and see if I can find any clues on Joshua and Aion's whereabouts."
"Is there nothing I can do to make you change your mind?"
(Not unless you can change the past,) he thought.
Aloud he said, "No, there is not. I've made my decision."
Sister Kate sighed. "I'm sorry to hear that, Chrono, I really am. I'll arrange for some transportation for you so you get to San Francisco. I will also get into contact with Father Gilliam; he's the head of the Magdalan Order's San Francisco branch. I'll let him know of the situation at hand and that he should be expecting you soon. I'm sure he'll lend you some help and a place to stay."
"Thank you, Sister Kate. I guess this is goodbye."
"Chrono, wait," the Sister said, stopping the demon at her office doors.
Chrono turned slightly, looking at her over his shoulder. "Yes?"
"I'm going to arrange for you to leave later on tomorrow evening so you'll have time to say goodbye to everyone here. Is that all right?"
Chrono frowned slightly. "I... I don't know if that's such a good idea, Sister Kate. I really need to leave here as soon as possible--"
"Please, Chrono," she said, rather forcefully.
Chrono was silent for a moment before he gave in. "All right, I guess I can do that."
Sister Kate smiled. "Thank you, Chrono. I'm sorry it has to be this way."
The demon nodded. "Yeah, so am I."
Chrono pushed the door open but paused when he felt it catch on something. Glancing down, he saw his red jacket caught under the door.
(How did this get here?) he wondered, picking it off the floor.
Looking down the hall, his eyes widened when he caught a flash of lavender hair as it disappeared around the corner.
"Azmaria..."
-----------------------------
Azmaria ran from Sister Kate's office, not believing what she had just overheard. Chrono was leaving. LEAVING! Without anything being resolved between him and Rosette. How could he do that? It wasn't right! Not right at all! She finally reached the courtyard and collapsed against the stone well, face buried in her hands as she let it all out.
She wasn't sure how long she stayed there, crying her eyes out as the sun set and the stars winked into existence. The young Apostle's throat started to become sore and her eyes began to sting from so much crying. But, no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't stop.
"Azmaria?"
The girl's head snapped up and around, bringing her face to face with Chrono. Without another word, she launched herself at him, arms wrapping around his torso and face buried into his stomach. A whole new round of tears fell from her eyes and began to soak through his shirt.
"Don'tgodon'tgodon'tgodon'tgodon'tgoDON'TGO!" she wailed, over and over again, her grip on him tightening.
Chrono sighed and kneeled down so he was eye level with her. "I'm sorry, Azmaria," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her. "But, I have to leave. I'm not doing myself or Rosette any good by staying."
"So that's it then?" she hiccupped. "You're just going to give up? Just run away without a fight? Without reconciling with Rosette?"
"It's not that easy," he said, pulling back to look in her eyes, which were red and puffy from crying. "Believe me, Azmaria, I want to reconcile with Rosette, I really do. But, I can never find the chance to. She's always out on missions or making sure to stay as far away from me as possible. And I'm pretty sure my alienation from everyone didn't help matters any."
Azmaria suddenly pulled back, blinking, an idea forming in her head. "Chrono, if I could get you and Rosette alone together, would you try and talk with her?"
"Azmaria, I told you, it's not that easy--"
"Well, would you?" she pressed, cutting him off.
He nodded. "Yes. Yes, I would."
The young girl smiled then ran off, shouting, "Don't move, I'll be right back!"
Chrono was bewildered. "Azmaria, wait! Where're you going?"
He never got an answer back and he didn't need one. He knew exactly where she was going. Sighing, the demon shrugged into his jacket and sat down on the well, dreading what Azmaria had in mind.
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It didn't take Azmaria long to locate Rosette. The young exorcist-in-training found her friend and mentor at the indoor shooting range. She stood at the doorway watching Rosette as she shot the artificial poltergeists that the Elder's machine created.
"Oh, yeah!" she yelled once the timer stopped. "Perfect score once again! I'm the bee's knees all right!"
"Um... Rosette?"
"Huh? Oh, hey, Azmaria. Come on in," the blond exorcist said, loading another magazine into her Colt. "Kinda late to be up, isn't it?"
"Ah, yeah. I, uh, couldn't sleep," she lied.
Rosette looked at Azmaria for a moment then shrugged, racking a round into the chamber. "Want to try?" she asked, holding the .45 out to the Apostle.
Azmaria looked at the offered gun. "Huh? Are you sure it's okay?"
"Yeah, it's Jake. I should warn you though; it's got a lot more of a kick than your .32 does. Still want to give it a shot?"
"Sure," Azmaria said, taking the gun. "It's a little heavy."
"Not surprising. But I was shooting fully loaded revolvers by the time I was thirteen, so this will be good practice for you." Rosette winked. "Just don't tell anyone. Technically, the only one who can authorize an apprentice to shoot a gun this size is an instructor. But, I don't think anyone will mind right now."
"Okay."
Rosette smiled. "Alright then, step up to the firing line."
Azmaria did as she was told and waited.
"Remember the way I taught you how to aim?" Rosette asked. The Apostle nodded. "Good. Now take aim."
Azmaria brought the pistol up, hands shaking slightly due to its weight. Closing one eye, she lined up the sights then slowly reopened her eye, making sure to keep the sights lined up.
"Okay, ready," she said.
"All right. I'm gonna control the targets from here. Don't worry about a time limit; just concentrate on hitting the target."
"Okay."
Rosette turned to the control panel and twisted a few knobs. An artificial poltergeist appeared in front of Azmaria and she sighted in. Keeping her breathing calm and steady, she aimed for the targets center and squeezed the trigger. The recoil took the small girl by surprise and she fell backwards with a yell and landed on her rear.
"Owwww," she groaned, rubbing her posterior. "That hurt."
"I told you to watch out for the kick," Rosette said, helping Azmaria to her feet. "But, on the brighter side, you hit the target. Good shot."
"Thanks," Azmaria said, handing over the Colt.
Rosette took the offered gun and walked back to the control panel. Checking the remaining bullets, she set the controls and waited. Seven targets popped and she rapidly shot off the remaining Sacreds with deadly precision.
Azmaria began clapping. "That was great, Rosette."
Rosette chuckled and put a hand behind her head, embarrassed. "Thanks, Azmaria. But it really wasn't anything special."
"Don't say that. Your marksmanship skills are some of the best I've ever seen. I just hope I'll be that good one day."
"You will," Rosette said, breaking down her gun for cleaning. "Stick with me and I'll make you the second best markswoman in the whole Order."
Azmaria smiled and walked up to stand next to the nun as she cleaned her Colt. While watching Rosette work, Azmaria tried to think of a way to bring up Chrono. She knew that there was no way Rosette would just come out and talk about him. If she was going to pull this off, she would have to be sneaky about it. And she knew just the way.
"Um, Rosette?"
"Hm?"
"I was wondering if I could talk to you about something."
Rosette paused in her cleaning and turned to look at the Apostle. "Well, sure. You know you can talk to me about anything, Azmaria."
"Really," Azmaria sighed. "I'm glad. The truth is that I'm rather nervous and embarrassed to talk about it."
Rosette raised an eyebrow at the way that Azmaria was acting. Her face was flushed pink and she kept fiddling with the hem of her exorcist uniform, keeping it pressed close to her--!
The blond-hired nun smiled, finally understanding what was wrong with her friend. "There's no reason to be embarrassed, Azmaria. All girls go through this. And I'll talk to you about it all you want."
"Really? You promise? You'll talk to me about it all I want?"
Rosette smiled and patted the girl on the head. "Of course I promise. I'll talk to you about it. All night if I have to."
Azmaria smiled and let out an inward cheer. (Yes, it worked! I'm sorry for having to trick you, Rosette. Please, forgive me.)
"So, where would you like to start first?"
Azmaria took a breath to calm herself then looked into Rosette's eyes. "I want to talk to you about Chrono."
-----------------------------
Outside at the stone well, Chrono sneezed loudly.
"Gah," he sighed, running a finger under his nose. "Someone must be talking about me."
-----------------------------
Rosette's mouth dropped open and she nearly dropped the gun parts she still had in her hand.
"W-what? Where did that come from? And why would you want to talk about HIM? I thought you wanted to talk about your... your..."
Azmaria slowly shook her head. "I never said I wanted to talk about that, Rosette. You just assumed it."
Rosette turned away from Azmaria, going back to work on her gun. "Forget it. I'll talk about anything you want, but I refuse to talk about him."
Azmaria glared at Rosette's back. "You promised." The nun paused. "And you've always told me that when a promise is made, it can never be broken. You weren't lying to me when you said that, were you?"
There was a tense silence between them before Rosette sighed and put her gun down. "All right, Azmaria, you win. Now, why do you want to talk about the worthless demon anyway?"
The Apostle flinched at the iciness in Rosette's voice when she called Chrono a 'worthless demon'. But she steadied herself, knowing that if she wanted to help these two reconcile with each other, she was going to have to take what Rosette said about Chrono with a grain of salt.
"Chrono's leaving the Order tomorrow, Rosette. And, from the way things sound, he's never coming back."
"Really?" Rosette said softly. "Is that right?"
Azmaria nodded. "Yes."
Rosette snorted and focused on her gun again. "Well good for him. I hope he never comes back just like you said."
Azmaria's hands went to her mouth. "You don't really mean that, do you, Rosette?"
The exorcist nodded. "Every word of it. It took that poor sap long enough to realize that I didn't want him here. And with him gone, that's one less problem I have to worry about."
Azmaria couldn't believe what she was hearing! This wasn't going the way she had planned at all! Rosette honest-to-God sounded like she didn't care what happened to Chrono at all. Biting the inside of her cheek to keep herself from crying, the lavender-haired girl walked over to stand beside Rosette and looked up at her face.
The girl immediately let loose a mental sight of relief. Rosette was lying. Not only to her, but to herself as well. And it was showing plain as day on her face. Her bottom lip was trembling slightly and she had tears forming at the corners of her eyes. Azmaria also noticed that her hands were shacking so bad that she couldn't continue with her cleaning.
She was crumbling. All that was needed was one final push and Azmaria was sure that she could get Rosette to stop lying to herself and make up with Chrono. Looking away from the blonds' face, she saw what she could use for that final push. She couldn't really say she was proud of what she was about to do, but this was for them, for the only family she had left.
"Rosette, can I ask you something?" she asked, softly.
"Sure," Rosette said, her voice shaking slightly.
"Do you really hate Chrono as much as you say you do?
"O-Of course I do," the blond exorcist said, her voice starting to waiver at her own obvious lie. "I said that I did, didn't I?"
"Then tell me this," Azmaria said, reaching out to touch Rosette's arm, causing the exorcist to face her.
(Please let this work,) she silently prayed.
"If you hate Chrono that much, and don't care what happens to him at all," she said, tapping a finger against the glass face of the pocket watch. "Then why are you still wearing this?"
Rosette's eyes widened, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to find an excuse for wearing the watch, but having none. She felt a tear slide down her face and jammed her eyes shut.
(No! I won't cry over him anymore! I won't! Not after what he did. I can't... I can't...)
Rosette opened her eyes when she felt Azmaria's hand on her cheek.
"It's all right, Rosette," the crimson-eyed girl said. "You don't have to hold it in anymore. Let it out."
And she did. Falling to her knees, Rosette pulled Azmaria into a hug and cried into her shoulder. She let it all out. All the lies she had told herself. All the pain she had kept locked up inside. She let it all go.
"You really do care about Chrono, don't you?" Azmaria whispered.
Rosette nodded.
"And you want him to stay, don't you?"
Again she nodded.
"Because you love him. Right?"
"Yes," Rosette hiccupped. "Yes, I do love him. I don't want him to leave."
Azmaria pulled back and wiped away Rosette's tears, smiling. "Then go and tell him."
-----------------------------
Rosette found Chrono right where Azmaria said he would be, at the well where she had left him. The demon was leaning back on his hands and had his gaze fixed to the stars, a look of deep concentration on his face. The blonds' hands started to itch when she saw his braid and the condition it was in. She had to stomp down on the irresistible urge to walk over there and start braiding his hair again.
But that would have to wait for later. First, she was going to have to apologize to Chrono. To forgive him for what he did and try and convince him to stay with her.
(Easer said than done,) she thought sourly.
Rosette pushed the depressing thoughts from her head. She had to stay focused. This was her one and only chance to fix things between herself and Chrono and she was not going to waist it. But first she was going to have to figure out what to say to him. And that was going to be hardest part.
As Rosette struggled to find something to say to Chrono, the demon suddenly straitened up and turned around to face her. Ocean-blue eyes met fiery-maroon for the first in over a month. Eyes that were wide with disbelief at what they were seeing.
"R-Rosette?" Chrono whispered.
"Hi," she said, lamely.
Rosette felt her hands start to itch again and she ground her teeth together, trying to hold onto the last little bit of willpower she had left.
"Can... can I sit down?"
"Sure, if you want," he said, moving over to give her room.
Rosette plopped down next to Chrono. The two sat in silence for what seemed like hours. Neither could find a thing to say to the other one, too big of a rift had opened between them. Chrono kept his head bowed and tried his best not to make eye contact with the nun.
Rosette, on the other hand, couldn't stop looking at him. Her eyes kept drifting back and forth between his face and messy braid. The itching in her hands was becoming unbearable. Finally she couldn't take anymore. Pulling off her gloves, she grabbed Chrono's braid and gave it a harsh yank, causing him to move closer to her so he could keep his hair in his head.
"Ouch! Rosette! What are you--! Ow, that hurts, damn it!" he yelled in protest.
"Shut-up," she growled, pulling the ribbon out of his hair. "Just sit still and keep quite."
The demon obeyed. As Rosette ran her fingers through is hair, smoothing it out and separated it out into three separate strands, he didn't so much as move a mussel. He did, however, enjoy the feeling of Rosette's closeness again. He had missed it more than he thought possible and relished in the feelings that had dulled over the past month.
"Finished," Rosette said, tying off his final plait with the ribbon.
Chrono's response was automatic.
"Thanks, Rosette. You did a good job, as usual."
Rosette automatically responded as well.
"Don't I always?"
The two looked at each other then quickly turned away, laughing nervously.
"I had forgotten," Chrono whispered, after a moment of silence, "just how good that felt. I really missed it."
"Me too," Rosette whispered as well.
The two drifted into another period of silence. Finally, Rosette sighed and asked the question she had wanted to ask ever since she left the pistol range.
"Are you really leaving tomorrow?"
Chrono stared at Rosette for a moment, studying her, before he looked away. "Yes."
More silence. "Why?"
"Because... you don't need me anymore. And my presence here is doing nothing but hurting you."
"So you think leaving is going to fix all that?" Rosette asked angrily.
"Staying here isn't making it any better," he snapped.
Rosette's mouth snapped shut. He was right; him being here wasn't making things better for either of them. But, that was then and this was now. And now, she needed him to stay. She WANTED him to stay.
"Why did you do it?" she finally asked. "Why did you break our Contract? You knew how much it meant to me. So why?"
"Because," he said, turning to look at Rosette, "I didn't see our Contract the same way you did."
"What...?"
"I hated that pocket watch, Rosette. I despised its purpose, its very existence. I still do. I hated waking up every morning knowing that, slowly but surely, I was draining your life away. And that watch was a constant reminder of it. But, most of all, I hated myself for giving in to your wishes and making the Contract."
Rosette stared at Chrono in shock. He kept talking, never taking his eyes off of her.
"I made a promise to myself that day we made our Contract, Rosette. I promised to protect you for as long as I could. And to me, that also meant protecting you from myself. So when I learned about another way I could keep myself alive without draining away any more of your Astral energy, I remembered my promise and jumped at the chance."
Chrono rose to his feet and stared off across the convent grounds. "At the time, I thought what I was doing was the right thing. But I was wrong. All I did was cause you more pain than I thought imaginable. And the only way that I see to somehow fix what I did to you is to remove the source of all your pain. Me."
Kneeling in front of her, Chrono took Rosette's hands in his own and looked into her eyes. "I'll find Joshua for you, Rosette, and I'll bring him back to you. And after I've done that, I'll leave. You'll never see me again. That much I can promise you."
Standing, the crimson-eyed demon gave Rosette a sad smile, tears threatening to fall from his eyes at any given moment. "Please have a long and happy life, Rosette. That's all I ask of you. Goodbye."
As Chrono walked away, Rosette started to panic. She wanted to go after him, but her body refused to move.
(Wait!)
Tears started to slide down her face...
(Don't go!)
...as Chrono's form began to disappear into the surrounding darkness.
(Don't leave me!)
Something inside her snapped. She launched herself from the well and finally found her voice.
"Chrono, wait!"
The demon turned around it time to get an armful of Rosette, her arms securely locking around his waist and her face buried in his chest.
"Don't go," she sobbed. "Please, don't go. Don't leave me alone."
Chrono looked down at Rosette's head, his arms staying securely at his side. "Rosette..."
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I said those things. I didn't mean them. I swear to God I didn't. I was just so upset..."
Chrono placed his hands on Rosette's shoulders and pushed her back so he could look into her eyes.
"Are you sure that's what you want, Rosette?" She looked at him in confusion. "I mean me, staying here with you?"
She nodded. "Yes. It's what I want more than anything in the world. Don't you understand? My life won't be a happy one unless you're living it with me."
Chrono smiled slightly. "All right, but it might be difficult."
The nun tilted her head. "Why?"
"We're not bounded by a Contract anymore. I doubt the Order's going to let me stay now."
"I don't care. We'll think of something. I know we will."
Chrono released Rosette's shoulders and stepped back. "Chrono, what are you...?"
"I have an idea," he said. "But, weather or not we use it is entirely up to you."
"Chrono?"
The demon transformed and kneeled before her. His amber eyes locked with her ocean-blue ones, witch were wide with disbelief. "I wish to make another Contract with you, Rosette Christopher. In its bindings, my heart and my soul will belong to you forever. But, in return, yours will belong to me as well. Do you accept the terms of this Contract?"
The tears came again, but this time they were tears of happiness. "Yes," she choked out. "Yes, I accept the terms."
Chrono nodded. "Very well."
Rising to his feet, the Sinner stepped up to Rosette and placed a hand on her shoulder and tilted her chin up with the other.
"Then let us seal the Contract, Rosette."
Before the nun could utter a word, Chrono's lips sealed over hers, making Rosette gasp in surprise. The demon took advantage of this and deployed his tongue into her mouth, memorizing every inch of her honey-filled cavern. Rosette soon returned the kiss with equal passion, her arms coming up to secure themselves around Chrono's neck while his arms wrapped themselves around her waist, pulling her closer to him.
The two broke apart, foreheads resting against each other and breathing heavily. Their eyes remained locked together, speaking volumes that the owners couldn't voice on their own. Until Chrono found the ability to finally say something.
"I love you, Rosette," he said between breaths. "My darling little Contractor."
Rosette, whose cheeks were already pink, turned a lovely shade of fuchsia and she gave him a smile that was brighter than the sun.
"I love you, too, Chrono. My handsome Sinner."
The two kissed again, rekindling and strengthening a bond that both humans and demons looked down on. But, at that moment, on that starry, starry night, Chrono and Rosette couldn't have cared less.
-----------------------------
Sister Kate watched the scene between Chrono and Rosette with a small smile of satisfaction on her face. From her position at the entrance of the convent's main building, she could watch everything without being detected.
"It seems everything worked out for the best after all."
Sister Kate felt her heart leap into her throat and slapped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from screaming.
"Fa-Fa-Father Remington! What are you doing here?" she hissed, trying to get her heart back under control.
The priest was leaning casually against a stone pillar, his eyes fixed on Chrono and Rosette. "Checking up on those two. But they seem to be doing better now."
Sister Kate looked back at the two. "Yes, it does. I guess I won't need to call Father Gilliam after all."
Father Remington raised an eyebrow at this, but said nothing.
"It's funny," she said softly. "When they first arrived here, and Rosette told me about Chrono and their Contract, I was furious. I kept thinking to myself, how could a child let herself be bound to a demon like that? And how could she trust him so? I wanted nothing more than for the Contract to be broken and have Chrono sent away. But, before I knew it, I found myself becoming more at ease with Chrono's presence. I began cheering for them and wishing for their happiness." The head nun sighed. "Tell me, Father, do my actions make me a hypocrite?"
Father Remington shook his had. "Not at all. You were merely reacting off what you had been taught. The mainstream stereotype that all demons are evil. That they trick people and kill them. And while this is true for most, there are some -- like Chrono -- who are different from the others."
Sister Kate nodded. "I'm glad. Even someone like Chrono, who has suffered so much, deserves a little happiness in his life. And I'm happy that he finally found it."
Father Remington turned his gaze back to Chrono and Rosette, who were still locked in their heated kiss.
"So am I, Sister Kate. So am I."
(End of Part Four)
------------------------------
Author's Rant: Jeez, that took me a long time to write. I don't know why, but, writing an intimate scene between Joshua a Fiore was just plain HARD! I guess it was because I was trying to find a balance between two completely different versions of the characters. In the anime, Joshua was just plain nuts half the time and Fiore acted more like Rei Ayanami from Evangelion than anything else. But, in the manga, they acted, well, normal. As normal as they could get anyway. So, I'm hoping that they didn't seem OOC too much.
In regards to the quote at the beginning of this chapter, I got it from a wallpaper I have on my computer. But for the life of me, I can't remember where I got the damn thing. If anyone knows the website and creator of the wallpaper, please let me know so I can properly give them credit. Thank you.
Next chapter:
-- Something dark and wicked this way comes
See ya next chapter.