A/N: Yes! Finally, the end of this fic! That means next week I can finally post the sequel! ISN'T THAT MARVELOUS? About bloody time! The sequel's been sitting around for months now, going through change after change after bloody change.
Damn… can't think of any witty way of saying, "Go listen to Malice Mizer!"…
-Epilogue-
Ansem returned to Reivanlocke's apartment the next evening after assuring Sephiroth he'd be back. He didn't want to leave his lover again, but he had to give Sora's body to Reivanlocke.
He pushed open the door to the darkened apartment and threw Sora's body to the floor. It made a soft thud as it landed. He looked around, eyes roving over things such as the couch and the table. He frowned.
"Reivanlocke?" he called. "Are you here?"
There was no answer. Starting to feel a sense of foreboding, Ansem advanced slowly into the room, occasionally looking at the furniture outlined in moonlight. He paused at the desk, hands passing over the book that lay there. He absently began tracing the letters by feel.
"N… e…" he murmured. He heard a slam from the window and whipped around. The windows were open, the curtains fluttering in the breeze. Ansem swallowed, feeling a faint twinge of fear. He forced it back, and walked to the windows, intent on closing them. Before he did so, however, he stood staring at the crowds below. His fist clenched impulsively and he tore his gaze away.
Ansem tugged the windows shut and wished he hadn't. Without the sound of the curtains fluttering and the wind sighing, it was dreadfully silent in the gloomy apartment.
Ansem stood by the window, senses keyed to their extent to hear or see something that likely wasn't there in the first place. He sensed there was something in the apartment with him, but he couldn't tell what. He took a steadying breath and moved away from the desk. He froze.
He had heard the distinctive ringing sound of a blade being unsheathed.
Unmoving, Ansem stared around the darkened apartment. Somewhere, a clock chimed, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. The clock slowly chimed out the hour as Ansem tried to steady his pounding heart. He turned, staring out the window as it started to storm. Lightning flashed, illuminating the streets below the apartment. The thunder, sounding twice as menacing in Reivanlocke's empty apartment, rumbled sinisterly.
Ansem kept his senses on high alert as he slowly made his way to the door. Something was amiss here. He decided to just leave Sora's body and return to Sephiroth.
"I don't think so."
At the sound of that familiar voice, Ansem stood stock-still. A serious mistake. A blade whizzed out of the shadows and embedded itself to the hilt in Ansem's back.
Ansem made a choking noise and fell to his knees, blood streaming down his back, soaking his shirt, staining it crimson. Reivanlocke stepped out of the shadows, a curious gleam in her eyes.
"You were… useful, I suppose. But you know my name," she drawled. "I don't allow anyone who knows my name to live." She absently rubbed the top of her hand. She walked forward and grasped the handle of her knife. She pulled it free, ignoring Ansem's gasp of pain.
Reivanlocke bent to his level. "Thanks for doing my dirty work," she said sweetly. "You saved me some time. But now you must die." She plunged the knife into his back again, dragging it upwards somewhat. Ansem couldn't even cry out. Reivanlocke's face remained inscrutable as she slowly withdrew the knife. Then, as if in a fit of anger, she snapped the blade off an inch from the hilt. She rammed it hard into Ansem's back, burying it deep within him.
"Have fun getting that out!" she snarled. She seized Sora's corpse and disappeared from the apartment, leaving Ansem to lie on the floor in a pool of his own blood.
Ansem could feel his body shutting down. He knew he was dying. Sephiroth's face and form flashed repeatedly in his mind. Ansem felt a crushing depression settling over him. They had just been reunited… he promised he'd be back…
Almost as if someone had beamed it into his mind, Ansem saw a vision of Sephiroth. His lover was sitting by the window with a book open in his lap. He wasn't reading it, though. He was staring out the window, waiting for Ansem to return. He glanced up at a clock on the wall and sighed.
The vision faded.
Ansem slowly clenched his fists.
"I never… make a promise… I won't keep…" he murmured. Slowly, he pushed himself up, wincing as the blade in his back scraped against his ribs. He levered himself up against the wall, leaning heavily on it. He screwed up his face as pain rocketed through his body. Little by little, he dragged himself out of the apartment and down the stairs, leaving a trail of blood as he went.
He made it out into the pouring rain. He stared out for a moment, feeling the rain wash away his blood. Gradually, he headed down the street, leaning on buildings for support. The rain obliterated the trail of blood he left behind.
-
Sephiroth was now quite concerned. Ansem had promised he'd return. He'd left several hours ago. Sephiroth unconsciously rubbed his arms, as if chilled. He could sense something had happened to his lover, but he didn't know what. He jumped wildly as the doorbell rang. He put his book down and went to the door.
Ansem stood on the other side, face twisted with pain.
"I'm… back," he joked feebly. Then he swayed on the spot and fell against Sephiroth.
"Oh, god…" Sephiroth murmured, supporting Ansem. He'd seen his lover's back. He carried him inside and gently laid him down. He carefully pulled off Ansem's shirt, using a pocketknife to cut it away in places. He gave a moan of sympathy when he saw Ansem's back.
Ansem whimpered, his muscular form drenched in sweat. His back was covered in blood, the vicious wounds on his back still bleeding freely. A piece of metal winked at Sephiroth from one near Ansem's shoulder blade. Sephiroth lightly passed his fingers over Ansem's back, wincing as his lover cried out.
"There's a blade stuck in your back," Sephiroth murmured, half to himself. Ansem nodded, unable to speak. "I have to get it out. I'm going to try and pull it out, okay?"
Ansem nodded again, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. Sephiroth steeled himself, then slipped his fingers into the wound. Ansem nearly cried out, a moan escaping past his teeth. Sephiroth's fingers slowly withdrew from the wound, taking the blade as well. He tossed the blade into the trash and pressed Ansem's shirt to the wound with his other hand. He stared briefly at his hand, covered in the blood of his lover. A lump rose in his throat.
"It's gone, my love," he whispered. Ansem's breathing was ragged. Sephiroth hoped beyond hope the blade hadn't entered his lover's lungs. "I'm so sorry… my love, my angel, my life, I'm sorry…"
He dressed Ansem's wounds as best he could, and carried him to the bedroom. He gently laid him down, cringing with every sound of pain Ansem made, no matter how soft.
"Oh, my love… my poor love… What happened to you? Who did this?" Sephiroth whispered.
-End "Death to Disney". To be continued in "Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow".-
A/N: Wow. This chapter was as short in the rewrite as in the original, if not shorter. Oh well, so be it. Yep, I sure like this version better, that I do. Whatever.
Okay! Next week the sequel will go up, since I wrote it ages ago. W00t!
