Disclaimer: I just pretend to own Loveless.

Chapter Five: Defenseless

"Ritsuka-kun!"

Ritsuka whirled at the sound of his name being called from behind him. A pink-haired girl was running towards him followed more sedately by a black-haired man.

Obviously, these were friends of his from school. Friends Ritsuka was positive he didn't want to deal with. Not right now, at least.

"Where have you been? You haven't been in school at all the past two days! Is everything alright?" The pink-haired girl was practically gushing.

She sickened Ritsuka. Did he have no friends worth having? His other self must have been a looser.

"Yuiko-san, give Ritsuka-kun a chance to speak…" the black-haired man said.

"Is Soubi-san alright?" the girl, Yuiko, asked. "You two aren't fighting still, are you?"

What business was it of hers what he was doing with Soubi-kun? "That's not really any of your business, is it?"

The girl's eyes widened. "Ritsuka-kun…?" she seemed on the verge of tears.

God, what a wimp.

"Now wait a second, Ritsuka-kun! You've got no right to take it out on Yuiko-san just because you and…" The black-haired man shut up when Ritsuka glared at him.

"I'm not the Ritsuka you knew," he explained calmly. "And I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't talk to me again." Ritsuka turned away from the two of them and started walking away. It was a trick he had learned from Seimei. If you wanted to prove your superiority over someone, just ignore them. They'd get the message.

Seimei.

Ritsuka felt a pang of loss as he considered his brother's death. Seimei had been his role model, his idol. If he was truly dead….

Ritsuka would have to find his killers and avenge them. And, according to what Soubi-kun had explained to him earlier about the Sacrifices and Fighters, it would be a piece of cake.

Without warning, strong arms grabbed Ritsuka by the shoulders and whirled him around. Ritsuka stumbled backwards as he felt a fist connect with his cheek. Ritsuka fell to the ground, a metallic, salty taste in his mouth.

"Don't you ever make Yuiko-san cry again!"

Ritsuka looked up to see the black-haired boy glowering over him. He pushed himself to his feet and barely dodged another blow from the angry young man.

"Yayoi-san! Stop!" The pink-haired girl screamed.

The black-haired boy, Yayoi, was breathing heavily. He glared at Ritsuka.

Ritsuka met his dark-eyed glare calmly, confident that he could handle himself if it came to that. He spit blood out of his mouth.

Yuiko ran up and stepped between the two boys. "Stop it, Yayoi-san!" she said, her voice wavering. "Leave Ritsuka-kun alone. If he doesn't want to talk to us…"

Ritsuka rolled his eyes. "Are we finished here?" he asked. He had half a mind to rip this boy to shreds but decided his revenge could wait. At least until Ritsuka had learned about this 'fighting' thing.

Revenge is better when the recipient isn't expecting it. At least, that's what Seimei had always told him.

The black-haired boy tore his eyes off of Yuiko and nodded slowly. A fire was still smoldering in his eyes.

Ritsuka sniffed and walked away from the two children in front of him. He had other things to do, such as going home and making peace with his mother.

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Yuiko sniffled and fought back tears while she watched Ritsuka walk away. What had happened to her Ritsuka? She shook her head.

"Yuiko-san..?"

Yuiko turned to Yayoi. His long hair was hanging over his face and he was studying the ground carefully. "Sorry for loosing my temper," he muttered.

Yuiko ran a hand across her face, drying the tears. She didn't want to cry in front of Yayoi. Besides, he had been only trying to protect her. "Its alright, Yayoi-san," she said, her voice subdued. Whatever had happed to her Ritsuka…

Soubi-san would know. He would also know how to fix it.

Unless she had done something wrong.

Was Ritsuka jealous of the time she had spent with Yayoi the other day? Yuiko shook her head. Ritsuka wasn't like that. He wanted her to spend time with Yayoi. Besides, even if he had an interest in Yuiko other than as a friend, he wouldn't be jealous of her time. Her Ritsuka wasn't like that.

"Its alright, Yayoi-san," Yuiko told her friend. "You were only trying to help." Actually, it was really kind of sweet. She studied Yayoi, as if looking at him for the first time. He was taller than her now. Not much, but the tips of her ears were definitely below his. He was still studying the sidewalk at his feet…

"Yayoi-san…thanks…for defending me…"

Yayoi looked up, his face brightening marginally. "Sure thing, Yuiko-san. Anytime." He offered her a small smile. "So, you going over to Soubi-san to find out what's going on?"

The idea hadn't occurred to Yuiko but it certainly made more sense than waiting for Soubi-san to come find her. Which, now that she thought about it, he probably wouldn't do. She nodded. "Do you want to come with me?"

Yayoi nodded.

Yuiko started walking towards Soubi-san's house. She had been there often enough with Ritsuka. She could find the way by herself.

Not that she had to, Yuiko realized suddenly. Yayoi-san was right behind her, where he had always been.

Yuiko stopped walking and waiting for Yayoi to walk the step it took to catch up to her. "Yuiko-san? What's wrong?" he asked.

Yuiko shook her head. "Nothing. I just thought it would be fun to walk holding hands." Without waiting to see the surprised look on Yayoi's face, Yuiko grabbed Yayoi's hand and led him off in search of Soubi's house.

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Soubi wished Kio had not followed him home. It was dark and Soubi was tired. Kio had chattered non-stop during their shift at the Museum. He had apparently decided Soubi needed cheering up.

"Why aren't you going home tonight?" Soubi asked hi blond friend. He opened the door to his room.

"Because you need some company," Kio told him.

"I have Natsuo and Youji for company."

"You have some more company, it looks like."

Soubi looked into the room. Ritsuka's friends, Yuiko and Yayoi, were sitting at his table with Youji and Natsuo talking to them.

"Hey, Soubi-san, these are…"

"Ritsuka-sama's friends. I know them." Soubi slipped off his shoes and walked into the house. He knew why they were here. He saw Kio watching him curiously from the doorway.

Soubi sighed. He could send Kio home. But then Kio would never leave him alone. It was more efficient to lay everything out on the table at once.

Especially before Ritsuka-sama thought to order him not to.

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A/N: Alright, sorry about the long pause between updates again. I blame Lent for which I've given up music and writing without music is difficult. I also blame being away from college every weekend for the past couple. Hopefully, I'll get back into the habit of updating regularly.

Kimper: Thanks for the complements! The entire story is kind of painful to write, but Soubi's parts most of all.

Buried Fairy Tale: I wish for the old Ritsuka too! There will definitely be a happy ending but I make no promises about a lemon since I get squeamish when trying to write one.

Teldra: Sorry for the long wait!

Coco Reed: Poor Soubi, indeed.

Lyerial: I do have an ending in mind- I just hope it won't be too forced….