Title : A Tale of Two Brothers

Genre : Anime/Manga

Category : Wolf's Rain

Disclaimer : Hey, remember me? Yeah, well, believe it or not, I still don't own it. Oh, well.

Summary : Basically what the title says. The two brothers in question being Toboe and Tsume. Much angst ensues. Oh yes, this is an AU. My apologies for my selfishness. And no, they're not wolves. Though I must say it being a WR story, I must include something containing the subject, shouldn't I? ; )

Warnings : Hmm, violence, angst, mild swearing, and various other circumstances that are too numerous for me to name.

Secondary Warning : This chapter contains a very graphic scene. You've been warned.

Rating : T

Chapter 2 : Will Fall

"Tsume?" Toboe questioned with an air of uncertainty. The auburn haired teenager stared aghast at the sight of his older sibling. His eyes slowly focused on the dried blood that had stained his brother's faded blue jeans and the grey t-shirt underneath the old biker jacket. He was covered in the now rust colored substance, his face as pale as the moonlight that shadowed him. The thirteen year old took it all in, even the frightened expression on his elder brother's face.

He gaped at his brother, the latter looking as though he had just seen a ghost. Fat beads of sweat glistened on his scrunched brow, his silver hair wet with the salty liquid. But there was one thing that was even more out of the ordinary, something Toboe didn't notice at first. Tsume was shaking, quivering; his eyes wide as they stared into the younger one's. His arm was still outstretched, his hand still grasping the invisible knob. He looked like he'd just seen a ghost.

The two stared at each other for a long moment, the younger not realizing his intrusion upon the memory that was playing before the other's eyes. The chilly air wisped around them, sending a transparent chill down Toboe's spine.

In all his years, he'd never seen his brother look like that before. Tsume always wore a mask, a mask that could not be taken off, even if he'd wanted to. It was a part of him, and always had been. Tough, unbreakable, and unreadable. Though, as he stood there with the moon's rays highlighting the small lines that had formed on his face, and the dark circles under his eyes, Toboe saw the one thing his brother had never let be shown before; fear.

It was clear and evident in the eighteen year old's eyes, clear as day. And as much as he tried to avoid it in the past, his hardened features were flawed with the look of absolute fear and revoltion. He wanted to speak, to lower his eyebrows and start shouting about how the younger one should leave him alone or stop staring, but he couldn't. He could only stare and see the quiet innocence in his little brother's eyes. He was helpless against the memory that was stuck on repeat in his mind. And he hated it.

It took a moment before Toboe could move, let alone speak again. As carefully as he could, he placed a gentle hand on Tsume's shoulder, trying his best to guide him inside the house. The cold wind continued to brush against his cheeks, reminding him just how much his brother was shivering. But instead of helping him in, he let out a gasp as his brother collapsed in his arms. Stumbling back a bit, he caught his balance and steadied them both, wrapping an arm around Tsume's waist.

On the outside, the auburn haired boy was doing his best to stay calm, but on the inside, he was going haywire. He didn't know where the blood had come from or why; and on top of that, he knew that his brother's shift was far from being over, so something had to be seriously wrong for Tsume to leave work that early. He let his brain go into autopilot as he guided Tsume to the bathroom, kicking the door open to gain entry.

He was quite scared himself, judging that his brother hadn't said a word yet, and he knew enough time had passed. Surely, Tsume would have said something by now, but as Toboe stole a glance at the young man before him, the silver-haired teenager's eyes were glazed over, emotion slowly fading from his face. But he was still silent, and that frightened the thirteen year old all the more. Tsume was hot-blooded and always expressed himself in one way or another, but at the current moment, his features were blank, empty.

The fear had leaked away and was replaced with nothingness. His mask was carefully put back into place, though his voice apparently didn't want to work. He was still quite wary and didn't realize what was going on around him.

Toboe carefully removed his shirt, eyeing Tsume with every move he made, praying that he didn't cross any boundaries that Tsume didn't want crossed. His eyes met a pale torso covered with scars and even a few fresh ones that Toboe didn't recognize. His eyes widened as he saw the amount of blood that was caked on his brother's left arm. He immediately turned on the bath water, his smaller hands starting to shake as well.

He tried to process the last bit of information that crisscrossed through his brain when more thoughts began to gnaw at his mind. His brother's state made him especially weary, but the amount of blood that he had lost frightened him even more.

He gulped, his heart racing for an unknown reason. Tsume had never looked like this, and he'd never had to take care of him before either. Tsume was always the one to take care of him, no matter what. He quickly shut the water off as it neared the top of the tub, his eyes wandering back to his brother.

Tsume sat still, his eyes still focused on something just beyond his younger brother. The memory was slowly dying down, though it still teased the edge of his mind. He shivered involuntarily as he felt his brother's arm brush against his skin. He heard his voice faintly, asking him something, but his vocal cords still refused to let him answer.

Slowly, the din of the bathroom came into view, Toboe sitting next to him on the edge of the tub, holding his arm. The iron odor hit his senses the moment his conscious brought him back to reality, forcing a cough out of his mouth. He doubled over, the urge to retch increasing. It took a second for him to realize that the scent was not coming from somewhere in the depths of his mind, but from his own body.

"Tsume? Tsume, are you alright?" Toboe's scared voice ran through his head, his eyes coming to focus once more. The look on his little brother's face worried him slightly, the younger's eyes as wide as saucers. He took notice of the boy's trembling hands as well, making him remember just what type of mess he'd gotten himself into.

"I'm…fine," he managed to whisper, his voice hoarse, a sharp pain plucking at the back of his throat. "I just had…a little accident…at work…" He pulled himself away from his little brother, his body still trembling beneath him. "I'll be alright…" He pushed himself up only to fall right back down again, his legs giving out on him.

"Doesn't look that way to me," Toboe muttered, a tinge of anger surfacing. "Here, let me help you. You've got to get those jeans off if you get in there anyway," he stated, nodding towards the bathtub.

Refusing to give into his little brother's so-called coddling, Tsume pushed away from him once more, knowing he had no strength left in him. It didn't take long for his body to retaliate again. His balance crumbled before him, his knees finding their way to the cold, hard linoleum floor. He jerked at his brother's light touch on his shoulder, but this time, didn't recoil completely as he normally did.

"Tsume, just let me help you. Please. I promise I won't mention this day again. But you're in no condition to do whatever it is that you think you're gonna do. Give me your hand," the thirteen year old ordered softly, reaching out for his older brother who still couldn't seem to do so much as throw him a gaze.

"Whatever," Tsume muttered bitterly, his eyes stinging with tears. If it just didn't hurt so damned much…He felt his little brother's hand slowly slip into his, and the feeling of being pulled up hit him like a ton of bricks. Purple and blue spots danced before his eyes, he definitely being on the edge of blacking out. Dizziness poured around him, making him unable to retain his balance. He could here Toboe say something about, "just sit down, you'll be alright," or something to that effect, but either the way, the ringing in his ears was becoming too damned loud, blocking out everything else in the process.

He could hear his breath coming out a bit raggedly and a wheeze here and there, something he knew he shouldn't feel; but he kept quiet, not wanting to upset his younger brother more than he already had. Twice in a day was enough. One more time and he'd be toast.

"Here, let me do it," Toboe said soothingly, gingerly helping Tsume undress and get into the warm water.

"No, I can do it myself," Tsume shot back, his voice still not up to its full potential. He stumbled again as he tried to pull one leg out of his pants, the feeling of being drunk hitting him immediately. Once again, he found his younger brother guiding him back towards the waiting tub, spots still swimming in and out of his vision. Reluctantly, he let Toboe help him with the rest, all the while having embarrassment flood through his system.

"Don't worry, Tsume, I'm right here. It's okay," the auburn haired teenager assured, helping his brother into the warm water. He winced as he saw how shaky the silver haired teen was, not even able to stand on his own. Once Tsume was settled, Toboe took a seat by the side of the tub, questions racing through his head a mile a minute. Silence rested between them momentarily before the younger one finally spoke. "What happened?" Toboe asked, his auburn eyes filled with concern, taking in how truly pale his older brother looked.

"I told you, I had an accident at work," he repeated, trying to get some type of anger into his tone, though none would come. Instead, his voice was soft, almost faint in the quiet of the room.

"What kind of accident?" Toboe inquired, leaning closer to his brother, his eyebrows narrowing. "Just tell the truth, Tsume, cos that cut looks pretty deep," he stated, his eyes wandering to the blood encrusted wound that lay across his arm.

"A machine cut me," he muttered through a clenched jaw, his brow declining as well. He turned his head away, feeling Toboe's auburn eyes on him. He knew his little brother was mad, but he just couldn't give in that easily.

"It cut you? It cut you, just like that?" the younger one questioned incredulously, disbelief in his eyes. For the first time in his life, he knew how Tsume felt when he'd come up with ridiculous stories and try to pass them off on him. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up as he realized what it was like to finally feel like the older brother for once.

Tsume finally met his gaze, something in his eyes telling the younger boy sitting next to him that he had crossed a line that he shouldn't have. He sat up a little straighter, the warm water rippling as an effect.

"Don't act like you know it all, kid, because you don't," Tsume hissed, anger flaring in his golden eyes.

The younger boy recoiled slightly at this, a flash of fear searing through his eyes. He could see the anger bubbling under his brother's veins, a flash of color coming to his face.

"I don't have to answer to you if I don't want to. I'm the one in charge here, unless you've forgotten," he stated through gritted teeth, droplets of water splashing on the younger one as he pointed a shaky finger at him. "And when there's something you need to know, I'll tell you," he added, facing away from Toboe again. Even though the water was warm, he was still shivering.

Toboe's face fell downcast at this, his auburn hair hanging in it discouragingly. "I'm sorry, Tsume," he apologized, his voice barely a whisper. His brow narrowed as his brother's words circulated through his mind. "But if I have to tell you every little thing that happens to me, I don't see why you can't do the same. I'm not some mindless little kid like you think I am," he shot back, the same tone of anger Tsume used earlier laced throughout his voice. "I do care about you, and if something bad happens, then I deserve the right to know!" he exclaimed, his head jerking up, sending his semi-long hair flying. "Just like I deserve to know what happened to Mom!" he let out, his face reddening at his own outburst.

Silence consumed the room, the thickest, most hated silence that had ever befallen Tsume's ears. He froze at that last sentence, sending his mind reeling. At that moment, the water could have turned ice cold, but he wouldn't have felt it. The only thing he felt was absolute shock and fear, nothing more, nothing less. Toboe's words stung him worse than any childish "I hate yous" ever could have. He was stuck once again, between reality and the truth.

"What are you talking about?" he whispered, his voice falling back in volume, the inability to look his little brother in the eyes back once again. There was an edge to his voice, though this time, it wasn't interweaved with anger; he was actually on the verge of tears.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about, Tsume!" Toboe beat him to it. Tears were streaming down his lightly sun-kissed cheeks at an alarming rate, making the elder one feel even worse.

Tsume could hear his heart reverberating through his ear drums, and slowly but surely, he was succumbing to the visions that slid past his eyes. His mother's voice, the scent of blood, the sound of his shoes splashing through the water from the over-flowing bathtub; the nightmare that had haunted him since he was a child struck him once more, too real for his own good. Before he knew it, silent tears were leaking from behind his eyes, small sobs slipping through his lips. He hadn't told anyone what had happened that day nearly eight years before. Not even his little brother.

"Answer me!" the shout ran through his ears, his brother's usually soft voice ringing throughout his head. "What happened to her, Tsume? And don't act like you don't know! Because I know you were there! I saw the death certificate! And she didn't die like you said she did!" The elder boy could feel the younger one's hands grip his shoulders, but the memory was stuck on full blast, reality gently fading away once more. "She killed herself! I saw it! It was suicide! Why? Tell me why!" Sobs wracked the thirteen year old's body, he on his knees before his brother. His grip was still tight, but his strength was waning, the older boy slowly slipping between his trembling fingers.

Tsume's face went pale, as pale as the moonlight that dared to shine through the window. His eyes were glazed over once more, a loud sob threatening to depart from his lips. Emotions whirled around him and through him, but he couldn't quite latch on, the scene slowly coming to an end in his head.

"Mom?" the young boy's voice shook, bloody water creeping upon his shoes, his laces sucking up the thin crimson substance that was occupying the floor. "Mom?" the small voice called out once more, but he knew better. He knew no one would answer his question. His golden eyes fell upon the sight in front of him, everything seemingly covered in blood.

The urge to vomit immediately overcame him, and whatever contents he held in his stomach were now mixing with the red liquid on the floor. He vomited until the dry retching finally took over, hurting all the more.

After what seemed like an eternity, he pushed himself up off the floor, crimson water staining his trembling knees. He forced himself towards the sight, his vision crippling before him.

The first thing he saw was the look on her face. There wasn't even an ounce of peacefulness there. No, here features were pulled into a state of hatred and worry, her eyes wide with fright. Her face was pale, paler than the fresh snow that fell in winter. It looked bleached and contorted, nothing like an actual human being. But then again, blood hadn't coursed through those capillaries in quite some time from the looks of it, which in turn had of course drained all color from her face.

The second sight that befell his eyes was the blood and the amount of it. It took him a while to see where it all actually originated from, her wrists being the primary source. He took a step closer to see that a deep cut was etched into her neck as well, causing more tears to stream from his eyes.

The bathtub was full of her blood, her lifeless body laying there for God knew how long, soaking up bit by bit of her own life giving substance. Her hair lay still against her face, specs of blood dried and caked in it. Her mouth was open as if to say something, but unfortunately, the boy had no idea of what her last words were. He only saw the end result.

He reached out to touch her, just to make sure the thing that lay before him was real and not some demented joke his father was playing on him just to frighten the piss out of him; but the moment his hand connected with hers, he froze again, knowing all too well that that lifeless shell was indeed the woman who gave birth to him. At that very moment, he screamed, the pain becoming too much for his young soul to handle.

She was dead. Dead and gone, and there was nothing he could do to bring her back.

The memory came to a close, pitifully playing out once again before his traumatized eyes. And now the day had come when he had to relay it all to the trembling boy that knelt before him, the hate that he felt towards his father presenting itself in his little brother. That was it, he finally done it this time. The bond that they were hanging onto by a thread had finally broken, and it was all his fault.

Finally, Toboe's voice broke the silence of the room. "Please, Tsume…I deserve to know…" His grip loosened all together as he hung his head, his hair confiscating his sight once more. "Don't lie to me either. Tell me the truth…"

Tsume slowly turned his head, anger rushing through him. Though this time, it wasn't for the boy in front of him, it was for himself. The shadow of hate that he had been holding onto for so long, keeping it just out of sight, fell upon him as the night sky does to the heavens. He felt the remnants of his heart break, the pieces littering the water below.

"I'm sorry, Toboe…I just…you didn't need to…not that…not like that…" his words were mixed and jumbled, his brain too afraid to speak the truths that had haunted the depths of his soul for the past eight years. He couldn't bare to look at the teenager that had held him in such high regards all those years, shame consuming his entire being. He couldn't even feel angry at the kid for looking, he was bound to figure it out sooner or later, the sooner coming rather than the later.

"Why did you hide it from me? Why, Tsume? All this time, I thought she'd been sick, like you said…but why? Why'd she do it? I don't understand!" he cried, his voice raising with each word. More tears riveted down his soft cheeks, spilling onto the already wet floor below. "I just don't understand…was it because of us?" the dignified question filtered through the air, Tsume almost going into a stupor.

"I don't know why she did it," he replied honestly, his golden orbs still watery, his voice still shaking. "I honestly don't know…she just did…"

They fell once again into silence, and it coveted the room.

Tsume couldn't count the tears that had fallen down his brother's distraught cheeks, nor did he really want to; but knowing that he was at least the cause of the majority of them made him feel lower than his father. He'd hurt the kid in more ways than one, and surely not telling him the truth would be the death of him. He'd dug his own grave, and the thirteen years old was probably more than willing to push him in.

"Why didn't you tell me, Tsume? Why?" the faint voice came from his brother's mouth, tears still hanging graciously in the auburn haired one's eyes. His voice shook with each syllable, unable to control the pain that was torturing his soul.

"Because I never wanted to see you like this," was Tsume's simple reply. His head hung, his shoulders slumped in a defeated way. "I just didn't think it would be right," he answered honestly, his golden pools gazing into the hazy water below. He didn't even flinch as his little brother's hand struck him across the face. He knew he deserved it for one reason or another.

"You should've told me! I was strong enough to handle it!" the outburst poured from the younger one's lips as he stood to his feet, his legs quivering beneath him.

Tsume raised his head, his eyes narrowing, a half-dazed look present on his visage. "You weren't old enough to be told something like that. Can you honestly tell me, that you would've been able to handle something like that when you were five years old? To know that your mother, your own flesh and blood, would rather kill herself than live with you?" he questioned with an air of ferocity in his tone. He was teetering on the edge of anger and sadness, unsure of which one would showcase its self more.

Toboe stared at him for a moment, the stare slowly turning into a glare and before he knew it, his hand was connecting with his brother's already red patch of skin again. The surge of anger continued to resonate through his body, the inability to keep his emotions under control getting the better of him. He took a step back from the tub, his eyes now meeting the wet floor. Shock was starting to overload his system.

Without another word, the auburn haired teenager backed out of the room, his footsteps echoing lightly throughout the hallway. Tsume could hear them grow fainter until there was the sound of the front door slamming, then they disappeared altogether, fading off into the night air.

Author's note : Thank you so much for your reviews! I really appreciate them. To be honest, I wasn't even expecting five so thanks you guys, they each meant a lot to me! Well, hopefully this chapter will suffice. I'm expecting this story to be quite long, so this is really just the beginning. Hopefully, you'll all stay along for the ride! Well, let me know how I'm doing!