A Castle of Corpses
Tatrin
Shu was in the quiet nothingness, with only the faint pressure on his fingertips to ground him.
He could hear voices, indistinct, completely neutral, and no amount of straining could make the litany clear. Once, he thought he caught his name, but that was all.
. o . 0 . o .
Haruka gingerly listened in on the conversations around her as she forced herself to pace her eating—unlike the usual days, she could not just gobble up slices of pizza and bowls worth of ramen. Especially since she was here for the taste. It was unsettling to hear what people had to say since the majority was terribly morose and the few laughs were more forceful than genuine. People were desperate to speak to someone. It seemed—anyone. Daily life was far from being back to normal, and almost everyone had lost someone in the explosion, so the only thing that people could rely on was those who were still around. Most spoke of the damage to the city or recounted where they were that evening, the hate never far away as they talked about the unknown cause. Haruka could understand, at least a little, why so many people can easily hate. She hopes she doesn't sink in that emotion. She hopes she could keep Shu from sinking into that emotion.
. o . 0 . o .
Haruka gave Shu a puppy. But Shu gave her a blank face...a puppy? Why would she give him a puppy? Haruka reminded him that he himself asked her for one. Shu thought he must have forgotten, and he apologized after thanking her.
~Aw, Mother is upset now, Shu-chan.~
A cold shiver runs through Shu's body at the sound of the voice. It's definitely a familiar voice, one he's heard quite a few times. "Go ahead and poke fun at the name. Just remember that she calls you that too," he shots back, speaking only in his mind.
~The difference is I'm actually her darling Shu-chan. You're just an annoyance.~
Shu ignored him. When he gets to his room, since he doesn't actually have homework, he falls onto his large bed and buries his face in the soft, black sheets. Please just go away, he thinks.
It has been a while since he was last heard from. Shu was starting to think that maybe he was finally gone. Not that that is possible. You can't leave your own body. Although that's unfair, isn't it? It's not his body! It's Shu's. Why should he share with someone else? As far as he knows, no one else has a 'roommate'.
. o . 0 . o .
Shu became good friends with the puppy, which he named Hachi. Haruka was very happy, and the three often play together. One day, he was playing sheriff as usual...and there was a gun on the table...he thought it was his usual fake gun...why is he holding onto a real firearm?
Hachi was in front of him, with his innards spilt from abuse by continuous bullet strikes.
D-Did he kill Hachi?
"I'm the one who killed that dog". The voice is soft and light; a child's, maybe around Shu's own age.
Shu bolts up, eyes wide in search for the source of the voice. It's dark, but he is afraid to turn on the light.
"I had to. That thing could have been dangerous when it was full-grown. It could have hurt Mother." It's the answer to his unasked question, and Shu briefly thinks that maybe the kid can read minds.
"Who am I?" the voice says at the same time as Shu thought to ask 'Who are you?'
But nothing else came. And silence was all he was given.
. o . 0 . o .
Shu met Inori at her concert. And Shu noticed Inori was having trouble with her phone. She told him that she had never had one of these smartphones. Shu remembered his own struggle and told her that the only way to be able to use it is if you use it at least a few minutes every day. Inori admitted that she liked talking with him and Shu suggested that they exchange numbers for calling one another.
. o . 0 . o .
"I...wanted to talk, to you," Shu said. "I don't know, I thought I was bothering you and I wanted to give it a day or so without calling I guess...? then I realized I couldn't."
. o . 0 . o .
The days pass as they always do. Shu wakes up, eats breakfast, goes to school, comes home to be tutored on whatever his mother feels like making him learn, eats dinner, and gets ready for bed. He does get some free time in there, but he never does much with it. What can he do? He has no friends, and video games aren't allowed in his house. He has to either do schoolwork or sit and do nothing.
. o . 0 . o .
Souta is in even more awe once he sees the Endo family house. "Is this really still Japan?" he asks, as they pass through the security gate. "I knew you were well off, but I never guessed you were this rich. I kind of hate you at the moment."
Shu leads him into the house. He's never had a guest of his own before, so he's not completely sure what to do. Should he offer him food and drink? But his maid will do that. Instead, he stands awkwardly with Souta in the entrance hall, waiting for her to show up.
After a few seconds of silence, the woman makes herself seen. "Shu-sama, welcome home!" she greets.
"I'm home," he replies. "I have a guest. We're going to do homework."
They find his mother in the sitting room, humming a song and crocheting something that resembles a blanket. She spots him before he says anything and calls out, "Shu-kun! What colour should I add next?"
"Black." He decides because it matches with everything. "I want to introduce you to someone."
"Oh?" she glances around the room, her eyes missed Souta's small form hiding behind the half-open door. "Shu-kun, we've talked about this. You know not to-"
"Mother," he interrupts, speaking loudly to cover her words. "This is my classmate, Souta Tamadate." He gestures to the boy he invited to his house.
"Oh?" She stands to greet him properly. "Nice to meet you."
Souta replies in the same manner. "Shu's very smart. He's helping me with the school."
Shu never knew that friends (he can call them that, right?) could just sit without talking and still be perfectly comfortable. But there they were, on his bed even, each doing their own thing, and yet Shu doesn't feel the need to start a conversation. He feels like he could happily carry on like this for hours, but Souta's phone making an annoying sound puts an end to his peaceful thoughts.
"What is it?" he asks the other.
"Just a text from my mother," Souta replies. "She's just making sure I'm fine."
"Oh." To Shu that's a little strange. It's not even late. But he knows that other families are different than his, so he doesn't comment.
Souta falls back onto the pillows.
. o . 0 . o .
"Sleep some more, Shu. I'm sure you won't have any more nightmares tonight." Haruka smiled, her eyes tired. She probably was woken up by one of the maids after seeing Shu. She never complained and would wake up at any hour to take care of him.
Shu nodded his head and gently bit his lip, wanting to thank his mother but—
it's your fault
—he stopped himself and just nodded, gently bowing his head before walking into his room. The voice echoed in the back of his mind.
. o . 0 . o .
The thing that bothers him the most is that his mother seems to favour that guy. Shu never knows what the other Shu does while in control, but he does know that the other Shu is not a good person. Why on earth does she like the other Shu better than Shu? It's not fair.
(The other Shu actually acts like Shu used to, making Haruka very happy. But when Shu takes control of his body, Haruka was left confused as to why he forgets everything again. And this caused an unknown rift between them]
You don't have to blame yourself~
We all want attention~
There's an easy way to get it~
And to stop the nightmares~
He steps off the stool and falls to his knees, still watching his knuckles. They stopped bleeding, but he sees how there are some glass pieces on his hand. He then remembers the broken mirror and looks at all the pieces laying around. He picks one up and stares at his reflection.
That's the way~
Don't push me away~
And let me help you~
All the pain will be gone~
Just do as I say~
Shu gulps and squeezes the shard a bit tighter. It stings in his hand, and when he looks at one of his fingers, it's bleeding. Without thinking, he obediently listens to the voice.
It's shameful
Blame yourself
Not worth anything
The sudden voice startles him, and he thinks he imagines it at first. He thinks back to his conversation with his mother and shakes his head before splashing his face with more cold water.
Lost your voice
Someone has to speak to their mind
She died.
Because of you.
He clenches his shaking hands and tries to push the voice away, but it just speaks louder. It's just like his nightmares but worse. He looks up at his reflection and blinks when he sees himself with a pair of reddish-pink eyes and a smirk. The reflection disappears, but it still terrifies him.
Couldn't keep your mouth shut
Had to have all the attention
So now you have mine
Oh, don't push me away
. o . 0 . o .
It starts slowly.
Small, minuscule, barely even there. Nobody would notice; he barely even notices it himself. Compared to the last few days it is the proverbial drop in the ocean.
. o . 0 . o .
"Shu, seriously, one day you're going to forget your own name."
. o . 0 . o .
Inori tilted her head in confusion, almost unable to recognize him. "Shu?"
. o . 0 . o .
Shu gritted his teeth against the growing pounding in his skull. It was sort of a headache that you could feel right behind your eyes, a pulsing, and every sound became nails on a chalkboard. Except the whistle. That was staying the same.
"No. I did not." His voice was even. Calm. Good. Just as he wanted it to be.
"I go out for business to earn money, and this is what you decide to do whilst I'm gone? Your actions influence those around you, and you need to start thinking about your actions for once."
Don't listen to him
he doesn't even care about you
he only cares about his image
Shu blankly stared at Shouichi before looking away. His adoptive father really only cared about what his image looked like. If his health didn't worry, he had no intention of thinking of him as his father. All he could do was push him away.
You've already been hurt
You don't need to go through it all again
Just push everyone away
You'll be safe that way
The next thing he heard was the door shutting behind his father. For once, he would listen to the voice without hesitation.
. o . 0 . o .
"Sis?" Shu turned his head only to be met with a kiss on his lips.
. o . 0 . o .
Shu woke up, surrounded by his friends. He didn't realize that he was crying in his sleep.
"Now, now. It's okay to cry sometimes! Problems are just too hard to handle by himself." Souta said.
"Were you dreaming about something bad?" Hare asked gently.
Shu blinked, and smile, "No. It was a happy dream."
. o . 0 . o .
Deal with the problem. It was so much easier to say than murder a human but meant much the same thing.
. o . 0 . o .
Shu gets kidnapped and drugged by Daath, who has been observing him and has recently decided that Adam is now an excellent host to the Virus is more than acceptable now.
. o . 0 . o .
"His recovery is remarkable." The black-haired woman in white, who is now behind a computer, talked about something. Probably about him. "The regeneration of both organs and tissue is simply off the scale. And his powers, both physical and mental, seem to be developing at a geometric rate. Better than we ever could have hoped for."
. o . 0 . o .
When Shu's Virus matured and he gains excellent proficiency controlling them, he was told by Haruka that there are other kids like him, and they all train in a private institution. Shu smiled. He has peers! There's a whole other bunch like him! He'll have friends!
. o . 0 . o .
"That I might be the one who destroys mankind."
Gai gave him a mighty scoff. "Why should I care?" they hummed, reeling back on their heels. "I mean I guess I'd kill you if I was told to, but I like you. You're buying me food."
"...Fair enough."
I'd kill you if I was told to.
This was his life now. Even if he made friends, it was possible that they might be forced into playing a hand in his execution. Some time. Some place. Maybe tomorrow, or maybe never.
Depending on whether the other Shu Ouma still wanted Shu Ouma.
The possibilities were endless in this new, fucked up world.
. o . 0 . o .
When Shu had arrived, there were barely any friendly atmosphere, mostly depair and desperation. Shu stuck around the group of kids who were deemed talented enough. For a while, it was nice. To be able to talk to them and learn things about them, share his small experience of the world. But then, they were lagging behind. No, they trained hard, like him, but they were holding him down. Why?
"It just means you're reaching your potential before they are, that's all."
It sounded simple when she said it. Just a thing he could do, not what it made him. Not what it made others think of him. None of the stares, the resentments, the muttered comments behind his back from teammates who had styled themselves his equals, his peers.
He was learning—slowly, maddeningly—that he had no peers at all.
. o . 0 . o .
Like clockwork—the moment he needs to focus on his thoughts, he appears.
Oh, Shu, you know you can't see her again.
Oh, it's you. This time, it was the other boy giggling childishly through his warning.
. o . 0 . o .
"Stop it," Shu said. "Stop hissing in my ears as though these thoughts are my own."
You know it's all true, Shu~
. o . 0 . o .
I am, and I'm in you—I am you. His words are enticing and hypnotic.
'You are me'. Shu repeats as if under a spell.
I am you.
'You...are...me.'
Searing pain shoots through his head.
. o . 0 . o .
Show them how much pain they caused. Tell them about the beautiful person they took away from the world. Try to forgive them. Those were the first thoughts that went through Shu's mind, and they were words that he knew he should heed. Forgiveness led to salvation, and there was no point of no return that kept a person from achieving that—he had to believe that even the minister and the general were people worth saving. They had lives and families back there somewhere waiting for them. They had souls.
They were people. Broken people who'd done awful things... but they were still people.
People who killed Inori.
Shu's hands tightened into fists where they rested on his sides. "I don't think there's anything I could do," he said, voice quiet.
. o . 0 . o .
Mana finally resurrected.
She was quickly gunned down.
Shu killed all of them.
It was just so easy to.
Adam looked down at Eve's mangled, bloodied body. "Eve... stop fooling around. Sleeping on the floor doesn't look all that comfortable to me."
. o . 0 . o .
Then something caught Mana's attention. Something that would easily enough, distract her from her embarrassment. As she kept her head down she noticed Shu's movements, his dancing... they were... off.
She noticed how every time she took a step. He barely reacted just in time to match hers.
Then it hit her. He had no idea how to ballroom dance! He wasn't even taking the lead. He was just reacting to her movement and adjusting as quickly as he could.
Mana smirked and looked up at him. Her prior embarrassment rapidly gone, and her cheeks only slightly flushed, now recovered. She cast him her typical domineering gaze, "How can you not know anything as simple as Waltz?"
Shu just grinned at her. "Oh, so you've noticed? Just give me a little bit more time to get used to the movements, okay?"
He said it more like a statement rather than a question seeking her approval. Mana did as he said, a bit intrigued by his proposition. Over a few seconds, Shu indeed started to adjust. She watched as he looked around the other dancers on the floor, and started mimicking their steps, and then eventually asserting their movements into their own waltz. It wasn't long until he was actually leading her, as he should have done from the start. He was indeed a fast learner. He didn't even need anyone to teach him.
Not like they needed anyone else in the first place.
. o . 0 . o .
"I'm bored."
"Now?"
She made a naughty smile. "Now."
. o . 0 . o .
Recommendations
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Right, wrong and everything in between by FeelingsDusk which tells us a character study between Stiles Stilinski and Peter Hale. A one-shot starting from when Peter stumbled upon Stiles who was temporarily running away from home.
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