"Now that I've found you, it scares me witless to think of anything happening. To you. I'm not used to being... afraid." A sudden realization came to her, "So this is love," she said quietly. "The daily prospect of joy or disaster"
― Zoe Archer, Warrior
Tatsumi patiently waited for the new world to come into focus. He briefly looked over his shoulder to try and catch another glimpse of Scheele, but a deep haze made everything seem out of focus and he couldn't see very far in any direction. Tatsumi breathed a deep sigh; he knew that he had to undertake this journey, but he was just so tired. "So much for rest when you're dead." Tatsumi laughed to himself.
As he continued to wait, Tatsumi's mind inevitably drifted back to Mine. His very being ached to be with her, but at the same time he was so afraid of what she might think of him. The pain of life still weighed heavily on him; all his mistakes, all his failings seemed amplified now that he had left the world, now that there was nothing he could do to change what had happened to him. Yes he wanted to be with Mine, but he wasn't ready to see her. He needed more time to figure everything out. With great effort, Tatsumi shook himself from his thoughts of Mine and once again looked at his surroundings.
He was surprised to see that the world was still very hazy. It almost seemed like everything was covered in a thick fog. Not only that, but the air itself seemed warm and heavy. Tatsumi tried walking forward to see if he could escape his foggy surroundings, but after only a few steps he felt one of his feet become submerged in warm water. Tatsumi quickly pulled his feet from the water and staggered backwards. That's when he realized; the fog was not the world coming into focus, this world was covered in fog. Upon another careful look Tatsumi realized where he was.
He was in a hot spring.
The warm air and fog, was actually steam. The water he had just stepped into was actually a rock lined pool. A huge smile broke across his face. Tatsumi loved hot springs.
He hurriedly undressed himself and started moving towards the nearby spring. A warm soak was just what he needed to help him relax. Tatsumi had his shirt off and was starting to work on his pants when he saw something move in the spring. A huge dark figure stood up from the far side of the pool. Tatsumi froze. The figure started moving towards Tatsumi almost inhumanly fast. Tatsumi struggled to settle his body into a fighting stance to meet this unknown while simultaneously getting redressed. The result was Tatsumi stumbled backwards and fell hard. A sense of dread started filling Tatsumi as he realized that the figure would be on him before he could stand back up. Tatsumi gritted his teeth and mentally prepared himself to fight until an unexpected voice stunned Tatsumi.
"Hey! Tatsumi! Aren't you happy to see me?" It was a voice of strength and wisdom. It was a voice filled with compassion and a willingness to do whatever it takes to protect those he loved. It was the voice of…
"Bro!" Tatsumi felt a great weight lift off his shoulder. With his Big Bro here Tatsumi could do anything! Tatsumi scrambled to his feet and went running towards the still shrouded figure. A huge smile stretched across Tatsumi's face as he got closer and closer to his friend. And then Tatsumi got close enough that he could finally see through the mist. He could see his Big Bro's large muscular body. He could see his Big Bro's outrageous hair that took him an hour to style. He could see his Big Bro's… he could see… Oh no.
Big Bro was naked.
Tatsumi desperately tried to stop himself, but his momentum kept him hurtling towards the completely nude figure of his friend. For Bulat's part he simply stood there completely unabashed, with his head thrown back and a deep hearty laugh rising up from his chest. Finally, Tatsumi's feet found purchase on the wet rocks and his lower body was brought to a halt. However, his upper body continued along its path and Tatsumi fell head over heels into a warm pool of water. Tatsumi was quite content to keep his head literally buried in the sand, but he could hear the thunderous footsteps of his old mentor growing nearer. Tatsumi forced himself to his feet and saw that Bulat was now walking towards him and was now only a few meters from where he stood. With his eyes riveted on Bulat's face, Tatsumi did the only thing that he could still do to prevent calamity. From the very depths of his being he screamed, "OH GOOD GOD, PLEASE STOP!"
Bulat finally realized that something was wrong and came to a halt, he looked questioningly at Tatsumi for a few seconds and then suddenly realized how breezy it was. He looked down, threw his head back in another hearty laugh and then snapped his fingers. Mercifully, a towel appeared over his figure, finally covering his vulnerable bits. "Sorry about that Tatsumi, I guess I got too used to being by myself, Hahaha!" Tatsumi smiled to himself, Bro was just how he remembered him, just his presence always filled Tatsumi with confidence.
Tatsumi quickly darted his eyes down to make sure the towel was firmly secured before he finally felt comfortable to move closer to his dear friend. "Bro, it's so good to see you again!" Tatsumi embraced his friend.
The tight hug actually caught Bulat by surprise; he was unprepared for Tatsumi's arm strength "Whoa! Looks like you've gotten a lot stronger Tatsumi." Bulat had watched from above as Tatsumi found his true potential, but it was quite different to once again be so close to him.
Tatsumi smiled and stepped back, he realized that Bulat was not as tall as he remembered, or perhaps Tatsumi had grown more than he had realized. Before, Bulat and been more than a full head taller than him, but now the top of Tatsumi's head was almost eye level with Bulat. Bulat also noticed these changes. Pride filled his chest, Tatsumi certainly grew into a fine man, he mused to himself. A brief moment of pain stabbed Bulat's heart, he died too young, Bulat turned away so that Tatsumi wouldn't see the tears that sprung to his eyes.
Unfortunately Tatsumi saw the tears and mistook their origin, "Bulat," he began hesitantly, "I'm sorry about Incursio, you trusted it to me and I ended up destroying it. I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't worthy to wield it." Tatsumi hung his head in shame, afraid to see the pain he had caused his friend.
Bulat turned to face Tatsumi once he started talking, he saw the regret etched into Tatsumi's frame and grabbed onto his shoulders forcing Tatsumi to meet his gaze. Once Tatsumi's eyes met his he spoke determinedly, "Tatsumi, you took Incursio farther than even I could. You are the one who brought forth its true power. You are much more worthy of it than I ever was." Tatsumi opened his mouth to speak, but Bulat silenced him with a finger. He was not done yet, "You didn't destroy Incursio, you set it free. That Danger Beast's soul always hated being trapped within a set of armor. Heck, it probably would have thanked you for finally letting it rest."
The earnesty in Bulat's voice got through to Tatsumi, but shame still filled him, "I could have trained harder," Tatsumi muttered, "so many people depended on me." Tatsumi's eyes started to sting and he dropped his gaze from Bulat's again. That's why he never saw the fist, only felt it connect with his stomach.
The force of the blow sent Tatsumi flying backwards; he rolled several times before lying stunned upon the ground. Once he mind finally cleared, he jumped to his feet indignantly, "What was that for!?"
Bulat now stood in his usual garb, light green armor, and help a long practice quarterstaff that he used to use when he and Tatsumi sparred. "I wasn't going to just let you wallow in self-pity Tatsumi." A glint of hardness in his eye's silenced the angry words in Tatsumi's throat. Tatsumi felt his chest and realized that there was no pain, just a dull sensation of soreness. He wondered once again what would happen if he was wounded fatally in this strange world. Bulat's voice shook Tatsumi from his thoughts, "You trained harder than anyone I ever met, you did your best." Bulat put as much sincerity into his voice as he could. He knew the effect of such self-doubt; he wanted to spare Tatsumi the pain he had dealt with after first coming to the afterlife.
Tatsumi knew that there was truth in his words, but a small part of him still lingered in doubt. "You don't know what it's like, you were always strong, stronger than me, stronger than everyone."
Bulat heaved a deep sigh; he knew that his words alone were no longer enough to shake Tatsumi from his pain. He knew what he had to do. Slowly, Bulat raised his staff into the air, and then slammed it down with all his might. As soon as his staff hit the ground the landscape changed, the mist and pools were abruptly replaced with a familiar scene. The training grounds in Night Raid's fortress. Tatsumi was so startled that he fell to the ground. A dull wooden thump surprised him, and he realized that in his hand was the old wooden training sword that Bulat had given him. The weight was the same as the sword he used to use, but its "blade" was nicked and scarred from countless bouts. A piercing yell suddenly pierced the air. Tatsumi looked up to see Bulat charging him with staff raised. Bulat closed the distance between them and then slammed his staff downwards. Tatsumi threw his body to the side to avoid the blow, just barely getting out of the way in time.
He sprung to his feet and then hastily deflected Bulat's side swipe. "What are you doing!" he cried out.
"You think you're weak, you think you're unworthy. Well I think otherwise, so let's see who is right," Bulat punctuated his reply with quick jabs at Tatsumi. Tatsumi desperately parried each blow, but he had no desire to fight Bulat. Tatsumi refused to strike back, so Bulat threw a blinding combination of stabs and swipes at him. Faster than sight, Bulat swiped his staff low and caught Tatsumi's feet, swiping them out from under him and sending Tatsumi crashing to the ground. The air exploded out of Tatsumi's lungs, and he was briefly stunned. His back radiated pain, the first he had felt since dying. It was just like he was alive again. This revelation finally made Tatsumi realize that just like in life, Bulat was not going to pull his punches. Bulat threw another mighty overhead swing at Tatsumi, sword met staff and Tatsumi deflected the blow to his right. The staff slammed into the ground and Bulat was briefly distracted, Tatsumi used the distraction to jump to his feet and settle himself into his familiar fighting stance. Bulat noticed the change in him and smiled to himself. The two then launched themselves into the dance of combat.
Strike, block, counter, each move slide smoothly into the next. Bulat could feel Tatsumi grow bolder with each strike, they were finally an even match, but Bulat knew that he needed to push Tatsumi so that he would reveal his darkest feelings. When Tatsumi swung next, Bulat let his grip loosen and his staff went spinning out his hands. Bulat then neatly grabbed onto Tatsumi's sword and pushed it out of the way, before twirling and letting his right arm swing around and strike Tatsumi in the jaw. The force of the blow sent Tatsumi reeling, silence fell across the field. Tatsumi's face darkened and after spitting blood from his mouth, he let his sword fall and launched himself at Bulat sending a quick series of jabs into Bulat's stomach. Bulat gave ground before once again falling into the rhythm of combat.
Finally after a blow glanced across Tatsumi's shoulders, he finally gave light to the feelings that had been bubbling inside of him since the fight started. "You didn't see how they looked at me." Tatsumi's voice was full of pain and anger, but he continued to fight, "When I returned with Incursio in my hand and you bloodied and dead, draped across my shoulders." Bulat remained silent, letting Tatsumi get everything off his chest. "They knew that I was too weak to help you. They knew that if anyone else had gone with you, you would have still been alive. They knew I had failed." Tears started tracking down Tatsumi's face, but still he continued fighting, launching a brutal series of kicks at Bulat. "But they still expected me to fill your shoes, to step up and be a man." Tatsumi was so full of anger, but he didn't know at who. Was he mad at Bulat, or the others, or himself? His distraction allowed Bulat to grab onto Tatsumi's arm and twist him into a chokehold. Tatsumi threw his head back and struck Bulat in the nose then easily twisted out of the hold. "How could I compare to you? To the 100 Man-Slayer? Yet they all expected me to." Tatsumi now let himself openly weep but even so his fighting only improved. "It should have been me who died that day!" Bulat threw a punch at Tatsumi and Tatsumi sidestepped it, letting it slide harmlessly past his head. Then he grabbed onto Bulat's arm, and with all his strength, heaved Bulat up and over himself, slamming Bulat into the ground. Tatsumi grabbed onto his shirt and drew his hand into a fist, but he delayed the blow. "You shouldn't have died! You shouldn't have left us! I still needed you!" Now Tatsumi was screaming his pain, his arm still drawn back and ready to strike. He remained that way until he felt Bulat draw him into a hug. Then he let his body relax and just let himself cry out. As soon as the tears started to come, all the wounds and pain from their battle disappeared like they had never happened.
Once his tears started to subside, Bulat finally spoke, "I'm sorry Tatsumi. I didn't want to leave. But you didn't need me anymore." Tatsumi opened his mouth to speak, but Bulat silenced him again. "I knew that Incursio and my friends were in good hands with you around." The last of Tatsumi's tears fell, but he remained limp in his friend's arms. Bulat continued speaking, "You did more than I ever could. You took Incursio to new heights and you were the one who challenged the Empire's strongest and emerged triumphant. I always knew that you would one day surpass me, I just never imagined that you would be this strong, this great." Bulat's words were like a balm on Tatsumi's heart, he always considered himself a failure when compared to Bulat. He never saw himself as good enough. Bulat pulled Tatsumi tighter to him, Bulat whispered into Tatsumi's ear "Thank you for taking care of everyone, I am so proud of you, Bro."
Suddenly Tatsumi fell forward. He looked around and saw that the training ground had disappeared and he was once again transitioning between worlds. The suddenness almost broke Tatsumi's heart, there was still so much to be said. Tatsumi screamed out and rammed his fist into the ground. "Argh!" Tatsumi screamed out. He hit the ground over and over again, tears pouring out of him. "Bro!" he called out, desperate for an answer. This was too hard, each time he meet one of his friends his heart broke, and each time he left it broke again. When would he be allowed to rest? Tatsumi cried with his face buried into the ground unable to move.
Until he felt a hand lightly lay upon his shoulder.
AN: Hello everyone! I am once again sorry about how long this chapter took. It was soooo much longer than I originally planned. I am pretty happy with how it went.
Okay there are a couple of things I need to say. 1: you guys are amazing. Every single one of you. Lately I have been making the mistake of reading Youtube comments, I have been so depressed with the caliber of people who seem to exist in this virtual world and I honestly wonder why I even interact with people online. Then I come back here and see how amazing and supportive everyone is. Not just to me, but to so many authors who make themselves vulnerable when they share how much they love something. This is what the internet should be. A place that fosters imagination and participation. So thank you for being your wonderful selves and please continue being amazing. 2: I have been addicted to the universe of How To Train Your Dragon I adore the films, and the soundtracks and especially HiccupxAstrid. But I have yet to find a fanfic that really feels like a true representation of the characters. If you know of a great HTTYD fanfic that will scratch that itch then please PM me.
Thank you for reading and stay tuned.