Love and War

--

In a time of war, the unthinkable happens…two lost souls are reunited. Together again for the first time in more than a decade, Dark Mousy will make a startling discovery about the one person he has sworn to kill...the one person he has sworn to love.

--

Chapter 3

--

There was an awkward sort of silence for the moment after Dark's claim, and then, just as fleeting as a flash of lightning, Krad had lurched forward and tackled the male. Weak as he may be, he still had fight left in him, and apparently it was his idea to go down fighting. His fist slammed into the left side of Dark's face as they simultaneously collided with the hard wood floor.

"Hey!" Dark yelped, pain swelling from the blow; he received another surge of pain when Krad elbowed his chest. "Hey, what the Hell are you—?"

"Shut up!" Krad hissed; he was still attacking.

It was only now that Dark was able to come to his senses and act; he didn't want to hurt Krad anymore than he already had for fear that the one blow might be fatal to the battle-damaged blonde.. So he did the logical thing: he kneed him, hard, in the groin. While Krad was recoiling from the blow, Dark rolled from under Krad and pinned him to the ground. Each was breathing heavily; with Dark straddling Krad, sitting on his stomach and trying to avoid applying pressure to any serious injuries. "Calm down, you damn maniac. You can either calm down, or I swear to God, I'll drag you to the capital and the king himself will see that you get proper judgment. Now," he moved his head closer to Krad's; their noses were nearly touching. "…You want to tell me what the hell that was all about?"

"Get off," Krad hissed. "Get off and get away from me!"

"Hey! I'm in charge here, and you will listen to me. Not the other way around! What the hell is your problem?"

"You! I hate you!"

Dark ignored the stinging pain his heart felt while his mind reasoned that something was just wrong here. "You hate me, yet you don't know me?"

"You stole it! Give it back!"

It took a moment to process, but Dark was suddenly hit with an idea. "The cross?"

"Yes, my cross! Give it back."

"Ah, ah. We made a deal, pretty boy. I said I'd give it back if you'd answer my questions."

"…Give it back, first, and then I'll answer the questions."

"If you're lying, I'm going to cut off a finger," Dark bluffed—quite efficiently.

"I'm not a liar and I never have been. Now, let me up!"

"Do I need to bind your hands? You're quitea wild thing. Fiesty as ever."

"What's that supposed to mean?" the blonde asked callously, wriggling just a slight bit beaneath the male as he tried to wedge himself from out beneath the male straddling him.

"Oh, you don't remember our romps in the bedroom? I remember." There was a smile in his voice as he watched Krad's face contort into a mixure of rage and embarrassment. "Don't flatter yourself," he snapped back. "I'd never be with something so vile as you!"

"Is that so?" Dark taunted. "Because I'll have you know that I remember every fine curve of that little ass of yours."

Krad was sputtering a mixture of nonsense when Dark slowly started to remove himself. "You're going to go sit yourself on the bed and not move while I light up some candles. If you so much as move, I will not hesitate to drag you to the nearest prison holding cell. And don't even think about trying to attack me. You're as weak as anything and we both know it, so why don't you just accept this offering of kindness I'm showing you and be a good boy. For once. And don't pull any of that sly, smart shit you always did back home. Be a good boy and keep your hands in your lap, answer my questions, and I'll give you the cross back. Do you promise to do that?"

"Fine, fine, just get off!"

Dark moved, then, pleased when Krad lay catching his breath for a few long seconds as he walked around the room seeking a candle and something to light it with. He took more time than necessary to locate such if only because he was watching Krad's form out of the corner of his eye. Almost genuinely pleased when Krad drew himself up and set himself on the bed, he only then lit up the first candle; more followed after that and were lit up around the room.

"You hungry?" he inquired as he moved to his pack and drew out the ornate golden cross. When he turned and let Krad see it for the first time, the male's eyes were locked onto it.

"No, I'm fine."

"Suit yourself," Dark said; he walked over and handed the cross to the other, surprised at how tenderly Krad held it in each calloused hand. "…You know, big black knight, one has to wonder, what the hell are you doing with a cross like that? You don't strike me as the religious sort."

"I'm not," Krad said, seeming calmer, now, yet still having the arrogant, superior, biting tone. "It's just something dear to me."

"Oh, yeah? Where'd you get it from?" Dark asked; he took a seat on the bed parallel to Krad and watched him with great curiosity. His astute gaze allowed him to notice the cold golden eyes that shot up to meet his own, gentler eyes.

"None of your business."

"You promised to answer all of my questions," Dark reminded, leaning back in a cocky manner as if to show how at ease—and in control of the situation—he was.

Krad opened his mouth, closed it, and seemed angry when he didn't have an answer.

"Time's running out. I'm losing my patience. Either tell me now or we'll leave first thing in the morning."

He watched as Krad's eyes drifted to the ground and then slowly back up to Dark. He'd lost the hostile expression and it had been replaced with a sort of lost one. He didn't have to answer; Dark might have been a screwball but he could read people better than most.

"You don't know where you got it from, do you?"

Krad had some snippy, biting retort waiting on his tongue, though lost it as he stared into Dark's eyes. Finally, he admitted, "No. I don't."

"…And yet, it's still important to you?"

"Yes, all right? It is," he answered sharply. "Stop asking questions, there aren't any answers to these questions. You're just being stupid."

"Ah, ah. No, these questions have a point, Krad. I just haven't gotten there, yet."

"Well, move on."

"No, this is…it's nice to be in charge. I forgot how much I missed your face when you're angry."

"Would you stop acting like you know me? I'm in the dark, here, and this mind game has long since lost it's appeal."

"Ah, no, I'm still having fun with it. And you should give me a little more respect, Krad. I know you better than you think. And if anyone has a right to want you dead, it's me. So be nice, while you're at it."

Krad looked at him with a confused expression and shook his head, convinced he was dealing with someone who had simply lost his mind. Someone who had seen one too many battles and all the death and gore had just gotten to him. He held the golden cross gently in his hands, stroking it with his thumb. "You're so full of yourself."

"Well, we always did have that in common, didn't we?"

"Would you at least tell me who you are?"

Dark didn't instantly know how to introduce himself. He thought that once they'd have some wonderful, loving reunion, though all words of sweetness and forgiving faded. "I can't believe you don't remember me. I literally can't believe it. I'd think you were an exact replica of my Krad if you didn't have that cross."

Krad groaned. "What is it about the cross? What is it about you? What does anything you're saying have to do with anything else?"

"…Krad Hikari, my name is Dark Mousy. And the last time I saw you was when we were fifteen years old and I gave you that cross as a goodbye present."

Krad stared at the male—the completely earnest tone had caught his attention and the words were as interesting as the way in which they were spoken. He didn't have time to really mull over the words or ask any questions because Dark continued, amethyst eyes plastered on Krad's face, "You are the first and only person I have ever loved and when you and your father left to make a delivery one town over, you were supposed to be gone for two days, tops. A part of me died when he came back without you."

"…What?" Krad asked breathlessly; he was compelled to laugh at the insanity of it all. Still, there was something in Dark's eyes that withheld him from reaching for the dagger he'd snatched and hidden under his pillow and attack the male. "I've never met you before in my—"

"You're full of shit. We grew up together. I've got a whole town full of people that will recognize you on sight. I've got a full town of people that will back me up when I say we were best friends. I've got bartenders that will tell stories about how we snuck in and got drunk when we were fourteen. I've got school teachers who remember us skipping. I've got old women who remember us helping pull weeds in the garden, and pastors who remember finding us in the closet of the church, naked and in the throws of passion—"

Krad shook his head disbelievingly. "This is some sort of trick," he said, still maintaining the elaborate aura of some sort of royalty.

"No trick. And I don't care if I have to drag you back to Azumano in chains, I'm going to prove that you're my Krad. Even if it's the last thing you ever think of, even if you only realize it as they're dropping the guillotine, you'll know you're my Krad."

This seemed to take Krad by surprise. "—Wait. If you love me, why on Earth would you let them kill me? Wouldn't it be your goal to protect me?" he tried to reason, wondering if there was some way he could worm his way into Dark's heart and come out on top of all this.

"Yeah," Dark said, seeming all too cool about the situation given that he was an emotional wreck on the inside, torn between extreme grief at the thought Krad could be such a God-awful murderer and extreme home that there must be some sort of misunderstanding. "But the truth is, you killed all of those people. You're still going to be tried for war crimes."

"Well, then what's the point of even bothering with you?" Krad sneered. "You've already got me set up for a death sentence. Obviously this is some sort of damned game to you. A little joke before the execution? A little game?"

"No!" Dark yelled, his voice rivaling the ongoing thunder; he was angry and furious at the statement. "No, damn it. I'm going to try my damndest to save you, so you'd better tell me every damn little detail you know so I can get you out of this shit hole you've dug for yourself!"

Harsh golden eyes were staring him down after the outburst, and Krad asked suspiciously, "You're a man full of paradoxes, Dark."

"And you've got ten years of mystery that I'm just dying to hear about. If I can't make you remember right now, you better get started on explaining everything you do remember?"

"And just what's in it for me?" Krad asked slowly.

His voice was bitter and he wore a harsh grin, "How about your neck?"

--

And I'll cut off just in time to avoid giving you a proper explanation. But, on the bright side, said explanation will be forthcoming in the mostly-near future, if you can only hold out for that long. More updates will be coming soon. Thank you for reading, and I'll greatly appreciate any sorts of reviews. As always. Go figure. A review for me is like an update for you. And sometimes, the right review can encourage so very much. Thanks for your time and I hope you keep reading.