Author's Notes: (scratches the back of her head) To begin with, I'd like to reiterate that I'm an incoming kolehiyala, that is, an incoming college girl. The requirements at school (for college and otherwise) have had me swamped, even through our one-week vacation that wasn't really a vacation at all, since it was filled with group meetings, screenings, location-hunting and article drafting/editing of the yearbook. PLUS, the role of Script Writer/Pseudo-Director for our trailer (based on Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo) was given to me, and we've been stressing over its production ever since I can remember. PLUS the death of the laptop, Arnoulf II aka Arnie, rendered me unable to even try to type up anything. Only with its recovery do I find myself available to bleed for your sakes, that and the fact that the filming is done ^ ^.
So those are the pathetic reasons why I haven't updated ANYTHING. Not even a little drabble. (bows) Forgive me, dear readers. (cough) Now though, I bring you a little something-something to tide you over until the next wavering blue moon that rises above my peacefully sleeping noggin' XD. I took two words and gave a word for each letter, with which I am free to do whatever I wish. I'm trying this method out on other fandoms, so I'm not sure about its credibility. I hope you like it though, even if you really want to bash my head against very sharp rocks.
Internal War: Okay, in the (god damned) anime, Akatsuki's orange haired. In Matsuri Hino's illustrations, I can't distinguish between blonde and orange. I'm sorry for my color blind-ness, but I'll be calling his hair color orange. In case anyone has a problem with it, please PM me or say it in your review. I'm on pins and needles with this thing. XP
Disclaimers: I own nothing but a temperamental laptop, a bleeding-twitchy-also-temperamental left hand, a bleeding-without-consent brain and the money that pays for my two-hour internet connection. Akatsuki and Takuma? I wish........................... very fervently.
Characters: Akatsuki Kain & Takuma Ichijou, may contain mentions of Kaname, Zero, Hanabusa and Senri. Also, intangible beings, movie stars, bands and other things that may come.
Rating: I wonder. T is fine, I guess, but there are two parts here that scared my socks off when I thought about them. So.... T/M for my own safety. For yours, dear readers? Well, you must be pretty brave to even wander over on this side of the field. I trust you know what awaits you in this field of ravens, in this garden of heat.
Randomnity: "When Barney turns emo: I love you, you hate me, you're in love but not with me; Now my heart is scattered and in pieces 'cause of you, when will I be happy too?"
Lez rok.
L.O.V.E.L.U.S.T.
L is for Laud
Laud, v.t. praise (song)
The songs he sings are full of emotions: that tender loving caress when he speaks of always being there, the bitter-sweet smile when it's time to part, the whisper of hurt when it really isn't him, but someone else entirely. Different languages pour out from one slender throat, to-crave-for lips upon which words of a thousand meanings alight, and eyes of sunset wherein everything lives and dies.
Baby won't you tell me why there is sadness in your eyes
I don't wanna say goodbye to you
Love is one big illusion I should try to forget
But there is something left in my head
He cares like no other, holds you close and never lets go. It seems like he's the one you know. You have to smile a bit, this talent of his is a wonder, he makes you poetic when you'd rather be sadistic. He's sheer magic, white or black you don't really want to know, because knowing would make things harder (not that they aren't already).
Jeu de Paume's full of faces knowing peace, knowing strife
Leisure and toil, still it's canvas and oil
There's just no medium for life
In the midst of the rubble I felt a sense of rebirth
In a dusty cathedral the living God called
And I prayed for my life here on earth
Sometimes he's the sense to your sensibility, the one that has the guts to tell you that 'too far' is already a hundred miles away from where you are. Serenading fool, Singer-sorcerer-- whichever he is, your ears are his, your eyes are locked, your heart is one moment away from being completely his, in a way that you've read of, known of, but never experienced. Scared doesn't even come close.
If you think you know the answers, then you've got a lot of gall,
cause it gives you satisfaction, knowing nothing at all.
He's your Pontius Pilate, your own personal Jesus, your Philistine, your Shamash. And you, naive little you, are his Quatzalcoatl, the son of Sun and Sky and all things too high for any mortal to reach. Not his goal, instead his Prince, his Servant, his Favorite, his. His songs are slowly twisting your mind with their hidden meanings, their dagger-words that hurt more than normal words can. Because the more beautiful something is, the deadlier it becomes. And he was beyond that flimsy wording.
I am looking for someone, who can take as much as I give,
Give back as much as I need,
And still have the will to live.
I am intense, I am in need,
I am in pain, I am in love.
I feel forsaken, like the things I gave away.
But then he is your Akatsuki, the one you hold and care for. You and he are not that far from each other, let the distance be neglected as a quantifiable entity and let it simply exist as a word. Though these are powerful for both of you, the meaning behind it is not. So many things, you think, can't be fitted into these melodies so effortlessly. But it does, he can, and you are fascinated.
You never, you never said... this wasn't what you wanted
He sings beneath your window in the dead of night, summer in the air mixing with the scent you know to be his, and you lean on your balcony's edge, all the more to hear his many-layered chorus. It's a deep sunset-torment, sweet and painful, through and through-- you love him more for it.
Forget the fear it's just a crutch
that tries to hold you back
and turn your dreams to dust
all you need to do is just trust
His summer laud brings a smile to your face and a kiss upon his lips and many more things only the moonlight and his music are knowledgeable of.
O is for Official
Official, adj., syn. definite, formal, legitimate
The day Akatsuki Kain and Takuma Ichijou became an official couple, the Night Class (hence Aidou, hence the Day Class, hence Headmaster Cross, hence Toga Yagari) knew about it almost instantaneously. It was all thanks to the very observant and nonchalant Discipline Committee member, Zero Kiryuu (property of Kaname Kuran), and his rather random statement upon seeing said couple one time of twilight.
This information reached the ears of the Moon Dorm's head (though how this was done was not made known), Kaname Kuran (owner of Zero Kiryuu--- aahhh....), who just happened to mention it in a discussion with one Hanabusa Aidou, who just happened to be in the process of giving Kaname a phone upon which one Ruka Souen was calling, and it just so happened that nearby stood a female student of the Night Class, who was chatting animatedly with another Night Class student who was in the middle of a rather tame (for their standards) group of Day Class girls who were being shooed off rather unsuccessfully by one Yuuki Cross, who had promised to go to a certain Headmaster's Office after her duties, to have tea with the reluctant Hunter, Toga Yagari.
The event proceeded in this order:
Twilight had come upon Cross Academy once again, and Zero Kiryuu had chosen to arrive earlier than usual at the gate where no vampire had yet to appear, for the sake of reasons not divulged. He stood beside the gate and resolved to remain quiet until the Night Class came out. Unknown to the ex-human, Kain and Ichijou were already standing in front of the other side of the gate, the only two students to be doing so at the moment. The reason was perfectly excusable (and was soon to become very obvious to the person right outside the gate): they were making out. Upon hearing a small thump and a gasp, plus an uncomfortable silence occurring after said sounds and the hasty rustling of what he could only assume as uniforms given the crude curse directed at a cravat that flowed through the gate, Zero Kiryuu concluded correctly, and had only to wait mere seconds before more visual evidences presented themselves to him.
These took the form of a flushed and disheveled Takuma Ichijou, whose pale blonde hair was mussed up quite a bit, as if someone had been running their hand (fingers) through it repeatedly, and a somewhat-smile (called so because of the smallness and near-invisible quality of it) on the face of Akatsuki Kain. Though upon seeing the Discipline Committee member standing in front of them, the couple quickly sobered up.
But not before Zero could comment.
With the air of one too used to such displays of affection, seen or otherwise, the ex-human vampire blinked and said,
"That's all fine and dandy, but next time, please get a room."
The flush on Ichijou's face darkened.
"Or a closet." Zero conceded, as if recalling other incidents. He shrugged. "Whichever works."
And later that night, as Kaname Kuran stole his breath away in one such closet, he mumbled distractedly as they came up for air,
"Kain-senpai's going out with Ichijou-senpai."
And it was official.
V is for Venom
Venom, n., poisonous secretion ("Anything can be poisonous, but only a snake is venomous.")
Since his element was water, it was no great wonder for Takuma Ichijou to be good with poisons, potions, balms and the like. What was unexpected was his sheer brutality when it came to dispensing it.
The Night Class (along with Zero Kiryuu) had gone to one of the Aidou's vacation houses for the Christmas break, expecting nothing but the usual tiffs and random clumps of mistletoe all around, a generally relaxed atmosphere, one would observe. But that was not to be the case. An insane vampire hunter had escaped the chains of the nearby Hunters' post, and the rumors of strange students who came out only at night fueled his ruined mind with idea-- which just happened to be true.
Everyone had decided that they would sleep in pairs, for the sake of tradition (the buddy system never fails!) and for the sake of Kaname's subtle hints at wanting to spend the night with the reluctant ex-human, and of course, the others simply complied: Akatsuki rooming with his cousin, and Takuma sharing quarters with Senri Shiki. Though it was questionable, the fact that neither of the two aforementioned vampires returned to their separate rooms without the time being late enough to be called early. Plus, the sounds from one of the empty guest rooms...
...It could have been Kaname and Zero. No other questions were asked.
The third night of this incident, thus the Night Class' third night to stay in the Aidou's vacation house, the insane vampire hunter came to call. A few of the students were wounded, and Zero Kiryuu had been shot at least twice, a fair number considering Kain's own injuries-- a broken arm and three bullets to the stomach. He and Zero had come across the hunter rampaging in one of the first floor rooms and had, without hesitation, attacked it simultaneously. It was wondered why Kain was downstairs, what with his room at the third floor, but the fact that Ichijou's room was in the first floor was ignored and the matter was shushed up.
The hunter had fled from the house when more vampires came, and when Toga Yagari had arrived at the scene, there was more blood than he expected.
"His injuries are worse than Zero's, but he'll live of course. Just don't leave the bullets in, and don't move that arm around too much." he advised the orange vampire cradling his left arm against his red-soaked chest. Kain nodded mutely, not wanting to add to the noise that his cousin was making as he fussed over him like a headless chicken. It wasn't like his face was contorting in pain or anything.
"Ruka-san, please let me through, where's---"
The sound of Takuma Ichijou's voice, though, made him wince, and it wasn't because of the physical pain either. Toga even had the grace to stand up and move his cousin away so that the blonde vampire that had just entered the room could see him in his (very) sorry state. Ichijou's eyes widened and he fell silent at the sight of the unfamiliar--too familiar--substance clearly visible on Kain's shirt.
As Kaname fussed over Zero (subsequently making him stay and put and not reach for Bloody Rose) and ordered the other vampires to go with Toga to hunt the basta----hunter that had taken to the woods, Ichijou knelt before him, and asked, very quietly, "Is there anything I can do?"
The wounded fire starter managed a minute grin for his sake, tilting his head to the side and whispering, "You could make me feel better..." Though he soon regretted that option.
More painful than the gun shots themselves were the tears that refused to fall from Ichijou's eyes as he maneuvered the bullets out of their temporary homes using his blood and his control over the element, as he bandaged his wounds and finally as he played with the fingers of Kain's right hand. After what seemed like hours, Kain spoke.
"I'm alright now, you know. You can cry on my shoulder if you want to."
At the other corner of the room, Kaname and Zero had curiously become very quiet, despite their earlier bickering.
Before Ichijou could reply, the door was flung open by a gnarled, burnt arm, the arm of the hunter which Kain had dealt a blow to. His blood shot eyes scanned the room, and unfortunately landed first on Kain. And it was as if time had slowed down.
Zero was about to pull Bloody Rose's trigger, aiming at the hunter's messed up head----
Kaname's eyes had begun to blow a malevolent red, his hand twitching with an unknown-but probably terrifying-will----
But both of them had to stop short at what Ichijou had done as they prepared to attack.
A mere quarter of a second after the hunter had opened the door, he had already taken out six small vials, three in each hand. Two of the vials held what looked like green and yellow wisps swimming in clear water, another two a substance similar to blood but of a darker and more viscous nature and the last, what seemed to be liquid silver.
Two seconds after, one of the vials found itself being tipped into Ichijou's mouth, and after being emptied, it fell to the ground. In a flash, Ichijou had the hunter on his back, the pressure issued from the vampire's foot on his chest preventing him from breathing and at the same time, rendering him available to the blood-like liquid the vampire was unhaltingly pouring into his throat. The effect was immediate. The hunter's limbs convulsed, the shapes of his bones clearly visible, what with his skin stretching to its limits, veins a sickening green against paling white. His eyes rolled back, blood vessels popping and turning them an ugly imitation of the vampire's red orbs. His mouth was open in a silent scream, allowing only small, strained noises to come forth. A trickle of saliva dripped from the corner of his blue tinged lips.
Ichijou's foot went down, and this time the hunter's scream was heard, maybe even by the vampires in the forest even as they were surrounded by the night folks' serenade, but all the occupants of the room could hear aside from the horrifying scream was the momentary breaking of several bones. Ichijou had stepped down on his sternum, and with the angle his foot was in, it was easy to assume that he had also done the same to several rib bones, perhaps one unluckily piercing the man's heart.
But Ichijou wasn't done yet.
The last pair of vials, whose content resembled imprisoned fireflies, was opened. The substance was poured onto the hunter's chest, and subsequently smeared all over it in one great circle, then smaller ones within it. If possible, his screaming seemed to have gone up a few decibels with this action. From his position near this display, Zero could guess why. The skin on the hunter's chest was melting. Suddenly, Ichijou bit his left hand's index finger, hard enough to make it bleed instantly, and began to write a single word onto the middle of the bigger circle. After this, he placed the bloody, venom-coated digit into his mouth bit down on it.
The blood letters sunk down on the hunter's chest like an executioner's axe, effectively sending sprays of blood onto the blonde vampire and anything else that was relatively nearby.
When the other Night Class students and Toga Yagari returned, they came upon the sight of what could have been a body, perhaps in one of Kafka's worst nightmare--- or his greatest dreams. And the sight of a blood covered Takuma Ichijou, sitting quietly beside Akatsuki Kain, playing idly with the fingers of the other vampire's right hand.
Later, when Kain asked him what kind of poison he used, he answered,
"It wasn't poison. It was venom."
Kain asked him where it came from. Ichijou glanced at the last vial he emptied, the brother of that silver like mixture.
"Oh, it came from grandfather."
E is for Eyes
Eyes, n., organ of sight
1. Open
When Kain's eyes opened in the morning, they reminded Ichijou of a rewind of the end of the day, when the darkness fled from the setting sun taking shelter in the edge of the world-- in short, it reminded him of sunrise.
2. Close
Kain would never admit (without much force, bribery and several hundred racks of expensive 'special costumes' for Ichijou) that, as Ichijou closed his eyes and turned his face up to brush his lips against his, he was nervous enough to be out of his wits (and that was something).
3. Sharp
Of course their eyes were keen, eagle-like, though sharp would a better term, for those eyes that see and deliver an attack to the object of their attention at the same time.
4. Dull
This was not Takuma, Kain's mind concluded hastily, his eyes were too lifeless, too unresponsive-- too dull.
5. Narrowed
When the blonde vampire pouted his lips and narrowed his eyes, 'no' ceased to exist from Kain's vocabulary.
6. Unfocused
After he heard his name being called out, Ichijou crawled up the other vampire's body to meet his unfocused sunset eyes, and he smiled to himself and thought, he was getting really good at this.
7. Hardened (glared)
As Kain glared at their Dorm Leader, at Kaname Kuran, the greatest pure blood alive, Ichijou felt less torn that he thought he would.
8. Softened
Takuma's eyes softened as he stared at his lover standing in the rain with a bouquet of white lilies in his hand and a determined look on his face--- and he couldn't help the tears that fell when Akatsuki spoke,
"I'm sorry."
His reply came out in a strangled breath as he embraced him, letting the rain soak them to the bone,
"You're forgiven…"
9. Sunset
His eyes are the sunset's that ends his pain and heralds the night where he is held like he wasn't broken already.
10. Sea
The only thing he can liken to his eyes is the sea: powerful but soothing, a raging beast and yet a gentle mother—his final resting place, it seems.
Author's Notes:
and here is where I cut you off and gain more angry e-mails. (sigh) acad's calls. BUT! The next part (L.U.S.T.) will be updated before Thursday. Cause on Friday, I climb mountains and get holy water from a waterfall and sleep on a bus. Yup. Field trip. :DSo, review? ^ ^