Fandom: Loveless
Title: Resolution
Pairing: SoubixRitsuka
Rating: R (this chapter- for violence/gore)
Timeline: Future AU Although there are hints at some events through volume 4/episode 12, there is no mention of Septimal Moon or Wisdom Resurrection in this story.
Summary: Can Ritsuka forgive Soubi in time to save him?
AN: My first Loveless multi-chapter fic. This story deals with some dark themes, including (but not limited to) graphic violence, abuse, and murder.
Chapter numbering is off on this site. Gomen.
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This is a brief side story that reveals exactly what happened to Misaki on that night... and why Soubi can still look Ritsuka in the eyes.
Enter at your own risk...
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Resolution
Side Story
"Serenity in Murder"
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Soubi stared into the window of his destination. He'd first come to this house as a teenager, on a clear, starry night not unlike this one. Waiting, longing for the boy inside to love him.
The only boy who had mattered… at that time.
"Seimei."
The name tasted like death in his mouth. It was not something he could have ever differentiated before, because it was the only thing that he'd ever known. But now, now that he'd known a glimpse of what life could be because of his time with Ritsuka, the name that had been his only reason for existing now revolted him.
Yet, he still found that he didn't want to… no… he couldn't live without it.
He simply couldn't.
You're hesitating, Soubi.
And so he was. The small, secluded part of his psyche that still clung to humanity cried out to him, begging him to stop, and for a moment, Soubi actually believed he had a choice to do so.
If you don't do this, you know what you'll have to do, don't you?
Yes, he knew. And the possibility that he would ever be instructed to do such a thing was the only reason he was able to will himself to move forward. He leaned closer to the window and peered inside at the woman who had borne the two most important people in his life.
Misaki was pacing frantically around the living room, wringing her hands together and muttering to herself. Soubi had no general feeling toward her one way or the other. Then again, the same could be said for most human beings he confronted on a daily basis. He recalled the times that he had offered to deal with her when she would pound relentlessly on Ritsuka's bedroom door and yes, he would have gladly taken care of her if it had been Ritsuka's wish. But such a thing would have hurt the fragile-spirited boy. Soubi himself did not understand such parental devotion, having been snatched away from his at such a young age. The only thing he knew for certain was that hurting Ritsuka was an impossible option.
At least, it had been. Yet here he was, about to do that very thing.
Because Seimei's alternative was…
The small, faint voice called out to him again, and Soubi cut it short with disturbing ease.
"I am the face of the one who holds your heart… the one whom you love the most," he began, slipping back into wordspell as if it had only been moments, as opposed to years, since he'd had to do so. He felt power, strong, unyielding power, his power, flowing in and around him like a current. Although Beloved's reputation was the stuff of legend, Soubi knew that none of them, perhaps not even Ritsu or Seimei themselves, were aware of the true and frightening depth of what he was capable of.
His words wielded a power that was so tremendous that they could have quite possibly split the earth in two, if he'd had any will of his own to do so.
Soubi stepped away from the window and walked to the door. With no further objections from his subconscious to distract him, he slowly turned the handle and entered the house.
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"S-Sei-Seimei?"
Misaki Aoyagi stared into the face of her firstborn son. Thoughts of her second child quickly faded into nothingness. "Seimei? Is that… you?"
"Mother," Seimei replied quietly.
Misaki's eyes filled with tears of joy. She broke out of her shocked paralysis and sprinted over to him, sweeping him into her arms and planting his face in kisses and tears.
"Oh, Seimei! Oh, my son… my baby… I knew you would come back to me!" she cried out between sobs. "I've missed you so much…."
Misaki tightened her hold around the teen's neck, too caught up in her own rapture to notice the way he did not return her embrace….
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Soubi patiently accepted the emotion that Ritsuka's mother showered upon him. It was a bit of a nuisance, like the insistent buzzing of a very large insect. Nothing more.
He wanted to go home. He wanted to feel that warm body curl into his own. He wanted to be free from Seimei's voice, even if it was just for the rest of this night. And so….
"Incapacitate."
The body draped around him immediately became stiff, unmoving. Soubi gently placed Misaki's arms at her sides and stared into her frozen face. Her eyes moved around wildly and her mouth twitched as she tried to call Seimei's name. He leaned forward, whispering death in her ears. It was a spell he'd only done once before, at his master's behest, on a poor, unsuspecting stray dog that had the misfortune of wandering in Seimei's path. At the time, even the twisted young Sacrifice had displayed a rare moment of horror at the gruesome ferocity of Soubi's spell… before clapping his hands and laughing gleefully.
Soubi moved away from the struggling woman and stood across the room, at a distance in which he was fairly certain he would not get… hit. He turned to look at her, noting the way that blood now steadily streamed from her eyes, replacing the tears she so happily shed just a moment before. It also ran from her ears, nose, and mouth as well as, Soubi suspected, every other orifice on her body. Bubbling, gurgling noises emanated from her throat and she began to twitch as the tremors that wracked her body were suppressed by Soubi's incapacitation spell.
Finish it, Soubi.
As if he had any other choice. To stop now would render the woman a useless, brain dead shell for the rest of her natural life.
He opened his mouth and spoke softly, in the voice that made Ritsuka's heart soar more than he would ever know.
"Your flesh cannot contain you."
Turning his head away did nothing to silence the indescribably grotesque sound of the implosion of liquid and flesh and bone that met his ears. He heard unidentifiable gobs splatter onto the carpet in a rainfall of bloody, wet thumps. He felt droplets of blood splatter against his face and absentmindedly wiped them away.
It was finished.
For now.
Soubi quietly left the house, erasing any traces of his presence in his wake.
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If Ritsuka ever suspects…
Soubi stared up at the sky. The stars twinkled brightly, each tiny planet giving off a glow of its very own. If only he could lose himself in them…
Well, he had. At least, for a little while, anyway.
His mind turned again to the one sleeping serenely in his bed, waiting for him to come home.
He'd taken Ritsuka's ears and murdered his mother, all in one night. It didn't seem possible that Soubi could ever face him again after doing such a thing.
But he would.
He had to.
Because if he didn't…
If Ritsuka ever suspects… if he ever finds out… then I will have you kill him, Soubi.
I will have you kill my little brother.
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Soubi closed his eyes as a soft breeze washed over his face and caused his long blond hair to flutter lazily in the wind behind him. After a moment, he opened them and began walking down the street, letting the cruel yet childlike voice of his master guide him home.
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Let me take you down without a sound
Dead before you hit the ground
Peaceful and serene, slowly bleeding
Eyes once bright now are fading…
"Serenity in Murder" by Slayer
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AN: sigh So... what exactly was I thinking when I sat down to write this??
For those of you still sticking it out with me, see you in 4. Thanks for reading!