Rin POV

"No…" I sob. Len is a thing in the distance, and each second I am brought farther away from him, the one I love.

"Princess…" Kaito says, obviously wishing I would stop crying.

I sniff, wiping some dampness off my face. My heart beats wildly, like a cord has been cut somewhere. I lean forward, as if to hold onto the horse's neck, but instead grab the horses rein and pull as hard as I can.

The horse immediately halts, pawing its hooves in the air, and as Kaito tries to gain control of the horse, I slip underneath his arms onto the ground, praying I won't be trampled.

Landing in the dust, I roll away from the moving hooves.

"Princess?" Kaito yells frantically as the horse bucks and I scramble to my feet.

"Sorry!" I call, for it's not Kaito or the poor horse's fault. It's stupid Len, thinking he could send me away. Fool.

I run as fast as I can towards the village, but on a second thought dash into the shelter of the trees to hide.

For the next hour, Kaito calls and searches for me like he's gone mad, and I hold my breath and stay hidden almost the whole time. Soon, the sound of him and the horse has disappeared, probably back to the village.

I crawl out of my hiding spot among the branches of an oak, dropping lithely to the ground. I brush some leaves out of my hair and they float to the ground. Its past dusk now, the field and the trees barely perceptible in the dimmest light. After feeling my way to the field, I head towards the flames in the distance: the village.

I arrive there and head towards the noise; surely that must be the revolt, gearing up for its fight. I walk through the muck and damp alleys as to not be spotted by Kaito or Len. The noise of a crowd gets louder and louder, and I stop at a corner to peer out.

I scan the lively and dangerous crowd for my brother and the night, but neither are to be seen.

Then, a flash of gold hair looks familiar, and I grin happily to see I've found him.

"Len!" I call, but as he turns I am suddenly lifted into the air, rough hands grabbing me.

"Hey-!" I start, but a hand is clamped over my mouth. I try to bite it to no success, and I am dragged into the alley.

"Len!" I scream out, but the sound is muffled. But then, I see a spot of blue as he turns the last thing I see before I am shoved around the corner, into the darkness.

Len POV

My heart pounds wildly, offbeat. I knew something was wrong, I've felt it since I'd left her. That had to be her, I know her, my sister, my love.

The crowd is pushing me from all sides. The sun is sinking, I'm losing time. Someone knocks into me, hard. I stumble, ready to send the person a quick glare, but a familiar mop of blue hair stops me.

"Kaito?" His head pops up, eyes widening so I can see all the white around his irises. He's panting.

"Sire! The princess…" he gasps. I grab him, partly to help him stand and partly to shake him.

"What? What's happened to Rin?" I demand fervently.

"She ran off…I'm so sorry, I couldn't find her!" his eyes search mine, his face a full apology. I drop him to his feet.

So it was her. Rin. But where was she going? What has happened to my Rin? My heart pounds faster.

"Sir?" I turn my gaze back to Kaito. "Follow me, there's no time."

This time, my determination and fear cuts through the crowd, making it easy for me to push through them as they mumble their complaints. Kaito dutifully follows. I don't even care about keeping a low profile anymore; all I can think about is Rin.

I find the dark alleyway that has been pushed between two shops. I run down it.

"Rin!" I call. No answer. Suddenly, the echo of a voice stops me.

"You hear something?" it says, barely audible.

"No. but shouldn't he be ranting to the crowd by now?" Said another. I follow the echoes, gesturing to Kaito.

"No man. Now that he's got the girl, he only has to wait. He doesn't need the angry crowd as protection when he's got a hostage."

"Ah, a smaller but stronger shield. And bait too."

"Exactly."

My blood was cold, my heart was stopped. I was dead, for it appears my heart had been stolen.

I choked out a sound, just loud enough for Kaito to hear. He instantly clapped a hand over my mouth, pulling me away. I moaned as if in severe pain as he dragged me away, for the realization had fully set into me.

I should have known. I was so blind! Of course they were here. So blind…

The "I shoulds," ran through my mind. I should have known she would run off. I should have known not to try to force her. I should have noticed the people behind all of this. I should have been more prepared. I should have gone home. I should have planned better. I should have been stronger. I should have been smarter. I should have protected her.

But now what? I lay slumped against the wall pathetically. What was I to do? They had her, they would kill her. They wanted to kill us both. I was helpless. If I went in there, they'd kill us both. There wasn't any time for reinforcements; villagers were headed to burn the castle! I couldn't even warn the others.

I was a horrible prince. I ground my fists into my eyes. I couldn't live without her. I couldn't save the kingdom, I couldn't even save Rin. Kaito patted my shoulder sympathetically.

"Sir, what will we do?" His eyes were worried.

I laughed harshly. "That's what I've been wondering." I admitted. He ducked his head down. I felt like scum.

I picked myself up with the image of Rin in my mind. Kaito stood as well.

"What's the plan?" he asked. I looked up. The sky was completely dark, and I could hear the roar of the moving crowd. I moved my gaze back to Kaito.

"Sometimes, you just don't have a plan." I told him. He nodded slowly and drew his sword.

"Follow my lead." I instructed. He nodded sharply. I paused in my steps. "And thank you, Kaito."

He looked down. "You're welcome."

We walked down the alley way silently. My muscles were tense and taut. Please let me see her, one more time. Tell her how much I love her.

We came to the edge. I peered around the corner. One portly man had his back to us, and the other was slumped against the wall facing forward. I motioned to Kaito.

We ran forward, fast, and I plunged my sword into the bigger one's back. He fell immediately. The other pulled out a sword from his belt to quickly clash it with Kaito's until he was disarmed and down.

The door stood in front of us, and luckily, the men hadn't been very loud. We still had surprise. And use it we did.

I opened the door casually, and got a good look inside before anyone moves. Then, two men in eerily familiar red jackets charged towards us with swords drawn.

Rin POV

There is the sound of shouts and clashing metal through the door. I struggle against my bonds, but unfortunately the gray-haired gentleman isn't distracted for long.

"Keep still." He orders sharply, grabbing my chin. I stare at him, not daring to speak or call out. In my lovely time here, I've learned that such a thing only invokes rage.

He releases my jaw to walk to the door, bolting it shut. As he turns, he lays a hand on not his sword, but a small dagger in his belt. I find this curious, but I am stumped to everything this man does.

After being dragged here, I was promptly tied up and given no explanations. I can only assume that they are after something other than myself, for they haven't interrogated or really done anything to me except to leave me with this man.

Older, but still well built, surely no decrepit old man. He is clearly in charge, but wears simple clothes. In the time before the commotion, he merely paced the room or sat, staring at me as if I were a meal and he a starving man. In his eyes are only greed. In my stomach, I feel a rolling that threatens to rise against my throat, but I will it down.

I hear shouts, and it suddenly occurs to me that it may be Len, not just some regular interference. Len, my love, finally come to rescue me! But somehow, this fills me with dread as well as relief. There is something wrong here, something ominous about the air. It makes me on edge, and I suddenly realize it.

It's a trap. I am the bait. And Len, oh my sweet Len, is the prize. My palms begin to sweat and I feel a deep sense of urgency. I would rather die than to see Len hurt, and this seems to be no ordinary situation, something is darker here. In a second, I decide it.

"Len! Run, it's a-" In a flash, the man is up and in front of me, his hand slamming into my cheek in an effort to silence me. In an attempt at restraint, I do not allow myself to call out at the pain, in danger of Len hearing. This time, I do not want him running to my aid.

After a moment of stifling the initial pain, I open my mouth to gasp, but the man takes it as another attempt to warn Len and hits me again, even harder. This knocks me to the floor, chair and all.

This time a whimper escapes my lips, but before I can even blink, the door bursts open.

From my sideways view from the floor, I know it is Len even before he sees me. His sword is drawn; hair escaping his usual ponytail, with a few cuts across his cheeks that make my own cheek hurt. Or perhaps that's just the pain from before.

"Rin!" Len breathes, eyes filled with shock.

I am grabbed, and the rope restraining me is cut and falls away. The chair bangs as it hits the ground, and I suddenly feel a sharp blade at my neck.

Len still has an expression of shock, but he seems so stricken that I begin to worry that something else is amiss. But his eyes narrow into an expression I have never seen: one of pure hate.

"General James Front." Len seethes, each word brimming with hate. I hear a low chuckle in my ear, and suddenly my blood runs cold as the name rings a faint bell.

This, this grizzled man was the man who killed our parents in cold blood, who led the terrible massacre that day. The one who tortured my twin and knocked him and our grandfather out, preventing my retrieval. This was the one Len had been searching for. And he had a knife to my throat.

My throat thick and overwhelmed with emotion, a sob escapes me. I glance up to see the reaction to my sound on Len; for a moment, he drops his guard, lost in my distress.

The general seizes this moment to throw a concealed dagger in his free hand at Len with startling accuracy. Although Len moves, he is a second to late, and it cuts deep into his shoulder.

My brother doesn't cry out in pain, but instead rips the knife out of his flesh, returning his enraged glare to the perpetrator. The knife drops to the floor.

"Prince Len. We've been waiting for you, me and your lovely sister. Such a miraculous occurrence that she is alive, isn't it? A long-awaited reunion for you, no?" the blade presses into my throat a little closer as the generals words are uttered close behind me.

"Let her go." Len orders darkly, his hand gripping his sword tight, so tight that his knuckles have turned white with strain. The general chuckles.

"I'm really happy to have her though! She drew you out, so that our lovely mob wasn't even needed, even after so much planning. And a little help from your negligence, of course. But you want her alive, don't you? Then you better drop you weapon boy." Len's eyes are conflicted, and I know that this is just like before. He's going to drop his sword, just to save me, the stupid boy. Hiding me in a cabinet, forcing me to leave the country, it's all the same, all the same sacrifice. How many times would we do this before it ends horribly?

I don't want him to do it anymore, it isn't fair, and I want a different ending for us. To be together. No more of his sacrifice.

It was time for mine.

I brought my elbow forward than swiftly back to dig deep into the general's ribs, as well as smashing the back of my head into his chin as hard as I could.

Lucky for me, he drops the blade rather than slamming it into my throat, allowing me to escape from his grasp in those few precious seconds.

Len also uses the time to his advantage, and swings his fist into the general's cheek, knocking him backwards as he tried to stand. I let out a small scream at the action, making Len turn to me, thinking I'm in distress.

The general stands and knocks Len back into the table, falling straight into it. I crawl over to Len, but am grabbed by my foot. I gasp and begin kicking as hard as I can, and eventually land a blow to his face, but still he hangs on.

Len, seeing this leaps up, sword still in hand and raises it to the general's throat. After a moment of stillness, the grizzled man drops my foot and backs into the corner.

"You bastard." Len growls, his free hand outstretched as if to shield me. "You dare hurt my sister."

"Dare?" the general grins. "It's my goal in life." With that, he dashes to the side of the wall and rolls away, right towards me, but Len quickly pins him from behind and holds the sword to his neck just before he reaches me, his face right before mine.

I look into the hateful gray eyes of this man, and suddenly I am taken back. Back, back, way back. I gasp, a sound so full of pain and shock that it even surprises me.

"Rin?" Len says urgently from his position behind the general. I back away from the man's gaze as it all falls into place.

"I remember… I remember…!" I cry.

"What?" Len asks urgently, watching me from his struggle, but the memory is pulsing, pulsing through my head.

"I remember!" I scream as it consumes me.

My head hurts. It's so dark. Where is Len? Where is he? As the memories come flooding back, I grab my matted head and whimper. The blood… so much… Where is my twin? I just want Len…

I sit up slowly, for my head still hurts, but the ground I'm lying on is so cold. The snow has soaked through the thin fabric of my dress, making me cold, so cold. As I shakily stand, the wet fabric sticks to my legs, covering them with the bloody, dark yellow dress. I'm shaking, my legs hurt and I can't help but start to cry.

"Len…Len!" I cry. Where has he gone? Why would he leave without me? What if he's hurt or… I begin to sob harder, for the thought of my brother bloody and cold like my parents were… it makes me hurt so bad inside.

Suddenly, a noise makes my head shoot up, scanning the immense courtyard. Nothing.

Heart pounding, I take a hesitant step forward.

"Len?" I whisper, my small voice echoing across the yard. No answer, no sound.

Suddenly, a crunch in the snow behind me.

I whirl around, so scared. It's a man, covered in blood. Or at least, looks like it, for he's wearing a bright red coat, as bright as the blood in the snow.

I gasp. A red jacket! He's one of them!

I back away, but fall to the ground. My hands slip on the cold snow as I try desperately to skitter away, but he limps towards me.

"There you are little princess…" he chuckles. "What a stroke of luck." His hand reaches for me, and his gold buttons flash at me as I am lifted, lifted off the ground by the neckline of my dress.

"Your brother got away, but not you… the last of the line. We thought you too lost. But no. you were just waiting, waiting for me. I lost one child, but gained another." I gasp and stutter, protesting, begging. Len, Len is safe? But where, and how, and why would he leave?

His breath is sour in my face as he shakes me.

"LOOK AT ME!" he roars. Through my dazed and shaken vision, I meet his eyes. They are grey and cold as the ice around us. They are full of something that scares me, scares me even worse than being left behind. But it is not long that I'm staring into those cold, cold eyes. For he slowly raises his free hand, clenched tightly.

"Die, little princess." And then it comes, the pain, and then the darkness. The deep, burying darkness.

"Len!" I gasp. I meet my brother's eyes, ones that are full of only love and worry, such a change from the older man before me.

"Len, he-he-he…" I stutter. The general chuckles darkly.

"So you remember, little princess." His words curl around the title sickly, it makes me sick inside. I feel bile rising in my throat, but choke it down.

"I was w-wrong." I utter. Len's eyes follow me, and the general struggles pitifully.

"It wasn't my fall that made me forget." I said. "It was his own hand, trying to kill me!"

Mad laughter fills the room that chills me like the snow did so many years ago. However, my eyes only look at Len, to see his expression darken to one that challenges the darkest storm.

"You." He says in a voice not his own, husky and so full of something like hate that it silences the laughter.

In a flash, Len's hand is at his belt, a small, bloodied dagger in his hand, the blade glinting. I recognize it, it is the generals own knife; Len must have picked it up.

And I watch it; watch it as Len slashes it across the general's throat. His death at his own knife, not even Len's sword.

I gasp as the blood flows, reminded of the horrors I had witnessed. The general falls to the floor in a pool of his own blood, and Len stares at him, horrified as well at his bloody hands and the death before him.

I let out a strangled sob and want so badly to close my eyes to the red pools, and to Len's red, red hands, glistening in the dim light.

He looks at me at the sound and reaches for me with his hand.

"Rin…" He says, a choked out sound. I cower, not even seeing my brother, only seeing the blood on his hands, only hearing the screams that echo in my ears and the raspy sound of my breathing.

A sound breaks the wall of fear. From the door, Kaito bursts in from his job of defeating the rest of the red soldiers outside.

"Sire! They're revolting!" I look to Len and see his face, filled with anguish, and feel a pang inside. Shakily, I stand and grab his hand, blood and all.

"Come, Len." I urged. He nods and grips my hand tightly before leading the way. I see Kaito's eyes sweep the room, taking in it all before lowering his eyes. I swallow hard.

Outside there are shouts, but there are only a few people around. As a boy whoops from the darkness, Len draws me close, sliding a protecting arm around me as we walk. My heart beats fast.

We head towards the field, and as we get to the edge of the town, I suddenly notice the orange glow in the sky.

The buildings fall behind us and the meadow is stretched across, straight to where the world is on fire.

Our home, the castle where Len and I were reunited, stands as a torch against the sky, lighting up the night like a huge sun. Screams and yells of anguish and anger shatter the air, and you can feel the heat of their anger and the flames from here. The sound of glass breaking pierces the air.

Len turns me away from the sight of our home, and I bury my head into his chest. Kaito pulls off his helmet in sadness before turning to Len.

"I cannot believe it…" Len murmurs. "I have been so blind…" He shakes his head mournfully. I draw mine back to gaze up at him.

"I must…I should…" he gazes at the flames with pure confusion. His hands grip me as a wind blows a gust of heat our way, rustling the trampled grasses at our feet.

"No Len." I say suddenly. He looks into my eyes. "There's nothing left here for us."

"But I must fix this…" he argued. "I must go back and-"

"No!" I interrupt sharply. "Len, if you go back, they'll kill you. I know that you feel guilty, but there's nothing more you can do." I swallow hard.

"They're angry, Len. They're tired. They don't want a king or a prince. They need something else. Our time here is over." He looks towards the castle, and I place a hand on his cheek.

"Please Len. Come with me. You've made so many sacrifices… Please, please Len." I lean my head onto his chest and cry, cry at the thought of losing him again, at the thought of our home gone, and just because I was tired, so so tired.

I feel a touch underneath my cheek and look up as Len's lips meet mine. When we part, he looks into my eyes, and feel relief.

"I'll go wherever you go, my love." He whispers as his blond bangs are tossed by the wind. Then, he smiles sadly at me and turns to Kaito, a firm hand on my waist to keep me close.

"Kaito, I thank you for your loyalty. I know it asking too much from you, but if you could not speak of this to anyone, we would be very thankful. And please accept the money I gave you earlier for your loyalty. Thank you for the years of service."

Kaito glances at his waist where the bag still lays, and then carefully unties it before handing it back to my twin. He smiles.

"You and the princess will need this to start your new life. And my loyalty comes free, sire." Hesitantly, Len takes the money, and then grabs Kaito's hand, shaking it firmly.

"You are a good friend." Len says, his gesture not one of status but of camaraderie. It makes Kaito smile again, and then with a nod, is gone into the night.

Len stares off for a moment before turning to me. I grab his hand, intertwining our fingers and smiling. He smiles back. We begin to walk off into the dark, concealing forest, but Len stops for a minute, raising his face to the burning sky.

"Len?" I say lightly. "What is it?" His blue eyes on the sky, his thin jawbone strong in his face, he is every inch a prince, for a moment more.

"I'm saying goodbye." He answers quietly. I too look, and for a moment, hear the sound of children laughing, their feet fast on rich marble. A small kitten mewling, the rustle of silk, and twin laughters, ringing in the air.

But then it is gone, and we are only left with the wind and the chants of anger from farther on.

"It's time to move on." Len echoes my own thoughts, and carefully, we walk off into the dark forest that holds the promise of our future.

A/N

I finished it TAT I'm sorry it got a little gorey in the middle, it's so unlike me! Blood makes me sick, so if youre like me I aplogize!

I hope you guys liked... I know the end is kinda open, but I'm not gonna lie, the thoughts of a sequel did cross my mind. But i'm not sure, so tell me what you guys think!

I really hoped you guys enjoyed, because I did writing and talking to you guys! I am really grateful for every review, fave, and read! You guys always make me smile and are really the best! Thank you for reading!

I have already planned my next story, it is a RinxLen, with a setting that's somewhat similar to this one... I really look forward to doing this new one because I've thought about it for a long time and is a really long, complex one that will hopefully prepare me for becoming a real writer! I go to college as an English major in the fall!

Again, thank you all so much for everything! Any comments, thoughts, or anything, feel free to comment or PM me! I love to hear from you guys.

So Anyways...

Kagaminevii~

Len always wants to be the hero. *shot*

No, luckily he's not corrupted, but he does feel like he has responsibility... he may return someday.

Thank you!

OliveBerries~ Thanks for all the reviews!

Sure, you can adopt them! But I think they would be a handful!

Aww thank you! You are so sweet. And ditto on the RinxLen twincest! And I could always fall in love with len XD

Rillaine l'Austriche~ I'm so sorry! Forgive me!

Maximum Phantomhive~ Aw! I'm sorry, don't cry! Forgive me.

Writers block ran away :D Thank you!

Yup! I envy them XD

SheWhoLeavesCrappyReviews~

It does! Len is a macho, macho man :D

It's not bad! I'm glad you like it! Thank you!

You'd never come back? o.o I'd miss you!

TeamKagamineForever~ I know! Drama drama.

He will! Dont worry TAT

Thank you!

Random Reader~ Aw thank you!

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! Till next time! ;D