Summary: "That is why…no matter what form you choose to take—male or female, young or old, we will always be weaved together by fate. You have been and forever will be my counterpart, my destined partner…my Queen."

Disclaimer: Of course, I do not own Monochrome Factor or any of its characters.

AN: It's been awhile since I've last posted, but my computer has been being a complete pain. So this chapter may look a little strange. I may go back and have to edit a few things.

Monochrome Factor: Lingering Shadows

Akira felt his left eye twitch. Words failed to leave his gaping mouth. And, like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car, his feet stood rooted to the spot. This made no sense. It wasn't possible. Surely, Shirogane has to be lying! But, those eyes…his subconscious recognize that look—he's seen it before. It was sincere; he meant what he said.

No.

No, no, no, no, no! This ain't happening!

Shaking from his stupor, Akira shoved the taller man as hard as he could away from him.

"Enough! We didn't ask you for some sob story. We need something solid to help us combat this. Always saying stupid things! How about something useful?"

He was struggling to keep his voice from trembling. Fear, anxiety, and denial were coiling tighter and tighter together like a snake threatening to suffocate him. If what the shadow is saying is indeed accurate, then that means the two of them have…that they…they…

"Akira-kun."

Shirogane's soft voice startled Akira's attention back to him. Tension had filled the small apartment room with each individual waiting to see how the brash teen would react.

"Please, be patient. I can only tell you what you need to know when the time is appropriate. However, I can tell you this. It's my belief, that in order to be its sole ruler, Homurabi is venturing to the Light World to obtain the remaining 'factors'. He's sunk your domain into darkness already once before. He won't hesitate to do so again now that he's gained the upper hand with Shisui out of the way."

Shirogane made a bold move by attempting to inch closer. At seeing his counterpart recoil, he sighed and chose to take a wise step back.

"Truth can be a bitter thing to swallow, but I'm afraid you must do so. As Queen, you alone are capable of aiding me to undo what has been done. We must overthrow the imposter that questioned our sovereign, brought chaos to both worlds, and continues to taunt us! Order needs to be restored. It is our purpose. Akira—no…Ryuuko, for thousands of years we have co-existed as Shin and Rei. War is still upon us, and one king has already fallen. There may not be much time before the enemy moves on his next target. We need to be prepared or he will overpower us. For now, please continue to have faith in me and fight by my side."

The boy swallowed hard, trapped by the eyes that strongly bore straight through his body to the pure soul underneath. Akira wasn't sure what bothered him more, the fact that Shirogane managed to make him feel extremely vulnerable or…that perhaps he didn't know the shadow being at all. He had never seen this side of his companion—the authoritative tone, the intimidating aura; they looked so out of place.

The polite smile Shirogane wore so often shifted back, and gently he reached forward to tenderly grasp the teen's hands in his own.

Akira gasped at the sudden gesture of affection, a light blush flushing his cheeks. His mouth opened and closed like a fish.

"I can't do this on my own. I need your help. Please…Ryuuko."

Something deep inside Akira suddenly snapped. He felt anger instantly fill his being. Roughly pulling his hands away, he gripped them into fists.

"…that's not my name."

The taller king blinked at him, regarding him carefully. Surprise quickly blossomed across his youthful features.

"I don't know what you're going on about Shirogane, but you've obviously got the wrong person."

"Ryuuko…"

"Silence! I told you already, that's not my name! What's more, I'm a man. I won't let anyone stand by and make a mockery of that."

"Don't delude yourself." The elder warned. "That body you wear is camouflage, a vessel serving as physical flesh. Now, I'll ask but once more…"

Akira gritted his teeth. Harshly, he slapped away the offered hand that extended towards him.

"Forget it! I'm not who you want me to be!"

"Akira-kun!"

Akira promptly turned away from him and bolted out the door—the rattling slam echoing off the walls.

Everyone in the small group stared slack-jawed at the sudden outburst. An awkward silence hung between them, while the only white noise radiated from the large fish aquarium Kou kept in his small living room.

Kou-san leaned casually against the back of the couch and drew a cigarette.

"Now what?"

The silver haired king gripped his cane again, his gaze as hard and determined as his resolve.

"Simple. We find him before something else does."

Across town, Akira pumped as much strength he could muster into his legs; the feeling of de'javu flooding his system. He has done this before. The first few memories he has of meeting his counterpart are of him running away.

He and his friends had been at school during the evening, and accidently met up with an aggressive pack of kochi. At that time, Shirogane made his appearance by intercepting the rampant creatures. He shielded the teenagers in a protective barrier, and asked Akira to aid him in fending off the invading darkness. Rather than comply, Akira had fled. He didn't understand a word the strange individual was saying, and the idea of fighting against phantom-like monsters scared him.

Never the less, destiny inevitably pulled him in. Defending the balance between both worlds of light and shadow soon became his job—not exactly his first pick as a career choice.

And now, here he is—same scenario. Shirogane has again approached him to ask for help…and just as before, he's running.

Ironic.

Akira slowed down the pace. Taking a few precious moments to catch his breath, he deftly jumped over a cemented rail guard to get closer to his destination of the harbor. The salty, sea breeze wafted past his nose. It brought a welcome feeling of relief.

Alone in his own thoughts, the teen sat down close to the rough shoreline. His head was spinning.

"I've never been one to run from a fight…but then, I don't get what Shirogane's talking about. He called me…Ryuuko. Could it be possible that this whole time, he's been assuming I'm someone else? But how could that be? He's never spoken of it before. This Ryuuko…I have no memory of being that person. I don't know who he is!"

A shiver crept up his spine, giving him the willies as another thought occurred to him.

"Or…to be more precise, who she is." He thought with building dread.

The conversation from earlier replayed over and over through his mind. Instantly, his cheeks heated up with a deep blush.

"The idea's ridiculous! His queen…? He should consider himself lucky I didn't bash his face in for even suggesting it! Stupid! As if I'd ever—I…"

Despite himself, a vivid, mental picture flashed through his poor, teenage brain. It lasted merely a nano-second, but he distinctly saw himself in a woman's body, stark naked, with Shirogane hovering above him.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhh! No, no, no, no, no, no!"

Hastily, he ran his hands through his soft, brown hair.

"Argh! Why does everything boil down to being about that baka? He's not even here and he still drives me insane!"

He sighed, holding his head in his hands while listening to the waves. Back and forth, back and forth, they gently crashed into the shoreline. It was soothing.

"…what an adolescence I'm having."

A prickly sensation suddenly overcame him, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up. Swiftly he became alert and was on his feet.

Something didn't feel right.

In fact, the atmosphere somehow felt cooler.

Akira surveyed his surroundings carefully. He didn't see anything, but that wasn't to say that something wasn't there.

The heavy silence dragged on, when suddenly a feral screech came at him from behind. He moved just in time to narrowly escape the shadowed beast.

Akira fixed his gray orbs with a glare.

The dark black, reptilian scales. The long, limber, muscular body. The poisonous, blue tongue and mouth. There was no mistaking this terrorsome creature.

"Kokuchi."

He lunged quickly to avoid getting hit as another member of the arriving pack took a swing at him.

"Can't any of you see that I'm in a bit of an identity crisis here?!"

One of the many accumulating kokuchi morphed its lengthy arms into a sharp blade, resembling a syche. It growled low.

Akira lept from its path just as the weapon came crashing down.

"I've had enough of this madness."

Boldly, he spread his arms out and shouted, "Doppler, release!"

Nothing.

He waited only an instant when cold, harsh reality dawned on him.

"Aw, shit!"

Another kokuchi made a lunge at him, bearing its long, sharp fangs like a serpent.

"Talk about being dumber than a bag of rocks! I completely forgot I'm no longer shin."

Dodging the open mouth, Akira grabbed a nearby stone and threw it with all his might at the creature's head. The kokuchi gave a shrilling cry of pain before bursting into red, crimson dust.

"Looks like I have no choice but to do this the old fashion way. If that's the case, then fine. I could use something to release my frustration."

He charged forward, nimbly maneuvering his way through the ruthless pack.

"Bring it on!"

Kokuchi are muscular beings, powerfully built, but Akira still found himself with enough agility to dodge the blows. Well…almost.

Without his abilities as a shin, he was feeling awkward in combat. His reflexes aren't as quick, his body not as light, and no weapon to behold!

"Great. What a perfect mess this is." He grumbled. "Still, I don't remember them being this difficult to handle. Have they somehow gotten stronger?"

He didn't have time to stop and think.

The pack continued their group attack at him. Together, they clawed, scratched, pushed, and desperately scrambled to get a bite. They reminded Akira of a pack of ravenous wolves. And more were gathering!

Every time the boy felt he took one out, two appeared to take its place. Some lost their footing on the unstable, rocky shoreline, but Akira knew better than to be overly optimistic. This is rapidly growing into a fight he can't win.

"Dammit." He cursed under his breath.

Twisting to dodge another oncoming attack, he gasped in horror as white, hot pain shot through his ankle. One of the aggressive kokuchi fell along the shore, and dug its fangs into Akira to use him as a stronghold. The added weight drug him down to meet the hard surface.

His vision blurred. Focusing in and out.

He could hear the monsters' loud screams pounding inside his head. This is it, they're circling...zeroing in.

"AKIRA-KUN!"

Louder.

The screams are getting louder.

Finally relenting, he let his eyelids slide close.