Training Days

by. Lacrow

Chapter 4

When Darkness Falls and Angels Weep

It felt cool in that little hideaway of his. Then again, it always did. For some reason, the secluded place within a place always seemed to take a life of its own, as if trying its best to accommodate his interests. It was dark by nature, with only candles and a single dreary lamp to illuminate the shadows. A record player behind the lamp. A single table across the checkerboard floor. Red and black were the only colors to be seen including his clothes, with the one exception being his bleach white hair. The only thing marring was the crappy jazz music that came from a record as it skipped in the player, annoying Soul immensely.

"What do you want, Ogre." he spoke flatly to nowhere, more of a statement than an actual question.

"Why, Soul, I'm hurt!"

His response came from the darkness, a little red man in a night black suit emerging from it. Two horns curled from his forehead. Black rings lined his eyes. He swayed this way and that doing an odd little jig, snapping his fingers with a tune that wasn't there. The bizarre act always tried Soul's patience, and he wondered if the little demon did it just to spite him.

"Can't I just spend time with a friend?"

"No." Soul said dryly, annoyed gaze turning into a scowl. "You'd have to have friends for that."

Tending to his tie, the ogre grinned. "Rapier like whit as always. I'm glad to see you haven't lost your edge, given how quickly you lost to his."

The skipping record quietly came to a halt, its repeated tune disappearing into a sea of silence. The flames of the candle wicks were the only audible things left in the dark and gloomy room, the gentle swaying of the fire whispering a hushed flicker into the air as they slowly burnt away at their wax. Soul sat in his simple ebony chair and leaned his elbow against the armrest, the scowl on his face waning as he began to realize just how true those words were. A fist supporting his cheek, the annoyance that pervaded his eyes left him. Temptation piqued his curiosity.

"Tell me what you really want."

The little red man smiled. "With pleasure."

At the snap of his fingers, the little demon pulled the satin curtains right behind Soul. He swiveled in his chair, his face expressionless as his eyes fell onto the ebony grande piano that was centered in the middle of the room. The instrument brought him such mixed feelings that he didn't know how to react half the time when he saw it, let alone when he played it. His love of music always made him melt at the sight of such a fine piano, but the cynic in him knew that the only thing that would come of playing it was insanity. So, after experiencing this dilemma more than once in the past, he decided that whenever he came into contact with it, the only thing he would express is indifference. More to spite the demon than to actually keep himself from playing it.

"However, why not a few keys first?"

"Not happening!" Soul spat, turning his head from the instrument as he closed his eyes. "There's no point."

The ogre's eye gleamed with a look of what seemed like malice. "Oh but there is, my boy! A very good one, in fact!"

Soul's scowl returned. "What kind of crap are you peddling this time?"

"Allow me to explain?"

He glared down from his chair. "You'd better."

With a wicked grin spread wide on his face the demon walked over to a tiny stool, one that didn't seem to be there a few seconds ago. His long arms swaying in the swagger he was so despised for, he made his way slowly and casually, all the while irking Soul further. Swinging his little legs over the equally small stool, he smoothly sat down and crossed his arms over his knees, smiling a terrible smile as though he had just finished some master plan.

"Well, what is it?"

"It's quite simple, really." The little conniver smiled even wider than he already was. "You're dying, Evans. Rather quickly I should say."

Soul's eyes contorted back into annoyance. "There's no way I'm going to let that bastard kill me so easily. He stabbed me before, and I survived just fine. Stop trying to con me."

"This is no con, I assure you. The last time that boy sunk his blade into your flesh, he intentionally tried to spare your life. This time however, he made no such attempt. I'm a part of you, whether you acknowledge that fact or not, and I can guarantee that from where you're sitting, it doesn't look pretty."

Soul took a shallow breath, knowing deep down that the little bastard was right. As if imprinted in his mind, he could still feel the aches of his physical wounds, even in the subconscious space that was the Black Room. The strike this time had been different, the pain it caused was on an entirely different level. He clearly remembered as the chunk of steel embedded itself into his body, the excruciating pain it delivered to him. And as he dwelt on those feelings and emotions, he started to remember everything else that had happened as well. How he had gotten into that predicament in the first place, the entire battle, Leon's last words, his final thoughts...about...

"Maka..." he uttered quietly.

The sound of the meister's name changed the little ogre's demeanor almost immediately. As if Soul had just spoken blasphemy, he switched instantly into a brooding beast, jumping up from the rungs of his stool only to stand atop the seat of his chair and point his finger at the boy as the words rumbled from deep within his throat.

"That woman! She is the cause of this!"

"Watch your mouth!" Soul bellowed back, fury rushing into his chest as he jumped to his feet.

"If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't be in the mess right now!"

"That's a fucking lie!"

"You know it's true! If she could stand up for herself, you wouldn't have to pull a prince charming and come to her rescue! If she had ended the fight, you wouldn't have to put your life in danger just to stay with her! If she had actually helped her weapon, you wouldn't be face down in the dirt right now with a sword sticking through your heart!"

Soul reeled for a second at those last few words the ogre shouted out, his eyes widened in disbelief as their meaning quickly sunk in. At first he didn't believe the demon. He just assumed it was another one of his tricks to lose his cool and fall into the insanity that he tempted him with ever so frequently. But as he stood there and stared at him, he could tell from the fire and anger in his eyes that the little man was all too serious about what he said. Soul could feel his stomach churn at the thought of an injury of that magnitude.

"...He stabbed me through the heart?"

"Yes, well..." The little ogre said calmly, quickly returning back to his mellowed self as he fiddled with his tie. "...not directly, but even a passing glance is enough to cause one to kick the bucket, as they say."

Those calm words coming from the little demon struck a chord with Soul and slowly he fell back into his chair, grasping the aching spot on his chest with his hand. It all made sense now, how he could still feel the pain in even the secluded place. He wan't just injured, he was dying. Which meant that, even in the safety of his own mind, he would soon be swallowed up whole. Permanently.

"It didn't help that you exacerbated the situation with your little fit, mind you." the ogre added off handedly, jumping off his stool and landing with a soft thud. "That was not the smartest move."

"How long do I have?" Soul asked in a detached voice, eyes staring blankly at the red and black tiles on the floor.

The little ogre shrugged. "How should I know? I'm no god. I only know as much as you do."

"HOW LONG DAMMIT! I KNOW YOU KNOW!"

"Quite honestly, this time, I don't." The demon sighed, a palm to his face. "But if I had to say, and I'm assuming that you're forcing me to at this point, it would probably be in the area of around two minutes."

Soul's head shot up, eyes twisted in fear. "Two minutes?"

"At the most, actually. You have metal sticking out of your heart, Evans. What would you expect? Hours?"

Soul sunk into the depths of his chair and grabbed his face, peeking through the slits between his fingers as he processed everything. It was strange being told how long you had left to live, the sensation it brought was indescribable. He was terrified at the prospect at dying obviously, of not being able to live out the rest of his life. At the same time, the thought of his friends losing him and the sadness it would bring them made him feel incredibly guilty about losing the way he did. Over some prideful fight that could have been entirely avoided. He always figured it would've been an accident on his motorcycle, or a well placed Maka-Chop that'd do him in. Not like this. He never planned for this to happen.

He thought of Black Star and Tsubaki. Of Kid, Liz, and Patti. All of them his friends, and all of them his family. They may have been dysfunctional, but they were the most important people in his life. More important than all those dam fan girls that kept sending him letters at school. More important than that renounced family of his that he dare not take their name, except maybe his brother Wes, but he hadn't seen him in years. And then there were those two girls who mattered the most to him. Blair, but only because she was his pet and he'd grown attached to her over the years, despite the fact she tried to molest him every other night. And then Maka...yeah, she was definitely important to him. The most important. And now she'd never get the chance to know that.

He sucked in air at the thought of not being able to keep his promise to her, of not being able to talk to her about their little moment together. It was painful to realize, but he knew that it was never going to happen. At least, not the way things were headed. He knew that the ogre had a plan, but he was wary as to whether to use it or not. There was always a catch, always a stipulation, and he shuddered to think what it would be this time. With such a grave situation on his hands, it probably wasn't going to be something he would enjoy.

Soul clasped his fingers together and ran his hand along his face, taking a deep breath as he collected his thoughts, trying to stay cool. "I'm assuming you have an idea?"

The little ogre's brow rose, a look of annoyance rather than interest. "Obviously."

"Well then what is it!" Soul growled, the temper returning in his voice.

An amused smile appeared on the red man's face. "It's painfully simple, Evans. Just use the Black Blood to heal your wounds. Then use the power it gives you to defeat this Leon character. It's all very obvious at this point, and quite frankly I'm surprised at how rattled you are by all this. Usually you're so calm, so collected, so...distasteful!"

A scornful half-chuckle came from Soul's throat as he looked up to the ceiling, staring at no place in particular. "What's the catch?"

"No catch."

Soul's head snapped back to face the little man, his eyes twisted to reveal the full brunt of his fury. The thought of being jerked around only moments before his supposed death sent him into a blind rage, forcing him to stand up and march his way over to the demon. The ogre merely stood there grinning as Soul grabbed him by the collar and lifted him into the air, tiny legs dangling as his long arms fell far below them, almost touching the ground even though he was so far up.

"Don't fuck with me! I'm not in the mood for your crap!" Soul barked, shaking the ogre a little as he did. "What is the catch!"

The demon's eyes half closed in complacency, his lips still curled into a grin. "Like I said, there is no catch"

Soul's eyes narrowed as he brought his face closer to the evil little figure's, their noses almost touching. "There is always a catch with you."

"Not when I'm this close to being erased, there isn't!"

With relative ease, the ogre worked himself free of Soul's grasp and fell back down to the ground. He dusted himself off and, picking up on Soul's genuine confusion, crossed his arms in annoyance as he looked back up at his host. The grin he wore seconds ago gave way to an intolerable sneer and he tapped his foot in impatience.

"You do realize that if you die, I die?" he said, shaking his head. "Don't mistake the concern for my own well being with sympathy for you. This is purely business, Soul."

"So what, that's it?" the scythe replied, shoving his hands deeply into the pockets of his pinstripe slacks. "No deals? No tricks?"

The little demon shook his head, a tired smile on his face. "Nothing of the sort. Any time spent arguing with you over the details of such an agreement would be put to much better use saving our lives. There is, however, one word of caution I'd like to instill in you."

Soul's brow raised. "And what would that be?"

The little ogre began to walk past Soul rather calmly, making his way towards the grande piano. Sliding himself into the tiny chair that sat right next to it, he threw his leg over the other and put his hands in his lap, a rarely seen serious look plastered to his face.

"The Black Blood will heal you, but it's no ambrosa. When you return to your senses outside, the pain will be unbearable until you're fully healed. The process will take some time and until you reach the peak of your strength, you will be completely open to attacks. I suggest that you don't do anything brash like you did earlier in the fight, for both our sakes."

Listening to him for once, Soul thought about the demon's words in silent contemplation. His movements would be hindered and he wouldn't be able to do much for a few minutes, but at least he would still be alive. That was the most important thing. The guilt within him suddenly receded and the thought of keeping his promise to Maka didn't seem all that impossible anymore. He was still wary of any tricks his associate might pull, but the opportunity was to great to pass up. He had to take it.

Eyes fixed in solid determination, he made his way to the piano. The demon watched in fascination as Soul came to the instrument, going around the side so as to slide into place.

"Pussy footing around the situation wouldn't be very cool now, would it?" he grinned as he brought his legs in front of him and his arms into place. "I'm doing this in style."

Although wary, the little ogre couldn't contain the winding grin that snaked its way across his face. "As you wish, Evans."

Brining his fingers to the keys, Soul hesitated for a moment as he tried to decide what song to play for the occasion. What melody would fit? What chords would he strike? The sheer amount to choose from was boggling but he had no time think about it, the seconds whittling down faster than either of them would like. He let his pointer finger fall on a random key, and he heard a familiar sound. One that always eased the situations when he played during Kishin fights, or when he tried to bring Maka out of her fits of self doubt. His teeth flashed in an unnaturally large grin. He had found it.

The perfect melody within his reach, he brought himself back into position. Sucking in air one last time, he sent his fingers crashing into the ivory keys below. The piece he chose was dark, brooding, tempestuous, and perfect; Lyapunov's Transcendental Etude No. 6, "Storm". The notes came racing from his fingers, the sheer speed of his movements turning them to blurs as the music came thundering from the piano in an assortment of gloomy strokes. His eyes glazed as the work consumed him, every thought fading from him as the playing became instinctual, quick, and emotional. He felt the grin fade from his face, every muscle soon focused into his wondrous piece. Monstrous Thunder. Torrents of Rain. Gusts of wind. All could be felt within that Dark Room of his. Everything could be heard.

With every other thought gone as he played with all his heart, one thought still lingered. The appreciation for that one key, even though his piece didn't call for it. It was his muse, his inspiration, and just as it had compelled him to play in the past, so too did it give him the push he needed in the present.

It was her key. It was their key.

G

"Stein!" The blonde teacher gasped as she placed her hand over her mouth, trembling as the sight registered with her senses. "Stein!"

"I know, Marie!" the professor replied hastily as he threw off his lab coat. "Dammit, how could I have become so complacent?"

"This is no time for analysis of the situation, Stein!" Spirit chided as his body instantly started to glow, transforming into a black handled scythe in the air.

"I know!" Stein repeated, grabbing a hold of the weapon and instantly making his way across the desert sands, running as fast as his feet could carry him. "Dammit, I know!"

His thoughts swirled as to how things could have happened so quickly. Leon was so quick, so well trained, but he thought that he had it all figured out. From his distant viewing spot, Stein thought he had mapped out all of Leon's strengths and weaknesses. For instance, he knew the reason why the Demon Pata was faster when he used his left hand. The hilt was higher up, resulting in a blade with less overall length, and comparatively less drag as well. Stein also surmised that he wasn't physically strong either, and had to compensate by putting all of his focus on speed and disorienting his opponents. All of this the professor picked up on with little to no effort, and yet, he still let something slip by his ever twitching fingers.

What had he done wrong? Was he too focused? Was he not focused enough? Was Marie the problem? Was Spirit? Was he the problem? Why couldn't he figure it out? Did somebody not want him to figure it out? Why would they want that! He had to find this person! He had to kill them! Where was the bastard at! Where could he be? Where could he possibly-!

"...Stein?"

The professor snapped back to his senses, sweat dripping down the bridge of his nose as his run had slowed to a jog. His mind reeled for a moment as he quickened his pace back up again, the three children still far away from their position.

"Well, that was interesting, Senpai..." Stein heaved as he burst back into a full sprint, weakened slightly by the ordeal. "...I'm sure you could feel what was happening to me."

"You better be careful!" The scythe called out from behind him. "There's insanity in the area and it's coming from somewhere nearby. You were being affected by it."

Stein closed his eyes as he let the hot desert air rush past him, letting it wipe away at the sweat that lined his face. He had to remain calm in situations like these, especially when he knew exactly where the insanity was coming from. He was in control with himself. He was at ease.

"I know, Spirit. I know."

It was so unbearably hot out there. So, so hot. It wasn't the sun's fault though. It wasn't the sand's fault either. Or the sky's. Or anyone's for that matter. Except for him. It was his fault. He was the cause of this heat, of this fire burning deep within her. It was his fault. It was all his fault, and she hated him with a deep, passionate scorn from every corner of her heart and every fiber of her being.

She never hated anyone before that day, but she certainly hated him now.

"HE'S MY WEAPON!" she screamed as tears ran down her face, another left hook of hers connecting with his stomach. "HE'LL ALWAYS BE MINE!"

The stoic boy stood there as he took the brunt of her strikes. It had been like that since she first got there. The moment he had taken the sword from Soul Eater's back and turned around, her fist was there to greet him. Every slap, kick, and punch to the face he took silently. Maka hit him on every corner of his body, but nothing seemed to faze him. There was no response from him, no matter what she did. Only the cold blue eyes of his seemed to give any sense of acknowledgement, any sign of humanity.

"YOU CAN'T EVER CHANGE THAT!" Maka continued as she threw another punch his way. "I WON'T ACCEPT IT! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME! I WON'T-!"

"-I'm sorry." Leon called back to her as he caught her punch easily, catching the meister completely off guard. "Maka, I'm sorry. But he's not your partner. Not anymore."

She shook her head and tried to pull her hand away in desperation, her words noticeably weaker as she struggled. "Don't say that! Don't you dare say that! I'll beat you and-!"

"MAKA!" he roared as he jolted her, immediately hushing the girl up.

She stood there and stared at him, her arms still in the air and wrist still grasped by his hand. Through watery eyes Maka noticed the look on his face. It was angry, hurt, but most of all cruel. Like his emotions had been pushed to the breaking point, and all he could feel was bitterness. But she didn't care about his feelings at the moment, only for Soul's wellbeing. With a quick struggle, Maka pulled herself from Leon's grasp and let herself fall to the ground where her partner lay battered and beaten.

Leon just stood there, eyes closed in rejection of the scene before him. Maka ran her hand along Soul's back, gently running her fingers along the edges of the gruesome holes in his flesh. With wide eyes and a heavy heart, she slowly turned his limp body over, praying that in the next few seconds she'd hear him bark at her to get away because it hurt, or make a cool comment like he always did and casually brush off his wounds. He never did.

"S-soul...!" she heaved, tears running down her face as his face came into view. "Oh please, God! Soul, no!"

His jaw hung open, dagger-like teeth laid out for all to see. Blood pooled at the base of his mouth from the gash in his cheek and his face was covered in cuts and bruises, all of them filled and covered with sand. Blood dripped from his nose in steady amounts, trickling down his lips and into the pool below. But she lost it with his eyes. Those blank, white eyes of his. There were no color to them, no sense of being. They were windows into the empty husk of a body that lay before her, no sense of life detectable anywhere within them. No longer those of a cool boy, but of a dead man.

"Don't!...don't you...!" Maka choked, hand trembling above the open gash in his heart. She couldn't finish the sentence.

Instead, the inconsolable girl wrapped her arms around the lifeless body and brought him on top of her knees. From there, she lay her forehead on top of his, tears flowing down from her face to his cheeks as they washed away the sand from his wounds. With her hand she closed his slack jaw, then brushed it along his ragged cheeks. Shaking her head against his, she silently denied the outcome of the battle. There was no way Soul could have lost. There was no way he was...

Maka brought her head up as the water continued to flow from her face. She was desperate. She decided to do the last thing she could, the last thing she wanted to. Reaching from behind her, she pulled out one of her books, the same one she had used on him earlier. Maka hovered it above his head and, with no strength behind it, let it fall on his forehead. It rolled off his face and onto the ground, making a pathetic thud as it did. Then it became silent again.

"It's over, Maka." Leon called to her, eyes looking away from the scene.

The meister shook her head in denial weakly and took Soul's face in her hands. She wasn't going to leave him. She was never going to leave him. Without even thinking she leaned down and kissed him on the forehead, as if confirming her promise. The she put her forehead back against his and peered back into his soulless eyes again, as if waiting for something to happen.

"Soul Eater." she whispered to her weapon.

Moments passed. Nothing happened. Until about a minute later, from the very corners of his eyes, Maka noticed something. Her heart skipped as a flicker of light returned to those bleached eyes, a slight twinge of red color returning to them. She stopped crying when she realized that the empty husk in front of her started to creak with movement, his chest moving up ever so slowly. Gazing into his eyes, she saw the iris' return to them, along with the sense of comprehension and consciousness. Maka burst into an ever winding grin as she looked down at Soul in her arms, the thought of him alive bringing her completely around.

His eyes turned to hers and, for a moment, the two of them locked together in time. All the pain, all the fighting, everything paled in comparison to the moment they shared in that brief little second in time. It was just them, their commitment to each other keeping them together even after injuries like the ones he had. Maka was enthralled...until Soul's eyes suddenly turned wild with what looked like pain. Their moment broken, she could nothing for him as he suddenly went from silent to screaming. Her heart sank into her stomach. Something was wrong.

When Leon was alerted to Soul's newfound consciousness he immediately peeled around, but it was already too late. He caught sight of Maka as she was pushed back by the force of a rabid Soul jumping up, the death-scythe's arms dangling uselessly as he ran towards him. Leon was caught completely off guard as Soul closed the gap between them in mere seconds, their heads careening towards each other's as he charged at him. Connecting, the Demon Pata was sent flying backwards, falling into the sand as Soul recoiled from the force of the impact.

"Soul, what are you doing! Stop it!" Maka shrilled, completely overwhelmed with fear and worry.

But he didn't listen to her. Or Leon as he roared in agony from the blow to his head. All he did was stand there in his spot up there on the sand dune. hunched over as he panted like a dog. His eyes were wild and distant. Soul wasn't in control. His chest started to convulse as he sucked in air erratically, and immediately he threw his head back into the air. Screaming a deafening scream that seemed like it would never end, Maka was helpless as she was forced to listen to the call. It was so full of pain. And fear.

So full of insanity.

A.N: V-ee-ola. Hope you like it

Quite honestly, I have to call Aquatwin out on this one. Thanks for guessing my plot ahead of time jerk! (Just kidding, I thought it was hilarious that you did though lol)

If anyone's interested, yes, Lyapunov's Transcendental Etude No. 6 "Storm" is an actual piece, and I highly recommend googling it in the video section. It's wonderful and it fits Soul pretty well I think.

Chapter 5 is a given, and I shall not let my readers down. However, Prom is this Saturday, so I probably won't be updating then, or the the following morning for that matter. At least it'll give me more time to review over my work instead of rushing to make the deadline like this one lol