Disclaimer: PoT is not mine.

Reviews: Thank you very much indeed for taking time to read and review my fic. Reviews always make me happy - suggestions always help with getting better, and the reviews in general tell me that people like (or are interested in) the strange ideas my brain comes up with. Which is awesome, because most people I know consider writing/reading fanfic no socially acceptable pasttime. ^^; Thus, thank you! And a super-thank you to NighttimeFirefly, Lazy Gaga, Henzie-sama, Alpha Centarus, onlyone42, turtlelover4015, LightAngleHiroko, delicious-thrill, lemon-and-chai and jerui.

And now, please enjoy! ^_^

Twenty-five

Tezuka's eyes snapped open, a split second before he crashed onto the frozen surface of the pond. The ice cracked underneath him, echoing through the silent backyard like an ominous explosion, pain raced down his spine and in the distance Tezuka thought he heard somebody shout his name.

Then he found himself in the deathly embrace of sub-zero water, and all air fled his lungs. Through wide-opened eyes he could see the blurry outlines of a tall building and flickering lights against a dark, dark sky, but it was bizarre, straight out of a nightmare.

Where was Fuji?

A subconscious part of his body recalled what to do – survival instincts kicked in, even if all his nerve endings were on fire; he propelled himself back to the surface with his remaining strength. His knees hit the rocky ground of the pond, and he found the water shallower than he had expected.

But when he – gasping desperately to get air into his burning lungs – tried to push himself up, his legs were too weak. The darkness blurring his vision had nothing to do with the water dripping down from his hair. And even though his heart was racing, he felt faint.

There was water in his eyes, and all of sudden hands were roughly pulling at his soaked clothes. He tried to breathe, but his lungs constricted, and all that came from his throat was a painful, whacking cough. Weakly he tried to swat away the hands, wanted them to leave him alone to recover – his ears were ringing and his head hurt beyond anything he had ever experienced before. He couldn't think, couldn't even remember where he was or what was happening.

Something about Fuji, though.

When he tried to open his eyes the next time, he was out of the water and had to blink - his eyes wouldn't focus; all he could make out were blurry, blinking lights and rapidly moving silhouettes. He wanted the movement to stop; stop before it made him sicker than he already was, yet his throat wouldn't work and he barely had any feeling left in his body. A hurricane raged through his mind - concentration was as impossible as was letting it all fade to black.

Only after his eyelids had closed once again without his conscious permission, the cacophony of sounds started to become distinctive.

"Tezuka-kun!" he could hear a familiar voice calling out, "Tezuka-kun! Hang on!"

At that point, his memory kicked in.

He had been at a hospital - because of his grandfather, because of Fuji, because at some point his entire life had turned into a nightmare – with Fuji's sister and Nakayama. They had been talking - quarrelling – before he had done something - inane. But he hadn't had much of a choice, had he? Or, rather...

A sharp pain assailed Tezuka's head, and he flinched, turning to his side with a soft groan. Something soft, yet cold caressed his cheeks, and he realized he was lying next to the pond in the snow, and his wet clothes had started to freeze and turn stiff. Darkness had fallen a long time ago, and all those blinking, golden lights were actually the windows of the hospital.

"Tezuka-kun?"

All he could do was helplessly gasp for air in reply. His lungs were on fire, the pain blurred together with all the other intolerable aches assaulting his body. He wanted to curl up, but moving was out of question, so he closed his eyes, blocking out the vision of Yumiko's worried face hovering over him, and Nakayama looking on with a concerned expression from the background.

"Nakayama-san," a rustle of cloth betrayed Yumiko turning around, her cold hands hovering next to his shoulder. He could see small droplets of water clinging to them, "Please get a doctor or a nurse! We need to get Tezuka-kun inside as soon as possible."

Tezuka saw Nakayama's lips moving – was that a moment of hesitation there? - but then the old man turned on his heel and hurried away. It was surprising that nobody had come yet, considering the ruckus they had made earlier - or had they? He wasn't certain just how much noise his sudden departure had caused in the end.

And how long had his bizarre venture to that other place taken, anyhow? It felt like ages, though his mind was in pieces, his logic was shattered beyond repair and he there was too much he couldn't make sense of.

It wouldn't matter if…

As the footsteps faded into distance, and noises faded but for his own harsh breathing, Tezuka became aware of Yumiko observing him closely. For a second he saw a darkness in her eyes that sent a shudder down his spine.

Then her expression softened. "Tezuka-kun?" she asked, and this time Tezuka managed a weak nod. His thundering heart began to quieten as he managed to draw one shuddering breath. And while fatigue laid claim onto his body, two questions started to form in his mind.

Was it over? Were Fuji and his grandfather alright?

He had saved Fuji, hadn't he? At least that he had accomplished, though he found no indication of success on Yumiko's face. Darkness preyed on the corners of his vision again, yet the adrenalin racing through his chilled body wouldn't rest before he had affirmed this.

"Are you injured?" Yumiko bit her lip and shook a strand of hair out of her face. Tezuka could see ice clinging to it – probably where water had splashed her.

Slowly, but certainly, he was beginning to feel the cold.

Shock, terror and excitement had dulled his perception, but as his vision had cleared, sensations became palpable once more. And he could tell all too well just how cold the night air was, lying in the snow in soaked clothes.

"There'll be somebody to take you inside in a moment," Yumiko told him. There was something else she wanted to know, he could tell, "Don't worry. Everything will be alright."

Fear coiled in Tezuka's stomach. He had been successful, hadn't he?

Why was there still so much grieve in Yumiko's eyes?

The smile on her face seemed strained, and Tezuka searched the corners and nooks of his mind for a way to voice one simple question. His voice wouldn't cooperate – he knew that without having to try.

Maybe if…

He caught sight of a movement from the corner of his eye.

His heart jumped, but Yumiko never heard the light rustling of fabric behind her. Tezuka's face must have betrayed his shock, for she leaned in abruptly, asking him what was wrong, while a silhouette distatched itself from the shadow of the large decorative boulder next to the pond.

Tezuka recognized the long, flowing dark hair and light coat instantly.

Horror froze him to the spot, while the figure behind Yumiko raised one arm high above her head. Cold anger glittered in the creature's eyes, before it brought down the rock it was wielding right on Yumiko's head.

Without a sound Yumiko collapsed into the snow, right next to him. Tezuka could only stare, terrified, as something red began to trickle from Yumiko's forehead into the snow. He heard the figure take a deep breath, and finally managed to turn around.

His heart started hammering – he moved his lips to say something, call somebody, do anything, but nothing but a faint wheezing noise emerged from his throat.

Close-up, Tezuka could see that she had gotten stuck somewhere between pretending to be Mori-san, and the figure he had encountered in the other place. Her hair was dark and curly, her skin sun-kissed, but the eyes were Mori's. So were the clothes – sporting a dark red stain just above her chest.

Hadn't Nakayama shot her earlier?

How had that reversed?

Or had it, he wondered, watching her straighten up with gritted teeth, while his brain screamed at him to run. When she lifted her head to glare at him, his body caught up, and he managed to push himself onto his knees, before collapsing back into the snow.

Sweat was covering his forehead all of a sudden; his chest was heaving and all his nerve endings were on fire. He was nauseous, dizzy, cold and feverish at the same time. White spots exploded in front of his eyes, and he had to put both hands onto the ground to steady himself.

"Finally," she hissed, and took one unsteady step closer to Tezuka, making him glance up with wide-eyes. He could only lean back, while she raised the blood-smeared rock high above her head.

Whatever strength was left in his body…

He couldn't quite dodge it. Neither did he have the strength to block what usually would have been an unimpressive attempt – all he could do was raise his arms and deflect the blow. The force left his ears ringing, and bloody scratches down his forearm.

Mori stumbled back, enraged.

"I should have killed you a long time ago," she whispered venomously, while trying to find her balance, "You and your annoying friend."

She regained her footing, lifted her head and a dark grin spread across her face. "Well, I guess better late than never."

All Tezuka could do was rob backwards on his behind, trying to put as much distance between himself and Mori as possible. His heart was thundering, his head throbbing and vision fading in and out. Now wasn't a time to allow himself any weakness – yet there was no energy left in his body anymore. He was beyond drained.

And then his back hit rock.

The same boulder she had been sitting on when Nakayama had shot her.

Hadn't that shot killed her? Couldn't he just show up and do it again? Wasn't he taking far too long to fetch help anyway?

Nothing made sense, and already she was upon him, the stone raised high against the black sky once more, the silence around them belying the chaos ripping through his mind. His breath hitched – she brought the stone down, and there was little he could do

He never remembered closing his eyes.

But he heard a gasp, and something heavy hit the ground with a thud, and realized that his head hadn't been smashed by a piece of rock.

Instead Mori and an all-too-familiar figure were rolling on the uneven ground. Tezuka's breath caught in his throat, and his eyes shot open. He'd never noticed Fuji sneak up on them.

He was grappling with Mori, had one hand firmly fisted in her hair, the other one tried to grasp her throat, while simultaneously fighting off her attacks. Mori had dropped her weapon during the surprise assault, but it didn't take her long to roll them over.

Fuji gritted his teeth and pushed back. Mori wouldn't have any of it, and tightened her grip around Fuji's throat. She barely dodged the attack aimed at her eyes – Fuji's nails left bloody scratches down her left cheek instead.

They were grappling on the ground, rolling closer to the pond with each punch. Tezuka's heart stopped. Whatever elation he had felt at seeing Fuji alive and unharmed vanished instantly.

Mori was struggling – he saw Fuji's arm reach up and grasp her hair tightly, attempting to pull her down with him, yet she refused to budge. Rage distorted her features, determination – now, that she had her hands wrapped around Fuji's throat she wasn't going to let go.

Something in Tezuka screeched at him to move, but he could only weakly claw at the ground, as control over his body vanished. Sensations faded in and out, darkness blurred the edges of his vision, his lips weren't moving. He was a prisoner in his own body.

But he refused to give in.

Tezuka bit down on his lip, until he could taste blood, and pushed his aching body forward – even if he had to crawl, he wouldn't stand by. Already, the taste of copper brought warmth back into his numb limbs.

Something was tickling his fingers. Circulation seemed to be returning –

It felt different.

Fuji's grip slackened – he could tell, even in the darkness – until his hand fell away completely.

Desperately he reached into himself, focusing on the unfamiliar, weak tickle of power – when Fuji abruptly turned to stare at a point behind Tezuka, wide-eyed.

"No!" he mouthed, stretching out his hand the same second that a shot tore through the night.

Mori's body stiffened – and then the beige back of her coat showed a small spot of bright red. Something tickled Tezuka's senses, an unfamiliar, disconcerting sensation, yet he could only stare at Nakayama in shock.

Until a splash behind him made him turn around so fast, he almost made himself sick. Mori had keeled over – her coat started to look deformed – and pulled Fuji into the water with her. Tezuka's heartn stopped as he watched the two of them go under in horrified mesmerization.

For a moment, silence was total.

Tezuka couldn't even begin to understand, what had just happened in front of his eyes. His mind was screaming, caught in a whirlwind that scattered every thought into a thousand pieces.

Then snow crunched under Nakayama's boots, and the water splashed as Fuji pushed himself upright, putting Tezuka's worst fears to a rest. His body was tingling, with adrenalin and something he didn't understand.

But Mori ...

Was she truly gone now?

Gone for good?

There was a beige coat floating on the dark water, next to where Fuji was making his way out of the pond. Tezuka finally found a chance to look as his friend – and found himself shocked at how pale he was.

Fuji looked like death warmed over, yet there was a grim kind of relief visible on his face that hid all other emotions. He was moving like somebody three times his age as he climbed out of the water – and the temperatures seemed to not even faze him.

"Tezuka-kun!" Nakayama exclaimed once he was closer, "Are you alright?"

Tezuka barely had time to turn around and nod, before Nakayama had caught up to them and finally caught sight of the entire scene.

"What on earth happened?" with a worried frown he cast a glance into Fuji's direction, before kneeling down next to Yumiko. "What happened to Fuji-san? And when did you get here, Fuji-kun?"

There seemed to be something else on his lips as well, but he took one good look at them and changed the line of questioning with a small shake of his head.

"Never mind. A nurse will be out soon. They had some uproar inside, but they told me they would send somebody outside at once," Nakayama looked around once again, and as if he had convinced himself that the danger had passed, he let the gun disappear underneath his coat.

Tezuka felt his shuddering heart beginning to beat a little slower.

"Tezuka," a new voice cut in, "Are you okay?"

He turned to find Fuji's eyes on him, something dark that mirrored Yumiko's expression from earlier in them. Breathlessly, he nodded. His fingers were shaking, and his vision started fading in and out.

"That's good," Fuji muttered and a familiar, exhausted smile appeared on his face as he slumped into the snow next to him, "That was quite a number. Really, I can't believe you did this. I…"

He didn't hear what Fuji said next. All was swallowed by a loud buzzing.

And then the world finally faded to black.

tbc

And from now on, Tezuka shall attempt to make sense of current events. ^_~ And if you have a comment to share, or found a mistake, please feel free to share those with me!