DISCLAIMER: Hino-san owns. I play!
SUMMARY: Ichiru, on his third day at school.
WORDCOUNT: ~1150

Written at vk_guardians. Prompt: 'I'll let darkness cover me.'

COVER ME
by Leni

"You are such a foolish boy, Ichiru," his mistress says, her voice still trapped between those girly lips and that high tone that slips so easily into a loud laugh. Maria's eyes tease him; Maria's mouth form a small pout; it is Maria's body which sinks into the armchair, its movement coltish, a flail of long bare legs and elbows. "You are no fun anymore," Maria's voice sulks.

Ichiru looks down at her, this girl that is his mistress and is not. She is barely the size he was when they met, this borrowed body. Maria's eyes study him, and Ichiru feels about to glimpse a shade of the true woman inside her, when one of those borrowed laughs echoes in the room.

Ichiru closes his eyes and turns on his heel. "I'll see about the carriage."

A cruel mistress he has, one that takes everything – except that which he offers the most.

xxx

Ichiru had woken up from his dream to the sight of beige walls and a few items hanging in the closet. He would not be able to go back to sleep, so he'd dragged his feet into the bathroom, lighting no lamps on his way as he was long used to dark hallways and feeling his way around a room. He'd made little noise; everyone else in the dorm was still asleep, and Ichiru didn't feel the need to disturb their rest.

Peaceful boys, all of them. With peaceful dreams.

How mediocre.

He was the first outside, clothes neatly arranged around his body even as he sprawled on one of the garden benches. Dawn seemed slower these days, as if his body was trying to reacquaint itself with the strange occurrence. Ichiru rid himself of the thought; a Hiou servant had no business missing the sun.

He still watched, though. Watched as the sky's colors deepened and then cleared into softer tones. Clouds became visible, lone puffs of white dotting the limitless blue. And then…

Ichiru closed his eyes against the intruding rays.

…the noise started.

Dozens of humans racing inside their rooms. Calling to each other. Babbling and singing, whispering and cursing. The students at Cross Academy, ready to start the new day.

Ichiru didn't move from his post until he heard the first students walking down the stairs, coming closer to the dorm entryway and to his current location. He sat up, stretching his arms to the sides until the last of the night left his body and he was free to blend with the rest of the students. He got to his feet in one smooth movement, and joined the shadowed hall at the same time the first group of boys reached it.

"Hey, Kiryuu-san!"

Curling his hand around his school books, Ichiru managed not to cringe at the playful slap on his back. On his first day at Cross Academy, many students had looked between him and Zero, compared his twin's narrowed eyes, perpetual scowl and rigid posture against Ichiru's relaxed shoulders and the fact that his answers included more than two words and a small smile. At the time, Ichiru had thought, Look. They like me. They love me better.

It had taken him three minutes to understand that Zero truly didn't care.

"Imoto-san," he replied, subtly placing himself out of his classmate's reach.

The other boy didn't notice, instead he fell into step alongside Ichiru and started the conversation with a wide grin. "I wasn't expecting you to remember my name," he said, "I guess twins aren't that alike."

Ichiru thought of the vitamin tablets his mother had always put next to his breakfast. "Guess not."

"You'll be staying through the year, right?"

Unless Rido awakened first. Ichiru smiled at the thought.

Imoto-san took the smile as an affirmative. "All right, then! Because the guys and I have been talking and, well, it's a bit late in the year, but have you thought about joining our ekiden team?"

Ichiru glanced at the other boy. He could count on one hand the number of times someone had looked so excited while walking at his side, and all those times it was Zero's much younger face that came to mind. Damn memories. "No."

Imoto-san's expression fell at the curtness of Ichiru's answer, and to anyone outside Cross Academy the look in his pale eyes would have been a deterrent. But not to someone who'd been treated for years to Zero's aloofness. Imoto-san regrouped in under five seconds. "You can come see our practice, have a talk with Coach," the dark-haired boy insisted. "I bet you'll like it once you see it."

With a hint of amusement, Ichiru wondered how much of a grouch his brother was, when their classmates didn't recognize the sudden coldness in Ichiru's manner as enough of a warning.

"At least promise you'll think about it?"

Ichiru turned his head to study the boy. Such a crestfallen air – a kid whose piece of candy had been denied to him. "Why?"

If Imoto-san was surprised that the conversation continued, he didn't show it. "Are you kidding?" he enthused, making a move with his hands that Ichiru guessed indicated at his body. "You're Zero's twin, and it doesn't take a genius to know why the Headmaster picked him as a Guardian. I mean, the rest of us jump – your brother leaps."

"I see." It was always about Zero. "You should ask him, then."

The sudden paleness in the boy's complexion told stories about how Zero had handled the team's approach. "Er…. I, um, I believe he's not interested," Imoto-san mumbled. "Probably if we tied Cross-san at the end of the race…." He gulped, though Ichiru wasn't sure if it was a reaction to the sudden flare in his eyes, or at the thought of what Zero would do if anyone tied Yuuki anywhere.

Probably the same Ichiru had planned for those who'd been part of Shizuka-sama's own downfall….

"It's cool, Kiryuu-san." The smile was now a bit forced. Ichiru tried to mask his thoughts with a more appropriate visage. Imoto-san blinked, and unconsciously relaxed. "I thought I should put the invitation out there, that's all."

"Very well." Ichiru opened the classroom door. "Thank you," he said, knowing it was expected.

Itomo-san grinned again before heading to his seat. "You're a pal, Kiryuu-san!" the boy answered even as he kept a wide space between his path and Zero's seat.

Zero glanced up at the name, giving Itomo-san a puzzled look before he realized he wasn't the object of the boy's praise. He turned further, his eyes locking with Ichiru's for a moment before they searched for the girl sitting one row before him. After making sure that Yuuki was well (and even Ichiru could catch the bubbly words as she chatted with her best friend), Zero didn't bother to return his look anymore, instead pulling out a book and leafing through it.

Doesn't matter, Ichiru thought. They do like me better.

Just his luck that, to these children and their games, Ichiru had nothing left to offer.

The End
30/01/10

p.s. New set of prompts at vk_guardians every Saturday ar 19:00.

vk(underscore)guardians dot livejournal dot com