Not Quite Paradise
Written by xmystorytime.
Disclaimer: If I owned this animé/manga... I'd've had more funny scenes between Cross and Allen. Alas, I don't and therefore won't get my wish. Sadly.
[Battle] The final battle is brutal, swift and harsh. There can be no happy ending for those within.
--
The bloody sword gleamed as it sung through the air, guided by a skilled hand.
There are...
The deft swordsman took down another demon, not put off by the blood nor the explosion which sent him back several feet. He merely spun on the spot and drove his double-edged blade through more enemies.
Too many...
He was not in a good mood, hadn't been in a good mood for a long time. Ever since the Earl had managed to slaughter more of their forces with his god-forsaken Noah he hadn't been in a good mood, but he was in a black mood that particular day and he took it out on those around him.
Fucking demons!
With a roar-like cry he jumped high into the air. Demons followed him, for he was the only exorcist in that area of the battlefield (granted, there were only five exorcists, excluding the generals, who were still fighting – and it was a big battlefield), and in one swift move managed to destroy five level three demons.
He landed, getting a brief respite for the moment, and gasped for air. Never before had he fought so hard for so long without any chance of a break. Just where had the Earl managed to get so many fucking demons from? Not only that, but there's those god damned Noah guiding them... he reminded himself, turning his gaze to the sky. There was only one Noah who remained stood in the sky, bloodied but alive.
Yu's eyes widened. Have the others been destroyed? He dared not hope for something so wonderful, instead turning as he heard a loud shout of his name.
For the first time since the final battle had begun he saw his companion. Lavi didn't look very well at all, bloodied and battered, rags and tags with a limp to match, but he was alive. It was more than Yu could say for some other exorcists he knew (Krory had earned his respect by going down and taking Jasdevi with him, some hours ago now).
"Yu," Lavi gasped, panting for air. A demon crept up behind him and Yu jumped over to him, destroying the horrendous being. "Thanks," Lavi added, not even looking surprised. "You... have to come... quickly..." something about his attitude gave Yu pause.
"What happened?" he demanded. He'd been out of contact with the main area, where the Earl was, since the beginning (he'd been driven away almost instantly, as had almost all the exorcists) and didn't know what was going on there.
Perhaps Lavi did.
"It's – it's Allen," Lavi was clutching his side, looking pained, but Yu's eyes widened as he heard the name of his lover. Lavi's grim face didn't help matters and he narrowed his eyes, forcing away the concern that rose within him. He couldn't afford to let his emotions interfere with his fighting right now. Afterwards, he would.
"What did the-" he cut himself off as another round of demons attacked. Several minutes of desperate fighting back to back passed before they got another respite and Yu didn't bother turning to face his friend. "-idiot do now?" he finished.
"He's fighting the Earl," Lavi replied.
Yu froze.
"Where?" he growled, finally turning. Lavi pointed to their left and Yu turned, but he couldn't see anything. He must have been driven further away than he thought.
"Follow me, I'll take you there," Lavi said, turning and then fighting his way through the demons. Lavi was one of the few who knew of his relationship with the beansprout, which was probably why he had been the one who had thought to chase Yu down.
Yu wouldn't dare let Allen fight the Earl on his own, not if he had a choice. He didn't care if it was his destiny, he would not let Allen do it alone. He'd even forced a promise out of the other. A promise his partner had broken.
When he next saw Allen Yu would be responsible for his death, not the fucking Earl.
Yu wasn't sure how many hours it took for them to reach the thick of the fighting. The going had been slow from the start, getting slower as they got closer to the Earl, for it turned out that this was where most of the exorcists were fighting and thus the most demons. As they inched closer Yu realized he had been the only one who hadn't fought his way back to where he'd originally been.
If he looked, in-between the demons he could spot his General fighting with a grim expression, not at all enjoying the killing, whereas General Zokalo's whoops of joy were heard even over the screams of the dying. Nyne was easy to spot, leaping around the battlefield on top of her monkey. He couldn't see Cross.
He couldn't see Allen either.
"Look up, Yu!" he heard Lavi shout and, obeying the other, he did so. His eyes widened and he took a step forwards, heart rising to throb painfully in his throat.
High above them, Crown Clown guiding him, Allen Walker fought with his master against a monster. He could do nothing but watch as Cross fired and Allen fought and the Earl dodged. It was all very fast-paced and Yu was surprised when, at some points, he found he missed a few things due to the speed they were moving at.
For one tiny moment he was proud of how far Allen had come since his beginning days in the Order. Now, he was easily the most powerful of them all, despite being the youngest General in all of history.
Something landed on the ground in front of Yu. His eyes snapped to it - deep red circles that stained the blackened grass - and realized it was blood from the battle above. He snapped his head back, forcing back the fear as he watched Allen fight more.
"Watch out!" Lavi suddenly yelled. Yu spun, bringing his sword up automatically. A level four impaled itself upon him and he staggered backwards, grunting fiercely. Its humanoid face grinned openly and Yu was filled with fury... but he couldn't take down a level four on his own.
"Leave him alone!" and glowing feet slammed down on top of the level four, crushing its head. Lenalee scowled fiercely, her fringe falling over her eyes, and then she turned to give Yu a one over. "You look terrible."
"You don't look much better," Yu replied, knowing that if Komui saw the state she was in he'd have a fit. Unfortunately, Komui had died long before the battle had started. Lenalee had never entirely recovered from it.
A large hammer suddenly appeared, whacking at the still twitching level four and crushing it beneath its spike. A weary Lavi leapt beside them, panting harshly.
"Are you two alright?" he asked. Lenalee turned to him, still floating at Yu's head, and nodded.
"We're fine," she said. They weren't, Yu knew. If they walked back from this battle alive it would be a miracle. But they were better than those above.
"MASTER!"
The pained shout drew all attention to it. Yu's heart twisted painfully, recognizing his lover's anguished tone, and looked up just in time to see the Earl let go of General Cross. Allen's master fell like a stone, not moving in the slightest, and it was only due to Lenalee's quick action that Cross didn't crash into the earth. Tears poured down her cheeks when she landed and Yu watched, in shock, as she gently laid the dead exorcist on the ground. Cross had always seemed so powerful, so cocky, that to see him dead...
A loud, mocking laugh echoed over the battlefield. All eyes turned to the Earl, who was clutching his fat belly and laughing gleefully. He was obviously taking great pleasure in the death of the thorn in his spine. Yu's gaze caught something moving behind the monster.
He knew what would happen before it happened.
Allen's exorcism sword pierced through the Earl, from one side to the other, and Allen buried the sword right up to its hilt. In the air the pair stood, seemingly frozen. Yu could hardly breathe, wondering if this was the end of the Earl.
"Please... please..." Lenalee whispered beside him, clutching her hands together tightly and shutting her eyes in prayer. It was the only sound on the battlefield now, demon and exorcist alike waiting to see what would happen.
"Allen, my boy, did you really think this would kill me?" Yu's heart sank. The Earl's head turned to look Allen in the face and they were almost touching. A twist of jealousy struck Yu, which was immensely stupid and inappropriate... but he couldn't help it. He was a jealous bastard.
"No," Allen said and his voice rang out over the battlefield. "But this will. Too long have you remained in darkness."
He brought up his human hand and in it was a dagger. Yu started, recognizing it as his own one. So that's where it went... he realized, just as Allen sliced the Earl's neck.
It made sense, if Yu thought about it. The Earl might be the most powerful sorcerer in existence, but he was still human. Allen's sword didn't have any effect on humans, and on the Noah it had had the opposite effect. The Earl had been more like the Noah than just a normal human, so by hitting him with his sword Allen had taken a huge risk.
Magic and powers from God wouldn't kill God's creation, who was immune against such effect. But mortal means would.
The Earl gurgled. Blood sprayed over Allen, who ignored it. He twisted his sword and pulled it out of the Earl, leaving a gaping hole in his chest. The neck cleanly sliced, the Earl scrabbled at his throat and then, with a small push from Allen, fell from the sky.
Lavi was the first to cheer.
His whistling and undecipherable shouts stirred others out of their shock and then they were all cheering, screaming, shouting, crying, as the Earl began his long descent back into the world of light.
Yu was the only one who didn't join in, never taking his eyes off of the falling evil. He knew that Allen, too, was doing the same. Neither of them expected the Earl to go down without doing something else. It wasn't possible.
As it turned out, it really wasn't possible.
The samurai spotted it first. In the palm of the Earl's hand a white ball was forming, glowing brighter and brighter each second. The Earl's last attempt to kill; a chance to bring down his killer with him. Yu pushed past the still demons who were unsure of what to do now their beloved master seemed dead, but there were so many he found himself struggling to get there. Eventually he snarled and jumped on top of them, one after another until he got closer to where the Earl was falling.
"Kanda?!" he heard confused shouts call for him. He paid them no attention.
He had to stop whatever was going to happen from happening. He couldn't allow Allen to be killed, not now that victory was so close. If he could take the hit that was meant for Allen, he might be able to recover from it with his curse.
But fate had never kind to him.
"You're not going anywhere," Yu was caught and snagged in a bind by Tyki, the only remaining Noah. Tyki had tight grip of his arms and, no matter how much Yu struggled, in his weary and battered state he couldn't get his arms in the correct position to strike Tyki with his sword. "You're going to watch, and suffer." Tyki hissed into his ear, hot breath making a shiver go down Yu's spine.
"Get the fuck off of me," he spat, struggling in his grip. Tyki didn't reply and Yu only struggled harder. He managed to get his elbow in an odd position and elbowed Tyki in the stomach - only to find his elbow went straight through.
"Have you forgotten?" Tyki said, amused. "It's useless. You're useless, especially without your -" he was cut off by something. He let go of Yu who spun around and, now free to use his sword again, drove the Innocence through Tyki's stomach. Peering over the male he saw Lavi's hammer extended, also piercing Tyki's back, and realized his friend was the reason why he'd been set free.
"Kanda, go help Allen!" Lenalee snapped from on high. "We've got Tyki covered!"
Yu didn't look back as he turned to where the Earl was. He hurriedly tried to get higher and higher, but his time with Tyki had delayed him too much. He was still too far away when the Earl's glowing ball was set free and thrown up high. It moved so quickly Yu couldn't see it and far too quickly for Allen to dodge.
The teenager gave a shriek of pain. Yu twisted to him and saw a golden arrow pierce all the way through Allen's chest. As it left a small chain followed it and then the magical arrow circled around Allen's body, creating a golden binding originating from his chest.
"Bean sprout!" he yelled, putting on an extra burst of speed. He reached Allen just in time to catch him as the boy toppled over, blood spilling from pale lips. Catching his lover in his arms, Yu cradled him close as they tumbled to the ground, staring desperately into the pale face.
The chains glowed and then solidified into grey, dull metal chains, criss-crossing over Allen's chest. Their weight only increased the speed the two fell at. Yu growled, trying to break the chains off of Allen's chest with his sword, but it didn't do a thing. Allen gasped for breath and the ground grew closer and closer – and then they were caught. They kept falling several feet but at a much slower pace, so that when they hit the ground no injury was caused.
Yu didn't need to look to know who their saviour had been. Lenalee was the only one who could fly through the air, after all.
"Kanda, is he okay?!" she demanded, scrambling around him to kneel on Allen's other side. Yu glanced at her.
"Tyki?" he asked.
"Dead." she said and then she looked at Allen. Her face softened and she reached out to rest her torn hand against his bloody face. "Oh Allen... and we were so close to winning..." she whispered, voice breaking. Yu resisted the urge to slap her hand away, knowing she meant nothing by it. Instead he turned his gaze to the chains.
There had to be a way he could break them.
"L-Lena...lee..." Yu didn't look up, too busy tugging at the chains. They barely moved. He growled and reached for Mugen before trying to find a part of Allen's body that the chains didn't attach themselves to. If I can break just one point...! but unfortunately the chains clung tightly and there was no way to cut them without risk of accidentally cutting Allen too.
Not that he would cut Allen, obviously, he had more control than that - he had just wanted to reduce the risk to his boyfriend. He glanced back at Allen's face and paused when he saw Lenalee cupping it.
"Don't worry Allen, Kanda will have you free within a few minutes," she said soothingly, glancing at Yu. Behind her Lavi stood, fidgeting and worried. Yu forced away the jealousy and nodded darkly, turning back to the chains. He heard Lenalee start talking again, reassuring the younger boy.
Was he scared? Should it be Yu doing what she was?
Yu had never been fond of that sort of thing (actually, he always did really badly at it, and tended to avoid it whenever possible...). No, it was better he let the professionals do that. He wouldn't dare let anyone else, trust anyone else, to do what he had to do.
He didn't give any warning when he raised Mugen. He brought it down with one hand sharply, only to be forced backwards. He tumbled head over heels before scrambling to his feet. He smoothly made his way back and this time tightened his grip before bringing his sword down. The same thing happened.
"Why won't it break?" Lavi demanded, tripping over his feet in his haste to join Yu. "Let's hit it together, Yu!" he looked concerned... and slightly panicked. Yu grimaced and then nodded. Lenalee counted them in and then together they attacked the chains, trying to break it. The chains glowed and threw them away.
"Lavi, stay with him!" Lenalee ordered, standing. "Let me try."
Lavi counted Lenalee and Yu in, but even the combination of her Dark Boots and Mugen didn't work. Getting extremely pissed off now, Yu was about to let loose a string of swear words when Allen gasped painfully. Yu's gaze snapped to him and then he moved, falling to his knees beside Allen's head.
"K-Kand-da..." Allen breathed, eyes locking on him. "S... sorry..." he wheezed. Yu scowled darkly.
"Why the fuck are you apologizing? You defeated the Earl, we should be thanking you." he snapped.
"B-broke... the promise..." and then Allen started coughing fiercely. Yu's eyes widened slightly as the younger's frame shook, and then watched silently as blood spilled out of the other's mouth.
"Allen!" Lenalee shrieked. Allen turned to smile weakly at her.
"Don't... worry about... me..." he hissed from pain seconds later and Yu smacked his shoulder with a dark scowl.
"Don't talk. You'll make yourself worse," he ordered. Allen turned back to him and his smile widened slightly.
"Kanda... broke the promise..." he whispered. "Forgive me?" Yu went cold and then swallowed discreetly.
"Idiot,"" was the best his scathing wit came up with. Allen shut his eyes, obviously taking that as a yes. He relaxed slightly and Yu was shaking him before he knew what he was doing. "Don't go to sleep, we have to get this chain off of you." he snapped. Allen's eyes re-opened.
"You can't..." he whispered. Yu shook his head.
"I thought I was the one supposed to have little faith?" he snapped.
"Yu... he's right." a soft voice came from behind. All three teenagers turned, Yu twisting at the hip, to see the three remaining Generals had regrouped and were now watching the events unfold. Tiedoll was the one who had spoken, tears in his eyes and blood mixed with sweat dribbling down his face.
"Shut up old man, you know nothing." Yu denied. Tiedoll had always been good at pissing him off.
"He's under a curse Yu. It's the Earl's hidden technique, one he only uses when he truly wants revenge on someone." Tiedoll stepped forward a few more steps. "There is no surviving it."
"Tough. The bean sprout's going to survive," Yu pointed out, turning to look at the one trapped. Allen's chest shuddered, obviously finding it difficult to absorb air. "Don't you go around believing that bollocks either. You'll live."
"Kanda..." Allen said, looking so sad it almost broke Yu's heart. His scowl deepened.
"Don't say it!" he snapped. "You're going to live!"
"He's lucky to have survived for so long already," Nyne spoke what Tiedoll couldn't say because he was too choked over with tears. Yu turned to her.
"What do you know?! Allen's going to live-" his voice broke and he shut his mouth, refusing to look weak in front of these people. He turned back to Allen whose eyes were shut. His heart started to race. "Beansprout? Beansprout?!"
"The name's... Allen... pretty boy..." Allen wheezed, eyes fluttering open. "Don't forget it... okay?"
"Beansprout," Yu snapped. "You'll always be a beansprout. I don't even know the name 'Allen'."
"Yu..." Lavi whispered, coming up behind him. He rest a hand on his shoulder and Yu shrugged him off, refusing to accept comfort for something which wasn't going to happen.
It couldn't happen.
Not now they could finally live in peace.
"You're going to live, you hear me bean sprout?!" Yu snapped. Allen slowly shook his head, eyes shutting as another pain tremor wracked his body. He re-opened them and locked eyes with Yu.
"I love you..." he whispered, shutting his eyes. Yu's chest tightened and he suddenly couldn't breathe. It was the first time the other had ever said the words to him - a long time ago, Allen had admitted he wanted to save them for a special occasion - but this was hardly the special occasion Yu'd imagined.
"Beansprout? Beansprout?!" he demanded, shaking the other when he didn't respond. Allen remained limp in his arms. "Damn it, wake up! Allen!" he was yelling, he was sure, but he didn't care because Allen always paid attention when he called him by his name and he wasn't this time and why the hell couldn't life be so damn fair for once in awhile?!
"K-Kanda..." Lenalee sobbed, tears trickling down her own face. "He's g-" she choked on the word and, breaking down, she fell weeping into Lavi's embrace. The Bookman Junior had his own tears on his face, but Yu saw none of this. He couldn't tear his eyes off of the body in his arms.
"Wake up..." he whispered, shaking the smaller boy. "Please, Allen... don't leave me here alone..." his voice broke and he fought back the tears that wanted to fall. He squeezed his eyes shut, a failed attempt to stop the tears, and then bent down, pressing his lips against the still slightly warm ones. "I love you too, idiot beansprout..." he murmured against them, the first and last time he would ever say the words.
And then he moved his head until his forehead was rest against his love's chest, listening for a heartbeat he'd never hear again. His tears merged with the blood and sweat on Allen's uniform, the salty water cleansing the patch of clothing it landed on.
And like that they remained, broken remnants of something that shouldn't be nothing.
A/N: I was going to have it so Allen lived... and then found it didn't work. So instead of a happy story you get a really sad one. Which is odd, because I finished this just after I got back from a really happy outing so really the odds were it being more happy... sorry. Again, there's not much Yullen, sorry! -hides- I'll do my best tomorrow!