So here is chapter 5 for all the readers out there who take the time to read it,…
Damn Kami,… it keeps getting harder and harder writing this story, for I, Moonttje, can certainly find myself in the emotional struggle Teito is having. But not that you people would care about that I guess,…
Hahah Kiba pouting right now, cause I keep her from writing any fluff at the moment, and how she would love to get her hands on that,.. but it will come eventually, but not now, and I don't see it coming either,.. so I guess she have to wait a little longer,.. Mhuahuahuahua
Well enjoy, and let us know what you think!
Thanks kiba1988 for beta reading this, suki dayo ne
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in the story; I do own this story though.
Changed: 5 jan 2014.
Frau looked at the seemingly fragile boy that lay front of him in the bed. It had been almost a week since Frau had tried to run away from this boy, away from his emotions that were still hunting him. Now he could only stare as Mikhail had taken hold over the boys conscious, while the Angel was explaining what had happened that night when Frau made a run for it.
He was called back by Mikhail himself, when the Angel saw no other option than to ask for help to distract Teito so he could talk some sense in 'his master'. Frau felt really useless right now, sure he had helped to distract the boy, but that was all he was able to after the mess he had made. He could not talk to Teito about what had happened while Mikhail was doing that for him. He couldn't help with the IV-drip, that was still hooked on, cause he didn't know a thing about medicine and such. Hell he couldn't even scout properly. He had tried to scout and hunt down the kor the first night, but he had to be saved by Castor. He wasn't able to use his scythe at the moment, let alone find the right words to use his zaiphon, all because his emotions in turmoil. His emotions only worked in his scythe's advance, the scythe had the time of his life taking control over him and draining him from any energy he still had.
He was stuck, only useful for sitting beside the bed and waiting for the boy to finally wake up so he could say he was sorry for how he acted.
Teito heard a lot of voices coming from the door while he was sitting on the bed. When sister Libelle had brought him some food yesterday, he had locked the door, after he heard her footsteps descend down the hall. He didn't want anyone coming into the room, he wanted to be left alone.
He jerked his head to the door when he heard a familiar voice, a voice he didn't expect coming from outside the room. There was some talk between the nuns that probably had come to bring food again and the one he just had heard. A knock on the door made him stand up from the bed and turn his body towards the door.
"Teito, open up, I know you are in there, and we need to talk. I know…" Teito heard the voice of the man he really didn't want to see right now. He backed away while he started to shout at the voice. "Go away, leave me alone, I don't need anybody. I don't need a stupid Angel, I don't need bishops and I don't need people. I will only need myself, that's all I had since Fea took my memories and all I will need." He felt his back hit the wall. He couldn't go any further away from the damn door, he slummed down so he could sit, hands around his knees, as he stared at the door feeling panic rise inside him.
His eyes widened as he saw the door being crashed in. A foot stepped inside as the lock was broken. The man who the foot belonged to stepped away to brush off his robes and another came in. He locked eyes with the man. He had blue eyes that could say so much, but right now the only thing he could read in those eyes was worry, a lot of worry for him. He didn't understand, he wasn't the one that had run away, the man before him was the one that had.
Teito was shocked, what did Frau want from him, why had he busted into the room like that? Damn, he couldn't get his thoughts straight, they were twirling around in his head. That's when he could feel Mikhail taking control over his body. No, this is not what he wanted, he had kept him away for so long now, how could he take control know, when Teito needed his own control the most.
"Zehel, I have to be quick about this. If master knows what I am planning he would prevent it. I am going to talk to him, I will explain some things that need to be explained. In the meantime his body may seem dead, but the opposite is true. I take control over his consciousness, so I can talk to him without him blocking me. In that time you have to take care of the body, I don't know for how long, but please look after it. Make sure he gets some nutrients in him. I don't care how you do that, but make sure that you do."
Teito heard Mikhail talk to Frau, he could still see Frau, but he himself couldn't talk to him, couldn't move away from the man. He could only watch as Mikhail had control over HIS body.
He saw Frau shake his head, he saw the conflict in the man's eyes, but what he heard the man say, shocked him the most.
"I will Mikhail, is there something else I can do?"
How could Frau listen to Mikhail, why was he agreeing with Mikhail? They had fought, Mikhail had made sure that Frau left. Teito didn't understand. Why couldn't he get back in control with his own body, how did Mikhail make him a bystander in his own body? Why did not only Frau but the others too listen to Mikhail? Why did they Ignore that Mikhail had taken over?
"No, not right now. When he wakes up again you need to be there for him. I am sorry what I put you through and what I put my master through, I will try to reason with him and explain what happened yesterday. Please make sure this body is and will be safe from anything"
He felt the conscious of Mikhail leave. He tried to take back control. He succeeded to lift his head. He looked up at Frau, he wanted to shout at the man, but somehow he couldn't. A pulling sensation was felt as he was struggling to say something. It became black before his eyes. Did someone put out all the lights? No, that couldn't be it, it was morning, there weren't any lights on at this time, the sun would provide them the needed light. When that realization became clear to him, he began to feel like he was falling before he totally blacked out.
He felt like he was falling for what seemed like hours. He couldn't remember what made him fall. How did he end up like this to begin with? What had happened to him? Where was he falling to? When would he hit the bottom? He couldn't see a thing, the only thing around him was darkness, so much darkness.
There! What is that?
Somewhere down below him, he saw a light closing in. He didn't notice it at first but it grew in size as he kept watching it. He couldn't see beyond the light, but he knew that was likely to be his destination. He heard a voice coming from the light, he had heard it before, but he couldn't place it. To whom belonged the voice he was hearing? Why was it so familiar for him?
"Resonance 10%, 24%, 38%, …"
Teito didn't get it. What did the voice mean with Resonance? What happens when it gets to 100%?
"…, 77%, 89%, 100%, full access to psyche. I will be waiting for you, master"
Teito fell through the light. He had to blink his eyes a couple of times before he was able to look around. Just when he could see the ground, he felt himself hit it, face first. A chuckle could be heard in the distance and he tried to push himself off the ground. He scolded at the voice. "Oh, so you think this is funny, show yourself Mikhail." Instantly he knew who the voice had belonged to, and he didn't like it one bit. He looked around to see if he could spot the one that had just laughed at his landing.
"I am sorry master, I can't show myself right now. If you want to see me face to face, you will have to come to me."
For the first time, Teito began to really look where he was and were he could go from here. He saw a lot of things he didn't recognized. There were a lot of things floating around him that he could not identify. There was one thing though he could recognize. It was a huge stairs that seemed to be going on forever. He couldn't spot a beginning or an end, only endless steps in both directions. Not really feeling to walk down he went up. Maybe he was able to find something that would allow him to see more of where he was so he could find a way out of it.
As he was walking up the steps an image came running past him. It was an image he had seen before. The image represented himself as a toddler. He had the clothes of the orphans that lived at the church. His toddler self seemed to be chasing someone up the steps. Looking further up he saw his father smiling at the young Teito who was being chased by the little boy. Seeing the scene before him he saw something from his past. It was another memory he had forgotten when Vertrag had sealed away his memories.
Teito was running around in the gardens of the church, a red sphere was clearly on his hand. He had a big smile on his face as he talked to someone only he knew was there. He was twirling around with his arms spread laughing and talking, a bone looking structure shaped as a heart was seen coming from the sphere. Teito fell to the ground in a bundle of laughing joy. "Thank you, Mikhail, I had so much fun. You are my best friend." Two man came walking to him as he lay in the grass. Teito looked up to see who they were. When he saw he jumped up to see his father and his uncle coming to him. "Dad, did you see what Mikhail did. He is so nice to me."
He blinked as the memory left his thoughts. The toddler him and his father had left and he continued to walk up. He was walking for some time when the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He felt a presence behind him. Looking behind, he saw nothing out of the ordinary, as ordinary one could expect wherever he was. As far as he could tell there was nothing, so he shrugged his shoulders and went on.
Soft metal sounds were heard as he continued, it sounded as if blades were scraped against each other. He felt something cold slide against his neck. He looked down to see one of the blades he had used, before he went to the academy. He slowly turned as he kept his eyes on the blade. When he faced himself from that time as a sklave, he noticed the color of his eyes weren't his own green eyes. He was looking at red irises with slit pupils like a cat or a snake. "You look like me, but you aren't me, are you?"
"You are right and you are wrong. This is your body, and you are in this body, but you are not controlling what is yours right now. The stress of having to kill people was not always something you could handle without turning insane. I was and still am always with you. When I would notice you would break down I would take over to protect you from letting that happen. I was not allowed to make contact to you, or let you know that you were not alone, but I could help you out like this. If only by this little gesture I would be able to protect you without anyone noticing you were the holder of the eye of Mikhail.
Teito could only stare as the image before him slowly started to fade. He thought about what this younger self of him had said. It had been some time since his last kill as a battle Sklave. Thinking about the kills, he had to admit that he had blanks in his memory. Most of the killings he still dreamed about at night. Every little detail was clear as he relived the killing, but some of the kills he just couldn't remember. There were killings were he didn't remember how he had killed the people before him. When that happened he always felt like waking up in the middle of a room with dead people around him. Sometimes those people still tried to talk to him.
He shuddered at the memories before he shrugged it off as something that happened in the past. He couldn't change his past, he could only promise he would never do it again. He wouldn't let anyone control him anymore. Teito scowled, how could he promise something like that when he was controlled right now.
He shook his head to get rid of that thought. There was nothing he could do about it right now but to continue on and search for either an exit or Mikhail to demand him to let him go.
A little time had passed when he smelled something nice and familiar, but he couldn't exactly place it right away. A flashback about Mikage hit him not only in the head but also in the heart. The narrowed, amber-colored eyes, that seemed to look right into his soul. The pale/ashy blonde hair that was parted down at the left side of his face but still looking kind of messy. And the X-shaped scar on his right cheek. The way he was talking about his favorite food, Yakisoba, as if it was the only thing on his mind 24/7. These were the features he became to appreciate throughout his time in the academy. Mikage was his first and the only friend he had ever had. As he walked, an image of Mikage began to form before him. The Mikage before him was happily jumping up the steps of the stairs as he was eating his sandwich.
Teito stumbled a couple of paces as he thought about the night he tried to escape from the military. The way Mikage had tried to break Teito out of prison, after Teito had tried to kill Ayanami. The way Mikage had looked upon seeing Teito with blood on his hand, from killing his guards, and never said a thing about it, only took his hand as he led Teito to a discarded Hawkzile. How they had tried to escape together, promising they would always stay together. Not even caring he was committing a huge crime against the military for helping a fugitive escaping.
He saw the last moments they had shared together before Ayanami had launched his attack. Only now did he remember the last words that Mikage had spoken to him before he died, before the Hawkzile crashed, before he had lost consciousness. "Teito, I will always be there for you."
Teito felt silent tears run down his cheeks. How could he have forgotten the last words his best friend had spoken to him? He looked at the image before him, the spitting image of his friend. Beside his friend was he himself. Standing in the same uniform Mikage wore. Migake's arm rested softly on his shoulders as he was eating a Yakisoba sandwich.
What did it matter? Where was his friend now? He had promised that he would always be there for him, didn't he?
Teito became angry at his friend, he fisted his hands near his sides. His body began to shake as he felt the need to shout at his friend. "Where are you now, huh? You said you would always be there for me, but you are not here, you're nowhere to be found! I can't even find you, because I can't remember where you fell down. Why did you promise something you couldn't keep, tell me why!"
The image only smiled at Teito. Teito fell to his knees, fist smashing against the steps below him. Tears fell to the stairs when a hand took hold of his chin. Looking up, he looked straight in Mikage's eyes. They were so calming. "But Teito, I am still with you, even if you don't see me. I am right here with you, in the place you need me the most." He laid a hand on Teito's heart while he said that. "I will never leave this place, no matter what will happen, I will always be inside your heart."
Mikage walked away from Teito and dissolved in the other Teito, slowly disappearing in that body, until a bright light, coming from the heart was radiating within the other. Teito felt his own heart warm up at the sight before him. The other Teito put out his hand for him to take. As he carefully took it he was pulled to his feet and softly pushed forward to keep walking up the stairs. Looking back, the other had already faded away, only a small light at the height where his heart should be was left.
An image came running down the stairs towards Teito. It was yet another Teito. He was wearing a church outfit, the one he got from the nuns a week after he was brought in. The boy looked somewhat at ease as he was running. A small smile decorated his face.
The image came to a stop before Teito. While looking in his own eyes he saw different emotions pass the surface. First he saw suspicion, which was soon followed with hope, followed by a shard of trust. He kept looking at the shard of trust in the eyes before him. It was something he didn't expected to see in those eyes, but still it was clear as daylight. The boy before him whispered a few names. "Mikhail, Frau, Labrador and even Castor. They are to be trusted, I feel I can…"
The boy before him cut himself short, as a gasp left his lips. His face was pulled in a pained extraction. He looked behind him. When he looked back at Teito the emotions in the eyes were changing again. This time from the shard of trust to pain, betrayal, distrust and hatred. Hatred directed to the people. Hatred directed at the world and at God.
He felt that his own face mimicked the face before him. He knew he was looking at his own face that very moment. The boy before him started to look lost, looking like he didn't know his place in this world. Where was he to go? What was his role in the world? Where did he belong?
The boy stared at a point behind Teito. When Teito followed the line of sight of the boy he saw a gate. The gate blocked his way back down the steps of the stairs. Looking back at the boy he saw another gate blocking the way up the steps of the stairs. He couldn't go any further to find a way out of this place he was thrown into, but he couldn't trace it back down too. He was stuck at this place. Stuck with the boy with the racing emotions and thoughts.
Teito looked at the boy, who was now looking sideways while he slowly faded. Following the line of sight again he saw a road. He was sure that road wasn't there a minute ago, but neither were the gates. Looking back at his own image, he saw it was now gone completely.
The gates didn't leave him much of a choice besides following the road. Walking on the it he noticed there were several squares along the road. They were black at first, but while he kept walking they began to show images of his past as a Sklave, as a military student. Looking further ahead, the images started to show his past as a kid, running through the church ground, sitting on his father's lab. He didn't want to look at the images shown to him so he ignored them by looking at the ground.
He didn't notice the great wall that started to form in front of him, until he hit it straight on. The impact made him stumble back, until he fell down. He let his gaze travel up the wall he saw himself, being held prison in the wall. "Is that really me, in that wall? Why am I up there in that wall? What does it mean? Why am I not breaking free from there? Did the me up there give up already?"
Standing up, he saw the wall morph into something else. The wall began to shrink and expanse at various places. A bright light started radiating from the wall, which made Teito cover his eyes with his arm.
"Master, you have finally reached me." Mikhail said as he walked towards Teito as he hid behind his own arm. "You have not only already given up, but you even have given up on the people around you. You have given up on me."
Teito let his arm fall as he heard the voice, looking at the place it had come from. Before him the wall had changed in a statue of an Angel. He saw himself no longer being held by a wall, but instead by the statue. He knew the statue, he had seen it before, many times in the books he had read with Father. It was a statue of Mikhail. Mikhail was holding him in what seemed like a tender embrace.
"No, you're wrong, I did not give up, I am still fighting." Teito shook his head. "I am still fighting. I am still fighting to find where I belong. And I haven't given up on people, I only gave up the trust I have in people. I just changed from trusting them to be along me, to having to protect them without their help."
Images of his past flashed before his eyes. He saw his father and the Father being slain, as they tried to protect him. He saw himself being trained by Kal, his combat trainer, to improve his zaiphon and agility to make him able to kill faster, without being killed himself. Flashes of the ones he had killed for his master Miroku-sama. He saw the last couple of minutes before Mikage got killed, shielding him from the attack of Ayanami. He had trusted to many people, and they all died because of him.
He fell down to his knees as he relived the moments in his life that haunted him almost every night. The moments where the ones that were precious to him were killed in order to safe him. The many people he had to kill for his master at that time. He felt himself break down in sobs as his mind kept showing him these events. "No, no, I didn't meant for them to die. I didn't want to be protected, I didn't want to kill anymore." Vomit came up his throat, he tried to swallow it down again, but a sob made him choke on it instead.
Coughing, he felt strong arms being thrown around him as he was pulled in an embrace. Red eyes were looking at him as he stared at the one who was holding him. The eyes looked worried as a faint smile showed itself on the face. "M-Mikhail…?" Teito tried to speak, but was cut off as another series of coughs made him break off.
"It's alright master, you don't have to kill anyone anymore. I will not allow for you to kill anyone anymore, I only ask of you to listen what I have to say." Mikhail tried.
Breathing heavily Teito started to mumble, more to himself than to anyone else. "How am I to atone for everything? What can I do? Everyone should be angry at me, I let them die, I killed so many men. I did so many wrong things, and still they did all that for me. I can never let anybody die for me ever again. I can't involve anyone anymore in the things I have to do."
"Master you have to listen to me. No one will be angry at you. No one is angry at you, they are only worried about you." Mikhail tried again.
"Frau was right, he was right when he left me. He shouldn't have…"
Mikhail felt his master shake as he was rambling on. Feeling he had no other option at the moment, he did something he had never done to any of his masters. He could not see his master like this any longer. He hit his master with a flat hand on the cheek to stop him from continuing his ramble. Right after he had done it, he already felt guilty about it, but it made his master stop the rambling.
Seeing the shocked face of his master, he started to apologize. "I am sorry master, but you were rambling and I needed you to listen to me." Teito nodded slowly as a hand came up to cover his bruised cheek. "I know how you feel, I was there all the time, helping you wherever I could. Your father was a brave man. He gave his life for you, so you could live on. He loved you more than anything. He was always talking about you to me, before you became my master. He hated it, to not be able to be around you. He gave you to his brother, so he could take care of you. So you could grow up happy without the late queen constantly tormenting you with her jealousy. Your father was so shocked when he heard about the actions of the queen that had almost killed you, he was so happy when Fea came to him with you, even though you now had Pandora's box inside you. When he gave me to you, he made me promise to always protect you. Can you believe it, a mere human, making an Angel promise something, but he did. Your father could be a scary man when he was protecting you, he was the first human that ever made me tremble in fear." This made Teito smile a little.
Mikhail brushed some of the tears away that had started to roll down his master's cheeks, while he continued. "When the war came and he ordered Fea to leave with you, he was prepared to give his life for you. He wanted to protect everyone, he wanted to protect you. He fought, so you could make a safe escape. He didn't die because of you. He died for you. He died knowing you would have a future, maybe even a future as a king. He died so you could protect all the people he could not."
Mikhail let Teito think about it for a moment. Tears had started to roll again, he had to tell his master everything, so he would understand. "The Father, Fea or Vertag, that you saw in your flashback, you have seen what he did to you. The military, or better yet, the black hawks, were after you. Fea used his last minutes to seal away your memories, so you could be relatively safe. He wanted you to live, so you could someday claim the right to the throne, just like your father. By sealing those memories away he saved you when Ayanami found the two of you. If Ayanami had known who you were, what was inside of you, and that I was with you, he would have killed you on the spot and taken both the eye and pandora's box. Vertrag told me to keep my promise to the king, your father, in protecting you. I tried as best as I could, but I couldn't save Fea at that time. Had I saved him, Ayanami had known I was with you and you would have been killed."
"Why do I have to live if so many people had to die for it, it doesn't seem fair! They died so I could kill so many more people? They tried to protect me, leaving me alone, sealing my memories, in that saving my life. But as I lived, I killed many more. Those people didn't do anything wrong, why did they have to die by my hands?" Teito tried to break away from Mikhail, but was hold back.
"It wasn't your fault that those people had to die. You didn't choose for them to die, you were ordered. Had you not executed the order, they would have tortured you until you would have done it anyway. And if you would have found a way to even then resist it they would have found another battle sklave to do their duty work. The people you were ordered to kill would have suffered even more if you hadn't made them die a quick death" Mikhail said.
"So…? If my father and Fea didn't give their life, I wouldn't be made a battle Sklave, and I wouldn't have killed those people! Sure there may have been killed by others but in the long run, they could have enjoyed life just a little longer."
"It's true that you wouldn't have been made a battle sklave and that you wouldn't have had to kill others, but Ayanami would have killed them and you either way. By protecting you and changing your memories they could protect the one precious to them, and hope for a time were you would be able to let the world see the real truth behind the war, behind the murders, behind the corrupt black hawks."
"You are telling me that they protected me, got killed while doing that, so I could maybe someday, take back what is mine, in order to bring back peace to this world? If that is what you are saying, why did Mikage have to die then? He didn't know any of this. He didn't know I was a prince of a dead kingdom." Teito spat as he had started to pound at the chest he faced.
"Mikage and I talked once. Do you remember the time when you woke up, and Mikage was sleeping next to you?" Mikhail asked, looking at the reaction his master would give. Seeing the shocked expression in those eyes he hastily continued. "He thought I was you. It was dark, you had fallen unconscious after one of the missions Miroku had sent you on, so Hyuuga brought you to the room you slept in. He told Mikage you were tired and needed rest, and if something seemed wrong he should call on him. Mikage was really worried and crawled into your bed. I think I scared him a little when I told him to move to his own bed, but he refused anyway. He was so happy that you, I, talked to him that he hugged you. He told you he was worried about you, that he didn't trust the black hawks. He didn't trust the way they use you all the time, making you come back late almost every night. He asked if you were willing to tell what it was they wanted from you. I only shook your head, but he told you that you could tell him anything you wanted. He would always be there for you, if you needed him. When I told him you, I, needed sleep, he asked if you would mind if he slept this one night together with you, to make sure you were ok. I saw no harm in that, so I let him."
Teito had fallen limp in his arms. Making sure Teito was still with him, he gave a little shake to his master, receiving an mumbled 'I'm listening', he continued. "Remember the day you had your final exam at the academy and when you had your first real flashback. That's when you started to doubt the people of the military. And you were right. The flashback you had back then, was about the necklace your father had been wearing. This made you attack Ayanami, but Hyuuga got you, before you could even touch him. You were confused and wanted to kill Ayanami. You had just relived the day your father was killed by his hands. After they had thrown you in prison, you wanted to run from them, so you started to break out. Halfway out, Mikage showed up. He must have heard that you were in prison for attacking Ayanami, but he didn't trust the Black Hawks anyway, so he came for you. Together you tried to escape, but again Hyuuga was there and informed Ayanami. Mikage knew you needed a friend, someone you could trust, so he came with you. He couldn't leave you, running from the military alone. He went with you because he loved you."
"He shouldn't have, look what it got him, now he is dead. All because he came with me. He trusted me, and that trust in me got him killed. How can anyone trust me again? I live a life with deceit as breakfast, lies at lunch and death as dinner. How can I let someone come close to me again, knowing he would probably be killed if I let that happen? It's good that Frau left me, that way I can't hurt him, like I hurt Mikage. It's my fault this all happened, I trusted them and let them in. I made them concerned about me by telling them how I really feel." Teito said still with his eyes closed.
Mikhail had to swallow the lump in his throat. He was about to tell his master about the day Frau left him. He had to let him know that Frau didn't run from him because he wanted to, but because he was told to. "Master, the reason Frau left… it was me who ordered him to go. I told him to leave you alone. I panicked when he started to touch you so freely. I…"
Teito's eyes snapped open at what Mikhail told him. "You did what? Why? I was the one who kissed him first, I was the one that…"
"I know master, but I just couldn't let Frau do that to you, not while you just had learned so much about your past. I was afraid you weren't thinking clearly like you normally do, so I ordered Frau to leave you alone. I didn't think he would go running off, I thought he would just go to his own room to gather his thoughts and come back to bring breakfast or something. When I noticed I scared him away and that he was about to run, I tried to call him back, but he wouldn't listen to me, just like you wouldn't listen to me when I tried to explain what had happened before. Both of you were ignoring me. You two are so alike in that way" Mikhail looked at his master and scowled a little when he thought about that little detail. He felt Teito tremble in his embrace and quickly told him that he was sorry for what he had done. "I am sorry master, I didn't mean to hurt you like this, I didn't mean to hurt Frau like I did."
Mikhail was kind of shocked when he heard the sighed answer of his master to his apology. "I don't really blame you Mikhail, at least not in the way you think I am. Yes, you could have used more tact in telling me, and Frau, to stop what we were doing, that would have prevented a lot of stuff. But it did give me time to think about a lot of things. And now I think I know what I have to do."
Mikhail lifted a brow as he looked at his master. "And that would be, master?" he asked, not sure he would like what he would hear.
"My dad and uncle both wanted me to claim the throne one day, they gave their lives for it. Mikage gave his life so I could start walking the road I need to take. I need to do that without letting any more people get hurt, without hurting the ones I care about."
Teito looked up as he felt the embrace fall away and heard Mikhail sigh. "Master, I don't think you should do what you are thinking of doing." But Teito didn't listen to him anymore.
"First I need to take out the ones that have killed Mikage, Fea and father. That way they can't hurt the people I care about anymore. I am going to fulfill the dream that my father saw for me. That will be my atonement for the ones that gave their lives protecting me." Teito said as he stood up and reached a hand to Mikhail to let him stand up too.
"Master I shall be your guide on the road you will follow, but to follow that road you must trust the people around you to help you walking it. You can't walk this road all by yourself. It will be too dangerous on your own. You need people that can help you, you need Frau and the others to assist you." Mikhail tried again to make his master see he needed people to help him.
"NO! What I need to do is doing this alone, otherwise…" he broke off as an image of Frau flickered through his head, being severely injured when he tries to protect Teito.
"Master listen to me, you can't do this alone, even if you want to. If you try doing this alone, it will surely be your death. That way the ones that already died protecting you, did it for nothing. You need to promise me you will listen to Frau and the others. They want what is best for you, just like I want what is best for you. I promised your father I will protect you, and I am doing so in telling you to trust others in helping you."
Teito stood frozen as he listened to what Mikhail said. Something told him Mikhail was right, but he didn't let himself trust anyone, not even Mikhail. Something that night, after Frau had left, had changed things for him. "I will promise I am going to listen to them, but I am not promising that I will trust them, or you."
Mikhail watched at his own statue and smiled at it. "That's all I am asking for right now, for you to listen to the ones around you. I will release your conscious, so you will be back in your own body. Please be careful if you wake up. Your body is probably weak from lack of exercise and sufficient food. I asked Frau to take care of your body, while I was talking to you, so it shouldn't be too bad, but it surely has weakened by time." Mikhail looked over at his master again, noticing the chains that still were on him. Sighing he said: "It is really bothersome that Ayanami has put Zaiphon in those chains you are wearing. I cant remove them completely, I need his blood to do so. What I can do is reform them in a tight neckband. That way your movement wont be held back by it any longer."
Teito looked from Mikhail to his chains still around his wrists and ankles. "That would be great" Teito spoke not above a whisper. Feeling the chains heat up a little and feeling a band form around his neck he knew Mikhail had already begun to reform his chains. After Mikhail said he was done he stretched himself for the first time since he was put into jail.
Both started to look at the statue and saw that the Teito in the hands of the statue was already released and fell towards the Teito that was standing next to Mikhail. It seemed to be floating towards Teito as it came down. He felt his heartbeat speed up, his breathing accelerate as it came closer.
Mikhail watched as Teito stared at the psyche that was going for him. "Just let it touch you and you will be back, nothing to worry about master." Mikhail smiled at the shaken nod he received.
When it touched Teito, he felt that it was warm. Looking at himself he saw he was kind of beginning to glow before he felt himself being pulled away to somewhere else. "Thanks, I guess," he whispered to Mikhail who was awkwardly waving at him with a comforting smile on his face.
Hakuren knocked on the door. He was told by Castor-san to bring some food up for Frau. The bishop didn't want to leave the side of the boy in the bed, so he had been bringing Frau food this whole week.
Opening the door he found Frau as he always found him, seemingly glued to the chair beside the bed. The only evidence he left the chair was the empty plate, each time Hakuren brought a new one. Sighing he replaced the old with the new plate and went to stand behind Frau. "Still no change, bishop Frau?" he asked as he had done so every time he was with the man.
Frau was grateful of Hakuren, the boy always brought food up for him, always tried to ease his discomfort. He shook his head as he had done so many times before. Letting the boy know that nothing had changed.
Suddenly Labrador came into the room, followed closely by Castor.
"Bishop Castor, bishop Labrador, what are you doing here?" Hakuren asked surprised.
Labrador didn't answer, but walked straight to the bed as he began to check up on Teito. Normally he would come in the evening to change the IV-drip and check up on the boy. He was usually too busy to come more than that. Why he did came now? It was something that had Frau concerned greatly.
Castor stood behind Labrador as he wanted to explain, but seeing Hakuren behind Frau he hesitated. "Hakuren-kun, could you be so kind to bring that old plate to the kitchen."
Hakuren wanted to protest, but seeing the look Castor gave him, he complied. "I will, have a nice day, bishop Castor, bishop Labrador, bishop Frau." He closed the door after he walked out. He decided to ask bishop Frau what happened, when he would bring his dinner again tonight.
When Hakuren had closed the door, Castor started to explain. "Labrador told me the plants had whispered that Teito would awaken soon. He told me to come along. He wanted to check Teito's vitals, to make sure when it would happen exactly. So I guess that's what he is doing at the moment."He said pointing at the younger male.
Castor and Frau both looked at the younger bishop, while he was checking Teito's pulse, breathing and temperature.
Frau gasped as he saw the color of the boy in the bed slowly change from awfully pale, to a healthier color. He laid a hand on the boy's arm and could feel the warmth returning in the body. Taking his wrist he started to feel a pulse whereas before only Labrador could find one.
Thats when he notice that the chains had disappeared from the wrists he had just checked. He looked up at Castor who only pointed to Teito's neck as a band began to form around his neck. He slowly stood up as he kept watching the obvious changes that were happening to the boy, not understanding it at all, but still happy the boy showed signs of actual life in him.
Slowly an even breathing was heard as all three bishops kept their own. The eyelids fluttered open and two green eyes looked up. "nnh…" came a sound from the bed.
"Teito-kun, can you hear me?" Labrador asked as he watched the boy trying to get up from the bed. "Frau please hold him still for a while, at least until I am sure he is ok."
Frau instantly had his hands on the boy's shoulders. "L-Let go, Don't touch me…" the boy told him.
"I can't do that kid, not 'till we are sure you are ok. Please lay still for a little longer so Lab can see how you are doing."
Teito stopped moving as he looked from Frau to Labrador. "I am fine, I just want to sit. How long has it been?" he asked Labrador.
"I can't let you sit up just yet. It's been a whole week since you locked us out. How are you feeling Teito-kun?" Labrador said as he kept on checking.
"I don't know exactly what has happened, but I had a long talk with Mikhail just now. I feel perfectly fine," 'physically' he added in his mind, "I am hungry though." he told them.
Frau couldn't help but laugh. "Lab, could you maybe examine him while he sits, so he can eat some food while you look at him?"
Labrador felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Looking at the man behind him and placing his own hand on the man's he sighed. "Ok, you can sit up, but that's it. Until I am sure you are indeed fine, you are not allowed to leave this bed, you hear me Teito-kun."
"Yes, sir." Teito said as he slowly tried to sit up. He was annoyed to find he needed help. The muscles in his arms wouldn't perform the needed strength to push himself up. Unconsciously he looked up at Frau for help, but quickly looked away again when he noticed what he had done.
The said man reacted when seeing the silent plea in the boy's eyes, helping him sit up before walking to the table, to grab the plate of food. Placing the plate on the boys lap, he sat on the chair again where he had sat all this time waiting.
Labrador checked his vitals again and was happy to say they all looked good enough. Teito shall need some muscle training to bring his strength back up, but that could be given to him in some time. The most concerning part was the mental state Teito would be in. Teito seemed to be doing fine, but something told Labrador that a lot had happened between Mikhail and Teito. Not to mention what had happened between Frau and Teito a week ago.
Teito was slowly eating as Labrador finished the check-up and started to stare at him. Swallowing the bite he had just taken, he looked up at Labrador. "So, am I allowed to leave the bed doc." He asked Labrador a bit mocking.
Labrador smirked. "You are allowed to leave, if you can that is. You will need some help when you want to leave the bed, you couldn't even sit up without help. Oh, don't give me that look, 'cause you know I am right. Your body was in a bad state when we found you. It lacked the necessary nutrition. I tried to help with getting you hooked on an IV-drip. That helped a bit, but your body was put in a near death state so it took a long time for the nutrients to circulate throughout your body. If you need anything, just ask Frau, he will be here with you until you are able to move freely again." With that he took hold of Castor's hand, smiled at Teito and winked to Frau as he walked out of the room again.
Closing the door he pulled Castor with him until he reached his garden. "We should leave the two alone while they talk things out. I can guess Mikhail explained a lot to Teito-kun, but it's best for Frau to do some talking too, don't you think?"
Castor looked at the younger Bishop before him. Labrador still had his hand in his own, which made it easy for him to pull the younger one in an embrace. "You are right my love, we should let them talk alone for some time, but are you sure you can leave Teito like that?"
"Teito should be fine, he is eating, the IV-drip is still hooked on. Now that his pulse is back to normal, it should work better and faster, resulting in a proper recovery. If something is to happen, Frau will be there. I don't think he will run away again anytime soon. Other than that, Mikhail is there too, so all should be fine for the moment."
Being assured, Castor kissed Labrador's forehead before he let go, so he could go back to his chores. "We should check them tonight to see if they need something." He said as he walked towards the church's hallways.
"We will check up on them tonight." Agreed Labrador and began collecting the needed plants for a new IV-drip.
Both men were looking at the closed door. Teito had his fork halfway to his mouth, while Frau just stared with his mouth open.
Frau was still thinking about the wink he received from Labrador just now. What did he meant with the wink? He didn't get it, what was Labrador trying to tell him?
Teito recovered fast and continued eating. He really did feel hungry, so he was glad with the food Frau gave him. While eating he was sneaking glances at Frau who still seemed to be lost in thoughts as he stared at the door.
When he had finished, he tried to elbow Frau, but found himself fall off the bed as he couldn't control his movements as he had been able to.
Hearing the 'yelp' Frau snapped out of his own thoughts, as he saw Teito fall. He managed to catch the boy before he hit the ground. "Oi brat, what were you thinking?"
"Don't call me brat, I have a name, and what was I thinking? I wasn't the one staring at a closed door for ten minutes." Teito pouted as he was put back on the bed. Teito stared at Frau for a while before he said. "I…" but he couldn't find the right words to continue.
Frau saw the conflict in his eyes and decided he should start first. "I am sorry for how I reacted that night. I shouldn't have left you like that but…"
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