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| semper memento |
she wants to embrace her veracity, her truths
yet her oceans are too deep
and her nightmares are too shallow
he wants to face his weakness, his avalanches
but his mountains are too high
and his dreams are too short
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i know that you are living a nightmare, but even so, will you—
always remember to remember?
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author's babbling and a little bit warnings:
Hello minna-san~ I'm back with the second chapter~ I hope I hadn't made you wait for too long. This whole university thing-y had taken its toll on me and made my pitiful self super busy with all their bullshit. This chapter is going to be bright like the sun at the beginning (I'm making up for the last chapter angsty-ness :D) and then turn angst-y and shit as the story goes on.
I think this one could answer some of your questions, or maybe not XD. You know, I kinda want to slap Guren because of that infamous 11th episode. I don't know why. I like him in the manga, but in anime… he just what I would call as an epitome of magnificent jerk. But well, I'm willing to forgive him because my ship sailed beautifully XD. And hell yeah the last episode is bae. Waiting for the second season like a maniac! (0_0v)
Before we proceed to the story, I want to say that I'm so happy that this story got so many attentions. Even though there was also a negative response I'm still glad that there are people who still willing to read this story, despite how many faults and shortcomings this one might be. I'm glad to find that there's a lot of people who had followed and favorited and even reviewed this new story of mine. Thank you for everyone who had reviewed the first chapter!
disclaimer:
I do not own owari no seraph (if I do, there's going to be a lot of yuunoa moments to fangirl about.)
—semper memento—
always remember
"Hm? Shinoa-chan?"
"She is... short. She is smart. She is playful.
She is… strong, really, really strong.
Even stronger than most of us."
-
"I have known her since... forever I guess.
Shinoa-chan is my ex-fiancé's little sister after all!
And she has this weird relationship with Guren too..."
-
"But if you ask who is she to me…. then—
-
"Shinoa-chan is
my cute little sister!"
-Hiiragi Shinya-
the second memory
[what is the difference between dream and nightmare?]
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Laughter filled the air as they were sitting side by side. Their surrounding was blurry with a sea of people, thousands of colors greeted their eyes as it was full of bustling soldiers about, talking and walking around the spacious hall briskly without a care. Shibuya Observation Post was clearly very busy in this time of a day, and it was quite risky for them to be here, but they didn't have any choice but to rest themselves inside the crowded building.
Well, let's just hope that no soldier could recognize their faces.
It's not like they were in hiding – or playing criminal in that case – but it's better for them to go unnoticed for a while.
They were presumed dead, after all. Not going to start any unnecessary ruckus.
"You two really surprised me!" Shinya exclaimed, eyes dancing with mirth as he was sitting on the empty lounger propped by the wall. "And here I thought it was hopeless…" he trailed off before he shook his head. "I should have known better that there is no way you two can die that easily."
"You bet, Shinya-san!" Yuichiro exclaimed rather loudly, kicking his feet up the air. "We're strong after all. A mere vampire like that wouldn't stand a chance." he nodded his head confidently.
Shinoa stared at the black haired boy with an amused expression. "Sure, Yuu-san. But what's up with that bruises and cuts on your body?" she said mockingly, eyeing some red and blue marks across his wan skin.
"Eh… uh.. this…." Yuichiro stammered as the heat that began to rush his cheeks. Now that was something he couldn't, wouldn't answer as long as he's alive. "T-That's none of your business!" he squeaked out, face flushing red from the embarrassment.
"Riiiiight~" The girl chimed, feeling a little satisfied when she saw his flushed face. "You're really are an idiot, aren't you?" she teased.
"S-Shut it!" he retorted back, eyes twitching badly. "Keep your comment for yourself!"
"Ahaha~ Okay Yuu-san~" she smiled suggestively. "Anything for you~"
Shinya could only watch from the sideline, amused smile upon his face as the lovebirds were busy prancing around in their usual act of insulting each other. Both of them were too absorbed in their little contest of glaring and giggling to notice the now-even-more-amused man beside them. The said man was sitting with his arms propped on the table now, eyes staring blankly into the ceiling above, wondering about their current predicament.
It's been a long day, he mused, and it was certainly been a long walk from Harajuku to Shibuya. They literally felt like shit after such a long journey, so it wasn't surprising that they had stopped for a while in Shibuya Observation Post to rest their legs.
Especially that the two of them had spent hours walking and killing a random psychopath on the loose in some unknown underground facility.
It was not exaggerating to say that they'd got sidetracked on the way, though.
Well, for his defense, it was supposed to be a simple route.
The three of them had been planning to head straight to Shibuya after their sore muscles had enough rest. They were itching to inform the others that no; they haven't died yet, and yes; they were still in one piece. Especially their squad mates and Guren.
( you know the reason. )
But as fun as coming back home would be, as a normal human in a not-so-normal world, they needed to satisfy their stomach first before dancing right into a dozens of monster out there. That was one of the reasons why three hours later they found themselves sitting inside Shibuya Observation Post mess hall, eagerly stuffing themselves with a portion that could have rivaled Guren's stack of paper works.
( the other was, maybe they were a little bit afraid. maybe. )
"Ne, Shinya-san." Shinoa called as she nibbled on her green apple. "Now that I think about it, how did you find us exactly?"
The two had to stop and stare for a minute when they saw the said man stilled in his place, mouth opened in shock. There's nothing wrong with her question, right?
She furrowed her eyebrows. "Shinya… -san…?"
"Mou~ Shinoa-chan!" The white haired man snapped out from his daze to pout at her. "How many times I have to tell you to call me Onii-chan!" he stood up from his place to sit beside her. "Shin-ya-o-nii-chan, you know~" he spelled each one of the syllable slowly, as if he was talking to a toddler.
"Eh…" the lavender haired girl could only sweatdropped. "Uh… fine… Shin.. ya –onii.. chan..?" she said quietly, unsure of the man bizarre antics.
"That's right~ Ah, I'm really happy to hear that cute voice of yours again." she just knew that the blue eyed man had forgotten her question as soon as he whirled around with an unbelievable speed to the equally perplexed boy on her left. Shinoa wrinkled her forehead when the man began to babble excitedly about something, clearly ignoring her question in the process.
"Shinya-oniichan?" she could have sworn that Yuichiro had winced from the corner of her eyes, almost chocking on his ramen when he heard her sugary sweet voice. But as always she ignored the boy. "Um, my earlier question, please?"
"Oh yes, of course." Shinoa sighed, at least the only adult they could count on finally back on his clean state. "Well, that's quite a hard question…" he mumbled under his breath.
"Huh?" she narrowed her eyes, "Can you please repeat that? I can't hear you."
"E-Eh… It's n-nothing." Shinya laughed nervously. "Eto… it's easy you know! It's not a secret that the two of you were lost in Harajuku, so… so I just… kinda walk around… hoping to find you by chance?" he muttered each of the word slowly and painfully, the tone of his voice turned unsure as the sentence rolled from his mouth that it's almost like he was throwing the question back at her.
They stopped eating for a while, abandoning the half-eaten food before them. It's obvious that he is lying, they thought as they glanced at each other. Both of them then shifted their gaze to stare at the uneasy man, it was clear as day that there was something he was hiding from them.
"Let me rephrase the question then." Shinoa tried another tactic and brought her eyes up to meet his. "How could you even go to Harajuku in the first place? And alone for that matter? Isn't that forbidden? Especially for a major rank like you are."
Shit, Shinya cringed as her words of truth began to pile up. It's not like he wasn't aware of the consequences, he had planned everything marvelously after all, but it slipped from his mind that these two brats were Guren's disciples. They must have known that he was lying to cover up his mistakes. Shinya, you're a smart man, he whispered words of courage inside his mind, so don't be such a wimp and lie flawlessly to their face!
He inhaled.
"Eh~ That's not really important." he tried to shrug it off nonchalantly, trying desperately to hide the nervous vibe from his (forced) monotone voice. "I'm a Major General after all, so it's not a problem if I acted on my own."
Shinya immediately admitted his defeat a second after he saw their blank gaze.
"You're lying, aren't you?" Shinoa stared at him flatly.
"Yeah, you're definitely lying." Yuichiro agreed from her left.
Shinya pouted, "You brats are certainly not fun." he mumbled quietly, "And here I thought it was a fine plan…."
"What really happened, Shinya-san?" Yuichiro raised his eyebrows. "It can't be that bad right?"
"Easy for you to say…" his tone was sad and solemn, "I think the Central is going to fire me for missing another meeting this week."
"Fire you?" Shinoa cocked her head. "For missing another meeting?" she asked, grinning widely.
"Yep…" he sighed. "Four hours ago was my, well, supposed to be, lunch time which equals my almost limited free-time so I decided to go to Harajuku, sneaking from that secret passage built in underground to find the two of you." he informed them, babbling miserably. "And two hours ago was my, well, another supposed to be meeting with the inner circle, yet here I am sitting with you two, munching on my strawberry flavored ration bar."
A pause.
"You are going to get killed, aren't you?" the looks they shot his way was pitying and sympathizing as if he had done something so offending that his soul couldn't even be saved anymore. Shinya cried without a sound when he remembered those promises of pain which was waiting for him back home.
"I know…."
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.
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"Where the fuck is that idiot now?"
Guren cussed behind the document he was currently reading, eyes twitching in irritation as another call of his went into a voicemail. It's been hours since the meeting had ended, but the impact the said meeting had done to him was not ludicrous. The inner circle just had to mention Shinya's absence in front of him, and he couldn't help but think it was somewhat his fault. And also that Hiiragi fucking Kureto just had to rub the fault on his face twice, for shouting out loud, twice.
But that's not a problem here.
At first Guren didn't want to know (and plainly didn't care) just what kind of trouble that idiot was having right now. Though for a moment there he had almost succumbed from the urge to locate that annoying friend of his and have his way with him but Guren immediately pummeled the idea down for it was so not worth his time.
But alas, he was too much a saint to ignore his troublemaker of a friend, so he tried to be a good comrade and contacted the rascal numerous times but the said rascal didn't pick it up. He tried again. And again. And again. But that freaking rascal still didn't answer his call. No, that's not right. That freaking rascal still didn't answer his calls.
"Shinya I swear to god," he gritted his teeth furiously as he dialed his wayward friend's number again. "If you don't answer this call again I'm going to—"
A clicked sound.
"Moshi moshi~ Guren~? Is that you~?"
That fucking voice. He knew that fucking voice.
"Shinya?"
"Yes~?"
He couldn't believe it. The bastard finally picked the freaking phone up.
"Where are you now?" he said, trying to keep the anger at bay.
"At my office~ Why~? Is something wrong~?"
What do you think? You git, Guren had to bit his lower lip hard in order to maintain the profanities from escaping out. All this time he had been worrying for nothing? He even thought that his friend had been battling with some mutant monster out there for an instance.
"The fucking heads were complaining about your lack of absence in today meeting." he began with wry tone. "And I just know that you have done something bad behind by back, so spill."
"Eh~ I didn't do anything bad~" Guren could imagine the bastard pouting face right now. It was so clear that he wanted to bash his head against his desk. "In fact, I have done something so unbelievable that even you can't help but wanting to hug me~"
What kind of crap that he's spouting about now? Pigs would fly before he even dared to touch the man.
"What nonsense are you implying?" Guren clicked his tongue in annoyance, bracing himself for any ridiculous answer he would have taken on. But suddenly there was a deafening silence, and he started to worry if he had said something wrong.
"Oi. Shinya?" he called, "Are you—"
"I brought them back, you know. Just like what I promised. Both of them."
Guren's heart stopped beating for a while, his face slowly paling into a sick color of stark white at the reply he had received.
That was certainly not an answer that he was expecting.
He ran.
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"Shinya-san? Are you talking with someone?" Yuichiro asked when he saw the man flipped his phone back into his pocket.
"Eh~ It's just my superior. Nagging about my absence today and all~" there's no way that he could say the truth to their face. No, he wouldn't. Even if there was a blood thirsty madman who was coming rapidly into his office. Nope. He would never.
"It doesn't look like that though." Shinoa titled her head. "For a moment there I thought you almost shat your pants."
"I didn't!" he quickly interjected. "I swear I didn't! Ahahaha~" and then laughed nervously as two-thirds of the occupant in this room stared blankly at his fidgeting form. "Really children~ I'm not lying, it's the truth!" he shrunk back in dismay when their stare didn't falter. "I'm honest…."
They stared again for the umpteenth time before they finally gave up. Forcing this man to admit the truth was as hard as making Guren smile from the bottom of his heart. "Whatever you say, Shinya-san. Whatever you say." she waved her hand carelessly and the man exhaled, relieved that they'd put the matter down for now.
"So, Shinoa-chan, Yuu-chan." he called, a big smile plastered on his face. "Why don't you check that first aid kit over there? I think you need that box considering that bruises and cuts all over your body."
The two of them paused for a moment to look at each other's battered bodies. That was true, the bruises and cuts had decorated their skin with countless of red and blue dots. It's time to get it treated properly.
"That's a great idea." Shinoa nodded her head as she made her way into the said box. "I think Yuu-san need to go first though."
"Eh? Why me?" The black-haired boy protested, clearly disagreed with her. "I'm not the one with a hole on my stomach!" he pointed out.
"I don't have a hole on my stomach." she bite the word back at him, the box securely propped on her hands. "And for shouting out loud it's healed!"
"No it's not!" he argued stubbornly. "I don't believe you. You go first!" he said through gritted teeth.
"It's healed for god's sake! Is it necessary for me to strip naked now so you will believe me?" she shot back, feeling a tad annoyed by his behavior.
"W-what?!" he sputtered out, face flamed into apple red. He couldn't believe the nerve of this girl. "The freaking hell–Shinoa you—have you no shame?!"
"Yuu-san..." she sighed exasperatedly, his willful responses had taken its toll on her as she massaged her throbbing head. "Please stop being such a whiny child and let me tend that wounds of yours." she almost begged, hands already hovering near his bruised form.
"No fuckin' way." but alas, he refused again, battling her hands away from treating his wounds. "I said you go first!"
The quarrel went on and forth, and amidst the petty war of who-is-the-first-to-be-treated that currently breaking inside this room, the white haired man had successfully disappeared from his place without any of them noticing.
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"Now….." Hiiragi Shinya glanced suspiciously around the hallways of the building in which his office located, searching for any signs of the madman he was currently anticipating about. "Where is he…?"
The blue eyed man was hiding behind some unfortunate overgrown plant beside his office's door, silently glaring to the hallway entrance just a few feet in front of him. He was twitchy and emotional, but it was not an understatement because for Kureto's sake having an equally emotional man like Guren craving for your blood was not something to look forward to.
He shouldn't have told him about them before he retreated to a safe location. It was stupid of him and now he had to face the consequence of his idiotic emotional move.
Shinya closed his eyes.
He breathed in. He breathed out. He opened his eyes again.
But to his relief (and disappointment), the place was barren and void like a desert, devoid of any live and for a moment there he thought that he was safe. At least for now, he thought nervously as he began to head back to his office.
BAM!
How wrong he was.
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"Did you hear that?" Shinoa furrowed her eyebrows, her hands suddenly stopped from harassing the boy's body.
"Hear what?" he muttered back with annoyance. "I didn't hear a thing. You're hallucinating."
"No I'm not." she pinched his bruised skin for that insult and Yuichiro had to bite down a scream because for shouting out loud it was painful. "I think it was a door opening or so. And from the loud noises I'm hearing the person is not amused."
"I don't… care." he gasped when one of her hands put too much pressure on his throbbing bruise. "J-Just keep your hands off of my body!" he cried out when pain began to creep up his swollen abdomen.
"You're hurting." Shinoa deadpanned. "There is no doctor or nurse. I'm the only one who is eligible enough to treat your wound." she nodded her head, heart swelled in pride and he groaned again because it was pretty obvious that the girl wasn't going to listen to any of his protest.
"Eligible my ass…" Yuichiro mumbled under his breath. "You're only making it worse…."
"Yuu-san," her smile was sugar sweet and he forced down the fear that began to breathe down his neck. "What was that? I can't hear you~" she asked him sweetly, pulling the bandage tighter around his torso without remorse and the boy groaned again from the double pain.
"I didn't…" he gasped for breath. "I'm… ugh… it's nothing…" he rasped out.
"I'm glad to hear that." she smirked. "Now keep quiet."
"Fine." he snapped, apparently fed up with all the spats they were having. "But please do your job properly this time!" he said desperately, almost in a brink of throwing his pride away just to beg for the girl's mercy.
"Yes~ Yes~ I will." The lilac haired girl promised with a big grin on her face, satisfied with his obedience. But then she noticed his unusual numbers of bruises and a frown suddenly made its way to her face. "Now that I thought about it, why is your body full of wounds? Is that the vampire's doing or—"
"Nothing! It's nothing!" Yuichiro interrupted the girl before she finished her sentence, "It's not important!" he laughed nervously. There's no way that he was going to answer that question. No, he would never. No way.
"Is there something you've been hiding from me again?" she said suspiciously when she recognized the edge on his voice.
"No!" he almost shouted from the nervousness. "You're just imagining things!"
"Really? You're not lying?"
"Yes! I'm honest!"
Nope, he thought. He certainly wasn't going to tell the girl the truth, even though those bruises and cuts were the result of protecting her from that fall back then.
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Before Shinya could even move a foot, the door in front of him blasted open with a loud crack, splinters of wood flying everywhere and he could have sworn that the black haired man had almost ripped the polished door off its hinges with his super power.
SHIT.
That word was enough to express the situation he was facing right now. But if he had given the chance to prolong the statement then his exact sentence would be:
Shit Guren's coming what should I do what should I do he's gonna kill me I'm going to die.
"Shinya."
He stopped breathing when the man's glare drilled into his face.
"Y-Yes?!" he squeaked out, it was the first time he had ever felt overwhelmingly scared of the person in front of him. But thankfully, the violet eyed man was not equipped with his cursed gear. If he was, Shinya didn't know what to think about those children's future.
"Shinoa. Yuu. Where."
"I-inside!" he had to force down the urge to salute at his angry friend.
And just like a passing breeze, Guren slipped from his eyes and slammed the door behind him open.
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.
To put it simply, Guren's arrival was not predicted by either of them. So just imagine their surprise when the said man suddenly emerged from the front door, a thick, black aura loomed behind his body.
"G-Guren-c-chūsa…." Shinoa managed to say the man's name as she fidgeted around. She didn't know what had happened but the face he wore was scary. No, scratch that. She knew what had happened but it didn't mean that the Lieutenant Colonel had to look at them with such a dreadful glare.
Beside her, Yuichiro was no different as he muttered words under his breath, silently cursing their bad luck. Of all people they had to meet first, it had to be Guren.
"Yo brats." The man began and the two of them suddenly stiffened at his voice. "Miss me?"
That smile he shot them was homicidal and brutal, and they instantly knew that it was promising a certain death. They just knew.
"Uh… Baka-Guren… w-we…" he stammered out when Guren began to walk to their direction, it was slow and excruciating, almost like that scene in a horror movie he had watched before. "Ugh, we are…" he glanced to his right desperately, begging the girl to come up with a smart plan to save them from whatever hellhole he was going to create.
But sadly, Shinoa didn't have a clue how to counter this seething man in front of them. All that they could do was bracing themselves from the impact of his anger. They had expected this kind of thing to happen, after all. So they swallowed their fear down and lowered their head, refusing to meet his eyes. They waited for him to explode.
Seconds passed. A minute passed. Nothing.
Huh?
They waited again but still, there was nothing. They had been so accepting with their current situation, even going as far as remained still on their place to let the man had his way. But the promised fist never came and instead they felt a rough hand atop their heads, gently messing with their strands of hair.
"…..Chūsa?" Shinoa said confusedly, head titled a little to meet the man's eyes. Even Yuichiro had to gulp down the peculiarity of this moment and raised his head up, wordlessly asking for a confirmation. But Guren didn't stop as a honest, small smile began to crept up his face, his hands continuously mussing up their nest of hair.
"I'm…." they heard him talked then, voice so soft and quiet that was so unlikely of him. "I'm glad, that you brats are alive…"
He… that Guren, he was smiling down at them, a true and sincere smile, not that half-assed grin he had always graced them. And contrary to their belief, he wasn't mad. He didn't even give any kind of indication that he was angry at them. No, not even a punch or a hit, no trash-talk, no punishment. Just a simple smile and it was… weird, those uncontrollable feeling of guilt and happiness that bursting inside their chest as they stared at the relieved man. They couldn't help but wonder just how worried he was in those past day they'd been gone.
"Both of you," his voice snapped them out from their thoughts. "Welcome home." Guren said then with another smile.
Their dropped jaws and widened eyes were sure ungodly, but beside that, they were content.
Yeah, they had certainly missed this man alright.
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"So brattlings, care to tell me about what the fuck happened out there that you didn't even spare a thought to contact us, hm?"
Dammit.
I take it back, I take it all back!
Yuichiro grimaced beside his equally pained comrade. That person was a demon. No, the spawn of evil. A godforsaken monster. Why would he ever thought that he's a changed man was beyond his mind.
"Oi. I'm asking you why, brats. Answer me when I am talking to you." they shivered when a sadistic smile stretched on his face.
"Yuu-san!" Shinoa whispered urgently to her side. "How do you reckon we should escape from this mess?"
"I don't know!" he whispered back. "You think about some smartass plan or what!"
"I can't!" she almost shouted at his annoying face. "You think about something!"
"I'm not a freaking genius for god's sake." he muttered quietly, minding his voice. "He's a demon. Spawn of evil. What can we do to counter such a force?"
"Just think of some—"
"Oi brats." they froze. "Who gave you a permission to talk with each other, hm?" Guren smiled homicidally at their sweating form. "Now answer the fucking question."
They glanced at each other, both feeling totally freaked out by the black haired man. "It's uh… a long story.." Yuichiro trailed off for a moment. "We… got… c-captured by… a super nasty time-controlling bastard…?"
A pause.
"You got captured by a what?" Guren said incredulously.
The look that Shinoa had thrown his way was doleful and Yuichiro began to doubt if he was qualified enough for this job.
"Uh, a time controlling abnormal, Chūsa." she glared sharply at the fidgeting boy. "That's why we took a long time to come back. The time and space around him was distorted enough that our time perception didn't match at all." she said with a matter of fact tone.
"Explain." The Lieutenant Colonel demanded as he frowned.
"Well—"
Shinoa stopped short when she heard loud noises by the door. It sounded like there was a raging war happening out there with all the noisy ruckus. "Uhm, Chūsa? I think someone just broke the door." she informed the man flatly, like it was normal.
"Huh?" The man abruptly stood up from his chair. "What are you tal—"
"Y-YUU-KUN! S-SHINOA-SAN! YOU'RE BACK!"
A bullet of warm body suddenly came barreling from nowhere, knocking both of them into the cold floor. They winced a little when a pair of arms wrapped itself around their body in a desperate hug.
"HUH? WHAT THE—Y-Yoichi?" Yuichiro toned his voice down when he saw tufts of chocolate brown hair under him. "Yoichi what are you—"
"Yuu-kun… Shinoa-san… I'm… I'm glad..." he was crying bullets, tear marks already marred his flushed face. "I'm so glad…"
"Y-Yoichi-san…" Shinoa groaned from the pain of their fall. "I missed you too… B-But I think you should loosen up your grip a little… I can't breathe…."
"B-But… both of you…" he sobbed noisily on Yuichiro's shoulder. "B-Both of you are safe a-and I…"
"Yoichi…." Yuichiro muttered when he saw his meek friend started to cry even louder. "Hey… don't cry… we are fine, see? No harm done." he tried to console the whimpering boy with a patience he didn't know he possessed.
Then, all of sudden, they could hear a faint sounds of hurried footsteps from outside the room, despite the loud episodes that Yoichi's currently having.
Well, if Yoichi is here… they mused, then those footsteps must be—
"You idiot…" they could hear someone muttered behind them, "Both of you stupid heads…. I can't believe it… that stupidity of yours…"
"Baka-Yuu…. Chibi… I swear to god I'm going to kill you two for this…." another voice joined.
"Huh?" Yuichiro turned his head to look from his shoulder. "Oh, it's you Mitsuba, and Kimi—"
BONK!
"IT'S HURTS!" he screamed when two fist collided with his head with a force so hard he was crying. "WHAT THE HELL YOU TWO?! Why I'm the only one who got clobbered?!" he demanded childishly, eyes glistening with unshed tears from the throbbing pain inside his head.
"Heh," Kimizuki scoffed standoffishly. "Isn't that pretty obvious, right, Mitsuba?" he said mockingly.
"That's true." The blonde clicked her tongue. "Totally obvious."
"Why you little—" Yuichiro gritted his teeth in frustration. "I'm going to kill you! Why did you hit me you bastard?!"
"Because you're an idiot." was their simultaneous answer.
"You little…." he seethed even more when he saw Shinoa bowed her head low, obviously trying to hide her snickers from him. "And you!" he pointed his finger at his (one-sided) partner in crime's shaking form, "STOP LAUGHING ALREADY!"
"Ahahaha~ I can't~" Shinoa laughed freely, eyes dancing as she looked at him with something akin to… happiness? There were tears in her eyes, red painted her flushed cheeks, and Yuichiro had to stop for a moment to admire her beautiful, honest smile. He didn't know why but his heart began to throb uncontrollably inside his rib cage. So fast, that he had almost thought that it was going to burst open.
He didn't know what's the name of this feeling, but he didn't mind.
( he would certainly know as the time pass, right? )
His thoughts was cut short when he felt Mitsuba curled her arms around their mess of tangled bodies on the floor, her usual malice was nowhere to be found and even Kimizuki rested his hands on top of his and Shinoa's head in such a relaxed manner. Warmth began to envelope his body, and it felt like every doubt, every fear and every grief had evaporated from his heart when he realized that they were together.
( they were together, they were family and he was happy, so happy )
In the midst of his blurry happiness, a fleeting phrase resounded within his ears.
Yuichiro smiled.
He was sure that someone had muttered a 'Welcome home' between his and theirs vibrant riots.
( i'm home. )
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.
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"They are definitely a good team, aren't they?" Shinya had to resist a smile when he saw their long awaited reunion. On the floor. With a bawling boy and two pissed off comrades. He broke into a round of laughter when he saw Yuichiro fruitlessly battled Yoichi's attempt at rubbing his snot-nosed face into his chest.
"Yeah." he could hear Guren muttered beside of him. "Those brats really are a handful bunch." he sighed tiredly, "I didn't ask for this when I applied to military, you know." he complained frivolously.
"Yes. I know." The white haired man smiled, sky-eyes bright with life. "But you are happy, aren't you Guren?"
The said man paused for a moment, before a small smile painted on his lips.
"Yeah." he whispered into the wind. "Yeah. I guess I am."
"Good then." Shinya hummed when he heard his soft tone. "After all I hate seeing your depressed face."
There was silence, a comfortable one, before the black haired man settled his hand on top Shinya's silvery white hair.
"Shinya?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you."
( for everything, I owe you lots, thank you. )
"You're welcome."
( I know, you don't have to tell me, we're friends, aren't we? )
.
.
.
It had been weeks since they returned to Shibuya, and the town was still as busy as ever.
They watched as countless of peoples swarmed inside the spacious hall, talking and bickering with each other and somehow they felt like drowning in the customary lifestyle around them. They had spent a few good hours inside Guren's office, explaining about their predicament—about the abnormal vampire, his ability to control time and even how they had met Shinya on the way back after a long lectures of 'use your common sense' and 'please don't be suicidal' the man had ruthlessly kicked them out from his office muttering 'idiot' and 'brats' and 'I'm too old for this' under his breath.
The two formerly missing soldiers were, unsurprisingly, banned from any mission until they were fully healed, and it meant that the entire team wouldn't get a mission for a long, long time. So in those long weeks of hectic days, they used the opportunity to train themselves off, and perhaps wondering about the town, just fooling around, really.
After all the thing they had been through, the normal everyday life was exactly what they needed to recover.
Nothing changed, and it was relieving to see that everything was mostly the same, except for a few things like the mess hall location or the breakfast menus and such. Yuichiro couldn't help but wonder though if there was another thing they had missed when they were away.
"Nah, it's the same, y'know." Kimizuki said when they were training at the combat grounds. "Just a few changes here and there, but overall nothing has changed."
"Is that so?" Yuichiro muttered as he blocked another of his mean strike with his own. "We had been gone for two weeks, right? You sure nothing has changed?"
"Pretty sure—" he paused to stoop down, evading the strike aimed on his head. "Hey, that was close you idiot." he said as he brought his twin-swords closer.
"I was aiming for your stupid head." he chucked a stone at the peach haired boy, but he easily evaded it. "I'm sorry though…" his tone began to waver as memories of the past days bottled within himself.
"For what?" Kimizuki stopped his attacks when he saw the boy faltered on his steps. "You idiot, we have been through this, haven't we?" he clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Just how many times I have to say that it's not your and chibi's fault?"
"Lots of time." Yuichiro sent him a crooked smile, "Just making sure that you haven't changed your mind."
Kimizuki could only stare at the oddball in front of him. "You're really an idiot, aren't you?" he scoffed.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean, huh?" came his biting reply, but it was not discerning, but rather fond of him.
"Yuu-kun! Kimizuki-kun!" they stopped when they heard Yoichi called from a distance, "We got a mission! We have to hurry, come on!"
Yuichiro and Kimizuki looked at each other before an identical grin broke in each of their face.
"Race you to the office!"
"I'm going to beat your ass!"
"Hah. You hope!"
.
.
Yuuichiro glanced around the enormous building, seeking his little friend among the sea of peoples. But he couldn't find that unique lavender everywhere, only lots of boring brown and black reflected inside his eyes and it was worrying, because the last time she wasn't by his side Shinoa was—
He frowned and gave Mitsuba a look. "Where is Shinoa?"
"Huh? I don't know." The violet eyed girl wrinkled her forehead. "She's not with you guys?"
"No…" Yuichiro murmured, eyes still searching for his little leader. "Yoichi said that the two of you had gone ahead. I thought she's with you." he deadpanned.
"Yeah." Yoichi agreed from his left. "Shinoa-san said that she would be with Mitsuba-san. I'm sure I'm not mistaken..." he muttered anxiously as he played with his fingers.
"Ehh? Seriously?" Mitsuba shouted incredulously. "That's not true. I mean, she didn't say anything about going together whatsoever. I thought she went with you guys."
They stopped for a moment to glance uneasily at each other, what's that supposed to mean?
"Do you have her number?" The bespectacled boy asked after the painful silence. "If you do, just call her." he suggested.
"Uh, fine." without hesitating she dialed her short friend's number, waiting as the line connected with the other. But even after a minute, the owner of the phone didn't pick it up, and her call went into a voicemail instead.
"She's not answering…." Mitsuba bit her lower lip in concern. "It's so unusual of her…"
The four-fifths of Shinoa's squad stood in silence, each of their face supporting an identical frown. It was not a coincidence, it couldn't be a coincidence. There must be something happened which made her couldn't make it on time. No, scratch that. It was so not like her to be late, especially for mission, she was after all the leader of this little squad, so it was out of the question.
So why? Did Yoichi hear wrong? But it was impossible, it was impossible unless—
( unless she lied. )
"I'm…" they turned to stare at the black haired boy motionless form, "I'm going to her apartment. You guys go ahead." he said blankly, his pair of viridian orbs devoid of any emotions.
"But—" Mitsuba stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder to find Kimizuki standing tall behind her shorter statue, eyes hard like stone as he gazed to the still boy.
"Fine." he said quietly, but enough for them to hear. "You go. Bring that Chibi fast would you?" before Mitsuba could even protest the twin-swords user had dragged her body away forcefully, not minding her loud shrill of a voice. Yoichi reluctantly followed the two of them from behind, but paused for a moment to shoot an encouraging look at their last squad mate—but to his disappointment, Yuichiro had already disappeared into thin air, leaving only dust and emptiness on his trail.
.
.
.
She saw it again.
That dome of nothingness inside her mind.
The place was once again painted into a blinding white, a dome she kept on seeing since that time she'd almost died. She couldn't see a thing but that lone chair in the middle of the vast landscape, all warped in solitary. But that person, whoever it was, she couldn't find it anywhere but instead there were memories.
Memories of her past that buried under the dust of time.
It had been weeks, and the memories began to morph into nightmares, plaguing her mind as the day passed by. She didn't know what's wrong with her, but piece by pieces it began to eat her consciousness away. Sometimes it left her between a half-sleep, half-awake state. Sometimes it kept her awoke for the rest of the night, didn't even give her a chance to close her tired eyes. Never compassionate and it kept on filling her mind with scenes of a distant past she couldn't even remember anymore.
( there was mahiru )
Her kind and heavenly beautiful, so beautiful older sister. She remembered her kind smiles, her soft touches and her chiming laughs. She remembered her warmth and the feeling of her soft skin when she hugged her little body closer to her chest. She remembered her sweet little kisses when she whispered words against her ears, lulling her into a deep slumber when she was too afraid to sleep at those horrible nights.
( there was guren )
Her awkward, rough, but soft-hearted guardian. She remembered his atrocious grins, his feeble half-smiles and his potty mouth. She remembered his gentle touch upon her head when he messed with her long strands of lavender hair. She remembered his half-embrace when she was crying for her sister, begging for her to come back because, because she was all she had inside this forsaken world. She remembered his promises and reassurances when it was hard and painful to keep on living.
( there was shinya )
Her weird, delicate and yet gentle, gentle older brother. She remembered his little laughs, his crooked smiles and his kindness that seemed like it had no boundaries whatsoever. She remembered his soft palm when it grazed against her scalp, stroking her head so tenderly. She remembered his playful doings, those incredible pranks they'd played on a certain black haired man back in the day. She remembered his hug when she was angry and sad because her sister was dead and her world was breaking all over the place.
( and then, there was him )
A crimson haired boy. The only one she couldn't name, he was like a void inside her heart, someone she didn't know from her childhood. And compared to her other memories, his was the most vague. She couldn't remember that much, but she remembered his fiery red eyes that almost rivaled the color of his hair. She remembered his happy laughter when they were playing and goofing around. She remembered his tender smiles and timid grins but she couldn't, couldn't remember who he was and what he was to her.
( who is he, she wondered )
She remembered it all over again.
She was forced to remember it all as the memories kept on repeating like a broken record. But his name, it was one thing she couldn't remember. It made her sick, she was sick. She couldn't take it anymore. She was sick of it all. It was enough.
It was enough.
( it's enough )
Shinoa had to bit her tongue to keep the scream at bay.
.
.
.
"— NOA! OI SHINOA! OPEN THIS DOOR!"
A loud banging suddenly broke Shinoa from the shackles of her deep sleep, bringing her stolen consciousness into the surface. She didn't know what had happened, but she remembered her dream—no, her nightmare. And yet, that voice certainly didn't belong to any of her memories, so who was banging on her front door in this time of a day?
"—NOA I SWEAR IF YOU DON'T OPEN THIS DOOR I'M GOING TO BREAK TH—"
Wait a minute. That voice, she knew that voice. And he's going to what?
"—IS STUPID THING INTO—"
It was her door for god's sake, there was no way that she would ever let him break it down.
"—SMITHERNESS AND YOU ARE GOING TO REG—"
She scrambled onto her feet and ran to the front door as if a vampire were hot on her tail.
"—RET IT! NOW OPEN THIS DO—"
Shinoa pulled the handle down with an iron grip and blasted the door open into his face. And for a split of second she regretted her misdeed because it's actually looked painful.
"SHIT!" he cursed out loud when the door slammed flat into his face, leaving a red mark for the world to see, and for a moment there she wanted to laugh at him but thought better when she saw his pale face and messy appearance. "What the—Shinoa!" he shouted when he finally saw her face emerged from the door. "You're—are you—is there—I mean—you okay!?" he stammered and yet maintained his loud voice when he was at it.
"H-Huh? Y-Yes? Is something… wrong?" she asked confusedly, what's wrong with him?
"You—The mission—Why—Argh, Forget it!" he cussed a little before he pushed her nimbly into the hallway. "Let me in!" he demanded.
"W-Wait a moment Yuu-san!" she exclaimed as the boy began to make his way inside, before he threw the door shut carelessly. "Wha—What are you doing!?" Shinoa screeched when he abruptly manhandled her roughly. It was unbelievable, the heat that began to burn her face when he suddenly backed her up into the nearest wall, trapping her body in the process. Shinoa winced a little when her back collided with the hard concrete, eyes widening in disbelief when the boy slammed his hands on each of her head, caging her petite body with his larger one.
"Y-Yuu–s-san?!" she stuttered, cheeks flaming red. "Uh.. I'm w-what happe—"
"Are you okay?! Are you hurt?! Is something wrong?!" he cut her over, his tone hurried and anxious, almost in a brink of madness and she didn't know what to think because, because it was terrifying to see him in such a state. It made her afraid to see him like this.
( it's familiar, too familiar. where she had ever seen this before? )
"Y-Yuu-san…. I'm... I'm okay…" she managed to draw out a few words, still shaken up with his bizarre behavior and not to mention that their position right now was making her nervous. "I'm... m-more importantly... what... just what happened...?" she asked quietly, still looking at his dilated eyes.
"I-I… y-you... I mean…" his words were feeble and unsure, as if he was back into his younger days, like a child. His wide-open eyes drilled into her meek ones and she could have sworn that she saw fear and horror inside those beautiful green. "I... I thought… I t-thought…" he began to stammer, the particular wild look still apparent on his stark white face.
( his voice was hot and burning against her skin. )
"You thought…?" she whispered between his and her breaths, they were close, frighteningly close that she wondered why they haven't touched yet. But her thought was cut short when she felt him move even closer to her still form, his lips dangerously hovering over hers. "Yuu-san…?" she addressed him quietly when he didn't open his mouth to answer her question. He just stood there, motionless, his dark bangs brushed against his forehead and eyes and it casted an eerie shadow over his face.
( she didn't like it. his eyes were too beautiful to be hidden, she thought. )
It was deafening, the silence, and she couldn't help but bit her lower lip, hoping the pain would keep her feet anchored on the cold floor. She didn't dare to move, didn't dare to talk and then out of the blue he began to drop his head low, onto her right shoulder, and she felt her heart stop beating from the mere contact. She could feel his hot breath upon the naked skin of her neck, and Shinoa had to fight the squeal that threatened to break from her quivering lips.
( he melted her, burned her until she was nothing but ashes and dust. )
"I thought…" she stiffened when he mumbled against her feverish skin. "I thought… you were gone…" he whispered brokenly.
( who's gone? i'm here, right here, right in front of you, she wanted to say. )
"Yuu… –san.." she honestly couldn't catch his voice, it was so small and unclear to her ears. "W-what are you…?" she murmured, voice equally weak. His breath was scalding her neck into lava, and her mind, it was blank—strangely blank, barren and void just like a desert. The only thing that she could picture inside her head was him. His face. His eyes. His lips.
( only him. )
"Shinoa…" he raised his head upwards, painfully slow, and the heat inside her cheeks began to explode again. "I'm…" their eyes met, green to crimson, both of their breaths mingled together and in that moment, Shinoa felt like drowning inside his striking orbs that filled with countless of emotions that she couldn't name. Thousands of feelings that seemed so foreign yet familiar at the same time.
( what's the name of this feeling again..? )
"I'm…" he whispered again, unconsciously brought his face even closer and she held her breath, waiting. "Shinoa I th—"
SCREEECH!
"SHINOA! YUU! ARE YOU GUYS OKAY?!" a shout could be heard from outside.
"Damn it woman! Can't you slow down?!" another voiced joined.
"W-Wait! M-Mitsuba-san! K-Kimizuki-kun! Please wait for me!" and another.
Silence.
"Shi…noa?" The blonde haired girl peeked from the creak between the door and its frame. "Hey, you guys okay?" she asked as she pulled the door open.
Another silence.
Mitsuba frowned when none of the occupants of the room answered her questions, she was sure as hell that her voice was loud enough for them to hear. With that in mind, she walked straight into the hallway of her friend's apartment eagerly. Ah, there she is! Mitsuba smiled when she saw her lavender haired friend standing a few feet ahead, but frowned when she realized that it was only her. Alone.
"Weird… I thought that idiot is her—YUU!" Mitsuba shrieked when she saw a bundle of black lying on the floor. "Hey! Are you okay?!" she said frantically, even went as far as bending down to shake his shoulder. But all she got was a series of groans and moans of 'damn it hurts' and 'why the hell did she hit me' and 'I didn't ask for this' and another 'it hurts' as the boy weakly rolled over the ground.
"Uh… Yuu?" Mitsuba could only sweatdropped when he saw him sobbing childishly into the floor. "Um… are you.. okay?" she cringed when she noticed the large bump on his pale forehead. Was Shinoa the one who did this…?
When she realized that asking the boy was impossible, she whipped her head quickly to stare at the other (thanks god) conscious people in this room, which was standing on her feet, mouth agape with a face that almost rivaled a tomato.
"Shinoa…?" she muttered unsurely, just what the hell happened before she came? "Are you… okay?"
But sadly, even though the girl was awake, it seemed like her mind wasn't. She could just tell by the blank look upon her face.
Just what the hell happened here?! Mitsuba screamed desperately inside her mind.
BLAM!
"M-Mitsuba you l-litte…" she snapped her head when she heard a loud booming sound and saw Kimizuki by the door, gasping for breath like a maniac. Mitsuba beamed, that bespectacled boy didn't know how happy she was when he broke into the room. "I swear someday I'm going to kill you… and that idiot too..." Kimizuki muttered with heaved breath, then paused.
"Huh? Why is that idiot lying on th—"
"KIMIZUKI!" she almost felt like crying when she saw that ugly frown upon his face. "Come here quickly! That idiot need your att—"
"M-Mitsuba-san! K-Kimizuki-kun!" a shout cut her over. "Ah, there you are!" Yoichi emerged from the wide-open door with his sunshine smile and forest eyes. "I thought I almost lost the two of you ba—YUU-KUN!" Mitsuba sweatdropped, really, his reaction was an exact copy paste of hers. "Y-You are alive aren't you?! Y-Yuu-kun! PLEASE DON'T DIE!" he sobbed noisily when he saw the black haired boy soulless form.
"Y-Yoichi! Stop hogging him over! We need to att—Shinoa! Don't just stand there you little—Kimizuki you go support him!"
"Why me?! And what the hell happened to that Chibi?! I don't wa—Yoichi stop crying for god's sake he's alive!"
"YUU-KUN! NO! PLEASE DON'T DIE!"
.
.
"What the hell happened to you?" Ichinose Guren raised his eyebrows, eyeing the grouchy boy with scrutinizing look.
"Don't ask." came the biting reply, "Just tell us already what the freaking mission is. I don't have time for any of your crap…" he muttered grumpily, nursing a large bump on his forehead.
"Heh." The man snorted. That bruise sure look ridiculous on him, he thought. "It suit you well. Made you even more charming." he mocked the boy.
"Shut up!" Yuichiro finally snapped. "It's not my fault that someone—" he pinned a glare into the lavender haired girl. "Was cranky, just because she overslept!" he snapped.
Shinoa winced from his obvious jab on her peculiar barbarism earlier this morning, but paid him no mind because really, no matter how much she wanted to mock him back it was entirely her fault.
Or perhaps not.
He was the one who made her into a blubbering mess, after all. Personal space, please?
She pursed her lips into a tight line. "Yuu-san need I remind you that—"
"Oh well, whatever." Guren waved them off, and both of them turned their sinister glares at him instead. "Personally, I'm a bit skeptical about giving your squad another mission, considering the mess that had happened a few weeks ago." he said idly as he sat back into his chair, "But we're understaffed so I don't have a choice but sending you brats into the battlefield." he nodded his head.
"Understaffed my ass…" Yuichiro mumbled when he read the mission briefing printed on white paper, "You just want us to babysit some box around, you jerk…"
That was pretty much the summary of the whole mission. Their squad was charged with some box's safety, while Guren's squad and Narumi's squad acted as the executioner of the group. He didn't know what was so important about this freaking box but Yuichiro refused to do such an easy task just like that. He wanted to fight vampires for shouting out loud, not babysitting an inanimate being around.
"You're not just simply babysitting, you brat." Guren scoffed as if he was reading his mind. "You're guarding. That box is more important than you think. Now stop pouting. I hate seeing your ugly face."
"Fine." Yuichiro grumbled under his breath. "Where is Narumi's squad anyway?"
His comrades paused for a moment to stare disbelievingly at the confused boy.
"What?" he asked when he felt eyes on him. "Why the hell are you guys staring at me like that. It's creepy." he shuddered.
"You should really pay attention when someone is talking, you idiot." Mitsuba face palmed, feeling a bit down because of her comrade's idiocy. "They are waiting outside the gates, preparing some equipment."
"Oh…"
"Do you always ignore everything that wasn't physically beaten into that skull of yours?" Kimizuki said blankly from his place. "I'm sure as hell that everyone in this room heard it loud and clear."
"Why you…" Yuichiro twitched his eyes, quite taken by the insult. "You want to take this outside?!" he said through gritted teeth.
"Bring it on! I'm going to beat your stupid ass in a minute!" Kimizuki shot back, fired up from the taunts.
"Maa~ Maa~ Yuu-kun, Kimizuki-kun, don't fight now okay?" Yoichi came between the two seething males. "We have a mission you know, please save it for later, alright?" he said as he smiled at them. The two hotheaded boys tsked before they gave each other a torrent of grumbles and curses from their mouth.
"Someday I'm going to sue you for not doing your freaking job." Guren whispered to the squad leader of this peculiar bunch. The said leader only smiled widely at his miffed face.
"Just try it, Chūsa." her smile widened even more when she saw the two idiots began another spat over some random thing. "I'm going to sue you back for children abuse."
Guren paused, eyes twitching madly from irritation.
"Just go die." was his only comeback.
Today is a cheerful day, Shinoa decided as she laughed openly at her superior distress. Despite that particular weird situation between her and Yuichiro this morning, she was happy and content because at least, at least his oddity could sway her mind away from those horrible nightmares she was having recently. And also her little circle of friend, they just knew how to always make her days interesting.
( she just wished from the bottom of her heart that it would continue just like that. )
She didn't know what the future would bring, but she hoped that there would be no storms for her to face eventually.
.
.
author's note:
*hide in the corner* I'm so, SO, SORRY. I trolled you guys with that almost-kiss scene. Even my cousin had pinched me for that one (T^T). Blame my miniscule experiences at handling romance. Honestly, I don't have a clue. That's why their relationship is going to be hard and painful and excruciating with a lot of half-assed ship-tease, according to my little mind :D. I swear I'm not stalling their relationship or what, it's just… well, kind of weird if they'd suddenly kissed just like that. Need a lot foundations whatsoever first, I think XD.
Eto, the next chapter is going to be a new arc which is a brand new mission in Nagoya with Narumi's Squad and Guren's squad. I wonder about Shinya though (he's bae tbh). Should I include him inside this mission too? Just like in Nagoya? Because apparently this mission play an important part in this story and his relationship with Shinoa is beautiful. Well, about Narumi's squad… just pretend that chapter 34 never happened? Pretend that the said chapter ended with a happily ever after? Or pretend that they had met before the Nagoya's arc? *feeble smile* I guess it's kinda hard to do but I like it better to use Kagami-sensei characters after all. I'm going to warn you though it's going to be angsty and painful for Yuunoa and… well, everyone. Here's the preview for the next chapter:
"Don't you dare to put the blame on me, Noa-chan..."
"Please stop with all this rubbish. I'm not aware that demons love it to play with their human happy memories."
"Ne, Guren-chūsa, you… promised me, remember?"
Ah, I think that's all! Thank you for reading this story of mine. What do you think about this chapter? Is it bad? Is it good? Or is there something wrong or what? Don't hesitate to tell me your thoughts about this chapter alright? I would be happy to hear your comments! Until we meet again minna-san~
-Hinoiri Lwin-