A/N: This is it, folks! End of the fic! Enjoy~

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story. Credit for Gabriel goes to Milaya Milen Zeal, and she deserves many thanks for her help!

The Guardian

Chapter 6

The next morning, Joshua woke up first, feeling his concerns for Neku return. Despite what the redhead had promised and his trust in his lover, he couldn't help but worry about him. As he lay there, he curled up closer to Neku, if that was possible.

This, however, made the redhead groan sleepily, before he wearily opened his eyes. "…Joshua?"

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," the silverette whispered.

"…what's wrong?"

"I know what you said yesterday, and I do trust you, but I can't help but worry," Joshua mumbled.

"Don't," Neku murmured, reaching up and moving aside Joshua's bangs. "Just don't think about it. I'm just going on an errand… think of it like that, okay?"

"A deadly one," the smaller teen muttered, but sighed. "But okay, I'll try that. I love you so much, Neku."

"I know…" Neku murmured, briefly kissing him. "I love you, too."

"We'd better get up and get you ready," Joshua sighed, but didn't move from where he was.

Neku waited for a moment more, before he decided to point this out. "…soooo… are we?"

"Sorry…" The silverette then sat up, gaining Suna's attention from where the kit had been sleeping on a blanket in the corner. Suna hurried over, nuzzling Joshua's chest as the teen stretched.

Neku sighed softly as he sat up. "Joshua…" When the boy looked up, Neku moved in again to kiss him. "Everything will be fine… I promise."

"I'm going to hold you to that," Joshua smiled slightly.

"Good," Neku said with a smile. "C'mon. Let's get something to eat, a'ight?" The smaller teen nodded, and the pair climbed out of bed, Suna following them to the kitchen. There went their usual routine of Neku making breakfast while Joshua fed Suna and waiting until the food was ready. When finished, Joshua waited on Neku as he went to get dressed in his combat gear.

It took Neku a few moments to prepare, but finally he stepped out of the bedroom, adjusting his gauntlets quietly. He wore a pale silver armor over a dark gray tunic, with a pair of gauntlets and greaves protecting his hands and shins, and a diadem-like charm secured along his forehead. He had secured Trinity's sword on a belt, and it now rested lightly on his left hip.

"You look really good, Neku," Joshua commented as he got up.

Neku looked up curiously, before he seemed to understand what had been said and nodded. "Thanks…" Joshua went over to his lover, and hugged Neku tightly.

"Don't do anything reckless, okay?" he said quietly.

Neku nodded as he hugged back as best as he could in his armor. "I won't. I promise, I'll be home before you know it."

"I trust you," the silverette murmured, kissing Neku briefly. "I'll be waiting for you."

Neku nodded softly, before he kissed Joshua on his forehead, and then walked toward the door. When he reached it, though, he paused and looked back to Joshua with a warm smile, once again promising without words that he would be back soon, before he finally walked out. Once he was gone, Joshua exhaled shakily as he sat down on the loveseat with Suna, hoping Neku would hold true to that promise.

X*X(With Neku)X*X

The redhead joined the small army of Angels, and when he did, he was surprised to see Rhyme there among them. She was quite young for an Angel, but VERY perceptive and strong in combat. It seemed she had her own bow and arrow, just like Trinity did. She smiled at him in silent greeting before returning her attention to the gates to Hell, where Orochi would be emerging from. There was obviously some sort of fight going on from the other side, and one could only assume it was Cerberus attempting to keep the serpent at bay.

"Keep on your guard, my Angels," Trinity told them firmly. "Cerberus can't hold out for much longer. Lucifer will soon give him the command to let Orochi by, and when he does, it will be our turn to fight the beast and vanquish it."

Neku exhaled slowly, resting his hands on the katana he carried. Gabriel was further down the line, adjusting his grip on the naginata he carried, breathing calm and even.

Suddenly, the sounds of fighting ceased, and the gates to Hell opened, allowing the gigantic, eight-headed serpent to burst forth towards the Angels with all eight heads roaring furiously.

"Be careful, everyone! Now fight!" Trinity ordered, and she swiftly drew back the string on her bow, an arrow already in place, and fired it at Orochi, striking its mountain-like body. Orochi roared deafeningly loud at the blow from the holy arrow, and then attempted to swat her down with one of its tails. As it swung down, she darted away with a swift flap of her wings.

In the meantime, Neku was busy fighting one of the heads alongside Gabriel and Rhyme. The redhead jumped back as the head snapped at him, only for Gabriel to swipe the curved blade of the naginata across the beast's jaw. This made the head back up with a roar, which doubled in intensity as Rhyme managed to hit its eye with a well-aimed arrow. Half-blind as it now was, it didn't see Neku moving around to its other side, gripping the katana in both hands.

And then, with a quiet exhalation, he snapped the katana from the sheath with a metallic chime, followed by the whistle of the wind streaming along the blade, before it struck the beast's neck. The seven remaining heads bellowed in agony as the damaged head was sliced off its neck. One of the heads shot at Neku in retaliation, flames dripping from its jaws.

"Oh snap!" Neku hissed as he jumped and swiftly took to the sky to avoid the beast's jaws.

Before it could chase him, though, Gabriel thrust his weapon into its jaw. And as it pulled away to escape the pain, Gabriel shifted the angle just so that the head basically ripped its own jaw open. The other six heads roared with rage and pain at having lost another of their heads, and even as the others fought them, one broke free and lunged at Gabriel, far too quickly to be stopped soon enough.

Gabriel screamed as the beast's jaw snapped shut on his arm, trying to at least wrench his weapon loose, but it was caught between the monster's teeth.

"Gabe!" Neku and Rhyme called out at the same time, before Rhyme cocked another arrow and let it fly.

This head, however, kept its eye shut, which made the arrow bounce off of its hardened scales harmlessly.

Neku cursed angrily, looking to the side without turning his head. If Orochi was as smart as he figured it to be, then it would be counting on him to run in to save his friend. And while he was confident in his own skills, it was still a matter of the beast having it out for both himself and Gabriel.

However, when Gabriel let out another scream of agony, Neku cursed. '…dammit! I don't have the time to worry about this!'

Neku shook his head as the Orochi threw its head back and forth, as if it was trying to rip off Gabriel's arm, taking only a brief moment to breathe and consider what he was about to do, before he dive-bombed on the head, well aware of the other head that followed after him.

'Please let this work!'

And then he buried the katana in beast's gums, directly above where Gabriel was held. The head holding Gabriel immediately released the Angel with a shriek, while the other head that had been pursuing Neku fell for the redhead's trick and chomped down on its fellow head. Rhyme, meanwhile, quickly caught Gabriel as he fell, and flew off to the infirmary, knowing he would need treatment. Sanae soon joined Neku, and nodded to him.

"There's still six heads, even it one attacked another on accident," he warned. "Gabriel's a fighter, so he should be fine. Keep your guard up, though, Neku!" That's when the same two heads in the earlier attack lunged, but one of Trinity's holy arrows struck the closer one and destroyed it with its holy power. The Angel herself flew over, and smashed the other over the head with her bow, stunning it.

"This thing doesn't know when to quit, does it?" Neku snarled angrily.

"Unfortunately, no. He'll keep going until he's dead," Trinity answered. "Now, decapitate this one while it's stunned!"

Neku nodded swiftly, briefly sheathing the katana again, and then he used a second quick-draw slash to slice through the beast's neck.

"Good work, Neku," Trinity praised. "You're making good use of my katana. Now, let's finish off the remaining four!" By this point, the Angels' numbers had been reduced by over half, leaving them with eight Angels left to fight the remaining heads, seeing as the others had been injured too badly to continue fighting.

"DIE, FOOLS!" one of them roared, letting loose a stream of flames from its gaping maw.

"Yipe!" Neku took to the sky to avoid the flames. "Fuckin'…!" The head that shot the flames pursued him, however, at least until Sanae's scythe sliced into its nose, drawing an agonized shriek from it.

"Neku, finish it! My scythe isn't strong enough to completely slice through it!" the Angel ordered. Neku merely nodded as he flew in and effortlessly cut through its neck yet again. Now there were only two heads remaining, as the other group had managed to decapitate another.

"Let's finish off this beast!" Trinity declared, and the reduced army split into two groups to fight. As they fought, Trinity shot arrow after arrow at Orochi's heads, managing to strike both heads' eyes and blind the serpent.

As the other Angels kept the head busy, Neku moved in swiftly and made to slice the head off. However, just as he came in range, the beast snapped its head to the side to get away from the other Angels. Neku couldn't back entirely and one of the beast's fangs sliced through his arm, right through his armor.

"GYAAH!" the redhead howled, trying to cover the wound without letting go of his weapon. Thankfully, it wasn't his dominant arm that got hit, so that he could still wield the weapon.

So, after taking a deep breath in preparation, he went for it again. And this time the blade bit into the beast's neck, and then through it.

Finally, the seventh head was gone, so Trinity summoned up more of her immense power before transferring it into her last arrow. She fired the arrow after taking a split second to aim at the last head, and it dissolved from the holy power of the arrow. Finally, Orochi was dead. Trinity quickly went to Neku's side as he clutched at his wound.

"Neku, this needs to be tended to, now. Sanae will take you to the infirmary, and I'll get Joshua so he can see you," she told him.

"I-I'll be fine…!" Neku hissed out. He just KNEW that Joshua was going to worry if he had to meet him at the infirmary. "I just…just need to get this wrapped up and I'll—"

"Neku, I understand that you're afraid of Joshua worrying about you," Trinity said, cutting him off. "But you DO need to get this properly tended to. I don't think it would be good to let it become infected, hmm? I feel that would make Joshua worry more."

"But…" Neku started to say.

"No buts, Neku. I'll do my best to soothe him, okay?" she smiled, but her tone left no room for argument.

"…yes, Lady Trinity…" Neku finally conceded.

"Thank you. Sanae, please take him to the infirmary. I'm sure Gabriel will be relieved to see him, too," she told the dark-haired Angel beside her.

"I'm sure he will," he chuckled, and led Neku off to the infirmary as Trinity headed to the redhead's home to retrieve Joshua. When she arrived, she knocked on the door to announce her presence, and the silverette was quick to answer, Suna in his arms.

"Lady Trinity!" he gasped, and dipped his head respectfully. "Is Neku okay?"

"Yes, my dear, he is. He only obtained a wound to his arm, which I'm having him get treated properly at the infirmary," she told him. "Would you like to see him?"

"Of course!" he nodded eagerly, and set Suna in the house so he wouldn't be in the way at the infirmary

"Then let us proceed," she said, and the pair headed to the infirmary by foot, since it wasn't too far. As soon as Joshua spotted the redhead, he ran to him.

"Neku!" he whimpered as he hugged his lover. "Are you okay?"

"Josh, I'm fine, really," Neku assured him as he wrapped his good arm around the boy, trying not to do too much. "It's just a scratch."

"I know, but I couldn't help it… I was worried about you…" the smaller teen mumbled, eyeing the bandage covering most of Neku's injured arm.

Neku sighed softly. He knew this was going to happen… that's why he didn't want to come to the infirmary. Or at least, didn't want to stay for long.

"I know, and I'm sorry," he murmured, moving over and kissing Joshua to his forehead. The silverette nodded, and looked at Trinity.

"Would he be okay to come home now?" he asked her.

"As long as he rests for a few days, he can go home. Nothing strenuous, Neku, understand?" she answered, and gave the redhead a stern look.

"I won't," Neku promised with a nod. After a moment, though… "Joshua…" When he had the boy's attention, he asked, "Where's Suna?"

"I left him at home just in case," Joshua replied. "I'm sure he's eager to see you're okay, too."

"…" Neku looked at Joshua for a moment longer, before asking, "Did you actually lock the door?"

Before Joshua could answer, there was a familiar yipping from the entryway. Joshua looked over just in time to see Suna as the kit jumped into his arms.

"You're such a silly boy," Joshua laughed lightly, petting his ears, and then he turned to Neku. "See? Neku's okay." Suna yipped and leaned forward to lick Neku's cheek.

Neku chuckled softly as he reached over and petted the small kit. "Hey lil guy."

Suna sniffed his bandage covering his injured arm, before whining when he realized Neku was hurt.

"I know, but he'll be okay," Joshua assured Suna as he held him close. "Ready to go home, Neku?"

"More than," Neku said with a nod, getting up from where he had been sitting. Joshua smiled, and the pair headed out for home, taking their time and going at a leisurely pace. Once they got there, the front door was swinging in the light breeze, evidence of Suna's escape.

"We're gonna have to do something about that…" Neku mumbled softly.

"Yeah, unless we want him escaping every time we go out," Joshua agreed, tapping Suna on the nose teasingly. The kit blinked, and then yipped at Joshua. "Well, we can't have so many breakouts happening, now can we?"

"Yeah, well try to imagine how difficult it was to hide him from you…" Neku mumbled as they walked inside.

"I'll bet," the silverette chuckled, setting Suna down once the door was closed. "So, how did you hurt your arm, anyway?"

"Being stupid and unlucky mostly…" Neku sighed. "Was trying to chop off the bastard's…seventh, was it? Yeah, seventh head…and the fucker's fang clipped me."

"Did they at least give you something to help with the pain? I would think that would be pretty painful," Joshua inquired.

"It's fine," Neku sighed. "I just need to rest my arm, that's all… Gabe got the worst end of the deal, though…"

"What happened? Is he okay?"

"He was less lucky… One of the heads chomped down on his arm. Almost ripped it right off…"

"Is he going to be okay?" Joshua asked worriedly.

"Last I checked, he would… but he's not getting up anytime soon…"

"Not too surprising…"

Neku sighed softly as he settled on the couch. "Man… I'm glad that's over…"

"You're telling me," the smaller teen murmured as he joined him, settling himself on Neku's uninjured side.

"…we do have one problem, though…" Neku mumbled softly after a moment.

"What's that?"

"I can't really cook with just one arm…"

"That's all? I can cook something!" Joshua laughed, kissing Neku briefly.

"You sure you'll manage?" the redhead asked.

"You underestimate me," the silverette smirked.

"…Okay… if you're sure," Neku mumbled with a shrug.

"I am. Don't doubt me, okay? My mom taught me some stuff before she passed away, ya know," the smaller teen smiled.

"Alright," Neku chuckled softly. Joshua decided to make something for food now, instead of waiting until later, so he stood, kissing Neku again.

"I'm going to make something special for us. It's something my mom would only make for special occasions," he told the redhead.

"Oh? And what's that?"

"Chicken parmesan with a side of pasta."

"Can't say I've heard of that before…"

"It's an Italian dish of breaded chicken, and it's usually served with a side of fettuccine pasta in sauce," Joshua explained.

"Huh…okay…interesting…"

X*X*X*X*X*X*X

After they ate, Joshua looked over at Neku, smiling tiredly.

"What did you think?" he asked.

"It was good," Neku complimented with a small smile at the silverette.

"Good," the smaller teen hummed. "We'll clean up tomorrow, but for now, let's go to bed. I don't know about you, but I'm tired…"

"You're telling me…" Neku mumbled, briefly stretching his good arm. "My muscles are gonna be so sore when I wake up tomorrow…"

"I won't blame you for sleeping in, then," Joshua chuckled, and got to his feet. Once standing, he helped Neku up, and then the pair headed to bed, Suna trailing after them and lying down on his blanket in the corner. Joshua helped Neku to undress and slide on a pair of pajama bottoms before doing the same for himself, not even bothering with his shirt this time. When they got comfortable in the bed, Joshua carefully cuddled close to Neku, being mindful of his injured arm.

"Goodnight, Neku. I love you," he whispered.

"Love you, too, Josh… g'night…" Neku murmured softly. And with that, the pair fell asleep peacefully.

X*X(1 Week Later)X*X

An entire week had passed since the fight against Orochi, and Neku's arm had completely healed by now, thanks to the accelerated healing ability of the Angels. As for Gabriel, he needed to keep his arm in a sling to promote a healthy recovery. Joshua's wings had finally emerged a few days prior, which made him happy. He had depended on Neku for so long, and now he hopefully would be a little less so. This didn't mean he wanted to leave the redhead, though. Far from it. He wanted to have an intimate evening with his lover, and he hoped they could tonight.

Joshua approached Neku from behind as the redhead cooked their dinner that night, seeing as they had come to taking turns since Neku had healed. He hugged his lover around his waist, resting his chin on Neku's shoulder.

"Hey," he murmured.

"Hm?" Neku glanced over his shoulder for a moment. "Something wrong?"

"Not at all," the silverette smiled. "Just wondering what you're making."

"Just some spaghetti," Neku said with a small shrug. "Figured we'd do simple for once."

"Fine by me, but something else sounds better," Joshua purred.

"Later, Joshua," Neku chuckled. "We should eat first, a'ight?"

"Can't blame me for trying," the smaller teen replied, pulling away with a pout. The older Angel merely chuckled as he focused back on his cooking. Suna came into the kitchen then, stopping in front of Joshua with a yip. "All right, I'll get you your dinner," Joshua chuckled. He then fixed up a bowl of dried crickets and some eggs for Suna, and set it in front of the kit, making him yip happily before eating.

Neku allowed a smile as he finished cooking and fixed two plates. "Right. Food's done."

"Thanks," Joshua told his lover as he accepted the offered plate. They ate in a comfortable quiet, and when they finished, Neku offered to clean up. The silverette took him up on his offer, and hurried off to the bedroom. While the redhead cleaned, Joshua was quick to undress and get ready on the bed. After setting the last of the plates away, Neku briefly stretched and headed for the bedroom. When he came in, Joshua was stark naked, spread out on the bed for Neku to see every inch of him.

"Hello, Neku," he purred.

Neku blinked once, before he chuckled softly, a small smirk on his face as he walked over. "Really now, Joshua?"

"We haven't been intimate since Christmas and my birthday," the silverette pointed out, stretching lightly and making the muscles ripple slightly beneath his skin.

"Aren't we needy, hmm?" Neku purred as he settled over the silverette, letting his hands play along the bare skin.

"Well you can't blame me. Your cock feels amazing in my ass," Joshua smirked.

"Oh does it?" the redhead chuckled, before he moved in and locked their mouths together. Joshua immediately kissed back, allowing a pleased hum from himself into the kiss.

After pulling away from the kiss, Neku immediately latched on to the shorter teen's neck, kissing, nibbling and biting gently at the tender skin. And all the while, his hands moved up and down Joshua's sides. The silverette shivered at the caresses to his sides, moaning softly as Neku teased his neck. After leaving a particularly prominent hickey on Joshua's neck, Neku slowly began to move his way down his chest.

Joshua whined quietly as Neku moved down his chest, and buried his fingers in the spiky locks of his lover, wordlessly encouraging him further down. The redhead hummed as the fingers in his hair urged him further along, all while slipping his own further down. As he moved along the silverette's thigh and toward his need, though, he paused.

"Oh?" he murmured with a small smirk as he sat back. "Been busy, hmm?"

"You were taking a while, and I got bored," Joshua smirked.

"You little minx…" Neku chuckled softly, as his fingers played with the twitching muscle. Joshua shivered at the feeling, kissing Neku lovingly before nipping at his bottom lip teasingly. Neku chuckled softly, before he firmly locked their mouths together and, at the same time, wrapped his hand around his lover's cock. Joshua gasped into Neku's mouth when his cock was grabbed, giving a strained groan.

This was exactly what Neku was aiming for, and he slipped his tongue into Joshua's mouth, swirling it around sensually while he moved his hand smoothly. The smaller male moaned into Neku's mouth as the redhead tasted him, pulling his lover closer by wrapping his arms around Neku's neck. This made the redhead chuckle softly into the other's mouth, as his free hand worked on his own clothes. Joshua swirled his tongue along Neku's as they continued to kiss.

Once he had managed to deal with his own clothes, Neku briefly pulled away. "Ready?"

"Been ready for that amazing cock of yours," Joshua purred at him with a smirk. Neku merely smirked right back, and then, without another word said, he moved. The silverette parted his lips in a silent cry, a small gasp escaping him at the familiar filling sensation. Neku didn't say anything; he merely held still for a moment, breathing deeply in an attempt to not start moving immediately.

After a few seconds of this, Joshua swiftly wrapped his legs around Neku's waist before moaning out, "Move, Neku...!" Neku hissed briefly at the pressure, before he gave a shaky nod and braced himself on his arms. After one more breath, he began to move slowly.

Joshua moved his hips in time with Neku's, but soon, he wanted more. "N-Neku, I'm not going to b-break… Go f-faster…" he stuttered, bucking his hips with the intent of spurring his lover into going faster.

The redhead allowed a small smirk at those words. "Suit yourself…" he purred, and then he picked up speed. The silverette had a pleasured look on his face as he moaned and mewled with every thrust from the redhead above him.

With a soft, labored chuckle rolling from his throat, Neku reached out and began to stroke Joshua's need in time with his thrusts as he adjusted his angle just so. The smaller teen cried out in ecstasy from Neku's touch to his member and the sudden contact with his prostate by the redhead's amazingly wonderful cock inside of him.

And Neku only chuckled at the sounds, before he curled his arm around the silverette's shoulders, and then threw his weight back, pulling Joshua up from the bed and into his lap, locking their mouths together once again. And all throughout, he never stopped moving.

Joshua moaned loudly into Neku's mouth as they kissed, unable to help himself. Neku was amazing, and his desire for the redhead would never cease to amaze him. He couldn't help but love Neku, especially since Neku cared so dearly about him.

The silverette broke away with another cry as his prostate was struck repeatedly. A groan escaped Neku as Joshua tightened around him further, before he smirked and moved over, nipping on Joshua's ear. "Let go, Yoshiya," he purred softly. "Now come… come for me, Yoshiya."

"Oh gods… N…NEKU!" Joshua screamed as his cum spattered onto the redhead's stomach. He clenched around Neku tightly as he came. Neku hissed sharply, before he choked on a cry as his own release hit him. Joshua's arms trembled as he held himself up, his hands bracing himself on Neku's shoulders. When Neku came inside of him, however, he shuddered heavily before collapsing onto his lover's chest.

The redhead easily held Joshua up, smirking softly, before he laid them both down gently. The smaller teen slowly curled up against Neku once they were lying on their sides facing each other.

"I love you, Neku," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

Neku smiled softly, running a hand through the shorter male's hair. "Love you, too," he murmured, kissing him briefly. "Go to sleep… you look like you'll need it."

"Mkay… G'night, Neku," Joshua breathed, cuddling close to who was once his Guardian Angel, but was now his lover, forever.