Thursday1.22 - Twilight

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

[NOTE: This is post-Thurs. 1.21, though that thread is still open]

Ran left the meeting without looking at anyone, specifically Yohji.

He made it to the stairs leading up to their apartments before he stopped dead in his tracks.

Was this the right thing to do?

It had been the right thing since the beginning.

Nevertheless, he stared blankly at the glow of light coming from the upstairs hallway.

She's seen things she never should have had to. Shwarz got to her again, because of this choice. All this has been is selfishness.

His breath was coming out shallowly. It felt like he was losing her.

Forever. Because if he could help it -

After this is over. This will be over.

He couldn't convince himself entirely that Schwarz would ever be gone, though. Did that mean that his sister would never be safe, unless...?

He put a hand on the railing.

The right choice.

Did this make him Aya again?

No. He would kill with his own name, and wipe clean the entire slate.

"I should have done this in the beginning," he murmured aloud.

The sound of his own voice convinced him to start upstairs.

It felt like he was dragging his katana slowly across his chest, from the inside. He stopped outside his sister's door and placed a hand flat on the wood. His eartails hung in front of his vision, his head bowed.

Ran took a deep, shaky breath, then drew his hand away to his side. He looked up and squared his shoulders.

"Aya-chan?" He called, softly.

Comments

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

She'd rushed back into her room as soon as they'd gotten home. It was nothing new, and had become a bit of a tradition of sorts.

And as soon as she'd entered her room, Aya-Chan threw herself onto the bed. She could hear hushed voices downstairs. It was always the same... she might as well not be there. It would be better if she wasn't...

At some point in time, Aya-Chan must have fallen asleep. She dreamed that she was walking down an empty hallway. It was eerie, dark, and quiet. And wet.

She looked down at her feet, and froze. Red. Crimson red. Everywhere. And a body.

Oh. Dear. God... She barely heard the familiar voice calling out to her through the darkness.

Aya-Chan woke up screaming.

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

"Aya-chan!" Ran flung open the door without waiting for an answer. He scanned the room quickly but saw she was still in bed, though she looked terrified. A bad dream, then. He relaxed, but crossed the room in three long strides and sat on the edge of her bed, reaching a hand out to rest on hers.

"Aya, it's okay." He tried to get her to focus on him. "Shh."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

She was still disoriented for a small while, but the hand on hers calmed Aya-Chan down. She blinked a few times, using her other hand to rub the sleep from her eyes. At the sight of Ran, she nearly burst into tears. Instead, Aya-Chan wrapped an arm around Ran.

"You were... and..." she wondered if Ran had these types of dreams too.

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

Ran reciprocated, pulling his sister the rest of the way into a hug. He stared at her for a moment with his lips pressed thin. He could guess, and he didn't want to hear it.

"I was what?" He asked gently.

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

Dead.

"Uhn..." Aya-Chan shook her head, pressing her lips together as well. There was no mistake that the two Fujimiya's were related. "It's nothing," she gave Ran a quick squeeze and then released him, giving him a half-smile. "Just a bad dream."

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

Ran stared at her face, memorizing it.

You're not saying goodbye to your sister, He told himself firmly. You'll talk to one another when you can. You'll visit.

"I'm sorry," Ran answered finally. He kept his eyes steady on hers. "Aya, you have too many things to have nightmares about here."

He closed his eyes, briefly. He wouldn't be able to continue if he kept looking at her.

He opened them again and met her eyes. "Aya, I've been selfish keeping you here."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

There it was. Despite almost expecting it, Aya's heart sank. It took all she had to not look away, but she didn't want to hide anymore. "But I want to be..." here? No, that would be a lie. She didn't want to be there, and she wasn't sure he wanted to be there either. "...with you."

She bit her lip, wondering if she should ask the question that had been on her mind since they'd been back. Finally, deciding that she had nothing to lose, she did. "Was... that man..." she gulped, suddenly losing her confidence. "Do you have to go do something dangerous?"

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

[Augh, this thread is making me saaaad...heh...]

Ran wanted to hug her again, but settled with taking her hand. "Do you remember those men in the supermarket earlier this week? The ones who stopped by the shop? There's a reason they keep coming around." Ran paused. He had made it a code to live by that the missions weren't to be discussed with her, ever, but it was just something to comfort him. She knew about their real job. He took a breath. "They are powerful. You know that. You know about their...abilities. They show up on our missions a lot, Aya. But we've never had to go up directly against them. They've taken a weapon from our employers, and we have to get it back from them before they use it or give it to the wrong people."

Ran's eyes were stinging. He forced himself to keep looking at her. His little sister. His only family.

"They'll use whatever they can against us, Aya, and that includes you. I'd have no choice but to do anything they asked if they used you against me. Do you understand? If I quit Kritiker, and go somewhere with you, they'll still have that weapon, innocent people will still be at risk and so will Weiss. And if I leave Kritiker, we'll lose a very powerful benefactor. Our only protection. So...so you can't stay here anymore. We have to send you to live somewhere safe."

He was trying to keep his voice strong, but it cracked near the end.

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

((I know, right?))

Aya pressed her lips together unhappily. Not this talk again.

But she knew. She knew that if she stayed, she would just get in the way. As much as she wanted to grab Ran and ask him to run away with her, it wasn't possible. Plus, even if the two of them ran away... there would still be Omi, Ken, and Yohji. And despite not having the most loving relationship with all of them since she'd gotten here, Aya still cared for them. And she didn't want anything to happen to them either.

She didn't really want anything to happen to anyone, actually. And she hated that there was this secret, silent war going on behind closed doors. She hated that she was a burden. Hated that she was some thing that people could use against her brother.

She nodded finally, after a long stretch of gloomy silence. "Okay." As much as she hated to admit it, it was the only way. "Okay," she repeated. "I'll... go wherever you want me to go." She frowned, and sent Ran a look she'd always given him when she was throwing a tantrum. Were the situation not so severe, it would almost seem like he'd taken a toy from her and she was throwing a childish tantrum trying to get it back. "But you have to promise... that you'll come for me. After it's all over." She refused to believe that there was a possibility that would never happen.

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

Ran smiled at her, partly at the so familiar look on her face, the one that reminded him of their past childhoods, partly out of gratitude, partly - mostly - out of pure love for his only sibling and only family. He pulled her forward into a strong hug.

"Aya, I will always come for you. You should know that by now." He drew in a quiet, steadying breath. "I'll visit. There will be phone calls, when it's safe to."

He brushed a kiss on the top of her head and drew back. "Aya, I'm sorry. We're going to...the mission is tomorrow. Someone from Kritiker will have to get you tomorrow, before we leave."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

The hug caught her by surprise. Aya wrapped an arm around Ran and breathed in. His familiar scent almost brought tears to Aya's eyes; she wondered for a brief moment how long it would be because she could be near him again.

What if he d-

No. She wasn't going to think that. He drew her back, and then she heard those words.

"Tomorrow?" Her voice was emotionless. A complete blank slate. Aya wasn't sure how to feel. So soon?

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

Ran nodded.

"The mission is tomorrow. Schwarz is..." The corners of his mouth pulled down. Psychic "Often ahead of us. We don't know when they could show up."

He took in a slow breath, trying to be calm for her sake.

"Aya...I wish it was safe for you to stay here with me. I fought for so long to get you back, and you're all I have left." Ran smiled at her, gently. "We're the only family we have left. This won't be goodbye."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

How ahead of them could they be? How dangerous...

Aya didn't want to think about it. She chewed on her lower lip anxiously. She wanted desperately to believe his words, but in the back of her mind, the image of Ran lying in a pool of blood would not be pushed away.

"Will it..." she choked on her words a little, almost afraid to ask. "Will it ever be over?"

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

Ran gave his sister a strong, confident smile. They had gotten through so much before. He didn't have any guarantees to make, but for her, at least, it wasn't a lie. It would be over for her. "It will be okay, Aya. I promise."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

His smile calmed her a little, but his answer was not altogether reassuring. Aya opened her mouth to argue that she hadn't asked if it would be okay, she had asked if it would be over. But she bit her tongue. This was not an argument she was going to win, and she knew that.

She almost asked if it would be possible for her to stay. She even almost offered to take up training with him and fight with him. But that wasn't what she wanted. And if she knew Ran, he would blow a blood vessel at the thought. So she bit that back comment back too. Instead, she took a deep question and steered herself toward a more neutral topic. "Where would I go?"

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

"To a family. I'd discussed this with...my employers before you woke up." Ran squeezed her hand. "It won't be so bad, Aya. They should already have a place waiting for you. You'll be able to go to school and not have to worry about finding meals for yourself or working in the flowershop."

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

"But I like..." Aya trailed off. She didn't want to argue with Ran. Not today. Not with their current situation. Still, she couldn't help but give him a small pout. She honestly did like working at the flower shop. And she didn't mind making meals and cleaning the house. Despite her not being as close to the four men who resided at the house with her, Aya felt that it was as close to a home as she would ever have. And that meant a lot.

"I like flowers." She said finally.

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

"Then you can come back and take all my shifts when this is over," Ran teased dryly.

He knew she had been doing okay with living with them, and that was why she'd stayed with them for so long, but he had thought she'd just been putting up with it. He was warmed to hear that she might have truly liked it.

Once she has time to adjust, she'll like her new, normal situation more, he told himself firmly.

That thought too was bittersweet.

[kuchren.livejournal.com]

For the first time during their conversation, Aya laughed. This was how it should have been. The two of them sitting and joking. And maybe this was how it would be some time in the future. The near future, hopefully.

"Really, though," she said, giving Ran a curious look. "A flower shop? You of all people?" She could see Omi working in a flower shop, and maybe even Yohji if his goals were purely to use flowers to pick up girls. But... Ran... seemed the least likely of the group. "I don't know how you haven't scared off all the customers yet with that scowl of yours."

[genuinelie.livejournal.com]

"Let me know what I'm doing wrong," Ran answered wryly. "Nothing seems to deter our...customers. If you've noticed they don't usually come to buy anything."

Usually they came to flirt with them. Yohji in particular. Not that who they were there for made any bit of difference.