Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Azumi's Tears ❯ Anfänge ( Chapter 6 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Weiß Kreuz : Azumi's Tears
Chapter five : Anfänge

By Tora-uma

Opening Notes :


"..." - speaking
^...^ - thoughts
//...// - telepathy

All translations and explanations appear at the bottom of the chapter. Thanks to all who've reviewed so far: Koji-chan, wannabeinanime, Rei4 and Minerva Solo.




Omi woke up the next morning to find Manx sitting on the side of his bed, brushing his hair away from his eyes. She smiled at him when she realized he was awake and he weakly smiled back.
"Ohayou, Omi."
"Ohayou. How are the others?"
"They're fine. They've all been examined by one of the Kritiker doctors, you're the only one left. Do you want me to let him in?"
Omi nodded and Manx got up to open the bedroom door and let the doctor in.
"How are you feeling?" the doctor asked Omi as he sat up in bed.
"Alright. Sore, but not too bad," he answered as the doctor started to check his wounds. The doctor mumbled something and continued checking Omi. "How badly is everyone else hurt?" Omi asked Manx.
"Yohji has one cracked and a few bruised ribs along with several contusions, Ken's left ankle has a first degree sprain and he has a small concussion. Aya's the best off, with the laceration on his neck and some contusions on his back. You guys will be laid up for a week or two."
"A week or two?! But what about the target?"
"We're keeping surveillance on him to make sure he doesn't get away. If he tries to move, we'll take him down somehow."
"Manx . . . gomen nasai."
"For what, Omi?"
"We failed. We should have gotten Masoto last night but he got away. We failed!" Omi looked up at her with tears in his eyes.
"Omi . . . Ii kara. You didn't fail, it's just a set back. You didn't know Schwarz would be there and they aren't easy."
The doctor finished checking Omi and stepped back. "You look fine, your wounds have been stitched up nicely, you should heal fine. The stitches need to be taken out in a few days so you'll need to go to a doctor. Any questions?" Omi shook his head. "Alright then, take care," the doctor nodded goodbye to Manx and left. Manx sat back down next to Omi and gently brushed away the tears that had formed on his cheeks.
"Omi, do you know why I came back to Weiß and replaced Birman?" Omi shook his head. "Because I believe in you four. I know you can get through anything. You've shown me that time and time again. And I wanted to remain a part of that." Manx smiled at Omi and held him in her arms. "Now I want you to get some more sleep, alright kiddo?"
Omi pulled away and smiled. He nodded and curled back up on his bed. "I'll have Yohji or Aya bring you some food later," Manx bent down and kissed his forehead and ruffled his hair. "Sleep well, Omi." She quietly got up and left the room. She stopped by Yohji's open door and saw him lounging on his couch, smoking. "Yohji, I let Omi sleep more, could one of you bring him some food later?"
Yohji grinned and winked at her. "Sure, but how were you planning on repaying me?"
"Cute," she shook her head and went downstairs to leave. Yohji finished his cigarette and left his room in search of Aya. The redheaded swordsman's door was closed so Yohji knocked. When there was no answer he went to check downstairs. There was no Aya in the kitchen either. He was about to check the basement when Aya came upstairs carrying an empty tray.
"Hey, Aya, why were you downstairs?"
"I brought Ken some food. He's watching a movie but I think we need to move him back up to his room when he's finished." Aya put the empty tray back on the counter and scratched at the bandages around his neck.
"Alright, no problem. Manx just left, asked us to bring some food up to Omi later. Hey, did she tell you what would happen with the shop while we're out of commission?"
"Aah, Momoe will be working half days until we heal. Officially she'll say we were in a car accident."
"The shop'll only be open half the time? That'll kill off a bunch of flowers."
"Shikata ga nai." Aya headed back upstairs to his room. "I'll bring Omi his food in a few hours, you get some more rest."
"Arigatoh, Aya." Yohji grabbed a beer and a box of rice crackers and headed back to his room.
~ * ~
Nagi woke up that morning to hear Schuldig singing inside of his head.
//Why do you do that Schuldig?//
//Mainly because it's fun. Sleeping late today?//
Nagi checked his bedside clock. It was almost ten. //Apparently.//
//Well, if you want breakfast before Farfarello bleeds all over it, get out here.// Schuldig left Nagi to his own devices. He got up and ran a hand through his hair, loosening the tangles that had formed during the night. He padded out to the kitchen in his grey pajamas and saw everyone in their normal places. Schuldig and Crawford were both at the table; Schuldig read the cartoons in the daily paper in pajama pants and no shirt while Crawford read the national news, already dressed and groomed in a white business suit. Farfarello had slit his hand open with a knife and was currently coating the blade of every sharp object he owned and throwing them at a wall. Nagi ignored everyone and grabbed the plate of pancakes Schuldig had left him on the counter. He coated them in syrup and sat between Schuldig and Crawford at the four-person table. Crawford had a very strict rule about food not leaving the kitchen and dining area. Nagi ate quickly, anxious to be as far away from people as soon as possible.
"Based on the injuries we inflicted on them, Weiß should be down for at least a week," Crawford started as Nagi was rinsing off his plate.
"Great, so we get to be bored and guard Masoto for the next week? I thought this bodyguard crap would stop when Esset was defeated," Schuldig whined.
"It's just temporary. We couldn't have defeated Weiß last night but this pause will give us time to weaken them more. How is you shoulder?" Crawford asked Schuldig.
"Fine, Nagi patched it up for me last night." Schuldig's eyes darkened. "But I want pay back."
"Patience," Crawford went back to his paper. Nagi put his dishes in the dishwasher and left the other three Schwarz members to themselves for the remainder of the day.
~ * ~
Aya looked up from the book he was reading and checked the small alarm clock on his bedside table. ^Ken's movie should be over by now,^ he thought as he got up from his bed and headed downstairs. Ken was sprawled out on the couch, channel surfing. "Movie over?" Aya asked him.
"Aah, nothing on now."
"Then let's get you back upstairs."
Ken nodded and turned off the T.V. He sat up and Aya helped him stand on his good foot. Ken slung his arm over Aya's shoulder and Aya wrapped an arm around his waist to help balance and steady him. The two slowly made their way upstairs and down the hall to Ken's bedroom. Aya carefully laid Ken down on his bed and propped his ankle up on a pile of clothes.
"You need to do laundry," Aya told him and Ken laughed.
^Wait, Aya cracked a joke?^
"Are you feeling alright?" Ken asked, concerned. Aya gave him a look.
"Fine. Do you want anything to eat?"
"Ano . . . Aah! Some soup, if there's any left, would be great."
Aya nodded and left the room. He rummaged through the kitchen until he found food for Omi and Ken. Re-heating the last of the miso soup he divided it into two different bowls and cooked some rice and vegetables for Omi. He carried one bowl of soup and a small dish of rice up to Ken on a tray and helped the brunette sit up and balance it on his lap. "I'll check in later," he told Ken and turned to go.
"Arigtatoh Aya."
Aya nodded and left Ken to his food. He went back to the kitchen to collect Omi's tray and headed up to the youngest assassin's room. He softly knocked on the door and heard a mumble from the other side.
"Hairuzou," he announced as he opened the door. Omi was sitting up in bed, playing a game on his laptop. He paused it when Aya walked in.
"Oh, Aya-kun! How is everyone?"
"Bruised and bloody, but fine. I brought you some food."
Omi grinned as he took the tray. "Arigatoh Aya-kun!"
Aya pressed the back of his hand to Omi's forehead, checking that there was no sign of a fever. "Daijoubu?"
"Aah, daijoubu yo!"
"Yoush. I'll keep making rounds and checking in on all of you. If you need any help, though, just call for me, alright?"
"Hai. Arigatoh."
Aya nodded and left Omi with his food and games. He passed the rest of his day reading in his room and checking on the others. Yohji attempted to help him with dinner at one point but Aya sent him back to bed when he ran his injured ribs into the back of a kitchen chair. Once everyone else was asleep and the dishes were washed Aya peered into the shop to see how swamped Momoe had been. The place was relatively clean, apparently without at least one of the boys working the hoards of hormone-driven girls stayed away. ^Maybe they just ran out of money,^ Aya thought, seeing the not-so-small "Get well soon" shrine on top of the order table under the T.V. It consisted mostly of flowers and arrangements from their own shop along with balloons and cards, both store-bought and handmade, for all four of the flower shop boys. Aya sighed and checked to make sure the shop was locked up, leaving the shine alone for the time being. On his way back to his room he noticed that some of the more delicate flowers were already starting to wilt. Momoe just didn't have the time to do the work that the four Weiß members usually did. Aya left them for the moment, planning on coming back in tomorrow night to clean out the dieing flowers. Alone in his room he changed into a pair of navy blue pajamas and stretched out on his bed. He stared at the alarm clock for what seemed like hours before drifting off to sleep.
~ * ~
When his alarm went off at 6 am the next morning, Aya glowered at it. He'd never wanted to roll over and go back to sleep so much in his life. He hit the screaming alarm to turn it off and grudgingly got out of bed. He walked quietly to the bathroom, not wanting to wake the others. He took his usual hot shower, letting the water relax and loosen the bruised muscles of his back. After washing his hair he dried off. Trying to keep his hair out of his face so he could see what he was doing he changed the bandages around his neck. He finished and checked his work in the mirror. He stared at his reflection for awhile, realizing his face had changed somehow. It was softer than it used to be, more like Ran than Aya. The cold determination of Aya was still there but it was balanced by a warmth he hadn't consistently seen on his face in three years. He wondered why he was changing all of a sudden.

~"It's what you've become . . . "~

The flashback froze Aya. Nagi . . . ^How much does he know about me? Did he notice I'd changed, is that why he said that?^ Aya wondered. He frowned and pushed it out of his mind. Wrapping his towel around his waist and picking his clothes up off the floor he walked back to his room as quietly as he'd walked from it. He pulled on a pair of loose black pants and laid a T-shirt out on the bed. He towel dried his hair to prevent it from wetting down his shirt and walked bare-chested back to the bathroom to hang up his towel. On the way back to his room he heard a small tapping noise and paused. It was coming from downstairs. He walked down and into the kitchen. Someone was softly knocking on the back door. Aya narrowed his eyes. He didn't like the possibilities of who would be knocking this early in the morning. But, he reasoned, it wasn't likely to be Schwarz as they were known for just barging into places as opposed to politely knocking. Aya opened the door.
"Nagi?" He'd been wrong. Nagi stood on the back step stoically in his blue-grey school uniform. He looked straight into Aya's amethyst eyes.
"I need your help," he said.
"Nani?"
"There's someone I want to save but Schwarz won't have anything to do with it."
Aya stared at him.
"Onegai desu. Schwarz didn't send me, I'm here on my own. Onegai desu."
Aya stared into Nagi's blue-green eyes. They were quite close to Ken's in color, he noticed. He couldn't trust Nagi completely, but for some reason he believed that the kid had come here for his help on his own. Aya nodded and stepped out of the doorway, allowing Nagi to come inside. He silently led the younger boy up to his room. Aya grabbed his shirt off the bed and put it on, motioning for Nagi to sit down. With the door closed, Aya turned and faced the youngest Schwarz member.
"What exactly do you want my help with?" he asked coldly, still not ready to let down his guard.
"There's a girl that Masoto keeps with him and I want to get her away from him."
"What girl?" Aya sat on the couch and faced Nagi. Nagi shook his head.
"I don't know much about her, but her name is Azumi."
"Azumi-chan . . . ?"
~ * ~
Aya finished dropping off breakfast trays to his teammates and took the last tray into his room. He put it down next to Nagi who was still sitting on the bed, staring at a picture.
"You need to eat," Aya told him as he sat on the other side of the breakfast tray. Nagi pulled the tray onto his lap and handed the picture back to Aya. "You're sure it's her?" he asked. Nagi nodded and stared at the food. "What's wrong?" Aya asked him as he crossed the room to put the picture of Azumi back in his trench coat.
"Kaimu . . . It's just that Schuldig always cooks, it's been a long time since I've had Japanese food for breakfast." He picked up the dish of takuan and quickly devoured it. Aya sat next to him on the bed and watched him eat. Nagi was very delicate, picking up each individual slice of takuan and pulling it into his mouth with his lips and tongue.
"Why did you come to me?" Aya finally asked. Nagi swallowed the food in his mouth and turned to Aya.
"You were the only person I could think of . . . that might be willing to help," Nagi felt a slight blush start on his cheeks and quickly turned back to the breakfast tray. He concentrated on eating the anpan, embarrassed to admit that he'd needed help getting Azumi away from Masoto without Schwarz knowing. He nibbled on the bread and sipped at his tea, feeling Aya's eyes on him the entire time. By the time he'd finished his food he'd composed himself enough to face the redhead. "You still don't trust me," he stated rather than asked.
"Not entirely," Aya admitted, "but I trust you enough to let you stay here for awhile. You shouldn't leave the room, we don't want the others to see you. I'll keep bringing you food but it's up to you whether or not you want to stay."
Nagi nodded. "I can only stay for a bit before Crawford will get suspicious about me being gone but I doubt he'll think anything of it for at least a day or two."
Aya stood up. "Alright. There are books there if you want something to read," he pointed to the metal bookcase across from the couch, "otherwise there's not much to do in here. Gomen."
"Mou daijoubu. Arigatoh gozaimasu."
Aya collected the tray and left Nagi to himself. After cleaning off Nagi's tray and eating breakfast in the kitchen by himself he went to collect everyone else's dishes. Yohji had moved himself to his couch and was in the process of sucking down a cigarette. He nodded his thanks to Aya as he carried Yohji's tray out and quietly closed the door behind him. Omi had his headphones on and was playing the same game as yesterday when Aya walked in. He grinned widely when Aya took his tray and placed it on Yohji's.
"Arigatoh Aya-kun!"
Aya gave a silent nod in return and headed to Ken's room. Ken looked up from the sports magazine he was reading when Aya came in. "Aya, can I ask you something?" Aya stopped in the middle of Ken's room and looked at the brunette. Ken assumed that meant 'yes' and continued with his question. "With Schwarz the other night, why do you think they just left without killing us? It doesn't make much sense."
Aya froze. ^Does he know? Did he hear me talking to Nagi?^ He quickly glanced at the wall separating his and Ken's rooms, almost wishing it could tell him whether Ken had eavesdropped. "I don't know," he admitted, hoping Ken hadn't noticed his pause. "Maybe it was to throw us off, maybe it was to gauge our strength and help weaken us. Ken," Aya stared straight into his teammate's blue-green eyes, "just focus on healing, it's the most important thing right now. To beat Schwarz we'll have to be at our best, but put them out of your mind right now. Just rest and concentrate on getting better," Aya told him.
Ken sighed and nodded. "You're right, Aya. Arigatoh," Ken smiled meekly. Aya nodded back and picked up Ken's tray, leaving him to his magazine. Aya made his way down to the kitchen with all three trays and washed all of the dishes. The Koneko was closed today and he quietly slipped into the shop. Filling a watering can he surveyed the number of dead and dieing flowers. He started watering the neglected containers of flowers, pulling out the ones that were wilting. He piled the flowers he pulled out on the wooden arrangement table as he went. It took awhile for him to water the entire shop of flowers and he had built up a decent sized pile on the table by the time he was finished. After putting away the watering can, Aya sat at the table and separated the flowers, picking out any dried and dead ones. He started working with the blossoms that were only slightly wilted, not wanting all of the flowers to go to waste. He pulled out some of the cheaper vases in the shop and started putting together some flower arrangements.
"Borage . . . White Jasmine . . . Yellow Daffodil . . . Celandine . . . Yellow Rose . . . Narcissus . . . " Aya mumbled the names as he put each blossom in the vase, smirking a bit over the last flower. He put the last blossom into place and set the arrangement aside for Yohji.
"Dwarf sunflower . . . Crocus . . . White Violet . . . Baby's Breath . . . White Chrysanthemum . . . Coreopsis . . . " Aya repeated the process and placed Omi's arrangement next to Yohji's.
"Cresses . . . Polyanthus . . . Chamomile . . . Lunaria . . . Mandrake . . . Azalea . . . " Aya shook his head as he set the third arrangement aside for Ken, still not sure if the brunette knew about Nagi.
"White Lilac . . . Red Pink . . . Amaryllis . . . Orchis . . . Jonquil . . . Tuberose . . . Lily of the Valley . . . " Aya drifted off into a whisper, not sure why he'd made an arrangement for the young, telekinetic member of Schwarz. He stared at the flowers, wondering what had possessed him to put those particular ones in the vase. He briefly thought of throwing them away. Eventually he stood, filling all four vases with water. He checked the clock, realizing he'd been in the shop for hours. He needed to start lunch, the others would probably be getting hungry. Gathering the vases, Aya carried them into the kitchen and set them on the table. He made a quick lunch and arranged the trays again, setting one vase on each. Picking up Yohji''s food, he headed upstairs and opened the blond's door. Yohji had fallen asleep on his bed, Aya set the food and the flower arrangement on the coffee table and left. He went back down to the kitchen and picked up Omi's food next. Omi was still awake, working on some homework, when Aya walked in.
"Why flowers?" Omi asked, confused.
"I didn't want all of them to go to waste," Aya explained.
"Oh. Arigatoh, Aya-kun!" Omi grinned and dug into his food, placing the vase of flowers on his window sill. Aya left and delivered Ken's food next. Ken had also fallen asleep, with one arm and leg flopped over the side of the bed. Aya sighed and set the tray down next to the bed where Ken could see it and lifted the chocolate-haired soccer player's limbs back onto the bed. He returned upstairs with the last tray and opened his bedroom door. Nagi was curled up at the head of Aya's bed with his nose buried in a book. He looked up when Aya walked in, surprised. Aya closed the door and walked to the bed, placing the tray at Nagi's feet. Nagi sat up and waited for Aya to take his portions of food off of the tray. Nagi carefully picked up the vase of flowers and looked at Aya questioningly.
"They were dieing, it seemed better than throwing them away," Aya started eating, not looking at the dark-haired boy beside him. Nagi softly fingered the petals of each flower, entranced by the arrangement. He finally placed them in the window sill and turned to his food. The two ate in silence and piled their empty dishes back onto the tray when finished. Aya pulled his legs up on the bed underneath him and leaned back against the wall. He turned his head enough to look at Nagi when the younger boy spoke his name.
"Aya . . . what are we going to do about Azumi-chan?" Nagi's large eyes stared up at the redhead through dark brown hair.
Aya sighed. "I'm not sure yet. You said Masoto always keeps her with him?"
Nagi nodded. "For the most part. I don't think he brings her along on business trips though, she stayed at his office when we went to Fujii's place."
"Alright. When does Schwarz go to Masoto?"
"When he calls. Crawford's almost always with him, everyone else just goes in when he feels he needs extra protection."
"Do you know his schedule at all?"
Nagi shook his head, "I don't think he really sticks to a set schedule, but I know he stays at his office quite a bit."
"Where's his office?"
Nagi looked at his hands for a moment, knowing that if he told Aya this information and Schwarz found out they wouldn't stop until he or they were dead.
"Nagi, I promise, I'll protect you with my life."
Nagi lifted his head and saw Aya's clear eyes watching him. "Alright," he nodded," I'll need some paper and a pen."
~ * ~

Translation notes :
Anfänge - Beginnings
Ohayou - Good morning
Gomen / Gomen nasai - Sorry / I'm very sorry
Ii kara - 'It's fine'
Aah - 'Yeah'
Shikata ga nai - 'No help for it' or 'No way to avoid it'
Arigatoh / Arigatoh gozaimasu - Thank you / Thank you very much
Ano - 'Um'
Hairuzou - 'I'm coming in'
Daijoubu - "Are you alright?'
Daijoubu yo - 'I'm fine'
Yoush - 'Alright' or 'Good'
Hai - 'Yes'
Nani - What
Onegai desu - Please
Kaimu - Nothing
Takuan - Pickled Daikon (for those who don't know, Daikon is Japanese White Radish)
Anpan - A bread filled with Japanese sweet bean jam
Mou daijoubu - 'It's alright'

Flower meanings:
(Yohji's arrangement)
Borage - Bluntness
White Jasmine - Amiability
Yellow Daffodil - Chivalry
Celandine - Future Joy
Yellow Rose - Friendship
Narcissus - Egotism
(Omi's arrangement)
Dwarf sunflower - Adoration
Crocus - Cheerfulness
White Violet - Modesty
Baby's Breath - Pure of Heart
White Chrysanthemum - Truth
Coreopsis - Always cheerful
(Ken's arrangement)
Cresses - Always reliable
Polyanthus - Confidence
Chamomile - Energy in action / Energy in adversity
Lunaria - Honesty
Mandrake - Honor
Azalea - Temperance
(Nagi's arrangement)
White Lilac - Youthful innocence
Red Pink - Pure affection
Amaryllis - Timid beauty / pride
Orchis - Beauty
Jonquil - Desire
Tuberose - Dangerous pleasure
Lily of the Valley - Return of happiness