Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Neutral Territory ❯ A Most Surprising Relationship ( Chapter 9 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Title: Neutral Territory [part 9/?]

Author: Enigma

Written: begun October, 2001

Rating: R

Pairings: (Omi + Nagi) (Yohji + Ken) (Brad + Schu)

Category: Shonen ai/Yaoi Angst Friendship Romance Action Violence. AU-OOC. Giftfic.

Archive: fanfiction.net & mediaminer.org [author: "E-sama the Llama"] plus Wuffie.net [author: "Enigma"]

Warnings: shonen ai/yaoi, angst, masculine friendship in many forms, various levels of romance, action, coarse language, whiffs of citrus but nothing detailed, possibly graphic violence, bloodshed, tiny bits of humor, fluff, and sap; more warnings will be added as necessary. AU-OOC. Giftfic for Rubious.

Spoilers: Aya's sister's condition and a few other small things, nothing major.

Disclaimer: "Weiss Kreuz" is the property of Koyasu Takehito and Project Weiss. All original characters featured herein (including but not limited to: Glocksten, Charon, etc.) are © Enigma, 2003, and are not to be used without permission. This unauthorized work of fanfiction is intended for entertainment only; kindly do not sue me.

Notes: Omi's first trip to the public library results in an unexpected meeting when Nagi saves his life without being aware of the Weiss archer's identity. Can two lonely teens overcome the limits of their dark purpose in life to find friendship and possibly love in the midst of "neutral territory"?

//thoughts//

*****

Tuesday night. Various locations in the Schwarz penthouse.

*****

Several hours after the confrontation in the kitchen, the Schwarz penthouse was relatively quiet as four assassins enjoyed a surprisingly normal homelife.

Even as Nagi lost himself in his online world courtesy of the computer in his bedroom, Crawford had been attempting to finish some documents in his office while Farfarello and Schuldich amused themselves watching television in the living room.

Slipping off his glasses and rubbing at the burgeoning headache that he was confronted with after receiving a baffling and too short vision of the future, Crawford retreated to the master bedroom suite that he shared with his lover and silently asked, {{Schu? Could you do me a favor?}}

Despite the pain he felt, Crawford was distantly grateful to the private communications system their powers combined with Estet's merciless training had provided the members of Schwarz with. Only a telepath more powerful than Schuldich was could have "overheard" their conversations this way and it was a far more secure method of sharing information than any other. Granted, at this moment, it was the ease with which he could inform his partner that he needed aid which was uppermost in Crawford's mind, but the fact that no one other than the verdant-eyed man could detect his thoughts was quite reassuring, too.

The redhead was discovering to his utter disgust that the episodes of "Oprah" he'd used to sabotage Farfarello's Food Network tape featured a guest appearance by a former FBI agent who had specialized in serial killers. Instead of making the Irishman's evening viewing boring and tedious, Schuldich had actually improved it and the silver-haired assassin was busy laughing, enjoying himself immensely as he watched the audience react in horror to the gruesome tales the detective was telling.

Disappointed and annoyed that his fun had been spoiled by a sweeps week programming trick, Schuldich had been considering going out for a drink when the unexpectedly soft mental voice had called to him. In an equally tender tone, he responded, {{Brad? What's wrong? What do you need?}}

{{Some aspirin, love, please?}} The misery was clear in the American's mental voice as he explained, {{I don't have the energy to search for it if you had to hide it from Farf like you usually do.}}

{{Sure thing, babe.}} Schuldich sent a mental caress as he left the giggling psychopath to enjoy hearing about Jeffery Dahmer for what had to be the millionth time. [1]

It was extremely unusual that Crawford would communicate with Schuldich in such tones if they weren't both behind the closed door of their bedroom and it worried the green-eyed man that the former boxer had done so.

Despite Schuldich's well deserved reputation for being cruel and heartless, the flame-haired telepath actually had a tender side to him which only one person ever saw and even he usually saw it only under certain highly specific circumstances. The same could be said for Bradley Crawford, a man whose ice-cold nature frightened his employers almost as much as it terrified those he faced in battle.

The two Estet psychics had faced hardships most people couldn't even imagine and these experiences had hardened them both. During the early years together building what would become Schwarz, they had each seen through the other's mask and had found something unexpected. They'd found someone they could trust with something far more valuable than their lives -- their hearts.

Yet both knew that such feelings would be viewed as weaknesses by others in their organization and they agreed to limit expressing themselves as lovers in any truly gentle fashion to the privacy of wherever their bedroom was at any given time. This resulted in the bizarre situation that they could go from coldly calculated manipulation of one another in Crawford's office to tender embraces a mere ten feet away just inside the master suite's door, but it worked for them. In many ways, they had successfully explored the concept of "neutral territory" long before the two blue-eyed assassins had instituted similar rules independently.

Lover to lover, they were "Brad" and "Schu". Leader to subordinate, however, they remained "Crawford" and "Schuldich" and they jealously protected that separation.

Farfarello and Nagi were both curious about the seeming animosity between two men that they knew had been lovers long before either of them had joined the team, but they both knew better than to ask. The assassins of Schwarz comprised a family of a sort and even though the balance within its structure wasn't what most people would see as the best possible choice for stability, it functioned well enough for them.

Carrying a glass of cold water and the requested painkillers, Schuldich slipped into the darkened suite, closed the door quietly, and glanced around before he called softly, "Brad? Where're you at, babe?"

"In here, give me a moment," the elder of the pair responded, voice sounding tired as he washed his face, leaving a cooling layer of water droplets on his skin before walking out clad only in loose-fitting cotton pajama bottoms. He accepted the aspirin bottle with a faint smile, taking three of the white tablets with a shallow swallow of water before stretching out on the king-sized bed with a pained sigh.

The redhead frowned and turned to quickly strip out of his own clothes, leaving on only his silk boxers as he moved to climb into bed beside his lover and then draw a luxurious, down-filled comforter up over them both to give them some extra warmth.

Admiring the way the American's black eyelashes lay upon his cheek like the soft feathers of some tiny ebon bird of prey, Schuldich smiled sadly and asked unnecessarily, "Another vision, Brad?"

A tiny quirk of Schuldich's lips was evident before he brushed them against those of the man that he loved, even as he responded, {{My pleasure. Not everyone gets to talk to their lover and kiss them at the same time.}}

If he hadn't felt so uncomfortable, the precognitive probably would've reacted more to the non-subtle suggestion that they do more than merely kiss, but for the moment he satisfied himself with simply sending, {{No, I imagine this is indeed a rare arrangement.}}

The telepath broke the kiss gently and snuggled close, sending, {{Then I really *am* a lucky bastard after all, aren't I, baby? Now, about the vision, good news or bad?}}

A short pause indicated that the taller man was considering his response yet when he sent it, there was a note of confusion in it that surprised Schuldich, {{That's a good question, love, but I'm afraid that I don't have an answer. It involved Nagi, but it was so brief that I barely got much past his seeming to be quite upset about something.}}

{{Oh? What could be wrong with our little Nagikins? He seemed fine tonight.}} To anyone outside of this room, it would've been a shock to hear honest concern in Schuldich's words, but to the man who knew him best, it was only slightly surprising.

Crawford felt a warmth flit past his heart as he answered, {{I know, but this felt like an image of the near future, tomorrow perhaps.}} After replaying the vision in his mind's eye, he then amended, {{Wait, there were *some* details that seemed a bit out of place for him. He was outside in the sunshine in a large open area, lots of people, and he was quite agitated about something, almost a fight or flight response, it seemed.}}

Schuldich looked disturbed by this additional information, {{That's not like *our* Nagi! What on earth was going on?! He hates being in the sunshine. Think there's going to be some kind of problem with his school like those shootings in the States? [2] We can give him a ton of Schwarz paperwork to do to trick him into staying home tomorrow if you like.}}

The warmth that Crawford had enjoyed a moment prior returned and intensified as he listened to the other man's overprotective suggestion for the youngest member of their household.

It had taken awhile for Schuldich to understand that the brown-eyed man felt deeply responsible for the telekinetic and that it was a paternal form of affection that the American harbored for the youth and nothing romantic as the jealous German had once feared. The American code named Oracle was many things, but a pedophile was not one of them, despite what some members of Estet bandied about amongst themselves privately.

A soft sigh of pleasure left the precognitive's lips as he opened his eyes once more and looked deeply into jade green ones, making sure that the other man wasn't making a joke out of his concerns. Seeing Schuldich frowning as he sent a light mental probe towards Nagi not seeking anything beyond simple confirmation that the boy was as content as he usually was on a school-night, Crawford smiled outright.

One long-fingered hand reached up and took gentle hold of Schuldich's chin, turning it so that Crawford could place a tender, appreciative kiss on the smaller man's lips.

{{The boy's fine, babe,}} the mental confirmation held a touch of laughter as the telepath added, {{but he *really* hates the science class he has. Apparently, the instructor insists on homework every night from him even when Nagi's already getting straight A's in the class.}}

Crawford chuckled as the kiss broke, glad his headache was getting better so quickly. {{Well, that's what he gets for refusing to take it in summer school as I suggested. Live and learn. As for the vision, I really can't say much other than that he was only "upset" and not truly "angry" or "frightened", so perhaps it is beyond our ability to influence it.}}

{{Probably true,}} Schuldich groused unhappily. {{But it's not like you to get a vision that isn't important in one way or another. How *has* Nagi been doing lately? Has he talked to you about anything out of the ordinary?}}

{{He hasn't mentioned anything in particular in awhile, love. Tonight he said something about wanting to be trusted more,}} emerald eyes caught the slight frown on his face as Crawford added, {{but why would he be thinking about that? There've been no changes around here for him to be concerned about to my knowledge.}}

{{I have no idea, babe,}} Schuldich responded, then offered cautiously, {{If you're really worried about him, I could try to "read" him for you, but I've got to warn you that his shields are stronger tonight than normal. It's as if he's trying to hide something. Hmm, now *that's* suspicious if you asked me!}}

Crawford sat up and turned to face the annoyed German even as cool air swept over both their skins as he warned aloud, "Don't do that, Schu. We've got no reason to doubt him and anything that invasive would probably only make matters worse. We'll give Nagi a few days. Maybe you were onto something earlier and he's got a situation at school he's dealing with right now. Maybe a problem with his friends or something?"

Schuldich snorted derisively and responded, "*What* friends, Brad? Nagi's as antisocial as they come at times!" Growling softly, he added vehemently, "Plus, I doubt there's even one kid in that whole stuck-up academy you send him to that even talks to him other than to try to steal his class notes or threaten him!"

Chocolate brown eyes narrowed dangerously as the American answered hotly, "Don't start that whole 'public school is better than private school' argument again, Schu! We've been over that a hundred times."

About to fire off a typical "smart ass Schuldich remark" as Nagi called some of the telepath's favorite comebacks, the redhead paused and then laughed, the surprising sound breaking the tension before he could say, "Oh god, there we go again! We sound like an old married couple at times, don't we, Brad?"

A slow smile broke out on the other man's face as Crawford shook his head and he lay back down on the fluffy pillow beside his lover, letting the comforter fall back into place as he commented drolly, "I'm neither old nor married, I'll have you know." He reached out to draw his bedmate into his arms, hugging him tightly as he added, "But I'm perfectly happy with this aspect of my life just the same, aren't you, love?"

"Definitely!" Schuldich agreed enthusiastically, answering the hug by placing a tender kiss on other man's jaw before dropping back against the pillow with a contented sigh.

Crawford felt willing to set the concerns about their youngest teammate aside for the moment in favor of more private, and certainly more pleasurable, distractions. In a slightly deeper tone than he used for normal conversation, he asked, "So, what now, love? Were you interested in something other than talking tonight?"

"Yeah, I kinda think so," Schuldich answered and yawned slightly before adding, "I'm in the mood to just snuggle for awhile."

Unable to resist the urge, the precognitive snorted softly then remarked, "Wouldn't Farf think it was hilarious if he ever found out that Schuldich actually liked to cuddle!"

Schuldich pretended to hiss angrily, "Tell him, Crawford, and you'll regret it!"

"Oh, now I'm scared!" Crawford chuckled as he reached to turn off the bedside light and then snuggled closer to his lover.

"You should be!" the German insisted between yawns, "Now, be quiet. We've talked enough for one night."

Placing a tender kiss to the long-haired man's cheek, Crawford answered in loving tones, "Of course, sweetheart. Goodnight."

Yawning again and turning onto his side to encourage his tall partner to spoon against him comfortably, Schuldich mumbled something along the lines of wishing Crawford sweet dreams and then drifted off himself.

If asked, neither Farfarello nor Nagi would've considered that these two particular people could possibly share the type of relationship that they did, it was simply too far outside the eldest members' of Schwarz's public personas for anyone to have expected it. Oddly enough, though, it was this very special "bedroom-only love affair" that the pair of psychics had shared for years that gave them the strength they needed to get through their difficult lives.

It was a strength that they would both need before the week ended and they found their world irrevocably altered by the young man they were both so concerned about following an unhelpful glimpse of the near future.

*****

To be continued.

Author's Notes:

[1] My apologies to all the Farfarello fans out there who wanted him to have more "screen time" here. He will later, but since this was essentially a "Brad-Schu" scene I'm afraid he got left on the couch watching television, something he apparently likes to do quite a bit in this continuity as you will discover later.

[2] When this was originally written a year ago, the school violence issue was much higher in everyone's awareness than it is now, yet it remains a darkness ever present and thus the reference remains.

[Posting Run Dedication for Chapters 8 & 9] Tonight's special friend who receives the dedication nod is someone who has given my muses and me more reasons to smile than anyone other than darling Yanagi-sen and my family-plus-kitten, the amazing Priscilla whose reviews at Fanfiction.net are fascinating reading in and of themselves! Throughout the seemingly endless chapters of "Cold November Rain" she was there cheering for our boys and adding interesting personal observations all along the way. The lemony romp "Ken's Dream" which will be a fantasy three-way including Ken, Yohji, and Aya/Ran will debut sooner or later and is the direct result of her comments there. Now, what she might inspire for *this* continuity is anyone's guess, but stayed tuned to find out! It's sure to be something fun! {applauds for the lady who was wed just a few months ago} Thanks again, Priscilla! All my love to you and that wonderful husband of yours!