Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Nobody's Listening ❯ Tortoiseshell, Himalaya and Siamese ( Chapter 4 )

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

Title: Nobody's Listening
Author: Ryoko 03
Series: post-Weiss Kreuz Gluhen
Rating: R; may go to NC-17 depending upon my muses' whims
Status: In Progress

All warnings and pairings noted in the previous chapter.

//blah// = thoughts
~blah~ = telepathy (trust me, it'll come up *sweatdrop*)

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Nobody's Listening
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This time when Ran awoke, it wasn't the sound of the monitors that first drew his attention; what actually woke him from his slumber were the sounds of a scuffle in the hall outside his room.

His trained ear could pick up the heavy breathing of the two-possibly three-people involved, amidst the sound of blades clashing and what he was certain was a soft yelp of pain. Wincing slightly, Ran threw the covers back and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

Another soft yelp sounded, this time followed by the distinctive wet slice of steel sliding across flesh and a grunt of pain. Having arrived at the door, Ran opened it slightly and peered out, violet eyes widening slightly at the scene laid out before him.

At one end of the hall were four people clad in outfits similar to Weiss mission gear. Behind them he could see a few members of the hospital staff looking on in shock. About five feet down from his door stood a dark-haired man with bronzed skin, dressed in a trench coat, black slacks and a white button-down shirt, right hand wrapped around the hilt of a sharpened fencing foil and the other press to his shoulder. Blood seeped between his fingers, silent testimony to how deep his opponent had managed to slice.

Almost directly in front of his door stood the nurse who'd spoken with him throughout the day... only now she didn't *look* so much like a neutral party. Now the relatively short blond was clad in a gold leather duster, boot cut blue jeans, a lavender shirt and what appeared to be combat boots. One hand was pressed lightly against her midsection, a faint trickle of red staining her shirt. He could see no visible weapons, but he caught sight of a holster slung low on her waist beneath the duster.

And directly in front of the door, as calmly as if fighting in a hospital was an everyday occurrence, was Jei.

The former Schwarz assassin was clad head to toe in black. His hair was held back by a black bandana, a few stray strands framing his face and making him look just a touch more feminine than normal. The ends of said bandana held the longer sections of hair back in a ponytail. He wore a tight cropped tank top, unmindful that his midsection was exposed and vulnerable to attack, as the still oozing marks on his skin attested. His arms were encased to the elbow in fingerless gloves, an armlet containing dozens of sharp needles around his upper right arm. Leather jeans and motorcycle boots completed the look, as did the knife holsters wrapped around each thigh.

"Who the fuck *are* you?" the wound man facing Jei and the woman snarled, eyes burning in fury at being kept from his goal. Rather than answer, however, the Irish assassin calmly lifted the retractable blade in his hand-the same blade he'd used in the battle against Abyssinian himself years before-and ran his tongue across the steel.

//Nope,// the Weiss redhead thought, a slight smirk crossing his lips in spite of the situation, //some things never change.//

"Ye're a very bitter man, Siamese," Jei said evenly, his accent thicker than before in the heat of battle. "I coulda told ye that wi'out a taste or touch."

Siamese smirked slightly, teeth gritted still in pain. "I know who you are now," he hissed. "Persia's pet psycho. Didn't recognize you without the scars, freak. Why the change?" A short bark of laughter. "The little boy in charge decide he wanted prettier fare to warm his bed?"

Ran glanced over at Jei, whose eyes had taken on the feral quality he knew well from repeated encounters with Schwarz. His own eyes narrowed slightly; he too recognized Siamese for who he was, the man's mocking and defiance of Mamoru still fresh in his mind. If he'd had his katana at that moment, he would have joined the other redhead in the hallway.

"Still," Siamese sneered, "I don't know why the kid would send his pet out. After all, you're Schwarz. A leopard doesn't change his spots, neither does a gaijin dog."

"Get the civilians out NOW!"

That was the only warning before Jei darted forward, left hand grasping and releasing the needles so fast Ran couldn't be sure he'd seen the movement. At the same time he brought his blade up to strike at Siamese again.

"Tortoiseshell!" the blonde cried out, reaching into her duster and drawing her gun. Behind her the other Kritiker agents were already herding the staff towards safety.

Blades flashed in the fluorescent light as the two opponents fought for a dominant position, neither giving an inch. The blonde kept her gun leveled on the two, waiting for a clean shot at the Japanese ex-Kritiker agent. From Ran's vantage point, he could tell that the shot was impossible.

He could also see that the Irishman was losing ground.

Thinking quickly, the redhead gripped the doorknob, keeping his eyes on the combatants as they neared the door. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the blonde take a few steps back as the blades came dangerously close to striking her. His grip tightened on the knob; he didn't know why his door opened into the hall instead of swinging into his room, but he decided to use it to his advantage.

Tortoiseshell's amber eyes swept towards him for a brief instant; then the Irish assassin leapt backward from the Japanese.

Siamese didn't have time to press his advantage; the second Jei backed off Ran slammed the door open, catching the man off guard and knocking him backward. The blonde saw the opportunity for what it was and fired, the silencer muffling the sound. She emptied her clip before lowering the weapon, then turned towards Ran.

"Sorry," she murmured, an apologetic smile on her face. "None of us expected him to make a move tonight. It's just pure luck that we were all here."

Jei snorted. "Sh'yeah, lass, and the order from Manx had nothin' t'do wi' ye and the rest o' ye team being here, eh, Himalaya?"

Himalaya rolled her eyes and lightly punched the man's arm. "Well, there *is* that. But then again, weren't you told to make it look like an accident?"

"Sphinx's *did* look like an accident... or rather a suicide."

The blonde blinked, then her eyes narrowed. "Not fair. You were keeping secrets, Tortoiseshell."

"Need to know basis, lass," Jei replied with a smile. "You didn't need to know." Himalaya opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, then hmphed and turned to walk towards her team, already calling out orders.

The Irishman smiled and shook his head, then turned to Ran. "You alright?"

For a moment, the redhead wondered why Jei was asking after his health when *he* was the one bleeding. A sharp ache in his wound reminded him of why he was still in the hospital in the first place. Placing one hand over his bandages he nodded slightly, violet gaze on the uncovered and marred skin of the other man's midsection.

He caught his breath as a stray though flit through his mind: //He's hot in that outfit.//

"Still, you should get back to bed," Jei said, lightly grasping Ran's arm and turning him back towards his room. Ran shivered internally for some reason over the touch and was *very* glad Jei's abilities didn't include straight telepathy.

Rather than think about *why* he was thinking of the other man in a non-professional sense, he countered, "You should get those looked at. They look pretty deep."

Amber eyes flicked down to his own skin, taking in the damage for the first time. "Hmph. Disadvantage to blocking pain; sometimes I don't realize I'm injured until I pass out from blood loss." Getting Ran to the bed, he gently pushed the redhead back and offered a small smile. "Get some rest. We can talk in the morning."

That said, the Irish assassin waved slightly, nearly purring "Ja ne" before closing the door behind him and heading off to get his wounds cleaned and stitched up.

Ran sighed and stared up at the ceiling. //Where did *that* some from? True, Jei-I can't believe *he's* this Tortoiseshell Persia mentioned a while back-looked good, but why am I thinking like this?// He shook his head and closed his eyes. //I've never really thought of *anyone* like this.//

~Not true, kitten, you're just denying it.~

Violet eyes snapped open and glanced around. The door was open again, and he could make out someone in the doorway. Before he could open his mouth, he suddenly felt very tired. As his eyes drifted closed again, his last thought was:

//Schuldich...?//

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Owari Part the Fourth
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Regarding Jei's assassin look: if you go to http//www.angelfire.com/anime/saotomechan/wk/Nobody_s_Listening_Index.html you can see the manipulated image I'm working from. And yes, I played around with it in PhotoShop to get the look I wanted (believe it or not, Jei's look is the third one I did; anyone wanting to see my other two options email me and I'll send you a link to them).

And yes, Manx got a promotion. Figured why not get her mentioned too since she was Miss Invisible in Gluhen....