Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ The Hope Diamond ❯ Tsukiyono - 20 ( Chapter 20 )

Name: Androgene

Website: http://www.angelfire.com/space/noir13

Email: androgene@lycos.com

Title: The Hope Diamond (Book Two): Tsukiyono - Chapter Twenty to Twenty-Four, and Interlude

Summary: Snow in June heralds the coming of disaster. Takatori's manipulations do not end with Yohji's death. The blood pact with Estet is about to be fulfilled and the Blood Diamond plays a key role. But Ran is too grief-stricken to care about his fate. If only Yohji is still alive…if only… (YohjixRan, TakatorixRan.)

Category: AU, fantasy, drama, angst, action, yaoi, shounen-ai

Rating: NC-17

Warning: Yaoi, shounen-ai, drama, the usual

Notes:

I think I almost turned into flame-bait with the last installment. Uploaded the Hidaka arc one afternoon, went off to work and came back to a rather big indignant outcry. Floored me, really. I'm beginning to think I have a sadistic and a masochistic streak in me. I actually got a kick out of reading those anguished reviews *duck flying objects*

Anyway I figure I better get down to work on this latest arc and get it up quick before I'm really flame-bait *sweatdrop…type, type, type furiously*.

Just a note for this installment - for the sake of this AU, Omi is not related to Reiji Takatori. For that matter, Persia is not Shuuichi Takatori either. He still keeps his name 'Shuuichi' though.

Disclaimer:

All characters belong to their creators. WeiB Kreuz™ is created by Takehito Koyasu and Project WeiB. I don't own them and I don't profit from using these characters.

Tsukiyono

Mamoru had a secret, one he kept to himself since he was five. He dared not tell anyone, not to his friends and parents or even his two older brothers. You see Mamoru was born with the talent of a mage. And in a wealthy but very traditional family that loathed magic, young Mamoru was smart enough to know revealing his talent would be a sure way of inviting trouble.

So Mamoru knew all about keeping secrets and the stress that came with it. He could sympathize with people burdened with secrets.

One day, Mamoru went to the mall with his mama. When they were ready to leave for home, some bad men accosted them in the parking lot. The bad men began to harass them, trying to drag them off to somewhere. And Mamoru, terrified and not comprehending what was happening, panicked. He felt a gust of…something leaving him. It knocked the men bullying his mama off their feet, freeing her, but it did not stop the bad men from taking him away from his mama.

Only much later in his life would he understand he had been kidnapped for ransom. But at that time, what was happening to him was a nightmare beyond his comprehension.

For many days, he was kept in a dirty room. Where he was and how long he stayed there, he did not know. All he knew was he was frightened, cold, hungry and far, far from his family, surrounded by loud and coarse strangers. He couldn't stop crying, wishing he was back home, with his papa and mama.

"Papa, help!" he cried into the cell phone his kidnappers held to his face. "I'm scared, Papa. Help!"

"Do you hear that?" one of the kidnappers said. "One million isn't very much to ask for."

A loud angry voice erupted from the cell phone. "I don't care how much you want! I will not pay a single cent! Do whatever you like with the boy. He is no longer my son!"

"Papa? Papa, help!" Mamoru wept. Why won't his papa rescue him?

"Quit your crying, boy." The kidnapper tossed the cell phone aside. "Your papa is not coming to rescue you."

"You're kidding," another kidnapped said incredulously.

"No," replied the first sourly. "What a waste of effort."

"That's cruel. So what are we going to do now?"

The first kidnapper loomed over the frightened boy. "He's of no more use to us alive."

Mamoru stared up at his kidnapper, confused and terrified. He didn't understand why his papa refused to rescue him. He badly needed his papa to save him but why won't he?

"Poor kid," the first kidnapper grinned sadistically at him. "That's some cold-hearted bastard you got for a father. Even my pop wasn't that bad." He bent and grabbed the sobbing boy by his hair. "Say bye-bye, kid."

The naked light bulb in the dirty room suddenly shattered, throwing the whole room into darkness. In the confusion that ensued, Mamoru felt himself being lifted. Next thing he knew, he was in the arms of someone running through the darkness. When they emerged into a brighter area, Mamoru got his first clear look of his rescuer.

It was his uncle, the one his papa never liked.

He watched with wide-eyed wonder as his uncle blew open another door with just a gesture of his hand and sprinted through. His uncle took a moment to smile reassuringly at the bewildered boy. "Don't worry, Mamoru. I will not let you die here."

Mamoru never expected to hear those words from this uncle he barely knew, words he had hoped to hear from his papa instead. But things seemed to be getting better and right now, that was all that mattered.

When his uncle finally took him home, Mamoru got another shock of his life. His papa, who doted on him and never raised a hand against him, inexplicably looked at him with the same kind of dislike he gave to Mamoru's uncle.

"Mages are all evil," his papa had declared ominously. "Nothing good will ever come from raising one."

"He is your son, oniisan!" His uncle protested furiously. "Your own flesh and blood. How can you turn your back on him just like that?"

"A spawn of magic is no son of mine! Mages are not tolerated in this family as long as I'm alive! Get out! And take him with you!"

"Oniisan!"

"My family will never have a Mage! Go and don't ever let me see your faces again!"

Infuriated with Mamoru's father's bigoted attitude, Mamoru's uncle had little choice but to take the traumatized boy with him. Stunned and upset, Mamoru meekly let his uncle guide him to the limousine. It wasn't until they were heading for the airport before Mamoru's uncle broke the awkward silence.

"I'm sorry, Mamoru. I really didn't think he would be so pigheaded. I really thought once he had seen you alive and well again, he would accept you even if you have the Mage talent." His uncle sighed tiredly. "It's a good thing I flew out here when I heard about your kidnapping. I never thought he would be so…cruel."

"Why?"

"I don't know, Mamoru."

"But he's my papa, right?" Mamoru searched his uncle's face beseechingly. "He loves me, right?"

His uncle smiled sadly. "Mamoru, I can't say if he really loves you or not. All I know is that sometimes when someone hates a thing too much, not even love can change it."

Mamoru didn't understand that. He didn't understand how his father could turn from loving him to hating him in a blink of an eye. Love was love, right?

Frightened and feeling utterly abandoned, Mamoru curled into a tight ball, hiding his face in his arms. Shivers wrecked his small body and he began to sniffle, trying to hold his tears back. Moments later, he felt a reassuring warmth enveloping him and he turned blindly to bury his face in his uncle's chest. His sniffles turned into sobs, sobs into a full-blown crying fit. He clung to his uncle, drenching the front of his uncle's suit as he cried out his heartache.

"Ssh," his uncle soothed. "Everything will be fine. I will take care of you. You have my promise, or my name is not Persia."

Mamoru was only eight at that time.

To keep him safe from his enemies, Persia kept his adoption of Mamoru a secret like he did with his other ward. He also made certain his nephew received the best kind of life he could give and sent Mamoru to the best mage school when he grew older. After realizing that Mamoru was also a Jack-of-all-Trades, Persia was adamant in letting Mamoru learn whatever skills he was interested in.

By the time Mamoru was twelve, he was a Class-C Techno-Mage and an expert computer hacker. But no matter how skilled and good he was, Mamoru never forgot about his father's betrayal. Beneath his cheerful and contented front laid a flinty determination never to let anyone else suffer the same way as he did.

But how was he going to go about it?

One night, unable to sleep, Mamoru got up for a glass of milk. He noticed light coming from beneath the door of his uncle's study and the sounds of two voices speaking. Curious, he tiptoed to the door to eavesdrop.

"- What vague hints are you sprouting now, Botan?"

"I can't help it if it comes out vague and generic," a second voice said defensively.

"Can you do any better than that?" Persia asked.

"Well…I can't shake the feeling that it's going to happen quite soon and it's likely to involve some underground syndicate. Other than that…"

"It's better than nothing, I suppose." Persia sighed. "I have already gathered the first two. What will happen if I gather the third one?"

A long moment of silence.

The hairs on the back of Mamoru's neck raised when he heard the second man spoke again, but this time in a flat eerie monotone, "When snow falls in summer, changes will transform the world."

"For good or for bad?" Persia questioned.

"Eh? What?" Botan replied normally again. "Oh, I said something again, didn't I?"

"Never mind. Here, take a look at this. It's something I've been planning for some time."

"Weiss, eh?" Silence again, then Botan said sharply, "You're kidding, right?"

"No."

"Are you crazy? You can't just put together your own hit squad."

"Why not? Magnopolis' justice system has been severely compromised. I do what I can on that front but there are many criminals who got away scot-free because so many judges and juries are corrupted."

"So you decide to be the judge and the executioner."

"No, just the judge. Weiss are my assassins." Mamoru's heartbeat picked up when he heard that word. "Weiss's targets will be those the law cannot touch, the monsters who hid in the safety of the darkness."

"And any other 'obstacles' that stand in the way of Kritiker's goal as well, am I right?"

"That can't be helped, Botan, and you know it. I have both the Estet and Takatori to worry about as well."

Botan sighed. "I suppose your mind is all made up."

"Yes."

At that point, his mind in turmoil over what he overheard, Mamoru decided to beat a hasty retreat. He crept back up to his bed and spent a sleepless night, turning the conversation over in his mind.

He couldn't believe his uncle would dare to take such a big risk. He might be young but Mamoru was not ignorant of the happenings around him. He knew exactly just how influential and powerful a man his uncle was. For a man of his social stature to be involved in the assassin game, when words of it get out, it would be more than just a scandal. Persia's entire life would be ruined and his enemies would spare no efforts to hunt down the man they would deem responsible for their failures to undermine the city's stability.

It was very risky, very dangerous and extremely pragmatic.

Mamoru had always wanted to be like his uncle, using his talents and resources to help others. This Weiss…it might just be the solution he was looking for.

The very next day, when Mamoru joined Persia for breakfast, he told his uncle, "I want to join Weiss."

Startled, Persia gaped at the young boy. He quickly recovered and said, "You were eavesdropping on us last night."

Mamoru nodded. "I'm sorry for eavesdropping, uncle. But I couldn't help it."

"Then you must know what Weiss is all about."

"Yes. They are the executioners of the monsters the law cannot touch."

"No, Mamoru. If you have overheard us last night, then you should know Weiss is not created just for the sake of the righteous," Persia said gravely. "Weiss are only murderers, with very specific victims. Forget Weiss, Mamoru. You are too young and idealistic. The life of an assassin will crush your spirit in very little time."

"No," Mamoru replied softly. "I think I know what I'm getting into. You can't shield me forever from the dark side of humanity. I already got a taste of that, remember?"

Mamoru gazed evenly at his uncle. "I think I'm more than qualified to join Weiss. Where else are you going to find a Techno-Mage who is also a Jack?"

"I never mean to shield you forever," Persia said. "Truth be told, I want you to be the next Persia."

"Then what better way for me to get involved than carrying out field operations?"

"You are a twelve-year-old boy who should be enjoying life, not taking it."

"Uncle, I haven't been a boy since Papa betrayed me."

Persia did not know what to say to that.

"Uncle, please."

"Think about it first," Persia replied shortly. "Then give me your answer a week later."

In the end, Mamoru's answer was still the same. He was fiercely determined to stop monsters preying on the innocents and nothing Persia said was going to deter him.

Realizing this, Persia acquiesced reluctantly but with several conditions.

Mamoru must 'die'. He would be Omi Tsukiyono, an orphan with two guardians who just happened to be his fellow assassins as well and inflicted with supposed amnesia. No one, not even his fellow assassins must know of his relation with Persia, to protect his team.

Mamoru agreed readily to the conditions. He was so used to keeping secrets that it no longer matter to him. He only hoped the other Weiss assassins could accept him as one of them and as their mission leader despite his age.

When Mamoru, or rather Omi, finally met his fellow assassins, he saw at once both men carried their own burdens and secrets. Something in each man's past had drove them to join Weiss, to choose to be a 'ghost' among the living, something that haunted them like his own past haunted him.

He never asked, never pressed. Their secrets were their own and Omi respected that. But knowing what he knew about keeping secrets, it certainly made it easier to relate to them. It was, he believed, the one common bond they shared and who knows, it might lead to stronger relationships between the three of them.

He was right.

For the first time, Omi truly found a place he could call his own. A small pseudo-family tied together by past pain, death and guilt. Omi was happy where he was and he would do anything to help his family, to be there for them.

After all, isn't that what family is all about?

Chapter Twenty

Beep…beep…beep…

The room was quiet like a tomb, with only the steady beeping of the medical monitoring device to keep him company. It was bright in this windowless white room, stark white light bouncing off white walls and white sheets, casting everything in shadowless light. In this white environment, he stood out like a black wound, clad entirely in black from head to toes and his hair was a vivid bleeding hue.

Beep…beep…beep…

He sat beside his comatose sister, watching her serene sleeping face. He hadn't moved since they imprisoned him in this room, hadn't spoken a word during his motionless watch. There was no one else he wanted to speak to; the only two persons were either dead or in a coma. No one would listen to him anymore, so what was the point of talking?

Beep…beep…beep…

He didn't know how long he was imprisoned in here. It could be days or weeks, he no longer care. They had sealed him in here with his sister and left him there, and he had no desire to even try to escape. He could still feel his blood on his hands though he was clean; still see his death every time he closed his eyes.

Some people would call his condition 'post-traumatic stress'.

He called it reality check.

He was empty, hollow, beyond despair and tears. He cared for nothing and no one anymore, save for the young girl he was watching over. He had promised to be strong but he could not find it in himself the strength to even react to anything. It was curiously peaceful - this numbness pervading his being. Like just drifting along on the currents, unconcerned and apathetic, content to just leave his destiny to fate.

Ran had simply stopped living.

He wasn't supposed to live anyway, he finally understood now. He was only meant to exist, to be a living passive avatar of power for his master, nothing more and nothing less. If only he had realized that long ago, then perhaps Yohji wouldn't have to die.

Now, the only thing that still kept him going was his sister. She was the only thing that anchored him to this existence.

Sometimes, he could almost hate her, for what he had to do to protect her. But when he looked upon her innocent face, an outpouring of love filled his heart. It was funny how he could still feel that particular emotion. He could never hate her; he loved her too much, sacrificed too much for her well being. She was his only tie to his past, the one link he could not dispose of. She was his Holy Grail and his Hell. For Aya-chan's sake, everything can be done - even killing the man he loved.

Ran felt like the monster he was. He had always known that but it took some time for his heart to catch up with his mind. A Gem was cursed, destined to bring misfortunes to all, and he was no different.

In the end, he was reviled and alone.

* * *

In the observation lounge, Crawford and Schuldich looked down into the windowless room where the two siblings were imprisoned.

//Pretty, isn't he?// Schuldich remarked. //And hurting so bad I get a kick out of watching him.//

//How long has he been like this?// Crawford asked Schuldich.

//Ever since he came back from killing his lover. He'll be docile and easy to manage.//

//Docile? More like he has almost given up.//

//You don't like his current condition?//

//I want docile and whole, not broken. Which he is very close to becoming.//

Arms folded across his chest, Crawford closed his eyes and allowed the visions to flood his mind again. Curious, Schuldich carefully reached out to lightly probe his leader's mind and met the usual wall.

"Stop that," Crawford said crisply without opening his eyes.

"I didn't probe that hard."

"No. But I know you well enough to guess what you will do."

"Guilty as charged," Schuldich replied lightly. //So is everything going according to your vision?//

//You know I won't answer that.//

Schuldich chuckled. //I had to ask.//

They lapsed into silence again, Crawford contemplative and Schuldich waiting as patiently as he could. It was almost five minutes before Crawford stirred back to awareness. Without another word, he walked out of the observation lounge with Schuldich following close behind.

//Where are you going?//

//Back to Estet HQ. The Elders are due to arrive this evening. I want you to stay here with Takatori and the Gem. Tell him you're here as Estet representative to make sure that nothing else happen to the Blood Diamond.//

Schuldich arched a brow. //You saw something happening soon?//

Crawford smiled enigmatically. //In a manner of speaking.//

* * *

Back in the white room, unknowing and uncaring of his unseen visitors, Ran gently pried open one of Aya-chan's small hands. He idly stroked the warm metal surface of the golden earring nestled in her palm, lost in his memories. With the same hand, he reached up to his own ear and touched his half of the pair.

I wear this to remember my promise to you, Aya. That I will wait for the day you wake up. It's so hard to keep that promise, after so long. But I will still wait. There is nothing left for me now. He closed her fingers around her half of the jewelry. Sleep well, Aya-chan.

Ran did not look up when he heard the opening of the door and the heavy tread he recognized instantly approaching him. He remained seated in his chair, unmoving, as heavy arms circled round his body, trapping him within their embrace.

"Your devotion to your sister is admirable, Ran." Takatori murmured close behind him.

The redhead said nothing, staring straight ahead as Takatori licked the delicate shell of his ear.

"I know you won't rest well unless you are here by her side, so I have taken the liberty of getting a cot for you."

The new sounds of something being pushed into the room caught Ran's attention. He turned his head to watch, as the servants set up a narrow cot in the far corner. He felt a stir of vague surprise as a simple but nutritious meal was brought in as well.

"You see," the hated voice spoke again softly, "I can be gentle and thoughtful."

Without good reasons, Ran thought dourly.

"You haven't said a single word since you came back. I don't like that." The arms tightened painfully around him for an instant, then relaxed. "But that is not important now. I have an errand for you. In three days' time, go to Estet."

The voice lowered to a soft murmur. "Listen carefully. This is what I want you to do."

Even sunken in despair, Ran could not help but react to the sheer audacity of Takatori's plan. It was crazy and too dangerous!

"Just do as I order," Takatori continued, tightening his embrace around Ran's tense body. "Your sister will be here waiting for your return. Carry out your errand successfully and she will stay unharmed."

Fingers curling under the fine-boned chin, Takatori nudged Ran's head up and to the side, and planted a possessive kiss against Ran's unresisting lips.

"My beautiful orchid. You are indeed one of a kind. Even if I had not made you my Gem, I would still claim you ten years ago."

He kissed Ran again, forcing the unresponsive lips open to hungrily plunder the warm depths of the redhead's mouth. One of his hands reached down to roughly fondle Ran's genitals.

"Remember, her fate is in your hands. You will do as I tell you to if you want nothing to happen to her."

Ran slumped back against his chair when he was released, listening to the sounds of Takatori leaving the room. Once he was alone again, he stared detachedly at the new cot and dinner.

Slowly, he got up and walked over.

Ignoring the cot, he took up the dinner tray and returned to his chair by his sister's side. He hadn't had hunger pangs since he became a Gem, but maybe…the motions of eating would help him to gather the strength to be strong.