Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Thoughts in a Mind ❯ Picture in a Frame ( Chapter 1 )

Title: Picture in a Frame

Author: Crazy Miko

Chapter: 1/?

Warnings: Mentioned Yaoi

Pairings: Mentioned YoujixAya

Summary: Omi PoV, a picture's worth a thousand words but how much are a thousand words really worth?

Disclaimer: I do not own Weiss Kreuz; it belongs to Koyasu Takehito among others.

Dedication: I would like to dedicate this little fic to The-Dark-One whose comment about a colder, more aloof Omi got the little gears in my mind moving until inspiration finally smacked me upside the head. Special thanks to Manon and Nyx for the beta, without them this fic would be quiet scary grammar wise.

Picture in a Frame

Coming back to the Koneko felt strange without the others walking with me, I almost expected to see Ken dashing ahead of me to claim the first shower. We had gone our separate ways a few years ago, but all of us are still with Kritiker. I still have no idea why they split our team up; at least they were kind enough to reassign Youji and Aya together. Kind enough; don't I wish? It was just common sense to keep Youji and Aya together, their success rate both as a duo or solo is unmatched by any of Kritiker's other two-person teams. I should know; I complied and calculated the statistics myself. I can't help but feel a little bit of pride over how well they're doing. I'm starting to enjoy my new position a little bit too much, but it's what I was raised for, despite what the others may think. I'm not the "chibi" anymore, I never really was. It was just easier to become friends with them; it would have been too hard not to let them close. I don't regret it in the least; they were the first real family I ever had. I miss having a team, but someone needs to keep tabs on Tokyo's agents. I can't do that and accept missions at the same time.

Aya-chan waves before throwing herself at me. I've grown genuinely fond of her; I'm trying to be her brother where Aya left off. It wasn't much of a choice for Aya; it was stay in Kritiker with Youji and have Aya-chan protected, or leave and lose both Youji and the protection. I hope for her sake that Aya-chan never finds out about Kritiker because there are only two things to do in that situation: die or join up. Aya-chan's too much of an innocent for either of those. I should stop thinking such morbid things, my story is perfect and even if she wanted to investigate it, I covered my tracks. For all she knows I have been on a month long trip to visit relatives in Osaka. For those who my trip is really is a concern, I was making my annual personal check on the agents in my area. Ken seemed to be doing well with his new team; one of his teammates is also a soccer fan. I think he told me they were going to see a game together this weekend and that there was an extra ticket. I couldn't make myself accept, we're not teammates anymore. My superiors gave me explicit instructions not to socialize too much with my former teammates when I saw them on my rounds. I wish I could have gone with him. It's lonely being a solo agent.

I saw Youji and Aya most recently when they moved closer to Roppongi. Youji was thrilled, and Aya, well, he's always grumpy about something. I didn't talk to them for long because they were getting ready for a mission when I came in. Aya looks almost approachable when he's dressed for clubbing. Maybe this mission is why Youji was so happy. Poor Aya, judging solely on the fact that his boyfriend is Youji, Aya wouldn't sleep at all that night. It was a short reconnaissance mission but Youji would probably keep him in the club for hours under the pretense of working before dragging him back to their new apartment to "christen" the rest of the flat surfaces capable of handling their weight. If it weren't for their record, I'm sure Kritiker would split them up. Off duty Youji is completely distracted by Aya, even on duty for that matter. But as long as he doesn't get either of them killed, I can't say too much against it. Their relationship can't possibly end well, but for assassins, the here and now is all that matters.

Aya-chan scolds me when I dump my luggage in the kitchen before wandering into the mission room. I tell her I'll get it on my way back up; she's as anal as her brother about some things. The photo album's sitting on the couch; I guess Aya-chan was flipping through it at some point while I was gone. The page it's open to is what makes me notice it. It's a picture of the guys that I took one morning during one of the quieter times where there was a lull in the missions. There's nothing really special about it, but I still remember everything from when I took the picture. I was walking down the stairs playing with the camera that I'd just gotten the day before. I couldn't think of anything to take a picture of so I went to the kitchen to take one of the guys. We didn't have that many good group pictures. I knew I'd have to catch them unaware so Aya didn't have time to start glaring at the camera. It was such a classic scene when I peeked into the room. Aya was sitting at the table with his reading glasses on, scowling at the paper as he sipped his tea. Youji stood behind him tugging on one of Aya's strangely messy eartails, trying to get the man to cook breakfast for him. Ken was in the background walking to his seat while stuffing a leftover rice ball from the day before into his mouth. All of them jumped when they saw the flash. Aya looked particularly disgruntled, while Ken just rubbed his eyes with half of the rice ball still sticking out of his mouth. Youji, on the other hand, just gave Aya's eartail one last tug before asking me to cook.

That was quite the morning, Aya eventually gave in and cooked Youji breakfast. I think it was then that I figured out why Aya looked more than a little rumpled and why he didn't kill Youji for pulling his hair. That was an interesting report to write, and Kritiker wasn't very pleased with its pet team for a few weeks after that. In retrospect, it's fortunate that Kritiker had decided to see how the situation would develop; it's very possible that I could have ruined Youji and Aya's relationship. However, it had to be done. Relationships between teammates usually ended messily in failed missions, where either one or none of the agents in question came back. The chances of that happening were too high for me to keep their relationship a secret. I refuse to let any more people I care about die because of their feelings. I was only doing what I thought was right at the time. In the name of altruism I went out and reported them, although, if I take a moment to think about it, it was rather selfish. I didn't want anything to change. I'm just lucky that Youji and Aya never found out about it, it really was the right thing for me to do regardless.

I'm hypocritical, like everything else that has to do with Kritiker. The agents are hypocrites, the leaders are hypocrites, and the whole organization is hypocritical. Where's the justice in killing others in order to protect the innocents, while simultaneously providing for the fairly extravagant life styles of Kritiker's upper echelon? I won't pretend that our organization is perfect; there is no such thing as pure altruism. Kritiker chooses its targets with care, so why bother risk discovery if there will be no compensation? Perhaps it would have been better if I had chosen to stay as a field agent; it was easier just to follow orders. Now I'm the one choosing the missions and tweaking the details so that my agents will kill the target and believe that they've done a favor to the city and its inhabitants. What a tangled web we weave, I hope I am here to see the day when Kritiker traps itself in its own net.

Why isn't everything like it was in the picture? Where's my family? How did I become so cynical? I guess I'm really not the "chibi" anymore, I don't know why that thought bothers me so much. If I could just go back to that moment when we weren't just a team, but a group of friends living and working together, I would give back my new position and paycheck. There were no thoughts of death or a mission during that moment in the picture, the biggest issue was who would cook breakfast. That was one of the moments I used to live for, where I was just Omi. Not the team leader, an assassin, or a florist, but just Omi the teenager who goes to high school and works at a flower shop part time to pay for a room over the shop. That life wasn't real, but it felt normal. That was really all that mattered.

I do miss them. They were my family. They were what I imagined it would be like if my real brothers had cared. They each gave their own brand of care; I wish I had Aya's steady presence with me as I coordinate these missions. When it didn't involve a Taketori, Aya could be very insightful. Ken's carefree attitude would help on days when I feel as if I have been wasting my life. On those days even Youji's perverted jokes would be welcome. I want my slice of normalcy back; the closest I'm had to one of those moments was when Aya-chan and I went to a movie. Not that that wasn't special in its own way, it just wasn't the same as being with the guys. Aya-chan hasn't seen the darker part of our lives; she doesn't understand why I look so sad some days. She can't understand, and if I have it my way she never will.

I can't make any promises though; she's too close to everything to say without a doubt that she will be safe from it. If my luck holds out for a few more months everything will be fine, I finally convinced her to pursue her dream of studying abroad. She will do well in America; our agents there will take care of her better than I can. There, the shadow of her brother and his deeds won't hang over her. Aya has enemies, but none hate him enough to bother tracking down Aya-chan in another country. Even if they did, Aya and Youji would take care of them quickly and silently. Kritiker would let it slide too, as a team they are too successful to provoke unnecessarily. There is a certain point in which an agent may become too well trained, I do not doubt that if they wanted to, Aya and Youji could disappear and leave behind enough chaos to distract Kritiker for a few months. Only Aya-chan holds them back I think, Aya could never leave his sister unprotected and Kritiker knows that.

There's no need to go over that again though, it's common knowledge by now. We all know why we're here and why everyone else is here. The only question to ask is for how long. I'm here for the rest of my natural life, assuming there isn't an accident or a power struggle. I've been preparing to take Bengal's place as the head of Kritiker for the past three years. He's brilliant, but he's far too ambitious and impulsive. I wouldn't trust him with my father's organization any longer than I have to. I will be keeping him as an advisor of sorts. His knowledge of Kritiker's inner workings is probably on par with the knowledge Manx used to have. I wish she were here since she would do a much better job of running Kritiker than Bengal and I can. Also, I would at least know that she wouldn't be planning to have me disposed of and take control. Bengal's ambition will probably be his downfall. The moment I think he's going to challenge me he will be taken care of; even if I have to do it personally. I will have to remember to go visit Manx and Persia's graves later, it's the least I can do to try and see the once a month. I think that the Koneko has a surplus of the nicer roses.

I suppose I don't really have a family anymore, just Aya-chan and Momoe. They aren't really family; they'll never be able to be what the others were. They're too innocent, well, perhaps Momoe isn't innocent but I can't exactly run around with an old lady. Kritiker picks its agents well, Momoe may be old and uninterested but she's still as sharp as ever. I wonder why she decided to come back; she's been retired for years according to her file. I don't think I'll ever understand her; she's the last constant left in my life from the time when I was with Weiss. I wonder if the others ever think about how alone they are now, but I guess they're not really alone. Ken has his team, and Youji an Aya have each other; I just have a doddering old woman who's as concerned about her cat as she is for me. I almost forgot that Aya-chan was leaving too. When she's gone I won't even have a friend. I never speak with the people I went to high school with; I officially disappeared from their lives at graduation. None of them will ever hear of me again. There were a few persistent ones who dropped by the Koneko a few times but they've stopped coming. They've stopped caring. It's best that way.

I put the photo album back on the shelf before I leave. I tuck the picture in my pocket though; I'm going to keep it close as a reminder of happier times. After I take up the mantle of Persia I won't see Aya, Ken, and Youji again. I'll be the faceless man handing out the missions and they'll be the valuable but disposable resources that will carry out those missions. I hope they find a way to get out, I don't know what I'd do if on of them died on a mission I assigned. I don't think I'd be able to handle it, I let them too close. I'll become the ruthless leader I need to be, but I don't think I'll take the same joy in it when they are ones I'm sending out into the field. Perhaps it would be best if I transferred them to Bengal's control since he can be objective when handing out their missions. I don't want to play the favorites game the way Persia did, it only causes problems. We weren't ready once Persia's protection was gone and we were sent on more dangerous missions. We survived though, and we'll always survive. That's what I'll have to believe, I don't want to consider death anymore.

The picture fits nicely into a frame I found under my bed. Ouka gave it to me so I could put a picture of her in it I never got around to it, but I wish I had. It's too late for regrets now, I have to concentrate on my and the others' future. Do they ever think about the fact that I'm going to be Kritiker's head? Does that ever bother them? Does it make the feel better? Will they trust the organization more once I'm Persia? Probably not, Aya doesn't really trust anyone or anything, and Ken and Youji are also mistrustful of Kritiker to a lesser degree. They have every right to be though; it's actually good that they are. If they weren't so suspicious of others, then Kritiker would have slipped a much tight leash around their necks.

Morbid, I need to think of happier things. I think I'll visit Roppongi soon; I need of Aya's advice. He's wiser than he appears. Underneath all that anger he's a very deep person. It must drive Youji crazy sometimes. I'll never forget what Aya said to me when we found out about my heritage; he's given me many words of wisdom since then. There might be a place for him in an administrative position once he's taken off of active duty. If he and Youji weren't such a successful duo I'd take him from active duty myself just to have him around. I think he'd be invaluable if I could get him to agree to take a position as one of my direct subordinates. I will talk to him about it later; I'll find something for Youji too. He'd probably do well with reconnaissance.

I put the frame on my nightstand by my alarm clock. Maybe one day we'll all be together again and make another happy memory. Until then I shouldn't worry about it, I need to focus on taking over Kritiker and securing my future. I'll keep my memories close, but behind glass where I can just look at them but not touch them. Those times are just like pictures, reminders, but no longer the present. Just the past, a past that doesn't really matter anymore.

~End~

Maa, this was going to be an oneshot but the muse has an idea for a sequel already. Thanks to the betas again, they're wonderful people who need more credit for all the work they did to make this fic readable.