fanfiction by jill 08/09/02
"Ayame," he replied, staring into this troubled face. After exposing his identity, he knew not what to do next. Unlike everything else that he had planned, he never knew what to do around Ayame. 'She is...'
'He is...'
Their eyes locked on each other, neither could speak. That is until the door flew open. Cho stormed in, making a lot of noise with his shoes. "I forgot my hat!" he replied. He then looked back and forth. "S-Satan-sama...!" Tears filled his eyes as he felt the dejection and rushed out in tears.
"That guy..." Yamazaki grumbled as he stood up. "I suppose I should get back to working on my plans. Excuse me." Turning to walk away, he felt a tug on his clothing. He turned to see Ayame's hand gripping on his hakama.
"Why?" she asked, her eyes falling to the floor, "Why are you doing this...?" He could not answer - now that she wasn't asking Satan, but Yamazaki. Without another word, he left the room with a hurried step. Ayame watched as the door slammed shut. "Yamazaki-san..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
'Is Neesan all right...?' Kaede sat at her window, watching the snowfall. Things weren't exactly all right in the Hoshigumi either. Tension filled each and every day without any relief coming any time soon, and it looked like the group would be disbanded after all. 'It's like I just arrived, like I just left Teito... Now I wish I was there...'
Hearing a noise at the door, she went to check it out. But as she got there, she saw no one. 'Am I sleepy? I must be imagining it...' She stood there for a moment and gazed at the empty hall. She could hear in the back of her mind friendly calls routed back and forth.
'Those were the days, Neesan. When we lived together under one roof... In peace... In Teito... Together... Somehow these words cannot go together anymore... ever...' Kaede slid against the wall and sat on the floor, something she would do when she was little. 'Staring up at you... Admiring you... Neesan... You are so far away now...'
"Ara, Kaede-san!" said a voice. She turned to see Orihime passing in the hallway. "What are you doing there in such an awkward way??"
"No, I was just...!" Kaede quickly gathered herself together. "I'm fine. I just got a little nostalgic."
"I see... You are homesick. I'm sure it happens to everyone. That's right, where were you from again?"
"Japan."
Orihime's face went sour. "J-Japon?! That place???! Y-You don't happen to... know any man from there...?!?"
Kaede laughed. "Don't worry, Orihime-kun! I don't!"
"That's good to hear! I wouldn't like any of them showing up at this place! You have a lot of good sense, Kaede-san!"
"Thank you. Now, Orihime, let's go have a coffee and warm up." she replied, trying to cheer up. 'Sou ne... I can't let my worry show. I have to be strong. Even if you're not here, Neesan...'
"I'll ask the other girls to come along too." Orihime said, as they walked down the hallway, "It's TOO gloomy around here! That's what I hate about wintertime!"
"I love wintertime." Kaede said with a bright.
"W-What???! How can you say that?! It's SO cold! I'm shive~ring!"
"Hehehehe, you better get used to it if you want to come to Japan..."
"I would never!!"
* * * * * * * * * *
Back in Teito, Oogami wandered into the cafeteria. 'Tomorrow morning begins a battle to save Teito... soshite Ayame-san...' He sat down at the table resting his chin down on his hands. 'Why... Why am I shaking?'
~''I'll be stronger than Ayame-san...''~
'Did Sakura-kun mean Ayame-san wasn't strong so she fell to the enemy... but why? Ayame-san wouldn't freely let that bastard Satan control her! She would fight him! Yes, Ayame-san is fighting him as we speak! Alone... and who knows what torture... Ayame-san, are you okay? When we met in the hallway, you were so vulnerable. It wasn't the Ayame-san I knew...'
Oogami let out a sigh, as he remembered her face - the struggle muddled in her brown eyes. He could not read her expression. If he had, could he have prevented anything? It happened so fast, his options seemed worthless, his path linear. Whether he liked it or not - the majinki ended up in the hands of the enemy and Ayame was...
'That kiss...' he thought, fist clenching on the tablecloth. 'I won't forgive it! That bastard Satan will pay for taking you away from us...!'
"Yo taichou." A drone Kanna cut into his thoughts and sat across from him. He noticed that her plate consisted of only a small salad. Kanna let out a sigh as heavy as his. "I have no appetite for some reason... Isn't it strange?"
"No, I don't see how anyone could be that hungry." He replied, "Come to think of it, I haven't ate anything all day..."
"Taichou, that isn't good for your body. You need your strength. We are going to battle tomorrow you know. It won't do if the commander passes out from hunger."
Oogami pointed at himself. "I've been through vigorous training before, I can manage. It's just my worry for Ayame-san is more than I can take."
"Atai mo. I can't help but worry for Ayame-san. She was... an important person to me. She was the one who first believed in my strength - not just physical strength. She wanted me to be someone who could feel proud of herself..."
"Why?" Oogami blurted out, "Why do you speak only in past tense? We will get Ayame-san back for sure! She's not dead! Without fail...!"
"Taichou," Kanna's hand latched onto his wrist. "What if we can't?"
"Eh?"
Kanna lowered her eyes. "I don't want to think about it, but... people don't live forever. If we count on that, what are we supposed to if it doesn't turn out that way? Ayame-san would say something clever like 'keep walking down the winding path, no matter how many coins you drop.' Or something like that. But Ayame-san wouldn't want us to blame ourselves... Do you get what I'm trying to say?"
Oogami blinked. "Kind of... But I... I can't give up on Ayame-san."
"I'm not saying to. I just want Taichou to be Taichou. And not forget what we are here to do. That is what Ayame-san would want." Kanna's eyes moved down to the meal before herself. "And she would want us to take care of ourselves and not be hurt on her account. The same goes for you, Taichou!"
"Hai..." Oogami sighed. But as he watched her munch away at the vegetables, he ignored the sounds from his stomach and the feeling of tiredness coming over him. 'I don't care what happens to me... I will get Ayame-san back no matter what!'
* * * * * * * * * * *
Ayame left the chamber after dressing herself in a robe that she found in the room and fixing her hair into a bun. She walked down the dark hall, searching for any exit.
'I have to get out of here quickly. Minna... They are all worried about me. I'm sure about it. After doing all those horrid things, I'm sure they must think I am a demon now. Am I? I even don't know...'
She stopped to see another pair of doors. Touching the iron handle, she wondered if it was safe. She had no idea what was on the other side. If it were dangerous, she wouldn't have known as she automatically pushed it open.
'What the?!' She saw before her millions of pods filled with demons. The green and purple lights surrounded her vision. Standing there, with her hand on the door, she didn't know what to do now. If she closed the door, surely a noise would be made and perhaps hatch some of these pods. She didn't want to take any chances so she wedged the door open with a stone on the floor. She hurried down an aisle, looking for another door. She found one on the other side, past the green pods. She steered herself into the room and gently as she could. But now she was left in darkness.
'This is great... I am the Fukushirei of the Teikoku Kagekidan, but I try for heroics and now I am lost. If I had a weapon, maybe I could have more of a chance, but I have lost most of my good sense these past days. Just like when I was younger...'
"Kiiiiiiii!" the growling noise of a nearby beast caught her attention. It was headed towards her, its breathing reaching for her. Ayame pressed her back against the door, fumbling for the handle. But the handle fell to the floor. "Kiiiii!!!!"
"Sonna!" she gasped, as she came face to face with the kouma. She grabbed the handle and bashed it in the head. There was a cry of pain as she swung around it and ran to the other side of the room. But she only headed into another group of hatched kouma. Coming to a halt, she looked at the two in front of her and the one that had followed her. "This is definitely not good for the Fukushirei..."
"Stop."
All of the kouma froze and the lights blared on. Ayame stared up at the light fixtures above her, then at the fleeing Kouma. One remained and watched as its master walked up and patted it on the arm. The demon made a noise then hurried away.
"How?" Ayame asked, "How did you do that? Demons... they detest humans."
"Sou yo." Yamazaki replied, "We understand each other. Our hatred is the same." He walked around her to where the door was and proceeded to fix the handle, but stopped and looked very pensive. "It was hatred that kept me alive... Not help from people... The people were the reason I..."
"Yamazaki-san!" Her lifted voice stopped him from going any further. Turning back, he saw her this time approaching without any fear. "It's making so much sense and yet... I just cannot believe you! That you've been spending these past years, hating humans - plotting to destroy Teito?! After all we've been through together, you've been so self-absorbed this whole time??!"
"Have you forgotten what we went through?" he replied, "We were their toys, their pawns. All we were meant to do were throw our lives away so that they can all continue the way before - selfish, ignorant, and careless. No... even if Taicho died a horrible painful sacrifice for mankind, you didn't think much of it. You went parading around the world, collecting boyfriends!"
"Ah?! How dare you! I mourned Taicho's death, like everyone else! For you to say such a thing, it's unforgivable!!" she argued, "I was on a mission, your mission - remember? To bring back people who could power the spirit armor you created to protect Teito. But you've forgotten about that."
"Just like you've forgotten about me. So easily, is it?"
"T-That's...!" Ayame dropped her hands that had been clenched into fists before. "Gomen... I had to, if I wanted to keep living... It's not like we were going to make it anyways. You were going to leave me anyways. It just wasn't meant... Those days we were so young, we really didn't know anything. Looking back, I can see we were failed from the beginning."
But she regretted it all in the next second. Somehow in the way his eyes looked reminded her of those times when all she wanted to do was protect him from any harm, even if the harm came from herself.
"So, that's how a woman's heart works. I finally understand after all these years. Please excuse me." Yamazaki replied, finally walking out. Ayame slid down to her knees, in disbelief of her own words. If it was truth or not didn't matter, but the person she saw in her self was becoming more and more clear.
* * * * * * * * * * *
It was a sleepless night at the Teikoku Kagekidan. Yoneda spent the night in the battle room, going over his plans. The Kazegumi worked overtime to supervise the preparations of equipment. And the Hanagumi...
Oogami lay awake, staring up at the ceiling. He set his alarm to go off at 4am, hoping for at least a 2 hour rest, but nothing was coming to him. 'I'm anticipating the battle of my life. What I will win and what I will lose... I have yet to determine...'
Hitting the buzzer before it could go off, Oogami got up and went to his closet, getting his stuff together. He headed downstairs to the locker room to wash his face. But then he heard a noise. "Eh?? Someone's already here..." The locker that was open was Maria's. Sweat covered his face. "S-Sonna..."
"Ohayo, Taicho." Maria said, walking out in a towel. "Just like you to be up so early before the mission."
"M-MARIA!!!" he exclaimed, fighting back a nosebleed. "I-I just got here! I wasn't doing anything! I'm not, you know, a peeping tom!!!"
"Sou yo ne." she replied cooly, unaffected by his presence, "Well??"
"W-Well what??" he stammered. 'Even after staying here for almost a whole year, I'm still not used to sharing a locker room with girls...!'
"Aren't you going to use the showers, Taicho? They are all yours."
"H-Hai!"
Before he could scramble into the shower room and forget being totally embarrassed, Maria's voice caught him off guard. "I'm nervous too."
"Maria..."
"I know it sounds strange coming from me, but I don't want to even think about the outcome. Happy, sad, or whatever it will be... I don't want to know. All I ever wanted was to go back to the way it was. But we cannot do that. No one can."
"That's true... but Maria, we cannot give up. We just can't!"
"If Oogami-taicho says so... That is the order." she replied, "But somehow, even when you say it, there's uncertainty."
Oogami lowered his head. 'She could be right. I'm... afraid...'
* * * * * * * * *
Yoneda stared into an empty glass. The empty battle room and the sound of a clock ticking surrounded him as he stared into the plans. 'This won't do... We're going to have to bring out the Battle Ship Mikasa... But...'
"It's risky, isn't it?" Kayama stepped out from the shadows and sat across from him, "But we've no choice. The report is that the entire area has been affected by its presence and all spiritual barriers are breaking down. Soon, Teito..."
"I know... but are they ready? Without Ayame? Without any experience? What am I doing sending them into this? I should fight it myself!"
"Maa maa maa, relax will you. Oogami is the one for the job. He got us this far, didn't he? You got to believe in him." Kayama insisted. Yoneda slowly nodded. "But of course, Oogami has to believe in himself... He cannot rely on his cause alone, no matter how just it is."
"Ayame wouldn't want it." Yoneda noted, "For people to die for her. She would want them to live on. But, no matter what I say, I can't change their minds if it's made. We are all working towards something we want anyways."
"Selfish, isn't it?" Kayama replied, "Maa, but people are like that. Just do what you like, that's how we all keep moving ahead. It's called 'living'."
"Sou da yo, Yarou." Yoneda chuckled. He flipped open his pocket watch. "It's almost time."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
to be continued
