Aniki [Four: God Bless Us Two] (HizumixAyumu; #12. Domo...; Thanks)
Title: Aniki [Four: God Bless Us Two]
Fandom: Spiral - Suiri no Kizuna
Authoress: moerikyo (SuspendedSilverWing on )
Theme: 12. Domo…; Thanks
Pairing/Characters: Mizushiro Hizumi x Narumi Ayumu, Kiyotaka Narumi
Rating: Teen
Disclaimer: I do not own Spiral - Alive, or Spiral - Suiri no Kizuna-nor the characters used. Nor “God Knows”.
Summary: He doesn’t want to be anxious anymore, and he doesn’t want to bet on his own happiness only to have it snatched away by HIM. [30_sweets]
Author’s Notes: Well-no way. The last chapter. xD I kick arse. (Just kidding!) Enjoy. (And I won’t spoil anything by saying something stupid.)
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Aniki
Chapter Four: God Bless Us Two
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“Stop it, telling lies isn’t like you. Look at my eyes and let’s talk about things from now on. I’m ready. Even in a dark future, I’ll become strong and my destiny just might be changeable even thought I want to fulfill my wish. God knows everything…”
--Two years-
On that day, sky and sea were a single cerulean blue, and the stone Ayumu sat on was warm under his bottom. It was apparent that he had been sitting there for a long time; and his eyes were closed and hair messy and brown. That March he had gone to see someone, and for some reason found himself sitting on their grave. And, if he could dig that far back in his memories, the person usually really liked blue skies and sunny days.
It was early afternoon, early spring, and Ayumu wore blue jeans and a long sleeved black shirt (really, he was not expected to be in any fancy event, so why not). He shifted where he was and crossed his arms over his chest, tilting his head to the side slightly. Rutherford was so going to kill him for sitting on that man’s grave, but what could he do? He was tired, and he had no chair.
Kanon Hilbert’s grave just oh so happened to be welcoming enough for him to sit on (besides, he was sure Kanon did not mind that much).
Ayumu heaved and sighed lightly. Where was he now? Surely he did not expect Ayumu to actually sit there and wait for him…
“Who are you, and why are you sitting on my son’s grave?” A rough, but detectably female voice asked.
God held him he was so screwed.
He cracked one eye open and was met with two harsh from age poisonous, ivy green eyes-were they really as green as they were a murky brown?-a woman who seemed a bit too old to be Kanon’s mother, and short brown hair pulled up into a low ponytail. She was donned in a black suit, the skirt coming down to her knees. Ayumu found himself slightly intimidated and wondered how the woman before him, all scary and there-is-a-stick-up-my-ass-ish, was Kanon’s mother.
Was she thinking on the same Kanon? Surely she was mistaken; he hoped she was. Ayumu knew Kanon was sort of fucked up at one point, but he was actually a pretty nice guy (albeit almost killing him on a few occasions, but he always pulled the gun back or stopped hitting him, always, always, always). The younger Narumi could not pretend to be apathetic about the Blade Child; his death did do a toll on his morale as well.
Kanon had died for him; for the Blade Children’s future; for the God HE believed in, a God that was not Kiyotaka.
That at least meant something.
“I ask again,” she said as she crossed her arms over her chest, “who are you, and why are you sitting on my son’s grave?”
SO not cute, Ayumu thought as he grimaced and stood up to his full height (how he had grown and was now reaching his brother’s height), facing the woman and her almost menacing features. And that was when he remembered that guy telling him Kanon’s mother was stopping by for a visit; he had just picked the wrong date show up like usual.
He was in the right place at the wrong time.
“You’re Evangeline, right?” The taller, and younger, of the two asked as he patted his jeans down and side stepped away from Kanon’s grave, giving a lingering glance and smile at the stone marker. The light was so strong that day, but Ayumu was sure the large stone angel was shining. After all he had been through; he just learned to take it as it came to him.
Knowing his luck, that angel probably was shining; but there was just no logic, nothing to go on to prove it.
But, he let it slide. Just that once; for Kanon’s sake if anything.
The woman uncrossed her arms and stared long and hard at the boy before her. “You…you’re that Narumi boy; the one who is the Blade Children’s God?” She asked after further examination. He looks like Kiyotaka.
Ayumu grimaced when he realized exactly what she was thinking but decided not to address it. He already overcame his brother. “Yeah-so that must mean you’re Evangeline.”
“You sound disappointed,” she said with a blank expression.
“You’re not cute at all,” the Narumi said rather bluntly. “Well this is no fun.” He reached a hand up and scratched the back of his head, only glancing at the glint of silver Evangeline tried to keep hidden, or at least Ayumu thought she was trying to keep hidden, inside of her coat. “And, no matter how many times you shoot me, I can’t die…”
She looked as if she were about to snarl, but merely stared at the other brunette. “One of the perks to being a God, huh?” Evangeline asked instead.
And all Ayumu could do was let out a light laugh. “I suppose you could say that…anyway, are you just here to visit Kanon?” He asked suddenly, stuffing his hands in his pocket absent mindedly. “Logic tells me you are-but a sort of twisted version of that logic tells me that you have something to say to me. So, out with it-I think I can take whatever you throw at me.”
Two years ago, Ayumu would have never been able to say something as brave as that to anyone. Two years ago, he was weak and cowardly. Two years ago, he was being crushed by his brother’s shadow. Two years ago, he thought he was not needed by anyone or anything, and considered himself completely useless.
However, two years ago he met the Blade Children, some girl whose name he could not remember, and the Devil. He found out that he was indeed needed, and that he was not completely useless; and that, maybe even someone like him could change, if even just a little bit.
That was how he ended up in front of Kanon’s grave, facing the Blade Child’s mother head-on, brown-gray eyes glinting with some sort of determination that they did not have two years ago. He would have been damned if he let anyone else step all over him after he had those two god damn years to try and work up the courage and enthusiasm to live day to day. Sure, he still had some sort of worry, but that was all depleting with each step he took.
Ayumu was no longer afraid; he no longer feared people, his brother, or the piano (hell, he was still playing it even with only one hand).
Evangeline Hilbert was certainly not someone he was planning on fearing, even with her initially intimidating aura.
Her lips seemed to curve slightly as she spoke, a tint of amusement lining her carefree words. “The Watchers did not tell me; did he die without regrets? Did he know he was going to die?”
Was he free?
And Ayumu could not help but smile. “He had no regrets, and I’m sure he knew he was going to die. I only hope that he’s allowing himself to settle down wherever he is…I mean, I’m pretty sure there are cats in heaven, right?” Ayumu asked with a laugh.
Yeah, he’s free; freer than anyone else I know.
He thought he heard her sigh in relief, but decided not to address it (she would have probably shot him for all he knew). Finally, brown eyes were on him. “There is no heaven,” Evangeline muttered lowly.
“Logically, I’d agree with you,” The younger brunette started, “at least, two years ago I would have agreed with you. But, now I’m not so sure.”
Uncertainty was an emotion that Ayumu hated, but he learned to live with it. His future was as uncertain as even the future of the Blade Children, but he found that it was futile to dwell on it. He would live, he would learn, and he would be happy (to some extent because he certainly was not the type to be skipping through fields of pink flowers like some lovesick girl).
Still…
Evangeline watched God’s face play over with happiness several times before she opened her mouth to say something to him, or rather ask him something, but was cut off abruptly by a rather annoyingly familiar voice calling out to Ayumu from the distance; or had it gotten a little bit deeper the passed two years?
“Ayumu, Ayumu! I’m here!” It yelled.
The two looked over to see a certain green-haired minx with a, Ayumu grimaced, fucking sucker permanently attached to his lips as he ran over to them clad in black jeans, a dark red shirt, and a light brown jacket. He was waving his long arms, long arms to wrap securely around Ayumu’s waist, a large grin plastered on his face.
Oh no, he was not dead; far from it (thanks to Ayumu’s quick thinking and desperation).
“Isn’t that…” Evangeline began before she snarled and grunted, a hand coming up to wipe at her face.
Ayumu showed the same motion and irritation at the other male’s arrival. “Yeah, that’s him…Hizumi, don’t trip over that!” He yelled as he watched his other take off into a sprint, dodging several vases of incense and flowers to make his way over to the two figures.
As soon as Hizumi reached Ayumu he reached out and grabbed the shorter male by the shoulders, hugging him tightly. “I am so, so sorry I’m late! The train wasn’t going fast enough, and then the doctors were nagging me, and it was SO annoying!” He complained from behind his sucker, which Ayumu noticed with a twitch was cherry flavored.
The woman watched the interaction between the two men in front of Kanon’s grave as Ayumu began to lecture Hizumi about the importance of being on time, not giving the doctors too much trouble, and not eating things that could make him fat. The other retorted with several words of his own, saying something about “it’s too small! I won’t get fat!”, and then there was a silence that concluded the argument.
She was pretty sure she could hear Kanon laughing at them. And she noticed that Ayumu and Hizumi might have heard it as well for they had grinned (Ayumu had smiled while Hizumi let out a bark of laughter), officially ending their argument. Evangeline wondered vaguely how the two “divine beings” had reduced themselves to such “normal” standards, but did not spend long pondering on her thoughts for she was being looked at by the Devil.
“What?” She asked, obviously irritated again.
Hizumi pouted but said nothing. He had nothing to say to her, nothing at all. No apologies, no thank yous, nothing (he was not sorry for killing Kanon-not sorry to his mother maybe, but definitely sorry to the other Blade Children, and maybe there was some sort of apology needed from him in order to break the ice). A prominent whack upside his head brought him back to reality, and he found himself yelping and looking at Ayumu with big, gold, puppy dog eyes, brimming to the edges with tears.
“What was that for?!”
“You were thinking too hard. I had to stop you before your head exploded,” Ayumu concluded.
The mint-haired male twitched. “Why, I ought to…”
“Now apologize to her,” the brunette said in a bored tone, albeit the serious expression crossing his tan features.
There was a pout again, and Ayumu swore Hizumi looked like he represented a puppy who just got beat (then again he too the other’s masochism to heart and concluded that the Devil might enjoy being beat, but quickly brushed off the subject in favor of not embarrassing him). Hizumi eventually looked back at Evangeline and cast a look to the ground, muttering a quick apology and getting whacked again.
“Like you mean it!”
“Okay! Okay! Geez! Abusive much!?” Hizumi asked as he gripped his only slightly, and not to mention pleasantly tingling, head. He looked at Evangeline, and mustered a completely honest and sincere look that almost had Evangeline weak in the knees. “I’m sorry.”
Ayumu nodded his approval and looked back at Kanon’s grave. “Hey, we’re leaving now Kanon! I’ll bring you a plush tomorrow, all right?” He looked back at Evangeline after saying what he needed to say and bowed. “It was nice to meet you, Evangeline. But, we have to go now. Apparently I’m supposed to play some song that Hizumi likes…”
Hizumi yipped and turned on his heel, running ahead and yelling for Ayumu to hurry.
Kanon’s mother shook her head. “He hasn’t grown a bit,” she muttered to herself.
“Technically, he has grown and scales three inches taller than me, but other than that yeah. He’s still a little kid at heart. But he’s allowed to be like that,” Ayumu said quickly, beginning to follow the Devil to his imminent death at the piano, playing “God Knows”.
“You…you’re spoiling him.”
“Yeah, pretty much-have been for two years now. I just wish he’d eat healthier!” The younger complained before stopping and looking back at Evangeline with a radiant smile. “Kanon was raised to kill, but you know what? He turned out just fine. So, thank you for loving Kanon.”
Evangeline stared in apparent shock as the Narumi ran to catch up with his counterpart, laughing when Hizumi almost tripped over a vase of incense. It was absurd; why was he thanking her for loving her son? It was not adding up, nothing was adding up; why were the two clones still alive? Why was Ayumu Narumi thanking her?
She touched her cheek and felt something warm and wet.
Why was she crying?
She suddenly remembered what she came for.
--
“Hey, Ayumu,” Hizumi began as he and his lover exited the cemetery and entered the streets. He walked backwards, putting his arms behind his head, seeming to be thinking once again. “Why DID you thank her anyway? Isn’t it a mother’s duty to love her son-or something like that?”
Ayumu merely shook his head. “Parents can choose whether or not they love their children. Look at my parents, for example; they loved Kiyotaka when he was a pianist, and became apathetic to both him and me when he gave it all up to become a detective. But her,” he stopped and smiled, “I could tell she really loved Kanon, despite her initial attitude and all. I knew she wasn’t such a bad person.”
Gold eyes blinked and a head was cocked to the side before those same long arms came out and wrapped around Ayumu’s shoulders once again, bringing him close in a hug. He prodded at the sucker in his mouth with his tongue a few times before he laughed. “And you saw right through her act, love.”
The brunette shrugged indifferently. “I don’t know. I guess I thought it was kind-of cute,” he said finally, walking out of the embrace in favor of crossing the street.
And Hizumi stood there and gaped at his lover’s back. “Wait-cute?! Ayumu, are you blind or something?!” He cried as he ran after the other male, reaching out and taking his hand. “Hey, that’s not fair! Aren’t I cute enough for you?!”
“Hm,” Ayumu hummed in thought. “I guess you are.”
“That is too cruel, Ayumu, too cruel…I’m going to tell Eyes on you when we get within range of a phone,” the mint-haired individual said with a pout, leaning to the side to kiss Ayumu’s cheek lightly as the Narumi rolled his eyes and said something along the lines of, “Oh yeah…Rutherford is a totally scary demon.” He laughed lightly when a light pink color tinted the other’s cheeks, bringing up their joined hands to whisper a kiss across the back of Ayumu’s hand, somehow maneuvering the sucker to do so.
“But I love you anyway,” Hizumi said with a smile.
Ayumu stopped, suddenly feeling something warm at his back, shining on him. He looked up into the sky and stared for a minute, watching a bird flying. For just a moment, he could have sworn that they sky was smiling at him too...so he smiled back before looking at Hizumi. "Let's go and play your song."
The devil smiled brightly and nodded. "Let's do that!"
“I’ll follow you no matter how bitter it is, even within the darkness of the world. Surely, you’re shining. I’ll overcome the limit of the future so that my soul won’t be destroyed due to my weaknesses. My way will overlap. Now, God bless us two…”
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