Backdraft [X1999 S/S]
Written: 4/01/2003
Series: X1999
Pairing: S/S
Well, I finally got this written.. though it has ended up vastly different than the plot that first spawned it. But first a couple thanks, one to Xandra for bringing the topic up and giving the X muse the idea in the first place, two to Kamitra for her little pep-talk\lecture on why I write and what I can do to improve upon it ^^ , and three to Kristin Olson for her summary/translation of the Rainbow Bridge scene in X 16.
Of course the last is one of the reasons for the fact that this one-shot turned from a shot exploratory piece into a full-fledged one-shot ficy. The other reasons happen to be the songs in my playlist >.> (I blame Skuld for ever bringing Evanescence's 'Even in Death' to my attention. It hasn't left me alone since..)
Basically they were Sarah McLachlan's 'Do what you have to do' and 'In the arms of an Angel' along with Evanescence's 'Even in Death' and lastly, Tea Party's 'Emerald'. I really didn't expect this to end the way it did, but after I shifted into the AUish part of the ficy you could say I lost control and the X angst muse took over my keyboard >.>;;
Pairings obviously are Seishirou x Subaru, with spoilers (sorta) for X 16 and character death, possible tissue alert if angst makes you cry, as it almost made me do so while finishing it ^^;;
Title was set before the story changed into what it is now, and if I can think of something more fitting I'll change it.
Backdraft
By Miri
A slim figure dressed in white stood alone at the end of a still and empty bridge, without a sound he lit a cigarette and silently drew on it seeming to be waiting for something or someone.
Within moments of releasing a breath of smoke another hand came to rest beneath the one holding the cigarette, cradling the smaller hand almost it would seem.
A single emerald eye glanced down at the hand briefly before Subaru turned his head slightly to look back at the man who stood behind him as if to confirm the other’s identity before looking back at the joined hands.
“The ash is going to fall on your hand.”
A brief soft amused sound followed the quiet statement. “And you're worried about that?” A pause. “As kind as ever, aren't you?”
The emerald eye flickered away from the hands towards the face of the other man. “No,” Another brief pause. “I’ve changed.” Subaru stepped away from Seishirou, turning as he did to face him. “You changed me.”
A small silence descends between the two briefly before it’s broken once more, by Subaru’s quiet words. “Although I suppose it makes no difference to you at all.”
Another small silence envelops the two men as they watch each other unmoving, Seishirou’s hand still lightly holding Subaru’s hand. The two men looking like mirror images almost.
The stillness breaks as Seishirou reaches up with his other hand to remove the cigarette from Subaru’s fingers ignoring the fact that the hand now holding the burning cigarette is stained and dripping with bright carmine blood. Releasing Subaru’s hand as he brings the cigarette to his lips he pays little attention to the almost startled look Subaru gives the bloody hand, the shocked expression quickly turning to one of anger as he watches the older man.
“...You've just killed someone here, haven't you.”
Seishirou silently removes the cigarette from his lips with his clean hand as he responds, his tone casual as if they were merely discussing the weather instead of someone’s death. “Well, I am the Sakurazukamori.”
A rumble of thunder rolls through the sky a few moments later as Subaru looks down briefly before looking back up at the older man as the sky is lit up by a flash of lighting arching downwards towards the bridge and the two standing on it.
Reaching within his coat he withdraws a handful of ofuda and flings them outwards away from him as he launches a sudden attack towards Seishirou, who reacts by throwing out five ebon ofuda to form a reverse star-shaped shield in front of him to block the attack.
Unfazed, Subaru launches a second attack causing small explosions to race towards Seishirou forcing him to leap up out of harms way to perch upon one of the bridge’s supports. Smoke rising around his dark clad frame as the wind whips the tails of his coat around him, causing him to look like a twisted vision of a fallen angel or like the bird of prey that is represented by his shikigami.
Subaru watching him from below moves from attack to defense just as suddenly as he began this fight, folding his hands together and summoning the star-shaped Kekkai to surround the bridge.
From his perch, Seishirou pulls out two handfuls of ebon ofuda, fanning them out as he crosses his arms over his chest. A very brief pause falls before the arms are uncrossed, the ofuda flying out to land out around the younger man still standing on the bridge below forming a inverse star briefly before causing a violent explosion and collapsing the span of bridge.
Another arc of lighting strikes from the sky, the thunder blending in with the sound of the pieces of falling pavement and steel hitting the water with a violent force causing the water to fly up around the remaining halves of the bridge, steam fogging the area for the moment as Subaru leaps up onto a piece of broken pavement sticking up into the sky, the bandage around his face coming undone.
As the fog clears Subaru turns back to the attack once more, throwing another wave of ivory ofuda towards Seishirou, who dodges it, leaping from his perch into the air.
Seeing this, Subaru changes the direction of the attack to follow the older man’s movement only to have it blocked by both shield and the sudden swing of an ebony trench coat.
Both men land on the ruins of the pavement below, the darker one silently sliding back into the coat that was used to block the previous attack, the falling ruined ofuda suddenly turning into a rain of sakura as Seishirou casually lifts one hand up while Subaru stands below watching.
Darkness descends over both men as the sakura gather suddenly and fly towards the younger man forming into hard vines that snake around Subaru’s legs, arms and chest holding him suspended in the air. The single emerald eye closes as fingers work a single white ofuda from his sleeve, holding it between two fingers as he slides his thumb up against its edge causing the paper to slice it open and blood to run down it and over his hand as the illusion shatters in a explosion of blackened sakura petals, leaving him standing upon the ruined bridge once again, looking up at Seishirou.
As the last of the illusionary petals fade away, a silence once again briefly descends over the battlefield, broken moments later by Subaru’s voice, speaking quietly. “Even without an illusion like that, I've been caught by the sakura.” The unraveling bandages whip around his head and shoulders as he continues. “Ever since that day.”
Silently Seishirou seems to study the slender figure below before reaching up to remove his sunglasses, folding them as he speaks. “The Kamui of the Dragons of Earth was saying that no one but me can fulfill your true wish.” He watches silently as Subaru lifts a hand to remove the remainder of the bandages around his right eye, the strip of fabric fluttering towards him as it’s freed.
Reaching out to grasp it in one hand, his eyes close quietly for a brief moment before he speaks again. “But it seems that wish is different from what I had thought.” Opening his eyes as he released the bandage he smiled as he continued. “Isn't your wish to kill me?”
Looking up at Seishirou, both eyes now visible, the right a milky white in contrast to the emerald of the left. Subaru’s voice is firm and calm as he responds with a single word.
“No.”
Once again silence takes over the ruined battlefield, once more the two figures look like mirroring figures, the only contrast being the colors the two wear. Black and White.
Without warning the silence of the scene is shattered violently as both the men move into attacking positions, ofuda of contrasting colors surround both as they build up their attacks, both striking at nearly the same time, both leaping from the place that their respective attacks would strike, into the air.
One emerald eye locked silently with one honey brown eye for one moment before closing briefly as a white clad arm shot out towards the older man in a abrupt attack, the hand rushing towards the dark clad chest with the intent to pierce and kill.
Lighting strikes and thunder rumbles through the sky unheard as the massive explosion rips through the night blocking the bridge from any view one might have had of it, destroying the majority of the bridge.
As the smoke clears, one figure is standing, the other slumped against the standing figure, a hand protruding from the white clad back, scarlet liquid pouring down over the white fabric staining it bright red where it soaks into it.
A single golden eye stares almost as blindly as its milky white mate straight ahead in silent shock at the events that just took place without any forewarning. Almost mechanically the eye moves down to witness the hand that remains sticking out of the back of the younger man clinging to his shoulders.
Still in startled shock, he withdraws the bloody hand from Subaru’s chest, catching him by the arms as he falls down towards the ground, and also ending up on his knees as well as he takes on all of the slight weight of the other man’s body, holding it against his chest despite the blood that continues to pour from the fist sized hole in it. His voice, for once holding something akin to a trace of emotion in it for once breaks the dead silence that has over taken the ruined bridge.
“How?”
Slowly with seemingly great effort, Subaru manages to look up at him, a faint smile on his lips for once as he speaks softly. “I found...out...about the...spell...Hokuto cast.” He leaned against Seishirou’s chest, breathing labored as he continued. “After... I...realized...what it...meant...”
A slim hand slowly moves to rest against Seishirou’s chest as Subaru closed his eyes for the moment, the effort of speaking wearing him down. “...I...realized...that the...only way...I could...gain...my true...Wish...was to...invoke it...by attempting...to kill...you.”
For once speechless, Seishirou stares down at Subaru, watching as the other slowly opened his eyes again the smile a little more pronounced now as the hand resting against him tightens around his suit jacket, the younger man using the leverage to pull himself up face to face with the older man so that their lips meet briefly as Subaru speaks once more softer this time against them. “I...never...truly...wanted to...kill you.”
His head leans down against Seishirou’s shoulder, resting against it for a moment before lifting again to look at him, his fingers slowly loosening their grip as he speaks once more. “Sei..shir..ou..san.......I.....”
The last remainder of his strength runs out then causing him to fall against the older man’s chest his lips brushing against Seishirou’s temple still speaking faintly as a another clash of thunder and lighting cross the sky.
The slender frame goes completely limp against the older man as the last rumbles of the thunder fade away, the ebon clad arms moving to wrap around the smaller frame tightly drawing it close against him. “...Subaru-kun...”
Seishirou held the body closer against him as the full impact of what had happened struck and the Kekkai began fading from around them, his eyes closed as he rested his head against Subaru’s neck and shoulder, tears unknowingly leaking from his closed eyes to soak into the dark fabric of the t-shirt Subaru was wearing.
He heard shouting moments later but ignored it, his mind going back over the battle and trying to pinpoint where things went wrong, twisted out of his control and resulted thusly. He was supposed to have been the one who died today, not his Subaru-kun.
The sound of screaming steel and the cracking of pavement went unobserved by him, he didn’t release the slight form he held still tight against him despite the desperate pleading he felt coming from the link from the tree back safely resting within Ueno park.
Widening cracks raced towards their joined forms as the bridge began to fall apart and crash down into the bay below. His last thought as he felt the ground drop beneath them was directed towards the one still against him as they both fell towards the dark waters below. ‘You won, Subaru-kun, wait for me.’
Series: X1999
Pairing: S/S
Well, I finally got this written.. though it has ended up vastly different than the plot that first spawned it. But first a couple thanks, one to Xandra for bringing the topic up and giving the X muse the idea in the first place, two to Kamitra for her little pep-talk\lecture on why I write and what I can do to improve upon it ^^ , and three to Kristin Olson for her summary/translation of the Rainbow Bridge scene in X 16.
Of course the last is one of the reasons for the fact that this one-shot turned from a shot exploratory piece into a full-fledged one-shot ficy. The other reasons happen to be the songs in my playlist >.> (I blame Skuld for ever bringing Evanescence's 'Even in Death' to my attention. It hasn't left me alone since..)
Basically they were Sarah McLachlan's 'Do what you have to do' and 'In the arms of an Angel' along with Evanescence's 'Even in Death' and lastly, Tea Party's 'Emerald'. I really didn't expect this to end the way it did, but after I shifted into the AUish part of the ficy you could say I lost control and the X angst muse took over my keyboard >.>;;
Pairings obviously are Seishirou x Subaru, with spoilers (sorta) for X 16 and character death, possible tissue alert if angst makes you cry, as it almost made me do so while finishing it ^^;;
Title was set before the story changed into what it is now, and if I can think of something more fitting I'll change it.
Backdraft
By Miri
A slim figure dressed in white stood alone at the end of a still and empty bridge, without a sound he lit a cigarette and silently drew on it seeming to be waiting for something or someone.
Within moments of releasing a breath of smoke another hand came to rest beneath the one holding the cigarette, cradling the smaller hand almost it would seem.
A single emerald eye glanced down at the hand briefly before Subaru turned his head slightly to look back at the man who stood behind him as if to confirm the other’s identity before looking back at the joined hands.
“The ash is going to fall on your hand.”
A brief soft amused sound followed the quiet statement. “And you're worried about that?” A pause. “As kind as ever, aren't you?”
The emerald eye flickered away from the hands towards the face of the other man. “No,” Another brief pause. “I’ve changed.” Subaru stepped away from Seishirou, turning as he did to face him. “You changed me.”
A small silence descends between the two briefly before it’s broken once more, by Subaru’s quiet words. “Although I suppose it makes no difference to you at all.”
Another small silence envelops the two men as they watch each other unmoving, Seishirou’s hand still lightly holding Subaru’s hand. The two men looking like mirror images almost.
The stillness breaks as Seishirou reaches up with his other hand to remove the cigarette from Subaru’s fingers ignoring the fact that the hand now holding the burning cigarette is stained and dripping with bright carmine blood. Releasing Subaru’s hand as he brings the cigarette to his lips he pays little attention to the almost startled look Subaru gives the bloody hand, the shocked expression quickly turning to one of anger as he watches the older man.
“...You've just killed someone here, haven't you.”
Seishirou silently removes the cigarette from his lips with his clean hand as he responds, his tone casual as if they were merely discussing the weather instead of someone’s death. “Well, I am the Sakurazukamori.”
A rumble of thunder rolls through the sky a few moments later as Subaru looks down briefly before looking back up at the older man as the sky is lit up by a flash of lighting arching downwards towards the bridge and the two standing on it.
Reaching within his coat he withdraws a handful of ofuda and flings them outwards away from him as he launches a sudden attack towards Seishirou, who reacts by throwing out five ebon ofuda to form a reverse star-shaped shield in front of him to block the attack.
Unfazed, Subaru launches a second attack causing small explosions to race towards Seishirou forcing him to leap up out of harms way to perch upon one of the bridge’s supports. Smoke rising around his dark clad frame as the wind whips the tails of his coat around him, causing him to look like a twisted vision of a fallen angel or like the bird of prey that is represented by his shikigami.
Subaru watching him from below moves from attack to defense just as suddenly as he began this fight, folding his hands together and summoning the star-shaped Kekkai to surround the bridge.
From his perch, Seishirou pulls out two handfuls of ebon ofuda, fanning them out as he crosses his arms over his chest. A very brief pause falls before the arms are uncrossed, the ofuda flying out to land out around the younger man still standing on the bridge below forming a inverse star briefly before causing a violent explosion and collapsing the span of bridge.
Another arc of lighting strikes from the sky, the thunder blending in with the sound of the pieces of falling pavement and steel hitting the water with a violent force causing the water to fly up around the remaining halves of the bridge, steam fogging the area for the moment as Subaru leaps up onto a piece of broken pavement sticking up into the sky, the bandage around his face coming undone.
As the fog clears Subaru turns back to the attack once more, throwing another wave of ivory ofuda towards Seishirou, who dodges it, leaping from his perch into the air.
Seeing this, Subaru changes the direction of the attack to follow the older man’s movement only to have it blocked by both shield and the sudden swing of an ebony trench coat.
Both men land on the ruins of the pavement below, the darker one silently sliding back into the coat that was used to block the previous attack, the falling ruined ofuda suddenly turning into a rain of sakura as Seishirou casually lifts one hand up while Subaru stands below watching.
Darkness descends over both men as the sakura gather suddenly and fly towards the younger man forming into hard vines that snake around Subaru’s legs, arms and chest holding him suspended in the air. The single emerald eye closes as fingers work a single white ofuda from his sleeve, holding it between two fingers as he slides his thumb up against its edge causing the paper to slice it open and blood to run down it and over his hand as the illusion shatters in a explosion of blackened sakura petals, leaving him standing upon the ruined bridge once again, looking up at Seishirou.
As the last of the illusionary petals fade away, a silence once again briefly descends over the battlefield, broken moments later by Subaru’s voice, speaking quietly. “Even without an illusion like that, I've been caught by the sakura.” The unraveling bandages whip around his head and shoulders as he continues. “Ever since that day.”
Silently Seishirou seems to study the slender figure below before reaching up to remove his sunglasses, folding them as he speaks. “The Kamui of the Dragons of Earth was saying that no one but me can fulfill your true wish.” He watches silently as Subaru lifts a hand to remove the remainder of the bandages around his right eye, the strip of fabric fluttering towards him as it’s freed.
Reaching out to grasp it in one hand, his eyes close quietly for a brief moment before he speaks again. “But it seems that wish is different from what I had thought.” Opening his eyes as he released the bandage he smiled as he continued. “Isn't your wish to kill me?”
Looking up at Seishirou, both eyes now visible, the right a milky white in contrast to the emerald of the left. Subaru’s voice is firm and calm as he responds with a single word.
“No.”
Once again silence takes over the ruined battlefield, once more the two figures look like mirroring figures, the only contrast being the colors the two wear. Black and White.
Without warning the silence of the scene is shattered violently as both the men move into attacking positions, ofuda of contrasting colors surround both as they build up their attacks, both striking at nearly the same time, both leaping from the place that their respective attacks would strike, into the air.
One emerald eye locked silently with one honey brown eye for one moment before closing briefly as a white clad arm shot out towards the older man in a abrupt attack, the hand rushing towards the dark clad chest with the intent to pierce and kill.
Lighting strikes and thunder rumbles through the sky unheard as the massive explosion rips through the night blocking the bridge from any view one might have had of it, destroying the majority of the bridge.
As the smoke clears, one figure is standing, the other slumped against the standing figure, a hand protruding from the white clad back, scarlet liquid pouring down over the white fabric staining it bright red where it soaks into it.
A single golden eye stares almost as blindly as its milky white mate straight ahead in silent shock at the events that just took place without any forewarning. Almost mechanically the eye moves down to witness the hand that remains sticking out of the back of the younger man clinging to his shoulders.
Still in startled shock, he withdraws the bloody hand from Subaru’s chest, catching him by the arms as he falls down towards the ground, and also ending up on his knees as well as he takes on all of the slight weight of the other man’s body, holding it against his chest despite the blood that continues to pour from the fist sized hole in it. His voice, for once holding something akin to a trace of emotion in it for once breaks the dead silence that has over taken the ruined bridge.
“How?”
Slowly with seemingly great effort, Subaru manages to look up at him, a faint smile on his lips for once as he speaks softly. “I found...out...about the...spell...Hokuto cast.” He leaned against Seishirou’s chest, breathing labored as he continued. “After... I...realized...what it...meant...”
A slim hand slowly moves to rest against Seishirou’s chest as Subaru closed his eyes for the moment, the effort of speaking wearing him down. “...I...realized...that the...only way...I could...gain...my true...Wish...was to...invoke it...by attempting...to kill...you.”
For once speechless, Seishirou stares down at Subaru, watching as the other slowly opened his eyes again the smile a little more pronounced now as the hand resting against him tightens around his suit jacket, the younger man using the leverage to pull himself up face to face with the older man so that their lips meet briefly as Subaru speaks once more softer this time against them. “I...never...truly...wanted to...kill you.”
His head leans down against Seishirou’s shoulder, resting against it for a moment before lifting again to look at him, his fingers slowly loosening their grip as he speaks once more. “Sei..shir..ou..san.......I.....”
The last remainder of his strength runs out then causing him to fall against the older man’s chest his lips brushing against Seishirou’s temple still speaking faintly as a another clash of thunder and lighting cross the sky.
The slender frame goes completely limp against the older man as the last rumbles of the thunder fade away, the ebon clad arms moving to wrap around the smaller frame tightly drawing it close against him. “...Subaru-kun...”
Seishirou held the body closer against him as the full impact of what had happened struck and the Kekkai began fading from around them, his eyes closed as he rested his head against Subaru’s neck and shoulder, tears unknowingly leaking from his closed eyes to soak into the dark fabric of the t-shirt Subaru was wearing.
He heard shouting moments later but ignored it, his mind going back over the battle and trying to pinpoint where things went wrong, twisted out of his control and resulted thusly. He was supposed to have been the one who died today, not his Subaru-kun.
The sound of screaming steel and the cracking of pavement went unobserved by him, he didn’t release the slight form he held still tight against him despite the desperate pleading he felt coming from the link from the tree back safely resting within Ueno park.
Widening cracks raced towards their joined forms as the bridge began to fall apart and crash down into the bay below. His last thought as he felt the ground drop beneath them was directed towards the one still against him as they both fell towards the dark waters below. ‘You won, Subaru-kun, wait for me.’