#13: excessive chain (Knots, by Amm)
Title: Knots
Author: Amm (SoulSeeker)
Pairing: Asazuki Kousuke/Takeuchi Rio
Fandom: Spiral: Suiri no Kizuna
Theme: #13-excessive chain
Rating: For Everyone (PG)
Disclaimer: I don’t own the characters of Spiral. I am just playing ‘Barbie’ with them, cause god knows they’re a lot more fun than real Barbies.
Summary: Around Kousuke’s neck was…well, a necklace…
The big one-zero. Hehe.
She’d never noticed it before; not until that day, though he assured her that he always had it.
The necklace, made of rope, that wrapped around Kousuke’s neck. It had three knots in it-she had counted them-and when she first saw it, it was perched in his mouth, his lips and teeth clamped firmly over it. His lips were suctioned together, holding it in place, and if it had been a habit to bite on it, he had kept it a secret; and did it well.
“What’s that?” Rio asked him finally.
They had followed their normal daily routine; after her last class period, she met Kousuke under the huge cherry blossom tree in front of Tsukiomi Academy. They would walk, each getting an ice cream bar should they happen to see the ice cream man, or if they felt like hiking their way over to the Haagen-Dazs ice cream shop. Sometimes Ryoko would join them, if she wasn’t busy.
Not that day, though.
She was out sick, and the two of them agreed to go see her at her house, getting her an ice cream sandwich on the way. Comfort food, they agreed, was always good, but the sandwich was they only thing they had bought. They themselves didn’t actually feel like having any ice cream, though they hoped Ryoko would appreciate it.
“Kousuke?” Rio prodded again. This time she finally got a response.
The redhead released the knotted rope necklace from his mouth and turned to her, seeing curiosity in her dark gray eyes. “Hmm?”
“What’s that?” she repeated, pointing to the necklace.
Kousuke narrowed his eyes as he grabbed it, holding it up a little as his dark green eyes gazed over her. “This?” the teen asked with a slight tone. “What’s it look like? It’s a necklace.” He let it go, letting it fall back against his chest, though he barely felt it because it was so light.
Rio rolled her eyes. “I knew that, smart-ass,” she glared. “I was just wondering where it came from. I’ve never seen you wear it before.” She traced the rope with her fingers, feeling the light fuzz against her skin. “Looks like an old shoelace.”
“It is,” Kousuke confirmed. “I took it out of one of my old shoes that don’t fit anymore and made it into a necklace.”
She looked perplexed. “Why?” she asked. “And what are the knots for?”
Kousuke finally took off the necklace and handed it to her. “Here. You can see it,” he told her. “There are three knots in it.” Though the rope was black, you could still see the part of it that had been in his mouth, and the knots.
Rio nodded, looking at it. “I can count,” she reminded him. “But what’re they for?”
A slight pause.
“People,” he answered vaguely as they made the final turn onto Ryoko’s street. They sped up slightly, not wanting the ice cream sandwich to melt before they even got there. It wasn’t quite summer yet, but it was hot enough.
“People?” Rio repeated, wanting clarification.
“Yeah,” Kousuke replied. She could tell he was being hesitant, though she wasn’t quite sure why. “People I’ve lost.”
Rio’s heart sank a little, though she couldn’t help but admire the thing. So simplistic, and though the idea of it was slightly morbid…it was beautiful.
“I see…” she replied, softly. Her lips barely came apart as she spoke; there was an air of awkwardness between them, as she began to realize she wasn’t exactly sure what to say, and her mind raced with questions. Should she ask them, though? She scrambled for her next words…something sympathetic? Something funny, to lighten the mood? It was hard to decide, but she had to say something.
“Three doesn’t seem like that big of a number…but, when you put it this way…”
“I know,” Kousuke sighed. He didn’t want her to feel obliged to show any sympathy, and so he wanted to get past the subject quickly as possible. Of course, it didn’t work too terribly well; things between them fell library silent, and though she didn’t ask it (probably out of courtesy), he knew she was wondering who the three people were. He hadn’t said much about his past, and he knew that this only raised more questions. Finally though, he spoke again.
“I have a feeling this necklace is going to have to get longer, too. By a lot, or else there won’t be enough room for all the knots I’ll need…”
Rio nodded; she understood well. She handed him back the necklace with a sigh…they could see Ryoko’s house now. “Oh, the joys of being a Blade Child,” she cooed sarcastically with a forced giggle.
Kousuke rolled his eyes with a smirk. Even though he was a Blade Child, his friends-like little Rio-who shared the same fate somehow made life a little more bearable. Maybe it was just knowing that there were people world who knew how he felt; people like the very girl who was standing right next to him.
“Yeah,” he agreed. “And by the way…”
He chuckled this time, and it wasn’t forced. She could tell. She raised an eyebrow suspiciously, that curiosity shining in her eyes yet again. “What?”
Shaking his head, Kousuke’s chuckle got a little harder, and you could almost call it a laugh. “We walked right past Ryoko’s house,” he informed her. Rio blinked, looking behind them and began to laugh as well, her head hanging low, probably in slight embarrassment. She hadn’t realized it either.
“Let’s get back there before you need another knot,” she said in between chuckles.
Kousuke nodded, and though it was hardly something to joke about, he couldn’t help but laugh a little too. “Yeah. That’s about the last thing I want to think about right now,” he assured her with a snicker.
At that point, he finally put the necklace back around his neck where it belonged. The mood between them had lightened considerably as they began to backtrack their way to Ryoko’s house, and for just a second-just one second-they had no worries in the world.
A/N: And finally, we have number ten. Hehe. My boyfriend Mikee is actually the one who spurned this one, because he has a necklace just like Kousuke’s, and I loved the idea of it so much I thought it’d make a lovely story. It turned out pretty well, IMHO. Hope you guys liked it.
Also posted to 30 Kisses: Kousuke and Rio and ammchan, my personal journal.
Author: Amm (SoulSeeker)
Pairing: Asazuki Kousuke/Takeuchi Rio
Fandom: Spiral: Suiri no Kizuna
Theme: #13-excessive chain
Rating: For Everyone (PG)
Disclaimer: I don’t own the characters of Spiral. I am just playing ‘Barbie’ with them, cause god knows they’re a lot more fun than real Barbies.
Summary: Around Kousuke’s neck was…well, a necklace…
The big one-zero. Hehe.
She’d never noticed it before; not until that day, though he assured her that he always had it.
The necklace, made of rope, that wrapped around Kousuke’s neck. It had three knots in it-she had counted them-and when she first saw it, it was perched in his mouth, his lips and teeth clamped firmly over it. His lips were suctioned together, holding it in place, and if it had been a habit to bite on it, he had kept it a secret; and did it well.
“What’s that?” Rio asked him finally.
They had followed their normal daily routine; after her last class period, she met Kousuke under the huge cherry blossom tree in front of Tsukiomi Academy. They would walk, each getting an ice cream bar should they happen to see the ice cream man, or if they felt like hiking their way over to the Haagen-Dazs ice cream shop. Sometimes Ryoko would join them, if she wasn’t busy.
Not that day, though.
She was out sick, and the two of them agreed to go see her at her house, getting her an ice cream sandwich on the way. Comfort food, they agreed, was always good, but the sandwich was they only thing they had bought. They themselves didn’t actually feel like having any ice cream, though they hoped Ryoko would appreciate it.
“Kousuke?” Rio prodded again. This time she finally got a response.
The redhead released the knotted rope necklace from his mouth and turned to her, seeing curiosity in her dark gray eyes. “Hmm?”
“What’s that?” she repeated, pointing to the necklace.
Kousuke narrowed his eyes as he grabbed it, holding it up a little as his dark green eyes gazed over her. “This?” the teen asked with a slight tone. “What’s it look like? It’s a necklace.” He let it go, letting it fall back against his chest, though he barely felt it because it was so light.
Rio rolled her eyes. “I knew that, smart-ass,” she glared. “I was just wondering where it came from. I’ve never seen you wear it before.” She traced the rope with her fingers, feeling the light fuzz against her skin. “Looks like an old shoelace.”
“It is,” Kousuke confirmed. “I took it out of one of my old shoes that don’t fit anymore and made it into a necklace.”
She looked perplexed. “Why?” she asked. “And what are the knots for?”
Kousuke finally took off the necklace and handed it to her. “Here. You can see it,” he told her. “There are three knots in it.” Though the rope was black, you could still see the part of it that had been in his mouth, and the knots.
Rio nodded, looking at it. “I can count,” she reminded him. “But what’re they for?”
A slight pause.
“People,” he answered vaguely as they made the final turn onto Ryoko’s street. They sped up slightly, not wanting the ice cream sandwich to melt before they even got there. It wasn’t quite summer yet, but it was hot enough.
“People?” Rio repeated, wanting clarification.
“Yeah,” Kousuke replied. She could tell he was being hesitant, though she wasn’t quite sure why. “People I’ve lost.”
Rio’s heart sank a little, though she couldn’t help but admire the thing. So simplistic, and though the idea of it was slightly morbid…it was beautiful.
“I see…” she replied, softly. Her lips barely came apart as she spoke; there was an air of awkwardness between them, as she began to realize she wasn’t exactly sure what to say, and her mind raced with questions. Should she ask them, though? She scrambled for her next words…something sympathetic? Something funny, to lighten the mood? It was hard to decide, but she had to say something.
“Three doesn’t seem like that big of a number…but, when you put it this way…”
“I know,” Kousuke sighed. He didn’t want her to feel obliged to show any sympathy, and so he wanted to get past the subject quickly as possible. Of course, it didn’t work too terribly well; things between them fell library silent, and though she didn’t ask it (probably out of courtesy), he knew she was wondering who the three people were. He hadn’t said much about his past, and he knew that this only raised more questions. Finally though, he spoke again.
“I have a feeling this necklace is going to have to get longer, too. By a lot, or else there won’t be enough room for all the knots I’ll need…”
Rio nodded; she understood well. She handed him back the necklace with a sigh…they could see Ryoko’s house now. “Oh, the joys of being a Blade Child,” she cooed sarcastically with a forced giggle.
Kousuke rolled his eyes with a smirk. Even though he was a Blade Child, his friends-like little Rio-who shared the same fate somehow made life a little more bearable. Maybe it was just knowing that there were people world who knew how he felt; people like the very girl who was standing right next to him.
“Yeah,” he agreed. “And by the way…”
He chuckled this time, and it wasn’t forced. She could tell. She raised an eyebrow suspiciously, that curiosity shining in her eyes yet again. “What?”
Shaking his head, Kousuke’s chuckle got a little harder, and you could almost call it a laugh. “We walked right past Ryoko’s house,” he informed her. Rio blinked, looking behind them and began to laugh as well, her head hanging low, probably in slight embarrassment. She hadn’t realized it either.
“Let’s get back there before you need another knot,” she said in between chuckles.
Kousuke nodded, and though it was hardly something to joke about, he couldn’t help but laugh a little too. “Yeah. That’s about the last thing I want to think about right now,” he assured her with a snicker.
At that point, he finally put the necklace back around his neck where it belonged. The mood between them had lightened considerably as they began to backtrack their way to Ryoko’s house, and for just a second-just one second-they had no worries in the world.
A/N: And finally, we have number ten. Hehe. My boyfriend Mikee is actually the one who spurned this one, because he has a necklace just like Kousuke’s, and I loved the idea of it so much I thought it’d make a lovely story. It turned out pretty well, IMHO. Hope you guys liked it.
Also posted to 30 Kisses: Kousuke and Rio and ammchan, my personal journal.