[Multichapter] The Watches Series: Apocalypse (3/??)
Title: The Watches Series: Apocalypse
Authors: tsuchi8562
Beta: andreja1989 <-- as always arigatou ♥
Pairing: SakurAiba, MatsuMiya, OhnoxOC
Genre: Fantasy, Drama, Romance
Rating: PG-13 (this chapter)
Disclaimer: No, we don't own anything... We're just Border Watch's glaziers
Summary: It looks like the end of everything they knew... Will their world collapse?
*MASTERPOST*
Masaki was sitting on the windowsill, looking at the peaceful and quiet night town through the glass. He was worried because of the situation between both Watches, not sure how it will end. Aiba was really afraid that frighteningly easy changing the riots can change into a world war. Nobody knew in which direction this all can go but if the thing which Sho had said the other day was true, nothing good awaits them.
"Can't sleep?" Sleepy voice sounded real close, startling Masaki. Exhaling the air he had in his lungs, he looked at Sakurai's face and smiled weakly.
"No... I have disturbing dreams..."
"I can make them go away, you know that. Just like I did before." The Border Watch officer smiled and closed the distance between them in few steps. The taller man nodded and let himself be pulled in tight embrace he felt safe in. How long this peace they finally had will last? Even though Sho was one of the Grays, standing in the middle, he could easily be dragged into a battle. And knowing the rage and possibilities of both Light and Dark Watches, open fight can end really bad for everyone.
"It's okay, Sho-chan. Go back to bed, I will be right there."
"I am not moving without you. Come on..." Sakurai took his boyfriend's hand and pulled it gently, but the latter shook his head.
"I need to go to the bathroom first. But I promise to give you the most juicy kiss you can imagine as soon as I get in bed." Aiba winked in his own clumsy and cute way, making the other man chuckle.
"Okay, just don't make me wait too long."
"I won't." The younger man showed one of his best smiles and as soon as the other one disappeared in the bedroom, he bit his lower lip. He looked at the clock and cursed quietly seeing the time. It was way too late to call anybody but he was aware that if he doesn't talk with the person that came on his mind, he won't be able to fall asleep peacefully. With his heart beating fast, Masaki went to the bathroom and closed the doors, praying that Sho won't hear him. He dialed the number of a woman who committed few crimes against The Treaty long time ago but later appeared to be the best vessel's specialist, having huge knowledge.
"Hello, Aiba-san?" A very awake voice greeted him on the other side of the line.
"I am really sorry to call you at this hour, Shouge-san but I have few questions which can't really wait..." Aiba talked as politely as possible. His heart beat louder and louder with each word said.
"Please, we agreed you will call me by my first name." Sachiko was smiling and it was clearly audible in her voice. "And here it's not late at all, it's just past 7:00 PM. How can I help you?"
"You're not in Tokyo?"
"No, I am in Rome, in a hotel just outside Vatican. I got called by The Border Watch. I am deepening my knowledge about the vessels. Though after the incident I got stuck in the room without any permission to go out..."
"The incident? Something happened?" Masaki got tensed and totally forgot about Sho waiting for him in bed. He thought he already knew the answer but what the woman had said shocked him.
"Remember the boy who took The Treaty from Nila? The Chinese one, what was his name... Huang Fu! Well, he was called to Vatican as well. I talked to him few times, really interesting young man. Well, anyway... Yesterday his body was found near Tiber. Somebody stabbed him over dozen times... Somebody must have surprised him, he was really well trained in Shaolin monastery... Since then all people involved in any way with The Treaty are told to stay in their rooms. Marcellus III ordered to investigate the case immediately..." Sachiko sighed and for a longer while silence fell between them. Aiba tried to process what he had just heard and the woman probably was giving him time to do so. After a while she asked politely, with smile in her voice which was most probably fake now.
"But you asked me for help... What can I do for you?"
"You already helped me, Sachiko-san... Thank you." After exchanging goodbyes Masaki hung up and sneaked in the bed, for the first time ever glad that Sho is asleep already.
One of the former vessels has been murdered in Vatican. A place where Nila was for sure as well. Everything seemed to be too complicated for a simple coincidence.
"Masaki, are you okay? Is something bothering you?" Sakurai broke the stream of his thoughts. The older man shook his head and drink a sip of already cold coffee. "Don't lie to me, I clearly see that something's wrong. I am just worried..."
"You are always worried Sho-chan. I am fine, just... I am thinking about the situation between Watches... I am afraid this can escalate quickly into something more dangerous that simple riots." Aiba put his chopsticks down and took a deep breath. Should he tell Sho everything he heard last night from Shouge?
"Masaki, please..." The older man stood up and came closer to the latter, pulling his chin up gently so he can look straight in his eyes. "You are not a member of any of the Watches, you never were. You are safe."
"It's not me I am worried about. For now it's Dark and Light, but what will happen with Border Watch soon? You don't interfere yet but what will happen when you get an order to do so?"
"Don't worry beforehand, okay?" Sho sighed and closed his eyes for a second. "I know you talked with Nila yesterday. I am not mad, but maybe you should... stop talking to her so often, at least for now?"
"I didn't talk with Nila yesterday." Masaki said quietly but firmly and got up to clean the table after breakfast he practically didn't even touch.
"Masaki, I heard you talking in night through your phone."
"I didn't talk with Nila. I... I called Sachiko to ask her a few questions." The shock on Sakurai's face gave the taller man opportunity to continue before the latter even thought about replying. "Shouge-san is in Vatican, just like Nila. She said it's because she wants to know more about the vessels from source... She told me something really awful... Remember the vessel who took over The Treaty from Nila? He is dead, somebody killed him... In Rome... Sho, something's definitely going on there, something that involves past vessels."
"It doesn't have to mean anything. Remember what Sachiko said? She is there for research. Maybe she even interviewed the boy and Nila?" Sakurai took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "The Border Watch decided not to interfere and focus on protecting the Treaty. Maybe it's not the best solution but I can't go against the top's decisions. Now, can we stop talking about it? I have this morning off and I thought we can cuddle on the couch and spend some time doing nothing. Well... Maybe a bit kissing?" The officer winked, which caused smile appear on the latter's face. It was a good idea, stop thinking about the fights and possible war and just be close to each other. They didn't have such lazy and nice mornings in ages, knowing their quite tight schedule. Masaki straddled the older man and rested his head on Sho's shoulder, closing his eyes and trying to relax, breathing in the bittersweet scent he loved so much. Even though he didn't want to, his thoughts ran to Rome, the dead boy and his friend Nila. Something was off. Shouge talked with all of them long time ago, when she was preparing her article, which years after became even more detailed. And why everybody had to fly through half of the globe to make research? All three of them were from Asia and easily could meet somewhere halfway. It was safer and cheaper... Something definitely was going on.
"Ouch!!!" Aiba shouted when he felt Sakurai pinching his butt real hard. "Why did you do that?"
"We were about to stop thinking about the Treaty, Rome and Watches and you are ignoring my questions... I wanted to talk about something really important." Sho sighed and pushed the latter off, standing up and heading to the bedroom. Masaki sat for a while, feeling guilty and then he followed his boyfriend, finding him sitting on the bed with hit arms crossed on his chest.
"I'm sorry Sho. I could think of million excuses, how worried I am but it wouldn't be enough. We were about to have few moments for ourselves and I blew it. Can you forgive me?"
"Every time I find time just to be with you, you are somewhere else with your mind. I know it's dangerous now and it can become even tougher but you could at least forget about it for fifteen minutes. I was about to tell you something really important... Masaki, I was thinking about us and..." Sakurai didn't manage to finish the sentence, since his phone rang somehow more irritatingly than ever. The Border Watch officer groaned after looking at his mobile and picked up. It was his boss who called Sho to the office. Right now Aiba was sure that there was something going on and got scared even more when Sho quickly put on his shoes and jacket and left without even a kiss goodbye.
"You still think nothing's going on?" Masaki whispered to the place where ten minutes ago his boyfriend was standing. He was fighting with an urge to call Nila, knowing how this can make the older man mad. On the other hand, Aiba had to know what was it all about. Without thinking much, he dialed Shouge's number. He waited almost a minute but nobody picked up, when finally she answered.
"H-hello?"
"Sachiko, I am sorry to call you again, at this hour... I have need to ask you something..."
"It's okay. I owe you at least that for what I wanted to do to you years ago." Shouge yawned and opened her ears on any questions the latter could have.
"Why Huang Fu was in Rome? Did you interview him?"
"Oh, no. He told me everything last time we talked, while research to my article. To be honest I don't know what why he was here... I found odd that this girl is also here; I didn't have a chance to talk with her yet though..."
"Thank you..." Masaki thought if he should ask about anything else, but nothing was coming to his mind, so instead he hung up. Aiba was aware that it's still the middle of the night in Rome, but he just had to talk with his friend. When after four trials Nila didn't answer, he got scared that something had happened. He decided to call once again and if she won't answer, he will try again, later. Masaki was about to hung up when the irritating already tone disappeared, changed to someone's breathing.
"Thank god, I thought something happened..." Aiba exhaled all the air he had in his lungs with relief. "Nila, I have few questions. I know it's late but..."
"It's wrong number." Low, male voice replied with broken English and cut the connection. Aiba frowned and checked the number to see if he didn't made any mistake but it wasn't possible. Who was that man then? Did he know Nila? Is she okay? Masaki bit his lower lip and tried to call again, but all he received was a message that the phone is whether turned off or out of range. He got really scared now. Former vessels are in Vatican, one of them dead, second missing... This couldn't be a simple coincidence, main headquarters of Border Watch whether didn't protect them as they should or was involved in those cases.
"Calm down..." Aiba scolded himself. Nila could easily got a bodyguard, who answered the annoyingly ringing phone. The guy got his job too seriously and lied to him just to get rid of possible source of threat. Masaki's head started to ache from all of this thinking and speculating that he decided to watch some silly comedy just to stop playing various scenarios in his mind. He didn't even notice when he fell asleep on the couch, fortunately without any dreams hunting him.
"Masaki..." Sakurai's soft voice and gentle hand on his shoulder woke him up. "Everything okay?"
"Y-yeah, I just took a nap... How was work?" Aiba rubbed his eyes and hit his cheeks to chase sleepiness away. "I will make something to eat..."
"I ate on the way back home." Sho sat next to his boyfriend and pulled him in tight embrace. The younger man smiled weakly and hugged the latter back, trying to swallow all the things he wanted to say about Vatican. Remembering his fail from this morning, he decided to focus on this moment and on the man he loved. The Border Watch officer seemed to be tensed and absentminded, so this time the taller one pinched the other's side.
"Now you are spacing out..."
"I'm sorry..." Sakurai sighed and pulled his boyfriend closer, making Masaki straddle him. "I had a weird conversation with my boss... About you..."
"About me?" Aiba frowned, trying to understand anything from the situation. "Why?"
"I don't know why, but he asked me are we living together... And was really interested in our relationship... I don't know what was going on so I asked, but he didn't answer in any way... I have no idea why he got so interested in our lives out of sudden..."
"I... I think I know why..." Masaki whispered and looked down, knowing how the next thing he says will make the latter upset again. "Just please, listen to me till the end before getting any conclusions, okay?"
"What did you do?" The older one looked at the other, his eyes piercing him throughout.
"I wanted to learn something more about Huang Fe's death... I... I was just scared about Nila and partly about myself... I called Nila to talk with her but she didn't answer at first... Then some stranger picked up and said it was a wrong number. Since then her phone is turned off... I think she is missing."
"Aren't you worrying too much?" Sakurai sighed and held the latter's hand tightly. "I know she is your friend but maybe she just hooked up with someone. Why accepting only the black scenarios?"
"Because this fits the best. The Chinese boy is dead, Nila went missing, all happened in Vatican. Now your boss asks about me... Maybe he cares about his employee and wants to make sure you won't hurt much after I disappear?"
"You're delusional. I am sorry Masaki, but your theory looks like taken from some ranked C criminal movie. Why Border Watch would want to get rid of former vessels? There is no point in that, you have no value for them anymore. Please, stop this nonsense until it consumes you." It was clear Sho is angry but he fully controlled himself. Aiba opened his mouth to say something but in the end he decided to let it go. The older man won't believe him anyway. Instead he free himself from tight hug and went to the kitchen to make himself some green tea which always calmed him down and helped him think. The shorter man stayed on the couch, jumping through channels to find something to watch. The air was filled with silence, broken only by some gentle sounds of boiling water and quiet tingle of glass. After half an hour Sakurai went to the kitchen and sat at the table, looking at his lover.
"Masaki, let's not be like this... I know a lot of is going on here, riots are spreading... I just want to come home, drown in your embrace and not thinking about anything but you and me and this moment... I know you are worried but please, don't let it eat you up. I don't want the battle between Light and Dark Watches affect our relationship."
"I am sorry Sho-chan. Maybe I am worrying too much but I can't help it... I don't anyone I care about to get hurt and as far as I can see it is possible..."
"I know, I am worried too. But I try to push that aside and focus on my job. Masaki, please believe me. Nothing bad will happen, we will stop this conflict before it escalates even more. Now please, let's stop talking about it and try to be together?" Sho got up and went up to the latter, taking his face in his hands. "I love you."
"I love you too." Aiba smiled and pulled his boyfriend closer, joining their lips in slow and loving kiss. Maybe Sakurai was right? Maybe indeed there was nothing to be worried about? Maybe everything was just a weird coincidence?
Without even noticing, the things between them became heated. Sho took the younger man to their bedroom and pushed him gently on the bed, smiling and claming his lips again. The ex-vessel decided to shut out his mind and just focus on the latter's lips, which were exploring his naked chest, going lower and lower... When Sakurai was about to pull down Aiba's sweatpants, the doorbell rang louder than ever.
"Ignore it, whoever it is, will go away soon." The Border Watch officer whispered and gently bit his boyfriend's awakening member through the material. Meanwhile the doorbell kept ringing mercilessly, making Sho groan from anger. "Don't move, I will get rid of that punk."
"Come back quickly..." Masaki winked in his cute way and waited for his boyfriend to come back. When nothing like that happened in next ten minutes, he got worried so after making sure he looks decent he sneaked out the bedroom.
"... personally to Aiba Masaki. With all due respect, but those are orders from the top." Tall man bowed gently in front of Sakurai.
"He is sleeping, so whether come back tomorrow or give whatever you have to me, I will pass it as soon as he wakes up."
"I am really sorry, but orders are orders. I need to give this to Aiba Masaki himself."
"Sho, what's going on?" The taller man frowned, coming closer to arguing men. Before the older one managed to reply, the stranger bowed politely and looked straight at Aiba.
"Are you Aiba Masaki?"
"Y-yes... What's going on here?"
"I apologize for coming this late and this intrusion, but I was ordered to give this letter to you personally." The man handed Masaki a big silver envelope, bowed and disappeared. The younger man stared at the piece of paper with his heart beating louder with each passing second. Without wasting more time, he went to the kitchen, took out a knife and gently cut the envelops to get inside. While he read the dark gray letters, all pieces of puzzles clicked on its place, revealing a very disturbing picture.
"What is it?" Worry was written all over Sho's face. Aiba took a deep breath and read the content of the envelope out loud.
"Aiba Masaki-sama.
The Border Watch is honored to invite you to its main Headquarters in Vatican. The purpose of this invitation is expand the knowledge of the Vessel's physical condition and obtain more information in order to build a device which could free people from the burden of carrying The Treaty inside their bodies.
The vice-president of Border Watch Lauro Magnini awaits you in his office in Vatican, Rome, Italy in two weeks from now.
Sincerely,
Paula Brodelli,
Lauro Magnini's Assistant
The Border Watch"
"Sho, I don't want to sound rude or something but..."
"Yes Masaki... You told me so..."