twilight - chapter 7
Title: Twilight
Authors: soukoji & jibunnohana
Rating: R
Summary: Halfling, tainted, unworthy - words the angel Sakito ignored living among the heavenly creatures he so adored and aspired to be. But naivite has its limits, and Sakito's fateful meeting with an ancient incubus proved to him that that there's more to goodness than pure white wings.
Notes: Very, very sorry for the long wait. ;o; Finally, the last chapter (besides epilogue)!
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
For the third time that week, Sakito found himself outside Niya’s house. A knife hung loosely in his hand as the angel stared in a blank haze at the smooth grain of the wood and the gold doorknob barring entry. Wings the color of pitch drooped at his shoulders, the sole reason for his visit to the house. He felt cheated, manipulated, and utterly alone, unable to go back to his home with those tainted wings. Truly an outcast now, Sakito was stripped of everything he believed in, leaving only an intense desire to harm the one he blamed, Niya.
Focusing every ounce of his strength, the doorknob ripped off easily in the angel’s hand. Once inside, he stalked through the foyer and into the dark hall with a snarl, “Where are you?!”
The demon could sense Sakito’s presence, his anger and his intent, and felt no need to hide. Doing so would only serve to upset the angel more. “I’m here,” Niya replied calmly, appearing out of the shadows, seemingly from nowhere. The incubus saw Sakito’s wings, charred an ebon hue, and frowned in uncertainty.
“What did you do to me?” the angel growled through clenched teeth. He was trying to hold back the surge of confused emotion threatening to overflow upon seeing Niya, but it wasn’t easy. It was his fault, everything he had lost was this demon’s fault - if they had never laid eyes on each other, Sakito would still be comfortably oblivious in his own home with his own people.
“I didn’t do a damn thing.” Niya remained unmoving, keeping a watchful gaze on the other and his weapon.
“Liar,” Sakito spat in contempt. The word dripped with loathing, enough to make him feel nauseous. His emotions were rebelling against his personality, changing his nature into something he couldn’t recognize, but also couldn’t stop. Betrayal, misguided or genuine, hurt too much. Sakito’s thin hand tightened around the knife hilt until his knuckles turned white. “I trusted you….”
“It’s true. I did nothing to you,” Niya replied softly, a hint of hurt in his tone, knowing Sakito only mistrusted him because of his affiliation. “What happened to your wings…I don’t know the exact cause. Push the blame all you want, but whatever the consequence, it was your choice.”
The demon’s words made Sakito question his sanity, but only for a brief moment. Desperation had rooted too deeply inside him to be talked down, especially by the one he was determined to hate. “If you cared so much, then why let me ruin my life? You’re nothing but a snake.” The angel’s voice was getting shrill, almost hysterical, and he took a step back, away from the incubus.
“Stop it, you’re only saying that because you’re afraid. When you last came to me out of fear, you told me that you were sure of what you were doing.” Niya took a step toward him, tensed to disarm the smaller man. “Now, here you are, accusing me of letting this happen when it was your choice.
What killing Niya would accomplish, he didn’t know, but revenge for his suffering had seemed logical after being cast out. Instead of trying to argue again, Sakito took the opportunity to lunge at him unexpectedly with the knife. A reckless move - uncalculated, wild, and way off the mark. He was used to fighting, never having the need to do so, but the angel was inconsolable enough to try. The incubus allowed himself to be stabbed in the ribs, unworried by such a minor wound. Moving quickly, Niya curled an arm around Sakito’s waist, holding the angel tightly to restrain him while grabbing his wrist with his free hand to push the blade away. At first Sakito struggled violently against the demon’s hold, hissing and thrashing like a trapped animal. Niya was right, the fear was blatant in his eyes. The fact that the blade had done nothing to harm the demon made him panic and struggle harder, even though he knew in the back of his mind he would only succeed in exhausting himself.
“You’re trying to kill the one person who has genuinely cared for you,” Niya said to him softly. “What would that achieve?”
“Let me go!”
Niya refused, holding onto him tightly. “No,” he said sternly. “Not until you calm down and start thinking rationally.”
“Rational? You don’t understand! How could you understand?!” The hysterical edge to the angel’s voice reached a fever pitch, and he tried to wrench the hand with the knife away from Niya’s grip.
Niya raised his voice slightly to force the angel to listen. “Stop it, Sakito. Don’t you see what you’re doing to yourself for no reason? I don’t bloody care what color your wings are, I just care about you. Are you really so daft that you can’t see that?”
In the struggle, a few inky black feathers came loose and floated to the ground. Sakito saw them out of the corner of his eye and watched them flutter down, feeling something break inside him at the sight, like the last of his hopes and dreams shattering the moment the feathers landed. Glancing at the knife, Sakito couldn’t remember the reasoning behind what he was trying to do, only that there was no point. No point in anything.
“Sakito…” Niya said quietly, loosening his grip and hoping the angel in his arms wasn’t loosing his will to live.
“No use…” Sakito murmured while the knife fell from limp fingers to clatter on the wood floor. Killing Niya wouldn’t fix anything. The damage was irreversible.
Releasing his hold on the halfling completely, Niya peered down sadly at his face. “Maybe we can find a way to fix it,” he suggested, hoping there was some part of the other’s mind still reachable by acts of kindness. “I’ll try for you if it would make you happy again.”
“No, it’s too late,” Sakito replied softly, dropping his gaze to his feet. “They already know what I did.”
“Then embrace it.” The demon placed strong hands on the angel’s slight shoulders. “If there’s no home for you there, then there’s a home for you here, just like last time.”
Sakito opened his mouth, but instead of words his voice came out as a choked sob, leaning his forehead on Niya’s shoulder. In a way, it was a relief not having a choice. There was no question anymore about were he belonged, but that didn’t make the transition any easier. Slowly, the demon brought his arms up to encircle Sakito, holding him gently and rubbing a hand across his back to calm him.
“Everything will be okay. Really.”
“Tell me what I should do,” the angel whispered, swallowing what little dignity he had left. Pride wasn’t worth holding onto when it had already been rendered meaningless. The demon’s arms were warm and comforting, even if everything else was wrong.
“Live with me.” Was the reply he received with a muted smile. “I’ll work to turn your wings white again, if you wish. And teach you to fly….”
Sakito shook his head and smiled sadly through the tears. “Changing the color really won’t change what happened. But if you want me, I’ll stay.”
“I do want you to stay. Why do you think I’ve been trying to help you? It’s hard to not care about you. Besides,” Niya paused and his smile broadened into a grin, taking the angel’s chin between his fingers, “you’re one hell of a knock-out beauty.”
Despite the turmoil inside, Sakito found himself laughing weakly at the comment. Humor perhaps wasn’t the best medicine, but it was a start. Time and patience was the only way to become used to his new existence. “Thank you…” Sakito mouthed, pulling his face out of Niya’s grasp to hug the demon around the neck. He was embraced in return, and the incubus pressed a tender kiss to his forehead.
“You’re welcome. I know a big, comfy chair up in the library with your name on it. Go upstairs and I’ll bring you some tea in a few minutes.”
Nodding, Sakito turned in the direction he remember the library being, moving slowly and thoughtfully through the halls. The angel used the time to collect himself, trailing fond fingers absently over the objects in Niya’s house, willing his tired brain to accept that he was better off here, with the demon. Niya allowed the angel to go off on his own while he prepared the tea with two overly eager spirits. When the kettle whistled, he poured two cups and floated them carefully in the air behind him as he went up to join Sakito.
“Here’s the tea.” Niya spoke quietly, as to not disturb the stability and peacefulness of the library. “I wasn’t sure how much sugar you wanted.”
Already curled in one of the chair with his eyes close, Sakito replied, “Just a little bit.” Opening his eyes halfway, the angel watched Niya stir his drink, leaving in on the table temporarily when the demon was finished. “You could have the world if you wanted. It still doesn’t make sense why you would want to waste time taking care of me.”
The incubus sat back and nursed his drink, mulling over Sakito’s statement. “I could…but…where would the enjoyment in that be without good company? Taking care of you is not a waste of my time. I told you before that everything is fate. You were fated to break in here and I was fated to fall for you.”
“Fall for me…” Sakito repeated, pausing as his hand reached for the teacup. He frowned as he contemplated those words, but it only took him a few seconds to realize what Niya meant by them. Taking a sip from his cup, he raised his eyebrows at the demon in the other chair, his heart adding a few extra beats to its rhythm.
“You’re cute.” The demon chuckled at his expression, sensing a slight optimism from the fallen angel. “I don’t know what it is exactly, but when you were here, you filled something…empty in my soul.”
Sakito didn’t know what to say in return; nothing sounded appropriately eloquent in his head. A tiny, sincere smile graced the angel’s lips as he sipped his tea. Good enough, he thought to himself, succumbing to the relief of being cherished without restraint.
Authors: soukoji & jibunnohana
Rating: R
Summary: Halfling, tainted, unworthy - words the angel Sakito ignored living among the heavenly creatures he so adored and aspired to be. But naivite has its limits, and Sakito's fateful meeting with an ancient incubus proved to him that that there's more to goodness than pure white wings.
Notes: Very, very sorry for the long wait. ;o; Finally, the last chapter (besides epilogue)!
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
For the third time that week, Sakito found himself outside Niya’s house. A knife hung loosely in his hand as the angel stared in a blank haze at the smooth grain of the wood and the gold doorknob barring entry. Wings the color of pitch drooped at his shoulders, the sole reason for his visit to the house. He felt cheated, manipulated, and utterly alone, unable to go back to his home with those tainted wings. Truly an outcast now, Sakito was stripped of everything he believed in, leaving only an intense desire to harm the one he blamed, Niya.
Focusing every ounce of his strength, the doorknob ripped off easily in the angel’s hand. Once inside, he stalked through the foyer and into the dark hall with a snarl, “Where are you?!”
The demon could sense Sakito’s presence, his anger and his intent, and felt no need to hide. Doing so would only serve to upset the angel more. “I’m here,” Niya replied calmly, appearing out of the shadows, seemingly from nowhere. The incubus saw Sakito’s wings, charred an ebon hue, and frowned in uncertainty.
“What did you do to me?” the angel growled through clenched teeth. He was trying to hold back the surge of confused emotion threatening to overflow upon seeing Niya, but it wasn’t easy. It was his fault, everything he had lost was this demon’s fault - if they had never laid eyes on each other, Sakito would still be comfortably oblivious in his own home with his own people.
“I didn’t do a damn thing.” Niya remained unmoving, keeping a watchful gaze on the other and his weapon.
“Liar,” Sakito spat in contempt. The word dripped with loathing, enough to make him feel nauseous. His emotions were rebelling against his personality, changing his nature into something he couldn’t recognize, but also couldn’t stop. Betrayal, misguided or genuine, hurt too much. Sakito’s thin hand tightened around the knife hilt until his knuckles turned white. “I trusted you….”
“It’s true. I did nothing to you,” Niya replied softly, a hint of hurt in his tone, knowing Sakito only mistrusted him because of his affiliation. “What happened to your wings…I don’t know the exact cause. Push the blame all you want, but whatever the consequence, it was your choice.”
The demon’s words made Sakito question his sanity, but only for a brief moment. Desperation had rooted too deeply inside him to be talked down, especially by the one he was determined to hate. “If you cared so much, then why let me ruin my life? You’re nothing but a snake.” The angel’s voice was getting shrill, almost hysterical, and he took a step back, away from the incubus.
“Stop it, you’re only saying that because you’re afraid. When you last came to me out of fear, you told me that you were sure of what you were doing.” Niya took a step toward him, tensed to disarm the smaller man. “Now, here you are, accusing me of letting this happen when it was your choice.
What killing Niya would accomplish, he didn’t know, but revenge for his suffering had seemed logical after being cast out. Instead of trying to argue again, Sakito took the opportunity to lunge at him unexpectedly with the knife. A reckless move - uncalculated, wild, and way off the mark. He was used to fighting, never having the need to do so, but the angel was inconsolable enough to try. The incubus allowed himself to be stabbed in the ribs, unworried by such a minor wound. Moving quickly, Niya curled an arm around Sakito’s waist, holding the angel tightly to restrain him while grabbing his wrist with his free hand to push the blade away. At first Sakito struggled violently against the demon’s hold, hissing and thrashing like a trapped animal. Niya was right, the fear was blatant in his eyes. The fact that the blade had done nothing to harm the demon made him panic and struggle harder, even though he knew in the back of his mind he would only succeed in exhausting himself.
“You’re trying to kill the one person who has genuinely cared for you,” Niya said to him softly. “What would that achieve?”
“Let me go!”
Niya refused, holding onto him tightly. “No,” he said sternly. “Not until you calm down and start thinking rationally.”
“Rational? You don’t understand! How could you understand?!” The hysterical edge to the angel’s voice reached a fever pitch, and he tried to wrench the hand with the knife away from Niya’s grip.
Niya raised his voice slightly to force the angel to listen. “Stop it, Sakito. Don’t you see what you’re doing to yourself for no reason? I don’t bloody care what color your wings are, I just care about you. Are you really so daft that you can’t see that?”
In the struggle, a few inky black feathers came loose and floated to the ground. Sakito saw them out of the corner of his eye and watched them flutter down, feeling something break inside him at the sight, like the last of his hopes and dreams shattering the moment the feathers landed. Glancing at the knife, Sakito couldn’t remember the reasoning behind what he was trying to do, only that there was no point. No point in anything.
“Sakito…” Niya said quietly, loosening his grip and hoping the angel in his arms wasn’t loosing his will to live.
“No use…” Sakito murmured while the knife fell from limp fingers to clatter on the wood floor. Killing Niya wouldn’t fix anything. The damage was irreversible.
Releasing his hold on the halfling completely, Niya peered down sadly at his face. “Maybe we can find a way to fix it,” he suggested, hoping there was some part of the other’s mind still reachable by acts of kindness. “I’ll try for you if it would make you happy again.”
“No, it’s too late,” Sakito replied softly, dropping his gaze to his feet. “They already know what I did.”
“Then embrace it.” The demon placed strong hands on the angel’s slight shoulders. “If there’s no home for you there, then there’s a home for you here, just like last time.”
Sakito opened his mouth, but instead of words his voice came out as a choked sob, leaning his forehead on Niya’s shoulder. In a way, it was a relief not having a choice. There was no question anymore about were he belonged, but that didn’t make the transition any easier. Slowly, the demon brought his arms up to encircle Sakito, holding him gently and rubbing a hand across his back to calm him.
“Everything will be okay. Really.”
“Tell me what I should do,” the angel whispered, swallowing what little dignity he had left. Pride wasn’t worth holding onto when it had already been rendered meaningless. The demon’s arms were warm and comforting, even if everything else was wrong.
“Live with me.” Was the reply he received with a muted smile. “I’ll work to turn your wings white again, if you wish. And teach you to fly….”
Sakito shook his head and smiled sadly through the tears. “Changing the color really won’t change what happened. But if you want me, I’ll stay.”
“I do want you to stay. Why do you think I’ve been trying to help you? It’s hard to not care about you. Besides,” Niya paused and his smile broadened into a grin, taking the angel’s chin between his fingers, “you’re one hell of a knock-out beauty.”
Despite the turmoil inside, Sakito found himself laughing weakly at the comment. Humor perhaps wasn’t the best medicine, but it was a start. Time and patience was the only way to become used to his new existence. “Thank you…” Sakito mouthed, pulling his face out of Niya’s grasp to hug the demon around the neck. He was embraced in return, and the incubus pressed a tender kiss to his forehead.
“You’re welcome. I know a big, comfy chair up in the library with your name on it. Go upstairs and I’ll bring you some tea in a few minutes.”
Nodding, Sakito turned in the direction he remember the library being, moving slowly and thoughtfully through the halls. The angel used the time to collect himself, trailing fond fingers absently over the objects in Niya’s house, willing his tired brain to accept that he was better off here, with the demon. Niya allowed the angel to go off on his own while he prepared the tea with two overly eager spirits. When the kettle whistled, he poured two cups and floated them carefully in the air behind him as he went up to join Sakito.
“Here’s the tea.” Niya spoke quietly, as to not disturb the stability and peacefulness of the library. “I wasn’t sure how much sugar you wanted.”
Already curled in one of the chair with his eyes close, Sakito replied, “Just a little bit.” Opening his eyes halfway, the angel watched Niya stir his drink, leaving in on the table temporarily when the demon was finished. “You could have the world if you wanted. It still doesn’t make sense why you would want to waste time taking care of me.”
The incubus sat back and nursed his drink, mulling over Sakito’s statement. “I could…but…where would the enjoyment in that be without good company? Taking care of you is not a waste of my time. I told you before that everything is fate. You were fated to break in here and I was fated to fall for you.”
“Fall for me…” Sakito repeated, pausing as his hand reached for the teacup. He frowned as he contemplated those words, but it only took him a few seconds to realize what Niya meant by them. Taking a sip from his cup, he raised his eyebrows at the demon in the other chair, his heart adding a few extra beats to its rhythm.
“You’re cute.” The demon chuckled at his expression, sensing a slight optimism from the fallen angel. “I don’t know what it is exactly, but when you were here, you filled something…empty in my soul.”
Sakito didn’t know what to say in return; nothing sounded appropriately eloquent in his head. A tiny, sincere smile graced the angel’s lips as he sipped his tea. Good enough, he thought to himself, succumbing to the relief of being cherished without restraint.