Rassemblez! Pret! Allez!

Two Steps Back

#tasukusenpai #chroyes #dragheart

dragheart:

chroyes:

tasukusenpai:

As Shion muscled his way in between the two, Tasuku ran to Chrono’s side and threw his smaller arms around Chrono’s middle in an attempt to hold him back. Chrono was still trying to get past Shion to get to the beaten Kazuma, but Chrono sported a fair amount of bruises and scrapes himself…

They’d both land themselves in the hospital at this rate. And though normally strong, even Tasuku was finding it difficult to hold Chrono back…

“Chrono, stop it! Please stop fighting!!”

“Let go! LET ME GO!”

Struggling violently to get a hold of Kazuma once more–to satiate that burning rage that was eating him up from the inside–Chrono nearly tried to fight past Shion, hands darting out in attempt to claw his way through to another punch. But it wasn’t long before those tiny arms of his boyfriend circled around his middle, ultimately restraining him as the tension wore off.

“Kh……”

… Everything hurt. Now that he had the red wiped from his eyes, Chrono felt the pounding ache of the reddening welts on his face, an instance of blood leaking from a busted lip. His bright green optics caught a glimpse of Kazuma’s expression, but before he could make anything of it, he was already storming off to leave.

“……….”

As Chrono pummeled him, Kazuma responded in kind, kicking and punching whatever he could. It wasn’t long before Shion intervened and pulled Chrono off of him, but Kazuma was still dissatisfied. Emotions and insecurity swirled into something ugly, leaving him in a worse mood than before.

“Tch…”

But whatever. Chrono was calming down, and everyone else in the room seemed to be against a fistfight, so it was about time he excused himself now that he could.

“…Hmph.” He fixed Shion with a hard glare. “I upheld my end of the deal, so we’re good now, aren’t we? Kiba.”

“Seeya.”

Brushing past Shion, he sauntered out of the house.

Shion tensed when Kazuma looked right past him and at the injured and restrained Chrono, then relaxed when Kazuma ultimately decided to leave. Letting out a sigh, he then turned back to Chrono and Tasuku.

“Chrono... I’m sorry. I thought that having someone different to fight would help you, but it seems it only made things worse. If I had know this would happen, I wouldn’t have asked Shouji-kun...”

Two Steps Back

#chroyes #dragheart #tasukusenpai

chroyes:

dragheart:

At such proximity, there was no way Kazuma could avoid the punch. Chrono’s fist hit him square in the face, and he stumbled back from the impact.

“…Heh… You really did it…”

He was laughing, but it only made his blood boil more.

This was fine. He was annoyed that things had turned out this way. Annoyed that his guys had messed things up on Shion’s turf, and annoyed that Shion had used that to rope him into coming to this useless gathering.

He needed to vent too.

“Now you’ve done it!”

He drew back and punched Chrono back, throwing all of his strength into that hit.

His fist shaking as he took in the recoil of slamming his knuckles into raw skin and bone, did Chrono barely brace himself for retaliation, apart of him wanting the rush of a fistfight to muddle over those previous feelings of stress.

Taking the punch and catching himself as he stumbled to the side, the pain, surprisingly, wore off quickly, Chrono jumping back in as the adrenaline overtook any sensibility he once had.

“You….!!”

Tackling into Kazuma and wrestling him to the hardwood floor, did Chrono aim a series of punches at that stupid face of his, mercy not quite a concept that existed anymore.

Oh my god...

Shion watched, with horror, as an innocuous card game turned into a full-blown brawl. As Chrono tackled Kazuma to the ground and the two traded blows, Shion finally gathered his wits about him and stepped in. Of the two bystanders, Shion alone was big enough to separate the two.

He grabbed Chrono and pulled him off of Kazuma, and then stepped in between the two.

“Both of you, that’s enough! Cut it out! What good will all of this fist-fighting do!?”

Two Steps Back

#chroyes #dragheart #tasukusenpai

dragheart:

chroyes:

“Wha…”

“Heh… Am I so unworthy of an opponent to you that you’re not even taking this seriously?”

At some point, Chrono’s eyes had glazed over, losing himself to the paranoia that his imagination may run rampant, trying his best to keep his enthusiasm under check. But getting called out like that snapped him right back to reality, incredulous green hues meeting hard cobalt.

“That’s… not it at all..! Don’t put words in my mouth!”

Taking his turn with a feverish scowl, Chrono was about to Stride when he found his hand hovering over his cards again.

Why is it always after the first Stride that this happens? Just pick up Nextage… Pick up the card and get over it! C’mon!!!

“St.. Stride..”

Of course, Chrono fell back on himself and was forced to stride Interdimensional Dragon, Warp Drive Dragon, a huge misplay because of his struggle, biting at his lips as he tried to make use of it.

“I’ll… attack..”

Of course, Chrono’s sputtered response did nothing to ease the frothing irritation now bubbling up in Kazuma’s chest.

“Perfect Guard.”

He blocked the attack easily, as well as the others, with plenty of guards in his hand to spare. Chrono ended his turn without dealing any damage at all whatsoever.

“…Really? I’ve always wondered what it was like to beat you, but you’re not even taking me seriously right now.”

It made his blood boil.

“Y’know… I only came here because I made a deal with Kiba… I promised I wouldn’t scoop either. But if I’m so insignificant to you that you won’t even pay attention to our fight, then what’s the point of me even being here?”

“Hey… What’s really on your mind, Shindou? Something got the ever-so-passionate Gene-whatever all tangled up? You’re really living up to your name right now,” he added, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Oh dear.

This didn’t look good at all. There was some bad blood brewing around the fight table, and Shion spoke before it could worsen.

“Shouji-kun, that’s quite enough. I think you’ve made your point clear. And Chrono, he’s right, you know. Acting like this only serves to disrespect your opponent...”

But it would seem that Shion’s words would fall on deaf ears...

Two Steps Back

#dragheart #chroyes #tasukusenpai

dragheart:

Can’t believe I got roped into doing this again…

“Well? I’m here as part of our deal, Kiba. As promised, you’ll overlook what my guys did, yeah?”

“You have my word, Shouji-kun. Thank you for your smooth cooperation. Chrono will be down in a few minutes. I don’t think I have to say this, but don’t hold back in your fight with him.”

Something Afoot

chroyes:

Though Chrono could feel Shion’s sincerity, he still couldn’t shed off the guilt from a simple few good, modest words. The latter suggestion, however—

“Perhaps… Fighting me or Tasuku-kun won’t help you, since we were tied closely into that incident. But maybe fighting someone you don’t really know will get your blood boiling again.

“That Shouji Kazuma person… How about him?”

“Shouji…?”

Kazuma. He was a tricky case, and even if they were teammates, in a sense, he couldn’t look past the terrible tension between them right now.

“Well… he’s a little prickly with me because of our happy reunion but… maybe it wouldn’t hurt? Maybe…”

“Well... He may be prickly with you in passing, but a Vanguard fight is truly the best way to get to know someone, isn’t it?”

And from the fights that Kazuma was getting into on the streets--his men had certainly told Shion about a Shadow Paladin user that fit Kazuma’s description--Kazuma would certainly be the right choice. Though rough around the edges, his skill level was nothing to be scoffed at.

“Great. I’ll set something up for the two of you, then.”

Something Afoot

chroyes:

What Shion didn’t know, was ever since he had been admitted out of the hospital, Chrono had altered his priorities almost immediately following the incident. He had forced himself to mature a little more, to shoulder a lot more, and to support Tasuku with everything he had. Not to mention, become the type of person that would not fall into desperation enough to take the nearest offering hand to him..

Chrono would not forgive himself that easily.

“It was still my fault. I still hurt you both. I’m going to continue atoning for that.

“…But you’re right. I just gotta get over this… I guess. Vanguard also showed me new possibilities. I could never abandon it…”

… But he couldn’t abandon Tasuku’s feelings either.

I can’t choose between the two… If I had to then… To me, Vanguard is…..

He knew the weight of just what Chrono was saying. He knew what Vanguard meant to Chrono. Chrono had only mentioned it dozens of times.

Vanguard helped Chrono grow as a person. Vanguard had a special place in Chrono’s heart. And Shion could relate. Because Vanguard was special to him too.

Vanguard was the only thing that made Shion feel free...

“That’s not what I meant, Chrono... I'm not diminishing your feelings so that you can just ‘get over’ them...”

So for the thought of abandoning Vanguard to even cross Chrono’s mind--why else would he have said it if it hadn’t?--just showed how dire things were.

“Haven’t you atoned enough? You never left Tasuku-kun’s side the entire time he was recovering... You’ve been working hard to take care of him--to take care of me--ever since. I’ve forgiven you already, and I’m sure Tasuku-kun has too...”

But it would never be that easy.

Maybe... A passionate fight that can set his heart ablaze again... One from a third party...

“Perhaps... Fighting me or Tasuku-kun won’t help you, since we were tied closely into that incident. But maybe fighting someone you don’t really know will get your blood boiling again.”

And Shion knew just the individual.

“That Shouji Kazuma person... How about him? From what Taiyou-kun told me, he seems to be quite the talent. Maybe fighting him will rekindle your spirits.”

Something Afoot

chroyes:

Placing his sixth and final card into the damage zone with a heavy sigh, Chrono was more defeated at the fact that he felt relief in Shion’s swift victory than actually failing to put up a fight. Certainly if this had been a few years ago, he would have been insistent on a rematch… No, if this had been before the incident with Tasuku, he would have been fine, too.

“I won’t hide it from you. I’m… weary. Vanguard’s not any fun if I have to be careful of my own imagination. I don’t want what happened during my time as Ryuzu’s Peacemaker to happen again… “I mean, I hurt you and Tasuku with Nextage back then. And when I fought Tasuku several days ago, I lost the rest of my motivation is all…”

“Weary...?”

Ah. That explained it.

Shion’s face fell with Chrono’s mention of Myoujin Ryuzu, as well as his use of Nextage. It was still a sour topic of sorts for Shion as well--it was because of Shion that Chrono had run off with Myoujin, after all.

Effectively, it was because of Shion that Tasuku had injured to the point where he still wasn’t fully recovered months later, and where Chrono was still feeling guilty for what he had done. So naturally, it fell to Shion to fix things too.

“But you didn’t hurt Tasuku-kun, did you? And you wouldn’t hurt me...”

“Your abilities as the ‘Peacemaker’ are innate, aren’t they? If that was the case, then all those other times, you could’ve summoned any of your units into reality... But you didn’t. I know you wouldn’t, even if you got really into a fight...”

Something Afoot

chroyes:

Chrono’s drive took a plummet as soon as it came to his second stride turn. Though he knew very well Shion had been anticipating his ace card, Chrono’s fingers had flickered right over it, opting to stride Interdimensional Dragon, Warp Drive Dragon instead. But his game suffered because of it. He really wasn’t at his prime… I can’t bring out Nextage, what if–?

“Chrono… Are you not having fun right now?”

“Ah…” No… It wasn’t that he wasn’t having fun–being with Shion brought him plenty of joy, actually–but …

“It…. it’s not you, it’s me. I guess I’m a little out of it today.”

Shion clinched it following the end of Chrono’s turn, defeating him with unprecedented ease. But it definitely didn’t feel right...

“But no matter how out of it you are, you’ve never been like this playing Vanguard...”

Shion put his cards down.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I should’ve considered you first... I wasn’t thinking.”

“But, Chrono... Did something happen? I want you to tell me...”

Something Afoot

chroyes:

“Hey.”

Perking up at the sight of his best friend passing, Chrono was all for the invitation… Until Vanguard was mentioned, that is. “Vanguard… huh. Uh, sure. Why not?” Maybe dusting off my deck will do me some good..

“Wonderful. I hate to sound snobbish, but you’re the only one who can give me a challenge.”

That wasn’t to say that the other members of the household were bad at Vanguard; certainly, those from Aichi’s time were skilled as well. But fighting Chrono was different. No one but Chrono got Shion as heated...

“Let’s begin, then.”

But as the fight progressed, Shion realized that there was something very wrong.

Chrono’s burning passion, which oft drew Shion in, was missing today. There was no luster in his green eyes--it was almost as if Chrono was simply following the motions. Shion didn’t let his guard down for a second, but...

This is usually around the time he strides Nextage...

...when Chrono didn’t, Shion had to speak up.

“Chrono... Are you not having fun right now?”

Something Afoot

“Chrono.”

Catching the other teen in the living room, Shion approached with his usual smile.

“You’re off today, aren’t you? Why don’t we play Vanguard for old time’s sake? We haven’t had a cardfight in a while.”

A Brush With Death(?!)

acedefeat:

He was ending that line of conversation there. The incident involving Myoujin Ryuzu and Shindou Chrono was already unpleasant to recall for the simple reason that it had resulted in some of the most grievous injuries Tasuku had suffered in Hive to date. The last thing Rouga needed–or wanted–was to go into how little use he had ultimately been in tracking Chrono down at that time…–

(It had been that strange creature, Chrono Dran, that had led them a great deal of the way. He and Cerberus had merely followed the trail from that point on.)

“Aragami-kun, when I supposedly called you ‘weak’… Was it around May of last year in Hive City’s time? That’s the one month I can’t seem to remember…”

… Huh?

Rouga frowned, mildly bemused by the question, before finally granting Shion a cautious nod.

“… That sounds about right.”

Where was he going with this? Shion wasn’t about to start grilling him for details, was he? If so, he’d be sorely disappointed; Rouga had been largely oblivious to the initial Reverse outbreak, after all, wrapped up as he was in his own affairs at the time. He’d only come to know it had happened at all because of Kyouya’s similar circumstances…

“If you want answers beyond that, though, I’m not the guy to ask. That was the first and last time I saw you that month…and Tasuku only mentioned what was needed for me to understand what was happening to Kyouya, and why.”

“I...see.”

Then...was I indirectly responsible for that tournament from a few months ago...?

He chewed on the thought, before ultimately discarding. What was done was done--for better or for worse, that tournament had ended without any casualties, though it had definitely put Tasuku, Rouga, and Kyouya out of commission for a while.

Perhaps he should have let it weigh on his heart a little more, but what good would agonizing over it do now? Both of the events were long over.

“Then it’s Tasuku-kun who knows about it...and Chrono too, probably. Alright.”

A pause.

“So, uh...we’re...good, right? We’ve established that it was never my intention to call you weak, and that I, in no way, think that you’re weak at all, right?”

After all, he had seen Rouga facing Myoujin’s unit head-on without hesitating. There was nothing weak about that--and if he could face that thing with such resolution then Shion would probably be nothing more than wet tissue paper to Rouga. Hence the lingering nervousness.

My word... The people from Tasuku-kun’s world are certainly intense...

#acedefeat

A Brush With Death(?!)

acedefeat:

Had he not been genuinely a bit miffed about the whole thing, Rouga might have laughed out loud as he finally lifted his head and got an eyeful of the subtle but quite visible horror dawning on Shion’s face. He’d always known the guy to be on the paler side, but he was practically as white as a sheet now…

That was good, though. Rouga wasn’t so kind that he’d spare Kiba Shion any squirming as the latter carefully (but quickly) began to explain himself, but at the very least, the other boy seemed to thoroughly understand the graveness and downright foolishness of his past transgression.

“Hmph… Is that right.”

But…memory loss, huh? That was strange. Following his rescue, Kyouya had retained his memories of the time he’d spent under control; and more than that, his ordeal had even managed to trigger recollection of the events of the Gaen Cup. Did possession by Void or Reversal or whatever, then, affect people differently…?

Well, it didn’t matter. Rouga snapped the book in his grip shut.

“Normally I’d be all too willing to demonstrate why that comment was a stupid one regardless…but I don’t have the time now.

“… That, and I do still owe you a debt for your help during that Myoujin Ryuzu affair. Taking all that into consideration…I’ll call us square.”

“Y-yes... Even if I really did feel that way--which I don’t,” he added quickly. “I don’t think saying such a thing to you would be a very smart thing to do... Nor would it be very nice.”

It took every ounce of self-control not to jump out of his skin when Rouga suddenly snapped his book shut (he probably did start a little, though--gosh he was nervous now!), and Shion found himself heaving an internal sigh of relief when Rouga did nothing else.

“R...really. But...you were the one who helped me find Chrono.”

Wait, why was he contesting this? Rouga had already said that it made them even, and Shion wasn’t about to dig his own grave further. There was one thing, though...

“Wait, you’re saying...Tasuku-kun told you that I was caught up in an incident that also involved Void? I don’t remember this at all, though...”

“Unless...that’s the reason there’s a gap in my memory. Aragami-kun, when I supposedly called you ‘weak’... Was it around May of last year in Hive City’s time? That’s the one month I can’t seem to remember...”

#acedefeat

A Brush With Death(?!)

acedefeat:

“No, we didn’t. That’s probably why it took me so long to remember.”

Still conversational; still casual; still inexplicably unsettling in his slightly-too-perfect calmness. Rouga went on.

“Back when Tasuku was explaining ‘Void’ to me for the first time, he mentioned another incident involving it that had happened a while back–one that you were apparently caught up in. I didn’t think much of it at the time…but I suddenly realized the other day that we actually ran into each other one time while that was all happening.

“As I recall…you told me I was weak.”

“...Huh?”

Oh god.

Had he really said that? Shion didn’t remember at all, but he was unable to deny the stark gap in his memories that he had never been able to fill. Everyone was so tight-lipped about it around him, especially Chrono, and Shion had eventually given up and dropped the subject.

And now, judging from the eerie calmness emanating from Rouga, it was biting Shion in the ass.

“I...really have no memory of this, Aragami-kun......”

“But I can’t deny...that I can’t remember the better part of a certain month for some reason, and no one has been willing to explain it to me......”

The possible consequences of this supposed crime were beginning to sink in. He knew Rouga was a prideful individual--and that he absolutely would not take any jabs at his strength sitting down.

He was screwed, wasn’t he? There was no way Shion would be able to diffuse this situation unless he diverted Rouga’s attention--or made himself blameless.

“If I said anything of the sort to you, you have my apologies... But rest assured, I don’t actually remember ever wanting to say this to you--or thinking it, for that matter...”

#acedefeat

A Brush With Death(?!)

acedefeat:

For better or worse, Rouga had started hanging around Sendou Aichi’s mansion with greater frequency.

It had been a gradual thing–something had just sort of happened when he realized that the house was actually fairly close by one of his workplaces, as well as a great deal more comfortable than sitting in some cafe or a park in the middle of winter between shifts.

… Or, well, in a matter of speaking, anyway. While it was true that the living room was quite cozy, Rouga wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to describe coming across any of Tasuku’s family during his visits as truly comfortable–especially when Tasuku wasn’t actually there to save him if the need arose.

Today was one such occasion, though in this particular instance, Rouga could say honestly that he was glad for the coincidental meeting…and that was because–

“… So I finally realized why you seemed familiar beyond that orphanage job,” he remarked, and turned to the next page of the book he currently held in his hands. “Kiba.”

The fact that the notorious Aragami Rouga had actually started a conversation with Shion was shocking enough as it was.

As for the topic... Shion wasn’t sure he liked Rouga’s tone of voice. The way he leaned against the couch and nonchalantly flipped through his book implied an air of relaxation, but there was a certain edge to Rouga’s tone that made Shion a little nervous.

“Er...?”

“I’m afraid I don’t follow, Aragami-kun... Other than with Chrono’s rescue, we never talked much outside of our job, did we?”

He wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.

#acedefeat #rip shion

Merry Christmas, from me to you

chroyes:

“Thanks, Shion. That’s an all-purpose thermos, by the way. I know you skimp out on meals nowadays so you can pack a warm oatmeal or soup in it without worrying about it getting cold”

Not to mention, the intricately swirled colors of silver, gold and blue had reminded Chrono of a certain Unit that Shion so treasured in his Vanguard deck…

“Ehh, there’s a party upstairs, too? Well, at least everyone’s spirits are lively–Whoa! Is this a deck box?” Having finished getting the wrapping paper off of his own gift, Chrono was delighted to see a durable case suited for playing cards.

Having unwrapped his own gift, Shion marveled at the apparent durability of the thermos Chrono had bought for him. Metallic colours gleamed under the light, and Shion noted that it was sizable, yet easy to carry.

“Chrono, this is... Thank you. This would be incredibly useful. I love the colours too...”

“And yes, it is. I’ve noticed that you’ve been carrying your cards loosely lately. That won’t do at all. I hope you don’t mind my choice in design? The casing resembles Tasuku-kun’s ‘core deck case’, doesn’t it? Now you can match with him.”

Merry Christmas, from me to you

chroyes:

“Haha… nooot really. I’ve been in the kitchen for most of the morning, so that counts for something, right?”

And the proof was in the adornment of freshly baked goods and snacks on the coffee table nearby. Besides, Tasuku had already complimented that Chrono was in the spirit naturally with his red hair and green eyes. Not that he was trying to cling onto excuses to escape from becoming another one of Santasuku’s Little Helpers or anything..

“Anyway, uh, Merry Christmas, Shion. I got you a little something for the occasion… Here.”

“That explains that mouthwatering smell. It’s been making me hungry all morning. Oh...”

Shion stared at the bright package that had been handed to him, and took it with a smile.

“Thank you, Chrono. You’re always so thoughtful. Actually, the reason I came down here was to give you something too.”

No sooner did Shion accept Chrono’s package did Shion procure one of his own, placing it gently in Chrono’s palms.

“Here... Merry Christmas, Chrono. You and Tasuku-kun should come upstairs later too. We’ve got plenty of festivities going on too.”