Loveless

Role Play blog for 16 year old Ritsuka Aoyagi from loveless.

[soubi-agatsuma]

Older!Ritsuka RP || xRaburesuX

[soubi-agatsuma]

As Ritsuka approached he was greeted by Soubi’s usual smile. They engaged in the usual banter, Ritsuka insisting that he was old enough to walk home on his own and Soubi responding with “If Ritsuka doesn’t want me to come anymore, all he has to do is order me.”

But despite the boy’s insistence that he didn’t have to come he never did order Soubi to stay away so the fighter assumed it was fine. He suspected the sacrifice even liked it, after all he was always a bit testy whenever Soubi didn’t show up. It seemed Ritsuka had got more comfortable with having Soubi around, even allowing him to inspect the aftermath of his mother’s abuse.

Ritsuka didn’t waste much time with small talk, which he had never been wont to do anyway. Instead he turned on his heels and led the way to his house.

“You know, Ritsuka,” he started after they had been walking for a few minutes, his tone of voice noncommittal, “If you got locked out you would be more than welcome to stay at my apartment”. Ritsuka had on occasion spent the night, but that had been in the past, when Ritsuka had been still new to spell battles and would tire quickly after one. So the idea certainly wasn’t a new one but Soubi liked to repeat his invitation whenever he had the chance, in the hope that maybe Ritsuka would take him up on the offer.

Apart from that they didn’t talk much, they never did. Ritsuka always seemed to be in deep thoughts when they walked home, most likely already worrying about his mother.

Soubi didn’t mind the silence so he never tried to initiate conversation between them. It was easier to pretend to be his usual nonchalant self when he was silent, even though the closer they got to Ritsuka’s home the harder it was to keep the half-smile on his face.

He dreaded every step they took and all his fighter senses in him screamed at him to protect Ritsuka, to take him somewhere safe instead of letting him walk right into the lion’s den. Every time he allowed himself to think about it he could feel a sharp pain from the letters on his neck. Allowing Ritsuka to go to his mother went against Seimei’s order to protect him, but at the same time he was ordered to obey Ritsuka. Two conflicting orders didn’t make this a very easy situation for him.

As he always did when he was nervous he wanted to light a cigarette but he had tried not to smoke in front of Ritsuka so much. Not only because the boy disliked it (although he had never ordered him not to smoke) but also because Kio had drilled the fact into him that it might be bad for the boy’s health to be constantly surrounded by cigarette smoke. No use damaging both their health.

So he let his gaze wandered until it rested back on his sacrifice, walking ahead of him as if he was a general leading an army to war. Although Ritsuka had grown Soubi was still a head taller than him. Of course he had noticed how much he had started to resemble his older brother, it was hard not to see it. He even had some of the habits Seimei had back when they had met for the first time, when Seimei had been 14. From behind he did remind Soubi a lot of the boy he had met back at Seven Voices, when Ritsu had announced to him that Seimei would become his sacrifice. Back then Seimei was far more expressive with his ears and tail and Ritsuka was the same way. But beyond some superficial similarities the two were very different from one another.

They were brothers but still very distinct personalities. In the past, Soubi had often wondered about the old Ritsuka and whether he had been more like Seimei but nowadays he noticed that he didn’t miss Seimei as much (did he even miss him at all? It was a question he was loathe to answer, even in his own head) so he found that he no longer thought about that or even cared to know the answer. He figured he really did like the current Ritsuka and wouldn’t want to trade him for anyone else.

At least now that he was growing older Kio’s comments about him being a pervert became less and less frequent. They still happened, especially when the man was in the same room whenever Soubi kissed Ritsuka but they seemed less serious than before. Soubi was glad.

Time seemed to pass quickly as they walked and they soon came to a halt in front of the Aoyagi residence.

Soubi watched as Ritsuka stepped forward and opened the door, disappearing inside before closing the door with a far too loud thud that pierced the silence. Of course, Misaki would freak out if she saw Ritsuka being accompanied by a strange man, so he wasn’t allowed to follow him. For a second, Soubi was frozen on the spot, muscles tense as he strained to listen to the muffled noises from indoors.

After a violent scream from Misaki he forced himself to turn around and circle the house until he stood under Ritsuka’s balcony. He hadn’t been told to go home so he took the opportunity to wait for Ritsuka. He quickly climbed up the rain drain and was relieved to see that Ritsuka hadn’t locked the door to the balcony, only closed it so he could wait inside the sacrifice’s room.

Now that he was alone, he lit a cigarette, surprised and a bit worried at the silence from downstairs. It always made him more nervous than the screams because he could usually figure out what was happening whenever Misaki screamed but when she was quiet he had no idea what she was planning. But it didn’t take long until the noises continued, rising in volume as Misaki worked herself into a frenzy. Misaki’s screaming was loud enough for the neighbours to hear, so it was a miracle no one had ever called the police on her. Most likely, people didn’t want to get involved in a stranger’s business, it didn’t matter that she had an underage son who was in danger.

Soubi sat and listened, one hand curled into a fist on his thighs, the cigarette forgotten between his fingers. He really wanted to help Ritsuka but he knew disobeying an order was something he couldn’t even imagine doing. The name on his neck pulsated with pain, a sharp reminder for him to do something.

More than the pain from his old bond with Seimei the noises of pain he could hear from downstairs hurt him. Just thinking about what that poor excuse of a mother was doing was enough to make his stomach churn.

He couldn’t intervene. But there had to be a way to get Ritsuka out of that house? If only Soubi could tell someone, but he had been ordered not to even mention it to Kio. Not that his friend needed Soubi to tell him in order to figure out that Ritsuka was abused. For all his usual ditzy behavior the blond was very

So his only chance of making Ritsuka leave would be by making sure his mother was cared for and well, which he couldn’t do because he couldn’t allow the police.

Just then the door opened and Ritsuka entered. It seemed he had managed to ward off his mother for the time being. Soubi wasn’t sure how much time had passed while he had waited upstairs but he could tell that Misaki had managed to injure her son quite badly.

The boy didn’t seem to notice him at first as he slid down the door and onto the floor. Soubi inspected him from his own position on the floor. Seeing the blood on Ritsuka’s clothes made his anger for the woman flare up again. But instead of saying what he really wanted to say about that useless mother he wordlessly got up and went into the bathroom to get the first aid kit.

The sight of blood usually didn’t bother him and even seeing it on Ritsuka was something he had got more or less used to over the years but he still felt slightly nauseous as he approached the sacrifice and could see just how bad his injuries were.

He knelt beside Ritsuka. “Could you lift up your shirt?” he asked, trying to sound as calming as was possible at the moment.

[xraburesux]

Ritsuka had not seen Soubi when he approached, his mind far to busy wandering around between his mother and what needed to be done for his arm, the biggest wound she managed to get on him this time during her little fit of rage.

The brusies he was bound to have and small cuts weren't nearly that bad, he was used to them at this point and they didn't really bother him that much. Sure, they hurt a little bit but not nearly enough for him to pay an active attention to them much less care if they got treated or not. Though everything would need to be covered up before he went back to school.

It was honestly amazing that the teachers still bought his lies or didn't care enough to find out the truth, by now it should be obvious that he didn't play sports. He didn't even really have any friends in school, sure there was the occasional people he hung out with, mostly Yuiko, but they didn't play sports at all and Ritsuka did not see them outside of school.  

It shouldn't take a genius to know what was happening and though he was glad his mother had not been caught—there was still this underlying depression feeling that no one cared, that he would be stuck this way for probably the rest of his life. He loved his mother and he didn't want her to get taken away, he simply wanted her to get better and to hold him like he remembered Seimei telling him when he was a little kid. Maybe it was to much to ask for though. A happy family did not exist, at least not for them it seemed.

“Why didn't you go home?” Was it because he had forgotten to tell Soubi to? That gave him the freewill to do what he wanted but why did he choose to stay instead of leaving? It wasn't his job to always patch Ritsuka he was in High School now he could do it himself.

So, with a bit of shaky movement, he picked himself up off of the ground and grabbed the first aid kit from Soubi, moving over to his bed and sitting down on top of it. When he couldn't do it himself he let Soubi do it, but she had mostly kicked and scratched him this time—he could wrap his arm himself and cover the rest up with concealing clothes. It wasn't like anyone would look enough to see them anyway and he didn't have Gym tomorrow.

“You don't need to stay, Soubi, I can take care of myself.” And his mother, the both of them would be fine. If she remembered to call him down for dinner tonight or not though—that would be the second act for tonight. There wasn't even really a food test anymore, it was just a test of if she could remember him or not—or if he was someone else.

If she thought he was Seimei again and tried to feed him—well that was a test that Ritsuka could not win. He didn't remember what Seimei liked or not, how he acted at a table, it was always a lose situation when he got put into it. Besides how did his mother even remember? What year was she running off of? Seimei went through a lot of changes, including his tastes, there was no way for Ritsuka to know. It was hard enough when he was younger to pretend to be her Ritsuka that she remembered now trying to play the role of another completely different person was practically a death sentence, but he couldn't ignore her call.

Of course though, there was also the fact that when he got down there that she didn't recognize him as anyone—Ritsuka or Seimei  and in that case he didn't even make it to the table before the next fight started. Dinner time though—that was usually when she seemed to bring up his father. Something about how he actually would have been there for dinner if Ritsuka had not come home and made him leave again. He still didn't understand what she meant.

His father couldn't have left because of him, he barely even remembered the man and he had never seen him in the house since before Seimei died. There was no way he could have been here and that Ritsuka's returning drove him away, right?

He wanted to ask Soubi—but what if he lied? Sure he had ordered the man too but that certainly had not stopped him before. If an order of his conflicted with an order of his brothers Soubi had to obey Seimei first... even if Ritsuka was his current Sacrifice. Was that because of the letters on his neck or was it because Soubi was just more loyal to Seimei? Again, it was a question he wasn't sure if he wanted the answer to or not.

Nothing ever completely belonged to him, not his mother, not the house, not the clothes he wore—and certainly not Soubi. Even if you couldn't own a person Soubi in any regard would never completely be his and he tried to accept that fact but it was hard when Soubi still listened to Seimei over him—despite how many years passed.

Maybe that was why he never took the mans offer to live with him. Because he didn't want to constantly be reminded of the fact that Soubi belong to Seimei and would only absolutely obey him. Including leaving with him if Seimei ever asked for it again. Trust was important between the two of them and of course he did trust Soubi—just only to a certain degree perhaps. He would trust him with his life and to treat his injuries, but would he trust him to never leave him? Well—he honestly wasn't entirely sure about that. And he didn't want to be abandoned.

His mother could never leave him, she never had, she even tried to keep him from ever leaving the house. Misaki was all he had and in reverse he was all she had left. They both lost Seimei, in a way, and they both lost his father. Family was something that could not be replaced and could never completely leave you.

[soubi-agatsuma]

Older!Ritsuka RP || xRaburesuX

Not much had changed between them, despite all the years that had passed. One of the major changes was that nowadays Soubi no longer had to linger in front of an elementary school to pick Ritsuka up, but could instead wait on a park bench opposite his sacrifice’s high school. It was much easier to blend in in such an environment.

Between them, things had gone on as they always had, which Soubi did not mind. But of course, it was obvious how much Ritsuka had grown up. Soubi rather liked it. The boy was still smaller than Soubi but the fighter was sure that in just a few more months he would at least be as tall as Seimei, if not even surpass him by a couple of inches.

Apparently he wasn’t the only one who noticed how much Ritsuka had matured. His mother had never given up on her old Ritsuka and it seemed that instead of getting used to the new one she had become even more occupied with her delusions. Her abuse had never stopped but instead had only increased over the years.  

Now it was almost a daily occurrence that Soubi had to stitch Ritsuka up. In the past the boy would never allow him to see the wounds his mother had inflicted but even he had to give up once the injuries became too much to deal with himself. Ritsuka was always sporting new bruises, which wasn’t that unusual, but his mother was becoming careless. It became increasingly clear that the bruises weren’t caused by sports or accidents but were made by someone who intended to hurt him. More than once Soubi had needed to cover hand-shaped bruises with band-aids and he would often need to wrap Ritsuka into gauze whenever Misaki managed to pierce his skin, either with her nails or with other objects.

The knife attacks were increasing at a worrying pace. In the past Misaki would often only throw things and lash out in blind anger, only occasionally hitting her target but nowadays the wounds she inflicted seemed quite coordinated and deliberate.

Apparently Misaki was too far gone to care whether her abuse would be uncovered by inquisitive teachers at her son’s school or by random social workers. Of course, as Soubi had predicted, none of the teachers had ever stepped in or done anything besides asking Ritsuka about his injuries and then believing his feeble lies about clumsy accidents. It was so typical of teachers to ignore the glaring proof and only see what they wanted to believe and it did nothing to dispense Soubi’s prejudices of teachers.

Although he had never actually witnessed Misaki’s attacks while in the same room he had often enough heard them, separated from his sacrifice by the boy’s bedroom door because Ritsuka had ordered – actually ordered – him to stay put and not to intervene under any circumstances.

It was maddening, having to drop off his sacrifice at this house every day and being unable to protect him but there was nothing Soubi could do. At least nowadays Ritsuka allowed him to help him take care of his wounds afterwards, provided Soubi did it without mentioning Misaki. Just approaching the subject of her would make Ritsuka draw into himself and tell Soubi to leave and one thing the fighter absolutely didn’t want to do was leave Ritsuka in that house alone with that madwoman. He might not actually be able to stop the beatings from happening but at least he was allowed to sit close-by and help Ritsuka once it was over and that was something he did not want to jeopardize by making carless comments.

Although his hands were tied where the actual abuse was concerned, Soubi had recently taken to speaking up about it more, in an attempt to appeal to Ritsuka’s common sense. He no longer offered to kill Misaki because over the years he had come to the conclusion that such a statement would only make Ritsuka become even more stubborn and dismiss anything Soubi had to say. Instead, he would often suggest Ritsuka to move in with him. Soubi’s apartment wasn’t very big but he had always slept on the sofa when Seimei was over after a battle and wouldn’t mind doing so again, if it meant that Ritsuka would be safe from that woman.

But of course, Ritsuka always refused. After all, he didn’t want to leave his mother all alone with no one to take care of her. Soubi didn’t understand that at all, he couldn’t see how Ritsuka could still love his mother, despite all the years of abuse he had suffered at her hands. It didn’t make sense to the fighter why the boy would willingly endure it. It was frustrating, but Soubi was determined to keep on asking Ritsuka to move in. He knew with his sacrifice, persistence was key.  Maybe if he was patient enough Ritsuka would eventually see Soubi’s side of it and realize that it was only in his best interests to accept the offer.

In the distance, the school bell chimed, alerting Soubi to the fact that Ritsuka would soon join him.

[xraburesux]

As the years passed Ritsuka had grown more mature in the sense that everything with his mother was now starting to become a reality to him. When he was little he refused to admit that something was wrong with her and that if he waited it out eventually she would go back into the mother that he used to hear stories of, even if he didn't remember.

When he was young he was hopeful that eventually she would remember and learn to take her pills, get better not for herself but him, or even Seimei. He wanted her to be as gentle with him as she acted right before she realized he wasn't Ritsuka and flew into a blind range. The hugs—used to be so nice and they sparked hope into a little kid.

But now getting older he realized the very true fact that what he wanted would never become a real thing, he would never feel the gentle embrace of his mother and the kind words that every child wanted to hear from a parent. She would never start taking her pills and because of that, as the school had taught, she would need a caretaker.

He wanted it to be him, and he was trying to take care of her in every way possible, but she could never stay sane around him for more than a minute. Now either he was mistaken for Seimei—or viewed as a complete stranger and the nights she didn't recognize him at all ended up being the worse. He was so used to pain now that it barely even hurt, but he was very aware of the fact that one day she could kill him, accidentally or not. The knives always came so close to his chest and if it wasn't for the practice he got from being a sacrifice, she probably would have won by now and stopped him before he could dodge her. Who would have ever thought that being with Soubi would end up saving his life outside of a battle?

The last thing he ever wanted was to leave his mother, she was the most important thing in the world to him but if she ended up hurting herself in what she did to him—he would never forgive himself. Misaki was all he had—aside from Soubi, anyway.

Something recently though had been making him concerned. In her delusions Misaki always imagined Seimei around, she had never once said to him that their father was there or that she saw him. But now, whenever he got home, she would repeatedly blame him for making the man leave again. Ritsuka wasn't stupid you couldn't blame someone for making a person vanish that wasn't even there anymore. So what was she talking about?

As the Sacrifice reached the park bench where Soubi sat, he stared down at the man and shifted his bag to his other hand, the one that had the least amount of damage to it. “You don't need to pick me up, I'm not a child anymore.” The usual conversation.

No matter how many times he said it though Soubi was still here the next day. Nothing would change unless he ordered the man to not pick him up and in that case even he knew that Soubi would instead follow him from a distance. Maybe in the other mans eyes this was a way of protecting him, even if he didn't believe that he needed it anymore. Ritsuka always assumed that he was viewed as a child to Soubi no matter how many years passed, and though such a thing was annoying to him even a little bit he could understand it with how many years the other had on him. What was he? Ten years older than Ritsuka? It was around there, anyway, and Kio was the same. Always looking at him like a kid and Soubi like a pedophile.

Though, to be fair to Kio, Soubi did kiss him on several occasions.

“Come on, I might not have curfew anymore but she still locks me out.” With quick steps Ritsuka started toward his home, the bag still held tight in his hands as they walked. He never kept up much of a conversation with Soubi as they walked, usually now the other would mention the idea of him living with him or wait till after the beating he would undoubtedly get from his mother. She didn't even remember him enough to wash his clothes, Ritsuka had to do them himself when she fell asleep. He couldn't blame her though, he had changed over the years. But did he really look that much like Seimei? Did that even bother Soubi?

When they finally reached his house Ritsuka stepped inside the door and locked it behind him, waiting for his mother to peek around the corner and ask the usually; Seimei or stranger. This time, for the first few minutes, he was Seimei. At least then, he did get a second of a hug from her—till it all devulged into a nightmare. The beating always turned out as bad as the others and for the first few minutes he didn't bother dodging, not until she grabbed the knife. Though life was short and boring he didn't intend to die so he dodged her as best he could and stumbled into the bedroom, closing and locking the door behind him. The kitchen knife stuck in his arm was yanked out and tossed down to the floor, Ritsuka sliding down with it and his back pressed against the door his mother was banging on.

At least this time she had hit something easy to wrap.

[the-bookshop]

[lovebreathzero]

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi was surprised that Ritsuka had been able to see through him so easily and that he had been able to figure out his little plan. From what Ritsuka had told him Soubi guessed that the boy knew Seimei always left as well when his brother was safe asleep so he had concluded that Soubi would do the same. And he hadn’t been wrong with that assumption since the fighter had planned on going as soon as he was sure that the boy was fast asleep but now of course he wouldn’t be able to do that.

He felt a bit guilty as he realized the reason why Seimei always left his brother after he had fallen asleep. That was usually when they would meet up for their spell battles. Soubi had found it a bit odd that Seimei would insist on meeting in the middle of the night rather than during the day but he figured that was because Seimei simply didn’t have the time since he had school and Ritsuka to worry about.

“I’m sorry, Ritsuka, I didn’t want to be mean,” he replied with a gentle tone of voice as he sat down on the floor with his back leaning against the bed, just a few inches away from Ritsuka. The remark about Soubi trying to play cruel tricks on him had hurt the fighter but he knew that was how small children saw the world and that trying to explain to Ritsuka why he had wanted to leave would be futile. The boy would probably be unable to really understand it and still insist that Soubi was a big ‘meanie’.

The fighter looked over the small child that was huddled on the floor. He looked cute with Soubi’s jacket wrapped around him like a blanket. Looking like this, it was painfully obvious just how young Ritsuka still was. Soubi didn’t want the boy to think badly about him and he also didn’t want to leave him all alone in this house without his mother. Even if she wouldn’t try to hurt him again Ritsuka would still be afraid and probably wouldn’t get any sleep.

“Seimei told me to leave as soon as possible. He didn’t want to alarm you, he thought you would be asleep,” he explained as he turned to face the boy, hoping that telling Ritsuka this would help the boy see things from Soubi’s perspective. Hopefully Seimei wouldn’t mind that he was telling Ritsuka that he had been the one to send Soubi to come over. “I didn’t want to go against his order”

Although, now that he thought about it, it hadn’t actually been an order and Ritsuka being awake did mean a change of plans. Since Seimei wasn’t here Soubi had to adapt to the situation and had to try and guess what his sacrifice would want him to do now. And from what he had seen of Seimei’s and Ritsuka’s situation he was pretty sure that his sacrifice would not want his little brother to spend the night sleepless and hurt, without someone to protect him.

“But I’m sure Seimei will understand that Ritsuka doesn’t want to stay alone. He would stay with you himself, if he could, you know that, right?”  

Even though Seimei was still a mystery to Soubi he was almost certain that his sacrifice would allow the breach in conduct, at least this time. And even if he didn’t, Soubi couldn’t bear the thought of leaving Ritsuka alone in this big house, without his father to shield him from any other outbursts his mother might have during the night. If Seimei would disapprove of Soubi’s actions the fighter would happily take the blame, just as long as he could be sure Ritsuka was safe. But something told him that Seimei would not be angry with him this time, if hopefully he would be allowed to explain the reasons for his decision.

Soubi leaned back against the bed. Almost instinctively now his hands went up to the bandages around his neck where his name was hidden, as if to silently ask for approval from his sacrifice. But of course he received no answer, the bond didn’t work like that and Seimei was probably already fast asleep by now. After a while of pondering how his sacrifice might react in the morning Soubi nodded. “Alright”

With a quick glance at Ritsuka he sat up and patted the bed. “If Ritsuka gets into bed I’ll promise to stay the whole night” Smiling, he added “I’ll just borrow a towel if Ritsuka doesn’t mind?”

Soubi smoothly stood up and went into Ritsuka’s bathroom. Guessing that the layout would be the same he opened an exact replica of the cabinet Seimei kept his towels in, only to find out that his assumption had been correct.

He pulled out one of the fluffy white towels and dried his hair with it. Afterwards he took off his shirt to dry his chest as well. Perhaps he could get his jacket back from Ritsuka so that he could wear that during the night. He doubted there were any clothes in the house that would fit him, with the exception of Seimei’s. But those would be a tight fit anyways and he just knew that wouldn’t go over well with his sacrifice.

His pants were still damp but Soubi didn’t have anything to change into so he would just have to stay in them. Maybe it would help him stay awake since he wasn’t planning on actually sleeping now that he was staying in Ritsuka’s room. He couldn’t even begin to imagine what Seimei would say should he – or even worse, his mother – find Soubi sleeping in his brother’s room.

Afterwards he joined Ritsuka back in the bedroom, his damp shirt still in his hands.  “Ready to sleep now?” he asked, smiling at the boy. 

[xraburesux]

It wasn't hard to guess what this man was going to do after Seimei had done it so many times before, he had just hopped that Soubi would be different and he wouldn't trick Ritsuka but he had gone and tried to do it anyway. Everyone seemed to try and do that and he didn't find it funny though they seemed to.

He didn't know why Seimei did it or where he went but he left when he said he would stay and it wans't fair. That was a lie and Seimei said lies were bad. He didn't get it he could lie to Ritsuka but Ritsuka wasn't allowed to lie? Seimei was confusing and mean sometimes, though he still loved his brother more than anything else in the world. He just wished Seimei wouldn't lie to him like Soubi. “Lying is bad Soubi.”

Seimei told him to leave? Why did that matter he could do what he wanted right? Didn't Ritsuka asking him to stay matter and all or was it only what his brother wanted? If Ritsuka asked Seimei he was sure his brother wouldn't mind him wanting Soubi to stay.

But if the man himself didn't want to stay then he didn't have to, he just had to say that and not lie to Ritsuka. There was a difference between tricking and just not wanting to do something. “If Soubi wants to go home he can, Ritsuka just doesn't want to be lied to.”

No tricking, it was cruel. Though the man had said he would stay if he gets in bed, how true was his words this time? Ritsuka didn't have many options left if the light was left on any longer he would get in trouble if his mother saw it.

When Soubi busied himself with the bathroom Ritsuka stood off of the floor and quietly slipped out of the room. As quickly as he could he hurried down to the laundry room and dug through a clean basket, returning to the room a few minutes later with some of his fathers clothes bundled in his arms. Their father was bigger than even Seimei so the clothe should fit Soubi and his mother wouldn't even notice they were gone, she wasn't that clever.

He handed the clothes to Soubi and crawled up into the bed, sitting against the wall as he waited for the other to change. “Their Daddy's don't worry. Seimei would be mad if you wore his own but you can wear Daddy's. They should fit you and even be a bit big.”

Soubi was a very tall individual but his father was for the most part as well, he was a Dad after all! So the clothes should work for him. “Daddy doesn't usually come home so it's okay if you borrow his clothes, he's not here to wear them anyway.” Ritsuka didn't even know when he might come back.

Sometimes he was gone for weeks at a time it all depended on what his father wanted to do and he was a very hard man to read and understand for the small four year old. Seimei said it was alright that he was just working but Ritsuka doubted that.

Seimei alone spent a lot of time out of the house and when Ritsuka wanted to go outside he couldn't, his mother didn't like it, she said it wasn't safe for someone his age. She was almost as confusing as everyone else but he didn't want to make her upset.

Upsetting his mother was bad. She was scary.

But he was tried of being inside the house all the time. Seimei tried to make up for it but when he had to be out he couldn't do anything. That was why Ritsuka was happy when Soubi came around, it was someone new that Ritsuka could play with.

Ritsuka didn't want him to lie though, he hated when people lied or forced themselves to do something they didn't want to do. That was why if Soubi wanted to leave he could, he just couldn't lie about it.

[soubi-agatsuma]

"You couldn't have known what would happen!"

Soubi mutely shook his head before letting it fall, his chin hitting his chest. He barely noticed the short, sharp pain as his hair fell forward, hiding most of his face.

“It’s my fault….I’m a tratior” He barely whispered, hoping Ritsuka wouldn’t catch what he was saying. 

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi smiled at his sacrifice’s flushed face. He knew that although Ritsuka had struggled in his arms he hadn’t been completely adverse to the kiss since he stayed in Soubi’s lap even after the fighter had let go off him. Soubi was used to Ritsuka always pretending to hate his advances so he was able to tell when the boy was really angry or not in the mood or when he was just putting up a front for appearance’s sake.

And Soubi didn’t mind that Ritsuka never returned his affections or said the words the fighter had told him for years now. He was sure it was still strange for Ritsuka to show affection, even after all of this time. And who could blame him, after all he had grown up with a distant father and an abusive mother. Even Seimei, who Soubi knew had loved his brother a lot, had not been with Ritsuka for long (at least not with the “new” Ritsuka) and had vanished when the boy had still been a child. So it was no wonder that Ritsuka always seemed a bit lost when Soubi started to hug or kiss him.

The fighter wasn’t worried that the kiss might have been unwelcomed; although Ritsuka hadn’t kissed back he had blushed almost immediately and closed his eyes. Sometimes his expression could tell Soubi so much more than his words and just then Ritsuka had looked content, even happy. Even now Ritsuka didn’t even scold him or look angry so Soubi was sure that Ritsuka had liked it, he just wouldn’t admit it.

And it wasn’t like Ritsuka didn’t know how to say “No” to him. He said it a lot of time, almost daily, in fact. Whenever Soubi asked for an order or for punishment his sacrifice’s expression would harden, his tail would lash angrily and he would tell Soubi off with a very stern “no”. Even with this Ritsuka had told him “no”, albeit indirectly. It was a gesture to let Soubi down easily, to tell him in a kind way that he had no intention of writing his name on the man, at least not the way Soubi wanted him to.

But even though it wasn’t the real thing and he knew it would eventually start to fade away Soubi liked the little symbol. It was Ritsuka’s way of promising him that they’d stay together, that the boy really considered him his fighter. He was willing to share a name with Soubi, but would do so on Ritsuka’s terms. He wouldn’t hurt him, not even if Soubi wanted it.

But that didn’t mean Soubi would stop trying to convince him to do so. He knew to Ritsuka the name wasn’t that much of a deal, he would probably never fully understand just how important it was to Soubi, even more so because he was born a blank fighter. And as long as Ritsuka didn’t make it an order Soubi would continue to ask him. But not today. For now, he was happy enough with the small doodle on his arm and he wasn’t ready to destroy the good mood between the two.

Soubi smiled as he watched Ritsuka take a photo of the name. The man liked the idea, to keep a memory of it. At least this way the name would stay permanently, even if it was just in a picture.

“But I want to thank Ritsuka because he has made me very happy today,” he replied as he reached up to pet one of the sacrifice’s cat ears.

[xraburesux]

He would not admit, he wouldn't, but he might have slightly enjoyed the kiss. Only slightly. The way it made him feel was still confusing, considering he still wasn't entirely sure what Soubi and him were, but it did in a way feel good. The closing of his eyes and coloring of his face was almost instinctual. It happened even if he didn't want it to at this point because he was so used to Soubi doing it and—sometimes he might even look forward to it.

He would never tell Soubi. He would sooner die than tell Soubi.

He could just see the look on his fighters face if he found that out. So smug and pleased that his head just might explode.

“Fine Soubi go ahead and do that then but I want to finish the painting so we can have pictures and then trash it.” There was no way this painting would ever see the light of day he was already embarrassed by it and they weren't even halfway done with it. His sun looked so funny and the clouds weren't even color right. It was only supposed to be fun though so he wasn't over worried about it, and it was serving it's purpose. He was having fun with this, a lot of fun and he hopped that Soubi was having fun as well, he seemed excited.

He finally got himself out of the others lap and knelt down in front of the painting again, grabbing the brush once more and resuming his painting of the sky. He got quite a bit of paint on the floor but as long as they cleaned it before it dried there wouldn't be a problem. Hardened paint was a pain to get off, his art teacher made that quite clear during their lessons. If you spilled paint you had to clean it up right away or struggle with it for hours later. Unless it was washable paint.  They made those for children so parents could get it out of clothes easily.

As the sky was finished Ritsuka did the water and helped Soubi with whatever else was left to do. Eventually the painting was finished perfectly and Ritsuka was completely covered in paint, along with Soubi's floor and part of the couch next to him. His cat ears twitched and knocked a few drips of paint off as he sat back on the floor, dropping the paint brush in the jar.

“Painting really is messy. See? This is why I thought there should be something under the canvas to catch the paint. I can help you clean up if you want.” Ritsuka stood off of the ground and tugged the apron off, folding it a few times and looking down at himself. Well, so much for the clean clothes he had on before.

“I think I might need to borrow one of your shirts to sleep in now...” They would both need a shower at this rate too.

[xraburesux]

"Rough Touch"

30. My muse breaks your muse’s arm. soubi-agatsuma

It hadbeen during school when he felt it, just like the Zero's had taughthim and told him he should be able to. When he was 12 he hadn't trulyfelt it as strongly as he did now; when Soubi activated the battlesystem. He wasn't supposed tofight without Ritsuka the other knew that and when he needed to hewas supposed to call Ritsukabut the sacrifice hadn't felt the tug of it. Unfortunately though,either way, with him sitting in class he couldn't just get up andleave to go find out what was happening though he felt like heshould.

Luckyfor them though it had been thee last class of the day and when thatfinal bell rang Ritsuka was up out of his desk and racing to leaveeven with Yuiko screaming for him to wait and what waswrong.

Evenwith the advancing of their bond and the growth in Ritsuka, findingSoubi was still a lot harder than it was supposed to be for anormal pair which lead to himwasting several minutes just chasing down where he thought the manwas. By the time he had already located where Soubi was and caught upto them, he was already mostly out of time.

Soubikneeling on the ground, completely out of breath and with the otherfighting pair just seeming to enjoywhatever torture they could inflict upon him. It was like every othertime the man tried to fight on his own, he simply couldn'tdo it and by now he should haveaccepted that.

Ritsukahated it when he did this, went off own his own like he was some oneman fighting machine who was as steady as a rock. Nothing worked theway he wanted it to and the more he tried to fight on his own themore he ended up like this, a complete mess on the ground lookinglike he was falling apart.

Thesacrifice ran to his fighters side and knelt down next to him,attempting to get Soubi to look at him before turning angry eyes tothe women. One of them was standing behind Soubi, a fistful of hishair in her hands and what looked like a dagger in the other. Theyseemed alarmed almost that Ritsuka had appeared but he didn't movefrom his spot on the ground next to Soubi.

Theone in front of him, he assumed she was the fighter and the one whostayed in the correct spot on the other side of the field had to bethe sacrifice. It only seemed right since the one holding onto Soubiwas taking orders from the second girl.

“Lethim go!” His demands were met with a simple laugh, the girlsseeming to have no problems with the fact that they were practicallycrushing Soubi and cutting him to ribbons. One of them even dared tobring the knife to the back of Soubi's neck and slowly draw a singlecut along it, making the fighter flinch.

Ritsuka'steeth clenched tightly and he tugged his fighters closer, attemptingto reach around him to make a grab for the knife but the blade waspulled back quickly, leaving a nice cut along his palm.

Whatwas he going to do? Soubi seemed to barely be hanging ontoconsciousness and was clearly in no position to fight. Ritsuka wasn'ta fighter and running clearly didn't seem to be an option with howheavy Soubi was.

“We'lllet you go, Loveless.” It was the other girl this time, thesacrifice. She had appeared out of nowhere almost, standing behindhim and wrapping her arms around his neck. He instantly tried toshake her off of him, glaring over his shoulder as she continued totalk. “If you disciplethis bad fighter ofyours. He broke several rules, battling alone and not even botheringto call for you. A dog that betrays it's master should be handled...appropriately.”

Thesepeople were sadists! Actually it seemed like everyonewho partook in these battleswere. He hated it, he hated fighting, he hated causing pain and thelast thing he wanted to do was hurt Soubi when he was already in somuch pain. “I won't hurt Soubi!” It was unfair, everything hadbeen quite for so long and now it seemed they were right back towhere they were when he was twelve. People always came to fight thembut not nearly as much as in the past and those that did werepractically just children still in training.The fights always ended so quickly but now he felt trappedpinned down by needles forsomeone to poke at and enjoy watching them squirm. Likebutterflies.

“Ah-ahLoveless be carefulwho you are talking to.” The sacrifice girl raised her eyes to lookto her partner and the female fighter yanked Soubi's head back withher hand that held his hair and then placed the blade against histhroat.

A waveof panic over took Ritsuka and he instantly moved to help but theblade was just pressed tighter, freezing him in his place. Again,those arms returned around his neck and the girl seemed to almostplay with his skin asher fingers danced along his chest and she whispered.“You deny me again and I'll have my fighter slit yours throat. Howwould that be for a punishment? Go on, make him feel painmake him regret over stepping you.Break his arm or something.”

Break his arm.She made it sound so easy, like causing someone pain was as simple asblinking. Like it wouldn't shatter her if she ran her blade alongsomeones throat. Maybe it wouldn't, maybe they really did find it soeasy and Ritsuka was just weirdbut the thought of breaking Soubi's arm—the image of him justtelling Ritsuka it was alrightand it would healnearly made him want to vomit.

Butthe thought of watching as someone cut his neck and left him there tobleed—that was worse than anything else. He would never forgivehimself for causing Soubi pain, and maybe it was for a selfishreason, but he also didn't want the man to leave him.He wasn't ready, he wanted Soubi to stay by his side. Even if it wasonly to say I love youtill the sacrifices ears fell off.

As thewoman released him Ritsuka's head fell, knocking his hair in front ofhis face and the boy felt a few tearsdrip down his cheeks despite his effort to hold him back. Would Soubiforgive him for this? He didn't want to do it, he really didn't wantto but he was really left with no choice. One wrong move and thatblade would cut and kill a person important to him. Bones would heal,death was permanent. “I'm sorry, Soubi.” Was his words heard? Hewasn't even sure if he saidthem.

Theteen moved a bit closer to the older man and reached his arms out,gently taking one of Soubi's and holding it in his hands. His fingersslowly danced along the skin, pulling Soubi's jacket sleeve back toget access to the rest of it. How was he going to do this? He neverthought about it before, never even consideredbreaking someones arm before.

Itseemed the answer was already there for him as the sacrifice girlagain appeared, holding out a hammerfor him. Of all the ways they wanted him to smashSoubi's arm. They very well might as well smash his heart along withit since when he was done all that would be left of it was piecesanyway.

For asplit second when taking that hammer from her, he felt like hismother. She had come after him with worse but at least he couldalways move a bit and miss it or at least move and avoid a horriblydeadly blow. Soubi... Soubi couldn't even move an inch or that knifewould kill him.

Backat the school when he felt the other enter a battle he had beenplanning all the ways he could yellat him, now all he was doing was thinking of all the ways he couldmake this up to Soubi.

Hishand felt sweaty and shaky gripping that hammer. He tried to stop itand get himself together but the more he thought about what he wasabout to do, really do, the more the tears fell and his hand shook.He could feel a sob growing in his chest and he tried to remindhimself that if he didn't put enough force behind the hammer itwouldn't do the job and he would have to hit Soubi again.

Thefirst time it had to be right, the quicker it was done the quickerthe pain would go away. At least, that was what he wanted to believe.It had been that way when Misaki broke his arm. Though his mother—shehad done it by yanking his arm behind his back, probably easier forher and maybe an accident. This—this was on purposeand the thought was sickening to him.

Hecould tell the girls were starting to grow impatient so Ritsukadecided now was the best time to move before they killed Soubi out ofboredom. He placed themans arm on the ground and again ran his fingers over the skin,slightly doing it to pick the best spot with a bone that was perhapsa bit thinner and easier for him to do. Eventually he stopped andgripped the hammer tightly in his hand, raising it above his head andtaking a deep breath.

Thefirst hit held as much force as the boy could manage to muster in thesituation and the sickening sound of the cracknearly drew Ritsuka to the edge. As soon as it was over the hammerwas tossed from his hand and the gripped his stomach, turning hishead to the side as he coughed up everything that had been slowlybuilding in his stomach.

Thesounds of the girls laughingmade him wish they were mute, the sound make him feel even moresick as the just enjoyed whatthey had done. The fighting barriers dropped and they stepped over toRitsuka, the sacrifice girl kneeling down in front of him andgrabbing his face. “You're weak.Your team is a joke.”

Withtheir enjoyment filled and the situation resolved, they left the twoboys there alone with a promise to come back again.

Ritsukasat there for a few seconds, almost afraid to lookat Soubi and what he had done, but when he found the strength to moveagain he was right next to Soubi's side and trying to pull thefighter against his chest as he frantically searched for his phone.

Hecalled Kio, the only option he could think to do and in a matter ofmoments the man was there demanding to know what happened. It wasmaybe guilt that drove him to but he completely spilled the truth tothe other man, all the while trying his best to not sobas they got Soubi to the taxi. The tears though were perhaps the onlything that didn't make Kio outright hate himfor smashing Soubi's arm.

Ritsukathough---almost wished the man had screamed at him. He felt horribleand simply looking at Soubi's arm made him want to get sick again.

Becauseof Kio's demands they had actually ended up at the hospital, a brokenarm far to much for the man to fix himself, especially when it wassmashed with a hammer. The trip took several hours and when theyfinally were back at his house Kio went to make soup while Ritsukagot Soubi into bed. The sacrifice had the other lay down beforesitting on the floor next to his bed, the boys legs drawn tightlyagainst his chest as he stared at his knees.

Hewould... find a way to make it up to Soubi. Somehow, someway, hewould do it.

[memeroundups]

Send ‘rough touch’

and the generated outcome will be used for a small drabble scenario or starter { tw violence, possible noncon/dubcon implications, nsfw }

Your muse throws a punch at mine.

My muse throws a punch at yours.

Your muse suddenly grips my muse’s hair.

My muse suddenly grips your muse’s hair.

Your muse roughly grabs my muse’s arm.

My muse roughly grabs your muse’s arm.

Your muse grips my muse’s hips.

My muse grips your muse’s hips.

Your muse wraps their hands tightly around my muse’s neck.

My muse wraps their hands tightly around your muse’s neck.

Your muse slams mine against a wall hard.

My muse slams yours against a wall hard.

Your muse pushes my muse to their knees.

My muses pushes your to their knees.

Your muse bites mine.

My muse bites yours.

Your muse clutches their hand tightly around my muse’s mouth to silence them.

My muse clutches their hand tightly around your muse’s mouth to silence them.

Your muse grabs my muse’s wrists.

My muse grabs their muse’s wrists.

Your muse attempts to shove away mine.

My muse attempts to push off yours.

Your muse roughly kisses mine.

My muse roughly kisses yours.

Your muse pins mine onto the ground.

My muse pins yours to the ground.

Your muse delivers beatings to mine.

My muse delivers beatings to yours.

Your muse breaks my muse’s arm.

My muse breaks your muse’s arm.

Mun chooses. 

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi had tried to stay calm as he had cleaned the slash on Ritsuka’s arm so he wouldn’t make a mistake or hurt the boy more than he had to but it was hard to ignore the suppressed sounds of pain the child emitted every time Soubi had to clean out a new shard of glass. He knew how painful it must be to Ritsuka but he had to do it, he couldn’t let the slash get infected.

The fighter sighed in relief as he put the basket with supplies behind the foot of the bed. He intended to take them with him when he left so he could put them back into Seimei’s bathroom.

Soubi tried to stay upbeat for Ritsuka’s sake but it was hard especially since he couldn’t help but think about what Misaki had done. It had shocked him when the boy had revealed that his father hadn’t even been there to try and stop his wife. The man had simply left his youngest son to deal with his unstable mother on his own. Soubi couldn’t understand how the mind of that man worked that he was able to do something like that.

“Ritsuka has been very brave,” he said, trying to cheer the sniffling boy up. Soubi wished he had some sort of treat to offer to the boy, candy or something similar but since he didn’t he had to rely on his words. “I’m very proud of you. And I’m sure Seimei would be as well, if he was here”

Now that Ritsuka’s wound was dressed Soubi wanted to approach the next issue. “Have you eaten dinner?” He guessed that getting attacked by his own mother at the table would have probably hindered Ritsuka’s chance at getting a good meal. He wasn’t sure what he would do if the boy was hungry, maybe try to steal downstairs and get something from the fridge.

He sighed as Ritsuka begged him to stay. He couldn’t, he simply couldn’t. Seimei had told him to leave after making sure Ritsuka was alright. It hadn’t been an order per se but he couldn’t anger his sacrifice yet again. It wasn’t the pain that might follow Seimei’s anger, it was knowing he had failed and disappointed his sacrifice that hurt Soubi.

Back with Ritsu he had always been able to anticipate what the man wanted from him but with Seimei he couldn’t always be sure. Sometimes the boy lashed out seemingly without a reason. Soubi wanted to understand why he had upset him but Seimei never explained. Ritsu would have told him what he had done wrong but Seimei often wanted to make him guess or simply left him in the dark for his own amusement. It was confusing. He didn’t even know how literal he should take orders. Sometimes he was chastised when he followed them word for word, other times he was accused of disobedience when he didn’t. Maybe with time it would become easier to judge Seimei’s desires without the boy having to explicitly tell him but at the moment he simply did not know whether Seimei would approve of him staying with Ritsuka or if he would prefer Soubi left.

 “I’m sorry, Ritsuka, I can’t” It pained him to disappoint the boy, almost as much as it pained him to disappoint his sacrifice. But he couldn’t stay, he still needed to go back and make sure that Seimei’s room was spotless before he left.

Soubi’s hair and clothes were still damp, he would get water all over Ritsuka’s floor should he stay and he wasn’t sure if it wouldn’t stain the carpet. He knew most people wouldn’t be able to spot a water stain but Seimei wasn’t like most people and he would definitely notice.

 But he also didn’t want to upset the boy even further, he knew how scared and alone Ritsuka had to feel, especially in the state he was in and without his brother to comfort and protect him. Maybe he could stay with him, at least until Ritsuka fell asleep and then try to sneak out?

He nodded reluctantly, unsure what Seimei would say to his decision. Should he tell his sacrifice about this change of plan? Soubi didn’t want Ritsuka to get in trouble but he hoped Seimei would not be upset with his brother. The fighter was slowly starting to accept their bond so Soubi no longer wanted to keep anything from Seimei. He didn’t want to keep any secrets since he knew Seimei was entitled to know everything his fighter thought and did and Soubi had been raised to accept that fact. The fighter didn’t want to betray the bond, not even indirectly. But he could insist on taking the blame for this, he would defend Ritsuka in front of Seimei should his brother become angry with him (even though Soubi doubted that it would come to that).

“Alright, if Ritsuka wants me to then I’ll stay,” he finally said, having made his decision.

“But first we have to change Ritsuka’s sheets,” he added with another glance at the red spot now almost completely hidden by the covers. Soubi got up from his crouch on the floor and crossed the room to open the closet, guessing that the sheets were kept there. At least he knew that Seimei kept his in his own closet since he had seen them when Seimei had opened his closet to get the plastic wrap and blankets during their first meeting.

Soubi was glad to see his guess had been correct. He pulled out a new set of sheets before approaching the bed again. He gently lifted Ritsuka off it, then made the bed. Once he was done he flipped back the blanket and gestured for Ritsuka to slip in with a small smile.

“Get in, I’ll tell you a bedtime story”

[xraburesux]

Make the bed? Ritsuka just wanted to sleep and spend time with Soubi as best as he could. The other had already been here for about an hour the big hand on the clock had moved once while he was here because of how long it took to clean and bandage his arm. Making the bed would just take away from the time he had left to spend with Soubi.

Because apparently he wasn't staying, which when the words were said completely crushed the young boys heart and made him want to cry.

It didn't matter how happy Soubi tried to stay the fact he wasn't going to stay and keep the childs mind off of the fact that he had several more hours alone with his mother. Maybe the older he got the easier it would be to be alone with her but right now he was barely the height of her legs let alone tall enough to withstand most of what she threw at him. Lamps were as big as his head, the table was large enough to completely crush him. Knives were terrifying hacksaws.

Ritsuka was scared and he didn't want to be alone, despite the brave front he had force to put up when Seimei left. He would be alright, he had assured his brother, but deep down he was shaking and wishing he was not alone.

He was only four, and being alone was like being shut in a dark room with nothing to guide him about and he was reaching out for something to grasp and that person happened to be Soubi because he was the only one else in the house. And now, now he wanted the man to stay and never leave his side though the other said he couldn't stay.

What was he going to do after Soubi left? The other said he was proud of him for being so strong but was he really? He didn't feel strong, he felt small and scared and he wanted to crawl up under his bed and wait for Seimei to come home because Soubi couldn't stay. He needed someone, he needed something.

As he was moved from the bed when Soubi returned from the closet Ritsuka reluctantly sat down on the floor and pulled his knees to his chest, the others coat draped over his head and completely covering his entire body. He could smell Soubi on it, whatever sort of perfume or cologne the other used, and it smelled nice. It was oddly comforting, reassuring in a way that even if Soubi left he would be alright. The other would come back again, wouldn't he? It took so long for the other to come back after the first time and Ritsuka felt sad, lonely in a way even though Seimei was right there. When the other had to go somewhere or go help with his mother, Ritsuka sat alone in the room and it was so empty and sad. He wanted his friend to come back so they could play games and keep the fun still going even though the sad.

“I don't want you to leave.” The question of food was completely ignored as the sad words left the boy, still sitting on the floor even as the other finished making the bed and told him to get into it. Ritsuka wasn't stupid. Seimei pulled the same trick.

He would get into bed, the story would be told and then when he fell asleep they would leave. Seimei did it when he wanted to sneak out at night to go somewhere and Ritsuka didn't want to be alone. He thought just because the boy was asleep everything was fine.

His mother would get up in the middle of the night or very early morning and when she couldn't get into his room she would bang on the door and scream. Ritsuka would always wake up alone and it would be terrifying.

He didn't want to be alone so why couldn't Soubi just stay? If he didn't go to sleep the man couldn't leave right? If he kept his eyes open Soubi wouldn't go anywhere because Ritsuka would see it. Though he was tired, very tired if he stayed awake everything would be alright. His mother had gone to bed after Ritsuka managed to escape her, that was a while ago she would be waking up soon after he medicine wore off and would either to laundry or prepare breakfast. Though it was nowhere near time for breakfast, the big hand was only one point past the top number, right on the big 1. Her sleeping patterns were weird because she slept whenever the medicine kicked in which was usually after dinner around the big number 6.

It was hard for Ritsuka to tell when she would get up because of that. But usually it was near the time Seimei would leave for school which was very early morning. If he was actually home that night sometimes he didn't come home but he would usually tell Ritsuka.

“You won't actually stay.” The words were muttered into his knees as the boy continued to sulk into his pajamas. Still not looking at the older boy.

“I won't go to bed unless you actually stay it's not fair if you leave when I fall asleep. You and Seimei are mean, tricking me is cruel.” Where did Seimei even go when he tricked Ritsuka? He never said and when Ritsuka incessantly asked he would get angry. But he wanted to know it wasn't fair of his brother to keep secrets Seimei wouldn't let him!

“Big meanie.” Yes, that was what Soubi was, a tease and a meanie. Though he was nice enough to treat Ritsuka's wounds he completely ruined it by trying to trick the child. One that would not work but an attempt either way.

[soubi-agatsuma]

"You couldn't have known what would happen!"

Soubi mutely shook his head before letting it fall, his chin hitting his chest. He barely noticed the short, sharp pain as his hair fell forward, hiding most of his face.

“It’s my fault….I’m a tratior” He barely whispered, hoping Ritsuka wouldn’t catch what he was saying. 

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi watched the shocked expression on Ritsuka’s face with a satisfied smirk. It was clear that his sacrifice hadn’t expected him to actually retaliate. But Soubi didn’t mind playing that little game, it was childish but he enjoyed it. It was something he would have never dared do with Seimei, getting paint on any part of his old sacrifice’s body (or even his furniture) and the thought of doing such a silly thing with either him or Ritsu was too strange to even consider. He and Ritsuka really shared a special bond, a relationship he had never had with another person, where he could do something so useless and childish as to paint little hearts on someone’s cheek but Soubi found he rather liked it.

It was incredibly messy and Soubi would have to scrub the floors afterwards so it would look clean enough. For Seimei, the fighter realized. Despite the fact that that man would probably never enter through his front door ever again Soubi still always considered him whenever he thought about the apartment.

Maybe….Maybe he should keep the floor as it is, just for a day or two. It felt like an act of rebellion, although he knew it was too small a thing to be considered such and if he had told Ritsuka the boy would have probably furrowed his brows and told him he was stupid for leaving the paint to dry and that it would be so much harder to clean later. But Soubi didn’t care. Eventually he knew he would be scrubbing the floor the exact same way Seimei had told him to do it but he would try to hold it off, even if he would only manage it for a day.

Soubi watched as his sacrifice moved again, he was mixing the paints until he had a vivid pink color, then he grabbed Soubi’s arm and the fighter watched as Ritsuka began to write on it.

As soon as he recognized the “L” Soubi’s pulse sped up. At the second letter the fighter was certain he knew what his sacrifice was trying to do. He felt a rush of joy and affection for the boy in front of him. It moved him, that Ritsuka would be willing to write his name on him, even if they both knew that it wasn’t permanent and meaningless for their bond.

But it wasn’t for Soubi. The gesture alone was enough to make him want to hold the boy and never let go. His grin had transformed into a genuine happy smile.

When Ritsuka was finished Soubi looked at the name on his arm, as if transfixed, watching it slowly dry.

He chuckled at his sacrifice’s comment. Soubi knew how much it bothered Ritsuka whenever he asked for his name.  “Now that Ritsuka has written the name it will forever be in my soul”  

He could feel the presence of their bond; it was pulsating and whispering words of affection in the back of his mind. Had it grown stronger? Maybe Soubi had imagined it but in that moment he didn’t care that their bond would never be as thick as Seimei’s had been, he believed it would be enough. It simply had to be.

His gaze was still on the new name as his sacrifice added another thing to his arm. The little duck was cute, so much like his adorable sacrifice and beside it was the butterfly Ritsuka had caught.  Soubi knew Ritsuka would never say it out loud but as he saw the little painting the fighter hoped it was a quiet promise, that his sacrifice had expressed something with this he would never be able to put into words.

Not wanting to let Ritsuka get back to their painting ad pretend nothing had happened just yet Soubi tugged on his arm so that the boy fell into his lap and kissed him chastely on the lips.

“Thank you, Ritsuka” For once, he left off his customary I love you and instead just hugged his sacrifice.

[xraburesux]

It had been a symbol more than anything else. A meaning that he recognized Soubi's wants and desires and that he would meet him halfway if he could. Soubi was important to him even if he wouldn't say it out loud for the other, he mattered more than Soubi could understand and he wanted to give the man everything he wanted—he simply couldn't the way Soubi wanted it. Pain was never something he would ever cause on another person, much less Soubi who had seen and felt far to much of it in his existence. Koi made that painfully clear to Ritsuka despite Soubi's wants for the man to keep his mouth shut in the sacrifices presence.

Soubi he painted the name on Soubi, it wouldn't last and it would do nothing for the others in regard to their bond but it was still something. It held a meaning, a special meaning that he was sure the man understood despite his outright blind joy that the name was written on his arm. Pure, strange blind joy to Ritsuka.

How could something so small make someone so happy? He didn't get it though the point of the doodle was to make Soubi happy.

It was just that though, a doodle.

As the other managed to knock him back into his arms Ritsuka instantly started to fight back, attempting to turn and crawl his ways out of the others arms and get back over to his spot but unfortunately, his efforts were in vain and his lips ended up being grabbed by the others.

Ritsuka's face instantly highlighted a few shades of red and he tried to pull his head away, not give in to the soft yet... oddly pleasant feeling it gave him. He could feel his heart and stomach do those—strange feelings again and before he could try and assets what was happening the kiss was broken and Ritsuka was left sitting in the others lap completely red faced.

“It's not a big deal, you're over thinking it.” Maybe or he was overreacting. Ritsuka had tried to do other sweet things for the man but it always ended up like this. Soubi so incredibly happy and wanting to cuddle the life out of him. The omelet was the best example he could think of, Soubi had ate it even if it wasn't very good and he was so excited.

It seemed small things that Ritsuka did always managed to make the other happy, maybe because they weren't painful they were just---happy.

As best as he could Ritsuka sat up and reached next to Soubi, grabbing his camera from the floor before leaning back into the other.

He clicked it on and checked the memory, deleting the photos he remembered printing and having on his wall before turning the lens down and aiming it at the mans arm.

He took a few pictures of the word loveless on Soubi before adjusting himself in the mans lap and then turning the camera to face the both of them. He let Soubi have his fun as he took the first few memories of their evening together before turning the camera off and placing it back down on the ground beside the both of them.

“Even if the words will wash off now you have a memory that they were there, and you better not forget it I don't want you asking me to write it on you anymore.” He had no reason to, right? It seemed that way to Ritsuka even if it wasn't exactly what Soubi wanted it was as close as he might get to getting it and Ritsuka was content with painting it on the man. This was—surprisingly fun for him, he was having a great time.

It was silly and childish but it was also fun, and Soubi seemed to be feeling the same about it all. Fun was hard to come by for the both of them sometimes.

“You don't need to thank me, Soubi.”

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi listened as the small child told him about his time without Seimei, all the while petting his hair to encourage him to go on. It was almost instinctive and Soubi hadn’t even noticed he had begun to do so.

He knew he shouldn’t feel thankful that Ritsuka was awake and that he got to talk to the boy but Soubi was. It was better to hear from Ritsuka himself if he was hurt or needed help. Soubi doubted he could have been able to see any smaller injuries had Ritsuka been asleep and wrapped up in a blanket.

At the mention of Misaki’s outburst Soubi’s arms tightened around the boy and he felt a surge of anger at the woman, like every time she was mentioned in his presence. How despicable, a mother who would hurt her children… Soubi didn’t understand how she could harm her own flesh and blood like that. He just hoped that her newest tantrum hadn’t led to any more injuries on Ritsuka’s part. He could still remember the nasty cut on the boy’s forehead the day they had first met and it still made his stomach turn at the memory.

Another thought occurred to the fighter and he furrowed his brow. Hadn’t Seimei said his father was supposed to stay with Ritsuka and his mother tonight?

“Did your father stop her?” he asked gently. Had the man been out or had he simply not done anything when Misaki had begun to throw dishes? Soubi honestly didn’t know which answer he would fear more.

When Ritsuka began to fidget in his arms Soubi let go, about to ask whether the child was hurt but then his hand was taken and Ritsuka tugged him along.

Soubi followed him as they headed for Ritsuka’s own bedroom, wondering whether it was a good idea to do so. Seimei had told him to make sure Ritsuka was alright and then to leave, quickly.

But if the child was hurt in any way Soubi couldn’t just leave him and wait until Seimei came over. The fighter was good at dealing with injuries, he knew what needed to be done and he was quick. And Ritsuka had done such a good job of taking care of him when he had been hurt that Soubi felt the need to return the favor in any way.

They stepped into the boy’s bedroom and Ritsuka let go off his hand as he wandered off to turn on the lights. The first thing Soubi saw after getting used to the sudden brightness was a bandage on the boy’s arm. Was it a new one?

Before he could ask Ritsuka handed him a piece of paper before climbing unto his bed.

“Ritsuka,” Soubi spoke up, then his gaze fell on the slip of paper he had been handed. It was a drawing. Two stick figures in front of what appeared to be a TV. The fighter looked up again, then approached the bed and knelt in front of Ritsuka, gently hugging him again. Soubi had almost forgotten about their little bet and either way he wouldn’t have expected that Ritsuka would really draw something for him. It moved him a lot that the boy had remembered. “Thank you so much. It’s beautiful” He drew back from the embrace and smiled. “I’ll put it up over my bed. Would Ritsuka like that?”

That’s when Soubi saw it, as his gaze fell down. A red spot on the bed sheet, partially hidden by the covers. So the injury was indeed a fresh one. The fighter felt a wave of nausea overtake him, although he usually didn’t react to the sight of blood. He figured it wasn’t so much the blood itself that made him feel sick, rather it was knowing who that blood belonged to. The more he got to know about Misaki the more he came to think of her as a monster. Certainly no human being would be capable of hurting a child like that.

“Ritsuka, may I see your arm?” he asked as he put the drawing on Ritsuka’s nightstand. He needed to see the severity of the injury for himself. Taking Ritsuka’s arm he gently pulled up the sleeves of the boy’s shirt. The bandages were already bloody so Soubi slowly unwrapped them.

The sight of the wound made him draw in a sharp breath. A very long slash trailed along Ritsuka’s arm. What had that woman done? Was it a knife wound?

But inspecting it closely he realized that it probably hadn’t been a knife. The cut wasn’t neat enough for that and it was shallower then he had previously thought. He could also see tiny pieces of glass still in the wound. “I need Ritsuka to hold that arm still,” he mumbled. Soubi looked around the room. They would definitely need to change the sheets, preferably before Seimei could get any chance to see them.

He was looking for a towel but he couldn’t find any in the room so he shrugged of his own jacket and lay it over Ritsuka’s lap so his pajamas wouldn’t get bloody. The jacket was still a bit damp but it was better than Ritsuka having to throw away his pants.

“You did a good job, Ritsuka,” he said, trying to comfort the boy. He felt sick at the thought that Ritsuka had needed to learn how to do this in the first place. “But we have to clean the wound again, alright?”

He stood up again and tried to stay quiet as he made his way back to Seimei’s bathroom, looking for the basket with the first-aid supplies. He found them in the same place Ritsuka had put them after his last visit. Soubi quickly took them and went back to the boy’s room.

Once there he knelt back down and looked at the wound again. “It may sting a bit, but you have a few shards in there that need to get out or else the wound may get infected” Soubi remembered the one and only time he had gotten an infection. It had been incredibly painful so he knew that the slight sting of the disinfectant was preferable to having to suffer through that.

He put some of the solution on a cotton ball and gently dabbed around the wound, then he rummaged through the basket for a pair of tweezers.

“I’ll try to be careful, tell me if it hurts too much,” he mumbled. It took a long time until all of the impossibly small shards of glass were cleaned out. Afterwards, Soubi dabbed around the wound again with the cotton ball and wrapped a new bandage around Ritsuka’s arm.

“Done,” he announced as he leaned back, putting everything back into the basket. “Now, doctor, what is your assessment? Did I do well?” he asked jokingly.  

Now the only thing left to do was to change the sheets.

[xraburesux]

“Daddy wasn't here.” Ritsuka finally answered, flinching and trying to dug his arm away gently when the older boy brought out the cleaning supplies. It hurt enough the first time and he had done the wound to the best of his ability. Why did Soubi want to make more pain?

Either he hadn't cleaned it well enough or there was still something in it because Soubi looked quite concerned. Reluctantly he let the boy take his arm and start to clean it again, flinching and tears building in his eyes throughout the entire processes.

Though, the removing of the glass was the worst part.

Ritsuka tried his best to not cry but at some point a small choked sob tumbled from his lips and the child gripped the sheet below him so as to not jerk his arm away and make it worse than it already was.

Soubi might have been gentle but it still hurt a lot and Ritsuka didn't like pain, just like he told Soubi no one really liked pain—not even his mother.

She was a good woman, Ritsuka loved her a lot she was his mother she just got a little upset today. Ritsuka should have chosen his words better he didn't think them through correctly and as such, she got mad. She told him if Seimei didn't come home then it was his fault just like it was his fault his father never came home. If that was true... he didn't know what he was doing wrong. Did he upset his father?

Seimei said their father had to work a lot, Ritsuka thought that was why the man didn't come home. If he could change something about himself to bring his father back of course he would but Ritsuka couldn't effect something out of his control. His mother would never lie though.

He wanted to help he just didn't know how.

When Soubi was finally finished Ritsuka took his arm back and held it against his chest, nodding his head as he whipped his eyes with his good arm. He was alright but he had been fine before. Now his arm hurt and gave a pulse like it had a heartbeat. It hurt, but he wasn't thinking about how hungry he was anymore. It was like his hunger was replaced with pain.

“I'm sleepy, is Soubi going to stay the night with me?” He wouldn't mind sharing his bed with the other, actually he didn't want him to leave it felt nicer with Soubi around. He was warm and friendly like Seimei but with something else about him. Ritsuka wasn't quite sure what it was. “You should stay.”

Ritsuka tugged the others jacket closer to him and cuddled it against his chest, further trying to prove his point that Soubi should stay with him. Seimei couldn't come home and the house was scary with only his mother in it. He knew she couldn't get in the room but she liked to bang on it when that was the case. Her screaming was... terrifying to say the least.

You would think it would wake the entire town but the neighbors don't even bat an eye at it anymore. Seimei said at one point they used to come over and complain but when Ritsuka turned two they stopped. He didn't know why they just stopped caring.

None of them even batted an eye or asked about his injuries anymore. Occasionally, those who were not in the neighborhood would ask and they could see someone who was turn their head away as if completely ignoring the conversation.

Their reactions confused Ritsuka to no end. Their mother didn't mean to hurt him, he was sure of it accidents happened and he could heal himself perfectly fine.

That still though, didn't change the fact that she scared Ritsuka. If the glass cut any deeper he was sure he would have needed a hospital trip. He hated going there they always asked far to many questions and even more when Ritsuka was so young because to them it seemed near impossible he should get wounds like these.

Seimei said no one would understand their mother so it was always best to remain silent when going to the hospital to get patched up and he should only go when it was an emergency. Little wounds he had to learn to treat and fix himself it was safer that way.

“Seimei won't be home to afternoon tomorrow. So won't Soubi stay with me?” They wouldn't hurt anything and his brother didn't have to know if that was what the older boy was worried about. Soubi would just have to leave before Seimei got back and that would be easy.

[soubi-agatsuma]

"You couldn't have known what would happen!"

Soubi mutely shook his head before letting it fall, his chin hitting his chest. He barely noticed the short, sharp pain as his hair fell forward, hiding most of his face.

“It’s my fault….I’m a tratior” He barely whispered, hoping Ritsuka wouldn’t catch what he was saying. 

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi watched in bemusement as Ritsuka stood up from the couch and put on one of his aprons before sitting down in the spot the fighter had previously vacated, the still blank canvas in front of him. 

Soubi knew Ritsuka wasn’t very interested in painting, at least he had never shown any ambitions to learn it and he had never asked the fighter to teach him so it was surprising to watch as his sacrifice picked up one of Soubi’s own brushes.

Ritsuka wanted to paint a duck. The idea was a cute one, Soubi thought. Now that he had realized his sacrifice’s intent he smiled and sat down on the floor beside him, cross-legged. Soubi never got to see any of the paintings Ritsuka had to do for school so he was looking forward to seeing what the finished painting would look like.

The fighter didn’t care whether it would turn out good or bad, it was a memory as Ritsuka would probably call it and that would make it invaluable to him.

He watched as his sacrifice started to draw a sun in the corner of the canvas. It did look childish but Soubi liked the simple and naïve-looking style of it. It made him happy to see a painting that was so different from the professionally done ones he saw at university.

Next, Ritsuka added a sky and some clouds. Soubi already found it very charming. Now the camera made much more sense. Ritsuka probably wanted to take a photo of it so that Soubi would have something to remember today by. The fighter figured that Ritsuka would probably want to keep the painting for himself, once it was finished.

When Ritsuka lay down his brush Soubi dipped his own in blue paint and started to draw a small butterfly onto the canvas.  He hated them, he really did. He hated their beauty, their fragility and how easy they were pinned down. Butterflies were truly useless and weak creatures. And they reminded him of himself.

It had been far too easy for people to catch him and pin him down. First, Ritsu, then Seimei and even Ritsuka, they had all managed to pin him down and he had been unable to resist.

Although, Soubi though, he hadn’t minded being caught by Ritsuka. He looked over to his sacrifice, almost smiling. Ritsuka didn’t seem to mind how similar Soubi was to the butterflies he so often drew when he was stressed out or scared.  He always told him that he found them beautiful and despite his own hatred for them Soubi had also felt relieved to hear his sacrifice say that.

Soubi paused and looked up as Ritsuka spoke up again. There was a mischievous look in his eye but before he could ask what his sacrifice had meant by that remark he felt a brush against his cheek. He blinked in shock and reached up, touching wet paint.

Then he broke into a smile. “Now, Ritsuka, the canvas is down there….” He raised his own brush with a smug grin. “But if you insist…. Two can play this game” And with that he painted a little heart on Ritsuka’s cheek.

[xraburesux]

He was actually a bit shocked, Ritsuka had bot thought Soubi would do it back. Had it been Seimei—well if it was Seimei they wouldn't even be painting.

Seimei thought paint was to dirty to be messed with, Ritsuka wasn't even allowed it as a kid because his brother claimed it would get everywhere and would be near impossible to clean up. He wasn't completely wrong but he exaggerated a bit.

Ritsuka was a child like any kid he wanted to paint, color, draw and have fun but his brother put it down so much his desire to please him outweighed any other desire to have fun with the colorful items and as a result the only time he touched them was for school. Which was a shame considering Yuiko made it sound so much fun.

Normal kids made pictures for their parents and their parents hung them on the fridge. Normal kids covered themselves in paint and had fun.

How was he pretending to be one of them when everything they did he had never even considered? His bother encouraged clean activities which was usually video games or reading a book. He liked Seimei reading to him but it wasn't really normal at the age he was.

Soubi didn't seem to really have much of a normal childhood either but at the very least this part of his life, painting and coloring, seemed to be normal till Seimei got involved. Was Soubi messy when he painted before? Did he get it all over the floor and then train himself to keep it clean because of his brother? He wouldn't put it past Seimei.

As the heart was drawn on his face Ritsuka grabbed the brush again and made pink from red and white before dripping it in the paint. Ritsuka then, took the others arm and very neatly with the cursive he was taught in school, wrote the work Loveless on Soubi's arm. There, that was what he wanted right? He said he wanted Ritsuka to write Loveless on him, and now he did it.

“Now you can't say 'I need to write it on you', it's clearly on you now Soubi.” It might not be perminant but his name is on the man.

It was childish, maybe, but the small smile that was present on the teens face showed he held no malace toward the words at all. He had done it simply and only with the intention of making Soubi happy. There wasn't any violence, no blood, no pain, the words were put on him cleanly and with a gentle touch from a brush. Ritsuka was content he didn't want to hurt Soubi.

The pink was exchanged for yellow and again the boy took Soubi's arm, drawing a little duck at the end of the word, though it might have accidentally looked like a yellow chicken from how poorly Ritsuka was able to draw. At least his hand writing was better.

From yellow to blue Ritsuka then attempted to doodle a little butterfly over the duck, copying the one Soubi had drawn on the canvas and when he was finally done he pulled back and turned to resume his clouds on the paper.

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Yet again Soubi found himself standing under his sacrifice’s balcony, just a week after the last time he had done so. Only this time it was in the middle of the night and it was raining heavily and of course he hadn’t brought an umbrella with him. He just hoped he would be able to get to his destination without leaving suspicious puddles of water everywhere.

That destination was Ritsuka’s room. Seimei had ordered him to check up on his brother during the night since Seimei wasn’t staying at home today. Neither was his father and there was no telling what Misaki, as Seimei’s mother was called, would do to Ritsuka without his brother there to protect him.

Soubi was glad for the order. For one thing he hated staying at his own apartment. It was a nice distraction, a way to get back from that eerily quiet room for just a couple of hours. Soubi wasn’t used to the stillness. Back at the school there had always been a level of noise, no matter the time of day so the boy had never actually felt so lonely. But in that one room apartment the school had organized for him it was almost impossible not to go crazy, at the lack of noises and life. He knew he should be thankful that he could stay at a place of his own rather than at the school where he would risk crossing paths with Ritsu (and he was pretty sure the man had been responsible for allowing him to get this room in the first place, even though he hadn’t spoken to him since the day Ritsu had given him to Seimei) but he couldn’t feel comfortable there. Whenever he was there he felt alone and small. It really made him aware of the fact that he was still just a 14-year-old, no matter how much he wanted to believe the opposite.

He’d much rather stay with Seimei, but even though he had known his sacrifice for little more than a week he knew that his sacrifice would never allow that under normal circumstances. His parents didn’t know of Soubi’s existence and Seimei had made it clear that he didn’t want his fighter near Ritsuka.

So this order came a bit of a surprise, although Soubi figured he should really know better than to be surprised by anything his new sacrifice did, but he guessed this situation was what Seimei considered an emergency. Besides, Seimei had emphasized that Soubi should under no circumstances wake Ritsuka up. He should just check for signs of an injury and call Seimei, if they were bad enough to warrant his attention. So if everything went according to plan (and Soubi really wished that it would, he didn’t want to disappoint his sacrifice yet again) Ritsuka would be asleep and unlikely to ever know that Soubi had been here in the first place.

With a determined expression on his face Soubi climbed up the balcony. It was a lot harder to do in the dark and with the additional risk of the rain so it took him longer until he was safely upstairs. The rain gutter had been slippery and had almost caused Soubi to fall but quick reflexes had ensured his success.

Maybe after time Soubi would become better at climbing up to Seimei’s room but this was only his second time. After their first meeting Seimei hadn’t brought Soubi over to his house again. They often met in front of Seimei’s school, albeit several paces away so none of Seimei’s friends would see Soubi, or in a park. One time Seimei had come to the fighter’s apartment to inspect the room. Seimei had almost immediately deemed it unacceptable, although Soubi had spent hours cleaning the sparsely-furnished room beforehand. Still, Seimei had had several critical remarks about its state. Soubi had memorized all of his sacrifice’s new rules and had taken great care to keep the room just as Seimei liked it, in case his sacrifice would drop by.

Even with all these rules and knowing so many of Seimei’s likes and dislikes his sacrifice was still a mystery for Soubi. They only ever met for spell battles or training and whenever they did Seimei would often stay quiet for long periods at a time or say things that completely mystified Soubi. Apart from orders and sometimes a few snide remarks there wasn’t much Soubi could remember Seimei actually saying that made sense to him.

But one time, after winning their first battle, Seimei had actually smiled at him and said something that might have been considered praise. The little gesture had been enough for Soubi to force himself to train extra hard so he would never lose against another team.

But even though Soubi’s days were filled with training and studying he still could not shake thoughts of Seimei’s brother off his mind. The boy had been so sweet and friendly, it had been unlike anyone Soubi had ever met. So he was glad that he could see Ritsuka again, even if the boy would be asleep and wouldn’t even know that he had been there. Soubi did feel a bit guilty at the thought that Ritsuka might be hurt that Soubi had never returned but there was nothing he could do, despite how much he wanted to.

At least he had this. Soubi had been worried about Ritsuka’s safety when Seimei had told him that he had to spend the night somewhere else. He had almost been ready to bring up his fear that Misaki might hurt the boy in Seimei’s absence but thankfully he hadn’t needed to. Immediately afterwards Seimei had given him the order he was now obeying.

He knew Seimei hadn’t been pleased with the thought of spending the night somewhere else with a person who didn’t know all the little rules Seimei needed people to adhere to in order to feel comfortable. But this was one of his classmates and Soubi knew that for appearance’s sake Seimei needed to pretend to be delighted by the invitation.

Reminding himself of his purpose Soubi approached the glass door and tried the handle. It didn’t budge and Soubi stared at it in disbelief. This couldn’t be true. Had Seimei really forgotten to unlock it before leaving?

So much for staying silent, Soubi thought with a soft sigh. There was only option left – he had to use a spell to open the door. But Soubi doubted he would be able to do it quietly. Muting actions was one of the spells too advanced for Soubi. He was sure that in a couple of years he would be able to master it but as things stood he simply couldn’t perform the difficult multiple kanji long spell.

Soubi stretched out his hand and mumbled a quick spell. It worked, but he knew he had made some noise. It couldn’t be helped; he hadn’t had the time to come up with something else.

As he entered the room he noticed that it was pitch-dark and Soubi didn’t have his glasses on. After Ritsuka had stepped on them one of the hinges was a bit loose so Soubi often kept them in his breast pocket in order not to break them completely. Maybe he should buy himself a new pair with the allowance Seven Voices gave him…

Soubi quietly closed the door behind himself. Better not to switch on the light so no one would be alarmed to his presence. Trying to recall the layout of the room he slowly moved around it, hoping that taking of his shoes by the window was enough to prevent the floor from getting wet.

Just then the door opened and Soubi stiffened. Maybe if he stayed silent whoever it was would just got back to bed instead of turning on the light. He forced his breath to become as silent as he could manage. If that was Misaki then he just knew Seimei would never forgive him.

He watched as a figure entered the room. It was much too small to be a grown woman. Soubi relaxed slightly.

Ritsuka.

Soubi was glad to see the boy. He seemed to be fine, at least he wasn’t moving stiffly or had any other visible sign of pain on him.

But if Ritsuka found him, then what would he tell the boy?

He didn’t have time to dwell on that thought since immediately after Ritsuka had realized he wasn’t alone in the room he was tackled by the child.

Instinctively, Soubi’s arms went around the small boy. Why did this always happen to him? Of course, he liked Ritsuka a lot and was happy to see that he was alright but he wasn’t supposed to know Soubi was here. He was just meant to check up on him and leave without the boy noticing.

By now Ritsuka had recognized him as well. Soubi bent down to give the child a proper hug. “Good evening, Ritsuka” Then, feeling he owed the boy an explanation, he added: “Seimei told me that he couldn’t stay with you tonight so I wanted to see if Ritsuka is alright”

[xraburesux]

The child was so tired he almost fell right back asleep when Soubi's arms wrapped around him. He leaned against the man and closed his eyes, barely registering the words that were spoken to him. But when he did he picked his head back up and rubbed at his eyes, giving a soft yawn slowly looking down at himself. “I had dinner alone with mommy today.” Right, and she wasn't happy about that. Maybe it was the way he chose his words? “She asked where Seimei was and I told her he wasn't coming home, because he wasn't tonight.”

Then the fact that their father didn't come home either... honestly they didn't even make it to dinner. Now that Ritsuka thought about it he was actually quite hungry.

It was his fault though, he should have picked his words more carefully. “Mommy broke a lot of glass, daddy won't be happy. He said plates and dishes are expensive. But I didn't mean to upset mommy.”

Ritsuka didn't even get an allowance so he could help pay back for the broken dishes. Was this the reason his father barely came home? His mother said it was his fault but he didn't know what he was doing wrong. What could he do different so his father would come home?

Pulling away from Soubi the child took the mans hand and lead him out of Seimei's room and across the hall to his own. He closed the door and flipped the lock just to make sure if his mother woke up she couldn't get in. The light had already been turned on his bed close enough to the switch he could stand on that to reach it. His room was layed out very conveniently for a child his age.

Since Soubi was now here Ritsuka could get him the drawing he wanted! It was nothing special just a little doddle of the two of the together playing the game. There wasn't anything else he was sure he could draw for the older boy seeing as he had only met him once, now twice.

Ritsuka turned to his desk and rummaged around in it, eventually finding the drawing and pulling it out. He passed it over to the other and then crawled up onto his bed, his little legs kicking back and forth off the edge of it since he was to short to reach it properly.

He had been injured in the little 'show' during dinner. His mother managed to cut his arm before Ritsuka realized to run instead of try and calm her down. He had just wanted to help but she was far to mad for him to do anything and the glass dragged across his arm hurt far to much for him to try that again. As much as he wanted to help, he was to little.

The would had been cleaned and bandaged but even Ritsuka didn't know to get the possible glass out. He simply looked at it and decided it was alright before wrapping it up. There was not large pieces in it but there was possible several little shards his eyes couldn't see.

But he had tried his best to clean it before wrapping it up. The would had bleed a lot but the butterfly stitches wouldn't stay on with all of the blood and now that he looked at the bandages, it had pretty much soaked through it and even onto his bed. Ritsuka hadn't noticed in his sleep though now that the light was one and he was awake, it was quite clear.

He didn't remember it being so bad when he went to bed. All she did was cut him with a piece of glass she had done worse damage before with a lamp, or at least it felt worse when it collided with his head. He was in more pain anyway but apparently pain wasn't directly connected with how bad things were.

Honestly Soubi's neck wound looked worse than the cut on his arm to Ritsuka, maybe it was where she cut him though? The gash was along the underside of his arm, going about from the middle of his arm across his hand. It wasn't  deep enough to slice a vein, at least Ritsuka didn't think so. Seimei told him to be careful of that and to watch out for where his mother managed to get him at.

He thought he was doing good. Did he not miss the attack enough? She barely managed to grab him.

Ritsuka wanted Seimei to think he would be okay without him enough to handle his brother going over to a friends house, but it seemed he had messed up. Would Seimei be upset that he couldn't do anything without his brother?

Unfortunately his little mental rambling was disrupted by his stomach growling, voicing it's displeasure at not getting to eat anything today. The child's face flushed a small bit and he wiggled around on the bed, adverting his eyes from Soubi.

He hadn't gotten to eat today. He skipped breakfast because he was to afraid to go downstairs and he had screwed up at dinner so unfortunately the only thing Ritsuka ate was the small bits of candy he had stashed in his room. He was very hungry and he was only now just realizing it.

“Does Soubi like the picture?” Yes, distraction, that was what would keep the childs mind off of his stomach.

[soubi-agatsuma]

"You couldn't have known what would happen!"

Soubi mutely shook his head before letting it fall, his chin hitting his chest. He barely noticed the short, sharp pain as his hair fell forward, hiding most of his face.

“It’s my fault….I’m a tratior” He barely whispered, hoping Ritsuka wouldn’t catch what he was saying. 

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi turned his head to look up into Ritsuka’s face. The sacrifice had yet to start whatever video game he had decided on and his expression was like an open book to the fighter. He knew that whenever Ritsuka insisted that it was “nothing” it usually meant that something was bothering him a lot and it seemed this time it was no different.

The only question was what exactly had made his sacrifice think about college and why that thought upset him so much. Was it because he would be in a completely new environment without his friends around? Or was he still worried that he would not find the right subject to study?

“Have you ever thought about what you want to do for work?” he asked. It wasn’t something they usually talked about, that topic seemed far too normal for them. Soubi had never thought about what Ritsuka would do after high school, the fighter was always preoccupied with other issues, like Seimei, Ritsuka’s mother or the innumerable spell battles they had to fight to think about something so mundane.

Soubi himself didn’t have any plans for the future and he didn’t care where he ended up working. It simply wasn’t important to him but he knew Ritsuka would want a job that he was passionate about.

The boy’s question made him look down at the canvas in front of him. It was still untouched since Soubi hadn’t had time to decide on what he wanted to paint.

He nodded again as Ritsuka voiced his own thoughts. “It’s as Ritsuka says,” he replied. He guessed it made sense. People usually got good at things because they did them a lot and why would you do something so many times if you didn’t like it?

Did that mean that Soubi liked painting? Apparently it did. And he certainly had no complaints about it, unless when it came to deadlines he couldn’t keep.

And what about fighting, did Soubi enjoy that? He wasn’t so sure. Without orders it was impossible for him to win a fight, it was as Ritsu had said once: Soubi was too gentle to fight without the command to do so. And the fighter definitely didn’t like seeing his sacrifice hurt, something that was almost inevitable during battles. Still, he engaged in spell battles a lot so according to Ritsuka’s thinking he had to like them. It was his destiny, after all, to fight. So not liking it wasn’t going to change anything anyways.

Ritsuka’s random question pulled him out of his thoughts but Soubi smiled and nodded. A few weeks ago Ritsuka had left one of his cameras at his apartment, after the boy had taken some pictures of the small park just a few minutes away from the apartment. Soubi had seen the pictures and they had been beautiful. Ritsuka definitely had an eye for these things.

“Yes, it’s just over there” He pushed his paints and the canvas to the side, then smoothly stood up and opened a drawer on the TV stand. He turned around and held the camera out to Ritsuka, wondering what the boy wanted to do with it.

[xraburesux]

Soubi sometimes took him far to literally, they did fight a lot but Ritsuka hated it when they did. It wasn't the kisses he they mostly ended up doing, though those usually made him feel far to many things to make him comfortable with them, it was the fact that they were hurting other people that he hated so much. He didn't understand why they had to fight, Soubi explained to so many times but Ritsuka still constantly wanted to find other ways to solve the problem aside from actually fighting. Though there never seemed to be an alternative way of doing it, especially when the other people seemed so determined to tear them down.

As Soubi fetched the Camera Ritsuka slid down off of the couch and grabbed one of the mans other aprons. He never seemed to care if Ritsuka wore his clothes so an apron should be fine to borrow. The teen slid it on over his head and tied it in the back before joining his fighter on the floor. This was only supposed to be for fun if it turned out horrible Soubi could just trash it.

Actually, the likely hood of it turning out horrible was incredibly high. Ritsuka would trash it himself to hide his embarrassment.

“Let's paint a duck in a pond.” Simple, easy, it shouldn't end up that bad—hopefully. “You can paint your signature butterfly sitting on the ducks tail.” At least Soubi always seemed to add butterflies somewhere on the paintings Ritsuka did.

Yet Soubi claimed to hate the creatures, to easily caught and killed. Couldn't the same be said for the sacrifices in the battles they did though? Those binds that wrapped around them during the battles, it's the same as getting caught and pinned in a way. Yet Soubi valued his sacrifice more than anything.

Deciding to not think anymore on it Ritsuka grabbed a thin paint brush and the yellow paint, unscrewing the lid before taking a small bit on the brush and starting to paint the sun in the corner. Round with little childish lines coming out of it, making it clear his skills at art where nowhere near as good as Soubi's.

The sun looked like something a child would scribble down when coloring a picture of their family for their mother, yet if Ritsuka noticed it he pretended not to. Art school might not be something he would want to invest his time into. It was fun, as a hobby and maybe to pass time but Ritsuka's skills in it were near nonexistent. Odd, slightly, considering how much time he spent with Soubi.

The yellow was exchanged for white mixed with blue to make a very light blue and then the clouds were drawn near the sun, little balls of what looked like a wad of cotton on the paper.

This would definitely be trashed when he was done. Even if Soubi would argue not to.

“Isn't the fun part of this supposed to be getting paint on yourself?” He questioned, glancing up at the man. “Yet you don't even have something on the floor to keep paint from getting on the wood. It's... far to clean.” Seimei clean, actually, did it rub off onto Soubi?

Maybe... the thought was childish but he really wanted to see how the man would react. From the paper to the air Ritsuka leaned forward and, slowly, ran the tip of the brush down Soubi's cheek before leaning back onto the floor.

What was the fun of painting of you didn't get a bit messy? The same with baking. Him and Yuiko would get messy in art or in Home Economics. It was—fun. She was a lot of fun and he really was lucky to have her as a friend. Even if he didn't think so in elementary school.

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi was glad when Ritsuka took his hand instead of rushing ahead. For a moment he marveled at how tiny the boy’s hand was. It really drove the point home just how young Ritsuka still was.

The fighter wondered why it was so important how the bathroom smelled. Would Seimei even notice? Did he not like the smell of strawberries or what was the reason for Ritsuka’s insistence that they needed these particular cleaning supplies?

But he figured that it was better to follow the boy’s advice on this issue. Soubi still didn’t know Seimei well enough to really judge what his sacrifice was like and what would anger him. Nevertheless, he still had an inkling that Seimei wouldn’t exactly be pleased should he find out that Soubi had used his bathroom without permission.

So he just nodded in response, still a little puzzled at how particular his sacrifice seemed to be. Even Ritsu had never been so strict about such small issues. Ritsu had often insisted on his way when it came to certain things but most of them concerned fighting or spell making, not simple things like cleaning. As long as Soubi’s room was tidy the man hadn’t cared what exactly Soubi did with it.

“Ritsuka has to show me the way Seimei likes it so I can remember it for the future,” he spoke up.  He didn’t want to accidentally do something that would displease Seimei and he couldn’t just assume his sacrifice would be willing to explain everything to Soubi himself.

Soubi wasn’t sure how to reply to Ritsuka’s question so he was glad when they entered Seimei’s bedroom again and he had a second to sort his thoughts. He wasn’t Seimei’s friend, that much he could admit. He was surprised Ritsuka had even been able to tell that Soubi wasn’t like the people his brother usually brought over. But he couldn’t tell the boy about him being a fighter, Ritsuka apparently did not know about their world and he wasn’t sure when or even if Seimei would want him to learn about it. In any case, Soubi would not risk angering his sacrifice by telling Ritsuka something he wasn’t supposed to know about.

“I’m Seimei’s servant,” he said instead. That was a simple enough reply, one he hoped Ritsuka would be able to understand. And Soubi thought it came as close to the truth as he could without actually telling Ritsuka about their world.

Soubi placed the basket on the bathroom tiles and watched as Ritsuka cleaned the sink. The fighter tried to remember the way the boy did it, just in case he ever found himself in a similar situation again and he needed to do this on his own. It seemed Ritsuka had done this before, a lot of times in fact so Soubi was pretty sure this was something Seimei thought very important.

“I’m supposed to protect Seimei. And Ritsuka as well,” he replied. The last part wasn’t technically true but he figured Seimei wouldn’t mind if Soubi told Ritsuka that. At least he hoped Seimei wouldn’t have any objections. He knew his sacrifice didn’t want him near Ritsuka but maybe he would allow it in the case of an emergency.   “So don’t worry about me knowing about your mother’s headaches”

Soubi wasn’t sure if Seimei had intended to ever tell him about their mother but he didn’t want to worry Ritsuka further by saying that.

The other part of the boy’s question made him involuntarily touch the place on his head where his ears used to be. Soubi was struck mute for a moment. He knew most people didn’t lose their ears at quite such a young age and sometimes he missed them a lot. But at the time it had happened he hadn’t thought anything of it; it had just been a part of his training. And back then Soubi had been pleased that he had been able to make Ritsu happy, even if it was only for a few minutes.

Now of course he was bitter as he thought back to that night. That bastard. He was surprised at himself. Previously he would have never dared insult his old teacher, not even in his own thoughts but maybe even his subconscious had finally realized that there was no longer a chance of Ritsu taking him as a fighter. And he figured that his teacher had even known back then, on the night it had happened, that he had no intention of becoming Soubi’s sacrifice. So why had Ritsu  not let him keep his ears for a few more years?

That line of thinking was futile, even Soubi could see that. He tried to focus back on the situation at hand just in time to see that Ritsuka was finished with the sink and was leaving the bathroom to get something from Seimei’s nightstand. It was another bottle. Apparently hand lotion, since the boy was using it on his own hands.

“I’m 14,” he finally replied. It was a harmless question, much more harmless than Ritsuka asking when or why Soubi had lost his ears.

Without his ears, Soubi technically was an adult, even if he did not feel like it. Maybe if losing his ears had been his own decision he would feel differently now but he couldn’t know that.

He just hoped Ritsuka wouldn’t find his answer odd and keep questioning him about it.

When Ritsuka took his hand again Soubi smiled and followed the boy. He sat down in front of the TV, looking at the screen as he picked up one of the controllers.

“What kind of sweets does Ritsuka like?” he asked as he chose one of the many cars the game had to offer. He doubted he would get to see him again but Ritsuka didn’t need to know that. Soubi didn’t know why, but he just wanted to pretend for a few minutes, to forget about the bleak reality of being a fighter and to play a childish game with the boy next to him.

What did he want? Soubi didn’t want to take anything of Ritsuka’s and he knew the boy was too young to have any money to buy him sweets. He would probably have to ask Seimei to buy them for him and Soubi didn’t want his sacrifice to be aware of their little bet, if he could avoid it. But he couldn’t just say “nothing”, either. He knew Ritsuka wouldn’t like that. “A drawing,” he replied instead. “I want Ritsuka to draw something for me” He hoped that was a good idea. Soubi had liked drawing as a child and it was one of the only things not related to his future as a fighter that Ritsu had encouraged and he knew many other children liked it as well.

Soubi focused on the game again. It was pretty easy, well-suited for a child as young as Ritsuka, but fun and even though Soubi had never played on a console before it didn’t take him long to figure out the controls. Soon he was caught up in it, even smiling as he watched the cars race. He was deliberately trying to let Ritsuka win, without making it seem too obvious.

At Ritsuka’s new question he looked away from the screen and at the boy sitting next to him. He knew it was common for children that age to be curious but he wasn’t sure how much he should reveal to him. Maybe he should try to evade questions until Seimei was back again…

“We met at my school,” he replied. “But I don’t go to school with Seimei”

[xraburesux]

The answer Ritsuka got confused the boy to no end. He was young, not much older than Seimei and he had already lost his ears. How? Why? Seimei never told him how a person lost his ears but it must have been something easy if Soubi lost his ears already. Maybe he could ask Seimei to explain it to him later after Soubi had gone home and his brother and him were taking a bath. He liked bathing with Seimei, he always knew the exact way to wash Ritsuka's hair without getting anything in his ears.

The child dropped the questions for now seeing as Soubi didn't provide much for answers and focused on the game. His hands were to small to reach some of the buttons and with his inability to steer to well he kept ending up smashed into walls, the car damaged to the point it could barely move. He had lost to his new friend just as the door to the bedroom opened and Seimei returned finally.

Ritsuka sat the controller down and crawled to his feet, rushing over to his brother and wrapping his arms around Seimei's waist. He appeared unharmed, simply tired more than anything else but the boy smiled anyway and returned the embrace that the younger of them gave. “Hey Ritsuka, what are you two doing?” His hands moved into the childs hair, gently running through and brushing against the ears that rested on top of his head.

Ritsuka smiled and leaned into the touch before he glanced back to the TV. “Soubi and I were playing a game but I lost. I will beat him next time though!” Seimei gave a small laugh at the answer, making Ritsuka smile even more before he pulled away from the child and started over to the older boy.

“Well, say goodbye to Soubi, Ritsuka. Mother is asleep now so it's time for him to leave. We don't want to wake her right?” Despite the pout Ritsuka nodded his head, watching as his brothers eyes moved curiously over to the trashcan. “Did you change your shirt Ritsuka?”

Briefly, the child paused, his eyes shifted over to Soubi before he quickly tried to answer his brother. “There... was a hole in it.” Not a lie, there was, it just wasn't the reason Ritsuka threw it out. However Seimei seemed to accept the answer clearly unwilling to reach into the garbage can to find out. At least that was in their favor, Seimei would never pull something out of the trash once it was in there, even something that belonged to Ritsuka. Once it touched the bag it was dirty. “I also borrowed the bathroom but I cleaned it when I was done!”

Seimei once again returned to his side and knelt down in front of him, the soft smile on his face completely calming the child's fear that his new friend would get in trouble. “That's a good boy. Now go to your room and wait for me, I have to see Soubi out.”

He didn't want to, he wanted to stay and play with Soubi more but he knew his brother wouldn't let him. With a reluctant pout he muttered a quick; “goodbye” to Soubi before stepping out of the room and returning to his bedroom.

It was nearly an entire week before he was able to see Soubi again. Although Ritsuka kept asking Seimei about him his brother wouldn't release any information and even told Ritsuka that he might not come back. Ritsuka asked why but Seimei never told him and even got a bit upset the more he pressed so, eventually, Ritsuka let it go.

The next time he saw Soubi it was incredibly late a night. The child was wearing one of Seimei's really long shirts and was tucked into his own bed, sleeping soundly when he heard a small THUMP from his brothers room. The boy startled in bed and slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes before climbing out of the covers. Did Seimei come home? He wasn't supposed to be home he said he was spending the night at a friends house because of a project. He seemed very upset about that, even taking plastic wrap and cleaning supplies with him.

Slowly the child snuck out of his room and over to his brothers, rubbing his eyes as he pushed the door to the older boys room open. “Seimei?” The question was quite, barely even asked between the yawn Ritsuka gave. He tried to reach the bedroom light but his arms were just a tad bit to small to reach it.

He tried standing on his tip toes but still couldn't reach and with a pout he stumbled into the room and tried to feel his way around. Eventually he gripped a person, someone far to tall to be his brother and squinting in the dark he barely managed to make out the long pretty blond hair that he liked so much. “Soubi?” Was he dreaming? He had to be dreaming how did Soubi get in their house?

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi was relieved at Ritsuka’s reply. So maybe their father wasn’t as irresponsible as he had previously believed, at least he apparently took care of Ritsuka when Seimei wasn’t there.

He stood in the middle of the bathroom as he watched Ritsuka peek into the sink before kneeling down, seemingly looking for something in the bathroom cabinet.

Soubi wondered what else they had to do to get the bathroom into the state it had been in before. To Soubi it looked extremely clean but he didn’t know just how strict Seimei was when it came to things like that so it was better to trust Ritsuka’s judgment.

Apparently the boy hadn’t found what he was looking for. But just as Soubi wanted to ask him whether he should help with the search the boy jumped up and was gone.

Soubi stood frozen for a second, his gaze wide-eyed before his instincts kicked in and he ran after the boy. He had taken a bit too long because Ritsuka was already by the door and had opened it, clearly intending to go.

Soubi could feel his heart sink at the realization. He couldn’t let that happen.

“No,” he gasped. The word came out as a hoarse whisper since he didn’t dare raise his voice. Surely that would alarm either Seimei or his mother and neither seemed like a good option at the moment.

But the boy either hadn’t heard him or hadn’t cared since he was already out in the hallway. Soubi slowly approached the doorway and stood there, his heart pounding.

He had already failed Seimei. This had been his first order and he had already messed it up. The hopelessness of his situation made him want to sink to his knees but he couldn’t do that. Maybe he could save the situation. But if Seimei saw Ritsuka, what would he think of his new fighter? He’d probably think him incompetent and would probably regret choosing him in the first place.

Using all of his willpower Soubi tried to calm himself as he scanned the hallway. To his surprise Ritsuka hadn’t gone downstairs but rather had opened a door and entered into another room.

At least this way there was still a chance that Seimei might not find out about all of this.

Soubi hesitated as he watched the open door at the end of the hallway. Should he sprint after the boy or stay where he was?

He had already messed up the order so now the only thing left to do was to try to damage control.

Soubi came to a quick decision. It was more important to make sure that Ritsuka didn’t endanger himself than to stay in the room like Seimei had ordered so he set after the boy, hoping that his sacrifice would never find out about this.

He entered the room Ritsuka had vanished it, immediately guessing that it was the boy’s bedroom. It was much more colorful than Seimei’s room had been and he could spot a lot of different toys. But yet again everything was neat and very clean. There were no stains, no dust, no broken furniture, not even a crooked picture. Highly unusual for a room inhabited by a 4-year-old.

Soubi crossed the room and opened a second door, revealing an almost identical bathroom to the one he had been in moments ago.

Inside Ritsuka seemed to still be looking for whatever he had got so worked up over back in Seimei’s room. “Ritsuka, please,” Soubi begged quietly. He could hear voices from downstairs. Seimei was apparently talking to his mother, so it was unlikely that he would come upstairs any time soon. Then there was another crash that made Soubi jump slightly. He tensed but soon afterwards he heard Seimei speak up again, his voice on edge but apparently unhurt and Soubi forced his body to relax again.

“Please, let’s go back to Seimei’s room. Seimei wants you to stay there” He hoped Ritsuka would cooperate.

He watched as the boy left the room, smiling as he had apparently found what he had searched for.

Soubi glanced at the basket Ritsuka lifted in the arms. He approached the boy and curiously lifted the towel.  Cleaning supplies. So that’s what the boy had been looking for.

Ritsuka had almost given him a heart attack, just because he wanted to get some stuff to clean Seimei’s bathroom. It seemed the two brothers were both very particular when it came to tidiness. He couldn’t help but smile slightly at the thought.

He wasn’t angry with the boy, of course. Soubi doubted he could ever get angry with him, and not only because he was his sacrifice’s brother. There was just something about him that made Soubi unable to even feel a flash of annoyance. Besides, he was still a little kid, he didn’t know better.

“Wonderful,” he replied, less than enthusiastic. All that, just for a few cleaning supplies. Seimei probably would be proud of Ritsuka, had he been there to witness it.

“Thank you for getting them, but let us go back to Seimei’s room, please” He took the cleaning supplies from Ritsuka and then held out his hand for the boy to take with a small smile. He was not going to take any more chances today so it would be better if he could hold Ritsuka’s hand, just to make sure the boy would not run off again.

[xraburesux]

“They are very important Soubi.” He argued, pouting at the mans lack of enthusiasm for Ritsuka finding what they needed. “The bathroom smells like strawberries now, it can't smell like that when Seimei comes back.” He didn't want to get Soubi in trouble, he was trying to protect his new friend. That was what friends did right? Though, it was odd that Soubi was allowed to stay for so long, Seimei usually kicked them out before things could get this bad, after all they didn't want them to get in trouble with their mother when she had a headache.

“Why is Soubi different from Seimei's other friends?” The question was voiced as the older man took his hand, Ritsuka's fingers lacing with Soubi's as best as his tiny had could. The door was once again pulled open and the boy checked for his mother and brother before leading Soubi across the way and right back into Seimei's room. There and back before anyone could tell, Ritsuka did it all the time Soubi was worried for no reason!

Safely back in Seimei's room Ritsuka took the cleaning supplies and headed into the bathroom, continuing his question that was asked. “No one is supposed to be here when mommy has a headache and Soubi doesn't have his ears!” The 'bleach' product was sprayed into the sink and Ritsuka started to wipe it down with the cloth, cleaning all the little corners before a second cloth was then used to dry the bowel. When he was done the child climbed down and started to fold the rags, sitting them nicely in the basket.

He placed the basket next to the sink before running over to Seimei's nightstand and applying some lotion to get rid of the smell on him. “Seimei doesn't have adult friends, and I know all of Seimei's friends. How old is Soubi? Only big people lose their ears!”

He had to be old like Ritsuka parents right? He didn't like it though he actually looked around Seimei's age. But why would a kid lose their ears and how? Seimei never elaborated on how someone lost their ears he just said it was a very 'dirty' process and Ritsuka shouldn't do it. That he liked Ritsuka's ears and he wanted Ritsuka to keep them forever. But—didn't older people who still have their ears get picked on? Ritsuka didn't want to be picked on he didn't like it.

The boy took his new friends hand and led him over to the game console, sitting in front of one controller and tugging Soubi down to sit in front of the other. “It's a racing game! If you can't beat me you have to bring me something sweet next time you come over! What do you want if you win?”

He was incredibly excited he never had anyone to play but Seimei. Ritsuka didn't get to go outside much, his mothers curfew rule keeping him inside more than half the day. Ritsuka argued one time it wasn't fair... one time. He never argued again after that and Seimei promised to play with him to make up for it.

Seimei didn't have many friends over either and they never stayed long enough for an actual game. Soubi seemed different so maybe Ritsuka could play a lot more with him. He liked Soubi! Seimei had to like him too, his brother never did anything unintentionally.

“Hey Soubi? How did you meet Seimei? Do you go to school with him?” It was fairly late in the year for Seimei to be making new friends at school, actually Ritsuka was sure he met most of them, so was Soubi new to the school? There was a word the four year old couldn't think of, Seimei had used it before. But if he was new then where did he live? What about his parents? There was so many questions the child wanted to ask but he had no idea where to start and there was no way he would get to all of them before his brother came back.

The big hand had yet to move but the small had had moved half of the clock so it shouldn't be long before Seimei came back but when he did Soubi would probably have to go home.

[xraburesux]

AU || Soubi & Ritsuka

[soubi-agatsuma]

Soubi took another glance at the wound on Ritsuka’s head. Of course, now it was covered by hair again, which was the reason why he hadn’t noticed it until the boy had told him but he could still see some of the white butterfly stitches sticking out. He could only imagine how much such an injury would hurt someone who was still so young and it sent another surge of helpless anger through him. Had his mother felt any remorse afterwards? Or was she as cold as her actions painted her as?

Maybe now that Seimei had Soubi the fighter would be able to help against their mother. He didn’t know whether Seimei would allow it but Soubi knew a lot of powerful spells that would make the woman unable to hurt either of them ever again. They wouldn’t kill her, of course, but they would hinder her from even approaching her two sons. Hopefully Soubi would find a time to approach the subject. He had to choose his words carefully, he didn’t want to anger Seimei by applying that he wasn’t capable of protecting Ritsuka and he wasn’t sure if Seimei held any affection for their mother or not.

Soubi nodded at Ritsuka’s statement. “I’m glad to hear that. Ritsuka is very brave” He knew that usually children his age wouldn’t be able to handle pain that well. “Seimei seems to take really good care of you” Seimei must be very fond of his brother. Soubi didn’t know if that was common or not; the families he had seen in movies or books always seemed to be arguing about one thing or another and they always resented each other, especially the siblings. And he imagined that such  a big difference in age would make it more likely for frequent arguments to occur but having to deal with whatever problem their mother had apparently had brought the two brothers close.

He waited until Ritsuka was done and had jumped off the bed before reaching up to feel the soft texture of the fresh gauze that was wrapped around his neck. Soubi smiled at the child. “Thank you” Ritsuka had known what he was doing, it seemed. He had even used the tape to make sure the bandages stayed in one place instead of simply tying a knot. Yet again Soubi was reminded that this was probably something he had done often enough in the past.

“What do you usually do when your mother has a headache? Has Seimei told you what to do when he’s not there?” He hoped Seimei had talked with him about what he needed to do in order to avoid his mother. Since Soubi didn’t know anything about their specific situation he couldn’t really advise him in that area.

As he mentioned Ritsuka’s shirt the boy simply took it off and threw it into a garbage can before going to Seimei’s closet to change into something different. Soubi wondered whether Seimei would notice the bloody shirt? Was that another regular occurrence, that Ritsuka had to dispose of stained clothes?  

He was glad that Ritsuka had changed his clothes since he wasn’t sure how Seimei would react should he see his brother in a bloody shirt and Ritsuka’s comments made it very clear just how much Seimei was obsessed with cleanliness. Soubi really didn’t want to make his sacrifice  angry on their first day together; it would leave a bad impression.

He smiled at the boy’s impatience. “I will, don’t worry. It will only take a moment” As he entered the bathroom he noticed just how clean it was. It was completely white and would look more fitting in a hospital than next to a teenage boy’s room.

He looked for the shampoo Ritsuka had said he should use, then began to unbutton the first few buttons of his shirt. As he washed his hair he took care not to spill any water on the floor or to wet the fresh bandages.

When Soubi was done he took the towel Ritsuka had indicated and carefully dried his hair. He was glad to see that he was more or less successful in keeping the bathroom clean. The floor was still dry and impeccable, but as expected the sink had some of his hairs in it.

Soubi wrapped the towel around his head so there was no risk of any water dripping off the ends of his hair and onto the floor.

He laughed quietly at Ritsuka’s unexpected question. “Would Ritsuka want to grow his hair out?” he asked. Long hair really was a hassle, especially on a child. He tried to imagine it and decided that it would really make Ritsuka look like a girl. “I like Ritsuka the way he looks now. You are already cute”

He watched himself in the mirror as he buttoned up his shirt again. Maybe tomorrow he could take a look at his name, if he had to change his bandages then.

Now that he was done he began to collect the hairs from the sink and threw them into the small garbage can before turning to face the boy. Ritsuka seemed to be an expert on how Seimei preferred things so he should better ask him. “Is there anything else that needs to be done?”

Soubi was afraid that he would never be clean enough for Seimei, even if he could remember all these rules Seimei seemed to have about the way things have to be. What would happen should he fail? Would Seimei cut his bond and leave Soubi without a sacrifice? Should that happen, no one would want him anymore, least of all Ritsu. That man would never want to have a fighter that has already been rejected by someone else.

There was no use thinking like that, Soubi told himself. He just had to do well enough that Seimei wouldn’t want to do that. Failure was not an option, as Ritsu had so often told him.

Soubi decided that his hair was dry enough now so Soubi hung the towel back on the right hook. It was damp, but not wet. He hoped Seimei wouldn’t notice when he came back but hopefully it would be dry until then.

Soubi looked through the bathroom door and saw that the TV was on. He didn’t want to admit it but he was looking forward to playing with Ritsuka. Soubi had never played video games before (and he couldn’t even remember the last time he had played anything at all) but he hoped it would still be fun for Ritsuka.

And really, there was nothing else he could do, as long as Seimei was gone. Soubi would have to make sure he could still hear what was going on downstairs, just in case something happened that would endanger Seimei in any way but as things stood he didn’t have any other orders than to stay in the room and guard the entrance.

[xraburesux]

“When Seimei is not home Daddy is supposed to help.” Supposed to... supposed to. Ritsuka didn't know if Seimei knew or not, because when Seimei was home Daddy did help and asked for Seimei's help, but when Seimei wasn't there.... Daddy watched. 

He was a different person when Seimei was there and Ritsuka wasn't sure why. He didn't tell his brother though because he had enough to worry about, the last thing he wanted Seimei to know was that Ritsuka had problems when he wasn't there. He loved his brother, he didn't want to worry him.

When Soubi was finished with the sink Ritsuka slipped into the bathroom and stood on the tips of his toes to peek into the sink. He glanced around it to make sure there was no more hairs before kneeling on the floor and opening the bottom cabinet below the sink. He glanced around for what Seimei used to clean and dry the sink with but when he didn't find it, the boy pouted.

“But it was here yesterday....” Yesterday... they had cleaned Ritsuka's room yesterday after he spilled something in there. When that happened Seimei made them clean every part of the room including the bathroom. He must have left the bathroom supplies in his bedroom.

“Opsy.” Standing up Ritsuka ran back into the bedroom and pulled the front door open, peeking his head out to make sure they were downstairs still before rushing across the hall and sliding into his own room. He had completely forgotten that Seimei didn't want either of them to leave the room but didn't that just apply to Soubi? He never knew when Ritsuka left before because he was always back before his brother had returned to the room.

From his bedroom with the door cracked a bit he could still hear them arguing below. His brothers voice was soft and a bit muffled from being so far away and it had been a long time since he last heard his father talk. Seimei had asked his mother to take her medicine and following the soft question was another smash of a lamp probably being thrown.

The child bit his lip and snuck into his own bathroom, moving things around and pushing the duckies out of the way from his bath yesterday. The cleaning supplies were important Seimei's bathroom always smelled very particular and he could always tell when Ritsuka was in there when he wasn't supposed to be. He never got mad he simply asked that Ritsuka clean up after using the sink and he promised his brother that he would.

Letting Soubi use the sink without knowing the rules would get his new friend in trouble, he didn't want that to happen because it would be his fault. He really liked Soubi, he was fun and he called Ritsuka cute! Only Seimei really did that the compliment was nice.

The more he dug the harder it was to find what he wanted and the boy sat on the now messed up floor, a  pout on his face. They were in here, he knew it, but what had he done with them? After cleaning with Seimei they put the supplies into a basket and covered them with a towel, to keep them both hidden and dry from any water in the bathroom. Seimei had told Ritsuka to return them when he was done but the boy had forgotten after the dinner last night. A very... unpleasant dinner where mommy got her headache and threw the object at Ritsuka.

It was his fault, he brought up the topic of going out again and having fun together, his mother didn't like the idea. He should have just asked Seimei to go with him but he remembered that there was something marked on Seimei's calendar for today so Ritsuka thought he and his mother could go out while Seimei did his school thing.

His mother didn't want to, clearly, and got upset.

Seimei insisted it wasn't his fault but Ritsuka didn't believe him.

After dinner he went to bed and the cleaning supplies were completely forgotten. But he had the intention to return  them so maybe he left them in his bedroom near the door and not the bathroom?

Ritsuka hurried out and looked to his door, the pretty woven basket right next to it just as the child thought. He scooped it into his arms and grinned brightly, a sign he was clearly proud of himself for being able to find it. “Got it!”