Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ zelos ❯ betrayal ( Chapter 19 )

zelos

by Myka

Arc II - Chapter 06

A/N: This chapter is long overdue. I am very sorry for the ridiculously long delay. From now on I will consider this my main project until it is finished.

Beta: naaha

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I hate waking up alone.

Now more than ever. Because I know what it means. I remember.

Esset discovered that Schuldig and I were alive. They threatened us, attacked us. They took Schuldig away from me.

A deep pain buried in my chest presents itself at that thought. "Schu…" I try to sit up, resting my head against the headboard of my bed. Images flare in my mind. The moment when the Esset team kidnapped Schuldig, the mocking smiles on their faces… and how I couldn't do anything to stop them. I trace fingers across the side of my neck, feeling the remnant of the small puncture wound there.

There is a threat of desperation within me; sitting here won't solve anything. I throw my legs off the side of the bed, grunting from the small cuts and bruises all over my body.

I walk clumsily across the room and down the hall. I reach the stairs and on my first step down Aya appears at the bottom, starting on his way up. I feel a frown form on my face. He gazes at me with slight surprise in his eyes. Well, excuse me for being conscious. "Where were you?" I ask with a slight hiss. His eyes leave my face as he walks up the stairs until he's right in front of me. "Where were you last night?" I ask again, my frown morphing to an outright glare.

"We were detained," he speaks coldly. He passed me by without as much as a glance my way and starts down the hall, presumably to his room. The bitterness of his voice makes me cringe. I remember what Schuldig told me about my family resenting him, even 'hating' him. At that moment I didn't want to believe it, but what if it's true? What if Aya is happy that Schuldig is gone, when I am so miserable? I stare at Aya's back as he walks away. For that second, I hated him.

I turn and make a few clumsy steps, following him, frustration and anger seeping through my every bone. "We waited for you! I trusted you to come! We waited…" I can feel tears prickling down my face. I swipe them away, surprised by the fact that I'm crying. "They took him Aya…oh God…" My feet suddenly become worthless and I slide down to the floor, hiding my face with my hands. I hate this! I hate being this weak, when I should be strong.

I sense Aya beside me and unconsciously my hand travels to the scar on my stomach. His arm goes under my shoulder as he helps me up. "Go back to bed, Yohji. You're still not well."

"How can I rest when they took Schuldig, Aya?" I ask him, my voice dry.

He just blinks at me, his arm still under my shoulder. His answer is calm. "How can you look for him when you're not at full strength?"

I want to reply to that, but he is right. I'm still not strong enough; the tranquilizer effects are still present. I grab his arm and push it away slowly, the glare still clear on my face. "I'll rest once you explain to me why the hell you weren't there to help us."

~~~

Aya forced me to lie back on my bed. Instead of me going downstairs to listen to what they have to say, they would come to me. I didn't wait very long.

Aya is the first to walk into the room, Ken and Omi close behind him. The two teenagers have a sort of depressed look on their faces; not sad or resentful, it's something else… I just can't place it. Aya bears the same look of indifference he always has. Ken just keeps staring at the floor for periods of time, and Omi keeps taking deep sighs. Whatever I needed to know, they didn't want to say it.

"What happened last night?" I ask.

They all turn their eyes towards me, but it is Aya who speaks. "We were detained."

"You told me that already." I reply, letting a frown settle on my face. "What happened?"

Ken sighed. "We were attacked. Esset sent people to stop us."

"Are you sure it was Esset?"

"We're really sorry Yohji!" Omi suddenly bursts out. "We really tried…"

"It was Esset." Aya reassures me.

I close my eyes for a second. I understood. It wasn't their fault. I can see it in their eyes. They tried to be there. I understood.

But it still hurts.

I open my eyes again. "How long have I been out?" I ask, finally breaking the silence.

"Less than a day." Aya answers.

Good. Not even twenty four hours since the attack.

"What has Kritiker found out?"

Silence.

I blink and ask the question again. No one will even look at me. "What's wrong?" I inquire, raising my voice slightly.

Ken looks away; Omi lowers his gaze; Aya shows nothing on his face.

I blink. I can feel my blood pressure rising just thinking about the possible reasons for their silence. What is so hard for them to tell me? I take a long breath. "Is Schuldig dead?" I ask softly, fearing the words as they leave my mouth.

"No!" Omi quickly answers, raising his eyes again.

"We don't know," Ken corrects him. "But we don't think he's dead. Why would Esset go to so much trouble to kidnap him just to kill him?" Ken opens his mouth to say something else, but Omi gives him a glare that clearly means 'shut up.'

Their words calm me. I relax against the headboard. I feel slightly uncomfortable lying on my bed while I question my teammates, but I need to rest. I want to get my strength back. "You never answered my question."

"What question?" Omi asks; he sounds lost.

"What has Kritiker found out?"

Silence again.

I take a deep breath. The scowl on my face becomes deeper, more tense…angrier. "Why won't you answer me?" I half-yell at them. "What are you so afraid to tell me?"

"Kritiker…" Omi mumbles.

Aya suddenly steps forward, his eyes unfaltering, his voice grave. "Kritiker hasn't found out anything."

My eyes meet that violet gaze instantly, the anger still there. "Why?"

He returns my glare, his voice clear. "Kritiker won't search for Schuldig."

I rise from the bed, ignoring how weak my legs feel. "What?" I hiss right at Aya's face.

He keeps that stern look. "Kritiker won't help rescue an enemy."

I step back, letting the confusion and shock show on my face. I cover my mouth with my hand and close my eyes; repeating the words in my head over and over. Remembering.

"They all hate me you know… or at least resent me."

'Kritiker won't help rescue an enemy'

The awkwardness of my teammates - my family - becomes clear now. Kritiker: the association that took me in. I have stained my hands and soul with blood for them. This is the moment when I need their help the most, and they outright abandon me and the one I love. Schuldig was right. But I didn't want to believe it. I wanted to believe I could trust my family.

I step forward, my knees wobbling slightly at the rushed movement. "He's not an enemy!" I yell, turning my eyes on each of them. "He's been living here for more than six months!" Ken and Omi look away. "He's my lover!"

I run a hand over my face, feeling the tension build inside me. Then all of a sudden I feel as if something has hit me. My vision blurs for a second, a blinding headache beating against my skull. I walk the few steps back to my bed and fall to my knees beside it. I wrap a hand against my head trying to stop the throbbing pain in my skull. I gasp for air as everything dissolves around me: the room, Aya, Ken and Omi. There is just me and the throbbing pain. My mouth opens in a soundless scream, everything grows quiet.

Then out of nowhere it appears; like a distant light I want to hold, but no matter how far I reach out I can't touch it.

I hear the whisper of my name.

"Yohji…help me…"

"Schuldig…"

I scream as I clutch at my stomach; I feel as if my wound has reopened. The memory of that night flashes before my eyes.

The room reappears around me. I'm still on my knees by my bed. I feel someone by my side; I try to look up. My world just goes black.

~TBC~