~*~SPOILER WARNING FOR THE END OF THE WEISS KREUZ OAV: GLUHEN!!!~*~

This is my "WTF??!!!" fanfic because I just watched the last episode of Gluhen, the last Weiss Kreuz OAV. The last episode was called "Tomorrow" (or something like that) and I was at first pissed off at the ending... until I realized, well, no one actually SAID that Aya-kun died. Therefore, we don't know IF he actually DID die and I remembered the words of the nun, "May God's protection be with you", so maybe that was meant to imply that he didn't actually die. Plus, I wanted to explain (to myself, at least) why the hell Ken was in Tokyo Penitentiary? And Youji was married to Askua who is supposed to be dead!!

Tomorrow's Destiny: Chapter One

by Ami-chan

Takatori Mamoru smiled brilliantly for the cameras, seeming to all the world the most happy, well-adjusted person in existence, what with all his wealth and power. Shouldn't he be happy? Shouldn't he smile despite the fact that his world was crumbling horribly around him?

"Aya-kun," he mouthed the words as he finally managed to push pass the press and cameramen with their flashing lights that only served to worsen his headache. Aya had told him that Youji was safe and well; he had to believe that. He didn't know what had happened to Ken, but he had to believe that he was fine, as well. He had to. If he didn't, he would most likely go insane. They were the closest things he had ever had to family and taking them away was like ripping out his heart.

Not that he was feeling much of anything at the moment, so perhaps his heart had been torn out. Or maybe it had just turned to stone.

Aya. He told had him, not as if he were reporting to Persia, but as if he were talking to Omi, that Youji had been admitted to a hospital and that he was fine. When he had asked which hospital, wanting to go see him, Aya had gave him that look with eyes not quite dead but filled with such deep pain and had said, "He doesn't remember. Anything." Then he had walked away.

He had stood frozen for a moment, simply staring after Aya's retreating form. He had known him long enough to hear the unspoken, "Leave him. It was what he wanted." He also saw Aya's heart and it was bleeding. Again.

Youji had wanted to forget everything and be reborn even if it meant that he would serve Esset afterwards. That had been his greatest desire: to be able to let go of the past so that it could no longer haunt him. That past included Aya and that was what had hurt him the most. Aya didn't care for many people, but he had loved Youji, though perhaps he had never voiced the words. It was the guilt in Aya that made him distance himself from everyone, especially those he loved the most. He had done it with his sister, Aya-chan, thinking she would be better off without him in her life. Youji had only affirmed that belief by telling Aya-kun that he wanted to forget the past.

Now he had no idea where Aya was, if he was all right, or if he was dead. There was always hope left. Aya couldn't die yet because he couldn't be meant to die with such heartbreak, such hurt in his life. Aya was strong, even stronger than Mamoru was. He couldn't die. Mamoru wouldn't allow him to die yet.

He spent the rest of the night in a daze, responding properly when spoken to but otherwise his thoughts were occupied with what had happened to the other members of Weiss. When he finally was able to return home and sink into bed he began to feel the tension that he had been holding in all day and forced himself to relax as much as he could. He didn't stir when he saw a dark shadow appear, seemingly from no where, and sit down on the bed near him. This was a familiar shadow.

"You are worried about them."

Mamoru closed his eyes, sighing faintly. "Yes, I am. As long as there are no bodies, I will always believe they are alive." He sat up suddenly and looked searchingly into the other's eyes. "You could find out, couldn't you? You could track them down and find out for sure?"

The shadow frowned, then moved closer to him, but not into the soft glow of moonlight that spilled partly across the bed. "Who would protect you?" He did not trust that task to any other, despite the fact that there WERE others who protected him. They were not enough.

"I don't care what happens to me, I just have to know for certain. I can't stand not knowing! I-If they are dead then I can at least put them to rest, but if they are - if they are still alive I would never forgive myself for not finding them!"

The shadow was silent for a moment, then he nodded faintly. "Then I will find them." His almost emotionless look betrayed some of his worry and concern; he would check up on him periodically to make certain he was all right. He always did.

For the first time since Weiss had disappeared, Mamoru smiled. The tears were a relief, as well. It had been such a long time since he had allowed himself to cry. The last time had been when he had thought Youji might die. But Youji hadn't. Now, he didn't know where he was. But he would find them.

"Thank you, Nagi." He reached out and grasped the hand that rested near his, pulling it into the patch of moonlight. "I love you, you know. Even if you can't find them - but I do hope that you can - I don't want you to take any risks; I want you back safely."

He nodded, his expression once more unreadable.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been strange, now that he thought on it. Indeed, he had a lot of time to think recently, being locked in the Tokyo Penitentiary as he was. There was, unfortunately - or fortunately, depending on how one looked at it - a lot of time to think. They had been unable to complete their last mission. It had been only he and Aya since Youji had lost his memories. Aya wouldn't tell him where he was, but he said that he looked happy and that was really all that mattered to him.

Aya had told him to leave, as well. He had a personal mission to complete that might take him from Weiss all together. He had hesitated, though; he had hesitated and had not gone after all.

Aya had almost convinced him that he could complete the mission on his own, giving Ken time to leave, to leave Weiss, to hop on the first plane and disappear forever. Then Ken had remembered Aya's sometimes sucidical mission tactics and it occured to him that maybe Aya didn't /want/ to complete this mission. Maybe he just wanted to die. Which made far too much sense, especially with the way Aya had been acting lately now that Youji was gone for good, as far as Aya was concerned. Aya would certainly not be the one to call him back to join Weiss.

Yet, Ken remembered the look on Aya's face as they had looked down on Youji and his "certain" death. There had been such love in his eyes as he told him, "Wait for me." And of course Aya had saved him, taken him to the hospital, shadowed the place for a time until he was certain he would live and then had left.

He had been about to throw it all away, to throw away his life with Weiss, with Aya, with Omi, and Youji though he no longer was an offical member of the team any more. It was true that he wasn't like Aya, he wasn't able to act as if nothing bothered him. Inside, however, Aya was bothered by everything that happened, but he was strong. Aya would have survived, no matter what the mission was.

"Wait for me, Aya," he told his quiet cell, purposely echoing Aya's own words to Youji. "In just a short while - in a short while, I'll go." Not Weiss. He had decided he couldn't leave Weiss, but he would go to Aya and he would make certain that he was okay and he would never leave him again. It was time to be honest with himself. Maybe, maybe - but he couldn't hope too much. He had to get out first.

"Prisoner 1257!" The doors had opened and he hadn't noticed. He sighed, dragged himself to his feet and walked out the door and stood obediantly while the guard glared at him a moment before moving on to the next prisoner.

Soon, Aya. It was the only thing he was still certain of.

Tomorrow's Destiny: Chapter Two

I'm dead, he decided.

He had to be despite the fact that he had never actually died before to have first hand experience of it, but he was quite certain he was dead. That would have been proper justice, too. A sword-wielding assassin not dying in some glorious, bloody battle, out to avenge some horrible wrong, but dying on a street, stabbed in the side by a child with a switch blade. Assassins weren't meant to have glorious deaths, after all. Poetic justice.

Slowly, his eyes opened and he squinted against the brilliant light surrounding him. Whiteness and beautiful golden light. Definitely, he was definitely dead. Except, he had never expected, after all the sins on his soul, that he would have gone to heaven. He had always given money to the nuns who ran the orphanage, but that surely could not make up for all of his crimes, even if they were done to stop the dark hunters of the world, those who deserved to die.

He lay still, expecting something to happen. For the light to fade, perhaps, and to be encased in eternal darkness and damnanation. That would be justified, right? A taste of heaven before being thrown into the darkest depths of hell?

"Sir!" A woman's voice. "You're awake! Finally!"

He blinked. Then blinked again.

The light did, indeed, fade but he was not thrown into eternal darkness; it was a passing cloud obscuring some of the sun's rays. And the woman was real and he was alive.

That's when it hit him. Intense, agonizing pain in his side. It was too unbearable to be anything but real. He had suffered many injuries in his profession, some worse than this, but he had assumed no one would have stopped to help him and that he would bleed to death against that mailbox. So. He was still alive. He did not know whether to be disappointed at that fact, or relieved.

A doctor arrived quickly and the nurse hovered about worriedly as the doctor made certain that he was all right and was not going to keel over again any time soon. Aya remained still and endured the prodding. Finally, the doctor looked at him carefully. "When they found you, you didn't have any ID on you at all."

Of course not. They never carried anything that could identify them. That would be stupid. "My name is Fujimiya Aya." Even if they looked, there would be no records on him so it was a safe enough name to use. If anything they would think it a false name if they managed to trace it back to his sister. As it was, there were few enough records of her so he rather doubted they'd be able to do that, either. Evidence of her stay at the hospital had been destroyed and unless they talked to the staff at the hospital - a hospital they would not even know about because of the lack of records - they would not know of her. Her employment at the flower shop was also not on any permanant records anywhere, either.

Aya judged the extent of his wound and forced himself to sit up despite the doctor's protests. When he tried to get out of the hospital bed the doctor did stop him. Aya glared. The doctor glared back, surprisingly unphased by his patented Evil Aya Glare that seemed to work on almost everyone else.

"What do you think you are doing?"

"Leaving." He hated hospitals. As he recalled, Omi had always thought that it was amusing that getting stabbed or shot or otherwise injured did not bother Aya as much as getting pricked by a needle. Aya was also venomously against the color white, which also happened to be the most typical color of hospital rooms. Perhaps it was that he associated white with his sister's prolonged stay in the hospital, or the white interior of the coffins his parents were buried in. Whatever it was, he certainly didn't want to stay.

"You are not fully recovered! I will not allow you to leave this hospital until I deem you fit to do so."

Aya pushed his feet out of the bed. He needed to find his clothes. Hopefully they weren't too bloodstained.

The nurse was suddenly in his field of vision. "No, please! You have to stay still or you'll tear the - " She froze as icy eyes locked onto her.

"Asuka." His voice was dark. He wasn't looking at her name tag.

Her eyes widened as she stared at him, seeing the recognition in his eyes but not knowing where he could possibly know her from. "How do you know me?"

There was a long pause in which is eyes seemed to want to drill holes into her head and see right into her innermost thoughts. Finally, "You don't remember." Then he shook his head. "No, of course you don't." If she had survived the blast, as she obviously had, it was natural to assume she lost those memories. Esset had probably deleted all of her previous memories before Esset - well, all memories except those having to do with fighting and killing that is. From a detective to an assassin to a nurse and each time losing her previous history for the next. She had lived three seperate lives and had no idea of the first two. He wasn't sure whether to envy or pity her.

"You remember me from before?" Asuka trembled slightly, excited and frightened both. "What was I? Who was I? It's been - it's been years and for a long time I tried desperately to remember but I couldn't. All I remember is someone screaming 'Asuka'."

Aya studied her for a moment. "I remember you, but I did not really know you well. It's not my place to remind you of those times." When he tried to stand, he found her hands firmly on his shoulders, exerting just enough pressure so that he could not deattach her without hurting her. "I'll need my clothes."

"Fujimiya-san, I'm afraid you are not going anywhere for the time being." The doctor again. "While we were stitching you up we discovered many unusual injuries. You've been shot before. Several times, actually. And there are slash marks over your body from knife wounds, perhaps, or a sword. Some scars indicated that perhaps you have been shot through with a dart or arrow of some sort." He eyed him warily. "Could you explain these injuries?"

Of course, they would comment on old wounds, wouldn't they? Yes, that was another realize he seriously disliked hospitals and their nosy staff. "Some people have dangerous lines of work, doctor."

"This isn't the first time you've cheated death, either."

Aya raised his eyebrows at him. "If I've cheated death, I never meant to. Perhaps death cheated me."

The doctor most likely would have persued the subject, but suddenly a head peered around the door and smiled at Asuka. "The lady at the front desk said that you would be -"

"Youji!" The name escaped his lips before he could stop it. He immediately cursed himself for the slip. It must have been whatever drugs they had given him for the pain that had fogged his judgement.

The light haired man stared at him and moved fully into the room, frowning at him faintly. "'Youji'?"

Asuka, looking alarmed, glanced between the two of them. "You knew him as well? We - he choose the name Takashi."

The doctor stood in silence, vaguely confused, but interested in the proceedings.

"Youji." He looked at Aya and moved closer towards him. "That was my name." His brow creased as he tried to reach into his damaged memory and tried draw out forgotten things. "I knew you, I know I did."

Aya had spotted his clothing on the table across the room. He went to them now without much resistence from the nurse or the doctor. It hurt to move, but he could ignore the pain for the most part. He dressed as quickly as he could, feeling Youji's eyes on him the entire time. When he turned to go, Youji was blocking his exit.

"There was something I had to give back to you."

He took a shaky breath, turning his face away from him to hid his expression as much as possible. "I got it back." He attempted to walk around him, but Youji caught his arm and jerked him to a halt; the movement pulled at Aya's side, the pain forcing him to stand still and focus on breathing and not passing out.

"Who am I?"

Aya glared up at him darkly as soon as the dizziness had passed. "I am not here to bring back your memories. I meant little enough to you; it should be no different now." The sharp bitterness in his tone shocked Youji - or, rather, Takashi, since that was the name Asuka said he had choosen to use now. He was able to pulled out of his grasp.

He had loved him. But it didn't matter because Youji had never loved him. He had been unhappy then and would be again. That much was certain.

"Aya!"

He had reached the hospital room's doorway and spun at the sound of his name, clutching his side as pain shot through it at his sudden movement. There was pain of a different sort in his eyes as he looked at him. "You'd be better to forget me. It never suited you, you know. You have a chance at life; don't associate with the damned."

He didn't wait for a reply. Youj - Takashi wouldn't follow. He had Asuka now, what need did he have for Aya?

Tomorrow's Detiny: Chapter Three

His phone rang loudly, jerking his mind firmly back to the present. He had zoned out again. There had been so many things to think about lately, none of which were pleasant. Too many things, too much confusion, too little real evidence for anything. Why did everything have to be so complex? Couldn't it be easy, just for once?

He grabbed his cell phone quickly, checked the number, and answered it immediately, feeling his heart rate increase. "Hai? Did you -?"

"Found Siberian." Was the curt reply. Nagi was never one for lengthy explanations; Mamoru would not have thanked him for one at the moment, either. Quick, percise facts was what he wanted now.

"Alive?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

Pause. "We'll have to get him out."

"Out?" Mamoru frowned at that, confused. "Out of where?"

"I am sending you the information. I suggest sending Rex to retrieve him. I explained everything. No leads on the others yet."

Mamoru started to respond, but Nagi had already hung up. Typical. He was too pleased at the moment to concern himself with his beloved's abruptness, however. Ken. They knew where Ken was and soon he would be back with them, safe and sound. Well, perhaps not exactly safe, per ce. He was an assassin after all, but, still, it was better than not knowing. At least he hadn't been killed. Yet.

He leaned back in his chair, smiling to himself. He knew Nagi could find them. Nagi was an extremely dedicated, talented individual. His lack of visible emotional responses was sometimes disturbing, but Mamoru had spent a lot of his life with Aya so he was at least used to that sort of behavior. Still, he had to get him to loosen up just a little bit, even if only for a moment or two. He was worse than Aya, which wasn't all that surprising, considering what Schuldig had -

Mamoru shuddered, shaking his head. He didn't want to recall the images Schuldig had shown him. Nagi was trying to put the past and those memories behind him and even though it wasn't working perfectly, it was at least a start. He wanted to help Nagi come to terms with his past as he had attempted to come to terms with his own past. Neither of them particularly wanted to talk about it, though, which made it rather difficult. He knew well enough that they were both extremely stubborn and it wasn't as if either of them could seek professional help, Nagi because he would be more than likely end up killing them in a panic as he had done before when he lost control, and Mamoru simply because of who he was. Takatori Mamoru did NOT want to appear in any tabloids any time soon as he had managed to keep out of them thus far.

Still, he was hoping that Nagi would begin to trust him even more and that he would confined in him. He was pretty sure that Nagi would do no such thing as long as he was functioning reasonably well, however. It would most likely take yet another breakdown before the younger man would crack enough to tell him the details. And no matter how traumatzing his words would be, Mamoru would have to be strong and supportive, which was always the hard part.

Just like in Germany (1) when -

Ken. The information.

He turned his attention back onto his computer, found the files Nagi had sent to him and quickly scanned the information, frowning at what he found within it. He snatched up his phone again, calling up a familiar number. "Rex?" he asked as the phone was answered.

"Yes, Persia? Is there - ?"

"I'm sending you something. I want you to bring him back."

There was a pause. Rex had no idea what he was talking about having not known about Nagi being sent out to search for the missing Weiss members. But, despite that she responded, "Yes, of course." Obedient as always.

"Be as quick as possible. Thank you, Rex." He hung up quickly and turned his gaze back onto the report Nagi had sent to him.

Ken. In the Tokyo Penitentiary.

He did not like the sound of that at all. Rex would get him, though. She would not fail him.

~~~~~~~~~~

Rex frowned at the report in front of her that Persia had sent to her. It wasn't that she disliked the assissignment, it was simply that it was not what she had excepted, though she was uncertain what it was she had expected it to be. Of course Persia would have continued to look for his friends, even after everyone else had lost hope of their survival. She should have realized it.

Siberian, it seemed, was alive and locked up in a penitentiary, of all places. Now it was her duty to retrieve him as soon as possible. Which also meant she had to do it as quietly and efficently as possible, too. No traces, no leads, no evidence to follow. That was their way.

According to the report, Siberian had been spotted and recongnized by someone working for their last assigned target. Who it was that had recognized him was unknown, but they had captured him and immediately had him locked up; they had had to pull some strings to get him put away, which seemed somewhat ridiculous. Why should they have wanted to spare the life of an assassin? Apparently they had not wanted to simply have him killed. Did they have some future use for them that was unknown to them at the moment, or was their another reason for their generosity? Perhaps they would never know and maybe it didn't matter anyway.

Still, it made her wonder exactly why they had spared his life. And where exactly Abyssinian had been when all this had happened? Had they seperated to take on their target? Or had they had Abyssinian killed but not Siberian? That, however, did not make any sense to her. Abyssinian was not mentioned at all in the report, as if he had not been there at all.

Maybe they had had Abyssinian killed before. Or maybe someone else had already gotten to him, someone not affliated with the target at all.

Yet, if Siberian were still alive, then there was always the chance that Abyssinian was still out there somewhere, too.

Persia would only be happy after Siberian was returned and even then he would still fret and worry over Abyssinian. She could understand that; Abyssinian was very insightful and for all his coldness he was a very kind and gentle person. In a way, Abyssinian was like a fatherly figure to Persia, or perhaps more of an older brother. She desperately hoped that he was all right, if only for Persia's sake. Persia had enough to bear without his loss.

She stood quickly, deleting the report after committing the important parts to memory. It was time for her to do her duty and to pull some strings of her own.

~~To be continued~~

(1) I know, I'm being evil again. Gomen. I have my own version of what happened in Germany (of course) and maybe I'll explain that later in this fic, or perhaps I'll explain it in another Weiss fic, one based around darling Nagi and Mamoru/Omi.

I love Nagi. He's so cute and... well, not EVIL, just misunderstood. But now, in my Weiss universe, he has Omi - er, Mamoru - er, Persia. ^^;; lol He's also as bad as Aragorn with all the different names! Lol I think I've been reading too many LOTR fics lately.

I just had to add these lyrics because it kind of characterizes this chapter. ^_^ That and I was listening to this song at the time.

"Sometimes I feel as though I'm running on ice

Paying the price too long.

Kind of get the feeling that I'm running on ice

Where did my life go wrong?"

~Billy Joel, "Running on Ice"

Tomorrow's Destiny: Chapter Four

He was certain who it had been and why they had targeted him in that way. What surprised him was that they had not made certain that he had died, or perhaps they had assumed, as he had, that he would allow himself to bleed to death and that no one would come to his aid. Obviously some good- hearted person had seen him though and had been kind enough to call am ambulance of some sort. He had blacked out completely and had no memories of that happening, but logically it must have.

The child who had stabbed him was not anyone of importance and was most likely just a typical street kid who had needed the money. If he knew the one who had sent him - and he thought he did - the boy was most likely dead now, anyway. Leave no one to tell the tale. The person who had sent the boy was also probably dead. That was their way and one less henchmen was not a big deal; they could get another as easily as they had gotten him.

All that remained for him to do was go to the source. To kill the killer and stop those who committed crimes without remorse or thought. That was his duty, that was what he was cursed to do, being so far beyond the common law as he was. He had long ago ceased to question it. There was no wrong or right, just evil and more evil. The lesser evil was what he did: to kill those who did wrong, which in itself was wrong, in a way, yet in a sense it was justifiable. Somehow.

He returned to his safe house. Not the one he had been staying at, but another. They had obviously found the one he had been frequenting and he wouldn't take that chance. He would complete his mission no matter how injured he was and if he died at least he would have tried.

Ken. He would be far away by now. Most likely Weiss would assume that he was dead and that was better for him. Ken deserved a chance at a real life as much as Youji did. He, however, he was doomed - by choice - to live the life of an assassin and there was no other path for him. Some simply couldn't turn from a path, no matter how self-destructive it would ultimately be. Just as Omi would always be a Takatori and was forced to walk his path even if he would rather be fighting than giving the orders.

He collasped into a chair and closed his eyes, never relaxing completely, but just enough to be somewhat comfortable. His whole body felt weak and useless. Still, he would strike tonight. He could not delay and he had no idea how long he had been unconscious for or how many other misdeeds his target had done since then.

The layout of the target's house was firmly implanted in his mind; he could have found his way around with his eyes closed. He would strike quietly and efficently. There would be no grand entrance because he had absolutely no backup. Take out the guards, take out the target, and flee. Easy as that. He'd done the same thing a million times before.

Then he would get his sword. And report to Rex.

His sword. The one Youji had used to save his own life, the one he had been clutching when Aya went to find him after the explosion. He had not used it since then. Now he carried lethal darts, knives, and a different sword. It had been more expensive than his other one, but he did not like it as much; the other held more memories and he understood it better.

Which was ridiculous. A sword was a sword and they all worked the same way. Swing, cut, kill. There was nothing else for them.

And yet -

He jerked awake, shocked. He had not intended nor even realized that he had fallen asleep. Perhaps that was a good thing, though. Maybe now he would be more focused and better prepared to complete his mission. His newly stitched side still ached as he hauled himself to his feet, but he would not let such a small thing stop him. He had fought before in worse condition.

He just hadn't been alone during those occasions.

Not that he missed Ken or Youji. No, of course not. It just meant that he had to do more work on his own without any back up. He'd done it before.

It was just a bit lonely.

Well, perhaps very lonely.

Yet, it also meant he could be quiter, more stealthy. Get the job done without complications, without worrying if someone had gotten hurt. The only one who could die this time was him and that did not concern him overly much. Aya-chan was happy and beyond that nothing really mattered.

Right?

Yes, of course. What else could matter in life?

Sword, poisoned darts, a couple knives. Yes, he was ready. He flinched as his side warned him that his usual stalking gait would NOT be acceptable tonight. Damn. He could still slink, though. It didn't hurt that much. Really, it didn't.

He choose to walk to the target's house, keeping to the shadows that were his only friends now. The shadows had always been a loyal companion, sheltering and concealing him from prying eyes that sought to kill him. It was the daylight that betrayed him.

Close combat was out of the question, though he hated to admit that, but he was a wounded assassin and he had to reach his target. It usually wasn't his style, yet it would suffice. A poison dart here, a guard down. Another here, another down. The other two were taken out just as easily. He would collect the darts later. The less evidence, the better.

Then it was just a hop, skip, and a jump - though he did none of those - to the target's office-like room. He had not even bothered to close the door all the way, making it all the easier for him. He was wary, still, but nothing pointed to it being a trap.

One more dart and -

An arm snaked about his neck suddenly. Light hitting the barrel of a gun. Fuck! What had happened to his amazingly accurate hearing, his concentration?? It couldn't possibly be because he was feeling light headed and his wounded side was pounding horribly in pain, could it?

A familiar whirling sound filled his ears, then a gagging sound as the arm around his neck disappeared as quickly as it had grabbed him. He turned, his eyes wide. There was Youji. He wasn't dressed in his usual "I'm an assassin and damn sexy, too!" clothing, but in the suit he had been wearing earlier. He looked wrong, but he was welcome nonetheless.

"Aya - "

Aya glared him into silence. Now was not the time for a lengthy discussion. Questions later. Take care of the target now. Then take care of all those after-mission annoyances and then his schedule would be clear.

He pushed the door open quietly, his eyes fixing on the traget; he was able to threw one of his poisoned darts with deadly accuracy despite his current state. Target eliminated. He double checked to make absoultely certain of that, then retrieved the dart and the others, as well. Youji followed him like an obediant puppy, saying nothing, only watching him. When they had cleared the premisis he began to speak, but Aya silenced him quickly. Well, he hadn't done it intentionally, of course.

He passed out. Again.

Tomorrow's Destiny: Chapter Five

Another aimless day which he filled with wandering thoughts he could completely understand or pin down. He still wasn't entirely certain how he had ended up in his current predicament and even if he did it wouldn't make much of a difference because he couldn't do anything to alter it. It was beginning to seem as if he would be stuck in here forever. He would just have to make the best of a horrible situation.

Maybe he should try suicide?

No. He wanted to see Aya again, had to see Aya again. He couldn't die yet, no matter what. He still had people out there he cared for and who cared about him. Omi, Omi must be frantic with worry by now. That was a depressing thought because he hated to cause the younger man anymore pain than he already had to bear.

"Prisoner 1257!"

He blinked and looked up. It couldn't possibly be time to -

Standing beside the prison guard was a tall and beautiful woman (1). His heart leapt to see her. Rex.

He was on his feet in an instant; Rex smiled at him faintly, nodding in greeting.

"You're being released," the guard was saying, but he barely heard the words. He did note the rather unfriendly look the guard tossed in his direction, but that was easy to ignore with Rex standing there, taking his arm, and leading him off as if he were a child. Not that he could have cared less about that. Obviously the apperance of Rex meant that he was being released and that meant things were looking up for a change!

He was allowed to change out of the prison uniform and into the clothes he had had on when they had thrown him into the penitentiary. They even gave him back his gloves. They obviously hadn't looked very closely at them, of which he was glad. It was a bitch to custom-make gloves with sharp metal claws. (2)

Then he was climbing into Rex's car. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye as she sped off. "It took us a while to track you down. I still don't know how they - or even who - found you, but I am glad you are okay."

"Thanks, Rex." Now he could see Aya again. He couldn't stop the silly grin that spread across his face. "I bet Aya reported in ages ago. I almost didn't expect anyone to look for me." Aya had probably told them that he had lost him in the action and that he figured he was dead. That was supposed to have been the cover story so that they wouldn't search for him.

Rex choose not to mention the fact that they almost hadn't looked for him, nor that she had no idea that they had continued the search. There were more important matters to address. "Aya is missing." She sent him a look that clearly said that she had hoped he had had some information on what might have happened to Abyssinian, but obviously he did not.

He reacted badly to that. "WHAT??!"

"The target was not killed and Aya did not report in. I assume there is someone looking into the matter, but at the moment he is missing and presumed dead."

"No!" Aya. No, not Aya. Aya couldn't die! He was stability itself, he was strong and stable and constant! It wasn't possible that Aya could die and leave him all alone before he could tell him - before he could tell him -

Not before he had the chance to say - to say -

That he loved him.

No, he wouldn't believe it! He couldn't believe that he had missed that chance and would never be able to tell him how he felt! Aya simply couldn't be dead. It was impossible.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aya knew he wasn't dead this time. He only WISHED he was. He definitely didn't feel very great at the moment, especially when he remembered what had happened. The fact that Youji was staring down at him intently, waiting for him to stir, wasn't helping that much, either.

"Aya?"

He closed his eyes again, trying to block out his voice. He had tried so hard to forget the sound of his voice and here he was again, reminding him of all the times they had spent together. "How?" They were at the safe house, but Youji should not have known where it was at all. Youji shouldn't be here, now. He wasn't an assassin any longer. He had broken away from that life.

"I followed you."

From the hospital. Damn, he was slipping; he hadn't even noticed that he was being following. Perhaps he had been too concerned about taking the next step and not keeling over. "The wire?"

Youji smiled ironically. "I never took off my watch even though I didn't understand why I didn't feel safe without it. That was probably a very good thing for you."

"I thought I told you to forget about me."

"And since when have I listened to you?"

He opened his eyes again and glared coldly at Youji even though he had to admit that that was true. Youji had a tendency not to listen to him. "You have Asuka now. Weiss has gotten on well enough without you so there is no reason for you to be here."

"Yes, I can see you've been doing perfectly well." Sarcasm. That only annoyed Aya more. "Where is Ken at, anyway? Shouldn't he be here helping you out?"

Aya forced himself to sit up despite the protest of his wound and Youji's verbal protests. "Lost track of Ken."

"He's gone?"

He shrugged. "I don't know." Which was the truth; he didn't know exactly where Ken was. He had told Ken specifically not to tell him where he was going so that he wouldn't know. "I have to report back to Rex," he continued, changing the subject. "You should get going and so should I. It's been too long and I'm sure they are concerned about my whereabouts." He had been delaying to give Ken time to get free and clear; Omi was most likely worried about both of them by now.

"I'm going with you."

Aya's eyes narrowed. "No, you are not. You were unhappy before and it will only be the same this time around. We don't need you."

"Maybe Weiss doesn't need another aging assassin, but at the moment you need me and I am not letting you out of my sight until I think you are fine."

That, of course, was not intended in the way Aya would have liked it to have been intended. Youji cared for him as a friend and nothing more. It might be nice to have someone take care of him for once. Then again - "No."

A stubborn look entered Youji's eyes that equally matched Aya's cold gaze. "Yes." Then he smiled. "You're to weak to do anything to stop me, anyway."

Aya's glare darkened considerably. Damn. He had a point there.

~~To be continued~~