Chapter Text
He was in pain.
Broken.
He felt betrayed.
No, he was betrayed.
The air was cold for the duo that ran hand in hand in the desert. There was a full moon cascading a light, almost as if to guide them to their next destination. Their bodies were filled with adrenaline as they escaped a raging war that was happening behind them. A war that, unbeknown to them, started thousands of years ago because of the red string attached to them.
Psyche Orihara, a twenty year old merchant, ran from a castle he had been held captive in for days. He couldn’t feel his left arm and his legs hurt with each step he took. His wrists and ankles burned from being chained and beaten. He looked down at the hand connected to his and the man it belonged to as they ran as fast as they could. Tsugaru Heiwajima, a twenty year old body guard, held on tightly trying to get Psyche to safety.
Tsugaru didn’t look any better than Psyche, if anything he looked much worse. The raven didn’t know how they were able to even move, but the adrenaline coursing through their bodies helped a great amount. He was so tired, he felt like he could collapse at any moment. The stab wound in his arm was fresh and wouldn’t stop bleeding out. He looked up at the night sky, stars shining bright as if they were leading them to safety. He could still hear the roaring fire miles away, coming from where he was being held captive. He could hear fighting and the neigh of a horse. He hoped his friends were alright.
It was so cold he could see each breath he took. The only thing that kept him going was the blond man that was holding on to his hand as if it was his lifeline. There were tears falling from his eyes. His body so desperately wanted to give out on him.
“Just a little longer Psyche.” Tsugaru wheezed out. Psyche could see the unshed tears in his eyes, most likely holding them in so Psyche wouldn’t worry. A stupid notion, because Psyche was worried regardless. It was one of the reasons he fell so hard for the man, he wasn’t just physically strong but mentally strong as well. Psyche cried out when his body stumbled forward. He let go of Tsugaru’s hand, and fell forward onto the floor. Tsugaru quickly knelt down next to the raven, grabbing and picking him up. His tears finally fell down onto Psyche's face as he ran as fast as he could towards Castle Town. He had to get Psyche medical attention quickly.
“I’m so tired, Tsugaru.” Psyche coughed out blood. He grabbed onto Tsugaru’s haori over his heart, his pale bloodied hand making a tight fist.
“We’re almost there, Psyche. Just a little longer.” Tsugaru cried and he looked down at Psyche’s pale face. “Please don’t leave me.” He begged.
“I love you.” Psyche whispered. It was getting colder by the second and his body was beginning to feel numb. He wanted to stay awake a little longer even if it was just to look at Tsugaru a little more.
“This isn’t going to be a goodbye.” Tsugaru ran as fast as he could with his injuries. “So stop trying to make it one. I can get you help. Just stay awake.”
“Tell me you love me.” Psyche lazily looked up at him. How did everything turn out the way that it did?
“You know I love you.” Tsugaru stumbled a bit, almost dropping the raven. He fell down to his knees, not wanting to take another step, knowing these were his last moments with his lover. He cradled Psyche in his arms making sure not to drop him. His soft cries turned into loud sobs and he cried into Psyche’s chest. “Please, just stay awake a little longer.” Psyche began to feel warm in Tsugaru’s arms. His eyelids felt heavy and he was fighting his body to stay awake.
“I’m supposed to be the crybaby. That face doesn’t suit you.” Psyche gave a half smile and he cupped Tsugaru’s face with his right hand, wiping the tears as they fell. He used what little strength he had and raised himself up to place a chaste kiss on his lover’s lips. “I’m sorry Tsugaru, but this is goodbye.” His grip on the haori loosened and his head dropped down.
“No! No! No! Psyche, this wasn’t supposed to happen.” He cried into Psyche’s chest. “I love you so much. Come back to me please.” Tsugaru began to leave kisses all over the raven’s face. Tsugaru could hear the sound of a horse approaching at top speed. “I don’t know how, but I’m going to see you again. You, Psyche, are my other half and we will meet again.” He grabbed Psyche’s limp hand and kissed the ring on his finger. The ring was a simple silver band with the date they illegally wed engraved inside. Their last names are engraved next to the date. “Wait for me Psyche. I promise I won’t keep you waiting too long.”
Tsugaru looked up when his friends caught up to him. Tears streamed down his cheeks and he held on to Psyche’s body tightly against his chest. Celty and Diamond watched him silently get on the carriage, refusing to let go of Psyche
“Tsugaru-” Diamond started but was quickly cut off.
“Don’t say anything. Celty, take me to Castle Town.” Tsugaru angrily spoke, cradling the raven.
…
Izaya rested his hand on his chin, waiting for the bell to ring. He was bored watching the teacher explain yesterday’s exam. He looked over to the frustrated blond who took notes on the questions he missed. Tearing up a small piece of paper he wadded it up to make a small ball. He entertained himself by throwing the small wads of paper towards Shizuo. Smirking to himself every time he made his shot. Students around him nervously watched the interaction when Shizuo glared over to his direction. Izaya feigned innocence by looking out into the courtyard.
“I know it was you, flea. Quit trying to distract me.” Shizuo scoffed and looked back at his paper. There was a tap on Izaya’s shoulder and he looked behind him to his scrawny brunette friend.
“Come over after school? My dad is still away on his trip and I’m getting bored.” Shinra asked him.
“Thought you couldn’t get bored with that Valkyrie you’re obsessed with.” Izaya rolled his eyes. “You have such a sick fascination that even I’m not interested in it.”
“My beautiful bride-to-be is always taking up jobs so I hardly see her. But just getting to see her passing by makes my heart pound.” Shinra lovingly sighed.
“That’s the sick part I was talking about.” Izaya stated in disgust. “People who think I’m a psycho have clearly never spent more than five minutes with you.”
“One day you’ll know how it is to love someone like I love Celty.” Shinra began writing his and Celty’s initials in his notebook.
“Absolutely not.” Izaya put a finger in front of his mouth and fake gagged to show his disgust.
“Do you think she’ll take my last name? Or should I take hers?” Shinra began to talk to himself. Izaya rolled his eyes and turned back around. He went back to his original task of throwing small pieces of paper at Shizuo. The moment the bell rang, Shizuo calmly got up from his seat, grabbed his backpack and darted towards the raven. Izaya quickly got on his feet and jumped on his desk and ran towards the door, using his classmates' desk to jump over.
The teacher sighed and watched the duo run out of her classroom. There were days where she couldn’t tell you if they were best friends or rivals. She looked over at their love stricken friend and was debating whether to snap him out of his delusional fantasies or not. She looked out the window and watched the cat and mouse chase make its way out to the streets of their big city. A city that never seemed to sleep and always had something interesting happening.
…
Izaya's laugh echoed through the streets of Ikebukuro, dodging any heavy items thrown at him. He looked back to the fortissimo of Ikebukuro and flashed him a dazzling smile. A daily occurrence in the big city.
“I’m starting to believe you don’t really want to kill me Shizu-chan!” Izaya giggled and he ran into an alley. He ran up the fire escape and hid to see how Shizuo would react when he realized Izaya outran him.
“I-za-ya-kun!” Shizuo yelled out at the top of his lungs when he ran into the empty alley. The blond kicked around some trash trying to locate the onyx haired boy. After giving up, he huffed and went back to meet up with Shinra.
Izaya laughed as he walked the streets of Ikebukuro. He was in a side of town he had yet to explore. Looking around the shops, he found a small antique store and had a sudden urge to go in. It was small and cramped as he walked around. A lot of the items looked more like junk than they looked valuable. Antiques covered in a thin layer of dust. He picked up a small music box and twirled the small key around. The sound of an intricate melody came out. It was beautiful but it gave him a melancholy feeling. It felt almost familiar to him like he had heard the melody in a dream, but he knew he had never heard the sound before.
The woman watched him look around her small store. She took a small drag from her pipe before acknowledging him.
“Quite the interesting collection you have in here.” Izaya told her, picking up an old microscope.
The microscope looked like it had been well used. He looked at the name engraved on the side, Naho. He could imagine the microscope in a lab, filled with vials and jars full of experiments. The older woman hummed before leaving to a room in the back of the store. She came back holding a small rectangular case.
“All of it has been collected by my family for many many generations.” She told him. The old woman sat down at a small table and ushered him to sit across from her. “You seem to be a boy with impeccable taste. I’ve never shown this piece to anyone but I feel you might like it.” Opening the boxes, she showed him a pair of matching rings. Izaya’s eyes were captivated by the small pieces of jewelry. It was as if they were calling out his name. “They say the rings belonged to a pair of star-crossed lovers whose story ended tragically.”
Izaya snorted as he picked up one of the rings. For a split moment, his head began to feel immense pain before it disappeared. He ignored the feeling, and focussed on the rings again. “Untrue, I’m sure.” He noticed the inscription inside the ring. The name was no longer eligible but the date clearly read 2/14/1564. There was a look of amusement in her eyes when she noticed he picked up Psyche’s ring.
“It is the truth. I have a great uncle. His name was Diamond and he knew the lovers personally. His story has been told for generations.” She closed both of the boxes when Izaya placed the ring back inside. “I remember my grandfather telling us the story vividly when I was a very small girl.” Izaya’s eyes never left the intricate mahogany case. The woman gave him a smile and slid the ring he had picked up towards him. “Consider it a gift.” She placed it in his hands. “I haven’t seen a youth here in ages. Especially one as curious as yourself.”
“I couldn’t.” The young teenage boy frowned and went to grab his wallet to offer her something.
“The rings are priceless, Orihara.” She rejected his money. He thanked her before leaving the small store.
…
After the antique shop, Izaya made his way to the Kishitani residence like he promised Shinra earlier that day. When he was doing his homework on Shinra’s coffee table, it finally dawned on him, he never gave the old woman his name. He looked over at the mahogany case and frowned. Had he really been so captivated by the ring and the splitting headache that he didn’t notice?
“What’s in the box?” Shinra asked, grabbing the case, and opening it. He looked curiously at the item.
“Congratulations, Shinra. There were malevolent spirits trapped in there and now you let them out.” Izaya spoke with a hint of sarcasm. Shinra rolled his eyes and snorted at him.
“You and I both know my future bride would protect me from all harm.” He picked up the ring and studied it. “I didn’t think you were into things like this. This ring seems to be really old.”
“Your parents didn’t think you would be into headless women but here we are with our interests.” Izaya smirked. Shinra slammed the case shut and huffed back to his seat on the couch.
“This is why you don’t have any friends.” Shinra grumbled. Izaya laughed and started putting his stuff away in his backpack.
“I’m hurt. Here I thought we were the best of friends.” Izaya feigned a sad look and placed a hand on his heart. “I have to be home in time for dinner.” Stretching his arms high up in the air he bent back and popped his back before getting up. Grabbing his backpack, he placed the case in his pocket and walked past his friend.
“See you tomorrow!” Shinra called out after him.