Alternatives

Empath


Ken left the kitchen and headed straight for his room needing time alone to think. He had to admit to himself that his feelings for Schuldig had been growing rapidly over the past week but now it looked like he stood no chance at all.

The telepath had told them that Crawford, as well as Yohji, was in the hands of Rosenkreuz and that he had to go to Germany to rescue them. Ken couldn’t help but wonder if it was because Schuldig had warmer feelings for the American. He had come to realise over the last day or two that Schwarz had been as close and caring of each other as Weiss so it seemed logical to him that those feelings had been expressed as love.

He had no illusions that, if it came to a choice between Crawford and himself, Schuldig would consider him. He had none of the sophistication of the pre-cog and he felt sure that a man like Schuldig would find him boring.

Why would he even consider a dumb jock like you? The thought kept going through his mind.

He beat up his pillow until he remembered that Yohji was still missing. Time to stop feeling sorry for himself and start thinking about ways to get his friend back. He needed to talk to Omi and Nagi.

* * * * * * *

Finally left to rest for a while, Yohji closed the door of the room he’d been given and sank down on the bed. He tried to reactivate his anger at Aya, but instead found himself reaching out to search for the other man’s emotions. There was a strong wash of anger and fear for him and his green eyes widened in surprise. He dug a little deeper and was stunned by the depth of Aya’s feelings for him.

So why had the idiot pushed him away? He thought back to how he’d once been and found several answers. The constant succession of women and his inability to move past Asuka. His belief in Neu, despite all evidence to the contrary, which led to him helping to betray Aya and his team-mates. The drinking, the teasing and, at the end, the madness. No wonder Aya had felt the need to protect himself.

He stretched out and let himself relax, careful to keep his mind shielded from the others in the building. He wondered if he dared sleep or whether the sadists would plunder his dreams and discover the truth about his memory being intact once more. Sighing slightly, he realised he needed to sleep whether it was safe or not. As if agreeing with him, his eyes shut and the darkness overtook him.

Strangely, he did not dream at all and awoke the next morning completely refreshed. Approaching footsteps heralded the arrival of Dietmeiller or one of his minions and Yohji waited calmly to see what was wanted of him this time.

* * * * * * *

Aya went upstairs to pack, attempting to push his anxiety to the back of his mind, to regain his mission focus. It wasn’t working. He had to admit, finally, that his feelings for Yohji were as strong, if not stronger, than ever.

He sat on his bed and drew his katana onto his lap. Unsheathing it, he drew the razor-sharp edge across his left palm, hissing slightly at the sting. \"I swear to you, Yohji, that we will either survive together or die together. I’ll never leave you behind again.\"

He held the blood in his fist for a moment or two, allowing his mind to clear. This time, he was able to push his fears and anger to the back of his mind and regain his focus. There was work to be done.

He bound his hand and finished his packing in a more settled and determined state of mind. Never mind that Rosenkreuz was almost totally composed of trained talents, Yohji was at stake here and he couldn’t let the man down again.

* * * * * * *

Dietmeiller sat at his desk, deep in thought. Kudoh had proved himself both willing and eager to learn which said a lot for the idea of wiping a talent’s mind before training them. It was a bonus to find that Kudoh was such a strong empath. Until he had come along, they’d only considered the process for minor talents. Now, it seemed useful for major talents too. Had Crawford and Schuldig had their minds wiped they would never have turned against the organisation in the first place.

Well, once he had the telepath and telekinetic in his grasp once more, he could wipe both their minds and Crawford’s. It beat breaking them and perhaps destroying the very qualities he wanted to keep. But first he had to find them.

But what was he thinking? He now had a tame empath. Why not use him to find the other two? He had no reason to try escaping. He was totally Rosenkreuz now.

Mind made up, Dietmeiller headed for Kudoh’s room. He found the empath sat on his bed, obviously rested. He smiled frostily and didn’t even wonder why Kudoh grimaced. He was used to his underlings having such reactions to him.

\"I have a job for you. You are to find the telepath, Schuldig and the telekinetic Nagi Naoe.\"

Kudoh looked at him blankly. \"Who the fuck are they?\"

\"Ah, so they weren’t in London. If they had been, I’m certain they’d have sought you out. They hate you, you know. They’ll do whatever they can to hurt you.\"

Yohji knew the man believed his words, which meant he didn’t realise that Nagi and Schuldig had help. It also meant that he didn’t recognise that all the memories had returned. He found it difficult not to laugh in the man’s face. Instead, he managed to retain his air of total confusion. \"Why would they want to hurt me?\"

\"Because that’s what they do. They hurt people. It’s what they’re trained to do.\"

\"So how am I supposed to find them and bring them here?\"

\"You find their emotions. Once you find them you twist them until they want, no need, to return here.\"

\"So, I’m looking for hatred?\"

\"Yes, you are. Hatred of Rosenkreuz.\"

Yohji nodded. \"Okay. I’ll try.\"

Dietmeiller ruffled his hair. \"Such a good boy.\"

Yohji found it hard to keep from flinching. He could feel the lust radiating off the man.

* * * * * * *

\"Exactly why do we have to stay behind?\"

Schuldig sighed. The little Takatori was determined to be difficult.

\"Because if you come with us we won’t succeed.\" He was trying to be patient, really he was.

\"Is Crawford never wrong? I mean what if Rosenkreuz made him send that message so they could get their hands on you?\"

Schuldig sat down opposite Nagi and Takatori. Rosenkreuz meddling was something he had considered, but Brad’s mental voice had been too hurried and fearful of discovery. He felt that a Rosenkreuz backed message would have been more relaxed in tone. Now he had to convince the two young men staring at him so expectantly.

\"I’ve never known Brad to misread a vision. Have you, Nagi?\" His young friend shook his head. \"I did consider Rosenkreuz forcing him to send the message, but two things made me realise that they didn’t. First, the tone of it. Brad had to send that in a hurry. Second, if Rosenkreuz had forced the send they would have wanted Nagi, not Aya. We need Aya and I to be there for some reason.\"

Takatori nodded slowly, never taking his eyes off Schuldig. \"You would know best how your talents work and how your team interact. I just can’t sit here and do nothing.\"

He thought about the other part of Brad’s message. \"You don’t have to. Brad saw the three of you following us. Just give us a day’s start, okay?\"

The young man glared at him. \"I’ve tried to forget your part in Ouka’s death and give you a chance. However, I warn you now, if anything happens to either Yohji or Aya, you’d better start running and never stop because I will find you and kill you.\"

He felt himself smirk at the kid’s assumption that he could kill him. \"You can try to kill me, by all means.\" He watched as Nagi first frowned at, then nudged Takatori.

\"We’re supposed to be on the same side now. You would never say such a thing to Ken or to me.\"

Giving the kid a mental cheer, Schuldig gazed at Takatori. \"We made a deal, Takatori. I will not go back on it. Will you?\"

Takatori looked back at him steadily before slowly shaking his head. \"I won’t go back on our deal.\"

Schuldig rose to his feet. \"I’ll go and pack.\"