Aya drove the others back to the cabin his mood bleak. Not only did he have to get rid of his beloved Porsche, but he would have to rely on Ken and the back of his bike to get him back after up the mountain afterwards. Even then they wouldn�t be able to stay there after tonight. So that meant another hair-raising trip to pick up an unremarkable car.
�Is everyone packed and ready to go at the drop of a hat?� he asked.
�Yes, Aya-kun,� Omi said quietly from the back seat. �I�m sorry things turned out this way.�
Yohji just nodded. He wasn't at all pleased with the idea of ditching his precious Seven, but he understood the need all too well. He had the only one in Tokyo, so it stood out far too much and would be much too easy for Kritiker to trace.
�Yep,� was Ken's answer. He sucked down half a bottle of sports drink then frowned, �Maybe Yohji should ride with me this time.�
�That might be better.� Aya was doubly relieved. Not only could he avoid the back of Ken�s bike but he wouldn�t actually have to dump his car. Yohji would do it for him. He glanced at the blonde. �Dump it the other side of Tokyo from� yours.� He didn�t want to upset Yohji even further by using the car�s pet name.
�Yeah, sure Aya,� the blond answered, voice flat as he turned to leave. �Don't forget to get some groceries. I'll handle finding us a new car; I've got money and an identity even Kritiker doesn't know about.�
�How long do you think before they get in touch?� Omi asked.
�I doubt if they�ll leave it much beyond noon,� Aya said. �But we�ll have to be out of here by then.�
�I'd better go and catch up with Yohji. I'll see you guys later,' Ken said as he tossed the empty drink bottle into the trash and hurried out after Yohji.
Aya wasn�t terribly impressed with the blue Toyota but it did have the advantage of anonymity. They drove aimlessly around Tokyo for a while before deciding to go back to Ueno Park where they had been approached. Although the others seemed certain they would be approached, he wasn�t as sure.
The leader had impressed and seemed competent. The woman also. But the blonde�
He shook his head as they walked through the park.
A figure dressed all in black leather slipped out of the trees and shrubs to reveal the leader of the other team of killers. Kei stood there waiting as the four Weiss approached, just able to see Jas where he waited high in a nearby tree, ready to handle anything that might be forthcoming from the Weiss. Or Schwarz if they arrived on the scene.
The blond seemed perfectly calm, but there was a tenseness about him that left Kei more concerned about the emotionally volatile man than he'd been in a long time.
Aya glanced up at the man in the tree then swiftly looked away, wondering at the effect the blonde had on him. He didn�t have the time or the inclination for anymore than purely business or platonic relationships yet the very sight of the man had gone straight to his groin.
�The cars have been dumped, the registration plates on the bikes changed and everything that matters to us is in a blue Toyota parked a block away,� he said to the figure in black.
�So you're certain this is what you want?� Kei questioned. �Once you've accepted there's no turning back, you become part of our team subject to my rules.�
Aya�s cold violet eyes gazed back at him. �We are used to this life,� he said simply, �Omi was raised to it and the rest of us could do nothing else now. So yes, we�re certain.�
Kei nodded and stepped forward, handing the Weiss a slip of paper. �This is the address of your first safe house with us. Go there, and stay indoors. I'll be by later and we can have a longer talk about what you'll be doing with us for the next six months.�
Yohji regarded the red-haired rocker, �Aren't you worried Kritiker will follow us there?�
Kei shook his head, a cool smile curling his mouth. �No, Jas will be following you. He'll know if anyone else is tailing you.�
Aya shot another quick look at the man in the tree but said nothing, merely pocketing the paper without looking at it.
�We�ll be following the car on our bikes,� Omi said. �Will that be a problem for your friend?�
�No. He knows where you�re going and he can hang back far enough to keep watch but still have you in his contact zone,� Kei replied.
Ken saw Aya look into the tree and frowned. He�d spotted the blond up there, but what he was wondering about was the way Aya kept glancing in his direction.
Yohji was wondering about Aya also, but his mental questioning went along a different line of thought. He was wondering about the traces of tension he saw in the red-haired killer�s stance.
Jas was watching Aya all too aware of the man�s grace and beauty, things he never noticed except when it might have bearing on a mission.
But this was no mission. They were going to be part of their team. More to the point, he, the Weiss swordsman was going to be part of their team and the thought sent a flash of heat though him. The kind of heat he�d never felt before, a sexual awareness that shook him to the very center of his soul.
Aya felt the constant regard from the man in the tree and it sent a frisson of some indefinable emotion through him. He felt his milky pale skin flush and frowned direly. This was ridiculous! Neither of his past lovers had produced this effect in him and he wasn�t sure he appreciated it. In fact he was damned sure he didn�t.
He felt his team-mates turn to stare at him and resigned himself to the prying and impertinent questions that they were bound to ask later, not one of the three of them able to keep their mouth shut.
Omi was nodding at Kei�s answer, obviously satisfied. �Until later then,� he said, seeing Aya�s discomfiture.
Kei frowned at the retreating Weiss. Now that he was paying more attention he could clearly see the tension between the red-haired swordsman and Jas, even though there were yards of distance separating them.
Kate's right. There is something very definitely happening here, and it's purely sexual. Damn, I never would have believed anyone could capture Jas' interest, but there is no denying what I just saw.
Now my worry is how it's going to affect the team.
From the blond Weiss' reaction and that of the red-haired killer there was going to be trouble. Probably a lot of it.
Aya made straight for the blue car, mouth set in a grim line. Omi took one look at his face and glanced at Ken in case his lover might actually have an answer to the redhead�s erratic behavior.
Yohji stalked along, mentally fuming about how damned obvious Aya's reaction to the blond in the tree had been.
Aya interested in... someone at all was just unbelievable. But what really pissed the older man off was that he would show interest for someone other than him, Kudoh Yohji who'd been in lust with Aya from the day he'd joined Weiss.
Aya relaxed slightly as he realized that none of them was actually going to be fool enough to say anything. As long as Kudoh remained silent in the car, he should get through this without making a fool of himself.
When they reached the transport, Omi gave a mental sigh of relief as he straddled his bike. The idea of being trapped in the back of a car with a pissed off Aya driving it was hardly appealing.
Yohji lit a cigarette, and took a few deep lungfuls of smoke while the pair of younger Weiss put on their helmets and got situated on their cycles.
The instant Ken started up his bike Yohji tossed the rest of his cigarette aside and got into the car.
Aya climbed in behind the wheel and shut the door. He put his seatbelt on and started the car, wondering, despite his better judgment, just where the blond might be. He gave himself a mental kick and dug the address out of his pocket. His brows rose. Judging by the address this wasn't just your run-of-the-mill safe house. He handed the paper to Yohji.
�You navigate.�
Yohji looked at the address and shook his head. "I've never been this far outside Tokyo by car. We'll have to stop to get a map, and my bet this safe house is an old and unused farm." He sighed, "Probably run down at best but," he shrugged philosophically, "we certainly can't expect them to potentially compromise anywhere their organization might want to keep. Not until they're sure Kritiker isn't on our tails anymore."
It was then that Aya realized that he�d been so wrapped up in his own problems he hadn�t even considered the whys and wherefores of the safe house. He�d been forced right off his game yet again and he was getting tired of it.
�Okay,� he said. �I�ll need to fill this thing with gas so we�ll grab a map at the same time.�
"If you don't mind, while we're getting that map and the gas we might want to do a bit of food shopping. We have no idea how close the nearest store will be, and I'm going to need some beer and a good supply of cigarettes. I've only got two packs of smokes left."
�There�s a fair amount of food in the trunk but you�re right. If we�re going to be dumped in the middle of nowhere we�ll need more than we have. As for your addictions, as long as I don�t have to pay for them, go ahead.�
He drove through the crowded streets of the city, wondering if he was going to actually miss it very much. There were very few good memories after all. Spotting a gas station with its own convenience store attached, he pulled in.
Yohji turned a sour look on Aya, "Name once when you've paid my way for anything."
Aya�s eyes narrowed. �We all very nearly paid over your obsession with that Schrient bitch,� he shot back.
Yohji's eyes went hard, but his face paled. "Well I wouldn't want to cause you anymore trouble so I'll tell you what, Aya, I'll just let you go on and join this new team without me. I'm sure that's more to your liking, seeing as how you've picked out a boyfriend already," he snarled, voice showing the anger and hurt he was feeling.
Here it came, Aya thought with a sinking feeling, and it had been his own stupid fault. �What the fuck are you talking about, Kudoh? I�m not the one who chases anything on two legs!�
"No, you are much more selective, aren't you Aya?" Yohji muttered. "I saw how that blond was looking at you and how you were looking at him so don't pretend you have no idea what I'm talking about. All this time with you and I've never seen you react like that, but give you a pretty face, grey eyes and blond hair and your cock goes hard, so don't bother to pretend you've got no interest in him, I know what I saw."
Aya undid the seatbelt and climbed out of the car, slamming the door behind him. �Fill it up,� he snarled at the attendant before marching into the store. Damn Yohji and his sharp eyes! What business was it of his anyway?
Yohji reached into the back and pulled his duffle bag of clothes into the front before he got out.
Ken's motorcycle rolled to a stop beside the car, the brunet puling his helmet off and looking at the blond quizzically, "What's up?"
"Have a good life, kid. I'm out of this," he said as he slung the duffel over his shoulder. There was a train station not too far away. He could hop a train and strike out on his own but he wasn't going to deal with Aya anymore.
He just couldn't. Not when seeing him with another man would hurt as badly as the death of Asuka.
Omi pulled up next to Ken and gazed at the duffle in Yohji�s hands. �Yohji-kun,� he said softly, �you need to tell Aya-kun the truth.�
"Do you honestly think it will matter?" Yohji asked. "Come on chibi, we both know better. If he'd wanted me he'd have shown some sign, so let's just say goodbye and go our own ways."
Omi stamped his foot. �He�s shown you dozens of signs! You never had to kill a female target until Neu. And that whole thing hurt him because he never thought you would betray us. You go on about how you feel but you don�t see beyond the end of your nose! Aya-kun is subtle, Yohji-kun, but you were never there to see it were you?�
Ken wasn't looking at either of his team mates as he said, "Omi, Yohji's got a point. Just looking at that other guy did things to Aya that Yohji's never done."
The ex-goalie glanced at the store then added, "Sure he's done things for Yohji, but he's done the same kind of stuff for us, hasn't he? Don't read so much into things like that. He was keeping a member of his team from going totally nuts. That's all it was Omi."
"He's right." Yohji stated. "One look at that blond and Aya went hard. I'd have noticed him doing that with me, and it never happened." Yohji gave Omi a pat on the head, gave Ken a nod and started walking. "Have a good life guys. I'm out of here."
Aya chose that moment to come out of the store with several bags of groceries. Poking out of the top of one was a carton of cigarettes. He immediately noticed the bag in Yohji�s hands and his shoulders seemed to droop. His face, however, remained impassive as he approached the car.
He dropped the bags on the back seat, withdrew the cigarettes and a six pack and strode over to the blonde. �You�ll want these,� he said at his most arctic.
Jade eyes studied the red-head then he put his duffle down and accepted the cigarettes and beer from Aya. "Thanks." He stuffed them into the top of his duffle and stood there for a minute just taking in the younger man's beauty one last time.
Walking away from the only friends he'd had for the last few years would hurt, but not nearly as much as watching what was going to happen between Aya and that grey-eyed bastard.
A motorcycle rolled into the parking lot, stopping a few meters away from them.
Yohji scowled and snatched his duffle off the ground. "Yeah well take care," he snarled out, unable to contain his jealous anger.
�How far do you think you�ll get alone, Kudoh?� The words were angry but there was pain in Aya�s eyes. Yohji was his friend and, much as he hated to admit it, he relied on that friendship.
Yohji shrugged, "Does it really matter, Aya? Like you reminded me, I'm a liability and I probably always will be. You're better going into a new life without me."
The motorcycle rolled closer, and the man riding it pulled off his helmet. Eyes cold as a winter locked sea regarded the four Weiss. "I hope you aren't planning to walk out of this now. You know where they're going, and that makes you a danger to your friends. Walk off now, and I'll guarantee you don't see dawn, because Kei will track you down and kill you."
Aya spun on his heel to face the speaker, his own eyes just as cold. �If you believe that we�d betray each other you must believe that we�d betray you. That�s not a good basis for a working relationship.�
"Nor was this 'working relationship' my idea," Jas replied coolly. "I don't want any of you, but I'm not in charge, Kei is."
Ken glared at the man on the bike, "And who asked you anyway? Fucking butt out of this, asshole."
The man turned a frigid smile on Ken, "So predictable. I hear the way you greet new team mates is to get into a fist fight. You might want to give that a second thought before trying it with us, Hidaka."
"If we wanted your opinion we'd have asked you, so piss off." Yohji snapped at Jas, putting his duffle down and taking a step toward the other blond.
Omi had finally had enough of all of them. �Yohji-kun, just get in the fucking car,� he said with a sigh of irritation. �Aya-kun, if you have enough shopping, let�s go.� He turned his bright blue eyes on the man on the bike, their bright depths as cool as Aya�s. �And if you�re as predictable as to mention my Takatori blood you�re even dumber than you look. Now let�s move people!�
A very small smile played round Aya�s mouth at Omi�s words but he turned away from the blond on the bike and headed for the car without another word.
Ken smirked and put his helmet back on while Yohji, relenting, shoved his duffle back into the car.
Jas just smiled at how easy the four were to manipulate into doing what he'd wanted: getting the lanky blond to stay.
Aya drove in silence for several miles, unwilling to even try to fathom out what had got into Yohji. His accusation that he�d �picked out a boyfriend� was ridiculous. The blond following them was every bit as arrogant as his leader and with a lot less reason to be so. Ridiculous!
Yohji just kept his mouth shut. There wasn't any point in saying a damned thing to Aya anyway.
The silence was broken by Aya when they came to a rather tricky junction that didn�t appear to have any signs. �Which way?�
Yohji looked down at the map, "You better pull over so I can figure this out," he said as he raised his eyes from the folded paper in his lap to the roadway junction sign.
�Okay.� Aya pulled into a lay-by and waited patiently while Yohji made a decision.
Ken motored to a stop beside them and pulled his helmet off. "What's wrong? Did we take a wrong turn or something?"
Aya shook his head. �Just trying to make sure we don�t but all the sign had on it was the road numbers. No town names.�
Yohji got out of the car and stretched just as the black cycle that had been following behind them pulled into the pull-off.
Jade eyes watched as the blond came to a stop near Aya.
"What's the hold up?"
Aya stared at the newcomer coolly. �We�re working out which road we�re supposed to take. Any objections?�
Behind him, Omi put his bike on its stand as he climbed off to stretch his legs.
"No. None at all," the leather clad man replied, a tinge of amusement in his tone. He kicked the stand for his bike down and shut the engine off.
Ken got off his bike and walked over to Yohji, "I might be able to figure it out. I've ridden out this way a few times on my days off."
"Be my guest, I'm at a loss." Yohji admitted as he passed the brunet the map through the open car window and pulled his smokes from his pocket. He got out of the car, stretching before he lit up.
Aya shrugged and climbed out of the car in his turn. He might as well have a stretch as Ken and Yohji figured out the road they should take. He carefully didn�t look at the blond biker.
Jas got off his own bike and took a walk over to the edge of the pull-off, looking down a shallow slope into an area of high grass and scattered wild flowers.
He knew which way they had to go, but if they weren't asking, he wasn't telling.
Yohji took a long drag of smoke and let it slip from his parted lips as he watched the leather clad man walk to the retaining wall and stand there staring at the ragged grass and weeds.
"I think we need to take the right fork of the road. It looks like the left one heads away from the town we're looking for," Ken stated as he glanced from the map to the ambiguous signage.
�Are you sure, Ken-kun? I really don�t want to have to double back,� Omi said, a decided whine creeping into his voice at the thought of his sore ass if they had to go much further than they absolutely had to.
Aya, meanwhile, walked away from the others to gaze up at the slowly darkening sky.
"Yeah Omi, as sure as I can be from the map, the address and the sign," Ken replied.
Yohji leaned back against the car and yawned, "Let's go then. If we don't find this place before dark we're not going to get there until tomorrow."
He crushed out the remains of his cigarette on the bottom of his boot and tossed the butt aside.
The other blond turned. He didn't want to spend the night wandering aimlessly around Japan. "It's the left branch. About seven kilometers past the town there's a road that takes you to right to the farm."
�Thank you,� Omi said with real gratitude and walked back to his bike.
Aya said nothing as he strode back to the car and climbed in behind the wheel deliberately staring straight ahead.
Yohji got in and buckled his seatbelt. "I'm sick of being in this car. It's freaking cramped, and the seats make my butt go numb," he muttered.
Ken pulled up beside the car on Aya's side, "I'll take point. I think I can find the road. It's probably dirt like the one that goes to the cabin."
Aya nodded his thanks to Ken and started the car. �For once, I agree with you, Kudoh, it�s a fucking awful car,� he said.
He pulled back onto the road and followed Ken down the left fork. They still had enough light to make it by dusk if that damned blond had it right.
He took a quick glance at the one by his side. Once he had hoped that they could be more than friends but Yohji had proved time and time again just how straight he was until Aya wasn�t prepared to make any sort of move on him, too afraid of the hurt of rejection. Yet now Yohji was acting like a jealous lover and he couldn�t figure out why.
Yohji glanced at the rear view mirror, seeing the black cycle well behind them. Anger welled up when he thought of the way Aya had reacted to the other man earlier.
Yet that reaction had been absent at the pull-off, and that made him wonder if he might have the hope of a chance with Aya. But how in hell could he even broach the subject without getting himself gutted was anyone's guess.
But Aya didn't have the katana in his hand, nor did he have any easy way to reach it since it was in the trunk of the car.
No time like the present. But how to start?
"Well we can get rid of it and find something better later," Yohji remarked, wondering if he dared try after all. He seldom tried to even talk with Aya as the other man wasn't the type for conversation that wasn't about a mission.
Aya scoffed. �A wheelbarrow would be better than this heap of junk! It might be inconspicuous but its damned uncomfortable and it drives like a pig.�
"Yeah, we have to get rid of this piece of shit. My back is starting to hurt from this seat."
Yohji noticed Ken was slowing down. "I think we're almost to the town, Aya. Is that a traffic light ahead?"
It was a traffic light, which was why Ken had slowed down as they didn't have the right of way. A huge truck piled with vegetables slowly made the turn and chugged it's way toward them.
Every sense in Aya's body was screaming trap at him and he wondered if he was being paranoid. Something about that truck seemed ominous to him.
"Yohji," he said quietly, "I don't like the look of this." He followed his instincts and rammed the car into reverse and backed away from the oncoming truck.
"Calm down Aya, it's just a truck," Yohji told his team mate as he glanced at Omi behind them. The boy had been forced to slam on the brakes when Aya had reversed the car.
The truck swerved erratically and headed straight for them. Aya hoped the car had some guts in it as he shot forward. Omi was forced to swerve round the other side of the truck that was now perched at the side of the road with its front wheels in a ditch. �Just a truck, huh?�
"No comment," Yohji muttered as he turned to see the truck driver half fall out of the vehicle's cab. The man was drunk from the looks of it and Yohji turned away from the scene quickly.
Jas easily avoided the situation, his smile hidden from the Weiss by the helmet he wore. So the red-haired assassin isn't a total loss.
The traffic light had changed to green and they all moved forward again, taking the turn-off past the town. Ken had been right, it was a dirt road and rounding a corner gave them their first glimpse of the safe house.
It was old. Historically old from the look of the heavy wooden beams and the tiled roof. An ancient farmhouse amid fields planted with an assortment of vegetables, there were ruts in the road that even Ken on his bike slowed to go over.
"Just as well we don't have our old cars, or one better than this one," Yohji commented. "At least if this car gets ruined on the road we won't care."
�I�d happily dump the damned thing,� Aya agreed with feeling. He climbed out and stretched aching muscles, staring at the farmhouse through narrowed eyes. He wondered if it was as decrepit on the inside as it looked from the outside.
Ken was already climbing onto the porch. "Shit I bet there isn't even any cable TV out here.
Yohji got out of the car and lit a cigarette. "This place is already not my idea of a good time," he remarked flatly as he stared out into the fields.
Omi rolled his eyes. �Look at all the food in the fields though,� he said with as much of his usual enthusiasm as he could muster after the long ride. Aya turned an icy stare on him and he blushed and shuffled his feet. The sound of the blond�s motorcycle was heard coming down the road as Aya opened the trunk to retrieve his few possessions.
"I don't think any of that is for our use, Omi," Ken commented as he tried the front door. It was locked. "So where are the keys?"
Jas stopped near the red-haired Weiss and pulled his helmet off. "You're here, stay here, and don�t leave until you're told to leave." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone and the keys. "Keep the phone close. Kei will call tomorrow to see if you need anything but I don't know what time he'll call. There's a work schedule on a cork board in the kitchen. Make sure it gets done, you're not here on vacation."
Aya ignored both the keys and the phone and picked up his bags and the katana. It was Omi who moved forward to collect them but only so he could glare up at the blond.
�We�re not afraid of hard work,� he said coolly. �Was there anything else?�
The blond studied the boy in silence, as if measuring him and finding something lacking. He turned his attention back on Aya, "Try to keep your blond friend from getting drunk every night. I know it's going to be hard, but make the effort."
Yohji spun to look at the other blond. "Mind your own damned business, asshole."
�Leave it, both of you,� Aya snapped. �It�s not worth it. If he wants to go through life being a prick that�s up to him, personally I don�t give a fuck.�
"Wow, now isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?" Jas remarked to the red-head as he reached for his helmet to put it back on.
Aya didn�t even react to that, merely waiting for Omi to get the door open. He might find the blond attractive physically but mentally he thought far too much of himself for someone who�d needed to be rescued by his team leader not so many nights ago.
Yohji grabbed some of their stuff out of the car and stalked toward the door just as the other blond spun his bike, raining a shower of dust and gravel over the Weiss blond.
"Son of a bitch!" Yohji snarled as the small rocks and dirt hit him. One of the flying bits of rock hit his cheek and drew a bead of blood.
"That asshole has some real issues," Ken grumbled as he glared after the retreating killer.
�No more than any of us do,� Aya said.
�Aya-kun�s right,� Omi piped up. �I doubt if they want to work with us anymore than we really want to work with them but none of us have any choice if we�re to survive.�
�Try telling him that,� Aya suggested dryly as he carried his bags towards the house. �We�d better see if it�s habitable and what this schedule is all about.�
"Well I've never thrown gravel all over you guys," Ken retorted as he got his stuff out of the trunk.
"No, you just beat Aya bloody the day he joined Weiss. Much different," Yohji remarked as he went up the steps.
�As I remember it we knocked each other out.�
�Yes,� Omi agreed as he got the door open, �and if you hadn�t I�d have put a dart in both your asses till you slept off the temper! Ugh! What is that smell?�
"Cow shit," Yohji replied as he stopped just inside the doorway. He looked around at the beautifully polished wooden floor and the beam ceiling overhead and gave a low whistle. "Classy."
�Beats any safe house Kritiker ever provided,� Aya said.
Omi grimaced remembering in all too vivid detail some of the rat-infested fleapits that Kritiker had provided them with over the years. It proved just how little the organization had really thought of them. Not that the luxurious comfort surrounding them meant that this group thought any more highly of them.
Yohji stepped off the porch, "I wonder what that job list is all about. Somehow I don't think we're going to like it."
"Probably just taking care of the vegetables," Ken remarked as he opened the back door of the car and reached in to get the groceries.
"Well any shoveling of shit is not going to be my job," Yohji stated.
Aya and Omi exchanged a glance as their friends argued. �I think I actually want a look at this list,� Aya said to the smaller blond. Omi grinned back at him.
�First to read gets the first choice on jobs!� Then he was sprinting through the door, Aya hard on his heels.
The kitchen was a gleaming collection of mod cons and Omi stopped for a second just to admire. It was all the time Aya needed and he grabbed the list pinned to a cork board on the far wall. He read the list and his frown slowly gave way to a small smile.
�I�ll take on the plants and vegetables,� he said and handed the list to Omi.
There was a loud racket from the front door and Ken came bolting in, grinning like a fool. "What's left?"
From the lurid swearing coming from Yohji it didn't take much brain power to figure out that Ken had done something to prevent the longer legged blond from gaining access to the house before he did.
�Whatever Omi leaves you,� Aya said with an answering grin, �I�ve taken on all the botanic work.� After Yohji�s little tantrum at the gas station, he was perfectly happy to see him get left with the shit jobs.
Omi was scanning the list. �I�ll deal with egg-collecting and anything pertaining to the hen house,� he decided and passed the list over to his lover.
"I'll feed the rest of the animals," Ken said. "It might actually be interesting since I've never been near a farm."
Yohji came limping in, glared at Ken and set a dripping grocery bag down in the sink before he pulled his fruit juice soaked shirt off and hobbled out, saying over his shoulder, "I mean it. I'm not cleaning up animal shit."
�It doesn�t need cleaning up,� Aya said. �It needs composting unless it�s from the pigs. We use it as fertilizer.�
�It�s actually a very good system, Yohji-kun,� Omi said as he read the various instructions. �Think about it, very little waste, fresh air, fresh food, no fangirls and something to do.�
Aya eyed the youngest Weiss with some suspicion. Was that a note of malicious amusement in Tsukiyono�s voice?
From wherever Yohji was going came the very firm, "NO!"
Ken sighed and stared after Yohji. "I think we hit a button."
�Yeah, and not a night club for miles,� Aya said as he began putting away the groceries. A giggle from Omi confirmed his suspicions. The youngest Weiss, worried by Yohji�s physical deterioration, thought this place was the answer. He didn�t share his optimism. Kudoh and mulish belonged in the same sentence.
Ken started putting groceries away. "I don't even think he knows just how out of it he is."
"SOMEONE BETTER FIND THE FIRST AID KIT!" was bellowed from wherever Yohji had gone.
�Finish this,� Aya said to Ken and headed out of the kitchen. He rummaged in their luggage until he found the kit. �Where are you, Kudoh?�
"The bathroom down the hall," Yohji replied, his voice sounding a bit strained.
Aya headed for the bathroom and stopped short in the doorway.
The room was huge with a large tub in the middle of the tiled floor, a marble counter with two sinks, a pair of showers off to the side and two additional doors, one probably led to the toilet.
Yohji was seated on a bench by one of the showers, his boot off looking at his ankle which was swelling. He saw Aya and said, "When I can walk I'm going to kill Ken, just so you know."
�Did Ken deliberately trip you, or was it your own clumsiness?� Aya asked. He opened the kit and drew out an elastic bandage. �Is it broken or just sprained?�
"Jackass boy didn't trip me, he shoved me and I fell off the porch, Aya." Yohji moved his foot gingerly, "Sprained is my best educated guess. If it starts turning blood red then I'll change my opinion to broken."
�Wriggle your toes,� Aya commanded. �I can�t put this on if it�s broken. All I can do then is to take you to the nearest hospital for a cast.�
Yohji did as he was told, wiggling them, though he did flinch a bit at the pain. "See not broken," but the look on his face was now a bit more dubious of his own diagnosis.
Aya took hold of Yohji�s foot and gently manipulated it. It moved with ease although it obviously caused the blond considerable pain judging by the way he hissed through gritted teeth. �I think it�s a bad sprain.� He went to bind the ankle with the elastic bandage to support it. �If it feels any worse in the next few hours let me know and we�ll get an x-ray done.�
"Forget the bandage. I think I need to get this fruit juice off of me in the shower. Maybe if I get in the tub and let it soak it won't hurt so much," Yohji said as he reached for the button of his jeans.
"And kill Ken for me, okay?"
�Irritating as he may be, we�re going to need Ken if we�re to deal with the workload we�ve been given.� He turned away in order to run a bath for Yohji.
The blond got out of his pants and underwear and got to his feet. He hung on to the shower stall door, and paused, looking at the short drop to the tile floor of the shower. There wasn't anything for him to hold on to, and he wasn't too sure about how slick the tiles might be, and he sure as hell didn't want to fall again. He could already feel the bruise forming on his chest and hip from where he'd landed on the bottles of juice.
"Okay he can live, but he gets to go to the store to buy more juice. I'm sure as hell not going since it was his stupid game that got me hurt and the juice bottles smashed."
�Seems reasonable.� Aya stood up and turned round. His eyes widened as he saw Yohji�s state of undress but he soon pulled himself together as he saw the blond�s dilemma.
"I think I need a hand here, Aya," Yohji freely admitted. "I don't want to fall again and maybe break it, or something else."
Jade eyes met violet, and the blond gave Aya a slow, sexy smile, "Wanna picture?" he asked, teasing the younger man and waiting to see what his reaction would be.
�I�d like a few answers,� Aya said, �but I�m unlikely to get them.� He stalked across the bathroom. �Hold on to me while you take your shower.�
Close up he could smell Yohji�s cologne under the smell of the juice and he was shaking very slightly as he placed himself so the blond could use him as a makeshift crutch.
Naked there was no way Yohji could hide the fact his cock went partially hard as Aya stepped closer, but he decided not to make an issue of it. If Aya wanted to know, he'd have to be the one to ask.
"Answers? What kind of answers?" Yohji asked as he reached to turn on the water. "You're going to get wet if you stay in here."
�Like why you suddenly decided you wanted to turn your back on us and why you seemed jealous of that blond?�
He moved so Yohji could keep a hand on his shoulder without his actually having to be in the shower with him, and pulled the shower curtain across to hide the vision from sight before he made a complete fool of himself.
Where had all these desires suddenly sprung up from? And why was Yohji semi-hard? It made no sense at all. The man was straight.
His fingers on Aya's shoulder made him wish they were on bare skin, that he could pull the younger man into the shower with him and kiss him breathless.
Yohji looked around in the shower and frowned. "Forgot to make sure there was soap in here. Can you go get mine out of my stuff, Aya? I'm sorry to bother you, but," he motioned to his foot and sighed.
He carefully didn't mention the other things Aya was going to find in with his soap and shampoo, but Yohji couldn't completely contain the faint smile that knowing Aya was about to find a gay porn magazine and lube in the same bag with his bath stuff put on his lips.
�Will you be able to keep your balance?� Aya asked. When he was sure Yohji would be okay, he headed for his luggage. It didn�t take him long to find Yohji�s washbag and he reached in for the soap only to have his hand close round a tube. Frowning in confusion he pulled it out of the bag. He stared down at a tube of lube.
Uncomprehending he reached in again and found the soap. However, his gaze fell on a porno magazine. It wasn�t a surprising discovery considering whose bag he was rummaging through, except that, instead of the half naked women he�d been expecting to see, he was staring at two very attractive young men locked in a passionate clinch.
It was too much to take in and so he returned to the shower in a daze and handed the soap to Yohji without a word.
Yohji took the soap but had to turn away from Aya to hide the smirk on his face, the stunned expression Aya wore telling him the man had gotten an eye full of the porn magazine.
"They're pretty, aren't they?" he asked softly as he started to scrub himself with the soap. He had to take this slow. He knew that. If he went too fast he'd drive the red-head away, might already have done so if he'd read the signs wrong.
But he was very certain that Aya was gay.
�What? Oh�oh yes, very pretty.� Then the pent up frustrations of the past three years boiled over. �Why the fuck didn�t you tell us you liked men?�
Yohji turned jade eyes on Aya. "I never said I didn't, did I?" He smiled, "And it's not all men anyway, just..." he openly looked his team mate up and down, eyes warming with lust, "certain ones."
And Aya finally had an answer to Yohji�s jealous fit over the blond killer from the other team.
He growled low in his throat and stepped into the shower fully-clothed. �You bastard!� he snarled before pushing Yohji up against the tiles and plundering his mouth.
The blond winced as his ankle was jarred, but the press of Aya's body holding him to the wall and the feel of the younger man's mouth, the taste of Aya made him forget the pain. His blood heated, cock going instantly hard and he groaned, his arms going around Aya, holding on, pulling him closer as he returned the kiss with three years of pent up desire behind it.
Aya broke away from Yohji�s mouth. He had so many questions but now was not the time to ask them. Now was the time to act. One hand reached down between them and squeezed the hard cock that was pressed against him.
Yohji groaned at the wonderful torment of Aya's calloused hand as it gripped his cock and held on. "Gods Aya, you have no idea how many times I thought of your hands on me. Every time I looked at you practicing your sword katas. I used to think about you, so graceful, so damned beautiful as I jerked off late at night."
He lowered his head, kissed along the side of the alabaster throat, nipped the red haired man's earlobe as one hand worked to get Aya's pants open. "This is going to be hard for me if we do this standing up."
Aya wasn�t prepared to tell Yohji how he�d thought about him in the same fashion and during the same occupation. Right now he was too angry with the blond to even talk to him. He did, however, realize that they would need to get out of the shower so Yohji could take the weight off his injured foot.
He stepped out of the shower, uncaring of the small waterfall running off his clothing. �Out of the shower, Kudoh.�
Yohji didn't need to be told twice. He followed Aya out. "I don't care what you want to do to me, Aya, so long as it involves you making me come."
�I�ll decide later if you get to do that,� Aya said coldly. �Now get on the floor.�
Yohji's eyes widened. He blinked. "You'll... decide?" He just stood there staring at Aya for a minute, then he smiled slightly. "So that's it. You're a Dom? You like to be in control. I should have realized that from how self-controlled you are. Silly me, for not figuring that out." The blond chuckled and looked around for something to use to steady himself, then just gingerly managed to ease himself to the floor without too much stress on his injury.
Aya shucked his sodden clothing and joined Yohji on the floor. His hands wandered over the contours of that golden-skinned body, the reality of it even better than his dreams had been.
Yohji had watched Aya strip, his eyes full of appreciation at the man's sleek body and pale skin. The blond couldn't remember the number of times he'd been touching a woman while mentally comparing her to the man he secretly lusted after.
And there'd never been any favorable comparison between those meaningless women and the man on the floor beside him. Touching him.
He gripped a handful of the man's deep red hair and pulled gently, his mouth closing over Aya's in a burning kiss.
Aya allowed the kiss although his hands continued their exploration of Yohji�s glorious body. The blond might appear lanky but there was well defined muscle under the silken skin of his chest and those long legs were also muscular. He pulled away from Yohji�s mouth and tweaked a nipple before placing his mouth over it.
"Oh... shit....Aya..." Yohji moaned, his hand tightening in Aya's hair as a wonderfully wet and warm tongue worked over the tender flesh on his chest. His cock twitched and the blond gasped his free hand reaching for the cock he could feel against his thigh.
Fingers strengthened by years of using a harigane wrapped around the firm flesh, feeling silken skin and the pulse of Aya's heart. He pressed the head of Aya's cock into the palm of his hand, giving pleasure, waiting for a reaction.
This was heaven, exactly what he�d wanted for so long. He gasped as Yohji�s hand closed round his twitching cock but kept working on the blond�s nipples, nipping and laving them until they were taut.
Yohji stroked the hardness in his hand, his own cock erect and twitching as he groaned at the sensations Aya was wresting from his nipples. Heat pooled in his balls and he tangled his free hand in the younger killer's hair.
"Aya... please..."
He tugged at Aya's hair, trying to guide the maddening tongue and almost savage teeth lower.
�Please what, Yohji?� He pulled his head away from the hand in his hair and gazed into the blond�s almost desperate green eyes his own full of dark and malicious humor. �You�ve made us both wait years for this so I�m sure you can manage for a little while longer.�
He kissed the object of so many fantasies, so many frustrated years of suppressed passion, pent up emotions.
Yohji returned the kiss with an equal amount of desire his free hand going to the back of Aya's head and holding him there as their tongues darted and slid in a passionate dance.
His body felt as if it would catch fire, years of denial, of refusing to believe he could ever have this man melting away as they kissed.
Yohji broke the kiss, "Fuck me, Aya. Please I can't take any more," he was demanding what he wanted, not begging. Not yet anyway.
Aya chuckled evilly. �You can�t take any more? And here was I thinking you were the great playboy. Where�s your stamina?�
Yohji gave Aya a dirty look. "I've got lots of stamina. I can fuck all night Aya, but I've wanted this for a long time and thought it was out of my reach."
If Yohji thought he was going to get what he wanted so quickly and easily he was very much mistaken. He had years of frustration to pay for.
The blond's hand started to speed up, stroking Aya's cock, trying to induce the same kind of desperation in the other man that he already felt.
Aya�s hand clamped down on Yohji�s wrist and pulled his hand away. �You�re not going to be the one doing the fucking, Kudoh, I am. And I�ll fuck you when I�m good and ready and not before.�
He climbed to his feet and retrieved the tube of lube from the pocket of his pants where he had put it before bringing the soap into the bathroom.
Yohji grinned. "Sure Aya. Fuck me until I can't sit, I'll just ask for more."
�Don�t be an even bigger idiot than you already are,� Aya snapped. �If you can�t sit and you can�t stand, what the hell use are you going to be to anyone?�
Although the question had been asked mockingly, there was real concern behind it. Aya didn�t think the man who called himself Darkness would have any time for Yohji�s little games. The blond would have to get fit fast and stop being a lazy playboy if he was going to survive at all. It wasn�t a comfortable thought.
"Well you can just lay the blame on Ken for my ankle. This sure as fuck wasn't my idea of a good way to get out of this farming bullshit. Besides, know what they say, most accidents happen at home. Well this is home for now so I had an accident because Ken decided to horse around on the porch and shove me."
He looked away from Aya, none to happy with himself over being laid up. "And in case you haven't noticed, I'm not of much use to anyone lately, not even myself." He sat up and looked around for a towel. "The floor is cold."
Aya gazed coolly at him. �This farming �bullshit� is actually quite a clever idea. We�re well away from the dangers and distractions of the city and at the same time we get a work out. As for being no use to anyone�� He sighed slightly, knowing that the blond was right.
�We�ve all been off our game, Kudoh, every last one of us. Now we�ve been given a last chance to survive and I think we�d better take it.�
Another thought struck him and he frowned. �And we�d better be able to defend ourselves if Schwarz should come to call again.�
Yohji sighed. �Schwarz, if anyone knows where we are, it will be them. Probably no way to hide from them either, all things considered,� the blond admitted. �And I'm still not sure joining up with these guys was a good idea, not that Schwarz was a better choice.�
He forced a smile and winked at Aya, determined not to lose what he'd already gotten so close to achieving: namely Aya's cock up his ass. �So you just going to hold that lube or were you planning on using it?�
Aya shrugged. �You�re complaining about a cold floor and either Ken or Omi will probably want the bathroom sooner or later. We�ll find a bed.�
�Good idea,� Yohji said as he started to get up off the floor, using one hand and his uninjured leg he managed it rather handily, proving he wasn't as totally out of condition as some people might think.
Of course the coughing fit he had immediately after getting up ruined his little demonstration.
Aya sighed in irritation and got an arm under the blond�s shoulder. He said nothing about Yohji�s smoking, the habit not having had any effect on the blond�s ability to do his job�as yet. The drinking was another matter entirely and one that would need to be severely curtailed if Yohji was to survive.
He hoped what they were about to do would make the blond forget the booze for a while but somehow doubted it. He started to second guess himself as he got Yohji into one of the bedrooms and onto the king-sized bed. He might just make bad worse and there was still his strong reaction to the other team�s icy blond to consider.
That made him think again, he was still thinking in terms of two separate teams and, as they�d been stuck out here on their own, they weren�t the only ones.
Yohji was the known quantity, for all his bad habits and irritating ways. The other blond was an arrogant prick.
Yohji lay back on the bed, stared into the enigmatic violet eyes of the man he was so deeply in love with it hurt. �You can do anything you want, so long as you don't hurt my ankle any worse than it is, okay Aya?�
Three years of silently wanting the blond overtook him and Aya growled as he pushed Yohji back onto the bed, covering that sexy mouth with his own. It seemed like it was the only way to shut Kudoh up.
He wasn�t entirely sure what he did want to do, but he was pretty sure that instinct would take over.
When Aya growled goose bumps roughened Yohji's entire body in reaction. That sound coming from the red-haired man was enough to stand his cock up hard as stone and turn the blond's brains to lust drenched mush. The kiss that followed removed any capacity for rational thought. He spread his legs wide, and then hooked them over the younger man's shoulders to show him exactly what he wanted.
Aya�s hands ran over that long body and came to rest on the rock hard cock. He applied just the right amount of pressure.
Yohji groaned and thrust into the firm hand round his cock.
�Interesting,� a deep, faintly accented voice said from behind Aya. It was a voice he knew all too well. �But not something I hadn't seen.�
Aya snatched back his hand as it he�d been burned and spun round to face the intruder, wishing he had a weapon to hand. Of course the smug bastard across the room seemed able to dodge virtually all attacks due to his �talent� so neither sword nor gun would do him a lot of good.
�What the hell are you doing here?�
Crawford shrugged and took a step closer to the bed as Yohji pulled away from Aya and glared at the American precog.
�Making one last effort to save us all from Rosenkreuz.� His dark eyes were taking in Yohji's lean nakedness, and there was a glint of something unreadable in the man's gaze.
Whatever it was, Yohji certainly didn't like the way the man was watching him. It reminded him too much of the way a cat would stare at a wounded bird.
�Your pet homicidal maniac and that freakish kid gave us the party line already. We turned them down,� Aya said. �Or is there something about the word �no� that you simply don�t understand?�
Brad grabbed a handful of dark red hair, �What part of dead don't you get?� he snarled into the younger man's face, and planted an open hand into he middle of the blond Weiss' face as Yohji went for him. He shoved and sent the injured man back onto the bed, hard.
�Both of you shut up and listen!� the American snarled. �You, them, us, we'll all be dead if we don't work together against Rosenkreuz. If you think the Elders and Esset and Schwarz are the worst you will face, you are about to receive a very rude awakening!�
�Have you approached them?� Aya asked. �Or did nearly losing your sadistic friend convince you that they don�t like you very much.� He wasn�t sure they liked them either, but at least none of them had had a hole blown in them�yet.
�Frankly I'd happily cut that blond bastard into small pieces over the course of a month or two.... if I had the time and didn't have to worry that by the end of the month we'll all be dead.�
Which, of course, wasn't the real truth. No, the distressing part of it to the American was that they would be dead. Schwarz. Not the Weiss and not the bloody bastards that had somehow convinced the only potential allies they could have hoped for to walk away without so much as a backward glance.
He let Aya's hair go, but his gaze kept going to the tall blond in the bed. The look of that sleek, lean body was warming his blood the way only Schuldig normally could. Frowning he tore his gaze away and regarded the face of the other Weiss. Not that he wouldn't love to shove the swordsman down and fuck him into submission, but he didn't quite affect Crawford in the same way Kudoh did.
�Perhaps if you�d kept a tighter leash on that telepathic bastard and his maniac sidekick we�d have been more inclined to listen,� Aya said coldly. �If you hadn�t tried to take my sister or let Farfarello and Naoe beat Ken and Omi into bloody pulp we might have been remotely interested in your survival.
�As it is, although I thank you for letting me get to Takatori, I really don�t care if you all die tomorrow.�
"And you think I'm not aware of all that?" Brad sighed and stepped away from the bed to stare out of the nearest window. His hands gripped the sill, knuckles going white. "I can't be everywhere at once," he admitted softly. "And I don't see every single detail of the future either."
He turned around to level a blank stare at the pair of Weiss. "We could have killed all four of you but we didn't. But I suppose it doesn't matter." He rested his behind against the window ledge, and sighed. "We were very careful to manoeuvre all of you to places in the Ani where I would be sure of your survival. It wasn't easy to do that, but we did it the only way we could: by getting you to fight us. Do you think we had any reason at all to stay there after the Elders were dead, other than to save your lives?" His lips curled into a bitter smile. "And here I am, trying to save all of you again." He shook his head, "Well you're safe for the time being. I won't tell them where you are, not even under torture."
He walked over to the bed, looking down at the two Weiss.
Fast as a striking serpent he leaned down and pressed a heated kiss to Yohji's mouth, his fingers tangled in the blond killer's hair before he moved quickly away from any retaliation the men would make.
Yohji just lay there too stunned to react, his jade eyes wide and full of confusion. There was something very familiar about the feel of the American's mouth on his, and it bothered him because there wasn't any reason for him to feel that way.
"Don't think on it too hard, Kudoh," Crawford said as he headed for the bedroom door.
�Wait!� Aya was totally unconcerned about his nudity as he jumped off the bed. �Why did you want us alive? Was it to save your skins?�
The little scene with Yohji had him confused but now was not the time to worry about that. Schwarz knew where they were and despite Crawford�s talk of wanting to keep them alive that fact did not sit comfortably with him.
Crawford turned to look at the red-haired Weiss. "We kept you alive because I knew it would come down to a battle for survival against Rosenkreuz. But I've told you this before. You don't stand a chance of surviving against them. Not even with the help of DSS." He looked meaningfully at Yohji, "Not all of you anyway."
As the Schwarz leader watched, Balinese went deathly pale and he gave the man a little smile. The blond had finally remembered.
"Oh... gods..." he heard Yohji whisper. "You... Schuldig..." The jade eyes closed, a shudder passing through the blond's lanky body at the memory of their hands on him. But it hadn't just been hands, or mouths. There had been cocks too. Crawford and Schuldig, with the American fucking him and his own mouth wrapped around Schuldig's erection.
Shouting in rage and self loathing, Yohji bolted out of the bed, intending to choke the life out of the smirking bastard. His ankle had other ideas and he pitched headlong to the floor, landing hard enough to knock the breath out of him.
It didn�t take a genius to realise what Crawford and Schuldig must have done at some point in time and Aya�s eyes narrowed at the thought.
He glared at the smirking American. �You�ve said your piece and done your damage; now get the fuck out of here.�
And Crawford did just that, walking out of the bedroom, a leaden weight forming in the pit of his stomach as he saw, not just how Kudoh would die protecting the red-head from being killed, but the also the finality of the darkness as it closed over Schwarz.