Vampire's Requiem

Vampire's Requiem
Eyes as deep brown as soil stared down at the limp figure lying beneath a red satin blanket, resting peacefully in a black coffin. Church bells tolled their sorrowful tune on this day. Any normal person would cry – would feel the deepest anguish. But not him; not Yuukie Tsuzuki. His expression remained blank as his gloved fingers traced along the edge of the open casket. Though he was upset – no, upset was an understatement … He was thoroughly distraught, depressed, sorrowful … - he found that no tears came to push over his eyelids – he didn't have the strength to cry anymore. He was done with crying – it simply got you nowhere in life; it was pointless to cry over a lost love … His Mother …

However, he felt the deepest anguish overcome him as his brother came to stand beside him. His less-that-stoic sibling looked close to tears – his body shaking, his breath trembling. Yuukie put an arm around his twin, pulling his close. They stood there together, one trying not to cry; the other trying to cry, and he knew – they knew – that nothing would ever be the same again. With no father to lay claim upon them, they would be put up for adoption (it was the law, after all) … And they would have to kiss their beautiful memories goodbye – all of the cherished time they had with their mother; all of the glorious memories they've acquired through all of the tears and the fights. Though they knew they would never forget their mother – the person who brought so much joy to their lives despite the fact that she was raising two children by herself; the person who made sure they had everything; the person who loved them like no other …

In time – they would come to forget … Forget everything that meant anything with them – forget all the sweet things with the bringing of the early morning sun; cleansing their minds and making them forget all the sad things … They would never be the same again. All because Yuukie's brother is a Vampire ….

The Vampire-boy sat upright in bed, his cold heart beating a mile-a-minute. He touched his chest where his heart would be as he steadied his breathing. It had been years since he remembered his mother's funeral – it had been about a year or so since he had last thought about her. He took a deep breath before looking over in the bed next to his, where his brother was sleeping soundly. Yuukie frowned, staring at his brother who was snoring softly. He wordlessly slipped out of bed, ghosting over to his sibling. He kneeled down at the side of his sleeping quarters, stroking the boy's hair back with a soft touch.

Yuukie loved his elder brother more than a sibling should. No – it wasn't that "Forbidden Fruit" or "Twincestual Love" thing that fangirls dream about. He only thought of Ichirou as a brother – nothing more than that; but his love for his sibling stretched further than it should. Despite the fact that Ichirou was the elder brother; he always felt it was up to him to protect his similar sibling. He says similar because they aren't exactly identical. They weren't born fraternal – but they weren't born identical either. Ichirou's hair was always wavy – while Yuukie's was pin-straight. Yuukie's hair was a dark black color, while – though it's often mistaken for black – Ichirou's is a deep brown. Yuukie's eyes are also a little darker brown than his brother's are … But; as stated previously – they're not Fraternal. They came from the same egg – an egg that split to create two; they didn't come from two separate ones …

However; they both seemed to be growing apart – despite how strongly Yuukie loved and cherished his brother – they were going their separate ways. Yuukie often seemed to lose his patience with his tenacious sibling; and Ichirou seemed to bother his partner in work – Raiden – more than he anymore. It saddened him somewhat, to know that they were losing their bond; yet at the same time, joy blossomed in his heart. Ever since his brother changed him into a Vampire – he found he was slightly resentful of Ichirou – yet he could never stop wanting to protect him, and he knew; the easiest way to protect him would be to let him go; let him be free to do whatever he wanted – to allow him to experience new things and meet new people …

But he found that hard to do so … He was afraid – though he would never admit it openly – that they would eventually forget about each other. He was afraid his older brother would move on, taking all their memories with them. Just like when their mother died ….

"Aniki, I'm scared …" Yuukie whispered to his fellow eleven-year-old brother. "What if Mary and Takuma-" their adoptive parents "-find out?"

"Relax …" Ichirou whispered back his arms wrapped tightly around Yuuki's torso. "They haven't found out I'm a Vampire yet and we've lived with them for almost three years now …" He smiled, despite the fact that he was clearly unnerved, also. "Just don't do anything silly around them and you'll be okay …"

Yuukie was silent for a few moments, relaxing into his brother's grip. Finally, he spoke; "Ii-chan …" He murmured tentatively, his voice thoughtful.

"Hnn?" Was Ichirou's only reply as he stared into his brother's eyes.

"Aniki … Promise me you'll never leave me …" His request seemed to take Ichirou off-guard, for he pulled back slightly, his expression bewildered. "Not like Mommy did … I don't want you to leave me; I don't want our memories to fade to gray …" Ichirou was about to open his mouth, when Yuukie cut him off, voicing his opinion even more, "I mean … There are Vampire Hunters out there – Humans who actually believe in us – and I'm afraid if you're not careful, you'll get hurt … Which means I'll have to be all alone …." Ichirou's heart lurched at the desperate sound in his brother's voice; but it lurched even more to know that he wouldn't – couldn't – cry. Yuukie's tears had long-since dried up with the death of their mother …

"Where will I go? What will I do? Without Aniki, I'll be nothing. Just another person who's likely to be forgotten as I continue to die more and more. Because a life without you, Ichirou, just isn't a life worth living at all … I'll be all alone, submerged in a life of darkness …"

Ichirou's jaw had dropped, and the younger's words brought tears to his eyes. He sniffed, before all but throwing himself at his brother, the metal springs in their shared mattress squeaking with the sudden change of movement and weight. "I thought you were the strong one …" When Yuukie didn't answer Ichirou sighed, burying his nose in his twin's shoulder. "I won't leave you for a long time … I promise …."

Yuukie frowned at the memory, pressing cool lips to Ichirou's cheek. He remembered when they shared that conversation. It was only a week or so after Ichirou turned him into a Vampire … When they first began to drift apart. It was – quite literally – the first time he had ever shown weakness in front of Ichirou. He sighed softly as he pulled away from his brother.

It all seemed so nostalgic. How one day; things were going great – both of them were mortal; both carefree and happy. And then the next day – Ichirou's a vampire and he's accidentally killed their mother …

He had told Ichirou several times after he was changed that he hated him – yet his actions by the end of the day always seemed to prove otherwise. They would speak kindly to each other; smile; laugh and occasionally cuddle. What? So, they were closer than average siblings, big deal … That's when something caught his eye. He frowned when he saw it. There was a beautifully crafted paper crane sitting by the head of Ichirou's bed. Yuukie recognized it. It was one of the cranes he used to make when he was younger … He smirked a bit as the memory washed over him.

Yuukie was aware of his brother's presence in their shared bedroom as he hummed happily to himself. He was folding origami paper; his brown gaze begrudging; intent. Ichirou breezed over to his twin, peering over his shoulder. Instantly, a smile blossomed across his lips. "You're making a paper crane …" He observed, watching his brother's every movement closely

His movements were brisk yet gentle, as if afraid he would break the paper as easily as crushing a rose petal. "Unn …" Yuukie murmured as he lifted the finished crane in the air on the palm of his hand. "It's my first one …" he paused, before chuckling to himself. Only 999 more to go …"Ichirou looked puzzled, and Yuukie smirked, elaborating. "Old Japanese folklore," he murmured as he began folding another piece of paper. "You've never heard of it, Ichirou? I though you of all …" he was about to say "people" but they weren't human anymore. He thought against it. "Anyways, legend has it that if you fold one thousand paper cranes and make a wish, it'll come true …" He trailed off as he folded the wings of his second crane.

"Your wish …" the thirteen-year-old sighed, "it's probably to be human again, huh?" Yuukie stared at Ichirou evenly for a long while, silence consuming the Vampire-twins. After a while, Ichirou nodded, turning away slowly, solemnly. "I'm sorry," he whispered, about to leave, when Yuukie suddenly grabbed his hand, then hugged him from behind. "Yuu-chan …" Ichirou whispered, feet frozen to the floor.

"You're wrong, Ii-chan. My wish … It's to be with you forever. It's to be with Aniki. To learn how to live again; without regret; without despair …"

After that the two boys stood there in a long silence, their breathing steady, their hearts racing, their arms wrapped tenderly around each other. Neither of them were willing to separate.

He sighed as he heard the soft, familiar tolling of church bells in the distance … It all seemed so nostalgic …. He rose to his feet, turning and heading towards their mahogany desk and rummaging through the drawers. He pulled out a piece of origami paper, staring at the yellow paper for a while. It had been years since he had last created a crane – or anything, for that matter. He remembered – he had stopped folding when he reached one-hundred cranes – when he was seventeen. When he thought back to it, he really must not have had a life at all … he chuckled to himself, before sitting down at the desk.

He folded the paper quickly, singing softly to himself as he did so. Singing was – honestly – one of his favorite pass-times. He often sang when he was positive no one was around to hear him … "The cherry blossoms fell, fluttering down/Embracing every bit of my fluttering love/Even now, I'm dreaming the dream I prayed for with you that spring/The cherry blossoms scatter/From the train I could see/The traces of one day/The big bridge we crossed together/Graduation time came and you left town/On the colourful riverbank, I search for that day—" as he sang, the crane was born; folded neatly and intricately, like it always was.

He cast a glance back at the sleeping Ichirou, smiling warmly. "One-hundred and one …" he whispered, chuckling softly. "Only eight-hundred and ninety-nine more to go, Ichirou … I promise I'll keep working … And then we can be happy … Forever …" Though he didn't seem like it when it came to health and physique … He was – and always will be for years to come – the weaker sibling ….