Scar Tissue [Yasha: Nagae Moichi, Arisue Sei]
title: Scar Tissue
fandom: Yasha
characters: Nagae Moichi, Arisue Sei
notes: Prompted by Cyn with five words to include: colorful, waves, gasping, traditional, night, and also using a 31_days prompt (4 March 2008: This scar I carry proudly.) for further idea with the plot ;) 1036 Words.
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It would hurt too much to go back to the very same beach. It isn't where any of it actually happened, but it was the same day and the last memory Sei has of them playing around together, and so it all becomes one sometimes in his mind when he tries to think back. Never mind that Moichi can't tell that the scenery here is not the same. Perhaps the waves sound different to Moichi though, Sei thinks to himself. His own hearing is exceptional for the pitch of sounds he can hear, and so the shushing of the waves alone doesn't stir bad memories for him. And Moichi is stood still and smiling into the wind, so it must be different enough after all.
Sei just lets Moichi stand and stand in silence until long after his legs have begun to ache. He puts a hand to Moichi's shoulder to steady himself, and is met with a startled but affectionate smile.
"What are you doing?" Moichi asks, as Sei leans down.
"Taking off my shoes and socks," he replies, and Moichi nods.
"Good idea," he says, and waits for Sei to finish and remove his hand from Moichi's shoulder before he sits down to do the same. As Sei watches the shoes being unlaced he cups his right hand in his left as though it is injured. These are the things Moichi doesn't see.
"Should we build a sandcastle?" Moichi asks, as though they are twelve years old again and it isn't mid-evening entering into night. As though it isn't going to get steadily colder from here on out, and they have no other worries in the world than that.
"Sure, we could," Sei agrees, knowing full well they have no buckets or even spades to dig with. And Moichi can't be all that much help anyway, and never was. It never, ever ended with a fully built castle.
"It's traditional at the beach after all," Moichi says, reaching down to cup the sand in his hands and let it fall back through his fingers. "I love the feel of it," he smiles, repeating the process. Sei takes off his glasses and slips them into his jacket pocket. He prefers to watch without the glass barrier when it comes to Moichi.
"Under your feet too," Sei says, "when you're in the sea and it's almost slipping away from under you."
There are so many layers to the words he doesn't stop to think about before he says them, but once theyr'e out and he can't take them back, all of a sudden he can't worry too much. Moichi is the one person he can trust to understand, and therefore pretend not to understand at all. How much strength it must've taken to go on believing everything was alright after knowing the circumstances under which everything happened, accepting Sei's lies as necessary and responding cheerfully so as not to cause problems between the two of them where there need be none.
All of a sudden, Sei wants very much to go back to that day on Okukami beach. Where his biggest problem was the bullies who wanted to steal his money, and the biggest lie he'd ever told Moichi was that his mother wouldn't be mad at them for jumping in the sea and getting their clothes all wet even after she'd warned them not to.
"Let's go," he says, reaching for Moichi's hand and pulling him up before he can argue; he is shorter than Sei, but not much smaller in terms of weight, but Sei has always had the advantage in that he is confident of where they are going. Moichi doesn't take long to catch on anyway, bracing himself visibly as they run towards the water. Sei closes his eyes before they hit the cold wet of the waves and hopes they will wash off all his sins.
The impact is staggering, enough to make him want to turn back and run away, but he knows the price is worth the reward, and he can't just leave Moichi behind. At least he knows when exactly the water is coming, Moichi must discern the sounds of the waves reaching ever-closer. But he takes no harm from it, smiling as the water splatters all the way up to his face.
He tackles Sei underneath the waves, and all of a sudden the first impact isn't so bad after all, not when you're submerged, freezing cold all the way down to your bones, gasping for air and only water is coming in. When they both get their heads above water again, they end up laughing. Sei is pushing at the surface splashing Moichi just as much as he is being splashed until they're both out of energy and they crawl back up the sand to their leftover belongings.
Sei starts a fire to warm them up as well as to combat the falling night. The sunset has created a beautiful, colourful sky, but it won't last long at all. He notices Moichi give off a small shiver and reaches for the jacket he won't easily find, too far out of his reach. Sei drapes it around Moichi's shoulders, and that's when he is close enough to notice it.
Right on the back of his head, just about where the hairline stops, Moichi has a scar. Sei stomach knots. His fingers brush over it lightly, but Moichi still reacts.
"Ah," he says, "that's uh-"
And Moichi never usually falters, and that's just about the worst thing. Sei remembers the hands on each arm, fingers digging in deep enough to bruise to ensure he wouldn't run - as if he would've when they had Moichi! - he remembers the man, Amemiya, lingering at Moichi's side, and he remembers the thud of Moichi's body dropping to the floor, but he just doesn't know what came between.
Now, he can guess. And if he had known at the time, things might've played out a little differently. Maybe they wouldn't be together again today. Though Sei would hardly call it being grateful.
"It's okay," he says before Moichi can gather up some words. He doesn't want the lies to go both ways. "I know."
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fandom: Yasha
characters: Nagae Moichi, Arisue Sei
notes: Prompted by Cyn with five words to include: colorful, waves, gasping, traditional, night, and also using a 31_days prompt (4 March 2008: This scar I carry proudly.) for further idea with the plot ;) 1036 Words.
-
It would hurt too much to go back to the very same beach. It isn't where any of it actually happened, but it was the same day and the last memory Sei has of them playing around together, and so it all becomes one sometimes in his mind when he tries to think back. Never mind that Moichi can't tell that the scenery here is not the same. Perhaps the waves sound different to Moichi though, Sei thinks to himself. His own hearing is exceptional for the pitch of sounds he can hear, and so the shushing of the waves alone doesn't stir bad memories for him. And Moichi is stood still and smiling into the wind, so it must be different enough after all.
Sei just lets Moichi stand and stand in silence until long after his legs have begun to ache. He puts a hand to Moichi's shoulder to steady himself, and is met with a startled but affectionate smile.
"What are you doing?" Moichi asks, as Sei leans down.
"Taking off my shoes and socks," he replies, and Moichi nods.
"Good idea," he says, and waits for Sei to finish and remove his hand from Moichi's shoulder before he sits down to do the same. As Sei watches the shoes being unlaced he cups his right hand in his left as though it is injured. These are the things Moichi doesn't see.
"Should we build a sandcastle?" Moichi asks, as though they are twelve years old again and it isn't mid-evening entering into night. As though it isn't going to get steadily colder from here on out, and they have no other worries in the world than that.
"Sure, we could," Sei agrees, knowing full well they have no buckets or even spades to dig with. And Moichi can't be all that much help anyway, and never was. It never, ever ended with a fully built castle.
"It's traditional at the beach after all," Moichi says, reaching down to cup the sand in his hands and let it fall back through his fingers. "I love the feel of it," he smiles, repeating the process. Sei takes off his glasses and slips them into his jacket pocket. He prefers to watch without the glass barrier when it comes to Moichi.
"Under your feet too," Sei says, "when you're in the sea and it's almost slipping away from under you."
There are so many layers to the words he doesn't stop to think about before he says them, but once theyr'e out and he can't take them back, all of a sudden he can't worry too much. Moichi is the one person he can trust to understand, and therefore pretend not to understand at all. How much strength it must've taken to go on believing everything was alright after knowing the circumstances under which everything happened, accepting Sei's lies as necessary and responding cheerfully so as not to cause problems between the two of them where there need be none.
All of a sudden, Sei wants very much to go back to that day on Okukami beach. Where his biggest problem was the bullies who wanted to steal his money, and the biggest lie he'd ever told Moichi was that his mother wouldn't be mad at them for jumping in the sea and getting their clothes all wet even after she'd warned them not to.
"Let's go," he says, reaching for Moichi's hand and pulling him up before he can argue; he is shorter than Sei, but not much smaller in terms of weight, but Sei has always had the advantage in that he is confident of where they are going. Moichi doesn't take long to catch on anyway, bracing himself visibly as they run towards the water. Sei closes his eyes before they hit the cold wet of the waves and hopes they will wash off all his sins.
The impact is staggering, enough to make him want to turn back and run away, but he knows the price is worth the reward, and he can't just leave Moichi behind. At least he knows when exactly the water is coming, Moichi must discern the sounds of the waves reaching ever-closer. But he takes no harm from it, smiling as the water splatters all the way up to his face.
He tackles Sei underneath the waves, and all of a sudden the first impact isn't so bad after all, not when you're submerged, freezing cold all the way down to your bones, gasping for air and only water is coming in. When they both get their heads above water again, they end up laughing. Sei is pushing at the surface splashing Moichi just as much as he is being splashed until they're both out of energy and they crawl back up the sand to their leftover belongings.
Sei starts a fire to warm them up as well as to combat the falling night. The sunset has created a beautiful, colourful sky, but it won't last long at all. He notices Moichi give off a small shiver and reaches for the jacket he won't easily find, too far out of his reach. Sei drapes it around Moichi's shoulders, and that's when he is close enough to notice it.
Right on the back of his head, just about where the hairline stops, Moichi has a scar. Sei stomach knots. His fingers brush over it lightly, but Moichi still reacts.
"Ah," he says, "that's uh-"
And Moichi never usually falters, and that's just about the worst thing. Sei remembers the hands on each arm, fingers digging in deep enough to bruise to ensure he wouldn't run - as if he would've when they had Moichi! - he remembers the man, Amemiya, lingering at Moichi's side, and he remembers the thud of Moichi's body dropping to the floor, but he just doesn't know what came between.
Now, he can guess. And if he had known at the time, things might've played out a little differently. Maybe they wouldn't be together again today. Though Sei would hardly call it being grateful.
"It's okay," he says before Moichi can gather up some words. He doesn't want the lies to go both ways. "I know."
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