The Shadows We Bear [Part VI / ???]
Basic premise for those who do not know: this fic is set the the world of theskytides, an AU panfandom RPG set in a steampunk line in which it is totally a fandom of its own. Miles Edgeworth (from the Ace Attorney series) and Hijikata Toshirou (from Gintama) happen to be the first mate / boatswain respectively in of one of the ships in the game. In this story, Hijikata has something of a... crush towards Edgeworth that he has never told anyone, though he is aware. Which of course, will only lead to nothing but trouble...
Parts: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI
THE SHADOWS WE BEAR
TST!Shadowverse fic : Part VI
Back when he was younger, Hijikata had been taught (albeit a tad indirectly) that karma was something that existed in the laws of nature; it was neither good nor evil as so many people had tended to see it as. It was neutral, as many things in the world was. How it was heavily depended on each and every person-if one did much good in his life, then what they would get at the end was good. But on the other hand, one was only destined to suffer if he did nothing but evil. That was what he had been taught, and it was what he had learned-and just a little, it was something he had believed in even though he was never much of a believer in things like these.
Still, no amount of karma that he could summon up could really compare to the current situation that he was in at the moment. He was virtually stuck between a rock and a hard place, pinned down almost painfully to the ground by hands that he had thought to be smooth but were only rough and calloused. His back still hurt from the impact in which he had been slammed onto the floor; his eyes flashed, reflecting the glint of the blades that were now lying useless far away from them both. Every part of him hurt with the pain and the exhaustion seeping in his bones, and try as he might it was impossible for him to try and wrench his pinned hands from the other. Any attempt of a struggle was only cut short when the thing tightened the grip in his wrist with enough force for him to let out a strained noise of pain while he felt the nerves there being cut off.
“It’s useless to struggle, you know,” came to voice of the one above him, the one who was pinning him down after that surprise attack which had caught him off guard and took that chance to render him weaponless.
The boatswain only gritted his teeth, bristling up into a snarl as his eyes flashed with warning once again. “Let me go, you asshole!” he growled out-even if he was down, he would not give in.
The thing only looked in amusement at that, the expression on its face one that Hijikata was only all-too familiar with and was only in his mind even as the lips twisted into a sardonic smirk and those toxic yellow eyes smouldered with the fog that enshrouded them both. When it spoke, its voice was back to the old familiar tone that the boatswain recognized instantly. “Ooooh, but why should I? I find this position so very comfortable.”
The voice did have its intended effect on the samurai, but the man made the effort to not let anything show on his face this time. Instead he only forced himself to calm down for the moment and continued to direct his glare towards it, repeating himself in a tone of quiet anger. “Let. Me. Go.”
There was only a pause after that, and then the smirk on the thing’s face only widened before it responded. “No.”
“You bastard-” started the boatswain, having lost his calm from before already and only started to struggle once more. His efforts were quickly stopped however as he froze entirely, body going rigid the moment the thing lowered itself closer towards him. At this distance, he could already feel his senses registering the things that his mind recognized as distinctly Edgeworth’s from what he could remember. His body was telling him that this thing... this thing that was nothing but a beast in human clothing, a monster who only took the other’s form was the real deal no matter how much his mind was protesting. They might be similar on the outside but the inside... the inside was totally different.
“Your heart’s beating faster,” the thing cheerfully spoke up again and broke the man from this concentration, sounding very much like a kid was playing around with his favourite toy.
Hijikata only scowled at it. “Get off me, you bastard.”
Chuckle. “And if I don’t?”
“I’ll kill you.”
He only remained silent after that as the thing broke off into laughter at his response, clenching his jaw and glaring stubbornly still even if his insides were getting riled up by all the wrong that he was feeling. The laugh was nothing like Edgeworth’s-it was only twisted, distorted and downright sadistic. It was nothing like him at all. This wasn’t Edgeworth. The words repeated in his head like a mantra over and over again-the only comfort in the knowledge was that it kept him sane.
“Oh, but Toshirou-” it started once it had finally stopped laughing, and Hijikata denied any fact that a shiver did run down his spine at that. The three words It’s not Edgeworth replayed in his head once more, going on as the other continued to speak. “-you just tried that, and look where it got you.” The grip tightened even more at that, and this time Hijikata couldn’t hold back the cry of pain that escaped from his lungs. Fuck, that hurt.
He gritted his teeth once more once the pain was on a more tolerable level, still glaring harshly at the thing with all the hatred that he could muster there and then. All he got in response to the look was that twisted smile once again before the thing lowered its head, twisting around so that his lips were just right above his earlobe and Hijikata had use every bit of his willpower to stop himself from responding to the sudden closeness.
A breathy laugh in his ear, and then a whisper that only made his blood froze once again.
“After all, you can’t really kill the one you’d much rather screw around with, right?”
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
The words played in his head like a broken tape recorder over and over again in an endless loop. He knew it was childish, knew it was foolish, but it was only this knowledge that was managing to keep him together in this otherwise rapidly downhill rolling situation.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Hijikata managed to grit out even as his jaw was tightly clenched and those three words continued to play in his head repeatedly.
“Ooooh, don’t try to fool me with your indifference,” the thing half-snarled, half-mocked above him. “I’m not so oblivious as I once was, you know. I can tell-” it leaned even closer now, close enough that the hairs on the back of his neck were at end, “-how much you want me to screw you senseless.”
“I don’t-” started the boatswain, but he was cut off in shock when it lowered is head so that its lips were brushing across his neck and he could feel the faint hints of stubble and what the hell-
“It’s too bad for you though,” it spoke as it raised its head back up to look with a fair amount of amusement at the man who had closed his eyes and bit down on his lower lips in a bid to prevent any noise from escaping him. There was a glistening trail of saliva down the side of his throat at where a tongue had swiped across it. “He’s never really been interested in-no. No, I take it back.”
Hijikata opened his eyes once the shock of the sensation from before had managed to more or less pass through him-just in time to have the thing right at its face, inhuman yellow eyes sparkling unnaturally before him as it spoke. “He considered a quick fuck sometime a while back, but you weren't even good enough for that, were you?”
The words began to play in his head again.
“You’re... you’re lying,” the boatswain managed out, the tone of his voice quiet and heavily forced.
“Well...” the thing started in response, head tilting to the side once more as if in thought. “You could ask him yourself, but...” It then paused and lowered its head again, and the man was forced to bite the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from responding to the rush of hot air over the skin of his neck when the thing finished its sentence. “I’m afraid he won’t live enough for that.”
No don’t respond don’t respond don’t respond-Hijikata could only concentrate on trying not to respond the other in anyway, the only indication of it being the furrowed eyebrows and his own bottom lip being bitten down hard. The thing could only let its own amusement propel it further as it continued its (rather underhanded) assault on the dark-haired other. “So all you can really do is to take my word for it.” Saying that, it wrapped its lips on the side of his throat and sucked once, hard.
Don’t respond don’t respond don’t-any train of thought was effectively cut short at the action as his composure slipped and a soft groan was heard from the man. Golden yellow eyes flared once as soon as it had heard the sound, and the thing only chuckled once deep in its chest before the teeth came out and it bit down hard onto the flesh. Hijikata could only let out a cry and arched upwards at the jolt of pain that ran through him at the action.
“Now that’s the spirit~” came the thing’s highly amused voice before it sharply moved its hips to grind down there against him, once. Still, it was already more than enough to let another choked cry escape from the man as the friction did nothing but torment him painfully.
The boatswain could only let out another strangled, choked sound that sounded almost (almost) like a broken moan as the assault returned to his neck, breathing out almost pleadingly. “D-Don’t.”
All he got in response was only another chuckle, followed by the tickle of hair against his collarbone as the thing shifted to raise its head in order to look down at him from above, the smirk still in place. “Don't what?” he echoed, amusement only all too clear his voice, “This is what you wanted, wasn't it?” He punctuated his line with another rough, possessive bite on the column on his throat, and the man only found himself painfully powerless to what was happening to him.
“You know, he actually did wonder a few times if this was what you wanted,” the thing went on almost conversationally as it flicked out its tongue to trace along the path of the bite, the action eliciting a slight shudder from the other. “But it was just too ridiculous.” It then moved once again, moving up this time so that lips brushed across his earlobe, and the boatswain let out a strained noise from the back of his throat as it nibbled on a spot just below his ear.
“But for once,” murmured the voice, sounding as if deep in thought, “he was actually right.”
Hijikata managed to grit his teeth at that, willing every part of him to try and resist all of this. “You’re... you’re not him.”
There was a sudden pause with that line, but soon enough the thing moved once more, this time closing in on him again until their noses were almost touching. At this distance, all that the man could see was its inhuman yellow eyes that flared once as it growled. “Then what am I?”
“You’re... you’re not him. You’re just using him.” That had to be the only reason after all. There was no way at all that Edgeworth would ever be something this horrible, this cruel-
A blast of hot air washed over him when he said that, then another shift and it was back to the side. “But Toshirou...” it started, a rough tongue licking down the edge of his earlobe. “I already told you-I am him.”
“Don’t use that name,” hissed out the man.
“But that is your name, isn’t it?” came the response right before it nibbled down on that spot behind his ear once more, and Hijikata made another strained noise.
“You can’t... you can’t use it.” Not even Edgeworth had used it-that had been a name that only she had ever used-a name that only rang true whenever she had said it with her own voice. Nobody else (besides the very few exceptions) had called him that. Nobody.
Still, that didn’t stop the other from forcing its opinion. A growl was heard when he replied, and then suddenly there was a sharp pain in his wrists as the thing further tightened its grip there. Hijikata cried out wordlessly at the sudden jolt of pain as it snarled right at his face. “And what are you going to do about it?”
There was no response to that but only silence.
“Hmph. That’s what I thought,” it went as the grip relaxed slightly. It then moved back to that it was on top of him comfortably once more, eyes glowing again as it studied the man below him with an almost childlike interest before speaking up again. “Want me to tell you something?”
The other would have responded had it not been for the fact that he had been cut off just as he was about to speak by another sharp movement of its hips against his. The thing only grinned savagely at the sight of the boatswain so utterly powerless before him. The grin was still in place even as it bent down again and whispered the one line that would be the final nail in the metamorphic coffin. “The closest he ever came to loving you was thinking about a quick fuck when he was drunk.”
Hijikata didn’t reply to that, but the look on his face at that moment had made it clear what he felt. It was the look of someone who had faced the ultimate despair, the final game over.
The thing then let the grin turn back into a softer sort of smile (though the savagery was still as clear as day there) before it grunted and moved its hips yet again. “So you might as well enjoy this, you know,” it went, sounding oh-so very pleased and glad over how the man below him was only making choked, strangled sounds from the back of his throat that sounded very much like desperation and helplessness (and thus music) to his ears. “Because since he’ll never love you, this is the closest that you’re ever going to get.”
It only continued its assault after that, alternating between gentle and rough, false kindness and plain mockery-but always, always teasing. Never giving anything substantial, always pulling back before anything real could be felt. But even so, Hijikata only continued to hold onto the three words that stopped him from simply falling apart, the three words that were the truth for him, the three words that prevented him from breaking inside.
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not-
A sudden surge of strength came through him as something abruptly just slipped in his last bits of self-control and the man snapped open his eyes, feeling nothing but pure rage rumbling through him and overpowering his own common sense. The asshole-the asshole had been only toying with him, and it was going to pay for doing that. With a burst of renowned energy, the boatswain yanked up his right hand from the other’s grip and glared with burning hatred towards the thing.
“You’re not Edgeworth,” snarled out the swordsman before his swung his fist to punch against the other’s jaw hard. The force of the blow was enough to shock the thing into loosening its grip on him, and Hijikata immediately took the chance to turn the tables on it. Making use of the adrenaline rush, the man shoved the other onto the floor now and without warning, fastened his hands around its neck, fingers digging into the sides with unforgivable force.
“You’re not Edgeworth,” hissed out the samurai as his fingers tightened even more, growling as strangled sounds escaped from the one now below him. The rush only increased as he heard those noises and his grip tightened further and all he could think of there and then was to teach this fucking asshole a lesson it would never forget-
Then suddenly, the feel of lips and the slightest of tongue on his own, and Hijikata’s eyes widened by just a fraction before closing shut, pain erupting spontaneously at the back of his head and he choked violently as rough fingers wrapped around his own neck.
“Do you really think that would work?” it growled out, voice slipping back to the warped parody that it once was as it lost its composure from the sudden attack it had received.
Despite himself, the man only managed out a smirk of his own in return, heedless of the dangerous position he was in. “No, but I just wanted to get your ass off me.”
The yellow eyes only narrowed at that, and a snarl rippled across its face, stretching thin along the bottom third of the skin. Hijikata only had a moment to smirk a bit more before he choked for air once more as hands tightened unforgivably around his neck, nails digging painfully into the back with enough force to make him let out a forced cry of pain.
“Trying to be the tough guy now, aren’t you?” the voice hissed out in disgust this time. “Trying to act like nothing’s happened when you know everything just did, you son of a bitch. I’ll make sure you know what true suffering is like.”
The grip turned deadly, suffocating, and all the man could so was to reach up to try and pry the hands off him in vain. His eyes watered as the lack of air began to reach him, chest heaving rapidly in a bid to try and get more air only to be stopped as he felt his windpipe being squeezed with inhuman strength. Eyelids fluttered as they struggled to stay open, and Hijikata could feel his limbs going limp as his strength drained out from him; the edges of his vision started to turn black, and even if his half-aware mind he knew that he was going to die.
Death via strangulation. How strangely... appropriate, in some sense or another.
He gasped, wheezing as he felt the last bit of air leaving him and then his vision slowly stated to darken and fade-
-then suddenly the ear-splitting crack of wood being bashed open, followed by a roar that sounded like thunder itself.
“Izanagi!”
There was that sound of shattering glass once again, and then a deafening crack of lightning after that, and next thing he knew Hijikata found himself sprawled onto the ground; both eyes and mouth wide open as he gasped for the air that rushed back into his lungs. He coughed and panted for needed oxygen as his mind slowly regained back its consciousness, and after a few moments the man was fine enough to push himself back up into a sitting position, albeit somewhat shakily. Once he had managed to get up properly though, the boatswain glanced around the area to see what was going on.
Seta and Hanamura were finally were, Izanagi (or otherwise what the man recognized as the Persona that had those billowing robes) floating behind the silver-haired kid. The brunette quickly hurried to his side, helping him up so that he was in a better position than the one he had been previously. “You alright?”
“I’m fine,” the man managed out as he looked back at the teenager. Seta’s gaze wasn’t fixed on him, but rather at the figure that was still down on the ground nearby where he was. The figure being that thing, smoking in the aftermath of a particularly vicious electrical attack and down on the ground-but not out for the count. There was a grunt from as it pushed itself back up. Surprisingly, there was no physical damage on it-even the clothes were still fine and in one piece as if nothing had happened to it at all. A scowl crossed its face as the thing shot a glare towards the stoic-faced teen by the doorway.
“Tch. Looks like my distractions didn’t get buy enough time...” it muttered, the implications of that line quickly falling into place for Hijikata. So that was the reason why they couldn’t reach here immediately...
“I’d like to thank you for having us running unnecessarily,” the teenager replied, the tone of his voice eerily calm.
The thing only let a smirk cross its face. “You always did like having some exercise.”
“And now I’ll end you,” he went on without paying heed to its words as the Persona behind him got into position, ready to strike. The blade that Izanagi wielded started to glow with a strange light-and a moment after Seta had charged forward with his weapon, both human and partner ready to land a blow-
-only to slice through thin air as the thing abruptly vanished in a puff of light, hazy smoke.
“Now now,” came the voice a few moments after, the voice which now Hijikata could easily place as that thing’s, “As much as you’re eager for your happy little reunion, you must first arrive at your destination. There’s still a bit more to go, so be sure you’re still well-enough for it when you arrive. After all, there’s still so much more to see~” There was another chuckle after that, and then suddenly everything just felt lighter than it had been before.
As soon as the oppressing atmosphere had faded, there was only a few moments worth of pause before boatswain only sagged even more much to the brunette’s chagrin. Hanamura yelped in surprise when the man almost crumpled against him, and Seta dismissed Izanagi with a wave of his hand before hurrying over towards them both. Hijikata felt himself being brought up to a sitting position with the other teenager supporting him, and his eyes only opened blearily in a bit to try and stay conscious-the whole thing had seriously taken a lot out of him.
“You alright?” he asked once he was near enough and could see the weakened state of the man.
Despite knowing better, the officer only nodded slightly in response. “It’s nothing I can’t handle.”
Parts: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI
THE SHADOWS WE BEAR
TST!Shadowverse fic : Part VI
Back when he was younger, Hijikata had been taught (albeit a tad indirectly) that karma was something that existed in the laws of nature; it was neither good nor evil as so many people had tended to see it as. It was neutral, as many things in the world was. How it was heavily depended on each and every person-if one did much good in his life, then what they would get at the end was good. But on the other hand, one was only destined to suffer if he did nothing but evil. That was what he had been taught, and it was what he had learned-and just a little, it was something he had believed in even though he was never much of a believer in things like these.
Still, no amount of karma that he could summon up could really compare to the current situation that he was in at the moment. He was virtually stuck between a rock and a hard place, pinned down almost painfully to the ground by hands that he had thought to be smooth but were only rough and calloused. His back still hurt from the impact in which he had been slammed onto the floor; his eyes flashed, reflecting the glint of the blades that were now lying useless far away from them both. Every part of him hurt with the pain and the exhaustion seeping in his bones, and try as he might it was impossible for him to try and wrench his pinned hands from the other. Any attempt of a struggle was only cut short when the thing tightened the grip in his wrist with enough force for him to let out a strained noise of pain while he felt the nerves there being cut off.
“It’s useless to struggle, you know,” came to voice of the one above him, the one who was pinning him down after that surprise attack which had caught him off guard and took that chance to render him weaponless.
The boatswain only gritted his teeth, bristling up into a snarl as his eyes flashed with warning once again. “Let me go, you asshole!” he growled out-even if he was down, he would not give in.
The thing only looked in amusement at that, the expression on its face one that Hijikata was only all-too familiar with and was only in his mind even as the lips twisted into a sardonic smirk and those toxic yellow eyes smouldered with the fog that enshrouded them both. When it spoke, its voice was back to the old familiar tone that the boatswain recognized instantly. “Ooooh, but why should I? I find this position so very comfortable.”
The voice did have its intended effect on the samurai, but the man made the effort to not let anything show on his face this time. Instead he only forced himself to calm down for the moment and continued to direct his glare towards it, repeating himself in a tone of quiet anger. “Let. Me. Go.”
There was only a pause after that, and then the smirk on the thing’s face only widened before it responded. “No.”
“You bastard-” started the boatswain, having lost his calm from before already and only started to struggle once more. His efforts were quickly stopped however as he froze entirely, body going rigid the moment the thing lowered itself closer towards him. At this distance, he could already feel his senses registering the things that his mind recognized as distinctly Edgeworth’s from what he could remember. His body was telling him that this thing... this thing that was nothing but a beast in human clothing, a monster who only took the other’s form was the real deal no matter how much his mind was protesting. They might be similar on the outside but the inside... the inside was totally different.
“Your heart’s beating faster,” the thing cheerfully spoke up again and broke the man from this concentration, sounding very much like a kid was playing around with his favourite toy.
Hijikata only scowled at it. “Get off me, you bastard.”
Chuckle. “And if I don’t?”
“I’ll kill you.”
He only remained silent after that as the thing broke off into laughter at his response, clenching his jaw and glaring stubbornly still even if his insides were getting riled up by all the wrong that he was feeling. The laugh was nothing like Edgeworth’s-it was only twisted, distorted and downright sadistic. It was nothing like him at all. This wasn’t Edgeworth. The words repeated in his head like a mantra over and over again-the only comfort in the knowledge was that it kept him sane.
“Oh, but Toshirou-” it started once it had finally stopped laughing, and Hijikata denied any fact that a shiver did run down his spine at that. The three words It’s not Edgeworth replayed in his head once more, going on as the other continued to speak. “-you just tried that, and look where it got you.” The grip tightened even more at that, and this time Hijikata couldn’t hold back the cry of pain that escaped from his lungs. Fuck, that hurt.
He gritted his teeth once more once the pain was on a more tolerable level, still glaring harshly at the thing with all the hatred that he could muster there and then. All he got in response to the look was that twisted smile once again before the thing lowered its head, twisting around so that his lips were just right above his earlobe and Hijikata had use every bit of his willpower to stop himself from responding to the sudden closeness.
A breathy laugh in his ear, and then a whisper that only made his blood froze once again.
“After all, you can’t really kill the one you’d much rather screw around with, right?”
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
The words played in his head like a broken tape recorder over and over again in an endless loop. He knew it was childish, knew it was foolish, but it was only this knowledge that was managing to keep him together in this otherwise rapidly downhill rolling situation.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Hijikata managed to grit out even as his jaw was tightly clenched and those three words continued to play in his head repeatedly.
“Ooooh, don’t try to fool me with your indifference,” the thing half-snarled, half-mocked above him. “I’m not so oblivious as I once was, you know. I can tell-” it leaned even closer now, close enough that the hairs on the back of his neck were at end, “-how much you want me to screw you senseless.”
“I don’t-” started the boatswain, but he was cut off in shock when it lowered is head so that its lips were brushing across his neck and he could feel the faint hints of stubble and what the hell-
“It’s too bad for you though,” it spoke as it raised its head back up to look with a fair amount of amusement at the man who had closed his eyes and bit down on his lower lips in a bid to prevent any noise from escaping him. There was a glistening trail of saliva down the side of his throat at where a tongue had swiped across it. “He’s never really been interested in-no. No, I take it back.”
Hijikata opened his eyes once the shock of the sensation from before had managed to more or less pass through him-just in time to have the thing right at its face, inhuman yellow eyes sparkling unnaturally before him as it spoke. “He considered a quick fuck sometime a while back, but you weren't even good enough for that, were you?”
The words began to play in his head again.
“You’re... you’re lying,” the boatswain managed out, the tone of his voice quiet and heavily forced.
“Well...” the thing started in response, head tilting to the side once more as if in thought. “You could ask him yourself, but...” It then paused and lowered its head again, and the man was forced to bite the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from responding to the rush of hot air over the skin of his neck when the thing finished its sentence. “I’m afraid he won’t live enough for that.”
No don’t respond don’t respond don’t respond-Hijikata could only concentrate on trying not to respond the other in anyway, the only indication of it being the furrowed eyebrows and his own bottom lip being bitten down hard. The thing could only let its own amusement propel it further as it continued its (rather underhanded) assault on the dark-haired other. “So all you can really do is to take my word for it.” Saying that, it wrapped its lips on the side of his throat and sucked once, hard.
Don’t respond don’t respond don’t-any train of thought was effectively cut short at the action as his composure slipped and a soft groan was heard from the man. Golden yellow eyes flared once as soon as it had heard the sound, and the thing only chuckled once deep in its chest before the teeth came out and it bit down hard onto the flesh. Hijikata could only let out a cry and arched upwards at the jolt of pain that ran through him at the action.
“Now that’s the spirit~” came the thing’s highly amused voice before it sharply moved its hips to grind down there against him, once. Still, it was already more than enough to let another choked cry escape from the man as the friction did nothing but torment him painfully.
The boatswain could only let out another strangled, choked sound that sounded almost (almost) like a broken moan as the assault returned to his neck, breathing out almost pleadingly. “D-Don’t.”
All he got in response was only another chuckle, followed by the tickle of hair against his collarbone as the thing shifted to raise its head in order to look down at him from above, the smirk still in place. “Don't what?” he echoed, amusement only all too clear his voice, “This is what you wanted, wasn't it?” He punctuated his line with another rough, possessive bite on the column on his throat, and the man only found himself painfully powerless to what was happening to him.
“You know, he actually did wonder a few times if this was what you wanted,” the thing went on almost conversationally as it flicked out its tongue to trace along the path of the bite, the action eliciting a slight shudder from the other. “But it was just too ridiculous.” It then moved once again, moving up this time so that lips brushed across his earlobe, and the boatswain let out a strained noise from the back of his throat as it nibbled on a spot just below his ear.
“But for once,” murmured the voice, sounding as if deep in thought, “he was actually right.”
Hijikata managed to grit his teeth at that, willing every part of him to try and resist all of this. “You’re... you’re not him.”
There was a sudden pause with that line, but soon enough the thing moved once more, this time closing in on him again until their noses were almost touching. At this distance, all that the man could see was its inhuman yellow eyes that flared once as it growled. “Then what am I?”
“You’re... you’re not him. You’re just using him.” That had to be the only reason after all. There was no way at all that Edgeworth would ever be something this horrible, this cruel-
A blast of hot air washed over him when he said that, then another shift and it was back to the side. “But Toshirou...” it started, a rough tongue licking down the edge of his earlobe. “I already told you-I am him.”
“Don’t use that name,” hissed out the man.
“But that is your name, isn’t it?” came the response right before it nibbled down on that spot behind his ear once more, and Hijikata made another strained noise.
“You can’t... you can’t use it.” Not even Edgeworth had used it-that had been a name that only she had ever used-a name that only rang true whenever she had said it with her own voice. Nobody else (besides the very few exceptions) had called him that. Nobody.
Still, that didn’t stop the other from forcing its opinion. A growl was heard when he replied, and then suddenly there was a sharp pain in his wrists as the thing further tightened its grip there. Hijikata cried out wordlessly at the sudden jolt of pain as it snarled right at his face. “And what are you going to do about it?”
There was no response to that but only silence.
“Hmph. That’s what I thought,” it went as the grip relaxed slightly. It then moved back to that it was on top of him comfortably once more, eyes glowing again as it studied the man below him with an almost childlike interest before speaking up again. “Want me to tell you something?”
The other would have responded had it not been for the fact that he had been cut off just as he was about to speak by another sharp movement of its hips against his. The thing only grinned savagely at the sight of the boatswain so utterly powerless before him. The grin was still in place even as it bent down again and whispered the one line that would be the final nail in the metamorphic coffin. “The closest he ever came to loving you was thinking about a quick fuck when he was drunk.”
Hijikata didn’t reply to that, but the look on his face at that moment had made it clear what he felt. It was the look of someone who had faced the ultimate despair, the final game over.
The thing then let the grin turn back into a softer sort of smile (though the savagery was still as clear as day there) before it grunted and moved its hips yet again. “So you might as well enjoy this, you know,” it went, sounding oh-so very pleased and glad over how the man below him was only making choked, strangled sounds from the back of his throat that sounded very much like desperation and helplessness (and thus music) to his ears. “Because since he’ll never love you, this is the closest that you’re ever going to get.”
It only continued its assault after that, alternating between gentle and rough, false kindness and plain mockery-but always, always teasing. Never giving anything substantial, always pulling back before anything real could be felt. But even so, Hijikata only continued to hold onto the three words that stopped him from simply falling apart, the three words that were the truth for him, the three words that prevented him from breaking inside.
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not Edgeworth. It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not Edgeworth.
It’s not-
A sudden surge of strength came through him as something abruptly just slipped in his last bits of self-control and the man snapped open his eyes, feeling nothing but pure rage rumbling through him and overpowering his own common sense. The asshole-the asshole had been only toying with him, and it was going to pay for doing that. With a burst of renowned energy, the boatswain yanked up his right hand from the other’s grip and glared with burning hatred towards the thing.
“You’re not Edgeworth,” snarled out the swordsman before his swung his fist to punch against the other’s jaw hard. The force of the blow was enough to shock the thing into loosening its grip on him, and Hijikata immediately took the chance to turn the tables on it. Making use of the adrenaline rush, the man shoved the other onto the floor now and without warning, fastened his hands around its neck, fingers digging into the sides with unforgivable force.
“You’re not Edgeworth,” hissed out the samurai as his fingers tightened even more, growling as strangled sounds escaped from the one now below him. The rush only increased as he heard those noises and his grip tightened further and all he could think of there and then was to teach this fucking asshole a lesson it would never forget-
Then suddenly, the feel of lips and the slightest of tongue on his own, and Hijikata’s eyes widened by just a fraction before closing shut, pain erupting spontaneously at the back of his head and he choked violently as rough fingers wrapped around his own neck.
“Do you really think that would work?” it growled out, voice slipping back to the warped parody that it once was as it lost its composure from the sudden attack it had received.
Despite himself, the man only managed out a smirk of his own in return, heedless of the dangerous position he was in. “No, but I just wanted to get your ass off me.”
The yellow eyes only narrowed at that, and a snarl rippled across its face, stretching thin along the bottom third of the skin. Hijikata only had a moment to smirk a bit more before he choked for air once more as hands tightened unforgivably around his neck, nails digging painfully into the back with enough force to make him let out a forced cry of pain.
“Trying to be the tough guy now, aren’t you?” the voice hissed out in disgust this time. “Trying to act like nothing’s happened when you know everything just did, you son of a bitch. I’ll make sure you know what true suffering is like.”
The grip turned deadly, suffocating, and all the man could so was to reach up to try and pry the hands off him in vain. His eyes watered as the lack of air began to reach him, chest heaving rapidly in a bid to try and get more air only to be stopped as he felt his windpipe being squeezed with inhuman strength. Eyelids fluttered as they struggled to stay open, and Hijikata could feel his limbs going limp as his strength drained out from him; the edges of his vision started to turn black, and even if his half-aware mind he knew that he was going to die.
Death via strangulation. How strangely... appropriate, in some sense or another.
He gasped, wheezing as he felt the last bit of air leaving him and then his vision slowly stated to darken and fade-
-then suddenly the ear-splitting crack of wood being bashed open, followed by a roar that sounded like thunder itself.
“Izanagi!”
There was that sound of shattering glass once again, and then a deafening crack of lightning after that, and next thing he knew Hijikata found himself sprawled onto the ground; both eyes and mouth wide open as he gasped for the air that rushed back into his lungs. He coughed and panted for needed oxygen as his mind slowly regained back its consciousness, and after a few moments the man was fine enough to push himself back up into a sitting position, albeit somewhat shakily. Once he had managed to get up properly though, the boatswain glanced around the area to see what was going on.
Seta and Hanamura were finally were, Izanagi (or otherwise what the man recognized as the Persona that had those billowing robes) floating behind the silver-haired kid. The brunette quickly hurried to his side, helping him up so that he was in a better position than the one he had been previously. “You alright?”
“I’m fine,” the man managed out as he looked back at the teenager. Seta’s gaze wasn’t fixed on him, but rather at the figure that was still down on the ground nearby where he was. The figure being that thing, smoking in the aftermath of a particularly vicious electrical attack and down on the ground-but not out for the count. There was a grunt from as it pushed itself back up. Surprisingly, there was no physical damage on it-even the clothes were still fine and in one piece as if nothing had happened to it at all. A scowl crossed its face as the thing shot a glare towards the stoic-faced teen by the doorway.
“Tch. Looks like my distractions didn’t get buy enough time...” it muttered, the implications of that line quickly falling into place for Hijikata. So that was the reason why they couldn’t reach here immediately...
“I’d like to thank you for having us running unnecessarily,” the teenager replied, the tone of his voice eerily calm.
The thing only let a smirk cross its face. “You always did like having some exercise.”
“And now I’ll end you,” he went on without paying heed to its words as the Persona behind him got into position, ready to strike. The blade that Izanagi wielded started to glow with a strange light-and a moment after Seta had charged forward with his weapon, both human and partner ready to land a blow-
-only to slice through thin air as the thing abruptly vanished in a puff of light, hazy smoke.
“Now now,” came the voice a few moments after, the voice which now Hijikata could easily place as that thing’s, “As much as you’re eager for your happy little reunion, you must first arrive at your destination. There’s still a bit more to go, so be sure you’re still well-enough for it when you arrive. After all, there’s still so much more to see~” There was another chuckle after that, and then suddenly everything just felt lighter than it had been before.
As soon as the oppressing atmosphere had faded, there was only a few moments worth of pause before boatswain only sagged even more much to the brunette’s chagrin. Hanamura yelped in surprise when the man almost crumpled against him, and Seta dismissed Izanagi with a wave of his hand before hurrying over towards them both. Hijikata felt himself being brought up to a sitting position with the other teenager supporting him, and his eyes only opened blearily in a bit to try and stay conscious-the whole thing had seriously taken a lot out of him.
“You alright?” he asked once he was near enough and could see the weakened state of the man.
Despite knowing better, the officer only nodded slightly in response. “It’s nothing I can’t handle.”