[fic] Truth
Title: Truth
Pairing: RyoKame (Nishikido Ryo x Kamenashi Kazuya)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Kamenashi Kazuya's world shatters when Nishikido Ryo is revealed to be a spy - an enemy.
Notes: written for kamexkame
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First fic posted in a while~ It feels like forever since I've posted anything XDDD Who would've thought that graduating university would leave me busier than when I was still in university? XDDD
*cough* Anyways. This was written for the wonderful kamexkame, I hope you like it Ana! I kind of...strayed from your original prompt a little, but I hope it's still enjoyable to read and that you like it <3333 Also, thank you (again) to pinkeuphoria1 for betaing. lol, I seriously sent it to her at like...the last minute and she still got it done in time for me to post <3333
Also, forgive me for my messed up icons. It's lj's fault, I'm sure, since I've noticed that I'm not the only one this happens to. For some reason, the codes to override the default usericon with my own (the little plane) aren't working anymore and...that's why you see like 4 planes in the usericon place (+the default usericon, like why the hell is it even there?) instead of 1 plane. >< fixed the usericon problem!! I think...well, it seems to work for now at least :D
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The world was going to explode in ten seconds, Kamenashi Kazuya theorized as he watched the numbers on display count down with mock bated breath. His gaze was barely above dispassionate as the large, glowing, neon orange 00:00:05 turned into a 00:00:04.
For a brief moment, Kazuya entertained the idea that maybe he really should be concerned about the world exploding. He created a concerned expression on his face as the numbers continued to get closer and closer to the end of the countdown. He wasn’t able to keep that mock frightened expression on his face for long, and he shrugged at the reflection of himself in the window.
00:00:00
A loud explosion rocked the room Kazuya was looking into, and little remains of the world flew at Kazuya, but Kazuya didn’t flinch. The remains were stopped by the window standing in the way, and Kazuya watched as, like bullets, they became imbedded in the glass.
As the explosion began to fade away, leaving a room of ruined plastic pieces, a hand reached out and plucked a cell phone out of Kazuya’s hand.
“I thought you were told to stop fooling around with the explosives,” Nishikido Ryo commented with a little grin playing on his lips.
Kazuya just smirked, “No, you told me that. I decided not to ‘fool around’ and try to destroy the world instead.”
“I hate to break it to you, but stealing plaster models of the planets from the scientists and blowing them up isn’t destroying the world.” Ryo retorted, but he was inwardly amused and Kazuya knew it. That was why, instead of snapping at Kazuya about stealing his cell phone to create an explosive trigger device, Ryo was studying it curiously.
“What’s the trigger set to this time?” Ryo asked in exasperation, punching at the keys to try to figure it out.
Kazuya smirked.
“Seriously, what is it?”
“Why?”
“Shut up, you know why,” Ryo sent Kazuya a disgusted look, “I’m still in trouble for the last time you stole my cell phone to do this sort of crap.”
“And I told you it was in your best interests not to tell anybody about that thing I broke that time. It’s your fault for calling it in.”
“That doesn’t mean you can create a remote explosive trigger set to go off the moment I call that number!” Ryo argued vehemently, glaring at Kazuya, “You’re so messed up.”
Then, realizing what he had just said, Ryo fell silent. A dark look crossed his face and Kazuya merely stood there, feeling and looking awkwardly at the expressions that were quickly making their way across Ryo's face.
“I meant -” Ryo started, trying to break the tense silence.
“I don’t care.” Kazuya replied, before Ryo could finish his phrase, “Really, Ryo, I don’t.”
“I -”
“Ryo, just shut up.”
Ryo scowled and looked away.
* * *
The Organization, Kazuya had long discovered, was much more different at night; when the sun disappeared behind the horizon, an overwhelming and nearly suffocating silence fell over the compound. Kazuya had been living on the compound since he was young. Back then, he hadn’t really noticed the suffocating silence, but being the son of the Leader, he had been allocated his own small house to stay in, separate even from his father’s. The nannies hired to take care of him back then left for their own homes once evening fell and Kazuya was fed, and so, at night, Kazuya had always been left alone in a house far too big for just a child. Back then, the Organization at night was frightening, like the compound invited and welcomed darkness and solitude.
The Organization was a society that existed only in the shadows. They could never be discovered by the authorities or authority figures in society, or they would all be wiped out. As such, it was in the shadows that Kazuya grew up, aware that if he ever ventured outside, he would be killed. The only people allowed out of the compound, for their safety, were those who had proven themselves worthy to aid in completing the Organization’s ultimate mission: to rid the world of corruption.
Kazuya had proven himself worthy long ago.
Shoving his hands in his pockets, Kazuya scanned the outskirts of the compound, his eyes falling briefly on the electric fence that outlined the property.
To society, the Organization was merely an in-depth research lab, funded by private means. To the members of the Organization, they were a society, banded together under their Leader.
“All set?” Kazuya heard Ryo's breath of a question before he even saw the older man. It sometimes amused Kazuya to see how unsettled Ryo was amongst the darkness. One would think that after a few years here, Ryo would have gotten used to this, but the older man still took to whispering in the darkness of the compound, as if he was afraid of waking up some terrible monster.
Kazuya merely took his hands out of his pockets, pulling a black device out of one of them. He threw it at Ryo who, even with the cover of the darkness, looked panicked for a moment. Then, as if realizing that it wasn’t anything that would explode, he relaxed, scowling at Kazuya.
Kazuya smirked, “Our mission instructions.” He intoned in a bland voice, trying to hide his amusement. Ryo scowled at him as he grabbed the device. The screen lit up once it was turned on, and Ryo read the instructions carefully.
After a moment, Ryo threw the device back at him, not saying a word. He continued to stay silent until they were out of the compound. They had a little to walk before reaching the edge of the property.
“I don’t like this,” Ryo said bluntly as he crushed a fallen branch under his foot.
“We have our directions,” Kazuya responded smoothly as they walked, “We’ve done this before.”
“We have,” Ryo agreed, but then he scowled, “Have you noticed that, lately, our missions don’t give too much detail - only what we need to do. There’s none of that evidence that we used to get…”
Kazuya froze for a moment, but then continued, purposely stomping one foot down. The loud noise resounded all around them, and Ryo paused for a moment.
Then, much to Kazuya’s chagrin, he continued.
“Don’t you wonder why?” Ryo asked darkly, “Like…what if what happened back at the beginning of the year wasn’t a mistake? What if…”
Ryo stopped when Kazuya suddenly turned around; a flash of silver glinting in the moonlight was the only warning he got before he was pushed against a tree, the blade of a short knife practically resting against his neck.
“You should remember, Ryo, that by our laws, that kind of talk isn’t allowed,” Kazuya reminded him softly but firmly, “We are not to question the Leader.”
His voice wavered a little, and he added, “Even if it’s you, Ryo, I will uphold our laws.”
His hand slowly moved the weapon away, back to wherever he had stored it before, and he looked right into Ryo's eyes, his gaze steady, “You would do well do remember what you agreed to when you joined us.”
Ryo's eyes darkened even as he leaned closer to Kazuya; his breath fell on Kazuya’s skin gently. Their faces, clouded by the shadows of the night, were close, maybe too close, when Ryo finally spoke, “Then I should remind you that this isn’t allowed either.”
Kazuya held Ryo's gaze, not moving, but his eyes were glinting just like that knife earlier.
“That’s different,” he said quietly. He didn’t know why, but he was speaking just like Ryo was - like he was afraid of unsettling something resting in the shadows. He shouldn’t be; he grew up in the shadows, he was part of the shadows, and yet, he couldn’t stop himself.
“No, it’s not.” Ryo replied and mockingly added, “But I’m going to let you keep believing that you’re a good, upstanding member of your father’s society.”
Ryo took a moment to add, “A society that doesn’t exist to the rest of the world.”
“Does it bother you?” Kazuya asked after a moment, not taking his eyes away from Ryo's.
His partner’s answer of, “Yes,” bothered Kazuya more than he thought it should.
* * *
A few months ago, a mission had gone terribly wrong. The Organization’s goals were to rid the world of all corruption - by any means necessary. Everything was run by the Leader, Kazuya’s father, and from a young age, Kazuya had been brought up knowing that what they did was necessary for the society outside of the Organization to function, because they were getting rid of all the evil and corrupted people in the world.
It wasn’t until that mission that anybody questioned the fact that the Leader alone got to decide who was corrupt and needed to be dealt with. It wasn’t until an innocent man had been targeted and killed that doubts of the Leader began to permeate their society.
The light from Ryo's room shut off, and Kazuya shook his head, making these thoughts go away as he opened the door to Ryo's room. It was almost a ritual to do this after every mission, Kazuya thought, even as he found Ryo exactly where he always was: lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling with unblinking eyes. He moved to sit on the bed, before lying down as well, staring up at the same ceiling that his partner was looking at.
“Come to check up on me again?” Ryo asked in a dark voice, a sigh laced into it.
Kazuya didn’t answer.
After a moment, Ryo finally turned to him. Kazuya noticed that the blood marks that marred Ryo's face an hour earlier were now gone, leaving raw red patches in their place. Ryo had obviously been overzealous in scrubbing the blood off his face.
“What are you doing here?” Ryo finally asked.
“Making sure you aren’t doing anything stupid,” Kazuya retorted, with a smile. It faded a moment later though, “You’ve been acting weird lately.”
“I haven’t.” Ryo muttered, turning on his side.
“Ryo.”
The older man let out an annoyed sigh, “Look, you know I have a hard time with these ‘missions’,” he said in a low voice, “I always have. You know that.”
“You’ve been upset more than usual, though,” Kazuya insisted, but he didn’t press the matter. Instead, as a tense silence fell between them, he reached over, pulled on Ryo's arm to make him turn toward him and their lips met in a kiss.
“Forget it,” Kazuya said even as he studied Ryo's face carefully. He was still sure that there was something bothering Ryo, but he also knew that the older man was stubborn and wouldn’t tell him if he didn’t want to.
Ryo grabbed his wrist, holding it tightly, as he returned Kazuya’s look; after a moment, and a flash of something in his eyes that Kazuya couldn’t recognize, he smirked and hissed out a, “Gladly,” before kissing Kazuya.
Yet, as they became immersed in each other, there was an annoying voice in the back of Kazuya’s head, telling him that it was a mistake to let this go. At the same time though, Kazuya was afraid to listen to that voice - like he would discover something terrifying if he did.
So, as Ryo pressed Kazuya down against the bed, he ignored it.
* * *
For the past while, during the day, Kazuya had begun to feel restless and irritated. It was like the presence of light annoyed him in the same way that he felt oddly comforted when the compound was encased in darkness. Maybe he was becoming nocturnal from these missions. Or, maybe, just like Ryo was wary of the darkness of the night, he was intimidated by the day. He knew the darkness and the shadows well, but the light - the world outside of the Organization's society was alive and awake during the day. Maybe, like many other older members of the Organization, he had begun to develop an irritation to the daytime because of the feeling that the outside world could threaten him much better during the day than at night.
So, during the day, amidst feelings of irritation, Kazuya retreated into the research lab, and tested the latest developments by the science division, more precisely, the explosives that Ryo kept telling him not to play around with.
Their science division claimed its headquarters in an isolated location on the Organization's property, in a building that was created to withstand any and all experiments the scientists tried out. Most people avoided this building as much as possible, mostly because of the erratic way the scientists behaved, which could very well be attributed to the chemicals they were constantly in contact with.
However, it was odd but Kazuya rather enjoyed retreating to the science building.
What began as mere curiosity once in a while became a habit, until he came here nearly every day. That was how Ryo always knew where to find him.
"I thought I told you not to play around in here," Ryo's voice cut through his thoughts in an irritated tone.
Kazuya looked up from where he was observing a few test tubes, "You told me not to play with the explosives. I haven't yet today." he replied, "One of the scientists had something to check up on and I've been tasked with making sure his workstation doesn't explode in his absence."
"And if it does explode?" Ryo retorted, sounding amused, "I doubt you know how to stop a chemical reaction like that."
"I figured I'd just throw something random in," Kazuya said nonchalantly, "That'll either make the reaction worse, do nothing to it, or stop it entirely."
Ryo glared at Kazuya.
"Just kidding," Kazuya laughed, "He gave me instructions on what to do if something happens." Kazuya held up a small vial filled with a strange liquid for emphasis, "I wouldn’t do that if I were you." He added sharply to Ryo.
Ryo, who had leaned over, peering at the workstation and sniffing the concoction with trepidation, wrinkled his nose at the smell, "What is he trying to do? Not another bunch of explosives, I hope." he sent Kazuya a glare.
"Who knows," Kazuya shrugged with a smirk, "I sure hope so though."
Ryo blanched.
"If only to see what lengths you'll go to, to keep me from getting near them," Kazuya added.
Ryo scowled.
"Yeah, well, if I didn't try to stop you, you'd probably be stupid enough to get yourself blown up." Ryo retorted.
"Of course, Ryo, you're the sole reason why nothing's exploded and killed me yet."
Ryo smirked, "As if anything would dare to explode in my presence."
Kazuya rolled his eyes but grinned at that, "And you call me messed up?" he retorted.
Then, he wished he hadn't said that.
Ryo went quiet, in a bad way. His jaw tightened, his lips thinned and he looked anywhere but at Kazuya. Ryo had always been a bit sensitive about that subject, no matter that Kazuya had forgiven Ryo for that long ago. The older man still punished himself for it sometimes, Kazuya knew, so he immediately regretted saying that.
"Ryo…"
The air was suddenly sombre and filled with a tension that couldn't be resolved with words. Kazuya began to reach out for Ryo, but he stopped when Ryo looked at him with an odd expression, and said stiffly, "I just remembered something I have to do."
"Ryo -” Kazuya called and then he faltered, "I'm not upset when you call me that, you know that, right? So stop beating yourself up over it."
"That's nice but I don't know what you mean," Ryo responded distractedly, looking as though he wanted to be anywhere but here at the moment. There was a look in his eyes that practically struck at Kazuya and, suddenly, he couldn't stop Ryo from leaving.
It was only later, when lost in his thoughts again, watching the scientists at work that Kazuya realized exactly what that look was.
It was guilt.
* * *
Kazuya stayed, observing the scientists for a few more hours. He had debated following Ryo, but then decided it was probably best to let Ryo have some time alone. After all their years working together, and then later developing a deeper relationship than that, Kazuya knew when to press the subject and when to leave Ryo alone so that he could work through whatever emotions he didn’t want to show Kazuya.
Guilt was one of them, even if it was a common one.
It was that emotion that gave Ryo a hard time with their missions. Kazuya knew, through Ryo, that in the outside world, their actions would be abhorred, but unlike Ryo, Kazuya had grown up in the Organization’s society, where every child was brought up with the Organization’s goals in mind.
Unlike Ryo, Kazuya never had to rationalize what he did, what he believed in, because he knew that what he did, in the end, benefited others. He was one of those who protected them from being subjected to the evil people who would trick them and commit horrible crimes under the guise of being upstanding members of society.
And, until that failed mission a few months ago when an innocent man had been targeted, Ryo had believed in that too. He had finally learned to leave his guilt behind, but now…it had become common again.
Kazuya knew that there was something else though, something else bothering him; Ryo was too affected by that mission that hadn’t involved him. There was something that Ryo was holding back, but Ryo avoided the topic and every time Kazuya felt like bringing it up, he would freeze, like he was venturing on some forbidden land where he would find something horrible waiting for him.
It was only when he saw the scientist, whose workstation he had been curiously watching over earlier, get up that Kazuya remembered something he had been meaning to ask.
"What are you trying to create anyways?" Kazuya wondered, deciding to push worries about Ryo out of his mind for now - at least until he went and found the older man.
The scientist surveyed him carefully before answering, "The Leader has me trying to work out a better truth serum. You know about the flaws of the old one. Its effects are too strong - those subjected to it, who aren't given the antidote within half an hour, tend to die from the chemicals shutting their major organs down."
Kazuya nodded absently, "So you're trying to weaken its effects?"
"Kind of. Even when weakened, the chemical we use for the truth serum is extremely strong and toxic. But, I am experimenting with a different method of administering it. It is a version that, instead of being forced into the body - through a syringe or by ingesting it - will be administered by something as simple as touch or scent. A version that can be absorbed in the skin, or take effect once even a whiff is inhaled. Like perfume, almost."
Kazuya suddenly blinked, "Through smell?" he asked slowly, "Just by, say, sniffing at it?"
The scientist nodded, "I'm still working on it though. It's not…quite what we want. It certainly makes the subject tell the truth, but…not quite as well. Instead of telling the truth to questions we asked, all the subject did was talk about his opinion on any word we mentioned, and once we stopped talking, he began telling us a few secrets that were not related to the questioning at all."
Kazuya felt his body go cold, and he must have gone pale as well, because the scientist looked concerned as he asked Kazuya if he was feeling alright. Kazuya ignored him and left the science building as quickly as he could, breaking into a run back to the main area of the property.
What if…
Ryo had been in there earlier, and Kazuya remembered warning him off sniffing at the test. He also remembered Ryo's disgusted expression at the smell -
Their relationship wasn't allowed; all relationships had to be appealed to the Leader and given permission to before they could continue. It was a way for the Leader to have the information he needed to safely assign missions, and not be caught unawares, but…
It was a ridiculous law, in Kazuya's opinion, but failure to get permission from the Leader led to a severe punishment, and what if Ryo - if Ryo had been affected, and they were found out, Kazuya knew that it would be Ryo who would suffer the most from the consequences.
Kazuya stopped in his tracks when he reached the main area.
It was odd; the area was empty, devoid of life.
Then, there was a crashing noise and Kazuya turned to see a body stumble back and into him. He lost his balance and fell over; when he recovered from that, and looked up, he saw Ryo's face, slightly bruised.
"Ryo?"
It was then that Kazuya noticed that Ryo's hands were bound. Kazuya blanched; so it really did happen, they had discovered -
"Kazuya-sama! You caught the spy!" a voice broke through Kazuya's thoughts and he turned to look at one of the Organization's top members. One of the worthy ones.
Spy?
Kazuya's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest, to correct the man but -
A bitter laugh, as Ryo held his bound hands up, "I guess that's me then."
And, suddenly, Kazuya felt like his world was breaking apart - shattering.
* * *
Kazuya ended up being assigned the task of interrogating Ryo. Maybe it was his father's way to punish him for not realizing what was going on with his partner, and thus not being able to realize that Ryo was a threat, but Kazuya was torn between dreading the idea and relishing it.
He didn't know what he thought about this.
On one hand, his belief in the Organization's ideals made it impossible for him to just dismiss this situation, to forgive this, but…
On the other hand, he cared for Ryo - a lot. Ryo had been his rival, partner, friend, and love - in that exact order - for years. He'd seen more sides of Ryo in the years they'd had together than either of them were willing to admit. He was closer, and more vulnerable, to Ryo than anyone else.
But that closeness was what made this…this betrayal hurt so much.
Kazuya took a deep breath before he entered the room where Ryo was kept. The moment he walked in, Ryo looked up; there were some bruises on face, as well as a few shallow scrapes; the overconfident, smug, expression Ryo had on, most likely an attempt to try to piss off his interrogator, gave way to a grimace.
"They sent you?"
Kazuya tried not to wince at the tone, tried to stay collected, "I'm sorry if that disappoints you." he retorted.
Ryo stared at Kazuya for a moment, before leaning back, "Well, not disappointed, per se, but more like…annoyed that they sent the one person who could probably get answers out of me." he responded, "I was hoping they'd be stupid enough to send your father's right hand men."
The derisive tone was so familiar that Kazuya almost felt like nothing had changed, and he almost felt like letting his lips twitch up into a reluctant smile. But things had changed; a few hours had passed and suddenly, they were on different sides, and it felt like a transparent barrier was put up. Suddenly, Ryo was the enemy - the one who was threatening the beliefs and goals of the Organization.
"Maybe this is my punishment, for not seeing it sooner." Kazuya responded, saying aloud the thoughts that had crossed his mind earlier when he had been told about his assignment, "To make me see where I had gone wrong, as I have been unable to see that you had turned into a traitor…or maybe, you were never really one of us?" he raised an eyebrow.
Ryo laughed softly, a little bitterly, as he ran a hand along his cheek, brushing over bruised skin and dried blood, "I see there's no time for small talk, straight to the point. Of course, I should have known that the moment you realized that I don't follow your father's insane laws, you'd turn on me and hate me."
His words were like a slap to Kazuya's face.
And suddenly, Kazuya couldn’t pretend that he was calm, that he was in control, “Turn on you? Hate you?” Kazuya snapped angrily, his voice coming out in nothing more than a hiss, “You’re one to talk! I thought - I thought that the reason they had arrested you earlier was because of our - our relationship, but apparently, you had more to confess to than just that! And I had no idea!”
And that was probably the main issue with Kazuya right now. He was closest to Ryo, and yet…he had no idea about Ryo's true loyalties. For some reason, the fact that he hadn’t known anything affected him more than knowing that Ryo was betraying the Organization.
It was strange, wasn’t it? He had grown up believing, and fostering, the Organization’s goals, and he had no qualms about the missions he went on, but this - this betrayal…
No, it wasn’t even the betrayal.
This realization that he was categorized as part of the Organization, and nothing else, in Ryo's mind shattered him more than anything. It meant that while he had trusted Ryo, the other man hadn’t trusted him one bit.
It hurt - a lot.
Kazuya forced himself to calm down, though, concentrating on the interview at hand.
“I suppose that’s what you’re so upset about, then,” Ryo said, leaning in with a familiar smirk that Kazuya wanted to wipe so desperately from his face just because it was so familiar, “Why don’t we get this interview over with and you can report all your findings to your father and then he’ll put me to death?” he asked sardonically, smiling as though he wasn’t talking about his own death.
Kazuya inhaled sharply, “If you have a good reason, a good explanation -“
Ryo laughed, “Let’s face the truth here,” he gave Kazuya a cold smile, “I realized the moment that I started to make contact with the society out there that I would die once your father found out. It’s just too bad that I wasn’t able to do what I wanted before that happens.”
Kazuya was almost afraid to ask, especially once he saw the look in Ryo's eyes. It was a look of pure determination, and such regret over what he hadn’t been able to do.
“What is that?” he managed to say in a strangled tone of voice.
Ryo didn’t answer for a moment.
When he did, he looked up, eyes dark with anger and hatred, “To save you.”
His words left silence hanging in the room, and it was this silence, and Ryo's eyes, that made Kazuya feel like the silence was poison, seeping in through his pores, infecting him. And suddenly, he felt very, very cold.
* * *
The effect of those words hung over the room even after the silence was broken. Even as Kazuya made a show of checking his facts and changing his topic, those words kept tearing at his insides like they were being repeated over and over, and yet, no matter how many times they went through his mind, their impact never lessened.
"So, because of the truth serum you accidentally inhaled, once asked a question by one of our residents, because the nature of that question was directed toward your opinion about the Leader, you answered truthfully about what you felt about him, which was -”
Ryo's eyes practically glittered with hate, "That he's a self-absorbed megalomaniac who's created a cult that targets innocent people who are vulnerable to his manipulations."
Kazuya tried to suppress the flash of outrage he felt at that, "Manipulations?" he snapped.
"The Leader," Ryo emphasized the title sarcastically, "Has created a group that supports him in a near fanatical way, preying on the weak who would believe in him and his vision."
With that said, Ryo leaned closer, "I mean, think about how I got into the Organization. The initiation I went through. The fact that each child that grows up in the Organization is expected to go through that same initiation to be an accepted 'adult' member means that he's creating a society of assassins. Why else would an initiation into adulthood, into becoming a worthy one be murder? Or have you forgotten how distraught you were when I left my initiation half-complete and you had to deal with the rest for me? The guilt we both felt from that? He's turned us into nothing but assassins, meant to be loyal to him and only him. He has manipulated all of you."
Kazuya couldn’t help but snap, "Then what about you?", reminding Ryo that he had been part of the Organization as well, upholding the Organization's laws too.
Ryo went silent, scowling.
"Or are you claiming that you were special enough to escape the Leader's 'manipulations', was it?"
Ryo's jaw clenched before answering, "No, I fell for them too - for a while. Up until this year, actually."
Kazuya started in surprise, "What?"
And yet, once again, Ryo's words from earlier, 'To save you', ran through his head. It was unsettling, how those words kept nagging at him, like little pins pricking at his every pore. Why should he care that Ryo had - that Ryo was trying to save him? He didn't need saving, he believed in the Organization…right? He didn't need to be…
Saved, Kazuya gulped down that last thought, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth.
Ryo smiled sardonically at him, "Do you remember what happened this year? At the beginning of the year?"
Kazuya thought about it for a moment, before his eyes narrowed, "Are you talking about that mission and that mistake -"
"It wasn't a mistake!" Ryo hissed angrily, the first time in this interrogation that Kazuya had seen him lose control, "It was deliberate, and he meant for an innocent man to be murdered! All because that man had gotten curious about what went on here and was going to check it out."
Kazuya stared warily at Ryo, "No, that's not possible. W - we," he cursed himself for stumbling over his words, "We only deal with those who are corrupt, none who are innocent. That's his goal, he has never tried to hide that. He made that clear when he took me in when I was little. He's a good person -”
"It is possible," Ryo glowered, "Because I was there. I was there when it was revealed that he had never done anything wrong, at least nothing to warrant his death, and I was there to figure out just why he was targeted and realize why: because he had threatened to create doubt in the Leader's society!"
Kazuya stared at Ryo and said flatly, "You're lying."
"I’m not," Ryo insisted, a low hiss in his voice.
"You have to be. You were my partner. All our missions were together. There was no way you were there, because then I would have to have been there, too."
Ryo merely leaned back, but he didn't meet Kazuya's eyes.
Kazuya felt that nagging feeling grow, and even though he didn't know why, somewhere, in the back of his mind, something was screaming at him to leave it alone.
Finally, Ryo looked up, "Did you honestly think that with the advances the scientists have come up with in dealing with the mind, like this truth serum, your leader wouldn't ask them to create something that would keep away all doubts toward him?" Ryo asked darkly, "And…why would anyone feel doubt if they couldn't remember the reason they were feeling doubt in the first place?"
Kazuya unwillingly leaned back, trying to get away from what he was hearing. He wanted to accuse Ryo of lying again, but…he couldn't. Ryo was under the truth serum, and…that meant he truly believed this, which meant…no, there had to be some mistake. Ryo had been hallucinating, back then, that was it. That had to be it.
In his distress, Kazuya never noticed Ryo moving, or that the older man had managed to free himself from his restraints. He also didn't notice - or by now, maybe he was too busy trying to rationalize what he was hearing - Ryo pulling at something that had been underneath his shirt, what appeared to be nothing more than a simple pendant on a chain. Except…
What Kazuya did notice, a few minutes later, was the fact that Ryo had gotten up, walked over to Kazuya, and gripped Kazuya's wrists, keeping him from moving. Kazuya's eyes followed that movement, and time seemed to slow due to his shock; he noticed the rope burns on Ryo's own wrists, as he must have been trying to escape the entire time.
Then, suddenly, Ryo's lips were against his, pressing furiously against Kazuya’s, even as Kazuya, in a panicked state, realized that he was swallowing something, something that seemed oddly like a pill…
"I'm going to save you, even if you don't want me to right now," Ryo's voice hissed in Kazuya's ear, as he held onto Kazuya.
Kazuya could only let out a groan, as whatever the pill was began to infect his body, and suddenly, his head throbbed in pain. The pain grew, and grew, like little electric shocks to his head that got steadily worse, until he couldn’t hold back the scream and then all went black.
* * *
The room was silent as Kazuya sat down on his bed, next to Ryo. In his hands were documents procured from their latest mission - and the proof that their mission’s instructions, the reasons given as to why that man had needed to die, had been nothing more than lies.
"He didn't deny it," Kazuya said softly, "And he wants to talk to me tomorrow."
"I'm sorry," Ryo said solemnly. It was obvious that the older man had no idea what else he could say.
Kazuya laughed a bit harshly as memories of the mission assaulted his mind: the slackened face of the man whose eyes had widened in shock in mistaken recognition, the call of a name that stirred Kazuya's memories...
And the subsequent break-in to the man's locked files to access the information that had only backed up what had originally been dismissed as delusion in the face of death.
"I always wondered why he had never told me about my parents, even though he never made it a secret that I wasn't his biological son," Kazuya said, running a hand along his own cheeks, to where blood splatter had stained them earlier. His voice grew distressed, "He killed my parents, and took me from the scene of the crime. And now, we've killed my parents' best friend who, apparently, had been looking for me all this time." he laughed bitterly, "It's like a bad dream."
Ryo didn't say a word, but he reached over and put a hand on Kazuya's shoulder. Kazuya didn't protest, and leaned into his hand.
"I killed a man who didn't deserve it - for his personal vendetta."
"He didn't want to risk the chance that your parents' best friend would really be able to find you, to tell you the truth, because…it would create doubts. He wanted to get rid of the problem." Ryo said softly, "He's led us to believe that he's always right, that he's doing everything for the good of humanity, so we'll do what he asks every time. Like he's a prophet to be worshipped," Ryo's eyes darkened.
Kazuya's eyes were a bit misty, but he bit down the distressed cry that wanted to escape. To find out all this tonight was more than distressing. His beliefs, his whole world, was crashing down around him as he realized that his father, the Leader whom he had always believed to be like a hero ridding the world of evil, was nothing more than an evil man who had manipulated everyone here. There was no vision for the betterment of humanity, there was no good side; it was like, with what they had found out, everything that his manipulations had caused was revealed and…
After a moment, he looked at Ryo, "Can we just forget for now?" he asked.
Ryo looked surprised for a moment, staring at him with a thoughtful frown, but then he leaned in, making their lips meet in a soft, almost desperate, kiss. The guilt inside that Kazuya had once felt at not telling the Leader about his relationship, as was the law in their - no, his - society, wasn't present for once. He wanted to forget, he wanted to do nothing but forget, and Ryo - Ryo had always been able to take away the loneliness of being in this society, take away the guilt of what they did.
Before things went further though, Kazuya stopped, lips inches from Ryo's; he reached for something in his jeans pocket. A chained pendant, and…a tiny, sealed, packet just small enough to fit in the pendant, which he opened. .
"There's a pill in there, and instructions how it's made and what it's composed of…" Kazuya said softly, "Knowing what I do now, I don't feel safe going into that meeting tomorrow, alone. I know perfectly well what some of the scientists have been developing. And…I stole one of their samples. If…if he really does what I think he might do…I - I didn't tell him that you knew, and he thinks I found out all of this while you were keeping watch outside, so…if you have this, it might take a bit of work, but I'm sure you could figure out how to reverse this. You're smart enough to get help from the scientists without asking directly. You can do it." he said, though his voice wavered.
"Kazuya…" Ryo's voice hitched a little.
"If something does happen to me, it's up to you, Ryo." Kazuya said, holding the chained pendant, now hiding something much more ominous than it had looked to Ryo, "You can't let him keep doing this to everyone. To us." he said firmly, almost pleadingly.
Ryo hesitated, "No way he'll -" but then he stopped himself. There was no way of knowing, was there? After a moment, he accepted the offered chained pendant, slipping it on, "Only if something happens to you."
Kazuya smiled, almost sadly, before leaning in to kiss Ryo once more, closing the already small distance between them.
Suddenly, Ryo was feeling the same fears that Kazuya was.
"If something does happen, I promise that I'll save you," Ryo said, this time trying to put on a show of smug confidence. It helped keep away the fears for a little while.
Kazuya's smile widened at that, "At least I'll finally make you spend more time in the science building…" he teased just a little, as he closed the distance between them once again.
* * *
"Welcome back," were the words Ryo said to greet the familiar brown eyes opening to look into his own dark ones. Amidst the confused emotions on Kazuya's face, a slow smile spread as well.
"I'm back," Kazuya said, taking the hand Ryo was extending to him.
---- END ----
As you can see, kamexkame, I really did deviate from your original prompt a little. (Hopefully, you still liked it enough not to care that I deviated from it? :D) I also kind of took 'cult' up for interpretation, and I based the one here on these 2 episodes of crime dramas based on cults (Criminal Minds and Flashpoint) because I really didn't know much about them ^^;; I hope it was still okay XDDD
As for everyone else, I hope you enjoyed reading this attempt of mine to do justice to kamexkame's awesome prompt ^___^
Now, I am going to go on vacation <3333 I leave on a cruise for a week, so I will reply to comments and all that once I return :DDD Thank you for reading~~
Pairing: RyoKame (Nishikido Ryo x Kamenashi Kazuya)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Kamenashi Kazuya's world shatters when Nishikido Ryo is revealed to be a spy - an enemy.
Notes: written for kamexkame
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First fic posted in a while~ It feels like forever since I've posted anything XDDD Who would've thought that graduating university would leave me busier than when I was still in university? XDDD
*cough* Anyways. This was written for the wonderful kamexkame, I hope you like it Ana! I kind of...strayed from your original prompt a little, but I hope it's still enjoyable to read and that you like it <3333 Also, thank you (again) to pinkeuphoria1 for betaing. lol, I seriously sent it to her at like...the last minute and she still got it done in time for me to post <3333
Also, forgive me for my messed up icons. It's lj's fault, I'm sure, since I've noticed that I'm not the only one this happens to. For some reason, the codes to override the default usericon with my own (the little plane) aren't working anymore and...that's why you see like 4 planes in the usericon place (+the default usericon, like why the hell is it even there?) instead of 1 plane. >< fixed the usericon problem!! I think...well, it seems to work for now at least :D
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The world was going to explode in ten seconds, Kamenashi Kazuya theorized as he watched the numbers on display count down with mock bated breath. His gaze was barely above dispassionate as the large, glowing, neon orange 00:00:05 turned into a 00:00:04.
For a brief moment, Kazuya entertained the idea that maybe he really should be concerned about the world exploding. He created a concerned expression on his face as the numbers continued to get closer and closer to the end of the countdown. He wasn’t able to keep that mock frightened expression on his face for long, and he shrugged at the reflection of himself in the window.
00:00:00
A loud explosion rocked the room Kazuya was looking into, and little remains of the world flew at Kazuya, but Kazuya didn’t flinch. The remains were stopped by the window standing in the way, and Kazuya watched as, like bullets, they became imbedded in the glass.
As the explosion began to fade away, leaving a room of ruined plastic pieces, a hand reached out and plucked a cell phone out of Kazuya’s hand.
“I thought you were told to stop fooling around with the explosives,” Nishikido Ryo commented with a little grin playing on his lips.
Kazuya just smirked, “No, you told me that. I decided not to ‘fool around’ and try to destroy the world instead.”
“I hate to break it to you, but stealing plaster models of the planets from the scientists and blowing them up isn’t destroying the world.” Ryo retorted, but he was inwardly amused and Kazuya knew it. That was why, instead of snapping at Kazuya about stealing his cell phone to create an explosive trigger device, Ryo was studying it curiously.
“What’s the trigger set to this time?” Ryo asked in exasperation, punching at the keys to try to figure it out.
Kazuya smirked.
“Seriously, what is it?”
“Why?”
“Shut up, you know why,” Ryo sent Kazuya a disgusted look, “I’m still in trouble for the last time you stole my cell phone to do this sort of crap.”
“And I told you it was in your best interests not to tell anybody about that thing I broke that time. It’s your fault for calling it in.”
“That doesn’t mean you can create a remote explosive trigger set to go off the moment I call that number!” Ryo argued vehemently, glaring at Kazuya, “You’re so messed up.”
Then, realizing what he had just said, Ryo fell silent. A dark look crossed his face and Kazuya merely stood there, feeling and looking awkwardly at the expressions that were quickly making their way across Ryo's face.
“I meant -” Ryo started, trying to break the tense silence.
“I don’t care.” Kazuya replied, before Ryo could finish his phrase, “Really, Ryo, I don’t.”
“I -”
“Ryo, just shut up.”
Ryo scowled and looked away.
* * *
The Organization, Kazuya had long discovered, was much more different at night; when the sun disappeared behind the horizon, an overwhelming and nearly suffocating silence fell over the compound. Kazuya had been living on the compound since he was young. Back then, he hadn’t really noticed the suffocating silence, but being the son of the Leader, he had been allocated his own small house to stay in, separate even from his father’s. The nannies hired to take care of him back then left for their own homes once evening fell and Kazuya was fed, and so, at night, Kazuya had always been left alone in a house far too big for just a child. Back then, the Organization at night was frightening, like the compound invited and welcomed darkness and solitude.
The Organization was a society that existed only in the shadows. They could never be discovered by the authorities or authority figures in society, or they would all be wiped out. As such, it was in the shadows that Kazuya grew up, aware that if he ever ventured outside, he would be killed. The only people allowed out of the compound, for their safety, were those who had proven themselves worthy to aid in completing the Organization’s ultimate mission: to rid the world of corruption.
Kazuya had proven himself worthy long ago.
Shoving his hands in his pockets, Kazuya scanned the outskirts of the compound, his eyes falling briefly on the electric fence that outlined the property.
To society, the Organization was merely an in-depth research lab, funded by private means. To the members of the Organization, they were a society, banded together under their Leader.
“All set?” Kazuya heard Ryo's breath of a question before he even saw the older man. It sometimes amused Kazuya to see how unsettled Ryo was amongst the darkness. One would think that after a few years here, Ryo would have gotten used to this, but the older man still took to whispering in the darkness of the compound, as if he was afraid of waking up some terrible monster.
Kazuya merely took his hands out of his pockets, pulling a black device out of one of them. He threw it at Ryo who, even with the cover of the darkness, looked panicked for a moment. Then, as if realizing that it wasn’t anything that would explode, he relaxed, scowling at Kazuya.
Kazuya smirked, “Our mission instructions.” He intoned in a bland voice, trying to hide his amusement. Ryo scowled at him as he grabbed the device. The screen lit up once it was turned on, and Ryo read the instructions carefully.
After a moment, Ryo threw the device back at him, not saying a word. He continued to stay silent until they were out of the compound. They had a little to walk before reaching the edge of the property.
“I don’t like this,” Ryo said bluntly as he crushed a fallen branch under his foot.
“We have our directions,” Kazuya responded smoothly as they walked, “We’ve done this before.”
“We have,” Ryo agreed, but then he scowled, “Have you noticed that, lately, our missions don’t give too much detail - only what we need to do. There’s none of that evidence that we used to get…”
Kazuya froze for a moment, but then continued, purposely stomping one foot down. The loud noise resounded all around them, and Ryo paused for a moment.
Then, much to Kazuya’s chagrin, he continued.
“Don’t you wonder why?” Ryo asked darkly, “Like…what if what happened back at the beginning of the year wasn’t a mistake? What if…”
Ryo stopped when Kazuya suddenly turned around; a flash of silver glinting in the moonlight was the only warning he got before he was pushed against a tree, the blade of a short knife practically resting against his neck.
“You should remember, Ryo, that by our laws, that kind of talk isn’t allowed,” Kazuya reminded him softly but firmly, “We are not to question the Leader.”
His voice wavered a little, and he added, “Even if it’s you, Ryo, I will uphold our laws.”
His hand slowly moved the weapon away, back to wherever he had stored it before, and he looked right into Ryo's eyes, his gaze steady, “You would do well do remember what you agreed to when you joined us.”
Ryo's eyes darkened even as he leaned closer to Kazuya; his breath fell on Kazuya’s skin gently. Their faces, clouded by the shadows of the night, were close, maybe too close, when Ryo finally spoke, “Then I should remind you that this isn’t allowed either.”
Kazuya held Ryo's gaze, not moving, but his eyes were glinting just like that knife earlier.
“That’s different,” he said quietly. He didn’t know why, but he was speaking just like Ryo was - like he was afraid of unsettling something resting in the shadows. He shouldn’t be; he grew up in the shadows, he was part of the shadows, and yet, he couldn’t stop himself.
“No, it’s not.” Ryo replied and mockingly added, “But I’m going to let you keep believing that you’re a good, upstanding member of your father’s society.”
Ryo took a moment to add, “A society that doesn’t exist to the rest of the world.”
“Does it bother you?” Kazuya asked after a moment, not taking his eyes away from Ryo's.
His partner’s answer of, “Yes,” bothered Kazuya more than he thought it should.
* * *
A few months ago, a mission had gone terribly wrong. The Organization’s goals were to rid the world of all corruption - by any means necessary. Everything was run by the Leader, Kazuya’s father, and from a young age, Kazuya had been brought up knowing that what they did was necessary for the society outside of the Organization to function, because they were getting rid of all the evil and corrupted people in the world.
It wasn’t until that mission that anybody questioned the fact that the Leader alone got to decide who was corrupt and needed to be dealt with. It wasn’t until an innocent man had been targeted and killed that doubts of the Leader began to permeate their society.
The light from Ryo's room shut off, and Kazuya shook his head, making these thoughts go away as he opened the door to Ryo's room. It was almost a ritual to do this after every mission, Kazuya thought, even as he found Ryo exactly where he always was: lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling with unblinking eyes. He moved to sit on the bed, before lying down as well, staring up at the same ceiling that his partner was looking at.
“Come to check up on me again?” Ryo asked in a dark voice, a sigh laced into it.
Kazuya didn’t answer.
After a moment, Ryo finally turned to him. Kazuya noticed that the blood marks that marred Ryo's face an hour earlier were now gone, leaving raw red patches in their place. Ryo had obviously been overzealous in scrubbing the blood off his face.
“What are you doing here?” Ryo finally asked.
“Making sure you aren’t doing anything stupid,” Kazuya retorted, with a smile. It faded a moment later though, “You’ve been acting weird lately.”
“I haven’t.” Ryo muttered, turning on his side.
“Ryo.”
The older man let out an annoyed sigh, “Look, you know I have a hard time with these ‘missions’,” he said in a low voice, “I always have. You know that.”
“You’ve been upset more than usual, though,” Kazuya insisted, but he didn’t press the matter. Instead, as a tense silence fell between them, he reached over, pulled on Ryo's arm to make him turn toward him and their lips met in a kiss.
“Forget it,” Kazuya said even as he studied Ryo's face carefully. He was still sure that there was something bothering Ryo, but he also knew that the older man was stubborn and wouldn’t tell him if he didn’t want to.
Ryo grabbed his wrist, holding it tightly, as he returned Kazuya’s look; after a moment, and a flash of something in his eyes that Kazuya couldn’t recognize, he smirked and hissed out a, “Gladly,” before kissing Kazuya.
Yet, as they became immersed in each other, there was an annoying voice in the back of Kazuya’s head, telling him that it was a mistake to let this go. At the same time though, Kazuya was afraid to listen to that voice - like he would discover something terrifying if he did.
So, as Ryo pressed Kazuya down against the bed, he ignored it.
* * *
For the past while, during the day, Kazuya had begun to feel restless and irritated. It was like the presence of light annoyed him in the same way that he felt oddly comforted when the compound was encased in darkness. Maybe he was becoming nocturnal from these missions. Or, maybe, just like Ryo was wary of the darkness of the night, he was intimidated by the day. He knew the darkness and the shadows well, but the light - the world outside of the Organization's society was alive and awake during the day. Maybe, like many other older members of the Organization, he had begun to develop an irritation to the daytime because of the feeling that the outside world could threaten him much better during the day than at night.
So, during the day, amidst feelings of irritation, Kazuya retreated into the research lab, and tested the latest developments by the science division, more precisely, the explosives that Ryo kept telling him not to play around with.
Their science division claimed its headquarters in an isolated location on the Organization's property, in a building that was created to withstand any and all experiments the scientists tried out. Most people avoided this building as much as possible, mostly because of the erratic way the scientists behaved, which could very well be attributed to the chemicals they were constantly in contact with.
However, it was odd but Kazuya rather enjoyed retreating to the science building.
What began as mere curiosity once in a while became a habit, until he came here nearly every day. That was how Ryo always knew where to find him.
"I thought I told you not to play around in here," Ryo's voice cut through his thoughts in an irritated tone.
Kazuya looked up from where he was observing a few test tubes, "You told me not to play with the explosives. I haven't yet today." he replied, "One of the scientists had something to check up on and I've been tasked with making sure his workstation doesn't explode in his absence."
"And if it does explode?" Ryo retorted, sounding amused, "I doubt you know how to stop a chemical reaction like that."
"I figured I'd just throw something random in," Kazuya said nonchalantly, "That'll either make the reaction worse, do nothing to it, or stop it entirely."
Ryo glared at Kazuya.
"Just kidding," Kazuya laughed, "He gave me instructions on what to do if something happens." Kazuya held up a small vial filled with a strange liquid for emphasis, "I wouldn’t do that if I were you." He added sharply to Ryo.
Ryo, who had leaned over, peering at the workstation and sniffing the concoction with trepidation, wrinkled his nose at the smell, "What is he trying to do? Not another bunch of explosives, I hope." he sent Kazuya a glare.
"Who knows," Kazuya shrugged with a smirk, "I sure hope so though."
Ryo blanched.
"If only to see what lengths you'll go to, to keep me from getting near them," Kazuya added.
Ryo scowled.
"Yeah, well, if I didn't try to stop you, you'd probably be stupid enough to get yourself blown up." Ryo retorted.
"Of course, Ryo, you're the sole reason why nothing's exploded and killed me yet."
Ryo smirked, "As if anything would dare to explode in my presence."
Kazuya rolled his eyes but grinned at that, "And you call me messed up?" he retorted.
Then, he wished he hadn't said that.
Ryo went quiet, in a bad way. His jaw tightened, his lips thinned and he looked anywhere but at Kazuya. Ryo had always been a bit sensitive about that subject, no matter that Kazuya had forgiven Ryo for that long ago. The older man still punished himself for it sometimes, Kazuya knew, so he immediately regretted saying that.
"Ryo…"
The air was suddenly sombre and filled with a tension that couldn't be resolved with words. Kazuya began to reach out for Ryo, but he stopped when Ryo looked at him with an odd expression, and said stiffly, "I just remembered something I have to do."
"Ryo -” Kazuya called and then he faltered, "I'm not upset when you call me that, you know that, right? So stop beating yourself up over it."
"That's nice but I don't know what you mean," Ryo responded distractedly, looking as though he wanted to be anywhere but here at the moment. There was a look in his eyes that practically struck at Kazuya and, suddenly, he couldn't stop Ryo from leaving.
It was only later, when lost in his thoughts again, watching the scientists at work that Kazuya realized exactly what that look was.
It was guilt.
* * *
Kazuya stayed, observing the scientists for a few more hours. He had debated following Ryo, but then decided it was probably best to let Ryo have some time alone. After all their years working together, and then later developing a deeper relationship than that, Kazuya knew when to press the subject and when to leave Ryo alone so that he could work through whatever emotions he didn’t want to show Kazuya.
Guilt was one of them, even if it was a common one.
It was that emotion that gave Ryo a hard time with their missions. Kazuya knew, through Ryo, that in the outside world, their actions would be abhorred, but unlike Ryo, Kazuya had grown up in the Organization’s society, where every child was brought up with the Organization’s goals in mind.
Unlike Ryo, Kazuya never had to rationalize what he did, what he believed in, because he knew that what he did, in the end, benefited others. He was one of those who protected them from being subjected to the evil people who would trick them and commit horrible crimes under the guise of being upstanding members of society.
And, until that failed mission a few months ago when an innocent man had been targeted, Ryo had believed in that too. He had finally learned to leave his guilt behind, but now…it had become common again.
Kazuya knew that there was something else though, something else bothering him; Ryo was too affected by that mission that hadn’t involved him. There was something that Ryo was holding back, but Ryo avoided the topic and every time Kazuya felt like bringing it up, he would freeze, like he was venturing on some forbidden land where he would find something horrible waiting for him.
It was only when he saw the scientist, whose workstation he had been curiously watching over earlier, get up that Kazuya remembered something he had been meaning to ask.
"What are you trying to create anyways?" Kazuya wondered, deciding to push worries about Ryo out of his mind for now - at least until he went and found the older man.
The scientist surveyed him carefully before answering, "The Leader has me trying to work out a better truth serum. You know about the flaws of the old one. Its effects are too strong - those subjected to it, who aren't given the antidote within half an hour, tend to die from the chemicals shutting their major organs down."
Kazuya nodded absently, "So you're trying to weaken its effects?"
"Kind of. Even when weakened, the chemical we use for the truth serum is extremely strong and toxic. But, I am experimenting with a different method of administering it. It is a version that, instead of being forced into the body - through a syringe or by ingesting it - will be administered by something as simple as touch or scent. A version that can be absorbed in the skin, or take effect once even a whiff is inhaled. Like perfume, almost."
Kazuya suddenly blinked, "Through smell?" he asked slowly, "Just by, say, sniffing at it?"
The scientist nodded, "I'm still working on it though. It's not…quite what we want. It certainly makes the subject tell the truth, but…not quite as well. Instead of telling the truth to questions we asked, all the subject did was talk about his opinion on any word we mentioned, and once we stopped talking, he began telling us a few secrets that were not related to the questioning at all."
Kazuya felt his body go cold, and he must have gone pale as well, because the scientist looked concerned as he asked Kazuya if he was feeling alright. Kazuya ignored him and left the science building as quickly as he could, breaking into a run back to the main area of the property.
What if…
Ryo had been in there earlier, and Kazuya remembered warning him off sniffing at the test. He also remembered Ryo's disgusted expression at the smell -
Their relationship wasn't allowed; all relationships had to be appealed to the Leader and given permission to before they could continue. It was a way for the Leader to have the information he needed to safely assign missions, and not be caught unawares, but…
It was a ridiculous law, in Kazuya's opinion, but failure to get permission from the Leader led to a severe punishment, and what if Ryo - if Ryo had been affected, and they were found out, Kazuya knew that it would be Ryo who would suffer the most from the consequences.
Kazuya stopped in his tracks when he reached the main area.
It was odd; the area was empty, devoid of life.
Then, there was a crashing noise and Kazuya turned to see a body stumble back and into him. He lost his balance and fell over; when he recovered from that, and looked up, he saw Ryo's face, slightly bruised.
"Ryo?"
It was then that Kazuya noticed that Ryo's hands were bound. Kazuya blanched; so it really did happen, they had discovered -
"Kazuya-sama! You caught the spy!" a voice broke through Kazuya's thoughts and he turned to look at one of the Organization's top members. One of the worthy ones.
Spy?
Kazuya's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest, to correct the man but -
A bitter laugh, as Ryo held his bound hands up, "I guess that's me then."
And, suddenly, Kazuya felt like his world was breaking apart - shattering.
* * *
Kazuya ended up being assigned the task of interrogating Ryo. Maybe it was his father's way to punish him for not realizing what was going on with his partner, and thus not being able to realize that Ryo was a threat, but Kazuya was torn between dreading the idea and relishing it.
He didn't know what he thought about this.
On one hand, his belief in the Organization's ideals made it impossible for him to just dismiss this situation, to forgive this, but…
On the other hand, he cared for Ryo - a lot. Ryo had been his rival, partner, friend, and love - in that exact order - for years. He'd seen more sides of Ryo in the years they'd had together than either of them were willing to admit. He was closer, and more vulnerable, to Ryo than anyone else.
But that closeness was what made this…this betrayal hurt so much.
Kazuya took a deep breath before he entered the room where Ryo was kept. The moment he walked in, Ryo looked up; there were some bruises on face, as well as a few shallow scrapes; the overconfident, smug, expression Ryo had on, most likely an attempt to try to piss off his interrogator, gave way to a grimace.
"They sent you?"
Kazuya tried not to wince at the tone, tried to stay collected, "I'm sorry if that disappoints you." he retorted.
Ryo stared at Kazuya for a moment, before leaning back, "Well, not disappointed, per se, but more like…annoyed that they sent the one person who could probably get answers out of me." he responded, "I was hoping they'd be stupid enough to send your father's right hand men."
The derisive tone was so familiar that Kazuya almost felt like nothing had changed, and he almost felt like letting his lips twitch up into a reluctant smile. But things had changed; a few hours had passed and suddenly, they were on different sides, and it felt like a transparent barrier was put up. Suddenly, Ryo was the enemy - the one who was threatening the beliefs and goals of the Organization.
"Maybe this is my punishment, for not seeing it sooner." Kazuya responded, saying aloud the thoughts that had crossed his mind earlier when he had been told about his assignment, "To make me see where I had gone wrong, as I have been unable to see that you had turned into a traitor…or maybe, you were never really one of us?" he raised an eyebrow.
Ryo laughed softly, a little bitterly, as he ran a hand along his cheek, brushing over bruised skin and dried blood, "I see there's no time for small talk, straight to the point. Of course, I should have known that the moment you realized that I don't follow your father's insane laws, you'd turn on me and hate me."
His words were like a slap to Kazuya's face.
And suddenly, Kazuya couldn’t pretend that he was calm, that he was in control, “Turn on you? Hate you?” Kazuya snapped angrily, his voice coming out in nothing more than a hiss, “You’re one to talk! I thought - I thought that the reason they had arrested you earlier was because of our - our relationship, but apparently, you had more to confess to than just that! And I had no idea!”
And that was probably the main issue with Kazuya right now. He was closest to Ryo, and yet…he had no idea about Ryo's true loyalties. For some reason, the fact that he hadn’t known anything affected him more than knowing that Ryo was betraying the Organization.
It was strange, wasn’t it? He had grown up believing, and fostering, the Organization’s goals, and he had no qualms about the missions he went on, but this - this betrayal…
No, it wasn’t even the betrayal.
This realization that he was categorized as part of the Organization, and nothing else, in Ryo's mind shattered him more than anything. It meant that while he had trusted Ryo, the other man hadn’t trusted him one bit.
It hurt - a lot.
Kazuya forced himself to calm down, though, concentrating on the interview at hand.
“I suppose that’s what you’re so upset about, then,” Ryo said, leaning in with a familiar smirk that Kazuya wanted to wipe so desperately from his face just because it was so familiar, “Why don’t we get this interview over with and you can report all your findings to your father and then he’ll put me to death?” he asked sardonically, smiling as though he wasn’t talking about his own death.
Kazuya inhaled sharply, “If you have a good reason, a good explanation -“
Ryo laughed, “Let’s face the truth here,” he gave Kazuya a cold smile, “I realized the moment that I started to make contact with the society out there that I would die once your father found out. It’s just too bad that I wasn’t able to do what I wanted before that happens.”
Kazuya was almost afraid to ask, especially once he saw the look in Ryo's eyes. It was a look of pure determination, and such regret over what he hadn’t been able to do.
“What is that?” he managed to say in a strangled tone of voice.
Ryo didn’t answer for a moment.
When he did, he looked up, eyes dark with anger and hatred, “To save you.”
His words left silence hanging in the room, and it was this silence, and Ryo's eyes, that made Kazuya feel like the silence was poison, seeping in through his pores, infecting him. And suddenly, he felt very, very cold.
* * *
The effect of those words hung over the room even after the silence was broken. Even as Kazuya made a show of checking his facts and changing his topic, those words kept tearing at his insides like they were being repeated over and over, and yet, no matter how many times they went through his mind, their impact never lessened.
"So, because of the truth serum you accidentally inhaled, once asked a question by one of our residents, because the nature of that question was directed toward your opinion about the Leader, you answered truthfully about what you felt about him, which was -”
Ryo's eyes practically glittered with hate, "That he's a self-absorbed megalomaniac who's created a cult that targets innocent people who are vulnerable to his manipulations."
Kazuya tried to suppress the flash of outrage he felt at that, "Manipulations?" he snapped.
"The Leader," Ryo emphasized the title sarcastically, "Has created a group that supports him in a near fanatical way, preying on the weak who would believe in him and his vision."
With that said, Ryo leaned closer, "I mean, think about how I got into the Organization. The initiation I went through. The fact that each child that grows up in the Organization is expected to go through that same initiation to be an accepted 'adult' member means that he's creating a society of assassins. Why else would an initiation into adulthood, into becoming a worthy one be murder? Or have you forgotten how distraught you were when I left my initiation half-complete and you had to deal with the rest for me? The guilt we both felt from that? He's turned us into nothing but assassins, meant to be loyal to him and only him. He has manipulated all of you."
Kazuya couldn’t help but snap, "Then what about you?", reminding Ryo that he had been part of the Organization as well, upholding the Organization's laws too.
Ryo went silent, scowling.
"Or are you claiming that you were special enough to escape the Leader's 'manipulations', was it?"
Ryo's jaw clenched before answering, "No, I fell for them too - for a while. Up until this year, actually."
Kazuya started in surprise, "What?"
And yet, once again, Ryo's words from earlier, 'To save you', ran through his head. It was unsettling, how those words kept nagging at him, like little pins pricking at his every pore. Why should he care that Ryo had - that Ryo was trying to save him? He didn't need saving, he believed in the Organization…right? He didn't need to be…
Saved, Kazuya gulped down that last thought, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth.
Ryo smiled sardonically at him, "Do you remember what happened this year? At the beginning of the year?"
Kazuya thought about it for a moment, before his eyes narrowed, "Are you talking about that mission and that mistake -"
"It wasn't a mistake!" Ryo hissed angrily, the first time in this interrogation that Kazuya had seen him lose control, "It was deliberate, and he meant for an innocent man to be murdered! All because that man had gotten curious about what went on here and was going to check it out."
Kazuya stared warily at Ryo, "No, that's not possible. W - we," he cursed himself for stumbling over his words, "We only deal with those who are corrupt, none who are innocent. That's his goal, he has never tried to hide that. He made that clear when he took me in when I was little. He's a good person -”
"It is possible," Ryo glowered, "Because I was there. I was there when it was revealed that he had never done anything wrong, at least nothing to warrant his death, and I was there to figure out just why he was targeted and realize why: because he had threatened to create doubt in the Leader's society!"
Kazuya stared at Ryo and said flatly, "You're lying."
"I’m not," Ryo insisted, a low hiss in his voice.
"You have to be. You were my partner. All our missions were together. There was no way you were there, because then I would have to have been there, too."
Ryo merely leaned back, but he didn't meet Kazuya's eyes.
Kazuya felt that nagging feeling grow, and even though he didn't know why, somewhere, in the back of his mind, something was screaming at him to leave it alone.
Finally, Ryo looked up, "Did you honestly think that with the advances the scientists have come up with in dealing with the mind, like this truth serum, your leader wouldn't ask them to create something that would keep away all doubts toward him?" Ryo asked darkly, "And…why would anyone feel doubt if they couldn't remember the reason they were feeling doubt in the first place?"
Kazuya unwillingly leaned back, trying to get away from what he was hearing. He wanted to accuse Ryo of lying again, but…he couldn't. Ryo was under the truth serum, and…that meant he truly believed this, which meant…no, there had to be some mistake. Ryo had been hallucinating, back then, that was it. That had to be it.
In his distress, Kazuya never noticed Ryo moving, or that the older man had managed to free himself from his restraints. He also didn't notice - or by now, maybe he was too busy trying to rationalize what he was hearing - Ryo pulling at something that had been underneath his shirt, what appeared to be nothing more than a simple pendant on a chain. Except…
What Kazuya did notice, a few minutes later, was the fact that Ryo had gotten up, walked over to Kazuya, and gripped Kazuya's wrists, keeping him from moving. Kazuya's eyes followed that movement, and time seemed to slow due to his shock; he noticed the rope burns on Ryo's own wrists, as he must have been trying to escape the entire time.
Then, suddenly, Ryo's lips were against his, pressing furiously against Kazuya’s, even as Kazuya, in a panicked state, realized that he was swallowing something, something that seemed oddly like a pill…
"I'm going to save you, even if you don't want me to right now," Ryo's voice hissed in Kazuya's ear, as he held onto Kazuya.
Kazuya could only let out a groan, as whatever the pill was began to infect his body, and suddenly, his head throbbed in pain. The pain grew, and grew, like little electric shocks to his head that got steadily worse, until he couldn’t hold back the scream and then all went black.
* * *
The room was silent as Kazuya sat down on his bed, next to Ryo. In his hands were documents procured from their latest mission - and the proof that their mission’s instructions, the reasons given as to why that man had needed to die, had been nothing more than lies.
"He didn't deny it," Kazuya said softly, "And he wants to talk to me tomorrow."
"I'm sorry," Ryo said solemnly. It was obvious that the older man had no idea what else he could say.
Kazuya laughed a bit harshly as memories of the mission assaulted his mind: the slackened face of the man whose eyes had widened in shock in mistaken recognition, the call of a name that stirred Kazuya's memories...
And the subsequent break-in to the man's locked files to access the information that had only backed up what had originally been dismissed as delusion in the face of death.
"I always wondered why he had never told me about my parents, even though he never made it a secret that I wasn't his biological son," Kazuya said, running a hand along his own cheeks, to where blood splatter had stained them earlier. His voice grew distressed, "He killed my parents, and took me from the scene of the crime. And now, we've killed my parents' best friend who, apparently, had been looking for me all this time." he laughed bitterly, "It's like a bad dream."
Ryo didn't say a word, but he reached over and put a hand on Kazuya's shoulder. Kazuya didn't protest, and leaned into his hand.
"I killed a man who didn't deserve it - for his personal vendetta."
"He didn't want to risk the chance that your parents' best friend would really be able to find you, to tell you the truth, because…it would create doubts. He wanted to get rid of the problem." Ryo said softly, "He's led us to believe that he's always right, that he's doing everything for the good of humanity, so we'll do what he asks every time. Like he's a prophet to be worshipped," Ryo's eyes darkened.
Kazuya's eyes were a bit misty, but he bit down the distressed cry that wanted to escape. To find out all this tonight was more than distressing. His beliefs, his whole world, was crashing down around him as he realized that his father, the Leader whom he had always believed to be like a hero ridding the world of evil, was nothing more than an evil man who had manipulated everyone here. There was no vision for the betterment of humanity, there was no good side; it was like, with what they had found out, everything that his manipulations had caused was revealed and…
After a moment, he looked at Ryo, "Can we just forget for now?" he asked.
Ryo looked surprised for a moment, staring at him with a thoughtful frown, but then he leaned in, making their lips meet in a soft, almost desperate, kiss. The guilt inside that Kazuya had once felt at not telling the Leader about his relationship, as was the law in their - no, his - society, wasn't present for once. He wanted to forget, he wanted to do nothing but forget, and Ryo - Ryo had always been able to take away the loneliness of being in this society, take away the guilt of what they did.
Before things went further though, Kazuya stopped, lips inches from Ryo's; he reached for something in his jeans pocket. A chained pendant, and…a tiny, sealed, packet just small enough to fit in the pendant, which he opened. .
"There's a pill in there, and instructions how it's made and what it's composed of…" Kazuya said softly, "Knowing what I do now, I don't feel safe going into that meeting tomorrow, alone. I know perfectly well what some of the scientists have been developing. And…I stole one of their samples. If…if he really does what I think he might do…I - I didn't tell him that you knew, and he thinks I found out all of this while you were keeping watch outside, so…if you have this, it might take a bit of work, but I'm sure you could figure out how to reverse this. You're smart enough to get help from the scientists without asking directly. You can do it." he said, though his voice wavered.
"Kazuya…" Ryo's voice hitched a little.
"If something does happen to me, it's up to you, Ryo." Kazuya said, holding the chained pendant, now hiding something much more ominous than it had looked to Ryo, "You can't let him keep doing this to everyone. To us." he said firmly, almost pleadingly.
Ryo hesitated, "No way he'll -" but then he stopped himself. There was no way of knowing, was there? After a moment, he accepted the offered chained pendant, slipping it on, "Only if something happens to you."
Kazuya smiled, almost sadly, before leaning in to kiss Ryo once more, closing the already small distance between them.
Suddenly, Ryo was feeling the same fears that Kazuya was.
"If something does happen, I promise that I'll save you," Ryo said, this time trying to put on a show of smug confidence. It helped keep away the fears for a little while.
Kazuya's smile widened at that, "At least I'll finally make you spend more time in the science building…" he teased just a little, as he closed the distance between them once again.
* * *
"Welcome back," were the words Ryo said to greet the familiar brown eyes opening to look into his own dark ones. Amidst the confused emotions on Kazuya's face, a slow smile spread as well.
"I'm back," Kazuya said, taking the hand Ryo was extending to him.
---- END ----
As you can see, kamexkame, I really did deviate from your original prompt a little. (Hopefully, you still liked it enough not to care that I deviated from it? :D) I also kind of took 'cult' up for interpretation, and I based the one here on these 2 episodes of crime dramas based on cults (Criminal Minds and Flashpoint) because I really didn't know much about them ^^;; I hope it was still okay XDDD
As for everyone else, I hope you enjoyed reading this attempt of mine to do justice to kamexkame's awesome prompt ^___^
Now, I am going to go on vacation <3333 I leave on a cruise for a week, so I will reply to comments and all that once I return :DDD Thank you for reading~~