9th of January, 9:00 pm, Ruby's room
Every light was turned off once again when Ruby returned home hours ago — something that had become more and more common over the past few weeks. — The kitchen was untouched ever since she left this morning. She ate a quick snack before she went up to her room, hesitantly locking the door behind her and drawing the curtains shut. Very uncomfortable with the whole ordeal, she lay down on her bed; however, she, alongside Kana, decided that if he were to have cameras installed, he would've most likely already tried to blackmail her; therefore, Ruby decided to return to her own home so as not to worry Miyako.
She had the newest volume of one of her favourite ongoing manga series in hand. She had been excited for the release for weeks, but now that she had it in hand, she didn't turn the page even once for more than 10 minutes.
Maybe Kana's right…
Am I too hard on Aqua?
I mean, his motives were noble, I guess-
No, that doesn't justify anything.
I don't want to have contact with people like him.
If I really wanted to, I could've even sued him, but what I am doing right now is just being done with him.
Like, can she really be mad at me for that?
She definitely can…
He is still my brother, and I didn't see him leave his room once in the past week…
For all I know, he could be dead or something, and I don't even care…
I should at least check if he is alive, not because I intend to forgive him, but like, human decency.
Like, I would also check on a stranger in this scenario.
But he could read too much into it and try to build up a relationship again, and I don't want that.
I am over him, and making him false hope is wrong. I should go to Miyako with my concerns, that way I wouldn't hur-
*crsshhk* The manga, which she held in her hand, barreled through the air only to come to a complete stop once it hit the ground about a meter away as Ruby jumped. A sharp 'krrrshh' sound tore through her room as the glass of her window shattered. She paled as soon as her head, which had faced away from the window, turned enough. Inside her room was a tall man, covered from head to toe in black, with his face obscured by an at least equally dark hood.
"It is me, Ruby. I am here to free you," the man said as he dropped his hood and took a step towards Ruby. It really was him, the same man she had encountered time upon time again without ever paying close enough attention.
She jumped off her bed and barreled towards the door as fast as she could, reaching for the handle and pulling. Dread set in as no matter how hard she tried to push, pull, and shove, the door she herself had locked half an hour prior was now the very thing that kept her caged. Her thoughts about the lock were cut short as she was violently yanked back. "Poor thing, you don't need to have fear, soon you'll see it too," the man whispered as he held Ruby close.
His fat and oily fingers over Ruby's mouth tasted like he hadn't washed them in ages as she desperately tried to bite into them to free herself from his painful grasp. His other arm locked her torso so hard she thought her ribs would crack if she'd even think about moving. Ruby became all lightheaded as his nauseating smell hit her nostrils. "Hmmpf— Hmmmpf… Hmmpf." Biting, scratching, kicking, nothing worked as her attempts at freeing herself turned more futile.
Suddenly, Ruby could breathe again as he pulled his arm away from her torso. Just as she gasped for air, she felt one of her used tops being roughly forced into her mouth, making her gag and be left with even less oxygen than before. "Don't fight it, you want this too, I know it," the man said as he slowly shoved Ruby towards her bed. One strong push and she fell onto her bed. When her eyes, which snapped closed from the fall, opened again, she saw nothing except for the intruder, right before her, looming over her.
She told herself that his eyes were filled with something she couldn't quite place; however, that was a lie, the first genuine lie she had told since Kamiki had died, because she definitely knew what his gaze meant.
"Ruby… Can you please quiet down? I can't concentrate like that," a voice came from the door after a knock which had almost been too faint to hear.
Aqua placed his ear against the door when nobody replied; he silently listened to nothing but the same silence responding, while on the inside of the room, everything but a calm silence reigned.
The moment the intruder had heard the knock, the voice, his hands were once again all over Ruby. She almost passed out from how hard he pressed his arm against her throat while her limp limbs were contained by his, as if she had the strength to even move them, right now.
"Ruby?" Aqua asked once more as he tried to be even quieter than before.
Ruby had survived it when the intruder first grabbed her, she had survived it when he pushed her onto her bed, even the hungry gaze she survived, but Aqua's steps distancing themself again is what finally made her heart shatter. Each quiet step in the hallway echoed through her head long after Aqua had taken it. "Seems like he left… So we can continue where we left off," the man whispered into Ruby's ear as his hands wandered away from her throat and down her body.
"HMPF… HMPF… HMPF," she began again, even louder, as she felt alien sensations her body was too weak to avert around her chest area. His burning hands took her autonomy away in a way Aqua never could've as they slowly began to wander down on her body.
"Are you ready for the next step, baby?" He did his best to look genuine as his yellow teeth formed a rather creepy smile; one hand gently glid over her thighs, and the other over her face.
Even if his words wouldn't give Ruby enough reasons to vomit, the foul odor that came from his mouth definitely did. Small tears prickled through the air as Ruby used her last strength left to violently shake her head.
"You…" A voice, almost too deep and too venomous, filled the room. The guy, who still rubbed his hands over Ruby's face just a second ago, froze in place, with his hand now resting on Ruby's cheek as he looked over his shoulder. He felt the same way Ruby felt a few minutes ago, perhaps even worse, as, instead of a stranger, Aqua climbed through her window, using the same ladder Ruby's attacker had used to get in. His sclera was crimson red, contrasting the blue of his once so beautiful eyes.
"Get off her." His voice was low and menacing; Ruby had never once before heard this tone from him.
"She's my girlfriend, man, you should leave," the guy stuttered out as he hurriedly stood up and faced Aqua.
One look into Ruby's eyes was closure enough for Aqua to know everything he needed to; a cold shiver ran down the attacker's spine as he saw Aqua's expression fall even further. He stumbled a few steps back as his sweaty hands reached beneath his coat to pull out a shiny knife. Aqua dodged back as the knife whistled through the air, but he was too slow, red blood trickling down his chin as he regained posture.
Aqua lost ground as the man began to wildly slash back and forth while inching forward. "Go away! We don't need you here!" This wasn't like Schrödinger's cat, where, when you don't look, you couldn't be sure what went on inside the box. Aqua knew the wall came from behind him, fast. Then, his back hit the wall when *Thump.* Ruby, barely herself, kicked the closet, which stood at the foot of her bed, hard enough that she would've screamed in pain if it weren't for the gag, hard enough to make the inexperienced attacker try to shoot a quick glance back at her.
*swoosh*
The attacker didn't even have remotely enough time to react before Aqua's fist connected with the side of his skull. The knife clattered to the floor as the impact made him fly right through the locked door into the hallway.
Aqua looked at his hands for a short moment, unable to understand how he used that much force, then he chased after him. In the hallway, Aqua saw the guy desperately trying to get away, heading towards the stairs. "Fuck this, I'm getting out of here," the guy murmured to himself.
He held the side of his skull with one hand, thick blood seeping through his fingers, as he used his other hand to guide him along the wall while knocking over various vases and pictures.
A few loud steps and another blow connected with his head. It was enough to send him down to the floor for good, crashing against a big wardrobe on his way down. Fear reflected in his eyes as he looked up at Aqua, who silently loomed over him. "P-P-Please, leave me alone."
Yet, the same way he hadn't planned on showing mercy to Ruby, neither Aqua planned on showing mercy to him.
A loud crunch, similar to the sound of a thick branch being snapped in two, ripped through the hallway as Aqua felt multiple ribs shatter into pieces beneath the kick he had invested all his pent-up anger in. A few more kicks and the intruder was howling from the pain, unable to even speak, much less beg for mercy.
Aqua burned, brighter than he should burn even now. It felt like he wasn't in total control of his body anymore; instead, he just went with the flow and didn't hate it. In reality, he actually enjoyed himself quite a lot.
Aqua's expression was completely void of emotion as he knelt over the attacker, like it were the most normal thing in the world. A bone-chilling crunch, then blood spewing towards Aqua as his fist connected with the now even further deformed face of the attacker.
Aqua's knuckles blew open as his second punch hit the mouth. Some teeth were knocked out clean, while others were broken off to show the black decay within them. Black decay, which was slowly feeding on them… familiar.
The third punch finally granted the attacker the mercy of losing consciousness. Yet, Aqua continued, looking down at the disfigured face before him while placing his hands on the attacker's throat. Both men looked equally monstrous for vastly different reasons.
Ruby, who sat on her bed during this entire ordeal, completely paralyzed by fear, finally snapped out of her trance as she heard the sickening sounds from the hallway. She pulled the gag out of her mouth and ran out of her room. She halted as soon as she turned the corner. A sick gurgling sound that was 100 times worse than the sound of chalk filled her entire mind. The sight was like something out of a horror movie. Aqua sat on top of the guy; his grip around the man's throat was tight and professional. He didn't even look at the man; instead, he looked at the wall, seemingly at something.
Ruby, who was once again frozen from the scene, watched in agony for a moment before sprinting towards them. "STOP!" She screamed in fear as she desperately tried to pull and shove Aqua, who didn't move an inch, off the guy. "STOP, DON'T KILL HIM, PLEASE." Her vision turned watery as she tried again and again. Then, after one particularly strong pull, something impacted with her cheek, strong enough to send her flying backwards, falling over, and landing on her butt. She held her burning cheek as she looked right at Aqua. He wasn't choking anymore; instead, he sat completely still, looking at Ruby, then at his hands.
Ruby's face was filled with regret and pain as she truly looked at Aqua for the first time in a week, her stomach twisted and turned while her heart ached — Her breathing was just as irregular as the unconscious guy's. Aqua's frail frame combined with the yellow teeth made him look like he had been smoking crack for at least a year, while his almost completely bloodshot eyes were covered by his scrawny-looking and oily hair, which fell into his face.
Then he got up, still looking at his hands, then at Ruby's face, then his hands, then Ruby's face. He stood still for a moment, looking at Ruby while towering over the attacker, before he turned and ran. Down the stairs, out of the door, and into the night, leaving Ruby and the unconscious stalker behind in the light.
…
Ruby scrambled over to the injured attacker. There was no need for her to check the pulse; the gurgling noise which came from his mouth told her that he was still very much alive, yet perhaps not for long.
"Oh no no no no," Ruby's shaking hands hovered just a few inches over the attacker's body. "What should I do?" Ruby asked herself, as her mind was torn. On her left shoulder, there was the angel, telling her to crawl back to her room and call an ambulance; on the right one was the devil, gently whispering into Ruby's ear that he deserved nothing else.
Ruby buried her face in her hands; the gurgling, the angel, the devil, too loud; the iron in the air, the faint humming of the lamp, her own quick breaths, too loud; the attacker's ragged breaths, the light overhead, the ground beneath her feet, too loud; the fabric of her disheveled clothes against her skin, the oily hair on her scalp, the light bruises on her flesh, too loud.
Ruby's hands clawed her blonde hair, strong enough to almost rip it out, as her arms covered over her ears, and her face remained buried into her knees.
"What happened here?" Ruby's welled-up eyes looked up as she heard a familiar voice pierce through everything else she had heard; some things there, some things not. Never once before had she gotten up this quickly.
*thump* A few steps in, and she was sent barreling back down as she tripped over the unmoving body of the attacker, who still lay in the middle of the hallway. "ouch" Ruby quietly groaned as she looked up at Miyako, who was silently looking down at her.
"I- The- Then- Aqua- This guy- but- help- please-" Ruby brabbled out as she tried to get back up. But her legs wouldn't let her, so she crawled; if it weren't for Miyako, Ruby would've fallen down the stairs, which had rapidly approached her from behind.
"Don't worry… We'll fix this," Miyako said as she held Ruby's hand, not too tight, so she wouldn't make it all even worse, but tight enough that Ruby wouldn't accidentally kill herself.
Up until now, Ruby hadn't even noticed her own hand being drenched in burning hot blood; however, the gentle warmth that radiated off Miyako's hand felt a billion times more than any other sensation she had felt over the entire rest of the encounter.
Miyako looked around the room after she had made herself certain that Ruby wasn't in any way injured or in danger. Her eyes wandered through the completely wrecked hallway, over her art, which wasn't really expensive, over the broken door that hung into the hallway, over the bleeding attacker, until it landed on the bloody knife. She looked down at Ruby as she let go of her limp hand and placed it in her lap. Then she walked through the hallway while she made sure not to step into any of the blood on the ground, which turned out to be quite the challenge.
She picked up Ruby's used top, which lay beside the knife up and used it to carefully pick up the knife and bring it closer to the still unconscious attacker, before finally calling an ambulance.
…
*HhhAhh…* *hhhuhhh–hhhaaaaghh* *Hhhhh–Aahhh*
Aqua's breaths were loud and uneven as he finally stopped running. He stood under a lone bridge where not even the sound of cars could be heard, or a trace of manmade light could be seen. If it was from what just went down, or from the ten-minute sprint didn't really matter, but his lungs felt like they were about to explode.
His clothes stuck to his body, drenched in what looked like more blood than Kamiki had in his entire body. His bruised hands, which he held close to his face, too, though there he wasn't even sure if it was the attacker's or his own.
*Hhhkhhhh–* *HhhhAhhh…HhhhhhAhhhh* *Hhhhh–Kkkhhh*
"T-That wasn't me… I-I-I didn't… didn't want this… didn't do this." His entire body was shaking, contorting under the harsh winter air and the knowledge of what he had done. He almost killed another man, and what was even worse for him, he struck Ruby.
"H-How did this happen? I-I-I never lose control like that." Aqua cowered against the cold and hard wall of the underpass of the bridge. The wind that blew over from the long, moonlit river in front busted his knuckles open even further as he pressed his legs against his torso and wrapped his arms around them.
*HhKhhhh* HhhhKhhhhh–HhhhUuuhhh…* *HhhhhUh*
"This m-m-might even ruin… her career…"
"I didn't want this… Didn't do this… this wasn't me."
It felt like the bridge above would collapse over his head, as now, after all, a car, which was hearable long after it had passed over him due to the Doppler effect, disturbed his silence. When it had finally passed, and Aqua just wanted to settle back and die, he heard faint footsteps that sounded closer than they should be.
He froze as, from the same uneven flight of stairs he took to get down to this forgotten spot which reeked of algae and moss, a new set of steps echoed. Aqua made himself as small as he could, hoping that whoever would just pass by, although the smell of blood Aqua had already adapted to was probably far too overwhelming to miss.
Eventually, after a while, the steps stopped just as randomly as they had appeared, though they never really came closer. Aqua lifted his head again, and his heart almost stopped alongside the steps. Tera stood right before him, utterly silent, with his face obscured by the shadows.
"What happened is not your fault," He said, "You might've overdone it, but your intent was pure, kindhearted even."
"B-B-But Ruby," Aqua stuttered out.
"You didn't hit her hard, I saw it… She will be fine, you saved her from a far worse fate, a fate which some might even call worse than death."
Tera pulled his hand out of the pocket of his suit and held it right between him and Aqua. His eyes widened as the air above the hand erupted in bright golden flames, blinding him, yet not quite reaching Tera's face. After a moment, the flame died again, leaving behind a single piece of paper which slowly glid towards the ground, landing in Aqua's lap.
"Look, let's end my test here…" Tera said as he let his hand glide back into his pocket, "This piece of paper is what you need to bring her back… You deserve it after all of this."
Aqua hesitated for just a moment before he greedily grabbed the page. No matter how hard he squinted, though, the spot was far too dark to read anything.
"T-Thanks, Tera," he mumbled as he secured the piece of paper with a lone rock, to not get any more blood onto it than he had already smeared upon it.
"Don't mention it…" Tera said as he summoned a new pair of clothing the same way he had summoned the piece of paper.