Chapter Text
“Yuya!” The voice was piercing- and impossible to ignore, but he still tried. He groaned, covering his eyes lazily with his arm.
“Yuya!” The voice came again, closer this time and followed by a knocking on the wall. No ignoring his mom now. “I need your help in the shop, get up please.”
Without a second thought he groaned again as he rose from his bed, hair messy and wild. He mumbled something along the lines of “I got it-” but by then his mom had already left to head the shop… he grabbed something to wear without really even looking, the only important thing when working with his mom were the goggles- the protective equipment was always down in the welding room . And boy did she make it known- if he forgot to put on a single piece of equipment he knew he’d be hearing about it all day.
About half way down the stairs Yuya felt a wave of heat wash over him, taken aback he hesitated to take another step, but the thought of his mom being even more upset was a more worrying thought.
It was muggy, especially for a spring day. And when you're working inside, well, things can get pretty humid, and Yuya was not one to like heat. Spending only an hour at the metal moulding station making his face turn red and the boy feel like he was baking alive.
“Tell me why we don’t have some kind of cooling machine again?” He wasn’t expecting any sort of response, as he continued to delicately stretch the molten metal.
“You know how expensive things like that are? Just be grateful upstairs has a draft.”
There was a mumbled response the yellow haired lady couldn’t quite hear- she briefly thought about inquiring on what her son had said but the familiar jingle of the door caught her attention. Heading towards the front desk once again. “Good morning!” She greeted cheerfully, before even seeing who had entered her store. When she saw the familiar black and blue hair her ‘customer service’ demeanour wavered.
“Oh, hello Yuto.”
“Morning Misses Sakaki.” The kid, one of Yuya's friends- waved. “Wondering if Yuya was free, me and a couple of friends are hanging out near that rec tree.”
Yoko huffed, looking dissatisfied with the thought of Yuya getting off with so little work- but by the time she opened her mouth to respond, the boy and her son had already taken off out of the shop, Yuya leaving her with his welding equipment.
But he was still young, she thought.
Better let him enjoy the time he has.
-
Yuya let his legs dangle in front of him as he sat on a particularly high branch on what the kids in the town had dubbed ‘the rec tree’ . In all honesty it was just a tree some kids had decided to paint and decorate, the addition of a swing was very recent… But in a small town like this, it was kind of the place everyone wanted to be. Especially younger kids.
He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t eager to give it a go- but it seemed very crowded at the moment.
“Dad tried to get me to man his shop again today- what a pain.” Yuto spoke. Taking a seat next to him- though he was huffing from the climb. “Man Yuya- how are you so good at climbing?”
“Dunno.” Yuya shrugged. “Parents always said I was like a monkey.”
“Yeah, a crazy circus monkey.”
Yuya scowled almost immediately at the comment, but the only thing that earned him was laughter from Yuto.
Yuto’s smile was extremely contagious, Yuya couldn’t help but laugh with him. “I may not be a monkey but I’d bet I’d be an awesome acrobat- y’know if I practice.” The green haired boy would never admit that he had wanted to do some sort of acrobatic performance since he was five.
“You should follow that, you’d be amazing at it.” A voice boomed from below them. Gongenzaka had arrived and heard the endings of the conversation.
“Oh, resident demon hunter’s here.” Yuto said jokingly, before turning to yuya to see his reaction to the burly boy's statement.
“I.. you know I can’t just leave my mom though, she’s got no one left to hand that shop to.” He caught his eyes drifting to something far off in the woods, something that seemed really odd- but as he blinked it was gone, and he forced himself to stay engaged. “It would be unfair to leave her like… like he did y’know?”
The word still stung his throat, he still found it hard to think about it. And time had only healed so much. There was a knowing pat from Yuto and a firm “sorry.” From Gongenzaka.
They didn’t need him to say his name to know who Yuya was talking about.
“Come on, let’s go get a snack or something at that cafe Nagi place in town, that swing isn’t clearing up anytime soon I don’t think.” Yuya blurted out, it was something he did often to keep himself from getting caught in bad thoughts, plus he could go for a sandwich.
-
The walk there was uneventful, but out in the sun one could really feel the heat. It was almost unnatural heat- especially at the start of spring. But still a sense of relief washed over all of them as they made it inside the cafe.
It wasn’t particularly busy, or maybe they had beat the rush. None the less they plopped themselves down at a table.
The first thing Yuya noticed was the familiar store clerk wasn’t there, instead it was a kid.
Jin Kusanagi to be exact.
“Er…” no one exactly hated Jin, but something about his demeanour drove people away.
It was probably his eyes.
“Who’s gonna be the one to order-“
“Not it.” The two other boys said in unison, before he even had the chance to say it himself. “Gee thanks guys.” He made sure to lace his voice with sarcasm.
“Hey you’re the one who recommended we come here- you should be the one who pays!” Yuto spoke matter of factly. Gongenzaka nodded in agreement.
“Gon, you too?”
“I… the truth is I just don’t have any money…” the tall boy looked rather sheepish- or maybe it was embarrassment?
Well, at this point it really didn’t matter, with a defeated sigh Yuya spoke. “Alright- but we’re all getting a plain sandwich- that’s the punishment-“
The boys mumbled in complaint, but by that point Yuya was already heading to the front to order.
“Oh- Yuya, what would you like to order?” Jin spoke normally enough, but he seemed a touch distant.
“Uh just 3 of those cheap sandwiches- ones with cheese and veggies.” He ordered, already having the money placed on the counter- he’d been here way too much. “Uh so that comes to- oh you already- OK.” Jin seemed taken aback- like he wasn’t used to people already handing him money but he took it- softly adding that “your sandwiches will be ready shortly.” before disappearing into the kitchen.
Yuya shuffled to the side, eyeing Jin as he vanished behind the swinging doors. “What an odd guy.” he hadn’t meant to say it aloud but did- mostly to himself, though part of him expected a reply from Yuto.
Instead it was another voice.
“No more odd than you, Yuya.”
He flinched, even though he was aware of who the voice belonged to.
“Yuzu- hi-“ his words came out fast and jumbled as he met eyes with his old childhood friend.
“I didn’t think you’d be out today. How are things going with uh-“ he made an odd motion with his hand, trying to imitate a blooming flower. “Magic-“
Yuzu chuckled- “not great really- I don’t really understand what any of the books in the local library mean when they talk about finding the inner soul and then-“ she stretched her arms out in front of her. “Make it flow to the right place.” The pink haired girl relaxed her arms, but looked rather perplexed, no doubt thinking about what she had read.
“Um- your food.”
Jin spoke up, rather meekly. When Yuya grabbed the tray from him he noticed Jin looked more… off than normal. His hands shaking, and eyes wide. “Everything OK Jin?” Now Yuya didn’t know the boy too well but he wasn’t about to ignore someone in distress.
Jin opened his mouth, before abruptly shutting it. He looked at both of them- and then tried to smile, though it wasn’t fooling anyone. “Don’t worry about it- consider heading out soon though.”
Huh?
Without another word Jin vanished back into the kitchen again.
The two outstanding kids turned to look at each other.
“Uh-“
“It’s better not to ask.” Yuya spoke, turning around to deliver the food to his friends. But Yuzu quickly stopped him. “Actually- I know you're hanging out with Yuto and Gon right now. But if you finish your meal quick, come outside.” She smiled. “I actually do have something I wanna talk to you about.”
Yuya blinked.”Ah- uh- OK.” And then she was off, how she could stand to be outside at all was beyond him.
Walking back to the other two boys Yuya was immediately the centre of attention.
“So?” Yuto inquired, between taking bites of his sandwich.
“So, what?” Yuya questioned back as he sat down taking a bite of his own.
“Yuto is askin’ about Yuzu- what’d she talk to you about?” Gongenzaka finished Yuto’s own thought. The boy looked rather annoyed by it.
“What was she talking about- did she ask you out?”
“Um, no?” He took another huge bite. “ I mean- she said she wanted to talk when I’m done eating-“
“Ok then, see yah.”
“Y- what?”
Yuto side eyed him. “We all know you’ll do anything for Yuzu.”
“That-“
“Yuzu means a lot to him, stop teasing Yuya.” Gongenzaka glared at the boy- he had known Yuzu for just as long and knew how important a friend she was…
Yuto blinked. “Was just teasing, you go see her-“
Yuya hesitated on his final bite, Yuto always teased him about this. It was something he was easily flustered by. “Uh, thanks-“
He almost looked lost heading to the exit- but breathed and walked out.
It was still just as hot, if not hotter when he went outside. “This heatwave is insane.” He said aloud, tugging at his collar.
“Tell me about it.” Yuzu replied, though this time The green haired boy expected as much. He turned to meet her eyes- “so uh, what did you wanna talk about?” He scratched his head nervously-
“Come, let's get out of the sun first.” Her smile made the heat a little more bearable.
At the forest lining the heat was much more subdued- though it might also have something to do with the sun beginning to set.
“So… what did you wanna talk about?” He tried his best to sound casual, but the thought of what it could be weighed on his mind-
Yuzu’s serious behaviour was also adding to the suspense.
“Ok- um.” She almost sounded as unsure as him. “Me and dad, we talked briefly about magic- and how beneficial it would be to learn it-“
There was this small feeling of envy- but Yuya refocused.
“He thinks I- well Ok we BOTH think it would be beneficial to go and… and travel to a place that’s better equipped to help me learn.” Yuzu tried her best to word what she was thinking.
“But he can't just leave-th-but I don’t wanna go alone. So I was wondering if…” she paused, almost feeling like her lungs were about to catch fire. “You would come wi-“
There’s a sudden rumbling, like the ground was gurgling for a moment. It draws both of their attention away- Yuzu’s final words going unsaid.
What was that-what the hell was that.
In the centre of town the ground heaved and gave way to the utter weight of a… thing that had barreled into buildings and anything in its way.
There was screaming, and the heat- he didn’t know if that thing had caused the fires or the dreaded weather. But the air became almost too hot, skin itching with a strangely hot and cold sensation…
“Wh-what is that thing?” He almost felt like laughing, this isn’t real right? This couldn’t be real…
His mind would not settle and Yuzu’s next words also went unheard… and then she ran, straight for the centre of town-
He felt like screaming, he wanted to grab at her- yell about how dangerous it would be.
But he was stuck- he felt like his whole body was made of lead- yet in the back of his mind he cursed at his urge to run.
“Yuzu-“ his voice was strangled and coarse- she couldn’t hear him, she had already run off.
“Yuzu don’t go-“
He grit his teeth and clenched his fist. “Damn it- damn it!” In his burst of frustration, he powered his own limbs, running into the mayhem.
The thing roared, its voice metallic and unnatural, heat billowing off it as it stomped and demolished anything in its wake.
It almost looked machine like. He thought, right before tumbling over some object on the floor- he wasn’t aware enough to catch himself and fell right on his face. Teeth rattling together and causing a fresh new wave of pain. But he refused to stop here- Yuzu had to be somewhere…
As he ran he noticed the charred houses and bodies- strewn everywhere and he felt a burning feeling in the back of his throat- like a mixture of wanting to scream and hurl at the same time. It was only when he ran out of breath did he have to stop himself from dry heaving. The flames and bodies around him- if anyone else had gone running into this he wouldn’t have followed…
But this was Yuzu.
“Yuzu!” He called again, his voice weak and raspy.
He didn’t expect an answer- not with the fire and smoke around him- but he heard a scream.”Yuzu?” He asked, hearing it come from just around the corner of the burning house.
He didn’t even think he just ran, turning the corner only to be met with an indescribably painful wave of heat- forcing him to squint.
But he saw her- she was running, her hair messy and her pigtails undone- for a moment everything was Ok.
And then the jaws of the creature chasing her snapped shut and she was gone. The only thing remaining was her outstretched arm. And then it’s eyes locked right on him.
But all he could focus on was that arm. He didn’t think he was even breathing at this point-
She was gone.
Everyone was gone.
The things roar sounded distant- he felt distant. A buzzing in his mind and on his skin. The vibration of the beasts steps matching with his own heart beat.
Stop
This isn’t how things were supposed to go-
Stop-
The pounding persists- he can no longer stand.
Stop it- stop-
STOP!
There’s a shift, the heat vanished from the air- for a moment Yuya wouldn’t open his eyes. He was probably dead anyways, right?
But he still felt fatigued- despite the lack of heat, he could feel everything else…
“Open your eyes mortal, I have stopped it as you wished.”
The voice was unfamiliar to the young boy- but he obliged with it.
What he saw when he opened them- he couldn’t quite comprehend. It’s form almost as big as the creature (that stood there frozen) but it’s form kept shifting- and he found it hard to stare.
“What are you?”
The creature laughed, it’s voice echoing and booming.
“Humans really aren’t loyal to us- few thousand years and you guys forget everything we’ve done for you-“
It’s yellow eyes locked to the boy.
“ it doesn’t really matter what I am, does it? I noticed your strong desire, and this destruction so I have come to revel in it…”
the giant dragon trailed off-
But Yuya barely noticed. The boy trying to wrap his head around what exactly was happening. This thing was obviously magical- it had completely stopped time…
An idea formed.
“S-so you stopped time?”
The creature had been looking at the scenery instead of the boy-
“I stopped it for now, yes.”
“Can you reverse it?”
“Excuse me?”
“Can you reverse time.” Yuya again tried looking into its eyes. But it’s emotions were unreadable. It’s eyes just seemed to flicker, it’s very blurry form drawing closer- yet not getting clearer.
“I can do anything. For a price of course.”
“Then please- please fix this- I’ll give you anything- even my life if it means this never happens.” He points at the still frozen mech creature. The thought of being no more fills him with dread, but.
As long as everyone remained safe, it didn’t matter.
“Anything?”
The creature seemed almost surprised- but again it was hard to tell. But it faded almost instantly, replaced with the joyous glint of its eyes.
“You got yourself a deal, I’ll even erase that things existence. ”
It’s form shifted again, drawing closer. Something like a claw slowly approaching Yuya- he almost flinched until it stopped.
“ All we have to do is shake on it.”
Yuya blinked, for some reason this felt like something, someone had warned him about. But the thought of everyone being Ok was an overwhelming force.
He finally picked himself up off the ground- his knees shook but he stood firm. He looked and locked eyes with the creature. “Deal.” Yuya said, firmly placing his hand on the palm of giant creatures' own claws.
It slowly closed its claws around it- shaking his arm lightly.
“Don’t come to regret your choice now.”
As soon as those claws closed around his hand a wave of pain shot through him. And in a second everything went dark.