Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1
“What do I do when lightning strikes me?” from Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”

“Hey, bro! Hold off on attacking this guy. I’m not finished with him. I can still beat him!”

“Attack?” The words had barely left Josuke Higashikata’s lips when he caught sight of a multitude of tiny flares glittering in the darkness and heard the accompanying rat-a-tat of what he might have described as strangely pitched gunfire. But no…it couldn’t have been…that made no sense...

He found himself darting to the left as a volley of some unidentified projectiles went whistling past his ear. He’d only just been fast enough.

As Josuke crashed into the floor, he twisted himself around in preparation to either dodge or defend. This blonde asshole meant business and Josuke figured he wouldn’t hesitate to kill him.

But the elder Nijimura had paused. He wasn’t looking at Josuke. He was looking at the form of his younger sibling who stood in the entryway of the house. Okuyasu Nijimura swayed unsteadily for a moment and then slowly, ever so slowly, he teetered backwards and then, all at once, he was on the floor gasping and gurgling through a face covered in trickling blood.

Josuke had the sickening realization that Okuyasu had been behind him. Okuyasu had taken the full brunt of the attack that had been meant for him. And something in that actually made him feel pretty shitty. Yeah, he’d just fought Okuyasu and the guy had landed a couple good punches, but Josuke had sensed only a half-hearted malice from him, if even that. The guy seemed street tough, but certainly not mean-spirited like his brother. He was a guy who fought because he had to and not because he enjoyed it. He took orders and did as he was told.

‘Probably because he lacks the brains to strategize or make decisions on his own.’ Josuke thought and usually he would have smirked at this kind of deprecation. But this time it felt out of place, even a bit wrong, and Josuke felt an immediate pang of guilt. He always had to be such a judgmental ass, didn’t he? Well, it was no wonder he had no friends if this was how he was with people he’d just met. But anyway, at least the younger Nijimura brother was nothing like his elder sibling. Josuke knew this much already and he couldn’t help being a bit grateful for that because otherwise he’d probably be in pieces out on the street and Koichi...well, Koichi would be guaranteed to die before the hour was up.

“Okuyasu!”

Josuke had instinctively taken a step towards the other boy. Yeah, they might be enemies, but it wasn’t like Okuyasu was going to jump up and start attacking him anytime soon. Actually, he looked pretty bad off. The entire left side of his face and upper torso was a bloody mess riddled with tiny holes and torn flesh. His left eye was pretty much ruined and Josuke could hear that each ragged breath was bringing fresh blood with it and if the poor guy didn’t find it in himself to sit up or at least roll himself over onto his stomach he’d probably end up choking to death. If Josuke had to guess, he’d probably punctured lung or something like that and now Josuke had two severely wounded people to deal with...but maybe that blonde asshole would cut him some slack if he saw him helping out his brother. But equally concerning was just considering what the elder Nijimura’s Stand had done. What sort of power did it have to do this kind of damage?

“Really, your stupidity never ceases to amaze me.“ The elder brother’s voice was hard and remorseless. “This fight would be over right now if you hadn’t come bumbling in here like the dumbass you are. I could have defeated Josuke Higashikata with a single attack. I probably would have killed him outright. But, as usual, you had to get in the way of things.”

“Anaki…” The younger brother’s voice sounded small and pleading and Josuke suddenly had a very bad feeling about this whole situation. He hadn’t been in many Stand fights, but he could already tell this wasn’t going to be an ordinary fight in any sense of the word. This wouldn’t just be a matter of knocking people out, retrieving Koichi, and heading out the door once it was all finished. There was some deep, personal business tangled up in all this as well and he had the sense that he’d just walked right in the middle of it all.

“It’s your own fault for walking into the line of fire. You’re completely incompetent. I don’t care how powerful your Stand is anymore. You’ll never learn how to use it. You’ve had so many chances to be useful. But you never learn, do you? How many times have I told you that incompetent people will always drag down the people around them? How many times?” The elder Nijimura was cool and collected, but there was a definite rage brewing under the surface. Josuke could hear it in the tightness of his voice.

“People like you only have the right to live if you keep growing. I’ve told you that. And you’ve absolutely failed me. I’ve given you chances, Okuyasu. More than you deserved. And you’ve failed me every time.”

“I’m sorry.” Okuyasu reached out a conciliatory hand towards his brother. The rat-a-tat brought his gesture down in a burst of blood.

“Stop it!” Josuke felt a strange anger that transcended everything sensible in him. It overrode his regard for his own safety and, for a few moments, his regard for Koichi’s safety; the latter was lying motionless at the elder Nijimura’s feet, but Josuke seemed to have lost sight of him. There was nothing but this sick bastard standing in front of him and threatening to kill everyone in the room, his own sibling included, because he seemed to get a kick out of deciding who was worthy of drawing breath and who wasn’t. But Josuke wasn’t about to just watch this guy butcher people. And, the whole family issue aside, anyone who shot at a guy while he was down...especially at a guy who wasn’t even trying to fight back, who was fucking apologizing and pleading like he’d done something wrong, even as he bled out across the floor...anyone who’d go after someone like that deserved to have their face pummeled in and Josuke would be more than happy to have Crazy Diamond do that.

The elder Nijimura cocked his head to one side and gave Josuke a curious, questioning look as if to ask if he really meant to get involved. Josuke stared him down. Yeah, he was about to step right into the thick of things. There was no way he was going to let him get away with this kind of shit.

RAT-A-TAT

The shots weren’t directed at Josuke. They slammed into the younger brother with a sickening succession of thumps. Okuyasu’s only response was to emit a faint groan, but no further protest or apology as if he’d finally given up trying to talk his brother down and was only trying now to accept his fate as quietly as he could. Josuke narrowed his eyes, furious. Clearly this guy was trying to fuck with him. But what the hell sort of game was this?

“Damn it! He’s your brother!” This had to be some sort of trap. This shithead had made a quick judgment of Josuke’s character and was trying to provoke him into doing something that would put him at a disadvantage. Whatever this guy's Stand was he didn't want to seem to use it haphazardly and give his opponent too many clues to its actual ability by letting him see the kind of damage it inflicted up close. Also, the way Josuke had tucked himself into the shadows near the open door...the glare of the sunlight was probably making him a bit hard to see meaning he wanted to lure him out into the open near Okuyasu so he could make a clear kill shot. He was gambling on Josuke's good nature. Because he'd gone in to try and save Koichi...and clearly this guy seemed to know more about him than vice versa and if word had gotten around about his run-in with the thug at the convenience store...and hadn't this guy said something about Angelo? Well then, if he was banking on Josuke's reputation as a good Samaritan...shit! Did this guy have his number or what!

The elder Nijimura cocked his head to one side again. “He’s of no further use to me at this point. I’ve given up on him.”

The implication of these statements was clear and the roar that tore from Josuke’s throat surprised even him. Like hell was this bastard killing his own brother. Not on his watch. No one, not Koichi and not this Okuyasu guy was dying today. And while this guy might think he knew a thing or two about Josuke, he had another thing coming.

Josuke lunged for Okuyasu.

Another round of shots sounded off, striking Josuke in the shoulder. Was that the best this asshole could do? He had a hand on Okuyasu’s chest and had grabbed hold of the front of his uniform. More shots, this time searing through Josuke’s hand. Fuck that hurt. But the elder Nijimura would have to kill him to stop him.

---

Outside, the sunlight was blinding. Josuke had laid Okuyasu out on the walkway and then stooped to catch his breath, to let his racing heart slow and the adrenaline in his veins ebb a little. He’d really only gone head to head with one other Stand user before this but somehow his encounter with Angelo had been completely different. It had been very straightforward with Angelo. He already had had an idea of Angelo’s power and so it was merely a matter of countering the initial round of attacks, trapping the Stand, and then kicking the shit out of the user to incapacitate him. Simple. That was it and that was all. But there was clearly a whole new challenging element with the Nijimura brothers and it was all he could do to sort it out in his head.

So first he’d been attacked by Okuyasu, under orders from the elder Nijimura brother, whatever his name was, who had shot Koichi and then taken him into the house while Josuke was busy fighting Okuyasu. But then the elder brother had turned on his own brother and used him to bait Josuke which really shouldn't have worked but somehow both had and hadn't at the same time because he'd landed a few hits but not any that were too bad and now he was sitting outside the house next to the guy who'd been trying to kick his ass only a little while before but whose life Josuke had just saved. Which meant…well, he had no idea what it meant, but he’d figure it out later.

For now it was enough that he’d saved this guy’s life and that he would be able to go back in an save Koichi’s. Well, he hoped he’d save Koichi anyway. He didn’t really know Koichi Hirose all that well, but Koichi’d got caught in the middle of all this Stand business and Josuke wasn’t about to let an innocent kid suffer for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Josuke was kneeling down at Okuyasu’s side now. He looked like hell but this certainly wasn’t anything Crazy Diamond couldn’t handle.

“So what’s up with your brother’s Stand? What’s its power?” Maybe he could get some useful information out of this to better his chances when he went back into the house. It couldn’t hurt to try. This guy would probably even feel a little indebted to him for the risk he’d taken for him.

“Like…hell…I…will…” Okuyasu was barely able to gasp out the words. He was choking on his own blood.

Josuke knew he shouldn’t prolong this, that he should just heal the guy and get back inside the house, but something about the hostility of his response kinda pissed him off. He yanked Okuyasu up by the front of his uniform jacket. What the hell was this guy’s problem? Hadn’t he just saved his life? What was with this ingratitude?

“Tell me about your brother’s Stand!” That sounded a bit harsh. “Tell me and I’ll heal you. Okay?” That was a bit better, but he hated making it sound like he would hold this guy’s well-being over him just for refusing to talk. But really, this information was kinda fucking important to his own well-being!

“He’s my…brother…dumbass…”

A frustrated Josuke slammed Okuyasu back down into the concrete. A bit too hard actually. Shit. Sorry. Josuke was handling this whole situation soooo well right now.

Okuyasu was gritting his teeth, probably hoping to look like he could still get up and kick Josuke’s ass. Of course, he couldn’t. That and he was probably in a lot of pain right now. But there was something else too…

“Guess I don’t have any choice.” It sounded a bit threatening, but it was a last ditch effort to learn what he wanted. But no. Fuck. That was the wrong thing to say. This guy was scared shitless, Josuke realized. He probably thought he was about to be killed. Well, no use dragging this thing out.

Josuke summoned Crazy Diamond.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2

“What have I got to do to be heard?” from Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”

Keicho Nijimura was ascending to the house’s second level with Koichi Hirose’s motionless form in tow. Yes, he’d have to kill this kid now....whoever he was. He wasn’t going to manifest a Stand anyway and at this point Keicho knew he’d gone too far with all this to turn back. He’d have to kill anyone who got in his way. And every single witness to today’s events was in his way, was going to have to die. Josuke Higashikata. This kid. Even…well, he’d always sensed it might come to that, now hadn’t he?

But first he’d use this pathetic kid to get Josuke Higashikata to come back in the house. He’d wait until Josuke rushed in to save him and then he’d dispatch them both at once. Josuke wasn’t the kind of person who ran from conflict or left people to die. He’d even put himself out there for Okuyasu. But Keicho had expected that Okuyasu won sympathy easily because as tough as he acted, his actions were never motivated by hate. That and he was just too stupid to be sincerely mean. Well, that’d keep him alive a little longer. But not much longer .

Keicho had deposited Koichi in the first room he came to. He figured he had a minute or two to hang up his weapon on the third level. It’d be best to keep it as far away from the impending fight as he could manage. But as he climbed upward once again, he noticed that his hands were shaking…badly. What the fuck was his problem? It was like that night back in February when there’d been that whole fiasco with that shitty manga artist. He’d been shaking before that fight too. Whatever was going to happen today couldn’t end like that. He was the one in control here, wasn't he? Yes. Yes, he was. And he had the upper hand right now...didn’t he?

Except he wasn’t in control. He knew that deep down. He’d known it for a while now. It had all started that night he’d nearly killed his brother giving him a Stand. And then, not long after that, the first time the arrow had failed to produce a Stand user and the unfortunate guy had bled to death in some dark alley. He’d gotten too desperate. He’d wanted out too badly.

But he’d stopped blaming himself when the arrow failed. It wasn’t his fault people were so weak. He hadn’t wanted any of them to die. He wanted them to develop Stands. He wanted one of them to set him free. They’d failed him.

He often felt the weight of those abbreviated lives like something that crushed him from the inside out. He’d told himself it didn’t matter. He shouldn’t care. It was their fate as much as his and one day it would cease to bother him at all. On the day he found the user who could dispatch his father, the world would be right again and he would leave this whole dark chapter behind him and simply forget. One day it would be just as if none of the terrible things he'd done had ever happened. He would start over.

But the thought had been coming to him with increasing frequency that starting over...really starting over... was no longer an option. That all of this would consume him. That he’d crossed a line he could never uncross. And the more he thought of it, the more he began to believe that perhaps Okuyasu was in the same boat and that they were both headed for the rocks. Of course, Keicho had tried to leave his brother in the dark about everything as long as he could. The bow and arrow had always been Keicho’s
affair and his alone. He was the older brother and it was his responsibility. But it wasn’t as if Okuyasu was unaffected. He lived in the shadow of the brother he trusted so implicitly. And somehow Okuyasu never seemed to sense the cold, remorseless fingers of fate closing a little tighter around his throat every time Keicho came home needing to take his anger out on something.

Keicho had been always been quick-tempered, even when they were younger, but his rage had taken on a much darker edge in the past several months. Each time he snapped was exponentially worse than the last. At first he had only left bruises, but lately, he’d gotten to the point where he’d leave his brother bleeding and unconscious for several hours at a time. And now today, with his Stand…Okuyasu would be fortunate to survive. Well, maybe fortunate wasn’t the right word. Any life with Keicho in it, the way he was now, wasn’t a fortunate life. Something in Keicho sensed that his brother’s uncompromising refusal to abandon his older brother would be his death sentence. And what should have alarmed him as the older brother, Keicho realized, was that he wasn’t as alarmed by this possibility as he’d been before. Sometimes he even thought of it as a mercy. It was almost like an unavoidable fact looming in the near future. Like Keicho killing again with the bow and arrow. It was fact...fate.

But right now he needed to focus, to mentally regroup, to look at the situation one more time. He figured the small, blonde kid was just about dead, so there was one issue that would resolve itself. Next, Josuke Higashikata. Assuming Keicho was correct, which was he undoubtedly was, Josuke would try to get to the brat in order to heal him. And as far as Keicho knew, the primary function of Josuke’s Stand was fixing things and that really wouldn’t be of much use against Bad Company. If Josuke had the power to heal himself, which didn’t seem likely, but if that was the case...well, really it didn’t matter because Bad Company was certain to overwhelm him in the end.

And really, Keicho did have the advantage here. Even though he might not be in a position to chance a one-on-one confrontation, unless that form of combat became absolutely necessary, there was nothing obligating him to fight fair. He could stage his offensive any way that he liked. He’d wait until Josuke approached the blonde kid. He’d lure him into a vulnerable position. And then…well, it’d only take a single barrage to finish him. And that was it. It would all be over and Keicho would continue on as he had before.

Yes, he felt much more sure now. He had regained control.

Satisfied, Keicho Nijimura descended the stairs back to the second level.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3
“What have I got to do?” from Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”

“I don’t get it. Why did you heal me?”

“Forget it.” Josuke was crouching near the door into the house.

“I’m still your enemy. I could attack you.”

“Yeah, sure. Later. I’m busy right now.” Was this guy actually dismissing him?

“I’m serious.” And he was. Maybe.

“Uh-huh. You want a piece of me?”

“After you answer my question. I’m really not that smart so you’re going to have to tell me.”

Josuke softened a bit, capitulating. “There’s no deep reason. Really, there isn’t. I’m no hero or anything.”

This whole false modesty thing was getting on Okuyasu’s nerves. Now that he was back on his feet, he ought to be beating the crap out of this guy. That’s what Keicho would tell him to do. But Keicho wasn’t here. And he wanted to know what kind of games this guy was trying to play. You didn’t just suddenly start acting all friendly towards the guy you were just fighting with. Was this some kind of trick? ‘Cause it was a really good one if it was.

‘’’There’s no reason this guy has to die’. That’s what I thought back there. That’s all.”

This made Okuyasu stop short. Was this Josuke guy serious?

“Look. Okuyasu. I’m going back in there to save Koichi. If he dies though…I don’t know what I’ll do to your brother. Just stay out of this. Got it?” Josuke turned to go.

“W-w-why haven’t you healed yourself?” Okuyasu pointed to Josuke’s hand, which was dotted with small holes where Bad Company had shot him. “You got that when you went in to save me. Why don’t you fix yourself like you fixed me?”

“Because my Stand doesn’t work like that. Now, just stay out of this.” Josuke was gone in an instant, the darkness of the house swallowing him up all at once.

Okuyasu stood blinking in the sunlight. He had no idea how to process what was happening. How come this complete stranger, supposedly his enemy, gave a shit about whether he lived or died? How come he’d even gone so far as to risk his own safety to save a guy who had tried to kick his ass not even ten minutes ago? And a guy that had gotten in the way of him saving the little blonde kid…Okuyasu hadn’t known Keicho would shoot the kid with that bow and arrow. He trusted his brother wouldn’t actually kill someone…would he? He’d had his suspicions lately, but really this was Keicho. His own brother. His brother didn’t kill people. All that shit about weak people not deserving to live…that was only him talking tough…right? Had his brother messed up? Maybe he hadn’t meant to make a fatal shot with that arrow. You didn’t need to make the shot fatal to create a Stand user, right? Shit! Had he been in the way? The way he’d had that kid’s neck pinned in the gate…was it his fault he’d had to make that kind of a shot? Because he couldn’t see properly or something. No…that wasn’t right. Was it? Damnit. Why was thinking about stuff so hard?

He looked into the house. It was dead quiet. What was going on in there? Clearly Josuke hadn’t run into his brother yet. Or had he and Keicho had just come up on him real quietly and…no! His brother didn’t kill people. He didn’t. And he, Okuyasu, really must be a fucking dumbass for thinking that. But Keicho had shot that kid…and he might not be too smart, but he figured the kid would die if Josuke didn’t get to him pretty soon…and Keicho meant to fight Josuke…but the kid couldn’t die or that would make Keicho a…no... his brother wasn’t like that. His brother wasn’t a bad person! Sure, he might have a temper and do some pretty crappy stuff from time to time, but nothing as bad as...well, as bad as what he’d just done. Of course, there’d been all that stuff he’d tried to do to their dad over the years...but none of that had actually worked. And so this would be really different if someone actually died this time. But Josuke could stop that from happening. So if Josuke needed to get to that kid to save him, then he’d just have to help him. For his brother’s sake. And because he must owe Josuke some kind of favor.

“Hey, Josuke! Wait up!”

He took the stairs two at a time. Josuke was at the door to a room on the second level. And there was Koichi laid out in the middle of the room. Josuke had his hand on the doorframe. He was stepping inside.

“Hey, I thought you were gonna stay out of this?” Josuke paused. The look on his face told Okuyasu he was a split second away from bolting into that room…and into the line of fire. Didn’t this dumbass realize he was being lured in there?

“Josuke!” Okuyasu had latched onto Josuke to restrain him. The Hand was rushing forward in an instant.

“You fucking bastard. What the hell are you-“

The Hand, with one quick swipe, had erased the space between Josuke and the injured kid whose body was now gliding across the floor…straight to Josuke’s feet! For the briefest moment, Okuyasu was giddy at his success. That had actually worked! Arguably, just arguably, that had been pretty competent of him or whatever that big word Keicho used was! But Okuyasu’s sense of accomplishment was fleeting. He felt that his brother, wherever he was, wouldn’t like this. Actually, he’d probably get the shit beaten out of him later, but hadn’t it been the right thing to do? It felt right. But he better not push things.

“There. We’re even now. But I’m not gonna help you anymore. Okay? This was just a one time thing.” Okuyasu turned to go. “And I’m not gonna help my brother either. I’m just gonna stay out of it now.”

Okuyasu put his hands in his pockets and began trudging down the stairs. That’s when he heard Josuke’s voice humming behind him.

“That’s just great, Okuyasu.”

He couldn’t be sure if Josuke had meant for him to hear the remark and he wasn’t about to turn back and ask. But as he reached the first floor and passed out of the house, Okuyasu felt a small half-smile tugging at the corner of his mouth and daring him to accept first nice thing anyone had said to him in a while.

---

The street was silent. Okuyasu’s initial thought was that he would walk away completely. Yes, he’d just walk down the street and wait at a park or something and then come back in a couple hours. He’d been halfway to the gate when Bad Company’s first attack rang through the house, rattling windows and making Okuyasu’s stomach turn. He’d run back to the front step and been about to charge back in…then there was a second strike…he’d said he wouldn’t interfere…and a third…he sank onto the front step…and it all just kept going and going.

His skin was crawling and he felt sick. He didn’t want it to be real. Please, let it finish and everyone walk out alive. Please let Keicho be okay. Please let those other two make it out. Don’t let Keicho kill them. Or anyone. Let it just be a stupid fight like guys tend to have from time to time. Nothing serious. A bit of name calling, a few punches, and done. But Stands weren’t like that. Fighting with Stands was nothing like that. Stands were only meant to destroy and to hurt. Well, maybe Josuke’s Stand was a little different…but if that was all it could do then it’d make it that much easier for another Stand to…no…no one was going to die. Please, let no one die.

The battle upstairs had been growing in intensity. Was it wrong for him to be sitting out here and doing nothing like this? He had said he wouldn’t interfere, but…an especially piercing shriek sounded from the second level. Probably the kid.

Shit! He didn’t want to hear this. This couldn’t be happening.

Okuyasu clapped his hands to his ears, shut his eyes tight and buried his face in his knees.

Please, please, please, please, PLEASE STOP!

Quite suddenly, he felt another presence behind him. Something large and decidedly not human. And then a pair of arms wrapped themselves around him as if to say, ‘I’m here with you and I’ll keep you safe.’ Without even looking, he could sense it was his own Stand. This was some sort of automatic response that he didn’t really get, but even so it made him feel just a bit better. As if it was reminding him that no matter what happened upstairs, there’d always be something looking out for him. Even if that something was coming out of his own head…but that really didn’t matter, now did it?

Several minutes passed and in that time nothing existed for Okuyasu outside of the comforting presence of the Hand.
---

The conclusion of the battle came with a deafening explosion that shattered most of the upstairs windows. The shock of it traveled through the entire house nearly knocking Okuyasu off of the front step. The Hand automatically reached out to steady its user as a small spray of shattered glass descended from above. The blast had probably finished off all that remained of the houses windows. Okuyasu rose. There was smoke…no dust…or maybe some mix of both billowing out of the upper story.

“Anaki…”

Keicho’s Stand had delivered the final attack. Which meant his brother must be okay! But those other guys...

“Anaki!”

Okuyasu was sprinting into the house, but stopped up short in the entryway. An impenetrable cloud of what he now realized was dust greeted him as it descended from the upstairs. He entered tentatively as the mantle of airborne debris and filth curled around him. He put a hand on the banister of the stair. Something in him hesitated to go up. He wasn’t sure if he was prepared for what he’d find. But then, there were voices coming from above. He recognized Josuke’s sardonic drawl and the other voice…shrill and squeaky…definitely not his brother’s.

“Let’s get out of here.” This was Josuke.

“B-but that bow and arrow. The one he shot me with. It’s gotta be around here somewhere. We should find it!” This was the other voice.

“Not today. I’m in pretty bad shape…”

“I only survived ‘cause you were around to heal me. Someone else might actually die from it. That thing is dangerous! We can’t let it be used again.”

A pause.

“Fine. But let’s hurry.”

There were footsteps now, but they were ascending rather than descending. Shit! They were heading to the third level…to the attic where…what the hell was he supposed to do? They couldn’t go up there!

He was racing up the stairs, stumbling as he made his way through the half-settled dust cloud. He should stop them, right? He didn’t want to fight anyone, but he had to stop them, right?! He’d reached the second level and was on his way to the third. Keicho would tell him to get his ass up there before Josuke and the kid found their dad. Keicho would…

He halted. Wait…what the hell was he doing? His brother was somewhere on the second level, hurt no doubt, and probably hurt pretty bad if he’d stopped fighting. He should be using this time to look for his brother and make sure he was okay. But what would Keicho want? Would he want Okuyasu to help him out if he needed it or make sure their secret stayed safe? Crap! His brother was right. He was really shitty at making decisions. But there was something about the thought of Keicho being hurt...

Okuyasu was heading back down the stairs. The air was mostly clear now and he could see that a good portion of the second level had been destroyed. This fight had been pretty serious.

“Anaki?”

He was darting through the half-obliterated rooms. No Keicho.

“Anaki???”

Why wasn’t he answering? He felt panic gripping his chest. He wanted to scream. Where was his brother?
There was blood on the floor. Not the kid’s. It wasn’t the kid’s. Where was his brother?! What had Josuke Higashikata done?! Keicho! No, no, no, no, no!!!! He couldn’t be…he wasn’t…

But, no…there he was going up the second staircase to the attic. Relief flooded Okuyasu. It was okay. He was okay. Well, as okay as might be expected after such a fight. But he was alive. That was all that mattered. Okuyasu went rushing up to him.

“Anaki!” There were thankful tears in his eyes.

“Keep the fuck away.” His hand shot out to halt his younger brother’s approach.

Shit! Keicho had taken some pretty heavy damage. Both shoulders had been torn wide open and were bleeding profusely. Several layers of skin and flesh had been ripped from (or blown off?) his left arm, which hung useless at his side. The entire left side of his face, the eye included, had been mangled beyond recognition.

Okuyasu read the accusation in his brother’s gaze. ‘Where were you? Why weren’t you there? This is your fault.’ Okuyasu felt guilt twisting his gut. Had he done the wrong thing again?

“Anaki….”

Maybe Josuke would heal him too. He reached out to put a hand on Keicho’s good arm. He’d ask Josuke himself. He’d get him to help his brother. It would all be okay.

Keicho flung his brother’s hand away.

“If I lose that bow and arrow because of this, I will fucking kill you. Do you understand?” Keicho was dead serious.

“They’re gonna find dad.”

Keicho’s expression told his brother that he already knew this. He was heaving himself up the stairs.

“Anaki, let me help-“

“Fuck off!”

Okuyasu watched his brother struggle to the top of the stairs, turn the corner, and disappear. What the hell was going on today?

Chapter Text

Chapter 4

“Why can’t we talk it over?” from Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”

“Hey! Lay off of him! He’s your dad!!!”

As Keicho ought to have expected, Josuke Hikashikata was a goody two shoes when it came down to it and that aggravated the hell out of him. Like this spoiled prick had any idea whatsoever what Keicho’s life had been like. He seemed like exactly the sort guy who’d sit you down with a patronizing smirk and tell you to cool it and then recline back in his seat with a self-satisfied grin as if he’d just told you the meaning of life and felt like a fucking saint for doing so. Who the hell was he to butt into all this like he had answers?

Keicho gave his father one last kick in the side of his misshapen head for good measure. But even now, the grotesque mass of deformed green flesh was repairing itself and a moment later his father was back to grunting and shuffling as if nothing had happened. It was no wonder his father never learned a fucking thing. If his discipline left no lasting impression…this stupid thing didn’t even know to cower when he raised a fist or the heel of his boot.

“He hasn’t been my father for eleven years. He doesn’t even know who I am. He can’t even fucking remember he’s been kicked a minute after it happens!”

“But before that…before all that!” The blonde kid interjected.

“Koichi’s right. He’s still your dad no matter what shape he’s in now. So maybe give it a rest for five minutes. You don’t have to hurt people all the time.”

“You have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about. You can’t even imagine the shit I’ve been through.“

Keicho was two seconds away from summoning his Stand. It would have been incredibly stupid to try and go head to head with Josuke again, given the injuries he’d already sustained. He knew this, but he was so pissed he couldn’t see straight.

“I think I know a little bit more about you than you think!” Josuke retorted. Keicho was taken aback. Josuke went on. “You may or may not know this, but I healed Okuyasu after you shot him up. And I was a bit surprised at how extensive his injuries were…and at how old some of them were too.”

What was this asshole getting at?

“I don’t usually pay so much attention to particulars because I don’t use my Stand too often…but did you know your brother had two cracked ribs? They were only about half-healed.”

No, Keicho hadn’t known, but he wasn’t going to let on to that.

“And you must think you’re real clever leaving the welts and bruises where they won’t show. Nothing on the face or hands…but everywhere else.” Josuke was staring the elder Nijimura brother down. The latter had dropped his gaze and was clenching the bow and arrow so tightly his knuckles had turned white.

“Let’s see…” Crazy Diamond had manifested and Josuke had his head inclined toward the Stand as if consulting it. “…contusions on the back of the head; swelling and tearing in the skin on the back and chest, most likely from repeated blows to the same areas; welts up and down the arms and legs, probably from some kind of a blunt object; fingermarks at the base of the throat, suggesting attempted strangulation…shall I go on?”

“How…”

“Crazy Diamond knows his shit. That’s how. Don’t play fucking stupid with me. It took less than five minutes of watching you two to figure out what things are like around here.” Keicho’s dumbfounded silence confirmed everything. “You know, your brother refused to even give me a hint about your Stand? After I’d gotten him out of the house and away from you. I’m pretty sure he thought I was about to pound his face in for not blabbing. Shit, he had nothing to lose. I even said I’d heal him if he told me, but he didn’t say a fucking word. Not a single fucking word. The guy was ready to bleed out on the pavement for you rather than save himself. What does that tell you? Anything? Or are you really that lost?”

The room was swimming before Keicho’s eyes. Mr. Nijimura was scraping around in an overturned box. The same box he was always ripping the insides out of every single fucking day. As pointlessly destructive as he’d always been. Keicho felt his temper flare and his boot flew into his father’s side. Once, twice, a third time.

“I told you to stop breaking shit! It pisses me off!” He knew his father didn’t understand. Never had and never would.

“Hold on a minute.” Josuke was bounding across the room, Crazy Diamond close behind him. Was this guy really going to attack right now?! Fucking great.

Keicho clutched the bow and arrow tighter, ready to defend them no matter the cost. This weapon was his last hope. This was all he had left. And he would kill anyone who tried to take it from him.

Josuke sensed the instantaneous hostility. “Hang on. You’ve got it wrong. I’ll worry about that bow and arrow later. But right now I’m interested in this box.” And with a quick motion, Crazy Diamond had made contact with it and it was flying back together before Keicho’s eyes. Every little piece of wood, every content restored, including…

Keicho’s stomach dropped. The scraps of paper that he had always assumed were just the remnants of some paper lining in the box…it hadn’t been the lining at all…it was a photograph…it was a photograph of all of his family together, before his mother had died.

He remembered that day vividly. It had been a cool Fall day, and he and Okuyasu had spent hours playing in the leaves outside the house. Really, nothing eventful had happened. It wasn’t a special day by any stretch of the imagination. It had just been a lazy day at home with their mother calling them in periodically for snacks and meals. Nothing significant had passed between any of them.

Mostly, he recalled impressions. The warmth of his mother’s smile. The thrill of having been excused from chores to do whatever he wanted. The delighted squeals of his brother as they raced through the yard. The satisfying crunch of the dead leaves underfoot. His brother’s perfect, unscarred face glowing with happiness.

Really, the only notable point had been when Mr. Nijimura had returned home early from work. Even their mother had been surprised. He’d simply said that things had been slow at the office and that he’d been so impatient to see his family. Their mother had declared she’d make a special dinner just to celebrate. Then Mr. Nijimura had gone outside with his sons and they’d had a thrilling game of chase followed by hide and seek.

Keicho remembered at the end of that game how his father had lifted both of his sons up at once and set them on his broad shoulders. As they walked back to the house like that Okuyasu had made some comment about being able to see the whole world from up so high. And for a moment, just a moment, Keicho could see it too.

When they’d gotten back inside, Okuyasu had scampered off to go see if their mother needed help. He wasn’t old enough to actually help with anything, but he always asked if he could.

Keicho’s father had paused to look at his eldest son.

“You’re growing up too fast, you know.” There was a twinkle in his father’s eye. “You’ll be quite the man someday, Keicho. I can already see it. And I’m already proud of you.”

Keicho had stood a little taller, his chest slightly puffed out.

“I’ll be just like you.”

“That’s right.”

“I’ll always take care of my family.” His father always said this to reassure his mother. It always brought a smile to her face.

His father’s forehead creased, almost imperceptibly, but he smiled after a moment.

“I know you will.”

Keicho couldn’t have known that his father had just lost his job or that his mother had been sick and would be dying in the hospital before the month was up. For that day, though, everything was bliss.

After dinner, they’d all gathered in the living room. Their mother and father had initially sat back while the two boys played, but in a very short time Keicho had convinced their father to join in the game and Okuyasu their mother. The game had fallen apart rather quickly as both parents had collapsed in peals of laughter, but neither of the boys minded this. Their mother had then asked if they might sit down and take a family picture, just to remember what a nice evening they’d had. Their father had run for the camera without missing a beat. He’d set the timer, dashed to the couch, scooped both boys onto his lap and put an arm around his wife just in time for the flash to go off.

Later, Keicho had brought this photograph to the hospital in a frame decorated by his brother. Their mother had displayed it on a small table at the end of her bed, strategically positioned so as to be always within her line of vision. It had stayed there until the day she died.

And now here it was. That same photograph, clutched in his father’s gnarled hands.

A horrible sob reverberated through the attic. For a moment, Keicho questioned whether he himself was producing that noise. But it wasn’t him. No, it was Mr. Nijimura, who was hugging the photo to his chest disconsolately, weeping at the memory of his sons.

“H-he remembers. He remembers you guys. From before. His memories are still there!” Koichi couldn’t get the words out fast enough. A long pause followed as this information sank in.

“Look. If you want to find a Stand user to help your dad rather than kill him, I’m happy to help. But you gotta let me destroy that bow and arrow first.” Josuke reached out a hand. Keicho instinctively drew back. He wasn’t about to trust this asshole. Not a chance in hell.

“You planning on running?” Josuke was poised to pursue.

“Anaki…come on let’s stop all this.”

Three pairs of eyes flitted to the doorway. Okuyasu stood there, his cheeks burning red and his eyes still moist from some recent emotion. But he looked strangely determined. He began crossing the room toward his brother in slow, careful steps as if he was approaching some wild animal that might dart away at any moment.

“You don’t have to do this anymore. Let’s stop, okay?’

“Y-you’re not involved in this!”

“You heard what Josuke said. Dad might get better. Well, maybe his body won’t. But if he remembers us…his mind could come back, right?”

“How fucking long were you listening in on us?”

“Let’s stop. Please. Anaki, this isn’t right.” Okuyasu had his hand on the bow. This was the first time he’d ever touched it. He knew he was doing something unusually bold, but he was just acting on what happened to be in his head. And his head told him that this might be his last chance to get his brother to listen.

“We can start over. Things don’t have to be this way. We can be a family again. Clean slate. Like nothing bad ever happened. Don’t you want that?”

Keicho bowed his head, overcome for a moment. He couldn’t process what he was hearing. His brother wanted to start over? Okuyasu had never said anything like this before. And hadn't Keicho already half made up his mind that it would be nearly impossible as it was? That things had reached such a point that their pasts would always work against any happiness they tried to build in the future. And here this dumbass thought he could just say a few words and they could start over...just like that?

But if it were so simple, what would starting over even look like? It had taken so much to get where they were and now his brother wanted to throw that all away on the gamble of there being a different way out? Was it even worth considering? Would it put them in a better place than they were now? But who could say where they were now? Were they any better off than they’d been eleven years ago? Well, not particularly.

Except now they had hope. The bow and arrow were everything. They were the promise of freedom. Yes, with that, they could start over. Well, Keicho could. He'd been having his doubts about Okuyasu. But he could and he would start over. It was the only thing he still believed in. The time for that just hadn’t come yet. But it was close. How could his brother not understand this? Why did his brother want to stand in his way? He was so close. It was only a matter of months, maybe even weeks, maybe days. Things had to be this way. This was fate and Keicho wasn’t about to run from it. This was the great challenge of their lives and Keicho was clearly the only one who had risen to meet it because Okuyasu was too weak, had always been too weak.

Keicho summoned his resolve. If Okuyasu was determined to allow stupid sentimental whims to destroy his life, then that was no longer Keicho’s concern. If his brother wasn’t with him he was against him. If Okuyasu wanted to stay on the sinking ship, then let him fucking drown. He had no obligation to save him anymore.

Keicho leveled his gaze at his brother.

“What do you think you’re doing?” The danger in Keicho’s voice was startling.

“Anaki…”

“I’m in no position to change course. “ He’d give him one last chance. “Don’t you see? It’s the only way. The slate won’t be clean as long as our father’s still alive. I’ve gone too far to turn back. I’ve killed so many people... “

Okuyasu’s eyes widened in misery. Of course, he hadn’t known. He’d always assumed the best about his brother.

Keicho went on. “If all those deaths meant nothing, if they were all to no purpose, what does that make me? If I don’t overcome this…if I don’t make those deaths mean something good, there is no starting over for me. I have to finish what I’ve started.”

Okuyasu was going to break. Keicho could see it. The confession had been too much. He was back on his side. Even now, Okuyasu’s grip was slackening on the bow. ‘Yes. Just let it go. You’re too weak to fight me let alone anything else. Let me do what I have to. For the both of us. And maybe then you really will be all right.’ For the first time, Keicho thought, his brother’s weakness was a mercy.

Then Okuyasu’s gripped tightened. He looked his brother dead in the eye, put a second hand on the bow.

“No. I might not know much, but I know that you’re wrong. I can’t let you do this anymore.”

A faint blue glow was rising from Okuyasu’s form. The bastard was summoning his Stand. Keicho had warned him after that night in February that if he ever dared challenge him with the Hand that would be it. And yet, here he was about to use his Stand against his own brother. The irony of this thought as it flitted through Keicho’s mind left a cold pit in his stomach. The tables had turned and Keicho, unlike his brother, did not forgive.

“You are not my brother. You have always been in my way, always holding me back!” Keicho’s words came out in a snarl.

“Anaki…”

“I wanted to believe that our father was the only one I’d have to kill to start living again. But it’s you too, isn’t it?” Keicho’s voice was catching in his throat. There were tears in his eyes. “I have to kill you too, don’t I?!”

“If you fucking lay a hand on him…” Josuke was approaching from the other side of the room.

It felt like the whole world was crashing in around Keicho. He was beyond saving and he knew it now. He had gone too far and changed too much. Had he really thought there wouldn’t be consequences for his actions? He felt as if he’d opened a door he couldn’t close, that some creeping evil had entered and poisoned his mind. He’d committed himself to this path with his first kill, but he’d never considered if it was one his brother could follow. And now Okuyasu had confirmed that it wasn’t.

He felt trapped. What were his options? Did he have any? Well, the first and most obvious was what was in front of him. He could continue on his intended course and kill anything that opposed him, his brother included. But that wasn’t what he wanted. No, that couldn’t be what he wanted, right? There had to be an out? Right?

Well, yes…yes there was. He could stop. He could let his brother have the bow and arrow, let Josuke Higashikata destroy it. But his father couldn’t be cured. That was a fool’s hope. His father’s mind would never return, let alone his body. Dio’s flesh bud had been designed to do this. It had been designed to destroy its host. His father might be crying over a photograph now, but his mind would only get worse, only deteriorate more. And Keicho would have thrown away his only chance of escape. He’d be trapped carrying the weight of all those people who’d died for nothing. He knew that that sort of dark existence would consume him, that it would make him destroy himself and everything around him, even Okuyasu.

“Anaki…you don’t mean that. I know you don’t. Please. Let’s stop this now.” Okuyasu’s voice brought Keicho back to reality. The implicit trust, the forgiveness in his brother’s sad expression seared him to the core.

Chapter Text

hapter 5
“What do I say when it’s all over?” from Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”

“Hey. Not to interrupt or anything, but you don’t happen to have any other relatives living with you, do you?” Josuke’s questions caught both the brothers off guard.

“No. It’s just us.” Keicho was baffled. What sort of question was that at a time like this?

“There’s someone else here. There were looking in from the skylight.” Josuke nodded upward. He was poised defensively, ready to summon Crazy Diamond in an instant.

Okuyasu felt the Hand looming just out of sight. Something was wrong. The air was crackling with tension. No, literally. There was something crackling in the air.

“Don’t space out you fucking dumbass.” Keicho’s fist connected with his jaw and knocked him back onto the floor before he had time to react. What the hell was that for?

And then he saw it. A large golden, rather birdlike Stand covered in hissing, sputtering…electricity?! It had come up behind Keicho like some horrible apparition, its tail still snaking into the outlet from which it had made its entrance, making it look impossibly long.

Shit! It was swooping in toward his brother and…

Keicho Nijimura gave a small cry as the Stand’s arm ripped through the right side of his chest and curled its claw-like hand around the bow and arrow.

“ANAKIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Okuyasu had ceased to think. He was back on his feet. The Hand was out. He was charging at the other Stand. He was going to beat the fucking shit out of this thing.

The electrical Stand registered surprise. It clearly hadn’t expected any sort of retaliation, especially not so suddenly. The Hand was descending towards the center of the thing’s head, but it was far too slow. The Stand flew backward, dragging a shrieking Keicho with it. It had been a near miss.

The Hand’s strike went gliding through the empty air…and straight into the thing’s tail. There was an agonized yowl and the wild fizzing of electricity as the Stand writhed in the air, it’s link to the outlet severed.

“How…fucking…dare…you…” The Stand hissed. “You’re…fucking…dead!”

In the blink of an eye, the thing had launched itself through the wound in Keicho’s chest and was hurtling towards Okuyasu, its free hand extended. In another moment it had Okuyasu by the neck and now he too was shooting through the air.

The Stand slammed him into the far wall. The back of his head was the first thing to make contact and Josuke watched with alarm as Okuyasu’s eyes flickered and his Stand dissolved with the impact. He’d hit too hard. He was going to lose consciousness.

“How…fucking…dare…you…” The Stand was enraged, ranting. “Did you really something as pathetic as THAT could stop ME…”

“Save…him…please…but don’t touch that thing...or you’ll die too…” Keicho was clutching his broken torso, willing himself to get these last words out, gasping and spitting blood as he did.

“You underestimate me. Did you think that my Red Hot Chili Pepper…”

“My Stand doesn’t work like that…I can’t do ranged attacks” Josuke had pieced together in an instant what needed to be done. He just hoped this didn’t blow up in his face. “…but you can!” Josuke was already sprinting across to Keicho, Crazy Diamond flying before him.

“…could be defeated with such a weak blow? Did you think you were going to save Keicho Nijimura?”

“Anaki…” Okuyasu’s skin was already starting to blacken under the Stand’s grip. He was finding it hard to focus. The whole room was fading in and out before him.

“Well, now you’re both going to die and I will be the one controlling this bow and arrow!” Chili Pepper was drawing out the moment, revelling it.

Josuke had skidded to a panting halt before the elder Nijimura brother. “I swear, if you shoot at me again after all of this I’m going to break your nose and not fix it.”

“You ever thought about what happens to the human body when it’s subjected to high voltage? I’ve heard it can be quite a spectacle. I might even manage to melt your eyes right out of your head. Wouldn’t that be fun to watch?” All Okuyasu could see was a pair of wild, livid eyes in front of his own. The Stand was in raptures over its proposed villainy.

“Bad Company!”

The voice made Chili Pepper hesitate, only for a fraction of a second, but it was a fraction of a second too long.

The shell from the tank had struck the arm holding the bow and arrow. The Stand shrieked as its damaged arm lost its grip on the weapon.

“HOWWWW...??????”

In one motion, it swung around, its other hand releasing Okuyasu and snatching the bow and arrow from mid-air.

Keicho unleashed another round of shots, but not at the Stand, though the latter swooped about in a dodge anyway. The barrage slammed into the walls, seemingly randomly.

“Your aim is really shit, Nijimura.”

“I wasn’t aiming for you, dumbass. I wanted to make sure you had a hard time getting back to your power supply. If I remember correctly, you can only carry a limited amount of electricity before you need to ‘re-charge’ from an actual electrical source.”

Chili Pepper whirled around. The electrical outlets. He’d destroyed the outlets. No matter. There’d be a loose electrical wire…somewhere.

Another bombardment came flying at the Stand. Pathetic. He’d just use his electricity to burn up the shells and bullets before they could make contact. He’d only been hit before because he’d been caught off guard.

He executed his electrical shield flawlessly. Now who was the dumbass? But there was more coming. No matter. He was untouchable. But this Nijimura asshole wasn’t letting up. He was really laying into him. It was almost like he was…

“I’m impressed you’ve lasted so long without recharging. But at the rate you’re using your energy to shield yourself…well, you won’t have much left to counter-attack with. And certainly not enough to cover your getaway with that bow and arrow. Yes, yes, I know you’re also thinking about other sources of power. Maybe an outlet in one of the rooms downstairs or the power lines outside. But I have a pretty good idea of where your User is, so unless you’d like to test your speed against mine, I’d suggest you withdraw. Remember, my Stand has the ability to attack things that are a pretty considerable distance away...and I don’t miss.”

That fucking prick. Was he bluffing? Shit! This was bad. This was incredibly bad. His fucking number would be up if he didn’t take some serious evasive action. And his arm was really starting to hurt.

Well, he had the bow and arrow anyway, which was all that mattered. And he wasn’t too sure about this other Stand user with the pompadour. Well, clearly he must be a Stand user of some sort or else Keicho wouldn’t be alive right now.

“This isn’t over, you prick.” Chili Pepper snarled. “You’d better watch your back Nijimura. I’ll be coming to finish you too.”

And with that Stand shot through the room and down the stairs and into the first electrical outlet it could find and disappeared.

“I-i-is it gone? Is it really gone?” Koichi was huddled in the corner. At least he’d managed to stay out of harm’s way.

“He’s gone. I know a bit about that guy. He’s the kind that prefers a decisive victory. And since he has what he wanted, he’ll probably wait a while until he feels like he has a very clear advantage.” Keicho was unnervingly calm. “Make no mistake, though. He’ll make good on his threat. He’ll want to finish me…” Keicho’s voice suddenly died in his throat as his face registered what the Stand had said. “…me…too?”

“Oh shit! Okuyasu!!!!” Josuke was darting back across the room. Shit! Shit! Shit! He’d got so caught up in everything. Josuke’s knees hit the floor next to Okuyasu. He felt bruises blooming under his skin, but he didn’t care. Shit! He might already be too late. He should have been paying attention. He should have reacted faster.

Keicho was suddenly right there next to him, nearly jostling him out of the way. He looked panicked, half-crazed. As his eyes reached his brother, his sharp intake of breath summed up Josuke’s own reaction.

The blackened skin extended from the point on Okuyasu’s neck where the Stand had seized him and travelled down through the collar of his school uniform and up to just above his jawline. There was a horrid smell of burning flesh and Josuke found himself almost gagging. A small pool of blood had formed under Okuyasu’s head and his eyes were half open and glazed over.

“Oh fuck…oh fuck…” Keicho extended a trembling hand towards his brother. “Can you fix him? Is he still alive?”

“I-I don’t know. Just let me—“

“Don’t let him die! Don’t you fucking let him die!” Keicho was frantic. He was losing everything all at once. The bow and arrow was gone. Any chance he had at life was gone. And now, his brother…his brother was…

Crazy Diamond had materialized and was reaching out toward Okuyasu.

“Understand that if…if he’s…my Stand can’t bring people back if they’re already dead.”

“What are you saying?” Crazy Diamond was making a gentle sweep over Okuyasu’s face

“I’m just saying that if—“ Josuke stopped. His Stand had placed its hand on his arm and inclined its head towards him as if communicating a silent message to him. He gave a faint nod and Crazy Diamond disappeared.

“Did it work? Is he…?”

Josuke hesitated, then gave Keicho a meaningful look. Keicho thought his heart would stop. Josuke opened his mouth to speak, drawing in a long, slow breathe.

“Don’t you ever fucking hit him again.” Keicho couldn’t have been more surprised if Josuke had slapped him.

“Got it? Good!” Josuke clapped him on the knee, rose, and crossed over to Koichi, a relieved smile playing about his lips.

For a moment, Keicho couldn’t move. It was like he’d had freezing water pitched over him, making him shake and go numb all at once. Then, in an instant, there was a profound sense of release in the very center of his being, as if everything he’d ever pent up inside him had been let go and was spilling out. He was experiencing every feeling, both in turn and all at once. Anger. Confusion. Regret. Joy. Sadness. Fear. Shame. Exhilaration. But all that showed on his face of this was a pair of silent tears tracing their way down his cheeks.

Across the room, Josuke and Koichi looked on in silence as slowly, very slowly, Okuyasu began to stir.

“Oku?”

Okuyasu sat up, blinking uncertainly.

“Y-you okay?” The words felt strange as he said them. He hadn’t asked a question like this in years.

“Yeah. Yeah, I think I’m good.” He started to stand up.

“Not so fast.” Keicho had put an arm out to help his brother up, but the latter had thrown up a defensive hand, his eyes flashing with concern. Okuyasu’s expression seemed to question if he’d done something wrong...if his brother about to start in on him again?

“I—I just wanted to help you up. Is that okay?” Okuyasu lowered his hand in acquiescence and Keicho lifted him gently to his feet.

“Thanks.”

Keicho took a step back and hooked his thumbs in his pockets as if expecting something else to happen.

Okuyasu took in his brother’s expectant posture. Was there something else he was supposed to say to him? He racked his brain. What had he done in that fight just now…Oh shit…that.

“Anaki…about the bow and arrow…I didn’t mean for that thing to…I mean there wasn’t anything I could have…”

Keicho’s face tensed and his hands compulsively clenched themselves into fists. Okuyasu visibly recoiled.

“Hey. You remember what I said?” Josuke was glaring at Keicho as if he’d raised a hand to strike his brother. But Keicho didn’t register any of this. Reality had come crashing in. The bow and arrow were gone. Every life he had taken…every single one…had been wasted. Those deaths, which ought to have served a purpose, were meaningless. It had all been for nothing. What did that make him? He knew the answer, but couldn’t even bring himself to think it. He’d thrown his whole life away, his sanity, his morals, everything for the chance to start over and now…

He was staggering towards the doorway.

“Anaki?”

“Get the fuck away from me!”

There was nothing in him but a profound sense of being lost. He’d been forced off the only course that could have saved him, that could have redeemed his actions. He’d lost the only chance he had to ever become a better person. He had to leave. He had to get as far away from his brother and father as possible. He could feel the darkness seeping into him like a poison. He was vile. He was wicked. He had killed so many people and in doing so had killed every scrap of goodness inside himself. Staying in this house, in this town even, would destroy him. He felt like he was suffocating.

There was a hand on his shoulder.

“Let me go, Oku.”

“I know that bow and arrow meant a lot to you. And I-I’m sorry I lost it. But aren’t things better this way? Can’t we make them better without it?”

Keicho looked his brother in the eye. There it was. Next to the perpetual uncertainty and the perpetual fear, that spark of hope, of trust, that desire to always be forgiven, and always make things right. They were too different. They always had been. Keicho didn’t trust, didn’t hope. He could never make things right because he could neither give nor accept forgiveness. And right now especially, he couldn’t forgive himself.

“Things will never be better, Oku.”

Keicho passed through the doorway and began down the stairs. He heard Okuyasu behind him. As fucking persistent as ever. He wheeled about to face his brother.

“Anaki, can’t we just try—“

“What the fuck is wrong with you? No matter what I do to you…it’s always okay, isn’t it? You always pretend that things are all right…that they’ll get better…that your own brother ‘doesn’t mean it’ when he beats you or insults you or tries to fucking kill you. No, that’s just what family does, isn’t it?”

“You’re my brother...” Okuyasu mumbled.

“And when’s the last time I acted like it?”

“Things used to be different.”

“We’re not kids anymore. I’m not here to look out for you. Hasn’t my behavior made that clear to you? I’ve done nothing but hurt you for years and it’s only getting worse.”

“You’re in a bad place. And you don’t leave people when they’re in a bad place.”

“It’s not a bad place. It’s me. It’s how I am. There’s nothing good in me anymore. Just anger. And hatred.”

“I don’t believe that.”

“Of course, you don’t. And that’s exactly the kind of naïve shit that’ll get you killed. You forgive too easily. And you care too fucking much!”

“Anaki…”

“I’m no brother to you!”

“Let me help you. Please…”

“No! You stay the hell away from me. You just stay away! Got it?”

Keicho was pounding his way down the stairs. In less than a minute he was out the door, through the gate, and headed down the street.

Josuke came up behind Okuyasu with Koichi in tow.

“I think he’s still trying to protect me. Y-you saw that, right? He’s still trying to protect me. But from himself, I think.”

“Yeah. I saw that. Maybe he just needs some time to sort through things.”

“Maybe.”

“I think you’ll be okay, though. Some time away from him might help.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah, I do. I really do.”

A long silence fell between them. Okuyasu, in an unconscious but perfect imitation of his brother, hooked his thumbs in his pockets. Then, perfectly unlike his brother, he dropped his head and struck up a slouch.

“Hey….Josuke. Ummm…you know…” He was shuffling a bit as he spoke. “…I’m really sorry about all this. The whole fight and everything and my brother shooting your friend and me…and me getting in the way of your saving him at the beginning. My brother said all these things that made it sound like you were real dangerous or something and…well…don’t think I’m making an excuses now, cause I’m not…but my brother’s usually pretty reliable…but I guess he really wasn’t this time and so I guess what I’m trying to say is…shit, what am I trying to say? Well…I guess…I’m sorry…again…and you’re a pretty okay guy and…thanks. Thanks for being a pretty okay guy.”

And Josuke Higashikata smiled at this.