210A/N: I deeply apologize for the very very very long delay. I'm not going to make excuses, just accept my apology. Only the Epilogue left!
Disclaimer: Not mine I say!
Dee held his head high as he was escorted into the city's center by a squad of Angeli soldiers to his execution. His long black hair was in a thick braid and he wore a white shirt with white pants as he walked through the paved streets barefoot. White wings protruded from his back and crimson eyes confidently looked around as the group moved to the city center. Ryo walked behind the troupe with Jolis, sadness and regret weighing his steps. The hybrid put an arm around the Angel's shoulders, offering what comfort he could.
"Ryo, I know that there is nothing I can say to take away the pain that you feel right now," Jolis whispered. "But you must believe me when I say that this isn't the end. Dee will find you again, you have to trust him." Dee looked behind him and nodded his head, confirming what Jolis had just told Ryo. Deep red eyes full of love and promise locked with Ryo's while Dee's rich voice filled his head.
"What Jolis says is true Ryo. I don't know when but I will find you. I promise." Ryo nodded at Dee's words, biting a trembling lip to stall the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes. The Demon Lord gave his lover a reassuring smile, wishing that he could comfort his partner himself. Acting on instinct, Dee closed his eyes and concentrated on Ryo, imagining that he was holding the Angel in his arms while placing gentle kisses on his neck. He imagined his love for Ryo surrounding the Angel like a cloak, keeping his lover safe and secure. Ryo gasped as he felt sudden warmth come over his body, as ghost lips traced lightly over his skin. Instantly his senses were overloaded with Dee's aura, reminding him of the first time they had made love.
"Thank you Dee, I love you. I'll be okay, I'll make it somehow."
This was the reassurance that Dee had been waiting for, a confirmation from Ryo's own lips that he wouldn't do anything to himself after he passed on. Dee was not overly worried about his impending execution; he knew that he would meet his lover again; for their separation was only a temporary one.
As the group walked up onto the platform in the middle of the courtyard, Dee gazed upon the hundreds of Angeli people who waited to see him executed. It was a sobering thought. Ryo couldn't help the tremors that wracked his body as Dee was seated in a chair on the platform. It had been established that Dee's execution would be a painless one, due to the slightly unfair nature of the trial.
Jolis pointed over the gates of Heaven to the fast approaching Demon Lords that had come to avenge Demon Lord Dee's death, just as they had said. The Angeli people gasped and moaned when they finally saw the army. They knew that the Demon's had every right to kill every last one of them, but all the same they wanted to live. Dicarri settled himself next to Jolis and stared blisteringly at Rose and the rest of the Elder Angels present. The Daemon Army came to rest just outside of Heaven's Gates.
Undaunted by the presence of their enemy, Elder Angel Rose began reading Dee's sentence, asking him if he had any last words. Of course Rose desperately hoped that he didn't, however the hybrid had other plans.
"Presiding Demon Lord Dicarri Dian, I only have one request. I ask that upon my death you would not take revenge for how I was wronged." There was an audible gasp that ran throughout the crowd as muted voices expressed their surprise at Dee's words. "I would not want my love for Ryo, this Angel, and his love for me to be tainted by the bloodshed of a whole race or any one person. Even though there is every reason for you to slay the Angeli race, I ask that you would respect my lover as I respect him. Out of respect for me, for Ryo, and for our love, I ask that you not kill the Angeli people. I ask instead, that you would form a bond upon my death and learn to live together as friends. This will take time and effort on both sides but it is for the best."
The crowd remained silent as Dicarri contemplated Dee's words, everyone desperately awaiting his answer. After a moment, the Demon Lord gestured to the crowd of Angels staring intently at him, a questioning smile on his lips.
"Demon Lord Laytner, I can understand your wish to save the lives of innocents, of people who have done no direct harm to you or to Ryo, but what about those guilty parties that have blatantly wronged you?" Dicarri turned to look at Elder Angel Rose, a sneer marring his elegant features. "This despicable creature has not only invaded your home, caused bodily harm to yourself and others, and set you up, he has done so only because he yearns for what is not and can never be his…your lover. As I have stated before, the preservation of the Angeli people is understandable, even admirable, but to so easily forgive your enemies…are you sure that is wise Demon Lord Laytner?" Dicarri's deep voice had his audience captivated. His black eyes stared into emerald green ones, silently telling Dee to choose wisely. "Do not be so naïve as to think that he will change his ways because you spared his life, the only lesson someone as corrupted as him can learn, is through death. In that way he will cause no more trouble…and he will not be around to bother your soul mate…when you no longer walk this realm."
The presiding Demon Lord's words struck a chord within Dee and for a moment, Ryo sensed his inner turmoil. He knew that the only reason Dee hadn't told Dicarri that he wanted to spare Rose too, was because Dian had used Dee's love for him, as a tool against his proposal.
Ryo opened his mouth to speak but was silenced by a gentle shake of Dian's head; this decision was Dee's alone. The Angel looked over to watch Elder Angel Rose, knowing that he couldn't uphold that blank expression when his life now rested in the hands of the one he was executing. Sure enough the Angel was shaking visibly fists clenched and brows drawn down, no matter how confident he appeared, his fear still showed.
"Have you come to a decision?"
Dian's voice shook Ryo out of his reverie and brought everyone present to full attention. All eyes once again turned to watch Dee as he slowly nodded. Two ice blue eyes in particular focused on the hybrid, hanging on his every word.
"I stand by my earlier statement, I want to spare everyone. Let this be the first step towards peace between our two great races." Dee held his head up high as he spoke, his words ringing with conviction. Dian stared intently at the Demon hybrid before simply stating
"Than it shall be done."
Dee smiled triumphantly as Rose began to move forward with the execution ceremony, undaunted now that he knew he would live yet, he now hated the Demon Lord more than ever: for granting him life.
As Rose concluded the spoken part of the ceremony, Dee finally felt the full force of what was happening —he was going to die that day. It hadn't hit him until all the preliminaries were done, until he had been strapped in, and until Rose had stopped talking. His time had run out.
Verdant green eyes grew wide as realization shattered the stability of Dee's mindset, causing him to see that this was it; he was not meant to live past this hour.
Ryo anxiously looked at his lover as a flicker of doubt came across their connection, but it was so subtle the blonde thought he had imagined it. Dee turned his eyes to the executioner standing before him with a needle in his hand, as a cloth was tied around his upper arm. The needle was full of a sleeping serum that would slow down his heart until he fell into a deep sleep, never to wake up again.
A rapidly fluttering heart and two green eyes that would not stay still was the only evidence of his true nervousness, which he hid for Ryo's sake as much as his own. Suspicious that no emotion or thoughts were coming from the link between their minds, Dee purposely sought out Ryo and turned his head to look at him.
The Angel had a zoned out expression, eyes and face blank as he stared intently at the ground. Dee jumped as the needle went into his arm and his lover looked up in alarm at the slight feeling of pain that came through their connection. The hybrid stared intently, yet softly at the Angel in such a way that wouldn't allow Ryo to look away.
"Ryo please don't run away from me in your mind. I need you right now. I need you to…I need you to be strong for me." A choked back sob was Dee's answer as Ryo nodded, angrily brushing away quickly escaping tears. "Come here love."
Without a second thought the Angel walked over to his lover, the executioner withdrawing as he approached. Dee held his arms open and closed them tightly around his love when he sat down on his lap, head resting against his. Rose was silenced by a frozen glare from Demon Lord Dian.
The hybrid spoke quietly to his lover in his native dialect, brushing away his tears and Ryo's with gentle hands. "Ryo I love you, I love you, I love you…" was the mantra he repeated over and over again, forever wanting to ingrain those words in his lovers heart so that when they met again—and the same words were spoken—Ryo would undoubtedly know that his other half had found him again.
Fighting hard against the effects of a deep sleep he knew he would not wake from, Dee continued to speak to Ryo, placing light kisses on his temple and lips. "I love you Dee, I love you so much. Promise me we will find each other again." The hybrid forced his heavy eyelids open to stare into his Angel's liquid brown ones; green eyes startlingly clear despite the drug coursing through his system.
"I promise, love. I promise," Dee whispered. Ryo nodded and gave his lover a weak smile, placing a sad kiss on his lips as he rocked back and forth with Dee in his arms.
"Sleep now. I will be okay. I promise." Dee nodded as a single tear rolled down his cheek, his measured breathing slowing even further until, he was breathing no longer. Ryo buried his nose in Dee's hair as he felt his lover's presence fade from his mind, tears flowing freely from his eyes. The square was silent as Dee breathed his last apart from Ryo's quiet hiccups and the sobs of a few Angels and Demons present.
The Angel looked down at his lover's still body and caressed the side of his face lovingly, placing a parting kiss on his forehead before standing up on shaky legs. Without a look backwards, he walked forward towards the edge of the platform, hands fisted at his sides. He stood there looking up at the beautiful blue sky, never once taking his eyes off it, as Dee's body was placed on a stretcher. He was to be taken back down to his manor and buried on his land, it was what he wished.
Ryo looked over at his lover one last time as his body was carried by him, and nearly collapsed from the waves of grief that washed over his heart. Dee wasn't going to miraculously wake up, he was gone. Jolis quickly walked over to Ryo and wrapped gentle arms around him, offering what comfort he could.
A warm breeze blew through the square and Ryo looked up to see the same black butterfly with the emerald trim he had seen the night Dee had first told him he was a hybrid. The little creature landed on his nose and slowly flapped its wings before happily fluttering above Ryo's head, never straying too far from the Angel.
"Seems like Dee has left you a familiar, a guardian of sorts," Jolis said, a small smile on his face.
"No, that's not a familiar. That's Dee." Ryo smiled up at the little insect fluttering about his head, as another warm wind blew across the square carrying the soft sound of Dee's rich laughter.
"I love you Dee. I will wait for you," Ryo whispered to the breeze, knowing that Dee would hear his words. He looked about once more before walking off with the procession, with what small part of Dee he had left always looking after him.
"This is your uncle Dee; he passed away five years ago." Ryo held Cristophe's little hand as they walked through the expansive garden Dee's manor boasted. The pair stood in front of Dee's tomb looking at the statue of him that stood by the door. The statue was of him in hybrid form, long hair braided down his back and a graceful smile on his face, looking ahead confidently.
"You miss him, don't ya uncle Ryo?" The Angel chuckled and looked down at the small hybrid child he was walking with. Cristophe was Val's hybrid son, born the day after Dee's funeral. His wings hadn't grown yet but he had the same long black hair that Dee did, but his eyes were a vivid blue instead. Just like his mother's.
"Yes, I miss him very much. But he still lives in my heart little one."
"And on your head," Cristophe exclaimed. Ryo laughed and thought lovingly of the small black butterfly that currently rested on the top of his head, his small antennae fluttering in the breeze. The butterfly fluttered down to land on the child's hand, wings flapping slowly. "Hi Uncle Dee," the boy said as he waved at the insect on his hand. In response, the butterfly flapped his wings in rapid succession, as if waving back to him.
Ryo smiled down at the interaction and hoisted the child up to sit on his shoulders. "Ready to eat buddy? I bet there's a feast waiting for us back at the manor! Your parents will be here shortly to pick you up too."
"Yea! Last one home's a rotten egg!" Ryo started running before screeching to a halt, playfully shaking the little boy that was sitting on his shoulders giggling.
"That's no fair; you're riding on my shoulders. We'll both get back at the same time!"
"I know, I'll win partly and I don't even have to run!" Ryo laughed and started to run across the grounds anyway, a warm breeze blowing at his back and his lover's spirit flying beside him.
Ryo woke up bathed in a cold sweat, chest heaving as he fought to get his breathing back to normal. It was the eve of Dee's funeral; he had been dead for twenty years. Silver hair was threaded in with the strands of blonde that graced Ryo's head. Small wrinkles around his eyes were showing more prominently from smiling and laughing so much, and his body wasn't as spry as it once was.
The Angel looked over to the little box with a cushion he had set up for his little butterfly, but was shocked to see that he wasn't there. "Dee, where are you little one?" Normally the little creature would flap over to him at the sound of his name but there was no answer for the Angel tonight. Increasingly worried, the blonde got up to look for his companion, Dee had always been there.
With a cry of horror he found the little butterfly lying still on the bedroom windowsill, wings spread out flat and once lively antennae not moving. "Dee, why did you leave me?" Ryo whispered as he picked up his friend's still body, tears rolling down pale cheeks.
"I never left Ryo." The Angel gasped and turned to see his lover sitting on his bed, green eyes glinting in the moonlight. With a cry, Ryo launched himself into his lover's arms, crying out his years of loneliness. "Shh, I've come back for you. I want you to come away with me love." Dee held his Angel close, reveling in the feeling of touching him after spending so long simply looking.
"I've missed you so much Dee, I love you so much." Ryo held onto Dee's arms and rained kisses all over his face, sighing as Dee's slender hands raked through his hair.
"I love you too Ryo, but I've never left you darling. I was always there." Dee wiped at the tears on Ryo's face, as Ryo wiped away his, before their lips met in a soul-searing kiss shared between two halves of the same soul. When they parted, the pair could do nothing but stare into the other's eyes, conveying all their thoughts in feelings in one steady look.
"Ryo, will you come with me?" Confusion flitted across brown eyes before realization took its place. "I can only stay in this realm for a little while, but you can come back with me… if you wish to." Ryo took his lover's face in his hands and placed a gentle kiss on soft lips.
"Yes Dee, I wish to." A broad smile lit up Dee's face as he took Ryo's hands in his own. "But where are we going?" Ryo looked down to see that he was floating in the air with Dee, his skin becoming transparent. He looked at his face in the mirror to see that he was 29 again; silver hair gone and the wrinkles had disappeared.
"To paradise."
Bikky and Carol visited their father at his manor the day after their 7 year wedding anniversary, intent on taking him out to dinner. Panicking when they couldn't find him anywhere within the house, they ran out to the garden and found him lying beneath Dee's marble statue, a small black butterfly resting on his chest. Carol started to cry when Ryo didn't answer their calls, but Bikky soothed his wife, telling her that's what Ryo wanted.
"Don't cry sweetie, we should be happy for him. Dee finally came to take him home."
EpilougeA blonde and an ebony-haired man woke up at the same time, next to each other in their New York City apartment, expressions of shock on their faces. Dee turned to look at his lover in disbelief as Ryo did the same, a half grin on his face.
"Ryo, did you just dream that you were an Angel?"
"Did you just dream that you were a Demon?"
"Do you think?"
"Couldn't be…could it?" Ryo shook his head in shock; somehow the notion didn't freak him out as much as it should.
"It would explain a lot don't you think? Like why I couldn't get you out of my head."
"And why I kept on coming back to you."
"And how come every time I kissed you…," Dee said as he drew his lover closer to him.
"And every time I touched you…"
"It felt so right, and so familiar."
"Right down to when you said you loved me." Ryo's brown eyes glistened as Dee drew him in for a kiss. "I knew I heard it before."
"I told you I would find you again love," Dee said when they parted.
"Yes, yes you did." The pair lay down to go back to sleep, snuggled next to one another like they originally had so long ago.
"I love you Arch Angel Ryo," Dee said with a sleepy chuckle.
"I love you too Demon Lord Dee," Ryo replied while placing a light kiss on his lover's lips.
As the couple went back to sleep, a man with blue hair that touched his shoulders and deep purple eyes chuckled to himself as he imagined the conversation his actions had caused.
"Alright Jolis, time to go back to Theaea, their memories have been restored. Job well done." With a glance around, the hybrid whispered an incantation before he disappeared in a swirl of white smoke; the broken link between Dee and Ryo's past and future had been rejoined.
Done! Wow, that took a while. So sorry for the very very very long wait! C&C appreciated! I'm thinking about a sequel, but I'm not sure yet. A new FAKE fic is in the works! Look for it! Thank you all once again for your support.