Out of Darkness

Tori and Shinya slept late after the crash. She had several nightmares of crashing through the night, and lost a lot of sleep because of it. Shinya lost sleep by staying awake to watch and wake her when she had a nightmare, so that he could hold and comfort her until she could sleep again.

Though Shinya woke much earlier than Tori had, he was very content to lay in bed with her in his arms, gently brushing her hair wavy red hair away from her eyes and admiring her light skin and soft, beautiful features. The red splotchy evidence of her nightmare-caused tears were still evident on around her eyes, breaking his heart as her brow furrowed together again and she gave another pained whimper.

“Shh, Tori-san,” he spoke softly, pulling her closer to him and rubbing the back of her shoulder as she seemed to calm down again to rest with her head against his chest, lightly curling the fabric of his shirt into her fingers in her sleep and making him smile at her.

“Shinya,” Kaoru called quietly as he stood in the doorway, knowing that the drummer had been awake for nearly an hour now while the fragile young woman beside him slept.

“Yes?”

“Brandon has decided to leave us early. He wanted me to be sure that you knew he was leaving.”

“Without saying goodbye to his sister?”

“He said something about Yumiko having a party that he needed to help with tonight. Apparently it is a very long drive, and to be there on time they would need to leave now.” He explained, smiling as Shinya opened his mouth to speak only to turn and mutter more soothing words and assurances to the redheaded woman beside him when she stirred again.

“Did he say anything else?”

“Yes, that he would be sending her things over today for her to stay with you, unless you wanted your things sent to her home. He received a call from their mother saying that their father is coming to collect some things. He won’t be around for it, and didn’t want her to be alone in the home when they begin fighting again.”

“I will ask which she would prefer when she wakes. For now, let her rest. She had a difficult night.”

“And so did you. Did you know that Achilles has been sleeping with his nose against the door, whining for her attention since Toshiya let him into the house last night? The only reason he isn’t here now is because Kyo sent him outside a few minutes ago.”

“It doesn’t surprise me. She is his only master.” Shinya smiled, but quickly frowned when Tori whined his name and buried her face deeper into her chest.

“It’s cold,” she whined, making him smile and cover her shoulders with the blanket while Kaoru fought his laughter. Die, Kyo, and Toshiya had a bet on how long it would take for them to move in together, and he had refused to join out of respect, but now he was reconsidering his decision, seeing that they would be living together sooner than he had thought.

He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Die shouting something inaudible, and the unmistakable sound of Achilles’ beastly body barreling through the house. He turned just in time to be knocked off balance by the dog as he darted through the door and launched himself onto Shinya’s bed, crushing both his and Tori’s bodies as he stood on top of them, barking excitedly and licking Shinya’s face, and the back of Tori’s head as she tried to hide form him.

“Achilles, off!” she ordered, her voice muffled by Shinya’s chest where she was still trying to hide her face from her dog’s greeting.

“He misses you.” Kaoru chuckled.

“I miss you too, now get off you monster!” she grunted, pushing him away from her, only for the great dog to lay on top of her with his paws on her shoulders, and nose touching her chin, sitting as still as stone and breathing extremely slowly.

“You’re a monster.” She sighed with a laugh and scratched him behind the ears as Shinya slowly repositioned himself to make them more comfortable, laughing when Achilles turned his attention from her chin to his fingers, licking the hand that he had resting on her shoulder.

“He loves you,” she smiled quietly, already dosing off again.

“She loves you.” Kaoru smirked, half mocking the couple in the bed before leaving Shinya to deal with an oversized seeing-eye dog, and his own thoughts.

Later in the day Tori sat in Shinya’s home studio, positioned behind the drums while listening to his instructions on how to play the basic rhythm he was teaching. She was excited to learn to play, but also nervous about every little mistake, and because she couldn’t SEE where each drum and symbol were, she had been missing the drums she meant to hit repeatedly.

“Relax, Tori-san, you aren’t expected to be perfect.” Shinya smiled, attempting to hide his laugh when she whined and let her head fall forwards onto the drums, causing a muffled thud against the snare.

“I’m not getting it!” she complained, though her voice was muffled by the drum.

“Nonsense, you’re coming along just fine. Try again, and play slower. Work on memorizing the kit.”

“We have been ‘memorizing’ the kit for three hours.” She replied, clearly discouraged.

“And we will try again, and again, until you are comfortable. I’m in no hurry, Tori-san, we literally do have all day to work on this.” He nodded and made himself more comfortable in the chair behind her, smiling as she sighed heavily and restarted the rhythm.

Toshiya walked into the studio four hours later to ask if they wanted takeout, but was silenced by Shinya, who smiled ear to ear as Tori was played the drums along with Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”.

At the end of the song she gave a squeak of excitement and clapped her hands together, letting the sticks clack against each other. “Very good!” Shinya praised proudly as Toshiya joined him applause, only making her giggle more.

“Does THAT deserve a cookie, Sensei?” she asked sarcastically, making Toshiya burst into laughter of his own.

“Yes, I would award that round a cookie.” Shinya nodded and helped her walk out from behind the drums before leading her to the kitchen.
“Good, because I really want a cookie.” she giggled and allowed herself to be placed in a chair at the table.

“Are we celebrating something?” Kyo questioned, noting the dorky smile that Toshiya held and the joy in Shinya’s eyes while Tori smiled excitedly.

“I played Kashmir!” she beamed happily, thanking Shinya for the chocolate chip cookie that was so fresh it still held its strong cookie aroma.

“On drums.” Toshiya added, explaining why the excitement was so strong as she could play Kashmir for hours on the piano and sound perfect.

“Oh! Congratulations!” he smiled.

“Thank you!” she squeaked, still overjoyed at her accomplishment while enjoying her well-earned cookie.

Shinya watched her with nothing short of joy and contentment as she smiled and joked with the other members of his band. The only thing he wished for that he couldn’t have from her was the ability to see her eyes. When she was afraid, when she was happy, he wanted to see it. He wanted to see the sparkle of excitement over her blinded red irises when she learned something new in music, or when she went on one of her many excited “lectures” on the subject. When she was afraid, or hurt, he wanted to see the tears in her eyes as she looked to him for comfort. Not because he wanted to see her pain, but because he wanted to see HER. Unguarded by the glasses she wore to hide her weakness. He wanted to see Victoria Death, in all of her innocence, fear, love, joy, confusion, strength, and weakness.

“Shinya?” Tori questioned, bringing him out of his thoughts and alerting him to the fact he had gotten lost in his own head as he often did while thinking of her.

“Yes?” he answered with a hint of blushing embarrassment across his face.

“Your band was asking you questions.” She smiled.

“Do you want to stay with her at her home, or bring her things here? Brandon doesn’t want her staying by herself in her family’s home with her father being there.” Kaoru asked again.

“Which would you prefer, Tori-san?” he asked, earning laughter from multiple musicians in the room.

“You really weren’t listening to a word they said, were you?” she asked with a giggle, “We had already discussed that, and I don’t really mind either way. You’ve been on tour, and are now able to be home, so whichever you prefer is fine with me. Whatever makes you the most comfortable.” She smiled.

“I’ll just bring my things here for a few days if that’s all right.” She nodded with a grin, knowing that he wanted the comfort of his own home but felt selfish requesting it.

He only smiled with more adoration to her at the knowledge of how much she thought of others. Yet another thing that sent him tumbling deeper and deeper in with her. He watched her as she laughed with Die over a joke Toshiya tried to tell about her moving in with their drummer, and felt mesmerized. Her hair bounced lightly around her shoulders, its natural red waves and curls flipping out in many different directions with a few tangles causing a bit of frizz. She tried to keep her hair looking nice, but often reminded the boys that there are no blind hair-stylists for a reason. Her pale skin contrasted with the deep blue silk shirt she wore, showing just how long she had spent away from the sun over the years. The cherry blossom necklace he had given her sparkled over her heart as she moved and her laughter sang to him over the chatter of his friends.

Her eyebrows jumped over the dark glasses she wore as she looked passed Die and Toshiya to the door suddenly, and she became very quiet. The spell over him was instantly broken as he watched her. He wasn’t sure what was happening, but he could tell that something had her uneasy. She was afraid of something.

“Tori-san?” Kaoru questioned cautiously, only to be shushed as she stood slowly and felt her way out of the room, moving almost silently.

Shinya went after her without questioning and nearly walked into her back when he found her standing as still as a statue a few feet from his front door. “Tori-san,” he spoke, not meaning to whisper but the situation didn’t seem right to him to speak louder. He placed his hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump and gasp, hushing him when he spoke again to calm her.

“Please, please be quiet.” She muttered when the others came to investigate, still straining to hear whatever it was that had her so on edge.

“Shinya,” she spoke finally, keeping a very serious and low tone, “Where is Miyu?” she demanded.

“Last time I saw her she was with Achilles running around.” He answered slowly.

She shook her head and sighed. “Do you have any small holes under your front steps that she could crawl into?”

“I think there is one, but I keep it covered so that she doesn’t get stuck. Why?”

“She’s stuck. I suggest you help her before Achilles decides to dig her out.” She announced with a frown.

He wasted no time at all walking out the front door to see Achilles lying beside the steps with his two front paws together and his nose between them, in the very hole that he tried to keep Miyu from getting into. He sighed as Kaoru stepped out to stand beside him, watching curiously when Achilles took a deep breath and sighed, soon followed by some rustling below the steps, and a short whine from Miyu.

“This is why I keep that hole covered.” The drummer sighed, dreading the chore of coaxing his dog out from under the porch.

Tori was standing beside Kyo, smiling as he gave her a play-by-play on Kaoru and Shinya’s plan on doggie rescue, until she heard a large crash, Shinya shout a wordless cry of disapproval, and Kaoru bellow Achilles’ name while Die, Kyo, and Toshiya tried their hardest to contain their laughter. Only Kyo was even remotely successful, and that was only because his laughter was quiet.

“Is everyone okay?” she demanded, though she couldn’t keep herself from smiling. She knew Achilles had just tried to rescue Miyu himself.

“The entire porch is destroyed!” Kaoru announced sharply.

“Are, You, Okay?” she demanded seriously, worried by the tone of his voice that he could be injured and in pain.

“Yes, Tori-san, I am all right.” He sighed, dusting himself off while watching Achilles dig Miyu out and jump happily over the mess that was once a porch, into the house to lay down behind the couch with her to clean her up.

“And Shinya?” she pushed.

“Everyone is fine, Tori-san. Shinya is a little bit in shock at the moment. Your dog just completely destroyed his front porch, and collapsed it while he and Kaoru were standing on it still. They fell pretty hard when Achilles dug the hole and ran under to get Miyu free.” Die explained. His voice was thick with amusement to the situation.

She shook her head and began to walk for the door, only to be stopped by Shinya quickly ordering her to stop. “You will get hurt if you fall, there are nails and sharp boards that could leave you very badly injured. Please stay in the house for now Tori-san.”

“He did that much damage?” she sighed, frowning as if speaking about an unruly child.

“He didn’t mean to. Give us a moment; we are going to use the other door to get inside.” Kaoru nodded and followed Shinya back into the house to rejoin everyone in the main room. Shinya of course claimed the seat closest to Tori, resting his hand beside hers so that the sides of their hands touched. It was his way of letting her see that he was beside her, and it never left her without some sort of small smile on her lips, even if it was one that only he could see.

“The dogs are all right?” Kaoru questioned, glancing behind the couch to see Miyu and Achilles falling asleep.

“They are just fine. Achilles performed his rescue with best of successes.” Toshiya beamed. Tori smiled and gave a light laugh when Achilles huffed and she heard his head thud against the floor as he readjusted himself to be more comfortable.

“How did you know that Miyu was stuck under the porch, Tori-san? We wouldn’t have known until Achilles destroyed the front porch that she was stuck.” Die questioned, still amazed with her supernatural senses.

“I heard Achilles walk out the door behind you. He wasn’t acting right and him and Miyu are usually louder. I couldn’t hear her running around after him anymore.” She explained with a shrug, not sure why he sounded so amazed.

“Brandon knows a lot about building things, he helped Yumiko build an entire garage for her ex-boyfriend a few years ago. He can probably help fix your porch.” She suggested, “He can make sure there are no Miyu-sized holes.” She added with a smile, looking towards Shinya who wished beyond all else that he could see her eyes, knowing that they showed everything in her that she kept hidden from the world.

As usual when he watched her, trying to imagine what her eyes looked like before the accident, he found himself completely lost in thought. Though this time he was able to listen to the conversation around him, he was far more interested in the woman beside him.

She smiled and nodded to something that Kaoru had said about her not needing to worry about the price of repairs, and laughed when Toshiya mentioned having more than enough money to pay for it.

Suddenly Tori’s phone started to ring, sending Kaoru into Shinya’s room to get it for her so that she didn’t have to fuss with feeling her way through the house.

“Tori what the hell happened to Shinya’s house?” Brandon demanded as soon as she answered.

“What do you mean?”

“The porch is a pile of wood and debris… is everything okay? Where are you?”

“I’m in his front room, why? Where are you?” she laughed.

“Standing in front of this house, I left my wallet here. What happened?”

“Miyu got stuck under the porch and Achilles rescued her.” She giggled before holding the phone away from herself before asking if any of the guys would mind helping her brother into the house, as he wasn’t able to climb over the ruined steps.

After collecting his forgotten belongings Brandon stayed to visit for a short while, joking about his sister’s dog being so destructive, and laughing at Toshiya, Die, and Kyo’s retellings of Kaoru and Shinya’s reactions to Achilles destroying the steps while they were standing on them.

Much to Shinya’s disappointment Brandon took Tori with him when he left, announcing that he would bring her back with her things later in the evening because he had a surprise for her. She carefully made her way around the room saying her goodbyes to Toshiya, Die, and Kyo. She felt terrible when she realized that Kaoru had in fact gotten hurt when Achilles collapsed the steps, and scolded him for lying to her after giving him a light hug goodbye before making her way to Shinya who took both of her hands in his while quietly giving his goodbye.

“You may as well sit back down. They have a habit of procrastinating goodbyes.” Kaoru informed Brandon.

“I’ll just pick her up and carry her out… we do have to be going soon.” He laughed while watching as his sister and the quiet drummer stood off in the corner together while the others attempted to give them some privacy.

“I am worried about my dad. Shinya Brandon will be there with me, and I will only be there long enough to get my things and come back here. I will be all right.” She smiled softly, leaning her head forward to rest on his shoulder as he tightened his grip on her hands, unknowing that she could see his concern without the use of her eyes. “I will be fine.” She assured again, smiling when she felt him release her hands to put his arms lightly around her back, hardly touching her while resting his head over hers.

“I love you.” She whispered, keeping her voice so low that he hardly heard her. He gave a quiet laugh, knowing that it embarrassed her to let the others hear either of them say that they loved the other. Mostly because Die and Brandon were almost always sure to make a joke about them.

“I love you too, Tori-san.” He smiled, resting his forehead against hers when she tilted her head up, closing his eyes after looking into her glasses, imagining that he could look into her eyes while conveying his love to her.

“Okay! Go time!” Brandon announced and tugged his sister away. She gave a very unhappy squeal, earning Brandon a warning bark from Achilles before she was guided laughing out the back door of Shinya’s home to walk to his car to off to her brother’s mystery surprise.