WeiB Kruez and its characters don't belong to either of us. ^-^ The storyline, 
however, does. =p If you are adverse to shonen-ai, I advise you to ditch RIGHT 
NOW. ^-^;; In case you do not know what shonen-ai is, it's two boys getting it 
together as a couple. ^.- I can be reached at wraithlike_solace@yahoo.com and 
Molly-san can be sought after at madisonk@swbell.net. Please enjoy the fic!


Touched by Light: Part Two


     Sunlight brushed through the translucent curtains and gently prodded the red 
head upon the bed awake. There were faint notes of song from several birds lurking 
outside as the deeply asleep figure twitched and drew in a deep breath.
     With strands of silky crimson falling around his face, he managed to drag open 
heavy, lidded, violet eyes. Amethyst glittered brilliantly as he blinked fuzzily at the 
faint rays of light softly touching the lines of his exposed body. 
     Aya exhaled softly and pushed himself up, unraveling the concealing blankets 
from his smooth, silky skin. The cool air that greeted him was crisp and snapped his 
grogginess awake in relative haste. Slightly stretching with the sleek grace of a cat, 
his lean muscles rippled in languid movement.   
     Vaguely alert, Aya raked a hand through his longish red hair. Fine crimson 
flowed around his strangely slender fingers. He felt good. Very good. He hadn't felt 
this good in... god-knows-when. Mentally shaking his head, he tried to focus his 
thoughts... as last night's events slowly came back to him in bits and pieces.
     Aya felt his face go hot, checks doing a slow burn as he finally remembered 
exactly went occurred last night. 
     Shrugging off his embarrassment, he rubbed his eyes, dispelling the last traces of 
sleep from them. ::I... didn't have any nightmares last night...:: he realized. ::That 
woman... she isn't haunting me anymore... why?:: Surging to his feet, Aya 
gracefully grabbed his robe, swiveling it around his shoulders and tying it in place. 
Unconsciously biting his lower lip as he went to the restroom, a thought lit the utter 
darkness of his mind with pinpoint brightness.
    ::Is it... because of Yohji?::

     Melodious humming echoed softly with the faint pitter-patter of falling water. 
     ::Yesss... hot and steamy. Just the way I like it.::
     Yohji leaned ecstatically into the flow of water, immensely enjoying himself. 
Taking a sponge, he thoroughly scrubbed himself. ::Soapsuds are fuun, who cares 
what they do to my playboy image?::
     A sudden surge of warm water poured over his head, utterly drenching him.
     ::Ahhhh~::
     Life was good.

     Aya stared at the door.
     The door stared back at him.
     "...." He glanced at a nearby clock hung upon the wall. 
     Forty minutes. And there was no sign of imminent emergence. Aya sweated 
slightly. He could hear the faint lines of some song emitting from the bathroom. 
Judging from the style and tone, the occupant of the room was Yohji.
     Mentally sighing in exasperation, Aya decided to prudently retreat. Waiting 
outside for another half an hour was useless... 
     Dropping to urge to make a sarcastic comment through the door about Yohji's 
affinity for merging with water, Aya went downstairs for breakfast.
     The scent of a heady brew of some herbal tea wafted tantalizingly at the edges of 
his senses.

     Downstairs, the murky liquid bubbled merrily on the stove as Omi steadily 
stirred it.
     From behind the enormous folds of a newspaper, Ken vaguely wondered at 
Omi's choice of morning beverages. ::Tea? Who drinks tea in the morning? I 
thought most people drank coffee... or juice... milk maybe... Tea?:: Some part of 
his mind tried figuring the eccentric tastes of his fellow assassin as the rest 
concentrated on absorbing the news. ::Hmmm.... Come to think of it, isn't Omi 
Japanese? Ahh... that would explain it...::
     Omi took a cautious sip of his concoction and smiled, obviously pleased with the 
results.
     "Good morning," a deep tenor said softly, a distinct tone of cheerfulness gracing 
the voice.
     Ken's brain abruptly froze, newspaper nearly falling out of his hands, as Omi 
suddenly choked on his tea.
     ::That voice...::
     With a sense of forbidding dread, the two slowly turned toward the 
improbability exhibited by an all-too-familiar voice. 
     Ken and Omi were greeted with the sight of Aya entering the dining room. "..." 
     Oblivious, Aya seated himself gracefully in his usual seat at the spacious, oak 
table. He reached for the jar of apricot marmalade...
     As Ken and Omi stared incredulously at the sudden stranger their friend had 
become, the redhead casually surveyed the breakfast items arrayed on the table. The 
look on their faces was comical as they observed the easy-going attitude Aya 
expressed. Ken and Omi slowly turned toward each other, a dark wariness nagging 
on their senses. 
     Something was distinctly wrong with this picture.
     They didn't know what, but something was definitely out of place. 
      Folding the newspaper, Ken picked up his cup of coffee carefully. "What 
happened to YOU last night?" Ken teased. Omi shook himself and gave his mixture 
in the pot a final stir before removing it from the stove and plopping it down on the 
counter nearby. Keeping half an ear on the conversation, he poured himself a cup of 
tea. The steam rising from the fragrant liquid bathed his face in its heat.
     "Hmmm...?" Aya responded absently as he started eating a marmalade-lathered 
piece of toast.
     Picking up his cup, Omi carefully scooted to the breakfast table, giving Aya a 
wide berth, and seated himself before his previously abandoned breakfast. He 
sipped at his cup of tea. 
     "The way you're acting... it's... it's not like you," Ken murmured, looking over 
at Omi who was studiously staring at his uneaten breakfast.
     A brief pause.
     Ken gulped inaudibly, wondering if he just asked the wrong question. Omi 
sweated.
     They nearly jumped out of their skins when Aya replied. "Well... I just feel 
happy for some strange reason," Aya said in mild surprise. Reflecting inwardly, he 
realized he really did feel happier than he'd been before. As he pondered on why, 
Aya graced Omi and Ken with a tentative smile.
     Ken and Omi were stunned at Aya's thoughtful tone concerning his emotions, at 
the sudden sight Aya presented them with, their jaws mentally dropped.
     Aya had smiled.
     He *smiled*.
     Aya NEVER smiled. Period.
     Aya remained silent, contently munching on his toast, as Ken and Omi struggled 
to get their sense of reality back into place. 
     Ken steadied himself by lifting his mug of coffee for another sip. "Omi, Aya 
seems to have been experimenting with various creative and mind-altering drugs..." 
Ken held his breath, awaiting Aya's reaction. 
     Aya ignored him.    
     Ken spluttered on his coffee, nearly choking. Whatever he expected, it wasn't 
this. Aya usually shot him a death glare at the very least...  He gasped for air. Omi 
looked over at him worriedly. 
     "Aya... is... what's wrong... with you?" Ken managed to choke out between 
breathing attempts.
    Aya frowned. "Nothing... I just feel... as if darkness has been lifted from my 
heart..." he said slowly. He abruptly shut up, suddenly realizing how inanely 
sentimental that sounded. He regretted speaking so freely. ::What *is* wrong with 
me?:: 
    "...." 
    ::Correct me if I'm wrong...  but did Aya just use the word "heart" in a sentence 
referring to himself?:: ran the irrational thought skipping through Ken's and Omi's 
head. 
     There was an uncomfortable silence as Ken and Omi continued attempting to 
process Aya's open behavior.
     ::Error. Logical thought pattern clearly contradicts recent actions... Paradox. 
Ignore.:: rang Omi's thoughts automatically. 
     ::It's the stress. I knew it would get to me... I'm becoming delusional. Yeah. 
That's it. Delusional...:: Ken mentally babbled to himself assuringly.
     As one, Ken and Omi shrugged and expelled a heavy sigh before returning to 
their prior activities: reading the newspaper and eating breakfast. 
     Despite his initial irritation at the two for making such a big deal over his habits, 
Aya felt relieved as they dropped the subject. The marmalade melted deliciously on 
his tongue as he stared absently out a nearby window.
     It was still snowing.
     The silvery-white flakes piled gently in a fluffy mound of ice upon the 
windowsill. Aya watched it steadily grow as the minutes ticked slowly past.

    ::Ahhhh, nothing like a shower early in the morning!:: Yohji beamed in exhalant 
bliss.  Toweling himself dry, he ran a hand over the smooth tan of golden skin. 
::Aya is SO pale...:: he thought distractedly, pulling on a pair of black sweatpants. 
::Speaking of which... where's he now? Hmmm...::
    Shrugging, Yohji opened the bathroom door, releasing a cloud of steam from the 
restroom, and yelped in startlement at the stark cold that slapped at his bare skin.

     Aya raised his head as a resounding crash hit the stairs and bounced playfully 
down them. As he noted Yohji's appearance, his interest in snow vanished as his 
eyes caught on the broad expanse of Yohji's tanned chest. Clad only in sweatpants, 
Yohji proved to be extremely distracting. ::Is this... a good or bad thing...?:: Aya 
wondered haltingly, staring at Yohji's leanly muscular build.
     In spite of their determination to ignore Aya's eccentric behavior, Ken and Omi 
noticed the way Aya suddenly diverted his full attention to Yohji as he entered. Omi 
hesitantly glanced in puzzlement at Ken. Ken stared back at Omi, indicating his 
cluelessness. They seemed to be staring at each other in askance a lot this 
morning... Finally shrugging, the two went back to their activities, not making any 
sense out of Aya's sudden fascination with Yohji.
     Beads of shimmering water dripped off the golden-brown strands of Yohji's 
glistening hair, as he seated himself amongst them. Reaching across the table, he 
snagged a piece of French toast and turned his attentions to adorning it with cream 
and butter.
     Unaccountably nervous, Aya mindlessly picked up the remaining section of 
newspaper Ken was not looking at and tried to read it. He resisted understanding the 
oddly tight sensation locked in his chest. ::I... I should say something to him... 
What...?:: 
     As Aya was working up his courage to say something to Yohji, Ken was staring 
incredulously at the sight of Aya reading the Women's Fashion/Comic section of 
the morning paper. 
     "...Yohji?" Aya finally managed to whisper. 
     "Hmumhh?" Yohji asked around the mouthful of toast he was munching. 
Stuffing the piece of toast in his mouth before grabbing a knife and fork to cut the 
bacon on his plate, he turned. 
     And froze; caught by the oddly warm violet glowing in Aya's eyes. He nearly 
dropped the piece of toast held in his mouth along with the knife and fork he was 
using to dissect the pieces of bacon scattered across his plate. 
     "...th-thanks for last night..." Aya said softly, mesmerized by the rich emerald 
of Yohji's incredible eyes. ::You saved my soul... without saying any words at 
all...:: His breakfast, long forgotten, laid forlornly at his side.
     Yohji's eyes widened. ::Did... did Aya just THANK me? Ohmigod... 
Judgment Day is just around the corner... he actually, truly, honesty, THANKED 
me for the first time in the history of the known universe... wait, I'm exaggerating a 
bit aren't I?:: He started to reply when he realized his mouth was still occupied by a 
generously buttered piece of toast. Sheepishly, he took it out of his mouth and shot 
Aya a wry grin, sensually licking his lips free of butter and cream. "You're 
welcome," he winked cheerfully. 
      Yohji caught his breath as a beautiful smile blossomed across Aya's lips, 
making him look like an angel who found its way back from the depths of darkness. 
::I can get used to seeing this side of Aya...::
       Ken and Omi paused in their meal to look at each other again.
       Something was definitely going on.
                   *           *          *