Chapter Text
Sinking.
He’s drowning.
The darkness surrounds him, thick and suffocating, pulling him under like a heavy weight on his chest. His limbs are heavy, barely fighting against the current that drags him deeper into the void. His lungs burn, begging for air, but there’s nothing but more of that cold, crushing pressure.
Not again…
But within the cold, he’s burning. His veins feel as if they’re flowing with acid, shooting up to his head. Every inch of his insides feel like they’re on fire, the pain racing through him in jagged waves, relentless. He tries to scream, but nothing comes out. His mouth is filled with the cold water he’s sinking into. He’s struggling to breathe, suffocating perhaps, as something tears him up from inside out. A particularly bad pain in his veins gets even stronger, and he tries to scream once more, to no avail. His body shudders, convulses. The pain is everywhere—sharp, stabbing, unending.
There’s no end. He’s going to suffer like this for the rest of his pathetic little life.
Then, he feels it.
A flicker of light. A warmth. A pleasant one, unlike the burn he’d been feeling.
His hand reaches out, trembling with the effort. He stretches, desperate, but—
It’s too far.
His fingers brush against it, but it’s gone. The warmth slips just beyond his reach, as though it’s teasing him, offering something that can never be his. He can’t grasp it, can’t hold onto it, no matter how hard he tries.
And then, the darkness closes in again. The light fades, leaving him alone once more. The coldness returns, heavier than before, pressing against him like a thousand unseen hands.
His body shudders, his heart pounding, his breath coming in shallow, frantic gasps. He reaches again, but there’s nothing to grab, nothing to hold onto.
So he sinks.
----
Rui groans. He’s so cold, but something inside him is so incredibly warm. It’s not pleasant, in fact, it’s more like burning. Shooting through his veins, much like the events of the previous night which are just now returning to him. He can feel a light on his face, but he doesn’t want to open his eyes and be blinded just yet. Faint murmurs can be heard by him, voices drifting like distant echoes, too soft to fully make out. They sound familiar, but he can't place them- just fragments of words, like pieces of a puzzle he doesn’t yet have the strength to put together.
“He just used all his magic up… somehow.” An unfamiliar deep feminine voice speaks to someone that Rui can’t see. “See, he’s alive.”
“Will he be okay though?!” A way too familiar voice practically yells, earning a groan from the other person. Rui tries to move, but he can’t. His own body doesn’t feel like his own, and he feels frozen, besides the burning in his veins that’s finally starting to fade out.
“Give him a day. He’ll be perfectly fine.” The unenthused voice muses. Rui finally manages to open his eyes. Tsukasa Tenma is standing above him, accompanied by a purple haired girl with crystalline wings on her back, eyes looking somehow empty in an almost scary way.
“See.”
“Rui! You’re awake! Uh- not that I was worried or anything.” Rui weakly laughs, he can’t really find it in him to actually respond to that.
“I brought Asahina-san with me to take a look at you, she says you’ll be okay! But how do you feel?” He gets all in Rui’s face before Asahina pulls him back.
“Quite alright, just a little cold.” Rui shivers. “I used all my magic up when I…..”
Asahina leaves without a word, almost as if she knew the altercation that was about to occur.
“Hm? Speak up Rui!”
“I used all my magic saving your life….” Rui sighs, Tsukasa isn’t about to like this next part. “I used a binding spell… that was all I could do to save you.”
“.....”
Oh no.
“YOU DID WHAT?!! YOU CASTED WHAT ON ME!!!?” Rui winces, the sudden noise overwhelming him a bit.
Tsukasa’s outburst is so loud Rui swears the room shook.
“You- you- what?” Tsukasa yells again, clearly not understanding the full weight of the situation. “You cast a binding spell on me? A bond spell? Are you insane?!”
“I had to,” Rui retorts, his eyes darkening with exhaustion, yet still fierce. “You have no idea what you walked into last night. If I hadn’t done that, you would’ve died. And you would’ve taken me with you. You’d be gone.”
“A BINDING SPELL? REALLY?” Tsukasa yells once more.
“Did you want to die?! That was the only thing I could have done without dabbling in, I don’t know- fucking NECROMANCY?” Rui shouts back, sitting up in his bed- well Tsukasa’s bed, defensively.
“WELLLL don’t you do that anyway!?”
“NO?”
Tsukasa freezes for a moment, the anger on his face fading as confusion takes its place. He stares at Rui, his lips parted, as if he’s trying to understand just how this whole situation spiraled so far out of his control.
“Wait. So… you’re saying… that the thing we saw… that energy… it was trying to kill me?” Tsukasa’s voice lowers, as he looks at Rui, as if trying to piece together what happened.
Rui rolls up his sleeve and examines his arm. Where the magic surged in his body has left vein like scars. He touches one and winces. It burns.
Tsukasa sighs for a moment, calming himself down. He cups his hands and focuses really hard. A small chunk of ice spawns in his hands with a flurry.
“It’s not much, well it’s about all I can do, but hopefully it’ll help.” He holds it out in front of him, gesturing for Rui to take it.
Rui looks down at the chunk of ice in his hand again, the burn in his veins still there, but dulled by the cool touch.
“You know, this actually helps a bit.” Rui says after a long pause, giving Tsukasa a sly grin. “I guess you do have something going for you.”
Tsukasa scoffs, though there’s a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Don’t get too carried away. It’s just ice.”
“Ice that actually works, though,” Rui points out, his grin widening. “You can’t be all bad if you can pull that off.”
Tsukasa's shoulders slump, as if the praise weighs more than it should. “It’s not much,” he mutters, looking away, “but yeah… I guess it’s better than nothing.”
Rui studies him quietly, the ice still cooling his hand, the sensation spreading up his arm and dulling the pain of his magic-fueled exhaustion.
“Well,” Rui begins, keeping his tone light, “I wouldn’t say you’re no good at magic. You made ice appear out of nowhere. That’s more than some people can do.” One of his ears flops over, a casual attempt at lightening the mood.
Tsukasa shoots him a look, his face flushed, though it’s hard to tell if it’s from embarrassment from the praise or something else. “Yeah, but that’s nothing compared to what Saki, or even you, can do. I mean, you’re… you’re ridiculous with magic.”
Rui chuckles softly, eyes still on the ice in his hand. "Maybe, but magic isn’t all about doing the big flashy stuff. You’ve just got to find what works for you.” He gives a shrug. “Everyone has their own style. Yours might not be like your sister’s, but that doesn’t make it any less valuable.”
Tsukasa looks at him, a brow quirked in curiosity. “How did you get so strong?” he asks, his voice softening a bit. “I’ve never really seen magic like yours. I mean, the stuff in the cave was… well, that was crazy. And the cat thing? That’s also pretty unusual to me. The only other Animas I know are bunnies, and they can’t hold a form for long. Maybe it’s because they’re smaller…”
Rui laughs. “Lots of practice,” he says, voice light. “I used to sneak out of my house a few years ago to meet up with a friend who likes the same kind of magic I do. She makes potions- sells them, too. I was actually talking to her last night before you rudely interrupted me,” he adds with a playful smirk.
Tsukasa's eyes brighten. “Wait- can you teach me?!” He blurts out, bouncing on his feet before suddenly catching himself and turning red. “I mean, I would really like to learn how to do more than just ice cubes, you know…”
Rui grins, amused by Tsukasa's sudden enthusiasm. “Of course I can,” he says with a wink. “Just give me some time to get my magic back up to speed first. Actually- can you grab something from my bag for me?”
Tsukasa narrows his eyes but heads over to the bag without hesitation. “What am I looking for?”
“The one with the bow on it,” Rui says.
Tsukasa pulls out a small bottle, reading the label aloud. “Amia…”
Rui’s eyes widen playfully. “Wow, Tsukasa-kun~ I didn’t expect you to know my good friend Amia!” His smirk grows. “You must’ve been to her shop.”
“I… I buy potions from her for my sister sometimes,” Tsukasa mutters quickly, tossing the potion to Rui, “that’s all.”
Rui chuckles as he catches the bottle. “Sure, sure. Whatever you say.”
He pops the cork off, taking a swig of the potion with a grimace. His ears flick back in distaste as the bitter taste coats his tongue. “Ugh, did she really put broccoli in this… disgusting.”
Tsukasa snickers at the sight. “Sounds like something she’d do.”
Rui grimaces, but the potion works its magic, and the pain in his arm dulls slightly. “Anyways,” he says, taking a deep breath. “Like I was saying, you don’t have to be good at magic. The whole ‘deserving to be here’ thing- it doesn’t matter. What matters is what you can do. What you bring to the table.” He glances at Tsukasa, his expression softening. “And I don’t know, Tsukasa, but to me, you’re worth something. Even if you can’t freeze an entire lake.”
Tsukasa’s wings twitch, and he blushes again. “What do you mean I’m worth something to you? I nearly got killed, and now you have no magic because you had- I mean you wanted to save me.”
Rui shrugs, his gaze steady and serious for a moment. “Well, you went after me, didn’t you? If that thing had gotten me, no one would’ve been there to help. Mizu- I mean, Amia- wasn’t going to stick around. She just gave me this,” he says, holding up the potion, “and left. You stayed.”
Tsukasa looks away, clearly struggling with the weight of Rui’s words, but he doesn’t argue. He stands quietly as Rui finishes off the potion with one last grimace. “Okay. That was disgusting. But worth it.”
Tsukasa shifts on his feet, glancing at Rui cautiously. “So… what happens now?”
“With what?” Rui asks, raising an eyebrow.
Tsukasa gestures vaguely between them. “The… bond thing. You said it was a binding spell. What does that mean for me? For us?”
“For someone sooo upset about being tied to me, you don’t seem to really understand what this even means, huh?” Rui teases.
“You know what? Fine. I don’t. Explain.” Tsukasa crosses his arms impatiently.
Rui’s expression falters slightly, becoming more serious. He sets the empty bottle aside. “It means we’re connected now. You’re tied to me—and I’m tied to you. Emotionally. Magically.” His gaze flickers toward the floor. “It’s not something that goes away with time.”
A beat of silence stretches between them. Tsukasa’s face goes pale. “That’s… intense.”
“Yeah. It wasn’t exactly my first choice either,” Rui says, ears wiggling as he runs a hand through his hair. “But it was either that or let you die. And I really didn’t want that.”
Tsukasa stares at him for a moment, visibly processing it all. “So we’re stuck with each other now?”
Rui gives a half-smile. “More or less.”
Tsukasa exhales slowly, wings giving a restless twitch. “We’ve barely known each other for a few days.”
“Yeah,” Rui says. “We have. But… you came after me. And I saved your life. That’s more than most people do for each other, even when they’ve known each other for years.”
“…I guess you’re right,” Tsukasa admits reluctantly, flicking a stray piece of hair out of his face.
Tsukasa finally speaks, voice softer. “I’m still mad you didn’t ask me before dooming me to an eternity connected to you..”
“And I’m still mad you followed me into the cave after I said go away,” Rui replies with a slight smirk.
Tsukasa groans. “Fine, guess we’re even.”
Rui tilts his head. “Truce?”
Tsukasa holds out a hand. “Truce.”
Rui hesitates for half a second before shaking it, his fingers still faintly cold from the ice, feeling as if they were melting when they made contact with Tsukasa’s warm palm. Their hands linger for a beat longer than necessary, a strange feeling in their hearts seemingly pulling them together.
Rui smirks. “Since we’re friends now, I hope you don’t mind- I’ve never met someone of your kind before, and you’d make an excellent research subject.”
Tsukasa groans. “I knew this was a mistake.”