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Ryo glanced down at the tiny sorrel rabbit held in the crook of his elbow, its eyes wide, ears shivering. He took the payphone off the hook and cradled it against his shoulder, tapping in an unfamiliar number. As the dial tone rang, he leaned up against the booth wall, watching the tiny pink nose wiggle furiously.
What was so attractive about these things? Sure, by most standards, they were cute. Big eyes, fluffy fur...but stuffed animals had just the same amount of appeal to him.
His head tilted back up as he heard the ringing stopped with a hard click.
“Makimura residence…!”
If Ryo had had big rabbit ears like the one in his arm, they’d have flattened against his skull at the voice.
Miki.
He remained silent just long enough to scour the creeping jealousy -- how RIDICULOUS for him to feel such a thing over someone’s voice -- from his chest.
“Yes, is Akira Fudo there?” He murmured, biting at his lip. His eyes caught a passerby’s as they walked in front of the booth.
Damn. He felt so furtive, even though he was just standing in a phonebooth in a turtleneck and slacks, with a baby rabbit under his arm.
He couldn’t truly blame the instinct, not with what he and Akira had been through in the past few weeks.
“Ryo? Is that you?” Miki’s voice chimed, a bit worriedly. “Is everything okay…?”
Then, harshly, “You’re not going to take Akira anywhere dangerous, are you? He’s still recovering from that car accident!”
Ryo blinked. Car accident. He stifled a puff of laughter.
If only Sirene had been a car accident, Akira would have been fit as a fiddle the next day. At least the girl had believed all the lies they’d fed her.
Besides, Ryo mused, he didn’t hate Miki, not in the slightest. He cared about her safety, and by not involving her in their work, she could live a normal life, free from the stress of knowing demons roamed her hometown.
He scoffed internally. Not to mention she was much too nosy and bullheaded for a girl her age.
“Ryo? Are you still there?”
The boy jolted back down to earth, clearing his throat.
“It’s nothing dangerous, Miki. I just found something I’d like him to see.” For a split second, a smile curled his lips as he looked down at the baby rabbit in his arm.
“What is it?” She didn't hesitate to pry further, but was met with a curt “None of your business.”
With a huff, she relented.
“Alright. But don’t stay out too long. Akira can’t be doing much more than walking for a while, y’know.” Miki reminded him, and Ryo politely agreed, reassuring the girl it would only be a couple hours.
He shifted from one foot to the other while he waited, muffled voices carrying through the earpiece. The rabbit began to squirm. Ryo’s grip tightened instinctively, then relaxed once the baby had calmed.
“Ryo? What’s wrong? Where are you?” Akira’s voice pressed for answers Ryo found himself chuckling over. Lord knows Miki made it sound like he was hiding in a dungeon somewhere like a cryptkeeper.
“Yes, nothing’s wrong, and the cornerstore.” Ryo answered in succession, twirling the phone cord around his finger, casually leaning back into the booth. “I went to pick up a few things, and I found something I’d like you to take a look at.” He grinned down at the bunny in his arm. Its nose wiggled, eyes straining at the sockets.
Silence.
Ryo’s eyes narrowed as Akira’s breathing became shallow.
“What is it?”
“A rabbit.”
“A…” He paused, “A rabbit?”
“Yes.” Ryo couldn't hold back a quiet laugh at his friend’s incredulous tone. “A small one. I found a litter of them in the little field behind the cornerstore.”
“...You want me to come see a rabbit den?” Akira spoke slowly, but it was obvious he thought it was just a prank. Though...Ryo wasn’t one to play jokes like this.
“No, not necessarily. You see, some of them are injured, and they look quite young. And I’m certainly no expert on rabbits.” He lowered his gaze to the he held, “I have one here right now. He seems okay, but he’s got a good bit of blood on his right hind leg.”
“What’s he look like?” Akira began to scowl. If they were big enough, they could just be released near the den. But if they were too young--
“Brown. With a bit of grey, I suppose.” Ryo said nonchalantly. He bowed his head and held back a laugh as Akira snorted on the other end.
“Brown doesn’t tell me shit, Ryo.”
“Come see him for yourself, then. I covered the rest of them up with my coat, so no one could get to them.” The blonde boy watched the clock that hung outside the cornerstore.
“...” Akira sighed, “Alright. Just don’t move any of them, or touch any of them.”
“Of course.”
“I’ll be right there.”
--
“I was walking out of the store when I heard the scream.” Ryo traced Akira’s footsteps as he made his way across the small field towards the long beige coat strewn across a few lumps. “At first, I thought it was some little kid, so I ran like hell to see what it was.”
He slowed to a stop, watching as his friend bent down, slowly pulling up the corner of the coat.
“It wasn’t until I remembered the time John caught a rabbit while we were on a walk once, that that was the noise they made.” He bent down to see Akira carefully peeking at the three pairs of glowing eyes beneath the coat. “A cat had gotten to this one," He motioned with the bunny in his hands before continuing, "and had it in his mouth, so I ran at it, yelling my head off like an idiot.” He churred. “Glad you weren't there to see that.”
Akira stiffened, and nearly dropped the edge of the coat.
Ryo? Going out of his way to prevent the natural order of things? That was…odd.
Very odd.
“What about the mother? If the mother’s around, we can leave these babies alone. Their eyes are bright and they’re all very alert.” He glanced up, dark eyes settling on the bunny in Ryo’s hand. “I don’t want to touch them. Human scent can disturb the mother, and she might abandon them.”
His friend’s blue eyed gaze turned soft and sorrowful.
“The mother isn’t here.” He murmured.
“Yes, I can see that, but--”
“She’s dead, Akira. The cat killed her.” His voice dropped to a whisper, and he knelt down beside his friend. “I hid the body in the bushes over there. I didn't want you to see her...like that.”
Akira froze, breath caught in his throat.
Ryo...Ryo, who had convinced him to fuse with a demon, Ryo, who had gladly lost his inhibitions for senseless bloodshed that night, Ryo who always seemed to know where a shotgun was when the need arose--
--Had hid the dead body of a rabbit, so Akira wouldn’t see. Akira, who shared his body with a demon, Akira who struggled with bloodlust and violent tendencies, Akira who--
“...I know you like them, Akira.” Ryo breathed, eyes shadowed by thick lashes as he stared down at the baby in his hands. “...I saw...I saw it happening, and I...well, I…”
It was not like Ryo to be tongue tied.
Gentle silver blue eyes caught dark brown.
“I thought of you, Akira.” Admitting that aloud made his heart strain at his chest. “I thought of what you would have done. You would have protected those rabbits, even if the cat was hungry, even if the rabbits were injured.”
He swallowed. His eyes had begun to sting.
Foolish.
He faced away.
“...You would have done what human hearts are capable of, Akira. That’s why…” His cheeks burned, and he cursed them.
His friend still sat in stunned silence. To think, Ryo of all people...No, no. That was cruel, to not believe someone so pragmatic was incapable of feeling compassion.
“It’s okay, Ryo.” Akira spoke softly, taking the bunny from the boy’s shaking hands. “It wasn’t a sign of weakness. Humans are the only creatures able to interfere like this, to offer others a second chance, when nature will not.”
Ryo took a deep, shuddering breath, and sighed.
“...Is there...a wildlife center nearby?” He changed the subject a little hastily. His eyes did not lift as Akira stood up, burly arms folded.
“Unfortunately, no, not for many miles. But I think I know a place they’ll be happy.”
A smile warmed his words, and Ryo blinked stupidly as a rugged brown hand was lowered in offering in front of him.
He stared at it, then watched in a sort of stupor as his placed his own pale one in it, dwarfed in comparison.
Akira’s fingers gripped his hand tightly, and he was tugged upward.
“We’ll wrap them up in your coat like a bag. I’ll pay drycleaning if any of them shit in there, alright?” He gave Ryo a toothy grin, the gleam glancing off his rosy cheek like a playful cuff.
His friend hid a small smile to himself, looking away.
--
“The hutch?” Ryo cocked his head slightly, as they turned a bend in the park path, the high school coming into sight. The sun had already begun its descent, orange clouds cradling it before it slipped below the horizon for the night.
“It’s been empty for a month now. I cleaned it out myself, so they shouldn’t be able to smell what happened before.” Akira said confidently, but the words caught in his throat at the painful memory.
Both boys knelt down at the hutch, looking inside.
“Just go on and dump them in there. I’ll get some bedding from the supply shelf in the shed.” Akira stood up, still a bit disturbed by how docile Ryo was acting. It was almost as if he were in some sort of trance.
When he returned, a large bundle of straw under his arm, he saw Ryo sitting cross-legged in front of the hutch, just watching the bunnies huddling together, noses wiggling frantically.
“They look terrified, Akira.” He mumbled, frowning, but the dazed look in his eyes remained. “They won’t be happy here.”
His friend squatted down and undid the latch, shaking out the straw to bed the hutch. The rabbits stood stock still, pieces of straw catching in their fluff as it rained down.
“They’ll be safe.” Akira reminded him, and closed the door once more. “Once they’ve grown a bit bigger, we’ll release them in the park.”
Ryo blinked, and when he looked up, his blue eyes were clear again.
“Release them? You won’t keep them?” He seemed genuinely surprised.
Akira frowned deeply.
“Of course not. They’re wild animals, not pets. I’m only giving them a second chance at the life they were meant to have.” He huffed, “I wouldn't want them having some sort of half-life stuck in a hutch.”
Ryo tilted his head, blinking slowly, like a cat. Then he nodded.
“But this guy...this one you saved from the cat...his leg’s fucked.” Akira mumbled, scruffing the bunny that had been stuffed in his shirt pocket, and sat it up in his palm. “See how crooked it is? It’ll heal, but he’ll be crippled all his life. He won’t make it in the wild.”
Ryo suddenly smiled, the light once again dancing in his starshine eyes.
“So you’ll keep him, won’t you?” The smile grew into a grin as he saw Akira suddenly get flustered, hair fluffing, cheeks ruddy, eyes averted. “I just knew you would, Akira. You’re such a softie.” But instead of a mocking tone, it was sincere. Kind.
The boy rubbed at his reddening ears, the bunny stuffed back in his shirt pocket.
“Yeah, but Miki might wind up keeping it. Or her little brother.”
“She shouldn't. It’s yours.” The childish retort startled even Ryo, who immediately stiffened, hand to his mouth, fingers curling to hide a cough of embarrassment.
Akira’s whole body brimmed with hidden laughter, until it broke at the seams, and he keeled over a bit, shoulders shaking as he laughed.
Ryo instantly clammed up, face screwed up in an ugly pout. He turned his head, masking his face with slender fingers, so his friend couldn’t see just how mortified he was.
For some unholy reason, it stung deeper hearing Akira laugh at him.
“Tell you what, Ryo.” The laughter subsided into chuckles, “I’ll keep him, to myself,” He added, “If you promise to take care of him, too. He owes you his life, and that’s a responsibility you have to take.” His rich voice and dark eyes sent shivers up his friend’s spine.
“Taking a life and saving one both are something you have to understand the consequences of. Becoming Devilman taught me that first hand.”
Ryo stared at Akira, blue silver lost in a deep amber.
There was an innocence lost, a knowledge gained, and yet, when it all fell away, to rust and stardust, there was a strength unwavering, a desire for justice unrivaled.
Had he confessed that night, had he confessed a pure heart was not just what was needed for merging with a demon, but what he had...what he had fallen in love with...what would have changed? Was it better left unsaid?
Ryo was not a man of many words and few truths. He said what he believed needed to be said, and did not hesitate to say it.
But this? Why did he hesitate? If he could be blunt with such things as the damn Apocalypse, with demons being humanity’s natural predator...but if the words of that confession ever graced his tongue, they certainly would never leave his lips.
Lips?
He caught himself leaning in, eyes having drifted down to focus on Akira’s.
Suddenly, Akira's eyes met his once more as the dark haired boy ducked down, a wild look making them glow, matching the grin on his face.
“Hey, Ryo! Didn’t you hear me? I said, if you don’t want me to give him to Mi--”.
“I’ll take care of him, Akira.” Ryo said softly. “You’re right. That’s one way of thinking about it.”
He sighed, and glanced over to the pen, where the bunnies had begun to shuffle about cautiously.
“But I don’t know a damn thing about rabbits.” He trailed off, watching as one began to clean itself.
“Don’t worry. I’ll show you. It’s not too hard, and they're quite sweet when they want to be.” Akira reassured him with a tender smile, then sat up. “What did you get at the cornerstore, anyway?”
Ryo jerked to attention, having forgotten completely about the small plastic bag he’d carried all the way here.
A sheepish smile crept across his lips, and he began to churr, running a hand through his hair as he tossed the sack to his friend.
“Take a look.”
--
“Well, we'll just call Miki before we get back to let her know to make something else for dinner.” Akira mused, cutting up the carrots and celery with his switchblade, tossing the pieces into the hutch for the rabbits to eat.
Every so often, he’d give a bit to the one in his pocket, its nose wriggling excitedly from under the button.
Ryo sat back, tearing up cabbage and dropping it through the top of the pen, watching the bunnies sit up to watch it fall down. They were kind of endearing, he had to admit, in a really stupid way, when they bunched up and chewed their food.
When they were finished, Akira stood up with a groan, and brushed himself off before stretching.
“Alright. That should be enough for a while, and they’ve got fresh water, too. I’ll check back in a couple days to see how they’re doing.” He turned to Ryo, who had gotten to his feet as well.
“I can safely tell Miki that I didn’t overexert you, right?” He teased, brow raised. “I didn’t see ‘abstain from feeding bunnies’ on your outpatient slip, Akira.”
His friend made to reply with something equally smarmy, but refrained, and just smirked instead.
“Yeah, but knowing Miki, it’s still a cardinal sin to keep me out past sunset. Let’s get going.”
--
Once Akira had cleaned and bandaged the little rabbit's leg, they sat on the guest bed together, watching the baby bunny snuffle about on the floor.
“Do we name it?” Ryo ventured quietly, not wanting to break the comfortable silence.
“You rescued it. You name it.” Akira smiled, and yawned, flopping back on the bed, eyes closed.
His friend stared at the rabbit.
“If I name him Akira, then everyone would lose their minds if I said “Damn! Akira shit on the floor again!”
The dark haired boy snorted loudly, bringing up a hand to cover his mouth as he let out an ugly laugh.
“Sleep on it then.” He said between chuckles. “There’s no rush. He won’t even need his license until he passes his driver’s test anyway.” He joked, then yawned again, sniffling. Though his injuries from Sirene didn’t hurt as bad as before, the strain of that battle had left his body weary and weak.
Ryo laughed along, but soon quieted, noticing Akira grow tired.
Without a word, he got up, and scooped the bunny into his hands, setting it gently in the cardboard melon box they’d found in the shed and layered with straw bedding.
He stared down at the shivering baby.
“Akira…”
He found comfort in that name.
It wiggled its nose curiously at him.
Carefully, he put the punctured lid on, securing it.
Ryo stood up and turned to see Akira fast asleep on the bed, nose tucked into his shoulder, chest rising and falling slowly with each deep breath.
He watched silently for a few moments, wondering if this damn light-heartedness that made his chest glow and his bones hollow would ever go away.
All over one rabbit. One damn rabbit.
He shook his head, and sighed.
Akira, you idiot. Are we both so blind to each other, or is it all in our heads?
Quietly, he padded up to the bed, gently tossing the quilt over his friend, making sure his feet were covered.
Let Miki give them both hell over feeding their dinner to rabbits; he wanted nothing more in this moment than that look of peace and contentment on Akira’s face.
After all, it was still Akira. After everything, it would still be Akira.
He just hoped it would fate’s bell would ring the same for him.