Work Text:
what does it all come down to? love? love.
- e. e. cummings
Rui was a hard worker. Often times, when he got invested in a project or idea, he would pour all of himself and then some, just so he could deliver the best result possible. However, it would prove too physically and mentally taxing at times. Which was one of the main reasons why Rui tried to tone things down. But that wasn’t the only reason Rui stopped consuming caffeine before bed.
It happened the night he stayed up late drafting out the outfit designs for their first stage performance overseas. Rui was going through his seventh draft and wasn’t prepared to stop until he drafted something he was satisfied with. He didn’t even register the moment he fell asleep. All he knew was that one moment he was staring down at the pile of sketches with heavy lidded eyes, and the next he was waking up in an entirely different room. A grand piano sat beside Rui and the boy nearly smashed his head against it as he was rising up from the ground.
“Rui?”
Tsukasa stood across from him wearing a newsboy cap with an oversized jacket draped over his shoulders like a cloak. Rui knew it was Tsukasa, but he felt no familiarity with him. Tsukasa was holding a bundle of sheet music in his arms and sighed, “What are you doing there? Come on, you’re supposed to help me with this part,” he brought the sheet music to the piano and arranged them on the holder. “Just a second, it’s kind of dark here,” he picked up a blue metallic round object that looked like a toy from the space store. Rui nearly fell back when light shot out from the blue ball and star constellations appeared all around the room, lighting up the small space in a gentle glow.
“What-“ Rui stumbled back and tripped on a storybook lying on the wooden floor. He fell back on his butt and groaned in pain. His breath hitched as he opened his eyes and noticed Tsukasa crouching in front of him, “Are you alright? What’s gotten into you-are you sick?” Tsukasa pressed his palm against Rui’s forehead, causing the purple haired boy to flush all the way to the tips of his ears.
Rui quickly scrambled back up and started making his way out of the room, “Sorry-I think I’m lost-“ he grabbed the doorknob. “Wait!” Tsukasa’s voice rang from behind him but Rui was already opening the door. He stumbled towards the darkness that greeted him and seemed to be falling again.
When he landed, he was in a room that was much too bright. Rui blinked and strained his eyes to accustom them to the light. Once his eyes were finally adjusted, he realized he was in the middle of a long hallway that had multiple doors lining its walls. Rui looked around, feeling more lost than ever. He stopped when he heard faint noises coming from one of the rooms. Rui took a step closer and pressed his ear against the wood. Someone was singing inside.
Perhaps it was Tsukasa getting ready for one of their performances?
Rui’s heart drummed in excitement as he swung open the door. He realized his mistake when he stepped inside and noticed a fancy cladded bedroom where the sunlight poured in from the drawn up curtains. Tsukasa stood near the window and his hair was longer. Long enough to be tied into a ponytail. He was dressed like a prince and from the way he was standing and carrying himself, Rui wondered if he was. The singing stopped as Tsukasa turned to face Rui, and the boy’s eyes widened.
“Sorry, I think I got the wrong room,” Rui took a step back and was startled when Tsukasa rushed towards him and nearly brought them both to the ground from the force of his embrace.
“You’re alive!” Tsukasa’s voice was wrenched with an unspeakable amount of grief and Rui let out a confused garble of words that sounded closer to a keysmash.
“All this time-I thought I would never see you again,” Tsukasa was crying. Wait, Tsukasa was crying?!
Rui stared with wide eyes as Tsukasa untied the purple ribbon from his side-pony, allowing his hair to flow freely and cover his left eye, “I kept it with me. The ribbon you gifted me. I had always believed that you would return,” Tsukasa smiled. Rui saw the suppressed sea of memories that swam behind the blonde prince’s eyes and opened his mouth to try and respond, “Tsukasa, I don’t-“
Before he could get a sentence out, Rui’s words were swallowed by Tsukasa’s lips meeting his in a desperate connection. Rui’s heart nearly threatened to give out and his eyes widened as he tried to take in the fact that he was kissing Tsukasa. Tenma Tsukasa was kissing him? There was no way this wasn’t a dream.
They both pulled back for oxygen and Rui took that chance to push Tsukasa away (despite the subtle urge to do the opposite) as he jumped to his feet and rushed out the door. He heard Tsukasa calling after him and only spared a glance back before going into the halls and straight to the opposite door. When he threw open this one, he was engulfed in darkness. The room was too dark to make out anything in it, but that was short-lived as there was a light that came on near the ceiling of the room and illuminated his surroundings to reveal…A circus tent?
Rui shielded his eyes as he looked up towards the top of the tent to see someone sitting on a tight-rope. No way…Another Tsukasa?!
This Tsukasa wore the outfit of a jester and a hat with bells that jingled as he tilted his head and played with the puppets in his hands. He mumbled under his breath, “You are not to join any more meetings, jester! Your jokes have no place here!” He moved one of the puppets as he spoke before grumbling and throwing the puppet down. It landed on Rui’s face.
“Oops, I didn’t know I had a visitor-ah!” Tsukasa’s eyes lit up as he looked down and noticed Rui, “Rui! It’s you!” Again, Tsukasa recognized him but Rui had no recognition of Tsukasa. At least, not this version of Tsukasa. The jester jumped down and Rui flinched in surprise before watching the boy land on his feet like it was no big deal.
“What are you doing here?” Tsukasa asked and Rui noticed the way this Tsukasa was different from all the others. This one had an excited, almost manic look in his eyes. Rui wondered if he had stumbled into something he wasn’t supposed to.
“I’m not sure actually-“ Rui started but Tsukasa interrupted him by leaning against him dramatically, “Great! Then you can listen to me-did you know they kicked me out from the court again?” He draped the back of his hand against his forehead, “All I did was spike our guest’s tea with a bit of juice…Amongst other things,” he mumbled the last part and turned to wrap his arms around Rui’s waist and draw him closer, “Will you comfort me?” He begged while batting his eyelashes. Rui blinked and swallowed thickly, “Actually, I think there’s somewhere else I should be-“
“You won’t?”
Rui’s body froze when he felt the temperature in the room drop and the warmth faded from Tsukasa’s eyes. It was replaced by a cold and threatening gaze. Rui feared for his life.
“But you promised, Rui.”
Goosebumps rose along the back of Rui’s neck and his mouth went dry as he felt his blood run cold. Then, a smile spread across Tsukasa’s face, “Just kidding!” He pulled back and laughed while picking up one of his puppets and placing it on his shoulder, “Oh my God, you should have seen your expression-that was hilarious!”
Rui relaxed a little although a part of him remained tense.
“So what can I help you with, other Rui?” Tsukasa asked in a sing-song voice.
“…I just want to get back home,” Rui said while dragging a hand down the side of his face. This was probably the longest dream he’s ever had. Rui didn’t think it was possible to feel exhausted while still being asleep.
“I could show you the way,” Tsukasa offered. If Rui had been more alert, he might have noticed the glint in the blonde jester’s eyes when he made the offer. But he was too desperate to get out of this situation to question it further.
“Really?” He asked, a hopeful smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Tsukasa nodded and guided Rui further inside his circus. Rui tried not to focus on the way the puppets eyes glowed and seemed to follow Rui as he walked past them. They came to another door that seemed drawn onto the side of the tent. “Is this…A door?” One that he could walk through?
“Yup! Allow me to show you,” Tsukasa piped up as he grabbed a knife out of nowhere. Rui’s scream was stuck in his throat as Tsukasa used the knife to stab into the tent and rip open a giant hole before he pushed Rui through it.
“Enjoy your time with his Majesty~”
Rui turned back to face the way he came but was frazzled to find the hole gone and replaced with a large, fancy carved door that seemed to loom over him.
“Hey!” Rui’s anger towards the jester seemed ready to burst but it was immediately extinguished when a bold, booming voice came from behind him.
“Come forth.”
Rui felt a sense of dread overcome him again but forced himself to turn back and face the longest red carpet he’s ever seen in his life. It led up towards a grand throne where, of course, another Tsukasa was sitting. This version of Tsukasa adorned a large fur robe that draped down half his shoulders. The gold and gemstones that shone from his crown and clothes only added to the air of intimidation that seemed to radiate from Tsukasa. Rui wasn’t sure how he managed to make his way to the front of the throne. He couldn’t even bring himself to raise his head to look Tsukasa in the eyes.
“You have the audacity to show your face in front of me again? After all that has happened?” Tsukasa’s voice was hard. Rui swallowed nervously. He had no idea what the other was talking about.
“I don’t understand,” Rui said in a small voice.
“You don’t understand? Or you simply do not care? Does it please you, to see the effect you still have on me?” Tsukasa’s words sounded like violence and Rui jerked his head up to see Tsukasa stand up and begin descending down the set of stairs towards him, “Have you come back to gloat your victory over this game of hearts?” Tsukasa’s words had grown soft like a whisper and Rui struggled for the right way to respond, but by then Tsukasa already arrived in front of him. Their faces were a breath away and Rui felt himself getting lost in the honey amber of Tsukasa’s eyes that were colder than he remembered them being.
“Tsukasa, I-“ Rui spoke the boy’s name and the King’s expression crumbled for a moment and he pressed his lips together thinly while his eyes shined over.
“I never wanted to hear my name uttered from the lips of such a wretched person again. And yet…” Tsukasa sucked in a breath, “I will ask you this one final time. Rui, do you love me?”
The purple haired boy had not expected such a question, and it was hard not to imagine the real Tsukasa asking it. If it was…
“I do,” Rui confessed with a small smile, relieved that it wasn’t the true Tsukasa hearing such an embarrassing confession come from his lips.
He was taken aback by the look of shock on Tsukasa’s face, as if he never imagined getting such an answer in his life.
“Another lie…? How can I trust you, after all you’ve done…” Tsukasa whispered, a clear conflict behind his gaze as he glanced down. When he looked back up, he wore a determined expression, “Prove it to me.”
“Prove it?” Rui tilted his head.
“Kiss me.”
Rui’s heart jumped in his chest and he nearly choked. Tsukasa took a step closer with a passionate flame in his eyes, “Kiss me. Otherwise, I’ll have confirmation that your words were a farce and I’ll have you thrown into the dung-“
Reacting out of pure intrusive thoughts, Rui cupped Tsukasa’s cheeks and kissed him with enough force to knock the air out of their lungs. Tsukasa’s eyes were blown wide and he pressed his hands along Rui’s chest as if to push him away, only to shift them higher and wrap his arms around Rui’s neck to draw him closer and deepen the kiss. Tsukasa’s lips were smooth like melted butter, and Rui wondered if kissing the real Tsukasa would feel the same. God, was he really so far gone that he was having dreams about kissing his best friend?
But with this version of Tsukasa, Rui tasted bitter memories and broken promises from the other’s lips. He was almost curious as to what exactly happened between the two of them to have Tsukasa react so viscerally towards him.
They pulled back and were left breathing heavily. Tsukasa’s eyes were still closed and Rui noticed the streaks on Tsukasa’s face stained by his tears. The King opened his eyes and gazed up at him, “You’re not Rui. At least, you’re not the one I know, are you?”
Rui was surprised that Tsukasa realized this. He hesitated before nodding, “I’m sorry,” he didn’t know why he felt the desire to apologize. Tsukasa gave a sad smile and shook his head, “I could tell. The Rui I knew…He was never this gentle. Nor this kind,” his smile grew pained as he looked out towards the windows, “and yet, I loved him regardless.” Tsukasa took a step back, “Thank you for humoring me with a mere fantasy…I wish you luck on your return,” he gestured to the door that magically appeared again, on the wall beside them.
Out of all the Tsukasas, this one seemed like the most mature one. Which made sense, considering he was a King, after all.
He went to the door and glanced back one last time to see Tsukasa ascending back up the steps. It looked like each step was strained, and Rui wondered if the crown on Tsukasa’s head ever grew too heavy for him to bear. As Rui opened the door, his thoughts flew out from his mind as he found himself falling. Again.
This time he landed on the dirt ground.
Rui just recovered from his head spinning when he suddenly had the tip of a blade pressed close to his throat. What the fuck?!
“Nice attempt at distracting me with your wardrobe change, but it won’t work!”
Of course…Another Tsukasa.
This one had his hair sleeked to the side while adorning a large blue cloak that had holes burned into it and blood staining the cotton. He was also the one currently holding a sword towards his throat. Despite the danger he was in, Rui couldn’t help noticing the look of betrayal that was carved into the scowl on Tsukasa’s face while his grip on the sword trembled. Geez, was he really such a horrible person in these universes for so many Tsukasas to have a gripe with him?
Rui had no time to contemplate the question as Tsukasa raised the sword and closed his eyes as if he couldn’t watch himself finish the act. Rui rolled away just as the blade stabbed into the ground beside him. Oh my God, he’s really about to kill me! Rui’s thoughts screamed as he scrambled onto his feet and took off in a sprint through the battlefield.
“Come back here!” Tsukasa hollered from behind him and Rui dodged and weaved through the many bodies that wielded dangerous weapons. During his escape he narrowly escaped getting sliced and stabbed several times.
“Help me! Somebody help me!” Rui cried and froze when he witnessed a soldier getting decapitated right in front of him. The sight was enough to cause his knees to go weak and Rui’s eyes rolled back before he fell back and fainted.
When he came to, Rui was overwhelmed with relief at finally seeing familiar surroundings. It looked like he woke up in Phoenix Wonderland. Rui sat up and checked himself for injuries from battlefield he just ran through. He looked up when he heard the sound of children’s laughter and noticed children crowding around…Tsukasa?
Rui slowly rose up. He didn’t remember Tsukasa being good with children. It was only when Rui got closer that he noticed the brightly colored clothes Tsukasa adorned as well as the candies the boy seemed to be pulling out from thin air. The children didn’t question it and were elated at the seemingly infinite supply of sweets that were showered down on them.
Tsukasa glanced at Rui before his expression brightened even more, “Rui!” He chirped. Rui knew he didn’t blink, but Tsukasa did. In fact, he seemed to pop out from the circle of children and reappear right in front of him. Rui couldn’t suppress his scream this time and jumped back in surprise. Tsukasa tilted his head to the side, “What’s wrong? You look pale. And you’re not popping! Are you low on sugar?” He opened his palm and a small pile of candy appeared out of thin air.
Oh, Rui was definitely still dreaming.
“I’m never gonna go back to my normal life,” Rui lamented as he rubbed his forehead. He let out a sigh before choking on it as a lollipop was suddenly thrust into his mouth. Tsukasa smiled cheekily at him, “Is it yummy?” Rui paused before holding the stick of the lollipop and nodding. Well, at least this version of Tsukasa wasn’t trying to kill him.
“Good!” Tsukasa clapped and then hid his hands behind his back, “Because I’ve got lots more,” he took them out to reveal a mountain of lollipops in his hands, “and we’re not leaving until you’ve finished all of them,” he spoke with a cheerful glint in his eyes.
Ah, perhaps Rui spoke too soon.
Rui was back up and running again as Tsukasa chased him through the theme park, popping closer and closer to him until-
“Watch out!” Two people carrying a large box stepped into Rui’s path, causing him to crash head-first into it. Rui had already lost track of how many times he had been knocked out.
When he came to, he sat upright and realized he was back at Kamiyama High. The people he crashed into were sprawled on the floor as well and groaned when they realized some contents from the box they were carrying ended up spilling out, “Kamishiro, you need to be careful!” One of them huffed. Rui was nearly moved to tears at the sight of familiar faces and couldn’t resist throwing his arms around one of his classmates, “You don’t know how relieved I am to see you guys,” he faked a sob and his classmates exchanged weird looks.
“Could you get off? We still need to finish setting up for the cultural festival.”
Rui nodded as he pulled back and rose up. As he did so, a thought peered through the back of his mind.
Wasn’t the cultural festival last month?
“Hi there.”
Rui froze and didn’t want to turn back but forced himself to. His heart dropped when he saw Jester Tsukasa hanging upside down outside the window. Wait, weren’t they on the third floor?
“Oh my God, make it stop,” Rui clutched his head. He felt like he was going crazy, but things were only getting started. He tried to ignore the jester who continued to tease him from the window and walked further down the hall. The door to one of the classrooms slid open and the version of Tsukasa that had been a prince stepped out. His ponytail fluttered over his shoulder as he turned to look at Rui and his eyes lit up, “Rui!”
Rui immediately turned to fast walk down the opposite direction.
Not even several paces in, the door to another classroom slammed open and King Tsukasa and Knight Tsukasa (the one who tried to kill him) stepped out. The King narrowed his eyes at Rui, “Knight, I want Rui incapacitated and brought to me immediately.” His knight unsheathed his sword (where was the principal) and responded with full conviction, “It would be my pleasure, your Majesty.” Rui let out a strangled cry as he saw Tsukasa charging towards him and rushed into the closest vacant classroom before slamming shut the door and blocking it from opening by pushing a table in front of it. He fought to catch his breath and let out a startled cry when he saw Tsukasa sitting on one of the desks, but relaxed a little when he noticed his newsboy cap,
“Oh thank God, it’s just you,” Rui exhaled as he leaned his elbows on the table to recover from exerting practically all his stamina. Tsukasa raised an eyebrow and lowered the book he was reading on his lap, “I see you’ve gotten yourself into a situation,” his tone was flat and conveyed no sympathy for Rui whatsoever.
“To put it lightly,” Rui admitted while glancing back as he felt the other Tsukasas attempting to break open the door.
“Did you consume caffeine before bed?”
“Huh?”
“Were you running on nothing but energy drinks, again?” Tsukasa reworded his question while shutting closed his book and shooting Rui an accusatory look. Rui flinched as he felt caught, “Just a couple…”
“I’ll send you back, if you promise me you’ll take better care of yourself.”
“Huh?” Rui wasn’t sure why Tsukasa cared so much about his well-being, considering they shared no memories together in this reality. Just then, another Tsukasa popped into the room with an armful of cupcakes, “There you are! Don’t worry, I’ve got something better than candy-these will perk you back up for sure!” He showed Rui a blue cupcake and even from this distance Rui could smell its sweetness amongst its florescent colored frosting.
“Promise me!” Tsukasa sitting on the desk hollered just as Rui was contemplating jumping out from the nearest window. “I promise! I promise!” He rushed towards Tsukasa as the boy opened up his book and exposed the pages towards Rui, “Here! Jump!” Rui was beyond confused but had no time to question it as he leapt forward just as the other Tsukasa launched a cupcake towards him. A light shone out from the book and swallowed him into the pages where darkness welcomed him.
Rui woke up screaming on the floor. He gasped and looked around to see himself surrounded by scattered pieces of paper that were slightly crumpled. The sketches? Rui picked up one to confirm and managed to catch his breath before letting out a long exhale. He was back. The dream was over. Thank God.
Rui sat up and rubbed the back of his head that throbbed from the impact it had taken during his sleep. His eyes locked onto the cans of energy drinks still sitting on his desk. Rui shot up and gathered the cans and then dumped them straight into the garbage in one swift move. “Never again,” Rui mumbled. He trudged towards his bed despite the fact that the sun was well up in the sky. It felt like he barely slept.
Ding-dong!
Rui tensed at the sound of the doorbell but made his way downstairs. He paused at the door and then unlocked it and pulled it open to peek outside. Tsukasa was wearing his casual clothes and sporting a baseball cap while carrying a plastic bag in one hand. He raised an eyebrow when he saw Rui peeking out at him, “Uh, Rui?”
“…Yes?” A part of Rui almost wondered if he was still dreaming and this was another version of Tsukasa he didn’t know about. But he could sense that this was his Tsukasa, one that he knew since the beginning. Rui opened the door wider and straightened up, “Sorry, I kinda just woke up.”
“…It’s twelve in the afternoon.”
Well, at least his dream really did go on as long as he felt it did.
Tsukasa held out the bag towards Rui, “I just went to get you some stuff from the convenient store. Since I know you probably weren’t taking care of yourself since we took on that project,” he took out two cans of energy drinks and Rui’s eyes widened, “you like these ones, right?”
“Nope,” Rui answered immediately.
“Really? I thought-“
“You know, I just thought of something that would help ease the tension I’ve been under-” Rui spoke quickly and reached forward to take Tsukasa by the wrist, “-your company. That’s all I need.” Tsukasa’s face flushed red and he pulled back quickly, “What?! Why do you have to say it like that-“ he groaned when he saw the pleading look in Rui’s eyes, “oh alright, fine! But only if you allow me to see everything you have prepared so far for the performance, that takes priority.”
Rui nodded and felt a warmth spread through his chest when Tsukasa flashed him a smile. They both headed inside Rui’s home and the purple haired boy wondered if he merely imagined the sound of bells tinkling from nearby.