Chapter Text
"Get whatever you need and meet me under the cherry blossoms at midnight."
He couldn't leave Genji. He couldn't just let the whole weight of the clan fall on his shoulders. He was much too young for that responsibility, too immature.
The clan would do just fine without them, one of his uncles could take it up after his father. They had been fighting for that power since he was born, anyway. There was a chance they would try to look for them, chase them to the ends of the earth to make him pay for his treason, if for nothing else. But he could handle it. It was a chance he was willing to take. He was advanced enough on his training to be able to deal with that. Jesse could help him, too. He was resourceful, and one hell of a good shot.
He was really doing this. He felt really good about this.
-
"You're crazy, aniki!"
Things quickly started to unfold. He should have known better than this.
"Please keep your voice down, Genji." He was desperate, frantically glancing over his shoulder towards the door, expecting someone to burst out of it any moment.
"We can't go to America!" He had really thought Genji would understand. That he would follow him. "What about father? We can't leave him. And for a man you barely just met."
He's young, still childish, doted on by their father since he was a baby. Hanzo really should've known better. He thought Genji loved him enough to follow him blindly. Foolish. He reaches for him, both hand on his brother's shoulders, his eyes pleading. "I don't want to leave you behind." Genji looks at him like he doesn't know him. "Brother, please come with me."
It's late, getting closer to midnight, and his anxiety grows with every second. Worried he won't be able to talk Genji into going with him. Terrified someone will step out and see them just on the edge of the estate, a heavy duffle bag draped over Hanzo's shoulders, packed with everything that matters to him.
"Don't do this, aniki." Genji pleads, just as worried. Hanzo knows his brother loves him. He knows this. But this time it's not enough. He loves his life here more, father and all the privileges he allows him, throwing his life away while Hanzo's shoulders slump with the clan's expectations of him. All his duties and responsibilities mean nothing now.
He goes to say something but the words die in his throat, eyes going wide as he pick up on the soft, hurried footsteps approaching, mora than one pair. He pleads to him one more time, clutching Genji's shoulders for dear life, feels betrayal sting in his chest when his brother just takes a step back, out of his hold and away from him, just seconds before the main door slides open.
"Going somewhere, young master?" Six of his father's men stand by the door, weapons gleaming where they're strapped to their backs.
They know by now. No point in lying. He was either heard talking to Genji or they stormed into his room, saw it stripped of everything but the bedsheets. He turns to look at his brother and what he finds there stings more than the fear he feels. His eyebrows are drawn together, eyes apologizing and disappointed in equal parts as he looks at Hanzo. He shakes his head slightly, drawing away from him, and Hanzo doesn't even hear the apology he whispers when he pulls his bow free, two arrows at the ready. He releases them on quick succession but the men are fast, their katanas blocking them from hitting home.
He tries to make a run for it, hears the quick steps behind him and the swift whir of an arrow flying just to the left of his head, a lock of hair ruffled by the closeness of it.
"Better stop now, young master. Before you regret this," he hears one of them call after him. He can't stop now, not when he's come this far, not when he has Jesse waiting for him.
The men are practically stepping on his heel. He turns back swiftly, releases an arrow that catches one of them on the arm. They get briefly distracted by it and he gains a couple of feet of advantage, the garden wall just a short distance away. If he can climb it on time he'll be able to get away.
"Hanzo! Wait!" He hears Genji's voice desperately calling for him. It's second nature to react, turning towards his brother's voice. It happens too quick, like the blink of an eye. He doesn't even get the chance to look back at his brother before he feels a burning pain on his right calf, the muscle pierced straight through with a black arrow, tip dripping red where it comes out the other side. The pain is almost blinding and he drops a knee to the ground, his heart pounding in his ears.
The men start closing in on him and he starts to panic, frantically trying to get up, resting his weight on his good leg. He tips back an arrow, aiming for the one closest to him. It slips from his fingers, completely missing its mark, when there's someone suddenly behind him. He didn't see him coming, could only feel the flash of cold metal that cuts at the back of his right knee, a controlled swipe of a katana almost slicing the tendons there. The bow falls from his hand, a scream threatening to spill from his throat.
"I'm afraid you're not going anywhere. Your father will want to see you." The men surround him quickly, weapons at the ready were he to be foolish enough to try anything else. He looks up at their steel faces, men he has known since he was but a kid. Genji stands a few feet behind them, face pained and disappointed.
Hanzo can only whimper lamely, his legs shaking with the pain inflicted on them. It's over. He can only close his eyes in silent resignation and think of Jesse waiting for him under their usual tree before they drag him inside.
-
Jesse feels the cherry blossoms gently falling around him, barely like a whisper. He plucks away the ones that stick to his hat and fights the urge to look at his watch again. It's been hours already. The plane tickets in his pocket feel like they weigh a ton.
He thinks about Hanzo, sitting right there under the same tree, his eyes closed in peaceful meditation, pink dotted over his hair where the cherry blossoms have fallen, his lips slowly curving into a smile when he's realized Jesse has joined him.
He thinks of their first kiss, lying on the grass and under the stars. How soft his lips had been, how the little noise he made when Jesse licked into his mouth had been the sweetest thing he had ever heard.
He thinks of Hanzo and his heart feels like it's twisting in his chest, threatening to choke him.
He avoids thinking of the sweet things Hanzo had said, seeming like he couldn't stop himself, like he didn't even realize he was speaking when Jesse had finally been brave enough and held him in his hand, stroking him until he moaned and shivered in his arms.
When he looks up again the first rays of sunshine are already glowing through the sky.
His head feels light and his chest tight when he stands, risking one last look around. He sighs when he sees nothing. "Guess he didn't really wanna come after all." He gathers his things and heads back home