Chapter Text

At the Snowy Meeting Place

Cold.

Why was he so cold? Snow continuously fell from the sky adding to the cold. He didn't really like the snow. He didn't want it to be any colder. The wind whipped through his jacket and dived straight into his bones. So easily it sank. He had checked if he was wearing a winter coat.

Crunch…Crunch…Crunch.

Teito looked up. In front of him was a towering man with piercing lavender eyes. Silver hair flew from the man's face as more wild wind seeped into the depths of Teito's bones. Slowly the man kneeled down where he had stopped walking. Now coupled with the frigid wind was an unmistakable air of danger. This man was dangerous. Teito could tell from the man's face and clothes, this man was clearly part of the military. Part of the military that had destroyed Raggs.

"You were missed in the initial invasion. Don't worry. You won't have to deal with the cold much longer." The silver haired man calmly spoke through the fury of the snow blowing wind. While he was speaking, questions were running through his own head.

What is so different about this boy? I have killed countless times before. Death is part of my being. If that is so though, then why does my chest hurt when I think about life leaving this vessel?

"Wh-what?" Teito couldn't hear what the man said. The smirk on his face did nothing to calm his fears. Where were his parents, but more importantly, why couldn't he remember them? Had he even had parents to being with? Did he have a family? "Are you related to me?" It was a farfetched question, so far than Teito had trouble believing he had just asked it. He would later blame it on the oh so mind crippling cold.

For a moment Ayanami paused. This boy, came along, caused him to question his own motives, and believed they were possible relations? Now Ayanami really did not know what all this interest was about. This boy was an idiot.

And yet there was a curious part in him that wanted to know what it would be like to be a relation to this child. He could lie and say he was some distant cousin that cared enough to come and try to perform a daring rescue under the military's nose. That was not in his character though.

He opened his mouth to deny the claim when, "Of course little one. How could you forget me? Your own brother?"

Then there were two parties gaping. Little Teito gaped for having the astounding luck of finding a person that knew him. A brother, in fact! Ayanami was in awe that his own mouth could betray him so. Never before had his mouth spat out such a wild lie. Generally his lies were more thought out for a specific purpose. There was no purpose for his talents of lying to be needed here. Let alone to a stupid child.

"Really?" That was all Teito could speak. The man, who had still not introduced himself to Teito, just chuckled lightly.

"I'm hurt you don't remember your big brother. What do you remember?" If the boy said his name than Ayanami's falsity would not yet be found out.

"I remember my name is Teito and….the coldness of the snow. I don't like the snow." If that was all Teito remembered, then Ayanami was in good shape. There was a high probability Teito's family had already been killed in the initial invasion, so Ayanami didn't have to worry about some wayward family member coming to seek custody. Even if his family was still alive, they were either going to be executed or made slaves. Should they have escaped both of those fates, then Teito's family members would need to distance themselves from their Raggs heritage as much as possible.

"It's okay Teito. It's fine that you don't remember. The important thing is I found you. We will get out of this cold and go home, alright?" Ayanami still could end this charade. It wouldn't take much. Just one swipe of his sword towards any of the defenseless child's vitals and all this work would end. The thought of killing this boy still did not sit well with him though, how strange. Ayanami resolved to take this child back as his long lost brother to investigate this foreign feeling. Should the child prove to be too much of a hassle or Ayanami figured out the reason why the child's death upset him so much, an arranged accident was always a viable option.

More footsteps could be heard. Finally his subordinates decided to show up. Their late arrival allowed him to make this cover of Teito's relation in the span of a few minutes. Had they had been there when he proclaimed to be Teito's older brother; their shocked reactions might have given him away. As is Ayanami could already feel their shock from him kneeling in front of a child. This was a confusing matter to all. Silently he sent out the message that he would tell his subordinates details later. For now they were to go along with the situation.

"Everyone I would like to introduce Teito, my younger brother. Teito, introduce yourself." Ayanami expertly cut off Hyuuga's chance of asking a question. He would undoubtedly try to ask something that would ruin this hastily made scheme.

"I-I'm Teito. He is my older broth-achooo!" Teito's sentence was cut off by a sneeze. Ayanami looked around and realized that while he had only been here for a few moments the snow was piling up and the wind had increased its ferociousness. He didn't know how long Teito had been standing in the cold.

"Teito has been standing out here for an undetermined amount of time. We should head back to the ship. What we are looking for is no longer here. That person, with that specific knowledge, cannot disclose the information of its location any longer." Swiftly Ayanami picked up Teito after finishing his miniature speech. Teito curled into his arms seeking warmth and comfort. Ayanami started to walk away from the place where he met Teito. Naturally his subordinates fell into step behind him.

"Uh, big brother?"

"What?"

"I don't want to be rude, but I can't remember your name, brother. I keep trying but I can't remember anything. Do we have parents? What are they like? Why was I here?" Teito had choked sobs slipping in every now and then. He just couldn't remember. Looking at his memory was like looking at the freshly fallen snow. White, purely blank white.

"It is okay, Teito. I already told you that. I should have known you had forgotten my name. You don't remember anything do you? You already answered that question for me. I'm sorry I did not reintroduce myself to you. I am Ayanami.

"I am sorry to say that my parents died two years ago. Teito you are actually my half-brother. Your mother was of Raggs descent. My father had an affair with your mother. When the scandal was revealed you were ripped away from me and brought here by that woman. I had heard she died a short time after going back to Raggs but there was no information about you.

"I promise that we won't be separated again. You will want for nothing. I will spoil you rotten as you deserve to be, Little One." Sprouting these lies became easier. He came up with a reference now that coincided with his history. Yes his parents were dead. Yes his father did have an affair. Yes a child did come from the union. And yes the child's mother was of Raggs descent and had taken the child back to Raggs. The only lie was about the child itself. Like he would let a soul that helped tarnish his family name live. He had sought to right the wrong of his family and had accomplished it

"Ayanami." Teito tried the word out on his tongue. It seemed fitting for this person. He snuggled even more into his embrace. His brother cared for him. He was wanted. "Aa-achooo! I'm so sorry, big brother Ayanami. I didn't mean to sneeze on your uniform."

"It is fine Teito. You have been in the cold. While your coat is meant to keep one warm, it is not enough for you. I cannot blame you for getting sick. Most adults would get sick from this weather. How can I be angry with you, a child?" Ayanami said with was meant to be a reassuring sort of 'smile.' Yet when he turned to his subordinates they all took smaller steps forward. They did not want to be around Ayanami when he had such a frightening look on his face. Teito let out a small squeak before diving deeper into Ayanami's embrace and avoided looking at the man's face.

"Uh, Aya-tan? If I could say something?" Only Hyuuga would have the guts to speak to Ayanami in such a situation. "I called the ship and it has moved coordinates to come and get us; it will be here momentarily." Ayanami's only acknowledgement was a brief shake of the head.

"Teito, don't worry. The ship will come soon and you will be properly looked at. Konatsu, you are to take him to the medical bay. I want him to have a full medical checkup. As I mentioned I am unaware of how long he has been outside, it would be bad if he developed pneumonia or frost bite. Also, he told me he can't remember anything but his name being Teito. He is to be checked for a possible concussion. I don't want my brother to have future repercussions because he wasn't thoroughly checked out for any medical condition he may experience." Ayanami finished with his signature bone chilling piercing glare.

Without haste Konatsu put his arm into salute position and replied, "Yes sir! He will be checked thoroughly for any medical abnormalities." Slowly he stepped back into line and let gravity help put his arm back down by his side.

"Teito that is Konatsu. He will have to be with you when we get on the ship. I must go and file my report and meet with my superiors. If the doctors do anything strange you are to report it to him. Do you understand?" A reassuring nod was all Ayanami got in response. Teito seemed to be falling asleep within his arms. Had Ayanami been a normal person he would have found the site unbearably cute. Since he had always been distant from his emotions instead he found there to be a slight stir in them. This was still unusual for him; instead of pondering on it right away he decided to file it away for later when he would contemplate the child known as Teito.

Slowly the airship came into focus. The loud sound approaching awoke Teito and he stared in awe mixed with fear as it landed. The back door dropped to let them on. People were already standing in salute to greet them. Signally Konatsu, Ayanami gave Teito to him with one more glare to sink the information in. Konatsu shook his head in affirmation. This was the first time any of them had seen Ayanami like this. It was so different.

"Don't worry Teito. We will be reunited later this evening." With those final words, Ayanami departed with his entourage of subordinates following him.

Konatsu held him as Ayanami and his fellow officers walked away. Teito briefly held out his hand and slowly withdrew it back to his chest. Konatsu looked down at Ayanami's new charge and sighed. Without going to the meeting he would definitely have much paperwork to do later from Hyuuga.

"Come little Teito, let's go get you looked at. Are you warmer on the ship?" Konatsu knew the answer had to be yes. Since stepping on the ship Teito's shivers decreased significantly. Teito nodded his head as Konatsu started to the infirmary. He did not want to face Ayanami's retribution if something were to happen to Teito because he had waited to long for the boy to be checked out.

Ayanami composed himself the second he turned away from Teito. Trying to smile had always been hard for him. When he was young his parents often tried to get him to smile. To the day they died he had never cracked one. The only thing they saw from him was a smirk.

"Well Aya-tan you certainly have yourself in a predicament. Who's the kid?" Hyuuga leered at him behind his glasses.

"I don't know. A stupid child for sure, but for some reason I do not wish to kill him. That is the only thing saving him. There seems to be something about him. That's why I had him sent for a full medical checkup. Teito I will find what is different about you. Once he has loses his novelty to me, a sufficient accident can always be arranged." Ayanami chuckled deeply before continuing down his path.

"And here I thought you were going soft Ayanami. Poor Teito has no idea what he is in for." Hyuuga stated.

"And he is to have no idea. To him I am a concerned loving older brother. Nothing suggesting otherwise will be brought up in the vicinity of the boy. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes Sir!" chorused his subordinates as they stopped in the hallway. Ayanami's shall be upheld. One last dark chuckle left Ayanami's mouth before he entered the meeting to give his report.

Chapter Text

After The Years Have Passed

Teito carefully looked into the large room before entering. He wanted to make sure his brother was alone or as close to alone as he could get. In his mind a mission was to be completed.

The sun could be seen setting through the towering windows Ayanami had behind his work desk. Some perks did come with having work and home space shared. Ayanami never had a long commute and Teito always had access to his brother.

Ayanami sat behind his desk and only looked up because he knew it was Teito entering. Putting the last document in the folder he beckoned Teito over to him. Teito took the invitation to sit directly on his lap and rest his head on Ayanami's chest.

Ever since Teito had been a young child, he had been active and would rarely calm down and just be still. Sitting on Ayanami's lap and listening to his brother's heartbeat was one of the few things Teito could truly relax while doing. Ayanami believed it stemmed from the trauma of the Raggs War. Teito had lost much during the war and the only way for him to truly feel comfort was to establish life did exist in the ones he loved, especially in Ayanami.

Moments passed and Teito started to relax as usual. Some days if Teito was terribly tired or stressed he would snuggle up to his brother and pass into sleep. That left Ayanami with the unfortunate job of taking his brother to his bedroom and tucking him in for the night.

"Are you going to tell me what you came here for? Before you fall asleep?" Ayanami drawled.

"I'm not falling asleep. I just wanted to make sure your heart was not beating irregularly. Sensei said it could be a symptom of a heart defect." Teito proclaimed. "I am here to propose a trip."

"A trip? And where is this trip leading to?" questioningly Ayanami looked down at Teito with his piercing purple eyes. One green eye gazed back at him.

"Yes, a very educational trip, full of culture and learning." Teito opened both eyes and smiled at Ayanami.

"Yet, you have not told me where this trip will lead to."

"The Seventh District," answered Teito while looking away with a pink hue staining his cheeks. He knew that Ayanami held a grudge against District Seven, but he had never had told Teito the reason why.

A disapproving, uncharacteristic grunt came from Ayanami. He shifted Teito in his lap and started to stroke Teito's hair. If possible Teito molded even more into Ayanami.

"Why the sudden need for a trip to District Seven, Teito?" Ayanami kept his gaze directed at Teito's face.

Slowly Teito looked down and pulled out an envelope addressed to him from District Seven. "This is a letter from Hakuren. You remember Hakuren from the Oak family?" Teito swiveled his head to meet Ayanami's stare.

"Ah yes, the disgraced son of the Oak family. I remember hearing about an audacious Oak that broke the family tradition of politicians and soldiers." With a smirk Ayanami closed his eyes and leaned back into his chair. Teito stopped opening the letter momentarily to look at him.

"And the part of Hakuren being a friend of mine is what? Irrelevant?" Teito sounded surprised.

"Oh yes, I suppose there is also that fact to consider."

"Stop messing with me." Teito spouted indigently. "Anyway, Hakuren went to District Seven to take the Bishop Examination. Since Hakuren is himself, he couldn't stand the small chance of being late and wound up there months before he had to be there. He found out near the end of the summer season the Church holds a festival, so can I go?" Excitement gleamed in Teito's eyes as he looked up at his brother.

"All that traveling for a festival? I think the Capitol holds enough celebrations for all the other Districts." Ayanami opened his eyes again to see Teito's determination be renewed.

"Exactly, I have only been to Capitol celebrations and anywhere place else. What is the point of paying for education and learning if this knowledge isn't applied?" Teito questioned while trying to be persuasive with finances and education.

"I will not say a definite no. I will think over the possibilities. Now get up. I do believe I have a candidate to be a begleiter here for an interview," Ayanami stated while moving Teito out of his lap. Teito gave an affirmative sound before exiting out of the family door; as soon as the family door closed the work door, as Teito would call the different doors, opened revealing the candidate led by Hyuuga.

"Now Mikage, I believe Ayanami wants to interview you. Good luck. Aya-tan looks like he just got some discerning news," leered Hyuuga. Mikage gulped at the last comment Hyuuga made before closing the door to the room and sealing his fate.

Tick tock, tick tock. A clock Mikage had never noticed before was working in a corner of the room that suddenly became quite interesting to him.

"Mikage Celestine, of the Celestine family, currently in service to the honorable Oak family, which happens to be a very important reason for your choice in joining the military."

"Yes." Quickly Mikage's focus centered onto Ayanami.

"Sir. Respect is important to superior officers or has the academy's standards sunk so low basic conduct is no longer taught?"

"Moving on, this year marks some of the worst final testing grades in the history of the military. Your scores are quite remarkable when compared to some of the more esteemed members of your former class. Yet, I see here you refused to finish the criminal." Ayanami drawled.

"That is correct, sir." Mikage answered with no hesitation.

"You will not make it far in the army if you lack conviction."

"I had conviction, sir. The criminal was in a position where he could no longer hurt anyone, Sir. What more should I have done? Sir!" Mikage ended with an afterthought of respect.

"Permanently put the criminal in an immobile position."

"I saw no need to take it that far, Sir."

"And on a mission not taking it far enough can lead to more death; death of you, a comrade, or a civilian. Do you remember what I told you when you remained friends with Teito?"

"Do not stay friends with him unless you are prepared to lose your soul, Sir." It was a line Mikage could never forget. Ayanami had spoken to him the first time Mikage's military plans had been brought up. Teito had shrugged it off as his brother being weird as he was prone to do. Mikage saw intent behind Ayanami's eyes that day though, some sort of dastardly intent.

"And are you?"

"I would do anything to stay with Teito. He is my best friend. Sir." Mikage had never uttered a truer statement than at that moment.

"Teito has broached the topic of a journey to District Seven, have you heard of this?" Mikage looked diagonally toward the windows and away from Ayanami. By now the sun had set and the lights now came from building or street lights. There was very little cloud fair, meaning the stars could shine brightly above the city, not that the residents could see more than a few twinkling lights.

"Yes sir. I don't see how that is relevant to this interview though. Sir." Mikage couldn't quite understand why Teito journey should have any bearing on his interview. If Teito got to make the trip though, Mikage admitted to himself, he would be a little jealous. He hadn't seen Hakuren in ages. Not since his father kicked him out from the family estate.

"It is very relevant since I am looking for a possible guard for Teito. This quest could hold some merit for his future, but I do not trust inanimate objects with Teito, let alone human beings. This will be your true evaluation. Pass or fail. I will have one of my people watch your progress on this trip. Make sure Teito comes back in good health or there will be no need for you to come back at all." A merciless sheen entered Ayanami's already frigid eyes. With some shivers Mikage nodded in affirmation. Ayanami was worse than an over protective father letting his daughter date for the first time.

"You will depart at 0700 hours in two days' time. I trust you to get your worldly affairs in order."

"Yes Sir!" Mikage turned to leave the room.

"One more moment, are you familiar with what a kor is, Celestine?"

"A kor, as in an agent of the fallen Verloren? Then yes, I am."

"Good. The objective of your mission is to protect Teito at all costs, am I understood? The rest of the information will be sent to your current lodging." Finally Ayanami gave Mikage a dismissing gesture so he could take his leave. Teito might insist Ayanami coldness is a front, but Mikage would continue to believe it was true.

"You are, Sir. I could not live with myself if I were to let something happen to Teito. You have nothing to worry about." Mikage gave his trademark smile before exiting the room, still trying to make sense of what had just happened. Why would it matter if he knew what a kor was? Was it relevant to Teito?

Mikage still remembered the adverse effects a kor had on Hakuren's mother when she had been infected. She had been in agony for days until a kind bishop came and destroyed the kor. Still puzzling the idea Mikage went to his residence to prepare for the journey.

"Ne, Aya-tan, keep this up and people will start to think you actually do care about your brother. Me included." Hyuuga barged in after seeing Mikage leave.

"I need another person to shadow the two. I have no doubts Mikage would give his all to protect Teito, but a simple human's all can be not enough."

"A trip to District Seven. Ah, I would volunteer to go myself, but somehow Teito always knows when I am around. I guess you are aware when those you most loathe are near. Oh, your 'brother' is just too cute Ayanami."

"Hn," Ayanami turned his chair to look out at the capitol's night scene.

"I would hate to do this to Kuroyuri, but I think Haruse would be the best candidate to follow Teito and Mikage. He blends in fairly well and has not interacted much with Teito."

"That sounds fine. Give him the mission specifics. If Kuroyuri has a problem with this, tell him to bring it up to me specifically."

"Will do Aya-tan. Shouldn't you be heading to the dining room? It is five minutes for dinner. Teito would never forgive me if you were to be late." Chuckling Hyuuga left to tell Haruse he had his first big solo mission and preparing for Kuroyouri's outburst.

With silence accompanying him Ayanami put the last essential documents in their place before beginning to leave the room. By now Teito would be at the dinner table wondering where he was.

Konatsu would be joining them for dinner tonight, as he always did after Teito visited the 'doctors'. He had turned into a type of medical adviser for Teito, making sure Teito would get to the laboratory on time, keeping tabs for Ayanami, and caring for Teito after such appointments. Teito had a weak constitution after all.

Entering the room he was greeted by Teito and Konatsu antics. Konatsu was fussing over Teito similar to how a hen mothers over her chicks; asking a multitude of questions and Teito trying to shrug off such affections.

"Konatsu, I'm fine."

"Teito you are not fine. It took you seven seconds to respond to my question."

"I wasn't paying attention."

"It's worse than I thought. You only had so much grey matter to begin with."

"You knew I wasn't paying attention. Konatsu that's mean. Almost to the level of that guy," Teito uttered with unmasked irritation.

While Teito kept saying he was fine, and probably was since Ayanami wouldn't allow his brother to be in a poor condition, Konatsu could not forget the first time he had met Teito. The day they had invaded the ruins of the Raggs Kingdom. The day when Ayanami became an older brother and he became a mother hen.

Teito's head swiveled from side to side following the doctor's finger. He had to go through a lot of tests today but this one was the easiest. He didn't have to run or be poked by those sharp, pointy needles. Teito learned he really didn't like needles, but he wanted to be good for big brother Ayanami. If he misbehaved Teito felt like Ayanami wouldn't take it too kindly. Instead Konatsu had to hold him so he could bury his face while the doctors either gave him a shot or withdrew the necessary blood.

"And there. I think we are done Teito. As far as I can see nothing is noticeably out of the ordinary. It will take a few days for the blood work to come back, but from the tests taken today I can't see anything being wrong with you." While the doctor spoke to Teito most of his speech was directed towards Konatsu.

"Is his head OK? Teito said he couldn't remember anything. He had trouble remembering his own brother, Sir. Is there any reason to be concerned? Does he have a concussion or some brain lesion?" Konatsu rambled off nervously. Ayanami had said to be thorough and he didn't think his leader would be too happy with him if Teito's head wasn't checked out.

"As far as I could tell this little guy's head is perfectly fine. His overall health seems good. The coughing and shivering was due to the dryness caused by the harsh weather and the overall cold." The doctor's voice suddenly dipped lower in volume.

"You found this boy in Raggs, yes?"

"That is correct. He is my leader's younger brother separated due to unfavorable circumstances." Konatsu automatically answered.

"I'm guessing he did not escape the horror of war. From the coughing I'm guessing he was out in the open for a good amount of time. It is possible his memory loss comes from what he has seen. For now, my best guess would be trauma caused little Teito to lose his memories. While he might have avoided being physically injured, he could not shake the mental scars of war. At least he is young and has time to make new memories. Should your leader, Ayanami, choose to he could put Teito into a type of therapy to recover his memories."

"Thank you for your expertise doctor. I'm sure Ayanami will be most pleased to hear that Teito is healthy even with being stuck in that dreadful cold for an unspecified amount of time." Konatsu bowed slightly as the doctor turned to leave. As the doctor shuffled out the door, Konatsu let out a sigh of relief. He was glad nothing was wrong with Teito. Now he could rejoin his group and hope Hyuuga hadn't left him with too much work.

Looking down Konatsu noticed Teito had wondered off to a counter full of medicals tools, dangerous and sharp medical tools to be specific. Slowly in childish curiosity Teito lifted his hand to touch the shiny object when Konatsu dived onto his knees and quickly grabbed Teito's hand. Another sigh left Konatsu mouth. One day and he had already sighed so much. He hadn't even seen the pile of work Hyuuga had left for him today. About to let out another sigh Konatsu instead took a deep steady breath in.

"Hey Teito the doctor gave you a clean bill of health. We are free to go. Why don't we go see what your older brother is doing, huh?" Konatsu diverted Teito's gaze away from the medical supply left out in the open by shifting Teito into his arms. With a reminder in his mind to report the medical staff's laziness he set off to join his comrades. Honestly he already served the laziest military officer. He wouldn't put up with others.

"Well if you don't feel well, just tell me, Teito." Konatsu finished his line of thought and turned his attention back to the dinner foyer in front of him.

Teito turned to look at his brother, "Have you decided yet?"