Same Side - Ayato Kirishima x Ghoul Reader [2/2]

Warning: Cursing and violence

       --

       A little stumble, a little stagger… I slowed my pace, stopping on one of the many roofs once I was sure I was no longer being pursued. Suddenly still, I realized there was a fresh wind in the air. It teased at my tattered clothing and gracefully whisked over my many fresh cuts. I took a deep breath, feeling warm liquid drip down my back sluggishly. I wouldn’t be healing for quite some time… I still needed food… the ghouls here were a lot more vicious than before… shoot. This was a terrible start!
       I bit my lip anxiously, feeling the delicate skin give way a little. I reached behind me, fingers searching for the sharp bits. Finding one, I cringed and roughly pulled the shard from my skin. Blood was ripped out with it, coating the blade. A shudder ran through my body and I tried to reach other shards and remove them…
       “Ahhhh!” A voice abruptly cried out, sounding in grave pain. I perked up and momentarily forgot about the shards in my back, wishing the sound was a human… I could hope for a meal, right?
       Guided by the hunger raging in my gut, I followed the noise warily from my lofted position. Searching after the origin of the cry, I came across a darkened alleyway. I peered over the edge, anxious for some reason of what I’d find.
       Stifling a gasp, I warily looked down at the alley. There was the attacker! The blue mop of hair shone brilliantly in the faint light, shuffling closer to the wall… and his hand was holding his chest? Even from here, I could see a dark red substance leaking out.
What happened to him?
       Three men were closing in quickly, one left behind crumpled on the ground. A hunger pang ripped through my body at the sight of them, humans… but I saw they held those terrible briefcases. A hiss ripped from my throat as one of them raised a large sword-like weapon. It was such a disturbing insult to wield that weapon, so sickening. My lips pulled back and I felt my eyes shift to a darker shade, filling up with inky darkness and brilliant crimson.
       What were the nut-jobs called here… ‘doves’? I think that’s their name. There weren’t many from where I used to live, but they were usually easy to kill.
       I remained low to evaluate the situation. Now, I had some choices. I could leave, forget I saw this battle and let my attacker perish. Or… I could jump down and get a really good meal.
       My eyes followed the blue-haired male, curious about him despite almost being his meal. His wings were still stunning, full of wild dashes of blue and red. However one had been severed so he looked slightly lopsided. His hand was tainted in fresh blood from his abdomen, and his leg was slashed through in a few places. He didn’t look so good, and the way he was stumbling backwards into a corner… I’d say he wasn’t going to make it.
       My gaze turned to the three inspectors, assessing them as experienced ghoul killers. But their smell! They were human after all, and I was beyond hungry. I hadn’t seen any other humans around this time of night… and my stomach was getting nearly unbearable…
       So, I guessed I would either get a really good meal, or a fairly quick death. Who knows?
       I stood up on the roof, judging the distance carefully. I crouched, letting power pool between my shoulder blades and manifest as the arching structure of black wings. I sucked in a deep breath, holding it within my battered chest… and then I launched off the roof.

~~Ayato~~

       Fuck, fuck, fuck!
       These bastards fucking surprised me! They baited me and led me into this dark corner, I can’t believe I fell for it! Shiiiiiiit!
       A growl ripped from my throat, eyes shooting between the bastards that had cornered me. I had managed to kill one of them, but it had been such a long battle that I had run out of stamina. Not to mention they got a couple of lucky hits… yeah, ‘lucky’ hits. We’ll go with that.
       My hands clenched over the wound in my middle, feeling the beginnings of repair start in the tissue. The skin was already trying to knit itself back together. My legs also felt as if they were on fire, the flesh attempting to fix itself from the recently concurred damage. But it wasn’t fast enough…
       I blocked another hit from the sword, feeling my own weapons splinter and shrink. Another blow, my left wing was severed… another blow, blood spurted out my mouth in a mess of coughs.
       Well, shit.
       I didn’t foresee this as the way I’d go.
       Wait! Hell no! This is not the end… I’m no wimp! I gritted my teeth and hissed profanities at the men, pulling the remains of my wings to my sides. I’m not an idiot…
       I shook my head in an attempt to clear it of the sudden blur in my vision. A wash of dizziness passed over me, causing me to stumble back. I morphed my face into a vicious scowl, pulling my spine straight and standing strong despite how I felt… My pride was watching…
       The foremost man had the audacity to laugh as he lifted his stolen sword high into the air. I didn’t look away as the weapon came crashing back down towards my chest…
       Whoooosshhhh
       A dark blur shot through the air and collided with the man, taking him off guard. The dark figure had two black appendages arching from their back, almost like that idiot I had chased off earlier…
       A distinct crack echoed through the alley as the ghoul’s hands expertly twisted their victim’s head off its spine. The ghoul’s back was to me, presenting me with a clear view of the spines protruding from the flesh. Wait… those weren’t spines… they looked like the crystals I could create…. What the fuck?
       The dark blur dashed to a different man, evading the swinging blow of his weapon. Red splattered into the air as the ghoul bit down mercilessly into the agent’s shoulder, taking him down swiftly. The final dove released a powerful capturing weapon, trying to stop the new ghoul. However, the figure seemed a little rejuvenated by the little meal and sprinted up a wall, curving back down when they lost upward momentum. The figure crashed down on the last dove and aimed for his neck… but the man raised a different stolen weapon and cut through the ghoul’s already tattered skin. The weapon slipped into the abdomen, releasing dark blood from the gaping wound.
       The figure hissed viciously and gripped the handle of the blade, pulling themself closer to the human. A hand flashed out and suddenly the man’s head hung off its axis. Crumpled to the ground, all the doves were rendered dead. The ghoul staggered backwards and braced their back against the far wall, the spear still stuck through their side. The figure gripped the handle and slowly pulled the blade from their body with loud hiss, letting it clatter to the ground. Even from my position, I could hear the ragged breath and wheezing from the ghoul… this ghoul… helped me?
       But, I tried to kill this person… they should be happy to see me die…? This doesn’t make any sense! This was the trespasser from before…?
       What…?
       I peered closer at the ghoul, noticing their wounds (from earlier and recently) were not healing. The figure was shaking… the person hadn’t registered I was still here and was focusing on their slowly regenerating body. I pushed off the wall, feeling my wounds begin to knit shut.

~~Reader~~

       Damn. This gash went pretty deep… I grimaced as I touched the edge of the wound, watching the skin slowly begin to grow back. However, I was still too hungry. The many wounds over my body were not healing fast enough. I needed food and I needed rest. A sigh rasped from my throat, muscles relaxing to put more weight on the building behind me.
       I’m glad I killed the doves though. I glanced up to see where they lay, hoping to get a quick meal before I leave. My body froze as my gaze lifted.
       Shoot! In my pain, I forgot he was still here! And his wounds were almost completely healed! Oh no! He was staring right at me, and walking forward! The blue haired male wore a blank expression, approaching confidently despite his recent brush with death.
       I quickly pushed myself off the wall and staggered to the left. Run, run, run! Please body, run! But my legs weren’t responding. I didn’t have any energy left, no stamina to fall back on. The burning knives of hunger still raged in my gut, outmatched only by the sear of shards in my back and slash in my side. Oh, I did not think this through!
       I stumbled and my hand flashed out to brace myself against the bricks. My elbow touched the stone, leaning on the wall for support. My other hand grasped at the hole in my side, feeling the seepage of blood through my fingers decrease. I glanced over my shoulder to see where he was…
       “Hello again, shitbrains.” A low voice bit out. His hand collided with my shoulder, pushing me face-first into the wall. My back exposed, I struggled to get free. His grip tightened on my shoulders, holding me in place against the cold stone. “You really are an idiot.” He muttered, though his voice was vacant of the humor he had spoken with before.
       “Let go!” I called desperately, hating the breathless weakness of my voice. Wiggling in his hold, I tried to get free to no avail. I willed my kagune to activate, but I was too tired and too famished. I pushed back, trying to get out from the pinned position, but my strength was gone…
       “Hold still idiot!” He replied harshly, one hand leaving my shoulder. No way! He was going to punch me even after I helped him! The ghouls here were insane! I helped him… I knew it was my choice, but I felt so betrayed… I felt so ashamed… I felt so stupid…
       Expecting a punch, I didn’t cry out when new pain erupted in my back. However, it was a different kind of pain than what I anticipated. I heard the clinking sound of glass as items were pulled from my back and tossed onto the ground sloppily. Low muttering filled the air as the ghoul pulled the shards out of my flesh. I caught several words like ‘idiot,’ ‘stupid,’ and ‘imbecile.’
       Once the remaining crystals had been removed, the grip returned to my shoulders and I was forced to turn around. My back was shoved into the wall, keeping me pinned. However, the grip wasn’t as tight as before. I looked up to witness the scowling face of my previous attacker. His lips were twisted in a deep frown and his blue eyes were staring directly into mine.
       “Why’d you do that?” He snarled, accusation in his glance. I was still reeling from this encounter. He hadn’t intentionally hurt me yet… does this mean he’ll let me go? Maybe?
       “I asked you a fucking question!” He barked, shifting pressure onto my shoulder to get my attention. I gasped at the strain and pulled together a reply.
       “Uh, what?” I rasped. Oh, great. That was a brilliant response. His faced morphed into a cold sneer and he opened his mouth to speak again.
       “Oh! Uh, I, um… We’re on the same side, right?” I spit out quickly, tumbling through the words. I glanced over his shoulder at the mangled bodies of the investigators. “Why shouldn’t I have done it?” Though my voice started out strong, it faded into a quiet question. So much for appearing confident…
       The ghoul’s face scrunched up as if he considered my answer revolting. “More of the ‘same side’ bullshit. Damn, you are so stupid!” He exclaimed, leaning away from me and loosening his grip. “Are you new around here or something, idiot?” He asked harshly.
       “Well, yeah…” I replied, uncertain which answer would cause the least amount of pain. I was still holding on to the hope that he’d let me go…
       He seemed to be considering something. His face went blank as he thought about it.
       “Where do you live?” He asked harshly, looking around the alley at the dead bodies.
       “Um… I don’t really have a hom-” I mumbled, flinching when he whirled back to me. He glared at me, blue hair falling down around his eyes. I held my breath as he froze, thinking about something.
       “Fuck this.” He deadpanned and stepped back, pulling me with him roughly. He turned away from me, gripping my wrist tightly and dragging me down the alley. I stumbled after him, unable to muster enough fight to stop our direction.
       “W-where are we going?” I asked shakily as he pulled me along. He didn’t turn around but muttered loud enough for me to hear.
       “My place.” We reached the end of the alley and he began tugging me down another.
       “But-” I started, looking over my shoulder at the dead bodies spread over the ground. Food… it was so close!  It was all I could think about. Why would we walk away from it?
       “Damn it! I’ll give you some when we get there.” He seethed, but he oddly sounded nervous. “Keep up, imbecile!” He snapped, pulling roughly on my forearm. That shocked me into silence. He was taking me to a safe place? And he was offering me food? What? Just a little while ago, this guy was at my throat.
       “Name.” He bit out and waited. I paused… did he want my name? I must have delayed too long processing his request.
       “Give me your name! Unless you want it to remain ‘shitbrains,’ shitbrains.” He replied lowly, clearly unnerved or unused to asking such questions.
       “__(name)__! My name is __(name)___.” I replied in a rush, confused still. After a few heartbeats I continued hesitantly, “and yours?”
       There were a few moments of silence before the male turned back to look at me, slowing his pace and loosening the tight grip on my forearm.
       “Ayato.” He muttered, not meeting my gaze.
       “So, ah… why are you taking me to your… uhm, place?” I asked, unsure if I should be asking such questions. He looked over his shoulder, slowing down till he was next to me. He looked down at the wound in my side, noticing it was repairing slowly. A sigh escaped his lips and he glanced away, suddenly interested in the darkness.
       “Eh…” His hand lifted and he ran his fingers through his hair distractedly. “We’re on the same fucking side, right?” He responded quietly, turning away and leading the path through the night. I happily followed.