Dislyte Oneshots

1: A Righteous Light Blinked Out

A Tang Twin Fic.

Genre: Hurt/No comfort

Characters: Tang Yun and Tang Xuan

TW: PTSD, Character death, Brief description of blood

...

From the young age of nine, after watching their neighbor help an old man being robbed by an esper, Xuan knew he wanted to be a hero.

For years he held the title of one of the Union's most cherished members and a truly vigilant hero. His face was everywhere, from billboards to posters. Some even called him the Union's 'golden boy'.

Yun clutched the box close to his chest. Lightning crashed above as heavy drops of rain slammed against the soil. Cars flew by. The city lights gleamed down into the wide puddles forming in the street. The wind blew through the city, chilling his bones. A shudder crawled up his spine.

The forecast had failed to mention how cold it'd be today. 'A bit cloudy with a slight breeze' – Yun would be late because of them. Agitation bubbled deep within him. His fingers twitched. Scolding himself for his inner urges, the boy pushed on.

His braid was undone now. A silent huff escaped his lips as Yun turned the corner. Blue hair flew into his face, swiftly stomping down any hopes of being able to see during the rest of his journey. There wasn't any time to fix it. Not when it was so late already.

Then it happened.

The box broke free of his grip like a frantic bird. Shit-! Panic pushed his feet forward and the shadow guard found himself sprinting after it. He must've looked like a madman, chasing after a mostly empty box in the middle of a stormy night.

Nobody in their right mind would be outside right now. The storm warning had strongly advised against it.

But Yun was late.

The tip of his fingers brushed against the edge of the box. Once, twice. It was nearly in his reach now. He ignored the horns of angry drivers as he dashed across the street. The noise hurt the guard's ears, yes – how could it not – but this was far more important.

Yun tackled the box to the ground. Horror struck his heart just as quickly. The contents spilt into the sidewalk with a hiss. Desperately clinging his fingers through it to no avail, it wasn't long until he was staring at the remains of the mistake. Xuan's ashes stuck to the fabric of his gloves.

"Brother…?" The words came out as a croak. Within a blink, Yun was returned to the very source of his nightmares. Crimson liquid stained his costume. Lifeless amber eyes stared into his own. What had he done…?

"Please wake up... I didn't mean it." He sobbed, hugging his brother's body close to his own. A metallic scent hit his nose. There was nothing more he wanted than to cry harder. "You can't leave me, you promised."

"You promised…"