Spirits In My Head // kagehina AU

Stars

My eyes open to total darkness and motionless silence engulfing not only the room I was staying in, but the entire zone. It was the type of silence that would make the fall of a pin sound like a nuclear bomb drop, so the light creak of the floorboards outside the door did not escape my attention. Shifting my weight on the cheap mattress, wary of the painful cries emitted by its rusty springs, I slide my legs off and set my feet on the cold wooden floor.

My eyes slowly adjust to my surroundings, taking in the series of mattresses pressed together on the floor, bodies tangled with the covers, rising and falling slowly with each passing breath. I glance at Shouyo, sprawled on the mattress beside mine like some type of fluffy, orange starfish. I make a careful move to stand, shifting my weight to keep the silence as still as possible while I maneuver around the maze of makeshift beds and out into the seemingly deserted hallway.

Another creak resonates through the shadows, coming from the staircase at the end of the hall. With mindful steps, I drag my feet towards the staircase, peering down into oblivion. I take a deep breath before heading down the flight of worn steps, using the wall to keep my balance due to a lack of railings.

Once my feet left the last step and my vision adjust to the absence of light, I recognize a body sitting on one of the couches in the clinic's lobby. Daichi turns his head to face me, tense at first but lowering his guard once he realizes that it is only me.

"What are you doing up so late, Kageyama?" He whispers, wary of breaking the silence and possibly waking anybody else at such unholy hours.

"I could ask the same," is my only reply. I take long strides to the couches, taking a seat beside Daichi. I am not sure why I did so, possibly to keep him company or to have some company myself aside of the unconscious men littering the floors upstairs.

Daichi sighs, turning his face away from mine and towards the window. With no moon to light the oblivion of night, the stars shine at their brightest, watching over us with amusement and curiosity. "I can't sleep."

"Bad night?" I wonder. He just shakes his head.

"I've never been able to sleep very well," Daichi explains. "Some sort of insomnia I developed as a kid."

"Is that why you always take first shift?" I ask, putting some pieces together as he nods. "Doesn't it get lonely? Sitting out in the darkness all alone..."

The darkness consumes oneself in the deserted wasteland. Nobody to speak to, or to turn to. Only the shadows lurking every corner and the occasional inhuman scream of an undead corpse echoing in the never ending void that surrounds you.

Never split up during patrols. Understand? Stick together and defend each other, that's what brothers are for.

"I was not usually alone," I brought my attention back to Daichi, who speaks in a much softer tone even though his volume was the same. "Koushi kept me company during the night."

"Koushi... Sugawara?" I blink. He gives me a small nod, not daring to tear his gaze from the blinking stars outside. I conjure up an image of the silverette, with warm hazel eyes and the sweetest smile that a human being could conjure up. The man seems almost unreal now that I try to remember what he was like. His memory seems like a warm ghost of what remains of a dream that once was. "Daichi... who exactly was Sugawara...?"

The man seems startled by my question, sneaking a glance at my curious expression before turning back towards the window. "Koushi was... an angel to say the least," he begins in a nostalgic tone, tilting his head as he observed the individual stars blink and shine. "We met as teenagers in Beta, and I swear to this day that the first time I saw him smile I could taste chocolate mint sweeter anything before. Kou and I... we were close... very close in fact. He travelled with me once we found an excuse to leave that wretched zone, but I had to return every so often." I guess it was because of this Michimiya they had mentioned that night under the bridge. It made sense at least. "We were planning to explore the drylands once we had the chance."

My eyes widen. "You mean... After the legendary treasure in Ksi?"

Daichi could not help but chuckle softly, "Yeah. Every youngster's dream in the western zones was to find what used to be Zone Ksi out in the drylands and discover whatever treasure is hidden under all that rubble." He shook his head, lowering his head. "Just a silly dream to give us something to search for."

"Why would someone need treasure?" I ask. It seems illogical for what would be considered 'treasure' to be useful at all at times like these, when priorities lay on survival alone.

"Treasure can be anything, Kageyama. Not only jewels and gold, like old tales portray," Daichi lifts his head once more, facing me. His dark eyes meet mine, glowing softly with the dim starlight. "Koushi told me once, that the gate to the spirit realm is said to be at Ksi. It's the place where the living and the dead can reunite."

I blink, bewildered. "Is there really such a place in existence."

"Who knows?" Daichi shrugs. "Maybe." He makes a move to stand, stretching out his arms. "Well, I am going to try and rest some, so why don't you go as well. Noya will take how down to Delta tomorrow."

I nod and stand as well, following in Daichi's shadow as he climbs back up to the residence where everyone was still sound asleep.

It's the place where the living and the dead can reunite.

Do not be foolish, Daichi. The dead are gone forever.