:: what are the [ C H A N C E S ]

[Heine Rammsteiner]

you poor, sweet innocent thing
dry your eyes and testify
you know you live to break me
don't deny, sweet sacrifice

Advanced skill came to advantage more-so here than it had back where he had been previously - just days before he had suddenly arrived here. He'd had no memory either, of how he'd gotten here. So far, he'd only met one person, and left that one person too. Heine just wasn't the type to make small talk or even long conversation. Really, Heine wasn't the one to talk much at all.

And so he'd left without much help at all, showing up finally in some other, different town. Karakura Town, he thought he'd heard someone say. Not only that, but he was on the roof of a building - the reason advanced skill came into advantage. He figured it would help him keep away from the people he wanted to avoid speaking to. He had no idea "Shinigami" could fly, although he had finally heard the word after a while of being in the Rukongai - now he was here.

Sighing, he stood up properly from a resting, kneeling position and ran a gloved hand through thick locks of white, causing the bangs to fall back into place moments after his hand fell back to his side.

Although by now he didn't feel as if he would meet anyone else like himself and that man named Tamaki, he somehow had the worst feeling.

Was it really likely that no one he knew - no one - would show up here other than him? It just didn't seem to make much sense. There should at least be one more. And if it was just one person from each different...world? Then why? Why was there any reason they were here?

Or had each "world" just become so corrupted that they all totally fucked up, and here they were now in a place that could hold all of them tightly knit? It was about the only thing Heine felt he could agree with. Not only that, but sometimes he himself had a "corrupted" mind.

Heine began walking once more, glancing up to the setting sun. The sun setting here was different then how the sun set where he had came from - or at least he thought so. At times Heine would stand upon the roof of the church, and watch the mixture of orange and pink come together in a beautiful combination, just a splash of yellow in between. And although here was almost or even just as beautiful - it seemed larger.

Maybe their world was just small. Or at least smaller.

Finally he made it to the edge of the building, stepping up onto the ledge and looking back up to the sky. A soft breeze, cool and warm all in the same, blew by him. It ruffled his bangs, and caused yet another sigh from him.

In moment's time, he jumped with ease across to yet another building, landing in a knelt position in which he then stood up. Whilst standing, he turned his back to the rest of the building he'd just jumped upon, and glanced upward to the setting sun once more.

Being here just didn't feel right, and so it always left him wondering.

... Should he really be here?

one day i'm gonna forget your name
and one sweet day
you're gonna drown in my lost pain

[Giovanni]

Now dance fucker dance...

“And Giovanni….Don’t get lost.”
That had been the last thing he’d head his “boss” say before he’d left. Imagine, Giovanni, getting lost? Impossible. He wondered to himself if it was just her way of telling him not to get distracted. Not to even think of Heine. Well, there he went, thinking of Heine. It was second nature to him to think of the other. Really, she should have been smarter than that. Heine was practically part of him, flowing through his veins like blood. There was no way to keep him off his mind.
Of course, then again, maybe she was just a psychic, because not even an hour before he had announced himself officially lost. He didn’t recognize this part of the city, these people, and that feeling of disorientation that had hit him when he first noticed the change. He’d felt sick to his stomach, but he’d managed to hold on to his lunch despite that overwhelming nausea. He had looked around and settled for the fact he must have wandered in the wrong direction subconsciously. It still didn’t explain why he’d felt sick when he noticed the change. Very little made him sick anymore.

Not that any of that mattered anymore. He had tried turning around, retracing his steps, but there were no familiar scents. Nothing that could lead him back to the people he was familiar with. The filth he was so familiar with. He found himself missing the stench of the city, the familiar looks of distaste he got from those who knew exactly who and what he was. This side of the city seemed to only look at him curiously like an outsider, a foreigner. Other than that, they ignored him. It was all very strange indeed.

Then it hit him, like a sudden slap to the face. Like Dorothy of Oz, he was no longer in Kansas anymore. “If this is your idea of a joke woman, it’s not a very funny one.” His hissed the words to himself really, speaking mostly about his “mother”. The woman that liked to play such twisted and fucked up games with her “children”. Maybe this was some sort of test, although where she had learned to teleport people he didn’t know.

He found himself wondering where Heine was, but that was a recurring state of his. Whether he cared or not, he always wondered what Heine was doing, where he was, if he was happy. He was absolutely envious of Heine’s freedom, and some days maybe he even yearned to be Heine, or at least to be like him. “I bet you’re home, with that damned red-head, and the stupid Bishop. You probably know right where you are….You probably-” He stopped there, a scent hitting his nose that was all too familiar. “Then again…maybe you’re just as lost as I am”

A smirk crossed his lips as he turned towards where Heine seemed to be. Nowhere in sight, but that was because he was looking at the ground level wasn’t it? He lifted his head, scanning the rooftops, and eventually spotted a shape. He wasn’t too far off now, but Giovanni knew he’d have to use some of that super-human ability he’d been given in order to reach him. It would be a cakewalk really.

He made his way to the building, and made sure as he reached the roof he was out of Heine’s sight, and he was practically undetectable. He silently observed what Heine was doing, watching the sunset?

“Evening Heine, enjoying the sunset?” He smirked, his lips pulling away to show his pointed teeth.

Man, he never had a chance

[Heine Rammsteiner]

take everything you need
take every part of me
give me some room to breathe
before i lose control

Gazing at the sun set brought Heine's mind somewhere further than where it had been before. Thing's like this, and him just being alone, was what helped him cope when Badou was just too loud, or Nill just seemed to quiet. A lot of the time the Bishop seemed to hyper to do this, although something hit him sometimes, telling him that he would be able to sit and talk with him.

It was just something Heine didn't do. Mostly he just repressed.
Mostly he just kept everything to himself.
And although it hurt, it was something... that he just did.

"Evening Heine, enjoying the sunset?"

Immediately Heine's body tensed, his eyes widened, his breathing stopped.

... He was here?

As soon as the thought crossed his mind of whom exactly it was standing just feet behind him, most likely cruelly smirking at him as he always did, he immediately turned around, hand on the base of his gun seconds later. However he did not pull it out. The last thing he needed to do was attract attention not even knowing where he was. And... would he hurt the fabric of time and space more to kill someone who was not supposed to be here?

Instantly, a low, guttural growl erupted from Heine's throat, like a wolf. Eyes narrowed dangerously. Teeth bared angrily.

"What the hell are you doing here, Giovanni?"

Any other time, and Heine knew this, he would have immediately ran for Giovanni, gun in hand, ready to kill. It didn't seem safe to do so now, in a new world. And although Heine had been wondering why no one else he knew hadn't arrived here- he never once had thought of Giovanni.

He wasn't sure why it was that Giovanni was like poison to him every time he heard that voice, or saw that cruel smile. He was unsure as to why his breathing hitched when he heard him for the first time in a while.

Heine had no idea why he had the sudden urge to kill the moment Giovanni was in his line of vision, or that voice rang, amusing and ironic in his ears.

But he just did.


Heine could barely remember the last time he'd seen Giovanni. The man had gotten to where he hardly came around, and when he did he caused more trouble then Heine or anyone else he hoped, believed that Giovanni was worth.

But Heine also knew without wondering that the last time he'd saw Giovanni, the other had surprised him just like this. He had caused his breathing to halt in his lungs, fear to show in his eyes for a split moment before instant anger took over him.

And although it shouldn't surprise him at all anymore every time he heard that voice, or saw that smile that seemed to hold his death within it- it still did.

it seems impossible for me to let this go
feel like an animal, i'm ready to lose control
take everything you need, take every part of me
take every part of me
give me some room to breathe

[Giovanni]

The sun is gone and the flowers rot
Words are spaces between us
And I should've been down in the rivers I've found of token lost
And I should've been down when you made me insecure

Giovanni tensed at the snarl, but did not back down, or show any signs of fear. He knew full well that Heine was probably more confused than he was, and as such, wasn’t likely to attack him. Not in the middle of a place he knew nothing about. Maybe guns didn’t even work here.

“What the hell are you doing here, Giovanni?”

Giovanni chuckled, his smirk growing into a devious grin. Wasn’t it obvious? They were doing the same thing. Trying to figure out a way home, just so they could be back in their own element. Giovanni’s smile finally faded into a blank expression, one which would have been of slight concern, if Giovanni’s eyes had been visible.

“Trying to figure out where I am, same as you.”

His attentions turned elsewhere, eyes watching a bird in the distance, just beyond Heine. He seemed almost to be staring through Heine, as if he wasn’t there and didn’t matter anyways. “You can relax, Heine, I don’t want to hurt you…not today anyways.”

His focus fell back on Heine, and he felt a sort of sympathy for him. They were in the same boat now. No one they knew, except the other, was present. This was not their home, and they hardly knew where they were. They were both lost in this world at this very moment in time, and Giovanni already knew what this would lead to. They had only each other, and as such, needed to depend upon only each other.

Who else could they trust but each other, even given the hate that had bred between them. They would just have to overcome the feelings of mistrust that existed between themselves and work together.

“Seems we’ve gotten ourselves stuck in the same damned mess. I don’t see hide or hair of those fools you call friends either…seems we’ve only got each other. ”

He paused, letting a smile return to his face, but surprisingly this one seemed genuine, kind almost.

“So, what do you say to a truce, at least until we get home.”

He extended his hand to Heine, his smile growing.

“Deal?”

And I'm the one you can never trust
'cause wounds are ways to reveal us
And yeah I could have tried and devoted my life to both of us
But what a waste of my time when the world we have is yours

[Heine Rammsteiner]

i hope most of you will never know
what it's like to let love go
leaving everything at home
everything you've ever known

Heine was accustomed to Giovanni, and how he only grinned or cruelly smiled at him - as if trying to beat sweet, like a child, and yet failing so... so damn hard at it. Never did Giovanni flinch. And it pissed Heine off.

But Giovanni made no move to run towards him either, as if thinking the same thing that he himself was. That this world was fucked. Something was wrong. And taking other people's lives was probably not the best of ideas now.

"Trying to figure out where I am, same as you."

Good enough answer. Though it still bothered him that Giovanni had to be a "smart ass" and tell him the already obvious. In fact, though, Heine was unsure why he'd even asked Giovanni such a question. The answer was obvious. He growled once again due to his own stupidity, his hand clenching the base of his gun more harshly than it had when Giovanni's voice rang mockingly through his ears.

"You can relax, Heine, I don’t want to hurt you…not today anyways."

Almost as if seemingly staring through him, even with those glasses on, had calmed him even by the slightest bit - his hand loosened by the slightest. He still did not trust Giovanni at all, or by no means. Like a dog hurt by it's owner - did the poor puppy really expect the owner to suddenly be nice?

No.


What was Giovanni wanting from then? Could they not at least try to ignore each other while in this fucked up place- or was there something more insanely stupid then this place that Giovanni wanted?

"Seems we’ve gotten ourselves stuck in the same damned mess. I don’t see hide or hair of those fools you call friends either…seems we’ve only got each other."

Heine blinked, hand slowly loosening just a bit more. Giovanni seemed different somehow. More distant then usual, as if he had something on his mind. Was he planning something? Tricking him? Or was he simply moved by the fact he's somewhere other than everything else he's ever known?

Finally however, a smile crossed Giovanni's lips. And that same difference Heine has continued to notice since Giovanni's last words dug itself deeper into Heine's mind. The smile almost seemed true- honest. It was definitely unexpected. Something that didn't match the usual Giovanni.

"So, what do you say to a truce, at least until we get home."

A truce?

A hand extended. As did the smile in its own little way. Almost as if the old Giovanni was returning.

Did he really have to agree with this?

One part of him told him it was the best thing to do - someone he at least knew, regardless of the hate and urge to kill due that certain person, was here now. Someone that could help him out if only in the least bit. And another part of him told him it was the worst thing he could ever do. That it was all a trick, even that almost sincere smile.

"Deal?"

... Deal?

Heine gritted his teeth beneath closed lips, eyes concentrating now more then looking angry on the hand that was held out to him. Then his glance raised itself to look up to Giovanni through ruby red irises, beautiful in a way, only to be looked back to by those oval-like glasses. They hid Giovanni's eyes so well.

Heine groaned and looked to the side, hand lifting but never touching Giovanni's. It brushed slightly over his as if that were the agreement, and then Heine scratched his shoulder.

The poor dog couldn't even bring himself to agree in words. That one brush of the hand and his groan was it.

i don't want to string you along
and that's why i'm letting you go
it's like i told you,
you're better off without me, i'm sick of saying sorry
so far from home

[Giovanni]

You remind me of the times
When I knew who I was (When I knew who I was)
But still the second hand will catch us
Like it always does.

Giovanni smirked at Heine’s reaction, the groan, and the weak attempt at shaking his hand. When he drew back, and seemed settled on his answer, Giovanni withdrew his hand and merely observed Heine. Despite his own second thoughts on the matter, Giovanni himself felt secure now that they had their deal, however shaky it was.

“Good, now that that’s settled, what shall we do?”

A long pause, followed by a calm “I mean about this whole situation…” He wasn’t exactly worried, no, he was too mature to fret over little things. He wasn’t a child anymore, and he wasn’t scared of what life had to throw at him. He’d grown up since the days when he would simply curl into a corner and cry when he was scared or confused. The days when he might have been a good guy, the kind of person who didn’t hurt his friends.

Those days were long gone now, along with any compassion he’d once had, or at least most of it. He didn’t need to care anymore, when the one person he would admit to caring for was his enemy, and even those days were past. Heine would only get angry if he admitted to caring about him, worrying for him. It was only natural after all, given how much Heine hated him. Giovanni had only come to expect Heine’s coldness, and the fact they would have to fight whenever they met. It didn’t bother him any, the sooner Heine was dead, the better off for him.

He wouldn’t have to worry about him anymore, and he wouldn’t need to admit he cared. If Heine was dead, he would have fewer problems.

Then again, he didn’t need to be thinking about any of this now. He and Heine were on the same side, at least for now. They had to learn to work together, to get along. It was that, or possible death at the hands of some unknown enemy. Personally, Giovanni knew he couldn’t bear that. If anyone was going to kill Heine, it was going to be him.

We'll make the same mistakes
I'll Take the fall for you
I hope you need this now
cuz I know I still do.

[Heine Rammsteiner]

i wish i could drive away to the sunset
back to the day when we first met
only believe the things i wrote
i'll put it in a note, yeah

Heine could pretty much feel the gaze on him - observing him without asking. But why should someone have to ask? He turned his head to the side, still angry with himself for even agreeing to this spite the fact it might be the right thing to do.

Or the right thing.

He shrug it off the moment Giovanni spoke, however he did not look at him. At least not for the moment.

"Good, now that that’s settled, what shall we do?"

To be quite honest, Heine had no idea. All he knew was that it was going to be extremely hard to get along with someone that he'd been complete and utter enemies with just moments before he even arrived in this place. He had still thought of them as enemies of each other.

Now suddenly he was asking for an alliance.
And he'll be damned if he didn't agree to it.

"I mean about this whole situation…"

He was curious about the long pause, and the need for extra words. But that didn't matter either. He shrugged and shoved his hands into tight leather pockets and looked up at the still setting, though nearing night sky. Still he wasn't one to speak - especially when to speak would mean to threat all due to the fact he still found it hard to even stand next to Giovanni.

Sometimes Heine wondered why he was like this. But he was. Just was.
Always would be.

Because he couldn't handle his past. Couldn't handle anyone from it. Anything about it. And he couldn't help it. It came naturally.

Finally he spoke.

"Eh."

Wasn't much for speaking, was he?

i'll cross my T's and not my I's
better say hello, i'm gonna wave goodbye
i'll write sincerely yours and sign my name
P.S. i love you forever and today

[Giovanni]

I'm strong on the surface
Not all the way through
I've never been perfect
But neither have you

“ Eh.”

Exactly what Giovanni had been thinking really, he supposed. What was there to do anyways? Perhaps look for others they knew who could have suddenly found themselves here just as they did, but it would be pointless. Those that Giovanni knew would only get in the way, make him hurt Heine again. Ruin his chance to have Heine to himself again, just like he used to.

Did he love Heine? Maybe. It was always hard to tell with Giovanni, especially now. Emotion was lost within him, choked off by his training. It prevented him from being the person he was before, the frightened child, the boy who had no memories, and was afraid because of that. He had never been brave, not like Heine, or that girl Lily. He’d never been perfect, but somehow he was the one who made it out as their perfect soldier. Lily was dead, Heine was a traitor. That left only Giovanni, pathetic, frightened Giovanni. That was the only reason he had become what he was…wasn’t it?

He found himself lost in his memories, of times long gone…

Giovanni was curled up in the corner, knees tucked up against his chest. His whole body shook in fear, the day’s training, and all his chaotic and anxious thoughts were catching up with him. It was too much for the child to handle, all the thoughts all the fears. Everything he kept bottled up inside was coming to haunt him, and he could do nothing to fight it off. The world around him was a blur, until-

“Hey…you ok?”

The voice snapped him from his fearfulness, if only for a short while. “H-Heine! What are y-you t-t-talking about, I’m f-fine…really, I am.” He looked up at the white-haired boy through tearful and frightened blue eyes.

“Obviously you’re not, what’s wrong?” Heine crossed the gap between them to stand in front of Giovanni, a look of mild concern on his face. Giovanni said nothing as he looked down at his feet nervously. “Scared?”

The blonde nodded, looking back up at Heine. “I can’t sleep…how can we know that they won’t do things to us while we sleep. What if I never wake up again? I don’t want to die Heine…” He was already tired and worn out from the ‘training’ they were going through. Being attacked daily while they were awake, it wouldn’t be farfetched to believe that they would hurt the children while they slept too, right?

Heine sighed, looking around as if to make sure no one was coming, before he spoke again. “You don’t need to be afraid Giovanni…I’ll stay with you, and make sure nothing bad happens.” He offered Giovanni a small half-smile before he sat down next to him, blushing a little as the blonde cuddled up against his side. Slowly he placed his arm protectively around Giovanni’s shoulder.

“Thank you Heine…”

Giovanni sighed, giving Heine a serious look. He reached up and took off the glasses that hid his blue eyes and finally spoke. “We used to be friends Heine, and now we have the chance to be so again, if only for a little while…” His look was deeply sentimental, as if he meant his words in all truth.

And really...he did.

Forgetting all the hurt inside
You've learned to hide so well
Pretending someone else can't come
And save my from myself
I can't be who you are...

[Heine Rammsteiner]

i've done wrong
i've been gone
it's the one you love
drink down and your candles burn
away, away

Heine honestly had not an idea what it was they could do, could go see, could go find. What they could do without being caught by something they maybe did not want to get caught by, or get caught doing something even that they weren't supposed to be doing. But were without knowing.

Heine was not afraid of this place. He'd never been afraid, really. Only his childhood and perhaps only for a moment. Only for that split second when he saw those monsters or when he heard that woman's squealing, loud laughter in his ears.

That's when Heine felt the most fear he felt he'd ever had.
And still that woman's laughter echoed harshly in his hopeless ears.
And Heine's smile was always waning, if there even was one, due to her. Even now, years later.

And still, even though he'd known Giovanni for years now, he hadn't an idea what he felt for him.

He always tried to ignore the aching feeling that they should come to a truce. They were together in that horrid place, going through the pain with one another. And yet today they are enemies, when they should be together, helping one another. But they'd went their separate ways, and Heine like a puppy now adult, had forgotten the way things used to be.

Or perhaps he had simply suppressed it.

For a long time, suddenly, he noticed they'd both been quiet. Silent. Standing on a rooftop, the sun setting still, almost gone, and no one was speaking. Not even Giovanni, and that was some sort of a surprise.

He turned around and looked at the blonde man, perking an eyebrow as he suddenly heard him speak.

"We used to be friends Heine, and now we have the chance to be so again, if only for a little while…"

For a long moment now, Heine remained quiet, eyes stilled on the face of the man he once knew when he was child. When they both were children.

Heine could remember many moments when they were children they shared. When Giovanni was once a stuttering, fearful and shy child and Heine was just simply confused. He was the hero. Heine always tried to save his friends, to keep them safe. It was he, Lily, and Giovanni. And it was just them.

And he had always felt it was his duty to keep them safe. And guilt always shadowed him.

He couldn't do what he wished he could have.

Finally, Heine sighed and turned his back to Giovanni once more, glancing up to the sun set. He nodded quietly and forced his hands into his pockets.

He spoke next, his voice quiet, almost inaudible.

"Maybe."

take you, take me
i can't go with you now
don't you wish i'd try?