Author: Trilies
Genre: Angst, familyshipping
Word length: 1199
Sypnosis Aeleus learns of a family he never knew, and at the worst possible time. How Lexaeus came to be.
Rating: PG-13 for violence
Yaoi/Yuri/Pairings: Aerith/Aeleus + hinted child!Sora, Ienzo&Aeleus
Notes: Based off of Family Ties and undoubtedly how it ends, so check that for more details.
The Fall of a Hero
Despite being so delicate, her hands cling to his with an almost crushing strength. It's the strongest sensation, overcoming both the harshness of crackling flames, the sandpaper feel of his throat with every swallow he takes, and the oddly cold handle of his long axe. It all swirls together to remind him that he has to succeed, that they have to survive.
Radiant Garden is falling, and Aeleus knows he is the only thing keeping Aerith and Ienzo alive.
On the other side of Aerith, he can hear Ienzo, gasping incantations that do not work without his tome and only waste breath. Aeleus can't berate him, however; not when he himself is concentrating on different attacks practiced with Dilan, maps of the city, and trying to remember how the controls of a gummi ship work, all at once. Aerith is the only one silent, but her own worry and fear radiate off of her. All around them, buildings succumb to flames, or collapse, an event which sometimes starts a domino chain of destruction. Trying to ignore them only proves dangerous, something that is proven when a burning wall suddenly slams to the ground right in their path. Two of them scramble to a stop, a gasp tearing out of Aerith's throat, but one suddenly darts forward. The flames roar and flare out at Ienzo, but the boy is not phazed. Looking all too pale, the apprentice's eyes almost seem to shoot out of his head with how electric blue they seem in this light as he raises his hand before him.
"Blizzara." The word is said softly, yet carries the weight of a mountain, and ice suddenly shoots along the surface of the collapsed wall, snuffing out seering orange and yellow. Stepping up onto the wreckage, Ienzo glances back at them, eyes wide and mouth tight. No words need to be said; the trio quickly move on, keeping their eyes peeled for the true threat which lurks in the alleys and shadows of this dying world. But a strange turn of luck appears to be on their side, for they meet none of the strange shadow beasts...
No one said the luck was good.
Their way remains clear for only so long before they turn a corner and immediately skid to a halt. Cursing, Aeleus feels his knuckles strain against skin as his heart sinks down at the sight: practically an entire platoon of Heartless blocking the far end of the street, the one they need to go down to reach their only hope of survival, their only way to escape. The Heartless haven't noticed them, yet; they're distracted by some other poor soul who's been caught by their claws, but Aeleus knows it's only a matter of time. They can't go back, that's a death sentence, but so is going forward, and he doesn't know what to do-
"Aeleus!" Ienzo suddenly whispers, and points, revealing an alleyway that could get them where they need to go. It's a tiny light at the end of the tunnel, but Aeleus doesn't get his hopes up so quick; it's much too near the Heartless. Still, it's a chance... And suddenly an idea hits him.
"Aerith, he whispers, tugging her towards him. "I need you to listen to me. Ienzo knows the way to the gummi hangers-"
"Aeleus, what are you saying?" Ienzo hisses, even as Aerith's eyes light up in terrible understanding.
"No!" she whispers, standing on the tips of her toes to glare and plead with her eyes staring into his. "Aeleus, don't you dare-"
"You two should be able to find a pilot near there," he continues, cutting them off. Gently, he cups her face with one hand, and his gaze becomes soft. "I love you," he murmurs to Aerith before laying one last kiss upon her. She squeezes her eyes shut and bites back a sob. To the side, Ienzo's face is twisting into a look of refusal and agony. When Aeleus turns to him, he stumbles forward, suddenly seeming so much like the small child he was years ago, when he first became an apprentice to Ansem.
"You can't leave us," he gasps, taking a fistful of Aeleus' shirt. I don't know if I can make it without you.
With a somber, trust gaze, Aeleus lays his hand on Ienzo's shoulder. "Watch over Aerith for me." I trust you to be strong. Ienzo mimics Aerith in closing his eyes tight, but when he opens them again, there's a desparate strength in them which helps him to grab the brunette's hand. They stare back at him, pain filling their gazes, but Aeleus does his best to ignore them. He just hefts his axe upwards, takes a deep breath, and charges.
The blade sinks into the first two Heartless with a morbid kind of ease, and their forms vanish into darkness as Aeleus turns to the rest. This earns their attention, and his offensive quickly turns to a defensive as their attacks rain upon him. The gashes and cuts which appear on his arms and chest are a small price to pay, however, as he hears two pairs of footsteps dash and then fade away. Thank the Light he thinks, even as he swings his axe to keep the Heartless at bay. He has to keep their attention for as long as possible, has to keep them distracted-
He's not sure for how long he's been fighting when he's suddenly aware of a spectactor, watching from one of the few balconies that are intact. All he knows is that he's whirled around to parry a blow from one of the Heartless, and there's suddenly a pair of menacing amber eyes watching him from above. "So you've sacrificed yourself for the two people you care for most," the dark-skinned creature practically purrs, poison in his voice. "How noble."
Kicking away a smaller Shadow, Aeleus backs up, only to find a wall blocking retreat, and a circle of Heartless waiting to pounce. Breathing hard, he glares up at the thing which used to be one of his friends. "Xehanort," he snarls, an unheard of anger exploding in his chest.
Ignoring his own name, Xehanort (or what remains, anyway) simply continues talking. "Yes, you're quite the hero," he says, the word said mockingly. "What a shame you could not do such heroic feats for your own child."
"What are you talking about?" Aeleus demands, even as he slams his axe into a leaping Heartless, prolonging the inevitable.
At the question, Xehanort's eyes almost seem to burn, and he draws himself into a twisted crouch upon the railings. "That's right," he says in an eerie sing-song voice. "You never knew, did you? All that time while your beloved Aerith was pregnant, you were stuck inside the castle knowing nothing..."
Something in Aeleus' chest freezes, and he whirls around to face Xehanort-
And something sinks white-hot nails into his chest, into his heart, wrapping them around the beating muscle. He gasps, eyes dilating at the pure pain, and even as he crumples to the ground, watching his heart be torn from his chest, he manages to hear those final words...
"His name was Sora."
