ED: Kippei and Zaizen

[shattermelt]

Kippei made sure he was early to meet Zaizen, wanting to get settled in and comfortable before the hunter arrived, and start thinking through what he was going to say, although he wasn't at all sure what that was. He was going to keep his promise to An-chan and not growl at him, of course, but he wasn't even feeling particularly growly, to be honest. He was worried, about his sister and Zaizen both. Neither of them were at all happy, and Kippei didn't like that at all.

He found a quiet table and ordered a beer, and sat staring into it while he waited for Zaizen to arrive.

Comments

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

He was almost late thanks to his commenting with Bane over their journals, but somehow, Zaizen was able to sneak his way out of the conversation with a promise to call his friend when he was done with his meeting and patrolling so they could get together and do something in person as well. It was thanks to that successful tactic that the hunter meandered his way past the front door and into the quaint pub exactly at eight o'clock like he himself had arranged. Really, it had been his intention to arrive early and hopefully before Kippei as one could never be too cautious in such situations. And what the hell was this situation?

Annie was mad at him and they weren't talking to each other now and somehow that made the big brother need to poke his nose into things. At least, that was what Zaizen assumed when he spotted the brother in question sitting in a corner by himself with a beer. Well, so far so good, he figured, walking over to the bar with another glance to the man who didn't look ready to jump him for a fight like all their other talks elluded to which was the hunter's other thought for their meeting.

"Hey," Zaizen greeted casually a couple of minutes later with a beer in hand, grabbing the seat across the table from Kippei without asking to since they had already agreed to meet for a drink, "sorry, meant to be here a little earlier than this. So what's up?"

[shattermelt.livejournal.com]

Kippei nodded absently in acknowledgement of the greeting, turning his glass around slowly in his hands. He had been sitting here turning over in his mind all he had to say, and still hadn't found a good way of saying it. So, as he usually did, he made it up as he went along, saying the first thing that came to mind.

"This mess with you and my sister," he began, glancing briefly up at Zaizen and then back down at his drink. "You've hurt each other a great deal. I don't like it. Also, I think it's stupid," he said bluntly. "You are both idiots, and pretty damn dense as well. So." He set the glass down with a thump and looked squarely at Zaizen, meeting his eyes with a steady, determined gaze. "We are going to fix it."

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

It was good to know one Tachibana sibling hadn't changed over night, Zaizen thought with a sip at his beer before deciding to ammend that. He hadn't taken Kippei to be the sort to meddle as he was clearly about to do, at least when it came to him--the hunter that seemed to irritate the big brother with pretty much any and everything said--though he did know the loyalty between the siblings was strong and they would defend each other to death.

Maybe that was the reason that earned Kippei a raised eyebrow of interest instead of the laugh that wanted to accompany all that Zaizen had to say on the matter. "If you want to fix it, you should be talking to Annie. She's the one who doesn't trust me and reads things in her own way that her newly developed paranoia twists around until I can't even figure out where she got that idea from."

[shattermelt.livejournal.com]

Kippei snorted and shook his head. "I've already talked to her. She's too paranoid for her own good, but it's nothing new. She's just scared, and panicking, and jumping at shadows. You were both being far too jumpy. Right now she's miserable and you aren't happy either, and I don't intend to let it go on, even if I have to knock your heads together. You're a good friend, and she could use a good friend right now. I've no idea what she is to you, but apparently she means something to you or you wouldn't have been bothered by her reaction." He gave Zaizen a challenging look, daring him to say that it hadn't bothered him, because that obviously not true.

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

"I fail to see how I was being jumpy," Zaizen answered the look he was given with one of arrogance and something almost akin to boredom. He was slightly offended at being called jumpy as that just wasn't something a vampire hunter was. Okay, unless they were being chased by a werewolf without proper weapons and pinned to an alley wall, but otherwise, he faced death nightly and knew what could happen each time he stepped outside his home. And that was why he let Annie go, no matter how much it hurt to lose a good friend.

"She was a good friend to me but things got out of hand and brought us to where we are now, even when we tried to fix things," he wouldn't let that pain still lingering beneath the surface go any further than that by showing in green eyes or upon his features with a frown. He didn't exactly like the idea of Kippei playing shrink on him on top of the lecture that was sure to come of this 'fixing things.' "She's safer not knowing me. And will probably be happier. She asked me once if I wanted her to be miserable. Of course I don't, and that's why this mess may actually be a good thing."

[flamesword.livejournal.com]

Kippei rolled his eyes. "Stubborn idiots, the both of you," he muttered. "She thinks exactly the same about you, and you're both wrong. She thinks that it bothers you, what she is, and I'm guessing she's wrong about that, too. Do you have a problem with it?" he asked directly, raising an eyebrow.

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

"Why would I have a problem with it?" Zaizen asked, stunned at being accused of such a thing. He was friends with a vampire that used to be a lover and was still bound to in some weird way, was now lovers with a demon prince, and had other friends that were demons, vampires, and shifters so why would Annie being a shifter be the exception? "I've never given her reason to think that and even offered to research what she is to help her find some peace of mind since I know it bothers her."

[shattermelt.livejournal.com]

Kippei sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Yeah," he muttered. "It bothers her more than it bothers anyone else, I think, and I try to give her some space about it because hey, it isn't me that has to live with it, but I really think it's....not as big of a deal as she thinks it is." He shrugged.

"Anyway, I didn't think that it bothered you. And it's ridiuculous for both of you to try to keep each other 'safe' by staying away from each other. Neither of you is going to be any more or less safe than you already are if you are friends, but you are going to be a good deal more alone. And I don't know about you, but she's much too alone lately. And trying to become more so." He studied Zaizen frankly, wondering what the hell the other was thinking.

"She needs people, Zaizen," he said quietly. "People other than me. You can take care of yourself, and she can't really put you in danger. She likes to think she does, but I much doubt you'd agree. You aren't putting her in danger either, not really. She's gotten less and less stable since she started cutting herself off the way she's doing, and it's only going to draw the wrong kind of attention to her. You'd be helping far more than you'd be causing any problems. Trust me, she needs you more as a friend than anything else."

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

Zaizen stared into his beer for a long time, thinking over what Kippei had said. The hunter in him had been torn over the entire thing since it happened and hearing someone else say what he had been thinking was making him wonder a little more. True, Annie would be safer if she didn’t know him at all so the vampires or their minions sent after him would ignore her and go straight for him. But what if she was actually left vulnerable now that she didn’t have a hunter there with her? He hated not knowing something and hated even more how the wrong choice could actually kill the woman in the middle of a breakdown.

“She obviously didn’t tell you,” Zaizen finally spoke when green eyes lifted from beer to Kippei, “I’m a vampire hunter.” He didn’t usually make it a habit to tell everyone he met of such things, but Annie already knew and it was only a matter of time before her brother found out as well, especially since what his profession was played an important part in the falling out that was had. “It sounded like she wasn’t comfortable with what I do, but even if we put that aside for a minute, I could have vampires or their followers coming after me and they have been known to use those closest to a hunter as a way to draw us out. So, as I said—I believed she was safer back home with you and not associated with me.” Unless it was already too late and the underground network of sorts already knew of their connection.

[flamesword.livejournal.com]

Kippei leaned back in his seat with a slight wry smile. "Oh, she told me. Sort of. I wasn't terribly surprised. The point is, she's safer with you as a friend than without you, and more importantly, she's happier. You are not doing her any favors by staying away." He sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm worried about her," he admitted. "And you aren't paying attention. She's cutting herself off, from everything. Everyone. She's decided that she's too dangerous or damaged or something to be around, and that when she's friends with people it only ends badly. She's making herself as alone as she possibly can, and it's going to get her killed." There, he'd said it, his worst fear as he'd watched her lately, getting less and less stable and more unhappy. He let his breath out explosively. There wasn't anything else he could say, and nothing he'd said so far seemed to have made an impression. Maybe he'd been wrong, and Zaizen didn't care after all. Damn hunter was goddamn hard to read.

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

“Know that many vampire hunters to peg one on sight do you?” Zaizen mumbled into his beer before taking another swig and falling silent. It certainly didn’t look like Annie was withdrawing from everyone from where he stood. She had admitted to sneaking out daily to tend to the injured werewolf and there were also the comments with Hiyoshi, and even some with Saeki of all people. But, the hunter had to agree and say he was worried about his former friend as well since she hadn’t been acting the same since the full moon, hell, she even quit her job which Zaizen had originally thought Annie loved.

But the fact remained that Annie was the one who pushed only him away and kept to socializing with everyone else. He had clearly done something wrong in going on hunter instinct to leave the whereabouts and condition of a fellow hunter unknown while Hiyoshi recovered and as much as he adored Annie, Zaizen couldn’t see himself apologizing for doing that either. No matter what she said, the hunter knew Annie would be too concerned and curious to sit on her hands at home and seek the were-hunter out at Saeki’s just as she had done with aiding Ohtori.

He didn’t know what else to do since even what could have been Annie’s attempt at fixing things had them arguing again because the shifter was taking everything that was said and spinning it around to fit her paranoid delusion of things. Another drink of his beer was given his attention before the glass was set back down so he could focus on Kippei. “You’re wasting your breath on this with me. I won’t say she seems fine, because I know she isn’t from the times we have talked, but she’s the one who needs you straightening things out and pointing out everything she’s done and how it has affected others or is viewed. She knew before hand, and I told her plenty of times in the comments she doesn’t read properly that I like her, all of her, and would have been there beside her if she truly wanted it.”

[(Anonymous)]

Kippei stared at him in disbelief. "You think she's paranoid and reading into things? You jumped all over her for a perfectly innocent question, and you've repeatedly misread all of her attempts to make things right. She does want you there, she's just scared. And apparently you're too paranoid to realise it." He shook his head in disgust, deciding that Zaizen was just too stubborn and this wasn't getting him anywhere. Idiot. Kippei had thought better of him.

"Okay, whatever, if you don't care, you don't care. Just tell me now and I can leave you alone and go back to watching her die," he said bitterly, because that was what it felt like, watching her turn into a shadow of herself that refused to reach out or be who she was or really live at all. And he couldn't help her, because she needed more than just him.

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

“Does the habit of hearing only what you want to hear run in your family?” Zaizen questioned, growing annoyed with the whole evening. He really shouldn’t have agreed to meet the man that had started more than once that he didn’t necessarily like him and wouldn’t mind a good fight with him. One more try. That was all Kippei was getting before the beer was downed and the hunter left to do his patrol before going to see Bane for the night.

“Which innocent question? The one where she asked about the man she is convinced is out to kill her that led to the mess we’re now trying to fix or the one where she decides she can use me as information but as a friend is still out of the question?” Why couldn’t the crazy siblings realize he was being defensive and a tad extra growly on purpose to scare her off of going to keep her safe in the first incident and then asking his own innocent question in the second? He liked Annie, he really did, and he cared for her as well, but the older brother was fast approaching the hate list for not listening just as he had been accused of seconds earlier. If he didn’t actually think Annie was better off not knowing him, Zaizen pondered, he probably would have pushed her away completely and told Kippei he didn’t care at all.

But he couldn’t do that and that prompted the rest of his attempt. “I do care about her and I would thank you to realize that. Do you need a list of proof that I do? How about, I used my connections and my own time to look up everything there is about shifters to help her. I bought a car so I could pick her up after work and drive her home when she thought someone was after her. Almost ruining my relationship with someone because of my friendship with her and defending her, which just happened to be the day before she drop kicked me to the curb.” Zaizen forced himself to stop there before he went on to ignore Annie’s words and tell her brother about her suicidal thoughts. Maybe, he still would. It depended on how Kippei responded and since Annie was probably already mad at him, what was a little more hate aimed his way because he told Kippei to look after his sister and keep her safe from herself?

[ariuhtahn.livejournal.com]

Kippei sighed heavily, rubbing his eyes. He was so very tempted to just get up and walk away and stop wasting his time. But he'd promised Annie that he would try, and he didn't intend to give up until Zaizen walked away first.

"If you care, you have a funny way of showing it. Obviously she's hurt you, and you've hurt her just as much, and I'm the last person who's going to claim that she's not way too paranoid right now, but the way you're handling it isn't making her any less so. And she did not kick you to the curb. She panicked. Trust me, she is very sorry. But you are clearly not interested in letting her make it up to you, or in understanding why she did it in the first place. I am listening," he added, "to everything you've said, but I think you're being an idiot."

He ordered another beer, because he definitely hadn't had enough to drink yet. When it came, he took a grateful drink and set it down, sighing. What the hell else could he say?

"Look, hunter, I like you, okay? I think you're good for her. I wouldn't be here if I didn't, but I'm starting to wonder if I misjudged you. I'm sorry that she hurt you and you don't understand where she's coming from, but if you care about her, then you should know that she needs you. And if you care, you should not let her push you away. That is NOT what she really wants. And if you really care and you let her do it anyway, then you're just a coward." Strong words, but by this point he didn't think anything he said was going to make a difference anyway, and he was bitterly disappointed.

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

“Look, human brother of a shifter, I don’t like being addressed by that label or need the whole city knowing what I am,” Zaizen shot back using the same labelling technique as Kippei had, biting back a temper that only showed itself on the rarest of occasion and usually left him forgetting he had it. “If she was sorry, and I’m not saying she isn’t since you say that she is, she would attempt talking to me again and maybe even in person. She should be here instead of you and maybe even after you give her this fantastic lecture,” this really wasn’t getting either of them anywhere and actually had the hunter feeling belittled and treated like he was the reason for everything bad that ever happened to Annie and her meltdown. He supposed the conversation with him had been her breaking point, but he didn’t appreciate being told it was his fault for how she was now and how he should handle things differently when explaining his actions and every thought on his mind didn’t seem to do any good.

“If she really needed me, she would come find me or you would be with her pushing her to find me when she lost her backbone again and took to staying indoors or slinking around to treat injured wolves, no doubt behind your back. I do care for her and I’m really getting tired of you questioning it. And a coward? How about I go stick you in front of an angry and deadly vampire and see what you do?” His beer was forgotten as he levelled a glare on Kippei, challenging the bastard to continue insulting him. It wasn’t even the attacks to his ego that bothered him but to be told that he didn’t care for a friend again and again in the span of several minutes was starting to wear thin.

“I also don’t appreciate being painted as the villain in all of this when I offered explanations of why I said something and went into detail about what I do and why I want her safe. I’m not hiding from her nor am I ignoring phone calls since they aren’t coming in. If she truly wanted to try talking to me again and clearing things up, I’d meet with her. Work things out. But instead I get you insulting and belittling me, probably because you’re her big brother who must protect her and can only see her as the innocent little girl up against the big bad world. Guess what. I wanted to help her stand up against everything, but she wouldn’t let me and instead thought I was one of the bad guys.”

[ariuhtahn.livejournal.com]

Kippei shook his head. "She did want to come talk to you herself," he said quietly. "I wasn't sure that was a good idea, as you seemed to be rather angry with her. I told her to wait until I had the chance to find out how you felt about things." He paused, taking a drink of his beer and wishing he'd never heard of Zaizen, because damn. Stubborn and how.

"I don't question that you care for her, only how you go about it. You don't act on it. There's many different kinds of coward, and facing vampires doesn't necessarily mean you are brave enough to face an emotional woman. I don't mean to paint you as a villain, I just think, as I said, that you are being extremely dense. No less than she. If you honestly are willing to meet with her and talk with her, then I will tell her you said so. Frankly, when I came here tonight I was not even certain of that. I don't think you are entirely at fault here, any more than she is. But it appears to me that you are less willing to fix things." Whether or not that perception was true, depended on Zaizen's response.

"You seem to be convinced that staying away from her is the best course, that this rift between you is all for the better, and so likely I am in fact wasting my time. But I don't like seeing her unhappy. And it is most assuredly not true that she would seek you out if she needed you. If you think that, you don't know her very well."

[puzzlepiece.livejournal.com]

He had been right earlier—this was getting them nowhere. There was obviously something in the air that distorted his words before they reach Kippei’s ear. “This is wasting both of our time as you’re intent on blaming me for everything and demanding I apologise to her.” He spat, still very much disgusted by everything he had heard the other man say. He rose from his seat, leaving his beer behind as he had lost his taste for it. “She’s not ten anymore, Kippei. Stop trying to fix things for her or she’ll always hide in her room when things get a little tough. If she came to me first, I guarantee things would have been worked out since it’s our problem and nothing you were involved in until I bet you demanded she make you involved.”

There was no reason to hit the guy, Zaizen kept telling himself since Kippei probably believed he was doing what was best for Annie, even if the veiled insults were starting to break through his usually calm demeanour. “I don’t care what you think of me as its Annie’s opinion that matters the most out of the two of you. But maybe I’ll toss a few words at her since you have been so kind and thoughtful in pointing me to the proper path I’ve strayed from.” Yes, there was a lot of sarcasm dripping from his words that went with the crooked smirking of lips, but Zaizen was beyond playing nice now.

“Now, I have a city to help keep safe,” he stated as he excused himself from the conversation and turned on his heels to leave. Kippei could come after him if he wanted, but Zaizen wasn’t listening to anymore of the same crap he’d just sat through.

[shattermelt.livejournal.com]

Kippei snarled after him, disappointed and disgusted and angry, and wanting badly to go after him and beat some sense into him, but he hadn't had so much to drink yet that he thought this would accomplish anything other than himself getting an impressive set of bruises.

"You stubborn bastard," he growled, although Zaizen's disappearing back was probably too far away to hear him. The failure stung, and also he was furious about the implied threat to snipe at Annie for the twisted mess that Zaizen had made of what he had tried to say. But he knew that he was, in fact, wasting his time, and going after the idiot would only end in violence. So he stayed in his seat and growled under his breath until he finished his beer, feeling distinctly annoyed and unhappy and wondering what the hell he was going to tell An-chan.

He hadn't come here to insult the guy, and he certainly had never said that it was all Zaizen's fault, in fact had repeatedly said the opposite, although he admitted to having tried pricking his ego when an outright appeal to sympathy had gotten no response.

He still couldn't figure out how Zaizen could claim to care and yet be so cold about the situation, but he was sick of it all and rather disgusted with a man that he had, at one point, had quite a good opinion of. He had hoped to find him reasonable and possibly make an effort at befriending him on his own merit, but he had obviously severely misjudged the man. It was a harsh, bitter pill to swallow.