Work Text:
Future Ties (Kamen Rider W)
By Haruka (haruka@ymail.com)
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Hidari Shotaro rolled over in bed. For some reason, he was having trouble getting to sleep. It wasn't that his current case was so challenging — he was used to putting work aside at bedtime or he'd NEVER sleep. It was something else, but nothing he could identify. With a resigned sigh, he got up to see if some hot milk would help.
As quietly as he could, he slipped into the main room of their headquarters. The kitchen was there, but so was Philippe's bed, hidden behind a curtain in the alcove. He didn't want to wake the boy up, so he crept silently past.
He was halfway to the refrigerator when he heard the bed creaking. After a couple of moments, it creaked again. It sounded like his own bed when he was tossing and turning. He turned and approached the curtain, carefully peeking in. Philippe looked frustrated as he rolled over once more.
"Hey," Shotaro said softly. Philippe jumped a little, then relaxed.
"Shotaro, I didn't hear you. Is something wrong?"
"That's my question for you. Can't you sleep, either?"
"Not yet," Philippe answered, lowering his gaze.
"Something IS wrong," Shotaro said gently. "Move over."
Looking at him curiously, Philippe shifted closer to the wall, allowing Shotaro to stretch out on the bed beside him. It was only a single bed, so they lay close together, then Shotaro unexpectedly made it closer by reaching around Philippe with one arm, inviting him to cradle into it cosily. It was new to Philippe, but the sensation of being warm and protected against Shotaro was already making him feel better.
"Okay," Shotaro's voice was soft and soothing, "talk to me. What's wrong?"
Philippe paused for a moment. "I was sorting through the World Library and came across a section on family dynamics. It didn't make any sense to me because I can't even open the book on my own family." He pouted. "It's frustrating, Shotaro. I'm someone with no roots, no memories. Other boys my age have a history of ballgames, school events, their first kiss, family road trips, Christmases, birthdays …." His lower lip trembled. "I'm so far from a normal teenager. With the World Library in my head, I'm not even a normal human being."
Shotaro's heart ached for him. He lay his head back and gazed up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "The way I see it, Philippe, is that you never know what cards you're going to be dealt in life. You were taken out of the game early, but you're back in it now, with a whole new hand, and new players on your team to help you win." He looked down at him. "One of them would do anything to make you happy."
Philippe tilted his chin to look up at him with moist eyes. Shotaro lowered his lips slowly onto his partner's and tried to convey through the kiss how very much he loved and valued him.
When it finally broke off, Philippe stared into Shotaro's eyes for a second, then the hint of a smile appeared. "Now THAT was a first kiss to remember."
Shotaro gathered him back into his arms. "I can't give you back what you've lost, but the future can be just as important as the past, and no one is going to take that from us — we're in it together."
"Two halves of the same Kaman Rider," Philippe said quietly.
"And more," Shotaro promised, tightening his embrace. Philippe hid a smirk.
"Half-boiled," he murmured fondly. "Luckily for me." He slipped his arm up around Shotaro's neck and initiated his own kiss, that would be the first of many.
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Theme: Free-for-all
Prompt: Kamen Rider W, Philippe & Shotaro, talk to me.
(2012)
Kamen Rider W belongs to Toei.
This fic is not to be re-posted.