Magic Storm: Chapter 13

[matsu1nino]

Title: Magic Storm
Pairing: Matsumiya, hints of other pairings
Genre: AU, Dark Fantasy
Disclaimer: Arashi is not mine.
Summary: In their fifth year at Hogwarts, amdist the buzz and excitement of the upcoming Tri-Wizard Tournament, Jun discovers just how far he will go to salvage his relationship with Nino.
Author's Note: Penultimate chapter. Hehe, probably my favourite word since year five.

Chapter 13

Jun barely felt the hard impact of his landing when he was teleported back to the front of the maze in a matter of seconds. The cup skidded across the grass away from where Jun remained crouched against the ground, still huddled and trying to hold the corpse which was no longer in his arms. It took him a few moments before he realized Nino’s body was gone, collapsing completely as he fought to slow his breathing. He could vaguely hear the stifled sounds of the music and cheering from the crowd while excited students shouted his name in triumph. He didn’t register any of it. His vision was blurred from the stinging tears that would not cease, his chest racking with every painful breath he struggled to inhale. Even though he had returned, his mind was still very much trapped in the nightmare he had come from.

Shortly after watching Jun enter the maze, Nino had withdrawn into the stands where their friends were. He could have remained by the gate of the labyrinth but he could not handle every agonizing second of waiting for Jun to return. At least with his friends by his side, his anxiety was shared. When Jun materialized in front of the maze only an hour later with the tri-wizard cup in tow, Nino felt his heart sing. That he had won made little difference to Nino. He was alive and that’s all that mattered, or so he believed until he saw the way Jun collapse. Nino gasped. His first thought was that Jun had passed out, but from the way his entire body was visibly trembling, Nino knew something else was going on. The headmaster and ministry official seemed to have noticed too as they hurried to Jun’s side. The music quickly died down as more people started to realize something was wrong. Everything was silent, beyond the hushed murmur sweeping through the crowd as they wondered what was going on.

Nino made a break for the nearest flight of steps that would get him down to his boyfriend, only to be held back by Aiba.

“I have to get down there” he exclaimed. He struggled against his friend, panicking gaze wandering down to where more of the professors had crowded around Jun. He briefly caught sight of the other two champions rushing forward, both honestly looking very concerned. Aiba refused to let up his hold on Nino as Sho and Ohno did what they could to calm him.

“We don’t know what’s happened” said Sho, worry lacing his voice. “Until we do just let the professors handle it. They’ll be able to help Jun faster without us interfering.” Nino knew Sho was implying he would get in their way and was not so subtle in reminding Nino of his hindering behaviour when Jun had last been in hospital. His friends had witnessed the frustration of the nurses as they attempted to do their job around Nino. All in all it had effectively slowed the process of Jun’s healing despite Nino’s good intentions. None of them knew what had happened to Jun this time but if they could prevent the same thing from occurring now, it might just save him.

Quite clearly irritated, Nino’s struggles eventually died away as the four of them watched in anticipation for any announcement to be made about Jun’s condition.

“Take him to your office” Johnny-san instructed Ogura, who nodded and helped Jun to his feet after having ensured most of his external injuries were minor. Jun’s feet dragged across the ground, his body refusing to wake from this comatose state of shock. Ogura-san supported the traumatized student as they moved out of the valley in the direction of the castle.

Seeing Jun be carried off out of sight by their potions professor, Nino tore free from Aiba’s grip and pelted after them. He darted his way between the flocking students and professors that had effectively barricaded the pathway leading out of the grounds. He could hear the worried cries of his friends as they shouted after him but Nino’s only concern was for Jun. He couldn’t shake the last sight he’d seen of his boyfriend from his mind. Jun had looked dead when Ogura had carried him out. The way his body hung limp and dragged lifelessly across the ground, without the strength to even support himself, it frightened Nino. The only thing that assured him Jun wasn’t dead was the way he had been shaking, his opened eyes glazed over with a fear Nino had never witnessed from his boyfriend. He wasn’t sure what had happened in that maze to have triggered such a terrifying reaction or what kind of lasting effects this trauma would cause. All he was certain of was that Jun needed him.

---

Ogura-san gently lowered Jun down into the chair by the fireplace, having felt how cold the student’s skin was while bringing him up to the castle. He would be sure to whip up a Pepperup Potion a little later to help raise his body temperature. Leaving him to warm by the fire for now, the professor searched through the stocks of brewed potions lined on the shelves in the back of his office. He picked up a small vial containing a clear blue, almost completely transparent liquid before taking it back over to where the shivering student sat unmoving from where he left him.

“Here” he said, pressing the vial into Jun’s hand. Jun’s clouded gaze flickered down to the flask in his hand before glancing up briefly at the professor, eyes glistening with the question he could not voice. Ogura explained, “It’s a calming draught. It will help soothe the shock.”

Jun slowly brought the vial to his lips and drunk the contents. His shaking hand made drinking the potion cleanly all that much harder, spluttering as the liquid struggled to pass easily down his throat. He eventually got it down with a cough, Ogura-san patting his back when he choked on the last of it. The effects of the draught were not immediate but were noticeable when they did begin to take effect. While his body was still unsteady and clearly weak from all he had endured, he had stopped shaking. His breathing levelled out, deepening as his lungs allowed for more air to be inhaled. His very pale complexion faded as colour returned to his face.

“That’s better” Ogura remarked with a nod of approval at his speedy recuperation courtesy of the calming draught.

“Indeed” Johnny-san’s voice sounded from the doorway. Both of them turned to face the headmaster as he entered the room, walking towards Jun. “You had everyone worried.”

Jun lowered his gaze to stare at the floor, unsure of how to respond. He was barely aware of anything that had happened since leaving the maze. His only memories between now and then were blurred and fragmented images that made little sense in his mind. The glow of the cup, dark blotched shapes of people crowding around him, the muffled sounds of those calling out his name and the faint roll of thunder overheard as he was carried up to the castle, the walls and trees melding together as one in a distorted mess within his head. The haze covering his mind had only begun to lift moments ago after drinking the potion.

Ogura sensed the atmosphere between the student and headmaster, and excused himself as he headed further into the room to prepare the Pepperup Potion for Jun.

“Professor” Jun managed barely anything more a whisper. It was all he could say but Johnny-san seemed to understand the confusion of all he wished to ask as he moved to stand beside him. Jun watched as he took out his wand and began writing burning words ahead of them that appeared to rip through the air itself.

Daerd ou yen oeht tu bwo nku oy eca fehtt on wohsi.

Jun recognized the words that had been written on the frame of the reflection he’d entered to find the cup. With a wave of his hand, Johnny-san rearranged the letters until they were spelt out backwards.

“I show not the face you know but the one you dread” Jun read aloud under his breath.

The headmaster nodded. “Two mirrors were forged centuries ago” he explained. “The most well-known, the Mirror of Erised, shows the deepest desire of an individual, as you are already aware of. Its twin, the Mirror of Daerd reveals the darkest region of a person’s heart.”

Jun was confused. When he had found it in the maze it hadn’t seemed like a mirror. He could only see the cup when he had looked into the reflection, believing it to be a gateway of some sort. His own reflection had not appeared until he was already inside it.

“The Tri-wizard Cup was placed within the mirror as a final challenge for the three champions” Johnny-san continued. “The champion who located the cup first would be forced to face their greatest obstacle: themselves. Inside the mirror there is no physical danger but the psychological perils are certainly severe.”

Jun nodded a little at that, wincing at the torrent of painful memories that came flooding back.

“Where the Mirror of Erised can display the best of a person, the Mirror of Daerd shows their worst.”

“But that wasn’t me” Jun whispered while staring blankly at the fire ahead of him. “I would never hurt them.”

“No one is wholly good or wholly evil, Matsumoto-san. Everyone has darkness lurking within them and the potential to kill even those we care about is always present, even if we are not aware of it ourselves.” The headmaster paused and turned to look at Jun, who’s faced had paled again slightly. “Matsumoto-san, it’s important for you to understand that what you witnessed is not real. The Mirror shows neither the past nor the future, merely a glimpse into what could be.”

Ogura-san moved across the room behind them to get to the door after having heard the muffled whispers sounding from outside. He opened it slightly, peering through the gap for just a moment before closing it again and turning back to the two of them.

Before he had even said anything, Johnny-san smiled. “There are some people here to see you.”

With a confirming nod, he gestured for Ogura to open the door. At once Nino shot into the room with Sho, Aiba and Ohno right behind him. They cried out his name and essentially tackled Jun to the floor.

“Are you okay?”

“What happened?”

“Are you hurt?”

Jun was bombarded with a barrage of questions, unable to answer as his friends embraced him too tightly. Nino clung to him like a second skin. His arms were wrapped so tightly around his torso; Jun was fairly confident his boyfriend was intent on shattering his ribs. Aiba was no help as he was flung halfway over the two of them, his weight crushing Jun between the ground and their bodies. Sho and Ohno were on either side. One had his arms coiled around his shoulders and neck, almost suffocating him, while the other leaned heavily into the embrace to get as close as he could with Nino and Aiba both in the way, pushing the two of them even further into Jun who at this point was nearing the point of passing out beneath all four of them. Jun appreciated their concern for him but he was starting to doubt whether their embrace was born out gladness that their friend was alright, and not a desire to strangle him.

Wriggling out from beneath them, feeling himself in desperate need of a breath before be lost consciousness at the lack of oxygen flowing through his squashed lungs, Jun managed to heave himself free of his friends’ grip. The four of them drew back a little to allow him to sit up but refused to give him much space.

Tears began to form in Jun’s eyes as he looked at each of them, remembering the last time he had seen them all when his darker mirror image cruelly slaughtered them. He willed himself to forget the image of their dead bodies. They were here with him now; smiling for real, talking and touching him with such gestures of comfort and kindness that stemmed from the concern Jun knew he had put them through.

The fear of what he had seen in the mirror returned momentarily as he realized one of the friends he has seen in there was not there now. “Is Toma…” he trailed off. Relief swept over him when his friends nodded, the smiles on their faces not wavering even though the slightest hint of confusion shone in their eyes.

“He’s fine, worried about you too no doubt” Sho answered.

“Thank god” Jun murmured. His gaze moved to where Nino was staring at him with such complexity. Emotions were overflowing from his eyes; relief, anger, happiness, worry, but most of all love. He shuffled closer on his knees while the others rearranged themselves to give the two of them some space.

Jun leant in to Nino and pressed his ear against his chest, sighing happily when he heard the soft and continuous thud of his beating heart. Nino buried his nose in the top of Jun’s head and inhaled deeply. They stayed like this for a moment before pulling away to stare at one another.

“Told you I’d come back to you” Jun whispered as Nino’s fingers brushed over the large scrape on his cheek. His hand wandered down to his chest, stroking up and down over the coarse material of his ragged shirt.

Jun gently cupped his face and drew their lips together. The kiss was tender and more of a gesture to reassure each other that they were really there. They could feel the eyes of their friends and professors watching them discreetly as they pretended not to notice the two boys embracing one another.

The kiss broke when there was a knock on the door. All eyes turned as Higashiyama-san entered with the tri-wizard cup, handing it over to the headmaster and looking down at the scene on the floor in front of him with interest.

“Ordinarily the triumphant champion would receive this at the concluding assembly of the tournament, but given the circumstances I think we can make an exception” Johnny-san said as he placed the cup upon the mantelpiece for all to see. He swiped his hand in front of the vessel. The engravings on the crystal reformed themselves under his gesture to spell out

TRIWIZARD

HOGWARTS

MATSUMOTO JUN

Comments

[nekom1ya.livejournal.com]

OMG OMG ALL OF THEM ARE OKAY!!! THANK GOD!!! Thank you!!! I love how you incorporated everything from the original, just in an alternative way >< howw howwww do you do thattt! And the idea of the 2 mirrors thing ughhhh why why are you sooo creative!! Really makes me tempted to not make you stop writing this AU ><
ARASHI PUPPY CRUSH HUG OMMMMG DAAWWW!!!!! That was the cutest, cutest, cutest thing!! Poor jun-kun.. but you know they love you right J? ;3
MatsuMiya reunion ugggghhhh I can't-
It was just waaayyy tooo sweet and fluffy!!! The way jun place his ear on nino's chest to hear his heartbeat kyaaaa!! ♥ to me it was the most romantic moment ever.. although that kiss is not far off hehe.. gotta love em for not giving any shts about who's around :3 just kept going hahaha... typical MatsuMiya ♥
YAY JUN WON!!!! Now nino, im believe you should reward your forever-hardworking boyfriend ;)
Ahhh I'm srsly craving for moreee.. looking forward to the ending~