The last chapter. Please thank my dear beta sama Blind_Alchemist for this chapter. without her asking this wouldnt come out. and yes, she cowritten this chapter with me. Hope you like it. I have not heard from Gisette in long time, so I am sorry.

Please, please, please go to Blind_Alchemist's page and read her stories! They are very good! They are all Kiku X Yao, though, but I am sure that you would like the pairing there! The stories are just amazing!

Enjoy!

"Of course I am not~ aru. I am Yao. I am you. Inside our little brother's body."

Arthur stopped right at the door when he heard the voice. It wasn't Yao's voice for sure, but the way it was spoken was just like Yao.

"He didn't pass out! He was seducing us even more! ... Yeah! He even asked for us to push it in deeper! It always happens when he is about to faint—suddenly he just switches to a seductive, annoyingly-sexy incubus!"

Arthur's instincts warned him that something was really wrong. He entered the room to find Yao kneeled on the floor beside the body of his little brother. The little boy was unconscious when Arthur had left the room, but now that he was awake, Arthur felt that he was being possessed by something dangerous. Something alluring. Something similar to Yao's aura.

"He woke up?" Arthur asked slowly as he closed the door. "About damn time."

But Yao wasn't aware of him, since his attention was absolutely, 100% dedicated to his little brother whose current words and mannerisms came out like some incredulous joke.

"…Impossible, aru. Who are you? Where is Kiku?"

The little brother pouted. "You don't hear me, aru? I am Yao! Kiku is asleep now, aru~ I don't want to wake him up. He is so scared and tired, and he needs his sleep very much. I am here to protect him, aru, so bring it on!"

"I… I … I don't believe this!" Yao face turned as white as paper. "Why did this happen?"

Arthur watched in amusement. What was happening in front of him unfolded like some kind of freak show. In front of him were two pretty boys who both called themselves 'Yao'. And he watched as the little brother sighed.

"Are you actually this stupid, aru? I am ashamed, as your brother's memory of you. I am Yao, aru, from Kiku's memory. He made me real when he became too scared to face reality. Did you know, aru, that he was being raped by at least five men at any given time? Do you know how scared and angry and desperate he was? And he was calling your name—our name, aru. So many times. Hoping you'd come to save him. And yet, you didn't. So I have taken over his consciousness and am letting him hide inside his head. I took control of his body. I am protecting him, just like what you were supposed to do, aru. So don't you think I am more of 'Yao' than you, aru?"

Yao turned even whiter, if that were possible, and his body suddenly bowed to the floor.

"I…I am so sorry, aru… I .."

The little brother sighed. "I don't really need your apologies, aru. You need to apologize to Kiku, aru. But I don't know when he will come back, so in the meantime, I will do whatever shit you want. Ah," he perked up, "are you the menacing captain of this ship, aru? You don't look half bad compared to your filthy crewmen. You want to taste my body~ aru?"

Arthur swallowed. The little brother did look tempting, with his seducing smile and half undone clothes. But when he glanced back to Yao, seeing how the beauty looked pale and lost, he couldn't get aroused anymore. He walked slowly to Yao's side and pulled him off the floor.

"I don't know what kind of pranks you are doing, but this is not funny," Arthur spat. "Maybe you do have the right to get mad at Yao, but I was the one who gave you to my crew. I apologized for that, and I promise I will protect you from them from today onwards."

Kiku looked surprised. He then laughed hard, drawing patterns in the air with his own cute tapering fingers. "Oh I see, aru. What a slut you turned out to be, Yao. You succeeded in seducing the captain himself. Is this what you aimed for all along, aru? So the real reason for taking Kiku with you on this little trip was so that you could easily ensnare the captain, while your poor little brother played the role of the expendable decoy? How smart of you, aru! How cunning of a man you really are! And you succeeded in making everyone around you believe that you are a perfect, gentle, loving, selfless prince! You did make Kiku believe that you are his perfect brother splendidly, aru. Such a cunning, sly bastard you are!"

"No!" Yao shouted. "It wasn't like that, aru! I brought you along because I thought it was safer for us to be together..."

Kiku didn't seem to be listening anymore. His eyes closed and his face darkened, and he fell towards the floor. Arthur was quick enough to catch the body before it hit the ground. Yao watched in disbelief. Arthur wasn't helping his little brother; instead he just punched Kiku in the abdomen to shut him up.

"Sorry. He was too noisy and making up some ridiculous crap. I cannot let him make too much of a ruckus. My crew is already pissed that I took him away from them, and I cannot afford to let this pretty little thing make another commotion in my room. I want to rest. Yao, go to bed and take off your clothes, now."

"What…" Yao was speechless. Arthur licked his lips as he gently laid the unconscious little brother on the sofa.

"Yao, I have done all that you asked me to do. I rescued your little brother; I even protected both of you from my own men. I have done everything you wanted me to do even though it meant I needed to go against my crew's will. I have sacrificed that much, and now you won't even open your dress for me? Don't be such an ungrateful bitch, Yao."

Yao didn't know what to do, and his internal mind was still screaming over everything that had transpired—the fact that his little brother had gone crazy, and was being possessed by some kind of 'dark-Yao' personality; the fact that Arthur had hurt his little brother just to shut Kiku up, and was considering the Chinese prince as the top "prize" for all his pirating accomplishments. But Yao's body knew him intimately better. While Yao's mind was still flying in a panic, attempting to digest all the sudden occurrences, his body automatically went to the bed and did as Arthur had told him to do. His hands gracefully opened the buttons of his clothes; his lips smiled and his arms had no trouble welcoming the Captain of the meanest pirate crew in his time. His body betrayed his mind and showed Yao that he actually wanted that connection, this sordid act.

When he realized what had happened, he was already climaxing with Arthur still rocking his body inside and out. Yao could only curse himself as he pulled Arthur into his embrace.

He loved the man.

Loved him enough to overlook what had happened to his beloved little brother. Loved him enough to let the man own his soul, his everything. Loved him enough to actually surrender and accept Arthur's harsh way of comforting his disturbed mind.

He was doomed. How was it possible that he, the Crown Prince of the civilized world, could fall in love with the Captain of the pirate syndicate that he was supposed to annihilate?

He was doomed.

And he loved the man.

Three days passed and the ship entered the Philippines' strait nicely, without any trouble. The weather was a bit cloudy, for the sun hadn't showed itself in the past two days. The sky looked gloomy and grey, but the crew was happy because a strong chance of rain meant an increased supply of drinking water. The winds were slow, so the ship drifted along the waves at a snail's pace. It was simply the perfect time to be lazy.

Arthur watched his crew in silence. His men had grown sullen and quiet these days, and his right hand man had warned him that although things might appear peaceful and settled for now, some were thinking of rebelling against him. So Arthur was preparing himself and watching his affairs with an even closer eye, wondering which men would prove to be enemies and which would be important allies.

Meanwhile, Yao was inside the Captain's cabin, watching as his little brother wept. Kiku was tied to the pole by some heavy chains to retain him from hurting himself or Yao. It seemed like whenever Kiku was awake, he either wept or acted out aggressively towards himself or Yao, with the intent to inflict pain and violence. Yao wanted nothing more than to pull his little brother into his embrace, to assure him everything was going to be fine, but they both knew nothing would be the same again, and whenever Yao tried to come anywhere near him, Kiku would turn into his alter ego and try to hurt Yao.

Kiku sobbed softly and rubbed his bulging eyes with his sleeves. He kept chanting "sorry," and "help," and even though Yao kept telling him that they were going to be fine and were in no imminent danger, Kiku seemed to be deaf to his brother's words, only anticipating that he would be raped by whatever pirate entering the room next.

Being confined in the cabin made Yao oblivious of the passing time, and he didn't know that they were already in Philippines' strait. Kiku's traumatic condition also made Yao forget that his faithful marines were actually already waiting in the wings for Arthur's pirate ship, ready to strike at a moment's notice. On that fateful day, Yao's soldiers launched their attack.

Nobody realized what was happening when suddenly the ship experienced turbulence and shook its crew off their feet. Arthur was immediately alerted and when he glimpsed the scene through his binoculars, eight armadas of Marine Corps were approaching and swiftly surrounding them, giving no way out for the huge pirate ship to escape. The thin fog had clearly succeeded in camouflaging the marine ships around them. And the turbulence was due to the first cannon ball the marines had fired.

The crew fell into chaos, with Arthur desperately trying to control the mess. The men eventually listened to his orders and struck back, shooting off some of the ammunition towards one of the marine ships. But they were drastically outnumbered and they were tightly surrounded by the marines, so their chance to successfully fight back had been reduced enormously.

Inside the cabin, it was quite a mess. The turbulence shook the whole room, making Yao and Kiku collide against the wall. Alarmed, Yao raced to the farthest wall, trying to listen to and make sense of the noises and chaos occurring outside. After listening tentatively, Yao put the pieces together and started to panic. They had to run out from the ship to the Marine Armada of their kingdom. He frantically released Kiku's chains with the key Arthur had entrusted to him. But before he could explain anything to Kiku, the poor boy jumped out of the cabin and ran to the deck, where the worst chaos was taking place.

Nobody in Arthur's crew realized at first that Kiku was amongst them since they were busy firing ammunition and trying to pull back their sails, in order to prevent damage from the flying bombs that were being launched by the marine ships. Nobody noticed when the boy threw himself overboard, into the water, and disappeared between the heavily fluctuating sea waves around the ship. Yao went to catch his brother but he was too late, and all he could see was his missing brother being swallowed by the sea. Blinded by panic, Yao's body automatically followed Kiku's lead and steeled itself to jump.

Arthur caught Yao just in the nick of time.

"Are you out of your mind? Don't jump into the high seas just like that!"

"But!" Yao fought against Arthur's grip. "Kiku is…!"

"Don't be silly, Yao. And return to the cabin, we are really busy here. It's dangerous. We are undergoing a surprise attack from those shitty marines."

"But! Kiku…"

"Don't be silly. Just get inside the cabin."

"No!"

"Go. Please. I beg you." Arthur sighed in desperation. "I need to protect my men, but I cannot do it without knowing you are alright."

"No! Arthur, Kiku is.. . The armada is …"

"Please." Arthur looked pained. "I need you to be safe. Please. I love you."

Yao stopped his struggling and held his breath. His mind felt as though it were turning into an unfamiliar kind of pulp. The sudden confession from the pirate captain made Yao's stomach drop. His body was frozen. Now he knew for certain that they were actually in love with each other. Yao was happy for a brief second, feeling warmth over the sudden realization. But then, it was gone as fast as it had come. His happiness and worry for Kiku went away, only to be substituted by another new worry.

What if Arthur knew of his real identity? Would he still love him?

Arthur couldn't wait for Yao's reaction. He harshly pulled the beau and threw Yao through the cabin door, locking it behind him. He did this just in time before the real invasion of the marines. As the fight continued, the marines attacked even more boldly, shooting more bombs and sending small ships of infantrymen to the sinking pirate ship. Those uniformed marines started to invade the ship and in no time, the deck became alive with one-on-one or two-to-one combats.

One could tell in an instant that the pirates were steadily getting cornered and overwhelmed. Many of them died from stab wounds and some from the bullet holes in their bodies. Some escaped to the sea by jumping. But the brave and the faithful fought till the very end. Arthur was busy fighting with some of the marines, while trying hard to protect the door behind him. Yao tried to push the door open, but Arthur stubbornly refused to let him out.

He fought and fought, but when he realized that his right hand mate was splurging blood from his mouth, Arthur went crazy. He lost his mind and started to go on a deadly rampage, skewering everything in his path with his swords. Even the tough marines around him started to feel afraid of him, surrounding him from all sides but none daring to attack. Arthur moved forwards, sword held tightly in each fist, ready to kill. His body moved gracefully, dodging some of the bullets aimed at him. His speed was terrifyingly inhuman, and his mind was blank; he wasn't even thinking. He was acting solely upon his instincts now, using the fighting skills he'd acquired from growing up in the gutter, which had helped mold him into a successful Captain of a pirate ship. And he was laughing. He had gone mad.

With a wrench, Yao finally succeeded in opening the cabin door. He spotted the berserk Captain a few yards away, bathed entirely in blood. Yao's stomach flipped, but he wasn't given any more time to react when a marine came up to him and bowed down.

"Your majesty. Everything is going according to plan. Should we exterminate every last one of these vermin?"

Yao was torn between 'yes', or 'no'. It was his choice. It was his plan. He had calculated everything perfectly, and he had asked some of the best crew in his armada to plant some bombs in the ship while the ship descended into chaos. In his calculating head, Yao knew that his army would win, and the only way to destroy the pirate pests permanently was by terminating their main pirate ship—this one that he was currently standing on. But now he was hesitating, since he hadn't taken into account his feelings for Arthur. Yes, Arthur used to be just 'the awful pirate Captain' in Yao's mind. Now Arthur was almost as dear as his brother was to him.

"…Wait, aru. I will settle this myself. Give me your uniform and weapons." Yao stood up and tore away his robes. He took his subordinate's uniform and sword, and made his way slowly toward Arthur.

The man was still laughing as he slaughtered marines left and right, but he stopped when he saw Yao approaching. Arthur's eyes narrowed as he sneered.

"…Who are you, really? The nymph of bad luck?"

"I am Wang Yao, the Crown Prince of the Chinese Kingdom, whose seas you have disturbed. I am here …" –Yao unsheathed the sword— "… to kill you myself, aru. Don't let anyone disturb us, aru!"

The marines shouted words of obedience to Yao and turned their backs towards the two men with their swords. The number of pirates on the ship was reduced greatly by now, but the ones who were left were the ones whose fighting skills were above average, thus making the battle harder for the remaining marines.

Yao bit his lip. Their feelings for one another were gone. Now they weren't lovers of any kind—they were enemies. Yao, the Crown Prince, and Iggy the Pirate Captain. They stared at each other. Time seemed to screech to a halt.

And one of them moved forwards. The other returned the challenge, and their swords met with a clang. Arthur was amazed by the strength displayed by such a frail wrist. Yao was shocked because Arthur's skills with a sword were even better than those of the best swordsmen opponents he used to fight within the palace. They struck at each other with the sharp swords, without realizing that both of them were actually avoiding the other's vital points. They stabbed at each other, they nicked at each other, but neither aimed to kill.

And the swordplay continued. Arthur smirked and stabbed Yao on the left shoulder. Yao shrieked and pulled the sword out of his flesh, but before he could return the hostile deed, Arthur's arms were suddenly around his hips.

"You are even sexier like this."

Yao blushed deeply when their lips met for a second. But it was only for a second, and before he knew it, Yao had flipped backwards. Immediately he felt Arthur's sword tip tearing down his back. Pain struck Yao and he shouted hard.

"I want to tear you down, Yao. Literally. I love you like I hate you. So very much."

Yao clasped his teeth and growled. His weak mind was resolved, and he didn't give it another thought as he pushed his sword against Arthur's body. Arthur shrieked as his thigh was stabbed by Yao's long sword. But the crazy captain was smiling, and he howled in eagerness. He pulled Yao's body towards him, and grabbed the man's face.

"You are beautiful, Yao. Beautiful."

"And you are a handsome bastard, aru," Yao sneered back, hand clasped around Arthur's neck. "I love you too, Arthur."

Arthur smirked in glee. "We are crazy, aren't we?"

"Dying together doesn't fit our type of love, aru." Yao smirked back. "It's either me or you; and yes, we are crazy."

With that, Yao pushed his sword in even deeper, stabbing completely through Arthur's thigh. The captain howled in pain as his blood gushed out. But his hand moved simultaneously and he stabbed Yao in the abdomen. Yao shrieked and pulled out his sword; and without intending to, stabbed through Arthur's chest.

That particular part where the human heart resides.

Arthur's eyes softened. His lips formed a smile.

"… why do I love my own killer?"

And he stopped moving. His body dropped to the floor face-first. Blood splurted out from Arthur's chest, colouring the area around him and Yao deep red. Yao was holding his own torn abdomen, and he was laughing.

Hollowly. His eyes were wet.

"… why do I love my enemy, aru?"

Yao waited and waited, but Arthur was dead. He had killed the man. He had killed Arthur. Arthur was dead.

"… answer me, aru."

But there was no answer. Yao waited and kneeled beside the man.

"Arthur…. answer me, bastard."

He waited.

But there was no answer.

His subordinates surrounded him then and moved Yao from the pirate ship. In the departing lifeboat, as they enshrouded Yao in blankets, the whole ship exploded behind them. The bomb had been activated and everything was engulfed in fierce flames.

Yao watched as the fireball grew further and further away. He'd succeeded in killing the most dangerous pirate of his time. His father should be very proud, and Yao would be made King once he stepped back into the palace.

But at what price? He had lost his brother. They found Kiku's body floating in the water, with a peaceful look on his face. And Yao knew he had lost his heart when he realized, with a jolt, how there no longer existed a man called Arthur Kirkland, who would laugh crazily as he tore his clothes away, loving him over and over again.

He became the King. He was the smartest emperor the kingdom had ever had. He was wise and well loved by his subjects. But he remained alone till the end of his life, because he couldn't forgive himself for killing the dearest people in his heart, with his own hands.

END

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