Like Twins

It just couldn't go on like that anymore. It was driving him crazy waking up without knowing whether or not he had done something unspeakable to the Blood Talon. Hiro needed to figure out a way to deal with it as soon as possible, and the only way he knew to do that was to ask one of the people who had already succeeded at what he wanted. He had to find one of his doubles.

It was early morning, probably the best time to find them alone. Last thing he wanted was to have to pull Jin away from his games with the Hwoarangs; assuming he'd even be able to. So he sought out the ones he wanted to speak to, first checking the lobby and outside, and then wandering up to the roof. There was one of the ones he was looking for. Jin was training, doing punch and kick combos. As strange as it was to see someone with his own body doing those familiar moves, Hiro had more important things to worry about. "Jin, in the mood for a break? I'd like to speak with you."

Finishing up the combo he was in the middle of, Jin turned to face him and smirked. After wiping his brow with the back of his hand, he shrugged. "What about?"

"It's about the devil gene." Hiro approached him, stopping a couple metres away. Just close enough that he could speak fairly quietly without having to whisper. "I've noticed you haven't been having any issues with it, and I think it's important to our mission that I learn to manage it somehow."

Jin nodded. "I think you're right, but helping you manage is not done in a couple of sentences. Let's go sit down." He said, smirk gone to be replaced by a serious expression, covering the couple steps over to a bench and sitting down.

At least he wasn't as stupid as that narcissism and sexual appetite made him seem. Hiro sat down as well, bringing one leg up on the bench so he could face the other man. "I am not looking for an easy fix. I wish to know more about how you control it so that perhaps I'll know what direction to go in. As of now, it's the one in control; it even has taken on a crush."

"A crush?" There was a faint trace of amusement in that voice, but not too much. "That's interesting... I don't think mine ever did that." He shrugged again, then asked casually, "may I ask who?"

"I suppose it doesn't make a difference if you know... It has taken a liking to the Blood Talon. I don't understand how that happened, but that's partly why I'm asking you about this now. I want to take measures to prevent it from hurting him." He could only hope admitting that much wasn't admitting his own feelings for that particular Korean. Not that he had too much faith in Jin caring enough to connect it - assuming there was any sort of connection to make.

"My bed mate, you say? It has good taste." Jin smirked, then thought for a bit. "I could tell you what your problem is and how to solve it, but you would get angry at me. So, tell me your perspective. Who are you, what is 'it', and how do you think you could manage it better?"

What an ill-mannered man. Hiro sighed and thought about it. "Forgive me for stating the obvious, but it's a demon. I don't remember much about what happens when I become that, so I can't tell you much about it. All I know is it enjoys hunting. If I had a clue about how to manage it better, I wouldn't be sitting here right now." He sighed and locked eyes with the other Japanese. "I'd like to hear your theories."

"Well, you know better than I feared." Jin rested his fingertips against each other, glancing over Hiro's body for a few moments. "It does enjoy hunting. If you already know that, you have something to work from." He smirked lightly, turning away to glance into the distance. "But you skipped the most important question. Who are you?"

"I am Jin Kazama, I enjoy candlelight dinners and long walks on the beach." Maybe the sarcasm was uncalled for but he couldn't help but be a bit unnerved about the question. "It may be the most important, but it's the most difficult to answer. I hate it when people are hurt by my dark side or anyone else. I didn't even know something so evil could be attracted to someone!"

"If it had been an easy question, you wouldn't have been here either." Leaning back, Jin stretched out. "Since you tell me it's the one in control, I can deduce one thing. You try to starve it." He paused, then turned to meet Hiro's gaze. "Stop trying to kill it. That isn't possible. You can control it, though, and if you truly want to, I can help you do that."

How could that even be an issue? If he truly 'wanted'? Sometimes that man really got on his nerves, and if that was the real Jin, the world was in a lot of trouble. Hiro sighed, trying to ignore his personal feelings about the whole thing. "I would greatly appreciate your help, but I have to ask... Does it come at a price?"

The other Japanese flashed him an amused grin. "Who do you think I am? The Blood Talon?" He laughed lightly, then added, "no, it doesn't come at a price. You have my word. If you want to just forget about me helping you, you can. Any kind of gratitude is voluntary on your part."

Hiro considered him for a moment and then reluctantly nodded. Surely Jun had instilled this version of her son with enough morals not to lie about something like that. "Good, then I won't have to pretend I like you. Now, where do I begin if I wish to control it?"

"Stop starving it." The other raven-haired man answered quickly. "Starving it makes it hungry. Hunger makes it powerful, and hunger also makes it fight you for control."

"You mean I'm supposed to allow it to murder innocent people?" The idea made him shudder. Maybe he had been too quick to jump to conclusions on that morals issue. "What do you do so yours won't starve?"

Jin furrowed a brow and shook his head. "Honestly, you think I let it kill? You let yours kill!" He answered with obvious offense, then took a deep breath. "You really have no idea, do you? If you stop starving it, it won't do anything at all! It won't even surface unless you let it. Now it surfaces because it thinks it needs to."

Hiro crossed his arms over his chest and looked away. It wasn't easy to be reasonable about all that when it was such a personal thing, but he knew he had to maintain some shred of civility between them. "I apologise for my ignorance. Obviously you have much more knowledge about it than I do, so please tell me what it needs in order not to starve. I don't imagine ramen noodles will do the trick."

Smirking lightly at the joke, the Japanese took another deep breath. "If it has a crush on the Blood Talon, perhaps you should try spending a little time with the guy. That is, if you can tolerate that redhead." He paused, brow furrowing in thought. "Sleeping on the floor is probably no good at all. It implies a form of submission, and that sets it off."

With a sigh, Jin closed his eyes. When he reopened them, they had a dim, yellow glow behind the brown surface. "Power." He started in a deeper, stronger voice. "Dominance. Control. Sex. Violence." The eyes closed again, and after a few seconds, they reopened to reveal the dark eyes Hiro had seen before. "Well," Jin said in a light voice, "there you have it. I asked mine what it wanted, and you heard the answer. Yours might differ, but probably not significantly. It's simple. Feed it, or it feeds itself."

Sounded like it was going to be more difficult than he thought. In order to save lives he had to become more like... Jin? If only his other half had a better appreciation for a quiet life. Hiro stood up, and gave a subtle bow. "Thank you for your time, Jin. I will keep all that in mind." That said, he turned and walked toward the door.

~~~

This is a collab, written together with Chlover. You can find her author profile here:
http://games.adult-fanfiction.org/authors.php?no=26260