Vile: Not having a big workload makes it easy for me to get out other fics, ZEXAL or not. I made this little ficlet after going back to Numbershot 15 and reading some reviews about Rio forgiving Marcus (IV) too quickly. So, I made this fic to clear up some of the reasons. I hope you people enjoy this little mini-story. No disclaimer needed since you clearly know that I don't own anything. As another reminder, in my headcanon, Rio is 17, not 14. Enjoy!

The Past Is Past

The gentle breeze blew Rio's hair from the window, but it was quickly shut, allowing her to brush her hair. Her eyes were closed with a gentle smile, and she was humming a small song to herself. After a bit of brushing, she looked at herself in the mirror. "Perfect." She walked out of the bathroom and went down the stairs, passing by her magazine-reading brother on the couch. "See ya later, Ryoga!" The other Kamishiro said nothing as Rio walked out and shut the door behind her.

At that moment, however, Shark looked up from his magazine, looking out the window with a skeptical face as Rio walked down the street. 'I can't just sit here this time.' Slamming his magazine on the table, he got up and left the house, taking a different path.

*A Little Later*

Shark watched from around the corner of a building as Rio waited on a street corner. Soon after, someone rushed up to her: Marcus. Shark glared at him slightly, more so when Rio hugged him out of nowhere. The two of them then left together, though it seemed more like Rio was pulling Marcus. "What are you doing?"

Shark was startled by the sudden voice, thinking he was busted, whirling around to see Ariel smiling at him. "Jeez Ariel, you startled me."

"Oh, gomen. I just wondered what was going on." The girl replied.

Shark looked back, still seeing Rio and Marcus. "Follow me. And keep quiet." Shark walked out from the corner and down the street behind Rio and Marcus, Ariel following behind him.

*A Little Later*

Rio and Marcus had stopped at a small café for lunch when Shark and Ariel got there. Shark was still glaring. "Shark-kun." He looked to see Ariel point at another place. "We might as well get lunch while we're around here."

Shark was a little hesitant to stop his watch, but shrugged his shoulders. "I guess so." His stomach then growled, making Ariel giggle.

*A Few Minutes Later*

Shark and Ariel sat on a bench, Shark biting into his hamburger like his namesake animal. "Shark-kun, you didn't answer my question earlier. Why are we doing this?"

Shark gulped down his bite and sighed, looking up at his sister. "…I still don't trust Marcus."

"Eh? I thought you were fine with him now. You were fine with him when Rio-chan got out of the hospital." Ariel told him, confused.

"I was only like that because I wanted to be happy for Rio-nee. I know Marcus reformed and wouldn't hurt Rio-nee anymore… but I can't get what he did in the past out of my head. If Rio-nee ends up in the hospital again because of him, it'll be my fault for not protecting her." Shark said. "There is no way I'm going to let anyone hurt my sister again. I'm going to make sure I can protect her."

Ariel looked sympathetic, looking back at the other couple. "But… she looks so happy with him."

"That's what worries me. She's too upbeat about this. Any normal person in this situation would hate him." Shark took another bite of his burger.

"Have you ever asked her why she's like that?" Ariel asked.

Shark gulped his bite. "Like heck she'd answer. Rio was always a brat when we were kids, even though she's three years older than me."

Ariel blinked. "I'm sure she'd tell you why if she knew you were concerned. You're her brother, Shark-kun. Look at Yuma-kun and Akari-san."

Shark was silent for a moment. 'She's right. Those two are close despite arguing with each other.' "…Maybe you're right, Ariel. I just hope she doesn't get mad at me."

*Later That Day*

Shark was already back home when Rio walked in, reading the rest of his magazine. "Hey, Rio-nee. How'd your day go?" Shark asked nonchalantly as Rio shut the door.

"Why were you following us?" Rio asked abruptly. Shark was startled, looking up to see Rio looking annoyed with her arms crossed. "I saw you when we were at the café. What's your problem?"

Realizing he was busted, Shark tossed the magazine behind him. "You wanna know my problem? My problem is your attitude."

"MY attitude? What 'attitude' are you referring to, Ryoga?" Rio asked, annoyed.

"The way you act around Marcus is unsettling to me. I don't get why you're acting so carefree around him." Shark said.

Rio turned around with a huff. "Marcus is my boyfriend, Ryoga. If you don't like me acting lovey-dovey around him, stop spying on us."

"That isn't what I meant!" Shark spat out. "I'm talking about how you're acting like nothing happened!" This made Rio open her eyes with a slight gasp. "Rio-nee, hear me out. You may think I'm acting overbearing, but I watched you lie in your bed, face completely bandaged and on oxygen, for longer than I wanted to. I thought you were going to die, so when you got out, I decided to make sure you wouldn't be hurt again. But Marcus… even though he healed you, I can't forgive him for putting you in the hospital in the first place!"

Rio turned around. "But you were fine with him at the hospital!"

"Because I wanted to be happy for you! I didn't care about Marcus back then, I was happy because you were finally all right! I didn't feel like making the moment bad again after the hospital came under attack. But now that everything has gone by, I can't shake what he did. I can't understand why you act like he didn't do anything to you. If you can shed any light on that, maybe I can get off your back."

Rio was silent for a moment, then her eyes closed. "…I never told you, did I?" She said, confusing Shark. Rio walked over to a dresser, grabbing a picture of the two Kamishiro kids when they were six (Rio) and three (Ryoga). There was a blue-haired man with them in the picture. "…I saw him die."

Shark let out a breath. "Tou-chan…?"

Rio nodded. "I was really sad when he was dying, but do you know what he told me?" Shark shook his head. "He said… 'Let the past be past. The things that have occurred in the past cannot be changed… all you can do is move on. Don't dwell on the past… or you can't make your future.'" She placed the picture on the dresser. "Ryoga… I know that Marcus hurt me in the past. But he's undone his damage, and even though he can't give me back the time I spent in the hospital, he's doing what he can to make me happy. And even you know that he never wanted to hurt me." She looked at him and smiled. "You know this yourself, Ryoga. You told me that when you met Ariel, you stopped letting your anger towards Marcus drive you. You let go of your past… and that's what I'm doing."

Shark was speechless. He didn't realize how much of a hypocrite he seemed: Not wanting Rio to forget the past when he did so himself. His head sunk. "Gomen-nasai, Rio-nee… I had no idea."

He was then hugged by his older sister. "It's all right, Ryoga. You were just looking out for me." Shark returned the hug.

Shark's eyes then opened. "Rio-nee."

"Hmm?"

"Marcus hasn't let go of the past, either."

Rio's eyes widened, letting go of Shark. "Why would you think that?"

Shark answered honestly. "Because I found him earlier and talked to him."

*Flashback*

"What's wrong with you?" Shark asked, seeing Marcus sitting on a bench looking glum. Ariel was still beside him.

Marcus turned to look at him. Shark was looking at him skeptically. "Hello, Ryoga. Must I be honest with my problem?"

"Considering you're like this right after a date with Rio-nee, yeah, I'd like to know." Shark said.

The two-tone-haired man let out a sigh. "…I don't deserve Rio-chan."

Ariel gasped. "Eh?!" Shark only raised an eyebrow.

"I can never forgive myself for everything I've done. Although I'm glad I've made Rio-chan happy during the time we've spent together, I don't feel like I should be with her. I'm the one who made her suffer." Shark said nothing. "…You don't trust me with her either, do you, Ryoga?"

"If I have to be honest… no, I don't." Shark told him. "The fact that you put Rio-nee in the hospital still pisses me off. The only reason I haven't forced you two apart is because Rio-nee looks happy with you."

Marcus nodded. "I understand. But even if it saddens her, I have no choice." He got up off the bench. "I am supposed to get Rio-chan for another date tomorrow, but I will inform her instead that we will not be together anymore." He looked at Shark. "You and I will still be allies in collecting the Numbers, but aside from that, I will willingly leave your life." He turned his back to Shark and activated his Crest, which made him vanish in a cloud of dust.

Shark was motionless. "Shark-kun? Are you all right?"

"…I get the feeling that I've made a terrible mistake." Was all Shark said.

*End Flashback*

Rio's eyes quivered as Shark finished his recount. "Marcus…" She then noticed Shark walking upstairs. "Hey!"

"I know you stay together with him, Rio-nee. Now that I understand the situation, I have no problems with it." Shark told her before looking back at her. "If anyone can make Marcus forget about the past, it will be you." He winked. "Good luck, Rio-nee." He went back upstairs.

Rio stood there for a moment, then held her fists in front of her chest with closed eyes. 'Marcus…'

*The Next Day*

Shark went for the door to leave, glancing at Rio on his way out. The two siblings shared a wink before Shark left the house. 'I guess it's all up to Rio now.' On his way down the road, he passed by Marcus, who was walking toward his house. He glanced at him with a smirk before walking right past him. Shark didn't notice Marcus look back at him in confusion.

Regardless, Marcus went up to the door and knocked, which was opened by Rio. "Hello, Rio-chan." He told her.

"Hey, Marcus. Come on in for a second." Rio told him, moving aside. Marcus nervously walked inside the house, Rio shutting the door behind. He didn't hear the lock clicking.

"Rio-chan… I came to tell you-" Marcus was quickly interrupted when he was pushed against a wall. Rio's lips smashed into his while her hands went on the wall beside his head, pinning him with her body. Marcus's eyes were very wide out of pure shock, but Rio wanted to make sure he didn't think of giving up what they could have.

'Please, Marcus, accept my love…' She thought, moving her hands behind his neck to hug him, allowing him to step away from the wall. Her heart warmed when Marcus finally wrapped his arms around her to return the kiss, closing his eyes. Rio still sensed his apprehension, but it only made her hug him tighter to convince him out of his plan. She pressed her body against his again, letting out a soft moan.

Marcus was the one to end the kiss, looking at Rio with slightly sad eyes. "Rio-chan… I-"

Rio placed her finger on his lips. "Don't say it, Marcus… You don't have to do this."

Marcus's eyes widened. "You… You know what I'm going to say?"

Rio nodded. "Ryoga told me. Please, Marcus, you can't just throw away what we could have."

"B-But… after what I did to you…" Marcus breathed. "Even Ryoga doesn't trust me."

"He does now. Listen to me." Marcus fully turned his attention to Rio, who had tears in her eyes. "I've moved on from the past. I don't care what you did to me anymore. I only care about who you are now. Can't you do the same for yourself?"

Marcus looked away. "It isn't that easy, Rio-chan. You don't know how many people I've hurt…" He clenched his eyes shut. "Their terrified faces haunt me to this day… I don't want that to happen to you. I can't let myself hurt you, or anyone else, again!"

"You're hurting me now!" Rio suddenly shouted. Marcus gasped slightly, feeling Rio bury her head into his chest. He heard her sobbing slightly. "Don't you get it, Marcus…? I know you're not the person who would willingly hurt someone. But doing something like this to keep yourself from hurting me is only hurting me more. Please, Marcus… stop worrying about what happened! If you dwell on the past, you can't make your future… and you cause pain to those you try to help. Please… don't leave…"

Her words became gentle sobbing as Marcus processed her words. She was right. Rio welcomed him with open arms instead of running from him, and even through his regret, his heart was healing slowly. If she hadn't, he probably would never heal. "Rio-chan…" He quickly hugged her tightly, trying hard not to cry and succeeding. Rio's eyes shot open. "…Gomen-nasai. I didn't realize… how much of a fool I was. I was… a coward."

"Then stop running, Marcus. Let people help you. Let ME help you." Rio told him, pulling back to look at him. "You may think you don't deserve me, but you're the one I want. That alone should convince you."

Marcus was silent, then allowed himself a small smile. "…Arigatou, Rio-chan. I can't thank you enough for allowing me another chance. I will do my best to truly move on… to make a future unimpeded by my past."

Rio smiled. "And I'll be there every step of the way to help you." She told him, kissing him again. Marcus returned the kiss immediately this time, the two young adults hugging each other tightly.

*Later that Day*

Shark walked back to his house, but noticed Marcus coming out. The smile on his face told Shark that all was well. 'Looks like the past is past now.'

Vile: I hope I did well with this little ficlet. To be honest, when I thought up this fic, I had the idea to do an alternate version with a lemon in it, similar to the end of Numbershot C13. However, I'm not sure whether or not I should do it. If you liked this story, leave me a review, and include whether or not you want me to write the lemon version of this story. Thanks for reading, and ja ne for now!

Computer Voice: Vile, logging out.