Summary: The clan head of the Sumeragis has a secret. Will Kamui find out what happened to Subaru?

Disclaimer: Don't own any of the characters. As if you didn't know they all belong to CLAMP. Do love them though. You know what they say, "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." So here's my flattery.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: From manga 6 onwards.


Chapter One: The stage is set.

To the casual observer, the young couple walking along the side of the road appeared to be on a date. The young man, wearing his cap backwards, was buying a packet of Takoyaki from a roadside vendor. His companion, a pretty girl with an ice cold expression was standing aside looking impatient. The young man was talking enthusiastically but to an experienced eye, was failing miserably to impress her. One would think their conversation would be centered on mundane things like school or movies or a favourite pop group. Not quite.

"Well it looks like we better get down to looking for the last Seal," Sorata said to Arashi. "The Sakurazukamori appears to be getting bolder in his attacks. First he attacks us under the Diet building then he goes after Kamui at the Togakushi shrine. I think the Sumeragis are probably the only people in Japan who can counter him."

The slim dark haired girl nodded. "They're the ones who use light onmyoujitsu right?"

"The way I figure, since those of us already gathered are in this business already, the most likely candidate for the last Seal ought to be one of the Sumeragis right? The Sakurazukamori and the Sumeragis have been deadly enemies for centuries. And I heard the Sumeragi clan head is currently the most powerful in the generation, " Sorata said.

"Well if he's the most powerful it seems likely the Sumeragi would be one of the Dragons of Heaven," Arashi agreed.

But Sorata frowned and scratched his head. "But I'm not sure if it'll be easy to find the current head of the Sumeragis. I hear the clan head is pretty reclusive. There've been stories told about how the Sumeragi and the Sakurazukamori had a big battle some years back. After that the Sumeragi head simply vanished."

"Vanished?" Arashi prompted when Sorata stopped.

Sorata nodded. "Yep, never shows up at any gathering, nobody's seen hide or hair of him. Come to think of it, nobody even knows if its a guy or girl. And that's weird cos our community is so closely knit. At least all the elders know each other. The only thing I know is that the Sumeragis don't want anyone to meet their clan head."

"Maybe its just you, afterall they might not want suspicious characters near their leader," Arashi said dryly.

"What, me a suspicious character?" Sorata exclaimed playfully. Then he sobered, "But if we can't find the Sumeragi, we might have to make do without."

"Oh dear, but how can we be short one Dragon of Heaven? Surely if the Sumeragi is a Seal..." Arashi broke off in distress.

Sorata reached out a hand in comfort. "Don't worry, let me give the 12th Sumeragi matriach a call and arrange a meeting. Don't be distressed, aren't I enough protection for you, my dear Neechan? Ow, ow, ow!" Sorata danced away, holding his ribs in pain as Arashi showed just what she thought of his offer.

The two Seals, determined on their course, quickly found a public telephone.

"Moshi, Moshi. Yes Sumeragi-sama. Oh you've heard of me from the old priest at Kouya," Sorata said, shifting about uncomfortably, thinking about all the naughty things he'd done that the priest could have told her about. "Yes, we're looking for the current Sumeragi Clan head, can we arrange a meeting?"

The voice on the other end took a while to reply. When she did, it was as if carried away by her memories. "I see, the time has come. Oh the poor child, to have to suffer again... to have to fight the Sakurazukamori once more..." Then recovering herself, the old matriach said,"Our clan head is in Tokyo, but I don't know if I can help. We haven't been in touch for a very long time..."

Sorata was disappointed. "But, but, its the Promised Day, we need..."

The Sumeragi matriach sighed. "I'll send some representatives to hunt for my grandchild. I'll let you know if we manage to make any progress."

~~~~~
To live in Tokyo, one learns to take earthquakes in stride. But for the Sorata and Arashi, the tremor that was currently shaking the city was definitely not normal. For one thing, there was that huge electric blue dragon snaking across the sky, evident for any with the psychic sense to see.

"Uh, Oh, a Kekkai is under attack!"

The young couple immediately began racing towards the centre of the disturbance, jumping with ease from one building top to another. Suddenly, a third figure streaked past them. It looked like a young woman, her shoulder length hair blowing back as she gracefully leaped past them. The two Dragons of Heaven caught a glimpse of her delicate face as she looked back at them.

"Who was that?" Sorata yelped in surprise.

"I don't think that was an ordinary pedestrian out for a walk," came Arashi's dry comment.

"Oh my, I knew you had a sense of humour!" Sorata said grinning. "She seems to be in a hurry. I think we better catch up to her and find out who she is."

The scene at the epicentre of the earthquake was one of chaos. Small explosions and fires were erupting from the windows of buildings as glass rained down on the streets below. Skyscrapers trembling under the tectonic stress began to crumble and split apart. All around people were running in every direction. Their screams of terror drifted up to Sorata and Arashi as they stopped on a ledge above the destruction. In the midst of the chaos, two figures stood, one dark, one fair, perfectly still. Moving closer, the two Dragons of Heaven were suddenly caught immobile.

The dark figure calmly removed his sunglasses and removed a cigarette from a pack. As he lit it, his face widened in a surprisingly gentle smile at the young woman. "It's been a long time since I've seen you."

"Well, I've been searching for you." Her voice was soft and low.

"Why?"

"To make my wish a reality," she replied.

The young woman raised her hands and a star shaped glow began expanding from her palms. As it grew, all the chaos and destruction was shut out. Sorata and Arashi, caught in the grip of some inexplicable force, could only watch helplessly.

"That guy, he's the Sakurazukamori!" Sorata exclaimed.

"She must be a Dragon of Heaven. Could she be the Sumeragi clan head?"

Arashi's thought was confirmed when the Sakurazukamori looked about admiringly. "Ah a Kekkai, an ability of yours as one of the Seven Seals. Or no, this was a Sumeragi secret taught to you to protect humanity?"

The young woman appeared to be growing ever more agitated, in contrast to the Sakurazukamori's calmness. "I couldn't care less about the fate of the earth." And with that she whipped out a sheaf of talismans from her stylish tan coloured jacket to throw at him.

"Aum," she commanded and the ofuda began transforming themselves into white doves, to streak like arrows at her nemesis.

The Sakurazumori appeared unfazed, coolly waiting till the last moment before drawing an inverted pentacle to shield himself. As if the birds smashing into bloody pieces were a signal for the battle to start, the two began duking it out in earnest. From his shoulder an eagle appeared which he sent winging towards her. The young woman quickly dodged the shikigami's attack and tossed more ofuda into the air.

"Break!" She cried. The two watchers realised she had sent her ofuda upwards to hit the building above, causing an enormous star shaped slab of concrete and steel to come crashing down on the Sakurazukamori.

But when the dust cleared, the Sakurazukamori appeared unharmed. All he had suffered was a slight cut to his cheek.

"You must be really angry with me for having killed your beloved twin," The
Sakurazukamori said with a knowing smile.

"You killed Subaru! How can I ever forgive you!" She stood there shivering slightly, in the grip of some strong emotional tension. A tear slid from a corner of her emerald green eye.

"Oh? Is that how you think? I'd say the responsibility for Subaru not being around anymore is as much yours as mine," said the Sakurazamori in a mocking tone. Then he lifted his right hand to his cheek, wiped some blood on his fingers and began writing on the back of his left hand. Using the power of the blood magic, he sent a bolt of pure power at the young woman.

The sheer force sent her to her knees as she tried to block the attack. Gasping for breath, she tried to retaliate with a handful of ofuda. But before she could release them, a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist, twisting it painfully. The ofuda fluttered uselessly to the floor as the Sakurazukamori leaned over her.

Like a deer caught in headlights, she could only stare at him mesmerised.

One heartbeat later, he brought his lips to hers in a fierce kiss. A long moment passed before he broke the contact. Almost gently, the Sakurazukamori lifted his hand up to caress the line of her cheekbone. The touch left a smear of blood across her face.

The young woman wrenched herself away from him and with an angry hiss, swung her free hand wildly at him. The resounding slap echoed across the empty plaza.

The Sakurazukamori had an unfathomable look on his face for a moment, almost like he was surprised at having been caught feeling a surge of true emotion. Then his expression turned amused. Mockingly he said, "You're really cute when you're angry. Well,as much as I'd like to stay and catch up with old times, I really have to be going." With that parting shot, the Sakurazukamori dissolved in a cloud of sakura petals.

The young woman remained kneeling in the centre of the large plaza. "You get back here and fight me! Coward!" She yelled, provoked. Then her mood changed. "Sei-chan." Her soft whisper was filled with heartache.

Suddenly unfrozen, Arashi and Sorata quickly descended from their vantage point to the young woman.

Getting up off the floor, she began brushing off her dust-stained outfit before suddenly noticing them.

"Are you alright? You're hurt," asked Sorata, concerned.

She ignored him and continued to tidy herself.

"Please, we are two of the Seals, gathered in Tokyo by the dreamgazer Hinoto-hime. My name is Kishuu Arashi. What is your name?" Arashi was desperately trying to stop her from walking away from them.

"And I'm this lady's future sweet lover, Arisugawa Sorata." Sorata was wondering if he ought to clutch at her sleeve.

The young woman stopped. She turned to take a considering look at them. Then seeming to give up trying to get away, she held up her palms to retract her Kekkai. "I am Sumeragi Hokuto."

Notes: Well there you have it, Hokuto is fiesty. But she's also angsty. Didn't really want to start with Sorata or Arashi's perspective but I needed someone neutral to observe the battle between Sei-chan and Hokuto-chan. So far this chapter follows the canon but things will deviate more in later chapters. As for the kiss, I figure Seishirou would use every opportunity to fluster his opponent. Also I'm a Seishirou fan-girl but this fic doesn't have much opportunity for me to write about him. Hopefully in later chapters. Moan...

Coming up... Hokuto finds herself dragged into doing her duty as a Seal. Can she save Kamui from himself?