There aren't that many JunxPailong fics out there, and they're my two favorite characters, and my favorite pairing in the series. I'd like to dedicate this fic to Setsumi-san, and all the other authors that support this pairing. Hope I can live up to your expectations!
Synopsis: Pailong has been reminiscing about the past lately, and Jun wants to do something to cheer him up. She decides to take him out on an all-day birthday bash, and the two begin to realize that they care for one another more than they let on. Meanwhile, Ren must fend for himself, since Jun isn't there to cook for him. Sweet romance for Jun and Pailong, and hilarious cooking hijinks for Ren and Bason.
Things to Do in Tokyo When You're Dead
Chapter One: Remembrance
Pailong couldn't remember when he started having that terrible nightmare, but it had haunted him for many nights these past few weeks. He was dreaming about that day The day he died.
It was a late night at the dojo, and he had just finished packing away the tumble mats into the closet when a loud staccato of raps hammered on the door.
"Just a minute," Pailong called toward the darkened doorway as the rapping grew louder, urgent almost. He straightened and strode toward the door, wondering who it could possibly be, at this time of night.
The tall martial artist opened the door to find a short wizened man before him, his head barely coming to Pailong's waist. His eyes widened in disbelief. This old man was the one making that terrible racket?
"Sir, we're closed now. If you'd like to come back tomorrow--" but Pailong was cut short by the old man's sharp voice.
"Li Pailong, I presume?" The old man fixed him with a piercing stare. It seemed as if he were staring into his very soul, laying bare all his thoughts and emotions. The martial artist took a step back, in spite of himself. The old man was obviously Chinese, like himself, but he was dressed in crimson robes with the symbol of the Yin Yang, an emblem many Taoist spell-casters wore.
"Yes, that's me," Pailong said, but he couldn't shake the feeling of uneasiness welling up inside of him. "What do you want?"
"My name is Tao Ching," the tiny man smiled, his bald head glistening in the dim light, "and I am in need of your assistance."
"Are you in some sort of trouble?" Pailong asked. "If so, perhaps you should go to the police--"
"No," the word echoed sharply against the walls of the empty dojo. "I need you're skills as a martial artist. My granddaughter's birthday is tomorrow, and I wanted to give her a special surprise."
"Ah, she must be a big fan, and you want me to meet her, is that it?" Pailong scratched his head and laughed, but his laughter could do nothing to mask the feeling of foreboding forming in the pit of his stomach.
"You could say that," the old man chuckled as he pulled a gun from within the folds of his robes and pointed it straight at Pailong's head.
"Wait a minute! What are you--" Pailong was frozen with fear. He mind screamed, What's going on? Who is this crazy old man, and why does he want to kill me?
"I really don't have anything against you, Pailong," the old man smiled wickedly, the click of the gun being cocked was distinctly audible in the silent dojo. "But I'm doing this for the Tao family."
"The Taos?" Pailong asked. Who were they? Some sort of Chinese Mafia family? "Sir, please! If it's money you want, I'll pay you anything. I've got a wife and kids back home--"
"Sorry, Li Pailong, but you have to die The family collection needs your body."
"Please, don't do this--!"
Suddenly everything froze as the sound of a single shot reverberated throughout the desolate building. Pailong felt a sharp pain in his forehead, then suddenly everything went cold and silent. As the blood seeped down his face, he felt his body falling slowly backward, as if in slow motion. Images of his life flashed before his eyes in milliseconds. His wife and children. His costars from his movies. His master. His home. His future. Everything. Everything was gone. In that split second, the Taos had robbed him of everything that mattered most to him.
The old man laughed hideously, joyously even. Pailong wasn't even aware that his body had finally slammed onto the floor
*****
Pailong awoke with a start, as if the force of falling to the floor had literally awaken him from his nightmare. Breathing heavily, surrounded in warm darkness, he realized that he was still within his coffin, and that the entire episode had been nothing more than a terrible dream. Staring at the smooth lacquered underside of his coffin's lid, he closed his eyes and forced himself to calm down.
Why am I having these nightmares now? He thought. That was over twenty years ago, and I have already reconciled with Tao Jun, and yet... I still can't seem to let go of the past.
Slowly, he pushed open the lid of his coffin to be greeted by more darkness. The coffin lay forlornly in a curtained corner of the burned-out Chinese restaurant that Ren had purchased for their living quarters here in Tokyo. Stepping out of his unusual bed, he padded forward toward the living room and looked out the window toward the street below.
The full moon shown with pearly brilliance over the abandoned street. Nothing stirred, save for a few newspapers that skittered across the pavement like broken butterflies. Pailong guessed that is must still be late in the evening, and yet somehow he could not bring himself to go back to sleep. He felt depressed somehow, the dream bringing unbidden memories to the surface of his consciousness. An image of his wife's smiling face came to him, her golden blonde hair cascading over her shoulders in amber waves. If he closed his eyes, he could feel the soft locks of her hair running through his fingers, as if she were actually there beside him.
A shiver ran through his lifeless body as he choked on a sob. He could feel the tears springing to his eyes, unbidden and unwanted. He tried to hold back the flood gate of emotions, but they burst forth and cascaded down his cheeks and fell to the carpet in glistening diamonds. He pressed his cold forehead against the windowpane, eyes squeezed tight.
Why? God, why do I keep remembering the past? I want to forget... Forget everything...
He needed to take his mind off things. He needed to do something mindless, something that would allow him to fade into peaceful oblivion and prevent his thoughts from turning down that road once more.
Pailong glanced at the old couch in the living room and decided that one couldn't engage in an activity more mindless than watching TV. Squatting in front of the 36 inch set, he rummaged around in the cabinet for an appropriate movie. He pulled one out, and chuckled softly to himself when he realized that it was "Fists of Rage" one of his earlier movies.
How appropriate, he smiled as he popped the tape into the VCR and turned the volume down, so as not to awaken the others. I'm trying to lose myself in a fantasy world of my own creation.
The movie began to play and bathed the room in a bluish radiance. Pailong propped his feet on the coffee table and watched himself, unchanged in twenty years, began to beat the crap out of a group of expendable bad guys. His lips mouthed the words to some of his more popular lines as he lost himself in the golden years of his Hollywood career.
"That's enough!" The TV Pailong said, his fists clenched in anger. "You screwed with me, now suffer my wrath!"
If only things were that simple, he thought. The movies made ever thing so clear-cut in black and white. You were either one of the good guys, or one of the bad guys. But Pailong learned long ago that life wasn't so simple. There were infinite shades of gray in between.
Once he thought the Taos were nothing more than black-hearted demons; murderers that had enslaved him both body and soul. He even tried to kill his master, Tao Jun. But that was before he truly knew her, before Asakura Yoh had opened his eyes that had been blinded by anger. He knew now that Tao Jun was a victim, as much as he. She too was a slave to her family.
"Pailong?" A gentle voice called to him, nearly causing him to jump out of his skin. He didn't need to turn around to know who that sweet voice belonged to.
"I'm sorry, Miss Jun! I didn't mean to wake you." He stood and bowed respectfully to her, embarrassed by his blunder. It was his duty to make sure his mistress was safe and comfortable, and here he was watching TV at an ungodly hour. He wouldn't be surprised if Ren was probably awake by now.
"You didn't wake me up," Jun smiled genially, drawing her silk robe tighter against her body as she settled herself on the couch next to him.
"Then what were you doing up?" Her mochirei asked. It was not like her to be awake in the middle of the night. She had always been a sound sleeper, he should know. He used to stand by her bedside every night when she was a child, commanded by Taoist spells to protect her from harm.
"I might ask you the same thing," she smiled, hands folded neatly in her lap. "If you must know, I got thirsty and needed to get a drink of water. So I went to the kitchen, and that's when I saw you."
"Oh," Pailong leaped to his feet. "Please, let me get it for you."
He padded softly toward the kitchen, leaving Jun to gaze at the TV. He pulled a clean glass from the cabinet and filled it with cold water from the sink, then quickly returned to the living room. Cupping the glass in both hands, so as not to spill a single drop on her robe, he offered it to her.
"Thank you, Pailong," she smiled sweetly while taking the glass from him and slowly sipping at its contents. "Ah! That's good."
"If you ever need anything, all you have to do it ask," the martial artist settled himself onto the couch once more.
"I know." She set the glass between her fingers and rolled it back and forth slightly.
"What's wrong?" Pailong leaned closer. He could clearly make out the pale outline of her face illuminated by the bluish glow of the TV. Her jade green hair fell to her shoulders, the only time it was ever free from the confines of her purple barrettes. He wished she would wear down more often.
"You seem different." Her deep blue eyes stared into his own, searching for something. "You usually are aware of my presence the moment I enter the room, but I had been standing behind you for a few minutes and you didn't even notice." He blushed furiously at his carelessness. "You seemed lost in your own little world"
"I'm sorry, Miss Jun," he bowed his head. "I am failing in my duties as a mochirei and that is unforgivable."
"Don't say that." She set the glass on the coffee table. "You have done nothing wrong. It's just that" She placed a slender hand atop his huge calloused one. He trembled at her warm touch. "I'm worried about you."
"About me?" He wore that vacant gaze that had annoyed his master so much in life. "Whatever for?"
"For the past few days, you have seem so distracted. I look into your eyes, and I only find myself staring back. It's as if you don't even see me."
"I'm sorry--" He started to apologize, but a sad look from his mistress caused him to fall silent.
"Don't apologize. All I want to know is what is troubling my mochirei. Even now, I can tell you are not yourself. I've never seen you watch your old movies before."
"Well," he averted his gaze once more. "It's just that I've been having this dream--"
"Oh!" She placed a finger to her lip in surprise.
" 'Oh' what?"
"I didn't know that a kyonshii could dream," she laughed a little. "It's amazing how very little I really know about you, both as a person, and as my mochirei."
"I will tell you anything you wish to know about me," Pailong smiled.
"Then what were you dreaming about?"
Pailong hesitated. He didn't want his mistress to worry about him over such a trivial matter, but he knew she would not leave him alone until he confessed. He stared at his feet as he replied in a low voice, "I've been having the same dream over and over again for the past few weeks. I keep dreaming about the day that I died"
Jun opened her mouth to speak, then fell silent. She plucked at the green silk of her robe. Pailong knew she was uncomfortable.
"Pailong, I--"
"I already know what you're going to say," he turned his gaze toward the TV once more. His movie double was about to face the yakuza boss for the final showdown. The real Pailong was about to face a difficult adversary, as well. "You've apologized enough for the sins of your family. I've already come to terms with the past. There's no need to apologize anymore."
"But still," she stared intently at the pattern on her nightgown. "It is my fault that you are like this. These dreams you've been having, is that as far as it goes? During the day, you go about your daily tasks as if you were in a waking dream." She turned her eyes on him and fixed him with a piercing stare. Pailong flinched under her gaze; it was best if he got this off his chest now rather than wait for her to bring it up later.
"I've just been reminiscing a lot lately. When I'm not training or working, or doing something to keep busy, my mind keeps wandering toward the past. I think about things. Silly little things, like my costars and how we'd goof around between takes, or how we'd share pictures of our families."
"Do you think about them a lot? You're family, I mean."
Pailong gasped slightly when she said that. Never before had Jun openly asked him about his family. He wasn't quite sure why. He thought maybe she didn't want to remind him of the past, or maybe that she didn't want to know about the first woman he ever shared his love with.
He looked at her and noticed the sad expression in her eyes. He sighed. "I think about them all the time."
"What were they like? You've never told me about your family before."
"Well, you never asked."
"I didn't really feel comfortable talking about such a delicate subject with you."
There was a long pause before he began. "My wife was a beautiful American woman. We met while she was vacationing in Hong Kong. She barely had a grasp of the language, and all I can remember was her stumbling around, trying to find a decent Chinese restaurant." He chuckled a little at that last remark. "So, I offered to take her out to eat and well One thing led to another, and eventually we were wed."
"I see," Jun smiled a little, here eyes locked firmly onto her folded hands. "She must have been a wonderful woman."
"She was." Pailong leaned back and gazed at the ceiling. "She was very kind and a great cook, too. She had a wonderful sense of humor, and always did her best to support me in my career. She even decided to move with me to China, so that I could be closer to my work, even though she knew nothing of the language or the customs. She sacrificed so much, all just to make me happy."
Pailong turned his head and was surprised by the look on Jun's face. He wasn't quite sure, her expression was difficult to read, but did he see a tear sliding down her cheek? Was she saddened by the fact that he was thinking about his wife?
She noticed his eyes upon her, and quickly brushed a hand across her face. She smiled, but there was no mirth behind it.
"And your children? What were they like?"
"Everything a father could ask for."
Jun turned toward the TV once more. The movie Pailong was walking into the sunset with a beautiful Chinese woman by his side, both of them smiling. The screen faded out and the credits began to roll.
"You must have been very happy." She clutched the fabric of her robe tightly.
"I was."
"Do you wish you could go back?"
There was a long pause. Finally, "Yes."
"I see."
"Miss Jun." The martial artist had a keen awareness of his master's feelings and knew something was troubling her greatly. He slowly placed a huge hand over her own, to keep them from fidgeting. Tao Jun raised her eyes to gaze into his own.
"Please, tell me what's on your mind," Pailong rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. "I know that you're distressed. You can't hide your feelings so easily from your own mochirei."
She gave him a small smile. "You're right. You always have been good at discerning my feelings." She stared at their hands for a moment. "I've just been thinking. Why did you decide to stay with me? You could have passed on to heaven. It would have been only a matter of time until your family joined you. So why did you choose to stay if you knew that you would never see them again in this life?"
Pailong fell silent, stunned by her statement. Unable to formulate an answer, he said, "Miss Jun, you already know why--"
"No I don't!" She snatched her hands from his grasp. "You said you wanted to become my kyonshii so that you could perfect your Dao Dan Do, but you also said you wanted to remain by my side." She gazed at him out of the corner of her eye. "But still, you pine away for this woman who believes you to be dead, and yet you say that you wish to remain by my side. So why did you stay?"
Pailong opened his mouth to speak, but quickly fell silent. So she did feel jealous of his wife. He had never seen her so upset before. Why should this trouble her so much? Wasn't she happy knowing that he was by her side right now?
Why should she care if I think about my wife now and then? He thought angrily. I'll never be able to see her; never see my children grow up to raise families of their own. How selfish. She should feel sorry for me. It's her fault that I'm dead...
He quickly shook his head to banish the evil thought. What was he thinking? He'd stopped blaming her a long time ago. He knew it wasn't her fault; she didn't know that what she was doing was wrong. Even though he missed his family terribly, he truly wanted to be by her side, and that was what made him happy. As long as he could continue to serve her, no sorrow could ever live in his heart for very long.
"That's what I thought," Jun closed her eyes and sighed softly. "Your silence proves me right. You wished that you had left me. You never wanted to be my kyonshii."
"No," Pailong shook his head. "That's not true. I do miss my family, but I've made peace with the past. I know that I can never be with them in this life. The past doesn't matter to me anymore." He reached forward and cupped her small chin in his hand, forcing her to look into his dark eyes. "But please believe me when I say this: being with you makes me happy. The happiness your presence brings me far outweighs any sadness I might have."
Jun's eyes sparkled in the moonlight like two sapphires. She seemed on the verge of tears, despite Pailong's reassuring smile.
"Do you truly mean it?"
"I mean every word. When I said I wanted to remain by your side, I meant it."
Jun gave him a small smile. "That makes me happy. I apologize for saying those terrible things. I was jealous, but that's no excuse for my behavior. I'm sorry for doubting you."
"Don't be," he grinned. "I am your mochirei, after all. I promised to remain by your side until death do us part, and I don't intend to break that promise."
She sniffed a little while rubbing at her eyes. "Thank you, Pailong."
"Now, you should go back to bed," he stood and gently pulled her to her feet. "There is much to be done before the preliminaries begin. Your brother will need your support during these difficult times."
"I know," her gaze traveled to the door down the hall. He younger brother, Ren, was sleeping soundly behind that door, perhaps dreaming of the day when he would finally defeat his rival, Asakura Yoh. It was strange how Jun looked at that headphones-wearing boy as a savior, while Ren viewed him as an obstacle. Perhaps one day, he might change his mind about Yoh. Jun hoped he would.
Pailong began leading Jun back to her room, but she stopped before he could open the door.
"What is it, Miss Jun?" He tilted his head to one side in confusion.
"Pailong," she placed her hand upon the red symbol on his chest, and he placed his hand over her own. "I don't want you to be sad. If there's anything I can do to help you, you'll tell me, won't you?
"Of course, Miss Jun, but I already told you, your mere presence makes me happy. Now, get some sleep. You'll have a long day ahead of you."
He removed his hand, but her fingers still lingered a moment longer before she turned and opened the door to her room.
"Good night, Pailong," she whispered while closing the door.
"Good night, Miss Jun." He stood for a few minutes outside her door, as if unsure of what to do. Finally, he walked down the hall and climbed back into his coffin. Replacing the lid, he closed his eyes, though sleep remained an ever elusive prey.
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So, what'd you think? This is my very first published fic ever, so constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! I'm already hard at work on chapter two, so please read and review!