"Hitsuzen: (noun); a naturally foreordained event. A state in which all other outcomes are impossible. A result which can only be obtained by a single causality, and other causalities would necessarily create different results." -Kodansha Japanese Desk Dictionary, 2nd Ed.
It was a picturesque summer afternoon. The weather was perfect for sitting out in the yard and drinking tea. Somewhere in Tokyo, in an odd little house shielded by skyscrapers, this is exactly what was happening. As the inhabitants of said house idly conversed, and that's what the young mistress would casually say on the matter, a sun shower began to fall. With an almost childlike smile, the orange-haired girl watched as it fell.
"Ah, looks like the fox spirit has taken a bride…" She mused, looking to the confused young man next to her. Smirking playfully, she chuckled. "It's a phrase for sun showers like these, rain on a clear day." The playful smirk gave way to giddy cheer soon after, as she resumed looking up at the sky. "Days like this…one could perform a Kyocho." To the outsider, it would look like she wasn't saying this to anyone in particular. The boy, on the other hand, tilted his head. Whether it was curiosity, or wary anticipation of the young woman's antics, none could say.
"And just what is…that?" He asked. Smiling, she looked towards the porch, where an identical-looking pair of boys were.
"Castor? Pollux?" She called, watching as the two boys smiled and ran to her.
"Here!" They cheered, holding up a small mirror together before placing it in her waiting hand. Letting the small mirror rest a moment, she looked upon it with a thoughtful expression as she began to explain the art of Kyocho.
"You can use any mirror you want. Hand mirror, compact, et cetera…" She explained, turning the mirror in her hand over a few times as if to inspect it, "Hold it by your heart, close your eyes, and consider the first words you hear to be an omen. Simple enough, it's a variant of the divining style known as tsujiura."
"Really?" The young man wondered, his curiosity piqued. The girl just looked to him and smiled.
"On days where the fox spirit takes a bride, sun-soaked rain adds its power to the kyocho divination. This results in a near-certain omen." The smile slowly shifted, from amused to conspiratorial, as she asked "Want to give it a try?" The boy took the mirror, looking it over curiously before holding it close to his heart.
"Good, good. Close your eyes, open your ears." She coached, "You needn't concentrate, needn't think, just listen. Listen for the first sound you hear." Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes. Any thoughts he had of the girl before him possibly pulling a prank were banished as soon as an indiscernible voice echoed across his mind.
"Today, I'll be there." The voice intoned, "Prepare and wait." Opening his eyes, he blinked.
"Was that…it?" He mused under his breath, looking at the mirror in his hand before glancing to the orange-haired girl. "I, ah…I really didn't get any of that." Judging from the uncharacteristically serious look on her face, he wagered that she knew exactly what the voice was talking about. Setting down her tea, she rose from her seat.
"Is that so…" She mused with a sigh. "Today, is it?" The boy with the mirror quickly tried to wave it off, but before an argument could escape him, she turned sharply towards the house. The odd twins followed directly after her.
"We must be ready…" She said, firm in tone but giving no details, "We need to prepare for their coming…"
In another world, a ruin rose prominently over a vast, scorching desert. Solemn, silent, and were it not for the remains of a recent battle at its feet, it may have been considered serene. From the entrance, ascending a stairway to chambers beneath the shifting sands, was a young man. In his arms, a young woman. What began as a cry for help was soon changed into one of alarm at the sight of so many dead. The crunch of sand beneath someone's feet made the white-haired lad turn. There, leaning against a ruined stump of wall, was a man with deep indigo hair, grimacing at the sight before him.
"You're late, twerp." The other male rasped, bravado poorly masking the pain in his eyes, "You'd better not have let my sister get hurt, there!" A sharp gasp stopped the first from any form of rebuttal as the other began to topple forward. A blur of white and light blue entered the scene, catching the wounded man before he could hit the ground. A woman this time, draped in the silver and white raiment of a priestess, looked to and addressed the white-haired young man.
"His highness met the poisoned tip of an enemy's arrow." She explained, answering an unspoken question. Before the boy had a chance to say he wasn't concerned about the other boy's welfare, the priestess gasped at the sight of the girl in his arms. "Is that-?! Oh, Princess…"
"Th-there was a strange relief in the ruins…" He began, his mind tripping over itself in his ever-growing panic. Frowning, the priestess placed two fingers against his forehead, their tips glowing a soft white before pulling away.
"I've read your memories." She said, after a few moments, "So, our little sister's wings have taken flight…"
"What?!" The boy asked, utterly confused while the blunette nodded.
"Her wings and her heart are as one," She began, allowing him to briefly repeat it before continuing, "All of her memories, from the moment of her birth to here and now, have vanished. Her heart is nowhere to be found in this world." Slowly, surely, the signs of distress began to appear on the older girl's face.
"Without her heart, her body is an empty shell." Her voice cracked a little, "She can't stay this way. Otherwise, she'll…" Fighting the tears in her eyes, she took a shaky breath.
"Is there something I can do for her? Anything?" The boy asked, not willing to believe that the girl in his arms could be taken from them, from him, without a fight. Looking upon the dead, the priestess looked to him with newfound resolve. Raising her arm, a staff manifested, adorned with symbols representative of the moon. With one swing, the air began to hum with magic.
"I'll take responsibility for what happens next, but we haven't much time left." She said, the air shifting around them, magic taking the form of waves and beginning to surround the boy and his closely-held companion. "I'm sending you to someone in another world. Like me, this person carries the power of the moon."
"Who is that person?" He inquired, yelling over the roar of gathering magic, "What should I do when we meet?" Out of instinct, he held the girl in his arms ever closer.
"She's called the Space-Time Witch!" The priestess yelled, "You will tell her everything, and you will beg her to help the princess!" The two shared one last look before the magic spirited them away. When silence returned to that desert ruin, she lowered her staff and sighed.
"Take care of her, Sirius…"