New Perspective

By Veszelite
Written for: Tami in the Yuletide 2006 Challenge

DISCLAIMER: The characters of the Juuni Kokki belong to Fuyumi Ono and associates. This piece of fanfiction is written for not-for-profit entertainment purposes only.

On hindsight, Rakushun really shouldn't have been so surprised.

It was easy to think such things in hindsight, of course, when one had the leisure to look back and consider the pieces of a puzzle that all fit together into such an obvious way. It was much harder to see the full picture before the pieces were lined up, while the events were taking place. ...Especially when the events in question had started in a bustling market square in the hanjyuu quarter in the capitol city of En.

Hanjyuu were half-beasts, individuals who had characteristics of animals, but could assume human form at will. Most found it uncomfortable to wear the appearance of a human, and preferred to stay in the more natural animal form. In Rakushun's case, the animal shape was that of a large gray rat. He was still able to walk upright and to speak, but he was about two-thirds the height of an average human, and in all other ways looked like a fuzzy, round-eared, bewiskered rodent rather than having the appearance of a full-blooded human being.

Here in the kingdom of En, Rakushun's appearance as a hanjyuu drew little notice from passers by. En was the most accepting of all the Twelve Kingdoms, and as a result, more hanjyuu had settled in En than in any of the other lands. They were a minority even here, and as with other minorities that shared the same cultural values and life experiences, the hanjyuu tended to form their own communities. There were exceptions--Rakushun himself lived entirely apart on the campus of the Daigaku of En. But the majority of hanjyuu in the city of Kankyu lived in small, localized areas of the city. The largest of these was a settlement of sorts in the area around the south gate.

Rakashun could not have said exactly what it was about Youko's traveling disguise that had given her away, that afternoon in the hanjyuu market square. Maybe it was the familiar gray of the traveling jacket she wore, the same charcoal color of the men's clothing she often selected when traveling without her full royal entourage. Maybe it was the long cloth-wrapped bundle strapped across her back, just the right size and shape to be the sword Suiguu, the national treasure of the kingdom of Kei. More likely, however, it had been the glimpse of familiar red that had attracted his attention, too bright to be an ordinary shade. It was the deep, intense red of a burning flame or dusky sunset--the exact color of a particular mane of fiery red hair.

...Only this time it had been fur.

Red fur shading to cream on the muzzle and underbelly, from the edges of the large, round ears, down to the tips of the toes on the clawed bare feet. Unmistakably, it was the form of a rat hanjyuu. Rakushun blinked, blinked again, and then stared, unable to help the temporary lapse into bad manners. The female hanjyuu was standing at a stall only a few meters away across the market. She was examining a collection of carved wooden ornaments, carrying on an animated conversation with the bull hanjyuu behind the counter.

Rakushun found himself moving almost without conscious thought, padding through the crowded square on his short legs until he came directly up behind the red-furred hanjyuu. Shorter than he was, he realized, with shell-pink ears and a furry cream-tipped tail. She was still absorbed in her discussion. Her black hanjyuu eyes, which were ringed with a familiar shade of emerald, were alight with enjoyment and interest as delicate clawed hands sifted through the carved figures of hanjyuu of all sizes and types.

A bit hesitantly, Rakushun cleared his throat and spoke. "Youko?"

If he had had any doubts, they vanished as the female hanjyuu squeaked in surprise and spun around. When she saw him, the black eyes got very, very wide. She blushed to the roots of her fur. "Oh! Rakushun!" she exclaimed. There was no mistaking her identity as she spoke--that voice was undeniably the same.

"So it is you." Unaccountably, he felt himself flushing as well, and put a hand on the back of his head self-consciously. "I didn't mean to startle you. I just saw you standing over here, and had to be sure. I have to admit that I'm surprised to see you." She hadn't given any forewarning that she was going to be traveling to En--much less that she would be choosing this form as a disguise. Rakushun firmly placed a lid on his native curiosity. This was not the place for questions, out in the open where anyone could overhear. Still, he hoped she would have the time and inclination later to explain.

"Y-yes!" she stammered, then recovered with an embarrassed little shake of her head. "I was planning to stop by the university later. I never expected to run into you here!"

"I visit this market from time to time," the gray rat hanjyuu explained. "I've made a few friends since arriving in the city, and came here to visit one of them this afternoon."

"Oh, I see. So you're busy, then." Was that disappointment he heard in her voice?

"Not at all," he quickly reassured her. "I was actually already on my way back to the university. Are you busy yourself? I don't know what kind of business brings you to En, but I'd be happy for the company, if you'd care to take some time for a visit."

Her eyes warmed, and he was suddenly very glad that he had asked. "I'd love to. Just a moment." She turned back to the stall proprietor and completed her transaction, the purchase of two of the little hanjyuu figures. After she had tucked the purchases into her traveling pack, Rakushun led the way off to one side of the market, toward a cluster of storefronts located beyond the row of stalls. On the way, they passed the small wooden shop on a street corner. It had a sign in the window identifying it as a bakery. There was an ape hanjyuu standing on the steps with a tray of rapidly-disappearing pastries in his hands. He waved cheerily to Rakushun as they drew near.

"That's Gantyou," Rakushun explained. "He's the one I came to the hanjyuu quarter to see. It's an important day for him, he and his wife are celebrating the birth of their first child."

"Oh?" Youko said with interest. Rakushun knew that the way children came into the world was much different where Youko had been raised. Youko had tried to explain once, and Rakushun still wasn't sure that he understood. It was too strange to think about, that in Hourai mothers carried babies inside their belly for the nine months before they emerged. In the Twelve Kingdoms, when a couple was ready for a child, they traveled to the closest Riboku, a tree of life, to tie a ribbon around one of its branches and pray to the emperor of Heaven for a child. If Tentei decided to answer their prayers, a ranka would appear on the branch they had chosen. The fruit would grow and mature, containing a precious child inside. That is what Gantyou and his wife had done, and Tentei had granted their wish.

Gantyou was beckoning to them now. With a glance over at Youko to see if she minded, Rakushun obligingly turned his steps to angle closer to the bakery. As they drew near the doorway where the hanjyuu stood, the ape called out, "Rakushun! Who's this little lady? You should have brought her over earlier, when we still had some of the sweet cheese pastries left!" He turned to Youko and added. "They're a local delicacy, and we sell out fast. You'll have to come by to try one sometime."

As Rakushun made formal introductions, Gantyou pressed pastries from his tray on both of them. "Here, we're celebrating in this household today, so you both have to take one of these. They're special cakes, made in honor of my new little girl."

"Congratulations," Youko said with feeling. "That's wonderful news." She bit into the delicate pastry and chewed carefully with her hanjyuu teeth. "It's delicious," she said at last.

A voice floated out to the street from inside the bakery. "Husband, aren't you finished yet?" A pleasant-looking woman appeared, leaning against the supporting doorway of the shop. There was a blanketed bundle cradled carefully in her arms. Beside him, Rakushun felt Youko straighten up in surprise as she realized that Gantyou's wife was full human. "It's nearly time to close up the shop, why don't you come in and rest your feet for a while."

"Soon, dear, very soon. I'm almost done with this tray." As the human woman gave her head an amused shake and disappeared back inside, the ape hanjyuu turned to the two of them again. "What she really means," he said with a wink, "Is that she needs some help, and I'd better get back to minding the shop right away."

Youko laughed. Gantyou looked at her speculatively for a moment, then his brown eyes lit up. "Ah, I have an idea. You two can take the remaining cakes with you. That way I can obey the wife and I won't need to stand out on the step anymore." Without waiting for an answer, he disappeared through the doorway, returning momentarily with a small white box. He deftly plucked the remaining pastries off the tray and handed off the box with a little bow.

"Thank you," Rakushun said. "That's very kind."

"No, no, thank you. I'm glad to find those last few cakes a home. I've enjoyed sharing our family's good news with our friends and neighbors, but now it's time for me to focus on other things. I'm glad you were able to stop by earlier, Rakushun. It's a bit of a hike to get here from the university, and I think the wife appreciated it a lot." He smiled cheerily at Youko. "It was a pleasure to meet you. Please feel free to stop by any time!"

"Rakushun," Youko said hesitantly as they waved farewell to Gantyou and continued on across the crowded market square with the pastries, "That mother and her baby were both..."

"Human?" he finished for her when she paused uncertainly. "Yes. Gantyou and his wife first met about 5 years ago, in the kingdom of Hou. The laws there prohibited them from getting married, so they traveled to En and became residents. That's one of the things that attracts hanjyuu and mixed-race couples to En, because the laws of this kingdom are so open."

Mixed-race couples were not unusual in the hanjyuu quarter in En. It was still a strange concept for Rakushun. In the kingdom of Kou, where he had been born, the hanjyuu were outcasts, shunned and ridiculed by full humans. Rakushun had not even been allowed to attend public school in the village where he had grown up, and he doubted that he ever would have been given permission to marry. Things in the kingdom of En were quite different. Here the hanjyuu prospered, for the most part, and were allowed most of the same rights and freedoms as full humans.

"...And the child?" Youko prompted.

"The race of the parents doesn't matter," Rakushun answered. "There are some families where both parents are full human with a hanjyuu child, and other families where the parents are both hanjyuu and the children are full human. No one can go against the wishes of the lord of Heaven. Parents must accept whatever type of child that Tentei chooses to give."

"I see," Youko murmured thoughtfully as they left the market square heading towards the Daigaku of En. The conversation changed to more mundane topics after that.

When they arrived back at Rakushun's crowded student room, Youko ducked behind the folding silk screens to change out of her disguise. Most hanjyuu clothing would not be considered appropriate garb on a human being, and Youko had brought extra clothes for that reason. As she changed, Rakushun busied himself clearing the table and getting things ready to serve tea. He was so focused on the task that he jumped a bit when he heard Youko's voice floating over the screen.

"You still haven't told me how you knew it was me in the market," she said. "No one else in Kei or En recognized me--except Keiki, but I think that was only because the kirin can sense power of the kind that comes from Hekisojou, the jewel of Suiguu. He gave me a terrible lecture about the dangers of traveling as a hanjyuu."

"It was dangerous," Rakushun said quickly. Better to talk about the dangers of the road than to try and explain something when he didn't really have a good answer. "Even though many hanjyuu don't own much, they are still easy targets for bullies and bandits. You took a terrible risk."

"Perhaps you're right," Youko said reluctantly. "Still, there was no other way. That was the whole purpose of the disguise in the first place." Before he could ask what she meant, her tone shifted to one of embarrassment. "I should have known that you'd recognize me. I was going to change back as soon as I got to the capitol city, but I hadn't found a suitable place. I never realized that the hanjyuu quarter was so close to the south gate. When I found myself walking by the market, I couldn't resist taking a detour."

Youko came out from behind the screen. Now she was dressed in her normal gray traveling clothes, her red hair wound into a ponytail. "Oh!" she said when she saw him, startled. "You've changed as well!"

Rakushun smiled self-consciously, shrugging human shoulders inside his gray robes. "The teachers and the other students here have scolded me before about always walking around in the shape of a rat. ...And they're right. I have to practice wearing my human form if I'm ever going to be successful as a government official."

Youko smiled, green eyes teasing. "Do you practice often?"

He shook his head ruefully. "Not often enough. Everyone promises that I'll get used to the change, but it's still hard to adjust to being a human." He finished setting out the materials for tea while his guest crossed to the window to gaze out at the busy street below. The sun was setting, casting long shadows and lighting up the sky with pinks and golds. "Youko," he said carefully after a long pause, "Why did you decide to travel to En as a hanjyuu?"

Youko sighed, folding her arms across her chest as she leaned into the window frame. "It was practical, for one thing. I've been the queen of Kei for over a year. Many people have seen me by now, and even those who haven't have heard my description. If I want to see how the people of my kingdom are doing, I have to come up with a better disguise than this one." She gestured down at her traveling clothes.

"It's true," Rakushun admitted, joining her by the window. "No one would think to look for you as a hanjyuu."

"There's even more to it than that," she added after a moment. "I've come to realize that the laws concerning hanjyuu in Kei are restrictive. They're not as bad as those of the kingdom of Kou, but are much worse than what I can see here in En. The laws of Kei must be changed, and I need more information before I can make such important decisions on my own." She gazed down at the street, green eyes as serious as he had ever seen them before. "The hanjyuu are my subjects, too. I have to understand the position they're in, the lives they have, in order to be a good queen."

"Youko..." Something in Rakushun's heart did a painful little flip-flop. It was admiration, and pride. She had come so far, since coming here from Hourai. Really, he should have expected nothing less. He was still standing close to her, and hesitantly he dared place his hands on her shoulders, as he had done that night in the King of En's palace before she had gone to claim her throne. "The people of Kei are very lucky to have you as their ruler."

She smiled a little. "Thank you, Rakushun. I've always relied on your good advice. It makes a difference that you approve." Before he could remove his hands again, she covered them with her own, holding them in place. He felt her draw in a deep breath. "You looked so shocked, in the marketplace. I hope that my disguise didn't offend you."

"Oh, no! Not at all!" Rakushun hastened to reassure her. "You just surprised me, that's all."

"I didn't mean to cause you any distress. I just wanted...I wanted..." She was blushing again.

His fingers tightened reassuringly on her shoulders. He noted, as he had before, that he was taller than her in human form. Before he could extricate his hands from hers, Youko's fingers gripped his own and she drew his arms down and across her collarbone, leaning back into his chest. Where he had intended only minimal contact as reassurance, he found to his surprise and dismay that he was suddenly embracing a queen.

"Youko..." he said, protesting mildly.

"I'm very happy to have met your friends in the market," Youko said. Now her voice sounded completely calm. She didn't let go of his hands. "Before this, I wasn't quite sure what you thought of humans and hanjyuu together. It's nice to know that you don't mind."

"W-why would I mind?" he found himself stammering. It was hard to think, when he could feel Youko's heartbeat under his palms. Hers seemed so steady, while his was suddenly racing. "Whatever a person looks like on the outside, it doesn't change what they are on the inside. That's true no matter what form a person wears."

"Good," Youko said with quiet satisfaction. "I feel the exact same way." The rays of the setting sun picked out gold highlights in her hair as she tipped her head back against his shoulder. There was a tension coiled in her that he never even noticed, until he sensed it melting away.

"Youko..." He felt it then--the answering shift inside himself as the puzzle pieces clicked into place. That sensation of completion, of finding something that he hadn't even realized he'd been missing before this moment. It was a marvel, to realize that she had such trust in him, such an acceptance of him, when he had been an outsider for so long. It was a gift, unexpected and unlooked for. In the face of her courage and compassion, he could do nothing else but respond.

Gently, he dared allow himself to rest his cheek against the red hair, tightening his hold ever so slightly around the warm, lithe figure in his arms. He understood at last, that final, unspoken reason for traveling to En as she had. "I'm happy to know," he murmured next to her ear, "that you accept the hanjyuu so well that you don't mind being one for a while. You were lovely in that hanjyuu form--but I hope you know that you're beautiful no matter what shape you choose."

She turned her head to meet his gaze, her eyes intent and searching. She must have found what she was looking for, because after a moment her lips curved up in a smile that was breathtaking. Her fingers interlaced with his, and for once he did not try to draw away. "Thank you, Rakushun," she murmured as the last rays of the setting sun painted the sky with orange and red.

"You always say exactly what I most need to hear."