+ Category: Kishin Douji Zenki

+ Rate: T

+ Genre: Romance / Drama

Authoress' Notes:

Kishin Douji Zenki series belongs to its respective owners - Mr. Kikuhide Tani (Story) & Mr. Yoshihiro Kuroiwa (Illustrations). :)

Flashbacks in italics. ;)

~ REVIVAL OF THE HEART ~

Part I

- His Angel -

It was still early in the afternoon when she asked him to accompany her to the hill so that she could refresh her mind after a hard day at university. She brought a book along with her so that she would have a good excuse to go out. After all, they all had just saved the world the day before (again… how many times had it worked out that way now? One hundred and one? One hundred and two?). Luckily for them, the said disaster happened to be within a bus journey's distance of Shikigami-Chou this time instead of, oh… in Argentine, for example.

They sat down on the lush-green hillside, in that same position under a huge shady tree. He sat on her right, his left hand holding her right even as she held a book.

They had become so close and comfortable to each other. He was both her guardian and childhood friend and that what they were doing right now was the most normal thing to do.

She smiled.

What mattered was that she had him–– her noble Guardian, her BEST friend, and they were at peace.

She decided to read her book for an hour or so.

But then, only about thirty minutes had passed when she felt something fall on her shoulder.

His soft snore brought another smile to her lips.

Maybe he didn't get enough sleep during the previous nights when he deliberately stayed up to help her correct all the mistakes she had made in the research paper she was due this morning.

Not to mention, the world had been saved from a crazy monkey with a banana cannon for going on twenty-four hours now. It was not their fault that they all had to contend with the very much underrated problem of post-heroic-emotionalphysical-exhaustion. It was really nothing odd at all. Lord knew what her other guardian was doing –he was quite possibly asleep as well, on the rooftop– but she wasn't going to… complain about it. They both really, really needed a rest.

She placed the book on her lap and carefully brushed his blue bangs away from his closed eyes with the back of her hand while she watched him sleeping. At the age of eighteen, he still looked so boyish with his face relaxed in sleep, his brow free of worry lines as he breathed, evenly paced and deep. His long dark-blue eyelashes fluttered gently, fanning across marble-like skin like whip-marks.

It had always a wonder to her how entirely exquisite he was– how fine-formed, how distinguished and beautiful, even while he slept.

Her lips curved in a fond smile.

Her Warrior Gods would have defended her with their lives in compliance with the will of her grand ancestor, she knew that, but he had always been there whenever and wherever he could be, offering her his silent company and making sure that everything went right, and that she was in no danger. They hit it off splendidly from the start and she felt as comfortable in his presence as he always did in hers, although she was not quite sure what people thought about her and him. She knew that the girls were jealous though, in that respect because all the girls liked him.

He was tall, now taller than her by over a head, with long, flowing cerulean hair cascading to his waist (from the start his hair had a shade of dark blue, but then it became lighter as he grew to look more and more like his true self), and while his true physique was usually hidden beneath his clothes, she **knew from experiences** that he possessed an incredibly kind of musculature that aimed for a sharply-defined look rather than massive bulk.

/Where did that come from?/ Heat rushed to her cheeks and she silently cursed herself for blushing at such a simple notion as his athletic build. For crying out loud! He was her protector who had been practising martial arts since he was a little boy, and they had been living under the same roof for almost six years now. Not to mention the occasions when they had to travel to different cities during missions and room together… Just the thought brought the blush back.

Moving on.

Generally saying, he was just that kind of guy– charming, polite and kind, whom girls always noticed and who just couldn't deal with that fact. This was probably one of the reasons why he hanged around her a lot, not only because she was his Master, his best friend, but also because she was pretty much the only girl who didn't try to woo him during their discussion about a lesson or whenever they were together. Or at least she was fairly sure she didn't. Unlike those girls who came to the Enno Shrine for a wide variety of reasons. She knew, really, that they only wanted an excuse to get near him.

Her hand slipped down from his light-blue hair and she ran her knuckles gently across the side of his face.

He was… breathtaking.

It wasn't just his looks; it was his whole air. She had never seen anyone like him, with such deep blue eyes and a smile that could melt even the hardest heart.

That said, she wasn't much surprised when the girls in Shikigami-Chou compared him to a modern Adonis. She liked to smirk at those who glared whenever she and he met at their school entrances or when she deliberately involved herself in their tutor group or every time they walked side by side down the streets of Shikigami-Chou, which was so silly and childish of the renowned Priestess of the Enno Shrine, she knew but… Damn it! They shouldn't have eyed him up like that, for he belonged to her.

The thought came to her unbidden and she barely realized it as she blushed again, this time– a deep shade of crimson.

Okay, so let's be honest, she had feelings for him - the sweet boy who had followed her to the Enno Shrine and stayed with her family ever since that incident that had changed his life forever. This boy– no, this young man who was the reincarnation of the Guardian Demon God of Azure Light - one among the top Warrior Gods of her great ancestor in the past.

He was the legendary Guardian Warrior God - one of the most powerful beings in the myths of ancient Japan.

And he humbly thought himself her servant. Okay, so he was her friend, but only at her insistence. As the Master of the Warrior Gods at present she had the absolute authority, but she did not consider herself above any other person, much less him.

She smiled and brushed his face again, lightly so he wouldn't wake, but enough contact to make her feel a little giddy.

She wondered with fond resignation why she was cursed with not just one but TWO SUPER-COOL Guardians in her life–– one was incredibly stubborn and the other ridiculously overprotective. In this regard she was referring to him– the blue-haired demon-man dressed in a white button-up shirt and gray jeans whose head was still firmly planted on her shoulder with no intention of moving, once again. For countless occasions he had saved her life, he would do that every chance he got, and at the expense of his own life! Years had passed and she could still remember clearly that occasion when the ground beneath her feet gave way and he, while gaining the upper hand in the ongoing battle, rushed to her rescue almost instantly, which resulted in him being gravely injured for the enemy had manipulated the situation to their advantage and he still refused to loosen his iron grip on her even when they were about to plunge to their death into an abyss below, even when she had *commanded* him to; or that time when a group of enemies launched a sudden and heavy attack on their home once taking her grandma captive, and he had only enough time to revert to his true form as he dove for her, spinning her down and under him, covering her with his body while pieces of the Enno Shrine– broken bricks, pillars and debris rained down and around them like hail, while all she could do was holding onto him, blind and trusting, in his protective arms as the ground shuddered beneath them.

What she appreciated most about him was that while being absolute mature and experienced he had never treated her with a condescending or disrespectful manner. As when he spent days with granny searching for help to repair her Bracelet of Protection as she was too stubborn and naive, having wholly disregarded the importance of his advice, and she didn't learn about the whole matter until much later. He could have reprimanded her for her behavior, but instead, he only did what was necessary without hurting her feelings or causing her to feel disrespected while proving himself as benign and unreadable as always.

The nerve of this guy! She knew whatever he did, it would be for her safety, her betterment. That was deeply touching, but she couldn't help feeling a mixture of sort of guilt and confusion for some reason too, for her deep concern over him had been waved aside, always, with a gentle and reassuring smile, even when he almost died that day having taken a wicked blade intentionally aimed at her. Although her grandma and great-uncle had come up with a plan and succeeded in rescuing them from the deadly trap, the battle still proved one of the most difficult they had been through as their enemy was gifted with an extreme God-speed that even surpassed that of the Demon Warrior Gods. No sooner had she chanted the Vajra spell to maximize her Red Warrior's power than the enemy leader delivered a fatal blow and his lightning saber had been a split-second away from ending her, when he had stopped it mere inches from striking her.

She lay sprawling on the ground with her mouth agape, watching blood splattering across the ground and running down in streams from his body before he was thrown several feet across the battlefield and crashed over on his back. Scrambling to her feet, her own legs were moving towards him before she could hear her own voice cry out his name, see the smoke rising from his body as the stench of blood filled her nostrils and a deafening roar followed by a radiant burst of crimson light from her Red Warrior God signaled the end of their enemy.

"You saved me…" was all she managed to say as she knelt down beside him. There was blood everywhere, rusted vermilion on her sleeves and pooled thickly about her knees. "Why did you save me!?" She asked in spite of herself. Tears began to well up in her amethyst eyes and stream down her face as an intense fear had begun to engulf her, but she smiled through her tears once she saw him smile back at her, glazed indigo orbs bleary but looking at her with such infinite tenderness.

"Shouldn't you be saying… 'thank you', and not… questioning me?" He tried to give a soft laugh, but grimaced instead; the pain was clearly preventing him from doing so.

She smiled brightly at this, believing that he must have indeed been feeling all right if his sarcastic wit was still there. But then her eyes grew wide with horror as he coughed up a disturbing amount of blood.

"Goki! NO!" She cried, lifting his upper body up slightly to ease his coughing and placed her hand over his that was pressing tight against his wound as his breathing became erratic. He was lying in her arms coughing, and she was trying her best to muffle a sob. "What's wrong? You can heal it. Come on…" There was a tremor way down deep in her throat but she refused to let him see her scared. She refused to give in to her fear and let him down.

"Master…" His eyes reopened slowly, unfocussed, and she brought her bloody hand up to his cheek to guide his gaze to hers and noticed a strange, sad feeling emanating from his weary indigo orbs.

"Shh. Do not speak. Save your strength." She cooed, brushing a few stray bangs away from his eyes and caressing his face as hushed tears streamed down her face. His healing power… How could this be happening!? But… no…! She must not lose Hope!

"Chiaki… I…" He tried to say, to tell her something but suddenly his eyes scrunched shut as he sucked in a sharp breath, then his body stilled and in a flash of light he reverted to his human form. The blood from the bleeding hole in his stomach began to soak his shirt and jeans, making the clothing start sticking to his body as the grip on his wound loosened and his neck tilted limply to one side.

Her eyes widened then, followed by a piercing, devastating, sting inside her heart.

"MASTER GOKI!"

Panic-filled screams erupted from those who were gathering around him and her.

"Hurry! We must stop the blood flow!"

"We cannot stop it, we can only control it!"

Voices ran through her ears, so unreal to her that she believed it was her mind playing trick on her. When he had lost his divine form and the severe wound had been left uncured she had begun to fear the worst– that it was more than a mere case of losing consciousness. It was as if she was caught in some dreadful, increasingly-alarming standstill; a nightmare that made her blood boil hotly. /Is he…?/

"No, he is alive… barely." A gentle touch to her shoulder brought her out of her trance and she looked up to see her grandma's grim face. "We must take him to the hospital. There's no time left."

The hospital. Yes! The hospital was their only recourse. But… how could they possibly move him without risking the aggravation of his injury? What if they caused him more pain? Or if they did bring him there would he still be–– She could now feel the lump in her throat, feeling as if her spirit, her mind, was crumbling piece by piece.

"Where is the hospital?" Metal armor hit the ground and a pair of muscular arms took the wounded human form of the young reincarnated God of Azure Light from her, lifting his limp body into his own well-muscled arms.

"Zenki!"

"Master Zenki!"

"Shut up and show the way." He grunted, fierce crimson eyes glaring down at her.

She nodded, suddenly brimming with Hope. She admired her Red Warrior's persistence in moments like this. Despite being a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, he had a simple mind, with simple thoughts like food, battles, and Evil Seeds. Really, it was in this simplicity that she finally understood him for what he was, and perhaps why she took a special liking to the red-headed numbskull– he may have been cocky, aggressive, selfish and simple-minded, but whatever he had on his mind he would stick to it and never let go. Like with his long-time comrade and best friend.

"Let's go, Zenki!" She said, tears falling freely now from her determined amethyst eyes as she tightened her arms around her Red Warrior's neck as they both hurried to their destination. She had to be strong. She wouldn't let him die. This was her turn to save him.

The wicked weapon had nearly mortally wounded him as its evil master had infused a large portion of his lightning power into it right before the attack. Fortunately, they managed to rush him to the nearest hospital where he was transferred directly to the intensive care unit.

The entire time he had been unconscious, she had felt as if a vital part of her was gone… She had prayed to the great Ozunu for days until sheer exhaustion overtook her at his bedside, and even though she had succeeded in nullifying the evil magic having followed the guidance of her grand ancestor through dreams, she had been worried that he wasn't going to make it. He had suffered massive blood loss and other complications due to his injury and had to remain in intensive care for weeks after surgery, during which she constantly prayed for his survival and whispered for him to come back to her.

And he did, in the end, to her and everyone's utmost joy and relief.

She watched him with pure adoration for a while. Her hand instinctively tightened around his.

He was the dearest person in her life besides granny, and she delighted in being merely in his presence. Whenever she was near to him, her heart would rejoice as if having found its companion and beat all the faster. And of course, that strange feeling of protectiveness, of wanting to be at his side, not simply because she was his Master and their struggle against the Evil forces to save humanity had not come to an end.

She still felt very irritated, though. He was indeed infuriating because she was having such **difficulty** getting through to him when it came to her feelings.

Everyday she regarded the benign wall of his countenance a little sorrowfully, although she didn't let it show, as if confronting his wall with her own wall somehow made things even, putting them on the same level. But deep down, it didn't make her feel any better. She seemed to be nothing more than his charge, his friend, despite everything he had done for her– all the risks he had taken, and everything that had happened between them. He was probably way out of her league anyway, and she couldn't help but wonder if he had purposefully distanced himself to keep her from getting the wrong idea.

Sometimes she even wondered if he had motives for half the things he did. She had not the slightest doubt about the immense prowess of the Mastermind of the Guardian Warrior Force under her great ancestor's control but… it didn't seem to her that he did, many times, although she was quite aware of all the little tricks he employed everyday to keep her and everyone else in a pleasant mood, even though some of which slipped by her until she reflected upon them. Sighed. It was as if he were the leader of some secret society and she had to pass all sorts of strange tests and rituals before he would so much as let her know what they were having for breakfast. But the look on his face when he lay severely wounded in her arms that day, when he smiled at her, as he always did– soft, adoring… sad, made her heart bleed. /Why did he look so sad? It's not like he loved me so much that he… it's not like he loved me in any way but as a guardian./ Still, she ached for him, for it was then she realized that he would die for her– die for HER–– and all she could do was watch. Tears of anguish filled her eyes and all the words that she had long wanted to say to him jumped to her tongue, wishing to be spoken, but were willed back into her heart, for they were not words of farewell in the least. She needed to save him. She couldn't afford to think that way, right?

If only she could know what was in his mind, what was troubling him. He always had a way with controlling his true emotions and thoughts. Not even the wicked Blue Dragon a.k.a the "Truth Seer" -Dokuro Sou- of the Four Heavenly Kings could read him, so how could she?

She sighed deeply before returning to her reading as she decided to give him his much-needed rest. He had only recently recovered from his severe injury and she wouldn't risk giving him another panic-attack anytime soon.

Someday… she would have to confront him with that. She wanted to know what he was thinking and feeling. Could he understand how she felt? And what did he truly think of her– if he actually felt the same way about her… She knew he loved her; she could feel it in his touch, see it in his eyes and sense it through the way he responded to her that night. She flushed once more recalling the intensity of his gaze and his heated embrace. But… was his love that of a friend, of a dutiful guardian or something more?

She wanted him to look at her for even a moment, unguarded and honest, laying all cards flat on the table, once and for all.

To be continued...