READ THIS: I really, REALLY would appreciate it if people would give me constructive reviews. This means no "update plz"'s or review-for-reviews. How is that supposed to help me improve the story? Even one suggestion will make me happy.
Note: My personal reason for writing this is to make the original Fushigi yuugi story a bit more deep, while at the same time retaining the actual storyline (meaning I'm not changing it a bit). The whole Universe of the Four Gods thing…the series didn't give much insight into the book itself, or the person who originally wrote it and the one who translated it…
Thank you.
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Prologue: Before the Rain
(takes place before they are even called by Nakago; Amiboshi (kotoku) and Suboshi( Shunkaku) are addressing each other by their original names.)
It was morning, and the sun was a scalding, searing pain of heat. Shunkaku took in a gulp of air, swallowing down as much as could in one sitting. It was so hot and humid out that it felt as if there was no oxygen to breathe. Many people around him looked as if they were half dead in the golden glow of sunlight, their small amounts of water and their fans doing little to suppress the heat. Yet they still had to endure it to buy food and fill their parched stomachs. The market, as he observed, was always a bustling, lively place no matter the weather. Impatient and irate from lack of water, he barged through the thick crowds without a care. Hoarse voices around him spoke of news about the harvest-how feeble the amount of food has been grown, and that people were striving to get as much as possible before everything ran out.
Kotoku would not be happy to find that Shunkaku had no water to bring back. The wells were all dried up, and it was far too exhausting in this weather to go to the river. Perhaps Kotoku would go by horse to get it instead…as long as he wouldn't get too upset.
Turning past a large crowd of bargainers, he tried to find a way around this ocean of rushing people; he entered the first corner he could find, and soon found himself in an unfamiliar area-he had never seen this part of Qu-Dong before. It looked much more organized and less depressing than the market he just painfully passed through. Homely houses and shops lined either side of the street. Men in what looked like fine silk robes stared at him, eyeing his shabby, dirty clothes. He watched them turn away while muttering in disgust, and slowly move into a large tea shop; obviously, this place, however Shunkaku lead himself to be in, was the richer part of the town, and these shallow men seemed to be in good shape when it came to the lack of food. Perhaps it was them who took more than half harvest for themselves.
He gazed hungrily at the life he would never have. And with his brother…
Stop dreaming…he scolded himself, just find the way home.
Shaking his head, he decided to ask someone rather than stand like an idiot; he proceeded down the street, looking for a suitable passerby. His eyes soon met with the doorway of the tea shop nearby, and, curiosity building up inside him, he dared to peer inside. Loud voices of laughter and shouting suddenly rang in his ears. This room was dark, save for several Chinese lamps and candles illuminating the crowded room. It was much more alluring than anything he had ever set foot in. Like a cautious mouse, he advanced through the doorway, hoping to attract as little attention as possible. In his shabby clothes and lack of money he felt like an unwanted fly entering the room.
Luckily, a lot of the people inside seemed too distracted by their loud conversations. Nobody noticed Shunkaku take a seat in the darkest area closest to the door, near a flight of stairs. Kotoku would not be happy with his lateness either; but why pass up a chance to try something special here? Making himself comfortable, he directed his attention towards a show of dancing women, practically sealed in a barrier of men.
"Shunkaku…is that you? I recognize those clothes from yesterday…"
The young boy nearly jumped out of his seat when he heard his name. Turning, he tried to find the source of the voice, wondering who in the world would know him here. His eyes soon met with another boy like him, who was standing at the bottom of the stairs nearby. The candles near him revealed a look of mischief masking his face.
"You, you're Sota…" Shunkaku said, trying to suppress his surprise, "What are you doing here?"
Shunkaku always knew Sota as one of the biggest troublemakers at his school. It wasn't the typical mischief like pranks and silly jokes, but bullying and sometimes destructive actions. Yet, for some reason, this violent, reckless boy was the only one who wanted to get to know Shunkaku better; Shunkaku admired him, almost instantly the moment Sota even said one word to him. Kotoku hated him.
"Yeah. Who else?" said Sota, "I'm just looking for something to do…my parents, I get sick of them sometimes…and what are you doing here? I'm amazed you even snuck in this place without getting kicked out. The people here hate others with dirty clothes and no money, you know."
"I have money!" Shunkaku shouted a little too loudly, "My brother and I don't work for nothing."
"…at a job that pays in dirt. You'd have to work an entire day to earn even one silver piece…"
Shunkaku snorted. "Who asked you?"
Sometimes Sota's arrogance got on Shunkaku's nerves, yet it was true; where he and his brother worked to make a living, only a little money was given to them in return-just enough for at least one meal a day. Any other food, they received from the school who took them in out of pity, and sometimes stealing. Shunkaku turned away. Today, in this awful weather, was not the time to argue over something so minimal. Pulling out some money from his girdle, he decided to calm himself down with a cup of tea.
"Hey…" Sota whispered before Shunkaku could leave his seat, "Want to see something interesting?"
Shunkaku stared at him. Whatever it was, he knew it was something that was meant to be kept secret; yet Sota was inviting him-a weak, lonesome creature-into his world…surely he must have done something right to deserve this. But would it be worth it, to go with someone that Kotoku loathed more than anything else? The elder twin warned Shunkaku many times to listen to himself inside-to find anything disdainful about the situation he was dealing with. Yet he could never free those emotions within him…if they ever did exist…
"Well?"
Sota sounded impatient. Shunkaku decided it was better to go now before he lost the chance, and look like some pathetic child. Following Sota up the barren, wooden stairs, he felt the darkness seemingly wrap around him as the candle light slowly faded away. Soon the two entered a long hallway; the loud jeering and laughter were now like distant voices trapped in a room of stone. The air around them smelled musty. Sota motioned Shunkaku towards a door nearby, which was marked with a small Chinese character painted on the upper part. A large crack was split across the door.
"Not scared, are you?" Sota asked. His voice was suddenly dark.
"What? No…" Shunkaku stared at him, unable to decipher the features in his face. The small candles on the walls didn't help much.
"Okay…you're a weird one, you know."
Sota laughed; Shunkaku tried to chuckle with him, but a small acknowledgement was all he could muster. He watched Sota open the door; it seemed even darker in there than in the hallway. Something did seem strange about this.
Whatever…it's too late to turn back, Shunkaku thought, stop being a baby.
Kotoku's quiet nagging seemed to be boring into him all of a sudden. As he entered the room, part of him wondered whether his brother was being overprotective. Shunkaku was, afterall, getting tired of being told what not to do…of being treated like a child…
Only a single candle was in the room, set on what looked like some shabby, broken table. Faces shot in the direction of Sota and Shunkaku, most of them Shunkaku didn't even recognize. They smiled as Sota approached them, then crouched by something that looked like a lump covered by a blanket. He nodded, looking satisfied. His hands undid a rope around the lump and cast it aside. Shunkaku could've sworn that whatever was under that blanket had moved. He accidentally pushed the door closed in surprise; a few of the boys turned to look at him.
"Who's he?" one of them said dismissively, pointing at Shunkaku.
"Oh, a friend from school," Sota replied, "What are you standing there for? Come here."
Shunkaku, feeling completely out of place with the group of people in the room, approached the lump on the floor; Sota made room for Shunkaku to sit on his knees.
"…what is it?" Shunkaku asked. For some reason he felt he shouldn't have asked.
Sota merely smirked.
"Look for yourself."
He stared at Sota for what seemed like a while; this really did seem weird…
One of the boys suddenly tugged at the blanket out of impatience. The blanket slid away with ease.
The face of a girl was suddenly staring up at Shunkaku, her eyes full of tears and fear, her face spotted in drops of blood; her hair was long and dark, a pretty shade of red; she had the strangest clothes on. Some of it was torn. She appeared to be about his age.
"Where'd you get a thing like her? Look what she wears!" one spat, and kicked her. She made no sound.
"Found her wandering like an idiot around my house," another explained coldly, "but who cares what she wears? Isn't she a pretty little thing?" He reached over and grabbed her hands, which were bound together with rope, and dragged her towards him across the floor. It took little effort for her shirt to be removed. Her thin body twisted involuntarily.
"What a pain she was, to drag her up here…" the boy continued, and pushed her face into the floor.
"Aw, look Shunkaku…look what you're brother is missing," Sota taunted with amusement.
Shunkaku watched, stone-still, as the scene unfolded before him. He couldn't understand what was going on, why this girl was beaten, unwillingly in possession of these boys, who seemed to bear a masochistic hunger for her. Somehow, though, he felt he was spiraling down into their sanctity of darkness as well…his brother was not here, that was true…his voice was not with him either…
"What's the matter?" Sota whispered to him, "Nothing wrong with this. It's more fun if you can do whatever to you want to the girl." Shunkaku had never seen him smirk like that before, so devilishly, so filled with furor…
A couple of the boys were tying a cloth around her mouth. Her face remained shiny, wet, and flushed; something about her degradation caused some dark emotion to slowly erupt in him. Absentmindedly, he got up, and moved toward the girl.
His mind kept questioning to himself…
This…this is wrong, isn't it?
Nothing wrong with this.
A couple of the boys moved away, smiling, laughing. They enjoyed watching first-timers.
It's more fun if you can do whatever you want to the girl.
The girl looked up at him fervently, a look plainly telling him not to do this.
He hated it.
"When you're done…give us a turn at least. Why don't you tell us your name, little girl?"
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