Title: Flat Flower
Author: Arashi
Warnings: Slight slight shounen-ai. Set sometime after Taikoubou & Co. meet Bunchuu in battle for the first time- so, around volume 6.
Disclaimer: Houshin Engi belongs to Fujisaki Ryu.
Author's Notes: A TaiitsuxNataku piece of sappy fluff written at the request of a friend, who is a rather rabid fan of the pairing.
C&C fully welcome- I'd appreciate any help I could get. ^_^;
**************************************************
He woke up to sounds of battle.
Opening his eyes to the clear sky of the Sennin world, he could almost imagine that the Houshin Project had never existed, and that everything was right in the world. And though the sun had already crept up to its peak in the sky, he was tempted to drift back to sleep.
To just close his eyes, and rest for a minute more, far away from the battles waged on the surface. To pretend that change wasn't imminent, and that the peaceful moment between dreams and consciousness needn't be lost in the torrent of war.
As another blast rocked the area, the sennin sighed into the ground, and made a note to himself that hammocks weren't the most practical of sleeping utilities. Dusting himself off, he stood up, and proceeded to head in the direction of the blast, with the mind to tell off willful doushis who interrupted his sleep.
Unfortunately, he took the moment to look down. After persuading his heart to come back from the vicinity of his throat, he decided to take his robot paopei, instead of jumping from rock to rock as many of the other sennins did. He wasn't sure if, at the end of the experience, his stomach could be persuaded to return, otherwise.
He expected to find a pair of doushis, sparring in one of the many arenas located around the Sennin world. What he found, however, was a shock of red hair and a pair of black eyes.
As he stared at Nataku's raised fist, he cursed himself for leaving his capture paopei behind. Of course, he hadn't expected to find the homicidal paopei, when he left to investigate the noise. He wondered, bemusedly, how it would feel to be houshined, by his own disciple, nonetheless.
But the doushi let his arm down to his side, and with a snort, diverted his attention to blowing up another bit of rock.
"Eh? Oi, Nataku, aren't you going to try and kill me? I'm not complaining, really, but still-"
"I don't feel like it."
"Eh?"
Only silence met his question.
"Ah- Nataku? Why are you back? Weren't you supposed to be with Taikoubou?"
A pause. "Stronger."
"...Nataku?"
"Not enough. I'm still not strong enough. I need," he restated, "to become /stronger/."
Something inside him wondered, vaguely, why he should feel hurt. After all, it wasn't frustration in the face in front of him. Disappointment didn't appear in eyes hooded by a metal headpiece. It wasn't, he debated, a living, breathing human in front of him. Just a paopei.
So why did it matter so much, that the tool had only come back to become stronger? Wasn't that his reason for being? Paopei were created to benefit the user, and bolster their power.
Just a tool, given the illusion of humanity.
So...
"Don't try and steal any more of my paopei, Nataku. I already gave you two before you left. If you want to be stronger, train, and don't take any of my inventions."
A snort, and then he flew off.
Watching the figure trail off into the sky, he wondered when he had become more than just an object.
Change... was inevitable, wasn't it?
Sometimes, he wished it wasn't.
**************************************************
Author: Arashi
Warnings: Slight slight shounen-ai. Set sometime after Taikoubou & Co. meet Bunchuu in battle for the first time- so, around volume 6.
Disclaimer: Houshin Engi belongs to Fujisaki Ryu.
Author's Notes: A TaiitsuxNataku piece of sappy fluff written at the request of a friend, who is a rather rabid fan of the pairing.
C&C fully welcome- I'd appreciate any help I could get. ^_^;
**************************************************
He woke up to sounds of battle.
Opening his eyes to the clear sky of the Sennin world, he could almost imagine that the Houshin Project had never existed, and that everything was right in the world. And though the sun had already crept up to its peak in the sky, he was tempted to drift back to sleep.
To just close his eyes, and rest for a minute more, far away from the battles waged on the surface. To pretend that change wasn't imminent, and that the peaceful moment between dreams and consciousness needn't be lost in the torrent of war.
As another blast rocked the area, the sennin sighed into the ground, and made a note to himself that hammocks weren't the most practical of sleeping utilities. Dusting himself off, he stood up, and proceeded to head in the direction of the blast, with the mind to tell off willful doushis who interrupted his sleep.
Unfortunately, he took the moment to look down. After persuading his heart to come back from the vicinity of his throat, he decided to take his robot paopei, instead of jumping from rock to rock as many of the other sennins did. He wasn't sure if, at the end of the experience, his stomach could be persuaded to return, otherwise.
He expected to find a pair of doushis, sparring in one of the many arenas located around the Sennin world. What he found, however, was a shock of red hair and a pair of black eyes.
As he stared at Nataku's raised fist, he cursed himself for leaving his capture paopei behind. Of course, he hadn't expected to find the homicidal paopei, when he left to investigate the noise. He wondered, bemusedly, how it would feel to be houshined, by his own disciple, nonetheless.
But the doushi let his arm down to his side, and with a snort, diverted his attention to blowing up another bit of rock.
"Eh? Oi, Nataku, aren't you going to try and kill me? I'm not complaining, really, but still-"
"I don't feel like it."
"Eh?"
Only silence met his question.
"Ah- Nataku? Why are you back? Weren't you supposed to be with Taikoubou?"
A pause. "Stronger."
"...Nataku?"
"Not enough. I'm still not strong enough. I need," he restated, "to become /stronger/."
Something inside him wondered, vaguely, why he should feel hurt. After all, it wasn't frustration in the face in front of him. Disappointment didn't appear in eyes hooded by a metal headpiece. It wasn't, he debated, a living, breathing human in front of him. Just a paopei.
So why did it matter so much, that the tool had only come back to become stronger? Wasn't that his reason for being? Paopei were created to benefit the user, and bolster their power.
Just a tool, given the illusion of humanity.
So...
"Don't try and steal any more of my paopei, Nataku. I already gave you two before you left. If you want to be stronger, train, and don't take any of my inventions."
A snort, and then he flew off.
Watching the figure trail off into the sky, he wondered when he had become more than just an object.
Change... was inevitable, wasn't it?
Sometimes, he wished it wasn't.
**************************************************
