The chilling wind broke through Tadase's clothes, biting at his skin worse than any dog or cat ever could. He curled his arms closer to him, shivering slightly as he tried to force his teeth together to stop them from chattering. He stood on a pier, made of worn wood and feeling incredibly unstable. Looking out, he saw a frothy sea of white and grey as waves hit the shoreline beneath. That grey expanse extending from the horizon up into the sky, coloring even the clouds that same, monochrome grey as white snow flurried across his sight.

Suddenly, he warm presense at his back, and he looked to his right. There, the boy stood. Wearing thick black woolen pants, black winter boots that laced up to his knee, a black sweater and a rather large, black fur hood and cloak that might've once been a bear. He almost looked like a viking, ready for winter combat. He pulled apart the metal clasp that held the cloak on his shoulders and tossed it over Tadase.

The King, after a moment, realized that he was putting his coat onto him. Its warmth pulled Tadase from his mindless staring, looking at the blue-haired boy who was now just as cold as he had been. "I can't," Tadase said, already having the cloak half off his shoulders. "It's yours, you shouldn't-"

The boy pulled it back onto him, pulling the furred-hood over Tadase's head and fitting the metal clasps together. He held Tadase's hands, cold and chapped from the icy winds, and kissed them. "A king shouldn't be cold," He said softly. "And besides, snow doesn't bother me much anyway. It's a part of my name, after all." He smiled slightly.
The blue haired boy stood, his hands still holding Tadase's. This was the first time Tadase had faced him standing as equals. He was a smidge taller than Tadase, tall enough so he looked down at him.

Tadase's voice died in his throat, looking up at the boy who had haunted his dreams for so long. He felt his mouth open, he could feel his voice coming out of his throat, but he couldn't hear it. Startled, he tried again, and he still heard nothing.

The boy pulled him close, holding the King to his chest, his arms between Tadase's back and the inside of the cloak. Tadase reached around him, squeezing him back. He heard the boy whisper to him. "Don't worry," he breathed softly. "I'm here to protect you, Hotori-Sama."

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase woke up on the floor instead of his bed, tangled in sheets with his mother taking a picture. "MOM!" He shrieked, trying to reach for her phone. She giggled, jumping out of the way as he scrambled, trying to get up.
This morning was not going well, Tadase decided as he trudged off to school, deciding to miss the usual morning Guardian's meeting in favor of going straight to the Chairman.

Of course, his darling uncle was waiting for him.

"Uncle, does the Solar Eclipse mean anything to you?" He asked as he approached.

"Why yes." The Chairman replied, spreading a black satin cloth across his desk. "I believe one's coming up next weekend, or so I'm told. I'm looking forward to it." Tsukasa took out a deck of cards.

"But...Magically. Is anything going to happen to The Guardian's that night?"

"This is the first total Solar Eclipse to happen in Japan for many centuries, so I couldn't say." Tsukasa began to separate the cards, taking out all the unnecessary cards, putting all the ones he needed onto a single pile in the middle of the black cloth between Tadase and he.

With that done, Tsukasa settled back in his chair.

"So, you don't know?" Asked Tadase.

"I don't." he was said as he began flipping cards onto a black cloth. "The moon is upside down," He observed as Tadase approached. "What are you unsure of, Nephew?"

"Something is going to happen on the Solar Eclipse, and I don't know what." Replied Tadase testily. "Maybe your cards will prove more useful. I need to know what'll happen."

"They tell me what could be, yes. But, they might not give the answers to the questions you want." Tsukasa warned as he set down another card. A man and woman entangled together, standing beneath a shower of heavenly light. "The Lovers. Could it be my little nephew is in love?"

"Yes." Tadase said, hoping his cheeks weren't as pink as he felt. "With Amulet Heart, of course. You know that."
He picked up another card from his deck, a woman standing tall, a blindfold over her eyes, a merchant's scales in one hand and a sword in the other. It was The Justice, upside down. Tadase was lying. He looked up at Tadase with a raised eyebrow.

"What is it?" Asked Tadase, a tone of slight hostility in his voice.

"Nothing important." He said instead, trying to sound innocent as he set the card facedown next to the other two. "You don't come to me often, Tadase-kun. There must be something else you came to me for?"

"Yes, actually." Tadase said softly. "I've been...having strange dreams."

"No need to worry, Nephew. All boys go through them." Tsukasa said with a slight smile.

"No! Not that!" Tadase yelped slightly. "They're...sort of...prophetic, I suppose? They've down me things that haven't happened, and they always have the same person in them."

"Hm..." Tsukasa set aside the three cards he put out, and fanned out the remaining set. "Pick up one."

Tadase, for a moment, hesitated, his fingers ghosting over one, before switching to another. He flipped it over, a woman in blues with a staff and a cross on her chest, sitting on a throne with a moon over her head. "The High Priestess." Said Tadase, flipping the card between two fingers to show his uncle. "What does that mean?"

"Congratulations," Said Tsukasa with a genuine smile. "You're Clairvoyant, just like your uncle."

Tadase looked up, alarmed. Clairvoyant? "I...I can't be, I'm supposed to be a king, not...not you. Not support."

"There's no rule that says it's impossible to be both." Said the man wisely, "Now, think of the boy in your visions, and pick another."

Tadase swallowed slightly, taking another and flipping it, a compass surrounded by clouds and golden birds. "The Wheel of Fortune." Tsukasa's smile grew. "That boy is your destiny."

Tadase's red eyes widened, his blush deepening. "That isn't possible!" He said firmly, his ears almost giving off steam. He flipped the Wheel back down, and picked another, this time a red skinned man with the horns of a ram and the wings of a bat.

"The Devil." Tsukasa was close to laughing. "Representing...sexuality."

Tadase's face got redder, picking another.

Tsukasa read the card, a female angel holding up the globe, looking at it with reverence. "The World, meaning...completion and perfection." He was laughing under his breath. "The boy in your dreams is your soulmate, Nephew. There's no need to fight it."

"I'm NOT GAY!" Tadase huffed, stomping out of Tsukasa's office, his face still burning red.

Tsukasa's smile was still on his face, going to flip up the card Tadase had nearly chosen the first time. His smile twitched slightly, before becoming grim. It was a tall building, struck by lightning in a storm and set aflame. It was The Tower, meaning disaster.

~.~.~.~.~.~

Tadase went straight to class, still steaming and repeating his new-found mantra: 'I'm not gay, I love Amulet Heart'.
The only good thing about his Uncle's accusations was that he was much too angry to fall asleep and dream during class.

He was the last to arrive to the daily tea party that afternoon. He actually sat outside by the courtyard fountain for a bit, ignoring the early December chill as he debated if he should tell them about his dreams, then if he should tell them about the letter he received.

He had to tell them about the Solar Eclipse, their magic was at risk too, and his dreams...He's say that he was having them, but not about what he was dreaming about, not exactly at least.

He steeled himself and his choice, going into the green house. "Everyone," He said as he approached. "I have an announcement."

As soon as Tadase even got close to the table, he was tackled in a massive group hug.

"It's alright, Tadase-sama, you're still a king to us!" Said Kukai, squeezing him tight.

"We could never think any less of you!" Agreed Nagihiko, clinging to his waist.

"We accept you, Tadase-Sama!" Amu declared, holding onto his arm.

"You're our king now and forever!" Yaya promised as she held onto his leg.

"What's this all about?!" Asked Tadase, eyes wide. Did they know about his Clairvoyance?

"I heard you coming out of The Chairman's office this morning." Said Amu, looking up at him with her amber eyes filled with understanding. "You don't have to hide it, we know you're gay! We don't care!"

It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped down Tadase's back, a rage filled his heart and belly as he felt the weight of his character crown appear on his head. "I AM NOT GAY!" He bellowed, shaking off his friends from his person and flipping the nearest table.

After a few minutes, a little cleaning, and a sincerely steamed Tadase, they were all sat down with fresh cookies and tea. "I was consulting with the Chairman with some meteorological problem's I believe might be an issue for us soon, and some possibly prophetic dreams I've been having."

"Dreams? Like...visions?" Asked Amu, having breathed her relieved sigh now that Tadase had firmly, firmly asserted his straightness.

"Sort of, they haven't come true yet, or happened while I was awake." He said, looking deeply into his tea cup. "It's hard to explain but...someone is watching me, not an evil force, I'm sure, but still. Someone sent me a letter the other day, and they explained that some...alien creature is here, and is going to try use the Solar Eclipse and our magic, but I don't know for what."

Kukai coughed slightly at the mention of Aliens. "Alien?! You must mean foreigners, right? Someone from overseas?"

"No, I mean alien aliens." Tadase said firmly. "I asked that myself, but they were very clear with what they meant. They're from a planet that orbits the star that makes Orion's Belt."

"Is there any way to get in contact with them again?" Asked Nagihiko worriedly. "This is...it's crazy. We have no idea what the Eclipse is going to do to us?"

"No idea..." Tadase sighed softly, leaning back in his chair and rubbing at his eyes. "I wish I could contact them again, but I have no idea ho-"

Distantly, there was a knock. Tadase sat up suddenly, slightly alerted.

"Someone's here?" Asked Yaya, standing herself. "I'll get it."

She went to the door, and Tadase waited with bated breath. He heard the knock again as Yaya came back. "There's nobody there." She said with a shrug.

Again, there was a knock. Tadase listened for it, silencing the rest of his court with a quick hand wave. He looked up, and saw something round hitting one of the sky-light panels. It flew to another panel, and smacked itself into glass. "There!" He said, pointing up. "It's that thing!"

Kukai rushed to where the skylight controls, quickly opening and closing one of the lights, unintentionally letting a bit of snow fall in, right onto Tadase's head as the thing floated down.

Tadase held out his hands, the little thing, a perfect black sphere about the size of a softball, hovered into the space between his hands. It had a bit of snow on it, and the snow didn't melt as it twisted in half, pulling itself apart as some sort of holographic image appeared between its two halves. He vaguely felt snow falling on his head and hands, but otherwise felt as if the entire world had been pulled out from beneath his feet as it spoke, the holographic image relaying a sound scope moving in sync with the voice.

"Ask and thy shalt receive." It was the blue boy, standing before him in a less barbarian-ish garb, this time in a strange robe. Pure white linen robes wrapped around his small frame, his right arm more heavily covered than his right, with a golden sash wrapped around his left shoulder, all of it tied with a golden rope around his waist. He had a golden laurel around his head, and wore a pair of equally golden, wire-framed glasses, and light leather roman sandal's that laced up his knee.

Tadase looked around him, finding himself no longer in his Court's Greenhouse, but instead in a giant pantheon, an arching roof above his head held paintings of the stars, each of them connected by little lines and forming the constellations. Beneath him, the floor was made of patterned marble, making what looked to be a mural of the oceans currents, each facet of dark blue stone was curving into another, swirling together in a way that almost looked real. The walls were entirely bookshelves, curved to fit the wall, and each shelf was packed, with little to no space between the volumes. In the center was a giant sphere, an entire globe, Tadase realized a moment later, with all the continents and mountain ranges carved into stone, and even the oceans themselves were carved in, leaving little gaps in the globe where water and massive sea trenches were.

He could hear little gears inside working, the slight and nearly silent 'clack, clack, clack'-ing only audible in the silence of the pantheon. It was turning, he saw, the entire globe was spinning, and a lantern above his head must've been a representation of the Sun, so that meant…He saw the moon, a faintly glowing stone on the far side of the planet, looking down on North America. That was the moon. Tadase found Japan, and swallowed slightly as he saw the celestial bodies moving, slowly coming together as seconds ticked on.

Tadase felt a weight on his head as he ran his hand over 's representation on the globe, and reached up to touch. It was a crown, not like his Character Change crown, or even like his Character transformation crown either. He took it off, and examined it. It was made of metal with no cloth to be seen, it had wires like a wrought iron fence, and vines and thorns wrapped around those wires, creating a solid base. It was encrusted with rose-cut rubies and diamonds, along with a few metal roses. He looked back up at the blue boy, gaping, unable to quite believe what was in his hand or where he was.

He just saw him, with the most serene, sincere look in those shockingly blue eyes, as deep as any sea and filled with just as many mysteries. "Hotori-sama." He had a joyous smile gracing his lips. Tadase, for a second, felt as if lighting had stuck him.