LLC- College Student, Extraordinaire! That's right, all' I've finally started my freshman year at college as an art major! On MWF, I have a 4 hour internet-less break in my classes, So it's the perfect opportunity to do some writing for my much-neglected stories! So I hope you enjoy!
Oh, and I have a new poll up on my profile pertaining to a new Yue story. Please take it!
)o(
Over a week had passed since Yue's birth, a week that the young man's master had been optimistic would be a time of fruitful leaps and bounds, a time to finally become adjusted to the anomaly of being corporeal. Having spent a subconscious eternity as intangible moonlight, Yue had, in magical theory, millennia of years to his soul, yet mere days to his mind and body.
Yet the magician could not lie, even to himself. As the week went by and still Yue made no sound, beyond his own name, Clow became first confused, then frustrated, and finally rather concerned. Kerberos had been like a weak levy with a leak; a trickle of words among an embassy bursting to escape; he hadn't been able to talk fast enough! So why was it a creature of similar magical construct, a mirror image of Kero's fiber, behaving so differently?
Perhaps it was because of the very paradox of a mirror; everything was the same, and yet backwards. Raising one's right hand before a looking glass causes the reflection to raise its left. Words spelled the same message when held before the glass, yet looked like an entirely new language. This was part of his reasoning in creating his two 'sons'. Kero and Yue were complete and utter opposites; light, dark, day, night, yin, yang. Yet, in essence, they were identical; celestial magic of infinite capabilities condensed into a body of flesh, blood and bone. They should repel and compliment each other like their orbs, but…Yue, thus far, was everything Kero was not and should not be.
Maybe his mirror was cracked.
That wasn't to say that the past 8 days had been dull or monotonous. On the contrary, Clow often had the feeling that he was caring for a very small child. Although Yue had no means by which to convey his emotions verbally, there was no way to miss the delight on his face as he stood outside at dusk with the cool evening rain splashing down on his face. He didn't laugh, but he smiled, and his eyes gleamed silver as he reached upwards, as though wishing to touch his fingertips to the very source of this cool new delight. Yue loved the water.
He also had the curiosity of a lion cub. He didn't (couldn't) ask "What's this? What does that do?" as the actual lion had. No, instead, he simply took it upon himself to just find out. He discovered, completely on his own accord, how to coax water from the pump, capture it in a bucket, and clumsily spill it all across the kitchen floor. He didn't ask permission to explore the inviting glow of the hearth; in fact, he had been so quiet that a groggy Clow had not even known he was still awake until a sharp cry brought his attention back to Yue and his scalded palm.
"I'll be gray before I'm 230, I will," Clow muttered in the half-mad way he did, possibly to Kero, maybe to Yue, but mostly to himself. He smiled softly as he finished wrapping Yue's hand in cotton strips. "I'll be as silver-topped as you, my friend. I hope you're satisfied with yourself." When his poor attempt at humor was met only with Yue's thirsty, inquisitive stare, he chuckled nervously. "Course you're not. You probably don't have a clue in Heaven's name what I'm saying to you, do you?"
Silence. Clow was loath to admit it, but Yue unnerved him a bit…His eyes were so soft, so sweet and trusting, and yet seemed to know everything. Nothing and everything.
Clow set aside the last unneeded bit of cloth, and reached his hand upwards, cupping Yue's soft, cool cheek and dipping his fingers into his gauzy, light hair.
"What am I going to do with you, Yue?" he asked out loud, not expecting an answer. Yue never answered when he was spoken to. The most he would do was to look up at the sound of his name being called.
But the moon, nearly always obscured into shadows, never shows all of its being to even the most astute observer. Yue sat quietly, placidly before Clow, hands folded neatly in his lap as he watched his Master, peacefully. His face wasn't blank never blank, but seemed to be so far off…
But then he did something that surprised Clow. No sooner had he lowered his palm from Yue's face, running it through his disheveled hair with a weary and near defeated sigh than Yue lifted his own, tentatively lying it along Clow's jaw, normally unsure fingers tapering smoothly against his skin in the exact same fashion that Reed had just done.
By his expression, Yue was about as unsure about this as his creator. He stared at his upraised hand as though deciphering Greek words on a tablet; a familiar shape, but such a foreign concept.
Then Yue turned his lavender eyes on Clow, a storm of emotion raging in the irises. The thrill of feeling his Masters power flowing through the steel-strong connection they shared, the instinctual comfort of human contact. The always present lack of comprehension of what he was doing, and…something else, something Clow wasn't use to seeing…It was as though Yue was trying to convey with his eyes was his tongue was unable to do; begging him, pleading, "Explain this to me. I don't understand."
"Damn it, Yue," he swore, his quiet voice not matching his vulgar words. "I don't understand either." And without really paying attention to the irony of his gesture, he lifted his hand again to Yue's face, in the exact way Yue was still doing. Feeling the deliciously cool texture of his hair between his fingers, he closed his eyes momentarily, hoping to take just the briefest of moments to reassemble his thoughts in a world now turned akilter before him. When he opened them again, He saw that his moon angel also had his eyes closed, smoky gray lashes fanning against his cheeks.
And then it clicked.
With the exhilarating feeling of an epiphany and the surge of adrenaline and inspiration that Clow had developed a natural addiction to, he flicked his attention from his hand to Yue's outstretched arm, to his closed eyes, and remembered Yue's first afternoon outside, before Kero pushed him into the pond…
"Yue, open your eyes." He murmured, and Yue did so, responding, most likely, to the familiar sound of his name. Once he had Yue's attention, he dropped his hand, laying it on his lap as he had seen Yue do only moments before, holding his breath throughout this little trial.
Yue cocked his head in puzzlement (rather adorably, Clow couldn't help but think,) but quickly followed suit. His long fingers entwined with one another as he lowered them, sitting straight and alert.
"That's it…" Clow began softly. "That's it!" His sudden rise in volume cause his Guardian to startle, but He paid little mind. Instead, He leapt to his feet, then reached down to grasp Yue's hands and pulled him up after. "That's it, Yue! I created you and Kero to be a mirror image! And that's exactly what your doing, isn't it? Being a mirror, a mime!" In a mood swing characteristic of the God-Knows-How-Many Polar sorcerer, he began to dance around the room in his excitement, overjoyed at finally working through another problem.
Poor Yue, though, was his less-than-willing dance partner, struggling to match his Masters tempo in leaps and spins; he barely was capable of a swift walk, let alone a fervent foxtrot!
But his Masters joy was contagious, and the closeness to his most important person thrilled the young man. It filled him with warmth inside, a bubble, like the rain had, like the sweet taste of honey.
The faster Clow's thoughts raced, the faster he madly danced around the study, as though his mind was an orchestra and the violinists had dipped into the scotch before the concert.
"You're just being a reflection, aren't you? Copying what you see? And that's why you've been getting into such mischief; what a mirror to do when there's no one before it but simply take in the space around it?" Faster and faster the tempo of their feet, Clow's robes flaring at their hems, the firelight catching the glisten of the embroidery as Yue had to use more concentration than he had yet to not trip over his hair.
Then, suddenly, Clow stopped dead in his tracks, his mind having hit rather a distressing road block. Barely noticing the yelp Yue let out as the momentum knocked him backwards, he said out loud, "Only question is, what are we to do now?"
)o(
Clow was by no means a dim man. On the contrary, he regularly trod the line between genius and insanity (though Kero often prodded that he was unable to tell the difference, if Clow was any prime example.) But with clarity and intelligence comes the responsibility to admit when one does not know the answer, and to seek help to discover it.
And sometimes, even a grown man has to ask Mom and Dad for the answers. He wasn't ashamed to admit it. Well, not really…
To send a letter through the mortal post in China was about as effective as writing upon a turtles shell; you'd be lucky if the letter arrived to a still living recipient. No, he had much more practical means of which to contact his parents.
Yue sat right beside Clow as he uncapped a bottle of ink (which Yue was able to understand he wasn't yet allowed to touch) and wet his quill in the liquid blackness, before drawing it over a clean, crisp piece of parchment. Yue tucked his hair behind his ears deftly, watching in awe at the sharp, quick movements of Clow's hand and the lovely "pictures" it produced. Yue had no idea that the English letters Master scrawled (for Clow's father was an absolute failure at understanding written Chinese) held questions, meaning, and an invitation, but he had the sense that these pictures were very important.
After several minutes, Yue broke from his hypnosis as Clow recapped the ink and blew gently on the paper to dry his penmanship. Only then did he really notice His audience.
"I'm writing a letter, Yue," he explained, folding it neatly into thirds. "To my mother and father. They live quite a distance away, on the shore, and I need this to get to them right away." He wasn't sure if his babble meant anything to Yue, but he had taken to narrating his activities anyway, both in English and Chinese, to see if, perhaps, Yue had a preference to one or the other.
He didn't need to look over his shoulder to know that Yue was still watching his every move as he lit a large, yellowish candle at his desk, and concentrated briefly on the image of his parents before holding the letter over the meek flame. Immediately, it ignited, the dry paper acting as excellent kindling.
Yue's brow furrowed as he watched, wondering why Master would spend so much time on his drawing just to watch it curl to cinders. Perhaps his Onii-Chan was right; maybe Master was…what was the sound? Oh, crazy!...
Whatever 'crazy' was.
Sensing his bafflement, Clow held up one finger in a "quiet" gesture, as though expecting a verbal opposition from a mute angel and a sleeping lion with a belly full of cake.
"Just watch, Yue," he instructed. "It may take a few minutes, but just be patient." Clow then leaned back in his favorite chair (a scarlet wing armchair with more than one rip in the cushions) and took his spectacles off to polish them on the tail of his shirt, as he usually did when waiting for something.
Yue waited as well, being patient as he was instructed. Since he wasn't completely sure what exactly it was he was expected to be watching, he watched Master instead.
He like Master. Liked the way his pretty eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled, liked the way he made such nice sounds when he moved his mouth, and how tender his touch was. Of course, Yue couldn't form these thoughts into words, not even within his head. He just knew the images made him feel…nice. But he also had the feeling that Master wasn't very happy. He smiled at Yue and his brother quite often; bringing his lips upwards in what Yue had come to associate as a pleasant expression. Yet…Yue could feel something…not so pleasant. Master was thinking about something not pleasant quite often, which made little lines furrow between his eyes.
"And there it is…" Yue turned suddenly to the place Clow indicated; the wax candle on his desk. Right before his eyes, the candle rapidly dissolved into a pool of molten wax, which in his experience took candles several hours to do! Even stranger, the flame began to move on its own accord, and not the swaying and flickering that all flames danced to; no, it began to dark across the puddle, leaving impressions in the soft wax in its wake.
Clow paid half of his attention to the melted mess of a candle before him, and half to his bewitched Guardian; this, now this was normal; even Kero had been fascinated by the way Clow received his mail.
"It's a letter from my father," he explained, wondering if Yue even understood what a father was. "He held it above the candle as I had, keeping my face in mind as it burned, and the candle is simply relaying the message to me."
Now, to Yue, even the way a clock dominates the rate at which time passes is a foreign concept, but something of this nature? He wished very much that Master would explain this to him, but he was intent of watching the flame dance trails of writing into the drying wax, chin resting over steepled fingers.
After many moments, Clow nodded his head once, satisfied and bent forward, a soft wisp of breath extinguishing the candle. As a tendril of smoke rose in it's place, the watch began to gather itself back up; tiers and spirals of yellow sludge climbing up the candlestick to form first the edge of the candle and then to fill it up like a glass. Once the last drop was back in its rightful place, the snuffed wick brought itself back to like a phoenix, flickering gleefully at a job well accomplished.
Yue decided right there. He loved magic. Almost as much as he loved Master.
A gentle tug on his arm indicated to the gaping guardian that the magician in question was trying to gain his attention, which he graciously paid.
"That was a letter from my father," he repeated, his posture relaxing into a sense f calm that Kero knew so well but Yue hadn't gotten use to seeing, as though a heavy burden had been lifted. "And he and my mother are coming for a visit. Tomorrow, thank Jesus."
Yue listened politely, although he really didn't know what that meant. Half the words that came out of Masters mouth sounded like gibberish, and what he could understand, he had no experiences with which to connect them too. Comprehension of idea but not of theory or practice.
And Master only aided in frustrating him all the further by adding, "These are your…well, I suppose in effect they would be your grandparents-"
Grandparents? What was a grandparents?
"And I want you to make a good impression on them. My mother can be a little…well…critical…but then she can flip right around and be overenthusiastic…" he paused for a moment before hurriedly rushing, more for his own benefit, "Not that she isn't a lovely woman, of course! I love her dearly, she's just…oh well, I suppose you'll see…"
And Yue needn't speak any language known to the mortals to understand the anxiety creeping back into master's handsome features. As Clow started milling about the library, his favorite haunt, cleaning up a few stray notes, Yue took his usual place at the hearth, curling his lithe frame up against Kero's, letting himself be soothed by the steady beating of Onii-Chan's heart and the warmth from both the fireplace and Kero's fur. He drifted off to Clow's continued ravings, "And then there are the times when she just smiles like she's in a completely different pla-wait, maybe that's where I get it from…"
)o(
Dressing for company was both a pleasure and a torture for Yue and a downright damnation for Kero. Well, actually for Kero, the worst part was getting up before 10 o'clock. It was no trouble for Yue, who enjoyed seeing the first golden gleams of sunlight stain the horizon. Though he had no education about celestial bodies or their magical connection to the Reed Household, he could feel the sun giving off the same powerful, boisterous radiance that his dear brother did.
Actually, Yue rather enjoyed the whole ordeal, with a warm bath and the extra time he got to spend with Master and Onii-Chan as Kero picked burrs from his tail with clumsy paws not made for such a purpose (yet he refused to let Clow get anywhere near him with a brush.) Instead, it was Yue who received that bit of attention, and the sitting-still-for-an-hour thing as Clow struggled and swore to do SOMEthing with Yue's hair beside braid it. He finally managed (amongst curses from Clow, exasperated eye rolls from Yue and more than one smother laugh from the sun beast) to sweep the sides back in a deep cerulean ribbon and folded and twisting the rest of it up just enough to keep it off the floor.
The new clothes were of more getting use to, as he had never worn such a heavy or volumous robe before. Clow told him it was a very distinguishing piece on him, with a high collar, silver stitching and the scooped bottom hem on the overcoat.
Yue just thought the color was nice.
Onii-Chan called him a pretty-boy. Whatever that was.
And then all they had to do was wait, although Yue really had no comprehension over what he was waiting for. He simply sat watching Clow as Clow watched out the large bay window at the front of their home.
After a while, Kero walked languidly over to the couch where Yue was perched, sitting down beside him and crossing his forepaws across Yue's lap. Somewhere back in some automatically generated store of information Yue sensed that a real lion would not be able to do that, but then he someone sensed that Kero was different, just as he felt he was somewhere different from Master. It was just another thing to add to his growing list of distress…
Yue could remember being the moon. Or rather, the feeling of being an IDEA of the moon. As he sat outside in the gardens in the evenings, often with Clow, He had a very faint feeling of déjà vu as he watched the blue glow kiss the surface of all it touched, as though he too had once washed across the surface of the ponds. He suppose he had, but he didn't understand how…
Oh how it frustrated him! He took in so much around him, drinking in every detail, and yet…he just didn't understand! He enjoyed the water and the rain and the moon, but he knew nothing of them, save the sweet sounds Clow made when they were around. At some point Yue had guessed that he was giving the occurrences names, yet he refused to share the knowledge of how to form the titles with his own tongue. Only his own name, and he wasn't sure how he even knew that. It was nearly driving him mad with annoyance, the way he touched the pages of the books in the library, knowing they were special and they held a purpose, but having no means to know what it was, what the pages said, or even what the use of a book was. Clow seemed so easily able to simply glance down at the black markings and see so much, whereas Yue saw nothing but chicken scratch. No one would tell him what a grabndparents was…come to think of it, he still wasn't sure what a "Master" was, or a "brother" for that matter. Only that his Master was Master and his brother was brother.
Resting his furry mane and trying to escape the drama of a paranoid magician, Kero could all but feel the tension radiating off his little brother. He sat so rigid, so formal, as though the weight of the stars were crushing him beneath their mass.
'Great. Crackpot Clow's raising a neurotic. Just what we need!' he groused inwardly, sure that Yue would be able to pick up on his pessimistic tone even if his words held no meaning. Instead, he gently nudged against Yue's leg to garner his attention.
A small, nearly reluctant smile found it's way to Yue's lips, as though he really felt he had little to smile about. All the same, he reached forward to comb through Kero's thick, lustrous fur with now-coordinated fingers (Kero no longer held a fear of Yue accidently putting out his eye.)
The lion purred loud and content as Yue scratched him right behind his ears just perfect. The deep, satisfied rumblings were something of an anchor for Yue, who seemed to have a keen empathy; if Kero and Clow acted calm and serene, than Yue too would feel the same. And with Clow, Gods bless his soul, raving to thin air as he gazed apprehensively through the front windows, SOMEone had to pick up the slack and keep Yue from worrying himself sick. Kero wasn't sure if he had a clue in hell that they were about to have company, but he was sure able to pick up on Clow's moods. Honestly! How WOULD Clow get along without him around? He was surprised that he survived on his own as long as he did!
A strained, nearly choked whimper was the only alert Clow gave to announce his parents arrival as he undoubtedly saw them walking up the expansive lane to his home.
"Oh for the love of pudding, Clow!" Kero muttered, exasperated, casually examining his impeccable claws. "They're your parents! And I happen to find them pleasant people! And your mother's one hell of a cook!" and he licked his muzzle in anticipation of a delicious sweet and sour bean soup for dinner. "Quit acting like this is your execution!"
"I am NOT acting in such a way." Clow defending himself sulkily. "And I am not denying that my parents are 'pleasant' people. I just…I just…"
"Want to impress them," Kero finished, looking up from his expertly sharpened claws for a moment. "I don't know what your problem is Clow, but I'm sure it's intriguing and hard to pronounce." After taking a minute to snigger at his own joke, he cleared his throat with flare and continued, "ANYway, you always get yourself worked into a mess when your parents visit and it always goes FINE! And what's more," he added, his voice raising into a classic Kero whine," I'M the one who usually has to get you to calm down once they go to bed the first night!"
Surprisingly, instead of having a look akin to a kicked puppy, as most people would, Clow instead smiled. But then again, when did Clow do anything the normal way?
"I suppose that you're right, Kero," he conceded the point humbly. "you help me keep my head out of the clouds, don't you?"
"Which is a full time job, I tell you."
"It's just that-" but Clow was unable to continue his monologue, or else he'd be talking over the greetings of his parents as his father let himself in through the front door.
A little thrown off by their sudden entrance, Clow had to take a comment before trying to greet him father. But-
"Jonathan Reed! Have you no manners left at all?" his mother chastised, as though his father was but 8.
"Oh, Ming, I swear! It isn't as though we're intruding on a stranger's supper here! He's our son; if anyone has a right to come barging through his front door, it's us!"
Mrs. Reed brought her petite 5-foot-nothing stature up as tall and proud as she could. "That is hardly an excuse," she argued with her richly accented English. "Son or no son, it is terribly impolite to enter a home without being invited."
With a heavy eye roll, Jonathan Reed shook his head in disbelief. "We WERE invited, dear. Clow invited us last night. Why do you think we're here? And so quickly?"
"erm…" Clow tried to get a word in edgewise. "Mother, really, it isn't-"
"Yes, that's true, but what if Clow had had other company around for a visit? Maybe even a lady-friend?" what sort of impression would we have made, eh? Traipsing in as though this was our house."
Kero had to stifle a bark of laughter at the suggestion that his Master would have had a "lady Friend" over to visit. The notion!
"Actually, I saw you coming, so-" but again Clow wasn't able to make himself heard. His mother and father loved each other very deeply, but their day wouldn't be complete without at least 3 rounds at each other. Even after 388 years of marriage they blamed it on "Culture shock."
Clow blamed it on hereditary stubbornness on both sides of the gene pool.
"I mean it, Ming, Clow was probably waiting for us anyway!"
"Still makes so difference!' his mother refused to back down, forever upholding her high and often reasonable expectations of manners. "Even if he was to live alone on an island rock, it is still only proper to-"
"Okasaaaan!" Kero suddenly cried out, making everyone in attendance jump in alarm as he galloped forward to greet his favorite 'grandma'. Er…only…whatever. "it's so good to see you, Kasan!"
And in a bit of mood swing that could only have spawned Clow, Ming Reed's sourly-set face instantly brightened at the sire of the wildcat vying for her attention.
"My Kero-Chan!" she crooned, kneeling down to envelope his warm scruff in a hug. "My have your grown to be a handsome one!"
"Yeah, I know!" Kero agreed, not bothering with false modesty.
While his wife was busy cooing over the cat (and he meant that in the most reverent way possible) Clow's father finally took notice of the now-frazzled man before him.
"Clow, it's been too long, boy!" he exclaimed, grabbing him strongly around the shoulders and thumping his back good-naturedly, though hard enough to cast his glasses askew on his nose.
"Why yes, it has, hasn't it?" he agreed, setting his glasses straight calmly. Something about having them around, even for just a minute so far, had Clow returning to his usual composed, collected and unruffled self.
As the pretty woman continued to fawn over his brother and the handsome tall man and master continued to exchange pleasantries, Yue sat in silence on the couch and watched the whole ordeal from afar. Rather fearfully, truth be told. He had never seen another human besides Master and his own reflection, so this concept was BEYOND new to him. He had the urge to go to his Master's side, seeking comfort in the contact, but he was reluctant to draw any attention to himself. He thought that maybe if he sat still enough-
"Clow, my dear, I think perhaps we've missed out on something very important!"
Too late.
"Yes, who might this young gentleman be?" Jonathan asked excitedly, his crystal blue eyes shining with anticipation. "I don't believe we've been introduced, formally or otherwise!"
The moon guardian could see anew light flare to life in Clow's eyes as he realized what his parents were referring to.
"oh! Of course! The entire reason I asked you to come here!" he quickly stride across the room, closing the gap between them and held out his hands as though indicating for Yue to stand.
Yue graciously took Clow's offer, although he was far graceful enough by now to stand on his own without the risk of overbalancing. He was brought forward, Master's hands resting warmly on his narrow shoulders.
"This is Yue," he introduced with pride. "He is Kerberos's counterpart, and my second guardian."
Ming came forward with enthusiasm, being such the open and social person she was. Her Asian upbringing had instilled in her the respect to never burst anyone's 'personal bubble' of sorts, but she was just too excitable a person to restrain herself around encounters such as this.
Clow was barely able to mask his amusement at Yue's look as his mother clasped his hands tightly in hers, squeezing lovingly as a welcome.
"What a handsome boy my son has made you to be!" she exclaimed, and began chattering away with him, not seeming to notice the blank, overwhelmed and wide-eyed look she was getting in return.
Jonathan, thank heavens, was a much more self-controlled figure, and he waited for the poor thing to finish being pawed by his wife. In the meantime, he studied him from afar.
He was silent for quite some time, the scholar in him taking dominance over his softer side. "You've outdone yourself, son," he finally conceded, apparently impressed. "I don't think I have ever seen the moon harnessed in such a manner. Retaining the moons aura and symbolism in a human form; magic in mortalities disguise. There aren't many practitioners mental enough to even attempt it."
"Are you challenging my sanity, father?" Clow quipped back, identical looks of mild amusements masking intense contentment on both their faces.
"I wouldn't say I'm challenging, Clow," he said calmly. "That would be like one arguing the existence of a soul. One may fervently believe with all their heart that it is there, which it may be…proof just doesn't always manifest itself in the most obvious ways." And all the while he had an ornery smile tugging upon his craggy face.
"Glad to see you too, father," and this was the way the Reed men usually greeted one another; in a display of vocabulary, wit and barely-hidden jabs at the ego. It drove his mother crazy…so she fit right in.
"Shy thing, aren't you?" Ming commented, finally noticing that Yue had not opened his mouth to speak once, and was actually acquiring a blush from anxiety.
Now came the fun part.
"Well, shy may not be the best word…" Clow suggested nervously, stepping forward to once again be at Yue's side. He could feel his creation instantly relax as he drew near, seeking solace. "You see, Yue's over a week old now and…well…he's not spoken a word, apart from his own name. I mean, I realize a week isn't but a drop in time, considering their near-immortal life spans, but…"
"But it worries you," Ming finished for him, patting the back of Yue's hand as though he was the one in need of reassurance. Really, he was just in need of a quiet place to hide.
Reluctant to admit it, Clow shrugged offhandedly. "well, I wouldn't say I was WORRIED, per say. It's just, well…Kerberos acted nothing like this-"
"I was a blessing from the start!"
"-or a curse. Anyway," he continued, ignoring Kero's swears of mutiny, "It simply has me-concerned- that Yue is so radically different that his brother."
Jonathan processed this, staring at the ground as he thought and spoke. "but isn't that the point? That they be one another's opposite?"
"Because you know better than anyone, Clow, that magic done in pairs must always have a balance." His mother put in, winding a piece of black hair, flecked with gray, back into the loose knot at her neck.
"Of course I realize that," Clow assured them, absently running his fingertips across Yue's hair as he carefully tried to explain the situation. "Perhaps I am simply becoming paranoid about my work, or a perfectionist. After all, few sorcerers, East or West attempt to create companions or servants based so heavily on humans-"
"Few people attempt most of the crap you pull."
"That's enough, Kerberos," Clow warned sternly with an uncharacteristic look that said "Don't push me."
"As I was saying, perhaps having such an elusive power retrained into a physical form is opening up a new book of rules for what should be done?" he was on a roll now, walking around as he went.
"Erm, Clow? Son?"
"They are opposite ends of the map, so to speak, that I should have handled their creations in a different way? or maybe-"
"Clow!
"Yes?"
"Shut up and sit down."
"Erm…right." And he immediately took a seat on the couch, indicating for Yue to join him, which he did immediately. So what if he was over 2 centuries old and the inventor of an entirely new sort of magic? When his father uses that tone, he listens.
As Yue eased himself languidly on his right, his mother took the spot on his left. She sat for nearly a minute just looking at Clow, her son, her dark, almond eyes crinkling in delight as the man her little boy had grown to be.
"Clow, you have grown to be such an accomplished man, she began, and Clow smiled half nervous, half pleased. "So handsome, so focused, intelligent. You have such a grasp for culture, language, philosophy…" and just as he was beginning to sit straighter with pride (and Kero was cringing) she finished, "And yet you still haven't got a shred of damn common sense."
"I…I haven't…excuse me?" he asked, disoriented. "I have most certainly got common sense!"
"Don't go getting defensive, Clow," said his father as he claimed the arm of an overstuffed leather chair. "We all have our weaknesses and downfalls, and yours just happens to be life and social skills."
By this time, Kero was nearly rolling with glee. God he loved his grandparents! They were the only other ones who knew Clow well enough to see such things, point them out and live! Yeah, he loved the crazy old man, but how boring would life be if he couldn't taunt him?
"I…I'm afraid I don't understand where you're going with this." Clow said finally, mostly because he didn't know what else to say.
His mother patted his knee softly, then reached up to kiss him lightly on his cheek, as though to soften the blow. "You always focused so intensely on magic and it's practice and theory, Clow, my child, that you often forget that there is another side entirely to the human life, even to ours."
"You look for a magical explanation in everything, so intensely that you don't see the human answer right in front of you."
"Right in front-?"
"Look at Yue," his father instructed, and he did. "Now I know for a ruddy good fact that he isn't just a magical construct to you. Sop tell me; what DO you see when you look at Yue?"
'What do I see?' Clow asked himself, a headache beginning to twinge between his eyes. 'I see…I see Yue. I see the moon. I see a beautiful young man with piercing amethyst eyes and pearly skin. I see…'
But then he saw something else, something beyond Yue's striking physicality. An innocence and naïveté that Kero did not possess, ever. He saw the motions that colored his eyes, the meek way he held his form, looking back up at Clow with a lowered head, gazing demurely through spiders-silk bangs.
"I see a child," he answered finally, speaking the moment he came to the realization. "I see a man appearing no older than 20, tall and toned and grown, but He isn't a man at all. He's still a boy."
"And how is that different than what you would see several years ago when you looked at Kero?" Ming prompted him in the right direction.
And he focused on Kero, looking past the distorted faces he was pulling at Clow, trying to reshape him as he would have been years prior. Physically he would have been almost identical. Mentally as well; he had spoken, walked well, and was already a pain in the ass by his first night. Although, now that he thought about it…Kero had been all "why's what and where's'. He'd be tumbling through the gardens one moment, and running after a crane the next in his own curiosity.
"Kero, too was…no, he was never a child…"
Jonathan nodded encouragingly, as though Clow was paying him any mind at all. "And why do you think that is."
And Clow had already figured out the answer. "Because Kero isn't human. Nor is Yue, but-"
"But you made him to be as similar as your powers could achieve."
"And Kero is a lion-"
Clow was finally getting all the pieces put together here, and Yue watched in amusement as he began to talk faster and faster. "And lions are fierce and full of energy from the start, because of their instincts…but human children are not…they need to be taught, even more than a lion does, because they have no instincts about the world around them."
"Exactly!" it was like watching badminton for the two brothers, their heads volleying back and forth to follow the conversation. "And since Yue is essentially a child-"
"Everything needs to be taught to him." Clow finished, finally fitting the final piece, his theory about Yue being a reflection. "And children learn through imitation and example."
Ming was getting so caught up in the moment that she was literally clapping in delight. "You see, my boy? What did you need us here for when you so easily figured out the obvious on your own accord?"
Clow wasn't so sure that he had figured it out on 'his own accord.' However, such praise from one's mother was always lightening, no matter how old one was.
Jonathan, however, looked a tad put out. "Does that mean we have to leave for home already?" he asked gloomily, wanting to spend more time with his son, Kero, and newest grandson.
His wife, however, looked at him aghast.
"Are you fooling me, Jonathan?" she demanded, resuming the authoritative tone that Clow knew so well. His father may have worn the pants in the family, but his mother could be a harpy from time to time.
"Are you fooling? We can't leave now! Would you really leave such a young child in Clow's care? Don't you remember the turtle?"
"Mother, I was six and he bit me first!" Clow groused, wishing she would stop bringing up that blasted turtle! It isn't like he hurled him across the room on purpose after all! Or that he would (or could!) do the same to his children!"
"All, the same," she brushed aside his objections, "who better to help you "raise" your creation than someone who has already been through it before, ne, Jonathan? Besides, we're already here, and your front entrance could use a good dusting…and I'm sure the upstairs windows haven't been washed in decades…I think to be safe we should definitely stay a month."
"A…a month?"
"Maybe two."
"Of course…"
Seeing his distress, she stopped listing off his housekeeping woes long enough to place another kiss upon his cheek, brushing his disarrayed hair back fondly.
"Oh my dear boy, don't fret! We're here to help take a load off your mind! You won't hardly even know we're here! Now…when was the last time you shook out your rugs?!"
)o(
I have a feeling I'm gonna enjoy writing Clow's parents hee So what'd y'all think? I know you're out there reading, so really, spare 30 seconds and send me a review, hmm? For Yue-Chan? And maybe 10 more to take the survey on my profile.
Lottsa love,
LLC