Hi everyone! whirlingstorm06 again here bringing you another chapter in the adventures of Tsubasa in the Charmed and Harry Potter world. For this chapter, just a lot of Charmed backstory and Tsubasa characterisation plus the ritual I mentioned last chapter. And more Tsubasa/Chris. Only because I can.
As always, I don't own those two series. If I did, I would be extremely rich.
Five Greats
Halliwell Manor, 8 am
The next day, Tsubasa, Daigoro and Chris start preparing for the ritual that should be able to reseal the cracks the shadow did yesterday in order to unleash the Nexus. Daigoro was able to buy everything they needed in Chinatown. To his surprise though, the merchants there gave everything they needed for free, which shocked both Paige and Daigoro. It turned out that the Shirogane family was quite famous among the denizens of Chinatown. A lot of them were helped by the Shirogane family one way or another and they were only happy enough to help them.
One of the merchants was only happy to give Daigoro a couple of jade magatama earrings. Magic with passive effects can be put in there for permanent use. Daigoro used the "translate" character at one of the magatamas and placed one in his ear. He's surprised that it's effective enough not be cast anymore every single day. He also gave one to Tsubasa and the both of them have been wearing it since.
"Are you sure that only Tsubasa can do the ritual?", asked Chris while continuing to draw a pentagram on the floor.
"Unfortunately yes. The scroll was clear about that. Only those descended from Abe no Seimei himself can only do this because it will involve manipulation of the spirits.", confirmed Daigoro, partly hinting disappointment that he can't help as well and partly because he's only adopted.
"Can I stay though? I… just want to make sure he's safe", Chris whispered to Daigoro.
Daigoro nodded and whispered as well, "Just make sure you're outside the pentagram." He smiled that someone is actually making an effort to know his younger brother.
Piper arrives at the basement as well and said, "Not done yet? Breakfast is ready. I don't want Tsubasa passing out in the middle of the spell just because he didn't eat enough."
"Just some finishing touches, Piper. The boys can go on ahead. I'm making sure everything is perfect.", replied Daigoro.
"Okay. Let's go Tsubasa. Wyatt might finish off everything.", Chris said. Tsubasa only nodded to Chris and followed him out of the basement. Instead of following the two boys, Piper decided to help Daigoro out.
"Need any help? This looks all so complicated", commented Piper. She saw the preparations going on. A pentagram was drawn with the cracks leading to the Nexus placed in the middle. A circle circumscribes the pentagram with Japanese characters written intricacy along the lines. On the five points of the pentagram are items used to signify the elements. Daigoro was still writing on one of the lines of the pentagram, copying what the scroll said to write.
"Well, we do specialise in ceremonial magic. I know you guys can say spells but elaborate ceremonies and rituals are more of our thing. And thanks for offering but unfortunately, the last parts involve writing in straight old-fashioned Japanese which has a lot of difficult characters", Daigoro replied.
Piper kept on watching the young man finish the lines. Over the past few days, she has subconsciously treated these two guests like surrogate sons with Daigoro as the eldest then Wyatt with Chris and Tsubasa like twins and Melinda as the youngest. What she also noticed though is Chris change in attitude and Tsubasa was kind of instrumental in that change even though Tsubasa was shy himself around other people in general.
"Hey… ummm… thanks for protecting us as well over the past few days. I know you are just guests and don't know anything much about our world but you seemed to be able to adapt quickly to our demonic problem", said Piper. "I think I have to thank Tsubasa more though. Chris has really changed over the past few days."
"What do you mean Chris has changed?", asked Daigoro suddenly stopping what he's writing.
"Well, Chris isn't normally like that. He's been always the different one among the siblings. Wyatt and Mel are more outgoing while Chris is introverted and very private. Mind you, he's always been like that."
Daigoro noticed something, "What do you mean he's been always like that? It sounds like he's been here a long time."
Piper explained to him about Chris. "When Wyatt was around a year old, a 23-year old Chris came from an alternate future to change his timeline. In his timeline, Wyatt grew up to be evil and became ruler of the magical world. Our generation already died by then and Chris and his fiancé at that time was evading Wyatt until they decided that the only way to stop him was to go to the past and go after the one that mad whim evil.
He arrived in this timeline and saved us from the Titans by making Leo an Elder. By then, we didn't know that he was our son so we treated him kind of harshly. He was very neurotic and mission-holic, ordering us to go after demons all the time in an effort to find the one who made Wyatt evil. Along the way, we also found out that he has issues with Leo because he was never there for him and thanks to Chris, Leo and I got back together. After all that was resolved, we thought we already destroyed the one who made Wyatt evil. But it turns out that it was one of the Elders who thought that because Wyatt was the twice-blessed made him susceptible to evil was actually the one who turned Wyatt evil in the future. Chris fought him but was killed while Leo killed that Elder.
When that Chris died, our Chris was born. And that was reminder of our son's sacrifice to save this family. When he was growing up, we thought he'd be different because of the changed circumstances. Leo became mortal and split his time evenly with the boys and the boys became close themselves but… we found that the Chris we saw was not very different from the Chris we have now. He's very private and would only talk when being spoken to. I thought that was probably because he's the middle child but I can't help but compare."
Piper thought back to the days since Tsubasa and Daigoro arrived at their household. "But ever since Tsubasa came here, Chris seems to have changed. I haven't seen him engaged like this. I don't know if this is because Tsubasa is his charge or he likes him. Would you mind, though?", she asked.
"Mind what?"
"If my son had a relationship with your younger brother."
Daigoro had already given that some thought. Tsubasa has also changed being with Chris. But he was a bit wary. The Elder Kyle mentioned that Tsubasa is Chris' charge. Is Chris friendliness because of this relationship or is this genuine? He didn't want to have his younger brother's feelings hurt just because of false pretences.
"No, it's perfectly fine. I have to ask though, are whitelighters usually like that to their charges?", inquired Daigoro.
"No, Paige is a whitelighter but she usually has a no-nonsense attitude to their charges. She cares but she shows a lot of tough love. Leo acts like a friend to all his charges. So it's safe to say that this is not just because Tsubasa is Chris' charge. But I don't think Chris will readily admit that.", answered Piper.
Daigoro finished the last few lines for the pentagram then told Piper, "Then I really don't mind. Our culture has a history of relationships between two men. It was said that the legendary warlord, Oda Nobunaga, had an intimate relationship with his page, Mori Ranmaru. It made them close to the point that young Ranmaru sacrificed his life when an assassination attempt was done against Nobunaga. And Tsubasa needs this as well. He needs to come out of his shell."
"Why do you say that?", asked Piper.
He stood up this time and inspected the five pedestals and said, "Tsubasa is an only child. The Shirogane family had good intentions but it ended up with Tsubasa not encountering other people his age. When he was still young, like, I think 5 years old? Master Takeru told me that Tsubasa can already see spirits. For us, this means that the child shows tremendous power and talent for onmyoudo. Master said he can see spirits only when he was 10 while I started to see when I was 12.
Because of that immense power, a lot of spirits and other evil creatures have attempted to kill him to get his powers. To prevent that from happening again, the master and his wife sealed his powers so that he won't become a magnet. But Mistress Makoto was too protective, I think. She didn't allow Tsubasa to get out on his own so he practically grew up inside the household.
Because he wanted to prove himself to be a capable onmyouji, he kept at home studying the theory even if he can't really practice. Sometimes, I would see him practice martial arts just so he can protect himself. I would be sparring with him sometimes and he's quite good at it. I asked him, 'Why learn?' and replied that he didn't want to feel vulnerable and he knows that it's part of his legacy to fight against evil. I wasn't really surprised that he took on this path even though his father made him choose. So even if he has no powers, he still thinks on how to defeat the enemy. While we do look at each other like brothers, whenever I look at him, he looks lonely."
Piper can only sigh at the circumstances. She thought to herself, 'So that's why he's like that. Still, maybe this could be both their chance to come out of their respective shells. I just hope Wyatt and Melinda doesn't tease him to death.'
Underworld
In a small section of the underworld, few demons converged regarding the recent attacks on the Charmed Ones.
"Do you have any info on who's attacking the Charmed Ones lately?"
"Someone had the nerve to attack?"
"Yes. Rumor has it that they were able nearly breach the shield of the Twice Blessed."
"That powerful? Do we have any idea who is it so far? He might be just become the new Source."
"Yeah but he got killed in the end right? How is he going to lead the Underworld again if he's dead?"
"But what I've heard was different, the demons were given extra power by someone. And if you guys what to have remotely a chance to face the Charmed Ones, you'd do well to find this person quickly."
Hiding behind some rocks is a tall man with disheveled features wearing a silver mask and a black cloak. He overheard the conversation and what interest him was that he couldn't understand who these people are talking about. He is only familiar with the "Source" as his boss previously met this "Source" a long time ago. His boss wanted an alliance but it was scrapped because the "Source" was vanquished by some witches. Are those "Charmed Ones" they referred to the same witches that vanquished the "Source"? He thought, 'This is what you get when you let a foreigner spy on American magical business.'.
Then he noticed something far from the demons. A shadow? He's not sure. That shadow looked like an animal he has never seen before. Was that a nine-tailed fox? Again, not sure. He never listened well in his classes back in his old school to make sense of what he is seeing. This shadow suddenly rushed to those demons and what looked like… possessing them?
The demons glowed blue and were surrounded by blue flames and then disappeared. While he isn't a stranger to magic, this method of teleportation is stranger to him. Moreover, he could feel the magic in the air. It's different to their magic even if he was surrounded by those who practice the Dark Arts. He could feel sinister magic among the demons but after they were possessed, the heaviness of their magic seemed more palpable. More sinister than before.
He doesn't know however if he will tell the boss about these developments though. He has been questioning the motives of his boss lately and this information should not be in the hands of his boss. He can't stay here any longer though. The same shadow could appear and possess him as well.
He brought out wand and disappeared with a loud crack. His next destination is London.
Kitchen, Halliwell Manor
Chris and Tsubasa are eating breakfast with Wyatt and Mel. Tsubasa and Chris were eating quietly while Wyatt and Mel were… in a word, loud. Both couldn't understand why they couldn't eat in peace. After Wyatt and Mel ate their breakfast, both orbed to… somewhere. Chris just rolled his eyes at the antics of his elder brother and younger sister.
Tsubasa couldn't help notice Chris' annoyance at the whole situation. After hearing all the explanation of their powers a few days ago, he can understand Chris a bit. It's a little thing called "Inferiority Complex".
After both finished their food and cleaned their respective dishes. Chris wanted to talk to Tsubasa, preferably alone but doesn't know how to do it he made up some lame excuse and asked, "Do you need help in getting into your ceremonial clothes? It looked like a lot of ribbons needed to be tied."
Tsubasa stared at him. He didn't know how to respond and unknowingly, fiercely blushed at the whole situation. He felt some attraction to the boy but couldn't quite understand it. Was Chris being friendly because Tsubasa is his charge? Or is he just gay? Not that he mind that. A lot of his fellow elder onmyoujis also had male lovers or even husbands. They call it "skin-ship". Some call it a protective relationship. In a world like theirs where there are better chances of survival if they protect each other, this kind of relationship is almost a necessity although not necessarily between males.
He nodded and went up to his room while Chris followed. His ceremonial clothes were already set on the bed and started to change. As Chris saw him changing he couldn't help notice his well-toned physique. No fat, and muscles are not bulging like that of a weightlifter. He looked like he has been practicing some martial art that involves blades because of a lot of scars in his body. 'My god, he's really handsome' he thought and couldn't stop staring at him.
Chris finally took the nerve to ask, "What did you do and your so… fit?", not knowing what words to use.
"Martial arts.", he replied.
"Huh. What martial arts do you practice that you have a lot of scars?"
"I use an iron fan. The scars are from sparring with Daigoro. He uses two swords. And could you tie this?", Tsubasa asked.
"Oh yeah."
Chris forgot what his fake excuse was for a minute and proceeded to help out Tsubasa with one of the many ribbons in his ceremonial clothes. 'Damn, this dress is so complicated. Ever heard of dressing simply?' he thought.
No talk occurred for the next five minutes. They looked as if they were doing this forever. Chris knew when to tie and how to tie for some reason. Tsubasa kept wondering about that so he asked, "How do you know all about this?"
"Studied it. I found a website that taught how to do this."
Tsubasa was impressed at the effort but couldn't help noticed that THERE WAS AN EFFORT. Which meant that Chris wanted to talk to him. It didn't take a genius to figure that out so he finally confronted him, "Okay, what did you want to talk about?"
Chris was surprised that Tsubasa figured it out or in retrospect, he shouldn't have been surprised. He realised that he was being pretty obvious in liking him to the point that he couldn't hide his intentions. He replied, "I just wanted to talk. You seemed so lonely all the time and ever since you got here, it kinda felt that you didn't know how to talk to us. So here, I wanted to talk."
Awkward silence. Tsubasa didn't know how to respond. It was as if Chris figured out what he feeling this entire time. He didn't know how to make of it. There was genuine concern in the way Chris said it. He liked Chris but couldn't help but be wary.
Chris continued, "I know you are still wary about us but I want you to know that I'm here if you want to talk to someone."
Tsubasa smiled. He "liked" Chris as well but doesn't know what to make of it… for now. He decided to play along and see where this goes. He said, "Thanks. And for what it's worth, don't let Wyatt bother you."
'Okay, what was that all about?', thought Chris. It was his sore point, after all - Wyatt being stronger than him.
Tsubasa continued while putting on a jade magatama necklace and a silver magatama earring, "He has a lot of powers but he acts too aggressively. Firepower is good but a decent strategy can help you better. You're better at that and that makes you better than him."
Chris didn't know what to make of what Tsubasa said. He never expected the boy to give out advise on the one thing he was irritated about and that only took the best of less than a week to figure that out. He felt a mixture of excitement, delight and embarassment. Excited and delighted that Tsubasa that showed a concern towards him and embarrassed that it had to involve his sore point.
"Thanks."
"Your welcome. Now does anything look lopsided to you?" Tsubasa asked and spun around once so that Chris can have a good look at his ceremonial clothes. Chris felt that while it looks too formal, the addition of the silver earring made him look cool. Perhaps, "cooler" if he'd just wear normal clothes.
Before Chris can answer though, Tsubasa felt a strange sensation. Something was wrong.
"Dai-nii-san!"
"What's wrong?" Chris asked.
"Chris, get everyone to the basement! We're under attack." ordered Tsubasa. He quickly grabbed his iron fan and head down to the basement. Chris shouted, "WYATT! MEL! DAD! AUNT PHOEBE! AUNT PAIGE!". They all appeared and followed Chris to the basement as well.
Basement
Three demons appeared attacking Piper and Daigoro with blue flames. Piper is damaging the demons by exploding them while Daigoro whistled to summon his shikigami to attack. It's partially hurting the demons but not killing them.
"Why are they not blowing up?! They're supposed to be lower level demons!", shouted a frustrated Piper. A demon shot an energy ball towards her but she was able to freeze it and she hid behind some used couches.
Daigoro put his hands together for a hand seal and chanted, "On nōmaku sanmanda basaradan kan!" then threw a paper talisman towards the demons which exploded upon contact. That finally killed one of the demons.
"At least it's working!", exclaimed Piper, getting her second wind again. And right on cue, everyone arrived at the basement as well. "WELL WHAT TOOK YOU GUYS SO LONG?"
"We didn't know until Tsubasa felt something!" replied Paige. A demon threw blue flames towards her but Wyatt summoned his shields to protect everyone. Paige spotted some nails hanging around and shouted, "NAILS!" The nails promptly disappeared and Paige did directed them towards the demon's head. Chris followed up using his telekinesis to throw the demon to the wall. Wyatt held up his hands and released a wave of energy which finally destroyed the demon.
The last demon was surprised that the others got defeated. Phoebe levitated and did a flying kick which threw the demon to the wall. Tsubasa opened his iron fan and threw it towards the demon. The fan homed in and it's edge kept on attacking the demon from different direction. Phoebe took that as a cue and unleashed a flurry of different punches and kicks with the fan attacking areas the Phoebe is not hitting. The demon was only able to recover when the fan returned back to Tsubasa but he sent another blue flame at Phoebe but returned it back with her empath powers.
Tsubasa quickly got a paper talisman and chanted "On irotahi chanoga jiba tai sowaka!" then threw it towards the last demon. Upon contact, the paper talisman released a burst of light that incinerated the demon.
"That was so cool!" exclaimed Mel. All breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone was thinking, however, how could the demons have known about the ceremony.
"What was that all about?", asked Piper.
"They couldn't have known about the ceremony. It's not even Wiccan!", added Paige.
Daigoro was deep in thought and thinking about how the demons attacked them. 'No way…', he thought.
"Unless…"
"Unless what, Daigoro?" asked Leo.
Daigoro had a suspicion and knew he has only a few minutes to do what he is thinking about. He quickly took out a blank paper talisman and the kanji "解". Unravel. He placed the paper talisman on top of the demon dust, whispered something, then waved his hand.
His spell worked immediately. The demonic dust was absorbed by the talisman and it levitated from the ground to their eye level. Slowly, a shadow appeared. Everyone was staring at it because it looked like a monster. Tsubasa and Daigoro, however seemed to recognise it. After a few seconds, the shadow disappeared and the paper talisman on its own. Daigoro was alarmed but kept a calm demeanour.
"It seems we have to do the spell now to fix the seal on the Nexus. Everyone needs to get out of the basement for now until I finish here. This will take a while but according to the scroll, once this is done, the Nexus will stop attracting demons and will also provide a decent ward against evil creatures.", Tsubasa explained.
"I can stay right? We agreed earlier", Chris reminded Tsubasa. He didn't want Chris to be there at the risk of getting hurt or interrupting the ceremony but he knew that Chris was concerned. The spell will thoroughly use a lot of his qi and could collapse later. His safety blanket would be Chris.
"As long as you don't get into the pentagram you'll be fine. But that's just a small area behind the stairs." answered Tsubasa.
"Okay then, we'll leave you two now. Chris make sure that you catch Tsubasa after the spell. He'll definitely be tired.", Daigoro said, confident that the young boy will be able to ensure the safety of his younger brother. Everyone headed out. Leo made eye contact with his son and smiled before heading out as well.
Tsubasa walked towards the middle of the pentagram and opened his fan. He started the incantation and spoke only in Japanese.
"The five elements are in harmony and are in peace…"
And at that moment, the pentagram and all the written and drawn images on the floor glowed in a white to violet light. The characters the outlined the lined moved and seemingly followed the lines, rotating across the entire pentagram.
"The five elements are in peace and are connected…"
And the ceremony continued with Chris looking on, amazed at the magic Tsubasa is wielding. This went on for 5 hours. At the end of the spell, Tsubasa was too exhausted and collapsed. Chris caught him and orbed him to his room.
END
I wanted to go on detail with the ceremony but I decided against it because it's way too complicated from how it appeared in my head. Needless to say, Tsubasa was too exhausted and collapsed.
For those of you wondering how come Tsubasa seems to be too powerful, you have to realize that he has been dealing with magic ever since he was young. He descended from Abe no Seimei which was basically the Merlin of Japan and that made him powerful. You can argue that Wyatt is that as well but the difference is in the magic. Onmyoudo is connected to nature and religion but there is a system to it. The myths and folklore of Japan is a combination of native Japanese, Chinese and Indian and that is reflected on the practice of onmyoudo. Now I'm no expert at onmyoudo. I'm basically deriving all my knowledge from watching a lot of anime, dramas and live action shows that deal with it and its variations.
For the next chapter, we move away from Tsubasa's story and we go to London.
Finally.
Don't forget to read and review! Thanks!
