The only character in this fic that actually belongs to me is the horse, Yume. I'm just borrowing the others from Watashi Yuu and Pioneer for a while. I promise I won't hurt them.
Divergence
Chapter One
"Do you really think you can do it?"
Kaen blinked, and turned around to see who the owner of the warm male voice was. There was no one there, and she began backing up, wondering what was happening. She heard a laugh and then the voice spoke again, its tone colored with amusement.
"You can't see me unless I want you to. Now, answer the question. Do you really think
you can pull off this masquerade?"
Kaen was beginning to get frightened, even though the voice seemed friendly enough. She steeled her nerves and replied, "I have to try. Who are you?"
"A friend. That doesn't really matter much right now. So, what are you going to call yourself? You can't very well wander around using a girl's name. People won't care that much if you just look feminine, but if keep your name they'll get suspicious."
Kaen hadn't thought of that. She paused for a minute then said, "I guess I'll be Shion."
"After your brother? Good choice, at least it's one you'll easily remember. Now, start thinking of yourself by that name."
Shion looked around again, recognizing the importance of the advice the voice was giving him, but still not comfortable with talking to thin air and having it respond. "Will you please give yourself a name?" he asked
The voice sighed, and suddenly a young man with long blue hair and warm aqua eyes was standing in front of Shion. "Ok," the man said, speaking with the voice, "if it'll make you feel better you can call me S."
"One letter is not a name."
"You're right, it's not, but it's all you're getting right now. So, you don't have any idea how to use that knife your mom gave you, do ya?"
Shion shook his head. "It's not that hard, is it? Just grab the handle and thrust at whoever's attacking you."
S rolled his eyes. "I can see already that teaching you to take care of yourself is gonna take more effort then I first thought."
"Teaching me? Wbat are you talking about?"
He laughed out loud and bopped Shion lightly on the head, "Yes, teaching you. What did you think I was here for? I can't just let you wander around alone and untrained in any form of weaponry. When you're older there will be more important lessons, but for right now using your knife will be enough." He held out his hand, and suddenly the knife Shion's mother had given the boy was in his hands. "This is a pretty good knife. The decoration on the handle throws off the balance a little, but you should be able to ignore that. Here, take it."
Shion reached out and took the weapon from the man, trying to hold it the way the same way S had. S smiled, and was suddenly behind the boy, adjusting his grip on the handle and the stance his body was in. "There, hold it like this," S said, once more standing in front of Shion and looking at him approvingly, "Even though you don't know anything about how to fight with that yet, people who know anything about knife fighting will assume from your stance that you do and will be less likely to attack. Unfortunatly there are very few situations where you'll have an advantage over larger weapons. I'll try to get you something better soon."
"Something better?" Shion looked at the knife, a little distaste evident in his expression, "Why do I even have to fight at all? I don't want to hurt anyone!"
S sighed and shook his head. "So innocent..." he muttered under his breath, then raised his voice to normal volume. "Look, these are dangerous times kid. Your mom was right about the fact that you're less likely to be attacked if people don't know you're a girl, but that's not gonna stop everyone. If ya look really confident and easily missed that'll put off some more would-be attackers. Still, not all. So for those who're left you need to know how to take care of yourself. Or you could just stay here in the woods for the rest of your life, which would inevitably be short and end with you being a tiger's dinner."
Shion's eyes widened. "Really?"
S reminded himself that Shion was only nine, and that even though he did seem intellegant for his age it was still best if he didn't use over exagerations like that. "Probably not. You're near a town, and they shouldn't come this close to it. It's still not a good idea to wander on your own though."
"I know that! I wasn't ever planning on not finding a town, I just don't want to have to hurt people."
S reached out a hand and rested it on Shion's shoulder, "I understand how you feel," He said softly, "If you were the type of person who liked hurting others I wouldn't be here now. If you need to use the skills I teach you it will be against bad people, who would just go on to hurt others if you dodn't take care of them. Understand?"
"I guess."
"Good!" S gave Shion and an encouraging smile and let go of his arm. "Ok, let's get started on your lessons! Oh, and don't worry about trying to remember everything I teach you, I've fixed it so you won't forget anything I teach you, just concentrate on getting the moves right, Ok?" At Shion's uncertain nodded S's smile widened, but then he started, smile fading and eyes staring off into the distance at something Shion couldn't see. "Dammit!" He growled, then his eyes refocased on Shion, "I'm sorry kid, it looks like our lesson's gonna be cut off today. I'll see ya again tonight!"
Shion became aware of another, female, voice saying something on the edge of his hearing. He concentrated on trying to make out what it was saying, and slowly it became more audible. At the same time however S was fading out, the background becoming visible through his body as Shion watched. "S, what's wrong?" Shion asked, eyes wide and voice slightly paniced. He didn't want to lose his new friend so suddenly when he didn't know anyone else in this strange new country. "S, don't go!"
The man was almost invisible now, and the voice was like a hammer pounding against Shion's brain though he still couldn't make out the words. He smiled ruefully and shook his head, "It's alright Shion." He said, voice seeming to come from across a great distance, "Even when you can't see me I'm still looking out for you." He only existed as a slight shimmer in the air, and his final words were so faint Shion couldn't even be sure of what he was saying, "After all, you are my seishi."
Then suddenly the girl's voice was perfectly clear, and Shion was blinking against bright sunlight which was shining through the trees. "Boy, are you alright? Wake up!"
Shion sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes as they adjusted to the light. After a minute he looked up at the girl who had been talking to him, then his eyes were drawn past her to a little boy with flame-red hair and amber eyes. There was something about that little boy. A feeling, or something, which he couldn't quite put his finger on.
"Excuse me, who are you?" The girl asked, voice slightly angry, drawing Shion's attention back to her. There was a definate resemblance between the two children. The girl was older, Shion would guess she was about his age, while the boy was a few years younger than him. Her hair and eyes were both darker, more normal than the fire and gold of the boy's features.
"My name is Shion." He said softly, eyes darting back to the boy as he tried to figure out what in the world the feeling radiating from him was.
"Well Shion." The girl said, stepping forward and catching his eyes, "This is our land, and you shouldn't... be..." The girl's eyes had moved to focus on something behind Shion and an excited look grew on her face. "Is that your horse?" She practically squealed, dashing forward to pet the horse's nose.
Shion followed her to the horse, and gently began stroking its neck. It momentarily turned and thrust its head into his chest, then looked back at the girl. "Yes, this is..." He thought fast and picked the first name that popped to mind, "Yume."
"Hi Yume." The girl cooed, all traces of anger leaving her voice. "What a pretty horse you are. I'm Aidou, and I love you more then anything else in the whole wide world!"
"If you want you and your brother could ride her back to your home before I go."
"Oh, could I? Thank you so much! But Shun'u shouldn't get to, he's just a baby. He'd fall off or somethin', and go cryin' to mom and get me in trouble!"
"I would not!" Shun'u said, demonstrating that he did in fact have a voice. He dashed forward and glared up at Aidou, eyes blazing. "I wouldn't do anything like that, an you know it! You're just a big jerk!"
For a minute Aidou's eyes hardened, then she caught sight of a hunk of wood on the ground. She picked it up, then straightening up she smiled brightly. "What did you call me Shun'u-chan?" she said in a sickeningly sweet voice.
"Ah, nothing Aidou! Nothing at all!" Shun'u backed away from the girl.
"Oh really?" Aidou pulled back her arm, preparing to throw the log, "Well, I think I heard you say... HEY!"
Shion had pulled the log from the girl's hands while she was threatening her brother, and now glared down at her, tossing it back into the bushes. "Ok, here's what we'll do. Either you agree to ride with your brother, or he rides alone. So, which will it be?"
Grudgingly Aidou said, "We'll ride together." Then she quickly climbed up onto Yume's back before Shion could say anything. "But I get to ride in front!"
"Alright, that's fine. Here, let me help you up Shun'u." He hoisted the boy up into the saddle, then began to walk forward, the horse following him. "So, which way is it to your house?"
"Keep going straight until you reach the big tree with the split trunk then turn left!" Aidou offered.
Following the girl's instructions Shion made it out of the woods and into the yard of the children's house quickly. There they were met by a woman, who ran towards the children, eye's wide.
"Aidou, Shun'u, what are you doing?" she yelled once she was close enough to be heard. "You two have been missing all morning, and now here I find you've harrassed this poor boy into giving you a ride! Honestly, I don't know what's wrong with you two, making him walk here while you to got comfortable on his horse!"
"It's alright." Shion said, breaking in on the others behalfs, "I'm the one who offered them a ride, they didn't ask for one."
"Well, that's very nice of you, but they still shouldn't just accept and make you walk."
"I like walking. Please, it's no problem."
The woman gave Shion a hard look, then her expression suddenly softened. "Alright, if you're dead set on keepin' these two brats outta trouble then I'll let them off. Now, who are you child and where did they dredge you up?"
"My name is Haku Shion. Aidou and Shun'u found me in the woods where I was sleeping."
"And what were you doing sleeping there? Shouldn't you be at home, with your family?"
"My family is..." Shion hesitated, tears begining to well up in his eyes. He couldn't tell them the truth, so he went with the easiest lie, "They're dead. There was a fire, and it killed my parents and my brother. I was visiting a friend and didn't learn until the next morning what had happened."
The woman's eyes softened, "Oh, you poor dear."
The tears were falling now, and Shion swiped at them with his shirt sleeve. "I was following the river to get to my uncle's house. I can't remember how to get there by the roads but I know his town was built on this river, and that it was to the east of my hometown, so I thought if I just kept following it I'll get there. He was close to my mother, so I hope he'll take me in."
For a long moment the woman looked at him with sad eyes, then she sighed. "You can't be getting much rest out there, or good food. Why don't you come in? You can stay here until tomorrow and get yourself some decent food and rest before moving on. Would you like that?"
"I-I couldn't. I mean, I wouldn't want to impose on you. I'm fine on my own, you don't have to worry."
"Nonsense! We may not be the richest family in Konan, but we have enough to help out those that need it! You're going to spend the night, I won't take no for an answer. Anyway, Shun'u would like to have another boy around for the day. My name's Kou Jun, by the way. Now, I'm afraid you're just gonna have to tie your horse up to a tree somewhere, and as soon as you've done that you kids can go off and play."
Shion blinked as he watched the woman walking off to get back to her housework, surprised at how quickly he had suddenly found himself drawn into this family, at least for the night. Then turned to Aidou and Shun'u who were still next to him, and frowned slightly, "Yume doesn't have a bridle," he said, "I don't have anything to tie her up anywhere."
"Don't worry, I can get you come old rope." Aidou grinned, and a crafty look entered her eyes, "I'll get it for you, if you let me ride her around the yard! An' without Shun'u this time!"
Shion looked at Shun'u and frowned slightly, then nodded his assent. There wasn't really anything else he could do. He had to have something to tie the horse up lest it wander off and try to return home, or even worse decide that the Kou's vegetable garden or crops looked like a nice snack. He helped hoist the girl up into the saddle, then watched as she began riding around the yard, smiling brightly. Seemingly out of nowhere two other girls, both older then Shion and his two new friends, showed up smiling at him. A second passed before they opened their mouths and began talking, neither allowing Shion a word in edgewise.
"Is that your horse?"
"Can we ride it?"
"It's so much nicer then ours."
"All we have is draft horses."
"They're ugly."
"Besides, you let The Brat ride it."
"So we should get to too."
Both momentarily paused to glare accusingly down at Shun'u, as if it were somehow his fault he'd gotten a ride before they did. The little boy took advantage in this break to introduce the two girls. "This is Mai," he pointed at the younger-looking girl, "and the other one's Li'An. They're my sisters, an' they never shut up."
Shion looked back and forth between the two girls as they finished glaring at the other boy and went back to the rapidfire back and forth commentary on Yume, their horses, and why the one was better then the others. After only a few minutes of knowing them they were already getting on his nerves. He could already tell they talked just as much as Shun'u had said, but he didn't see any of the better qualities which were already drawing him to the other members of the family.
"I'm sorry," he finally said loudly, breaking into the steady stream of words and causing the girls to stare at him. When he was sure he had their full attention he started over. "I'm sorry, but I won't be able to let you ride Yume. Once Aidou's done Shun'u's getting a ride while she gets me some rope, and then I'm tying Yume up for the day. She needs sleep."
The two girls and Shun'u stared at him, all startled for different reasons. Mai and Li'An couldn't believe that this boy would deny them their wishs, especially since he was only there because of their family's kindness. Shun'u was startled that he was going to get to ride the horse on his own after all, and that through doing so he was getting one over his older sisters for one of the few times in his life.
"That's not fair!" The girls finally yelled at Shion in chorus, glaring at Shion angrily.
"Those two are just little kids!" Mai said.
"Yeah, they shouldn't be allowed to ride if we're not!"
"Especially not The Brat."
Shion tuned them out and waved Aidou in to let her know her ride was over. Aidou continued riding for a minute longer then decided to do what he wanted. As she came close enough to hear what her sisters were making a fuss about a smirk slowly grew across her face. As soon as she was close enough to be heard she called out in a sugery sweet voice. "Oh Mai, Ji'An, you're not going to be able to ride? I feel so sorry for you, Yume's the best horse I've ever ridden. Oh well, I suppose one day you'll get to ride a nice horse like her too, so don't be to upset." She smiled brightly at them as she slid down out of the saddle, then began to help her little brother up into it, realizing from her sister's complaints that this was Shion's plan. Normally she might complain herself, but this time she was unwilling to since it would be helping the other girls. "Don't feel bad about Shun'u getting a turn when you can't, it's not his fault he was here first," she said, then turned and began walking away, calling over her shoulder "Come on Shion, I'll show you where the rope is kept, in case you ever need more. I'm sure Mai and Ji'An will watch out for Shun'u for us."
Shion didn't know what to make of Aidou's sudden change of attitude towards her brother until they were out of sight of the others and Aidou suddenly started laughing. "Oh. sweet Suzaku," she gasped out through her laughter, eyes shining brightly, "I'm so glad you did that!"
"I would have thought you'd have been upset," Shion said, confused. "You didn't want Shun'u riding earlier."
"I just didn't want to ride with him, it's ok if he does on his own. An' I'm so glad you decided to let him ride and not those two."
"You're not close to your sisters?"
"Suzaku, no! They're ok sometimes, but most of the time they're just like they were back there when it's just us kids around! Then when Mom or Dad show up they turn into the world's biggest suckups, and tattletales! They always get everything they want because Mom thinks they're such angels. That's why I'm really glad you let Shun'u ride instead of them. They get everything and The Brat rarely gets anything."
Shion glanced at her, surprised at the warm affection coloring the term the other girls had used with such derision to describe their brother. "You like Shun'u then?"
Aidou had gotten over her laughing fit, and now smiled slightly. "Never tell him that," she said, "but yeah. Someone has to watch out to make sure he doesn't always get left out in the cold, right? The problem is he never really seems to ask for what he wants, so of course no one knows when he wants something. I was really surprised today when he actually stood up for his right to ride on your horse."
Shion's eyebrows raised as he looked at her. "If you're really so interested in seeing that your brother gets his fair share of things," he said, "then why were you about to throw a log at him earlier when he did ask to ride Yume?"
Aidou has the grace to blush slightly, but her tone of voice wasn't the least repentant as she said, "Just 'cause I don't want the others walkin' all over him doesn't mean I want him to think he can get anything he wants outta me! I want him to have some repect for me. Don't you have any brothers or sisters, to know how it is?" Then her hands flew over her mouth and her eyes widened as she saw Shion stiffen and his eyes fill with tears.
"Yes, I... I did," he said, voice thick with tears as he remembered the real Shion, and the fact that he would never see any of the rest of his family again.
"Oh Suzaku, Shion, I'm so sorry. I forgot, I never would have brought it up if I had remembered..."
"No, it's alright." He said, fighting as hard as he could against the tears, "I only mentioned it to your mom, I didn't expect you to remember."
Aidou's eyes filled with pity and she stepped forward, pulling him into her arms and holding him tightly. "Go ahead and cry Shion," she said gently to the boy, "I'm the only one here and I won't tell anyone."
And Shion followed her softly spoken order, the full force of her pain at the loss of her family, gone with just as much finality as if they really had died, hit him for the first time. He lost all track of time as the tears poured from him to the accompaniment of deep shuddering sobs. The world faded away around him and he didn't notice how after awhile Shun'u came looking for them and, once he noticed what was happening, got the rope himself and took care of the horse with some help from his mother who had come out to call them into lunch. All that mattered at the moment was the pain in his heart, and the comfort that was being offered.
Finally the tears ceased to flow, though Aidou didn't loosen her grip and Shion didn't try to pull away. For a long while they just sat in silence, then Shion started talking in a low voice that Aidou would have had to strain to hear had she not been so close. "My brother was five years older then me," he said, "but he was my friend. I didn't really see him much, he was always out helping my dad while I stayed home and help mom since I was younger, but when he came home he'd always play with me even though he was tired and hungry from working all day. We lived in the same room most of my life, it was only a year ago that he decided to move into the attic so we'd both have more room."
"What about your parents?" Aidou asked, her voice just as soft.
"My mom was the most wonderful woman in the world. We were very poor, but she always was able to find treats to give me and my brother, or games for us all to play. My dad..." he sighed, "my dad didn't like me. I guess because he never wanted another kid since he already had a boy. My brother would inherit everything when he died, and I was just another mouth to feed and he didn't want to waste his money on that. I didn't know for a long long time how much he hated me, I loved him and was blind to the fact he didn't feel the same way toward me. I only realised the truth a little while before the fire."
"Well..." Aidou smiled, "if it makes you feel any better I can be your sister!"
"What?" Shion blinked at her, wondering if the girl had suddenly gone insane.
"Well, not really silly! But we could pretend. And I bet Shun'u would like having a big brother too. If you wanted to Mom and Dad would probably even let you stay here forever! I mean, you said your uncle didn't even know you were coming, so he'll never miss you if you don't show up!"
For a brief moment Shion considered it. He could easily believe that Aidou was right. That if he just asked her mother would take him in and they could live together forever after, just like a real family. It was a nice vision, but he knew it was impossible. He wouldn't be able to hide his true gender forever. He couldn't impose on their kindness like that. He couldn't betray his real family by replacing them as soon as he had left them. For all these reasons, and more, he couldn't stay with them. "I'm sorry Aidou. I'd love to stay here, but I can't. It's not what my family would have wanted."
"Yeah, I guess you do have to get to your uncle's house. You'll come visit sometimes, right?"
"Sure! I'd love to come by whenever I get a chance to."
"Great!" Aidou said, grinning. "You'll have to be careful of the bandits when you come by, but they should leave you alone since you're just a kid. Other then that there isn't much to worry about if you stay on the paths. It was really dangerous trying to follow the river though." The girl put on a mockfrown and took a slightly scolding tone, "Don't you know there are tigers in the woods?"
"I didn't think of that. But I could probably find my way by the roads from here without getting lost. An' if I did I could just turn around and start off from here again, right?"
"You don't have to worry about that until tomorrow anyways. And you can always come back, my mom likes you. Now lets get food, Ok?"
"OH! I forgot about Yume!" Shion said guiltily.
"It's ok, Shun'u took care of her. Now lets go!" Aidou jumped up and began running toward the door to the house, the boy following close behind.
"Do you really think you'll be able to get away with this?"
S glanced up at the ruby-winged man who had silently walked up behind him, and smiled slightly. "There's no reason I shouldn't. I'm following all the rules about destiny changing." He looked fondly down at the young crossdresser from his invisible position in the skies above. "It's too late to save the others from their fates, but she'll be happy."
"Seiryuu, why did I agree to help you with this?" The man asked, running a slender hand through his flame like hair, "I keep feeling like mother's going to come down off her mountain and start yelling at us about messing in the affairs of our seishi."
Seiryuu chuckled at the other god's discomfort, while at the same time wrapping a companionly arm around his shoulder. "We're scarcly children Suzaku, she can't do anything unless we break the rules, which we haven't. If one god gets the help of another he's allowed to change the destiny of one of his seishi. Just because it's never happened before doesn't make it any less true."
"There's a reason it's never happened before."
"Sure, none of us have ever wanted to make a change that would help another before! Suzaku, stop sounding so upset! Once her powers manifest themselves they will be used to help Konon, not Kutou. You should be happy, not moping about how you're afraid of going against tradition."
Suzaku sighed and rested his head against Seiryuu's shoulder, eyes drifting shut. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do? I'm happy to help her, but now that she's on her own, without fate carrying her through her life, how do we know that whatever happens to her will be better then what would have if we hadn't intervened?"
"There are very few ways it could be worse. But, I understand what you're saying. That's why I'm sending her dreams, and teaching her things that'll help her through her life. Which reminds me, I have to see about getting a sword from Taiitsukun for her..."
"Don't even think of asking for the diety sword!" Suzaku said, bapping Seiryuu lightly on the head. "That's already been claimed for one of my seishi. I'm still a little upset about your decisions to teach her swordfighting like that by the way, it seems way to much like Hotohori's power. She's already going to be one of the most powerful seishi without giving her more powers."
"It's not like that! The whole point of Hotohori's power was that he could pick up a sword and beat someone in a fight with it the first time he ever tried, without any training. If she tried that she'll probably cut off her own leg or something. She'll have to taught before she can fight. And it's not like she'll be able to learn that way when she's not asleep."
"Ok, ok, I've agreed not to argue about that, remember. But what was that earlier with Tasuki? I could tell she could sense his ki! That is not one of her powers!"
Seiryuu blushed slightly, "Ok, that is my fault. But it's not like she'll ever learn to use bouchu magic now! She can't manipulate ki like she would have been able to, so she can sense it instead. It's a fair trade!"
Suzaku chuckled. "Ok, I'll accept that," he said, eyes shining. "Now, I think it's safe to say she's ok, at least for today. So how about we go home?"
Seiryuu glanced down at his seishi once more, then smiled down at Suzaku. "I think that's a wonderful idea."
And the two gods disappeared as if they had never been there, leaving the world to take care of itself for awhile.
------
Ugh, chap. 1's finally out. The prologue I typed out in the library one day when I had a bunch of time to spare, but at the same time I didn't have the notebook this fic was kept in and had to remember what happened in it off the top of my head. Because of that I didn't realise how little the feel of it, and much of the first few chapters, fit the later parts of the fic. They skim over things which later become importent for one thing, and the writing style's a little different. The whole fic was written during whatever little pieces of time I could find between school and work over a very long period of time, so by the end I had forgotten what the beginning was like, which when I reread it was a problem. So, this chapter and the next are almost completely new material, then after that it should start coming much faster since most of what I already have starts being Ok to use.
By the way, if you somehow don't know, Kou Shun'u is Tasuki's real name. The only one of his sisters who was given a name was Aidou so I went with the rumored names for the other sister's we saw, and I just chose a name for his mom off a babyname website.
I'd like to thank my beta readers, Sarah and Connie. You wouldn't believe a few of the stupid mistakes I made that had to be pointed out to me.
I'd also like to thank the people who reviewed me at fanfiction.net, who were great for feeding my ego at moments where I got completely sick of typing and needed something to remind me why I was putting it up for other people to see instead of just keeping it in my notebook for myself alone, like I do with most of my fics.
Divergence
Chapter One
"Do you really think you can do it?"
Kaen blinked, and turned around to see who the owner of the warm male voice was. There was no one there, and she began backing up, wondering what was happening. She heard a laugh and then the voice spoke again, its tone colored with amusement.
"You can't see me unless I want you to. Now, answer the question. Do you really think
you can pull off this masquerade?"
Kaen was beginning to get frightened, even though the voice seemed friendly enough. She steeled her nerves and replied, "I have to try. Who are you?"
"A friend. That doesn't really matter much right now. So, what are you going to call yourself? You can't very well wander around using a girl's name. People won't care that much if you just look feminine, but if keep your name they'll get suspicious."
Kaen hadn't thought of that. She paused for a minute then said, "I guess I'll be Shion."
"After your brother? Good choice, at least it's one you'll easily remember. Now, start thinking of yourself by that name."
Shion looked around again, recognizing the importance of the advice the voice was giving him, but still not comfortable with talking to thin air and having it respond. "Will you please give yourself a name?" he asked
The voice sighed, and suddenly a young man with long blue hair and warm aqua eyes was standing in front of Shion. "Ok," the man said, speaking with the voice, "if it'll make you feel better you can call me S."
"One letter is not a name."
"You're right, it's not, but it's all you're getting right now. So, you don't have any idea how to use that knife your mom gave you, do ya?"
Shion shook his head. "It's not that hard, is it? Just grab the handle and thrust at whoever's attacking you."
S rolled his eyes. "I can see already that teaching you to take care of yourself is gonna take more effort then I first thought."
"Teaching me? Wbat are you talking about?"
He laughed out loud and bopped Shion lightly on the head, "Yes, teaching you. What did you think I was here for? I can't just let you wander around alone and untrained in any form of weaponry. When you're older there will be more important lessons, but for right now using your knife will be enough." He held out his hand, and suddenly the knife Shion's mother had given the boy was in his hands. "This is a pretty good knife. The decoration on the handle throws off the balance a little, but you should be able to ignore that. Here, take it."
Shion reached out and took the weapon from the man, trying to hold it the way the same way S had. S smiled, and was suddenly behind the boy, adjusting his grip on the handle and the stance his body was in. "There, hold it like this," S said, once more standing in front of Shion and looking at him approvingly, "Even though you don't know anything about how to fight with that yet, people who know anything about knife fighting will assume from your stance that you do and will be less likely to attack. Unfortunatly there are very few situations where you'll have an advantage over larger weapons. I'll try to get you something better soon."
"Something better?" Shion looked at the knife, a little distaste evident in his expression, "Why do I even have to fight at all? I don't want to hurt anyone!"
S sighed and shook his head. "So innocent..." he muttered under his breath, then raised his voice to normal volume. "Look, these are dangerous times kid. Your mom was right about the fact that you're less likely to be attacked if people don't know you're a girl, but that's not gonna stop everyone. If ya look really confident and easily missed that'll put off some more would-be attackers. Still, not all. So for those who're left you need to know how to take care of yourself. Or you could just stay here in the woods for the rest of your life, which would inevitably be short and end with you being a tiger's dinner."
Shion's eyes widened. "Really?"
S reminded himself that Shion was only nine, and that even though he did seem intellegant for his age it was still best if he didn't use over exagerations like that. "Probably not. You're near a town, and they shouldn't come this close to it. It's still not a good idea to wander on your own though."
"I know that! I wasn't ever planning on not finding a town, I just don't want to have to hurt people."
S reached out a hand and rested it on Shion's shoulder, "I understand how you feel," He said softly, "If you were the type of person who liked hurting others I wouldn't be here now. If you need to use the skills I teach you it will be against bad people, who would just go on to hurt others if you dodn't take care of them. Understand?"
"I guess."
"Good!" S gave Shion and an encouraging smile and let go of his arm. "Ok, let's get started on your lessons! Oh, and don't worry about trying to remember everything I teach you, I've fixed it so you won't forget anything I teach you, just concentrate on getting the moves right, Ok?" At Shion's uncertain nodded S's smile widened, but then he started, smile fading and eyes staring off into the distance at something Shion couldn't see. "Dammit!" He growled, then his eyes refocased on Shion, "I'm sorry kid, it looks like our lesson's gonna be cut off today. I'll see ya again tonight!"
Shion became aware of another, female, voice saying something on the edge of his hearing. He concentrated on trying to make out what it was saying, and slowly it became more audible. At the same time however S was fading out, the background becoming visible through his body as Shion watched. "S, what's wrong?" Shion asked, eyes wide and voice slightly paniced. He didn't want to lose his new friend so suddenly when he didn't know anyone else in this strange new country. "S, don't go!"
The man was almost invisible now, and the voice was like a hammer pounding against Shion's brain though he still couldn't make out the words. He smiled ruefully and shook his head, "It's alright Shion." He said, voice seeming to come from across a great distance, "Even when you can't see me I'm still looking out for you." He only existed as a slight shimmer in the air, and his final words were so faint Shion couldn't even be sure of what he was saying, "After all, you are my seishi."
Then suddenly the girl's voice was perfectly clear, and Shion was blinking against bright sunlight which was shining through the trees. "Boy, are you alright? Wake up!"
Shion sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes as they adjusted to the light. After a minute he looked up at the girl who had been talking to him, then his eyes were drawn past her to a little boy with flame-red hair and amber eyes. There was something about that little boy. A feeling, or something, which he couldn't quite put his finger on.
"Excuse me, who are you?" The girl asked, voice slightly angry, drawing Shion's attention back to her. There was a definate resemblance between the two children. The girl was older, Shion would guess she was about his age, while the boy was a few years younger than him. Her hair and eyes were both darker, more normal than the fire and gold of the boy's features.
"My name is Shion." He said softly, eyes darting back to the boy as he tried to figure out what in the world the feeling radiating from him was.
"Well Shion." The girl said, stepping forward and catching his eyes, "This is our land, and you shouldn't... be..." The girl's eyes had moved to focus on something behind Shion and an excited look grew on her face. "Is that your horse?" She practically squealed, dashing forward to pet the horse's nose.
Shion followed her to the horse, and gently began stroking its neck. It momentarily turned and thrust its head into his chest, then looked back at the girl. "Yes, this is..." He thought fast and picked the first name that popped to mind, "Yume."
"Hi Yume." The girl cooed, all traces of anger leaving her voice. "What a pretty horse you are. I'm Aidou, and I love you more then anything else in the whole wide world!"
"If you want you and your brother could ride her back to your home before I go."
"Oh, could I? Thank you so much! But Shun'u shouldn't get to, he's just a baby. He'd fall off or somethin', and go cryin' to mom and get me in trouble!"
"I would not!" Shun'u said, demonstrating that he did in fact have a voice. He dashed forward and glared up at Aidou, eyes blazing. "I wouldn't do anything like that, an you know it! You're just a big jerk!"
For a minute Aidou's eyes hardened, then she caught sight of a hunk of wood on the ground. She picked it up, then straightening up she smiled brightly. "What did you call me Shun'u-chan?" she said in a sickeningly sweet voice.
"Ah, nothing Aidou! Nothing at all!" Shun'u backed away from the girl.
"Oh really?" Aidou pulled back her arm, preparing to throw the log, "Well, I think I heard you say... HEY!"
Shion had pulled the log from the girl's hands while she was threatening her brother, and now glared down at her, tossing it back into the bushes. "Ok, here's what we'll do. Either you agree to ride with your brother, or he rides alone. So, which will it be?"
Grudgingly Aidou said, "We'll ride together." Then she quickly climbed up onto Yume's back before Shion could say anything. "But I get to ride in front!"
"Alright, that's fine. Here, let me help you up Shun'u." He hoisted the boy up into the saddle, then began to walk forward, the horse following him. "So, which way is it to your house?"
"Keep going straight until you reach the big tree with the split trunk then turn left!" Aidou offered.
Following the girl's instructions Shion made it out of the woods and into the yard of the children's house quickly. There they were met by a woman, who ran towards the children, eye's wide.
"Aidou, Shun'u, what are you doing?" she yelled once she was close enough to be heard. "You two have been missing all morning, and now here I find you've harrassed this poor boy into giving you a ride! Honestly, I don't know what's wrong with you two, making him walk here while you to got comfortable on his horse!"
"It's alright." Shion said, breaking in on the others behalfs, "I'm the one who offered them a ride, they didn't ask for one."
"Well, that's very nice of you, but they still shouldn't just accept and make you walk."
"I like walking. Please, it's no problem."
The woman gave Shion a hard look, then her expression suddenly softened. "Alright, if you're dead set on keepin' these two brats outta trouble then I'll let them off. Now, who are you child and where did they dredge you up?"
"My name is Haku Shion. Aidou and Shun'u found me in the woods where I was sleeping."
"And what were you doing sleeping there? Shouldn't you be at home, with your family?"
"My family is..." Shion hesitated, tears begining to well up in his eyes. He couldn't tell them the truth, so he went with the easiest lie, "They're dead. There was a fire, and it killed my parents and my brother. I was visiting a friend and didn't learn until the next morning what had happened."
The woman's eyes softened, "Oh, you poor dear."
The tears were falling now, and Shion swiped at them with his shirt sleeve. "I was following the river to get to my uncle's house. I can't remember how to get there by the roads but I know his town was built on this river, and that it was to the east of my hometown, so I thought if I just kept following it I'll get there. He was close to my mother, so I hope he'll take me in."
For a long moment the woman looked at him with sad eyes, then she sighed. "You can't be getting much rest out there, or good food. Why don't you come in? You can stay here until tomorrow and get yourself some decent food and rest before moving on. Would you like that?"
"I-I couldn't. I mean, I wouldn't want to impose on you. I'm fine on my own, you don't have to worry."
"Nonsense! We may not be the richest family in Konan, but we have enough to help out those that need it! You're going to spend the night, I won't take no for an answer. Anyway, Shun'u would like to have another boy around for the day. My name's Kou Jun, by the way. Now, I'm afraid you're just gonna have to tie your horse up to a tree somewhere, and as soon as you've done that you kids can go off and play."
Shion blinked as he watched the woman walking off to get back to her housework, surprised at how quickly he had suddenly found himself drawn into this family, at least for the night. Then turned to Aidou and Shun'u who were still next to him, and frowned slightly, "Yume doesn't have a bridle," he said, "I don't have anything to tie her up anywhere."
"Don't worry, I can get you come old rope." Aidou grinned, and a crafty look entered her eyes, "I'll get it for you, if you let me ride her around the yard! An' without Shun'u this time!"
Shion looked at Shun'u and frowned slightly, then nodded his assent. There wasn't really anything else he could do. He had to have something to tie the horse up lest it wander off and try to return home, or even worse decide that the Kou's vegetable garden or crops looked like a nice snack. He helped hoist the girl up into the saddle, then watched as she began riding around the yard, smiling brightly. Seemingly out of nowhere two other girls, both older then Shion and his two new friends, showed up smiling at him. A second passed before they opened their mouths and began talking, neither allowing Shion a word in edgewise.
"Is that your horse?"
"Can we ride it?"
"It's so much nicer then ours."
"All we have is draft horses."
"They're ugly."
"Besides, you let The Brat ride it."
"So we should get to too."
Both momentarily paused to glare accusingly down at Shun'u, as if it were somehow his fault he'd gotten a ride before they did. The little boy took advantage in this break to introduce the two girls. "This is Mai," he pointed at the younger-looking girl, "and the other one's Li'An. They're my sisters, an' they never shut up."
Shion looked back and forth between the two girls as they finished glaring at the other boy and went back to the rapidfire back and forth commentary on Yume, their horses, and why the one was better then the others. After only a few minutes of knowing them they were already getting on his nerves. He could already tell they talked just as much as Shun'u had said, but he didn't see any of the better qualities which were already drawing him to the other members of the family.
"I'm sorry," he finally said loudly, breaking into the steady stream of words and causing the girls to stare at him. When he was sure he had their full attention he started over. "I'm sorry, but I won't be able to let you ride Yume. Once Aidou's done Shun'u's getting a ride while she gets me some rope, and then I'm tying Yume up for the day. She needs sleep."
The two girls and Shun'u stared at him, all startled for different reasons. Mai and Li'An couldn't believe that this boy would deny them their wishs, especially since he was only there because of their family's kindness. Shun'u was startled that he was going to get to ride the horse on his own after all, and that through doing so he was getting one over his older sisters for one of the few times in his life.
"That's not fair!" The girls finally yelled at Shion in chorus, glaring at Shion angrily.
"Those two are just little kids!" Mai said.
"Yeah, they shouldn't be allowed to ride if we're not!"
"Especially not The Brat."
Shion tuned them out and waved Aidou in to let her know her ride was over. Aidou continued riding for a minute longer then decided to do what he wanted. As she came close enough to hear what her sisters were making a fuss about a smirk slowly grew across her face. As soon as she was close enough to be heard she called out in a sugery sweet voice. "Oh Mai, Ji'An, you're not going to be able to ride? I feel so sorry for you, Yume's the best horse I've ever ridden. Oh well, I suppose one day you'll get to ride a nice horse like her too, so don't be to upset." She smiled brightly at them as she slid down out of the saddle, then began to help her little brother up into it, realizing from her sister's complaints that this was Shion's plan. Normally she might complain herself, but this time she was unwilling to since it would be helping the other girls. "Don't feel bad about Shun'u getting a turn when you can't, it's not his fault he was here first," she said, then turned and began walking away, calling over her shoulder "Come on Shion, I'll show you where the rope is kept, in case you ever need more. I'm sure Mai and Ji'An will watch out for Shun'u for us."
Shion didn't know what to make of Aidou's sudden change of attitude towards her brother until they were out of sight of the others and Aidou suddenly started laughing. "Oh. sweet Suzaku," she gasped out through her laughter, eyes shining brightly, "I'm so glad you did that!"
"I would have thought you'd have been upset," Shion said, confused. "You didn't want Shun'u riding earlier."
"I just didn't want to ride with him, it's ok if he does on his own. An' I'm so glad you decided to let him ride and not those two."
"You're not close to your sisters?"
"Suzaku, no! They're ok sometimes, but most of the time they're just like they were back there when it's just us kids around! Then when Mom or Dad show up they turn into the world's biggest suckups, and tattletales! They always get everything they want because Mom thinks they're such angels. That's why I'm really glad you let Shun'u ride instead of them. They get everything and The Brat rarely gets anything."
Shion glanced at her, surprised at the warm affection coloring the term the other girls had used with such derision to describe their brother. "You like Shun'u then?"
Aidou had gotten over her laughing fit, and now smiled slightly. "Never tell him that," she said, "but yeah. Someone has to watch out to make sure he doesn't always get left out in the cold, right? The problem is he never really seems to ask for what he wants, so of course no one knows when he wants something. I was really surprised today when he actually stood up for his right to ride on your horse."
Shion's eyebrows raised as he looked at her. "If you're really so interested in seeing that your brother gets his fair share of things," he said, "then why were you about to throw a log at him earlier when he did ask to ride Yume?"
Aidou has the grace to blush slightly, but her tone of voice wasn't the least repentant as she said, "Just 'cause I don't want the others walkin' all over him doesn't mean I want him to think he can get anything he wants outta me! I want him to have some repect for me. Don't you have any brothers or sisters, to know how it is?" Then her hands flew over her mouth and her eyes widened as she saw Shion stiffen and his eyes fill with tears.
"Yes, I... I did," he said, voice thick with tears as he remembered the real Shion, and the fact that he would never see any of the rest of his family again.
"Oh Suzaku, Shion, I'm so sorry. I forgot, I never would have brought it up if I had remembered..."
"No, it's alright." He said, fighting as hard as he could against the tears, "I only mentioned it to your mom, I didn't expect you to remember."
Aidou's eyes filled with pity and she stepped forward, pulling him into her arms and holding him tightly. "Go ahead and cry Shion," she said gently to the boy, "I'm the only one here and I won't tell anyone."
And Shion followed her softly spoken order, the full force of her pain at the loss of her family, gone with just as much finality as if they really had died, hit him for the first time. He lost all track of time as the tears poured from him to the accompaniment of deep shuddering sobs. The world faded away around him and he didn't notice how after awhile Shun'u came looking for them and, once he noticed what was happening, got the rope himself and took care of the horse with some help from his mother who had come out to call them into lunch. All that mattered at the moment was the pain in his heart, and the comfort that was being offered.
Finally the tears ceased to flow, though Aidou didn't loosen her grip and Shion didn't try to pull away. For a long while they just sat in silence, then Shion started talking in a low voice that Aidou would have had to strain to hear had she not been so close. "My brother was five years older then me," he said, "but he was my friend. I didn't really see him much, he was always out helping my dad while I stayed home and help mom since I was younger, but when he came home he'd always play with me even though he was tired and hungry from working all day. We lived in the same room most of my life, it was only a year ago that he decided to move into the attic so we'd both have more room."
"What about your parents?" Aidou asked, her voice just as soft.
"My mom was the most wonderful woman in the world. We were very poor, but she always was able to find treats to give me and my brother, or games for us all to play. My dad..." he sighed, "my dad didn't like me. I guess because he never wanted another kid since he already had a boy. My brother would inherit everything when he died, and I was just another mouth to feed and he didn't want to waste his money on that. I didn't know for a long long time how much he hated me, I loved him and was blind to the fact he didn't feel the same way toward me. I only realised the truth a little while before the fire."
"Well..." Aidou smiled, "if it makes you feel any better I can be your sister!"
"What?" Shion blinked at her, wondering if the girl had suddenly gone insane.
"Well, not really silly! But we could pretend. And I bet Shun'u would like having a big brother too. If you wanted to Mom and Dad would probably even let you stay here forever! I mean, you said your uncle didn't even know you were coming, so he'll never miss you if you don't show up!"
For a brief moment Shion considered it. He could easily believe that Aidou was right. That if he just asked her mother would take him in and they could live together forever after, just like a real family. It was a nice vision, but he knew it was impossible. He wouldn't be able to hide his true gender forever. He couldn't impose on their kindness like that. He couldn't betray his real family by replacing them as soon as he had left them. For all these reasons, and more, he couldn't stay with them. "I'm sorry Aidou. I'd love to stay here, but I can't. It's not what my family would have wanted."
"Yeah, I guess you do have to get to your uncle's house. You'll come visit sometimes, right?"
"Sure! I'd love to come by whenever I get a chance to."
"Great!" Aidou said, grinning. "You'll have to be careful of the bandits when you come by, but they should leave you alone since you're just a kid. Other then that there isn't much to worry about if you stay on the paths. It was really dangerous trying to follow the river though." The girl put on a mockfrown and took a slightly scolding tone, "Don't you know there are tigers in the woods?"
"I didn't think of that. But I could probably find my way by the roads from here without getting lost. An' if I did I could just turn around and start off from here again, right?"
"You don't have to worry about that until tomorrow anyways. And you can always come back, my mom likes you. Now lets get food, Ok?"
"OH! I forgot about Yume!" Shion said guiltily.
"It's ok, Shun'u took care of her. Now lets go!" Aidou jumped up and began running toward the door to the house, the boy following close behind.
"Do you really think you'll be able to get away with this?"
S glanced up at the ruby-winged man who had silently walked up behind him, and smiled slightly. "There's no reason I shouldn't. I'm following all the rules about destiny changing." He looked fondly down at the young crossdresser from his invisible position in the skies above. "It's too late to save the others from their fates, but she'll be happy."
"Seiryuu, why did I agree to help you with this?" The man asked, running a slender hand through his flame like hair, "I keep feeling like mother's going to come down off her mountain and start yelling at us about messing in the affairs of our seishi."
Seiryuu chuckled at the other god's discomfort, while at the same time wrapping a companionly arm around his shoulder. "We're scarcly children Suzaku, she can't do anything unless we break the rules, which we haven't. If one god gets the help of another he's allowed to change the destiny of one of his seishi. Just because it's never happened before doesn't make it any less true."
"There's a reason it's never happened before."
"Sure, none of us have ever wanted to make a change that would help another before! Suzaku, stop sounding so upset! Once her powers manifest themselves they will be used to help Konon, not Kutou. You should be happy, not moping about how you're afraid of going against tradition."
Suzaku sighed and rested his head against Seiryuu's shoulder, eyes drifting shut. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do? I'm happy to help her, but now that she's on her own, without fate carrying her through her life, how do we know that whatever happens to her will be better then what would have if we hadn't intervened?"
"There are very few ways it could be worse. But, I understand what you're saying. That's why I'm sending her dreams, and teaching her things that'll help her through her life. Which reminds me, I have to see about getting a sword from Taiitsukun for her..."
"Don't even think of asking for the diety sword!" Suzaku said, bapping Seiryuu lightly on the head. "That's already been claimed for one of my seishi. I'm still a little upset about your decisions to teach her swordfighting like that by the way, it seems way to much like Hotohori's power. She's already going to be one of the most powerful seishi without giving her more powers."
"It's not like that! The whole point of Hotohori's power was that he could pick up a sword and beat someone in a fight with it the first time he ever tried, without any training. If she tried that she'll probably cut off her own leg or something. She'll have to taught before she can fight. And it's not like she'll be able to learn that way when she's not asleep."
"Ok, ok, I've agreed not to argue about that, remember. But what was that earlier with Tasuki? I could tell she could sense his ki! That is not one of her powers!"
Seiryuu blushed slightly, "Ok, that is my fault. But it's not like she'll ever learn to use bouchu magic now! She can't manipulate ki like she would have been able to, so she can sense it instead. It's a fair trade!"
Suzaku chuckled. "Ok, I'll accept that," he said, eyes shining. "Now, I think it's safe to say she's ok, at least for today. So how about we go home?"
Seiryuu glanced down at his seishi once more, then smiled down at Suzaku. "I think that's a wonderful idea."
And the two gods disappeared as if they had never been there, leaving the world to take care of itself for awhile.
------
Ugh, chap. 1's finally out. The prologue I typed out in the library one day when I had a bunch of time to spare, but at the same time I didn't have the notebook this fic was kept in and had to remember what happened in it off the top of my head. Because of that I didn't realise how little the feel of it, and much of the first few chapters, fit the later parts of the fic. They skim over things which later become importent for one thing, and the writing style's a little different. The whole fic was written during whatever little pieces of time I could find between school and work over a very long period of time, so by the end I had forgotten what the beginning was like, which when I reread it was a problem. So, this chapter and the next are almost completely new material, then after that it should start coming much faster since most of what I already have starts being Ok to use.
By the way, if you somehow don't know, Kou Shun'u is Tasuki's real name. The only one of his sisters who was given a name was Aidou so I went with the rumored names for the other sister's we saw, and I just chose a name for his mom off a babyname website.
I'd like to thank my beta readers, Sarah and Connie. You wouldn't believe a few of the stupid mistakes I made that had to be pointed out to me.
I'd also like to thank the people who reviewed me at fanfiction.net, who were great for feeding my ego at moments where I got completely sick of typing and needed something to remind me why I was putting it up for other people to see instead of just keeping it in my notebook for myself alone, like I do with most of my fics.