Many Faces of a Friend
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Author's notes: By darkness, i mean good, and by light, I mean evil. Simple as that, the yin and yang. Again, written with bad writers block. *smack smack*
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Houjun stirred, his senses tingling. Ryuuen's soft breathing seemed undisturbed. Of course, it had to be another demon. He glanced outside the window as he got out of bed, noting that it was nearly sunrise. Quickly he decided to just dress up as Chichiri and scope out the situation before attacking. He attached the mask to his face, and headed out into the hall. Carefully he creeped past the rooms towards the area where he sensed the demon. It was a small beast, cat-like it form with large paws. It growled, but didn't move from it's position. Chichiri backed up slightly, as a figure suddenly materialized next to it. The long robe and hair belonged only to one person: Tomo.

The magician laughed, stroking the beast carefully. "So, you're the one," he said slowly.

"That-that's not a demon, is it no da?" Chichiri found himself asking, before he could stop.

Tomo shook his head slightly. "Of course not, he's merely one of my many pets."

Chichiri hit a wall, not able to back up any further. "Wha-what are you doing?"

"Searching for the one that's been DESTROYING my reputation."

"I-i-i-i," he stuttered. Suddenly the walls gripped his arms, turning into gaurds. "Suboshi! Amiboshi!" he cried, as the twins pinned his arms behind his back.

"Sorry Chichiri, we gotta do this," Amiboshi said, his voice soft and frightened. Then, he raised an arm and struck the side of his friend's head, taking him out with one blow. Suboshi bit his lip, looking away as this happened.

Tomo nodded towards his pet, which jumped into the air, creating a glowing chain with its tail. This, they used bind Chichiri's unconcious body, and carry him to the main hall.

Tasuki was woken up by a group of gaurds, and was now being carried towards the main hall. "What's going on?!" he asked, authority dripping with every word.

"We're merely presenting you to the one who's been endangering your life, and the lives of the people in the palace," one gaurd said.

They pushed the prince from behind, into the hall where Tomo was standing with his pet. "Tomo," he hissed. He looked to and saw both Hotohori and his father standing in the back, obviously there for the same reason.

"Ah, Prince Tasuki, I thought it would be most appropriate for you to see the villain up close and personal," the magician said, and gestured to the gaurds to bring in the prisoner. At that same instant Tasuki saw Nuriko run into the room, his eyes wild with fright.

The gaurds carried Chichiri in, his face dull. He had awoken earlier, but he could no longer keep magic into the mask. Instead it's expression was flat, and unsmiling. "Chichiri?" Tasuki gasped, taking a step. He heard Nuriko take in a breath next to him.

"Tomo! What are you doing to her!?" he cried.

"Her?" Tomo laughed, "on the contrary Prince." One of his hands moved to Chichiri's face, ripping the mask off. Tasuki backed off. There was the face of the man who'd rescued him all those times before. Somewhere in the depths of his mind he couldn't accept the fact that the "angel" had been a girl the whole time.

The magican continued to laugh. "Ah, that's not all!" With one swift movement, he tore at the robes by Chichiri's chest, revealing his true form.

"NO!" Nuriko cried, running towards his brother, only to be caught by a group of gaurds. "No! Those were mother's!!" he continued to cry. He was overtaken with grief and anger that he couldn't concentrate to use his strength.

"Aha! Merely a man in disguse," Tomo announced. "He's been living in the castle! That's why he's been able to send the demons here!" He started laughing.

Tasuki dropped to his knees. All that time he trusted Chichiri, only to find that... that... he was the warrior at night. He didn't want to believe that he was the one trying to kill them. He... he saved them! Desperately he tried to find a way to speak, but no words could pass from his numb lips.

Nakago took a step. "Take him to the dungeon. A trial will follow today at sunset. If found guilty he will be executed before the sun rises," he declared.

Hotohori looked away at the sight of his brother on the ground. Nuriko was dragged away sobbing, unable to fight back. Angerily he cried out towards his brother. Houjun looked up at him, a small smile on his lips, as if to comfort his younger brother. With that he was hoisted up by the gaurds and taken to the levels below the palace.

Tasuki stared at the floor, an expression of disbelief on his face. His brain wasn't computing the situation properly, and all he could do was mouth, "No... no... no..."

~*~

He waited, just a moment longer, his back pressed against the cold brick. The dungeons were amazingly built, resembling the dark stone corridors of a western castle. The last two gaurds walked past him, talking about their only prisoner. Tasuki snuck past them, until he reached the end of the hall, where the last door was left. The twin gaurds were on the floor, apparently asleep. The young prince was amazed at how easy it was to rescue his "angel."

He gripped the lock in his hands and hissed, "Rekka Shinen." Fire billowed from his fingers, melting the lock, and allowing the door to swing open. Houjun's body was lying against the cold stone wall, obviously unconcious. Tasuki stared at the scarred face that saved him many times before. "Now it's my turn to do the rescuing," he whispered, scooping the older man into his arms, and starting outwards.

Amiboshi and Suboshi had somehow awakened, and were now staring intently at the prince.

"Move! Don't make me blast you!" he cried, holding out one hand, which was already turning red.

The twins shook their heads fiercefully. "Please, don't hurt us," Amiboshi said, extending his arms. "Houjun and Ryuuen are our two best friends... we'll let you go. But, it won't last too long... be careful Prince."

"And when he wakes up, give Houjun our sincerest apologies," Suboshi added, and the two watched as the Prince, carrying the limp form of their friend sprinted down the hall.

Tasuki managed to get out of the dungeon, when the loud footsteps of gaurds surrounded his hearing. "REKKA SHINEN!" he cried, allowing a billowing fire burst from his hands, and block the other hallways. He pressed Houjun tighter to his chest, as he picked up speed. His lungs burned for air, as he pushed through the gate, and beyond the gaurd of the palace. The warm surroundings melted away, into a cold desolate wasteland. He knew perfectly well that the soldiers would not go farther than the magic, so for the time being he was safe. Tasuki cradelled Houjun in his arms, looking around for someplace to go.

A soft giggle reached his ears, and he turned around only to see nothing. Then another giggle, and another, until finally something cried, "Nyan-nyan!" At that moment, a trio of girls appeared around him, each of them floating a nearly a meter of the ground.

"Whaa-- what the hell are you!?" he cried.

"Wooo... Poor Houjun," one girl said, flying a little closer to the unconcious body.

"Ne... Prince Tasuki... what happened to him?"

"Tsk, tsk.. didn't you take care of him? He's very special!"

Tasuki clutched Houjun closer to his chest once more. "Hey, it's not my fault Tomo's a power crazy magician!"

"But why haven't you brought him to Mitsukake yet?"

"Who's that?" The young prince was starting to get annoyed by the magical entities, smiling and flying around him. The way they spoke with their singsong, cat-like voice he wouldn't be surprised if they were actually mocking him.

"The town doctor!" the trio cried in unison, before popping away in a swirl of pink bubbles.

Tasuki looked down at Houjun and shook his head. "Man Chichiri, you sure know how to make weird fri-- wait... did they call you Houjun? Is that your name?" He looked away suddenly realizing he was talking to a vegtable, forget learning his real name. Keeping in mind the name of the doctor, he started towards the small houses.

~*~

"Houjun's strong, he'll get through this," Mitsukake said, pulling the woolen blankets over Houjun, who had been stripped of the useless robes.

Tasuki sat down on a hard wooden bench, his back against the wall. "So, his name hi Houjun... and... you know him?" he asked, looking up at the ceiling.

The doctor made sweeping motions with his left hand across the unconcious man's body, while replying, "We grew up together, he's barely 2 years older than me. Helped me become a doctor before he left our village."

"So, maybe you know why he was in the palace?"

Mitsukake looked up at the prince. "Yes, unfortunately. As children his parents sold both him and his brother--"

"Wait... brother?" Tasuki interuppted, snapping to attention.

"Yes, Ryuuen."

The firey haired prince thought quickly, and an image of the violet haired Nuriko appeared in his mind. "Hold on, is this Ryuuen a really pretty boy? Got purple hair? Can pass as a girl even better than Chi-- Houjun?" he asked.

The tall man nodded, confirming Tasuki's guess. "He's around your age, 18."

"I'm 17, my brother's 18... but that doesn't matter. Can you tell me something about those demons?" Tasuki attempted changing the subject, hoping to possibly figure out a way to clear Houjun's name.

The doctor sat down next to the prince, towering above him. "The demons are part of this earth. As she purges herself of evil to restore balance, demons are created, and people are him and his brother are created when she purges herself of goodness.

No matter how you look at it, Houjun and Ryuuen are deeply connected to the demons, as well as myself. People born with a special ability are nothing more that the polar opposites of the demons. However, at the same time, they aren't demons, merely lost souls of darkness."

Tasuki stared at Houjun's sleeping form as Mitsukake explained the legend of the earth. A small smile crossed his face as he heard that he was made of darkness. 'He really is like an angel,' he thought to himself.

"However, we don't quite understand why he was so special, he seemed much more connected to the earth, to the demons. They seemed to follow him."

He prince was shocked out of his thoughts hearing the doctor's previous words. "Hold on," he said, interupting him, "so... the recent attacks in the palace is because of Chi-- Houjun?"

"Oh, yes, I heard of that... and possibly yes."

Tasuki held his head in his hands, unsure of what to make of this new knowledge. "No, I don't care... even if he is the cause for all this... I will not have him convicted!!" he cried.

~*~

Houjun sat up, no longer in pain, but his head was swimming. The room was relatively dark, save for a flickering oil lamp near the far end of the room. A sillouhete of a large bulky figure was sitting next to him, one he recognized so easily as Mitsukake. A smile crossed his lips and he greeted happily, "Mitsukake no da!"

"Good to see you've gotten better," the large man, covering Houjun's hand with his own.

"How did I get here no da?"

Mitsukake stood up and carried the lamp towards the blue haired man, shining the light in a spot in the corner of the room. Houjun could make out a huddled shape on a wooden bench, which had a shock of orange hair. He looked at the doctor and exclaimed, "The prince brought me here?"

His friend nodded. "Quite determined he was, to make sure you got better," he said after a moment.

"How did he know to find you na no da?"

"The Nyan-Nyan of course. They've always been right there to help you."

Houjun chuckled to himself, thinking of the small spirits that constantly appeared to help him before he went into the palace. He brought a hand to his head, noticing that it was still a little heavy. "We got to get Tasuki back to the palace no da," he said, while getting out of the bed.

Mitsukake shook his head. "He won't go back, he said he'll stay here until he knows you're safe from conviction. You must have gotten into some trouble there."

"Yeah, I did no da." Houjun stood up from the bed, the pants too large for him. He looked at the clothes forlornly. "Mitsukake no da, you know your clothes are too big for me na no da."

"I'm sorry Houjun, I had nothing else." The larger man pushed him down, one hand glowing. "Now, sit down while I finish up on you. You might be awake, but you're not completely better."

As Mitsukake used a little bit more of his magic to heal Houjun, the blue haired man asked, "Who's been taking care of the demon attacks? Without Ryuuen and I--"

"Some guy named Tamahome... we had to pay him though, but it was all for a good cause. We get rid of the demons, and he gets money to buy his fiancee from the emperor."

Houjun blinked. "Pay?" He shook his head.

~*~

Hotohori stood by the entrance of the palace, the wind whipping his hair around him. He knew what his brother did, and he hoped to the four gods that he wasn't going to stick around to recieve the consequences.

*****

author's note: this was written during a case of bad writer's block... so it sucks. I offer much apologies... and please review... cuz I don't find myself driven to finish this anymore...