Seiryuu Den – Gaiden Two

Seiryuu Den – Gaiden Two

Chapter Two: The New Student

Sukunami Hoshi couldn't believe it. He was running late on the first day of the new season of school. He was on the final year of college. He never thought he would be able to survive as long as he did in school. At the age of twenty-two, he was graduating from university with a degree in English. There were delays here and there because of his activities as a Seiryuu seishi. Nonetheless, he was running really late today of all days. His uncle, Yuuki Keisuke, would probably say that he's acting like his mother, Miaka. He parked his car in haphazard manner in a parking spot and took running through class. Fumbling with door knobs and scrambling to get to class on time was not Hoshi's idea of fun. 'If I could just use my powers, I could phase through the walls and get to class on time. Dammit. Why the Hell was there so much traffic today? I even got out early!' he thought as he finally wretched the door open to his class.

The sensei had paused in the middle of his directions to look at Hoshi, who was incredibly embarrassed. "Sukunami Hoshi?" he asked as he looked at the roster. The class was one of the advance classes for the English majors of Tokyo University. Sukunami Hoshi was one of the top English majors out of the entire university. The sensei was British, and was peering at Hoshi over the rims of his glasses. "You are late," he stated in a very frank manner. Hoshi wished he could have avoided this class, but he couldn't it was one of the requirements he needed to graduate with.

"My apologizes, Sensei," said Hoshi in perfect English devoid of a Japanese accent as he bowed his head slightly.

"I've just started to instruct the class on their final project. It was jolly good that you decided to show up, Mr. Sukunami. Because you will need a partner for this assignment," the sensei said in English. Hoshi looked at him with his lips parted slightly. He couldn't believe it. He was late on the day he had to pick someone to work with. Big problem because Hoshi hated to work with a stranger.

"But, I don't have a partner," said Hoshi in English. It didn't matter what language he was speaking because his voice would have slightly trembled either way.

"Mr. Nicholas, please greet your new partner. You're lucky, Mr. Sukunami because Mr. Nicholas just transferred to this university today," said the sensei. A tall man from the back of the room came up to them. He was a little taller than Hoshi. He had blonde hair and ice blue eyes that seem to freeze over anyone who looked directly at them. He was broad shouldered and muscular. He was definitely a foreigner.

"Sukunami Hoshi, this is your partner, Ivan Nicholas. Ivan Nicholas, this is your partner, Sukunami Hoshi. Or rather for all intensive purposes of this class, Hoshi Sukunami. Remember, in the West, it's family name last," reminded the sensei.

Both men looked at each other. Hoshi held out his hand, and Ivan took it. They shared a firm handshake. Hoshi knew that was how most Westerns liked to greet each other.

"I look forward to working with you," said Ivan with a slight accent that was unidentifiable to Hoshi, but his English was good.

"Likewise," said Hoshi in English.

Ivan looked straight into Hoshi's gray eyes. He smirked slightly as he released Hoshi's hand. Hoshi saw him walk back to his desk. There was a chill that Hoshi felt that he couldn't shake off. A creepy feeling that just wouldn't leave him. Who was his partner? Why was Hoshi feeling so disturbed after meeting this person? There was something so familiar about him.

* * *

"PAY ME BACK OR ELSE!" shouted Kajiwara Seijitsu as he grabbed Asaiya Tei's shirt in a violent gesture.

"Stop, Sei. Please," pleaded Sasaki Yoshi as he grabbed on to Sei's arm because it looked like he was going to punch Tei in the face.

"I'll pay you back I swear," said Tei in a soothing voice with hopes of calming down Sei.

"You'd better," said Sei as he narrowed his hazel eyes. Yoshi was sweatdropped. Tei had swirls in his eyes. Who would have thought that these three second year college students were the first seishi for Suzaku, Genbu, and Byakko? Sei's kanji on his forehead was glowing slightly. Yoshi looked slightly panicked when he saw it.

"Stop…your forehead, Sei," whispered Yoshi. He was known as Yogensha, the seer. He was the first Genbu seishi and a medical school major. Yogensha was always the one who had to break up any fights that Sei and Tei were constantly having. Tei was the first Byakko seishi and an accounting/business major. His seishi name was Inochi or life. Inochi's powers was the ability to grow plants with his chi. The definition of Seijtsu's name was loyalty. Three days after his birth, his mother, Yui, saw the red symbol for loyalty on his forehead. This made him the first Suzaku seishi. He was a journalist/liberal arts major. He was a photographer, and his dream was to be a photojournalist. Sei, as he preferred to be called, had powers of speed and agility, but there were extras: a pair of red wings that sprouted out of his back and the ability to create spirit balls. Of course, they hid their powers during the time they spent in their world, but when they were in the Universe of the Four Gods of Earth and Sky, they could freely use their powers. They also made it a point not to really address each other by their seishi names, but they did so in private. The three of them were the best of friends. Sei had to find new friends to hang out with after his miko and best friend, Sukanami Mariko, married and chose to stay in the other world on a more permanent basis. She called the three of them the "Three Stooges" because they acted very silly at times. Sei's fuse was getting shorter and shorter because he kept lending money to the deceivingly innocent looking Tei who was a compulsive gambler. Yogensha thought that Sei was just foolish to lend the money to Inochi in the first place. They finally settled down a bit. Hoshi was an upper classman who was on the brink of graduating. He also was the most aloof of the first seishi. Perhaps, it was because he was older than all of them, or because he was the first seishi for Seiryuu. The Seiryuu group was still trying to prove that they were nothing like the first generation of Seiryuu. Mariko claimed that he was far too mature to hang out with Sei, Inochi, and Yogensha because of their constant childish behavior.

Another young man approached them. He was about the same height as Yogensha, the shortest out of the three. He stood maybe an inch or two taller than Yogensha. Today was the day he had to introduce himself to the three of them as ordered to by his superior. He was eighteen years old, a year younger than them. He had dark blonde hair and a pair of dark blue eyes that were beautiful and soft, but most of the time it was hard to tell because he always looked so serious.

"Um…hello. I'm new here. My name is Bryan St. George. This is my first day here," said the young man rather shyly. Sei turned around to greet him, but it seemed to catch him off guard. He seemed to pale over slightly when Sei looked at him. It was fairly obvious that Bryan wasn't Japanese.

"My name is Kajiwara Seijitsu, but please call me Sei," said Sei as he gently smiled at him. 'That smile. I didn't get to see it that often, but…' thought Bryan.

"The name's Ayashi Tei. Please lend me some money," greeted Tei with sparkling eyes. Yoshi smacked him upside the head.

"Baka! Don't you have any shame? You're already in the hole with Sei. Don't listen to him. Hello, I'm Sasaki Yoshi. What year are you?" asked Yoshi.

"I'm a first year here, but I graduated out of a bordering school in the United States," answered Bryan.

"Ah. American. I should have known by your name. Well, you're free to hang out with us if you'd like," said Sei. He saw his father, Dr. Kajiwara Tetsuya, the head of the department of Chinese Literature in the university. He was on his way to a meeting. He saw his son with his friends, so Tetsuya waved to him. Sei waved back and smiled.

"Who was that?" asked Bryan with curiosity.

"Oh, that's my father. He works here," answered Sei with a casual shrug.

"You sound like you don't care, Sei. Bryan, he's a wonderful teacher. I want to take his class, but its been always full every time I sign up for classes," said Yoshi.

"Everyone wants to take his class," agreed Tei.

"Speak for yourselves. Not all of us want to take his class. No thank you. I live with him. And he's been teaching me things all my life," said Sei with a laugh.

"So, that's your father," said Bryan as he clutched his hands into fists. 'So, he's the one that she married. I see. I'll deal with him later,' he thought as he tried to listen to the conversation that the others were having. He studied Sei closely. He was informed that Sei was the first seishi for the Suzaku. Bryan thought that he looked like his mother, but Sei had that man's eyes. Why couldn't they be blue like his mother's? But, the smile on Sei's face as he laughed definitely belonged to Kajiwara Yui, the former Seiryuu no Miko.

* * *

The studio for the soap opera, Wings of Heaven, was next door to Studio Pierrot in Japan. Yumeno Hikari finally wrapped up the scene he was doing with his co-star Larissa Chambers. They were done for the day, and Larissa had to meet her boyfriend, Ivan Nicholas for lunch. Yumeno Hikari knew both of them, and he liked Ivan. Or rather he was in love with Ivan, but Larissa was Ivan's girlfriend, so Hikari didn't like her much. Not only was she competition for Ivan's affections, but her growing popularity on the soap opera was also bothering Hikari. She was an English actress who came from a long line of actors in England who preformed Shakespeare as well as other plays. She was also once a model. Hikari went to various training schools for acting in Japan and China. At the ages, of twenty-one and twenty-two, respectively, Larissa and Hikari were the top actors in Japan. Wings of Heaven was very popular. Hikari played a break through character, a homosexual who was in love with a heterosexual who was in love with Larissa Chambers' character. Her character refuses to return his affections, but the character in love with hers denies Hikari's character's affections. A love triangle that was making millions of viewers tune in five days a week.

"I'm off now," said Larissa in Japanese with a slight English accent.

"See you," said Hikari.

"Do you want a ride?" offered Larissa. It was only courtesy that she invited him along.

"No. It's not a good idea that I be seen with you, Chambers. I've got a reputation to maintain," answered Hikari with a superior tone. He ran his fingers through his shiny black hair.

"Alright then," said Larissa as she walked off to the limo that just pulled up. Her dark red hair swayed slightly as she walked off. 'What do men see in her?' he thought as he shook his head slightly. A massive dark figure was driving the limo, and he looked at Hikari slightly who nodded.

* * *

Ivan Nicholas observed Hoshi from his chair. 'So, this is the first Seiryuu seishi. Intriguing. He looks like him. Not a very comforting thought, but I'll just have to live with it. I hope he isn't as uncooperative as he was,' he thought. He was comparing Hoshi to someone he knew long ago, but Ivan made it a point not to even think about the man's name. The man who Hoshi reminded him of.

"For the final project of this course, you have been paired up. You must come up with a lesson plan for an entire year that you would use on students in any country. You must take into account any holidays and special assignments. In other words, put some thought into it and prove that you can graduate at all. There will be no makes up for this exam, and you all must complete this project with your partner. If you deviate from these guidelines, you will not pass this class. This class is to prepare you to be teachers. Teachers must interact with other teachers as well as students," droned on the professor.

Hoshi tried to pay attention to him, but he couldn't shake that creepy feeling that Ivan gave him earlier, and he knew without turning around that Ivan was watching him. 'What's up with this guy?' thought Hoshi. Finally, the two hour class was dismissed, and they met each other in the hall.

"We should probably trade numbers and e-mail addresses," suggested Hoshi uncomfortably.

"Here. I already wrote those out in class, and my home address as well. I would rather work there, if you don't mind," said Ivan as he handed a piece of folded notebook paper to Hoshi.

"Um…wait a sec," said Hoshi as he ripped out a piece of whole notebook paper and scribbled his home number and his e-mail address on it. He didn't want to give his uncle's apartment address to a perfect stranger because his uncle had difficult keeping some of his fans away.

"Thank you. I must leave. I have a lunch date. Good day to you, Hoshi Sukunami," said Ivan as he bowed slightly.

"Um…bye. We should call each other later to set up a good time to get together," said Hoshi nervously. Ivan nodded and waved to him. It wasn't until Ivan was out of sight did Hoshi feel any better. Finally, the air was getting warmer.

* * *

Kajiwara Yui was at home after a long day of work at the magazine that she was the editor-in-chief for. She shook her head when she came home because there was papers and coats tossed everywhere. 'Why can't they pick up after themselves?' thought Yui as she shook her head again. "Sei! Soki! Pick up your things before your father gets home!" she ordered them. The sound of hurried footsteps came down the stairs. Kajiwara Soki was her youngest son, and he had dark hair like his father's and his mother's large blue eyes. Sei was tall and lanky like his father was at his age. He had blonde hair like his mother, but he had his father's eyes.

"Okay! Mom, we'll pick up!" shouted Soki as he picked up Sei's coat and threw it at him. Sei caught it with ease.

"You little gaki!" sneered Sei with a grin.

"I'm not a little gaki!" shouted back Soki defensively.

"You're short," said Sei as he gestured at his fourteen year old brother's head. He was a good head and a half shorter than Sei.

"SHUT UP!" yelled back Soki.

"That's enough, you two. Can't you just do as I ask without fighting?" asked Yui with patience. She had a lot of patience for her sons.

"Where's Dad?" asked Soki.

"He's attending a bunch of meetings today. He said that he would be late," said Yui as she looked outside. 'I hope he isn't too late. It's getting dark out there, and the boys are getting on my nerves,' she thought as Soki threw another pillow at Sei who caught it again. They glared at each other. Honestly, couldn't a nineteen year old and a fourteen year old act more mature?

* * *

Tetsuya finally got out of his meeting with the other members of the school board heads. He loosened his tie as he headed for the parking lot to go home. All he wanted to do was get some rest and be with his family. He knew that everything was alright at home because Yui always made sure of that. Even after twenty years of marriage, Tetsuya still couldn't believe how lucky he was to have a wonderful wife like Yui. Tetsuya was going to pick up some flowers for her before getting home. He did that at least once a month for no real reason at all except because he loved his wife. Ever since they were married they were never separated from each other for more than three days at a time. Before their marriage, they survived a year's worth of separation because Yui got a job as an investigative reporter who did on the spot news for CNN. Yui traveled all over the world during the time because the job demanded it. Tetsuya approved of it because he was just barely starting out as a professor, and he didn't want to hamper her dreams. Yui couldn't stand being away from Japan for too long. She missed not just Tetsuya, but Miaka. So, one day she just quit her job without telling anyone, even Tetsuya and Miaka. Tetsuya came to New York to surprise at her office there, only to find out that she was gone. He ran in to her at the park. Yui said that she couldn't continue being unhappy, and that she knew that Tetsuya wasn't happy either, but he only wanted her to live her dreams. Yui said that her dreams had changed a long time ago when she survived being the Seiryuu no Miko. The experience taught her how to value things. Finally, in the end, Yui was the one who proposed to Tetsuya. What else could Tetsuya do but agree? She didn't care that he was just starting out, and that she was unemployed. All she care about was being back home in Japan with her family, friends, and him.

Tetsuya never knew how important he really was. Not only was the husband of the former Seiryuu no Miko, but he also sired one of the most powerful Suzaku seishi, Sei. Soki took after him in looks, but he had a personality all his own. Tetsuya had wonderful students who respected him because not only was an exceptional teacher, but fair one. He finally reached the level where his car was parked. Honestly, it was getting harder and harder to find decent parking in the university.

A person followed him to the parking lot, but Tetsuya didn't notice. The person had trailed Tetsuya ever since he came out of his office, and that person waited until he was alone. His dark blue eyes shined with total animosity for Tetsuya, and he held his weapon in his hands. He focused his eyes on Tetsuya who was now fumbling for his car keys. The object in the attacker's palm was spinning quietly. He held the other part of his weapon in his other palm. He pulled back his arm with the spinning object on it and hurled it at Tetsuya's back.

"ARGH!" shouted Tetsuya in surprise and pain. His eyeglasses slipped off the bridge of his nose. There were two spinning objects that he couldn't identify that were coming straight at him at high speeds. They hit him both at the same time. Tetsuya gasped and groaned in pain as he felt the objects smack him in the head and back. The weapon hit him over and over again.

"Uh," growled the attacker as he continued to pound Tetsuya with his weapon. He did it again and again. This was all for Yui-sama. All this was for her. At least, that was the thought that the attacker had.

"Yui…" mumbled Tetsuya as he was losing conscious from the loss of blood and the injuries to his body. The mention of her name stopped the attacker dead in his tracks. He scowled because Tetusya had said her name. How dare he mention her name at all? As Tetsuya loss his consciousness, he could have sworn that he saw a blue glow around his attacker's body.

~*~ClareBear's Omake~*~

The Seiryuu seishi have taken over the omake for the time being. So, here's Nakago interviewing the fully grown Yui.

Nakago: Are you still qualified to be our miko?

Yui: Not exactly.

Nakago: What to do you mean?

Yui: Well…

A little five year old blonde boy walks by, and he's followed by a little baby crawling with his big blue eyes.

Sei: Hi Mama! Bye Mama! (walks off)

Soki (takes out pacifier): baby talk…. (crawls off)

Yui: See?

Nakago: I see. Looks like we'll have to make other arrangements.

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Disclaimer: All standards apply. ClareBear owns story…and some of the characters, but not most of them.

Author's Note: So, what do you guys think so far? I am pretty sure that most of you have figured out what is going on right now.