This chapter has a scene that could be easily mistaken for shounen-ai. Once again, I remind you that this will not become a yaoi fic. In this fic, Chichiri and Tasuki share a platonic love. That means friends, not lovers. My idea was for Chichiri to become almost a big brother to Tasuki. For all the yaoi fans out there, I'm sorry to disappoint you. If you want to interpret their relationship as a yaoi, go ahead, I have nothing against that. But my intent is for them to have a close friendship and nothing more.
Thinking in * *
Chapter 5: TransformationTasuki cried out as his skin stiffened painfully. It felt as though thousands of needles were being pushed through his skin from the inside. If he had been able to open his eyes at that moment, Tasuki would have seen that it was not needles, but crimson hair forcing its way out of his skin. Every inch of his face burned with the heat of a thousand fires. His nose and mouth began to elongate, pulled by some unknown hand. He could feel his ears stretch and pull upwards on his head. His gums ached considerably as all of his teeth began to sharpen into points. His throat constricted painfully and when he attempted to scream out the pain that soared though his entire body, all that came out was an inhuman whine.
Below his neck, Tasuki's body screamed with pain. Every fiber in his muscles was expanding rapidly as his entire body grew in size. His chest broadened while the muscles in his arms and legs bulged. He could feel the weight on his feet shift completely toward his toes as his heel was pulled further out, splitting his boots. Something long and furry brushed against the back of one thigh; which, if he had been looking, he would have known to be a crimson wolf's tail. The nails on his hands stretched from his fingertips to form dagger-like claws. The same occurred to the nails on his feet. The pain became too much for the seishi as he fell to his knees and clutched his head in his hands in a pitiful attempt to block out the pain.
Meanwhile, Chichiri stood with every muscle in his body frozen with fear as he watched the transformation in horror. He could hear ripping sounds as growing muscles covered in long fur tore through Tasuki's shirt. The whines and yelps of pain that flew from Tasuki's mouth were like physical blows to the monk. Chichiri's mind raced with guilt at seeing his friend in such agony. Despite the endless number of times that Tasuki had said it wasn't his fault, Chichiri could not help but blame himself for the younger seishi's pain. *If I was only faster and more perceptive, this never would have happened to him. It's all my fault. Everything is my fault.*
After what seemed like a lifetime of watching Tasuki transform, crying out in endless agony, Chichiri was only partially relieved to see the transformation end. Tasuki remained on his knees with his head bowed and his breath coming out in short gasps.
*But now is when the trouble will really begin.*
Time seemed to stop for a moment. Neither Chichiri or the newly transformed Tasuki moved. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity of silence, the lupine Tasuki staggered to his feet with a throaty growl. Chichiri just stared at his friend for a moment, taking in the site. Tasuki was now even taller than Mitsukake. His entire body was covered in fiery red fur. His bare chest had become extremely muscular along with his arms and legs. His face had become that of a long muzzled wolf, complete with curved fangs and erect ears. His hair had become long fur that hung down his back and stopped where a tail had formed below his waist. Chichiri would never have recognized his friend if it weren't for the colorful beads draped around the werewolf's neck and the trademark earrings dangling from his pointed ears.
When the werewolf opened its glowing amber eyes and turned them to Chichiri, the monk realized that he was standing alone in the middle of an open field. The horses had run off during the transformation, leaving him with no means of escape. What was worse was the way the newly transformed Tasuki was looking at him; like a starved animal looked upon wounded prey. Tasuki crouched low, ready to pounce and strike his prey down. Chichiri knew that he had to move fast or else he would be killed. Just as Tasuki was about to pounce, the monk used his magic to swiftly teleport far behind his lupine friend.
Tasuki roared in frustration as his prey had escaped. He was starving and needed blood. If his first prey had escaped, then there was only one thing to do. He would have to find a new prey to satisfy his growing hunger for flesh. He raised his muzzle to the sky and sniffed. There had to be flesh somewhere. He needed meat. He needed to feel blood on his teeth. All he wanted was flesh. He sniffed again. Yes, there was flesh nearby; young flesh. He had to have this delicious smelling meat.
Chichiri was only slightly relieved to see Tasuki run off in another direction. Apparently, his lycanthrope friend had found something else to hunt. He assumed that it was probably some forest animal. Still, the monk had a very uneasy feeling.
"I should probably follow him," He muttered to himself. "He may be away from people, but he could still cause some serious damage in this feral state."
The monk raced after the werewolf through the forest. Having spent so much time with the bandits of Mt. Reikaku, Tasuki was able to hide his tracks among trees very well, so that only the most skilled trackers could follow him. But now that he was part wolf, Chichiri found tracking his friend to be almost impossible. The monk had paused in a clearing to determine which way Tasuki had gone when a high pitched scream from deeper in the forest caught his attention.
*K'sou!* Chichiri swore to himself. *I had thought that there would not be any people around this area. Apparently, I was wrong.*
The screams grew louder as Chichiri dashed through the forest toward them. He stumbled into a small clearing and looked on in horror as a young girl, no older than seven or eight, was staring right into the glowing amber eyes of a gigantic wolf with fur like fire. The girl was pale, her eyes wide with fear. Her voice was hoarse from screaming.
Chichiri could see Tasuki poised to attack. There was no other alternative. Without a second thought, the monk leapt at the snarling monster and latched his arms around the beast's neck.
"Tasuki, stop this! This isn't your way! You said you didn't want to hurt any one, didn't you!?"
Tasuki merely roared and flung Chichiri off with a single swipe of his clawed hand. The monk crashed to the ground with a sickening thud. Tasuki snorted at the monk before turning his attention back to the girl. He desired flesh immediately and the young one would go down much easier than this new threat.
From his position on the ground, Chichiri could see the apparent blood lust on his friend's face. If he didn't do something, Tasuki would kill an innocent child.
An incantation suddenly flashed through Chichiri's head. Without thinking, the monk raised a hand to his prayer beads and began chanting. As he did, a soft red light surrounded Tasuki and the beast slowed his advances, apparently confused.
"Tasuki!" Chichiri cried. "This is not your way! Please try to remember who you are!"
The beast came to a stop and looked at the monk blankly. Chichiri could see something flicker across Tasuki's face. Was it fear? *Is he scared?*
The red light began to glow vibrantly with the monk's chanting. To Chichiri's surprise, he could see sense returning to Tasuki's amber eyes. He glanced over at the girl still trembling behind to massive form of Tasuki.
"Run for it!" He shouted. "I may not be able to hold him back much longer!"
The monk allowed himself to breathe a tiny sigh of relief as he watched the girl scamper off into the forest before returning his full attention to the spell being cast upon Tasuki. The enormous werewolf stood in place. His eyes showed obvious signs of an internal conflict as they flickered between pure gold and white with black and amber.
"Come on Tasuki," The monk cried through his clenched teeth. "I know you can fight this. Suzaku-sama, help me!"
The light surrounding Tasuki suddenly became blinding. The werewolf collapsed to his knees, his hands clutching his head as he howled in pain. To Chichiri's surprise, he could see Tasuki's symbol flare up on the beast's right arm. Without warning, the light exploded, knocking both Chichiri and Tasuki back.
Chichiri sat up and began to rub a large bump that was forming on his forehead. "What was that no da?" He grumbled to himself.
What answered him was a low groan coming from the direction of the fallen werewolf. The beast stirred after a few moments, before attempting to push itself up off the ground. Chichiri stayed where he was, not daring to move. He had no idea what the spell he had cast would do. It was something he vaguely recalled learning from Taiitskun three years ago. Was Tasuki still a feral killer, or had that spell subdued him? The giant wolf sat up and proceeded to rub the back of his head, all the while moaning in pain. Chichiri continued to stare, not sure what he should do. The werewolf finally looked up and saw the monk sitting on the ground only a few feet away. To Chichiri's surprise, the werewolf's eyes had reverted back to the amber human eyes of Tasuki.
"Chichiri?" The werewolf groaned in a scratchy voice.
The monk could hardly believe his ears. "Tasuki-kun? Is it really you no da?"
But Tasuki did not answer. Instead he stared at his clawed hands in horror and utter disbelief. He ran a claw over his long muzzle while his breath came out in ragged gasps.
"Chi-Chichiri," Tasuki croaked. "W-what…what am I?"
"Tasuki," Chichiri began. Tasuki didn't let him finish though. With a sharp, canine cry, he raced off into the forest.
"Tasuki, matte!" Chichiri called after him.
The monk scrambled to his feet and hurried after his troubled friend. Now that Tasuki seemed to have regained some of his human qualities, tracking him through the forest became much easier for the monk. Chichiri finally spotted the younger seishi by a pond after a few minutes of running. Tasuki sat on a rock with his knees pulled up to his chest and his ears lying flat on his head. He sat in silence, staring at his lupine reflection. His ears perked up as Chichiri approached.
"So this is it huh?" he mumbled. "This is what the curse does. It turns you into a monster and robs you of your human mind. I was nothing more than a blood lusting demon back there."
"It's not your fault," Chichiri replied in his most serious tone as he began to take a seat next to Tasuki.
The werewolf jerked away from his friend. "Don't come near me, Chichiri! I have control over my blood lust now, but I can feel it trying to break back to the surface. I don't know how much longer I can control it. If I falter at all, it'll come back and I might try to hurt you again." A tiny sob broke his voice. "I didn't want to hurt anyone, but I almost killed you and that kid back there. Try as I did, I couldn't stop my mind from craving blood or my body from attacking."
Ignoring the way the younger seishi flinched when he got near, Chichiri pulled off his mask and defiantly sat down in front of Tasuki. "This is what happens to those under the werewolf curse, Tasuki. You don't have any control over your instincts; just as you had no control of the situation when you were bitten no da."
Tasuki held hastily averted his eyes. He couldn't stand looking into that single, expressive eye. "I know I couldn't control it. I just thought that because I was a Suzaku seishi, maybe I could've been able to handle it better than a normal person...but I was wrong. Kisama, I could've killed someone back there. Or worse, I could've given that kid the curse. I could've given you the curse."
"But you didn't no da," Chichiri's eye softened as he turned Tasuki's head to force the younger seishi to look at him. "You were able to regain control and stop yourself before any damage was done no da."
Tasuki bit back a sigh of relief. Hearing the familiar 'no da' was helping to quell the anger, doubt, and self-loathing that welled up inside of him. "I didn't gain control on my own, Chichiri. I probably wouldn't have stopped myself in time if it wasn't for that spell you cast. What d'ya to me anyway?"
Chichiri gave Tasuki a ghost of a smile. "I'm not really sure no da. I just suddenly remembered a spell I had learned while training under Taiitskun. I had completely forgotten what it would do, but somehow I knew to use it. Apparently it weakened your werewolf instincts and allowed your seishi soul to break through and regain control of your mind and body no da."
"Not quite," Tasuki grumbled. "I'm in control now, but I can still feel it; the blood lust. I can't fight it. K'sou, Chichiri, I need flesh! I don't know why, I just do. Right now, the need for blood is battling with my human instincts. I don't know what to do. What am I gonna do, Chichiri?"
It broke Chichiri's heart to see Tasuki in this agony. "There is not much we can do until the sun comes up no da. Once it does, you'll return to your human form and we can stop at an inn to rest and try to figure out a way to find the werewolf that cursed you no da. Until then, perhaps that nose of yours can sniff out some wild animals to hunt. I know that werewolves typically crave human blood, but I highly doubt that you want to hunt people no da. You'll just have to make do with smaller animals until we can figure out a way to get your human mind to override your animal instincts."
Tasuki seemed to be lost in his own thoughts for a few minutes. Chichiri pulled away and shifted so that he was sitting next to the werewolf instead of in front of him. Tasuki turned to look back at the older seishi with pleading amber eyes.
"Arigatou, Chichiri. After what's happened tonight, I know that I can't handle this alone. I'm glad that you're here with me."
Chichiri gave Tasuki a rare, genuine smile. "Tasuki, I promised that I would stay and help you and I meant it no da. I will help you find the werewolf that bit you no da. We will see this whole ordeal through to the end together no da."
For the first time that evening, Tasuki smiled. He nodded firmly to Chichiri before turning his eyes up to the starlit sky.
That night, the waning moon shown brightly on two friends sitting side by side; ready to face whatever came their way together.
A/N: The ending's a little sappier than I intended it to be, but I wrote this late at night when I was too tired to be emotionally constipated. For those of you who are wondering about the serious lack of no da's from Chichiri, it's because he was completely serious until the end of the chapter. If this chapter got a little to angsty, don't worry. The next chapter's a bit more lighthearted. Keep the reviews coming, everyone.