~Tears of a Phoenix~
A Fushigi Yuugi/Harry Potter Crossover
DISCLAIMER: Rowling-sama owns Harry Potter and Watase-sama owns Fushigi Yuugi. Chibigreen only owns a homemade Chichiri plushie. *glomps plushie*
~Chapter 10~
*Chuin's POV*
People can be so boring. Life can turn monotonous with the same people doing the same things; never changing, never ending. Truthfully, that is one of the reasons I was so unexcited when I received a letter saying that I was going to go to a school for magic. Magic, to me, sounds so dull. In most stories about magic, people show it as something that takes so much precision to learn, and if you don't say or do the spell right it doesn't work at all. I found that it's not quite that way in real life, much to my delight.
Magic is so strange and complex that even experts like Professor Dumbledore don't fully understand it. New things are constantly being discovered, and people have been using it with finesse way before most sciences even began to be used. That's not because wizards are somehow better than Muggles. It is just easier to find raw materials for magic instead of raw materials for science. I mean, what's easier: pointing a wand and saying 'Lumos' to produce a light, or making a light bulb from metal and glass? It's obviously easier to use the wand, if you have magic.
Some of my housemates seem to think I dislike everyone else. Shunkaku constantly complains about me annoying his 'aniki.' I can't help it if my views clash with Koutoku's. I am myself, and I will not change myself to please other people. Koutoku sometimes bothers me – not deliberately – because we just don't think the same way. Personally, I think that Koutoku needs to stand up for his own opinions more instead of passively accepting others' views. With Shunkaku constantly acting overprotective, I doubt that will happen very soon.
Filch interrupted my thoughts. The mean idiot was in charge of handing out detentions whenever rules were broke out of class. I had made the mistake of poking at one of the paintings in front of Mrs. Norris, the stupid cat. Within a few seconds, Filch was there and he quickly assigned me a detention for the next day. So here I was, standing in a room full of old and derelict paintings. He grinned nastily at me. "Since you like poking at paintings so much, you can clean all of these. Don't leave until you're done," he said, and he swept out of the room and closed the door behind him.
I had carried the cleaning supplies up the steps (Filch's way of starting detention early), so I bent down to sort through the junk and see what I had. Perry's Perfect Painting Cleaner, a brush, a bucket of water, a towel, and a note that I wasn't allowed to use my wand. I snorted at that. I didn't know any spell for cleaning paintings in the first place, and if I did I still wouldn't use it. What if the spell went wrong? Then I'd have been in an even bigger mess. Yes, being raised in a Muggle-ish way in Tokyo does have its advantages. Both my parents are wizards, but it's hard not to know Muggle ways after living in Tokyo.
Filth covered the paintings. It took a hard scrub to remove all the dirt and dust from each painting, but some of the people I saw in the paintings were quite interesting. There was a jester in one – he continually cracked jokes as I cleaned the other paintings – and a stable full of domestic animals in another. As soon as I cleaned that one the animals began to clamor to get out, so I found a nail sticking out of the wall and hung the picture there. Then the animals escaped into the outside picture-worlds. Down the stairs, I could hear humans yelling as dogs barked and horses neighed. The animals had caused quite a commotion.
Soon there was only one more painting for me to clean. When I was done, I, to my complete surprise, saw a picture of two young men in antique wizard robes hugging and about to kiss. I coughed politely. "People can see you two now, you know…"
One looked up in surprise. "What? Why did you clean it?" His arm remained around the other guy.
I felt horribly uncomfortable. My face was probably a bright red right now. "It was my job. I'm in detention." I know that some guys like other guys, but the thoughts of guys liking guys like some liked girls made me feel strange.
The two looked disgruntled. "After all this time finding a private spot," muttered the second. "Kid! Give us some privacy here!" Obediently, I turned the picture around and leaned it against the wall. Quickly, I picked up the cleaning supplies and left. There are some things I'm just don't want to know, and why exactly they wanted privacy is one of them.
From there, my day just got worse. Or maybe better. I'm not quite sure.
I walked down a hall, across a room painted completely pink, through another hall, and began to descend the stairs to the Great Hall. Wham. I ran right into someone while walking down the stairs. He was about to fall backwards, but I instinctively grabbed his hand and pulled him forward. The result: both of us smashed against the stairs, with me landing on the cleaning supplies and the other kid smashing into the wall before hitting the stairs. "Itai…" we both said at the same time.
I took a second glance at the guy I had crashed into. At least, I thought it was a guy. With long purple hair –must've been a side effect of his magic – and feminine features, he looked almost like a girl. I could barely tell the difference. But that description sounded familiar… A Gryffindor that I didn't really know at all, but I saw him in Potions occasionally… His name was Chou Ryuuen, or Ryuuen Chou if said in the Western way. "Watch where you're going, Chou," I told him sharply.
"You're Ruo Chuin, right?" he replied more than asked. It slightly surprised me that he said my name in the Japanese style. "You could've avoided slamming into me, too." I scowled. I shouldn't have caught him if he was going to be so rude about it. But then he said, "Sorry. I know it was also my fault. Thanks for catching me before I lost my balance." That caught me off guard. Frankly, I hadn't really expected him to thank me because people from different houses generally just didn't get along.
To avoid saying 'You're welcome,' I picked up the cleaning supplies and stood up. "It was just a reaction. I didn't do it on purpose." Chou seemed taken aback at that. "Anyway, I would've had to drag you to the infirmary if you had gotten yourself knocked out." Would he get the hint that I didn't want to talk to a Gryffindor?
Apparently not. He stood up and dusted his clothes off. "You still saved me from a trip to the infirmary." He glanced at me. "You don't have to accept my thanks if you really don't want to. What were you doing up there, Ruo?"
My scowl deepened. Didn't carrying a bucket of cleaning supplies drive home the point that I had had a detention? "Call me Chuin," I said instead of answering. I don't like to be called by my family name because I don't like my family.
"Call me Ryuuen," he replied automatically. "Or don't. If you want to be so rude," he said with a slight edge of irritation in his voice, "then why be rude on a first name basis?"
"Some of us," I replied coolly, "don't like being reminded that we're actually related to our families." He cringed at that; I must have struck a nerve.
A small frown appeared on his face for a moment. "Yeah, I suppose I can understand that," he said softly. Then the frown was gone, but he wasn't smiling. He simply brushed past me and walked up the stairs. I felt slightly guilty about upsetting him, but I told myself that it really didn't matter.
********
It was just three days later that I found myself in detention. Again. But this time, Ryuuen was there, too. The room we were in felt old, but not musty. There were piles of books on the floor and a few empty rows of bookcases. Our job was to sort the books by language and then alphabetize them. The librarian wasn't doing it because these books were not part of the official library since they were in foreign languages. "What did you do to get in here?" I asked Ryuuen as I went to the tallest pile.
He smiled sheepishly. "I got in trouble for wandering around the school at night. I couldn't sleep," he added to answer my unspoken question. "What did you do?"
I sighed. "I accidentally spilled some water and cleaner on the stairs when I bumped into you, and it stained the rug." I placed some books that I think were in Spanish on one shelf.
"Sorry."
What was he apologizing for? "It's not your fault. I wasn't paying attention, either."
"I know."
I rolled my eyes. "Then why are you apologizing?"
Ryuuen made a sound of slight disgust and irritation. "I thought it'd help you cheer up. Just because we're in detention doesn't mean you need to be depressing. I mean, jeez," he said as he sorted through some other books, "it'd just make a boring job worse." He studied one book in his hand. "I think this one is in Greek." He vanished behind a bookshelf with a handful of books. We worked in silence for perhaps half an hour except to ask the other where a certain language went.
The purple-haired girly-boy intrigued me. He was nothing like any of my housemates at all. One minute he was trying to cheer me up, the next he was telling me off – politely – for being rude. I didn't even really know the guy. Slowly, the silence got on my nerves. "What did you mean when you said you understood people not liking being related to their families?" I asked suddenly.
He seemed startled by the question. Ryuuen seemed tense, so I didn't pressed it. A few minutes later, I could barely hear him when he said, "I can't blame you for being curious." Louder, he continued, "My family is kind of messed up. A few years ago, my parents broke up. My dad got custody of my older brother and I, but my mother got my little sister, Kourin." I was watching him now. He looked troubled, and was chewing his lip nervously. "I really missed her. She was almost like my twin. So, I decided that if I dressed and acted like her, it'd be like she was still around." He laughed cynically at himself. "My dad didn't like that, as you can imagine; I was grounded for a while, until he realized he couldn't force me to act differently. My brother, Rokou, basically ignored my existence. That's why I said I understood."
I was stunned. "Oh… Um…" And I thought that my family was messed up. Maybe having your parents argue often and sometimes ignore you wasn't so bad. "I'm sorry."
He waved it off. "No, no, it's okay. Is you family pretty bad, too?"
"You could say that…"
An hour later, we were comparing the teachers of Hogwarts to different animals. "Professor Bins does remind me of a goat," Ryuuen agreed with a giggle as he stuck the some of the last books into their proper shelves. "What do you think of Professor Dumbledore?"
I didn't really hear him. Two books on the shelves caught my attention; I knew that I hadn't put them there. The sides had Chinese written on them, and when I pulled off one with a red cover it was inscribed with a small golden picture inside a silver outline of a diamond. "A phoenix…"
Ryuuen hadn't seen what I had, so he thought I was just talking about Professor Dumbledore. "I suppose that could work. He does seem old enough."
His comment brought me back to reality. "Oh, no, I was just talking about this book I found. It has a golden phoenix on the cover. And this other one," I said as I pulled out a similar book with a blue cover, "has silver dragon. They just piqued my curiosity."
When he walked over to see what I was talking about, I handed him the one with the phoenix. "Shi Jin Ten Chi Sho," he murmured as he traced the Chinese symbols with one finger. "Four Gods Heaven Earth Book…" A strangely serene feeling descended upon us for a moment, and the pictures on the covers seemed to briefly shine. It was probably just a beam of light coming in from the window. We soon placed the books back on the shelves, but I felt strangely disoriented. Ryuuen didn't look much better.
"I'm going to go back to the dorms and study," I said, still in a slight daze – from what, I didn't know. "Talk to you later?"
Ryuuen nodded distractedly. "Yeah… See you in Potions," he said with a wave as we parted ways.
********
An hour or two later, I looked up from studying a chapter in my Transfiguration book as Ayuru walked in. With him was – of all people that I did not want to see today – Kaen. I'm sure that she's a very nice person in her own way, but the way my personality clashes with hers compared to the way it does with Koutoku's is like comparing getting hit by a bullet to getting bitten by a flea. She's such an unbearable flirt, but she only tries to get on my nerves. Everyone else gets along with her.
I could see her eyebrows rise elegantly in surprise when she noticed me. "Oh, Chuin… Are you studying?" She wrapped one arm around Ayuru. "I knew that you had to be failing in at least one class. Isn't that right, Ayuru-san?" I seethed at her insults, and she 'couldn't help' but notice. "Jealous of my grades, Chuin…? Or is it something else?" That increased my irritation. I told myself that I wasn't jealous of her being closer to Ayuru-san than I was, but it felt like a lie.
"Kaen," Ayuru said with a roll of his eyes. "You're not my girlfriend. Let's just study for Charms already." As they walked off, I suppressed a sigh of relief, but was it about Kaen finally shutting up or the fact that she wasn't that close to Ayuru? I feel very confused. Do I have a crush on Ayuru? Does that mean that I'm… gay? Note to self: Do not become romantically involved with anyone. Not for a few years, or at least until you have what gender you like sorted out… And beneath all the confusion, my mind was still focused on that strange book.
Translations: Itai = Ow/Ouch
Chibigreen's Notes: I just noticed that I forgot to write a chapter for Tamahome… Oops. I'll have to fix that in the chapters I have planned for Christmas. For side note, I felt in the mood to write some shounen ai today because I just listened to this really cool song called 'Coming Out'. It's by Megumi Ogata, but she's singing the part of a guy who's coming out of denial. It's really kind of cute, especially with the translation. You can download it, if you want, at Strawberry Sherbert.
And to relieve any worry that any of you might be having, Ryuuen is going to end up with Sai. Eventually. But for now, Chuin and him are going to have a friendship – nothing more. I really would not like to write any story dealing with a Ryuuen/Chuin pairing at all. _ But, they seem to be in similar…predicaments…so they can be good friends. ^___^
TA Maxwell – Eh? You can't eat Seiryuu's egg! It's still needed for the story. ^__^; Though Suzaku's egg… ^_~
Keimei – Don't you worry! Genrou's short chapter will be made up sooner or later… Specifically, it will be whenever I write the chapter about their Christmas. That's one thing that I need to feature from both sides of the spectrum.
Singing Nightingale – I'm happy that you enjoy the fic so much! ^___^
ember-fang – You'll always be Chibigreen's loyal follower? I'm sure she's happy to have one!
Kryssa – I hope that you do like the way that the Seiryuu are portrayed in this fic. I like making the bad guys good!
Kyra – I have foreshadowing? Eh, guess I do… *didn't notice* I'm glad that you like how I showed Doukun with ESP-ish abilities, and I know the feeling about crossovers making one edgy at first – it happens to me, too.
Draconsis – Don't worry! Kaen will be appearing very soon… Possibly in the next chapter.
shadow priestess – I excluded Genrou's accent mostly by accident, but I might go back and revise that later. And someone can't step on a egg and blow up the school, sorry. ^__^;;
Amiboshi and Company – I can't do more in Koutoku's POV right away because he just did a good part of the last chapter… However, I'll try to get Shunkaku in soon.
Skipsida – Yes, yes, Tomo is cool, but you have to admit that he isn't exactly polite towards others. But don't worry, he's actually nice in his own way. He's a fun character to mess around with… I mean, to write into the story. ^___^
Flying heart – Wai! Thank you for adding the story to your favorite's list! *gets starry eyed* ^___^ And a big THANK YOU for volunteering to be Ashitare's owl! The poor guy needs a pet. (A werewolf having a pet called 'Flying Heart'… Strange…)
Chachiri – Oh, believe me, Genrou is going to set things on fire… It wouldn't be Genrou if he didn't!
PrincessKitty-Chan – Glad you liked it!
Sanomi – Don't worry; I'll make sure that Miboshi is nice enough to leave his cat alone in this story. And he'll preferably leave little kids alone, too…
That's that! Now on to the next chapter! Hmm… Kaen or Shunkaku? *flips a coin* *coin lands on edge* *Chibigreen sweatdrops*
Today's recommendations: One Inch Ahead by Ryuen. It's an interesting reincarnation-type story that's focused on Chichiri (Yay!). Nuriko appears in the first chapter, too. It's curious…I don't know what to think of it yet, except that it's good!
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