Author's Ramblings: Well, well, well…I bet none of you ever thought this fic would get updated again. Sorry about the delay, but my writer's block has been immense. This chapter may be short for just that very same reason. But who knows? Maybe I'll get into the swing of it as I write.

Author's Notes-that-are-pertinent-to-the-actual-fic: Let's see…we're going into the Tokyo Babylon chapters. Expect much Sei-chan goodness. I'll try to hit the main points of the manga plot…just not at all in this chapter. I'm thinking this is going to be quite a bit of humorous fluff.

Thank Yous: Thanks to everyone who has waited patiently for this chapter to come out. And thank you to those of you who continue to be extremely prolific and entertaining authors…because, hey, if you're a bum like me who can't write, you still want to read. ^^;;

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Because You Existed…

By SS

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Chapter 3 – Something like Real Life

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Kick. Dodge. Duck. Chant....

Did the spirit just throw a cat at him?

Shake it off. Dodge. Jump. Chant. Dodge.

One quick look around the room told Subaru that yes, the projectile object that had gone soaring past his head was indeed Taffy-chan, beloved household pet of the Takana Household. He could only hope that she was okay. The last thing he wanted was for the already skeptical family to find a new point of scrutiny against the Sumeragi household and onmyoujitsu as a practice. He pulled out five ofuda, jumping over a table that the volatile spirit had chucked in his direction. With skill and ease that had come from years of training, he let out a string of chants and flung the ofuda at the spirit, trapping it fast. He breathed a sigh of relief as all paranormal activity in the room came to a screeching halt.

The spirit was that of the teenage son of Mr. and Mrs. Takana, who had died in a car accident with his friends a month prior. At the moment, he seemed pacified, so Subaru took the opportunity to go and send the boy along. He placed his hands together and chanted the sending spell, but not before getting a chance to look into the boy's eyes. He felt his heart clench as the form before him started to disappear. Working with spirits had given him a sort of empathy, a keen intuition about how people were feeling. This boy was another sad story…just like the innumerous others that he had met since beginning work in Tokyo. With the spirit removed, Subaru carefully maneuvered his way out of the wreckage of the Takana's parlor and into the hall where Mr. Takana waited rather impatiently. Subaru raised a gloved hand to his forehead. These long work days were starting to get the better of him, but there was no way he could refuse a job, even from the most unappreciative of patrons.

Mr. Takana strode past the Sumeragi Clan Head, peering cautiously into the room. He surveyed the damage with a look of repulsion.

"…You do know that this is coming out of your salary, Sumeragi-san."

"Of course, Takana-san." Subaru bowed deeply to the man before turning to leave. He paused, his handle holding onto the front door. "…Takana-san?"

"Yes, what is it now?" The elder snapped impatiently.

"Your son…he wanted you to know that he was sorry for yelling at you, and he was sorry for sneaking out that night." Subaru turned back to the man, his sincere green eyes trembling with the sadness of the spirits that he sent away on a day-to-day basis. He could tell so much from the sadness in one dead boy's eyes. This was the last message that he had to pass on to the living, the only comfort he knew how to give. After all, his specialty was dealing with the dead, not those who remained. "He loved you very much…"

The Takana walls radiated sadness, but that was nothing that Subaru hadn't seen before. In truth, he saw it far too much to be healthy, but there was nothing he could do about it. Everyone has their own destiny, and this was his. He opened up the door, welcoming the fresh air and sunlight. He breathed in deeply, letting out a cleansing sigh. It was amazing what a change of scenery could do for his mood.

"Subaru-kun!"

The young boy couldn't help but smile, looking at the man who was waiting for him. As painful as his duty could be sometimes, there were some things about moving to Tokyo that he felt sure that he would never regret.

***

"Onii-san! Onii-saaaaan!"

Subaru had fallen asleep on the kitchenette counter for the fifth time that week, and as a dutiful brother, Kamui took the task of waking him up very seriously.

"Subaru!" The violet-eyed boy whined, shaking the older boy by the shoulder. "You fell asleep in the carrots! Onee-san needs those to cook diiiinnnnneeeeeer! Wake up, wake up, wake up!"

Subaru yawn sleepily, blinking as he lifted his head up. Kamui cheerfully, hopped up onto his lap, carefully brushing away carrot shavings from off of his beloved brother's face. Subaru smiled at him appreciatively. "Arigatou, Kamui-chan."

Carefully removing the younger boy, Subaru quickly went back to the task at hand. Before his little impromptu nap, he had been making carrot shavings to help out Hokuto-chan, who was frantically running around trying to make everything perfect for that evening. It was the first time that Sakurazuka Seishirou would be joining them for dinner, and the Sumeragi twins were absolutely frenzied trying to make everything as good as possible. Afterall, Seishirou had been so kind to them since they moved to Tokyo. He drove Subaru around on many of his jobs, cleaned up Subaru whenever he got hurt, carried Subaru back to his office if he mysteriously fainted, had lunch dates with Subaru (and occasionally Hokuto)…

Although it was not clear to her brother, Hokuto Sumeragi had a pretty clear image of where Sei-chan's interests were. She walked into their apartment, taking off her shoes as she carefully maneuvered into the kitchenette with a huge bag of groceries.

"Hokuto Onee-saaaan! Subaru fell asleep in the carrots again!" Kamui chirped, cheerfully.

"Kamui!" Subaru let out an exasperated sigh. Now he was going to get it.

"Subaru! What have I told you about getting proper rest? You can't just keep running from job to job without the proper sleep and nourishment." She gave her twin brother a very berating look. "You're going to be all skin and bones if you keep this up, and then you'll never make a good bride for Sei-chan!"

"Hokuto-chan!"

Kamui blinked, staring up at his elder siblings. He had heard mention of this third person innumerous times. Sei-chan…Seishirou-san…Kamui had never met the man himself, but he had seen Hokuto tease Subaru about this mystery man. He had seen the way Subaru twisted the phone cord when talking to Seishirou. The things that no one else saw, Kamui never missed. Who was this man that was coming over for dinner? Why did Subaru and Hokuto act so strangely at the mention of his name? Having only been a member of the family for a short time, Kamui couldn't help but feel threatened by this new presence. He felt as though this man that he had never met was going to take the only thing he had away from him. He plopped himself down on the ground next to one of his toys, but he did not play with it. Instead, he sat there and pondered the situation more and more. He sat there quietly for a whole hour whilst his siblings scrambled about the house, occasionally commenting on what a good boy Kamui was being today. He was finally stirred from his thoughts by the sound of the doorbell.

"Ah! He's here. Right on time! My future in-law is so wonderfully punctual!" Hokuto grinned, playfully pinching her brother's cheek. She turned to Kamui, her hands full with washing lettuce. "Mu Mu-chan [1], be a good boy and answer the door."

Kamui rose to his feet, scurrying to see this mystery man. He turned the doorknob, pulling the door open to reveal a very tall man with glasses, gold eyes, and an unnaturally friendly smile. He blinked up at him a few times, before the smiling man knelt down to his level and patted him on the head.

"You must be Kamui-chan! Subaru-kun has told me a lot about you."

Kamui continued to stare at the man for a good few moments, giving him a severe scrutinizing look that would have made anyone but Seishirou squirm, before finally opening his mouth to speak. "I hate you." [2]

Seishirou blinked. This was a sudden and unexpected new development.

***

Despite Kamui's less-than-friendly disposition, dinner went off without a hitch. Hokuto had taken a very sleepy Kamui off to bed to tuck him in, leaving Seishirou and Subaru alone in the living room. The young onmyouji fidgeted on the couch, playing with his hands while casting quick sideways glances at the kind vet. Seishirou knew that he would have to be the one to break the awkward silence.

"So how was work, Subaru-kun?"

"It was good…I handled three exorcisms today."

"No wonder you looked so tired when I went to pick you up." He smiled patting Subaru's black hair affectionately. "Are you feeling any better? You seemed…upset on the car ride home."

Subaru looked up at Seishirou. It never ceased to amaze him how easily the older man could read him. Since when had he become such an open book? "I felt badly for the spirit I sent on. He had a lot of remorse."

"That's my Subaru-kun for you…always too concerned with others to take care of himself." He smiled softly, getting up to his feet. In one quick swoop, Seishirou had Subaru in his arms and was carrying him off to the bedroom in the same fashion that Hokuto had just taken Kamui off to bed. "Thank goodness you have me to look out for you now!"

"S-Seishirou-san!" Subaru broke out into full blush.

Hearing the commotion, Hokuto popped her head out of Kamui's room. "Sei-chan! Don't even think about taking advantage of my poor, innocent brother. He's naïve and fragile, and he doesn't understand such shameful things! OHOHOHOHO!"

"You misunderstand me, Hokuto-chan. My intentions with Subaru-kun are entirely pure! Though it is a tempting idea now that you mention it! AHAHAHA!"

"Ohohohoho!"

"Ahahahaha!"

"Ohohohoho!"

Subaru was blushing so hard that he thought he might pass out from the rush of blood, yet even though his home life was hectic and full of embarrassment, he wouldn't have it any other way. Back in Kyoto, his life had centered on his duties and his training, but here in Tokyo, he had the opportunity to have something normal, something close to a real life. Though he covered his ears to drown out the laughter and shut his eyes to pretend that he wasn't there being teased, on the inside, Subaru Sumeragi couldn't have been happier.

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Notes: Hehehe…I had too much fun writing that. I think the only flaw in this chapter was the horrible POV transitions.

[1] – Well, Elf Asato suggested once in a note that I have them give Kamui a nickname. So there it is. Mu Mu-chan. I bet Hokuto even dresses him in little cow outfits. *snickers*

[2] – And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the one moment that inspired this whole fic.