Let's all give a Happy Belated Birthday wish to Sakusha-san! I'm sorry I can't give the sketches to you in time for your birthday. I tried but apparently I've gone too long without practicing and it. . .sucks. I'll try again, ne? ^__^;;
Everyone, I have no idea when I'm posting up this chapter you're reading. Recent events have. . . .disturbed my life (i.e., screwed it up massively) and I'm still trying to recover. As of now, I am not able to get access to the net so I'll just type the chapters and when I can get access, I'll post it up a.s.a.p. So you might get a sudden influx of new uploads with only a few days in between.
A last word; What you have in life, appreciate it. Look at the good of life instead of the bad. You'll never know when you might never see it again.
Shaynie: Ahahaha! No one saw that coming! Aki I mean. . . .
Inami: "Cucumber and her pickle offspring"????? *giggle* That's a good one ^^
Twylise, Daemonchan: Arigato! And Daemonchan, thanks for the FruBa info!
Sakusha-san: Are my lemons the only reason you read my stories????? ^__^;;;; Ah. . .I'll try to do one soon. . . .and I already know how I'll. . . ."do" Ayame. . .heh.
nekoMoon-chan & Poison Ivy: *whines* WHERE have you guys been??? I haven't heard from you people in ages! *pouts*
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
Chapter 19
Children grow up so fast. . .
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
"What are you doing here, Shinigami?"
They stared at her in incredulous shock. Somehow, they had not expected the innocent looking girl sitting before them to talk with such. . .venom in her voice. It did not fit her young, high school girl appearance. It made her somewhat scarier than if she had been sporting fangs and claws.
"How did you know we're Shinigami?" Tatsumi by far was the fastest to recover from the shock and was glaring at Aki. He, and the others, had pulled back slightly from the table as though expecting an attack at any moment. Hisoka, sitting beside Tatsumi, was aware of the slight thrum of tension that vibrated through the dark-haired man.
"Oh, come now," Aki waved airily. "You're sitting here, in our living room with your aura simply screaming 'Shinigami' and you ask me how I know?"
"I take it you have magic then?" Watari surmised and a hopeful look crossed his face. Hisoka knew what he was thinking. Watari thought that that was a perfectly plausible excuse for Aki to have detected their true nature. Maybe it meant that she was not more than what she seemed and they had just imagined the menace in her voice. After all, having a group of gods of death appearing in your home would rattle anyone right?
Aki trilled bright laughter. "Of course I have magic! With a mom and dad like mine, how could I not?"
Since she did not seem to be radiating that earlier menace, Watari obviously thought they could ask Aki about Ayame. He leaned forward, trying to get her attention. "Ano. . .Aki-san," he started but was cut off when Aki gave an excited squeal and grabbed the picture Kyo had left on the table.
"Oh wow! Is that dad's old high school picture?" She held the photograph in front of her face and chewed on a lock of hair. "He's as handsome then as he is now!"
Hisoka noted, that throughout the entire exchange, Takashi, Tatsumi and Terazuma hadn't let down their guard once. If anything, a reddish glow had lit up Terazuma's eyes and a low rumble was starting deep in his throat.
"He looks so good," Aki smiled wistfully. "No wonder mom fell in love with him. Ne, is that you sensei? Sitting behind Dad? It has to be, you look exactly the same!"
Takashi tensed up even further.
"It's a beautiful picture," Aki enthused, seeming not caring that she wasn't getting any response. "You can just feel the love, don't you?" And still with that bright, innocent smile, she held the picture between her fingers and with a quick wink thrown at Takashi, ripped the photograph right down the middle.
Takashi stared in horrified silence as the papers floated gently down to the polished surface of the table.
"Oops, my fingers slipped," Aki smiled.
Without wasting another minute, Hisoka threw down his shields, far down enough for him to get a clear reading and extended his empathy out. He could see the tendrils of his power reaching out, invisible to everyone but him. They shone a silvery white, ghosting gently through the air and wrapping themselves around Aki.
There was a flash on impression. Yellow bright amusement. Pure white power. And darkness so deep that Hisoka felt as though he was falling into a bottomless chasm.
"Maa. . .only the first encounter and already you think you can look within me?" Her bright smile was now focused on him and with a gasp, Hisoka realized that Aki knew he was reading her. That was impossible. No one could detect him before.
"Be careful you don't get more than what you bargained for." And the chasm of darkness turned into a tsunami of howling black that tried to drown him. Hisoka slammed his shields back up and scrambled back in unashamed fear. Someone had told him once that bravery isn't about being a hero. It's about knowing fear when you face it.
"She!" Hisoka gasped, barely aware as the others stood up and quickly backed away, Tsuzuki pulling him along. "Demon!"
They were now pressed against the shoji with Aki facing them with a little grin. Tsuzuki had one arm around him while the other came up with an ofuda. The others had done the same and Terazuma's growls became more pronounced.
"You know, mom wouldn't like it if we trashed the house. She'd get really irritated," Aki informed them. "Why don't we take this—" A crash from the hallway outside broke her off. Her eyes wide and face draining of color, Aki spun around and ran out of the room.
"Daddy!"
Startled, they exchanged surprised glances, the red glow receding from Terazuma's eyes.
"Let's go," Tatsumi said sharply and without a word, they followed him out to where Aki had gone. Aki had not gone far, she was in the kitchen, kneeling on the floor and hovering protectively over Kyo who was sprawled out, gasping in pain. He was clutching his chest. Shards of broken porcelain littered the floor around them but Aki paid it no heed.
"Daddy," she said firmly. "Where did you put the new medicine mom got?"
"Bed. . ." Kyo gasped. ". . .table. . ."
"Okay Dad, hold on." Aki quickly got up and pushed past the Shinigami still crowding the hallway. "Don't you dare touch him!" she hissed at them and amazingly, she actually turned her back on them, hurrying down another part of the hallway. But before she could go any further, shadows rose up in a wave and cocooned her. She let out a curse before she was muffled completely and the shadows bunched and flew out into what appeared to be the back garden, crashing into a shoji on the way.
"Everyone!" Tatsumi said tersely as they stared at him in amazement. "Leave Kyo for now! We have to take care of this Aki before we can take Kyo back."
And as one, they ran out to the garden also where the last of the shadow cage dissolved, revealing a very frustrated and pissed off Aki.
"You.Will.Pay.For.That." She bit off each word with renewed venom.
And the ground began to shake.
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
What the hell is taking Aki so long? Kyo wasn't prone to cursing, especially when it concerned his family but pain left no room for niceties like that. The attack he was currently having had redoubled in its ferocity and he whimpered softly. Broken porcelain crunched softly underneath him as he curled up, trying to contain the pain. His body started to jerk spasmodically and his breathing grew decidedly more laboured. He was sure another long minute had passed and still no Aki with his medicine. In fact, the house was suspiciously quiet even with their guests.
Oh god. . .did something happen to Aki? Maybe those people did something to her. Cursing himself this time, for trusting people too easily, Kyo clawed at the wooden floor and managed to drag himself into a crouch. He had to stop for a moment as the world spun dizzily before he could start to crawl. The distance between the counter and the kitchen door seemed like a hundred miles. By the time he reached it, he was panting heavily and sweat was trickling down his face. The pain that grabbed his heart in a vice hadn't let up but it hadn't gotten worse either. He took that as a good sign.
The hallway was empty and he peered down both ends. The shoji with a good-sized hole in it got his attention. As well as the shouting that came from the garden. It sounded like Aki.
Telling himself over and over that he could do this, that he won't pass out, Kyo crawled unsteadily towards the broken shoji. The shouting continued but from the buzz that filled his ears, Aki didn't sound scared or in pain. Rather, she seemed to be shouting in anger. And in a language he had never heard before.
Before he realized it, he had reached the exit to the garden. The shoji now lay half out of its tracks, sagging under its own weight and afforded him a clear view of outside. Hands trembling, Kyo grasped the wall and pushed himself up. He fell twice before he could fully prop himself upright.
The sight that greeted his shocked eyes had him rubbing them, wondering if his vision had gone faulty.
Aki and his guests were in what appeared to be a face-off, glaring at each other. But what had him transfixed was the glowing circle that was between them. It burned a fiery red and straining his eyes, Kyo could make out a pentagram within the circle with arcane writing all around it.
What the hell—his thought broke off as Aki raised a hand and a triumphant cry burst out from her lips.
"Rise and serve me! Ashtamil!"
He watched, in complete shock and horror, as a monster started to rise from the ground right inside the pentagram. The thing, as it stood in its complete form was fully 7 feet in height. Its back was ridged with what looked like thorns and a salivating mouth grinned as it scraped sharp claws together.
For a moment, forgetting his pain, Kyo let go of his hold and stumbled out into the garden.
"Aki?"
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
Tatsumi cursed softly under his breath as the girl cast a summoning circle between them. He tried sending arrows of shadow to distract her but they bounced off an invisible wall. She had erected wards around herself. Beside him, Tsuzuki also started chanting and throwing out his ofuda but he got the same result. So did Wakaba, Watari and Hisoka. Terazuma meanwhile had transformed fully into his Shikigami but not even his blasts of fire did any damage.
"Tsuzuki! Can you disrupt the circle?" Tatsumi shouted even as he still sent more obsidian arrows flying.
Tsuzuki turned his attention to the circle but whatever power he sent out bounced back.
"Can't! The circle's too strong!"
Again, Tatsumi cursed as Aki's summoning grew to a crescendo. From the formation she was using, it was obvious that she was creating a gateway into Makai itself. Whatever it is that she was summoning would not be pretty.
"Rise and serve me! Ashtamil!"
The demon that rose up from the ground was a particularly ugly brute. But then, all demons were. Sharp rows of teeth dripping with saliva was bared in a grin as the demon scarped its claws together. It sounded like nails being dragged across a chalkboard. Tatsumi gritted his teeth as the sound sent a flash of pain through his teeth. The demon took a step forward and growled.
The Shinigami prepared their ofudas. But before they could launch an attack, a weak voice called out.
"Aki?"
Everyone, including Aki, turned around in surprise. Kyo stood on the grass barefooted and looking bewildered. He still clutched at his chest and his face was pale and dripping sweat. At his arrival though, Aki faltered and gave a gasp.
"D-daddy! No!"
Her concentration broken, the summoning circle flared once and died out before she could fully complete her control over her demon. The thing let out a howl of delight and bounded towards its victim. But instead of tearing down on them, its clawed feet dug into the earth as it spun and. . . .headed straight for Kyo.
Aki screamed. "No! Not my father you fool! Get back!"
Kyo seemed frozen in fear as the demon got closer. It raised gleaming sharp claws overhead, prepared to strike down. Tatsumi was already weaving a shadow-void to grab Kyo into. Tsuzuki, Hisoka and the others were chanting spells of attack. But all of it would be an instant too late, Tatsumi realized. The claws were already in their halfway descent, producing a sharp whistling through the air of its passage.
The demon howled in hungry joy even as Aki screamed again. But someone got between Kyo and the demon. Instead of the claws digging into Kyo, they were dragged across the back of a brown jacket of that someone who had got in the way.
It was Takashi, Tatsumi realized. The sensei let out a strangled yelp of pain as the claws were pulled out.
"Takashi!" He screamed. "Get him back! Now! Everyone! Back to Meifu!"
Before Aki could react, all of them disappeared in a heartbeat, including Kyo whom Takashi had taken with him. She stared in shock at the suddenly empty garden. The demon was still howling, angered at the loss of its prey. Outside the walls, frantic shouts of her neighbours filled the air and the wail of a siren drew close. Aki ignored them all, even the demon, as she threw her head back and screamed a howl of frustration.
"DADDY!"
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
Kyo wasn't sure what was happening. First, he had seen his own daughter doing. . . .something, and the next minute, he was on the verge of getting his head ripped of by a monster only to have that Matsumada guy protecting him and now. . . .he was sure he hadn't left his garden.
So why was he currently being carried through a dimly lit hallway? He hadn't passed out, he was sure of that. And why on earth was Matsumada the one carrying him? He was hurt for god's sake!
"You. . ." he gasped. "You're. . .back. . .hurt. ."
Matsumada gave him a tight grin. "I'm fine. We're more worried about you."
Dazed and wondering whether he had dropped into a different dimension where men can walk and talk even after getting mauled by a monster, Kyo realized that he was being taken to what looked like an infirmary or a very small hospital wing. A door was opened and he was carried through and laid gently on a bed by an open window. He gaped. The scene outside showed sakuras in full bloom, bathed by the reddish glow of a setting sun.
"It's not. . .spring," he mumbled.
Matsumada glanced briefly outside and smiled again. "I'll explain later. Where does it hurt exactly?"
Kyo stared at him, dumbfounded before he finally regained use of his voice. "You! Turn. . .your back. . . .now!" he had to close his eyes briefly as dizziness overwhelmed him. When he opened his eyes, Matsumada had presented his back to him. Foot-long gashes had ripped his jacket to shreds, including the shirt underneath. But the skin revealed was smooth and unbroken. Not a drop of blood anywhere. Not even a scratch.
Kyo blinked.
"I'll explain this later also," Matsumada promised. "What about you?"
He shook his head dazedly. "Can't. . .do. . .anything," he said weakly. "Need. . .medicine. . ."
"What medicine?" Another voice spoke up. Kyo saw that it was the blond one called Watari. Strangely enough, a miniature owl was hovering over his head.
"Ayame gets it. . .for me. . .can't get. . .anywhere. . .else." Lord in heaven, won't someone get it for him?! He was in pain dammit! If they felt the need to abduct him, they could have at least gotten his medicine for him as well!
"Then I'm afraid we can't give you that," Watari replied.
"Do you think. . ." Matsumada trailed off.
"Aa, it might be the cause of it in the first place," Watari nodded and the owl hooted.
"What. . .the hell. . .are you. . .talking about?!" Kyo gasped and curled into a ball, whimpering.
"I'm sorry, Kyo-san," Matsumada said gently. "We think that the medicine your. . .wife gives you might be the cause of your attack in the first place. We can't risk giving it to you."
Despite the pain and the shivering that had gotten worse, Kyo shot out a hand, twisting the man's shirtfront and dragging him close. "Do you want me to die?!" he managed to snarl before letting go.
Matsumada didn't answer him, instead asking him, "Kyo-san, have you ever gone this long without taking your medicine?"
Kyo glared but after a while, relented and said grudgingly, "No."
"And are you dead yet?"
A long silence. ". . . . . .no. . ."
"Is the pain getting any worse?"
He had to stop and consider the question fully. Is the pain bad? Extremely so. Is it getting any worse? . . . . .no. Will he die? Apparently not in the near future.
"No," he finally answered and Matsumada sighed in relief as did Watari. "But. . .can't you. . at least. . something for the. . pain," he asked weakly.
Matsumada nodded and asked Watari softly, "Do we still have any painkillers left?"
The blond nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! We still have some of the. . ."
Kyo let the voices tune out as he tried to concentrate on staying conscious. While it was apparently true that he was not about to die from his attack, he could not help but wish he would, if only to escape the tearing, burning sensation that throbbed in his chest, spreading throughout his entire body with each weak beating of his heart. A few minutes later, he felt the familiar prick of a needle sliding into his forearm.
What if these people are terrorists or something? That voice in his mind had gotten panicky. What if you had just subjected yourself to a secret scientific experiment which will turn you into some sort of monster?! What if they're planning to kill you?! What the hell was Aki doing?!?! And why do they think that Ayame is the cause of this?! How do you know you can trust them?!
Kyo told the voice to shut up and leave him in peace. He opened his eyes blearily and blinked in surprise to find Matsumada leaning close, peering at him worriedly. He noted, with some surprise, that the man's hair was a beautiful auburn, shimmering a deep russet in the light and that his eyes were the darkest green he had ever seen and was flecked with gold. He stared in complete fascination. Why didn't he notice it before? In the house? Matsumada was simply. . . .handsome.
I can trust them. He saved me from that. . .thing. And I was right, I do like auburn hair and green eyes. They're a good combination.
Kyo blinked.
"Are you feeling better?" Matsumada asked softly.
"A. . .little," Kyo admitted and bit back a gasp as the pain intensified for a second before dying back down to the steady throbbing that was no less painful.
"Dammit," Matsumada swore under his breath and to Kyo's complete amazement, Matsumada took off his jacket and climbed into the bed next to him.
"Wha--?" Kyo managed in bewilderment and stiffened suddenly, shocked, as Matsumada gently cradled him close from behind, spooning him. "W-wwhat are y-you d-doing?" he stammered.
"Shh," Matsumada murmured. "I'm just trying to help you. Relax." He pried off Kyo's hand from where it had been clutching his chest and massaged the spot tenderly. For a moment, all Kyo was aware of was the warmth behind him and the gentle massaging. Strangely enough, the pain did subside.
"Do you still have that scar?"
Kyo tried to shake off the sudden lethargy that overwhelmed him the instant Matsumada had held him close. He had never felt like this before. The hug felt so. . . .right. He felt. . .complete. More complete than he had ever felt when he was with Ayame. But that's not possible! He thought wildly. I love Ayame! I never met this guy before! How the hell could I feel so comfortable with him! Unless. . .he was telling the truth. . .Wait, he frowned, how did he know about the scar?
"What. . .scar?" he tried.
"The one right above your heart. Is it still there?"
Kyo stiffened again. "No one but Ayame knows about it. How did you. . ."
"I'm sorry," Matsumada murmured and went on massaging softly. "Shh, I'll explain later. Just relax."
Feeling helpless before that gentle command, Kyo submitted himself fully to the lethargy that came back to claim him. The world grew hazier and a welcoming heaviness weighted his eyes close. As he drifted off to sleep, Kyo noticed, in complete awe and bafflement, that the pain was gone.
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
Kyo stared unseeingly at the masses of paper spilling all over his lap and onto the battered sofa. They had taken him to this lab the next morning (and the sakuras were still blooming) and they told him, we have to tell you the truth.
That he was dead.
No, they didn't kill him and he didn't die in the night.
That he had been dead for over 17 years. He died when he was 18 years old.
And that his name was Shiozaki Kyo, not Tanaka Kyo.
He is a Shinigami. Had been one ever since he died though he had been classified as 'Missing In Action' for the past 15 years. That was how long he had been married to Ayame.
He doesn't believe them? They have the records to prove it. Shinigami records, school records, medical records. Clippings even. His obituary in the local papers. To cap it all off, the records were brought in by a couple of floating chickens in funny suits. The Gushoushin. Twin gods of human records. He had even plucked one out of the air and pulled abstractedly at its feathers, trying to tell if it was a fake.
Apparently not. He was met with an indignant squawk and a cuff to the head with an irate wing from the chicken he had mauled.
"We can prove it to you," Watari offered. Saying so, he took a knife and with complete aplomb, sliced his palm open. Kyo stared at the dripping blood in fascination and as the cut rapidly healed, sucking the blood back in and the skin looking unblemished as though nothing had happened, he still stared.
"Er. . ." The one they called Tsuzuki fidgeted nervously. "I don't think he's taking this too well."
Distracted, Kyo looked up. "Hmm?"
"Er. . ."
Kyo turned to the one person who had not been offering endless proof to him all morning that he is not the man he thought he was. Matsumada Takashi had sat by his side quietly, not saying a word.
"Matsumada-san," he began and was cut off by a pained smile from the man.
"Takashi," he said gently.
After a long silence, Kyo began again. "Takashi. . .san," he started slowly. "Who are you?"
Takashi stared at him unblinkingly for several moments before replying. "I'm a. . .friend."
"You're lying." He said it very softly but he might have shouted it for the effect it had on everyone in the room. Tatsumi, Watari, Tsuzuki and the empath, Hisoka, took a distinct step back.
"Why do you say that, Kyo-san."
Kyo shrugged, looking down to his folded hands. "Just a feeling," he said vaguely. "Technically, I should have died last night, not taking my medicine. They all said so. My doctors, Ayame. . .but I didn't. You said I wouldn't and I didn't. So I believe that all of you people are not crazy and trying to pull some elaborate stunt on me," he waved at the others but turned his attention back to Takashi who watched him silently. "And last night you said you could make the pain better. You did. And you knew about the scar. And when you slept with me last night, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. I never even felt that with Ayame."
Takashi winced.
"So no, I don't believe you when you said that we're just friends."
Takashi sighed, running his hands through his hair and causing the light shining on it to dance teasingly. Kyo felt a sudden urge to run his hands through it as well.
"I didn't want to tell you this at first because I figured you would have enough shocks to deal with on top of it." He stopped, staring intently at Kyo and Kyo shrugged. "Yes, you're right, we're not just friends."
"Then what were we if I truly am Shiozaki Kyo."
"I'm your husband."
". . . . . ."
"We've been married since in your senior year in high school. Father Sakano performed the ceremony with Hikki and Ken in attendance."
"Oh."
Kyo leant back into the sofa, dislodging the papers in his lap to spill to the floor. He ignored the mess he was making and asked the four still standing silently, watching them.
"He really is my husband?" he asked in general.
"Yeah," Hisoka smiled.
"Oh." He shifted uncomfortably. "If you're dead, a Shinigami and want to marry your colleague, do you have to get a special license or something?" he asked abruptly.
"No~," Tsuzuki drawled, eyeing him nervously. "You just. . .get married. No one minds."
"Yeah," Hisoka chimed in again. "Tsuzuki and I are married."
"Oh. Okay. You're too young you know. You should be in school still."
"Kyo-san, counting death years, I'm over thirty years old already," Hisoka raised an eyebrow.
"Still," he waved a vague hand. "It's the principle of the thing."
"Kyo-san," Tatsumi cut in. "Are you okay?"
"Quite fine, thank you," Kyo nodded seriously.
"Kyo, here." Takashi waved a plate in front of his nose. On it was a slice of chocolate cake. With whipped cream. Lots of it.
He took the plate, thanking the man gravely and dug in. They watched him in silence as he polished it off in less than 2 minutes.
"Would you like another?" Takashi asked gently.
"Please."
As he devoured the second slice, Kyo mumbled through a mouthful of cake. "You know this is creeping me out even more don't you."
"I'm guessing so," Takashi said calmly. "But I think it helps."
Kyo grunted noncommittally.
The silence turned into one of stunned amazement as he practically finished a whole cake. After 15 years, it was a shock to them at exactly how much chocolate Kyo can take. Finally, as even the crumbs were swiped clean and the can of whipped cream had been pressed till it was spraying air only instead of cream, Takashi spoke up.
"Kyo. . .I realize it's all very difficult to take in. So how about if we go to see someone? Someone you know will tell you the truth."
Kyo glanced at him curiously. "Who?"
"Hikaru."
Kyo stared back at him unblinkingly for a long minute. Finally, he shrugged, saying, "Why not."
"Great. Do you want to go now?"
Kyo nodded but as they stood up, he held out a hand. "But first. . ."
"Yes?"
"Can I have some chocolate please?"
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
to be continued
* ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *
Kelly: That's a very good therapy method, Takashi-san.
Takashi: Thank you. Just keep in mind, whenever Kyo's gone cuckoo, just give him chocolates and everything will be fine. ^__^
Kyo: . . . . . . . .
A/N: Everyone, I have a new fic out under Cardcaptor Sakura. It's called (tentatively) Cardhunter. And because it's me, there will be an original character in it ^__^. In fact, our Shinigami friends might pop in to say hello also. (But it won't be a total crossover. . .I think. . .) Please support my new venture, dozo yoroshiku, onegai shimasu.