Disclaimer- Watase won't sell FY to me, the meanie!
AN- OK, this is shadow priestess! Some of you may remember me from my other fics… Well, I've started a rewrite of FY again, this time with no original characters! (Ain't it amazin'?) The basic idea is that Chichiri is now the Priest of Suzaku. It might be Tasuki by Chichiri, except I'm not too sure about that… I dunno. Maybe Chichiri'll just have a loveless life… HOW COULD I BE SO CRUEL!! Well… If worst comes to worst, Miaka and Yui will be making appearances…
Miryokuteki Yuugi- The Alluring Game- Chapter One- The Book of the Four Gods
"Wake up, Houjun!! Come on, we're going to be late for class!"
Ri Houjun's good brown eye slowly opened as he registered his best friend's voice. As always, he allowed himself a small sigh upon taking in the two-dimensional world the scar over his left eye had reduced him to seeing. After a moment, he stretched, ready to go to sleep now that Koutoku's voice had shut up.
The sandy-haired eighteen-year-old groaned. "Houjun…" he began threateningly. "Our exams are coming up soon, and neither of us can afford to miss any classes! We've got five minutes to get across campus, maybe not even that. I thought you wanted to get into Ogawa University with me!"
"Aww… come on!" Houjun teased. "You know I can get by on my natural intelligence! I mean, I always pass my classes!" They just grinned at each other. Both of them knew that Houjun rarely invested any more time than was necessary on homework, which had never made a favorable impression on teachers. "Besides," he added. "We don't have to walk."
"Oh no, we shouldn't…" Koutoku said worriedly. "You know our parents told us not to do… that anymore. It's like they're scared of us or something. Besides, you don't want a repeat of last year, do you?" His clear eyes studied the other boy, who stiffened.
"No… no… I don't…"
People outside of their little circle, which consisted of them and two other classmates- Kouran and Hikou, had always considered the two friends strange. For the most part, though, hostility was not openly expressed, most preferring to ignore the group. However, around their seventeenth birthdays, Koutoku and Houjun had discovered that they possessed very strange powers. For the former, it was merely an ability to manipulate emotions, a way to keep annoying people quiet, which was easily attributed to his talent.
Houjun, on the other hand, had discovered more of a way to form bright red lights, no doubt a useful trick. In addition, he could transport himself and any unwilling passengers through the midnight blue jacket he wore no matter how hot it was in Tokyo. He also managed to sense anyone within a pretty large radius, making it virtually impossible for anyone to sneak up on him. So, since Kouran and Hikou were at least semi-normal, the blue-haired student was so obviously the freakiest kid in the school.
Of course, it hadn't really been a problem at first, but after a particularly nasty incident involving Houjun and Koutoku appearing on top of a few students thanks to the unpredictability of Houjun's jacket… it seemed as though the whole establishment had turned against them. Fear does strange things to people, and the quartet soon felt as though they were reliving the Salem witch trials. Each day became a new opportunity for them to be pelted by random objects, and for Kouran and Hikou to listen to taunts about their horrible choices in friends.
Even most of the teachers avoided speaking to them, the only contact they had being a quick toss of tests or graded papers. Overall, it was a lonely existence. Much of what they heard throughout the school day was derogatory insults, usually shouted. Often they were cornered on the way to and from school and tormented. Daily, they would report to each other of death threats received in classes they didn't share. Yet at the same time, they never truly expected anyone to follow up on them…
// "Koutoku!! Where'd Kouran go?" Houjun called, fearing the worst. "She didn't try to go home with Hikou, did she? Doesn't she know it's dangerous? I told her to wait for us here! We have to go as a group!" He stopped short as he saw the flutist's face. "What is it?"
The shorter boy took a deep breath. "I overheard some of the kids talking… They're planning to ambush them on their way home. I've been looking all over for you! They mean to kill this time… And the idiots took the alley route, if I heard correctly."
Houjun began cursing inventively as he started running towards where Koutoku had said they'd gone. His best friend followed behind, snatching up his flute as he went. 'Please don't let it be too late…'
The scene they arrived at was quite frankly gruesome. The veritable mob had caught the teens by surprise, and a quick check by Houjun of their life forces revealed that, while alive, they would not be for long. Rage began to cloud his perception, and before he knew it, there was a scarlet ball of energy forming between his hands, ready to fling it at anyone who dared to cross his path.
The last thing he felt was the sensation of Koutoku's flute seeming to tear into his consciousness and the pain of a knife tearing into his eye.//
"Hey… You still in there?"
Koutoku's hand waved in front of his. "We still have a class to get to, you know."
"Oh! Yeah…" Houjun agreed automatically, picking up the paper mask that lay next to his textbooks and smoothing it over his face, effectively covering the scar and his emotions with an ever-smiling, fox-like expression. "I'm ready no da! I've just gotta get my books together no da!!!" As he spoke, his voice slightly higher than normal, he stuffed all of his supplies into his schoolbag.
"Say…" Koutoku pointed out. "Isn't that your homework in the restricted room? You'd better get it; it's a major part of our grade, and Anara-sensei isn't exactly nice about late work."
"It's not the work that's going to be late no da," Houjun muttered, but he got up to retrieve the paper anyway. "Where is it na no da?" he called back as he admired the school library's extensive rare book collection. 'No wonder the tuition's so high around here…'
"I dunno…" Koutoku stepped in also, looking a bit confused. "I could have sworn I saw it here."
Houjun shrugged and picked up a book that caught his eye. "The Book of the Four Gods Sky and Earth…?" he read, trying to puzzle out the kanji. Intrigued, he opened it. "Herein contains the story of a young man and his quest to gather the seven constellations of Suzaku… what the heck is this?" He skipped around a bit. "And the moment the page is turned, the story will become reality… yeah right no da…"
This was about when they noticed that the thick volume was glowing faintly crimson.
"Strange book na no da…" Houjun commented. "I wish Kouran and Hikou could be here to see it… They'd have loved it…. huh? Wh-what's this light?! DAAAA!!!!"
Koutoku blinked quite rapidly as he scanned the room. There was no sign of Houjun, only an old book that appeared to have swallowed him, though it now looked totally normal. "We are so going to be late for class…" he muttered, "What's happened to you, Houjun?" Shrugging, he sat down and began to read.
So… what'd you think of it? Did it drag out too much? This was just the intro thing, so theoretically it should get better… But realize that this story and all chapters were thought up late at night while the author was sleep-deprived! So go easy on the criticism! And give me input as to the pairing! So…. Review and all…