AUTHOR: Macx
DISCLAIMER: not mine. Definitely not! I just play with them and hope I tread on no one's toes.
Author's Voice of Warning (aka Author's Note):
English is not my first language; it's German. This is the best I can
do. Any mistakes you find in here, collect them and you might win a prize
g> The spell-checker said everything's okay, but you know how
trustworthy those thingies are.....
ARCHIVE: yes
WARNINGS: none
FOCUS: Tsuzuki, Genbu
RATING: PG-13
FEEDBACK: empty inbox seeks emails g>
There were times Tsuzuki Asato wondered why he still did what he did. Why he still worked this job. Why he still laughed and smiled and went to work each and every morning.
He was lonely.
He wasn't alone, no. He was just lonely.
Leaning back against the warmth behind him, feeling the living, breathing heat of his shikigami, he closed his eyes, trying to dislodge the image of his latest partner at work leaving him for some obscure reason or other.
Imaki had claimed he couldn't work as an angel of death. He had claimed he needed a change. He had claimed a lot that wasn't true and all ran down to one reason: he refused to work with Tsuzuki.
It hurt.
It hurt deeply.
There was a deep, rumbling purr and a warm breath gusted over his face. Tsuzuki opened his eyes and looked into the deep red feline gaze of his first shikigami. Byakko's expression was compassionate, sharing his pain, and there was nothing the proud tiger could do but be there for him. No words could take away the pain of abandonment.
Because that was what had happened.
He had been abandoned.
Why? Why did he have to be so different that people hated him? That partners never lasted longer than a few months?
Tsuzuki shivered and Byakko purred more, the long tail of the tiger wrapping around him. The shinigami stroked over the soft fur, smiling a little.
"Thank you for being here," he whispered.
"I would be nowhere else," was the soft reply.
Tsuzuki had fled to GensouKai, as he usually did when he needed distance and space. Byakko had greeted him there, had taken him to the deep canyon with its green oasis, the forest where the two beings had met for the first time, where Tsuzuki had challenged the powerful God, Protector of the West. Here they had become friends.
He smiled a little and snuggled into the white, striped fur. He was proud of Byakko, as he was proud of Suzaku and Rikugo. He had three very powerful shikigami as his friends and he loved them all. And each was special in his own way.
#######
The sun rose higher, its rays coming through the canopy of trees, tickling Tsuzuki's skin. He was dozing, his mind still going over and over the predicament of always losing his partners. Byakko hadn't moved and his soft breaths and the strong heart beat were lulling Tsuzuki into a sense of security. Byakko smelled of the sun, the wind, and of the untamed wild. Tsuzuki let himself sink into this sensation, turning off everything else.
It was in the late afternoon when they finally left the canyon, mostly because Byakko had received a call. It had been in the form of a messenger, a small, winged creature that had been sent to find Byakko by Sohryu's order.
Tsuzuki sat on the white tiger's back as they flew to the palace, enjoying the wind rushing through his hair. He closed his eyes, fingers curled into the striped fur. Byakko landed not much later, the padded paws making no noise and Tsuzuki slid off the broad back.
"Tsuzuki?" he asked softly, looking into the shinigami's violet eyes. "I have to go... Will you be okay for now?"
Tsuzuki gave him a small smile, nodding. "Sure. Don't worry. Thanks for everything."
And it was okay. Byakko was the Protector of the West and he had a job to do. Tsuzuki wouldn't stand in his way.
Byakko hugged him, smiling into the brown hair. "Later," he whispered.
Tsuzuki smiled more. "Later."
###
Alone now, he wandered through the huge city and finally found himself in front of the observatory, part of Rikugo's palace. His feet took him inside, past the astrological charts, into the depth of the cool and majestic building, until he reached the study of his latest shikigami. Rikugo wasn't when Tsuzuki knocked carefully.
The study was empty.
The shinigami hesitated a moment, then walked inside.
The study of the astrologer was large, with a high ceiling, a wide open vista that showed all of GensouKai with an unimpaired view, and there were shelves and shelves with books. Tsuzuki let his gaze wander of the backs of the book. He raised a hand and let his fingers glide over the leather-bound books, feeling their age, smelling the dust, and it was as if the room itself was exuding an aura of ancient wisdom, of calmness, a soul-deep balance.
It was what he loved about this place.
It was peaceful.
"Tsuzuki?"
The soft tenor startled him and he whirled around.
Rikugo smiled at him, onyx eyes warm and loving, the blond hair in his usual tail, dressed in the wide, flowing robes that hid a slender body.
"Rikugo!" he exclaimed. "I... sorry, I didn't... see you."
The smile grew. "I was with Genbu for a moment. I felt your presence, though. I'm honored by your visit." He slightly bowed his head, but not in any gesture of submission.
Tsuzuki hated submission.
"I... came for a visit. I thought I'd drop by," the shinigami murmured. "If you don't mind, I'd like to stay for a while?"
The astrologer nodded. "I never mind, Tsuzuki. You're very welcome in my home."
Tsuzuki gave him a relieved smile. He knew Rikugo would never turn him away, but he would always ask. It was the polite thing to do, and he would always give his shikigami the choice. He would never order them.
The door to the study opened and Tsuzuki smiled at Genbu as the Protector of the North entered. He was the smallest of the Divine Commanders, but his size didn't matter. He was a God, one of the four most powerful beings here in this realm, and Rikugo's sensei.
Walking stick clicking on the wooden floor, the shikigami approached, bushy eyebrows drawn down.
"You look tired," he remarked.
"I had a hard day at work," Tsuzuki answered vaguely.
"I see." The barely visible eyes narrowed a little. "You need to relax more, Tsuzuki. Even an immortal soul is not safe from stress and its consequences."
"I'm not immortal," he protested.
"You're as immortal as anyone," was the simple answer.
Genbu walked past him and settled on the cushion seats that were strewn around the low table close by. Out of his robes he pulled what looked like a folded board. A gaming board, Tsuzuki saw.
Curious, he came closer.
"What's this?"
"Oh, it's what I use to wile away the time," Genbu answered jovially. "It's an ancient game. I tried to teach it to Rikugo, but for all his brightness the boy never really mastered it."
There was a light chuckle from behind him and Tsuzuki glanced at his shikigami. Rikugo was smiling good-naturedly.
"It's because you make up the rules as you go, old man."
Genbu grinned. "That's the beauty of the game. The rules can change with every move."
Tsuzuki was fascinated and he watched as Genbu set up the pieces. The gaming board was a plain piece of wood. There were some colors added to the brown background, forming circles or wavy lines. The game pieces were made of stone, round with a flat base, and shaped more like a fat little man than anything else.
"The basic rule is quite simple," Genbu explained. "Get as many pieces from your opponent as possible while defending your part of the game. Everything else can change." He met the violet eyes watching him. "Ready for a game?"
Tsuzuki shrugged. "I never played before, I doubt I can challenge you, Genbu."
"You know the one rule that needs to be followed."
He frowned a little, intrigued by the complexity of the game. Tsuzuki had played Mahjongg and Go as a boy, though he had rarely had many opponents. The other children had hated him for his difference. But he had known the rules and he had been a good player in the few games that had been really serious. He had also played against some of the shinigami in Meifu once, but there had been no real challenge, no serious game.
Now he had a chance to learn something knew, and it was also a chance to take his mind off his problems.
"Okay, I'll challenge you to a game," he declared, smiling at the Protector of the North.
Genbu nodded sagely. "So be it."
And the game was on.
#######
Rikugo had stopped working a long time ago. Onyx eyes were riveted to the seating area, watching his master and his sensei play against each other. The astrologer was fascinated by the swiftness with which Tsuzuki had adapted to the changing rules. There were moments when he lost a piece due to a new rule, but he usually got back into the game not much later, and it was always him who declared a new level.
Rikugo himself had never really understood the game, which was a complex, mind-bending affair. He had once accused Genbu of not only making up the whole game, but also changing the rules at his whim. His sensei had just grinned toothily at him, then delivered the killing strike.
Now Genbu had initiated Tsuzuki, had challenged him, and the game had been going on for the better part of two hours.
No, Genbu hadn't challenged Tsuzuki, a small voice begged to differ. Tsuzuki had challenged the Protector of the North.
Rikugo's eyes widened.
Tsuzuki had
No
No, no, no!
His sensei couldn't have
But he had, he realized, shocked. He truly had!
Manipulative little bastard!
Rikugo glared at the small figure and as if Genbu felt his burning gaze, he looked up from the board and smiled benignly. It was a knowing smile and it confirmed Rikugo's suspicion.
Genbu had once remarked that he would like to tickle Tsuzuki's full potential, that he would like to face the agile mind that had bested Rikugo on a spiritual level just a few years earlier. Back then Rikugo had taken it as a remark without any serious thought behind it.
He should have listened more intently because right now Tsuzuki was in a real challenge, with a witness in the form of Rikugo, who hadn't realized his role until now either.
You... he thought darkly.
Genbu wouldn't hurt his master if Tsuzuki should lose, but if he won if he won Genbu would be his. Tsuzuki would have three of the four Gods at his command!
Rikugo suppressed a groan.
He could barely suppress it again when the door opened and Byakko strode in, smiling cheerfully.
"Hey, Rikugo."
"Hello, Byakko."
Red eyes fell on the two gaming men. "What's going on?"
"Genbu brought along his game. They're playing."
"That strange little game? The thing no one can make sense of but him? And Tsuzuki's playing it?"
Rikugo nodded. "That game. And yes, they've been playing it for almost two hours now."
Tsuzuki announced a new level, smiling a little as he collected a piece from Genbu, and the old shikigami nodded his respect.
Byakko stared at them. "They're how far?" he breathed.
Rikugo's features grew grim. "I know, I know. It's amazing. Tsuzuki had a few starting problems, but he's adapting to the ever-changing rules quite well by now." Dark eyes met feline ones. "It was he who challenged Genbu for a game, Byakko."
There was a moment of silence as the two shikigami looked at each other, then Byakko seemed to realize what the astrologer was saying, as it sank in.
And he gasped softly.
"No!" he breathed, soft enough not to disturb the others.
"Yes."
"Does he know---?"
"I don't think he realized it just yet."
The white tiger stared at his master and at his fellow God.
Both shikigami followed the ongoing challenge silently, each with his
own thoughts. Rikugo was simply amazed at the adeptness of his master,
while Byakko was gripping the edge of the table he sat on, eyes wide, body
tense, expecting the worst to come out of this.