In response to one of mah reviews, from Dark Mousy: I work entirely from manga, not from the anime series, just fyi... So, check Tokyo Babylon volume 7, pages 74-76. Hokuto calls out her brother's name, not Kakyou's. As far as I know, Kakyou wasn't even invented as a character by this point. He is never mentioned in the Tokyo Babylon manga, and without going through all of my manga in detail, I -believe- the first time she's ever mentioned in context with him is the very end of X14, and Kakyou's character file in X15.

Moving on... This chapter begins the really fun stuff. Screwing with actual manga continuity. From here on out, you must repeat to yourself... "It's fanfic, and therefore AU... it's fanfic and therefore AU!"

For those following along at home, the dialogue and action comes from X manga volumes 7 and 8. I may have changed some of the wording (the translation I used was a bit jerky) and put my own spin on Subaru and Seishirou's actions, but this chapter at least will be relatively close to the manga itself.

And by the way. Writing this chapter SUCKED. o.o;; It's so hard to write from a script. ;o; So please forgive me for how long I went between updates, (especially since I promised it would be quick! n.n) this was really hard to write, especially since I was on a road trip for a lot of the holidays ;

Beta thanks go to Colin, Mitsu, and tdei

-- Wild --

At first, I went to the park every day, at least briefly. I would never miss the opportunity to pass it by, to study it, his hunting grounds. Every time I went there, I wondered if that would finally be the day that he would come for me, to finish what he had started.

Occasionally, I'd even walk directly to the damned tree, sometimes running my hands over it. The rustle of its leaves almost sounded like the voices of the dead, though I'm sure that was my imagination.

At those times especially, I expected him to appear. I was directly invading his territory. He never did, of course. It was foolish of me to expect him to, I suppose.

Days bled into years, and my visits stopped altogether. It wasn't that I stopped caring, or stopped wondering. Perhaps you could say I lost hope, or interest. It wasn't even that, precisely... it was just apparent that I wouldn't find him there. He didn't want to be found. Not by me.

The day the Nakano kekkai was broken, Seishirou was one of the farthest things from my mind.

Smoke billowed from the buildings in front of me. A few people watched it quietly, clustered in doorways and windows, half-afraid to leave the presumed safety of the buildings. The half-silence was eerie, frightened and confused, only broken by uncertain murmurs and distant sirens.

I ignored it all, however, concentrating on my task. The air around me crackled with lightning and magic, making the hair on the back of my neck rise. I blocked it out, concentrating on the ofuda at my feet.

The wind picked up around it, swirling debris around, pushing the pieces into a pattern. I looked down at it, my eyes widening in shock and my breath catching in my throat.

An inverted star. "Sakurazukamori..." I whispered, hardly believing it.

I started running before I had completed the thought, pushing my way through the pedestrians that had finally decided that the street was safe and had come out to stare at the smoke and murmur to each other fearfully. Someone screamed.

He was so close. I could feel it, and I knew I wasn't wrong. He was here. Finally. As I ran, I saw my reflection. The stars on my hands were glowing.

Building after building blurred by me as I ran towards the source of the earthquake. Finally, I saw him. He stood below me, in the center of the chaos.

I hesitated for a breath, just looking at him, though it was too far to really see him properly. Without even thinking about it, I jumped down to him.

He paused, cigarettes in hand. And for a moment, I could have sworn an expression akin to shock flitted across his face.

But no. He slid off his sunglasses, and he was smiling at me, warmly. Happily, as I glared at him. There was a healing cut on his face, and thick waves of smoke billowed around him as the city burned.

"Subaru-kun." His voice was exactly the way I had remembered it.

I watched him for several moments. My heart was beating so fast. It must have been from the running.

Finally, he broke eye contact, leaning down to slip a cigarette out of the pack, holding it between his lips as he searched for his lighter. I hardly realized I was walking towards him until my own lighter was in my hands.

I held it out to him, striking it, watching the flame dance as he leaned down to catch the end of the cigarette in it.

Pulling away, he let the smoke out of his lungs in one smooth sigh. "Thank you."

He caught me before I could step away, his hand warm as he clutched my hand. Too warm, it felt like my skin was burning, and his grip almost hurt.

He pulled my hand up to his mouth, running his lips softly over my bare skin. Over his mark, then hovering at my knuckles. He looked up at me, and my breath caught. He was so close.

"You smoke." I stared at him, my stomach turning uncomfortably. "It's not good for your health." He smiled again, and suddenly, it was if things hadn't changed, as if he were asking me where I wanted to go for a lunch date. I narrowed my eyes. His smiles were false, and dangerous.

He was toying with me. I ripped away from his grasp, stepping back, suddenly angry. I clenched my jaw "I have been looking for you for a while now."

He paused, looking at me with faint curiosity, his smile fading into something vaguely mocking. "Why?"

I held out my hands, calling on the power that only I could access, as one of the Dragons of Heaven. It rippled out of me, forming solid walls, and I looked up at Seishirou.

"To make my Wish... Reality."

He looked up, almost appreciatively. "A Kekkai." He turned back to me. "The Seven Seals... No, the Sumeragi clan taught it as the Dragons of Heaven. One of the Dragons of Heaven who supposedly will save the earth from destruction."

I hated that he knew so much. He had always sounded like a fucking lesson on the history of onmyoujitsu. Anger burned deep inside of me. I took a breath to steady myself, locked my emotion down as best I could, and answered him. "...I have no interest in the future of the Earth."

His chin jerked up slightly, and again surprise flashed on his face. I wondered what he expected me to say. Did he think that I was some kind of martyr, a paragon of virtue and compassion? Did he expect me to still be 'kind?' I brought my hands up, ofuda at the ready.

I sent the spells flying, white doves speeding at him as I chanted.

Was that a contemptuous smile on his lips as he brought the cigarette up through the air, the glow of the tip hovering unnaturally in the air?

Blood spattered as my spell hit his shield, running down it, partially obscuring my view of him as it slowly dissipated. I squinted, as I readied more ofuda, trying to make out what he was doing.

Suddenly, he leapt up, trying to gain an advantage from above. I followed him, trying to match the shikigami that he sent towards me. Finally, we reached the top of the buildings. Hurriedly I sent a wave of shikigami swirling around him, and his head whipped around, watching, trying to figure out my plan. I suppressed a smile of grim satisfaction. He wouldn't be able to avoid this attack.

I couldn't see his expression as the ground started to tear under along the edges of his shield then exploding in earnest. He threw his arm up to protect his face, whether from the light or the debris, I wasn't sure.

Finally, he looked up at me again, holding onto his smile by the barest of measures. "Your wish... is to kill me? To kill me, the one who killed your dear sister..."

I shuddered slightly, feeling myself go cold as he mentioned her. I stared down at him, words rushing up and sticking in my throat. The anger had fallen away, and I didn't know what to say, or how to feel or why I was really here.

He smiled again, one of those carefree, heartbreaking smiles. "Subaru-kun, you are really cute."

Clenching my fists, I glared at him. Did he think this was some sort of joke?

"I would like to play with you a little longer." He raised his hand to his face, catching at the blood that now flowed freely from his cut. "...But I have some business to do right after this."

His words added to the sick rage that I felt. And suddenly, I knew. I -was- going to kill him. I jumped down, eager to begin the fight again.

Too late, I realized I had made a mistake. He held his hand out, channeling an immense amount of power through it. I hadn't prepared for that, and it caught me off guard. He pressed it against my shields, and suddenly I was on the defensive, struggling madly to just keep him away.

The sound of our spells was practically drowned out by the howling wind that sprung up around us, catching bits of the ruined building and whipping them through the air. One caught me high on the cheek.

His attack was increasing, and though I poured everything I had into my shield, he kept advancing. Finally, he stabbed through the shield, ripping his hand through it decisively.

I choked on the pain, as a corresponding gash opened up over my chest.

I stumbled back, falling to my knees. I watched blood spill from me, disbelieving, then snapped my eyes up. He was inside my shield. Gasping for breath, I glared up at him as he stood directly in front of me, staring at me. His eyes were wide... angry?

I couldn't stop fighting. I reached into my coat, pulling out the last of my ofuda, opening my mouth to shout out the spell, to fling it into his face.

I was unable to complete the attack. His hand caught my wrist, pulling me up, towards him. Slips of paper dropped from suddenly nerveless fingers. He stepped closer and my throat tightened in shock, or was that fear? Or something else?

His fingers slid along my cheek, warm and slick with blood. It made me shudder, and he smiled again, darkly, cruelly. "Then... I will see you again."

He let go of me, and his fingertips seemed to crack... to float. They dissolved into sakura petals and before I knew it, he was gone. Again.

I stood up, watching the sakura swirl in the wind. He was always such a show-off. It was an illusion, of course. Not even he could escape a kekkai. He was still here, hiding, biding his time.

Briefly, I considered finding him. I controlled this space, and I could press the issue. I could make him face me again. But I was hurt and tired, and really, what was the point?

He didn't want to see me anyway.

I stared at the petals as they fell around me, holding out my hand. As they touched my skin they dissolved. I clenched my fists, shaking. "...Seishirou-san..." The voice seemed to belong to another.

I wasn't alone. A couple of high school students stood in front of me, watching me. A girl with long hair and a severe mouth, and a boy who tried very hard to look serious. I had a feeling that it was out of character for him, judging by the half-grin he wore. An interesting combination.

Their presence in the kekkai, of course, told me immediately that they were fellow Dragons of Heaven, almost certainly here to recruit me. It was a pity I wasn't interested in their cause. Now if I could only get away before my senses of duty and guilt kicked in.

I pushed past them as if they didn't even exist.

The guy stuttered slightly. "W... Wait a sec!" He chased me. "Where'ya going with such wounds?"

I turned to glare at him briefly, and continued walking away. Maybe if I was quick they'd just let me go. I was in no mood to discuss the end of the world. I had to go take care of my injuries.

A wail from the guy behind me. "This guy has a pretty face but ain't too friendly..." His accent was beginning to grate on my nerves.

The girl spoke. "You created a Kekkai." Her voice was beautiful and cool, all business, unlike her partner.

I stopped, wincing. She was direct. I started feeling the first twinge of guilt. Hell, I was going to get tied into this whole destiny thing whether I wanted it or not, wasn't I?

"I am Arashi Kishuu." She paused, and her partner took a moment to interject.

"And I'm her future sweet lover, Sorata Arisugawa!"

A brief silence descended, and you could feel the irritation rolling off her in the cold pause. Finally, she sighed. "I am one of the Dragons of Heaven gathered by Princess Hinoto the Dreamgazer. Could you tell me your name?"

I turned to her. "...Subaru Sumeragi."