Disclaimer: The characters from Fushigi Yuugi are the creations and property of Yuu Watase and related enterprises. The characters from Doctor Who are the property of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). I do not own them and do not make any profit from this fiction except for my own enjoyment in spending time with them.

However, all original characters in this story DO belong to me and may not be used elsewhere without my permission.

Warning: True "M"-rated chapter for depiction of male sexuality. Please respect all restrictions with this rating.

Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to Kryssa, mostly to embarrass the heck out of her. It's also dedicated to CG--because it won't embarrass her at all!

****

Chapter 10. An idyllic interlude.

"Joss…"

His gentle voice never failed to send a pleasurable thrill down her spine. She smiled softly, sensing the greyish light of dawn glowing behind her closed eyelids. Warm…he was so warm, his muscles strong and hard beneath her embrace. She burrowed deeper into his warmth, her body suspended in a drowsy, sensual limbo between consciousness and sleep.

"Joss, please."

There was a pleading note in his soft tones. Didn't he understand that he didn't have to ask for anything from her? Everything she was, everything she had was his for the taking…but maybe he needed reassurance.

"Mmmm, Houjun," she murmured, tightening her arms around him.

"Joss, could you please let go of me? I have to get up now!"

She frowned dimly at the desperate edge in his voice. Something wasn't right; he was supposed to be holding her passionately, not tensing in her grip. Unless…

Her eyes flew open, and she realized that, unlike in her dream, he was facing away from her, trying to gently pry her arms off him.

"Oh my God!" she screamed, releasing him and trying to leap away. Her bedroll was pushed right up against his, however, preventing her from putting a modest distance between them. "Oh my God, oh my God, I am soooo sorry!" Her desolate wail resounded around the walls of the small tent. "I can't believe I did it again! I swore that it wouldn't happen again, but--"

Houjun rose quickly from his bedroll, pulling on his slippers. "Look, Joss, can we talk about this later? Right now, I have to--"

"Good morning, sleepyhead slug-a-beds!" The Doctor ducked into the tent, his brown-gold locks gleaming as if freshly brushed, the velvet and silk of his tailored suit as exquisite and unwrinkled as if he had just left the ministrations of a personal valet. "I trust you both had a quiet and, er, restful night?" His eyes twinkled merrily at what was becoming their routine early-morning-waking panic.

"Ohayo, Doctor." Houjun paused, unable to bring himself to be rude, even though he was anxiously shifting his weight from foot-to-foot.

The Doctor frowned at him. "What are you doing just standing here? Don't you need to--?"

Houjun shot him a grateful glance and dashed out of the tent.

Joss raked her fingers through her wildly corkscrewing curls and glared blearily at the Doctor. "Do you have to be so damn cheerful all the time?"

"Oh, someone's such a grumpy bunny in the mornings. Well, I'm sorry that I can't offer you a cup of coffee, but I do have a pot of excellent tea brewing outside."

Joss felt ashamed at taking out her bad humor on the Doctor. "Sorry, Doctor. Guess I'm just not a morning person." She narrowed her eyes at his elegant figure. "And it doesn't help when Mr. Perfectly Turned Out Esquire Model of the Year shows up to provide a striking contrast to us mere mortals who have to struggle with morning mouth and bed-head. Don't you ever sleep?"

"Sleep is for--"

"Tortoises, yeah, you said so a couple of nights ago. So I'm a tortoise, shoot me. I'll remind you that we lower beings have to get a decent amount of shut-eye, or else we turn into raving homicidal maniacs." Her ever-present sense of curiosity was provoked. "What do you do all night anyway, while the tortoises are snoring?"

"Well, if I had my TARDIS, any number of fascinating things. But being that I'm as stranded here as you are, my entertainment choices are far more restricted – although my explorations often result in significant pay-offs, especially for my chilly companions." He flashed a grin at Joss' shivering form.

Joss' face lit up. "You wouldn't joke about a thing like that, would you?"

"Perish the thought! I would never be so cruel."

"Have I told you lately how much I admire and respect you? No, more than that; I positively love you! You have my lifetime devotion, Doctor, if only you tell me--"

"Bribery and flattery are completely unnecessary. Make a left outside the tent, take the path into the woods, branching right just over the second rise, follow along the curves in the path for about 50 meters, and there you'll find a perfectly wonderful hot spring."

Joss snatched up a towel and her bathing supplies. "Let's see, some clean clothes and undies…Oh! Should I wait for Houjun to get back? I don't want to stumble across him by accident and make him think that I'm an even bigger perv than he already takes me for." She strove for a flippant tone, but the Doctor read the embarrassment and misery in her words.

"No, don't worry. He went off in the opposite direction."

"Right then, I'm off. See you in an hour, Doctor."

"Wait, Joss." The Doctor reached into his pocket and held out his tube of peppermint toothpaste.

"Oh, God! Have I told you lately how much I adore you?"

"Tell me after you've brushed your teeth," he admonished, pushing her out of the tent.

Several minutes later, Houjun returned to their camp. The Doctor smiled at him from beside the campfire and offered a steaming cup of tea. Houjun sipped it gratefully, then looked around their site.

"Is Joss around?"

"No, she went off to freshen up a bit." The Doctor inhaled deeply. "Ah, the fresh mountain air! Positively invigorating! Of course, it's a two-way road when you think of the excitement we provide to the local fauna as they wake to the screams issuing from your tent every morning."

Houjun blushed furiously. "I'm sorry, Doctor. I don't mean to make her scream…"

"You have no idea how that sounds," muttered the Doctor to himself.

"…but I can't seem to get out of her embrace without waking her. And I'm not really sure why she--"

"Well, these spring nights in the mountains are still uncomfortably cold. I'm certain that she just subconsciously seeks out warmth during the night. I believe her major concern is what you think of her."

Houjun frowned at their little fire. "Believe me, Doctor, I don't think anything bad about her. I'm just not used to sleeping with a woman's arms wrapped around me; at least, not since I was a little child."

"Is it such an unpleasant sensation?"

"No," Houjun admitted reluctantly, the tips of his ears a brilliant scarlet. His voice dropped in embarrassment. "I'd almost have to say the opposite…" His eyes were dark with concern as he met the Doctor's gaze. "I know that it happens in all innocence. But I don't know how to tell her not to be so worried about it without making myself sound like a-- We're just starting to become friends. I don't want to threaten that by making statements that can be misinterpreted as…inappropriate advances."

The Doctor repressed a sigh. Really, young humans were so maddeningly obtuse at times! It was obvious that, as much as he hated to meddle in others' affairs, he was going to be forced to take an active hand in things. He dug around in his pockets and produced a second tube of toothpaste. "Here, Houjun, why don't you take this to Joss as a peace offering? That way, she'll know that you're not angry with her."

"But I thought you said she was--"

"You two have shared the amenities of a fresh-water spring before, haven't you?"

"Yes," agreed Houjun hesitantly, remembering how Joss would laugh and shout at the icy cold water they would scoop out of a tiny spring. She would talk non-stop as they cleaned their teeth and their faces, seeming to enjoy the camaraderie during their personal ablutions.

"Well, then, grab your towel, then follow these directions."

Less than a minute later, the Doctor watched as Houjun disappeared into the woods. Suddenly a huge grin broke across his features. "If Ace were here, she would say that I'm positively wicked!"

****

Houjun rounded a slight curve in the path, frowning at the mist that drifted over his feet. The Doctor hadn't said anything about a hot spring in the area. He looked up as a flash of movement caught his eye--then froze in place, his face flushing red.

She couldn't have been more than twenty paces away from him, and had she not been pouring water over her head, she would've heard his approach. She knelt in a grassy patch a short distance from the spring, careful not to let the soap from her hair and body flow into the pristine waters. Humming some obscure tune in a strange key, she ran her fingers through her hair, blissfully lost in the pleasure of cleaning herself--and Houjun felt his mouth go dry at the perfect beauty and unconscious sensuality of her movements.

Most of the time, she dressed in loose, almost masculine clothing and talked in a blunt, unaffected way, so Houjun had never really thought of her in feminine terms. What he was seeing right now wasn't exactly feminine, either; she had no frills or affectations. She was simply, magnificently female: her muscles moving smoothly under her glistening skin, her body toned like a fighter's, the curve of a breast becoming visible as she turned towards the spring. She moved with an ease and surety he had never noticed before, her relative silence emphasizing her animal grace--and the male in him answered her siren's call.

A wave of sexual excitement swept over him, making him grow taut and hard with desire. He felt his heart pound as he nearly grew dizzy with the unaccustomed sensations: sensations that he had thought long dead in him, drowned beneath the bitter waters of a long-ago flood. But now they raged back into furious life, making him almost cry out at the sharp suddenness of his fierce arousal. His sensual nature overtook his reason, clouding his mind, and all he knew was that he wanted her, burned for her, yearned to stride up to her and claim her as his. He needed to bury his throbbing, aching body in hers, to feel her warmth bring him back to life, making him feel again, making him…whole again.

At that moment, she looked up--and their gazes locked. For one breathless moment, the passion blazed between them as her lips parted in unconscious desire. He breathed heavily, wanting to leap across that short distance between them and take her lips, take all of her! He shifted his weight, raising his hand to his own lips in anticipation--then felt the mask. The mask: the false representation of who he was, what he might have been had he not killed. That was what she saw, wasn't it?--some idealized version of a man who didn't exist, some unscarred man who wasn't him. Houjun turned his eyes away in shame.

He heard her sigh very softly and knew that the moment was gone. She was safe; safe from him and his twisted passions. He could hear her shift position, then clear her throat. "Umm," she murmured huskily. "I think the word we're looking for here is 'Oops.'"

He continued to stare at the ground, miserably embarrassed and unbelievably frustrated, his stubborn body refusing to give up its state of arousal. What was wrong with him? Usually he had such control…no, that wasn't right. 'Usually' didn't exist for him; sexual arousal didn't exist for him anymore, until now. He tried to subtly move the towel in front of his trousers, praying that she hadn't noticed his excitement.

"Well, since you've decided to become the great mysterious Sphinx, I think I'll just mosey on into the water, and maybe you can find your voice again." He heard the splashing as she entered the spring, still talking. "Of course, your state of immobility might be taken as less than flattering to me; in Greek mythology, there was a snake-haired woman named Medusa, the sight of whom could turn a man…to stone."

Suddenly her voice was filled with laughter, and he looked up, startled. He didn't know these myths she was referring to, but…turning a man to stone? She couldn't possibly be alluding to his-- His eyes widened at the thought, and he finally met her laughing gaze.

She lost it completely then, howling with laughter so infectious that he found himself smiling against his will. Her shoulders, just visible above the water's surface, shook with merriment. "Come on, Houjun; loosen up! You gotta admit, it's pretty funny; I mean, turnabout is fair play!"

He kept smiling but a line appeared between his brows. "Turnabout?"

"It's a story that maybe I'll tell you some day. Let's just say that you got even with me without even realizing it."

He relaxed, feeling her good humor disperse the tension--well, not all of the tension. Damn his recalcitrant body; why wouldn't it just give up? He felt stupid, standing nervously clutching a towel, but he could hardly walk away without it becoming obvious that he was…having difficulty walking. Damn it!

Joss' voice floated across the water, filled with concern now that his smile had disappeared again. "Hey, Houjun, what's the matter? You're trembling… Oh, that's right!"

"What?" His voice was low and miserable. She was so blunt; would she actually confront him about his state of arousal?

"You must be freezing. Get in here right now!"

He flushed scarlet again. "You're not serious, are you? You can't possibly be suggesting that I--"

"Why not? Look, the water's all cloudy and bubbly. As long as we both stay beneath the water line, we should be able to retain a certain level of modesty."

Houjun clenched his jaw. What was it that made the gods mock him so badly? The thought of being with her in the spring, both of them naked - Shikuso! He swore that his body grew even harder. He couldn't move forward; neither could he leave. He was stupidly, helplessly frozen in place.

Joss' voice floated across the spring again, this time softer. "Ah, don't worry; I know that you're shy. Listen, what if I promise to turn my back, and I swear I won't turn around until you say it's all right?"

A glimmer of hope entered the darkness swirling around his brain. Maybe that would work. It was the opposite direction from where he wanted to go, but he could hardly ask her to turn around while he walked away fully clothed. That would be sure to provoke her endless curiosity. Maybe if he got into the spring, the hot water would discourage his…

"All right!" he agreed. "But you have to promise."

"Scout's honor, hope to die!" she swore mysteriously, crossing two fingers and spitting into the water. True to her word, she turned around.

Houjun didn't trust her sense of honor to hold out very long against her sense of fun, so he threw the towel aside and disrobed quickly, struggling a bit with his trousers. Oh, dear gods, what if she turned around now? But her back remained turned, so he leapt towards the safety of the water, diving in, not caring if he was boiled alive.

"Shit!" shouted Joss as a wave of hot water crashed over her head. Houjun surfaced to see her pushing her dripping hair out of her eyes. "So you want a water fight, huh? Just remember: no mercy! I'm taking no prisoners, buddy!"

He opened his mouth to apologize and received a faceful of hot water. He coughed and sputtered, hearing Joss howl in laughter. Pushing his bangs out of his eyes, he fixed her with a malevolent glare. "So, no mercy, right? You forget that you're up against an evil magician, foolish woman!" He held his right hand up before his face, approaching her while muttering strange incantations. Joss continued to smirk at him, although she began to look a little worried.

He suddenly flung his right hand out to the side. Joss spun to follow the motion of his hand--and he reached out with his left hand, pushed down on her head and dunked her. She came up choking and spitting out water.

Houjun smirked at her. "Gotcha!"

****

"So in your world, this isn't unusual: a man and a woman sharing a hot spring together."

"Well, let's see…there aren't that many natural hot springs in my world. We have a type of man-made hot spring; we call it a hot tub or jacuzzi. There are ways of heating the water and making it bubble. Anyway, men and women do share it openly. They're very popular, especially at, er, inns, but generally people don't go naked in public. They wear tiny tight garments called "swimsuits" which would be considered indecent in this world, anyway; they barely cover the essentials and leave little to the imagination, especially thongs."

"Thongs?"

"Ah, stupid things: a swatch of material in the front and just a piece of string in the back. You really gotta have a perfect ass to wear one of those in public. Unfortunately, too many people don't realize this."

Houjun laughed out loud, looking up at the sky as the sun climbed higher, warming the morning air. He and Joss had romped and played in the water until they grew weary and over-heated, and now they were sprawled comfortably on the grassy bank of the spring, letting the steam rise off their towel-clad bodies.

He could hardly believe that he was so relaxed around Joss--around any woman, actually. But her casual friendliness and unselfconsciousness made him unselfconscious, too; it seemed ridiculous to behave like a blushing teenaged girl when she was so natural and at ease. So here he was, lying half-naked next to her with his chin propped in one hand, laughing at her jokes as if the two of them were same-sex lifelong friends. His body, too, was now firmly under his mental control, especially since she made it easier by completely spurning any hint of coy femininity in favor of acting like a--what was her word again?--oh, yes, buddy.

He almost felt that he might've dreamed that earlier encounter, when she had appeared to him like a goddess of earthly desires. But even now, he could see the passion behind her flashing brown eyes, hear the sensual throatiness of her unrestrained laughter, feel the essential carnality of her being…. Damn, time to divert his thoughts again! He was grateful to hear her voice break in on his dangerous line of thought.

"So you keep asking me about my world, Houjun; what about yours? Let's say some village elders suddenly appeared at this spring and found us innocently sun-bathing like this. What would happen? Would they excuse themselves politely, or would we be looking at some serious prison time, floggings no extra charge?"

"Neither, really; the situation would be highly improper but not criminal. They would probably haul you off to your weeping parents and give me a good scolding. There would be no forced marriage, but…there's a true imbalance of justice. I would be secretly congratulated by my friends, while you would gain a reputation as a girl of…easy morals."

"Yeah, it was the same in my world up until the last few decades; still is that way in many places." Joss put the back of her hand up to her brow dramatically. "Alas, cruel fate! My bride-price has just fallen on the stock exchange!"

Houjun caught her meaning. "So if I were a man of ethics, I'd feel compelled to rescue you from a dismal future. I'd have to present to your parents a list of my worldly possessions, which right now consists of…" he felt around his bundle of clothes which lay next to him, "…this!"

Joss stared at the tube of toothpaste that he triumphantly brandished before her eyes. Her eyes crinkled up in amusement, and she clasped her hands together. "Oh, be still my heart! You mysterious man of hidden wealth! The village elders stand in awe, and my hypothetical parents cry out in joy, 'Sold! For the price of a tube of toothpaste, she is now yours! All sales final, no refunds, no returns.'"

Houjun laughed. "Actually, even this belongs to the Doctor. He sent me out here to give it to you."

Joss raised one eyebrow. "Oh, he did, did he? So that's how you ended up here so unexpectedly. That sly dog…" The last part was muttered under her breath. She leaned over and took the toothpaste from his hand. "Well, let's not waste such a generous gift. Time to brush our teeth, get dressed and head back to camp, before our oh-so-concerned friend and mentor sends the village elders out looking for us."

All these hygienic tasks were quickly carried out, and Joss and Houjun were soon on their way on the path through the woods. Houjun marveled at how at ease he and Joss were with one another. It was a marked change from their mutual panic and embarrassment earlier this morning. They chatted about insignificant things: the expected weather, what they hoped to find for breakfast. Finally they fell into a comfortable silence as they neared the campsite. A mischievous smile began playing around Joss' lips.

"Say, Houjun…"

"Mm-hm?"

"You know when you turned your hair dark?"

"Yes?"

"Well, you missed a spot."

He raised a hand self-consciously to his loose, still damp locks, frowning in confusion. Why didn't the Doctor tell him? Suddenly he focused on Joss' widely grinning countenance.

"Why, you little…!" He was gasping with a combination of outrage, embarrassment--and hilarity. She was absolutely unbelievable! "You are such a liar!"

"I am."

"You swore not to peek!"

"I had my fingers crossed."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I'm lying when I swear."

"You have no honor!"

"None."

"No sense of shame!"

"I had it surgically removed."

"How did you--? You had your back turned!"

She flashed a small hand mirror at him, hidden in her palm.

He was stunned. "I can't believe that you… I just… I've never…!"

"You're stuttering, Houjun. Have you ever heard of what causes stuttering--and what cures it?"

"Is there nothing you won't say?" he howled in disbelief.

"Nope."

His voice dropped. "What did you see?"

She smiled a slow, wicked smile, enunciating each syllable with relish. "Ev-er-y-thing."

His voice grew even weaker. "Everything?"

"Don't try to hide it, Houjun. You like me--a lot!"

"That's it!" he roared, pushed beyond all reason. "You'll pay for this, you…you…"

"Shameless hussy!" she finished, taking off at a run. "Promises, promises!"

He took off after her. "I'll catch you, and then--"

"What?" she called back over her shoulder.

"I'll turn you over my knee and spank the daylights out of you!"

"Doctor, Doctor!" she shrieked, running into camp. "Save me! Houjun's into kinky sex!"

"What are you saying?" he shouted at her, caught between laughter and horror. He grabbed at her arm, but she feinted right and dodged him.

At that moment, the Doctor ducked out of the tent, grinning. "Had a nice time at the hot spring, children?"

Houjun froze guiltily for a moment, trying to think of an explanation for his actions, but saw that the Doctor was laughing openly, while Joss stuck out her tongue at him from behind the safety of the velvet coat. He couldn't help it; he burst out laughing along with them.

"Doctor, what have you gotten us into, picking up such a--"

"Shameless hussy," interjected Joss.

"I was going to say 'troublemaker'!"

"Oh, Houjun, you know that there's not a particle of harm in her."

Joss smirked and batted her eyes innocently.

"Oh, no? Well, next time, you get to go to the hot spring with her, Doctor!"

"Utter nonsense! It's not as if she would…" He turned suddenly and caught Joss clasping her hands in a victory sign over his head. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh, no?" Joss mimicked Houjun. "I believe in equal treatment for both my men, Doctor!"

"I am not one of your men," he huffed. "I really…it's inconceivable that…how could you dare to…?"

Houjun caught his eye and smirked. "You're stuttering, Doctor. And you know what they say causes stuttering." He walked past them into the tent.

The Doctor stood stock still in disbelief. "Did he just imply--?"

Joss laughed merrily. "I think the term is: he zinged you, Doctor!"

The Doctor gave up his struggle for control and laughed out loud. "It's a radical change from the young man who left here just over an hour ago. You seem to have worked a kind of magic, Joss."

"Oh, I don't think that we have any shortage of magicians in this camp," she replied airily. She produced both tubes of his toothpaste from her satchel. "Funny how you seemed to think that I needed two whole tubes of toothpaste this morning, Doctor. Not exactly flattering."

"Well, I…"

"And since I brushed my teeth twice this morning--I get to do this!" She stood up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks, Doctor," she whispered into the chestnut waves. "You old romantic goop!"

****

Houjun mused contentedly, listening to leather creak as his horse picked its way up the sloping dirt path. He smelled fresh greenery and the sweet, dusty scent of the horses, heard the insistent call of hungry baby birds high above, felt the soft, warm breeze lift his bangs. He could feel the even warmer pressure of Joss' head leaning against his back as she dozed, her arms looped loosely around his waist. A wave of happiness swept over him, and he fought to keep from laughing aloud in sheer joy, not wanting to wake her. Up ahead, the Doctor turned in his saddle, smiling back at him, sharing in the magic of this halcyon day.

Could anyone ask for a better life? Living in the open air, traveling to new and exciting places, sharing the company of close friends. Close friends--and maybe something more. There was a warm, happy glow in his heart now when he thought of Joss, something that grew a little stronger each day. She'd done something to him over the past few days, freeing some part of his soul that he'd never realized existed. He felt accepted, almost embraced by her--even his sexuality, which had caused him so much embarrassment two days ago. To her, it was just a part of him, and she made him laugh about it. She made him be himself, free of any of the restrictions and expectations society imposed upon young men and women. He had never felt so free in his life; it was as if he, the Doctor and Joss made up their own little society in which judgment and criticism was suspended, and joy and sensuality embraced.

Not that he and Joss--no, it was a little too soon for them. But the possibility existed, and what more could he ask for than a world full of possibilities? He didn't need to pin down their relationship, to analyze it or categorize it. In fact, he almost feared looking too directly at it; it was too new, too fragile, this thing called happiness.

In the same way, he'd just accepted the Doctor steering them on their travels, not feeling any need to question their mission or motives. They had put aside their nomadic disguises for the past two days, since they hadn't encountered anyone on their mountain trek. The Doctor seemed happier now that he was back in his velvet coat. He was always bringing forth amazing objects from the coat's seemingly bottomless pockets: strange toys, odd books, snacks. In fact, the Doctor was fishing around in his pocket right now. Houjun craned his neck to see what the Doctor was holding--oh, the mirror that Taiitsukun had given him.

Unexpectedly, something changed, and the Doctor abruptly pulled up his horse. Houjun reacted to the tension in the air, pulling up his own horse and waking Joss. The Doctor was frowning at the mirror, shaking it intermittently.

"What's wrong, Doctor?"

"This mirror--the mountain and fire kanji--they've started flickering, almost as if they're going out!"

Suddenly the Doctor stiffened, his eyes going dark and distant. He seemed caught in a trance or some strange silent communication with an unseen entity. The air thickened, a scent of ozone wafting out of nowhere. In an instant, the Doctor snapped out of the trance, letting out a curse in some unknown language. "Come on, Houjun; we've got to hurry!" He spurred his horse up the steep path, kicking it into a full gallop.

"Hang on," Houjun instructed Joss, digging his heels into his own horse so that it leapt after the Doctor. Joss locked her arms around Houjun's waist, letting the lead rein for their pack horse drop away from them. She, too, was caught up in the sense of panic that seized them, "Too late, too late, TOO LATE!" shrieking in her brain.

They followed the dust that the Doctor's mount had kicked up as he plunged down the other slope of the rise, towards the dark green waters of a mountain lake rippling in the afternoon sunlight. Several figures were gathered on the near shore, staring out at the water. They looked up as they heard the horses pound down the slope. Suddenly three of the figures-- teenaged boys--took off running, drops of water catching the light as they flew from their sodden clothes. They disappeared into the woods, leaving one last figure still frozen in place. It was a girl of about Sachiko's age, her hands held up to her mouth and her dark eyes wide in horror as she stared at the lake's surface.

The Doctor leaped off his horse and ran up to her, Houjun and Joss following close behind. "What happened? Where is he?"

The girl shook her head. "Not my fault! They made me--it's not my fault!" She began to cry, refusing to say anything else.

The Doctor turned from her in aggravation, pulling off his boots and throwing off his velvet coat. He tugged at his cravat, anxiously scanning the surface of the lake for telltale ripples. "Houjun, I can't pick up his ki! Can you--?"

Houjun ran up, pulling off his shirt, his eyes narrowing in concentration. "There's definitely someone out there, but his ki is fading fast. I need to know where to focus, Doctor!"

Joss lost it. She strode up to the snivelling, whimpering girl and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her head back and slapping her across the face. "Listen, you little bitch; you'd better talk now, if you want to keep your teeth! Now tell us where you last saw him!"

The girl went silent in shock, the print of Joss' hand red on her face. Her face crumpled, and she started to snivel again, but Joss yanked hard on her hair.

"Joss," hissed the Doctor.

"We don't have time for this bullshit! Now talk, or else the next thing you feel is gonna be my fist!"

The girl wailed, pointing at an area just right of the center of the lake. "They dragged him out there! He went down near that tree! He was supposed to come up again, but--"

Houjun narrowed his eyes, focusing on the area near a dead tree sticking partially out of the water, its bare trunk and skeletal branches clawing at the sky. "There!" he shouted in triumph. He locked gazes with the Doctor, mentally sending the location. "Got it?"

"Let's go!" The Doctor dashed towards the lake, plunging in, Houjun close on his heels.

Joss watched anxiously as they swam furiously towards the center of the lake. "At least one minute already." Her words came out tightly between gritted teeth. "Unless the water's cold enough to induce hypothermia, we only have at most one more minute--Come on!" she prayed, watching them take turns diving below the surface. She saw Houjun take a big gulp of air, dive down again, and…and…not come back up.

The Doctor suddenly dove down after him, the water rippling in his wake. Joss watched the ripples grow wider and slower, the lake calming after the disappearance of the two intruders. Joss grasped her head in frustration, releasing the girl.

The girl began crying again. "This wasn't supposed to happen! We overheard his sister telling Okaa-san that he didn't know how to swim, and Taro thought it would be funny if… Taro made me trick him into coming out here! He and his friends grabbed him and threw him into the lake twice, but the third time, he didn't come up! Taro was supposed to pull him out again, but he and his friends just ran off. They left me here!"

"Shut up!" Joss was infuriated. "You have no right to feel sorry for yourself! You're just as guilty…" Her words trailed off as Houjun and the Doctor burst into view again, carrying a small bundle between them. "Oh, thank God, thank Suzaku!" She watched as they pulled doggedly for the shore, their movements determined but slowing through weariness. "Come on, come on, come on!" Joss thought her heart was going to smash through her chest.

They finally reached shore, Joss running down into the water to help pull the small bundle out. They set him down rapidly on the first area of dry land, turning him over. "Oh Christ!" Joss burst out, tears running down her face. He was so small, with thin, spindly limbs; he couldn't be more than eleven years old! Dark russet hair was plastered to his forehead, his skin bluish from hypoxia. "Those bastards tried to drown a little kid! God damn them! God damn them to hell!"

The Doctor ignored her, turning the child's head to one side. "Okay, Houjun, I need your help. Crash course in resuscitation. Press down on his chest firmly but not hard enough to break ribs. Now!" Houjun pressed down as ordered. Water burst from the child's mouth, but there was no other response, no indrawn breath. The Doctor pinched the child's nose shut and blew air into his mouth. "Again, Houjun!" They repeated the process until there was no more water flowing from the boy's mouth, yet he remained quietly, utterly still.

The girl wandered up, drawn by curiosity, and stopped at the sight of the child's bluish skin, his sprawled limbs. "He's dead!" she screamed. "Oh, Suzaku, he's dead!" She ran shrieking toward the woods.

"Good riddance," growled Joss, while the Doctor pressed his ear to the child' s chest. "Okay, Joss, I need you now. Are you certified?"

"You bet!" Joss gently pushed Houjun aside, taking his place. "Now watch, Houjun." She placed one hand on top of the other and pumped his chest over his heart. "One, two, three, four, five…" The Doctor bent and blew into his mouth at the end of each series. Houjun hovered anxiously, watching as the Doctor listened for a heartbeat. They continued the cycles, the Doctor listening, listening… Finally he held up a hand to stop Joss as he slumped in defeat.

"Wait, Doctor!" Houjun's voice was urgent. "There's still something there: not much, but he's not gone yet. Let me try!" Houjun drew himself up and pulled together all his strength, all of his ki. He had never tried this before, but… He sent his ki out towards the small child, seeking, questing--there! So weak, yet something seemed powerful. A fighting spirit, nearly extinguished, yet stubbornly clinging to life against all odds. Houjun mentally visualized reaching a hand out to that ki...and jolted in shock when it seized him, grabbing onto him fiercely. There was an overwhelming sense of connection, almost of recognition, as if they were two parts of some greater whole. The child's life force pulled at him, drawing greedily on his strength, and Houjun gave him all he could, coaxing him back to the physical plane. He felt the child following him, trusting him, but he himself was weakening under the strain, fighting to retain his own consciousness. He tried to hold on, but it was too late. He was falling, falling…

****

Darkness all around him…but he could sense light flickering behind his eyelids. The smell of woodsmoke, the crackling of the flames…ah, home. He opened his eyes to see--

Her. She was smiling at him, her skin burnished by the soft glow of firelight, the flames bringing out the highlights in her gleaming hair. She gently held a blanketed bundle in her arms, caressing long, wispy red-gold locks with maternal solicitude. He suddenly knew that this was how she would look as a mother: warm, tender, almost sleepy with contentment. He felt something in his chest tighten, some unspoken desire rise in his breast. What would it be like, to have her as a safe harbor in his storm-tossed life? What would it be like, to watch her by firelight each night as she held not some lost waif, but her own child…his own child? Could there possibly be a future so warm, so bright and full of promise?

She smiled wider, as if reading his thoughts. "How are you feeling?"

Her husky tones caressed him, made him stretch in pleasure. "Good," he murmured. "Very, very good."

Her teeth gleamed as she laughed. "So you should, Master Magician. Come here and look; you saved him."

Houjun rose to his feet, walking over to peer down at the child in her arms. What a difference! The boy's hair had dried, changing from the deep russet of its drenched state to a light red-gold, the same color as the flames that danced before them. The bluish tint had left his skin, which now showed its natural golden shade, darker than he expected in such a light-haired child. Joss ran a caressing finger along the lines of the heart-shaped, elfin face: wide near the forehead and cheekbones, tapering to a sharp, pointed chin. He had a distinctive, prominent, pointy nose, that suddenly wrinkled.

Joss laughed softly, sharing her sense of wonder with Houjun. "Look, he's starting to wake up at last," she whispered. "So innocent." She touched a finger near the child's long dark eyelashes. "I can't wait until he talks! He's as pretty as a girl…so sweet…"

Suddenly the dark eyelashes lifted, revealing slanted amber eyes flecked with gold. A high-pitched voice rang out in annoyance.

"I ain't no fuckin' girl! And take your hands off me, ya goddamn pervert!"

****

****

Glossary of Japanese terms:

Shikuso! - Shit!

*

Author's note: (3-3-03 - Ooh! Cool date!Shun'u has arrived! Hurray! (Joss: Oh, yeah, whoopee…) My favorite foul-mouthed little punk is here at last, signifying that we are more than halfway through this fic; more like two-thirds!

Of course, this is a change from what I'd promised last week, but that's the way my stories work: they drag me the way they want to go, no matter what I plan in advance. I can only follow meekly, just taking dictation from my muse.

Kryssa: (sarcastic) Oh, is that where the first three sections of this chapter came from? You, of course, didn't have anything to do with the highly, ahem, interesting subject matter.

Roku: (smirking) Wellll, it is my favorite subject in all the world: male sexuality! In fact, let me tell you a funny story…

Kryssa: That's enough, Roku!

All right, all right. Back to Shun'u. Now, before you jump on me about canon inconsistencies about his age, let me clarify that I didn't say that he was eleven years old; I said that Joss thought that he looked like an eleven-year-old. And he does, although he is thirteen. He is, shall we say, a late-bloomer; his voice hasn't even changed yet. This is consistent with Yuu Watase's canon description of him in Genrou Den at age fifteen as being small for his age--many thanks to Tasuki no Miko for her painstaking online translation of that novel.

By the way, congratulations to Jack of the Pelt for catching all the obscure canon Doctor Who references in Chapter 9. I have one more for you in this chapter, Jack; see if you can find it! By the way, where's that story you've been promising me? I've been looking for it on all week!

Well, I'm done making promises for future events in this story until my muse solidifies this plot a bit more. But as for my future posting plans: the next thing up will be an odd interlude in "Casting Stones," followed by either another chapter of "Bridge" or, if I EVER get to that dance club, to the long-awaited Chapter 4 of "Hidden Paths!"

Ja ne!

Roku-hentai-mind