Title Broken China

Author Kyrie Sanctus

Rating PG-13 for Shounen-ai situations.

Begun September 27, 2003

Finished ???

Chapters 1/??

Synopsis Unfortunately for Ren, Jun has invited Horohoro to accompany them to China. But perhaps, Ren's disgust at this situation is just a cover up for the feelings he hasn't realized he could have for the shaman of ice? A bit plotless, just a device for fluff. HoroRen.

Comments Well, the title does NOT refer to the many plates I've broken in trying to come up with an idea for a HoroRen story good enough to post on FF.net. Instead, it's about China. You know, the country? Broken. Not literally broken, but rather.. .. It's symbolism! Ren's feelings about Horohoro going to China with them are like.. Mixed, you know? The inspiration for this came from me buying a Chinese dictionary and looking up the word 'peach.' Yep. That's how it all got started.

Dedications this goes out to Tanjo, for being the one who made me interested in the Chinese language in the first place. Katie, for no darn reason. Krissy, for always being the little inspiration in my life, and whoever else writes HoroRen fanfics. Because I didn't want you to be alone anymore!

Disclaimer I own no rights to Shaman King, it's plots, or it's characters. Those are all belong to the masterful Hiroyuki Takei. However, I do own the Chinese dictionary used in making all of these pretty Chinese words possible!

Broken China

Dance Two: Traveling Chinese

It had been three days since Jun had rained on his parade, and Ren was in utter misery. Just the thought of Horohoro being there the whole time he was trying to relax… It annoyed him. He'd been in his room the majority of the time since he'd discovered Horohoro with the Chinese dictionary.

Every once in a while, Jun would come to his door and knock, asking him to come out, but he didn't budge. And in regular intervals he heard one of them going into or exiting the bathroom, and once or twice a day he would hear running footsteps outside his door. At one time, he heard his sister and that moron practicing his Chinese in the main room.

He sighed and noticed the pained hole in his stomach. Damn, he thought, holding his hand over it. I forgot. I haven't eaten since yesterday. But he didn't want to leave his room, not right now at least. He would wait until later that night, when they both were asleep. For now, he'd just go to sleep to ward off the pain.

When he shook awake it was midnight. He sat up, pushing the hair out of his face, the sweat from sleeping in the afternoon saturating his underarms. He pulled his shirt off, freeing himself of the warm that had caused this.

He exited the room. Everything was quiet around him. They must be in bed already, he started down the hall. Turning the corner, he peered into the kitchen. It was completely dark in there. He walked in and over to the fridge, opening it with one hand. The light illuminated half of the room, and also, the figure perched up on the counter beside it.

Ren's eyes glanced sideways as he put his hand on the milk, and he jumped at the sight of the figure, sloshing a bit of the open milk container's liquid on the shadow's face.

"What the hell are you doing in here?! Why aren't you in bed?!"

"Ungh," the figure was wiping it's face on it's sleeve, cleaning the milk up. "I was hungry. God, Ren, why did you have to.. Now I'm gonna smell bad."

Ren was about to retort with a snide comment about how Horohoro already smelled bad anyway, but he was stopped by the movement of the Ainu sliding off of the counter to the floor, where he pulled his jacket up over his head and off.

The jacket was thrown onto an opposing counter, and Horohoro leaned back, picking his snack back up. He took a bite of it, and looked over at Ren, who hadn't yet noticed that he was staring at him. He waved his hand in front of his face, which shook him awake.

Ren jumped and turned away, closing the fridge with his foot. He walked to the cabinet and opened it, pulling out a glass. Filling it to the brim, he turned to return the milk to it's rightful place in the fridge, however, he tripped over the leg of one of the chairs at the table which hadn't been pushed in all the wall.

As he was about to hit the floor he felt a pair of arms around his own, and felt himself being pulled back up to stand in an upright position. "Heh. Got you in the nick of time," Horohoro commented before stepping away. Ren, flush-faced, continued his journey to the fridge and put the milk in, kicking the chair in before he returned to his milk.

Horohoro had known not to expect a 'thank you,' from Ren, so he wasn't anticipating anything. He sat down at the table, watching him from across the way. Striking up a conversation would be a dumb thing to do, but.. We all know Horohoro.

"Ren, how come you don't want me to go to China?"

There was stillness as Ren tried to think up an answer. One came to mind rather quickly.

"Because you're a moron."

"Thanks.. I guess."

They both sat there, neither looking at the other, studying their milk or snack.

"I guess it won't be so bad.."

Horohoro looked up at Ren, who was taking another sip as before he continued.

"As long as you stay away from me." He slid off of the counter and walked to the sink, placing his glass inside it. He exited the kitchen, leaving Horohoro with a scowl.

"Ren! Hurry it up!" Jun called from the front door. She and Horohoro had packed the day before, but her little brother, although he usually didn't rush, was taking his time an hour and a half before the train left the station. Naturally annoyed, she tapped her foot.

Horohoro was standing beside her, holding his bag on his shoulder, his dictionary in his other hand. He looked over to the man opposite him, Bailong, who was holding all of Jun's luggage. There was no response from Ren for a moment, and Jun screamed out to him again.

"REN!!"

Ren emerged from his room, holding a black duffel bag. He stopped in the hallway and set it down, pulling his coat around his body and wrapping his muffler around his neck. He then bent to pick the bag back up and walked to the door, staring at the two of them in the utmost disgust. "Ready."

Jun's snarl turned into a bright smile, and she nodded to Bailong to open the door. He did so, and she exited first, followed by Ren, then Horohoro, then Bailong himself, who turned off the last light and closed the door.

The taxi ride to the train station hadn't been a long one, but it had been quiet. No one really wanted to say anything to scare the driver, who was already quite scared at the fact that Lee Bailong was sitting in his front seat beside him and looked rather.. Well, dead.

Jun had decided it a good idea to disguise Bailong further, so before she stepped out of the car to pull a toboggan over his head before they entered the train station. Then, there they stood, watching and waiting for their train.

Now on the train, Jun and Bailong had taken seats opposite each other, with Horohoro beside Bailong. Ren, however, was wandering the train. He did not want to sit with that idiot for longer than he had to, especially since he was going to be with him for the next month or so.

He walked down the aisle of the next car over, looking at the people sitting, relaxing in there seats. A few children were arguing over a toy, a pair of teenagers were in the middle of a game of Go, an old man slept, while his middle-aged daughter flipped through a book.

Ren wished he could have been like one of those people, never having too much to worry about a one time. He, like Yoh, wished he could ease himself of all the problems he had. That was his one fear about returning to China. Although, he knew something had changed in his father since he had been there last.

He sat down in a seat that wasn't his and looked out the window, wishing he was on his return trip rather than the one to get there.

Author's End-Note Well, that was the second chapter. Sorry it was so short! I've had a trying night.. Well, now they're on their way to China.. I promise this fanfic won't be unbearably long, but I'll make it long enough to be enjoyable. ^^ Hmm.. What else would I like to address? Oh yeah! Thanks a lot to everyone who reviewed the first chapter. It means a lot to me! Please continue to review and enjoy this fanfic! I know it's the overused 'Ren goes back to China,' scenario, but I'm hoping my twist is making it a different experience! ^^ Besides, we all know we like Horohoro in pain… … ( Believe it or not, he is my favorite character. Everyone loves to torture their favorite! ) Yeah. Oh, and to address one of the reviewers.. Tsukamaete Senshi, unfortunately, I work on a basis that.. Well, there needs to be angst before I can reach the fluff.. I'm hoping, for now, since I updated quickly, that the little cute moment with Horohoro catching Ren (and Ren BLUSHING!) will suffice.. I'll try! ^^ I'm not the fluff master like Em0tions ( Katie. )

And, like I said last time:

Anyway, if you liked it, please review. If you hated it, please review. If you think I'm a crap writer and that I need to quit at it before I put all of the actually talented writers into cardiac-arrest, please review then jump off a bridge. Just kidding.