Someone was close by. The source of the protective shield that kept him safe, and Rikugo turned his head. He gazed at the man curled up on the other side of the bed that was large enough to hold two easily. Tsuzuki Asato was asleep, his face relaxed, the longish strands falling into his face. He was on one side, facing Rikugo.
The astrologer studied the young face, so sweet and innocent, but also so much stronger than he could ever be. His master. His friend. His protector. Like the shikigami protected him, Tsuzuki protected them. He loved the young man who had survived his challenge, who had mastered him, and coming to Meifu to flee from GensouKai had been almost instinctual. He had wanted to go to Tsuzuki right away, but the shinigami had been on a case and it had taken him away from Meifu for too long. So Rikugo had retreated into the less populated areas of this realm. Enma-Daiou probably knew of his presence, but the Lord of Hades had let him stay without interference.
Until Tsuzuki had found him.
He had felt his master's aura, had felt the power, and he couldn't but go there. Rikugo had wanted to be where this man was, wanted his strength, needed this support.
Reaching out, he touched the slumbering form. Tsuzuki's eyes blinked open at the touch and a smile crossed his lips.
"Hey," he whispered. He sat up, violet gaze resting on his shikigami. "How are you?" he asked.
"Fine," Rikugo answered almost automatically.
"You're not," his master begged to differ.
No, he wasn't. Not really. He was weak, his body was drained of energy, and his mind was like molasses. He felt like a newborn kitten, unable to coordinate his movements, let alone his thoughts.
"You up for something to eat?"
Did he feel hungry? Rikugo didn't know. He felt nothing at all, but when he looked into those huge eyes, saw the worry, he found himself nodding.
°
Rikugo slept a lot. Tsuzuki was always with him, was there, fed him, helped him with whatever he needed, and he stayed when Rikugo slept. It was reassuring to wake up to his master's presence, to the gentle aura, and Rikugo reached automatically for it while waking.
It was on the second day that he sat in the bed and ate that Tsuzuki asked the question he had dreaded.
"What happened?"
He lowered his spoon and sighed. "Too much."
Tsuzuki waited, silent.
"Did... Byakko tell you what that devil did to him?"
"Yes," was the soft answer. "I doubt I know everything, but he told me a few things. We talked a lot."
Tsuzuki's face was serious, the expression very empathic. Rikugo knew that Byakko would turn to his master in his need, though he had never done too often in the past. Usually it was Tsuzuki who needed their support, but the young man had grown. He had finally accepted what he was, what he could do, and it had done wonders.
"You know that this false reality the devil created involved us?"
A nod. "I know what he thought I did."
And Rikugo knew all Byakko had been shown, had been made to believe.
"You saw it all," Tsuzuki spoke out loud what his shikigami had thought. "You never talked to anyone."
Rikugo lowered his gaze. "I was in that reality as well," he murmured.
Tsuzuki was silent, eyes widening a fraction.
"I... hurt him. Not the Byakko you know, but the child he was when his father died... when he was alone and afraid and turned to me for help, for consolation... to talk, to sleep over, to help chase away the horror over his agile mind."
He looked up and saw understanding rise in those expressive, violet eyes.
"I would never hurt him, Tsuzuki," Rikugo whispered. "Never... But that thing showed it to him, made him believe I would... that I would..."
The horror was back, the screams and cries, the huge red eyes staring at a Rikugo that had never existed, pleading for him to stop.
Rikugo screwed his eyes shut and drew a shuddering breath.
There was a warm presence all of a sudden, pulling him close. Strong arms curled around him, held him tightly, and he felt his master's aura cocoon him. Tsuzuki pulled him close, whispered soft words, and Rikugo felt his dams break again. Tears streamed down his face and he cursed himself for his weakness, but he couldn't stop it. It was too much, too painful, and he knew all Byakko had endured.
Crying for a child that Byakko had never been, crying because of the horror he had witnessed, he let himself fall into Tsuzuki's strength, wishing he could be stronger himself. Hands stroked over his back, a voice told him that it was okay, that it was all right to be like this, and Rikugo held on.
° ° °
The wounds in his soul didn't really heal, but they were no longer as painful as a week ago when he had arrived in Meifu, and Rikugo was getting some of his old personality back. He smiled more, he actually went out, though only into the unpopulated areas, and he talked to Tsuzuki whenever his master was around. Tsuzuki in turn listened and heard of the horror Rikugo had faced inside Byakko's mind while trying to heal him.
His heart went out to the wounded shikigami and he did whatever he could to help. Rikugo's presence didn't go unnoticed, but no one said a word. Not even Enma-Daiou made himself known. If he had, Tsuzuki would have fought for Rikugo. He knew he would at least try.
It was throughout one of his long walks through the realm of Meifu, a world that was as real as GensouKai, with just as many illusions, that he stumbled over one institution everyone knew about and which resided at the edge of Meifu. It was an immense building, a palace of incredible proportions. The white walls very intricately established, rising before him as far as they eye could see, like reaching for the sky. It looked like an Italian baroque villa, blown up ten times and set into a dream realm.
Sohryu's palace came close to this masterpiece of architecture, though the style was vastly different. This had only European influence, which was curious for a realm that didn't even reach that far. And it was probably just as old, if not older.
Curious, the shikigami walked up the stairs that led to the high doors. They were made of solid wood, but when he touched them, they swung open easily.
Rikugo raised an eyebrow, but he took the silent invitation and entered. The entrance hall was as high as the building itself, awash in light that couldn't come from the candles alone.
The Palace of Candles, he thought. So this was it. An incredible building at the edge of the underworld. He felt the energy everywhere, the life of the millions upon millions of candles. Souls, he knew. Every soul of every living human being was in this place. No one came here except for business. Rikugo himself had no official business, but he had been curious. Since he was already in Meifu, had no duties, and since Tsuzuki couldn't be around him all the time, he had started to look around.
And had ended up here.
Walking through the hall he let his senses adjust to the energy-laden environment. As a shikigami he was sensitive to the shifts in energies and here there was so much life in all stages, it was like a pressure on his senses, like being underwater.
There was no one here, but he knew he was being watched. Someone was curious, just like he was, but he didn't see anyone.
Entering a room, Rikugo stopped, amazed.
The room was stretching into infinity as it seemed.
Seventeen windows overlooking the garden were matched by seventeen arcaded, exceptionally large mirrors along the wall. The arches were set on marble pilasters whose gilded bronze capitals were decorated with the astrological symbols Rikugo could easily tell apart. Solid silver tables, lamp holders, and pots adorned the gallery.
Rikugo slowly walked into the room, fascinated.
"Who are you?"
The voice was a cool tenor, demanding, wary and with a slight edge. Rikugo turned, caught by surprise since he hadn't felt anyone approach, and... his second set of eyes opened in surprise.
There was no one there. Just a roughly cut half mask floating at head level of a normal-sized human being, and a pair of white gloves resting against the frame of the doorway, as if the invisible man had placed a hand there.
And he had.
Rikugo knew that opening his other eyes was impolite but the sheer surprise overwhelmed him-- and he Saw.
He Saw a human being, wearing the mask, dressed in a formal outfit of a black tuxedo with a delicately ornate cravat around his neck, looking at him with a wary expression. Dark eyebrows were drawn down over eyes that struck Rikugo as odd. They were dark, of a color he couldn't define from this distance, but there was a shimmer to them that made them inhuman. The black hair was unruly, reminding him of Tsuzuki, though the face looked older while still remaining young.
But the aura of the man... Rikugo inhaled sharply. Ancient. Very, very ancient. He felt life but not like anyone he had ever met. He wasn't a true shinigami, he wasn't a creature of magic, he wasn't human, but something in between.
Like Tsuzuki...
"My name is Rikugo," he answered the question, still staring at the man. "I apologize for coming in unannounced."
The frown deepened and the man seemed to be unaware that Rikugo actually saw him. "You're a shikigami," he said, coming closer.
His movements were lithe, slow, careful.
Rikugo bowed his head in acknowledgement. "I am."
"It's rare that a shikigami appears in Meifu. Especially to this place."
"You are a bit remote."
Had he seen a wince? And why was this man wearing a mask?
"Can I offer you a tour?" the man asked, a slow smile suddenly crossing his lips. "Since I get so few visitors, I can at least entertain the one I have."
Rikugo smiled slightly and bowed his head once again. "Thank you."
"You already walked into the Hall of Mirrors," his host said. "So welcome to the Palace of Candles, my friend. I am the Count. How may I address you?"
The man behind the mask smiled widely, eyes alight with something like happiness but not quite it.
"I don't have a title," the shikigami answered, only briefly wondering why the man hadn't told him his name, just his position. "Just call me Rikugo."
"Then follow me now as we begin the tour to this magical place."
And he turned, his formal clothes so very fitting into this regal environment.
"We'll start with the ground floor, wind our way through the gardens with its fountains and little private groves..."
Rikugo listened to the words, smiling to himself at the expressive way, the gestures, the smiles that the Count thought he couldn't see.
°
He had no idea what had driven him to let the tall, blond shikigami enter the Palace. As master of this place, master of the Candles, the Count controlled every aspect of the huge building. He decided who was allowed to enter or not. He could just as well have locked the entrance and be done with it. But he had left the doors open, had allowed the stranger to enter, curious about why a shikigami was in Meifu.
He knew all there was to know about their kind. Centuries of boredom and a huge library had helped along with that. He also knew who Rikugo represented, who he was. All twelve of the highest shikigami were known to him, the Divine Commanders.
So this was one of Tsuzuki's, one he had challenged and won.
The Count let his eyes trail over the slender form, noting how unusual his outfit was for such a proud being. If he hadn't sensed the aura, he would have taken him for a run of the mill visitor. Rikugo, despite his fearsome reputation, had a rather.. reduced aura.
Curious.
And then there was the thing about the hair.
The Count remembered reading about shikigami, especially the dragons, and Rikugo was a dragon. Their power resided in their hair and the blond strands were... way too short for his age and standing.
Very curious.
But he reined in his questions, just guided his visitor through his home, his prison, and enthusiastically explained the Palace to him.
It felt too good to have someone here to ponder about inconsistencies.
Later. If there was a later.
Yes, maybe later.
° ° °
The tour couldn't be completed in a day.
So Rikugo came back the second day, seeing the smile on the young features, saw the eagerness for company, and he followed his host again, for his second tour, for tea and something to eat, for a drink and conversation.
It was on the third day as they were out in the gardens, the perfectly groomed, wide expanse of green grass, trees, shrubs, a huge maze with a sun dial in its center, with the many fountains, stone benches, and the groves that were chambers of greenery nestling in the small woods separating the pathways that Rikugo finally asked what he had been trying to answer for himself ever since the first day, ever since feeling that unusual aura.
"Why is a demon serving Enma-Daiou?" Rikugo asked calmly.
tbc...