AN: If you're skipping over the past two chapters (10 & 11), I ask that you go back and read them. This three-part interlude is meant to be read together. Thank you. --
Interim
Tatsuha was becoming livid. He couldn't find high or low of Tohma anywhere, and there were no more places to check.
"Stupid, disappearing acts ..." The boy grumbled to himself, "Show me to try and help out dead brothers ..." Why did he even try? Tatsuha wondered. It was obvious that Tohma did not want him involved in any way shape or form. It was obvious from the way he spoke, and from the way he constantly tried to dismiss Tatsuha. Well, the archangel might as well forget dismissing him, because Tatsuha's persistence was legendary once his mind was resolved.
He found himself standing in front of Tohma's office doors a second time.
Tatsuha took a deep breath, and reached out for the gold handle of a seemingly endless height of gold door. He pushed the suprisingly lightweight door open effortlessly, and he peered in meekly.
"Tohma?"
"JUST WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"
The sudden roar of gunshots rang in his ears, and Tatsuha reflexively 'EEP!'ed and ducked behind the door. "Please don't kill me!" The black-haired boy whimpered, only to notice a recognizable laugh. He looked again from his place on the floor, and saw K standing with his smoking gun still cocked.
"Hohoho!" The man chortled, "Even if I had got you, you couldn't have died!" The blond seemed to find Tatsuha's rightfully scared reaction eternally funny.
Tatsuha stood up and glared, "Well excuse me! As human, it's usually beaten into your brain that," He pointed at his chest, "Bullets bad! Bullets pain! Bullets death!"
K pouted and stared at his gun, "Aw ... that's right. You're barely over a hundred. You don't find death humourous yet." He shrugged and shot at Tatsuha again.
The younger jumped out of the way, "STOP THAT!" he bristled defensively.
K only chortled again.
Tatsuha spoke loudly to interrupt the raucous laughter, "Where's Tohma? I need to speak to him."
K abruptly stopped laughing, and thoughtfully rubbed his chin with the barrel of his gun, "Hmm ... I dunno." His smile was dismissive, "Anything you have to say to him will have to go through me for now."
The angel began to turn, "That's okay --" that's when a series of gunshots hit the door hard enough to close it. Tatsuha stared at K disbelievingly.
The man smiled brightly, "Special orders in your case."
'No way out ...' Tatsuha frowned, and began to reach for the door handle, when he saw K's trigger finger twitch. Despite the deceptively lighthearted grin, K was obviously serious about keeping him in that room. The boy figured he could just phase out, but the gunman would probably follow him: Tatsuha had to tell him what was on his mind. "Eiri got a weird summoning from one the judges."
K blinked, and looked at the other as though this was no big deal, "I know." He stated, "So?"
"It was from a woman, the messenger said."
"I know."
Tatsuha bristled again, "Does this not worry you at all?"
K cocked his head to the side and smiled brighter, "Tohma's on it. Why should I worry?"
Tatsuha found himself losing his temper, "Because it's probably from --"
"I know." This time the response was not bouncy, but voiced deeply and gravely, and harsh enough to make Tatsuha hesitate. "There's not much we can do, unless Tohma finds something illegal about a simple summoning. And knowing him, Tohma will find something technical to use against her."
Tatsuha's chest fell, "There's nothing ...?"
K shook his head, "There's nothing we can do for now."
"Okay ..." The younger sighed, and began to leave, only to have four more gunshots at him. "WHAT THE FU--"
K grinned, "Until I get word from Tohma, you're not going anywhere."
Tatsuha cursed, kicked the doors then let himself drop to the ground, where he crossed his arms and pouted like a child. "Dammit all ..."
--
'When the hell did Heaven get elevators?' They were very nice elevators, (clean, reflective and gold, just like everything else in Heaven) but non-the-less elevators. Eiri could just hear the bad synth-versions of eighties pop songs playing in the background, though that was just his imagination. 'This had better be good ...'
Though he didn't know what he would say if it wasn't. Receiving a summon from a Judge was usually a very serious event. They were known to be hermits, mainly because most of a Judge's time was spent ... well, deciding the fate of incoming souls. It was best to be polite at all costs.
Eiri watched the yellow elevator doors slide open. Before him was a darkness which echoed, silent and cold; this took him by surprise.
"Come in." A gentle female voice ordered.
He stepped forward, and light from the elevator instantly disappeared. Beneath his feet was black, above and to the sides was black, and the only thing that he could see was the faint outline of a dark grey desk. This room was the exact opposite of Tohma's office, and Eiri wondered if this was what a demon's work space was like.
"Don't be shy, come here."
He sensed a pair of eyes studying him, and instantly felt uncomfortable. Eiri quickly found that he had to focus on the dim silhouette, because if he tried to look around, he felt as though he might fall right through the seemingly non-existent flooring. The sensation was nerve wracking, and unbalancing.
When he finally reached the desk, Eiri was still aware of a scrutinizing gaze. The black room was silent.
Finally, that gentle, clear female voice spoke again, "Do you know why you're here?"
A simple question ... why did it feel so complex? "No." He responded.
An air of disappointment dropped around him, "All right." The woman said easily. Eiri realized that she was standing, and extending her hand. "Thank you for coming on time then."
He mechanically accepted the greeting, and for the first time, felt that he could look at her face.
Long brown hair pushed back with a headband, a plain dress, and a pleasant smile that felt fake, she was 'normal' looking. "My name is Ayaka, and I have a few things I wish to speak to you about." She stated politely.
Eiri nodded numbly, and watched her circle her desk to his side. "Why don't we go somewhere a bit ... brighter?" Ayaka proposed rhetorically, and gently lay a hand on his elbow.
They were standing on clouds. Eiri looked around, puzzled, and curious as to how it had taken a millisecond to get from Point A to Point B. "How did we ...?" He looked down at the young-seeming woman, who merely have him a neutral smile, and released his elbow.
She fluidly advanced a few steps, before stopping, and clasping her hands before her. "I'm afraid I've called you to discuss a bit of," She thought of the correct term, "an unpleasant topic."
Eiri raised an eyebrow, and resigned himself to watching the woman's back, "Oh?"
A head of brown nodded, though Ayaka continued staring forward, "It's about your latest charge, the one who died recently." She glanced over her shoulder, studying the indifferent man behind her, "What was his name?"
"Shane." Eiri answered dully.
A frown tugged at her lips, before she nodded in assent, "Yes, Shane. Perhaps you were wondering about his soul's fate." Ayaka turned again, as her eyes continued to bear into the blond, "Were you at all?"
Eiri felt a wave of neutrality wash over him, at instinctually sensing that she was trying to upset him, though none of Ayaka's actions hinted at aggression. "Not especially."
The frown deepened, and Ayaka's eyes darkened, "Well," she sniffed, "Maybe this will interest you; Shane had two souls when he passed, as you might have known from his records. Did this not make you curious as to who he was in his past life?"
Something was wrong ... Eiri shook his head, "It's none of my business Miss Ayaka. What's done is done, and who he was makes no difference to me."
Ayaka's hands gripped each other before relaxing, "You think so?" she said thinly, "That's one thing I hate about people in limbo. They're always so content. Have you never wondered why you're here, or why you have no memories?" The woman tilted her head down slightly, staring at him pointedly, "Or why you've been having strange dreams?"
The fact she knew about his dreams, completely passed over Eiri's radar, "Not especially." He stated vaguely "Like you said; I'm perfectly content. It's not bad, not anything, but I have no desire to progress or digress from how I am."
Her threatening blue eyes narrowed, "Of course not Eiri-san." she spat.
San? What did that mean? "San?" He asked before he could stop himself.
Ayaka's eyes lit up, "Your name is Japanese. 'San' is the appropriate suffix. 'Tohma' is Japanese also, you never noticed?"
No, he had not. Eiri's eyebrows knitted together as he tried to put this information together: something wasn't letting him. " ..."
Ayaka stepped forward gracefully, and her smile turned into a satisfied smirk, "You see, Eiri-san, when you were alive, Tohma was your guardian angel."
Eiri's eyes widened.
Ayaka ignored him, "But he was never actually considered human, before his life or death. He gave up his position as an archangel to be able to be near you, because, he fell in love with you."
"But Tohma is still an arch--"
"He's not." Ayaka interrupted smugly, "Take a close look at his status. He'll be listed as 'Overseer', an angel who watches over angels."
Eiri pressed his lips together and fell silent.
"The reason people still call him 'archangel', is that no one lost that respect for him after he died on earth. If you ask Tohma," Ayaka's smirk widened, "He'll probably tell you that he lost his pure archangel body, but not give you an explanation as to 'why'."
Eiri tried to brush this obviously important information off, "So, he was my guardian. A small detail from my past life." he smiled, "It doesn't matter now."
Ayaka snorted, "He's the only reason you're not in true limbo right now. Him, and your brother Tatsuha begged God to not punish you. Homosexuality truly is a sin you know ... perversion, selfishness and gluttony all mixed into one nice package."
"I don't have a brother." The blond retorted weakly, trying to ignore her last words.
She had a response of course, "Oh, that's right, you wouldn't know Tatsuha. Maybe you recognize Thaddeus?"
Eiri felt his throat constrict, "What?"
Ayaka's eyes glittered, "He wanted to be with you, he was worried as to what you would turn in to after being stripped of your memories, but wanted to see non-the-less. Tohma helped him with that little fiasco."
There was nothing to say; Eiri only watched as the brown-haired woman revealed each little unbelievable detail.
Said woman smiled and began pacing thoughtfully, moving her hands behind her back. "Your family decended from a long line priests, you were next in line to take over for your father, but you refused for selfish reasons."
Eiri watched dumbly. "And those would be?"
"Ah! So you're curious now." She tittered, and clapped her hands together, "You wanted to be an artist, a poem writer. And you brought in a reasonable amount of money to your temple, but that wasn't the reason your father was angry with you. By the time you were twenty-two, you still hadn't married, purely to avoid being pushed further into priesthood. Your little brother was picking up for your slack."
Eiri remained silent, waiting for Ayaka continue, as he was sure she wasn't even close to finished.
He was correct.
Ayaka stopped pacing, placing herself directly in front of him, and meeting Eiri eye to eye. "I'm sure you're wondering why I'm even taking the time to tell you all of this."
Had she simply disappeared without another word, he wouldn't have wondered. He would have been a tad disturbed, but not curious.
She pushed on, "You see, Eiri-san, I loved you dearly, ever since I had been a little girl." Ayaka's eyes turned vicious, hateful, even more so than before. "You refused me for a boy! A boy!" She snarled, "And that's where Shane comes in."
'Shane ...' Eiri listened.
"Two souls," Ayaka spat, "and one is the one you claimed to love so much." She laughed dryly, "Well, you never said it aloud, but you sure went through a lot of trouble for someone who didn't care." Ayaka's voice dropped to a soft murmur, "I waited my entire life to marry you, and you declined me for him; I was so angry." She looked down beside herself, as if actually ashamed to meet Eiri's still shocked gaze, "So full of hate. I couldn't stand it."
She looked up again, her aggression renewed, "I still can't." Ayaka growled, "But you can't remember anything, can you?"
Eiri shook his head, for lack of mind to do anything else.
One feminine hand moved upward, "Then I'll help, and show what happened, and he will remember also ..."
Eiri jerked when a soft palm suddenly pressed against his forehead, sending a burning pain down his skull; he could only gasp.
Only her voice remained, soft, almost nonexistent, feathery and still dripping with hatred so quiet, it was of the worst kind.
"I'll show you why ... and why Shindou Shuuichi will die again ..."
Memories begun.
END INTERLUDE
AN: O.O It's done. I started this a year ago, as of November 28, 2004.
It's started. We're halfway through. I didn't think I'd get this far. :collapses: And what's that::cups ear: Is that a plot I hear?
Don't worry, I've thought it through, and it's not going to be a remake of Gravitation. I know it sounds like it right now, but I threw everyone off the first time didn't I? Yes, yes I did.
Sliefoxx needs to do major research, but I'm sure monkshood has nothing to do with marriage. I'm only assuming Papa-Uesugi would want Eiri to be married before taking any major responsibilities, because Eiri's the eldest son. Don't agree? I'm using Artistic Licence ™ ... even though I'm usually against it ... (Stupid licence ... should be outlawed ...)
MY PRECIOUS REVIEWERS! I ♥ you all ...
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I hope ya'll stay tuned for the next and last half of Guardian;
Part Two: Beloved.