Long chapter here! It's the only chap this long, don't worry...For Hatori and Momiji fans, this is their first big appearance. Momiji turns into Nharu, and he still possesses a thick accent (though not German). BTW, my favorite FB characters are Shigure, Hatsuharu, and Hatori in that order.
Disclaimer: FB ain't mine, nor is anything else you recognize. (Drumroll)
Chapter 17
A genuine dragon is not an everyday occurrence, and it took a week to fully restore order to the estate. Several servants saw Hotohori in the five minutes before she returned to human form. Asheno was forced to seal the estate, and had the memories of everybody, but Rhena and his wards, erased. Those servants were dismissed and new ones hired promptly. Haku wondered if the person Asheno called for the erasing was the same one who had erased Huki's friends' memories.
After she'd reassumed her human form, Hotohori had lain on the ground completely stunned and naked. Hatsuharu covered in her in his jacket and carried her inside, Haku and Khosure tagging along.
"I feel so good," Hotohori had said dazedly, "like after a big sneeze."
"I always knew you could breathe fire, but never literally!" exclaimed Khosure, his eyes wide.
The three came to the sickroom, where Hatsuharu set Hotohori down on a sofa.
"What happened?" asked Lhurone, who'd heard the commotion. He was still bedridden, but he'd been off painkillers for a day. Khosure, short of breath, flopped onto his cot.
Rhena ran in, gray curls popping free from the tight bun. "Did Hotohori really turn into a dragon?" she whispered urgently.
"Yes," Haku said, spreading a blanket over Hotohori.
"Almighty…Can you look after everyone here while I deal with the servants? Asheno's closing off the estate and I'll need to help him. It'll take a while." Before anyone could reply, she vanished.
"Who turned into a dragon?" Lhurone inquired mildly.
"Hotohori, this girl here," said Hatsuharu. She's a close friend of ours from school. It sounds incredible, but she really did turn into a dragon."
"Hey, I believe you. Overnight I turned from violent to peaceful, and a monster wolf materialized out of nothing and killed my gang. A girl who turns into a dragon isn't such a stretch after that."
"So true," Hatsuharu smiled weakly.
"Could I have some water? My throat feels so dry," rasped Hotohori. She gulped down the glass Haku handed to her. The five teenagers sat in silence for several minutes, listening to the shrieks of panicking servants and Rhena bellowing at them to be quiet.
Hotohori spoke first. "Did I really turn into a dragon?"
"Yes! It was unbelievable!" Khosure said, propping himself up on one arm. "First this humongous fireball came out of your mouth, then you turned into a mammoth dragon the color of blood!"
"I can't believe my head didn't burst into flames," Hotohori muttered. "Ugh, my breath stinks. At least the pain in my chest is gone now. Why am I naked?"
"Your clothes were ripped apart when you turned into a dragon," explained Haku.
Khosure
How like Tori to focus on the practicals, like her head not blowing up. Even as a dragon, she is still so beautiful. All of my favorite reds…But that look in her eyes before she magically transformed made my heart quake; it bore a simply terrifying resemblance to the emotion I'd felt right before turning Cook into ashes. I was so relieved when she did nothing more than cause some property damage.
What if I accidentally killed my best friends with my eyes? Never again could I live with myself if such an unthinkable thing happened. I buried my head under a pillow.
"Kho, what are you doing?" Hatsuharu asked.
"Oh, all the yelling is driving me insane," I said, muffled.
Haku raised an eyebrow at Khosure's answer. Odd, that someone who yelled so much himself should be bothered by others' yelling. But all five were together now, and no one would disturb them for a while yet. He couldn't pass up this opportunity.
"Tori," Haku said, motioning towards the far bed, "I want to introduce you to Lhurone, a friend of ours from Shiwa. Lhurone, this is Hotohori."
Nodding politely to the black-haired boy, Hotohori took in the tattoos painted over his exposed shoulders and arms. Gang tattoos—she'd seen pictures of them in the newspapers. He had bandages wrapped around his chest. Strange, he seemed too serene for gang life. Lhurone smiled back at her and waved.
"Now that we're all here, I thought this might be a good time to explain a few things," Haku began. A few things? Quite an understatement. "As you've no doubt noticed by now, we all have some strange quirks. We're affected by a curse that has haunted the Shomas for several hundred years." No time to explain that according to Faran-Zhuku, it wasn't really a curse. He just had to get the basic facts across to them for now. "Fourteen members of the family are possessed by spirits. In the past, one of those members would be the "god," or the head of the family, and look after the other thirteen. The other thirteen would transform into one of the dzuni animals, the dzuni from the old legend, when they were hugged by the opposite sex or when they became ill." Khosure slowly crawled out from underneath his pillow, listening intently. "Apparently, the five of us are now touched by the curse, and Shoma Asheno is our 'god'. But the curse has changed with our generation." Doing his best to pull together what he'd picked up from Asheno, Rhena, and the wolf's visions, Haku explained the difference between the old manifestation of the curse and the current one. Seated in a comfy chair, Hatsuharu gazed into empty space.
"How do you know that our Dzuni are different from the ones before?" asked Khosure.
"Well…" hesitated Haku. He'd never told anyone else about the visions and voices. Even Hatsuharu didn't really know anything besides the bare fact that the visions and voices existed. "Uh…my particular Dzuni is the wolf…"
"The wolf's not part of the Dzuni, the dog is," corrected Hotohori.
"No, I mean a wolf, not a dog," Haku said. "I told you. The Dzuni curse has changed. The animals are different from the old legend. Hatsuharu and I have had a lot of trouble with Asheno because he expects us to be like the Dzuni of the past."
"You'll need to be careful around Asheno, but Haku and I will help you," Hatsuharu said.
"That one time Asheno spoke to me…" Lhurone reminisced, "I still get shivers when I think about it. He gives me a worse feeling than anyone I've ever known, and I came from a gang town."
An uncomfortable silence settled over the room.
"Haku, your Dzuni…" Hotohori whispered, "have you changed into a wolf?"
"No, not exactly. Here, I'll show you. Faran-Zhuku, can you come out?" This time Haku was prepared for the cold draft.
"What…?" gasped Hotohori. Khosure clutched his blankets tighter. Lhurone's eyes widened as he struggled to sit up more. The giant wolf stood in their midst.
"Hello, Faran-Zhuku," Hatsuharu nodded at the wolf. Faran-Zhuku wagged his tail briefly in response.
"Hotohori, Khosure, Lhurone, meet Faran-Zhuku," Haku said as he mentally beseeched Faran-Zhuku to behave well.
"That's the same wolf I saw," Lhurone said softly. "Thanks for saving me, Faran-Zhuku." A short second later Faran-Zhuku stood by Lhurone's bed and licked his hand.
"What's wrong with him?" Hotohori asked. "He's missing chunks of fur."
"Um, he's been imprisoned for a long time, and it hurt his mental and physical health," Haku struggled for a coherent explanation. "He's still recovering, so he becomes wild sometimes. Whenever he's strong enough to, Faran-Zhuku plays visions and voices from the past inside my mind. He uses them to tell me the story of the Dzuni curse."
"Can you control him?" Khosure asked nervously. Those teeth and claws looked a little too real to him.
"Somewhat…He's accidentally killed a few people the last few weeks," admitted Haku. "I don't fully understand how our relationship is supposed to work yet, but it seems he's closely tied with my emotional state, and when I get upset, I lose control over him."
"So I'm not the only one then," Khosure's voice quavered, "I killed someone, too, but I didn't mean to!" Sobs escaped from his weak lungs.
"Your guardian, right?" Hatsuharu asked, sitting down next to Khosure and putting his arm around the slender shoulders. "We went to your house today, and saw the pile of ashes. It's okay, just let it out."
"She was going to hit me with a broken bottle," wailed Khosure, covering his eyes, "and I got scared and grabbed her arms to stop her. Then this…feeling came over me, I felt so happy, so strong. My eyes tingled, there was a flash, and then…" The sobbing became hysterical.
"You didn't know, like the rest of us," Hatsuharu soothed him.
"Your guardian deserved to die," stated Hotohori furiously. "I knew she was beating you."
"Tori!" Haku hissed. "Kho, now…"
"I'm afraid I'll kill you all!" whimpered Khosure. Faran-Zhuku nudged Khosure's rib. "I don't even know how I did it, much less how to stop it!"
"Not worry," rumbled Faran-Zhuku. Everybody but Haku twitched. "Only use eyes when you in danger."
"Really?" Khosure wiped his eyes, after getting over his initial shock. "What am I, anyway?"
"You the great snake. No remember right name now."
"And me?" asked Lhurone, "Am I a horse like Asheno says?"
"A special kind. Hatsuharu a bull, and Hotohori the dragon of fire." Faran-Zhuku twitched and bit his forearm. His mind was beginning to slip. Haku realized this and silently ordered him back inside. The ghost disappeared.
"What happened?" Hotohori asked.
"Faran-Zhuku was starting to want to attack people," explained Haku, "he gets those urges every so often."
"He knows everything about our Dzuni, doesn't he?" Hotohori said. "Why can't he give us a full explanation?"
"You saw for yourself the state Faran-Zhuku's in," replied Hatsuharu, "he's not that strong yet. And besides, he prefers to talk to Haku."
"I don't know that much, I've only seen and heard mostly little bits at a time, and anything longer than that goes at a very slow pace," Haku said. "He insists on telling me everything about the previous group of Dzuni. He keeps telling me it's important to understand what happened back then."
"That's all very well, but THIS is happening now," pointed out Hatsuharu. "You've seen how inadvertently dangerous things get with us. We need to be better prepared."
"Look, I'm sorry, but I can't force Faran-Zhuku, he has a mind of his own, however poorly it's working right now," snapped Haku.
"You mean you won't tell us," accused Hatsuharu. The two glared at each other.
Hatsuharu sighed. "Very well, we shouldn't fight. Asheno is enough to deal with as it is."
"Yes, tell us more about Asheno," Lhurone added. The rise in tension had made him uncomfortable. Hotohori had remained silent, but she, too, thought Haku had held back. However, she was sure that Haku had been telling the truth when he said he didn't know very much about the Dzuni yet. There were other things he didn't want to discuss…
"No, I don't want to talk about Asheno now," Haku got up, making the chair screech against the hard floor. His eyes locked briefly with Hotohori's sharp jade ones, then he left, slamming the door. Hotohori huddled under the blankets, pulling them closer to her chin.
'Haku is scary sometimes, I often can't tell what he's thinking," Khosure said in a hushed voice.
"He's a very angry person," observed Lhurone. "This Asheno has done a lot of damage to Haku, hasn't he?"
Hatsuharu
That finished me, when Lhurone said the bit about Asheno and Haku. I hadn't meant to yell at Haku, but I wished he would tell me what was going on with him.
"Doesn't Haku know he can trust me?" I blurted. Damn, I didn't want to worry the others.
"But he does," Tori said, with great feeling. "I'm sure that he just doesn't want to concern you. If the shape Faran-Zhuku is in is any indication, this whole Dzuni business is much more complicated than Haku told us. I can barely process what he told us; I can't even imagine what the ghost must've been telling him. Give him some time."
"You're dear to Haku," smiled Lhurone. "Really, the only reason he tolerated me was because I was your friend."
"Don't worry, Hara!" piped Kho, doing his best to look bright despite obvious fatigue.
"Thanks," I said, grinning. "You're right, this will take some time to sort out. But while we're at it, I might as well tell you about Asheno…"
Haku
I shouldn't have walked out on them the way I did. But how could I explain to them? How could I convey the fear, anxiety, and sweet sorrow accompanying my visions and voices? My own fears? If I had all of eternity to explain, I wouldn't be able to. Shaking, I sank to the floor of my room. Freedom…freedom from Asheno, freedom from this house, freedom from the past, freedom for all of us.
"But what kind freedom you want?"
"I…I…wa-want…" Fruitlessly I searched for the right words.
"You not know until you understand what you want."
"I want to forget everything that's happened!"
"Forget everything? Really? You think memory so bad?"
"You know damn well there are things I'd rather forget."
"You so certain you better off no memories?"
"Shut up. Why must you torture me like this?"
"It make you strong. Old saying: 'That stand through harithe, stand anything.'"
That night, Faran-Zhuku introduced Haku to two more members of the previous Dzuni: the rabbit and, naturally, the dragon.
At Karori, brightly-painted wooden stands lined the hallway. Crepe ribbons hung from the ceiling, and handpainted signs advertised all manner of food, drinks, and games. Feisty music resounded through the hallways as a background complement to chattering and excited yelling. Culture Festival Week was in full swing—with booths dedicated to various aspects of Hothan, Zi Aldan and Gogothan culture.
Lhoru stood smiling behind piles of piles of brightly-wrapped gift bags, under a sign saying, "Zi Aldan Mystery Sweets: A Surprise in Every Bag!" Other teenagers from her class subdivision chatted with their fellow students or assisted customers. Lhadoman helped Lhoru with the money; this was one of the most successful booths. Huki, dressed in a traditional Zi Aldan ceremonial outfit, served as the walking advertisement. The usual gaggle of students, male and female alike, hovered near Huki, who kept his eyes downcast.
"Tsein!" A boy hardly bigger than a twelve-year-old jumped onto Huki's shoulders. A thick mop of blonde hair and round brown eyes peeked over Huki's head. ";As 'Eiuki torned into a Zi Aldayn?" The boy spoke with a curious accent, slurring the Hothan vowels and dropping his h's. Nobody really noticed though, because they were too busy staring at the frilly pink shirt and purple cap with a red rose in it.
"Agh!" yelped Huki, staggering under the sudden weight. "What are you doing here, Nharu?"
"I cayme 'eir for the feistival!" shrieked the boy.
"Nharu, behave yourself," a cool voice spoke. Haku recognized the male version of Tori that he'd seen in previous visions. He was attired professionally, in dark gray suit pants, a vest and a dark green tie that complemented his eyes perfectly. Dangling tresses of auburn hair covered his right eye completely.
"Hathori!" hissed Huki, curling his hands into fists.
"Are they Shomas, too?" whispered Lhoru to Lhadoman beside her.
"Yeah, but what's Hathori doing here?" Lhadoman replied, eyeing the man suspiciously.
"Eis this L'oru?" Nharu bounced off Huki's shoulders and eagerly hopped in front of Lhoru. Huki massaged one shoulder, frowning.
"Lhoru, this is Shoma Nharu, my cousin," Huki said. "And this is Shoma Hathori, the family doctor. Nharu, Hathori, this is Mileshi Lhoru." Nharu bowed extravagantly, and Hathori politely dipped his head.
"You really are an ordinary girl," remarked Hathori, earning glares from both Huki and Lhadoman. In an aside to the boys, Hathori whispered, "I'm not here to do anything to Lhoru. That is for Asheno to decide."
"But what are you doing here?" demanded Huki.
"You should be glad—Asheno was going to come until I discovered he had a high fever and ordered him to bed." Huki's cheek quivered slightly.
The one who erased memories…"He seemed so sad"...Rhena's recollection dominated Haku's mind. But Hathori seemed so frigid, not like a man burdened by great personal tragedies. Or perhaps the frigidity was only a frail mask that would be easily peeled away. Certainly, no reason existed for the family doctor, and a Dzuni at that, not to be pushed around by Asheno as Huki and Lhadoman had been so far.
"Yoo know about the family seicrit, right?" Nharu asked Lhoru, who nodded cheerfully in response. "Then yoo woun't mind eif I 'ug yoo!" A large hand on his head kept Nharu from plunging into Lhoru's arms.
"Remember where you are, Nharu," Hathori sternly remonstrated. "There are consequences if certain events were to unfold."
"Tsein, Arei, yoo're so meayn!" whimpered Nharu, nonetheless obediently hopping back to Hathori's side.
"We should get back to the main house, Asheno will be concerned." Hathori bowed. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Ms. Mileshi."
"Ah'll cohme visit soon, L'oru!" Nharu yelled, running to catch up with Hathori, whose longer legs far surpassed Nharu's in gait.
A lull followed in the festival activity. It was almost closing time, and most of the visitors' stomachs were full of goodies and thick, refreshing drinks. Huki joined Lhadoman, who moved to the other side of the booth, and Lhoru in organizing the money and the few leftover bags. The gray-haired boy counted the money slowly, clearly preoccupied. Lhadoman kept glancing at him and fidgeting. He never liked being close to Huki.
"Lhoru," Huki began haltingly, "Remember when I told you that my friends' memories were erased when I was younger? Hathori was the one who suppressed their memories." Lhoru's eyes widened in surprise. "Please, promise me that you will never let yourself be alone with Hathori."
Haku heard Huki's words bouncing around Lhoru's head: suppressed, suppressed, the one who suppressed their memories…memories…
"Attention. Paging Mileshi Lhoru, Section 6, Class 1," boomed the loudspeaker. "Please report to the conference room on the second floor. Repeat, paging Mileshi Lhoru…"
"What could they want?" asked Lhoru, mystified, walking towards the end of the hallway.
"I'll pick you up at work later," Huki called after her.
At the conference room, Lhoru cautiously pushed open the door.
"Lhoru? Is that you?" Hathori's voice came through. "Come in. I'm sorry I had to summon you like this, but with Huki and Lhadoman around, I couldn't talk to you properly." Hathori sat at the table, fingers drumming the surface impatiently. Nharu perched on a windowledge, and leapt up when Lhoru entered, visibly panicked.
"Oh, no," Lhoru thought, "here I am alone with Hathori right after Huki told me not to…what will I do? Is he going to suppress my memories?" Her burst of worrying prevented her from noticing Nharu flying at her until the inevitable "pop" filled the room. A cream-colored rabbit with Nharu's brown eyes cuddled in Lhoru's arms.
"Oh, Nharu," groaned Hathori, "stop wasting time. This is important."
"Areiii!" whined Nharu.
"Anyway," Hathori reached into his vest pocket and pulled out a small card. "This is the address of the main Shoma estate. Come visit me on your next day off; we have much to discuss. And don't tell Huki, Lhadoman, or anyone else, this is to be secret."
Lhoru mutely accepted the card, balancing the rabbit on the other arm. A visit? She looked at the address. The house was in Mhagenu, the richest district in Lhasa. She'd never been there before.
"I'll be there!" Nharu piped up. "Arei, that's ok, isn't it? L'oru will be scared if she's all alone with a man!"
"Fine, fine," muttered Hathori, picking up Nharu's discarded clothing.
The next day off was only a week away. Lhoru approached the high walls surrounding the estate. From Lhoru's perspective, the walls appeared imperious and forbidding, the embossed sign saying "Shoma" adding an air of exclusivity.
"It's so big," thought Lhoru, shivering slightly from the first morning frost of the year. "What if I get lost? They're such an important family…what if I offend them? Will I meet Asheno? The head of the family that Huki's so scared of…" To an insider like Haku, Lhoru's anxious thoughts provided him with a glimpse of how outsiders thought of the family. Hotohori adjusted easily to the rhythm of the Shoma household, having come from an affluent home herself. For Lhurone and Khosure, however, it was a different matter. The richness of the furnishings, the automatic deference of the servants, the lavish meals, and the peaceful orderliness provided a shocking counterpoint to the unforgiving and violent worlds they were used to. While listening to Haku's tale of the family, Lhurone said, "Well, I can't complain about living here now," with a wry smile. Out of the corner of his eye, Haku watched Khosure wistfully finger the fine silk fabric of his nightshirt. He could just see the bitterness-laced thought flitting through Khosure's mind: I could have lived here? The memory of Khosure's "home" clenched Haku's chest.
"L'oru!" Nharu's ecstatic scream caught Lhoru off-guard as she stalled in front of the gate's handsome but strong double doors. She turned her eyes upward, to see Nharu perched on top of the wall adjoining the gates.
"Oh, no, he'll fall off!" Lhoru thought.
"I cayme 'ere to meit yoo!" said the boy, "Theis eis a big compoond and I thought yoo might geit lost." He nimble leapt out of the sight behind the wall, and just before Lhoru started calling for help, he swung open the double doors.
"Weilcome to the Shoma eistayte!" declared Nharu, sweeping Lhoru inside. Nharu began walking, prattling in the manner of a tour guide while Lhoru followed behind dumbly. Indeed, the beautiful gardens stole her breath (and this wasn't even the main garden!), but it was the grand yet simple façade of the house and the labyrinthine connections of footpaths and smaller buildings that overwhelmed her. For a moment she forgot to worry about Hathori's intentions.
"Mowst of the Shoma don't know about the Dzuni curse," Nharu was saying. "The people heire on this compoond know about the curse, except for the servants. Usually the Dzuni live in these smaller houses. She'ure's an exception. He lives mhane, away. Everybody who lives within these walls live rho, inside the family. Tsein, here's Arei's house!" Nharu led Lhoru up some stone steps and through a door adorned with an ornately carved dragon, fire and smoke curling around it as it flew. The dragon looked out at the house's intruders with a sharp, intelligent expression. But Lhoru had reverted back to her nervous state upon hearing the announcement that it was Hathori's house, and failed to see the dragon.
"Arei is also the family doctor, you know," Nharu chattered as he peeled off Lhoru's damp coat, "he only looks after the Dzuni and their family. Even so, 'e's still very busy! 'E also uses this 'ouse as 'is office." He guided Lhoru to a simple yet spacious parlor, with comfortably cushioned chairs.
"I'll get Arei and bring some cocoa, too, just wait 'ere," Nharu grinned as he zipped back into the dark hallway.
"Cold ice flows through your veins, not warm blood."
Asheno's absent, ghostly voice marked shifted the vision from the parlor room to a vague pink nothingness. For the briefest moment, Haku found himself seated on the floor, wearing a black uniform, with a little gray-haired boy sobbing in his lap. Huki.
"Why? Why did you erase my friends' memories? Now I don't have any," Huki choked out in between sobs. Then the scene faded away.
"Yes…ice suits you well…the man of ice and snow…" As Asheno spoke, half of the fog gradually formed itself into a small, framed picture of a smiling, bright-eyed woman with short dark brown hair. She wore a light blue dress and held a bouquet of summer flowers. The other half shifted into a murky chiaroscuro of light and dark. A tragic longing filled Haku, who tried to fight it off.
"I must be in Hathori's memories now," Haku reasoned, "maybe this was someone he loved?"
"Arei!" The voice snapped Hathori awake. "L'oru's 'ere! Now don't be mean to 'er."
"Thank you, Nharu," Hathori replied, squelching his bubbling emotional overflow. It wouldn't do to sit and mope. After straightening his tie, Hathori strode businesslike into the parlor.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Shoma!" Lhoru shot out her seat, jackknifing into a too-deep bow. "I hope you are well!"
"Please, sit and relax." The girl looked terrified. Tired, too—there were dark circles under her eyes. Did she get enough sleep and food?
"I'm fine standing up! Really! I hope I didn't interrupt you—"
"No, no, you aren't bothering me at all. Please sit. I insist." Lhoru obeyed, sitting bolt upright.
Might as well get this over with, sighed the doctor to himself.
"Lhoru," Hathori said, "I asked you over because I want to discuss the family curse with you. It is not a light thing—it is sinister, full of complications. It hurts anybody who becomes involved." The girl's eyes widened. Hathori's voice dropped. "Move out of Shehure's house while you still can. Forget the Shomas."
"I 'ave the coco—aggh!" Nharu yelled as he fumbled the tray containing steaming cups of cocoa. The hot liquid splashed over the rug and floor.
"Be careful, Nharu!" Lhoru jumped to her feet, only to snarl her foot on the edge of the rug and fall. Hathori instinctively held his arms out to break her fall and remembered the curse too late, as she landed square on his chest.
When the dust settled, a light brown seahorse lay still on the heap of clothes before Lhoru's eyes. She stared for a minute, then started screaming.
"Water! He needs water! Salt? Tap? Hot? Cold? Water!"
His head throbbed from where he'd hit his shoe upon landing after his transformation. Hathori the seahorse heard Lhoru call for water, Nharu trying to reassure her.
"Just like Hana," he smiled as he passed out. Haku's vision went black.
What followed were a series of transitory images, from Hathori's point of view. This time the chiaroscuro half had disappeared. It must be Hathori's past I'm seeing now, thought Haku. He must be mostly blind in his right eye.
"Reported a rash over her shoulders…" Huh? Oh, medical reports. Sheafs of them covered the small table in front of Haku. He was still in Hathori's body. A clean, disinfected smell filled the room. A handsome cabinet contained neat rows of bottles, boxes of gauze, and other medical supplies. An escritoire, its surface littered with paper, perched under a large bay window overlooking the main garden. It was snowing gently outside.
"Good morning, Doctor. I am your new assistant, Shoma Hana." Hathori turned around, and there was the woman from the framed photo. This time she wore a tan skirt and a shirt patterned with dainty flowers, but the smile was the same.
"It's so funny," continued Hana, "we're in the same family, yet we've never met before."
"I have a lot of work for you to do," Hathori said, turning to the large pile of folders before him. "Organize these files, please. The cabinets for storage are over there."
Couldn't he be a little friendlier? He didn't even say hello, thought Haku. Then, reminiscing, he recalled the first time he'd met Hotohori. They'd been assigned to work together on a project in their biology class, and she had treated him in a similar brusque way. The exact same piercing, serious expression on her face. What had he said to strike that inner chord, that set them on the road to friendship?
Hana had been looking out the window during Hathori's instructions. "Oh, it's snowing!" she exclaimed. "Doctor, I have a riddle for you. What does snow turn into at the end of winter?"
What? Hathori really didn't have time for silly flights of childishness. "Well, snow turns into water, of course." Was she pulling a joke on him?
"No!" laughed Hana gaily. "It becomes spring. My favorite season. All the flowers start blooming."
Yes, that was it. Haku had said he couldn't wait for spring to arrive again. Probably because the hated song had been repeating itself in his mind endlessly. And Hotohori had replied, "Yes, I hate winter, too. I hate the snow." For a very short moment, her loneliness and sadness had bared itself to Haku, and her eyes had shimmered.
"The wonderful thing about spring is that it always arrives, no matter what," Hana said, giving Hathori a shining smile. The first shallow cracks in the man's icy veneer emerged under the sunny onslaught of a bright personality.
After that, Hathori and Hana quickly developed a relationship. Haku could feel Hathori's joy, a kind of emancipation from the dark power of the curse. The doctor didn't bury himself in work as much, and smiled much more often.
Then came the day she found out about the curse. It was inevitable that she'd hug him, when he wasn't on guard.
"Aaahhhh! Water! What kind? Salt? Tap?" She frantically whipped her head around, terrified the flopping little seahorse would suffocate and perish. A loud pop, and Hathori transformed back into a human.
"Gods, she's seen my Dzuni now," he groaned to himself. "She must think I'm a freak."
"Hathori?" Hana stroked his hair. "Are you all right? Can I get you anything?"
"I…I'll understand if you don't want to stay with me—" Hathori said, buttoning his shirt.
"No, Hathori, of course I want to stay with you. I love you. Now I understand why you wouldn't hug me. But I'm happy I met you, and I want to stay with you." Hana caressed his face. "But how did you turn into a seahorse?"
Hana became an initiate into the Shoma secret, and only became closer to Hathori. But after Hana accepted Hathori's marriage proposal, the vision skidded ahead.
"No! NO! Never!" roared a man. Everything was tinged red; only with great difficulty could Haku make out shapes. He discerned the form of a thrashing Asheno, and an overturned dinner tray. "I'll never let that bitch near the Dzuni!" Hathori screamed, and a hellish pain filled Haku's head. Something warm spurted down his face…
"Hana! Help Hathori!" Was that Shehure holding back Asheno's hand? Was that a fork Asheno was holding?
Blackness. Then Hana materialized in front of Haku. But she wasn't the same. Her cheekbones jutted with a stark clarity, puffy purple patches ringed her eyes. So emaciated…
"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, Hathori," she broke down crying, "I couldn't protect you, it was my fault. Asheno's right, it was my fault. I'm the one who made you blind in that eye."
Then Asheno's insidious voice: "It really would be better if you erased her memory, wouldn't it?" The bony hand crept up Hathori's tie, pulling him closer to the devious voice. "Look at the poor girl, just wasting away. She probably wishes she'd never met you. You could do it. After all, you've erased countless other memories with no problem at all. Do it, Hathori." Threatening, yet still restrained.
Back to Hana, kneeling before Hathori. She continued to sob.
"I'm so sorry…" managed to escape through the sobbing. Hathori looked at her for a long time. This was the last time that Hana would know him as her lover, the man she would have married in a short while. He lifted her hand to her forehead. He couldn't get upset now. He had to concentrate, erase all her memories of him, of all the times they'd watched the snow fall, the times they'd laughed over a ridiculous joke. Erase all her memories of him. Memories precious to him. And he had erased other people's memories so easily, at the behest of his father and Asheno. Without thinking about how others might feel. Little Huki's pleas snuck obtrusively into his thoughts.
"No, Hana, I was the one who couldn't protect you," murmured Hathori softly. "Goodbye. I hope you will find someone who makes you happy. I…couldn't…make you happy." A solitary tear trickled from his injured eye in defiance of Hathori's efforts to control his crumbling exterior. Light filled the room and blotted out everything.
The pillow felt so wet. Haku opened his eyes and discovered tears still flowing from his eyes.
"That was awful," he managed to say, wiping his face on a sheet. "Awful" wasn't even really appropriate for the way Asheno had torn apart and then ground Hathori's heart into pieces.
"Still want forget?" asked the wolf.
Haku sat silent, collecting his confused emotions. The sad strains of a violin tinkling through the room didn't help very much.
Oh, Hatsuharu's playing his violin, realized Haku. That means he must be in his room. Soon after the harithe when they were still so little, Hatsuharu had discovered a violin in one of the storage rooms and taken it upon himself to learn how to play. Asheno, still recovering from the injuries inflicted by Hatsuharu, had left him alone. He'd become quite a good violinist, too. It'd been a while since Haku had heard the violin.
Haku stumbled to Hatsuharu's room next door, and knocked.
"Come in," replied Hatsuharu, without missing a note. He took in Haku's rumpled clothes and red-rimmed eyes. Gently, he set the violin down, lifted his feet from his desk and sat upright.
"What the hell happened to you? Asheno didn't do anything, did he?"
"No, Asheno wasn't involved, not directly, anyway," Haku smiled weakly, dropping onto Hatsuharu's beanbag. Its squeak sounded comfortingly familiar. "I just had an upsetting vision, that's all."
"What was it about?"
"Heartbreak."
"Whose?
"That's all I can say." Haku looked Hatsuharu in the eyes. "Hatsuharu, I really came in here to apologize for earlier."
"It's okay, I should apologize to you, too." Hatsuharu sighed.
"No, really, you were right to get frustrated with me. You're worried about me, and I appreciate that. I really do. But…my relationship with Faran-Zhuku is just really complicated, then the visions and voices the ghost makes me see and hear…it's more than I can ever hope to explain to anybody right now. Please, be patient with me a little while longer. I'm sorry, but I need time to sort this all out."
"Whenever you need to talk, I'm here." Hatsuharu smiled and nodded. "No, Haku, don't lean so far back on that thing. You'll break your head against the wall."