Sorry for the excruciatingly long wait, but I was on deployment. No opportunity to upload when one's floating about in the middle of an ocean, after all.
Review replies: Thanks to everyone who reviewed this when I was out! You were all a great source of inspiration, motivating me to continue with this little tale. That kind of gracious recognition of my work is hereby rewarded with gratuitous amounts of writing. Hope you enjoy it! If not, feel free to smack me. :)
DISCLAIMER: I don't own X or Tokyo Babylon, nor do I hold rights to any of the characters held within those works. They all belong to the four goddesses of Clamp. I'm just borrowing them for my own sick pleasure.
WARNINGS: Alternate timeline, Kamui-chan thrown into Tokyo Babylon. Terrible representation of Japan (well, I've never been there. Excuse the hell out of me) with no proper placement of important areas/buildings/etc. The Sumeragi Twins partake in indecent behavior (I blame Hokuto-chan's lack of modesty), weird astrological predictions, and more Sorata cameos.
Read at your own risk.
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I groaned as I stretched my fingers towards the pastel sky that swept above me, reaching towards the fluffy clouds that hovered overhead. A tired smile touching my lips, I let my eyes finally open once more to take in the beautiful sight of the fresh morning upon the lofty expanse of Koya-san. Squinting in the bright light, I decided that breakfast could wait a few moments and that my bones and the warmth they sought to absorb from the newly risen sun took priority over the needs of my stomach.
I'd woken early to witness the sunrise, taking pleasure in the simple things that constituted a significant difference between this temporary shelter at Koya-san's impressive complex and Tokyo's Shinjuku. There hadn't been an alarm clock's blaring horn to rouse me, but rather the soft chirping of birds and the rustles of early morning life rousing to greet the day's star upon its horizon. I'd not smelled the delectable scent of Hokuto-chan's breakfast spectaculars signifying that I was already running late and had to hurry myself to get all I needed accomplished before dashing from the house for the bus station, but rather the crisp scent of morning dew and a fresh breeze snaking over dampened grass.
I'd woken to a warm lump cuddled against me, his body pressed comfortably to mine, conforming with eerie perfection against my own frame. His lips were tickling my neck, his bangs brushing my nose, his arms wrapping about my waist and holding me prisoner. All in all, it was quite comfortable. Almost too comfortable, one might say, as my body was thoroughly enjoying such delectable contact.
It had taken every ounce of stealth in my possession to sneak away from that intoxicating touch and weasel my person out of the room without disturbing him.
As the bright and cheerful songs of birds calling to one another either in greeting or with challenge flew over the crisp atmosphere, I was dimly aware of the sound of shuffling feet approaching me. Wiggling my own sandal-lacking toes in the dew-touched grass, breathing in the refreshing scent of bent blade and far-off autumn leaves carried upon the barely present breeze that chilled my pajama-protected flesh, I let whoever it was that had decided to approach me come unchallenged. It would be no one of concern, no one with any ill intent towards my person. I'd be able to sense a hostile aura approaching me.
No, this aura was far from hostile. It was tired and grumpy to be certain but levied no harmful wishes towards me.
"What're you doing out here so early, Subaru?" the intruder's voice muttered, still thick with slumber.
Turning, I cast my new guest in the damp field outside of the building my room was situated in a gaily-lit smile. "Enjoying the morning breeze. Come to join me, Shiro-kun?"
Shiro-kun gazed at me with dark eyes obscured almost entirely by their thick black lashes. "Nm. It's early."
"That's noted," I marked with a nod.
"When's breakfast?" he yawned out next, taking the opportunity to stretch as I had, his red pajama top snaking up his thin frame as he reached for the blue-stained heavens above.
I shook my head as he shivered when the wind chose that very moment in which his top rode its highest to slide across his flesh. "In an hour."
"Mm. Enough time to wash up and change. Don't tell me Hokuto-san's coming into our room to accost us."
An innocent, unknowing shrug moved my shoulders. "I truthfully have no idea," I admitted. I fully expected Hokuto-chan to burst into our room at any time. She hardly has ever shown any regard for gender lines at any point in our shared lives – why should she begin now?
"Well, maybe if I'm already dressed she won't be able to do anything," the boy hopefully grumped, his eyes darting with uncertainty back towards our room as if searching for signs of an already attempted break into our dormitory. "Going to come along?" he asked a moment later, turning his eyes back towards me.
"I'll be along soon. Go ahead and finish with your bath first, Shiro-kun," I suggested even as I turned my gaze back to the woods that sprawled majestically along the mountain's span. The sounds his feet made as he shuffled through the thick grass back towards the building that acted as our home for the weekend touched my ears, barely defeating the bright birds' songs in volume and soon being smothered by both song and whistling breeze as he retreated into the distance. Once again on my own, I laced my fingers together behind my back and resumed my observations of the sky above, watching cloud and leaf blow past while birds flew swiftly towards their intended destinations.
Everything was so very peaceful, so very quiet, that it was hard to believe that what I'd taken part in last night had been reality. Part of my mind had attempted to play off the fight I'd partaken with the spirit in had been a nightmarish concoction of my overactive imagination, brought on by too many Saturday night movie specials and engrossing horror novels. However, evidence had been painfully present to support the reality of Koya-san's situation.
My lips turned their corners towards my chin. That ghastly fingertip was still sitting upon the small table out on the porch that flanked the room Shiro-kun and I were bunking in, blending in so very well with the soft white wooden furniture that my roommate's eyes had missed it entirely during his exhausted shuffling about the premises. That severed chunk of flesh, which should not have been present at one of the holy mountain's cleansing pools.
Something terrible had happened on Koya-san. That was all I could be certain of at the moment, all I could firmly set my finger on.
That digit had been severed. The scoring along the edge might have been giving a hint that I simply was too inexperienced to read.
Perhaps Hokuto-chan could assist me. If anyone was familiar with the cuts made by knives, it was most definitely her.
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It happened that I didn't have to seek out my sister that morning. Indeed, when I'd finally decided that my body was properly warmed by the soft rays of the sun and that the outside world could offer me no more comfort than it already had, that it was time to return to the inside of the manmade structure I was residing in for the weekend to bathe and don my clothing for the day's activities, she was already in our room and busily chasing Shiro-kun about with a bundle of cloth in her arms.
"Neh, Hokuto-chan…?" I desperately attempted to interrupt, seeking not only to garner her attention but also to perhaps provide some path of salvation to the poor amethyst-eyed focus of her hunt.
She momentarily paused her pursuit to turn her emerald glance towards me, her long blue sundress with its pretty yellow daisy design flaring dramatically about her thin body and her yellow daisy earrings sweeping by her cheeks, granting Shiro-kun his opportunity to escape. The boy hurriedly burst through the rice-paper door in naught but his towel, his bare feet slapping loudly upon the wooden deck outside as he tore down the hallway in search of salvation from my sister's manic attention. It was a bare second until she'd noticed his departure and lamented about it. "Mou! This had better be good, Subaru. It took me forever to get these together!"
"Ah, gomen, neesan," I quietly apologized with a bow of my head. As I was escorted by a hand upon my elbow towards my bath, I turned my gaze back towards her. "I have a question for you. I was wondering if you could ponder over it while I'm in the bath?"
"Mm, I suppose," Hokuto quietly said, her eyes losing their playful edge and adopting a more respectable, businesslike sheen to their bright surfaces. "What's bothering you, Subaru?"
Laying my hand upon the wooden frame of the paper door that would obscure my bathing from the rest of the world, I turned away from her and stepped into the small room that contained the tub I was to use that morning. Pulling my nightshirt off, I handed it dutifully to my sister, accepting the gloves she'd chosen for me to wear that day in its stead. Standing before her bare-chested and dour, I cast my gaze towards the door that lead outside of our room to the grand grassy landscape that surrounded our dormitory complex. "On the table outside is something I found last night. I think it's key to figuring out what happened here at Koya-san to cause their problems. I was wondering if you could take a look at it and tell me what you think?"
"Hm," she started, her thin fingernails lying upon her bottom lip, "I suppose I could. Hurry with your bath, though. I've got a full schedule for all of us today! We're going to eat anpan and vegetable stir fry, and hit some of the meditation pools, ascend the mountain and pray at the topmost shrine-"
"Hokuto-chan, you can't go there! You're a girl!"
"Oh pish posh! They won't stop the twin of the head of the Sumeragi, and you know it," she hastily dismissed even as she laid her hands upon my chest and shoved me towards my bathtub. "You interrupted me! After that, we're going biking through the woods, then we'll get some rice balls! And we can go see all the ancient temples we can cram in one day!"
Even as I drew my bath, I stared at her over my shoulder. "I have to work, Hokuto-chan."
"It's Saturday, Subaru. You've got time. Relax! Enjoy a pseudo-vacation for once! Oh, and breakfast is in twenty minutes."
A huff escaped my nose as I reached over to slide the door shut before doffing my pajama bottoms. Twenty minutes to get bathed and dressed before presenting myself and my discoveries of the night before to those who were concerned and who'd requested my assistance? Great.
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I bathed as quickly as I could and was immediately greeted by my sister even as I pulled the plug from the bathtub.
"You're running late as usual, Subaru," she laughed brightly even as she dropped a bundle of clothes on the floor. Routing through them, she started humming merrily.
I felt that I could outdo the Crayola company for presenting the most shades of red at one moment in time as I flushed brightly, the fact that my sister was kneeling at my feet digging through my decided-upon attire while I was dripping wet and nude not escaping me at all as it had apparently had escaped her.
Rising, she shoved boxers in my hands. "Get dressed."
"H-hai, Hokuto-chan," I whimpered even as I turned away for modesty's sake. God, she could be so awkward at times! What if someone walked in on us? It's a men's dormitory, after all! Nothing would stop Shiro-kun or any of the monks or-
"HEY! Why's there a beautiful miss in here?"
Or that little Sorata boy from entering.
Hokuto-chan just laughed her silvery laugh, lifting a hand to her lips to cover them in a fainted show of modesty. "Oh ho ho ho! You hear that, Subaru? I'm a beautiful miss!"
"A beautiful miss that shouldn't be in here," I grumped quietly as I finished yanking my boxers over my scant hips. "Really, Hokuto-chan. You'll wake everyone else!"
"They're all awake, Subaru. You are the one who's running late. You and Kamui-kun, seeing as how I haven't seen him again to give him his clothing for the day!"
"Is Kamui-kun that guy that's running around in his bath towel?" Sorata-chan chirped as he marched over to us and flopped onto his bottom beside Hokuto-chan's feet. I awkwardly stood over the two of them, my hands subconsciously ensuring that my boxers were firmly in place and not going anywhere, my skin lobster-red from my embarrassed flush.
Hokuto-chan simply shoved a pair of khaki pants at me, her eyes focused entirely on the little boy beside her as she smiled. I accepted my clothing hastily and yanked it on, noting that the coloration of the clothing she'd chosen for me matched the soft tan gloves my dear sister had pushed into my hands before I'd commenced with my bath. Even as I dressed, she merrily conversed with the boy, proclaiming, "Yep! He's the one! Could you be a dear and fetch him for us?"
"But he was begging robes off of Shyou-san last time I saw him. Do you want me to interrupt him while he's changing?"
"Robes! He's going to be in those orange temple robes? Oh, they'll look simply awful on him!" Hokuto-chan burst in dismay, her face instantly drooping in disapproval.
"Neh, Hokuto-chan-"
I was interrupted by a shirt, white in color and button-up, being shoved in my hands. I hastily pulled it on and started doing every clasp that would hold it in place.
"Yep! He's going to be in robes in breakfast." The boy stopped speaking for a moment, cocking his head slightly. "Speaking of breakfast, we're late! Oh no! Come on, pretty miss! We've got to go! Oh, and you too, mister!"
Hokuto-chan rose to her feet and smiled brightly, patting the small boy's head with her slender hand. "We'll be right behind you. Why don't you start without us?"
Scrunching up his button-nose, Sorata-chan huffed. "It would be very unmanly of me to go to breakfast without escorting you, pretty miss. I've got to be cou.. cor… cer…."
"Courteous?" I promptly assisted even as my shirt was assaulted and the top three buttons swiftly undone by ungloved hands so very similar to my own.
"Yeah! What he said. I can't leave you alone! That'd be rude," the boy said with a hasty nod.
Hokuto-chan smiled wistfully even as I chuckled under my breath. "Well," she started, "then give me a few moments to finish dressing my brother."
"Alright!" the boy burst, his smile taking his entire face. "So, why'd'ya have to dress him? He can't dress himself?"
"Terrible fashion sense," Hokuto-chan easily answered as she flopped a limp beret on my head and snapped dark brown suspenders onto my pants – backwards, I might add, so the cross that should've been situated in the small of my back instead was pressed to my navel.
I wisely remained silent, suffering it all for her sake. After all, I do love my dear sister.
She smiled as she yanked a thin brown leather jacket around my shoulders.
Yes, I love my sister. No matter how much she aggravates the hell out of me.
Sorata nodded when she turned away from me and gave him a thumbs-up. "Cool!" he chirped before getting to his feet and dusting off his knees. "Now we're off to breakfast! Follow me, miss. And you too, mister!"
"Sure thing!" Hokuto-chan giggled, grabbing my wrist and dragging me forcibly along. "Neh, Subaru, about that thing you had me check out?"
"Yes?" I eagerly asked, my eyes widening.
"I'll talk to you about it after breakfast. I think you were right in your assumption."
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Breakfast was fairly uneventful (save for Hokuto-chan lamenting like crazy over Shiro-kun's rather traditional attire and how it looked terrible mixed with his pale complexion and amethyst eyes). It was the events that followed that would mark the morning as memorable.
First I'd had my discussion with Hokuto-chan. That in of itself was interesting.
We'd met immediately after breakfast as I was walking out of the grand hall we'd all met in to share our porridge with eggs and rice balls. I was intent on standing out in that refreshing sun and relaxing breeze some more when she stepped to my side and lay her hand upon my arm. "Neh, let's go talk," she quietly tasked me, steering me towards a remote area far enough from the buildings that no one would hear us.
We'd arrived at a small collection of boulders situated in the lush grasses a good distance from the trees. Hokuto-chan immediately hopped onto one of the smaller, flatter precipices and seated herself. Patting the stone seat next to her, she smiled at me. I immediately made myself comfortable, lounging in the warm sun's rays. My head lolled slightly to my right, coming to a cozy rest upon my sister's shoulder, my hair lightly brushing her soft cheek.
Sighing in quiet satisfaction, I closed my eyes even as her hand lightly rested upon my cheek, her delicate fingertips brushing upon my skin with teasing gentleness. Her hand slid from my face to instead rest itself upon my shoulder, encasing me in a subtle hug before she dared to break the calming silence that existed around us. "Where did you get that finger?" she finally questioned.
Wow, did that instantly destroy the mood. As memories of last night's encounter rushed back to me, the feel of the cold breeze upon my skin, the sensation of the chilled pond water touching my flesh, the bitter sting of the waterfall's offerings pummeling me into the soft ground, I shuddered violently.
"Subaru?" Hokuto-chan softly pressed, tightening her grip on my slightly shaking shoulder.
"The pond in question. It was in some stones on the shoreline. It looked like it had been washed up," I answered, lifting my skull from its resting place then shaking my head once to rattle the memories of that haunting cackle from my ears.
"Mm. That would explain the condition it's in. Looks like it's overly hydrated. Hasn't had the opportunity to dry out."
Opening my eyes, I cast my gaze towards her. Hokuto-chan was frowning, lightly biting her bottom lip.
"It was cut by a steak knife."
"How could you determine that, Hokuto-chan?" I quickly questioned, my brows arching towards my hairline in disbelief.
"I've cut enough stuff with steak knives to recognize that kind of scoring, Subaru! Geez. What kind of cook do you take me for!"
"Eh, gomen, Hokuto-chan."
Nodding once, she let her shoulders slump. "It was cut right at the joint. Knife was serrated and very sharp. But there's a slight puncture further up. And the way the bone's splintered…."
"Yes?" I pressed as she slowed her explanation.
"I think that whoever's finger it was had been attacked. She probably tried to defend herself with her hands and got stabbed for the effort. The knife probably went almost through her hand, breaking through the bone and scoring it, and the amount of time it's been underwater let it soften enough for it to break away and float to shore."
I felt slightly nauseous at the content in Hokuto-chan's proclamation. "She…?" I clumsily stated.
"Aa. That finger belonged to a woman. You can tell by the structure. It's too skinny for the length that it has to be a guy's. Either that, or it's a young man. A handsome young teenager like yourself!"
I scratched my chin. "Interesting," I stated, trying to drive my mind away from Hokuto-chan's disturbing hypothesis about this apparent murder victim.
"Neh, if you want some real information, we should go back to that pond and get the body."
"Nani!" I burst, staring at her with horror in my eyes.
"Think about it, Subaru! If that finger just washed ashore, that means the body's still down there, right? It's not like Koya-san's called the police to investigate. They tried to take care of the paranormal activity on their own, then called us in."
"Eh, they probably don't know what happened. Why call the police on a ghost hunt?"
She nodded. "Hai. Which means that the evidence to this crime's still at the bottom of the lake."
I let my lips turn into the scowl they desired to craft. A murder victim on Koya-san.
I had to go back to that pond tonight.
I needed to talk to that spirit.
Even as I was pondering when I should go back, one of Koya-san's orange-clad residence arrived and bowed hastily to us. We turned as one to regard him, mirroring one another's faces with similar uplifted eyebrows and puzzled expressions.
"Sumeragi-dono, Stargazer-sama requests your presence."
We both blinked.
"Eh, which?" Hokuto-chan questioned.
"Sumeragi Subaru-dono," the man replied, a trickle of sweat running down his brow. I guess he just figured out he was speaking to twins.
"Ah poo, there goes our afternoon," Hokuto-chan grumped, sullenly balling her hands in her lap. "Well, in return for interrupting our mini-vacation, YOU can accompany Kamui-kun and me around this mountain! After all, you've GOT to know all the best places to go!"
The poor monk looked more than a little distraught as my sister grabbed his wrist and marched towards the dormitories where Shiro-kun was changing into his 'Hokuto-chan-approved' outfit for the day which consisted of dark blue slacks and a soft white shirt accompanied by a red tie I was certain would get tied into some decorative knot, a dark blue floppy golf-cap and white sneakers. Mercilessly Hokuto-chan dragged her newest victim every step of the way with strength no one would ever figure her as being able to possess.
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I cautiously made my way up the treacherous steps towards the complex indicated to house the Stargazer, ensuring that I took a few moments of my time to glance both to my left and to my right along that shining wooden deck for fleeing little boys with rice balls hidden up their sleeves. Once I'd determined that the coast was indeed clear, I made my way across the luxuriously cleaned wooden floorboards to the thin door that rested between the venerable premonitionist and myself. Bowing steeply to the door, I humbly asked permission to enter as he'd requested.
His voice was quiet and steady as he granted me the permission I'd asked for. My eyes widened slightly at his tone.
This was no pleasant request for chitchat, much as I'd feared.
Perhaps he was simply concerned about my progress with the job he'd hired me to do. Perhaps he was wondering what I'd accomplished, seeing as how he'd garnered naught more than fleeting glimpses of me running amuck with my sister and my houseguest. Perhaps-
"Please be seated, Sumeragi-dono. Or do you wish to stand in my doorway while I speak with you?"
His voice instantly rattled me out of my mental ponderings. Flushing red, I bowed my head. "Su-sumimasen, Stargazer-dono. A-arigato," I stammered pathetically as I bowed once more, my hand instantly flying to that beret my sister had flopped upon my head to hold it in place as I completed my deep gesture of humble thanks for his offer. Straightening my stance, I made my way to the plush cushion he'd already had stationed before him and knelt.
I instantly allowed my eyes to rove the room, recognizing it within a few sweeping glances as the same room I'd first met the powerful leader of Koya-san in. The only difference in the room's décor between this day and that that preceded it was the serving of teacups that rested between us. Instantly recognizing what was to occur, I bowed my head in meek acceptance, took the foremost bowl into my hands with its piton and began to slowly grind the delicate leaves that lay in that ceramic vessel's bottom. I hardly noticed his approving nod.
"Sumeragi-dono, do you have any thoughts as to why I've summoned you?"
"I suppose you wish to ask me about my progress in solving your problematic paranormal events here at your site, Stargazer-dono," I quietly answered even as I reached for the steaming kettle of water that lay between us and poured its contents into the bowl before my knees.
"Partially. I summoned you, first and foremost, to tell you the results of my viewing of the stars yester eve."
I slowly lifted the kettle away, staying the flow of water from its spout. Lifting the bowl between my hands, I cast one glance into it before lightly turning it and offering it to my respected elder. Grandmother would be proud.
As he accepted the bowl, our fingertips cleanly avoiding contact with one another, he nodded once before laying his lips to the bowl's edge. I calmly resumed my work on the second bowl, preparing my own tea as he began to quietly speak once more after laying his tea at his knees. "I speak to you owing to the motion of the stars surrounding 'Subaru.'"
"Surrounding 'Subaru'?" I quietly asked. I couldn't help but be interested. 'Pleiades', 'Subaru' in Japan's tongue, is an often-overlooked constellation – reflective of my true persona, I feel. My name could not have been more fitting – a constellation named for seven powerful fates, but so small that it's often looked over as an insignificant blob of light in the heavens. Very much in contrast to my dear twin, 'Hokuto' – the 'Big Dipper', which stands so prominently upon the sky that no person who had ever been shown its shape could ever miss its consuming presence.
"Aa," he replied, lifting his teacup once more and taking a delicate draught. "I've seen disturbances I have never seen before. Tell me, young Sumeragi-dono, has there been any unexpected event in your recent past?"
I lifted my gaze from my bowl, stopping my reach for the water kettle. "Yes," I muttered.
"The dragon has arrived. Heaven is meshing with 'Subaru' long before the stars intended."
My shaking hand made no move for that kettle, disrupting the calm ceremony that was taking place underneath the conversation.
"The boy that accompanied you twins?"
I let my head complete a slight nod. "Shiro Kamui."
I felt the most terrifying sensations as the mighty Stargazer's eyes widen and his face went ashen. My throat constructed, my heart plummeted even as its beat raced like a broken horse in the race of its life and my stomach tried to leap past my lungs. That reaction was one I had prayed to never, never see.
"'Kamui' you say?"
I nodded once more.
"Sumeragi-dono," he whispered, "I know you are aware of your destiny. As a Seal, you are to side with and protect that Dragon that serves Heaven in humanity's name. However that destined day has not yet passed."
"I know he shouldn't be here," I mutely mouthed as I finally convinced my fingers to wrap about the kettle's handle and lift it. "But he-"
"The wavering of your heart is altering the stars. Beware your actions, Sumeragi-dono. Tragedy worse than that already written by fate could befall you."
The kettle fell to the tatami mat, spilling its contents. My eyes were huge upon my face. "What… what do you mean?" I stammered, feeling my own face drain of color.
Tragedy… worse than that already written by fate?
Tragedy already written by fate….
My mind was running rampantly over the conversation I'd had with Shiro-kun a bare week and a day ago. How we'd first met in the depths of his soul. How in the wake of tragedy I'd spoken to him about….
Please, God, no….
"The 'Scorpion' is a jealous creature, despite its own beliefs in its emotional fortitude. Draw that creature's wrath, and more suffering than is already destined to occur will land upon you and those around you."
He watched me for my reaction before bowing his head to look into his own abandoned bowl.
"If you continue to alter this time, Heaven's dragon will have but five Seals when the year which contains the Promised Day arrives."
My eyes wide with shock, I was able to offer no words to reply to his statement. Instead I numbly rose from my mat and staggered blindly towards the thin door that separated me from the job I had been contracted to accomplish.
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I was shaken considerably that evening as I sat upon the shore, my arms wrapped about my legs and clutching them so tightly that my knees were serving as a resting place for my chin. Burying my gaze in the comforting darkness of my khaki pants, ignoring the slight breeze that stirred my loose black hair left free to move by the lacking addition of a hat, I reflected on all I had heard, all that I'd concluded. So many thoughts were racing through my head that I was finding it difficult to concentrate on any one thing in particular.
Turning my eyes to the heavens, I stared ruefully at the stars that hovered above me. Why could they give no answers to me, as they apparently did to Koya-san's Stargazer? If only I had been gifted with the ability to view the secrets of time within their glimmering light rather than commune with the spiritual realm and harness its power, I might know what to do, where to go, and why I was supposed to do all I was tasked with.
But then I'd be saddled with a cushion strapped to my knees and a tatami mat rather than a hand full of ofuda and a passport. A terribly similar fate, trapped in recognition and clan obligations and stripped of the ability to accomplish one's own dreams. A terribly similar fate made worse by the fact that the one who gazes upon the future in the star's light wasn't allowed to run amuck all about Japan solving the problems of others – rather, others came to him and his perfect viewing place of the heavens.
The disturbing conversation with Koya-san's head had me rattled, to put things mildly. Continue to alter this time, and Heaven's dragon would have but five Seals in the year of the Promised Day? He was telling me that I was altering our current time. That I would die if I continued to do such.
Why?
The 'Scorpion's' jealousy?
Astrological expert, thy name is not Sumeragi Subaru. I'm just a simple onmyouji zookeeper-in-training. Bah.
I stared at the constellation my name had been derived from as it glistened in the brilliant heavens, barely visible through the heavy leaves of the mountain's trees. Was it my imagination, or was it less bright tonight than it had been for so many years?
Perhaps I was simply letting the foreboding words of the Stargazer play with my hyperactive teenage imagination.
Or perhaps that's what he'd been referring to.
'Scorpion's' jealousy…. It was to move into Scorpio's house within the next couple months, if I recalled my astrology correctly. I've never paid much mind to the movements of stars and constellations, leaving such work to those who wrote horoscopes or star charts and to Hokuto-chan, who held a veritable obsession with them.
Was that to mean that my actions would carry repercussions within the next couple of months? And what actions were those?
The Stargazer had been concerned with the fact that the 'Kamui' was already here, that I was taking it upon myself to act as his Seal and protect him from any who would do him harm. Really, I did not see what the problem was – I would do such for any unfortunate in a similar position as Shiro-kun. Ask my sister and she'd tell of my generosity – often with snorts and rolls of her eyes and proclamations that I'm too damned forgiving and gullible for my own good.
Eh…. Her opinion of me is sometimes less than I'd like to think, I believe. I pray that most of the times when she makes those snappish remarks she's doing it in jest, but I have the sinking suspicion that such is not always the case.
So what did he mean by me altering our time? About drawing the wrath of the 'Scorpion'? About drawing down more tragedy than was to already befall me….
That statement perhaps made me the most terrified.
Tragedy was already fated to come to rest upon my shoulders. He suggested that worse would come.
I remembered the first few days that Shiro-kun was in our company, when I'd had my first conversations with him in the confines of my home, when he'd revealed that in the depths of his heart I'd spoken with him of tragedy, of accepting such tragedy, and of Hokuto-chan.
The words Stargazer had uttered towards me, "Draw that creature's wrath, and more suffering than is already destined to occur will land upon you and those around you," had me terrified. Not only would I be caught by whatever it was I was crafting, but others as well. Others who surround me.
The only others who truly surround me were Hokuto-chan and Seishiro-san.
Would she be falling victim to whatever fate was to befall her due to my actions? Due to me?
Was the association between Hokuto-chan and tragedy one I was crafting by whatever it was I was doing to alter our present?
Was the 'Scorpion's' jealousy going to strike against her?
Would I be stricken down in my attempt to defend her?
Or would I strike in such a fashion that I would no longer be worthy of the position of Seal of the Dragon of Heaven, protector of humanity? Would I fall from favor and light, essentially dying to the cause of the Promised Day? Not truly perishing, but falling eternally from those designated to partake in the decisions that would determine the fate of the Earth and its residents?
All I could know for certain is that the predictions made by the elderly man had more than upset my stomach. I'd ceased my attempts to drink my tea during that conversation and bypassed dinner, fearing my tremulous innards wouldn't be able to handle the introduction of anything of substance. Instead I'd left the festive halls where all of the complex's monks (and my sister and Shiro-kun, tired and merry and more than a little covered with dust and grass from their day's romps upon the mountain) were gathered for their dinner, making my way instead up the sides of Koya-san.
I made my way back to that forsaken clearing, seating myself near the shoreline of that tiny crystalline pond with its powerful waterfall and its chilled wind. The sun sank into the trees while I rested upon that grass. As darkness fell completely over the land and the moon slid into the heavens I turned my gaze towards that luminous globe's domain to stare at the stars as they poked their sky heads out of the dusky darkness of the cloudless night.
The other thoughts that ran through my head were similarly disturbing.
Having been analyzing Stargazer's words, focusing on Shiro-kun was an inevitability. What was he doing here? What did he want? How did he get here? How was he to get back to his own time?
And while he was here, was he directing fate to alter his past, our present? Whether consciously or subconsciously, would his presence be that turning force that would cause this greater calamity than that already destined for my head to fall upon me?
Was that increase in tragedy worth my efforts to protect and comfort him?
Would I be able to cease what I'd already started?
I scowled as I reflected upon my last two questions to myself. The boy was a lonely teenager in need. How could I think to turn away from him?
In addition to that, I was apparently the only person present in this time that could bring some measure of comfort and perhaps even joy to his miserable persona. He needed support. He needed friendship. He needed someone steadfast and determined, someone to remain by his side and lend him that arm he would need to grab when he stumbled, to lend him the strength he would need when his own flagged.
It's my duty as a Seal to protect the Dragon of Heaven, no matter what time it should happen to be.
It's my duty as a human being to protect another human being when I am able.
And… the fact that I was able to help that befuddled boy in some fashion brought me joy.
Being able to see his smile reflected in those amazing amethyst orbs of his, for some unexplained reason, made my heart flutter within my chest as almost nothing else could.
Finally, my mind flitted like a drunken butterfly to the final worry to plague it while I rested upon that chilly grass.
Hokuto-chan's hypothesis concerning the very pond I lounged beside.
A murdered woman, stabbed to death with a rough knife and sunk to the bottom of the pond I sat before to rest in its considerable depths.
I started as I heard the beginnings of human cackling. Now that I heard it again, I was able to determine that it was indeed quite feminine….
Ah, Hokuto-chan, must you always be right?
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She'd startled me when she'd materialized before me.
Bolting to my feet, my ofuda already in my hand, I stared with huge green eyes at the ghostly woman who stood before me, her head downcast and her shoulders shaking slightly with the force of her otherworldly chuckle. However, she made no move to attack. Rather she stood perfectly still before me.
I lowered my hand. "Eh…" I attempted to start.
Lifting her head, I was allowed to peruse her face. I drew a harsh breath.
She hadn't been cackling. She'd been trying to cover her sobs with hopeless laughter.
My heart was instantly moved. Lowering the slips of paper with their spells and quickly stuffing them to rest in my khaki pockets, I frowned. "Gomen," I apologized quickly even as I swooped into an instinctive bow.
She stopped her laugh, her eyes springing open with a quizzical glimmer enhanced by her ethereal tears.
"Please, I don't wish to fight this night," I started again, my voice quiet and calming as I held an empty hand to her. "I don't know why you attacked me last night, or why you've been attacking the monks that reside here, or why you attacked that tourist. But tonight I wish no combat. Please, may I speak with you?"
Her eyes were wide, her lips dropping from their hopeless smirk to a disbelieving line. Finally her full lips moved slowly. "You… what do you mean to do?"
I let my own mouth assume a kind smile. "My name is Sumeragi Subaru. I want to help you."
"Help me?" her voice quietly whispered. "Why? After what I've done, wouldn't you wish to destroy me as the others have tried to do?"
"No!" I instantly burst. "While it's true you've caused trouble on this mountain, it's obvious that you're in pain. If I can help you, maybe we can arrange something."
"Like?" she questioned, her eyes growing hard.
I let my shoulders droop slightly. My lips frowned sadly. "It pains me to see people suffering. I want to help you. Please."
She studied me critically before letting her smile widely spread across her lips. "You truly are a kind boy, aren't you? You're sincere?"
"Of course," I said with a hearty nod. "I want to help. Will you give me a chance?"
Coming to my side, she smiled brightly. "Yes."
It was then that I truly got the opportunity to study her. Translucent as all spirits I've encountered are, she was nonetheless beautiful. She was garbed in a long, simple sundress with delicate ivy patterns racing along its length, a thin belt of ribbon cast about her waist and spaghetti-thin straps slipping over her shoulders to hold that dress in place. Long wavy hair was held in a simple ponytail at the base of her neck with a thick ribbon tied into a perfect bow. Long eyelashes framed energetic and expressive eyes. Full lips, coated with a glossy sheen, curled into delectable smiles. Large hoop earrings dangled from her lobes, accompanying a delicate bracelet snaking around her right wrist, a small watch looping about her left, and a fragile ring circling the fourth finger upon her left hand.
A wedding band, if my knowledge of western customs serves right.
I remained silent as I studied her, allowing her to make the first move. I wasn't surprised when she turned her face away from me even as she sat at my side and chose instead to look at the heavens above. "It's a lovely night, isn't it Sumeragi-san?"
"Please, feel free to call me Subaru-kun," I said to her respectively even as I joined her gaze. Staring at the constellation I was named for, I sighed quietly. "What's your name?"
"Alice," she replied simply.
"Alice-san," I repeated in as crisp of English as I could manage. "It is a beautiful night. You don't see anything like this in Tokyo."
She laughed softly with a nod. "I have to agree with that. He said that, too."
"He?"
"The man who brought me here," she sighed quietly. "He told me that I had to see the beauty of the sky from Mount Koya."
"I'm certain you don't regret that," I murmured.
"Not at all," she clarified with a smile. "It is the most beautiful place I've ever been."
"Is that why you don't choose to leave?"
Her face instantly fell, her eyes narrowing as her smile flattened in anger. "No. I'm not leaving until he pays."
I sighed softly, my eyes as gentle as I could get them to be while I turned my gaze back on her and ignored the stars. "Alice-san, you're talking about the man who brought you here?"
"No. The man who killed us."
My brain leaped in my head. Us?
"My fiancé was killed where you're seated, attempting to defend me. I watched him being slaughtered before I was…."
"Please, feel free to speak if you wish. If not, that is fine as well," I softly assured.
"He raped me. Then he turned his knife on me. I tried to defend myself, but…."
Bowing my head, I sighed quietly before reaching out to lightly grip her hand in mine. Giving it a reassuring squeeze, I lifted my eyes to meet hers. I was not surprised to feel tracks of tears snaking down my cheeks.
How terrible! How could one's heart not be moved by such a tragic tale?
She was startled at the sight of my tears, though. "Subaru-kun," she whispered before letting a light giggle pass her full lips. "Don't cry for me. I'm already dead."
I snorted. "Don't tell me not to cry," my voice roughly hissed as I lifted my free hand to scrape the tears from my eyes. "Such a terrible thing! Who…."
"I don't know," she bashfully said, her cheeks flushing slightly as she looks away. "I just remember that he was in the robes of the monks."
In the robes of the monks? Oh, fabulous.
"The one man who was not in the robes that I tried to bring to the pond looked just like him. I wasn't sure if he'd just wandered without his garments to the place of his crime. You… I'm sorry. I was just being rash. Everyone's been trying to get rid of me before I can find him and make him pay."
Now we were getting somewhere.
Now I had a place to start.
Revenge is not my business, but I would bring this man to this place to stand witness to what he'd done, to hopefully express sorrow over his crimes. Perhaps that would bring enough comfort to Alice-san's soul to allow her release.
I would find out.
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As the tourist who'd been attacked hadn't seen but four days of care, he was easy enough to find. Still in the hospital, he had no opportunity to run from me.
He was also quite innocent.
After lengthy conversations with him, I'd come to discover that this had indeed been his first trip to Koya-san and that he had no intention of ever returning again. He had no knowledge of Alice-san and her dead fiancé.
But my trip was not for naught. He did reveal one incredibly pertinent fact – he had a cousin who looked much like himself at Koya-san's monasteries, a cousin he'd been intending to visit that hadn't been at the site the day he'd arrived and journeyed to that pond to take pleasure in the natural beauty the mountain possesses. That cousin had joined to cast off the sins of his past life and begin anew.
tbc...