Things continue to get worse for Gakkun...
Chapter 3 – The Heart of the Protector
Luka's spoon scratched the bottom of the bowl with an unpleasant screech. She glanced upwards and found Gakupo again staring at her. His meal was barely touched; he seemed much more interested in observing her every move than eating. Then again, Kaito had told her that Gakupo had periods in which he ate very little and slept even less. It was a mark of his extended confinement, like the other small eccentricities she was beginning to discover as the meal progressed.
"Sometimes I imagine the three of us having big adventures out there in the world, slaying monsters and finding treasure," Gakupo commented, once the conversation began to be more fluid. "It feels so real, I kind of forget I'm still here. Kaito has to shake me sometimes, so I can return to my own body."
He smiled, as if confessing such a thing was perfectly natural.
Luka blinked, then took a sip from her cup of juice to give herself some time to think a response. Nothing came to mind. But Gakupo seemed to have already moved on to another scattered line of thought.
"You smell like flowers, it's very nice."
"Thank you. Maybe I could send you some flowers from the shop with Kaito, would you like that? Do you have any favorites?"
Gakupo laughed a bit, still staring rather fixedly. "Anything pink will do."
Luka's eyes examined her plate, once more. "Um, Kaito, could show me where the toilet is?"
Kaito had been inclined back in his chair munching on a pastry and watching the exchange with a small smile. He leaned forward, an eyebrow lifted. "I guess I could take you to the soldier's quarters at the ground floor, but-"
"Only your father is down there at the moment, right? That'll do, let's go." Luka said hurriedly, and rose up from the table. "Ah, excuse me Gakupo, we'll be right back."
Gakupo nodded slowly.
Luka grabbed Kaito's sleeve and forced him up. "Come on, hurry!"
"Ok, ok, I'm going!" They exited the cell and Kaito closed the door and locked it, though it seemed more out of force of habit than anything. Gakupo watched them go with a strange, almost nervous expression on his face.
Luka stopped at the first landing they reached, and turned to whisper at Kaito. "What's wrong with him?!"
"What do you mean?" Kaito asked reticently.
"You know what I mean! He barely blinks when he looks at me! Besides…there's something disconnected in the way he talks...I don't know, it's like he loses track of what he's saying." Luka didn't like to admit, but a rising sense of discomfort was drowning out her initial joy.
Kaito leaned on the wall, peevish. "Honestly, Luka… he's been locked up in here for almost four years. You really thought it wouldn't affect him at all?"
"Why didn't you warn me?!"
"That's still our Gakupo," Kaito pointed upwards. "There's no need to act differently towards him." He waited with a frown, clearly willing to shut down any arguments on the contrary.
"…At least tell me if there's anything else I should be expecting," Luka mumbled. Her feelings were a muddled mess, but she was still willing to continue their meal.
Kaito crossed his arms. "Hm…I've told you he gets really lethargic sometimes. He sits by the window or curls up in bed, and nothing anyone says seems to register." He made a long pause. "There's been a couple of times my father had to tie him down and force feed him."
Luka sucked air between her teeth.
"I know. I don't think he means to be rebellious or anything like that. It just happens."
Luka played with a strand of her hair, tense. "Anything else?"
"He has panic attacks, sometimes. I usually manage to call him down, though." Kaito shrugged. "And when he feels talkative, he really does. You'll see, if you stick around." He said the last words with intensity, his blue eyes stating a voiceless challenge.
"I'm not going to abandon him!" Luka immediately replied, staring Kaito down. She ran back up the stairs without waiting for him to say anything.
Gakupo was standing by the door of the cell, looking at the stairs. He began to stammer as soon as he saw her, fingers twitching and squeezing the bars. "I…I'm sorry if I'm acting weird. I don't mean to…please, I won't hurt you, I promise!"
Luka just stared at him. She wanted to reassure him, but again her own difficulty in expressing herself was tripping her up.
Kaito rushed past her and opened the cell door. "It's alright. Calm down, you're doing ok." He pulled Gakupo into a hug and began to rub his back, with the air of having done the same thing many times before.
"I'm so sorry," Gakupo uttered shakily, his face hidden by his long hair.
"There's nothing to apologize for," Kaito answered vehemently. He then turned to Luka, once more daring her wordlessly to make good on her word.
She advanced woodenly towards them. Until the last moment, she wasn't sure what she was going to do, but then she softly separated them, and cradled Gakupo's face in her hands. Luka watched his confused, scared expression for a moment, then made him bend down and kissed his forehead. Her face felt hot again, and under any other circumstances she probably would've froze on the spot. But he needed her, right now. "Please be patient with me. I'm an animal in a dress," she stated without letting him loose, her lips very close to his skin. "But you mean a lot to me, and I'm not letting you go." She kissed him again, several times, on the forehead, on his eyelids, on his cheeks, until Gakupo began to laugh.
"What are you doing?" He didn't seem all that displeased, however.
"That's all the kisses I owe you for the last couple of years," Luka explained, emboldened by his and Kaito's smiling expressions.
"Not bad, not bad. Now we're getting places," Kaito commented, nodding approvingly. He took Gakupo's and Luka's hands. We should do something fun, you know, to celebrate. It just so happens that I have a suggestion."
Captain Fuuga rubbed his eyes and tossed the report aside. It was the third time he tried to read the same paragraph, and nothing was truly sinking in. With a half-hour or so until dawn, he was already feeling the pressure in the back of his head that heralded a fatigue-induced headache. He looked around him, at the cramped little office full of official records, and yawned.
He could've gone to bed hours ago and trusted Kaito to wake him up if anything happened. But he was already making a gamble in leaving the trio unsupervised for so long. Kaito and Luka were usually reliable, but it was still a girl and two boys left to their own devices, after all.
Maybe it would be a good idea to go check up on them. He had heard Kaito and Luka going up and down the stairs a few times, each descent and ascent more raucous than the previous one. Perhaps they were playing some kind of game.
Unless…Captain Fuuga stood up and investigated the darkened mess hall. It didn't take him too long to figure out that a bottle of liquor was missing.
Shaking his head, he climbed to the top floor. The sky, visible through the narrow slits in the stone, was already beginning to change color.
Meanwhile, the bottle in question was laying on its side near the bars, with a small dark stain on the floor under its neck. Closer to the end of the room, Kaito, Luka and Gakupo were sleeping on the floor, huddled together chaotically in a sort of nest made from the sheets and blankets of the bed and Kaito's and Luka's capes.
Captain Fuuga observed the spectacle while tilting his head. He briefly wished Luka's father materialized in the room, just to see his expression at the sight of his daughter squished between two young men. All the same, he was rather relieved to see that they were too innocent to do anything but huddle together like a trio of kittens. He wasn't ready to be a grandfather just yet.
He decided to let them sleep while he prepared breakfast. Luka would have to make herself scarce before the next shift, but they had at least a couple of hours until then. He picked up the bottle and examined it. "What a way to liven up things," he whispered. It was the strongest type of liquor in the tower; he couldn't help but feel a bit impressed they managed to finish the bottle before passing out.
His own tiredness was nothing compared to what they were going to experience once they woke up.
"I'm not hungry, sir," Gakupo insisted. Captain Fuuga ignored him and placed a big plate full of food before him. Gakupo looked down, cringing. If there was a term for the opposite of hungry that didn't entail having actual food in one's stomach, he was certainly feeling that state right then.
To his right, Luka was massaging her temples, eyes closed. To his left, Kaito was leaning forward, resting his head on the table. He only rose when his father urged him to move so he could place his breakfast before him. Despite this, Kaito still seemed like he was going to use his eggs as a pillow at any moment.
"I hope you all remember this lovely sensation the next time you decide to raid the supplies," Captain Fuuga exclaimed. "Now eat and drink lots of liquid. Especially you, Luka."
Gakupo eyed her, full of concern. Thankfully, she seemed somewhat recovered, in comparison to how she started the day.
He had been the first one to wake up that morning. It was quite the experience, to open his eyes to that face, so close to his. He felt oddly uncomfortable and there was a disgusting taste in his mouth; but all was rendered meaningless, due to the warmth of Luka's body and the weight of her head on his arm. Her perfume was so strong, that for a second he was sure they were at her mother's orchard, surrounded by flowers. He almost felt the sun touching his head, and heard the buzzing of insects. But those were only faded sensations from his memories.
He touched the side of her face cautiously with his free hand. Was she really there? Sometimes she visited and they talked, but then a guard would say something, and when Gakupo turned back to look at her the cell was empty.
But no, this time was real. It had to be. Kaito was behind her, one arm circling her waist. He was keeping her in place so that she wouldn't vanish. And Kaito was real, more real that many of the things Gakupo knew were supposed to exist, but he just wasn't sure anymore. At times, it seemed like his friend was the only thing anchoring Gakupo to the ground.
Luka opened her eyes and they stared at each other for a few instants. Gakupo opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Luka made a bizarre expression and crawled away from him, gagging. She shakily stood up and stumbled towards a corner of the room, where she began retching.
"Kaito, Kaito, wake up! Luka is sick!" Gakupo growled, shaking Kaito awake.
"Ugh, stop it…" Kaito grabbed his head and squinted at Gakupo, as if he didn't recognize him. He then peered at Luka. "…It's just a hangover. But looking at that makes me want to…ugh…" He covered his mouth.
"Hangover?" Gakupo looked from one to the other, terrified. What was going on? He scrambled to his feet and ran to the bars. "Captain Fuuga! Captain Fuuga!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, hoping the man could hear him all the way down below. Behind him, he could hear his friends groaning.
"I'm coming!" The man replied, much nearer than expected. He soon appeared carrying a tray overflowing with food. Captain Fuuga took one look at Gakupo's face, then surveyed the scene behind him. To Gakupo's surprise, he smiled with amusement.
"Captain Fuuga, Luka and Kaito are sick!"
"Small wonder. How's your hangover doing?" The officer calmly placed the tray on the chair.
"I don't know what that means!" Gakupo rattled the door of his cell, enraged at the man's indifference.
Understanding downed on the man's face. "It's just something that happens when people drink too much alcohol. They'll be fine once they eat something and rest." He opened the door and placed a calming hand on Gakupo's shoulder. "And I think they'll appreciate it if you keep it down."
"Yeah, please stop shouting," Kaito agreed from the floor.
"Please," Luka echoed, before she began to clean her face with the jug of water and basin.
"I guess you didn't drink as much as them," Captain Fuuga noted to Gakupo. "Or you bear it better. In any case, sit down at the table, breakfast will do you good. That goes for you two as well."
And so the trio found themselves facing eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, big loaves of bread and even bigger glasses of juice. Gakupo stabbed an egg with his knife, unconvinced. Why did people have to eat in the first place? He squashed the egg with his fork, repeatedly, making a yellow and white mush.
"How are you feeling?" He finally asked to Luka, placing the cutlery aside without actually ever using it to eat.
"I just want to get home and sleep," Luka replied. She massaged the skin above his eyes over and over.
"You could sleep in my bed, I'll get it ready for you," Gakupo offered quickly. He began to stand up, but Captain Fuuga firmly forced him back down.
"I told you to eat. Besides, I think Takano might have a thing or two to say if he gets here and there's a girl in your bed. Let Luka go home, son. I'm sure she'll come visit you again as soon as possible."
"I promise," Luka assured Gakupo. He nodded reluctantly.
"I'll take you up on that offer, if you don't mind," Kaito intervened.
"I was thinking of sending you on some errands…" Captain Fuuga started with a mischievous glint in his eye, which made his resemblance with Kaito all the more evident. His offspring groaned. "But I guess I can let you recover here for a while. Just consider things more thoroughly the next time you get yourself and your friends drunk."
"Why do you think it was my idea?" Kaito inquired in an offended tone.
"Because I've known you all your life. Eat your breakfast," Captain Fuuga commanded. Kaito obeyed with an exaggerated sigh.
When breakfast was finally over, Luka said goodbye, placing more kisses in Gakupo's cheek, then blushing furiously when she recalled Captain Fuuga was watching. She went downstairs with the officer, and Gakupo made the bed and cleaned the room while Kaito continued to lay his head on the table.
"Are you sure you have a beast inside of you and not a homemaker? Why are you smiling?" Kaito asked, watching him with one eye.
"It's not like that," Gakupo shook his head. "I'm just happy you'll be here with me a little longer."
"Hmm," Kaito closed his eyes and rested his head on his arms.
"The bed is ready, do you need help?"
"Hmm," Kaito replied and extended an arm. Gakupo basically dragged him towards it and Kaito fell asleep almost immediately, without bothering to get under the covers.
Gakupo went to sit on the window sill and watched Oto slowly grow more animate. First the streets were vacant, then there was a person or two, then more and more people were walking up and down the streets. Luka's mother exited the shop and began placing decorations. A festival was coming, it seemed. Those types of details and Kaito's schoolwork were the most helpful tools in keeping track of time, throughout the year.
An hour or so later, Takano popped up, saw Kaito curled up on the bed and went back down, apparently deciding that the sleeping son of his commanding officer was enough to satisfy the demands of security. It didn't surprise Gakupo all that much.
Most guards didn't bother to sit outside the cell all day, in any case. Kaito and his father were the only ones constantly there during 'their' shift. In fact, Kaito spent so much time in the tower that no one was surprised when he announced his intentions to join the town's guard.
"It's not right," Gakupo said to himself. He descended from the sill and approached the bed. Kaito was placidly laying on his side, facing him. Gakupo sat on the bed and lightly touched one of Kaito's hands. "You never wanted to stay in Oto. Weren't you going to be an explorer?"
Or a sailor, or an errant knight. Kaito's choice of occupation tended to vary, but the commonality between all of them was that he wanted to be out there in the world, not in Oto.
"You aren't doing this because of me, are you?" Gakupo questioned. Poor Kaito. And poor Luka, so sweet and awkward and beautiful. They both were sacrificing so much for him, and they didn't even realize it. "I'm not worth it."
Gakupo laid on the bed next to Kaito and pulled him close. He was a beast, because he clung to his friends, even though he had nothing to offer, even though that brought them trouble. Kaito grumbled and draped an arm around him, before falling into an even deeper sleep.
The beast cradled him in silence.
Gakupo's fifteen birthday was drawing close. He personally didn't see any reason to celebrate one more year inside his cell, but that wasn't going to stop Kaito and Luka from celebrating it as best as it could be done.
He idly wondered if her father remembered the significance of the date. Probably not. In any case, it meant she would stay the night and hopefully cuddle with him in bed like a couple of weeks ago.
Gakupo was vaguely aware that it was odd for him to want to lie in bed with Kaito or Luka, embracing them, given Captain Fuuga's reaction last time. But they didn't seem to mind it all that much. Perhaps the soldier was scared that the evil spirit inside him would hurt them. But the beast was dormant, as always. All Gakupo wanted to do was to hold them close and pretend everything was fine.
It was infinitely better than to lie in bed alone as he was, staring at the ceiling. From time to time, he heard birds outside, or a sound at street level loud enough to reach the top of the tower. It was well past the time when normal people got out of bed, but that meant little to him. He had nothing to do. He was done with Kaito's home assignments, and had read every book in his cell at least four times. He considered practicing some vocal exercises, but dismissed the idea. It would've meant moving and he wasn't in the mood for that.
He heard someone come up the stairs. Kaito, most likely, given the sound. That was enough to compel him at least to turn towards the cell door. His guess was confirmed a moment later.
"I have news!" Kaito said after a quick greeting. He fumbled, looking for his key.
"What is it?" Gakupo sat up unenthusiastically.
Kaito finally opened the door and entered. He quickly crossed the room and sat next to Gakupo, over the sheets. "Verdirrama is coming. Maybe he found a way to extract the beast from inside of you!" he gesticulated excitedly.
"Or maybe he'll say it's useless, and that I should rot in here," Gakupo retorted. "Or maybe he wants to vivisect me."
"Don't be so dramatic!" Kaito roughly ruffled his hair. Gakupo tried to grab his hands and it quickly evolved into a playful scuffle. As usual, Kaito ended up pinning him down, grinning victoriously. "Still the best!" He bragged and stood up, but not before patting Gakupo's cheek obnoxiously.
Gakupo sat up again, feeling a mild sense of disappointment.
Ignoring his bemused expression, Kaito began pacing back and forth. "Verdirrama will have to admit nothing weird has happened in all this time. He has to admit you aren't a danger to anyone."
"Even if he allowed me out, I wouldn't want to live in Oto anymore," Gakupo let slip.
"No, of course not. We could enlist in the principality's army, or simply travel abroad for a while," Kaito answered easily, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
He's been expecting this, Gakupo realized. His friend's next words made it all the more obvious.
"I've been saving for a while now. Luka too. We can even go south, if you want." Kaito kneeled before him and rested his hands on Gakupo's knees. "All you need to do is convince Verdirrama that you're harmless."
Gakupo placed his hands over Kaito's, moved. "You two would leave all of this behind, for me?"
"Without a second glance," his friend declared.
"But, your father…?"
"He set me on this course, when he told me to be faithful to my friends, before anything else. He knows how much you important you are to me." He rose and hugged Gakupo, his hand tracing circles in his back, his usual soothing gesture. "Luka has her parents, I guess, but I doubt she wants to stay either. They're trying to marry her off to this old merchant, he's a creep and a half."
Luka, married? The thought of her as a meek housewife made Gakupo laugh. Luka was a force of nature, a thunderbolt shaped like a girl by some caprice of the gods.
"I know!" Kaito chuckled. "She's ours! We'll go away from here, the three of us, and become famous adventurers!"
Gakupo didn't want to allow himself to hope. Not after all of this time. But an image planted itself in his mind: a campfire under the stars, in the middle of nowhere. Kaito, Luka and he singing together. And the world around them, so vast he would need a hundred lives and more to explore it all. The vision brought tears to his eyes, but he smiled. It was such a pleasant dream.
As Kaito announced, the mage showed up at the tower the following day.
Verdirrama was completely unchanged from five years ago. Time seemed to have completely passed him by. Gakupo observed him, baffled.
"Mystics don't age like commoners," the mage observed, as if reading his thoughts. "How are you feeling?" His tone was light, as if he was a relative on a visit.
"Good," Gakupo replied promptly. "I'm good."
Behind Verdirrama, Captain Fuuga seemed about to say something, but then glanced at Kaito and shrugged.
"No hallucinations or visions?"
"Not anything threatening, no." Gakupo replied, unwilling to disclose the truth, but unable to fully lie. There was something about the mage that forced him into sincerity. "I sometimes see dots or shadows. And I fantasize about Luka."
"Luka?"
"That's a girl in town," Captain Fuuga answered.
"I see," Verdirrama lifted his eyebrows. "You don't want to harm this Luka, do you?"
"I'm in love with her," Gakupo replied, now convinced that there was something drawing words from the deepest part of his skull. "I see Luka before me and I take her in my arms and kiss her and-" Kaito was silently laughing behind the mage's back, while Captain Fuuga rubbed his forehead.
"I get the idea, thank you." The mystic turned to the officer, who placed a hand on his son's head to stop his exaggerated gestures. "Have you or any of your soldiers seen him do anything out of the ordinary? Or witnessed any unexplained phenomena in his vicinity? Lights? Emanations? Disturbed furniture? Even streaks of particularly bad luck?"
"Not a thing," Captain Fuuga replied with obvious satisfaction. "Forgive me for saying this, but maybe you made a mistake."
"If you had my eyes, you'd see this young man shining like a flare in the night. It's much more obvious now, there's something inside of him. This last year will be critical."
"Last year?"
"According to my auguries, the beast is almost done gathering its strength. It will likely wake after the Festival of Light, during his sixteenth year." The mystic grabbed Gakupo's chin and peered closely at this eyes. "He'll begin to show signs of it soon. Be careful, you shouldn't let your son be anywhere near him."
"That's rubbish!" Kaito interjected loudly.
The mage turned towards him, surprised, and even Captain Fuuga seemed flabbergasted.
"Gakupo's not dangerous!" Kaito continued, not even a little intimidated by the mage's stare. Though Verdirrama seemed more interested than angry. He waved his hand before Kaito and hummed, the same gesture he had done before Gakupo when he first entered the cell.
"What do you intend to do?" He asked the young man affably.
"I'll get him out of here, I'll take him away with me!"
"But what about this town? What about this country? The beast's rampage was very costly, last time around."
"I don't care, I love him!" Kaito's face immediately reddened after he said the words, but he still glowered defiantly at the mage.
Captain Fuuga intervened, annoyed. "Look mage, you aren't here to harass my son. Just tell me what the verdict is."
Verdirrama faced Gakupo, making the youth tremble. There was no mercy in the mage's eyes. Still, the youth dropped to his knees. "Please, if you tell them to free me, I'll go away, I'll leave the continent entirely. Please, I've never wanted to hurt anyone!" He begged, touching the ground with his forehead.
"He'll stay where he is. At the first sign of trouble, you'll contact me. If I don't find a better remedy for it in the course of this year, I'll recommend to the elders that he be sacrificed during the third night of the Festival of Light. It could be dangerous to wait any longer." It was the coldest tone the mage had used until then.
"No!" Kaito screamed.
"The beast will have to choose another host and begin the process anew. It will give me more time to decipher the signs," the mystic continued, as if there had been no interruption. He then calmly addressed Kaito. "I have another augury, whether you accept it or not. You will betray him, before the Festival is over, and so will the girl. You are a traitor. The beast will die alone." He walked out of the cell and down the stairs in the same peaceful manner.
"Hey, you can't speak to my son like that!" Captain Fuuga's angry tone diminished in volume, as he followed the mage downstairs.
Gakupo remained where he was, facing the ground. He was going to die. They were going to kill him and cheer, and be glad to finally get rid of him. Why was I here all this time, if you were going to kill me anyway? He tried to move his lips, but no sound came out.
"…He's lying."
He had almost forgotten than Kaito was still there in the room with him. Gakupo looked at him, not really understanding what he had just said.
Kaito wiped his eyes furiously with his sleeve, trembling. "He's lying! I'll never betray you and I won't let them kill you! Never!"
Gakupo stood up and approached his friend, feeling a strange emptiness inside of him. Not even when Kaito clumsily grabbed him and kissed his lips did he feel anything but a sense of unreality. Perhaps he was already dead, and he was just remembering what it felt to be alive. Or maybe he was hallucinating and he was going to find himself in bed, willing the afternoon away. But Kaito was right there, touching him. That usually meant things were actually happening. When Kaito pulled away, Gakupo touched the side of his face, wet with tears. "Are you here with me?"
Kaito sniffed. "I've always been here."
"That's true."
"I'll save you…We'll save you." Kaito squeezed Gakupo hard enough to push out the air of his lungs. "I have to tell Luka about this. I'll be back soon." He rushed towards the exit, only to head back inside and grab the front of Gakupo's robes nervously. "I guess you can tell, given that I just…um, it's true, what he made me say."
"Yes, he must've been using some sort of enchantment to keep us from lying," Gakupo commented.
"But, doesn't it bother you that I…? " Kaito trailed off, uncharacteristically flustered. After a few instants, whatever was making his brow crease suddenly vanished from him. Gakupo wasn't exactly sure what it meant, but Kaito looked happier, so it had to be good. "I'll go find Luka, we'll figure something out." He caressed Gakupo's face fondly and ran off.
Gakupo retreated to the window. Very soon, he saw the small white and blue figure cross the street and enter the flower shop. He waited, but nothing happened for a long, long while.