Chapter 22

"Kuon..." Huba Syd stood and unlocked the door. He placed his hand on Kuon's shoulder. "Come with me." And with those words he was pulled into a familiar place that reminded him of Lory's home. Huba Syd pointed to a bank of cushions on the marble floors. "Have a seat." He told him. "There is something you should know. Farasha and I know so much about you, yet you know nothing of us..." He smiled. "Why don't you conjure a drink for yourself?" Huba Syd told him.

"I... you really don't need to give me anything." He commented as a whiskey glass appeared in his hand, filled with bourbon and two ice cubes. "Thank you." He told him.

Huba Syd laughed. "I did nothing Kuon... That..." He pointed to the glass in Kuon's hand. "That is your doing."

Kuon looked at him in surprise.

Huba Syd smiled at him mischievously and a shiver ran down Kuon's back. Where had he seen that smile before? "Kuon... There is something you should know about the time you have spent with my lovely sister... It has affected you. It has changed the very core of your being. You..." Huba Syd morphed and revealed himself as Lory Takarada. "Are no longer human, dear godson."

Kuon gasped.

"This is why she apologized to you. This is the very reason she avoids you. She has changed you and she believes that you will blame her. The humans she has ever known have viewed our kind as inferior or, demonic. Kuon... She does not know it yet, but she obviously adores you or, she may be fully aware." He waved his hand around. "I really don't know. It has been so long since we have been close." Lory sat down with the silent man and sighed. "You know... We are twins... Before we were enslaved, we were close. It was always only the three of us... Farasha, me and Ruto."

Kuon looked at him attentively.

"There were others like us. For a very long time... For a long time we lived in this paradise before humans were introduced and for a very long time we lived in harmony with them. Most were accepting, but there were always that fearful few that didn't understand and chose not to." He sighed.

"I want to understand. I... I don't fear her..." Kuon told him. "Boss..."

Lory looked at him compassionately. "You can call me Lory when I'm like this." He chuckled. "Now that we know each other's secrets.

"Lory... I would never fear her... I love her. I love her more than anything." He confessed.

Lory nodded his head. "I can see that." He sighed. "The only problem we have right now is convincing her that you don't have a problem with being one of us." Lory smirked and patted him on the back. "Welcome to the species Kuon..."

She had been avoiding him and now he knew it. She was certain of it. How was she supposed to face him after what she had caused? Perhaps a peace offering for the Day of Saint Valentine? His birthday was approaching... She still wanted to give him a gift for that since he had done the same for her. Maybe he had not noticed his changes yet. She would have liked to avoid that conversation as long as possible if she could and hiding from him, banishing from her realm and avoiding him was not helping the situation. There was also the small matter of him possibly being her master in some strange, weird twisted way.

She sighed heavily and rolled over on her cushions. "What to do... What to do..." She pondered as she twirled little blue butterflies and flowers through the air.

"Sweet sister..." Huba Syd came to her and sat next to her. "What troubles you?"

"Haahhh... you were right Brother... My magic has changed sweet Kuon and it is all my fault. You warned me and I did not listen." She told him sadly.

He gently caressed her hair. "Sweet Farasha... It is not just you that has changed him. If that is the case. Do you remember what Mother and Father taught us?" He asked quietly.

She glanced up at him with wide eyes. "But Brother... That's not possible... It's just not possible for one such as him to think that of me. He is mortal... I am... This..."

Huba Syd shook his head. "Is it really something so difficult to accept? Even though it stares you in the face?" He scolded. He felt a little sad that unworthiness had been so ingrained in her over the centuries of captivity. How could he convince her of the obvious? Perhaps this was something that Kuon needed to present to her himself. Perhaps she wouldn't believe anyone but him. Huba Syd took her in his arms and held her tightly. "Sister... You are Djinn. How can you say that you are proud to be Djinn, yet not be proud of yourself? You are more than worthy of him and I will not stand for you to say otherwise." He kissed her forehead.

He flopped around on his bed like an exasperated teen aged girl. He sighed, got up and grabbed a soda and bag of chips from the kitchen to snack on, then flopped back onto the sofa and sighed as he began pigging out on junk food.

With his thoughts firmly on his misunderstood knowledge of her desire to revoke Reino's abilities, he felt that perhaps he should try to get on her good side, do something to appease her so that she would never even consider doing so with him. Even if it weren't possible. He didn't understand that the gift was never granted to Reino, just taught to him by his grandfather and she was merely going to erase that knowledge from his memory.

He rolled over and groaned again and that's how he was behaving when Aki Shoko entered the apartment. She rolled her eyes at the sulking teen, wondering why on Earth she ever agreed to be the manager of a hormonal little brooding prince wanna-be. She sighed as she went about the living room picking up empty candy and snack chip packages and empty soda cans. "What is it now Sho?"

He groaned again. "Shoko-san? If a girl is mad at you, how do you make it up to her?" He asked and all she could see at the moment was a lost little boy.

She shook her head and tossed the garbage in the wastebasket. "Well, Valentine's Day is coming up. I know it isn't traditional for men to give anything until White Day, but perhaps give her some flowers or, candy. Then after that apologize for whatever you've done. I'm sure she'll see your effort and forgive you." She told him not realizing whom he was referring to.

He smiled widely. Of course! She was a slave. It's not like anyone would shower her with gifts. She would be grateful for it. "Perfect! Thank you Shoko-san. I think I will do just that." He whipped out his phone and began browsing the internet for ideas.