It turned out it was weird. Touke spent some time later scrabbling at her neck, as though trying to pull the hinman out. Even while Aku was paying for the room Touke was still pawing at the back of her neck with a pained expression on her face. She found it cute. Touke said some quick words of goodbye to the owner, really more a brusque I'm never coming back, see ya sort of thing than a proper goodbye. Neither of them mentioned she was Kyou-Ou. They left the inn.

The city hadn't quite woken up yet. There was still a sleepiness to the air, as though the dreams of the people were permeating the streets. Aku found herself stepping lighter than usual, as though trying to keep from disturbing them, getting odd looks from Touke. They made their way to the side of the city the refugees were on. By the quality of the buildings, it was clearly the poorer quarter of the city. Even so, the refugees were mostly camped outside the walls, in a messy jumble of tents and campfires.

A few of the refugees called out to her long before they got to the camp. It was likely the ones she had been traveling with had told the others she was with them; either that, or there was someone else around who had been on a shouzan. Some of them quickly moved to wake the rest up, and a few minutes after they had arrived the whole camp was awake and crowding around them. These people seemed most cheerful with Aku around, which made her feel a little guilty that she was leaving. There wasn't a lot she could do about that though. She had a duty, a duty to them, and she had to leave. There was no choice.

After a few more minutes, she told them she had found Kyou-Ou, while gesturing at Touke. Their reactions were split. Some immediately dropped to the ground. Some stood as though dumbstruck. Others jumped into the air with elated shouts, vocalizing their excitement. They talked for a few more minutes, during which Aku almost had to laugh with how they were treating Touke. They were being so distant and polite, more than they were with her.

Not too long after that she had to break it up. She explained they had to get to Houzan quickly so they could immediately get to Soufuu Palace and get things going. She didn't say a thing about the coming war. There was no use in getting them worried about her and Touke's safety. Plan A would probably be suicide, but that's why there was a B and C. Soon they said their goodbyes, hopped up on Nansou—his appearance had gotten a shout of surprise from Touke and most of the refugees—and they were off.

With the jolt off the ground, Touke had let out another of her yelps, and tightened her grip around Aku. Which she wasn't exactly complaining about. Much less than the thing itself, simply thinking about physical contact with Touke sent thrills of excitement and pleasure through her, so Touke touching her like this made it the best flight she had ever had. And she liked flying. Aku could feel her shaking a little bit. But after not too long in the air, she relaxed, and loosened her hold a little. "What happened to the wind?" she eventually asked.

"Some shirei and youjuu put up some sort of magic around them so you don't feel the air rushing around," Aku tried to explain. "Actually, we don't really understand it. Kirin do the same thing though."

"People ride Kirin?" she muttered in mild confusion.

Aku could kind of understand her thinking. Kirin were such highly respected creatures that the thought of someone riding one must seem strange. "You can ride me, if you want. I wouldn't do it with anyone else though. Well, Renki, but he doesn't count." She had done that a few times, partially to practice Plan C.

"Renki?"

"Ren Taiho."

"Oh, right. Is that like a rule or something?"

"Well, sort of."

A long pause as they flew, Touke clearly in thought. "I don't know nothing."

That was a weird and random thing for her to say. "I'm sure you know plenty of things."

"I mean about Kirin."

"You knew enough not to argue with me when I told you you are Kyou-Ou."

"Yeah, everyone know that. Tentei tells you or something."

Aku smiled. Well, she smiled wider; she had already been smiling. Just being around Touke seemed to make her constantly all smiles. "Exactly that. It isn't like a whisper in the ear, or something, but I could tell the moment I saw you." Technically, she had felt something the moment she saw Touke that she had later interpreted as her revelation. But still. "Besides, I could prostrate myself."

"What?"

"It is physically impossible for a Kirin to do that with anyone but their liege."

"See, things like this. I didn't know that. And if I even know so little about you, how can I do something as out of my league as ruling a kingdom? That's even more out of my experience."

"You can do it. I know you can."

"So you say."

Aku tried not to sigh. Touke having doubts was not entirely unexpected, and it was perfectly understandable. But there was no reason for them. "Tentei would not have chosen you if you couldn't do it. It's as simple as that."

"But sometimes kings are total failures."

Aku shrugged. "Every king has the potential for greatness. Tentei wouldn't choose them otherwise. But they are at a basic level human. Humans make mistakes. And of course there are outside factors. So you can do it. Whether or not you will do it is the question."

"Yeah, I get it."

"Besides, you have to fight for the throne before you get it anyway. Worry about that first."

"Yeah." Touke paused for a moment; even without being able to see her, Aku knew to wait for her to speak again. "Is that a common thing? Having to fight?"

"Yes, sadly enough. Very common. I'm not really sure why."

"People like their power."

"Yes, that's what I don't understand."

"Of course not. You're not really human, are you?"

"No, not technically," Aku said with a smile. Touke said nothing, letting that hang in the air. She got the impression that her not being human bothered Touke for some reason, but she supposed there wasn't a whole lot she could do about that. She looked and acted enough like a human for pretty much everyone.

They flew continuously for some portion of the day. But Nansou had only flown this far a couple times in his life, and now he had some extra weight. It took training to fly long distances, especially with any excess baggage. Aku, though, didn't want to waste another day before ascending Houzan. So they stopped on the shores of Hakukai to give Nansou a rest. While they waited, Touke barely said a word, simply staring at the sea, clearly deep in thought. Aku suggested she take a nap, for they would be on Nansou for some time yet, but she didn't say a word. Soon they were flying again.

Another whole day passed, curving to the southeast, before they actually crossed Hakukai. The flight over Hakukai, as it was the first time, and with how silent Touke was being, was incredibly boring. But eventually she did speak. "So how do you carry around all those youma anyway? This thing just popped out of nowhere."

"I am not a thing," Nansou said, a little irritably.

Touke jumped against her back, and Aku laughed. "His name is Nansou."

"Alright then," she said, clearly still thrown by a youma talking. "Nansou just popped out of nowhere."

"When I was younger I used to think they just lived in my shadow, and were able to move themselves between other shadows. I still catch myself thinking like that."

"But that's not what they're doing."

Aku shook her head. "It's called tonkou. There are channels between all things through which energy flows. They travel through these. Mostly in earth and air. That's how Shomou can travel between Mei and I so easily and so quickly, and how my shirei can follow you and me out of sight."

"Me too?"

"I assigned some of my shirei to watch over you. Some Kirin can use tonkou as well. With much practice I've learned to do a little bit, but I can't put my whole body through yet, just my arm. I've used it to pick up things from across the room and scare nyosen."

"Huh." Touke thought on that a moment. "You're really not human, are you?"

"Does that bother you?"

"A little," Touke admitted. "Like, when I met you you was this simple-minded little girl. Now you're a Kirin, and you don't understand humans, and you can do these magic things. It's weird."

"Well, there's not a lot I can do about that. I guess you'll get used to it. You're not completely human anymore yourself, you know."

"I guess." Again, Touke fell silent for a while. It was a few minutes of flying before she spoke again. "So, you assigned some youma to me."

"Shirei, yes."

"What's the difference between youma and shirei?" asked Touke, a frown on her voice.

"Shirei are youma that serve a Kirin. There are various ways they're changed by being pacified. It'll take too long to get into them, and I'm pretty sure it would go over your head. It goes over my head sometimes," Aku added, suddenly realizing that could have offended her.

"Oh, okay. So you assigned some to me."

"Yes."

"They have names too."

"Yes. I'll introduce you sometime."

"Okay." Touke didn't say any more, so apparently that was her question.

Not long after that, they were nearing Koukai. Nansou took them through the hidden maze of caverns through the Kongou Mountains, and soon they were flying over Aku's realm. The flight over Koukai was peaceful enough. Apparently Touke knew a little bit about this place, how it was packed with youma, for she clung a little tighter to Aku than before. Again, not complaining. Nansou got tired again, so they came to the ground to take a short rest. Mostly just to make Touke feel better, Aku called out some of her shirei to make a patrol around them. During their stay on the ground, Touke didn't move further than three steps from Aku. Everyone took a short nap, and a few hours later, they took to the sky again. Soon, in the middle of the night, they were soaring over the maze that was Houzan. They picked somewhere in the middle of the inner palace and came down on the ground. The impact was strong enough Touke almost toppled off. Or she could just have been half asleep.

"It's good to be home," Aku said as she hopped off, then turned around to help Touke down. Really, the difference in her mood was only very slight. Any small happiness like that was completely drowned by that she got just by being around Touke.

"Doesn't seem like a bad place," Touke admitted with a look around. There wasn't really much to see, other than the towering maze around them. "At least there aren't youma."

Aku felt herself smiling a little wider. "No, there aren't. Oh look, nyosen."

There were, indeed, three nyosen approaching. Aku wasn't sure how they managed to be everywhere at once, and be aware of everything going on in the palace at all times, but it still didn't surprise her that they had shown up so quickly. "Kyourin," said the one in the lead, one Fuu, she was pretty sure. It was dark. Aku never really saw her much, and almost every time she did it was in close proximity to Renki. She understood Fuu was one of his primary caregivers. "We didn't expect you so quickly."

Just then, Nansou vanished. Touke was revealed to the nearing nyosen. They stopped in their tracks. Their eyes focused on Touke for a while, then turned as one back to Aku. Aku nodded. They glanced at each other for only a second before dropping to the ground. With a flinch, Touke shook her head. "You don't have to do that," she muttered, her voice weak. They kind of did. Besides, Touke would have to get used to this kind of thing, so she just had to adapt to being the master after so long being the servant.

For those first couple seconds the nyosen kept their heads to the ground and said a few obsequious things, to which Touke looked at the sky and awkwardly half-answered. Soon they lamented on how long a trip it must have been, and how tired Kyou-Ou must be, so if she would please follow they would show her somewhere she could rest. "I'll see you tomorrow," Aku said with a smile while the nyosen starting leading the way ahead.

Touke froze. "You're not coming with me? How am I supposed to handle these people by myself?"

"You'll be fine," Aku said, patting her on the shoulder. Then she thought better of it and gave her a tight hug. The very contact gave her a powerful thrill of happiness that almost made her dizzy again. Touke herself hugged her back as though she were the last bastion of humanity in a barren wilderness. "Just remember they're your servants. No problem." Aku pulled away, and gave her as reassuring of a smile as she could before starting off toward her own pagoda.

She noticed with her frequent over-the-shoulder glances that Touke watched her leave for a while before reluctantly turning to follow the nyosen. But Aku was having problems of her own. It seemed every step she took away from Touke, it turned more and more difficult to put one foot in front of the other, and her heart sank further. She pushed them forward as hard as she could, but she barely had the will to resist it. After a short while she realized her trajectory was curving around away from where she was supposed to be going. Before long, she found herself at Touke's side, just about to enter the maze. She blinked in surprise. Suddenly it was perfectly easy to walk, and her mind was soaring as it always did around Touke. Huh.

"I thought you were leaving," Touke muttered to her.

"I tried," she said simply.

"You tried?"

"Yes."

"So I really am stuck with you?"

"Seems like it."

Touke nodded. "Thanks for sticking around. I don't want to be alone here."

At that, Aku could only sigh. At least she put the effort into sounding dejected, or even annoyed, but it was impossible to feel anything but happiness around Touke. She would think after a couple days of this it would be wearing off a little, but it hadn't depleted at all. Only the thought of war had been able to pierce it so far.

It seems the nyosen had already prepared a pagoda for Kyou-Ou, should Aku find her while she was out. It was one of the nicer ones, more ornate and outfitted with the fancier options the nyosen had at their disposal. It was probably nicer than anywhere Touke had ever slept. They even had bedclothes for Touke. For a moment, Aku wondered how the nyosen could have known Kyou-Ou would be female, or could possibly anticipate the proper size, but that was just one mystery of the thousands on Houzan. They were about to start undressing Touke to change her but she immediately, and rather irately, waved them off, saying she could do it herself. The nyosen bowed deeply in apology, then, on their way out of the room, grabbed Aku by both elbows and dragged her out. She resisted for a short while before giving up; the nyosen were much heavier than her. Besides, she was sure she could tolerate being away from Touke for a few minutes.

She spent the whole time pacing back and forth, stopping occasionally to glance in Touke's direction. The nyosen were giving her weird looks, but she didn't care. "It'll get easier," one of them (Aku wasn't paying enough attention to know which.) said, an uncertain smile on her face (but she didn't see it). Aku just grunted absently in response.

After a few minutes, Touke's wavering voice called out for Aku. Without a thought she charged on in. Just seeing Touke lifted her spirit out of the trough she had been in up to great heights. She felt the smile spreading on her face. Touke was giving her an odd look, her eyes frantic. Sure she looked like a simple idiot with the kind of smile that was on her face, but totally uncaring, she walked up until she was within a handbreadth of Touke. She just noticed now that Touke was hugging herself, as though extremely uncomfortable, unwilling to be seen. "I can't wear this," she hissed to Aku, her voice as frantic as her eyes.

Aku couldn't stop smiling. She just couldn't. "Why? What's wrong with them?"

"They're silk!" she shouted in her constrained hiss.

"So?"

"I can't wear silk! I can't!" She repeated that phrase a few times, and was soon breathing harder and faster than she really should. Again, Touke was hyperventilating. Aku thought it was strange, that something as simple as clothing was pushing her over that tipping point of anxiety again. But she supposed the trappings of the wealthy had never touched her skin, and giving her future a tactile presence could make it seem more real, or something like that. Aku didn't know. She had been being richly pampered her whole life.

Aku shushed her and took her into a hug. Touke clung back at her, and suddenly burst into tears. Still making her shushing noises, Aku rubbed her back, and willed herself to be as soothing as possible. She wasn't sure she was doing a very good job of it. It took a long time for Touke to quiet some. When she did, Aku pulled away a little, and cupped her cheek with a hand. "I didn't even notice what you're wearing," she said, with her smile so omnipresent this last day or so. She brushed a tear away with a thumb.

Touke let out a short laugh, and nodded. "You'll just have to keep anchoring me to reality."

"I'm a Kirin. I don't think my reality is the same as yours. But it'll do for now."

Touke's eyes glanced over Aku's shoulder. "Um," she whispered, "they're watching us."

"Let them."

"I think we should, um…" Touke pulled the rest of the way away from Aku. It took all the self-control Aku had not to close the distance again.

The nyosen led them—technically they only led Touke, but Aku doggedly followed—to a table where they had set out some water and dried fruit. They said they must be hungry and thirsty from their trip. It had been a while since Aku had eaten or drunk anything. Aku ate and drank a little, but Touke drained the rest of the water and didn't even touch the food. Then they suggested Touke return to the bed and sleep.

Aku was on her way behind her when Fuu caught her by the elbow. "Kyourin, you should go home."

"But…" Aku couldn't take her eyes off of Touke, who was looking over her shoulder at them. "I don't want to leave her," she admitted.

"You can't be with her all the time."

"I know, but…"

"It's okay," Touke said. "She can stay."

"Milord, she really should..."

"I want her to stay," Touke said, her voice suddenly firm.

Well, that gave the nyosen no choice at all. They quickly set up a divan in the room near the bed for Aku to sleep on. A little reluctantly, Aku set herself down there. Soon the nyosen left, exchanging looks on the way out that Aku knew to mean they thought she and her queen were a little off. That was okay, they could think whatever they wanted. She lay down and set about trying to go to sleep. She found it strangely difficult to get comfortable, tossing and turning in place. She heard similar sounds coming from Touke on the bed. She sighed.

After a short while, Touke said, "Aku."

"Yes?"

"You ain't gonna leave me this huge comfy bed all to meself, are you?"

Aku smiled.


Fuu: 楓優