Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis

TezukaxFuji AU

I decided to break this story into three parts; I wanted to make it a bit easier to read rather than a giant block… but the chapters are still long so forgive me.

Parlous Folly chapter 2: To Commit

The ground beneath the youth was not the cushiony grass and leaf bed he had grown accustom to over the years of living among the knolls with Yuuta. It was rough, rocky, and uncomfortable yet Syusuke's body lacked the strength to move away. For a moment sleep and disorientation clouded his mind until a powerful gust of wind cleared it as well as the tawny hair obscuring his vision, allowing him for the first time to see the scenery around him and thus jog his memory.

The sun was rising now illuminating the forest in hues of dusted pinks and gold; the darkness of last night erased and dreamlike yet real none the less. This place was the same yet different, he knew the moment he agreed to accept Yuuta's curse that he wouldn't be able to go home.

A snap of a twig alerted Syusuke to an approaching presence. His eyes flicked in the direction of the sound; he was on his stomach, face hardly turned away from the ground, yet he could still see the figure moving towards him. A human, a man, tall and fine of feature, with dark brown hair and clear determined eyes. It was obvious from the way the stranger's gaze fell in his direction and remained there that his form was completely visible. Even in their own world human's with the ability to see beings like him where exceedingly rare and it made Syusuke wonder whether or not it was a good thing.

Regardless it didn't matter he couldn't defend himself at the moment and he was never one to run away, not that he could quite do that either. Instead Syusuke allowed his eyes slip closed; a wave of exhaustion flowing over him nearly as soon as the human's hands made contact with his body. The sensation was strange instead of the harsh painful darkness that had claimed him the night before this time it was light and oddly comforting. Without further thought Syusuke relaxed into unconsciousness once again.

When Syusuke woke his surrounds had changed again: a human dwelling in favor of the outdoors. A thick sturdy log cabin decorated in warm earth tones and bathed in the light of soft glowing candles. Siting up in the bed slowly the brunette took his first really look around the room of man before a sharp smarting in his chest propelled his eyes downward. Pushing aside the light blue material of his yukata there, on the left side of his chest just above his heart engraved into his flesh, the number twenty nine. The smile on his lips held a bitter edge as he ran his fingers gingerly over the tender bruised skin.

At the sound of footsteps outside the wall separating this chamber from the next he pulled his clothing back into place over the marking and turned his eyes to the door expectantly. The same person from earlier stepped into the room quietly, only the slightest rise of the man's brow indicating his surprise at finding his charge up.

Silence reigned about the two as Syusuke took the opportunity to take a better look at the stranger. The man was younger than he originally thought, no older than mid-twenties, still a child even in human years. Yet there was something in those hazel eyes partially concealed by thin framed spectacles that spoke of wisdom and age beyond his physical years.

"Thank you. You saved me," Syusuke finally broke the quiet when he caught the man's eyes sizing him up in nearly the same way. When his words failed to elicit any response save a slight incline of the strangers head Syusuke suppressed the smirk rising to his lips. He had certainly run into an interestingly stoic person. Syusuke highly doubted it was a normal occurrence to stumble upon unconscious strangers in the forest and take them home, but his new friend completely unperturbed.

"My name is Fuji," Syusuke informed more out of gratitude than a conversation starter. It was probably for the best that he maintained as little contact with humans as possible. "I appreciate your help, but I should be moving on now."

The wordless man looked neither surprised nor confused and simply stepped aside to allow Syusuke uncompromised access to the exit, no obligation or expectations. Syusuke rose to his feet slowly, a hint of suspicion growing in his mind. He had always been told that humans were untrustworthy yet sensed nothing hostile or deceptive from this man.

Pushing the thought from his mind, he would be way from this place soon enough anyway, Syusuke took a step towards the door. What he wasn't prepared for, however, was the weakness that claimed his legs at the action and he fell forward with an embarrassing lack of control. Gathering energy in the human world was proving more difficult than he thought.

Instead of the floor Syusuke's stumble was broken by the toned arms of his silent companion. With a slight laugh at his own expense Syusuke pushed himself away from the man and back onto the bed.

"You still need to rest. Leave when your strength returns," The man's self-imposed silence suddenly ended as his voice filled the room, imposing yet not forceful nor demanding.

Syusuke looked up strangely fascinated, "So you can speak after all," a grin pulled up the corners of his lips which in turn caused the man's eyes to divert quickly. Smile fading a bit and sliding his eyes closed Syusuke turned his head downward guiltily. The stranger's initial indifference nearly made him forget the influence his features had on mortals.

"You're very kind stranger. Do you happen to have a name?" Syusuke questioned to clear the air. The brunette wasn't exactly sure why he asked, he would have the power to leave in no more than a few hours, still he just couldn't seem to keep curiosity at bay.

"Tezuka. Tezuka Kunimitsu."

Days passed before the thought of leaving was once again brought to Syusuke's attention. It came in the form a question from Tezuka.

During their time together the man had remained true to his quiet nature limiting his speech to no more than a dozen words or so a day, and never once regarding Syusuke's presence as unusual. The brunette felt drawn to this house and the person within it, worries fading like forgotten memories in days of calm. Tezuka's question, however, released the strange hold over his thoughts.

"Where was it you were going when I found you?" The inquiry held no hidden intention just plain curiosity.

Such a simple reasonable question; yet it shocked Syusuke into stillness. There was nothing, no objective, no destination. The fact that he had somehow forgotten the reasons surrounding his purpose here appalled Syusuke greatly.

The nearly constant smile he had adopted around Tezuka turned downward into a pensive frown. "I don't remember…" Syusuke admitted. The words felt wrong on his tongue, like his mind knew the answer yet refused to allow the information to surface and the words came automatically.

Tezuka looked worried by the response and from the corner of his eyes he could see the other man moving in his direction. Syusuke's attention, however, was pulled elsewhere: to a gust of wind that brushed past him and into the dense forest surrounding the small isolated cabin. The nostalgia he felt was real and strong and Syusuke searched intently for the source eyes on the forest, even as a hazy of white clouded his vision.

Yuuta. The memory became clear just as Tezuka's hand touched his shoulder. Syusuke snapped his head back in the direction of his tall companion, reaching out to feel the others hand on his own arm. With Tezuka he could recall everything. Obviously this was the work of some magic, the demons idea of a joke. No doubt hoping Syusuke would wander about the human world aimlessly until the timer on his chest reached zero and the demon took his life.

Syusuke awarded Tezuka with a smile, if he could channel the emotions he felt that first day Tezuka touched him then the trick was meaningless.

"I'm looking for someone," the brunette said, finally allowing Tezuka to pull his hand away. "Some who has taken something important to me."

Tezuka nodded at the explanation calmly, eyes turning towards the house: inviting Syusuke to share his story.

"The man's name is Mizuki Hajime. He tricked my brother into stealing from a demon and I came here in his place, cursed until I find that man and return what was stolen." Somehow telling Tezuka seemed to solidify the story even in his own mind. Syusuke's wish was to involve no one with his burden especially not a human yet this felt right and above all Syusuke trusted his instincts.

"I don't believe in demons," Tezuka stated simply yet there was no trace of disbelief for Syusuke's explanation in his face at all. The juxtaposition was an interesting one and Syusuke indulged the human. Obviously Tezuka understood the words as truth despite his lack of belief and Syusuke felt his decision to tell the man was right after all.

"Well, I suppose they could be classified as spirits… Spirits who have gained their power through unnatural violent emotions: anger, hatred. And also by consuming the power of others," Syusuke revealed patiently, most of this was already common knowledge among men anyway. Tezuka seemed content with the answer for he nodded then set his cool hazel eyes on Syusuke.

"Are you a spirit as well?" The man's next question should have been expected yet Syusuke still acknowledged the shiver of surprise that ran down his spine.

"Why would you ask that?" Tezuka was generally one not to push for details consciously left out so Syusuke figured his human act had been subpar after all. Not that it really mattered that Tezuka knew in the first place, the man obviously wasn't planning to capture, banish him, or anything of that sort.

"When I first saw you in the forest you had wings, sparrow wings."

At Tezuka's response Syusuke laughed despite himself, "Did you now?" So the man had known all along yet said nothing, he certainly was a private person.

"My, you are perceptive aren't you," was the response Syusuke gave though for Tezuka it seemed adequate enough.

"Tomorrow I will help you search." Rather than a suggestion Tezuka's words were a promise and he left the room before Syusuke could input any opinion of his own.

So the journey would begin tomorrow. Vaguely Syusuke wondered if he would still remember his mission after sleeping and whether finding Mizuki was really such a big deal after all. Yuuta was safe already, and he was content living here, more so than he had been in a long while.

Their search commenced in stages, first with Tezuka depleting his pool of person contacts for any information on the mysterious Mizuki. The village nearest to Tezuka, and thus the spot Yuuta met Mizuki, was a small one in which nearly everyone knew each other.

Yet in Mizuki's case even the village doctor, a young man by the name of Oishi Shuichiro whom Tezuka had introduced as one of his close friends, knew nothing of the man. No records, birth or sickness. The man was a ghost and the two were without a lead or trace, until Tezuka suggested visiting local shrines. If Mizuki had made contact with Yuuta then no doubt he had spiritual ties. It was a brilliant idea but a taxing one.

Even the smaller shrines had wards in place to prohibit the crossing of unintended spirits from entering the grounds. Syusuke was strong enough to get through each time but as his days dwindled as did his energy and will power to continue the search. The swallow spirit tried to hide the weakness from Tezuka, yet as he said himself the man was perceptive and he never failed to notice the little moments when Syusuke would waver or forget their purpose, which was happening with increasing frequency.

Today was adding up to be another rough one when Tezuka announced that a small shrine tucked in the deep forest of the west had reports of a an unnamed exorcist passing through.

The walk to the place itself was tiring but passing through the wards, which were abnormally strong for the shrine's size, left Syusuke dazed.

"Tezuka…" Syusuke called out quietly, breathlessly. The look in Tezuka's eyes when he turned towards him informed Syusuke that the man already knew of his request, still he phrased it regardless "I need to rest for a while."

Tezuka didn't question, instead he just nodded in a quiet understanding and lead Syusuke away from the Shrines main path with a light hand on his shoulder. There was a bench not far from the main alter were Tezuka planned to meet up with the shrines main caretaker and Syusuke allowed himself to be pushed towards it. The brunette sat down gratefully leaning heavily against the side of the building behind him trying to regain the energy it would take for the trek back home.

He knew his time was running out, the days passed my more quickly when he actual paid enough mind to watch them. He had gone years in the past not even knowing the decade, simply counting seasons as they passed. Yet, the last three weeks had gone by in the blink of an eye. He was tired and the probability of finding Mizuki was shrinking with each passing day, but the way that Tezuka looked at him, with determination and strength, even though he owed Syusuke nothing, willed the spirit to continue.

When Syusuke realized that Tezuka had yet to move away from him, one look at the man revealed why: he was worried. This was the first time Syusuke actually required them to stop and the concern was clear in those hazel eyes. While Syusuke had never actually informed Tezuka about his time limit he had a nagging feeling that the man knew already.

Flashing his companion a tired smile Syusuke commented, "Go on, you don't need me for this part anyway." That was true regardless of his physical state; most of the people around, even shrine caretakers had lost the ability to see forest spirits, and now with his power this low only a few with considerable power would be able to see him.

"I'll be back soon," Tezuka supplied loyally sparing Syusuke one last glance before departing. Sometimes Syusuke wondered why Tezuka would go through all this trouble for him but those quick glances and light touches explained much. The human was enamored with him. And as much as he hated to admit it, the reason he couldn't leave Tezuka's home, why he felt so comfortable around the man: he was taken by Tezuka as well.

Syusuke's contemplation was broken when he felt the foreign presence of someone sit on the bench beside him. At first he was unbothered by the stranger too tired to even open his eyes to see the newcomer figuring he wouldn't be seen anyway. Until the presence moved closer and then spoke to him.

"Nya, you okay? Hiking mountains and especial this time a year is a really bad idea if you're sick you know?" The stranger chided him lightly, his voice childish and energetic.

Syusuke turned his head slightly to see the new person and was met with bright red hair, wide indigo eyes, and an excited smile. The redhead was obviously overjoyed by the attention. It only took Syusuke a moment, already longer than it should have, to realize that the being next to him was no human. The cat ears and tail sprouting from his body was enough of an indicator of that. A quick glance around the shrine confirmed his suspicion: this was the guardian of the shrine, a lucky cat shrine.

"Yes, it probably wasn't the smartest idea…" Syusuke agreed lightly relaxing back against the wall; this spirit meant him no harm. "I am sorry for coming in without permission though."

The cat spirit seemed unbothered in the slightest, "Don't worry about it, Nya! I'm Eiji! It's been a while since anyone's come to visit me!" The red-head's energy was really something to be admired and Syusuke wished he could be more entertaining for his host. "It's really boring being all the way up here in the mountains! No humans want to come visit me anymore!" The feline didn't seem to mind Syusuke's silence and chattered on, "But there was this one human that use to come all the time! I really liked him, he was nice and kind. A good type of human, Nya! He could see me and would talk to me all the time! But he hasn't come in a while. He told me he got a very busy job and wouldn't have time to visit much. Isn't that mean! Nya, when I see him again I'll tell him to come back and play with me."

When Syusuke failed to respond to the red-head's rant the cat moved closer to him and set a hand on his arm curiously. Immediately there was sympathy and a bit of fear reflected in the other's eyes. Syusuke afforded his new friend a soft smile. Cat spirits were extremely sensitive, no doubt he could feel the curse upon Syusuke as soon and their bodies touched.

"Are you traveling with that tall human over there?" Eiji questioned his voice suddenly low suspicious. "Is he doing this to you? Is he making you sick? You can't fly away anymore right? I can get rid of him for you! I'll chase him away and you can stay here with me and get strong and be free!"

Syusuke set his hand on Eiji's knee to silence the energetic spirit, "No, it's not anything like that. That man is helping me," the brunette explained calmly, amused and rather moved by the others generosity.

Eiji nodded in understanding expression morphing into one of interest, "Nya, so what is he helping you with?"

Syusuke opened his mouth to answer yet no words came to his lips and his thoughts were suddenly inky and blank. He couldn't answer that question; their reason for coming here, what Tezuka was helping him with, everything was blank. "I…I am not sure." Syusuke was sure there was an answer yet he lacked the drive to search or wonder, he was oddly content with the mystery.

"That's weird! He's helping you but you don't know with what? Does he know what you're looking for?" The other posed a fascinating question.

Surely Tezuka would know if he sought out this place to search for it, "Hmm, I think he knows. I just let Tezuka handle all the searching so I guess the fact that I don't know isn't really a big deal."

The red-head frowned at the response but didn't get a chance to answer back for Tezuka returned and called out to Syusuke, "Fuji, let's go home now."

"Is that you're name, Fuji?" Eiji questioned hastily before Syusuke rose to his feet to meet Tezuka who had opted not to come too close to the shrines guardian.

"Yes. Fuji Syusuke."

The cat spirit smiled a bit sadly at him before pouncing, trapping Syusuke in a tight yet friendly hug. "Good luck Fuji. I hope you find what you're looking for…And when you do I hope that you will come back to see me."

Syusuke nodded his head in thanks, "I hope I will get the chance sometime soon."

The walk home was a quiet one. Usually it was Syusuke who simulated conversation between the two but this time his mind was far from small talk, instead diverted to trying to stop the gradual continuous leak of his energy. Dealing with this level of fatigue was not something Syusuke was accustomed too.

"Mizuki hasn't passed through there." The two were nearly home by the time Tezuka decided to reveal the results of their business at Eiji's Shrine. A flicker of recognition stirred in Syusuke's mind at the name on Tezuka's lips, yet there was no face or story to connect and make sense of it.

"There is another place I would like to try tomorrow if you're feeling better."

Syusuke nodded absently at Tezuka's suggestion, he probably wouldn't be doing any better than today, but if it would help Tezuka find what he was looking for than Syusuke would go.

It wasn't until Tezuka's hand was on his arm that Syusuke's mind cleared and the memories came rushing back in a dizzying influx. The spectacled man beside him was ready when Syusuke stumbled, easily stabilizing and assisting him the rest of the short distance to the house. The memory transfer shouldn't have taken so much energy yet his limbs were suddenly trembling with overexertion and the lightheadedness was nearly too much to bear.

Tezuka deposited Syusuke onto the couch gently before heading off in the direction of the kitchen. The brunette laid still for a spell to regain his breath; it was kind of Tezuka to give him the privacy to recover alone. The curse was progressing a lot sooner and much more potently than he had expected which quite troublesome. Even if it was only to chase pointlessly after the dreadful Mizuki, he hadn't expected to be so encumbered. Syusuke moved to place his hand over the marking on his chest, the wounds were always aching now; a constant reminder of his last few days.

Too absorbed in thought to hear Tezuka reenter the room Syusuke found himself face to face with the man's anxious, slightly agitated expression. Without a word Tezuka lifted away Syusuke's hand and pushed aside the clothing covering the brunette's timer.

"Four? What does it mean?" Syusuke felt his heart sting at the trepidation evident in Tezuka's voice. The man already knew the answer to his own question.

"That is the number of days I have left to live…"the swallow spirit responded anyway, there was no time left for ambiguities.

Tezuka's eyes dropped at the confirmation and he released his hold on Syusuke taking a step back. "I'm sorry…I wasn't able to do anything to help."

With a shake of his head Syusuke reached out and he captured Tezuka's hand this time, "Even if I were to die tomorrow I wouldn't feel that my time had been wasted here." A soft smile reserved only for Tezuka make its way onto Syusuke's lips, "But don't worry I will not go anywhere before my time. You said you still had another place you would like the search, so hope is not gone yet, right?"

Tezuka nodded though they both knew the likelihood of finding their target.