Tokyo Babylon Fan Fiction / X/1999 Fan Fiction ❯ In the Hands of an Uncaring God ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

Disclaimer: All characters that belong to CLAMP belong to CLAMP. I don't own them. I just love writing about them. Arimi Yuki and Ikeda Ran are mine.

Chapter 7

Kakyou knew he was in trouble when the earthquake struck. Even deep inside his dream, he could see the effects of the disaster ripple through. He'd actually been recovering from the exertion of entering Kotori's body and was feeling rather weak but a quick glance into the present convinced him that now was not the time to be resting.

Fuuma was pacing his way through the hospital where Kakyou's body lay. Fuuma's nonchalant demeanor was in stark contrast to the general chaos erupting through the hallways. Unerringly he was soon at the ward where Kakyou resided. One of the nurses tried to question Fuuma but Kakyou was dismayed to see him simply toss her out of the way. But Kakyou wasn't going to just lay there and take what was coming. Well, his body was just going to lay there, but his consciousness was already devising a plan. As soon as Fuuma placed his hand on his door and stepped in, Kakyou struck.

The dreamscape he'd built was very different from the one in which he usually greeted his visitors. This one was cold and dark. A constant hail of feathers rained down on Fuuma. Kakyou was trying for a surrealistic look, in hopes of disorienting his invader. So he wasn't happy when Fuuma didn't seem to appreciate it, instead seemingly unfazed to be caught in a dreamscape. Squashing his dismay, Kakyou schooled himself to stand with equal indifference some distance away from Fuuma.

"What is your name?" Fuuma asked, in a surprisingly gentle tone.

"Kuzuki Kakyou."

"You are a yumemi," Fuuma said, irritatingly stating the obvious.

Kakyou thought he would try to see if there was anything left of the personality that was Fuuma. He conjured up the image of Kotori with a wave of his hand. "This girl has a message for her brother." He felt a little like an answering machine service but squashed the thought as it surfaced.

Kotori's image smiled and said, "Tell my brother and Kamui, I love them very much. And they should do their best to fight against those who would use them." Her voice echoed through the cold barren dreamscape as her image began drifting upwards and fading away.

Fuuma seemed unaffected. "This is destiny, there is no point fighting against it."

Kakyou knew then that he wasn't talking to Fuuma. "What are you?"

"I am an entity more ancient than the history of mankind. I am that which moves the earth. I have been worshipped as a god or a devil in past times. People usually call me a Dragon or spirit of the earth." Fuuma answered him informatively.

"A dragon spirit. I can see the power that surrounds you," Kakyou repeated. "Why do you let Hinoto control you?"

"Why does anything happen? You can attribute it to fate. And at the moment it suits my purpose to be here." The Dragon of Earth answered.

Kakyou wasn't sure he really understood. "What do you want with me?"

At that Fuuma strode forward to take Kakyou's face in his hand. "You intrigue me."

"I'm sure there are other more interesting yumemi around that you can torture," Kakyou remarked dryly.

"Don't sell yourself short. Nothing else has fascinated me for a very long time." The Chi no Ryuu's eyes were boring into Kakyou's golden ones.

"Yay for me. But I'd rather be left alone, thank you." Kakyou was beginning to get uncomfortable at the intense way that the creature was regarding his face. He felt like a horse on sale. Was the Chi no Ryuu going to be inspecting his teeth next?

"You're beautiful," he said and moved to bend closer.

Now that was just taking liberties too far. Kakyou wrenched himself free and quickly retreated. He summoned his power and crafted a huge icy cavern around the Dragon of Earth. He also threw in a convoluted maze around it for good measure.

But all hopes that it would be enough were soon shattered when the Dragon extended his hand and blew his dreamscape apart. Kakyou knew he was revealed, in all his vulnerable glory. The Dragon of Earth came to stand by his bedside and began ripping away at the wires and tubes monitoring and controlling his bodily functions. Kakyou wondered if he was about to die but wasn't surprised when he didn't feel any fear at the prospect. With a burst of determination, he opened his golden eyes to look accusingly at Fuuma. He was taken aback when he heard a rumble of laughter.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to keep you for a whil," the Dragon of Earth said before he sent a jolt of power into Kakyou, causing him to gasp. Gently he gathered Kakyou into his arms and lifted him from his bed. Kakyou decided to make a last ditch effort and mentally screamed "SUBARU HELP!"

As if chiding a child, the Dragon said, "No, No, we can't have that." He shook Kakyou to break his mental concentration. Kakyou's head lolled back and he slipped into a dreamless unconsciousness. Fuuma stood there cradling him for a moment before carrying him out the door.

~~~~~

Subaru was glad that the four of them had apparently made a clean getaway. He had risked raising one of his wards and casting a misdirection spell to deter any would-be pursuers and it seemed that it had worked. As the small group collapsed in his tiny apartment, Subaru entered his kitchen to make tea. However when he brought it out, Sorata was there with a worried expression on his face.

"Subaru-san, I think something's wrong with Kamui. I've bound his wounds up but he won't answer me when I call him. It's as if he's not there."

Subaru frowned in dismay. He set the tea down on a table and dashed into the bedroom. Kamui was laying on the bed, his eyes wide open, staring at nothing. "I can't believe I went through all the trouble of getting him out of Hinoto's hands to have him go into a catatonic state!" he thought with a sigh.

A voice from the door questioned, "What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to go Within him and drag him kicking and screaming out if I have to," Subaru answered. Without further ado, Subaru chanted his spell and found himself sinking into Kamui's consciousness. Quickly he sought out Kamui's awareness, doing his best to dodge Kamui's natural defences. "Please Kamui, you can't stay here."

"Why not? I like it here, it's quiet. Who are you?" Kamui said pugnaciously.

Subaru was a little taken aback by the brattiness of Kamui's attitude. But he could forgive him, considering the boy had just seen his girlfriend get killed by his best friend. "I'm Sumeragi Subaru. I'm the head of all onmyoujitsu practicioners in Japan. I want to help you."

"You can't help me, nobody can help me." Kamui shouted in denial, raising his hands to cover his ears like a small child.

Subaru reached out and grabbed at Kamui's hands. "Please, I know the pain you're going through, your confusion. But hiding in here isn't the answer." Feeling a little desperate, Subaru decided the only way to reach Kamui was to share his own emotions. Bracing himself, Subaru summoned his love for Seishirou-san, his confusion at his subsequent betrayal and his pain at Hokuto's death, and thrust them at Kamui.

In that strange place which symbolized the heart of a person, Kamui stood still as the tide of emotion washed over him. The knowledge of Subaru's pain came to him filling his every sense --sight, smell, sound, touch, even taste. He was jolted out of his selfish preoccupation. In a small voice he asked, "You've suffered, just like me. I didn't know someone could go through so much pain and still be able to live. How do you manage?"

"It doesn't hurt all the time. Some days are better than others. You see, you have to live so as to enjoy the better days. The pain will always be there but I can promise you, there will be better days," Subaru said solemnly.

"Will I be able to get Fuuma back?" Kamui asked plaintively.

Subaru didn't know if what he was going to say would comfort Kamui. Yet he couldn't lie to him. "I don't know. But know this, the entity that killed Kotori was not Fuuma. I don't know if Fuuma still exists or if the spirit now in possession of Fuuma's body has also killed his consciousness. I do know it's very powerful and elemental. A dragon spirit if I guess right. In ancient times it would have been worshipped as a god."

"I want to fight it, I have to try to get Fuuma back," Kamui insisted.

"It will be dangerous, and if he does come back, how will you explain what happened to Kotori?" Subaru asked.

"I'll lie to him if I have to. I won't give up on Fuuma." Kamui's eyes looked pleadingly at Subaru.

"Then I will help you to the best of my ability." Subaru gifted Kamui with one of his rare smiles. He admired the boy's courage and determination. "Wake up Kamui, it's time we made plans for the future." The mission accomplished, Subaru began to rouse himself from the spell.

Subaru was startled when he opened his eyes to see Sorata's concerned face mere inches from his. With a yelp, he fell sideways onto Kamui. Kamui who was beginning to wake from his catatonic state was surprised by Subaru's sudden weight on him, which resulted in him shifting himself suddenly. His arm came up around Subaru's body while their legs tangled together. The looks on their faces mirrored disgruntlement at the sound of Sorata laughing in relief.

Suddenly Subaru heard a mental call, "Subaru Help!" Dazedly Subaru looked about saying, "Kakyou?" But his exhaustion from the night's activities plus the backlash from the spell he'd just cast hit him hard. He was only able to gasp out an apology before he collapsed on Kamui. Just before he lost consciousness, he heard Kamui whisper in his ear, "Thank you, Subaru."

~~~~~

Back at the compound, Hinoto was throwing what could only be called a temper tantrum. Her attendants nervously noted she had been screeching for a full two hours. They were secretly impressed her lung power which was surprisingly large in contrast to her small frame. Her current state was far from her usual meek and demure demeanor. Daisuke was fluttering about in a panic, trying to soothe her but only succeeded in aggravating her further. Kanoe had showed up early on out of curiosity but soon beat a hasty retreat to lock herself up in her room and refuse all entreaties to come out. Everyone else had known better than to even come close, all suddenly finding work that took them away to the furthest corners of the compound. There would be no sleep for anyone that night.

After a while the dream-gazer recovered enough to demand, "Where is the Dragon of Earth now?"

Unfortunately the news that he had left the mansion with a careless 'I've got an errand to run, I'll be back,' set her off on another round of shrieking. But nobody had dared to stop him after the first idiot who tried to fell into a chasm Fuuma had promptly opened up beneath him. Hinoto was secretly impressed by the magnitude of power he displayed while extremely annoyed by his show of independence. Eventually Hinoto wound down her tantrum and began planning. "Get me the Sakurazukamori. NOW!" She ordered.

By the time Sakurazuka Seishirou appeared, a full two hours later, dawn was just about to break. At that point, Hinoto was beyond fury. She was disgusted to note that the Sakurazukamori was just as unruffled as ever, despite the early hour.

"I have a task for you," Hinoto said through clenched teeth. Daisuke began singing his refrain to her pronouncements automatically. But she had no patience with his sycophantic behaviour today and sent a quelling glance back at him, stopping him in mid-sentence.

Sakurazuka Seishirou didn't say a word, knowing it was so much more infuriating for Hinoto that way. He was aware of the great turmoil at the compound earlier that night and had observed Subaru's actions from afar. In fact, he had been quite pleased at the general mayhem Subaru had managed to create. Still while he was proud of his Subaru-kun, he was dismayed at the inevitable result of provoking Hinoto.

"I want you to KILL Sumeragi Subaru. He has interfered in my plans for the last time!" Hinoto was trying to comfort herself with thoughts of the Sumeragi being torn to bits or suffering in agony with a hand through his chest for having the audacity to attack her in her own home. She was also incredibly embarrassed at the thought of the undignified sight she must have made while being physically hauled off by her attendants.

Seishirou too was delightfully remembering that same sight of Hinoto which he had seen through the vision of his falcon shikigami. He wondered if there was some way he could wriggle out of this task without Hinoto sending another hired killer after Subaru. "That might not be a good idea, he is a high profile person. A killing would raise many questions, being clan head and leader of all onmyoujis in Japan and such," he said, not really expecting her to be dissuaded from her course of action.

"I believe you've said you would have no problems killing him. Has something changed?" Hinoto glared at Seishirou malevolently.

"Ah no," Seishirou replied in perfect calmness, maintaining his emotionless expression with an iron will. "I'm merely pointing out that it will be a murder that will be hard to cover up."

"I don't care how you do it, I want him dead! And make sure it's as painful as possible!" She demanded.

Seishirou mentally raised figurative hands in defeat. "If that's what you want, then far be it for me to deny a lady her wish."

Hinoto's large red eyes narrowed. She spent a moment trying to figure out if he was being a good obsequious servant or if he was insulting her. She did not like the subtle way he had stressed "lady" while he was addressing her. "Yes, that is my wish. You know the consequences if you don't do as I tell you," she warned.

For the first time in her presence, the Sakurazukamori was roused to anger. His aura flared manifesting in an indistinct golden glow around him. For a moment he gathered his power in a blatant display of just what the Sakurazukamori was capable of. Small tremors shook the room causing the crystals on the chandelier in the ceiling to tinkle together. Then it abruptly stopped as the Sakurazukamori regained control of himself. "I don't need you to remind me of the consequences," he said neutrally.

Hinoto smiled, knowing she had got to him. "Then you'd better get to work," she said waving him out with a superior air. Cheap though it might be, triumphing over the Sakurazukamori was a thrill that restored her spirits.

Seishirou stood glaring at her balefully from behind his dark glasses. Then he whirled about and left.

~~~~~

NOTES: Oh this was fun to write. I love scripting Hinoto-Seishirou scenes. There's so much opportunity for me to poke fun of horrible Hinoto in them. Fuuma and Kakyou are also shaping up nicely. But since I want to emphasize this isn't really Fuuma, I'm going to have to refer to him more as the Dragon of Earth or Ryuu in future. And in case you didn't know, Chi no Ryuu is Japanese for Dragon of Earth. Reviews are welcome.

Coming up... Rainbow Bridge! Oh my god, is Seishirou going to kill Subaru?

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A super-deformed Subaru runs out with Fuuma, Kamui, Yuki and Ran holding placards. They run around and rearrange themselves to form a word while shouting, "Omake, Omake, Omake!" Fireworks and confetti fall.

(Subaru and Kamui are Within Kamui's heart. Subaru has just shared his most intense feelings with Kamui)

Kamui (violet eyes shining): I didn't know someone could go through so much pain and still be able to live. How do you manage?

Subaru (emerald eyes shining back): You have to live so as to enjoy the better days.

Kamui (lurches forward and suddenly hugs Subaru): I want to be with you to enjoy all your better days.

Subaru (question marks flying around head): Huh? I thought you wanted to be with Fuuma.

Kamui (tosses head snootily): Nah, I don't even like him. You're sooo much cuter.

Subaru : Eeep!

Seishirou-san: Hey you, keep your hands off my Subaru-kun!

Kamui: I'm his Kamui. I want him!

(Kamui and Seishirou engage in a tug-of-war with Subaru in the centre)

Subaru (screaming): Somebody, help!

Director Xandra (yelling and pulling hair out in frustration): Will you people just follow the script?!