Tokyo Babylon Fan Fiction / X/1999 Fan Fiction ❯ Subaru, Seishirou and the Hokkaido Getaway ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

Xandra (xandrabelle@hotmail.com) and Midorino Mizu (midorinomizu@yahoo.com) present Subaru, Seishirou and the Hokkaido Getaway

Disclaimer: Subaru, Seishirou and Hokuto are all the property of CLAMP, which was a sad fate for them, because they suffered a lot. But we don't own them and we're not profiting from them, so please, direct all praise to CLAMP for creating such wonderful characters.

Summary: Sumeragi Subaru's work takes him to the far northern island of Hokkaido. Naturally, Hokuto and Seishirou insist on accompanying him. The resulting high jinks are typical of any Tokyo Babylon story.

Chapter 4

In Sumeragi Hokuto's opinion, the best part about traveling was being able to shop somewhere else than her usual shopping haunts.

She had already conquered the small village's three souvenir shops, emerged laden with bags and was about to venture into a fabric shop that had some exquisite looking wool on display when she stopped cold in her tracks.

There was a man sitting cross-legged on the sidewalk. He had medium brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, his eyes focused on the sketchpad on his lap.

"What are you doing?" Hokuto asked curiously. It was another one of the things liked to do-- talk to interesting people.

The artist's dark brown eyes rose to the teenager's face. There was something so engaging in that bright and happy expression that he couldn't help answering. "Just sketching," he said, returning her smile. "I'm Ajibana Naosuke."

"Sumeragi Hokuto." She leaned down and peeked at the charcoal drawing he'd been working on. It was a street scene, showing all the storefronts and all the people who were wandering around…and some who weren't actually there.

"What's this?" she asked, pointing to a strange figure in the sketch.

Ajibana looked to where her polished, slender finger indicated. "Well, that's a ghost, Sumeragi-san." His tone was one of humoring a child.

Hokuto was unrepressed by it. "Why did you draw her?" Hokuto inquired.

The artist shrugged elegantly. "I don't know. But she might be there, and that's enough for me." He flashed the pretty girl a smile. "Would you like this picture as a souvenir of your trip here?"

"Sure," said Hokuto with an answering grin. "Then I can show it to my brother and Sei-chan when I get back to the hotel."

"Oh," said Ajibana flatly as he tore the sheet from his pad. He made a face at the mention of the resort, but said nothing further.

"Don't you like the resort, then?" asked Hokuto perceptively as she carefully took the picture he handed her and tucked it away. She didn't know why, but it seemed to her that Ajibana was a troubled young man. All her instincts, and they were well-honed, screamed at her to help.

"I suppose it's very helpful for the local economy," said Ajibana, with a negligent shrug. "But…I used to have such a beautiful sight to wake up to in the morning. The mountain inspired me to create.

"Now, all I have to look at are the ski slopes. You have to understand," he said, bitterly. "I don't find them quite as inspiring."

Hokuto thought about it from the artist's perspective and nodded slowly. "I can understand that," she said. Then her green eyes sparkled at him, and she smiled. "If you're as wonderful an artist as I know you are, you will be able to find something else to inspire you."

Ajibana just shook his head stubbornly.

Watching him for a while longer, she decided to say, "It's not what you paint that matters but where you paint from. As long as you have your heart engaged, it'll be all right." It sounded trite, but it was the best she could do.

"I have to go," she added after glancing at her watch. She thought Subaru would be done and waiting for her by now. It was unlikely that her twin would get into any interesting situations with Seishirou, but she wanted to be there to see it if it happened. With that thought in mind, she bade the artist goodbye and bounced down the street, the fabric shop forgotten in her hurry to return to the resort and be with her twin.

Ajibana Naosuke stood up, placed his charcoal pencil in its box, and stowed his sketchpad in his bag. "It's not quite so easy as that, Sumeragi-san," he murmured bitterly as he gazed after Hokuto. "Things like that are elusive."

Unknown to him, Hokuto's thoughts turned to the artist on her return to the resort. She wondered if there was any way she could have encouraged him better. Flinging the doors to their suite open, she entered to see her brother in their sitting room, quietly conversing with Seishirou.

Dumping her packages down to the floor, she lightly skipped over and swept both her twin and Seishirou into hugs. Her brother was looking worried, probably about the work, she guessed. Subaru took his work far too seriously, she thought.

"Subaru, don't frown so much. You'll get wrinkles and Sei-chan won't love you anymore!" she said, sliding easily into teasing mode.

Predictably, there was an answering laugh from Seishirou. "I would care for Subaru-kun, no matter what he looked like. But it is an added bonus that he's so cute," said Seishirou, wearing his usual broad grin.

After listening to Subaru stammer and blush his way to an answer for a few moments, Hokuto decided to let him off the hook. At least she had succeeded in distracting him from his worries.

"I had a great time today," she informed them. "This place is beautiful. And there was so much to buy!" She fully expected the two to recognize that the measure of a place was in the shopping opportunities. However, she didn't think the guys would fully understand her glee over acquiring things, though Seishirou often displayed a surprising ability to appreciate a bargain. She opened her bags and started taking out some of her purchases to show off.

Digging a bit deeper, her fingers encountered the sketch she'd been given. "Oh, take a look at this," she said, spreading the picture open. "Isn't it beautiful? It's so well drawn." She handed the picture over to Seishirou, who laid it on a table.

"It's beautifully rendered," he murmured. Something caught his eye immediately even though he didn't know why. "But who is this?"

"Hmm?" inquired Hokuto as she poked her head over his shoulder to see what he was pointing to. "Oh, that's a ghost." She knew that wouldn't surprise her brother or Seishirou, being rather common things to their experience.

"A ghost?" echoed Subaru, walking over to the other two and sat down on the sofa between them. "Where's a ghost?"

"Right there." Hokuto jabbed her finger at a slight figure leaning against a lamppost.

Everything else in the drawing, everything that was of the living world, was drawn in bold clear lines, but the ghost was faint and smudged, and not just from where Hokuto's finger had touched it. The artist had made an effort to make it appear less tangible than the rest of the scene.

It was, Subaru thought as he stared at the picture, a pretty, young girl. She wore a patterned dress, and he could practically see it floating around her when she moved. The picture was amazingly life-like and struck a chord within him. Whoever the artist was, he was good.

"She looks sad," he whispered.

Seishirou smiled at the young man next to him and smiled. Subaru's heart was in his eyes, and the honest regret in them made him even more beautiful then he usually was. He laid an arm across the onmyouji's shoulders.

"The artist knows, then, doesn't he, Subaru-kun?" Seishirou gazed steadily into the Sumeragi's brilliant green eyes. "A spirit that wanders the world is rarely a happy one, because they're meant to go on."

Subaru smiled tremulously, and nodded. "Yes, Seishirou-san."

"Subaru!" Hokuto squealed and squeezed her brother around the waist. "You're so lucky; you'll have such a wise husband!"

"H-H-Hokuto-chan!" said Subaru, shifting his eyes to his sister and blushing furiously.

"Well, you will!"

Seishirou shook his head slightly at the delightful image of the two twins cuddled about each other before turning back to the drawing. There was something about it he didn't like.

It felt like power, and he was sure that the power didn't come from the inert object before him.

No, he was certain that the power was from the artist.

He trailed a fingertip along the jagged edge of the paper and a slightly predatory smile lit his face.

Something would have to be done about that.

He turned to Hokuto, regretfully interrupting the twins, still to-ing and fro-ing over Subaru's love life with him. "Hokuto-chan, can I meet this artist? It's such a beautiful drawing and I'd like to tell him that. And if I'm very lucky, perhaps he'd take a commission to draw me a picture of Subaru-kun," he said, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses.

"S-S-Seishirou-san!" Subaru gasped.

Seishirou's smile was innocent but it held all the determination of a runaway boulder rolling down a slope. As if there was any possibility of Subaru's protests swaying him from his decisions…

On her part, Hokuto had launched into another bout of happy squeals. She bounced up and proclaimed she'd lead them to the artist immediately. Seishirou's lover-like sentiment to have her brother immortalized in portraiture appealed to her immensely.

But first, Subaru had to change.

Grabbing Subaru's hand, she dragged him into the bedroom and proceeded to force him to wear something more to her satisfaction.

Re-emerging sometime later, clad in the outfit that Hokuto had worked on so carefully for him on the night prior to their trip, Subaru stammered his apologies. "I'm sorry you had to wait, Seishirou-san."

Looking at him, Seishirou had to admit to himself that the wait was well worth it.

Subaru was wearing a long crimson coat, his best color in Seishirou's opinion. In deference to the cold weather, Hokuto had trimmed the jacket with faux mink, and the fur was nearly as dark as Subaru's hair. It was just too bad that silky crown of hair was covered under a black fur Cossack hat.

The hat, Seishirou reflected, would have looked absolutely ridiculous on any other teenager, but Subaru managed to carry it off. It was covered entirely in the same faux mink that decorated the Sumeragi's coat, and was pulled down over his ears. Only the barest fringe of bangs peeked out from under it.

The rest of the outfit was just as striking. Under the brilliantly colored coat, Subaru wore one of his close-fitting black turtlenecks, and a pair of tight black pants.

Seishirou fancied that he could see a strip of pale skin where the hem of the turtleneck didn't quite meet the tops of his pants, before Subaru hastily pulled the edges of his coat together.

Seishirou's gleaming amber eyes met with Hokuto's knowing green ones. "I must compliment you on your skills, as usual, Hokuto-chan."

Hokuto gave her brother an appraising smile. "Yes, he does wear this one particularly well, doesn't he? I must have been inspired."

"My Subaru-kun always looks spectacular in red," affirmed Seishirou. "I have to insist that his kimono be in that shade for our wedding."

"Oh, of course, Sei-chan. We want Subaru to look his best. Don't we Subaru?" she called to her brother.

Subaru just covered his face with his hands and let out a heartfelt groan.

He was experienced enough now to know that there was no reasoning with the two of them.

Notes:

How could we have a Tokyo Babylon fic without some pretty clothes for Subaru? Well there you go, a pretty red jacket. Xandra would like to note that she actually has a long red coat with black faux fur trim, which she doesn't get to wear very often but loves anyway. ^__^

Xandra's fics can be found at Butterfly Dreams (http://www.midnightrevolution.org/xandra)

And Mizu's fics can be found at shadow-truths

(http://www.emphatic-meow.com/fiction.html)