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The Meikai War	By : saiyanb Category: Yuyu Hakusho > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 11639 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own YuYu Hakusho, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 18
- 19
- 20
Meikai
War
Chapter18

"He-ya!" shouted Yusuke as
he finished a jump kick sending two onis skidding on their butts.
"Gee, they're everywhere,"
said Kuwabara giving one red oni a black eye.
"Botan where are we going?"
"To Lord Enma's office,"
shouted the blue haired ferry girl.
"We have to make sure he's okay.
If something happens to him, the three worlds will be seriously messed
up!"
"What about Koenma?" asked
Kuwabara running beside the girl. He
'eeped' and ducked as she made a wide swing with her oar almost smacking him in
the face.
"I don't know. If they've gotten all the onis in the palace
I don't think Koenma will be in his office.
I'm worried about him," she said softly biting her lower lip. She frowned in a determined matter. "We'll just have to find Korin and make
him tell us where he put him."
Botan viscously smacked one oni out of her way making the poor creature
slam into the wall to leave a body imprint there.
Kuwabara laughed nervously at the
fiery goddess of death and made a mental note not to get on her bad side any
time soon.
The blue haired girl skidded to a
halt and stared with wide eyes at a set of slightly opened giant twin
doors. She didn't even notice when
Kaoru jumped right over her head and blocked two onis who'd been moving in for
the kill. Nor didn't she noticed when
those two onis were sent rolling down the hall like a pair of bowling balls to
knock several more onis down in their path.
"Hurry!" called Inari
slamming the hilt of his sword down on the back of one oni's head. "I can feel Suoh's ki up ahead! We're getting close!"
"No! Wait!" shouted Botan
snapping out of her stupor to turn and yell at them.
"What's wrong Botan?"
asked Kuwabara leaning over her shoulder.
"Look!" she shouted pointing
a finger at the open doors.
"Huh?" said Kuwabara
glancing at the door then back at her then back at the doors. "Um... what?"
"Dummy! Those are the doors to
the Reikai vault!" shouted Botan at him.
Yusuke grunted and knocked one oni
ass over teakettle. "We don't have
time to worry about the treasures right now Botan."
"No! It's not that kind of
treasure!" shouted the ferry girl running over to the door.
Inari cursed as he watched her
disappear behind the doors. "There
goes our guide. You people follow after
her and see what she's up to. Me and
Kaoru will continue to clear the path."
Yusuke cursed as well grabbing
Kuwabara and hurrying after Botan.
"Silly girl, what's she doing?" he grumbled pushing the doors
open and stepping inside. His eyes
widened as he did.
"What?" asked Kuwabara
looking inside, he gasped.

Lying inside on the floor was Koenma; his head cradled in Botan's lap as
the ferry girl slapped him on the face calling for him to wake up.
"What's wrong with him?" asked
Yusuke kneeling down next to the ferry girl.
"I don't know! His eyes are open, but he doesn't seem to
see me," she cried shaking the godling hard. "Wake up Koenma! Now's
not the time for a nap! Please wake up!"
Kuwabara looked on with concerned as
the two tried with no success to rouse the god. He turned his head away from them with a frown and looked
around. They we in a relatively plain
room. Eggshell colored walls, simple
wood framework, a perfect square with only one piece of furniture in it. A case of some kind with purple cloth
lining. Curiously Kuwabara walked over and studied it. It looked like a pedestal of some sort, but
nothing rested on its surfaced.
"Botan," called Kuwabara
not turning to look at the three on the floor.
"What's suppose to be in this room?"
Botan glanced up from her worried
slapping and shaking of her boss.
"This is where the Golden Seal is kept-" she gasped loudly and
jumped to her feet to run over and stare at the empty case. "Oh! Oh no! No, no, no! His bad, very
bad!"
"What?" asked Yusuke
getting up to see for himself."
"It's gone! Korin must have it!
Oh no! This is so bad!"
"What it's just a silly golden
seal," said Yusuke.
"It's not just a silly golden
seal!" shouted Botan. "You
have no idea what you can do with that silly seal! It's the signature of Enma, Yusuke! Whatever you touch with it is legally binding as far as universal
law goes! Korin can seal Enma with
it!" Botan gasped again even
louder this time and dropped back down to twist Koenma's head over to the
side. She raised a shaky hand and brush
it over his forehead.
"Koenma..." she spoke softly.
"What?" asked Yusuke
bending down to see what had gotten Botan so shook up. He frowned slightly as he noticed the Jr.
sign on Koenma's forehead had changed to some strange character.
"He sealed him..."
whispered Botan voice starting to crack.
"He sealed him," she repeated bowing her head and burying her
face in Koenma's hair.
"Sealed...?" said
Kuwabara. "You mean... he's not dead...
is he?"
Botan
lifted her head and looked at him with miserable eyes. "It's almost the equivalent of
death," she said softly. "A
god can not truly be killed, but this...." She looked down at Koenma. "This is living death.... His soul is trapped, doomed to remain frozen
in his immortal shell forever or till he is unsealed. That could drive anyone insane, we've got to help him."
"Yah, but how?" asked
Kuwabara.
"We need the golden seal, only
something as powerful as that can remove this curse."
"Well then, lets go join Inari
and Kaoru. We'll defeat Korin and get
the seal from him," said Yusuke.
"I...I want to stay here with
him," said Botan softly.
"I'll just get in your way and he's conscious of what's going on
around him so... I'll stay and keep him company till you get the seal."
"You sure Botan?" asked
Kuwabara. "Will you be alright
alone here?"
Botan
gave an almost perky smile and swung her oar.
"Don't worry I can handle a few zombie onis. Just hurry up and get the seal."
"Right, be careful Botan. Come on Kuwabara," said Yusuke grabbing
his arm and pulling him out of the room.
The doors closed leaving Botan alone
with the frozen god.
"Koenma," spoke Botan softly running her fingers though his
soft brown hair. "Don't worry
Koenma... Yusuke will get the seal and be back soon. I know he will," she smiled softly petting the god's hair as
she sat back and waited.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Suoh sighed as he circled a forest
searching for a suitable place to put up his elemental site. The problem was humans had a bad tendency to
spread out and populate all land for miles around one of their villages or
cities and it wasn't always easy to spot their small dwellings.
Suoh wanted to avoid dealing with
the annoying creatures if at all possible, but on such a small island like this
Japan it wasn't likely to happen. He
spotted a large field and sighed yet again seeing human's running for cover
trying to herd their live stock away to what they thought was safety. Suoh eyed one of the pump looking cattle and
idly licked his lips; they looked kind of tasty.
Giving his head a shake he moved on,
it was likely that human farmer was going to lose a large part of his stock
soon, what with the sheer number of ryus in the area and more gathering by the
second. He glanced behind him to see
the large group chasing after him waiting for him to pick a spot to land.
He wouldn't be alone while gathering
the energy needed to construct the elemental site. The group following him was all colors of the rainbow, but for
the most part leaned towards the fire element of his kind. The thought behind that was gathering so
many creatures of the same element would draw more of the needed energy to the
site, it also provided a chance to gather and be merry before the upcoming
battle.
Ryu typically did such things before
a major conflict, wanting to enjoy life to the fullest least it be snuffed out
in combat. However, having the other
ryus around meant that they too would be an energy source, meaning Suoh was
going to be draining power from them whether he wanted to or not. They would simply be too close for him not
to. It was a flaw in their plan, but
hopefully not a major one. Suoh figured
with the help of the gods he was going to be able to gather most of the power
from other sources in the Ningenkai besides his comrades.
Suoh felt some of his own energy
drain out of him. The gods were
currently in the Reikai redirecting the flows of power in the Ningenkai towards
them, the stone holders. Inari was in
the Reikai helping to gather power for the earth elemental site.
Suoh selfishly wished his silver
lover were with him as moral support while he toiled away at the site. Selfish yes, but he couldn't help it. Inari had been acting strange for awhile
now. His being appointed the stone
holder for fire had really thrown the fox for a loop, Suoh could honestly say
Inari was being paranoid about the whole thing. Suoh had thought he'd be drawing mental strength from Inari for
the task, but found himself being the one rubbing the fox's back and telling
him everything was going to be okay. It
wasn't like Inari to be like that, why was he so scared.
Suoh mentally berated himself. Of course, Inari was scared, all the gods
probably were. They tethered on the
edge of oblivion waiting to see if they were going to be pushed in or not. Well not if he could help it, for Inari's
sake he would fight his way through hell and back. The thought of living life without him was unbearable. Suoh didn't think he could do it. Don't worry my love, I won't let you down, I
promise he silently vowed.
Lifting his head he saw another
stone holder, probably Yokokaze judging by the power in the air, being trailed
by his own large flock of followers.
His kind just couldn't resist a good gathering, the cooked meats and
vast selections of wines that would be brought and made. The dancing, singing and general joyous
activities that would be engaged, one might think they weren't taking the
situation seriously, but that was far from true. By the end of the day most likely every ryu alive would be in
Japan, it was a rare event and cause for celebration. Add a fight in and it was a recipe for a dragon festival.
From the look of it Yokokaze was
feeling quite put off with his search and maybe a little irritated by the group
on his heel. Suoh knew how he felt, he
wasn't exactly comfortable being the center of attention and that was just what
he was in this party. He wondered if
he'd even find a decent plain to make a camp large enough for the number that
would appear. Most likely the entire
boarder around the five sites would be covered from head to tail with
ryus. The combined sites didn't even
take up the whole of the island, it would only take a ryu a few minutes to fly
from one end to the other. All the
better for the celebrating creatures who would no doubt want to visit the other
sites and see what games they were playing.
Suoh would have like to visit and
party with his people, but he was stuck in the center of all the festivities
and unable to participate in any. Suoh
snorted in annoyance. What was the
point in being the guest of honor it you couldn't enjoy yourself? Well he thought scanning the terrain at
least I get to pick a comfortable spot, although that was proving to be quite
difficult. The forest he currently
circled was more suited for the purple earth ryu, Koudo and his flock. The river with its large pool he'd passed a
few leagues ago had been Bakufu's choice of site. But, where was a fire ryu suppose to set up his site, there
wasn't exactly a burning valley anywhere near.
Lifting his head up to look straight
foreword, Suoh smiled to himself. Well
he did know one place that just might do.
Giving his wings a few extra hard flaps he climbed higher up into the
air. It wasn't long before he came upon
his site of choice, a tall volcanic mountain located a bit farther then he'd
have liked, but not unreasonably so.
What did the human's call this mountain? Ah, yah Fuji, mount Fuji.
Strange name's human's came up with Kurama, Hiei, Fuji, really.
Circling the tall peak once all the
way around he decided to settle near it's jagged top. (Note: I know mount Fuji
is flat on top, but there is a good reason I'm making it jagged, you'll see in
future chapters.) It was kind of cold,
being as the peaks reached so high snow fell on them, but Suoh could feel the
hot lava underneath all that rock, it seemed to hum to him softly. (Yes Fuji is
still an active volcano) This would do
he decided and found himself a nice fairly flat rock to perch on. Extending his powers a bit he melted the ice
and snow around him and warmed the air briefly.
No sooner had the heat he'd exerted
started to disparate, then had his first follower landed to stake out his own
perch. Many were soon to follow and the
once chilly air turned quite comfortable with their combined generated
heat.
Ah, not
bad, not bad at all thought Suoh leaning back on his rock. There was a well of fire to tap into under
him, and despite some peaks and climbs in the landscape it was wide and with
enough flat places for a comfortable stay for them all. And besides, many of his kinsman preferred
rocky terrain over flat lands. He also noted the defensive side to being based
on a mountain, yes it was not a bad choice.
Taking in a deep breath Suoh
centered himself and opened himself up to his surroundings. He felt down deep into the earth and began
drawing on the power he found there. A
small smile graced his lips as he felt a presence pushing more his way, almost
like a hand offering him fistfuls of fire.
No doubt that was Volcanus, the great smith of the gods, the lord of
fire, and Inari's good pal.
He felt quite toasty now with the
currents of power flowing through him, any bite the wind might have held was
over powered by it. He wasn't sure how
long he sat there just feeling the power caressed him, but it must have been a
reasonable sum of time, because when he opened his eyes the area around him was
quite crowed with ryus. All flat space
had been converted for cooking and serving of food. A large bonfire had been constructed in the middle of all the
action with a line of twirling bodies already around it. Half grown cubs raced and chased one another
up and down the hills while watchful parents kept an eye to make sure no real
mischief was done. Most of the snow was
now gone, he had to crane his neck off into the distance to see any of the
white stuff.
The atmosphere was general merry and
Suoh felt his spirit lift with the good mood.
"Enjoying yourself?" asked
a familiar voice to his side.
Suoh's head swerved and his smile
grew. "Rouin." The taller ryu was camped out right next to
him. A fine woven carpet spread under
his seated form and a fire to his right roasting some freshly caught game. Suoh's eyes glanced to the hide of the
unfortunate creature and couldn't help the smirk that lifted his face. Poor human farmer, but his stock did look tasty,
yes very tasty indeed.
"You've been meditating for
quite a bit. Didn't even feel me settle
down next to you," commented Rouin getting up to poke his kill testing how
done it was.
"I'm surprised you got such a
spot," said Suoh laying back on his rock and watching his friend. He smiled with mischief. "Who did you thrash for it."
"Neji," said Rouin not
even bothering to look over his shoulder at Suoh. "He was asking for it, everyone knows I should be next to
you. After all, you can't exactly
defend yourself like this and you're too spaced out to even notice people
approach. No way I'm leaving you in the
care of this drunken lot." He
turned with a large slab of cooked meat and held it out to Suoh. "Here you go."
Suoh's
fingers danced in the air a moment before taking the hot juicy meat. He juggled it a bit before sinking his teeth
in. Juice dripped down his chin and he
smiled warmly as he wiped the grease from it with the back of his hand. "Speaking
of leaving in the care of others where's Kaoru?" he asked before taken
another mouthful.
Rouin carved himself his own slab
and settled back down to beginning chewing on it. "He's with Inari's pup," he said tearing off a mouthful
with his teeth.
"Kogare," frowned
Suoh. "And who's watching
him?"
Rouin swallowed. "No one as far as I know."
"What?!" shouted Suoh nearly
dropping his food.
"Calm down. You know Inari's got his hands full with
stuff and beside that fox pup is old enough to be on his own for a bit. He's always running off from the people you leave
him with anyway."
"I know," said Suoh
looking at the meat in his hands with a distant look. "I just don't want
them to be alone and then go off and fight.
Who knows what will happen."
Suoh's tone dropped with each word.
"Nothing will happen,"
said Rouin locking eyes with Suoh.
"I wouldn't let it," he stated firmly before lowing his head
to snap up another chuck of meat. "Besides," he said around
his mouthful. "I'd like to think
that pup of yours has enough sense to keep his nose out of trouble."
Suoh frown, not sure if he agreed.

* * * * * * * * * * *

"A-Aaa- Achoooo!" sneezed
Kogare nearly falling on his tail with the force of it. "Uh," he breathed wiping his hand
under his nose in disgust.
"Hehe heee," grinned
Koaru. "Someone's talking about
you behind your back," teased the ryu cub currently perched high up on a
tree branch. "What'd you take this
time?" he asked falling backwards to hang upside down by his clawed feet.
"I haven't stolen
anything-," snapped Kogare. He
paused and looked at the simply made sword he'd been swinging around a moment
ago, one pilfered off a famous human monk no more then a few days gone by.
"In the last day or so," he finished lamely.
Koaru swung down to land in a
crouch, smiling so wide the perfect fitting of his teeth could easily be made
out. "You're going to get in
trouble," he sang teasingly.
"Shhh you," barked
Kogare. "You have to be caught to
get in trouble and I don't plan to get caught," he huffed giving the ryu
his back and crossing his arms. He
glanced at the sword in his hand and then over at his little brother, it
suddenly donned on him that the young ryu didn't have any weapons. "Koaru," he called turning to the
ryu.
"Hmm?" answered the dragon
cocking his head to the side in a curious manner. "What brother?"
Silently the golden youko held out
the sword to him.
Koaru hesitated a moment before
reaching out and taking the blade. The
tip bite into the ground as the cub held it awkwardly.
Kogare frowned. "Give it a few swings."
Koaru gave a start at the order, but
that soon faded into excitement at the prospect of wielding a sword. Biting his tongue softly the ryu twisted to
look around for a target, the sword tip still dragging on the ground. Spotting a fairly thick tree the dragon
turned to face it and awkwardly hefted the sword over his shoulder.
"He-yaaaaah!" roared the
cub practically falling into the swing, far too awkward and unbalance with the
long blade in his grip. Too Kogare's
big surprise the blade bit into the thick tree at an angle and cleaved clear to
the center before the ryu's strike stuck.
The blade may have stopped but the ryu cub didn't. With a squeak he continued the momentum he'd
created with the swing and ended up rolling head over tail several feet before
thumbing into another tree a few paces away.
Kogare couldn't help it, he broke
out into loud laughter at his brother's clumsy swordsmanship. "Oh, the look on your face!"
wheezed the golden youko clutching his stomach and trying to imitate the look.
Koaru straightened himself from his
fall and glare at his older brother from his seat on the forest floor. "Stop laughing!" he wailed as his
brother continued for several long moments.
Kogare make a wild swinging motion
with an imaginary sword in hand and laughed harder when he caught his brother's
pout. "I can't believe what a
cluts you can be. You're more likely to
stab yourself in the foot then anything else.
Swords are definitely not your forte," he smiled after calming
himself down.
Koaru looked less then pleased. "It's too long. I can't stay balanced," he whined in
his defense.
"Right," teased Kogare
making his brother's cross his arms over his chest and look the other way. Chuckling the golden youko walked over to
the tree and whistled at the deep cut.
If the little ryu's aim had been better he might have actually cut
through the thick trunk. As it was he'd
started up high and ended nearly two feet lower. Still laughing Kogare took hold of the sword hilt and
tugged. His laugh died when the blade
didn't budge. Putting his other hand on
the hilt he threw his height into trying to dislodge it, his face turned red
with strain as he yanked wildly up and down on the sword trying to at least
loosen it from the stubborn wood. His
efforts were for not and ended with him panting hard. Pulling back he spat on his hands and trying again, growling
obscenely as his efforts weren't rewarded.
This lasted for several minutes until the fox wore himself out now
leaning on the sword for support.
He stopped and tried to compose
himself as his little brother got up and moved over to him. The ryu gave him a look that had the hairs
on the back of Kogare's neck standing on end. Still looking at him Koaru drew
back a tinny fist and slammed it into the huge tree. There was a loud crack and the tree gave a death groan of wood
bending and breaking. The tree snapped
the rest of the way with a shower of large splinters as it broke uncleanly at
the end and slammed into the forest floor, bumping several other trees in its
decent. Several of those trees now
leaned crookedly or had large dings and scraps in their sides.
Kogare stood there dumbly with the
now free sword in hand, staring at the destruction the one punch had
caused. Slowly he turned his head to
look at his little brother that deadly calm look that had given him the creeps
before still on the little ryu's face.
"You're weak aren't you?"
asked Koaru before an almost smug look appeared on his face, pleased he could
do something his brother couldn't.
"Why, why you-you over grown,
fire belching, lizard!" shouted Kogare tail bristled at the thought. It hadn't been too long ago Koaru had called
him strong and now he was calling him weak.
Koaru's big eyes widened at the
insult and he growled baring his canines.
"You take that back!" he shouted fisting his hands and
dropping into a wide stance.
"Make me, half pint!"
dared Kogare. Even though he'd dared
him Kogare was still shocked when the ryu cub let out a growl and lunged at him
toppling him to the ground. His world
went vertigo when the ryu's fist slammed into his cheek making his head smack
into the thankfully soft soil. It took
him a moment to recover, but when he did he retaliated with a punch to the ribs
that sent the light ryu rolling off of him.
Koaru went with the roll and up onto
his hands and feet, back arched like an angry cat, growling low under his
breath. Kogare slowly got to his feet
and raise up a hand to wipe his mouth.
He looked at the back of his hand to see blood smeared across it. His teeth were soon bared in an angry snarl.
Koaru's growl got louder at his
brother's angry look. He lowered his
upper half closer to the ground, shoulder blades tensing a moment before he
moved into a four-legged run as smooth as any jungle cat. He coiled his body when he came into range
of his target and with a great flap of his wings leap high up and towards his
brother intending on tackling him once more.
Kogare was not unprepared this time
he went with the move catching the young ryu and went down with a roll. His feet tucked between them caught Koaru in
the stomach, somersaulting the ryu over his head.
Koaru went down in a heap, tangled
in his own limbs. He had only just
managed to right himself when Kogare was up and looming over his prone
form. With a shout the ryu snapped out
his leg and sweep his brother's out from under him. Kogare landed hard on his tail, the air knocked out of him in
surprise.
Koaru moved to straddle his
brother's lap, planning to use his clawed hands to rake some bloody slashes in
his front. He was however caught by
each wrist before he could tempt it and flipped under. Koaru's legs tightened around his brother's
middle and with a push from his wings he was on top again. Kogare wasn't about to allow that and the
two ended up rolling endlessly over the terrain. They hit trees, rolled over large and sharp rocks, flatten plants
and bushes, and sent dirt flying.
Kogare's back hit a particularly
painful rock, slashing a bloody line down his spine. His vision went red and before he knew it he had his little
brother pinned under him, one hand tightly gripping the ryu's left collarbone,
the nails digging into the softer white flesh, in his other hand he held his
forgotten sword pressed to the young ryu's throat.
Kogare's eyes gleamed in
anticipation, wanting to see blood, wanting to finish with a killing blow. The steel blade moved down, a line of red
appeared, crimson slipping down. A
sharp gasp was heard.
The small sound caused Kogare's eyes
to snap up from the line of crimson to the startlingly wide pair of crimson
eyes looking at him. Reality slammed
back and he threw himself off the young ryu to stare with horrified eyes at
what he'd almost done.
Slowly Koaru pulled himself up into
a seated position, one shaking hand moved over to his pale throat and felt the
shallow cut there. The trembling
transferred to the ryu's whole body when he felt the warm wet blood, little
hand smearing it over his collarbone where it was meet with the other wounds
dung by Kogare's fingernails. The
little ryu's mouth dropped in shock at his condition.
A long pause incurred with them
staring at each other before Kogare snapped out of his stupor and realized his
brother was bleeding. The thought sent
an icy chill down his spine. He wondered
briefly what would have happened if he'd continued the blow- no he tore his
mind away from the thought. He needed
to make Koaru stop bleeding, it wasn't much, but it bugged him in a way he
didn't understand. "Koaru,"
he called moving to lean towards the ryu.
Koaru's pupils dilated to mere
pinpricks as his brother's hand moved towards him. Terror griped him and his hands came up to shove the larger body
away. He turned and scrambled up,
nearly falling on his face in his haste to put some distance between them.
He stood their breathing raggedly
staring at his brother who was just now pulling himself back up into a seated
position from the shove.
"Ko-koaru?" called Kogare
moving into a kneeling position. He was
several paces away from his little brother, but still reached out a beseeching
hand towards him. The ryu took a
nervous step back.
"Koaru, wait," said Kogare
getting to his feet. "Wait I
didn't mean to- we need to-"
"Stay away!" shouted Koaru
little wings flaring out behind him in preparation for flight. With a coiling of his body he flung himself
into the air, but stopped there to look down at his brother.
"Koaru?" called his golden
brother once more, sounding hopeful.
Koaru floated their, little wings
working away. His brother looked hurt,
not in the cut and bruised way, although, he was sporting some nasty
scraps. Koaru couldn't have said why he
thought it he just knew that it was true.
Koaru was confused, angry, and hurt with the whole situation and being
the young pup that he was it wasn't long before tears were making their ways
down his cheek. He wanted his mother
ryu. Puffing out his chest he drew in a
lungful of air and shouted "Oni-san no BAKA!" as loud as he could
before fluttering away.
Kogare watched him go then glanced
at the sword still held in his grip or more precisely the streak of crimson
sliding down its length to drip onto the ground. His hands were shaking as the blade slipped from his numb
fingers. He held them up to his face
unsure why he was so terrified.
Sure fighting for real with Koaru
was wrong and hurting Koaru even worst, but why did that terrify him so. He was confused, unsure what had just
happened. Bending down he scooped up
his blade and felt a tinge of queasiness as he spotted the blood once
again. Quickly he wiped it off onto the
grass. He then planted the tip of the
blade into the soil and watched as the world shifted around him. He appeared in a forest area, glancing up he
could see ryus of all colors flying in the sky.
He had questions and like most young
people he could think of only one person who might have the answers. Slowly he started to make his way following
the flight of the great serpents. He
was in no hurry. He needed the time to
think.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Suoh was starting to feel quite
toasty. The storage of power he'd
already gathered felt almost like a good strong wine, the kind that giving a
warm tingly feeling after you've downed it.
He wondered if he looked flush, because he felt like it. Around him ryus laughed and danced, ate and
drank. More then a few were currently
feeling that warm tingly sensation only it was most definitely caused by the
large amount of liquor they'd gulped down.
Suoh glance over at Rouin as the
large black slapped one of their comrades on the back hard, sloshing over some
of the brew he was drink in the process.
He wondered idly if his good friend was drunk or not. It was hard to say with him, Rouin could be
overly zealous with or without liquor; it had more to do with his mood.
He flapped his wings in a shrug of
sort. If Rouin were then he'd sober up
soon enough, ryu's had extremely high tolerance levels. He'd sober as long as people stopped supplying
him with more of the frothy stuff. Suoh
narrowed his eyes at one purple ryu who'd been carrying two fresh mugs their
way. Seeing the look the purple wisely
turned in the opposite direction and kept going.
"Hn," snorted Suoh, idly
wishing he could have a mug of his own.
However, power and liquor were never a good combination, plus no one
seemed inclined to offer one up. Oh,
there were a hundred and one different meats and dishes being pushed under his
nose, but nothing harder then cider to wash it down with. No one wanted to be sitting on this mountain
should he lose control and blow, not that he could really blame them.
A commotion went through those
gathered and over that the sound of soft sobs.
Suoh's ears twitched as his head wiped around in the direction of the
sound, eyes widening with a jolt of concern.
There stood none other than his dear twin sister and wrapped in her
bandaged arms his youngest cub wept softly.
He didn't know what
disturbed him more the ragged burnt condition of his twin, or the bloodied
condition of his sobbing son.
For a moment he wanted to abandon
the site and all the power he'd been building up to run over to the pair. The fire stone searing the flesh of his
chest stopped him from going to them.
He gritted his teeth against the pain and fought to calm himself
down. The ryus around him look at him
in alarm as the smell of burnt flesh drifted by their noses. It was difficult to tear his eyes from them,
but he manage it some how to focus on the gem.
It stood on its woven cord a fiery red-hot color, almost glowing with a life
of its own. Slowly he subdued the
stone, soothed it back to a deep crimson red and breath a sigh of relief when
it was safe once more. That's been too
close for comfort. Seeing his son and
sister like that had nearly made him lose control, he'd just come inches from
certain death as well as sure chaos among those gathered. Despite the heat around and in him he felt a
cold shiver run down his spine; too close.
A large hand landed on his shoulder,
jolting him back to his surroundings.
He turned his head to see Rouin's concerned face. "Are you okay?" he questioned
eyeing the angry red burn mark on Suoh's front. A fire ryu getting burnt?!
The idea was absurd! He glanced
around him to see the many concerned faces all holding their breath.
"I'm fine," he assured
wincing at the combined sound of so many sighs of relief. "Sorry everyone." The crowd grumbled in a low buzz and the
merry making returned in full force.
Suoh turned his attention back to Sunoo and Koaru.
"Mama ryu!" shouted Koaru
jumping out of Sunoo's surprised grip into a dead run for him.
Suoh felt panic batter at him again,
but he stubbornly refused to let it grip him once more. His mind clamped down on the fire stone
commanding it to stay stable as his hands clasped over the red stone putting as
many barriers between it and his son as possible.
"Mama ryu!" squalled the
black ryu cub again jump at him. Suoh
slumped back onto his rock in relief as Koaru's flight path was intercepted by
Rouin snatching him out of harm's way.
Suoh was a quivering pile of nerves
at this point, practically pray to the fire stone to behave. The thought of his son touching it was a
nightmare in the making.
"Mama ryu!" cried Koaru
once more waving his arms at his ryu mother pleadingly. When Suoh made no move to take him from his
ryu papa Koaru's lower lip quivered violently and he turned in his papa's arms
to bawl against his deep chest.
Rouin was looking down at his cub in
alarm, free hand alternating between inspecting his cuts and bruises to patting
his back in a soothing manner.
"What happened?" breathed
Suoh, "is he okay?"
Rouin lifted his head and meet his
eyes, there was a small smile on his lips.
"I think our little Koaru got into his first fight," he said
almost proudly. "He's alright, one
nick to the neck, and a few scratches to his front." He lifted his son up and held him out to get
a better look. "What'd you do? Fight a cat or something?" he
questioned the sniffling cub. He looked
like he'd rolled down a hill full of brambles and twigs. There must have been a whole brush of leaves
sticking out of his hair. His clothes
were absolutely fifthly.
Suoh frown, but felt a lot better
with Rouin's assumption. Koaru was a
black, they tendered to be more aggressive and prideful by nature. He couldn't remember the number of cuts and
scraps he and Rouin had collected in their youths. More often then not it was from rough housing with each other. A Perfectly normal thing, but it still set
off the protective parent instincts in him.
That also might however have something to do with the fact that Kogare
wasn't present. He turned and gave his
sister a questioning look.
"I found him like that,"
she answered. "I was coming to see
you when I spotted him flying this way."
"Are you okay?" questioned
Suoh taking in her tattered form once more.
Her beautiful long hair was now cropped to just above her shoulders, her
white feathered wings looked ruffled and blackened in spots, and her pale
flawless skin was now marred by fresh red burns and white bandages. "Should you be out an about?" he
asked looking up from his scrutiny to meet her red eyes with his own.
She sighed and smiled for him. "I'm not as bad as I look," she
said touching a bandage on her arm.
"In a month or so you wouldn't be able to tell I even hurt. He was very quick to give me medical
aid." Her smile became even warmer
at the mention of 'he' and Suoh felt his eye twitch in an aggravated
manner. Just who was 'he'?!
Suoh gave his head a shake, it
wasn't the time to pry into her personal life, but he would later. Yes, later.
"But, should you be out here?" he persisted, truly concerned
for her ragged appearance.
"I only plan to stay the night,
reassured Sunoo. "I'll be up and
out of here in the morning. You needn't
worry, I will see no battle in his condition."
Suoh was silently pleased she
wouldn't be apart of the fighting; however, unhappy with the cause for it. He supposed that some minor injured were
better then major or worst. Still he
disliked seeing her like this. She was
such a sweet creature she didn't deserve to feel pain.
"Don't push yourself too hard,
please," he beseeched her.
"I wish I could say the same to
you," smiled Sunoo moving to cup his cheeks and kiss his forehead. Suoh's hand tightened around the fire stone,
fearful of what it might do to an ice ryu.
As if sensing his unease she stepped back away from him and gave him
another supportive smile. "Do your
best oni-san."
"Thanks you, I will,"
nodded Suoh turning to his youngest, who was now quietly sniffling into his
papa's chest. "Now then, Koaru,
what happened?" he prompted.
Koaru sniffled a little louder into
Rouin's chest, no longer in any real pain, but wanting attention and comfort
from his parents for his scraps and bumps.
And like most children he was willing to put on an act to get it. He peered over his shoulder at his mama ryu
all glassy eyes and hurt puppy dog.
Sniffing extra hard the ryu cub wiped his face with the back of his
hand. "O-oni-san kono BAKA!"
he shouted before burying his face back into his father's front.
Suoh shared an amused look with
Rouin. The larger black laughed softly,
shaking his head in merit while patting his son's back. "Got in a scruff with your brother huh?
Who won," he quested his son curiously.
Koaru lifted his head all pouty
injustice at his parents' lack of support.
To him it was a real fight to them it was a game that'd gotten too
rough. It was bound to happen, after
all: boys will be boys.
When his son offered no answer it
was Rouin's turn to pout. "You
mean the fox boy won," he frowned childishly at the thought of his son not
being the winner of any battle mock or no.
"He's big," whined Kogare
in defense.
"You're a black ryu,"
countered Rouin. "Next time transform
and sit on him, that'll teach him a lesson on who's big." Rouin laughed and reached up a hand to ruff
his son's hair. Being a young child
easily sway and hard at keeping grudges Koaru was soon smiling again. His smiles turned to all out laughs has his
papa ryu griped his chin and started bathing his wounds with his tongue.
"Hn," snorted Suoh. Rouin had always been good with children,
probably because the ryu had never lost his egg tooth, so to speak. The petite
black ryu sat back and watched the two with a smile. Now he'd just have to wait for the other brat to show up. Kogare would probably show up dragging his
feet and kicking at stones, looking as guilty as sin. He shook his head just picturing it. Kogare had always been a little too excitable when it came to war
and battle, he really didn't want his oldest anywhere near the
battlefield. He'd just have to ask
Sunoo to take them back in the morning.
There was no harm in letting them
stay the night. Inari would probably
yell at him for letting their son participate in a dragon festival, but he'd
just have to live with it. Really once
wouldn't hurt the pup's godly develop or warp him to the ryu's way and besides
he had a feeling it was going to be a long, long time before they ever gathered
again.
Suoh tilted his head back and gazed
up at the almost full moon.
"A night and a day more,"
he murmured quietly to himself.

* * * * * * * * * * *

It was near dusk when Kogare finally
made it to the summit of Mount Fuji.
The long walk had done his mind some good, but now that he was so close
to his destination he was attacked by an angry mob of butterflies twirling
around in his stomach. Asking his
questions might have consequences.
Admitting he'd attacked his little brother with deadly intent anywhere
near Koaru's papa was just asking to get stomped. He wasn't too sure if Suoh wouldn't be right next to him to
helping either.
He didn't want his mother ryu angry
with him, but he needed answers. He'd
be of no good till his thoughts were put straight. Going into battle right now would have been insane, especially if
Koaru was still mad at him. Koaru....
Kogare glanced around when he
finally stepped into the ryus' campsite, eyes widening at the sight. It looked like a festival, not a war
camp. Ryu's of all colors danced and
sang, drank and ate, chatted and played games in the light of large bonfires
flickering every color of the rainbow with dragon's fire.
His eyes landed on a group of
hatchlings, all younger then Koaru, playing a game of tag. Their joyous laughter reverberated about the
area as they ducked and dodged each other.
What were such small children doing here? Surly they had not been included in the pact with the gods. No mother ryu would stand to have her cub
put in harms way, even the gods weren't bold enough to make such demands.
His features turned bitter as he
watched them a moment longer. They
looked so happy frolicking around like they were. No duties, not a care in all the worlds. Did they even know that the decisive battle
was about to start? Did they know they
could soon all be killed? Huh, stupid
little care free brats. His expression
was almost wishful as he looked at them.
Deciding he wasn't going to get any
answers standing about he lifted his head and looked for any familiar
faces. Spotting none he began to
wonder, taking in all that was happening around him. A group of red ryus sat in a line playing a range of musical
instruments, their combined melody was positive and happy. To his other side a group of yellow dragons
were playing a game involving a ball and teams, passing it back and forth
between them. There was even a blue ryu
making fantastically crafted hard candies for a large multi-colored group of
cubs, everything from simple colorful lollypops to long legged giraffes and
deer. The children seemed to enjoy the
making almost as much as the eating.
His head turned in all directions
trying to take in everything around him at once. He'd never seen anything like this before. Every ceremony he'd ever attended with his
fellow gods had always been about tradition and formality. Compared to all this they were... well they
were boring to put it simply. He walked
around an extremely large boulder and happened upon a white ryu telling a
comical tale of a young dragon who kept getting into trouble with a bitter
slime, both whom were competing for the heart of an oblivious human. He stopped to listen for a while and fought
hard not to laughter along with the ryus; a battle he ended up losing.
Still giggling he regretfully left
to continue his hunt. These ryus really
knew how to have a good time. When he
became a certified deity he decided he'd have humans worship him with festivals
like this. He could see it now; humans
dressed up in their finest kimonos, out with there loved ones, eating snacks,
playing carnival games. It'd be a
blast; of course as their patron god it would only be fitting that they give
him an offering of the some of those snacks.
Kogare licked his lips just thinking about it. He could make it an annual practice then he'd always have
something to look foreword too. Plus,
it'd be fun to send his message to the humans.
Tho shall party in my name. He
chuckled softy at the thought.
His Merit was cut short as he
happened upon a large part of the black ryu clan. Perched on a large rock in the middle of them was none other then
his mother ryu, Suoh. To Suoh's side
was Rouin singing a drunken tavern song swinging his mug of frothy beer. To Suoh's other side sat Sunoo smiling
softly and clapping her hands with the other ryu's to keep the beat. Rouin was more then a little off key. The beat did seem to keep him somewhat on
the right track. In Sunoo's lap was
Koaru, smiling and clapping along, giggling at his papa's antics.
Kogare had expected him too look
battered and bruised after their last meeting, but the little ryu was
annoyingly peachy. All the ryus looked
annoyingly peachy. Was it because they
were ryus? Was it because he was a god
that he was the only one worried about the upcoming battle? As he gazed at them he bitterly wanted them
to look and feel the same way he did.
He wanted at least one of them to look stressed or have concern stamped
on their face. He got his wish and
immediately wished he hadn't when Suoh looked up from his meal to spot him
standing there.
"Kogare," he called
causing the other dragons to pause in their merry making to look at him. He felt like he was trespassing on something
sacred. What right did he have to ruin
their fun, what right did he have to be here?
He turned to leave, but was stopped by Suoh once more.
"Kogare... come here,
please," he called.
He thought about refusing he thought
about leaving and not looking back, but he didn't. He turned and looked at his mother ryu and was immediately caught
and held by the pleading look in his eyes.
He went to him like a moth to the flame he went.
Once within reach Suoh grasped his
arm and pulled him into his embrace, leaning his face down to nuzzle into his
soft golden locks. He should have felt
embarrassed at the public display, he was not a kit anymore, but he only felt
comfort in the simple gesture. His own
arms wound around Suoh's waist as he snuggled against the other's warmth. Suoh truly felt incredibly warm right now,
so soothing and pleasant to be held like this.
He felt almost drossy in his embrace.
All worries seem to drain from his body. It was so pleasant, so peaceful.
"Excuse me Rouin, could you and
the others perhaps-"
"Say no more," grinned
Rouin grabbing Koaru from Sunoo and getting to his feet. "Come on everyone Suoh would like a
moment alone with the brat."
Kogare opened one eye to glare at
the large black ryu and ended up opening his other when he saw the look on his
little brother's face. Koaru looked
completely jealous and a little hurt.
Suoh acting on mysterious parental
instinct, the kind where you swear they're reading your thoughts, smiled to his
youngest. "Sorry Koaru, I'm not
ignoring you. Would you play with your
ryu papa for awhile, please?"
Koaru looked like he was considering
it, which caused the other parent to step in.
"What's this? Am I not entertaining enough for you
Koaru? Oh the shame... rejected by one
own offspring. Who will take care of me
when I'm old and decrepit? I'm doomed
to wastes away alone and unloved," spoke the large black ryu with overly
dramatic gestures and tone. He made as
if to set the little cub down, but Koaru turned in his grip and hugged him
tight.
"I love you Rouin papa, really. I really, really do."
Rouin grinned over Koaru's small
shoulder and winked at Suoh, his large hand patting his son on the back. "You'll come keep me company than
right, Koaru?"
The
little ryu nodded into Rouin's shoulder still hugging tight to his neck. Rouin flashed them a winning smile and a
wave before heading off with his burden after his drinking buddies.
"Hn," uttered Suoh shaking
his head. His red gaze turned down to
his oldest asking silently questions.
Kogare almost didn't want to answer. He was more then a little comfortable right
now and the idea of ruining that was less then appealing. Sighing into Suoh's chest he began. "I hurt Koaru."
Suoh hummed and kept petting his
long hair. "I know; a few cuts and
bruises are nothing to worry about."
The fondness was still in Suoh's voice, the fingers in his hair so
soothing. Kogare's stomach churned, his
thoughts traveling back to the time he'd purposely lost Koaru and then in a
panic gone out and found him. Suoh had
looked so happy, so relieved, to get him back and it'd been his entire
fault. He'd caused it all, but had he
gotten any of the blame? No, he'd even
been thanked and oh how that had eaten at him.
The thought of covering up the truth to Suoh once more was there, but he
didn't think he could live with the knowledge again.
"I-I almost did something I...
I think I would have regretted."
Suoh's hand stilled a moment, a
second at the most, then resumed stroking.
"What did you almost
do, Kogare?"
"I...I..." Kogare's voice
froze in his throat and his arms tightened around Suoh's waist. "I don't
want you to hate me," he breathed into the black ryu's chest. "Please don't hate me."
"Kogare," sighed
Suoh. "Look at me."
Kogare shook his head, tightening
even more around Suoh as if afraid the ryu would vanish if he let go.
"Kogare," a dark hand slid
under his chin slowly tilting his face up.
The enchanted fire played over Suoh's features as a gentle wind toyed
with his wild riot of hair. The ryu's
face was soft, his eyes warm. Suoh's
other hand moved, finger wiping moister off the golden fox's surprisingly damp
cheek before moving to cup his face.
Was he crying? Kogare's hand
rose to feel and indeed he was. The
knowledge was as confusing as it was shocking to him.
"I could never hate you
Kogare. You are my precious golden one,
my kit, my son. You could burn the four
worlds to ash and I'd still love you."
Kogare lowered his head back to
Suoh's chest, hot tears sliding down his pale cheeks. They were not the same as the tears he'd shed before: these were
not sad tears. He ran the back of his
hand over his face, trying to compose himself.
He must look a mess, squalling like a snot nose little brat not old
enough to be off his mother's apron strings.
He was embarrassed, yet relieved at the same time. Looking back up at Suoh's patient features
he knew he had been right to come here, he knew he could tell Suoh
everything. His vision lowered again
and he told the tale to Suoh, how he and Koaru had gotten into a fight, how
he'd over powered his little brother, how he'd cut into his throat not knowing
what had possessed him; his fears, his confusion.
After the telling he lay in Suoh's
arms, holding him, afraid once again to look up at the ryu's expression. Had Suoh changed his mind hearing his
confession, would the ryu push him away now?
His body was tense waiting for an answer. "Okasa?" he breathed.
Suoh let out another sigh and his
hand resumed its petting. Kogare nearly
melted with relief when the ryu's fingertips touched the top of his head so
gently.
"Ryu blood," muttered Suoh
almost to himself. "It's my blood
that makes you so aggressive, my blood that makes you so rash. If you'd been born pure," Suoh paused
and shook his head sadly.
"Mingled with mortals, fascinated by what you don't know nor
understand. Drawn and repelled by our
manners and nature... I
finally understand Inari."
"Mother ryu?" called
Kogare looking up at Suoh's puzzling words.
Suoh looked down and smiled for
him. "I'm sorry Kogare, you know
what you did was wrong right?"
"Yes," said Kogare nodding
his head.
"Do you know why it was
wrong?"
Kogare opened his mouth then paused,
not sure what to say. His eyes searched
Suoh, looking for some clue.
Suoh's expression looked sad. "Kogare do you know that if you'd gone
through with- with your strike, it would have killed Koaru?"
"Yes," answered Kogare
nodding his head.
"Do you know what that
means?"
Kogare paused again, he'd heard of
it, but really he didn't understand the subject. Was that why he was so confused?
He'd over heard gods speak of death.
This mortal had died or was slain.
He'd even taken mortal life with his own two hands, but just what that
entitled was unclear to him. His eyes
searched Suoh seeing such sadness in those blood red orbs. "Papa..." Kogare paused not sure
why he'd called Inari papa, he hadn't done so for many years, he was always
Inari or father now. He cleared his
throat and tried again. "Father
told me once, long ago, that it means you leave. Mortals... mortals leave, but not me and not father we stay. We cannot, not be. But I didn't. I didn't
kill Koaru I don't want him to leave."
Suoh seemed to be rolling something
around in his head, debating. Nodding
to himself Suoh turned to regard his first-born. "Being what you are, I suppose death is a foreign concept,
one that I might not be able to fully explain to you right now, but you need to
have an idea of it. Death... death is
eternal."
Kogare's ear shot up, his head snapped
back to look Suoh fully in the face.
"Eternal... you mean... you mean if you die you never come
back?" The golden kit's eyes
showed white all around at the thought of losing the ones he loved, of going on
and on and never getting to see them again.
"A joke," said Kogare forcing a laugh. He twisted onto his knees placing his hands
on Suoh's shoulders as if he needed the support. "You're joking.
You're joking, right, mother ryu."
He waited there for the black to smile and nodded his head, but Suoh's
face reminded serious. "YOU'RE
JOKING RIGHT?!" shouted Kogare giving Suoh a hard shake.
Watching the ryu's head snap
foreword then back hard with the move, Kogare gasped and let go. A sudden fear he could not explain seized
him. What if he got that insane desire
for blood again, what if he hurt someone dear again. What if that someone was Suoh?!
He didn't realize he was trembling till Suoh's warm palms cupped his
cheeks once more.
"Look at me Kogare,"
coaxed Suoh, with soft words and warm touches.
"I am mortal, my flesh, my blood, my bones. All of it will someday decay and return to
the earth. It happens to all mortals, some
faster then others, but we all someday return to the mother's embarrass. It is our fate, it is the way of this
world."

"No," whispered Kogare hands moving up to touch Suoh's
face gently. He was in the grasp of a
terror he could not understand, a terror that said his strong invincible ryu
mother were suddenly very fragile, breakable.
"No," his voice cracked and he shook his head in denial. "You can't go, mother, you can't leave
me."
"I'm sorry Kogare, it will
happen someday. I pray not for a long,
long time. Not till you're much
older." Suoh brushed the salty
tears flowing unchecked down Kogare's face away. "Death maybe eternal, but it is not an end."
Kogare's eyes locked on Suoh's hope
shimmering in them, made all that much brighter by their dampness. "Not an end. So you... you just can't come see me?" he asked. The thought was not easy to handle, but was
infinitely better then that of Suoh's non-existence.
"Not exactly," smiled
Suoh. He turned Kogare so he rested his
back against Suoh's front. The ryu's
strong arms circled him, his wings came around to hide them from sight in a
very intimate and private moment for them both.
"My
flesh," breathed Suoh, "is mortal.
My soul is not. I suppose you
could say that is the fundamental difference between gods and mortals. A god's flesh will never decay, but his soul
can only live in that flesh. Mortals'
shells die, but their souls can gain a new shell, new flesh and live again as
someone totally different. A new
life." Suoh's nails scratched at
Kogare's scalp, rubbing behind the ears in a way no fox could not, not
enjoy. "When I die, my soul shall
depart his flesh and find new stealthier in a new body, a new form."
Kogare leaned back, a smile now on
his features. "I see. You'll get a new body and when you grow up
you can come find us again."
Suoh's smile faltered a moment, but
returned just as strong. "I'm
afraid, it's not that simple," he said petting the golden fox's long silky
hair.
"What do you mean?" asked
Kogare, once again confused.
"A new form means a new
life. A new start."
"I don't understand," said
Kogare once again concerned. He did not
like the way this sounded.
"We rarely retain memories of
our past lives when we are reborn. Not
only that, but our shapes, our nature, everything about us maybe totally
different. I could be reincarnated as a
fish or a bird, or even a human in my next life. I would not be the same creature you know as Suoh Ryu. Even if I were reborn as a black ryu and
given the name Suoh I would not be your mother ryu any more. I would be a new person, a new life. I cannot take with me what I've gained in
this life to my next. I might met you
again, but I would not know you and you most likely would not know it was
me."
"But... but that's...
horrible," said Kogare shaking his head.
"I don't want to go on by myself.
I don't want to exist forever without you or Kaoru, or Rouin ojisan and
Sunoo obasan. I don't want to live
forever. Can't-can't I go with you when
you go? Can't I be reborn with you in
another life?"
"I'm sorry, Kogare," said Suoh, eyes sad at the
thought. "I am mortal and you are
immortal. You will never be anything
else then what you are now."
"No!" shouted Kogare.
"There has to be a way.
There has to be a way that we can all stay together. Can't you- can't you become a god some
how?" asked the golden fox, the look he gave the black ryu was
desperate. "I've heard of it
mortals obtaining immortality by some means.
Can't we do something like that to you?"
Suoh laughed, lowering his wings, returning them to the cold
cruel world. "I'm sorry Kogare, my
parents were mortal. I have no godly
ancestry. And the stories you've heard
of mortals gaining immortality is not true eternity; merely a means of
prolonging the body. Those souls can
still be set free with the destruction of the flesh."
Kogare shook his golden head in denial of the truth and buried
his face against his ryu mother's chest.
He just wanted to stay like that for the rest of eternity safe with his
mother warm and alive in his arms. It
was just too hard to fathom a world without Suoh, he was just too important to
him.
"Kogare," called Suoh brushing his bangs out of his
face. "Will you make me a
promise?"
Kogare lifted his head and locked eyes with Suoh's fiery red
ones.
"Will you-" Suoh paused, breaking eye contract, and
turned his head to nipped at one of his nails as if debating whether to go on
or not.
Kogare took his hand and pulled it away from his mouth. "Anything... anything for you Suoh
Ryu." He could feel the words
settling on him, feel their weight on his shoulders, binding him to them. Gods cannot lie. He was not afraid to give Suoh such power over him, he trusted
Suoh, he loved Suoh, he 'would' do anything for Suoh.
Suoh smiled fondly and resumed petting his son's head once
more. "You are so much like your
father." Kogare frown at the
comment, which only seemed to widen Suoh's grin. "I want you to look after your brother."
Kogare blinked having expected something more challenging or
difficult, he was after all use to babysitting the little spitfire.
"That's all?"
"That's all?" laughed Suoh. "That is a life time commitment, Kogare. You might not find it as easy as you think
especially with the way gods view ryus.
I will not bind you too tight with the actually wording just keep an eye
on him. He will not live forever, but
he is precious and I want to know you'll always be there for him when he needs
you."
Kogare smiled bitterly, Koaru was also mortal. His little brother would also one day die
and leave him. His expression hardened,
not if he could help it. "I
will," he whispered as if taking an oath.
"I will look after him... always mother ryu."
Suoh gathered his oldest to him in a warm embarrass,
"Thanks you Kogare."

* * * * * * * * * * *

The festivities progressed as well as the games and
drunkenness. Rouin, Sunoo, Koaru and
the rest of their group rejoined Suoh and Kogare and the warm atmosphere
intensified, whether from the power Suoh harvested or the general warmth of the
company was hard to say. They stayed
out late and only when the moon shown high in the sky did mother ryus gather
their little ones and herd them home.
Those that would stay and fight continued their merry making or settled
down for the night, finding quiet perches to roost till morning.
Kogare and Koaru stayed, unwilling to leave the warmth of their
mother ryu just yet. Kogare wormed his
way back into his little brother's good grace, with Rouin there and Suoh's
beaming expression it didn't take long before the two were rolling together in
mock play. The young golden fox was
more then a little shock when his brother turned ryu and sat on him, as well as
puzzled by the roaring laughter it produced from Rouin who ended up slashing
his beer all over himself in his fit.
Kogare watched his young charge like a hawk, his mother ryu had
entrusted the hatchling's safety with him and he would be damn if he'd fail
Suoh in this task.
The little ryu kept attempting to crawl into his mother's lap
only to be block by Rouin. This had
confused Kogare at first till he realized the danger of what Koaru was
attempting. If the young fire ryu
indivertibly touched the fire stone, not only would the power Suoh was
harvesting be disburst, but the process would most likely kill Koaru and likely
Suoh as well.
With the realization Kogare took up holding his brother,
nuzzling into his fine black mane and whispering strategy and tactics for
tomorrow in his ear. Turning his words
into a fantastic tale of adventure and excitement, capturing the little ryu's
imagination and taking him away like any fairytale might.
Kogare had yet to give up his dream of glory, he would just have
to be extra careful; to lose was unthinkable.
His hand drifted up to stroke the soft hair of the black ryu cub who's
head was nodding, lower slowly and snapping up fast when he realized sleep was
upon him. Suoh looked so pleased with
their closeness and he in-turn took great pride in Suoh's pleasure.
Suddenly Kogare's head lifted in surprise as a beautiful crisp
note split the night. It came from far
off across the large chuck of land the ryus circled, echoing through the
mountains and over fields and valleys Golden and sweet. The golden ryu, Ryujin was singing. Starting the first notes of an ancient
melody that was every change and would live and die with the night.
Goose bumps marching up Kogare's arms to hear it; enchanting,
he'd never heard it likes before. His
golden eyes wondered around to see every ryu's face near and far tilted to
listen. Some held such awed expressions,
other's respect, and more a glazed look like serpents under a snake charmer's
flute. To his side a group of ryu's
began to cue and hum to the melody, the whole mountain seem to come alive and
sing with that one lone powerful voice.
He'd heard of it, when the earth and sky joined and sang with
the voices of ryus. He wondered briefly
if his own golden gaze was glazed over, if he too was so affected by its
pull. He thought he might be, he wanted
to be, wanted to be part of this; it felt so right, so natural, like he'd
experienced it many a times in half remembered dreams. He didn't know when that deep echoing voice
faded out, nor when his own joined in.
He was numbly unaware of the startled looks on the face of ryus near
him. He did however see his mother
ryu's, did see Suoh gaze upon him with something akin to amazement. That feeling of pride increased ten fold
under that look: Suoh Ryu was surprised, but pleasantly so. There were no words to the song he sang, but
it told his tale loud and clear. He was
Kogare, son of Inari and Suoh, young and proud, strong and cleaver, the
trickster, the thief, the beauty, the only other golden one; the golden fox
god.
It is said by some that on this day foxes did spout wings
and take flight on the night air, their voices beseeching the great serpents to
sing with them once more. The birth of
the bat, the flying fox, the holy and unholy combination of fox and
serpent. A creation who would forever
after hunt the night crying out for the ryus to sing once more. Listening, but never hearing the sound of
the mountains, the cry of the earth and sky join in bliss for shortly after the
songs of the great serpents were lost to the world of man and only whispered in
the realm of demons and dreams.
TBC
- 18
- 19
- 20
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The Meikai War