"Fine! I’ll do it!"

The tent flap was suddenly flung aside and Shunkaku stormed out.

"Shunkaku! Hey!" Chama called after him. Shunkaku marched past him without even glancing at his direction, a dark scowl on his face.

"Wait up! Where are you going? Hey!" Chama shouted as he stood up and ran to catch up with his friend.

"Hey, what’s the matter with you?" he asked placing a hand on Shukaku’s shoulder which the other boy promptly shrugged off.

"Whoa, bad mood…" muttered Chama.

"Damn it! To hell with him!"

"What happened? What did he say?" he asked as he followed Shunkaku back to their tent. He doubled back when Shunkaku suddenly whipped around to face him.

"I can’t fuckin’ believe him!" the other boy fumed, "He took me out of the goddamn operation just like that!"

Chama gave him a puzzled look. "Took you out of the operation? What are you saying?"

Shunkaku paced the small space within their tent, muttering curses under his breath. "He took me out! What can’t you understand? I’m not going with you!" Shunkaku growled.

"But why?" Chama asked as he watched Shunkaku rummage furiously through his belongings. The other boy straightened up when he found what he was looking for. Chama eyed him warily as he fastened his ryuuseisui to his belt.

"What are you doing? Where are you going?"

Shunkaku gave a disgusted snort. "That sonofabitch Tetsusou took me out of the group so that I could follow his sister around."

"Touka? Why would he want you to follow her?"

Shunkaku shrugged. "He’s got this fuckin crazy notion that she’s been secretly meeting someone. She’s been running around and disappearing lately. Shit! I don’t understand why he chose me? If he’s so concerned, why doesn’t he go? I’m not the brother here!"

Chama could only give him a sympathetic look. "Well, I don’t think there’s anything much you could do about it."

Shunkaku gave him an irritated glare. "Thanks a lot! That really makes me feel a whole lot better!" he said sarcastically. He looked around for the last time, making sure he didn’t forget anything then walked out the tent.

"Wait!" cried Chama as he went out after him. "So where are you going now?"

"Where else would you think I’d go?" snapped Shunkaku. He turned to a passing boy. "Hey Chou, seen Touka around?"

Chou pointed towards the direction of the town. "Left just a couple of minutes ago."

"Shit!" muttered Shunkaku as he headed towards the said direction.

"Hey Shun-kun, I’ll just see you at the palace then?" shouted Chama after him.

Shunkaku turned and gave him a piercing look. "The palace, eh? Well, you’re one cocky sonuvabitch." Then he grinned. "Okay. Just kick a couple of asses for me, ne?

Chama chuckled, shaking his head at his friend’s sudden mood swings. "Sure, Shun, sure." He watched as Shunkaku jogged off.

"So, he’s off." said a voice from behind him.

"Hai, Tesusou-san," Chama replied.

"Poor kid. I had to leave him behind. The bad thing about being Suzaku sei. That bastard Shogun will be able to sense his chi a mile off," mused Tetsusou as he stood beside Chama.

Chama shook his head. "You should’ve just let him come. His powers hasn't been awakened," he said contemplatively. "For three years, not once did I see it. I’ve watched him like you asked me to. Not once. And I’m sure he’s not hiding it from me. I don’t even think he knows we’re aware of it."

"No. It’s there alright. He just doesn’t want to use it. He denies, it I think."

"You think so?" asked Chama. I wonder why?



There she is.

Shunkaku ducked into an alley making sure Touka didn’t see him. He glanced disdainfully around him. Rubble and debris were scattered everywhere. It was a great surprise to him when instead of going to town, Touka headed for an abandoned section of a small village which was attacked by Kuoto’s soldiers a week before.

Weird girl.

He looked again back at towards her and let out a curse. Dammit, I lost her again! He slipped out of the alley and cautiously ran forward muttering to himself all the while. He was too busy making his way through all the rubbish that he ran past an the alley where Touka turned to. He ran straight ahead till he came to a dead end.

"Fuck it!" he swore. He whirled around, eyes scanning the area frantically. Then a scream sounded to his left. There!

He ran, heading towards the nearest side street. Nothing. Then there was the scream again, only this time it was nearer. Shunkaku moved quickly, hands going to the weapon at his side.

His eyes widened with rage as he turned on the next alley.

Four men were surrounding Touka, one already grasping her by the hair. She saw him and her eyes widened.

"Kouto-kun!" she cried.

Shunkaku froze.

Kouto… He glanced around quickly. There was no one behind him.

When he turned back to her, he saw that her cries had given away his presence.

The man holding her quickly let go of her hair and grabbed her by the arm pinning her against him, her back to his chest and a knife poised beneath her chin.

"Let her go!" he demanded hotly his ryuuseisui poised for combat.

The men laughed.

"What are gonna do, boy? Lasso us to death?" sneered one of them, giving his weapon a look of disdain.

Shunkaku’s hand gripped his weapon so hard his knuckles turned white.

"Get out of here!" one of them said dismissively, "This ain’t any of your business."

"I said let her go!" he growled. He could feel the anger building up inside him. And along with that, a thought gnawed at the back of his mind.

"Hey, c’mon kid. We’re giving you a easy way out here," said the man with his arm around Touka. "What do you want, huh? You want the girl? Well you can have her after we’re through. How’s that?"

His companions cackled.

"BASTARDS!!!"

There was a sharp crack, then a crunching sound.

Touka dropped to her knees while the man holding her crumpled to the ground, both hands covering his face. The man gave a thick guttural cry before blood began to trickle though his hands.

The ryuuseisui snapped back into Shunkaku’s hand.

"Sonofabitch!" one of his companions breathed, looking at Shunkaku with wide eyes.

"Get him!" shouted another.

Shunkaku whirled his ryuuseisui again, catching one man across the stomach leaving a deep slash on his flesh.

As the man fell, Shunkaku swiftly brushed past the third tug and kicked the fourth aside to get to Touka.

"Quick! Stand up! Let’s go!" he shouted at her. He reached out his hand to grab her by the arm when to his surprise, she drew back from him.

"What the…? Touka!?" he shouted at her, pissed. "Move dammit! Let’s go!" He could see her eyes were wide open and was staring at him with an expression akin to…what?…fear?

"Suza…Suzaku!" she whimpered.

Shunkaku frowned then suddenly it hit him. He glanced at his arm and realized he was glowing. A reddish hue enveloped his body. Oh shit. Shunkaku felt the anger and adrenaline rush out of his veins, shock making his blood run cold. The red light surrounding him winked out.

Then the air was knocked out of his lungs. "Uumph!" was all he could utter as he crashed to the ground. One of the thugs had tackled him and was now pinning him down.

The other came up behind him, a dagger in one hand.

"Finish him!" snarled the man who was weighing him down. The man with the dagger quickly advanced.

Shunkaku’s mind raced.

Use it!

Then Touka’s voice broke through his conflicting thoughts.

"Koutoku!"

Shunkaku jerked his head up.

A boy stood at the other end of the alley. The sun was behind him, casting a shadow on his face.

The boy lifted something to his lips and a sharp melody pierced the air. The man pinning Shunkaku down suddenly let go of him, raising his hands to cover his ears.

Shunkaku quickly pushed him off and scrambled up, running towards Touka.

"Cover your ears!" he shouted as he clamped his hands over his ears. Touka followed his example and Shunkaku knelt down beside her, shielding her body with his.

They huddled together for a moment, eyes shut and hands over their ears.

Then Shunkaku felt something warm splatter against his back, soaking through his shirt.

Everything was quiet.

Then Touka moaned.

Shunkaku glanced down at her, and saw her eyes were wide open, staring at something behind him.

He turned slowly and the first thing he saw were the bodies of the thugs sprawled face-down on the ground. Blood was beginning to pool beside the bodies.

He quickly turned back to Touka, crushing her against his chest. "Don’t look…don’t look…" he said as he wrapped his arms around her shaking body.

He gently guided her to a standing position.

"Is she okay? Are you okay?"

Shunkaku stiffened. That voice….

"Hey, is everything alright?" the voice asked again.

No. It’s not him. It can’t be him. Shunkaku loosened his arms from around Touka and placed an arm around her waist to support her. Then they turned around slowly.

Shunkaku froze.

Time seemed to stopped and then his mind blanked. Everything faded away and all he could see was the boy in front of him.

No, it wasn’t a boy. It was an illusion. A mirror. A dream. He stared and stared, afraid that if he moved, the image would shatter into a million pieces.

Yes, it’s an illusion. It’s not real.

His ‘image’s’ lips parted slightly.

"Shun…" it said.

Then reality came rushing back. Shunkaku could now feel the warm wetness clinging to his back, the faint coppery smell of blood in the air and Touka’s weight leaning against him.

"Shunkaku!" said the boy in front of him, his voice a strangled cry. The boy took a step forward, hands outstretched, tears welling up in his eyes.

Shunkaku took a step back. The boy stopped, suddenly confused. "Shun-chan? It’s me…" the boy said softly, taking another step forward.

Shunkaku took another step back, his face hardening.

"Stay back," Shunkaku hissed and the boy looked as if he’d been slapped.

"Who are you?" Shunkaku demanded. "Are you Touka’s lover?"

The boy’s stared at him in shock. "I…I…" the boy said.

"Answer me!" he thundered. "Because if you are I won’t hesitate to kill you!"

Shunkaku felt Touka shift beside him as her shock started to wear off.

"Shunkaku…please," she said.

"Stay out of this Touka. This is what your brother wanted," Shunkaku said coldly, not taking his eyes off the boy in front of him. "Speak up! What have you been doing to Touka?

"Shun-kun! Stop it! Listen to…" Touka begged

"I said stay out of this!" Shunkaku shouted at her. He released her then quickly scanned the ground. His weapon was on the ground behind the boy.

"If you move, I’ll kill you!" he snarled. He made his way slowly towards where his weapon was.

"Shunkaku…" Touka whispered.

When it was within reach, Shunkaku bent down and grabbed his weapon quickly.

The boy looked at him with sad eyes, "Please…" the boy said.

Shunkaku eyed him warily. "Don’t even think I wouldn’t hurt you just because you saved us!"

Touka’s face was tear-streaked. "Stop it, Shunkaku! He’s your brother!"

Brother. Niichan.

Shunkaku lips formed a bitter smile.

"Brother?" He barked out a laugh. "I don’t have a brother! My brother’s dead!"

The boy paled. "Shun-chan…"

"Stop calling me that! My brother is dead! Dead! You hear me?" he screamed. His chest was heaving with anger. He looked the boy in the eye, stared at the face which was a spitting image of his own and said in a low voice, "My brother loved me. He would never leave me. Never. But he did. And so that only means one thing. He’s dead. He must be! He would never leave me, you understand? So, he’s dead! Dead!" He saw tears trickling down the other boy’s face. Something pricked at his eyes. He blinked, fighting back tears of his own.

"Shun-chan…" whispered the boy. Then he turned to Touka.

"Touka. Could you please…?"

"Hai," said Touka softly and she brushed past Shunkaku, giving him one last pleading look.

Koutoku turned back to the boy in front of him. His chest felt so heavy, it was difficult to breath. He wanted to say so much but the words were stuck at his throat.

"He would never leave me. Never."

He took a step forward. This time, Shunkaku didn’t move but Koutoku saw his hand tighten around his weapon.

The silence between them stretched for sometime until Koutoku realized that he was the one who was supposed to speak. Everything had been his fault. He could understand his brother’s anger and pain.

"I…I came back for you the day after you were…taken away from the house," he began.

"I left that night because…because I didn’t think I could stand seeing you being treated the way you were. I was afraid…I was afraid I’d do something bad if I saw them do it again."

He saw Shunkaku’s head jerk up a bit, but if his words had any impact on him, Shunkaku didn’t show it.

"I wanted to tell you that I was leaving that night. I wanted to take you. But I couldn’t. I didn’t think you could have managed it. You were always sick. I couldn’t take you with me, knowing we’d be going around begging for food and sleeping on the ground. I didn’t want you to do that. I thought you’d be better off at the farm. At least you knew you’re gonna get something to eat and a bed to sleep in at the end of the day. I was gonna come back for you as soon as I found the miko…But I’m sorry. For not waiting. I wanted to wait for you until you were ready. I didn’t want to force you. But I figured the sooner I found her, the sooner we could finally leave that awful place. You do understand me? Do you…Shun-chan?"

He looked at Shunkaku who was awfully still. His head was bowed, his bangs obscuring his eyes.

"I was so worried after that," he added. "Worried sick. I looked for you everywhere! I went from village to village. I…" He paused. He thought he heard his brother say something.

"What…?" He paused again when he heard a small sound escape from his brother’s lips.

"….chan," whispered Shunkaku, head still bowed.

"Did you just say…" he began but was cut off when Shunkaku suddenly looked up, tears streaming down his face.

"Nii-chan!" Shunkaku flung himself upon his brother, wrapping him in a fierce hug.

Koutoku was stunned for a moment then his arms went around his brother, returning the hug just as fiercely.

Then, Shunkaku suddenly broke away, brushing his tears aside hastily. "Gomen. I shouldn’t call you that anymore…aniki," he said gruffly.

"Ah, so my Shun-chan has grown up," he said, a bit amused.

Shunkaku scowl at him, "Eh, and don’t call me that anymore, too," he growled softly.

"Gomen…"

They looked at each other and there was an awkward silence.

"Touka!" Koutoku exclaimed abruptly, suddenly remembering.

Shunkaku frowned. "Yes, I almost forgot. How did she…?"

Koutoku held up his hand, silencing him. He walked out of the alley, followed by his twin, and looked around. When they saw no sign of her, he turned to his younger brother.

"Listen, we need to get to the palace as soon as possible!"

Shunkaku looked at him in surprise. "I didn’t think you knew about the uprising."

Koutoku shook his head. "No, it’s not that. We need to stop the Basara."

"What? Do you know what you’re saying?!"

"I know. I know all about it. About you, the plans… Touka told me. You have to listen to me, Shun. We need to stop them. Three of Seiryuu’s seishi have already gathered. The three of them are in the palace! We have to help them."

Shunkaku was silent.

"Don’t you see? There are now five of us! We only need two more and then the miko…"

Shunkaku looked at his brother’s face which was bright with anticipation. It was a familiar look. One his brother always got when he spoke of the miko or the seishi.

He suddenly grabbed a very surprised Koutoku and hugged him tight. "Alright, aniki. We’ll go. We’ll both go." He whispered in his brother’s ear. I’m not going to let anything separate us ever again.

His brother patted him awkwardly on the back. "Alright…" Kotouku said, surprised by Shunkaku’s sudden show of affection.

Shunkaku finally let go then looked him in the eye. "Just promise me one thing, aniki."

His brother gave him a puzzled look. "What is it?"

Shunkaku looked at the ground. "Promise me that you won’t tell anyone about me. About my…"

Koutoku frown but then slowly nodded his head. "Alright. If that’s what you want. But you have to understand. They’ll find out sooner or later."

Shunkaku sighed. "I know."

"Well," said Koutoku, "has it happened yet?"

Shunkaku stiffened. Visions bathed in red suddenly flashed before his eyes. "N…no…" he said, his voice catching. He hated lying to his brother.

Koutoku gave him a bright smile and patted him on the shoulder. "Don’t worry about it. It’ll come out sooner or later. Maybe when we find the miko. But you can trust me. As long as you’re not ready yet, it’ll remain a secret between the two of us."

Shunkaku gave him a tight smile. "Arigatou, aniki."

TBC