Title: Fantasia

Author: Regina Wren

E-mail: wren13 @ gmail.com

Fandom & Pairing: Janne Da Arc; ka-yu x yasu

Keywords: yaoi, romance, AU

Rating: Teens

Words: 19,435

Status: Complete

Disclaimer: I don't hold any rights over anyone contained herein, except for the story, which is mine. And just because I should probably point this out legally: this is a fantasy, plain and simple, it's not meant to harm anyone directly or indirectly, I'm not making any profit from this, and it's only meant for entertainment and enjoyment purposes.

Fantasia
By Regina Wren

Part 4

 

The morning woke Ka-yu with bright rays on his eyelids. The sky had clouded over during the night, but it didn't stop unearthly dazzling light from illuminating the clouds a glaring white. He squinted and rolled to his side, trying to escape the piercing light. Yasu was already up, kneeling by a dead tree nearby, and Ka-yu blinked a few times. No, not just a tree. The entire area around him seemed to have died overnight. The grass was brittle and brown, and the plants hung limp and dry around bare trees.

"Yasu?" Ka-yu sat up, suddenly unnerved. It hadn't been like that last night, had it? "What happened?"

The blonde glanced over his shoulder, worry written clearly across his face. "One of the Forest Gods..." he didn't need to finish the sentence for the hunts master to pick up on what he meant.

Ka-yu was now fully alert. "One of them did this?" He climbed to his feet, moving over to join Yasu. It almost looked like a localised drought had hit and done months worth of damage overnight.

"The spirits are very confused. Things have changed in this forest and confused them. They don't recognise the life they're supposed to be protecting anymore," Yasu's eyes fluttered closed as he spoke. A gentle hand brushed over a cluster of withered flowers that may once have been wild Forget-me-nots but were now nothing more than crumpled leaves and dry petals. But his face looked strained as though he could physically feel their pain.

First the animals disappeared, and now the plants were dying. And whatever happened here would no doubt be mirrored in the Duke's forest too. "Isn't there any way to stop it? Any of this..." Ka-yu watched as Yasu gazed down at the flowers infront of him.

"There is a way," was the determined answer, but he didn't elaborate any further. Instead his fingers only trailed lightly over the browning petals.

Gradually a faint green blush crept up the slender stalks, and a blue glow, like approaching dawn, grew on the petals. The flower heads nodded as they slowly regained their colour, rising slightly, lifting their faces skyward, as though death itself were working backwards. Ka-yu only watched, holding his breath. Emerald life also spread across the grass at Yasu's feet, like water rippling over the forest floor, reviving the brittle grass. Finally that glow crept up the tree trunks to the brown trees. It was as though Yasu were radiating life itself, somehow coaxing the land to respond to his call.

As Ka-yu watched the changing of the plants, mesmerised, it seemed like time were reversed. The trees and plants regained their colour like magic, and the flowers began to bloom again, coming to life in front of his eyes.

Finally Yasu let out a deep breath and stood up. A soft breeze ruffled those newly revived leaves, stirring the flowers, rippling the grass. All gleamed healthy green as though they had always been like that, and only Ka-yu was witness to the fey-touch they had received.

There was a tired little smile on Yasu's face, but he seemed more at peace now the plants grew again. He turned to head back to their fire but stopped abruptly. Infront of his feet lay Ka-yu's rifle where the hunter had put it down on the ground. He paused a moment before carefully stepping around it.

"Sorry," Ka-yu apologised quickly when he realised Yasu's aversion to the weapon. He'd forgotten that Yasu hadn't touched the hunting knife either on that first night.

But the other man just grinned back at him, all worries forgotten in a flash. "I don't like iron, that's all."

Folklore was right about one thing at least, it seemed. "Iron bars a fairy-being's way for all time," Ka-yu quoted to himself, but Yasu apparently heard him and nodded in affirmation.

"That's why we could never survive in the human world. Iron locks and bolts would imprison a fey forever, and that would kill it." Then he smiled, his solemnity gone as quickly as it had come.

Ka-yu was beginning to find the faerie's light-hearted temperament very reassuring, as though as long as Yasu was smiling, all was right with the world.

 

 

* * * * *

Their journey that day took them through a wilderness of stone and stunted trees. The ground was littered with roots and loose rocks, making it rough and unsteady, and slowing down their progress. The trees looming around them were ancient things, gnarled and twisted by age and weathered by the merciless elements until they looked more like bizarre rock formations than trees. Great roots tangled on the ground, and the old branches creaked eerily every time the wind blew. The entire forest here was old and hardened against the will of nature, leaving something undeniably awe inspiring in the air.

Above those ancient giants, the clouds darkened, heralding rain to come, but the uneven ground made progress slow and difficult. At least for Ka-yu, even if Yasu could nimbly skip over the twisting roots and loose rocks, he was only human and not intended to ford a place like this.

Soon they found themselves ascending the side of a hill, where the going got even more difficult on the loose rocks. Yasu was in the lead as usual, his light steps barely touching the ground, let alone dislodging rocky earth as Ka-yu was doing. But unexpectedly, the normally graceful nymph stumbled on his feet. With a sharp intake of breath, Yasu fell to his knees, a hand reaching for his chest.

"Yasu!" Ka-yu scrambled to catch up with the blonde infront of him, concern knotting up in his gut. What force on earth had the power to make someone like Yasu falter, even weakened to the point of collapse?

When he reached Yasu's side the blonde reached out to grasp his shoulder almost desperately. "Yasu?"

A deep shuddering breath was gasped between the normally rosy lips, now deathly pale. His grip on Ka-yu's shoulder was white-knuckled and painful, and his jaw was clenched, beads of sweat making his skin glisten. Some unknown agony seemed to have paralysed his body, that powerful grip unshakable.

But before Ka-yu could ask again Yasu's back suddenly slumped, his forehead hitting Ka-yu's shoulder. At the same time his breathing became more regular, and his grip loosened in relief.

"Yasu, what just happened?"

The elf was breathing deeply, sucking air back into his strained lungs. His voice came low and rough from his throat. "Nothing. Just... I get that sometimes. It's nothing."

Before Ka-yu could even properly register the return of his strength, Yasu straightened and climbed steadily back to his feet as though nothing had happened.

But Ka-yu wasn't dismissed as easily. "Why?"

A casual shrug. "I must have exhausted myself healing those plants." A sudden familiar spark of mischief flashed across the pixie face. "I guess I wasn't quite recovered from healing you yet. You took a lot out of me, big guy," and again he danced away before Ka-yu could retaliate, his step as lively as ever.

Ka-yu sighed in exasperation. "Yasu, one of these days I am going to strap down that tongue of yours!"

Yasu laughed cheekily. "You have to catch me first!"

Muttering about cheeky elves and the unfairness of being stuck with one, Ka-yu clambered after the lithe figure ahead of him. But it was a relief to see Yasu back to normal at least.

"Yasu!"

The golden head turned to look back.

"Promise me something."

"What?"

Ka-yu stumbled to get closer so he didn't have to shout. "Promise me you'll look after yourself." Seeing Yasu falter like that had troubled him more than he wanted to admit, even to himself.

For once Yasu's smile seemed honest, free of cheekiness and mischief. "I promise."

Ka-yu nodded, finally reassured, even if inside he only wanted to berate himself. Despite the smart mouth he was glad Yasu was with him.

 

 

* * * * *

 

 

By the time afternoon settled into evening, the sky had darkened to an almost night time darkness, and threatening clouds were rolling across the heavens. In that gloomy late afternoon, the two found themselves fighting their way down a steep incline. Tangled undergrowth and giant gnarled trees surrounded them on all sides. Only the dense tree-ferns crowding between the trunks broke the monotony of ancient tree giants. Pushing through the leafy jungle, the forest seemed suddenly very green again, the ferns on all sides more shades of green than an artist's pallet, and the moss climbing up grey trunks giving an impression of life back to the age-worn wood.

The sudden sound of water splashing on leaves above his head caused Ka-yu to speed up his steps, though, while trying not to trip in the tangled shrubbery at his ankles, it wasn't easy. A fall down this incline was quite likely deadly.

In the next few minutes large drops splattered heavily on his head with ever increasing frequency, and all Ka-yu could do was follow the blond head leading him on. His foot slipped on a moss-covered root, and reflexively he reached out to grab hold of a nearby branch to stop himself from falling. A second twisted root provided a foothold, and he steadied himself quickly. Water already ran down the trees, making them as slick and wet as the slender fern leaves brushing his face. Within minutes the sky had opened up to dump cherry-sized raindrops over the land.

Through the curtain of rain, the forest became nothing more than a blur of green and grey all around, every direction revealing only more of the same sight. It didn't take long for Ka-yu to be completely soaked under that almost unbreakable sheet of water. That impenetrable rain made it hard to breathe, and he was forced to keep his head down. He had lost sight of Yasu a little while ago, but he had no choice but to continue heading downhill, the way they had been going.

Water ran down his face, and trickled down his neck, cold and unpleasant. His brown hair stuck to his cheeks and his shirt clung to his body, the rain soaking him to the skin in no time.

The hillside seemed endless, and without a clear path to follow, Ka-yu paused in pushing his way through the ferns. Squinting through the downpour he tried to make out the blond form that should be below him somewhere on the hillside, but all he saw was endless green, and ceaseless water pouring from the sky.

Ka-yu swore under his breath. Now what? He'd lost sight of the only guide he had through that wilderness, and he was soaking wet, with no shelter in sight.

"Yasu!" he called out loud, hoping the rain wouldn't drown out his call. For the first time since he'd strayed into this strange world, uneasiness settled around him. This was a foreign place, one where he didn't belong and understood nothing of, and now he was alone too. At least with Yasu around there had been a kind spirit to guide him, and to help him feel like he wasn't completely lost.

Apprehension raised his voice. "Yasu! Where are you?"

Now the unfamiliarity of the place seemed suddenly to be staring him in the face. All at once it hit him that he was far away from everything familiar, with no idea how to get back, and no idea what to do next. It would be night soon and the last light would fade from the forest, and he certainly didn't fancy being alone in the wild at night.

Should he continue downhill? Or had he passed Yasu somewhere uphill without seeing him? There was no way to tell.

Trying to quell the rising hopelessness he called out a third time: "Yasu!" This emptiness was disquieting and this wilderness all the stranger for his isolation.

Ka-yu was still debating what to do, when he felt a hand grip his. A familiar face appeared beside him and Yasu tugged at his arm. His body was similarly drenched, with his hair dripping, damp skin gleaming, and clothes hugging his body tightly.

Relieved, the hunts master just let himself be led unresistingly, down the slope, towards wherever Yasu was headed. The warm hand never let go of his, holding on, and just that mere presence was comforting. How was it that even the weather didn't seem quite so bad now that Yasu was back?

Through the dripping plants, drenched trees and rocky outcrops Yasu led the way. At last, after stepping around a large milk-quartz boulder, the rain abruptly ceased falling on them. Ka-yu looked up to find himself in the ruins of an old... temple? Whatever it was, there was a roof over their heads. This place had been carved out of the quartz in the hillside to form a building. Maybe it had held great meaning to whoever constructed it, but the years had aged it into little more than a cave leading into the hillside.

It must have been beautiful once. A temple carved into milk-white quartz - no doubt it would gleam in the sunlight - with elaborate carvings of plants and animals on the walls. But centuries of disuse left only the faint echo of a forgotten world. However, it was dry and sheltered, so it would serve to keep them housed for the night.

Yasu had already started a fire and was currently flipping excess water from his hair. A large fluffy blanket occupied one corner; how Yasu had managed to cram that into his tiny pack Ka-yu didn't even bother questioning. At any rate, it looked like they were staying here overnight.

"Hang out your clothes by the fire," Yasu called out to the hunts master as he crouched over the blanket to make a somewhat comfortable bed.

He was right, Ka-yu decided. His clothes could dry while he slept, so he simply did as Yasu suggested. Some branches had been leaned up against the wall, and he spread his sodden clothes out across them so that they would dry as quickly as possible.

Turning to see Yasu doing the same, Ka-yu headed over to slip into the makeshift bed in the corner. The grey material was warm and soft against his skin, and Ka-yu remembered it from the first night Yasu had taken care of him. Now that he had the chance to examine it, he could only gather that it was a material he'd never come across before.

"Yasu. How much further are we going to be travelling?" he asked to lighten the silence that had settled around them.

He heard the smile in Yasu's voice. "Not much. We should be home tomorrow." Ka-yu felt the blankets shift as Yasu climbed in on the other side.

Home. Yasu's home, he meant.

"Get some sleep," the fey told him pleasantly. "You'll need to be rested for tomorrow."

Ka-yu suppressed the urge to sigh as he felt the blankets move beside him. There was sunshine in that voice, strangely reminding him of a merrily bubbling stream in the forest. And his heart ached. He knew how dangerous it could be to open your heart to someone who wasn't from your world. And Yasu wasn't even human.

Besides, he didn't even know anything about the fey. What did Yasu want? Were his flirting gestures real, or was Ka-yu just his new toy until he grew tired of playing? Could a wood-spirit even grow emotionally attached to someone? Or was he too flighty to ever give himself wholeheartedly?

Ka-yu closed his eyes, his back still turned to his companion. He'd known Yasu for only two days and yet everything inside him was telling him that he was already growing too attached. Caring a little too much, trusting just a little too soon. But he couldn't help it. He liked having Yasu beside him. Something had drawn him to the fey the moment he met him.

Undoubtedly, this could only end painfully. He didn't belong here any more than Yasu belonged in his world.

"Mind where your dreams wander tonight," Yasu's voice murmured into his ear. "I can watch over your body, but there are dark things out there that prey on your dreams."

"Don't worry," Ka-yu muttered sleepily. Yasu's bed was so warm. "The only thing I'll dream about is a noisy pixie who alternately teases me and looks out for me."

Yasu giggled and squirmed trying to get his hips comfortable against the hard ground. "Dreaming about me?" he sounded so cute and happy when he said that. "Well then you couldn't be safer."

It was all Ka-yu heard before he drifted off to sleep. He never knew how Yasu stayed up after he closed his eyes, nor did he see the pensive smile that dipped that pink mouth sadly as he watched the sleeping man beside him.