Fujimiya Ran sat, cross-legged, on the wooden floor, head bowed over the sheathed katana that rested across his thighs. The blood-red stone on its hilt seemed to wink up at him, reminding him of the burden and blessings he had taken on with his agreement to become a Vessel for the element of Fire. Now he had to face the other three elemental Vessels to see if they could join together to create the perfect whole. A basically shy young man, the thought almost terrified him. Supposing he wasn�t strong enough or they didn�t mesh, as they should?
He drew in a deep breath and remembered the reasons why he had agreed to try to wield the Fire weapon. The quest he had to avenge his dead parents and sister. To take up arms both physical and metaphysical against the evil warlord Takatori Reiji.
It was time to go. He rose gracefully to his feet and took his leave of the four elderly wise men that had helped him find this path. Then, without a backward glance, he headed towards a particular flower shop in the capital city.
* * * * * * *
"Here he comes!"
Omi�s excited voice reached into the shop drawing Ken and Yohji to the door. They gazed up the street to see a tall young man with hair the color of blood and a long katana at his side. He was dressed in a simple kimono and hamaka both black, white undergarments and a cotton haori also black. He stopped upon seeing them seemingly unsure of how to proceed. Omi rushed forward, a smile on his face, his hands outstretched.
"Welcome," he greeted excitedly. "I am Omi, Vessel of Air." His smile slipped a little when the redhead stepped back a pace, hand on the hilt of his katana. A wary look came into the stranger�s icy lilac eyes.
"I am... I am the Vessel of Fire," he said uncertainly. He seemed to notice the almost stricken look in Omi�s huge blue eyes for he then said, "Gomen, I am not very good with strangers." Omi brightened again almost immediately.
"That�s okay," he said. "Doubtless you�ll get used to us in time and then we won�t be strangers, ne? This is Ken, he�s Earth, and this is Yohji who is, of course, Water." The newcomer nodded his head politely but said nothing.
Omi�s expressive face fell again, as he tried to find a way to put their new addition at ease. He was at a loss as to how to proceed with such a shy, cold-seeming young man. Before anything came to mind, matters were taken out of his hands.
Ken jumped forward, his face twisted with anger, and knocked the newcomer to the ground. "Who the hell do you think you are? Omi�s done nothing to you. There�s no reason that you should upset him like that!"
Rage flared immediately in the unusual eyes and the stranger jumped to his feet and smashed a fist into Ken�s face forcing the brunette to stagger back a step or two.
Omi glanced beseechingly at Yohji, who stood with his back to the doorway, an amused expression on his handsome face. The Water Vessel merely shrugged.
"Let them get it out of their system, kiddo," he suggested. Omi frowned at this blas� attitude and turned his attention back to the fight. Both Ken and the Fire Vessel were giving as good as they got and it was turning into quite a nasty little fight. Neither man seemed prepared to give an inch, jumping back up immediately if they were knocked down.
Omi stamped his foot. "Yohji-kun, do something!"
Finally Yohji stepped forward just as both fighters got in simultaneous good hits and knocked each other out.
Omi glared at him. "Well, thank you for being so useful!" He had the minor satisfaction of seeing the Water Vessel�s eyes widen in surprise at his angry tone.
"Should we just leave them there, or shall I turn the hose on them?" he inquired. Omi frowned at him.
"We can�t just leave them in the street, Yohji-kun," he protested. Yohji sighed.
"Fine," he snapped, "you take care of Ken while I deal with the new guy." So saying he bent down and hauled the newcomer over his shoulder and carried him through the shop and into the house at the back.
Omi knelt by Ken�s side wanting to slap the unconscious man himself. He restrained the urge and shook him back to wakefulness instead.
* * * * * * *
Yohji climbed the stairs and deposited the Fire Vessel on his bed, his room being behind the first door he came to. The man sighed slightly and snuggled into the blankets, murmuring something unintelligible. Yohji sighed again and sat down on a chair to watch over the unconscious man.
There was simply no getting past the sheer loveliness of the young man on his bed. Only the almond-shaped slant of his eyes spoke of his Japanese blood. The hair and eye color along with the creamy skin were pure gaijin. The overall effect was totally stunning and Yohji felt a slight stirring in his loins at the sight.
The redhead moaned softly and tossed and turned a little. "Aya," he muttered making Yohji wonder who the girl might be, a lover, perhaps, or a sister, who could tell? A few moments later the violet eyes opened and narrowed slightly.
"Where am I?"
"In my bed," Yohji said calmly. "I really couldn�t be bothered to carry you all the way down the hall to yours. I�m Yohji, by the way."
The redhead merely glared at him and climbed off the bed, obviously a prelude to heading for the door.
"Talkative aren�t you?"
The man stopped and turned to look at him. "No," he said simply.
Yohji frowned but tried again. "So, do you happen to have a name?"
"Not one that matters anymore."
"Hmm. Perhaps I should call you Aya then." The redhead stiffened at the sound of the name on Yohji�s lips before he visibly forced himself to relax again.
"Fine," he said curtly, "call me Aya if you wish. It�ll do." Then he was gone and Yohji felt strangely lonely.
He shook the feeling off after a moment or two and wandered back down to the shop to see how the other two were doing. Omi was bending over Ken and from the expression on the boy�s face, he wasn�t happy with his brunet friend. "That was hardly a proper welcome, Ken-kun," he was saying sternly. Yohji chuckled in remembrance.
"It was exactly the same welcome I got from Ken. What makes our fiery friend so special?" Omi glanced up at him, frowning slightly.
"Do you have any idea of how rare it is to find a Vessel for Fire, Yohji-kun?" he demanded.
"No rarer than any of the rest of us, at a guess."
"No, its much rarer. After I was chosen by Air, I studied all the ancient texts I could find on the subject of Vessels. There are potential Vessels for Air, Earth and Water in the world at nearly all times. Potential Vessels for Fire come along only once in every ten or twelve generations and even then they don�t necessarily pass the initiation test. The stone in that sword has burnt the hand of several failures in the past. This is the first time that a Vessel has been found for Fire in over two thousand years!"
"Well I guess that put me in my place!" Yohji said wryly. Ken chuckled at the comment which was a mistake as Omi turned angry eyes back to him.
"And as for you, Ken-kun...he could have killed you with a thought, you baka!" Both Ken and Yohji widened their eyes at that.
"He�s really that dangerous?" Yohji asked, remembering his own teasing of the redhead and swallowing hard.
"Fire is the most unstable of all the elements. It needs fine control and great strength to harness, to become a Vessel for it. If you enrage our new friend too much, he may well lose that control."
Beside him, Ken managed to look somewhat abashed. "I�m sorry, Omi, I didn�t think," he said. "I just saw him upsetting you and I had to act."
Omi made a small sound of impatience and rolled his eyes. "Much as I appreciate your over-protective urges, Ken, I really don�t need them. Now, if you�re able to stand, perhaps we should re-open the shop!"
* * * * * * *
Up in his own room, Aya unbuckled the katana and placed it reverently on its stand before unpacking the rest of his pitifully few possessions. While he placed his clothes in the cedar chest provided, his thoughts strayed to the other Vessels.
Omi seemed to be talkative and possibly far more clever than his youth suggested. Aya guessed him to be about sixteen though he was still quite short for his age. He also guessed that the boy wasn�t above using those wide, innocent eyes to get what he wanted. Aya marked the Air Vessel as being very bright, very dangerous and plainly used to getting his own way due to his enhanced manipulative skills.
Ken was an obvious hothead, acting without thought. Aya smiled slightly as he realized what had set Ken off. He was highly protective of young Omi even though he was probably only two or three years older. But then, it would make sense for sensual Earth to think about the boy as more than a friend. The thought made Aya frown slightly. Did Ken see him as a rival for Omi�s affections? He shook his head. No, the thought was ludicrous and besides, he had no time for such things.
And that neatly and instantly brought his thoughts to Yohji. The Water Vessel was both beautiful and languorous which was to be expected. What was unexpected was the hidden strength in that lanky body. Equally unexpected was Aya�s reaction to hearing his assumed name uttered in that husky voice. He pushed the thought away angrily. He was not going to be taken in by Water�s wiles!
He swiftly finished unpacking his meager belongings and made his way down to the shop to find out what they expected of him.
* * * * * * *
Meanwhile, in another part of the city, hazel eyes snapped open in a frowning, gaijin face. "Fire has been found and joined the other Vessels. This could make life very much more interesting."
The other man in the room, another gaijin with long red-gold hair, smirked. "The powers that be must consider Essett dangerous enough to pit the Vessels against us. The first such threat for more than two millennia."
"Don�t be so sure, Schuldig," the first gaijin said, holding up a hand, "I have seen the whole Balance wobbling. There are others involved who would topple the Balance over into Chaos."
"I thought that was our job."
"No, we merely need to tip the Balance enough to allow the Elders� plans for their ceremony to come to fruition. I am sensing a third force that wishes to bring an end to humanity, as we know it. We may even have to aid the Vessels from time to time."
"That might be fun. All four of them have very interesting minds. I would love to toy with them."
"Only when and if I say that you can." Schuldig�s face fell and the smirk became a pout.
"Awww! You�re no fun at all, Brad!"
"Don�t worry, Schuldig, you will get your fun. Though not necessarily with the Vessels. With them, our future is far too entwined. It would be wise not to make enemies of them if possible." No, they needed them as allies.
"We work for the Takatori clan, and they won�t tolerate the appearance of the Vessels in their plans."
"I know, and the new Fire Vessel has cause to hate them, Reiji especially. If we don�t want their enmity we will need to tread very carefully indeed."
Schuldig stared at him, a bemused expression in his green eyes. "Why do I get the feeling that you�re hiding things from me?"
Brad Crawford frowned slightly. Sometimes his lover and friend was far too observant for his own good.
"The Vessels being in the world seems to change things more than I�d realized," he said eventually. "My visions have changed completely. Schu, it is imperative that we don�t make enemies of them or allow harm to come to them. It may be the very reason why we are in the world." The green eyes widened but Schuldig said nothing. The years had taught him to trust Crawford�s visions.
Crawford nodded as he saw his partner�s acquiescence. It was enough for now. There was no way that he could trust Schuldig�s temperament with the rest of his vision. Best to keep the possible future of freedom to himself until he was certain he, or possibly the Vessels, could make it happen.
~TBC~