by Karma
Tsuzuku stood before the prince protectively, his mind reeling from shock of what the beast said.
He wants...Arslan!?
What the hell!?
"Get behind me," he warned the prince, not bothering to look back or to stop and ask himself why he was protecting him. Frightened, the blue-eyed boy silently obeyed, stepping behind him.
Like I'm going to give that bastard what he wants!
The bull-headed monster laughed in delight. His voice echoed as he spoke contemptuously. "Whoever thought that HE would be here? With him in our hands, there will be no question who the ruler of the Tenkai is." He took one menacingly step forward, towards Arslan and Tsuzuku. Tsuzuku braced himself to attack.
Recovering from the initial shock of the beast's appearance, Guibu reacted. He slashed at the monster with the same sword that he had beaten Bodon with only minutes earlier. The sword connected with flesh, but to his horror, the creature only smiled slightly in reaction.
"As if an ordinary human could harm me," he laughed. He gripped the end of the sword and shoved Guibu backwards left, towards Farangis, who had been hurrying over with Jaswont. Guibu's body sailed through the sky and made its landing, knocking both minstrel and the priestess unconscious.
He's just as strong as one of us!
Tsuzuku thought quickly. Hajime and Amaru are still weak and they're still a distance away from us to be of any help, unless we held out for a few more seconds.
The ex-assassin moved protectively before Arslan and Tsuzuku. Moving swiftly, he jabbed his sword up, gouging the monster's right eye.
The Gyuren cried out in surprise and pain. Angry, he caught the assassin's arm, and before the Shindran could do anything, he flung the dark human to the right with monstrous strength that was appropriate to the size of his gigantic body. The assassin fell back without a sound, as quiet as he always was.
Several arrows struck the Gyuren, courtesy of Melain. He took them in without comment, as if perhaps he did not feel the pain. Realizing that in a few seconds the rest of the Ryuushu might recover enough to move come over and start attacking, he moved for his goal.
"Get back Your Highness!" Darun struck the bull beast from the back with such force that he fell forward, stumbling a few steps to catch himself from falling. Unfortunately, this only brought him closer to his goal: Arslan.
That idiot! Tsuzuku silently cursed as the bull stumbled close to them. Gathering his strength, he punched the tall Gyuren in the stomach with the strength that only dragons possessed. He watched with satisfaction as the beast groaned and doubled over in pain.
Darun clubbed the monster's back with his sword once more, wielding it as if it were a hammer, focusing more on the force than the cut.
Struck from both the front and the back, the bull fell, stomach down, to the ground.
Immediately, the red dragon moved to kick him while he was down. I should've stomped on his head when I got a chance! He managed to stomp on the bull's neck twice, before a hand shot out from under him and caught his leg. With great effort, the creature that had replaced Bodon shoved the second eldest Ryudo. Caught off balance, Tsuzuku was knocked back, making contact with the ground with his back as he landed.
Before anyone else moved, the bull's other brown arm snatched out before him. He crawled a little forward, eager to catch his prize before retreating. His efforts were not in vain, and his hand tightened around the prince's heel. In one smooth motion, the Gyuren yanked the young prince towards his body.
Arslan lost his footing and fell backwards. The bull beast pulled Arslan forward by the leg, reached over, and grabbed the royal throat with his free arm.
Darun immediately started towards him.
"Anyone step any closer," the Gyuren warned, "And I'll snap Hoshiki's neck in half like a stick."
Darun stopped in mid-step.
"That's better."
There was a tense moment of inaction.
Crouching on the ground, Tsuzuku cursed his own stupidity.
Arslan winced. The bull monster gripped his neck tight enough so that he could barely find the strength to move, hard enough so that it was difficult to breathe, but careful enough as to not kill his prisoner. Vainly, he swung his leg and tried to kick the beast, but the movement was weak and he was rapidly finding himself grow weaker by the minute. With his last strength, he reached his right arm behind him, drew his sword in one smooth motion, and struck the beast in the head.
So hard was the creature's head that the sword vibrated violently from the action. Already weakened, Arslan lost his grip and the sword dropped to the ground with a sharp metallic clang.
The beast smiled in triumph. Behind him and Arslan, a dark white light opened forth, forming a portal for his retreat. Briefly, a bright blue light flashed, but it flashed only once for shorter than a fraction of a second, almost like a blink of an eye.
That monster is NOT getting what he wants! Tsuzuku thought ferociously.
The blue light flashed one last time, brighter and more intense than before. It reached everyone nearby, spreading out from its source. For a moment, it blinded Tsuzuku, and for an instant, he could not see where he was.
And for an instant, he thought he was someone else.
Chuukei-niisama!
Oniisama!
What?
Let's go play outside!
Yeah, let's go, let's go! The Imperial Palace is so boring everywhere else!
No, you two go on ahead.
Aww...
How boring!
Tsuzuku blinked. As quickly as the imagery came, it disappeared and he saw, before him, the bull beast holding a semi-conscious Arslan. Behind him the dark portal was getting larger and he *knew*, that the beast was going to kidnap the Crown Prince of Palse.
Following his instincts, he took two steps forward and jumped forward at them both.
As he did so, the beast stepped back into the light with his prisoner.
Tsuzuku fell in after them. All he could see was an intensely dark white light and it blinded all of his senses.
And then darkness.
"Tsuzuku-aniki!"
Owaru got there just in time to watch his older brother vanish into the portal after the bull beast. He moved forward to jump after his brother, but the light vanished and he landed on the ground where the three had been just seconds before.
"ANIKI!!!"
Eventually, the brothers accustomed themselves to the prince's presence. He was a quiet being, but one whose each word was a carefully chosen prism of wisdom. The sky-haired being gave his opinion when asked, and held his tongue when not.
Kouryuu-ou found that it was quite easy to surprise the prince with new sights, and he took it upon himself to do so as often as he could. For more often that not, his surprise was one of delight, a look of amazement and a thrilled smile upon his lips, akin to his first tour around the palace. He was amazed by all of Kokoryuu-ou's animal servants. He was easily impressed by Hakuryuu-ou's demonstrations of strength. Hoshiki was gleeful when he discovered Seiryuu-ou's library. And with all the moments he did not spend examining the other three, he spent with the Red Dragon King, who showed him other, lesser impressive places and events of the palace that its occupants had taken for granted.
The arrangement was not as Kouryuu-ou had hoped. The Red Dragon King of the South Sea had been, after all, deeply in love with his servant. He would have been happier had the arrangement never happened. Still, he could not deny that it was not as bad as he thought it would be. The Star Prince was a nice person, and...becoming a close friend...
He sailed out of the darkness and landed with a loud 'thud.'
"Oof!"
Tsuzuku tackled the monster to the ground and smiled when he heard the beast cry out in surprise. He pulled Arslan away from the startled bull, and then delivered another kick, sending the thing into the road.
There was a screeching of wheels, and Tsuzuku watched with satisfaction as the force of the swerving truck smacked the tall beast off the bridge and into the deep waters below.
Wait a minute.
Headlights shone brightly and blinded him in the shadowy darkness. Tsuzuku heard another car honking at him, and he quickly moved out of its path, carrying an unconscious Arslan with him.
Cars?
He looked around in amazement, and realized that he was in Tokyo. It was night.
Home, sweet home.
Shit.
Where was he?
Who was he?
Who am I?
He heard a sobbing sound and moved towards it.
There, he found a young boy with bright red hair. The boy was sitting by himself, hugging his knees and crying softly alone. Upon the sound of his footsteps, however, he looked up and smiled at whom he saw.
"You found me!" The boy walked towards him. And as he did so, he changed, growing. Then, a prepubescent. Then, a teenager.
And then, himself.
His reflection gave his usual charismatic smile that had won so many hearts and passionate nights before.
And he stepped forward, hugged himself, and went into himself.
And he became himself.
He woke up to the sound of sharp, angry voices. He felt worn, weary, his body ached, his eyes were dry... And yet, curiously, part of him was happy. No, not happy exactly. More like...deeply satisfied. Refreshed.
Slowly, he sat up and looked around him. The first person he saw was her, Lady Farangis, priestess of Misra. She was lying down, rubbing her head absent-mindedly. Based on the weary way that she blinked, he guessed that she had only awakened minutes before him.
"Lady Farangis."
She turned to him and gave him a wry smile, then slowly sat up. "You are a lot heavier than you look, Minstrel."
"My apologies, My Lady. I must admit that these were not the circumstances under which I had hoped you would discover that fact."
She gave him a startled look, and he returned it with his most innocent, as if he had no idea of the implications that he had just spoken of. Inside, he laughed with delight to see her thrown off so completely, and was happier even more to note the look of embarrassment that flashed quickly over her fair face.
Deciding it was best to change the subject before she got angry, Guibu spoke quickly. "What are they arguing about?"
Distracted, she turned towards the direction of the voices, watched, and listened.
"It's not OUR fault that he got kidnapped! It's not like we KNEW who kidnapped him!"
"Owaru!"
"Well, it's true! I'm not stupid! I see the resentment they feel towards us, Aniki, but it's not our fault--"
"Owaru, that's enough!"
The white dragon fell into a resentful silence.
"I'm sorry about my younger brother's behavior." Hajime paused, and then stole a glance at Jaswont, who was emanating a dangerous aura of anger. "Doubtless, we are partially responsible for the disappearance of the prince. But we'll do everything in our power to get him back."
Narcasse turned to Darun. "Well, at least our prince is with Tsuzuku." At the look of surprise that crossed over Hajime's face, the strategist smiled slightly. He was the one of the few on Arslan's side that did not seem angry with the Ryudo family. Jaswont and Darun were angry, although neither said so much in words. Melain, as always, was indifferent; Eram and Alfreed were both upset in general, though more so as a reaction to everything that had just happened.
"Your brother," said the strategist. "Once implied that he could 'feel' where you were. Is that true? That you can sense, instinctively, where your other brother is?"
After a moment of hesitation, Hajime nodded.
The strategist assessed the situation and took charge. "Then we don't have a moment to lose to our quarreling. Let's go find them." He paused. "Eram."
"Yes?"
"How are the wounded?"
"Amaru is still out." The former slave spotted Guibu and Farangis watching them. "And it looks like Guibu and Farangis just woke up."
Narcasse turned towards Hajime. "How close do you sense them?"
Close. He uses terms like "close" rather than "far." Narcasse is always careful of his speech, as if he knew the full effects of each of his diction.
Like me.
Guibu shook his head slightly, as if to physically clear his mind of his thoughts.
The eldest Ryudo hesitated. "I'm not sure." He frowned. "He must be very far, because I'm having problems sensing him at all."
He walked home carrying the prince, his senses dazzled by all of the old, familiar sights and sounds. Smog. Cars. Honks. Roads. Streetlights. He recognized where he was at, and it did not take him long to find the way back to his house. Luckily, they had landed not far from the Ryudo home, and so after walking quickly for about ten minutes, he arrived at his house.
Arslan was still unconscious.
The doors and windows were locked, so Tsuzuku was forced to break into one of the latter quietly, so as to not disturb anyone in the neighborhood. Windows were, after all, much cheaper to replace than doors. I'll just apologize to Niisan later. He'll understand.
He set Arslan down, climbed through the window, opened the front door, went outside, and brought the prince inside.
After a moment of thought, he placed the prince down on the nearby living room couch, then proceeded to examine him.
His neck's still partially red from the bull's grip on it. His pulse is a little weak, but he's not in any critical condition. He's bruised up a little from the fall, but other than that, he seems to be okay. With a little luck, he'll be fine in no time.
In fact...why's he unconscious in the first place?
The only explanation Tsuzuku could think of was that when he had tackled the bull, the beast had squeezed the poor prince's neck a little too tightly in surprise.
Either that, or like Matsuri, the travel through space and time was hard on him.
Then why do I feel all right?
Uncertainly, the red dragon did a mental check on his own health.
But he felt fine: healthy and alive. Like always.
He went upstairs and came down with a spare blanket. Unceremoniously, he covered the prince with it, went to the kitchen to get himself a snack, found nothing, and then came back empty-handed to sit down to think. He ended up leaning against a corner of the couch, while sitting on the carpeted floor-- even though his brother was not there, Tsuzuku was still aversive to sitting in Hajime's chair.
Okay, I'm finally home, with only a few problems:
1) None of my family is with me.
2) Arslan has to be sent back to his home, because he's a very important person there.
3) We have an unknown number of enemies that are dangerously powerful and who now, for reasons that elude me, want Arslan.
He glanced at the prince, who was lying there peacefully, and sighed.
In summary: how did we get here, who are we fighting, and how can we get back?
Tired, the events of the day finally caught up to him, and soon he drifted off to sleep.
It had not been intentional. He had thought that there was no reason why they could not be friends, but this did not mean that he had truly *wanted* to be friends.
But friends they had become, Kouryuu-ou realized one morning when they were eating together. As the prince's husband, he had initially felt obligated to keep the prince company. It prevented anything possibly scandalous from occurring between the prince and the Red Dragon King's younger brother. It was also partially out of spite, for if he was denied the company of the one he loved, should the prince not deserve the same?
As he got to know Hoshiki better, however, he knew that the prince would never attempt anything that would break their contract, even if the contract had been forced upon him unwillingly.
"Something wrong?" Inquired the prince. He cast a look of worry in the Red Dragon King's direction, which the latter could not help but notice.
When did it become like this? When did he stop resenting Hoshiki in its entirety, when did his company become bearable, when did it begin to feel natural to spend time with him?
When did they become friends?
When did he learn to care for the Star Prince, just as Hoshiki was now watching him with concern?
"I was just reflecting," Kouryuu-ou confessed.
"Reflecting?"
"Reflecting."
Arslan dreamed.
"Tell me again," he said, his voice in shock and denial. He had walked in on their conversation-- how could he not, when all of the most important people in the house were here, right now, talking about matters such as this?
Seiryuu-ou looked pained. "Are you sure you want to hear this, Hoshiki?"
"After I'm forced into a marriage against my will and kicked from my home into yours, do you really think that anything my father said will surprise me now?"
He shouldn't have said the words... He didn't mean them! He just hated the thought of being excluded from this family too, after losing his other one. Secrets set walls up between others, and he wanted none of that! He was tired of always being left out when others discussed things that involved him...
But still...he should not have said that... the implications of his words...they said that he hated it here, hated everyone here, hated his marriage...
While such was not exactly true.
Stunned, but unwilling to comment on it, Seiryuu-ou looked at his younger brothers. The two youngest looked hurt, Kouryuu-ou had a careful mask of indifference.
"By all means then, let's tell him," said the second eldest Go.
Seiryuu-ou watched his brother for a brief moment, then returned his attention to Hoshiki.
"The Gyuushu clan is starting up trouble on the Jikai. The Human Sphere. They are interfering with the lives of humans-- murder, insurrection, riots-- deliberately going against your father's wishes. I was just summoned by the Emperor. He wants us to battle them."
"And...?"
"If we win, we get half of the Jikai back. The Gyuushu clan will be banished to the Western half of the Human Sphere, and we will take the East."
"If we lose..."
"We lose the Earth completely to them." Here Seiryuu-ou, the youngest Go clan leader to ever come into existence, paused to watch him with a sad expression. "And everyone in the Go clan will be destroyed."
"And, by simple definition...because of the marriage...that includes you."
He awoke with a start and then calmed when he realized it had only been a dream. What the...? The sun was shining in his eye, although it was on its way to setting, and the majority of the light shining through the window was partially obscured by the drapery besides it.
Dazed, the Crowned Prince of Palse sat up. He blinked in surprise when he looked at his surroundings. From the corner of his eye, he saw a figure, and he turned to get a better look.
It was the second eldest Ryudo. The dragon was sitting on the floor, leaning against the couch, and completely asleep. Upon seeing him, Arslan gave a small sigh of relief; at least he was not in this strange place alone. Gingerly, he moved his legs so that his feet touched the floor, and got ready to stand up.
Apparently the Ryudo was a light sleeper, for he woke soon after the movement, and sat up straight. His bright cinnamon eyes met the prince's blue in alarm, and then relaxed into recognition.
They stared at each other for a heartbeat. Then another passed, and Arslan finally realized that he was staring. Feeling embarrassed, he broke the eye contact and looked around. Faintly, he could hear some background noises from the window, but otherwise, the place that they were in was relatively quiet.
"Where are we?"
The other stretched his arms and stood up.
"Tokyo, Japan."
At the inquisitive look at he received from Arslan, Tsuzuku elaborated. "My home. We've been sleeping for a while; the sun's almost about to set."
"Oh." Somehow, Arslan was not surprised. He looked around and asked tentatively, "The monster?"
"He fell off a bridge. I don't think it killed him, but it slowed him down long enough for us to make our escape." Tsuzuku paused. "Any idea why he was after you?"
Arslan shook his head. "By the way he was acting, I thought that you knew him."
"Never seen him before in my life."
"Ah." The prince frowned. "Any idea how we got here?"
"None."
Arslan accepted this quietly. Feeling helplessly lost, he tried to smile, but it faltered. For a moment, he closed his eyes and almost gave into the despair that was creeping over him. Now he knew how the Ryudos must have felt when they showed up in his world, separated. In a completely alien landscape with bizarre sights and sounds that were utterly unfamiliar to the senses...
"Come on." The smooth voice interrupted his train of thought. Arslan looked up and his eyes were treated to the sight of Tsuzuku standing before him, bathed in the colors of the orange-pink skylight that peaked through the window, his hand out stretched towards him.
"There's no point in us sitting around and moping. Let's get going."
Tentatively, Arslan took his hand and the red dragon pulled him onto his feet. "How are you feeling, by the way?" The Ryudo brother suddenly remembered to ask.
At least...I'm not alone here... The prince smiled. "Better, thanks."
"Wonderful. We've lost the prince, we've lost your brother, they're facing a monster on their own with no one to protect them, AND there's no way we can track them down," Darun said.
"It can't be THAT hard. Just look for another dragon in the sky to appear when Tsuzuku gets attacked," Guibu offered as consolation. He regretted the words immediately when he received sharp looks from both Hajime and Darun.
Oh, well... "It'll be hard to hide a dragon as large as Amaru's. I'm assuming, of course, that all of you can transform like your younger brother?"
Hajime nodded ever so slightly, and the minstrel continued. "So we'll just look for strange creatures that appear in the sky."
"How often do you transform? I mean, what are the circumstances?" Narcasse asked the Hajime.
"Not very often. It's all very new to us. That was Amaru's third transformation, the others have only transformed once each..." Hajime stopped himself. "Actually, I think Tsuzuku might have transformed twice. I think he might have transformed right before we came here, which is why he woke up here--"
"Without his clothes on," Guibu finished.
"Right. Without his clothes on. In any case, it appears so far that we only transform when we're near death or in great pain."
"Why did you NOT SAY SO EARLIER?" Darun demanded.
"Because YOU guys were already suspicious enough! Like you'd believe this too!" Owaru exploded. "And anyway, you guys should be HAPPY. At least Tsuzuku DOVE after the prince. Otherwise, he would've disappeared alone! And anyway, Tsuzuku-aniki's awesome. He won't let anything happen to Arslan. So why don't you try to be just a LITTLE glad that we're here-- I mean, sure the prince has been kidnapped, but at least he's with a RYUDO. He'll be fine!" the white dragon declared with utter conviction.
"Owaru!" Hajime reprimanded.
A moment of uncomfortable silence ensued when the second youngest Ryudo fell quiet. It was interrupted by sounds of light laughter. Startled, everyone looked at the source.
Guibu.
The minstrel chuckled lightly. When he felt everyone's eyes upon him, he smiled slightly. "I'm sorry, it's just the irony. Here we all, all prepped up, grown in numbers, and ready to follow our leader prince to the end for truth, justice, peace, and then he gets kidnapped!" Guibu shook his head slightly, moving the red bangs out of his face. He couldn't help it; he was in a good mood. It IS funny, if someone here has an appreciation for irony. We came here looking for our prince, who was set off alone, and then we lost him.
"Guibu," a voice said softly.
Turning, he smiled at the beautiful priestess, whose face was one that he never grew tired of seeing. I never did tell her, did I...? When I was dying beneath the moon, the lady herself distracted by visions of other dragons. I never did tell her that I love her. I don't remember much of that moment-- I was starting to get a bit delirious then. But I don't think I was able to tell her.
I suppose one of these days, I should.
I shall.
The priestess watched him with a slightly puzzled look. Quietly, she tugged his arm gently and by mutual agreement, they moved aside, a little away from the main group so as to be harder to overhear. "Do you remember how you first met Tsuzuku?" she asked, her clear green eyes curious.
It was the natural curiosity that followed when she realized that what Guibu had said regarding Tsuzuku was something only the "real" Guibu could say.
"It is with the greatest pleasure, My Lady, that I may tell you that I do, indeed, remember that." Guibu turned towards her, and gave a flourishing bow. "As I am also able to recall the day that Fate stumbled into my path and I," here he bent low, took her hand, and kissed the back of it with great extravagance, "met you."
His actions did indeed startle her. Wisely, Guibu chose then to let go of her hand and then stand up, smiling slightly, in case she lost her temper.
To her credit, Farangis did nothing of that sort. "You have most of your memories back now?"
And he fervently wished that the slight tilting of her voice pitch indicated her joy at the news. With a grin, he nodded. I know that right now is an awful time. We've lost our prince, and there's a large possibility that the next time we find him, he'll be in smaller pieces.
And yet, I can't deny how feel it goods to be myself.
Finally.
"How is that...possible? What happened?" Farangis asked, stunned.
"I don't know-- it just came back to me when I woke up." Anything happen when I lost my memory? I almost died. Anything happen when I regained it? We fought in a battle against a monster, although I was not really injured. But other than that, how are the two incidents related?
And then he remembered.
Prince Arslan.
"First things first," the red dragon said. He eyed the Palsian prince with concern. "You aren't suffering from any internal injuries, are you?"
Arslan hesitated, then shook his head.
"In that case, there's nothing that requires immediate attention," Tsuzuku paused and then shrugged. The two of them were in the kitchen, munching on a tiny box of Pocky that Owaru had apparently tried to stash away. Not a very nutritious meal, but it was the best that they could find under the circumstances. There was very little ready-to-eat food in the house-- Owaru ensured that such items did not last long, and the Tsuzuku did not want to take the time to look for ingredients and cook themselves a full meal.
Arslan, of course, could not cook because he did not know what half of the ingredient packages were.
Tsuzuku asked, "So what do you suggest we do now?"
Arslan frowned. "You recognized the name that the monster addressed you as, didn't you." It was not so much a question as a statement.
A pause. "Yes."
"It's the same name that Guibu used to addressed you."
"Yes."
Arslan munched on another Pocky thoughtfully, and then winced. As good as the cookie stick was, it was simply too sweet. His thoughts returned to the Ryudo. "So do you recognize and identify that name as yours as well?" They hide so much...Amaru's transformation was not the last of the secrets they've kept from us.
And yet...I still cannot help but trust them.
"Do you remember when my older brother mentioned that we came from somewhere else?"
Arslan nodded, waiting expectantly.
Should I or shouldn't I tell him this? Tsuzuku grappled with indecision for a moment, weighing how much he was obligated to tell the young prince versus how much he should keep secret from outsiders. But the fact that the prince was attacked by one of the Ryudo's enemies... Even if he was "recognized" by the beast, the bull-headed bastard was really after us. It's clear now that Arslan's involved, so I guess it would be unfair to withhold anything. But how much can we really tell him? Most of our theories are based on dreams anyway, dreams or from the ravings of mad men...
"Well, in theory, my name from there would be 'Kouryuu-ou.'"
"I'm still a little unclear..." The prince hesitated, feeling stupid. "Were you born there, and raised here? How did you originate from there?"
This is where it gets VERY complicated. Tsuzuku sighed. "This is going to sound really weird...and most of its theory anyway." I can't believe I'm going to tell him this. But Amaru thinks he was there too...
"We think that there's another place, not on this world... One of our enemies once explained it to us. The Tenkai. The Heavenly Sphere. We were members of the Dragon Clan there. Sons of the Imperial Dragon. Something happened-- we're not quite sure what-- and we were reborn here, in modern Tokyo, as humans." Could anything have sounded more unbelievable, arrogant, or lunatic all at the same time? He closed his eyes, feeling slightly embarrassed and silly. It was almost like he wanted Arslan to believe him... How unusual of me. After he let his last statement to sink in, he looked up the see the prince's reactions.
Calmly, Arslan munched on another Pocky. Actually, now that he thought about it, it really wasn't all that sweet... "Ah," he said, to indicate that he was listening, despite feeling kind of numb. "So the monster recognized you from the Tenkai?"
"I guess. I don't know."
"So why does he recognize me as well?"
Hesitation.
"I don't know." Why WAS he after Arslan? He forgot about his plans against us, and went straight for the prince. What was is that he said? "... you even lead us to him, whom we all assumed dead... you lead us to the most valuable thing of all." Most valuable thing of all? Arslan? Tsuzuku studied the prince intently, who now seemed to be absorbing what he was saying without much shock. I suppose, after waking up in somewhere like here, it's hard not to believe the weird facts that someone else tells you...Even Amaru, our dreamer, said that we were there to meet Arslan.
Why? What's so special about Arslan? Observing the prince briefly, Tsuzuku was suddenly overcome by a d�j� vu feeling, like he had talked to the one sitting across from him before.
"There's a lot that you don't know, isn't there?" Surprisingly, Arslan's voice sounded neither resentful nor accusatory.
"Yes..."
"It...must be hard...to have powers and enemies and not know why. My condolences."
The prince gave him a small, sad smile, while Tsuzuku reeled in shock. He had *never* expected to hear anyone to say something like that to him; hell, he had never heard someone say anything of that sort. It was always other things that accompanied the reactions of people who discovered the Ryudo's secrets. Envy, hatred, jealousy. Ambition, a desire to use the brothers for immortality or as tools. Never sympathy. And I really didn't expect to hear it from a prince, above all things. Especially one whose life we put in danger because of association...
Hesitantly, Tsuzuku smiled back, slowly. I've always wanted someone to accept me for who I was, who I *really* was. Someone who knew but didn't reject me for it...Guibu is right, Arslan is an extraordinary person.
I should probably tell him what we do know about him...He certainly deserves that knowledge... "We actually do not know how you fit into this at all, Arslan. But what Hajime said was true. Amaru has seen you from his dreams. With us. Theoretically then, you should be from the Tenkai too. If nothing else, that monster thought you were..."
"I see." A pause. "I suppose, then, if we wanted answers...the only person who could probably tell us..."
The idea hit Tsuzuku at the same time. That's right! "Is..."
"The monster that had been Bodon."
The thought excited him. Arslan's right. That bull had been the one who tried to kidnap Arslan by being here...if we could question him... Then doubt set in. But he'd never answer any of our questions. It would only tell him how ignorant the Ryudos are.
Tsuzuku then started with realization. I doubt the fall off the bridge would kill him. He's probably going to come looking for us. We're like sitting ducks here!But there's nowhere else to go. We don't know where we're going. We can flee...or go looking for him, beat him up a little, maybe, and get some questions answered. But if we go back to him, he has another chance to catch Arslan... "As I see it, there are three things we can do. We can sit here and wait for something to happen. Or, we can flee...our house doesn't have a lot of money, and my car has been totaled, but we can take the train."
"Where to?" What's a train?
"Well, actually, if we fled, I can't really think of a destination."
Arslan absorbed this. "And the third?"
"We can go looking for Bodon."
The prince nodded. It was as he expected. "How much time do you think we have?"
"Well, I never met this bull before, so I don't know whether or not he knows where I live. He can find us though, because he was able to find my family in your world."
"I guess we can try confronting him," the Palsian said hesitantly. "Except I really don't see how we can take him down. He recovered from Darun's blows and from being blinded in one eye. I don't have my sword, and we don't have anyone else to help us. And he really is strong..."
Arslan has a point. And the usual Ryudo philosophy of enemies is that if they're not immediately threatening us, then we leave them alone. At the same time we can't just stay here, since Arslan has to get back. Damn. Hajime is the one that makes decisions that involve others in the family, not me. If it were just me that I was risking, then I'd probably go after Bodon. But since Arslan's here... "Do you have any ideas?"
Arslan sighed. "Well, the only action that we really can do would be to go after him. Any other decision that we choose really has no effect on our current situation." He paused and then asked with a slight tinge of hope in his voice, "Are there any places that sells swords?"
"In Tokyo? Not any that I can think of that would be easy to access..." Or inexpensive. We could probably find replicas of samurai swords somewhere, but they won't be cheap...
"Oh..."
"I suppose we could go shopping for weapons," Tsuzuku said skeptically. But somehow I don't think guns would work on that thing...
Hearing the doubt in his voice, Arslan dropped that idea as well. "Let's just go to the place where he fell off the bridge. He probably will not be there still, but perhaps on the way we will be inspired by a better idea. Or something else will happen to us. We both seem to have been dragged into many unexplainable circumstances recently. Maybe we should just make it easier for Fate and not make any moves."
The fatalistic attitude alarmed Tsuzuku. From what he gathered from Guibu and the rest of Arslan's people in the short time that he had known them, Arslan was not one to stand idly by. The whole helplessness of their situation was taking a toll on him. Even though he is unlikely to retake the throne, he did at least have confidence in himself. He knew that he was doing everything in his power to regain it. And he believes in his cause; he sincerely wants to change things. When we headed for Castle Peshwal, Guibu had told me that Arslan had also wanted to outlaw slavery. It was one of the reasons that he had thought Arslan was so "eccentric and idealistic." And now, he has become SO passive. Must be shock. Then again, for all I know, all people from Arslan's world think like fatalists. Still...
Deciding that they both needed a change of pace, the red dragon finally spoke his response. "Well, since we don't know what we're doing or how to get back...we might as well make the most of our stay here. Let's get something to eat and then...um... go looking for clues..."
"Clues...?"
"Clues about anything." Tsuzuku shrugged. "We'll head for the bridge, just to see if we can find anything about Bodon that might be useful on the way. Before that..." He paused and scrutinized the prince. A pretty boy without shoes walking around in a bloody and torn tunic? People will think that he's a prostitute or some kind of pervert. Or a molested child. Nothing good. "Let's get cleaned up and change our clothes. They're soiled and...um...not exactly fashionable by today's standards."
Arslan blinked in surprise and then lowered his head in effort to conceal the flush on his face. Neglected by his father or not, he was still a prince, and unaccustomed to feeling of dependent on another's charity. Or to having someone inspect him and comment on his fashion sense. Granted, Tsuzuku would know, considering that he lived here, but still...
"Come on." Tsuzuku stood up and held out his hand.
Puzzled, Arslan took it.
The red dragon pulled the prince onto his feet and then proceeded to measure the boy's height against his own. A little taller than Owaru, but his frame is also a lot more slimmer. Owaru has broader shoulders. "You should be able to fit into some of Owaru's clothes," he decided. "If you don't mind looking like one of us."
"Not at all." Why would anyone regret looking like one of you?
"Well then, let's go." The red dragon led the prince towards his younger brother's domain.
"Lord Narcasse?" Alfreed asked, as she started the campfire.
It had been getting dark, and considering their current confusion, Narcasse had forced everyone's mind off of the last few events by making them prepare the carcasses that were caught. The scent of blood was faint in the air. By mutual agreement, everyone, still shaken up by what happened, had convened together: cutting, gutting, and preparing meat. Now it was night, and everyone relaxed together around the fireplace.
"Yes?"
"What if the prince doesn't come back?" She voiced all of the fears that no one had dared to speak aloud. "Should we just give up our quest now?"
"Don't talk like that!" Eram protested. "I think we should keep on going. He'll be back, and when he does come back, we'll be even closer towards our goal then before. Let's just head for Port Giran and see what we can do about securing soldiers."
"But don't we need Prince Arslan with us to secure so many troops? They listen to him, not us."
"You really don't sense your brother?" Darun asked Hajime for the tenth time that day. He was no longer angry, because he knew how petty it was to fight over something that had already happened.
Nevertheless, with things settled down and immediate concerns out of the way, other feelings washed over the group. Shock slowly gave way to hopelessness, doubt, and then, to despair. Without the boy that had united their group, there was a pervading mood that began to creep upon them all. Everyone felt a little lost, and they took comfort in each other's company because there was little else.
Amaru was still unconscious, but the rest of the Ryudo family settled with them. They were feeling other emotions: Matsuri feeling worried about Tsuzuku, Hajime feeling guilty, and Owaru wondering why they were still hanging around with the others if Arslan was gone.
"We can argue about it tomorrow," said Narcasse smoothly, referring to Eram and Alfreed. "For now, let's just concentrate on getting through with the rest of the night." He leaned slightly against Darun, shoulder to shoulder, and casually enough as to not any arouse suspicion.
But the fact that he did so alarmed Guibu.
Even Narcasse...Without Arslan, no one knows what to do. Narcasse is a strategist, true, but his talents lay in thinking, not making decisions. When you're primarily a thinker, you see all sides, and it's harder to make choices. And the fact that he's leaning against Darun now...even though they're both trying so hard not to let anyone know how truly "close" they are...it means that he's just as emotionally exhausted and drained as the rest of us. Even Narcasse needs to be comforted...
What are bards best at but making others forget...?
The minstrel left the circle momentarily, then returned with his harp.
"I have a song to sing, and then a story to tell," he said. "Anyone interested?"