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A New World	By : Meirav Category: +S to Z > X/1999 Views: 2658 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own X/1999, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 28
- 29
- 30
Disclaimer: I don�t own X/1999, I didn�t come up
with any of their brilliant characters, they�re the geniuses not me!

The character of Alex, Jacob, Venus, Charlie,
David, Anthony, Dvora and Dimitri are all mine. The Noters are half reality.
The rest belong to all the book/movie/TV/anime/manga they came from. If you can
spot where they�re from then good for you!

Author�s Thanks: To DarkAngel ID the relentless, slightly impatient but
greatly thanked for here is this chapter, a few weeks ahead of when I thought I
might write it. don�t worry darling, I aint gonna stop writing this fic, it�s
my biggest project and my most important so�.yeah. yes! You found out the two
women I placed there from places that aren�t my brain! Cool! I didn�t know her
name is Beatrix, cool name!

TEKOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Ah,
Suby shouldn�t be left with Kamui? Why? That danger is far far behind them now
since the Fuma-maboroshi incident, don�t worry darling. Well more people won�t
actually pop into the fic more like�.errr�.flashes of his life. And you deserve
credit for a lot more darling. Also I received a message through Lani about you
wanting me to update Behind Bars. Funny, I got it on the day I was writing a
new chapter of it, henh, it�s waiting to be beta-ed darling so don�t worry.

Also
thank you to the following people who apparently have this fic on their
favourite list and did not tell me a single thing so that I will know I have
more then two readers�: Lonely Tsukasa, Miko-Tenshi, Subaru�s Voice (kyaaa!
Darling!!!) and Xazenru.

Yaaaaay!!!!!!!!!!!
20 reviews!!!! This fic�s beginning to gain on the number of reviews it had
back when I was Meirav and people actually read this.

AUTHOR�S CHALLENGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!: yes!!!!! A
challenge!!!!!! For the 30^th chapter celebrations I challenge you
all!!!!!!! (�all��tssk, as if�) to write in scenes for this story!!!! Yes!! A
scene of your own making! I won�t grumble and I won�t censure and I won�t drop
anything out, I�ll put everything in as it is unless it�ll make the rating soar
too high up that is, but your footmark will be in this fic. Yes! You can write
what you want into this fic, let your imagination run wild and go for it!

What
else? I�ll take orders for what you�d like to see and I�ll insert it into the
fic, no matter how wacky it might be! But, of course, I�d much MUCH, M-U-C-H
more like it if you wrote in something. Your grammar and phrasing level
don�t matter and you�ll be credited for it (if you wish, you can remain anon.
if you want) so WRITE IN!!!! my email is as follows:

MPmeirav@Yahoo.co.uk

Oh,
and there�s a teeny amount of yaoi but nothing descriptive okay?

*******************************************************

Chapter 29 - The Land of Anthrax
(1)

�I
have seen you coming in my dreams� the Oracle said �you came here carrying my
Kamui with you�

she
did not miss Seishiro�s look of mild surprise. When she saw Alex slightly
squinting at her trying to fish the memory carrying her name from the back of
his mind she glared at the one eyed onmyouji.

�I
remember you very well sir� her tone was dark and blaming �from the time you
snatched me and Kamui into your maboroshi trying to hurt the both of us�

Seishiro
bowed at this, smiling happily to annoy her.

�Kotori,
you�re Kotori aren�t you?� Alex finally remembered the name.

The
Oracle turned her eyes to him again �You bring your band of murderers here
trying to wreck havoc upon us, monster! You hurt my Kamui and snatched him
away!�

Alex
pondered if the loving tone in which she spoke of Kamui meant that she did not
fully know whom it was the boy was snatched from.

�Oracle�
the queen suddenly interfered the duel of glaring. Her eyes were suspicious and
amazed �You knew this will come upon us and yet you warned us not?!�

Kotori
was dumbstruck. She hung desperate eyes at the royalty and wrung her hands
nervously.

Her
servant, the shy and slightly stuttering young girl who spied upon Death�s men
for her mistress, now stepped forward nervously. �Umm�.your majesty� she bowed
quickly �it�s not that Kotori-chan didn�t tell you, it�s just that�.� She
blushed and became silent.

The
two girls exchanged desperate panicking looks with each other before Tohru
turned to the queen again.

�It�s
just that Kamui was�.well�.is�very special to Kotori-chan and when she first
dreamt that he will come to her she was so excited that she didn�t want to say
anything that might stop these men from coming and bringing Kamui with
them�.you see?� by the end of this her nerves were so unruly and her panic so
deep that she was crying and blushing so bad her face was dark red.

The
queen leaned back into her chair and stayed silent for a while, tapping her
bejewelled forefinger on her slim lips. She nodded finally and smiled a little
to hint the two girls that there is no more need to panic.

With
this Kotori turned her fiery eyes back to Alex �Let me meet him!� she demanded,
her voice cold and mature again.

Alex
sniggered.

Seishiro
chuckled.

Kotori
glared.

Alex
calmed his breathing and hung amused patronizing eyes at the teen. After a long
while of exchanging his cancelling mockery with Kotori�s demanding glares he shrugged
�Maybe�

�Maybe?!�

Alex
nodded at the queen and turned around to leave. He turned back to the ruler
once again before he exited through the great door �I will meet the treasurer
tomorrow morning and we�ll begin making a list and get the food over to our
City as quickly as possible�

The
queen nodded and sighed deeply, leaning her forehead on her long fingers once
the men were out of the room.

*******************

Kamui
stared up at the ceiling in his new room. The walls were lilac which, for some
reason, he found a bit disturbing (it�s a pretty colour but too much of it can
prove tacky).

The
chamber was fairly large and roomy, with great big French windows, it�s doors
decorated with intricate silver vines and leafs. The ceiling contained three
awe filling pointy high domes from which lamps hung, fashioned as branches
carrying candles and blue glass leafs.

His
room contained a large comfortable sofa, a large white marble bath hidden in a
niche draped with slightly see-through bright blue satin, a big richly scented
wooden table and a large canopied double bed covered in velvet and round
comfortable cushions.

Will
dragged himself to the bed and crushed there, immediately appreciating the
softness of its mattress and crawling under its covers to snuggle up there for
the night.

Kamui,
on the other hand, walked up to the windows, opened the large glass doors, and
stepped out to the charming small balcony overlooking the palace�s court, it�s
rich buzzing market and the fields beyond it.

Night
time spread darkness all around and one by one the lights in the small farmer�s
huts were lit like tiny blinking fireflies.
He walked to the other balcony from which he could look at a beautiful
garden, lush with tropical wild plants creating a brilliant, well organized
jungle.

Elegant
little garden torches were being lit by women servants draped in Arabian and Asian
style who, from time to time, looked up and noticed him looking down at them.

They
ignored him and carried out their mission of lighting up the garden to better
allow the youth to see its glory.

Kamui
inhaled the sweet scent of blooming flowers and rich cooking from the market.
He exhaled it slowly, unwilling to let the brilliance out of him so quickly.

It
seems everything here was perfect, nothing was wrong, nothing was twisted or
painful or difficult. Like the women moving in the marketplace, like the
servants who lit the garden torches; everything ran smoothly here, calm, silent
and effortless.

He
felt a pang of guilt for being here in this richness and wonder while his
friends back in the City faced starvation and depression everyday.

A
knock on the door of his room took his mind off of it. He invited whomever it
was in.

Alex
stepped into the room, his strides long and awkward, and his eyes darting back
and forth from Kamui�s. Something was up and Alex knew it was going to cause a
fuss. From his stance Kamui knew Death is going to lose the fight. When did he
ever win it with Kamui?

�There�s
someone here who wants to see you Kamui�

Kamui
shot his eyebrows up. Someone here who wants to see him? Who could it be?!

A
sudden rush of happiness and hope sprang up in him; he had noticed that, since
Alex and Dvora both came from the same dimension but landed at it�s two
different parts, maybe there�s someone here he lost and was looking for him?

A
sudden flame of hope sparked up inside him and he took an involuntary step
forward.

Alex
took half a step backwards and a deep breath, prepared to defend against
whatever it may be.

Kamui
hung huge hopeful eyes at him, eyes quivering with excitement and hope. �Is�.is
it mother? Is it mother looking for me? Did she land here when I came here too
the first time?� he drew nearer to Alex who stopped backing away.

Death
was taken by surprise. He was sure Kamui had guessed who it was, he didn�t
expect Kamui to suddenly think it�s his mother looking for him.

Poor
child, he still carried the scar from his mother�s burning, stinging his soul,
refusing to heal.

�No
Kamui, I�m sorry, it�s not your mother�

The
light turned off in the youth�s eyes and his stance slackened.

�It�s
Kotori, she�s the Oracle here like Kakyou is and�.�

�Kotori?!�
the light was back �you mean Kotori?! Kotori? Here? Alive?! She�s alive?
Kotori?!�

Will
shook himself from the comfortable sleep which folded him so lovingly in the
soft bed. He reared his head and stared at his master bouncing on the balls of
his feet before a slightly awkward and annoyed Alex.

�I�m
going to see her! Where is she?� Kamui was about to storm out of the room when
Alex grabbed him by the wrist.

Mauve
fires glared at Alex, then at the captured wrist, then back at Alex.

��.You
can go see her tomorrow�

�No!!
I want to see her right now!�

�Kamui!�

�ALEX!!!
I haven�t seen her in such a long time! When I met up with her again I didn�t
get to see her for very long either! I thought she was dead! Alex, please, I thought
she was dead!!�

Alex
let go of the wrist but shut the door instead with his powers.

�Be
back for dinner�

�I�ll
have it in her room�

�Be
back for dinner Kamui!�

Kamui
huffed in complaint and stomped his foot.

Alex
glared, this annoying spoiled child behaviour was starting to get to his nerves
�Kamui, may I remind you that you are a captive here and that this is a war,
not a joyride! You�re lucky you can come and go as you please instead of being
chained and locked down!�

Kamui
hung his head and sighed �I�ll be back for dinner okay?�

Alex
nodded �Be here for breakfast, lunch and dinner on the other days we�ll stay
here, may they be short and swift to pass�

Kamui
chirped and stormed out of the room, his werewolf zooming past the threatening
Alex to follow his master.

Alex
remained in the room and sighed. After a few moments of rubbing his temples he
turned around and left the room to meet Dvora and David over a bottle of vodka
or two.

*******************

Kamui
walked into an immense room of pure white; white walls, white draperies across
the wall with white silk embroideries, white chairs and sofas and a white great
bed at the far corner with a canopy much like his room�s bed.

Everywhere
he looked he saw large white bird cages filled with colourful birds in various
sizes, the doors open and the birds flittering around all across the huge hall.

Amongst
these batting wings and squeaking chirps Kamui saw her, standing by a cage with
a few tiny orange parrots on her small open palms containing a small nound of
bird seed on each hand.

She
turned her head slowly to him and her eyes grew almost twice thier size.

�KAMUI!�

�KOTORI!�

The
tiny orange parrots shot to the air as their mistress dashed towards the boy.
He returned her dash and soon they were in each other�s arms, sobbing with joy
and clutching at each other like there�s no tomorrow.

They
dropped to their knees on the white marble floor, crying vigorously for a long,
long while. Rocking sideways gently, they cried the pain of their last
encounter away until their hearts were left with nothing but the joy of their
reunion after so long.

Tohru
stood aside and wept silently, dabbing at her eyes with the sleeve of her indigo
shirt and whimpering at how wonderful it all is.

She
had noticed Will walk into the room a few minutes after Kamui walked in and
signalled for him to join her.

Shyly,
he did so, and was immediately caught and hugged by Tohru who looked for
someone to share her mistress� joy with.

This
sudden burst of affection from a person he�s never met before stuck such a deep
chord in Will�s heart that if he had any emotion beyond friendship toward Kamui
or Alex (an emotion beyond deep terror in the latter�s case) it was wiped out
completely now.

Still
crying and shaking a bit, Kotori guided Kamui to a large comfortable sofa in
her room and sat him down to talk to her.

Tohru
brought tea for them all and the four teens began a fluent happy conversation
lasting until the very mid of the night.

Kamui
spoke of what had happened to him since he parted ways with Kotori, of his
kidnapping to this world and back to his home, of his re-kidnapping and what
happened since then.

Kotori
clapped her hands to her chest and gasped �My brother! Fuma! He�s not the
Dragon anymore? He�s free?�

Kamui
nodded, the tears of joy wallowing in his eyes again.

�Oh
how wonderful! I�m so happy� she burst into tears again �I was so worried�.so
worried I�ll lose the two men I love� she covered her face with her hands,
letting herself go a little to cry out the gaping pain of the past.

Kamui
skipped a lot in his story when it came to Alex, referring to him only when he
came to what Death has done and how it helped, but also how it hurt him.

�And
who is this?� Kotori asked, turning her big teary eyes to Will who stared down
sheepishly into his tea cup trying to make himself not blush too deeply at
Tohru sitting a little too near him.

Kamui
introduced Will and explained what he is and how he�s helped him (again,
skipping a lot about the werewolf).

�Kyaaa!
So you�re a werewolf! Wow! I�ve never seen one before!� Tohru chirped and
grabbed Will into another hug. She tickled him behind his ears and snuggled him
up closely as if he was a puppy and not a boy of Kamui�s age and physic.

Will
blushed even more but did not fight against the loving arms.

Kamui
exchanged a few looks with him and chuckled, happy to see someone found place
in his heart for the abandoned ostracized pup.

Even
Kotori clapped her hands and chirped merrily at the sight of Will�s ears and
tail, yelping that it�s the cutest thing she�s ever seen and that Kamui should
have himself a pair of these.

They
were all chirping in Japanese around Will and most of it went flying high above
his head but from what he heard of Kamui and Subaru�s conversations he could
understand the main themes of the discussion around him.

When
Kamui explained him what �kawai�(2) was he frowned and growled a little to
prove his roughness, only making the girls giggle some more.

Kotori,
in her turn to speak, told about her arrival straight from the ocean dreamscape
which she shared with Kakyou into the marvellous fields around the palace.

At
first she was hired as a servant in the palace�s guards� quarters, which she
did not object to and found quite delightful.

Soon
she began having dreams of the date of the next rain season, of the successes
or relative failure of this crop or the other.

Her
foreseeing dreams about the location of spy patrols from a city of men a
distance from the palace gave her the duty of an Oracle to the queen and a high
value in the eyes of the land�s women.

Tohru
had joined her two months ago and immediately they became great friends.

Kotori�s
life had been a joyride, painless, free and happy. Her world became complete
and perfect when one night her Lady of Light (which is how she referred to her
world�s half� destiny deity due to her kindness and her dreamscape of
blossoming bright flower field) showed her the sight of Kamui bound and brought
before her by a black winged demon.

The
Lady of Light had told her that Kamui would be snatched from her just as
quickly as he had been given to her and warned her little Oracle that she
should watch her tongue, but these prophesies were far too grim for Kotori to
share right now.

Kamui
spent most of his time in the women�s castle almost locked up in Kotori�s room,
spending his days in joy and laughter to live them as fully as he could.

The
four teens would take walks across the palaces� beautiful gardens and halls,
tour the libraries and galleries and enjoying every moment of it. If it weren�t
for Alex�s command that Kamui would attend at the meals held in the dining hall
the visitor�s rooms circled and the he would sleep in his room, he�d spend all
his days in the castle with Kotori.

He
obscured only one thing from her: his relationship with Fuma. He only spoke of
Fuma when he mentioned how delightful her brother will be when he�ll know she
is still alive.

He
felt a little bit guilty about it whenever Kotori and he would fall into an
awkward silence and his senses told him the girl was hoping he�d use that break
to kiss her.

*********************

The
meetings with the royal treasurer and her helper had started on the wrong foot.
The treasurer tired sweet-talking to Alex using her brimming sex appeal and
soon discovered, quite bluntly (Alex had said �Quit leaning forward like that
miss, I�m gay�), that Alex was not at all interested.

Then
came the arguments over how much should be given to the city, arguments which
burst again and again whenever Alex discovered the woman in yellow ordered her
helper to lie about the crop numbers and various production speeds and
efficiencies.

This
lead to such deep mistrust between the negotiating companies that Alex had
forced the two ladies to go out to the shops and fields in the land to see the
facts with his own eyes.

Wherever
they went Alex had demanded half of the products, whether it was half a field�s
crops or one of the two rolls of fabrics in a fabric boutique (there were no
�shops� in the palace market, only �boutiques�).

Having
heard enough of Alex grumbling about the greedy miserliness of the treasurer
and how horrible he is in bargaining, Subaru had taken on himself to attend
these meetings to soften his Death�s roughness and appeal to the ladies with
his calmness.

It
helped, greatly, and soon the negotiations were running smoothly without
a single argument to complain about.

Subaru
took great pride in it and had been praised greatly for it by both his lover
and the much grateful Alex who promised he�ll never forget how Subaru helped
him translating �Those damn cackling chicken�s blabber into sane English�

The
theory that whenever someone is taken from their world into the Lost Dimension
half (or a few) of them are taken to the other dimension�s side as well was
proved once again; the yellow clad treasurer was a fellow bounty hunter on the
space ship from which Spike had come and her helper, a lady named Kochanski,
was from the same world as Ace was.

When
they were not negotiating, Alex and Subaru split each to their own occupations
around the palace.

In
fact, the Death riders were hardly ever together as before while in the palace;
the place was far too vast and wonder-filled to make them remember any
commitment they had within the group besides the romantic ones.

Their
meals they had together, and always in their rooms� dining hall but these were finished
quickly so the diners could be free again to roam the magnificent new land.

Victoria had spent her nights
roaming the land with David who soon shook the last fragments of icy shell
around him and showed her to the fields dragging back whatever farming
knowledge he still had from his days as a youth.

She
was a wonderful listener, nodding and humming and asking questions whenever she
didn�t understand anything or when she felt David liked the subject he spoke
of. Though she didn�t understand many of the things he said and her mind often
became dizzy with knowledge overload, she could not object to her heart�s wild
beatings at David�s figure under the moonlight talking to her so freely while
looking her in the eye and paying such great attention to her.

In
the women�s land, in the palace, in the beautiful gardens, in a tiny charming
little niche perfectly made for such things, they had their first kiss. Chaste
and quick, followed by many awkward mumbles and blushes from both parties, it
was nonetheless a kiss of love un-regretted for by the two.

Lestate
had spent his nights in a part of the palace where the women kept their fancy
furnishing, clothing and various pampering utilities where he admired and
enjoyed the styles and fashions of the place.

He
gained a pair of good friends; the royal designer and his assistant.

They
were the only two males allowed in the land. They jested that it is only due to
the fact that they are lovers.

It
is due to Lestate that the Dark Side�s City had won a delivery of the palace�s
almost complete collection of furnishing the queen and other resident�s cast
away. These items were not broken but simply tired of and could be used better
by the City�s needy ones.

The
rest of his time Lestate spent with Alex, with whose friend Dvora he enjoyed
joking about his Death.

Subaru
and Seishiro spent their time exploring the palace together whenever the light onmyouji
did not help with negotiating.

The
sights of beauty shared together served to straightened their bond and create
memories to cherish and treasure forever.

Ignorant
of Death and Love�s plans for their future, the couple saw this as a sort of a
honeymoon holiday.

************************

It
was time for five o�clock tea in Kotori�s room,
where the four teens ended up after a long day of roaming the castle, yelping
and giggling.

A
tall dark servant walked into the Oracle room, pushing the pristine silver tea trolley
before her whilst humming a powerful tune.

Will
thought he heard something familiar in that tune. It was like someone was whistling
at him from the bottom of a deep dark abyss on which�s edge he stood looking
downward.

The
three other teens were just discussing the palace�s �makeover� quarters and how
Kamui and Will should go there tomorrow to have some better clothes fitted for
them.

Tohru
had insisted that Will will find something better to wear then the rags he was
wearing at the moment. When she turned her head to the werewolf she saw that he
was not listening.

He
was staring straight into the eyes of the servant girl, his orbs huge and
amazed, slightly frightened, but mostly shocked.

The
woman was very tall and slender, slim and agile. Her hair was long, straight
and black as the night. Her face was pale the way that half-breed vampires of
her type was, with only a few freckles across the bridge of her nose and her cheeks.
Her eyes were bespectacled and quite big, black as her hair with the dark red
tint of her kind.

Will
stared at her and she stared at him, both frozen the way they were when their
gazes crossed; Will was reaching eagerly for his tea and cookies while the
woman was just bending down to bring each teen their cups.

�R�.Rip�
Will mumbled slowly.

�Schr�dinger�
she said and frowned a little at the fact that, though she heard the other
three speak of him she did not hear his name but the reference to him as
�Will�.

�Will?
Who is this? Do you know her� Kamui suspicious was nagging at him.

The
suspicion was affirmed as, since she was still bent down horizontally, a
necklace the woman was wearing came slipping out of her suit�s collar and a
large golden swastika shaped pendulum swayed back and force on it with the necklace�s
swing.

�No,
I don�t know her� Will spat and finished fetching his tea and cookie plate. He
shot his eyes sideways, frowning.

The
servant straightened her back and turned to bring tea to the others.

Glaring
at her, Kamui refused his venomously and kindly but firmly told Kotori to ask
for new tea brought by another servant.

The
servant girl shrugged and rolled her tea trolley away, muttering profanities in
her mother tongue, to the sound of which Will cringed.

That
evening Dvora brought a large silver tray loaded by freshly picked fruits.

While
she and David feasted over the round simple wooden table Alex had in his room,
Alex did not eat a single one.

�Oh
come on Alex, have a cherry, they�re delicious and juicy�

Alex
glared at the fruits �Nah, don�t feel like it�

�Why,
they are delicious� David added, munching on a cherry stalk. He was
eyeing the sunset through the window to see if it was time yet when Victoria was up.

Their
first kiss had happened yesterday and though he was not yet eager to take this
new development onwards he was more then willing to repeat the act again, if he
would be allowed to do so.

�Ah,
why should I eat these riches while my friends are starving back in our city�
Alex grumbled, even drawing his elbow from the table as if to force his hands
away from the temptation.

The
other two glared at him.

�Eat
and drink for tomorrow you will die (3)� they said in unison, unintentionally.

Alex
stared at them and sniggered. He would have said something but his senses told
him that an intruder was at the door to his room, an intruder who surely has a
death wish if he comes into this room without his master when the three of them
are together.

�Do
you want die mutt?� he barked at the shy werewolf cringing at his doorstep.

Dvora,
who had heard of Will from David, turned sharply on her seat, and so did David.

�I�.came
here because�.uh�.� Will was dizzy and nauseated and so sweaty his new satin
shirt clung to his chest and back, great dark circles spread on the fabric under
his arms.

He
shook his head a little and bettered his voice �There�s someone I know here� he
said finally when his voice was restored.

Alex
shot to his feet, his fellows� eyes hung on him �Come my friends, we have some
hunting to do�.

It
had been the worst timing in the world for the servant girl to do the work she
was doing, at the time she was doing it. She was making bread buns for the other
servants, a task she insisted upon doing alone as a token of trying to
socialize with them.

Though
her long rifle was with her, leaning on the table where she worked (she carried
it everywhere with her, even to her kitchen duties), it would not serve to
protect her from those out for her blood now.

The
great oven was gurgling with fire to her left as she rolled and squashed and fashioned
the dough into neat little balls and placed them on a long hard wooden tray
she�ll slide into the oven�s raging mouth.

As
she worked she hummed her favourite opera, which only served to worsen her
situation.

As
they stepped silently into the great kitchen room the hunters kept complete
quiet, sneaking up on her from the shadows dancing on the walls like the fire
in the oven.

She
first noticed them when her rifle was snatched from its place on the table. She
looked to her left and saw a pale strong hand with a number on its skin grab
her rifle near the nuzzle and, with the aid of another powerful arm at the
hilt, snapping it in half like a twig.

She
opened her mouth to say something but her breath was knocked out of her by a
powerful bunch to her face and the wooden tray, now without the little balls
she made, pushed into her stomach.

She
folded in half and gasped for air.

She
was pushed backwards and, to her horror, she realised that her back was now
turned towards the great gaping oven. The heat was scorching her back, lashing
out to devour the fabric of her black jacket.

She
sent her long slim arms to the sides of the great source of fire and clung to
it with all her might.

As
she fought to save her life she saw before her, holding the big wooden tray and
pushing her backwards into the fire, two people; one was a guard captain she
saw running around the palace and another she recognised from the other kitchen
ladies� gossip about the group of men who came to the palace. They didn�t say a
word, didn�t even have any expression on their face, the fire danced in their
intense eyes and that was all.

Finally
overcome by their sheer force, the servant was hurled into the fire, the great
black iron door of the oven shut tightly on her with the tray�s long slim
handle used to lock the door.

The
kitchen became dark as the fire no longer cast its great roaring orange light
around it. The only lights were those of a dozen little candles burning on the
shelves around the room, casting giddy golden rings around them.

The
three remaining in the kitchen stood silent in the dim light.

�Now
that� the woman said �is what we should have done�

�I�ll
drink to that� said the man who sacrificed his date with a vampire for the
hunting spree.

The
other man walked out of the kitchen to leave the two for their little
celebration.

As
he exited the room he walked past a werewolf who stood at the doorway all
along. The man stood still for a while and shot a glance at the sombre
werewolf.

�Good
job boy� he said and walked on.

Will
gasped, feeling his heart race again and not out of fear.

************************

�Oh
look! How beautiful� Subaru had tried to stop himself from saying that but it
was too late.

He
and Seishiro were exploring the inner circle of gardens in the palace. These
gardens were surrounded by rooms in the palace and acted as a small breath of
greenery and fruits for those who lived in the palace and were too occupied to
walk all the way to the official gardens.

The
patio they�ve walked into was a stylish traditional Japanese garden. At it�s centre,
circled by well balanced black rocks and well combed bright grey gravel, stood
an immense ancient cherry tree.

Its
trunk was knotty, its many limbs were thick and far stretching and it was
absolutely booming with powerful cheery pink blossoms.

Subaru
had shut his mouth tight and awaited his lover�s reaction to these words who
had twice been almost deadly to him.

It
seemed that his limbs were frozen at the sight of a tree almost completely
replicating that which he knew far too well ages ago. He could not remove his
eyes from it though he wished to tear them away and turn his back to the tree.

Seishiro
walked up to the gigantic plant and placed a hand on it�s trunk, the other hand
involuntarily reaching for his cigarette back while moving so that the blood
(like he had on his hand in days in which he did this every night) won�t stain
the fabric of his suit too much. He caught himself doing this and stopped,
looking up into the tree limbs sinking back into far away childhood days when
the only tree he could climb was a one very similar to this.

He
looked at Subaru and smiled kindly, walking back to his lover�s side. He
wrapped his arms around the younger man�s waist and drew their lips together
passionately, softly.

When
Subaru opened his eyes again after the kiss they were trusting again, calm and
assured of his safety. The nightmare was over a long time ago, there was no
reason to fear anymore.

�Ah
look Subaru-kun! A bush of red camellias! How lovely. They�re my favourite
flower you know�

Subaru
would have been surprised to see his lover admire something like flowers and in
such a happy tone but his voice was snatched away as he noticed a familiar
tingling to the back of his palms.

He
looked down and saw the old scars of worse days glow on his pale skin.

�Seishiro-san!
What are you doing?!� he demanded.

He
was not answered. Seishiro moved before
him, his arms slightly stretched sideways as if shielding Subaru from something.

The
light onmyouji turned to where his lover gazed and saw a short petit woman
standing at the entrance, staring at them.

Her
face was round and sweet, her skin creamy white, her eyes big and deep the same
shade of Seishiro�s remaining eye.

Her
hair was so long it almost reached the floor and she wore it with several small
braids combined with satin ribbons and pearls. She wore a magnificent long
black silk kimono with an embroidery of delicate sakura petals so brilliantly
made they seemed to be drifting downwards as the fabric moved slightly to the
delicate fresh wind through the garden.

She
stared at the two, her slim eyebrows soaring high in her porcelain little forehead.
�Seishiro?� she asked. Her voice was clear as smooth running water.

�M-mother�
he answered under his breath.

Subaru
gasped.

She
took a few tiny steps forward, gliding on the floor like an elegant geisha. She
stopped a little away from them. The pink petals rode on the wind and caught in
her hair, running down the immaculate hairs like bubbles in a waterfall.

�But
you were a mere child when I last saw you Seishiro� she said with her eyes scanning
the grown man before her �oh how you�ve grown!�

Both
onmyoujis gave a deep sigh of relief; this was not this Seishiro�s mother, she
was the mother of another world�s Seishiro. Nevertheless she was a
Sakurazukamori, as Subaru�s marks showed.

The
woman now gazed at Subaru and a tiny sweet smile appeared on the dark red slim
lips.

�Oh
my Seishiro, you�ve your prey with you! And a Sumeragi at that, how brilliant!�

Seishiro
was still as a rock and calm, but inside a roaring fire raged within him.

All
the times in this world he got to think back at his life and what his mother
has done to him. He never thought he�d have the chance to say something to her.

But
what can he say to her?! This is not the mother who educated him! If she
was taken from him when he was a child, this other world him, then surely she
did not yet burn her madness into him.

In
the meantime he quaked slightly as his mother�s replica took a few more tiny steppes
towards her overgrown son.

Seishiro
leaned backwards a little �H-he�s�.he�s not yours� he mumbled, a drop of sweat
dripping into his eye spreading pain into the only seeing orb.

The
tiny pale hand reaching out to caress the side of his face cringed and drew
back. The big eyes twitched in pain and surprise.

Suddenly
Seishiro understood something: this mother of his is just as lost as he is,
just as suddenly bombarded by emotions, just as apart from the tree as he is!

Suddenly
there were only the two of them in the world; brimful of emotions they did not
want and could not control bursting out through the mask suddenly cracked and
flaking.

They
were both lonely and frightened and miserable and lost like little children in
a huge hostile forest, flailing monsters amongst elves and pixies long
accustomed to the great woods.

His
heart reached out to the tiny woman before him. He was engulfed by the need to
gather her into his arm and cry with her for all the sorrow and anger and hate
and remorse they were both showered with as this world tore them from the
numbness of the sakura and into a world where they can no long hide in the
shadows and be content, where they have to socialize and�.and feel.

But
he did not.

She
hissed at him, hissed, and backed away from him, madness in her eyes.
Turning her back to him she flung an ofuda at him before disappearing down the
corridor.

The
spell grazed his cheek and opened a searing gash which immediately began to
bleed. It had been a much worse spell she cast on him but Subaru�s countering
ofuda had disarmed most of its sting.

Seishiro
was blind and deaf to the fussing of his lover over his wound; he was too
engulfed by thoughts.

Did
she react that way because she thought the same thing he did in those few
seconds and shunned it out hatefully thinking it a pathetic weakness?

Did
she back away due to an animalistic fear that, having exposed herself as a
weakened predator, he will try to kill her?!

Or
maybe�.maybe she was as maddened as his mother?

Seishiro
was silent and musing for the rest of the day. He sat in the large chair in
their room, a cigarette slowly burning away between his fingers and stared
forward powerfully, his brow frowning slightly.

Subaru
had snapped him out of it finally with tears of panic in his eyes. He was
terrified that the encountered had somehow made Seishiro withdraw into his
heart, so much he resembled someone Subaru knew once.

Alex
had been there as well when he awoke from his musing, he was the one who
ordered Seishiro out of his daze. He stayed to keep an eye on Seishiro. He
forced Seishiro to eat a big meal instead of the lunch and dinner he missed and
interrogated both men of what had happened today.

Eventually
he had spent the night in the onmyoujis� room sleeping in the same bed as them.

When
he noticed the two men on both his sides (this time Seishiro was in the middle
with Subaru and Alex sleeping by him) he lay and stared up at the ceiling,
still pondering things. He was like a mindless, speechless idiot, flipping
through a book in a strange tongue, staring at the pages shocked.

Finally
he let fatigue have the better of him and sank into a bothersome sleep.

His
dreams were filled with little boys falling from tree limbs and, with broken
arms, bruises, and twisted ankles, crawling to their mother sipping tea, her
hand covered with blood and a corpse of a boy his age at her side.

The
next morning he woke with the two men neatly snuggled up to him, deep in
peaceful sleep.

He
looked down at Subaru�s innocent sleeping face and smiled. He did not end up a
crazed frightened beast like his mother because he had Subaru-kun here to help
him out of it and teach him how to be human again. He tightened the hold he had
on the younger man and squeezed the sleeping body a little.

Then
he looked down at Alex and found a clear, innocent expression on the man�s
face. He did not seem his age this way, he seemed like a small frail boy, weak
and begging to be loved. His palm was clutching at the blanket drawn up to
Seishiro�s chest as if it would help to keep him there in the warmth and
comfort.

Seishiro
felt a bitter sting to his heart.

********************

Kamui
had spent another happy day with Kotori, only this one had ended in a somewhat sombre,
gloomy mood.

The
Oracle looked down into the green tea in her cup (her servant had changed, she
had noticed and made Kamui look at Will who answered him with a steady powerful
gaze) and sighed.

�What
is it Kotori-chan? What�s wrong?� Kamui asked, sitting a little closer to her
on the sofa.

Kotori
looked away, a single tear dripped silently down her cheek.

�There�s
a rumour around the palace� Tohru answered for her mistress, wrapping an arm
around her friend�s shoulders �that the negotiations are drawing to a close and
that soon you�ll be away from here again�

With
this Kotori burst into painful tears, throwing her arms around Kamui who
returned the hug.

�The
dream said it! the Lady of Light told me, she told me you�ll be snatched away
as quickly as you were given to me�.but for it to happen so quickly� she
whimpered miserably �I thought that surely you�ll stay here for a little bit
longer� she sank into sobs again.

Kamui
rubbed her back trying to cheer her up a bit; his heart too had sunk when he
heard the news. He heard them from Subaru this morning.

�I
don�t want to lose you a third time Kamui� Kotori whimpered on into Kamui�s
shoulder �I don�t want to lose you again! That man, he�s so evil for taking you
away like that� she gasped and burst into another fit.

�I
wish I could join you, I�m sure her majesty won�t object! And then when you�ll
finally return to your city I�ll be able to see Fuma again!�

�Yes
if only� Kamui sighed in return.

�Oh
Kamui� Kotori drew herself off of Kamui�s shoulder and hung big watery eyes at
her old childhood friend �can�t you speak to him and ask him to stay here for a
little while long? I�m not talking about taking me with you, that might be too
much, but�.but can�t you talk to him a little?�

Now
three pairs of eyes hung at him miserably, hopefully, demanding him to act as
their saviour.

Kamui
thought for a while. His mind buzzed with a million suggestions and ideas but
all of them were sure to fail. Alex had an iron will and nerves of steel when
it came to insisting upon something happening the right way in this �war�.

Then
again when did Kamui ask Alex to do something and did not receive it after
enough reasoning and nagging?

But
surely Alex won�t agree to this, no matter how nicely he�ll ask him�..

And
yet��just how nicely had he been acting towards him? If at all?......surely��

Surely�..if
he gave Alex something�..then the man would be content�..won�t he?

Kamui
gulped, slowly forming a plan. It�d be a great sacrifice and he�ll have to do
something he might not want to but�.for Kotori�.and for Fuma when they�ll come
back home both him and Kotori, Fuma would be so happy�..

Fuma
won�t have to know, would he?

�I�.I
think I have a plan�.�

The
eyes stared at him in awe and wonder.

******************

That
evening Alex�s room had been filled with cheerful voices and ringing laughter
as a past mischief was told of by Dvora. Lestate had had a ball with it,
getting into specific details and how Alex had messed up there.

Of
course they didn�t really laugh at him and that often Alex would get his revenge
while teasing the other two. For now he let them have a good time at his
expence.

Generally
he was most pleased with the way his two good friends were getting along so
very smoothly.

Usually
Dvora would probably cringe away from a fancy, witty creature such as Lestate
but her spirits were good and her mood lenient. She seemed to have finally
calmed down here and came to be at peace with herself. Alex was very happy to
see that.

Lestate
had found Dvora a brilliant source of information about his favourite subject
and never missed an opportunity to ask another question about his Death.

That
evening, as they lazed out on the large comfortable sofas in Alex�s room a
knock was heard on the door.

Dvora
answered it merrily, giggling at how she became so comfortable here that she
behaves as if it�s her room.

The
giggles ended as the door opened and Kamui stepped into the room, silent and
humble. He was blushing and averting his eyes from Alex as he hung his head a
bit.

He
was wearing something very smooth and very flattering Kotori had found him a
few days ago; a shining black with violet fragment, satin-like fabric. The suit
had made him quite a sight eyes and the fresh blush in his cheeks only added to
his beauty.

The
silence in the room weighted down on the people.

�May
I speak with you alone Alex?� Kamui asked clearly, his voice calm and
confident, yet very humble.

Alex
darted looks at his comrades and they began leaving the room.

Dvora
threw a happy face at him with her tongue sticking out before disappearing into
the corridor.

Lestate
walked out calmly, slowly walking past Kamui. Before he walked out he turned to
Alex and threw a single thought thread towards him.

�Watch
your step�

Alex
tore his gaze from Kamui, trying to not to become blinded with the sheer
beauty, and turned to his maps again.

�May
I speak to you Alex?�

****************

David,
and Victoria who were about to join to the meeting in Alex�s room had just
arrived to see the two guests leaving.

The
undertaker had noticed Kamui entering the room before. The door closing behind
him and the look in Lestate�s eyes turn an alarm in his mind.

�What�s
the brat planning?� he turned to Lestate who walked up to a large window in the
hall �You can read his mind vampire, what�s he up to?�

Lestate
took his time to answer. He gazed up at the beautiful moon above, its rays
making his skin glow unnaturally and his eyes turn into bright blue opals.

�If
Alex steps into it then it is entirely his fault. No don�t walk in; he should
learn his lesson�.both of them should�

David
clutched his fists and ground his teeth.

Victoria threw a worried gaze
at the closed door.

******************

�May
I speak to you Alex?�

�What
is it now?!� Death spat back angrily �Probably want to spend your nights with
that little dreamy idiot. Did you tell her about you and her brother? Eh?�

Kamui
remained calm �Please don�t attack me Alex, I didn�t come here armed with
demands and accusations� his voice was so calm and cool, yet pinched with misery.

Alex
turned his doubtful eyes to the boy.

Kamui
returned a mature solemn look, his cheeks still flushed, as if wishing to
reveal something terribly secret to Alex.

Death
wished to remove his eyes from the bewitching beauty but found that he
couldn�t, it was far too great for him to overcome.

�What
is it Kamui?� he asked softly.

Kamui
cast his eyes to the floor, turning his head sideways again with just the
tiniest pained expression.

�I�ve�..�
he flushed even more �I�ve been thinking about�.well�.no�I�ve�..� he sighed and
looked to the other side, fighting not to meet Alex�s soul searching gaze.

�I�ve
recovered my memories from the first time I�ve been here� he said, finally
gathering the courage to look at Alex for a single glimpse �and I�ve remembered
how good you were to me, and how kind and loving�� a single tear escaped and
rolled down his burning cheek.

Alex
slowly climbed to his feet. This�.wasn�t�happening, right?

�And�.it�s
hard for me to try and think�.I mean�.to try and decide which�.�

Alex
took a step towards him.

Kamui
lowered his gaze even more, wishing to hide his burgundy face �Which to be
with�.� He finally whispered.

Alex
was at his side, yet still weary and aloof.

�It�s
just that I can�t remember everything� Kamui went on, his voice a mere whisper,
too shy to speak �I can�t remember how we were�..alone�.I mean�.intimate��

�I
only remember little things about myself�.monstrous things because I was a
vampire but I can�t remember the gentle things�.if there were any�.I mean�..it�s
just important for me to decide�..if�..if it was human and okay�..�

He
suddenly gazed up at Alex, directly into the bewildered foggy green deeps who
stared down at him as if he was the greatest treasure about to be revealed to
him.

�I
thought that if you could remind me�.just once�.of how it was�

The
strong arms grabbed his shoulders. Caught. A soft thumb caressed his chin to
tilt it backwards a little.

Alex
scanned his face hungrily, impatiently �Kamui� he said hoarsely �do you mean
it?�

�Yes,
please Alex� the bait whimpered.

The
arms circled him, his chin was tilted backwards a little more and here, in a
second, their lips would meet!

�No�.�
Kamui turned his head sideways, away from the kiss �I mean�.if I�ll kiss you
that spell will work and�.well�I want my head to be clear of any influence, I
want to think for myself�

Alex,
who was very much on the verge of loosing himself to this wonderful experience
and his needs, which he repressed in the long bitter nights and days, took a
deep breath and scanned the beautiful tiny face in his hand as he planned his
next move.

He
kissed Kamui�s eyes closed, then his cheeks, then his delicate neck where he
rained a hundred tiny soft kisses each hardly revealing the storm of want in
their giver.

Kamui
kept his eyes closed tight and let his mind drift far away. Drifting as his
mind was, he did not let it drift too far for he knew that Alex�s ears were
acute to his thoughts and if the name of a certain youth might arise there then
the plan will be doomed.

He
found himself on the bed, his shirt open and his pant almost the same, the soft
lips playing wonderfully across his skin while the marble white fingers
explored him hungrily.

He
noted that Alex was not the attacking, hungry, lustful beast he thought he
might be; he did not hurry to expose anything, nor did he rush to please
himself as well. Instead Alex kissed his skin on every inch of exposed skin as
if charting the boy.

He
thought, with much surprise and slight joy, that Alex was appreciating his
body, worshiping it in this behaviour. He was thanking him for letting him have
this chance.

His
heart stung at this notion, he was doing something wrong. But before he�ll even
bring it into coherent thinking Kamui wiped the notion away to keep it hidden.

And
damn it! It felt so good!

Why
did he feel like this?! Why did he whimper and sigh and moan and arch into the
lapping tongue and warm hands over his body? Why was he, in small fragmented
words, asking for more or giving the man above him directions?

He
yelped as he sensed what Alex was doing now and the warm waters of pleasure
washed over him like a tidal wave. His breath quickened and his own mouth had
lost contact with what his mind allowed it to do. His fingers ran through
Death�s smooth long black hairs encouraging the man to do more.

He
really was enjoying this, treasuring this because��because�..

Because
Fuma never did this to him. He never made him feel like this.

Fuma
was a young man of much passion and very little experience. His opportunities
with Kamui he spent quickly, rashly, inconsiderately, leaving the boy not
unsatisfied but definitely wishing there was more of it.

Compared
to Fuma Alex was a master in this arts; ages of experience combined with his
unending love for Kamui made him know the boy�s good spots by heart, his need
to not blow this rare chance up heightening his behaviour to it�s best. He took
these spots in Kamui and played the boy like a piano�s keyboards, making the
boy dance and sing to his tune.

Kamui
knew this and for a moment thought that this is far, far better then what he
has at home, that in a sense he was accepting the fact that Alex is better then
Fuma.

That�s
impossible�.impossible� he won�t fall for it, not like this, not for such a
silly selfish reason such as good sex, would he?!

He
loves Fuma! He must think of Fuma, must keep his eyes on the prise and remember
what he came here for; for Fuma and Kotori, and fight the pleasure back.

Only
there wasn�t anymore pleasure. The touches stopped and the lips no long
caressed him.

Kamui
opened his eyes and saw the man bent over him was glaring menace at him with glowing
turquoise eyes. His face was almost completely red with anger, his orbs horrifying.

Kamui
cringed and kicked himself to sit on the bed, drawing his garments back on; the
plan had backfired on him! Shit!

�Kamui�
Alex growled, his voice deep, hoarse, demonic �what have you done?�

Kamui
squirmed back into his pants, leaped off the bed and began buttoning up his
shirt.

His
heart raced with the deepest, keenest terror he ever felt. The terror was worse
then when he had noticed that Seishiro�s execution will not go through, that
Death�s powers were getting stronger and soon, soon his punishment will come.
The terror was worse then when the Dragon possessed Fuma and hissed hateful
words into his ears after pinning him like a butterfly to the concrete slab
behind him.

�What
have you done Kamui?!� Death got off
of the bed, starting to march towards the youth.

Kamui
whimpered, backed up against the door he fumbled for the handle and escaped
into the large round hall outside their rooms.

�How
dare you play such a dirty trick on me Kamui?! How dare you?!� Death
boomed at him, wrath in the form of a man.

The
other Death riders were there, all staring amazed at the sight. They�ve never
seen Alex so mad at the boy he loved so much before, nor did they see Kamui so
very frightened.

Kamui
walked into the dining table and, seeing he has nowhere to run, decided to
speak up a little. �I wanted to ask you to allow Kotori with us so that when
we�ll return she�ll be able to meet Fuma��

�You
know we won�t return so quickly Kamui! Not until you�ll let this man off the
hook!� Death shot his arm to point at Seishiro.

�What
on earth makes you think I�ll let that idiotic bitch along with us?! What made
you think of such a conniving, dirty trick?!�

The
powerful slap hit Kamui so hard it tipped him over the table, sent him rolling
across it and down to the floor on the other end where he laid whimpering and
crying with sheer panic.

Death
sent the table flying against the wall where it crushed into a million
fragments with the might of the blow. He marched on towards the boy who managed
to gather himself to his feet again.

Will
shot himself before his master, defending the boy with his body. His eyes were
powerful and resolved though inside he was preparing to die for this act of
rebellion against the one man who could kill him with a snap of his fingers.

�You
dare stand before me mutt?!� Death roared and grabbed the werewolf by
the side of his head, flinging him to where the table lay scattered in a pile
of chips and broken limbs. He knocked the youth unconscious against the wall.

The
strong white hand that caressed him so lovingly a few minutes ago now lashed at
Kamui�s neck and squeezed tightly as Death carried the boy away into his room.

�No,
no please�.Alex I�m sorry, I�m so sorry�.please�.� Kamui choked on his tears
and the powerful steel hand on his windpipe.

�I
don�t think you�ve learnt just how imprisoned you are here Kamui. I think you
have too many liberties and it has gone to your head, brat!�

�No
please�.Alex PLEASE!!!�

A
cage of cast iron, two meters on in width and length, appeared in the boy�s
room with its door open.

Kamui
looked across his shoulder as much as he could and began to futilely beg even
more.

�No�.please�..please�.no�..�

He
was flung into the cell, cuffs and chains immediately clamping on his wrists to
bind him tightly to the wall behind him. The heavy door slammed shut limiting
the light to a single stripe coming from the little slit of a window.

Kamui
crumbled to the floor as much as he could and sunk into his misery, his anger
at his own stupidity and the pure fear of what might come next.

He
had spent the day there, laying cast away on the cold floor with nothing but
his tears and the echoing of his whimpers to keep him company.

******************

��

��

�Won�t
you speak to him?�

Will
raised his suddenly age-old eyes to his veterinarian and kept them there for a
while. He looked away and shrugged.

Seishiro
began tending to his wounds as soon as he noticed Alex turning his back to the
boy yesturday. He picked the frail body from the pile of woodchips and brought
him to his room where, on the table on which he spread a spare sheet, he tended
to the injured werewolf.

The
meeting with the wall had rendered Will with a heavy concussion which lead to
him nauseated, incoherent and dizzy for the rest of the day. Only now was he
finally beginning to shake the last veils of the searing headache. Gladly he
had not suffered from cracks in his skull or internal bleeding in his cranium,
something that could have ended his life quite quickly now that he was on
hostile territory with only a limited veterinarian to his aid.

His
shoulder had been dislocated, which was easily fixed but not without great
pain. His arm was broken, his elbow was slightly cracked.

Seishiro
sent Subaru down to the palace�s hospital to fetch him a proper arm sling and medical
plaster.

Subaru
had been a bit reluctant to help the werewolf cub at first but the screams of
pain and miserable canine whimpers had finally overcome him.

The
hand Alex sent to claw at the boy and yank him away from Kamui had pulled the
hairs from around Will�s right ear, leaving a partially bald patch on the side
of his head.

The
black ear�s tip had been torn away leaving an ugly wound behind. Seishiro had
managed to fashion the skin to leave a relatively aesthetic scar.

Now
he sat crouched by the werewolf checking on his shoulder and the stitches in
his ear.

Will
sat on the floor leaning on the heavy door of Kamui�s cell. From time to time a
tiny whimper managed to make an escape from the iron room and out into the air.

�Vhy
should I speak to him� Will sighed finally.

��.Because�.I
thought you were good friends��

�He
has done somesing bad and ist now being punished for it�I haf nothing to say to
him��

Seishiro
gave Will a doggy biscuit he found around the palace and ruffled his hair
fondly as much as he could between the bald patch and the large painful bump on
the boy�s head.

He
did not expect such an answer but found it pleasant and good nevertheless.

It
was the afternoon of the day after Kamui�s wicked trick and the sun was already
setting. Tohru had come to Kamui�s room three times already, asking about the
two boy�s absence which worried her mistress to no end.

Will
had told her shortly of what had happened.

He
did not give into the soft caresses and chirps of worry at his bandages and
wounds, he bore them with muted pride and refused to be praised for his
bravery.

Tohru
had just been there, trying to open a conversation with the silent and
suspicious Seishiro by Will�s side when Alex stepped into the room heavily.

The
three stared at him and immediately hurried to their various hiding places,
each knowing they�ve done something wrong by being there.

Alex
walked up to the iron cell, unlocked it, and flung the door open.

Slowly,
weakly, Kamui raised his stinging swollen bloodshot eyes to the menacing man at
the doorway.

�The
negotiation is over. I�ll be down securing the caravan with all the food and
products and then we�ll be riding out of here. Go spend whatever time you still
have with that little bird-brained Oracle of yours�

His
voice had been cold and commanding, powerful as it echoed from the iron walls.

He
turned around and left the room to go and gather zombies which will escort the
undead horses for the huge caravan acting as the rescuers of the Dark Side�s
City.

Will
walked into the room and helped his master get to his feet.

Kamui
gasped as he saw the werewolf�s wounds �You shouldn�t have done that Will, you
shouldn�t have protected me�.it was my sin, my idiotic acts, I should have paid
for them alone�

Will
looked at his master for a while and finally smiled, embracing the twin youth
as much he could.

They
hurried to walk over to Kotori�s room to make use of their now limited time.

**********************

�Oh
my god Kamui!!!! What had they done with you?!� Kotori leaped to
her feet and shot over to the two boys as soon as they entered her chamber.

Kamui
had half his face covered in a nasty black and blue bruise, his eyes swollen
and red. He was sickly and pale.

�Calm
down Kotori, I got what I deserved, please, sit down, and don�t cry�

�Oh!
And he hurt Will too, that monster�

�Kotori
please, I told you�.I�ve done a very, very bad thing and I got punished
for it. Please, don�t worry about it�

Kotori
threw herself into Kamui�s arms and burst into tears.

�I�ve
been told that you�ll be heading out tonight�� Tohru said while rubbing an
herbal medicinal ointment onto Will�s injured ear.

The
two youths held each other tightly, crying and sobbing powerfully.

They�ve
spent their last three hours together like that.

Tohru
had given Will a rosary necklace of white and black beads as a farewell token
from her.

The
werewolf blushed and mumbled a choked �zank you�. She gave him a kiss on the
cheek and a long hug which he returned ever so gratefully.

The
chamber�s large door swung slowly open, Alex stood at the entrance in his
armours �Come Kamui, we ride�

Kamui
got up, pulling Kotori after him sobbing and hysterical.

She
cleared her head and turned her mature and calm eyes to Alex.

Sobbing
and hiccupping slightly, she spoke to Death �I bid you now, formally and properly,
to let me and my servant ride with you for the rest of your journey.

�I
will not be a hindrance and won�t act against you. I only wish to ride with you
until you�ll reach your city where my brother is, I haven�t seen him since the
Dragon slew me�

�No�

Kotori
whimpered angrily.

�I�m
afraid your company only serves to stir the wrong ideas in Kamui, and besides,
you are a luxury he is not entitled to have in his status� Alex�s voice had
been cruel, powerful and dark.

He
turned to Kamui, who hung his head and avoided eye contact with him �Come on,
we haven�t got much time�

Kotori
held tightly to Kamui�s hand and refused to let go.

�Please
Kotori, I have to leave� Kamui begged of her, his eyes so sad.

Kotori
burst into sobs and refused to let go. Tohru came to her side and tried to
sooth her to no avail.

�If
you wish� Alex suddenly spoken in a soft and mannered tone, surprising the four
youths in the room �I will inform you when Kamui will be back in the city. Then
I will send my riders to escort you safely to our city where you�ll reunite
with your brother. How does that sound to you?�

Kotori
blinked, astounded �That sounds�fairly nice I think�

�I
thought so too� Alex smiled, turning to leave �Fuma should be happy once the
both of you are there, to have both his sister and his lover there by his side�

�His
lover?!� Kotori cried out �Are you suggesting that me and my brother�.� Then it
hit her.

Kamui
turned his eyes away form her, another mischief backfiring on him.

Kotori
hung huge shocked eyes at him.

Her
hand let go of Kamui�s.

�Kamui�..you�..�
she huffed, refusing to believe �you�..and Fu�..Fuma�.� tears choked her �you
and Fuma�.all this time�.behind my back�..

�but�..but
you love me, don�t you Kamui?!.....you said you�ll marry me when we�ll grow up!
You promised!!!

�Oh
and�.and all this time�.and when you came back to Tokyo�.I was nothing but a
background noise to you wasn�t I?!�

her
voice grew angry now, bitter and broken.

�Kotori,
I�.� Kamui was silenced by a slap from his former friend, landing on the bruise
making it sear and ache all over again. He cringed and ground his teeth to
stifle a yelp of pain.

�How
dare you!!! I hate you!!! You lied to me!! You fooled me!!!! You
bastard!! Get out of here!!! I don�t ever want to see you again!!! GET OUT!!!�

Kamui
did so, his head hung and sad, tears wallowing in his eyes. He did not
want this to end like this, to have such a bitter parting with Kotori.

As
he walked the palace corridors behind Alex he had noticed the man�s face
reflecting off a shield hung on one of the walls; Death was smiling
victoriously.

Alex
told Kotori about Kamui and Fuma on purpose! Was it revenge for last night? A
dirty trick for a dirty trick?

If
that�s the case then Kamui deserved it, he knew it, and walked on with another
burden of pain to carry.

****************

As
they left towards the far off land stretching beyond the palace and it�s
surrounding crop fields the Death riders, when they turned their heads and
looked backwards, could make out a huge convoy stretching out from the palace
towards the huge mountains where they came from almost a week ago, trailing on
like a long thick snake.

The
numerous carriages were run by undead, relentless, tireless horses that were
ordered to run beyond the animal�s physical capability in the times they were
alive.

On
each side of the carriages a thick line of zombies ran to secure the convoy,
running at the same inhuman pace as the beasts.

In
their current speed and their straight line course the convoy would reach the
Dark Side�s city within a matter of a few days and the starving City would be
saved.

Alex
had kept his promise to Yuzuriha.

(tbc)

*******************************************************

(1)
not the disease but the castle full of lustful women �nuns� from Monty Python�s
brilliant The Holy Grail. Go watch the movie if you don�t believe me, it�s good
for your sanity!

(2)
cute in Japanese, mostly referred to small pink things with big eyes a chirpy
voices, Mokona like, chibi forms etc. also said when referring to a good
looking girl who behaves herself like a stupid and, mannered giggling idiot to
attract the boys.

(3)
this is something I came up with, it is no where in the protocols or the
testimonies of the group Dvora and David are supposed to have been imprisoned
in. apologies if this offends anyone.

A.N: wow! A lot of slapping going on in this chapter ne? oh well. Hope you
liked this, don�t forget to R&R and remember the challenge!

Wow,
28 pages�.da-amn! �t�s been a long time since I last wrote such a long chapter.

Anywways
rest assured that Kamui won�t run anymore bitchy tricks on Alex. Rather the
other way around, but I digress�.
- 28
- 29
- 30
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A New World