11:33 PM WALNUT TREE (the Passion) - unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.
8:00 PM
Half old, half new. New starts at bold. Working title Raven Dreams, though I'm trying to remember the right one. ITALICS missing.
WARNING for gratuitous and graphic historical accuracy.
~~~
The snow drifted down like slow fireflies, painting the tree bark white and blanketing the hard ground. Seiji kept his armor dimmed, navigating by snow-light under the forest’s shadows. The pine trees thinned as he climbed higher, but he did not look up. The sky would be just as white as the ground; he already knew these hills around Mount Asahi quite well.
This was close to where he’d freed Shuu from Kongo’s sleep, bare seconds ahead of the deadly touch of Yami Masho’s evil sword. Seiji stopped to draw out its twin, Korin Ken, hoping it would guide him to Touma. Frost clung to its mystically honed edge. The blond warrior frowned.
He could feel Tenku nearby, yet Touma himself was still out of range. It was difficult to concentrate through the howling wind and creaking branches. Still more difficult to analyze the cold tickle on the back on his neck which set his nerves on edge.
The endless trees parted to reveal a rocky cliff which climbed steeply towards another plateau. Seiji leaned on its wall as he picked his way towards Tenku. When he and Nasuti had come for Shuu, it hadn’t been this cold. Seiji could almost feel the sweat on his hair crystalizing. At least he was getting closer...
The billowing red cape was the first thing he saw. His heart skipped a beat as the sword of darkness rose from its folds, ready to strike down. Then he noticed the small form huddled against the rock.
A savage cry rent the air and it was his own. The red cape whirled, red to black, but Seiji's attack was perfectly sighted. Mystical steel clanged together, throwing sparks. Melted icewater slid down the blade edges like first blood.
"Anubis! Step away from him!"
The dark warlord had closed his eyes at the bright intrusion, and thus blinded roared his answer. "NO!" Red to black. Seiji braced himself against the frigid gust in its wake, catching sight of Touma's bare body, the blue film of Tenku's shield obscuring him.
"I won't let you--!"
Suddenly the gust turned to a gale as Yami exploded outwards. Seiji's armor was barely able to shield in time. The blast threw him back to the rock face, the double impact popping the bubble just before he hit. "Nghh!" He spit out debris and ice as his head rang with Anubis' cursing.
And to his horror, the black sword rose in the air again. He pushed away from the cliff wall. "Stop it!"
"Silence, Date!" The nodachi swung down.
Anubis had been drained by the first blast, it seemed. He was in a crouch, eyes still closed, a dozen points open to attack. His family name on the warlord's lips might have stayed Seiji for a second. But his trained eye caught something else.
The nodachi was held blade-back down.
Korin Ken wavered.
The black wolf sword swung down. Seiji's breath seemed caught between his ribs and the breastplate. There was an awful screech as Yami's ki struck Tenku's shield. For a panicked moment Seiji thought he'd guessed wrong, he'd come all this way to see his love, his best friend cloven in two, but the sword stayed at the point of impact. Where it dissolved.
The shield blossomed into dark indigo, absorbing the power of the Masho's weapon and, Seiji realized, the Yami armor itself. Anubis was rooted the spot, shoulders heaving up and down. His armored fists and their cruel claws were buried in the snow.
It occurred to Seiji again, despite the bewildering events, that Anubis was completely unprotected.
"Impetuous boy," rumbled the warlord. "Are you going to take my head, as well? Wrap it up and offer it on your ancestral shrine?"
"You—" Seiji advanced, snow crunching under the armor. Touma... his friend wasn't answering. It was more than Touma's usual games of block-and-seek. The shield obscured his huddled form, but Seiji could see him shivering. He was so cold! Touma? "I can't hear him!"
"Of course you can't, boy." Anubis stood, claws lengthened by quick-frozen shards of ice. The cape waved and snapped from shoulders broad and intimidating in the mountain's shadow. Seiji cringed. The energy shield... the very sight of Touma made him feel cold.
He was cold. Shivering so hard Seiji nearly dropped the sword, he barely heard Anubis' voice. "If he cries out, she'll find him—"
"What did you do to T-Touma!" Seiji bit his lip.
The wind battered Anubis' still form. Wolf-dark eyes narrowed. "Sh'matta, shut up! She'll hear. You're as foolhardy and rock-headed as old One Eye."
Seiji nearly drew himself up to retort – how dare he insult his honored ancestor – when Anubis reached and pulled the helmet from his scarred head. Dark blue hair whipped in the wind; the Masho kept his body between Touma and the driving snow even as he faced Seiji. "I saw him pick the arrow from his eye, pretty boy. He was a mad oni on the battlefield. And fattened with luxury while we starved in the snow." The clawed hand clenched, raining ice shards. "Just keep quiet and she might spare him," came the growl.
you know how you try to pick an ant out of water? that's me and the emotions. I thought it would level out a bit, but who was I trying to kid? shorrrrttt attention span.
same old weights. same old facts, clearly stated and just waiting for me to deal with them.
rarrrr. must try to get rid of some of them.
and I swear to God, if anyone wags their finger at me for not doing it -right-, why are you doing this to yourself, get yourself together....
yeah. better to be angry than paranoid.
(or maybe I am paranoid? yes let's be afraid of her, she'd be so nice if she weren't fucking crazy, what a shameshameshame...)
I suppose the last bunch of people I really really trusted with this, let's see, wasted two years of my life, and treated me like hey, depression is your disease, you sorry excuse for a person, you stick the I.V. into your own bloody arm because we're not touching you not talking about it not going to acknowledge that we trigger any of it oh nononono and everything is happy because you're fine, see, you're fine, you can do this, you WILL do this or it'll ruin OUR lives
pardon me if I get jumpy when people beat around the bush or project their own lives onto my own.
you try moving when you don't even know what you feel. besides ugh. ugghhh.
a very rough draft and if you don't want to read the notes, don't highlight!
"Really? She was?"
Seiji's voice was soft on his ear, no longer seductive. Wistful. "She was. It was something I had not considered. But I wanted to try, and I wanted to learn, and I knew I could not trust a man with that sort of training."
"Mm." Remembering. "That must have been awkward."
"She knew what she was doing." Seiji sighed as Yohji laid his hand on his hip. "We met for tea, so I could get used to her. After a few times, I realized she was playing the role of lady and I of vassal."
"So, how did you--"
"First she undid her kimono. We had tea like that, never mentioning it. She knew I wasn't as attracted to women, but the exotic nature of it would build the tease..."
"She pounced you, didn't she?"
"Yes, she did. Wearing nothing underneath, of course. Nothing stopping her from just exposing me and taking, which terrified me."
A warm nuzzle. "But she didn't."
"No. In a minute I realized she was going to stay there till I did something. Guilted me into trying -something-." Seiji sighed. "I touched her, and in a while it became difficult not to take her."
"Blushed, did you."
"I couldn't help it. She made short work of me, showing up the next time in a vinyl skirt. Teased me till I took off my own clothes. She wanted me to let go. If I missed something, she'd censure me, no matter how intense the situation."
just remembered my dream. was framed for murder. like, really. in front of me. ewww.
Tuesday, October 22, 2002
7:53 AM
annnnnnd the blonds are officially trying to drive me crazy. :p~~
Monday, October 21, 2002
11:37 PM
did I even mention, I came out today, in art class, rather loudly. I was talking to my neighbor, this dad in his thirties with two kids, and we were comparing relationship styles. it felt so good then.
M Anthur Feb 8, 2001 18:03 NST Aquarius, mWhiteTiger Month, mBlack Tiger Day, fBrown Chicken Hour
- greatest in Wood, then Fire and Metal
- lucky: Water and Earth
M Abette Mar 24, 2001 10:50 NST Pisces, fWhite Rabbit Month, mRed Dog Day, fBlack Snake Hour
- greatest in Fire, then Metal
- lucky: Earth
M? Aussie Dec 25, 2001 6:32 NST Capricorn, mWhite Rat Month, mBlack Dog, fBlack Rabbit
- greatest in Water, and Metal
- lucky: Fire
F Star Sept 27, 2001 9:30 NST Libra, fRed Rooster Month, fBlack Snake Day, fRed Snake Hour
- greatest in Metal, then Fire
- lucky: Wood
F Ancalime Mar 4, 2002 21:28 NST Pisces, mBlack Tiger Month, fWhite Sheep, fBrown Pig
- greatest in Wood and Water
- lucky: Earth
M Terriermon Feb 22, 2002 13:53 NST Pisces (near Aq cusp), mBlack Tiger Month, fWhite Chicken, fGreen Sheep 5762h 2:54pm 10/20/02
- greatest in Fire and Wood
- lucky: Earth
M YamiYugi Aug 28, 2002 14:41 NST Virgo, mBrown Monkey Month, mBrown Dragon, fBrown Sheep
- greatest in Earth, and Water
- lucky: Wood
* * *
Speaking of birthdays, I'm thinking I won't bother with the Amazon list... that's more for my own benefit than anyone else. I'd rather have mp3s and if one's on Neopets, stuff for my pets. That's infinitely more fun than more stuff to stuff into this tiny room. And cheap ^^ I finally understand why my mother always says "Whatever" when we ask her what she wants for her birthday. She started saying that when I was around fifteen. It's just... a nice excuse for a party. What's another year? Already got my driver's license, can vote, can buy liquor and cigs... big deal. The planets spun around again. We all fall down. Next big birthday, afaic, is the social security birthday. (If we still have SS, but that's another potato.)
12:32 PM
Hrm... could post this on the LJ, but I'll tuck this here till I can look it over and check my versions against the House canon.
"I am not the only cowboy in this one-horse metaphor."
- the Josh Joplin Group, Every Day
He knew somehow he'd end up back here. It wasn't as though the money was ever going to run out; Omi had always taken care of them, even when they didn't need it. And after the clan had released the Date inheritance, they hadn't needed it.
Still, after a while even Rio got old, and he had no intention of wasting a ticket to Milan or Nice or Paris. He'd sooner move to Sapporo. So he uploaded the last of the prints into the secure database, closed down the studio, and left.
And got sidetracked in Hong Kong, and Sydney, and there had been that fabulous weekend in Shanghai.
Now he was here. Home? Home was people, Omi had always said.
Fuck. He didn't have a home. He hadn't even rid himself of the hangover.
He looked up at the cheery little shop sign. It hadn't changed much from the last time they'd visited. The cheery was no doubt Cye's doing. The little had to be Ran, scrupulous miser that he was.
The door swung open before he could knock. That was something he'd gotten used to---
"Uncle Yohji!"
He blinked, and was ushered into the shop proper, then up to the spacious flat. When had the buggers grown so big! Probably somewhere between Hamilton and Port-of-Spain. Which one was this again?
"It's Elly, remember? Well, it's a good thing there's another train into the city. They'd have my head if I let you wander in such a state." She deposited him on an easy chair with instructions not to move, and fussed her way out.
Relatives of Cye's never failed to leave him feeling like a lost puppy. He laid his head on his hands, trying to calculate Elly's age through the throbbing headache. It beat contemplating the light, airy spaces of the redheads' perfectly feng shui home. They'd moved into the loft for a couple of years. The atmosphere was heady with Ran and Cye's presence, but there were more than enough memories of them to go around.
A suspicious looking drink appeared on the end table next to him. It smelled of tomato juice. "Since when do they let you root around their bar, Elly-chan? And where are the troops anyhow." He downed it. Far be it from him to mistrust a concoction of any relative of Cye's.
"Uncle Ran said it was a buying trip. Uncle Cye said it was a hotel room with a view." Elly flopped on the couch. All pigtails and plaid skirt, just like any other girl, except for the way her eyes looked at you and saw straight through. "It's probably both. They'll be back this afternoon."
"So what're you doing here?" Yohji finally came up with a ballpark age and shook his head. It actually hadn't been that long. They did shoot up overnight.
"House-sitting," she answered promptly, swinging her legs on the edge. "I had a paper to do and I wanted some peace and quiet. Little brothers, you know." She wrinkled her nose. "Shall I tell them you're here, or will you wait till they're practically stumbling on you?"
Yohji grimaced. "Get out of here, Elly."
She grinned in return, jumping up and planting a kiss on his cheek. "The key's by the coat rack if you want to leave."
He watched her go, vaguely rubbing his cheek. "Thanks, Elly-chan."
"You've got till tonight before I call Aunty Suki so don't go far!" She called on her way out.
Yohji fairly growled. Perfect. Seiji's little sister. He'd have preferred Yayoi, but she was in the States for business. Well nothing for it. He probably had to call Omi too. No point bothering Ken, he'd hear about it through Aya anyway.
This was the part he hated about coming back. The interrogation phase.
The lanky blond curled up on the couch. He'd shower in a minute. First he needed some shut-eye...
* * *
In general, anyone sneaking up on Kudou Yohji would soon find themselves flat on the floor and banged up just short of a civil suit. Seiji was usually quick enough to dodge; if he was ever caught between a flat surface and 75 kilograms of former assassin, there was no telling if it was deliberate.
Three people were excepted from this rule.
"Kudoh, it's your turn to open the shop." The deep voice sounded next to Yohji's ear.
"Five more minutes, Aya," Yohji mumbled.
"Baka." The voice was more amused than annoyed.
Yohji was not to be tricked into opening his eyes, though. "Or ten more minutes if you wanna..." He reached out and was rewarded with a nice, firm ass.
"Yohji!" Okay, now he was annoyed.
"Mmph." Yohji capitulated, and opened his eyes. Then he remembered the right name. "Ran. Whatcha doing here?"
Ran glared down at him in a way that made Yohji feel positively homesick. "This is my home. I should be the one asking you that!"
From the direction of the stairs came a mildly chiding snort. "Love, I'm sure Elly let him in." Despite the calm in Cye's British tones, Yohji could hear him pacing.
"Besides, aren't I your favorite stray?" Yohji mustered up a grin.
Ran humphed. "Probably. It might just be the frequency of your washing up at our doorstep."
"So where's Seiji?" Cye slipped in. Yohji struggled out of the afghan which he had most certainly not been cuddling when he fell asleep. He recognized the tactic, as well as redheads' silent mental exchange. Telepathy was a waste without a poker face.
"He's with Touma. Na, I'm getting old, that was just one time zone away!" Yohji beelined for the coffee before he could be debriefed in full.
"You are not getting old," Ran bit out. Ah, Ran. Yohji loved his best friend like his right hand and his tattered soul, but it was still incredibly easy to divert him from the issue.
"Sure I'm not. I haven't smoked in how long? International airport damn near took me out, just walking between terminals." Yohji found the coffee already brewed. And cooling. They'd been home for a while, then.
"You could have taken the shuttle, you know."
"What, and get squashed between neechan's Hello Kitty matched luggage and sararisan's pot belly? I think not."
"Yohji," Cye said. Yohji managed to get a sip of coffee to avoid answering, but met Cye's piercing gaze. Turning away from Cye was an option long disappeared from Yohji's life. "Is he coming back?"
Well, yes. But probably not to me. Are we going to stand here and hurt Ran with that?
"What are you talking about, Cye-chan?" Ran looked from one to the other. "Answer him, Yohji."
The caffeine was starting to loosen his bones. Yohji shrugged. "Seiji and I had a disagreement."
"You have a disagreement every day! Yohji!" Cye laid a hand on Ran's shoulder, and he took a deep breath. "Where is he?"
This was what he'd come all this way to do, right? He hadn't said the words till now, lest the reality of the situation sink in. No turning back. "He's in the Youjakai with Touma and Kayura and that whole bunch." Lightly, "I didn't dump his body off a bridge, if that's what you're thinking."
Ran looked incensed. Yohji was less surprised that he'd hit close to the mark, than that Ran had read the despair on his face. Cye was frowning. "Yohji, what is he doing there?"
"Research. Armor business." Yohji finished off the cup. No point in dissembling now. Besides, he needed a place to crash, and he didn't want to ... be in Omi or Ken's households. "He wants an heir."
Ran opened his mouth. Probably to say that Yayoi had children, and Satsuki had her adopted kids, and why after all this time did Date Seiji want an heir? Cye shushed him telepathically. Yohji was grateful; he didn't want to hear his arguments coming out of Ran. Not after it had made so little difference.
"Did you have any things other than that bag?" Cye said instead. Ran looked like he was going to burst.
"Nah. Hey, you don't have to go through the trouble. I can call up a hotel," said Yohji politely. He knew the answer to that, of course. He would stay here tonight; he was their favorite stray.
"No, no, it's all right. We'll go make up the guest bedroom, then." Cye was all but tugging Ran out of the kitchen.
"Thanks. I'll be fine down here...!" Yohji slumped on the kitchen stool as they made their escape. It was a good thing Cye's empathy was so strong. He wasn't sure he'd have survived a full interrogation without breaking down.
So Yohji was left all alone in the massive kitchen. The space was large enough to fit four cooks, and five or six families bustling in and out. Yohji almost dropped his spoon just to hear the echo. He got up to wash out the cup. "Sorry we broke your dream, Ran," he murmured. "It wasn't anyone's fault."
O no, I see,
I spun a web, it's tangled up with me,
And I lost my head,
The thought of all the stupid things I said,
O no what's this?
A spider web, and I'm caught in the middle,
I turned to run,
The thought of all the stupid things I've done
I never meant to cause you trouble,
And I never meant to do you wrong,
And I, well if I ever caused you trouble,
O no, I never meant to do you harm
O no I see,
A spider web and it's me in the middle,
So I twist and turn,
Here I am in love in a bubble
Singing, I never meant to cause you trouble,
I never meant to do you wrong,
And I, well if I ever caused you trouble,
Although I never meant to do you harm
They spun a web for me,
They spun a web for me,
They spun a web
for me
~60K of graphics :: Koani by
Alice in Wonderland :: Scorpion by Ushikai Background and buttons by Triple Orbit Graphics ~ Sadly it's no longer at its former website.
