Okay... this one brings everyone up to speed on what happens with Recca. BTW, in the manga, Tsukino was really Mori Kouran's wife, and had found & brought up Kurei. Mori Kouran used her like he used Kurenai. Also, Recca tamed Saiha first... but here, I gave him Nadare first because it just seemed more appropriate. ^_^ Enjoy!-Bottou-chan

The dark-haired woman gazed sadly into the ball she held in her hands. A swirling, hazy image faded from view and she tucked it safely away. She wished that it wasn't true... but the Eikai Ball never lied. As much as she hated to interfere, something had to be done.

Hundreds of years had passed since she had done the time manipulation. Back when she was known as Kagero. Back when she was with Ohka, before the Oni had visited their village to destroy them. Now, she was known as Kage Houshi, and she had been wandering around Japan in a seemingly endless wait for the two boys' arrival. The Eikai ball had helped her tremendously with this. To keep attention away from herself, she had never remained for too long in one place. Five years spent in Yokohama, six years in Kamakura. Three years in Kobe, then five years in Kyoto. A few in Tokyo, a few in Hiroshima, a few in Osaka, a few in Nagasaki. And then repeat the cycle. Never long enough for her neighbors to notice that she never aged. And yet long enough for her to make friends and acquaintances, which she could never keep for long. It had been four hundred years of sadness, bitterness, and loneliness. And uncertainty.

Until fifteen years ago. A kind woman by name of Tsukino had run across the baby Recca by chance, and had taken him in. She was married to a very powerful person, by name of Mori Kouran. Kage Houshi wished for the best for her son, and how could she be a good mother if she was unable to even touch the boy again? Tsukino and her husband seemed to have vast resources at hand which Kage Houshi lacked herself, but seemed to ensure a good future for her son. It had been a heart-wrenching decision to make, but she had remained where she was, instead of yielding to the impulse of running to claim her baby. Tsukino seemed to need Recca just as much as Recca needed Tsukino. It was touching, watching the joy he brought into the formerly sad woman's life. Kage Houshi couldn't help but be envious as she spent hours gazing into the Eikai ball, watching the two.

Recca was three when his Flame reappeared for the first time. Kage Houshi happened to be gazing into the ball when it happened. Recca had been caught playing in a potted plant, and he was very dirty. A servant was supposed to give him a bath, but Recca refused to cooperate. He threw a temper tantrum, and in the midst of his fit, a tiny flame burst from his hand and burned the servant. Word spread quickly to his foster parents and amongst the other servants. And suddenly, Mori Kouran took a newfound interest in him which hadn't been noticable before.

Time passed. Recca was now five. Even at this young stage, he could control one of the dragons: Nadare. Kage Houshi wasn't surprised. Nadare, according to the Hokage history, had been one of the kinder and more pleasant leaders. Mori Kouran had begun to take a more active part in the raising of Recca, to the eventual exclusion of Tsukino. He had banished her to a small, isolated house which he mockingly called the "Moon Palace". Mori Kouran encouraged Recca to develop his skills and hone them further, to become more powerful.

Kage Houshi had watched this part of the proceedings intently. It had been a turning point for Recca, she decided in retrospect. Tsukino had become a hostage, with a tiny bomb implanted inside her. Recca was made to practice, practice, and practice some more. Or else something would happen to his beloved mother... It had taken Kage Houshi great effort to refrain from interfering then. I should have, she thought bitterly. But I didn't...

She had sat and watched. Watched as her son lost the things he loved. Watched as her son was encouraged to throw aside his emotions. Watched as her son became Mori Kouran's machine. It had hurt. It had hurt terribly.

She had also been keeping track of Kurei during this time. He had been found by a fireworks manufacturer named Hanabishi Shigeo. He wasn't particularly affluent, and tended to smoke around the fireworks. But Kurei had enjoyed a relatively normal childhood... he had attended school like other boys, and was now midway through college. Kurei tended to be a loner, but had one good friend: his girlfriend. He, like his half-brother, had discovered his powers of Flame early on, but unlike Recca, had lacked the incentive to develop them.

Kage Houshi sighed and prepared herself for the ordeal. She didn't want to interfere... she had spent the last ten years making excuses to herself why she shouldn't become involved in Recca's life. But she could no longer stand seeing what her son was becoming.

It was time for things to be changed.

Back to the KFC