Defying Heaven
2nd Perception: The Guardian Witness
by
Ina-chan
First Posted Online: December 26, 2001
History: Ina-chan's First Fruits Basket Fic
It was
said that people leave imprints of themselves in objects. And
traces of that person’s story… that person’s secrets…
linger on and on, even after death. If that is so, then if the
great hallway of the Souma Main House could talk, it would have
been a writer’s dream. For these walls have witnessed hundreds
of years worth of history… and secrets. Specifically secrets
that people would normally prefer not to be a part of.
When he
was a child, Shigure wanted nothing else but to sniff and dig up
these dark secrets to sustain his unnatural curious appetite for
knowledge. Until it came to the point when he found himself in
the role of a main player, who created more of those secrets.
With all honesty, he wasn’t really sure if he wanted to be
proud or be ashamed of the things that he knew. But he was only
sure of one thing. He wanted to be a part of it. It made life
more interesting.
Like
today…
The
faltering of the small footsteps echoing behind him broke his
line of thought. The young man turned around to find a small
pale frightened face looking back at him, silently begging him
not to lead him to face the wrath of God.
“Yuki…”
Shigure sighed
“GURE-SAAAN~~~!!”
A cheerful voice suddenly called out, and a beautiful
silver-haired figure immediately came rushing after him from the
end of the hallway, “Ya! There you are! You and Tori-san
promised to meet me after school. Neither of you showed, so I
thought I’d come to pick you…” Ayame’s voice trailed to
silence when his cousin didn’t return his jovial greeting
“Sorry,
Aya… I’m afraid I have to cancel today. I don’t think
Ha-san can come either. Sorry,” Shigure replied, before
sweeping his gaze to the direction of the quiet smaller figure
behind him, “Come along, Yuki.”
Perhaps in
an act of desperation, the little boy turned and reached out to
the new comer, seeking for protection, “Ni-san…”
The
silver-haired young man shrank away instinctively from the small
hand reaching out for him, as if protecting himself from being
scalded by the child’s touch. He then turned to his cousin and
forced out a disappointed sigh before walking away, “Ahh ma!
Now I have to find other means to have fun all by myself. How
troublesome. Ya Gure-san! I’ll see you later.”
The little
boy bowed his head tried to stifle a sob rising painfully from
his throat, as his last hope for a protector rounded the corner
and disappeared from sight.
“Yuki,”
Shigure called out again, “It’ll be worse if we keep Akito
waiting.”
Motivated
by a greater fear, the little boy immediately complied and
walked beside his older cousin. He would never admit it out
loud, but this was one task that Shigure was reluctant to do. It
was too much like leading a lamb to be slaughtered. Personal
feelings and opinions, however, mean nothing compared duty and
loyalty. Furthermore, he will never let such sentiments to
prevent him from attaining a goal that he promised himself.
Yes… even if it meant sacrificing a lamb to be slaughtered.
He felt a
pair of small hands suddenly clutch his leg tightly as they
stopped in front of a door at the end of the great hall. He put
a protective hand on top of the little boy’s head before
reaching out to open the sliding door with his other hand.
The light
of the afternoon seeped through the window and flooded the room
with ethereal brightness. They found him sitting on a chair and
leaning idly by the window. One relaxed arm hanging outside, the
other supporting his chin… He didn’t even bother to
acknowledge his two visitors. Shigure simply stood quietly by
the door in venerated silence. His charge continued to limit his
movements and prevented him from showing proper respect through
action. He let the silence linger a few more moments before
attempting to speak, “Akito, I brou—”
“It’s
late,” Akito’s soft voice interrupted quietly
“I’m
sorry, we—” Shigure began again
“I let
it out this morning and it still hasn’t returned,” Akito
continued, as if he didn’t hear Shigure speak, “Do you think
it’s all right?”
“Eh?”
Shigure blinked in puzzlement before realizing what the Head of
the House was referring, “Ah… I’m sure it will come back
anytime now. You shouldn’t worry too much about it.”
“You’re
right. I shouldn’t worry. Eventually, it will come back to me.
It always comes back…” Akito agreed as he shifted to finally
face the two newcomers, an unreadable smile lining his serene
face, “All of them.”
Shigure
kept an impassive expression as he gently nudged the frightened
little boy hiding behind him to move forward. The child only dug
his fingers painfully deeper into his cousin’s flesh and
started to shiver violently.
“Come
here.”
As if
controlled by invisible strings, the child reluctantly released
his death grip and slowly walked closer to face God’s wrath.
“Why did
you do that?”
The little
boy’s lips moved to give a reply, but his voice failed him.
“Because
of what you did, we will need to ask Hattori to do something
awful to those poor children. Because of what you did, Hattori
will have to erase their memories… all because of you.”
“Wh-why…”
The little boy finally managed to force his voice out, “… is
it… am I so abnormal that we have to hide it so much?”
Akito
stood up and slowly walked in front of the younger boy and
towered over him. “Yes. You’re abnormal. A human who turns
into a mouse? Of course, its abnormal.” The Head of the House
lightly cupped the younger boy’s chin and gently forced the
little boy to look up and face him, “If normal people find
out, they will be disgusted. They will be sickened. That’s why
it’s better to stay away.” The older boy leaned down to meet
the younger child’s height and gave him a re-assuring smile,
“But don’t worry. Everything will be okay. I’ll always
protect you from them.”
“But…”
The protesting word burst from his mouth before he could stop
it. Realizing his mistake, Yuki meekly lowered his eyes and bit
his lip.
“‘But’
what?” Akito prodded, his soft voice hardening and all traces
of gentleness fading from his features.
“Th-they’re…
my… my… friends…”Yuki forced himself to continue
hesitantly
“Yuki…
sweet gentle Yuki,” The Head of the House slowly stood up
straight and lightly ran his fingers through the little boy’s
hair, “I’m afraid that I have to remind you again of WHAT
you are.” The little boy let out a shriek of pain as the older
Souma’s fingers suddenly curled into a tight grip.
“AKITO!”
Shigure called out in alarm as he helplessly watched the young
Head of the House drag the younger boy out of the room and to
the dark Great Hall by the hair
“Shigure!”
Yuki wailed in pain, as he let one desperate arm to flail out
and unsuccessfully reach for him
“AKITO,
WHERE ARE YOU TAKING HIM!?” Shigure called out again, as
he walked briskly behind them.
The young
man already knew where the Head of the House was going. Another
room… a small dank room with stale air, with no light and with
no windows. It’s walls kept secrets as well.
“NO!
NO! PLEASE AKITO!” The little boy screamed when the
familiar door at the end of that particular hall came in sight,
“I’M SORRY! I’LL BE GOOD! I WON’T DO IT AGAIN! I
PROMISE! PLEASE! DON’T LOCK ME ALONE IN THERE AGAIN!
PLEEEEEEASE!!!!”
Without
another word, the Head of the House tossed the younger boy into
the pitch black room, slid the door shut, and locked it. He
stood there listening to the younger boy scream and bang the
door with his hands with an unemotional expression on his face
until the little boy’s wails died down to silent sobs.
“You’re
so pathetic,” Akito stated blandly through the door, “Being
afraid of the dark. Mice like the dark, and that’s what you
are. No matter how hard you try…”
“YOU’LL…”
“…NEVER…”
“…CHANGE…”
“…WHAT...”
“…YOU...”
“…ARE.”
Despite of
himself, Shigure ground his teeth and clenched his hands in
indignant anger. Then he slowly forced himself to relax as the
mantra of duty, loyalty, and his dream chanted quietly in his
mind. That is, until his ears picked a subtle change in pattern
in the sobbing of the little boy being punished at the other
side of the door, “Akito, let him out.”
The Head
of the House didn’t make any hints of acknowledging his words.
“Akito,
this is an emergency, he’s having an asthma attack.”
The boy
simply stood there, staring at the door impassively.
“IF
WE DON’T GET HIM OUT, HE COULD DIE!!”
A
small smile made its way into the Head of the House’s lips,
“Then it’s for the best.”
Shigure’s
eyes widened in horror as he stared at the younger boy in
disbelief.
“A
person who can’t accept who or what he really is will only
face inevitable death when left alone in the cruelties of the
world. If he dies now, then it will be more merciful. It’s the
least that I can do for him…” Akito soft voice rang clearly
through the quiet halls, as he slowly turned to face the young
man and gave him a serene smile, “Ne?”
The young
man swore under his breath and immediately spun around and raced
down the great hall, his footsteps thundering loudly.
“Shigure!”
Ayame called out in alarm as the his cousin rounded the corner
that he was hiding in
Shigure
stopped and grabbed the silver-haired young man’s shoulder
urgently, “Run and get Uncle. Tell him to go to Yuki right
away. I’ll get Hattori so we can get Akito away from the
door!”
An
uncharacteristic look of anger flashed on Ayame’s face, before
turning on his heels and obeying his cousin’s order.
In the
brightly lit room, a little bird flew through a window and
perched itself on top of its cage. It cocked its head to the
side, as if puzzled to find the room empty. Oblivious to the
chaos happening around it, it proceeded to groom its feathers
and waited for its master.
End of 2nd
Perception
Return
to
1st Perception: God's Will
Continued
on 3rd Perception: Crucial Resolve
Ina-chan’s squawk:
HAAAAAA! Two down, one to go! I’ll finish the last part tonight and
hopefully post it by tomorrow. For now… I’M GOING SHOPPING!
^_^. Happy Boxing Day! ^_^.
Usual stuff… Comments, criticisms, bricks… you know where to send
them!
Ja!
Ina-chan
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