Jyuunishi no Enkei Monogatari
Epilogue 
by Ina-chan
First Posted Online: March 28th, 2003
History: A Theory on the Origins of the Souma Family Curse 

“It was said, that Mizugawa Kaji spent the rest of his life imprisoned and isolated. With no one and nothing to keep him company other than his grief, guilt, hate and indignation… gradually and steadily, he began to descend into a deep pit of despair. It came to the point that he spent the last years of his life, with his mind moving erratically between periods of madness and sanity. Though one thing was for certain….”  

Souma Shigure’s voice paused for dramatic effect. He watched his cousin’s face intently, only to be rewarded by a stoic, pensive expression. The Dragon didn’t show even the slightest indication that he noticed that his cousin even stopped reading. The writer made a small mental shrug before returning to the journal in front of him to continue his tale.  

“Though one thing was for certain,” Shigure repeated, “His wrath only grew stronger with the passage of time. His burning desire to destroy the family that crushed them fuelled his hate to the point that it consumed his very soul… corrupting it into a hideous, unrecognizable monster.”  

With that Shigure closed the journal and eyed his companion expectantly, “Well, what do you think? Interesting, isn’t it?”  

Hatori didn’t reply. Instead he pulled out a cigarette from his pack and lit it.  

The writer carefully laid the diary on the table and idly ran his fingers around the edges of the aged leather, “He was really an impulsive hot-head wasn’t he… Kaji-san, I mean. He probably laid down the curse without thoroughly thinking about the consequences. He probably didn’t realize that it was a fate worse than death to be trapped into coming back over and over and over again.”  

Shigure gave his cousin another sidelong glance, but the medicine student continued to refuse his gaze. The writer leaned on the table and rested his right temple on his knuckles, “Every time they return and meet to relive the cycle again, they’re probably blaming each other for not being able to move on. No matter how close you are or how much you love each other… being subjected to a fate like that…  it’s no wonder that they eventually grew to hate each other…”  

Hatori breath interrupted the silent pace of the writer’s voice as he let out a long breath. Shigure absentmindedly watched the smoke swirl lazily in the air before letting out a sigh of defeat, “Nee, Ha-san… won’t you say something?”  

“It’s stupid,” Hatori replied blandly  

“Somehow, I had a feeling that you would say that,” Beads of sweat lined on the writer’s forehead, before turning into a more playful tone, “But Ha-san… with how you looked earlier, it didn’t seem that you thought it was. Come on, admit it, the truth is, you really liked the story.”

 The Dragon frowned at the Dog, but said nothing. The writer’s eyes glinted mischievously as he leaned forward with an impish expression on his face.

 “Haaaa… just imagine… a girl whose beauty rivals that of the legendary Princess Kaguya. You don’t see anyone close to that anymore,” Shigure grinned wolfishly before closing his eyes and clasping his hands melodramatically over his chest,  “And it even seemed like Yukino-chan was favouring Tatsu-san in a not so fatherly light! I’m so jealous! If Yukino-chan were alive today, she would probably be in her 3^rd year in senior high school or in her first year of college…”  

“Idiot,” Hatori snorted in disgust, “Don’t get too carried away. It’s just a story.”  

“But still…” Shigure stated, in a more serious tone as he held the diary once again in his hands, “…it seems much too real to be ‘just a story’, isn’t it?”

 “It’s just a story. Don’t think any more of it,” Hatori insisted more firmly, grinding his half-finished cigarette against the ashtray as if to stress his point, “If you had any common sense, you’d burn that damned thing.”

 “Burn it!” The writer gaped at his cousin in horror, as his hands instinctively pulled the journal away from the other man’s reach, “How can you even suggest that? This is a diary of a Jyuunishi member from the Meiji Era. It’s a priceless and irreplaceable historical treasure by itself.”

 “I would hardly call a diary containing a dead man’s sick imagination a priceless treasure,” Hatori replied irritably

 The Dog raised an eyebrow, surprised at his best friend’s reaction. He expected the normally calm Dragon to brush the story aside nonchalantly without another thought. But there was something in the way his cousin was reacting that he couldn’t put a finger on. Besides, it was rare enough to get any form of reaction from Hatori’s face. He couldn’t help but indulge the wayward imp whispering instructions of mischief in his ear.

  “Ah, but Ha-san… you know that most legends and folklore are often times based on fact. What if Iwaku-san actually stumbled upon a version of the Jyuunishi legend that explains the origin of our curse? You have to admit that the circumstances in laid here are too much of a coincidence to ignore.”

 “Iwaku-san is also a Jyuunishi,” Hatori countered, in controlled patience, “It’s easy to create a biased reasoning to explain his own suffering. It’s just a story Shigure. Just forget about the whole thing.”

 “Yare, yare… It’s very unlike you to get worked up like this over something so trivial,” Shigure eyed the other man through half-lidded slits, “If I didn’t know better, I would think that Iwaku-san’s story actually hit a sore chord. Like I said earlier, this book is a treasure. It should be preserved in a museum and shared to the general public. I think a lot of people will find it amusing just as I have.”

 “As amusing as it may be, it’s dangerous to share that story with anyone… more so the general public,” Hatori replied vehemently

 “Eeeh? So what happened to ‘It’s just a story’?” Shigure grinned impishly

 The Dragon replied by giving the Dog a serious reprimanding look, “Even simple works of fiction can become dangerous depending on the person who reads it.”

 The writer’s eyes widened at the other man’s reply. A wave of silence descended upon the room as the writer felt the weight of his cousin’s grave words slowly sinking in.

 “Just think of what will happen Shigure,” Hatori began in a quiet voice, “How do you think the others would feel if they found about this? Most specially the young ones… You know the Jyuunishi tale already has a powerful hold over us. You’ve already seen how we are all treated and how people see us just because of a story… what more if THIS particular story was to come out. You said so yourself, that the story feels too coincidental to be ‘just a story.’ So what if everyone believed it?”

 The writer couldn’t find any words to counter that. He could only tighten his protective grip on the ancient leather-bound journal.

  “How do you think Yuki will feel, if he finds out that the Mouse was the reason to why we are cursed? How do you think Kyou will be treated if the others found out that it was the Cat that cast it? Heaven forbid…” Hatori paused as he gave the other man a long, penetrating stare, “What do you think Akito would do?”

 Shigure made an involuntary flinch at that. He looked down at the book in his hands and once again carefully set it down the table. As expected, everything that Hatori said made total sense. All of them had suffered enough enduring their curse… was it really worth it for all of them to bear the burden of the knowledge of something that may or may not have happened?

 His cousin was right. It made perfect sense to burn the book before anyone else sees it… but for some strange reason, he couldn’t let his trembling hands to let go.

 “Harii! Harii! Emergency!!” A young voice called out frantically as a small figure burst into the room. The two men looked up in surprise to see their younger cousin hunched in front of them. His face flushed from the exertion of running, strands of his golden locks pasted on his sweaty cherubic face, as he desperately tried to catch his breath, “Emer---!!”

   “Momiji?” Hatori bent down to one knee and put a gentle grip on the little boy’s shoulders, “Momiji, what’s wrong?

 “Em… em… EMERGENCY!!!” The little boy gasped breathlessly as he clutched the older man’s hand and tugged insistently, “YU… YU… YUKI!!!”

  The two men exchanged silent looks as their eyes widened in concern. Shigure immediately got on his feet, “What is it Momichi? An attack? Akito?”

 The rabbit shook his head fiercely, tears of frustration starting to fill the corners of his eyes. “NO! NO! NO! EMERGENCY!! EMERGENCY!!”

 “Momiji, stop,” Hatori commanded loudly and firmly

 The little boy immediately froze and stared at the older man, wide-eyed.

  “Take a deep breath, then exhale slowly,” The Dragon continued

 The Rabbit closed his eyes and complied with his older cousin’s instructions.

 “Now talk.”

 Momiji opened his eyes and started with a calmer tone, “Harii, it’s an emergency! It’s Yuki!”

 “What happened to Yuki?” Hatori inquired

 “He locked himself in the washroom and refused come out!” Momiji reported mournfully

 Another wave of silence fell in the room. After a few moments, Hatori finally blinked and bowed his head, and letting his shoulders sag in relief.

 “Haaa!?” Shigure uttered in disbelief as a large bead of sweat appeared on his forehead, “You got all worked up just for that?”

 “It’s not ‘just for that’, Shi-chan!” Momiji frowned at the writer uncharacteristically, before turning back his attention to his other cousin, “I ran and ran and ran all over the house trying to find Harii!! Yuki was still scared about dancing in the banquet tonight. But because Harii wasn’t there, Aya was able to come back and tried to cheer Yuki up… but Aya only made things worse. Yuki ended up crying hysterically and locked himself in the washroom and no one can get him to come out! Nothing Gura-chan did or said helped at all!”

 Hatori’s left eyebrow started to twitch, while Shigure immediately doubled over in laugher, unable to contain his mirth.

 “Stop laughing Shi-chan!!!” Momiji wailed, his voice starting to return to its initial frantic pace, “It was horrible! Haru got upset and turned black and started fighting with Kyou. And then Ri-chan got upset and started running around and screaming hysterically. And then Kisa got scared and started crying, then Hiro started crying after her. And Akito will get upset when he finds out because there’s only thirty minutes left before the banquet starts…”The little boy’s eyes widened in horror as he pointed an accusing finger at Shigure, “AND SHI-CHAN IS STILL NOT DRESSED!!! WHY AREN’T YOU DRESSED YET!?!?”

  Hatori sighed as he raked his fingers through his bangs before turning back to the hyperactive child in front of him. Once again, he held on the Rabbit’s shoulders firmly before speaking in a clear and commanding voice, “Momiji, stop.”

 The little boy immediately calmed down and turned his complete attention to the older man in front of him.

 “Tell them that I’ll be right there,” Hatori stated precisely

 Momiji nodded as he let out a small sniffle.

  “Now go,” Hatori instructed as he let go of the little boy’s shoulders.

 The little rabbit immediately turned to his heels and disappeared through the door, his fast footsteps echoing through the corridors.

 “Well, if this is a preview of what’s to come this year, the Year of the Rat will definitely be a very interesting one,” Shigure chuckled as he dabbed the corners of his eyes with his the hem of his sleeves

 “Shigure,” Hatori drawled in a low warning tone

 “Hai?” The writer called out, automatically regaining his composure

 Hatori turned around to face his cousin. Shigure braced himself for another one of the Dragon’s scary glares, but was taken aback by the uncharacteristic pleading expression on the other man’s usual stoic face, “I’m serious about what I said earlier. Burn it. Make sure that nobody else sees it.”

 With that, the Dragon walked out of the room to attend to the chaos waiting for him at the other side of the compound, leaving the Dog alone to ponder his thoughts.

 The writer reached out and held the journal in his hand. Everything that his cousin said made perfect sense… but contrary of what the Dragon said… this diary was still a literary treasure. The writer in him simply couldn’t bear the thought of destroying a piece of work that an ancestor, no less, had created. If this were really something that should be kept a secret, then why would Iwaku-san write it down and preserve it… if not for future Souma generations to know?

 He pulled the ladder over to the nearest shelf and climbed up to reach the highest ledge. Well… it’ll be okay as long as nobody else sees it, right? Shigure sighed before pulling loose several thick volumes to hide the smaller journal behind it.

 “I’m sorry, Ha-san,” Shigure whispered as he arranged the books back into place.

 With that, the writer made his way down the ladder, across the room, and out in the corridor. He took one last sweeping glance at the room, breathing in the sweet dusty air, before closing the sliding door to seal the room that held the treasures of their family history.

 OWARI?
Return to Chapter 7  

AUTHOR’S SQUAWK:

            <Ina-chan dances with joy> It’s done! It’s done! It’s done~~~~! I can move on with my life! ^_^.  It’s exactly 1 year and 9 days since I first started this fic! Can you believe it?

            Well… it didn’t turn out exactly as how I planned it, but I’m glad how it ended…

            AND IT’S DONE! IT’S DONE! IT’S DONE~~~~~!

            Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed this fic! Thank you to Merrow-chan, who in more ways than one, was instrumental to finishing this fic! So now… on to finishing “Fumei no Musubi”, I guess the background on that fic got clearer now that this fic is done, ne?

Ja!
Ina-chan