(no subject)
Title: Shards
Author/Penname: Kainasilverbane
Rating: PG-13
Chapters: Chapter 3 (WIP) (EDITED!)
Pairings: (optional) Fujitaka/Kaho
Summary:(Main summary on first chapter post) Tomoyo's had her way and Kaho's seeing green. The demon in Eriol crashes the Christmas party and cameos and foreshadowing galore!
Warning, Notes: (optional) Bloody, very much so in this chapter
Link to previous chapter http://community.livejournal.com/reviewers_inc/4422.html#cutid1
AN: Been edited, still's got the cameos, still's got the foreshadowing. MUCHO GRANDE CHAPTER! Like, uber big XD.
Old art plug http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/30511380/ <~ You can see the completed image of what Kaho's dress looks like. Unfortunetaly my PS saved lighter, turning the emerald green to baby food and Kaho's hair...orange...SHE LOOKS LIKE A FRIGGIN' INVERTED CARROT!! *Sobs*
Disclaimer: Believe me, if I could sell this CLAMP, I would. I also don't own any of the songs in there either.
Chapter 3
“Did you really have to make the entire thing out of velvet?” Sakura asked as they kicked Kaho into her room and closed the door to allow her to change. It was Saturday evening and Fujitaka and Kaho were getting ready to go to the University’s Christmas party.
“Well, I didn’t have much left on the skein to begin with, and even if I’d only made pieces of the dress with it, I would have been left with a length what I couldn’t do much with,” Tomoyo answered. “Making the entire dress out of it leaves me with manageable scrap pieces that I can use for other things. Besides, it’ll be warm and it looks beautiful being all one piece.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” Sakura said. She hadn’t seen the completion of the dress, only a few stages of the beginning while Tomoyo and been pinning and refitting the dress over the whole day Friday.
With a sigh from Sakura’s room, the door opened and Kaho poked her head out, “Zip please?” Tomoyo nodded and the woman turned around and Tomoyo zipped up the dress. Once done Sakura could see the dress in its completion.
“Ho-e…” the young teen’s mouth hung near her ankles.
The woman who stood before her was completely different from the one they had found two days before. Where the Kaho they’d saved could have been compared to a diamond that had dulled and cracked, this Kaho sparkled like a newly polished emerald. The dress started as a light, skintight turtle neck that melted down to her shoulder and cut off, leaving it sleeveless, then all the way down in a pure, seemingly seamless dress that was cut perfectly at her ankles. The only break in the dress anywhere was a cut out design of a piece of a holly leaf that started at the base of her neck and ended at the starting point of the valley between her breasts.
“There’s just one problem Tomoyo,” Sakura said, “how are we going to cover up the bandages on her arms?”
“Watch,” Tomoyo said as she pulled out what looked like strips of velvet green fabric from the bag at her feet. Carefully Tomoyo unwrapped the woman’s bandages and rewrapped them in a lighter wrap. Then she handed over what Sakura thought had been just two strips of velvet, but instead were something like arm warmers. There was one tiny ringlet on the end of each one, connecting the top and bottom pieces and was slipped over Kaho’s middle fingers, then the disconnected sleeve was worked gently over her bandage wrapped arms to halfway up her upper arms were they stopped and held.
“They’re kind of like gloves, but without the restriction on your hands and fingers,” Tomoyo explained as Kaho adjusted the glove like garments, “Originally the dress was going to have sleeves, but we found that they restricted the full movement of her arms. Considering the situations she’s been in before, we came up with these arm coverings. Thankfully velvet is a clingy material, so they’ll stay up and hide the bandages on her arms as well as keep them warm. And she shows off skin while she’s at it.”
Sakura looked at her watch, “Well, let’s let the emerald sparkle, time to go.”
“I’m really getting tired of all the gemstone jokes,” Kaho muttered as they all walked downstairs to the living room where Sakura’s father was waiting.
OOOO
Fujitaka looked up as he heard footfalls coming towards the living room, and smiled as his daughter walked in. Tomoyo walked in after her, but the girl had to turn around to beckon Kaho in.
“Come on don’t keep him in suspense,” Tomoyo said as she took one of Kaho’s hands and hauled her into the living room, shedding light on what the dark hallway upstairs hadn’t.
Kaho hadn’t realize how large Fujitaka’s eyes could get, but she laughed when she watched them turn to the size of dinner plates. But after a moment she felt herself become shy under his gaze and turned away, “Are you ready?” She looked back and eyed the green velvet tie he wore and grinned, knowing Tomoyo had gotten to him as well.
“Oh, yes,” he turned and picked three of the half a dozen boxes he’d set on the coffee table, “Sakura could you grab the others?”
“Sure,” Sakura said as she picked up the other three and followed her father out to the car. She loaded them up with her father and waved them off as they left.
“Time for practice?” Tomoyo asked.
“Yep,” Sakura smiled as they walked back into the house.
OOOO
“There’s no one else here,” Kaho observed as they pulled up to the hotel.
“Not yet, we’re here early because we have to help set up,” Fujitaka smiled. “You know, food and such.” He pointed to the back where the desserts were hiding in the back of the car.
“I see,” Kaho smiled back.
“You don’t have to help if you don’t feel up to it,” Fujitaka said as he parked the car and got out.
“I’ll help,” Kaho said as she got out and helped him carry in the desserts.
They walked in to the lobby of the hotel and were directed up a flight of stairs to the room they were designated to be in. When they entered the room Fujitaka was greeted by his colleagues festively.
“Did they make you climb up those stairs too?” One asked.
“Yes,” Fujitaka said with a little sweat trickling down the side of his face, “Where do we put this?”
“Those are the desserts?” The man asked and Fujitaka nodded, “Over there on that table. Need any help?”
“I’m fine, but please take the other three from my friend,” Fujitaka nodded to Kaho, who stood a few paces behind him. “She recently had an arm injury and I don’t know how long she’ll be able to hold onto that stuff.” Kaho let the man take the boxes and sighed in relief. Her arms shook because they ached so badly, something she hid by folding them behind her back and declined offering to help for a few moments before she could move them without the constant tremble.
“So who’s your lady friend?” Fujitaka’s colleague asked.
“Oh, just an old friend I haven’t seen in a few years and she happened to be in town,” Fujitaka answered quickly, “I was lucky she decided to come with me, she originally had plans to leave tonight.” He smiled at her as she finally walked over to help with the set up. “Right?” Kaho nodded as she helped rearrange the things already on the table to accommodate what Fujitaka had brought.
“You know, compared to the things that were catered, yours look a lot more eye catching,” said the man.
“Thank you Fai,” Fujitaka smiled, “I hope it all gets eaten, I have a few things that I decided not to bring because I heard this was going to be catered. I’ve unfortunately run out of room in my refrigerator.”
“I know what you mean,” Fai laughed. “I have the same problem, but not with the same sort of thing at the moment.”
“Can I make the assumption that you are one of the culinary professors?” Kaho asked.
“Your assumption would be correct,” Fai turned his blue eyes and smile towards her.
“All the rest of the food has been stored in the kitchen Fai,” said a black haired woman as she came up.
“Thank you Yuuko,” Fai said as the woman came up. “And I still haven’t learned your name,” he turned his head back to Kaho.
“Kaho,” she answered politely.
“And I am Fai,” he bowed to her, “And this is my companion for the night, Yuuko.”
Kaho actually turned and studied the woman for the first time and was startled when a child’s voice in the back of her mind started asking her if the woman’s cleavage was going to eat her. The adult in her quickly took over before she giggled at the absurdity of the thought, “Nice to meet you.”
Yuuko, likewise, studied Kaho. A smirk slit itself across her face, “You’re going to have to go back, you know. Nothing will get done while you stay here.”
Kaho blinked at the woman, “Excuse me?”
“You can’t keep running from it. From your fight or your feelings.” Yuuko’s smirk softened to a playful grin, “Nice to meet you!” And with that, she walked off to two people just entering the room.
“That’s Watanuki and Doumeki with the centerpieces for the tables,” Fujitaka said more for Kaho’s information than anyone else.
Kaho stared after the woman, “Why am I all of a sudden very confused?” She asked as one of the young men Yuuko was talking to started flailing about in an obviously distressed and irritated manner.
“Yuuko’s like that,” Fujitaka assured her.
“You know her?” Kaho asked.
“I’ve talked to her a few times,” Fujitaka said as he steered her towards the dining hall. “The first time I saw her I thought her boobs were going to eat me…” Kaho couldn’t help but start laughing, and the ice that had been between them from the start of the evening finally broke. “You had the same impression?”
“Just a little…” Kaho sniggered.
***
“I still can’t believe they got Kurogane to DJ,” Fujitaka chuckled.
“He seems very good at it, is he a professor at your University?” Kaho asked.
“Yes, but he’s the athletics director and has no real taste for anything else,” Fujitaka answered as he looked over at Kurogane, chuckling as the tall man was being teased by Fai and Yuuko.
Konna ni mo tooku e futari wa kitte shimatte
Ano koro no
Osanai kimi no hohoemi ni mou kaerenai ne
Kaho’s attention pricked at the sound of the song, “That sounds like Tomoyo’s voice.”
“Very perceptive,” Fujitaka smiled, “It is. She already has one album out in stores and is working on another one.”
“I had no idea,” Kaho closed her eyes and enjoyed the sweet sound.
Kimi ga warau sekai ga suki de
Soba ni itai, soredake
Wasurekaketa itami o mune ni
“It’s why they are rehearsing back home, Tomoyo has a concert coming up on New Years Day,” Fujitaka said
Time goes by
Toki no nagare wa futari o kaete yuku keredo
Nakushita mono mo yumemiru mono mo
Sono te o totte omoidasu yo
itsumo kimi no soba de
“It sounds so beautiful,” Kaho smiled as she leaned back in her chair to listen.
“Isn’t it?” Fujitaka asked rhetorically, then looked out at the people dancing on the dance floor. To him, it didn’t feel much like a dancing song, but more like one to sit back and enjoy the sound and feel of the music washing over you and the words playing with the dreams in your head. “Music lover?” He finally asked after a few moments of listening.
“I have…a certain appreciation for it,” Kaho answered quietly.
Kanashii koto sae oboete okitai kara
Kimi no chizu ni
Watashi no tame no PEEJI o nokoshite oite ne
He looked over at Kaho and smiled at how peaceful she looked, sitting there so relaxed and listening to the music. Completely different from how they had found her only a few days before.
Mirai kara fukitsukeru kaze o
Kimi wa ano hi shinjita
Ashita wa motto takaku maiagare...
“Would you come?” Fujitaka asked.
“To what?” Kaho asked as she opened her eyes.
“To Tomoyo’s concert,” Fujitaka clarified.
Time goes by
Toki ga sugite mo kitto kawaranu mono ga aru no
Todokanai kara, mitsuketai kara
Yume no tsubasa o sagashi ni yuku
Soba ni ite ne, zutto...
“If I’m still alive by then, then I’d love to go see it,” Kaho answered.
“Still alive?” Her words concerned him.
“Fujitaka, you know very well how this problem could turn out,” she was referring to the demon possessed Eriol. “I’ve gotten to the point where I live day by day, doing what I can and ultimately trying to think of ways to get rid of the demon inside Eriol without killing him.”
Time goes by...
Toki no nagare wa futari o kaetteyuku keredo
Nakushita mono mo yume miru mono mo
Sono te o totte omoidasu yo
(la la la la la la...)
“You and Eriol were once…” Fujitaka started to step into the boundaries of which he wasn’t too sure about.
“You mean how I used to love Eriol?” Kaho asked and Fujitaka nodded. “Yes, at one point there was an amazing love between us.” She shook her head, “But the minute he started attacking me, by his own will or not, the bond that we had was broken. And though I wish there was some way I could repair it, I don’t know if I can trust him enough to see something like this coming again.”
“I see,” Fujitaka frowned as he realized that she probably didn’t have much in the way of trust for anyone anymore.
Time goes by...
Toki ga sugitemo kitto kawareru mono ga aru no
Todokanai kara mitsuketai kara yume no tsubasa wo sagashi ni yuku
Soba ni iru yo zutto
Kaho smirked and changed the subject abruptly, “You know, for a Christmas party this doesn’t have much in the way of Christmas spirit.”
“Yes, you’re right, and they never seem to,” Fujitaka chuckled. “You are probably the most in holiday spirit just by the way you’re dressed.”
Kaho sighed, “That was Tomoyo’s brilliant idea.”
Fujitaka held his tongue, unsure of how she would react to a compliment.
Silent night
Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin
Mother and child
Holy infant, so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
Fujitaka looked up to the DJ platform and chuckled. The dark athletics director was now tied up near a speaker and Fai was at the controls. He chuckled, “Yes, that would be something Fai would do.”
Silent night
Holy night
Shepards quake at the sight
Glory streams from heaven above
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia
Christ the Savior is born
Christ the Savior is born
“How are you feeling?” Fujitaka asked.
“My arms ache for the most part,” Kaho answered. “Left one more than my right one, it may have even opened up a little…”
“You want to go check it?” Fujitaka asked. “I don’t think Tomoyo would be happy if we came home with a bloody dress.”
“We’ll do it after this is over,” Kaho said.
Silent night
Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin
Mother and child
Holy infant, so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
As soon as the music began to fade they made their way out of the dance hall and over to a secluded area near another staircase. There Kaho pulled off the velvet covers from her arms and Fujitaka carefully unwrapped the bandages, hissing in sympathy as he found the left one had opened and was beginning to bleed again. He quickly got it closed again and rewrapped it and did the same to her right arm. He was thankful that it hadn’t opened up again, but did his best to bring the swelling that was making it ache come down as much as he could.
Kaho’s head jerked up and her eyes widened, “Oh no…”
“What’s wrong?” Fujitaka said and Kaho pointed over to the entry door. He looked over and found a smartly dressed Eriol sauntering in. “Oh no…” He echoed and looked back over at the woman, “What do we do?”
Kaho pulled up her right sleeve tightly, “I’ll distract him, you try as much as you can to convince people to start leaving.”
“Are you crazy?” Fujitaka asked. “He’s here to find you, if he succeeds all hell will break loose. Keeping you out of sight is the best idea I think.”
“All hell will break loose if he can’t find me and knows I’m here,” Kaho emphasized, “One way or another, we have to get people out of here.”
A crashing noise and an explosion made them both dash for the dance hall. Both gasped as they found the dance floor blooming in a gigantic flower of flames while Eriol floated above it laughing maniacally. Fujitaka felt more than saw something go up and over the room, blocking Eriol against the ceiling and leaving the entrance open for people to escape.
“Make sure everyone gets out,” Kaho said as she held herself rigidly still, holding up the barrier.
Fujitaka ran towards the back of the hall, then started making his way back to the front, herding stragglers out as he went. Noticing Kurogane was still tied up on the DJ platform he leapt up and untied the man.
“Who ordered the fireworks?” He asked as Fujitaka gave him a hand up.
“Not sure, just get out of here,” Fujitaka pushed him towards the exit, then dashed off to look for anyone else. His lungs were on fire by the time he got back to Kaho. “Everyone is out, lets go.” He felt whatever it had been forcing Eriol to the ceiling evolve into something more offensive and explode against Eriol.
Kaho regained movement and dashed to the door, Fujitaka at her heels. Running down the marble stairs was difficult when Eriol caught up with them and began raining fire attacks down on them. Fujitaka nearly stumbled as he watched Kaho leap up onto the banister and stood standing as she slid backwards down it, facing Eriol. A bubble formed around the possessed young man and exploded, knocking him back somewhat and allowing Kaho to leap from the banister to the floor with relative ease. With a flick of her wrist she threw a pencil sized magic bolt at Eriol. It grazed the side of his neck; throwing him back farther and actually putting a look of surprise and pain on his face.
He faded from the room shortly after and Fujitaka and Kaho didn’t ask questions, just bolted for the car. Once there they were able to stop and breathe, or as much as they could.
Fujitaka coughed as he spoke, “Do you know…where he went?”
“Off to wherever he hides when he’s not looking to kill me,” Kaho answered as she looked up at him. She took in his slightly charred appearance and, along with the coughing he kept doing, assumed he’d inhaled too much smoke and heat and now feared he had some lung damage.
“Are you hurt?” Kaho asked, trying to see if he’d tell her anything.
“He didn’t hurt me, but my chest is burning like the dance floor back there,” Fujitaka answered.
Kaho reached her right hand out towards him, hesitated once, then placed it gently against his jacketed chest.
Fujitaka felt the pain and burning in his chest begin to fade a little and looked into her eyes in surprise. “What are you doing?”
“Like you, I can heal,” Kaho said, “but the difference is I have more experience in it, and unfortunately, I cannot heal myself.”
Her hand glowed white against his black jacket and the cooling he felt in his chest was heavenly compared to the brimstone heat he had felt only moments before. He exhaled painlessly and swore he could feel the last of the heat floating away with that breath. “Thank you.”
Kaho gave him a small smiled, “You’d do the same for me.”
“If I could,” Fujitaka sighed as he leaned against the van. “You aren’t hurt anywhere?”
“Um,” Kaho raised her arms up in the dull light of the parking lot. The arm guards she wore were saturated with blood and dripping, leaving dots of the red fluid on the concrete and her dress. “Tomoyo is going to kill me…”
Fujitaka’s eyed widened, “Holy…” he looked up at her face, trying to keep his thoughts straight on what to do, “I don’t know if I can heal them right now…”
“If you have some extra towels in the van they’ll suffice until we get back to your home,” Kaho said as her arms began to tremble, the adrenaline that coursed through her body during the fight was apparently beginning to wear off.
“I do actually,” Fujitaka as he opened up the back of the van and climbed in, rummaged around for a moment, then climbed back out carrying three towels. He helped Kaho strip off the arm guards and bandages, then wrapped her arms tightly in two of the three towels. The remaining one served as a carrier for the soiled bandages and guards.
Kaho swayed on her feet and actually hit the side of the car as she tried not to pass out from the amount of blood she was loosing.
“What are those wounds from anyways?” Fujitaka asked as he steadied her and walked her to the other side of the car so she could get in.
“Just before I got here, Eriol and Spinel cornered me in an alleyway. He’s is only halfway under Eriol’s demonic control and fights it as much as he can,” Kaho explained; then paused as Fujitaka went around the car to get in on the drivers side. “Spinel had pinned me against a wall by my arms using his forepaws. He’d tried to sheath his claws before attacking, but Eriol’s control allowed one claw on each side to slip out. These claw marks are the result of both of us trying to get away from each other…”
“And they won’t heal. Why?” Fujitaka asked as he started the car.
“My guess is because they were made essentially by the demon’s will, and until the demon is killed, that Will will persist, keeping any major wounds I have not physically sewn up open and bleeding,” Kaho answered as she leaned her head back against the seat and closed her eyes. “But that’s just my guess…I could also be resistant to your healing powers. It’s the same as some people being resistant to some medication…”
“Hmm,” Fujitaka seemed distressed at the statement, but said nothing other than that for a long while. Both sat in silence as they drove down the dark and amazingly empty streets. When they were near Fujitaka’s home did he speak up, “And we can’t take you to the hospital to get those sewn up can we?”
“No…” Kaho murmured.
“Why?” Fujitaka asked.
“Because the story of how I was attacked by a demon possessed young man and his winged leopard counterpart sounds like something a child would make up to cover up something he’d done himself, or by someone else…” Kaho answered.
Fujitaka turned that over in his head for a moment, then nodded, “I see.” Her frowned, “So, wait, all you can do now is take what healing I can give, then just keep bleeding?”
“Seems that way…” Kaho agreed.
Fujitaka pulled over and stopped the car. He sat there for a moment, his grip on the wheel tightening until his knuckles turned white and the material began to make cracking noises. Kaho looked over at him and found white hot rage covering his face. For a moment she found herself pressing up against the door to try and get herself as far away from him as she could. He had yet to learn that his emotions could harness his powers to actually radiate outward like the sun radiates light and heat.
Kaho finally pulled herself together enough to work her right hand through the thick radiation of power, which burned almost as badly as the fire in the hotel had, and placed her hand on top of his left one. Something came back to his eyes and his expression softened somewhat.
“Please Fujitaka, you have to calm down,” Kaho flinched as she felt the skin on her hand begin to blister. She tightened her grip on his hand and whispered, “Please!”
He literally flinched in his seat as he snapped out of his enraged trance and looked at her as if wondering if he had done something wrong. His expression changed slightly as he felt something warm run down his hand. Looking down, he found blood trickling down over the top of his wrist then slide down and drip on the gear shift of the car.
“What the…?” He was confused.
“I’m sorry…that’s mine,” Kaho pulled her hand away and gingerly rested it on one of her toweled arms.
“Did I do that?” Fujitaka asked.
“It was an accident,” Kaho said, “You got angry…and no one has told you yet that your emotions can trigger something like an instinctual attack with your magic. When you get angry like that and have no notion of what you’re doing, your power radiates out like heat from a heater and turns you into somewhat like a living fireball…just…without the fire…yet. It’s why you see most magic users show either very little emotion, or are always calm or happy. No emotion or positive emotions effect your powers consciously and you have to physically think about using them to do something. Negative emotions trigger your powers unconsciously, doing something along the lines of what you just did. Normally though you’d have to be…extremely angry…to get that way.” She looked over at him with a curious look on her face. “What made you so mad?”
Fujitaka sighed quietly as he reached for her burned and bleeding hand, “Just the thought of you bleeding for no other reason than for someone else’s pleasure I guess.” He turned her hand palm up and rested cool fingers against it, healing the damage he had done.
Kaho looked at her lap, “You barely know me, why would you care?” She regretted it when it came out. It had sounded so harsh, and she had not meant it to. She peeked back over at him from the corner of her eyes and found his expression covered in shadows. “I…didn’t mean it like the way it sounded…”
His fingers lightly moved over healing skin, “I know.”
Kaho bit her bottom lip, the movement of his fingers on the sensitive skin of her healing hand tickled and soon she realized he was doing it on purpose, “Fujitaka!” A giggle laced the complaint.
Fujitaka chuckled as he finished and pulled away, “Had to get a smile out of you somehow.” He started the car up and continued home.
Once they got there they had the fun of trying to sneak in without either Tomoyo, Sakura, or Kero hearing them.
Pulling into the driveway was out of the question because they would be seen through the sliding glass door in the living room, so Fujitaka parked in front of the house to see if they wouldn’t hear the front door open. He wisely helped Kaho out of the car, knowing she would be dizzy, then as quietly as they could, they made their way towards the door.
They heard music and Tomoyo’s singing come from the live room even before they opened the door. Fujitaka peered inside, making sure the entryway was clear before he beckoned Kaho in after him. They had to move quickly because the song Tomoyo was working on was almost over.
“Follow me,” Fujitaka whispered as he headed for the stairs.
Kaho raised an eyebrow at him as she followed. She had never been upstairs for the few days she’d been living with them, except for when she’d been shoved up into Sakura’s room quickly, and was curious, though had a fair idea, as to where they were heading.
“Sakura do you have that other music cd we recorded last week?” Came Tomoyo’s voice.
“It’s up stairs, do you want me to go get it?” Sakura asked.
“I’ll get it!” Kero shouted.
“We’re done for…” Kaho muttered as Fujitaka slapped himself on the forehead.
“La la la…” Kero sang as he came into view. “Hey! Your dad and Kaho are home Sakura!” Kaho kept herself conveniently turned away from Kero. “Wait a minute, where are you two going?” Kero’s eyes took on a mischievous shine.
“N-nowhere!” Fujitaka stuttered.
“Sakura! Your father and Kaho are going upstairs all alone!!!” Kero shouted.
“KERO!” Kaho shouted and made to grab the guardian out of the air.
“What?” Sakura and Tomoyo ran over and were startled at the appearance of the two adults.
In the shadows of the entryway and stairs the dark colors they were wearing had hidden the blood that was splashed over them, but Kero had turned on the light and neither Kaho nor Fujitaka had turned their backs on them quick enough to hide it.
Sakura’s eyes widened, “What happened?”
“What do you think happened?” Kaho asked as she gave up hiding and leaned against the corner of the banister facing towards the girls, allowing them full few of the blood soaked towels she had wrapped around her arms.
“Eriol…” Sakura sighed, then gasped as watched Kaho’s eyes roll up into the back of her head. Fujitaka caught her before she had a chance to fall, but the heavy blood soaked towels slipped from her arms as they went limp and splattered onto the floor.
“Dammit…was hoping to get her sitting down before this happened,” Fujitaka cursed as he picked the woman up and headed for the bathroom.
OOOO
Fujitaka watched her open her eyes and sighed inwardly as he noticed they were glassy and clouded like she had a fever, which she probably did.
“How long have you been at this?” Kaho asked as she felt him rubbing a mild soap into her slashed arm.
“About an hour,” he looked at his daughter and Tomoyo for confirmation and received two nods.
“Why don’t you just let me die?” Kaho asked.
He heard both the younger girls gasp at the woman’s statement. He knew Kaho was probably on a visual basis only, he was the only one in her sights at the moment and she hadn’t known Sakura and Tomoyo were there. It was either that, or the woman really didn’t care what they heard her say.
“Why would I want to let you die?” Fujitaka asked. He’d been afraid she’d slip into this sort of depression and had actually been surprised when she wasn’t depressed when she’d first arrived. Knowing the consequences of what would occur if she was left alone, he let himself get emotionally closer to her, even if it was just temporary. “Let me tell you a story, all right?” He sighed as her left arm opened up a little under his gentle cleaning and he stopped to heal it again. “When my wife died, I fell into a depression similar to the one you’re going through now.”
“I’m not depressed…” Kaho muttered darkly, “…just useless.”
Fujitaka scowled at her and dropped his normally polite disposition for a moment, “Just shut up and listen to me.” He watched a little bit of personality glint into her eyes for a moment before it faded and she fell silent. “When I was depressed, I felt a lot like you’re feeling, worthless, being blamed for everything that was happening to everyone else. As though you had no one that cared for you anymore and therefore have no reason to live?”
“Mm, one difference, I have no one who cares for me,” Kaho said.
“I said shut up,” Fujitaka made sure his gentle strokes with the soap-sudded cloth stung just once to add emphasis to his words.
Kaho flinched, but let her mouth run, “All I do is sit around and do nothing while you and Sakura go out and do things. I can’t do anything!”
Fujitaka sighed, knowing that the self abuse she was doing was unconscious, “You can do whatever you feel like,” he paused and growled as the end of the wound opened up again. “You stay indoors because Eriol is less likely to attack you when you’re here with Sakura and Kerberos. I wouldn’t attack either with those odds. You don’t do anything because when you do do something, you end up bleeding all over the place…”
“So I’m worthless and messy…” Kaho added.
Fujitaka finally rapped her on the head gently with a wet fist, “And guess what?” She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, having learned her lesson from opening her mouth. “See those two over there?” He pointed over to Sakura and Tomoyo and Kaho looked over at them and made a face. “They care about you.” Both girls smiled at her. “Guess what else?”
Kaho looked back over at him.
“I care about you,” he smiled and watched as bit more life came back to her eyes as well as a hint of color to her cheeks. He wanted to make sure she knew people were there for her, the thought of waking up one morning to find she’d suicided from mere depression before sense could be knocked back into her wasn’t something he wanted to experience. “If you blush you’ll pass out…” Fujitaka added to lift the awkwardness of what he’d just stated.
“Guess I better avoid hitting my head,” Kaho murmured as her head leaned back against the wall and her eyes fluttered closed again.
“I’m curious as to why you’re being so methodical about washing those wounds Mr. Kinomoto,” Tomoyo said.
“Kaho and I discussed it on the way home and we came to the conclusion that these wounds aren’t going to stay closed for good until we get rid of that demon,” Fujitaka answered. “These stay fresh because the demon wills it to, so now we need to make sure that, while working as much as we can to keep them closed for as long as possible, we also have to make sure they don’t get infected.” He finished Kaho’s left arm, made sure the wound was closed, then looked over at the two girls, “So, who’s gonna give her a bath while she’s passed out?”
“I can bathe myself!” Kaho was awake quickly and sitting up, her face the same color as the towels that had been used to wrap around her arms an hour before.
Fujitaka chuckled, “All right, Sakura will bring you in one of my shirts and pair of sweat pants.” And with that he got up and left.
Tomoyo and Sakura watched him leave, then the short brunette tumbled over to the sink to pull out bath supplies.
“Sakura…you don’t have to…” Kaho said as she struggled to get up.
“Just stay there, my dad worked hard to get those wounds closed,” Sakura almost sounded annoyed. “It’d be a waste to have them open up again.”
Kaho blinked before settling back down against the wall to wait for the young girl to finish. When Sakura left to get the clothes Fujitaka had spoken of, Tomoyo spoke up.
“Don’t get too upset about their attitudes right now Ms. Mitsuki,” Tomoyo smiled reassuringly at her as she turned to face away from the woman to give her a little privacy. “They’re just very worried about you.”
“I still don’t understand why,” Kaho said as she carefully removed what clothing was left on her person and wrapped herself in a towel and leaned against the wall for a moment. “I’m more of a stranger to them than a familiar face.”
“Everyone deserves to have someone care about them,” Tomoyo said as she turned around and studied the woman clad in only a long towel. She was indeed thin and, from the exposed skin she could see, covered in scars. “And you are not a stranger to Sakura and me, but more a friend and teacher than I guess you realize.”
“Maybe so…” Kaho murmured.
Tomoyo brought over a few towels to wrap the woman’s arms in so they stayed as dry as they could, “Unless you do decide you want some help, I’ll let you go on with your bath.”
Kaho sighed, “Well…” she looked down at her towel wrapped arms.
“Sometimes asking for helping is better and smarter than doing it yourself,” Tomoyo said.
“Yes, you’re right,” Kaho gave the younger girl a small smile.
“I’ll wash your hair first,” Tomoyo said, “There’s blood in it.”
“Sometimes I think there’s more of my blood outside of my body than in it,” Kaho said as she knelt on the floor so Tomoyo could work shampoo into her hair.
“Things will change soon,” Tomoyo assured her. “You have people here who care about you.”
Kaho stared blankly at the wall ahead of her, “So I’ve noticed.”
“And possibly even an interest in one?” Tomoyo asked as she worked shampoo into the woman’s long rusty brown hair.
“I do, though I have no business doing so,” Kaho answered.
“Why do you say that?” Tomoyo asked.
“Tomoyo, I am not ignorant of Fujitaka’s past,” Kaho said. “I know his first wife died when Sakura was three, and I have no business even getting this close to him.”
Tomoyo frowned at the woman’s words, “I see.”
“The only way I know of showing how much I care for both Sakura and Fujitaka is to try and keep them as safe as possible, and of course you too Tomoyo,” Kaho added as she angled her head to look up at the young woman, who smiled down at her, “But right now all I seem to do is make things harder for them.”
“That’s not your fault,” Tomoyo said, “tilt your head back please.”
“A lot of it is,” Kaho said as she did as she was told and Tomoyo carefully rinsed the suds from her hair. “Had I not come back here, they would have never gotten involved.”
“Though that’s true, if you hadn’t come back, we wouldn’t know what was going on and, with the only way of finding out would mean you would be dead, I’d take this alternative situation any day,” Tomoyo said.
Kaho sighed, “I just wish I didn’t feel like such a burden to them right now.”
“You’re still recovering, give yourself some time to actually heal and regain some strength, then things will be better,” Tomoyo said.
“Yeah,” Kaho nodded as Tomoyo finished with her hair. She looked up as Sakura came back in with a large white shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. She still looked slightly annoyed and made Kaho want to go back on what she’d just said and get up and do something to make up for being such a pain.
“Dad’s fallen asleep and I’m going to head up to bed soon too, Tomoyo you’re welcome to stay the night,” Sakura said before leveling her gaze on Kaho, “Dad’s sleeping like he’s had a healing, and he said there was a fire at the hotel.”
“He’d inhaled a lot of smoke making sure everyone else had gotten out all right,” Kaho said. “His lungs had been burned, so…I made sure that he wouldn’t leave you alone.”
“So you did heal him?” Sakura asked and received a nod, “So why can’t you heal those wounds of yours?”
“I can’t heal myself,” Kaho answered. “I’m immune to my own healing magic…”
“How convenient for that demon…” Sakura said and Kaho nodded.
“Well, are we done here?” Tomoyo asked and Kaho nodded again, “Then we’ll let you soak for a bit. Give us a shout of you need anything.”
“Go on up to bed you two, I can get this done and get to bed without making a mess, I promise,” Kaho said.
“There’s a few extra towels by the couch in case anything happens during the night,” Sakura said. “And Dad said not to feel guilty about waking him up if they get bad.”
“All right,” Kaho said.
OOOO
Yeah, you know what to do
Author/Penname: Kainasilverbane
Rating: PG-13
Chapters: Chapter 3 (WIP) (EDITED!)
Pairings: (optional) Fujitaka/Kaho
Summary:(Main summary on first chapter post) Tomoyo's had her way and Kaho's seeing green. The demon in Eriol crashes the Christmas party and cameos and foreshadowing galore!
Warning, Notes: (optional) Bloody, very much so in this chapter
Link to previous chapter http://community.livejournal.com/reviewers_inc/4422.html#cutid1
AN: Been edited, still's got the cameos, still's got the foreshadowing. MUCHO GRANDE CHAPTER! Like, uber big XD.
Old art plug http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/30511380/ <~ You can see the completed image of what Kaho's dress looks like. Unfortunetaly my PS saved lighter, turning the emerald green to baby food and Kaho's hair...orange...SHE LOOKS LIKE A FRIGGIN' INVERTED CARROT!! *Sobs*
Disclaimer: Believe me, if I could sell this CLAMP, I would. I also don't own any of the songs in there either.
Chapter 3
“Did you really have to make the entire thing out of velvet?” Sakura asked as they kicked Kaho into her room and closed the door to allow her to change. It was Saturday evening and Fujitaka and Kaho were getting ready to go to the University’s Christmas party.
“Well, I didn’t have much left on the skein to begin with, and even if I’d only made pieces of the dress with it, I would have been left with a length what I couldn’t do much with,” Tomoyo answered. “Making the entire dress out of it leaves me with manageable scrap pieces that I can use for other things. Besides, it’ll be warm and it looks beautiful being all one piece.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” Sakura said. She hadn’t seen the completion of the dress, only a few stages of the beginning while Tomoyo and been pinning and refitting the dress over the whole day Friday.
With a sigh from Sakura’s room, the door opened and Kaho poked her head out, “Zip please?” Tomoyo nodded and the woman turned around and Tomoyo zipped up the dress. Once done Sakura could see the dress in its completion.
“Ho-e…” the young teen’s mouth hung near her ankles.
The woman who stood before her was completely different from the one they had found two days before. Where the Kaho they’d saved could have been compared to a diamond that had dulled and cracked, this Kaho sparkled like a newly polished emerald. The dress started as a light, skintight turtle neck that melted down to her shoulder and cut off, leaving it sleeveless, then all the way down in a pure, seemingly seamless dress that was cut perfectly at her ankles. The only break in the dress anywhere was a cut out design of a piece of a holly leaf that started at the base of her neck and ended at the starting point of the valley between her breasts.
“There’s just one problem Tomoyo,” Sakura said, “how are we going to cover up the bandages on her arms?”
“Watch,” Tomoyo said as she pulled out what looked like strips of velvet green fabric from the bag at her feet. Carefully Tomoyo unwrapped the woman’s bandages and rewrapped them in a lighter wrap. Then she handed over what Sakura thought had been just two strips of velvet, but instead were something like arm warmers. There was one tiny ringlet on the end of each one, connecting the top and bottom pieces and was slipped over Kaho’s middle fingers, then the disconnected sleeve was worked gently over her bandage wrapped arms to halfway up her upper arms were they stopped and held.
“They’re kind of like gloves, but without the restriction on your hands and fingers,” Tomoyo explained as Kaho adjusted the glove like garments, “Originally the dress was going to have sleeves, but we found that they restricted the full movement of her arms. Considering the situations she’s been in before, we came up with these arm coverings. Thankfully velvet is a clingy material, so they’ll stay up and hide the bandages on her arms as well as keep them warm. And she shows off skin while she’s at it.”
Sakura looked at her watch, “Well, let’s let the emerald sparkle, time to go.”
“I’m really getting tired of all the gemstone jokes,” Kaho muttered as they all walked downstairs to the living room where Sakura’s father was waiting.
OOOO
Fujitaka looked up as he heard footfalls coming towards the living room, and smiled as his daughter walked in. Tomoyo walked in after her, but the girl had to turn around to beckon Kaho in.
“Come on don’t keep him in suspense,” Tomoyo said as she took one of Kaho’s hands and hauled her into the living room, shedding light on what the dark hallway upstairs hadn’t.
Kaho hadn’t realize how large Fujitaka’s eyes could get, but she laughed when she watched them turn to the size of dinner plates. But after a moment she felt herself become shy under his gaze and turned away, “Are you ready?” She looked back and eyed the green velvet tie he wore and grinned, knowing Tomoyo had gotten to him as well.
“Oh, yes,” he turned and picked three of the half a dozen boxes he’d set on the coffee table, “Sakura could you grab the others?”
“Sure,” Sakura said as she picked up the other three and followed her father out to the car. She loaded them up with her father and waved them off as they left.
“Time for practice?” Tomoyo asked.
“Yep,” Sakura smiled as they walked back into the house.
OOOO
“There’s no one else here,” Kaho observed as they pulled up to the hotel.
“Not yet, we’re here early because we have to help set up,” Fujitaka smiled. “You know, food and such.” He pointed to the back where the desserts were hiding in the back of the car.
“I see,” Kaho smiled back.
“You don’t have to help if you don’t feel up to it,” Fujitaka said as he parked the car and got out.
“I’ll help,” Kaho said as she got out and helped him carry in the desserts.
They walked in to the lobby of the hotel and were directed up a flight of stairs to the room they were designated to be in. When they entered the room Fujitaka was greeted by his colleagues festively.
“Did they make you climb up those stairs too?” One asked.
“Yes,” Fujitaka said with a little sweat trickling down the side of his face, “Where do we put this?”
“Those are the desserts?” The man asked and Fujitaka nodded, “Over there on that table. Need any help?”
“I’m fine, but please take the other three from my friend,” Fujitaka nodded to Kaho, who stood a few paces behind him. “She recently had an arm injury and I don’t know how long she’ll be able to hold onto that stuff.” Kaho let the man take the boxes and sighed in relief. Her arms shook because they ached so badly, something she hid by folding them behind her back and declined offering to help for a few moments before she could move them without the constant tremble.
“So who’s your lady friend?” Fujitaka’s colleague asked.
“Oh, just an old friend I haven’t seen in a few years and she happened to be in town,” Fujitaka answered quickly, “I was lucky she decided to come with me, she originally had plans to leave tonight.” He smiled at her as she finally walked over to help with the set up. “Right?” Kaho nodded as she helped rearrange the things already on the table to accommodate what Fujitaka had brought.
“You know, compared to the things that were catered, yours look a lot more eye catching,” said the man.
“Thank you Fai,” Fujitaka smiled, “I hope it all gets eaten, I have a few things that I decided not to bring because I heard this was going to be catered. I’ve unfortunately run out of room in my refrigerator.”
“I know what you mean,” Fai laughed. “I have the same problem, but not with the same sort of thing at the moment.”
“Can I make the assumption that you are one of the culinary professors?” Kaho asked.
“Your assumption would be correct,” Fai turned his blue eyes and smile towards her.
“All the rest of the food has been stored in the kitchen Fai,” said a black haired woman as she came up.
“Thank you Yuuko,” Fai said as the woman came up. “And I still haven’t learned your name,” he turned his head back to Kaho.
“Kaho,” she answered politely.
“And I am Fai,” he bowed to her, “And this is my companion for the night, Yuuko.”
Kaho actually turned and studied the woman for the first time and was startled when a child’s voice in the back of her mind started asking her if the woman’s cleavage was going to eat her. The adult in her quickly took over before she giggled at the absurdity of the thought, “Nice to meet you.”
Yuuko, likewise, studied Kaho. A smirk slit itself across her face, “You’re going to have to go back, you know. Nothing will get done while you stay here.”
Kaho blinked at the woman, “Excuse me?”
“You can’t keep running from it. From your fight or your feelings.” Yuuko’s smirk softened to a playful grin, “Nice to meet you!” And with that, she walked off to two people just entering the room.
“That’s Watanuki and Doumeki with the centerpieces for the tables,” Fujitaka said more for Kaho’s information than anyone else.
Kaho stared after the woman, “Why am I all of a sudden very confused?” She asked as one of the young men Yuuko was talking to started flailing about in an obviously distressed and irritated manner.
“Yuuko’s like that,” Fujitaka assured her.
“You know her?” Kaho asked.
“I’ve talked to her a few times,” Fujitaka said as he steered her towards the dining hall. “The first time I saw her I thought her boobs were going to eat me…” Kaho couldn’t help but start laughing, and the ice that had been between them from the start of the evening finally broke. “You had the same impression?”
“Just a little…” Kaho sniggered.
***
“I still can’t believe they got Kurogane to DJ,” Fujitaka chuckled.
“He seems very good at it, is he a professor at your University?” Kaho asked.
“Yes, but he’s the athletics director and has no real taste for anything else,” Fujitaka answered as he looked over at Kurogane, chuckling as the tall man was being teased by Fai and Yuuko.
Konna ni mo tooku e futari wa kitte shimatte
Ano koro no
Osanai kimi no hohoemi ni mou kaerenai ne
Kaho’s attention pricked at the sound of the song, “That sounds like Tomoyo’s voice.”
“Very perceptive,” Fujitaka smiled, “It is. She already has one album out in stores and is working on another one.”
“I had no idea,” Kaho closed her eyes and enjoyed the sweet sound.
Kimi ga warau sekai ga suki de
Soba ni itai, soredake
Wasurekaketa itami o mune ni
“It’s why they are rehearsing back home, Tomoyo has a concert coming up on New Years Day,” Fujitaka said
Time goes by
Toki no nagare wa futari o kaete yuku keredo
Nakushita mono mo yumemiru mono mo
Sono te o totte omoidasu yo
itsumo kimi no soba de
“It sounds so beautiful,” Kaho smiled as she leaned back in her chair to listen.
“Isn’t it?” Fujitaka asked rhetorically, then looked out at the people dancing on the dance floor. To him, it didn’t feel much like a dancing song, but more like one to sit back and enjoy the sound and feel of the music washing over you and the words playing with the dreams in your head. “Music lover?” He finally asked after a few moments of listening.
“I have…a certain appreciation for it,” Kaho answered quietly.
Kanashii koto sae oboete okitai kara
Kimi no chizu ni
Watashi no tame no PEEJI o nokoshite oite ne
He looked over at Kaho and smiled at how peaceful she looked, sitting there so relaxed and listening to the music. Completely different from how they had found her only a few days before.
Mirai kara fukitsukeru kaze o
Kimi wa ano hi shinjita
Ashita wa motto takaku maiagare...
“Would you come?” Fujitaka asked.
“To what?” Kaho asked as she opened her eyes.
“To Tomoyo’s concert,” Fujitaka clarified.
Time goes by
Toki ga sugite mo kitto kawaranu mono ga aru no
Todokanai kara, mitsuketai kara
Yume no tsubasa o sagashi ni yuku
Soba ni ite ne, zutto...
“If I’m still alive by then, then I’d love to go see it,” Kaho answered.
“Still alive?” Her words concerned him.
“Fujitaka, you know very well how this problem could turn out,” she was referring to the demon possessed Eriol. “I’ve gotten to the point where I live day by day, doing what I can and ultimately trying to think of ways to get rid of the demon inside Eriol without killing him.”
Time goes by...
Toki no nagare wa futari o kaetteyuku keredo
Nakushita mono mo yume miru mono mo
Sono te o totte omoidasu yo
(la la la la la la...)
“You and Eriol were once…” Fujitaka started to step into the boundaries of which he wasn’t too sure about.
“You mean how I used to love Eriol?” Kaho asked and Fujitaka nodded. “Yes, at one point there was an amazing love between us.” She shook her head, “But the minute he started attacking me, by his own will or not, the bond that we had was broken. And though I wish there was some way I could repair it, I don’t know if I can trust him enough to see something like this coming again.”
“I see,” Fujitaka frowned as he realized that she probably didn’t have much in the way of trust for anyone anymore.
Time goes by...
Toki ga sugitemo kitto kawareru mono ga aru no
Todokanai kara mitsuketai kara yume no tsubasa wo sagashi ni yuku
Soba ni iru yo zutto
Kaho smirked and changed the subject abruptly, “You know, for a Christmas party this doesn’t have much in the way of Christmas spirit.”
“Yes, you’re right, and they never seem to,” Fujitaka chuckled. “You are probably the most in holiday spirit just by the way you’re dressed.”
Kaho sighed, “That was Tomoyo’s brilliant idea.”
Fujitaka held his tongue, unsure of how she would react to a compliment.
Silent night
Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin
Mother and child
Holy infant, so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
Fujitaka looked up to the DJ platform and chuckled. The dark athletics director was now tied up near a speaker and Fai was at the controls. He chuckled, “Yes, that would be something Fai would do.”
Silent night
Holy night
Shepards quake at the sight
Glory streams from heaven above
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia
Christ the Savior is born
Christ the Savior is born
“How are you feeling?” Fujitaka asked.
“My arms ache for the most part,” Kaho answered. “Left one more than my right one, it may have even opened up a little…”
“You want to go check it?” Fujitaka asked. “I don’t think Tomoyo would be happy if we came home with a bloody dress.”
“We’ll do it after this is over,” Kaho said.
Silent night
Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin
Mother and child
Holy infant, so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
As soon as the music began to fade they made their way out of the dance hall and over to a secluded area near another staircase. There Kaho pulled off the velvet covers from her arms and Fujitaka carefully unwrapped the bandages, hissing in sympathy as he found the left one had opened and was beginning to bleed again. He quickly got it closed again and rewrapped it and did the same to her right arm. He was thankful that it hadn’t opened up again, but did his best to bring the swelling that was making it ache come down as much as he could.
Kaho’s head jerked up and her eyes widened, “Oh no…”
“What’s wrong?” Fujitaka said and Kaho pointed over to the entry door. He looked over and found a smartly dressed Eriol sauntering in. “Oh no…” He echoed and looked back over at the woman, “What do we do?”
Kaho pulled up her right sleeve tightly, “I’ll distract him, you try as much as you can to convince people to start leaving.”
“Are you crazy?” Fujitaka asked. “He’s here to find you, if he succeeds all hell will break loose. Keeping you out of sight is the best idea I think.”
“All hell will break loose if he can’t find me and knows I’m here,” Kaho emphasized, “One way or another, we have to get people out of here.”
A crashing noise and an explosion made them both dash for the dance hall. Both gasped as they found the dance floor blooming in a gigantic flower of flames while Eriol floated above it laughing maniacally. Fujitaka felt more than saw something go up and over the room, blocking Eriol against the ceiling and leaving the entrance open for people to escape.
“Make sure everyone gets out,” Kaho said as she held herself rigidly still, holding up the barrier.
Fujitaka ran towards the back of the hall, then started making his way back to the front, herding stragglers out as he went. Noticing Kurogane was still tied up on the DJ platform he leapt up and untied the man.
“Who ordered the fireworks?” He asked as Fujitaka gave him a hand up.
“Not sure, just get out of here,” Fujitaka pushed him towards the exit, then dashed off to look for anyone else. His lungs were on fire by the time he got back to Kaho. “Everyone is out, lets go.” He felt whatever it had been forcing Eriol to the ceiling evolve into something more offensive and explode against Eriol.
Kaho regained movement and dashed to the door, Fujitaka at her heels. Running down the marble stairs was difficult when Eriol caught up with them and began raining fire attacks down on them. Fujitaka nearly stumbled as he watched Kaho leap up onto the banister and stood standing as she slid backwards down it, facing Eriol. A bubble formed around the possessed young man and exploded, knocking him back somewhat and allowing Kaho to leap from the banister to the floor with relative ease. With a flick of her wrist she threw a pencil sized magic bolt at Eriol. It grazed the side of his neck; throwing him back farther and actually putting a look of surprise and pain on his face.
He faded from the room shortly after and Fujitaka and Kaho didn’t ask questions, just bolted for the car. Once there they were able to stop and breathe, or as much as they could.
Fujitaka coughed as he spoke, “Do you know…where he went?”
“Off to wherever he hides when he’s not looking to kill me,” Kaho answered as she looked up at him. She took in his slightly charred appearance and, along with the coughing he kept doing, assumed he’d inhaled too much smoke and heat and now feared he had some lung damage.
“Are you hurt?” Kaho asked, trying to see if he’d tell her anything.
“He didn’t hurt me, but my chest is burning like the dance floor back there,” Fujitaka answered.
Kaho reached her right hand out towards him, hesitated once, then placed it gently against his jacketed chest.
Fujitaka felt the pain and burning in his chest begin to fade a little and looked into her eyes in surprise. “What are you doing?”
“Like you, I can heal,” Kaho said, “but the difference is I have more experience in it, and unfortunately, I cannot heal myself.”
Her hand glowed white against his black jacket and the cooling he felt in his chest was heavenly compared to the brimstone heat he had felt only moments before. He exhaled painlessly and swore he could feel the last of the heat floating away with that breath. “Thank you.”
Kaho gave him a small smiled, “You’d do the same for me.”
“If I could,” Fujitaka sighed as he leaned against the van. “You aren’t hurt anywhere?”
“Um,” Kaho raised her arms up in the dull light of the parking lot. The arm guards she wore were saturated with blood and dripping, leaving dots of the red fluid on the concrete and her dress. “Tomoyo is going to kill me…”
Fujitaka’s eyed widened, “Holy…” he looked up at her face, trying to keep his thoughts straight on what to do, “I don’t know if I can heal them right now…”
“If you have some extra towels in the van they’ll suffice until we get back to your home,” Kaho said as her arms began to tremble, the adrenaline that coursed through her body during the fight was apparently beginning to wear off.
“I do actually,” Fujitaka as he opened up the back of the van and climbed in, rummaged around for a moment, then climbed back out carrying three towels. He helped Kaho strip off the arm guards and bandages, then wrapped her arms tightly in two of the three towels. The remaining one served as a carrier for the soiled bandages and guards.
Kaho swayed on her feet and actually hit the side of the car as she tried not to pass out from the amount of blood she was loosing.
“What are those wounds from anyways?” Fujitaka asked as he steadied her and walked her to the other side of the car so she could get in.
“Just before I got here, Eriol and Spinel cornered me in an alleyway. He’s is only halfway under Eriol’s demonic control and fights it as much as he can,” Kaho explained; then paused as Fujitaka went around the car to get in on the drivers side. “Spinel had pinned me against a wall by my arms using his forepaws. He’d tried to sheath his claws before attacking, but Eriol’s control allowed one claw on each side to slip out. These claw marks are the result of both of us trying to get away from each other…”
“And they won’t heal. Why?” Fujitaka asked as he started the car.
“My guess is because they were made essentially by the demon’s will, and until the demon is killed, that Will will persist, keeping any major wounds I have not physically sewn up open and bleeding,” Kaho answered as she leaned her head back against the seat and closed her eyes. “But that’s just my guess…I could also be resistant to your healing powers. It’s the same as some people being resistant to some medication…”
“Hmm,” Fujitaka seemed distressed at the statement, but said nothing other than that for a long while. Both sat in silence as they drove down the dark and amazingly empty streets. When they were near Fujitaka’s home did he speak up, “And we can’t take you to the hospital to get those sewn up can we?”
“No…” Kaho murmured.
“Why?” Fujitaka asked.
“Because the story of how I was attacked by a demon possessed young man and his winged leopard counterpart sounds like something a child would make up to cover up something he’d done himself, or by someone else…” Kaho answered.
Fujitaka turned that over in his head for a moment, then nodded, “I see.” Her frowned, “So, wait, all you can do now is take what healing I can give, then just keep bleeding?”
“Seems that way…” Kaho agreed.
Fujitaka pulled over and stopped the car. He sat there for a moment, his grip on the wheel tightening until his knuckles turned white and the material began to make cracking noises. Kaho looked over at him and found white hot rage covering his face. For a moment she found herself pressing up against the door to try and get herself as far away from him as she could. He had yet to learn that his emotions could harness his powers to actually radiate outward like the sun radiates light and heat.
Kaho finally pulled herself together enough to work her right hand through the thick radiation of power, which burned almost as badly as the fire in the hotel had, and placed her hand on top of his left one. Something came back to his eyes and his expression softened somewhat.
“Please Fujitaka, you have to calm down,” Kaho flinched as she felt the skin on her hand begin to blister. She tightened her grip on his hand and whispered, “Please!”
He literally flinched in his seat as he snapped out of his enraged trance and looked at her as if wondering if he had done something wrong. His expression changed slightly as he felt something warm run down his hand. Looking down, he found blood trickling down over the top of his wrist then slide down and drip on the gear shift of the car.
“What the…?” He was confused.
“I’m sorry…that’s mine,” Kaho pulled her hand away and gingerly rested it on one of her toweled arms.
“Did I do that?” Fujitaka asked.
“It was an accident,” Kaho said, “You got angry…and no one has told you yet that your emotions can trigger something like an instinctual attack with your magic. When you get angry like that and have no notion of what you’re doing, your power radiates out like heat from a heater and turns you into somewhat like a living fireball…just…without the fire…yet. It’s why you see most magic users show either very little emotion, or are always calm or happy. No emotion or positive emotions effect your powers consciously and you have to physically think about using them to do something. Negative emotions trigger your powers unconsciously, doing something along the lines of what you just did. Normally though you’d have to be…extremely angry…to get that way.” She looked over at him with a curious look on her face. “What made you so mad?”
Fujitaka sighed quietly as he reached for her burned and bleeding hand, “Just the thought of you bleeding for no other reason than for someone else’s pleasure I guess.” He turned her hand palm up and rested cool fingers against it, healing the damage he had done.
Kaho looked at her lap, “You barely know me, why would you care?” She regretted it when it came out. It had sounded so harsh, and she had not meant it to. She peeked back over at him from the corner of her eyes and found his expression covered in shadows. “I…didn’t mean it like the way it sounded…”
His fingers lightly moved over healing skin, “I know.”
Kaho bit her bottom lip, the movement of his fingers on the sensitive skin of her healing hand tickled and soon she realized he was doing it on purpose, “Fujitaka!” A giggle laced the complaint.
Fujitaka chuckled as he finished and pulled away, “Had to get a smile out of you somehow.” He started the car up and continued home.
Once they got there they had the fun of trying to sneak in without either Tomoyo, Sakura, or Kero hearing them.
Pulling into the driveway was out of the question because they would be seen through the sliding glass door in the living room, so Fujitaka parked in front of the house to see if they wouldn’t hear the front door open. He wisely helped Kaho out of the car, knowing she would be dizzy, then as quietly as they could, they made their way towards the door.
They heard music and Tomoyo’s singing come from the live room even before they opened the door. Fujitaka peered inside, making sure the entryway was clear before he beckoned Kaho in after him. They had to move quickly because the song Tomoyo was working on was almost over.
“Follow me,” Fujitaka whispered as he headed for the stairs.
Kaho raised an eyebrow at him as she followed. She had never been upstairs for the few days she’d been living with them, except for when she’d been shoved up into Sakura’s room quickly, and was curious, though had a fair idea, as to where they were heading.
“Sakura do you have that other music cd we recorded last week?” Came Tomoyo’s voice.
“It’s up stairs, do you want me to go get it?” Sakura asked.
“I’ll get it!” Kero shouted.
“We’re done for…” Kaho muttered as Fujitaka slapped himself on the forehead.
“La la la…” Kero sang as he came into view. “Hey! Your dad and Kaho are home Sakura!” Kaho kept herself conveniently turned away from Kero. “Wait a minute, where are you two going?” Kero’s eyes took on a mischievous shine.
“N-nowhere!” Fujitaka stuttered.
“Sakura! Your father and Kaho are going upstairs all alone!!!” Kero shouted.
“KERO!” Kaho shouted and made to grab the guardian out of the air.
“What?” Sakura and Tomoyo ran over and were startled at the appearance of the two adults.
In the shadows of the entryway and stairs the dark colors they were wearing had hidden the blood that was splashed over them, but Kero had turned on the light and neither Kaho nor Fujitaka had turned their backs on them quick enough to hide it.
Sakura’s eyes widened, “What happened?”
“What do you think happened?” Kaho asked as she gave up hiding and leaned against the corner of the banister facing towards the girls, allowing them full few of the blood soaked towels she had wrapped around her arms.
“Eriol…” Sakura sighed, then gasped as watched Kaho’s eyes roll up into the back of her head. Fujitaka caught her before she had a chance to fall, but the heavy blood soaked towels slipped from her arms as they went limp and splattered onto the floor.
“Dammit…was hoping to get her sitting down before this happened,” Fujitaka cursed as he picked the woman up and headed for the bathroom.
OOOO
Fujitaka watched her open her eyes and sighed inwardly as he noticed they were glassy and clouded like she had a fever, which she probably did.
“How long have you been at this?” Kaho asked as she felt him rubbing a mild soap into her slashed arm.
“About an hour,” he looked at his daughter and Tomoyo for confirmation and received two nods.
“Why don’t you just let me die?” Kaho asked.
He heard both the younger girls gasp at the woman’s statement. He knew Kaho was probably on a visual basis only, he was the only one in her sights at the moment and she hadn’t known Sakura and Tomoyo were there. It was either that, or the woman really didn’t care what they heard her say.
“Why would I want to let you die?” Fujitaka asked. He’d been afraid she’d slip into this sort of depression and had actually been surprised when she wasn’t depressed when she’d first arrived. Knowing the consequences of what would occur if she was left alone, he let himself get emotionally closer to her, even if it was just temporary. “Let me tell you a story, all right?” He sighed as her left arm opened up a little under his gentle cleaning and he stopped to heal it again. “When my wife died, I fell into a depression similar to the one you’re going through now.”
“I’m not depressed…” Kaho muttered darkly, “…just useless.”
Fujitaka scowled at her and dropped his normally polite disposition for a moment, “Just shut up and listen to me.” He watched a little bit of personality glint into her eyes for a moment before it faded and she fell silent. “When I was depressed, I felt a lot like you’re feeling, worthless, being blamed for everything that was happening to everyone else. As though you had no one that cared for you anymore and therefore have no reason to live?”
“Mm, one difference, I have no one who cares for me,” Kaho said.
“I said shut up,” Fujitaka made sure his gentle strokes with the soap-sudded cloth stung just once to add emphasis to his words.
Kaho flinched, but let her mouth run, “All I do is sit around and do nothing while you and Sakura go out and do things. I can’t do anything!”
Fujitaka sighed, knowing that the self abuse she was doing was unconscious, “You can do whatever you feel like,” he paused and growled as the end of the wound opened up again. “You stay indoors because Eriol is less likely to attack you when you’re here with Sakura and Kerberos. I wouldn’t attack either with those odds. You don’t do anything because when you do do something, you end up bleeding all over the place…”
“So I’m worthless and messy…” Kaho added.
Fujitaka finally rapped her on the head gently with a wet fist, “And guess what?” She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, having learned her lesson from opening her mouth. “See those two over there?” He pointed over to Sakura and Tomoyo and Kaho looked over at them and made a face. “They care about you.” Both girls smiled at her. “Guess what else?”
Kaho looked back over at him.
“I care about you,” he smiled and watched as bit more life came back to her eyes as well as a hint of color to her cheeks. He wanted to make sure she knew people were there for her, the thought of waking up one morning to find she’d suicided from mere depression before sense could be knocked back into her wasn’t something he wanted to experience. “If you blush you’ll pass out…” Fujitaka added to lift the awkwardness of what he’d just stated.
“Guess I better avoid hitting my head,” Kaho murmured as her head leaned back against the wall and her eyes fluttered closed again.
“I’m curious as to why you’re being so methodical about washing those wounds Mr. Kinomoto,” Tomoyo said.
“Kaho and I discussed it on the way home and we came to the conclusion that these wounds aren’t going to stay closed for good until we get rid of that demon,” Fujitaka answered. “These stay fresh because the demon wills it to, so now we need to make sure that, while working as much as we can to keep them closed for as long as possible, we also have to make sure they don’t get infected.” He finished Kaho’s left arm, made sure the wound was closed, then looked over at the two girls, “So, who’s gonna give her a bath while she’s passed out?”
“I can bathe myself!” Kaho was awake quickly and sitting up, her face the same color as the towels that had been used to wrap around her arms an hour before.
Fujitaka chuckled, “All right, Sakura will bring you in one of my shirts and pair of sweat pants.” And with that he got up and left.
Tomoyo and Sakura watched him leave, then the short brunette tumbled over to the sink to pull out bath supplies.
“Sakura…you don’t have to…” Kaho said as she struggled to get up.
“Just stay there, my dad worked hard to get those wounds closed,” Sakura almost sounded annoyed. “It’d be a waste to have them open up again.”
Kaho blinked before settling back down against the wall to wait for the young girl to finish. When Sakura left to get the clothes Fujitaka had spoken of, Tomoyo spoke up.
“Don’t get too upset about their attitudes right now Ms. Mitsuki,” Tomoyo smiled reassuringly at her as she turned to face away from the woman to give her a little privacy. “They’re just very worried about you.”
“I still don’t understand why,” Kaho said as she carefully removed what clothing was left on her person and wrapped herself in a towel and leaned against the wall for a moment. “I’m more of a stranger to them than a familiar face.”
“Everyone deserves to have someone care about them,” Tomoyo said as she turned around and studied the woman clad in only a long towel. She was indeed thin and, from the exposed skin she could see, covered in scars. “And you are not a stranger to Sakura and me, but more a friend and teacher than I guess you realize.”
“Maybe so…” Kaho murmured.
Tomoyo brought over a few towels to wrap the woman’s arms in so they stayed as dry as they could, “Unless you do decide you want some help, I’ll let you go on with your bath.”
Kaho sighed, “Well…” she looked down at her towel wrapped arms.
“Sometimes asking for helping is better and smarter than doing it yourself,” Tomoyo said.
“Yes, you’re right,” Kaho gave the younger girl a small smile.
“I’ll wash your hair first,” Tomoyo said, “There’s blood in it.”
“Sometimes I think there’s more of my blood outside of my body than in it,” Kaho said as she knelt on the floor so Tomoyo could work shampoo into her hair.
“Things will change soon,” Tomoyo assured her. “You have people here who care about you.”
Kaho stared blankly at the wall ahead of her, “So I’ve noticed.”
“And possibly even an interest in one?” Tomoyo asked as she worked shampoo into the woman’s long rusty brown hair.
“I do, though I have no business doing so,” Kaho answered.
“Why do you say that?” Tomoyo asked.
“Tomoyo, I am not ignorant of Fujitaka’s past,” Kaho said. “I know his first wife died when Sakura was three, and I have no business even getting this close to him.”
Tomoyo frowned at the woman’s words, “I see.”
“The only way I know of showing how much I care for both Sakura and Fujitaka is to try and keep them as safe as possible, and of course you too Tomoyo,” Kaho added as she angled her head to look up at the young woman, who smiled down at her, “But right now all I seem to do is make things harder for them.”
“That’s not your fault,” Tomoyo said, “tilt your head back please.”
“A lot of it is,” Kaho said as she did as she was told and Tomoyo carefully rinsed the suds from her hair. “Had I not come back here, they would have never gotten involved.”
“Though that’s true, if you hadn’t come back, we wouldn’t know what was going on and, with the only way of finding out would mean you would be dead, I’d take this alternative situation any day,” Tomoyo said.
Kaho sighed, “I just wish I didn’t feel like such a burden to them right now.”
“You’re still recovering, give yourself some time to actually heal and regain some strength, then things will be better,” Tomoyo said.
“Yeah,” Kaho nodded as Tomoyo finished with her hair. She looked up as Sakura came back in with a large white shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. She still looked slightly annoyed and made Kaho want to go back on what she’d just said and get up and do something to make up for being such a pain.
“Dad’s fallen asleep and I’m going to head up to bed soon too, Tomoyo you’re welcome to stay the night,” Sakura said before leveling her gaze on Kaho, “Dad’s sleeping like he’s had a healing, and he said there was a fire at the hotel.”
“He’d inhaled a lot of smoke making sure everyone else had gotten out all right,” Kaho said. “His lungs had been burned, so…I made sure that he wouldn’t leave you alone.”
“So you did heal him?” Sakura asked and received a nod, “So why can’t you heal those wounds of yours?”
“I can’t heal myself,” Kaho answered. “I’m immune to my own healing magic…”
“How convenient for that demon…” Sakura said and Kaho nodded.
“Well, are we done here?” Tomoyo asked and Kaho nodded again, “Then we’ll let you soak for a bit. Give us a shout of you need anything.”
“Go on up to bed you two, I can get this done and get to bed without making a mess, I promise,” Kaho said.
“There’s a few extra towels by the couch in case anything happens during the night,” Sakura said. “And Dad said not to feel guilty about waking him up if they get bad.”
“All right,” Kaho said.
OOOO
Yeah, you know what to do