(no subject)
Title: Seishirou's Happy House-Moving Story
Series: TB/X
Rating: G
Genre: Comedy/gen
Word count: 1146
Notes: Set after Seishirou's Heartwarming Childhood Tale.
Summary: It's finally time for little Seishirou to move house. But his new guardian doesn't seem as pliable as the old ones were...
His caregivers waved him off at the gate, each standing with an arm looped around the other's waist for comfort, affecting a melancholy air. The woman he'd called 'Mother' when in public even dabbed at her eyes with one corner of a freshly starched handkerchief.
It was a marvellous act, Seishirou thought. He'd seen them hiding a bottle of red wine in the kitchen the previous day; as soon as he was gone, they would uncork it and say a toast for their good luck, ice clinking in their glasses.
"Where are we going?" Seishirou asked sweetly, glancing up at the old man walking along beside him.
"To your new home," the man replied. "But you already knew that, didn't you? This isn't the time to play stupid, Seishirou-kun."
"You'll be teaching me more onmyoujutsu, right?"
The old man paused. "Perhaps."
"Perhaps?" Seishirou stopped walking to stare at the man, but the man kept going and Seishirou had to hurry to catch up.
"Depending on...hmm...certain factors," said the old man over his shoulder. "Discipline, for one."
"'Mother' and 'Father' talked about discipline a lot," Seishirou said, unperturbed.
The old man grinned. "I'm sure they did. Would they happen to have mentioned manners, too?"
Seishirou nodded. "Yes." They had mentioned manners; when his nursery school teacher had sent out a student report on him, his parents had marvelled at the teacher's comment of 'A well-mannered, polite boy with a good command of spoken language. Popular with other students. No trouble at all,' and then asked him why he couldn't be that well-behaved at home.
Of course, the school teacher hadn't known who it was that let the classroom's pet rat out of its cage; her eventual wrath had descended haphazardly upon a child far less appealing than himself.
"Manners would be a good thing to keep in mind too. You know, you haven't even asked me my name. That would have been polite."
"Then...what's your name?" Seishirou asked dutifully while rolling his eyes in boredom.
The man didn't turn around. "Oh, but I don't think I'll be telling that to a child who has no manners."
***
Seishirou blinked. "This is dinner?"
"What else could it be?"
"It's not what I had at my old house."
The old man shook his head. "Those two pampered you terribly. Don't you worry: it won't happen again. Healthy, traditional food, that's the ticket."
Seishirou stared, aghast.
"If you don't eat it, you won't get dessert, Seishirou-kun."
Dessert, as it turned out, was a single stick of celery.
***
Having swiftly determined to run away back to his old house, Seishirou checked the doors while the man was out in the kitchen. In sharp contrast to the way his 'parents' had managed to keep him indoors, they were all unlocked.
Later that night, after being left in his new bedroom with what he considered to be an abominably hard futon, it was very easy to slip outside. It wasn't too far distance a walk to be manageable on his own, and he did remember the way.
It was odd, though. No matter how far he seemed to have walked, he hadn't got very far at all.
"Excuse me," said a melodious voice, and Seishirou looked up to see a smiling girl wearing a tidily arranged kimono. "But I'm afraid I've got lost..."
Seishirou shrugged. "Can't help," he said, slipping past her on the path.
"Oh," she said, dismayed, "and I would have given you a sweetie if you'd helped. But never mind. Goodbye." Aimlessly, she wandered along the path, radiating the sort of damsel-in-distress vibes that inspired heroism, at least according to people's behaviour in films. It wasn't something Seishirou could generally be bothered with.
But there was an important distinction: she was a damsel in distress who had sweets with her.
"Why thank you, young man," she said delightedly, bending down to hold his hand as they walked along. "I'm trying to find Sakurazuka Ono's house. Do you know if it's far from here?"
"It's..." Seishirou looked away, puzzled. "It's right here." Why was it right there?
"My, my. I'll forget my own head next," the girl said mischievously. "Here's your payment." She pressed something small and crackly into his hand, and bent down to press a quick kiss to his forehead. "Don't you stay out too late!"
As soon as she had disappeared from view behind the plants in front of the entranceway, Seishirou wandered around to the rear of the house and slipped back into his room, yawning as he slid the door shut. He could manage one more night here, even if the bed wasn't fluffy enough.
The sweet was caramel chocolate. Not bad.
***
When he tried to find his old home the next night, he succeeded.
It was empty.
***
By the time Seishirou got back to his new home, the sky was already brightening, and he could hear the sound of birds.
The old man held the door open for him, seemingly amused by the bags under Seishirou's eyes and the extra scuff mark on his shoes from where he'd hit an unexpected obstacle in the dark.
"Good morning, Ono-san!" Seishirou said cheerily.
A slow smile spread over Ono's face. It wasn't a particularly nice smile, but then, it wasn't a particularly nice face. "I told you manners were important," he said. "Well, you'd better go and get yourself cleaned up now, Seishirou-kun. Your onmyoujutsu lessons start in ten minutes."
"Can't I have some more sleep first?"
"No."
And that was that. Seishirou decided to go back to bed anyway, but paused when he saw something held in Ono's left hand. "What's that?"
"Oh, it's a bag of sweets a visitor left here two nights ago. If you're very good at your onmyoujutsu today, I might even let you have one." Punctuating that, Ono unwrapped one chocolate and chewed it slowly. He made a face. "Ugh. Far too sweet for me. If you don't get them, maybe I'll feed them to the dog next door. Your choice, boy."
***
"Did you know," Ono said one morning two years later, while he read the newspaper, "that your old parents are going to adopt some children on a permanent basis?"
"Them?" Seishirou kept eating his breakfast, holding the too-large chopsticks between his small fingers. "But...they don't like children."
"Seems to be," said Ono, with a rasping laugh, "that they took a shine to you after all."
"Do they want me back?" Seishirou said, vaguely surprised.
"Goodness, no. Besides, your mother would never allow it."
"Her? I've never even seen her. She's probably been dead for years."
"I wouldn't assume that." Ono lowered his newspaper to look Seishirou in the eyes. "A very healthy lady, your mother. Undisputedly in the land of the living."
"I'll take your word for it," said Seishirou noncommittally, turning back to his rice.
Series: TB/X
Rating: G
Genre: Comedy/gen
Word count: 1146
Notes: Set after Seishirou's Heartwarming Childhood Tale.
Summary: It's finally time for little Seishirou to move house. But his new guardian doesn't seem as pliable as the old ones were...
His caregivers waved him off at the gate, each standing with an arm looped around the other's waist for comfort, affecting a melancholy air. The woman he'd called 'Mother' when in public even dabbed at her eyes with one corner of a freshly starched handkerchief.
It was a marvellous act, Seishirou thought. He'd seen them hiding a bottle of red wine in the kitchen the previous day; as soon as he was gone, they would uncork it and say a toast for their good luck, ice clinking in their glasses.
"Where are we going?" Seishirou asked sweetly, glancing up at the old man walking along beside him.
"To your new home," the man replied. "But you already knew that, didn't you? This isn't the time to play stupid, Seishirou-kun."
"You'll be teaching me more onmyoujutsu, right?"
The old man paused. "Perhaps."
"Perhaps?" Seishirou stopped walking to stare at the man, but the man kept going and Seishirou had to hurry to catch up.
"Depending on...hmm...certain factors," said the old man over his shoulder. "Discipline, for one."
"'Mother' and 'Father' talked about discipline a lot," Seishirou said, unperturbed.
The old man grinned. "I'm sure they did. Would they happen to have mentioned manners, too?"
Seishirou nodded. "Yes." They had mentioned manners; when his nursery school teacher had sent out a student report on him, his parents had marvelled at the teacher's comment of 'A well-mannered, polite boy with a good command of spoken language. Popular with other students. No trouble at all,' and then asked him why he couldn't be that well-behaved at home.
Of course, the school teacher hadn't known who it was that let the classroom's pet rat out of its cage; her eventual wrath had descended haphazardly upon a child far less appealing than himself.
"Manners would be a good thing to keep in mind too. You know, you haven't even asked me my name. That would have been polite."
"Then...what's your name?" Seishirou asked dutifully while rolling his eyes in boredom.
The man didn't turn around. "Oh, but I don't think I'll be telling that to a child who has no manners."
***
Seishirou blinked. "This is dinner?"
"What else could it be?"
"It's not what I had at my old house."
The old man shook his head. "Those two pampered you terribly. Don't you worry: it won't happen again. Healthy, traditional food, that's the ticket."
Seishirou stared, aghast.
"If you don't eat it, you won't get dessert, Seishirou-kun."
Dessert, as it turned out, was a single stick of celery.
***
Having swiftly determined to run away back to his old house, Seishirou checked the doors while the man was out in the kitchen. In sharp contrast to the way his 'parents' had managed to keep him indoors, they were all unlocked.
Later that night, after being left in his new bedroom with what he considered to be an abominably hard futon, it was very easy to slip outside. It wasn't too far distance a walk to be manageable on his own, and he did remember the way.
It was odd, though. No matter how far he seemed to have walked, he hadn't got very far at all.
"Excuse me," said a melodious voice, and Seishirou looked up to see a smiling girl wearing a tidily arranged kimono. "But I'm afraid I've got lost..."
Seishirou shrugged. "Can't help," he said, slipping past her on the path.
"Oh," she said, dismayed, "and I would have given you a sweetie if you'd helped. But never mind. Goodbye." Aimlessly, she wandered along the path, radiating the sort of damsel-in-distress vibes that inspired heroism, at least according to people's behaviour in films. It wasn't something Seishirou could generally be bothered with.
But there was an important distinction: she was a damsel in distress who had sweets with her.
"Why thank you, young man," she said delightedly, bending down to hold his hand as they walked along. "I'm trying to find Sakurazuka Ono's house. Do you know if it's far from here?"
"It's..." Seishirou looked away, puzzled. "It's right here." Why was it right there?
"My, my. I'll forget my own head next," the girl said mischievously. "Here's your payment." She pressed something small and crackly into his hand, and bent down to press a quick kiss to his forehead. "Don't you stay out too late!"
As soon as she had disappeared from view behind the plants in front of the entranceway, Seishirou wandered around to the rear of the house and slipped back into his room, yawning as he slid the door shut. He could manage one more night here, even if the bed wasn't fluffy enough.
The sweet was caramel chocolate. Not bad.
***
When he tried to find his old home the next night, he succeeded.
It was empty.
***
By the time Seishirou got back to his new home, the sky was already brightening, and he could hear the sound of birds.
The old man held the door open for him, seemingly amused by the bags under Seishirou's eyes and the extra scuff mark on his shoes from where he'd hit an unexpected obstacle in the dark.
"Good morning, Ono-san!" Seishirou said cheerily.
A slow smile spread over Ono's face. It wasn't a particularly nice smile, but then, it wasn't a particularly nice face. "I told you manners were important," he said. "Well, you'd better go and get yourself cleaned up now, Seishirou-kun. Your onmyoujutsu lessons start in ten minutes."
"Can't I have some more sleep first?"
"No."
And that was that. Seishirou decided to go back to bed anyway, but paused when he saw something held in Ono's left hand. "What's that?"
"Oh, it's a bag of sweets a visitor left here two nights ago. If you're very good at your onmyoujutsu today, I might even let you have one." Punctuating that, Ono unwrapped one chocolate and chewed it slowly. He made a face. "Ugh. Far too sweet for me. If you don't get them, maybe I'll feed them to the dog next door. Your choice, boy."
***
"Did you know," Ono said one morning two years later, while he read the newspaper, "that your old parents are going to adopt some children on a permanent basis?"
"Them?" Seishirou kept eating his breakfast, holding the too-large chopsticks between his small fingers. "But...they don't like children."
"Seems to be," said Ono, with a rasping laugh, "that they took a shine to you after all."
"Do they want me back?" Seishirou said, vaguely surprised.
"Goodness, no. Besides, your mother would never allow it."
"Her? I've never even seen her. She's probably been dead for years."
"I wouldn't assume that." Ono lowered his newspaper to look Seishirou in the eyes. "A very healthy lady, your mother. Undisputedly in the land of the living."
"I'll take your word for it," said Seishirou noncommittally, turning back to his rice.