[Kitagawa]
by lanerose
A Change of Channels
The streetlights had just come on when Shindou Hikaru arrived at his apartment building. He climbed the steps two at a time and hurriedly opened the door.
"Akira, I'm home!" Hikaru called, kicking off his shoes. He shut and locked the door behind him. "Akira! Aki - ack!"
Touya Akira emerged from the kitchen doorway to be greeted by the sight of Hikaru, sprawled ass over head across a brown paper-wrapped package, his nose buried in the carpet. Akira leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.
"I hope your game today went better than your entrance just now," he said.
Hikaru rolled sideways off the box. He sat up, rubbing his head, and grinned at Akira. "One more match and I'll be in the Meijin league this year!"
Akira smiled.
"So, what's this?" Hikaru asked, waving at the box. Akira straightened. Hikaru pulled the package nearer, poking at it. "Did your parents send you something from Korea again? Geez, it wouldn't kill you to take it out of the entryway!"
"I know you dropped out high school, Shindou," Touya growled, "but I would think even you can tell that the package has your name written on it."
"EH?!" Shindou grabbed the box. He went to pull it onto his lap, but dropped it. "Oof, heavy. Who would send me a package from Korea, anyway?" He leaned up on his knees and squinted at the return address. "Korean! Hey, Touya, can you read this for me?"
"Idiot," Akira said as he stalked over, "how do you expect to survive international tournaments if you can't even recognize the names of foreign pros?"
"I got through the Hokuto Cup all right, didn't I?"
"Only because Isumi and I were there to help you," Touya said. He got down beside the box and looked at the name. His hand came to his chin, head tilting.
"What?" Shindou asked.
"Nothing, it's just…"
"Just?"
"It has the character for 'Ko' on it," Akira said. His hand fell away. "I just thought it was strange, that's all."
Hikaru snorted. "Figures that bastard would find a way to torture me from beyond the grave."
"Shindou!"
Ko Yeongha had died only recently. His car had been one of some fifty or more involved in a bridge collapse. Initial reports said that Yeongha had been badly injured, but would likely survive. His heart gave out on the operating table, though, and the surgeons never got it started again. He'd died a short week before the third Hokuto Cup, leaving many young Korean baduk players to vow they would avenge his defeat at the second.
("At least he had the courtesy to wait for me to beat him officially before dying," Hikaru had complained over ramen one night.
Akira had set his chopsticks neatly beside his bowl and looked up. "Don't expect such patience from me.")
(To spite them all, China won that year.)
"Better get this over with now," Hikaru grumbled. He held out his hand impatiently. Touya sighed. He grabbed his letter-opener from the coffee table and walked over, depositing it on Hikaru's palm. Shindou looked up and smiled. "Thanks, Akira."
Shindou cut the string, and pulled the brown paper away. An envelope with his name written on it had been taped to the top of the box. He opened the envelope and pulled out a small note card. The handwriting was unsteady, uncertain, and the paper had been stained with tears, but the message was still clear:
'He would have wanted you to have this.'
Hikaru passed the note to Akira, who read it, and set it down beside him. Hikaru broke the box's tape seal with the letter-opener. He reached for the edge of the box, and stopped.
"Hikaru?" Akira asked, his hand reaching towards Hikaru's. Hikaru shook his head.
"It's fine," he said. His hand trembled as he slowly opened the box and cleared away the paper to reveal the box's contents.
"Oh!" Akira exclaimed.
"Ah." Hikaru said. He pulled the goban from the box and looked at it, heart pounding. It was a goban. Just a goban, probably with two go ke and stones in the box, and there was nothing more to it than that. He wouldn't - couldn't - be there. Hikaru looked up quickly, and almost breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't see anyone right away.
Then, Hikaru looked around.
He was leaning against the wall to the kitchen, just over Touya's left shoulder. He wore a familiar blue suit, and that stupid, overly-done hair, and had just taken a long drag off some sort of metaphysical cigarette.
"Did you know," Yeongha asked, exhaling a stream of non-corporeal smoke, "strange things happen to go players who die on May 5th?"
Hikaru fainted.
A Change of Channels
The streetlights had just come on when Shindou Hikaru arrived at his apartment building. He climbed the steps two at a time and hurriedly opened the door.
"Akira, I'm home!" Hikaru called, kicking off his shoes. He shut and locked the door behind him. "Akira! Aki - ack!"
Touya Akira emerged from the kitchen doorway to be greeted by the sight of Hikaru, sprawled ass over head across a brown paper-wrapped package, his nose buried in the carpet. Akira leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms.
"I hope your game today went better than your entrance just now," he said.
Hikaru rolled sideways off the box. He sat up, rubbing his head, and grinned at Akira. "One more match and I'll be in the Meijin league this year!"
Akira smiled.
"So, what's this?" Hikaru asked, waving at the box. Akira straightened. Hikaru pulled the package nearer, poking at it. "Did your parents send you something from Korea again? Geez, it wouldn't kill you to take it out of the entryway!"
"I know you dropped out high school, Shindou," Touya growled, "but I would think even you can tell that the package has your name written on it."
"EH?!" Shindou grabbed the box. He went to pull it onto his lap, but dropped it. "Oof, heavy. Who would send me a package from Korea, anyway?" He leaned up on his knees and squinted at the return address. "Korean! Hey, Touya, can you read this for me?"
"Idiot," Akira said as he stalked over, "how do you expect to survive international tournaments if you can't even recognize the names of foreign pros?"
"I got through the Hokuto Cup all right, didn't I?"
"Only because Isumi and I were there to help you," Touya said. He got down beside the box and looked at the name. His hand came to his chin, head tilting.
"What?" Shindou asked.
"Nothing, it's just…"
"Just?"
"It has the character for 'Ko' on it," Akira said. His hand fell away. "I just thought it was strange, that's all."
Hikaru snorted. "Figures that bastard would find a way to torture me from beyond the grave."
"Shindou!"
Ko Yeongha had died only recently. His car had been one of some fifty or more involved in a bridge collapse. Initial reports said that Yeongha had been badly injured, but would likely survive. His heart gave out on the operating table, though, and the surgeons never got it started again. He'd died a short week before the third Hokuto Cup, leaving many young Korean baduk players to vow they would avenge his defeat at the second.
("At least he had the courtesy to wait for me to beat him officially before dying," Hikaru had complained over ramen one night.
Akira had set his chopsticks neatly beside his bowl and looked up. "Don't expect such patience from me.")
(To spite them all, China won that year.)
"Better get this over with now," Hikaru grumbled. He held out his hand impatiently. Touya sighed. He grabbed his letter-opener from the coffee table and walked over, depositing it on Hikaru's palm. Shindou looked up and smiled. "Thanks, Akira."
Shindou cut the string, and pulled the brown paper away. An envelope with his name written on it had been taped to the top of the box. He opened the envelope and pulled out a small note card. The handwriting was unsteady, uncertain, and the paper had been stained with tears, but the message was still clear:
'He would have wanted you to have this.'
Hikaru passed the note to Akira, who read it, and set it down beside him. Hikaru broke the box's tape seal with the letter-opener. He reached for the edge of the box, and stopped.
"Hikaru?" Akira asked, his hand reaching towards Hikaru's. Hikaru shook his head.
"It's fine," he said. His hand trembled as he slowly opened the box and cleared away the paper to reveal the box's contents.
"Oh!" Akira exclaimed.
"Ah." Hikaru said. He pulled the goban from the box and looked at it, heart pounding. It was a goban. Just a goban, probably with two go ke and stones in the box, and there was nothing more to it than that. He wouldn't - couldn't - be there. Hikaru looked up quickly, and almost breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't see anyone right away.
Then, Hikaru looked around.
He was leaning against the wall to the kitchen, just over Touya's left shoulder. He wore a familiar blue suit, and that stupid, overly-done hair, and had just taken a long drag off some sort of metaphysical cigarette.
"Did you know," Yeongha asked, exhaling a stream of non-corporeal smoke, "strange things happen to go players who die on May 5th?"
Hikaru fainted.