[12K] The Tales of Twelve Kingdoms :: Chapter II
Title: Fate
Fandom: The Twelve Kingdoms
Characters: Enki, Shouryuu
Prompt: Choices
Word Count: 1791
Rating: PG
Summary: In which Rokuta and Shouryuu share a heart-to-heart.
Author's Notes: None
[disclaimer] :: In these series of drabbles, things may or may not contradict with the canon. Timelines may or may not be rearranged, messed up or otherwise ignored. Terms, places, phrases and spellings may or may not be 100% correct. Tiny tidbits of information may or may not be included. In short, these stories are just fun little ideas that have popped into my head concerning the characters and their relationships with each other. 100% canon accuracy isn't what I'm aiming for since the 12K world is huge and somewhat confusing. But I did my best and hope that you enjoy it nevertheless.
Shouryuu had never see the effects of shitsudou before. He knew of it and heard all about it, but he had never laid eyes on just what it did to a kirin. Kourin had been the first and it was truly awful. Even in his imagination he hadn’t been able to come up with something so dreadful as the truth. Yet as a king, he felt more sympathy for Kou Ou. Yes he had lost the Way and had done some rather horrible things not only against Youko, but against his own people. For that Shouryuu could never forgive him. Even so, he felt sorry for the pain Kou Ou felt watching his kirin die. He pitied the man more so for that than for the fact that he would die soon.
It was shortly after Keiki had been rescued and Youko had returned to Kei that these thoughts finally surfaced in his head. So much had happened after he had witnessed Kourin’s death that Shouryuu hadn’t had time to think about it. Now he stood outside on the balcony that over looked the sky-sea. Below he could see the shimmering lights of the city, a mere portion of his kingdom. Holding a cup of his favorite saké in one hand, Shouryuu’s face showed a rare expression of seriousness. He was semi-protected from his staff for the day, standing just outside the doors that lead to his bedchamber. There wasn’t much left to be done for the day anyway. It was late, the sun having long since set, and so all the daily duties of the king were completed until tomorrow morning.
Suddenly he heard the doors inside his room burst open. He knew exactly who it was without having to look. After all, there was only one person in the entire palace that would have the gusto to barge in without asking.
“I can’t believe how difficult it is to talk to Keiki,” Rokuta complained as he wandered in. “We’re just writing letters to each other and if I forget to ask something he doesn’t say anything. He only gives really short answers, too. It’s so frustrating trying to figure out how Kei is doing when he’s like that. I should probably just start writing letters to Youko directly or visiting myself.”
Shouryuu chuckled but did not turn around to look at him. He heard the kirin approach behind him.
“Hey, are you listening?”
“I heard you,” the king replied calmly. “It’s hard not to. You’re awfully loud. Kirins should have better manners.”
Enki gave Shouryuu’s back a flat look. “Like you’re one to talk.”
Shouryuu listened to Enki’s footsteps pad lightly across the wooden planks of the balcony. The taiho paused beside him, stepping up onto the lower rail so he could peer down at the sky-sea below. He leaned on his arms on the top railing. A gentle breeze brushed past both king and kirin, causing their hair and clothing to sway.
“You’re only ever up here when you’re not acting like yourself,” Enki observed, his voice uncharacteristically quiet.
“Really? I never noticed,” Shouryuu replied absently and took a sip from his saké cup.
Enki turned to look at him, trying not to look too concerned but Shouryuu could tell he was. The king laughed and waved a hand at him.
“I’m fine. I’m just tired I suppose. I was thinking about Kou Ou.”
Enki frowned at the name and looked away. “He left the kingdom shortly after Kourin’s death. He’ll be dead himself in a year... if he lasts even that long.”
Shouryuu knew the fate of his fellow kirin was something Enki cared deeply about. His determination to find Taiki and his attachment to the kid was proof enough. Shouryuu wondered if it had been the first time he had seen the effects of shitsudou as well.
“But what really gets me,” Enki continued, leaning as far over the railing as he dared, “is how Kourin was able to disobey a direct order for the sake of her King. Even until the very end she was only thinking about him.”
Shouryuu glanced at him. He looked surprisingly serious as he spoke.
“And that bothers you?” Shouryuu asked with honest curiosity.
Enki’s face grew more troubled. “Kirin are loyal to their masters forever. No matter what they do… or how they treat them. Kou Ou was such a hateful and bitter old man. I looked at him with anger, especially when he told us we couldn’t understand anything as taika and when he ordered her to kill. But for Kourin, he was her king. She chose him and gave her life to him. And in the end, she had to give her life for him as well. It’s just…”
He trailed off. He looked very confused all of a sudden. “I guess it’s sad.”
Shouryuu clicked his tongue. “That wasn’t what you were going to say.”
Enki shook his head. “Forget it…”
There was silence between them for a moment. The wind continued to blow persistently, but it was gentle. The air felt pleasant and welcoming. The touch was almost like a familiar friend. The smell of salt was carried on this breeze, making the scent stronger than it already was. Even the taiho and his king were not accustom to the smell being so strong. Like the wind, however, it was also welcoming. Unexpectedly it made Shouryuu think of the ocean in Hourai. He was reminded of his island, his home and his people. Lifting his free hand the King of En rubbed his temples. Apparently tonight was a night for thinking on unpleasant things. It must’ve been the full moon.
He felt Enki’s eyes on him again and lowered his hand slowly. The boy was staring at him worriedly. It was rare to see Shouryuu act so… un-Shouryuu like. The king himself didn’t really like this feeling that had settled over him. He didn’t like to dwell on things that could not be changed. The past was the past and all he could do with it was learn. Though abruptly he wondered if he would really change anything if given the chance.
“Unfair.”
Enki blinked. “Huh?”
Shouryuu turned to him with a small smile. “You were going to say that it was unfair, right? Kirins are so devoted and loyal to their masters no matter what. Even if their king is a terrible tyrant there is nothing they can do except await death.”
Rokuta averted his gaze to the wooden planks below. He watched the fabric around his ankle move in the wind. He had no answer to that. Maybe it was unfair. As a kirin himself Enki wasn’t sure it was right to think that. This was his duty and the reason he existed. Fairness had nothing to do with it.
“It is unfair.”
Enki’s gazed returned to Shouryuu’s face, who was looking out across the sky-sea once more. “Life isn’t fair by definition. If it were there wouldn’t be much use for kings and kirins and the Way. The evil would pay and the good would triumph always if things were fair.”
The king turned to look at him seriously for a moment and then gave a mischievous smile. “Would you give your life for me, too?”
To Shouryuu’s amusement Enki blushed lightly. He looked embarrassed and caught off guard by such a question. He glared when the king laughed at his expression.
“That’s all right,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t want you to. That would be… unfair.”
Unfairness was the death of his innocent people. It was unfair that he lived but they were dead. Unfairness was Kourin’s death and her sacrifice for a king who did not care for her until his own life was threatened. All Youko had to go through only to be burdened with a great responsibility seemed like unfairness too. Life was unfair…
“I still would, though,” Enki suddenly said and Shouryuu refocused on him.
The taiho was turned away. He kept his face carefully hidden from Shouryuu’s gaze so the king had no way of knowing what he was thinking at the moment. His words were soft but full of confidence at the same time.
“I would die for you because that is the duty of the kirin. We’re sworn to protect you. But more than that… because we’re the other half, remember? I wasn’t going to say unfair. What I wanted to say was that it’s just a choice we all have to make. It’s one thing to die for the king because that’s your duty. It’s another when you die for them because you care. So to us Kourin’s choice probably doesn’t make sense. But to her it made perfect sense. It only bothers me because she had to make it in the first place. But I don’t blame her or Kou Ou for it. I guess… I might’ve done the same thing in her place… and for you if you ever lost the Way.”
Shouryuu was taken aback slightly by the rarely heard sincerity in the kirin’s voice. More so than that, however, he was struck by the words themselves. It wasn’t unfairness after all, but choice. His people chose to save him even if they knew they might die. He chose to live because he accepted Enki’s offer. Kourin chose to die for her king’s safe. Youko chose the throne and took everything she had gone through as something to make her stronger instead of using it for pity. It wasn’t fate but choice. Shouryuu stared absently into the remaining saké in his cup. Somehow Shouryuu knew he was already aware of this. Yet for some reason, just for tonight anyway, he had questioned it. With a soft chuckle, he drank the rest of the sake and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
“I’m going to bed,” He announced. He and Enki turned back towards each other at the same time. Rokuta hopped down from the railing and the king smiled. “Today was an odd day. Tomorrow will be better.”
He turned to head back inside his room, but Enki stopped him by grabbing a hold of his sleeve. Shouryuu glanced over his shoulder and gave him a questioning look.
“Do you regret it?”
Shouryuu was silent, eyes trained carefully on the boy’s head. He had hid his face again. After what felt like an eternity, he smiled.
“Not a single moment.”
The next morning Shouryuu found Enki curled up on the foot of his bed like a cat. He was fast asleep and barely stirred when the king rose. Perhaps kirins would die for their other halves but Shouryuu wondered if any of them realized their kings would gladly do the same.
Fandom: The Twelve Kingdoms
Characters: Enki, Shouryuu
Prompt: Choices
Word Count: 1791
Rating: PG
Summary: In which Rokuta and Shouryuu share a heart-to-heart.
Author's Notes: None
[disclaimer] :: In these series of drabbles, things may or may not contradict with the canon. Timelines may or may not be rearranged, messed up or otherwise ignored. Terms, places, phrases and spellings may or may not be 100% correct. Tiny tidbits of information may or may not be included. In short, these stories are just fun little ideas that have popped into my head concerning the characters and their relationships with each other. 100% canon accuracy isn't what I'm aiming for since the 12K world is huge and somewhat confusing. But I did my best and hope that you enjoy it nevertheless.
Shouryuu had never see the effects of shitsudou before. He knew of it and heard all about it, but he had never laid eyes on just what it did to a kirin. Kourin had been the first and it was truly awful. Even in his imagination he hadn’t been able to come up with something so dreadful as the truth. Yet as a king, he felt more sympathy for Kou Ou. Yes he had lost the Way and had done some rather horrible things not only against Youko, but against his own people. For that Shouryuu could never forgive him. Even so, he felt sorry for the pain Kou Ou felt watching his kirin die. He pitied the man more so for that than for the fact that he would die soon.
It was shortly after Keiki had been rescued and Youko had returned to Kei that these thoughts finally surfaced in his head. So much had happened after he had witnessed Kourin’s death that Shouryuu hadn’t had time to think about it. Now he stood outside on the balcony that over looked the sky-sea. Below he could see the shimmering lights of the city, a mere portion of his kingdom. Holding a cup of his favorite saké in one hand, Shouryuu’s face showed a rare expression of seriousness. He was semi-protected from his staff for the day, standing just outside the doors that lead to his bedchamber. There wasn’t much left to be done for the day anyway. It was late, the sun having long since set, and so all the daily duties of the king were completed until tomorrow morning.
Suddenly he heard the doors inside his room burst open. He knew exactly who it was without having to look. After all, there was only one person in the entire palace that would have the gusto to barge in without asking.
“I can’t believe how difficult it is to talk to Keiki,” Rokuta complained as he wandered in. “We’re just writing letters to each other and if I forget to ask something he doesn’t say anything. He only gives really short answers, too. It’s so frustrating trying to figure out how Kei is doing when he’s like that. I should probably just start writing letters to Youko directly or visiting myself.”
Shouryuu chuckled but did not turn around to look at him. He heard the kirin approach behind him.
“Hey, are you listening?”
“I heard you,” the king replied calmly. “It’s hard not to. You’re awfully loud. Kirins should have better manners.”
Enki gave Shouryuu’s back a flat look. “Like you’re one to talk.”
Shouryuu listened to Enki’s footsteps pad lightly across the wooden planks of the balcony. The taiho paused beside him, stepping up onto the lower rail so he could peer down at the sky-sea below. He leaned on his arms on the top railing. A gentle breeze brushed past both king and kirin, causing their hair and clothing to sway.
“You’re only ever up here when you’re not acting like yourself,” Enki observed, his voice uncharacteristically quiet.
“Really? I never noticed,” Shouryuu replied absently and took a sip from his saké cup.
Enki turned to look at him, trying not to look too concerned but Shouryuu could tell he was. The king laughed and waved a hand at him.
“I’m fine. I’m just tired I suppose. I was thinking about Kou Ou.”
Enki frowned at the name and looked away. “He left the kingdom shortly after Kourin’s death. He’ll be dead himself in a year... if he lasts even that long.”
Shouryuu knew the fate of his fellow kirin was something Enki cared deeply about. His determination to find Taiki and his attachment to the kid was proof enough. Shouryuu wondered if it had been the first time he had seen the effects of shitsudou as well.
“But what really gets me,” Enki continued, leaning as far over the railing as he dared, “is how Kourin was able to disobey a direct order for the sake of her King. Even until the very end she was only thinking about him.”
Shouryuu glanced at him. He looked surprisingly serious as he spoke.
“And that bothers you?” Shouryuu asked with honest curiosity.
Enki’s face grew more troubled. “Kirin are loyal to their masters forever. No matter what they do… or how they treat them. Kou Ou was such a hateful and bitter old man. I looked at him with anger, especially when he told us we couldn’t understand anything as taika and when he ordered her to kill. But for Kourin, he was her king. She chose him and gave her life to him. And in the end, she had to give her life for him as well. It’s just…”
He trailed off. He looked very confused all of a sudden. “I guess it’s sad.”
Shouryuu clicked his tongue. “That wasn’t what you were going to say.”
Enki shook his head. “Forget it…”
There was silence between them for a moment. The wind continued to blow persistently, but it was gentle. The air felt pleasant and welcoming. The touch was almost like a familiar friend. The smell of salt was carried on this breeze, making the scent stronger than it already was. Even the taiho and his king were not accustom to the smell being so strong. Like the wind, however, it was also welcoming. Unexpectedly it made Shouryuu think of the ocean in Hourai. He was reminded of his island, his home and his people. Lifting his free hand the King of En rubbed his temples. Apparently tonight was a night for thinking on unpleasant things. It must’ve been the full moon.
He felt Enki’s eyes on him again and lowered his hand slowly. The boy was staring at him worriedly. It was rare to see Shouryuu act so… un-Shouryuu like. The king himself didn’t really like this feeling that had settled over him. He didn’t like to dwell on things that could not be changed. The past was the past and all he could do with it was learn. Though abruptly he wondered if he would really change anything if given the chance.
“Unfair.”
Enki blinked. “Huh?”
Shouryuu turned to him with a small smile. “You were going to say that it was unfair, right? Kirins are so devoted and loyal to their masters no matter what. Even if their king is a terrible tyrant there is nothing they can do except await death.”
Rokuta averted his gaze to the wooden planks below. He watched the fabric around his ankle move in the wind. He had no answer to that. Maybe it was unfair. As a kirin himself Enki wasn’t sure it was right to think that. This was his duty and the reason he existed. Fairness had nothing to do with it.
“It is unfair.”
Enki’s gazed returned to Shouryuu’s face, who was looking out across the sky-sea once more. “Life isn’t fair by definition. If it were there wouldn’t be much use for kings and kirins and the Way. The evil would pay and the good would triumph always if things were fair.”
The king turned to look at him seriously for a moment and then gave a mischievous smile. “Would you give your life for me, too?”
To Shouryuu’s amusement Enki blushed lightly. He looked embarrassed and caught off guard by such a question. He glared when the king laughed at his expression.
“That’s all right,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t want you to. That would be… unfair.”
Unfairness was the death of his innocent people. It was unfair that he lived but they were dead. Unfairness was Kourin’s death and her sacrifice for a king who did not care for her until his own life was threatened. All Youko had to go through only to be burdened with a great responsibility seemed like unfairness too. Life was unfair…
“I still would, though,” Enki suddenly said and Shouryuu refocused on him.
The taiho was turned away. He kept his face carefully hidden from Shouryuu’s gaze so the king had no way of knowing what he was thinking at the moment. His words were soft but full of confidence at the same time.
“I would die for you because that is the duty of the kirin. We’re sworn to protect you. But more than that… because we’re the other half, remember? I wasn’t going to say unfair. What I wanted to say was that it’s just a choice we all have to make. It’s one thing to die for the king because that’s your duty. It’s another when you die for them because you care. So to us Kourin’s choice probably doesn’t make sense. But to her it made perfect sense. It only bothers me because she had to make it in the first place. But I don’t blame her or Kou Ou for it. I guess… I might’ve done the same thing in her place… and for you if you ever lost the Way.”
Shouryuu was taken aback slightly by the rarely heard sincerity in the kirin’s voice. More so than that, however, he was struck by the words themselves. It wasn’t unfairness after all, but choice. His people chose to save him even if they knew they might die. He chose to live because he accepted Enki’s offer. Kourin chose to die for her king’s safe. Youko chose the throne and took everything she had gone through as something to make her stronger instead of using it for pity. It wasn’t fate but choice. Shouryuu stared absently into the remaining saké in his cup. Somehow Shouryuu knew he was already aware of this. Yet for some reason, just for tonight anyway, he had questioned it. With a soft chuckle, he drank the rest of the sake and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
“I’m going to bed,” He announced. He and Enki turned back towards each other at the same time. Rokuta hopped down from the railing and the king smiled. “Today was an odd day. Tomorrow will be better.”
He turned to head back inside his room, but Enki stopped him by grabbing a hold of his sleeve. Shouryuu glanced over his shoulder and gave him a questioning look.
“Do you regret it?”
Shouryuu was silent, eyes trained carefully on the boy’s head. He had hid his face again. After what felt like an eternity, he smiled.
“Not a single moment.”
The next morning Shouryuu found Enki curled up on the foot of his bed like a cat. He was fast asleep and barely stirred when the king rose. Perhaps kirins would die for their other halves but Shouryuu wondered if any of them realized their kings would gladly do the same.