[12K] The Tales of Twelve Kingdoms :: Chapter V
Title: Of Mice & Queens
Fandom: The Twelve Kingdoms
Characters: Enki, Rakushun, Youko
Prompt: Friends
Word Count: 1825
Rating: G
Summary: In which Youko and Rakushun talk.
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.
Rakushun sighed. Picking up the empty bag of silver pieces, he stared at it with drooping ears and whiskers. The bird sat perched on his windowsill, starting at him expectantly. But Rakushun knew without any silver pieces to feed it he could not continue sending messages to Youko. Usually the Taiho of En was nice enough to bring him more every so often. Lately, however, Enki had been unusually busy and thus had not stopped by in several weeks. Rakushun had run out during this time and had no other way to get more. He sighed and put the empty bag on the desktop.
“Sorry, I don’t have anything for you right now. I promise I’ll find something soon,” He told the bird.
Rakushun quickly gathered his bag and left the room. He left the school and began to travel down the streets in search of something he could feed the bird. He knew that the bird would not deliver messages without the proper silver pieces, but he could at least find something silver for it to eat. Naturally there was nothing he could readily afford.
He spent all afternoon searching, but was unable to find anything affordable. The hanjyuu eventually came upon a fountain bubbling in the center of the square, the water splashing refreshingly against his face. Rakushun sat on the edge and glanced up at the sky sadly. It was a warm summer day, perhaps a little too warm to be wandering around looking for bird food.
“What’s the matter?”
“Ahhh!”
Rakushun jumped and scrambled off his seat by the fountain, turning sharply with wide eyes. He blinked and the voice that had spoken to him laughed cheekily at his surprise. Although the boy had his hair completely hidden underneath the cloth tied on his head, Rakushun knew immediately who it was.
“E-En Taiho! You startled me again…”
Enki grinned. “One more time and it’ll be a new record.”
Rakushun sighed. He wasn’t quite sure why the En Taiho and his king enjoyed picking on him, but it seemed it was one of their favorite hobbies. Enki tended to visit more than Shouryuu, which was a good thing since the king always wanted to share a drink with him.
“Actually, I’m glad to see you. I have a bit of a problem.”
Enki hopped down from his perch on the wall behind the fountain, landing with ease on the fountain’s ledge where Rakushun had been seated a moment ago.
“Problem?”
“Yes… I’ve run out of those silver pieces.”
“Oh, for that bird so you can send messages to Youko? Hm...” Enki scratched his head. “I don’t have any with me. I didn’t realize you were out. It’s been busy at the palace lately.”
“I’ve noticed. There are a lot of people at the university saying that something big is going on at the palace.”
Enki laughed and waved his hand dismissively. “Nah, just the same old stuff. Plus the Kou ranka hatched recently so Shouryuu wants to keep an eye on his progress.”
Rakushun perked up at the mention of his home kingdom. “The kirin of Kou has been born? That’s really wonderful news.”
“Yup. Kouki was born only recently, though. It’ll be a little while before anything comes out of it.”
Rakushun smiled. “Still… I’m glad to hear it.”
“I thought you might. I came to find you to let you know, among other things.”
“Errands for the king?”
Enki rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest in annoyance. “Of course. Though I don’t mind this time. I’m sick of being stuck in the palace and Shouryuu sure can’t leave right now with all the work.”
The kirin stepped down from the ledge and lifted his hand in a small wave. “I better get on them. I’m sorry I didn’t bring those silver pieces for you. As soon as I can come back, I will. Until then the bird will be fine without food for a little while.”
“I see… Thank you very much, Taiho,” Rakushun said and bowed his head gratefully.
Enki just laughed. “Cut it out, I’m supposed to be undercover.”
He gave a final wave and disappeared into the crowd. Rakushun watched him go, still smiling faintly. The news of Kouki had brightened his spirits considerably. Kou had been suffering so much lately since the death of the previous king and kirin. He had been worried sick for his mother since the day he had left all those months ago. Hearing that a ranka had appeared in the first place had been a joy but now knowing that it had hatched was even better.
Knowing Enki would keep his word, Rakushun returned back to his room and waited. Days eventually turned into weeks and while the bird showed no distress over not having anything to eat, Rakushun was growing a bit concerned himself. Mostly he was worried about what Youko must be thinking since he hadn’t gotten back to her in so long. He didn’t think there had ever been a delay this long between their letters. During the third week of no communication on a cool night, Rakushun was disturbed from his sleep by a knock at his window.
The hanjyuu immediately suspected it was Enki and climbed out of bed eagerly. He got half way to the window when it swung inward on its own. Rakushun jumped backwards, startled. He was less startled by the window opening and more so by the person on the other side smiling at him.
“Youko?”
The red haired girl laughed. “I’m sorry, Rakushun. Did I frighten you?”
“More like you surprised me! What are you doing all the way here?”
Youko looked a little sheepish and scratched the back of her head. “Well… You never replied and I thought that was a little unusual, so I came to make sure you were okay. I haven’t been able to contact the Ever-King or Rokuta about you, either. I guess they’ve been busy.”
Rakushun moved to the window and helped her climb in, though she hardly needed the assistance. He recognized her plain gray clothing and the sword wrapped in cloth on her back. Her hair was done up in a ponytail and it had gotten a lot longer since he had last seen her. In fact, Rakushun realized it had been a really long time since he had last seen her face. Although he knew she didn’t age physically anymore he couldn’t help but think she looked a lot older.
“I never expected to see you here,” He told her. “I don’t know what to say.”
Youko smiled kindly at her friend and sat down on the chair beside his desk. “Just be grateful I even made it this far. It was a real challenge to get away from the palace without Keiki knowing where I was really going.”
Rakushun stared. “You left without telling anyone? But…”
“I left without telling Keiki the whole truth,” She said with a mischievous smile.
Rakushun laughed despite himself. “I see. I wonder if the Ever-King is starting to rub off on you.”
“I hope so! He’s been ruling for five hundred years. I’d like to rule that long.”
At this Rakushun smiled. “You will. I’m sure of it.”
Youko paused at this. She stared at Rakushun, who gave her an inquisitive look. Honestly Youko couldn’t imagine ruling for that long, but another thought had struck her.
“Rakushun, what will you do when you’re done with school? I mean, have you thought about it?”
Rakushun scratched his chin and sat down on the edge of his bed, clawed feet hanging just above the floor. “Well… I was hoping to get a job as a government official here in En. The King of En already said he’d help make sure that happens for me, but I want to get a job with my skills. I don’t want to depend on his help alone.”
Youko chuckled lightly, giving her friend a warm smile. “I see. I was just thinking… Would you like to work in Kei?”
Rakushun seemed surprised. “In Kei?”
“Yeah. Things are getting better every day and I already have Kentai in my court. I would… be really honored to have you by my side, Rakushun.”
The hanjyuu felt himself blush in embarrassment and was thankful his fur hid the redness so well. He was taken aback by Youko’s request and scratched his neck sheepishly.
“Do... you really mean that, Youko? You’d let me serve in your court?”
“Of course. I need people in my court I can trust and depend on and I can’t think of anyone I trust more than you.”
“Y-Youko! You’re embarrassing me…”
The queen laughed at the look on Rakushun’s face. She felt very happy suddenly. Rakushun really was the only person she could truly relax around. It was such a weight off her shoulders to be around him as opposed to being around her stiff kirin or in front of her officials that demanded proper behavior from her.
“Will you think about it? I know it’s a long ways off, but…”
Rakushun nodded. “Of course. It sounds like a dream come true. I never thought I’d get an offer to work directly under a queen.”
Rakushun looked away, scratching his neck again. Youko just smiled more. Perhaps the request had been a selfish one. She wanted Rakushun by her side no matter what. For all she knew he had no desire to work in Kei. Maybe he even wanted to go back to Kou someday now that the new Kouki had been born. Or perhaps she was even afraid of Rakushun’s mortality versus her own immortality. Making him a part of her court meant he could become a Sennin. How would he ever see the kind of kingdom she could build if he was mortal?
Youko smiled. “You probably never thought you’d save the life of a queen, either.”
“Maybe,” Rakushun said thoughtful. “But you saved my life too, Youko.”
Youko blushed and shook her head. “I-I didn’t…”
Rakushun hopped off his bed and took a few steps to her, placing his paws on her hand. He was smiling.
“I know you don’t think you did, but you did. Or maybe…” He scratched his face. “Maybe it’s more accurate to say that you gave something really special. You were the first friend I ever had.”
This was something Youko had never thought about before. “The very first? Really?”
“Hanjyuu weren’t allowed outside in Kou, remember? Not that I stayed in my house all the time but I didn’t talk to many people.”
“That’s true…” She smiled warmly and gave a tiny laugh. “Their loss.”
The two talked for most of the night before Youko had to leave, knowingly Keiki would start to get suspicious if she was away too long. As she left Rakushun found that he was quite thankful to have run out of silver pieces.
Fandom: The Twelve Kingdoms
Characters: Enki, Rakushun, Youko
Prompt: Friends
Word Count: 1825
Rating: G
Summary: In which Youko and Rakushun talk.
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.
Rakushun sighed. Picking up the empty bag of silver pieces, he stared at it with drooping ears and whiskers. The bird sat perched on his windowsill, starting at him expectantly. But Rakushun knew without any silver pieces to feed it he could not continue sending messages to Youko. Usually the Taiho of En was nice enough to bring him more every so often. Lately, however, Enki had been unusually busy and thus had not stopped by in several weeks. Rakushun had run out during this time and had no other way to get more. He sighed and put the empty bag on the desktop.
“Sorry, I don’t have anything for you right now. I promise I’ll find something soon,” He told the bird.
Rakushun quickly gathered his bag and left the room. He left the school and began to travel down the streets in search of something he could feed the bird. He knew that the bird would not deliver messages without the proper silver pieces, but he could at least find something silver for it to eat. Naturally there was nothing he could readily afford.
He spent all afternoon searching, but was unable to find anything affordable. The hanjyuu eventually came upon a fountain bubbling in the center of the square, the water splashing refreshingly against his face. Rakushun sat on the edge and glanced up at the sky sadly. It was a warm summer day, perhaps a little too warm to be wandering around looking for bird food.
“What’s the matter?”
“Ahhh!”
Rakushun jumped and scrambled off his seat by the fountain, turning sharply with wide eyes. He blinked and the voice that had spoken to him laughed cheekily at his surprise. Although the boy had his hair completely hidden underneath the cloth tied on his head, Rakushun knew immediately who it was.
“E-En Taiho! You startled me again…”
Enki grinned. “One more time and it’ll be a new record.”
Rakushun sighed. He wasn’t quite sure why the En Taiho and his king enjoyed picking on him, but it seemed it was one of their favorite hobbies. Enki tended to visit more than Shouryuu, which was a good thing since the king always wanted to share a drink with him.
“Actually, I’m glad to see you. I have a bit of a problem.”
Enki hopped down from his perch on the wall behind the fountain, landing with ease on the fountain’s ledge where Rakushun had been seated a moment ago.
“Problem?”
“Yes… I’ve run out of those silver pieces.”
“Oh, for that bird so you can send messages to Youko? Hm...” Enki scratched his head. “I don’t have any with me. I didn’t realize you were out. It’s been busy at the palace lately.”
“I’ve noticed. There are a lot of people at the university saying that something big is going on at the palace.”
Enki laughed and waved his hand dismissively. “Nah, just the same old stuff. Plus the Kou ranka hatched recently so Shouryuu wants to keep an eye on his progress.”
Rakushun perked up at the mention of his home kingdom. “The kirin of Kou has been born? That’s really wonderful news.”
“Yup. Kouki was born only recently, though. It’ll be a little while before anything comes out of it.”
Rakushun smiled. “Still… I’m glad to hear it.”
“I thought you might. I came to find you to let you know, among other things.”
“Errands for the king?”
Enki rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest in annoyance. “Of course. Though I don’t mind this time. I’m sick of being stuck in the palace and Shouryuu sure can’t leave right now with all the work.”
The kirin stepped down from the ledge and lifted his hand in a small wave. “I better get on them. I’m sorry I didn’t bring those silver pieces for you. As soon as I can come back, I will. Until then the bird will be fine without food for a little while.”
“I see… Thank you very much, Taiho,” Rakushun said and bowed his head gratefully.
Enki just laughed. “Cut it out, I’m supposed to be undercover.”
He gave a final wave and disappeared into the crowd. Rakushun watched him go, still smiling faintly. The news of Kouki had brightened his spirits considerably. Kou had been suffering so much lately since the death of the previous king and kirin. He had been worried sick for his mother since the day he had left all those months ago. Hearing that a ranka had appeared in the first place had been a joy but now knowing that it had hatched was even better.
Knowing Enki would keep his word, Rakushun returned back to his room and waited. Days eventually turned into weeks and while the bird showed no distress over not having anything to eat, Rakushun was growing a bit concerned himself. Mostly he was worried about what Youko must be thinking since he hadn’t gotten back to her in so long. He didn’t think there had ever been a delay this long between their letters. During the third week of no communication on a cool night, Rakushun was disturbed from his sleep by a knock at his window.
The hanjyuu immediately suspected it was Enki and climbed out of bed eagerly. He got half way to the window when it swung inward on its own. Rakushun jumped backwards, startled. He was less startled by the window opening and more so by the person on the other side smiling at him.
“Youko?”
The red haired girl laughed. “I’m sorry, Rakushun. Did I frighten you?”
“More like you surprised me! What are you doing all the way here?”
Youko looked a little sheepish and scratched the back of her head. “Well… You never replied and I thought that was a little unusual, so I came to make sure you were okay. I haven’t been able to contact the Ever-King or Rokuta about you, either. I guess they’ve been busy.”
Rakushun moved to the window and helped her climb in, though she hardly needed the assistance. He recognized her plain gray clothing and the sword wrapped in cloth on her back. Her hair was done up in a ponytail and it had gotten a lot longer since he had last seen her. In fact, Rakushun realized it had been a really long time since he had last seen her face. Although he knew she didn’t age physically anymore he couldn’t help but think she looked a lot older.
“I never expected to see you here,” He told her. “I don’t know what to say.”
Youko smiled kindly at her friend and sat down on the chair beside his desk. “Just be grateful I even made it this far. It was a real challenge to get away from the palace without Keiki knowing where I was really going.”
Rakushun stared. “You left without telling anyone? But…”
“I left without telling Keiki the whole truth,” She said with a mischievous smile.
Rakushun laughed despite himself. “I see. I wonder if the Ever-King is starting to rub off on you.”
“I hope so! He’s been ruling for five hundred years. I’d like to rule that long.”
At this Rakushun smiled. “You will. I’m sure of it.”
Youko paused at this. She stared at Rakushun, who gave her an inquisitive look. Honestly Youko couldn’t imagine ruling for that long, but another thought had struck her.
“Rakushun, what will you do when you’re done with school? I mean, have you thought about it?”
Rakushun scratched his chin and sat down on the edge of his bed, clawed feet hanging just above the floor. “Well… I was hoping to get a job as a government official here in En. The King of En already said he’d help make sure that happens for me, but I want to get a job with my skills. I don’t want to depend on his help alone.”
Youko chuckled lightly, giving her friend a warm smile. “I see. I was just thinking… Would you like to work in Kei?”
Rakushun seemed surprised. “In Kei?”
“Yeah. Things are getting better every day and I already have Kentai in my court. I would… be really honored to have you by my side, Rakushun.”
The hanjyuu felt himself blush in embarrassment and was thankful his fur hid the redness so well. He was taken aback by Youko’s request and scratched his neck sheepishly.
“Do... you really mean that, Youko? You’d let me serve in your court?”
“Of course. I need people in my court I can trust and depend on and I can’t think of anyone I trust more than you.”
“Y-Youko! You’re embarrassing me…”
The queen laughed at the look on Rakushun’s face. She felt very happy suddenly. Rakushun really was the only person she could truly relax around. It was such a weight off her shoulders to be around him as opposed to being around her stiff kirin or in front of her officials that demanded proper behavior from her.
“Will you think about it? I know it’s a long ways off, but…”
Rakushun nodded. “Of course. It sounds like a dream come true. I never thought I’d get an offer to work directly under a queen.”
Rakushun looked away, scratching his neck again. Youko just smiled more. Perhaps the request had been a selfish one. She wanted Rakushun by her side no matter what. For all she knew he had no desire to work in Kei. Maybe he even wanted to go back to Kou someday now that the new Kouki had been born. Or perhaps she was even afraid of Rakushun’s mortality versus her own immortality. Making him a part of her court meant he could become a Sennin. How would he ever see the kind of kingdom she could build if he was mortal?
Youko smiled. “You probably never thought you’d save the life of a queen, either.”
“Maybe,” Rakushun said thoughtful. “But you saved my life too, Youko.”
Youko blushed and shook her head. “I-I didn’t…”
Rakushun hopped off his bed and took a few steps to her, placing his paws on her hand. He was smiling.
“I know you don’t think you did, but you did. Or maybe…” He scratched his face. “Maybe it’s more accurate to say that you gave something really special. You were the first friend I ever had.”
This was something Youko had never thought about before. “The very first? Really?”
“Hanjyuu weren’t allowed outside in Kou, remember? Not that I stayed in my house all the time but I didn’t talk to many people.”
“That’s true…” She smiled warmly and gave a tiny laugh. “Their loss.”
The two talked for most of the night before Youko had to leave, knowingly Keiki would start to get suspicious if she was away too long. As she left Rakushun found that he was quite thankful to have run out of silver pieces.