The Sakura trembled from the aftershocks of the awakening that rattled the very fabric of spiritual and physical world alike. The old order was shattered; unbeknownst to Amaterasu's fast living children, the Age of the Dao had begun. The balance of power had irrevocably tilted.
     The Tree spread its spirit crown wide, watching over its two Sakurazukamori, curled around each other, oblivious in their sleep.

Ueno-Sakuragi-cho, Tokyo, 
April 20, 2000 [Thursday] 

It was almost ten when Subaru dragged himself out of bed for a late breakfast. Water simmered on the stove when he entered the kitchen. His tea set stood, ready for use, on the kitchen counter. Subaru looked at it, then opted for coffee instead — very hot, very black, with just a hint of sugar — and eased himself down opposite Seishiro with a steaming mug and a plate with fresh toast. Eased, because desks weren't just uncomfortable the day after. They were downright painful. His spine felt as if he had a bruise on every single vertebra from neck to bottom. Next time would be in bed, he decided while pouring honey onto his toast. Or at least somewhere soft and cushioned. Or Seishiro would be the one on the bottom! Subaru glanced at the wall of paper in front of him, skimming the headlines. "Today's last page is rather uninteresting," he commented.
     "Looks like Shiibatani's cover held." Seishiro folded the paper in half and tossed it onto the kitchen stool beside Subaru, who watched the pile of discarded papers wobble and a couple of pages flutter down to the floor. Seishiro shrugged and sipped from his coffee. "Nothing about the events in the East Gardens."
     "That's a relief." Subaru drank from his own cup. The ink of the spells on his skin had faded a little and was now a natural, henna-red brown. It would take days, if not weeks, for it to fade completely, leaving the spells active to some degree — especially when Seishiro gave in to temptation and traced them again. Glancing at Ameru's delicate penmanship on his bare arms, Subaru wondered what to make of the slight tingle and brilliant flash it had caused. Sumeragi protection, Sakurazuka gift... what did that mean in terms of the Dao? Another sip of his coffee.
     On the other hand, it certainly hadn't stopped them yesterday. Yesterd— The report! Subaru's mug hit the table top with an audible bang. Pushing his plate towards Seishiro, he made room for his writing pad still lying on the windowsill. Last time's neglect. He shook his head, pulled out a sheet and hastily wrote the preamble. If he hurried, he'd still be able to fax it— 
     "You object to me reading the paper and now you sit there and scribble?" Seishiro complained. 
     "It's the report for elder Makoto," Subaru said without looking up. "I forgot about it yesterday." 
     Seishiro shrugged. "What can she do? She's back in Kyoto." 
     "You're naive," Subaru told him. "If I haven't sent that report by noon, elder Makoto will do well worse than burning my shikif— fuck!" He dropped his pen and — despite his aching back — ran for the phone. He glanced at the bedside clock while the call went out. It was well past ten. Even express, it would be a close call. The fifth ringing already. Six—
     =Sumeragi Estate, public relations office. How may we help—=
     "Yimura-san?" Subaru interrupted her. "This is Sumeragi Subaru. Please connect me with my grandmother. It's urgent."
     =I will fetch her immediately, Sumeragi-sama,= his distant cousin answered on the spot. =Please hold.= A click and the soft melody of temple bells played on the other end. It would take minutes or more to get his grandmother out to the gate house holding their small public relations office with the heavily warded telephone. Subaru sighed. The inconvenient arrangement was in effect since before Hokuto's death. The result of his experience with the dial Q2 hotline. He looked down at the phone system beside Seishiro's laptop. The device sat comfortably on the desk and had more features than he had cared to learn. An extension was even right on the night stand. No wards, no banning field, yet safe because the line to the house was scrambled. He wondered how he could convince the elders to install something similar. He glanced at the clock again. At the moment, he'd even settle for a cordless phone that could be brought to his grandmother instead of relying on her to wheel out to—
     =Subaru-san? Have you been harmed?= His grandmother sounded shaken, if not out of breath.
     "No, grandmother." He hurried to assure her. "Please don't worry. I—"
     =Do you require ritual cleansing?=
     Rit—?! "No, I did wash myself." He abstained from adding 'even behind the ears', "but I require a purified shikifuku by the end of tomorrow."
     =Tomorrow?= Her stern voice held a well-honed tone of disapproval.
     "I know it's on short notice, grandmother, but I have a memorial service scheduled on Saturday morning. There's not enough time for the preparations and obtaining and purifying a new shikifuku."
     "It is the virtue of an onmyoji to be prepared for his work," she quoted the old adage in a brittle voice. "As head of the house you are expected to abide by that."
     "Indeed, grandmother," Subaru replied, clamping down on his temper. "However, I expect you to kindly take into account that if elder Makoto hadn't burned my shikifuku after the exorcism, I wouldn't be in this quandary to begin with."
     =Subaru-san, I pray that you still realize that your former shikifuku was stained beyond redemption. Makoto-san reported it soaked with blood.= 
     "Which is why I require a new one," Subaru stated with strained patience. "Or do you want me to go to Isetan and perform a memorial service in jeans and t-shirt?"
     Shocked silence.
     "I thought so," he concluded. "Please have it sent express. Thank you for your help." He hung up before she could reply anything further and briefly closed his eyes. There was no denying it: Seishiro had a bad influence on his behavior.
     "A memorial service?" said bad influence asked from the bedroom door. "For whom?"
     Subaru drew a deep breath. He should have said something yesterday. He should have rescued his shikifuku. He should have held his temper. "Kotori-chan. Imonoyama-san asked me to hold the service."
     "Did it occur to you that the Kamui — both of them — are likely going to be there?" Seishiro inquired frostily.
     Subaru looked up, facing him squarely. "I know for a fact that they will attend!"

CLAMP Campus, Tokyo,
Imonoyama Mansion
April 22, 2000 — 08:33 [Saturday] 

Subaru winced as he set the last bow, securing the obi. The new shikifuku hadn't yet softened from use and tying the crisp cloth put strain on his injured palm. His hand was still sore, probably it had been too early to leave the cut uncovered, but he didn't want the questions an obvious injury would raise in the audience. Seishiro wouldn't care about their accusations, but he wasn't happy about the service to begin with. And loving Kotori-chan deserved better than having a confrontation on her first year obit. Mono-kun's sister deserved better.
     Sister. Subaru clamped his right firmly around the prayer beads as he laid them around his shoulders. The ritual dagger felt weird at his side. It was his usual blade, wrapped in white silk, tied with red thread. It hadn't seen blood, but it was too light after having carried a wakizashi. Susumu's wakizashi. His left palm throbbed. His cheek—
     Hokuto had said, "It's my fault." The dreamlike memory from his catatonia and the sensation of her death from Seishiro's maboroshi overlapped. The touch of her hand on his cheek before she'd taken his shikifuku and left felt exactly like her touching Seishiro's cheek while her blood flowed to fuel a spell she shouldn't have known to begin with.
     "She asked."
     And you didn't say no, Subaru returned in his thoughts. Why? But he was sure Seishiro wasn't aware of the answer to that. Hokuto on the other hand... 
     "I want you to truly live," she'd told him. "I can't let you die." And, "I want Subaru and you to live..." The latter to Seishiro while her life was pouring out of her around his hand. "A person who can't fall in love doesn't exist."
     Subaru brushed the fingertips of his left hand over the cheek she'd touched all those years ago. Yes. Hokuto had known what he himself had figured out merely days ago. He closed his eyes, pressed his injured palm against his cheek in mimicry of her final touch.
     I'm trying, big sister, he silently told her memory. We are trying.— 
     A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Subaru glanced at the clock. No, the memorial service wouldn't start for another thirty minutes. Who—?
     "Sumeragi-san?" Takamura asked. "Are you decent?"
     No, he wasn't decent. He was mentally talking with his dead sister about his life with her murderer while he was supposed to spiritually prepare the memorial service for Kotori-chan, who'd actually been killed by her brother. He was anything but decent.
     Takamura knocked again. "I'm sorry to disturb your preparations, but here's somebody you need to see."
     So, the other decent. Subaru shook his head about himself. Corrupted. He was definitely corrupted. "Yes, Takamura-san. Please do come in."

"Akechi-sensei." Subaru asked, surprised, at the sight of the doctor standing beside Takamura. "Is something wrong with Kamui?"
     "Good morning, Sumeragi-san," Akechi greeted him politely. "Kamui-kun is recovering well as far as I know. My visit doesn't concern him." The doctor glanced back at Takamura.
     "I'll make sure you aren't disturbed." Takamura nodded gravely at Subaru, then said toward Akechi, "Please don't take long. I can spot him, but I can't stop him these days."
     "Stop whom?" Subaru asked, alarmed.
     "Sakurazuka."
     "Why—?" Subaru began, but Takamura closed the door already.
     "I'm sorry for causing you concern," Akechi apologized quietly. "It's because I'm here because of Sakurazuka-san," he explained. "I— Do you have any information about his family background, specifically his father?"
     His father? Seishiro's father? Subaru blinked. "The Sakurazuka are a secretive house, Akechi-sensei," he answered cautiously. "Why do you ask?"
     "I have reason to believe that Sakurazuka Seishiro may be my younger brother."
     "That's impossible." Subaru shook his head. Yes, there was a certain similarity in size and demeanor, as far as he knew Seishiro had worn some of Akechi's clothes when he'd stayed injured in Imonoyama's house last Winter, but to think that a reason to—
     "I have evidence." The doctor looked clearly discomfited as he continued. "I ran a test for paternal relationship on one of his blood samples. It came away positive. There is an above 99.8 per cent chance that he and I are paternal half-brothers."
     Subaru felt cold. This was a recipe for disaster. He had to stop this. "And why did you make the test in the first place, sensei? If Sakurazuka-san requested it, we wouldn't be talking here, would we?"
     Akechi averted his eyes. "I am aware of my crimes, Sumeragi-san. But the result remains."
     And may get you killed, Subaru added silently, aloud he said, "I can't condone this unprofessional conduct. Your business relies on integrity even more than mine."
     "Understandable."
     Subaru jumped at the cool voice from behind him and froze at the sight of the man standing in the doorway. "Ijyuin Shigetoshi. I'm Akechi's — and I guess Sakurazuka's — oldest brother and the head of the house. Please excuse this secrecy, but like Imonoyama I'm not a man you should be friends with." He crossed the room and leaned against the edge of the sink. "I assume you know now why Akechi felt compelled to run the offending test."
     Subaru swallowed. Ijyuin could have been Seishiro's twin... if not for his dark eyes and the greyish hair at his temples, still— Twenty years from now, Seishiro would look like him. It was scary. Deadly if he didn't stop them. Subaru straightened. "Be that as it may, Ijyuin-san, but—"
     "We don't want to waste your time, Sumeragi-san," Ijyuin interrupted him. "Sakurazuka Seishiro may know about our lost father. We have every intention to learn what happened to him."
     "Please understand," Akechi added quietly, "our father went missing thirty-five years ago and we've been searching for him all this time. Seishiro— Sakurazuka-san is the first trace we ever found."
     Subaru feared he had a very clear idea of what had happened to the man if he really was Seishiro's father and inquiring about it might bring a similar fate upon his sons. Two of his sons. Two of his three— His head reeled and he sat down heavily on the stool before the mirror. "And what do you want me to do?" he asked woodenly. He could hardly go to Seishiro and tell him there were two brothers of his out here looking for him.
     "How best to breach the subject with him?" Akechi prompted.
     "Don't," Subaru said without thinking.
     "That is not an option," Ijyuin said sharply. "This is not a question of 'if', only of 'how'!"
     "Sumeragi-san." Akechi laid a calming hand on his brother's arm. "It honors you that you're trying to protect him, but we do not wish him harm. We are aware that this kind of surprise might pose a problem for him."
     It's not his problem, it's his solution. Subaru looked from Akechi to Ijyuin, whose dark brown eyes were sharp, intense. Subaru realized, they would be intimidating if he weren't that used to confronting Seishiro. The doctor seemed kinder than his brother, but was clearly just as ruthless. No, Subaru realized, he wouldn't be able to talk them out of this, he could only hope to prevent the worst.
     Subaru drew a deep breath, composing himself before he searched Akechi's gaze and held it, noting the doctor's obvious discomfiture at his challenge almost with relief. "If you confront him about this, you better have a very good explanation for that test of yours, doctor. Seishiro was a Dragon of Earth last year. I'm certain you do know what that means. Keep it in mind when speaking with him."
     "I'm aware of my transgression," Akechi acknowledged, receiving a comforting touch from his brother in return. "But for the sake of the family—"
     "'Family' is not a positive term in his book," Subaru interrupted him. "In fact, referring to him as your relative might be a mistake. His clan is very protective and interest in their affairs is not welcomed." And deadly.
     Ijyuin studied him thoughtfully. The intense scrutiny sent an unwelcome shiver down Subaru's spine. "Then what do you suggest?" he asked. "What shall we do?"
     Forget about it and run, Subaru thought desperately, but he knew neither Ijyuin nor Akechi would accept this most sensible solution. A sharp pain raced through his hand. He'd dug his nails into the barely healed cut in his palm, drawing blood. He only hoped Seishiro hadn't caught that through the marks. He—
     "Sumeragi-san?" Ijyuin pressed.
     Subaru gathered himself up. "Stay with the plain truth. You've been searching for your father since he disappeared thirty-five years ago and you'd like to ask whether he has any information about the whereabouts of his own father as there may be a connection. Add nothing else. Imply nothing else. He may deny it at first, even shrug it off. But he might come back to you later — on his own terms."
     He drew a deep breath, then looked straight at Akechi. "And don't tell him that you specifically targeted him with that test. If you have to say anything about that, tell him you routinely test every sample you get."
     "I shall confess an even bigger crime?" Akechi asked, shocked.
     "It's a bigger crime, but a smaller offense to him. If he knows you targeted him, he will consider you a threat. And believe me," — Subaru looked at them both — "you do not want that."
     There was deadly silence in the room after his last words. Ijyuin kept looking at him, but said nothing. Akechi appeared rattled. Subaru only hoped, it would make him cautious.
     "Can you get us an appointment with him?" Ijyuin asked eventually. "The Sakurazuka have an office downtown, but this is hardly a business matter."
     "Make the contact through Imonoyama," Subaru replied tiredly. "The chairman is less close to him, so your approach through him will appear less significant. And give him time. Don't approach him today. Right now is a rather strenuous time for us."
     Us? Did I really say 'us' aloud? Subaru wondered, noticing that Ijyuin's expression had softened.
     Another knock on the door. "Sumeragi-san?" Takamura. "It's time for the ceremony."
     "I'm coming," he answered, getting to his feet. He bowed at Ijyuin and Akechi-sensei and left the room, patting the back of his shikifuku in a likely futile attempt to ease the wrinkles left behind from his sitting down.

"You appear shaken," Takamura remarked when they left the house.  
     Subaru sighed. "What makes you think so?"
     "Ijyuin tends to have that effect on people."
     Was he shaken? Subaru asked himself. No, he was worse. Kotori-chan's memorial service was only minutes ahead and he was the opposite of composed. The elders— Grandmother would be appalled.
     When he looked up, he found Takamura looking at him shrewdly. "Or was it the matter itself?"
     "I'm afraid that's confidential."
     "I thought so." Takamura nodded. He froze for a moment, listened attentively to a skin-colored button in his ear. "I'm afraid there's no time for recovery. The Kamui just passed the main gate." He started down the stairs with a visible limp. "I don't want Kaicho near them unprotected."
     "Is your wound bothering you?" Subaru asked. 
     "Not more than usual," was the terse reply, accentuated by an especially jarring tap of the walking stick on the stones.
     "I'm sorry," Subaru said quietly.
     "You aren't responsible for my condition," Takamura corrected gruffly. "I chose to protect his back. And I chose to turn down your help afterwards for reasons that had nothing to do with you."
     "I know." Subaru's zori sank into the wet earth as they left the paved area. "Yet it would have been my duty to help. As it is my duty to help now, if I can." If I am allowed to. If I'm composed— 
     "That won't be necessary," Takamura told him, sounding as if he'd bitten on something decidedly bitter. "The wound is healing properly since—"
     "Since?"
     "Sei ignored my objections."
     Subaru stopped dead. "Sei— what?"
     "Treated the wound," Takamura admitted grimly. They were now under the canopy of the park trees. The changing shadows obscured his expression. "Let's stop beating about the bush. I know what he is and there's no love lost between us. But having him skewered on a holy sword after all this time didn't sit right with me, either." He snorted. "I guess it was the same with him in return, but that doesn't mean I want him anywhere near Kaicho in this mess they concocted! So, please come." He gestured for Subaru to resume walking. 
     "He won't hurt Imonoyama-san," Subaru said quietly. "He likes their game too much."
     "I know." Takamura nodded as the grave tree came into view. "But I won't bet Kaicho's life any more on a game than on the Twin Star's good will." 

~:~:~:~:~ 

CLAMP Campus, Tokyo 
Grave of Mono Kotori 

There was a history between those two, Seishiro decided. An attraction not yet acted upon, though. Leaning comfortably propped against the grave tree's trunk, he watched, amused, how the windmaster held the folding chair for Kasumi after Nokoru had shown them their seats. Aoki's wife was either very lenient or as adept at spotting subterfuge as her husband was at hiding attraction.
     Nokoru, returning to his position beside the altar, gave him a wry smile. In a somber grey suit with minimal black trimmings, he was an unusual sight. Even the trademark fan dangling from his left wrist seemed monochrome black. Seishiro wondered idly how many of the mourning guests currently watching him with carefully veiled wariness realized that the chief mourner much closer to them had a tessen at the ready. Not to speak of the artfully hidden earpiece and mike, and the lethal ornament by Heckler and Koch concealed under the jacket in the back. No, Suoh was not happy about this event.
     Actually, Seishiro admitted privately, neither was he.
     He watched the monk hovering over the Ise — now, 'girl' was probably not a fitting description for her any longer. Judged by Arisugawa's fussing, Subaru's suspicion regarding her condition had been spot-on. He wouldn't wonder if they disappeared back to safety right after the service. 
     The wide crown over Seishiro's head moved in a breeze. Drops left by an early morning rain fell from the leaves. An extra-large one found his collar. He should have tied Subaru to the bed and harvested his ch'i instead of agreeing to the folly of a secret memorial service for the Twin Star's first victim! The tall ash guarding the remains shook with mirth at his sullen thought, releasing more drops to fall on the altar, the grave, and him.
     An investigation of the girl's death would have put Destiny's chosen ones in trouble, so someone had faked a death certificate and a cremation to appease authorities. Kind of ironic... The Dragon of Earth produced the body, and Heaven hid it in the woods. If that wasn't teamwork, what was? 
     Seishiro straightened. In front of him, Nokoru touched his earpiece, listening. He queried his marks, found Subaru near. So the Kamui were on the grounds already. Something white flashed under the trees and Nokoru's black lacquer fan snapped open with a metallic click. Sparks of sunlight flashed off its sharpened steel spokes. Subaru rang the bell to call the priest forward the moment Mono, wearing the white of a mourning relative, and a rather hollow-eyed Kamui reached the chairs.
     Seishiro narrowed his eyes as they sat down in the front row, ignoring him. Something was... off, for lack of a better word. There was some shuffling in the audience when the monk insisted on sitting between Arashi and the Kamui, and Kasumi, having covered her flamboyant hair with a black lace scarf, insisted on welcoming Kamui anyway. The windmaster looked decidedly unhappy about it. Mono gave him an amused look over the edge of his teashades— 
     Green teashades that had seen Shibuya fall, while the Twin Star had invited him to chocolate chip icecream. That wasn't Mono. 
     Subaru's hand brushed Seishiro's as he passed him on the way to the altar. The bell chimed again. Nokoru clapped his hands and bowed deeply. Seishiro kept the Twin Star in sight, offensive fuda at the ready in his sleeve. The grave tree touching his shoulder had stopped radiating mirth. Something else whispered in its wide crown when Subaru, his back to the audience — to the Twin Star! — lit the lamp of wisdom in the center of the altar. A sharp gust of wind threatened to scatter the fruits and flowers chosen to represent the five elements and their colors. The candles of Sun and Moon flanking the lamp shook. Somebody needed a reminder.
     He crossed the distance to the altar in five long strides and put the flame of his gold-plated lighter to the wick of the Moon candle at the time when Subaru's burning rush lit the candle of the Sun. The wind died instantaneously and he returned soundlessly to his position under the tree. Behind him, Subaru, doubtlessly bowing deeply to the gods, announced the girl's funeral name and began his incantation. 

~:~:~:~:~ 

The tension in the audience had been palpable from the beginning. The Kamui, especially Mono-kun, flashed with power. Subaru had been very aware of them since he entered the clearing. The grave tree guarding Kotori's remains seemed to shake in their presence. He'd planned for a short ceremony, calling to mind Kotori's memory and, given her clairvoyance, the transcendent wisdom of the deceased. But then Seishiro had come forward, lighting the candle dedicated to Tsukiyomi with a cigarette lighter. A tightening in the marks had been all the warning Subaru got when choreography and dedication of the service were drastically altered. What had begun as a primarily Buddhist memorial was now firmly turned to the Dao, an aggressive, active Dao, concerned with the here and now and not the enlightenment of the deceased. Subaru deftly switched from the planned Heart Sutra to the Amithaba Sutra, telling Kotori about the wonders awaiting her in Anraku, repeatedly calling the Buddha by name.
     This was a much longer ceremony than he'd planned and his throat felt raw by the time he clapped his hands and bowed a last time to the Buddha and the deceased. The spiritual power of the Kamui at his back felt dulled, but he was hyper-aware of Seishiro and the whiff of Sakura wafting around the grave tree. There was a quiet, almost joyful presence lingering between the tall ash's leaves when Imonoyama rang the bell, officially ending the ceremony. Grateful, Subaru bowed again. Yes, despite everything, he had done well. He drew a deep breath and met Seishiro's eyes briefly across the altar between them. He frowned at the black ofuda aglow between Seishiro's fingers. What—
     "I see you made good use of my warning," a calm, yet slightly flippant voice said behind him.
     Subaru turned. "Kuzuki," Seishiro said by way of greeting, thus telling him who the slender man in front of him was.
     "I've come to deliver two messages," Kuzuki said towards Imonoyama, still holding the chief mourner's position beside the altar. At Imonoyama's small nod, Kuzuki turned for Kamui and the smirking Mono beside him. "The deceased asked me in her dying dream to tell you that she loves you both — despite her end in the Final Year."
     "You were supposed to predict the Earth's future," Mono returned, "not to peep into my sister's dreams!"
     Kuzuki didn't flinch under the reprimand. "Her dreams were of interest. She foresaw correctly that the future hadn't been decided yet when she died." Silence followed the cold statement. A breeze moved Kuzuki's pale short-cropped hair and the black scarf with which Karen had covered hers. 
     The Twin Star snorted. "And the second message?"
     "Is not for you." Kuzuki turned back to Subaru saying, after a brief glance at Seishiro, "Your sister wants both of you to know that there's no such thing as never."
     "And no such thing as ever," Seishiro said flippantly, coming forward around the altar. "Like having the last word with Hokuto-chan."
     "You didn't have the last word even when you killed her," Subaru told him brusquely. "So stop pretending you did!" He bowed his respect to Kuzuki. "Please accept my heartfelt thanks for my sister's message and your warning. I feel deeply indebted to you."
     "Don't mention it." Kuzuki shrugged. "I could have called earlier."
     "But you also didn't call later," Subaru said solemnly. "If I may ask, Kuzuki-san... how did you come to know my sister?"
     The yumemi studied him thoughtfully. "She entered my dreams," he said finally, "shared hers with me when she found mine too bleak to bear. She brought... laughter. Exuberance. Real dreaming."
     "Into your dreams."
     "Yes." 
     Subaru, lacking words, bowed again. 
     "Don't you mind your boyfriend flirting with my ex-dreamseer?" Mono sauntered over. 
     "Not at all." Seishiro brushed his fingers along his jaw, showing off the marks cut into his hands, and smirked. "He's quite aware that Kuzuki's appeal can't match mine." 
     "And here I thought you cut his palm to keep his hands off potential rivals after he'd wrapped himself in protective spells to keep your hands off him." 
     Seishiro laughed. "Your perception is lacking. Whose magic do you think fuels those spells written all over—" 
     "I warned you—" Kamui pushed between them, crackling with power. 
     "I closed my hand around a blade in an exorcism four days ago," Subaru corrected calmly, stopping Kamui in his tracks. "Seishiro had nothing to do with it."
     "He didn't?" Mono inquired, standing entirely too close for Subaru's tastes. "How odd." His expression hardened as he looked at Seishiro. "I still have to thank you for trapping me in this reality." 
     "Do you?" Seishiro arched a brow in mild interest. "You also still owe me an icecream." 
     "That was forfeited when you betrayed the Earth's cause." 
     "So now you plan to fulfill my Wish — whatever you think it is — in the most gruesome manner possible?"
     "No," Mono laughed. "I can do better than that. I will fulfill Sumeragi's." 
     Subaru froze, thoughts racing at what Mono might mean. 
     "You think you can?" Seishiro actually sounded amused. He fetched a packet of cigarettes from his coat pocket and offered a smoke to Subaru, who declined, still shaken. "Didn't you say it was something you cannot grant?" He took one for himself. 
     "Wishes change." Mono snickered. Seishiro lit his cigarette on the flame of the Moon candle. "Worlds change as well, but my destiny is still foreordained and this body is young and healthy and will have a very long life." Adding with a serene smile, "Forcing the two of you to keep watch, while getting older and older and—" 
     "Spiritual power doesn't weaken with age," Seishiro returned coldly. "We will be there." 
     "Perfect!" Mono put his arm around Kamui's shoulder. "Let's go."  
     Kamui shrugged him off, reaching for Subaru's hand. "I'm not done here." Subaru winced, when his fingers touched the sore cut in his palm. "Promise me to tell me, if he ever tries something funny," Kamui said seriously. "I will stop him." 
     Mono chuckled. "Don't promise things you—" 
     "Do you want a kick where it counts?" Kamui snapped at him. 
     "Do you want to make a fool of yourself?" Mono returned sweetly. 
     "Don't worry." Seishiro dragged at his cigarette, completing the sentence in a cloud of smoke behind a bright glowing tip. "I'll only behave as well as he wants me to." 
     "Don't even try to put your character flaws on my conscience," Subaru told him dryly. "They're all yours." He met Kamui's worried expression and forced a smile. "Don't worry about me. Please take good care of yourself instead. I'll be fine." 
     Mono rolled his eyes. "Can we leave now? This sap might be contagious." He actually waved at them, when Kamui nodded sadly. "Be seeing you!" 

Kasumi, Aoki in tow, joined them as they watched Destiny's chosen ones leave, not without Kamui freeing his arm repeatedly from Mono's grasp. "That's not the Twin Star I recall from last year," she said after Kamui and Mono had disappeared under the trees. 
     "No," Subaru confirmed. "But also not the Mono Fuma I know from Kamui's memories." 
     "Or from this January," Imonoyama added.  
     "I don't think this is still a possession," Subaru thought aloud, adding more firmly, "It's an amalgamation." 
     "The Twin Star? Softened by Mono Fuma?" Seishiro raised a brow at that. 
     "Something like that." Subaru nodded. "He's both. The Twin Star, but also a teenager with the body and the memories of Mono Fuma, who got his way far too often last year. There are no longer two souls, two persons." 
     "I don't believe Mono's soul has the power for that." Seishiro shook his head. 
     "I think it's the Twin Star himself," Subaru said softly. "It's his Wish being fulfilled." 
     "His Wish?"
     "Yes." Subaru nodded. "It had begun already in the rectified time span between our fight on the bridge and the end of the year. He told me that only Kamui can fulfill his Wish. From what I saw of him, I believe it's something along the lines of Kamui acknowledging him for what he is. However, I'm concerned that he still tries to get back at us. I don't think he's softened enough to be harmless. How can us getting older be perfect for him? Onmyojutsu is gift, skill, and experience. We won't weaken with age. On the contrary. And he knows that."
     "Maybe it's something about your Wish, Sumeragi-san," Imonoyama said thoughtfully. "Only you would know the answer to that."
     Subaru shook his head. "It doesn't make sense. And yet he seemed almost... happy, for lack of a better word, that we continue to prevent a decision of the Final Battle." 
     "We will find out in time." Seishiro shrugged and crushed the rest of his cigarette under his heel. Looking at the spot where the Kamui had left, he smirked. "I think I'm going to have that icecream with him. It might prove interesting." 
     Subaru reached up and turned Seishiro's face firmly towards him despite their audience. "You shouldn't," he said with emphasis. "I doubt Kamui would come to save you."
     "I don't believe the Twin Star still has the physical power to harm me," Seishiro quipped taking a step back. 
     "I wasn't speaking of the Twin Star." 

to be continued in
Family Matters - Epilogue