Clow and Ushiwaka [complete]

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

Who: Clow and Ushiwaka
Where: Clow's room
When: Sunday, right after this conversation
Rating: PG
Summary: After fighting monsters together and dropping a couple of interesting hints, Clow is more than a little curious about Ushiwaka. He's got a sword to return, and a perfectly good excuse to talk.
the Story:

Terribly curious, he'd said. It was an understatement. In all his time in the mansion, Clow hadn't met someone as interesting as Ushiwaka yet - at least not someone so open and willing to talk. He was definitely going to seize the chance to learn more about him, since he had no problem talking about himself in exchange.

The sword, now properly cleaned and cared for, was ready to return to his owner. Now all he needed was something to eat; it would be rude to invite someone without having any treats to offer him. He wasn't sure of what his new friend liked to eat (did he even eat at all?) so he rushed to the kitchen and took a bit of everything, sweet and spicy, just in case.

After a moment's hesitation, he also took a bottle of sake. He was going to need it, he was sure of that.

Luckily, his room was close enough to the kitchen to let him prepare himself on time. He managed to get everything ready before Ushiwaka arrived.

Comments

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

He never knocks before entering a place. Actually, he doesn't even pass the entrance; doors are things that happen to other people. What's the use, anyway, if there are other methods? So, as usual, he just materialized inside Clow's room.

Sadly, the sorcerer was looking to another direction at that moment. So, how should he announce his presence? Using his usual speech? No, too long, and it works better from high places. Flute solo? Not for shock value, no.

What's left, then?

"HARK!" he yelled.

He was feeling minimalistic that day...

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

Clow couldn't help but jump a bit, startled, and then felt immediately embarrassed. As much as he enjoyed his newfound life without his foresight, this was a side of it that he felt he'd never get used to...

"Ah, hello," he said, trying not to look too surprised. "I've brought a few snacks, as you can see - all courtesy of the Mansion, I'm afraid, I didn't have time to prepare anything. Next time I'll be sure to cook something myself."

He offered him a seat and took the sword in his hands.

"But first things first," he said. "This is yours."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

Ushiwaka loved to see people jump, especially those who always seem cool. What's life without little surprises? It's not his fault they don't keep the guard up all the time.

"It's okay! I'm not picky with food myself, my friend."

He stretched his hand and received his old katana from Clow, the golden and ivory sheath as clean as it was when he bought it a century and a half ago in Sei-an City. He stuck it in his hakama's belt, took his geta shoes off, and sat down. Tentatively, he chose a round thing with a white substance covering its surface. He took a bite: it tasted sweet.

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

Well, Ushiwaka was obviously comfortable. That was always a good sign. Clow sat down himself, trying to think of a good way to start the conversation.

"So... as I've told you before, I can't help wondering about certain things," he began. "I don't mean to ask anything rude, but there are some things you said that I find very interesting. I'll be glad to answer any of your questions, of course, it's only fair."

He hesitated for a moment, but his curiosity got the better of him.

"You mentioned reincarnation, for example. Is that common in your world?"

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

Ushiwaka poked his own cheek with his flute for some seconds, thinking.

"Well," he shrugged, "some human religions believe in that. I worked in an area related to Buddhism, and usually talked to Shinto priests during my watch. Buddhists believe in the karmic cycle, which includes reincarnation. Shintoists believe the soul becomes a sort of kami.

"The Moon Tribe, however, believed our souls would become stars after death. Personally, I never asked which was the correct idea, or if there are different fates for each race. I'll find out when I kick the bucket.

"Oh, but the case I mentioned was different! I was talking about a god."

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"A god," Clow repeated, blinking. "Well, that's... an entirely different matter, I suppose."

He took one of the snacks, but didn't bite it yet, ditracted as he was. He simply held it in his hand and stared into space for a moment, talking more to himself than to his guest.

"I was asking out of professional interest, mostly. I was supposed to reincarnate myself, insted of showing up here... but I guess no one can give me a proper answer about how that happened," he sighed. "But still, your world sounds very interesting. It seems it's quite different from what I imagined, too. I think I got the wrong impression from your words."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, it's always different with her. Her soul had to be forced to be reborn, so I'm doubting it was anything like the kind of reincarnation you believe in. She's the sun brush god and the 'mother of all', she'll never truly die and all... Amaterasu-kun shall rise again as the sun does."

He wasn't sure he was getting Clow's words. He served himself some tea.

"My worlds," he stressed the plural, "are different compared to this one, and perhaps yours. But I'm not sure what you're meaning with reincarnation now. Does it really happen in your world, for you to be so sure you would? Or are only magicians able to reborn? What were you expecting, exactly?"

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"Worlds? More than one?" he asked. "This keeps getting more and more interesting, my friend. I'll have to ask you a bit more about that later. But let me answer your question first."

Before he did so, though, he definitely needed that sake.

"It's complicated, where I come from. Some people simply pass onto the after life. Some become ghosts," he explained. "In my case... well, I tried to make sure I would reincarnate. It was a part of my plans to keep my loved ones safe. But since I ended up here instead, I'm not so sure of how that's going to work out."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

Ushiwaka nodded. "We also have ghosts, actually. But I'm not getting how you can make sure of that kind of thing. Wouldn't that depend of higher cosmic powers? And to make sure your loved ones will be safe, wouldn't be enough to become a ghost, and ask someone else to help you with the unfinished issues?"

He scratched his head.

"Are you... already dead? Or do you know you're close to be deceased?"

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"Worlds, you're right," he said, a little distracted.

He was right about it, then. Ushiwaka was talking about far worse things than setting up tests for a little girl. He thought of Soel and those other children, and of all the things he couldn't - shouldn't - change... yes, he knew how that felt. And yet, he still had the feeling that his own situation wasn't as bad as his.

"But that day came, didn't it?" he asked. "It must be nice to be there when things do turn out all right at last."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

He chuckled, remembering the one trip on the Ark that didn't end up with tragedy, remembering the metallic floor, remembering the blue sky around him, remembering the comfortable warmness of Amaterasu while she looked above and below waging her tail in both sadness and happiness, remembering the cherry petals blown by the wind from the Konohana trees. Peace.

"It sure did. It sure was."

He realized he must've looked distracted, so he shook his head and returned to normal.

"Pardonez-moi, I think I've made you feel uncomfortable. I'm not usually like this, my friend. I don't normally have other with a sight to talk to, I suppose, or perhaps it was the confession booth that made me weak."

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"Hmmm. Yes, there was that, too. I suppose that put most of us in a talkative mood," he sighed. "But it's good to have someone to talk to. I've often been told I shouldn't keep so many secrets."

He smiled a little, taking another sip of his sake.

"I believe you and I might have a lot more in common than I first thought, my friend."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

"We probably do, yes. I think the mortal realm made me secretive by nature. They wouldn't understand half of my life even if they tried, so I never bothered. The only time I talked to someone like this was when I confided to a friend's friend who happened to be a Celestial Envoy. I can't even talk like this to Amaterasu-kun: not only he's not talkative, but she usually falls asleep during conversations. Good company, but not good listener!"

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"Yes, I know the feeling. There are very few people who would even understand how this works," he replied. "And there are things one shouldn't say, even to those who do understand. I would have liked to talk my Guardians, sometimes, but it was vital that they didn't know certain things..."

He shook the thought away, knowing it wouldn't do any good. There was no point dwelling in thoughts of Cerberus and Yue unless he was going to do anything about it, and this was no the time.

"In any case, I'm glad we met, even if it wasn't in the best of circumstances," he admitted. He hesitated for a moment, then he decided to voice his doubt; he was sure that Ushiwaka wouldn't be offended. "There is something I wonder, though, and I'm afraid there's no way to ask this without sounding at least a little rude... You aren't exactly human, are you? You talk about us as a separate race."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

He thought about asking if the Guardians were the creatures he had created or somebody else. But first he had to reply to that question.

"Heh, I am from a different race. We are of a human-like nature, but we were different from the Humans and the Oina at the mortal realm. I'm a Lunar, from the Moon Tribe. There are several humanoid beings in my universe, but what made us special was the technology. We weren't anything like the gods at the Celestial Plain, though, although we look halfway between them and mortal humans. In two hundred and something years living among mortals, almost no one thought I wasn't one of them."

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"That's interesting... I'd never heard of a Moon Tribe before. Your universe is quite a mystery to me," he replied. "But I'm not surprised that most humans couldn't tell the difference. I think it would have been the same in my world, too. I'm not sure I would have noticed it, if I wasn't used to meet all kinds of people - it comes with a wizard's job, you could say."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

"So no one's ever lived on the moon in your world? Not even on ancient times? See, that's strange to me. Most mortals think we don't exist, though, even if there are proofs of our lost civilization everywhere. Then again, some think I'm lying when I tell my prophecies so it's not that odd."

[BTW, any rabbit on the moon jokes are welcomed and encouraged, because there's a canon response for it :D]

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

Ushiwaka thought for a minute.

"The creatures you created. Is it normal in your world to do that? And how are they like?"

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

"Well, it's not common," he had to admit. "It requires a great deal of power, if I may say so myself, and magic itself is somewhat rare in my world. I'm not the only one who created living creatures, but I am one of the few."

Clow paused for a moment, thoughtful. How to describe them? No words could possibly make justice to his children... and yet, he had to try. He only hoped he didn't sound horribly technical about them.

"There are several kinds of them, actually. My Cards were the first I made. I must say I confused quite a lot of people with them," he added with a mischievous grin. "They looke like mere magical instruments, called as I needed them, and sealed in their Card forms when they weren't useful. But they are alive, of course. I rarely kept them sealed while we were home.

"And then... then I made the Guardians," he went on. "Cerberus and Yue. They are far more complex than the Cards - all of them have their own personality, of course, but it is clearer for the Guardians. They are nearly human in that respect, although they don't exactly look human... well, Yue does, except for the wings. Cerberus is more of a lion-like creature."

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

So the guardians were some of Clow's creatures, after all. The cards sounded niftier to have, but the descriptions of the big ones were the most boggling to him.

"When you say wings, where exactly? Does... he or she have wings instead of arms? Or are the wings attached to, say, the hair or the arms? Oh, and excusez-moi but I'm not sure what a lion looks like."

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

[OOC: watch me run away from description!]

"Yue looks almost like a human, except for the wings on his back," he explained. "Cerberus is... a little harder to describe. There are no lions where you come from, then? Hmm..."

Clearly, words weren't the right way to do it. He should go for something more visual. A piece of paper and a quill appeared out of nowhere - along with that confusing feeling of not knowing what was his doing and what was the Mansion's, as it often happened to him now - and he drew some quick sketches of them.

"There," he said. "Hopefully this is more helpful. Handsome, aren't they?"

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

[Incidentally, we Clow forgot there ARE lions on the mansion: the Lion King characters XD But hell, pictures are better!]

Waka was more of a canine person so he wasn't sure he'd call a feline handsome. Still, he nodded out of courtesy. The humanoid guardian would actually be considered beautiful in any of his worlds, that's for sure.

"Ah, there are no lions in Nippon, but your Cerberus looks like a stripeless tiger. I think there are mansion guests of a similar race, perhaps? But what I find fascinating is the wings. No one has wings on their back where I come from, and that's strange.

Bien, your turn. Ask me something now."

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

[... *headdesk* I completely forgot D:]

"Hmm, yes, you are right about that," he replied. "Well, normal lions in my world look like them. I took a few artistic liberties, so to say."

As for questions, he knew exactly what to ask. It was always the off-hand comments that puzzled him the most.

"Where do people in your worlds have wings, then?"

[halfbakedlunary.livejournal.com]

"The most similar thing to back wings are the dead fish youkai, except they're flying fins and not wings... The bird spirits such as crow tengu or the sparrow tribe have the usual kind of wings birds have, of course. Most Brush gods, including my Amaterasu-kun, have petit, non-functional wings on their limbs as decoration. The Celestial tribe, may they rest in peace, had hair wings that allowed them to soar the skies.

"Nonetheless, you don't have to have wings in order to fly. Some races have their methods, and some cannot fly at all. Can your guardians fly with their wings?"

[a-game-of-cards.livejournal.com]

Wings in their hair? Now, that was quite a mental image... Still, he tried not to show his amusement, given the rest of that sentence. It would be too disrespectful.

"They do need their wings to fly, yes," he said. "Some of the Cards do fly without them, though. Flower is quite good at it.

"It's interesting," he added, "how many things there are in common between your Nippon and mine. We also have bird spirits like the crow tengu, for example. But I have never heard of brush gods or the Celestial tribe."