“Wake up!”  Kagamine was gazing down at him with an impatient expression, punctuating each word with another rough shove.  No doubt the boy had been working at it for quite some time now and had grown understandably frustrated, but that stern look was so different from the last one Shion had glimpsed there, he couldn’t help but smile.

“Ah, I’m sorry, Kagamine.  I was having the most wonderful dream-”

“Your dreams seemed to trouble you a great deal last night,” the boy responded sarcastically.

“Not this one.  I-”

Those emerald eyes softened their gaze, reflecting back a kind of dejection which made Shion ache to reach out for him once again.

“We ought to get going.  I’m sure your absence has been noticed.”

He studied the boy carefully for a moment.  The change in his demeanor was striking.  It was almost as though- they’d exchanged places-

“You’re worried about it, aren’t you?”

“What’s there to worry about?  No one drives a harder bargain than I do, and I’ll be damned if I let some worn-out old codger intimidate me.”

Shion smiled, rising lightly to his feet.  “There’s no respect like the respect men have for gold,” he shot back, rattling the bag of coins at his waist.  “Everything is going to be all right."

The boy glared at him.

Even then, his eyes were beautiful.

He was very nearly free.  In a matter of moments, it would all be over.  He’d belong to no one but himself.

Shion kept reminding himself of this, over and over, hoping it would ease his fear at the thought of approaching his master, but it only sparked new fears within him.  What if it wasn’t enough, or if the apothecary outright refused to take it?  What if the man was somehow able to separate Kagamine from him and keep both Shion and the gold?

He considered the slender form in front of him.  The boy hadn't yet left his side.  Indeed, he’d been keeping watch on Shion for a very long time.  He was certain Kagamine wouldn’t be driven away until the matter was settled, but, afterwards- what then?  What would he do with his dearly-bought freedom?  Should he return to the fortress, or set out on his own?  Would Kamui ever forgive him, if he-?

His thoughts were in turmoil.  It was all too much.  It had happened too quickly.  The first thing he ought to have done was pay his respects to Lord Kamui, but Kamui was the one who had given the boy these instructions, and Kagamine seemed to be following them through with complete fidelity-

A sudden thought struck at him so violently he froze in his tracks.

"Kagamine, please tell me, did Lord Kamui know your feelings about me?"

The boy turned to regard him with a quizzical expression.  "I can't answer that with confidence.  I never told him, but-"  He shrugged.  "We lived together for many years.  It was always difficult to hide such things from each other."

Had this been part of Kamui's plan as well?  For the two of them to stay at each other's side?

Did it even matter, either way?

They were nearing the apothecary's shop.  Shion wished he could focus a bit more clearly on the task at hand, but his mind was a hopeless jumble, and his body had grown tense and restless.

"Don't be afraid," his companion reassured him.  "I'm here beside you.  I'll take care of you, as long as you'll allow it."

The boy approached the entryway.  Shion hesitated, his footsteps dragging, as Kagamine pushed the screen aside.

"Good morning!  How may I-"  The moment the man's eyes caught on Shion, his demeanor changed entirely.  "You brat!," he hissed, "Where have you been?"

Kagamine stepped forward protectively.  "Shion Kaito has come to buy his freedom."

His master's gaze shifted to the youth with obvious contempt.  "And who are you to speak for him?"

The boy shrugged nonchalantly.  "A friend."

The apothecary’s eyes narrowed.  "A friend, eh?  I'm sure you two got very friendly last night."

Kagamine straightened himself up to his full height, glaring back at him.  "Do you want the gold or not?"

The old man laughed, an unpleasant, mocking sound without the slightest bit of humor.  "Run home, little boy.  Whatever you have isn't enough."

"Shion," Kagamine muttered through gritted teeth, "show him."

He pulled out the heavy bag with shaking fingers.  The apothecary raised an eyebrow and reached his hand towards it, but the youth interposed himself even further between them.  "First," he insisted, "we agree on a price."

A cunning look flickered across the man's face.  It was an expression Shion had glimpsed many times before.

"Why bother?  Since you stole it, it's all profit anyway."  He put on an insinuating smile.  "Or will you tell me he earned it with that filthy body of his?"

The hand which hung at Kagamine's side tensed into a fist, unclenched, and tensed again.  "Its provenance doesn't matter, old man.  Either you take it, or you don't."

"Honest men don't make bargains with thieves."  He paused significantly.  "Speaking of which, certain ingredients of mine seem to be missing.  You don't happen to know anything about that, do you, Shion?"

The words burned into his skin like a brand, marking him with their heavy stigma.

"If you leave the entirety of that bag with me, I might be persuaded to believe I've simply misplaced them-"

"You have no proof of your accusation," Kagamine growled, leaning in towards him.

That grimy smile only deepened.  "Who needs proof?  As long as he remains with me, I can do whatever I like with him."

Kagamine was shaking with barely-restrained fury.  Shion placed a light hand on his shoulder.

"I'll do as he asks."

"But, Shion-"  The boy gave up his protest with a kind of defeated sigh.  They both knew there was no other answer.  Kagamine might not have liked it, but he understood.  "Fine, then.  Have it your way.  But before he grants your price, Shion requires a document stating he has paid all his debts to you and is free."

The man eyed the bag of coins lasciviously.  "Of course," he answered, hurrying off to the back of the room.  Shion reached for Kagamine's hand and clasped it firmly.  He was still holding it when his master returned.  The man frowned down at this disdainfully but said nothing as Shion reached out and took the little scroll.

"You can read it?," Kagamine asked, with evident surprise.

He nodded distractedly.

"Are we in agreement, then?"

An odd look flickered across Shion's face for a moment, then was gone.  "Yes," he answered.  "Here is your money."

The man nearly snatched it out of his hand.  He took the bag to the back counter and poured its contents out, seeming to forget all about their presence.  Shion gazed out at him with a sad expression.  Finally, he made a low bow.

"Thank you for teaching me and for sheltering me all these years."

The apothecary dismissed him with a wave of his hand as he continued counting.  Kagamine's arm fell around his back, ushering him outside.  No doubt the boy could see he was close to tears.

Once they made it past the threshold, he began sobbing in earnest.

"You sure cry a lot," Kagamine teased.  His arm still hung around Shion's waist.

He felt as though the world was crumbling around him.  It took a tremendous amount of effort just to remain on his feet.  Kagamine was right.  He had no friends, no family, no home, nothing whatsoever to lose in leaving the province behind.

"He was all I had.  He could've at least said good-bye."

Kagamine kicked at the ground in frustration.  "That man is the second-worst person I've ever had the displeasure of meeting."

"I wasted the money, didn't I?," Shion choked out hoarsely.  "I got the impression it was far too much-"

"All that matters is that the man no longer has any claim on you."  Kagamine's expression brightened.  He tried not to sound too enthusiastic, but he couldn't keep it out of his voice.  "Are you coming back with me to the fortress?"

"There is something I have to do first."  He gave Kagamine a hesitant glance, as though he feared the boy might find it objectionable.  "I haven't been allowed to visit my parents' shrine in a very long time."

"May I come with you?”

Shion nodded.  It was strange having someone accompany him like this.  He hadn't spent so much time in the presence of another person since those long-ago days with Kamui.

"I lost my parents as well.  I was so young, I don't really remember what happened to them."  The boy paused.  "How did you end up with that man, anyway?  Is he some kind of relative?"

"No," Shion answered quietly.  "After my father died, he took me and my family's few possessions as payment for our treatment."

Kagamine kicked at the ground again, this time sending little pebbles flying up in all directions.  "That's complete rubbish," he murmured.

"If he had've been kinder, I don't think I would have minded.  I enjoyed learning what he had to teach me.  He was especially insistent that I learn the language and alphabet of the West-"

"You speak two languages too, then?"  The boy laughed with delight.  "Maybe we should set off overseas!"  He seemed to find the thought immensely pleasing.

"I still haven't decided whether or not I'm staying with you, Kagamine."

"I realize that.  Figured it was one of the things you wanted to ask your parents about."  They walked for a while in silence.  Shion had not traced out this path in years, but he remembered traveling it many times with his father.  They'd gone there often enough in his childhood to visit his mother's altar, a woman whose face he had never known.

"Religion-" Kagamine began softly, haltingly, "-was another thing Kamui and I could never agree on.  He spent a lot of time at the shrines, no doubt trying to make amends to those whose lives he had taken."

"You don't believe in spirits, then?"

The youth refused to face him, staring off into the distance instead.  "We live alone, and then we die, leaving everyone else alone.  That's all there is to it.  My parents, my sister, even Kamui- they're nothing now but memories.  Our offerings are worthless.  We pray to empty air."  There was a hard edge to his voice.  The boy turned towards him with a mirthless smile.  "You think I'm crazy, don't you?"

"I think your belief is as valid as mine.  It just seems like a harsh way to live."

"Life is harsh, Shion.  I made peace with that fact long ago."  Kagamine shrugged.  "Whatever his beliefs, the old man shouldn't have kept you away from the shrine.  It's not a bad thing if it helps bring you comfort, I only wanted you to understand why it might be a bit awkward for me."  The boy gave him a bashful smile.  "I'm not doing so well at winning you over, am I?  First that business with the apothecary, now this-"

"People don’t always have to be in complete agreement in order to be drawn to each other, Kagamine.  Sometimes they don’t agree on much at all.”

“Maybe, but- I can’t help but think you and Kamui would’ve had much more in common."  The boy walked with measured steps, as if carefully considering his thoughts.  "I worry that you, like him, will be burdened with regrets.  That you will never be able to move forward in the future- because of the past."

Something in those words resonated with Shion so deeply he felt, for a moment, as though his heart stopped beating.  He stared out at his surroundings, without really seeing them at all-

"Hey, Shion?"  The boy's hand fell across his shoulder.  "Are you all right?"

He gazed into Kagamine's concerned face, and nodded.

"You know, it's kind of scary when you freeze up like that.  You only seem halfway real, like some sort of ghost-"

Shion smiled at him.  "I thought you didn't believe in such things."  He meant the remark playfully, but a shadow suddenly darkened the boy's expression.

"If I did, I might never have been able to leave the past behind, either.  Life is change, Shion.  To resist that is a kind of death."  He spoke with such sincerity it was almost painful to hear.

Just beyond this stand of trees, now-

"It's kind of a ruin, isn't it?," Kagamine murmured, unimpressed.

The landscape was completely overgrown.  The posts hadn't been quite so worn, the colors so faded, the last time Shion had come there.  He ran his fingers over the peeling wood, remembering something his father had once said to him.

"Prosperous people have no use for shrines," he repeated softly.

"I suppose we have Kamui to thank for that."

Shion nodded, ignoring the obvious cynicism in his tone.  "I wonder what will become of this province now that he is gone."

"I doubt it will be anything good," Kagamine answered, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning far too casually against the weathered entryway.

"You won't come inside?"

"If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not.  These places reek of hypocrisy and obsession."

"You said that Kamui came here?"

"All the time."

Shion frowned slightly.  "Why?  This place must be very far from anyone he-"  The sentence remained unfinished, but Kagamine understood what he meant in asking it.

"It is, but- I'm not exactly sure how these things are supposed to work.  I think I remember it's customary to bring an offering of some sort?"

Shion smiled, holding up his flute.

Kagamine gave him a confused look as he stepped inside.

The chill breeze blew past him and was lost in the emptiness of the place.  There were altars laid out for each family in the village, including his own.  That much was familiar to him, but as he turned to take it all in, he noticed a screened-off area that he was certain hadn't been there before.  It captured his attention so thoroughly he immediately felt himself drawn towards it.  With only a slight sense of trepidation, he peered behind the screen-

There was a vast collection of altars, rising solemnly, ranks upon ranks of them, assembled in terraced rows.  That in itself was highly unusual, but- there should have been remnants of offerings strewn about the place.  Shion found ashes of incense, but beyond that, there was nothing that might have indicated anyone's presence.

He was about to withdraw when he saw something that made him very uneasy.  The floor was stained with blood.  Not in any great quantity, perhaps, but there were marks of it everywhere-

Shion had no idea who or what it belonged to.  He only knew it should not have been there.  There was a fundamental impurity to it.

Leave the shrine

Stay and make an offering