O.K. Next part. Please let me know what you think!

Windlily

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	Tita thought it was interesting to watch how the group settled. The 
three men took the sofa. Hajime choose the over-stuffed chair to their 
left in front of the sliding glass doors. Amaru settled on a pillow by 
his feet, Owaru also on the floor and a little to the right so he could 
lean on the coffee table. Tsuzuku had pulled up a chair to sit at 
Hajime's right side. Jasmine had taken the second of the chairs that 
faced the sofa, Elenora sitting beside her sisters feet on the large 
footstool she had pulled up so Jasmine could prop up her knee. And poor 
Matsuri didn't seem to know where to sit. She finally settled on the far 
side of the coffee table in Jasmine's and Elenora's territory.

	*Now that was interesting!* Tita thought as she repressed a 
mischievous urge to go and sit between Lieutenant Mizuchi and Shinkai 
and upset the clearly drawn boundary lines. She took the chair which was 
partnered with Jasmine's instead and settled in to listen. There was a 
few seconds of uncomfortable silence then Jasmine sighed.

	"O.K. I'll get the ball rolling. First, I can answer some of 
Nijikawa-san's question about the prophesy. I did look into it, Owaru, 
but couldn't find much more than you told us. Around 3,000 years ago the 
Imperial Dragons appeared in Chinese mythology. They were called the Go 
and this was the Ryudo surname for twenty-two generations. Do you know 
why it was changed?" She asked the brothers in general.

	"No. Do you?" Hajime asked back, wondering if she was asking to see how 
much they knew or if it was a true request for information.

	She shook her head. "No. It is just changed in the records from one 
generation to the next. Oh, well. Back to the subject at hand." She gave 
Hajime a wry smile. "Feel free to correct me if I get any of this 
wrong."

	Hajime gave her a nod back. So far, it seemed they knew just as much as 
he did.

	"There were four dragons, sons of the Imperial Dragon which were given 
one-half of the Earth to rule. They were the Blue Dragon King of the 
East, the Red Dragon King of the South, the White Dragon King of the 
North and the Black Dragon King of the West."

	All three of the men looked at the Ryudo's with varying stages of shock 
and disbelief.

	"You?" Mizuchi grinned as the boys shifted, embarrassed and uneasy.

	"Hai." Hajime answered them. "At least, I think so."

	"So, what was the prophesy?" Nijikawa demanded.

	"That after 117 generations, the Dragon Kings would reclaim their 
dragon forms."

	"That's it?" Nijikawa frowned, let down.

	"That's all I could find. Do you have anything new to add?" She cocked 
her head at Hajime.

	"No. That's all we could find out also."

	"No reason as to why?" Nijikawa was obviously working on the cryptic 
piece of information.

	"Sorry, Nijikawa-san. We are as much in the dark as you." Tsuzuku said 
with a little sigh.

	"O.K. Well, maybe together we can dig something more up." Jasmine 
smiled shyly at Tsuzuku.

	"I'll look forwards to it." Tsuzuku promised with a small, cryptic 
smile.

	"O.K. About the Order." Jasmine shifted in her chair, obviously trying 
to gather her thoughts. "It's kind of hard to explain." She poked 
Elenora with her toe as her sister giggled. "You want to give it a try?"

	Elenora shook her head no rapidly. "I really, want to hear this!"

	"Feh." She pushed Elenora gently but firmly off the stool with her 
foot. "Go get me some coffee, would you?"

	Tita nodded into the hand that propped up her chin as the oldest Ryudo 
relaxed a bit. That little bit of by-play was just what was needed to 
break the tension.

	"We are members of the Order of Solomon's Seal. Do you know what that 
is?"

	"I do!" Amaru spoke up with a grin. "That was the thing that King 
Solomon used to trap the King of the D'Jinn's in a bottle."

	"How did you know that?" Owaru asked.

	"I read all of 101 Arabian Nights, remember? Not just the chapters 
assigned." Amaru said back with a smug expression.

	"Oh, thanks, Amaru." Owaru grumbled softly as he saw his oldest 
brothers chiding look. "Yes, Elder Brother. I will read it all, as soon 
as possible."

	"Solomon's Seal. So is that what your Order does, seal up evils in a 
bottle?" Tsuzuku asked.

	"When we can. We also observe, record and when necessary, do what we 
can to thwart harmful paranormal activities. Thanks Elenora." She took 
the mug from her sister and steeled herself. They weren't going to like 
this next part one bit. "We also observe 'gifted' Families and track 
their development."

	Hajime frowned at that. "Observe gifted families?"

	"Yes."

	"You mean you've been spying on us?" Owaru glared at both of the 
sisters, betrayal and hurt showing on his face.

	"Hey! We," she indicated herself and Jasmine, "have not be spying on 
you! The Order has been observing your family. There is a big 
difference! And you would never have known if we didn't just tell you! 
And we didn't have to tell you! I'll have you know that you Ryudos are 
very hard on Observers! We've lost two in just the past three weeks!"

	"Elenora, that's enough." Jasmine's quite voice silenced her sisters 
tirade. "They have every right to be upset."

	Elenora pressed her lips together and looked down at her clenched fists 
on her knees. "They just don't understand." She said in a whisper.

	"What don't we understand, Elenora?" Tsuzuku asked gently, hoped that 
her explanation might help remove the tension and distrust that had 
started radiating from Hajime again.

	"You have to be raised in the Order to really understand it, Ryudo 
Tsuzuku." Tita broke in, shifting the antagonism away from her 
grand-nieces. "The post of Observer is a great honor in the Order. It 
takes a special set of skills and a certain personality. The observed 
Family often becomes like the Observers own. They share in their joy, 
their sorrows, their triumphs and tragedies. Yet always at a distance 
and always outside."

	"How long has this been going on?" Hajime asked, anger glinting in his 
deep blue eyes.

	"For your Family? Around 2,500 years, give or take a few." She smiled 
as she saw that startle him.

	"No way!" Owaru challenged.

	"The Order is very old, Owaru. It was founded by Solomon himself. He 
told his scholars to go forth and observe and record the wonders of the 
world. And to stop the forces of evil when and where ever they could. 
The Observed Families are, to us, Wonders of the World. We do not 
intrude or interfere. We simply watch and marvel at what the Creator has 
made." She caught Hajime's eyes and held them with her own. "I truly 
feel that I have been honored by the chance to meet you, Ryudo-sama."

	The reverence in her tone throughout that explanation broke through 
Hajime's anger. He understood. He himself had just stood dumbfounded for 
a full minute when Amaru had changed and he had gotten his first good 
look at what they were. How much more amazing would that transformation 
have been for a normal human?

	"I understand, Saint-Germain-san. It is just, uncomfortable, to think 
that our whole lives have been watched."

	Tita nodded. "I know. I'm surprised that Jasmine told you. It is not 
something that we admit to very often just because of this response. But 
Owaru, if you are going to be angry at someone, be angry at the Order 
and not Jasmine and Elenora. Besides, they are field operatives and not 
Observers."

	"What happened to our Observers?" Amaru asked softly as Owaru scowled 
at his knees, thinking about what Tita had just said.

	"One was killed by Tanaka Tamanji and the other by one of Dr. Tsukuba 
augmented humans." Tita answered with a sad shake of her head.

	Jasmine had been observing the men while Tita took over. Shinkai was 
leaning forwards and hanging raptly on each word, the Lieutenant 
apparently bemused and the Detective's body language was showing that he 
took each statement with a hearty dose of disbelief.

	She studied them because she didn't want to look at the Ryudo's and see 
their condemnation. She shouldn't have told them. But she wanted to get 
it out in the open. She wanted Tsuzuku's trust. She might have blown 
that, big time. She sipped at the dregs of her coffee and gave a mental 
sigh as Matsuri caught her eye and gave her a friendly and reassuring 
smile. She looked at Tsuzuku out of the corner of her eye. At least he 
didn't seem too angry. Until Tita mentioned Tamanji. His whole body 
tightened and his eyes narrowed with anger, then he shot her an almost 
frightened look then blushed and dropped his gaze.

	*Oh man! What did Tamanji do to him!?* Anger warred with embarrassment 
as a variety of unpleasant images flitted through her mind.

	"I'm sorry. Would you send my regards and sympathy to their families?" 
Amaru asked.

	*Bless you, little Dragon-king!* Tita thought as Amaru's acceptance of 
the awareness of the Orders intrusion on their lives touched his 
brothers.

	Hajime gave his littlest brother a soft, bemused smile and shook his 
head while he ruffled Amaru's hair. "For all of us, if you would, 
Saint-Germain-san."

	"They will be honored, Ryudo-sama." Tita said as she stood and made a 
formal bow.

	Hajime felt himself color. This reverence was embarrassing. He didn't 
deserve it. "Please, Saint-Germain-san. I don't deserve such honor."

	Tita smiled back with a twinkle in her eye. "Then you must stop calling 
me Saint-Germain-san." She sat back down. "Tita or Oba-san will do just 
fine. So, now you know about us. Your turn to share."

	"Yeah. What happened up there in that cloud?" Mizuchi asked.

	"We met the enemy." Hajime answered harshly, both hands clenching into 
tight fists on the arm rests.

	Tita watched that pronouncement produce some interesting reactions. 
Amaru drew himself up into a knot and hid his face by resting his 
forehead on his drawn up knees. Owaru hunched up in a looser version of 
Amaru's huddled position. Tsuzuku crossed knees and arms, his open and 
easy body language shifting into tight, closed tension. It appeared that 
the Dragon Kings had not fared well in that encounter.

	"What enemy, Hajime-san? Did they make you Change?" Matsuri held him 
with her eyes.

	Hajime ran his fingers through his hair as he looked away from 
Matsuri's concern, tried to gather his thoughts. He was uncomfortable 
talking about this with so many strangers. Yet the men who had helped 
them had a right to know. He looked at Jasmine and her sister. Or was it 
Jen-lei and Eyanna who sat there? Then at Tita. The woman who appeared 
out of nowhere with sanctuary and safety at the time when they were in 
most need. He needed to remember to ask her how she knew where they 
were. And he suspected she knew just exactly how dangerous that offer 
was.

	He looked at each one of them. Shinkai-sempai restless as he waited to 
find out the answers to the mystery of his friend that he had been 
researching for so long. The Lieutenant just waiting with a friendly 
expectant grin, the exact opposite of Nijikawa-san who was glowering and 
impatient to get on with it. What part did these men have to play in 
their lives? Then on to Tita, ancient face with young eyes, who cocked 
one silver eyebrow at him. Then the Tanaka's. Both of them regarded him 
back with open curiosity. They carried dragon blood in their veins and 
would soon be family. He knew that now that Tsuzuku had found Jasmine, 
he would never let her go.

	He quickly squashed the feelings of envy that rose at the thought of 
his younger brothers luck as his eyes came back to Matsuri. Matsuri. He 
sighed to himself. *They have the right to know. But where to start?* He 
decided the best place was to answer Matsuri's question.

	"No. Lady L let Dr. Tsukuba play with me for a while. I was still too 
hurt from the explosion to escape. It took him a while but he figured 
out a way to," he paused for a moment, looked down and swallowed against 
the bitter taste that rose in his throat, "hurt me enough."

	"Oh, Hajime!" Matsuri whispered, her horror showing in her face.

	Elenora glanced at Jasmine who made a fast curt gesture with her head 
in Matsuri's direction. Elenora slid off the footstool and scooted to 
Matsuri's side as Owaru shuddered and reached over to give his eldest 
brothers knee a squeeze.

	That insane old vivisectionist had scared the crap out of him. He hated 
Lady L with all of his heart but he had to admit that he owed her one 
for getting him out of Tsukuba's clutches before the Doctor had a chance 
to try to take him apart.

	Hajime gave his third brother a private thank-filled smile then took a 
deep breath and continued. "I had a series of dreams before and after 
that. I think they were memories of the past. Basically, they were of 
The Blue Dragon King getting summoned by the Heavenly Emperor and asked 
to go to war with the Gyushu. The Gyushu were thwarting the Emperor's 
will in the Human Sphere and he wanted to Go Clan to stop them. The Blue 
Dragon King was reluctant to do this. He went and discussed it with his 
brothers. They also were uneasy about this request, seeing only disaster 
in it for their Clan."

	Tita found it fascinating how Hajime referred to The Blue Dragon King 
as a separate person. Did he truly doubt that he was that Dragon 
re-born? Or was it a way to hold onto his own identity, to keep that 
other self and his life and memories at a distance? She suspected it was 
the later as Hajime continued.

	"Then Seiohbo-sama came and asked them to do this thing saying that the 
Emperor had signed a pact with the Gyushu and saw in this a chance to 
test both of our Clans. Then she said that this was not just a problem 
for today, that the true impact of these events would not be felt until 
the far future. That if the Gyushu were not stopped now they would 
control the Human Sphere and fill it with death and suffering then set 
their sights on the Heavenly One as well. This swayed the Dragon Kings 
and they agreed to do it."

	"Who is Seiohbo-sama?" Nijikawa asked as Hajime paused for breath.

	"She's the Guardian of the Heavenly Sphere." Amaru answered, finally 
coming out from behind his knees.

	Hajime shot his brother a startled look. "Amaru-kun, how did you know 
that? Did you had another dream?"

	Amaru's expression got confused. "I don't know! I just did!"

	"Well, you're right. That's who she is." Hajime smiled to reassure his 
brother.

	"So that was a Gyushu thing that made that cloud?" Nijikawa asked.

	"Yes." Hajime crossed his arms across his chest and stared into his 
memory for a moment.

	"So, what happened?!" Mizuchi demanded.

	"It's hard to explain." Hajime shook his head.

	"It was a psychic battle." Tsuzuku offered.

	Hajime nodded. "We met Shiyu. One of the Gyushu that Amaru has dreamed 
about. He threatened to kill us. I threatened back and then..." He 
paused, looking for words to try to describe what had happened.

	"I will take this part, if you want, Elder brother." Tsuzuku offered.

	Hajime nodded again, all to willing to let Tsuzuku try to explain it 
and curious to hear what conclusions his brother might have drawn.

	"We got treated to a rather disjointed trip through time accompanied by 
a history lesson in the art of war. We always landed as combatants on 
the loosing side right before the end of a battle. Always Shiyu was on 
the winning side, gloating. And each time we moved, we got a little 
weaker."

	Hajime frowned a little at his brother. He hadn't noticed that.

	Tsuzuku saw that, raised his eyebrows. "Well, at least Amaru, Owaru and 
I did. You didn't?"

	Hajime thought about it for a second. "No. I don't think so."

	"We ended up in a ruined version of Shinjuku." Tsuzuku continued.

	"It looked just like something out of one of those 'after the bomb' 
movies." Amaru said softly.

	All of the brothers seemed lost in that tragic memory for a moment.