O.K. Starts out with a bit of a re-edit. Nothing major, just a few
tweeks. Hope you enjoy it!

Windlily

*********************************************************************



	*Elder Brother, we both see it. There is something there and it is
affecting you strangely,* Tsuzuku soothed, alarmed to the very core of
his being.

	*And what makes you such an expert on the behavior of Dragons, Little
Brother?* Hajime's tone dripped with sarcasm as he turned his attention
back to his second brother.

	*I never said I was, Hajime-san!* Tsuzuku tried to keep the fear out of
his tone as he pulled on his power to sharpen every sense and studied
his brother and the strange shadow.

	Suddenly he could smell it and choked as the odor hit him. It was the
over-sweet scent of rotting flowers combined with rancid meat. Something
caught at the edges of his hearing. It was a soft, sibilant whisper,
Hajime's voice...yet not. He focused on it, trying to hear the words. He
growled in frustration as they eluded him. All he knew was that the
voice was sweet and soothing in cadence but oozed malice. He didn't have
time to search further as his older brother responded.

	*Of course you aren't, Tsuzuku-kun!* Hajime's tone echoed the thing
with him. *And do you know why?*

	*Hajime!* Tsuzuku tried to warn him, tell him that something evil was
in his mind with him, but his brother didn't pause.

	*It's because you are afraid of the Dragon! You always have been! You
disgust me!* Those venom filled words stuck like a physical blow.

	*Hajime!* It was a small and wounded whisper.

	Owaru growled and hissed. *Hajime! What are you doing!*

	Hajime ignored him, his body coiling tight in preparation as he lashed
out with his verbal whip once more.

	Tsuzuku saw his brother coil, but he was still mentally reeling from
the disgusted derision that had accompanied his brothers harsh
accusation.

	*You are not worthy of your heritage!* Hajime sprang at him on that
last word.

	The attack snapped Tsuzuku out of his shock, but not in time. Hajime's
body wound around his own and he was bound and held before he could do
more than utter a startled hiss.

	*Brothers! Stop it!* Owaru bellowed in confusion as he hovered over
both of them.

	*Owaru, get out of here!* He screamed as he realized that whatever was
possessing Hajime had absolutely no qualms about hurting his brothers. 

	Tsuzuku writhed and tried to break free but could not. Hajime's talons
sank deep into his shoulders as his brother rubbed his cheek against his
own, his blue neck entwined around his red one so he couldn't bite. Fire
sprang into being around him as he struck back, tried to get his brother
to loosen his grip enough to let him escape.

	Hajime laughed, said *ouch* and only tightened his coils. 

	*Owaru, get out of here!* Tsuzuku bellowed once more as he saw the
white form of his brother still hovering in stunned disbelief.

	*You want so much to be a 'normal' human being?* Hajime almost purred,
then the entwining neck was gone. *Then be one!*

	Tsuzuku snaked his head around and screamed in anger and fear as
Hajime's crystalline fangs touched the flesh at the place where his neck
joined his shoulder. He sank his own into the Blue Dragon's broad chest
as his brother gave him an almost gentle nip. Numbing cold flowed from
those teeth. He bit harder hoping the pain would shock his brother back
to his senses, or hurt him enough to make him let go!

	He heard Hajime growl in pain as his brother's blood filled his mouth.

	*Stop it! Please...brother...* Tsuzuku begged as the numbness spread,
the cold burning almost as much as the fire it extinguished.

	He tried to screamed as the Change ripped through him with excruciating
pain. Then he was falling. He heard one last thing from his brother. It
was tinged with bitterness and frustrated fury and something else...

	*Let's see what your beautiful lady thinks of you now!*

	He knew what that something else was as he started to black out. *Oh,
Gods! Matsuri! He's going after Matsuri! Owaru! Amaru! Protect Matsuri!*

	But his brothers could no longer hear him.


						***

	*Tsuzuku!* Owaru started to dive for his brother's plunging form but
had to veer off when Hajime lunged into his path.

	*Owaru, you will stop! NOW!!!*

	Owaru twisted and backed away, years of habit making him obedient. He
found himself unsure of what to do. It was a feeling he didn't like one
bit! Anger rose and he stopped his retreat, determined he would not be
bullied into submission by anyone. Not even Hajime!

	*Hajime, are you nuts? What did you do?!!!* He roared his anger and
fear at his oldest brother and mentally winced as Tsuzuku hit and
disappeared under the gentle swells of the water. And didn't come up.

	He was gathering himself to do whatever it took to get to Tsuzuku, even
it that meant going through his oldest brother, when he saw the golden
streak flash across the surface of the ocean. It submerged in the very
spot Tsuzuku had hit. He let out a 'whoosh' of relief when Jasmine's
tiny form broke the surface a few seconds later with his brother in her
arms.

	*Our brother needs a chance to learn to appreciate his nature,
Owaru-kun. It's nothing serious and nothing for you to worry about. See?
Jasmine is with him now. She will take care of him. I need you to do
something else.*

	Owaru focused all of his attention on his brother. The big wound on his
chest dripped blood but Hajime seemed unconcerned by it. Man, he had
gone nuts! And in his dragon body, Hajime was nothing to mess with! He
had to get him Changed back and manageable so they could figure out what
was wrong with him. But how? He doubted that he could take him by
himself, but if he could get Amaru to Change then the two of them
together could force him to expend enough energy to force him to do it.

	*What, Elder Brother?* He struggled to keep his voice even and subdued.

	He knew that anything else would annoy Hajime at the moment and he had
to keep him calm. It was hard to do. The only thing he could think of to
get Amaru to Change was to hurt him. And he really didn't want to do
that! Not to mention that if Amaru was forced to Change suddenly, he'd
toast everyone around him. He searched frantically for another solution
as his brother answered.

	*I want you to go to the Pacific Ocean, turn around and come back
across the country and destroy everything in your path.*

	Owaru blinked at him stupidly, could not believe he had just heard his
Eldest Brother say that.

	*Do you have a problem with that, Owaru-kun?* Hajime asked with mild
curiosity.

	*I sure in hell do! Hajime, you are asking me to kill innocent people!*

	Hajime laughed.

	*Owaru-kun, this is Gyushu territory. They have been breeding these
humans for 3,000 years. They are tools, nothing more.*

	Then his mental voice turned hard and his dragon hissed. *Besides, they
killed our people. Now we will kill some of theirs. Isn't that what you
wanted? Revenge? To kick a little Gyushu butt?*

	Rage overcame his reason. *Hajime, you have lost it! What the hell is
wrong with you? I'm not going to do that and you can't make me!*

	*I'd never make you do anything you didn't want to do, Little Brother!*
He sounded hurt and upset.

	Owaru unconsciously relaxed his guard a little. Maybe Hajime was coming
back to himself.

	*I know that, Elder Brother!* He offered and worked hard on mimicking
Tsuzuku's quite and soothing tone.

	*Good. Owaru?*
	
	*What, Elder Brother?*

	*Go to sleep.*

	*Wha...?* Owaru's stunned reply never finished as his brothers command
rolled through his mind.

 	Hajime grumbled a bit as the White Dragon hung unmoving before him.
Owaru was such a pain in the ass sometimes. He never saw the whole
picture and always jumped to wrong conclusions. Then that stubborn
streak would surface and nothing could make him see reason. Well, he had
told the truth. He would never make Owaru do something 'he' did not want
to. The Dragon that was the other part of his brother's soul was another
matter entirely.

	*Sokokukyo, wake.*

	White, opalescent eyes opened and focused on him. The Dragon regarded
him, not Owaru. He was now a primal, elemental creature without the
constraint of a human conscientious. Sokokukyo would do what his brother
would not.

	*Go, do what I bid you.*

	The White Dragon's battle cry wove around a chiming laugh as it bowed
it's head to show obedience, then rose and flashed towards the West.

	Hajime nodded, pleased, and glanced down as he turned and headed for
Amaru. Jasmine was struggling for the shore, Tsuzuku a limp weight
dragging at her, but she was making headway. If she still hadn't brought
him in by the time he had sent Amaru for the Gulf he would go and get
them before turning his attention on the Eastern seaboard.

	Once again his bitterness and frustration rose up. Tsuzuku had found
his beautiful lady, had experienced something he burned for! Yet he was
stuck with the unending torment of Matsuri. Unending penance for
something that happened so long ago! Well, he was going to put an end to
that now!

	He paused for a heartbeat as he realized what he was contemplating,
shuddered as searing pain ran through his body and soul. The Shadow that
engulfed him, body and spirit, faded to almost nothing. Matsuri. He
would never hurt...

	Amaru's attack caught him off guard and he bellowed in pain and
betrayed fury. The Shadow laughed in his mind as it re-coalesced,
blacker and stronger than before.


						***

	Amaru clenched his fists at his sides as Owaru's Dragon went back up
into the sky. Hajime had turned on them! He didn't understand why or
how, he just knew that it was what was happening. And he knew his Eldest
Brother was coming for him next and soon he would be a Dragon in body
and spirit. 

	"Amaru, what the hell is going on?" Shinkai had come charging up when
Jasmine had streaked out over the water going after Tsuzuku.

	Amaru felt tears spring up in his eyes, blinked them out of the way.
Hajime had said to protect them, and he would. He would hold his Eldest
Brother off long enough for the others to get clear.

	"Everybody, run! Get as far away as you can!"

	"Amaru, what's wrong with them!" Matsuri demanded from behind him as
her fingers dug into his shoulders.

	"Matsuri, get out of here! Elenora, Shinkai-san, get her out of here!"
His voice was clear and full of command.

	"Be careful, Amaru-kun," Elenora touched the back of his hand then
grabbed Matsuri's arm and yanked her away.

	He widened his stance and readied himself. If he could keep his brother
off balance for just a minute, just long enough for them to get clear of
his Change then he could find out what was wrong and see what he could
do to put it right!


					***


	Nijikawa stopped and cupped his hand around the lighter flame that was
being very uncooperative in the stiff sea-breeze that had sprung up. The
end of the cigarette finally caught and he inhaled and closed his eyes,
then breathed the smoke out a through his nose, just like a dragon.

	*Just like a dragon.* He frowned to himself as he resumed his amble
back through the trees and toward the beach. He still very was
uncomfortable with the idea of real dragons and didn't much want to see
them. They gave him the heebie-jeebies. So he had gone back to the
Bronco for the clothes when Amaru had announced his brothers were
returning.

	Tita had come up behind him as he dithered and told him he'd better
hurry back as she passed and gotten in her car. He had glance her way as
he swung the bag over his shoulder and could see her talking on a car
phone. He hoped she was making arrangements for a nice soft bed and
dinner.

	The flash of lightning almost blinded him. Static electricity raised
the hair on his arms and made his hair fluff up as the deafing boom
vibrated the ground under his feet.

	*What the hell?*

	He took off running.


					***