An Exorcism, cont'd
Dec. 30th, 2005 08:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tarigwaemirBlair Hall Apts., on the Feast of the Holy Family
Er, sorry for people who had a heart attack from the yesterday's prologue. I'm afraid it doesn't get any better in this part...O_O
An Exorcism, part 1
[prologue | part 2]
Akira placed his stone wih a loud /pachi/ and looked up expectantly. His opponent stared at the board and shook his head as if in disbelief. His hand hovered over the /goke/ then clenched into a fist. "I have lost."
Akira bowed politely then quickly began to take his stones from the board. He surreptitiously glanced at the game taking place behind him. Both players were gazing intently at the board. He gave a small sigh of relief. They hadn't finished yet.
He got up to his feet, hastily recorded his win, and then hurried back to watch the remaining game. There was already a small crowd observing it intently. Akira craned his head to look at the board. Black was ahead.
Shindou placed another stone on the board and tapped his closed fan against his chin.
"I have lost," his opponent finally said in a tight voice. Akira recognized him, a 7-/dan/ professional who studied with Zama Ouza.
Shindou bowed with uncharacteristic grace and smiled politely at his opponent as he began to clear the board. The observers dispersed, murmuring among themselves. Akira remained standing, staring intently at the board as he tried to reconstruct the game in his head.
"Oh, Touya-kun," Shindou exclaimed, looking up at him with delighted eyes. "Did you watch the game?"
Akira nodded though he couldn't keep from frowning. Shindou had been behaving strangely for the past few months, as he sprinted through /oteai/ matches and preliminary rounds for title tournaments with a perfect record of wins. They had not yet faced each other in an official match, but if they both advanced to the third round of the Meijin tournament next week, then they would most likely play each other very soon.
"Do you want to discuss the game, Touya-kun?" Shindou asked eagerly.
"Yes, please," Akira said automatically and sat down. He continued to frown as Shindou began to replay the game from the beginning. It was the same characteristically flawless, elegant yet powerful style that he had seen when they first played--the same style that Shindou had shown consistently in all his professional games. The classic Shuusaku /fuseki/ with a innovative twist...the occasional old-fashioned /joseki/...the calm confidence of each move. It was everything that he expected from Shindou, the first Shindou that had made him chase after him so singlemindedly, over a year ago.
But the mystery still remained: how to explain Shindou's inconsistency? What could be the meaning behind that clumsy game he had played as Haze's third board? The memory of the /kifu/ that Yun-sensei had shown him nagged at him. That game had shown an unpredictable, creative streak that had been missing in Shindou's style as a pro. Which was the real Shindou?
"Every time I see you play, I'm more and more reminded of Sai," he said bluntly, as Shindou placed the final stone on the board.
The other boy started and gave a nervous laugh. "Sai? The mysterious NetGo player?"
"Don't pretend like you don't know, Shindou. You're connected to Sai somehow, I'm sure of it."
"Well...our styles are similar, but--"
"And that's not all. It's as if you're a different person. You act...well, you don't--" Akira gave an exasperated sigh. He could hardly claim to be Shindou's friend, and yet he had thought he knew the other boy well enough. The Shindou he had first come to know was brash, blunt, often clumsy, not at all like this soft, quiet, well-mannered boy, who called him "Touya-kun" without fail and addressed him with a formality that he never used before.
"I don't what?"
"Nothing," Touya muttered. "Thanks for showing me the game."
"Ah, Touya-kun," Shindou said suddenly.
"Hm?"
"I heard your father's returned from abroad. I was hoping," Shindou hesitated, "well, I was wondering if I could have a chance to play him." He smiled shyly.
For a moment, Akira almost couldn't recognize the boy in front of him: the once-blond bangs were no longer dyed, the unfamiliar smile made the round face seem longer, and for a second the gray eyes grew dark and unreadable. He blinked. "Of course," he stammered, "he's very busy, but I'll certainly ask."
"Thank you, Touya-kun," Shindou murmured.
-----
For a thousand years he had not slept or dreamed, but ever since that fifth of May, he found himself waking up every night, drenched in sweat, with the hazy fragments of a nightmare still vivid in his mind. It was a single recurring dream, though the images changed from night to night. Sometimes he found himself wandering between tall hedge groves, turning sharp angled corners into narrow corridors, surrounded by walls and walls of impenetrable green. Other nights, he walked through dark, dank catacombs with muddy floors and dripping ceilings, with the occasional skeleton bone to show that he was walking in endless circles. But the essentials of the dream remained the same: night after night, he walked endless mazes, haunted by the sound of a familiar voice.
"Where are you? Sai? Come back, Sai, please."
He shuddered.
Tonight, though, he found himself standing at the edge of a vast room, with a smooth wooden floor marked with a large black grid of intersecting lines. In the opposite corner of the room--miles and miles away it seemed, from where he stood--there was a single black stone. A familiar place, made unfamiliar by the sudden terror he felt when he heard once again Hikaru's voice call out, "Sai?"
He looked around the room and realized it had no ceiling, but opened up to a starry sky.
"Sai, where are you?"
"There is always a price," whispered a new voice, sibilant and emotionless. Sai jumped and turned around. "Higher than you expect."
Sai covered his ears. "I didn't want this. This is all wrong."
"Face yourself. The selfishness of a thousand years," whispered the voice, soft but still clearly audible.
Sai stared at the giant /goban/ hopelessly. "What am I to do?"
"Make your move," said the voice as it faded away like smoke.
TBC
In good news, I finished my paper! Hurrah! ^_^
Yours &c.
Er, sorry for people who had a heart attack from the yesterday's prologue. I'm afraid it doesn't get any better in this part...O_O
An Exorcism, part 1
[prologue | part 2]
Akira placed his stone wih a loud /pachi/ and looked up expectantly. His opponent stared at the board and shook his head as if in disbelief. His hand hovered over the /goke/ then clenched into a fist. "I have lost."
Akira bowed politely then quickly began to take his stones from the board. He surreptitiously glanced at the game taking place behind him. Both players were gazing intently at the board. He gave a small sigh of relief. They hadn't finished yet.
He got up to his feet, hastily recorded his win, and then hurried back to watch the remaining game. There was already a small crowd observing it intently. Akira craned his head to look at the board. Black was ahead.
Shindou placed another stone on the board and tapped his closed fan against his chin.
"I have lost," his opponent finally said in a tight voice. Akira recognized him, a 7-/dan/ professional who studied with Zama Ouza.
Shindou bowed with uncharacteristic grace and smiled politely at his opponent as he began to clear the board. The observers dispersed, murmuring among themselves. Akira remained standing, staring intently at the board as he tried to reconstruct the game in his head.
"Oh, Touya-kun," Shindou exclaimed, looking up at him with delighted eyes. "Did you watch the game?"
Akira nodded though he couldn't keep from frowning. Shindou had been behaving strangely for the past few months, as he sprinted through /oteai/ matches and preliminary rounds for title tournaments with a perfect record of wins. They had not yet faced each other in an official match, but if they both advanced to the third round of the Meijin tournament next week, then they would most likely play each other very soon.
"Do you want to discuss the game, Touya-kun?" Shindou asked eagerly.
"Yes, please," Akira said automatically and sat down. He continued to frown as Shindou began to replay the game from the beginning. It was the same characteristically flawless, elegant yet powerful style that he had seen when they first played--the same style that Shindou had shown consistently in all his professional games. The classic Shuusaku /fuseki/ with a innovative twist...the occasional old-fashioned /joseki/...the calm confidence of each move. It was everything that he expected from Shindou, the first Shindou that had made him chase after him so singlemindedly, over a year ago.
But the mystery still remained: how to explain Shindou's inconsistency? What could be the meaning behind that clumsy game he had played as Haze's third board? The memory of the /kifu/ that Yun-sensei had shown him nagged at him. That game had shown an unpredictable, creative streak that had been missing in Shindou's style as a pro. Which was the real Shindou?
"Every time I see you play, I'm more and more reminded of Sai," he said bluntly, as Shindou placed the final stone on the board.
The other boy started and gave a nervous laugh. "Sai? The mysterious NetGo player?"
"Don't pretend like you don't know, Shindou. You're connected to Sai somehow, I'm sure of it."
"Well...our styles are similar, but--"
"And that's not all. It's as if you're a different person. You act...well, you don't--" Akira gave an exasperated sigh. He could hardly claim to be Shindou's friend, and yet he had thought he knew the other boy well enough. The Shindou he had first come to know was brash, blunt, often clumsy, not at all like this soft, quiet, well-mannered boy, who called him "Touya-kun" without fail and addressed him with a formality that he never used before.
"I don't what?"
"Nothing," Touya muttered. "Thanks for showing me the game."
"Ah, Touya-kun," Shindou said suddenly.
"Hm?"
"I heard your father's returned from abroad. I was hoping," Shindou hesitated, "well, I was wondering if I could have a chance to play him." He smiled shyly.
For a moment, Akira almost couldn't recognize the boy in front of him: the once-blond bangs were no longer dyed, the unfamiliar smile made the round face seem longer, and for a second the gray eyes grew dark and unreadable. He blinked. "Of course," he stammered, "he's very busy, but I'll certainly ask."
"Thank you, Touya-kun," Shindou murmured.
-----
For a thousand years he had not slept or dreamed, but ever since that fifth of May, he found himself waking up every night, drenched in sweat, with the hazy fragments of a nightmare still vivid in his mind. It was a single recurring dream, though the images changed from night to night. Sometimes he found himself wandering between tall hedge groves, turning sharp angled corners into narrow corridors, surrounded by walls and walls of impenetrable green. Other nights, he walked through dark, dank catacombs with muddy floors and dripping ceilings, with the occasional skeleton bone to show that he was walking in endless circles. But the essentials of the dream remained the same: night after night, he walked endless mazes, haunted by the sound of a familiar voice.
"Where are you? Sai? Come back, Sai, please."
He shuddered.
Tonight, though, he found himself standing at the edge of a vast room, with a smooth wooden floor marked with a large black grid of intersecting lines. In the opposite corner of the room--miles and miles away it seemed, from where he stood--there was a single black stone. A familiar place, made unfamiliar by the sudden terror he felt when he heard once again Hikaru's voice call out, "Sai?"
He looked around the room and realized it had no ceiling, but opened up to a starry sky.
"Sai, where are you?"
"There is always a price," whispered a new voice, sibilant and emotionless. Sai jumped and turned around. "Higher than you expect."
Sai covered his ears. "I didn't want this. This is all wrong."
"Face yourself. The selfishness of a thousand years," whispered the voice, soft but still clearly audible.
Sai stared at the giant /goban/ hopelessly. "What am I to do?"
"Make your move," said the voice as it faded away like smoke.
TBC
In good news, I finished my paper! Hurrah! ^_^
Yours &c.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2005-12-31 03:06 am (UTC)Beautiful writing as always~ More coherent response forthcoming once I finish sobbing.
PS: Great job on your paper!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-12-31 03:30 am (UTC)I love Akira's thoughts on the changes of Hikaru. Your writing is so fluid and beautiful.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-12-31 05:42 am (UTC)a polite Shindou *snickers* and especially this line the once-blond bangs were no longer dyed, the unfamiliar smile made the round face seem longer, ^^
(no subject)
Date: 2006-01-01 12:14 am (UTC)Him calling Touya "Touya-kun," of course Touya would get suspicious! Wah, I wonder how all the other people think of this Hikaru...like Waya for example. >_>
(no subject)
Date: 2006-01-01 03:07 am (UTC)Actually, speaking of which, I have a bunch of hikago DVDs I'm not sure I want...
(no subject)
Date: 2006-01-03 12:32 pm (UTC)One typo: Where am you?
(no subject)
Date: 2006-01-08 01:15 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2006-03-06 08:10 pm (UTC)I'll definitely be stalking your journal to see where this goes. ^^
(no subject)
Date: 2006-04-24 12:57 am (UTC)Hope your schooling is going well. And that you are well too.
-AKung
AECKung@gmail.com
(no subject)
Date: 2006-04-27 10:33 am (UTC)