The Heart Of Time

She was full of questions and mumbled into his chest, "I want to remember what you say I have forgotten. What do I need to know?"

Kyou closed his golden eyes not wanting to return to the real world just yet… she was right where she belonged… in his arms. With a sigh, he unwillingly released her back onto the sofa and moved to sit beside her.

Running his hand through his overly-long bangs, Kyou took a deep breath to calm his raging instincts. Stilling his desires, he focused on the wall in front of him and began to tell her what he wanted her to know. Hearing something was not the same as remembering it.

"You will have help. All the people here that arrived the same way you did, on the scholarships, I have gathered for you. They do not remember you and you do not remember them, but they fought with you then, and they will fight with you again when the time comes," his voice was laced with a hint of memories of the past.

Kyoko's eyes widened, "Suki and Shinbe?" She asked wondering why she believed him so readily.

Kyou nodded, "I see you have met them. Yes, you were very close to them, as well as Toya who protected you like no other."

"Toya?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "You have to be kidding.” Then she mentally added, ‘He doesn't even like me.'

Kyou sighed reluctantly, "Toya has not changed in this life, and is still the obnoxious, hardheaded, youth of the past. But yes, he protected you with a vengeance, and would have died for you if the need would have arisen."

Kyoko frowned, "He does not remember?" She felt like he was telling her the truth, and it made sense knowing she was missing part of her own memory. Her eyes searched his, wanting that knowledge back.

Kyou shook his head slightly, "I am the only one that did not come back with you. Therefore, I am the only one to carry the memories of what happened. Toya does not even remember he is my brother."

Kyoko inhaled at the confession, “brothers? What happened that you are the only one to remember?" She had to know.

"You gave all your memories up in battle to destroy the evil of our world and save the Guardian Heart Crystal. In the same instant, you made a wish on the crystal to see everyone again. You did not want to lose them. When you instantly disappeared, so did everyone else… including the enemy. You had unknowingly brought them here… with you.”

He sighed regretfully. “I had cast a spell around myself that protected me from such wishes." his eyes grew distant as if he was reliving the memory.

"You took everyone with you, and you didn’t even know it. They were all reborn here, in your time, leaving me alone in the past." His eyes focused and locked with hers. "So, I survived and waited on you. Once it was time, I gathered everyone that had left me. Now you have brought with you the crystal, and the malevolence that wants it…" his voice became darker, "…evil has already started its search for you and I will not allow it."

Kyoko nodded trying to understand, "So, everyone who is here the same way I am, I can trust?" He nodded and Kyoko continued, "Do they know any of this?"

Kyou shook his head, "They will feel a bond and it will grow, but other than that, I do not know the future, only the past. They will protect you, as they did then. It is what they were born to do… their reason for existence.”

He quickly looked away from her searching eyes knowing the truth of his words pertained to him as well. “We still have some time, but for now I want you to stop hiding your priestess powers, and become aware of your surroundings. I will watch over you, and have told Toya to keep a close watch also."

Kyoko watched him closely trying to remember anything she could about him. He seemed to know her so well. Looking deep into his eyes she whispered curiously, "How close were we?"

A fluttering of hidden affection crossed his golden orbs before Kyou stiffened and moved away from her. His cool exterior falling back into place, he growled looking at the door, then back at her quickly. "Do not repeat what I have told you for they will remember on their own."

Kyoko jumped when a hard knock came from the door, then it opened without permission.

Toya had started to worry for the girl’s safety and thought to interrupt, if nothing else then to save her from the iciness he knew Kyou capable of. His gaze was instantly drawn to her as he entered.

"Well, I see she survived her talk," his irises flashed silver still feeling that something was not right. "If you’re finished with Kyoko, Suki is waiting for her." Toya leveled his golden eyes on Kyou not aware of the silver flecks that had started showing within his orbs.

Kyou gave Toya his usual blank glance, and nodded silently.

Kyoko looked at Toya warmly, because now that she was using her senses, she could tell he had been worried about her, even if he did not act it.

'Would have given his life for you.' Kyou's words came back to haunt her.

Kyou watched her ease with Toya, and felt a distant, but familiar longing, causing him to scowl. He remembered this feeling well, and his eyes narrowed on the silver guardian. Would she always hold a special bond for his brother that she did not share with the others?

Kyoko stood up, nodding her goodbye to Kyou and flashed him a secret smile that Toya could not see, then turned to Toya and granted him with one of her sweetest smiles. "Come on, let’s not keep Suki waiting." She took off out the door leaving Toya standing there with a warm feeling. A feeling only her smile could cause.

He shook his head trying to shake the warmth away, and then scowled at Kyou, noticing he was watching him intensely. “What?” Toya asked in a hard voice knowing he wouldn’t get an answer. Deciding it wasn’t worth his time, he took off out the door again, slamming it behind him and hurried to catch up with Kyoko.

Toya watched the back of Kyoko as she walked hurriedly down the hall. She must be in a hurry to get away from Kyou. He smirked to himself, speeding up to catch up with her, which was not a problem, considering he was a guardian. His thoughts darkened a little, wondering if she even knew what he was. He doubted she did, or she would not have smiled at him like that.

At the top of the steps, Kyoko knew Toya had caught up with her because she could feel him behind her. Yes, she could feel his powerful aura, but it was a little different feeling than with Kyou. She closed her eyes for just a second. Searching the aura Kyoko decided no matter how mean he acted, his aura was actually very warm and made her feel … among many things… protected.

She understood that Toya was supposed to be younger than Kyou, but she also could sense the hidden power in him. A power that, if tapped into, could make Toya outshine his brother in a heartbeat... though she doubted either of them was aware of it. Kyoko was enjoying the use of her senses, now that she had flipped them back on again.

"So…" she turned to him, "…where are Suki and Shinbe?"

Toya narrowed his eyes at her now that he had been put on the spot with his lie. How the hell should he know where Suki and Shinbe were? He’d only gone back for her to get her away from Kyou.

“I don't know,” he drawled lazily.

Kyoko frowned at him, "But you said… "

Toya cut her off. “You should thank me for saving you," he informed her, leaning in closer as if to intimidate her.

"Saving me from what?” Kyoko growled right in his face, not liking his attitude. Geez, sometimes he could really come across as a jackass.

"From Kyou," Toya growled loudly back at her, clenching his fist. She could really piss him off with that pretty mouth of hers. ‘Pretty mouth?’ Where the hell had that come from? He took a startled step back from her in confusion.

Taken aback, Kyoko just stared blankly at him for a minute. Then softly at first, but growing louder by the second, she started laughing at him. "You did?" she asked, trying to breathe between giggles. "Why would you…" she trailed off, slowing down on laughing, and finally settling for a wide grin though her eyes still held a twinkle of mischief.

“That was very sweet. I didn’t know you cared," she wrinkled her nose at him, trying to keep a straight face.

Toya glared at her getting the feeling the joke was on him. "So, have you decided to stay after all ‘Priestess’?” he spat the last word as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Kyoko lost her smile and pushed her face within inches of his again, staring straight into his golden eyes. "Yes I have, ‘guardian’," she cocked an eyebrow at him then turned and raced down the stairs laughing.

‘YES!’ Kyoko exclaimed silently and mentally tacked a point up on her side of the chalkboard. ‘Kyoko one… Toya zip.’

Toya's eyes widened for an instant before he realized the little wench had gotten him. "Damn!" he hissed and took off after her.

Kyoko was almost at the bottom of the steps when she felt her priestess senses going into overdrive. Sensing another guardian besides Toya, she looked around. The only person close enough to cause that feeling was a student standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching her with interest.

Looking closely, she was mystified with the purplish highlights running through his untamed hair, and the most beautiful eyes. As she watched those eyes she could have sworn… she could see glitter of every color appear within his irises.

Toya now stood behind Kyoko. Seeing her sudden stop, he noted she was staring at Kamui. ‘So she can detect immortals now,’ Toya thought to himself. Reaching down, he grabbed her arm, "Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

Toya had found a soft spot for Kamui as soon as he had met the boy. All he really knew about him was that he had no parents and had grown up in foster care till Kyou had offered him a place here.

Kyoko let herself be half pulled and half dragged by Toya toward the stranger. She could tell he was also immortal, but could also sense an awesome kindness. She let her senses explore his aura and found warmth there and… a hidden innocence belonging only to a child.

"Hiya Toya, who you got here?" Kamui’s glittering eyes were watching her in fascination. He felt like he had been waiting for her for so long… even though he had no idea who she was. It was as if he had missed her terribly. It felt like he could suddenly breathe again and he even inhaled to prove that fact, but when he did he caught her scent and found it also seemed so familiar.

Looking at Toya, he asked, “What did you do… go capture yourself a girlfriend?” Kamui smirked as his eyes lit up with humor.

“Hell no,” Toya growled. “She’s not my type at all.”

“How would you know? You've never had a girlfriend.” Kamui laughed out loud at his own joke.

Kyoko tried hard not to giggle but seeing the mirth in Kamui’s eyes coupled with the dark expression on Toya’s face made it impossible.

"This is Kyoko," Toya turned to her, releasing her arm as if he just remembered he was touching her. "Kyoko, this is Kamui. He is also here on scholarship, and will be in the same classes that you are in."

“Yeah, I’m one of the freeloaders here,” Kamui said with a straight face, causing Kyoko to lose the ability to hold in the laughter she had barely contained in the first place.

She turned to Kamui and stuck out her hand. With a very friendly smile, keeping her secret inside that if he was here on scholarship, then she knew that he was her friend in the past, "Hi Kamui, it’s nice to meet you. How long have you been here at the academy?"

Kamui already liked this friendly girl. "About two years. So what’s hothead doing? Showing you around?" he looked at Toya smirking, then back at her, softening his smile. The mischievous side of his personality came forth and he took Kyoko’s hand in his own. Bowing down slightly, he brought her soft hand to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on her knuckles.

Kamui almost laughed at the heated glare he was receiving from Toya. Only an idiot wouldn’t be able to see the obvious attraction the other man had for the lovely Kyoko.

Kyoko blushed slightly and giggled at the term ‘hothead’. Seeing Toya glare at Kamui, she grinned. "Actually we are trying to find Shinbe and Suki right now. Have you seen them any…"

Before Kyoko had even finished, someone grabbed her arm, pulling her from between Kamui and Toya. With a quick glance, Kyoko found herself looking into the worried face of Suki.

"Did everything go okay Kyoko? You are staying, aren’t you?" Suki sounded almost pleading.

Kyoko nodded suddenly hearing Kyou’s soft voice whispering for her to stay. "I’m not going anywhere." She nodded over Suki's shoulder at Shinbe seeing he seemed just as satisfied as Suki at her answer.

Toya lifted an eyebrow at Kyoko's words. He wondered exactly what Kyou said to her to make her so determined to stay. Now she was acting so different, she looked almost happy. Usually when Kyou talked to people alone… they would walk away unnerved for hours. The guy even had the ability to give him the creeps every once in a while.

Kyoko took Suki's arm and started for the stairs, “You have got to help me find something to wear tonight, if we are going dancing." The two girls huddled, talking as they walked. They acted like they had known each other forever.

Shinbe, Kamui and Toya watched the two girls disappear up the stairs. Shinbe asked Toya in a worried voice, "Does she know about what’s really going on here?"

Toya watched Kyoko’s lips moving as she talked to Suki, "Yeah, I think she does." Then turning back to them, he changed the subject, "Kamui, are you coming with us tonight?"

Shinbe did a double take. "Toya? Are you really going to come dancing?" his voice sounded shocked. 'That doesn’t sound like Toya,' he thought to himself.

"Hey, I was told to watch her like a hawk, so I guess I have no choice, now do I?" Toya acted annoyed so they would think he was doing this against his will. But in truth, he suddenly didn’t want to lose sight of her.

His pulse thumped under his skin, as if to tell him to protect her at all costs, no matter if he had been told to do so or not. It wasn’t helping that he now had a mental picture of Kyoko moving around suggestively to a thumping beat on a crowded dance floor. It made his protective instincts surface and he suddenly would rather she not go.

A soft growl made its way from Toya’s throat and he shook his head trying to rid himself of the thought of too many eyes on her… eyes that did not belong.

"Yeah, sounds like fun. I’m going too,” Kamui chimed in. "We have to do something on the weekends to take our minds off this place." He felt almost lightheaded with relief knowing Kyoko would be around from now on. “Plus we need to find a girlfriend for Toya,” he chimed in innocently.

“Who says I need a girlfriend, you little twerp,” Toya growled as he popped Kamui on the top of his head. “You wouldn’t know what a girlfriend was if she bit you on the ass.”

Shinbe grinned, “I think I’m the only one here who knows what a girlfriend is, but I can show you two virgins if you want the experience.” He took a quick step back when they both turned and gave him murderous looks.

Quickly changing the subject, Shinbe nodded then slid a little closer to Toya. "Kyou ordered you to watch after Kyoko?" his gaze drifted in the direction she’d gone. "You know… lately I have felt a shift in the balance around here, like something is getting ready to happen. Evil is getting closer. I wonder if she has something to do with it." Shinbe's instincts were almost always right and it worried him.

Toya had felt it too, and he wanted answers. "Well, no time like the present. Why don’t I just go upstairs and ask frosty for the truth?" He knew Kyou was hiding something and he was going to find out what it was.

Before Shinbe could stop him, Toya had already taken off for the stairs. Shinbe cringed, "I hate it when they are in the same room. I’ve seen it, and it’s not pretty. They act like brothers or something.” His amethyst eyes trailed the stairs, watching Toya take them two at a time.

Kamui nodded, knowing Kyou scared the hell out of him sometimes. "Better him than me. I’ll see you tonight." he took off, leaving Shinbe standing there by himself, still watching the stairs.

Deep within Shinbe’s mind where his guardian powers reflected within his mirror self, he wondered at the familiar feeling he had for the priestess who had just ascended them. He searched deep inside his soul for the truth as he closed his eyes.

Once his amethyst eyes opened again, they glittered with secrets that were only his to know.

*****

Kyou was lost in thought about how to handle Kyoko, now that he had her where he wanted her. He was abruptly interrupted, hearing pounding on the door. Blinking a couple of times, he suppressed the urge to roll his golden eyes, knowing that it could only be Toya. Kyou gave the door a glare, just as it opened without invitation.

Toya walked straight in, instantly seeking out his target, and spotted Kyou reclining on the sofa. "What the hell is going on with Kyoko?" he got straight to the point.

Kyou's eyes darted to Toya, but his face showed no interest in the question.

Toya knew Kyou's moods better than anyone, and he knew he would not have even looked at him if he hadn’t already hit a nerve. Reading Kyou was a science to him. Even the blink of an eye meant something when it came from Kyou. Toya moved to take a seat across from him in an overstuffed chair.

"Come on, I’m not stupid. If you want me to protect her, you need to tell me why. After all, the rest of us are on their own, so why is she any different?" He spat, as if disgusted with the thought. "She’s only a weak human girl.”

Toya grasped the clawed hand, which he suddenly found clasped around his throat, and looked into the very angry face of Kyou.

"You will do as I say," Kyou’s voice shook with rage.

Toya's eyes narrowed. Now he knew something was up. "Fine." he hissed, and was rewarded with his release. He watched Kyou's rage disappear instantly as he returned to his former place across from him, his cold mask falling back down like a shield he hid behind. Toya shook his head. "You need to tell me why she is so important to ‘you’." He put emphasis on the last word.

Kyou agreed somewhat. He had raised Toya since the day he was born. He had known his brother was near, the same moment Toya had drawn breath in this world and he had stolen him away from parents who would not have understood him. It was the same as with his other siblings, though for a while, Kyou had chosen to watch over them from a distance.

He’d hoped to make Toya's personality different somehow, but it seemed it had followed him to this life, no matter what Kyou had done to try to change it. Bottom line was Toya was still Toya, no matter what life he led. He thought that maybe meeting Kyoko would have provoked memories of the past, but his sibling showed no signs so far, just interest. Kyou's eyes narrowed with the thought.

"You feel nothing for her?” he asked in a tone that made Toya wince.

"Am I supposed to?" Toya shot back, knowing he did indeed feel something for her, but wasn’t about to admit it. Folding his arms in front of him, he appeared annoyed as always, unaware of the silver that danced in his golden eyes.

"Yes," came the cold reply.

"Damn it! What makes her so special to us?" Toya threw his hands up in exasperation.

Kyou's gaze challenged his, "She is the one we have been waiting on."

Toya's eyes widened. As far back as he could remember, Kyou had told him they had to prepare for the one who carried the Guardian Heart Crystal within them. Surely, he wasn’t referring to that… why would such a powerful crystal be inside such a weak girl? He had been expecting a warrior of some kind… not a simple girl.

“She is the reason you have gathered all of them?” His eyebrows rose in question.

Kyou had always refrained from telling Toya about his past, but he had warned him about his future. "You must protect her at all costs."

The room was silent as Toya’s brain went into a whirlwind of thought. Lately, he’d begun to feel the increase in demonic vibes in the area, as if more were being born, and the evil side was getting stronger.

"So, she is the one. What else do I need to know?" He almost felt relief knowing this was why his brother took such an interest in Kyoko, but at the moment he would not dig deeper into those feelings that hinted at jealousy.

Kyou had hidden the truth for so long, he was not sure he was ready to share the memories. The thought of Toya's closeness to Kyoko in the past didn't help matters. Maybe some things were best forgotten. The two had been inseparable at times. "You were reborn to protect her and I have lived over a thousand years waiting on her. For now… that’s all you need to know."

Toya snorted softly then chuckled in a slightly sinister way. “That’s all I need to know huh?” He ran his fingers through his long hair feeling an overwhelming need to vent some hidden anger even he wasn’t aware of. “Is that why you look at her with heat in your eyes? You say we were close… are you actually jealous of something that supposedly happened a long time ago with a girl that probably wouldn’t look at you sideways?” Toya glared… his eyes now molten silver.

Kyou nearly snarled at Toya’s guess. There were times the boy’s perceptiveness was uncanny.

“Do not cross my line of patience Toya. Crystal or no, I will not tolerate your accusations or delusions of grandeur where the priestess is concerned. You have been assigned to protect her… I care not whether you enjoy it. Your temper will be held in check and you will refrain from making any advances upon her person. Is that clear?” his eyes were now deadly as they focused on his younger brother.

Icicles could have been hanging on Kyou’s words, and Toya could tell the conversation was finished, for now at least. He rose and left the room without a backward glance or another word. Once outside his brother’s apartment he stopped, facing Kyoko’s door. He could feel her within the confines of the rooms in front of him.

He raised his hand to knock, wanting to be with her but knowing he didn’t have a reason at the moment. He shoved his hand deep within his pocket and turned to continue down the hall.

Had anyone else been in the hall they would have seen a shimmering outline of silver wings as they appeared across Toya’s back before disappearing unnoticed by the now silver-eyed guardian.

Chapter 5 "Growled Warning”

Kyoko picked up a rubber band from the vanity and pulled some of her unruly auburn hair back into a pony tail, leaving the back in a short bouncy layer and a long layer to flow free down her back. She leaned in close to apply just a touch of blush then stood up, walked to the full-length mirror, and turned around examining herself. Suki had talked her into wearing some of her clothes and Kyoko felt different.

The black mini skirt flared out as she turned, showing off shapely legs due to all the workouts she exposed herself to. The tight pink shirt had black lace all the way down the back, and in the front a black lace ‘V’ shape went almost to her breasts. Kyoko shook her head at the exposed cleavage.

It made her wonder if Suki wasn’t the one chasing after Shinbe just as much as he was chasing her. Picking up her cross earrings, she wondered why she had agreed to look like a wild child. She was startled out of her musings when someone knocked timidly on her door.

Opening the door while still fastening her earring, Kyoko beamed, feeling better seeing Suki was dressed wilder than she was. "Oh Suki, you are gonna knock them dead tonight," she said as she looked her friend up and down.