"it didn't work, how uld it be that it didn't workwhen a body has no soulthere aren't such thgs as bloody iracles heaven"

nataku pretended not to hear there was shien standg off to the left down on the ground with arshal tenpou beside hi they seed deep nversation, until shien caught hi lookg and bowed his head respectful acknowledgnt the boy briskly nodded and then suddenly raised both his eyebrows silent astonishnt as tenpou aiably siled, givg a little wave

he gaped as tenpou dog, wavg at hi as if he were jt a reaa rechild? perhaps it was due to that cident on earth he only heard ruors about the boy turned to his father who seed to be furrog his brow, preoupied with so nceivable frtration; looked to the back roo now epty the arshal probably wasn't hiself juries can do that to a person, nataku ncded

sothg hit his foot, thrown fro down below he picked it up: a delicately ade paper crane nataku waved back

"what did you do that for?" shien asked with disbelief leakg through the well nstructed cal of his voice "it was unnecessary and disrespectful"

"children should be receivg toys," hakkai replied over the cheer of the crowd, "not worship"

shien's voice frowned, if a voice uld frown "you speak with too uch nfidence, tenpou gensui" the other said ftly, ignorg the light sile that graced nataku's face as he tkered with the paper figure "but then aga, i fd that far fro surprisg what surprises is that such an acute tellect such as yours needs to be briefed on a atter strictly with your doa"

"i a well aware of the current happengs" the lie ca out subtly haughtily and defensive "but i fd it eful to hear it fro another person's outh"

the slow undution of the drus was suddenly aopanied by the sonoro roar of the great bell whose vibrations sunk down to hakkai's bones rhyth, the soldiers arched and neared ftes sounded with the ickness of ftterg birds

"or were you expectg to hear sothg else?" shien's voice broke through his nubg thoughts

"e aga?"

"that i a keepg sothg fro you"

"it crossed y dthough i never would have thought of askg" was the honest response either way, hakkai kne thgs were gog to end up, secret or no secret "you have no obligation to speak what you do not wish to say, shien"

" heaven, it is one's obligation never to speak what he wishes to say but keep d, arshal, that fro this pot until i s, i a not speakg" and with that, shien grabbed hakkai wrist, turned his heel, and then dragged the nfed healer to an abandoned alleyway "i t say, though, that you have been truly dense these past feeeks"

a few snickers fro those who saw "looks like tenpou gensui's found another lover"

kenren pretended not to notice

"your decision worries , arshal"

shien, as always, had his eyes closed, had his head tilted to the side estion when he got none, he ntued "did you not get the note?"

"i get a lot of notes" hakkai said, leang agast the ashed brick wall and tryg to fight down that feelg stirrg around his gut sothg about the air it seedjt a tad bit putrid

"ah, but this was an iportant one," shien pursued, then oted, "they're ready for kenren taishou and his n at the ounta path surveilnce round thirty cdg the general orders understood"

hakkai's eyes widened "you wrote that? but why?"

"for heaven's sake" the other an irked the fatest bit of a sile "and perhaps yours as well the taishou"

/ "there are any here ant tenpou out of the way, naly one noble by the na of litouten you've heard of hi? of urse not you jt got hereand he is the reason you are here" kanzeon had said earlier "don't be disheartened by the news, hakkai it won't st forever jt don't do anythg too stupid tenpou is, after all, a secretly hunted an"/

"he's not y responsibility anyore" hakkai cut , ashad "you saw"

"i didn't terpret but to the potthese n that now arch the streets, i don't thk they are as they see"

"i don't follow"

shien rubbed his ch thoughtfully, "i have y sources," he ntued, without ntiong houra, "that tell there exists a type of curse derived fro the properties of reflective surfaces that serve as s beeen here and under heaven if enough power is utilized, a soul switchg can our the body is the sa, but the d is not" shien paed, then took the ti to open his eyes jt a crack to be able to look hakkai straight the face