Cabin Fever

An X fanfiction by Midorino Mizu

Disclaimer: No, I don’t own X. If, however, CLAMP would like to cede it over to me, I’d be happy to actually /write/ it. Unlike some mangaka I could mention.

Chapter One

Subaru sighed as he stared at the fax in his hand. At least it had been a quiet week –there shouldn’t be any problems there.

All the same, he felt a little apprehensive about this particular job. A small shrine in the foothills of the Du Mountains, not terribly far from Morioka, was having some problems.

They were relatively minor spiritual issues, Subaru noted as he skimmed over his grandmother’s description again. Nothing that would call for the Clan Head’s skill. Either of the other two talented onmyouji in the family, Hiroshi or Sakiko, would have been able to handle it.

Apparently, the elderly priestess of the shrine had some pull. She wanted the Sumeragi Head, and she would get the Sumeragi Head.

But first he had to explain the situation to Imonoyama-san. His departure would leave a hole, however brief it was, and would weaken the Seals position. It would make them vulnerable.

As the man who had taken it upon himself to shelter them all, Imonoyama Nokoru would have to know.

As he raised his hand to knock at the Chairman’s door, Subaru looked fondly back at the years before this one.

When he had been perfectly free to leave Tokyo without informing anyone.

But that, along with everything else, had changed when 1999 began.

***

“Rijichou,” sighed Takamura Suoh in exasperation. “Are you going to do any work today?”

Nokoru merely pressed his steepled fingers to his lips and stared off at something neither Suoh nor Akira could see.

The CLAMP Campus treasurer and secretary looked at each other, deeply concerned. It was rare that Imonoyama Nokoru wore that particular expression.

He only wore it when he was in the midst of plotting something particularly devious.

They could only hope that they weren’t directly involved.

Suddenly, a brilliant smile broke through on Nokoru’s face, and his eyes gleamed.

“Akira,” he said warmly.

The treasurer gulped. “Ah, yes, Rijichou? Is there something you needed me to do?”

“Yes, Akira,” continued Nokoru in the same warm tones. “I need you to fix a picnic basket. A large one, I think.”

Akira blinked. Of all the possible requests that he had enumerated in his head, that had not been counted among the likely possibilities. “A-A picnic basket? But Rijichou, it’s February.” He quickly glanced out the window, where icy winds could be seen blowing across the Campus.

When Nokoru had taken over management of CLAMP Campus, he had decreed that the advanced heating and cooling systems that scientists had developed years before only be utilized indoors. CLAMP students should, he had rationalized, be able to experience the beauty of the four seasons like everyone else in Japan.

So now they did. This included the frigid weather of late winter.

Suoh’s lips twitched as he saw the wild-eyed look Akira had shot at him. He cleared his throat. “I’m afraid I must agree with Akira in this instance, Rijichou. It is much too cold out for a picnic. Not to mention,” he continued, casting a baleful glance at the mountainous pile of paperwork currently overwhelming Nokoru’s desk. “You have far too much work to do.”

Nokoru smiled serenely. “Don’t worry, Suoh, the basket isn’t for us.” He tilted his head and addressed his treasurer. “I think we will need the basket fairly soon, Akira.”

“Oh, of course, Rijichou. I’ll get to work on it.”

Suoh turned to watch Akira, as with brow furrowed, he disappeared from the office and toward the kitchens. Then he turned back to Nokoru.

To his surprise, he saw him dutifully applying his stamp to papers that had been needing it for the past week.

“Rijichou,” he began, and then frowned when the Imonoyama didn’t even look up.

Suoh had never thought he would see the day when Nokoru would use paperwork as an avoidance tactic.

“Nokoru,” he gritted out, reverting to his Chosen’s rarely used given name. He almost smiled when the blond head jerked up.

“Yes, Suoh?”

“If you aren’t planning an absurd picnic for the three of us, then who are your chosen victims?”

Nokoru’s eyes took on a familiar gleam. “Oh, you’ll find out, Suoh. In due time.”

Takamura opened his mouth to protest and then snapped it shut and sighed. He had known Imonoyama Nokoru since he was seven years old, and he knew him better than anyone else in the world.

He knew when he wasn’t going to get any more information out of his closest friend.

As he sat down to get started on his own paperwork, Suoh couldn’t help but to send a prayer for whoever was about to become the recipient of Nokoru’s goodwill.

They were going to need it, that was for certain.

***

Sumeragi Subaru knocked lightly on the door, and stepped inside once he heard Imonoyama-san’s cheerful tenor voice call out.

“Sumeragi-san,” smiled Nokoru. “Did you need to speak to me about something?”

Subaru nodded slightly, but his eyes narrowed a bit. He didn’t particularly care for the expression in the Rijichou’s blue eyes. It was too guileless to be believed.

“Yes, Imonoyama-san.” Subaru met Nokoru’s eyes directly. “I’m afraid that I have a new job coming up—one that will take me out of Tokyo for a few days.”

Nokoru was silent for a moment, and then nodded to himself, as if he was considering the notion. “I don’t think that should be a problem, Sumeragi-san. An unavoidable circumstance, but I feel sure that the other Seals will be able to handle it if something should…occur.”

Subaru nodded, and was about to turn and walk out the door, when the Imonoyama spoke again.

“I do have a favor to ask you, however.”

Subaru lifted twin black eyebrows. “A favor, Imonoyama-san?” Subaru could feel all his senses jump to life, flashing warning signs every which way. “What is it?”

Nokoru smiled sunnily. “I wonder if you would take Kamui with you.”

Subaru was noticeably startled. Of all the requests he had considered as possibilities, this had not been one of them. “Won’t he be needed here? In case a kekkai should be attacked?”

The Rijichou inclined his head. “I thought of that, but there will still be five Seals available to handle things.” He paused, and his eyes darkened slightly. “And I’m afraid that if he doesn’t get away from Tokyo for a little while, he’ll break.

“That would be disastrous, don’t you agree, Sumeragi-san?”

Subaru nodded in acquiescence. “If you are sure, Imonoyama-san, then I have no problems. I will be glad of the company.”

“Good,” said Nokoru. “I’ve taken the liberty of having a car packed with the necessities for you.” He dropped an ignition key in Subaru’s hand.

Subaru stared down at it, and then sighed.

When he left the Rijichou’s chambers, it was with the knowledge that he had been maneuvered.

***

Kamui wasn’t expecting anyone at this time of day—Sorata had late afternoon tutoring sessions, Yuzuriha disappeared from campus as soon as her classes were over for the day, and Arashi preferred to take advantage of the quiet, and kept to her room.

Subaru, for his part, was usually away from the Campus until fairly late in the evening, although his schedule was a little more flexible than the others. If he wasn’t away from the Campus, then he, too, liked to spend his free time in solitude.

With the notable exceptions of Sorata and Yuzuriha, the Seals were really an unsociable bunch.

So when the knock came at the door, Kamui was a little startled. He’d gotten used to his routine.

Kamui stood and went to his bedroom door.

Subaru stood on the other side.

“Hello, Subaru-san.” Kamui paused, expecting Subaru to speak. When he didn’t, the teenager continued, a little awkwardly. “Is there something you needed me for?”

Subaru inclined his head gracefully, but a faint line of color appeared on his cheeks. He was usually very observant, but hadn’t been paying attention when Kamui had opened the door. “Ah, yes, Kamui. I wanted to let you know that I’ve received a job that will take me out of Tokyo for a few days. I’ll be up near Morioka.”

Shirou Kamui visibly drooped at that announcement, and Subaru’s lips twitched slightly at the sight.

“Imonoyama-san suggested that you might like to come along.”

Kamui stared at Subaru for a moment before nodding in assent.

“I’d love to, Subaru-san. When will we be leaving?”

“In the morning, early,” said the Sumeragi. “So you had best get packed.”

Kamui nodded again, and stood in the doorway until well after Subaru had disappeared into his own room.

He certainly didn’t mind going with Subaru up north, spending a few days alone with him, but it was rather curious that Imonoyama-san had suggested it.

After all, it was Thursday afternoon, which meant Kamui would be gone for classes on Friday and Saturday.

Personally, he didn’t care, but Imonoyama-san usually did. He’d been known to lecture Kamui about his propensity towards skipping class rather vehemently.

So the Imonoyama suggesting that he should go off with Subaru for a quiet weekend was strange. Perhaps he realized that Kamui needed a break.

But perhaps there was an ulterior motive. He’d once heard Takamura-san mutter that Rijichou always had one.

Kamui didn’t really have much experience with this sort of thing, being an only child, and a loner, but he had the feeling that he was being involved with a plot.

***

Subaru quietly announced their plans to the rest of the Seals at dinner that night, and it was met with scant objection.

Arashi was the only one who voiced any concerns, but that was to be expected. The shrine maiden was quiet, but she was stubborn, and she had very firm ideas of what Kamui’s priorities should be.

Nonetheless, even her protests were half-hearted, as if she was also aware that the stress of their collective situation might cause her Kamui to break before the Final Day if he wasn’t given some time to rebuild his emotional shields.

She also realized that the Sumeragi was good for him.

So the two Seals went to bed early that night, and rose early the next morning, though not before Arashi, Sorata, and Yuzuriha went off to their classes.

The mansion was quiet as they ate their breakfast, and Subaru harbored some hope that they might be able to depart the Campus unnoticed.

He should have known better.

When he and Kamui went out the front door, and turned in the direction of the garage where he assumed their borrowed car was waiting, they were flagged down by the Council.

Ijyuin Akira was holding a massive picnic basket, and Takamura Suoh was standing next to him, leaning against the hood of a blue, mid-sized SUV, and looking rather disgruntled.

That was, reflected the Sumeragi, quite normal for the ninja.

Imonoyama Nokoru was also there, standing next to Suoh, and smiling angelically.

He was at his most dangerous when he was smiling angelically, as anyone with any experience dealing with him already knew.

Since both Subaru and Kamui lived under his roof, the sight of his smile made mild trickles of fear travel down their spines.

“The forecast called for snow up in Morioka this weekend,” explained Nokoru to the two silent males in front of him. “So I took the liberty of changing your vehicle. I do apologize for any inconvenience, Sumeragi-san.”

“Not at all,” murmured Subaru. “Thank you for seeing to it, Imonoyama-san.”

“It was my pleasure,” the blond returned. He dropped the keys in Subaru’s hand and pocketed the set the Sumeragi returned to him. “Have a good journey.”

Subaru nodded absently, and climbed into the car, placing Akira’s picnic basket carefully in the backseat. He waited until Kamui had settled himself into the passenger seat before he started the car and drove forward.

They had reached the end of the Imonoyama Mansion drive before Kamui spoke.

“Does it strike you,” asked the younger boy, “that Imonoyama-san would have made a superb evil genius?”

Subaru flicked a glance at the leader of the Seals and his lips twitched in a small smile.

“What makes you think he isn’t one?”

They both chuckled weakly as the car drove out of CLAMP Campus.

Neither one of them noticed the man in the black overcoat leaning against a nearby lamppost.

He watched the vehicle’s progress until it had disappeared from sight, then an amused smile curved his lips.

“You never took me on vacation, Subaru-kun,” he murmured.

“We shall have to remedy that oversight.”

Chapter Two