The Village Hidden in the Sunlight

"Thank you," Felix said when Kymin led him to the nearest bench. Felix took a seat and leaned back against the seat, his eyes closed. He only reopened them when Kymin spoke. "No, I'll be fine, we had plans today." A pause. "Just give me a minute." Felix bent over so that he was looking at the ground. He wished he knew the source of this. He blinked slowly and then looked to Vishnu. "Hey little guy, are you trying to get the food." He was avoiding looking at Kymin, he didn't want him to worry, but he knew it was too late for that. He was just hoping his playing would Vishnu would ease the other male.

"No prob. Just...start telling me when you're feeling sick man. We have plenty of time to do these things," he said, rubbing the back of his neck lightly. "We can go to a park tomorrow." Kymin blinked when Felix started talking to Vishnu. In response, the puppy gave a small bark and laid down on the bench with his paws on Felix's lap, trying to nudge his way under the silver haired man's arm. Kymin frowned lightly, then looked down the street once more. The hospital was visible from here, so at least there'd be no getting lost. He was kinda glad that at least now they had two landmarks in the village they knew of. That would make it easier to travel around.

If I knew when when this thing was going to go haywire, I'd let you know, but unfortunately I don't. Felix shook his head. "I didn't think too much about it," he said. "Probably would have ignored it had you not mentioned it," he said with a smirk. He lifted his arm so Vishnu could stop nudging him. "Hmm, Vishnu seems pretty eager to get to the park," Felix insisted. "So how about you take him and I'll just go home." He gave a small smile. "It's not fair for him to have to miss out on chasing ducks because I'm feeling under the weather."

Kymin was quiet for a few moments after Felix made his suggestion. He actually didn't want to go without his silver haired boyfriend, but at the same time, he couldn't just hang around Felix all the time. Even though he very much wanted to. And besides, it would give Felix time to rest, right? Right. Kymin gave a small sigh. "Alright. But I'm walking you back to the hotel," he said with a small nod. There were two reasons behind this. One, he wanted to make sure Felix would actually make it back to the hotel room, and two, he wanted to take the room key to the park with him so when he got back, he wouldn't have to wake Felix up by knocking at the door if the guy just happened to be sleeping.

Felix shrugged when Kymin made his proposal. "Whatever you want," he said. His blue eyes a bit glossy he got up and turned towards the way they'd come. "Let's go." He didn't pick up Vishnu because he had the bags in his hands and he also didn't want to black out and drop the dog. He walked with little ease. "Sorry I can't go with the two of you," he said. He pulled a card from his pocket. "If you find a pet store make sure to buy him a chew toy and whatever else you need or want." He handed the card to Kymin. He really did want to go to the park with the two of them, but there was no point in forcing himself to go and having the mood all sour. It was a nice day, so he could just open the window in the room and let the cool air flow though. It was better than nothing. "Vishnu, behave for your mother, okay," he said to the dog as he walked. "Kymin, don't let him go flirting with other dogs, he's far too young for that. Explain to him that they can only be friends, nothing more."

Once Felix got up, Kymin picked up Vishnu once more and followed next to the other man. "Don't worry about it. Like I said, we have time. I just want you to feel better," he said with a small smile. It was too bad there was nothing he could do for Felix's sickness. He felt useless. The black haired ninja blinked when the silver haired man handed him his card. He didn't take it. "Hey, didn't I tell you I've saved up a bit? I'll buy the dog toys and stuff," he smiled. He knew Felix had a lot of money, but he didn't necessarily like having other people paying for him. Made him feel like he was just wasting his time doing his job. He grinned lightly when Felix spoke, nodding. "You just relax and let me take care of things, okay?" he said, kissing Felix on the cheek. He would have leaned on the other male as well, had he not thought that Felix would fall over if he did. So instead he just walked next to the silver haired ninja, as they closed in on the hotel.

Meet too, Felix thought miserably. Maybe after Kymin was gone he'd go find Serenity. Or maybe he'd make a brief trip to the Sand and make a deal with Kyla. Anything to stop this horrible pain. "He's my puppy too," Felix stated. The jonin did however put his card back in his pocket. No point in arguing with Kymin. It was a waste of precious energy that he very much needed to make it back home. He smiled when Kymin kissed him on the cheek. Once at the hotel Felix opened the room door and went inside and laid on the bed after putting the bags of food on the dresser. He closed his eyes immediately as he just lay there. "See you later," he mumbled.

"Mmhm, but somehow I get all the blame if he turns delinquent," Kymin grinned lightly. The fact that Felix didn't stumble or collapse on the way back to the hotel was a huge relief, and it showed when the black haired ninja gave a light smile when Felix laid on the bed. "Rest up, kay? I'll be back in a bit," he promised, taking the key card and leaving out. He supposed he'd let Vishnu walk from here on out, since he didn't have to make sure Felix wasn't falling all over the place. He was worried though. That sickness came and went so suddenly, it seemed. Or maybe it was always affecting him and Felix just didn't say anything about it, even when it started getting bad. Kymin sighed and started down the street after putting Vishnu down. The puppy seemed eager enough to prance around and play, at least.

Felix lay on the bed curled up in pain when Kymin had left. Tears filled his eyes and he gave several strained coughs. Damn it this hurt like hell. He reached up to his chest and held his hand there. He really wished he knew the cause. I have a proposal for you if you're willing to listen. To help the pain, if only for a little while. "Tell me," Felix groaned. Find a lake and we shall talk. Until then, my silver haired friend.

Kyla was sitting at the park, waiting for Kymin. Her beady old eyes peering casually over the lush green grass. Where oh where could that pesky ninja be?

Unfortunately, Kymin hadn't found a pet shop on the way to the park. He'd just have to find one on the way back, because as soon as they got to the wide open space, Vishnu bolted for a patch of green grass and began rolling around in it and chasing his tail and playing. The very sight of the energetic little puppy made Kymin grin. He really was an adorable creature. He didn't notice the old woman, since there were a good few people in the park anyways. If they were lucky, him and Vishnu, that was, maybe there'd be another dog around for the puppy to play with.

Felix opened his eyes tiredly and pushed himself off the bed. Kymin had the room key, but he could always get another. Hopefully he'd be back before the guy returned though. Dragging himself downstairs, hand still on his chest, he made it to the front desk and requested a knew key. He then asked for the location of the closest lake outside of the village. Immediately he made his way there, careful not to been spotted as he left the village. He didn't want to run into Kymin nor Kinana on his way out. When he found the lake he dropped to his knees exhausted. It was a pretty good distance from the village. "I'm here, you promised to help me, now do so."

The water in the lake stirred as a watery figured appeared, taking the form of what was a water human. "Hello Felix, it has been a very long time."

A small fear engulfed Felix. He remembered this creature all too well. "Why are you helping me when you tried to kill me back when I was twelve?"

The water spirit chuckled. "It was a simple misunderstanding. I wasn't trying to kill you."

Felix shook his head. "I don't believe you."

"But you trust me enough to help you. If not then the next time will leave you too weak to stay conscious. You're playing a dangerous game boy of silver and blue, but you don't even know it. I only wish to make a contract with you, but there will be consequences to this. If you want to live without the pain and misery slowly eating away at you, you will agree. However, before you do, just know the Mark of the Water Spirit will remain permanently until your death, at which point we will part ways."

Felix blinked. He just wanted the pain to go away. "What is the Mark of the Water Spirit?"

"A simple three ring mark that serves as our contract. It gives you my powers. However, each time the cage triggers, the mark will spread. The further it spreads, the more time you will have to spend in the water. The progress is slow, but it will happen nevertheless."

"And when it spreads completely?"

"You will be bound to the water permanently. This is the price you must pay to keep what you cherish the most."

Felix smiled. "Is this why she told me to stay away from the water? Because eventually I'd have to make a contract with a water spirit? The same one I'd been afraid of for so long?" The silver haired jonin stood up and walked to the waters edge. "If it is, I can't complain. Without you I'd have to abandon Kymin, and I'd hate to do that. Before I accept your contract, what do you require of me?"

"I just require that you remain near water. Without it I can't survive, even if most of the human body is made up of it."

"Why are you helping me?"

The water spirit was silent for a long moment. "Because you are the only human worthy of such a contract. Your love for water is exceptional, just like your father."

Felix took a step closer to the water. "You knew him?" His mother had told him a lot about his father, but never about this.

"I'm not aloud to speak on the matter. I apologize."

Felix gave a sigh. "Never fails. I accept your contract."

On the other side of the village....

Kyla was sitting on a bench at the top of the park so the moment she saw Kymin she smiled and got up, walking over to him in a slow stride. "Mr. Onihana, I am surprised to see you," she said as he came up next to him, her eyes watching the puppy. "Do you know that your very presence is killing Felix?" A small smile formed across her lips. "What a cute little puppy you have," she said just as calmly as if she'd never spoke her previous words.

Kymin didn't bother sitting for the time being, since he would have to follow Vishnu around to make sure the pup didn't get lost. He turned his gaze away, though, when he saw someone approaching him. "Lady Kyla? Ah, I don't think I've known you to leave the Sand before," he said, sounding a bit surprised. He had nothing against the old woman, but she kinda creeped him out. His reasons were given even more foundation at what she saw about Felix. He blinked. "What? What're you..." He paused. Wait. Felix's sickness, was that what she was talking about? The first time he'd gone near Felix it had acted up, and now it was again. But there had been days in between that first meeting and now. Did that...mean Felix had been suffering this whole time, or what? "What do you mean, I'm killing him?" He completely ignored her statement about Vishnu, but glanced at the puppy just to make sure Kyla hadn't somehow caused him to spontaneously combust. The thought made him grimace. Damn his over active imagination.

Kyla smiled. "I may be old Mr. Onihana, but I do like to get out and travel," she said. She gave a friendly chuckle. It faded away and she peered up at him in shock. "Oh, he hasn't told you? I thought the two of you had so much trust in each other that he would have told you. It's not my place to say." She shook her head. "I feel like I've spoken out of place." She backed away. "I should probably go, just know that what you two have cannot last forever. Eventually he'll get tired of waiting for you to be reborn. Relationships never last long with him anyway, he'll just use you until he gets bored and then toss you off to the side. He did that with Kana, broke the poor girls heart. And the mother of his children Serenity, he left as soon as the girls were eighteen. Save yourself the trouble." She turned away. "Did you know he killed his first girlfriend," she asked over her shoulder.

Kymin simply looked at the old woman as she spoke. He didn't get this. Had she actually come here to tell him that he was killing Felix? It didn't make sense to him. What was going on, was she trying to get him to leave Felix? "No offense, Lady Kyla, but I trust Felix far more than I trust you. I don't think he'd just toss me to the side the way you're describing." He paused at the mention of Kana. He'd known the two were together at one point, or at least, they'd slept together once, but he hadn't been aware that Kana loved Felix in any way. If anything, despite the fact they'd slept together, he believed Kana just thought of Felix as maybe an authoritarian figure or a close friend. Kymin frowned at the last thing Kyla said. He wasn't sure he believed that. No, of course he didn't. What the hell was with this woman and spouting lies like this? Now, Kymin wasn't usually a very accusing person, but just hearing her talk about Felix like that made him defensive. He didn't bother answering the old woman with anything more than a hard "Have a nice day."

"None of them trusted me," she said with a shake of her head. "And they all suffered for it. I was only trying help you before you got hurt. You seem like such a nice boy I figured I'd give you fair warning." She gave a small wave goodbye when Kymin told her to have a nice day. "You to deary." She then disappeared over the hill. That boy was a hard one to deal with, she'd just have to visit Felix to make sure the two separated. If she had to, she'd kill Kymin herself. Hopefully she'd planted at least a small seed of doubt. A smile formed across her lips.

Felix found his way home and ran some water in the tub. Getting in he looked at the small blue rings on his arm. They were about a centimeter in width and a half centimeter apart from the other. How he was going to explain this to Kymin was beyond him. Thankfully his bandages would cover them during the day. He was kind of tired of keeping secrets from Kymin. He sunk down into the tub, letting the water wash over his head.

Kymin gave a small sigh as Kyla walked away. He wasn't going to avoid the problem like he usually did this time. Sitting on a bench, he watched as Vishnu ran around, now chasing a bug that was flying around. It was too small to be a butterfly, so maybe it was a ladybug. Kymin lowered his gaze for a moment. He could've avoided this problem with Batsu if he'd just stood up to his clan instead of avoiding it. Now he was about to ask Felix about what was happening, but he wasn't sure if there would be any benefit from it. Would it just make Felix angry? What would it accomplish if he asked?

Despite his mood having spiraled downwards, Kymin stayed at the park with Vishnu for another half hour until the puppy had laid down in the grass, seemingly tired. The black haired ninja was surprised the puppy hadn't lasted longer. Maybe the energy only came in short bursts. Going over to Vishnu, Kymin picked him up and started back for the hotel, but paused. He guessed he could go get Vishnu some toys while he was out. Asking around, Kymin finally found his way to a pet store, picking up a Frisbee, some treats, and a couple chew toys. And a ball. After paying, he carried the bag in the crevice of his arm and carried Vishnu at the same time. The dog was still tuckered out. So when Kymin got back to the hotel, he put the puppy down and unlocked the door, letting Vishnu scamper in before finding a place to lay down. The black haired ninja was quiet about coming back in, because he didn't know if Felix was sleeping or not.

Since the water was still hot, Felix remained where he was. His eyes closed, one would have thought him to be sleep, but he wasn't. He titled his head when he heard the door open and the scrapping of paws. Kymin and Vishnu must have been back. Felix sighed and got up out of the water. Letting it drain out, he dried off and dressed. Walking out, he looked to Vishnu who was laying down and then to Kymin. "Did he run after ducks," he asked with a smile. Felix took a seat on the bed and ran his hand through his hair wet hair. It was dripping lightly onto his shirt.

Kymin gave Felix a small smile as the male came out of the bathroom. Considering the guy's hair was wet, and he heard the bathtub draining, he was gonna say Felix had been taking a bath. "Ladybugs, actually." He went over and sat next to Felix. The black haired ninja was very wary of every one of his movements. 'Do you know that your very presence is killing Felix?' Or so Kyla'd said. "How're you feeling? Any better?" That whole conversation had been weighing heavy on his mind. Did his presence really have something to do with Felix's sickness? Was he the one causing Felix's pain? It made him feel sick just thinking about it.

Felix blinked confused. "He was chasing after lady bugs? Ah, this is his mother's doing." Felix stretched and laid back onto the bed. "Much better," he said. He was serious. He couldn't even feel the pain in his heart anymore. The water spirit had been honest. His blue eyes shinned. "So, what's in the bag," he asked. Felix was honestly feeling a hundred times better than before. It meant he was ready to get up and take on the world again. Kyla had nothing on him.

Kymin was glad to hear Felix was feeling better. The guy sounded like it too. "That's good. At lease the rest did somethin for ya," he smiled. "Hm? Bag...oh, yeah, I found a pet store and bought Vishnu some toys and treats," he smiled. "And a frisbee," he chuckled. A Frisbee counted as a toy, sure, but since they'd discussed it earlier, he figured he'd bring it up as a small joke. Even joking was hard right now. Should he really ask Felix? Risk everything for nothing? Kymin looked over to Vishnu for a moment, trying to hide the conflict that was sure to be obvious in his eyes. He didn't care about all that stuff Kyla'd said about what'd happened with Felix's past lovers. What he cared about was if he was hurting Felix or not.

Felix didn't realize that Kymin was having some kind of internal conflict. He was too busy being happy that he wasn't feeling like crap around his lovely black haired mate. "Oh good, now we're getting somewhere. A frisbee means we can teach him how to be a good dog. He'll be trained through the art of Frisbee." Felix gave a small snicker and then closed his eyes. This was nice, it was very nice indeed. If things could stay this way forever he'd be more than happy. He knew that eventually he'd have to find a way to disable Kyla's cage or else him and Kymin would be separated forever. Right now he didn't care.

Kymin looked back towards Felix for a few moments. Aw man, he was in a really good mood...He'd hate to break that. But...was the good mood genuine? Wasn't he still hurting from earlier? He'd said there was no cure or treatment. 'You're the problem.' Kymin blinked. Something in the back of his mind remembered that being said. It was only a couple days ago, but still. Felix had said that to him. "I'm gonna take a quick shower," he said suddenly, standing up and starting for the bathroom. Man, he was not feeling so hot right now. He should have stayed in the park longer to think about this. A frown crossed over his face after he closed the bathroom door. He didn't bother locking it. Hm, maybe he'd take a cold shower, he figured as he started undressing. It would help him think, at least. Sharpen his focus a bit.

Felix looked at Kymin confused when the other male suddenly got up saying he was going to take a quick shower. "Okay?" Felix sat up, watching the guy go into the bathroom. Felix titled his head. What was up with him? He sat on the bed for a moment confused. Slowly he got up and went over to the door. He leaned against it, knocking lightly. "Kymin," he called. "Are you okay?" He tried the door and then pushed it open when he felt it was unlocked. He didn't go inside the bathroom though. "Did something happen while you were out there," he asked.

Kymin didn't know how to respond when he heard the other male ask if he was okay. Yeah, he was fine, but he hated this feeling of doubt. He was starting to question what Felix said and did, and it wasn't right. He trusted the guy. Damn that old woman, why'd she have to go and say shit like that? Kymin turned on the cold water and got in the shower, but started to answer Felix first. Before he could though, the silver haired man was already asking another question. Climbing in the shower, he let the cold water run over him, shivering for a moment before he adjusted. "Yeah, something like that," he responded finally. He didn't like keeping secrets. He didn't like lying. He just didn't have it in him. Maybe he was naive and childish, or maybe he'd just retained his honorable personality from his first life. He didn't know if Felix was gonna come into the bathroom or not, and for the moment he didn't really care. Putting his hand on the wall in front of him, Kymin held himself there while the cold water soaked him. Even though it would've been lukewarm to some people, it was damn near icy to Kymin because of the way his body was so naturally hot.

Felix stood behind the door even though it was opened. He could hear the water running as Kymin got into the shower and knew the curtain would keep him from seeing the other male, but he stayed put regardless, in case Kymin didn't want him in there. When Kymin said something had happened Felix paused. "Want to talk about it," he asked. He was hoping it was nothing serious. Maybe Kinana had popped up and teased him about their relationship, he'd noticed her grins whenever she saw them. That was unlikely though, Kymin was more comfortable about this than Felix was. He sighed heavily. Why did things go uphill for a brief moment before spiraling back down?