Website: http://kiss.to/okp and http://bite.to/len

Archive: Go ahead, just please let me know.

Fandom: Vampire Chronicles/ Fushigi Yuugi

Pairing: Louis/Lestat

Rating: Hmm. PG.

Category: Crossover.

Series/Sequel: Yep. Part one of three.

Spoiler: Tale of the Body Thief, the first few episodes of Fushigi Yuugi.

Warnings: Mild slash. Louis ouchies.

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Anne Rice and the many other people who own the rights to Vampire Chronicles. Same for FY. I'm not making money.

Feedback: Yes, please!

Thanks to: All the wonderful shiny people who commented on "Geese" and Yuu Watase for FY.

Summary: Thus, the boy of the legend opened the door of another world . . .

*-*-*

KYUKETSUKI YUUGI
(The Vampire Play)
Episode 1
The Boy of the Legend

Lestat de Lioncourt was very, very bored. He looked around, searching for some entertainment, before his eyes settled on his beautiful fledgling. Louis de Pointe du Lac was totally engrossed in a novel and not likely to provide any distraction.

At least, not on his own.

Lestat stood and strolled over to the window Louis was sitting in front of, pretending to be admiring the view. In reality, there wasn't much of one--just Mojo scratching behind his ear. He chanced a glance over his shoulder and saw Louis was still absorbed in his book. With one quick, calculated movement, he spun and leapt. Louis ducked, and Lestat went flying into the coffee table.

"You weren't supposed to duck," he said.

"I apologize," Louis replied. "Please warn me the next time you decide to jump me so I won't duck."

"If I didn't know for a fact that you have no sense of humor, I'd think you were being sarcastic."

"If I didn't know for a fact that you're denser than a box of rocks, I'd say you were right."

Lestat flinched. "Low blow." He rolled off the table and dropped onto the couch next to the other vampire. "Whatcha reading?"

"Something David picked up for me at that occult bookstore down the street," Louis said, turning the book and showing the cover to Lestat. "It's called 'The Galaxy of the Four Deities,' or something along those lines."

"What's it about?"

"I'm not quite sure, to tell you the truth. I don't think I'm translating it right, though, so that may be part of the problem. Ancient Chinese is different from modern Chinese, and I never had that strong of a grip on Chinese in the first place."

"Sometimes reading aloud helps," Lestat suggested. He draped an arm around Louis' shoulders and pulled him close. "Will you read it to me?"

Louis smiled and made himself comfortable in his maker's arms. "All right. It'll be slow going, though."

Lestat sat back and relaxed, letting Louis' soft, accented voice wash over him as he struggled with the ancient text.

"Thus, the boy of the legend opened the door of another world. This is a story of a boy who gathered the Seven Guardians of Suzaku. He obtained omnipotent power, and made every wish come true. The story itself is an incantation. Whoever finishes reading it shall receive this power. As soon as the page is turned, the story will become the truth and begin." He paused.

"Why did you stop?"

"I don't know . . . I'm just beginning to feel really apprehensive about this."

"Worrywart," Lestat teased. He reached down and turned the page.

Everything went red.


Lestat opened his eyes, then cried out inarticulately and flung an arm over them. Ignoring the pain tearing through his body, he scrambled to his feet and began digging into the ground. He had to get out of the sun! Already, he could feel it searing his flesh, taking his strength--wasn't it?

He stopped digging, straightened, shaded his eyes and looked into the sun. It was blinding, yes, but other than that, he could feel no effect on his body.

"Louis?" he called. "Where are you, Beautiful One?"

"I'm over here," Louis called from underneath a nearby tree. "I think I--" He hissed and cursed in French. "No, scratch that, I know I broke something."

Lestat came over and knelt next to Louis, who was holding his swollen wrist. Gently, Lestat lifted it and examined it.

"Take some of my blood," he said. He stuck his thumb into his mouth and tried to prick it on his fang. To his surprise, he felt only normal teeth.

Louis gave him a Look. "Lestat, we're in broad sunlight and we're not burning to a crisp. It seems that, for all intents and purposes, we are mortal. What makes you think you think you still have your fangs?"

Lestat blinked.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?" a drawling male voice asked. Lestat looked up and saw a tall, muscular dark-haired man staring down at them, leering. Behind him were several other men, all equally muscled and a few were armed. The man in the lead bent and grabbed Louis by his good wrist, yanking him to his feet. Louis gasped in pain as his other wrist was jerked out of Lestat's grip. "Mmm. You'll fetch a high price in Kutou. The emperor likes his boys pretty."

"Get your hands off of him!" Lestat snarled, leaping to his feet. He lunged at the man, but was stopped by someone grabbing his arm with bruising force.

"Where're you going, blondie?" the man who had grabbed him asked. With his free hand, he grabbed Lestat's necklace and began scrutinizing it. "These real rubies?"

"Yes!" Lestat snapped, yanking his arm from the man's grip. He heard scuffling behind him and spun. Louis was struggling with three men, trying to fend off their wandering hands and get free. It was obvious his strength was waning, and Lestat was just about to spring into action when--

A cry split the air and something dove into the men. A fight ensued, most of which Lestat was not able to follow because it went so fast. Several seconds later, their attackers were running away, and a handsome blue-haired fellow was standing there, examining his bruised fist.

Blue?

"Who are you?" Lestat asked.

The man looked up, brushing his hair from his lavender eyes. For a second, a symbol glowed on his forehead, but rapidly faded. "I'm Sou Kishuku," he replied. "You can call me Tamahome." He hopped off the pile of men and went to Louis. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, thank you," Louis said. "I really appreciate your--"

"Money is the best thanks a person can give," Tamahome interrupted. He held out his hand expectantly.

Lestat came over to them and put a protective arm around Louis. "How much?" He pulled out his wallet, opened it, and frowned. "I don't have much on me . . ."

Tamahome snorted. "Great. Over three thousand people in this kingdom and I manage to rescue the two penniless ones. See ya." He began to walk off.

"Wait!" Louis called. "Where are we?" No answer.

"Turn around, Louis," Lestat said darkly. "I don't want you to see this." Rolling his eyes, Louis turned and stared intently at a nearby tree. Lestat threw himself at the man and then--

"Lestat?" Louis called. "Lestat, can I turn around now?" When his maker didn't answer, Louis turned anyway and looked around the suddenly very empty field. "Lestat?" Panic welled up in him as he continued calling. "Don't leave me alone!"


Lestat hit the coffee table with enough force to kill a mortal man and split the table neatly in half. Tears sprang to his eyes from the impact, and the back of his head felt like it had been smashed flat.

"Ow," he said finally. He sat up and gingerly touched the back of his head. Nothing too bad, just a bit of a skull fracture. It was already knitting. Wincing, he stood and looked down at the ruins of the coffee table. Louis was going to kill him. He had searched flea markets and antique malls for months for that particular table, and now it was broken. Well, maybe he could fix it. Later. Right now, he had to figure out where his beautiful one was. Absently, he picked up the book and opened it. Kanji glowed briefly and appeared on the page as he watched, dumbstruck.

"Lestat? Louis?" David called as he came in.

"In here. Hey, David, can you read Chinese?"

"A bit, why?" David entered the living room, examined the destruction, and turned to his maker. "Where's Louis?"

"That's what I need you for," Lestat said, tossing the book to his friend. "Translate this. I can't."

David caught it easily and sat on the couch. " 'The Universe of the Four Gods,' " he read aloud, checking the cover. "Oh, this is that book I got for--"

"Yes!" Lestat said impatiently. "Read!"

David rolled his eyes, opened the book, and began reading. " 'Traffickers attacked the boy and his lover, but they were saved by a man with the sign of the ogre on his forehead. Scared and alone, the boy got onto a nearby cart to find the man.' "


Louis sat on the back of the hay wagon, wondering just what he was going to do. In order to distract himself, he was braiding the hay. So far, he had completed eleven perfect braids.

The wagon bumped and pitched its way into a bustling village. Panic was forgotten as wonder took over.

"Mon Dieu," he breathed, trying to take in all the sights at once. He hopped off the cart and began looking around. It seemed like a thousand different sensations were being dropped on him all at once and it was overwhelming and terrifying but wonderful all the same. People were shouting, conversing, selling their goods. An imperial procession was to take place later that day.

"Ryou for the poor!" a man called as he shuffled past, clutching a worn earthenware bowl. Louis' stomach suddenly growled loudly, and the man cast him a sympathetic look. "Yeah, buddy, me too."

Louis put a hand to his stomach. It made sense that he would be hungry, after all, he hadn't eaten for two hundred years. A hysterical giggle escaped him, the pebble before the avalanche. He quashed his growing hysteria and looked around for a food booth. Nearby, a man was selling meat pies.

"Excuse me, sir," he said, stepping up to the booth, "could I please have one of those?" The man handed him a pie. "Merci beaucoup."

"You're not from around here, are you?" the vendor asked, eyeing him suspiciously. Louis suddenly felt very self-conscious of his clothes--jeans with a huge rip over the left knee and a black T-shirt.

"No," he replied, pulling out his wallet and taking a five-dollar bill from it. "Have you seen a man with a symbol on his forehead?"

"I'm afraid not." The man took the money, then looked down at it and frowned. "What the hell is this? Don't you have any real money?"

"I-I'm sorry," Louis faltered. "But-that is real money, and--"

The man held out his hand for the pie. When Louis didn't immediately comply, he began to step out from behind the stall.

Louis was alone, terrified, hungry, his wrist was really killing him, and there was a man threatening him, so he did what any somewhat rational human would have done.

He ran.

"THIEF!" the man's voice rang out behind him. "Catch that man!"

Louis ran blindly through the streets, not knowing or caring where he was going. His wrist throbbed painfully with each step and he finally stumbled into an alley where he collapsed, clutching his wrist and biting back tears.

"Sir! Sir, are you all right?" Gentle hands rested on his shoulders, turned him over, lightly brushed his face.

Louis blinked away the tears of pain and stared up at the man. He was tall, and rather good-looking, with wavy green hair and concerned sky-blue eyes.

Wait a minute, green?

"It looks like your wrist is sprained," the man continued, gently lifting Louis' bad arm by the elbow and examining it. "There's a healer nearby who can fix it up for you."

"Non, non, that's all right," Louis said, sitting up, smiling, and trying to get his arm back. He didn't trust this man. "Tell me, have you seen a man with a symbol on his forehead?"

The man's face went blank for a second, then he smiled and nodded. "Oh, yeah, he's a friend of mine. You want me to take you to him?"

Well, that was a little too convenient, but it was all he had right now. "If you would, please?"

"Certainly." The man took Louis' good hand and led him out of the alleyway, down a street, and onto the main thoroughfare. "So, tell me. What's her name?"

"Pardon?"

The man gestured to the ring on Louis' left ring finger. "What's your wife's name?"

Louis blushed a little. How could he explain it was a promise ring from his male vampire lover? "I'm not married. It's. Um. Just a ring."

"You're single, then?" The man's glance had somehow garnered a lascivious edge.

"No," Louis replied, exasperated. Why in the world was everyone in this God-forsaken town hitting on him? Didn't they have better things to do?

"Well, if you're not married and you're not single, what are you?"

"Taken."

By this time, they had arrived at an alley near the edge of town. Several men were lurking in the shadows, talking softly among themselves. Although there were quite a few handsome men, none were the man with the symbol on his forehead.

"Excuse me," Louis said softly to his guide, "where's the man with the symbol on his forehead?"

The man turned and looked at him, all concern melting away, replaced by a look of pure malice. "The man with the symbol on his forehead is right over there," he said, gesturing. A man with a huge scar in the middle of his forehead swaggered out, his grin revealing several missing teeth. Revolted, Louis began backing away. He turned and was about to run when someone yelled,

"Get him!"

Someone tackled him and grabbed his injured wrist, jerking it backwards. Stifling a howl of pain, Louis began struggling to get free. Other hands began pawing him, tearing at his clothes. Finally, he freed himself and spun, breathing heavily. He knew that he was doing something really stupid, but right now, he didn't care.

"God may forgive you, but I, Louis de Pointe du Lac, will not! In place of the eternally damned, I'll punish you!" In the back of his mind, his common sense wondered where the hell he had got that from. He flew at the thugs, the pain in his wrist forgotten as he punched, kicked, and bit furiously. Suddenly, he was shoved out of the way and someone else began fighting. The fight was over practically before it had begun.

"Four guys on one injured person?" someone asked, snorting. "Puh-leeze. Who needs to do that?"

Louis gasped as he saw his savior. It was the man with the symbol on his forehead.


"Lestat, please, you're breaking my arm," David said calmly, attempting to pry his maker's fingers from his upper arm.

"Oh. Sorry, David." Lestat sat back and stared anxiously at the British man. "So what happened next?"

David sighed and looked down at the book again. "The boy was attacked again by traffickers. Although he fought hard, he was nearly overcome, but the man with the sign of the ogre on his forehead came and saved him." Lestat grumbled something incoherent and David aimed an annoyed look at him. "Don't tell me you're jealous of a character in a book, Lestat . . ."

"Fine. I won't."
Episode 2
The Priest of Suzaku

Tamahome examined Louis disdainfully, lavender eyes scanning him as if memorizing him. "So it was you."

"Pardon?" Louis said.

"I heard someone talking about a guy being attacked," Tamahome explained. "I thought it might have been you."

"Where's Lestat?" Louis asked, getting to his feet and brushing off his clothes.

"Who?"

"Lestat. The man I was with." Louis felt a wave of irrational anger swelling in him. "He went with you and now he's gone! Where is he?" When Tamahome didn't immediately answer, he yelled, "You kidnapped him, didn't you? You kidnapped him and sold him!" Terror replaced his anger and he began backing away from Tamahome. "Is that what you're going to do to me? Are you going to sell me?" He turned, ran out into the main thoroughfare, and began screaming, "Help! There's a trafficker in here! Help!"

Suddenly, an arm clamped around his waist and a hand clapped over his mouth.

"Shut up!" Tamahome hissed. "I didn't kidnap your stupid friend so stop your yellin'!" Louis opened his mouth and Tamahome pressed his hand harder to the other man's face. "And you'd better not bite me or else!"

Louis decided against that course of action and instead went limp in Tamahome's arms. The other man let him go, shoved him out of the way, and went out into the street.

"Now, look," he said, "that's twice I've saved your life. You haven't paid me for my efforts. I would suggest that you fix your wrist, find your friend, and get out of Eiou. And for Suzaku's sake, stay out of trouble." He shook his head and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Louis called after him. "I have money--I can pay you--please, I'm all alone here--don’t leave me!" His voice cracked on the last word and his calm demeanor threatened to dissolve.

Tamahome stopped, clenching his hands into fists. He would not go back to the beautiful man. He would not.

"Money is no object! I can pay you however much you want!"

His traitorous feet were backtracking.

"Will you please, please help me look for Lestat?"

Tamahome turned and found himself exactly where he'd sworn he wouldn't be--right back in front of the man.

"All right," he sighed. "All right. I'll help you. Now what was that about money being no object?"

Louis reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet, checking inside. "I don't have much with me . . . just a hundred or so."

Tamahome's eyes went huge. His eyes said one thing: "SCORE!" Grinning, he took Louis' good hand and led him out to the main road.

"What's that coming towards us?" Louis asked, peering down the street.

"An imperial procession. When it gets closer, I'll point out the Emperor's palanquin."

The procession thundered closer and closer. Louis gasped softly at the sheer size and elaborateness of the first car.

"That's it," Tamahome said. "Emperor Saiheitei and, when he marries, his wife are the only people who can sit in there." He sighed enviously. "If I had just one jewel off his crown, I could be the richest man in the world."

Louis cocked his head. "What would you do with it?"

"Sell it. Buy food for my family."

It was for a charitable cause.

Louis jerked his hand from Tamahome's grip and ran after the imperial palanquin. Just as he reached it, a guard flung out his spear and hit him hard in the chest.

"Stay back, pretty boy!" the guard snarled. Louis staggered back and hit the guard coming up behind them.

"Watch it!" he yelled. He, too, shoved Louis and sent him sprawling on the ground. Before Louis could get up and yell at the guard, one of the horses clip-clopped by, its ironclad shoe crushing Louis' sprained wrist. The black-haired man let out a strangled scream and shot up, grabbing his wrist, in too much pain to cry.

"Louis!" Tamahome cried from the crowd. He shoved through the throng and burst onto the street. He ran to Louis, pulled him up by his good wrist and held him close. Louis' body trembled against his and he was whimpering piteously.

"What's going on out there?" a voice called from the palanquin.

"A man tried to attack you, Your Majesty," the guard who had hit Louis in the chest said. "We're going to arrest him."

"Do it," the emperor ordered. "I'll think of his punishment later."

Another of the guards grabbed Louis roughly by the arm and yanked him out of Tamahome's embrace, causing him to cry out faintly with pain.

"You come too," a guard said to Tamahome.

Just as the guard yanked Louis' wrists roughly together, a red light burst from his chest and he began fading rapidly.

"What the hell?"

"He's disappearing!"

"Get him!"

Louis felt faint pains ripple though his body, and he got the vaguest sense of flying. He could see Lestat and David hunched over the book, David translating rapidly, Lestat clutching his arm, staring wide-eyed.

"Lestat!" he yelled. "Lestat, look at me!"

The vampires gave no sign of seeing him, but as Louis watched, Lestat grabbed David by the shoulders, shook him, and said,

"Hurry up, David! What happened next? Tell me how to get Louis out of that damned book!"

"I'm going as fast as I can, calm down!" David glared at Lestat and pried the older vampire's hands from his shoulders.

Louis felt a sharper pain stab through him and he felt like he was falling. He landed hard on a stone floor and arched up, hissing.

"What's the matter?" Tamahome asked groggily. He reached up and scratched his head lazily.

Louis sat up, ignoring Tamahome's inquiry. "Where are we?"

"We've been arrested," Tamahome replied. "Right now, we're rotting in the emperor's dungeon. The emperor has called for our execution and we are to be beheaded tomorrow." He smiled brightly at his companion. "Sleep well?"

Louis started cursing in French. He turned to Tamahome and said, "I'm sorry I got you into this. I didn't even have a reward for you."

"How about I just take it now?" Tamahome said softly. He tilted Louis' head up and gently kissed him. When they separated, he added, "Go back to sleep. We don't have much else to do until we're executed."

Nodding resignedly, Louis lay back down and fell asleep. Tamahome watched, amused and incredulous, as he instinctively curled into the fetal position, arms over his face.

"I wonder what he has to protect himself against," he wondered aloud. "It's almost like he's blocking the sun."

Hours later, Louis awoke and shook himself awake. He got up and went over to the bars.

"Excuse me," he said, "but can you tell me what time it is?"

The guard looked up at him and his eyes widened. "It's a monster!" he yelled. He got up so quickly his chair fell backwards. "G-get away from me, you thing!"

Louis blinked. "What? What are you talking . . . about?" The last word was spoken as he watched the guard bolt down the hallway, leaving the keys behind him.

Tamahome knelt, stretched, and grabbed the keys. "Got them. Good job. Don’t know what you did, but it worked."

"I don't know what I did either," Louis admitted.

The blue-haired man stood up and his eyes went huge. "M-M-Monster!"

"What?" Louis was totally lost now.

"Oh--it's--it's your hair, it's all sticking up . . ."

Louis ran a hand through his hair and found, indeed, it was standing nearly on end. "No wonder the poor guard was scared. I would have been, too."

Tamahome deftly unlocked the door, then pushed open the door. "Shall we?"

Louis nodded. "Let's get out of here."

The two hurried down the hallway and a flash of gold caught Louis' eye.

"What's that?" he asked, stopping and looking into the room.

Tamahome stopped also and peered in. "That's a statue of Suzaku, the god of the south. He protects Konan. There are three other gods, Seiryuu in the east . . ."

Louis tuned the other man out when a wonderful scent tickled his nose. He wandered off while Tamahome continued talking, unaware that his audience was gone.

" . . . Genbu in the north, Byakko in the west, and their mother is Taiitsukun--" Tamahome stopped and looked around. "Louis?"


Louis desperately wanted to eat, but even smelling the food had his stomach turning. He picked up an egg roll and sniffed it, then set it down quickly. That was what two hundred years of not eating did to the digestive system. He turned.

"Tamahome?" He looked around, trying to locate his companion. He realized, with a sinking feeling, that he didn’t know where Tamahome was, or even where he himself was.

"Excuse me, sir, are you lost?"

A beautiful young woman came up to Louis, smiling. At Louis' nod, the girl laughed.

"There's a gate right over there," she said, gesturing with an elegant hand. "It's a simple matter of exiting the palace after that."

"Thank you," Louis said gratefully, heading towards the gate.

"Wait!" the girl said. "You're the one who got arrested, aren't you?"

Louis narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

The girl walked over to him and placed a comforting hand on his arm. "Don't worry. I'm on your side. I won't turn you over to the guards."


"Louis!" Tamahome yelled, running through the palace. "Louis!" He spotted a figure with long black hair ahead of him and went to it. "There you are, you idiot--" He stopped when a member of the Emperor's harem turned and glared at him.

"Excuse me?" she said sweetly, danger tinting her voice.

Tamahome laughed nervously. "Sorry. Thought you were someone else."

"Hey!" a voice yelled from behind them. "You! Stop right there!"

Tamahome looked over his shoulder and saw a guard pounding down the hallway towards them. "Gotta go!"


"So, why do you want to find this . . . Tama-homie?" the girl asked, grabbing an egg roll from the table and delicately eating it as she sat down.

"He's involved because of me," Louis explained. "If we can't get out, I can't get back to New Orleans."

"New what?" The girl looked intrigued. "Where's that?"

"It's . . . I guess you'd say it's in another world." From the expression on the girl's face, Louis knew he'd made a mistake. Now not only was he a fugitive, he was crazy too.

"Another world? Really? That's wonderful!" The girl's eyes shone as she sighed. "I'm Hotohori. People usually call me another name."

"Louis." Louis extended his hand and the girl shook it rather limply.

"Pleased to meet you, Louis." Hotohori sparkled happily. Louis was struck by her beauty. "Is something wrong?"

"No . . . it's just . . . you're very beautiful."

Hotohori's sparkling increased. "Lots of people say that."

"Get movin'!" someone yelled from outside the courtyard.

The girl's eyes widened and she shoved at Louis. "Hide! Go quickly!"

"What--"

"Don't ask questions, just go!" Hotohori shoved Louis in the direction of a safe place, then spun to face the guard, who had just come in, pushing Tamahome ahead of him.

"Where's the other guy?" the guard demanded.

"I don't know!" Tamahome snarled.

"Are you still resisting?" the guard asked.

"No! I don't know! Why don't you believe me?"

The guard lifted his hand to strike Tamahome, and Louis couldn't stand it. He surged to his feet and yelled,

"Don't you dare!"

"Idiot!" Tamahome hissed. "You could've escaped! Why the hell did you blow such a great chance?"

"I couldn't let you get hurt!" Louis snapped. "Excuse me for having concern for your welfare! Next time I'll just let him use you as a punching bag, shall I?"

The guard let go of Tamahome's wrist and, while holding him with one hand, walked over to Louis and went to grab his bad wrist.

"If you dare touch him, I'll kill you!" Tamahome yelled in the guard's ear, causing the guard to wheel on Tamahome and clench his fist.

"Silence, please," Hotohori said softly. Despite the quiet tone, each word was spoken with a tone that demanded respect and immediate acquiescence. She went over to the guard and said in that same tone, "Without my order, you are not allowed to hurt them. Release that man."

As he was released, Tamahome said, "Who are you?"

"Your Majesty," the guard said, falling to one knee.

" 'Your Majesty?'" Louis repeated. He stared at Hotohori skeptically. "I thought only men could be the emperor . . ."

"He is a man!" Tamahome snapped, tugging on Louis' hand to get him to kneel. "Get down here!" Louis complied, unable to digest the information he had just been fed.

"Louis, I didn't mean to deceive you," Hotohori said. "I just wanted to get to know you without you bowing and scraping to me." He held out his hand and helped Louis to his feet. "I have a request to make of you."

"Yes?"

"According to legend, when Konan is on the brink of disaster, a boy will come from another world, gain the power of Suzaku, and unite the empire."

Louis laughed nervously. "No, this can't be right. I'm sure I'm not the boy. You don't understand, I am evil, there is no way I could ever possess the power of a god . . ."

"Then you don't wish for the power of Suzaku?" Hotohori asked, sounding saddened.

" . . . wish?" As if from a thousand lifetimes ago, Louis could remember reading to Lestat, " 'Thus, the boy of the legend opened the door of another world. This is a story of a boy who gathered the Seven Guardians of Suzaku. He obtained omnipotent power, and made every wish come true. The story itself is an incantation. Whoever finishes reading it shall receive this power. As soon as the page is turned, the story will become the truth and begin.' "

"So . . . if I become this hero . . . I can wish . . . I could . . .I could be mortal again." He looked up and his eyes met Hotohori's. "I'll do it."

Hotohori turned and called, "Everyone, show respect to this man! He is our country's protector, the Priest of Suzaku!"


David licked his dry lips and read, "And so, the boy became the Priest of Suzaku and everyone bowed before him."

Lestat pressed his fist to his mouth. "Oh, no, David, what have I done? He's going to be a priest now, and when--if--he comes back he--he won't love me--" His voice caught and he covered his eyes, trying to hold back his tears.

David set down the book and held Lestat tightly. "Calm yourself, Lestat. Louis will come back. He will."

Epilogue

Lestat shot awake, grasping for the person snuggled up next to him. His breath came in short, ragged gasps as his wild eyes looked everywhere without really seeing.

"Louis!" he said hoarsely. "Louis, where are you?"

Louis cracked open one eye and said groggily, "Right here, just like I was last night, remember?"

Lestat sobbed with relief and swept up the other vampire into a crushing embrace. "Oh, Louis, I had the most horrible dream! I dreamt that you got sucked into a book--and you became a priest--and you found seven people to fight for you--a fighter, the emperor, a gay guy, a monk no da, a bandit, a healer, and a little kid--but then I got sucked into the book too--and I hated you--and my warriors killed your warriors and you didn't love me anymore and you only loved that Tama-homie and and and--"

Louis silenced Lestat with a brief but firm kiss. "Thank you, Lestat. As you can plainly see, I am still here, I still love you very much, and I am not the sort to be in books."

Lestat sniffled. "Promise?"

"Of course, chérie. Now why don't you go back to sleep?"

Mollified, the blonde vampire nodded and lay back down, falling asleep almost immediately. Louis smiled down at him and gently brushed his hair from his forehead. He turned away, leaned down, and retrieved a red leather book from beneath the bed. He opened it just in time to see glowing red kanji form two words--

"The End."