The White Tower
This story is rated PG-13 for sexual situations
Chapter 14 - Vara's Dilemma
"What am I to do? I feel like such a fool!" Vara lamented, once she had apprised her mother of what had happened.
"Our power is, unfortunately, easy to get away from us. I have two disasters to my credit. Once with Bankotsu -- which seems to have remedied itself when Aniki was born. And then again with Sesshomaru, which caused much pain and jealousy. I know that my binding hurt InuYasha badly." Aara replied, putting an arm around her daughter's shoulder.
"Is there a way to stop what he is feeling?"
"I haven't found one. If you flood him with another emotion, Raine will still have the first emotion and you might end up with another Bankotsu, his life filled with nightmares and pain. I think the best thing to do is to complete the binding. You only have three males, so another would not be so bad."
"I have four, if you count Kyo. Mother, Kyo told me that he loved me."
"I know. He told me the same thing when he was at the Tower. He was so unhappy that he had left you."
"Kyo is strange. I never am sure about him, even after his confession. Every time he leaves, I fear that I will never see him again. That he will not return."
Aara smiled. "But he always does."
Vara sighed heavily, "I don't feel anything for Raine at all."
"You know that the binding will take care of that. You had no feelings for Souten or Suzuki, did you?"
"No, and I still don't feel the same about them as I do about Tekken -- or Kyo, for that matter. I feel affection for them, perhaps even love, but it is not the same. Tekken takes me to heights I never imagined." Then she blushed, realizing who she was talking to.
"I think our power should have a side effect of not allowing a blush!" Aara laughed. "After all, it is sexual -- how can you describe it without alluding to sex? Believe me, I learned much from Kurama! That Fox knows everything there is to know. And he has had over a thousand years of experience! About the same as Tekken, I believe."
"Yes, about that. At least you don't have children forever showing up on your doorstep. Tekken must have over a hundred!"
"True, that is not a problem I have ever had to deal with. None of my males has ever had a child -- well, except Sesshomaru -- and that was by accident. I talked to him recently and met his son. What a sweet child! Looks so much like his father. Seems that Sesshie was dreaming of me when he begat his son." Aara laughed delightedly. "So there are still some feelings left over!"
"Sesshie? Do you actually call him that?"
"Not any more. But I used to when he was bound and we were in bed. It is amazing what a woman can get away with when a male is in need! But now, if the name slips out, he glares daggers at me."
The two continued to talk away the night, happy in each other's company. In the morning, Vara would return to Suzaku and bind Raine to her. She had no other choice, and it might be the best thing for him. He was so lost -- neither Raike nor Shun.
Upon her return, she asked her males and Kyo to come to the gazebo and there she told them what she had accidentally done and that she had no other choice but to bind Raine. Souten and Suzuki had no problem with it at all; they liked Raine and would simply drag him along on their adventures.
"The boy was always so moody!" Souten exclaimed. "Even when he was a child. It will do him good to see the world a bit with us. We will look out for him."
Once Tekken heard that Raine would be going with the boys, he also had no problem with the binding.
Vara looked at Kyo. "What do you say in this?"
"I feel somewhat to blame."
"You did not cause the fight with the Black Dragon. Nor did you create the female Dragon. You have no blame at all, Kyo." Vara said gently.
Kyo sighed, "If your binding will help Shun -- Raine -- then I have no problem with it. I really don't feel like I have a say in this -- I am not bound to you."
"Only because my power does not work on you. If it did, you would be." Vara assured him. After her meeting, she summoned Raine and gently told him what she had accidentally done to him.
"You mean what I feel for you is not real?"
"Well, not in the truest sense. But after the binding you will not know the difference."
"Will you feel love for me?" Raine's eyes were full of hope.
"Yes, I will. You will be a part of me. I will sense you at all times and I can call you to my side no matter how far away you are. And you will be brothers with the other males."
Later that afternoon while going over some paperwork with Boushin, the young Emperor turned to her with a mischievous grin. "So I hear you are going to take our young green friend to your bed."
Vara turned deep red, exclaiming. "And it seems that everyone already knows!"
"Ah, the Palace is the best place for gossip. Everyone knows who you are with each night and how long you spend with each of them." Boushin smiled.
Vara turned even redder. "Oh no!"
"At least you are with someone! The palace is also abuzz with the fact that I am with no one."
"Well, there are more than enough beautiful maidens around begging for your attention."
Boushin's smile disappeared. "I know."
"No one has piqued your fancy?"
"One person has." He said, lowering his voice and his eyes.
"Oh! Now I am curious. Why should you have secrets when obviously I don't! Tell me who it is! I demand it!"
"Only because you commanded it, my Queen." Then he whispered a name.
Vara looked at him in surprise. "Did you say Toya?"
"Yes."
"Oh." Vara said, then smiled, "There are going to be a lot of disappointed young ladies!"
Now it was Boushin's turn to blush. "I have never been attracted to girls."
"So it seems. I do not know Toya's mindset. He was mated to Yukina, but that was only a matter of convenience and I don't think there was any love on his part. Feel him out. What have you got to lose?"
Boushin looked at the young Queen. "I guess I have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I will approach him -- or "feel him out," as you say." Then he laughed lightly, "I would surely love to feel him out for real!"
After a little more bantering, Vara bid him goodnight and made her way to Raine's room. As she walked the halls, she could not help but notice the servants and the guards. She had never noticed them before; but now, knowing that they gossiped about her, she saw every glance, heard each whisper. Oh! Let them talk! If Toya accepted Boushin's advances, soon they would have something even better to talk about! Straightening her shoulders, she went into Raine's room without knocking. Let them talk indeed!