Meditation [Zeshin][FINISHED]

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

[This takes place after the events of "A Breath Of Fresh Air," and "You'll Go Far, Kid!"]

Rajah finished dressing himself as he stood in his room in the tavern, looking at the setting moon out of his window. It had to be somewhere close to five or six in the morning and the Tora-Jin was beaming a smile as if he was ready to take on the world. It was time for his first training session with Zeshin; he couldn't wait to get started.

The Tora-Jin quietly walked through the tavern, using his cat reflexes to stay completely silent. When he approached Zeshin's door, he knocked gently, trying to see if he was either asleep or awake. He wanted to go inside and nudge him out of his sleep. But after experiencing the anger situation from the young one before, he figured that was not the best idea.

So Rajah knocked on his opened door loud enough for him to hear, adding a call of his name from time to time.

"Zeshin," he said loud enough to break away sleep for the boy. "Wake up, Zeshin; it's time for your first training session..."

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

Zeshin found himself quite restless over the course of the last few days. Despite his reluctance to say so, he had been quite uneasy around Rajah since their initial meeting and return to the tavern, his insecurities factoring in on his interaction with the seemingly harmless Tora-Jin. Unable to sleep, Zeshin found himself in the kitchen of the tavern, sharpening his cutlery, and attempting to practicing his budding yet ever increasing in its potency fire magic in the one secluded place no one question a mishap that resulted in a burn or scorching.

Although he could barely stand the sound of the grating metal on his ever more sensitive hearing, Zeshin could discern the patter of feet a floor above him, such noises foreign to him as he usually did not sleep in late much after his latent magic began to manifest. It was then he heard Rajah's voice before he even graced through the kitchen doors leading to the bar adjacent to the staircase leading upstairs to where the rooms were located. Putting his knives away, Zeshin sighed and walked to the base of the stairs to answer the call of their new guest.

"I'm already up..." Zeshin said to Rajah in a restrained voice as to not wake anyone else, brushing the dust from the sharpened metal and slight carbon smears from his shirt. Zeshin had taken the time to wake up every morning for another purpose, physical exercise, something he would not be able to get during the day outside of the small feats of labor required in his usual day to day tasks. As the days went by, the looming threat of being unprepared when he faced Peteo for the last time before he went off to be by his father's side was the main drive that seemed to possess Zeshin when he was alone, choosing to subdue his ambition while around others, something he had been growing to suspect that made Nani worry about him.

walking up the stairs, Zeshin fiddled with his small ponytail before leaning against the banister as he addressed Rajah, "And try to keep it down a tad, oyur voice is louder than you think you know." Zeshin said, noticing a scorch mark on his armband that he quickly moved out of sight.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

"I'm already up," Rajah heard from a familiar voice behind him. With the sudden response, Rajah frantically looked around trying to figure out where his voice was coming from, since it was already evident the blue-haired young one was not in his room. It wasn't until he noticed Zeshin standing at the base of the staircase, brushing dust off his shirt when he realized he was probably only talking to pillows wrapped in blankets.

He smiled at the boy in response to his query. "Oh," he said rather dumbfounded. "Yes, I see..."

"And try to keep it down a tad," Zeshin said as he leaned against the banister. "Your voice is louder than you think, you know."

Rajah's neck retreated within his body; a sign of embarrassment that became trademarked to him by one of the very first -Jin he met other than Issac. He looked away from Zeshin, still kind of slumped over but not necessarily saddened.

"I'm sorry," he said in a whisper. He continued walking toward Zeshin, whom he had seen quickly move one of his arms into the darkness of the home. At first, Rajah was curious as to know if he was concealing anything or not. But he decided he'd rather not worry about it, hoping after this training session that the boy would open up to him more willingly. If there was any sub-goal for Rajah's training today, it would be to develop the friendship that the two created when they first met a few days ago.

Rajah smiled at the boy warmly when he reached him, placing one of his paws on Zeshin's shoulders.

"Well then," he whispered. "Are you ready for your first day of training?"

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

"I guess, be careful when you go down the steps, they make a lot of noise..." Zeshin said in a nonchalant manner, moving off the banister to walk down the stairs. Zeshin thought to himself that he could spend today like he did the few days after Rajah come home with he and Issac, training on his lonesome in the seclusion of the forest under the dim light of the new morning sun, but he did not want to look rude to his guest and went along with Rajah to be tutored, on what he wasn't sure.

Reaching down to grab his sword at the doorway, Zeshin turned back to Rajah and squinted. "You never did say where we were going, did you?" Zeshin asked a slightly suspicious look on his face as he placed his sword over his shoulders, holding it with one hand.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah's smile stayed on his face as he watched Zeshin walk down the stairs. Hearing the young one's warning about the creaks in the stairs, he nodded.

"Right," he whispered. He stared at the steps before him and blinked. His retinas turned green as he accessed his spirit magic. With his spirit powered eyes, Rajah could see the weakened steps that would creak and the steps strong enough to support any type of weight and not make a sound. And lucky for the Tora-Jin, they were about two to three steps apart.

Rajah walked down the steps he saw were strong enough without making a sound and approached the front door. He saw Zeshin grab his sword and place it over his shoulder, only to receive a squinted look from him, as if he didn't trust the Tora-Jin.

"You never did say where we were going, did you?" he asked.

Rajah gulped as he approached the boy, somewhat set off and made a bit nervous by his gaze. And after experiencing what his anger could transform him into in days past, he had every right to.

Rajah stood next to Zeshin and pointed out of the open door before them.

"To the top of that mountain," he informed him as he leaned against the open door frame with his right arm. "I find it better to train both the body and the mind in the thin air. It makes you pay attention to things you wouldn't necessarily observe when you are in your right mind."

Rajah then sighed, finding the situation inevitable to bring up. He looked at Zeshin with a humbled and saddened face.

"Zeshin," he said softly. "About our spar a few days ago. I... I still quite bad about it."

He removed his right arm from the door frame and used his shoulder to lean against it as he used his paw to rub his left arm in nervousness.

"I didn't mean to drive you that far," Rajah said as he look reflected that of a sob. "And if I have to say that I am truly sorry a thousand times, then so be it."

He tried to change his look from being saddened to a more cheerful look, but ended up creating a hybrid of the two.

"So," he said warmly, "no hard feelings? Do you forgive me...?"

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

Zeshin looked at the remosrful Tora-jin, and then starred at his own feet and sighed. He had been this way since he first arrived at the tarven, over eager to help and always friendly, and Zeshin relaiized that only he would lose out if he still retained a grudge to something that was accidental.

"I accept you apologies Rajah, all one thousand of them. I've been pushed farther and worse htings have happended, let's just be thankful I didn't cause you any harm." Zeshin said, not wanting to discuss his training in or around the bar, out of fear someone may overhear their conversation. Zeshin then looked back up at Rajah, his face more amiable now, a smirk form on the corner of his lips.

"Just chill with all the sap you big goof, if you think I'm bad, just wait until Issac sinks his mangy claws into you. " Zeshin said, walking over to Rajah, nudging him in the arm. turning toward the door, Zeshin held it open with one hand and looked to the small peak in the distance, his vision growing more sharp and precise, he could almost count the trees leading to the top. "Let's go!" Zeshin said walking out of the bar, waving a good morning salute to the village elder Aki, who always was up this early tending to his work in the garden before he returned to his forge.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah smiled after Zeshin nudged his furred arm in friendship. He could also tell that he was a bit more at ease around him afterward and was now a bit more eager for the Tora-Jin's training. That alone made him glad. He followed Zeshin outside as the two started the trek to the top of the mountainside, counting the number of stars left in the sky until dawn. By the time that they were halfway up the mountain, Rajah retrieved his drinking valve filled with water and gave it to Zeshin with a warm smile on his face.

"Here," Rajah said in a friendly manner. "Take all you can for now; you won't be able to once we start training."

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

Zeshin as also not unprepared for his trek, his wanderlust and desire from foraging causing him to acquire many trinkets and useful traveling tools over the years. "Thanks but I filled my flask with wear before we left..." Zeshin said back to Rajah, pointing a the small cloth pouch at his side. Continuing to trek up the mountain with his new Jin companion, Zeshin took the time to enjoy the sights, taking in the tall foliage, the bright sun, and the crisp clean air, which was growing thinner the more they scaled the peak.

Zeshin then turned to Rajah with a smile on his face, keeping pace with the Jin who seemed to have no difficulty traversing the summit. "Did you know that this mountain was named after the patron deity of the land?" Zeshin said, striking up small talk to pass the time as the top grew closer with each passing step.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah chuckled after seeing the pouch attached to Zeshin's hip when the blue-haired young one told him that he brought water of his own. It seemed that he came prepared for this little outing the Tora-jin planned for the two of them.

He opened up his valve and started to drink the water inside. Taking his own advice he gave Zeshin about not being able to drink anything during the training, Rajah started to drink until nothing was left. While he was drinking, he caught Zeshin smiling at him out the corner of his eye. As the valve left his lips, finishing the water inside, Rajah heard a bit of information about this specific mountain.

"Did you know that this mountain was named after the patron deity of the land?" he said.

Rajah looked at Zeshin with a look of surprise on his face, no doubt impressed with the information. Still walking, he took the time to look around their surroundings to observe the earth around him, not using his spirit powers at all to find out if the boy spoke the truth.

He trusted him, after all...

"No," Rajah said, sounding amazed. "No, I didn't." He looked at Zeshin with an innocent smile. "Do you know the patron personally?"

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

"No... He's supposed to be ancient, long gone from here. Mom told me that his name was Mahatub, and he was some powerful Dragon that stopped the war between the people who used to live in Laytor and the wolf people, or Ookami as the used to be called. Story says that at the height of the war, he could be seen flying away with the body of the Ookami Mononoke in his arms over this mountain, after which the Ookami's or whatever they were called left, leaving the humans in the area free from war. " Zeshin said, reciting the tale as if he had told it a hundred times.

Despite the reverence his mother showed the supposed Deity in her daily speech, Zeshin paid it no mind, choosing rather to focus on what lie before him, his mind far removed from the godlike creatures to whom he shared a common linage with. Smirking he finished the story for Rajah in a apathetic manner, viewing it only as simple local lore, "After that, the landscape changed, more people moved in, and the forest began to shrink as the towns grew larger, until people stopped going into the forrest... They stopped going because people like you, Issac, and my friend Haku started showing up, dumb if you ask me. It's not like you guys start any trouble." Zeshin said bluntly, focusing back on scaling the mountain.

Climbing the mountain grew more and more tedious, for the higher they got, the steeper the cliffs became, as well as the air steadily growing thin was began to irritate Zeshin. Channeling his magic, he subtly increased his body temperature to a comfortable level and soon, he and Rajah were at the summit, looking down on the entirety of the land below them, as Zeshin covered the sunlight from his eyes to see the world in a panoramic view.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

"Wow," Rajah said in amazement, listening to his new friend's tale. "A Dragon. I always wanted to see a dragon." The Tora-jin smiled at the idea of even being in the presence of one; even befriending a dragon would be a dream come true.

"A friend of mine named Rowan told me long ago that my kind came from Dragons," Rajah said with a little hint of sadness in his voice. "If that is true, then I would like to meet the one I came from. Maybe then I can piece together where my family is and where I came from."

Rajah placed his sadness aside and continued to listen to Zeshin's story about the mountain. Afterward, only two elements of it made Rajah's curious mind start to think. One of them were the Ookami named Mononoke. Rajah couldn't help but think if the Mononoke was like him; like how Rowan, Issac and himself were. It would be nice to befriend another being like himself.

The other thought was what Zeshin said about how humans reacted to beings like himself. He sided with Zeshin on that point; humans shouldn't be afraid of beings like himself, they shoud befriend them. That's what Rajah does. Zeshin was proof of that.

With this thought in his head, Rajah looked down at Zeshin with a smile. He was glad to see that this little trek allowed them to bond so well already. Then they reached the top of the mountain. The sun was at a midway point; in-between sunrise level and it's normal state on mid-day.

"Beautiful," Rajah said as he looked at the view with an admirable smile on his face. He looked at Zeshin with the same smile and nodded.

"I suggest you drink your water now, Zeshin," he informed.

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

ZEshi's sense were being bombarded by an array different elements. He had been to the summit once before today, and his powers were not yet known to him at that time, but here today, everything seemed more vibrant to him. The clors were more fluid, he could here the rush of the river on the other side of the mountain, he could see and feel the brightness and heat of the sun, smell the grass beneath him, the richness of its soil and sap from the now sparse surrounding trees.

It was during this he heard Rajah advise him to partake in some of his water, which Zeshin did dutifully, sipping from his flask a quarter of it's contents before he placed its cap back on. Taking off his sachet and placing the small bag on the ground, Zeshin took his sword and place dirt on the near his other belongings, looking at the Tora-jin ready to begin. "Well, what now Rajah." Zeshin said as he stretched his muscles after climbing, hopping they retained their elasticity, the last thing Zeshin needed at the moment was a cramp to hinder him.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

"Well, what now, Rajah?" Zeshin asked him.

Rajah nodded as he detached his supply belt from his blue sleeveless dojo uniform he received during his visit to China months ago. He rubbed his paws together to prepare for the morning exercises he planned for Zeshin and himself.

"Okay, Zeshin," Rajah started. "Before I want to continue exploring your capabilities as far as your fighting and swordplay is concerned, I want to try and tame your quick prone to anger so that it won't necessarily overtake you in battle, but bring it to a level of control where you can use it to your advantage."

Rajah immediately sat down on the ground, crossing his legs as if he were preparing for meditation. He placed his arms on his knees and smiled at the boy in front of him.

"Take a seat across from me, Zeshin," he said, "and we'll begin."

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

Zeshin listened to Rajah's words, unable to focus on anything in particular other than his addressed anger problem, as to which he said in both annoyance and agreement. Taking heed of his given instructions, Zeshin sat on the ground in front of Rajah cross legged, resting his hands onto his thighs and looking at Rajah wondering what the Tora-jin had in mind.

As the young man sat, he thoght back on his previous expirences, and deduced that his anger had both helped and hindered him in the past, understanding that it would indeed be advantegeous of an opponent to use what he percieved to be a great strength to himslef against him.

"About my temper, at times I feel like I have it under control, and I use it to feed my magic, which makes it stronger. But then their are times when It seems too much to handle, and no matter how hard I try I can't calm down..." Zeshin said regrettably, touching a small part of his stomach, a place where a scar should have been on anyone else who did not possess the same physical qualities that he did.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah listened to Zeshin explain the two-sided situation his temper would spark and he refuse to let even one syllable falter. He understood everything that the young one told him in the first aspect of how he used it; his new Inu-jin friend, Mr. Issac informed him of that aspect personally. But what made Rajah concerned was when Zeshin told him about how sometimes his anger would make him almost uncontrollable. Rajah received a sample of that situation himself when the two first met.

"And that is what I want to help you with, Zeshin," Rajah said with a hint of concern in his voice. "Mr. Issac told me about how you use your anger to your advantage, but what becomes a hindrance to you is your inner anger; something that is so easily clicked on sometimes, yet you have no idea that it resides within you. It's almost like a rage that overtakes you and takes a life of it's own." Rajah sighed and saddened his face. "I would know. I had the same problem.

"Before I left India, a very good friend of mine was murdered by a band of refugees. Of course I was saddened, but all of a sudden I felt angry; I wanted them to pay for the trouble that they placed upon me. And... I... I killed them; I killed them all. I was not in control of myself; it was my inner rage that I can only guess built up from everything that I endured in my past. But I know now that there is no excuse.

"Anyway, once they all died under my hand, I started to regain my right mind. I looked at my paws, and saw that they were drenched in their blood. I made a vow to myself that I would never allow my inner anger to take over me and to never kill again."

Rajah then looked at Zeshin with a look that combined compassion with seriousness. "This technique helped me balanced out this inner anger, and I am honored that I am able to teach it to you, Zeshin," he said to him warmly.

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

"A while back, some dude's came into the bar after we were closed and wouldn't leave. I started to get angry and when I told them to leave again the biggest one hit me in the gut and knocked me down. Then they grabbed my mom and said they were gonna rob the place, so I tried to defend her and, and ended up hurting her. Issac was there to help thankfully enough, but the big guy go desperate and but a knife to her throat, and my powers burned his sword out of his hand, and burned my mother's neck as well.

When I jumped over to stop him he put a knife in my gut, and threw me across the room. All I could see was fire, and I wanted him to die so bad, I got up, despite the pain and pulled the knife out. He tried to attack Issac from behind and then... and then I exploded into a rage and he burst into flames Rajah, and ran out the bar screaming. I don't remember anything after that. I can remember wanting to kill him so bad, but since then sometimes all I can ever think about is whether I killed him or not, and if I did, did I really need to." Zeshin said to Rajah, revealing his own tale of anger filled violence.

Rajah's story had given the youth a different look into who he was, no longer the seemingly non-violent monk in Zeshin's eyes, but someone that can be prone to anger as well. "I want to get more control over my powers, which is why I train as hard as I do, so I would be honor to learen what you have to teach." Zeshin said, eager to learn what the Tora-jin had to teach.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah could only pout in sadness and remorse at the unfortunate situation of Zeshin's situation he chose to share with him. Whereas he was thankful that Zeshin was now comfortable enough to share a situation as painful in comparison to his own, but that did not stop Rajah from feeling sorry for the boy.

But if the boy's story did not tug on the Tora-jin's heart strings, hearing Zeshin say that it was an honor to learn from him definitely did. Rajah smiled at Zeshin, trying to keep his quivering bottom lip from showing too much exposure. But he soon regained his composure and continued his meditated sit.

"Well, Zeshin," he said, trying to release the emotional state his voice was in, "wheras you would find those memories to be a hindrance to you, I need you to keep those close to you. This will allow you to increase your strength. However, in order for you to balance this increase in your abilities, you must balance it out with one that brings you joy."

Rajah tilted his head, his curious mind causing him to think.

"Do you have any joyous memories, Zeshin?"

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

"Yeah, of course I do." Zeshin said with some enthusiasm, sitting up from his slouching position on the ground. Zeshin though back, and he could recall several happy moments, in his short, and what he perceived to be boring life. He though back to when his mother actually let him cook and bus at the pub, and though the night was accident filled and busy, he had so much fun working next to her.

He specifically remembered fishing with Peteo when they were both smaller, telling his mother he lost something on his way to their estate, hoping to explain why he had been away for so long. The two of them had a very tough time luring anything with their makeshift rods and reels, and Peteo found himself the more frustrated of the two, a thought the made Zeshin chuckle.



"I remember a few things, getting my sword from Aki, and I remember discovering I had magical powers. I remember my mom closing down the bar and us having a picnic for my 10th birthday. I remember meeting Nani for the first, and alot of other stuff." Zeshin said, now looking into the sky, a warm glow emanating from his person, his aura gently heating the air around him.

[Nagoyaka Rajah]

Rajah smiled at Zeshin's reminiscence. And whereas if this was any normal day, he would have asked him to elaborate on the stories of his childhood, since he was mildly interested. But, first things first.

The Tora-jin took a deep breath, preparing himself for the upcoming training.

"Okay, Zeshin," Rajah started. "I believe both of those memories will suffice for this training session. First, I want you to summon your ability over fire through your open palms, using the adrenaline from your selected bad memory, like so."

With another deep breath, Rajah closed his eyes and reminisced on the day he killed the refugees. Instantly, Rajah's spirit magic started to form into a green light hovering over his open paws. He opened his eyes with a serious look on his face.

"Keep your energy stable yet strong," Rajah informed. "Let me know when your abilities are starting to grow out of your control, but continue to dwell on that memory until then, understand?"

[Zeshin Lak-el Ury]

Zeshin closed his eyes and focused on keeping his magic under control, a task that seemed simple enough as he though back on his more fond memories. The more he focused, the farther his aura spread, and as Zeshin opened his eyes, they began to grow a pale blue, more calm than the fiercely bright color that beamed from eyes at the heights of his anger.

His blue aura then began to shift in color, growing muted and white, and then it took on a more rueful appearance, as a red glow basked the surrounding area. Taking notice of this Zeshin held out his hands to see that his whole being was covered in the glow, "This is so cool!" He said to Rajah, his excitement causing the color and intensity of the heat coming from him to rise. Taking note of this, Zeshin calmed himself as to not offend Rajah