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Ah, Phoenix Wonderland. What else could Tsukasa say?
This was the place to be for smiles and happiness. For wonder and excitement! Most importantly to him, it was the place for shows!
Tsukasa let out a hearty breath, taking in the air and the sun. After all, he was a star! He needed the sun to compliment his perfect skin! (Never mind the 20 step skincare routine he had to do to get it so perfectly)
Screams of cheer and thrills rang out from the distant roller coasters, children’s laughter filled the air when the oversized mascot comically fell over. Tsukasa was more than ready to practice.
That’s when he heard something very peculiar.
“HONK!”
Tsukasa jumped a little, muttering to himself as he turned around to face what had made that noise.
A goose. Staring at him. Just a few feet away.
It wasn’t too out of the ordinary, animals wandered in all the time. Especially birds, there was actually a swan that hung around by the picnic areas of the park looking for food. Higher ups were going to chase it off or get rid of it, but Emu wasn’t about to have that and got her family to buy its protection, so now it’s a treasured member of the park called ‘Hakucho-san’. Kids loved Hakucho-san.
The point is, there was a goose in the park giving him the stink eye. He had no idea what to do.
“…hi?”
“HONK!”
The goose edged closer, Tsukasa was starting to get nervous.
“Oi, oi! Hold on, mister goose!” Tsukasa raised his hands, backing away the goose. It did not listen.
Then, the goose started to scream.
“HONK!! HONK HONK!!”
“GGAAGHH!!” The goose raged and chased him around the entire theme park, honking and hawking along the way. It took about an hour for them to finally reach the wonder stage, where the rest of the troupe were waiting for him.
“Oh!! It’s Tsukasa!!” Emu called, her face lighting up. The rest of the troupe seemed to be elated, only for their faces to drop when they realised the situation.
Tsukasa, almost in a flash, crashed into the rest of the troupe, a failed attempt to get away from the raging goose.
“GGAAAAAGHH!!! HELP MEEEE!!!” He screamed, clutching onto the others.
“Oh!! MISTER GOOSE!!” Emu called, flailing her arms around. “STOP BEING MEAN TO TSUKASA!!!”
“HONK!”
“AAAAGH!!” Emu screamed, jumping to Nene, who looked like she’d rather be anywhere else. However, when the goose looked back to Tsukasa, it noticed that he was clutching to Rui. Rui himself was hanging on right back, clutching Tsukasa’s waist like it was a lifeline. To this, the goose settled down and walked away.
What?
WHAT?!
“Tsukasa, what the hell was that about?” Nene broke the tense silence, looking up at him with a mixture of contempt and confusion.
“HOW SHOULD I KNOW?!? That ANIMAL just started going for me!!” His grip on Rui loosened slightly as he tried to catch his breath.
“I’ve never seen that goose before!” Emu chirped up, pacing around as she watched it in the distance. “It’s definitely not Hachuko-san! Should I tell my brothers about it?”
“I…really don’t know. That goose actually attacked me, Hachuko-san just likes food. I’m still reeling over the fact that I got RANSACKED BY A GOOSE!!” Tsukasa clutched back onto Rui to emphasise his point.
“Fufu, you better be careful with that guy! They say a goose can break a man’s arm!” Rui looked to Tsukasa as he teased him with this, the little space between them becoming increasingly more clear.
“DON’T SAY THAT!!” He screamed, his voice reaching a good hundred decibels.
“My star, you’re still hanging onto me”
“I’M JUST SCARED!!” He nearly started crying, though it was a little exaggerated, as he clutched onto Rui. His weary voice led Rui to let out a heartfelt sigh. He then started to pet Tsukasa’s hair gently, letting him get all of the fear out.
If that goose showed up again, practice was going to be a nightmare!
Tsukasa, for all his excitement, his eccentricity and his hyperactive nature, was at peace at home. Despite the nightmareish nature of his room, he liked it here. He was still weirded out that one of his walls was just not there, but that’s not the point!
After a long day of school, then practice, then making dinner for Saki and he, he felt at peace just sketching out ideas in his room. Shows, outfits, designs, all sorts. His passions lie in the creative, so creativity is what he’ll have.
That’s when he saw it.
He could see through one of the windows from his bedroom’s balcony, only a snippet though.
What he saw in that snippet was two webbed feet.
His blood ran cold.
His pencil stopped in its tracks as he tried to process what he was seeing. Webbed feet. The same webbed feet from earlier. The goose.
The goose was here.
Tsukasa gulped down some of his nerves and picked up his phone, white as a sheet. His fingers tapped out a message to his dear sister, who he could hear practising singing in her own room.
StarBro: Saki
StarBro: whatever you do, do not go outside
He set the phone down, tracking his breathing. Even though the goose was outside and he was in, he was paranoid that the goose would somehow hear his fear in his breath.
Then, his phone got a notification.
PianoMedley: what??
PianoMedley: tsukasa what’s up?? D:
StarBro: do you see it
StarBro: look out the kitchen window
PianoMedley: bro
PianoMedley: its a goose
PianoMedley: answer ur door!!
Speak of the devil and he won’t knock, but his much better sister surely will. He heard a few knocks at his door, and a concerned voice on the other side
“Tsukasaaa!! Are you having a stroke in there or something?” Saki’s voice rang out, the only care in her voice being her worry about her brother's sanity.
“Get in here Saki!! I’ll explain!” His voice was half a whisper, half a screech, but completely riddled in panic. She hurried in as per his word, but looked incredibly confused. When she saw where Tsukasa was pointing, she sighed heavily.
“Ugh, Tsukasa, it’s just a goose! Are you working yourself too hard or something?” Saki held her hands to her hips, an eyebrow raised.
“No, no, you don’t get it!! Earlier today when I was working, that exact goose was there! It attacked me!!” He waved his hands around aimlessly to paint the picture of the scene. Saki looked entirely unconvinced.
“That…same goose?”
“THE SAME GOOSE!!!”
Tsukasa was exasperated, he was stressed and he was tired. Why can’t there be one normal night in the Tenma household? Saki raised her fingers to her chin, making thinking noises (‘hmmm’ and ‘hummm’ for example) and pacing a little. Then, she patted her legs and turned back to face her brother.
“Do you want to go see if it really is the same goose?”
“WHAAAAT?!?”
Tsukasa’s scream actually shook the foundations of the house. Wow.
“OW!! Jesus, Bro! I was just asking!”
“If you THINK I’m going anywhere where that MANIAC BIRD is, you’re madder than me!” It was Tsukasa’s turn to pace around the room, panicking.
“I just think we could go and confirm our suspicions! You can come with me!” She patted her fist to her chest and let out a hearty laugh, similar to her brothers. “HA HA HA HA! I will protect you, dear brother!”
“…if you’re coming with, then sure!” Tsukasa worked up a bit more courage, though he still clutched onto his sister's arm. He wasn’t even scared of birds, just this one specific goose! Utterly humiliating for a star such as himself.
“Alright! Let’s go, Synth girl and Star boy, out to confront a goose!” Saki cheered, dragging Tsukasa out of his room along the way.
Among all this buffoonery and mayhem, the goose remained unmoved. It just stared through the window with its beady eyes of death. Saki didn’t seem to see it that way though.
“Awwwwww!! He looks so sweet!” Saki cooed, tapping on the glass a little.
“Don’t call him sweet, he tried to break my arm!!” Tsukasa screamed, hiding behind his sister, his face resembling a lost hamster.
“Alright, you wait here while I open the door and see it. We’ll see if it attacks me!” Saki explained, much to her brother's protests.
“WHAT?! No! No! You’re not facing that…thing!! That would be so cruel of me!” His confidence perked back up in the name of protecting his sister, and so he swung the window/door open with ease. He marched right on outside, prepared to face the monster that had been attacking him.
“What do you want, fiend!” He put on his best showman’s voice, waiting for the goose to respond.
To his surprise, the goose was passive. It just sat there and looked at him. Those little beady black eyes made their home right in Tsukasa’s soul and he started to regret not dragging Saki out here for backup.
Then, the goose spat something at him.
Turns out it’s beak was holding something. What the goose just spat was something very peculiar indeed.
Two buttons, one orange/yellow, one purple, tied together by red string.
How fascinating. How…confusing.
Tsukasa took a look at the obscure gift, then looked at the goose with a sense of contempt. Was this thing the gooses’ agenda?
As it turns out it wasn’t. That’s what Tsukasa learned when the bird then flew at his head.
“AAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHH!!!” Tsukasa’s scream could genuinely be heard for miles “SAKIIIIIII OPEN THE DOOOORRR!!!!” He started banging and rapping at the door like a lost cat, fighting off the raging goose. Saki yelled back, scrambling with the door handle and wrangling Tsukasa in. Then, she slammed it on the goose, who let out a mighty ‘HONK!’ before flying away.
Jesus Christ.
“Tsukasa!! Oh my god- ARE YOU OKAY?!?!” Saki was fully convinced of the goose's maliciousness, panicking and fussing like someone had died. Drama runs in the family.
“Agh- I don’t know! It just spat at me then started attacking again!!” Tsukasa was just as confounded. He leaned against a counter, heaving out his breaths.
What on earth was happening to him?!
The night was old and the morning was nearly in sight. Purple colours were mashing together with a dark orange, creating a hue that could make anyone yawn. Tsukasa, however, hadn’t slept a wink.
That item the stalking goose had given him was doing his brain psychic damage. Two buttons tied together with red string? In two different colours?! What the hell was this? Tsukasa didn’t know, but…he had an idea.
Orange and purple were the colours of he and Rui, after all. Those colours were intricate to them. So clearly, this was about Tsukasa and Rui.
…Rui.
His mind did wander a bit, he had to admit. Rui was the kind of person you could think so much about. Tsukasa’s hand shook a little as he admired the purple button. Now that he saw it, small specks in the button's paint were electric blue, much like those odd streaks in Rui’s hair. How could he NOT think about Rui, looking at this thing? What their next show together would be like, how much Rui hates the bento boxes he gets, the way his mouth curls up when he laughs, his chapped up lips and…
Ah. Okay.
That’s…interesting.
He raised a slow, shaky hand to feel his face, feeling the heat through his palm.
Great. That’s just…great…
He took another look at the buttons, both of them this time. The red string that tied them, not that he thought about it, had to mean something more. After all, the buttons resembled two people! Who wouldn’t put even more effort into the string between them? The colour must be a deliberate choice, but why red in particular…?
They had made a play about such a red string. The red string of fate. To be honest, the play’s plot was pretty basic. A princess is set to marry a prince from another kingdom, but she finds a string tied to her finger one day that leads to the peasant boy she was friends with as a child. That string meant that they were destined to be together. Again, basic, but what it lacked in plot it made up for in both heart and comedic value, plus a REALLY cool dragon animatronic that Rui made for it.
Was this red string…tying Tsukasa and Rui together?
It made Tsukasa’s heart burst to think about that.
Before he could whine about his own situation anymore, a flash on his phone caught his attention.
“Hey! Tsukasa?? Please tell me you’re awake!” A familiar, robotic voice called from his phone.
“Eh? KAITO? What’s going on?!”
“Uhm, well…You’re going to want to see this. There’s a goose in the SEKAI”
Indeed, as KAITO said, there was a raging goose loose in the SEKAI. Currently, it was trying to maul Miku.
“WAAAAHH!!” She screamed, dashing around with a plush bunny tight in her arms. “LEAVE ME ALONE MISTER GOOSE!!”
“HONK!!” The goose, if it could understand her, wasn’t going to listen.
“You see the problem, Tsukasa?” KAITO asked, his face saying the equivalent of ‘I don’t get paid enough for this’.
“Yes…Yes I see it. The problem has wings and it attacks people” Tsukasa’s comment was pretty redundant, but he could be forgiven for it. After all, this was his SEKAI and if there’s a goose attacking people in it, something was clearly wrong.
“Any idea what this is about, Tsukasa?” KAITO asked his question calmly, but you could tell that there was a bit of desperation to his voice. Tsukasa even noted that KAITO was covered in a few goose feathers of his own.
“Um…well I don't know how I could get rid of that bird myself, but I think I know what's causing it…” Tsukasa clutched the buttons and string in his pockets, gulping down some extra nerves.
“And that is..? Please…?” KAITO, while still calm and maintained, was begging Tsukasa for any sort of reason for this mayhem. To this, Tsukasa unveiled what was in his pocket and handed it to him. KAITO analysed the item closely, humming and hahing until something seemed to click. All the while, Miku was still being mauled and screaming in the background.
“Ah…so I thought…” His tone was ominous, scaring Tsukasa out of his wits.
“What?? What is it??”
“You appear to have a soulmate, Tsukasa…though I've never seen the calling take this form…” KAITO’s words only scared Tsukasa more.
“Soulmates?!? What are you on about?!” Tsukasa’s yells nearly matched Mikus; Panic certainly was afoot in the Wonderland SEKAI.
“You’re bound to someone, by fate. Usually it takes the form of a red string, or a marking on the person's body, or so on and so forth. I’ve…never seen a goose…” KAITO’s anxiety about this did nothing to help.
“What do I dooooo!!! There’s a goose stalking me outside of this SEKAI as well!! It’s gonna chase me until I DIEEE!!” Tsukasa’s drama was in full force, shaking KAITO's arm while whining.
“Hm…Judging by how these buttons look, I think there’s someone you need to connect with a little better. I don’t know if you already…” he stepped around the point a little, not wanting to step on anyone's toes. However, Tsukasa had the look of someone who already knew. His face was a small shade of red and he was staring at the ground, fist clenched.
“It’s…It’s Rui isn’t it? That’s who the goose is trying to chase me to…isn’t it?”
“Hah…I’d say so…I think the goose will lay off if you manage to reach him. Though, that’s just my estimation from other soulmates I’ve seen, or even sung about!” He let out a small laugh, which did not help Tsukasa.
“...I’ll see what I can do, KAITO. Thanks for the help!” Tsukasa smiled, though subtly. It was a lot more honest, had a lot less showmanship put into it. It was a smile that KAITO could trust to see this goose to the end.
“I…should probably help Miku” Oh yeah, Miku was still screaming. “Break a leg, star of the show!” KAITO sent a thumbs up of encouragement as Tsukasa logged out of the SEKAI. When he found himself back in his room, at the ass crack of dawn, he knew what he had to do. God knows how long it would take him, though.
The next week was a week of pure goose hell. Honestly, what else could it be? When he tried to go to school? Goose. Go home? Goose? Visit someone? Goose. Sleep?! GOOSE. The only way the goose could be calmed would be if he stuck by Rui. Neither party was complaining, of course, but Rui was noticing how much closer and more affectionate Tsukasa was being. Again, no complaints, but his heart could race only so many times a day before he needed a defibrillator. Or maybe his heart should just stop, that would save him all the red faces and the heart jackhammering in his chest every time Tsukasa jumped to him to avoid the goose.
“Let’s just- let’s just go to the roof, Rui!! Can geese fly?!” Tsukasa was latched onto Rui’s arm, head darting every which way, looking for a sign of the feathery fiend.
“Uh…Yes, Star, geese can fly. Though I don’t know how bothered one would be to fly all the way up…we could give it a shot if you’re really that scared of it!” Rui giggled a little, leading the paranoid Tsukasa upwards. The stairs weren’t that long of a walk, most of the seniors' classes were higher up in the school, so it wasn’t long before they found themselves in that special place in any school.
“Phew…” Rui mumbled “It seems a storm is coming in…”
“...how can you tell?”
“The air. And the giant cloud on the horizon. Or a hunch” Rui raised his hand to his chin and giggled, giving Tsukasa a heart attack. Somehow, after the reveal that Rui was almost definitely his soulmate, every little move that he made sent Tsukasa’s heart flying. He didn’t want to be thankful to the goose, but somehow it did bring them closer. He could be grateful for that at least.
“Ehhh, well, it won’t get here till the afternoon, so we’re fine!” Tsukasa let go of Rui’s arm, marching forward and raising his fist to challenge. “YOU HEAR THAT, GOOSE!! WE’RE UP HERE, AWAY FROM YOU!! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!” He screamed to the high heavens, spinning around during the last sentence in a shameless reference the writer was making.
“Good form, Tsukasa. That yell will be good for that last scene in our next show!” Rui found himself admiring the man, his eyelids falling slightly. Tsukasa beamed at that comment, running back to his side.
That’s when he saw it. The goose, flying behind him. Going straight for the head.
“TSUKASA!” Rui yelled, pulling him in quickly then ducking to avoid the goose sweep. The bird landed a few feet from them and honked, bamboozled again by the two soulmates.
“IT’S HERE?!?!” Tsukasa screamed, only to have his mouth clasped shut by Rui’s hand.
“Shhhhhh, they hate loud noises and sudden movements. Stay still, for the LOVE of god…” He whispered back, keeping Tsukasa close with an arm wrapped around his shoulders. They both lay low slightly, possibly in an attempt to not seem like threats. The goose wasn’t convinced. It’s neck bowed low and it let out a mighty hiss before charging straight at them. When Tsukasa tried to get out of dodge, Rui pulled him back and kept him close. In response, he clinged to Rui’s jumper, waiting for further instruction. That further instruction being backing away very slowly.
“WHY ARE WE GOING SO SLOW?!?!” Tsukasa whisper screamed, which was basically a scream considering his voice.
“You don’t run, you just stand your ground and avoid attack.” Rui whispered back, guiding Tsukasa away with gentle hands. The goose, surprisingly, seemed to lay off a little at this gesture of affection. “Just keep watching it. If it goes for us, duck”
“What? It’s not a duck, It’s a goose!”
“My star…” Rui looked at him for a second, concern in his eyes. That’s when the goose found its opportunity.
“AH, DUCK!!” Tsukasa screamed, tackling Rui to the ground. The goose sweeped over them, landing again a few feet away and regaining its position of attack. The other position in the area, the one that Tsukasa and Rui were in, was a lot more awkward.
“Ah- Rui!” Tsukasa’s face was way too close to Rui’s, the latter being sprawled on the floor while the former leaning over him. “Ah-I’m sorry it’s just-” His red faced spluttering got quickly interrupted when Rui pulled him in, then hauled themselves both up.
“No time, my star, keep your ground!” Rui eased him back up onto his feet, then held him close as he regained eye contact with the goose. However, to his surprise, the goose seemed a lot less hostile now. Despite its assumed personality of, well, being a goose, it looked up to the sky and noted the current weather (at least, that’s what Rui assumed). It seemed to be plotting.
“God…how’d it get like this…first Phoenix Wonderland, then my own house, then the SEKAI, now here?! What did I doooooo….” Tsukasa whined, hands firmly around Rui. However, one of those lines didn’t make sense to his soulmate. The SEKAI? How could this goose manifest inside the SEKAI?
“My star…Tsukasa…what was this goose doing in the SEKAI?!” Rui spluttered out his words, exasperated and tired from managing both a goose and a man.
“Attacking Miku!! It was so scary!”
“...Why?”
Why indeed. Tsukasa would have to explain…that…
His face, quite suddenly, got very red again. Why explain this now…in front of the goose…that’s essentially trying to set them up!!
“Okay…Rui…I’m going to explain something that’s going to sound insane! Just please believe me when I say it!!” Tsukasa’s words stumbled about, already nervous about what he was going to say. Rui, calm as ever, simply nodded while keeping his gaze firmly on the goose.
“Whatever it is, if it sorts this goose out, I'll believe it!”
That was all Tsukasa needed to hear.
“You know the concept of soulmates?!”
“Huh?” Rui’s voice cracked a bit, confused about the possible correlation.
“Well, this is what me and KAITO assumed, but apparently this goose is chasing me to mine!” He hung on to Rui a little closer, giving himself the chance to breathe.
“And?? Who is your soulmate? Can we get you to them?!” Rui asked, clearly not getting what Tsukasa was implying. Mainly because of the goose presence.
“Well…I think I’m with him now, which is why the goose isn’t attacking!”
Rui made a small sound, it sounded most like a gasp.
“Wait…HUH?!?” His face suddenly turned red, turning to face Tsukasa again. Only this time, the goose didn't go for another swing.
“Yeah!! I think that’s why it left when I first hung onto you!! That damn bird’s been trying to set us up!!” Tsukasa pointed a very accusatory finger at the goose, who let out a satisfied honk noise.
“Tsukasa…I’ve just realised how close we are…” Rui’s voice cracked again as he stumbled to the floor, red as a beet. “I think fight or flight kicked in…god…” He hid his face in his hands, having clearly forgotten about goose protocol.
“Fight or flight kicked in for you…over a goose?” Tsukasa asked, looking back up at the animal. It was now just sitting down, nibbling at its feathers. “That’s…adorable” He thought out loud, turning back to Rui.
“You were here…I didn’t want you to get hurt” Rui whined, tucking his legs in. Now that's adorable. The goose seemed very satisfied with its work as well. Tsukasa walked over and sat down in front of Rui, a smile uncontrollably plastered onto his red face. He gently removed a hand from his soulmate's face and admired what was before him. A tomato red Rui, embarrassed that he protected Tsukasa so valiantly from a goose of all things. A goose that was actively trying to set them up!!
“Ugh…my face is burning…my stomach… ughhhhh…” Rui kept whining, tossing his head into the space between his knees. Tsukasa let out a small laugh at that.
“...Is it a surprise? That we’re soulmates?” Tsukasa asked, tilting his head.
“It’s…it’s nice to know…” His eyes peaked out of their resting place, looking at Tsukasa with adoration yet nervousness. “I’d love to spend my life with you…I just didn’t know if we were actually fated…” He let out another sigh, trying to cover the blush on his face.
“Well, if a goose even says that we’re perfect, then we’re perfect!” Tsukasa’s grin made Rui’s heart flutter, letting him take his head out of his knees for a second. When he could, Tsukasa admired his newly found soulmate's flustered expression. The goose was right, he truly was made for this man. He felt his heart soar as well, scooting closer to Rui to admire him closer.
“HONK!”
One last honk made the two turn around. The goose had let out a content noise and took off, soaring into the horizon. As much as that goose tortured him, he was grateful. So, so grateful.
Then, he remembered. KAITO and Miku!! He flipped up his phone and whispered something into it.
“The goose should be gone! I’ll need a moment to myself though”
When the phone slipped back into his pocket, he faced Rui once again.
“This is us then. Heh” Tsukasa’s small laugh made Rui’s heart leap for joy, more than any proud showmans cackle. Without thinking, he leapt out of his crouch and secured Tsukasa in a tight hug. The hug itself was quickly reciprocated, Tsukasa humming as he wrapped back around him.
“God…I’m so happy, my star…” Rui’s voice was wobbly, clutching onto his soulmate like it was their last embrace. “I’m so happy, I could kiss you!”
“Why don’t you, Rui?” Tsukasa’s head pulled out of the hug so he could press his nose against Rui’s. When the contact was made, Rui got even redder.
“Ah- my star I- I mean-”
“Can I kiss you, Rui? My soulmate?” Tsukasa’s words were gentle, melting Rui like a quiet flame to a candle.
He nodded, two nods was all it took. Tsukasa closed the gap.
Neither of them had felt anything more wonderful. Their faces fit together like a puzzle, being able to melt into the taste of the other without letting go. Tsukasa’s hand floated up to Rui’s hair, stroking the purple strands, making Rui shiver. He could also taste the ramune candy on Rui’s lips, taking it in like it was Rui’s own. Tsukasa’s taste was of pumpkin, which was a surprise, but not an unwelcome one. When the two finally had to part, it felt like it had been an eternity and yet a second since they started.
“...That was wonderful…my star…” Rui’s face flashed back into red and he dived into Tsukasa’s shoulder. Despite his bouldering confidence, Tsukasa had devolved into a blushing mess too.
The pair held each other close on the roof, not thinking to part for even a second. When a flock of geese passed by, one let out a honk of celebration. Another soulmate found.
The goose's work was done.