|
SECOND CHANCES
PROLOGUE
The first
and last fanfic I've ever written was done when I was 13 years old (man,
that was so long ago!). It wasn't even an anime-based one. I think the
cartoon's title was Zone Riders (eh, not too sure on that one, it's American).
I tried making a romance between the characters Corporal Katerina Anastasia
and Sgt. Tank Schmidt. I thought they looked cute together especially after
they played husband and wife as undercover agents. I did it diary style.
Uhm, unfortunately, it turns out that the lovely lady corporal was in love
with the team captain Dirk. Eh! So what you'll be reading this time would
be my second attempt. This was inspired by A Sailormoon Romance: Jadeite
and Rei, The Past Returns written by Mara Julianne. If there are any inconsistencies
here, well, forgive me then, Besides, it's only fanfic! Okay, read on!
*********
"Are you
sure you can handle all of it, Grandpa?" Rei asked her grandfather again
as he eyed the list in his hand.
"Sure,
sure. Nothing to it." Grandfather dismissed. "It's not the first time I
went to a grocery store you know." He reassured his granddaughter. Kids,
he thought, still young and they worry about everything already.
Rei frowned.
The last time her grand father went shopping for supplies, he'd nearly
been thrown out the store for peeking under the cashier's skirt. She would've
done the shopping herself but she had slipped and sprained her ankle yesterday.
Forcing herself to walk caused excruciating pain. She sighed. The shopping
couldn't be postponed for another day. There wasn't any food left at the
temple and her friends were coming over tonight.
"You be
careful now, Grandpa." She called off to the figure walking down the steps
of Hikawa Jinja.
"I will...I
will." He called back.
"And don't
forget anything!" she reminded again as he disappeared around the corner.
Rei closed
the door and took the walking stick that aided her walk. She was angry
with herself for falling over the steps yesterday. She bit her lip every
now and then to hold back the pain that occurred every time she stepped
forward.
She peered
over the fireplace, watching the flames dance brightly. Her two pet ravens
Phobos and Deimos danced merrily about. Apparently the two birds were happy
about something. It looked as though something good was about to happen.
She shook her head. Something good should happen today. Her dreams of the
past few days were strange and complicated. She hoped it wasn't an omen
of things to come.
It was
cold. Cold drops of water fell on his cheek, rousing him from what seemed
to be an eternal sleep. He brushed the dewdrops that had fallen on his
face. Gradually, he opened his eyes, only to close them again as he was
blinded by the bright sunlight that greeted him. He carefully rose from
the supine position. Pain seared through his head like a sharp flash, almost
making him fall again. Only the quick support of his elbow prevented him
from doing so. Every muscle on his body seemed to ache. Had he grown old
and developed arthritis already? The flash of pain subsided after a while
and the cramps of his muscles mellowed down. He opened his eyes, revealing
their clear blue depths. A wisp of his wavy blonde hair fell in front of
his face and he brushed it aside. Slowly he began to assess the vision
before him. A field of green grass with tall trees planted intermittently
and fragrant flowers scattered greeted him. A stone cherub stood in between
a large pool of clear water, the stream flowing from the basin he held.
In the distance he could hear children's noises, laughing, teasing playfully
under the warmth of the sun and the blow of a gentle breeze.
"Where
am I?" he wondered.
He stood
up. He noted that the clothes he were wearing, a blue general's uniform,
was tattered and torn. He was barefoot. When he raised his hand to touch
his face, he felt a rough stubble on his chin. He moved over to the stone
fountain and glanced at his reflection on the water. He almost didn't recognize
his face.
I look
pathetic, he thought. His wavy blonde hair was short but disshevelled.
A fine stubble of the same color covered his chin lightly. That and his
clothes taken altogether made him look like a derelict.
He stood
straight and looked around. The place was totally alien to him. Why was
he here anyway? He tried to think but couldn't come up with anything. It
seems his mind was a total blank. Deciding he wouldn't get any answers
by standing there, he started to walk.
"Look
at that."
"He looks
like a vagrant."
"Maybe
he's a nutcase."
"Too
bad. He's kind of cute though."
People
whispered as the tall, blonde stranger in a torn uniform walked by. He
merely ignored them and their snide comments. He simply wandered around
the streets of downtown Tokyo, observing the place. He had been wandering
for a half hour or so and still he had no idea where he was or why he was
here. He tried to analyze but kept on coming to a blank halt.
Exhausted
and with another attack of the splitting headache, he stopped and sat in
front of a store. He closed his eyes trying to shut out the pain when a
hand was suddenly put on his shoulder. Reflex prompted him to grip the
wrist and pull the arm forward. The owner barely budged. When he opened
his eyes, he was met by a kind pair of eyes the same fathomless blue as
his own.
"Jadeite."
"Who?"
he snapped back. He stood up to face the man whose face was at level with
his. The man was dressed in a tailored suit. His long, brown curly hair
framed his handsome face. At his arm was a young woman with red hair and
a pink ribbon on her head.
He eyed
the man menacingly, though apparently he wasn't threatened. Jadeite noted
that the man's hand was still on his shoulder.
As if
understanding, the dark-haired stranger took his hand off. He smiled, "We
have been given a second chance, my friend. Don't let it go to waste."
He stated.
Before
Jadeite could ask what the other man had meant, the latter turned and walked
away. "Hey! What do you mean?" he called. But the man did not seem to hear
him as he escorted his female companion to a parked red sports car.
"Who was
that Masato-sama?" the girl asked at last. She noted the man still calling
for her beau.
"An old
friend, Naru-chan." He replied as he started the car.
Jadeite
stared at the vehicle that was about to leave. He was about to follow it
when something heavy struck him from behind.
Thump!
He fell
flat to the ground, his face missing the pavement by an inch. A heavy object
laid on his back.
"And stay
out!" an angry, burly man screamed. He was standing at the grocery store
door, waving a rolled newspaper towards Jadeite. "If I ever catch you looking
under my daughter's skirt again, I'll wipe the floor with you! And I don't
care if you're an old man!"
Jadeite
turned his head. The burly man wasn't screaming at him, but at the person
who had landed on his broad back. It was a small, bald old man who was
currently holding his hairless head. "People! They just don't respect their
elders anymore!" he complained as he got up, dusting off his priest robes.
He turned towards a bewildered Jadeite and shook his hand, "Thank you for
breaking my fall there, young man. I could've broken my neck if you hadn't
cushioned my fall." He proceeded to pick up the fallen groceries scattered
on the pavement.
Jadeite
had no clue what was going on. He looked over his shoulder to across the
street. The car was gone. No chance of him finding out who that man was
and why he knew him. His gaze shifted to the tiny man who smashed into
him. The poor guy was attempting to balance three tall grocery bags full
of food unsuccessfully. Before Jadeite could do anything, the man had fallen
over and had spilled the contents over the sidewalk again.
Something
in Jadeite's head told him to pick up the fallen goods and replace them
in the bag.
"Thank
you, young man." Rei's grandfather acknowledged. "Oh, I haven't even given
you anything for helping me out earlier. How thoughtless of me!" He took
an orange from one of the bags and handed it to Jadeite. "Take it. It looks
as if you hadn't eaten in a while."
The former
Negaverse General took the bright colored fruit and stared at it. What
is this? He thought., eyeing the orange carefully. What purpose does it
serve? A querying look was shot at Rei's grandfaher.
"You don't
like oranges?" the old man asked. Jadeite simply stared back at him. The
old man laughed. "How silly of me, of course!" he said. "Say, why don't
you come back to the temple with me? I can give you something more filling
than that. Come on."
Rei's
grand father took the fruit back and led Jadeite's hand. "Oh don't be shy
now." the old man reassured when he didn't budge. "We'll eat a lot of sushi,
I'll pour you some warm tea, and I'll even spare you some clothes to change
those rags." He pulled Jadeite but the latter stood still and unmoving.
As if realizing something, Grandpa said, "You probably heard about my grand
daughter Rei. She's not really mean, you know. She's actually a very sweet
kid, so don't believe all that hearsay. Come now."
It was
as though a spark had been lit for him when Jadeite heard the name Rei.
As though something suddenly struck his clouded mind. Her name sounded
familiar…and yet…he couldn't be sure. Perhaps this Rei person knew something
about him that would explain his situation. He could use a lot more information
than his brain was currently providing him with. He took two of the three
grocery bags from the old man, lest they fall again, and said, "Okay, I'll
come with you."
*****
Rei
was sweeping the front steps of the temple when she heard her grandfather's
offbeat humming. He would be in a fit if he saw her cleaning, as he insisted
she rest her injured foot. But leaves and dust had gathered carelessly
on the temple floor and it wouldn't be right. Her friends would be coming
over tonight.
She looked up to greet her grandpa when he caught her eye. The smile disappeared
from her lips. He was no less than ten feet away but she recognized him
immediately. Under the dishevelled hair and the thin grazing of beard,
he was the same man. Rei quickly drew one of her ofuda scrolls and
chanted her exorcism. Despite her aching foot, she launched in mid-air
to throw the scroll at her target.
"Rei stop!" her grandfather saw what she was about to do and jumped to
block the sheet of paper she had cast.
Before Rei could put on her brakes, the scroll had hit her grandfather
square in the forehead. He fell back and for a second time, landed on Jadeite.
Rei, the pain on her ankle overcoming her, landed less than gracefully
and collided with the two men. The three of them were sent crashing on
the floor, with grandfather rolling aside and Rei landing on top of Jadeite.
Rei found herself atop the former Negaverse general, her face less than
a foot away from him. She found herself looking into his clear blue eyes.
A fiery warning emanated from her own violet stare, directing them at the
man who looked back at her in wonder.
"Rei!" her Grandfather called out angrily. He proceeded to pull his grandchild
off Jadeite. "That's no way to treat a guest!"
Rei's eyes stared at the old man incredulously. ""What?" she exclaimed,
"You're not serious, Grandpa!"
Jadeite stood up and dusted off his worn-out garb. He proceeded to pick
up the fallen grocery bags for the nth time. It seems the groceries spill
out more than need be today. All the while he was staring at Rei who was
engaging on a war of words with her grandfather.
So this is Rei, he thought. Somehow she looked familiar, though he couldn't
pinpoint when or where he had seen her. But then, it's not possible...he
concluded. For if he had met someone as beautiful as she was, he'd be sure
to remember. And she was just that...beautiful.
"But Grandpa! You can't let him stay here." she protested,"He's...he's..."
Rei couldn't get to tell her grandfather that the man he had brought home
was Queen Beryl's general. Of course beryl was long dead, and still...
"He's a man with no home, no family, no food, no memory." the old man concluded.
"He's my guest and I have a right to welcome to Hikawa Jinja who I please!
Besides, if it weren't for him, I'd probably be in the hospital now!"
If he doesn't send you there himself, Rei thought bitterly. She threw a
warning look at Jadeite. Not if I can help it, she told herself.
"Come now...uh..." Rei's grandfather called, "What's your name again?"
"Uh...." Jadeite stuttered. He can't seem to recall. What had that dark-haired
man on the street called him?
|