AN: Wow... One-shots aren't really my thing anymore, but I've done a few. I think it's time I did another and here it is. My favorite couple in FoR, which I have never written for, is now my new writing obssession. Actually, it isn't but it may be. So please review and I'll think of another story if I have time.
To Anime angeL: Where is your fanart for TOUGA? God, woman, even I know how to keep that kind of promise. Come on now! So, in honor of your laziness, I'll dedicate this to Touga because... Well, I liked her fanart for Tokiya and Fuuko. At least she did it! Grr... And where's my fanart for Caught Between Reality and You? I refuse to post my RyoSaku one-shot until you've finished it. Hmph!
Summary: One-shot. Tokiya/Fuuko. When ice and wind meet, a snow storm is the result. After an abrupt snow fall, Fuuko is left to think of the elements and who they represent. These thoughts lead her to Mikagami Tokiya, the ice that she, the wind, blows around and lightly touches without disturbing the frost. Both of their elements bring winter, so what can they offer each other?
Warnings: Have not seen the complete FoR series. I am going with what I have and any spoilers I've come across. If I'm wrong, I'm sorry and feel free to tell me. Also, Fuuko is OOC. She thinks more than she acts on impulse. Sorry again!
Disclaimer: All rights reserved.
Passionate Storm
It was a cool winter afternoon. The forecast had explained a snowstorm to occur the day before and had been right for once. It had drowned the entire city's streets and houses, leaving many people snowed into their homes for the morning. The large trucks, known for shovelling snow, were seen throughout the city so the many citizens could get to work. It had delayed most of them from exiting the house until early afternoon, leaving the sun to melt the masses of ice slightly.
The adolescents of the large town were quick to leave their warm, sanctioned homes for the snowy wonderland that only visited during the cold recesses of the year. All of them were bundled in thick jackets and many lairs of clothing, thanks to many worried parents.
Throughout the day, these children could be found throughout the entire town. Wherever there was a snow-covered hill or enbankment of crushed ice, you were sure to find many youths because of the piling of frost. Even those who were not of such a young age were found playing in the white frost. Namely, there was Hanabishi Recca, the fire ninja with skill beyond that of any opponent, with his hime, Sakoshita Yanagi, a girl who once possessed healing powers and the ability to give immortal life.
The two were found in the park with other comrades accompanying them. Recca happened to be sledding down the large hill while Yanagi was quite content playing with Ganko, Fuuko's 'adopted' little sister. They were building a snowman while Koganei Kaoru, a misguided boy turned Hokage, went sledding with Recca. The similarity between the two obnoxious boys was quite strange, even mistakable as brothers to those who didn't know better. Their spiked hair and arrogance were eerily similar, making people wonder.
The one known as Ishijima Domon, the overbearing giant with a negative I.Q., was hanging around with the other two boys. He enjoyed pushing them off the hill, even when they weren't ready on the sled. He laughed animatedly as they tumbled over each other as they went down ungracefully. However, in the middle of the merriment, stood two characters who were silent. Although one was usually quiet, the other was uncharacteristically calm.
Standing near a tree was Mikagami Tokiya, the ice prince of both the element and personality. His hands were shoved into the pockets of his tan jacket as he watched with an air of casual boredom. On his other side, however, stood the unusually at-ease countenance of Kirisawa Fuuko, the wind goddess of the mortal realm. Or, formerly at least. With their weapons gone, the titles were merely a part of the past and their still unbroken ties that held them so close.
The Fuuko that stood next to him, the one that didn't seem like interacting with the others, was very out of character. It was refreshing not to hear her yell so much, but it was also a bit too frightening to see her so patient at his side. Although Tokiya was never one to pay much attention to others, he could easily note when stark contrasts occured.
Just like Fuuko's attitude, at this moment in time.
"Kirisawa," he said sharply when she decided to tuck her hands behind her, eyes unfocused as she stared into nothing. She came back, however, when he said her name and she looked up at him expectedly. Her eyes were glazed in a light laziness, which was becoming to her dark lilac eyes. She gave him a nonchalant look as she waited for him to continue.
"What's wrong with you? Why aren't you with the others, laughing and acting like, well... you?" he asked, his tone sharp and inquiring as she pondered for her answer. The thought of Fuuko actually processing something other than fighting left a sense of strange awe and the wonderment of whether pigs had flown not too long ago did cross his thoughts.
"I've been thinking, Mi-chan..." she said lightly and he scowled at the name she addressed him with. He had thought he'd outgrown that old pet name, but it was obvious she didn't think so. Then again, it could merely be habit holding her to the strange and outdated nickname.
"About...?" he asked impatiently, since she was testing his limits. He had been gracious enough to even openly wonder about her, but she was certainly taking her sweet time. But, then again, it was Kirisawa. The little Monkey Girl that was constantly trying to annoy him, whether she knew it or not. She was always able to put him on edge, which made him question how he had let her under his skin so easily.
"Walk with me, Mi-chan," she said seriously and Tokiya was tempted to take off his glove and (no, not hit her with it) feel her head for a fever. She was solemn, for once, and now she was commanding him. Okay, so the second one wasn't too far off from her usual way, but usually she was so undemanding about it. It was a request this time, not the usual come-or-I'll-drag-you-by-your-hair command. Something was wrong and he, strangely, wanted to know what was wrong with Fuuko.
He nodded, as he motioned toward the others. He told them they were going for a walk, which left a screaming Domon and the others holding him back. Although Tokiya hadn't gotten all of it, he was pretty sure that it had something to do with staying away from Fuuko and being possessive of her. He just wouldn't take the hint that Fuuko wasn't interested in him. However, that wasn't any of Tokiya's concern as he followed Fuuko along the slippery road.
He never noticed the rest of Team Hokage's eyes watching diligently, almost wishing they could follow. However, Fuuko and the ice-man had instincts that hadn't dulled, even since the their little bonding time at a certain illegal tournament. They were still skilled without their weapons as well. This meant that the one to attack either one of them was a deadman. And, frankly, none of them were too eager to die.
The silence continued between the powerful entities as they walked. Nothing between them but the air and the crisp ice in the surrounding mist. They treaded, neither too eager to speak until their problem, if you want to call it that, was solved. However, Tokiya's patience was thin and tattered as he stopped and narrowed his eyes at the wind goddess.
"Kirisawa," he said, grabbing the wrist of the smaller girl. She stopped and looked at him with mild annoyance. That was more familiar, thankfully, as she tried to wrench her hand from his grip. But the former ensui-weilder was much too strong for her to merely try and overpower. She should have learned her lesson by now.
"Look, Monkey, I'm not letting go until you tell me what's on your mind. I'm worried about you..." he said, not being able to catch his slip-up. Kicking himself mentally, the swordsman didn't fix it. Instead, he watched the wind wielder with grave eyes. She met them and returned it with an indifferent glare. He had always been the demanding-type, hadn't he?
Finally pulling from his grasp, she turned away from him. He watched as she kneeled down, near the edge of the cement walkway, and took a handful of ivory frost in her hand. She held it over the snow-covered grass as she kept herself turned away. Tokiya, being someone who was used to little change, was now a little more than worried. What did Fuuko want to do with snow?
"Who does this remind you of?" she said and her hand jingled the icy fluff. He caught the motion with his eye and watched if she made any other movement. However, she remained collected as she let the edges of the ice fall to the ground.
"Is it supposed to represent someone?" he asked, knowing that she was describing him. However, what did the fresh ice have to do with himself? And what did Fuuko have to do with the semblance of snow?
"Yes. Do you know who?" Fuuko let more of the snow escape the barrier of her hand as she turned her head to him slightly. He now had a slight view to the side of her face as he stared at her. This girl was either very enigmatic or very tired. She was acting much too philisophically.
"Me, of course," was his obvious reply, a bit of a bite to his tone. She paid no attention as she nodded. Letting all of the frost slide from her hand, Fuuko faced him with solemn eyes. She looked so innocent, as if she hadn't slept soundly because of a thought progressing through her mind.
"Do you know how all of this snow got here? How it arrived all around this city?" she asked again, her questions seemingly naive. There must have been some kind of trick to these questions, something to connect him to the frigid cold. However, his old experience with the element was not helping him with the wind child.
"It comes down from the clouds and is swept into the wind, as it forces its way around. It blows hard enough to scatter every lithe thing in its wake," he replied. She was looking for the physical aspects of it all, wasn't she? Well, he would keep playing her game until she finally surrendered her thoughts to him. Kirisawa Fuuko would tell all, as long as he had something to do with it.
"Yes. And who is the wind that blows the fallen flakes about?" her cryptic question left him more than a little skeptical of her. She had obviously been thinking about this for a very long time, since she had gone so in-depth with the symbolism. He was beginning to wonder if she was smarter than he gave her credit for. With a small smirk, he dug his hands deeper into his pocket and stared increduously at her.
"It's you, isn't it?" he said to her and she nodded in agreement. A small smile flitted across her features and he admired her again, her thoughts racing through her head. She was going to elaborate, he could tell. For some reason, he looked forward to her explanation. Fuuko was certainly trying very hard to come up with the words, as she closed her eyes in irritation.
"You see, Mi-chan, we're still a lot like our elements. Just because we can't control them anymore, doesn't mean we are not similar to them," she began and faced him with serious eyes, "The snow is cold and sometimes never there. There are only certain times when it can be enjoyed, just like you. But, no matter how cold it is, you always find something good about the frost, something you never really realized until that moment. So that, over time, you've gathered many good things about it.
"As for me, I'm like the wind. A very loud and rambunctious tornado that seems to always catch everyone off-guard. I seem to graze past everyone without them really knowing it. My personality touches everyone, whether it be good or bad, much like the wind. It's just that you never really notice.
"But, have you noticed something Mi-chan? That, when we're together, we seem to change everything around us. The atmosphere gets better or worse, depending on how we're feeling. It's always changing when we're together. Everything turns into somethig totally different. After every situation and every person we come across, we somehow change it, them, or both."
Her fomplex thoughts were amazingly deep and sunk far beyond the limits of mere physical means. The use of personality and the tangible ways that these elements danced gave some strange meaning to their relatioship. Apart, they were nothing but fleeting energies, brushing against others and each other from time-to-time. But, there was always a certain point of the year when avoidance was unacceptable and resulted in something much bigger than just the two of them.
"Aa. Things always seem to... morph when we're together. Be we've done many things that people wouldn't have even thought possible. So, what exactly are you trying to say?" Tokiya asked, a certain sharpness in his tone. He was very wary of the fact that Fuuko was even more out of her usual self than he had originally guessed.
Her once turned away face was now pointed at him, a thoughtful look in her eyes. She seemed almost playful as she stared with that gentle curve of a smirk on her lips. That same smile was bring back a sense of familiarity as Fuuko began to break down exactly what she was saying.
"Tokiya..." she whispered, the wind teasing any stray strands across her forehead. The grin she wore so well resurfaced and he couldn't help but note the shiver that went down his spine, her small purr echoing in his mind. Or perhaps the slight wind was picking up.
"How does winter happen? What makes this cold season so different? Is it the snow we see in the morning, or the rushing of winds that pass us when we walk and stinks our face? Or, in some strange way, is it a combination of the two? And if so, do we hold any of the power we used to? I've been looking for answers, Mi-chan. In the end, I only thought of you..."
So honest. So kind. So... unlike Fuuko. The purity of such insight was lost to the Fuuko he had come to know and, unknowingly, care for. He watched with calm eyes as she walked toward him. The chilled air nipped at her skin in a mixture of the wind and ice that winter was known for. She said that he could give her an answer, though cryptic hints were hard to go on. She said he was the only option because of the bond between the season and its storm.
But his only answers were in her.
Tokiya's smirk graced his face and his hand went to her head mockingly. He ruffled the locks of amethyst hair, annoyance gracing the smaller girl's face. She fought the urge to bat his hand away as he did, but he grinned in delight at her acceptance. She didn't move away, even as his hand removed itself from her locks. Instead, she looked up with a certain amount of irritation and an expectant of an answer to her question.
He didn't have anything to say. The forged bond between the wind and snow belonged to the elements themselves, while the season was merely created as an afterthought. The two people stand in the wake of a storm weren't creating anything, but bonding all the same. They were together, even after everything, not because it was expected by anyone or for any particular purpose. No one was waiting for it, no could predict it. Instead, they fell in love with a scowl on both of their faces, surrounded by a society that believes them to be too different.
He was calm, cool and always the best at everything.
She was loud, short-tempered but always there when she was needed.
The wind and ice combined to create the wonderland that engulfed the world, whether they wanted to or not. It was fate, destiny, a cycle that happened every year and was never looked on as something bad, but always as something missed. The life that it brings and destroys makes winter seem like a double-edged sword, though no one can protest the delight in having it come and go.
But the weilders of such beautiful entities could easily change each other's world, if given that chance. The wind is a fleeting thing, just as she is. The snow is a cold element, just as he is. The winter season was the feeling of completion, just as their love is. Though not expected, these emotions were not unwelcome. So, instead of having a small session of winter, they would create their own little dreamland.
Their own winter to last forevermore.
SxSxSx
AN: Eew... So much fluff. I like fluff, but still. I can't believe I wrote that. Please review this sad, little one-shot and make me feel better about my horrible writing skills. Thanks in advance and please add anything else you want inbetween the constructive criticism and slight 'complaints.' Bye!
Well, till next time!
Much love,
Adobo-chan