Yomi

"Even history has secrets."

Collaboration of,

Hayley (Heirii) and Kere

Eri shifted under the gaze Principal Yamamoto.

The old man gave her a stern stare through his thick rimmed glasses, making sure that they kept eye contact.

"What do you have to say for yourself, Ms. Oda? This is the fourth time this week you've been in my office due to your behavior in class. Falling asleep during class is unacceptable.'

Eri turned her golden eyes away from the more superior adult.

'This has never happened before' Eri bites her lip while thinking, 'but these dreams I've been having recently'

There was a great storm,

The waves were crashing and roaring against the cliff.

Fear was grasping her by the neck as she gasped in fright.

Then a large man with long hair flashed in front of her, with a large sword in hand,

It felt like she was supposed to be scared, but the opposite, she was relieved.

She couldn't see her 'savior',

But she saw his head turn,

To only see a deep, dark socket were his eye should've been.

'Don't worry, Teshi (angel),'all she could look at was the dark hole on his face;

'I'll always protect you.'

Then the tidal waves crashed above the cliff and dragged her unto the cliffs edge,

She felt the wave's crash again and again unto her back, feeling like thousands of icy needles stabbing her,

But suddenly the waves settled,

But the darkness did not leave.

After the shock left her body, she was able to look down.

To see that the water had become red as roses, like blood, and saw the large sword of her guardian slowly sink into the depths of the water.

Cold terror filled her body, and she screamed,

'GUARDIAN MIZUKO!'

Mr. Yamamoto kept rambling, while Eri remained in thought.

'I felt like I meet that man before, like I already know him now, but I've never known someone doesn't have an eye…'

'Guardian Mizuko… Who are you?'

"Ms. Oda, I'm so glad that my speech is so important to you, especially since you now have to serve this week detentions."

"DENTENTION?" Eri gasped, "I've never gotten a detention before! Mr. Yama-!"

"Ahem."

'Oh dear, Kami-sama…' darkness consumed Eri's face as she turned to the voice of her mother.

Eri looked frightful while her mother's aura seemed to be oozing anger.

"Oh good! Miss Oda, take your daughter home and it'd be wise to put her to bed since she always seems tired during school"

Eri flinched and murmured, "Ouch! Thanks for helping the cause…"

Eri looked back at her mother…

'I'm dead…'

"Yes, you are young lady."

Eri blinked, 'I hate it when she seems to read my mind…'

"I don't read your mind, I just know you to well… Well maybe not enough because this kind of behavior is totally unlike you!"

"Kaa-chan, I'm sorry." Eri's eyes were downcast, trying to show in-superiority.

"I'm sorry is not acceptable right now, Eri. Get in the car, I'm taking you home."

Eri sighed as her mother's identical gold eyes stared back at her with frustration. Eri picked up her school bag and hurried out of the room, with her mother following behind, after excusing themselves out of the presence of Mr. Yamamoto.

*The Oda Household*

Eri pushed open the front door and dropped her bag beside the door to sprint to her room, up the stairs.

"Eri Oda! Get back her right now!" Her mother was at the bottom of the steps calling to her, with her hands placed on her hips.

Eri looked back at the woman who only shared the same eyes as her. Eri flipped her long hair and kept running up to her room,

Ignoring her mother's request and slammed the door of her room.

Eri stared off into the balcony that was across the room, looking out to the dimming orange sky.

Eri wasn't angry at her mom; she was just frustrated with herself.

Frustrated with the dreams.

Angry with Guardian Mizuko.

Confused that she had no idea why she was having these dreams.

Tapping heard from her large window rattled her back to her senses.

She lifted her gaze toward the window, to have her frown replaced with a grin when she saw a guy dressed into a school uniform with long dark hair and a shining green eye, Dia'chi Shinto.

Eri's smile grew bigger, just having him around made her feel better.

Dia stood there staring back at her with a small smirk of his own.

"Are you going to let me in? Or are you going to wait for me to go home?" Dia's viewable eye twinkled with amusement as he slouched into a comfortable standing position on her balcony.

Eri giggled and ran to her balcony, to not let Dia in, but to let herself out to join him.

After she closed the door she turned to face him, to see Dia give her a confused look.

"I needed to get out of the house, but I don't think I'm going to be going anywhere for awhile." Eri said with eyes downcast.

Dia raised an eyebrow, for this was new to him, "Why? What happened? You've never gotten in trouble before."

Eri grumbled, "I've been falling asleep a lot during class all this week and I have a weeks worth of detention."

Dia's eyes widened, but then he chuckled, saying, "Maybe you shouldn't stay up late, smart one."

Eri glared at Dia's amusement, "I've actually been going to bed earlier, but I wake up from nightmares every night, and it's always the same dream."

"What's the dream?" Dia became very serious.

"Well," Eri started seemingly staring off into the distance, "it seems more of a memory every time I think about it now…" Dia tensed, listening to Eri intently.

"I'm on a cliff and it seems like I'm caught in a Tsunami, and it's horrible, and I was so scared, but than this man with a large sword appears in front of me, proclaiming that he will always protect me."

Dia was on edge, his neck strained with tension, it seemed like he wasn't breathing.

"And… and he turned to me," Eri looked up at Dia once again, "but where his eye should've been, was nothing, like.. He didn't even have an eye at all."

Eri stared intently at the bandaged spot of Dia's face, covering his eye.

Dia saw her gazing, and turned away from her towards the changing sky.

Eri went to stand right next to time, attempting to get him to look at her, she continued,

"and suddenly a wave came crashing on the cliff, dragging me to hang on the cliff's edge. After feeling like it was the end for me, the storm calmed. And when I was finally calm, I looked down to find this mystery guy, to see that the sea had turned red and the large sword that he was carrying was sinking to the bottom."

This was when Eri took Dia's face into her hands, so she could see his next reaction.

"After that, I remember screaming, 'GUARDAIN MIZUKO!'"

Eri saw all the color and emotion drain from Dia's face and felt his face tense between her hands.

"Dia…Do you know something?" Eri became nervous and slightly worried for the sake of her best friend.

Dia expression went from utter blankness, to shear fury

He shoved himself away from Eri's presence and walked to the other side of her balcony.

"No, nothing." His words came out very rough and ragged.

"Dia... Please, I don't know what's happening to me… If you could tell me anything!"

Eri hated begging, but she was scared of what was happening to her.

"I said it before," He turned towards her, his face showing that he wasn't going to say anymore about the subject.

"I know nothing."

Eri felt tears of frustration prick her eyes, "Fine…Fine! If you can't help me then leave!"

Dia's face flashed from resentment to alarm.

"Eri, just calm down…"

"No!" Eri stood her ground, "I will not calm down! I do not know what's going on and I know you know something! You just won't tell me! Just like the time when I asked you about the bandages!"

Dia flinched away from her.

"And I am not going to talk to you if you are not going to give me a truthful answer!" Eri turned to open the window to her room,

"Eri…Please…"

"Dia!—"Eri was about the say 'leave' when suddenly, it felt like she wasn't in her body anymore,

She felt like she was floating up into the sky.

Eri watched her body fall on her balcony as Dia ran to her body, shaking her body in alarm

"Eri!" Dia sounded so close, shaking with panic…

"Eri!" His voice was drifting…

"Eri!" His voice was only a whisper in the wind…

Silence consumed her…

"Teshi…"

She turned toward the voice of her guardian,

The smile that was prepared just for him faded from her face as soon as she saw his condition.

His usual attire of armor and his famous large sword, Oblivion, was replaced with bandages covering almost everything that was to her viewing.

The only thing that covered him that wasn't bandages was the black trousers he usually wore during the night. The parts of him that the bandages didn't cover were his feet, lips, and one shining emerald eye, the bandages even kept his hair from falling unto his shoulders.

"Oh Guardain! What happened to you?" She lifted her skirt to run to him, "Was there a battle last night?"

His lips formed a smile, attempting to reassure her, "Teshi-sama," she stopped in front of him and frowned, "It's nothing that concerns you, yes, we had enemies invade our territory at dawn, but they were taken cared of. I and only a few others were injured critically."

"What enemies?" She felt anger course through her body, "My father didn't speak to me of any soon invasions! From what I was told we were going to be in solitude for the time being!"

He placed a calloused hand on her shoulder and massaged to release the tension from her body,

"Teshi, he just doesn't see it fit that his daughter wants to be apart of warfare---"

She pulled away from him, "This war concerns family! I'm a part of his family and I deserve to know!"

He placed the hand that was on her shoulder on the back of his head,

"The reasoning of your father hiding knowledge from you is beyond me, Hime-sama."

"Do not call me, Hime, I hate these terms of ranks…"

"That is why I call you Teshi, Teshi." His visible eye crinkled with laughter.

"Yes, and that doesn't bother me at all, but what does bother me is that you just lied to me."

The guardian's face became blank, "I would never lie to you."

"You did! You are the closet to my father besides me and my mother! And if he didn't tell me of this invasion, he obviously told you!"

"Teshi, do not be angry with me, I do not know anything." His face also portrayed anger.

"Yes, you do! Please, Guardain Mizuko, if you know anything of what is happening to my kingdom, please, tell me-!"

"Teshi," His face was stern as marble, "I have told you already, your father has told me nothing…

"I know nothing."

She was furious.

She knew he was lying to her; she knew him to well. She turned away from him and started walking, maintaining her dignity.

"I'm glad that your duty to my father allows you to feel comfortable to lie to me yet again."

"Teshi…"His voice sounded broken, and it made her feel horrible.

"Do not call me Teshi; you are not the same person who beckons me by that name."

She kept her pace and then started jogging.

"Where are you going?" His words were laced with worry, she heard him rushing to her.

"Away from you!" She started to run, holding her skirts to keep from falling.

The Guardain Mizuko did not follow her…

Yomi is an original idea of me and my friend, Kere. It's loosely based on the Japanese Mythology, Shinto. I'm not going to explain in full detail, for it would give the whole plot away. If you have any questions about the story, please review. If you have a comment about the story, please review. If you have a problem with the story, you can still review, just don't be to harsh.

Japanese Translation:

Yomi - "the shadowy land of the dead, underworld" The name of the place, that is basically known as the underworld in Japanese Mythology.

Eri - "blessing, reason, profit, excel"

Dia'chi - "great, large, land, wisdom, and intellect"

Shinto - "Way of the gods" Japanese Mythology

Teshi - "Angel"

Mizuko - "water child" In Shinto, it's known as a baby who was unable to be born due to a miscarriage or abortion.

Hime - "Princess"

xoxo,

-chan.