. Stars .

Manta sighed heavily and looked down at his thick dictionary. It was of no use to him, especially when he was in Math class. He didn't know why, but he couldn't fight the urge to take the book out from his haversack. Maybe it was because it was so thick and looked so comfy and it would make a great pillow..

Manta shook the feeling away; No, he can't possibly think of such things. The exams were approaching and he needed to concentrate. He looked up at the board and tried his best to absorb every single word that escaped from the teacher's mouth, but failed to. Why? This feeling.. he no longer had any interest to study, since the Shaman Fight ended. Hao was Shaman King, but he said that he'd still like to "create a world full of superior shamans only", didn't he? What did he mean? When was he going to do it? And most importantly, what was going to happen to him, Oyamada Manta, if Hao somehow managed to create a world only for superior shamans? What about his friends, and family?

Manta brought forth a soft, pained groan. He clasped his hands around his head and sighed once again. This was all too much for him to handle. He was already not in the mood to study, so why should he even bother thinking about even more complicated things? Manta looked up, then turned to Yoh; Yoh had his head facing the window, but his head and arms were also resting on the desk. Manta chuckled; Yoh was probably taking a nap again. How nice, he thought. To be able to live a life without any worries. Manta turned back to his own dictionary and stared at it; perhaps it wouldn't hurt to just rest for a little...

Manta bent his head down and rested it on his dictionary. He blinked a few times before closing his eyes for good. Doubts, negative thoughts and unanswered questions were slowly drifting away from his mind, leaving his body to relax. Manta's breathing got slower, and slower..

Sure, he needed this rest.

x-X-x

Later that day, Manta was waiting by the school's main gate for his friend. He waited and waited, turning to look at his wristwatch occasionally. Where is he! They were supposed to meet up fifteen minutes ago! Did he forget about him?

"If you're looking for Yoh," a familiar, expressionless voice startled the diminutive boy. "Then he's not here."

Shocked, Manta turned, only to find himself facing the scariest lady he had ever met in his entire life; Kyouyama Anna. Yoh's fiance.

"Wh-what..?" Manta muttered. "What do you mean, 'he's not here'?"

"Exactly what I meant," Anna replied. "Yoh has something to attend to. He had to leave in a hurry. He didn't forget you."

Manta nodded, but he wasn't sure if that helped him.

"Don't worry, you'll still be able to see him," Anna added, shocking Manta even more. "This evening... at the cemetery."

Manta blinked, but his eyes were as wide as ever. The cemetery? Yeah, he knew perfectly well which cemetery Anna was referring to. So Yoh wanted to see him..

"If you need to kill time," Anna said, stepping out of the school compound and making her way back to the inn. "You can come to the inn if you like."

Manta nodded; he knew Anna just wanted him to clean the whole house from top to bottom again, but now that he looked at it from a different perspective, it didn't seem all that bad. Cleaning could actually kill a lot of time; by the time Manta was done cleaning the whole inn, he could still get ready and make his way to the cemetery to meet Yoh. Manta ran up and caught up with Anna, following her close behind from then on.

x-X-x

Unfortunately, Manta wasn't able to finish his chores in time. He still had to clean the washroom and prepare dinner. His mind was so filled with doubts and questions and many other things related to the Shaman Fight; he wasn't even able to think straight.

Anna threw his haversack at him, hitting him hard on the head. Not that Manta minded; he needed it. "You're late," said Anna. "Go change and meet Yoh now. I'll take care of the rest."

"A-ah, okay," Manta agreed. He took off his apron and headscarf and grabbed his haversack, before sprinting out of the building. Anna watched as he rushed to the cemetery, and sighed. "I envy him," she said to herself, before yelling, "Alright, you guys can come out right now!" Immediately, a huge number of spirits revealed themselves to her; some of them being Tamao's and Ryu's own guardian spirits. Not only that, their shamans came out as well.

"Is he gone?" Ryu asked.

"Has he gone far?" Tamao mumbled.

"Yes, I believe so," said Anna, before she started pointing fingers. "Now, all of you will have to listen to what I say. I need this place to be spotless, head to toe! Ryu, Tamao, I need you two to prepare dinner!"

"Yes, ma'am!" both of them yelled.

"If you don't do as I say, I will send you to the other world," Anna warned. "Understand?"

"Geez, what a scary old lady," Ponchi whispered to Konchi, only to be stepped on by Anna.

"Understand?" Anna repeated, her voice now extremely low and threatening.

"Y-yes, ma'am...!" Ponchi struggled. "Now, please.. let me go...!"

"I won't," said Anna, bringing forth a whimper from the spirit she was abusing. She turned back to the other spirits and gave them their respectful duties.

x-X-x

Manta looked at his wristwatch, and quickened his pace. He was running late! What would he say to Yoh if he learned that he had made him wait for so long? What would Yoh say to him? Will Yoh fall asleep and forget about their meeting, eventually?

Finally, Manta reached the gate that blocked the path that led to the cemetery. Small fry. He jumped and climbed over the gate, before running up the stone steps towards the top of the hill, where the cemetery was. A huge wave of nostalgia flew right through him; it's been years since he last stepped into this place. And that was also the time when..

..when he first met Yoh.

Manta finally reached the top of the hill, panting vigorously. He quickly scanned the area, and found what he was looking for. There, standing just a few feet away from him, was a boy who was looking up at the sky. The boy with the "everything-will-work-out" smile on his face. The boy who could never fight without a reason. Asakura Yoh. And his first human friend, Oyamada Manta, was just standing there, watching him.

Yoh turned to Manta, his cheerful smile still glued onto his face. "You're finally here," he said.

Manta laughed nervously as he walked towards Yoh, "I'm sorry, I must have made you wait long."

"No, not really," Yoh said, turning back to the sky as Manta took a seat right next to him. "You're just in time."

"Eh? Just in time?" Manta echoed. "What for?"

"Look," Yoh pointed at the sky, and Manta arched his neck. "Tonight's a beautiful night," Yoh added. "There are lots of stars."

Manta was beyond amazed; Yoh was right! There were thousands - perhaps billions - of bright stars in the night sky that night! They were shining like never before; what a sight! It was a spectacular moment, watching the sacred, radiant stars glistening like a thousand suns. Calling them beautiful would be an understatement. Manta wished he had brought along a camera at a time like this; this was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. But though he may not be able to stare at this image for long, he knew the memory of this would remain etched inside his heart forever.

Then some thought randomly popped up in Manta's head. "Hey, Yoh," he called out. "Does the brightness of the stars have something to do with the Shaman King?"

Yoh remained silent for a while, as if he was pondering over something. Then he shrugged and chuckled, "Who knows."

The two turned back to looking at the stars.

"Manta," Yoh spoke up. "There's a reason why I called you here today."

"What is it?"

"Well, you do remember that this was where we first met, right?"

Manta nodded, "Yeah."

"Hmmmm," Yoh sighed. "That's good."

Manta was confused, "Yoh...?"

"Manta, I want to thank you," said Yoh. "For being my friend."

"Wha – "

"You've always been there for me, Manta. Sure, there were times when we argued over little things, but that was just the past. You've stuck with me till the very end, and I hope you'll keep doing so, Manta."

"O-of course!" Manta exclaimed. "I'll always be by my friends' sides, no matter what! That's what you taught me, Yoh. You taught me that no matter who our friends are, we still have to protect and put up a fight for them. We should never let our dear ones go." A small smile formed on the blonde's face, and he arched his brows like a young kid begging for attention. "Right?"

The smile on Yoh's face widened, and he nodded, "Yeah!"

The two remained silent for about half a minute, before Yoh finally got to his feet. "It's getting late," he said. "Come over to the inn. We're having a party."

"P-party...?" Manta asked, tilting his head.

"Yep," Yoh outstretched his arm for Manta to take it. "Happy Birthday, Manta."

Manta's eyes widened; did he hear right? He never recalled telling Yoh when his birthday was, and neither did he recall telling Anna, or anyone else affiliated with them. He didn't understand; was that why he felt so different today? Because it was simply his birthday?

Yoh laughed, "Have you forgotten what day it is?"

Manta pondered for a while, before laughing along, "I must have!" He reached out and grabbed Yoh's hand, before being pulled up to his feet. "I've been thinking so much about the Shaman Fight lately.. I haven't kept track of the time.."

"It's alright," Yoh said. "The Shaman Fight is just the past. What's done is done, so we can't really do anything about it. We just have to move on, remember?" Yoh then advanced forward, down the path that led to the exit of the cemetery. "C'mon, the party's starting, and everyone's waiting. Anna's going to get mad at us if we're late."

"Everyone...?"

"Yeah, Tamao, Ryu, Ren, Horo.. you get the idea. All our friends are gonna be there."

It was then that Manta came to realise what kind of friends he had. Even though they never said much, Manta knew there were always people watching his back, ready to protect him from any harm that was supposed to be directed at him. So many things happened for the past few years, and Manta never realised all these until now. The whole time he thought he was useless; just sticking around with Yoh and his friends like a pet and its master. He felt like an idiot most of the time, but then again, all of his friends were. They had each other in their hearts, and with these group of friends, no one could be even more complete. Even Hao - the Shaman King - was able to understand what friendship really is.

The blonde was convinced that he wouldn't be alone from now on. As mentioned, he was an idiot, just like his friends.

Manta grinned and nodded. He ran to catch up with Yoh, who was strolling his way back to the inn. On the way back, they shared with each other things that had happened between them in the past; from their very first meeting, to Yoh's first shaman fight, Yoh's first Oversoul, and it continued from there. They kept each other smiling, and they never stopped until they reached the inn. When they did, their grins got even wider, and soon those grins developed into laughing. The whole gang was there to celebrate.

Of course Manta no longer felt like an outsider. He was with his friends now. Friends who knew how to entertain and protect him at the same time. Friends who will stick together no matter what happens.

Friends who remained true to others, no matter who they are.

Happy Birthday, Oyamada Manta!

Wow, I can't believe I actually wrote such a fic (and a really cheesy one, at that!). My brain wasn't working so I'm sorry if this one is extremely bad. Well, it's September 5 now and that means Manta's just grown a year older! Hurray! I wish I had a friend like Manta; so cute. ;u; LOL. I think the characters were pretty OOC in this one, especially Anna and Yoh. xD

Anyway, I hope to find even more fics related to Manta now; he's pretty underrated for such an adorable character. D': Like Lyserg. Oh, well. I hope you enjoyed this fic!

- A

P.S. Have any of you guys read the latest track of Shaman King Remix? And have you seen the preview for the next one? I can't wait; the next one is possibly going to be my most favourite track (well, we'll just have to see about that!)!