Disclaimer: I do not own Shaman King bla bla bla.
Warning: male/male pairing, incest, AU
Pairing: Hao/Yoh, some Ren/Horohoro
A/N: Something I'm working on. This story actually centres around Hao's past life but that chapter 2 hehe.
I dream of you. But then light comes and steal you once again from me...
The alarm clock rang noisily. Sleepily, Yoh reached out his hand to shut it off. As he closed his eyes and wandered back to sleep again, the door of his room slid open. "Yoh, don't you dare go back to sleep! Go clean the bathroom," ordered Anna, throwing a wooden bucket and a mop towards him.
Yoh groaned. Ever since the Shaman Fight ended (or was held off till further announcement from the Great Spirit), Anna had been working to make their home into a running onsen (hot spring) resort. They've gotten a few customers lately.
But since Anna was the self-declared okami (lady in charge of an onsen), that made Yoh and the rest the staff. Ryu was stationed at the kitchen, Faust VIII was the doctor of the establishment, and Horohoro had welcoming and counter duty. That left Yoh, Manta and Ren to cleaning duty.
However, on days when Horohoro returned to Hokkaido, Ren went back to China, Manta had classes at cram school, Ryu disappeared to go biking or hang out with his old friends and Faust VIII went on a honeymoon with Eliza, Yoh had to do all the work.
Luckily, days like these were rare since everyone enjoyed working there (with the exception of Ren who refused to admit it) and being together.
After cleaning up the bathrooms with Ren's help, the whole staff of Asakura Onsen Resort gathered at the dining area and had breakfast together. As Horohoro took his bowl of rice from Ryu, he turned his head from side to side as though looking for something. "Hey, where is that guy?" he asked.
"Huh? Oh he went out to shop for groceries," said Ryu.
"Should we wait for him?" asked Faust VIII.
"That bastard can feed himself later. I'm hungry,' said Ren.
"Anou…"
"Ren's right," said Anna. "It's his fault for taking so long."
"Anou…"
At that moment, Manta stepped into the dining area and bade good morning to everyone. 'Just in time for breakfast," he said happily as Horohoro passed him a bowl of rice. "Um, it feels like there's someone missing."
"Yeah, that guy's gone out grocery shopping," said Horohoro. "He hasn't come back yet."
"Anou…"
Ren slammed his chopsticks onto the table. "If you've got something to say just say it! Don't keep on going 'anou, anou', it's annoying the hell out of me."
Yoh chuckled sheepishly. "It felt rude to interrupt," he apologized. "Anyway, who are you guys talking about?"
"It's too early in the morning to try and make jokes, Yoh," reprimanded Anna in a monotone.
"Huh?" Yoh scratched his head, really having no idea who his friends were talking about. "Really, who are you talking about? I don't remember anyone else who works with us here."
"Of course you don't, danna ('master'/ what Ryu calls Yoh in the anime)," said Ryu. "He doesn't exactly work here, does he?"
"Chocolove?" tried Yoh, jogging his memory to recall who his friend could be referring to.
They stared at him in blank confusion. Manta laughed. "What are you talking about, Yoh-kun? Chocolove doesn't live here. He's in America now."
"Lyserg-kun then?" tried Yoh again.
"Like I said, it's too early for this kind of lame jokes," said Anna, throwing her chopsticks at Yoh in annoyance. "Run ten laps around the house and clean the onsen when you're done."
"T.T"
Five hours later…
Yoh wiped the sweat off his forehead as he finished airing out the last futon. Then Ren suggested that they have a fight against each other to practice their skills once again. But Yoh declined, saying that they should let Amidamaru and Bason enjoy their time drinking with Mosuke.
"Oi," said Horohoro appearing from inside the house. "That guy hasn't come back yet. Anna asked me to tell you guys to go out and look for him."
"Hmph, why should I leave to find that idiot? He probably 'lost' his way here again," said Ren with a scowl.
"Yeah, I know. It's obvious why he keeps getting 'lost'," said Horohoro with a smirk. "If I had the job of running errands like him, I'd probably get lost on purpose too." He slid an arm around Ren's shoulders.
Ren blushed and smacked his arm away. "Don't think that I would go looking for you even if you get lost for a month!"
Horohoro laughed and pecked him on the cheek. "Then I'll stay lost till you come look for me then."
By now, questions marks were floating around Yoh's head. What were they talking about? Getting lost on purpose? Running errands? And there was that guy that they keep talking about, who were they talking about?
The blue-haired Ainu jumped high in the air as Ren tried to attack him with his Kwan-Do, cheeks redder than a tomato. Yoh merely laughed. It was so nice seeing the two of them together like that.
"What are you laughing at?" exclaimed Ren.
"It's so cute seeing both of you in love," said Yoh, grinning cheekily. For that comment, Yoh almost lost his head. He swallowed. "Now, now, that is very…sharp," said Yoh nervously as he tried to nudge the blade of the Kwan-Do away from his neck.
"Hmph, we're not the only ones," said Ren with an accusing tone. He jabbed his finger at Yoh. "You're in a relationship too."
Yoh chuckled and scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah, but it's too scary to do anything with Anna."
"…what are you talking about?" asked Ren. "You broke it off with her after the Shaman Fight."
"EH?"
"Yeah," nodded Horohoro. "We even remember you telling her that she was like a sister to you. But she has another boy trying to woo her now anyway."
Yoh frowned slightly, trying to absorb the information they were telling him. That didn't sound right. Wasn't Anna his arranged fiancée? If he broke it off with her, then who was he with? "Then I'm not in a relationship anymore, right?"
Horohoro raised both eyebrows. "What about that guy? Didn't you used to tell us that you would never leave him no matter what?"
"No way," said Yoh shaking his head. "My parents will never accept it anyway. They're determined to continue the shaman bloodline so they won't accept anyone that isn't a shaman. That's how I ended up with Anna in the first place."
"He is a shaman," said Ren. "What's going on with you today? You act like you don't know or you've forgotten all this."
Yes, this day had been very confusing to him. He didn't remember any of this: breaking up with Anna, having another lover…
"You better go out and look for him," said Horohoro, "or we won't get the groceries."
Yoh set out from his house, uncertain on where to start searching. The thing is, he didn't even know who he was searching for! When he tried asking, everyone thought he was trying to pull a joke. Horohoro and Ren were helpful though.
"Try the hill behind the cemetery," suggested Horohoro.
"That bastard in probably waiting for you there," said Ren.
That was the part Yoh didn't understand the most. If they knew where this guy was going to be, why didn't they go get him themselves?
"Because he won't come back unless it's you," said the Ainu.
Yoh sighed, flipping through his memories again to see if anything matched with today's weird events. He didn't remember any guy that lived with them but didn't work at the resort. Truly, he couldn't recall.
He saw the hill and start running towards it. If he came back late, Anna might not let him have dinner. He saw a shady tree on the apex of the hill. There was a swing hanging from one of its stronger branches. There was someone playing on the swing. Could he be the one? The one his friends kept talking about? The one he was supposedly in love with?
He climbed the hill and by the time he reached the top, the sky was already starting to darken. He saw two bags of groceries at the foot of the tree. This must be the guy. But Yoh could only see his back. He was still swinging. Long dark hair cascaded down his back and that all too familiar poncho…
"Oi, everyone's waiting for you to get back with the groceries," said Yoh. "…what are you doing here?"
He stopped swinging and looked over his shoulder. Yoh's heart stopped for a second. It was him.
Hao.
"Shouldn't it be obvious by now?" asked the longhaired shaman. "I'm surprised you took so long to come look for me." When he saw confusion written all over Yoh's face, he chuckled. "Whenever I get sent out to do an errand, I would never come back until you fetched me."
'…what are you talking about?" asked Yoh. You should've died. How can you sit there before me so casually? Tears started to well in Yoh's eyes.
"You are always so busy in that onsen resort, I can never spend enough time with you," said Hao with a small smile. He beckoned for Yoh to come closer. When Yoh did, Hao swiftly sat him on his lap and wrapped his arms around Yoh's waist.
It was then that the tears started to fall. Hao brought his hand to wipe away his tears. "What are these tears for? Why are you crying?"
I thought you could never come back. I thought I had really killed you. I didn't understand, I still don't. But I love you so much it hurts.
Hao buried his head into Yoh's neck. "I know. I know it hurts. I've experienced it too." Three lifetimes, I loved you for that long. "That's why; I hate myself for doing this to you."
"Doing what?"
"When you woke up, you didn't remember me, did you?"
Yoh shook his head. "I thought you were dead. But for some reason, the others knew."
Hao laughed but his laugh seemed to be full of sadness. "You don't remember this, because it doesn't exist."
Yoh pulled away from Hao slightly. "What do you mean?"
"No matter how real it seems, or how you and I want it to be real, it isn't," said Hao releasing Yoh. "You don't remember because this is a dream."
"No…no…it isn't. Don't say that."
Hao stood up. "I always wait for you to fetch me here on this swing. It will be the same in your next dream and the next. But it will only remain as a dream." He was slowly fading. Yoh reached out to grab him in desperation but his hand went right through him.
The older shaman smiled sadly at him. "I love you."
Yoh sat up, tears trickling down his face. It was two hours before he set his alarm to ring. He wiped the tears with the back of his hand. Hao hadn't lied after all. It had been all a dream.
He remembered now. Every night he would have the same dream. He would dream that his brother hadn't died and that he was living with them. He would dream that Hao was his lover and that they were happy together living in Asakura Onsen Resort.
Whenever Hao went out to do some errand for Anna, he would wait for Yoh on that swing. He would wait for Yoh to come bring him home so that they could enjoy being alone with each other on the way home.
It was true that Yoh had broken it off with Anna. And the part where Anna had worked to open the onsen resort where she was the okami and he and his friends were the staff, that was all true. The only thing missing was Hao.
He was gone. Yoh had killed him during the Shaman Fight. And no amount of dreams could bring him back.
Why he felt this way, Yoh couldn't explain. Love could not be explained. Long after the Shaman Fight, Yoh still loved his brother, even if he was not there for Yoh to love.
The alarm clock rang noisily. Anna slid open Yoh's door annoyed. "Stop that alarm! And go wash the bathroom before breakfa—"
The futon was empty. "Amidamaru!" called Anna.
The samurai ghost materialized before her. "Yes, Anna-sama?"
"Where's Yoh?"
"I-I don't know," said Amidamaru. "I was drinking with Mosuke and Bason."
"ANNA!" screamed Horohoro bursting into Yoh's room.
"Don't scream so loud in the morning, you'll wake the guests!" snapped Anna.
"Look what I found on the counter," said Horohoro in an alarmed tone, shoving a slip of paper into Anna's hands.
Minna-san (everyone),
Sorry I didn't inform you earlier but I'm going back to Izumo for some private business. Please don't worry about me because I brought enough oranges with me this time. I'll probably return once my business is done.
Yoh
At that moment, Ryu came running into the room as well. "Anna-okami! All the oranges are missing! Eh, what's going on?" He took the slip of paper from Anna's lax hand and read it. "NANIIIII!"
"What? What? Is somebody hurt?" asked Faust VIII rushing into the room.
"What's going on?" asked Ren, annoyance tainting his voice.
Anna was shaking. "How irresponsible of him…how dare he leave all of a sudden without telling me…he will die when he returns." Everyone could see black aura emanating from Anna's being and backed off slightly.
"But Anna-okami, do you know what private business danna is talking about?" asked Ryu.
The wind chime jingled as the soft breeze passed through the open corridors of the Asakura household in Izumo. Asakura Kino adjusted her sunglasses and wiped them once with the hem of her clothes to make sure that what she was seeing wasn't an illusion.
"Yoh? What are you doing here?"
"Hi, obaa-san(grandma)," greeted Yoh with a grin.
"What is in that big bag of yours?" asked Kino curiously.
"Oranges," replied Yoh with a bigger grin.
"…"
"Oh yeah, obaa-san, I came here to ask a favour from you."
"Ask away," said Kino.
"I want you to teach me some of your itako skills."
For a while, Asakura Kino blinked blankly. "If Yohmei was here right now, he would be laughing himself silly."
"I know." But there was no trace of a laugh on Yoh's face. He looked dead serious.
"What brought this on, Yoh?" asked Kino. "Itako training is tough. Are you sure a lazy ass like you want to take it?"
"Yes."
"Is there a reason? If it's just for calling ghosts, you could ask Anna to do it for you."
"…this is something I have to do myself, baa-san," said Yoh, determinedly. "I want to call Hao back to me."
What did Hao mean when he said he loved Yoh for three lifetimes?
Find out in the next chapter: Hao's past
Tsuzuku (2 b cont.)