My name is... Ko. I am a wandering spirit. Un-named by a god. I live in an alleyway. Yeah, its kinda bad. Heh... I have no regrets though. I get to live a life where I don't have to be under command and all I have to do is avoid those weird creatures that cause trouble.
No one dares come into my alley because of how shady it looks. "Hey, Ko, I'm starving! Can we go now?" Oh yeah, and I have a "room mate." He's just as carefree as I am though. I look over, met with emerald green eyes and short black hair. "Sure Torren." Torren always wore the same outfit. A black trench coat and white cargo pants tucked into his black boots. Me, I wore a blue long-sleeved kimono top and black training harem pants. I had black traditional zori shoes. While Torren was pale and had black hair, I was exceptionally tan and had short pale blond hair.
I got up from the ground and proceeded to walk out of the alley with Torren. I had my hands behind my head in a lazy manner. "So, where to, Starve Boy?" I asked him. He put his hand under his chin while he thought. "Let's go to that one café down town." I smirked. "And how are we supposed to eat? Remember, we're both spirits?" As I said this, I started waving my hands frantically in front of a man on his phone just to get my point across. At this he laughed. "Oh yeah, I keep forgetting."
As he thought again, I looked into a window to a toy shop. I saw piercing blue eyes while staring at my reflection. I looked at the toys with disinterest. Muttering to myself, "Tch. Honestly, all I had as a kid was a sewn doll I made."
Torren suddenly slammed his fist into his palm saying, "Aha! Why don't we go visit Kofuku and Daikoku's place? Maybe they'll feed us!" I slapped him on the back while laughing. "Sounds great! Let's go!" I grabbed his hand and took off, unaware of the pink dusting Torrens face. Once we arrived, both me and Torren began shouting. I noticed a shadow forming around us and my shouting faded away. Torren was a bit too late though, and was met with a very angry Daikoku. "What's the big idea huh?! Trying to pick a fight with Kofuku? I'll gladly pummel you!" Daikoku picked up Torren and threw him behind a stand, causing damage. I was laughing my butt off, practically dying a second time.
Daikoku glared at me, causing me to shut up. He normally beat up any guy willing to come near Kofuku, but didn't worry about girls. "Thank god I was born a girl..." I walked over to the violent man, who was helping pick up Torren. I coughed awkwardly. "Umm.. Mr. Daikoku, Torren and I are quite hungry, and we would like to know if you could spare a few scraps?" He looked over his shoulder to see me practically groveling at his feet. He sighed, "Alright, come on." He picked up Torren, and slung him over his shoulder. Not gently, might I add. I snickered and followed them.
We arrived at the little cottage and I removed my shoes since it was polite. Torren had regained consciousness. He seemed more than a little confused. "W-What happened?" I punched him in the arm. "You're lucky I was able to convince him to let us eat!" Daikoku came back from cooking and set down bowls of ramen in front of us. We both thanked him to which he replied, "You two seem to come here to eat on a daily basis. Honestly, I would've turned you away, but Lady Kofuku seems to think of you as friends." Torren just shrugged and began digging in.
I hadn't seen Kofuku around lately, I wonder where she was. Not that I was unhappy she wasn't here, I'm more relieved she's not tackling me or Torren for once. "Where is Kofuku anyway?" I ask. "She's been sneaking out for a while." He replied bluntly. I decided to stop asking about it, the topic seeming to anger Daikoku a bit. We ate in silence. Torren practically inhaled his serving like a wild animal. He burped rather rudely. It wasn't really all that loud. "I swear Torren, you have the manners of a pig." He only laughed while patting his stomach.
"I can't help it! Daikoku just cooks so good! So how about it? Can we come back next week? It's only routine and all." Daikoku began to protest, but decided against it. He simply sighed. "Okay, now get lost you lousy kids." He pushed us out. I began to giggle as I put on my shoes. Torren decided to run ahead of me. Catching up with him, he asked me, "Where do you wanna go now?" I happily said, "Let's go watch the river!" He began running. "Alright! Whoever gets there first has to do what the other tells them!" I started to run behind him. "No fair!" We both raced to the river.
In the end, Torren won. We were both hunched over, trying to catch our breaths. Once we did, we sat by the river bank side by side. Torren had laid down, watching the stars. He sighed. "Sometimes I wish that nights like these could last forever." I laid down next to him, once again oblivious to the blush on his cheeks. "Yeah..." We went into a comfortable silence. I sat up suddenly, slapping my face. "How could I forget?!" Now this was embarrassing. Torren sat up too. "What?" He asked in confusion. Grabbing him by his shoulders, I shook him. "How long has it been since we met?!" He thought for a second, then replied, "About three years, why?" I let go of him. "Exactly! That means we should celebrate!" He looked at me with a smirk.
"Okay, but why all of a sudden? Isn't that an annual thing?" I shook my head. "Yeah but it takes me a while to get warmed up to someone! You're special to me! That's why I've decided on today." I noticed Torren had pink on his cheeks. "Hey, are you okay? You're not sick, are you?" He jumped, nodding, "I'm fine! It's nothing... I just think you're special too." I smirked at him. "Great let's go!" I grabbed his hand to pull him up, but he wouldn't comply.
"Huh?" I noticed that the pink was gone from his face too. He just smiled. "I beat you here, remember?" I frowned. "You don't need to remind me." I scoffed at him. He laughed. "Well, I wanna take you somewhere." My frown dissipated into a curious look. "Where?" Torren stood up, and took my hand. Now, it was my turn to blush. He started off, dragging me with him. A long run later, we arrived in a dark part of town. The part which constantly had those weird creatures. "Umm? Torren, isn't this dangerous?" He only said "Relax, I have a surprise for you." I started to get nervous, but decided to trust him. We arrived at a weapons shop. It was empty of life.
My eyes practically sparkled with excitement. Torren pulled out money from his pocket, which I questioned. "I've been saving up and now I have enough." He placed the money on the counter and went into the aisles while telling me to wait out front. What was with him? My face still radiated heat and I was kind of nervous. Why do something for me? Torren came back out while holding what looked like a sword. I helped Torren carry it since he was about to drop it. I was sort of strong so I could carry it with no problem. Looking at it, it was a katana, brandished in a black sheath with blue strings decorating it. I unsheathed it, looking at the beautiful pure white blade and golden base. The swords base had the words "Those that are lost, can always be found." carved onto it. The writing looked like Torren's. I strapped the sword onto my pants without saying a word. Torren looked disappointed. "Aww... You don't like-" He was interrupted by me hugging him tightly, tears pouring from my eyes. "Thank you. Its perfect." I whispered. He hugged me back, placing a hand on my head. I didn't know how he knew about my love for swords but it didn't matter. I broke away from our embrace, saying, "I didn't have anything to give back..." He smiled at me. "How about we stay friends forever?" I nodded my head. "Of course!" It felt as if things would stay happy forever.
Too bad it didn't.
As we began to leave the building, my sword comfortably at my side, I had decided to walk in front. I was knocked to the side with incredible force, hitting a concrete wall as my breath struggled to get to me. Torren shouted my name and ran to my side. I wiped at my mouth as I asked Torren, "What happened?" He pointed to a gigantic wolf. The fact that it had creepy human eyes looking in different directions all over it's back was weird enough alone. It's coat was a vibrant red. Overall, it gave me the chills. I stood up, one hand in front of Torren. "I need you to hide for me please." Torren nodded, running far away I hope.
The three years we've known each other, we've only come across a few phantoms. And they were nowhere near this size. I took a deep breath before charging at the wolf. It swung a paw at me, its claws out. I jumped up, avoiding the blow. Behind me, several houses were shredded. I'm really glad this place was somewhat abandoned. I landed on a rooftop, looking down at the wolf. It had a black patch on it's back, covered in eyes. Jumping from the rooftop, I pointed the sword down. Stabbing the wolf in its back. It let out a growl before looking at me. I gasped as it began shaking itself wildly. The sudden movement threw me into a wall. It hurt like hell, might I add.
The wolf then charged toward me. I willed myself to move as it crashed where I was only seconds before. I stood before the creature and slashed at its leg, making it bleed a foul smelling black substance. The wolf howled loudly, shaking the houses and windows. Anything made out of glass shattered. In a attempt to save my ears, I dropped the sword and covered my ears. The wolf charged with newfound speed, slashing at me. This time, it hit. Pain shot through my chest, three new slash marks on me. I picked up my sword and jumped back, putting some distance between us. Red blood slowly seeped from the wounds on my chest, causing me to wince in pain.
The wolf howled again, but I didn't cover my ears. I couldn't afford to lose my only weapon against this thing. The howl left a ringing in my ears as the wolf charged again. When it slashed, it missed, though only by a little. My movements began to slow. The wolf seemed to be getting in singular slashes instead of three. It continued it's pattern of attacks. The pain was so unbearable. Eventually my ears began to bleed from the constant howling. My clothes were shredded, and a slash effectively hit my leg. The pain caused me to stop, kneeling on the ground. I couldn't use this leg anymore. Looking up, I saw the wolf charge again, taking advantage of my newfound disability. I looked it straight in the eyes with no fear anymore. So this was it, and right after Torren gave me a gift. I laughed bitterly as I closed my eyes, waiting, but it never came.
Opening my eyes I saw something I should've never seen. Torren ran out in front of me, arms up. I unconsciously stood up and shouted, "What are you doing here?!" He looked at me with tears in his eyes, "I just couldn't bear seeing you like this." Everything after that seemed to move in slow motion. The wolf had reached us. It slashed out. I reached out for Torren, but I was too late. He mouthed something right before he was hit. Torren had went flying into the wall. He...sacrificed himself for me? ...Why? I felt something wet on my face. Tears? The wolf, who's attention was turned to Torren, charged at him. Seeing this, I ran up with sudden strength and launched myself at the bastard. I had stabbed it straight in the neck, knocking it off it's feet. The black liquid was all over me, but I didn't care. I ran over to Torren, who I braced against the wall. "Why?!" The tears wouldn't stop. He cupped my face with his hand. "It's okay. Don't be sad... After all, we're already dead." I shook my head. "Don't! Don't leave me here! Please!" My desperate cries were in vain. Torren had closed his eyes. His hand dropped from my face. I desperately put my face to his chest.
Ba-Bum Ba-Bum
I released a sigh of relief. He was alive, for now. I grabbed my sword and ran over to the wolf, who was still on the ground. I took the blade, and stabbed the wolf in the patch where the eyes were densest. The wolf had jumped, then relaxed. I didn't realize I had knocked it a ways away from where we were. As I turned away, whimpers could be heard. The wolf had shrunken down considerably. It looked...normal. It had white fur that was stained black from previous scratches I had made. All of the eyes were gone except for one.
I walked over to the wolf, and instead of killing it, a wave of sympathy washed over me. I cut the eye out and stepped on it. It disappeared in a white flash. I picked up the wolf and began carrying it back. I had expected to see Torren, but I saw a woman who had on flashy clothes. She had long blonde hair and purple eyes. Next to her was a lion with a scar over it's face. There was a bright purple light, and then they left. I had hidden in a alley, watching them go by. The lion had looked at me, and for a moment, I was scared. He turned away when the woman called him. When she left, she had a new accessory, a cannon glove. She mumbled something, and the glove disappeared. After I was absolutely certain she was gone, I had rushed over to where I last saw Torren.
I was worried the woman had done something to him. When I reached the spot, I started crying again. He...He was gone. The only thing left was a spot of blood. I knew the woman did something! Torren... Why?! If only he'd have listened... He wouldn't be hurt! If only I was stronger!
The wolf began to whimper again. I ripped my sleeve and bandaged the poor thing. It must've been possessed. I was alone. Alone... Taking the wolf, I walked back to my alley. I decided that I would keep him. I thought about all the things I wanted to tell Torren. I now, he's gone. I'll remain hopeful though. He could still be alive. I laid down, next to the wolf. Crying yet again. Wiping my tears, I sniffled. Honestly, why am I so weak? I couldn't sleep. Not a wink. I looked up to the stars. Putting my hand over my heart, I whispered, "I'll find you. Count on it." At that, my journey began.
And That's the first chapter! I'm really excited for this story!
I'm going to try to make the chapters as long as I can, but no promises ;)
This story isn't going to be completely accurate along with the anime, but I'll try...
Tell me how this chapter was! Please review!
-Lisa
