Akiko Ire...

When Akiko was only 12 her life came to a jeering halt. One of her best friends had run away from home, trying to escape the clutches of his haphazard and wasted life. The life of Takai. His father left him when he was young, just like Akiko's had, but he was an only child unlike his childhood companion sense birth. Akiko had an older brother who was also like a brother to him. They grew up as close as any friend could be until Takai started to stray... Drugs over took him, appealing desires coursed through his veins and rebellion shown through his eyes and he lashed out at his mother, finally sending her to a mental institute and dropping him off at his uncle's. After a year she picked him up and whisked them away to another state. Takai's drug addictions became much worse and the 15-year-old was thrown into the hands of a group of 19-year-olds who took him to her home city. Akiko was now 14 and a freshman in high school when she found out her now 15-year-old adoptive brother and semi-crush had done all these things. It had almost 2-3 years sense any contact at all.

Another rumor spread that not only was he near her but he also was a player in 'The World', a futuristic, virtual game that had been the rave of late. She got her own account and looked all over for her companion, leveling up and trading information with friends. One cloaked figure caught her attention. Their information was traded with other knowledge that she gave them willingly, doing anything to find him. One day her 'source' told her that he had found him. She was more then happy to come with. But when they arrived at their destination point...there was nothing but darkness, and she turned to ask where he was when only a fading shadow answered: (These are some little snippets from the story)

"He's here...look closely...deep within you...look...but when you do...you shall pay a price..."

She shifted nervously. The air around them became cold and thick, wrapping her in a shroud blanket of mystery and enigma. Everything felt so cold...so...real...to real for even 'The World'...

"You shall pay...with your life..."

The eerie voice slithered away into the depth of unknown and left her alone with those last words hanging on the air. What did he mean pay with your life?

Wondering if Takai was really there she parted her lips. An inaudible sound squeaked form her throat. Lungs constricted and everything around her went black, slipping from consciousness...slowly eating away at her...WHAT'S GOING ON! This is to real! Everything going, I can't log off, I'm dieing...Takai...help me...

Darkness....

~~

Someone shook Akiko's shoulder gently. Her head tilted back, rolling over her shoulder and then her chin rested in the hallow of her collarbone. Another shake and a light pierced her senses and flooded everything, coming so fast that she yelped in pain, her head throbbing. And her eyes snapped open.

~~

"I-I'm not an angel.", the silver-haired boy in front of her mumbled, a faint blush on his cheeks which accented the red streaks there.

Akiko's eyes were wide and she couldn't help but gawk at the person pacing aimlessly in front of her. He was tall, lanky with a staff held between flexed fingers. His knuckles were white from their tight grip and his robe was an earthy brown as well as the hat on his head. How much he looked like her Takai, but of course some difference. This boy's eyes were a little larger then Takai's and Takai's were a dark brown, almost pit less black. But even though the color and size differed the same smiling and uncertain look glowed from them and she felt her heart warm. The stranger's lengthy hair was a platinum silver, the style the same as her companion that she searched for, but his hair was charcoal black with blue streaks if she could remember.

But then everything came back and she was alone with a boy in 'The World', thought she had died and cannot log out of the virtual system. Oh shit...

What's going on? Who is this silver-haired stranger with solemn expression and shy attitude? Well you kinda know already but ahah...oh well...Who was the person that tricked poor Akiko and how can she get out? Tsukasa travels looking for the same way out.

Ok, ok, NO. N-O, this ABSOLUTELY not a Tsukasa/OC fic! Akiko is only a girl I created that he befriends on his journey. They get to know each other well BUT NOTHING HAPPENS. And furthermore, Akiko is not the most important person in this fic. She isn't almighty powerful. In fact, she's like a sidekick person. Take Zell form FF8 for instance! He's cool, he's funny, but he's not the leader, not the most powerful but everyone loves hiiiiim! Er...Well, that's just an example. She does have a seemingly itsty-bitsy-smoochy-woochy 'lil part concerning her search for her lost koi, Takai. Ok, koi isn't a good word, they're only 14/16 ( he's 16 now) and they were only CLOSE friends before he left. I also hate Akiko and I love her. I've never had a hate/love relationship with my chars I make, I only have LOVE-LOVE! Well, I like her personality on things and I sometimes hate them. It just makes her ever more...original? I donno...But she is not a Mary-sue! So don' yell at me pleeeeease! Tsukasa is the most important one! Teeeee-heeeee! It's kinda like putting your own char in a roleplaying game which .hack//SIGN is and is a role-playing anime... Um, R&R if I should continue and if I should I will on Saturday after .hack//SIGN premiers on Toonami at 3:00 P.M. central/pacific. K,k? *sighs and puts on shield armor incase she has heavy objects thrown at her.* And if you want you can put your own char in here. First 5 reviews will be chosen. *puts on metal hat and sits behind a wall* If I choose you then e-mail your profile at daisuke_fangrrl2000@yahoo.com with you profiles stating name, age, weapon, blah-blah-de-blah. Ja...*curls up and covers head with hands*

Ready.set.FLAME OR REVIEW!