Part of my Christmas special. Everyday a gift, everyday something
different. To open every present, go to my Christmas 2003 page.
~*~*~*~
Makes the Heart Grow Fonder Shaman King Virgo
Somewhere in the house, a clock changed to 11 at night. The spirits all sighed, humming as they went about their ethereal un-lives. The old man in the toilet flushed. He always did that now that they had put in one of those blue tablets. He said he liked the smell. They didn't ask.
Despite the lateness of the time the TV was still on, though nearly muted now. Anna hadn't been watching it for the passed few hours, but the flickering light in the blue dark of the empty house soothed her somewhat. Childish, yes, but she could have some trivial thing give her a sense of security. After all, she was the future wife of the future Shaman King. She was allowed to do what she wanted.
She sat at the table and looked at the clock and tried not to look at the phone that sat next to it. She willed it to ring without her knowing she was willing it. Then she looked away. It didn't help that she knew she was trying not to know what she was doing.
Feeling restless but untired, Anna stood up and went to one of the shelves by the entrance to the living room. There was a book there she had been trying to get through for the passed few weeks; something Yoh had told her to read. She found that somewhat amusing. Reading was one of the many things Yoh would rather not do.
But, Yoh had told her, it's a really good book! Lyserg told me about it, actually. See, these two fantasy writers got together and wrote about the end of the world! It's really funny and there's an angel and demon that're friends and witches and prophets and aliens and stuff! His smile disappeared as he though. Okay, there weren't that many aliens, but they're still in there. The only thing that would've made it better is if they put some spirits in there. But they have an Anti-Christ and the Four Motorcyclists of the Apocalypse!
Four Horsemen. She corrected automatically.
They're motorcyclists in this book. He grinned widely at her.
A highly nonsensical book, she mused. That /would/ be one of the few things he'd read.
But, he had suddenly gotten serious on her, there was something in there I think everyone should read about. The ending just made me think. And what really made it hit was the fact that one person in this entire world, only /one/ /person/ will have the power to end the world, save it, do what they want with it. His eyes went dark. When I get that power, I'd do the same thing that character did at the end of the book.
Oddly curious, Anna had held the book against her chest, captivated by Yoh. What's that?
Then his mischievous smile broke the spell. You'll have to read it.
That was around two weeks ago. And she hadn't even gotten halfway through. Anna debated looking through it again, but then just put it down. She hadn't been in the mood. Not since Yoh and the others left. Another Shaman Fight. Yoh had said it wouldn't last that long, that they'd be back soon so Anna didn't have to go with them.
She couldn't say that she wanted to. She did, desperately, but she knew her place. She trusted Yoh to do the best that he could, and she trusted that he would succeed. But she couldn't help a small part of her that ignored her ignoring it, wishing she knew if he was okay, if he was safe, it he wasn't hurt-
Abruptly she went over to the TV and turned it off. As if that was the source of the thoughts she didn't want.
She could remember Manta's crumpled face, saying how unfair it was that they had to have a Shaman Fight so close to Christmas. His parents didn't let him follow, despite how much he begged and pleaded. Yoh reminded Anna about the present he had for Manta on his dresser top.
If I don't make it back in time-
You will. She had cut in. Because if you don't, I'll make you train eight times harder than I had already planned.
Eh~! But Anna....! But he didn't say anything more because he knew it wouldn't do any good. And because he knew that, really, she just wanted him back for the holiday. Even if their families didn't celebrate Christmas, Yoh had fully grasped the western tradition of it from Faust, Lyserg, Chocoluv and the more modernized of the Patch, among others. And, of course, when you had people like Ryu and Horo Horo who would take any reason to party with good friends and run with it until it was throttled to death, you couldn't go around having a blowout of a bash. It eventually became one of the many oddities that they celebrated. All of them, together.
She went over to the fridge, robe swishing around her calves as she went. In the back of her mind she could hear Yoh teasing her about how she could make even a sleeping robe look regal. It wasn't like she could help. It was just in the way she carried herself, the way she kept her bearing, the way she was raised. After all, one could not be the wife of the Shaman King by being messy and uncontrollable. It would give both them and their families a bad name.
Of course, she thought dryly to herself, only a regal wife would be eating leftover chicken this late at night.
It wasn't that she didn't know how to cook, or that she didn't cook very well (in all honesty, it was pretty mediocre cooking), she was just, for the most part, lazy. Their families would joke on that being why the two of them were such a perfect match. Neither of them liked doing work, they just wanted to do what they wanted and not have to worry about anything else. But they trained hard and worked hard when it counted, and that was all that really mattered.
After all, Yoh reasoned, if he worked real hard, he could become Shaman King. Then he could be lazy for the rest of his life.
And, Anna reasoned, if she got Yoh to work real hard, he could become Shaman King. Then /she/ could be lazy for the rest of her life. There was no way she was going to pass that up. Especially with all that natural power Yoh had sleeping inside him.
But with all that latent talent, he still had so many people to go through. So many strong, battle hardened Shaman. Yoh may have seen his own far share of fights, but there were so many that were ruthless, that would do anything to win. Even having grown so much stronger, there were still those like Faust- completely mad and drowning in their dreams -like Ren- who didn't know any better than just to keep fighting -the X-LAWS, Hao..
Yoh would win. She knew. He had the skill. He had the more than willing spirit. He had the ingenuity-
The phone rang in the living room.
-he had the will.
She turned to the sound of it, surprised that it had interrupted her thoughts. With a deep breath she shook her head and put the chicken into the microwave. It was oven baked BBQ, rather bland, lacking seasoning. Not nearly as good as the BBQ Ryu and his gang had made them last autumn. She wished she still had some of that.
The phone rang again and she felt oddly torn and her thoughts wandered idly back to Yoh.
She knew she shouldn't worry. But that didn't mean that she didn't.
The phone gave its third rang by the time she reached it, hand on the smooth surface. For a moment she debated on not picking up. But, out of habit, answered the phone in the middle of the fourth ring.
"Funbari Onsen. Kiyouyama Anna speaking." Her soft voice breathed into the receiver.
"Yo."
Her eyes widened a bit. She wanted to let out a laugh, but remembered herself. "Yoh."
There was that familiar chuckle at the other end. "Just won the final fight in this round." His voice was a pleasant distraction, bringing up warmth that she had missed. "We'll be heading back to Japan in two days."
There was a silence. Not one bit uncomfortable.
"Sorry for calling-"
"You're late." Was all she said. Though it was carefully kept out of her voice, Yoh knew she was smiling.
"Eh? Really?" He was laughing again. She could tell. "We ended the fight as quick as we could."
"Not quick enough." Anna's eyes flickered to the clock, soft smile carefully kept on her face.
He still had forty minutes until midnight. But she wouldn't tell him that.
~*~*~*~
Makes the Heart Grow Fonder Shaman King Virgo
Somewhere in the house, a clock changed to 11 at night. The spirits all sighed, humming as they went about their ethereal un-lives. The old man in the toilet flushed. He always did that now that they had put in one of those blue tablets. He said he liked the smell. They didn't ask.
Despite the lateness of the time the TV was still on, though nearly muted now. Anna hadn't been watching it for the passed few hours, but the flickering light in the blue dark of the empty house soothed her somewhat. Childish, yes, but she could have some trivial thing give her a sense of security. After all, she was the future wife of the future Shaman King. She was allowed to do what she wanted.
She sat at the table and looked at the clock and tried not to look at the phone that sat next to it. She willed it to ring without her knowing she was willing it. Then she looked away. It didn't help that she knew she was trying not to know what she was doing.
Feeling restless but untired, Anna stood up and went to one of the shelves by the entrance to the living room. There was a book there she had been trying to get through for the passed few weeks; something Yoh had told her to read. She found that somewhat amusing. Reading was one of the many things Yoh would rather not do.
But, Yoh had told her, it's a really good book! Lyserg told me about it, actually. See, these two fantasy writers got together and wrote about the end of the world! It's really funny and there's an angel and demon that're friends and witches and prophets and aliens and stuff! His smile disappeared as he though. Okay, there weren't that many aliens, but they're still in there. The only thing that would've made it better is if they put some spirits in there. But they have an Anti-Christ and the Four Motorcyclists of the Apocalypse!
Four Horsemen. She corrected automatically.
They're motorcyclists in this book. He grinned widely at her.
A highly nonsensical book, she mused. That /would/ be one of the few things he'd read.
But, he had suddenly gotten serious on her, there was something in there I think everyone should read about. The ending just made me think. And what really made it hit was the fact that one person in this entire world, only /one/ /person/ will have the power to end the world, save it, do what they want with it. His eyes went dark. When I get that power, I'd do the same thing that character did at the end of the book.
Oddly curious, Anna had held the book against her chest, captivated by Yoh. What's that?
Then his mischievous smile broke the spell. You'll have to read it.
That was around two weeks ago. And she hadn't even gotten halfway through. Anna debated looking through it again, but then just put it down. She hadn't been in the mood. Not since Yoh and the others left. Another Shaman Fight. Yoh had said it wouldn't last that long, that they'd be back soon so Anna didn't have to go with them.
She couldn't say that she wanted to. She did, desperately, but she knew her place. She trusted Yoh to do the best that he could, and she trusted that he would succeed. But she couldn't help a small part of her that ignored her ignoring it, wishing she knew if he was okay, if he was safe, it he wasn't hurt-
Abruptly she went over to the TV and turned it off. As if that was the source of the thoughts she didn't want.
She could remember Manta's crumpled face, saying how unfair it was that they had to have a Shaman Fight so close to Christmas. His parents didn't let him follow, despite how much he begged and pleaded. Yoh reminded Anna about the present he had for Manta on his dresser top.
If I don't make it back in time-
You will. She had cut in. Because if you don't, I'll make you train eight times harder than I had already planned.
Eh~! But Anna....! But he didn't say anything more because he knew it wouldn't do any good. And because he knew that, really, she just wanted him back for the holiday. Even if their families didn't celebrate Christmas, Yoh had fully grasped the western tradition of it from Faust, Lyserg, Chocoluv and the more modernized of the Patch, among others. And, of course, when you had people like Ryu and Horo Horo who would take any reason to party with good friends and run with it until it was throttled to death, you couldn't go around having a blowout of a bash. It eventually became one of the many oddities that they celebrated. All of them, together.
She went over to the fridge, robe swishing around her calves as she went. In the back of her mind she could hear Yoh teasing her about how she could make even a sleeping robe look regal. It wasn't like she could help. It was just in the way she carried herself, the way she kept her bearing, the way she was raised. After all, one could not be the wife of the Shaman King by being messy and uncontrollable. It would give both them and their families a bad name.
Of course, she thought dryly to herself, only a regal wife would be eating leftover chicken this late at night.
It wasn't that she didn't know how to cook, or that she didn't cook very well (in all honesty, it was pretty mediocre cooking), she was just, for the most part, lazy. Their families would joke on that being why the two of them were such a perfect match. Neither of them liked doing work, they just wanted to do what they wanted and not have to worry about anything else. But they trained hard and worked hard when it counted, and that was all that really mattered.
After all, Yoh reasoned, if he worked real hard, he could become Shaman King. Then he could be lazy for the rest of his life.
And, Anna reasoned, if she got Yoh to work real hard, he could become Shaman King. Then /she/ could be lazy for the rest of her life. There was no way she was going to pass that up. Especially with all that natural power Yoh had sleeping inside him.
But with all that latent talent, he still had so many people to go through. So many strong, battle hardened Shaman. Yoh may have seen his own far share of fights, but there were so many that were ruthless, that would do anything to win. Even having grown so much stronger, there were still those like Faust- completely mad and drowning in their dreams -like Ren- who didn't know any better than just to keep fighting -the X-LAWS, Hao..
Yoh would win. She knew. He had the skill. He had the more than willing spirit. He had the ingenuity-
The phone rang in the living room.
-he had the will.
She turned to the sound of it, surprised that it had interrupted her thoughts. With a deep breath she shook her head and put the chicken into the microwave. It was oven baked BBQ, rather bland, lacking seasoning. Not nearly as good as the BBQ Ryu and his gang had made them last autumn. She wished she still had some of that.
The phone rang again and she felt oddly torn and her thoughts wandered idly back to Yoh.
She knew she shouldn't worry. But that didn't mean that she didn't.
The phone gave its third rang by the time she reached it, hand on the smooth surface. For a moment she debated on not picking up. But, out of habit, answered the phone in the middle of the fourth ring.
"Funbari Onsen. Kiyouyama Anna speaking." Her soft voice breathed into the receiver.
"Yo."
Her eyes widened a bit. She wanted to let out a laugh, but remembered herself. "Yoh."
There was that familiar chuckle at the other end. "Just won the final fight in this round." His voice was a pleasant distraction, bringing up warmth that she had missed. "We'll be heading back to Japan in two days."
There was a silence. Not one bit uncomfortable.
"Sorry for calling-"
"You're late." Was all she said. Though it was carefully kept out of her voice, Yoh knew she was smiling.
"Eh? Really?" He was laughing again. She could tell. "We ended the fight as quick as we could."
"Not quick enough." Anna's eyes flickered to the clock, soft smile carefully kept on her face.
He still had forty minutes until midnight. But she wouldn't tell him that.