Mia

by Icicle Raindream

Ryo tells of the worst day of his life.

Mia

Story by: Icicle Raindream

Disclaimer: Ronin Warriors does not belong to me and so in light of that fact, I'm not making any profit from writing this. It's for fun and entertainment only. (AKA Something to keep me from being a total lazy bum all the time.)

Notes: This was when I had just begun writing fanfiction. I was getting dressed for school one morning, and as I pulled my shirt over my head, I just got this idea. (I actually started writing it down on notebook paper during my German class, then finished it on the computer.) Keep in mind that this story does not necessarily follow any plotlines in the actual series. Most of this is just my own twisted imagination. Hope you like it! Tell me what you think, okay?

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I would have fallen if it weren't for them.

If it weren't for my friends, my soulmates, I would have completely and utterly collapsed, right there on the grassy hillside of the lawn. Just before my knees hit the ground, two pairs of strong arms wrapped around me and held me up.

My vision was blurred, but the violet cut through the bleariness like an icy knife as I turned my head to my right. Sage's arms were strapped tightly around my torso and he was staring at me in concern. His eyes were slightly red; not nearly as red as mine were. I'm sure I looked like a demon with my puffy eyes and tousled hair falling in my face, but Sage said nothing about my appearance, nor did he react in any way to it. He simply rested his head on my shoulder in assurance that he, and ironically, I, too, was still alive. Sage…always the strong one, never showing fear, regret…he hardly even showed a hint of the sorrow that was tainting my being, but I knew in his actions that he truly did care.

I could feel the pressure around my waist and looked to my left. I recognized Rowen's blue hair immediately as it fell across my shoulder, the hold increasing comfortably around my stomach. I raised my arms and wrapped them around my two friends, who were engulfing me in a comforting, compassionate hug, sharing my pain. I clenched my eyes shut as the tears came in a rush and streaked down my cheeks. My chest began to heave softly as I sobbed; quietly at first, then louder. I buried my head in Sage's hair, wishing I could make it all go away, wishing I could undo what had been done, wishing I could combust and leave the hurt behind. My knees were shaking; surely if my friends hadn't been there my legs would have broken already.

"Sage…" I mumbled into his hair between sobs, "I never got to…I never told…I didn't…" My voice failed and I lost the words, couldn't find them again.

Sage lifted his head gently and stared at me, eyes shimmering. "I know…but I think…" He paused. "You said it clear enough…It was known, Ryo…it had to be…"

I shifted my weight and my knees faltered, sending all three of us to the ground in a miserable heap, Rowen and Sage not once surrendering their grip on me. I looked up in front of me and Cye was there, wrapping his arms around my neck, leaning against my chest, crying softly. Kento's arms came from behind, his head on my shoulder blade and his breathing light and shallow.

I reveled in the warmth created around me and realized my tears had momentarily stopped, surprising me. I could feel myself shaking and I gripped my friends tighter in attempt to stop. I closed my eyes again and felt nothing, nothing but the love and caring that kept the five of us bonded together, forever.

The memories began to swirl inside my head; those horrible, gut-wrenching memories, pictures…from that terrible day…the day that would be permanently etched in my mind.

*

It was so COLD!

I opened my eyes and looked at my clock, shivering. Great. Three-fifteen a.m. I sighed in disgust, disappointed in myself that I had woken up. My body hadn't even begun to feel sleepy until somewhere around one o'clock, and even then I'd been tossing and turning. You'd think I could finally get some rest now that Talpa is gone!

I glanced down at myself, wondering why I was so cold. The blankets on my bed were shoved down in the right corner, one sock was flung carelessly on the floor, my pillow was resting next to me, and my pajama shirt had worked its way up to my armpits, chilling the flesh on my stomach and chest.

I groaned as I rolled off the bed, snatching my sock. I pulled it on and fixed my shirt. Then I put my pillow where it belonged, and uncrumpled my blankets. I had about fifty of them, and I piled them on me and under my head as I lay back down. I commanded my eyes to close, and eventually my breathing slowed and evened out.

*

KER-RASH!

"Ro-wen!" three voices bellowed in agitation. It came from downstairs.

The noise startled me from my uneasy slumber. I rolled over quickly to get up and discovered I wasn't quite awake yet. I landed in a belly flop on the floor.

"What time is it?" I wondered out loud, my stomach stinging. I tried to push myself up off the floor to look at the clock, but failed miserably. My overworked body just wouldn't work anymore. I gave up and sighed, pressing my cheek into the carpet. "Who the hell cares anyway?" I asked myself, and closed my eyes to sleep again.

Just then my door banged open behind me and I jumped out of my skin.

"MORNING!" Cye screamed out happily.

Oh, my ears. "Stop shouting!" I demanded from the floor. I couldn't see Cye since my feet were pointing to him, but I could tell he had stepped over to my side.

"Gee, Ryo, you look like crap," Cye observed, his voice smiling down on me.

"Thanks," I mumbled sarcastically to the floor.

"Well, time to get up, breakfast's on!"

No. I don't want to go to school today. I inwardly moaned as I forced my body over to face Cye. He leaned down close to my face and studied me for a moment, then pulled away thoughtfully.

"Your eyes are all bloodshot," he told me. "You should get to bed earlier."

"I went to bed at eight o'clock, Cye!" I whined, covering my eyes with my hands. "And I'm still tired!"

Cye tsked. "You got too much sleep," he said as I removed my hands. He waggled his finger at me, a look of mock disappointment on his face.

"I didn't fall asleep until one," I admitted pitifully in a small voice.

Cye threw his hands up, an amused look on his face. "You need more sleep then! You're all out of sorts this morning, aren't you?" He was trying not to laugh. "Well anyway, come down and eat." He left me on the floor and walked out.

I sat up dizzily and realized my head was pounding. I groaned. Yuck. This is just perfect! Is my crappy night going to carry on throughout my day?

If I had known better, I never would have thought those words.

I struggled off the floor and lazily grabbed my school clothes from my closet, not paying too much attention to what I was doing. I walked out of my room to the bathroom and grabbed some painkillers for my head. Then I made my way downstairs, where I could hear my friends' voices talking and laughing.

I pushed open the kitchen door and stood for a moment, taking the scene in, my head still thumping inside. Cye was standing over the stove with a spatula, Sage was pouring himself a cup of tea, and Kento and Rowen were sitting at the table. They were all dressed and ready for school, even Rowen, who's usually still comatose at this hour. Did I get up that late? Kento was eating hungrily and Rowen was sipping orange juice as the smell of breakfast food filled the kitchen. I groggily walked in and sat down next to him, staring at the pitcher of juice, not having enough strength to lift it and pour a glass. I rested my head on my arms as Sage and Cye began talking by the stove.

I let my eyes wander the kitchen till I wasn't sure if the world was spinning or my head was. My eyes came to rest on Rowen's glass, which had been refilled to the brim with orange juice. He picked it up, my eyes following his every movement but he not paying any attention. I watched as he raised the glass to his lips and took a sip, swallowing delightedly. I listened to the swallow—it was torture. The juice looked so refreshing and cold and tasty…Uh-oh, there he goes again. Another agonizing sip. I watched as condensation dripped from the glass over his fingers to the table. My mouth was dry as sandpaper and my voice was rasping in my throat. Kento was oblivious to my watching him as he took a bite of his food, then reached for his milk. Oh…tall and frosty, beautifully white, creamy…and wet. Milk. I desperately wanted something to drink. I looked back to Rowen as he lifted his glass…

…and snatched it from his hand. My reflexes were quick as lightning and before I knew it, I was guzzling the whole rest of the glass greedily. The juice poured down my throat and relieved it, filling my mouth with the wonderful orange fruit taste. Nothing at this particular moment had ever tasted so good before.

I gulped in a huge breath of air as I set the glass loudly back down on the table, empty. Juice had spilled carelessly down my mouth and a little onto my throat. I guess I was breathing harder than normal because my breath suddenly sounded like a chainsaw hacking in an empty gym. I looked around the kitchen, hoping I hadn't attracted too much attention.

Oops. Everyone was staring at me, especially Rowen.

He turned his head towards me, a stunned look on his face. Kento's fork was poised in the air for another bite. Cye's spatula was drooping to his sides in amazement, and Sage was leaning back against the counter coolly with his tea in his hand, an inquisitive look on his face.

"Gee, Ryo, if I'd have known you wanted something to drink so badly I would have poured you a glass," Rowen said, sarcasm lightly painting his tone.

I wiped my mouth sheepishly and looked down at my lap. "Sorry, Rowen…I couldn't help it."

He shook his head, brushing it off. "Whatever you say, man."

Activity resumed in the small kitchen, and Sage joined us at the table. My head slumped clumsily into my hand as I rudely leaned my elbow on the table.

Kento finished off his breakfast and looked at me. "Dude, you look like crap," he stated, picking up his plate.

I nodded slowly, rolling my eyes. "Thanks."

Kento nodded and left the table, walking over to the stove.

God, my head! It was still pounding against my skull. I glanced across the table and saw Sage's mouth moving. He must be talking… why so loudly?

My ears perked up at another noise… Cye and Kento tussling over something at the stove. I didn't turn my head to see what was wrong. Frankly, I couldn't have cared less, and besides, they always work it out anyway, with or without my help.

Except this time.

I'm not sure exactly what happened since I hadn't bothered to turn around and look, but somehow the empty frying pan on the stove flipped over and smashed to the ground with a big crash.

The noise reverberated through my head and cut into my brain, bursting tiny holes of pain in it. I cried out and clapped my hands over my ears, trying to drown out the sound before my head burst open and spilled everywhere.

It was then that I was vaguely aware of someone's arms around my shoulder, pulling me back up to my chair. Wait a minute…when had I fallen out of my chair? I was on the floor? My head was whirling around, making me nauseous. I clutched my stomach and squeezed my eyes closed.

"Ryo…" I heard my name being said. It sounded like I was underwater. "Ryo, are you all right?"

I opened my eyes and stared up at Cye's worried face. He was standing over me, holding the fallen frying pan. Sage was next to me at the table, helping me sit up.

"Does your head hurt?" Sage asked, his voice becoming clear.

The nausea passed and I let go of my stomach, nodding slowly. "I'm okay."

"Did you take something for your headache?" Cye asked, handing the pan over to Kento, who stood behind him. Cye has this internal mother radar which I guess had alerted him to my head hurting. And I also guessed the little tiff between him and Kento had been cleared up.

I nodded again as Sage pulled me to my feet. "Do you want another glass of orange juice?" I heard Rowen's voice call from across the table. He was being slightly sarcastic at my expense, I knew it.

"Maybe you should go back to bed, dude," Kento suggested.

"I said I'm okay!" I exploded, frustrated at all the sudden attention. "I'm fine, really! I can't miss school today anyway." I turned and shoved Sage out of my way, heading towards the living room. My face had begun to heat up and my head was still throbbing. I slumped on the couch tiredly and rested my head on the armrest.

*

"Come on, Ryo, time to leave!" Someone shook my arm.

"Huh?" I struggled to open my eyes. "Was I asleep?"

Sage bent over to look me in the eye. "Yeah. But it's time to go."

I nodded and got off the couch, only to be attacked by Cye.

"Look at your uniform," he scolded gently, reaching towards me. "It's in utter chaos." I felt him rebuttoning my top buttons and straightening my collar. "Good thing that collar covers the orange juice stain." My mind was in a haze from my catnap, otherwise I would have made up a snappy comeback. I'd learned to do that when faced against Warlords. You had to keep a certain sense of humor, but today, I just wasn't functioning properly and didn't even bother.

As we left the house, I felt someone take my hand. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that it was Sage. He squeezed, and I felt a burst of healing shoot through my body, lessening the steady thumping in my head. Then he let go, and nobody noticed what he had done as we made our way to school.

*

"Are you ready to give your presentation, Mr. Sanada?" my first period teacher called.

I sat up straight and nodded, ignoring my forever-lingering headache. "Yes, I am. Let me get my paper."

"Very well."

I reached under my desk and grabbed up my stack of books. I began searching through them, trying to remember where I'd stashed my report sheet.

"Are you prepared this morning, Mr. Sanada?" the teacher's voice asked, sounding sarcastic. What is it with people and sarcasm today? I wondered angrily. Lay off, will you?

I stood up, prepared to make a corny excuse. "Actually, I…" Lightning struck my brain as I realized where my paper really was. I didn't have to lie; I had to tell the absolute truth. And it was going to sound cornier than any fake excuse I could think of. My heart sunk into my chest and my pride fell to the floor in an instant. "Actually, I left my report at home…on my desk…where I had been working on it last night."

Don't look around, Sanada…they're laughing at you…keep your eyes on the stupid teacher and her stupid shocked face.

"Then I guess you'd better make amends, Mr. Sanada," the teacher replied, a sparkle in her eye.

She loves doing this to you, Sanada, you dumb idiot. I nodded and bowed respectfully to the class, as we'd been taught. Then I recited the formal apology to the students for my forgotten homework, and sat down with a thump and a few snickers in my ears, my face reddening. I hadn't forgotten something as trivial as homework in years. Damn Talpa, my mind raged. He's thrown me out of whack.

Class carried on without my participation.

*

When the bell rang, I almost fell out of my chair.

Geez, I fell asleep! And I hadn't been caught? Amazing.

I slowly dragged myself up out of my chair and crouched down to grab my books. Get a grip, Sanada, I told myself, my head still spinning. I stood back up and realized that I was going to be late for my next class if I didn't haul some major ass.

I shook my head to clear it and walked out the classroom door, surprisingly without a comment from the teacher, who was busily writing something at her desk. I silently raved happily in my head as I made my way down the hall and turned the corner.

I yelled as I came into solid contact with a wall. Or that's what it felt like, anyway. All I knew was that I had hit something, and now I was lying flat on my back, my books and papers sprawled everywhere.

My head…it had slammed into the hard floor and now the ache was back full-force. I clenched my eyes shut and curled up into a ball, forgetting that I was in the middle of the hallway at school, and going to be late.

"Ryo?" a familiar voice asked in shock.

I straightened out from my ridiculous position and looked up, aware that a few million people were staring at me with laughing looks on their faces. Someone walked over by my head and kneeled down, peering at me.

"Rowen?"

He nodded. "I'm sorry, buddy, I didn't see you coming."

My gaze shifted from his face to his hand, in which he held a thick book, where his nose had obviously been implanted until we almost knocked each other out.

He grabbed my hand and lifted me to my feet, then collected my books as I stood there, dazed. "You'd better hurry, you're going to be late," Rowen told me, handing over the stack.

I nodded wearily as I took it, then glanced around at the crowd that surrounded me, feeling overwhelmed by their presence.

Rowen sensed my feelings and broke it up. "Don't you have classes or something to get to?" He stood defiantly with his hands on his hips, switching into Ronin Warrior mode. He normally didn't act like that around the school kids, but they were afraid of his genius mind anyway, so I suppose he didn't care at the moment. The kids quickly moved away and continued down the hall, some still laughing at the event which had just occurred.

"Ryo, you okay?" Rowen asked suddenly, putting his hand on my shoulder.

I looked at him through fuzzy vision. "Yeah, I'm fine," I lied. "Catch you later." I stalked off dizzily, not looking at anyone. I pretended that my books were absolutely fascinating and hoped I didn't look too drunk as I walked, my balance all messed up. I knew Rowen had seen through my lie; I was the worst liar of all the Warriors (except in battle, of course), but I didn't have time to stand around and chat with him about how lousy I was feeling, and he must've known that.

I was about seven steps away from my classroom when the bell rang and the teacher closed the door. Just my luck. Now there was no way I could slip into class without being noticed. The old doors in this place were incredibly creaky, the teachers had eagle eyes, and what was worse, they had even better hearing. I think they were specially trained that way or something.

For the second time that day I had to get up and apologize to the class for my irresponsible behavior and sit down feeling like a total dork, my face hot with anger and embarrassment. I wasn't used to this; I wasn't used to explaining my actions or obeying rules, or even being in trouble. I sat for the whole period fuming, angry at everything, everyone. They didn't know what I'd been through and they didn't know how much stress I'd been under, but still. It seemed so irritatingly ironic to be so unappreciated. I just saved this whole damn world, what more do they want from me?

*

The day dragged on miserably, and during the course of it, I'd managed to trip on the carpet in class in front of everyone, spill my pen's ink all over my hands, and send my books crashing to the floor during a silent reading session. I went to the library to do some research for a paper that was due and spent the whole time sneezing loudly because of the dust on all the old books and shelves. I was sent away from there to go back to class to start writing, but couldn't concentrate on putting words down on the paper, and the pen was barely working anyway. It proceeded to shred the paper when I tried to write anything, so I gave up, frustrated. I guessed most of the ink was still on my hands, which I'd spent twenty minutes in the bathroom trying to scrub off with freezing water and rough paper towels. Later, the teacher called on me when I was lost in my own little world, thinking about nothing in particular, and I answered him with an intelligent, "Huh? Me?" I swear, the cleverness of that sentence rivaled Rowen's 250-point IQ. The usage of my vocabulary probably would've impressed him, too. Of course, I became the laughing stock of the entire class, and if my stupid head weren't still hurting I might've called my armor and beat the crap out of everyone.

The day wasn't even half over, and already I was praying for lunchtime to come. I needed my friends.

*

"You know," Rowen began, flipping a page in his book, "Sophocles says—"

"Rowen, could you cut us a break, just for now?" Sage broke in, putting his hand on the book and pulling it away from him. "Let's talk like normal human beings, okay?" He was trying to be as nice as possible without totally crushing Rowen's feelings.

Rowen obeyed, muttering under his breath. "Who ever said you were normal?"

"Hey, Cye, you gonna finish that?" Kento asked, eyeing Cye's lunch. He grabbed for some of Cye's food and they began a tug-of-war, arguing.

I just sat and watched my friends contentedly, not really comprehending anything, just letting the sun shine down on me and warm my head. The breeze that was blowing felt good and helped clear my head just a little bit. Maybe today will get better, I thought, smiling inside. I'd gone a whole half a lunch period without anything tragic happening so far, and my dead spirits were slightly lifting. Besides, I was with my friends, and by now Cye and Kento were laughing at each other.

"Hey, Ryo, how ya feelin', man?" Rowen asked, bringing me back to reality.

I looked at him and gave a half-smile. "Better," I answered. "If anything else happens to me today, though, I think I'm gonna die. I can't handle anymore." If that didn't sound truly pathetic…but it was true. I got up to throw my trash away, and did it successfully, with no problems at all. I kept an eye on my circle of friends as I made my way back from the trashcan. You can do it, Sanada. Keep your eye on them and you can do this.

"Hey, watch out!" somebody yelled.

Too late.

"Oof—" I groaned. Someone abruptly rammed into me and I lost my footing. For the second time that day I fell backwards and wailed my head on a hard surface, this time concrete, the world outside spinning and swirling around me, my head threatening to burst…again.

I lay there confused, unbelieving, my eyes closed. This didn't just happen, I told myself. Wake up, Ryo, you're dreaming. This is all a bad dream, and if you would only open your eyes…

I felt something cold spreading over my chest. Unfortunately, I knew I was most definitely awake. What the…I reached down to my shirt and realized it was soaking wet, and for the love of God it was freezing cold!

"I—I'm sorry," a small male voice said contritely, coming from above. "I didn't see you there."

I grasped my shirt tighter, the rage flaring up within me. Couldn't go one damn period of the day without an accident! "Just leave me alone," I snapped in an even tone, refusing to open my eyes. It was all I could do not to get up and impale the person with something sharp, preferably my katanas. I rolled onto my side as the footsteps retreated, slowly at first, then faster. It must've been someone younger than me, otherwise I wouldn't have scared them off so easily.

What was that, voices? People started to surround me, and some were already snickering. You'd better get up, Sanada, before they all laugh at you again! Oh, hell. Who cares, I thought bitterly. What's the difference? Can't save face now. Hey, everyone…for those of you who missed Ryo's performance earlier in the hall today, this was a little re-enactment for you! Hope you enjoyed it!

I'm not sure how long I stayed there on the ground, feeling my head pulsing and my face burning up. I just couldn't move. In fact, I didn't want to move. I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole. No, I wanted to hit something as hard as I could. I wanted to slice something open, to call upon my armor, to scream my lungs out.

But I just stayed there, slumped in a wrinkled, wet heap, and to my humiliation, tears formed in my eyes and a few escaped, completing my total embarrassment.

Suddenly there were fifteen thousand pairs of arms around me, pulling me off the ground gently and steadying me on my feet. I heard my name repeated over and over, and opened my eyes to see blurry faces staring at me. I dug the heels of my hands into my eyes to wipe away the tears and tried to focus my vision. It was only the guys, forming a protective circle around me, shielding me from the other kids' hurtful mocking laughter. Ridiculous, wasn't it? They were trying to protect me, the leader! I was the one who was supposed to be protecting them!

As soon as I had my balance back, the guys let go, waiting for my reaction, or perhaps just any reaction at all, as they stood there rigidly. I stared at them, my gaze shifting over each and every one of their faces, all clouded with concern and maybe a little anger towards the other students.

"Ryo?" Cye ventured timidly.

I turned around fiercely and pushed him back away from me. "Get out of my way," I snarled ungratefully, advancing.

Cye stood his ground and said calmly, "Where are you going, Ryo? What are you going to do?" He held up his hands as if to protect himself from me.

"I am going to kill someone," I responded, my words clipped. "What did he look like?" I raged on, the fire ignited inside. "I'm going to smash his head with my hands. Then maybe he'll know how I feel right now."

"Oh, no you don't," Kento said from behind me, and before I knew it, his arms were locked around my waist in a death grip, squeezing so hard I could barely breathe. My rage immediately began to melt away as I thought about how stupid I must've sounded, and I didn't have any strength to fight anyway. I couldn't even pour myself a glass of juice this morning.

The bell sounded then, and everyone began clearing the courtyard, heading for class. I shook my head, trying to push my anger and hurt deep inside, and managed to wriggle out of Kento's grasp. "Go," I ordered my friends. "You'll be late if you stay."

"Are you going to be okay?" Cye asked.

I nodded, feeling ashamed. "Yeah."

"Here." Sage handed me my jacket, which I'd tossed on the ground before we'd started lunch. "That'll cover up, um…whatever was spilled on you."

I took it and looked down at my shirt, which was covered in a bluish-brown stain. "What the hell was this guy drinking?" I asked out loud, pulling the jacket on.

"I don't know, man," Kento answered, "but it doesn't smell too good. I've gotta go wash my hands."

He and Cye left then.

"Are you sure you'll be all right?" Sage asked as he and Rowen gathered up their stuff. I noticed that they had taken a few strategic steps back, evading the stench that was emanating from my shirt.

"Go," I said again. "Once I commit suicide I'll be fine."

"Lighten up, buddy," Rowen said, keeping his laughter inside. "Only two more periods to go and you'll be outta here."

I nodded, unconvinced, and watched as they left. Sage had to direct Rowen through the doors so he wouldn't smash into them, his face buried in his book. I probably would have laughed if I didn't feel like I was going to fall apart. Instead, I just stood for a few moments, trying to gather my strength to walk.

Here we go again, I thought as I made my way into the school and down the desolate hall to my class. My head was still seriously pounding. Ready to apologize for acting like a jerk and being late? Three times in a row now, that I had to stand up in front of my fellow students and feel like a moron. I wonder if it's a school record? I guess I was going to find out, and I didn't even care anymore.

I sat in class like a lump on a log. Dull, unfeeling, barely alive. The smell from my shirt had long since taken over my nasal passageway, and every so often I was racked with slight shivers from my wet front. The open window I was sitting next to only amplified my anguish, and all I could do was pray that no one was paying any attention to me, or how I must've looked. I slumped in my desk behind the person in front of me, staring at the ink that outlined the grooves in the skin on my hands. It was truly amazing that I could focus my attention on something as small as that with my head about to fall off.

*

It was almost the end of the day when suddenly I heard my name being called by the teacher. Oh, no, what now? I thought, groaning softly to myself. I stood up and addressed the teacher respectfully as she spoke to me.

I was wanted in the principal's office. What? What did I do? I got in trouble because I was late a few times? No, that couldn't be it. Teachers didn't report incidences as petty as that to the head of the school. It had to be something else.

But what?

I dutifully gathered up my things and left the class, the other students' childish "Ooooh"s and "What did you dooooo?"s ringing quietly in my ears. At least I managed to get out the door without tripping or dropping anything.

I knocked on the headmaster's door and entered, bowing. Then I took a seat as she smiled at me from behind her desk, ruffling through a few papers.

"I have a sheet here, Mr. Sanada, with a few unpleasant comments about your participation in class this morning," she said sternly but nicely. She looked at me through her thick lashes and dark brown hair, waiting for me to say something. I kept my mouth closed, not catching the drift on why I was here in the first place.

"I want to know if this is true," she continued. "Did you, or did you not fall asleep in class this morning?"

I cringed as everything came together in my (hurting, pounding, throbbing) mind. First period…the reason the teacher didn't say anything to me is because she was too busy filling out a sheet saying that I had slept through her class. Oh, man. If only I knew this was going to turn around and bite me in the ass…I woulda…well, I would have done something. How about another apology? I thought sarcastically to myself.

"Mr. Sanada?"

Oh, right. She was still talking to me. I gulped and replied, "Yes, I did. I fell asleep accidentally in class."

The headmaster smiled at me. "I appreciate your honesty, Ryo. I believe this can all be cleared up if you would simply stand and give me an apology."

Man, if I had a buck every time I did this today…I stood up and recited the formal apology, my face burning. Then she dismissed me, and I turned to leave.

"Mr. Sanada?"

"Yes?" I turned around and faced her.

"Could you possibly open the window here for me? I don't know…I think I smell something foul." She was totally innocent, but I knew she smelled whatever had been spilled on my shirt. I guess nobody else had smelled it because the classrooms were bigger than her office, and I'd been sitting next to a window, and anyway, my jacket totally covered the huge stain that was splashed across my chest, so she had no idea.

I held in my absolute embarrassment and walked over to the window. I quickly yanked it open and made a beeline for the door.

"Mr. Sanada? Ryo?" she called again.

Oh, what now? I thought agitatedly, as the final bell rang. I turned and faced her with my most interested and respectful face.

She smiled widely at me again. "Perhaps you should get more rest before you come to school tomorrow?"

Ha! After today, who said I'd want to come back? I nodded and gave her a half-smile. "I'll try." Then I turned swiftly on my heel and nonchalantly rushed out of there, leaving tracks of fire in my wake.

That went rather well, Sanada, I told myself sarcastically as I walked down the hall. I could see my group of friends standing and talking, waiting for me. I wondered when everybody else's sarcasm had rubbed off on my personality as I approached them. I had turned involuntarily bitter.

Cye looked over at me.

"Just start walking," I told him miserably. "If I get any closer I'll probably knock you all out with my lovely sea-breeze scent."

Cye bristled slightly. "Are you making fun of the ocean?"

"Just the opposite," I mumbled, shaking my head. "Quick."

"Hey, that wasn't very nice, Ryo," Cye whined as I passed him. The others quickly began to follow me, shooting worried looks to each other. They knew I usually didn't act like that to them.

Something in Cye's words struck me like a blow to the head. "Nice?" I repeated, the fire coming alive again. "Do you want to know what's nice?" I whirled around and faced my friends, who stopped dead in their tracks at my outrageous behavior. "Feeling like the laughing stock of the school, that's nice. Not having any strength or getting any sleep, that's nice. Having to open the window for the principal because you stink, that's nice. And having your head feel like it's going explode…that's the nicest thing of all!" I rubbed a hand across my forehead as I turned back around and began walking, not caring if they were following me or not. I just wanted to go home and rest, not think about anything, and not do anything. I was suddenly so angry and my friends just happened to be there, happened to be convenient. I figured that if I took my rage out on anyone it should be them, because they would understand my actions the most.

I clutched my books desperately as I walked off school property and down the street towards Mia's house, my friends trailing. I could hear them talking softly between themselves behind me, but couldn't make out any words. I was kind of glad they weren't talking to me. Yeah, I felt bad about yelling at them, but it almost couldn't have been helped. It was like a firecracker going off inside me; there was nothing I could have done to prevent it. I just wanted to walk home in peace and forget this terrible day ever happened.

Suddenly a huge gust of wind rose up on the street and sent my books flying out of my hands. I watched in slow motion as they whirled up in the air, scattering my papers and that stupid empty pen all around me. Everything landed with a wham in the middle of the street.

That was it, the last straw. I'd had it! Enough is enough! How much bad luck could one person have in one day? My footsteps halted and I flopped down, hunched over pitifully in the middle of the road, my face buried in my hands and my legs sprawled out in front of me. Tears shamefully came to my eyes and streamed down my cheeks, tears I was unable to stop from flowing. I heard faint scuffling next to me and then Kento was pulling me up to my feet. He said nothing about my un-Warrior-like behavior, just put his arm sympathetically around my shoulder. I watched as Cye, Sage, and Rowen picked up my stuff and divided it between them, not handing anything to me at all. They began to walk again and Kento dragged me up next to them, my hands stuffed in my pockets and my hair in my face.

We walked in complete silence the rest of the way home, the wind cooling and drying my hot cheeks as my anger faded away. I was beginning to feel incredibly drained all of a sudden, if I had any energy to lose, and being angry just took everything out of me. I decided anger wasn't worth it.

Besides, with friends like these, what else mattered?

*

Light flooded into my bedroom.

"Hey, Ryo-man, you awake?" Rowen's voice called softly from the hall.

"Mmmff," I responded, rolling over to face him. I cracked open one eye.

Rowen walked in and sat on my bed.

"What's up, Rowen?"

"Well, uh…" He hesitated, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

I sat up quickly. "What is it?" I felt out of the loop since I'd been sleeping for three hours, in bed where my friends had made me go after school, no buts about it. They knew I needed some relaxation/cooling off time. I had stripped off my dirty clothes tiredly and changed into comfortable sleeping attire and Cye had purposely closed all my blinds to keep out the sunlight, in hopes that the darkness would help take my headache away, which it had.

"Okay, this is how it goes," Rowen blurted out. "Cye refuses to make dinner because he and Kento have a mondo report they need to work on, Sage is doing his little…meditation thingy…and I, as everyone knows, am a total disaster in the kitchen…so, that leaves you…(and four, well presumably, very hungry growing teenage guys)…with any knowledge on how to make a semi-decent meal…andMiawon'tbehomeforawhile, either," he rushed. "She called to say so."

I blinked at him, rubbing sleep out of my eyes. "You want me to make dinner?"

He bobbed his head up and down, a puppy dog expression on his face. "Yes. I'm starving."

I chuckled. "All right. Give me a minute and I'll be down."

Rowen shot off the bed, yelling, "Triumph!" He danced out my door and closed it behind him.

I swung my legs over the side of my bed, stretching. I felt a little bit rested now, and my headache was completely gone. It was almost five-thirty and it had grown dark outside as I opened my blinds. Stuffing my feet into an old pair of slippers, I shuffled out of my room and down the stairs, laughing to myself about Rowen's behavior. Was he always such a nutcase?

I rummaged through the kitchen cabinets and decided what to make for dinner. Now, I'm not the best cook in the house—Cye took care of that position—and I didn't have the natural ability to cook—that was Mia—but Rowen was right when he said I was the only one with a slight knack for preparing food. Sage just didn't bother, Rowen was so accident-prone in the kitchen it was amazing how graceful he actually was in battle, and Kento would probably eat everything before he got to prepare it. So I set to work, blaring the radio in attempt to keep my mind off the events of my horrible day that were stacked in my mind.

After about fifteen minutes, as the kitchen began smelling good, the door behind me opened. I was busy measuring something to drop into the frying pan, so I didn't turn around to see who it was. Instead, two slim, lightly colored arms wrapped around my waist and a head leaned on the back of my shoulder. I dumped the contents of my measuring spoon in the pan and set it down.

"Thanks, Ryo," Mia breathed into my ear, sounding exhausted. She let go of me and sat down at the table as I faced her.

"Rough day?"

She nodded. "You have no idea."

I laughed. "Trust me, I think I do."

Mia looked at me, confused. "Hmm?"

I shook my head. "Forget it. I don't want to talk about it."

She smiled, and I realized how good it felt to laugh again.

We stayed in the kitchen in nice, comfortable silence.

Ever since Talpa's defeat, Mia and I had grown closer. In fact, I think my attraction for her began when I first met her, when the Ronin Warriors were first trying to destroy Talpa. I hadn't realized it until after Talpa was gone, but I didn't know the level of our relationship's intensity, even now, standing in the kitchen. I was waiting—every day we seemed to get closer, friendlier, but now was not the time to blurt to Mia Koji that I was madly in love with her. I had to know if she returned my feelings, and I just needed to settle down and let her figure things out for herself. After all, she was a few years older than I was, so I figured she knew herself enough to know when she liked someone. I just hoped that she didn't think I was too young for her; Lord knows I could protect her from anything and would do so in an instant, as I would for any of my friends. I don't know, maybe I was just being pathetically antsy? No, I was trying not to let my hormones control my body. That must be it.

Dinner was ready soon after, and we all sat down to eat. I sat across from Cye, who was gazing at his plate with a smile on his face.

"What?" I asked, afraid of his answer.

He picked up his fork and took a bite. He chewed thoughtfully. "You made this, Ryo?"

I gulped and nodded. "Yeah."

Next to him, Kento was happily scarfing his dinner down. "It's great, man. Really excellent!"

Mia nodded. "I agree," she said proudly, making me blush.

I looked back to Cye, hoping he wouldn't crush my rising spirits by telling me that my cooking totally sucked and tasted like poison.

"Did you use one of my recipes?" he asked. Crap! I knew I should have!

I shook my head and replied coolly, "Nah, just kinda threw things in. Don't you like it?"

Cye nodded his head vigorously. "Very much. It's quite a…masterpiece."

Whew. I grinned at him. "Thanks." It seems as if my night is going to pick up!

*

"Hey, Ryo, the game's on!" Rowen's voice called from the living room.

Mia and I were in the kitchen, cleaning the dinner dishes up and putting things away. "All right!" I yelled back, up to my elbows in hot, soapy water. "Be there in a minute!"

"Darn," Mia murmured, putting a plate away in the cabinet.

I looked over my shoulder at her curiously. "What?"

She looked quickly up at me and realized she'd been talking out loud. She smiled faintly and said, "I was going to ask you if you'd take a walk with me after we finished."

I looked back to the sink, my cheeks heating up. Damn I wish she didn't have that effect on me! It made me feel like a little kid, but I liked it all the same. "Oh, well…I'll go with you then." I glanced at her and smiled, pulling the plug in the sink and letting the water drain.

"No, it's okay…I don't want you to miss your game." Mia waved her hand as if to brush the matter off.

Okay. Now do I stay inside the house with Rowen and Kento, screaming my lungs out at a bunch of hot-headed hockey players and eating too much salty stuff, or do I go out with Mia at my side and observe the night around us, just the two of us, alone? Twist my arm.

I faced Mia, giving her my full attention. "The game will be on some other time."

"No, Ryo. The guys—"

"Will be perfectly fine without me," I finished for her, holding my hand up. "Listen." I cocked my head towards the living room.

"SCORE!" Kento yelled. "You owe me, Rowen! Ha!"

"Oh, man, I don't believe it! He's the suckiest player, too!" came the response. "You just remember what payback is, Kento."

I looked pointedly back at Mia. "See? They don't even know I'm not there."

"You don't mind?" she asked timidly.

"No way. I could use some air, after the day I've had."

"Okay!" She smiled happily.

That smile alone would have been enough to convince me.

*

I pulled on my favorite jacket and met Mia in the hallway. I was ready to go but Mia wasn't, in fact, I didn't even know what she was doing. Her back was to me, and her head was down, and she looked like she was trying to do something with her jacket, but for the life of me I couldn't figure out what. It looked incredibly funny, though. It took all my will not to laugh at her, for fear of hurting her feelings. I stood there waiting, a major case of ants in my pants.

"Mia, what are you doing?" I finally asked when I couldn't stand it any longer.

She let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm…trying to—" she broke off, fiddling some more. "The stupid…I can't get it…can you, Ryo?"

She turned and faced me, her face slightly red. She was clutching the zipper of her windbreaker in her hands, and I saw that it was stuck and she couldn't zip it up. She looked at me through those long lashes with a face that said, "Please help me," and I was gone.

I concealed my nervousness and reached for her, drawing her up close to me. She was so close I could smell her hair; it smelled wonderful, like peaches and sunshine. I broke the zipper loose and zipped her jacket for her, grinning. "Got it."

She looked up at me and smiled, our noses almost touching. "Thanks."

I stepped back from her and opened the door before she saw me blush, nodding. I think if I had said anything my voice would've cracked and totally humiliated me.

The night air encircled us as we stepped outside. It was a little chillier than usual, but it felt good against my skin. Washing all those dishes had made me really warm, and the heat had risen up to my face. (And Mia wasn't helping the blush in my cheeks, either.)

As we stepped off the porch, Mia grabbed my arm. "Let's go into the woods," she said mischievously, her eyes sparkling.

I wasn't about to argue. As long as she kept her arm entwined with mine, I think I would have flown to the moon if she'd suggested it.

The woods…hmm. If this weren't the Mia Koji that I knew, I would have thought that she was talking about something else…

"Isn't it beautiful?" Mia asked as we walked among the trees, interrupting my typical male thoughts.

I looked up into the night sky and gazed at the moon. It was casting eerie yellowish shadows over the trees and onto the ground. An owl hooted nearby and a breeze rustled through the leaves.

"Yeah, it really is," I agreed. "Are you cold?"

Mia shivered again against my arm. "No, not really."

I looked down at her. "Are you sure? You can have my jacket if you want it."

"And then you'll be shivering," she said sensibly, smiling up at me.

I stopped walking and shook my head. "Nah. I'm Wildfire, remember?" I grinned back and shrugged out of my jacket. I handed it to her and watched as she put it on over hers. Wow. She looked really cute like that, all bundled up. I'd never seen anyone look so cute before.

"Are you laughing at me?"

Uh-oh, back to reality. "Uh, what?"

"I don't believe it! You're laughing at me!"

I looked into Mia's eyes; they were laughing right back. I hadn't realized I'd been staring at her, smiling at my thoughts, since she'd put my jacket on. She caught me red-handed. (Red-faced?)

I blushed furiously. "I'm sorry," I apologized, running my fingers through my hair. "I didn't mean to laugh."

Mia let out a laugh herself and grabbed my hand. "It's okay. I'm sure I look really stupid, but I don't care." We began walking again, in comfortable silence, observing the nature scene around us. Mia's hand held mine tightly.

Finally, we walked so much that we reached a road. It seemed to come out of nowhere, but I knew that was because none of us had ever walked this way before. I mean, none of us had bothered to. We had no reason.

Mia and I stood at the edge of the road, contemplating whether or not we wanted to keep going. Mia looked up at me and the moonlight bounced off her eyes. I heard the rumbling of a motorcycle in the distance, and the wind was whipping gently through our hair, caressing our faces. It was oddly romantic.

I could tell she wanted to keep walking, so I suggested we do so. She happily agreed, but stopped me.

"Ryo, your shoe's untied."

I looked at her skeptically.

"I'm serious!" she said, laughing. "I'm not joking with you."

I looked down, and what do you know? My stupid shoe was untied! I crouched down to fix it and realized that there was a huge knot in the laces. Aw, man! This was going to take forever to get out!

I fumbled with the laces while Mia hopped around anxiously, trying to keep warm. She raced to the other side of the street and back, lowly humming a tune I recognized but couldn't place. She ran back to the other side of the street, chanting my name, edging me on playfully. I started to laugh—my fingers were caught up in the laces, almost tied in with them. I don't know how I managed to do that, but it happened.

"Oh, no!" Mia exclaimed suddenly, sending my heart into my throat.

I jerked my head up. "What?" I asked, on guard. I studied her carefully. She was standing across the road, fingering her ear, looking around frantically.

"I lost my earring!" she cried. "The really expensive-looking ones Sage gave me for my birthday!"

"Hang on, I'll help you look," I said as she crawled down on her hands and knees in the middle of the street. "Lemme fix my shoe first." I looked back down at my shoes, wishing I could just magically fix them and forget about them. At least I managed to pry my fingers out of the huge knot that had formed.

That's when I heard it. The low rumbling of a motor in the distance, gradually becoming louder. I couldn't place where it was coming from, but before I knew it, headlights were blinding me as the noise overwhelmed my ears. I looked over to my left, to the headlights, and watched as they sped down the street, directly towards Mia at top speed. I heard her jump up to her feet and she let out a scream, piercing my heart. I tried to get up, but instead all I did was fall flat on my face. Somehow my other foot stepped on my tangled laces and I wound up tripping myself. I landed with the wind knocked out of me, my head slamming into the ground, barely staying conscious. All I could do was lie there and watch through fuzzy vision as the speeding motorcycle hit Mia head-on and sent her flying over the handlebars towards the back of the bike. It tore away without any recognition of hitting something.

THUNK.

God, what was that…bones?

I lifted my head out of the dirt. "Mia…" I choked out, trying to catch my breath. It felt like all my ribs were broken. "Mia! Answer me!" I forgot about the pain as I leaped to my feet in a rush and ran out into the road, desperately searching, shoes still undone. I couldn't see anything. "Mia, where are you?" I shouted, my face heating up. "MIA!"

I heard it. Her voice. "Ryo…"

I turned sharply to my left and darted into the bushes just outside the edge of the street.

"Oh, God, Mia…" I could see her. Her still form was hunched into a heap; her hair flung everywhere and blood oozing onto the ground, soaked through my jacket. Leaves fell from the trees and landed softly on her, as if they could bandage her and make everything better.

I fell to my weakening knees as I reached her. "Mia," I said, pulling her head gently into my lap. "Stay with me…don't you give up now." Tears welled in my eyes and threatened to fall, but I held them back. I had to stay strong for her.

She reached a trembling hand up to brush my cheek, taking in small gasps of air, trembling slightly. "Ryo…promise me…"

"What?" I asked frantically. "Anything, anything!" Just don't leave me!

"Take care…of the guys…take care of each other…" It sounded like farewell.

I cradled her head against my chest, giving up and letting the tears fall. "Oh, Mia, no…don't go, please…" I pulled my hand away from the back of her head and saw it was covered with blood. "Mia…"

"Promise me…" she whispered, and her hand went limp and fell from my face.

I sat, paralyzed. My Mia…she was gone. Dead…forever.

"No…" I sobbed into her hair. "I never told you…don't leave me…I love you. I need you."

I clutched her body roughly to mine, my mind screaming inside my head, my body shaking uncontrollably. This can't be happening…my Mia…She stood up against Warlords and never gave up on us, kept us in check when our tempers flared against each other, looked out for Yulie like she was his mother, unselfishly donated her house to us and cooked us dinner like we were all a real family…the only family I'd ever had…and now she was gone. Completely and utterly gone. She was our backbone, my backbone. She'd helped us through everything…brave Mia. I looked down into her once life-filled eyes…there was nothing there. Dead eyes.

I sucked in a breath of air and promptly passed out from shock.

*

"Come on, Ryo, you've got to walk," someone said. "Move your feet."

Where was I?

"Oh, my God…"

"Come here, Cye…"

"What in the hell were they doing out here?"

"Ryo, can you hear me?"

What's going on?

Sobbing. A hand gently slapping my face.

Scuffling. Wind blowing.

"God, he's covered in blood…"

"Shh, Cye, it's going to be all right."

Was I dreaming?

I opened my eyes as I regained consciousness and took a hazy look around. It was still dark outside and I was in the bushes, the ones near the street. Sage, Cye, Kento, and Rowen surrounded me. Cye was leaning on Kento's shoulder, crying. Sage was carrying something that looked like… a sack? And Rowen's arms were wrapped around my shoulders, helping me stand on my unsturdy feet.

I looked at him. "Rowen…?" I croaked, my mind blank.

"Thank God you're all right," he said, looking into my eyes. His were passion dark with concern and relief. "We started getting worried that the both of you were gone." His voice was shaking slightly.

I glanced down at my pants and saw that they were covered in blood. Mia's blood, I remembered. My gaze shifted from my pants to my shoes, which were still undone.

Rage I had never felt before penetrated my body. I shoved Rowen away angrily and kicked off my shoes. I leaned down and scooped them up, and in one swift movement, swung my arm viciously and chucked them over my head. They went sailing somewhere into the woods behind us. "Damn things!" I screamed. "I could have saved her!"

My friends stared at me in confusion and shock, nobody moving. My chest was heaving with ragged breaths as I took a long look at Sage—he wasn't carrying a sack, he was carrying Mia's body. Her dead body.

Fresh tears streamed down my cheeks. I backed away from my friends onto the road, feeling overwhelmed with guilt and anger. "No," I told them in denial. I was almost hysterical. "This isn't happening…it can't be…it's not real…Ouch!"

I yelled as something stabbed into my foot. I fell to the ground and snatched the item up to examine it.

Rowen was by my side. "What is it?" he asked in concern, peering over my shoulder.

My hand shook as I held it up to moonlight, tears still streaking down my cheeks. I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I closed my fist around the tiny object and held it to my chest, sobbing miserably into my lap.

It was Mia's lost earring.

*

I sighed loudly, jarring Rowen and Sage from their positions next to me. They looked at me with inquisitive eyes as Cye removed his hands from my neck.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't think I had anything to say besides I was a total failure. I saved the stupid world and I defeated Talpa, yet I couldn't save the one person who was worth more to me than the entire universe.

I glanced around at my friends, studying their faces. Each and every one was telling me that it wasn't my fault and I shouldn't blame myself, but I just couldn't listen to them now. I needed to be unhappy for a while—Mia deserves it. She deserves a decent period of mourning; she earned it.

Cye sniffed quietly and said, "Do you hear that?" His head was cocked towards the house.

I shifted my face to the house and we sat silently for a few seconds, listening.

"Music?" Sage asked. His grip loosened around my chest and Rowen let go of me.

I stood up abruptly and started walking to the house, my friends calling after me. I knew the tune of that music but I couldn't quite place where I had heard it before. I was determined to find out.

I stalked through the front door and confronted a forlorn Yulie, who was sprawled across the couch, holding a snowglobe that was softly playing music.

"Where did you get that?" I demanded, pointing to him. The guys filed in behind me as I stood and faced Yulie, waiting for an answer.

He looked up at me with red eyes and swiped his arm across his nose. "I—I found it on Mia's shelf," he told me.

--"Here," Mia said. "I brought this in to help you sleep. My grandfather gave it to me when I was a little girl and the music is nice and soft." She placed the small snowglobe next to me, on my nightstand. "Get some sleep, Ryo. Maybe this'll help clear your head, and then you and others will be able to figure out the source of the white armor's power."

I snuggled under the covers, my eyelids drooping. "Thanks, Mia…" I mumbled. My body was bruised and sore, and soon the comforting tune from the globe lulled me to sleep.--

I sank to my knees and stared at the floor.

"Ryo?" Cye asked, worried. He knew that I knew something the others didn't, and I wanted to tell him, but my voice was missing. I could only sit and memorize the structure of the floor.

God…that night…Mia was across the road while I was fixing my shoelaces…she was humming something…the stupid song from the snowglobe that she loved so much. I even recognized it then, I just didn't know where I'd heard it before. It must've been unconsciously implanted in my mind ever since the day she put it in my room to help me recover.

My eyes welled at the sudden memory and I covered my face with my hands. I felt pressure in my lap and looked down to see Yulie crawling onto me, seeking comfort. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my nose in his hair. His little arms grasped my waist as he snuggled in, his face in my neck.

We sat together, broken-hearted, while the music played on in memory of our kind, gentle Mia.