Crossing Roads

Greetings from the world of the internet!

So I just finished watching the anime Air Gear and honestly, I was very unsatisfied. In truth, the two OVAs were better than the whole anime combined. There really wasn't any character development (well, except for Ikki), you didn't even get to see Spitfire fight, and...

... there wasn't enough Agito screen time.

Yes, I am a hard-core Agito fan. Anyways, if you want to hear my entire rant about Air Gear, feel free to PM me. XD Oh, and an early warning for any OOC-ness... I tried not to make Agito OOC, but I don't know if I succeeded or not... Other than that, I hope you enjoy the story! (And remember to review!)

~Square Root of Three √3 (Wow, that was a long A/N...)

Disclaimer: I do not own Air Gear.

He was lost.

Agito couldn't figure out which way was left and which way was right. It felt as if his whole life had been a lie. He had been riding ATs for how long now? Two years? More? And yet, he hadn't felt how it was to fly; how it was to be free until Ikki came along. Itsuki Minami. Ikki was only a boy who had started riding about a month ago, and yet, it was him who had the wings; not Agito.

Agito took a step forward. He was walking along the sidewalk, not really caring where it led him today. He was in a trance as his legs moved by themselves with his hands in his pockets. Kaito had given him exactly an hour to go out and do anything he'd like, and usually he would be riding his ATs, trying to climb all these tall buildings and getting the most fun out of the little time he had, but today was different. Today, he just walked.

His head was down with a small frown on his face. He had never felt that feeling before; the feeling of actually soaring through the skies. His road was the Fang Road; his job was to carve his markings onto his opponents' bodies. He didn't have time to "fly".

For him, he was in a never-ending spiral of darkness, waiting for someone to show him the way out.

She just happened to be the light that he was looking for.

The small girl sat at the top of a hill, just looking down at the lake below and enjoying the view. Her light, brown hair swayed as the wind picked up as she crossed her legs and leaned on the railing behind her. For a few minutes, she just sat there, watching the dragonflies buzz by and the water sparkle under the moonlight. She looked at her ATs that rested on the grass to her right. They were a little worn out since she had just practiced with them, but still usable.

She brought her legs up and placed her arms on them. Her jeans flapped as a breeze went by and she shivered a bit in her blue jacket. Her dark brown eyes continued to stare ahead, as if not even realizing what was going on around her. Sometimes, she had learned, it was good to just close your eyes and think of absolutely nothing at all.

The girl snapped out of it when she saw a shadow approach her. Looking up, she saw a boy in a bright, orange jacket. His blue hair shone proudly, but his eyes said otherwise. The yellow-gold orbs looked dulled and worn out with a sad tone in them. She continued to stare at him, finding the boy very strange.

He didn't seem like he came here just to look at the lake, like she did.

Something was troubling him.

He didn't seem to notice the girl that sat beside him. In fact, he didn't even know what brought him here, beside the lake, anyways. His feet had just seemed to move on their own as he was lost in his thoughts.

"Hey," Agito jumped when he heard a voice call out to him. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

He blinked, waiting for his eyes to adjust and identify the person in front of him. The voice belonged to a girl, he could tell that much. Her brown eyes looked him up and down and she wore a slight frown on her face. He wondered, was she lost too?

"Nothing," He replied lamely. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stared back at her.

She didn't look like she believed him, but shrugged it off. "Take a seat, if you want." She patted to the spot beside her. "Feel free to just look at the water with me and try to take your mind off things."

Take his mind off things? How could he do that?! He wanted to shout at her; after all, who was she to tell him what to do? He didn't even know her! And she couldn't possibly know about how complicated his problems were. He raised a fist, preparing to punch her square in the jaw. He would finally be able to take his anger out on someone.

Give her a chance, Agito.

Locking his own jaw and gritting his teeth, he saw that the girl had remained unmoved. She didn't seem to have noticed what he had planned to do.

He lowered his fist.

He had heard Akito's voice.

She knew that he had prepared to punch her; she saw it from the corner of her eye. But what made him stop? The girl wouldn't have minded if he took out his anger on her. She had no idea what happened, but he looked confused, and maybe she was just feeling generous today.

The two of them sat in silence for a while, just enjoying the warm wind that passed by. She would not be the first to speak. If he wanted to talk to her, he'll do it when he's ready and she didn't want to force him into it. For some reason, she found herself wanting to help him sort out whatever problem he was dealing with. It was strange because she was usually a distant person and never even bothered with someone unless they talked to her first.

"What's your name?" She finally heard him say. The question caught her off guard, but she grinned and replied, "Miharu Sugiura."

Agito mused over her name. "Forever-lasting sky?"

She nodded in confirmation. "What about yours?"

"Agito Wanijima."

Silence again.

"Are you a Storm Rider, too?" He asked, glancing over at the ATs by her side.

Miharu nodded. "Why? Something wrong?"

The boy slumped down and sighed. "Nothing," He brushed it off again. Then, "Have you ever soared through the sky?"

"Yeah, isn't that what ATs are all about?" Realization hit her. "Don't tell me you've never...?" Agito looked away and her eyes widened. No wonder he was so sad! Quickly, she put on her Air Treks and stood up. Grabbing his hand in hers, she led him to a tall cliff on the other side of the bridge. "Just follow me and do what I tell you to, okay?"

He didn't know how to respond. Nobody told him what to do! He wanted to slap her hand away and just leave his crazy girl alone, but he was curious. Maybe if he was lost, then she could help him find his way again.

Go on.

There was Akito's voice again. He sighed. What made his other half trust the girl so much? They had only just met by chance, after all. But he knew that he wouldn't disobey Akito, so he gripped Miharu's hand in return.

"Okay," he said.

She smiled at him and started her ATs. He did the same, bending down low as if preparing to start off with a run. Then, he followed her as she rode off the cliff and jumped into the air. So what? He thought to himself. This was nothing new.

"Stretch out your arms!" She called out from in front of him. He complied and noticed that he wasn't falling as fast anymore. "Not close your eyes!" He was hesitant at first, but eventually, his eyelids dropped. Agito felt the wind rush past his face and he found himself going upwards instead of down. It was almost as if... he was soaring through the sky!

He kept his eyes closed for a little longer. He smiled a real, genuine smile for the first time that day. Rolling onto his back, he pretended that he was floating on water and just laid there for a few seconds. Then, with lightning speed, he did a 360 degree flip, followed by a series of other tricks. When they finally landed, he found himself wishing that he could've stayed airborne longer.

It was at that time that he realized that Ikki may have opened the door for him to the AT world, but it had been Miharu who led him through.

I'm happy for you, Agito.

Said boy blinked. Happy for him? What did that mean? Had Akito not been happy before?

He pushed the thought aside and looked at the girl in front of him. The girl that he just happened to meet at the lake today. The girl that hadn't tried to pray her way into his problems and instead gave him time to open up to her. The girl that held his hand as he jumped off the cliff. And yet, it was this supposedly normal girl who had finally given him his own pair of wings and the change to fly.

Looking at her now, he noticed that she wore a smile on her face as well. Her head was tilted slightly to the left, as if waiting for him to say something. Agito had never been good with words, so he went with something simple and straight to the point.

"Thank you."

Miharu's grin spread wider. "No problem!" She looked down at the watch that she wore on her wrist before meeting her brown eyes met his golden ones again. "It's getting late, so I have to go now. It was nice meeting you, Agito!"

He watched her turn around and walk away. "Wait!" He called after her. There were still so many unspoken words that he wanted to say to her; so many more 'thank you's he owed her. "Will–Will you be here again tomorrow?"

"Sure! Meet you by the lake again? Maybe we could ride our ATs again!" She suggested, warming up to the idea.

He could only nod. His heart was racing.

This time when she walked away, he watched her go. Then he, too, turned and left. Tomorrow's meeting was the first thing that he was looking forward to in a long time. It was only on the way back that he realized what Akito's words truly meant. When he got back, even Kaito couldn't bring his mood down.

Lying down on his bed, he closed his eyes and wrapped the blanket around himself. His mind wandered, and eventually, he fell asleep with a soft smile on his lips.

And the next day, she was there waiting for him by the lake, just as promised.

I'm thinking of writing a multi-chapter story with Miharu as the main character and this could be the prologue or something. What do you think?

Leave a review on your way out!

~Square Root of Three √3