Meeting the Teacher
I sat in the tree and stared at the sky, the crescent moon shining in my face and the steady, cool wind blowing the flowers which hung on the vines to just rub against my cheek. In three days time it would be my time to hunt but although it had been months since the last full moon I wasn't hungry I was worrying about if I would go on a rampage like the last time.
You may be wondering "what the hell is she talking about?" so just to enlighten you I'll explain.
My name is Jade Taisho; I am one of the five Taisho siblings. Like every other Taisho I am half vampire and half dog demon but unlike them I and my sister, Shana, lean more on the vampire side. My brother, Ronin, and my sister, Alyssa, lean more on the demon side. On the new moon they acquire their vampire features, their hair turns pitch black, their tail and dog ears go away and blood lust up roars in them. My sister, Alyssa, is completely grossed out by blood so she isn't affected by this, however, my brother, Ronin, needs to be carried to hunt. Shana and I take turns on carrying him, this is so because he is easily calmed and controlled since he has had years of practice.
Shana and I are the opposites of Ronin and Alyssa. We obtain our demon features on the full moon. We grow dog ears and tails, our hair changes into sparkling silver and we crave human. Alyssa and Ronin need to come along and help to control us. The last time they lapsed I got away and I went on a rampage. I killed more than I can remember but I was not in control of myself, I was only half conscious of what I was doing and I was trying to stop myself but the aroma of fresh human was too tempting, I had completely let go, killing almost all of the people on a camping ground. Blood was shed and I would never forget that night. Now every full moon I am put in handcuffs and chains until I am sure I can control myself. My other brother, Reito, was a perfect balance of demon and vampire so he pretty much ate when necessary and could easily control himself.
"So you're just taking it all in?"
I turned my head towards the voice that had called me behind my back. It was my vampiric sister sitting on a branch just a bit higher than mine.
"Jealous?"I asked her with a smug smile.
"Nope I'm just here to tell you dad is calling you but you wouldn't be interested" she said knowing I would react wildly.
"Dad's calling?" I shouted
"Uh, duh" she said.
I simply shook my head, grabbed a flower and dashed off to see what my father wanted. On the way I smelt human blood and it was coming from my father's office. I opened the doors to my home and made my way to my father. The aroma of human was its strongest when I steeped in. I kept my head down and my eyes closed so that I may have a little control. I pushed open the office doors and simply kicked them shut with my foot.
"You called me, father?"I said. He knew when I called him 'father' what it meant.
"Cool down jade. I want you to meet someone"
I raised my head to see a dark haired male. His hair was loose at the top but held together by a pony at the bottom. His skin was light and smooth. He was handsome and from the looks of him, he was smart, calm, cool and collected. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at me; they were pale, lavender eyes.
"Jade this is Neji Hyuuga and he is given the task of teaching you how to calm and control yourself."
Although it was inviting I didn't want any help from any one, AT ALL. I tried not to scream and give myself away.
"I needn't any help father"
"Jade I won't let all of my effort to go to waste; it took me many days to get into contact for him to come. So what I'm saying is you've no choice but to let him teach you"
I had no choice but to give in and listen to my father and be taught by this Neji. I sighed and hung my head.
"Fine" I said.
"Good he'll be sleeping in the room next to yours-"
"But dad that's where-"
"He'll be sleeping and you'll start training tomorrow so go to bed NOW"
"But dad I was just-"
"About to go and show Neji where he'll be sleeping and then go to bed"
I sighed and gave in; I slowly walked to the door and whispered a good night to my dad. I looked to Neji with tired eyes and motioned him to follow.
"Come on, I'll show you where you have to sleep"
He followed me to the room next to mine I opened the door and showed him where everything was. I was about to exit when he pulled my hand back.
"Thank you" he said smiling at me.
"Welcome" I said and pulled my hand away.
"Good night" he said.
"Good night" I said and walked in to my bedroom.
I don't know why my father sent me to bed, he knew I wouldn't sleep. That's when I grasped what my father was trying to do. This is how he started everyone: Alyssa and Kakashi and Shana and Kiba. I stepped out into my little balcony with my night dress on. I slapped my forehead as I was thinking about what my father was doing and it seemed the more I thought about it the more I liked Neji. I sighed and looked up at the moon and whispered to myself.
"Soon"
"Enjoying the view?" I heard a voice say.
I turned my head and saw Neji kicking back in a chair on his balcony wearing nothing but his bandages and a pair of pants. In my head I was saying 'which one?' but I shook my head and smiled a bit.
"Yeah I guess"
"Shouldn't you be sleeping?"
"My father said to go to bed; he didn't say go to bed and sleep"
"Disobeying your father?"
"He won't mind"
I bent over and folded my arms on the balcony railing. I looked up at the crescent moon and tried to clear my mind but that only led to seeing my father's head which led to his office which led to Neji. I saw Neji move to his railing and braced back on it with his bare back.
"Isn't that cold?" I asked him seeing that he was so relaxed.
"Look closely" he said.
I looked closely and saw a towel behind his back. My eyes wandered to his bandages around his hand, arm, torso and foot. I shook my head and snapped out of my exploration.
"Oh, I uh didn't see that" I said.
"You should sleep now, you sound tired"
"I guess I should but-" I stopped, remembering my nightmares; I wouldn't want to drag him into this.
"What's the matter?" he asked with concern in his voice.
"Nothing, I'm going to bed"
I stepped toward my door and he grabbed my hand and pulled me back. He was still in his balcony only inches away from mine. He was smiling at me and his hand was so warm I didn't want him to let go. He pulled me closer to him; although our bodies were separated by wooden railings I felt the warmth of his body. He rubbed my cheek and whispered in my ear.
"Sweet dreams"
I pulled away from him smiling and probably blushing. I ran into my room and sat at my vanity. I begun brushing my hair and I fixed it to look a bit like Neji's. Wait! What the hell was I doing! I loosed my hair and shook my head my head wildly. I brushed it back and put it in a long plait. I threw the hair over my shoulder and sighed.
"You have got some serious problems" I told the mirror.
I sighed again and dragged onto my bed. I could see Neji sitting back and meditating. If he looked he would be able to see me too. So I got up and pulled the blinds over my glass door. I crawled into bed and covered from head to toe. I tried really hard to not sleep but I was so tired, the sleep won the fight and I dozed off.
2. Training Begins
In my dream it was the scene of the rampage and I saw dead bodies all over the grounds and bloodshed on all tents. The last thing I saw was a teenage girl screaming and I awoke screaming. I was shushed and comforted by Neji. I was crying and hugging him without even thinking. He held me close and tried to help me.
"Are you okay?" He asked.
I pushed him away and hugged my knees.
"What are you doing here?" I asked looking away from him.
He held my face up and rubbed my jaw.
"I heard you screaming and no one was coming so I thought I would check on you. Are nightmares the reason why you don't want to sleep?"
I pulled his hand off of my face and walked out into my balcony to greet the morning sun. I took a deep breath and sat on the wooden railing. He walked to me and stood at the side of me and braced back on the railing.
"Do you have social problems?" he asked me.
"I don't want to talk about it" I said looking down.
"If you don't tell me how am I supposed to help you?"He asked.
I jumped off of the railing and headed toward the shower.
"I'm going to go get ready for training, you should too" I told him collecting my towel.
"I guess I'll meet you at breakfast" he told me as he was leaving.
"I guess so" I said as I went into the shower.
I took my shower, brushed my teeth and hair and got dressed. I put on a black dress that was just below my knees and had long sleeves that were worn just off of my shoulders. I made my way to the breakfast table to see Neji and my parents talking. Neji was in a white jacket and white pants with a black cloth around his waist. My father, Lord Sesshomaru, and my mother, Ryuuka, were in their usual clothes.
"Good morning" I told them.
"Good morning Jade" they all said at once.
All of a sudden I felt somebody glomp me from behind.
"Morning Jade!" Zero said.
Zero kiryuu is my best friend from school but he is very protective and doesn't like me being around other guys unless he knows a lot about them and if they are 'acceptable'. He put me down but he was still hugging me. He looked around and yawned.
"Good morning everybody!" he shouted.
He paused and squinted his eyes at Neji. Then he looked at my father and my father nodded. He looked at me and smiled with eyes of mischief. I look at him with eyes of 'don't you dare'. He put his hands up as to surrender and walked to the table. I couldn't believe it! He sat next to Neji! I hugged my parents and sat in the chair on the opposite side of Neji. All of a sudden I heard stampeding footsteps coming down the stairs and the screaming of my siblings.
"Here they come" My father said.
About a second later my parents were drowning in teenage huggers and then the table was filled of my siblings and their partners. I propped my head on the table and sighed. My dad saw my mournful manner and gave me nudge.
"Zero could you exchange seats with Jade, I want to talk to you" He said.
In my head I was saying 'THANK GOD FOR DAD!' So zero quietly got up, glared at Neji and came to my seat. I got up and sat next to Neji. Zero seemed much ticked off that I was sitting with Neji. Neji nudged me and whispered in my ear.
"Is he gay?"
I chuckled and whispered back to him.
"No just very caring and protective"
"Oh"
Zero growled at Neji and glared at him. I looked at Zero and shook my head; we all had pop tarts and orange juice.
My father told me that Neji and I could use his peace room for training so I took Neji to the room and we begun training. The room was coated in red and gold, in the center of the room was a pond with two fishes, one black with a white spot and the other white with a black spot. Neji made his way to the other side of the pond and looked around. We both folded our feet on the ground and took deep breaths.
"Okay first you need to clear your mind and think about a peaceful scene for instance, your happy place" he told me.
I closed my eyes and got the scene of my beautiful sunset. I felt something vibrate and all of a sudden my beautiful scene was killed by an earthquake and my eyes popped open to see Neji sitting next to me instead of the other side of the pond. Veins were swelled at the sides of his eyes but he was just peacefully sitting and meditating.
"Neji you-"
"Relax I know. Now try to go to another scene that makes you peaceful."
I calmed myself and imagined my moon with the mist of the falls and me in the water relaxing. Weirdly enough that I was meditating in my scene, Neji was also there. He slowly walked over to me and sat next to me. He held my hand tightly, he hands felt so warm as if almost real. I felt a thrill go up my spine and then came the goose bumps.
I opened my eyes to see him holding my hands. At first, I wanted to pull back but his were so warm and welcoming. I looked at his face and he had a small smile on, so I not only left my hand in his but I also held on tighter. I closed my eyes and meditated, I couldn't believe it but I was at peace in-doors. I felt myself slowly dropping and dragging and before I knew it I was asleep.
My dream, nothing, nada, blank, it was just nothing. I now saw why people loved dwelling in nothingness. I was just nothing and that was all you did.
After a while I opened my eyes slowly and saw Neji's face. I smiled at him, I was laid on my bed but my head was on his lap, he smiled back at me.
"Good day sleeping beauty" he said to me as he helped me up.
"Same to you prince charming" I said as I rose up.
"Guess what?"
"What?"
"You conveniently woke up in time for lunch"
I rested my hand on my tummy and pouted.
"Good 'cuz I'm hungry like hell" I said getting up and stretching.
"Humph, you are so not like any girl I've ever met"
I yawned. "Tell me something I don't know"
"Heh, c'mon let's go eat"
I followed Neji down to eat and I was planning on asking my dad if our next training session could be at my falls in the earth court, somehow I always found peace there.
3. Falling, Falling, Fallen
So we had lunch and I asked my father for permission to train at my court. My father, seeing that I was adapting to the 'situation', agreed it would be a good idea.
Neji followed me to the falls and I showed him around my earth court. I showed him the calm and shallow river that had reasonably sized earth pillars at random places; these were used for meditation, and banks which had walkways and then had the beginnings of small forests. Finally, we stopped on the bridge that went in front of me falls to link the two sides of the out grown mountain parts. We stood on the bridge and faced the river and the scene that followed.
Neji took a deep breath and stared at the scene with admiration.
"Breath taking isn't it?" I asked him, smiling.
"Beautiful, you must love being able to control this element" he said looking at me.
"Yes I do love it; sometimes I feel it's the closest thing I've got that understands me"
"The Earth?"
"Yes she's full of nature and fertility and peace and……….the most beautiful scenes ever imagined and some that haven't even been imagined."
"She's full of nature?" he asked, confused that I had called the earth 'she'.
"Yes" I replied "the earth is not just a thing, she is a person that has do deal with pain, happiness, joy, sorrow, diseases and destroyers. SHE is a strong being"
I took a deep breath after saying this mouthful. Neji was filled of admiration by how much I loved my 'bestest' friend- Mother Earth, I could see it in my side view of his face.
"I wish I could understand you better sometimes, you're just so…..different. I expected you to be one of those spoiled brats that ask their dads for money to go shopping and one of those that always have earphones and iPods and stuff but you appreciate the fact that your father has gotten a place that is isolated and away from…….such……civilization. How can you, as a girl, do that?"
"Ok, first of all, are you implying something about my strength as a girl? And second of all, I have all of those modern things, I just grow tired of them and I like shopping a little bit, depends on what I'm shopping for. But you see, I'd rather be around things like, my bike, my car, my Jet Ski, my court and stuff like that. I like to get the rush and just let it all out by myself. When I use the Jet Ski, I'm walking on water, when I use the car, I'm sliding on the earth, when I use the bike, I'm flying through the air and I just love those feelings" I said opening my arms toward my court.
He chuckled and looked at me, I looked back.
"You know, I think I want to race you?" he said, probably knowing I would want that.
Suddenly I got all excited, a race! Finally! Dad wouldn't race me because of the noise that came from the bike but finally somebody would come.
"Hold up, which……thing do you want to use?"
"Thing?" he asked confused.
"Yes. Bike, car or …?"
"I kind of like the bike more"
"Yeah me too"
"Sweet, so after training?"
"Sure" I said more than happy to have a race.
We both jumped off of the bridge and on to the pillars. Neji calmly sat down and begun his meditating. I sat and looked over to him.
"Same as last time?" I asked.
He raised his head and looked at me with his pale eyes.
"Actually I want you to imagine something that gets you angry or outraged and I want you to try to not have and outburst"
I grimaced and Neji noticed it.
"Please try, jade" he said with some amount of care in his voice "I need you to do this if I'm supposed to help you"
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes "I'll do my best, Neji"
He smiled and begun his meditation, his veins up again. I just tried to get angry, thinking about my punishments on the full moon nights. It worked and I tried to remember what I was supposed to do. My mind went back to that place with Neji, I immediately got so calm and warm on the inside. I smiled to myself, I couldn't really believe it, I loved Neji. Him, who held my hands and warmed my heart, the same person who I wanted nothing to do with- I now wanted to spend all of my time with him.