A/N : I know some of you are like wondering about the ages and all, so I thought I would clarify some of the doubts before launching into the first chapter. :]
Firstly, about the ages, Ami is currently aged 21 years old, Amu's age is approximately 28 years old and Ikuto's is about 33 years old. As of the other characters like Tadagay (oops, I mean, Tadase), Kukai, Yaya and so on and so forth, their ages would be their anime age + 16. So, yeah, everything is pretty similar to the anime itself. Hope that would clear your doubts.
And secondly, I would like to thank those who reviewed my prologue. Really appreciate it.
Also, thirdly, I realise that I have a tendency to include a lot of dialogues in my writing. So I'll try to reduce the amount of dialogues. Also, this chapter seems quite short to me, so try not to kill me for that.
And lastly, I will try to update weekly, on Fridays, but I hope you guys will understand if I'm late at updating.
Ai Loli: Tadase's child?:] Heheh, read carefully and remember I'm an Amuto. *winks*
Smallvillegirl2: Unfortunately (or fortunately?), 'weird' happens to be my middle name :D not literally, of course.
Hime Cullen Tsukiyomi: Glad that you like it; I would try my best to not spoil the story. :]
Celiaaxo: Haha, I guess, 13 years ain't really a big gap. At least, Ami was 17 when she married Ikuto, and not like 4? *imagines the scene and looks horrified*
Kerukittylover : You got the pregnant art correct. The father of the child has to be figured out by you (which I'm pretty sure that you will get it soon too)
Chapter 1
"Zzz…Zzz…Zzz" the cell phone vibrated. Sighing, Amu answered the call.
"Yeah? Amu Hinamori here." She answered tiredly.
"Amu? Tadase here. Can you pick up Shizuko from Kukai's house? I got to meet a client later tonight. "
"All right. Would you be back for dinner?" she asked.
"Nah, and don't bother waiting up for me tonight. I will be back pretty late, I think. Okay, I gotta go now. Take care, sweetie." he said, before hanging up on her.
Amu tossed the phone onto the table. He has been doing that lately. Promising to fetch Shizuko, and then calling at the evening to break his promise. Meeting clients and coming home late. She is getting a tad sick of this; but there's little she can do about it. Afterall, she was the one who made the choice four years ago. And Tadase had been nice enough to accept Shizuko and her. Sighing, she grabbed her stuffs and left the office.
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Nothing really beats a nice drive after a long day at work, thought Amu. With the breeze tangling up her pink tresses, it was almost possible for her to forget about all of her problems. It's almost as good as those chamomile teas that Suu always make for her whenever she cries.
Yet, when was the last time she tasted the light delicate taste of chamomiles? When had she switched to drinking coffee instead of tea? When was the last time she cried?
Lost in her thoughts, she didn't even realise that she had reached Kukai's house until a familiar voice called her name.
"Sis? Are you alright?" A pair of golden brown eyes looked at her with concern.
"Yeah, I'm right as rain. Don't you worry." she replied, giving her a reassuring smile.
"If you say so." she sang out. "Come on, Kukai has been waiting for you." With that, she grabbed Amu's hand and started towards the house, while shouting at the top of her voice, "Kukai! Amu is here!"
Shutting her eyes, Amu just allowed Ami to drag her into the house. She could never understand how Ami could be so energetic. Even Yaya had toned down after marriage. Indeed, whoever that said married people tend to be more mature was probably not in his right mind.
Perhaps that's why Ikuto married her.
Her eyes flew open at the sinuous thought. Such thoughts should be abolished. Ami was her sister! She has no right to be jealous of her sister. Technically, Ami wasn't the one who caused her all these heartaches. There was never an Amuto. The happy ending that she had always fantasize about was just…a fantasy. One that would never be realised.
Sighing, she turned to greet Kukai and her daughter.
"Hey, Kukai. Hey, honey. How was your day? Did you have fun with Uncle Kukai?" she said, stooping down so that Shizuko could meet her eyes.
A pair of midnight blue eyes stared back at her.
"So it was good?" she tried again.
Her reply was just a mere nod.
"We had an awesome day!" injected Kukai.
Ignoring Kukai's comment, Amu looked at her daughter with concern-filled eyes and said quietly, " Are you angry that Mommy is not spending enough time with you? Mommy is sorry about that. Really sorry, sweetie."
"Got you!" Shizuko yelled, grinning at all the adults gleefully.
Amazed by the sudden turn of events, Amu just stood that in shock while Shizuko launched into her victory dance.
"Kukai, what have you been teaching my daughter?" asked Amu once she got over the fact that her daughter just tricked her.
Kukai winked at Shizuko and said, "Well, I taught her that contrary to popular beliefs, adults are actually the easiest people to trick."
"With the exception of Uncle Kukai!" the little girl shouted.
Wincing slightly at her shout, Amu scooped up Shizuko and said, "Well, I better get going first. Thanks, Kukai. For everything."
"I get paid for doing that. Hey, why don't you and Ami stay for dinner? Ran, Miki, Su are making it as we are speaking." Kukai replied.
"Nah, I doubt we will accepting the offer. Amu most probably wants to spend some quality time with Shiz." a voice piped up from nowhere.
"Dia! You woke up! Oh well, I guess, I will have dinner with Ami then."
Thank god for small favours. Otherwise she has no idea as to how she should reject Kukai's invitation. Although four years has enabled her to recover and have a normal and relatively cordial relationship with her sister, she hasn't come to a stage that she is able to have dinner with her. Furthermore, there is always possibility that Ikuto might pop in and pick Ami up later. She just could not risk breaking down in front of them. At least not when everything is perfect as it is.
"…with Ikuto" a voice said, jerking Amu back to reality.
"Oh, well, have fun with him then. I shall eat dinner alone then." Kukai said sadly.
Ami just laughed at Kukai's act and waved them goodbye. Though Amu lost track of the conversation, it did not take a genius to figure out that Ami and Ikuto are going out for dinner again. Those two are real sweet. Four years of marriage clearly have only made their love better, sweeter, stronger.
"They are sweet, aren't they?" Dia said, echoing Amu's thought.
Amu gave a slight nod and Kukai looked at her concernly. What's with that depressed face? She looks like a kid whose favourite toy has just been snatched away. Kukai thought.
Lost in his thoughts, he didn't realise that Amu was already getting ready to leave with Shizuko and her Guardian Characters.
"So I think I shall make a move first. Thanks for looking after all of them…Kukai? Are you still there?" she asked worriedly.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Well, you guys better get going then. It's getting kind of late!" he said, while glancing at the clock on the wall.
And with a ghost of a smile, Amu bid farewell and started towards her car; with Shizuko and her Guardian Characters tottering behind.
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As she drove home, Amu was contemplating about the last time they had dinner as a family. Was it during Shizuko's third birthday or was it during Tadase's birthday? She smiled mirthlessly. She had no idea when that had occurred; or maybe she was hallucinating – they never had one. It's kind of ironical when she thinks about the reasons for her marriage. When she married Tadase, her only purpose, duty and responsibility was to ensure that Shizuko grow up in a warm and caring family. This was the only way she could ever forgive herself and make up for her daughter. Yet, she couldn't even recall when they did anything together as a family.
"Mommy? Tell me the story of the Guardian Characters!" requested Shizuko, while her mother was making a mental note to have a family dinner as soon as possible.
"Hmm? Oh the Guardian Characters? Well, every child has an egg in their heart, unseen at first, an egg with their dream. When the child becomes of age and wants to be somebody different, their guardian character is released. It first comes out in the form of and egg; and when the child needs it, it will hatch. The guardian character would be the character that a child wants to be like." Amu started.
"I'm born from her desire to be more honest and athletic!" Ran interrupted.
"And, me, from her desires to be more level-head and artistically inclined." Miki injected.
"Amu's desire to be more motherly and caring has resulted in my birth!" said Su excitedly.
"Amu's radiance keeps me alive." said Dia simply.
"So when Amu loses her 'shine', Dia will go back to her egg and remain there till she sees Amu 'shining' once again." Ran chimed in.
Amu nodded her head and look at the lonely egg sitting in a small basket on her dashboard. Dark red in colour, tiny black crosses decorated the egg's surface.
"And this is another of my Guardian Character that is yet to be born."
