Kingdom of Hearts

Disclaimer: I do not own TK.

Chapter 3

Youko felt her whole body vibrating violently. Then came another jerk and pain shot up her spine. She struggled to open her eyes, which after much effort saw total darkness, save for the dim light at the front of her feet. She attempted to sit up and groaned when another excruciating ache spread from her neck to her left shoulder blade. She heard something shift near her feet and her senses became alert. Where am I?

She stayed silent until her eyes adjusted to the darkness. It did not help much as the darkness still threatened to engulf her whole being. Though mostly blinded by obscurity, the young empress managed to make out her surrounding. A carriage. I'm in a carriage. An unexpected jerk came and she bounced painfully on her rear end. A moving carriage.

The red haired teen then remembered her black haired friend, and pivots her searching eyes in every direction and tried to feel the damp floorboards for any sign of another. There were only wooden crates stacked neatly around her and nothing living except for herself, was present in this coach. Admitting and somewhat glad that she was alone, Youko turned herself around and crawled towards the dim light she saw when she was awoken unceremoniously. Feeling her left hand on the fabric, she peeled the flap and peeked through. The young lady was astonished at the environment that lay before her widened green orbs. Her eyes darted right and left, desperately trying to pick up any familiar landmark. But all she saw were trees and a dusty trial moving steadily further away from her. It was unfamiliar territory.

Youko's beautifully arched eyebrows slanted forlornly and her nails sank into the cloth and red markings were left imprinted on her palm. She released the flapping and her hand fell back to her side. Youko pulled her arm away from her waist when her elbow knocked onto something. The late teen grabbed the flapping again and pushed it much higher this time to allow the generous moonlight to aid her eyes. Her eyes were suddenly filled with hope as she made out the basic shape of the Suiguu. It was carefully wrapped with several layers of coarse fabric. Her hope reached a new high when another sudden realisation dawned upon her; the Hinman was still within her. There was no way she could have felt the punishing weight of the imperial sword if the magical being had left her.

The young empress then decided to jump. Steadying herself gingerly, Youko hoisted her body and propelled from the carriage. Her nostrils managed to take in a few breaths of fresh pine air in between the flip before she landed gracefully on the muddy earth, sending blobs of soils beneath her feet to slosh outwards. The carriage did not stop and the coachman continued his journey, oblivious of what just happened. Curious to find out who had taken her captive, Youko decided to follow. She has no idea where she was anyway, and it would be easier to know her bearings once she reached a town.

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Till this day of her life, neither had she forgotten a single detail about it, nor does she intend to. The memory to her was very precious. It was what changed her, made her realise her mistakes, and gave her the chance to find her true destiny. Though she had not heard from them since a couple of years ago, there was no doubt in her that she, they, are alive and well. As for the boy who had a crush on her…well, she wished him the best of luck.

Tucking a long strand of ebony hair behind an ear, the college student gathered her notes and left the lecture hall with the throng of students.

"Sugimoto-san!" A voice bellowed from the podium.

Fighting her growing irritation, Sugimoto fought her way over to her lecturer. With her chest heaving up and down, the nineteen-year-old stared expectantly at her bald, bulky and bespectacled Biology professor. The kind looking man was doing anything but talking to her. Sugimoto watched the dull scene unfolded before her, with much…abhorrence. Arrangement of the folders…sticking a pen in his breast pocket and taking it out again to sign the attendence sheet and filling out the necessary details….

Sugimoto cleared her throat, but this chap before her continued with his business. Sugimoto cleared her throat louder this time, and the lecturer glanced briefly at her. Putting the blue ball point pen down, Dr. Shine (as everyone calls him) uttered a sigh and spoke,

"Sugimoto-san, are you experiencing any sort of financial problems lately?"

Something snapped within her and she replied quickly, too quickly, "No. Why would there be?"

Dr. Shine held his steady gaze. The equally stubborn young lady before him stared back.

Finally backing down after five minutes of starring contest, the bald professor took his pen and dropped it into his breast pocket, and gave his student a smile; a genuine smile and walked past the dumbstruck girl. Just when he was about to descend from the podium, he stopped and turned around.

"If you need anything, you know where to find me." And he turned and proceeded towards the door again.

Only when she was alone in the hall, did she allow herself to relax. Clutching her notes in one hand and messaging her temple with the other, her previously terrified mind replayed the scene again. If he found out…no. He would not. He absolutely would not! She would rather have her mother disown her than to speak the truth. It would only bring shame upon her. There was nothing glorious about being poor. Especially in a rich school.

On the road home, the troubled teen was deciding whether or not to find another part-time job. Summer vacation was approaching…the arcade seemed to be the choice… The dark haired girl's eyes twitch at her unpleasant memory; those perverted old men who leered at her, and those adolescents who whistled and made comments about her body. Scratching her head with frustration, the young lady scowled as her eyes laid upon the old building in front of her as she turned at a corner. Treading the filthy steps with extreme caution, Sugimoto made her way to the fifth floor where her apartment was. She past by a wall smeared with undesirable scribbling, and then past another upon turning right before reaching the familiar looking door. She reached into her jeans and pulled out a worn silver key and stuck it into the keyhole. The dull metal gave an approving 'click' and Sugimoto pushed the door and stepped inside. She stopped mid-track and traced her steps backward, peered into the rusted red mailbox next to the door and grunted. Pulling out a white envelope, her guess was confirmed and she entered her apartment and shut the door, not so gently, behind her.

Bills…bills…and bills! Sugimoto threw her letter on a table which held many other similar white envelopes. Why, her mother had not been kind enough to send her daughter a greeting card. Not even on festive days! The late teen removed her brown coat and hung it on a metal stand next to the window. She reached out and pushed the glass away and the chilly wind of a bad weathered afternoon sneaked into the room. Shivering slightly in her red sweater and jeans, the burden laden girl glanced back at the bills and a scowl presented itself immediately on her beautiful face. Things have been getting tougher and tougher as her dwindling savings continued to shrink. She was already working five hours at night as a cashier but it still was not enough. Thank god she received a scholarship or she would not know how to manage.

You may wonder about her family. Why hadn't they send money? What about her friends? You see, there were many reasons to why Nakajima Youko tried to befriend Sugimoto. Not only were they outcasts in school or at home, they have similar parents.

Mr. and Mrs. Sugimoto despised their daughter. They even went to the extent to adopt another sixteen year old just because Sugimoto was not popular and sociable in school. Even after that "episode", and even after she attempted to change herself, the people around her refused to grant her that chance. A chance that would have made her life much easier, and much happier. So, our near adulthood character here decided to move out after finishing high school, much to her parents' relief. They believed, and were afraid that their biological daughter's negative vibes might affect their precious substitute. While the ebony haired girl bears no animosity towards the new family member, if she could still call them family, it still sparked jealousy and hatred in her. She recalled her mother filling out a form where she specifically wrote down that they wanted a fun-loving and socially active child. A person that Sugimoto was not, or was not meant to be in her case. It was not fair. She did not want to be socially challenged; a term referred to by all her lecturers and she did not choose to be that way. In any way, it was her parents' fault. She inherited her genes from them did she not? Sugimoto betted her life that one of her parents was just as, if not worse, unsociable as her when he or she was young. The oriental beauty snorted at her memories. What a wonderful life she was leading! Absolutely wonderful!

Then, unexpectedly, her thoughts flew to the distant shores of the Twelve Kingdoms. What would it be like now if she was the chosen one instead? Would she be treated with respect and dignity by her subjects and people? Would she be bathed in sinful luxuries that any frugal commoner would frown upon? Would she be planning important things with her kirin to improve the lives of her people? And in turn would they love her? The thought of a cheering crowd made her breathing irregular. She could become a brilliant queen! One who was certainly much better than Youko?

But it was all not meant for her. She was chosen to stay here; to lead a normal life like another other civilian in this twentieth century world. Life was definitely not just.

TBC…

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A/N: Another chapter! I managed to churn out another chapter. Sadly, it is short. I know I promised to length my chapters but I did not have sufficient time. I was particularly busy on Friday and yesterday and today as well! Maybe some of you may prefer to wait for a longer chapter, but I feel that if I do not update ASAP, I would continue to drag on and on… I have a two-day holiday coming right up after tomorrow and I will try to churn out another chapter. If possible, a longer one.

And yes! About the storyline…I said that Youko and company would flee to Horai and I assure you it WILL happen. I know this is taking too long but please please please bear with it for the moment. And also, please do R&R. Thank you guys for the reviews. You have no idea how much appreciated they are. I guess this is it for this chapter then! Hopefully I will be able to meet my dateline (one chapter per week).