A/N: Ok everyone! Here's the (hopfully long awaited) chapter 3! In the begining I wasn't sure where this fanfic was heading, but it's all good! I don't know how to explain it but the story writes itself you know? Like it's not mw writing, it's more like the characters telling me their life (if that even makes sense).

I'd like to give a HUGE thanks to p0p-ViRg097 , Sam-AKA-SakuxSasuLover and hhflyka for commenting/favoriting/subscribing! I have to say, every comment/favorite/subscription you guys give mean ALOT to me, so YOU'RE ALL AWESOME. ;)

ALSO, for some reason this part (Author Notes) didn't show up when I updated this chapter so here it is!

DOUBLEY ALSO, you'll notice the first part was Ayano's POV. I forgot to do that last time...oops! i though this chapter really needed to show her feelings and I think my metaphor(yeah?) was a great i dea (not bosting or anything). I don't know when I'll do this again, but I definitely will.

~Enate-Doxy-HERO~

Chapter 3- Coincidence?

Ayano's POV

We sat in complete silence as the scenery flew by us. It had been like this ever since we got on the train. I didn't know what to say to him. I wanted to say something to him. I wanted to comfort him. I wanted to talk to him about something. I just didn't know what, and the fact that we had to share our cart with some old couple didn't help either. I sighed. He had let me have the window seat which I took without saying anything.

I tried averting my attention to the beautiful lake we were passing. Its body was gleaming like a topaz jewel as the sun hit its surface. It shined like a confident movie star, letting everyone bask at its wondrous complexion. But I knew it was only the surface, I knew there was more to the lake than what met the eye. Underneath the glowing front was a dark and cold place that brought dread and pain to others. As you went deeper in you wouldn't be able to see very much, but if you could, you would notice the previous bodies of trees and plants that were drowned as time had made the lake stronger, bigger and less avoidable. The trees, which had once been feed and nourished by the lake, had probably died slowly and painfully while the lake sucked up their lives without a damn and continued to look beautiful. The trees now were a dim colour of purple. If you dared to keep going further you'd notice something else.

At the very bottom of the lake, you would notice a little pond sized crevice in the middle of the lake. By the looks of it, this massive lake would have seemed to once be a peaceful pond. Shallow and inviting, you could see right through its perfect clear blue water and see the tiny tadpoles swimming around carelessly. You could see the small flowers growing around the pond. The sunlight was probably strong enough to penetrate right to the core of the pond, making the water reasonably warm. If you looked around, there was a massive green and lushes forest wrapping around the pond as if it were protecting it from the harsh realities of life and death. When you would look up, you would be looking up for awhile.

The sky shone a breathtaking azure blue and was clear of any clouds as far as the eye could see. It brightened the whole mass of air up high like day; it didn't need the sun to glow. It would have seemed soft, but it was so out of reach you wouldn't have been able to tell. You would long to fly high into the air until you could grasp the sky and hold it as your own. But you wouldn't be able to, for you were still lost in the shadows were light didn't reach.

When you would return from the past memories of the lake, to the top of the lake you would again look up at the sky. You would notice dark grey clouds filled with more water, ready to enlarge the lake even more. They were everywhere. You couldn't escape them, even in the shadows. But, above the grey stormy clouds, past there evil aura of depression, you could still see it. You could still see the same azure blue sky that shined on its own. This time however, it was different. Its glow had seemed to strengthen to the point where the need for a sun was no longer there at all. It seemed to harden and was no longer the same softness you longed to touch. It seemed stronger, yes. But what saddened you most, more than the lakes coldness, more than the storm clouds looming over the world, was that no matter what the lake had done, the sky still broke through the storm to shine over the lake and let it glimmer…

I realized that nature had many things in common with my life.

I sighed deeply but quietly and closed my eyes. No, I wouldn't let myself think in that direction at the moment. I opened my eyes and stared through the glass and watched the lake disappear further away and the storm clouds filling the empty spaces in the sky. I sighed again.

"It's going to rain..." I whispered. It wasn't really meant for anyone, so I didn't expect a reply.

"It seems so, and it looks like it's going to rain rather hard too." he said sounding down. I looked at him curiously. My mood had lifted enough so that I could at least ACT normally on the outside.

"You don't like the rain?" I asked sounding surprised.

He looked up at me from the book he was reading with the same bored expression. But for the tiniest second I saw surprise in his face. I realized that this was the first time I had talked to him in 3 hours.

"It's not that I hate the rain... Well it's a long story." he said. I knew this meant that his feelings about the rain were because of memories he had with her.

"Oh." I simply replied. I was going to look back outside.

"I don't hate rain, but I don't love it either." he suddenly spurted out. That was unexpected. I realized that I was suddenly really happy that he was going to tell me about his past life. "A few years back, I was walking around. It was raining lightly but I didn't mind, it felt refreshing because I had been inside all day." of course, he was inside all day; he slept until four if no one woke him up. He continued, "It suddenly started to rain cats and dogs and I didn't have an umbrella or rain jacket. So I started running to- the place I was staying at. In my haste, I slipped and fell right on my butt. Then as I stood up, a car splashed me from the side of the road. Long story short, that happened about 5 or 6 more times and I ended up getting pneumonia. That's why I don't like it." he finished looking outside and shaking his head remembering the fatal incident.

I smiled. This was probably hard for him to talk about but the fact that he had put in effort to tell me his irrelevant story really touched me. I was honest to god at bliss because he had put in true effort to get closer to me for the first time.

"I see. So you don't like getting wet huh? I'm going to remember that." I laughed. I looked at him and smiled warmly. He kinda smiled at me, like an almost smile, which was an improvement from the usual smirk none the less. I did love this guy. No matter how much I hated to admit it, I knew I would go with him wherever he wanted me to.

"You two get along well don't you now?" the old woman said suddenly.

KAZUMA'S POV

I couldn't stand it. I didn't know why, but the fact that Ayano hadn't spoken one word to me since we got on the train was bothering me to no end. I tried reading the book I brought along for the ride but I couldn't concentrate on how, because Stalin created the Five Year Plan*, many of his people were slaughtered*. I glanced toward the strangely quiet girl looking out the window. She seemed far away somewhere in her thoughts... a miracle. Deciding not to die now, I looked toward the old couple sitting across from us.

They looked like they should be in a nursing home taking a nap, not travelling on a potentially dangerous train. The old woman was sitting near the window, like Ayano was. She was adjusting her glasses, just to return to knitting what looked to be a simple red scarf. Her hair was pulled back into a bun tight enough to look like it was holding the wrinkles up from falling over her eyes. The old man was sleeping... or dead, but most likely sleeping. All the hair on the top of his head was gone. He too had glasses. He was wearing a very old person like sweater vest, but it somehow suited him. I looked at the old couple together. The scene they created was very, peaceful. They were leaning against each he rested his head on hers and she on his shoulder. They looked very happy... I had to admit I, was a bit jealous, envious and well sad. No. I didn't want to go there.

I couldn't get why, but they seemed very familiar for some reason, like I had known them my whole life. I decided to shake it off. It was most likely nothing.

I looked toward the girl again, still looking out the window. Her face, reflecting of the window, looked upset. I wondered why she looked so hopeless. Was it my fault? Is that why she wouldn't speak? Did I say something? ...Probably. What was it that I said? Hold it Kazuma. What are you fretting about? I didn't know. Distracting myself wasn't doing anything good for me so I went back to reading my book.

"It's going to rain..." she whispered. It was obvious that she wasn't saying it to anyone in particular. I looked up at her from my book. I hadn't even read five pages.

I looked outside the window into the sky. "It seems so, and it looks like it's going to rain rather hard too." Great. More stuff I didn't want to think about. She looked at me curiously, back to her normal self. Her soul still seemed to be a bit far away from her body, as if it were still with the lake that just passed us. I went back to reading my book. It seemed she still wasn't going to speak to me.

"You don't like the rain?" she asked sounding surprised. I looked back at her from the novel. Well, that was unexpected under the circumstances.

Though I was grateful (why was I grateful?) she finally decided to have a conversation, I didn't want her to go in this particular direction. So I answered it the best way I could.

"It's not that I hate the rain... Well it's a long story." Yup. The best way I could.

"Oh." She said trying to sound light-hearted. It was obvious that she was disappointed with my response and she started to turn back to looking out the window.

"I don't hate rain, but I don't love it either." I suddenly spurted out. Why? I don't know. Probably because she finally started talking and I didn't want to be bored. Well, she returned her face towards me expecting an explanation, and I couldn't just drop it there. So I pushed just a bit passed my best to tell her what I could. "A few years back, I was walking around. It was raining lightly but I didn't mind, it felt refreshing because I had been inside all day. It suddenly started to rain cats and dogs and I didn't have an umbrella or rain jacket. So I started running to- the place I was staying at. In my haste, I slipped and fell right on my butt. Then as I stood up, a car splashed me from the side of the road. Long story short, that happened about 5 or 6 more times and I ended up getting pneumonia. That's why I don't like it." My hesitation was obvious in places where I didn't want to think to hard on. Well, she could figure out the rest by herself. Besides, she smiled, so I guessed that information was satisfactory enough. I really did like that smile though.

"I see. So you don't like getting wet huh? I'm going to remember that." she giggled. She then smiled warmly at me. Someone like me didn't deserve to be smiled at so warmly, especially from her. That made me feel good inside. But of course, I didn't let it get to me to far. That would be dangerous. I intended to smirk at her but the expression on my face didn't quit fit the term.

"You two get along well don't you now?" the old man said suddenly. I looked up from Ayano only to realize that are faces had been unnaturally close. I looked at the old couple. It seemed the old man wasn't dead after all.

"Ummm, well, no! Not really! I-I hate this guy." She flustered. She was blushing as pink as a cherry. I decided to play with her now that she seemed to be herself again.

"Ayano, how painful. Don't my feelings get to you at all? Don't tell me all those times meant nothing to you?" I said with some sarcasm.

"K-Kazuma!" she objected. I laughed in my head. She was blushing even harder. "You I-Idiot!" she exclaimed. She whipped her head in the opposite direction of me, looking away from the old couple who were smiling at us in kind hearted amusement. She growled, embarrassed, at the scenery flying by us. I stared at her reflection from the corner of my eye as I sighed playfully. I still couldn't understand why there was always a hint of sadness when she was in these kinds of predicaments.

I shrugged my shoulders "Sorry, my friend here is very emotional. You know," I leaned in, looking intent, "girl problems and all." I whispered loudly, making sure she heard. Surely enough, I felt a not-so-light smack on the head.

"KAZUMA! You big idiot!" she said. Still standing in the position ready to hit me again.

"Ow! Hey calm down Ayano. Jeesh." I laughed. The old couple laughed with me.

"Now, now dear. Please don't hit the young man." Said the old woman, still laughing a bit. Something still bothered me about them. I was much more casual with them then I normally would be. But the air around them didn't seem wrong at all. There was no disturbance whatsoever. This got me even more edgy. While Ayano was apologizing to the old woman even though it was obvious she didn't regret hitting me, I saw the old man looking at me intently, like he was assessing me.

I met his eyes and was surprised when he moved the air around him. Yes, he moved the air. I realized that he too was a Fuu-jutsu user. He smiled realizing that I understood, but there was some sort of teasing that I didn't understand. I looked at his wife beside him and tested the air to see if she was a Fuu-jutsu user as well. My eyes widened slightly as I figured out that she was an En-jutsu user like Ayano. What perplexed me further was that her power seemed greater than Ayano's, but it was way too similar, and the old man...

"So, where are you two youngsters travelling?" the old En-jutsu user broke my train of thought. She smiled at us, not realizing that I was aware of what she was. I decided to keep it that way for some reason.

"We're actually going to China." I replied. I made it sound as casual as possible.

"Oh how wonderful! China truly is beautiful in some areas. Especially, the small towns." The old women explained with excitement. You could tell happy memories of the place were flashing through her mind. Happy. I thought. I wish.

"You've been there before?" Ayano asked intently. I raised my eyebrows at how interestingly she looked at the old lady.

"Oh yes! Quite a few times actually. Would you like to hear some stories dear?" she asked Ayano, grateful for the opportunity.

I looked at the old man and let out a chuckle as he looked at me and sighed "Here we go..." he whispered in a voice so quietly only us Fuu-jutsu users could hear.

I lounged back into the cushioned seat and continued reading my book, with the chatter of the old en-jutsu user and Ayano in the background.

...

It wasn't long until the sun had started to set and the talking had stopped. The old woman had continued finishing the bright red scarf. Ayano had fallen soundly asleep leaning against me as I continued to read. She and I had switched places so that she was closer to the door and so I could lean against the window. The old man had his arm around his wife's waist as he watched her concentrating on her mini project. The silence between us was no longer awkward, but more peaceful, like that of old friends. I had decided to shake off the suspicious feeling I had before, but the other feeling hadn't gone away. More like it had grown over the time spent with the old couple. I continually kept glancing at them, wondering, trying to remember if I knew them, but nothing came to mind. I would catch them glancing at Ayano and me. Sometimes they would stare at us with warm smiles which I pretended to ignore.

"All done." She said quietly so that she wouldn't wake Ayano. The old women held up her scarf in front of her.

"Not bad." I said smiling at her. What surprised me was her reaction to my comment.

"It's not like you could do better Kazuma!" she pouted. I stared at her in shock. Than me and the old man burst out laughing.

"Now dear, please don't get mad. He meant that it was good, just in a youngster way. You should know that shouldn't you?" he teased her.

I laughed at their squabbling that followed on. They were a lot like me and Ayano. I looked at the girl sleeping like the dead beside me. I took my arm opposite from her and brushed a piece of hair from her face. I realized that the petty arguing had stopped and I quickly dropped my hand from her face as I turned to see them smiling at us again. The red scarf the granny En-jutsu user had knitted was now folded neatly on her lap with both her hands resting on it. Her husband's left hand was holding her right gently.

"...What's up?" I asked them. That weird feeling had returned and my guard had presumed.

The old woman looked out the window to the bright orangey-yellow and pink sunset then she looked up at the man beside her and said "It's almost time..." He looked at her and smiled. Then they both faced me and I had a feeling I was about to figure something out.

"It seems you're going to figure it out soon, but all I'll say to you is that we are an example of what couldhappen. Keep in mind that yours and Ayano's decisions will shape your future, but in truth your decisions are the most effective because you are the one that needs to change the most, Kazuma." The old man suddenly said.

"What..." Then I got it. The way the old couple addressed me and Ayano, wasn't like how normal people would, it was like they knew us, like really knew us, like they were us. The way they were sitting, the way they had fought with each other, the way he teased her and the way she reacted to my comment. The simple fact that the old woman's En-jutsu power was unnaturally similar to Ayano's... and now that I thought about it, the old man's power, was that of a contractor's! Could it be...!

"Wait, what do you mean 'what could happen'?" I exclaimed.

The old couple just smiled at me as they started to fade away leaving little dream-like sparkles behind. It seemed like they were melting into the sunset outside.

"Come on, I think you know, Kazuma. The old women said shaking her finger at me.

"Don't worry, we'll run into each other again one day." The old man laughed. "I'm sure of it."

"Oh! That's right I almost forgot. That over there," pointed the old lady to the red scarf she had knitted, "That's for Ayano. Tell her it's a gift and not to worry about anything, I hope it inspires her." She finished, looking at the still sleeping Ayano with a proud expression on her face, but why was there also smugness in her smile?

"Goodbye, then." They said together as they disappeared completely, like they had dispersed into the sunset sky and sore to heaven. It was as if they were never real.

"…Yeah." I replied to the empty seats where the old couple had just been. Sparkles were that were now dispersing as well, were the only thing that left any evidence of them.

I slouched in the seat, trying to understand what I already knew. I couldn't process it though; how could that old man have been me… from the future? I looked at Ayano, still soundly unconscious even after all that just happened. I watched her as she jostled a bit to regain a comfortable position after I had moved so much. I gently brought down her head and placed it on my lap. Her hands laid out in front of her were in loose fists. Without thinking I placed one of my hands in hers. Even though I should have removed my hand, I felt too lazy at the moment. I looked out the window. How? How could have that old man been me? How could have that old lady been, Ayano? There was no way that the old couple who held their hands with their ring fingers be…us? It wasn't possible. I nodded to myself.

"Yup, definitely impossible." I agreed to myself. Hmmm, then who were they?

I leaned my elbow on the edge of the windowsill and cupped my chin in my palm. With everything I guessed they were most likely our ancestors of some sort. Maybe we were repeating history; I wasn't sure, but we definitely had some sort of relation. It was too much of a coincidence that the old guy had been a contractor and that the old woman's energy resembled Ayano's. Though these were facts, the man was to kind to be me, and the woman was way to calm to be Ayano. I remembered that she even told Ayano that she shouldn't smack me upside the head. I chuckled; yes they positively weren't the same person. I concluded that they must be some sort of ancestors, but how did they do such things with their power. It wasn't the old man's wind magic, no; it was much more natural than that, but how?

"Mmmm…?" I lifted my head from my hand for a second, and then put it back. It seemed that my quiet laughing had awoken the sleeping princess. I idly wondered how such an act had wakened her but not the whole scene that had happened.

'You finally awake? Jeez, I heard of beauty sleep doing wonders but…' That's what I was going to say, but I decided not to ruin my peace this time.

"…Mmmm…Kazuma? What…?" she mumbled quietly, barely conscious. Normally she would had jumped right up, embarrassed she had slept when something dangerous could have happened, but she had been relaxed even after she woke up. I smiled; her fate in me and my strength were quite flattering.

"Don't worry, there's no need for you to get up yet. You can sleep." I assured her.

"Huh... Kay…" she snuggled her head into my lap and brought her hands, still holding my hand closer to her face. I didn't think she realized that she was sleeping on my lap, or that she had squeezed my hand... of course I was grateful. That meant I wouldn't come out of the train in a stretcher.

I leaned down, removing my arm from the windowsill and moved the hair from her cheek and kissed it. I mean, why not? It was very satisfactory when she smiled in her sleep after that.

I closed my eyes as well. I didn't sense any danger for now and decided to get some shut eye. We had a long journey ahead of us...

"Kazuma! Kazuma look at the cute puppy! Its eyes are as gentle as yours."

"Kazuma, I can't leave you, not ever... You're too cute!"

"Kazuma...I love you."

"...She wished you were dead."

I clenched my jaw and tightened my grasp around Ayano's hand. I would destroy them; both Burnhardt and Lapis.

Your Very Welcome :)

=(") - Heck yes! A PENGUIN!