Hi everyone. I know, I know there has been a massive delay on this yet again and yes, I do have excuses. But why listen to me moan? Just read.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my plot and OCs.
Chapter Four
"Come on ladies," Misty yelled at the group of apprentices who were rubbing various parts of their bodies in pain. "Hurry up and shift it."
"Mist," Ash moaned from quite close to Misty's elbow. "Don't you think we've been thrown about enough?"
"I've counted five times," Misty snapped back at her best friend. "Come on, I thought Akari apprentices were the toughest in the world, not a bunch of girls."
"Depends on who's throwing us," one of the apprentices commented as he hopped out of Misty's striking distance.
"Why do we have to be your punch bags, any way?" another chimed up.
"Hey, it's better than meditation," the first apprentice said. He nudged one of his friends in a playful manner. "Remember those lessons with Akiko-Sama? Hours of sat in the rock garden with a pebble nicely nestled up your bum and if you dared move, she'd shoot you with an aura attack? One time, she actually fell asleep during the lesson. I suppose she had the last laugh… None of us noticed."
"Pipe down, Yukito," his friend complained.
"I can see why Akiko lost her rag with you lot," Misty mumbled. "You're a bunch of useless cry-babies."
Shouts of 'hey' and 'we're not' echoed round the dojo for a few seconds until Ash stepped forwards.
"You know we're not, Mist," Ash told her. "Come on, let's show these women we can take their beatings."
With an enthusiastic cheer, the apprentices walked back to their women partners and resumed the practice of being thrown. Only Yukito remained, shaking his head at his companions.
"You sure know how to play them, Misty," he commented when he glanced at the red head to see she had a triumphant look on her face. "Fear the lady with a cunning mind."
"Wise words," Misty said with a nod. "Now get back to it!"
Yukito jumped away from her and rushed over to his partner to resume his training. Misty let out a loud sigh as she looked over her class of twenty or so woman now throwing the young apprenticeships around. Things were going well with training the tea ladies and widows how to protect themselves just in case of an attack.
"It's good to see everyone getting involved," May's voice came from Misty's right. Misty nodded before turning to smile at her friend.
"Yeah, it's great that Kiboji let me do this," Misty agreed. "They were just sitting ducks before now."
"Only Akiko and Dawn knew how to fight, didn't they?" May asked. "I'm surprised that you got someone to train them, considering."
"Well, we have a few trainers," Misty admitted. "Usually Kiboji trains us since it gives him a break from the doom, or so he says. I just think he likes the attention."
"Yours," May teased causing Misty to glare at her. "Come on, Mist. He's practically jumping through hoops to get you on his side."
"I'm already on his side," Misty snapped back.
"Queen Misty," May went on. "It's got a pleasant ring to it."
"Oh just shut up," Misty snapped.
Neither of them noticed as Dawn walked into the dojo looking slightly confused at the surroundings. She noticed the two teen girls chatting to each other but she made no effort to go and talk to them. Instead she wandered over to the crowd of apprentices and women who were practicing fighting. She paused at the side lines, watching intently as one of the apprentices decided to stop his female partner from throwing him and went to strike her instead.
Before Dawn knew what she was doing, she had pushed the woman out of the way with her hip and caught the punch the apprentice had thrown at her.
"Don't even think about," Dawn told him, frowning at him and tightening her grip round his fist so that he yelped in pain.
Misty and May glanced to see what was wrong.
"Dawn, no!" Misty yelled, running forwards to break up the fight. Dawn turned her back to the apprentice and pulled him over her back into a hard throw to the floor. When he groaned on the floor, laying on his back, Dawn brought her foot onto his windpipe.
"Dawn!"
She didn't even glance up to see who was talking to her, to intent on staring down at the apprentice.
"Don't ever do that again," she told the apprentice, "otherwise I'll get Kiboji to get you out of here like that."
To prove a point she yanked his arm, causing him to yell again before she let him go and stepped away from him. She then looked around the room like she had woken up, turning to Misty.
"Oh, hello Misty," she greeted the red head. "What's going on? Is he OK?"
"Considering I think you broke his arm," Misty snapped. "He's peachy."
"Oh, sorry," Dawn apologised to the apprentice, bending down to look at him. The apprentice scurried away from her, his eyes never leaving her face until she turned her back to him and wondered across the room. An annoyed Misty followed her.
"What do you think you're doing?" she snapped at the bluenette.
"Oh, it's nice in here," Dawn commented. "What are you doing? Training?"
"Yes," Misty replied sharply. "But you shouldn't be here."
"I'm not doing any harm," Dawn said.
"Yeah, say that to the poor apprentice you just maimed," Misty muttered under her breath. If Dawn heard what Misty said, she hid the fact rather well. Instead she seemed to busy herself in looking at one of the fighting mats.
She stared at the spot, her mind racing wildly as she recalled an explosion. Two people were fighting on the mat, not like they were arguing about something, rather they were practicing. Eventually after a few strikes, both of them landed on the floor.
"And I thought you needed training," said one of them - a woman with black hair. She went to move herself but instead she flinched and let out a rage of swear words. "You broke my leg!"
The other warrior - a much younger boy with chin long mauve hair - let out a small chuckle before he too seemed to realise he was injured. He grasped his side, an elegant smirk appearing on his face.
"Pay back for breaking a rib," he replied. Both of them fell into melodic laughter which seemed to chime like an old grandfather clock in Dawn's head. It became distorted by an echo as Dawn's head worked quickly to think whose the voice belonged to.
"Dawn?" now May's voice called to her from somewhere far away as she rocked Dawn's shoulders to bring her out of her trance. Dawn held her gaze on the fighting mat a moment longer. If only she could see his face. If only-
"You OK?" May asked Dawn as she finally closed her eyes and reopened them. The boy and the woman were gone along with their laughter.
"I thought I saw... A..." Dawn mumbled.
"A what?" May asked softly, placing a comforting arm round Dawn's shoulder.
"A... Ki... Ko..." Dawn mumbled."A-ki-ko. Akiko."
The name meant something to May for she suddenly flew from Dawn's side to hold her shoulders roughly while stood in front of her. Dawn looked up at her, her eyelids feeling heavy as if she was drunk or something.
"Akiko?" May gasped. "You saw her? You know who she is?"
May was far too impatient to wait for an answer. Dawn on the other hand seemed to have slipped back into her trance.
"If there's one thing you should know about me, Dawn, it's that I always come back to the ones I love."
"I remember her... I think I do," Dawn muttered slowly. "She told me... She told me to look after..."
She broke free of May's grasp and stamped her feet like a toddler throwing a tantrum.
"I remember!" she yelled at May. "She's... She's..."
Then she sank to her knees, a sob raking through her body. May merely watched her friend dissolve into angry tears but made no move what so ever to help her.
"She was like a mother to me," Dawn sobbed. "I need her, May. She promised never to leave me so where is she? I need her."
"She's dead, Dawn," May replied softly. "Just like Isamu."
Dawn sniffed, raising a hand to her nose to stop herself from crying any further. It was only when Dawn raised her head to stare up at her that May let out another gasp. Dawn's eyes were blazing through the tears, just like they used to before Paul had died. For a moment it seemed that the old Dawn was back with them again. May dropped down to her knees and placed a hand on Dawn's.
"If I find Akiko then I'll be able to get all the answers," Dawn said.
"But she's dead," May said. Something flickered across Dawn's face and then for no reason at all she let out a laugh.
"How many times have we had this conversation, May?" Dawn asked, cocking her head to one side. "How many times have I told you that I need to see Akiko?"
"A few times," May said as honest as she could.
"Then do it," Dawn replied, a subtle tone that May hadn't heard in a while. The pair of them stared at each other for a second.
"You've never asked us that before," May said. "Do you even know if you're lucid or not?"
"To be lucid, I'd have to be insane," Dawn muttered. "I'm not insane. I'm lost. Akiko would know what to do."
"But she's dead," May repeated. "Dawn, you know she's dead."
Dawn blinked a few times then let out a long sigh: "You don't get it."
She brushed May's hand off her knee and got back to her feet. She gave May one more, almost pitying, look before her expression smoothed out and she waltzed towards the exit of the room. Now it was May's time to let out a sigh. She looked around the dojo, watching as Misty continued with her lesson. There was no doubt that she would have to report all of this to the others later on that evening.
"I hate it when she does it to me," May moaned, setting down her rice bowl on the low table in front of her.
"She maimed an apprentice too," Misty added. She stuffed a dumpling into her mouth in an annoyed sort of way, chewing it roughly. Kiboji, who was sat next to her, merely glanced at the red head then turned his attention back to May.
"She really thinks Akiko is alive?" Kiboji asked.
"Akiko's long gone," Ash replied noisily from the other side of the table. "Even Dawn knows that."
The group of them remained silent for a few moments, even Ash who was a noisy eater quietened down to a low hum as they each thought about this. Reggie, sat on Kiboji's other side, quietly poured himself some sake before offering it to Kiboji, who refused. On Reggie's right sat Silver, then Suzume and lastly Drew, who was watching the grotesque way Ash was eating with his usual look of distaste on his face. Eventually, though, the silence was broken by Suzume as she placed her chopsticks onto the table.
"I believe Dawn is right," she said quietly.
"Kiko's dead," Kiboji retorted shortly. "If she's not then I will kill her for leaving us to struggle for so long."
"When we went to the Cape, we found her obi along with Isamu's," Ash said. He looked over at Drew and Reggie who nodded in confirmation. "They were long gone."
"Maybe they sold their souls to Ichiro to avoid been killed," Silver said bluntly. This caused almost everyone to drop whatever they were holding and stare at him in pure horror. Suzume turned to stare at her husband in a rather calm manner before she moved to pour him a fresh cup of sake. "It's possible that they could have surrendered so they could fight for another day. It would explain the message we got on the stones."
"Forgive us," May gasped. She turned to Kiboji, leading on the table to get closer to him. "You don't think?"
"I wouldn't even dream it," Kiboji replied shortly. "For the love of Arceus, Shin was her son. She wouldn't just surrender to the monster who killed him."
"I agree," Suzume said calmly. "Therefore there has to be something else going on here."
Silver twitched slightly as she place the sake jug down beside his hand. The porcelain was cold against his knuckles but he was reluctant to move his hand. May settled back into her seat slowly, staring at Suzume in wonder.
"As a Clan, the Churitsu are very mysterious," Suzume went on. "Who knows what happens to them when they 'die'. Perhaps they leave something behind or perhaps Dawn is right. On that day, there was a lot of chaos so who is to say Akiko and Isamu slipped out of trouble? Who's to say there isn't another force working here? There are many people who are talented enough to cheat death and we all know it."
Everyone seemed to lean back now then turned to Kiboji who looked practically spooked. Resting his chin in his hand and his eyes wide open, he only moved when he realised that everyone was staring at him. He jolted upwards.
"Well... How am I supposed to know these things?" he asked.
"I was expecting that," Drew commented. He gave a stretch. "If Dawn thinks Akiko is alive, then there's probably one place she would have checked in."
"Where?" Ash asked.
"The Ecruteak Shrine," Kiboji said. He sat back in on his cushion, stroking his chin slowly.
Misty took this opportunity to go back to her dinner with everybody following suit not long after her.
"Pass the seaweed, please May," Drew asked politely. May snorted but picked up the small white bowl filled with crispy seaweed and passed it over to him.
"Is that why your hair is so green, Drew?" she teased.
"I'd have you know that my colour is one hundred percent natural," Drew said, flicking out his fringe in a haughty manner.
"Yeah," Ash agreed. "One hundred percent natural seaweed."
"Knock it off you two," Kiboji said before Drew could retort. The Akari leader suddenly looked rather refreshed and determined. "When you've eaten, Drew, Ash, Misty, go stright to bed. I need you rested for tomorrow."
"What for?" Misty asked.
"You're going to Ecruteak," Kiboji replied. "No excuses."
Yup, another slow one. I hope you enjoyed. I have a brand new laptop now, true t doesn't have Microsoft Word, but I will be able to write lots :)
Please review!
RSx