A/n: Okay, okay. I know I said I was going to upload this in a week, but I got six reviews within a couple of days! *brain pops* You guys are so totally awesome! I love you guys. ^^ Thank you for this because it really means a lot. I know what I am about to say will probably annoy you since I've said it so many times before, but I worked really hard on this (it really did take me a few months to finish) and I just appreciate that you guys are reading it. Just reading it makes me happy! And you guys are so kind as to review too which makes it even more satisfying. It's a really great thing that you guys review and it makes me feel so great about the hard work I put into this. Thank you again and again! I'll probably be saying this in every chapter but that's just how happy your reviews make me. :) So here's my present. ^^ Thank you again!
-Misty
Summary:
Thirteen years ago, the Shinrabansou was ripped away from its owner. Forcefully. Without its consent. By an unknown force. Now, the new age has begun. The world has fallen to the new ruler of the Nabari world. Humans have been forced upon each other like savage beasts. In this world, the previous owner, struggling for life like everybody else, meets another who has had his own share of misfortunes.
Chapter 4: It's My Turn
My eyes flicker and twitch before they finally open. When I open my eyes, I'm greeted by the fire once again. It's dark out, but the fire lights the whole place up.
I'm staring at it, wondering if all that happened was a dream. But no. I'm still in pain. My head is still heavy, my leg still hurts, and I'm still congested. However, something is different. Before I fell asleep, I felt terrible, like I was about ready to keel over at any second, but now...
I feel better.
I roll over onto my back and look at the ceiling. My ears are listening around for any signs of enemy, but nothing. It's the first thing I ever listen for. The next thing I hear is... Nothing.
The rain is gone. The fire is all I can hear. I hear the wood cracking and an occasional pop of some ember, but that's it.
Why am I feeling better? I should be dead by now, but I can feel the sweat making Yoite's clothes damp and I know my fever has broken.
Remembering Yoite, I sit up and look around. He's back in his corner, sitting up straight and sleeping. His hat is off of his head, so this is the first time I can see him without it. Since he's asleep, I permit myself to observe him closely.
His hair is a shiny, black color. It's short in the back, but longer in the front. His bangs are strewn across his face gently and every now and then when he breathes a stray hair is whisked slightly.
He has sharp features, but these are natural. There are some spots on him that show he barely eats, but his sharp chin and cheek bones show his actual face.
Once again, in the fire, he looks more like a doll.
"Yoite..." I'm surprised to hear me say his name, but it's in a whisper, and he only shifts in his sleep. I didn't wake him up.
Good. It's obvious he's sick too. He could use the rest.
I look back at the fire and see more food waiting. Some of it isn't thoroughly cooked, but the stuff that is, well, I assume he got that for me.
Like before, I only take two sticks. I leave the other three for him. I'm glad to see my appetite is back, because when I eat, it doesn't upset my stomach.
It doesn't taste like rabbit. This meat tastes more like crow. Crows are very common to find here. They're also very stupid. Leaving out some bread will attract them. Catching them, if you know how, is easy too.
But did he know how? I sigh with my mouth full. If he didn't, what trouble did he go to get this just for me?
I lower the stick of meat on my lap and look at it. My list is getting bigger. If he keeps this up, my debts will keep piling on until I can't repay him back ever. He's already saved me multiple times, and that will be the hardest to make up for.
But then I think: What if that is what he wants? He's knows I'm indebted to him. What if he uses that against me to make me his personal slave?
I look back at Yoite and watch his sleeping face. Every part of me is saying not to trust him, that he's just a con-man like everyone else, but there is a part of me, in the back of my mind, saying that he's kind. All of this that he's doing for me is because he cares.
'He wouldn't do that...' I think. I look down at my covered leg and pull the pant leg back. My ankle is still swollen, but not as much, and the red streak that showed the sepsis is gone. My eyes have gone wide and I keep running my hand along my leg. It doesn't hurt as much.
'Yoite... What did you do?' I look back at him and stare.
My debt can never be repaid.
I place the food by the fire and quietly crawl over to where he is sleeping. With the blanket in my hand, I gently drape it over his body and up to his shoulders. He doesn't wake up.
Like this, he looks so comfortable. He actually looks a bit like a young child.
'If only I had a stuffed animal...' I smile inward at my thought.
But now I'm cold. Without the blanket, my body is exposed to the cold night air. I scoot back to the fire and cover my legs with my arms. I place my hands near the fire in an attempt to warm myself up, but now my back is cold.
There is no escaping it. Without the blanket I'll be cold. But I can't just take it from Yoite. He needs it too, unless...
I look over to Yoite. He's sleeping really hard. Maybe if I'm careful I won't wake him up.
Quietly, I crawl back to Yoite's side. I check again; he's out cold. Carefully, I lift the blanket up enough for me to fit under and sit next to Yoite. Once I'm situated, I place the blanket over me.
This is much better. It's much warmer. It's even warmer with Yoite next me. I'm trying hard not to touch him. The slightest brush of even his coat has my heart beating faster, but inevitably I rest against him. He's really warm, like when he was touching my face and feeling for my fever.
Somehow this is the thing that wakes him up. He takes in a deep breath and opens his eyes. I keep my eyes shut and don't move, hoping he would think I was just sleeping. I was so comfortable that I didn't want to move.
I can feel him move a little, then look down at me. His hand leaves the blanket and touches my cheek, and I can hear him sigh in, what must be, relief. He can tell my fever has broken too.
"Hey," He whispers. I shift a little and nuzzle my face into his palm. I'm not really aware that I did this. Maybe I'm still sick? "Are you awake?" Yoite asks.
Well, I knew this wouldn't last long. It was nice while it lasted.
Just before I prepare to sit up and be awake, I feel Yoite's arm go behind my head and pull me closer to him. I use this as a "pretend" way to be startled awake.
I whine a little and rub my eyes. When I'm done, I look up at him, and I see him smirking. He's doing this because I've been caught in the act. How stubborn can he get?
I could kill him. But I won't.
"How are you feeling?" He asks. If he doesn't stop with the smirk, he's going to be in a lot pain in a minute.
"Better." I say. My voice isn't as scratchy and my throat isn't as raw from what I remember.
Yoite bends over and lifts the blanket over my leg. His lifts the pant leg and smiles when seeing that the red streak is gone.
"What did you do?" I ask. "H-How did you save me?" I still am in disbelief.
"Medicine," Yoite smiles at me and covers my leg after a couple more moments of inspection.
"Medicine?" I ask.
"Yes. I found some." He says. Again with that excuse. Yoite turns his head around and I follow his eyes to an unfinished corner of his home. In a plastic bag is medicine along with some bandages and antibiotics. I recognize the bottles, but I really couldn't tell anything apart.
I frown, and he knows he's been caught. I know he's lied to me, and he knows I know.
"Really, Yoite." I cuddle closer to him and say. I want to know how he did it, because there is no possible way someone would simply leave medicine laying around in the forest in a plastic bag. Not only is it unheard of, but if someone were to do it, it'd be just plain stupid.
Yoite sighs and wraps his arm around my waist. His other hand has gone to rest on my neck. This is soothing, but I'm not letting him off that easy.
"Honestly?" Yoite looks to me, his blue eyes shining in the fire as he asks.
"Yes," I mumble. He's doing it again, that hypnotizing thing.
"Well," Yoite looks over to the flames. "Not far away, but far enough I guess, there's a long and massive trade route. Trackers are constantly there sending things off in giant trucks. When they receive stuff, they put everything on these big pallets and wait for moving trucks to pick them up." Yoite explains.
"Moving trucks?" I question.
"Yes. Tokyo... Well, the government knows, but the city people don't know that our trade is coming from North Korea." Yoite continues.
That's news, even to me. I thought our imports were from America or China. I didn't know our country was so chummy with North Korea. When did that happen?
"And you just go and steal their stuff?" I ask.
"I don't like to, but I only do it if it's absolutely necessary." Yoite looks at me again and smiles. "It was worth it."
I turn my head and blush. Why did he have to say it like that?
"But if there are so many Trackers, aren't you afraid of getting caught?" I have become the American game Twenty Questions.
"No," He says. I look back up at him and he's leaning his head back on the wall, looking really satisfied. "I'm not easy to catch." He says.
I don't understand, but then I think back to when he was watching me in the forest. He was extremely quiet and light on his feet. Had he not called out to me, I wouldn't have known he was there.
'Had he not called out to me, I'd be dead.' I don't say this out loud.
"So that's how you got this medicine." I say.
"Yeah." He nods.
"What about the mushrooms?" Yoite suddenly chuckles.
"Actually I really did find those. A Tracker must have dropped them while on guard duty." He says. I laugh a little too. Maybe Trackers aren't as "visually gifted" as they want people to believe.
"I see," I mumble. I scoot a little closer to enjoy Yoite's and my shared room. "Well, I guess I should give my thanks to you and the Trackers." I continue.
"No, it's nothing. I'm just glad you're okay." Yoite murmurs. I'm blushing even more.
Then, and out of nowhere, Yoite coughs hard. Very hard. He balls over his knees and coughs into his hand. His coughs sound as congested and sick as my nose did earlier.
I place my hands on his shoulders, having nothing else to do to comfort him. I watch him; worry striking me hard when I see blood slip down his chin and past his fingers.
"Blood," I force Yoite down onto the floor to lie down, and this calms down his coughing… Somehow. "I hope you got enough medicine for you too." I say. I barely miss the look of guilt on his face.
"I'm okay, r-really I am." Yoite tries to sit up, but I grab his shoulders and pin him back to the floor.
"Lay down." I say harshly. He gets that wounded, puppy dog look on his face and relaxes on the floor. Once he does, I place the blanket over him. He's tall, but thankfully it's long enough to go past his feet. "Now it's my turn to take care of you." I say.
I leave his side momentarily to go to the medicine. I open the bag and pull out the first few bottles of medicine I find. I look at them, but another painful secret of mine comes up and I'm hit with guilt.
I can't read.
I never got to finish school. In fact, I was only in a daycare for a year. I had learned some hiragana, and one katakana character, but that wasn't going to help me here. The characters on the bottle were completely foreign to me, like it was written in English, but it wasn't English. At least that I knew that.
I've heard many rumors that English is the most difficult language to learn, but in all honesty, I have to disagree. A teenager with university education should know at least six thousand characters of kanji. That would be someone at my or Yoite's age. But with over fifty-thousand characters, I highly doubt I'll ever be able to read.
"What's wrong, Miharu?" I hear Yoite ask from behind me.
I bite my bottom lip and grab the whole bag of medicines.
"N-Nothing, just trying to think of the dosage for you." I pretend I know what I'm saying.
"Dosage?" Yoite asks.
"Y-Yeah." I set the stuff down next to Yoite and pull out the bottles again.
I have to do my best, it's the only way I can help him.
'Let's see, that character... Is that ni or ta? And the next... Ko? No, it's go... Shit.' I curse in my head. I can't do it. If I can't read it, one simple mistake could kill Yoite.
"Miharu," Yoite mumbles.
"Yeah?" I drop the medicine so it seems like I'm not trying hard.
"You can't read, can you?" Yoite asks.
Two minutes. New record. He wins.
I drop my head in disappointment.
"I'm sorry, Yoite." I say.
"For what? I can't read either." Yoite mentions with a stifled laugh. I look up. I'm surprised again.
"You can't? T-Then how did you tell which medicine was which?" I ask, pointing to said medicine.
"My... Uh, my dad used to take a lot of antibiotics for infections. I learned the kanji for those, so I recognize it." He explains.
"Oh, I see." Yoite reaches for the bottle in my hand and squints to look at it.
"This is for fevers. This is what I gave you." Yoite mumbles.
"Good! Then you'll be feeling better in no time!" I take the bottle from him and say. I start futzing with the lid, but it's not coming off. Yoite takes it from my hand again and gets it off without trying.
"Kitty locks. They're for little kids so they can't accidentally eat the medicine." He explains. I nod my head, but I can't help but feel that he just insulted me.
"Anyway, just take it." I hold a tiny blue pill in my hand out for Yoite. Instead of accepting the medicine, something I would gladly accept, he looks away and frowns. "What are you waiting for?" I ask.
"I can't take it." Yoite says.
"What? Yes you can. Just open your mouth and say "ah," Yoite." I say. He shakes his head. "Yoite, it'll get rid of your fever. Please take it." I beg.
"You don't understand. Even if I take it, it won't help me in any way." He murmurs.
"Why?" I ask. Yoite doesn't look at me. I move closer to him and touch his cheek. He looks up at me and frowns, his lower lip quivering slightly. "Please, Yoite, tell me."
"Okay..." He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "I'm sick... And I've been sick for a very long time now." He explains.
My heart drops into my stomach.
"Oh..." I mumble.
"No amount of medicine can fix it. I used to take medicine to dull the pain, but I can't anymore." He says.
"What are you sick with?" I ask and immediately I regret it. Yoite looks away again and I swear I can see his eyes fighting back tears.
"It's..." I hear him choking, trying hard not to cry. I turn his head back to me and place a finger on his lips.
"Shh... If you don't want to, don't say it." I hold out the medicine for him. "But take this. It'll help your fever." I say.
Yoite's thin lips part slightly and I let the pill slip past them. He swallows and shivers for a moment at the foul taste it has.
"Sorry," I say. He smiles at me and shakes his head.
"No, thank you." He mumbles. This makes me smile. I crawl away for a moment to grab the meat that is now thoroughly cooked and bring it to Yoite. I take the pieces and pull them apart into smaller pieces. "What are you doing?" He asks.
"I'm making them smaller so it'll be easier for you to eat." I explain. He sits up on his elbows as I finish up. "Just rest on me; it'll be easier." I say.
This time it is his turn to blush. None the less, he moves closer to me and leans back on my folded legs. I keep an arm around the back of his neck for more support and hold out the first piece of meat.
"Here," I offer. He's still blushing as he opens his mouth slightly to eat. I'm the next one to blush when his lips touch my fingers. I ignore it though and continue to feed him carefully, making sure he's finished each piece fully before I give him another.
When the food is gone, he lies down on the floor and sighs. I go back to sitting by the fire, trying to warm myself the best I can. Now that he's awake, I can't sleep with... Uhm… Next to him.
"Hey Miharu," Yoite mumbles.
"Yeah?" Yoite motions for me to come next to him. I go back to him and lean over him slightly. "What's wrong?" I ask.
Yoite reaches behind my head and pulls on my neck. The sudden force makes me lose balance and I fall to his chest. I gasp and sit up quickly, but he's got his arms on my back and is holding onto me tightly.
"W-What was that for?" I ask, irritation forming.
"I thought you wanted to sleep with me. Aren't you cold?" He asks. I blush and look away, but he's right. I'm cold and uncomfortable.
"Uhm... Y-Yeah," I still can't look at him. I feel him pull again and I lay down next to him. He puts the blanket over me and I finally relax.
Next to him, it's much warmer. I rest my head against his shoulder and close my eyes. I listen to the sounds of the fire that's dying down. I can hear the sounds of animals behind the fire: birds chirping, owls hooting, and a wild dog howling in the night somewhere in the distance.
I never got the chance to really enjoy how peaceful it is at night. I'm always alone and I'm always scared and it's never relaxing, but here with Yoite, in his arms, surrounded by this warmth, it almost makes me... Happy?
I don't think I've been truly happy in such a long time. I keep pondering this thought until my mind can't think anymore. I'm exhausted, even though I didn't do anything today.
My mind is wandering, and I'm about to fall asleep when I feel Yoite's hand against my cheek. It's warm to the touch. It's very soothing. I'm about to fall asleep to this when I feel something else on my head.
A soft pair of lips.
