Chapter 6

Back at the base

"SHE'S WHAT?" Bou-san and Ayako yelled. John was paralyzed with shock as Masako forgot to cover her mouth with her sleeve. Yasuhara was blinking profusely as though it could make everything seem clearer. Even Lin-san and Naru were staring at Mai, unable to believe what she had said was true.

Mai groaned. She had expected this though their yelling didn't make it easier to bear: instead it gave her a huge headache. "You guys heard what I said. Hoshizuki Sumiko – you know, the girl with the overprotective wolfdog – is blind." She gave them a few more moments to process her words. She knew it was hard to take.

Masako realized, "So that's why she has to use her ability to sense vibrations, even if it overwhelms her." Mai nodded.

"I didn't know . . ." Bou-san spoke quietly.

Mai sighed softly, "She didn't want you to know. It always strikes people as a weakness or something and makes them treat her differently. She wanted you guys to get to know her before telling you since then you would have a better chance of understanding."

"That's understandable. Most people are like that," Ayako spoke softly.

John smiled, "She really is incredible. To be filled with so much kindness despite her problems."

Mai chuckled, "You have no idea. This is just part of her problems. I have quite a few more that would surprise you even after this kind of shock."

Naru looked at her, "But you aren't going to tell us." It wasn't a question, just a statement. Mai gave a pleasant smile as her answer.

"Was she always blind?" Yasuhara inquired.

Mai shook her head, "No. It was an accident that happened when we were 10. There was this house, a really old one. Some kids went in to poke around and Sumiko felt the danger. She ran in to see that the ceiling of the room one of the kids was in was about to collapse. She managed to push the kid out of the way, but the ceiling fell on her instead. It hit her head really hard. She fell into a coma."

"At the office, when you were talking about her being on a hospital bed barely alive, you were talking about this, weren't you?" Lin-san guessed.

Mai smiled, "You heard us, huh."

"Hard not to when you're yelling," Lin-san smirked ever so lightly, though it was more teasing than insulting so Mai didn't mind.

"So when she woke up, she was blind?" John deduced.

Mai nodded, "Un. The connection between her brain and her eyes was damaged."

"Will she ever see again?" Ayako questioned.

Mai sighed, "We don't know. It's possible that the connection will heal, but the longer it takes, the more unlikely it seems."

"Is it hard on her?" Masako asked, albeit a bit reluctantly, "Too not being able to see?"

Mai looked away, "There were things she held close to her because they allowed her to get away from taking care of others. She could just rest. But those were taken away from her when she lost her sight. She's probably found other ways to find that rest, but I know it isn't the same."

John sighed understandingly, "I suppose to most, it wouldn't seem like that big a deal, but she's always taking care of others so it isn't just something she wants, but rather needs."

Mai nodded, "Un. That's why it's probably the one of the worst things about losing her sight. Though there were other things. . ." The last part came out bitter and angry.

"What are you talking about, Mai?" Yasuhara looked at her sharply. Though no one else had yet to notice, he already knew he had feelings for the girl. And with those feelings came a protective instinct that was part of his nature as a guy.

Mai sighed, "Do you guys know what Sumiko's eye colour is?"

"Yeah, it's black," Bou-san raised his eyebrow, not understanding what Sumiko's eye colour had to do with anything.

"Pure black," Mai spoke quietly, "When she lost her sight, her already-dark eyes darkened even more so that they blended in with her pupils. It scares people to see black eyes, making them say she's cursed or something. Some people have even tried to hurt her because of it. Even some of those she knew before she lost her sight began to stay away from her. And that includes all the kids she had to say from that old building, though at least the boy she saved had a little decency." She growled the end, still furious.

"That's ridiculous!" Ayako was outraged, "Since when did it matter what her eye colour is?" Everyone nodded their agreement, all of them angered by the treatment that Sumiko had received. Mai stayed silent though she clearly felt the same way.

"That's why she has to keep her eyes closed," Masako spoke softly.

Lin-san looked to Mai, a thought having struck him, "Wait, Mai. You said that people tried to hurt her. How did she protect herself? Did Kago or one of her friends protect her?"

Surprisingly Mai grinned, "Though Sumiko did have a number of friends to protect her, they weren't there all the time and she only met Kago two years after the accident."

"Then how?" Bou-san was puzzled.

Mai chuckled, "Well, let's just say there aren't a lot of people out there who can take Sumiko down. Not surprising, seeing as she had those two for parents."

"Those two?" John raised his eyebrow.

Mai simply smiled, "That's a story for another time."

"Mai, tea." It seemed that Naru had been waiting for all the talking to be done to ask. Though, Mai didn't really notice that.

Mai shot him a glare, "Yes, Your Majesty."

She stood up and walked out of the room the same way she usually would after getting angry at Naru. Lin-san had the sneaking suspicion that Naru had done that on purpose so she would go back to normal. But as usual, he kept his opinion to himself, though he did allow himself a secret smile: one that Naru luckily missed.

Yasuhara on the other hand had other thoughts on his mind. He turned to Naru, "I'll be outside if you need me." He waited to see Naru nod before leaving.

Naru turned to the others, "Bou-san, I want you to perform an exorcism at the kitchen after Mai is done with the tea. John, you will do an exorcism in the living room."

"Why these two places?" Bou-san asked.

"Because these two places are where the most accidents have occurred," he waited to see the two men nod before turning to Ayako, "Matsuzaki-san, I want you to make warding charms to place on the walls. Make some for the women as well, especially Sumiko since she seems to be the target. Hara-san, I want you to accompany her so you can tell her if there are any spirits."

"Gotcha," Ayako said as Masako nodded. Before they would have turned up their noses at being forced together, but they have long since put aside their differences.

"Matsuzaki-san," Naru called, just as the four were about leave, making them all stop and look back.

"Yeah, what is it?" Ayako asked. It was rare for him to call her.

"Do you think you will be able to use the trees in this area for an exorcism, if needed?"

Ayako sighed, "To be quite honest, I don't know. These trees confuse me."

"What are you talking about?" Bou-san raised his eyebrow.

"You see, normally when I meet trees, they are more like dormant spirits. But these spirits seem awake, though not in a bad way. It's like they are awake because they have someone important that they want to protect."

"Has someone been communicating with the spirits?" John asked.

"I don't know," Ayako told them, "But you know, somehow it feels like they were about to die a while ago. And something – or rather someone – revived them."

"Was a spell performed?" Lin-san asked. He didn't know a lot about tree spirits, but he did know that they were different from your usual spirits. Healing them was something he hadn't heard of.

Ayako shook her head, "I can't sense any trace of a spell. Trust me, I've looked. But you know that tree spirits thrive on purity. It's more like someone's presence was so pure that it revived them. And because of that, I can't be sure they'll listen to me since their loyalties clearly lie somewhere else. But I can't tell you anymore than that."

Naru nodded, "We'll look into this later, but for now, you all should go do whatever I asked you to." They nodded and left the room to do whatever job was assigned to him.

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Yasuhara walked around the side of the building, where he can hear the children playing, "I wonder where Sumiko is."

As if on cue, he saw Sumiko near one of the trees, Kago and Kashi by her side. She gave the boy a gentle smile and a little push towards the other children, as though encouraging him. He gave her a doubtful look and when she whispered something, he relaxed and nodded, giving a tentative smile. With that, the boy ran off while Sumiko watched, leaning against the tree.

"Hm, it seems like his entire character just changed," Yasuhara mused, thinking back to the moody boy they had known before. He briefly debated over walking to Sumiko and just leaving her alone, deciding to join her in the end.

As he approached, Sumiko turned to look at him, "Oh, Yasuhara. You're here."

Yasuhara shrugged, a small grin on his face as he leaned on the tree as well, "Thought I would join you."

"I would like that," Sumiko smiled before turning to Kago, "Why don't you join the children? I think it might be easier for Kashi to adjust if you're there as well." Kago nuzzled her hand gently before galloping to the children.

"Oh, I think I'm getting jealous," Yasuhara sighed, though his twinkling eyes gave him away.

"You don't need to be jealous, my love," Sumiko touched his shoulder, trying to stifle a smile, "No one could be better than you."

Yasuhara placed his hand over hers, "Your words warm my spirit." Both of them laughed. They never got tired of their little skits, especially when it teased so many of their friends. Then Yasuhara nodded to Kashi, "So you told him about your sight."

Sumiko nodded, "Un. That got him to listen to me."

"What did you say to change him like that?"

"He hasn't changed, Yasuhara," Sumiko told him, "He's finally showing who he really is, unhindered by anger."

"So what did you say to make him show his true self?"

"To put it simply, I just told him that if he wanted people to see him for who he is and treat him the way he wants, he's just going to have to make it happen because no one will be there to do it for him."

"And I suppose you speak from personal experience."

It wasn't a question, but Sumiko answered anyways, "That I do."

"Are you going to tell me anything else about what happened?" Yasuhara raised his eyebrow.

"Sorry, but privacy is part of my service," Sumiko winked.

"You shouldn't keep secrets from your husband, my dear."

"I ask for forgiveness and understanding this time."

"I suppose I can this time as long as there isn't any cheating involved."

Sumiko laughed, "I assure you: I'm only interested in grown men."

Yasuhara's eyes danced, "Do I suit your idea?"

Sumiko smirked, "You're practically identical."

For a few moments, they stood silently, watching everything around them. "So?" Yasuhara started, "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything other than my three sizes," Sumiko joked.

Yasuhara sighed dramatically, "I guess I'll have to wait for that one. But I do have one other question."

"Then shoot."

Yasuhara turned to face her, "What do you miss the most about seeing?"

Sumiko was silent for a few moments as though she was considering it before finally speaking, "The sky."

"Why?" Of all the answers, Yasuhara had not expected this one so he was curious to why she chose this answer.

Sumiko smiled and looked up at the sky. She reached up with one hand as though trying to grasp the sky. "It's always there: an eternal presence. And even though it changes as time goes by, it always goes back to what it was at first. It's something I know I can depend on. But now," she clenched her fist, "it's all black. I can't see the changes anymore. I can't see it return to its original form anymore. I can't see it anymore. That entity that was supposed to always be there for me to lean on."

Yasuhara looked at the sky as though he was contemplating something, silent for a few moments before "Then can I take its place?"

"Eh?" Sumiko looked at him, taken back by his words.

But Yasuhara just continued to look at the sky, "You said that they sky was the 'entity that was supposed to always be there for me to lean on.' Can I be that 'entity' instead?"

Sumiko just gawked at him for a few moments. Then she started laughing uncontrollably.

Yasuhara looked at her, surprised, "Why are you laughing? Did I say something weird?"

Sumiko shook her head, unable to stop laughing. Yasuhara just stared at her as she finally brought herself under some variation of control, wiping away her tears of laughter. She covered her mouth with one hand, trying to keep herself from bursting into laughter again. She took a deep breath, a smile still playing at her lips as she turned to look at him, "It's just that I've never really been able to depend on a person. That's why I needed the sky, but no one really offered to be the replacement. Though they said that I could depend on them and such, it always seemed like a temporary fix. But when you said it, it seemed so permanent. The fact that when it finally happened, it would be so simple amazes me."

"So is that a 'Yes, you can be that entity,'?"

Sumiko laughed lightly, "I guess it is, but I want to ask you a question myself."

"If you agree to call me 'Osamu'," Yasuhara told her, adjusting his glasses jokingly.

She smiled, "Alright, Osamu. Does my blindness change the way you feel about me?"

He turned to the sky again, "It does."

Sumiko looked at him, surprised before turning away. The way he had acted now had made her think that it was not so, but she had wanted to make sure. She sighed. She shouldn't have expected that he wouldn't think differently about her now that he knew about her sight. "I guess I should be glad I asked, but it feels a lot worse since I have feelings for him."

"I've fallen even deeper in love with you."

She gasped, turning to face him. He had the most casual look on his face as he looked back at her. Sumiko smiled, raising her eyebrow, "Is that a confession, Osamu?" using his first name on purpose.

Yasuhara smirked. He moved in front of her, pressing one forearm above her head as he leaned into her ear. He dropped his voice to an intimate whisper, "Yes." He watched her as her body became lax, her eyes looking into his breathless. He felt an urge to pull her close, but he resisted it, part of him unable to understand how such a small woman could bring out such a primal response from him. "So what is your answer?"

"I'm glad," she looked away, blushing ever so slightly, "to know you feel the same way as me."

"Which means?" Yasuhara grinned. He would never forgive himself if he let her go without a little teasing.

She blushed even more, her accepting way of thinking clearly not helping her at that moment, "I love you."

He smirked as he took his other hand out of his pocket to pull her close to him, making her to look up at him, "Good."

Then he kissed her.

OMG! I can hear fangirls screaming. Well, one or two more chapters before this ends. Hope you enjoyed it so far. Oh and I'm sorry that it took so long. My cousin's wedding is this Sunday and I'm one of my culture's versions of bridesmaids. So sorry, but I'll do my best. ; )