I'm majorly sorry for the one-day delay people, due to RL reasons I couldn't post this chap yesterday. This one, as the one that ends the arc, is kinda special. It's an Interlude and interludes are going to be told from the first-person POV of the arc's respective protagonist- in this case that's Hana. Also, the first chap of the next arc is going to be posted after two weeks, not the usual one. I need some time to go ahead with the writing, mkay?

Interlude I:

The Boy And His Spirit

Sometimes I hate myself, y'know.

Not because I have some severe psychological disorder, not because I'm some whiny emo who thinks the world is out to get him, oh no. Plain and simple, I hate all those moments when I'm stuck between my utmost desire to spend the whole day slacking around somewhere away from others and my habit of wanting to see people snapped in two just 'cause they've looked at me the wrong way. This stupid combination of hot and cold drives me insane and it wasn't only once that I've thought that maybe, just maybe of course, there's something really wrong with my mental health. But then again, there's no way I'm some crazy loon, nothing more than a ticking time bomb that will eventually show up at school with a sawn-off shotgun and a chainsaw. Having actually seen the example of such a type of guy, at least the six-hundred-year-old version, kinda helps reinforce my belief. There's no possible way I can end up like him.

Back on topic, it's the anger that always annoys me. It's like that kind of stupid itches that just don't go away, even after you've made yourself bleed trying to stop them. The fact that my sweet temper is triggered by the simplest of things doesn't help either. Maybe that's why most of the time I've the enthusiasm of a sleeping elephant- the only way my body deals with the… well, my desire to break stuff, is to make me a top-notch slacker. After all, if I don't do anything and stay away from all those annoying people around me, there's nothing that could possibly anger me, right?

And speaking of things sleeping, maybe that's why ninety percent of my special 'slack-off time' is spent snoring under some tree, on a park bench or in the gym's equipment room. Sleep is, in my not so humble opinion, probably the best thing a man can experience. Well, speaking of experience, I am yet to experience some other things men can enjoy and that will probably change my viewpoint of 'best things' but… err, whatever! My point is, when you're asleep there's nothing that can annoy you. It's just you, relaxing and not even realizing you're doing it. True, you do dream but dreams, at least to me, aren't something major. To me they're just slideshow… thingies. With sound. And other kinds of special effects. Important thing is, they can't annoy you, can't make you angry or bug you in some other way. Plus, last time I've had nightmares I was in fourth grade. Maybe I just don't bother remembering them anymore? After all, good or bad, dreams are just so mashed up no one can even hope to understand them. So why bother in the first place?

And so, when I dreamt that dream, it was the fact that it was so damn vivid and clear that made me realize something was majorly wrong. And sick.

At first there was nothing but darkness around me. And it was annoying- a lot. Looking back, it was probably the fact that I had been knocked out, right, down and generally in all possible directions those past few days that had made me despise the color black so much. It starts to get really irritating after a while, being able to see nothing and just float with your senses going crazy. So that's why when she appeared, instead of mentally cringing like I usually did, I was actually kinda glad to see her. Kinda.

Things started going down from there. Rapidly.

The fact that all five of my senses were so active when I was just dreaming was quiiite strange. The fact that dream-me had no way of actually knowing it was a dream made things even worse. But the fact remained- my senses worked better than they had ever had in the real world. It was as if I had been always forced to experience stuff through a semi-transparent casing and then someone dismantled it in seconds.

I didn't even know if I had any body at all- the disorientation was pretty major- but I knew damn too well that I felt her with every single fiber of my being. Her fingers, tracing lines across my body, made me feel like my skin was on fire. Her rosy lips, doing roughly the same as her slim fingers, were surprisingly warm- I had always expected them to be as icy and distant as their owner. Her very smell was maddening and I'm still pretty sure normal humans can't usually sense aromas so well. Hers was as vivid as the rest of her- it was almost as if I could touch it as well. Her silky hair, finally out of her ever-present twin braids, tickled, wrapping itself around me as if to goad me into running my hands through it. She whispered something but despite hearing loud and clear every word, in a tone I'd never think of her ever using, I couldn't understand a thing. All that I knew was that even her voice was as mind-numbing as the rest of her being. It sent my mind spiraling down into pleasure-induced insanity. The sense of her smooth skin against mine drove me absolutely crazy, forcing me out of my previous stupor and my own hands soon found themselves all over her body. Senses of vision and touch blurred into one as I traced every single curve of her body again and again and my mind threatened to go numb once more by the sheer bliss of me being able to truly touch her.

Our primal dance grew faster and faster and my sanity felt like being broken and renewed with every twist and turn. The world spun along with us but all that existed to me was her. Her bottomless eyes centimeters away from mine. Her billowing hair gently wrapped around my body. Her fingers intertwined with mine, nails dug in the back of my palm. Her breadth that caressed my neck. And the dance just quickened and quickened, the world becoming a blur and I was no longer able to realize where her body ended and mine begun. It was mind-numbing bliss- I truly wanted for it to last forever. But as the dance went on something else inside me stirred up. The all-too-familiar rage rose up and I was actually angry at her, hated her for some reason I was completely unable to point out. I didn't know what to do. I wanted the dance to continue forever. I wanted to break her into millions of pieces just as much.

And then the world grinded to a halt.

A terrified shout escaped my lips when I saw the Antiquity rammed between her small pale breasts, handle-deep and with my shaking hands gripping it. I wanted to shout at her not to look at me, to gouge out her eyes that were filled with such contempt and disappointment. But I could do nothing, only watch as the blood gushed out and smeared my body. It felt warm in a sick kind of way- one all too familiar to the way her skin was so warm and inviting to the touch. And then she shrieked, her hair turning snow-white, her skin becoming cold and ashen and her eyes glowing crimson red as she kept on wailing. She was like a banshee, her shrieks morphing from wails to growls and from growls to roars in a matter of seconds. Her hands found themselves on my chest, nails digging deeper and deeper until she was just clawing and slashing and tearing me apart again and again and again. Once more she placed her now ice-cold lips on my neck but the false kiss ended up with her needle-like teeth sinking deep into my throat and I was forced to watch, unable to stop her, unable to even die and make the pain go away. Bones cracked and fell off broken as she ripped my ribcage apart with feral glee and her cold fingers wrapped themselves around the treasure we humans hide inside it. Veins and arteries strained but refused to let go when she took out her prize and examined it with the curious expression of a child pondering on whether to do something naughty or not. Her tongue slowly licked my own blood off her lips as she eyed my still pumping heart. Her needle-like teeth glistened in the darkness and she lunged forward, incisors digging deep-

"Time to wake up, Asakura-kun!"

I woke up with a start and ended up headbutting the beautiful girl with long obsidian black hair that had the bad luck of leaning above me. My thoughts were still jumbled and my mind was pretty much desperately trying to reboot so all I could do was fall back on the pillow because of the backlash and wonder who the hell the hottie with the strangely deep yet still kinda soft voice was. She did seem quite familiar for some reason…

"Great gob, genius. Now we can have him hospitalized again because of a heart attack," quipped a certain green-eyed individual that entered my field of vision. Cedric sent me a casual one-handed wave but all that I could think of was what on Earth was he doing… well, wherever I were. My whole body ached and it felt like daggers were jammed into me with even the slightest move I dared make. My head was still spinning and I must've looked like quite the moron looking drunkenly around.

I was in a hospital room, one with only two beds and with me being the only patient there. The sun and the cool wind coming inside through the open window indicated that it was probably morning. Or it was just a windy afternoon. Or noon. Hell if I could figure it out. Eventually the memories, all the unpleasant very painful memories of why I was actually bedridden returned. I didn't know how things had actually ended, last I remember was me passing out- so Anna had probably fixed things after that. After all, I was alive so the freaky samurai with the troubled past must've lost, one way or another. And that meant that Cedric and the girl that knew my name were visitors. I knew Cedric, even if only for a couple of days but who the hell do I know who's hot, has long black hair and sounds strangely… uhm, boyish. Lemme thi-

Hell. No.

Burn in hell, Sato! Burn in fucking hell! Oh my goodness, I need to bleach my brain!

"So, you gonna keep on vegetating or you'll finally rejoin the land of the living? What's it gonna be, chief? I ain't got all day, y'know," asked Cedric with his usual even tone and succeeded in igniting the anger I had momentarily forgotten I had the habit of 'enjoying'. Luckily for that smartass, I was too damn tired to move a finger, much less punch him.

"Leave him alone already, he needs some rest," said another familiar voice and Alejandro dragged his exchange fella away from my bed. His almost bored tone made me guess the Brazilian had gotten quite used to the American's antics. And quite used to reprimanding him for them. Besides, the Lopez guy looked healthy enough- last I checked he had been the one in the hospital, not me. How long was I out anyway?

Another one of my acquaintances, the one that I actually do know well enough to call a friend loomed above me from the other side. Tsumemaru was smiling with that stupid grin of his that he used only for special baseball occasions and playfully punched me on the shoulder. I ought to punch him back good but now I was too tired and too damn in pain to actually do it. He must have noticed it because he helped me get up in a seated position more carefully than he would've usually done.

"Sorry 'bout that," Tsumemaru muttered hastily before proclaiming loudly enough to make my ears cringe. Were they bandaged, too or something? "Don't pay attention to them! The important thing is that you're up and runnin' again. Things will be back to normal in no time!"

I sincerely doubted my life was ever going to be normal again.

"So cheer up, pal, and look there!"

Curiosity kicked in and I obliged to look at where he was pointing so enthusiastically. I wish I hadn't. Anna was huddled on a lone chair in the far corner, observing the scene with dispassionate eyes, legs and arms crossed in disapproval. Indeed, she did seem actually small and easy to overlook when one glanced around the room for the first time. But seeing her after that kind of sick and twisted dream made my stomach lurch and I felt whatever… thingies and medical stuff the doctors were cramming me with while I had been out rise up my throat. Still, I suppressed the urge to vomit with an audible gulp and turned to Tsumemaru in hope that he would change the topic.

"She's been like rooted next to ya for the 'hole week that you were out. I think someone's really willin' to help ya continue the Asakura line," he said with a knowing smirk and nudged me, causing me to cringe in pain once again. "I knew you two would get along right off the bat!"

One, he was lying and two, there he goes with the baseball puns again. Plus, I was actually surprised his head didn't explode by the glare Anna shot at him after his comments.

"Come on now, let us not create any more tension," said the Sato, now finally with head cleared after the sudden impact with my own. He plastered his signature disturbing robotic smile on his girlie face and held up his hands as if giving up. "I suggest we just keep it quiet and go outside, I think Asakura-kun has some things to discuss with our fair lady here."

I didn't even care about Cedric and Tsumemaru's blatant smirks or Alejandro's barely suppressed chuckle as they followed outside that stupid Sato. I was actually disappointed that all of them left- yes, even Arada. I didn't want- I was actually scared of- being left alone with Anna. I needed someone to stay in the room. But after all- when have I been lucky anyway? Despite trying to look away my eyes found themselves constantly fixed on her. I couldn't help but wonder if the parts of her exposed body I hadn't actually seen yet were as I had imagined them. I couldn't help but asks myself did her skin really feel that warm or was the caress of her lips so gentle and inviting. But in the end I desperately hammered those thoughts out of my head- after all, they were just the leftovers of some stupid coma-induced dream or something, weren't they? In reality, she was just the annoying menace she usually was, constantly bitching and belittling me. There was probably a better chance of her killing me because I inconvenienced her in some way than anything else.

And speaking of killing, I found myself frantically searching for the Antiquity appearing in my hands or stuck into her chest. But in the end, no such thing happened and she certainly didn't grow claws or razor-sharp teeth as I had feared. Anna just kept on looking at me dispassionately, as if waiting for me to say something. Yet again her attitude made me want to break the nearest thing I could get my hands on- she had that particular constant effect on me. Around her, temper matters went from worse to abysmal.

"The doctors said you were probably going to actually awaken today- not just for a few minutes like the last couple of days. That's why all the idiots were here," Anna eventually explained from her place in the distant corner.

"Oh? Okay."

I wanted to punch myself for giving such a stupid answer. The way she looked at me notified me she hadn't expected anything better.

"After the fight with Amidamaru you fell unconscious so I called Arada to get you to the hospital."

Understandably, the thought of the Sato being the one saving my ass again wasn't appealing in the least.

"Why not call an ambulance? I could've bled to death."

"You weren't losing that much blood," icily shot back Anna. "You were out for so long only because weak minds like yours can't handle mental attacks. Besides, they would've asked questions if they had found you on the school grounds. I told Arada to pretend he found you in some alley beaten up by thugs. No doubt you'll end up in such a position one day if you ask me."

"Well, I'm not."

Anna promptly ignored my retort and just got up from her chair and headed towards the door. There really was something Indian in the short black dress she was wearing- maybe it were those frills at the edges of the skirt. The red bandana with the triangular pattern reinforced her exotic look as well- I found it disturbing I was once again paying attention to details I had ignored when first seeing them.

"By the way, there's someone that wants to speak with you."

And of course, she didn't oblige to tell me who it actually was before she strolled out the door. To further damage my already numb mind, the answer was revealed soon after. With a brief swirl of still hospital air, a figure in a billowing white cloak formed out of nowhere at the side of my bed. Even without the pieces of red armor strapped to the man's body and his long snow-white hair, his cerulean eyes would've been enough for me to recognize him. The only reason my terrified shout didn't leave my mouth was because Amidamaru's actions, if it was even possible, shocked me even more than him actually being in my hospital room. He dropped down on his knees, forehead laid against the floor tiles, and hastily spoke in the most normal voice I had ever heard him use in person.

"I beg for you forgiveness! My shameful actions and weaknesses nearly cost you your life!"

Of course, I had no way in hell of even knowing what to think. Amidamaru going from 'KILL! KILL! MUAAHAHA!' to actually acting like… well, how I imagined real samurai did was quite the shocker. I found myself speaking the first thing that came to mind.

"Weaknesses? I've trouble believing of you as anything like 'weak'."

"I am referring to the weakness of my will," he replied, not breaking his deep bow. "If it was not for your own force of will to snap me out of my… condition, I do not dare think what could have happened. I allowed my soul to get twisted and contaminated by my bitter memories over time. You-"

"Hold on a sec there! You're telling me that I snapped you out of it? I actually did it? If I did, weren't you supposed to go to the afterlife or something?"

"Technically, yes," said Amidamaru and finally obliged to at least look up to me. "But what keeps a spirit anchored to this world is, roughly phrased, unfinished business of some sort. As you know all too well, I may have rebelled against my daimyo but I am still a samurai-"

"Wouldn't that make you a ronin?"

He promptly chose to ignore my comment.

"- And I still have my honor. My actions in the afterlife are inexcusable. I killed two innocent boys, maimed a girl and hurt you severely. If I was alive I would have taken my life but as things are now… I fear I can only stay here for a while longer and hope to somehow repent for my sins."

"How do you plan on doing this anyway?"

"Well, I…"

Amidamaru stammering and dragging out words certainly wasn't to my liking. The drastic change in his behavior was too much to handle immediately- not that I actually wanted the homicidal maniac back. I'd rather get gradually used to the current situation, thank you very much.

"Well?" I asked back with no small amount of irritation evident in my tone.

"From what I have learnt so far, earthbound spirits can work together with shamans to hunt down other rogue spirits and deal with other spiritual anomalies. And since, well, you do not have a guardian spirit yet… I was thinking that maybe I can be your partner and repent for my crimes by helping you do your duties."

If that was even possible, did he really think I'd take the crazy guy with the slasher smile that had tried to kill me a couple of dozen times? True, Amidamaru claimed he had changed and if things had really worked he had probably changed. But still, come on!

"Amidamaru, even if I lost my mind and actually agreed, I can't be your partner or anything like that at all. Shamans can see spirits. I ca-"

And then it struck me. The realization felt strange but it was there. Plain as daylight, I could see his semi-transparent body, his real one and not some rotting corpse he had chosen to posses. Naturally, I had no idea what was happening with me. Again.

"I-I can see you. You aren't possessing anyone but I can see you!"

"That is correct," said Amidamaru and kept on kneeling next to my bed. "Anna-sama explained that the brief time that we were in the same body and your spirit had contact with a foreign one must have caused the awakening of your latent shamanic abilities. Apparently many humans have them hidden deep within."

"Anna-sama?"

"She made me swear I will obey her orders from now on to repay for my threats against her and for attacking her that first time we met."

Somehow, Anna ordering around a former zombie didn't strike me as strange. Maybe there really was something wrong with my brain after all.

"Well? I know that I caused you much pain but… would you consider accepting me as your guardian spirit?"

I didn't know what to say, really. At first I thought of outright telling him no but something inside me prevented me from doing it. I couldn't point out what it was. I tried telling myself Amidamaru, being a former killing machine aside, was a total stranger. But some annoying inner voice of mine pointed out I knew about him more than I did about my closest friends- even Tsumemaru. Back then in his memories, I had actually felt what the still-living Amidamaru had experienced. True, I just watched from the sidelines but it was as if I could read the man's heart, understand why he was making the decision that had shaped his life. The words left my mouth before I actually realized I was saying anything.

"Tsk, I hope there's really gonna be no harm in trying then. I've no idea what a shaman does and how he does it, tho."

Amidamaru once again pressed his forehead to the ground and smiled normally for the first time since I had met him. And then I suddenly found myself with a six-hundred-years-old undead samurai crushing me into a bear hug. My barely healed bones cringed and threatened to snap once again and I found myself shouting at the top of my lungs.

"The 'no harm' clause! The 'no harm' clause, dammit!"

Amidamaru was quick to carefully put me down and stood, err, glided away from me with a worried expression. He probably thought he had ruined the partnership he had worked so hard for. Or probably thought Anna was going to sent him to the deepest pits of hell. Yeah, probably it was that.

"Amidamaru, how're you even able to touch me? Aren't you supposed to be incorporeal without a body to posses?"

"That's because," answered a somewhat familiar deep voice "you're a shaman now, kiddo. Shamans can allow spirits to touch them to show they are actually able to interact. Guess you don't know how to use the on/off switch yet."

And there it was- a freaking foot-long pompadour of impossible shape, reflecting the sunlight with the sheer amount of hair gel that required to maintain such a ridiculous gravity-defying hairdo. And to it was attached the strange man known as Eki-san. For some unfathomable reason he was now sporting a ludicrous tackier-than-life white Evils-style suit with purple cuffs and collars. Eki-san leaned on the doorframe and flipped up his even tackier star-shaped sunglasses.

"And because you are such a newbie, you need someone to teach you the way of the shaman," proudly proclaimed the Elvis-lookalike. "And who better to do it than I, the skillful and dashing Eki-san!" he finished by pointing cheerfully at himself and flashing a smile filled with two rows of perfect pearl-white teeth.

"For all I know you're just an info broker! You probably know nothing about being a shaman."

I'm fairly certain he wanted to punch me but Eki-san just chose to pull out a cigar to subdue his temper. Apparently the fact that he was in a hospital didn't bother him at all. After taking a long drag, he finally obliged to reply.

"Think what you want, brat. You're gonna end up awed by my skills later. You'll be begging me to teach you! Oh, that reminds me-"

He shuffled through his many pockets and eventually found what he was looking for- a tacky business card adorned with a venom-green lizard. The color scheme was bright enough to give anyone seizures. The card proudly declared: 'Eki-san! The man who will make your ghostly troubles go away!'. The back of the card had a phone number and some lines in a font too small for one to read without a magnifying glass. My hunch was that those were the prices. And as if he had read my mind…

"- I expect my payment by the end of the month. I've already refrained from charging you for the time you wasted on sleeping so you better be quick about it. The shaman lessons ain't free either but since I owe some favors to certain members of your family, I'll give you a ten percent discount."

"YOU WANT ME TO PAY YOU FOR YOUR STUPID ADVICE AND FOR GIVING ME SHAMAN LESSONS?"

"Pretty much," was his simple answer. Then he dared flick me up the nose. "It's good to see you're not brain-damaged and understand what I'm saying but could you keep it down a little? The cute nurses ain't gonna like me if they think I'm harassing the patients. Oh, and it's Eki-sensei-sama from now on for you, brat."

I was too pissed off to even call him out on that one. He just turned back and shoved his hands in his pockets, about to stroll out like Anna before him. However, instead of saying goodbye like normal people do, he sent me- us- a cryptic look over his shoulder. It was a strange look, the serious one that he had used when he had finally realized who the killer at our school was. That look served as a reminder that the man in the Elvis rip-off costume and the oversized pompadour could be serious and possibly even dangerous if the situation called for it. I felt strange thinking of Pompadour Man as actually capable of something. His even more cryptic parting words were of no help either.

"You two better get ready and learn fast. Amidamaru, we've a mutual friend who just can't wait to kick your ass. But we've to make you two are actually able to fight before we can have that party, right? It'll be no fun otherwise, oh no."

And with that, he waved us a casual goodbye and left. Amidamaru just shrugged at my questioning look. Eventually silence descended in the room as I just leaned back on my pillow and the spirit of a six-hundred-year-old samurai kept me company, hovering around the bed. In the end, it was me who spoke first.

"So, Amidamaru… what now?"

The simple question seemed to throw him off guard and he took his time before answering.

"I-I don't know, Hana-dono. But we have all the time in the world to decide what to do, do we not?"

It was then that I realized why I had accepted his offer so easily, despite all the literal bad blood between us. Frankly, these past few years I'd spent bitching on about how opportunities just passed me by and all the interesting things happened to others. I wanted destiny to give me what I desired on a silver platter. When Anna had turned my life upside-down, I didn't choose for it to be so. It just… happened, Anna just decided herself how things were going to be done, in typical Anna fashion. But earlier, when Amidamaru asked me to be my guardian spirit it actually meant that I was the one choosing this time. It was me that actually- finally- had the opportunity to choose in which direction my life was going to head from now on.

Does life really have something special in store for us all? For some of us…any one of us?

I have no idea. I don't know if we are all part of some grand design or if each of us plays the hero in a million of different plays. All I know is that I've started a story of my own, with my own hands. I don't know what kind of story it is, whether it is important or how it will end. All I know is… we are the only ones that can choose whether to have a story of ours or not.

TBC