Author's notes: Longest chapter yet. Took me most of the day to write. But I do sort of like how it turned out, I'm just anxious as to how you readers will find it. I'm a bit worried if it makes enough sense. I don't know if I can update as speedily after this one.

Thanks for everyone who's been reading! PS This story has a lot of..err breaks do you call them? The line thingys XD Jsut so you wouldn't get confused with the flashbacks

PPS I've edited the previous chapters so dialogues are now enclosed in "". A lot of people have been commenting that it's a bit confusing with the apostrophes

Pon: I hope over the course of the story she loses some clichedness. I actually reread some of the earlier chapters and I do get what you mean. I think at that time I wasn't fully acquainted with her character then. The more I write her the more I get to know her! So the more I'm able to show her character in a deeper way I guess. Weird cause I made her up. Haha

Yeah, some of the chapters are pretty short, they've been getting longer though. :O I think the chemistry came in at Chapter 6 onwards, so I hope you get to see that when you read it. Yep, dialogues are enclosed in ' '. No offense taken! Happy you took the time to review! All of my reviewers so far have been really constructive and nice! Thanks guys!

Disclaimer: Don't own Hunter x Hunter

"What is taking Killua so long?", the little girl wondered aloud. Even back then she had the habit of twirling her hair. She was sitting on a large, rather intimidating wooden chair, her feet dangling inches above the floor and her arms resting on the chair's curved arms. Her voice echoed a bit in the huge room. It took Raiha a few days to get used to the interiors of the Zaoldeyk home. Their family wasn't one for overly dramatic furniture, and why did the ceilings have to be so high really, and the curtains so dark? But she liked this house. She liked it because she was allowed to run around, jump, and practically do everything she wasn't allowed to back home. Much more, even. Killua knew all sorts of tricks. She enjoyed learning them, mimicking him, and oh just moving around felt good. She had always felt stiff and contrived back home.

She had glared at her father when he told her that she would be leaving home for a while, to spend some time with her would be husband. Although Raiha had been told that she would one day marry into a good family and thus bring honor to the Kanakiri name, nobody had bothered to explain what getting married meant. They had always just told her, "To be a good bride one must…blah blah blah…" But what was a bride, a wife? Was it just days of wearing clothes she couldn't move in? Talking in a soft voice? Always doing what other people say? Looking at her mother she thought that must have been it. And she didn't want that. She wanted to join her brothers when they accompanied their father, when they learned of a world she only saw the outskirts of. She heard their father say that Hisashi and Nobu would begin training in a few years. What kind of training? Surely it wasn't the same as hers, how to walk properly, sit properly, bow properly.

She was in a restaurant with her family. Her brothers were busy playing with one another. Her mother had told her to sit still and not mess up her clothes, or her hair. She would be meeting her future father in law today, Silva Zaoldeyk. He was meeting her father for business, and her mother thought it a good opportunity to introduce her to him. The door opened and her father stood up to welcome the newcomer. A tall muscular man with long wavy silvery white hair, strong eyes and a firm jaw, Silva Zaoldeyk.

Raiha could feel her mother nudging her to welcome him, but there was something wrong. She felt something in the air, something unpleasant. Her eyes scanned the room and it fell on her brothers. In the back of her brain there seemed to be a voice saying, "Move, move!" The voice kept speaking until she finally stood up, and time seemed to be in a warp, slowing down and speeding up, she couldn't understand. Her eyes caught the flash of something silver and she felt her hand moving almost on its own. Her fingers brushed on a hard slim object and time flowed as it usually did again. But the scene had changed dramatically. Her mother had stood up slightly, mouth agape, her brothers were turned to her, Nobu was pointing at the something in her hand, and Hisashi's arms had dropped to his sides. Near the doorway, her father stared at her as if seeing her for the first time. Silva glanced at the girl then at the arrow in her hand. He put his hand on Raiha's father's shoulder. "She's got potential, that one."

The meeting with Silva was uneventful enough, in terms of life threats. Her father and Silva had rushed out and scanned the surrounding area. After about 20 minutes they had returned saying everything was taken care of. Raiha kept clasping and unclasping her hands. She felt triumphant. It had felt wonderful to move like that, and even more wonderful that she had saved her brothers from a flying arrow of all things. By herself. A girl, like her, expected to be a mere living Kanakiri doll.

"Raiha."

Her thoughts were broken by her father's voice.

"I trust you remember that I told you you would be spending time at the Zaoldeyks."

She nodded and looked at Silva. Suddenly remembering what she had been taught, she bowed her head at him slowly.

Silva chuckled at the little girl in front of him. She would make a very interesting companion for Killua. Normally he wouldn't have encouraged this sort of thing; this engagement was far too early. He smiled, with a hint of exasperation at the memory of Kikyo losing her head at the thought of having a little girl in the house. His wife had always been obsessed with having a girl, to the point that she dressed their youngest son as one. The moment he had mentioned the Kanakiris and shown her Raiha's picture she was in ecstasy. He glanced at Touya Kanakiri next to him. Traditional to a fault, he had set up his daughter's life before she was even ten years old. He was surprised that Touya had come to him offering his daughter. To be able to reach the Zaoldeyk mansion was enough of a commendable feat. He had made a solid case. His daughter would understand the lifestyle the Zaoldekys led, would make a good addition to the family, and all that jazz. He didn't question Touya's motives. There was a lot to be gained allying with an assassin family. Perhaps he had been that affected by the quality of work Silva had done for him. Whatever his reasons were, it was an interesting proposition. Kikyo had begged him to agree to it. Although he had said yes, he was still truly undecided. He had planned to make his final decision when he saw the girl. Now, after meeting her, and seeing that display earlier, he had come to his decision.

'I'm sure you and Killua will get along well, Raiha."

The door opened and Illumi entered. Raiha stopped twirling her hair to look at him. He was strange, this brother of Killua's. His eyes felt dead to her, barely any sign of life behind them. She wasn't afraid of him, exactly. Just a bit, weirded out.

"Yo."

Raiha opened her eyes. Why had she remembered that all of a sudden? Gon had fallen asleep, head leaning back against his chair, just the slightest amount of…drool on the side of his mouth. She giggled. Disgusting. But he was tired because of her, because she had put him up to whatever it was he did today, she couldn't blame the guy for a little drool.

"What's taking Killua so long?"

The door to the dining room burst open causing the guests to simultaneously turn in that direction. An enraged Killua was standing at the door. He scanned the room with an intense expression causing the people to look back at their plates as if their life depended on it. He took long strides toward Gon and Raiha.

"Oy, Raiha." A dark aura was emanating from Killua. Gon was slowly waking up, smacking his mouth a bit. He raised his face and sleepily looked at his best friend.

"Hey Killua, where have you been?"

Raiha could tell that Killua was seething. And from the way he said her name it looked as if it was her fault. But why? What did she do? She just gave him a call. The dark expression still hadn't left Killua's face and he looked like he was just about to explode on her. If she didn't act soon she would end up half deaf probably. Deftly she reached into her bag and brought out a box of chocolate bonbons and waved it at him. Slowly but steadily his expression started to return to normal. Gon glanced alternately between the two. Raiha was good. Chocolate was the best damage control for times like these.

Killua ripped the box out of her hands and sat down. He began eating the bonbons, barely stopping even to breathe. After he finished, he leaned back on his chair and shot Raiha another look. He still wanted to scream at her, but the chocolate had already started to take effect. Damn woman. He would deal with her later. The chocolate had soothed his wounded pride.

"So, how did things go?"

First Gon relayed the story of the long, dragging and eventually fruitless auction. Raiha followed with the café conversation with Smite that was equally fruitless. The two turned to Killua expectantly and he reluctantly told the story of his meeting with Tora, and how, he had lost because he was rudely interrupted by Raiha's phone call.

"Just when I was winning you had to go and call!"

Oh, so that's why he's so miffed.,. thought Raiha. She knew how obnoxious Tora could be, especially when he was winning. Poor Killua. She wasn't really scared of the dark vibe he exuded earlier. She actually found it quite endearing. Very Killua-like. She did genuinely feel bad for him though.

As for the blonde, she was curious as to why he wanted to meet her. It was probably nothing. That jerk just wanted her to go through extra trouble and get nothing for it.

"That guy knows something though. When I mentioned that it was a sword you were looking for, his expression changed. Definitely suspicious."

"You're lucky you got something. I'd much rather arm-wrestle some dude than go through an auction." said Gon with a yawn.

"Tough luck buddy. Well at least you didn't have to see the guy. His head was so big I'm surprised he got through the front door."

Raiha sighed. So basically today wasn't fruitful for any of them. She stared at the sword before her then let her eyes moved to Gon and Killua.

The two were now animatedly chatting with one another. She smiled. They were great friends. She saw how natural they acted with one another, no pretenses. What they felt, they showed the other in real time. Would she come to be as close to them too in time? She wondered how these two saw her, if their impression of her coincided with her impression of herself. If she had to describe herself it would probably be collected, stubborn, risky, protective…wait, did it make sense to be all those at the same time? To be honest, she thought she was one of those people that didn't know themselves all that well. She kept contradicting herself, especially during the past few days. She wanted to think she was cool, calm and collected, but somehow she hadn't been recently. Remembering how she had jumped up and down in her room before meeting Killua, the uncomfortable and awkward pangs she felt during their first conversation in years, and oh God, the things that had come out of her mouth during that night in her room. She thought Nobu was the only one who had no filter in their family. And that time she touched his face! Not being cool calm and collected. She didn't know that there was such a side of her that existed. Maybe it was only Killua that brought it out of her? She had to admit to herself that she felt something strange when her hand made contact with his face. Good strange or bad strange, she didn't know. She wasn't accustomed to the feeling that was what she was sure of. Was this what it meant to like someone? She thought it would feel more pleasant, not this queasy sensation that made her act like a chicken who lost its head. Did she bring out anything different in him?

Maybe this was the opportunity to know herself better. Once again she was out of her family's confines. She could say what she wanted, act how she wanted, be who she wanted. Which was what exactly?

Raiha realized that she had been too far gone in her thoughts and that the two were now staring at her.

"You okay?" Gon asked.

She needed to collect herself, this was the explaining part she had been dreading earlier. No time to freak out. She had been getting these freak out urges more often or rather, not more often, more of, she had been getting them recently, since she didn't use to get them before.

"Uhh. Yeah. There's something I need to tell you guys though. About the swords. You know how I said there was nothing I knew of other than the legend that made the swords important? Well turns out there's something else." Something very important.

"Panic? And why would I do that?"

"Raiha, listen to me very carefully. We have told you, Hisashi and Nobu the legend of the swords. But only the first part. You don't know how the swords actually came to be made, and why they are extremely important to our family.

The ethereals had believed that the highest authority in the world was the Sun, from whom they received their energy. But it wasn't. There was an even higher power, and from that higher power came the humans. The ethereals had spent a good long while being the sole inhabitants of the world. What they didn't know was that they were never inhabitants to begin with. They were that which was to be inhabited. The humans came slowly, filling the Fields and Valleys. The ethereals were surprised that such beings existed, and what more, they were surprised at how free these creatures were. They roamed the lands as they pleased and what more, they used the ethereals as they pleased. They cut Trees and climbed Mountains, they bathed in Rivers and took fish from Seas. The Sun watched them by day, and the Moon by night. The humans were constantly developing, constantly changing, and constantly renovating the world. The adornments they put on their bodies changed over time, the tools they used. Fire was born. Metal was born. Glass was born.

Throughout all these, Moon and Sea remained constant. They still continued their pattern of the tides, meeting when Sun bade the world goodnight. But the coming of humans started to fill them with desire, the desire for freedom. Sea, most especially. The more time passed, the more the humans progressed, and the more they did, the more frustrated Sea became. She would see them forming families, from couples, from individuals. Why were they able to do so? She felt envy in every part of her being.

"Don't you want to be free Moon? Like them? If we were human, we could be together. Not just at night. Whenever we chose."

"I am not so sure. We are as we are for a reason. I don't know if becoming human is... Is it even possible?"

"There must be some way." Sea glimmered at Moon imploringly. He let himself be hidden by the Clouds, unsure of what to answer her.

Soon Sea had made up her mind. She would become human. She would be together with Moon. On the night when the Moon shone on her in all his glory, she spoke to him.

"We have spent so much time going along with what Fate has supposedly intended for us. We have let ourselves be run by the course of Nature. But what do we really want? What do you want?

I want to believe that there is a reason why I am pulled towards you, that there must be something more for us than just this. I have seen the humans, I have seen them walking in pairs, and how, how happy they are. I want to believe that we have the same right. That we are not bound by our circumstances. Or we will not be, at least, no longer."

Moon was moved by her words. He too, wanted to be with her. But becoming human? However, he no longer had a choice in the matter. Sea had made up her mind.

Sea visualized what the humans looked like, how they moved, how they talked. She let the thoughts fill her, and soon the thoughts had overwhelmed her, and she felt strange forces shaping her. The ethereals were powerful, much more powerful than they gave themselves credit for. But were they powerful enough to become human?

The Sea looked as if it was in turmoil, Waves crashing against the shore. It raged for a minute or two before suddenly becoming calm, still, quiet.

A man had come out of his home, his interest roused by the noise the sea had made earlier. But it must have been his imagination for now all was silent. He was walking along the shore when he was stopped in his tracks by a strange sight. A woman with hair of pale blue was lying on the shore. Her hair was so long that it lay on a coil at her feet. She looked pitiful. The man decided to bring her to his home.

When Sea awoke the sight she first saw was the ceiling of a house. She could feel something on either side of her and below her, something she was connected to. She lifted them up and put them in front of her. Hands.

"What are these….?" She sat up and looked down. She could see a body clad in white.

"Good, you're awake."

Sea stiffened. A human. The human was rather tan and had black hair. He had very dark kind eyes, and his lips were curved into a smile. The man was struck by the girl"s beauty. Her eyes were blue-green and contrasted sharply with the paleness of her skin. Her long blue hair framed her face delicately. She was unlike any other human he had seen in his lifetime.

"Who…" Her voice was soft and a bit hoarse.

"Oh, yes pardon me for not introducing myself. I am called Kanakiri." The man bowed slightly. He suddenly felt bashful. This girl was truly beautiful.

That man was the first of our kind, Raiha, our ancestor. He was a blacksmith who lived near the sea. He had told Sea how he had found her on the shore. Sea remembered what she had done, how she had willed herself to become human. And she had succeeded. What about Moon? What had happened to him? Did he become human as well? Where was he?

Kanakiri tried to engage Sea in a conversation but her mind was only on Moon. Kanakiri offered to help her if she needed any but she dismissed him and said she would be fine on her own. She did not feel at ease with this human although he appeared harmless. She had seen enough of humankind to know that they could turn cruel at any moment. He wanted to get to know her, but he didn't want to force her. He could sense how reluctant she was on interacting with him. He let her go, after giving her a robe to wear over her the thin white one she had on. As she walked out of his home he felt a pang of worry in his chest. The girl seemed too delicate to be left on her own. He hoped she would be alright.

Sea wandered around the area and searched for Moon. She was sure she would recognize him, even in his human form. Under the heat of the Sun, she walked. It was not too long before she began to feel hunger, and fatigue: things she was not familiar with, things ethereals did not feel. She did not know what to do about such sensations, and so she pressed on with her search. Wandering, wandering, traversing the land around the sea that she once was. She felt a certain emptiness looking at the wide expanse of blue that used to contain her spirit. But she was glad that when she became human it did not disappear. The sea had been her body; now she had a new one. Her spirit was constant.

The day wore on and the Sun began to set giving way to darkness. Moon appeared in the sky. She looked up at him and tried to talk to him, but there was no response. Frustrated she tried talking to Trees, Stone, Waves, Froth, but there was no response. Becoming human had severed her ties with the ethereals. She could not hear them; they could not hear her. She felt alone. So alone. Where was Moon? She felt something wet touch her face. She tasted salt in her mouth. What was this?

She was crying.

She kept wandering and wandering, repeating the same cycle of crying out at night, no longer aware of the direction she was headed. She hadn't eaten or had anything to drink. All she was surviving on was sleep and her desire to see Moon. She did not know that she was heading back to the direction of Kanakiri's home. A short distance from his home, she was overcome with fatigue.

She awoke in his house once again. He smiled at her and handed her a bowl of broth. She did not know what to do with it. Puzzled, Kanakiri made a gesture of putting an imaginary bowl up to his mouth and drinking it. Sea followed slowly. The broth was hot and good, and she soon finished it. So this is what it was to be human. She thought they were completely free, but they were prisoner to their bodily sensations. This feeling, hunger, she noted carefully, was one such captor.

For the next few days she was too weak to move around. Kanakiri nursed her back to health, feeding her, giving her medicinal supplements. Sea began to lower her defenses. This human was not too bad. They began to talk. Kanakiri told him of the world of humans, things like money, and markets, and of his trade, blacksmithing. Sea told him stories of the ethereals, how Rain danced beautifully, how the Wind was such a gossip. Kanakiri laughed and told her she knew such wonderful myths. Myths? But these things were real, it was what she knew from having lived in this world. But she did not blame him, he was only human.

When she had regained enough strength, Kanakiri asked her to be his wife. She did not know what to say. Her heart ached, as if deep inside her chest a hole had grown and she was being swallowed inwards. Moon. She longed for him. Her eyes refused to shed any more tears, her voice could no longer call out to him. Maybe it had all been a mistake. Becoming human was a mistake. But it was the price she had to pay for defying Fate. For rebelling against Nature.

That night she went to the shore and stood there feeling the waves crash against her feet. The water was cold. This was her old body greeting her new one. She gazed at the moon. It was full tonight.

"I am sorry. If only I hadn't desired too much maybe now…maybe…

I will always be pulled towards you. And you to me. This lifetime has been cruel to us. But I will meet you one day. For now I will surrender myself to this human, this Kanakiri. He is kind. He has taken care of me during these trying times. Please forgive me, for allowing myself to be tethered to this man. But if I am to be tied to a human, at least it is to this one."

Kanakiri watched her from a distance. He was surprised when he awoke to find her gone. But she was just there, standing on the shore. He was completely enamored by her. Although in his heart he felt as though it was only a hope against all hopes that he carried, he still wished for her to be with him.

Her back was to him, and it was mostly her long hair that he saw. The moon seemed to shine only at her then, a thin straight ray of light illuminating her beautiful figure. Soft waves were crashing on the shore, stopping at her feet. Delicate concaves fading into sand. It was a sight that struck him to the very core of his being, a sight that ignited his artisan's spirit. He went back inside the house to await her return.

He had fallen asleep and sunlight was already streaming inside the house when he awoke. Sea was beside him, a gentle look in her eyes.

"Yes, I will be your wife."

Kanakiri created the Tsuki and Umi swords because of the sight he saw that night. Sea's lone figure illuminated by the moonlight, standing in front of the sea. Tsuki, straight and fine like the ray of light shone by the moon, and Umi, a shorter straight sword etched with a pattern of small waves on the blade."

"Wait mom. As far as I remember, Umi is a curved sword."

"That sword wasn't always curved Raiha.

Sea and Kanakiri lived a pleasant life. But Kanakiri always felt like his wife was restless. Like she had lost something and couldn't rest until she found it. Sea bore him two children, a boy and a girl. She enjoyed being a mother. Giving life to another was one thing she appreciated about being human. Although there was nothing to complain about her home life, she never fully felt right in her human form. She knew there was a time limit. Humans were not like ethereals in that they existed indefinitely. Even Trees that were cut would make way for new Trees, and the former spirits of the cut Trees would inhabit the new ones. Humans, she thought, were not like that. She did not know where their spirits went when they died. But an instinct told her they did not keep recycling through other humans born after their death.

This body was only one she would be passing in, not staying in forever. Years passed, and she felt that soon she would bid goodbye to her human body. Kanakiri was distraught when she began to deteriorate. He called in doctors, medicinal men, but to no avail. She was dying. He felt it unfair, that she would leave this world before him. She had come so suddenly, and now would be leaving him as abruptly.

This man, Kanakiri. He was a good man. Sea thought lying on her deathbed. Her children thought she was just sick temporarily, that she would soon get better. She regretted that she would be leaving them so soon. But she had no control over her body, its limitations. Kanakiri was sitting beside her, head buried in his hands.

"Are you sad, Kanakiri? Do not be. My body may die, but my spirit will never disappear. It is how I am made."

The man lifted his head and stared at his wife. He loved this woman. He knew almost nothing about her past save what she told him, but all she told him were myths. He held her hand in his own and squeezed it softly.

"I have been unfair to you, keeping secrets from you throughout all these years. But do not worry; it is not of your concern. There is something I am searching for, someone."

"Kanakiri… I am hoping that as I say goodbye to this lifetime, I might meet him in the next. One day, I will come back into this world, once again as a human, born in the line of the family formed from the two of us. I trust that when that time comes, I will finally be able to meet him.

Thank you, Kanakiri. Thank you for taking in a stranger like me, making me your wife and mother of your children. I have lived in this world long enough to know, that humans like you, are not as common the world would like. May the ethereals bless you. "

Sea closed her eyes and Kanakiri felt the hand on his lose life. His wife was dead.

He buried her with the two swords he had made. Seeing them conjured up memories he would rather not recall, at least not for a while.

The years passed. Kanakiri grew well into old age until it was time for him to bid goodbye to the world. Before he died he asked to be buried with his wife."

….

"Hello? Mom?"

"Oh sorry, where was I? …They dug up her grave, in order to place him inside. Upon uncovering Sea's body, they saw that one sword had curved inwards, that was Umi. They lifted the swords out of the burial area, and suddenly a voice began to resound. Sea, it was her.

"Kanakiri. And so the time has come for you to leave the world. Til death you are loyal, wanting to be buried with me. But you are more fortunate than I. For though your body must remain here, stuck, your spirit will freely find its true destination.

I have been confined here, unable to find a new body, unable to continue my wandering. The human body I once had is now nothing but more dust and bones and I have nowhere to go, save these swords your father has crafted. My children…. I implore you. Take these swords and keep them in your possession. These swords will protect you. Never let them out of your possession for they are the spirit of your mother. You are the trunk that will soon bring forth branches, but what is a tree without its roots? My spirit will linger in this family, in these swords. The tree shall grow where its roots are planted."

"Those swords are physically bound to everyone born of the Kanakiri bloodline. You, your father, your brothers. You are the branches and those are your roots. Those swords are important because they are almost like…part of your life source. A fragment of your spirit. Do you remember that day, when you snuck in the sword room? Do you remember how you felt?"

She remembered. When her fingers brushed against Umi, she was filled with a warmth she had never known. A burst of energy, of life. It was as if she wasn't fully complete, and she had finally found a part of her she never knew was missing. Like she hadn't noticed she was thirsty until the water was running coolly down her throat.

"Raiha….

Do you remember, that day when Umi was stolen? How weak you felt?"

"Yes."

"Raiha, the loss of that sword could mean physical repercussions on our family. I'm not sure how you're feeling right now, but…. your father and your brothers… are not doing so well."

"What do you mean? They were much better off than me when it was first stolen."

"You have its pair with you. And perhaps…perhaps it is because you are near the sword now? Perhaps, you are closer than you think. But I am sure it is not near us now."

Her mother"s voice had gone weaker as it explained the circumstances. So…their lives depended on these swords? And she, she was tasked to recover them? If her family was suffering maybe she should return the other sword? No. The swords needed to be together. She needed to act fast.

'You should have told me sooner."

"We know you. We didn't have to tell you to make sure you were going to do the best you could. Raiha. We're counting on you."

Raiha took a deep breath after she finished relaying her mother's words to the two. It all seemed too much like a fantasy, but she had felt it: that near gut wrenching feeling of her energy being sapped away. She looked at the two in front of her. Gon was looking at her in a concerned way, brows knotted.

Killua's gaze held hers and quietly he said, "We'll find that sword. You have me and Gon." The two friends looked at each other, smiled, before giving Raiha the thumbs up sign.

She couldn't argue with their optimism. She smiled at them both before saying, "We're going to eat a lot tonight! My treat!" which was met with loud cheers. She was still worried to be honest, but, with these two, maybe things weren't so bad.