I'm not too sure about this chapter since I think it moves too fast, but that's just me. Hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara or Tales of the Abyss or their characters
Chapter 10: Gone Astray
"I-Ikuto?" Amu cried in shock as she immediately got off the blue cat's lap.
Ikuto smirked as Yoru slumped himself over his shoulder. "Yo, nya!"
"Where have you been all day? I wanted to talk to you." Ikuto said in a whining tone.
Amu felt her eye twitch in annoyance. "Yeah? About what?"
Ikuto got up off the bed and strode over to Amu before he spun her around and wrapped his long arms around her waist.
"Do I really need a reason to just come over to see you?" Ikuto said coolly into her ear, sending shivers down her spine.
Amu was left dazed for a second before blushing hard the next.
Ikuto smirked at her reaction before Amu quickly squirmed out of his grasp and glared at him while blushing heavily.
"Keep that up and I'm kicking you out the window!" Amu said a blush still evident on her face.
Ikuto shrugged before laying down back on her bed and propped his head up on his arm, getting into a relaxing position. "So cold, as usual."
Amu turned her back on him while folding her arms stubbornly. "W-What did you come here for, really?"
"I was worried about you. After I saw that light from your attack, I figured you were fighting with that Hiroto guy." Ikuto said causing Amu to flinch slightly.
She heard him let out a sigh behind her. "I never expected such a twisted person to turn out to be the Kiddy King hiding underneath that beak."
Amu froze as her eyes started trembling while staring straight ahead, her back still facing Ikuto.
Ikuto took her reaction as a hint that she already knew this and went on. "Kiddy King was right here in Easter and I had no idea. I didn't even recognize him; he was an entirely different person."
The air in the room seemed to have tensed as Amu clenched and unclenched her fists nervously, unsure of what to say.
"It all makes sense as to why they waited six months to send him out. He probably needed two months to recover and four months to train. Considering how harsh and strict my dear 'father' is, I'm not surprised how fast the kiddy king was able to learn how to fight like that." Ikuto said thoughtfully.
"You're talking like Tadase-kun fought us on purpose! He lost his memory!" Amu said turning around to face Ikuto. "He didn't know friend from foe; he was just lost. We have no idea how alone he must have felt. And you're talking like he joined Easter willingly!"
Ikuto stared at her for a moment before letting out a sigh and laid down on his back, putting his arms behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling.
"Look, I'm not saying that the kiddy king is the bad guy here, I was just surprised, that's all." Ikuto said as Amu looked down at the floor.
"So… Where were you? You seemed pretty happy when you came back." Ikuto smirked, changing the subject off something touchy.
"T-That's none of your business!" Amu said stubbornly, blushing slightly.
Ikuto chuckled slightly. "Go on a date or something?"
Amu's face went bright red before glaring at him. "S-Shut up!"
"Ah, so you did," Ikuto mused. "But with whom I wonder…"
Ikuto reached out and pulled Amu towards him, having her sit on his lap again. (*groan* I'm sorry, I'm not enjoying this part either)
"W-What are you doing, you idiot?" Amu cried, aware of how warm her face was becoming.
"I was just thinking that we haven't been on a date in a while…" Ikuto purred in her ear causing Amu's heart to pound in her chest.
Amu's charas and Yoru watched the two with anticipation while hovering above them.
Ikuto grinned before letting her go and walked back over to the screen door.
"Well, I gotta go. Ja ne, Amu." Ikuto said in a low, husky voice as he stepped out the door.
Before he left, he turned back towards her, his blue bangs gently blowing to the breeze.
"Don't worry too much about the Kiddy King. He'll come around eventually."
Amu widened her eyes in surprise as Ikuto waved and jumped off the balcony onto the nearby catwalk.
Amu held her hand to her chest, still feeling her heart beating rapidly.
'Right, he'll come around eventually.'
Tadase blinked a couple of times, his vision still a little hazy from sleep.
It was early the next morning and Tadase was back in the old planetarium, where he had just woken up.
"…" Tadase stared blankly at the strange new egg in his hands.
Tadase rubbed his eyes with his hand, trying to make sure he wasn't seeing things but the small egg was still there.
"What in the… A Guardian egg?" Tadase said, still half asleep.
The egg was all white except for the middle which had a gold circle with little orange circles surrounding it.
He ran a hand through his hair before placing it on the ground beside him and settled back down to sleep. "I'll deal with it later…"
Sync floated over to the egg and examined it with suspicious green eyes.
He narrowed his eyes before glancing over at Tadase, who had fallen back to sleep.
"Looks like my usefulness has come to an end…"
A few hours later, Tadase had woken up again and was surprised to find a change of clothes on one of the planetarium seats. He realized it must have been the strange man he met when he first arrived at the planetarium.
He was left with a white collared shirt and black pants. He was also given a pair of white shoes though Tadase saw the wardrobe as a poor taste in colors.
Tadase quickly changed into the new clothes considering he hated wearing the uniform before glancing back at the newly found egg that was still lying on the ground where he left it.
Tadase debated on what to do with it for a moment before picking it up and stuffing it in his pocket and walked out of the planetarium with Sync following slowly behind him.
He was still tired and was walking along a path while constantly rubbing his eyes sleepily.
Sync sweatdropped, seeing that Tadase looked like he was going to drop back to sleep any moment.
"Ugh… Why am I so tired today…?" Tadase mumbled irritably before letting out a tired yawn.
Sync looked at him warily before turning his gaze in front of him with many thoughts running through his head.
Tadase had a new unborn chara that could hatch at any time and he seemed to be getting along better with this Amu Hinamori, making Sync unnecessary.
The thought bugged him and didn't seem like it was going to get any better when Sync realized that Tadase was headed in the direction of Amu's house.
Sync frowned. He and Tadase hadn't done a Character Change or a Transformation in days and Sync felt like there was just no more use for him to be with him.
Tadase arrived at Amu's house a little while before climbing into the tree next to her house and jumped onto her balcony, leading to her room.
He quietly opened up the screen door to find that Amu wasn't around. He let out a small sigh before letting himself in and felt exhaustion hit him again.
Tadase put a hand to his head as the room started spinning slightly.
"Ugh…"
Amu's eye started twitching as her charas just stared blankly once they entered their room.
They had only left the room to eat lunch and had come back to find Tadase lying on the floor next to her bed fast asleep. Sync was sitting on Tadase's stomach, rising up and down with his breathing.
"First Ikuto, now this…" Amu said bleakly though on the inside she was relieved to be able to see him more often now.
"He sure has made himself at home." Miki said sweatdropping as Amu let out an exasperated sigh.
"He still hasn't regained all of his energy from the last battle." Sync said, staring at Amu intently through narrowed eyes.
Amu looked at him questionably as Sync continued.
"He put too much stress on his body by using so many attacks. It will take a while before he's at full strength again."
Amu stared at Sync suspiciously. Chara Transformations drain the user's energy if they transform with a chara that isn't their own, like Dia and Utau.
Amu narrowed her eyes at the green-haired chara. "Just… Just who's chara are you really?"
Sync said nothing as Amu took a step forward.
"You're not Tadase-kun's would-be self. Where is Kiseki?" Amu demanded.
Amu's Charas glanced uneasily from Amu and Sync as the air in the room suddenly tensed.
Sync looked at her with such a cold glare; it would probably freeze a volcano.
"Kiseki is gone, along with this "Tadase" person. If he can't remember who he is, he can't remember his "dream" and what good is a chara of a forgotten dream?" Sync spat as he flew over to the sliding door and opened it, the warm summer wind blowing at Sync's spiky hair.
"I wasn't born a would-be self. I was never even supposed to be born. I'm basically just trash." Sync said bitterly.
"What are you talking about? Don't call yourself that!" Miki said as Sync scoffed at her.
"That's what I am! A created chara like myself that doesn't have any more use is nothing more than garbage."
"Don't say that! You're still a living being, just like the rest of us!" Ran cried.
"I'm not interested in the naïve babbling of charas who still have someone who needs them!" Sync shot back.
"Please, Sync-san! We all still have people who need us. Tadase-san still needs you." Su said floating over to Sync and extending a hand of friendship to him.
Sync narrowed his eyes, knowing he had a Guardian egg before slapping her hand away roughly. "No he doesn't. And don't talk like you and I are the same either, because we're not.
"I'm only here so Easter can use me. Other than that, this world has no use for rejects like ourselves." Sync said gravely, referring to him and Tadase.
With that, Sync flew out of the room and disappeared into the distance, leaving Tadase behind.
Amu and her charas watched sadly as Sync disappeared, shocked by his resolution. Sync and Tadase's way of thinking were very similar and thought that that could be Easter's doing as well. Amu had never thought much about Sync before since he was quiet most of the time, unlike the loud-mouthed Kiseki. But there was something about the spiky-haired chara that seemed a little off. He didn't give off the feeling of an x-egg or that of a normal chara. He feels no connection to Tadase or the world he's living in. Amu just couldn't understand what he meant by him not being born. Was it possible that he was artificially created…? Was that even possible?
Amu glanced down at the sleeping Tadase and was surprised to see such a peaceful look on his face. In this state, he looked like his normal self. No bitterness, no mockery, no pain… Just peaceful.
She kneeled down beside him and unconsciously reached out and touched the side of Tadase's face.
Amu caressed his cheek while lazily stroking it with her thumb. Amu blushed at her bold action but found herself enjoying it.
'If only I could help him regain his memories…' Amu thought to herself when Tadase suddenly winced.
Everything was shrouded in the god-forsaken fog again and the air was chilly as ice.
The darkness was muffling everything. The air, the sounds, the images…
But unlike last time, the images were slightly more visible, making it somewhat easier to see though the fog still made it hard to see exactly what was going on.
Within the fog and darkness, there was a figure walking along, seemingly to be a girl.
Around the girl were three other figures, though the fog and darkness prevented any depiction of what or who they were.
Then, there was that horrible shrilling noise again; screeching of tires echoed and the flashing lights flashed the outline of the person once again.
The sound of a heartbeat beating rapidly echoed everywhere as the sound of honking followed before covering the whole line of vision with light.
A sickening crash followed and blood splattered onto the ground…
Before Amu could react, something grabbed her wrist and she was suddenly flipped onto her back onto the floor. She opened her eyes to find a hand hovering just above a vital point on her neck.
She glanced up to see Tadase's eyes wide with terror as he was panting in quick, shallow breaths.
"T-Tadase-kun?" Amu said apparently snapping Tadase out of his trance as he looked around bewilderedly.
Tadase quickly got off her as his body started trembling uncontrollably. Sweat beaded his forehead and his eyes were still wide with a horror-stricken look to them.
Amu didn't understand it as she slowly got up as Tadase looked down at his trembling hands before bringing them to his face.
"No… No… NO!" Tadase cried as he fell to his knees while clutching his head as if trying to keep his head together.
"Tadase-kun!" Ran, Miki, and Su cried in concern as Amu rushed over to him and placed her hands on his shoulders.
The dream was different this time, but still the same as well as the reaction. There was just something about the dream that Tadase didn't want to see. He didn't know what it was, but he had a feeling it was something terrible. He wasn't ready to know what it was.
"Tadase-kun, what's wrong? Speak to me!" Amu pleaded while shaking his shoulders, though Tadase continued trembling uncontrollably.
"What's wrong with him, desu?" Su asked worriedly.
"It looks like he's frightened by something. A nightmare maybe?" Miki pondered.
Amu's eyes trembled, never seeing Tadase look so frightened before. It hurt her not knowing how to help him.
"Make it stop…" Tadase whimpered. "I don't… I don't want…"
Amu wrapped her arms around his trembling shoulders, pressing him comfortingly to her.
"It's all right. Calm down. Nothing's happening." Amu said soothingly, trying her best to calm him down as Tadase gritted his teeth.
In a sudden movement, Tadase brought his arms to Amu's back, pressing himself closer.
Amu's eyes softened as she laid her head against his while stroking his back soothingly.
She could feel his heartbeat increase and hugged him tighter, trying to calm him down. She didn't understand what was causing him to be so frightened but wanted to assure him that everything would be all right.
After a while, Tadase had stopped trembling and his breathing had evened out again. Whatever made him anxious had passed and Amu was relieved, feeling him finally relax.
Tadase took several deep breaths as he leaned his head against Amu's shoulder, feeling her comfort. He didn't need pity, but he did need reassurance.
Somehow, being with Amu made him feel rest assured that he'll be fine and that he'll find the answers to his questions. It puzzled him, but he hoped that feeling wasn't wrong. He wanted to know who he was. He wanted to know if he did know Amu before he lost his memory. He wanted to know if he'll ever get his memories back. So far, he still has regained nothing.
Tadase let his arms drop to his sides and slowly looked up at Amu, his eyes seemingly softened to its original light shade of ruby.
"A-Are you all right?" Amu asked as Tadase looked to the side.
Amu frowned at his silence but also took it that whatever happened, he didn't want to talk about it.
Tadase noticed her frown and narrowed his eyes at her before reaching out and grabbed hold of Amu's cheeks and lightly pulled them, stretching out her face.
"H-Hey! Ow!"
"Stop worrying about me and stop making that face. A smile suits you better." Tadase said with a slightly frustrated tone.
Ignoring his tone of voice and expression, Amu's eyes trembled with emotion after hearing his words. Though they weren't expressed in the most kindest fashion, they still had a caring and compassionate meaning behind them.
"Ow! Cud id oud!" Amu cried while struggling against Tadase's grip.
Tadase stared at her blankly for a moment before letting out a snort as a strange expression came over his face. His mouth formed a squiggle as his eye started twitching.
Ran, Miki, and Su floated up to him curiously as Amu looked at Tadase puzzled.
"Whawts da madder?" Amu said, her mouth still stretched out.
Tadase's pupils shrank as his whole face started twitching.
Suddenly, he let out another snort before letting go of Amu's face and slapped a hand over his face and broke down laughing.
Amu stared at the laughing Tadase in shock. Tadase was laughing.
Tadase couldn't believe it either as he doubled over laughing. He couldn't remember the last time he's ever laughed, definitely not during the six months of training under Easter.
"Make it stop! *Laughing* Make it stop!" Tadase cried clutching his stomach with one hand and pounding the floor with his other hand.
Amu let out a snort before joining Tadase in laughter.
Her charas smiled at the scene, after six months, Tadase was finally able to laugh and smile.
Tadase finally calmed down and was panting, exhausted from his laughing fit as he was lying on his back on the floor again.
He placed the back of his hand over his eyes before letting out a sigh. "I just don't understand you sometimes."
"Eh?" Amu said puzzled still chuckling slightly.
Tadase grinned softly. "I never thought it would be possible for me to smile and even less laugh. But somehow, you're the only one who was able to make that possible for me."
Amu's eyes trembled in emotion, a light pink blush appearing on her cheeks as Tadase let his hand fall to his side and stared up at the ceiling. "Being with you… It's both familiar yet unfamiliar. I don't know what it means, but…"
Tadase stopped and quickly sat up before rubbing the back of his head. "Ah, never mind. I was just thinking out loud.
"I'm going to go get more sleep."
"What? You've been sleeping all morning. Aren't you hungry?" Amu asked in concern as Tadase came over to her and flicked her on the forehead again.
"I told you to stop worrying about me, stupid girl." Tadase said as Amu glared at him.
"Besides, I'm more tired than anything else. I'll just come back when I get hungry." Tadase said rubbing the side of his head.
Amu twitched angrily having him calling her a stupid girl again, which seemed to be routine now. 'That attitude of his really ticks me off sometimes…'
"See ya." Tadase waved while giving Amu a mock smile as he prepared himself to jump.
"Wait!" Amu cried, causing Tadase to slip and fell on his face on the bar.
"What the hell? !" Tadase shouted, his nose bleeding from landing on the bar.
"Uh, I'm sorry!" Amu said apologetically as Su brought Tadase a tissue.
Amu hesitantly reached out and gently took his hand into hers, earning her a questioning look from Tadase.
She blushed slightly as she glanced down at the floor. "Can you stay a little longer?"
Tadase raised his eyebrows at her, slightly surprised by her question. He let out a sigh and looked over to the side stubbornly. "Fine…"
Amu was afraid that if he were to leave he wouldn't come back again. And if it had to happen again, she wanted to spend more time with him.
After a while of small talk, Tadase had fallen asleep again and was sleeping soundly next to Amu's bed on the floor again. Amu had given him a few pillows so he could be a little more comfortable.
Through out the whole conversation, Tadase hadn't once asked about Sync. It seemed as if he wasn't too concerned about him, which Amu thought was a little peculiar. It was as if that he didn't care whether Sync was with him or not.
"Amu-chan, we should leave Tadase-san to sleep a little bit." Su said.
Amu nodded and glanced back over at Tadase, seeing his mouth opening and closing, snoring softly.
She smiled softly before closing the door behind her to give him some peace and quiet.
Once the door clicked shut, Sync suddenly flew back into the room. He glanced down to find Tadase sleeping, causing him to frown.
He floated over next to him as an evil grin crossed his features.
"You're nothing. You're nothing without Easter. You've outlived your purpose. You were abandoned once, you'll be abandoned again." Sync whispered in Tadase's ear, causing Tadase's eyes to tremble as if he were having another nightmare.
Sync smirked at his work before flying out of the room and into the hallway. When he left, Dia peaked out of her egg, watching him with worried eyes.
Sync peered around the corner to see Amu sitting on the couch with her mother apparently watching tv while her little sister was posing as her father took several pictures of her.
Sync spotted Amu's charas hovering around her and narrowed his eyes. He went back around the corner and put a hand to his chin, pondering on what he should do.
An evil grin appeared on his face as he boldly flew out from around the corner and waved to Amu's charas with a fake, happy smile.
Amu spotted him immediately and was surprised to see him back… and smiling.
"What is he doing back here?" Ran asked as Su shook her head.
"Maybe we should find out what he wants." Miki suggested as Sync flew back down the hall towards Amu's room.
The three of them followed him as Amu wondered what Sync could want.
Sync flew into Amu's room as Ran, Miki, and Su followed. When they entered, Sync was no where to be seen.
"Didn't he fly in here?" Su said nervously.
"I could have sworn he did." Ran said looking around puzzled.
"Got you!"
The three of them glanced up to see a net suddenly come down on them, trapping them.
Amu heard her charas let out a cry for help, causing Amu to immediately stand up from her seat.
"Ah, uh, I need to go check on something real quick. I'll be right back." Amu said as she raced up to her room.
"Ran? Miki? Su?" Amu called as she quickly threw open the door. But all she found was an empty room. She glanced over to find that Tadase was also missing and that the screen door was hanging wide open.
"Where did…?"
"Amu-chan!"
Amu looked up to see Dia's egg fly over to her and hatched open.
"Dia? What happened? Where are the others?" Amu asked urgently as Dia looked at her sadly.
"Sync took them and flew off!" Dia said as Amu's eyes widened in shock.
'Why would he…? Tadase wouldn't have…' Amu didn't know what to think, but what really mattered right now was to find her missing charas.
Dia closed her eyes. "I can feel their presences…"
She pointed out the window. "They're that way."
Amu nodded before running out the door, saying she had to go get something at one of the stores.
Dia led her up and down some streets, saying that she could feel them getting closer. She then led Amu to the school's field.
The sky was starting to turn orange and red and the sun was starting to get lower towards the horizon.
Amu ran as fast as she could to keep up with Dia and to hurry to find her other charas.
'What's going on…? Please let them be okay.' Amu thought to herself while picking up the pace.
"Let us go, Sync!" Ran demanded as Sync looked away.
"I don't take orders from the likes of you."
Ran, Miki, and Su struggled to wriggle their way out of the net but to no avail as Sync just pulled on it to make it tighter.
"Why you… Why are you doing this?" Miki demanded as Sync glanced over at her before floating over to her.
He brought his face close to hers which was sticking out of the net and smirked. Sync placed his finger on Miki's chin and slowly slid his finger up, tilting Miki's head up.
Miki was dazed for a second as Sync smirked again before Miki got her bearings and glared at him while blushing furiously.
"Y-You jerk!" Miki shouted as Sync scoffed.
"Leave her alone, Sync!" Ran shouted.
"Guys!"
Ran, Miki, and Su glanced over to see a pink-haired figure rushing towards them.
"Amu-chan!" they all cried in relief as Sync narrowed his eyes at her before glancing up towards one of the light poles, where a shadowed figure stood.
The figure brought his arm over his head and snapped his fingers.
"There they are!" Dia said as Amu nodded.
When Amu was within a few yards of them, the field lights suddenly flashed on, blinding Amu with a burst of light.
Amu shielded her eyes while trying to see what was going on around her but it was no use.
"Ran! Miki! Su!" Amu called unable to see through the piercing light.
"Amu-chan! Look out!" Ran cried as Amu squinted and saw something heading towards her.
Acting on impulse, Amu immediately darted out of the way as the ground exploded where she last stood. Amu hit the ground hard and glanced over to find a crater where she was standing.
"It's about time you came."
Amu froze at the voice and slowly looked up over the lights to see a figure standing on top of one of the light posts, his jet-black hair blowing softly to the summer breeze.
"No… Tadase-kun…?" Amu said slowly seeing that accursed beak mask back over his face, which still had the crack down the middle but was glued back together.
He was wearing a black turtleneck with a white vested shirt that opened up in the back and went down past his knees. The white vest had green markings along the collar and the lining. He wore black pants that opened on the sides and black boots. He also had on black gloves that had black and white cuffs. His hair was black once again with none of his blond hair showing and his mouth formed a firm line underneath his mask.
In a flash of movement, Tadase disappeared and reappeared right in front of Amu causing her to flinch and back away in fear and disbelief.
He narrowed his eyes from under his mask and spoke in a dark voice, "You may have ruined things for Easter once, but I'm here to make sure that doesn't happen again."
Amu widened her eyes in horror as they started trembling. It was like Tadase had forgotten everything they've been through. All the progress they made, everything.
Tadase's hand shot up and grabbed hold of Amu's neck causing her to gasp in shock. He slowly closed his fingers around her throat as Amu desperately tried to pull his hand off.
"Please… Tadase-kun… Stop…" Amu muttered softly as a tear streaked down her cheek.
Tadase didn't respond as he wound his other fist back, which started glowing with green light.
Amu couldn't understand. She thought she and Tadase had come to an understanding and were getting closer.
"Amu!"
Tadase suddenly released Amu before jumping away as a powerful force hit the spot where he once stood.
Amu stumbled a few steps back while coughing and rubbed her sore neck. She glanced up and was surprised to see Black Lynx land in front of her.
"Ikuto?" Amu said in surprise as Ikuto glanced back at her.
"Are you okay?"
Amu nodded her head slowly as Ikuto turned his gaze back on Tadase.
"Just what do you think you're doing?" Ikuto said harshly while narrowing his eyes.
Tadase didn't respond as he slowly lifted his gloved hand to his face and removed his mask, revealing dark red eyes. There was no anger, no regret, no anything. There was no emotion as if he were empty.
"My orders are clear. I am to make sure you Guardians know your place." Tadase said in an almost robotic voice.
Ikuto narrowed his eyes as Tadase brought his fists up in a fighting stance.
The two stared hard at each other for a moment before sprinting towards each other the next.
"Slash Claw!" Ikuto shouted as he thrusted his arm forward at Tadase.
Tadase jumped out of the way and brought down his foot down on Ikuto for a powerful kick.
Ikuto brought his claw up to successfully block the attack, wishing he had another claw to attack with. (Haha)
Tadase pushed off Ikuto's arm and sent a powerful blast of wind at him. Ikuto leapt high into the air and came down on Tadase with a powerful Slash Claw.
"I have no business with you. But if you insist on getting in my way, then so be it." Tadase said as his fist started glowing with a bright light and raised it above his head.
Amu widened her eyes in horror, recognizing the light of that attack. "Ikuto, get out of there!"
"Too late!" Tadase said as he slammed his palm down on the ground. "Akashic Torment!"
With that, a giant whirlwind blast erupted from the ground, sending Ikuto hurtling across the field and crashed hard into the ground soon after.
"Ikuto!" Amu cried as she rushed to the injured cat's side. "Ikuto!"
Ikuto broke out of chara nari as Yoru fell to the ground while wincing in pain.
"Ugh…" Ikuto groaned as he struggled to sit up.
Tadase was walking over towards him as Amu got in front of Ikuto and spread out her arms defensively. Tadase stopped and looked at her with disinterest.
"Tadase-kun! Please stop! Why are you doing this?" Amu demanded, her voice cracking with emotion.
Tadase didn't reply as he came forward and drove his fist into Amu's stomach, knocking the wind out of her.
"AMU-CHAN!" Amu's chara cried as Ikuto widened his eyes in complete shock.
Amu couldn't breathe as everything around her started spinning, her eyes wide with shock as they started trembling.
Amu felt her body give though Tadase was still holding her up with his arm. He leaned down to her ear and whispered, "Stay out of Easter's way, little girl."
"T-Ta… dase- ku…" Amu could only mutter before Tadase allowed her to collaps onto the ground unconscious.
Darkness lay everywhere as Amu seemed to glow with blue light, the only thing that was illuminating within the darkness.
Everything seemed hazy and Amu couldn't see anything through the darkness.
"Is… Anyone there?" Amu called but there was no answer, except for a cold breeze that swept past her causing a shiver to run down her spine.
Footsteps could be heard in the distance as Amu whirled around to see another figure walking towards her.
Her eyes started trembling when she realized it was Tadase, the old Tadase. He was also glowing with a blue light that illuminated the darkness. He wore the same kind smile that he always had before the accident and extended a gentle hand towards her.
Amu reached out towards him with her own hand but was suddenly held back as someone took hold of her other hand.
Amu looked over her shoulder to see a darkened figure grasping her other hand, preventing her from getting any closer. The only thing that was visible was his glowing, dark red eyes that pierced through the darkness.
Amu let out a gasp and tried to get out of the shadow figure's grasp but to an avail. The shadow figure tightened his grip on Amu's wrist causing her to squeak in pain.
"Tadase-kun!" Amu cried for help as she looked back over at Tadase and reached out towards him, but was held back by the shadow figure.
She widened her eyes as they started trembling to see that Tadase had turned his back to her and was walking away.
"Tadase-kun!" Amu cried again desperately but Tadase continued on, not looking back or even hesitating.
Amu slowly allowed her hand to fall back to her side as she stared after him with a mixture of confusion and hurt.
"He's gone. He's abandoned you."
Amu froze as she slowly looked over at the shadow figure who suddenly revealed himself to be Tadase as well. Her eyes widened in horror as Tadase grinned evilly.
"Tadase is never coming back. He was manipulating you into believing he was turning back to normal. He is fully loyal to Easter." Tadase said darkly, his red eyes glinting in the darkness.
Amu stared at him in disbelief before wrenching her hand out of his grip and took a few steps back. She couldn't believe that Tadase wasn't coming back and shook her head slowly.
"No… You're lying!" Amu cried as Shadow Tadase placed a hand on his hip and smirked amusingly.
"You mean nothing to him. You've never meant anything to him."
Amu awoke with a gasp while sitting up in bed with a jolt.
She was breathing heavily as she wrapped her arms around herself to try and steady herself.
"Amu-chan!"
Amu looked over to see Dia hovering close to her with a look of concern on her face.
She let out a sigh and gave Amu a small smile. "I'm glad you're all right."
"How did I…?" Amu started.
"After you passed out, Tadase left but took Ran, Miki, and Su with him," Dia said a bit bitterly. "Ikuto was the one who carried you back to your room. He was still pretty injured but managed to bring you back here. He left after he was sure you were all right."
Amu looked down at her lap. 'Ikuto…'
The memory of Tadase attacking them came back in a rush causing Amu's heart to wrench. She slowly shook her head, not knowing what was happening and why Tadase didn't seem to remember anything that had happened between them.
Somehow, her dream seemed to make sense. All those times when he was smiling… Were they all a lie?
"Why so down? You sick or something?"
Amu's eyes widened at the sound of the voice and whirled around to see Tadase in the doorway to the balcony. He had a curious expression on his face and tilted his head puzzled. His hair was matted down again and wearing the same clothes he had before he left…
Anger and sadness boiled deep down inside Amu's heart as she looked down at the ground while her shoulders started trembling.
Tadase lifted and eyebrow as he slowly walked over to her bedside. "Hey, what's the matter?"
Amu bit down on her lip. "How could you…?"
"Hm?" Tadase said, obviously confused or he was just playing stupid.
Amu glared up at him, tears ready to fall. "Don't act stupid, you traitor!"
Tadase raised his eyebrows in confusion as Amu stood up from her bed abruptly, her eyes trembling in emotion and anger.
"Who do you think you are? Attacking me and having the nerve to come back here, acting like nothing's wrong!" Amu shouted as Tadase narrowed his eyes at her.
"What are you saying? Are you saying that I…" Tadase was cut off when Amu came forward and wound up to punch him.
Amu struck him across the face again, leaving a stunned expression on Tadase's face. He stared to the side with a mixture of confusion and hurt as he slowly brought his hand to his face.
"What…?" Tadase mumbled in complete shock.
Amu glared furiously at him while on the brink of crying, causing him to flinch slightly.
"You idiot! I can't believe I trusted you! Baka! Baka! Baka! Baka!" Amu shouted as tears started streaming down her face.
Tadase's eyes started trembling with emotion before hiding his eyes behind his bangs.
"Amu-chan…" Dia said as Amu violently shook her head.
"I never want to see you again, you low life!" Amu shouted as she attempted to punch him again.
Tadase brought up his hand and caught her fist this time causing a small slapping sound. Amu gasped and looked up at him. Tadase wore an unreadable expression before he suddenly gritted his teeth.
He suddenly pushed her up against the wall and slammed his hands against the wall, trapping Amu in the middle.
Amu widened her eyes in shock as Tadase started trembling as he balled his hands into fists against the wall.
He tried to speak, but couldn't say anything. No words could come out. He couldn't even describe the feeling he was experiencing.
"I can't believe I trusted you!"
"I never want to see you again, you low life!"
Tadase's arms relaxed and slowly pulled away from the wall as they slowly fell to his side.
"I get it." He didn't look at Amu and turned his back to her and walked towards the screen door without a word.
"Ah…" Amu said but clamped her mouth shut as Tadase paused at the doorway.
Tadase looked over at her and gave her such an intense glare; it shot fear through her heart. His eyes were dark red with a mixture of anger and hate.
Amu had never seen such a look from him before, even when he was shouting curses at her before.
"To think I actually trusted you. I'm such a fool." Tadase said darkly, the shine in his eyes already faded away.
Amu widened her eyes in shock. She didn't understand. Why was Tadase…?
Tadase clutched his chest as if in pain while wincing. "When I lost my memories, I had lost everything… Everything except my heart. I don't know what it was, but something prevented me from letting it go. But now… if I knew it would cause me this much pain… I should have just let it die along with everything else!"
Something shot out of Tadase's pocket and up into the air causing both Dia and Amu to flinch.
Amu was struck speechless when she realized it was a Guardian egg. It wasn't Kiseki's egg, which confused Amu, for it had no crown on it. Instead, it was a white egg with a gold sphere on the front, surrounded by eight orange spheres, lined by a blue stripe.
Before Amu could ask about it, the white egg turned completely black and a giant white X appeared over it.
"I am nothing… I have no purpose…" the X-egg chanted as Tadase narrowed his eyes.
"That's right. I am a nobody. I feel nothing in my heart." Tadase said almost inaudibly.
With that, Tadase jumped off the balcony and ran away as fast as he could with the X-egg flying after him.
'To think I allowed myself to become this vulnerable... I'm a fool! An idiotic low life!' Tadase shouted in his head.
After a while of running he came to a stop, trying to catch his breath before falling to his knees, clutching his chest.
"Gah!" Tadase cursed under his breath as he clenched his eyes closed, wincing in pain.
"That stupid girl!
"I am nothing… I have no purpose…" the X-egg said behind him as Tadase writhed in pain.
The X-egg chanted the same thing over and over again as Tadase placed his hands over his ears.
"Silence."
The X-egg flinched before being swatted aside by a hand causing Tadase to glance up.
A tall, dark skinned man with light brown hair that was tied in a ponytail and a beard stood next to him. He wore a business suit and was looking down at him through piercing blue eyes.
"Van… sensei…?" Tadase said in surprise seeing his martial artist teacher here of all places.
Van gave Tadase an encouraging smile before bending down next to him. "That girl… Caused you much pain, didn't she?"
Tadase looked hard at the ground while gritting his teeth and narrowed his eyes dangerously.
Van grinned suspiciously as he placed his hand on Tadase's head and leaned close to his ear.
"Hiroto, forget about that girl. She is nothing but a nuisance. Forget about all the hurtful things she told you, all the lies she told you. Focus on your anger, your hatred for the people who hurt you. Remember all the people who betrayed you, who abandoned you. They all lied to you." Van said as Tadase's eyes narrowed while trembling.
"I'm the only one you can depend on, no one else. Focus only on my voice and obey my commands…" Van said softly as Tadase's eyes glazed over and slowly started closing.
"You are only a tool and that's what you always will be."
To be continued…
Arg! I put quite a few Amuto moments here, boo. Let's just say, I didn't enjoy writing that part very much. =_= Anyways, things got pretty complex in this chapter. I still kind of eh about this chapter, but I hope you all enjoyed it, 'cause that's what really counts. Tell me your thoughts or suggestions, all but flames are appreciated. Please Review! XD