Chapter 12

The restaurant was crowded on a late Friday evening. Families and friends flowed into the building to get a taste of the famous Rei Faun cuisine. Hana raced back and forth from table to table, to the kitchen and back. Kento was taking orders on the other side of the restaurant. He turned his head and saw Hana with plates of food balanced on her arms. Smiling, he thought about why he was there in the first place working. About a week ago, he and Hana went to run an errand for his mother. The two of them walked the busy sidewalk with a list. His mother wanted some things for the restaurant and was too busy to go and get the items herself. Since the incident at the waterfall, Kento made sure he was close to Hana; Ryo and Mia both objected to it, but he wasn't going to listen this time. The bearer of Hardrock kept walking until he noticed that he was walking by himself. He stopped and turned around to see Hana looking through a window. He walked over to her to see what she was staring at. Inside the window was a beautiful silver bangle. It didn't look that special to him, but it somehow grabbed Hana's attention. The young woman noticed his presence and backed away from the display case.

"I'm sorry, Kento. I got distracted," she apologized.

"You like that bracelet?" Kento asked as he looked at her.

Hana simply nodded. "It reminds me of a bracelet my mother used to have." Kento could see the sadness in her eyes at the mention of her late mother. "I'm sorry. We are supposed to get things for your mother. I'm sure she's waiting for us to return."

With that, Hana moved forward, taking Kento's hand in hers as she led the way to the nearest store.

Kento was determined to get that bracelet but in order for him to do so, he had to earn his money. He made his way down the stairs and into the living room where Mama Faun was busy going through restaurant catalogs and jotting item numbers on a pad of paper. "Hey, Mama? Can I talk to you for a moment?" he asked as he entered the living space.

"Of course, Kento," Mama Fuan said as she set aside the catalog she was looking at. "What's on your mind?"

Kento joined her on the couch and looked at his hands that were folded on his lap. His palms started to sweat as his nerves wracked his body; this was going to be the first time he went to his mother for anything girl related. "I was wondering if I could work a couple of shifts to make money. You see, earlier today when Hana and I went shopping for you, she stopped at a store. She was looking at this bracelet and she said that her mother had a bracelet just like the one she saw. I really want to get it for her." There was a long pause afterwards. Just then, Kento felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked to see his mother smiling at him.

"Of course you can work. I'm glad to see that you have found someone you really like," Mama Faun said softly. "I'm assuming she doesn't know how you feel about her."

"I can't tell her anything," Kento said remorsefully.

Mama Faun could see the pain in her son's eyes as he looked at her. "I don't know what is going on exactly, but I'm sure getting her the bracelet will make her very happy. You're a good guy, Kento and I'm very proud of you."

A loud crash brought Kento back to reality. People stopped what they were doing to see what caused the noise. Kento watched with concern as Hana picked herself up from the floor. She looked at the shattered glass before her and started to pick up the pieces with her bare hands. Bus boys hurried to the scene to help. Kento watched as Hana bowed and walked to the back room of the restaurant. Crimson trailed down her arm as she washed the jagged wound. A piece of glass must have made its way into her flesh. She wrapped her injury with a towel and was about to leave when she saw Kento standing before her. Concern was etched on the young man's face as he looked at the now bloody towel.

"Let me see," he said softly. He went for her arm but she pulled back. "Hana, let me see." This time his voice was a little harsh.

"I'm fine, Kento. I just tripped over my own two feet. I was in a hurry to get the plates to the back," Hana explained, but Kento wasn't going to leave her alone until he got his way. Giving up, Hana held out her arm so her friend could see. Kento carefully took the cloth off the wound and saw an edge of glass sticking out. Not saying a single word, he exited the room. A minute later he appeared with a pair of tweezers and a first aid kit. "What are you doing with those?"

"You have glass in your arm. We have to get it out," Kento said. He took hold of her arm and carefully pulled the shard of glass out. Luckily it wasn't a big piece, but it still hurt. He sprayed some stuff that stung so bad that she let out painful yell. Hana watched Kento as he carefully wrapped her arm properly with a bandage. The scene at the waterfall played in her head. The way he looked at her and embraced her on that rock, it was as if a totally different person was there but looked like the crazy friend she once knew. He definitely was changing. Kento smiled at his work and looked at her. "You want to take the rest of the night off?"

Hana shook her head and smiled. "Of course not. Do you see how many people are out there waiting for your family's food? No. I need to finish my shift." Kento didn't say a word but extended his hand out to her. She gladly took it as the two of them headed back to the busy dining hall.

The cold weather was rolling in fast. The once colorful trees were now bare. Christmas was approaching as stores announced their big sales and shoppers hustled from store to store. Kento was walking with Ryo down the sidewalk. Both of them were bundled up with scarves and extra layers under their winter coats. Ryo was never a fan of the cold, so he made sure he was extra warm. Kento stopped at the small shop that had Hana's attention weeks ago. As the two gentlemen entered the shop, they were rewarded with the sensation of warmth. The shop had a little bit of everything, from jewelry to bags and then some.

A petite old lady wearing a light blue dress and a white apron approached them with a smile on her face. "Why, hello there, boys. What can I do for you today?" she asked.

"That bracelet that you have in the window," Kento said as he pointed to the display case.

"What a fine choice. Is it for a special person, if you don't mind me asking?" The old lady winked at Kento before fetching the precious item.

"Yeah… I guess you can say that," Kento said. He could feel his cheeks getting warm.

"Well, I'm sure she'll love this." The lady went to the register and wrapped the item nicely. "The wrapping is on the house."

"Thank you," Kento said as he handed the woman the money that he earned at the restaurant.

"No, thank you and have a Merry Christmas, you two."

After exiting the shop, Ryo looked at his comrade. "What's with the bracelet?" he asked.

"Hana saw this when we were running errands. She said it reminded her of her mother. I wanted to get her something for Christmas," Kento said nonchalantly.

"You like her," Ryo pointed out.

Kento stopped in his tracks and looked at his black-haired friend. "What? What do you mean?" Kento asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Kento, Mia and I both know you have a thing for Hana. It's obvious the way you act towards her," Ryo stated. "And this bracelet is no different."

Kento looked at the bag in his hand. He ran his hand through his dark blue hair. "I can't tell her and I can't do anything about it," he said in a defeated tone. "She's Cye's girl. Even though he totally destroyed her… she still loves him. I can't tell her how I feel. I can only be there for her when she needs someone."

"You really have changed," Ryo said with a warm smile. "The reckless, hard-headed, crazy man that we all knew and loved has grown up."

"What do you mean 'knew'? I'm still here. I still love a good fight, and my head is still hard as a rock," Kento said with a wink. "Don't worry about me, Ryo. I'll be fine."

Ryo placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know you will be. I just know it must be hard for you."

"You have no idea." Kento grinned, but Ryo could see that behind that grin, was someone who really was hurting.

Kurushimi was sitting in her father's chair in his study; a book lay out in front of her. A knock emanated from the big iron door, disturbing her train of thought. She looked up from her readings with an annoyed look on her young face. "Come in," she said. Natsumi emerged from behind the tall door and stood in front of the wooden desk Kurushimi was behind. "So, you got my message."

Natsumi looked around and saw that some of the bookcases looked like they were burnt. On the carpeted floor where she stood, she could see burnt marks in different areas. What happened in this room? She shook her head from her thoughts and looked at the girl in front of her. "Yes, I did," Natsumi said with her hands behind her back. "What is it that you wished to speak to me about?"

The young mistress bookmarked her spot in the book she was reading and closed it. She removed herself from the chair slowly and walked over to her servant. A smile formed on Kurushimi's pink lips. "The time has come for my plans to come into action," she said excitedly. "Your purpose has now come and I need you more than ever."

Natsumi raised an eyebrow at the girl in front of her. "What do you want me to do?"

Clearing her throat, Kurushimi continued to explain. "Christmas is coming up. I'm sure you have plans with Cye and his lackeys, am I right?"

"Yes. We are all having dinner at Mia's house. Why?" Natsumi was getting a funny feeling about what was going to come next.

"I need you to provoke Hana into using some of her powers to the point where she leaves to be alone. I'm sure someone will say something. I need her to be alone so I can go and get her."

"Why are you doing this? Why do you want to hurt people?" Natsumi asked. "I know you don't like Cye or Hana, but can't you just let everything go?"

"No! I will make sure those two pay, and I will get that armor!" Her eyes flashed red as Kurushimi glared at Natsumi. "And if you don't help me, I'll make sure your life will be just as miserable. Now go, and don't you fail me."

Fear ran down Natsumi's spine as she slowly backed away towards the doors. Once she was far away enough, she bolted out of the room and down the dark hallway.

"I smell cookies!" Kento announced as he waltzed into the kitchen that was occupied with Hana and Mia. "Sugar and gingerbread cookies galore!" Drool started to appear at the corners of his mouth as he saw the sugary goodness.

"These are for after dinner," Mia said as she covered the plates with the cookies in tin foil. "You are just going to have to wait."

"Aw, man! That's not fair! Can't I just have one?" Kento whined. Hana shook her head and grabbed his hand with hers. Blood started to rush to his cheeks as he looked down at Hana.

"Come on. Let's go hang with the others while we wait for dinner," she suggested with a smile. Kento couldn't refuse as he was led out of the kitchen and into the living room where everyone but Cye was present. Sage and Rowen returned home for the holidays. Rowen and Ryo were having a heated discussion while Sage was in one of the armchairs reading a book. Natsumi was sitting next to Rowen on the couch minding her own business until she saw Hana. Kurushimi's command was playing inside her head as she sat there motionless. Rowen and Ryo stopped talking when Hana sat between them on the couch. "What's up?"

"We are just talking sports. You seem to be doing okay," Rowen said with a smile. "I'm glad. I like you this way."

Hana blushed and turned to Ryo. "He hasn't seen me in my rebel state, has he?"

"I'm afraid not. Sage hasn't, either," Ryo said. "Let's just hope it doesn't return."

All Hana could do was smile at the comment. She couldn't promise anything because that's how she was. Her rebel state would always remain with her. Sage, who was listening to the conversation, was now looking at Hana from behind his book. Was she the reason why he was getting the strange feelings? His thought was cut off when Mia announced that dinner was now served in the dining room.

Everyone gathered around the long, wooden-polished table with food galore spread on top. A roasted chicken was sitting in front Kento as he licked his lips. One by one everyone grabbed what they wanted. Kento, of course, grabbed both chicken legs and helped himself to all of the side dishes. Laughter erupted when Kento dropped one of his chicken legs and started crying over the fallen food. Hana patted him on the back while Rowen teased him about it. Cye, who was quiet for most of the dinner, started laughing at Kento's expense. The laughter stopped when he saw how Hana and Kento were getting along with one another. Jealousy reared its head from deep within him as he continued to watch the pair. Natsumi followed Cye's gaze and clenched her teeth nervously. This wasn't the only time Cye was noticing Hana. As each day passed, it seemed like he was more interested in her than to Natsumi.

"I'll do the dishes," Hana volunteered. "The faster we get cleaned up, the faster Kento can have the cookies Mia and I baked."

"Yeah! Cookies!" Kento shouted with his arms in the air.

"Cool it, hard rock," Rowen laughed. "Try saving some for the rest of us."

"I agree," Sage smiled. "I would like to taste these cookies, as well."

Kento pouted. "Fine. Each one of you gets two and I get the rest."

"How's that fair?" Ryo chimed in.

The discussion turned into arguing over how many cookies one person was getting. As the guys argued, Hana started removing the dishes from the table and headed into the kitchen. She turned the water on to the point where the temperature was just right and started scrubbing the dirty dishes.

"I see you are doing fine," said a soft voice. Hana stopped what she was doing and turned around to see Natsumi standing behind her. A smug look was on the young girl's face.

"I guess," Hana said as she returned her attention to the dirty glassware. She didn't really want to talk to the girl who stole Cye away from her.

"Cye got a ring for me for Christmas," Natsumi said as she played with the circular object on her finger. "He's such a nice guy. He was always there for me no matter what the situation. I'm like that, too. No matter what, I'm always there for him." Trying the best she could, Hana focused on scrubbing a stain on a plate. "But you, you disappeared, from what I was told. For a year, you were gone and left him behind. You could have never been a perfect girlfriend for Cye."

Something snapped within Hana as the purple aurora surrounded her body. The feeling of rage was too great as she lashed at Natsumi. The brunette dodged the attack just in time as Hana's fist went into the kitchen wall. The plates in the sink rose into the air and surrounded Natsumi. "How dare you…" Hana said as a shadow covered her face. "How dare you even bring that up…" The plates were about to crash into the girl when Cye's voice broke her trance. Glass shattered as it hit the tiled floor.

"Hana! What are you doing?!" Cye demanded as he ran to Natsumi's side.

"Cye… I'm scared," Natsumi said as she buried her face into his chest.

"I can't believe you," Cye said angrily.

"I-I didn't…" Hana stuttered. "I just…" Next thing she knew, she was out of the kitchen and out the door into the cold. The pathway was slick as snow started to stick to the ground. Faster and faster she ran until she couldn't run anymore. She had to get away from the house, away from people. She made a right turn and ended up at her sanctuary. The newly built waterfall was frozen due to the weather. Sitting on one of the big rocks, she pulled her knees to her chin and stared at the ground. Her control slipped and she made a terrible mistake. A sound of a twig snapped behind her. Hana turned her head and saw a young girl standing before her. She was clad in a long black coat, and her long, dark hair was blowing in the wind. "Can I help you?"

The girl tilted her head to the side. "Are you okay?"

Hana sniffed and wiped the moisture from her eyes. "I'm fine. I just had a moment is all." She looked at the girl who was staring at her. "Why are you here? It's too dark and cold out to be out here alone."

A smile formed on the girls lips. "I came here for you, Hana."

Hana's eyes grew wide at the mention of her name. "How do you kno-" Next thing she saw was red eyes and then nothing. Kurushimi caught Hana as she fell off the rock, a triumphant smile on her face.

"Don't worry. I'll take good care you," Kurushimi cooed as she disappeared from the area, taking Hana with her.