Chapter 14 – Cleanup

'…Ugh, where am I?" Alkan said, looking around as his eyes opened. He found himself in a place that was pitch black, which happened to look like nothingness. Looking around once more, he said, "Oh no, I died, didn't I?"

"No, you're not dead Alkan." A voice said to him. Whipping around, Alkan found himself face to face with Cui-Ling. Seeing her Alkan said, "Aw man, I really am dead!"

That's when Cui-Ling went over to him and slapped him on the face shouting, "How many times to I have to tell you: You. Are. Not. Dead!" Alkan looked at her with disbelieving eyes for a second before he said, "If I'm not dead, then how am I talking to you?"

Cui-Ling couldn't help but slap her head and said, "We're in your mind Alkan. I'm talking to you from the crystal." Alkan scratched his head and asked, "Uh, w-what happened? The last thing I remember was using a family spell to turn Ayumi into a regular human being, and things start to get fuzzy from there. Though I do remember there being blood though…"

A sigh came from Cui-Ling and she said, "You almost died due to using way too much energy. It's only thanks to the Spirit Princesses that you're still around, which by the way I'm thankful for."

An 'oh' formed on Alkan's lips as he said, "So that's what happened, though I didn't think it would've been that severe…"

"Ha, you can be such an idiot like Kazuma sometimes. I wonder if it rubbed off on him from you in the first place." Cui-Ling said with a sigh. Alkan laughed and asked, "So do you have any idea where am I right now? Or is it they left me lying on the ground at the foot of Mt. Fuji."

"From what I could tell, you're in the Kannagi mansion lying in a futon. That's all I can say for now, since it appears that you're starting to wake up from your injuries Alkan." Cui-Ling told him. Then she remembered something and said, "Yes, there's one more thing I have to mention Alkan. Due to the huge amount of energy you used, you won't be able to use any of your Jutsushi abilities for a while, maybe for a few weeks at the least. The Spirit Princesses said so…"

Alkan felt it as well and asked, "Ugh, now that's going to be rough, though there's just one more thing. How long was I out for?"

Cui-Ling just smiled at him and said, "Oh, why spoil the surprise? You'll find out eventually…" With that she disappeared, making Alkan shout, "Hey, what do you mean by that?! Get back here Cui-Ling!"

* * *

In one of the rooms of the Kannagi mansion, Alkan groaned as he opened his eyes. Now awake he mumbled, "She's the same as always…" He tried to get up, but found that he was quite sore and made quite the loud groan as he collapsed from the sudden freeze his body made.

Alkan's shout seemed to have attracted some attention and he heard footsteps approaching. When the door flew open, he was surprised to see Ayumi and Ren at the door, and both of them said, "Alkan-san!"

Ren and Ayumi had relieved looks on their faces seeing Alkan awake. He looked at them and smiled saying, "Hey Ren, Ayumi, glad to see the two of you are alright."

The reaction Alkan got was something that he wasn't expecting; both Ren and Ayumi ran right at him and both gave him a big hug, making Alkan cringe at the sudden soreness that came from the contact. Ren said, "Alkan-san, thank goodness that you woke up! We thought that you would be out for much longer!"

The two got off him and sat down beside his futon. Alkan felt like he was paralyzed, so he just stayed there down on the futon as Ayumi said, "Oh, I'm so glad that you're all right Alkan-san. You gave me a new life, and if you died because of it, I don't think I would've forgiven myself…"

A sigh came from Alkan as he asked, "Um, how exactly did I survive exactly? The details are hazy for me."

"Um, well, after you saved Ayumi, you collapsed onto the ground with blood coming out of, well, every opening we could see on your face Alkan-san." Ren replied reluctantly. Alkan winced at the details and knew that it wasn't even remotely pretty as Ren went on, "From what Nii-sama said, you were going to die when we heard these female voices talking out of thin air. Then all of a sudden your body started glowing and after that, you were okay, and Nii-sama carried you with the wind back here."

Alkan thought, 'Hmm, those voices must be the Spirit Princesses. It must've been them that saved me, but I wonder why? Not that I'm not grateful or anything like that, just out of curiosity, since I don't actually see those four intervening just like that.'

A groan came from Alkan as he asked, "Okay that answers that. So anyway, what happened after that? And how long was I out for?"

That's when the door opened and both Kazuma and Ayano were at the door, with Kazuma saying, "Oh, it looks like sleeping beauty decided to wake up now!"

"…Screw you Kazuma." Alkan spat, "I'd like to see you in a bed after throwing around large amounts of energy like there's no tomorrow."

Alkan tried to get up, but halfway through another spasm went through his body making him crash back into the futon. Kazuma laughed and said, "Oooh, looks like sleeping beauty's a little cranky!"

"Oi, stop doing that Kazuma!" Ayano snapped, "It's to be expected, since he's been out of it for two weeks."

Ayano's works shocked Alkan as he said, "What?! I was out for two weeks?!"

Everyone except Kazuma jumped at Alkan's shouting. Ren scratched his head and replied, "Actually, you've been unconscious for about a week and a half. And after what had happened, everyone thought that you'd be still out of it for another few weeks."

"…What a vote of confidence…" Alkan sarcastically mumbled. Then he asked, "So, what's the situation these days Kazuma. I take it things with the Tsuwabuki calmed down?"

Kazuma just shrugged and replied, "I don't really know much about it. You'll have to ask the Soshou about it."

"I'll go get Father then." Ayano said, and she left the room to go get the Kannagi Soshou.

Alkan tried to get up again, but found that his body was now totally unresponsive. Seeing him squirm made Kazuma laugh, and both Ren and Ayumi admitted that seeing Alkan squirm under the futon was pretty hilarious as they stifled a laugh.

"Ugh, either the massive amount of energy I used shot most of my nerves senseless, or that lying in a futon for over a week made me really weak." Alkan groaned.

"It's probably both Al." Kazuma told him.

Alkan just shook his head slightly and said, "Ha…I guess I owe one to the Spirit Princesses…" Then he turned to Ayumi and asked, "So, how are you doing Ayumi?"

Ayumi brightened up a bit as she happily replied, "I've been doing well Alkan-san. Just a few days ago, Ren took me to an amusement park with Kazuma-sama and Ayano-sama, and he introduced me to two of his friends, Kanon-san and Tetsuya-san, I think."

From what Alkan could see, Ren looked a bit sheepish, and he also saw that Kazuma had a slightly smug look on his face for some reason. Alkan made a slight nod motion as he said, "That's good to hear. Fu, it looks like you're keeping your word huh Ren?"

"Y-yes!" Ren replied, his face a bit red. Alkan smirked as he turned to Kazuma and asked, "So you really have no clue what's the current situation with the Tsuwabuki?"

"I believe I can answer that one Alkan." A voice replied. A moment later, Jugo appeared at the doorway, with Ayano beside him. Kazuma moved out of the way as to let the two walk into the room. Jugo said, "Gad to see that you're conscious now Alkan."

"I'd feel better if I was able to move though Jugo-dono.' Alkan replied with a sigh.

Jugo kept a calm face as he turned to the others and asked, "I need to talk to Alkan in private. Ayano, could you take care of Ren and Ayumi?"

"Of course Father, let's go Ren, Ayumi-chan." Ayano replied. She motioned to Ren and Ayumi to come over at the same time and they complied without question. When those three left, Kazuma was about to leave also when Jugo said, "Wait Kazuma. You might want to stay for a bit since there's something you need to know."

Both Alkan and Kazuma wondered what that was as Kazuma returned to his previous spot after closing the door. Then Jugo said, "Okay, first off, the Tsuwabuki have been busy trying to get their affairs back in order after the incident with the behemoth, and they've been unusually quiet during that time. They didn't even say anything about Ayumi staring here."

"Pfft, more like they're trying to clean up the mess that Kureha made." Kazuma commented.

Jugo just sighed and said, "Just recently though, I received a message from Iwao Tsuwabuki, and what it said quite surprised me. It said that he wants to meet with you, Kazuma, Ayano, Ren, and Ayumi as soon as you recovered Alkan."

"Um, did it happen to say why?" Alkan asked, sounding slightly confused.

"Apparently, it didn't." Jugo replied. That's when Kazuma said, "They probably want to meet us as a way to settle one of their affairs, and it probably involves Ayumi."

Closing one eye, Alkan said, "That…makes sense, I guess." Looking at Jugo, he said, "Could you send the Tsuwabuki a message Jugo? Tell them that we can meet the in a couple of days, and to tell us the location where they want to meet."

"I can do that." Jugo replied, getting up. Suddenly, Alkan's stomach growled and Jugo added, "I'll have one of the servants get you something to eat."

Jugo left the room, leaving Alkan and Kazuma by themselves. Then Kazuma was about to leave also, when he stopped and remembered something. He took out a cellphone and threw it towards Alkan, with it landing on top of the futon as Kazuma said, "Here's your cell Al. Sorry for just taking it."

"…And why did you have it in the first place?" Alkan asked suspiciously.

"Well you see, a guy named Len called and I told him what had happened to you." Kazuma explained. Then a smug look appeared on his face as he added, "Oh, and you should thank me for covering for you, concerning all those jobs that Len person called about. Don't worry, I already took the pays as payment, so you don't owe me anything."

With that, Kazuma walked out of the room and closed the door. Alkan couldn't help but feel annoyed as he muttered, "One of these days, I'm gonna kill him."

* * *

A few days later, Alkan, Kazuma, Ayano, Ren, and Ayumi were standing in front of a building that had a restaurant in it. Alkan was still a bit wobbly but he was well enough to stand on his own. He said, "So this is the meeting place. Well, let's see what the Tsuwabuki Soshou wants."

They were about to walk inside when Ren noticed Ayumi trembling a bit. Everyone else saw it too as Ren said, "Don't worry Ayumi-chan. I'm here to protect you, and everyone else is too!"

That seemed to calm her down as she gave a small smile and said, "Thank you Ren."

"That kid's going to be a heart breaker when he's older." Alkan commented.

Kazuma agreed saying, "Just like his older brother. Let's get going."

They all walked in, though everyone but Kazuma noticed that Ayano made a snort trying to hold in her laughter. Ren and Ayumi wondered what that was all about but they didn't say anything as they entered the building.

Inside Alkan and Kazuma looked around until Kazuma spotted Mayumi's attendant Yuji standing nearby in his usual suit. He looked like he was waiting for something and Kazuma said, "Bet he's our welcoming party."

"You know, they could've sent someone that we haven't met before." Alkan said, as Yuji spotted them and walked right over to them.

As Yuji approached them, he felt slightly uncomfortable for some reason, and he could see it on Yuji's face too. He couldn't blame him though; how can you walk up to people who kicked your ass a while ago like nothing ever happened? He stopped in front of them and Alkan could hear Ayumi shuffling a bit as Yuji addressed Alkan, "The Soshou has been expecting you. Please, this way."

Yuji led the way and everyone exchanged glances with each other as they walked. Alkan couldn't help but think, 'This feels awkward…'

The group was led to a pair of doors that they figured led to a private room and Yuji opened the door saying, "The Soshou is inside, please come in."

Alkan and the others entered, and found that there was an elaborate room that had two couches, two chairs and a table in the center. Iwao was sitting on a chair at the end of a table, while Mayumi and Kureha were sitting together on another couch beside Iwao.

As Alkan and the others approached Iwao said, "Ah, Hosenkou-dono, I'm glad to see that you've recovered."

"Thank you for your concern Soshou-dono." Alkan replied as he sat on the chair on the other end, while Kazuma and the others sat in the other couch.

Feeling that things should move along quickly, Alkan asked, "I am curious though, is there a reason you called all of us here Soshou-dono?"

"Ha ha, straight to the point eh?" Iwao said, "I understand. First off, let me say thank you all on behalf of the Tsuwabuki for destroying Zenon. Secondly, I would like to apologize personally to you Ayumi, for everything that has happened."

"Eh? Um, it's alright Iwao-sama…" Ayumi said nervously. Iwao shook his head and said, "No, it isn't. You were created solely for the Taisai ritual and that in itself is wrong, and the way we treated you wasn't any better."

Kazuma raised an eyebrow and thought, 'Wow, looks like the Tsuwabuki Soshou did a lot of thinking over the past week.'

Ayumi clapped her hands together and said gently, "I'm glad you created me Iwao-sama, because if you hadn't, then I would've never met people like Ren, Alkan-sama, Kazuma-sama, and Ayano-sama." Ren blushed a bit while the other three smiled as Ayumi went on, "Also, I've discovered many things in such a short while, and thanks to Alkan-sama, I'm able to experience much more things."

"…I see." Iwao said, looking a bit relieved for some reason. Both Mayumi and Kureha looked a bit surprised by Ayumi's speech but they managed to hide their expressions before anyone could notice.

That's when Iwao said, "Hosenkou-dono, I'm sure this may sound presumptuous of me, since you just recovered and all, but I need to ask you something."

Alkan raised an eyebrow as he asked, "And what would that be Soshou-dono?"

Iwao cleared his throat before he replied, "Could you please take Ayumi under your care, Hosenkou-dono?"

The room was completely silent, with everyone baffled at the sudden request. Alkan and Kazuma managed to keep their expressions completely straight, while the others looked downright surprised at Iwao's request. Ayumi looked a bit embarrassed for some reason as the silence went on, until Iwao said, "Hosenkou-dono?"

Alkan thought about it for a bit before he said, "I'm sure that there are some complicated reasons behind it, but I won't ask. I'd be glad to take care of her, but only she can make that choice. I won't decide for her."

Then the attention turned to Ayumi and Kazuma couldn't help but think, 'He sure knows how to push decisions on others.'

Ayumi looked a bit nervous, but a look from both Alkan and Ren made her more confident. She cleared her throat and said, "I really don't mind at all Iwao-sama." Then she turned to Alkan and said, "Please take care of me Alkan-sama."

"Uh, sure thing Ayumi." Alkan said with a small smile. In his mind he thought, 'Oh man, that sure backfired. I was so sure that she would refuse then I would try to convince the Soshou to let her live with the Kannagi.'

'Some schemer you are.' He heard Cui-Ling say in the back of his mind.

'Quiet you.' Alkan thought in a snap. Then he said, "Well, with that now done, is there anything else Soshou-dono?"

There was a moment of silence, but Ayano noticed Kureha looking at Alkan oddly from time to time, which made her think, 'Wonder what Kureha's deal is…'

"Actually, that's about it." Iwao replied. Alkan could tell that everyone looked stumped at the sudden end of the meeting. Getting up, Alkan said, "Then I guess we should go and get things straightened out. Let's get going everyone."

Iwao nodded at that but said, while Mayumi and Kureha looked a bit miffed that they were there for no reason. The group left the room, until Alkan was the last one. He was about to leave when Iwao said, "Hosenkou-dono, could you please stay for a bit?"

Curious, Alkan hung back as the doors closed, due to Yuji. He wondered what Iwao wanted as he went back to his seat.

Outside, Kazuma and the others were led to the entrance hall by Yuji, when they realized that Alkan wasn't with them. Looking around Kazuma asked, "Oi, where's Al?"

"Soshou-sama had to talk to Hosenkou-sama in private," Yuji replied, "Please wait there for a moment please." He motioned to the area that led to the restaurant that was built in.

About ten minutes later, Alkan came out alone, looking a bit stressed. Everyone looked at him and Ren said, "Alkan-san! What happened in there?"

"It's nothing to be concerned about. Just something the Soshou and the others wanted to talk to me about." Alkan replied, assuring them. Kazuma and Ayano noticed that he was hiding something but they knew that Alkan wouldn't say anything in front of Ren and Ayumi, so they kept quiet. Instead Kazuma said, "Well, I guess I'm off, there's still that one job that that Len person gave me. Coming Ayano?"

"Huh?" Ayano said, not expecting something like that from Kazuma. Meanwhile, Alkan just shook his head that Kazuma still had a job that he took from Len. He watched Kazuma grab Ayano and dragged her off, with the last thing he heard from Ayano was, "Why the heck are you dragging me along?!"

"It'll be good training for you." Kazuma replied, before Alkan, Ren, and Ayumi couldn't hear them anymore.

Shaking his head, Alkan said, "Well now, why don't we head over to my place? It's been over a week and I'm starting to wonder what state it's in."

Ren and Ayumi nodded to that, and Alkan said, "Okay then, let's get going you two."

* * *

When they got to Alkan's place, the first person they saw was Chisato, who was at her door in the middle of unlocking it. She heard the three of them coming and took a good look before she said, "Is that you Alkan? Where have you been? It's been over a week?"

"Uh, I've been out of town on a sudden business call…" Alkan lied. For some reason Chisato saw right through it and said, "I don't believe you Alkan, but whatever. So anyway, who's the girl with Ren, Alkan?"

"Her name's Ayumi Tsuwabuki, and I'm going to be taking care of her for a while." Alkan replied. Chisato raised an eyebrow at that, but didn't say anything as she said, "Oh well, at least you're back Alkan, and that's what counts." Then she turned to Ayumi and said, "It's nice meeting you Ayumi-san."

Ayumi nodded and Chisato went over to her door opening it. Then she gave one last nod before going in and closing the door behind her. Alkan looked puzzled at her behavior and said, "Wow, she must've had a bad day or something…"

Both Ren and Ayumi looked at each other for a moment before Ren just shook his head. Meanwhile, Alkan went over to his door and touched the handle, and that's when he felt something wrong. He said, "Ren, could you come over and open the door? I think there's something inside, and to tell you the truth, I can't use any of my powers at the moment."

"I understand Alkan-san." Ren replied. He lit a fireball in his hand while carefully opening the door after Alkan had unlocked it. The two of them burst through the door, only to find a peculiar scene in front of them.

Inside, half the place was a mess, with a number of things strewn here and there. Floating on top were Tierria and Tiana fighting with each other. Ren made the fireball vanish as Alkan shouted, "What the heck is going on here?!"

The Fairy Gnome and Pixie stopped fighting with each other, and turned around to see a very pissed Alkan. They gulped as Ayumi walked in to see what's going on, and she was quite surprised to see the half trashed apartment. Meanwhile Alkan looked at the two responsible and asked, "First thing's first, why are the two of you here? And secondly, why does my place look like something out of a tornado?!"

Tierria was the first to answer saying, "Well, to answer your first question Alkan-san I'm here to give you your payment for actually completing our clan's request." She pointed to a counter in the kitchen and the three of them saw a brown bag tied by a string on top, "As for the Pixie here, I have no idea."

"Well excuse me!" Tiana said angrily, "I'm just here to give a message to Alkan-san from my village elders!" She then turned to Alkan and said, "My elders just want to say thank you for your help concerning the Pixie egg. They wanted to give you something in return, but with Kazuma being paid with half our treasure, we couldn't afford to part with anymore."

"Cheapskates." Tierria muttered, and thankfully Tiana didn't hear that as Alkan said, "It's alright Tiana, I wasn't really expecting anything, so just tell your elders that it's alright."

"Oh, thank you very much Alkan-san. The elders also said that if you need anything, don't hesitate to call us." Tiana said. She was about to leave when Alkan stopped her saying, "Where do you think you're going? You still haven't answered my other question."

Tiana gulped and flew back to where Tierria was floating. Both of them looked nervous, but Tierria replied, "Well, when we heard that you had awakened Alkan-san, I made my way over here early in the morning and came in thanks to Chisato-san. Apparently Tiana here followed me in, and one thing led to another…"

Alkan shook his head and said, "I think I get the picture, and for that, I want the two of you to clean up this place and fix anything that's broken!"

"Eh?!" Both Tierria and Tiana said. Alkan looked at them and said cleanly, "By today would be nice girls!"

The two beings just sighed and started to clean up the mess. Ayumi looked at Alkan and asked, "Are you sure that's alright Alkan? I mean, they are just tiny little things…"

"Don't worry, those two are stronger than they look." Alkan told her, as they watched Tiana struggle trying to pick up a piece of wood, "Well, most of the time anyway."

Ren and Ayumi just giggled as Alkan said, "Well Ayumi, this will be the place that you'll be staying at. I preferably would've had you stay with Ren at the Kannagi mansion, but that would raise questions I would rather not deal with at the moment."

Watching Tiana and Tierria clean up, Alkan said, "I think we'd better help those two, or else this really will take all day." Ren and Ayumi nodded, and they followed Alkan forward to help clean up the mess.

Later, Alkan went over to Chisato's and when she opened the door, he saw that she was still a bit mad for some reason. He sighed and said, "Okay, I'll tell you what really happened, so could you please let me in? I need to ask you for a favor."

"…Sure." Chisato said, her expression lightening up a bit as Alkan was let in. Looking around, Alkan saw that Chisato's place didn't look that much different from his, only the furniture was different.

After Alkan explained what really happened and the reason why he was gone for over a week, Chisato was more than surprised by it all and asked, "So, you're alright now Alkan?"

"Sort of, however, I can't use any of my powers for a while as a result of what happened." Alkan told her, "I don't have much of a choice but to ask Kazuma to cover for me for a while…"

That's when Alkan asked, "Anyway, I need to ask you for a favor. Could you let Ayumi stay here for a few days? She's going to live with me, but I don't have the place prepared, thanks to some things that happened."

Chisato gave a nod saying, "Of course Alkan. I have a few spare things that she can use." Alkan looked grateful and said, "Thank you very much Chisato. I really appreciate it."

"It's no problem Alkan." Chisato told him, "By the way, where are Ren-kun and Ayumi-san anyway?"

"They're next door, with Ren introducing Ayumi to my video game collection." Alkan said casually. Chisato looked at him and asked, "Are you sure they're doing that?"

"Positive," Alkan replied, "I might not know Ren as much as Ayano or Kazuma, but I pretty sure that Ren knows how to behave himself. Those two are still young after all…"

Suddenly, Chisato gave a laugh saying, "You know, you sound just like an old father when you talk like that. It sounds totally wrong!"

"Hey, I'm barely in my early twenties, thank you very much!" Alkan said with dignity. Chisato just rolled her eyes as she laughed, "I was just kidding Alkan. No need to get so wound up!"

All Alkan did was shake his head as he sighed and laid back in his seat thinking, 'Man, this sucks. It feels like I'm back to square one with no powers, and even though I do have some protective talismans that I made awhile back, I have the strangest feeling that they won't be enough…'

* * *

In another part of the city, a certain eighteen year old girl got off the train. She attracted looks from the people passing by, and no one could blame them. The girl looked absolutely beautiful, with long navy-blue hair and matching eyes. She wore a simple white blouse with a blue jacket over it, as well as a long white skirt that reached down to her ankles, ending with her wearing a pair of high-heels that looked fashionable, yet comfortable. One notable thing was that the girl was wearing an earring on her right ear, which looked like a tiny orb filled with water on the end of a short chain.

Two other people walked out after her, one man and one woman, both of them wearing suits. They looked like twins though the woman's black hair reached her shoulders and was straight, while the man's looked a bit messy and was shorter. They wore sunglasses as part of their attire as the man said, "Are you sure that this is city that Hosenkou-sama is staying in Shion-sama?"

"I'm quite sure. Or are you saying that the intel was wrong Lee?" The girl called Shion asked.

"I'm sure my brother didn't mean that Shion-sama." The woman said, "He was just checking if we really were in the right place."

"Are you saying that I don't have a sense of direction Skye?" Shion asked in a hurt tone.

The woman named Skye hastily replied, "N-no, of course not Shion-sama!"

"Fu fu, I was just playing with you Skye." Shion said playfully. Both Lee and Skye sighed as Shion said, "You sure know how to play hard to get Alkan-sama, but this time, I finally found you. I, Shion Umizuka, will find you this time…"

Note: I admit, this ending was a bit sloppy in my opinion, but I'm glad the Tsuwabuki arc is done. On another note, the last three people are a reference to another group of three, and kudos to anyone who can figure it out. Hint: It's a very popular game series that has spawned over four games. Reviews are greatly appreciated and thanks to those who did so far!