Sorry that this is so late! I was updating another one of my stories, because I realized I can't spend all my time writing with this one. Just 98% of it. ^^
Thank you, as always, to all of you who reviewed. They make my day, and I love getting feedback on my stories!
dotYui: Thanks for pointing that out before. It's corrected now. I didn't notice it before. And your memory's not bad...I don't think. I like writing about Jun and Kazuki. They're just easy to put in character, and the banter's fun to write. I like Japanese names a lot too, especially pretty ones. I wonder what would actually happen if Reborn was real though... I'm glad you think I keep him in character, and read on to find the answers to your questions!
Rikulz: Questions on Jun, and all the guardians, will be answered in time. I kind of plan out the chapters as I go, so I don't know how long this battle will be just yet. Generally, it takes me about 3 hours to write a chapter, depending on distractions/motivation. What flame type? Um, probably lightning or storm. I'm lazy, and I can have a quick temper at times. So, a mix of the two maybe? Sleep is very important!
Fuuki Inchou Ange: Third, huh? In how long? Either way, thank you. I kind of based her off one of my friends (not the kimono and all, but the hairstyle and eyes ^^).
Reborn22: Yes, I do love writing cliffhangers. Stories are no fun without them, you know? And yes, I would like a cookie! *gobbles it down*
Our Sky
Chapter 21: Trust and Intuition
Last Time:
"I know who you're looking for, and you don't need to look any farther," she stated in a monotone voice. "In fact, this saves me the trouble of finding you."
"Then you're..."
"Correct. I'm a member of the 6 Zodiacs. My name is Usagi."
~OS~
For a moment after the girl's confession, there was complete silence. It was Jun who finally broke it. "Well that was fast," he commented dryly. Usagi raised an eyebrow.
"Shouldn't you be a bit more surprised?" Yume asked.
"I try to take things in stride," the boy shrugged. "It's how I was raised."
"While this is all very interesting-" the black haired girl tried to say, but was cut off by Kazuki.
"What kind of childhood did you go through to be raised like that?" the blonde asked incredulously. Jun shot him an annoyed look.
"I grew up being dragged into fights by a certain long haired idiot," he snapped.
"Who?"
"Are you trying to be funny, or are you really just that dumb?"
"Can we please-" Usagi was interrupted yet again, this time by Retsu.
"C'mon guys, be nice," the teen said in exasperation, stepping in between his two friends. "Jun, you should try to stop being so downright hostile. You should know better than to act that way around Kazuki. He won't get it. And Kazuki..." he trailed off, taking in the other boy's confused stare. He sighed. "J-just try and forget this ever happened."
"Um," the blonde still looked puzzled, but nodded anyway. "Okay?"
"Hmph," Jun snorted, crossing his arms and looking away. "Whatever."
"Wow, Retsu!" Yume exclaimed appreciatively. "You're so good at controlling them! They never listen to me when I tell them to stop."
"I'm not controlling them," Retsu denied hurriedly. "It's just something I learned over time."
"A boss should be able to mediate his family," Reborn nodded in approval, and his teenage charge glared.
"No, no, no," the boy emphasized each refusal with a stamp of his foot. "I told you, it's an acquired skill. Why do you always have to go making such a big deal out of noth-"
He was cut off by a black and white blur that shot by his head. As it passed, he could just make out a rectangular shape. It looked almost like...a playing card?
"Ah!" he yelped, falling back to land on his butt. The projectile flew into a nearby building and stuck there, revealing that it was just what he'd thought: a seemingly normal card. The key word there was seemingly. Because he was pretty sure that most cards didn't have razor sharp edges. Or black skulls drawn in the center. Retsu turned to face the source of the throw, and found that Usagi looked like she was about to kill someone. Which, in retrospect, really wasn't good for him.
"I do not like being ignored," she said slowly, each word sharp as a knife. She was gripping the stack of cards in her hand so tightly that her knuckles were going white. "You insolent, insignificant, worthless pieces of trash."
"And you say I'm hostile," Jun said, helping Retsu to his feet.
"Yeah, my bad," his white haired friend agreed.
"Are you okay?" Kazuki asked. The sprinter glared, and the blonde backed off, hands raised in a sign of surrender. "Right, I forgot; redundant question." Jun nodded curtly, then threw Retsu at him, getting yells of surprise from them both. He rolled his eyes.
"Idiots," he muttered, turning to face Usagi. "Hey lady, I'll be your opponent."
"Eh?!" Yume exclaimed.
"You can't!" Retsu yelled. Kazuki nodded furiously in agreement.
"You guys think I can't handle it?"
"Yes!" the blonde burst out, immediately cowering back at the murderous look Jun sent him.
"It was a rhetorical question, you dumbass," he ground out through his teeth. "And get going. You said you're in a rush."
"But..." the white haired boy said hesitantly, and the others expression softened a little as he shook his head.
"I'll be fine," Jun assured him. "I promise, I'll catch up with you guys as soon as I'm done here."
Retsu looked back and forth between his friend and the livid girl in front of them, and came to a quick decision. He met Jun's eyes, saw the resolve and excitement burning in their sapphire depths, and nodded. "One hour," he said quietly. "You have one hour to catch up with us. We're going that way," he pointed to the left of Usagi. "And I expect you to keep your promise. You don't show up, we'll come looking for you. Understand?"
Jun's eyes widened, shocked that Retsu had actually agreed. He wasn't the only one. "You're not serious, are you?" Kazuki asked. When the violet eyed teen didn't respond, he groaned. "Is this really okay? What if something happens?"
"Kazuki?" the sprinter asked.
"Yes?"
"Shut up. I told you I'll be fine, and I will."
"I think you should let him," Yume chimed in. "I mean, Retsu's right, we are kind of in a hurry. Besides, I trust Jun-kun."
"Yume-chan, Jun's fine," the black haired boy blushed lightly. "You don't have to add the honorific."
"Then you have to drop the -chan," the girl replied obstinately.
"Fine."
"Alright!" she smiled. "Then I trust Jun."
"Not bad, all of you," Reborn said, smirking down at them from his place on Retsu's head. "Trust is a very important thing in a family. It's good that you're learning that so early on."
"Reborn, for the last time, we're not in the mafia!" Retsu made a grab for the baby, who easily dodged out of the way by jumping to the ground behind his student. The diminutive hitman then kicked the boy in the heels, almost tripping him.
"You are if I say you are. Now get going."
Retsu reluctantly followed orders, turning to walk away. Kazuki and Yume followed behind, casting worried glances back in Jun's direction. Seeing their concern, he shook his head and gave them a thumbs up. "One hour, right?" All three grinned back.
"One hour!" they chorused in agreement.
"You think I'll just let you leave after insulting me like that?" Usagi nearly screeched from behind them, her previously calm demeanor completely gone in the face of her anger and indignation. "Don't screw with me!"
In the blink of an eye, four of her white cards were whizzing after them, slicing through the air with sharp, whistling sounds. Before their targets could even turn to face them though, they were shot out of the air. The four pieces of paper fell to the ground, harmless, with identical holes through the centers. Bullet holes, if the small pieces of metal imbedded in the ground near them were any indication.
Jun stood behind them, straight as an arrow, a still-smoking silver gun held in his outstretched hand. His blue eyes were narrowed, calculating and precise.
"W-what the hell was that?" Retsu couldn't help asking, moving to face his friend. In response, the other teen only shrugged.
"Mom always said I was a lot like Dad," he offered with a smirk. The white haired teen could only nod in amazement.
The 50 metre pistol, huh? he thought wryly. "Okay then. Good luck."
"Just get going already," Jun ordered, aiming the weapon at him. Retsu didn't need to be told twice, and without another look back, he was off. Jun smiled, but it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared as he turned to the black haired girl, who was looking back and forth between her ruined cards and the boy who had shot them down. "Alright. What do you say we get this fight started now that all the annoying people have left?"
~OS~
"Was it really all right to just leave him back there?" Kazuki asked once Retsu had caught up. The blonde and Yume had been too far away to witness Jun's recent display of accuracy, so it was understandable that they were still a bit unsure. As for Retsu, he couldn't be more sure of his decision.
"Trust me, we've got nothing to worry about," the violet eyed boy responded. Choosing to believe him, his friends nodded in understanding.
"Other than yourselves, of course," Reborn added from his usual perch on his student's shoulder.
"Yeah," the boy said grimly. "Other than that."
They ran in silence for a moment, each lost in their own thoughts. It was Yume who broke it this time. "Ne, Retsu?" He turned to face her, which she took as a sign to continue. "Where are we going?"
He shrugged. "Who knows."
"Wait, what?" Kazuki almost skidded to a stop, startled. "You mean you don't know?"
"No idea," Retsu shook his head. "I figure that we ran into Usagi quick enough, so if we keep running around randomly, maybe we'll meet someone else. Besides, I've got a good feeling about this way."
"That's not a good basis of judgment!" Yume insisted.
"If you guys got any better ideas, I'd love to hear them." When neither teenager replied, he snorted. "That's what I thought."
"When in doubt, trust your intuition," Reborn said. Retsu was about to say that that was one of the best pieces of advice the baby had ever given (and the most normal), when he realized his tutor hadn't finished yet. "Bosses before you have survived more than once on pure instinct. It's a good code to live by."
"Right," the boy muttered irritably. "I'll be sure to remember that."
"A-anyways," Kazuki interjected, noticing the tense atmosphere. "Do we even know who we're looking for?"
"Maybe," Retsu admitted sheepishly.
"Well, let's figure out who's left," Yume suggested. "There's six of them, right? Usagi-san's back there."
"Izumi-san," the white haired boy added.
"And Tora," Kazuki finished, taking note of the sad wince that went across his female friend's face, and the way her eyes flickered to the empty band on her thigh.
"Yeah," she agreed quietly.
"Um, that's three," Retsu said, trying to take her attention away from whatever was going through her head at the mention of the name. "So there's only three left?" he asked hopefully.
"Not necessarily," Reborn said. "There may be more."
"If there were more than six, why would they call themselves the 6 Zodiacs?" the soccer player asked.
"They may not be working alone," Yume answered. She looked like she was about to say something else, but her gaze was caught by a red flash on the rooftop above. The girl looked up, and stopped dead. "T-there's no way," she stammered in fear, paling considerably.
"What's wrong?" Kazuki asked worriedly. Wordlessly, Yume pointed at the roof, and her two friends followed her finger to the spot. They also froze at what they saw. "Why is she here?!" the blonde cried in panic. "What happened to Jun?"
"He said he'd be fine," the brown haired girl said quietly into her hands, which were cupped around her face in defeat.
"Usagi," Retsu voiced their realization in shock. "She can't be here. If she is..." he trailed off, not wanting to finish. The evidence was right before him, so why couldn't he believe it? It's because something's wrong here, he thought. This isn't right. What's going on?