Ninth day: Masks are off
Ichigo slowly opened her eyes and she wasn't in Kisshu's room with Lettuce. Instead of that she was in Kisshu's arms on the giant mushroom on the giant tree. Her mind went crazy, why was she here, why was Kisshu here? Until the memories of the last night returned. Oh yes I spend a night up here with Kisshu.
"Kisshu, Kisshu. Come on we must return home." She shook him a little.
"I know:" He said.
"What you were awake a whole time?"
"No, I just woke up few minutes ago and I didn't move because I didn't want to wake you up. So how did you sleep honey?"
"I sleep great but wouldn't others get worried?"
"No I told my parents where are we going and they knew that we would stay here a whole day. So let's go now, the breakfast is in few minutes." He said teleporting them in his house.
"Well, well, well, looks like Ichigo spend some time with other guy, gee Ichigo what will Aoyama-san say if he found out."
"Don't be such an idiot Mint, he would believe me and nothing happened we just fell asleep outside."
"Whatever Ichigo I don't care, I have to help twins about performing. If you didn't know tomorrow is a festival and they asked me to perform some ballet so I can show it to the aliens like a part of our culture."
"Oh." Ichigo realized how fast these days just passed. "Is anybody else doing something?"
"Pudding is showing her skills na-no-da! She will perform in front the whole town na-no-da!" Pudding yelled excided.
"Well I'm helping Pear with flowers after breakfast, so I won't return soon."
"KIsshu about what I said about testing machine. I won't do it on you and Ichigo it's still unstable so I will try with something else." Hugame said when she put a bowl with zems on the table.
"Oh it's Ok I need to do something alone today and by the way Liro is coming."
"What? When?"
"Today not sure when I wanted to keep a secret but I'm not in the mood today." Kisshu said little sad.
"Kisshu what is wrong?"
"Nothing."
During the breakfast Kisshu was really silent and he was hiding her eyes behind his hair. His Ichigo is leaving soon and they still didn't kiss and with that he remembered that he got a letter yesterday, a letter that made him sad and confused. A letter that might change his whole life, and he wasn't ready for that kind of change.
After meal everybody went their own way.
For who know what reason Ichigo went to the monument on the meadow where she saw Emerald, she had a feeling like she need to be there, but why? She saw Emerald reading one notebook; she had the same face as Kisshu.
"Hey what are you doing?" Ichigo asked sweetly.
"I'm reading my night diary to see what did I miss last night and other night."
"Oh. So what did you do last night?"
"Well up here it says that I was spying on Tem and his girlfriend. But I don't remember and it also said that I saw bit shooting star… Ichigo what stars looks alike?"
"Um well it's like a gloving shining dust or diamonds on the black sky. You really can't remember anything, do you?"
"No you see at first Kisshu's secret was that he like you. I wrote it in here and some guys almost read it when they stole it. I thought about to stop doing it but I'm not sure I can."
"Then don't. Everybody deserves to know what they did at night. Hey I wanted to ask you about Kisshu, you are the only one who can tell me the true."
"Ok the true is that he loves you, a lot. I know that you have boyfriend but how would you feel if he never returned you feeling. Think about it. And Kisshu is having over nature, he become aggressive or maybe he is pervert or stalker. But he is a good person. And if you ever return him his feeling he would make your live living paradise. Maybe your boyfriend is perfect but guys like that ordinary become jerks in the future. I'm not saying that he will, but Kisshu can't be worse than now and Aoyama guy can. You meet Deep Blue but you didn't meet his real dark side."
"Why do you hate him except because he is my boyfriend?"
"Because he almost killed Kisshu and because Deep Blue almost killed humans and us because he was selfish."
"Sorry. But he was trying to protect me, Kisshu would kill me."
Emerald began to laugh and laud. "Oh Ichigo you are so funny and naïve. You think that Kisshu would really kill you. What a joke."
Ichigo felt little weird maybe Emerald was right. "I must go and think about something. Bye" She said sadly.
Ichigo was walking somewhere who knows where she was lost in her mind, she missed Masaya but she also didn't want to leave. It was obvious if she had stayed longer than ten days she would fall in love in Kishu. But her thoughts were stopped by teleport when she got sucked in.
On the other part of the town Pai was returning home from the practicing little, after all he needs to stay in form. He saw Lettuce surrounded by children she was giving something to them.
"What is going on?"
"Oh Pai-san well children saw some of my toys so I decided to give them and I'm toughing their mothers how to made one."
"When did you make those?"
"Well I had some free time these days while you were in lab and some of them I already had in my backpack. Well kids did everybody got one?"
"YES!"
"Good now I need some time, if you can give me."
"Ok Lettuce-onechan."
When children had left Pai talked with Lettuce a little. "You know I made this like a practice." He gave her a book. "It's an elf history book on Japanese. I tried my best."
"Wow amazing I would like to read this one."
"What kind of books do you like?"
"Different types but this is my favorite. Crime and Punishment, a book about a man who killed one lady and his thoughts after that. It's like getting in humans mind. Here take it. If you like first part you can have it."
"What? Why?"
"I don't have reason, or maybe I have, we are friends."
"Yes." He mumbled but he was feeling more than a friendship.
"Let's read some parts of books that we just gave one to another to see how we like it."
Pai just nodded.
Ichigo teleported to some unknown place,she was not so high from the ground and she just fell. "Ouch it hurt!" She complained to herself. "Uh? Where am I? AAAAAAAAAA I'm lost, if other doesn't found me they will leave without me and then I will be stuck here with Kisshu and Emerald for a whole eternity! Ok Ichigo just relax and think about situation… AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I'm going to die here! Uh?" This sound it's a music that I heard every night. Does that mean that a guy who is playing it is near? I better go and see who that is.
The music become laugher as Ichigo was going toward it. She was almost there right behind those bushes in from of her. I better hide here I don't want this person to think that I'm spying on him. Ichigo pike a little ready to see who it was and she was prepared for almost anything except for this.
Just like an illusion she saw Kisshu sitting on the beach near to the lake or sea who know, playing on the instrument that reminded on fife, it wasn't made of wood and it had something was hanging on the end and as he blow those hanging things would fuse with the already existing sound creating one even more beautiful sound.
"K-K-Kisshu?" She said getting out of the bushes shocked.
Kisshu stopped plying and looked at her shocked too. "I-Ichigo what are you doing here?"
"Ummm I was teleported here again like when we came here and… wait a minute you were my mystery guy?"
"Your mystery guy? Should I be flattered? " He said with evil grin. "Sound like a name for a lover."
"NO,no,no,no I didn't mean like it! I was expecting to be someone … not you, you know romantic, sweet, kind."
"Wow that hurt."
"Sorry. Where are we? I wasn't here before."
"This is deadly lake, it's too dangerous for humans, you see this lake have some weird substances in itself and while other waters push you on the surface this lake pull you into it. Nothing lives in it."
"Wow scary. So we are stuck, or you can teleport us back."
"Well I don't know where we really are and Hugame will return us in an hour so be patient."
"Real time for date?" Ichigo asked annoyed but Kisshu didn't answer.
"Ichigo can I ask you something?"
"Yes:"
"Do you like me?" He asked little unsecure about the question.
"Um well now I don't think that you are that bad and maybe if I would stay here longer …- I do like you but not that much how I like Masaya."
"I see. Can I ask you for advice? You see yesterday I got letter from the fire village. The village is inside volcano so there was always the warm. Emerald's mother is from there and they ask her to go there and maybe they can help her about her hair problem and memories."
"Wow that is great you told her?"
"No. I'm afraid to let her go. On two days you will leave and who know will we ever see each other again and if she leave me too I will lost two most import persons that I have."
"Kisshu it's Emerald she would return, you mean too much to her, cause she is just like you."
"But what if she meets new friends up there and forgets about me?"
"She won't trust me, if you believe her enough and if she loves you as much as she said she will return to you. You are her only family."
"Yes you are right thanks Ichigo you really helped me."
"You welcome you helped me to decide something too."
"You welcome too."
"Hey can you play that music again."
"Oh it's the only one song that my father taught me, my real father. But if you didn't have enough of it I would be glad to do it." Kisshu said and played the instrument again giving Ichigo one great feeling in her heart.
The music was warm and relaxing. Ichigo lied next to him listening and not letting anything to disturb her. She felt like she was in haven, beautiful music was played just for her, the smell of the clean air was great.
Before she realized it Kisshu stopped with music and began to pet her hair. He did it so sweetly and gently so she didn't protest, she actually enjoyed.
"You like this kone…? What a hell Hugame why did you teleported now!" Kisshu yelled when they were teleported in middle of their date.
"Ups sorry but I was just checking our teleportation machine. Sorry little brother." She said baby voice so cute that even Kisshu couldn't resist.
"Ok fine after all I don't want to be sad when your dreams are coming true, Liro is coming and you will be maiden tomorrow. Oh that remind me, Ichigo will you cheer for me tomorrow, it would mean a world to me."
"Umm oh you mean in race of course."
"Really thanks. Oh look what time it is I must see Emerald bye!"
"Wow he is really excited right now. What happened while you were on dead lake?"
"Well we talked about our problems and sold it. Anyway Hugame I wanted to ask you about this festival and race."
"Ok what about it?"
"Well is this race still dangerous and what kind of festival it is."
"The race is still very hard and dangerous, but don't worry only skillet people are in it. About festival well it start with race than after two hours when everybody pick up wild fruits and food and eat lunch outside. After that we have free time until the sun set everybody watch that, and then began night festival, when everybody looks pretty and they gather on the main square. From there we watch the show; it starts with song that I will sing this year, than an ancient dance that we use to dance when we lived on the Earth. You know that day was the only day in year when we could enjoy in our life."
"I know you said it, no wonder why you respect it."
"Yes even if we have sunny days and normal life, it's a tradition that we won't change. We must remember our mistake so we won't do it again."
"And what is Kisshu's and Emerald's plan for today?"
"What they are doing that again?"
"Yes what?"
"I told you that Emerald has psychic powers, well she can mess with people minds and then they say something that they don't want. With that they are ruining other's dates. Ones she made my fiancé to tell me that I have great boobs, and that was our first one. You can imagine what my reaction was."
"HUH? That is scary. Why do they do that?"
"Nobody knows."
Hugame and Ichigo went outside in garden so that they could wait for Liro. Ichigo was little excided she wanted to see what kind of person is Hugame's fiancé. In few minutes everybody came, it was weird like they had deal.
"Guys what are you doing here? Didn't you all have some plans?"
"Ichigo we done everything and Malina told us that lunch is soon." Mint said.
"Yes but we will be little late with lunch today, 'cause Liro is coming soon. It will be nice to eat with him." Malina said when she came from the house. "Will you girls help me about serving a table?"
"Sure." Girls said.
Just when girls served the table someone knocked on the door.
"It's him!" Hugame shouted running to the door crushing everybody on her way. She stopped before the door and checked her hair and clothes and then opens. She was acting like a girl that is waiting her first date. "HONEY" She jumped but it was Pai.
"What is wrong with you?" He asked coldly.
"Oh it's just you."
"Yea, sorry if I disappointed you, but father and grandfather were with me helping on the buildings."
"AAAHHHHHH it's not fair Liro should be on that door not nerd and old guys."
"Who are you calling old?" Hund dashed.
"Sorry daddy but its difficult situation." She said baby voice.
"It's ok sweetie, you are my only daughter so I can't be angry on you."
"Wow I didn't know that Hugame can be big baby girl." Ichigo said sweat drop.
"Yes she always knew how to get out unpunished." Malina said.
"Uh I miss Liro."
"Nice to know that my girl miss me." A voice said and everybody looked at the person whose voice was. He was actually everything oppose to Hugame. He was tall man with long dark hair haired in ponytail. He was dressed in Black t-shirt and pants similar Pai's. He also had black eyes with cold look and deep voice. But this guy also had three silver pricings on his right ear. He was cold person and somehow he reminded on Deep Blue. How could so sweet girl fall for someone that dark?
"Liro!" She jumped in his hug, and even if he looked like cold person he was actually really nice to Hugame. "I missed you so much. Oh you don't know how long I was waiting for this day."
"Three mounts" That is how long we didn't saw each other, but I miss you too."
"Liro." She nuzzled in his hug.
"Well now we can eat." Kisshu said teleporting inside with Emerald.
"Oh Emerald you admitted my invitation. I'm glad." Malina said. "Now let's eat.
"Your cooking is getting better and better Malina-san. I can't wait for us to be real family." Liro said cold but polite.
"Yes too bat that it won't happen soon."
"Oh I see Hugame didn't tell you."
"What?"
"Well I wanted to tell you this later, but… I'm pregnant, for three mounts already."
?
"WHAT!" Everybody shouted.
"My baby is getting baby." Hund said disappointed.
"How great, congratulate, can't wait to see baby." Others said.
"Three mounts … well that mean you can't fight any more." Grandfather Kikiro said. "I just hope that my grandchild will be healthy and then you two will be able to marry."
Family pended another hour talking about plans for the future, and then Kisshu and Emerald run out.
But before they did that. "Hey Pai, Taruto how about we show girls running stars tonight?"
"Ok" Pai said when they teleported away. "Hugame show us what are they doing." He said, knowing his little brother.
"OK." She summoned her crystal orb and everybody gathered to watch it like a major TV show.