ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!
*On the last chapter of Love Hurts 5 Ways, Akimoto's attempts to rescue Miaka's best friend Yui lead up to her meeting with the first Seiryuu warrior, an attractive, yet cold and ruthless Nakago who seems to know more about Aki's origins and purpose than she does.
Yui and Miaka were happily reunited for only a little while before Yui accused Miaka of abandoning her in the Universe of the Four Gods. Aki, in the meantime, was brought face to face with a powerful and intelligent Shadow Maiden named Stella who revealed that Aki wasn't human.
After the dreadful turnout of Yui announcing Miaka as her enemy—thus taking on the role of the Priestess of Seiryuu, Aki felt extremely torn that the one relationship that she had always had faith in was utterly shattered. Stella, taking advantage of Aki's inability to use Light due to slight depression, attempted to Turn Aki but was interrupted by the efforts of Chichiri and Shokyoku.
However, Aki was left in an unfortunate state where she no longer has the ability to move or feel her body—or even feel positive feelings. How will the Suzaku warriors deal with this new dilemma presented before them? Will Aki remain defenseless or will she find a way to overcome this physical and mental Darkness that had now befalling her? And what does Miaka plan on doing regarding Yui and the war?
The story continues to unfold…*
The atmosphere in the throne room of Konan had been submerged in dread. It hadn't been long since the warriors had regrouped after coming back from Mt. Taikyoku—informing the emperor and Nuriko about the events that had unfolded in Kutou. Some would think that there would be a feeling of gratefulness that everyone had come out of it alive to fight another day. But in light of the situation with Yui, the priestess of Suzaku was already saddened about the girl's sudden hatred of her. Now the threat of an all-out battle with Kutou was not only inevitable, but more likely to be disastrous now that they also had just as much of a chance of summoning their dragon god, Seiryuu, with their newly acquired priestess.
The mission of bringing Yui back had failed. Konan's celestial warriors would have no choice but to be in a state of high alert of the imminent threat.
To make matter's worse, there was still an irritatingly curious and guilty mystery of what went down in Seiryuu's shrine back at the enemies' palace. For a seemingly short while, Aki had been left alone to fight the two formidable foes: an extremely aware and stronger than expected Shadow Maiden and the powerful Nakago, who happened to be a Seiryuu warrior. In that time, no one really knew what happened or what was going to happen. They all knew of Aki's strength and confidence, and for that, they—Chichiri and Tamahome with an unconscious Miaka—figured that leaving her on her own for only a few minutes wouldn't have been much of a problem. She had been able to fend for herself so many times before, so what could have possibly gone wrong?
Chichiri knew that something bad was happening. He could feel Aki's life force wavering in a peculiar way, even as he was at Mt. Taikyoku. Though he had tried to rush and return by her side, he had still been too slow. By time he had appeared once again in the shrine, he witnessed her at the mercy of the female being consumed by Darkness—its arm lodged deeply within her chest. Aki's aura had been tainted by a sinister black, cloud-like energy that closely emulated the ink of a squid shot throughout the water—Chichiri had barley been able to get to her and away from the Shadow Maiden in time. When he saw what was happening, there was no time to think…just get her out of there. Some invisible force surrounding Aki had assisted him in his feat, and without it, their world would have had a lot more problems to deal with than the surge of an enemy countries army.
The more optimistic part of the monk told him that once she was no longer in the same proximity as that creature, she'd recover soon after.
But something was wrong—she wasn't the same girl he had left behind only a few moments before. She had changed…and for the worst. Yes, Akimoto Tsubaki was strong and had great potential, but she still wasn't invincible—they overestimated her—and they had left her alone—a dark-grey cloud of guilt loomed over the three who were there and supposedly having her back as well as the two who could have been there to assist.
"Are you serious Chichiri?" Nuriko asked the monk. Everyone except Aki had met up in the middle of the throne room to discuss the unfortunate events that had unfolded.
The blue-haired monk nodded, his usually cheerful fox-like face turned into a frown. "It has been confirmed—Lady Taiitsukun and I are sure about this." His head hung over even more. "All of Aki's positive emotions are gone, ya know?"
Nuriko was still, uneasily, trying to grasp onto what he was saying. "Now when you say that they're gone…"
Turning to address the inquiry, Chichiri told him, "I mean that she lost the ability to feel them," Everyone gasped in response to this—unable to believe that something like that could even happen to someone, "even if she tried to be happy, it wouldn't work, ya know? Her positive emotions might as well be nonexistent." Standing with the rest of his comrades instead of on his throne, Hotohori, in his casual royal robes, clenched his fists and closed his eyes in anger. Hearing that all of this went on during his absence infuriated him. It was his duty as a celestial warrior of Suzaku to protect his priestess—Aki shouldn't have been the one to pay for him not being able to carry out his duties. Perhaps if he were there to help out, it would have made a huge difference.
Recalling something that Aki had told them before, Tamahome spoke up. "Most of us already knew that Aki had some kind of Darkness around her, which made us believe that was why she was in a bad mood sometimes." It may have not been obvious to Aki, but the others were more than aware of her periodic bits of slight depression as well as how she would avoid hanging out with the rest of them unless it was absolutely necessary. After arriving in that world, she had informed her friends at the palace of the ring of negative energy that was around her, though no one was able to see it but her. They never doubted its existence though. In fact, it was assumed that that was the reason for her aloofness. None of them liked seeing her off on her own or keeping things to herself, but there was just something about her whole peculiar circumstance that made them want to take the situation…sensitively—which meant slowly getting closer to her and hoping that she'd eventually open up. Miaka may have known the girl the longest, but even she couldn't fathom the complexity of the red-eyed sorceress. "But she wouldn't always be like that," Tama continued. "There were times that she'd smile and laugh—"
"At other peoples expenses sometimes…" Nuriko mumbled with a slight chuckle.
Miaka gave an uneasy smile. "True. But I feel that that's a part of her charm…as long as it didn't go too far." Or if it wasn't about me, the priestess thought.
Going on from that, Tama finished his point by saying, "The bottom line is that we should be able to bring her spirits up, right? I mean, it can't really be possible that someone's emotions are gone, can it?" It's one thing to not have any emotions, but to have only the bad ones? That just seemed highly unlikely.
Crossing his arms and titling his head to the side, Chichiri's expression became puzzled. "Unfortunately, it's not quite that simple, ya know?" Right when someone was about to ask why, he explained. "You see, there's a chance that Aki also lost a part of her memory as well—the part associated with any time that she had ever experienced positive emotions, ya know?" The rest of the group gasped at the new information.
"Which means…" Miaka's voice trailed off as her thoughts pulled her into silence. No one else in the room needed the monk's help in connecting the dots for this one. If Aki couldn't remember ever being happy and if she lost the ability to feel said emotion, then the chances of them getting her to smile with these handicaps on her were extremely slim—maybe even impossible.
Nuriko's eye-lids drooped down as he bit his lower lip slightly. Earlier when he had tried to cheer Aki up, he had received a reaction that he didn't expect from her—not since they officially became friends.
"What the hell do you think you're doing? Get away from me you hateful bitch!" Aki shouted at him.
Blinking his pink eyes in disbelief, Nuriko tried to calmly reason with her. This was the first time he had seen her since returning back from Kutou and he had heard from Chichiri that she hadn't gotten out of it unscathed. He kind of had to see it with his own eyes how bad the damage actually was. He knew that something must have been up since her body wasn't budging and she had to be carried bridal-style by Tamahome. "What do you mean by that?" All he did was put his hand on her shoulder and ask how she was feeling. Then she suddenly snapped at him as if she were PMSing or something (that monthly occurrence was the only thing that he wouldn't look forward to if he were a woman). "I just want to know if you're okay." He chose to ignore the malicious name she had just called him. Instead, he just gave that playful smile of his. "That's not a crime now is it?"
That was when she gave him one of the most seriously demonic glared he had ever received from anyone—it was enough to even send a chill down his spine. Those red eyes of hers really were a killer. What's up with her? Did I do something wrong? "Stop talking to me as if you really give a damn." Her voice was so cold that even if the North Pole could hear her it would shy away. "I was never part of this group to you so I could just die for all you care."
Chuckling nervously, Nuriko still stood frozen in denial, thinking that all of this was some sort of cruel joke. "But Aki, I—"
"Hearing your voice has always disgusted me you fag," His eyes widened with that hurtful remark. Part of him wanted to reach out and grab her collar to shake her out of her delusion, but the tears that he was fighting to keep away tempted him to just comply with her cruel wishes. "Don't insult me with your faux sympathy." Even if she were having a bad day, there was no reason for her to be acting like that—as if they weren't friends. On any other day, he'd just argue back—you know, in a jokingly manner—playing their little game he enjoyed so much (her reactions were always so entertaining!). Looking into those crimson eyes and unwavering lips signified that she was dead serious.
The last time she spoke even remotely like that was back when they first met. Those two hadn't started off on the best terms, but eventually they came to a treaty of friendship—at least…that was what he thought.
"Onee-chan!" Miaka lectured sternly, with a surprised tone to her voice. "I can't believe you said that to Nuriko! He's your friend!" Now that girl had no trouble allowing the tears to flow down her cheeks. Something had happened in Kutou to her as well—why else would she be so affected by this? "He was just being nice to you—he was worried—" Chichiri, the monk who they had recently discovered was the next Suzaku warrior, tenderly put his hand on the saddened priestesses shoulder. She looked back at him and he shook his head, making her go mute and take back everything she was about to say. Yup, something did happen in Kutou—to both Miaka and especially Aki. But what? Nuriko was an intuitive person and was more aware of how women ticked than even some women did—he knew that there had to be some legitimate reason for her acting like that. Luckily he wasn't shallow enough—not to mention way too mature—to just ruin the progress they had made then and there.
How can I find out what's wrong with her if she hates my guts? He sighed, trying desperately to not take everything she had said into offense.
So that's why…Aki didn't remember the two of them reconciling their differences and becoming friends—she only remembered the bad memories, the ones of them hating on each other and of Nuriko being a bit of a…bitch (he had to admit that his actions were…slightly unreasonable during his jealousy fit). The guy didn't want to admit it out loud, but next to him feeling bad about the events that unfolded, he was slightly relieved that Aki's behavior was the effect of one of those Shadow Maidens and not because of her changing her mind about him. There was no way he could have any fun with her if she really hated him. Besides all of that though, he did care for her on some level and he believed that they were really beginning bond for a while—in some…more or less unorthodox way.
He and Miaka were just fine, though. That girl was the poster-child for trusting and happy-go-lucky. There wouldn't have been much trouble consoling her and getting that one to talk—she was incredibly easier to deal with in comparison to her make-shift older sister. This condition of Aki's, however, was an incredible bummer—all of that trouble he had gone through and for what? Nothing—and he couldn't really do anything about it. It was a shame that magic and forces of the universe simply weren't his forte.
If only he had been there to prevent whatever it was from happening—surely his fellow warriors could have used someone with his strength to their advantage. Instead, he ended up playing messenger boy to the Emperor (out of all the people to play messenger to the beautiful emperor, he was more than happy to oblige, but still…Nuriko felt piles of regret for not fighting his way past enemy territory to help his friends). Even so, how could he have known what was going on?
Chichiri's continuation with the details of her condition brought the womanly-looking man out of his thoughts. "Without those emotions or even her memory of them, the natural element of Darkness within her is overwhelming all of the other elements she has control over. Not to mention the fact that it's polluting her ability to even access those now unknown emotions, ya know?" He sighed. "And not that I want to add on even more bad news, but it also appears that the impact of the Shadow Maiden's power had managed to somehow…um…how should I put this in a simple way…" Bringing up his finger to his lips, he thought about what words made the more sense. "I guess you can say that she sort of…deactivated most of the nerves throughout Aki's body, ya know? And because of that—"
"She lost the ability to feel the sensation of touch or move her body," Hotohori deduced. From the moment she had returned to the palace, he knew something was wrong with her. When he put his hand on her head, stroking her hair compassionately as she remained there, emotionless, in Tamahome's arms, she didn't even react or budge. He had seen her blush whenever he did something like that, felt her body tense up from her own awkwardness. But there had been…nothing. She didn't even know that he was touching her until she looked up at him from curiosity.
The emperor had been at a loss. All of the war-tactics and books his teachers made him learn from didn't seem to help out in this case, and that not only made him feel inadequate as an emperor, but also as a celestial warrior for not completely seeing his duties through, and as a friend for not being there for when Aki and the others needed him most. Sometimes, he despised being emperor—being confined to a throne and meetings a lot of the time instead of getting his hands dirty. All of the riches in the world could never compare to the time he could possibly be having with his loved ones and protecting them.
"So you're saying that…her emotions were sealed? And what—her memories have been permanently stolen?" Nuriko asked.
"There has to be something that we can do," Tamahome added in. His primary focus at the time was Miaka—he just had to get his beloved away from those that could cause her further harm. Still, in the back of his mind he kept on reminding himself how, if he had been strong enough to get through the barrier in the first place to the shrine, he could have prevented Miaka from getting hurt, and could have stayed a few minutes longer to ensure Aki's safety.
After hearing everyone's input, the monk did his best to address all of their questions and/or statements for confirmation. "In a sense, yep, her emotions were sealed off. Though we [Lady Taiitsukun and I] don't exactly know why, ya know? It happened either as her body's defense mechanism to ward off the Darkness from permanently affecting her positive outlook on the world, or the Shadow Maiden just wanted her to look at the world more negatively and not be aware of the better things in life. Either way, it's problematic, ya know?"
Miaka couldn't help but keep silent for most of the discussion. This had been her Onee-chan who was being forced to go through this and she had absolutely no idea how to help her. What good was it to be some prestigious priestess if she couldn't even do something like stop this…this whatever it was? If only she was able to summon Suzaku at that moment—one of her wishes would have definitely went out to her older sister in a heartbeat. Almost constantly throughout her mind she was reminded of how all of this was her fault. If she hadn't screwed with Aki's plan to rescue Yui, then none of those awful events would have taken place. Yui still might have harbored feelings of hatred for Miaka's supposed abandonment, but at least she wouldn't have been in the enemies clutches. Aki probably could have gotten Yui out of there no problem—but Miaka had to go and lose faith in Aki's abilities, following her there…she lead to her downfall. So…what could she say? How could she really contribute in any way?
Then the monk switched onto the next topic. "Nope. Technically, it's possible to steal memories with the right spell, though difficult since the brain is so complex, ya know? But we're pretty sure that this isn't the case." If it weren't for the enlightenment of Lady Taiitsukun with this dilemma, even Chichiri would have been extremely baffled regarding this whole thing. "Best case scenario is that the only reason she can't retrieve her memories is quite literally because she isn't aware that she has them, ya know? Worst case is that there are so many memories in her life that whatever this force was that did this to her, it's extremely intricate in that it's causing interference only with the memories dealing with happiness, ya know?" He sighed even more heavily as a sweat drop appeared on his head. "Having her recall every single one of those would actually be more difficult than it sounds ya know? Way too many factors to consider here—complicated wouldn't even begin to describe it, ya know?"
Noticing that his question wasn't exactly answered, Tamahome nudged Chichiri further. "And? How do we fix this? It's not exactly easy seeing her this way." Tama counted his blessings that Miaka wasn't the one suffering through all of this—it would kill him on the inside if she forgot about how they felt about one another. Imagining how bad he would feel for her made him ever more aware of how horrible Aki must have been feeling—all alone in her room by herself, wallowing in a pit of cloudy black despair. There was no way he'd allow her to experience this any longer than she honestly had to. Hell, even that was too long.
Chichiri shrugged guiltily. "That's part of the complicated part, ya know? Lady Taiitsukun told me that all of this should eventually subside. So her positive emotions and memories will hopefully come back over time." Rubbing the back of his head in an almost embarrassed way, he went on by saying, "As of now we have absolutely no idea how to trigger them, ya know?" Chichiri had been studying magic and the ways of the universe with his mentor Taiitsukun for a while now, yet it sort of disgraced him how he didn't know much of what was going on. Aki's case was so unique to her and her kind that it proved to be one heck of a challenge. The faster he could crack this code, the quicker he could help her out. After all…he, unlike the others, was completely aware of the inner torture she was already forced to endure—though it was probably an invasion of privacy how he knew more than she actually wanted him or anyone to know. In light of all of this, he was pretty sure that now (or ever) would not be a good time to tell her what he knew. Regardless of his inside knowledge, it all boiled down to the fact that she needed help and Chichiri might be one of her only hopes.
"All of this nonsense much cease immediately!" The emperor's sudden outburst caused everyone to snap their heads to face him. That whole time Chichiri and the others had been discussing the issue Hotohori had been absorbing everything in—evaluating the problem like a good leader should before coming up with what solution he believed was best. "These Shadow Maidens—whatever they may be—must be stopped. If they are in fact allying themselves with Kutou, then perhaps they are the real threat if they can bring such misery with just a small notion. The war should be with them!"
Chichiri scratched the side of his cheek sheepishly. "I'm sorry Your Highness, but at this time, we don't exactly have the resources to do something like that, ya know? But Aki does." He lowered his arm. "When it comes to the forces of Darkness, as of now, the best thing to do would just be to wait until she recovers, ya know?" Technically, their battle was with Kutou and their army, as well as the other natural forces of their world—including the four gods. "Forces of Darkness" weren't really even an option until Akimoto came into the picture. In a way, she dealt with them the best (though it didn't exactly seem like that at the moment). And it was true: leave certain problems to the experts. Aki wasn't exactly an expert, but she was the closest thing they had. It wouldn't have been a good idea to go tampering with the universe before she had a say in the matter.
"Instead of waiting around for her to get better," Nuriko suggested, "why don't we just find some way to heal her?"
On a matter that Chichiri usually would have answered, Tamahome put his knowledge on the table set before them as he shook his head. "This isn't just some simple sickness or injury—she can't move or feel joy, and has absolutely no recollection of being happy." Holding his chin in thought, Tama pondered on it some more. "It's not like something like this has ever happened before in history…I think. So I'm pretty sure that finding a medicine specific to this is somewhere near impossible."
Nuriko narrowed his eyes at him. "Way to kill the chances of an optimistic mood Tama-kins." I always knew you were a fighter, stingy, and a mooch, but I wasn't aware that you were a doctor all of a sudden. He sarcastically thought at the guy. Dr. SmartAss. Choosing to continue the attempt at a high road, Nuriko addressed his questions back towards Chichiri as he dropped a fist in his other hand. "How about we just go back to that specific Shadow Maiden and force her to tell us how to fix Aki?" He was proud of how he and the girl were friends, but now, Aki wasn't even aware that any of that even happened.
"Kind of the same problem arises as before, ya know?" Chichiri told him. "If Aki's the only one who can deal with those creatures, then she'd be the only one who could hold it down and force it to do anything." Nuriko's spirits began to drop again. Damn. "Anything we do would have little effect, ya know? And it doesn't exactly help the situation any more that Aki's pretty strong and the Shadow Maiden barely had any trouble defeating her."
Finally Miaka chose to speak up and add in her two-cents—a fact that was left out in this equation. "Aki-nee-chan was already in a battle with Nakago before going up against that Shadow Maiden. There's a chance that that tired her out and made her weaker than she was before. So in a way…that stupid Shadow Maiden cheated! There was absolutely nothing fair about what happened—she's too strong to lose to jerks like them." That guy…Nakago…Miaka thought to herself. He had something to do with Yui's anger towards me…I just know it! How much pain would that guy cause before he was satisfied?
Tamahome growled the moment the general of the Kutou army's name was mentioned. From where he was standing, he noticed how that Shadow Maiden came from his shadow—those two were in league with each other for some reason. The thought of those two planning to weaken Aki during separate battles probably wasn't that far-fetched. Sneaky bastards.
"Cheating or not, I still do not understand why Shadow Maidens would even be on their side," Hotohori furthered the conversation. None of them except Chichiri and Aki even knew who the Shadow Maidens were or how they were created, so that fact created an even bigger mystery when they found that those beings were dancing with the enemy. "This could only mean trouble for us in Konan—they've been given an unfair advantage—tampering with forces they, not even we, can understand." Of course, the best interests of his country were still at heart.
Nuriko perked up only slightly in response to his prince. "While that is true Your Majesty, you're forgetting one thing: Aki is our advantage." Perhaps that was why she was sent to them—she obviously had nothing to do with being a priestess or any of the four gods. She had the power to take out the part of Kutou that the Suzaku Warriors couldn't touch.
Though he appreciated the effort of optimism—he actually hated being such a downer like he was, it just wasn't in his personality—Chichiri rubbed the back of his neck. "Perhaps, but either way, she can't do anything at the moment, ya know?" She was still incapacitated.
For her whole life, Miaka had always seen Aki as the epitome of strength and confidence—it was difficult on her to see her role model so helpless (in a sense) like this. But still she stayed hopeful for her sake. "Why don't we just go to Aki-nee-chan's room and try to cheer her up? I mean, I know it probably won't do much good all things considered, but she still doesn't deserve to be all alone. She needs us."
Chichiri didn't hesitate in answering. "That would be a bad idea, ya know?"
She pouted. "How come?"
"So what I've gathered is that you're all aware of the Ring of Darkness around her?" Everyone nodded. They realized that thing's existence the moment when Aki revealed that she was a sorceress a little more than three months before. Once their friendship was established with one another, she wanted them to make sure that none of them got hurt by that mysterious force in which she had no control a lot of the time. Sure, none of them could actually see that it was there, but both Tamahome and Nuriko knew first-hand that that thing was no force to reckon with. All Nuriko had to do was piss Aki off by going too far with his insults in order to make him wish that he had never made that awful mistake. Tama was just an innocent bystander who happened to get caught up in the ring's negative flare of energy. Neither of them expected to have all of their happiness to just wash away in a flood of despair and doubt—having their misery bang at their heads until they wanted to cry from the agony as well as the sensations of pricks of ice continuously poking at each and every cell in their body. The flash of horror only lasted a few seconds, but those had been the worst moments they had ever experienced in their lives. It felt as if there was no escape and all they knew was the darkened abyss of pain.
The scary part to them was that that probably wasn't as bad as it could get. For all they knew, the ring was going easy on them. Was that what Aki had to deal with her whole life? Or was a version of that what she was experiencing now? Aside from being afraid of ever having that happen again, Nuriko still felt a little bad for making it happen in the first place. After apologizing to Aki, he felt a little better about it, but now, him acting like a bitch to her was all she could remember. Plus her day wasn't exactly rainbows and sunshine—she got her ass kicked by two chumps and now she was in a bad mood (more so because of the things she lost). Of course she snapped at him.
Sigh.
"Yeah, she has that dark ring around her," Tamahome observed, "but lately it seems like it's weakened and we didn't even realize it. I mean, if I didn't have my mind on it, I barely felt anything at all." Which still pretty much said that he still felt it to some degree. Aki had mentioned how each of them would be affected negatively because of that force and most of the time during the beginning, they had. However, they promised her that despite its effects, they'd continue to stay by her side. But usually, when she wasn't upset, Aki was fairly successful in suppressing the negative energy—which proved to be a lucky break for them.
Chichiri grinned and held up his index finger. "That's because during her journey, she had gained more control over it thanks to growing awareness, positive influences in mixture with experience, and Light. In fact, I'd be a bit surprised if she didn't have it more under control by now, ya know?" As he signed, his face and shoulders fell back down. "But now that her positive emotions and memories are gone for the moment, that ring of hers is in full power, emitting more Darkness than ever. So as of now, Aki no longer possesses the ability to 'lighten up' ya know?" The obvious pun there was pretty much discarded the moment it was dished out. No one really felt like laughing at that particular attempt to brighten the mood. Taking note of his failed joke, Chichiri cleared his throat, and went on with the graver news. "Because of that, getting anywhere near her would be a dire mistake—lethal even."
Everyone's eyes grew wide from the alarming news. The same thought went through everyone's mind simultaneously: We can't go near her? Miaka had been the first to speak up since no one else really knew what to say for the first few minutes. "That doesn't make any sense. Back at Mt. Taikyoku, Tamahome and I had no problems being near her. Even Hotohori and Nuriko seemed just fine when we brought her back. I don't get what you mean by getting near her would be dangerous."
"During that time, Lady Taiitsukun had been using her power to dilute Aki's flares of Dark energy, ya know? You all didn't notice because she was protecting you from her." Scanning everyone's eyes watching him, the explanation went on, "The thing is that Lady Taiitsukun didn't want to invest all of her time and energy keeping Aki at bay when instead, we could just wait for Aki's condition to subside, ya know?" So now Aki was in her room, all alone, immobile, as she lies on her bed. Making sure that she was isolated from those she could harm.
"So what you're saying is that we can't even go anywhere close to her or her room?" Hotohori was concerned about the girl as really desired to know if there was anything he could do to comfort her.
Waving his hand from side to side to signify reassurance, Chichiri told him, "Inside of the room, the walls are enchanted and have a barrier about them, preventing any of her Darkness from getting out and hurting us or others, ya know? As long as she stays in the room, everything should be okay."
How awful…To be left all alone during a dreadful time, the young emperor sympathized for the sorceress for it must have been unpleasant—far worse than any loneliness that he had ever felt or imagined. For so much of his life, he never thought that he'd meet the same loneliness he had as a child—parents no longer around and never even being able to associate with other children. It had always been to learn the ways of an emperor—that was his royal duty. Complaining was beneath him, but that didn't mean that he wasn't affected by that sort of isolation. And now, set before him was a girl who not only knew that pain, but had it far worse—she could never escape it even if she wanted to. For Hotohori, Miaka had been his savior and light…what did Akimoto have to save her? No one was even allowed to be with her and help her fight this battle. If he could, Hotohori would go to her side and hug her, reassuring the woman that everything would be alright—even if he wasn't sure that that were true.
What shocked him almost nearly as much was the absence of her bracelet—that gorgeous golden bracelet that had been given to her by someone precious. The last time Hotohori asked her about it, Akimoto would suddenly become bashful as she smiled and recalled the blissful memories associated with it. She mentioned how she'd never be able to see that person ever again, but that didn't matter to her—she still loved it all the same.
And now it was gone.
The one thing that was certain to make her smile had been lost. Though Hotohori hadn't known the details of what occurred in Kutou, he was positive that the sinister Shadow Maiden was somehow responsible for the absence of the bracelet. Had anyone else noticed how it was gone? He wasn't sure. Did it matter though? All that was important was how to be able to bring back that rare smile of hers.
However the replacement of something near and dear was not something that could happen in a day.
None of them knew how long Akimoto would be out of commission, she could be in her room like that for an infinite amount of time. The emperor was torn. As he looked over at Miaka, he was perfectly aware of what his duties were: keep her safe and assist in the summoning of Suzaku…for his country's sake. But wasn't it also important to be at the side of a dear friend who was suffering?
Seeing how distraught his friends were, Chichiri really hated the fact that he had to be the one to relay all of this information to them—sure it was stuff that was important and necessary to hear, but he didn't exactly enjoy being the bearer of bad news. The mask he wore on his face was meant to make people happy and not show the dread he had over his past. When he thought about it, the point was sort of lost when it was that playful mask that was causing everyone to look so sad.
He hated being so serious. In fact, it wasn't exactly like him to talk this much either. Lady Taiitsukun left the dirty job to Chichiri of telling everyone what the facts were and the cautions they needed to take in order to survive. Why couldn't she tell them instead? He asked himself, though he didn't question his long-time mentor directly, he had way too much respect for her to do that. For what it's worth, he just hoped that everything would return back to normal soon and that Aki would be okay.
Eventually…hopefully…
"Though it's not completely effective, I know a spell that can allow me to get close to Aki without having Darkness affect me, ya know?" At the sound of that, the group produced a glimmer of hope that shone in their eyes. "I'm really sorry guys but the spell is really difficult and draining, so I can only do it on myself, ya know?" Then he quickly added, "And only in the time of an emergency, ya know?"
Tamahome made a fist as he stomped the ground. "I can't believe that we're expected to just go on with our lives as Aki sits all alone in her room while being forced to sink deeper into any bad emotion and memory possible. I hate this!" He did make a valued point: life did go on and they'd end up having no choice but to do what they had to do and leave Aki behind—indefinitely stuck in the same miserable state. If they waited around for her, Kutou might have ended up making their move and Konan could suffer. With a clearer mind, Aki wouldn't want that.
"You hate this?" Nuriko poked in as he punched his hand determinately. "None of us are even able to avenge Aki—there's definitely more than one reason why this whole thing leaves a sour taste in my mouth."
A separate thought had been coursing through Miaka's mind. "What happens if Onee-chan is able to walk again before her memories and emotions come back? She's not exactly the type to just sit around in some room…when she can—ya know, leave." On the one hand, Aki might have stayed in her room because she wouldn't have felt the desire to be near anyone due to her condition. But on the other hand, for some reason or another, she'd end up leaving her room at some point. And should that situation happen the dark ring around her wouldn't end up showing mercy to any poor soul who happened to be walking by.
Luckily, Taiitsukun seemed to have already thought of this since Chichiri suddenly mentioned, "If that happens, we're prepared, ya know?" As he held out his fist, palm up, the curious bunch approached him slowly, wondering what the monk was planning. Just then, a flash of white light spontaneously erupted from his fist, only to dim down as he opened his hand. In the middle of his palm were four silver rings, each one of them emitting some sort of delightful essence. Chichiri gave a small, uneasy smile. "Well, it's not the best solution to the problem, but they're better than nothing, ya know?"
Even with the atmosphere as tense as it was, Nuriko and Miaka's eyes instantly lit up at the sight of the bits of sparkling jewelry. "How marvelous! I know that jewelry can't truly heal a wounded heart, but it's a good start!" Nuriko squealed with delight.
"They're so pretty!" Miaka agreed. Although the silver rings were pretty ordinary looking, there was just something about them that made them so attractive. Shaking her head to escape from the trance, Miaka asked, "Why the rings Chichiri?"
He smiled at her. "These aren't ordinary rinds, ya know? Each one of them was enchanted. When you wear them, the effects of Darkness on you are significantly weakened, however, not completely gone, ya know?" Well, some defense was better than no defense. "So if Aki does come out of her room on her own, then at least, for the most part, you'll be fine."
"What about everyone else in my palace? Or all of Konan?" Hotohori asked in concern for his country.
"Even though Aki isn't exactly in…the best mood right now, she is, I believe, considerate of people's feelings and fully aware to the dangers of her curse, ya know? If it would put people in danger, she'd back off." I'm pretty sure she would anyway...He tried to get himself to have trust in the woman's now impaired senses. However there was no doubt in his mind that, even if she didn't care about the others, she still probably wouldn't have the desire to wreak havoc or be around others. She's end up staying in isolation all her own—that was the lifestyle she was more accustomed to anyway—at least, that was what the monk had heard about her from Taiitsukun. Chichiri had seen elements of that side of her personality during the travels with her and Genrou.
Taking only a few more seconds to inspect the rings, the remaining four reached out and inserted them on the finger of their choosing. With the use of magic, each one of the rings fit to match its bearer, ensuring everyone that they'd remain without any problems.
"Are we actually supposed to feel anything?" Tamahome ended up asking the question that arose with the rest of them. None of them actually doubted that Chichiri would give them duds…but it was always good to make sure.
Chichiri waved him off. "Not really, ya know? However it should activate once Aki gets near you—well, more like if she comes near you." He reminded them, "Just remember that these aren't designed to make you immune to her powers, just safe enough to well, uh…keep your sanity and…for your safety, ya know?" It was then that the monk grabbed everyone's attention with a loud, "Oh I almost forgot!" Making sure that he had everybody's full attention, his last bit of news surprised them all. "You cannot, under any circumstance, tell Aki that she lost her memories. She is not allowed to know by any means, ya know?"
"What if—" Miaka began to say.
"I'm sorry Miaka but this is quite literally a matter of life or death, ya know?" Knowing that his spectators were going to ask anyway, Chichiri just went on. "Not only does Aki's Darkness have the power to potentially kill us, but also…" What can be worse than that? The group thought. "She's susceptible to turning into a Shadow Maiden as well if the right conditions are met."
"That's impossible! That could never happen!" Hotohori cried out in the woman's defense. "Akimoto is nothing like those demons. No matter how miserable she is, there is no possible way for her to become one of them." The last word of that sentence had been battered in a thick chilled layer, showing his complete disgust for those creatures of Darkness.
Chichiri turned to him. "Sorry to say this Your Highness, but Aki is more likely now than ever to turn into one of them, ya know? For more reasons that I can't honestly explain to you at this time. But what I can tell you is that if she were to know that she's lost something so precious, it could probably be the right push she needs to fall into a deep enough pit of despair and into a Shadow Maiden, ya know? It really sucks, but that's reality unfortunately." In response to this, all Hotohori could do was grind his teeth and clench his fists, closely resembling the gestures of the others who couldn't stand to hear the news. As unspoken as it was, the group figured that Aki was probably extremely fragile at a time such as that—with barely any Light present within her being at all. The little amounts that were there, though seemingly nonexistent, were the one thing preventing her from Turning then and there. Anything that threatened its ability to stay inside her also threatened her ability to maintain her humanity. "You guys must promise me that you will never tell her." To that, they all just shifted uncomfortably in their spots as they glanced around uncomfortably at one another. After all, Chichiri was asking them to keep a huge secret from one of their most trusted companions—something that had to do with her! And she wasn't allowed to know. Suffering in her room all by herself from the lack of happy memories or emotions…the ones that she wasn't even allowed to recall…or else…disaster. "C'mon guys, you have to promise." This time, they all mumbled something under their breath, still a little too inaudible for Chichiri to be satisfied. Taking in a deep breath, he demanded, "I SAID PROMISE!" Usually, he'd never raise his voice like that, but it was sort of necessary this time around.
Jumping from the sudden startle, the remaining four simultaneously exclaimed, "We promise!"
A horrible feeling bubbled in the pit of their guts at the terrible promise they were forced to make.
We're so sorry Aki…
Am I in a room? Or… is this supposed to be Hell? The fine line between the two reflected that of a spider's silky thread. Instead of having my skin and bones be singed from the intense flames of Hades, I could sense a chill as freezing as the nonexistent heart of the Shadow Maiden Stella.
If this were Hell, then wouldn't the punishment have been more effective if I could physically suffer for my sins? And there was…no fire—only darkness. This kind of sea of black had the potential to drown any normal person from its lonely, immobile, and glacial constriction. Swimming to the surface was but a dream, not even the sun could be seen…I had sunken so low.
…I could feel nothing at all.
I'd tell my fingers to move, for my legs to jerk, and they wouldn't listen as if they were defiant children. To me, it was like my body was just a clear capsule of some sort, and my soul was trapped in the container, forced to be a spectator to the taunting world that played on the outside.
What had happened before? Someone…it was Tamahome…or was it Chichiri? who had brought me to my chamber. It didn't even seem important to me that Chichiri was a Suzaku warrior…nothing seemed to matter except my imprisonment. Just as I was set down, the walls that enclosed me had been enchanted with a spell that was unfamiliar to me, but I knew their purpose. With their help, no one else would have to experience even a fraction of this lifetime nightmare. If this had been my life from the start, perhaps people wouldn't have had to go through such hateful measures…or even fearful ones…to avoid my unwanted curse.
Well, that was just fine to me. Being around people only caused incessant worries and trauma. If I learned anything from this accursed collection of dreadful memories, it was that they were the problem. They'd just judge me, not bothering to go the extra mile to learn the truth—each doing whatever it took to protect themselves.
I growled. So…weak and selfish humans. That was really what I wanted to think of them—I had every reason to.
No, this wasn't Hell—this was my life.
This is what it's become.
ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!