Disclaimer - I do not own the rights to any of the characters in this fanfic. All characters belong to their proper creators/companies. Enjoy!
AN - A special thanks goes to Sam and Silver Flare for their suggestions. You both had a similar idea ... I suppose great minds think alike! ^_^ Thanks again!
Unity - Rei and Ryo
This takes place during "This Time Around, Part 4," after Mia, Lita, Serena, and Kento head off into the city to look for Rini.
Rei watched as Mia's jeep went around the corner, and a feeling of foreboding washed over her. She crossed her arms, and she felt an arm go around her shoulders. She saw Ryo from the corner of her eye, and she leaned into him, wrapping an arm around his waist. She rested her head against his shoulder, and closed her eyes.
"Everything will be fine, Rei," Ryo said. "They'll contact us if they run into any trouble. Besides, Lita is a strong warrior, and Kento is there. I have a feeling he wouldn't let anything happen to any of them, especially Serena."
"I know, Ryo," she replied. "But, I just have this bad feeling, and I can't shake it." She looked up at him and smiled. "But thank you for trying to comfort me."
"Anytime, Rei," he said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. She blushed slightly, and sighed inaudibly.
"It would be so nice to be close to you like this all the time, Ryo," she thought to herself. She smiled at the thought, and then scolded herself. "But I can't think about that right now! I've got to do something to ease my mind about this bad feeling I have." She looked into the distance, and saw Mia's red jeep disappear from sight. "Ryo, do you have somewhere I can mediate," she asked.
"Yeah, sure. Follow me," he said, grabbing her hand and leading her towards the house.
"Thanks," she replied. She was surprised by his actions, however she found herself holding his hand back. A small smile appeared on her face as they entered the house.
"We don't have a fire room here in the house," he began. "But out in the back, there's a make-shift camp site. When the guys and I returned from your world, Mia and Yuli built it, and we all stayed out back the whole night." He smiled at the memory. "And Anubis used it from time to time when he was the Ancient."
"You miss him, don't you," Rei asked, noticing as a shadow crossed over Ryo's face. He looked over at her and smiled.
"Yeah, I do," he replied. "We all do. I always sensed something different about him. He was somewhat kinder than the other Warlords were, though he was still a formidable enemy. When he became the Ancient, I was the first to accept him. He became part of our group, but more importantly, he became family. It was tough losing him, especially for Mia."
"I noticed that," she replied quietly. "Mia has this emptiness in her eyes. I noticed it right away, because Serena had that same exact look when Darien had amnesia. In fact, now that I think about it . . ."
"What is it," Ryo asked as Rei's voice trailed off. She shook her head.
"Oh, it's nothing," she replied, giving him a reassuring smile. Ryo shrugged his shoulders in response, and as he opened the back door for her, Rei reluctantly released his hand.
"Let's get some firewood, and then we can get a fire started," he said as he followed her out into the backyard. She nodded her head in agreement, and the two silently collected the wood. After a few minutes, a fire was slowly burning in the fire pit.
"Thank you, Ryo," Rei said as she knelt down in front of the fire.
"What are you doing anyway," Ryo asked, stoking the fire.
"I'm going to see if I can uncover the identity of the enemy," she replied, getting comfortable. "I can usually detect an enemy through a fire reading. In fact, that's how I learned when you guys came into our world."
"Oh really," he asked. "What happened? How did you know when we arrived in your world?"
"Well," she began, searching her memories. "I performed the fire reading like normal, but nothing happened at first. Then suddenly, the fire began to react strangely, and cast shadows of armored soldiers on the walls. It was really strange, because that's the first time that had ever happened."
"That's interesting," he stated.
"It was really strange," she commented. She raised an eyebrow towards him as he sat down near her.
"You don't mind some company, do you? I'm interested in what will happen," he began, getting comfortable. "I can leave, if you want me to."
"No, don't leave," she exclaimed. "I don't mind your company. Besides, the others are usually present when I do fire readings. I perform one whenever we have our Scout meetings."
"You won't even know I'm here," he said, closing his eyes. She smiled, and withdrew a small pouch from her pocket. She threw some powder from the pouch into the fire, and as it began to burn faster, she put her hands together.
"Oh great Fire Spirit, reveal to me our new enemy," she prayed. She closed her eyes, and quietly began chanting a mantra. She grew quiet as she began to concentrate, and Ryo opened his eyes and looked over at her.
"I'm totally smitten with you, Rei," he thought to himself, coming to that realization as he watched her. Her raven-colored hair gently moved against her cheek, and tiny beads of sweat began to gather on her forehead. "I just wish that I could tell you, without feeling stupid." His head snapped up towards Rei as she gasped. He moved over towards her, and put a hand on her shoulder. "Rei," he asked hesitantly.
"Shh," she hissed. "Great Fire Spirit," she thought, concentrating harder, "reveal the enemy to me!" Her eyes flew open, and she began to chant the mantra again. "Earth, sky, water, fire, sun, stars . . ." The fire roared up violently, and she reeled back in surprise.
"Rei," Ryo exclaimed. He pulled her up to a sitting position, and she wearily rested her head on his chest. She watched as the fire began to die down, and saw a figure within. However, when she blinked her eyes, it disappeared.
"What was that," she asked herself, a frown appearing on her face. "Who was that?"
"Rei, are you alright," Ryo asked, concerned thick in his voice.
"I … just had a vision," she replied. "I'm okay, though. The fire does that sometimes, especially when it's an intense evil or power. That's all."
"What happened," he asked.
"When you touched me, I lost concentration," she replied, wiping her brow with the back of her hand. "And I didn't see the entire vision, just part f it."
"I'm sorry that I distracted you," Ryo apologized.
"Don't worry about it," she replied. "My link was bound to break eventually. And I think that I saw the most important clue, right after the link was broken. But I'm not entirely sure." Ryo looked at her intently as she paused to gather her thoughts. "Our enemy is vaguely familiar," she continued. "The evil power I felt was too recognizable to forget. I just can't place which enemy it was."
"Well, we'll figure it out, Rei," he replied, smoothing down her hair. "Together." The two sat silently, and Rei listened to the sound of Ryo's breathing contently. She let her mind wander, and then began to chuckle lightly. "What's so funny," Ryo asked.
"Oh, I was just realized something," she replied.
"And what's that," he asked again. She sat up, and looked at him with an amused look on her face.
"Well, you always seem to distract me whenever I'm doing a fire reading," she began. "No one else has ever broken my concentration, like you have. My concentration has always been lost when the reading overpowers me. Remember back at my Grandfather's temple, when you brought me breakfast. Well, you distracted me then, too. There's something about you, Ryo, that I just can't put my finger on."
"Maybe it's my rugged good looks," he replied coyly.
"Maybe," she replied, blushing slightly. She looked away from him and sighed. "Ryo, can I ask you something?"
"Sure, what is it," he asked.
"Well, do you think we'll be able to defeat this new enemy," she asked. She turned back towards him, allowing a concerned look to cross her face. "We have yet to see the enemy, so what bothers me is that we don't know how powerful they are."
"I don't think there's anything to worry about, Rei," he replied thoughtfully. "The ten of us make a great team. We've proved that much already. We'll do fine if we work as a team."
"I'm not worried, Ryo," she stated. "I … I'm a little scared." She paused and looked into his eyes. "How are we supposed to defeat an enemy that's strong enough to chase someone from the future back into the past? It makes me wonder whether we're strong enough for this task."
"Hey, you're not giving yourself enough credit," Ryo argued. "You girls are really strong. I remember that one time you made me and the guys swallow our own words when you beat us senseless, although I got off a lot easier than the others."
"I remember that," she stated, smiling at the memory. "But even back then, we almost lost. I just don't …" Her sentence was cut off as Ryo put a finger against her lips.
"Rei, even if the powers you gain from your guardian planet aren't enough, your spirituality will give you the strength that you need," he commented. Rei looked at him, and then smiled.
"It's no wonder you're the leader of the Ronins," she said. "You have me almost convinced that we can beat the enemy."
"We can, Rei, and we will," Ryo stated.
"I supposed that you're right," she conceded, sighing. "This is so unlike me! We proved you guys wrong when you thought we were weak, and we'll prove to this enemy that just because they might be stronger, we're no pushovers!" She stood up, however Ryo grabbed her arm, pulling her back down. "What is it," she asked, sitting across from him.
"I never thought you were weak," he said. "I was just concerned for your well-being. I wanted to protect you … I've wanted to ever since the first time I saw you." He paused, and took her hands into his. "And even if I did think you were weak, you changed my mind on the docks that one time you held you own against those Dynasty soldiers - without transforming."
"Well, thank you, Ryo," she replied. "That means a lot to me, especially coming from you."
"I just guess there's something about you, Rei," he stated. "And I can't quite put my finger on it." She smiled and winked at him.
"I guess so, Ryo," she replied, leaning towards him. As she did so, Ryo gasped involuntarily.
"She's so close to me," he thought to himself. "If I were to lean forward just a little, I would be close enough to kiss her. But how would she react?" He cleared his throat and looked into her eyes. "Rei," he began. However, he never got to finish what he was going to say. Rei leaned forward and kissed him. He smiled inwardly as he kissed her back, and wrapped his arms around her. They finally pulled apart, and she smiled at him.
"It's your eyes, Ryo," she stated, brushing aside a piece of hair that fell into his face.
"What's my eyes," he asked, confused.
"I've always liked your eyes," she replied. "I've always thought they were a beautiful color. It's the first thing I noticed about you, the first time we met. They have this calming affect on me."
"A lot of people have blue eyes, Rei," he stated.
"Not like yours, Ryo, believe me," she argued. "Now hush, you, and learn to take a compliment from me. They're few and far between."
"I think I can handle that," he replied, kissing her. Their kiss was cut short as Rei's communicator went off.
"You guys, this is Mia," the woman's voice filtered through. "There's trouble. Some strange woman has a little girl trapped, and Serena thinks that it's Rini. Serena and Lita have transformed, and so has Kento. Come quickly. We're in the shopping district where Ryo and White Blaze first appeared." As Mia's message ended, Rei and Ryo looked up at each other.
"Well, I guess this is it," Rei stated.
"Yeah," he said. He took her face into his hands and kissed her briefly. "We'll fight together, Rei." She nodded her head, and then the two warriors ran back through the house, to find the others.
Fin.
Hey all! Keep a lookout for Unity - Mina and Rowen. That one will probably be next, followed by the last part of This Time Around and Unity - Serena and Kento. That's the order I plan on writing, but things can change. Keep a lookout for them, and as always, please leave a review.