Hello! It's me! ::everybody present gasps:: Yes! I'm not dead! Surprised I got this done, finally? Me too. Sorry I've been so lazy to everyone who's been keeping track of my progress. I have so many excuses, I won't even bring them up. So, yeah! CHAPTER THREE IS NOW HERE!!! Aren't you proud? Agh! My wrist hurts from typing! So, I'm gonna stop! r/r! Thankies!! And, I apologize for the long-ness/boring-ness of this chapter! ^_^ have fun reading!!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
It was raining again…
Yamato rose sleepily from his bed, his dreams rudely disrupted by the patter of the hard, Autumn rain outside his window. Usually he welcomed rain, but tonight had been different. So much had been on his mind; it had taken him nearly an hour to finally get to sleep—before the rain had disrupted it. Had it a neck, he would have liked to strangle it just then, for bringing him back to the land of the waking, also causing his thoughts to rush back to him relentlessly. He sighed and groaned deeply, becoming aware of how sore his arms and back were.
"Probably from working too hard with the shop, yesterday," he muttered to himself, rubbing his sore neck and glancing at the clock from the side of his eye. He groaned deeper as he read the time: Three-thirty a.m. The perfect time to start a beautiful new day of school. Sighing audibly, Yamato knew that he would not be able to get to sleep again; not now that his mind was running, anyway.
He walked sullenly across his small bedroom and opened his creaky door, doing so as quietly as possible. He did not want to wake his tired father who, sadly, had come home only and hour after Yamato had. The man worked so hard to provide for them both—he surely deserved some rest.
His bare feet could feel the cold tile floor as he left the other carpeted areas of the apartment, sending shivers through his body. The night was far colder than he had remembered it being in quite a long time. He'd become so accustomed to the warm, summer weather that he had almost forgotten what Autumn felt like. Although, this night seemed to be far colder than he had ever remembered it being before.
The blond boy ignored this sudden chill and made his way—tiptoeing—to the refrigerator. A soft light filled the dark room as he opened the door and he watched it spread its fingers of light across the cold, linoleum floor. Turning his attention away from the silky beams of light, Yamato poked his head into he chilly refrigerator, not really intent on any certain thing. Truthfully, he was not really hungry or thirsty, and was merely in the kitchen finding food out of pure, innocent habit.
Suddenly coming to the conclusion that he was merely thirsty, the blond boy stepped away from the chilly refrigerator and walked, almost silently, to the cupboard. Reaching a pale hand inside, he picked a glass and filled it with water from the faucet in the sink. He slowly tilted his head back as the glass came to his lips, water pouring from the glass and into his dry throat. Once the glass had been emptied, he set it down quietly in the sink and looked around the empty kitchen. His eyes wandered aimlessly about the deserted room, his eyes growing more accustomed to the darkness that filled the small apartment.
The only lights in anywhere came from the streetlights outside the windows in the apartment, and Yamato's eyes followed them. The rain was visible on the window in shadows that were seen only through the thin curtains. The rain, though pouring terribly outside, landed softly on the glass of the window, glittering for a moment as it reflected the streetlights, then sliding down and forming larger shadows with the other drops. Without realizing it, the boy's feet had slowly shuffled over to the window as his hands stroked the thin, silky curtains aside to glimpse out to the outside.
The world was silent. Though Yamato was still on the inside, he could almost feel the stillness of the world by simply looking into the darkness. The rain had begun to steady to a slow, almost rhythmic pace, now coming down in gentle drops. Without thinking, the blond boy's hand reached for the latch on the tiny window, flipping it upward and pushing up the windowpane with ease. The cold wind from the outside forced its way through the open window, it's icy fingers caressing the boy's pale face. The rain, also, decided it might like to come in, seeing as how the window was now open. It splattered against Yamato's clothes, slowly soaking into the dark fabric and disappearing. The boy stood shivering for a moment amazed at how quickly the steady rain and wind had changed from calm to violent.
A sudden, strange curious feeling overtook the blond boy. Unknowingly, he had stuck his blond head out the window and looked around. The wind and rain beat against him worse then ever, trying to force him back inside. He ignored the sudden violence of the elements, his arms resting comfortably on the edges of the windowsill. His soft hair dripped with the rain that had fallen, and he watched it intently. The drops would linger, only for a moment, to the ends of a few strands of hair, as if the hair were some kind of lifeline. When it could hold no longer, it would drop down to the earth below, joining several other drops on the way. Yamato's mind wandered as he watched the falling rain, wondering about stupid things that one could only think about when desperately tired. As the rain fell on him, however, nearly soaking and chilling him to the bone, he became more wary and his thoughts became more complex.
His eyes eventually wandered away from the rain on his hair up to the sky, the source of the droplets. It stuck him, suddenly, that he could not see the stars. The clouds were so thick that night that not even one single star was visible and, for some reason he could not explain, this saddened Yamato. After spending so many days in the past two weeks with Sora Takenouchi, he had become… accustomed to star gazing, which was something the orange-haired girl did nearly every clear night.
The frown the boy had been wearing deepened as he thought of his orange-haired friend, knowing that she was probably sadder this night than he was about the stars not being out. He wondered if, by chance, his friend could maybe be awake, also. Perhaps she, too, had been wakened by the sound of the rain pounding on her window, and that she had gotten up to watch the rain as he had. That, maybe, she could be thinking about him as he was thinking of her…
Shaking his head to clear it of thought, the blond boy knew that something like that was only wishful thinking. Fresh rain fell from the locks of hair he had shaken, falling onto his already rain-soaked face and sending a slight chill down his spine. His brain acknowledged this chill as nothing as his thoughts continued to wander. He could have punched himself for focusing his thoughts on Sora—he'd been thinking about her too much, as it was. In fact, she was nearly all he ever thought about, lately.
He'd already convinced himself that he was, indeed, falling in love with her. He didn't know what had triggered this sudden change in feelings for this girl that he had known nearly all of his life—if there ever really had been a change. He'd always known that he had felt something for her, but he had always just interpreted this feeling as friendship. How wrong he had been to think that… He'd always loved this girl and was just far too selfish and naïve to ever admit it, even to himself. Spending more time with her had made him realize just how far his feelings went for the orange-haired girl… and he could have kicked himself for it.
Falling in love was probably the last thing Yamato would ever have wanted to happen to himself, no matter how glorified people made it sound. Love was only wonderful if the person you were in love with loved you back. The blond boy was more than sure that Sora did not. He knew that she felt at least something for him, but this feeling was only friendship, nothing more. Nor would it ever be anything more.
A sneeze escaped the blond boy unexpectedly, causing him to drift back to his senses. He had hardly realized he'd even been with his head out the window, or what he had been thinking about. He pulled himself out gently, closed and locked the window, and rubbed his head, dazedly. He vaguely recalled a picture of a certain orange-haired girl but, being as tired and soaked as he was, he hardly knew what to make of it.
Rubbing his head, he became aware of the state his clothes were in, and decided it best to get changed and attempt to get back to sleep. A yawn escaped his lungs as he trudged tiredly off to his bedroom, intent on a change of clothes and some sleep. Anything he had been thinking of just a few minutes ago had completely escaped him, he couldn't figure out why. Although, in the state he was in now, he could have cared less. It was probably better that he didn't remember, anyway, considering how strange his thoughts had been lately…
After changing into some new clothes and climbing into his bed, Yamato became aware of how dramatically the rain had softened. It was barely audible, now. It brought another silence with it, followed by a quick rush of thought. It was all very blurred and nearly disappeared as he rolled over on his mattress, but something seemed to kind of stick with him, even as he fell into a light sleep.
Her smiling face greeted him in his dreams…
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
She awoke coughing profusely, finding it harder and harder to breath with every loud, wrenching cough. She leaned over the side of her strangely and suddenly uncomfortable bed, fearing that her lungs could suddenly fall out, along with her stomach. Her eyes began to tear up as the coughing continued relentlessly, causing her spine to wrench upward with every breath that she lost to the fit.
After nearly five minutes, the coughing subsided, leaving Sora feeling dizzy and gasping for air. It had been like this for nearly two weeks. Sora had been feeling ill in every way possible for so long, yet she tried to hide it as best she could. There was no use having anyone being concerned over her, especially her mother, who seemed to be concerned about her nearly all the time, over nothing or anything in particular. Her mother was far too stressed and worried with other things to bother being worried over her own daughter any more than she already did. It was senseless, and the orange-haired girl did not want to be the cause of some pointless worry.
When the girl had regained the necessary amount of air into her lungs again, she rose unsteadily from her bed and glanced at the clock. Nearly five in the morning, her mother would have already been at work. Sora had always thought it odd that, lately, her mother had been leaving for the shop earlier every week. The girl had certainly noticed a change in her mother, lately, but decided it had been nothing to worry about. For years, Sora had known how much strangely her mother acted in fall apart from other seasons, and she had long ago found the reason why.
Long ago, the orange-haired girl recalled, she had had a father, who her mother had been deeply in love with. However, on some day during Autumn when Sora had only been a tiny child, her father had passed away. This had left her mother devastated, and, even as a young child, Sora knew her mother would never be the same, especially in this season.
But this year seemed to be different. The usual mood the girl's mother usually portrayed in the fall was one of only slight sadness and an almost constant daze. This year, Sora had carefully observed, had been different from others. Her mother's sadness seemed to be replaced by a constant mourning that seemed to place an almost tragic air around the woman. She always seemed to be dreading something, though Sora did not know what. She decided, however, that she would not like to know. Her mother was a very mysterious woman, full of secrets and ambitions yet to be uncovered by someone, one day. Sora, having known her mother for her entire life, knew how stubborn she was. She would tell Sora nothing 'til the time was right.
Tipping slightly, the orange-haired girl made her way to the door, deciding that a drink of water might be the best thing after having a coughing fit like the one she'd had. The door creaked as she opened it, as quietly as possible at first, until she reminded herself that her mother was most likely not home anyway. She flicked on a few lights as she entered the kitchen, standing for a moment to adjust her eyes. Her mother was surely gone, for on the counter was another note. Picking it up tiredly, Sora skimmed through it, not really paying attention to what she was reading.
"Sora, sorry to leave so early. Please get yourself off to school all right. Have a good day. I'll see you tonight."
Then she would sign it. Every day, it was the exact same note… Sora wondered why she continued to read it every day…
Tossing the note aside, Sora proceded to get herself some water. After doing so, she went sullenly back to her bedroom, intent on at least and hour more of sleep, if it was at all possible. However, before she reached the confines of her bedroom, something caught her eye. The rain was coming down hard outside the kitchen window, possibly harder than it had that entire night. For some reason, this suddenly made the girl curious and, without giving sleep another thought, she walked lightly toward the window.
Pushing aside the curtains, the orange-haired girl stared intently out the window. She was surprised that the sun had not risen yet. In fact, there was hardly any light anywhere, as far as she could see. Sora's apartment building was located on the outskirts of the city, far away from the bright lights that others usually saw through their windows. The only light the girl really ever depended on was the moon and the--!
"The stars…" Sora muttered to herself, suddenly taken aback. "My stars… aren't out tonight… and soon it will be morning…" She could feel her spirit drop. Usually the rain was so inviting… during other seasons. Fall was not the time for rain—it couldn't rain! Fall was the only time she ever got to communicate with them. How was she supposed to talk to her friends if the clouds never went away?
The orange-haired girl rested her elbows on the window ledge, then placed her chin in her hands. She watched the sky intently, again giving it a questioning glare. Why did it have to rain? She wondered this over several times in her mind, hardly noticing that the night was slowly slipping away, leaving her without a chance to talk to the stars, anyway. The only time it struck her that the day was approaching is when the streetlights outside her apartment abruptly flickered off in unison, signaling that the new day was nigh. Surprisingly, the rain began to slow, as if it were excited at the prospect of a new day itself. However, considering the fact that it was still Autumn, the morning was still dark and still. No cars passed, no dogs barked. Everything seemed utterly still on this new morning.
Taking her eyes away from the window to focus on a nearby clock, Sora became aware that it was nearly time to get ready for school. Giving the sky one last, resentful glance, she drew the thin curtains together and trudged away to her bedroom. It was only around six o' clock, but Sora always liked to be ready by seven. This was always so she could stop by the park on her way to school to watch the leaves from the trees fall. Other than the stars, Sora's favorite part of Fall had to be the falling leaves. They were always particularly beautiful, she observed, in the exact area she lived. It was her way of thanking them by admiring their beauty at every possible moment.
The smell of roses and clean linen are what greeted Sora as she slid open her closet in search of her sailor fuku. Upon spotting the fuku, she unwittingly turned her nose up in disgust. She'd always hated the outfit, colored a disgusting shade of green that horribly clashed with her ginger-orange hair and a too-short skirt to match—she would have paid good money to burn the thing. However, after staring disgustedly at the suit for a while, she finally managed to pull it on. She knew that it wasn't too bad; once she had it on, she'd hardly be able to see it. It's what other people saw that worried her.
The mirror had become slightly dusty overnight, and Sora was forced to use the sleeve of her fuku in order to see a reflection. As her eyes focused on the image she knew to be herself, she became aware of how horribly messy her hair had become. Taking the comb set upon the desk beside her, she pulled it through her orange hair, only slightly amazed by how easily any tangles or knots came undone through the force of her comb. She studied herself only for a moment before locating her favorite scent bottle and spraying it through the air. She carefully watched the mist as it floated down, then stepping through it, catching some of the scent on herself.
The rest of her morning preparations went by normally. The sky was still somewhat dark when she left her apartment, though there was enough light to see by. She closed the door gently as she exited, making sure to lock the metal door behind her. The morning was freezing, and vile winds bit at Sora from every direction. The comfort of a warm elevator seemed more promising than ever. The ride was short, however, and barely managed to warm more than Sora's fingertips. She shivered and clutched her coat tightly, determined to tough out the cold. She headed in the direction of the park nearest to her school.
As she neared the park, leaves began to fall from every direction. The orange-haired girl watched them as they fell, occasionally falling onto her head or shoulder. Moist leaves would stick to her shoes as she walked, and she would not bother to kick them off. She found her favorite bench, after a while, and sat down.
The girl nearly jumped from her seat as she felt a hand on her shoulder only after a moment of sitting. The person immediately apologized for startling her. She immediately recognized the voice and, as a natural reaction, she could feel her face begin to burn. Icy blue eyes met her own brown eyes when she turned around.
"Morning, Sora," Yamato said warmly, and took a seat next to his orange-haired friend. She immediately turned her head away to hide the blush that was slowly making its way to her cheeks. Out of habit, her hand found its way to her neck and, from there, found the chain of a necklace. The necklace he had given her on the first day of Fall only a few weeks ago. She held the piece of jewelry in her cold hands and waited for the blushing to subside, then turned to her blond friend and returned his kind greeting. There was a moment of silence before Yamato decided to start a conversation.
"What're you doing here, Sora?" he questioned, not really curious to know at all. He was surprised to have found her there, but it was a surprise that made him happy. He loved seeing her more than anything. After the night he'd had, her presence made him happier than anything, after having spent nearly half of that night wishing to see her. The smile on his face refused to go away.
"I always come here," Sora responded, "Every morning before school, I come to watch the leaves." Yamato looked at her questioningly.
"Is that so?" He asked, turning his gaze from his friend's wind-bitten face, to the trees. "Hm… You have some very interesting habits, I've noticed." Sora grinned at his comment.
"So, you're saying that you're habits are normal?" she commented, glancing at him from the side of her eye. The smile on Yamato's face changed from a wide smile to a friendly smirk as he once again focused his vision on the orange-haired girl.
"As normal as they come," he stated matter-of-factly, and Sora grinned to herself. She opened her mouth to retaliate, but the only sound that managed to come out was the chattering of her teeth. She quickly shut her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut, hugging herself tighter. Yamato immediately became concerned. The weather was indeed cold, but it couldn't have been that cold, could it?
Her fingertips stood out from the rest of her hand, having become a bright reddish color while the rest of her skin stayed a pale, sickly tan. Upon instinct, Yamato reached over and took her frostbitten hands into his, and held them tightly. Sora would have liked to react, but as of then, it felt as if her entire body was being frozen. She didn't want to move, for fear that she might lose the bit of warmth she had collected.
"Sora," Yamato muttered, "You're so cold!" reaching into one of the many pockets sewn into his jacket, he fished around for a moment before pulling out the desired object. Gently, he rubbed Sora's cold fingers before bringing out a pair of black wool gloves, and handing them to her. She stared at them blankly before realizing what was there. She took them quickly; almost greedily, and shoved them onto her hands without hesitation. She then allowed Yamato to continue rubbing them in his own, strangely warm hands. Within seconds, Sora's entire body had been warmed significantly, either from the blood warming up in her hands or some other sense in her body. She didn't know which, but she also didn't care. At least she was warm… and with Yamato.
In the distance, a bell rang, signaling to the two teenagers that it was time to get going. And they did so, Yamato helping Sora up from the bench and, to her great surprise and delight, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, stating that he was only trying to keep both of them warm. This was only partly true, though Yamato dared not admit it. He knew well enough to admit to himself that he was in love with her; he had no need to let her know it. They walked slowly together in silence to school, both of them leaning close together to conceal warmth and, perhaps, something else.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The professor strode smugly to the front of the room, waiting in anticipation for the class to bow to him in unison, as expected. The class rose and bowed only half-heartedly, for this particular man was hated among many of the students. Displeased by their performance, the professor forced them to do it again, until the class could do it "respectively". They were forced to do it only once more, which was unusual. This happened nearly every day as that fat man strode into the classroom, and they were sometimes made to do the bow nearly four times 'til they got it right. It became almost a daily chore. One that was loathed in all ways possible.
The students seated themselves, only a few still wearing grins on their faces. They would be wiped off soon enough, Yamato was sure. Only for the few devoted fans of the subject, the class was, in the very least bit, enjoyable. Yamato was not among them. For him, the subject, which happened to be Ancient Japanese, was among his most hated. The only way he found the class in the least bit tolerable was the fact that a certain orange-haired girl shared all his classes.
He watched her intently now, sitting in her front row seat, giving almost her full attention to the fat man who stood in front of the class, now scribbling nonsense onto the black board. His writing was almost illegible; you almost had to squint to read it. Yamato was grateful, however, that most of what was written always came from their textbooks. As much as he hated the class, he was determined not to fail it, and that meant being able to understand what was said and instructed.
The professor, having spent the last three minutes scribbling down impossible kanji symbols, grunted abruptly, meaning that he now wanted the classes attention. Few heads turned as he cleared his throat and directed a meter stick toward the board.
"Take out your textbooks!" he nearly hollered, startling only a few afternoon sleepers. The class did as they were ordered. Yamato didn't have much in his desk to search through; somehow, his Japanese book always seemed to float up to the top of everything, begging to be read. He took it disgustedly from inside his desk, looked at the symbols scratched on the board, and flipped the pages to what he hoped he'd read as the right page.
Immediately upon looking at the page, the title caught his attention. "Myths and Legends" is what it read, and this surprised him. The professor, earlier on that year, had mentioned that they would most likely be skipping over the entire chapter, as well as a few others that had seemed in the least bit interesting to anyone, including Yamato. Without second thought, his eyes began scanning over the pages; his ears ignoring the professor whose voice now jabbered on like a duck. In a way, the professor was much like a duck. This is one of the main reasons Yamato always chose to ignore him.
His eyes scanned the page for a moment, before coming to a halt to where, in bold italic, the first legend began. "Lesson I: The Princess of the Stars". This title hardly caught his attention. It wasn't until he began reading that he became absorbed, almost instantly.
"The legend is an old one, going as far back as ancient times." Is how the textbook read. It was followed by a small illustration of a woman with flowing black hair and silky white robes, looking up to the sky as small lights floated about her hands. Yamato was intrigued by it; it seemed oddly familiar. He read on.
"Once, long ago, the universe was said to have been ruled by the Sun and his children, the stars. Although the Sun had many children, he had no one to rule under him when he was gone. So, he decided to have another son, who would be the one to take his place. When the day came that the new star would be born, he was enraged to discover that he had been given a daughter. In his rage, he threw her to earth—as a falling star."
A question was thrown into the story at about this point. Yamato ignored it and moved his eyes onto the next paragraph.
"Upon landing on the solid ground of the earth, the star was, and would be, alone to raise herself. Nearby woods served as a shelter for her as she grew to a young woman. She never left the woods. It was always so peaceful; she didn't see the point in going out into the busy world. Near her forest was a kingdom that was ruled by a steadfast king. This king happened to have a son, who would often visit the nearby forest to find peace away from his kingdom, like the star did. It was the first day of autumn that he saw her on a trip to the forest, one night. She sat on a rock watching the stars as he hid in the bushes, watching her in awe. He was astonished by her beauty, and was soon drawn toward her. She took no notice of him until, also unnoticed by her, a tear slid down her cheek. The prince watched the glistening droplet before carefully wiping it away with his hand. She turned to him in shock, but did not run. The young prince fell helplessly in love with her, almost instantly. He knelt down beside the girl and took her hand, promising to come back every night to see her. The boy proved the next night that he would be keeping this promise for a very long time."
The professor's duck-like voice forced Yamato's head to snap to attention, thinking that he was the cause of the disturbance in the fat man's voice. Upon looking up, however, he became aware of the student that stood, trembling, at the front of the classroom. Yamato shook his head for the student, for the duck they had for a professor always dealt out the worst punishments. He watched for a moment longer, then turned his attention back to the text he had been so absorbed in.
"As the fall season drew nearer and nearer, the young prince noticed how absorbed his new, mysterious friend had become in the stars. Of course, she always was; over the time they'd spent together, she had taught him everything he now knew about them. Another thing he'd noticed-- the thing that concerned him the most-- was that her health was slowly slipping. She began to draw herself deeper and deeper into the sky, leaving no room for her own personal affairs. He offered her the chance to find medical assistance in his kingdom, yet she declined, claiming that she would be all right, because she was strong.
He found it difficult to believe her as, one night as he came to visit her, she was even too weak to move her head to look at her precious stars. He stayed with her that night, making sure she would be okay. Eventually, he fell asleep and was only woken by a bright light that disturbed his slumber. He immediately found the source of the light. His friend, the star, was going up into the sky! She ascended higher and higher, so he was unable to catch her. A light surrounded her figure and the stars were shining brighter than ever. As he watched in fear, an object fell from above him; he caught effortlessly, and realized that it was a necklace in the shape of a heart. He held it, thinking dearly of his lost friend, unaware of the fact that he was also ascending until he was far above the earth. He closed his eyes fearfully, before his feet caught solid ground. Looking around, he gasped, unable to believe that all the fairy tales he'd heard about the place could be true."
Yamato drew in a sharp breath, suddenly anxious for a reason he did not know. He managed to stay focused, however.
"He was among the stars! Their realm, which had never been opened to any human before, had been opened to him! He stared around dazedly, when he saw her. She walked crookedly, and it pained him to watch her. He also wondered, to himself, what she could have been doing there, so he caught up to her and spun her around to look at him. He gasped painfully as he looked into her eyes, realizing that they were lifeless. Then it struck him—she was one of the stars that ruled the universe! One of the lifeless, emotionless stars that watched the earth under the rule of the Sun… she didn't belong there, like they did…
Taking his friend by the hand, he urged her to come back with him. She did not respond. Instead, a booming voice, one the prince could only guess belonged to the Sun, spoke for her. The Sun explained that the prince's friend was a fallen star that had dropped to the earth by accident. They now wanted her back among them, where she belonged. The Sun also made sure to note that, if his daughter were ever to return to the earth, she would die at his bidding. The prince found it difficult to take everything into account, stating, to himself, that there had to be some way to take her back. He knew he could not part from her, believing that he would die himself without her. He loved her as far as his emotions would allow, he realized, and the Sun was touched by his words.
The Sun became gentler as he spoke to the boy, telling him again that it was impossible for the girl to go back. She would surely die, unless she found some kind of life support. She was not human, and earth was not her home. The prince knew and understood this, but persisted, claiming that, if it were at all possible, he would be her life support. This puzzled the Sun greatly. The prince knew what he had to do and, without word to or from the Sun, he wrapped his arms gently around the emotionless girl whom he loved so dearly, and it immediately felt as if his entire life force was being sucked from him. The Sun ordered the boy to stop as he realized the situation—he was giving up his energy to bring the girl back to life! The prince ignored the Sun, reassuring him, while straining to keep upright, that they would both be okay, if he just let them go back to the earth together.
"The Sun finally relented. He knew the prince loved the girl more than anyone ever could, and his realm was no place for them to stay. The prince held tightly to the girl as the bright light surrounded them once more, this time sending them to the earth. As their feet hit solid ground again, they both fell into a deep sleep that lasted for the rest of the night. When they awoke, they immediately took into account the night before, the prince filling in the girl on what had happened when she had been in her lifeless state. She embraced him, afterwards, claiming that she would never let him go again. And so, they stayed together for as long as they lived, Prince of Earth and Princess of the Stars. It was also said that, years afterwards, the stars continued to glow brighter than day, solely for the Princess."*
Yamato sat in silence, staring at the page that was now filled with questions. The story was over, and he was suddenly filled with emotions he was unable to explain. The story had close to no relevance in his life, yet it had struck him, hard. He closed the textbook silently, so the professor would not take any notice. He did not want to be tempted to read the story again; in fact, he wanted to forget it, with all his heart. Something had been important about it, yet he could not place what. He didn't want to know what.
Ignoring what was going on around him, he set his head on the desk and breathed in deeply. A nap seemed rather promising, at that moment…
Unrealized by him, his orange-haired friend, positioned in a window seat at the front of the classroom, had been reading the same story. Like him, it had struck her hard, if not harder. She'd heard a similar tale from her late grandmother when she was little. Though the text book version had been far more choppy and less accurate then her grandmother's version, it had still had an impact; one that hurt. Memories of days long-gone swirled around in her head like a mess. She couldn't control them. With all the thoughts and memories floating around in her head, she began to feel dizzy. Well, perhaps that had not been the exact reason, but something was making her feel sick and dizzy. She held her head in her hands as she rested her face in her open textbook, intent on stopping the spinning that was getting faster. She closed her eyes as her vision became blurry, and she suddenly became angry at the fact that she had not seen something like this coming. She'd been sick for weeks; it had been stupid of her not to stay home even once. She could feel the world begin to disappear around her as her thoughts became further and further away…
The classroom went still as the orange-haired girl slipped from her desk, unconscious.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Yamato tried everything to get out of school early that day. After seeing Sora fall, he knew he had to see her. He tried everything from faking sick to a fake appointment, but nothing worked. By the end of the day, he was about close to throwing up from anxiousness. He wasn't sure how he'd make it through any longer, when the bell that indicated school was officially out for the day chimed.
He raced down the halls of his school, intent only on getting to Sora. He nearly had to push and shove his way out of the crowded school, his only focus, at that moment, being the orange-haired girl. Without stopping at his own apartment to drop off his things, he raced to his friend's apartment, which happened to be one of the farthest buildings from the school. His side had begun to ache from running as he neared the girl's apartment, and he only rested for a moment, attempting to locate his friend's apartment from the street. He then entered the elevator, making sure to press the button to the correct level.
He reached her door, so impatient to see her that he almost forgot to knock. When he did, there came no reply. He tried the buzzer. No reply. Once again, then. Or, again… he sighed and decided it was hopeless. Perhaps her mother had taken her to the doctor, or…
He had turned to leave and had taken a few forced steps, when a familiar voice called out to him. He turned to face Natsuko, Sora's mother. Her face was filled with relief when she saw his face, and she grabbed him by the wrist, urging him inside the apartment.
"Yamato, I'm so relieved you've come!" she said, concern still apparent in her voice. "I was afraid to leave her by herself, but now that you're here…" her voice trailed off as she led Yamato to the kitchen, offering him a glass of water after noticing how red his face was from running. In the time Yamato had spent with Sora, he had also gotten close to Sora's mother, who now treated him like the son she never had. He smiled politely but refused the glass of water, asking cautiously if it would be all right for him to see Sora. The dark-haired woman nodded, trying her best to smile.
"Actually, I'd like to know if you would stay with her while I'm gone," Natsuko said as they traveled down the narrow hall. "I'm afraid to leave her alone… but, I have to go out. It's important that I do…"
The woman's voice quieted as she neared the door to Sora's bedroom, putting a finger to her lips in a signal for Yamato to be quiet as possible. He swallowed up a breath of air as he followed the dark-haired woman into the bedroom. Immediately he spotted his friend's orange hair through the darkness of the closed curtains. It hid the soft rain that was now falling outside, giving the room a serene mood. Sora slept peacefully on her bed, the covers tucked tightly around her body. Yamato only took his eyes off of her when Natsuko put a warm hand on his shoulder.
"Yamato, will you stay with her?" The woman whispered, looking hopefully at the blond boy. He looked back at her, noticing, for the first time, the wrinkles of worry on her face. This was a woman with many worries and doubts, Yamato was sure. She needed all the help she could get…
A reassuring smile crossed his face. "Of course I will, Ms. Takenouchi," he replied, his low voice almost nonexistent in a whisper. The dark-haired woman's worried face broke into a gentle smile, and Yamato recalled that, through the time he had known the woman, he had only seen her smile once before. He had done something great for this woman, and a sense of accomplishment spread over him like a plague. He smiled wider.
"Do you need to call you father?" Natsuko asked, her own smile fading a little, but not so much as to be noticeable. The blond boy shook his head.
"No, he's gone for the week," he replied. "I'm on my own for this week. I'm sure he wouldn't mind, anyway, if I stayed to care for a sick friend for a few hours. It's okay."
The woman smiled as she led him back to the kitchen, taking out paper and pen to write instructions and such, no matter how much Yamato tried to tell her he would be fine. She was just like her daughter, always so wrapped up in trying to help others that she ignored any protest that came her way. The boy smiled to himself and shook his head, almost laughing out loud at how amazingly similar mother and daughter were.
He followed her to the door as she left, hurriedly putting on her walking shoes and a coat. She handed Yamato the instructions, assuring him once again that she would try not to take too long. Only a few hours, if at all that much. Then she was out the door.
The blond boy watched the door for a few moments before heading back to the kitchen, deciding that the glass of water sounded rather tempting, about then. He then stopped himself, realizing that, through all the rush of talking to Natsuko, he had not asked where she was going.
Deciding that it was not really important, he found himself the glass of water, finding it hard to swallow through the emotional lump of concern jammed into his throat. He then made his way to Sora's bedroom, intent on nothing but staying with her 'til Natsuko returned. The room was still dark when he entered, and the rain outside had become harder. It now nearly beat on the window, causing Yamato to worry that it would wake his sleeping friend. He had nothing to worry about, however, for Sora was sleeping as peacefully as a baby. He smiled to himself once more before finding a chair and drawing close to the bed.
Setting his things down in a corner, he sat down, gazing affectionately and concernedly at his friend. He wondered what could have gone wrong that day, to make her faint like she had. He'd been nearly scared to death for her. No matter how much she had tried to, in the past few weeks, to hide it from him, he could tell her health was slipping. She had become paler and far more sensitive to the cold than he had ever known her to be. She would also stumble, occasionally; something she never did or was ever known to do. She would always try to cover it up as clumsiness, though Yamato would never once believe her. He almost wondered why she even tried, but then recalled the way her mother acted: stubborn. She would refuse help when it was needed, always thinking that she could take care of herself.
Yamato sighed silently, dazedly staring at his friend who rested underneath the thin covers. He noticed, for not the first time, how frail she looked. No matter how much the girl tried to act tough and boyish on the outside, Yamato sometimes managed to catch her off-guard. In those off-guard moments, she would usually show some kind of weakness, like sadness or anger. He'd seen her cry a fair few times, as he'd also seen her angry. He was surprised to recall how many times he'd been the cause of her weak points, only to make her laugh or smile immediately afterward.
The orange-haired girl turned in her sleep, suddenly, letting out a small whimper of pain that a dream was obviously causing her. He wondered at that moment what she could possibly be dreaming about, only to remind himself that other's dreams were none of his business, even if she was his friend.
After a few more minutes of simply thinking and staring, Yamato decided that he could no longer withstand the utter boringness of the room. Quietly raising himself from the seat, he padded over to the corner where his things were, in search of his guitar. Pulling it gently from its case, he plucked a few strings before taking his seat next to the bed.
He played a few chords before going onto a song, one he had played so many times at concerts and parties. It was a wonder why he never got tired of playing the same thing over and over. He wondered if he ever would. He had wondered a lot of things that day and, ironically, he wondered why.
Shaking his blond head, he focused all his thought solely onto his music. He hummed in time with each sting he plucked, the music becoming more intense. One chord led off to another, and soon he was playing the song as vibrantly as ever, humming along, and forgetting, for the moment, the entire world. All that mattered was the music. It required his entire attention…
The song ended quicker than he had expected. Unable, for the moment, to think of another song, he set down his guitar and once again focused his attention on the orange-haired girl that lay in the bed.
He was surprised to see that she was shaking. Her back was facing him, but he could tell that she was indeed, crying. Her shoulders shook up and down with every silent sob, and the rest of her frail body quivered. She turned in her sleep, abruptly, so Yamato could see her face. The boy almost broke into tears himself mainly at the expression on the girl's face. It was of utter pain and sorrow, something the blond boy had never hoped to see on his friend's usually bright face. It wrenched in pain with every tear that slid down from her cheeks, falling silently into a puddle where her pale face lay.
Yamato was overcome with a sense of helplessness. He was sure Sora felt the same way, in her sleep. All people became so helpless in their sleep, unable to help themselves in their make-believe worlds.
Unable to watch his friend suffer from innocent nightmares any longer, Yamato stepped down from the chair to kneel beside the bed. Hesitantly and with much consideration, the blond boy gently shook his friend's thin shoulder, urging her to wake from her horrible nightmare. The tears immediately slowed, although a slight groan escaped from the girl's throat, indicating that she was still in her nightmare and still in pain. With a bit more urging, shaking just a bit harder than before, Yamato began whispering to the girl, attempting to relax her. She did so, and, abruptly, her eyes fluttered open. Yamato smiled when her clay-brown eyes focused on him.
"Yama… Yamato…?" Sora muttered softly, almost inaudibly. The boy nodded gently in reply, and was nearly thrown onto the floor as the girl's thin arms flung themselves tightly around the boy's neck. It took him a moment to take in what had just occurred, before wrapping his arms around the girl in concern. He could feel her body shaking against his; she was crying and was, more than likely, scared. He held her tighter, both of them on their knees on the softly carpeted floor, Yamato trying his hardest to calm down his friend. She cried into his shirt, almost ignoring his words, repeating words that Yamato could not understand over and over. He stroked her back gently, becoming more panicky with every question the girl did not answer.
"Sora, please!" Yamato whispered, panic now evident in his voice, "What's wrong…?!"
The orange-haired girl did not answer.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It had taken some doing, but Yamato had finally gotten the girl under control, although she still refused to tell him what was wrong. They had talked for quite a while, afterwards, Sora refusing to go back to sleep. She wouldn't say why, but Yamato knew it was because she was afraid. He didn't blame her. He probably wouldn't want to go back to sleep, either, so he allowed her to stay awake.
He had become concerned and impatient as ten o'clock drew near, for Sora's mother was supposed to have been home hours ago. Sora, however, was not aware of this. He decided it was best not to tell her and risk her crying or panicking again.
As the clock turned finally to eleven o' clock, Yamato gave up hoping for Ms. Takenouchi to arrive. He also noticed that Sora had begun to yawn, as he did. He urged her to sleep. She frowned at him.
"Yamato…" she muttered, about to protest once more. Unexpectedly, her eyes brimmed with tears, causing the blond boy to feel a sudden surge of guilt. He ignored it, telling himself that her health was more important than what she did and didn't want to do.
"Sora," he said calmly, "You know you need to sleep. It's not good for you to stay awake; you're not gonna get any better if you do."
The orange-haired girl looked almost crushed. "Yamato, I… I can't sleep… I just can't!" the tears in her eyes leaked out, and she brushed them away with a quivering hand. There was fear in her eyes as she spoke. The guilt inside Yamato became stronger.
"Sora, please!" Yamato urged, rising from his chair to kneel beside the frightened girl. "I know you're scared, don't try to hide it from me. I know that you know you have to sleep; you are not well!"
The girl still looked hesitant, though her expression was of relent. Yamato took advantage of her sudden weakness and persisted.
"Sora…" he continued, becoming gentler as he spoke. "I'll be right here beside you. You won't have anything to worry about with me here. I promise I'll protect you from whatever kind of dreams you'll have."
Sora continued to look doubtful. "But… I…" she murmured, her voice becoming wispy. Her eyes teared up again. "I… won't be able to see you… I won't be able to see you anymore when I fall asleep, Yamato. I won't know where you are, and I'll just be scared again…"
Yamato took this deeply into consideration before deciding what he would do. Sitting on the edge of the girl's bed, he wiped the tears that fell onto her cheeks. She looked up at him, dazedly.
"Sora," he said, his voice deep and reassuring. "Just lie down. Please."
Sora immediately did as she was told, curious to find out her friend's intentions.
"Now, close your eyes," Yamato whispered. Sora did this, too, and found herself feeling more comfortable in her friend's presence.
Yamato, noticing that his friend had done what he'd asked of her, removed his slippers and swung his legs onto the bed, surprising the orange-haired girl. He merely smiled at her a warm smile that could have melted anyone's heart. She could feel him take her cold hands into his own, and her heart raced. She closed her eyes again, more tightly. Her thoughts became lost as her friend spoke again in his deepest, most reassuring voice.
"Now you can sleep, Sora…" the boy said softly, looking his friend straight in the face, adoringly. "I'm right here with you, now. I know you won't be able to see me in your dreams, but you can feel me here, beside you. As long as you can feel me, you shouldn't be scared."
Sora was in a daze. Her friend's kindness was almost beyond words… she didn't know what to say. Opening her eyes, she found that the boy was looking straight back at her. Almost instantly, she became lost in the crystal blue sea that was his eyes; she couldn't pull away. And he stared back, adoringly… lovingly. Without thinking, Sora wrapped her arms around his neck and twined her legs around his, tears suddenly falling from her eyes once more. Yamato could do nothing but smile, and soothe her until she finally fell asleep, still in his arms.
He watched her sleep, for a long time. She seemed so peaceful, now. Twirling her soft, orange hair in his fingers, the blond boy noticed, for the first time, that the girl he held in his arms still wore the same necklace he had given to her only two weeks ago. It sparkled, now, from the light of the moon through blinds that he had opened earlier that day. It had stopped raining, so the stars were shining brighter than ever, happy to be away from the cover of clouds.
Fatigue suddenly overtook the blond boy, as he watched his friend sleep so peacefully. He closed his eyes and, without much thought, kissed the girl on the forehead before falling into a peaceful sleep himself.
The stars shined through the small window, watching the young boy and girl… they watched their friend, Sora, especially. It had concerned them that she had fallen ill so soon… her father had lasted so much longer on the earth than she had been… however, they knew she would be well soon enough. They knew what they had to do to make her well again, and they intended to carry through with it… for her sake.
They watched as Sora shivered, slightly, in her sleep…
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
*Just a little note, there. Yes, I did come up with that by myself. It's not a real legend. And, sorry for the corny-ness of it; It's just gonna be important in the upcoming chapter. I promise, that pointless bit of crap DOES have some relevance do it!! ^_^
Eek! I'm soooo sorry to leave the story right there! I just thought that I had to get SOMETHING out to you guys, so… here! CHAPTER THREE IS COMPLETED! ::bows as everyone claps then throws tomatoes:: Ah! I promise to try really hard to get chapter four out sooner than this one! Special thanks to everyone who waited long enough for me to finish this much! You don't realize how much your comments mean to me! ::sniff:: ::hugs everyone present:: Eeepers! I'll stop rambling and bugging you now! I'd love some feedback on this, and thanks to everyone! ^_^ ja ne!