All I Want Is You

Chapter 2

Captivation

Through the doors poured in the sunlight. It shone in every corner of the room, on everything, including the child-like girl that was asleep in the centre of the room.

Her ears twitched as the birds outside chirped to welcome the coming of a new day. Her eyes squinted as the light fell upon the closed lid. She didn't want to wake up; she was enjoying sleep too much.

It was when someone entered the room that she woke up. The noise of the sliding door opening caused her eyes to open.

She got up abruptly and turned to her left to see who it was that had woken her.

"Okaa-san," she mumbled softly.

"Hikari!" cried her mother. "I was so worried! When you didn't come into our room last night I didn't know what to do, I couldn't do anything right! Just as I was to go out to search for you a Samurai came in and told me where you were, I was never more glad in my life!"

The expression on her mother's face changed as she realized how weak her daughter looked.

"Hikari, are you ok?" she asked as she quickly walked over to her.

Hikari hated herself for making her Mother worry about her all night. If she wasn't too tired she would have demanded to be put back into her normal room.

She winced in pain as soon as her Mother touched her throbbing ankle. Her Mother looked horror-stricken!

"Daiijobu," Hikari quickly said.

"It hurts doesn't it? Oh here let me take a look," said her Mother.

"No don't," Hikari objected.

It wasn't that she didn't trust her mother; it was mainly because she knew that her mother was not very bright in the matter of twisted ankles.

"I rather get Onni-chan to look at it," Hikari added.

Her Mother nodded, "Yes, that's the best thing to do, I'll go get him now, will you be alright while I'm gone?"

"I'll be fine Okaa-san," Hikari reassured her Mother.

Hikari watched her Mother until the closed door separated them. She sighed and stared at her surroundings. She still could hear the birds and she got the desire to get out of the room and write more things.

Hmm, she thought to herself. She needed to thank that Samurai, unfortunately she forgotten his name already. She couldn't feel more ashamed in her life. He was her saviour, goodness knows what would have happened if he weren't there to help her.

Hikari heard the door opening again. She turned around to welcome her brother but it wasn't her brother, nor was it her mother. It was the blue-eyed Samurai.

"Ohayo," he said softly.

"Ohayo..." Hikari replied, slightly bowing. Judging from his face, he was probably older than her by a year or two.

Hikari's policy was, 'No matter whom that person is, if they were older than her, she must show respect.'

I guess yesterday was an exception, she thought bitterly to herself.

"Are you feeling ok?" he asked as he came closer to her.

"I'm ok," she answered.

"Good..."

"Demo-," she said softly as she touched her right ankle that was covered by her blanket. "My ankle still hurts."

Hikari was surprised at how worried the Samurai looked after she said those words. As he approached her she saw something that she seemed to have missed yesterday. The passion that his eyes held was ... overwhelming.

Before she could say anything else he was already kneeling down in front of her. He lifted the front bit of the blanket and was about to touch her feet when he paused.

He looked up and looked at her sheepishly. "Which ankle did you twist?"

He expected some nasty remarks from her but instead he heard laughter. Not just laughter, it was a laughter that was so different to any kind of laughter that he had heard before. It was some kind of enchanting laughter that held him captive.

"It was my right ankle," she said through her giggles.

"Oh, gomen."

"Daiijobu."

Takeru took off the white sock that was covering her feet and started massaging it for her.

"Ow," Hikari said under her breath but he heard it.

"Sorry, is it hurting you? Well I suppose it would hurt a bit, but if you can't stand the pain just tell me and I'll massage it softer..."

As his concentration was focused on making her feel better, Hikari studied him.

She felt so bad about treating him so badly yesterday. If she knew that he was this kind-hearted, she wouldn't have been so cruel. She admired him for not hating her; he didn't even seem to hold any grudges for her!

"Ano-," Hikari started to say. "Aren't you angry about yesterday?"

"Hmm, should I be?"

"I don't know, I mean...if I were you, I would be mad."

"If that is how you would feel, why were you so unkind to me yesterday?"

He had stopped massaging her and was now intensely looking at her. She didn't look at him because she didn't feel like that she should answer him.

After realizing that she wasn't going to say anything else, Takeru started massaging her feet again.

"If...if you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" Hikari asked slowly.

Without looking up he replied, "Give me three good reasons why I should tell you my name."

Hikari could feel her cheeks burning up. Sometimes he fascinated her but sometimes he just really infuriated her! Honestly! Repeating what she said yesterday? It was a little bit too much for her.

Before she could object to this, the sliding door opened and her brother and her mother entered.

Both Hikari and Takeru turned to look at the same time. Even though they weren't doing anything bad, they both felt as if someone had just caught them in a sinful act.

"Okaa-san...Onni-chan," Hikari said.

None of them answered her; they were stunned to see a Tokugawa Samurai, kneeling down to help a Tozama's daughter.

Hikari's brother felt as if he'd seen this Samurai somewhere before. Somewhere...sometime ago. As he finally realized why he felt this familiarity, anger started running through his vein.

"I'll take it from here," he said coldly, trying to control his temper.

Though neither Hikari nor Takeru knew why he was so cold, Takeru got up, bowed, and left the room.

"Did he do anything to you Hitohana-chan?" Her brother asked as he took over with what Takeru was doing earlier.

"Iie," Hikari answered him, smiling. Even though she was already fifteen summers old, her brother still called her with the name that he made up for her ever since she was a baby.

Judging from what her mother had told her, when she was born, after taking one look at her, her brother was in love! He started to call her Hitohana meaning flower after he saw that she was blessed with the colours of a CherryBlossom. Her cheeks were a light shade of pink and her hair was deep brown. He was rapt in her!

He was enthralled with the way she giggled, with the say she laughed...even with the way she cried. Her mother tried to tell him that her name was Hikari meaning light, but he refused to listen.

"To me her name is Hitohana," he had stated firmly. "And I will never stop calling her that."

And he never did. In a way, Hikari was glad. Every time her brother calls her that, she knew that he still very much love her. And she had no intention of doing anything that would cause him to stop calling her that.

"Are you feeling better now?" Her brother asked.

"Much better," Hikari replied as she smiled.

"Taichi," their mother said. "Is it ok if you stay with Hikari for a while?"

"Yes, of course I can Okaa-san, but where are you going?"

"I have to write your father a letter, an important one mind you."

"A letter? How are you going to send it?" Taichi asked.

"A merchant is going to send it for me, fortunately he's making a journey from Edo to Nagasaki and he's going to deliver the letter for me," she answered.

"A merchant? Are you sure that's a wise idea? What are you paying for it? What if he reads it?" Taichi asked worriedly.

"It is a wise idea Taichi, how else am I going to send the letter if I don't get the merchant to send it? The merchant won't understand what the letter says, no one else apart from me and your father, and besides, I don't think that the merchant can read."

"What are you paying him?"

"Once the letter has reached your father, the merchant will receive two large sacks of rice."

After she said this, Taichi nodded his head and focused his attention to his little sister. He didn't turn to say bye to his mother as she left the room. Hikari was too distracted by her brother that she too didn't say bye.

Once the two of them heard the shutting of the door, Taichi relaxed and sighed.

"What's wrong Onni-chan?" Hikari asked.

To her surprise, Taichi's face suddenly turned red, not from blushing but from...something else. Even she didn't know what the cause of it is.

"Hitohana-chan, I'm worried...worried about you, I don't know why, but...I feel something is wrong," Taichi said softly.

"Oh? You shouldn't be worried about me Onni-chan, so far, I don't see any signs that anything is wrong, and if I do, you'll be the first one I'd tell."

"No, you don't unders-," Taichi stopped in mid sentence as he gazed at his sister. She seemed so young...too young to be burdened with his thoughts.

"Nani?"

"Oh...nothing," Taichi quickly said. He continued to massage Hikari's foot.

"Hmm..." Hikari said to herself, she slightly leaned back and a soft look appeared on her face as she watched the shadows of the birds outside her room. "Dreaming of heaven, I just look into your eyes, And I feel I'm there..."

Taichi stopped massaging Hikari's foot and turned to face the way that she was facing. Sensing how much his sister wanted to go outside, he stopped massaging her foot and got up.

Hikari lifted her head to look at him, questioning him with her eyes.

To her sudden surprise, he bent down, cradled her into his arms and started to make his way out.

"What are you doing?" Hikari asked.

"Taking you outside," Taichi simply replied.

"Let me walk..."

"I will, later."

"Onni-chan!"

No matter what Hikari was saying, Taichi didn't put her down. With her in his arms, he passed the many closed rooms, passed the people who were already up and about, and soon enough, he was outside, being greeted by the calming breeze.

Taichi carried Hikari into the gardens where all of the Cherry Blossom trees were. He placed Hikari under one of the trees and sat himself next to her.

"If you want to walk...you can...but don't force yourself," Taichi said.

"A brother who cares, I feel so lucky today, With him I feel safe."

"Your Haikus are always comforting Hitohana," Taichi said in reply to her Haiku. He leaned back across the tree and closed his eyes.

Hikari giggled and started to get up. The pain in her ankle didn't hurt as much as it did before. She stood...and started to walk. Every step she took, she was drifting further and further away from her brother.

But she knew that she would be able to find her way back again, it doesn't take a genius to know that.

She was reaching the end of garden, up ahead was the wall that surrounded the whole castle town. She continued to walk, until she almost reached the wall. She turned left and if she continued to walk that way, it would take her around the castle town before she was back to where she started.

Before she took another step forward, she saw a figure coming towards her way, faster and faster.

Ok...Hikari thought to herself, he's running, I should move, but...I can't move my feet.

With him coming closer by the second, she couldn't do anything. She wanted to run, but she couldn't, she had frozen on the spot for no apparent reason.

Stop, Hikari was saying in her mind. Stop running, onegai.

In no way would he be able to hear her, but he stopped.

He stood on his ground watching her questioningly. Hikari felt as if she was inside a Fairytale for in the moment he stopped, the wind blew her hair, and it also blew his. And right now, as they faced each other, the Cherry Blossom petals were flying their way.

"Did you say something to me?" He asked. His voice was deep but in a way it sounded melodious.

"No...I mean yes, no...yes..."

He raised one of his eyebrows and he smiled. This...kept Hikari captivated. His smile was unique. It was only one side of his lips that was pulled and Hikari had never seen anything like it.

"You did?"

"Yes, I mean...no...I mean," Hikari struggled to think, she paused for a few seconds, looked up and excitement were twinkling in her eyes. "I think I just communicated with you telepathically," she said.

She expected him to laugh but he didn't, instead he extended his arm and said, "I'm Daisuke."

Hikari shook his hand and told him her name.

Woah, she thought, I gave him my name!

"What's your family name?" he asked.

"Satsuma, you?"

Just after she said that, she saw his face take a different kind of attitude.

"Nani?" Hikari asked.

Without answering her, he turned around and walked the other way.

***

As you can probably tell I gave Hikari a different last name. I have to give her that last name in order for the story to make sense. ^^

Hikari: Press it...go on...press it...and review ^^