"Anna!!!" Yoh finally caught up to the itako, who was seated by the river. He smiled – even the Anna Kyouyama was afraid of the rapids of the Izumo River.
However, his grin didn't last long. He heard a sob escape from her throat, one that nearly broke his heart. The pain was worse than all those he incurred in his three-year training with Shilva.
He sat down beside her. "Anna?"
"I'm so dumb," she whispered, eyes on the river. Tendrils of her hair partly curtain her face, so he couldn't see what the girl's face looked like. "I took a prince for a bodyguard. I saw Hao Asakura and yet I didn't even deduce that you and Hao must have some kind of a connection."
He sighed audibly. "I only learned about my identity just a little earlier than you did. All my life, I thought I was just a street rat, and the next minute, I was a prince. I had my share of shock too."
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" she wanted to know.
He shrugged. "Because I thought you don't need to know."
"But I can't have a prince for a bodyguard."
"That is exactly why I didn't tell you," he said. "I know that you would avoid me if you learn that I am more than a pauper."
"You're afraid that I would avoid you, but you yourself left!" She picked up a pebble and threw it on the water. "Where's the logic?"
"I thought that you could find yourself a better bodyguard than me- one who can protect you ably. I'm a loser- you always end up in trouble because I am awful as a bodyguard," he admitted.
"So you left, and you broke your promise at the same time." Anna at last faced him, eyes blazing. "Do you really think you can get away with what you've done to me that easily?"
"Anna…"
"I came all the way here just to see you, and to do this." She slapped his face. "This is for breaking your promise."
He didn't react.
And another slap. "This is for making me cry." She was about to withdraw her hand when he suddenly held it back, and her hand ended up cupping his cheek.
"Gomen nasai, Anna," he said quietly, his eyes on her face. "I'm sorry for being a coward. I was just frightened that I couldn't be strong enough for you in the battles, so…so…I decided to leave. I thought someone else much stronger than me can protect you."
"Didn't you even care how I would feel about that?" she asked.
Yoh shook his head. "I thought you don't care."
"I went all the way here. Shouldn't that say something?" she asked sarcastically.
"Anna…" Shame filled him. Why didn't he see things her way? When he decided to run away, he thought he was doing it for her sake. But looking at the hurt look on her face right now, he realized how wrong he was. Anna had far more courage than him, going all the way here just to confront him, as oppose to how he couldn't meet things head on.
Silently, he formed a resolve within him. This time, he wasn't going to run away.
She stood up. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm too good for you. Maybe someone as spineless as you are don't deserve to be my bodyguard-"
Yoh got up too. "Anna, wait!"
She glanced at him. "What?"
"Give me one last chance to make up for it." He turned serious. "I'm going to defeat my brother. He told me that he wants you for his wife, and as your bodyguard, I should challenge him."
"You don't have to," she said coldly. "Feel free to consider all your obligations to me absolved. You are not my bodyguard anymore." With that, she turned her back on him.
His heart fell. "A-Anna, I-I thought you still want to kill me for breaking my promise?" He didn't want her to go!
"The slap would be enough." She glanced at him briefly. "I can take care of myself, don't worry. Hao will make a fine husband. He can protect me, if what you're worried about is my security."
"Anna…"
The itako turned her back on him. "You always run away, Yoh Asakura. How can I keep someone whom I cannot even hold securely? You are like the wind, Yoh, intangible. You hold so much insecurities, and those are the real devils you must get scared of, not the people who have defeated you in the whole time you served as my bodyguard."
Each of her words penetrated his heart like an arrow.
"Goodbye, Your Highness. This will be the last time we'll ever meet, I'm sure." These were her final words before the darkness swallowed her figure.
Yoh clenched his fists. He wanted to follow her, but he could sense that she would rather be alone.
He could still feel the icy bitterness in the itako's voice, and realized how wrong he was.
But there was one thing she failed to understand, one that he failed to make her understand.
He had always believed in Que sera sera. He was able to live a worry-free life before.
These insecurities surfaced only when she arrived. She was the root of those feelings, and the root of the root was that…he loved her so.
Until now, he was still hell-scared, for he wasn't able to tell her in their entire discourse his feelings her.
What he could give right now just to turn back the hands of the clock, to the time when they were happily living in Horo Horo's mansion, unaware about the Asakuras. Sitting together on top of the roof, dreaming about the day that they would grow old together.
Anna's eyes blurred with tears. No matter how many times she tell herself that Yoh wasn't worth her tears, the stupid liquid seemed to have a life of its own. It just kept on flowing, shaming her pride. She had never cried for anyone before, so why was she crying for him?
A figure emerged from the shadows. "Anna?"
She paused. Hao Asakura was standing right in front of her, face drawn in concern.
"Are you…are crying, Anna?" he asked, his voice gentler than she remembered.
She couldn't find the energy to shout at him to go away. She merely looked at him, waiting for him to get bored of waiting for her answer and just leave himself.
He didn't; he sighed. "It's Yoh, isn't it?"
She found herself nodding.
He smiled sadly. "Someone like you is crying for him. My lucky, lucky brother."
Silence.
His hand suddenly moved to her face, cupping her chin with his rough, gloved hand. "You advertised for a shaman king husband, didn't you? Tomorrow, the Great Spirits will rise, and I will conquer them. Whoever has the Great Spirits will be declared the rightful shaman king." He held out his hand to her. "Take it, and I will marry you this instant."
Anna bit her lip hesitantly, then lifted her hand out to him.
"Nyorai!" To say Chocolove was shocked was an understatement. He grabbed the iron bars. "Nyorai, what are you doing here?"
The girl blinked incredulously. "C-Chocolove?" She grabbed the iron bars too, clasping his hands, "W-What are you doing here?" she asked, laughing.
"I asked first, Nyorai! And why are you so happy? Should I remind you that you are currently detained in a stinky and damp dungeon under the Asakura Court?" said Choco.
"I am aware of that. I'm just glad you're here," she said, eyes twinkling.
He looked at her hair. "Lend me your hairpin. So how did you end up in here? Did you rape a horse or something?"
She obliged. As the boy began to busy himself with picking on the locks, she began to narrate to him how Hao took interest on her ability to see the darkness in the heart of anyone.
"That's not good," said Choco. "We need to get you out of here, fast! Hao is one crazy fellow, and I hate the thought of you suffering just because of him."
She nodded again, then remembered something. "I'm glad you came," she mumbled.
"Huh?" He paused to look up at her.
"I never stopped hoping that you will come to save me," she said, smiling shyly. "I'm so glad you did."
He smiled awkwardly. "If only I've known earlier about this-"
Her hand clasped his. "But you're here, and I'm happy." She beamed at him. "So…will you marry that girl after all?"
Chocolove grinned sheepishly. "Er, no." He looked at the clock once more. "But you said something about introducing me to a girl who's crazy for me. Would she still be interested?"
Nyorai paused, but just as she was about to reply, the dungeon door opened, revealing a grim Nichrome.
Tamao suddenly dropped down to the ground, panting.
"Tamao!!!" shrieked Pirika. She immediately rushed to her side. "Tamao, what happened?"
"M-My coin…and the board…"She pointed to her things.
Pirika shook her head. "N-No, you lie down first, ok?"
Tamao looked frantic. "I need it now!"
A hand gave her the things. It was Faust, who looked calm.
"You do know that further fortune-telling can jeopardize your life," he said.
Tamao smiled weakly. "I know."
"T-Tamao," Pirika wanted to protest, but the prophetess' mind was already made up.
"The Great Spirit will rise tomorrow, commencing the battle between the fire and the wind. The wind will burn as well, together with the wingless angels."
Everyone was silenced- the prediction wasn't good. Not good at all.
Tamao shook her head. "T-There must be a way to defeat the fire. It must have a weakness."
No one replied in accord.
"Nichrome…" Nyorai bit her lip when she saw the court priest heading their way, face impeccably blank. She shut her eyes- she knew that Chocolove was in trouble.
Choco, on the other hand, bared his claws, ready to protect himself and his friend.
But Nichrome didn't touch them. Instead, he spoke.
"Are you going to get her out of the palace?" he asked.
Choco nodded. "Yeah, but so what? Are you going to try to stop us?"
He looked at Nyorai, and his eyes softened peculiarly. He handed Chocolove the cell key and then abruptly turned his back on them. "This way, please."
"Hey, how are we suppose to know if we can really trust you?" asked the African boy. "How will we know that you're not just going to lead us into further trouble?"
The priest turned to Nyorai briefly. "Master Hao is planning to use you tonight to find the darkness in the heart of Yoh Asakura, and to dispose of you afterwards. If you still want to make it out of this place alive, you have to leave now."
"I trust Nichrome," said Nyorai immediately, making the two boys' heads turn her way. She smiled in reply. "Nichrome is my friend, and I know that he won't do anything to hurt me."
Nichrome's eyes shook, and he turned his back on them quickly. "We must hurry before the other priests return."
The two nodded and followed the court priest outside.
"You are on your own," said Nichrome when they reached the side gates of the palace. "From here, just keep on following the sound of the river. The rapids won't be so strong anymore, and crossing it would give you no problem. When you get to the other side, you'll be on your way to Funbari."
"Then come with us already!" said Nyorai.
The priest shook his head. "My obligation is here." He turned to Chocolove. "Take good care of her, please."
The boy nodded.
"Nichrome," protested the girl.
He gave her a small smile. "Thank you for being my friend. I'll never ever forget you." With that, he turned his back on her and vanished back into the Asakura Court.
Chocolove pulled Nyorai along with him gently. "Let's go before the guards realize that you are missing."
She was reluctant, but she nodded anyway.
"You let her do the predictions anyway?" Horo Horo massaged his aching temples.
"Onii-chan, I'm sorry," said Pirika. "She said she really needed to do it." She took another scroll and handed it to her brother. "She told you to give this to Yoh. It has something about Hao's powers, I think. If Yoh studies this well, he might make out the weakness of Hao."
Horo sighed, then took it. He sat down beside Tamao and ran his hand on her face. "Ren Tao, we need to talk."
The Chinese shaman blinked.
Everyone else had left the room, save for Ren and Horo, who were sitting beside the unconscious Tamao.
"Will you promise me one thing, Ren Tao?" he began. "It's about my sister."
Ren nodded. "What is it?"
"Swear to me that you'll never leave her side, that you will always take care of her and protect her." He smiled. "I know that before I handed my sister over to you way back, I have made you promise that. I want you to reiterate that vow."
The Tao frowned. "Doushite?"
"Because I may already lose the power to do so." Horo looked at him earnestly. "So can I count on you to do that?"
Ren nodded solemnly.
Horo nodded. "Please call Faust already. Tell him that I'm ready to do it."
Lyserg watched the pillar of light grow bigger.
"It's out of control," said Jeanne sadly. "The Great Spirit is at its peak, and I am expecting that Hao knows about this already."
Lyserg took her hand into his own gloved one. "No matter what, Jeanne, I'm with you."
She nodded. "Once all of these is through, I would really like it if we go ride a Ferris wheel again."
"Me too."
Hao looked at his minions. "Tomorrow at daybreak, we will move." His eyes went to the pillar of light, twinkling. "And we will commence the domination of this pathetic human-ruled world."
Loud, boisterous ayes reverberated in the forest.
Opacho, on the other hand, was quietly looking at its master. Hao noticed it, and he asked the servant why.
"Was Master Hao slapped?" it asked quietly.
Hao touched his slightly swollen cheek, remembering what happened in the forest. Just when he thought that Anna would take his hand, she ended up slapping him.
He exhaled audibly, then grinned. "Nothing serious, Opacho."
"If Master Hao says so, Opacho will believe."
Dawn had barely broken when the itako got out of the Asakura Gates. Anna tied her bandanna around her head, then looked back at the Asakura Court. "What the heck did I just do? I've given up my dream of being a shaman king's wife!" She remembered how tempted she was to take Hao's offer, for she had seen how strong he was. He was the surest thing she could have for a shaman king.
"Too bad he looks like Yoh." She turned to the mountains. "I'm going back to the Osorezan Mountains." She slung her itako beads around her neck, then noticed the tusk band still connected to it.
Something pinched in her heart. She lifted it and inspected it.
It was like only yesterday when Yoh stupidly got himself captured by her necklace. Now she had finally let him go.
But the question is, why was it hurting her so?
She shook her head. "Hah! I've lived on my own before. I've managed to get by even without him. I can live without his presence again."
"Too bad I can't say the same for me."
Her eyes widened. She turned around and found Yoh looking at her forlornly. How couldn't have she noticed that he was around?
"Shouldn't you be happy now?" she asked, her eyebrow arched. "You don't need to risk yourself everytime to protect me. I've given up on finding myself a shaman king husband. You do not need to feel guilty. I'll get along fine."
"Why do you think would I be happy, when I know that after this I might never see you again?" he asked.
She fell silent.
"Anna, I've done so many stupid things in my life before, and you have enumerated some of them awhile ago by the river. But if I let you go now, I won't be able to ever live with myself." He took a step closer to her, and another, when she didn't react.
"I was really scared back then to say this out loud, but when my brother talked to you awhile ago about you marrying him, I snapped out of it. I told myself that I don't want to lose you to anyone else. Back then, when I fought your suitors, I wasn't really doing it out of obligation. I'm doing it because I don't want you to marry anyone else." He smiled. "I am intending to keep you for my whole life. Call me selfish, but I don't think I can give you to anyone else, even to my own brother. And if I have to be the shaman king to do that, then I'm ready to move heaven and hell for that."
"I'll do anything and everything, if it would mean that you will be with me."
Anna couldn't speak, couldn't move. She was still struck by his words. She couldn't believe that he valued her that much.
Yoh took one last step towards her, and they were face to face. His hand smoothed her cheek reverently. "Ne, Anna, I'll make you proud of me. I'll be the shaman king, then I can have the license to have you for keeps, right?" he whispered huskily.
But before she could answer, dawn finally broke through. Everything went still, but the next minute, everything came into life! The pillar of light roared, and the ground shook.
Anna's eyes widened when she saw streaks of light cross the sky. "That was the-"
"The spirit of fire," said Yoh, nodding grimly.
Amidamaru suddenly appeared, his face grave. "Master Yoh, they're going to take the Great Spirit!"
"We better follow him." Yoh's face turned to her. "Anna?"
She smiled slowly. "Don't think of showing your face to me if you lose."
"Everything will work itself out," he grinned.
"I was just kidding. Just come back, Yoh Asakura. And I'll wait."
"Hai, Anna!" His arms wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her close to him.
Anna's eyes softened, and a tear trickled down her cheek. "Just come back," she whispered again.
Tsuzuku
Harry: We're down to the last 3-4 chapters, folks!
Lenny: Is it me, or Syao-chan is going to use us in an omake?
Lisa: No way!
Rio: And what's with our names?
Lenny: Your name's fine. Look at mine!
Harry: I feel the pain.
Lisa: XD
Harry: Anyway, I think Syao-chan wants us to introduce a song she wants to make a theme song for this fanfic.
Rio: You mean she's going to produce a movie for this?
Lenny: Well, if she's wacky enough to think of doing a screenplay for a Hao/Syao movie that can rival Kamasutra…
Lisa: XD XD XD
Harry: Lisa, you're not helping us. Ah, anyway, check out the song from the Anastasia OST. Yoh/Anna-ish.
At the Beginning
Donna Lewis/Richard Marx
We were strangers
Starting out on a journey
Never dreaming
What we'd have to go through
Now here we are and I'm suddenly standing
At the beginning with you
No one told me, I was going to find you
Unexpected what you did to my heart
When I lost hope
You were there to remind me
This is the start
* Life is a road and I wanna keep going
Love is a river, I wanna keep going
Life is the road now and forever
Wonderful journey
I'll be there when the world stops turning
I'll be there when the storm is through
In the end I wanna be standing
At the beginning with you
We were strangers on the crazy adventure
Never dreaming how our dreams would come true
Now here we stand unafraid of our future
At the beginning with you
(Repeat *)
I knew there was somebody somewhere
Like me alone in the dark
Now I know my dream will live on
I've been waiting so long
Nothing's gonna tear us apart
(Repeat *)
Life is a road and I wanna keep going
Love is a river I wanna keep going on
Starting out on a journey
Life is a road and I want to keep going
Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing
In the end I want to be standing
At the beginning with you
Harry: *overhears Syao-chan singing the intro of her fave Hao/Syao duet* I think we better conclude the omake. Shall we?
Lenny: *shivers* We shall. *flees from Syao-chan in fear*
Syao-chan: You guys will still be hearing my duet with my Hao-sama no matter what!
Lisa: XD XD XD XD XD
Rio: Er, save that for the omake next chapter, ok?