Author: Luz Nocturnal
Email: luznocturnal@yahoo.com
Copyright: Shaman King and its characters © Hiroyuki Takei & Shueisha, Inc. Forever Came Today © Masters Of None. The only copyright I stake is intellectual, meaning that I do not want this story copied/reproduced/reposted anywhere without my permission. Thank you, drive through.
Notes: The muse wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it; blame her. I'm taking the liberty of assuming a few things, and I'm only as far in Mankin as U.S. Shonen Jump. And yes, I know; I'm committing the horrid sin of not having thoroughly researched the source material. Having said that, I welcome corrections.
Since you came to testify, nothing's ever been the same.
--Masters Of None, Forever Came Today
Manta teetered and tottered on the unreliable little stool, while reaching for the bottle of honey that seemed just beyond his reach on the top shelf in the cupboard. It was one of those special times when he wished sorely for stilts, or an extra few inches of height.
With a frustrated huff, he made a final bid for the bottle, jumping just high enough to grab it. Manta's untrustworthy four-legged companion didn't welcome his return via gravity, and tipped both itself and the poor boy over.
After a moment, Manta realized that he had not hit the ground. Or, if he had, it was softer and warmer than should be expected.
"Geez, Manta, if it was that much trouble, why didn't you ask me to get it?" Yoh asked, setting the boy on his feet and releasing him.
Manta did his best to suppress the small blush on his round cheeks. "Because it isn't right to have others do something that I can do myself," he replied. "At any rate, here's your honey."
"Thanks," Yoh smiled, grabbing the small bottle and turning back to the counter. "We're going to have some nice, sweet tea in just a minute."
Manta shook his head, a half-smile forming on his face. Yoh's sweet tooth had chosen that morning to emerge. It must have been the spring air.
With a contemptuous eye toward the poor excuse for a chair, Manta moved to right it, and sat down near the standing Yoh.
An unknown song vibrated lightly past Yoh's lips, a soft-pitched hum of a melody he him self didn't seem to remember fully. Manta noted that Yoh had begun shaking his body slightly to the beat, as he kept time with the stirring.
Manta eyed Yoh's concoction with trepidation; he always preferred his tea with a more gentle flavor, but Yoh had insisted that he'd enjoy this, as well. The off-beat tink of spoon against porcelain finally urged Manta to speak. "Yoh-kun, what's that song?"
Without skipping a beat, "I have no idea. I just heard it one day and haven't been able to get it out of my head all week."
"You pick up songs like you pick up ghosts," Manta smiled. He smiled much more often since befriending Yoh, even if he brought a cadre of spirits with him.
"Songs are less dangerous," Yoh replied.
"True," Manta agreed, almost wanting to giggle.
Yoh dipped back into the small, square jar of amber-colored liquid and emerged with another spoonful that promptly went into the second cup on the counter.
After a moment of stirring, Yoh removed the spoon and noted that a small amount of honey still remained. "Hey, here," Yoh offered the spoon to Manta, who looked at it curiously for a moment before accepting with a small thanks.
Manta wasn't in the habit of sticking honey-coated spoons in his mouth. After licking the utensil clean, he removed it from his small mouth and held it casually near his jean-clad lap.
Yoh gathered up both of the steaming cups and turned, stopping mid-pause and staring at Manta with a somewhat goofy expression.
"What?" Manta demanded.
"Nothing. You just... missed a spot. Let me get that for you," Yoh offered, leaning toward the smaller boy.
Confused, Manta waited in clueless pause until he felt the warmth of Yoh's tongue dart out and slide across his thin lips. Manta hadn't been quite as tidy with his honey as he thought. He felt himself turn bright red and resisted whatever urge was rising to blurt something silly.
"There, all clean!" Yoh said brightly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. With his usual cheery gait, Yoh marched out to the back porch to enjoy the spring breeze.
Yes, indeed. Manta smiled much more often now that Yoh Asakura had come into his life.
End.