Disclaimer: Shaman King belongs to Hiroyuki Taki, not me.
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ENDING #1: THE SAPPY ONE
Anna sat up, wondering where the crazy dream had come from. It was full of her dim memories of her babyhood, of the night her parents died- but this time there was a boy there, a boy with soft gentle eyes who held her when she cried. She shook her head as the train entered the Funbari Hill station. There was no use thinking on it. She wasn't going to remember anything else, and even if she did, she doubted it would change anything.
The walk back to the house was long and cold. Anna found herself awaiting the warmth of home and Yoh's welcoming grin. She kicked her shoes off in the front room. "I'm home," she called tentatively.
There was no answer. A light was on, so she knew that at least Yoh was there, but no one was coming to greet her. She bit her lip, concentrating on the physical pain instead, and fled to her room.
The room was dark and freezing. Anna flicked the light on and set her pack down. That was when she noticed the box in the middle of the floor. Her name and address were typed neatly on the label, unmistakably for her. But who could it be from?
She pulled out a pair of scissors and sliced open the top. Inside was a crumpled heap of newspaper, but on top of that was a letter for her. Anna pulled it out and read it, recognizing Mikihisa's scrawling, slapdash kanji.
Dear Anna,
Yoh said you'd not been very happy later, and he wanted all of us to do something special for you. I don't have too much free time to write letters, but I did want to say that you are my favorite future daughter-in- law. Actually, you're my only daughter-in-law, but you will still always be my favorite. Take good care of our boy.
Mikihisa
Anna smiled ruefully as she set the letter aside and lifted away the paper. That was Mikihisa for you, she thought. Under the paper she found two more envelopes and a battered little suitcase that was vaguely familiar. She opened the letter from Keiko first.
My sweet girl,
I've never really gotten a chance to tell you how special you are to our family. I remember when Kino first announced she had found the perfect girl to marry our son. I have to admit, I wasn't ready for my son to marry. But you are perfect for him in every wau. You are such a special child, Anna-chan. You have already become a daughter to me.
With love,
Keiko
She wouldn't admit it, but there was a tear forming in her eye as she tucked the letter into the envelope again. The last letter was from Kino, and she couldn't help but wonder what this one held.
Anna,
I thought long and hard over what to put in this letter. I had my reservations when you were first brought to my school. But you are so bright and so spirited that I could not help but learn to like you. You have a great deal of talent as a shaman. However, I think that I saw you as only a person with power, rather than a person in your own right. For that, I am sorry. You will become part of our family legally when you marry Yoh, and you will become my granddaughter. It is in my opinion that you became so long ago. So, as a grandmother, I would like to give you a gift. The suitcase in this box is the one that your tiny hands clutched so many years ago when you were brought to live with me. I hope it pleases you, and that it gives you a glimpse of the real family you left behind so many years ago.
Love, Your Grandmother Kino
With shaking hands Anna pulled out the tattered suitcase and undid the latch. She tried to school herself, tried to calm the fluttering of her heart, as she reached inside.
The first thing her hand came in contact with was the tiniest kimono she had ever seen. It looked barely big enough to fit a medium-sized doll, yet she instinctively knew this was the special kimono her mother had dressed her in when she was not quite three years old. Anna let her finger stroke over the pale pink silk before she forced herself to lay it down and reach for the next object.
This time she pulled out a soft, yellow blanket. Somehow she remembered it as being much bigger, but then again, she had been very small. Anna buried her face in the blanket, remembering how she would drag it with her wherever she went. The tattered edges reminded her of that. Setting the blanket in her lap, she reached for the last item.
Anna gasped as her fingers closed around the cool, solid metal of a picture frame. She knew them. She knew them. Her mother and father, her two brothers, herself, they all smiled back at her. Anna clutched it to her chest, rocking back and forth, her body trembling. Her family. She finally could see what they looked like.
"Anna?" Yoh whispered. He tapped the door open. "Anna, what's wrong? Are you sick?"
"No," she whispered. "Yoh, look at this." She held out the photograph. "That's me. That's me when I was two years old. And that's my parents."
Yoh sat down next to her, grinning, as he looked at the picture. "You look absolutely precious," he said. Then he looked at her again. "What's wrong?"
"I'm trying not to cry," she sniffled.
He put an arm around her shoulders. "Why not?" he asked. "Go on and cry, little one. Cry as much as you can."
Anna hit her fist against her mouth, trying to muffle her sobs. It was too late, she was already crying. Her sharp, ragged sobs echoed in the room as Yoh stroked her back.
"Yoh? What's wrong with Anna?" Pilika asked.
"Is she sick?" HoroHoro asked.
"No," Yoh said, his fingers playing in Anna's hair and twisting it into curls. "She just needs some time to cry."
Pilika smiled. "I know how that is," she said. The blue-haired girl and her brother sat down next to their friends. Pilika stroked Anna's back as she cried, and HoroHoro laid his hand on her arm.
"Hey, what's going on?" Jun asked. "I couldn't find anyone- Anna?"
Her little brother poked his head around her. "What's wrong?"
Yoh shrugged. "I think Anna needs a hug," he said.
Anna tried to laugh but it came out more like a snort. "You stupid boy," she sobbed.
Yoh curved around her and snuck a kiss on her cheek. "I know," he said. "But it's true."
At first he thought she was going to slug him. But her hands didn't curl into fists. Instead, they touched his face softly. "You were the boy," she whispered. "You were the one that held me when I cried."
"I was," he whispered back.
Anna rested in his arms as her friends sat around her, smiling, as they watched Anna's heart mend.
Author's Notes:
This is a TERRIBLE ending. I wrote a different one. It's slightly better. So...read the next chapter, and maybe that one won't make you gag.
