Yay! Chapter 5 is finally here! Took me awhile, but I did it. Enjoy.

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Finally. This is it.
What?
The end of ridicule. Forever.
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Misaki smiled. This should be fun. She meant it with no malice, but somehow, in her mind, the words twisted around. I don't mean it like that. 'Yeah, sure,' her mind spat back.


She focussed on the game again. Hikaru dodged an attack moments before it hit. She raced around the layer. Hiroko streaked after her. Within seconds, she had caught up and before Misaki realized it, Hikaru had taken a hit and was down. That angel's speed is unreal, she thought, frowning. Something wasn't right. She looked over at Hiroko's deus. She sat motionless, seemingly not following Hiroko or Hikaru's moves at all. She wasn't even looking at Misaki. How can she control her angel without looking at anything? As small voice in her head responded, Maybe she isn't controlling it. Misaki pushed it away and urged Hikaru to get up. As Hikaru got to her feet, Hiroko lunged forward, nearly knocking Hikaru off her feet. Just in time, Hikaru spread her wings and pushed away from the ground.


Hiroko then vanished abruptly. Misaki looked wildly around. Then she gasped aloud. A darkness had surrounded Hikaru, who fought wildly. Misaki focussed and found the source. Hikaru wrenched herself free of the darkness and aimed a wild kick at Hiroko. Apparently, the angel was unprepared, because she spun across the layer, stopping herself just at the edge. Suddenly, the black eyes snapped to a fierce dark red. The angel stood perfectly still.


Misaki took a chance, "HIKARU!" She screamed. Hikaru threw a punch at Hiroko, but it seemed to bounce off an invisible force. Hiroko smiled and her already hard eyes hardened even more. And everything went black.


"HIKARU!" Misaki screamed again, tearing off her headset. She leapt out of her chair and landed hard on the floor. She didn't notice. She was running as she hit the ground. She reached the layer as the lights came back on. Hikaru lay on the edge of the layer, her face and clothes blackened. Long tears were in her armor and deep gashes were in her body. Her eyes were closed and Misaki could have sworn that she saw a tear glistening on her cheek. She picked up the small form gingerly in her arms and turned towards her adversary, questions on her face.


The girl sat perfectly still, staring straight ahead. The angel, however, stood in the center of the layer, her arms crossed and a malicious grin spread across her features. Misaki stared at her for a minute, frozen in shock, then ran out of the stadium, tears streaming down her face.


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Watching from the sidelines, Tamayo saw her run.


"MISAKICHI!" She screamed. She leapt from her seat and ran as fast as she could to the deus waiting room. Koutarou was there, but there was no sign of Misaki.


"Tamayo-chan, what's the matter?" Koutarou asked looking up into Tamayo's eyes.


"Weren't you watching Misakichi's battle?" She asked him.


"No, I just got back. I wanted to, but I had to change something on Masao and I just missed it. Did she win?"


"If she had, would I be here?" Tamayo asked, already preparing to leave to look for Misaki.


"She lost? But- HOW?" Koutarou was incredulous.


"I dunno. Her opponent's angel did this freaky thing... I can't describe it and - and that was it," She finished quickly.


"Where would she be?" Koutarou asked.


"How would I know?" Tamayo asked. She turned and ran out of the room. Koutarou followed her as quickly as he could.


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Misaki sat beneath a small cherry tree in the courtyard. Tears ran down her face and splashed to the dirt below. She held Hikaru close to her chest. She wasn't sobbing anymore. The calm always came after a storm of tears.


Why me? She asked herself, What did I ever do to deserve this? What was with that angel anyway? I'm sorry Hikaru. I let down my guard and you were nearly destroyed. Why am I running away? Why am I letting this hurt me? I can fix Hikaru. I'm not afraid of anybody. She wiped away her tears and stood up. Brushing the dirt off her body, she walked toward the building.


"Hello again," a voice said, very near her ear.


Misaki screamed and spun around, nearly knocking Icchan over, "Oh, it's only you."


"What do you mean, only me?" Icchan asked indignantly.


"Never mind. Why are you here?"


"To help you fix your angel. She really isn't in very good shape right about now."


"Yeah, I know."


"Here, I'll fix her," Icchan pulled a toolbox from somewhere and opened it. Misaki decided to go along with this and handed Hikaru over.


In what seemed no time at all, Hikaru was fixed and Misaki was mending her uniform.


"I know why you lost," Icchan said suddenly.


"What do you mean? Why did I lose?"


"I shouldn't have said that. I'll tell you later."


"Why can't you tell me now?"


"I just... Never mind."


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From inside the building, a figure in a wheelchair watched, clutching a triumphantly smiling angel.


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Well, there you have it... Chapter 6 will be long in coming, what with the rush of school and all that stuff...