Different
By Cassandra
DISCLAIMER: Me not own anything, but Kira and Aoi
Chapter IV
Revelations
The sun was slowly setting in the horizon and it kind of intrigued Seiya that it only seemed like a short time had passed since that morning when their little group outing had commenced. With her arms tucked behind her head by her fingers, she glanced curiously down the side at her smaller, silver-haired companion and wondered what was it that went through his mind at the moment.
Yaten Kou, her guest, was walking with her towards home.
Their excursion had come to a close just a few minutes before and the group of friends had easily dispersed. Taiki went on alone since he was going to pass by the library to pick up a book he had reserved the day before. Kira and Aoi went on their own way, probably to spend some more alone and quiet time together. Somehow, it happened that Yaten's house was near Seiya's so they decided, albeit a bit reluctantly, to walk home together.
Thinking back on everything that has happened that afternoon, Seiya allowed herself a small smile as she lifted her arms over her head and stretched, making a small sound of contentment deep in her throat.
For the most part, the afternoon had been surprisingly fun and quite disturbingly revealing.
The group of friends decided to just hang out for a while and visit the arcade later. Yaten had been expectedly silent most of the time. He had this particularly bored look on his face and he barely conversed with anyone despite the fact that Kira and Taiki had tried to engage him in conversation.
The gathering had gotten awkward and Seiya once more lamented her rash judgment. She really shouldn't have invited the cold shrimp that was Yaten Kou to come with them.
The mood was sort of lightened when Aoi suggested they go to the arcade then.
Seiya had obviously been all for it. She loved the arcade and looked forward to beating Kira once more in one of those combat games that they were both quite fond of. The problem then was that she had a responsibility to Yaten.
Hadn't she promised the sulking and irritating Ice Prince that she would be giving him an afternoon that would cure him of whatever it was that prevented him from smiling?
So what exactly was it that she did to get the little Ice Prince to get off his pedestal? She challenged him to a round on the new Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Starlights game, ignoring the look that Kira was giving her and the little giggles that threatened to overtake Taiki and Aoi.
Clearly, they just didn't see Yaten Kou playing an arcade game, much less one that had skimpily dressed girls on them. They were right on their assumption. The silver-haired menace declined her challenge with disinterested eyes and a bored yawn.
Ah, but Seiya was smart when she wanted to be and pretty determined when she wanted something done. So, standing up and drawing herself up to her full height to tower over the ice cold shrimp, she loomed over him and just smirked.
"You can't be scared of me are you, Yaten Kou?"
She watched as the boy only sighed and returned her gaze lazily. Again, she wondered why she even bothered with this annoying little shrimp.
"I'm not scared of you, Seiya, but I just believe that all this is just a waste of my time."
Then he had the nerve to get up and attempt to leave the Crown Arcade.
Seiya never liked it when someone turned their back on her when she was still speaking to them. It was downright rude and Yaten didn't seem aware of that fact. Or maybe he was at the point that he'd do it just to annoy her.
"Nah, I think you're just scared Yaten Kou."
It was as if the whole arcade had stopped in mid-action at the ring of her voice and Yaten himself stopped walking a mere few meters from the doors. All eyes were on the dark-haired girl that was known to be the champion Sailor Star Fighter on the Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Starlights game and the proud awfully good-looking boy, girl one couldn't really say, who seemed to have been reached by her taunt.
Yaten Kou didn't move as Seiya continued to let her words hang in the air for a while.
On the sidelines, Kira, Aoi, and Taiki silently predicted that Seiya would not let it end there.
They knew all about Seiya's cockiness after all and once more, they weren't wrong.
"So what'll it be Shrimp? You taking up my challenge or are you just going to run off and sulk up on the school roof again?"
The speed with which the silver-haired boy turned was almost too fast. His silver ponytail lashed behind him and revealed striking lime green eyes. If the crowd could, they probably would have gone "ooh" at the spectacle. Apparently, Yaten Kou was a spectacle even when he just moved.
He smiling, leering actually in that usual way of his whenever Seiya was around to hack at him, which had just been recently.
"Don't call me 'Shrimp'." He snapped and continued. "And I suppose this is what you promised me when you said you have a cure for me? A challenge on a stupid arcade game?"
This time, the crowd did "oooooh!!" and Seiya actually looked enraged. It was as if the crowd knew Seiya's affinity for her video games.
"It is so not A STUPID ARCADE GAME!"
"Oh yeah? Then what the heck are all those girls doing with skimpy outfits and throwing balls of energy at each other supposed to accomplish huh?" Yaten shot back, practically going dramatic as he pointed a finger right at Seiya with a whiplash gesture. "STAR SENSITIVE INFERNO! Ooh! That is so essential to my everyday life! I could probably feel my brain cells get engorged with knowledge! My life now has found new meaning because I've gotten a peek down Sailor Star Fighter's cleavage!"
Seiya was probably red in the face by then. No one and I mean no one, demeaned her Sailor Star Fighter!
"It is so not STUPID! They are trying to find their princess! It is SO important!"
"Yeah, and so is Sailor Star Fighter's on-the-side relationship with SAILOR MOON?? I don't think so!"
"Her love for her Odango is different and you know it!"
"Star Fighter needs to get her priorities straightened out!"
"THAT'S IT!" Seiya shrieked almost hysterically, apparently not caring anymore that she had gathered quite the crowd and that they were all listening to her bicker with the silver-haired closet fan of the Sailor Senshi over Sailor Star Fighter's dedication to her mission.
Kira, Aoi, and Taiki were all shaking their heads on the sidelines. They knew this scene far too well.
Seiya's indigo eyes were on fire as she once more delivered her challenge.
"You are so going to bow down to this Fighter, Healer Shrimp!"
His response this time was a cold smirk and a toss of his silver ponytail over his shoulder.
"Bite me, Fighter-baka."
Then the two went off to face each other on the latest Sailor Starlights game, which would turn out to be one of the most talked about events in the Crown Arcade ever.
It was only now, on the way home, did Seiya realize how weird the whole day had been. Who knew that Yaten Kou the Ice Prince could be so passionate about something so seemingly trivial like the Sailor Star Lights and that he was pretty good at arcade games? Well sure, Seiya didn't think the Sailor Starlights game wasn't something trivial, but that was another story.
And who knew Yaten Kou was a fan of the Sailor Senshi series?
Seiya was just about to tease her smaller companion about that when he spoke, for probably the first time they had separated from the others.
"I'd appreciate it if you don't tell anyone about my interest concerning the Sailor Starlights." He had that serious look on his face again and Seiya wanted to giggle at the sight of it.
"But why? Don't you want others to see a bit more of the Ice Prince beyond the cold stare and the untouchable aura? The one who happens to be a Sailor Star Healer fan?" Of course she got a glare in return for her comment, but she was pretty used to it by then.
"Ne Yaten Kou, since when have you been a fan of the Starlights anyway?"
"Why do you insist to call me by full name?" He asked tiredly as he looked up at her though he seemed particularly bothered by doing so. Looking up at her, I mean.
Seiya shrugged as she returned the look. "I don't know, I guess because I never really knew whatever else to call you."
There was silence between them. It was contemplative as Yaten looked right on ahead towards the path they were walking through. After a while, he spoke again.
"You can call me Yaten."
"Yaten it is then." Seiya said with a nod and a small smile. She looked up at the beautiful hues that the sun and sky painted above her. Then she once more directed a teasing smile at him. "So, since when did you like Sailor Star Healer?"
She laughed lightly when he heard him groan.
"Am I ever going to escape your questions?"
"No, so you better just answer them."
"Fine." He answered in a sigh of resignation and she chuckled.
"Do you find me that annoying?"
Yaten raised her a thin eyebrow.
"Ya think?"
Seiya shrugged easily, her lips lifting in a lopsided smile. "I wouldn't know."
Yaten trained his lime green eyes at her once. "Since the manga came out."
"What?"
"You're easily side-tracked aren't you?" Yaten shook his head. "I liked Star Healer ever since she came out in the manga."
"Why do you like her?"
It was Yaten's turn to shrug. "She has no sugar-coating to her. She's just real that's all."
Seiya snorted. "And pretty tactless."
"Just blunt and frank."
"You have a soft-side for her don't you?"
"I don't know about soft, but I like her more than all the other senshi. For one, I find Fighter far too loving for her own good."
"Hey! Fighter's just very passionate, that's all."
"You see her in your own way and I'll see her my way, okay?"
Seiya rolled her eyes. "Fine, fine."
They continued on walking and silence came once more, but this silence was more comfortable than it was ever before.
She couldn't resist flashing Yaten a smile when he wasn't looking. She somehow got to get the boy to loosen up a bit after all. Now he just have to figure out why in the world she invited him to come along…
"This is my stop."
She was brought out of her thoughts when she glanced up at Yaten's house to only gape at it after a while.
"THIS IS YOUR HOUSE??!"
Sure enough, Yaten's house wasn't a house. It was a mansion and one of those Western styled ones too. They were standing outside the gates and the front door needed a good amount of walking before actually getting there. A lush garden filled with almost all colors of roses filled up the space around the house and beside the path that led to the gate.
"You attract flies even more if you keep your mouth open that long you know?"
Seiya turned her bugged out gaze to Yaten who was now currently looking annoyed and a bit embarrassed at her reaction towards the house he had lived in for most of his life.
"You actually live here?"
"Yes." Yaten nodded shortly before pushing the gate open. Just before he slipped in, he turned to Seiya once more. "Well, I guess this is goodbye."
Finally, Seiya was able to snap out of it and respond coherently.
"Yeah."
Yaten nodded again and seemed to be at loss of what to say to her, which was funny since she felt the same way. She obviously didn't expect him to thank her or anything. If he did, she just might go on a dead faint right there in front of his gate.
Yaten Kou was never known to say 'thank you' and honestly, he didn't look to be the type to say his thanks graciously.
"Yeah, uh. Okay, I'll be going now. I had fun." Seiya told him with a smile and a wave. She turned to go ahead to save him from saying anything further, waving still. "I'll see you in school on Monday, Shrimp!"
She thought she heard him growl and close the gate with more vehemence than should be intended in closing it. It made her laugh a bit.
As the stars started to show themselves against the beautiful dark blue of the nighttime sky, she wondered what would happen now that she sort of got to know Yaten Kou, ahem, YATEN a bit more. But then after a few moments thinking about it, she decided to just let it go.
She shook her head, making her black ponytail bounce.
It would be pointless to think about, especially when it was her and Yaten that was the topic.
So what if they played a few games of Sailor Starlights and enjoyed it?
That didn't build a relationship, much less a friendship.
Meanwhile, a certain silver-haired boy was considering the thought of pulling out his old Sailor Starlights game from under his bed to play with it for a while.
A/N: Honestly, I don't know where all that Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Starlights stuff came from, but I guess I couldn't really separate the Starlights from what they really do in Sailor Moon ^^;;;. Review please! Domo!
