Water and Wind

By: Padfoot-chan

Sorry for the long delay everyone. Now that the summer has rolled around I am going to try to work on my stories a little more often unless my mother makes me volunteer at the hospital. I need community service to graduate from high school.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the GS character. I only own Okami, Yoru, Ryou, Daisuke, and Mamoru. Aoshi belongs to Ivan and Kanata and Amiko belong to Hoshi-chan (aka Tsuna Arashi :3)

Notes: Shonen-ai warning. Don't like, don't read. Flames shall be handed to Okami and he shall throw them into the fires of Hell along with the flamers where they belong. Flame me and you will see a very angry Padfoot-chan. Very angry.

Read and review please 3

Chapter Five: The Legend and the promise

"In ancient times when Weyard was still young, the four elemental lighthouses were built to protect the land from harm and to make sure that its splendor remained for centuries, perhaps even longer than that. Four Stars were created to keep the fire in the lighthouses burning; each Star held the eternal essence of its element and had its own special power.

"For further protection, the gods and goddesses that overlooked everything in Weyard, created four special Energists, each with two elements. Of Venus, there was always an Energist who held Air and Water as their element. Of Mars, there would be an Energist with Fire and Air. Of Mercury there would be an Energist with Water and Fire, and of Jupiter, there would always be an Energist of Air and Earth. To make sure that these four Energists did not lose their way, there was a fifth Guardian with the element of Water and Earth. This fifth Guardian would always keep a level head in the most terrible moments and would always lead the others along the path of good.

"These four Energists were sometimes called cross-Energists by the outsiders, but those who knew their true importance called them the Legendary Warriors, for they were warriors whom protected the sacred elemental lighthouses from any who would seek to darken the world from their power.

"However, there was another, darker secret that the Legendary Warriors kept to themselves. They were pure hearted and could do no wrong, so to balance out their pure hearts, there had to be an equally dark heart who could do nothing but wrong. The Apocalypse Energist. He was created when the Legendary Warriors were born, and to make sure that he never awakened to bring Weyard to an end, the four gods and goddesses gave him unlimited power, unlimited power that would keep him in a deep slumber for all eternity, unless a power equal to his own was sacrificed to him.

"As an extra precaution, to make sure that if the Apocalypse Energist was ever awakened, the gods and goddesses created a Savior among the five Legendary Warriors. The Savior would change from each generation of Legendary Warriors but there would always be one among them. The Savior was created to combat the Apocalypse Energist, his or her true powers awakening once the Apocalypse Energist was released upon the world.

"No one knows who the Savior is now. Only the Apocalypse Energist knows because if he ever awakens, he will go to the Savior first, drawn by their newly risen powers. It is said that the two will do battle until one comes out the victor. Their power will be so even matched, though, that the battle may go on forever. It is there, that the other four Legendary Warriors come in. They can help the Savior in the battle, adding their power to the Savior's for that extra boost so that the Savior can finally overcome the Apocalypse Energist and save Weyard from certain doom."

A small child with shoulder length light blue hair with silver streaks raises his hand, his golden eyes intently focused on the woman in front of him. "But, Auntie, you said that the Apocalypse Energist served a purpose. He was there to balance out the good and evil. What would happen if the Savior were to destroy him?" The woman paused and smiled down at her nephew.

"That is a good question, Yoru. I am not sure. Let us hope that that day never comes where we are able to find out. You could be the Savior, or even your cousin, Ryou, could be the Savior. The two of you would not want to have to fight a long, strenuous, would you?" Yoru and the boy next to him shared a long stare, their golden eyes watching each other carefully before they turned back to the woman, shaking their light blue hair. "I did not think so."

"Hey, Yoru, do you think that either of us could really be the Savior?" asked Ryou once his mother had left the room. Yoru turned back to his cousin, shrugging his shoulders.

"It's a possibility, both of us are Legendary Warriors. But you must be really happy that you are the fifth Guardian, you always keep a level head and you are our leader." Smiled Yoru. Ryou blushed, turning his head to the side and staring out the window.

"Why don't we go outside to play, Yoru?" asked Ryou, standing up and making his way toward the door. "I bet Fiori wants to go out for a walk, it's so boring inside." Yoru inclined his head, wondering if it was such a good idea to go out with those outsiders in Lemuria, but since Ryou was the one who suggested that they should go out to play…where was the harm in that?

"Sure, why not?"

----

Yoru opened his golden eyes, slowly sitting up in his head. Why had he had that dream? A memory from the past, his last moments on Lemuria with Ryou. It was something that very few people knew, that Ryou; the top Legendary Warrior was his cousin. As far as he knew, apart from himself and Ryou, only Okami knew about that information and the only reason that he knew was because he had told him after having a nightmare.

The cross-Energist rested his head in his hands, shutting his eyes tight against the thought of Ryou being of his blood. He hated everything about Ryou now. It was his fault that they had gone on that boat after Fiori; it was his fault that they were taken away from Lemuria, and it was his fault that they were separated in that storm. He cursed Ryou's very essence.

Robin had healed his wounds and he had changed out of his torn, bloody garments and into some of the spare clothes that he had brought with him from Karei Town. Yoru had managed to get his hair back into a state of decency, which he was overtly thankful for. He still could not figure out for the life of him why those woman had flocked to him when he was cover in his own blood and his hair had been in a state of disarray.

Looking out the window, he rationalized that he had gotten about eight or so hours of sleep. That was enough for him to start traveling on, but it was still quite dark outside and he was sure that Robin and Ivan were still asleep in their room. There was little time for him to sit around and wait. Tret was slowly slipping away and along with him, the humans of Kolima and whoever had been foolish enough to wonder into the depths of Kolima Forest to either figure out what was going on there and why no one was returning or had been ordered by the Lord of Bilibin to cut down the children of Tret.

He would have to leave without Robin and Ivan, even though he had agreed to accompany them to Imil. Every moment was precious and there was not a second to lose. Yoru threw the covers of him and pulled on his boots and his tunic, tightening his belt around his waist before strapping his wallet and herbal pouch to the loops in his belt. He grabbed his staff from where it leaned against the wall and looked around the room one last time to make sure that he had everything the he had come with. Yoru bent down a little, grabbed his pack where he had his clothes, foods and water, and sleeping bag, threw the strap over his shoulder and walked out of the room, locking the door behind him.

The cross-Energist crept down the hallway silently, making sure that he did not make enough noise to wake up the other guests sleeping in the Inn, but he was extra careful as he tiptoed past Robin and Ivan's room. He did not want to alert the two of his presence in the corridor. Yoru hurried down the stairs, dropped his key off at the front desk and made his way to the front door, throwing it open and rushing out into the night air.

He knew that Ivan would be mad at him for having left without an explanation or even leaving them a note to tell them that he had left for Imil without them. However, it would be better that way, there was no telling how long the Holy Tree would be able to hold on to life and every minute counted against him. Yoru slipped out of the front gate of town and headed north toward the mountains, toward Imil.

----

Yoru and Ryou chased after Fiori, the small dog running toward the outskirts of Lemuria. Ryou was a little ahead of Yoru, his longer legs carrying him further than his cousin. "Ryou! A storm is coming! Don't you think we should go back home? Fiori will find her way back to the house without us!" Yoru yelled over the blistering winds, his light blue hair whipping around in the strong gusts of sharp air.

Ryou looked back at him, worry showing in his golden eyes. He hurried back to his cousin and took hold of his hand, "We have to go and get Fiori. Something is telling me that we have to go after her. What if the water rises and carries her out to sea?" Yoru held his free hand up to keep his bangs and hair from flying into his eyes.

"What if we get carried out to sea?" challenged Yoru, "Fiori will be just fine. Are you even sure she came this way?" Ryou pointed over to where the ships were docked.

"You saw her go that way, didn't you? It's gonna be alright, Yoru, you don't want anything bad to happen to Fiori, do you? She was a gift from Picard, remember?" Yoru frowned. How could he forget? Ryou tightened his grip around Yoru's hand, knowing that he had won the argument.

"Fine, we can go after Fiori but it had better be quick."

"Right, we just go in there to get Fiori and then we're gone."

----

'How true his words had been.' Thought Yoru bitterly as he walked along the dirt path. It was not like him to think about the past, especially if those memories of the past dealt with Ryou. He had looked up to him so much when he was younger, when he was still in Lemuria. He had bumped his head in the storm and lost his memory of his childhood until recently. He probably had been suppressing those past memories because they had proved too painful for him to handle even now. Ever since he had found out the truth about his adoptive parents, his memories began to come back to him in dreams.

He had had those dreams before but he had thought they were merely something he had thought up. They were becoming all the more real now and he hated that fact. It was just fine before when he had hated Ryou just because he was annoying and always acted as if he were this smartass but now that he knew he was related to him…it was twenty times worse.

He suddenly found himself wishing that Okami was there with him, at his side to say a few comforting words to him, maybe even tease him about being such a baby or perhaps coddle him to try to make him feel a little better. Even though Okami did not act as if he cared, he knew that the younger cross-Energist did in fact care for him. It was the extent of those feelings that he did not know. Just how deeply did Okami care for him? Yoru felt his face grow hot and he tried to think about something else, like the path he was walking along.

It was still night out, the full moon hung above his head to light the path with its milky light. It was not wise to travel alone in the dark. There were worse monsters lurking around Weyard in the dark but Yoru knew that he would be able to handle anything that snuck up on him in the dark. His only real worry now was getting to the Mercury Lighthouse in time to save Tret from dying, and along with him all the humans he had transformed into trees.

He understood that sometimes humans made mistakes, he was among them. He would not pretend that just because he was a Legendary Warrior that he knew everything there was to know about the world and that he could not commit some great wrong. He knew that it had been said in the old Lemurian legends that none of the Legendary Warriors could do wrong, but they could. They were only human and it was part of being humans that they were to make mistakes. However, at the same time, they were there to right those mistakes and even hopefully help to make everything better than it had been before.

Yoru paused when he heard something rustling in the bushes near him. "Is someone there?" he whispered, already summoning a powerful Fire Psynergy attack in his right hand, his left hand wrapped tightly around his staff. He heard something whimper in fright and he let the Fire Psynergy die in his hand, taking a step toward the bushes. Yoru was about to use his staff to poke at whoever was hiding but a small boy fell out of the leaves.

The cross-Energist stumbled back in surprise as the boy looked up at him with cherry-red eyes, hidden underneath shaggy red hair. "Hey, kiddo." Laughed Yoru awkwardly, "What are you doing out here by yourself?" The boy's bottom lip began to quiver and Yoru blinked at him, a confused look on his face until the boy begin to cry, the sound piercing the silent air like a hot knife through butter.

Yoru covered his ears, wanting to cry out himself. "Shh, quite kid, it's gonna be okay. Where did you come from? Do you know where your parents are?" The boy continued to cry, only louder this time. It took a while but Yoru finally managed to stop the child's tears, a hiccough pushing past his lips ever so often. "Alright, so do you think you can answer my pervious questions without trying to drown us in your tears?"

The little boy sniffled one last time before finally deciding to answer the cross-Energist's questions. "I come from Prox but it doesn't matter because my parents are dead." He sniffled again and broke out into tears. Yoru studied the boy carefully, his earlier smile leaving his face. The boy had said that he came from Prox but he did not look like a Proxian. The Proxians had abnormal skin colors, but this boy had pale peach skin, much like his own. There was no reason for the boy to lie to him and somehow he knew about Prox, very few people knew about that northern village. So he must be telling the truth.

Yoru sighed and rested his hand on the boy's forehead, ruffling his silky red bangs, "What's your name, kiddo? I do expect that someone as strange as you comes with a name." The boy was indeed strange. Even though his skin was not the same as a Proxians, his eyes, though normal looking from the pupils, were the same as the Proxians, a cherry-red.

"Daisuke, my name is Daisuke of the Mars Clan." Yoru's eyes widened at this. This boy knows about both Prox and the Mars Clan? How could that be? Could it all be true that he was from Prox and born of the Mars Clan, a second line of defense for the Mars Lighthouse.

The cross-Energist bowed his head, laughing weakly before he smiled at Daisuke again. "Do you have any family around here, Daisuke?" The boy shook his head and Yoru frowned. If he turned back around to take Daisuke to Bilibin he would only be delaying his trip to Mercury Lighthouse and that would not be a good idea. If he sent the boy on his own, he could be captured by bandits or killed by some of the monsters roaming around in the dark. It was not really his problem and Daisuke had made it this far on his own…but still, he felt some sort of attachment to the boy. Maybe it was because he said that he was Prox, the village near the lighthouse he had been chosen to guard.

"What do you want to do, kid? I am giving you a choice. Either you come with me to Imil, or you head down the road until you reach Bilibin, what you do from there is your decision and I don't care if you get yourself killed." Said Yoru, shrugging his shoulders. He had to admit, it was the truth, even with his slight attachment to the boy. He did not care whether the kid died or not if he were to leave him.

Daisuke looked toward the north, frowning slightly. "I'll go with you, mister." Yoru sighed. He had hoped that the kid would have picked the latter. He really did not need the little snot machine tagging along with him and slowing him down. What would Okami think of this?

"Yoru! I cannot believe how stupid you are! Traveling during the night is one thing but picking up a little boy who knows about Prox and says he's from the Mars Clan! What in the name of Venus were you thinking? Do you want to get killed?"

Yoru rubbed the bridge of his nose. That sounded a little harsh even for Okami, he might have just whacked him upside the head, tried to drown him and then dump him off in Karei Town. "You can come with me but you had better keep up. And my name is Yoru; don't call me mister ever again, okay? It makes me feel old."

"Okay, mis—I mean, okay, Yoru." Yoru sighed, shaking his head and headed back toward the path, Daisuke following close behind him.

----

"Argh! Get him! He's stolen something from Lord Hammet's palace! Get that boy!" Okami leapt down the stone steps and landed hard on the ground, not stopping to get his balance back as five guards from the palace ran after him, their lances ready. Okami continued to run along the path, picking up dirt behind him as he moved faster, the small bundle tucked under his arm seeming worth all the trouble.

He reached the second pair of stone steps, jumping three at a time. When he made it to the bottom, he turned a corner and ran into an alley, jumping onto some barrels and climbing onto the roof of a house. Okami jumped from that building to another, making sure to get the guards turned around on the ground so they would not be able to find him later.

When he thought he had finally lost them, he dropped back to the ground and hurried home, turning a quick corner and running straight into Yoru, knocking both of them to the ground from the strong force. Okami groaned, finally dropping his precious bundle to the ground, his eyes spinning. "What in the name of Venus hit me…?"

"That…" started Yoru, sitting up and cradling his head in his hand, "would be me." Okami sat up and stared at Yoru, his deep blue eyes traveling up and down his body before he smirked, reaching over quickly and grabbing the bundle off the ground before Yoru had a chance to ask him what was inside.


"Sorry about that, mister, but I'm on the run from the law." He winked at him and was about to walk away casually when three guards appeared behind Yoru and two behind Okami. "Crappit…they're smarter than I thought they were…"

"Come on, Okami, give us the bundle and you can go home with a warning." Said the closest guard to Okami. The boy smirked again, cocking his head to the side and closing his eyes as he lifted the bundle in the air slowly and tossed it up ever so often.

"Sure, Richard, I'll just give this thing back to your brainless muscle heads and it will be a good day for all of us, right?" Okami opened his eyes and turned his suddenly cold gaze to Richard. "When Venus come to Weyard and commands me to do so. I know how important this is and I would be stupid to give it back to Lord Hammet. No, I think I shall keep this for myself."

"Come on, Okami, what good is it to you?" Yoru finally pulled himself off the ground; curious about what Okami was holding in his hands, why it was so important that five of the top guards would be dispatched from their posts around the palace to chase some little boy around the town.

"I dunno yet but I do know that I can put it to a lot more use that Lord Hammet can. So what is it going to be, Richard? Do you want this thing so badly, that you would fight the Child of Earth for it?" Yoru's eyes widened. The Child of Earth? Only the Guardian of the Venus Lighthouse would be called that. Could it be that he had found a fellow Legendary Warrior in this small village?

"Okami, what will Lord Hammet say about this? He was looking forward to—" Okami narrowed his eyes at Richard, making him stop talking immediately.

"I do not need to know what he was looking forward to, Richard. What could he possibly want to use this for? A present for Lady Layana? I do not think that he would be that thoughtful." The guards around them looked at each other, almost in agreement. Okami knew that he had them now. "So wouldn't it be better," Okami hugged the bundle to his chest, using his age and cuteness to draw them into his trap further, "if I were to get it instead?"

"Fine, whatever. Just don't go and pull something like that again, okay, Okami?" asked Richard as he motioned for the other guards to go back to their posts. Okami smiled and nodded, laughing playfully as Richard sighed and walked away. As soon as he was out of sight, Okami stopped laughing and turned to Yoru, his smile moving from fake to genuine in a matter of seconds. Yoru realized then that he would like to see that smile on Okami's face all the time.

"My name is Okami. Who are you, mister?" Yoru paused at the title. It seemed weird to have someone only a couple of years younger than him calling him 'mister'.

"The name is Yoru." They stayed like that for a couple of seconds before Okami rocked back on his heels, breaking Yoru out of his daze, "Hey, you called yourself the Child of Earth back there, did you mean that? Or were you just joking around? Are you the Legendary Warrior of Earth?" Okami stopped rocking back and forth, studying Yoru carefully for a second time, as if wondering what to make of this new boy.

"Yes I am, Yoru, Child of Fire and Guardian of the Mars Lighthouse." Yoru smiled through his surprise at Okami knowing that he was the Guardian of the Mars Lighthouse.


"So the legends are true, that the Child of Earth has Air Psynergy." Okami nodded, "That's cool. I do too but I haven't learned how to read people's minds yet, besides, Mom says that it is rude to read people's minds, that it is an invasion of their privacy." Okami frowned.

"I can't help it, though…it's hard to control my powers, sometimes they work without me even willing them to." Yoru blinked.

"Couldn't you stop them?"

"I don't know when they're going to start so there is nothing that I can do to stop them." Okami rubbed his arms and averted his eyes from Yoru's; "You must think I'm a freak now." Yoru smiled and shook his head, reaching over and resting his hand on Okami's shoulder.

"Not at all. I'm just glad that I was able to meet another Legendary Warrior. I don't care if you can control your powers yet or not, it just means that that is something you are going to have to work at in the future. It is going to make you stronger in the end." The younger cross-Energist blinked up at Yoru as he continued to smile down at him.

"I've never…thought about it like that." He smiled and bowed his head to Yoru, "Thank you, for not being afraid of me or thinking that I am a freak."

"No problem. We Legendary Warriors have to look out for each other, right?" Okami nodded, laughing to himself. Yoru rubbed the bridge of his nose and glanced down at the bundle that Okami still cradled in his arms, "So, what was so important that five of the palace guards would chase you all over town?"

"It's kind of stupid, really." Mumbled Okami, sticking out his tongue as he began to unwrap the bundle. "I just wanted to see how they would react if I broke into the palace and took something out of there. I didn't know that they would make such a big deal out of something like this, though." He pulled out a small white stuffed animal rabbit.

The sides of Yoru's mouth twitched slightly before he doubled over with laughter. "All that trouble, just because of a little white rabbit? If word gets out that the top guards of Karei were chasing a little boy around just because he had stolen a stuffed animal from the palace, their reputation would be ruined." Okami turned the rabbit around so that it was facing him.

"Really? Wanna help me spread the word?"

And that was just what to two boys did.

----

'We were pretty carefree when we were younger. I wonder when we began to change? After the Elemental Stars were taken from our care? But that was long before we met. I guess it sort of just snuck up on us in the end.' Thought Yoru as he and Daisuke continued down the trail. The sun was rising off in the distance, bathing the awakening land in a blood red light.

"Hey, mister, what are you thinking about?" Yoru's eye twitched and he turned around, leaning down to grab the boy's collar to shake some sense into him.

"I told you, don't call me 'mister'. My name is Yoru. Yo-ru. Got it?" Daisuke nodded, gulping. "Good. As to what I was thinking, that is none of your business, kid." Daisuke frowned as Yoru let go of his collar and started walking again. He could tell that it was going to be a long walk to Imil already.

-Morning: On the road to Imil-

Okami threw his thick cloak around Mamoru, hoping that the extra clothing would help keep the boy warm. He was shivering himself but he was used to the cold weather because of his Psynergy. The cross-Energist looked back to see Kanata carrying Amiko in her arms, wrapping her cloak around the both of them to fight off the cold. Gerald was a little behind, probably faring the worst of them.

"Gerald!" he called over the wind and snow. The Fire Energist looked over at him, raising his arm to shield his eyes from the snow, "Do you need me to help you?" Gerald shook his head, moving through the snow a little faster. Okami sighed and knelt down next to Mamoru, taking the boy into his arms so he would not have to walk through the snow on his own.

"How much further do we have to go, Okami?" asked Kanata when she reached Okami's side.

"It is still going to take a long time, Kanata. We just got out of the cave an hour or so ago. The road to Imil is easy to lose and hard to find again so we have to take out time. Even without this snowstorm, it would have taken us about a week to reach Imil. This is going to set us back a great deal unless it stops soon but I don't sense that it will do that." Okami turned to face the wind, allowing the ice cold gusts to blow back his hair, "I could try to stop this but it seems unnatural. I just hope that it stops before Ivan and Robin pass through Bilibin Cave.

"Neither of them has traveled here as far as I know, so they will not know the way unless they can follow the path. I am starting to get a little worried now."

"Don't worry about it too much, Okami. Robin and Ivan are both smart boys. If they can't find the path, I bet they will just camp out until the storm stops." Smiled Kanata. Okami shrugged his shoulders. "How long could this blizzard possibly last for, anyway?"

-Earlier: In Bilibin-

Ivan sat up in bed, stretching his arms and yawning as he started to wake up. The door to his and Robin's room opened and the Earth Energist walked in, a smile touching his lips when he spotted the Air Energist awake in bed, a sleepy smile on his face. "I'm glad to see that you finally woke up, Ivan. Did you sleep well?" asked Robin as he walked over to Ivan's bed and sat down on the edge of it. Ivan flushed a little and nodded before he leaned over quickly and kissed Robin. The Earth Energist smiled again, making Ivan blush even more. "What was that for?"

Ivan bowed his head, fiddling with his hands before he muttered a soft reply, "Do I need a reason to kiss the person I like?" Robin laughed and pulled Ivan into a hug, "So you really do like me, Robin?" Robin pulled away slightly and brought his lips to Ivan's; letting his actions speak for him rather than use words. He thought it would be nicer that way too.

"What do you think?" he whispered once he pulled away. Ivan smiled, a little dazed from their last kiss. Robin flopped back on Ivan's bed, staring up at the ceiling as Ivan watched him, a comfortable silence settling between them.

"What are you going to do now?" asked Ivan after he decided what to say to break the silence. The older Energist glanced at him, wondering what he meant by that. "I mean, about us? You and me? What are we going to do about our relationship from here on out?"

"I have been thinking a little about that myself…" muttered Robin, lifting his hand in front of his face and studying the calluses that his sword had created there. "I already know that the people of Haidia Village would disapprove, as for my mother…I do not know what she would say if she I were to tell her that I liked you in that way." Ivan moved over in the bed until he was lying down next to Robin, resting his head on the Earth Energist's shoulder and drawing little designs in the light blue fabric of Robin's tunic. "I don't care what they think though, she can disown me and I wouldn't care. I do know that I want to be with you and no one can stop me from continuing to want that."

"There is no disagreeing with an Earth Energist when they want something." Whispered Ivan, remembering back to what Kanata had said jokingly in Vault about Earth Energists. "I would feel bad, though, if you were kicked out of Haidia Village all because of me. I don't want you to be banished from your hometown." Robin tugged on Ivan's arms a little until he brought the Air Energist up so that he was lying on top of him, "Robin?"

"As long as I have you by my side, I'll have everything that I could ever want, or need. To tell you the truth, Haidia was starting to feel less like home every day. I would have eventually left on my own before long. It's better that I had a reason for leaving rather then just walking out of town." Robin kissed Ivan's forehead lightly, "For now, I suppose we just have to keep our relationship a secret. I don't know how the others will react to the news if we tell them. We just have to act like there is nothing going on."

Ivan sighed. "That sounds like it is going to be hard to do, Robin." Robin smirked down at Ivan.

"Hey, I know I can behave, can you?" Ivan flushed, waving his hand at the older teen.

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" Robin smiled and hugged Ivan again. "We should probably get out of bed now. I still need to get ready. It is a long way to Imil and we are going to have to use every minute that we have available. You don't want to make the others fight Satyurous and Menadi on their own, do you?"

Robin shook his head, finally releasing the Air Energist from his grasp. Ivan rolled off Robin and sat up, running his fingers through his hair to try to get it back to normal as Robin propped himself up on his elbows, happily watching Ivan as he tried to fix his hair.

"Robin…" started Ivan as he paused in his movements, glancing back at Robin to see if he was listening to him. "Would you really…be willing to leave Haidia Village just because you wanted to stay with me?"

"Of course, why would I tell you that if I did not mean it?" asked Robin, pulling himself up into a sitting position next to Ivan, "My feelings for you, Ivan, people may think that it's wrong, but I don't. I care for you deeply, maybe a little more than I am willing to even admit to myself. I've never felt this strongly about anyone in my life before. I don't think I would be able to stand it if I were apart from you for any length of time. Maybe I am just being a little clingy but that's how I feel."

Ivan smiled weakly, throwing his arms around Robin's neck and burying his face in Robin's tunic, "I hope it does not have to go that far, for you to leave. We can still stay together and keep our relationship a secret from everyone else. I don't really like public displays of affection, anyway." Robin began rubbing circles into Ivan's back, resting his chin on the top of the Air Energist's head.

"I guess if we have to do that, we will. I don't mind, really, as long as we can get to be like this." Robin buried his nose in Ivan's hair, taking a deep breath, committing the smell of Ivan's hair to memory before he released him again, rising from the bed. "You should get ready. I'll get your breakfast and then you can wake Yoru once you're done."

"Why not wake him now?" asked Ivan, reluctantly climbing out of the bed as well.

"I think that we should let him rest for as long as we can. He did lose a lot of blood from that battle with Tret. I'm not even sure if he is ready for travel yet but we haven't much of a choice. The longer we wait, the more time we give Satyurous and his little group time to fire the Mercury Lighthouse beacon." Robin ruffled Ivan's hair lovingly. For some reason he just wanted to stay like that but he knew that he should go and let Ivan get ready. He pulled Ivan to him for one last hug.

"You're so huggy today." Teased Ivan, his voice muffled against the fabric of Robin's tunic.

"Don't spoil this for me. I almost lost you." Whispered Robin, now understanding why he had wanted to keep Ivan in his arms. He bit down on his bottom lip, knowing that if he thought about what had almost happened to the young Air Energist earlier, that he would start to cry again. "Ivan, I won't let anything bad happen to you on this journey. That's a promise. I won't let anything harm you. I promise to protect you with my life."

Ivan pulled away slightly and turned his solemn violet eyes up to Robin's pale blue ones, burning with a hidden fire, "And I promise to protect you, Robin."

-TBC-

Finally! The fifth chapter is done. But, I have a question for everyone Who's Paddy's favorite Earth Energist that wants to get into Ivan's pants? 3

Robin: What!? Don't say that! I don't want to—I mean, yes I do—wait! That's not what I meant! Padfoot-chan!

I'd like to take this time to brag that Water and Wind is now 76 pages long and is 56,465 words long. I'm just so happy. blows nose and starts crying on Robin's shoulder I'm so proud of my baby!

Robin: blushing Can you remove that question?

3 Answer the question and I'll dedicate the next chapter to you :3 Ah fluff, I'll dedicate the sixth chapter to whoever reviews to this before I finish the next chapter.  Read and review! And remember, Paddy loves you Obviously I'm drunk on all the fluff between Robin and Ivan XD