Mizu no Sennto
By: IronyV
Chapter 3: The Train Station
Author's note:
Finally up and rolling! Chapter 3: Train station actually introduces two new characters into the story. I have slightly changed my way of writing; there are more descriptions and a clearer characters' point of view. Hope you will like it!
By the way, I couldn't do breaks for this chapter (I don't know if it has something to do with fanfiction.. ) so I put >>> in between for breaks...hope it is okay for you to read!
Thanks for your lovely reviews! As usual, please review and in the meantime, I will try to finish up Chapter 4 as soon as possible.
Thanks!
PS: No FLAMERS allowed!
>>>>
"Sir, I would like to seek your attention to an urgent matter," a voice behind the door spoke.
"Come in."
The man bowed and opened the reddish brown door slowly. Walking in, he observed the surrounding and felt as though he had entered the living room section of a home furnishing store. There was a posh sofa set in the middle of the spacious room with a rectangular teak coffee table beside it. The walls, except for the paneled one facing the sofa (the man suspect that that was where the television might be), were painted a comfy brown. A ceiling-to-floor bookshelf occupied one of the walls while a heater sat in a small corner near the sofa. The curtains were totally drawn, and the only source of light in the dark room was the crafted lamp stand beside the sofa. As he closed the door, he wondered if he had really stepped into someone's living quarters accidentally.
"Oh, this is certainly not my home," A clear voice spoke behind him. The man jumped and turned around quickly.
"Gomenasai!" The nervous man bowed deeply and then frowned in confusion when there was no one behind him.
The clear voice chuckled from the sofa suddenly and said, "Daijyobu…most of the employees are startled by my unique office when they came in, "
The man turned around, squinted in the dim light, saw a person sitting comfortably on the sofa, the light from the lamp reflected on a pair of glasses. He knew at once that this was his highest superior.
The person sipped loudly from a cup of tea in his hand and spoke again, "You are new here, aren't you?"
The man nodded promptly. "H-Hai. I am from the intelligence department. Under the Head's instruction, I am here to pass you a document." Upon saying that, he took out a sealed envelope from his front coat and walked towards the sofa, wincing a little at the brightness of the lamp. His biggest boss set the cup down onto the coffee table and reached forward for the envelope.
For a brief moment, the man saw the person's face and thought he saw a glint of red glowing eyes peeping out from a pair of spectacles. The man blinked twice, thinking that the light might have caused an illusion. He tried to take another glance at his employer, but all he saw was the light reflecting off the pair of glasses and a bright smile.
"Thank you." He said, sipping from his tea again, "You may go now."
After the employee left, the man placed his warm cup on the table and stood up. Walking towards the curtained windows, he unsealed the envelope and read the document. His eyes widened with surprise while reading it and a smile erupted from his face. With his right hand, he pushed the curtains aside, allowing the afternoon sun to shine into the room. He looked down at the busy streets surrounding the building he was in and beamed happily.
"Ah…they are finally here."
>>>>
Half an hour has passed since the elves have entered the train station.
"Akira, we have been walking around for almost an hour already." Hotaru said idly.
"Hotaru, you are not the only person who has a watch here," said Akira snapped, trying to restrain his frustration without much success.
"Ne…Kyo sama, why are we still here?" Akari asked, while grabbing Kyo's arm tightly. Kyo grimaced and said nothing, looking around for signs once in a while.
"Well, firstly, we have forgotten to bring a map along," Akira said grimly. "Secondly, although we are able to speak their language, we have yet to learn to read it, which results in our inability to read those stupid signs."
"Thirdly," Hotaru mumbled, "None of us wished to ask that scary looking man that stands behind the counter. He kept smiling and his eyes are fixed onto us!"
"Maybe we should ask the passengers here," Bontenmaru suggested. He walked over to a lady nearby but the lady nervously walked off as she saw the huge figure approaching. Bontenmaru frowned and muttered something inaudibly.
"Or maybe we should ask for assistance from that man" Hotaru uttered, pointing a finger at the man behind the counter. He looked at them and gave a sly grin.
Akira felt a shiver down his spine. "Nope, not me…I'm not doing it!"
"Me too, I have enough of asking stupid questions to humans!" Bontenmaru huffed and crossed his big arms.
Kyo only frowned.
Hotaru looked at them and shook his head steadily. "I'm not going."
The four stood in silence for a few moments before Akari finally growl in frustration, "Fine! I'll do it! I'll sacrifice myself for the future of the elves!"
As she stomped off towards the direction of the creepy guy, Akari did not notice the looks of relief and satisfaction on the faces of the other four elves. If she did, they would probably find themselves being slammed into one of the station's white walls by now.
>>>>
'What the hell is he looking at me for? And why the hell is he smiling at me?' Akari thought as her eye twitched slightly and an involuntary shiver went down her spine.
She reached the counter but stood at least half a metre away from the counter.
"Erm…Hi…Do you know where can I board the train that goes to Asakusa?" Akari said hesitantly. The man was still smiling at her, and there was a strange glint in his eye.
'He is creepy!' Akari thought apprehensively.
The man's smile widened another inch as he raised his hand slowly, beckoning Akari to come closer. Akari stood frozen, not willing to move nearer. She frowned slightly when her mind informed her that if she couldn't get any directions now, the five elves could jolly well forget about the mission and rot in the station.
'Is this some kind of test for us to get through?' Akari wondered briefly, 'We have to work out the stupid railway system and get out safely?'
Taking a deep breath, she took a step reluctantly and leaned towards the man. Her body tensed against the icy cold counter and she gulped unconsciously. The man moved his face slowly towards Akari's face and she moved back unconsciously.
"Boo."
Akari jumped slightly and slipped, felling on the ground unceremoniously. A shocked and angry Akari looked at the man, who was clutching his sides in mirth and laughing really loudly. Akari felt a nerve in her temple twitch and a growl escaped from her lips.
"Kisama!" Akari jumped up, her eyes glinting murderously at the man and was about to deal a killer blow when a hand stopped her. She looked to her left, ready to maul whoever that interrupted her and froze when Kyo's red eyes stared back at her.
"You are not supposed to kill anyone here, Akari." Bontenmaru chided softly as Hotaru and Akira moved towards the counter.
"Baka, why are you laughing at?" Akira snapped, glaring at the laughing idiot.
The man stopped laughing and slowly straightened himself. He looked back at the young boy with blond hair and smirked.
"Nothing," The man ignored the scowling boy in front of him and glanced at the group. Standing beside the young boy was a taller kid, who looked slightly older. Unlike the neat and presentable dressing the boy wore, the tall blond kid had loose, oddly matched clothing and wore flip-flops on his feet.
The man's eyes wandered to the big burly man behind the tall kid. He was huge, with big broad shoulders and an eye patch covering his right eye, and couldn't help thinking that this man might be an ex-convict. Before he could observe the pretty girl that he had pulled the prank on, he suddenly felt a penetrating stare that sends shivers down his spine. He quickly looked at the man on the girl's right side.
Although the man was wearing a pair of black shades, he could feel the intense aura the man gave. Somehow, he could see a tint of red behind those shades, but it was gone in a second.
"This man is strong," he thought quietly. He walked towards the man in black shades and smiled brightly.
"Konnichiwa. My name is Benitora, nice to meet you."
>>>>
Kyo stared back at the smiling man. He could detect a faint, challenging aura coming from this man. Kyo smirked; he'd never rejected any challenge.
"Nice to meet you too, my name is Kyo…Kyotaro, I mean. You can call me Kyo."
'What is he doing!.' Akira thought anxiously, 'Why is he using Kyotaro's name? Does he want to get detected so soon!' Bontenmaru chuckled loudly, while Hotaru raised his eyebrows.
" Kyo-sama. You must absolutely address him as Kyo-sama." Akari said suddenly, a sweet and terribly fake smile upon her face.
"His name is Kyoshita, actually." Akari continued, "The rest of us call him Kyo-sama because he is actually a very great man! Right?"
Akari turned to look at Akira, Bontenmaru and Hotaru and smiled pleasantly at them. The three of them shuddered at that smile; it was the do-what-I-say-or-else smile that Akari always put on them.
"Err…hai…hai…Kyo-sama is really a great man," Bontenmaru said sarcastically. Hotaru and Akira smirked and nodded slightly.
"Soka…Kyo-sama must be a very important person in their lives…" Bontenmaru pondered out loudly.
"Benitora, are you a train station personnel?" Akira asked. Benitora smiled and nodded.
"Ah….I am currently doing temporary jobs around Tokyo…you can find me almost everywhere actually…"
"Ano…Benitora-kun, do you know how to get to Asakusa from here?" Akari asked politely while sidling beside Benitora.
"Err…hehe…Akari-chan, currently you are at the Ikebukuro station…take the JR line to Ueno station and take the train on Ginza line to Asakusa." Benitora gushed, looking happily at Akari.
"Un! Arigatou Benitora-kun!" Akari smiled innocently at Benitora and hopped away towards Kyo. The rest followed and they slowly moved away from the counter.
"Ha….you…you're welcome!" a flushed Benitora gushed dreamily and waves his hands at Akari.
>>>>
"Benitora eh…silly human…" Akira smirked while the elves are walking to the train platform.
"Akira chan, Benitora is a nice man! Stop insulting him!" Akari argued, frowning dangerously. She whipped around suddenly and smiled sweetly at Kyo. "Kyo-sama, my complements to that human doesn't mean that I am in love with him…I just thought that he is a nice man…that's all…I love only you Kyo-sama!"
"Whatever…" Kyo said nonchalantly.
The group walked in silence, observing the huge mass of crowd in the station. Minutes later, they finally reached the station platform.
"I heard from Muramasa-san that the train are usually packed with people," groaned Akira. He spotted Akari snickering and glared at her.
"Come one Akira, try to relax, you looked like you are a teenager trying to act like an adult," Akari sneered.
"Hey, for your information, I am an adult!" Akira hissed. His verbal confrontation stopped when they heard the thundering sound of the incoming train."
Bontenmaru chuckled, "Akira, stop talking for one second and try to squeeze into that train."
Akira frowned but kept his silence as they entered the train. It was a daunting experience for all of them; humans from all directions rushed around them, pushing them hard into the train. Before they could recover from the shock, they found themselves squashed between the human crowds, unable to move. Kyo found himself to be squashed with a gleeful Akari.
"Kyo-sama! I am soo happy to be squashed with you!" a flushed Akari squealed and hugged Kyo tightly.
Kyo frowned, irritated by the situation. He felt Akari's head on his chest and burrowed his brows. He was the leader of the group, but in this cramped train, he could not do anything to block Akari's advances. He decided to simply ignored Akari and observed his surroundings.
He spotted Akira and Bontenmaru at a corner of the train. It seemed that they noticed the suggestive behaviour that Akari was doing to Kyo. While Bontenmaru was snickering, Akira was staring angrily at Akari, who was totally ignorant of their presence. Moving his vision to the other side of the train, he spotted Hotaru, who had somehow managed to find a seat and was carrying an intense conversation with an old man next to him. Kyo smiled slightly; these are the elves that worked for him, he thought. They are the ones that fought together with him during the warring periods in Elvindar. But now, they looked just like any normal human being, indifferent and weak. He closed his eyes and pondered over what he said. He was, after all, half a human himself.
>>>>
After much jostling around the human crowd, they finally managed to get off the train at the Ueno station.
"Akira, I think we need to ask for directions again." Akari said while staring blankly at the signboard.
Akira looked up from his futile attempt at reading another signboard and sighed tiredly, " I know that too, Akari. Can you ask for directions from the young girl over there?" He jabbed his thumb to his left.
Everyone glanced over to the direction Akira pointed. A young looking girl with long blond hair was leaning against a pillar. She wore a pink turtleneck top and a gray-checkered mini skirt. She was reading a magazine, and would occasionally looked up and glanced around the surroundings. Probably waiting for someone, Kyo thought.
Akari turned back and raised an eyebrow. Then, she simply gave a big sigh and pouted her lips.
"Oh well, since Akira-chan doesn't dare to ask even a young girl for directions, I shall ask her myself." She said with a tinge of sarcasm.
Akira stared back at her. He instantly felt irritation seeping through his bones. He couldn't be a coward; he was after all, one of the Shiseiten fighters. He knew that Akari was challenging him, and he felt himself accepting that challenge.
"Fine! I shall show you that I am not a coward!" Akira huffed and stomped towards the girl.
I think I need to get some anger management, Akira thought tiredly when he found himself walking reluctantly towards the girl. He sighed, 'Akari is always making use of my temper…'
With a shake of his head, he instantly eased down his unhappiness and put on a small friendly smile. As he walked towards the girl, he could feel Kyo's eyes on him. He narrowed his eyes determinedly; he'll show Akari that he is as brave as her.
"Sumimasen," Akira smiled as he neared the blond girl and bowed slightly, "I would like to know where could I take the train from here to Asakusa."
The young girl looked up and smiled at Akira. Akira could see a thick layer of blue eye shadow around her big green eyes and noticed the difference in the colour of the skin on her face and her neck. He thought that she might be one of those Harajuku girls that were mentioned in Muramasa's guidebook.
"Oh, you are going to Asakusa too?" She closed the magazine and stood up. "I am actually meeting someone to go to Asakusa, but I doubt he would be coming." She looked at the watch and her big eyes narrowed slightly in a frown. Shrugging, she looked up again at Akira and beamed. "Anyway, since I am going to Asakusa, I can bring you there instead. Is it alright for you?"
Akira smiled gratefully and nodded, although part of him was not pleased about being leaded by a human. He glanced at his group and discreetly gave a few hand signals at them, asking them about their opinion. All of them gave him the 'OKAY' sign impatiently. Akira sighed inwardly. He was also eager to end this trip as soon as possible.
Akira turned back at the young girl and smiled. "I would love to, but I am actually traveling with that group." He pointed at his group, who are looking at Akira and the young girl. "If you don't mind, you can travel with us." Akira continued.
The young girl pondered for a while. Then, she smiled and nodded her head. "Sure! Let's go then!"
>>>>
"My name is Shiina Yuya, but you can call me Yuya." The young girl said, turning her attention to the group. " What's yours?"
Akari was chatting with Bontenmaru when she heard her speak. Her eyes narrowed. She didn't like the idea of allowing a girl to join them as a group, but since Yuya's help was much needed, she reluctantly agreed. Slightly turning her head towards Kyo, Akari felt a sudden pang of jealousy when she saw Kyo looking at Yuya. It was more like a stare, and Akari knew that Kyo was judging the girl. Slowing her walking pace, Akari skipped to the left and gave Kyo a tight hug, Kyo-sama is hers; she thought jealously, no one could claim him.
On her right, Akira turned his head towards Yuya, " My name is Akira," and turning his body slightly to his left, continued, "This is Kyo-san, my-"
"Kyo-sama, you should always call him Kyo-sama," Akari interrupted. She looked at Yuya intently and continued, "My name is Akari, nice to meet you." She shook Yuya's hand and proceeded to introduce the two other elves, Bontenmaru, who was chuckling at Akira's fuming face, and Hotaru, who was staring blankly to his right. Both of them turned their heads simultaneously towards Yuya and smiled slightly. Then, they continued with what they were doing.
Upon reaching the train platform, the loud and roaring sounds echoing from the train tracks announced the train's arrival. Akari immediately grabbed hold of Kyo's arm and blushed. "Kyo-sama, I really lovve it when I am in the train with you!" she squealed.
Kyo frowned annoyingly. He was starting to hate train rides. However, when they entered the train, Kyo realized that the train wasn't as packed as before, and although there weren't any empty seats, there was actually a space in the corner big enough for the group to stand. He walked over to that corner and leaned his body against the glass panel. The rest of the group followed over and silence loomed. With a stranger around, the elves found it impossible to discuss about their mission or even joked with one another in their native language.
It was Yuya who broke the silence.
"Hmm," Yuya smiled. "So…I assume that all of you are tourists." She turned to Akira, who was reading Muramasa's guidebook. "Where do you all come from?"
Akira stiffened and looked up at Yuya, who was looking intently at him. Of all elves in the group, she had to choose him, Akira thought annoyingly. He put up a smiling face at Yuya and simply said out the first country he recalled from reading Muramasa's guidebook.
"We are from…Singapore," Akira continued, "We are actually going to stay in Japan for awhile, because-"
"Because Bontenmaru and Kyo-sama have a temporary work assignment here." Akari interrupted. Akira felt an instant stab of irritation and fumed silently. Akari never fails to interrupt him, he thought icily. He glared at Akari, who ignored him and continued with the story, "The three of us, Akira-chan, Hotaru and I are still students, so we will be studying at the Gakugeikan High School in Asakusa."
Hotaru and Akira, who had already calmed down, nodded and Akari beamed. "Anyway, we are on the way to Asakusa to look for lodgings."
"Did you say you need accommodation?" Yuya interrupted. Her big green eyes suddenly brightened up and she quickly took out a name card from her sling bag. She held it towards Akari, who took it after a slight pause of apprehension.
"I am actually looking for tenants to rent two of my rooms in my bungalow in Asakusa," said Yuya. She zipped open her sling bag and took out a small folder. Passing a piece of paper to Akira, she continued. "Here's a picture of my bungalow and the rooms that I intend to rent out. The rental charges are as listed."
"I was going to meet up with a prospective tenant, but she never turn up today." Yuya continued. She could see from the prospects' eyes that they were slightly apprehensive. "I can bring you to my bungalow and show you the rooms if you want."
Yuya waited for the group's response. She could feel hesitation and tension among the group members. Observing their body language, she could immediately guess that the tall, handsome man in black was their leader. The group referred him as Kyo-sama, Yuya pondered, probably as a form of respect. She could sense the powerful and authorative aura of that man, and assumed that he could be an important person in his country.
Are they a family, Yuya wondered, or what kind of relationship do they hold?
Her train of thoughts was interrupted by Akira, the shorter blond kid, who looked at her with his round blue eyes and said, "It's alright Yuya-san, the photos are good enough."
"However, we can only give you an answer after we have a discussion with our guardian." He continued. He turned to look at the large guy on his left who chuckled loudly and uttered, "Un, we have to discuss before we have come to a decision. We will give you a call once we've decided."
Yuya sighed and nodded slowly. "Sure, not a problem. My name and contact number are on the name card." She smiled and gestured her hand to the door. The group followed her to the train door as the train approached their destination.
"Just give me a call when you have decided." She said. As the train door opened, she waved good-bye and started towards the escalator at the right.