Hello! It's been a while, so the chapter is a bit longer! Have fun reading!
Thanks to:
Blu Rose: Yes, she'll meet Yoh soon! Trust me.
Wonderous Wolfy: Whadaya mean you 'think?' Read it soon, K?
On with Chapter 4!
Shaman Tale
Chapter 4
Wood Beats Metal
Terra stood up. "That ain't gonna happen," she said. "Now I'll just beat you and be on my way." She put her hand to her hip to draw her sword – but found nothing. Don't tell me… she thought. I forgot to get my sword…! An image of her sword in its scabbard on her bed flashed through her mind. She closed her eyes in regret. "Damn."
"Oh, you'll beat me, will you?" Opal said mockingly. "No-one beats Opal Kiravita. Cornisha! Spirit form!" Her ghost went into her hand. "Unity!" She pushed the spirit into her chest, and when she looked up she had her fan open, half hiding her face.
"Reena! Spirit form! Unity!" Terra pushed her own ghost into her chest.
"How will you defeat me with no weapon?" said Opal. She ran forward, her fan poised and ready to attack. "Death Slice!"
"I may not have a weapon…" Terra started, getting into a position. "But I don't need that to survive!"
When Opal tried to slash at Terra, Terra heard Reena give her advice she already knew. "Wait for the opportune moment, and then step back!" Terra and Reena moved together, and managed to dodge Opal's attack right before she struck.
The fan went head first into the soil, and got stuck. Opal glared at Terra. "How? You were unarmed, yet you still managed to do that!"
Terra smiled. "Skill, I guess. And a little luck."
"But you still won't defeat me!" Opal snarled. "Now neither of us has a weapon, but I have still the advantage, and you will still die at my feet!"
"Wrong."
Neither Terra nor Opal had said that. They looked down the hill, and saw a boy with brown hair and orange headphones on his head (A/N: I wonder who that could be…) and a shorter boy next to him. They had obviously been watching them fight.
"One of you will have a weapon." The taller boy held out a wooden sword. He held it in a throwing position. "Now, who will get it?"
No! Terra thought desperately. He can't throw it! She's taller than me, and she'll easily catch it!
"I don't need your pathetic sword," Opal sniffed, her nose slightly in the air. "I already have a weapon, a much better one. Your wooden sword will snap on its blade."
The boy shrugged. "Suit yourself." He aimed the sword more at Terra, and threw. Terra held a hand up and caught it.
"Thanks," she smiled. She turned to Opal. "So where is that better weapon of yours, then?"
Opal looked sideways and behind at the half of her fan that was visible, and realized her mistake.
There was no way she was going to get that fan out of the ground.
Terra held the sword in front of her in a fighting stance. "Who doesn't have a weapon now?"
Opal's hands clenched. "I'll kill you, weapon or not!" She got her fist ready to punch and ran forward.
But Terra had been waiting for that.
She lent slightly to the left, making Opal lunge past her. Then she hit Opal with her sword, and when Opal was facing the opposite way she slashed across her back. "Dancing Blade!"
A rip appeared in the back Opal's denim jacket and in one arm, where a cut appeared in the shoulder. Opal flashed her head around to look at Terra. There was fire in her cold eyes. Terra watched as her defeated opponent got up with a struggle and limped away, her feet dragging and her hand covering the wound on her upper arm.
Terra let out a sigh of relief and went back down the hill, but on the way she slipped and tumbled forward. She fell the rest of the way (which wasn't far) and landed face down onto the grass. "Ouch…" she mumbled.
She looked up to see the taller boy laughing. "I guess being a shaman doesn't make you any more graceful," he said.
"Heh heh…" Terra laughed nervously.
The boy held out a hand to help her up. "I'm Yoh, and this is Manta."
"Hi," Manta said. He didn't look as happy as Yoh.
Terra took it with a smile. "I'm Terra, pleased to meet you. Are you guys shamans?"
"Well I am. Manta isn't, but he can see ghosts." A samurai with white hair appeared behind him. "This is my guardian ghost, Amidamaru." The samurai bowed and greeted her.
Reena appeared next to Terra. "This is my ghost, Reena." Reena bowed as well and smiled. But she looked a little worried.
Terra held out Yoh's sword. "Thank you very much for lending me this. I would've died if it wasn't for you."
Yoh took it. "It's nothing."
"TERRA!"
Terra turned to her left, where the shout had come from. "Yes?"
Running up to her was Jet. "What are you doing, talking to the enemy?" He grabbed her wrist and pulled her along. "We're going home!"
"But… but Jet, he helped me! If he hadn't been there, this shaman would have killed me!" Terra protested, trying her best to stop Jet from tugging her away.
Jet did stop, but he didn't turn around. "Is that true?" he asked Yoh.
"Uh huh, I gave her my sword," Yoh replied.
Jet raised an eyebrow. He said to Terra, "So, you forgot your sword?"
"Um… yeah…"
"Well, then, you definitely can't stay!" Jet snapped.
"What…? But he didn't hurt me or anything," Terra cried.
Jet half dragged Terra out of the park, leaving the two boys standing there watching them, amazed and a little scared.
"Bye!" Terra called to them. "See you later! I hope…"
Terra walked a little behind Jet, looking at the ground. Stupid Jet, was all that went through her mind. Stupid, stupid, stupid Jet…
"Terra," Jet suddenly said.
"Y-Yeah?"
"I don't want you to hang out with that Yoh kid ever again."
Terra glanced up, her eyes wide in disbelief. "What?"
"That shaman is an Asakura," Jet continued, stern and cold. "It was an Asakura who won the last Shaman Tournament. (A/N: It was an Asakura, right?) He's dangerous, Terra."
"You can't tell me what to do!" Terra cried angrily. "I'll hang out with whoever I want!"
Jet flashed around and grabbed her upper arms tightly. "Terra, I said he's dangerous. He might have saved you today, but tomorrow he might want to fight you, or even destroy you!"
Terra's eyes began to water. "You… you're hurting me, Jet…"
Jet let go with a sigh. "I just don't want you to get hurt."
"I'll be fine," Terra said with a smile, despite her teary eyes. "I can defend myself."
"I don't know," Jet said. He turned back around and started to walk again. "I don't like him. He's too… happy."
Terra had to run to catch up. "Jet, you're way too protective. And I won't get stronger if I just slash away at sticks of wood. I need a real challenge, a real shaman."
"Fine. But I don't want to see him, so stay away from the house."
"Yay! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Terra cheered, jumping up and down. Then she hugged Jet, which caught Jet unawares. She never hugged him. "Thanks, Jet."
"Uh… anytime…"
"We're home!"
Grandpa met them in the hall as Jet and Terra were taking off their shoes. "Good, good. You're just in time. I have wonderful news."
Terra looked up. "You finally learnt how to cook?"
"No, of course not," Grandpa said, smiling funnily. "It's much better than that."
"What is it then?" Jet asked.
Both Terra and Jet were thinking the same thing at the same time. What's better than Grandpa learning to cook?
"Come into the living room, and I'll tell you."
They all sat around the table on their cushions, Grandpa on one side and Jet and Terra on the other, and waited for Grandpa to spill the news.
"From tomorrow," Grandpa said happily. "Jet will be starting at your school, in your class."
No-one said anything for about ten seconds. Then the two teens exploded.
"No way!"
"I am NOT going to some school!"
"Why does he have to come?"
"This isn't fair!"
Grandpa sat very calmly, waiting for them to quieten down. He had expected this. "Now, now. It's not that bad."
"Yes it is! First you want me to help Terra with training for her Tournament, and now you want me to go to school? In the wrong year? Do you know how much I'll stand out?"
"And I don't want him in my class! He'll get all the attention, and all the girls will be asking me what he likes and stuff!"
"Really? Am I that popular?"
"SILENCE!"
Jet and Terra stopped talking, and averted their eyes away from each other and from Grandpa.
"IT'S AGAINST THE LAW NOT TO SEND A CHILD TO SCHOOL. YOU WILL DO AS YOU'RE TOLD!" Grandpa bellowed at them.
"Sorry."
"Yeah, sorry."
"Now. I know Jet is two years older than you, Terra, but I thought it would be a lot easier to just put him in your class. And Jet, I know it'll be hard, but we'll be going back to our hometown soon anyway, so it won't be for long. How we managed beforehand is beyond me… Any other problems?"
"I'm gonna be way taller than everyone else."
"Yes, well I'm sure you'll put up with that. Anything else?"
They stayed silent, knowing there was no arguing with Grandpa now.
"Then off to bed! It's late, and you have to get up early, Terra!"
Terra trudged up the stairs behind her cousin. This sucks, she thought angrily. I can't believe Jet's going to start my class. This is going to be so embarrassing…
Yay! Terra finally met Yoh! And a note about schools. Terra and Yoh go to the same school but are in different classes. The only thing they have together is cooking. Yoh only just started the school though, so they haven't had it yet.
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