Update Note (June 24, 2005):
ffnet removed the original story so right now I'm in the process of re-uploading it. Stats on the progress of chapter 7 can be viewed on my author page. (I haven't started it yet, by the way ;;)

Author Notes:
Wow! I haven't written in a long time. Erm.. Since September-ish. So pretty much half a year! Ok. I got lazy and I somewhat lost interest in SK. (don't hit me!) For this lovely fic.. (if it ever gets posted up.) Thank cherri-chan, who somewhat motivated me with her awesome fic. I'm trying to catch up on all the good fics that I've missed during the half-year time period. At least I can't be bored now! OOC caution, as always. A fic can't be a fic without a little out of character-ness. Don't kill me for hurting Anna in the first bit. I really love her! She's one of the best female characters in all the anime I've seen. And trust me. That's a lot.

Thanks: cherri-chan, damouse and everyone who had me on author alert/favourite author. I didn't think all of you would bother to watch my outdated fics. I'd also like to thank all the people like apple-chan who are still writing Shaman King fics after all this time. You guys are amazing! Also! Thanks to Anne for being a great help with a name that will be seen in the story.

Fic Notes: Right now, this fic takes place when Yoh and Anna were about 5 years old. That's right.. FIVE.. aww. wouldn't they be cute? Of course they won't always be five in this fic but I'll tell you when the time changes. This fic doesn't follow the anime much so.. no spoilers. Of course, if I do spoil something.. You have every right to through foods at me. BUT ONLY DOUGHNUTS! (So I can eat them.)

Further Notes: I seem to have a lot of these small notes. XD If you all are wondering, I WAS KiraX105 but I decided to change my penname to KiraX05 to match my e-mail and other account names that have that.

Start/End: 030904 / 040404


Midst of Heaven and Hell, Ch. 1

Covered in cold sweat, Anna pulled the old covers over her head. Her breathes were short and quick as her heart pounded without stopping. The pictures ran through her mind like a vivid movie that could not be turned off.

"It was just a dream," she quietly reminded herself.

'A dream that seemed so real..' her mind echoed in defiance.

Her cheek still swelled with pain as she tried to swallow the fear inside her. With arms and legs covered in bruises, one would think she had experienced a nasty fall. Beyond her dark youthful eyes, she was a woman. She possessed knowledge that only those at the end of their lifetime would have. Though you wouldn't expect it from five-year-olds, Anna kept inside her, a painful secret.

She wasn't normal. And because she was different, she was targeted by the friends she thought she had, by the people she didn't even know and by everyone that couldn't understand her feelings. Why is it that mankind feels threatened by the supernatural? Why must they end it over assumption?

Footsteps were heard behind the wooden door and Anna hid in deeper underneath her thin blanket. The door opened with a quick motion and a man stepped in noisily.

"Stop making those banging noises! The whole house can hear it!" He angrily yelled.

Anna bit her lip as she apologized slowly. She knew it wasn't her fault, but it had become a habit to her. Through experimenting, she realized that saying "I'm sorry." would instantly stop all yelling and would bring satisfaction to the yeller as it proved that they were right. The words would roll out of her tongue before she even knew it.

"You better BE sorry!" He screamed as he slammed the door. As the echoing of the door stopped, Anna caught mumblings behind the door. "Stupid girl. No wonder her parents left her. A complete nuisance."

Although Anna didn't understand what a 'nuisance' was, she gathered it wasn't a pleasant word to use. Without much choice, Anna was forced to stay here with slim servings of food and 2 pairs of one piece pyjamas. After her parents left her without notice, she was taken care of by the old landlord. She knew it was to keep quiet about her presence as most of the townspeople would stone her as soon as she was seen.

To the landlord, Anna was the scapegoat that was put to blame for everything that went wrong in the small building. Though even the landlord feared Anna's abnormality, he denied that it existed and continued to treat her like a disowned rag.

"Old fart." She muttered under her breath. She laid back down on her hard futon and closed her eyes. Images of her reoccurring nightmare rushed through her mind. Rocks were tossed at her without remorse. The faces of the people filled with a mix of both anger and fear. The taste of blood in her mouth as her lips bled. The painful bruises over her body that held her back from running away. The scars she had continued to carry with each encounter she had with them. She remembered everything. She could feel everything.

Anna shook her head vigorously, trying to rid herself of the horrible images that plagued her. She reached for her one and only friend in the world and held it close to her chest. It was a stuffed bear, formerly glossed in white but time aged it's coat to a dirty grey. Not that it mattered to her anyways. After watching an older girl through away her childhood things in an attempt to mature herself, Anna took the bear in her care. They both shared the same circumstance that brought them together -- Being abandoned by their owners.

Fozzie. That's what she called him by. She never knew why she chose that name.. But after hearing it just once, it seemed to have a certain ring to it.

Cuddling Fozzie in her arms, she fell silent and into a restful sleep.


The door squeaked as it opened without any respect for the sleeping girl inside. A tray of food was brought to the floor with haste, swaying it's contents to the edge. A small bag containing coins and bills was tossed beside it.

"Get up. Eat. After that, run these chores. I gave out the exact amount so you won't have change left to steal." The landlord spoke as he tossed a small list at the foot of her futon, "Remember to take that mask there. Wouldn't want anyone to see your disgraceful face when you're outside."

Anna groaned as she unwillingly got up. It couldn't have been earlier than 11 in the morning. She was famished since last night but ignored the growls of her stomach. She bit into the dried toast and drank the glass of orange juice sparingly, savouring each gulp of sweetness before swallowing it. The landlord began to clap with impatience as he yelled, "Hurry up. I haven't got all day with you!"

Pulling on a sack with 2 eyeholes over her head (which the landlord considered as a mask), Anna grabbed the list and read it:

Buy a 10lbs sack of rice.

Buy two loaves of white bread.

Return by 11:46AM sharp.

"GO! GO! GO!" The man snapped with fury as he pointed out the door.

Shaken with fear, Anna ran out the door and climbed down the stairs. With her limited vision, she could barely see the door handle above her. Standing on her toes, she pushed the lever and with a few tries, she successfully opened the door.

The smell of the old bag was washed away into the winds as a new spring breeze arrived. If the townspeople didn't recognize her face, she would have chose to embrace the winds directly. She silently cursed to herself as she started to run. Anna caught a few odd glances at her direction. She couldn't blame them, after all she wouldn't help it too if a person with a smelly old sack over their heads ran past her. She was used to it all. The glances.. the stares.. the scattered laughter as she ran past.. the pointing.. the taunting...

Tears built up in her eyes as her legs picked up speed. How she wished she could escape from it all..

She closed her eyes as her feet continued to travel across the empty sidewalk. She would have shut her eyes tight if she didn't feel a searing pain in her head.

"Are you alright?" A kind male voice asked as they lowered a hand. "You bumped into me pretty hard. Almost had me down on my feet."

"I'm ok." Anna mumbled as she got on her feet by herself. She began to walk off when he held her shoulder.

"Wait a minute. I'm sorry I bumped into you. Tell you what, I own a bakery just down the direction you were running towards. How about a nice treat on the house for that accident?" The young man smiled.

Anna looked at his face and noticed a sincere expression on his face. He was much younger than the landlord and a little younger than the father she had.

"I don't know..." She started as she dusted herself off.

"Come on! I bet you could use a little food. There's no poison! Can't have customers eating that!" He chuckled.

The word, 'poison' was new to Anna and she resolved to later on look it up in an old dictionary in her small room. She nodded slowly in response and soon enough they walked down the street together.

When they arrived, the blonde girl couldn't help but gasp in awe.

"You own this?" The words tumbled out without control.

The man chuckled, "I guess I do. But it's that big of a deal." He opened the door as he made a gesture for her to enter. "What would you like to have? You can choose how many and whatever you want of whatever you see."

Anna looked around and for the second time that day, she gasped in shock. Inside, there were columns and columns of pastries, cakes, buns and other various types of baked goods. She didn't recall ever seeing this much food in her whole 5 years of life! In the end, she chose a jelly-filled doughnut and a chocolate covered sweet roll. The man asked her if that was all and placed the goods inside a paper bag.

"Thanks, mister!" she cried as she was handed the small brown package.

He chuckled once more and pointed at the sack on her head, "I don't suppose you'll take that off now, will you?"

Anna shook her head furiously and bowed quickly as she ran out the door. As much as she was happy that this person treated her with respect, she feared the worse if he knew her identity.


After buying the stuff that the landlord wanted, Anna hid the pastries under her shirt. She crossed her fingers in hopes that they weren't found out as she opened the door of her refuge.

"You're late." A cold voice said sternly.

"I'm sorry," she said in a quiet voice. She let the items drop on the floor as she clutched her shirt tightly.

"No, you ain't!" He yelled, "What's that you got there? Something you stole?"

Anna gripped the pastries tight as she protested, "I didn't steal anything!"

"My ass. What's the matter? Too poor to actually buy something?" He crept closer to her, raising a small fist.

"...No..." was the meek reply.

"Gimme that!" the landlord snatched the paper bag from under her shirt and examined its contents. "What is this? Pastries? I was right! You did steal it! And from the most famous bakery in the whole country! How did you do this?"

"He.. gave it to me..." Anna cried as she reached for the brown bag. "Give it back! It's not yours!"

"This," he pointed, "Isn't yours, either. Get your ass up to your room. Not one little squeak or ELSE!" The landlord took the jelly-filled doughnut and bit into it, "Ah.. only the best could have done this well of a job." He glared at Anna, who seemed almost to be glaring at him. "I said, go to your room now! Didn't your parents teach you to respect your manners? Oh wait! I've forgotten.. your parents decided to abandon a brat like you! And I can see why too. A nuisance! That's what you are!"

For the first time, Anna stood her ground, "No. Not until you give it back. It's not yours. The owner gave them to me." A twinge of aggression overwhelmed her. A glow of light began to form around the girl as her fists tightened.

"...Wha--What's happening?" He cried as he dropped the package and scurried towards the wall on the opposite end. She couldn't control it.. It was some sort of dominating power that couldn't be stopped. What was happening to her?

A head-like figure began to float above Anna and almost began to humanize in to a physical form. The glow began to become brighter as the figure grew in shape. She couldn't feel anything but anger surging in her veins. She wanted to make him pay... make him pay for everything she was forced to do... for everything he said about her and her parents... for everything! He didn't have a right to say anything about her. What did he know? How would he felt if he had suffered like she did?

As the figure became more defined, Anna was having a hard time trying to stand up. Something was draining her energy. Before it was fully complete, she collapsed on the floor and was unconscious.


'It hurts.. My head hurts... Everything.. hurts... Something's.. tight around my wrists... It hurts.. I can't move it... Why can't my body move? Why does it hurt so much...?'

Birds chirped above her as she slowly opened her eyes to morning's glow. Her wrists were securely tied to the dusty pipes beside her.

'I must be in the basement...'

Anna tugged at the ropes, hoping that it could loosen them enough for her to free herself. An itch tingled under her nose and before she could stop it, she sneezed into the dusty air. When she recomposed herself, she noticed a sharp edge further down the pipe. Quickly yet quietly, Anna slid the ropes down and began to cut the knot off. The ropes eventually loosened and fell through her tiny wrists.

She spotted a fire escape that lead outside and without hesitating, she climbed the creaky ladder and opened the window that finally led to freedom.

Her legs walked on along the pathway, without direction or a destination to reach. She couldn't stay here any longer. If someone saw her… it would be impossible to run away the next time.

"Why…" She whispered to herself, looking up to where her legs have led her.

It was the bakery of the man that she ran into yesterday. This time, it was a young boy around her age choosing his own treats to take home. 'Maybe he doesn't have a mean landlord that takes things away from him..'

Anna continued to stare inside the window at the young boy who seemed to be equally surprised about the number of baked goods as she was yesterday. The man Anna met yesterday didn't seem to be running the shop today. A younger woman watched the boy as he made his choices. The small girl gasped in front of the windowsill when the boy chose the two same exact pastries as she did.

A few heads turn to see where the gasp was from.

A older man chuckled, "What's the matter little girl? Haven't seen that big a bakery? Can't blame ya.. It's the biggest one in this country, I'll bet!"

Anna whizzed around, "Really?"

"Yo-You-Your…." The man suddenly stuttered, "…The... demon… raiser…" His faced etched with complete fear as his feet stumbled. He fell to the floor reaching for a rock. "GET OUT OF HERE, YOU DEVIL OF A CHILD!"

Other heads began to turn around for a closer look and all of them had the same look in their eyes --- Fear.

Anna suddenly realized that her face was revealed since she left and without telling her legs what to do next, she ran north of the town as fast as her legs could carry her. More and more people begin to realize who she was and began to toss anything that was in their sights – Rocks, pebbles, stone, pencils… anything.

And this time… she had no home to run back to.

The crowds ran faster, carrying the throwing fragments with them, tossing them as she ran further ahead.

'Why..'

'Why… am I the only one?'

'Why am I the only demon raiser?'

'Why… am I the only one being targeted like this?'

'Why… WHY… me…'

The forest was only a few meters away and in there, it would be harder for the townspeople to find her. Picking up her pace, the girl ran into the forest and quickly made a few sharp turns to lose her chasers. Her feet ached with each step she took but she couldn't breathe easy yet. Anna quickly climbed up the largest tree she could see and hid under the thick leaves. The crowds ran past her location, roaring with fury as they headed deeper into the forest.

Slowly, her racing heart slowed down as she sighed in relief. "That was close… I should stay here just in case they come back this way."

"Oiiii!" a voice below cried.

Anna gasped as she held on to the branches. 'No! Someone's down there… Is he with the townspeople? Did they get him to come after me? But that voice… he doesn't sound very old.'

"I'm not with the townspeople and no one sent me out here," the voice added.

The girl peaked over the spaces between the leaves and was shocked to find the same boy that was at the bakery earlier.

"How did you find me?"

"When the man threw the rock, he hit the window and the next thing I saw was you running away from him and the others. I just followed to see what was going on. But it's all over now right? You aren't hurt or anything… are you?"

"Why do you care about a demon raiser like me?" Anna hissed, "Aren't you going to throw something at me?"

The young boy was shocked at her harsh words but then realized that he had once shared the same feeling as she did. "Of course not. Why would I? I don't think you're a demon raiser… You're too cute to be one!"

Anna blushed slightly, but quickly shook if off before the boy could see, "What's your name?"

"Asakura Yoh. What's yours?"

"Kyouyama… Anna."

"Anna? That's a pretty name. It suits you really well," the dark-haired boy smiled, "Anyways, you must be hungry… running all the way from town… how about a bite to eat?" He pulled out a paper bag and reached for the jelly-filled doughnut.

Secretly admitting she was famished, Anna slowly climbed down to meet the boy face-to-face.

"Here," Yoh grabbed her hand and placed the pastry into her hand. He sat down and rested on the trunk, reaching for the remaining sweet roll. "Sit down beside me and we'll eat together!" He grinned, patting the spot of ground beside him.

Anna sat down and took a bite into her doughnut. Strawberry jelly filled the insides of her mouth and slid down her throat as she swallowed. "Mmmm.. This is delicious!"

Yoh laughed, "I'm glad you like it."

Anna nodded as she continued to finish the rest of her pastry. "Thank you for sharing with me."

'You're the first one that's ever done that…' she added in her mind.

"Why aren't you eating yours?" Anna asked pointing to the roll in his hand.

"Oh.. well I just have to… erm… hold it for a while before I can eat it.. it tastes better.. that's all!" he chuckled nervously.

"But the chocolate's dripping on to your hand… are you sure it'll taste better like that?"

"I guess not.. aha.. haha.. Could you turn around.. for a second? Please?"

"Why?"

"Just for a second."

Anna reluctantly followed as she looked at him from the corner of her eye. Yoh dug out a small dark gravestone monument. For a split second, Anna thought she saw a white translucent figure appear from it but when she blinked, it was gone.

Yoh put the tiny structure back into his pocket and stuffed the sweet roll in his mouth. "Mmm! It is good!"

"What was that thing you took out just now?"

"What?" he replied, slowly moving further away.

"What was that white thing that came out of it?"

"Y-you saw that!" Yoh asked frantically.

"Yeah. What was that? It was kinda white.. and it seemed to take shape of a human head."

The boy pulled out the monument again and placed in front of her. "Come out."

Slowly, the ghostly white figure rose again, but this time it asked, "Did you call, Yoh-dono?"

"It can talk!" Anna exclaimed.

"Mm. So you can see spirits… This is Amidamaru."

"Spirits…?"

"I didn't want you to see… because you would think I'm really weird… holding food out to a mini-gravestone for no reason. But if you can see spirits… That must mean…"

"I FOUND YOU!"

Anna and Yoh were startled at the sudden cry in front of them. Anna gasped and quickly hid behind the boy.

The landlord growled angrily, "So this is where you were… You stupid girl… The townspeople saw you enter this forest… To think you escaped from the basement! You're gonna get punished when I get you home. You're lucky I'm taking care of you! Especially when you're demon child! But I guess you don't appreciate that enough.. do you?"

"Please don't let him take me… I don't know what he'll do… I don't know what I'll do!" Anna begged.

"Don't worry. Leave it to me… and Amidamaru!" Yoh gave her a reassuring smile as he stepped forward. A faint glow appeared on his fingertips and became more concentrated into his palm.

'What's going on? Why does this look so familiar to what I did yesterday?' Anna wondered as she continued to watch the boy from behind. 'The same glow…'

"Hito dama mode! …Hyoui Gattai!"


-(TBC)-

Yeah. That was bad, wasn't it? Anyways. Comments, questions and criticism can all be done by reviewing or e-mailing.