Author Notes: Aww… 3 Thank you for the kind reviews everyone! I can't tell you how great they've made me feel. I hope this chapter can meet at least a half a quarter of your expectations. Erm. Hopefully.
Thanks: To everyone who took the time to click and read this little ficcy AND everyone who kindly reviewed the first chapter.
Fic Notes: I may have forgotten tidbits of important detail of SK but I think I'm pretty right. (Eep. Maybe.) If not, feel free to correct me.
Start/End: 040504/040904
Anna watched as Yoh forcefully pushed the glowing orb from his hand into his body. Her eyes were completely fixated on him during the fusion. 'What… just happened? How did he… Why did he…'
Her thoughts were cut off as the landlord chortled, "I don't know what you were doing just now boy, but the girl belongs to me. Run along now or you'll regret it."
"Anna is my friend. Judging by the way you were talking about her, you don't treat her very well do you?"
The landlord pointed in Anna's direction with his wooden cane, "Tell me then, how would you treat a dirty rag?"
"With love, care and respect, like all living things," Yoh simply replied, "I won't let you take Anna back if all you're going to do is treat her like she is nothing important."
The old man snorted, "She is nothing important. Nothing special to the townspeople or anyone! She might as well be of some use to me by running all the chores in the place." He lifted his cane, as if it were a sword. He motioned Yoh to come forward and strike.
"Anna is important to me and I will protect her. You'd best not fight me with a heart as dark as yours. You can't win against me and Amidamaru."
"Who? You mean that stupid motion of yours back there? HA! Don't make me laugh. I'll teach you a good lesson and then I'll take my 'rag' back and give her something to think about the next time she decides to disobey me."
The landlord ran and swiped his cane at the younger boy. Anna closed her eyes. Why is he getting hurt for her sake? They've only met for less than 10 minutes and yet… there he was… fighting for her. Slowly, her eyes opened to see Yoh easily dodging the landlord's attacks.
Grumbling, the old man growled, "Why—you little… If my back was what it was used to be… You'd be in trouble boy!"
Yoh grinned, "But it isn't."
The landlord stroke his cane again and his fury rose each time he was unable to hit him. Yoh only added fuel to the man's raging fire by doing playful spins beside his weapon after each dodge.
Anna giggled softly as the young boy did ballerina turns during each miss. After a few more, she found it hard to contain her amusement and laughed loudly.
Yoh froze in his stance as he listened closely to her laughter. 'Now that expression suits her. A beautiful laugh to go along with a pretty face,' He thought to himself.
The boy grinned as he bent down to retrieve a fallen twig. "It's time to finish this."
The landlord panted as he rested on his cane, "A twig? You couldn't hurt me enough to finish me!"
"The twig won't hurt you. But we will," Yoh replied. He spun halfway and sliced the wind in front of him.
"Shinkuu Buttagiri!"
A gust appeared in a shape of a crescent and headed towards the landlord.
The old man was startled at what had conjured and lost his footing. He fell to the floor and raised his arms to cover his face as he hurriedly moved backwards.
"HELP!" he cried at the last minute before being thrown back against the trunk of a tree. The landlord's body slowly slid to the floor motionless.
A glowing orb appeared from Yoh's chest and slowly drifted back into the black monument. Yoh placed the small twig on the floor and turned around to see Anna's emotionless face.
Reassuring her thoughts, Yoh replied, "He's only unconscious, he'll be up in a few minutes. But in the meantime… Why don't you come stay with my family and me? We'll treat you better than he ever will. If you saw Amidamaru, then you must be a shaman!"
"A shaman…?"
"One who binds this world and the next. They can talk to spirits and people directly. Though most people don't see the being a shaman a good thing, it's really not bad at all. My entire family are shamans, though they're a little different from one another."
"But… I can't just come and live with your family… wouldn't that be hard on them?"
"Not at all! Trust me. I know they won't turn you away. They can't!"
The blond-haired girl scrunched her face as she thought about life where people acknowledged, understood, and maybe even become proud of her difference. A life without wearing masks when taking a walk outside… without the fear of getting stoned… It seemed almost perfect…
It couldn't be that easily obtained, could it?
"We just met… How can you let me just… live with you?"
"Because… You deserve happiness."
Anna froze.
What was happiness? Was she happy with the landlord? Or was being happy receiving the baked goods from the kind man yesterday? Maybe happiness was just a word. Maybe it doesn't even exist. But when he said it… It meant something… didn't it?
Yoh continued when she didn't respond, "I know I don't know you that long… yet. But I know you aren't very happy living here. How could anyone be? Being treated like an outsider… Like almost nothing at all…" He turned away as he trailed off, "I wouldn't be…"
Anna looked into his distant eyes. There was something… lingering in his eyes. A hurtful glint… of loneliness perhaps? And it was right there, that Anna knew that she wasn't alone anymore.
The boy shook his head, "What am I going on about? I can't promise you happiness… but I can at least promise you something much better than this…"
"Ok…" she replied. Her hand clasped over his in reassurance.
"What? …Really?" The boy grinned instantly.
"I'll come live with you…"
'Though I'll probably get thrown out at first sight.' Anna decided not to add verbally.
"You won't regret it. I can promise you that."
Yoh's other hand rested on top of hers, giving her a small squeeze. Little did Anna know that those words would hold truth in their future to come.
The train doors closed with a snap as it began to move to its destination in Izumo. Anna bit her lip, unsure of what was to happen when she arrived. She mentally thought of backup plans to use when it would be announced that she couldn't stay with them. She could go back and live in the forest… though food would be scarce and she had yet learned basic survival skills… and on top of that… she was only five. It would be a long thirteen years before she could finally move around the country or travel abroad freely.
Heck, if she wasn't accepted… maybe she'll even move back with the landlord. No… that couldn't be an option nonetheless a backup plan. It would be ten times worse if she came back. The landlord would treat her even worse, if that were possible, than before.
Maybe she'll just wander around Izumo… or make a hole and live in it.
Anna glanced at Yoh, who was soundly asleep already. His mouth hung open and his head kept tilting upwards and downwards. She giggled slightly at his appearance.
If she continued to walk along and never stopped to watch the boy at the bakery today… She wouldn't have met her first friend. But still… things were moving fast. The other day, she was sleeping soundly in her hard futon… and today… she was off to see if she could live with the Asakura family.
She mentally groaned, 'How did I get myself into this?'
It was silly… she already knew the answer. It was him. Yoh. His dark brown eyes had so much more than its colour. His kind and gentle smile… The way he was so willingly to protect her just from the first 5 minutes of being with her.
She could still remember those words he said during the fight…
"Anna is important to me and I will protect her."
'I will protect her…' the words echoed in her mind again.
There was just something about those words that set it apart from lies. It was so genuinely spoken…
'He's only my age. Surely, he couldn't have meant it. But it was nice to hear them anyways…'The young girl sighed.
It would be a long ride… 3 hours is what Yoh had said. Closing her eyes, Anna decided to rest… After all, it would be a long day ahead of her.
"Final stop! Izumo. Passengers please exit now. We hope you had an enjoyable ride," the speakers blared loudly announcing their arrival.
Yoh slowly opened his eyes. He yawned while stretching his tired muscles. He looked at his companion across from him, who seemed to be fast asleep. Her face seemed pale, probably from exhaustion and lack of proper care over the years. Though despite all that, she was still cute. At least in Yoh's eyes.
Gently, he poked her arm and whispered, "This is our stop."
"A few more minutes…" mumbled the sleeping girl.
"Well... In a few more minutes, the train will move back to where we were 3 hours ago. Come oooooon. Let's goooooo," Yoh tugged her arm lightly.
He stood up and pulled the girl away from the seat. Anna mumbled something before she let herself be pulled out of the train by the boy.
"Let's go! The bus stop is this way."
"Bus stop? You've gotta be kidding me," Anna groaned, "And how long will the bus ride be? And will we have to walk after that? Or take another train? And some more buses?"
Yoh laughed, "Not really. Just a 45-minute bus ride and a 15-minute walk… and we'll be there."
"Your house must be in the middle of nowhere."
"It is. Well, it has to be. A lot of shamans come to train at our place because they know our family and because of its location near waterfalls and a couple of caves."
"Your family must be famous…"
"You could say that," Yoh smiled at her, "But starting today, it's our family that's famous. Oh look! There's the stop."
Yoh ran ahead and climbed onto the bus benches. He stood and watched for incoming buses. A cool breeze blew past Anna, sending chills crawling over her body. Her arms folded as her teeth gritted. She glanced at Yoh for hopeful signs that the bus was indeed coming. But instead, she found his eyes staring directly at her.
"What?" she asked. She wasn't used to people staring at her for no reason.
"Are you cold?"
"No," Anna replied, quickly letting her arms fall to her side, "Why would I be?"
Yoh shook his head, "I have no clue." He continued to look in the direction the bus would be coming from, but at the same time, he watched Anna from the corner of his eye.
Much to her misfortune, Anna sneezed suddenly. She sniffled as she found Yoh's gaze at her once again.
"I'm not cold!" she exclaimed, "It's… just dusty here. That's all."
The boy jumped down and walked towards her. Anna backed away a few steps in reflex. Yoh opened his arms and wrapped them around her body.
"W-Wh—What are you doing?" Anna shrieked, struggling from his hold.
"Making you warm," was his simple reply, "Sometimes when I'm cold at night, I feel really warm when my mom holds me like this."
Anna said nothing in reply. She let his warmth spread throughout her body. She had to admit that it was oddly effective. There was another feeling though… something she couldn't quite describe. It was something new… and warming to her heart. Even if the purpose of the embrace was not to achieve this feeling… It didn't matter. It almost made her feel… whole… and secure. But how could such a simple thing as a hug, build up so much emotion inside her?
A large automobile was coming around the corner, but Anna didn't want to lose this feeling yet. On top of that, she would be cold again.
"The bus is coming," she slowly said, kicking herself mentally at the same time.
Yoh pulled away, as Anna predicted, and turned to await the bus. She could feel some of the warmth slipping away already.
The bus stopped in front of Yoh and opened its doors, welcoming its passengers.
"Let's get on. You'll be warmer in the bus," he said, stepping inside.
Anna followed him up the steps and towards the back end to sit down.
It really is going to be a long day.
Yoh watched the scenery as the bus continued to roll. His eyes were in danger of closing again.
It would be bad if their stop passed by while he was sleeping.
'I wish Anna knew where it was… Then I could catch a few Z's…'Yoh glanced at the girl beside him. Her head was down, letting her long blond hair cover her face.
'But she probably deserves to rest more than I do…'
Unexpectedly, the bus sharply turned right and sent the passengers falling slightly to the right of the vehicle.
Anna's body leaned on Yoh's, pushing him against the side of the bus. Yoh waved a hand in front of her face, checking to see if she was awake. He smiled when there was no response from the motionless girl. Looking back towards the window, Yoh grinned.
'Today is going to be great. I can feel it.'
Anna didn't even know she dozed off a second time until Yoh stood up beside her and pulled the thin rope to signal that they were getting off the next stop.
The bus slowly slid to a stop and opened its doors once more.
"We're almost there, Anna… Just a little further."
The young girl yawned as she leapt off the final step of the bus. The large automobile drove away, leaving clouds of smoke trailing from behind.
"Someone's tired today," Yoh hinted as they began their final walk to his home, "Though I guess I can't blame you. You're probably not used to taking so many different kinds of transportation…"
"A 3 hour train ride, a 45 minute bus ride and a 15 minute walk. That's pretty much 4 hours from where I lived," Anna pointed out, "Speaking of which, if it takes you 4 hours to get there… Why were you there in the first place?"
"I had to run an errand for my grandfather, he needed some sort of incense… or something."
"So, he made you go all by yourself?" Anna asked, shocked at the idea of sending someone as small as him to run an 8-hour errand.
"I'm used to travelling on my own a lot. It's not a big deal. I was the one who wanted to run it. Besides, if I get into any trouble, I can just summon Amidamaru."
"Shamans must be strong then. I wonder if I can become that strong."
"You will," Yoh reassured, "If you consider me strong, then you will definitely become even stronger."
"What makes you say that?"
"I don't know really. Just a feeling," He smiled.
"Your face must hurt from smiling a lot."
"You know what they say, it takes 43 muscles to frown and only 17 to smile. You should try it sometimes."
Anna shook her head, "It hurts to smile. All that effort to move your mouth upwards… It's just not for me."
"Wow. You're exactly like my grandmother," Yoh laughed, "Speaking of which, we're almost there! Let's hurry!"
The boy grabbed her hand and ran quickly towards a large house. Anna stared at the old house. It was certainly big… really… really big.
Yoh pushed opened the gates and smiled, "We're finally here. Welcome to your new home."
Anna forced a smile, but it was quickly replaced with awe as she realized, that the large house wasn't the only thing there was. Other houses, smaller and smaller in size were scattered across the fields. It was a complex. The centre house was the largest, like the king of all houses.
"Is this all… part of your home?" Anna asked, looking right and left, astonished at the true size of the Asakura household.
"Kinda. Most are empty. Have been for quite a while now."
"Yoh-sama!" a shrill voice cried, "You're back! Welcome home."
He nodded, "Yes I am. Thank you, Tamao. Oh. By the way, this is Anna. If all goes well, she'll be living here with us."
The pink-haired girl raised her hand out, "Pleased to meet you, Anna-sama. My name is Tamamura Tamao. I hope we can become good friends."
Anna took the hand and replied honestly, "Me too."
"Hey Tamao, could you show Anna around here? I have to talk to my parents a bit…" Yoh grinned as he jogged ahead.
She replied with a wave, "Of course, Yoh-sama."
The girls watched him as he entered the large house. Tamao turned to Anna, "Well, shall we begin?"
The latter nodded and followed the younger girl. If most of this complex was indeed empty… Then maybe… just maybe… she could live here. Even in the smallest house…
'No,' Anna shook her head, 'I wish… I can't get my hopes up. There's no possible way for me to live here. No matter how many empty places there are. You'd obviously have to be a very talented shaman to live in such a place. As the landlord said, who'd accept a rag like me?'
'But still… I wish…'Yoh handed over the small package of incense to his grandfather, "Here it is."
"Thank you very much. It must have taken a long time to get there and back," Yohmei replied.
"Maybe… but it was worth it. Every single trip."
"I take it you must be talking about that girl you've brought home. She's a cute one."
Grinning, Yoh nodded, "Yep. I think she's a shaman too! She definitely saw Amidamaru with no problem."
"What! How did that happen?"
Yoh explained all the details of how he saw her running away from the townspeople and how he followed her only to meet up with her cranky landlord.
"Please let her stay here! I'll even consider twice the training!" Yoh begged.
"Relax, Yoh. I never said she couldn't stay here… But still, we'd have to inform your grandmother and your parents."
"Now that you mention it, I forgot to add that Anna is a lot like oba-chan."
"You're kidding. At such a young age? Well, your grandmother always wanted another apprentice to train. But Yoh, are you sure she can truly see spirits?"
The boy scratched his head, "I never... really asked…"
"Oh well. We'll find out sooner or later. I'll talk to your grandmother about it. She can stay the night here… but tomorrow… if your grandmother agrees to test her abilities… it might be a lot of pressure on your young friend," Yohmei shook his head grimly.
Yoh sighed. His grandmother was a fierce trainer, which explained why she was one of the best shamans in the world. But Yoh had faith in Anna. She would pass. She has to.
'Or I will train her to pass the initial test.'
-(TBC)-
cough There's another bad chapter I wrote that's gone down the drain. Anyways, comments/criticism/questions can always be done by e-mailing or reviewing. (And it's always greatly appreciated.)
