Note: This chapter takes place a week or so after the last. And also… If there are any typos here… I probably made a mistake in the previous chapters… hehe, sorry bout that... But that is IF there are any.

Chapter 3- Festival

Aoi yawned and turned to see a sleeping… well snoring figure of HoroHoro, her Shikigami. She sighed. There was no helping it. She got up and walked over to her calendar. She took a quick look at the date, her schedule and then squealed with happiness. Peridot appeared on Aoi's shoulder with a confused look. She looked at Aoi, who was smiling like crazy.

"Oh Peridot! Do you know what day it is today?" Aoi asked her little friend. Peridot tipped her head to the side a bit and floated over to the calendar, pointing at the current date. "It's not only the 4th Peridot. It's the official day for the cookie festival!" Peridot blinked, having no idea what the festival and what a festival was. Aoi sighed.

"I guess shikigamis don't have festivals neh?" She asked. Just then, the telephone rang. "Hello?" Aoi said as she picked up her phone. "Aoi des."

"AOI! OPEN THE DOOR!" It was Mint no doubt. Aoi sweat dropped.

"Are you that lazy that you have to call me and not ring the doorbell?" Aoi asked.

"Pul-eez, I rang it 5 times." Mint told her.

"Actually it was only 2 times." Aoi heard Hao in the background.

"Shut up!" Mint yelled. "Just open the door." Again, Aoi sweat dropped.

"Umm.. O-Ok…" She said as she hung up.

She walked over to the door and opened it. Hao and Mint both stood in front of her in their kimonos. Hao's was black and red with a hint of brown in it while Mint's was white and red. A large ribbon tied around her waist and the bow was in the front. Her extremely long sleeves hung downward by her sides and her hair was tied into two long pigtails. –Anyone seen Chobits? I'm sure you have. Anyone seen how Kotoko looks like? Yah, I made myself look like her but a bit older lol. If you have no clue who Kotoko, here's a link to an image of her

http/tchiichan.free.fr/Kotoko.GIF-

"What are you still doing in your P.J's!" Mint yelled as she stormed in. "Hello? Don't you know today is the festival! Where are your cookies! Where is your kimono! Where is your basket? Where is-" Mint paused for a second. "I think that's all the questions." She turned and smiled at Aoi who sweat dropped once more.

"So… Why are you so hyper all of a sudden?" Although Aoi already knew the answer, she just had to ask.

"Don know… Mood swings?" Mint asked with a shrug. "Or could be the cookies I ate." Aoi sighed.

"So what are you still doing in your PJ's?" Mint asked, looking at her. Aoi blushed and turned around. Hao smirked.

"I won't say anything." He said in a teasing voice. Aoi blushed harder and Mint rolled her eyes.

"Go change." Mint ordered as she pushed Hao away and into the kitchen. "Anna and Yoh are going to be here any minute." Aoi ran into her room and then paused.

"They are coming too?" She asked. "Now there's something new.

"Amazingly, Yoh was able to convince Anna to come." Mint explained as she looked through her cupboards. "I'm hungry. Got anything to eat?"

"Help yourself but I'm going to have to charge you!" Aoi yelled as she ran into her room. Mint made a face and grabbed a box of cookies from the cupboard.

Aoi closed the door and turned to her closet. She looked around for her kimono and finally found it in the very back.

"Finally!" She muttered as she grabbed it and took it out to have a full look at it. "Hmm.. May need some finishing touches... But I think it will do." She smiled and looked at it one more time. She remembered that this used to be her mother's. She had worn this last year and the year before that… She loved it. The Ocean Blue color really matched her hair perfectly which was why she loved it. She looks good in it, even Mint and Anna agreed. Underneath the ocean blue over coat –Not sure what to call it- was a white tube top, just like any other tub top in kimonos. –Or so I think so lol. Sadly, I have never really worn or seen a kimono so I don't really have much clues on how it really looks underneath the top part… You know, underneath the part where the LARGE ribbon is that ties the kimono together…- Her ribbon was pale pink and was DEFINITLY not as huge as Mint's red ribbon. Unlike Mint's kimono, Aoi's kimono's sleeves were definitely NOT as long. They were actually pretty tight and navy colored with arm warmers of the same ocean blue color. She made a face when she saw the navy colored tights that matched her kimono's sleeves. Somehow, it didn't look like a kimono anymore. She sighed.

"What was mother thinking when she made this for me?" She mumbled.

"Made what?" A voice suddenly asked, Aoi jumped with a yelp and turned to see Horo looking at her with a curious look on his face. Aoi turned pink and let out a yell.

Outside…

"Gee… I wonder why she is screaming now…" Mint mumbled as she munched another cookie. "Her shikigami or did she forget that the festival had already started and it takes at least 2 hours to get ready?" Hao chuckled.

"Let me guess, you want to bet?" He asked. Mint grinned.

"Given." Mint simply said and took another cookie out of the box. Minutes later, the door banged open and a desperate Horo bolted out of there with an angered Aoi running after him.

"Aoi sweetie! Your frying pan is in the top cupboard!" Mint yelled.

"Thanks." Aoi muttered angrily as she ran into the kitchen. "Cookies on me." Mint grinned and stretched out her hand to Hao.

"5 bucks mister." She said grinning. Hao chuckled.

"I never said I was betting." He told her.

"Too bad. You make dinner tonight." Mint said and got up to throw out her trash. "And I don't want Japanese anymore. Try Italian." Hao lifted a thin eyebrow.

"Italian?" He asked. Mint nodded.

"Have not eaten pasta for a long time." She told him and watched Aoi run after Horo with her frying pan.

"Any who…" Mint walked into Aoi's room to look at her kimono. "Hmmm… Could use some finishing touches…"

The doorbell rang but no one really heard it because the TV was on and Aoi was still trying to cut Horo's head off. Again, the doorbell rang and finally, Hao sighed and got up lazily.

"They should invent a door opener…" He mumbled as he opened the door.

"Aniki!" Hao wanted to slam the door in front of his little brother's face but Anna was going to have his head if he did that so he left it be. It wasn't that he didn't like Yoh, it was just that sometimes, Yoh can be an air head and annoying. Still, it wouldn't really be a good life without his brother to bother him sometimes.

Yoh was wearing a dark brown kimono much like Hao's and Anna's was pink with Sakura images printed on them in a darker shade of pink.

Anna walked in calmly and watched Aoi run after Horo with her frying pan. She rolled her eyes and walked into Aoi's room where Mint was currently trying to put in some finishing touches on Aoi's kimono… No such luck of course but... At least she was trying right?

"Hey Horo!" Yoh yelled. Horo blinked and grinned at Yoh.

"Hey Yoh." He stopped and waved at the shikigami, causing Aoi to crash right into him. "Oops. Sorry Aoi." He said giving her a lob sided smile. Aoi growled and Horo gulped. He dashed off in a flash and a puff of smoke before Aoi was able to get up. When she did, didn't even bother to look for him. Instead, she walked to her room and closed the door.

Yoh laughed and sat down next to his brother.

"Is she gone yet?" A small voice asked.

"Yah, she's gone." Yoh replied. Slowly, very slowly, a small blue rabbit crawled out of his hiding place. Yoh blinked and laughed.

"How cute! Horo is a rabbit!" He yelled. Horo's ears twitched and he jumped onto Yoh. More like tackling him actually.

"Shut up! She'll hear you!" Horo yelled. "And if I die, you are dieing along with me!"

"Ok ok!" Yoh said laughing and held Horo an arm length away. "Hehe. It's so adorable how something so small can think he is so tough!" Horo gave Yoh a look. Yoh laughed again. "Ok, maybe adorable isn't the right word."

"You think?" Horo mumbled. "By the way, can you hide me? It's really hard to move in this form." Yoh laughed.

"Well… Where do I put you?" He asked.

"The garbage." Hao said chuckling. Yoh frowned.

"Aniki, that isn't a nice thing to say."

"You are forgetting that I am not really that nice either." Hao informed him.

"But you can be nice if you want to so say something nice!" Yoh said getting up. "Say sorry." Hao's eyes twitched.

"Now that is one thing I will not, and I repeat, NOT do." He told his younger brother.

"Why not!" Yoh whined.

"Hello? Hide me first! Ask later!" Horo yelled, waving his fluffy arms in the air.

"Oh, right…" Yoh walked off in search of a place to hide Horo for the time being. Hao chuckled.

"I hope Yoh isn't that stupid to hide him in the basket." He mumbled.

"I say leave it as it is." Anna said. She was currently sitting on the edge of Aoi's bed while Mint held Aoi's kimono up to look at it.

"I don't know. It could use some finishing touches." She mumbled.

"Touch it and you will be finished." Aoi said as she walked over to Mint. "This Kimono is my mother's and she made it just for me."

"That don't make sense…" Mint told her. Anna rolled her eyes.

"She meant that it originally belonged to her mother and her mother remade it for her."

"Thank you oh smart one." Mint muttered. "Anyway, we shall leave you to your changing and all that other things you need to do. Are your cookies ready?" Aoi nodded.

"Yah, they should be in the basket in the kitchen somewhere." She told her. Mint nodded and she and Anna walked out, closing the door behind them.

"Let me see…" Mint mumbled as she looked for the basket. "There you are." She picked up the basket and walked over to the others. "I didn't know Aoi baked so many cookies." Mint said as she sat down with the basket on her lap. Yoh stopped talking and froze, looking at the basket.

"You hid him in the basket didn't you Yoh?" Hao asked. Yoh laughed nervously. Mint didn't seem too notice and began taking a few of the cookie bags out. She stopped and noticed something blue and fluffy so she pulled it out, revealing Horo, who was currently clutching on a cookie bag for dear life.

"Awww, how cute!" She said looking at him while holding by the ears. At that time, she had no clue it was Horo. "I wonder why only one of them has a rabbit attached to the bag…" Hao sighed while Yoh laughed nervously and Anna rolled her eyes. Mint studied the doll, still having no clue that it was Horo.

"You look familiar to me…" She mumbled. Horo started sweat dropping. "Hmmmm…" Mint looked closer at him and Horo started sweating. Yoh laughed nervously.

"Maybe you saw him in the store or something…" He said trying to drive her away from finding out that he was Horo.

"Hmmm…" Horo started sweating harder. Waterfalls of sweat started pouring down his back… Or well anywhere else that Mint couldn't see. "You are probably right." Mint said smiling at Yoh. Horo and Yoh both sighed with relief.

"Ok guys. I am done changing." Aoi muttered as she walked out of her room and into the living room.

"Oh hey." Mint smiled at her friend. "Cute doll by the way. Where'd you get it?" Aoi blinked and looked at Horo in her hands.

"That… That is err…" She bit her lip. Mint is definitely not going to be happy about this… "That's Horo."

"So I am guessing you are not mad at him anymore for doing whatever it is that he did you get you pissed neh?" Mint smiled. "I mean-" She paused. "This is who?" She lifted Horo up.

"Horo…" Aoi said quietly. Mint let out a loud yell and threw Horo across the room. Horo banged against the wall with X's in his eyes.

"I can't believe I said that that idiot was cute! Whatever am I going to do!" Mint yelled. "What have I done in my past life to deserve this!" Aoi giggled and sat down next to her panicking friend. "Oh dear god!" Mint yelled out. "RID ME OF MY NEGITIVE KARAMA!"

"Don't worry, you will be fine." She said rolling her eyes. Mint sighed and calmed down.

"Whatever…" She mumbled. "I actually just wanted to throw him against the wall but anywayz, why did you tell him to go into miniature mode for?"

"I didn't tell him to." Aoi said with a shrug.

"Uh-huh…" There was a pause.

"So why a stuffed animal?" Mint asked. "Why couldn't he choose something else?"

"Like?" Aoi asked. Mint looked at Hao who blinked. A few seconds later, his eyes widened.

"N-O. No." He said.

"But Hao! Please!" Mint whined.

"No."

"Why not?" Mint asked.

"Because…" Hao mumbled. He hated his miniature size mode. He looked like a red alien form out of space and his voice goes all baby kid like.

"Aniki, come on. Show us." Yoh said grinning.

"Easy for you to say, you just turn invisible…" Hao mumbled.

"Huh?" Aoi was confused.

"You see, some shikigamis are different from others." Anna explained with a sigh. "Yoh only has 1 form. But his invisibility power makes up for it." Yoh grinned.

"Yup! I can become invisible." He said proudly.

"Oh joy…" Hao muttered, looking out the window.

"And Hao?" Aoi asked.

"He only has 2 forms." Mint answered. "Its quiet rare to have a shikigami who has more then 2 forms."

"Oh…" Aoi mumbled. Is something wrong with Horo then? She quickly brushed that question off by asking, "What is Hao's other form?"

"None of your business…" Hao mumbled.

"Oh come on Hao. Everyone wants to see you in your other mode so just transform already. You are out voted anyway." Mint said examining her hair to see if it had enough volume.

"I don't care. I am not changing." Hao muttered. Mint folded her arms.

"Come on Hao!" She yelled. She flipped her long graceful hair behind her shoulder and stood up.

"No!" Hao yelled back.

"Come on Mint." Aoi wanted to clam her down before she breaks anything. This was HER place after all. She wasn't exactly THAT rich like Mint or can afford some broken object like Anna. "If Hao doesn't want to transform, then he doesn't have to."

"Yes, exactly." Hao said looking at Mint who made a face at him.

"No." Mint said firmly. "I want him to transform."

"Why?" Aoi asked.

"Cause he is sooooo cute when he is in that form." Mint said with a giggle. Everyone sweat dropped and fell to the floor.

"I look like a damn baby alien from out of space." Hao mumbled and rolled his eyes with boredom.

"But a cute one!" Mint said with a wink and cupped her hands together, as if praying. "Please Hao!"

"No." Hao said firmly. Mint sighed and tried to think of an idea. Then it came to her.

"If you do it, you won't have to do dinner." She told him. Hao paused.

"I'd rather cook every night then transform." He answered. Mint rolled her eyes.

"And burn down my house along with it but ok…" She muttered and then paused. "No wait! That's not ok! I will be homeless because of you!" Hao smirked. "I may have a lot of money but I plan to spend them on important things and not really remaking the house."

"Cloths, shoes, hair, makeovers and manicures are what you call important things?" Hao asked chuckling. Mint glared at her shikigami. She grabbed a lock of Hao's hair and gave it a small yank. –Oh god… Hao-sama! Gomen-nasai!- Hao let out a painful yell.

"Let go!" He yelled.

"No!" Mint yelled back in a stubborn way. It was like a little sister picking a fight with her bigger brother. Everyone could tell that Hao was getting angry because the room suddenly got a lot hotter.

"Is it just me or is this place 100 degrees?" Horo asked as he finally woke up and walked over to the others.

"Nah, its Aniki." Yoh said with a grin. "He's angry." Horo blinked and looked at Mint and Hao. Hao losing his cool is definitely not a good thing but Mint didn't seem to be worried. Probably because she has dealt with his anger or something.

"So… What do we do? Stay or run?" He asked.

"Stay." Everyone answered at the same time. Horo sweat dropped.

"Umm... Ok…"

Mint sighed. "You are one stubborn shikigami." She said.

"And you are one stubborn girl." Hao growled. "Can you let go of my hair now?"

"No." Mint simply said and grinned. "Not until you transform."

"I'm not going to do that anytime soon." Hao muttered.

"Then I won't let go any time soon." Mint told him. Hao was getting seriously pissed now and if he gets any angrier, he will… Wait! That was Mint's plan! Hao paused and Mint seems to have noticed that he had caught onto her plan. She quickly released his hair and gave him a peck on the cheeks. –Yup… All yah Hao-Sama fan girls are now running after me… And are about to jump me… Look! I can see you all now! Ahhhhhhh!- Hao turned pink and there was a puff of smoke.

When the smoke cleared, Mint was sitting down on the sofa with a satisfied smile across her face. In her arms was a small red alien looking like thing with green eyes. It looked annoyed and folded its arms as if it was a little kid taken away from his playmate or the playground.

"See? Isn't he cute?" Mint asked nuzzling the thing as if it was a doll.

"That's… Hao?" Aoi asked. Mint nodded.

"Yup." She answered and poked Hao on the head. "You see? It's not that bad." Hao glared at her.

"Easy for you to say. You are not the one who looks like a baby alien and has a baby voice." He growled. Mint giggled.

"But you are soooooo cute!" She said nuzzling him. Hao tried to get away from her but Mint had a good grip on him. Everyone sweat dropped and Horo ran to the bathroom to throw up. Mint's eyes twitched as she set Hao down as if he was some kind of baby and grabbed Aoi's frying pan. She threw it at Horo and had a bull's eye throw. It knocked him out cold. Mint grinned at her aim/attack and sat down again.

"If I wasn't wearing a kimono, I would have chased after him." She said. Again, everyone sweat dropped.

"So this is Aniki's other form neh?" Yoh asked. He bent over and grinned at his brother. "Hiya aniki." Hao glared at him and a small fireball appeared on his palm. Yoh gulped and jumped back.

"Don't mind him Yoh." Mint said licking her lips before applying lip-gloss. "He is just mad."

"But what happened? I thought he said he didn't want to transform." Mint blinked.

"Yah I know but for Hao, if he gets angry enough, he will automatically transform so that he won't do much damage. Or if he is too weak." She explained. "In his little version, he will slowly cool off and eventually transform back. As well as gain back some energy if he transformed because he had little energy left."

"Oh…" Aoi mumbled.

"That's how fire shikigamis are." Anna simply said. "Wind shikigamis have the gift of turning invisible, water shikigamis can change shape like water, earth shikigamis can sometimes heal and are quite strong, lightning shikigamis can teleport as fast a lightning can flash and ice shikigamis have the power to create blizzards and do even more."

"Oh… wow…" Aoi had no clue shikigamis were so strong and different. "So Horo can create blizzards?"

"Yah but I am too lazy to." Horo told her. "It's either that or I fell asleep during that lesson." Yoh laughed.

"Hey! Me too!" He slapped high fives with Horo and they both froze when they saw their angry masters.

Mint sighed and looked at Hao who was currently floating around. His position? You know how Yoh sleeps under a tree? Yah, like that. Imagine the baby spirit of fire sleeping under a tree like how Yoh does but he is floating on air instead of sleeping under a tree. I don't think I am making any sense so I'll just move on.

"Hao, are you mad at me?" Mint asked, looking at her shikigami who looked as if he was about to go to sleep. Hao didn't answer and Mint made a face.

"Fine, don't talk to me for all I care." She told him and looked away. "I don't need you anyway."

"So what's with the festival?" Horo asked.

"You have never been in a festival before?" Aoi asked.

"I only heard about these things. Never been to one in the human world." Horo told her.

"Let's go into the history of this festival first." Aoi began. "In the past, some children made some cookies for their mother because she was very ill. When she ate them, she was instantly cured and everything was nice and happy again. After that, they decided to hold a festival every year around this time."

"The festival comes once every year and when it does come, everyone dresses up in kimonos to hit the tradition." Mint told them. "All the children serve out cookies to people who take care of them as well as their friends and loved ones and say, 'Thank you for taking care of me. I wish you good luck and happiness.' That's how it all started."

"I see…" Yoh grinned and nodded.

"It is a very good story neh?" He asked. Horo nodded and smiled.

"Yup. It's cool, but whats even better is the cookies!" He yelled. "The cookies will recover everyone's health. Wow, sounds really cool. I want to eat one!" Hao chuckled which made him sound SUPER adorable since he was still in his other form and still had that little baby voice.

"It's not true. It's just a legend." He told Horo.

"So? It's still cool." Horo argued. "And who asked you, ET?" Hao's eyes twitched. He quickly threw a fire ball at Horo who nearly dodged it.

"Hey! You can both suicide together, or jump off a cliff with each other, or jump off the titanic together, I don't care!" Aoi yelled. "Just don't fight in my house! I don't want anything broken in here!"

"Come on. They festival has already started. Let's just go and hand out our cookies." Mint said as she made her way to the door.

"But what about Hao?" Aoi asked. Mint paused and turned back to look at Hao. Hao didn't' seem to be a bit interested if she cares or not.

"He can do whatever he wants…" She muttered angrily.

"Since this is going to be my first time at a festival, is there anything I need to know?" Horo asked as he looked in the mirror. He had borrowed one of Yoh's kimonos since he didn't have one for himself. –Do boys wear kimonos? I don't think so but what they wear looks like one so I'm just going to call it kimonos too lol.- He and Yoh were about the same size "Is it fun? Is it interesting?" Aoi thought for a moment.

"It is pretty cool. They have a lot of attractions." She told him. –No she did not watch him change! What are you guys thinking!- Horo smiled.

"Come on then. Let's check it out." He said taking her hand. Aoi blushed lightly and walked out after him. When they were outside, no one was in site besides Hao. Since he was still in his little form, he couldn't really leave until he transforms back.

"Where is everyone Hao?" Aoi asked.

Hao shrugged.

"They all said that they wanted to go first." He simply said.

"Dam. I can't believe you turned into something like this." Horo said laughing. He picked up Hao who glared at him. Seconds later, Horo let out a painful yell and released Hao.

"Dam-it!" Horo yelled, blowing on his hands. "WHAT WAS THAT!" Hao chuckled.

"You got burned." He simply said. "If I don't want you to touch me or if I don't trust you and you touch me, you get burned. Seriously, you didn't know that? How slow can you be?" Horo glared at him.

"Come on guys. Stop fighting." Aoi said. She didn't want anything broken in her house. It was a big enough mess as it is.

A few seconds later, there was a puff of smoke and Hao was back to his original form. He sighed.

"It's about time." He mumbled and walking out the door. "You guys coming or what?" Aoi nodded while Horo kept an even glare at Hao before they both walked out after Hao. A few minutes later, Aoi walked back to her apartment because she, yet again, forgot to lock the door.

"Hey, what's that?" Horo asked, pointing to a few people holding instruments and unlike everyone else, they were not dressed in kimonos.

"They are probably the band or something." Aoi said with a smile. Horo blinked and smiled. He looked around and saw some kids looking around at the cookies in people's hands.

"You got any extras?" He asked Aoi.

"Ummm…" Aoi looked down at the cookies in her basket. "I did make some extras."

"Can I have some?" He asked.

"Sure but how come?" Aoi asked, as she handed him 5 bags of cookies. Horo didn't answer her. Instead, he walked over to the little kids and handed them each a bag of cookies. The little kids smiled and laughed, happy that someone actually cared about them. Aoi smiled and walked over to them.

"So this is why you took my cookies?" She asked in a mad voice. Horo froze.

"Ehh…" He bit his lower lip. At this, Aoi started laughing.

"I was only kidding Horo." She told him. "Come on. I need to give out my cookies to everyone." Horo nodded and got up.

"Ok, so where to?" He asked. Aoi took out a small list from the pocket in her kimono.

"Umm… First up is to my grandparent's place." She told him. Horo nodded and they started walking.

"What about your parents?" He asked. "Don't they get cookies too?" Aoi froze at the point. Horo bit his lower lip, knowing that he had said something wrong.

"Aoi… Is everything ok?" He asked.

"My… Parents are…" Aoi paused. "They're dead Horo…" Horo's eyes widened.

"Oh… H-How?" He asked.

"They… They were killed by demons…" Aoi replied quietly. "T-They were trying to protect me… And…"

"Oh…Sorry…" He mumbled. Aoi shook her head and smiled.

"It can't be helped. At least they are in a better place now neh?" She asked. Horo frowned and watched her walk off. No wonder he had never seen her parents around… No wonder she was so lonely… It was a wonder how she was able to keep going on like this… Horo sighed and looked at her. She was very strong… Aoi Umenokouji… Horo smiled. She was different from everyone else… She was different… Because she was special.

"Grandma! Grandpa!" Aoi yelled as she opened the door to her grandparent's house.

"Oh my! Aoi!" Aoi's grandmother walked over to greet her. "How good it is to see you again! My, don't you look prettier and prettier each time you visit." Aoi giggled.

"It's nice to see you too grandma." She said smiling. "You look well yourself. Where's grandpa?"

"He's upstairs at the moment." Grandma replied. –Sorry, I was out of names so they will be called Grandma and Grandpa lol- "Why don't you come in and have some tea and cookies?" Aoi laughed.

"No way. This time, I give out the cookies." She said as she stepped in. Grandma smiled softly and stopped when she saw Horo who smiled nervously.

"Ehh.. H-Hello." He said.

"Oh yah." Aoi laughed. "Grandma, I want you to meet Horo. He's my shikigami."

"Oh my! You have been able to summon a shikigami?" Grandma gasped. "My, how fast you grow up! I am so proud of you." Aoi smiled.

"Thanks grandma." Aoi turned to Horo.

"Come on. Don't just stand there." She said. Horo nodded and walked inside.

"My, my Aoi. How tall you have grown. I remember like it was just yesterday when you were just this high." Grandma placed her hand by her waist. "And now look at you. You are all grown up and you look beautiful." Aoi blushed and giggled.

"Thanks grandma." She said smiling. Horo smiled. What grandma said was right however. She was pretty. Horo suddenly blinked and prayed that he was not falling for her. Shikigamis and humans are not supposed to be together… They only work together to bring peace and nothing else… But he didn't need to worry about it. It wasn't as if he liked her or anything… Right?

"So, this is your shikigami heh?" Grandpa asked as he took a seat across from them. Aoi smiled and nodded.

"Yup. Horo, I want you to meet my grandpa and grandma." She looked at her grandparents. "Grandma, grandpa, this is Horo, my shikigami." Grandma and Grandpa smiled politely.

"Very nice to meet you." Grandpa said nodding.

"I hope you take care of our little Aoi." Grandma said laughing. "She is one big troublemaker." Aoi's mouth dropped.

"I am not!" She yelled. Everyone laughed and Aoi laughed along.

"Oh yah, before I forget." Aoi reached inside her basket and took out 2 bags of cookies. "Here."

"Oh my." Grandma smiled as she and grandpa took the bag of cookies.

"Thanks so much for taking care of me." Aoi said as she did a small kersey. –I KNOW I spelled that wrong…- "I wish you good luck and happiness." Grandma and Grandma smiled softly.

"Thank you." They both said.

"Neh, Anna! Look at that!" Yoh yelled. He grabbed Anna's hand and pointed at a crowd of people. "Is it what I think it is?" Anna rolled her eyed and pulled her hand away.

"A crowd of people?" She asked. Yoh shook his head.

"Come on!" He yelled and dragged her towards the crowd. "Look!" Anna watched random people that she didn't know dance along with the beats of the drum.

"It's… A dance…" She mumbled. Yoh nodded. "What about it?"

"Dance with me!" Yoh yelled happily. Anna blushed.

"What?" She asked.

"Come on! It'll be fun!" Yoh pulled her to the center of the circle.

"Y-Yoh!" She yelled.

"Don't worry. It'll be fun!" Yoh said grinning. Anna watched Yoh started dancing for a while before sighing and joining him. –You know those Japanese dances where they dance along with the beat of the drums? The dance can't go on without the drum and all so that's they type of dance. It's not really a couple dance or anything. More or an individual dance but you can dance in a group as well… Ahhh can't explain.- 'When we get home, the first thing I will do is kill him.' She said to herself. Yoh grinned, happy that Anna was actually dancing.

Aoi walked down the streets of her town, searching for a few of her friends. Horo pulled on her sleeve lightly and pointed at a crowd of people.

"What's that?" He asked.

"Oh, that!" Aoi smiled and walked over to them. "It's the festival dance."

"Wow!" Horo exclaimed as he watched everyone dance.

"Hey look! Anna and Yoh are there too!" Aoi yelled as she pointed at Anna and Yoh.

"Let's join in!" Horo yelled. Aoi giggled.

"Do you even know how to dance to this dance?" She asked. Horo shrugged.

"You can teach me." He told her. Aoi smiled.

"It's not that hard to dance." She told him the steps to the dance and Horo nodded.

"Ok, let me try this out." He said. Started dancing the dance steps, which was mostly just hand movement.

"Yay Horo!" Aoi cheered and joined him. This was by far, the best festival this year.

Mint strolled slowly through town, eyes silent and somewhat foggy. She was lonely without a doubt. She would never admit it but she missed Hao's company. No one was ever home and her grandparents were across the country so she had no one to visit or talk to. She walked slowly down the streets, looking at this and looking at that. She looked at the window displays at the stores and spotted something she wanted. She bit his lower lip and took out her wallet. She sighed and put her wallet away.

"Oh man… I forgot I maxed out my credit card for this kimono…" She mumbled. She sighed and put her wallet away. "I guess I will have to wait till mom and dad comes home from their business trip to get more allowance… And if I'm lucky… A new credit card… If they ever come home…" She turned sadly and walked off again, looking at this and looking at that. She let out a bored sigh and continued walking. She walked by the park and sat down on the swings, slowly swinging, back and forth. She didn't care if she sleeves were being dragged across the cement. She barely cares about anything at this point. She looked up at the sky. It was starting to get dark and cloudy. Maybe she should start walking back… She thought that, but her body refused to move at all. Instead, she just continued swinging.

The festival was about to end and the fireworks at night signaled the end of it. Everyone watched at fireworks burst into millions of colors and shapes and sizes.

"Wow… So these are what fireworks look like?" Horo asked. Aoi smiled and nodded.

"Yah, they are pretty neh?" She asked him. Horo nodded.

"They are almost as pretty as the northern lights back home." He said softly.

"Northern Lights?" Aoi blinked.

"Yah, they are kinda like auroras but prettier." He told her.

"Cool…" She said and looked back up at the fireworks. "So did you have fun today?" Horo laughed and nodded.

"Definitely." He told her. "I'm sure you have fun every year at this festival." Aoi laughed.

"Kind of…" She said and watched as the finale of the fireworks presentations came. "But this year… Has been the best out of all of them." Horo smiled lightly. "I haven't had so much fun in a long time."

"I am always fascinated by these things, neh Aniki?" Yoh asked.

"Ah…" Hao mumbled. Yoh frowned.

"What's wrong Aniki?" He asked. "And where's Mint?"

"I don't know…" Hao simply said and watched the fireworks die down. Yoh frowned deepened.

"But you are her shikigami. Aren't you supposed to know?" He asked him.

"Whatever…" Hao mumbled. "I'm going to for a walk."

"A-Aniki!" Yoh was about to chase after his brother when Anna stopped him.

"Leave him alone." She told him. "You can't fix everyone's problems." Yoh frowned.

"I guess you are right…" He mumbled sadly. "But Aniki seems very sad and lonely when Mint isn't around. Just like back at home… He never really smiled as much as he did when he is around Mint and everyone else… It's like they need each other to be happy."

"I know Yoh… But some problems are meant to be solved on their own or by the people who caused the problem." Anna told him. "And I still have to kill you for making me dance that stupid dance!" With that, Anna smacked Yoh across the head.

Not too long after the fireworks display, rain started pouring down. Mint looked up at the sky, letting the rain pour down on her face. Slowly, she got up from her seat and walked home. She didn't care that she was going to be soaked. Usually, she could run home so that her cloths and hair wouldn't get wet or messed up. She was very protective when it came to what she wore, how her hair is and her surroundings. It would take her about 2 hours to find something perfect to wear and another 2 hours to do her hair. It may be true that she was somewhat self centered and somewhat of a plastic girl sometimes but a girls got to look nice and make a good appearance right? Well at this point… Her appearance definitely needed work but she didn't care. It was strange for her to see that she didn't care that she was going to get soaked… Must have been another one of her mood swings. She finally decided to get up and walk home before she catches a cold. There was a strange feeling that someone was following her but she didn't play much attention to it. It was probably Hao or something.

When she reached her house, she noticed that all the lights inside were closed. She sighed.

"I guess mother and father didn't make it back tonight…" She mumbled. "I guess we can have dinner as a family some other time…" She stared at her front door, deciding whither to go inside or not. She placed her right hand on the door and ignored the pitter patter of the rain falling above her. She slowly looked up at the house. She wished her parents were home. That way they could talk to each other and be like a regular family and not like some famous important family. Not that her family was THAT famous or anything. Her father was an important business man who was working for a technology company and her mother was a model who just started modeling a few months ago. She didn't like that her parents were famous. It made her stand out too much and she had way too much expectations to reach. She just wanted to live with a normal family and do what normal families do… Not that she didn't like being kinda of rich but… She wanted things to go back the way they use to. Before all the job advancements her father got and before her mother got the modeling job. They would always be home and live like a normal average family would live but now… They were close to never home and when they were, they were too busy to even talk to her. Either that or they would be arguing with each other. Sometimes it got so bad, one of them would actually leave the house and living in a hotel for a few days.

Mint didn't like it when they argued. They did it too often and it was like they were going to get a divorce. She prayed to god everyday that they wouldn't. She sighed once again and was about to open the door when she heard voices. She turned around to see her friends run over to her.

"Hey, do you mind if we stay here until the rain stops?" Aoi asked. Mint smiled and shook her head.

"Sure come on in." She said as she opened the door. Everyone stepped in and out of the rain. "You guys want anything?"

"Nah, it's ok. We aren't really that hungry and it's a good thing we aren't so soaked." Aoi said laughing. "But you are soaked from head to toe. You better go dry up." Mint blinked and looked down at herself and let out a small laugh.

"I didn't notice." She said and made her way upstairs. Aoi watched her run upstairs with a strange look. Since when did Mint Aizawa not care about her appearance and hair? Has Mint been replaced by a demon or an alien from out of space!

"Hey Aniki. When did you come home?" Yoh asked as Hao walked into the kitchen.

"Not long after you guys did." Hao simply said and sat down. "Why are you here by the way?"

"The rain." Yoh told him with a lob-sided smile.

"I see…" Hao mumbled. He walked into the living room with Yoh and sat down next to the others.

"You guys have any more soda?" Aoi asked.

"Should be in the fridge." Hao answered. Aoi nodded and got up.

"I want one too!" Horo yelled.

"Well you are going to get it yourself!" Aoi yelled back. Horo sighed and got up.

He paused when he reached the kitchen. Something was wrong…

"Horo? You ok?" Aoi asked. Horo blinked and looked at her.

"Huh?"

"I asked if you are alright." Aoi asked again wit ha worried look. "You're not sick are you?" She placed her palm on his forehead to check his temperature. Horo blushed lightly but thankfully, Aoi didn't seem to notice. "You seem fine…" She mumbled.

"Iie… I'm fine." Horo said grinning. "I was just thinking." Aoi smiled and handed him his soda.

"Well here you go." Horo smiled and took the soda.

"Thanks." Before he left the kitchen, he turned to see if he felt that icky feeling again. It was gone but he still had a feeling that it was still there… Somewhere inside Mint's house.

Mint stepped out of the showers and dried herself. After she did, she changed into some dry clean cloths and walked into her room. Again, she had that feeling that someone was following her. She turned around but saw no one. She took a deep breath and closed the door and locked it. As soon as she did, the lights turned off. She let out a surprised gasp and tried to calm herself down.

"It's ok…" She whispered. "It's… Probably a black out because of the rain or something…" She took in deep breaths and then froze when she heard voices. No, it wasn't Aoi's. Nor was it Hao's, Yoh's, Anna's or Horo's. She didn't know whose voice it was but it was no one she knew.

"Mint…" Someone said. Mint's heart started beating faster with fear.

"W-Who's there?" She asked.

"Mint…"

"W-Who are you? What do you want?" She asked. She was starting to panic now. She turned around and she was no longer in her room. She was in some room with no windows. A small light was in the middle and it flickered lightly. Under it was a small bed. You know those beds where the ambulance uses to take people to the hospital? Yah, those types of beds. Mint's lower lip quivered.

"Should I run or stay?" She asked herself.

"Mint…"

"Ok that's it." Mint said, backing away. "I'm getting the hell out of here." She turned and bumped into something. She backed away and looked up to see the bed in front of her. Her body started shaking with fear.

"W-What is…"

"Mint…" The dead body under the cloth spoke. "You can't run away…"

"W-Who are you?" Mint asked in fear. "W-What do you want?"

"You can't run away from the truth."

"W-What truth?" Mint yelled. "I don't know what you are talking about!"

"You are all alone Mint…" Mint's eyes widened. "No one likes you… Everyone hates you…"

"L-Leave me alone!" Mint yelled.

"They want you dead… No one wants you here. They are only nice to you because they feel sorry for you… Even your parents say so…"

"Shut up!" Mint yelled, backing away.

Suddenly, an image of her parents appeared before her.

"M-Mom? Dad?" Mint asked.

"Mint… Your father and I…" Mint's mother said.

"Mint, Your mother and I are having some problems." Her father said.

"W-What?" Mint's eyes widened.

"We are having a divorce." Her mother announced.

"We will be living in different houses from now on." Her father continued.

"Wait! Mom! Dad!" Mint ran after them as they parted separate ways. "Come back! I need you! Wait!" It was too late, they had disappeared.

"No one cares about you anymore. You are nothing but a helpless child who thinks she is all that." The voice came back. "You think you are so smart… You think you are so cute and so great… That you deserve everything and anything you want… You think you are so important…"

"W-What?" Mint gasped and looked at her own reflection in the mirror.

"Look at that pretty face." Mint blinked and looked closer. She smiled lightly and giggled, studying herself.

"But deep inside, you are nothing but a spoiled brat!" The mirror suddenly stretched and wrapped itself around her.

She let out a loud yell and then suddenly, she was back in the little room again. Her eyes widened.

"You don't deserve to live…" The voice came again. Her body started trembling again.

"Stop it… Whoever you are… Aoi… Hao… I don't care. This isn't funny anymore… Stop this…" She whispered.

"No one will help you… No one wants to…" The voice said again. Images of Aoi, Hao, Anna, Yoh, Horo, her parents and a few other people flashed before her. "They don't' love you. They just say it so that you would stop crying. They don't care about your feelings at all."

"Stop it! Shut up!" Mint yelled. "Leave me alone!"

"You can't escape the fact Mint…"

"I told you! Shut up! I don't know what you are talking about!" Mint yelled.

"You don't deserve to live in this world…" Mint's eyes widened as she saw the body on the bed rise. Quickly, it floated above her and all of a sudden, the cloth covering the body fell and she was face to face with a bloody, dead version of herself. "You deserve to be dead."

Aoi, Horo, Hao, Anna and Yoh were downstairs watching TV when they heard Mint scream. Hao's eyes widened and he got up quickly, running upstairs.

"What was that?" Aoi asked.

"Sounds like Mint screaming…" Yoh got up and followed his brother upstairs while the others followed after him. When they got upstairs, they saw Hao banging on the door. Mint would not stop screaming and the door was locked. Hao bit his lower lip.

"She is going to kill me for this…" He mumbled and kicked the door open. –Yes! Go Hao-Sama!-

Once inside, he saw Mint in the middle of the room, still screaming. She was looking at something above her but there was nothing floating above her. She still kept screaming but her eyes were closed.

"Mint! Mint!" Hao ran over to her and shook her. Mint suddenly stopped screaming and fell unconscious in Hao's arms. "Mint!"

"W-What happened to her?" Aoi asked when they reached upstairs to Mint's room.

"We don't know…" Yoh mumbled. "She just wouldn't stop screaming…"

"How come?" Aoi asked. "Do you think it's a demon attack?"

"Could be…" Horo mumbled, looking around. "I sensed something earlier but the feeling was gone so I left it."

"She was looking up at something but her eyes were closed. She just kept on screaming and looking up at something but nothing was there." Yoh explained.

"Was it an invisible demon?" Aoi asked. Hao shook his head.

"It's a new breed of demons…" He mumbled. He looked down at Mint, who was still in his arms, unconscious.

"We better bring her to Yome's place." Anna said rather calmly. "She will be safe for the time being and we might be able to find some information on their new breed of demons." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"How is she?" Hao asked, looking at Mint who was still unconscious. It has been 3 hours since the attack and there was no word on how Mint was. Nor did she make a sound or move. Yome looked up with a strait and stern look.

"She is stable for now…" He said calmly. "But she seems to be in a state of coma." Hao's eyes widened.

"W-What happened to her?" Aoi asked.

"Mint…" Yome paused. "Mint has been attacked by a different breed of demons…"

"What type?" Anna asked. Yome stayed silent for a while.

"Nightmare gargoyle." He muttered after a long period of silence. Aoi's eyes widened. "Nightmare gargoyles are extremely tricky to track down. They can only been seen in your dreams."

"What?" Horo asked.

"They will feed off your nightmares and drain your power." Yome continued. "What they do is bring your worst fears to life or…"

"Or?" Aoi whispered.

"Or they trap you in your worst nightmares." Yome continued. Everyone stayed silent, waiting for him to continue.

"How… How did it attack her then? She wasn't sleeping or anything…" Yoh said.

"Nightmare Gargoyles can enter your mind when you are dreaming or when you have too much doubt in your mind." Yome explained. "When one is clouded with doubt and loneliness, they will be an easy prey for the Midnight Gargoyle to feed on." Everyone fell silent…

"Is Mint going to be ok?" Hao spoke up.

"It is very hard to say…" Yome said, looking at Mint. "If she stays stable, she may be able to live. But the longer she lives her nightmare or worst fears, the faster her heart beats."

"So you are saying… The longer she lives in her nightmares or her worst fear, the faster her heart will beat until the point where she has a heart attack and…" Aoi paused. "And dies?" Yome nodded.

"I believe so…" Aoi's eyes widened, and her body began to tremble. Mint… Her very first friend… Her very best friend… Was now lying in bed, probably dying and she can't do anything to help her… Or can she?

"Can we do anything to help her?" She asked.

"You must kill the Nightmare Gargoyle in order to return her soul back into her body." Yome replied. "This is task is not as easy as it sounds… You might get trapped in your own nightmares yourself… Or worse…" Everyone gulped, waiting for him to finish. "You might die in them."

Wahhhhh! This definitely was NOT and I repeat NOT supposed to turn out to be a horror chapter lol. It was supposed to be happy ending! Oh wellz. I got carried away. The festival part I got from watching Tiny Snow Fairy Sugar. Isn't Hao-Sama cute! His other form is the SOF baby version! Hehe, he is soooo going to kill me lol. Gomen Hao-Sama! Anywayz, what did you think? OMG! It's like 11:49 PM... Almost 12! T.T I need sleep! Next story updating is definitly To See You Smile Again.

Next Chapter: Living Nightmares

This is the continuation of this chapter or course. There is no way I'm going to let my character die! Aoi and everyone else goes and tried to save Mint but find themselves trapped in their own fears and nightmares as well. Will they all come out alive or will one be left behind?

Aoi Umenokouji: Haha, I don't know if I plan to add him in his 3rd form or not… I myself don't even know what his 3rd form should be like! Lol. What did you think of this chapter now? shivers Yes I know.. HORROR! Ahhhhhhh! Lol Hope you still like it though! And sorry if I borrowed your frying pan in the fiction lol. I had to see how it feels like to smack Horo with it lol.

half vamp: Lol, I am sure this chapter is more of horror then humor… Neh? Hope you still like it if I add a bit of horror in it!

Fish and Chips: This chapter is more of horror then humor neh?

Hope Usui: Haha, don't let Aoi hear that you said that. She will run after you with her frying pan! Lol. Yes, I plan to make him very sweet in this fanfic… Or try to at least.