Kirakayano- Probably. I like the relationship Kouri and Mannen have as kids, and I AM planning a sequel fic to this, so we'll see if anything develops. Plans in your fic? Oooh…
Kohaku-san- No, no, Sasame did it all for love! Betraying his friends, risking the safety of the world, breaking Mawata's heart, killing a black turkey and making a coat out of it…-blink- Yeah, he WAS sorta insane, wasn't he?
So, we all know what happened last chapter, and now…it's time to torture Kei! Ohhh, I'm so mean. -cackle- And the Saihi wannabe isn't really a threat. I just needed something evil.
Here we go! Thanks to Soyakaze and Kirakayano for updating...you two inspired me!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Himeno suspected something was amiss with her ten-year-old charge when Kouri didn't respond to Mannen's teasing about tripping over her own two feet and sprawling gracelessly to the ground. Instead, she had sat up, glanced over at the young Knight, then got to her feet and plopped down at one of the picnic tables in the park.
The Pretear exchanged a glance with Sasame and Takako, the former Pretear and Princess of Disaster. Hayate was helping Kaoru with his sculpting, Goh and Kei were both working, and this left the Knight of Sound and his love interest to help Himeno tend Mannen, Kouri, Hajime, Shin, Kenjiro, and Samui. Okesa was (as always) staying at a friend's house, preferring not to play with the younger children.
"Kouri…" Sasame approached the listless girl, smiling down at her with twinkling amethyst eyes. "You want Mawata-san to teach you origami? She's very talented."
The child nodded slowly. "Okay…"
However, even the folding of exquisite cranes and delicate flowers failed to rouse Kouri out of her stupor and, as Shin laboriously worked the yellow paper beside her, her head met the surface of the table with a hard clunk.
Kenjiro shook his head at his sister. "She should really get more sleep."
------
By the end of the day, Kouri had awakened again, but was lagging even worse than before. So it was that Himeno watched her enter her house with Samui and Kenjiro, her reddish eyes containing unease.
"It's probably nothing to worry about," Takako assured her, laying a hand on the girl's shoulder. "I'm sure she's just tired."
"I LIKE her like this!" Mannen piped up. "She should be like that all the time!"
Hajime frowned at this. "Nuh-uh! She's happier when she's herself!"
"I'M happier when she's not!"
The pink-haired teenager allowed herself to relax as she led the way back to the Awayuki mansion, listening to Hajime and Mannen arguing about nothing in particular.
"She'll be fine…"
---Two Days Later---
Rika had called Himeno early that morning, sounding rushed and slightly frantic.
"Himeno-san, are you doing anything today?"
"No, not really," Himeno answered, covering a yawn with one hand. "Did you need me to baby-sit?"
Mrs. Awaremi sighed. "If it isn't too much of a bother…Okesa spent the night at her friend's house, so she won't be home until this evening. It will just be Samui and Kenjiro and Kouri…but do you mind staying in the house with them?"
The girl became more alert. "No, not at all…what is it?"
"Well, Kouri has a bit of the flu, poor thing. She's been feeling poorly all week and she developed a fever last night…however, I have work and I don't want to leave her with someone unfamiliar. If you want, you can bring your little friends with you, but she may still be contagious." Another soft exhalation was heard. "Normally, she and the other children would be with her father today, but we don't want to move Kouri and her brothers insisted on staying with her."
Himeno clutched the phone tightly. That explained why Kouri had been so lethargic lately--she'd been coming down with the flu. She didn't want to expose the Leafe Knights to the disease…but she could at least help.
"Of course I'll come…mm-hm…thirty minutes…all right. I'll see you then." Hurriedly, she donned her regular Sunday outfit and dashed off to find the Knights and explain to them where she would be today. She expected they wouldn't have a problem with her taking care of a sick Kouri and her brothers.
She was right. No one objected to this. What she DIDN'T expect was when every single one of them (except for Sasame, who was doing his radio show and Takako, who was going to watch) wanted to tag along.
"Chicken soup's the best thing for sickness!" Goh told Himeno firmly when she tried to protest. "And I can just grab some from the kitchen; the cooks won't mind. The poor thing…"
Hayate and Kei both claimed that they were coming to protect Himeno from any threats, although she reminded them that Saihi had been effectively abolished and there wasn't much danger anymore. Kei pointed out that one could never be too careful and that was that.
Hajime had just calmly stated that Kouri was their friend and he wanted to make her a "Get Well Soon" card, while Shin's large eyes threatened to spill over and Mannen sighed that he had to come along and keep them all out of trouble.
And so it was that Himeno showed up on the Awaremi house with a video game designer, a waiter, a messenger, and three young boys ranged behind her.
How do I get myself into these messes…?
In response to her knock, the door was answered by a harried-looking young woman, her dark bangs falling into her cerulean eyes as she distractedly tugged a clinging Kenjiro away from her leg.
"Hello, Himeno-san," she began, glancing up with a worn smile to greet the babysitter…but then she froze, letting her eyes rove over the assorted group of males that Himeno had brought with her.
"G-gomen ne," the girl apologized, sweatdropping. "They all heard Kouri was sick, and…"
Rika tapped her chin thoughtfully with a neatly manicured finger. "Hmm, yes…you're the nice young men who fought off that horrid tree about a week ago, aren't you? Knights of the Round Table, or something?"
"Leafe Knights," Kei corrected her, raising an eyebrow.
"Right, right…" She nodded, mostly to herself, then scooped up Kenjiro and passed him over to a surprised Goh. "Well, I certainly don't object to our saviorsbeinghere for awhile, so feel free to stay as long as you'd like. Himeno-san, I've left numbers on the counter and Samui is sleeping right now. He should be up in two hours. Also, Kouri should take the medication in the refrigerator at three o'clock. It might make her a little groggy, but that's to be expected. I should be back around seven or eight tonight. Thanks again!" With a wave, she dashed out the door, still in the process of attaching a pearl earring to her left earlobe.
The Fire Knight carefully set Kenjiro down and stepped into the house. "Wow…so that's their mom…she moves fast."
"She's like that," Himeno replied, following him in with the others. "She has main custody of her kids, but she's always running out to work or go out on dates, so she calls me a lot to baby-sit." She smiled fondly at the four-year-old, who still seemed somewhat disoriented. "Not that I mind. They're great kids."
Kenjiro cocked his head, peering up at his babysitter with large blue eyes, the gears in his mind whirring furiously. "…Game?"
Ah, yes. When disoriented, with your siblings in various states of repose and surrounded by a bunch of elemental boys and someone who merges with them, what better thing to do than kick all their asses at Go Fish?
---Two Hours Later---
Hayate bit his tongue to keep from cursing as Mannen gleefully took the large pile of cards he had just slapped and won.
"I'm winning! Better luck next time, huh, Hayate?"
The Knight of Wind deigned not to reply, desperately trying to save his dignity. And once again, Kouri came to the rescue, in the form of a very panicked voice ringing from upstairs, "MOM?!"
This sudden expostulation was followed by a wail from Samui…who had apparently just woken up and discovered that his mother was nowhere in sight.
A glance swept around the card-playing circle and they simultaneously rose to their feet, with Himeno and Kei dashing upstairs to answer Kouri's summons and Hayate and Kenjiro going to check on Samui. Mannen, Hajime, Goh, and Shin hesitated, before deciding to follow the Pretear and the Knight of Light.
As Himeno burst into the bedroom with Kei on her heels, Kouri was sitting up, clutching her sheets in a white-knuckled hand and covered in a cold sweat. "I…" She whispered hoarsely, turning even paler as she spoke. "I'm going to…"
The high-schooler knew enough to step aside quickly. However…poor unwitting Kei didn't move out of the way in time and got the most interesting look of horror on his dark face as the ten-year-old vomited…all over his shirt.
There was a stunned silence for a seemingly long duration of three minutes, as Kei glanced down mutely at his ruined shirt, Himeno and the other Knights gaped like fish, and Kouri burst into tears.
This wouldn't do. Himeno took charge immediately, barking out orders left and right.
"Goh, get some water! Mannen, a wet cloth! Hajime-chan and Shin-chan, go help Kei clean off his shirt, please." She turned her attention to the sobbing child still rigidly upright in bed and sat down beside her, pulling her into a much-needed hug. "It's all right, Kouri, it's okay…it's done now."
"I threw up on Kei-saaaaan!" Kouri wailed wetly, unable to suppress her tears, much to her chagrin and shame. The last thing she wanted was to cry in front of everyone like this, but at least they were gone now, having obeyed Himeno's orders with startling alacrity. "I-I threw u-u-up on a KNIGHT!"
"It happens," the pink-haired girl told her gently, stroking her hair soothingly. "He'll recover…" She glanced up as Goh and Mannen made their reappearance, each bashfully clutching the items she had requested of them. With a warm smile and an appreciative nod, she took the glass from the former and handed it to Kouri. "Drink, you'll feel better."
The girl obeyed, taking slow, careful sips with tears still streaming down her face. She passed it back after she had lowered the water level slightly and Himeno helped her lie back down, tucking the covers over her and smoothing her hair back from her forehead. Mannen, understanding what he was to do, laid the damp cloth carefully on Kouri's forehead, then placed his hand on top of that. He would keep it cold so they wouldn't have to keep soaking it.
"Come back downstairs when she's asleep," Himeno whispered to the young Knight as she and Goh exited the room. Mannen grimaced slightly, but decided now was not the time to argue and instead focused on Kouri. She looked absolutely miserable, so he tried to cheer her up, Mannen-style.
"Wow, I thought Kei was going to have a heart attack when you threw up on him! You should've seen his face!"
Kouri let out a choked sob and turned her face away. Frowning, Mannen grasped her shoulder and rolled her over so that she was lying on her back once more.
"Baka, if you turn away, I can't keep the cloth cold!"
Silence. The boy's eyes softened, as did his tone.
"Look, it's not your fault that you don't feel good. And it's not like you threw up on Kei on PURPOSE. He'll forgive you."
"…In front of everybody…" Kouri mumbled, peering up at Mannen with darkened blue-gray eyes. "I'm being a pain…and causing trouble." Her entire body tensed up and he quickly fetched the waste bucket, holding it for her as she choked up the acidic contents of her stomach. "S-see?" She rasped, slumping back down tiredly after she had sipped more water to clear out the taste.
Mannen shook his head. "Then stop crying and go to sleep. You'll get better faster that way. Besides…" He colored a light shade of pink. "It's weird to see you cry. You're tougher than that. So get some rest; I'm not going anywhere."
He remained seated a full twenty minutes after the girl had drifted off, and finally went back downstairs to fill Himeno in on her status. Her fever hadn't abated, but her sleep was restful. Gin-chan had curled up on the bed beside Kouri and was snoozing lightly, although Mannen had tried to get the dog off so he wouldn't bother the invalid. Kouri, however, didn't seem to mind and in fact was snuggled close with her face pressed against the canine's thick fur.
---Meanwhile, Sinister Forces are LURKING…---
Takako had been a weak fool, easily conquered by the horrible existence of a thing called Love. She had abandoned the glory, the power of darkness, to be with that Leafe Knight…indeed, she had been foolish. But IT was not going to make the same mistakes. It was going to sap the Leafe out of everything, take control of one of the Pretear's companions, and inflict much pain and suffering on this world. After all, it had never been human and so didn't have to worry about those risks and casualties.
The shadow slipped silently inside the house where it sensed the Pretear's presence. After a pause, it cast out its senses, searching for the right candidate to use for its disastrous purposes. The Leafe Knights and the Pretear were too full of love and happiness to be of any use to it, and the two small boys were too innocent…they hadn't experienced that much pain. But…
Wait. It perked up. There was someone…slightly older than the boys, but younger than the Pretear. This someone had faced pain and heartache and harbored resentment towards a certain person…an older male figure. She was a child, but mature enough. She would do quite nicely.
Concentrating now, the shadow gathered its substance into itself and formed into a tall, voluptuous black-haired woman. Puppets always related better to those of their own kind. Her form writhed for a moment, then faded out, seeking Kouri's bedroom.
At that instant (whether due to timely concern or freaky Goh intuition), Goh decided to check on the "patient", announcing his destination to the others (who were now involved in playing a game appropriately named "Aggravation") and ascended the stairs.
It was then that he saw a hint of smoky blackness drift somewhere above him and frowned. Hm. That certainly couldn't be good!
Having reached the room, the dark, ominous shadow crept over to the bed in which her (its?) new puppet lay, just rousing from her foggy dreams. "Despair," she whispered tantalizingly. "Hate, my dear…become my puppet of darkness!"
Kouri blinked, raising the lids further to stare upon the strange wench in her bedroom. "…Are you my conscience?"
Needless to say, the creature was unsure how to approach this, but decided to go along with it anyway. "Ah…yes, it is I, your conscieeeeence…despaiiiiir for no one loves you…"
Goh chose that moment to throw open the door in a very heroic manner, having heard everything up to that point. "DON'T LISTEN TO A THING SHE'S SAYING!"
The child smiled sweetly at him. "Oh, hello. Are you my conscience too?"
It was Goh's turn to blink. "Uh…"
"If you are, please tell Kei I'm sorry for throwing up on him. I'm gonna go to sleep now, the macaroni's dancing…" Without another word, her head hit the pillow and she was whisked back to the land of fever-induced dreams…which, apparently, involved dancing macaroni. It was evident that she hadn't quite recovered from her sickness yet.
For the longest of seconds, Goh and the woman stared at each other, each desperately trying to comprehend what had just happened and what to do know. The Fire Knight reacted first.
He threw a fireball.
BOOM.
Himeno and the others looked up sharply, hearing the noise emanating from…Kouri's bedroom?!
"He blew her up!!" Kenjiro cried, panicked.
"He's not THAT stupid!" Mannen retorted, dashing up the stairs and reaching the room just in time to see Goh and a shadow duking it out, while Kouri and Gin-chan slept peacefully in the midst of battle.
"Goh!" Hajime scolded, peeking out from behind the older boy. "You know you're not supposed to wake up Kouri or do weird things with women!"
"It's not LIKE THAT!" Goh yelled, sending the shadow flying out the window--luckily, the thing phased out in time and avoided breaking the glass. However, it wasn't safe yet, for it was met by a strong gust of wind and impaled with a sword, courtesy of a very pissed-off Wind Pretear.
"And THAT is why you shouldn't mess with my charges," Himeno said triumphantly as the shadow disintegrated, its evil plan foiled. Curses!
A roaring flame shot over her head as Goh reappeared, scowling darkly and looking around. "Where is she? Where'd she go?"
"GOH!!" Kei screamed, leaning out the now-open window of Kouri's room. "YOU SET THE BEDSPREAD ON FIRE!"
"SHIMATTA!!"
Hajime and Mannen quickly got to work dousing the flames…while Kouri, miraculously, didn't awaken. Hajime had put it out before the girl was burned, but now she was drenched. Kenjiro was crying loudly, which had set off Samui and Shin, and now Gin-chan woke up and added his noisy barking to the din.
Kei resisted the urge to plug his ears and raised his voice. "EVERYONE, OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW!"
With a startled glance at the man who rarely ever yelled, the Knights, Kenjiro, and Samui obeyed, leaving Kei alone with the dampened child.
With a sigh, the Knight quickly fetched a towel and lifted Kouri out of her binding sheets, setting her on his lap and rubbing her dry briskly.
Kouri stirred, sleep blue-gray eyes meeting golden ones. Instantly recognizing who they belonged to, she stiffened. "K-Kei-san!"
Kei slowly raised both eyebrows, vigorously rubbing the towel over her hair. "So, after all this excitement, you wake up because I towel you off."
The girl pondered this for a moment. "…Why am I wet?"
With a sigh, the golden-skinned man set about explaining all that had transpired, while Kouri's eyes slowly grew wider…and wider…and wider yet.
"…So…" She said slowly, trying to piece it all together. "An evil lady tried to make me her puppet, and Goh-san saved me, but set my bed on fire, but then Mannen and Hajime put it out, and you made everyone go away?"
Kei nodded. She had the basic grasp of it, as silly as it sounded. And speaking of Goh…
"Kouri!" Goh poked his head through the doorway, grinning sheepishly as he held out a tray laden with a bowl of steaming soup and a bottle of pink liquid. "I've got your soup and your medicine here!"
Kouri perked up at the mention of soup, but scowled when she saw the medicine. "Aww, that stuff's disgusting, Goh-san! Do I have to drink it??"
"If you don't, you'll never get better, and you'll keep dreaming about dancing macaroni," the Knight told her solemnly.
At this horrible thought, the ten-year-old quickly grabbed the bowl and a spoon, shoveled the soup into her mouth, and then took the cup Goh had poured for her and downed the thick pink stuff with the rapidness Himeno possessed when she was late for school. It didn't prevent her from making a scrunched-up grimace, but at least she'd taken it.
"All right, good job!" Goh patted her on the head, gave Kei a wink and departed. They regarded each other steadily, before Kouri heaved a sigh and dropped her head wearily.
"Gomen nasai, Kei-san…I-I honestly didn't mean to throw up on you, and Mannen told me you hate kids, and I wasn't trying to, honest, I was just--"
"The reason," Kei interceded smoothly, before she could continue her babbled stream of apologies, "that I don't like children is that they do things without thinking first and they complain and cause mischief to those watching them. You, however, intended no mischief towards me. You were simply feeling ill and I happened to be in the wrong place when you couldn't control your body's reaction anymore. I forgive you, but if you ever vomit on me again when you AREN'T feeling unwell, I shall be most displeased. Now…" He reached for a book lying on its side on a shelf above the bed. "If you promise not to tell anyone, how about a story…?"
Kouri met his eyes then and read understanding there. Kei had been a child himself once, after all. A slow smile crossed her face and she nodded.
"Hai. That sounds nice."
---Around 4 o'clock…---
"She took her medicine an hour ago," Goh remarked, glancing up at the ceiling as Shin napped beside him on the couch. "And Kei hasn't come down yet…do you think something's wrong?"
Himeno raised a hand to her chin, rubbing it in thought. "I don't know," she answered. "But it wouldn't hurt to check."
Well, once she said that, everyone not asleep (namely, Hayate, Goh, Mannen, and Hajime) wanted to come as well. So the group crept up the stairs and peered cautiously into the room, to find the one sight they'd least expected to see.
Kei was still sitting on the side of the bed, typing one-handed on his laptop. The other hand rested on the head of a sleeping Kouri, who had her head on his lap and her feet propped on her pillow, hands tucked under her cheek. A book laid half-open on the Knight's other side and he glanced up at the others, seeming almost guilty.
"Her fever went down, but she fell asleep on me, and moving her might wake her up again, and I didn't want to be bothered by her complaining…THIS is why children annoy me!"
No one believed him for a second.
---OOC---
Hoo. Well, it's my bedtime here and I have school tomorrow, so for…whoever actually reads this story, I hope you're happy. -laughs- No, I'm kidding. I love this story to death and I really wanted to work on it. So here you go, and please review!
Next chapter…Kouri and the Leafe Knights Put on a Play!
"Hello…I am Hayate, Leafe Knight of Wind, and I love Himeno, the Pretear! But we may die today before I can tell her how I feel! Of course, I don't know WHAT she'd want with me, since MANNEN is so much cooler than I am! In fact, he's my hero! I want to be just like him--"
Kouri rolled her eyes, as Kei shot him a glare, mouthing, "THOSE AREN'T YOUR LINES."
Himeno, meanwhile, was laughing her head off.
Thank you.