Hey! Happy New Year! Oh my gosh, I haven't seen you since last year!
(I've never even seen you before…oh well, I still know you're there.)
Well I wanted to start out this year with a new name so I changed it. Well, no not really…I just thought my old one was too long, and plus I like "Fyraga" better. It's short and cool.
LadyRainStarDragon: Thank you, I didn't think my action sequence would turn out so well. I thought it would get confusing, especially with the formation I had done, you know, the one where Rio and Kuja fly and crisscross each other? I don't know if everyone could imagine it though…I hope you could.
Fatlazicat: Don't get too obsessed!
Well guys and gals…thanks for your reviews and stuff. Now, without further ado, here's the new chapter. Read and Review please!
Chihiro sat there by the bed. She could hear Nathalia talking to the nurse outside of the room. Kuja played with his ponytail, and Rio just leaned back against the wall with his eyes closed and his arms crossed. This was his usual position.
Chihiro stared at Haku. His eyes were closed and his expression was irritation. She tried to figure out if he was in pain, if he was angry, or just having a nightmare. She couldn't tell for sure though.
The door suddenly opened and Nathalia stepped in, accompanied by the nurse.
"Is he going to be ok?" Chihiro said anxiously as she shot up from her chair.
Nathalia smiled. "Don't worry. Everything looks to be fine. The doctor just needs to run one more test to be sure." She walked over to the end of the bed and spoke once more,
"You all need to clear out, however. This test requires some privacy. It won't take long."
"Good. I was beginning to think he was doing bad from the way you spoke to that nurse." Kuja said, relieved.
"Oh! No, no, no…we were talking about damages and money. If anyone got seriously injured, it would be my ship!" Nathalia chuckled.
"No one else was hurt…other than a sprained ankle and some bruises. " The nurse said as Kuja and Rio made their way out.
"Well, I'm glad. Thank you so much for your help, Captain." Chihiro said, smiling gratefully.
"I should be thanking you! You're the one who scared away the monster!" Nathalia said, wondering how a mere human could be so strong.
"Well, Chihiro, I think you should come with me now. The doctor will arrive in about a minute to look at Haku. You coming out?"
"Yeah…just a moment." Chihiro stared down at Haku as Nathalia walked to the doorway and waited.
Haku was having some kind of nightmare. At least, Chihiro thought he was. He didn't cry out, but made tiny noises. His eyes tightened and he looked to be distressed about something.
Chihiro knew his wounds were taken care of but…why was he still in so much pain?
"Haku…" Chihiro stroked his soft hair, "Please get better soon…" she said.
Chihiro leaned down closer to his face and gently kissed him on the cheek.
Haku then sighed in his sleep. His face loosened up a bit, too.
Now he looks so peaceful…rest well Haku. Chihiro thought to herself.
She smiled at him once more and joined Nathalia.
She waited outside for a while as the doctor conducted his test.
"Captain," Rio started, "What is the current status? I would like to know since we do have an important mission."
"Right." Nathalia said, pounding her left fist into her open right. "Well, Caesar got a little carried away with the ship maneuvers…and we really need supplies and money so," Nathalia paused for a second and looked at Rio.
She continued, feeling sorry that there wasn't much she could do to repay them,
"Basically, we're off course and have changed our current destination to…um…well…no where near Bane City…I'm kind of sorry about that…there's really nothing I can do for you."
"Well that's just great!" Kuja said as he punched the wall. "Now what are we supposed to do?"
"Where are we headed for exactly?" Rio asked.
"We are taking a fast current down to Bubble Island." Captain Viva answered.
"Bubble Island? What kind of name is that?" Kuja growled.
"Well, I guess it'll be okay for now." Rio said. "There is a good information facility there. I have been there before."
"Do you think we'll find information on Baba there?" Chihiro asked.
"Yes. There are many ruins there that might have come from venom spirits and demons of the sort. My guess is that there should be something that could give us a clue about Baba's origins. The facility should have something, too."
"That's good. At least we won't be wasting our time." Chihiro said.
Suddenly, a loud smash came from the room. Glass was broken, and a table was flipped over. The nurse shrieked and the doctor lost his composure.
"No Sir! Please, you have not fully recovered yet!" The doctor pleaded with Haku but the river spirit would not listen.
The door slammed open and Haku walked out, past his confused friends. He kept a stoic face on with a hint of irritation.
"Haku! Are you okay?" Chihiro ran up to Haku and grabbed his shoulder. "We were all worried about you. You should rest." Haku pushed Chihiro away and glared at her, becoming even angrier. He continued storming down the halls, grumbling to himself.
"What's wrong with him?" Nathalia asked.
"Hmph, this is just like the time when he got beat up and little Frankie won the prize." Kuja chuckled.
"What do you mean? What prize?" Chihiro wondered.
"Well," Kuja explained. "There was a small tournament. It came annually and it was one of Haku's first competitions. He was so set on winning that he forgot about his job.
"He owed some cash, too. Winning the prize would get him out of debt and even give him a short time to relax from work.
"But you know what? It wasn't even that…he was just so focused on winning. He wanted to become stronger. It's a pity that his boss had to come in at the wrong time. If it weren't for that, Haku would have whooped Frankie right off the ring.
"See, his boss distracted him. The guy just isn't the very reasonable type. He threatened and distracted Haku so much, when Frankie got a lucky punch, Haku tripped and fell out of the ring. He kind of got hurt, too.
"I don't know how he got unconscious but it must have been the way he fell…he might have hit his head on a rock or something.
"I'm tellin' ya, he could have beaten that boy ten times if he had the chance. It's a shame.
"Haku was in a bad mood for a few days, too. He eventually got over it though." Kuja said smiling, remembering the good old times.
"Oh, I hope I didn't do anything to make him mad…" Chihiro said, feeling guilty.
"Oh, you have. You really embarrassed him." Kuja said, snickering.
"But what did I do to make him so angry?"
"Chihiro, it's plain to see. You beat up the monster. He gets beat to a bloody pulp by the monster. On top of that, he is stronger than you, and the monster. Now, what's not to get?" Kuja said.
"Well, at any rate," Rio started, "We need to get off as soon as we reach our destination. Well, our NEW destination, anyway. We need to explore the ruins and find out as much as we can about Baba. Any shred of information will help." He turned towards Kuja.
"If you want, we can survey the shops and sites while we're on our way to the information facility. A little fun would be good anyway, especially for Haku." Rio said, forgetting that Kuja would most likely want to hit the bar first.
"All righty then! I'll get me some shots at the bar…and maybe a good looking girl or two…" Kuja plotted.
Rio smacked the back of his head. "Remember, focus on the mission!" Rio sighed, ashamed he even knew the guy.
Kuja scratched his head, wondering what he had said wrong.
"Haha…Well, I got to tend to some other matters. We'll get to Bubble Island shortly. I'll let you know if I see you on deck, ok?" With that, Nathalia walked off.
"You know…" Kuja said tilting his head and moving down to get a better view. "This Captain Nathalia Viva has got a really nice form, not to mention a killer…ouch! Rio! What was that for?"
Chihiro chuckled as Rio smacked Kuja on the head again. "For being yourself. She owes us a favor and we don't want to waste it on you." Rio said.
"Anyway," Rio said, "We've got other problems."
"Like what?" Kuja asked.
"Like Haku! I hope he's ok…" Chihiro worried.
"Haku has a problem incase you haven't noticed, Kuja." Rio said.
"Well, I knew he had problems but it's nothing serious is it? If there's something going on then you should really tell me. Haku and me are tight you know. He once told me his deepest darkest secret!" Kuja said, in a more serious tone.
"What would that be?" Rio asked.
"It was when we were younger. He told me not to tell anyone that he got beat by Frankie a second time."
"Kuja, it only took you an hour to start blabbing about that. It's no wonder Haku doesn't tell you anything." Rio said
"Right…well, since he tells you more than he tells me, what exactly do you know?" Kuja said, scratching his head, and feeling a bit guilty.
"Kuja, I know as much as you. It's about his past." Rio said.
"What do you mean you know as much as I do? Haven't you asked him stuff yet? Or even Zeniba? She ought to know something…"
"No Kuja. All I know is that he didn't grow up happy. When he came to us he started healing. When he left, I think some of his old memories started to haunt him. He went back to the way he was when he was younger…only worse."
"What are you talking about?" Chihiro asked, wondering about Haku's past.
Kuja took a breath and looked at Chihiro. "Haku came from a dysfunctional family."
Rio looked at him confused but then decided to just go along with it. His statement was close enough anyway.
Kuja continued, "His life as a child wasn't too hot. I don't know all the details exactly though. Haku doesn't tell us anything…" Kuja finished.
"We started to notice it when we came back. He's always acted a bit unkind but never like this. I mean how he has been treating you, Chihiro. He is hurting deep inside and just cannot let go of the fact that his mother had died and abandoned him. He may be taking it out on you." Rio said.
"I don't think it's his mother Rio…I mean it could have been his father." Kuja said.
Rio nodded and added, "Well, we can't know for sure unless we find out for ourselves."
"Then let's just ask him already!" Kuja exclaimed.
"Bad idea." Chihiro said.
"Very bad…" Rio echoed.
"Why?" Asked Kuja.
"Listen," Chihiro started, "I think Haku has nightmares about his past late at night.
"See, one night I couldn't sleep. I had gone to the kitchen for a little snack, but when I got my snack, I heard something.
"I followed the sounds and found myself at Haku's door. I opened the door to make sure he was ok-normally I wouldn't but I had to check on him. So, when I saw him, he was covered in sweat. He kept cursing out someone in his sleep. I thought he was hurt at first, just remembering a loved one but…he was clearly remembering someone he hated."
"Hated? You think he's angry at his dad for abandoning him?" Kuja asked.
"I don't know," Chihiro said, "But whatever is going on we can't just ask Haku. It's a bit of a private thing you know. We need to wait for the right time…or we can just ask somebody else like Zeniba."
"My thoughts exactly." Rio agreed.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to wait till after this whole charade with Baba is over. We can't do anything right now." Kuja said.
"Yes, for now we should just get some rest. That battle wore me down quite a bit." Rio said.
Rio and Kuja left to rest up. Chihiro went up on deck. While taking a short walk, she found a wooden bench and lied down on it.
She couldn't stop thinking about Haku and what had just happened.
'Oh Haku…I'm sorry…' her thoughts trailed off and she couldn't notice anything going on around her.
'I just wish I could have listened to you before…why did I look back? Why did I have to add to your already heavy burden?' Chihiro paused for a moment and thought of her father.
A tear ran down her cheek. 'It's all my fault…my father's death.' Her guilt swept over and she couldn't think of anything else but her family.
'I bet your family was horrible…If only I could know how you feel right now…' Her hair whisked slowly as the wind blew in.
'Oh Haku…I know I'm only human…or a spec as you call me…but isn't there a way for me to help? Is there even a way for me to see my mother?' More tears ran down her cheeks.
Chihiro kept thinking about it until the ship reached the docks.
When the ship came to a stop, she wiped her tears. She didn't want anyone to see her in that state so she tried hard to shake off her guilt and pain.
Chihiro hopped off the bench and slapped her face in her hands. She took a deep breath and resumed her cheerful demeanor as best she could.
Once she was ready to go, she immediately went to Nathalia to say her goodbyes.