Amerante: Hello! Sorry this ch. Took a while...we were working on it...it's so sad! Oh, and the cat is dedicated to one of the ppl who wrote a review on our story asking us to put in a cat, so we did and we named it after her...thanx fire!! Sorry if the "T" was confusing, but it stands for "Tori" who you will meet in this chapter. Oh, by the way, we dun own shaman king...meow!

(Her head was splitting, she ached all over. And her arm? It burned as though she had left it on the stove... then poured lava on it. But wait what happened? Her thoughts were foggy, and the headache wasn't helping. Kara opened her eyes)

G-ma: S'about time you came around, you moron! What did you do exactly? Pick a fight with a pro-shaman?! When your friend showed up practically dragging you, I almost fainted!

K: (squints at her G-ma, as if trying to comprehend her words, then she groans and states with a cracked voice) My head, my body. (More groans)

An: Oh, good you're up. I thought he put you down for good.

K: (Remembering the fight slightly, up until the weirdness started, that was foggy) What happened? (Her voice still cracked)

An: I don't know. Yoh and I showed up as Jun Tao was taking Ren away, and we saw you and dragged you over here...

K: Did I win? (Hopeful)

An: You can thank your ghost for helping us find the house...and no, you tied.

K: (Goes slightly pale) We can't have tied!!! (Desperately hopeful) I lost right??!!

An: No. You tied. Like I said.

K: (Smacks head with good arm, and yelps) Oh, I shouldn't have done that.

An: Yes, you shouldn't have.

Y: Wait...SHE fought REN??!!

An: Yes! You idiot you saw him and said the exact same thing!!!

K: W-wait, what did you say before? M-my ghost?

(Amidamaru floats in with Tori)

T: Um, hi.

Am: (shakes his head and says to Tori) Anna and Lord Yoh are always like this.

T: (grins weakly, then turns to Kara) are you all right Kara?

K: (blinks) Um y-y-yes I'm fine, a-a-nd you? (Faintly as she sees Tori floating along with Amidamaru... not to mention a few other ghosts just meandering around)

G-ma: Wait, YOU fought REN TAO???!!!

An: Didn't we JUST say that?

K: (turning her attention to her G-ma, willing the ghosts to go away) My god YES!

G-ma: Idiot! Your not supposed to FIGHT your FIANCÉ!!!!

(Stunned silence)

K: Humph! I didn't want a fiancé in the first place.

An: REN is your fiancé? You've got it worse than I did...

Y: HEY!

K: (glares stubbornly at the blanket on her) You're sure... You're sure that we tied? I mean that neither of us won?

An: For the last time, YES. I'm positive. Ok?

K: (mutters) Damn

T: I'm sorry, I failed you, Miss Kara. I shouldn't have leapt in, but it seemed like you needed help...

K: (stares at the ghost in front of her, then looks back down) Is that what happened?

T: Yes, I'm sorry.

K: N-no don't be. Um, what's, what's your name?

T: (Looks up) Tori. At your service.

K: Yes (faintly) and you're a ghost.

T: Um, yes.

Am: How come you didn't think I was a ghost?!

K: (Kara gulps, and looks as far around the room as she can, again she faintly talks) And we have a ghost-infested house.

Random Ghost: Infested?! We aren't bugs! (Moves on, grumbling)

T: Well, yes. I'm sort-of new here. I was a hired bodyguard, but I protected people from a far, because I was too shy. I was quite successful, actually. Until I was called on a fake mission, and, well, here I am.

An: You sound American.

T: Canadian actually.

An: Same thing.

T: Well, actually-

K: Oh I was there once! It was very pretty! (Starts to ramble on about Canada) Where did you live?

T: Niagara-

An: ANYWAYS. You've discovered your shamanic powers. Do you want me to train you?

(Kara blinks at Anna, she had been smiling and talking with Tori, she had forgotten all about Tori being a ghost... and her shamanic powers...)

G-ma: NO SHE DOESN'T!!! I've been waiting to long to train my granddaughter to have some friend of hers go soft on her training and not have her know what she's doing...

Yoh: SOFT?! SOFT!?!?! (Disbelieving)

G-ma: Damn straight. I've seen that training program of hers...

An: I told, you Yoh, I'm going easy on you.

K: (Goes slightly pale, thinking about what Anna was doing to Yoh. She waves her hand in front of her. ) Shamanic powers? What the hell is that, I don't know what you are talking about? Ghosts, what ghosts?

Am: Huh? But? What?

G-ma: Don't give me that crap young lady! I wasn't born yesterday.

K: (mutters) You sure weren't...

(Amidamaru is still lost)

G-ma: I'm glad you've regained some enthusiasm

(Kara is still muttering)

An: I think you should accept your grandmother's training Kara. You'd sure make a better shaman than lazy-ass over here.

Y: (Hoping Anna won't make training harder now) Hey! I'm not lazy!

K: Accept her training? Do you actually think I have a choice?

An: No. But just so it doesn't feel like your being forced into it. Things are less fun when you think that.

K: But the point is I don't have a choice... (glowers, then looks at Tori) Doesn't that suck? Does that happen often to you?

T: Hm. Too often. It was my job for that to happen to me. Well, give or take a couple of times...

K: (Questioning look) What kind of 'jobs' do ghosts get?

T: No I meant before I died.

K: Ohhhhhhhhh, sorry. (Shrugs apologetically) I'm new at this...

T: (Smiles) it's all right. So am I. I've only been dead for three weeks.

K: Oh... I-I'm sorry? (Tries to figure out how you're supposed to talk to a ghost)

Am: Only three weeks, and you integrated already?! Without the person saying it even??

T: Well, I wouldn't say we integrated. More like I possessed her. But she had a lot of control...

Am: I've never heard of a possessed person fighting one who has integrated. I can't imagine fighting someone like Ren like that.

Y: YOU FOUGHT REN?!?!

(Anime falls for everyone capable)

An: SHUT-UP, DUMB-ASS!!!!!!

Y: Sorry, it's just so hard to sink in, I can't believe you fought him, and that he is your FIANCÉ!

K: Well I did fight him, (smiles at Tori) with a little help. And he is only my fiancé so long as he is alive... (Glowers as she thinks of Ren)

T: Well, his existence can be...altered.

K: That's what I meant.... He can't be my fiancé if he's dead. (Still glowering)

An: I think that's what she was implying.

K & T: Huh? Who was implying?

An: (sigh) Never mind...

K: (Kara goes back to being annoyed about Ren. Then, mimicking Ren) "So your the fool I'm "paired off with", really I didn't think you would be such an idiot."

G-ma: Oh fibber git.

K: (too busy mimicking to hear) I told my parents I wouldn't marry anyone I could beat, and no one who could beat me...blah blah blah, enjoy your last two minutes of being alive. AND HE SAID THAT WHEN I HAD JUST STABBED HIM!! (Kara keeps muttering about Ren)

Am: (just sort of blinks, looking at Kara) I'm glad you're not like that Lord Yoh...

T: (Defensively) Well, I'm glad SHE IS like that...

Am: Oh (tries to cover up) I didn't mean it like THAT, I just meant uhh... (Scratches the back of his head looking for a comeback)

T: (Blinks at him) Never mind.

(Kara is still muttering, and not listening to the conversation going on)

An: Yoh, Amidamaru, we should go. Don't think your getting of easy either; you get double training tomorrow.

Y: Aww, c'mon Anna tomorrow is the first day of break!

K: HOW LONG HAVE I BEEN OUT?!?!

An: don't "Aww. C'mon Anna" me. Being a shaman is serious business. And you've been out for a three weeks at least.

K: (stunned) All I had was a stupid cut on my arm! (Mutters darkly again about idiot fiancé's)

An: If you would stop muttering... you're body couldn't take being possessed for that long. So you passed out.

K: Oh (sobers, and looks at Tori) I suppose we shouldn't do the 'possession' thing anymore...

T: Yes, we'll have to learn to integrate...

K: (Thinks) I feel stupid, she knows more about this then I do and she's only been a ghost for three weeks. (Kara just smiles widely at everyone, because she is really tired, has had her world turned upside down, and is now becoming slaphappy)

K: (stifles laughter) How long is our break?

An: Two weeks. Plenty of time to get a good start.

T: Well, I've got nothing better to do, and nothing worse for that matter.

K: (Breaks out in laughter. Then she shakes her head) Ugh sorry

An: Oh great. She's slaphappy.

K: But I mean (laughs) are you sure? Have you ever (Laughs) SEEN a Shaman 'training'? (Laughs)

T: It can't be much worse than anything I've done before...

K: (Kara laughs again, then bangs her head against the bedpost) NO MORE SLAP-HAPPYNESS!!! (LAUGHS LAUGHS LAUGHS) NOOO!!

G-ma: All right! Everyone out! This one's got some training to do tomorrow. So she needs to sleep.

An: Jeesh, we're leaving.

K: (rubs head) That (laughs) hurt. (LAUGHS) DAMNIT!

G-ma: Good night Kara! (G-ma leaves)

Yoh: Aww...but I wanted to see her bang her head again (Slap from Anna) Ow!

K: (LAUGHS) Wait that wasn't nice, oh but (LAUGHS) that was! (Groan) Bye guys, (laugh) I prolly won't see y'all again sooo, this is farewell. Anna, I want you to have all my possessions when I... go.

An: (Smile) I'll bear that in mind.

(Kara lies on the bed, and sighs)

Y & A: Bye! (They leave the room)

An: See you around, Kara.

K: Are you kidding? She won't let me out. (Sigh) Chao.

An: (Smiles and exits)

K: (looks at the lightly glowing Tori) Are you ok? You look kinda tired.

Tori: It's nothing. My afterlife is happening so fast....

K: Is that ok? (Scoots over in her bed, giving room for Tori to lie down)

T: I guess so (accepting the space) you know, you didn't have to move, I'm a ghost you know...

K: Oh (foolish grin as she remembers Tori is a ghost No she isn't slow!!! ...well maybe a little) Right, sorry, I'm so stupid. (Sigh)

K: (Talking quietly, as she is about to go to sleep) Hey Tori, can I ask you a question? Or a couple I suppose since I just did...

T: Of course

K: Where you following me all day? I mean the other day when I fought.

T: Yes, truth be told, you reminded me of someone I knew...

K: Oh. Really? Who? And how did you get here? I mean I thought you were from Canada. (Kara says that, then realizes that Tori might not want to talk about it/dieing) O-oh ifyoudon'twannatalkaboutitthat'sok, ImeenI'llshutupifyouwantmeto!

T: (Smiles) No, that's ok. Well, I got here because...well...I suppose I should start from the beginning....

(Kara listens)

T: The case that I got killed on? It wasn't completely fake. See these bozos kidnapped my little sister, whom I'd raised from a baby. They called me to come. So I did and as soon as I stepped in the door, they killed her, brutally in front of my own eyes... (She pauses) So I attacked, I killed the bastards, but I didn't get a warrant first, so it was considered murder, and the law put me to death.

(Horror runs across Kara's face, and she wishes she could hug Tori, but Tori is a ghost...)

T: I got here by possessing some fat lady's cat, named Fire or something, which was traveling here, and she walked by your grandmother, who saw me and took me in. You remind me of my sister, who I'm sure has gone to heaven. I was following you so I could watch you, to make sure that the same thing that happened to my sister didn't happen to you.

K: (Crying slightly) THAT'S AWFUL!!

T: (Looks startled at Kara) Oh! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry! Please don't cry!

K: I can't believe that happened to you!! I can't believe you can even be like this after three weeks!! (Looks sadly at Tori) I'm sorry, and you don't even get to see you sister now! (Another tear runs down Kara's cheek)

T: Well, I know she's ok; my parents are there. I'll stay here with you as long as you need me, and then I'll join her...

K: (Kara is silent for a moment) Ha, well then you should go now! I don't need you! (Lying)

T: That's very sweet. But I know you're lying.

K: If you don't go I'll ignore you!! (Stubbornly) It won't do you any good to stay.

T: And it won't do YOU any good if I leave. My whole life I've been giving up my happiness for others. And it's about time I did something I wanted. I love my little sister, and I want to see her again, but I also don't feel like I've accomplished enough...so I'm staying here.

K: What was her name? (Clamps hand over her mouth) I mean- (Kara turns over not looking at Tori anymore, attempting to ignore her)

T: (Blinks and smiles sadly) Nami. Her name was Nami.

(Kara frowns slightly, still ignoring Tori, but makes sure to remember the name Nami. Then, as she should have done a while ago, she falls into a slumber)

T: (Smiles and "gets up") Good night Kara...(Floats to the door, and says softly) Good night Nami...(Floats out)

Amerante: WASN'T THAT SAD??!! WAAAA! BOOHOO! Ok, I'll stop...