Ch 8. Blood in the Snow

It was when February was nearly over that Anna announced she wanted to see the snow. They both went to Izumo where it wasn't such a strange occurrence to have snow on the advent of spring

They lodged at the Asakura's main house; Yoh's grandparents were traveling out of town, taking Tamao with them. All the students who studied there (they were still few) took that opportunity to visit their families. The servants were dismissed as well (all the lingering spirits were nearly gone), leaving the couple to prepare their own meals.

Decadent smells greeted Yoh's olfaction in the morning, evoking him from his bed. He followed the waltzing aroma to the kitchen. There, his wife was at the oven, taking out, what looked like cake. Knives, forks, measuring cups, milk jugs, and various cooking utensils were strewn across the table. Fully aware of the inquisitive expression on Yoh's face, she volunteered, "I wanted to try a Western meal for once."

Noting that it was more dessert than meal, Yoh nodded. The five months since learning about Anna's pregnancy was spent anchoring around her numerous cravings. At least this time she wasn't forcing him to meet her demands; Anna had taken the initiative to satisfy those needs herself.

"Need any help?"

"It's okay, just relax." It was a rare arrangement of words to come from Anna's mouth. Being too preoccupied with the stove, she didn't even bother to look up. Yoh decided to take his seat near her, noticing how his wife seemed to be in a good mood today. Feeling his eyes on her, she looked up. Those dark irises asked him what he was still doing there.

"The food smells good, just wanted to enjoy it a bit longer," Yoh said sheepishly. He indulged in the sight of the white cotton apron on his wife's petite frame while she gracefully blended the dark chocolate in the saucepan. Bits of chopped hazelnut were sprinkled in with her fingers.

"Do as you'd like then." But there was a trace of skepticism on her face.

As it so happens, strands of long bangs fell loose from her neat bun and covered one of her eyes. The itako paused, unsure of what to do since her fingers were dipped in sugar and flour. Help came from Yoh, who brushed the locks aside. Both eyes met into a longing gaze. He smiled at her.

Many days passed like this for the couple, seeming like they tumbled into love for the first time each day.

Snowflakes flurried from the sky, landing on the tips of Anna's lashes. Night had descended, but it was no sapphire sky. Pink colors refracted from the snow and seeped through the expanse of atmosphere. The world seemed stuck between night and day, sans the golden light of the rising and sinking sun. Anna absorbed all she could of the scene without fearing the bite of the cold.

Anna was soon jarred from her reverie by the clamoring of heavy doors swinging open. She whirled around to identify the cause of the disturbance. Her eyes traveled the vast courtyard and settled on the familiar figure stumbling into the grounds of the estate. He dragged his body towards her. Somehow he did so with grace, with confidence, with dignity. About ten feet from her, he slowly forced himself to stand up straight.

"You're a stunning sight as always, Anna. This snow scene meshes with you very well."

Anna was devoid of the usual sharp retort. Her eyes glazed over the trail of blood that followed the former fire shaman.

His balance faltered and Anna rushed to catch him. For what reason, she did not know. This person, after all, was the man who amused himself with testing her marriage with Yoh, spreading lies to see if they would crack. But of course, such ill attempts! Her bond with Yoh was too solid to break.

It was natural, she reasoned; she did not loathe him because she did not care for him.

But Hao was smiling up at her now, and she couldn't help but admire the handsome face. It was clever where as Yoh's was honest. "Sorry, looks like I've soiled your clothes."

Anna pried her eyes from his to look down at her lap. His blood had soaked through her ebony cloak and stained the ivory robe beneath. It turned to a deep shade of crimson. Then she noticed how both her hands were still holding onto his elbows. Upon realizing this, she quickly relinquished them. "What kind of trouble did you get yourself into this time, Hao?" she inquired.

He responded in the same sheepish manner his younger sibling would. "Not sure, but plenty."

"How did you know Yoh and I were here?" Self-reprimand followed soon after; he was Hao after all, so he always knew these kinds of things. As twins, he shared a connection with Yoh as well.

Reading Anna's expression, Hao let the query go unanswered. He remained as sharp as possible, despite the haziness setting in. His boldness even allowed him to rest against her knees. Instinct told her to protest, but pity fell on his haggard body. "Don't worry; I know you only love Yoh," he assured her with a trace of smugness.

And icily she retorted, "It should be etched in your mind. Don't flatter yourself by thinking that you would ever cause me to worry."

"I guess it was the wrong choice of words. Being deprived of blood kind of does that to you."

Their moment was cut short when numerous voices reverberated in the air. "Hao, you bastard! We found you now!"

It was Anna who spoke back. "Leave, you're dirtying the snow with your foot tracks."

An angry group of shamans appeared, glaring at the itako. There had to be at least thirty of them. They earned a more intensive glare back, thus, the bravest one decided to challenge her. "Who the hell are you?"

"You step onto my property, and you dare ask me who the hell I am?"

A meek-looking shaman stammered, "You're not The Itako, Asakura Anna, are you? Wife of the Shaman King?"

"She is, so I wouldn't make her mad if I were you guys," rang Yoh's voice.

"Yoh," Anna whispered.

A brute looking man stepped forward and spoke on behalf of the large group. The words came out more well-mannered than expected. "Asakura-san, pardon us for the disturbance. We have only come to capture Hao. We'll be glad to leave your residence immediately after."

Yoh was now standing beside Anna. "Why do you still hunt him when his powers have been erased? He can cause you no harm."

"The fact that he can no harm us is the perfect opportunity for us to come after him. We may appreciate you for defeating that demon, but that doesn't excuse you from protecting him. He's brought too much death and pain for our families and friends to be forgiven. Now that we are able to deliver divine retribution, we will take any measures to see to it."

Brows furrowed, Yoh spoke back in a dangerous tone. "I can't allow you to do that. I'm sorry about the loss, but the deceased won't benefit from revenge."

"Then at least we, the living will benefit. Step aside Asakura-san. We don't want to fight you, and I'm pretty sure you don't want to fight us because of him."

"You're right, I don't want to fight. But I will be forced to if you still insist on taking revenge." Worry plagued Anna's face at hearing where the confrontation was leading towards. Yoh didn't have a spirit to merge with…but if she was to summon Amidamaru…

And just then she doubled over in pain. Strong contractions coursed throughout her lower body.

"Anna!"

The others were relentless, taking advantage of Yoh's distraction. "We're coming at you then!" They charged forcing Yoh to leave his wife's side as an effort to steer the fighting away from her and Hao. Yoh advanced towards the large distance before them. His quick hands broke off a thick branch, using that as a medium while he merged with the nearby spirit who came to his aid. The shrieks that Anna was unable to hold back distracted him momentarily, and he was knocked against the wall by an enemy's oversoul. Broken icicles landed all around him.

Next to Anna, Hao had become unconscious.

The sharp thrusts of pain were intolerable, making her efforts to suppress her agony unfruitful. Amidst the torment, her brain scrambled to think of what to do. Having only a weak spirit and lacking the proper weapon, Yoh had no chance. Seeing him pummeled was too unbearable. Doctor Asano's warnings rang in her ears, but there was only one course of action to take. It wasn't even a choice anymore.

Half walking, half crawling, Anna made her way towards the manor, with the weight of her belly becoming all the more apparent. Wetness oozed from her. Her sweat? No, it was mostly red. Was it from Hao's wounds or was it her own? She shook off the snow that had fallen into her eyes, in her hair and on her face. It didn't matter if she was bleeding too; the important thing was to get a hold of the 1080 beads and the futso no mitama no tsurugi. How lucky she was to have listened to her intuition by bringing those two crucial things from Funburi. Yoh questioned why it was necessary to bring them along, as did she, but she always listened to her gut feelings. Those gut feelings proved right once again.

Now, to get her body to listen to her…

Goddamit move. It's just a little distance. Just move! Move!

"Yohhhhhhhhhhh!" The desperate scream made the Shaman King's blood run cold upon hearing it. Yoh turned in the scream's directing while wiping away the blood near his mouth. To add to his already heightened alarm, Anna was crawling his way.

"Don't overexert yourself!" That came out as a desperate plea rather than a command. Doctor Asano had said there would be risks with too much strain on her body...and giving birth at seven months could pose unnecessary complications after labor.

"Catch," she yelled, and threw something a few yards from his feet. His eyes widened in terror as his fears were confirmed.

"Anna, DON'T!"

But she was already clutching the prayer bead, despite the strain on her face. She would do it despite the blood that overflowed from beneath her robe, seeping into the white snow. "I fondle it once, for the seed of father. I fondle it twice, for the seed of mother. I fondle it thrice for the hometown. Mirror, descend upon my body. If this voice is heard in the other world, stand up. If the sound of these beads is heard, come out now, spirit of Amidamaru!"

Things had gotten this far; Yoh had to go with it, so he picked up his weapon and ran towards the itako.

Bursts of power collided with the air. The silver haired samurai made his first appearance since his long absence. "Yoh-dono!" Amidamaru only needed to take one look around to immediately understand the situation.

Master and spirit nodded in agreement and morphed into their large form.

Anna's screams had begun again, making Yoh resolve to finish things in three minutes. It was easy now. They swung left. They swung right. The grounds shook and the cracking of icicles crashing could be heard. Two and a half minutes later, bodies flung in all directions, with oversouls broken.

"ANYONE STILL WANTING TO DELIVER DIVINE RETRIBUTION?" boomed Yoh's voice, echoing through the snowy night. "IF NOT, LEAVE NOW!" It rattled against the tree branches, shaking off the snow

None took the challenge; the least wounded drove out, while some dragged their bodies and others carried their comrades out of the courtyard. Yoh was furious, especially at the fact that their foolishness nearly caused him to kill all of them. And the danger those fools put his wife and child in! They should have been grateful his logic returned, saving them from slaughter.

But it didn't matter when he thought of her. Running now towards her now, he cried for his wife's name. "Anna!"

Sweat rolled down her pale and strained face. "Yoh…contractions…." He looked at his brother who was a few yards away.

Hao seemed to have already regained consciousness and scolded him. "Otouto, what are you fretting around for? Hurry up and take her inside." He said it rather bleakly as his strength was completely exhausted.

Without wasting any more time, Yoh carried his wife into the house, fighting his blurring vision and ignoring the sweat that stung his eyes. Anna winced in his arms, her contractions getting stronger. After setting Anna down, he called his grandmother. The hospital was too far away, so sending for an ambulance would take too much time. Miraculously she answered the phone right away.

Heeding her advice and depending solely on himself, he was able to aid Anna in delivering their newborn son. Everything happened so fast in that short period of time. He couldn't remember going through the motions. All he could do was revel in the fact that his wife and son's health appeared to be fine, easing most of Yoh's fears.

He called out for Amidamaru. "Please look after her for a few minutes. I have to go check on Hao."

"Yes, you can count on me, Yoh-dono."

Yoh sprinted outside to where his brother laid, with a mass of his hair spread out on the red stained ground. Yoh leaned over his body and was awed by how his brother's face still held authority, despite the wounds, bruises, and blood.

"It was a boy wasn't it?" The younger brother could only nod. "I knew it. I'm sure….." Yoh peered at him with sorrow in his eyes, waiting for Hao to complete his sentence. Somehow Hao managed to smirk back wisely, with the trademark mischief in his eyes. "I couldn't read her mind at that time—ha ha—well actually I was never able to really---but at that time I was pretty sure she'd miss me…" Then he closed his eyes, naturally, as if he expected to wake up once he was decided that he was done resting.

No more words came from his lips. It was the last time Yoh would ever hear his voice.

June 26, 2005----Sorry for the late update, I've been working on my new fic. Please take a glance at it…or…eh…read it….then review it... LOL, I'm one greedy writer! Anyway, it's titled Tale of the Philandering Prince Hao. It's obviously a HaoxAnna story, with romance, angst and a bit of humor. Writing that was not as excruciating as writing this…..

Wasn't sure if Yoh still had Harusame at the end of the manga. I used "dagger" because I remember him being given that ancient thing (from Yohmei). Forgive me if that was a blooper. Let me if you remember what it was!

June 27, 2005----made some small changes, added some details. And thanks for reminding me what the name of the new medium was! Chapter 9 will be the conclusion, titled Spring Magnolia/Summer Wedding.

10/30/05—Cleaned it up a little.