Disclaimers: Still don't own, despite everything I say.

Warnings: Dark gets kicked in the shin a lot, a really, really cheap explanation on what has to be done to rid of evil prophecy and… more arguing and the fact that there's only one thing they have to do…

Other: Er… they finally meet… is that enough for an explanation?

000

"Thirteen years, thirteen stars. Foul separate souls destined from the start. One dreaded prophecy; waiting to come true…"

Fragment Ten: One Simple Task

It wasn't long before the four would-be-prophesized-travelers were all crammed into a small room in the village inn and not in the best of moods. In truth, Krad was just put off at the fact that there was no room for leg space, and merely ended up entertaining herself by randomly kicking Dark whenever she felt like it. This also meant that the other teen would wince at odd intervals and then send her a glare that was ignored. The redheaded kid blinked in confusion every time that happened while his pet… bunny – she still didn't know what it was – would bounce happily on his head. And the guy in the hood and cloak hadn't removed it and was standing in the corner, ignoring the chaos. Maybe he was an assassin or something, and that was why… she pushed the stupid, stupid thought out of her head; it wasn't her fault that there were people who were jealous of her for some reason. She didn't even know them. Unless they were those people a few weeks back who'd tried to propose marriage on her and she ended up hurting them really badly…

She pushed the thoughts out of her head.

As it was, she didn't know why she allowed herself to be dragged along with them and the fact that the lady – Towa – seemed to know them. Kind of. Not to mention the fact that somewhere in the back of the blonde's mind told her that they had met once, and only once.

So why were they here again?

They hadn't even made basic introductions, and Riku and Risa had just followed without saying a thing, and Dark was as stupid as always, meaning absolutely nothing to help at all. The redhead just looked confused and… yeah, the guy in hood hadn't said a thing at all.

000

Dark stifled a yawn and winced when he felt the jab of Krad's boot hit him hard in the shin for the tenth time in the row that very afternoon. Or day. he hadn't been keeping track and was still indignant of the fact that the blonde had been the one doing all the fighting. As much as he hated to admit it, SHE knew what she was doing with that weapon, and he'd only ever used it for decoration, which was a pretty bad excuse in itself. Supposingly, the only reason he had it was due to the fact that his parents had wanted him to learn how to wield a sword, but he never got around to actually being taught it, so that was why he didn't have a clue on how to use it effectively.

Glaring at his old childhood friend – who simply ignored it – he went back to thinking about the nothing in the depths of his mind. He wasn't worried about what was going to happen because – as luck would have it – he always ended up on the good side of things. True, he couldn't fight (YET) but he was willing to learn; if not just to spite Krad. And although all that had happened hadn't been the best of things, it was better then being chased by his nurse, or being bugged by the adults who kept telling him that he needed to a fiancé sooner or later. But he wasn't even old enough for that. Stupid parents, thinking they could control his life…

By this time, he could deal with anything else thrown at them. As long as it didn't involve crazy girls and stupid people trying to rule his life, it was all fine with him. And what was with the creepy dude in the cloak anyway? He didn't seem… human at all. The redhead next to him was just staring out the window and waiting for something to happen, but he didn't look like trouble at all. How did he get dragged into it then? He didn't seem the sort to want to get involved with pain or anything.

Hm… strange…

000

So first he was following a vampire who didn't have the same need to consume blood as much as normal vampires, and now he was in the middle of the inn with people that he had never met before. Not to mention the fact that With kept on jumping on his head and killing all his brain cells.

Daisuke sighed and watched as the purple-haired teen next to him winced visibly. Why he was doing that, he really couldn't put his finger on, so all he could adopt was a confused expression, which was now plastered firmly on his face. It wasn't like he could do much else than that and the blonde across was just ignoring all of them.

The two older brunettes were sitting by the window, and were obviously sisters – twins no less – and were just waiting for the silver-haired woman to say something. Thing was, he hadn't said a thing yet and was just staring over in their direction and shaking her head. Why? He couldn't work it out properly.

Being a small room wasn't helping matters at all, but who was he supposed to complain to? He didn't care less, but something about the woman who had greeted them a few minutes earlier was just so… so…

Damn his vocabulary shortage.

Not to mention that he needed to buy himself a proper weapon; a ceremonial knife needed for summoning wasn't going to help much at this point.

And he was bound to get yelled at for the rest of his life by Daichi when he ever saw her again. That was something he didn't want to witness at all. Bad, bad thoughts…

000

By the looks on the other three people's faces, they had no clue on what was going on at all. Satoshi had suspected as much, but he wasn't about to try and explain it to two other people that were giving him a look that screamed 'who is that freak!'. He wasn't about to answer that question. Already he suspected that they didn't trust him at all, but what else did he suspect?

Not to mention that got him questioning on Daisuke's trust in him. If it was that. If the mental vibes seemed to speak truthfully, the redhead didn't fear him at all, nor did he suspect him or… or anything. It was trust usually bound between two best friends, so why…

It was so confusing for him; a vampire who didn't even get along with his brothers or sisters. Not that they were the nicest of people in the first place, but even so…

Grinding his teeth, he wondered when he could actually walk around without the hood over his head, but it seemed better that way, seeing that the blonde was glaring constantly in his direction, while the purple-haired boy was wincing at odd intervals. Seeing that he was being kicked under the table, it made quite a bit of sense.

But now that they were all together now, what was going to happen? If the prophecy was true, they now had to do something that only they could do. Whatever it was.

000

It was annoying, Towa had to admit, that, by the reaction she had received, that no one honestly had a clue on what was going on. Well, she had predicted as much, but it was still annoying for her. At least Riku and Risa had managed to find the other two, and the vampire knew what he had been doing… but the redhead was obviously trying to make more sense of the situation, the blonde didn't trust them, and the purple-haired guy was staring at nothingness.

Well, it was time to break the ice and get right to the news that they needed to know. And she really needed to get back to moving around; she had a lot of villages to visit.

"Well, let me introduce myself," bowing slightly, the seer noticed that all their attention was now focused on her, "I am Towa Shirube, and I'm a seer. You see, destiny was what brought you four here, and now is the time to explain the quest which you must accomplish."

"That's nice and all, but why did we have to get involved?" asked Dark, "Seeing as me and Krad were just getting away from the adults…"

"Just as fate degreed it as."

The blonde kicked him and then faced her, frown firmly in place, "So you're saying that we're the ones in the prophecy?"

"Of course. For certain," Towa nodded her head and then allowed herself the time to scan the room and to focus on each person. Mainly the three boys, and the blonde, who was still frowning. "Why else would you be where you are now. In particular, Satoshi." She pointed a finger at the cloaked figure, who said and did nothing, as if he hadn't heard a thing at all.

Daisuke looked up, the confusion stamped on his face, "But… it was Daichi…" he explained, almost apologetically, "She just ended up screwing another summoning… so that was all…"

"Oh, you're wrong there," winking, she grinned lightly and then tapped a finger over the wooden surface of the table, "As I said, fate works in mysterious ways. One way or another, it was destiny that brought a vampire to this part of the world, and the fact that both the Sun and Moon children are here pretty much proves it."

Riku smirked slightly and crossed her arms, "As it was, it's not everyday you get a mortal, children from two opposite kingdoms and a vampire to become a traveling group."

"Huh?" Krad blinked, the frown changing to perplexity as the words processed into her head. "Wait… are you saying that we have to work together with others that we have never met before and we're supposed to get along!" and the unsaid sentence of, 'I'm the only girl in the group!' hung around the room.

"She has a point," agreed Daisuke, "We don't even know each other or anything… and my aunt and uncle are going to kill me…" He gave a surprised squawk as Dark jabbed him in the ribs with his elbow. "What was that for?"

"I don't see the problem with travelling with you," the older teen replied, "You seem nice enough… although that rabbit thing is… kinda weird…"

The redhead could only stare at him, unable to work out what he meant by that, and then Krad sighed and explained. "I'm assuming that he's glad that he's finally found a friend that won't kick him around like a soccer ball."

"Damn straight!"

Daisuke sweat dropped.

"Now, as I was saying," coughed Towa, noticing that the conversation had ventured off in another direction that made no sense whatsoever, "I made a prophecy of trouble that is now approaching, as you may have noticed by now, and your four must travel now and accomplish the task."

Raising a hand like a student in class, Dark had only one thing to point out before Krad kicked him again, "Then you'll need to tell us the task."

Trying hard to keep her temper in check and not to take a leaf out of the blonde's book, the seer said as calmly as she could, "The Stars."

By the reaction she got from the redhead, it seemed that he knew what was going on, and the vampire obviously had been told about it by his parents, but the other two remained blank. Damn the adults that thought that such a case would never come to be.

"You see, in this land, and connecting lands, there's always an object that pulses with both life and death and holds the lines of destiny in place," she explained, "Elements, balance, shadowed worlds and the like all have that in common. In this world and the two kingdoms of light and dark-" she pointed gazed at Dark and Krad, "-rely on the stars as the link between pure chaos and just plain trouble."

"So the stars are an important part of all this," muttered the blonde, taking it in. "And what are we supposed to do then?"

"Well, it's simple, really. Thirteen has always been considered an unlucky number, but this time it might actually save… us from being overrun by monsters, I guess." Towa frowned, "As I was saying, collecting all thirteen fragments of the sacred Star will pretty much put the balance back in place and you can live like nothing has ever happened."

Inclining his head, Dark could only mutter, "So now we have to run around the place, facing monsters and the like, while searching for thirteen pieces of… whatever they are. How are we supposed to know what they look like?"

"Oh, you'll know when you see it. Besides, it's not like any of you had any plans anyway."

"But thirteen!" stressed the purple-haired teen.

"Actually…" Towa suddenly smiled and pointed at all four of them, "You only need to find one fragment!" By the blank looks on their faces, they were – once again – lost in her logic, "Simple really. There are four of you and, you may not know it, but you each already hold four separate fragments. As it is, THAT'S why you're stuck in this, so get unstuck and find that fragment!"

Without further ado, she kicked them out of the room and slammed the door behind her. Daisuke groaned as he picked himself up and stared at the solid wooden door. "That… was strange…"

"And you're telling me that…" grumbled Dark, "Well, we might as well go… somewhere and properly introduce ourselves, right?"

Krad rolled her eyes and dragged him away from the other two before hissing into his ear, "Do you really believe a thing she said? And who says that we can trust them in the first place anyway?"

"Well, it's not like we HAD any plans in mind anyway," shot back the other teen, "And they seem harmless enough. And besides, the redhead probably knows where he's going, so that would be really helpful."

"How about the guy in the cloak," she asked.

"He's creepy. Creepy, I say…"

"Who's creepy?" as a dangerously low voice behind Dark. With a yelp, he whirled around and saw that it was the said guy in cloak, still hooded, but by the sound of his voice, he wasn't too happy with the arrangements.

"You are!" Dark snapped.

"Dark…" growled Krad warningly.

"We really shouldn't be standing here," the redhead piped up, "And I need to go to the store anyway. Come on!" He bounced down the corridor with renewed energy and, after shooting bewildered glances, Krad and Dark followed after him. And the hooded guy trailed behind them.

000

"So you two are from the Sun and Moon Kingdoms?" questioned Daisuke as he inspected a variety of daggers on display. Despite the fact that he never honestly fought or wandered around, his last teacher in the summoning business had always told him to be prepared in case of trouble. And the times when he and his twin had found more trouble than they were worth, the words of advice were priceless.

"Well… yeah…" replied the boy, standing to one side and trying not to stand out. "I suppose… what about it?"

"Wow, I never thought I would see the day when Dark would actually be nervous enough NOT to talk," joked the blonde girl next to him. There was a muttered reply at this, but she ignored it, "I'm Krad and he's Dark, so… what's your name?"

"Daisuke Niwa," he replied, bending down to look at another arrangement of weapons. "I'm a Daemon Tamer. And he's Satoshi Hiwatari," he added thoughtfully, well aware of the fact that Satoshi would not introduce himself. And, of course, the vampire didn't say anything.

Maybe it had something to do whether it was day or night… or something. The redhead never did do a study on vampires, but they were pretty much like humans; besides the fact that they drank blood… couldn't stand the light… and were able to turn into bats… but other than that, they were very similar to the human race.

"So why doesn't he talk?" demanded Dark irritably, "I mean, he only said two words during that hour or so in that stupidly stuffy room! Not to mention I've got bruises on my legs…" he added huffily as he shot the blonde another glare, that was ignored.

"Does he even speak to you?" asked Krad.

"Well… yeah… kind of…" admitted the redhead, "But we only met yesterday…"

"And that was my birthday…" the blonde muttered to her friend.

"What! Oh yeah!" Dark slapped his forehead, "Does that mean that it was your fault that you were born that day?"

There was a loud crash as Dark was kicked out of the weapon shop. Daisuke sweat dropped slightly as he paid for a bow and arrow set and then followed the storming girl out, only to have Satoshi tap him on the shoulder and he turned.

"Hiwatari-kun?"

"Do we really have to travel with those two?" Satoshi muttered as he watched the blonde strangling the purple-haired teen, "I was prepared, but something tells me this wasn't supposed to happen."

"They're royalty though, aren't they? Maybe that's why…"

"I don't even know why I'm here anymore…"

The redhead smiled at this and then stepped forward to try and stop Krad from killing Dark; which she was doing quite successfully. "Eeh… Krad-san… maybe you should stop before he chokes to death…?" he tried hesitantly.

"That wouldn't be a bad idea, you know," she replied coolly, one arm around his throat as he gagged, "What a jerk… and he has the nerve to blame it on me being born then…"

"… Stupid… violent…" spluttered Dark as his face began to turn as purple as his hair, "Bloody hell… if you weren't a girl…"

She strangled him for just that little longer.

000

Daisuke shook his head slowly, bewildered. Just ten minutes ago the two older teens had been at each other's throats (well, Krad had been close to killing Dark…) but as they left the village behind them, they were getting along just fine like nothing had happened. Dark had ended up giving Krad his sword and had opted for some close range knives instead, and the peaceful air was almost too good to be true.

Not to mention the fact that Dark seemed to get along with Daisuke just as well in the few hours they had met and they got along fine… although maybe it had something to do with the fact that the redhead had given in and promised to teach the older teen on how to actually defend himself. With that, Krad managed to put in another sarcastic comment, which led to more bickering… and then Satoshi actually said something, which then had Dark arguing with him…

"Does he always like to argue that much?" Daisuke asked Krad, who rolled her eyes and ignored the two behind them.

"Well, Dark probably doesn't get to argue much with anyone, seeing as he's an only child and all, so I guess," she shrugged and rearranged her cloak, "I mean, since we were kids, we were constantly supervised by servants and stuff, and I just couldn't take it. But the fact that we're now going to somewhere we don't even know… I just have to guess what will happen next."

"I've got a vague idea…"

"Well, you're just a jerk who can't even show his freaking face around the place--" ranted Dark, sticking out his tongue.

"Moron! I think by now you might have worked out that I CAN'T!" snapped Satoshi.

"Cause you're ugly!"

"No, I'm a VAMPIRE!"

"What's that got to do with it!"

"Wait, if he's a vampire, why isn't he trying to kill us?" asked Krad, blinking as the argument slowly got louder by the decibel. "And what's your idea?"

"Well, Hiwatari-kun isn't like most vampires, apparently," the redhead explained, "so I'm not really sure myself. And as for the idea… if what Towa-san said was true, then I'm assuming that it would have to be somewhere sacred. The problem with that theory is that there are quite a few temples as such that we could visit. And I have no idea on how we're supposed to locate this fragment… so… er…" he then noticed he was babbling and blushed, "Sorry… I think I said too much…"

Krad grinned, "No, not really. And it makes sense." She inclined her head and suppressed a sigh when she noticed that he childhood friend was still arguing with the vampire, "I suppose those two won't want to hear the theory anytime soon. So why don't you tell me about this place. I mean, this would have to be the only time I've ever left home."

"Really, it must be tough."

"Not for an only child with a friend with a brain the size of a kumquat. He never was the type to stay around and fight."

"Aah… my sister's like that… although she's constantly messing up summonings… which means I always have to be there to keep an eye out for her…"

Bouncing from one subject to another, it wasn't long before Dark finally got sick of arguing with Satoshi – for the time being – and ran ahead to catch up with the other two. "What'cha talking about!"

The blonde raised an eyebrow, "What's it to you?"

"Krad…"

Smiling, Daisuke could only comment to Satoshi – who had caught up - as the blonde and the purple-haired teen began to argue, "Towa-san said that we could save this place from chaos… but at the rate we're going, we might as well be trying to save ourselves.

"I think our one simple task is a lot broader than we thought."

The vampire was in silent agreement. That, or he was plotting a way to hurt Dark badly; either way.

And so forwards the newly formed group marched… yelling insults and threats to each other and the like.

000

Wow. And that's another chapter done. I don't think there'll be many chapters after this one, but you never know. Ah well, that's the way life is blah blah blah. And they're all happy cause now they have to wander around the world… kinda like Tales of Phantasia or something, you know?

Reviews:

Hakudoshi-chan: Well, I'm trying to update this as often as possible every week… even if it is only a chapter… and yeah. Thanks for the comment.

kyo's little koneko: Eheh… they all kinda get along and the like, but you know… a vampire and the like… what more could one expect? As for getting hurt, probably not too badly and all… maybe.

neko-nya: yah, Satoshi's very special cause he's… er… the Chosen One of Four! Yeah… Krad's both strong and pretty… and independent and… uh… not useless… Dark's a prince who was just too lazy to learn anything… I suppose.

Chrnoskitty/kittenoftime: Thanks!

Devinedragon: Well, I'm currently trying to update once every week, so yeah. Satoshi makes a pretty good vampire though… low blood pressure and the like, so why not? Thanks for the comment!