Memoir
Summary: Sequel to "Forgotten." "Time really does change everything, doesn't it? Hard to believe I'm the same person." Hiei/OC
Author's notes: Part seventeen. Exciting. Some pretty big stuff happening in this chapter. Hope you guys like it.
And thanks to Moojuice Nne of the Mayonaisse for beta reading for me. You rock, sweetie!
And now, the fic.
Oh, and watch for the italics part—it indicates dream/memory once again.
Part Seventeen: Holding on to the Light
Akiko's sleep grew more and more fitful as the night progressed. Partly because the ground was hardly the most comfortable place to sleep.
But mostly because of the visions.
Ayame had left before Akiko learned to walk. Her father wasn't really much of the parental type either, so Akiko spent a great deal of her younger years at the playground on the edge of the city.
They called it the Dead Children's playground. An old legend said that children killed by the supernatural came to the playground when they died and they waited for justice. If one really listened, the children could be heard—not laughing and playing, but crying.
Being as young as she was, Akiko didn't understand the legend nor why she should be afraid, so she frequented the playground as often—or perhaps more often—than she did her own home.
Still, it was hardly safe for a seven-year- old to be alone in a haunted playground at night.
"Come on, this way."
"Where are we going?"
"Yeah, what're we supposed to see?"
"You'll see when we get there; come on!"
Three teenagers trampled onto the playground; the child Akiko rose from the swing she had been playing on and hid behind the nearest tree.
"A playground? Come on man, you dragged us out here for a friggin' playground?"
"It's a haunted playground, stupid. You wanted to go ghost hunting, didn't you?"
"Well, yeah, but—"
"Then that's what we're doing."
The rest of the teens' conversation was drowned out by a series of screams. Akiko, startled, abandoned her hiding place to investigate the source of the sounds.
Sangre's fangs cut deep into Itaka's flesh. Blood seeped from the wound; Sangre lapped it up hungrily.
One of the teenagers spoke again, sounding panicked.
"What was that?"
Akiko, now returned to her true age, stood directly between the scene of the teens at the playground and Itaka's last moments. She looked from one scene to the other in awe.
"It's strange how everything is connected, isn't it?"
Akiko nodded, not turning to look at the speaker. "I remember the screaming," she said softly, focusing her attention on Sangre and the dying boy. "But I don't remember seeing that… it's horrible."
"You weren't able to see me then," the voice said. "You can now."
The girl turned to the voice and saw Itaka, smiling, as always, up at her.
"You can talk?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.
Itaka's grin broadened. "Only for now. Koenma decided that there might be some things I need to tell you, so he broke the rules about the silence of ghosts of a little while."
"Okay," Akiko said. "So is there anything you needed to tell me?"
Itaka nodded. "Sangre wanted to get the powers that the gypsy lady said I would have. That's why he attacked me. And he wants powers from you, too."
"Powers? What powers? I'm not an angel anymore. Hiei told me that. And Sangre knows it too."
"He's not looking for angel powers. He's looking for powers from Reikai."
"How would I have any powers from Reikai?"
"Koenma told you. When he brought you back to life, he accidentally gave you some of his powers. And what Hiei told you is right—you need to be careful. You don't have angel blood anymore; you can't be protected by your heritage."
Akiko nodded. "So what do I do?"
"Let your friends protect you. That's what they came here for—they came for you, not for me."
"I find that hard to believe," Akiko muttered, her mind resting on a particular fire yokai.
Itaka laughed. "He cares about you more than you think."
"How do you—?"
"I've been watching. Helping along the way. The point is that they care. Let them help."
The vision faded into a swirl of colour.
A wave of pain awoke her. It was like her side was ripping open.
And, in effect, it was.
Her wound had clearly reopened—blood was leaking from the tear in her side. She should call for Kurama. She should. She should.
She couldn't.
"I told you to come with me," Sangre's voice said as Sangre himself kneeled beside her, lowering his face to her side and licking up some of the falling blood.
"W-wha—?"
The yokai placed a hand over her mouth. "Don't try to talk, dear. It'll only weaken you."
He lifted her roughly off the ground, paying no heed to the blood pouring from her side or to her cries of pain. One clawed hand supported her head and forced her to look up at Sangre.
"What do you want with me?" she managed to gasp.
Sangre smirked. "You know that already. The child told you. Oh, I know that you've been in contact with him—" he said, for Akiko looked shocked, "—though I thought I had silenced him long ago. But that doesn't matter now. He can't stop me getting what I want.
"And nor can you."
Author's notes: Insert dramatic music here Just kidding. Anyway, again, I hope you guys liked the chapter. There's only four chapters left in this fic, so… yeah. And after (note, AFTER) I finish I'm going to take a break from fanfiction for… I don't know… maybe a month? I'm going to spend some time working on one of the … four twitch original works that I've started. Who knows, maybe I'll be able to get something in print. Well, I'll talk to you guys later, then. Thanks. Read and review, please!