I really hope I finish this story eventually. I was going to wait until it was all done to post it… and yet here I am, posting it. sigh It will probably end up like my GW story… begun with good intentions, then left to rot. But who knows? I might finish this one. I might finish that one too! You never know!

The Season of the Witch
By Angel Maxwell

Chapter 1: Festival

On the evening of the cultural festival Clamp Campus sparkled like a gem, illuminated by a thousand paper lanterns. A plethora of colorful stands were set up all around with offerings of food and activities for eager merrymakers. Taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the festival were the Sumeragi and Aoki families, all decked in lovely kimonos.

"Wow!" exclaimed Midori. "This year's festival is even bigger than last year!"

"Yeah," added Maki. "And last year was huge! We're gonna have to hurry if we're gonna fit in everything we want to do."

Maki Aoki had been Midori's best friend since before either of them could remember. Midori was a year older, but Maki's high IQ allowed her to skip a grade in school, so the girls were always in the same class.

For this occasion, the girls had even selected color-coordinated kimonos to wear. Maki's was yellow with a green leaf pattern and her long brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail with a matching green ribbon. Midori wore a light green kimono patterned with yellow sunflowers. Her black hair was cropped to chin-length but she kept it off her face with a yellow barrette.

"I want to win something at one of the games," said Midori excitedly. "Oh, and I hope they have okonomiyaki! And…"

She turned around to see if her father had heard her. Subaru was lagging a bit behind with Mr. Aoki and seemed oblivious to anything his daughter had said.

"Dad!" Midori called. "Are you even listening?"

"Huh?" Subaru responded. "Oh, sorry 'Dori. I missed what you just said. I was too busy admiring how cute you are."

The young girl rolled her eyes and continued walking backwards, which was not the best idea considering how clumsy she was when just walking forward.

"Dad," she said coyly. "Sometimes you can be so corny and…"

It was almost inevitable that she would fall but nobody expected her to fall so spectacularly. Midori tumbled over backward, did a full flip, and ended up facedown with her kimono flipped up to reveal pink and white striped panties. Immediately, Maki and Subaru rushed to the fallen girl's aid, as did several bystanders.

"Are you all right, sweetheart?" her father asked as he helped her to her feet.

"I-I think so," Midori replied, looking quite embarrassed. "I must've tripped over something."

The thing she had tripped over was a ball of gray fur that was now yapping boisterously.

"Hey, it's Pochi!" Midori exclaimed as she scooped up the puppy. "Sorry I tripped over you, boy."

"Uh, "Dori," Maki whispered to her best friend. "If Pochi is here, that means you-know-who can't be far away…"

"Yoo-hoo, ladies," an obnoxious voice interrupted. "You wouldn't be talking about me would you?"

Both girls rolled their eyes at the pint-sized boy who had appeared on the scene. He had spiky dark-brown hair and a devilish grin on his face.

"You little runt!" Maki sneered. "You probably had Pochi trip her on purpose!"

"Shinya Shiyuu, you better not have seen my underpants!" Midori added sharply.

"I didn't see anything," the little boy answered, trying to sound innocent. "I couldn't tell you if your panties were white or pink… or striped…"

"Why you little…" she growled, setting down Pochi and pushing up her sleeves.

At that moment, Subaru stepped in.

"Knock it off, kids," he stated firmly. "There's no need to start a fight over something that was an accident. Now come on, let's all try to have fun. This is a festival after all."

By now, Shinya's mother had tracked him down to the scene. Her slowness in getting there could be explained by the fact that she was very pregnant.

'Shinya, honey," she called after him. "I told you not to get too far ahead of me." She paused and looked around at her son's company. "Mr. Aoki!" she exclaimed joyfully. "And Subaru! It's so great to see you!"

"It's good to see you too, Yuzuriha," Sei'ichirou responded.

"Yeah," Subaru added, smiling warmly at their friend. "You look… lovely."

"I look like a watermelon," she joked back. "With number three due in less than a month, I'm as big as a house."

"So, is your husband here?" Aoki inquired.

"Oh, no," Yuzuriha answered. "Kusanagi couldn't make it tonight. Izumi has a really bad cold so he's staying home to take care of her. They both wish they could've come, though."

Standing at Yuzuriha's side was her guardian dog, Inuki, who looked like a grown up version of Pochi. In the past fourteen years, Inuki had changed very little. Yuzuriha, however, had. The girl who was once the youngest and irrefutably cutest member of the Seven Seals had grown in to a beautiful mature woman. These days she was happily married to Kusanagi Shiyuu and had two children plus another on the way.

"Dad," Midori interrupted. "Can Maki and I go off by ourselves for a little while? We wanna go play games."

"I guess," Subaru answered thoughtfully. "But take Shinya with you."

"Fine," the young lady sighed. Her father just smiled.

"I'll meet you at the okonomiyaki stand for dinner. Have fun and be careful." Then he patted her affectionately on the head and watched her skip off.

Sei'ichirou's older daughter Yuka had gone off with her mother and the younger kids were off playing games. Now the three remaining Dragons of Heaven stood face-to-face under the glow of lantern light. It was rare for all of them to be together like this and nobody could think of quite what to say. Of the three, Subaru seemed the most nervous. The situation was making him all too aware of the past he wanted to hide from. After a long awkward silence, Yuzuriha was the first to finally speak up.

"She's starting to look a lot like her mother," she said softly.

"Huh?" Subaru responded.

"I mean Midori," his friend elaborated. "I noticed that she looks a lot like her mother did."

The head of the Sumeragi family looked down at his sandaled feet.

"She does," he sighed. "But I also can see traces of 'him' in her." He paused. "That's why I've decided to tell her the truth about the past."

"Oh," said Yuzuriha, tilting her head to the side. "Well… I think it's the right thing to do. It might even make you two even closer."

Yuzuriha always liked to put a positive spin on things. Subaru, however, still looked unsure.

"Don't worry," she continued casually. "It's not as big a deal as you think it is. She's your daughter. She'll love you no matter what."

"I hope so," Subaru said. "I think I'll probably take her home to Kyoto next week. It's not going to be easy."

His two old friends stood there and watched him as the colored lights danced across the surface of his dead eye. They knew this was going to be the hardest thing he'd ever had to do.

"Aw, man!" Maki huffed as the ring she just tossed bounced off of its target. "That was my last try. Maybe you'll do better, 'Dori."

"I hope so," Midori replied eagerly. "I really want to win that stuffed monkey."

"Hmph," Shinya snorted. "Why don't you just stand back and let a man handle this…"

"You're no man," the shorthaired girl said sarcastically. "You're just a shrimp."

"Besides, it's harder than it looks," the other girl added. "I bet you can't get a ring around that peg either."

"Oh yes I can!" Shinya stated firmly. "And I'll prove it! How about this? If I win that monkey for you, 'Dori, you'll go out with me!"

"Go out with you!" Midori shouted at him. "You're seven years old! You shouldn't be asking girls out! Especially girls who are older than you!"

"I'm almost eight!" the pintsized playboy retorted without missing a beat.

"I can get that monkey on my own," Miss Sumeragi said confidently.

"Not if I get it first!" said Shinya with a laugh.

Seconds later the two children were facing off with rings in hand. After a few skillful tosses, the girl emerged victorious and was rewarded with a cuddly stuffed monkey. Shinya frowned.

"That last throw was wind assisted," he argued.

"I have no control over the wind," said Midori with a smirk. Then she turned to Maki who winked. Having a best friend who came from a clan of wind masters had its benefits. "Now, if only I could throw paper spells as well as I throw plastic rings… my life would be a lot easier," she added.

After the ring toss showdown the three young people as well as little Pochi were getting along much better. Even Shinya was on his best behavior. He hadn't walked away empty handed. His fairly good throwing skills had won him a stuffed rabbit, which he planned to give to his little sister.

"Don't feel bad about 'Dori rejecting you," Maki told the younger boy. "Her heart belongs to someone else." Midori elbowed her friend gently.

"Shhhh… Maki," she mumbled. "He doesn't need to know about that."

"What?" Miss Aoki said innocently. "It's not like I mentioned that the man you're in love with happens to be your new teacher."

"Now that really was uncalled for!" Midori retorted, her face blushing madly. "And I just… like him… that's all."

"So, I guess you like older guys," Shinya said, sounding a bit disappointed.

"Can we just drop it?" she replied.

"Aw, come on," Maki pleaded. "Can you at least tell me about how you met him again? It's such a cute story!"

"Oh, all right," Midori consented. "But after that we're changing the subject. It was during lunchtime a couple of weeks ago. It was the day you were sick, Maki, so I went to eat under my favorite tree… And when I got there he was sitting there reading. He was so serene and so handsome… So, I told him my name, and he told me his. And he said he was the new eighth grade teacher, which means after the break I get to see him every day and… I'm rambling, aren't I?"

"It's okay," her best friend answered, grinning widely. "You're so cute when you're in love, 'Dori."

"Yeah… adorable," Shinya grumbled. "Hey, isn't it time we met back with our parents for dinner?" Pochi barked loudly.

"Yeah," Midori agreed, checking her watch. "Let's go, I'm starving."

When the quartet arrived at the dining area their parents were already waiting for them.

"Hey guys," Yuzuriha greeted cheerfully. "Did you have fun?"

"Yeah, Mom," Shinya replied, thrusting the stuffed bunny into her arms. "I got this for Izumi."

"I see you won something, too," Subaru said to his girl. "That's a very cute monkey."

"Thanks," Midori replied, giving the plush animal a squeeze. "So, are you ready to eat, Dad?"

"Yep," he answered happily. "Now let's go get some okonomiyaki. I know it's your favorite."

"It sure is," she added. "Oh, and Dad, after dinner there's a place I want to show you… just you and me."

After they were thoroughly stuffed with fried egg, seafood, and veggies, the two Sumeragi's took off across Clamp Campus hand-in-hand. They journeyed to the edge of the festival grounds and into the unlit garden areas. Midori was leading her father to her favorite spot.

"See this?" she said, pointing to a large tree. "This is my favorite place on all of the school grounds… under this tree."

Subaru stood motionless. He knew this tree. A long time ago a pretty young girl named Kotori had died and was buried under this tree. Later, she was joined by the boy she had loved, who was buried by her side. They were together forever now.

"I don't know why," Midori went on. "I just always feel peaceful when I'm here… I thought you would like it too, Dad."

"It's beautiful," he answered her. For some reason it made him feel contented that his daughter could feel the significance of this site, even if she didn't know why it was significant. He decided to take advantage of their solitude.

"Midori," he asked gently. "How would you feel about going to the family home for golden week?"

"Uh, okay," she answered, a bit puzzled. "But how come?"

"Well," her father went on. "You're getting to an age where pretty soon you won't want to hang out with your old dad anymore. I just want to get in one more vacation before you become to cool for me."

"Dad!" Midori interjected. "Don't say that! You're the coolest person in the whole world! And I'd never want to stop hanging out with you!"

The emotional young girl threw her arms around her father and buried her face in his dark blue kimono. Subaru put his arms around her and hugged back.

"C'mon now," he comforted. "There's no need to cry."

Suddenly, a dark, tall figure showed up on the scene, interrupting the tender father-daughter moment.

"I'm sorry," the man said. "I didn't know anyone was over here."

Recognizing the voice, Midori lifted her head from her father's chest.

"Mr. Munou!" she greeted ecstatically.

"Well hello, Miss Sumeragi," he greeted back. "What brings you out here and away from all the fun?"

Midori's face went scarlet.

"Oh… uh… I was just showing my dad my special place and… Oh! This is my father, by the way. Dad, this is Mister, er, Professor Munou. He's going to be my new teacher."

"It's nice to meet you," the teacher said with a smile. "Your daughter has very good tastes. This is my special place too."

Subaru was suddenly in a state of shock, eyes fixed and mouth slightly agape. Even though it was dark and a bit hard to see, there was no doubt that the man his daughter had just introduced him to was Fuuma Munou. Subaru felt as if his stomach had filled with ice. Standing just a few feet away was the man who had blinded his right eye; the man who had brutally killed countless people, including two of the Seven Seals; the man who had once reminded him so much of Seishirou. And yet, as Subaru looked at this man he could see no trace of cruelty. He actually seemed very kind.

"It's nice to meet you, too, Professor Munou," the bewildered onmyouji finally responded. "I guess I'll be talking to you when parent-teacher conference time rolls around."

"I guess so," Fuuma chuckled. "I think I'm going to go get something to eat, so, goodnight you two. And I'll be seeing you, Miss Sumeragi, when the new school year starts."

With that, the handsome man turned around and headed back towards the center of campus. Midori sighed as she watched him disappear. Even if he was much older than her, she couldn't help but think Mr. Munou was dreamy, especially in kimono.

Subaru watched him leave, too. When Kamui had sacrificed his life, Fuuma was purged of all evil and lost all memory of his past dirty deeds. Still, it would be hard to get used to the idea of this man being his little girl's teacher. It was also one more thing that he would have to somehow explain to Midori.

"I think it's time we headed home," he sighed.

"Yeah," she responded, snuggling up close to him. "Me too."

They took the same route that Fuuma had as they left Midori's special place. The stars were out and a sweet scent of flowers filled the air. It was truly a beautiful night. And neither father nor daughter had any idea that they had been being watched. As soon as the two were out of earshot, a man who had been hiding behind a nearby bush began speaking into a headset.

"We have confirmation," the man said in a sinister voice. "We've located Sumeragi… Now it's just a matter of time before our plans come to fruition… Let the resurrection commence…"

To be continued…