Summary: Anna has been living at the Asakura Mansion for two months already. Best of all, Hao has been coming home more often. (A/N: wink wink)
"Anna! Please! I don't want to run an extra ten miles!" Yoh whined.
"Well, too bad. You were late for breakfast again. That's sixty miles in all." Anna said simply.
"WHAT!"
"Oh, did I forget to mention that I'm increasing your training again? Hurry up and get going!"
Yoh groaned his usual silent complaint, and ran off.
Since there was nothing to do and Hao was at home (A/N: wink wink), Anna decided to rest, and maybe take a nap. She hasn't been getting enough sleep these days. Her dreams are usually alive with blurry images, pain, and death.
Normally she doesn't get dreams. Nothing but peaceful slumber. But not these days.
Sitting down under a Dogwood tree, she closed her eyes. During that movement, her furrowed eyebrows became two simple arches over tender eyelids. Her thinly forced lips softened, allowing them to come out wholly and a small serene smile unfurled on it.
Soon, the Itako was in a quiet, peaceful sleep with no nightmares, no dreams, just plain bliss. And the first one that she's got in days. She didn't notice someone coming towards her.
HAO'S POV
After I got bored of messing around with Rikihota, making him redo the whole meal again, I decided to visit my little brother and Anna. I haven't spoken with her yet, which I do everyday, now. Just a little conversation about the day. Nothing more, though I have to say that I'm starting to enjoy her company. Of course, it is only a brother-sister relationship. I gave up trying to woo the unsympathetic witch some time ago.
When I reached the street, I was greeted by Yoh's spirit, Amidamaru, who was held back by what appears to be Anna's chains.
"Hello, Amidamaru. Where is my little brother?" I asked pleasantly.
"He's on his twentieth mile, Mister Hao." Amidamaru said miserably, "Forty more miles to go."
I chuckled, "That Anna. She's more ruthless than my former trainer."
Just then, I spotted Yoh running down the road. I waved to him, but all he did was smile feebly. 'Poor Yoh.' I thought as I chuckled again, "Now if you'll excuse me, Amidamaru, I have a trainer to annoy." And with that, I turned and walked away, ignoring the samurai spirit's questioning look.
I found the Itako under a blooming Dogwood tree, sleeping. Smiling, I approached her in a slightly loud manner.
I was a couple of feet away when I froze.
The Anna that was sleeping before me looked a lot different from the Anna that I know. She looked so innocent and peaceful, not cold and uncaring. Her features had softened immensely, and, is that a smile I'm seeing on her?
This must be Anna's other side. The side she keeps hidden most of the time: the angel side of her that actually has a heart.
It makes me want to hold her and protect her forever.
I want to stare at her all day. But how will she react if she sees me like this? I didn't want to disturb her since she might return to her heartless half again. Finally, an idea came to me.
Doing my best to stay as quiet as possible, I climbed up the tree in which Anna was sleeping under. From there, her sleeping form can be seen clearly from below.
She now lay on her back so that her face was visible through the leaves, and made me almost fall of my seat. 'I've never seen such beauty! Ok, so I might have seen women more beautiful than her, but this is completely different. Having known her to only be harsh and ruthless and then seeing her like this now creates a bigger effect than those fakes.' I thought as I looked down on her, kind of like her guardian angel.
END HAO'S POV
Hao continued to stare at Anna, never getting bored.
He got hungry a couple minutes later and took out his leftover sushi. Which was a baaaaad idea. Soon, flies started hovering on top of the meal, making it nearly impossible for Hao to eat without swallowing at least two or three flies.
Annoyed, he waved his hand to and fro, trying to shoo the pests away, but they wouldn't leave.
He tried harder and harder, oblivious to the cracking branch that he was sitting on. Finally, he bounced so high and so hard, that the poor branch couldn't support him anymore. It cracked again-this time; it was a big crack. One that angled the branch low enough to send the shaman sliding down towards the sleeping Ice Queen.
"Oof! What the-" Anna had opened her eyes the moment she felt something land heavily on her. And what did she see?
A broken branch above her, on the verge of falling, and a certain long-haired Asakura, lying ON TOP OF HER!
"HAO!" she screamed.
"Oh hello, Anna." He pulled himself onto his hands and knees, still inches above her.
A cracking sound was heard above them. The two looked up and saw the broken branch finally giving in, plunging towards the ground. With it came several small branches that were light enough to be lifted by the gentle wind, but sharp enough to pierce you.
"Look out!" Hao said as his shaman instincts took over. He lowered himself again so that his body was touching Anna's, sheltering her from any damage.
She, on the other had, just lied there, abnormally calm for someone who's going to get hurt real bad.
"Fuyumi! Stop the branches!" She yelled.
The female deer-like spirit quickly obeyed. She took out her Crested Arrows, slung one onto the bow and aimed carefully. She then let go: the arrow seemed to have pierced the fabric of time (A/N: Literally! It was that fast!) right after she had let go, the tip multiplied into thousands of mini arrows, each aimed at a specific branch.
The result was a blanket of blinding light, illuminating the ground. Tiny sparkles fell lightly down, never touching the grass.
It was then that the two people underneath all that action realized their position. As usual, Anna was the first to notice it: Their bodies were against each other once again, but this time, Hao's face was centimeters from hers. His hot breath tickling her cold features.
"Hao you Baka! Get off of me this instant!" She yelled as she kicked him squarely in the stomach. He winced slightly, and so did she-for some reason.
"Oh, gomen Anna. Are you okay?" Hao said patiently as he stood up.
"Besides no because I'm irritated that you disturbed my sleep?" Said matter-of-factly, "Well, there's also: no, because you ruined my favorite tree, no, because you've made such a mess, no, because you gave me a lot of bruises and cuts, no because you ripped my dress, and no, you've ruined my hair! I already combed it and conditioned it!"
"Well, I'm terribly sorry for all the inconveniences I've put you through today, Anna. Anyways, Yoh's almost done with his training program, and you're going to be going back home very soon, right?" He asked, a hint of sadness in his voice.
Anna was disappointed as well, though she never let it slip out, "Yeah, why do you ask?" She asked icily.
"Well, there's this place I always go to when I'm bored. I'll show you it. I'm quite sure you'll like it."
"It's not a bar, is it?" She inquired.
He laughed, "No, my dear Anna. It's not a bar. Trust me. You'll like it." he flashed one of his now familiar trademark smiles, quite a normal thing these days. But this time, Anna blushed and had to turn away, pretending to check her torn dress for any fragments of wood on it.
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Anna." He waved at her and left.
'Only a couple of days left and I get to go home, back to my trainers. I'll finally get some rest after all these months. Only a three days left. Why am I feeling so depressed?' She thought bitterly.