AN/ Hey! I'm back everyone! I have finished the third chapter as you can see, and am starting the fourth. And don't worry. I'll try not to be someone who leaves ya hanging on a fanfic and never continue it again. I hate it when people do that… especially if they have a really good plot going. In this chapter, Suguru and Noriko blow off some steam at each other, so get ready! I'll have to make Shu and Yuki fall in love pretty quick, because I gotta get on to the real plot of the story soon. Here's a hint of the actual plot…. It has a lot to do with demons, darkness, and a "chosen one" type of thing. I'll give ya three guesses who the "chosen one" is. Anyway, let's get on to the story! Please review me! -

"Oh my, it seems you found me… my dear Fujisaki Suguru." The gypsy said, smirking.

"What scandal are you causing now, you wench?" The young man narrowed his eyes at her while she slowly swayed toward his direction.

"Scandal? Do you really think that lowly of me? I'm shocked." Her words dripped of sarcasm.

"I thought I told you to move out of the city. Why have you plagued us again with your vulgar dancing?" He folded his arms. The people watched on eagerly as the two bitter enemies barred their fangs at one another.

"Oh come now. Your making such a scene Fujisaki-kun. A little fun here and there never hurt. It is what I do for a living, you know. How would I be able to get my pay if I left town?"

"Get a proper job."

"Ha! You mean like YOUR'S? Please! I'd die under the weight of a thousand boulders before I ever became a duchess! I mean look at yourself! Strutting around like you own half the city… you've become like an old man Suguru."

"What did you say to me!" A pulse threatened to pop on his forehead. The blonde traveler just yawned in boredom.

"If you want to be crushed by a thousand boulders, then I could arrange that for you very easily if you keep up this satanic shenanigan!" The aqua haired teen yelled into her face.

"Just TRY and catch me you filthy upper-class snob!" She was getting worked up herself. The crowd started cheering the duke and gypsy on, wanting to see some action after their petty little quarell. Once the fireworks were about to break out, a piercing gun shot echoed through the street, causing everyone to flinch in surprise. Each head hesitantly turned around to find the Captain of the Guards holding his gun up in the air, a stream of smoke emitting from the long sliver barrel.

"Ha ha ha!" The long haired man laughed hardily. "I should have known it was you two causing all the commotion. What a pair!" He smiled cheekily.

"Mr. Winchester! What's the meaning of this!" Suguru stomped his foot.

"Just calming down the local ruckus. I'm not surprised to see you here in the middle of it either. Always has to be the center of attention, don't you Mr. Fujisaki?"

"What! I-!"

"Now, now. Don't get all worked up, little one. I'm only kidding ya."

"Hmph!" The boy grunted, humiliated by the captain's words. While the whole city respected the Captain of the Guards, no one was too fond of his obnoxious accent and personality. But he did keep Arbaphem safe, so everyone could rest at ease, knowing that they'd be protected at night as long as Claude Winchester was around… well… they felt somewhat safe… if you know what I mean…

The trigger happy blonde cleared out the town square, telling the people to move on their way while the gypsy and her crew packed up their stuff and the money they gathered from the performance. The author stayed near the spot where the stage was and listened to what the gunman and duke were talking about.

"There. It's all peace again. Might not want to start something up like that again. It could cause a riot." He told the young duke, still smiling.

"But I'm not the one who started it! That vile gypsy shouldn't be anywhere near this part of the city! I ran her out months ago!" His face was turning a raging cherry red.

"Whoa! Calm down there, 'Mr.Duke'. I'm sure she's gotten the picture by now. Right ma'am?"

"Whatever. I don't associate with men like him. But if it'll close a lid on his erupting little head, I'll move to a different part of the town… maybe in the suburbs."

"There! Ya see? She cooperated just fine. Violence shouldn't be the answer Mr. Fujisaki."

"But I wasn't…I… grrr! It's not my fault!" He stormed off out of town square, enraged at the treatment he was receiving. The crowd parted like the Red Sea once the flaming Fujisaki came barreling through.

"See what I mean? He's so hot headed." The gypsy, Noriko, said while wrapping a cloak around her scarcely clothed body.

"You sound like you know him personally (God forbid…)."

"I do… unfortunately. We used to be old friends until the caste system separated the boys from the men… or women. I don't know where he got the attitude, but it does get a little annoying."

"I couldn't agree more, but it wouldn't hurt for you to not to cause trouble anymore, now would it? Why not be friends again. I'm sure you could work out all of your differences if you did."

"Your just saying that so it'll be more convenient for you and your job."

"Yeah… but hey! Look on the bright side. You've definitely got a more exciting life style than him."

"True." She checked over her shoulder to see if her crew had packed up the setting. "Well, better be on my way. I can still shake my money cans and here the rattling inside them."

"Good luck. And, if I were you, I wouldn't let Mr. Hothead see you around here anymore. Next time, he might really pull the plug on your little show."

"Don't worry. I'll be in disguise." Noriko winked and swung her hips toward the blonde novelist, about to walk away like the rest of the crowd.

"Hey. Thanks for coming to my performance. I always enjoy a variety of people." She came up millimeters away from his front.

"Yeah. Too bad it was interrupted by that duke guy. I really wanted to see the rest of your interpretive dance."

"Well, well. A critic, are we? Alright. I know when I've been insulted. See ya around stranger." She kissed the emotionless man on his left cheek and hopped into the gypsy cart along with her crew. Once they rode off, the captain came over and chuckled a bit.

"She's quite a handful, isn't she? She'll get herself into real trouble one day." He said, smiling all the while.

"…Whatever." The traveler left town square and decided to head in the direction of the gypsy. Since he wanted to head toward the outskirts of the city as well, her trail would lead him in the right direction anyway.

:-:X:-:

For the Shindou family's dinner, there was stew, bread, and grape juice. And in their terms, the stew is actually lightly flavored water, bread is very dry dough, and grape juice is just water. But it kept them alive, so there wasn't anything to complain much about yet. The conversation at their hand-made wooden table was about the shilling hunt they would have the next morning and about how much they might find. Mrs. Shindou stated a reasonable amount, Maiko might've had her hopes a little high, and Shuichi was just concerned about finding any at all. While they were debating, a knock sounded at the front door.

"Who would be here so late at night?" The mother peered over at the entrance.

"I'll get it." Her son stood, headed to the other room, and answered the knock to find his one and only best friend… "Hiro! What are you doing here?"

Hiroshi Nakano was a very studious man brought up with class and manners even if he wasn't the richest guy in town. His friendly and outgoing attitude tied him all together to make the perfect buddy, especially for a lonely guy like Shuichi. The teen worked part time at a local library closest to the outskirts. He received fair pay and lent out books to Shuichi for free since the Shindou's could hardly manage to buy any novels in the first place. Though he wasn't as poor as them, he had a kind heart and good logical advice whenever you need it. Being a librarian was only part of the reason he was so smart. Usually, the red head would lend some money to his best friend, but even his income was getting low, so it was becoming near to impossible anymore. Hiro tried to get a job for the 19 year old at the library with him, but it turned out that there were no more positions available at the moment. But, in spite of that small problem, he still struggled to get a decent paying occupation for his friend.

"Hey Shuichi. I'm here to get that book you borrowed from our library a week ago."

"Oh yeah! Hang on, let me go grab it." The pink haired boy ran to his room, and came back in a flash with the book in hand. "Here ya go! It was SOOO good!" He squealed.

"You like it? Good. I thought you would." He smiled.

"The plot was so well thought out! And the characters were so awesome. And remember when that guy came along and seemed friendly, but was actually a spy, but he and that girl fell in love, but then in the end he died, and she…. It was really sad!" He had tears at the corners of his eyes.

"Yeah. I remember. This guy has a few works out so far. And people are just eating them up one by one. He's really popular in America right now, and I heard he's traveling here for some inspirational searching."

"Really! Cool!" Puppy Shu hopped up and down ecstatically.

"Who knows? Maybe you'll meet him sometime when he comes into our city."

"Here? Naw. He probably wouldn't come to the suburbs of the city. There isn't anything to do here."

"Well, ya never know… hey. How's your mom doing?" He said in an almost inaudible voice so the two women in the other room wouldn't hear him.

"Mom? Oh… she's gotten better I think. Maiko found a shilling in the forest today, so that cheered her up a bit I think. Though I don't think she's gotten over the loss yet."

"That's too bad. I'm sorry that happened."

"We had it coming. Don't worry about us."

"Okay. Hey, man. If you need anything, just let me know. I'm always just a few miles away."

"Thanks. But I things are starting to look up for us Hiro. I hope…"

"Yeah. I hope so too." He stated softly. After an awkward moment of silence, the librarian spoke up again. "Anyway, I better go. You guys are still having dinner. Say hi to Mrs. Shindou and Maiko-chan for me."

"I will. See ya around Hiro!" Shu waved.

The red head waved back silently, and made his way down the road toward the city.

"Who was that dear?" The mother asked as Shuichi sat back down at the table again.

"It was just Hiro. I had lent something from him and he came back for it."

The rest of the evening was followed by a light conversation and preparations for bed. It had been an overwhelming day for all of them, and a peaceful night's rest is just what they needed for their fatigue.

AN/ Okay! Since I have to make these next chapters quick, I'm gonna introduce some of the other characters later into the real plot and you'll see what roles they have. EVERYONE is going to be in this fanfic, so you'll have a variety of twists and turns. I'm still debating whether to have Hiro and Ayaka to get together. To be honest, I really DO NOT like Ayaka. She slapped Shuichi in the series and is just a plain… well, you fill in the blank. So maybe yall can help me decide if I should do that or not. Of course you don't know what role she plays yet so it may be a bit difficult for you to decide…. Maybe later then, huh? I'll update as soon as I can. Summer band is killing me on time though, so I don't promise to be quick on adding chapters, but I'll try to do it as often as possible! Thank you and please REVIEW! --