A/N: Warning: Mild Shoujo-ai angst and fluff here in
Chapter Ten: What was Lost
"Really, I'm fine", Shinobu said, smiling weakly up at the sceptical face of Mitsune Konno.
With warm, heat flushed cheeks, heavy eyes and a voice that was small, even for her, it was clear that the blue haired girl was anything but fine.
She was caught somewhere between happiness and embarrassment that everyone had come to visit her, expressing their concern after Su had found her like this earlier that morning.
Her head felt like it had been stuffed full of cotton wool and her body couldn't seem to decide if it was hot or cold. It was just as she had thought, going out in the rain without proper protection had made her sick, but she was fairly certain she'd done the right thing.
Kyoko-chan was so upset…I wonder what made her so sad?
Shinobu could still see her dark haired friend sitting out there, the rain sapping all the life from her hair and leaving it clinging to her skull lifelessly. Very much like the girl whose face was hidden beneath it, only the shallow rise and fall of her shoulders showing that she was sobbing softly as the storm ragged on around them.
She had claimed that she was no longer, if ever loved by her family, that she had been discarded because of some perceived failure.
Shinobu had tried to comfort her with little success at first…
---"What the hell would you know?", Kyoko screamed, edging away from her, "You have plenty of people who love you, what would you know…"---
Shinobu still felt the sting of those words, even if they were spoken in sorrow and anger, they stirred old memories of her life before Hinata house, during her parents divorce.
Memories of a sad and lonely little girl crying out silently for affection, affection she had later come to understand had been there all along, hidden because she hadn't taken the time to search it out.
"Hey, you still with us?", Shinobu's attention returned grudgingly to the room and its occupants. Koichi was looking at her kindly, a faint trace of worry playing across his face as he crouched down next to her.
He didn't look like he had done anything to Kyoko. There was no trace of malice or grim intent anywhere present on his face or in his eyes. He just looked concerned, attempting to cheer her with a trademark lopsided smile.
No, whatever had happened it didn't involve Koichi, at least, not directly. He had a hard edge that occasionally poked through, but he had never used it against anyone as far as she knew, and Motoko wouldn't be marrying someone like that even if he was somehow hiding it from the others.
"I'm ok", she said with a return smile.
He nodded and stepped back, returning to Motoko's side with his hands resting casually behind his head.
Motoko shook her head gently with a fond smile, not, surprisingly for Koichi's nonchalant attitude, though she did find it endearing that he wasn't making a big deal out of this when he was clearly as concerned as the rest of them. No, she was musing over the number of times the girl lying before them had ended up like this. Her immune system must have set a world record by now in ineptitude, which was probably one of the reasons she worked so hard when she was well, to make up for it. An admirable trait.
There was, however, something that troubled Motoko. To have come down with this illness would require either exposure to another with the disease, unlikely seen as they hadn't encountered anyone sickly lately, or alternatively, exposure to the elements.
Taking a minute half-step back from the group she let her eyes roam casually over the room until they found their target.
Half covered by one of the spare sheets that the girl must have kicked off in the night, was her Cabot dress. Even at this distance it wasn't hard to see the water logged patches that showed up wherever mud failed to prevail.
Her eyes met with the ailing girl's as she seemed to realise what the older woman had spotted.
Oddly, rather than explaining, her violet eyes seemed to send a silent plea for Motoko to hold her tongue.
The raven haired woman frown and cast one last sidelong glance at the garments before nodding subtly and returning to her place at Koichi's side as he and Kitsune tried to persuade Su that 'playing', would not make Shinobu feel any better.
The blue haired girl smiled thankfully at the older woman as she stepped in to help out with Su, grateful that she hadn't asked any questions.
"Come on", Motoko said, hoisting Su up by the back of her collar like a cat, "Lets let her get some rest for now".
"Yeah, you take care sugar", Kitsune said, walking toward the door, "I'll be back to keep an eye on you after I grab something to eat, ok?"
Shinobu nodded as the fox girl departed, Su squirming out of Motoko's grasp and heading out after her at the mention of food, leaving just Koichi and Motoko who also expressed their hopes she feel better before retreating, leaving her alone once more with her thoughts as she tried to get some sleep.
Koichi slid the door closed carefully and turned to Motoko, "You saw them?".
It didn't need to be explained what he was referring to.
"Yes, I believe that answers how she got sick,", Motoko said, keeping her voice low, "But what was she doing out in a storm like that?".
Koichi shrugged and lent back against the wall, folding his arms across his chest, "No idea, but did you notice we were short one".
Motoko's eyebrow lifted as she replayed the past few minutes, "You mean Kyoko-chan?".
Koichi nodded, "Yeah, beside all that Lady of the Manner stuff, she and Shinobu seem like pretty fast friends, so I'm surprised she didn't show up".
"Could it be she doesn't know yet?", Motoko offered.
"No, I went to fetch her myself, she didn't answer when I knocked", he held up a hand to forestall her next question, "And I asked around on my way here, she hasn't left her room, so it wasn't that she just wasn't in. She's not answering to anyone apparently".
Motoko joined him by the wall, "You think there is a link?".
He shrugged again by way of reply, his eyes flickering down the corridor for a second, a brief smile flashing across his lips.
He glanced at Motoko significantly before looking back at the far end of the hall, where it vanished around a bend.
Motoko concentrated for a fraction of a second, long enough to identify the Ki of the lurker Koichi was obviously alluding to.
"Kyoko?", she mouthed and his head dipped to confirm her question.
Motoko wondered briefly if they should go and ask the young girl if she knew what had happened to put Shinobu out in the middle of that storm, but Koichi once again interrupted.
"I'm hungry, want to go get something to eat?", he asked, facing her so that his body shielded the hand gestures he was making for her to agree with him from hidden eyes.
"…Sure, I suppose", she agree reluctantly, wondering why everyone seemed to be hiding something today.
"Great", he beamed with exaggerated cheer, "Wanna race there?".
She chuckled slightly, "You've been hanging around with Su to much".
He paled slightly and scratched the back of his head as they began walking, "The scary part is I think your right, hit me if I ever start sniffing you for food".
"I'd do that if you began sniffing me for any reason"
"Aw, you're no fun"
She rolled her eyes as they began walking away from the blue haired girl's room, "Remind me why I agreed to marry such a pervert again".
"Because of my charm, wit and undeniable good looks?", he offered with a grin.
"Really?", she said, schooling her face to avoid smiling as she spoke next, "Here I was thinking it was pity".
He clasped his chest dramatically with one hand and placed the back of the other atop his forehead, "Oh, woe to me, who is so cruelly mistreated, alas poor Koichi, harsh is the world to his beautiful soul".
"Over actor", she muttered, rapping him lightly on the head as they rounded the corner.
"You see how she abuses me", he whined melodramatically to a pair of passing servant girls, who giggled at his antics, "Save me ladies, I beg of you".
She grabbed his collar, dragging his ear level with her mouth, a burst of insecurity at his semi-flirting making her pull rougher than intended, "Keep this up and I'll do much worse".
"Promise?", he said cheekily, causing her cheeks to colour.
He laughed and wrapped an arm around her waist as they walked.
"Ok, that should do it", he said once they turned another bend, his smile vanishing as he looked back over his shoulder.
"What?"
"If Kyoko wants to talk to Shinobu alone, she's only going to do it if she's sure she can do it, that means no witnesses"
"Do you have any idea how sinister you just made that sound?", Motoko said, starting to feel concerned.
Koichi blinked, "Really?…Yeah, I guess I did, but that wasn't what I meant, I didn't mean to make it sound shady or anything, just that I know my little sister. If she was hanging back like that then theirs something really important on her mind that she needs to deal with, and I don't want to risk anything stopping her".
Motoko smiled as she elbowed him in the ribs, "You really care about her, don't you".
He raised a finger to his lips, shushing her and looking around, "Hey, less of that, I have a reputation to think of, I don't want to think what would happen if the brat thought I'd gone soft on her".
Motoko shook her head in bemusement as they carried on.
As soon as she was sure they were gone, a silent, kimono garbed shadow detached itself from the wall it had been pressed against. Risking a quick glance to ensure there was no one in sight, she padded down the abandoned hall on slippered feet.
Despite everything that had happened, and even trying to convince herself to hurry, her pace somehow managed to appear measured, and dignified, if abnormally accelerated. It was something ground into her since childhood, and as it had been mostly of her own violation, such mannerisms were to deeply engraved in her behavioural patterns for her to stop after one night a loss of control.
Kyoko Sagura paused outside Shinobu's room, the irony of her hesitation to enter her 'saviour's room not lost on the dark haired girl.
True this was a somewhat unusual circumstance. How often did one suffer news that tore down everything they based themselves upon, flee in a fit of self-destruction only to be saved by and angel in blue, with words of comfort and hope.
Her hand tightened on the handle.
How often did one cry in the rain on the shoulder of a complete stranger, lost in a conflicting sea of new emotions, strangely uncomfortable in said persons arms because they felt they never wanted to leave.
She slid the door aside and stepped in, her head bowed so that her bangs would hide most of her face from the occupant's eyes, turning to close the door, leaving her back to the other girl to delay the moment she would have to face her.
How often did one tell someone they loved them…
She took a calming breath, ignoring her bodies sudden conflicting desires to stay and to flee, and turned to face her.
How often did they mean it?
Kyoko didn't experience any tensing sensation within her chest, she didn't feel the urge to rush to Shinobu's side, to break down and confess everything it seemed the other girl hadn't heard the previous night, that was what she wanted to believe anyway. The other option, that she had been heard and scared the other girl to much to reply wasn't something she wanted to dwell on.
No, what she felt was a kind of gentle warm, spreading insidiously throughout her body, but not in an unpleasant way. This was far subtler than the overblown sensations described by poets and musicians. It was almost dismissible…almost.
Kyoko released a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. On some level she'd wondered if her outburst the previous night had simply been the result of an unsound mind, but this reaction didn't seem to hold true to that theory.
Was that good or bad?
Gliding quietly over to the other girl she crouched next to her. She seemed to be asleep, her shimmering blue hair splayed around her head like the parody of a halo, pale skin flushed delicately from fever, chest rising and falling slowly beneath her covers in the pattern of sleep.
Kyoko was entranced. It was like being on the bus again when they had thought they were going to crash, only this time she wasn't even holding her.
Curious, she took a small whiff of the air….lavender.
Does this mean I was right…am I in love with you?
Kyoko wasn't stupid, she knew that female relationships generally did not stray outside of friendship, her upbringing had implicitly emphasised that when talking about her later duties to the family line, but having nothing to compare this to made it difficult to think of it as abnormal, or wrong. Truth be told, she wasn't sure she wanted to be able to think of it that way.
She sighed and gently brushed a stray lock of Shinobu's hair away from her face, "This is most perturbing, maybe I shouldn't have insisted on going to see Oni-chan after all, things have become a lot more complicated".
And a lot clearer, she internally voiced the contradiction of the situation.
"…Kyoko-chan?", a sleepy voice murmured, and Kyoko snatched her hand away guiltily before she realised that Shinobu had not awoken, but was merely mumbling in her sleep, "It's…ok, Kyoko-chan".
Kyoko smiled a rare smile. Shinobu was dreaming over her it would seem, and in her wishful mind, dreaming of the previous night and feelings left unanswered.
"Shinobu…", Kyoko trailed off just short of adding the affectionate chan, to the end of her friend's name.
It doesn't do to be presumptuous, she said, aware she was rationalising cowardice, something she would have been scolded for by her instructors in any other situation.
"Shinobu-san, Shinobu-san", she said softly, gently rocking the other girl's shoulder.
Shinobu was dreaming.
As with any fever induced dream it was confusing and fragmented, but recognisable. In her mind she was replaying the previous night, probably because she had been thinking about it as she had drifted off.
In her dream the landscape jumped by in leaps and bounds, while she seemed to move in slow motion, watching with fascination as the rain slid past her at a snails pace, somehow managing to impact with her no matter how she turned and twisted, rapidly soaking her dress.
In the distance she could just make out Kyoko, sitting limp and devoid of life, more like a doll than a person, as water and mud sloshed about her.
She was sinking in her own sadness. Or rather that's how Shinobu's sleep fogged mind interpreted what she was seeing.
She willed herself to move faster, calling out to her friend, reassuring her that she was ok, that there were people willing to save her.
Kyoko looked up in her direction, sea grey eyes vague and unfocused. Shinobu almost imagined she could here the waves washing behind those flat orbs, carrying her friend away.
She was mouthing something at her, but every time she began to speak, a crash of thunder would block out her words, and with each repetition, Kyoko would seem to fade a little, as if waiting for an answer to be saved.
Shinobu strained her ears, trying to make out the words above the rising wind that was buffeting her body back and forth.
"Shi—bu—an".
Almost there.
"Shinobu-san", what, what did she want, "Shinobu-san".
Shinobu's eyes fluttered open, once more forced to adjust to the room's light and relaying their displeasure readily enough.
Her peered around groggily as the vague blurs and shapes eventually took focus, registering dimly that there was only one person in the room.
Someone wearing a deep blue kimono with a pink spring pattern obi and a strangely pensive smile, if the name could be applied to a curve of the lips so subtle, on a face framed by short black bangs.
"Shinobu-san, are you awake?", Kyoko question, releasing her grip on the other girl's shoulder reluctantly.
"Kyoko-san?", why did she seem to flinch?
"How are you feeling?", she asked, looking at Shinobu's flushed face with a critical eye.
"I'm ok", Shinobu said, no more convincing than when she had said it to the others, and Kyoko's raised eyebrow clearly showed she didn't believe it.
"No, you're sick", she waved a hand to dismiss protest, "It is unwise to ignore illness, it only weakens you to allow such things to run unchecked".
"Besides", she added more quietly, not quite meeting the other girl's gaze, "It was my fault…".
"Kyoko-san", she protested, but was once more cut off.
"No, if I had not allowed my emotions to get the better of me this would not even be an issue".
And I wouldn't feel this strange talking to you, she silently added.
"It's ok", the blue haired girl reassured her, finding her hand and giving it a quick squeeze, almost laughing when Kyoko jumped as if startled, "I did the right thing, so it's ok…"
Kyoko mulled her words over, before muttering, "The right thing… I suppose that is a good reason".
She looked away from her friend's curious gaze. It wasn't realistic to expect her to have claimed to have done it out of undying love, but that didn't make the fact she had said it like it was an obligation any better.
"Did you…tell anyone", she asked after a moment, hoping she hadn't for several reasons.
Shinobu shook her head, wincing at the mild pain it caused, "No, no one really asked…but Motoko-sempai saw my clothes, she didn't say anything to anyone though, but she knows I was outside last night for some reason".
Kyoko followed the other girl's gaze to the half hidden dress, standing and retrieving it, trying not to wrinkle her nose at the fact it was still muddy and wet.
"I'll get this cleaned and returned to you before anyone knows it was gone", she said curtly, folding the garment and sitting back down.
"Thank you", Shinobu said, her smile causing an odd jumping sensation in Kyoko's stomach that if it had been there previously, she had never noticed.
For a few minutes neither of them said anything, just sat in each other's company.
Kyoko couldn't help but wonder if the blue haired girl felt as at peace as she felt like this. She had never felt like this in the presence of another, not even her father and brother, she had prided herself on being strong without another.
Last night's…revealing, events, had shown that she hadn't been quite as free of others as she had believed, and also that strength was waiting for her in unexpected avenues.
"I suppose I should go then", she said, glancing down when she didn't receive any reply, "Shinobu-san?".
The violet-eyed girl was fast asleep again. Apparently she agreed with Kyoko on just how peaceful that moment had been.
She smiled another rare smile as she looked down at Shinobu's sleeping form, the other girl's breath making soft whistling noises through partially open lips.
Kyoko wasn't aware of how long she stared at those lips as the thought suddenly intruded upon her mind, an idle speculation. What would it be like to kiss those lips? Would it be anything like the myths that most young girls heard growing up, even in remote upbringings like hers? Or would the fact it was another girl make it different?
Kyoko felt herself inching closer, tucking her bangs away behind her ears.
What would it be like?
Kitsune yawned a little as she made her way back to her room.
A very early start to the day thanks to Su busting in to tell her Shinobu was sick, combined with a late night drinking session with her new would-be admirer and a heavy breakfast had left her eager to hit the sack.
She chuckled briefly at the idea of Kentaro eying her hopefully as the night progressed, forgetting that she could drink him under the table, even on a bad day. Still it was nice to be the one being chased again for a change. After Keitaro and Koichi she was more than willing to let Kentaro follow her around trying to persuade her to see things his way, it was closer to normal, something lacking in her relationships as of late.
No kidding, one harem situation, and a love triangle. Give me boring any day.
As she was pondering possible ways to taunt her admirer, she was nearly knocked down by a man carrying a stack of books far too high for him to see over.
Grunting under their weight, he offered her a brief apology before staggering on his way.
Ever heard of light reading, Kitsune quipped to herself as he continued to plod diligently on, out of sight.
The fox girl resumed her ambling pace back to the wing that housed the guests, stopping outside Shinobu's door on the way to her own.
She slid the door aside and stepped through, "Hey there sugar, how are…".
She trailed off as she realised she wasn't alone.
Kyoko rose gracefully from where she sat, something folded in her hands.
"Good morning Kitsune-san", she said, causing a raised eyebrow at the fact she had used the fox girl's preferred rather than given name.
"Hey to you to, where were you this morning?"
"I overslept", the dark haired girl responded simply, "I came to check on her but she seems to be out cold so to speak. I suppose I should try again later".
Kitsune nodded slowly as the younger girl glided past her with a short farewell, leaving her alone with her unconscious friend.
"That kid gets stranger and stranger".
Koichi slumped down on his futon. Mornings were such a pain sometimes, but at least this meant he had a little extra time to plan things out for him and Motoko, not a bad trade off in the end.
He yawned and stretched, rolling onto his back and sitting up, rubbing his eyes.
First things first, he had to pick out a new set of clothes, tossing on the robes from the previous day had been fine to check on Shinobu and grab some breakfast, but he needed to change if he was going anywhere.
He sauntered over to the closet, this time deciding to wear his jeans and his favourite top, the one with the sleeve rings he had worn the day he had arrived at the Hinata Sou.
Changed he ran a hand through his hair, allowing it to fall back into its natural 'order' and was halfway to the desk before he spotted the note.
Picking it up curiously he opened it up and read:
Dear Koichi,
Meet me at the place where the three gods dwell at noon and not before
Signed, Motoko
He turned it over, but there was nothing else written. The place where the three gods dwell was most likely a reference to a small shrine located about half an hour's walk from the temple grounds, he couldn't remember whether or not he had talked about it when they had been out the other day, but she had been interested in the history of the temple, so he might have mentioned it at some point.
He shrugged and dropped the note back onto the table. It wasn't as if he had really planned anything out yet anyway.
Motoko opened the letter carefully, peering at it's dual contents one after the other.
The first item, was a small note, reading:
Dear Motoko,
I have a little something planed out that I think you'll enjoy, I showed you some of my favourite spots before, but there's one more I want you to see, a very important one.
Meet me here at noon, and not before.
Signed, Koichi
Motoko looked at the other item in her hands, a hand drawn map, detailing a location not too far from the temple proper, perhaps ten or twenty minutes at a fair pace.
She smiled to herself. As a general rule she didn't like surprises, but felt that this one would be worth it.
Tucking the note and map back into the envelope she started to get ready.
Shinobu murmured lightly in her sleep as she dreamed.
It was the same dream as before.
She still couldn't make out what Kyoko was trying to tell her, and this only increased its importance in her mind.
Bending her fevered mind to the task, she devoted herself to discovering what had been lost to the wind, as unaware as the others of the new storm approaching.
Koichi reached his destination a full ten minutes before the time requested.
He lounged against one of the fierce looking statues of the three gods to which homage was paid by this shrine. Not a show of disrespect as one might at first think, but a show of comfort and familiarity.
It was here, in the small wooden structure beyond the carvings, that the Sword of Two Souls, had originally been housed in keeping.
It was a place of reference, and more importantly, of duty. A stark reminder of his obligations.
Then again, he would have expected nothing less of his old man.
The underbrush rustled slightly as someone approached, and Koichi couldn't help but smirk at the approaching persons feeble attempts to remain silent.
Is this really how low you think of me old timer, he thought disgustedly.
Koichi had sensed the others Ki long before he had gotten within hearing range, though he couldn't pin down off the top of his head who it belonged to, though he knew he should have been able to.
It was irritatingly familiar.
They were getting closer, the footsteps easily heard, perhaps they had decided that he probably knew they were here, and had given up all pretence of stealth as either a waste of time or an act of arrogance.
If it was the former they were about to receive a lesson they would not soon forget, that was for certain.
Koichi readied himself, falling in to his centre and tapping into the power waiting there as he had always done, his Ki energy.
He fed some of it into his senses, expanding them to better anticipate the coming attack, the world coming into sharper focus. Colours suddenly more vibrant, sounds clearer, the crunch crunch of his opponents clumsy feet on the underbrush now almost deafening.
Strangely they didn't seem to be deviating from their chosen path, but instead continued to walk straight at him unafraid.
Koichi tensed as they began to emerge into the clearing in which the shrine was located.
He felt his enhanced strength flee as shock and confusion entered his system.
"Sakura?"
Motoko looked down at the map one last time before deciding that she had indeed reached her destination.
The clearing was wide and expansive, almost perfectly circular in nature and very obviously fake.
There were a number of odd gouges and pit marks in the overly smooth ground, but none of these held her attention as much as the man standing at the centre of the unnatural clearing.
There was an omni-present sneer on his face as his spiked red hair blew back and forth in the wind.
Akira.
"Welcome my dear, I see you got my little love note", he said, his sneer upgrading to a mockery of a smile as he adjusted the katana resting flat edge on his shoulder, "And you brought along a few toys, how kind".
Motoko smiled coldly back and rested her hand on the handle of the Hina at her left hip, her elbow brushing the pommel of the Sword of Two Souls as she did so.
"Koichi isn't exactly the love note type, he speaks with actions rather than words, so I knew it wasn't him, and to be sure I brought along some extra protection", she said, widening her stance as she spoke and tightening her grip.
"You must be so proud of your little reasoning skills", he mocked, turning to face her fully and bringing the katana to rest at his side, "Can you tell me why I brought you here then woman?"
"I came here on my own, you had nothing to do with it, but if I had to guess I'd say it was some snake-like reason".
His eyes narrowed angrily.
"I warn you woman, do not mock your betters, or I may not feel inclined to grant you a quick and merciful death", he grinned as he saw her eyes widen slightly.
Motoko was taken aback by that statement. She had fully expected to be challenged at some point to prove herself, perhaps as an attempt to disgrace her. The very reason she had brought the Sword of Two Souls along was to prevent it being taken while she was distracted and its absence used against her.
She had not expected an outright assassination attempt, it just didn't fit in with what little Koichi had told her about his family.
Could it be possible that Akira was acting alone?
"Your bluffing", she stated with more confidence than she felt, "Killing me would start a Clan war unheard of for generations, there's no way any of the rest of your family would condone this".
Akira let loose a surprisingly mirthful laugh, but his eyes were hard and bitter.
"Typical Aoyama bitch, so sure of your worth", his fading smile rapidly degenerated into a glare, "Don't overestimate yourself woman, no one will care if you live or die. Besides, my Uncle already approved this, not that you'll live long enough to for that information to matter".
Motoko gasped as he blurred from sight, reappearing in front of her already in mid swing.
Faster than a thought, her blade was free, the blackened steel of the Hina intercepting his strike and forcing it wide.
He vanished again and only her recently refined senses saved her from a downward blow to the skull as he blurred into existence above and behind her, Ki enhanced muscle barely stopping the force of his strike as she jabbed backward above her head to intercept the blade.
His weight suddenly disappeared and Motoko set herself, waiting for his next attack.
She didn't have to wait long.
"Serpent's Strike!"
A snake shaped wave of Ki rushed in from her side, phantom jaws snapping hungrily at her.
"Boulder cutting blade!", she yelled, swiping her sword across the other attacks path as she twisted and threw herself aside, the two waves of spiritual energy colliding and halting for a moment before hers eventually won out, tearing the other attack asunder before dissipating back to the either.
"So it's true", Akira's voice seemed to echo from everywhere at once, he was probably moving around at his enhanced rate to prevent her from tracking him, "The Aoyama line has the brute force of the demon itself…guess that just means I'll have t work a bit harder to kill you now, doesn't it".
Motoko re-established her grip on the Hina and settled herself in to wait. She had the feeling this was going to be a very long battle.
The Librarian looked around in dismay at his rapidly dwindling collection. More and more men came in, and with them, more and more books left for parts unknown.
He cast yet another imploring look at his Lord, begging for at least an explanation of some sort, but finding none.
Kenichi Sagura's eyes were locked firmly on the floor beneath where one of the last shelves stood, an odd, almost maniacal smile on his usually impassive face as he absently stroked the spine of the book he had been holding since he had arrived.
Two low for anyone but himself to here, Kenichi whispered to himself.
"Soon, very soon"
---Author Notes---
Sinister much, ne? Well my friends, the end rapidly nears, I figure about three more chapters till all is done.
Next chapter: Battles rage, truths are told and something else awakens
Till next time, Betweenheavenandhell