Here it is guys, Chapter 7. I hope you like it and let me know what you think. I want to thank everyone for their input so far. It means a lot to me. Love Hina is owned and created by Ken Akamatsu. Now, without further adieu…
You Have Me
Chapter 7
Two hours had passed since Keitaro had retreated into the woods behind the property in search of quiet solace. He entered the house with a hardened expression across his features. As he walked down the hallway and up the staircase, he saw no sign of any of the girls. 'Good.' He thought. 'No one to bother me.'
Keitaro slid open the door to his room and stepped inside. He happened to look up at the Knife display and to his great dismay, noticed the Knife was gone.
"What the-?" he said, his lips curling back from his teeth in an angry grimace. He ran over to the dresser, picked up the glass display and looked at it as if still not believing its absent display piece was now gone. He threw it to the floor, shattering it and looked all around him for the Knife. He ran from this place to that in his room, pulling open drawers, overturning furniture and throwing things in all directions as he searched frantically.
"Where is it!" He yelled out, his rage growing more and more by the moment, his frustration becoming ever deeper. He began to pace back and forth, kicking things about as his mind became clouded with more fury. More and more anger flowed through him until his mind could not discern or comprehend the very reality that surrounded him.
Suddenly, the terrible pain returned to Keitaro's chest, worse than ever before. It was such unspeakable pain that he fell to the floor, clutching his chest as he screamed in agony at the top of his lungs. Scream after scream. This flaming torment went on for several minutes, with him writhing on the floor in sharp, penetrating agony. Then he fell silent. His body, still.
A long moment passed and Keitaro started to stir. He slowly rolled over onto his chest and raised himself up on his hands. He looked around curiously as if testing new eyes, as if this was the first time he's seen this new place he was in. Carefully, he stood up. He looked at his hands as if examining them, approving them.
"I see. I am here." He said.
He walked over to the desk and calmly searched through its drawers. "There has to be one here somewhere." He said. Then he found what he had been searching for: A phonebook. While flipping through its pages, he quietly sat down at the desk and leaned back in the chair. He stopped at a page and ran his finger down the listings until it stopped at a single name.
"So, she's still alive, is she? That cursed witch."
Meanwhile, at Kyoto Station, we see Motoko hurriedly step off the train, knife in hand. Wasting no time, she ran through the station and out to the streets. Moments later, climbing up the steps of the apartment building, she rang her grandmother's intercom, impatiently, pressing it again and again. Finally, a voice answered her calls.
"Hello? Who's there?"
"Grandma! It's me! I have to see you right now!"
"Motoko? Is that you? What are you doing here in Kyoto, dear?"
"There's no time to explain! I need to see you!"
"Oh, my. Please, come in."
The electric lock on the door released. Motoko ran inside and up the staircase to the door that was held open by her clearly worried grandmother. Motoko stopped in the middle of the living room. Bent down over her knees, Motoko was flushed, trying to catch her breath. Her grandmother quickly shut and locked the door tight. She hurried over to her breathless granddaughter and held her up by the shoulders.
"Take it easy now, dear. Take deep breaths. Now, tell me what it is that's got you so worked up tonight."
Motoko looked up at her grandmother and held out the Knife to her.
"Please! Tell me what this writing says!"
Megumi Aoyama was frozen in shock as her wide eyes looked at the Knife in front of her.
"M-Motoko, where did you get that Knife! How did you find it?" she said, the sound of fear and apprehension in her voice.
"What? You mean you've seen this before, Grandma?"
"Yes," she said, taking the knife from her granddaughter. "And I'd hoped I would never see it again. That no one would ever find it."
Megumi sat down on her couch, examining the knife. Motoko sat down across from her.
"But grandmother, I'm confused. How could you be familiar with a knife that's been buried for centuries?"
"It has not been buried for centuries, Motoko, just for fifty years. And I thought I'd buried it deep enough that no one would find it or the presence sealed inside of it. I have no doubts that this is that very same knife that I hid so long ago."
Megumi held up the Knife, closed her eyes and concentrated for a moment, sensing. Then, with a gasp she opened her eyes and said,
"It's gone! The presence is gone! Motoko, please tell me. Who was the first one to find it, to touch it!"
"I-It was Keitaro. He brought it back home with him to the apartments. He was on an archeological dig here in Kyoto." Motoko said.
"Has he been acting differently since then? Become irritable, cruel?"
"Yes he has. In fact, it's gotten to the point where he's almost uncontrollable."
"But he hasn't tried to kill you yet. Hasn't threatened you in any way?" Megumi said, eagerly.
"Well, no!"
"Good, then it might not be too late." Megumi said, lifting her closed hand to her chin as her gaze fell slightly.
Motoko stood up and slammed her hands down on the table in front of her grandmother.
"Grandma, please tell me what's going on! What is happening to Keitaro!"
Megumi looked up at her granddaughter.
"Please sit down, Motoko. And I'll explain everything."
Motoko did as she said. Megumi placed the Knife on the table between them with the red Kanji facing up. Her grandmother began.
"The words inscribed on this knife say, 'Holder beware. Forbidden to disturb. Vengeful wraith contained herein. Sealed here, the spirit of Ichiro Akume.' These words, I inscribed. The origin of that name and the history of the Aoyama family are deeply rooted together.
"It all started two hundred years ago, right here in Kyoto. Kyoto was the capital then and the Emperor gave his unconditional support to your great ancestor, Shin Aoyama who, proved to create the greatest martial art in the land. With this support, Shin established the Aoyama Dojo, which still stands to this very day. As Head Master of that school, he taught there for many decades. Early in the Dojo's life, a new student named Ichiro Akume passed through its gates.
"Ichiro was a brilliant young man, possessing speed and reflexes that were unmatched by any of the other students. The most stunning thing about him was his eyes. They were such a light shade of hazel they almost appeared yellow. However, he had a quick temper and started to cause injuries to his fellow students during training. In light of this, Ichiro was suspended by the Head Master for two months.
"During these two months, Ichiro isolated himself in the deep wilderness that surrounded Kyoto. There, he developed and perfected a martial art of his own. An art that could effectively counter all the techniques of the Shin-Kami style taught by the Head Master. Ichiro called this new style of his 'Tsubasa no Aku' or 'Wings of the Demon'.
"He returned to the school, boasting about the new style he had created. He explained his new techniques to all the students that were present, even demonstrating the moves and as a result, permanently injuring several students. The Head Master saw this and immediately had Ichiro thrown out of the Dojo indefinitely. The Emperor dubbed 'Tsubasa no Aku' forbidden throughout the land.
"Ichiro banged on the locked gates of the Dojo for days, demanding a match with the Head Master so he may prove that his style was the superior. But the Master refused the challenge, thus infuriating Ichiro. He became so furious that he started to kill passers by with his art and lay them before the gates.
"Determined to put a stop to the madman Ichiro's bloodshed, Shin Aoyama opened the gates and met him in his challenge. The fight lasted only a few moments. Shin had performed a secret technique that only he himself had known and taught to no one. The technique involved the transference of all Shin's Chi into a single blow to the center of Ichiro's chest, sending a force through him so powerful that it exploded the main artery running through the center of his body.
"With his last breath, as he lay dying on the ground, Ichiro swore his revenge and would not rest until the entire Aoyama family is wiped out.
"True to his word, for a century and a half, the spirit of Ichiro Akume tormented each generation of Aoyamas. He would possess a family member and kill an entire family branch. Then he would disappear, only to return several years later to do the same to another family branch. Exorcisms were useless. His spirit was simply too powerful. He went on. Killing and disappearing, again and again.
"This continued until fifty years ago when I, a member of Onmyo mystics who married into the Aoyama family, summoned Ichiro's vengeful spirit. He had possessed an innocent bystander who stood nearby, someone who was not a member of the family. The battle ensued, my mystic spells against his forbidden art. With all my power I was finally able to seal his spirit into this very Knife.
"I inscribed the warning on the Knife, which was also part of the seal to hold his spirit inside. And so I buried it and remained here in Kyoto, should his spirit ever escape."
"And now, Ichiro has possessed Keitaro?" Motoko said.
With a sad nod, Megumi said, "I'm afraid so."
"Oh my God. What do I do?" Motoko said.
"Your only chance is to seal his spirit again."
"But Grandma, I can't do that. I'm not a mystic. Only you have that power."
"You are my granddaughter, Motoko. The blood in my veins also flows through yours. The power of an Onmyo is in you. Besides, I am old now and my powers have grown weak. Motoko, you are Keitaro's only hope. Ichiro will stop at nothing until all members of the Aoyama line are dead."
Motoko stared at her grandmother. Then she looked down at her hands.
'Flowing through my veins?'
Motoko closed her eyes, took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. She looked up at her grandmother with eyes filled with newfound strength and fervor.
"Grandmother. How do I seal the spirit?"
Inside the Hinata Teahouse, Naru had gathered all the girls together. She tried to explain the situation to each of them the best she could. However, everyone was still worried and fearful. They all sat together around a circular table in the back room of the teahouse with Haruka standing over them, holding a half burnt away cigarette between her fingers.
"But Naru-Yan. Is Keitaro sick? Will he get better? Does he need medicine?" Kaolla Su innocently asked, her face wrought with sadness.
"I just don't know, Su." Naru said.
"Oh, Keitaro. Keitaro." Shinobu said through her sobs.
"Naru, just where did Motoko go?" Kitsune asked.
"She went to Kyoto to see her Grandmother. She said that she might be the only one that can figure out what's wrong with Keitaro." Naru said.
"Oniisan. My Oniisan! Why won't you let me see my brother, Naru!" Kanako yelled.
"Because he's dangerous right now, Kanako. He might hurt you too." Naru said, raising her hand to her injured shoulder.
"I don't believe you!" Kanako protested as she stood up to leave, but was then held down by Haruka and Kitsune. "Let me go! I said let me go!"
"Now calm down, sweetie." Kitsune said, doing her best to restrain Kanako with Haruka's help.
"Believe me, Kanako. I'm just as worried about him as you are. We all are. But the best we can do now is stay away from him until Motoko returns." Naru said, rubbing her injured wrist in nervousness.
Knife in hand, Motoko quickly opened the front door of the apartment building and hurried down the steps. She ran out into the quiet street and headed on towards the train station, her long black hair flowing behind her. We look back and we see Keitaro standing in the middle of the street in front of the apartment building, silently watching Motoko as she ran farther and farther away. Keitaro then turned his eyes up to a set of windows on the second floor, forming a malicious smile.
Megumi sat down at her kitchen table. With a weary sigh, she picked up her cup of tea and took a sip. Then a loud crash came from the living room, startling her so much she almost dropped the cup on the floor. She quickly ran into the living room to see what the matter was. The apartment door had been busted in and lay in pieces across her living room floor. She cautiously looked around. No one outside the door, no one in the room. Megumi felt a shiver and then a terrible feeling that chilled her very soul.
Then, from behind her came a voice,
"Hello, Megumi."
She closed her eyes and said, "Hello, Ichiro."
"Just like old times, huh?"
"Yes." She said calmly as she heard the unsheathing of a sword.
A woman's terrible scream came from inside the apartment. Then…silence.