Haku-chan back again with Chapter 2 of Carpe Diem! Thank you so much to Omnislasher4871 for our first review! You can view all of the chapters 1-6 at our fanfiction site: carpe. t35. com! Please check it out & tell us what you think! In the first chapter we met Xena, Haku, Sora &Riku ... who will we meet this chapter? Will we meet anyone? Will anything happen? Well ... you'll just have to read to find out! ;)

Disclaimer: Carpe Diem is in no relation with the Square Enix co. We hope you enjoy and thank you for all of your support!

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Chapter 2: Things are not going over smoothly

"Riku! Your friend!" Hakumei said worriedly as she ran to sit beside the spiky haired boy. She put her hand on his chest and said in relief, "Phew, he's still breathing". She smiled, then frowned looking at his clothes, "Strange outfit."

Riku was still staring wide eyed at Xena. A look of shock and stupidity was plastered on his face. He pushed her to the side lightly and nodded to Hakumei. "Its an island thing," Riku said motioning to his own clothes. He walked over to Sora. "You still don't got it," he said to the unconscious Sora, trying to lighten the mood.

Hakumei looked around, "Where can we go? This village is deserted by now," She asked looking to Xena. Xena shrugged and knelt beside Sora, examining for cuts. She found three on his left cheek. Putting her finger in her mouth, she took it out and rubbed it on Sora's cut. In a matter of seconds, the cut healed and both Riku and Hakumei stared in shock.

"How the hell did you do that." Riku asked is disbelief at what he'd just saw.

"Vampire saliva can heal cuts and sicknesses," Xena told him nonchalantly.

"Like what!" Riku asked in shock.

"If you ever took medicine for a sore throat, you've had vampire spit," Xena smirked and winked.

Riku took Xena's remark as if someone had told him that they put poison in his food, which is very disgusting.

"We have no vampires in my land, we have mages for illnesses" Hakumei stated.

He knelt next to Sora also, away from Xena and looked up. "You...are very screwed," was all he could say. Xena growled and punched him into the wall and ran over beating the crap out of him.

"NO STOP! PLEASE! WE HAVE TO HELP THIS BOY!" Hakumei cried. Riku pushed Xena off and slapped her across the face. Remembering Sora, he walked over.
Hakumei knelt down to the boy again, "We have to carry him. There's probably another town around this one, let's go," Xena informed the two. Riku scowled as he threw Sora over his shoulder. "Where we going?" he asked as he looked angrily to Xena.

Xena returned the glare, "There's another town about five hours away from here. He'll be up in a few minutes. He was knocked out by a gas that the vampaneze can breathe on humans. We should hurry." Hakumei rested her hand on the boy's back as he was carried away by Riku. Before she walked back out of the barn she put her hood back on and rested her hand again. Xena noticed this, but just looked forward.

Riku then stopped and turned. "Maybe someone else should lead the way?" he said. "Preferably someone TRUSTWORTHY." He emphasized the last word as he looked to Xena. Xena nodded and walked in front of the two.

Hakumei couldn't help but wonder to herself, " If Seresu was Xena's hometown and everyone's gone, she must have lost everyone and everything. Why isn't she acting sad about it. Or is she just bottling it up"
Xena looked forward and than to the sky. Xena was on the verge of tears but wasn't going to show them in front of Riku because he would only make fun of her. It hurt. Everyone was gone. Clark, Emelya, and most of all, her parents. The people she knew forever. Never returning. pHakumei put her head down, her hood falling over her face, not seeing the dead bodies, started to walk towards the gate, having her hand still on the brown-haired boy's back, forcing Riku to move away from Xena. "How could two young Vampaneze girls do while I was around? My parents were vampires. But they were killed by them. Gone... How could the vampaneze play so dirty and live being OKAY with it?" Xena asked herself. pRiku gave up trying to fight the girl's push and walked forward. He could tell Xena was incasing sadness.

"Go ahead. Cry" He said, twisting his head around to Xena. "I know your bottling up emotions. We all have our problems. Only the weak hold their tears." he said these words all almost sincerely. Almost. Xena looked at him and ran as fast as she could away from them into the forest hiding behind a tree and sank to her knees face covered by her hands and sobbed to her hearts content. They were gone. No more comfort. No more. It was gone- and it only took a few quick, slow painful seconds. "Hey, are you okay?" Xena turned to see Riku. p Hakumei stared off into the forest as Riku followed Xena. looking down to the boy, she knelt and brushed away some brown hair from his face. she blushed slightly, he was very...cute then she drew her hand back quickly as he stirred.
Riku looked at Xena. She just looked so…sad. He could tell in her dark crimson eyes that she was sad, and above all…frightened. "We all have our problems," he told her and took her hand to help her up. "We don't have much time. Lets go." Xena nodded, head held down she followed Riku. Xena looked to the sky and made the death touch sign, "Even in death may you be triumphant…". p Hakumei watched as the boy slowly opened his eyes. She was taken aback, they were a deep and extremely beautiful light sapphire blue. There was so much caring in the boy's eyes. "Are you awake now?" Hakumei asked concerned for the spiky-haired teenager. He stared at Hakumei for a second before his eyes widened. "Where am I?" Sora asked sitting up. "A little outside of Seresu. I'm Hakumei. Who are you?" Hakumei asked. Sora hesitated for a moment. "I'm Sora," he said.

Riku could have slapped himself for what he was doing. He kept making notes to himself saying that she had beat the wind out of him, she had put knives to his throat, and…whatever else she had done. Although, then he remembered he had hit her and flipped her and...whatever else. So in Riku's mind they were even. p Xena wondered why Riku had just been so nice to her. And wondered even more about why she cared about it, or didn't slap his hand or beat more of the crap out of him. It was peculiar to her. The two came to where Hakumei and Sora were, to see that Sora was awake. Sora looked over and his eyes grew wide. "R-Riku?" he asked looking at the silver haired teen.

"Who else, you moron?" Riku smirked. Riku looked over to Hakumei, "Do we still have to carry him?" He looked to Sora. "Hate to tell ya, but you aren't so light." Sora hmphed and put on a pouty face and crossed his arms over his chest as Hakumei giggled to herself.

"Can you walk?" Hakumei asked.

"No RIKU should carry me!"

Xena sighed at the two boy's childishness and said exasperatedly "Just shut up and lets go," she said walking over to Sora flipping him over her shoulder with ease.

Riku smirked at Sora and walked forward. "So, Where are we going?" he asked as he stared over the horizon. "And is it going to snow there?" Riku still had not adapted to the cold weather. Well...not THIS cold weather. Wherever they were going looked far off.

"3 to 5 hours" Xena replied. p"Ill carry him," he said to Xena. "I believe he is afraid of vampires. No offense." Riku motioned for Xena to play along. "I mean, he would never fear his ibest friend/i" Xena turned to face Riku.

"No that's ok. You're the one who said that he's too heavy for you." Xena smirked and kept walking. Sora snickered at her comment. Riku's mouth dropped open. Now he REALLY wondered why he had helped her. But he wouldn't worry about that. He rolled his eyes and, before he could say a smart remark, took a deep breath. Something that Kairi had taught him.

Hakumei sighed at the two fighting teenagers, iWe are never ever ever going to get to the next city without someone getting into a fight../i Hakumei thought to herself.

To be continued...

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The end ('til the next time!) How'd it go? Please review! We love them? It's our life force:( Don't let us shrivel up like prunes ... I hate those ...