Yoh awoke with a start, staring up at the ceiling above him. At first he thought that this must be just a dream, or perhaps he really was dead, and this was the afterlife. But then he came to grips with reality, and he realized that he had indeed survived. He took a long breath of sweet, fresh air, but he was soon frantic again. Had his friends survived as well?
Yoh sat up quickly, looking around him for any sign that they were alright. But none of them were in the room with him, and so the worst thoughts raced through his mind all at once. He noticed a small door to his right, and a light coming from it. He knew that it was leading to the outside, but what was outside, he did not really want to know.
But he knew that he needed to find out for himself, and so he raced out of the room and out the door, finding himself standing in the middle of a large field, which appeared to be too vast to see all the way to its end, but also so weak and small. It was as though the field was immaginary, but when he touched the ground, Yoh found it to be quite real. Lost in thought, Yoh had almost forgotten about the sole reason that he had come in the first place.
Yoh was about to call out for his friends, but he was saved the trouble when a small boy of about twelve ran up to him, a stern look on his face, but also one that showed kindness. Yoh knew to trust the boy, and so when the boy told him to come with him, he agreed right away.
The small child led Yoh to another cave-like room, telling him that his friends would be there. And, sure enough, there sat Faust, Rio, and Horo, all waiting for him. Yoh was about to smile and ask them questions, happy to see them, but upon seeing the sullen looks on their faces, he thought better of it. He was about to ask what was wrong, but he knew just by looking to see who was there and who was not.
"Where is Ren?" Yoh asked, not truely wanting to know the answer. But, to his surprise, it was the small boy who answered, in a tone quite unlike that of a child.
"Your friend, the short one with the purple spike, was injured greatly. He is still alive, but for how long, no onecan know for sure. You may go in and see him if you wish, but do not expect much from him. He is still unconsious." The boy's voice was so calm, but he spoke in a tone that sent chills up Yoh's spine. Yoh nodded, not sure what else to do, and went into the next room, where he was told Ren was to be staying in.
He found Ren, unconsious as he was told. His breathing was short, and he looked paler than usual. Yoh tried to convince himself that Ren was just faking, or that he had acold, but even he knew of the truth. Ren would not live much longer.
Ren's hair was down, the normally purple locks were now more black looking than ever. His golden eyes were closed, and his chest rose slowly with his breathing. Even though Yoh told himself that it was all going to work out, now he could not. Ren was possibly never going to wake up, and he had to be prepared for the worst.
The small boy from before came in, carrying a wet rag to put on Ren's forehead to help with the pain. Yoh's eyes met the boy's grey ones, and he knew that something was different about him. He reminded Yoh strangely of a Patch, but he had the cold, stern look of someone he knew too well, and missed too dearly. He reminded Yoh of Anna.
"Thank you for saving me, and for doing your best for Ren. But I have one question for you: what is your name?" Yoh asked the boy, and the boy's eyes opened a bit wider before he answered, in a voice that was much softer than before.
"My name is Hana. I'm the son of Master Hao, and Lady Anna is my mother."
