Disclaimer: Shaman King is not mine! (I wish it is…)
"The reflection of Light & Darkness"
---Chapter VII---
A Shaman Who Cannot See Spirits
Hopes and dreams are the things that support any human being to live. However, I have none. I used to dream and hope for so much when I was a kid. I dreamed to be a Shaman. I hoped to have my parents to be by my side. I dreamed to be able to protect things that I love. I hoped to have someone to be my shelter. I was innocent back then. I even dreamed to become the Shaman King. I thought that if I am Shaman King, I will be loved and my parents will finally look at me. I don't know when I've started to lose all dreams and hopes. Now I am not that innocent anymore. The more you dream, the more you hope, the greater the disappointment is.
To love is to live. To live is to hope. To hope is to be loved.
That is not true. Loving is not the goal of living. Living does not require hope. Even if you hope, you still cannot be loved.
I don't know why I thought about that the moment I woke up. It is so unlike me to think so negatively. I am not someone who is pessimistic but, ever since I came to this school, I have become so gloomy. Setting that behind my mind, I went to school.
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Mathematic is an easy subject. It is actually very similar to what we would learn in normal class. The next class that I have is Spirit Hunting. Since it is an outdoor class, I am quite worried. I hope that I will be in a class where I know no one. I wouldn't mind being in the same class as Anna or Jeanne, but I can't avoid to be too friendly with them on the outside. After all, I am a half-breed that no one knew.
As soon as I joined my class outside, I noticed that the tension of the class greatly shifted. Unlike the previous classes, which either have a crazy teacher or not worthy of mentioning, this is quite tense. I soon notice that there is a center of attention. The students seem to be avoiding that "center" but still can't help but to look at it. Their worrisome looks make me becoming nervous too. I slowly approach the origin of this tension and see no other than Asakura Hao and Asakura Yoh. Why am I even surprised? Only the noble families will cause this much attention, especially the Dark Lore and the Light Elne. Why must they cause this much attention? Why can't they just live in peace?
My presence seems to be noted by both of them, at least I assume. Yoh smiles at me or at someone in my direction only. I suppose that Hao will also notice me because he can read thoughts. He knows so much to the point that it gets a bit freaky, not that I mind it. I wish that I have that power; then I wouldn't be wondering what others think about me. I probably shouldn't think this much since
Hao is able to read my thoughts. But just for the fun of it, I explicitely think "Hello Hao, I think that you and Yoh are very similar."
As soon as i "thought" about that, Hao looks at my direction. He looks like he was annoyed by my thought.
"Sorry." I say in my mind. "I just wanted to know if you noticed my presence or not."
I see Yoh whispering something to Hao and quickly, he goes away. It seems like he only came here to say something to his twin brother. I wonder what is so important that Yoh must come in person to talk to Hao. In the other hand, anotehr thought preoccupies me. Why is Hao here? Please, don't tell me that he is in my class! More importantly, why is he even attending classes? Isn't he like the strongest Shaman ever or something? I remember my parents, meaning my real mother and my real father, warning me about the horror of Asakura Hao. but to me, except his power to read my mind keeps me at a disavantage position, I don't see what's so scary about him. In fact, I find him rather cute, nono, handsome. God! I hope that he didn't read what i've just thought! I take a peek at him and is relieved when I see him concentrating all his attention to Opacho who suddenly appears out of no where.
The teacher of this class is quite disappointing, or rather say predictable. He is basically kissing up to Hao like there is no tomorrow. Seeing that Hao is kind of annoyed by it, he stops and stats teaching the class.
"Today, we will hunt Spirits of water elemented. So the ones who have earth element spirits will be advantageous and those with fire will be in disavantage. Of course, if your spirit is as strong as Mr. Asakura, then it will not be of a concern. Now let's move on."
He then points at different spots and explain the characteristics of the "spirits" that he is pointing. I, for once, thought that he was joking around. However, the students are paying close attention to him. Soon, I noticed that I am the only one who can't see whatever he is trying to teach.
"Hey big bro", I thought in my mind hoping that my 'big brother' will listen to me. "Is it normal if I can't see the spirits that the teacher is pointing?"
I can see them perfectly. I am pretty sure that you can see spirits, can't you? After all, isn't this why you are a Shaman? although you suck at it...
"I can see the spirits when I am in the human world. I can see my parents' shinigamis but somehow, I can't see those."
Have you even seen one spirit after arriving here?
"There is this weird spirit who is in pain that I saw. I am not sure what it is. but that's almost it. Oh! and I can see you."
Please tell me that you are joking! This place roams with spirits, more than you have ever seen!
"Haha...? Are you serious?
After talking mentally with my brother, I decide to raise my question to the teacher.
"Sir?" I lift my hand. " I can't see anything."
"Nice one. Now let's continue..." The teacher says.
"Sir, seriously, I can't see anything. I can't see any spirits that you are pointing."
As if I've said something really funny, the whole class starts laughing.
"Are you sick?" the teacher asks me.
"No I am not."
"Are you having a mental crisis?"
"NO I AM NOT! God! Jsut because I cna't see them it doesn't mean that I've gone nuts!"
"Stop lying and let's get on with the materials. I will not let you skip class."
"I don't think that she is lying." Suddenly, the silent Hao has spoken.
"Opacho thinks too."
It is only then the class takes what i've just said seriously. The teacher, scared of what he has just heard, has decided to send me to the Headmaster.
From afar, I can hear Hao saying,
"A Shaman who can't see spirits. This is starting to get interesting."
Next Chapter: The Loser Team-Reform!
:Manta's Diary: Yoh's Perfect Scores?
By Manta
I, Manta, am Yoh's best friend. I may be short and I may not be a shaman, but I am still Yoh's chosen friend. Lately, Yoh has been 'studying' very hard. He keeps saying that he needs to live up to his name, but I know better. This is not about him living up to his name. This is about him… I won't tell you why.
Yoh and I went to primary school together. Back then, he was very lazy and wished for nothing more than to be able to live in peace. The primary school we went was not a shaman school like the one that we are going now. It is a very normal school, where people don't know the existence of spirits and shamans. You may wonder why I, who am not a shaman, am doing at a shaman academy. I didn't want to leave Yoh alone. When he knew that he needed to transfer school, he, who smiled as if it was nothing, said goodbye to me, still smiling, without a tear. I knew better. He didn't want to go. He was forced to move in a new environment and was forced to marry a girl that he had never met. So I chose to be by his side. I asked my father to donate money to the school so that I can get accepted too.
I am not doing so well in this school while Yoh is one of the best students. If this school is a normal school where we learn how to write or read, Yoh will be no match for me. However, this is a shaman school. All the classes are shaman based.
In language classes, we had to learn quite a lot of languages in order to be able to communicate fluently with the shamans of other countries. I do quite well in this class. After all, it's one of the few classes that are more like normal. How Yoh gets such high marks in this class surprises even me. It seemed since he was young, he was forced to learn all those languages already. Since he was moved from country to country before he went to my primary school, he had picked up quite some languages.
The reason why Yoh does well in Clan Study, History and Mathematics is because I did all his homework. I learn all about the three clans and help, help as in do all Yoh's work, Yoh as much as I can. Three days before each exam, he would come to be with watery eyes and claimed that he knew nothing about the subject. I normally sit him down and go over everything. It would be three days without any sleep. In the beginning, I was surprised about how much he can remember in three days of time. It wasn't long before I find out how. He had asked the spirits to memorize everything for him and use spirit unit so that his spirits will cheat for him. It is pretty amazing how no one noticed that Yoh cheated. Maybe they did notice but only pretend not to.
Shaman Art, Combat, Spirit Hunting, Shaman Art-Clan, and Team Fight are the subjects that Yoh did well. Nevertheless, he got a really scary fiancée, Anna, to look after him. If he did poor in one of those subjects, Anna will become as horrible as a demon.
I sure hope that no one will read my diary. If Anna figures out the reason why Yoh is doing so well in his other classes, he and I will see no tomorrow.
Author's notes:
There are some side stories that I didn't want to incorporate in the actual story. They may not appear in each chapter and do not affect how the story is. They are mostly explanations to some unclear part of the story. If you are too lazy to read them, it won't affect your understanding of the story, at least I hope.
Why did I put Hao in Yufi's class? I realized that Hao is not in any of her class, and since he can't be in her Shaman Art-Clan class, the only choices left are Mathematics and Spirit Hunting. I seriously can't imagine Hao being in Yufi's math class. Therefore, I have put him in her class, not that he would go to class often. lol.
I think that the story had been moving quite slow. There is no actual fighting yet. Seriously, I don't know how I did that… I did put some Hao-Yufi Yoh-Yufi incorporated in the story but there isn't that such that happened… yet! Don't worry, the story won't be this slow paced. I will make sure that I'll make people suffer.
