Chapter: 6
Game: Catch Me If You Can
Go Seek
Darkness….it was so consuming, the darkness…
"Master Yoh!" The voice sounded far away. It seemed to echo on forever as he slowly blinked open his eyes to the stars. They were so beautiful, like fire gems in the sea of darkness. "Master Yoh! Oh, you're awake, thank the heavens you are!" He blinked his eyes a couple of times and then slowly sat up, coming face to face with his look alike…well his pet anyway.
"What happened?" he asked in a low voice that sounded unsure and confused. Admidamaru sighed in even more relief that his master was safe, and began to explain.
"You fainted, just for a few minutes" Faust said "I've teleported us to the edge of Northern lights. This is where I am sure they took Manta." Yoh's eyes widen as realization sank into his head. Yes, they had been fighting to protect Manta from some bullies, and somehow he had allowed them to get the smaller boy. This was his entire fault for not being able to protect him, he was going to have to go and save him now. He quickly got to his feet and hissed when pain shot in his head.
"Ouch"
"You are also a bit disoriented as well" Faust smiled softly "you'll need to rest some or you're going to feel a rush to your head"
"I can feel it"
"YOH!" Chocolove then glomped him, his ears straight up and his tail swaying back in forth in long languid moves "I thought you were dead but Admidamaru hit me over the head for even saying such things! But you are alive, you are well, thank everyone in the heavens!" Yoh tapped at Chocolove's shoulder.
"Joco, please let go, we must save Manta!" His voice was strained do to the fact that he was being suffocated in the process.
"Oh!" Chocolove said as he let go of the smaller boy, a smirk coming over his face as he made his announcement "About that, I have found them. Over there in the forest of Northern, they have built a campfire and Manta seems to be their sacrifice. We should go save him now, before they get out their ritual equipment"
"Who are they anyway?" Admidamaru hissed.
"They are called the X-laws," Faust said getting to his feet and crossing his arms, a dreadful look coming over his face "They are a bunch of people who believe what keeps the magic alive in Northern is the death they cause to many once a year. This year, they have chosen Manta" Eliza beside him closed her eyes and sighed.
"They are the ones who deserve to die, playing with people's lives like that," She said, in a low but powerful voice. She had nearly lost hers, and in the process Faust had nearly lost his, life to her meant everything.
Yoh smiled unsurely, "Right! Then let's go get em" Whatever it took, he had to save Manta and bring down the X-laws.
"You know what" Chocolove said, no longer wondering about Yoh and his state of mind "You really are an insane kid for a prince" Yoh chuckled, and soon they were moving through the forest following Chocolove towards the location of Manta.
With the others
"Where are we going Hao!" Anna complained when they got to Northern lights and then the Asakura prince had started to run in a direction that led out of the city and straight into the forest. She was tired, she was pissed, and Hao just seemed to add to the list. Man, she missed Yoh, he was so much easier to control than his older twin was.
"The forest, Yoh is there"
"How are you so sure!" Ren asked, confused as to how Hao suddenly knew where his twin was. It was unnerving as if Hao was all playing with their heads. He would not be surprised if the Asakura prince was doing so.
"It's a twin thing" Was all the elder Asakura prince said and continued moving forward.
"That does not explain much Master Hao" Ryu said, but followed him despite it all. All of them did. Hao picked up his speed closing his eyes, it was like he could see and feel what Yoh was seeing and feeling. It was confusion, anger, and fear mixed all into one.
'I'm coming for you Yoh' He thought, an angry expression on his face.
Yoh, Faust, Chocolove, and Eliza all came to a stop when they saw smoke rising up over the dark skies. It made Yoh gulp when the flames seem to rise and an orange glow was emitted from all around the area. There was rapid chanting, and he knew he had to do something "Oh Great Ancient one, Spirit king, rise before us and bless us with your image!" And then the winds became boisterous.
'Damn' Yoh thought 'Who the hell wants to be blessed if it's gonna be this cold!' he curiously looked around until he spotted Manta, completely ignoring everyone else shocked faces of the monster that now stood there around the X-laws.
"Ma-Ma-Master Yoh" Admidamaru stammered out in a low voice. Still, Yoh was not really listening and started to tap him on the shoulder.
"Hmm, what's the matter?" Yoh asked as he looked back confusedly at Admidamaru, only to see him pointing at something, his own finger shaking back and forth, as he gaped. That was when Yoh noticed the large monster that stood over the X-laws, it's gaze over Manta, and then the way the blond leader was offering Manta to it. It angered him, and before anyone knew it, he was walking towards them, a determined look on his face.
"YOH!" He heard his entire friends gasped, but Yoh ignored them.
"Don't you dare offer my friend in such a way!" Yoh hissed Manta and every X-law eyes widen as they set their gaze upon the brown haired boy that seemed to hold authority to some point. Still, it was hard for anyone of them to take him seriously. As for Manta, he could have never believed that he was this kid's friend that this boy would even care enough for him to come back and save him in the end. The huge spirit monster seemed to stop at its tracks and look at Yoh right in the face.
"And who might you be" It said, in a booming mythical voice.
"I am Yoh Asakura" he stated proudly "and you are going down"
"Master Yoh!" Admidamaru ran to stand by his side. They both pulled out a magical sword, white and glowing at length, and they rushed to an attack.
"Yoh!" Chocolove gasped, and then composed himself. He let his magic travel through his body and ran towards the monster as well; he was going to stand beside Yoh until the end. Faust and Eliza decided the same; they sank into the darkness around then and decided to attack from the back. Before all of them knew it, they were being blown back, the impact of the rushing winds un-enabling all of them from movement.
"Damn" Yoh hissed. He pressed his hand to his sword and started a rapid mumbling. He had never had real life experience so finding a solution on what to do at the moment was hard, he had no idea what he was going to do. He just let his mind race and said a spell, hoping it will help. Admidamaru got back to his feet and stood his ground, in a support in case his master needed him.
"You insolent disbelieving brats, who do you think you are!" Theh tall blonde-haired person yelled.
"AAH! Save me, someone!"
"ENOUGH!" the great spirit cursed, and then sharpened it's arms at an aim, it's target, the young little brunet that seemed to infuriate him with his holy magic. "I'LL FINISH YOU HERE!"
"No!" Admidamaru was trembling, as he saw the knifes coming towards his master. Yoh gasped, his eyes wide as his mumbling stopped and the wind filtered around them in a harsh slashing way. He managed to stand his ground, but the other's around him got knocked out of the way, all of them hitting hard and finding it hard to stand up again.
At this moment, Yoh stood alone.
The X-laws stood in the back, where no winds of the monster reached, and the blond one held a now unconscious Manta. Yoh was shivering, but he was not done yet. He was not about to give up. He pressed his hand to his sword once more, the chanting a lot more rapid than before, and then he sunk it into the ground.
Grand slashes of thunder cracking the caked up dirt, and blazing through at sonic speed came from his blade. It reached the monster and zapped it, nearly making it fade within its own standing, but that was not enough. Yoh fell to his knees panting hard, and then eyes widened he moved when a glowing hand came his way to try and get him. He managed to flip out of the way, his sword once more positioned for another attack, but just as he was about to initiate, it was slammed right out of his hands, making it vanish in a glittering dust.
"THIS IS WHERE YOU DIE!"
'No' Yoh thought to himself and jumped once more 'I have to live, at least long enough to see Hao once more, I need to see Hao' His mind kept yelling, that he shouldn't dare die. There were still things that he had to do. Besides not wanting to die just like that, he had to make sure Manta stayed safe. It wasn't fair, all of this was not fair.
This is not what he had planned his game to be.
It was not supposed to end this way.
Once more landing on the ground, panting hard, he felt the earth begin shake under his feet. The roots of plants suddenly coming out of nowhere, wrapping themselves around his ankles and keeping him in place. "HAHAHA, THIS IS YOUR END!" His body trembled, his heart trembled, fear rushed him as he stared at the huge spirit monster looming over his small frame, a hand raised in a motion of attack "SYONARA, SAY YOUR PRAYERS FOR YOU'LL NEVER CAUSE TROUBLE HERE AGAIN!"
Yoh tightly closed his eyes, no longer wanting to see the hand that was about to slam him right into the ground and take his life. 'I'm sorry Hao, I'm never going to see you again, I can't die here, Hao I love you'
Then he heard nothing.
The roots around his ankles had vanished.
And all he could feel was a welcoming warm breeze around him.
Before either of them knew it, the monster was shred to ribbons. A male clocked in a white Poncho had just slashed through it and vanished it, as silently as possible.
"Hao-sama!" The tall blonde-haired person from the X-laws group gasped out, and fell to his knees before the much-respected male dressed in a poncho. Everyone was now looking at the older, prince Asakura. Even Yoh, happiness exploded in his chest and he ran towards his older brother, literally throwing himself over him and hugging him tight, surprising everyone.
"HAO! I never thought I was going to see you again!" The young Asakura twin literally sobbed, tears braking through his eyes, despite his happy smile. "I'm so glad I got to see you again, now I don't have to worry about never haven't been able to tell you how much I love you, Hao!" the younger one kept bawling and hugging Hao to him.
"Yoh" Hao said in slight shock, but then warmth spread his cold features and he hugged his younger twin to him. "I love you as well, my darling twin, but you have to stop playing this games" Yoh nodded against his chest. He pulled Hao's head down to his suddenly and kissed him deeply on the lips. Once again taking the older Asakura by surprise.
They silently and gently shared their first kiss, the first of many to come.
Hao felt like he was finally home.
On the other end of the field, The X-laws were all about to make themselves scarce when they were stopped by the great Lady Anna herself "Where do you think you are going" she hissed between her teeth, an angry look on her face.
"Lady Anna!" They all said in shock.
"I am taking you all to hell, and locking you up there" She said, her beads leaving her neck and wrapping around them all. The small male, look like a child, was brought to her arms and she narrowed her eyes at him. The boy was unconscious but still alive. Snapping both her fingers, she sent them all away in a flash of light.
"Well done Miss Ana" Ryu said, a grin on his face.
"Here" She said tossing the small kid to him.
"What do I do with him?" He asked, she shrugged.
"Why don't we throw him at the trash?" Ren asked, he was still a little annoyed at the fact that HoroHoro was still not here with him. On second thought, he would go out to look for the buffoon.
"We can't" Ryu insisted.
"Whatever, I am leaving" With that, he left to the Amazon's.
"What's eating him?" Anna asked, and Ryu decided to just shrug his shoulders and pretend he did not know a thing. They both turned back to the twins and smiled at the fact that they were now reunited.
"Let's go home Yoh" Hao said as soon as Yoh stopped crying, but then remembered his new friends and turned towards them.
"Oh, Hao meet my friends!" he said, with a grin on his face. "Joco, Faust, Eliza, and Admidamaru" He looked over to the side and saw Manta in Ryu's arms "that's Manta over there"
"Uh" Hao said "He looks like you"
"Who?" Yoh asked, trying to play off innocently and turned towards his pet. He bit his bottom lip when Hao pointed out whom and he shrugged his shoulders. "Well, what do you know, he does huh"
"Yoh"
"Yes"
"What's going on here?"
Sighing, Yoh signaled for Admidamaru to get near him. Even Anna was shocked to see this new look alike. "What the hell is going on here!" she practically shrieked, "there is no way!"
"Of course not" Yoh said "This is Admidamaru, my pet cat, the one I took in when he was sick, I knew you'd never let me keep him so I had to hide him"
"Master Yoh, that is not a cat" Ryu pointed out, that was when Admidamaru began to glow and he turned back to his feline form. A gray colored kitten with darkened ears, and human like eyes. "Oh my god, it just transformed!" They were all freaking out, and it upset Yoh as he reached down for Admidamaru.
"You don't have to act all shocked" He said, snapped his finger and then he and his new friends were gone.
"Yoh!" Hao hissed, and snapped his own fingers to follow him.
A month later
"I don't get it," Manta said, "You two are twin brother's and now you are going to get married?" Yoh simply nodded his head up and down in a lazy way "But you guys are brothers and you can't reproduce" Yoh shrugged.
"Mom and dad don't want us to"
"Why is that?" The wind ruffled Yoh's hair, making him look even more dazzling than he already looked in his white royal kimono, black baggy pants under the seemingly white kimono that allowed freedom. Silver earrings on his ears, and the strange black markings on his forehead that marked him as royalty all the time.
"You know, I have no idea"
"And you're okay with the idea of marrying your brother?" Manta once again asked, Yoh was pensive for a moment and then let a smile graze his features.
"Yeah" He said, it was a small whisper that seemed to carry itself away. Manta sighed, deciding to drop it there.
"Yoh?" Hao entered the room, also wearing the same kind of clothing as Yoh, but he was downed in all in black, and his earrings were a dark red color with a white star in them. Manta watched as Yoh got to his feet and ran towards his brother, throwing his arms around him. Both siblings soon engaged in the act of lip locking, a tender moment between them. Manta blushed and looked away, a smile on his face.
He for one had finally found his place, a place where he felt accepted and like he belonged. He loved serving Yoh and Hao, and he loved working at the palace under the instructions of Anna, as bold and as unfair as they seemed. The air was always fresh here, the atmosphere was always peaceful, and Yoh and Hao just knew how to stir things up a notch when it was too boring. He had met new people, like Horohoro and Ren, who were always in and out of the palace. Ryu who seemed to follow the pink haired girl named Tamao.
Faust and Eliza had been blessed by the king and queen and had decided to stay within the palace walls, were they were treated with great respect. Chocolove had stayed for a while, but decided to go back to Fairy tale. He would occasionally come by and try to tell a joke or two, and have some fun. As for Admidamaru, he only helped to make trouble with the twins. He could now even become Hao, and it never seemed to keep everyone there completely confused.
Nothing was missing here.
Not joy, laughter, tears, and smiles.
Nothing.
He decided to leave both twins alone when he could hear the soft warm whispers of love they told each other, as they held one another, and the sun set around them. The world coming to a close, bringing night with it.
"Hao" Yoh whispered. Hao grinned as he nipped at his younger twin brother's lips, he was happy.
"Come, let's go have some fun" Yoh nodded his head and allowed Hao to drag him into the palace. And into their room.
The End.
(I know, took me some time to come back and finish, but, School is important as well. Hope you all liked the ending. I'll see you around!)
