Ryuuya woke slowly the next day, having slept in an old and unused room, it was slightly stuffy despite the open window. He sat up and stretched, yawning. His hair was down, and his bangs were as spiky as ever, though this didn't really bother him. He yawned, stretched, and not bothering to tie back his hair, wandered out of the room he had been granted and towards the kitchen. He could already smell the food Uraha was preparing and smiled. He opened the door, preparing to say good morning, but yelled in surprise with someone else as pots crashed to the floor.

"Uraha!" He cried hurrying into the room. "are you okay?" He asked, kneeling beside her and helping her up.

"I'm okay." Uraha smiled sheepishly, giggling. She tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear and shook out her clothes.

"You sure?" he Ryuuya asked, still concerned. He grabbed a napkin and approached her. "You have a cut, right here…" he said, pressing the item to the small wound. She turned to face him, and even though she was older than him, he nearly towered over her. They both flushed a little, each feeling a surge of emotion that they knew didn't belong to them.

"Uraha? Uraha you in here?" Ryuuya and Uraha froze momentarily as the door opened. "Oi, what's this?"

Ryuuya turned to see a young man about the same age as Uraha, perhaps a little older. He was looking rather irritated at the sight of Ryuuya bending over Uraha. He pulled back, rubbing his head nervously. "She had a bit of an accident." He said. Uraha nodded.

"Really, Sen. You worry too much."

Uraha's small laugh faded as Ryuuya left the room. He pressed a hand to his head and groaned, closing his eyes. What was going on?

"Hey, what's wrong with you, smelly?" Ryuuya glanced over to see Kanna.

"Good morning to you too." He muttered. He picked at his shirt and realized it was most likely Sen's. As if a confirmation, he heard the man asking Uraha about it hotly. Kanna rolled her eyes and shoved a roll into Ryuuya's hand and grabbed the other, dragging him outside.

"So… That guy is Uraha's boyfriend?" He asked her. Kanna nodded.

"Yeah, he's a real jerk too." She said. "If they get married, he's gonna move her away, so that she cant stay on and help us. We already know who's going to be the next house mother, and none of us kids like her at all." She said, sitting on a bobbing ride and munching on her roll sadly. Ryuuya sat on one also, looking horribly out of place.

"That's no good. She seems to love the work she does."

"Yep! She's only been her for a short amount of time, but it feels like she's been here for forever. She actually pays attention to me."

There was a moment of silence between the two.

"So… lived here since you were a baby?" He asked tentatively. Kanna nodded.

"Probably the only other time someone paid much attention to me at all was when I couldn't walk. Once I could, not even the kids played with me very much." She shrugged. "I hate going to school, it's boring and no one talks to me."

"Let me guess, you don't do very well either?" He asked. She puffed out her cheeks angrily.

"Watch it Mister." she growled.

"I can help you out with your school work if you want." He said. "Well, once it starts up again." He added, popping the last of the roll into his mouth. Kanna tilted her head and looked at him, as if no one had ever offered to help her before.

"You'd do that?"

"Sure. Why not?" He asked, giving her a quizzical look. She looked a little stunned before glowering.

"Stop looking at me like that stupid!" Ryuuya put his hands up in defense.

"Sorry, sorry." She said, crossing them over the head of the animal he was sitting on and looking off towards the shrine. He got that little shiver down his spine as he saw Uraha saying goodbye to Sen. His fathers voice echoed in his head about the girl in the sky, and wondered what the rest of the story was. He found himself desperately wanting to know.

"So why are you out here anyway?" Kanna asked suddenly. Ryuuya shrugged.

"I'm asking myself the same thing…" He muttered. Kanna looked at him funny and shrugged. She stood and bopped him on the head.

"I'll see you around, weirdo." She said, waving and walking back to the shrine. Ryuuya frowned and watched her go, there was a flash, just a spilt second, and the terrain changed, the shrine looked newer, the sky was brighter, and Kanna… wasn't the Kanna he knew. Her hair was tied the same, but she was in a pink kimono.

He blinked, and Kanna was vanishing behind the door. He shook his head to clear it. What the hell just happened?

///***\\\

"There you go, thank you so much for chopping wood, but im sorry you missed the main meal." Uraha said. Ryuuya shrugged.

"It's fine. I don't mind. Kids are all asleep then?"

"Yes. Or their getting around to it."

"Kanna too? Seems odd, she's quite a bit older than the others."

"Oh, she likes to set an example. She goes to bed early to read a bit before bed, and when lights out is called, she shuts her lamp off." Uraha smiled.

"Huh, good idea." Ryuuya said, eating a bit more. They sat in silence for a bit.

"So, what are you traveling for?" Uraha asked after a few moments. Ryuuya glanced up at her, then back at his food.

"I'm… looking for someone." he finally said. "It's been a sort of mission for my family, for a long, long time." He said quietly. "My father used to tell me a story, of a girl trapped in the sky." he said, picking at his food a bit.

"That's so sad." she said quietly. "What's the story?" She asked, tilting her head. Ryuuya smiled a bit, and relayed the story to her, including the one of his fathers success in finding the girl after she had prodded a bit. By the end. She was dabbing tears away. "How depressing…" She said softly. "I wish I could be of some help." She smiled. Ryuuya returned it.

"I don't know, I… think I might stay on here awhile though. If that's alright." he said. After all the weird things happening, he figured he should. Uraha smiled.

"Of course. I don't mind at all. Sen helps out occasionally, but it's not the same as having someone here consistently who can help." She smiled. Ryuuya smiled.

"I'm glad to help out." he said, eating more. He felt at peace at the moment, and he almost felt as if they had shared more than one meal like this. They spoke late into the night, and he stopped worrying about the strange sensations he was getting. They mostly spoke about Kanna, about her sad life. She'd been shuffled from one orphanage to another, and had been at this one for several years. Uraha herself had only been there about a year now. No one knew where the girls mother was, or any of her family. She was completely alone. Uraha spent a lot of her time with the girl, she'd befriended her, and become close to her. Ryuuya felt the urge to do the same.

After saying goodnight, he paused by kanna's room, and slid the door open a little. His gaze softened as he watched the girl sleep. He blinked suddenly and turned around, looking down the darkened hallway. No one was there, but it felt as if a million people were watching him. He took a step backwards, staring down the hall. His heart pounded, and his head started to ache. So many voices were echoing now… Ryuuya brought a hand to his head and turned, running out of the shrine and into the woods, The voices were overpowering, he was getting dizzy. He collapsed to his knees, and turned his head to the clear, star filled sky.

"JUST STOP IT ALREADY!!!"

Why didn't I realize it sooner? All I ever needed was to be here with you and to make you laugh. If I just could have done that I would have been content…

Im really sorry about the wait, thank you all for sticking with me, if you have. It's been very hard to keep this chapter in line with the others, and I've been struggling with the timing of Ryuuya's experience with Kanna. It's not going to be the same as Yukito's was, but it's not going to be the same as the original story, so it's been difficult trying to get it right. I hope to have more up very soon. I'll work really hard.

Not to mention, school and work are getting in the way as well as writers block. feels kinda pathetic, i only have one college course at the moment, so it's mostly work, lol