"Wake up! Yoru, wake up!"

Yoru felt a sudden sharp pain in his ribs! He groaned as he opened his silver eyes to see two bright blue ones staring right back at them.

"Gah!" Yoru cried, his heart skipping a beat at the sight of the girl hanging less than a foot away from his face. "For God's sake, Luna! Don't do that to me!" Yoru cried, trying to catch his breath.

Luna, the girl who had just woken Yoru up, gave an exaggerated glare at her friend. "Yoru, you lazy bum! We're supposed be down at school doing work!" She stamped her foot down to further prove her point.

Luna's so cute when she's mad at me. Or trying to be mad at me. The way her short brown hair bounces as she yells...

"...Every time I-" Luna cut her rant short, "Are you even listening to me, Yoru!?" She demanded, looking down at the boy like a queen looks down at her cowering subjects. She then proceeded to whack Yoru lightly on the side of his head, messing with his spiky charcoal hair.

"Oww! Uh, yeah! I'm listening. Stuff about me being lazy and other stuff." Yoru span quickly from his mouth as he rubbed where he'd been hit, gaining another exaggerated glare from the girl.

"Yoru..." She said simply.

"Yes, Luna?"

"You're an idiot..." She offered her hand to the boy who was still sitting on the floor. Yoru smiled and took her hand. "But don't worry, you're my idiot..." With that, Luna's frown curled into a smile. "Come on sleepy head, we gotta get back to town." She told him.

With that, the two of them started down the dirt path that lead to the town. The woods on both sides of the path reached toward the afternoon sky. Behind the two teens was a huge cliff that overlooked the rest of the mountain, then a forest that stretched all the way to the horizon. This mountain that the two of them lived on was their home; their whole world. It's name was Mount Fate.

Yoru and Luna finally made it back to town. It was a quaint little place with not many buildings, maybe eleven or so. Trees shot up from the sides of the pathways. At the far end of the town was a small school, and next to that was the sawmill.

Ugh... The sawmill... Yoru thought as he walked with Luna back to school. Then something suddenly occurred to Yoru.

"Hey! Why aren't you in school?" Yoru questioned, raising a finger accusingly at his best friend. She whipped around to face him, a nervous look in her eyes...

"Well, I, uh..." She stuttered, looking away from the blonde boy.

"You ditched too!" Yoru pointed out.

"Shut up, Yoru! I was out looking for you." Luna stated, crossing her arms, "I'll have you know that I have an obligation as your Best Friend to make sure you're doing what's right." She turned her head away indignantly with a 'hmmf'.

"Well, being my Best Friend might not be such a good deal after all." Yoru snarked. Luna turned to her friend with a serious look that stopped Yoru dead in his tracks. "Did I say something wrong?" Yoru asked.

Her face was scrunched up in an attempt to look angry, but Yoru could see that part of her was smiling behind all that false malice. "Nothing Yoru... Idiot..." She turned to continue walking. "You know, if it weren't for me being your friend you wouldn't have a moral compass." Luna pointed out as if to brag. Yoru couldn't help but roll his eyes at her behind her back. "I mean it! If it weren't for me you wouldn't be any better than Kadaj and his brothers."

As if on queue, three boys rounded a corner.

"I heard my name, Luna." Said the one in the center, "I hope you weren't spreading nasty rumors about us."

The three boys all looked related. Pale skin, silver hair, teal reptilian eyes.

"Nothing that hasn't already been said, Kadaj." Luna challenged.

Kadaj was the oldest of the brothers. His silver hair ran to his shoulders, teal eyes like a snake, and a cruel yet childish sneer that seemed to be constant. Like his two brothers, he wore an outfit made from black cloth and leather. On his back was an elongated wooden katana with two 'blades' running parallel to each other.

"Oh, that's just lovely, Luna." Kadaj said with a smile as he reached for the training sword holstered on his back. Yoru caught notice of this action and moved quickly.

"Luna!" He cried, tackling her over before Kadaj's sword could hit her. Yoru tumbled, holding Luna in his arms, making sure nothing would hurt her. He turned to the three boys who were having a laugh. "Hey!" He growled, "Didn't your mother ever teach you not to hit girls!?"

The trio of assailants stopped their laughing and turned to the boy as soon as their mother came into the equation. "Did he speak badly about our mother!?" Loz, the youngest but definitely strongest demanded.

Loz. He was the same height as his oldest brother Kadaj. His silver hair was cut short and slicked back, his teal lizard-like eyes shone with anger at the blonde boy before him. He wore an outfit identical to Kadaj's and along his left wrist was an iron gauntlet.

"Uhh, no big guy! I didn't mean anything by-" Yoru was cut short by his friend, who was still in his arms, "He meant to say that your mother did a lousy job of bringing up you clods!" Luna barked, still flustered by the attempt to hurt her.

Loz was in a fit now. His eyes were filled with rage and a vein on his forehead was bulging. "Nobody talks bad about Mother!" He shot, clenching his armored fist. Before he could charge and attack the girl who insulted his mother, a hand reached out grabbing him. Loz turned to his right to see his brother, Yazoo, holding him back. "Don't cry, Loz. Mother didn't raise a crybaby." He said under his breath. The statement seemed to calm Loz, but just barely.

Yazoo was the middle child and the shortest of the three. His silver hair ran down to his mid back and covered his left eye, which was teal and reptilian just like his brothers'. He was the calmest and most attractive of the group. Well, the most attractive in Luna's eyes. On his waist were two wooden shortswords.

"What the heck Luna!? Now they're gonna try to kick the crap out of us!" Yoru said, still holding onto Luna. That was when he realized he was still holding her and quickly let go, a shade of red hitting both their faces. "Well, why don't you kick their butts first?" Luna suggested, grabbing a wooden broom that was leaned against a wall. She promptly snapped the brush end off with her foot and offered the wooden pole to Yoru. "Come on, I believe in you." Yoru shrugged, then took the handle from the girl. Yoru then turned to the three brothers, his 'weapon' held behind him in his right hand.

Kadaj sneered at Yoru's action. "I'll have you know that anyone who talks bad about Mother is dead meat." He threatened, both his brothers readying themselves for a fight as well, "As well as anyone who stands in our way." Kadaj cracked his neck, then gave his sword a taunting spin. "Are you ready, brothers?" The two nodded, Loz throwing in a grunt.

Luna stood behind Yoru with her fists clenched. She had full confidence in her friend, but she still didn't want to see him get hurt. Why can't I keep my mouth shut? Luna asked herself, looking at the situation she'd put Yoru into.

The first to attack was Loz, throwing in a fast punch to Yoru's jaw, sending him flying back. Yoru tumbled back, landing on his feet, then back stepping to narrowly avoid Yazoo slamming down with a downward slash.

Kadaj was in the back, laughing at the fight. Luna was watching and biting her lip, feeling guiltier with every hit Yoru took.

Yoru decided to take the offensive, dashing forward and bringing his weapon across Yazoo's chest. Yazoo was sent back, Loz taking his place. Loz meant to deliver another devastating strike to Yoru's face, but was met with an equally devastating blow to his own. Yazoo and Loz were both on their knees beside each other, trying to catch their breath.

"You two are incompetent," Kadaj mocked, passing between his brothers and spinning his sword around his wrist, finally catching it in his right hand. He approached Yoru with his trademark sneer, full of dangerous confidence. "I'll make this wretch regret talking about Mother."

Yoru and the skinny silver haired bully stared each other down. A determined glare in Yoru's eyes, while a stare akin to that of a mad jester dancing in Kadaj's eyes.

Yoru made the first move, running in with his stick trailing behind him. Kadaj stepped aside and delivered a painful strike to Yoru's side, gaining a grunt of pain from the boy. Kadaj couldn't help but let out a childish giggle as he rapidly stuck Yoru all over. Yoru was sent back by one extra powerful blow, landing three feet back.

This hurts... So much... Yoru thought, his strength beginning to leave him, But if I don't drive these crazies off, they'll attack Luna...

"Come on Yoru, you can do better than that!" Luna shouted at her friend. Yoru turned to see her cheering for him. He couldn't help but smile as a warmth entered his Heart. Yoru took up his fighting stance once more, reinvigorated with thoughts of Luna and a warm feeling dancing in his Heart. "Alright Kadaj," He taunted, "Let's finish this!" Kadaj's sneer twitched a little between an enraged snarl and his usual psychotic whimsey. "Stupid boy..." He growled, giving his sword a decorative spin, "I'm gonna make you bleed..." He slowly approached Yoru with his weapon forward, "Then I'm gonna jar the blood and bring it to Mother..."

Yoru didn't wait as he swung his broomstick, hitting Kadaj hard in his side. Kadaj yelped in pain before regaining his composure and attacking Yoru. His sword swung hard and fast, but Yoru caught each strike thrown at him. Yoru took the offensive once more, shoving Kadaj back with his palm, then he proceeded to deliver a series of hard strikes, finishing with a spinning swipe that knocked the silver haired boy on his back.

"Get out of here!" Yoru threatened, pointing his 'sword' at the three fleeing boys. They were stumbling over each other, Yazoo in the front and Kadaj just behind, Loz trailing slowly in the back.

As if on instinct, Yoru delivers two diagonal swipes, then spins his weapon and attempts to holster it in its nonexistent sheathe. He tossed the broomstick aside, then turned to Luna. "That was stupid." He told her, "I nearly got beat to a pulp because of your mouth." Luna scowled at Yoru, "Yeah, but you did a pretty awesome job at fighting." Luna grabbed his wrist, then attempted to lead him back to school.

On arrival, the bell to get out rang. "Oh, come on!" Luna cried, children their age and older pouring out of the school's gates. "We missed school!" Luna turned to her friend, "I blame you." She said with another exaggerated glare. "Wha- Me?" Yoru questioned, "You're the one who antagonized those silver haired freaks!" Luna rolled her eyes at the exasperated boy, "Yeah, but we wouldn't have ran into them if you weren't ditching school." Yoru lifted his finger to counter but found it useless. He dropped his head in defeat, "Can we just get ice cream now?" He asked.

Today, like most days, the two went to the ice cream stand and bought theirs. Luna always had a chocolate ice cream bar, while Yoru preferred sea-salt. "Why do you enjoy that flavor so much?" Luna asked as they walked toward their usual spot; a large boulder overlooking the endless forest below their village. "Well, I don't really know." Yoru tried to explain, "Maybe because I've never seen the ocean?" He guessed. Luna chuckled a little, "How can that be your answer?" She asked. Yoru simply shrugged, "I guess I wanna see the ocean, the beach, anything besides trees, rivers and mountains."

They arrived at the base of their rock. Most people wouldn't know how to get up, though Yoru and Luna knew the exact places the rocks were at to climb.

Luna eyed Yoru mischievously, "Hey Yoru..." she began with a look in her eyes. Yoru sighed, because he knew exactly what that look about her eyes meant. "Yes Luna?" He replied, playing dumb in an attempt to humor the girl. "Race you!" She cried, running up to the boulder and grabbing hold of the rocks, her ice cream held in he mouth as she climbed. Yoru sighed, then did the same as he tailed behind her, climbing slower, but making steadier holds than his counterpart.

Luna was about to make it to the top of the boulder, when-

"Waaaahh!" Luna cried as her hands and feet slipped. Yoru's eyes widened as she fell, and as if on instinct he reached out and grabbed Luna's hand. Luna was dangling off, only being held by Yoru, who brought her closer. Their bodies were pressed against each other, and both teens had a shade of red about their face from the close contact.

Yoru could feel the rapid beat of Luna's heart, making his heart beat in time with hers. He could feel himself warm up as she leaned her head into his shoulder, still hyperventilating from the close call. "Th-thank you..." She stuttered, trying to catch her breath. "Y-you saved m-me..." She looked up at him, his embrace calming her down. Yoru's face was ten times as red as before, "W-well, uh, what're f-friends for!? Am I right?" Yoru said with a snarky smile.

Dang it Yoru! Dang it! You said the 'f' word! Friends! Yoru screamed in his head, Now you'll be in the friend zone forever!

Yoru brought Luna to the top, letting her go after catching his breath. He looked at her, she looked at him, then both of them smiled...

"You should really work out, Yoru. You take too long to catch your breath."

Yoru rolled his eyes at that comment, then turned to move to the side of the rock overlooking the Eternal Forest, the sun sinking down into the horizon.

The two of them stood next to each other, looking out at the sunset, eating ice cream, all their cares and stress leaving them.

"Hey Yoru?" Luna asked, breaking the peaceful silence of the moment. Yoru turned to her, "Yeah Luna?" He replied, taking another bite of his sea-salt ice cream. "What was all that back there at the bottom you said? You know, about seeing the ocean and such?" Yoru sighed, though not at all out of exasperation. "Well, I've never seen the ocean, though I know it exists. It has to, or else we'd have no idea what it is." Yoru quickly munched on some more salty ice cream. Luna sat there in contemplation, "Yeah, but there has to be more to it than that." She pressed on.

"I want an island." Yoru said simply.

Luna was caught off guard by this comment. "An island? Why?" She questioned, licking her chocolate bar soon thereafter. Yoru sighed. "I don't really know." He replied, "But I'd just love an island where I could sit around, play in the sand, the water, and just have the people I care about around me." Yoru turned to his counterpart, "People like you, Luna." This comment brought a healthy shade of red to Luna's face. She turned away, an embarrassed look about her. "Oh, don't say all that! I get embarrassed!" She said, hiding behind her hair.

Now! Now! Tell her how you feel! Yoru told himself. The sun is setting, you got a beautiful view, she's blushing, no one else is around, tell her how you feel already!

"Say, Luna..." Yoru began, scratching the back of his head. Tell her! Tell her! Tell her! A million little voices in his head chanted. She turned to him, her face still red, a small bit of chocolate on her lip. "What is it, Yoru?" She asked. Kiss her on the chocolate stain! One voice screamed. No, don't do that you creep! Just tell her! Yoru nodded inside.

"Do you still have that Totem Charm?"

No! No! The voices screamed. He blew it! The idiot blew his perfect chance!

Luna's lips curled into a soft smile as she reached into her back pocket, "Sure do, Yoru." She produced a small wooden object. It was around five inches tall and was modeled like a miniature totem pole, with bear feet, an eagle at its base and a crescent moon adorning the top. "You got yours?" She asked. Yoru reached behind him and procured another small totem, almost identical with the exception of it being darker wood and a star adorning the top in place of a moon. "Of course." He replied, holding his close to hers.

When the two of them were little, they had to make these things in school for History. The legend behind them stated that if you made two totems, both nearly identical, the ones who possess them would be together, no matter what. Yoru and Luna's made theirs identical without even realizing it, resulting in students teasing them mercilessly, but also a friendship that has lasted to this day.

The two of them held their totems next to each other, the moon and the star nearly touching. "You know what Yoru..." Luna sighed, looking at the matching set, "I wouldn't mind living on an island with you."

The two of them sat there, staring at the sky as it grew darker. Yoru could see that Luna was getting colder, she did wear a sleeveless black tanktop and a blue miniskirt, so it's no wonder she's cold. Yoru took off his grey vest and offered it to the girl. "Here," He said, holding it out to her, "Put it on, you look cold." She nodded and took the vest from him, shoving her arms through the short sleeves. Now she wore a boys' blue short sleeved jacket over her top. "I look like a lesbian, don't I?" Luna said to Yoru, opting a chuckle from the boy.

"No Luna, you're fine. I'm pretty scrawny, so it shouldn't look too strange on you." Yoru at there in his zip-up t-shirt, a thermal tank top underneath to keep him warm in the mountainous region.

"You sure you're not cold?" Luna asked, watching Yoru shiver slightly next to her.

"Uh, n-no, I'm f-fine." Yoru lied, rubbing his exposed arms in an attempt to warm them.

"Okay then..." Luna replied, rolling her eyes at Yoru's stubbornness. "You're an idiot, Yoru..."

"Yeah, but I'm your idiot..."

"Yep."