Hey there ^^

I'm very sorry to make you wait even longer this time, but I was working the last weekend and exams are also starting again. I know this chapter isn't as long as the last, but i think that if I'd have made it longer it would have become too emotional. XD (and I like it this way, so . . . I guess you have to accept it X3)

Kay, it's the second part of Azarni's and Yoshitsune's story. And I'm begging you to tell me how you like Azarni in this chapter because she may have become a bit too emotional, compared to her character in the first part of "Missjudged Genius". o.O

Meg L.H.: I'm really glad you liked the last chapter ^^ But I guess I can't tell you anymore about the relationship between Phoenix and Falk. Just keep on reading! And I'll take you suggestion into consideration when buying the next keyboard. ^^v

Hitsugi's Lover: Falk, the bad guy? Hm, we will see X3 (Yeah, I'm mean, I know XD) Oh, and thanks for the great compliment on my english ^^ *hug*

willyfreak26: Hey ^^ I hope you'll like this chapter as well. And I may say this much that you'll find out what I've invented Mizuki for in this chapter! X3

AZUREciel: the chapter about Phoenix training with the other rider will be the next one, promised ^^v

Ah, and suggest to listen to "Winter Lullabye" and "Summer" by David Garrett while reading the part between Yoshitsune and Azarni, hope this way there will be the same atmosphere created on your heads which I had in mind while writing.

Chapter fifteen: Underestimated Genius II

"Do you think she'll join?"

A little cloud of dense smoke flew towards the winter sky.

"Nah, no chance."

Yoshitsune took a sip of the coffee Benkei had offered him. The young woman smiled and took a sip of coffee from her own cup. "Yeah, I thought so, too."

They were standing outside of a little coffee bar and looked at the people passing by while a cold breeze tainted their cheeks red.

"But she is an interesting girl", mentioned Benkei after a while and the Rumble King nodded in agreement. "She sure is; but what will happen next?"

"What do you mean?" Benkei turned her head towards Yoshitsune who looked up at the sky to follow another cloud of dense smoke that was slowly disappearing.

"Will that girl change something?" He thoughtfully mentioned while lowering his gaze towards the street without really looking at the gray asphalt. "She mentioned something that could affect lower-ranked members of the team."

"The sky can't be ruled by only one king? – So, you think that the legend of the one and only Sky King could fall apart?"

The rumble King shrugged again. "Just thinking."

An amused grin showed up on Benkei's lips and she took a deep breath of the cold air. "Well, let's see which direction the wind will blow and whose wings will be strong enough to take the upcoming storm head-on."

Yoshitsune emptied his cup of coffee and threw it into the garbage can next to him. "You're expecting a storm?"

"Don't you have a meeting at Tool Toul To's headquarter today?", The dark-haired woman responded with a smile on her lips which Yoshitsune couldn't read. But the Rumble King didn't care about it very long, he looked at his watch and raised his eyebrows. Then he took another drag from his cigarette and leaned back at the advertising pillar behind him. Benkei looked at him with a sceptical look in her eyes.

"You're already one hour late?", she mentioned with a low voice.

A cloud of dense smoke flew towards the sky and Yoshitsune simply nodded. Benkei grinned and shook her head then she took another sip of her coffee.

"Ine will kill you."

"Yeah, but only verbally."

"You're late."

"I know."

Ine felt like smashing that smile out of Yoshitsune's face, but she manged to control herself even the professional smile was back on her face when she took place behind her desk in her office. She took a deep breath and rubbed her closed eyes shortly.

"Okay, it has been three weeks since you received the temporary tuned regalia. Have there been any problems?"

Yoshitsune shook his head, but he was kinda irritated by the great relieve that lit up in the Pledge Queen's eyes for a few seconds. Then she had put the perfect mask of the Tool Toul To-leader back on her face. Cold and calculating.

"That's good to hear." The shining smile on her face made an even greater sceptism raise inside of the Rumble King's chest. Should have anything happened? Did someone forget a screw? "And I can also tell you that Yama has recovered from her illness . . . so, if you like to you may meet her today. I thought she'd be a good choose as your tuner-"

"What's with the other girl? That Azarni-kid."

The mask cracked, but it didn't break yet.

"W-why are you asking? Did something happen last time you met her?" Yoshitsune couldn't see how the pencil in Ine's right hand break because she had formed a very tight fist, but he could hear the wood breaking.

"Nothing happened . . . I just decided that I'd like her to become my tuner."

The mask broke. Ine sighed and gave up her professional smile. There were pain, sorrow and anger in her eyes. "You can't", she whispered, but Yoshitsune remained stubborn.

"Why not?"

"She will never accept to become your tuner."

"Why?"

Ine didn't answer and just kept focusing Yoshitsune with a very serious look in her eyes. But the Rumble King felt real anger burning up inside of him and he didn't even know why it was that way. It was a very rare case that he got angry that badly. The Pledge Queen obviously tried to hide something from him and he didn't feel like simply accepting this at all.

A silence began to grow between them filled with pure tension.

"Why?", Yoshitsune repeated the question angrily. Ine sighed and looked at the Rumble King with obvious annoyance in her eyes.

"She decided never to be a King's tuner ever again."

"What?" Surprise was spread across Yoshitsune's face while a bored smile was formed on Ine's lips. It always was the same with those young King's. They thought they'd understand everything in this world just because they've mastered the title of King. The Rumble King crossed his arms in front of his chest and seemed to think about something very hard. Then he took a deep breath and asked:

"Whose tuner has she been?"

"You've heard bout the Storm King who had died one year ago?"

"It can't be . . ."

Ine snorted.

The sound of a violin is a difficult one because you have to listen to it for quite a while to discover it's beauty.

Azarni knew this and it was actually the reason why she was drawn to that certain instrument since a very young age. She loved how she had to concentrate while playing because if she wasn't concentrated the tone would be too high-pitched and it'd be scratching in her ears. It was like the violin was talking to her and saying: "Hey! Pay attention to me!"

There had been many time after Mizuki's death when Azarni had thought about the reason why she had had become a tuner. Her mum had always yelled at her for spending too much time with him, but she had been happy. Maybe she had had feelings for that lively Storm King, but it had never mattered to her because the only reason she had had spent that much time with him was his sound. His bio-rhythm had been like the play of a violin and Azarni could have spent the rest of her life listening to his voice, to the beating of his heart, to his breathing.

"Mommy, look there's that girl again."

But one year ago that sound had stopped. She had closed the door of her room and instead of crying, screaming or furiously hating Sleeping Forest, she had had begun playing the violin. That day she was simply standing in the middle of her room and playing that instrument which Mizuki had loved so much. So many time he had dragged her to play for him and she had done so even before becoming the Storm King. If she'd ask herself seriously then she had to say that the moment when he gained the title of the Storm King, everything had started to crumble. She simply had been to intoxicated by his sound.

"Oh, maybe she'll be here everyday then from now on."

A little boy stepped forward and let a few coins fall down into the box which was standing in front of Azarni's feet. The boy looked up at her and smiled. But when the view of that little kid met with her eyes he only saw empty orbs. He stepped back and left, dragged away by his mother's hand.

People never stayed longer than a few seconds to listen to Azarni's playing. She was simply staying at this place in front of a museum every day when she could afford taking some free time. A cold breeze started blowing and Azarni took a deep breath of the cold, clear air. Suddenly the movements of her fingers started speeding up, she had to raise her concentration, every muscle of her body was keen. The bow seemed like he was hectically flying across the strings. It sounded like a soft breeze which suddenly turned into a furious storm. Azarni loved it, she loved how she could put all her strength into those fast melodies. There was no way that any human being would ever be able to let her feel the same pleasure by listening to his or her rhythm.

"Wow, nice performance."

A single man stopped in front of her and clapped applause. There was an honest smile on hiss face and the winter-sunlight liz up his almost snow-colored hair. (I know he's blonde, but to her it seems different at this moment) Azarni was still breathing heavily when she sceptically eyed that man who was simply wearing a chemise with weird colorful patterns on it.

"Aren't you freezing?", she asked bluntly, but the young man just shook his head.

"Nope, not at all. Are you worried?" Suddenly Azarni remembered that smile which seemed to be glued on his face. Wasn't that this Rumble King-guy?

"Just wondering", she responded while avoiding Yoshitsune's eyes. Ine must have told him where she was. That snail-bitch really seemed to enjoy messing with her tuners privacy.

She took a look at her watch and decided to call it a day and get back home, otherwise her mum would be yelling at her again. (Please don't get this wrong, her mum is not a bad person, only a bit over-protective.)

"Would you play for me if I'd ask you?"

Azarni turned her head towards him and raised one eyebrow with a questioning look on her face. "Why should I do that?"

"Why are you playing out here on the street if you obviously don't care if there are people listening to you or not?"

She bit her lower lip in annoyance and narrowed her eyebrows. "Did I miss the part when it had become your business?", she shot back, but Yoshitsune wasn't affected by her anger at all. "Well, it will become my business when you've agreed to become my tuner."

"WHAT?"

Azarni was stunned with surprise and anger and she couldn't decide which emotion was stronger. On the one hand she wanted to know why that Rumble King wanted her to become her tuner though Ine must have told him about the fact that she had been the tuner of the King who had died. On the other had she was pissed at him for taking it as a matter of course that she'd gladly agree to become his tuner.

"I refuse."

He still smiled which made her realize that he had expected this to happened. But still he had been walking to her standing in front of this museum of which she didn't even know what was shown inside. Why did he come though he already knew that she would refuse his "offer"?

"Then tell me why you've decided to stay as a tuner after Mizuki's death?"

Now the smile was gone. Hearing the Storm King's voice spoken out loud felt like being pierced right through. Her hand grabbed the violin and the bow a bit more tightly.

"It's none of your business." She was proud of her voice staying strong though she didn't feel strong inside.

"There is no reason for you to stay if you refuse to tune a King."

Azarni swallowed hard. Yoshitsune's word were like millions of little needles piercing her heart. She didn't answer immediately.Why did I stay? Why did I become a tuner?

Which answer have I given to Ine when she had asked me why I wanna become a member of Tool Toul To?

I like music? – No.

I wanna learn . . . did I wanna learn something? – No.

I wanna reach a person's heart, I wanna make him shed tears of happiness, I wanna become the wings of someone who's important to me!

She had seen storm rider several times back then and she had always wished to be able to put that smile of pure happiness on their faces. Then she had met Mizuki who smiled at her and had offered her a ride. "Let me show you the sky."

But that sparkle in his eyes had disappeared when he had become King. He had changed, but Azarni had refused to see it, to realize what'll happen sooner or later. And it had happened than she had aver imagined.

"He should have never become King", she whispered. "Such a title changes people and nobody recognizes that."

Yoshitsune listened to her were no tears in her eyes and no sobbing in her voice, but every word was spoken with pain. The pain of loosing someone important and also the pain of being responsible for it or at least being told so. Ine had been relieved that nothing had happened in the past weeks, but she hadn't been concerned because she didn't trust Azarni's abilities, no, she had been concerned because she had thought that Azarni would try to prevent Yoshitsune from becoming a real King by sabotaging the regalia. It was pretty difficult to control a tuners work on a regalia because the engineering was much more complex than normal ATs.

But Ine had given Azarni the job. Maybe she wanted to give her a chance and the moment Yoshitsune realized this detail he was absolutely determined to make this girl his tuner. So, he raised his view and looked straight into her eyes.

"If I fail as the Rumble King of the Over Road, you may kill me."

"ARE YOU KIDDING?", Azarni screamed out loud and she didn't give a damn about the people turning around with irritated looks on their faces.

Yoshitsune wasn't kidding, he was serious – dead serious. There were many tuners in Tool Toul To and he could have picked almost everyone of them, but he only wanted her to become his tuner because she wasn't one of those smiling, naive girls who would get seriously concerned every time he'd get scratched during a battle.

"I may seem like an idiot sometimes, but I've never regretted a single choice I've made."

An amused smile lit up Azarni's face and she slowly started playing on her violin again. She closed her eyes and sped up again, the bow was flying, her fingers were dancing and almost seemed to be obsessed by that sound. Maybe she was obsessed, maybe she was the devil between all naively smiling tuners. Maybe she was a demon disguised as a girl with dark-blond hair and turquoise highlights and maybe he was already brainwashed by her playing.

"I like it", he whispered.

Standing on the street and playing the violin is the best possibility to find someone who loves those high-pitched, shaking tones, too.

Azarni opened her eyes again and it seemed like there was mysterious glowing inside of them. A malice smile was formed on her lips.

Contract signed. No way back.

Well, that's it. Please leave a review even if you didn't like it (but no flaming, please) ^^

See you next chapter! (hopefully. . .)

Bye FreakyPumpkin