Disclaimer: Shaman King does not belong to me.
The Beauty of Silence — Chapter 23
Not right; not right again. As minutes and then hours ticked by, Pilica grew increasingly anxious. And rightfully so. The last remnants of daylight had been receding steadily against the approaching dusky backdrop for quite some time now, yet the letter remained incomplete. She started out determined to resolve the matter in mere minutes, and realised only after she had begun that forging a letter from her brother to the arrogant Chinese shaman was no mean feat. The two shared a silent relationship, and others were not privy to the interaction going on between them. Pilica, for one, cannot even fathom how they speak, or write in Ren's case, to each other on a daily basis. In retrospection, she would realise how she had undermined the relationship between the other two, for a bond tempered by daily bickering, serious arguments and camaraderie, and which then blossomed into something so much more, was not something to be overlooked.
Dear Re-
Groaning in frustration, Pilica crossed out the first, and only complete, word from her 'letter' and tore the page off her quickly thinning notepad. She couldn't believe how long it had taken her to realise that the word 'dear' probably didn't exist in their dictionary. Resisting the urge to bang her head against the table (Pilica had prided herself on being tons smarter than her brother, though he's naturally still the best), she started when she heard approaching footsteps. Since the irregular 'thumps' were accompanied by measured footfalls undoubtedly belonging to a certain Tao, Pilica knew the couple had returned and hurriedly stuffed Horohoro's notes back into his pack. Just this once, the girl was glad that her brother was such a slob when it came to organisation; everything in his bag looked as if they had been shoved in hastily even without her interference.
Welcome home. Pilica had been learning basic sign language, though her hand movements were still awkward and stiff. Opening the door of their shared bedroom and greeting Horohoro rather enthusiastically as was expected of her, the Ainu girl was startled to see how even Tao Ren seemed contented after the two shamans' early trip out. Though he was glaring at Horohoro over something as usual before moving off towards his own room, his eyes revealed none of the heat and bite expected of him. Contentment due to an afternoon spent with my brother. Wrapping her mind around such a notion was a struggle, and knowing what she had been doing all afternoon, Pilica fought to ignore the sense of unease rising from her heart. Her beloved brother had looked happy; the goofy smile was proof of that, and isn't there a saying that ignorance is bliss? Was it absolutely necessary for the Tao to learn of what Horohoro had continuously avoided talking about right now? She truly wanted what was best for her brother, wasn't it?
Not knowing what was right any more, Pilica chose to forget the letter for just a moment and instead frowned at what seemed like flour smudges on her brother's face. A closer inspection then led her to discover more of the white powdery substance and cookie crumbs on Horohoro's clothes. I know he wanted to bake in secret for Ren, so why had they come home together? And he's going to get flour all over the room if he doesn't take a bath now! When she questioned him about it (curiosity triumphing over concern in her tone), all he would say was that the crumbs were souvenirs from his first baking experience (as if she didn't know it was his first time), before actually offering Pilica some cookies contained snugly within a satin drawstring satchel. Perhaps her face showed too much distrust, for Horohoro hastened to assure her that the treat was brought from some kind old lady instead of being handmade by her 'awesome brother'. He has grown much more sensitive. If this were the 'old' him, he probably wouldn't even notice my grimace at being shown what I thought were cookies made by him. Could it be that being with Tao Ren has actually taught him some semblance of tact? But that arrogant shaman himself behaves like such a jerk at times!!
When Horohoro left for the common bathrooms to take his much needed bath, Pilica rummaged for his notebook again, took a good look at the handwriting and began writing. The confrontation would take place even without her interference, and the Ainu girl wished for it to happen sooner rather than later. After all, feelings evolve, take root and grow stronger over time, and with it come increased hurt when everything falls apart and things take a turn for the worse. She was someone who viewed relationships seriously, and understood that despite her interfering this time round, were something private and only belonged to the parties involved. The same went for her brother and his boyfriend. Pilica didn't want her parents to enter the picture and complicate matters, all the while acknowledging that her current actions qualify her as the biggest hypocrite she knew.
Ren:
Meet me in the backyard after dinner.
-Horohoro
Raising an eyebrow at the crumpled looking note stuffed under his doorstep while he took the trash out and disposed of all evidence that could be possibly linked to his baking attempt, Tao Ren wondered if that baka Ainu had forgotten about his cellular phone again. Surely it would be a waste of the phone if Horohoro forgot how to send messages after just a few attempts at it. Furthermore, they had just gotten home together, so there couldn't really be a need for another secret meeting just a couple of hours later. Whatever the case, Ren did not like sacrificing his mediation time, though he was willing to make an exception just for this request. Who knows, Horohoro may be trying to confess putting some unknown and possibly poisonous ingredient into the batter earlier in the day. Not that it matters if so because he didn't trust the Ainu's cooking skills enough to eat any of his cookies proper. With that in mind, Ren went downstairs for dinner.
Horohoro shuffled his feet nervously as he made his way to the backyard. In a bid to forget about his anxiety at confronting Ren, he tried shifting his mental focus to the dinner that had just ended. He guessed it was delicious, since it was Valentine's Day and sweet, sensitive Tamao wanted to thank everyone for being her friend through a wonderful meal. Try as he might, guilt for wasting all that food (since he was so edgy that he couldn't eat much) didn't surface, the butterflies in his stomach reminding him merrily of what was to come. Earlier on, when he returned from the bathroom, Pilica had informed him that somehow, Ren found out about the calls and letters, and wanted to meet him after dinner. Horohoro guessed that he should have expected it, since it was common knowledge that the Chinese shaman was perceptive, and it was tough hiding something from him. Though he had envisioned the confrontation several times already during dinner, the 'how to deal with that when it happens' bit continued to elude Horohoro. And while doing things without planning was his style through and through, he didn't have a good feeling about this one.
He was quickly getting annoyed. Why was that baka Ainu taking such a long time to cross the backyard? Ren could see Horohoro from where he stood, and it wasn't hard to tell the reluctance in the other shaman's steps even at a distance. Could it be something serious? He thought hard about their recent encounters, but didn't come up with anything too strange (with Horohoro, quirks were common). Then again, the ice shaman, while exceedingly easy to read at times, was very good at plastering grins on his face no matter what happens. A potential facade, now that he thought about it, much like his aloof demeanour. When the Ainu finally came within acceptable (for communication) distance, he stared at Horohoro till the other looked into his eyes before jerking his head lightly upwards, the unspoken command for "Get on with what you want to tell me". Ren realised why Horohoro refused to look up once he started; perhaps he wanted the excuse of not being able to tell Ren's reaction to what had been said, the literal manifestation of playing deaf. After all, he knew he had quite the temper, for it was obvious Horohoro had been planning to keep him in the dark till much later. Amazing how such a small phrase could change the mood so.
"Well Ren, as you already know, I'm leaving soon-"
Author's notes:
Well, this concludes yet another chapter in TBoS. I've run out of excuses this time, and shall just humbly (and sincerely!) apologise for being so lazy. I can't help it! However, I'm determined to finish up on this story soon… and will post a chapter a month henceforth. If any of my loyal readers are still following this, drop me a review or note please? It will strengthen my resolve. By about infinite times.
I know it has been mentioned before that the rest of the gang (the more observant ones at least) already saw changes in the two shaman, but for Pilica, I wanted to show how she was still reluctant to accept everything. After all, her brother was involved, and thus she might be more 'blinded' as to what has been going on.
As usual, I shall end off with a reminder that reviews make my day, and that it's good to be nice to others during Christmas. Santa might just be watching.
In the meantime, Merry Christmas everyone, and have a Happy New Year!!