CHAPTER XII
"Nya!" Inochi cried with delight looking all around her. "The leaves are falling! The leaves are falling!"
"Yes," Shi smiled. "What a wondrous sight, right Youhi?"
"Yeah,: Youhi smiled at me. "You love the autumn season the most, am I right Asahi?"
"Yap," I breathe in. I really love how it smells during this season. "Eh? Ah! How'd you know?"
I saw his eyes warmed before answering, "It's a secret."
Geez. Just when my opinion of him being so childish is starting to change, he suddenly reverts back being like it.
Ah! Wait!
"Anyway," I suddenly spoke out my thought. The four of us are walking around town looking for an inn. I decided to walk right now instead of letting Youhi carry me, for a consequence that he is tightly holding my hand. Geez. He's so protective when it comes to me. The pain has dulled itself a few days back so now I can walk without wincing on my every step. Anyway…
"There are only four towns is this world, right?"
"Yep," Inochi said as she took a step beside me and took hold of my other hand. "And all of the towns only has one season the whole year, thus their names."
"Isn't it a little difficult like that?" I asked her.
A moment of silence passed between the twins. Then Shi looked at Youhi before answering, "Actually, this world is really just like your world in the beginning. Having four seasons every year and there are more towns before."
"Having only one season in these four towns happened not a long time ago," Inochi said. "Just right after the queen lost her power and fell into a deep slumber.
"Actually, the truth is, the queen did not just lost her power but also her---" she suddenly stopped when Shi shot her a warning look. "Umm… Ah! An inn! I'm going first!"
Shi followed her with an irritated look on her face.
Geez. What's with them keeping so many things from us? When I took a peek at Youhi, I noticed that it seemed that he also doesn't have a clue about what the queen lost besides her power and her consciousness. Really… He should have known, right? He is living in this world, isn't he?"
When he caught me looking at him, he smiled apologetically at me and said, "I'm sorry, but I don't know what they are talking about either. Actually, I don't remember anything other than my mother and me struggling in Winter Town."
Eh? His mother?
"Where's your mother? Is she…?" Geez. I'm not really comfortable asking this kind of question.
"Yeah, she's dead," I noticed for the first time a pained expression on his face.
"Youhi…" I also felt some pain in my heart when I looked at him looking like that. Slowly, I reached up to him and touched his cheek.
"It's okay," he said and smiled gently at me. He covered my hand with his own. "I'm not really lonely, because you are here with me, Asahi."
I felt my face heat up and I snatched my hand away and looked down on his chest. Why am I blushing again? Does this mean… No! I must forget about this! I must focus of something else. I took hold of the chain on his neck and yank at it.
"Hey!" He cried with surprise on his face. "What do you think you're doing, Asahi?" Then with a grin, he tugged a strand of my hair in return.
Ouch! Geez. Do I really need to answer that? Then I noticed something at the end of the chain. It's a cmooth blue stone in the shape of a cat's head. It looks so cute and at the same time has a mysterious feel to it. Mesmerized, I slowly touched it and suddenly I felt some kind of current passing though my fingertips into my whole body. Then---
"Hey! We've managed to book two rooms!" Inochi suddenly called to us from the inn.
But then her voice seemed so far away. Images filled my mind. I can see a cat-human girl with long blond hair, so blond that it seemed almost white, with clear blue eyes filled with fear holding something tightly in her hands. Then another cat-human woman, someone older with short black hair, her green eyes lit with determination and, desperation, yanking the thing that the little girl is holding. Then everything blacked out.
When I opened my eyes, I saw that I was now lying on a bed with Youhi sitting on a chair beside it. When I tried to sit up, I winced as pain suddenly shot up throughout my whole body. Geez. It's back. And now I'm starting to have a headache.
Asahi," I turned towards his voice and noted the worried expression on his face.
"I'm okay," I sighed as I slowly massage my temple. Geez! What a headache this is! Is this another one of the consequence of staying in this world? How I really, really wish I'll be able to leave as soon as possible. I don't want to feel these pains anymore.
Then I remembered about the blue cathead-shaped stone on Youhi's chain. What are those images I saw? Who're that girl and that woman? What's their connection with Youhi?
"Youhi…" I called to him gently.
"Yeah?" he asked as he leaned closer to me. I saw his chain and I yanked it again. "Hey! Asahi? Again?!"
"Teehee," I laughed at his bewildered expression. "I just want to see you looking like that."
Wah!" his face filled with delight. "You laugh!"
"Of course I can laugh!" I yanked the chain again. And then gently, I touched the stone and the end of it. Current still passed through my fingertips but no images came into me anymore.
"Youhi, about this pendant…"
"My mother gave it to me," he gently spoke, the pain evident on his face and in his voice. "Her first and last present for me."
"Youhi…" I said softly as I looked at him in the eyes and gently placed my hand on top of his hand. I don't want to see him looking like that. I don't want him to be in pain at all.
I gasped as I came into a realization. So this is really it. When did it start? How come I've not noticed it till now? My face softened as I thought it over. So this is what love really is. So unexpected that it pains me in my heart, yet so pleasant to feel; my love for Youhi…
wow,.,.what a really long chapter,.,.i guess,.,teehee,.,.,hope you'll enjoy reading,.,._____________________