Author's Note: I know. It's been nearly a month. I was meaning to update earlier, but I was never satisfied with the chapter, therefore I would laze around for a few days, then exams came up, then my Dr. Who obsession sprung to life and my obsession with David Tennant became more prominent. It's quite horrible, really. ANYWAY. This one is extra long and I intend to create every chapter around this length! ENJOY!
Chapter 5: Lock and Key
Amu was going to die. She was almost 100% convinced of this. What else would happen while being encircled by a group of wild men? What she could confirm was that nothing good could result from it, that was for sure.
Not to mention her ankle was throbbing. Jolts of electric shocks were coursing through her body just by remaining still. When she moved it was as if her whole body was going to shatter. She was in desperate need of a long rest. In fact, she had just woken up - from a very short, uncomfortable sleep - just a few moments earlier. However, she shot right up upon noticing all the eyes on her.
She wished she had remained lying down. Her ankle was growing angry with her and she didn't blame it.
Amu shifted so her weight was being supported by her uninjured ankle. Her teeth sunk into her tongue. Shots of pain stabbed through her veins. It was almost to the point where her leg had gone numb. She would have cried out for medical attention in a heartbeat if she didn't feel so intimidated. There were four guys against her if she were to attempt to put up a fight. The last thing she wanted to reveal was the fact that she was injured.
"What was your name?"
Amu's gaze snapped over to the blue-haired boy whose name she kept forgetting. She crossed her arms defensively.
"Hinamori Amu."
Her bitten reply seemed to provide a source of entertainment as amusement slipped into the expressions of all four boys.
"You need to learn to fly." The blue-haired one was the one who spoke again. As the other boys nodded in agreement, it didn't take long for Amu to figure out who the leader here was.
"Well that should be easy enough. I just sprout wings, right?" she retorted coolly. Her bright, golden eyes turned sharp as she glared at the lanky boy who remained unfazed. If anything, he continued to look amused.
"Of course you can't! Only fairies can grow wings."
All eyes turned to the one who spoke. It was the auburn-haired boy. His wide, expressive eyes stared at Amu like she had just crapped on his face.
The three other boys who were smart enough to keep their mouths shut turned away in shame.
Amu plastered an unimpressed look on her face to hide the smile that threatened to grow. Ran sighed from beside her. The pink chara muttered something about the Lost Boys not only losing themselves but parts of their brains, too. Amu had to agree, just a smidgeon. Though it always seemed to be the not-so-bright ones that proved to be the ones most full of life.
"That was sarcasm, Kukai," Nagihiko, the purple-haired one, said with a forced smile and a pat to Kukai's back.
The boys resumed their intimidating poses that consisted of them remaining unmoving with their eyes slicing into Amu as she stood with nowhere to run.
Swallowing thickly, the pinkette chewed down on her lower lip and glanced to Ran for help. Ran, on the other hand, was looking rather calm. She floated happily with her attention caught on a squirrel jumping through the trees. Despite the occasional bird call, the forest was still and hushed with a light breeze providing a soft song as it whistled through leaves and branches, tousling hair as it went.
"So, Ikuto…shall we get to it, then?"
Amu's eyes snapped over to the green-haired boy who spoke. Kairi…was it?
Kairi glanced to Ikuto for a confirmation signal.
Ikuto nodded slightly before stepping forward. His footsteps crunched through spikes of grass. His gaze met hers and after a moment, he spotted her eyes flicker to the side to search for an escape route. He quickened his pace, dashing over to Amu before she could make a run for it. He scooped her up and jumped off the grassy earth, shooting into the air.
Although this wasn't her first time being flown into the air with no previous warning, Amu still wasn't used to it. She shrieked, swore, and screamed until her throat was sore. Cold wind whipped through her hair and thrashed her clothes. Her arms were wrapped tightly around Ikuto's neck, so much so that she was sure she could decapitate him if she squeezed any more. It was a tempting thought, though she was much too busy screaming to put the plan into action.
"Why don't you ever warn me before you do that?" She screamed over the roaring wind.
A soft laugh sounded through the murky ripples of wind. "Do you really think you would willingly allow me to fly you into the air?"
Amu tried to think of a witty reply but gave up quickly as her stomach dropped further and further as their altitude increased dramatically. With jaws snapped together, the wind seeped between her teeth, drying her throat until it felt like paper. She quickly resumed keeping her breathing stabilized, adding in the reminder to swallow as often as possible to be rid of the sandpaper in her throat.
Finally, when Amu was convinced she was going to pass out, Ikuto halted.
Despite the nightmare being over, Amu was finding it impossible to release him from her chokehold. Her muscles had tensed up to the point where she felt like an ice sculpture. Her face hid in the crook of his neck as her arms trembled from the pressure she was forcing into them.
Ikuto finally spoke, completely unaffected by their escapade to the skies.
Amu slowly loosened her grip as the low tremors of his voice pulsed through her limbs.
"I didn't realize you found me so irresistible."
Scoffing, Amu pried her fingers out of his shoulder blades. She moved to completely let go of him when he quickly stopped her, tightening his grip underneath her legs.
The pinketted moved away so she could look at him, ready to start scolding him, but the look in his eyes made her stop. The serious edge to his gaze carved a hole into her. She swallowed again.
"You might not want to do that," he warned with an amused smirk.
Amu heaved a sigh, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. So she was kidnapped by some creepy pervert who insisted on flying her through a strange forest to be alone with her. Just what she wanted. And where was Ran? Weren't charas supposed to protect their humans?
"And why wouldn't I want to get away from you?" Amu challenged stubbornly.
Ikuto pointedly moved his gaze downwards. Amu followed his eyes and gasped sharply, arms instantly tightening around his neck. Sure, they may have stopped flying, but they technically had not landed yet. Squeezing her eyes shut, the pressure shot stars across her vision as she counted her heartbeats. She did her best to convince herself that she was not fifty feet in the air above a thick woodland.
"Go, Amu-chan, you can do it!"
Amu's eyes widened as she whipped her gaze down to seek out the owner of that high-pitched voice.
Among the thick trees of deep greens mixed with bare branches, Ran hovered just a few feet above the forest with the lost boys all crowded in the tree tops to watch.
Kukai and Nagihiko were equipping binoculars while Kairi began setting up a fresh piece of paper in his notebook. He pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, ready to take notes as he leaned back against a tree trunk.
All eyes were on them, Amu noticed, self-consciously loosening her grip on Ikuto's neck once again.
"Wh-what exactly am I being required to do?" She asked with her voice wavering.
Although she usually tried to keep her cool n' spice façade in tact at all times, being dangled in mid-air while hiding behind false characteristics wasn't exactly the simplest task. Her wide orbs clearly betrayed the sinking feeling of nervousness that swam in the pit of her stomach. She searched Ikuto's face desperately as she waited for him to figure out the best way to phrase the sentence lingering on his lips.
"You have to…fly," he finally said.
It took a moment for her to process this. She peered down, then to the lost boys, then to the trees, and then back to Ikuto, who was watching her carefully with an unreadable expression.
"Let me get this straight…" Amu began in the calmest tone she could muster. "You're going to let me drop?"
"Yes."
Amu nodded slowly, pursing her lips together as she shrugged carelessly. "Simplest thing in the world."
"You're ready, then?"
Ikuto's hands slid closer to him, detaching themselves from Amu's legs and back. She slipped a mere inch before screaming, clinging to him like a koala on a tree before she scooted back up to cling to his shoulders.
"You're out of your mind! I'm not letting you drop me, nor am I willingly going to jump! You're all insane," She whipped her fierce glare over to Ran, blasting lasers from her golden eyes. "You too, Ran! You're also crazy! What makes any of you think I'll be able to fly just like that? Especially if you're just going to drop me from the air! I refuse!"
She swallowed to wet her coarse throat that scratched in protest at her screams.
She jumped at the motion of Ikuto's hand pulling away from her back. Her fingers sunk deeper into his skin. Ikuto simply rubbed his ear with a cringe, not yet adjusted to having someone screaming bloody murder in his ear. Amu slowly released her death grip when she realized what he was doing. He returned his hand to support her back after tending to his ear. She glanced away, flushing in humiliation.
It was mentally decided that she wouldn't scream anymore. She couldn't. If Ikuto got frustrated with her, all he had to do was swipe his arms out from under her and she'd be history. Amu even pinched her mouth closed to make sure she wouldn't yell from this point on.
Ikuto seemed to notice this transition in her and tried speaking again.
"In order to keep you alive, you have to learn to fly. That way when that oaf Kazuomi comes after you - and he will - you'll be able to escape. Understand?"
Amu nodded silently. Her eyes were wide as she absorbed the information, heart-rate rapidly increasing.
"Just think happy thoughts. You'll be fine," Ikuto finished casually before leaning closer and adding with a wink, "think about me."
The pinkette allowed her jaw to unhinge as she stared dead-panned at him. "Are you kidding me?" She glanced back down and a ripple of shivers shot through her skin. "How can I think happy things at this height?" She didn't even bother responding to his flirtatious comment.
He seemed confused, his eyebrows sinking deeply as his eyes searched hers. "You don't like heights?"
Amu tried not to smack him. Mainly just because they didn't know each other that well. Otherwise she might have snatched a hammer and beat him over the head with it. Instead of tearing his head off with insults, she replied through gritted teeth, "Duh."
Finally, after heaving a sigh, he flew them down to the ground that crawled with thick grass and pebbles, where Amu willingly threw herself out of his grasp and onto the forest floor, clinging to it as if it would walk away.
The grass tickled her hands and poked through the spaces between her fingers. She let the blades cool her overheated body. Her heartbeat pounded with her headache, her breaths coming out ragged and rapidly while her heavy eyes fluttered closed. The taste of metal inked her tongue and her dry throat felt like it would tear open. A stab from her ankle shot her stomach into a frenzy, flipping and squeezing as Amu's head clouded even more.
She could vaguely hear the lost boy's voices growing louder when she blacked out.
Midori was making dinner, wasn't she? And Tsumugu had been panicking about where his family members had gone. He never did like being alone for too long. It got so bad that he would begin counting the seconds on the clock and then the floor tiles. Sometimes he'd start counting all the different ceiling patterns just to distract himself. Eventually, he'd go insane and search for any one of his girls to remind himself they were still there.
He was a weird man.
Then there was Ami. She was obviously up to no good and must have spiked the water jug. That was why Amu was having strange dreams that felt like a rush only capable of being induced by drugs.
She would open her eyes to find herself in her own warm bed, surrounded by yellow walls plastered with photographs and posters of outdated bands. She would shake off the dream and walk around in sort of a daze before her mama's incredible breakfast would snap her out of her revere.
Amu had almost had herself convinced of this until a bird chirped somewhere nearby.
Wiping the tangled mess of pink hair out of her freshly opened eyes, she squinted at her bright surroundings and propped herself up on her elbows.
Thick shrubbery engulfed the tree fort she lay in. The branches swayed happily in the warm, afternoon wind while chirping birds danced playfully through the clouds.
Amu sat motionless while taking in her surroundings. Despite the most comfortable mound of blankets she was sleeping in, an uncomfortable sensation made her stomach drop in disbelief as her heart skipped a beat. She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head. It was real. She actually was in a place called Never Land, with a flying fairy thing called a chara and a bunch of boys who claimed to be lost. No…they weren't lost. They had just lost their minds, that's why they were given the title of 'Lost Boys'.
She could already feel a headache coming on, along with a familiar, dull throbbing in her ankle.
Her eyes reluctantly peeled open. Tossing her blankets aside, she went to roll up the leg of her jeans, only to see that it had already been rolled up, as now her ankle lay covered comfortably in bandages. Amu slowly leaned forward, pressing her fingers lightly to the wrappings.
"Good morning, girly!"
Her bones jumped and she whipped around, arms flailing into the air and hitting the intruder in the face. She paid little attention to the hammering of her ankle after it had rubbed against the floor boards.
Her startled gaze found the auburn-haired boy with the cheeky grin who was dangling upside down from a nearby branch. Not so surprisingly, his cheeky grin wasn't in tact after being hit. He groaned in pain and placed the tray of food he was holding onto the floor beside Amu.
"I knew I shouldn't have been the delivery boy," he groaned painfully. "Nagihiko, you're doing it next time!"
Nagihiko's deep, amber eyes flickered up to peer into the window of Amu's tiny treehouse. He looked at Amu, then at Kukai, whose glaring orbs met his own. "Yeah, right. You're on your own with this one." He took off, jumping and spinning through the trees as Kukai yelled after him.
Once realizing the purple-haired boy wasn't coming back, Kukai awkwardly let himself off the tree branch and onto the floor before he turned to face Amu, who was watching it all with wide eyes and a defensive posture.
"Okay, ninja girl," he laughed unsurely, holding up his hands. It was a poor attempt to show he meant no harm, as he was moving closer at the same time, making Amu feel like throwing the tray of food at him.
"Relax, it's okay," he soothed. He finally stopped moving, keeping his hands up. "You're in a cubby, in a tree, with breakfast that needs to be eaten." He moved a finger to point at the food. His wide, jade eyes were laced with discretion as he risked moving closer. He searched Amu's eyes for any sign of discomfort.
Amu had gone back into a shy silence as the auburn-haired boy spoke to her, trying to keep his voice gentle so as not to startle her. She couldn't believe she had actually hit him. Mind you, it was an accident, of course, but it was embarrassing, nonetheless. Usually she was a lot more cool when it came to people scaring her. She used to be able to mask her shock well. Ever since coming to this foreign land, everything seemed to have changed.
Once seeing she had finally relaxed and wasn't making a move to hit him again, Kukai spoke up once more, "I'm Kukai, by the way. And you're…Amu?"
Getting a closer look at him, Amu quickly realized just how friendly he looked. It was probably a completely bizarre occurrence for him to actually startle someone by appearing beside them. His eyes were wide- curious. His brownish-red hair was a mess of tangles, curling in front of his pierced ears. There was really nothing scary about him. His whole appearance screamed friendly.
Realizing he was waiting for her to speak, Amu cleared her throat and swung her gaze around the cubby, pausing on the food, then shifting to her hands. "…You actually have food here?"
Kukai arched an eyebrow before grinning, "Of course we do! We may be Lost Boys but that doesn't mean we can't cook and find fruit." He then jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, pointing at Nagihiko, who had returned upon hearing no more screaming, figuring the silence meant someone had died. "He's our chef," Nagihiko waved with a soft smile, "I'm the medic, Ikuto's the navigator, and Kairi's the technical one."
Nodding along slowly with what Kukai was telling her, Amu slowly picked at the plate of fruit in her lap. It was oddly quiet, the pinkette noted. Despite Kukai's upbeat voice and the occasional wave of wind followed by an odd bird call, there was hardly any noise.
Amu frowned. She wasn't able to put her finger on what was missing.
It took a moment, but an apple and half a banana later, her eyes widened in realization.
"Where's Ran?"
Kukai swallowed the bit of apple in his mouth before replying. He threw the apple core over his shoulder and out the window, Nagihiko having to dodge it as it sailed past his ear. "Your chara? She's around here somewhere…I think she went with Ikuto - probably yanking his ear off about the stunt he pulled earlier." Kukai reached for some grapes while mumbling something about not blaming Ran.
Amu's honey eyes slid down to her lap as she recalled the events of…earlier that day? Perhaps it was already a day ago. She had no idea how long she had slept for. Nor did she care, really. That was the most relaxing sleep she had ever had. Especially considering it took place in a tiny, cramped little treehouse thing that people referred to as a 'cubby'. She was tempted to take one home with her. That is, if she was ever able to return home.
"Why…why do I have to run away from Kazuomi?" Amu asked finally, glancing up at Kukai, then to Nagihiko, who had finally decided to crawl inside through the window.
The boys exchanged hesitant looks.
Nagihiko sighed, closing his eyes. Clearly he had been the one chosen to explain the story to Amu. He reopened his eyes and smiled at Amu.
"You know that lock you have?"
Amu unconsciously reached up to her necklace, holding it tightly.
"That was sent to the human world to be kept safe once the key had been stolen. You see, when the lock and key are together, it grants one wish to the one who connects them," Nagihiko looked over at Kukai for clarification that he got that right. Kukai nodded, unable to speak over the mouthful of grapes.
"Kazuomi has the key…and you-" He didn't have to finish his sentence.
Amu's eyes widened as her jaw unhinged. She swallowed thickly. Her stomach churned and her limbs tingled.
"So basically…"she began slowly, "I have to run for my life or get killed by some deranged pirate who's in desperate need of a bath?"
Kukai barked out a laugh which was followed by a coughing fit, obviously having just inhaled a piece of grape.
Rolling his eyes, Nagihiko half-heartedly patted his friend on the back. "Basically, yeah. Knowing Kazuomi and his evil intentions, he'll use the wish to make him ruler of Never Land. He'll get the throne and turn everything upside down, destroying this whole place. But…if we can get the key back and get you to connect the two…you can use the wish to return home, in the meantime destroying the power of the lock and key. This way the war here can finally end, as the wish will already have been used up."
Her head was spinning so much that swirls of color and black and white mashed together to create a collage of rubbish. She licked her chapped lips before inhaling and exhaling deeply. She rubbed her aching temples before nodding slowly.
"So basically…I have to learn to fly to escape Kazuomi…and that's it?"
Nagihiko and Kukai glanced at each other before nodding.
"We may have to teach you a few fighting skills…but…yeah, that's about it," Kukai replied. "Stick with us and you'll be fine." His bright eyes then widened excitedly. "We can give you a tour of Never Land, too! Go to the Indian Camp and," he muttered the last part, "start another war with Kiseki."
"Maybe even Mermaid Lagoon," Nagihiko offered, his tone of voice much softer and gentler than Kukai's. In fact, he almost reminded Amu of a girl. What with his soft facial features, gentle manner of speaking and long, deep purple hair. Not that it was a bad thing. It made Amu feel comfortable around him.
This touring idea sparked life into Amu's dull gaze as her eyes brightened immensely.
"Can we?" She asked, then quickly realized she was acting out of character. She wiped away the curious expression and replaced it with a monotonous look. "I mean…if there's nothing else to do."
Kukai chuckled while shaking his head. He leaned over and ruffled her hair. "You're a funny one. But we can't go anywhere just yet. I only just wrapped that ankle of yours and it was in desperate need of attention. We'll have to wait a while to go exploring but until then, we can start you off with some light defence training-"
"Knock, knock," came a deep voice from somewhere behind the trio.
A higher, much chipper voice followed shortly after.
"I'm back, Amu-chan!" Ran squealed happily as she flew swiftly over to the pinkette. "How are you feeling? I gave Ikuto a good talking to, don't worry! Kairi was even there to make sure I didn't go overboard. ...Then again…he might have been there just to study the ways of charas…" she drifted off in a heap of mumbles strung together.
Amu hardly paid any attention to her. Her gaze dragged across the floor, stopping on the black shoes of the tall, slim boy who gave her a woozy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She felt like just being around him would result in some kind of danger. She didn't know what it was, he just gave off that dangerous aura she preferred to stay far away from. It must have been his emotionless, unwavering gaze.
Ikuto looked off to the side. He removed his hand from his pocket, holding onto the stem of a strawberry and holding it out in front of him.
All eyes turned to look at the fruit.
Amu glanced from the strawberry to Ikuto, eyebrows slanted downwards in confusion. Big whoop, it was a strawberry. Did he think she had never seen one before? She searched his face for any offending expression that would give an answer as to what was so amazing about this strawberry. It took a moment, but she finally realized that it was a peace-offering. An apology.
She slowly reached out and accepted the strawberry. How he knew of her love for strawberries, she would never know. Amu's slanted gaze suddenly flickered over to Ran. Never mind. She had a pretty good idea who told him about her favourite food.
Now the eyes snapped over to Ikuto, who was watching Amu. He casually slipped his hands into his pockets as Kairi joined them in the cubby. In order to make room for the latest addition, Nagihiko had to smash up against Kukai, who was pressed against the wooden beams of the short wall. Amu, however, was given plenty of space, as she was technically a medical patient as of right now. Her time to be squished would come soon enough.
"So, Kairi, what does the schedule look like?" Kukai asked, his voice slightly muffled from the wall being in his face.
The green-haired boy gazed through his thick glasses at his notebook as he swiftly flipped through the pages. He tapped his pen against the wooden boards on the floor as his eyes scanned the paper.
"We rest for today, combat training begins tomorrow."
Amu, who had just taken a bite of the strawberry, had trouble swallowing it as her body tingled with dread. The hair on the back of her neck stood up straight as Ran gave her a reassuring pat on the head. The lock necklace seemed to grow heavier against her chest. Amu was tempted to hate it. Just what had it gotten her in to?