Disclaimer: I don't own Saint Seiya,Saint Seiya belongs to Masami Kurumada and Toei Animation.
-Chapter 2: A Day in Cancer-
"What do you mean something's not right?" Aldebaran asked, "she's just a little girl."
"Yeah,a creepy one too," Kanon said.
"But that doesn't explain WHY you sent her to Deathmask," Mu said.
Milo stared at them. "Don't you feel it? That girl...no...that thing has no cosmo! I sent her to play with Deathmask because her aura is almost similar to the one in Cancer Temple! I figured if she has some similarities with that crab then he would be the best one to play with her!"
Saga seemed thoughtful. "I don't know about the aura thing but about her cosmo...it's possible that she hid it," he said, "like Shaka setting up a barrier when I'm battling him for Hades."
"A little child can't do that yet. I can guarantee you that she doesn't even know what a cosmo is." Shura stated.
"It is true..." Shaka said.
Kanon and Aldebaran were lost in thoughts. "I wonder why I thought she does have a cosmo when she first came in," Kanon said.
Saga rolled his eyes. "You mistook her aura for her cosmo."
"Oh..."
Milo sighed. "Is that why some of you are acting so normal?"
There was a murmur of agreement.
While everyone was speaking,Camus stayed quiet. "A person that has no cosmo," he thought, "what kind of person is that? She may not even be human!''
*Meanwhile,in Cancer Temple...
"Wow! Deathmask-sama,is this your temple? It's amazing! Oh,what's that? The sofa is really nice! This smell...you're cooking something? This is AWESOME!"
Deathmask was having a headache hearing the little rat's blabber. If only he could kill her! But the Cancer saint knew that by doing so,it meant suicide. Athena would be furious if he killed the brat.
Suddenly Rikka stopped speaking. Deathmask looked up. "What's the problem,kid? Finally tired using your big mouth?"
Rikka gazed at him,and pointed to the wall. "What is that,Deathmask-sama?"
Deathmask followed her finger. He smirked. If he told her what it really is,she would probably scream and go nuts herself. Now that is interesting.
"That,kiddo,is a collection of faces whose owner I'd killed. You see, everytime I kill a person,I peeled their faces off and put them on my wall. Great idea,huh?"
Rikka turned quiet. Deathmask grinned. He figured that either her mind was having a mental-breakdown,or her soul was self-destructing right now. If she's dead,he won't have to put up with her again! Athena can't blame him for this! He simply explained,and the kid killed herself by asking! How great is that!
"COOL! YOU DEFEATED ALL OF THEM,DEATHMASK-SAMA? You must be very powerful!" Rikka cried, "now that I think about it...these faces are like trophies that marked how many you killed! This is TERIFFIC!"
Deathmask stared at her in disbelief. This is the FIRST time in his life that a little child could say something like that. Children usually ran away seeing his face collection...and yet...this one thought it was awesome! What's more, this child is a girl ! Deathmask was speechless. He was almost certain that this child is Lymnades in disguise...
"Aren't you at LEAST scared of all this?" he couldn't help asking.
Rikka hesitated. "... Well...I really do feel sorry for them,but they no longer have to suffer in this world,right? So...I guess it's okay..."
Deathmask blinked a few times. "You also suffer in the afterlife,you know! What if you go to hell?"
Rikka shrugged. "I guess then it's my fault for ending up there. If I did something wrong when I'm alive,then I don't mind paying for them in hell."
Once again,Deathmask was speechless. This kid,he started to think,she's still a child,but her mind was of an adult's.
Just then Rikka's stomach growled. The little girl blushed. "I'm sorry,Deathmask-sama," she said, "do you have anything to eat?"
Deathmask sighed. This is going to be a very long day,and he suddenly felt exhausted. "Go look into the kitchen yourself. I want to sleep."
Rikka beamed. "Thanks!" she said,and hurried into the kitchen. By the time she was there, she immediately saw a plate of spaghetti on the table. Without thinking,she grabbed it and gobbled the whole thing up.
Few minutes later, the plate was spick-and-span. Not even a strand of spaghetti noodle was left untouched. Rikka felt her eyes were getting heavier and heavier. It's been a long day,and she was tired. With little energy left, she searched around the temple for a good place to sleep.
Few hours later...
Aphrodite walked up towards Cancer Temple. He thought he should warn his friend about the little girl. The meeting just now didn't turn out so well. All they knew was that this child had no cosmo,had an unknown origin, and an unknown family. It would be wise to be careful. She might be a person in disguise,like...Lymnades Caza,for example. But they still didn't know why she had no cosmo.
Either way, Aphrodite would warn Deathmask about this. Afterall,he didn't join the meeting. He didn't get to hear this non-cosmo thing. The Pisces opened the Cancer door.
"Masky?" he called.
No answer.
"Masky?" he tried again, "Deathmask? Hello? It's me,Aphro. Rikka?"
Still no answer.
Aphrodite sighed. Deathmask was probably watching TV again,he thought. When the crab was watching,he always set the volume to its maximum until someone had to shout to get his attention. The Pisces saint went into the living room. The TV was off. Deathmask wasn't here either. Then he went to the Cancer's bedroom. He knocked,and still no answer. That's it!
He had come here personally trying to warn his friend about a mysterious guest but the crab remained as ignorant as ever! Aphrodite opened the bedroom door impatiently.
"Deathmask! I have been calling you for ages,why didn't you-" the Pisces stopped himself. Was he dreaming? Did his eyes play tricks on him again?
Inside,Aphrodite saw something that he thought would never see.
Deathmask was sleeping on his bed,his back against the mattress...with Rikka beside him. The girl cuddled herself right beside the Cancer saint,her head resting on his chest. And Deathmask's arm...it was around the child's shoulder,as if protecting her in his sleep.
Aphrodite couldn't help but smile. Guess the warning could wait. Despite being a mystery to all the saints, probably the kid wasn't so bad afterall. Aphrodite decided to leave and closed the door. But not before taking a picture of his friend using his camera! This is going to be a big hit in Sanctuary!
An hour later,in Pisces Temple...
"WOW! Deathmask has a daughter!"
"Goodness! Are you sure that this is our Deathmask?"
"Let me see,let me...oh. WOW."
"What on Earth...?"
"Holy Poseidon!"
"I am SO publishing this!"
Yeah...do I need to say it? In case you're wondering,those were the reactions from the goldies upon seeing the Deathmask-was-sleeping-with-the-brat picture. Some of them was speechless,and some of them really went hysterical.
"What do you know? Deathmask has a soft spot for the kid," Mu said,a smile on his face.
"Don't be too sure," Aiolos warned, "we still don't know who she is."
"But niisan,this kid is amazing! She can GET ALONG with our crab!" Aiolia said.
" I SAID DON'T BE TOO SURE!" Aiolos growled, "she might be a little girl in the outside, but who knows what she is in the insisde! YOU CAN'T JUDGE A PERSON LIKE THAT,AIO!"
Ailoia blinked,unsure of what to say. It's so rare for Aiolos get angry,moreover shout at him.
Saga sighed. "Look,Aiolia,what your brother is trying to say is that you must be careful. Until we know who she EXACTLY is,then we cannot let our guard down."
"Which is why we must meet with Pope Shion," Milo suggested, "we should talk about this with him. He's our senior. With Roshi being in Rozan,we only have him and Athena to rely on."
"He's right," Camus said,glancing at Milo a few times. His best friend seemed surprisingly serious today, "we shall have another meeting tomorrow. This time,with Athena and Pope Shion involved in it."
Aphrodite groaned. "Again? Come ooon! When do we get some REAL free time?"
"Shut up,Aphro!" Shaka snapped, "IF YOU DON'T WANT TO ATTEND ANOTHER MEETING,THEN YOU CAN JUST PACK YOUR THINGS,SAY GOODBYE AND GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!"
Everyone stared at him. Did Shaka just say that?
"...Okaaaay..." Saga said uncomfortably, after a long time blinking, "tomorrow we have another meeting. At 11 o'clock morning,in the Pope's Hall,alright? Someone tell our crab."
~END OF CHAPTER TWO~
A/N: I'm really running out of ideas so I'm sorry if this isn't much...*sweatdrop* Any suggestions for the next chapter?