Hao was looking at another night full of tossing and turning… thinking of Yoh, and encountering him in his dreams. Still… he had a new silver lining to reflect on: Ren. He could now count on Ren as a real friend, not just someone like him that he could use. It was strange… why had he never thought of Ren like this before?
Of course… it was when he went to buy Ren some milk so long ago.
"I never knew how easy it was to get to the real Ren."
He shuddered, feeling coldhearted. How could he have said that? But, it was over now and they were friends. He knew he was really very lucky to have friends like he did… and a brother like he had. As the sun finally set, Hao saw no more options but to go to sleep. A knock on the door sounded as he was about to lie down, but he allowed them to come in.
"Hey," HoroHoro greeted.
"Hey," Hao greeted in return.
"Opacho wanted to say goodnight to you," HoroHoro said, gesturing to the little girl at his feet. Hao smiled. "Thanks. Goodnight, Opacho."
"Goodnight Hao-sama!" She said, walking up to him and hugging his leg. He picked her up and gave her a hug too. He put her down and HoroHoro took her hand and let her out.
"'Night, Hao." He said, giving a grin as he left.
"Good night, HoroHoro." Hao smiled back. As the two left, Hao laughed to himself, in happiness. He lay down on his bed, finally realizing how tired he really was. He drifted off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep…
He awoke the next morning; once again it was dry and chilly. He smiled to himself. Maybe today would be a better day. Maybe today he could get some help with his problems with Yoh.
He got dressed quickly, wearing a black short-sleeved shirt and plain blue jeans. He yawned as he walked into the kitchen, where Ren, HoroHoro, Opacho, Anna and Lyserg were eating breakfast. He got himself a glass of water and helped himself to cereal, sitting down beside HoroHoro. He caught Lyserg glaring at him. He returned the look with a quizzical one of his own, which really made Lyserg flush. He screwed up his face in stress, obviously trying to refrain himself from hitting Hao across the face. Hao laughed a bit, and HoroHoro soon clued in and laughed too. Ren, however was civil enough not to lose himself in childish jokes… though it did take a bit of self-restrain. Anna rolled her eyes and got up, annoyed with the boys. Lyserg noticed, a strange look on his face. With that, all of them broke out into laughter. Even Ren. "What was all that about?" Lyserg panted. HoroHoro shook his head. "I think she's upset with us!"
"Why?!" Hao exclaimed. Soon though, the fits of laughter subsided with everyone running out of breath. Simultaneously they took a drink, and began to laugh again, less than before though. Lyserg got up next, a smile on his face. He walked out the back door, probably trying to refresh himself.
Soon Chocolove came in, as if summoned by their laughter. "What were you laughing at?" he asked. Ren gave a stingy reply,
"Certainly none of your jokes."
"Hey, that's harsh!" Chocolove said. "I'm really funny!"
"Give him a break," HoroHoro said. "It's not his fault!" He and Ren began to laugh again, Opacho giggling too for no apparent reason; she didn't understand what they meant.
"Come on, I find him quite funny sometimes." Hao said. He grinned. Chocolove smiled too, but upon seeing Ren's mouth open to retort, he exited the room.
The day was off to a good start.
Deep down though, Hao could tell, that this feeling would not last much longer.
And there it was.
The room fell silent.
Possibly everyone now felt guilty, for seeming so happy, when only upstairs, lay Yoh…cold.
And it only took a second, for Hao to know for certain, that it was that on everyone's mind.
"C'mon guys. If he was here he'd be laughing too." said Hao, quite determined not to allow this happiness to slip through his fingers and even vanish for a very long time. This moment he had just experienced with everyone, was so rare, it made it wonderful. HoroHoro nodded.
"Yeah…he's right!" agreed HoroHoro. Ren sighed.
"I guess so…" he muttered.
"Opacho miss Yoh-sama…" whimpered Opacho.
And there it went. The moment. Flew out the window, gone.
The sadness…had returned.
Hao stood up quickly, shaking the table slightly, knocking over his empty glass. He turned around and stormed out the room. Ren and HoroHoro looked at one another, and then lowered their heads to their breakfasts and continuing their meal. Hao brushed past Chocolove who was stood in the hall listening to what was going on, eager to know what they were laughing at a few moments ago. Chocolove blinked hard heard Hao jog down the hall and slam the door to his room. Chocolove sighed.
"I'll cheer him up." He muttered to himself. He walked nervously up the stairs, approaching his door. He took a deep breath before knocking on…
After all…this was the first time he had actually spoken properly to Asakura Hao.
"Knock Knock?" he muttered as he knocked on the door.
"Who's there?" Came a sigh from inside the room. Maybe he was joining in on the joke! Chocolove grinned, throwing out the first knock knock joke that came into his head.
"Yar!"
"Yar who?"
"Why are you so excited?" Chocolove chortled at his own joke for a few seconds before grabbing his breath and listening for any laughter from inside the room.
Silence.
Chocolove sighed.
"I'll come back later…" he muttered, walking away from the door.
"Hey come back I want to hear more jokes. Plus you knocked on the door which means you want to come in so why don't you?" Chocolove froze in his steps and turned round back to the door happily.
"Okay!" he chirped sliding the door open and jumping inside. He then blinked at the boy sat at the open window, his hair blowing over his shoulder in the wind. Chocolove realized, maybe Hao wasn't in the joke kind of mood after all.
"Please sit down. I want some kind of happiness. I can't bear to sit in this sorrow for much longer." sighed Hao. Chocolove nodded, approaching the bed and sitting on the end of it.
"You want more jokes?" he asked, not being hopeful.
"If you would. I just…" he paused turning around. "I just want to be happy you know? I'm annoyed because that laughing moment I just had with everyone, including Lyserg, was like…wow…"
"You're new to this kind of stuff huh?"
"Yeah! I am! It's amazing! Friends…they make you feel…" Hao struggled to find the words.
"Complete?" finished Chocolove. Hao sighed, closing his eyes, shaking his head sadly.
"No…I can never be complete with out my brother…" Chocolove swallowed, he said the wrong thing. "But you have a point. They do fill in a missing space inside of you." Hao lifted his head and looked at him. "So go on, show me what you've got." Chocolove blinked, surprised.
"Huh?"
"You have a show in New York right?"
"Yeah…"
"Well, can I have a private show? Right here?" asked Hao, leaning forward, curious to what kind of things this boy sat in front of him was saying on stage.
"Well you know…heh, heh, it's not really a big show. It's just the stage where I worked at in the kitchens, but still, I did make a few people laugh –"
"Go on. I'm listening."
"Wow. You really want me to tell you some jokes?"
"Yes."
"Woah…" Chocolove took a long, deep cleansing breath, just trying to take in the moment. "Okay. Well, here's one I've known for a while. Some people don't get it, but you're smart. So I think you will."
"Okay." Replied Hao. "Go on."
"Right. Three engineers and three accountants are traveling by train to a conference. At the station, the three accountants each buy tickets and watch as the three engineers buy only a single ticket. "How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?" asks an accountant. "Watch and you'll see," answers an engineer. They all board the train. The accountants take their respective seats but all three engineers cram into a restroom and close the door behind them. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets. He knocks on the restroom door and says, "Ticket, please." The door opens just a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor takes it and moves on. The accountants saw this and agreed it was quite a clever idea. So after the conference, the accountants decide to copy the engineers on the return trip and save some money (being clever with money, and all). When they get to the station they buy a single ticket for the return trip. To their astonishment, the engineers don't buy a ticket at all. "How are you going to travel without a ticket?" says one perplexed accountant. "Watch and you'll see," answers an engineer. When they board the train the three accountants cram into a restroom and the three engineers cram into another one nearby. The train departs. Shortly afterward, one of the engineers leaves his restroom and walks over to the restroom where the accountants are hiding. He knocks on the door and says, 'Ticket, please.'" Chocolove finished, cracking up into a hysterical laughter. Hao, on the other hand, stared at Chocolove a few more seconds before sitting upright. He tilted his head to one side, thinking hard about the joke. Chocolove's laughter descended and he waited for Hao to react.
"So…you mean the engineer stole his ticket?" asked Hao.
"Yes. Did you get it?" asked Chocolove.
"Ah…" trailed off Hao, he then nodded, smiling. "Yeah I did get it!" Hao then began to laugh, but not a very hysterical one, just a few short laughs and then stopped. It was good enough for Chocolove, so he grinned and continued.
"Okay. Here's another one. Well it's more like a question." Chocolove giggled slightly. "I think you'll like this one."
"Oh? Continue."
"Some months have 30 days, some months have 31 days. How many months have 28 days?"
"One. February."
"Nope. All months have 28 days!" Chocolove broke out into a fit. And soon after, so did Hao!
"Hey that's a good one! Do you have anymore question jokes?" he laughed.
"Sure! You take 2 apples from 3 apples. How many do you have?"
"One."
"No silly! You took 2 remember?" they both began to laugh again.
"Oh please tell me more!"
"Okay! If you drove a bus with 43 people on board from Chicago and stopped at Pittsburgh to pick up 7 more people and drop off 5 passengers and at Cleveland to drop off 8 passengers and pick up 4 more and eventually arrive at Philadelphia 20 hours later, what's the name of the driver?"
"Erm…Bob?"
"Nope! The driver is called Hao! You drove the bus!" the both cracked into fits again.
"Oh…my…god…" panted Hao between breaths. "You're so funny!"
"Thank you!" Chocolove began to cry waterfall tears. "That means to much!" Hao lent forward punching him in the arm.
"C'mon don't be so soft. Got another one?" Chocolove thought about it for a moment.
"No. Sorry that's all I've got for now." He sighed. 'Sorry Hao." Hao smiled.
"It's all right."
"Half left."
"Huh?"
"All right…half left. Get it?"
"Oh! You're pretty hilarious. Thanks Chocolove."
"Hey! Anytime!"
As Chocolove left the room, Hao closed his eyes and lay back down on his bed. His face showed a strained expression, like something was causing him pain.
Which, in a way, it was.
Yoh was really an idiot. Just for wanting to leave his friends.
"I sure do miss them..."
Hao suddenly sat up. Had he really just said that? He felt his mouth move, the words come out... but he didn't really mean it. He covered his mouth.
"But it's better here."
He couldn't stop himself. He was saying this.
"It's perfect."
No. He wasn't really saying this ... it was Yoh. Yoh was talking through him. He closed his eyes, concentrating on his twin now...
"Don't you think so?"
"No."
"How come?"
"You're not alive. It can't be perfect."
Yoh shrugged, not letting Hao talk him out of how he felt. "It's great here and you know it."
"What are you doing to me?" Hao suddenly changed the subject. "I feel different... not like myself. Especially when..." He trailed off. Yoh's eyes had changed, showing confusion. "I'm not doing anything to you. What do you mean though? Especially when... what?"
"Hao!" HoroHoro had come in. "You look pale." he said, sitting down next to Hao.
"I have a persistent headache..." He said. "I guess I'm just not feeling right."
HoroHoro grinned at his friend. "Yoh, huh?"
"Yeah... how'd you know?"
"It's kind of obvious now." He said. "Here, I'm going to go visit Pirika. Want me to bring you some tea before I go?" Hao nodded. "That would be great, thanks."
"Want to come too? After you finish your tea?" He offered.
"No thanks. I don't think Pirika would appreciate that." Hao said with a smirk. HoroHoro laughed and nodded. "Yeah I think you're right," he said. "Plus I don't think you'd be too thrilled either, what with her always being... err, excitable?" With that, he got up and left the room. Hao laughed. HoroHoro really was a lot of fun. He closed his eyes, remembering their little trip to the ice rink...
"Here's your tea." That wasn't HoroHoro's voice.
"Anna?" Hao asked. "Where's HoroHoro?"
"Pirika got angry and took him away before he finished making your tea." She said simply, laying the tray of tea in front of him. She turned around and, as she was about to exit...
"Anna, you..."
"Hmm? What is it?" She snapped, turning around to face Hao again. She had an impatient look on her face, like she wanted to get out.
"Uh ... never mind," he said, barely getting the words out. He didn't even know what to say, really. Somehow he just didn't want her to go yet.
Yoh...!
"Hmph. Don't waste my time." She said, leaving quickly. Hao hit himself on the forehead angrily. "Yoh..."
Hao sighed angrily. He was angry now, not at Yoh, at himself. "Why did I let him fool me...?" he muttered to himself, straining to talk. He opened his eyes and stared at his surroundings. Yoh had everything. Friends. Love. Home. "Why do I allow him to toy with me?" He got up off the bed, now starting to pace the room, backwards and forwards. Backwards and forwards. Like a tiger in a cage. He said he'd let Hao revive him. Now he says he is happy where he is. Which is it? Why was Yoh always changing his mind? Always...forgetting? Why would Yoh always forget important things that had happened to either himself or to Hao? Yoh once forgot why the scenery in their perfect soul together had suddenly changed to darkness. Now he seemed to have forgotten, that Hao had tried to kill himself. Now Yoh had almost forgotten how lucky he was to have everything he had. Yoh was such a fool. "You will never learn...stupid, stupid younger brother..." Hao stopped in position, now actually expecting Yoh to say something.
Nothing...
Silence.
Did Hao now...want Yoh to talk to him? Some how, maybe, Hao liked Yoh being with him, just inside him. Like a warm feeling. Maybe...deep down...Hao wanted to be whole...too. Hao quickly shook this feeling off him that should never be the way things should be. Never. He wanted Yoh to be alive again. He didn't just want him, he needed him. He needed his younger twin. Hao lifted his head. "I can never be whole...never be complete until you are back Yoh." He said aloud, as if to be talking to him. He now waited once again for Yoh to talk, but nothing happened. The silence remained. From out of the quiet, came a gentle knock upon the door. "Come in." said Hao. Ren opened the door, and remained at the doorway.
"Are you just going to sit in here all day and feel sorry for yourself?" he said, putting a hand to his hip. "There are things to be done, you know. You could help tidy the kitchen. Or, you could even do the grocery shopping. Your choice." Ren waited for a reply. Hao blinked at him. Ren had never spoken to him this way before. He spoke to him like he had known him for a long time, he had no fear at all to approach him, and even demand things to be done around the house. This some how made Hao smile, happy to be treated like a friend.
"S-Sure thing." he stammered, then coughing to clear his throat. "I'll do the shopping if you like."
"Good." Ren reached inside his pocket and handed Hao some money. "This is Anna's daily allowance. It also goes towards shopping. I have been given the task to even out the costs of today. This should be enough for you to get something for dinner. Get anything you like. Be sure to get enough for all of us." and with that, Ren turned and began to walk down the stairs. Hao stood in position for a moment, in slight shock. He looked at his hand, where the money lay. He had now gained...trust. Hao nodded his head, like to be replying to Ren like he was still there. He gently pushed the notes into his pocket, the smile on his face remained. He patted his pocket where the money was stowed away safely, and grinned.
"Heh. You don't know what you're missing Yoh. Seriously, you really don't." And in some way, still expecting a reply, Hao listened for a few seconds to either hear a voice, or say one. But still, nothing. Hao closed his eyes and let out a sigh. As he was about to leave the room, a little tapping noise suddenly came to his attention. Tap. Pause. Tap, Tap. Pause. Tap, Tap, Tap. Hao turned around, a quizzical look upon his face. He looked at the window, to suddenly see a small pebble make contact with the glass. Tap. Came the noise again. Hao quickly made his way to the window, sliding it across, another mini rock flying past his nose almost hitting him in the face. "Hey!" he called out, now looking cross. "What are you - " Hao stopped the words from coming out, as stood beneath his window on the grass at the side of the house, was HoroHoro.
"Hao!" He called up, panting, his face red. "You've got to get the hell out of here!" The words didn't quite sink in to Hao. He cocked his head to one side, almost like he hadn't heard him. He just stared at his friend, confused. "Hao don't space out on me! You need to get your butt down here, and we need to get away from here as fast as we can!" he called up to him.
"Why?" Asked Hao simply, not seeming to be panicked.
"It's the Shaman Council! All of them! Silva, Karim, Goldva, all of them! They're all here, in this town! Looking for you! I saw them, they're looking for Yoh's house. I heard them talking, they've got some sort of power with them, I don't know what I just ran after I heard them say they are
here to kill you!" this now made Hao blink and concentrate.
"What power?!" he shouted, now beginning to feel uneasy.
"I don't know! C'mon dude, get out of the house and let's go!"
"But..." Hao blinked, turning around looking back into his room, he felt inside his pocket, finding the money he left there. He had only just begun to like living there, even with Yoh - Suddenly Hao gasped, placing his hand across his mouth. Leave? Now? He couldn't...not before he's worked out what to do with Yoh's body. He can't just forget about him! It was really important! Hao turned around. "What about Yoh?!" He yelled. HoroHoro shrugged.
"I don't know we'll work that out later but please we need to get going! Opacho will be fine with Chocolove and Ren, just you and me dude let's go!" Hao had already ran back into the house, but not making his way instantly out of the house, he darted into his brother's room, throwing himself on his knees beside him. He pulled back to covers lay neatly over him, and began to gently lift him. He carefully weaved his left arm under his neck and shoulders, and his right arm under his knees and legs. He got to his feet and lifted him, carrying him like a child. He gently placed Yoh's head so he was resting on Hao's chest, not lying back. Yoh's limp and freezing cold body made Hao shudder and goose bumps filled within him. But not pausing for another second, he ran out of the room, down the stairs, and out the front door. Luckily, not being noticed by anyone. HoroHoro was waiting for him, jumping back and forth on his feet in desperation to get away from the place. HoroHoro didn't say anything about the body Hao was carrying, he nodded his head and the two of them began to run as fast as they could away from the house, and out of town. Neither of them knew where they were going. Neither of them knew why they were in such danger...
But all Hao could worry about, was what was going to happen to Yoh...