Chapter 2: Finally Meeting You

Tokiya watched the incoming train from the glass window on the second floor of the station, a whirlwind brewing from his insides. He already had her picture in his hand. He looked down at it. The Polaroid snapshot labeled 'Tanya Mikagami.' He shut his eyes; letting his memories of the past week overcome him.

FLASHBACK:

The sound of the doorbell ringing roused Tokiya from his trancelike state, from reading and rereading the child custody letter he had received a few days ago. The phone call that followed that letter led to this moment.

He stood up and opened the door. A woman in her late thirties stood there. There was no doubt this was his former mentor's sister. They had the same physical features, and almost the same aura of power.

"Hello. You must be Tokiya." She smiled.

"Yes." Tokiya mustered up a grin. "Come on in."

He lead her to his apartment's living room and bade her to sit down on the couch then he excused himself and went to get a couple of drinks from the kitchen.

He returned and sat across her, passing a glass of lemonade across the coffee table.

"You are Megumi Kyoza, am I right?"

The woman nodded. "Yes."

The silence that followed her reply seemed to fill up the space between them, but finally, she spoke again.

"Forgive me if I stare. I know this might be painful for you to hear, but you look so much like your father..."

Tokiya nodded. "I"m sure you meant it as a compliment. Thank you."

Megumi smiled. "And now, I feel I owe you a huge explanation."

"That you do." Tokiya leaned back and took a sip of his own lemonade.

Megumi shifted uncomfortably. "I was hoping I would be able to call you before they sent you that child custody letter. I found out they dispatched it the moment the custody hearing was over. The shock must still be overwhelming for you up till now."

Tokiya watched the condensation drip down his glass and wet his fingers. He looked up at his guest and found her to be smiling sympathetically. He found it strangely warm, so unlike Meguri's cold sneer.

"This is all very sudden, but I'm willing to take her in. In fact, I insist upon it. We're... we're all each other has now."

"I find I'm extremely surprised to hear you say that. You never even knew she existed." Megumi put her glass down on its coaster. "

Tokiya swallowed a mouthful of lemonade. "It doesn't change the fact that I am her brother."

Megumi let out a chuckle. "You'll have to excuse me for being so brash. It's just... I've gotten quite attached to the little imp you're agreeing to take in. Now that she'll be living with you, I won't get to see her as much. She always makes my day, one way or another."

Tokiya felt the corners of his mouth stretch into a grin. "That makes me a bit more anxious to meet her."

His guest gave him a sincere smile. "I guarantee you that she'll be quite a handful. Now, I want to tell you what really happened to your parents."

The Ensui – Master leaned forward.

"I'll start from the beginning: They weren't killed, Tokiya. I was able to stop my brother from taking their lives. When he found out that I had them go into hiding, he immediately searched for you and Mifuyu and…. well…."

"He had her killed." Tokiya finished, returning his gaze to the yellow depths of his drink.

"I was too late in trying to stop him. Your parents begged me to come and get the two of you. When I arrived at the scene, I saw your sister dead and no sign of you. I knew he must have wanted you alive, so I went to his house to retrieve you. He fought me off." Megumi lifted her left sleeve to reveal a deep red welt. "I still bear the scar from that night."

Tokiya felt his insides churn. "I feel ashamed to be the cause of pain on your account." He bowed his head. "I am sorry."

"No. It is I who should be apologizing. I should have brought someone along. It was stupid of me, thinking I could face Meguri alone."

Tokiya shut his eyes.

Megumi continued. "Anyway, your parents were devastated at what happened to you and Mifuyu. Out of fear of what my brother would do, I had them live in the same village I was living in Hokkaido, so I could watch them and protect them at all costs. They begged me to let them come see you, but again I was foolish in my fears. I forbade them to have anything to do with you. The only news they would get about you came from me. So they know that you were part of the team that won the Urabutousatsoujin two years ago. Team Hokage, right?"

Tokiya nodded. "How did you…."

"I have my ways." Megumi laughed. "My brother isn't the only one with useful contacts. Your parents were so proud of you, by the way."

Tokiya found himself smiling genuinely.

"Let's take this story back eight years ago, and that's where Tanya comes in." Meguri removed a Polaroid snapshot from her purse and passed it to Tokiya across the table.

"Your parents had her, as I said, eight years ago. They were quite protective of her, but don't let the looks fool you. She's one courageous spirit. That's why your parents let me train her to wield a Madougou at such a young age."

"A Madougou?"

"An Ensui, much like yours, only that, instead of water, it is powered by fire."

"So, she must be…."

"Pyrokinetic, yes. It didn't take her long to master the element of fire, but she still needs to improve on her control."

Tokiya stared at the snapshot. A little girl with silvery eyes stared back at him. The same silver eyes that his older sister and their father shared. She looked like a younger version of Mifuyu, only this time with ebony – black hair he recognized likely to be inherited from their mother. This was his little sister, hands down.

"So, she must be eight years old by now?"

"She's turning eight this September 29." Megumi answered.

"When will she be arriving here?" Tokiya asked.

"Next week, Friday. You can expect some of her belongings to arrive by tomorrow"

Tokiya slumped. That gave him a little more than seven days to fix up a suitable room.

"I hope you don't mind me saying, Tokiya, but you're more mature than I expected. Even more than most nineteen-year-olds I know."

"Thank you."

Megumi's fingers twisted in her lap. "I feel your energy too. I can tell you've still been training. You hide it well. At least that's one good thing my brother taught you."

A fond smile crossed her face, as a thought sprang to her mind. "Tanya can't seem to master hiding her energy and I can't seem to get her to understand how. Perhaps you will have better luck teaching her."

"I'll do my best." Tokiya promised. "I'll take good care of her."

"I'll hold you to that." Megumi smiled. "Oh, and by way, the money your parents left will be added up to your current financial account. It should be enough to get you and Tanya through the rest of your schoolyears. The people in charge of child support at the custody hearing took the liberty of enrolling her in Tokyo Elementary School."

Tokiya breathed a sigh of relief. That was one item he could cross off his 'To Do' list. "Please thank them for me."

Megumi nodded as she glanced at her watch. Sighing, she stood up. "I'm afraid I have to go. I need to do a few errands." She reached into her purse, pulled out a business card and handed it to him. "You can reach me at this number if you need to know anything else."

Tokiya stood up as well. "There is one thing I need to know before you go."

Megumi raised her eyebrows.

"You didn't mention how my parents…. died."

Megumi's eyes seemed to get teary. "Their house was burned, and they were trapped inside. Tanya was at school when it happened. When she got home from the bus stop, the fire was put out already. Only a small section of the house burned down, with your mother and father in it…. I didn't even know about the fire until Tanya called me up at my office."

For a minute, Tokiya felt that seething fury he felt on the night Mifuyu was killed. His heart ached.

"There were traces to make it look like it had been and accident, but to a better-trained eye, it looked so planned out. They still haven't found out who the culprits are, and frankly, they don't have much people to question. Even I was pulled in by the police to be interrogated." Megumi wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

Silence.

Tokiya let out a breath he realized he'd been holding and walked Megumi to the door. "Thank you for taking the time to come here."

"No problem."

He watched his former mentor's sister push a button on her keychain. Two beeps signaled that her car was unlocked. She opened the driver's door and made to get in, then saw her seemingly conceal another laugh before turning around.

"Oh, and Tokiya?"

He looked up.

"Fight the urge to spoil Tanya, hmm?"

END FLASHBACK

Energy seemed to reverberate through the air. It was young, uncontrolled, and fiery. Tokiya's eyes flew open. This was her energy. It had to be. It stood out, as clear as though she was standing right next to him.

His eyes scanned the stream of people leaving the train, tracing the path of youthful power. It's owner finally disembarked from the train.

"That's her." Tokiya recognized her the moment he saw her. An amused smile came to his lips as he remembered Megumi telling him over the phone last night that Tanya insisted on riding the train to Tokyo alone.

He watched her mount a bench and scan the crowd, undoubtedly looking for him. A while later, she had to get down and remove her luggage from the bench so that an old man could sit.

Tokiya tore his gaze from the window and took the escalator down. Tanya's gaze seemed to find him as he descended; he saw her face go through a myriad of emotions. She reached inside her coat, seemingly to grip something in there, then finally picked up her luggage and made her way towards him.

Tokiya took a few calming breaths as he got off the escalator.

"This is it. Now or never, Mikagami."