A/N: 2 chapters mashed into 1! Also this chpt is longer to make up for the previous chpt which was on the shorter side.
Disclaimer: I do not own the music lyrics, the song is "Stargazing" by Kygo.
Chpt 9: Stargazer
February 2, 2010
3rd Person POV
"YOU IDIOT." Hana smacked Misaki upside the head.
"Owwwwww." Misaki grumbled and he clutched his head with one hand, the other arm in Hana's grip.
"I get a phone call saying that some idiot decided to take on a stupid group of punks all on his own. I come here, and I see you laughing it off AS IF YOUR ARM WAS NOT ALMOST CUT THROUGH TO THE BONE." While this entire conversation was been going on, Hana had Misaki's arm coated in her aura.
"They just got a jump on me! I handled them fine, I could take 'em." Misaki's pride in his clan would not be deterred by some measly punks who decided to try to do business in their territory.
"You're not invincible Misaki, stop acting like you're seven." Hana rolled her eyes at Misaki's cockiness.
His face turned red either from embarrassment or anger, who knows.
Before Misaki could retort back, Hana kept her mom-mode at full capacity. "I'm finished, just take care of yourself alright? I'm always here to heal and take care of you guys, but at least call in backup next time. Now I expect you to take a nap since this process tires your body as it accelerated your healing."
"Okay, okay, geez." Just like how Misaki doesn't stutter when talking to Anna, Misaki eventually (after several months) got used to talking to Hana. Maybe it's because Hana is now like a sibling that he's able to talk to her normally.
"Thanks for coming Hana." Izumo peeked his head into the back room that they were in. He had been tending to a bar customer when Hana came rushing in to treat Misaki.
"Yeah, anytime. Plus it's been a while since I've met up with you guys." Hana began putting away her medical supplies that she used to first sanitize the wound before she used her aura to stitch the skin back together.
"What's been goin' on lately?" Izumo made small talk as she walked back into the main area of the bar, where Anna impatiently waited and Mikoto leisurely smoked.
"I've been here and there. Got a new job lately. Guess it was worth it to invest in a PDA since it came in handy." Hana gave Anna a nice side hug as she took a seat.
"Imagine my surprise when I found a sticky note with your phone number on it just lying on my bar counter, order's on the house."
"I can be sneaky when I want to be. I'll get what she's drinking." Hana indicated to the tall young lady sitting next to her.
Said lady turned towards Hana as she realized that she was being addressed.
"Aye." Izumo made a pained face as if he was being tortured. Nevertheless, he made the drink requested. A virgin watermelon margarita with 3 scoops of…. Red bean paste.
The young lady was wearing a flowing white mini-dress with a black sash around her waist, white stockings, and white high heels. She also had on a white coat with fur ends on the sleeves. It is still quite cold outside, but the bar's interior was supplied with a steady heat. Ha, guess that saves on the heating bill since these guys are natural furnaces. In addition, the drop-dead gorgeous customer wore pearl accessories and light makeup with the outfit.
"Seri Awashima." Seri held out her hand for Hana to shake.
"Hana Kugawa. Are you a University student?" Ah. The future SCEPTER 4 Lieutenant. It seemed like Izumo had a crush on Seri, even if he tried to act cool about it. How ironic considering Izumo is HOMRA's second-in-command, similar to the position of a Lieutenant.
"I go to X University."
"My, oh my, that's one of those big ones nearby isn't it?" Hana took a sip of the 'abomination.'
Her eyes widened in surprise. "This is quite good!"
"Isn't it? The red bean paste adds a sweet tang to the drink. Especially in vodka, I typically get 5 scoops." Seri's hair was down and swept to the side as she animatedly talked about different drink and snack combos with red bean paste.
Izumo seemed like all he wanted to do was run out of the bar from their conversation.
Their conversation ranged from sports to beauty routines. It seemed like they both had a strict workout routine and made plans to go to the gym together next time they were both in the same area.
March 2010
"Singing."
Once a week, Hana had taken to street performing.
At first, it might seem odd that she would do something like that considering she wasn't in need of any money. But it was her way to relieve stress and just have fun.
Pepper was curled up on Hana's shoulders as she strummed her guitar. She was sitting outside a quaint little coffee shop in downtown Shizume. She had become fast friends with the owner, who was glad to have her perform every week and draw in customers.
Hana strummed her guitar strings as began her next song. "You're saying it's hopeless, that I should hope less. Heaven can help us, well maybe "she" might."
Fate is something that can't be changed. At first, that's what I thought before I came here. I'm not going to waste my time thinking why I was sent here, instead, I'm going to focus on how to save people. I still want to become a doctor, even if these powers are kind of cheating.
"You say it's beyond us, what is beyond us? Let's see and decide." Sometimes it does seem like our goals and ambitions are far out of our reach, but are they really? Or are we holding ourselves back?
"We've been meteoric, even before this. Burns half as long when it's twice as bright." Hana's thoughts turned to Mikoto whose light was so bright. Too bright. He was harming himself and shortening his lifespan because his aura and powers were too strong.
"So if it's beyond us, then it's beyond us. Let's see and decide. And I will still be here, stargazing. I'll still look up, look up. Look up for love." What will happen will happen. I can't go back and change the past, but what I can do is change the future. Or what will be the future in this universe.
"I'm trying to save us, you don't wanna save us. You blame human nature, and say it's unkind." Mikoto, please let me save you. I don't know what your reaction is going to be, but please don't turn me away. Also, future Colorless King, I'm coming for you. I'm going to try to get to you before you lose yourself in your hunger for power.
"Let's make up our own minds, we've got our whole lives. Let's see and decide, decide." I don't know how much time I have here, but Tatara has so much to live for. I can't let him down. I won't let him down. I will make sure the Colorless King doesn't kill him. I can't. I can't lose another person again.
"And I will still be here, stargazing. I'll still look up, look up. Look up for love. Stars don't disappear, they keep blazing. Even when the night is over." Stars are always there in the sky. They don't disappear when the sun comes up, it's just another star that outshines the rest of them. The stars are always there for us. It must be a lonely life up there among the stars, Addy. You're all alone, just gazing down at all of us as we gaze back up at you.
There were many people who stopped and listened to Hana's performance. Others continued to walk on after a quick glance at her.
Pepper, a typically sleepy and lazy ferret (who sometimes reminded Hana of Mikoto), suddenly perked up. Hana was too distracted in her thoughts to realize that Pepper's head had come up and her eyes were locked onto a certain figure.
This figure was wearing a blue fitted sweater with khaki pants. He was wearing rimmed glasses and had his blue hair parted to one side.
Gathering herself like a cat ready to pounce on a mouse, Pepper jumped off of Hana's shoulder and directly towards the tall figure.
Hana stopped singing as she realized that Pepper was now being held by the scruff of her neck by a passer-by.
"Gomenasai!" Hana bowed in apology to the person Pepper had caused an inconvenience to.
"Pepper, what are you doing?" Hana scolded as she held both palms up and open as if to receive change from a cashier. The passer-by dropped Pepper into her waiting palms.
However, Pepper knew that this was going to happen. The second the man let go of her, Pepper used Hana's hands as a springboard and jumped onto the person's shoulders.
Hana mentally face palmed, but the person just smiled.
"You're looking for this right?" The blue-haired man reached into his vest pocket and retrieved a piece of dried chicken. It was in a plastic bag like beef jerky… just chicken jerky instead. The stranger handed it to Pepper who took it with her front paws eagerly and began chowing down.
It's not that Hana starves Pepper or anything, in fact, she's heavier than she's supposed to be as she hunts her own food in addition to what Hana feeds her. Chicken is her favorite food though, and so it wasn't any surprise that she could smell the dried chicken from this person.
"I am so sorry Mr…."
"Munakata. Reisi Munakata." Hana's eyes which had been carefully watching Pepper shot to the person's face. She quickly realized that…. This person is the future 4th and Blue King. He's not in uniform though. Hana doesn't remember when he became the 4th King, but it must be soon.
Last month she met Seri, and now she's running into Reisi. Are these coincidences? Or did fate plan something out…
"Come here Pepper." Hana softly called out and tried to pick Pepper up from Resi's left shoulder. However, Pepper avoided her hands and perched herself on Resi's right shoulder instead. "Okay, I know you're mad I didn't give you any chicken yesterday, but you need to watch your weight! You can't escape from your problems by jumping onto other people's shoulders and getting them to give you extra treats. By doing so, it only means you will continue to lose your way, doesn't it?"
Reisi chuckled as Hana lectured the small animal.
"I apologize for her behavior Munakata-san. I'll make it up to you."
"It's alright. You just reminded me of me when I was in high school. I had a friend who I would lecture in much the same way."
"Would you like to grab some coffee? By the time Pepper finishes her snack, she'll be more reasonable. Must've been a little hangry."
When Reisi agrees, Hana packs her guitar and they both settle into the coffee shop.
It was a nice setting. The aroma of coffee beans with the wooden furnishings gave off a nice, homey feel. As they ordered our drinks, they sat at a corner table, waiting for them to be delivered. The owner had no issue with Pepper (which you imagine a coffee shop would), because she's well behaved (typically), and the owner and Hana are good friends. Hana often frequented the coffee shop, either before or after her performances and sometimes would receive a drink on the house when the owner was in town. She owned several chains in other nearby cities.
The girl with pink hair carefully sipped her mocha latte. Enjoying the drink, she softly hummed, "If it's beyond us, then it's beyond us. I will still be here, stargazing." I want to be a star, they keep blazing and never disappear. "Even when it's night, that's how people find their light." Even that loner up there appreciates them.
Hana pointed outside the window and towards the sky. "Have you heard the rumors about the aircraft in the sky?"
"I've heard of the app called 'candle,' which lets you light up your PDA in a red color. People say that you can see the light from extremely far away. There's an urban legend that states that when someone who is suffering points their 'candle' at that aircraft, those above the Earth will rescue them. Quite silly and nonsensical in my opinion."
"Hmmmm…. But every rumor is based on a grain of truth. You just need to sift away the untruths to find the facts."
"Sounds like a waste of time." Reisi's sharp eyes seemed to dull at the thought of being a mere spectator, it sounds a lot more fun to have an influence and an impact in the world.
"Well, some are fascinated and wish to live like that. Up among the stars, being adored by everyone."
"If there really was a person on that blimp, I would image he'd be quite lonely. Up among the stars, never interacting with others, yet always being a spectator. Playing God, how arrogant."
In her head, Hana gwaffed and without her self-control would have done a spit-take at Reisi's words. That is exactly how Addy is! Without even knowing him or if he even exists, Reisi explained his personality perfectly. Addy, you have to step up your game, even those of us earthbound know of your arrogance. Then again, as the future Blue King, his perceptiveness must be a trait of his.
Instead of a situation where her drink would be all over the table, Hana kept her mouth shut and nodded her head in agreement. Then, she decided to change the subject. "Hypothetically speaking, if there is a situation where one is fighting to do the right thing, even if it harms another, is it considered just?"
"One country's freedom fighters is another country's terrorists. There is no right or wrong, it just depends on perspective."
"Using that argument, then even something that is considered 'just,' is based on the justice wielder's perspective isn't it?" Hana leaned forward slightly in her chair.
"No matter what, war and chaos should not be allowed."
"But what if it is the battle and chaos that opens the gates to equality and freedom? Should one stand aside and allow their freedom to be taken from them? Or should they stand up and do the right thing, even if the entire world is against it."
Reisi was silent for a moment.
"Right now, we live in times of peace. There hasn't been a war since WWII, and since then the world has healed and prospered. Back then, there was a need to fight the fight and win the war. But now, if the cause is pure and valid then there should be no hesitation when fulfilling one's duties."
During the entire conversation, Resi held a level eye contact with the pink-haired lady. He did not yet have the confidence of a King, but he sure spoke like one.
Hana smiled softly and stood up, her cup of coffee already finished. "We're only human, right? Have a good day Reisi-san."
She waited until he returned the sentiment, then turned her back on him and walked towards the entrance. As her boots clicked on the walnut-colored wooden flooring, the small ferret leapt off of Reisi's shoulders and onto Hana's.