Rumbling Earth

If not for the barrier cast by the men in black, many people could have noticed the bright shining light coming from Rei's accumulated power. As Kaori was about to grab his hand, Rei suddenly retracted as an idea boldly came up instead.

"What's wrong?", Kaori asked surprisingly, her hand still hanging in mid-air.

"I think, maybe,...I will try something, don't worry!", Rei reassured his friend as he took a brave step forward and took a deep breath. The boy drew out a paper talisman while mumbling a spell, then wrapped it around his right wrist. As Kaori observed him quietly, Rei quickly put both hands on the ground before the men could approach any closer.

The next thing happened was out of the ordinary. Kaori finally opened her eyes after she sensed the strong light fading away; there she saw was six men lying on the ground, motionless…Before the young girl could figure out anything, Rei grabbed her by the arm and the two ran away together towards Kaori's house. What on earth just happened? The thought flew by as Kaori ran with all her might; the thing Rei just did, the men in black forcing them to follow with, the sense of danger approaching left Kaori restless as she took out her phone and called Hideki, while hoping that her brother was still safe and sound.

Meanwhile, the young master of the Shimizu clan was already resting at home. The arcade wasn't interesting enough to keep Hideki for too long, or…he probably felt something unusual as well. After hearing the news from Kaori, Hideki immediately left his room to find the head mistress, who was enjoying her evening tea at that moment.

"Mother, I have bad news. Kaori and Rei suddenly got threatened by some strange men. Do you happen to know about this, mother?", Hideki asked worriedly while trying to remain calm.

"Was that what happened? I suppose your father's absence might bring forth some unpleasant events in the future. This mishap is probably one of them…", the mistress shared in contempt with slight worry in her eyes.

"Mom! I'm home, and there's also Rei coming with me. Hideki, you told mother what happened yet?", Kaori arrived at the door with Rei right behind her, both looked exhausted from the run.

"I just did, and mother was implying that it has something to do with our father not being here with us. Can you explain more to us about this matter, mother? I would like to help our family, too!", Hideki pleaded as he directed his gaze back to his mother, who's standing up to prepare tea for the children.

"Sit down, kids. Let's have some warm drinks and I'll share with you all about what might be happening in the near future.", her voice echoed softly as she poured out the fragrant tea.

"The aroma is so soothing…", Kaori took a sniff as she tried to relax herself on the chair close by.

"Whenever I feel stressed out, I would always have some of this tea.", the mistress shared as she took a light sip.

"Now, for the problem at hand, the Head of the Shimizu's clan, or…your father,...is currently not able to show himself right now. Rei dear, the reason for his absence will be delivered to you later by my children. However, since his disappearance, many clan's members have visited and were asking where he could have been. Some asked out of curiosity, others asked for information,...or may I say, an opportunity to rise up and seize more power.", Mrs. Shimizu spoke calmly while the children were listening carefully to her story.

"But I have never sensed any conflict between the clans recently…", Hideki spoke up as he also drank some tea, his eyes widened in surprise.

"That's true, mother. Aside from Ryo picking a fight with Hideki from time to time, I also didn't see any abnormal behaviours.", Kaori added as she gave her mother a confusing look.

"That might be the case for you two but not for me, little ones. The matter is just not as simple as it may look, as even our allies could probably become enemies at any time. Rei, I thank you for protecting my daughter during the hard time, but your power is still unstable right now… Please remember to polish the spell on that talisman of yours, it will help you greatly in controlling your power.", the head mistress gave out a slight warning while gazing at the talisman still wrapping around Rei's wrist.

"I see, so there might be a chance that Ryo was behind the attack :(", Hideki took a wild guess as he scratched his head.

"Whether that's the case or not, as long as Mr. Shimizu isn't around, your family is in danger. Is there anything we can do? And yes, I will make sure to control my power better, Mrs. Shimizu.", Rei raised his question as he took the talisman off.

Kaori suddenly avoided looking at Rei the moment she heard of his power being mentioned…, as the girl suddenly remembered what just happened a few minutes ago. I wonder if I should ask Rei about his power…The thought flew by but couldn't stay long in Kaori's mind.

"There's one we can do in this situation. Please, hang in there with me! Keep training and polishing your skills and power, so as to prepare for the big tsunamis coming our way ;) It will be a tough fight,...especially without your father here with us…However, until he can wake up again, we will stand strong and welcome him back, safe and sound.", Mrs. Shimizu bravely encouraged the young ones; her eyes were no longer listless like the moment she broke the wretched truth about her frozen husband to her daughter, but instead,...brimming with fragile hopes.

"Yes, mother! I also share your thoughts. Rei, I sincerely ask for your help; if it's you, I believe we all can pull through this mess together. And also, thank you for protecting my sister earlier!", Hideki humbly asked his friend for a big favour as he took a slight bow. The gesture left both Kaori and Rei in shock as the two had never seen Hideki act so politely and honestly before.

"Oh God, why are you acting so formally, I'm getting all awkward right here :"-) Of course I'm gonna help you guys, what are friends for? ;3", Rei replied without hesitance as he bowed back.

Now it's getting real awkward here ^-^…The thought popped up as Kaori and her mother exchanged a soft glance. Although,...after hearing the truth, I wonder if Rei would still want to help us,...The dreadful thought seeped through the mind of the young twins, who were afraid that the darkness in the Pandora Box could possibly destroy their friendship which was still a forming crystal, forever.

-UwU-

That night, so many thoughts were swirling around in Kaori's head, leaving her in a slump. After a long while burying her face in the pillow, Kaori was finally out of breath and decided to call her close friend, Ayano, who happened to be awake still.

"Hello! What's up, Kaori?", Ayano answered while putting down a magazine.

"Good evening, Ayano. I'm sorry to bother you so late at night, do you happen to have some free time? I would like to consult with you about something…"

"Sure! I'm doing nothing important anyway. Let me guess,...is it about Rei? After the talk with Hideki, have you told Rei the truth yet?", Ayano started with a question, she got straight to the point just per usual.

"Well, I haven't…But before I get to do it, something else happened and I feel like more and more problems are piling up on me.", Kaori sighed as she stroked her temple. After listening to Kaori's story, Ayano couldn't help but feel worried about her friend who used to be so cheerful but then grew sorrowful due to such unfortunate events.

"I suppose it's a good thing that Rei transferred back to your school. If he hadn't been there, you might have been kidnapped by those men already. And, for his power, I think it would be fine though, as long as he keeps it in check, don't you think?", Ayano tried to lift her friend's spirit, even if it's just a little bit.

"Yes, I think Hideki would give me the same advice like you do :") Although, hearing it from you might make me feel better, haha.", Kaori whispered as if she was afraid that Hideki might overhear her conversation.

After the short but meaningful chat over the phone with Ayano, the fragile but resilient girl finally understood what she needed to do. There was one thing that Kaori decided to keep from Ayano, that was her father being missing. Ayano is a nice person, but I still want to face my clan's problem on my own; so that one day, I can stand firm on equal ground with the future heir of the Kannagi's clan. Kaori kept the thought to herself as the night grew colder, but her spirit still sparkled in her dream.

-UwU-

"Kazuma,...is this the only way to bring my father back?", she asked.

"There's another way, but it's just as difficult as the first,... for me, at least.", he answered.

The vivid dream slowly faded away as the head mistress of the Shimizu's clan woke up from her Vision. It came too early this time,...Probably, I just sank a little deeper into my own landmine,...Oh dear husband~, how can I ever get to see you again?…Will Kazuma be able to make the right choice?...When the mistress's daughter was able to find her ray of hope, a nightmare seemed to befall the future as the powerful seer cried herself to sleep, hoping to reunite with her beloved husband one day.