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By Ran-Chan |
Out in the dusty desert, a land that I had never visited before, the sun seemed to drone on forever. The wind blasted from every direction, and I ha run into some dust devils, but nothing serious. I constantly rubbed my eyes to get rid of the sand, but never was enough. My blood red cape flapped like a flag around me, hugging onto me.
From my purse I whipped out my new scanner I had created. It was especially useful for a land I had been looking for some time now. It bleeped and seemed to snicker when it found and circled what I was looking for.
"Hm, that can't be right," I covered my eyes as I looked back behind me over my shoulder. "I just went through there." I tried the scan again and got the same results. "Ok-ay," I said with a doubt in my heart and hopped on my hover-bike.
I skeered across the sands for a few miles, around a land that looked no different. No life had been seen, no interesting roses to remember from a grave; just sand.
I haulted instantly when I thought I heard my scanner beep. I was close. My heart pumped faster, anxious to get this over with.
Over the hill, and down the other side, I had saw a blue gem in the desert storm. Three of them, with bamboo poles hopelessly poking up from them, broken and cracked like jagged teeth.
My footprints in the sand were quickly wisped away as I stepped out to the small springs.
The bamboo poles, one was about ten feet above ground without any breaking, but cracked in a few places. The one closest to me, the pole was only about my heighth, and I've always been known as short for my age. The last one, the pole was cracked in the center, the top half hopelessly flipped over, smacking the base with the wind's encouragement.
My canteen was already empty, and had been for many miles. I couldn't believe it. I built a scanner for these three springs, which were legendary, but I heard were cursed. I had a fascination, or an obsession, with these springs, built a scanner, and never had the time to take it out on the trip. I had lost interest by now, but figured that I would regret allowing my invention to rot away.
Legendary or not, I was dying of thirst and filled my canteen with the water from the closest spring. It looked the cleanest.
"What are you doing?!"
I whirred around to find a boy about my age, with long black hair, and a white Chinese blouse and pants. He had calm eyes, and I noticed though, that his hair was not flying everywhere like mine would have been if it was not covered.
"Who are you?"
He ignored my question. "Don't you know that those are cursed?"
"What?" And he vanished away as quick as my footprints. "What?" I repeated, but louder. A mirage.
I knew they were legendary, but cursed?On my way home, I filled up my vehicle with gas and slept at an inn for the night. My canteen was mostly empty, the cursed water?
I would have been close to death as miserable as I was. My throat was dry and cracked, and my tongue felt full and flaky. I was too desperate, I had to drink the water. But I didn't get any weird reactions. I'd be okay.
The inn had a strange feel to it, me being the only female besides a plump lady who sat in a corner knitting a scarf, near a small fire. There was a group of bustling muscular men about twice my age who were goofing off in the lounge. I was too tired and turned in for the night. After a cold, cold shower, I wrapped myself up in a towel and felt more awake. I crossed my legs and sat on the edge of the bed, wrapped in a white towel, reading a magazine that I subscribed to through my portable screen.
A few times I was interrupted with a scratch or a shy knock on the door, not knocking if it was someone who just brushed the door with their belongings on the way by or somebody who wanted to see me. I continued to my reading. Who would want to see me?
"He-ey," the door cracked open. Didn't I lock it? "I'm comin in with you."
"What do you want?" I said in defense. "Please leave, I'm not fully dressed!"
"Baby, that'sh allright . . ." A bald guy about fourty with a gold nose ring slammed the door behind him, fumbling for the lock, but didn't find it and came in after me.
"What are you doing?!" I stood up. "Get out!"
The man was obviously drunk. His stance was uneven, shifting from foot to foot, reaching for anything to keep his balance. He smelled of sweat and beer and smoke, and he hiccupped as he slurred.
"Pleash, jush for tonight . . ." he whined, hugging his arms around me, his face half-way burried into my chest. I didn't remember him getting so close! He pushed me against the bed, pinning me with his weight.
"Get offa me!"
"I SAID JUSH FOR TONIGHT!"
I tried to knuckle him, but my arms weren't long enough. He started to unzip his vest, one hand grasped at my throat and chin. I could feel myself about to cry when his warm breath blew against my neck.
"Noooo," I cried.
"Get offa her, you slime!"
The man choked and was blown to the floor. I shot up and rubbed my eyes, clutching my towel. My red hair was still stringy and all over my shoulders, only hiding the top half of my bosom.
The drunk cracked against the wall. I had to stare a few seconds to find that boy from earlier, the one at the spring! He dragged the drunk out into the hall and locked the door behind him, but I think it was to keep him out, not me.
"Are you all right?"
"Y-Yeah," I stared at him hard in the eyes. "You're that boy . . ."
"Yes." I found myself on my feet, not remembering getting up, but I remember standing before him.
"What are you doing here?"
"I need to know," he heaved a sigh. "Did you drink that water?"
"You mean-!!" I squinted to see him better. "You weren't a mirage, were you?!"
"No I'm not. The water from the spring. . . . Did you drink it?"
"Yeah. About half of my canteen. The rest of it I still have. Why?"
"NO!" He made a fist. "That water . . . is cursed. I dunno which is which, but each one had an animal or a person that drowned there, like thousands of years ago, but . . ."
"But what?"
"I dunno, I just had a bad feeling about you drinking the water, that's all."
And he left. I reached out for him, upset that I didn't say anything earlier. "No! Please come back! I want you to stay!"
"Do you really?" I couldn't see him, but I could hear him.
"Yes! Please stay!"
"All right." And he stepped back into my vision, but I could see him more clearly now. "If you didn't say anything just then, I would have erased your memory a second later."
"Are you-" I felt his chest. "Are you real?"
"I am now," he flinched at my touch. "But only to you."
His blouse was soft and had a silk-like texture to it. I quickly put my hands to my sides.
"Why are you here though? I mean, as a spirit? Why aren't you dead?"
"I can't tell you that." His gaze was melting into my eyes. "It would mess things up. I mean, you will know later."
"Oh," I decided not to ask anything else. I didn't want to shower him with questions and help him decide to leave. I was too curious now. But his eyes, whenever I'd dare to take a peek or stare, his eyes expressed great sorrow. What kind of pain has he been through for such a face?
I twirled him around so that I could get my pj's on. But since he was now physical, he needed a place to sleep as much as I did. After I was done getting dressed, I pulled my hair in a low pony-
tail. I didn't even know this guy.
"Oh, hey." He scratched his head. "I'm Ranma. Ranma Soatome. And you are . . .?" He offered me his hand.
"Oh, I'm . . . Akane Tageuchi." I accepted the hand shake. For some reason, he was surprised
when I told him my name. Or was it the hand-touching stuff? "Somethin' wrong?"
"N-No! It's just that I . . ." He tried to smile. "Never mind!"So that night, I wound up sleeping under the sheets and blankets, and Ranma only under the blanket, with a knife under my pillow in case he tried anything funny.
But I didn't get a full-night's sleep. I was careful to make as little movement as possible so that I wouldn't disturb Ranma's slumber, and to watch him to make sure I wasn't the next inspire in a slasher movie. But to tell you the truth, that's not why I awoke, although it was part of it.
I felt the bed moving a little bit, and set my eyes over on the peaceful man next to me, who was as still as a lamb. I stared at him blankly until my eyes focused in the darkness. I still felt slight movements through the sensitive springs, but Ranma didn't move. It wasn't me. I sat up and tightened my ponytail, which was pretty loose.
"It's about time, you rat." I met face-to-face with someone.
"Eh?" I blinked. My hands plapped on two strong cheeks and soft hair. "YeeeeAAAAH!!!"
I slapped the figure with all my might a few times and ran for the closest light. Ranma shot up and rubbed his eyes.
The light flashed on in the room, on me, Ranma, and a man with shoulder-length violet hair, pale orange eyes, and a strong build. He wore a plain brown Chinese blouse and baggy pants of the same color. He was taller than me, maybe even taller than Ranma. Ranma ran in between me and the man in a defensive stance.
"Hey buddy! What do you want?!" Ranma gently pushed me back. His black hair covered his strong shoulders, and in a white Chinese blouse yet. Kind of poetic.
"Shuddup! I am not interested in you. It is her."
"Yeah? What about me?!" I shouted over Ranma's ear.
"It's all your fault . . ." He pointed his finger at me in blame. "I would have still been peacefully dead in my grave if it wasn't for you!!" He stomped to us, grasping Ranma's throat, and simply trying to throw him aside. But Ranma only grabbed his throat in return and squeezed it enough so he could barely breath. The two strangled each other for a few moments, and Ranma had to let go out of will, or just logic. But this guy aimed Ranma's head at the floor and didn't miss.
He grabbed both of my shoulers firmly, almost painfully. A surprised short gasp ran out of my throat as his fingernails began to dig through my T-shirt and into my skin.
"Let me go!" I ordered. Ranma jumped up and grabbed him with one hand by the shoulder and whirred him around. I was freed.
"What is your problem?!" Ranma frowned.
"Are you kidding?! I am doomed to stick with her! I cannot rest until she's dead, and I've been through this stage many times! I just want the springs to be left alone!"
"The spring . . ." It rolled off my tongue. "All I did was drink some of the water."
"Yeah! From my spring!"
"I was thirsty!"
"Well this is fine anyways!" he sighed. "I've killed before. It really shouldn't be too tough to do it again."
"Well guess what?!" Ranma caught his attention once again. "I too, am from those springs! You're stuck with me too!"
"Curses. Are you a spirit?"
"Yes. And so are you."
"This spirit's got tricks!" He wrapped his arm around my waist and covered my neck with his other large hand. I could feel him press into my throat.
"I bind you spirit! From harming any people or other spirits!" I shouted. He was alarmed at my words. I repeated it again and again. "I bind you spirit! From harming any other people or other spirits! I bind you spirit! From harming any other people or other spirits!"
His hand slid through my throat. I couldn't feel the coldness of his skin, or the evil steam of his breath. He was now physically a spirit like Ranma was before.
"You WENCH! I'll teach you to mess with me!!" He pawed the air, to hurt me, but only strained his arm, that is, if he did.
"So you mean we hafta put up with him?" Ranma placed his hands on his hips.So at 4 A.M., I was out on my hover bike again, desperate to get home. It was all a bad dream. That's it.
Ranma was weird but this guy was unbearable. I was dressed with jeans over my boxers and my T-shirt on. Ranma sat behind me, wide awake, and the other spirit just flew aside.
"Will you slow down?!" he shouted at me.
"What for??"
"You're going too fast!!"
"Afraid to be left alone?" I sneered. "Aren't you man enough to take it? Flying can't be so bad."
"You fat mule!"
"Boneless jerk!" I reved up the speed. Ranma gripped tighter around my waist in silence. I decided to start a conversation with him instead of keeping up the pointless argue with the ghost.
"Hey, how come you had a choice to leave but he didn't?"
"What?" Ranma thought a second. "Oh, because you didn't drink the water or nuthin. I just visited you. And because you binded him, he's ghostly until you "un-bind" him."
"That won't happen!" I chuckled. I concentrated on where I was driving. What a pain. Why did I get stuck with a nice guy, and a violent maniac in one day? "Hey, what is your name anyway?!"
"Ha! I wouldn't tell your peabrain anyday!" the ghost yelled back.
"Fine then! I'll just have to call you Dog for now."
"Or Boneless Jerk," Ranma snickered in my ear.
"Allright, Mule!"
"Argh!"I parked my hover in the garage at 7:30 that morning, and heaved a sigh as I stared back up at the house. It was only three days, but it seemed like forever since I walked past the red dragon-
snaps at the front or the Welcome mat at the door.
This house my father had created. He was from America and my mother was Chinese, making me half-in-half, but I had more of my dad's red hair and blue eyes than my mother's glassy black hair and coal eyes.
"What a shaggy dump," Dog crossed his arms. "How can people stand calling a place like this home."
"Hey, why don't you just leave her alone!" Ranma shot back. "Neither one of us give a damn what you think!"
I trudged up the stairs and headed into the bathroom with a clean set of clothes. The shower was soothing, although I had taken one the night before, I wanted to get all the sand out of my hair. I stepped out of the small shower, squeezing the excess water out of my hair, blindly reaching for a towel.
"With the way you dress, you can't tell how cute your figure really is."
"Whuh?!" My eyes flew open. "You pervert! Get out of here!!" I wrapped myself in a towel.
"Why? Ashamed?" Dog poked out his tongue. Believe me, if he was physical, I would have bruised him until people thought his skin was naturally purple.
I think I actually managed to get dressed in peace, but as soon as I began in the bra area, Dog just had to poke himself in through the wall.
"And just what do you think you're doing?" I mumbled.
"Sorry. Ranma wants ya."
He left.
He left?
DID HE JUST SAY HE WAS SORRY??!!!
I zipped myself in my body suit of plastic that was skintight, and covered every part of me except for my head. Over that I put on a loose red jacket of plastic, that ended a couple inches below my chest. Of course, my favorite combat boots, military-style, black and to the knees, were on my feet.
I stepped out into the hall to find Ranma staring at the floor, his arms hung loosely by his sides, his hands in fists.
"Ranma, what did you want?" I smiled as I came up to him. His dark eyes wandered to mine.
"I'm sorry."
"About what-?"
It felt like a storm! All around me, everything blurred and flashed into a bright orange light. I felt my stomach rumble against the shaking! I was flying . . .?? What was going on? What did he do? My head felt like it was about to explode, like I was standing on it.
"Ah!" I hit something solid. All the wind was knocked out of my lungs. My large blue eyes scanned my surroundings. I was at a place, where there were hundreds of springs, of different sizes and shapes, each with a bamboo pole sticking out of it. About fifty meters ahead of me, there was a Japanese boy of about 15 or 16 in a white gi with a black belt, with a black ponytail. There was another man, much older and meatier in a white gi and the same dark belt with a sash or something on his head. And besides him was a Chinese man in a potato color uniform.
The two men in gis jumped up on top of the poles with perfect balance and grace.
I picked myself up from the ground. Where was I . . .?
The two jumped at each other, the boy dodging the old man's kick, and knocking him into a spring. He plunged into the water, and the boy landed on top of a pole, staring down at the spring. He said something, but I couldn't make the words out.
A panda arose from the spring, with the same clothing as the old man! He was pissed and knocked the boy into another nearby spring. What was this?
"AIYAH!" I heard the Chinese guide cry.
And out of the waters that the boy fell into, was a red-headed girl in his gi. I squinted at the girl carefully, running for them as I examined her. She ripped open her gi to find her full chest and yelped.
"See? Now you young girl!" the guide claimed, almost cheerfully.
"Hey," I heard behind me. Dogbreath had to come too. He gawked at the redhead. "Isn't that . . .?"
"Pretty snappy, lame brain."
"This is Jusenkyo," Dog crossed his arms. A seriously stern look gloomed onto his face. "I wonder what day it is."
"Why is that girl me?" I felt my heart pound. A small bead of sweat trickled down my forehead. "I don't belive this."
"Well, why don't you go investigate?" Dog rolled his eyes. "In the meantime, I'll go find my spring.
I trudged through the short grass waving my arms, calling for the guide. "Excuse me!" Everything went white.
After a few seconds of blank, I was back where I was, calling for the guide. But the guide, clone, and panda were gone. On top some poles were many fights and training going on. Most of the people, I had noticed, were women.
"Oh my god! Are these the Chinese Amazons that we learned about in school?!" At first, I was afraid to say anything, worried that everything would change again.
"Dammit! This is really starting to piss me off!" Dog stomped. "I wish it would finally stop!"
"Hey Dog, look at their clothing." I pointed. "Those are pretty old. They kind of look like yours.
"Yup!" Dog grinned, stretching his arms high above his head. "We were sent back to the "good ol' days". At least for me anyway."
"You mean, like time travel?"
"Yeah. Let's get outta here." I nodded in response. My back facing the springs and the fighting, I jogged downhill to a small village nearby.
Did Dog used to live here? What year is it?
I walked through the cluttered dirt streets of the town, feeling pretty akward in my clothes. I caught a lot of glances and stares, mostly from women. In fact, there were hardly any men around.
"The only men here are visitors," Dog said as if he read my mind. "At least most of them are. When I lived here, I was pretty popular with the lasses."
I decided not to say anything so that people didn't think that I was mumbling to myself.
I squeezed my way through the crowd, Dog drifting right through them. I passed shops that sold tea and rice, carpets, fish and bread, fancy dishes, even chickens. I stopped when a woman walked right across my path. She was only a few years older than me as it seemed. Her hair was long and jet-black and her face was stunning. I could feel myself wreak with jealousy.
"Oh!" Dog gasped. He stared contently at her, with a passion I never knew was in him. My heart started to thud, seeing him this way.
After she left, I just stood there.
"Move it, kid!" I heard an elder woman scold me from behind as she pushed her cart by.
"What's with that girl?" I asked Dog. He refused to make eye contact.
"It's nothing."
"Right."
"Follow her."
"The old lady or that other girl?"
"You think I want to follow an old lady?"
"Geez." I jumped wherever there was a patch of space on the ground, growing closer to the girl. "Now what?"
"Ask her if she remembers me."
"Well, what's your name?"
"Excuse me miss," a guy my age bumped into me. "Do you talk to yourself often?"
I could feel my face heat up. "Yes you lout. It makes me feel better."
"Geez, you don't have to be so snipey."
"Well well well!" Dog clapped his hands. "Where did you pick up such a nasty mouth?"
"I've got a lot worse stuff I've been saving for you."
"Honey," an older man, maybe in his early thirties, placed his hand on the girl's shoulders. "I've been looking for you. Where've you been?" The girl turned around to make eye contact with him. He had a beard and black hair tied back in a ponytail.
"We got lost!" she gasped. "I realized you were gone and I couldn't find you."
"Let's go home."
"WAIT A SECOND!!" Dog stomped. "Are they married?! Ask them!"
Geez, no matter how I'd try to say this, it would sound dumb. The couple turned their backs on me and began to leave, but I tapped their shoulders.
"Excuse me. Are you two . . . married?"
"A brave girl would ask such a question!" the girl gasped.
"Yes we are, in fact," the man grunted. And they left.
"Nice people," I said dryly. I looked off to my side to find Dog sitting in the air, cross-legged, pouting or frustrated, I couldn't tell. "What's your problem?"
"I knew her, okay?" he said defensively.
I left the marketplace. I was in the outskirts. I had no money, and no food. I was dirty and starving. I rested against the side of an inn feeling sorry for myself.
The sun was barely a sliver in the golden horizon. To my left two girls were walking up the dirt road. I overheard a little of their conversation with each other.
"I heard that Gel's baby colt drowned in there!" one girl gasped. "He had been lost for days and stopped for a drink. No one knows if he fell in or if he was pushed."
"Oh, how terrible!" the other girl replied.
"They're talking about Jusenkyo," Dog told me.
"I'm not an idiot." I sighed, changing the subject. "I just want to go back. Why did Ranma send us?"
"Eh," Dog shrugged.
I arose to my feet."This is much better!" I chortled. The water was a little cold, but bearable. My clothes were on the ground next to the pond. I yelled up at Dog, who was laying in the air, but his back facing me. "You may forget on how people can't see you, but I can, and I can bring you back to human! So don't you peek!"
"Like anyone would want to look anyway," Dog mumbled, but I didn't hear him.
The stars were coming out now. I was in a pond on the opposite side of Jusenkyo, out of the village.
Dog didn't look as far as I know. He didn't talk back to me any, but I yelled up at him a few times. After awhile, I was sure I was clean, but dawdled in the water.
"What are you doing here?"
I whirred around to a woman already halfway in the water. It was so dark, that it was hard to make her out. She had a few gray streaks in her long black hair revealing her age.
Her body was very beautiful for one that was her age. But then again, I wasn't sure what her age would have been.
"I-I'm sorry. I was taking a bath."
She stepped closer. Her dress clung onto her body tightly, her hair floating on the surface of the pond.
"I can leave, if you want," I offered. "I'm pretty much done anyway."
"No, that's okay. I'll just join you then. I take baths here too."
She began to uncover herself shamelessly in the water. Her breasts were much larger than mine, which sent me near jealousy. She tossed her clothes aside onto the ground. Than I realized that my clothes were gone.
"Oh no!"
"What is it?"
"My clothes . . . I think they were blown away."
We looked around from the pond, but I couldn't see them. They had to be somewhere nearby. I didn't want Dog to think he had an excuse to look down at us. Thank goodness his ghostly figure was easy to see at night.
"Do you want me to scrub your back?" the woman offered.
"I didn't bring a washcloth."
"That's all right. You can use mine." The water splished as she walked behind me. She took all of my hair and placed it over my shoulder. "You have such nice hair. And nice skin too."
"Th-Thanks."
The washcloth was warm. It felt like she had it dipped in hot water before she came. She must have lived nearby or brought a bowl. She scrubbed my back soothingly, but I felt akward when she touched my buttocks.
"What are you doing?!"
"What? I'm simply helping you wash." She looked clueless. Maybe that was the way things were here at this time.
"Well, forget down there."
She continued to wash my back, and went around to my ribs. Like a snap, she wrapped her arms around my neck tightly.
"I could use a young girl like you!" she said in my ear.
"Let me go, you freak!" I struggled to be free, but there wasn't much hope. "Release me!" I choked.
"No can do," she smiled. "You are sooo . . . delicious." Her grip was unbelievable. I knew that the women here were strong but . . . "I'm growing old you see. I would love to have this body of yours, and your red hair . . ."
"Please, release me," I began to plea. All the attempts I had against her were useless.
Dog flew down in anger, but when he caught what was going on, he was even more upset.
"I can't do anything until you make me human!" he claimed. "You have to say it!"
"Dog, you are-ungh!" I was interrupted by the lack of air. "Dog, I un-bind you!"
"Silence!" the woman scratched my neck with her nail. I couldn't tell, but it felt like it had drawn blood.
Dog's ghostly figure turned into more vivid colors. His purple hair was even more beautiful than I had imagined, and his orange eyes darker and filled with fire.
"What-?!" the woman shreiked. "A spirit!?"
"Get your hands offa her, you bitch!!" Dog punched her hard across the face. She hit the edge of the pond, still in the water. She removed some of her hair from her face and glared at him.
"I am a demon indeed! And back to life as well!" Dog couldn't help but laugh. He flew above the water, and the woman started to feel less confident.
I covered myself and stared up at Dog in awe.
"I am leaving now, demon." The woman crawled out. "But we will meet again." She grabbed her clothes and ran off into the darkness naked.
"Are you all right?" Dog looked down on me.
"Y-Yes." I blushed. "Do me a favor and find my clothes, will you?"
"The hag took off with them, I saw them."
"Well great! How am I supposed to get out of here?!"
"Hey! I just saved you didn't I? You could be grateful!" His face softened. He reached out his arm and I instantly flew up to him. I covered as much skin as I could. When I was level with him in the air, He wrapped his arms around me, his large sleeves closing me in. The air breezed only against my ankles and my hair. He pressed me against his chest. "We'll look for something."
I pressed my head against his chest while we flew through the air. What he did was kinda . . . heroic.
"Thank you," the words escaped my throat. I knew I would say it now or never.
"How could you do something so stupid? You could have died if I didn't come down and rescued you! Why didn't you call me?"
I made a face. "You were peeking?!"Turned out, we didn't find anything. He banged on a door and asked some people at their home if they could give me some food and clothing. They were nice enough, thank god, and even offered for me and Dog to stay for the night, but there was only a small barn to sleep in.
I was clothed in a brown leather shirt that went to my knees and a skirt that was a lighter tone of leather. Dog crossed his legs and stared at me from ten feet ahead.
"What?" I pulled back a string of hair. "Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Are you okay or not?"
"Well yeah, I am now."
"Aren't you going to bed?"
"Yeah. You?"
"No, I have to stay up and keep watch."
"What for?"
"Who do you think you ditz?!"
I frowned and crawled over the itchy piles of hay in a dark corner. I fluffed up the hay and rested against it, my backing facing Dog.
There was a figure next to me that I didn't see. Dog squinted his eyes with a frown. It was see-through and white, and a male human build sitting cross legged next to me, watching me. His back was facing Dog.
"What?" Dog spoke to himself.
The ghost looked over his shoulder at Dog.
I rolled over. "What is it?" He disappeared right before my eyes opened.
"Nothing, never mind."
I rolled back over, still facing the rotting wall and frowned to myself. "You better not think about taking advantage of me, you know!!"
"Foolish twit," Dog looked off to the side. "Who would want to take advantage of you anyway?"
I got to my feet and stomped over to Dog. He didn't bother getting up. "Why can't you say something nice for a change?"
"Just go to sleep, Mule!"
"Shut up, Dog!" I kicked him hard in the knee, but he showed no reaction of pain. My foot ached and throbbed. I began to wonder if the kick hurt me more than him. I fell on my hands and knees in front of him and felt myself begin to cry.
She's . . . crying? Dog thought. "Don't cry. I thought you were strong."
"Well I'm not! Everyone cries! But with a heart as strange as yours . . ." I wiped my tears with my sleeve. "Haven't you ever cried?"
"I don't know," Dog refused to look me in the eye. I wasn't satisfied. I couldn't read his facial expression. Did he truly never cry or just not remember it, or was he lying?"
"I bet you were a crybaby," I poked him in the chest. "Older kids teasing you and you'd bawl all the way home."
"Crying is pointless." He made strong glaring eye contact now. "It never goes anywhere."
"Do you know why people cry? The emotion of pain, or maybe happiness, is so strong, that it takes over your body. It's stronger than your muscles."
"Hmph. Just sleep and leave me be."
"Fine," I threw some hay in his face. "Good night."The next day we set out for Jusenkyo. Dog wanted to see some special spring or something. There were a couple dozens of people training. Every now and then some-
one would fall in and scream in some foreign voice.
There was a female guide there. She had short hair and a grumpy face.
"You here to train too?" she spoke in Chinese. Dog nodded to her and we walked past her into the ground.
"You have to be careful here," he told me. "You don't want to fall in."
We edged around springs and walked on. The people-in-training were mostly behind us. It was getting pretty lonesome and the sky began to turn gray, although there were no clouds.
"How much further do we have to go-o?" I whined. "I want to head back in time for lunch."
"Only a little further." He stopped a few moments later. I ran into him not paying attention. He forwned at me with doubt over his shoulder. "Careful!"
"S-Sorry," I stepped back. "I wasn't paying attention."
"I think this is it," he stared at the water. It was calm and cold-looking. So very still.
"We came all the way for this?"
"Yup." Dog closed his eyes. "I hate this!"
"If you hate it, than why are we here?"
"Most of these springs aren't cursed yet. But you see, men drown animals and humans on purpose, to learn more about the springs and have more animals to become."
"How . . . . cruel." I blinked in wonder.
"Anyway, I'm done." Dog turned to me and grinned. "Want to fly back?" He offered me his hand. I blushed as I accepted. My feet didn't touch the ground and neither did his.
I slowly became taller than the bamboo, then high enough to stand on them. "C'mere."
Dog wrapped his arms around me and held me at the top of a pole. I balanced myself on it with one foot, pretending to pose like Chinese martial artists did in movies. He chuckled, although I don't think he knew I was copying Jackie Chan.
"This is the spring of drowned of drowned cat. It drowned here just 300 years ago. This spring is known as the Maoniichuan."
"Ooh," I felt tearful. "Poor kitty."
"Would you like to be a cat?" I looked at him in the eye.
"You're kidding, right?"
"Yeah, but you could become a cat. Now's your chance."
"No thanks!"
"Let's go now. Now that I'm back to human, I feel hunger again." We took off. We went pretty slow, but we were connected by the hands. I couldn't fly, so I held on from beneath in the front.
"My arm hurts! Can't you think of something else?" Without a word he spun me onto his back. "That works." I said in his ear.
"Heh, bet you wish you could fly."
"No, I like it better this way," I kissed him on the cheek over his shoulder. His face became surprised, I bet he wasn't expecting it. My face became hot and my heart vicious.
"What'd you do that for?" he grinned. I didn't know if I was supposed to answer that.
But it's not like I had time to, because he looked over at me and with one hand, cupped my face. He kissed me on the mouth, and of course I accepted it. The wind picked up a lot just then, our hair strings of storm surrounding our faces, closing us in. He managed to turn me around so that I wasn't on his back, continuing to soothe me.
I heard a crack and a thud. Dog moaned. He ended the kiss. My hand on his back felt wet, and when I looked at it, it was coated in blood.
"Oh my god!" I screamed.
"Th-There is a knife in me," he barely spoke. "T-Take it out." I reached around the best I could, the knife almost out of reach. I found the rough handle, and with all my force,
yanked it out of his body. He released a moan and more blood came out. I looked past his shoulder to find the woman from the night before, smiling up at us, her hands clasped behind her back.
"Some demon you are!" she chuckled. "Can't even handle a mere knife?!"
"Why you-!" I took the knife and threw it at the woman, but it simply plopped beside her feet.
"I have more you know," in between every finger she held a blade. She tossed them up, stabbing Dog in several vulnerable spots. He held in his cry the best he could, I plucked all of the blades out as fast as I could.
"Let's get out of here," I told him. He didn't budge. "C'mon, let's go!" A blade stamped through my hand, making it stuck onto his back. "YAAA-aah!" I wailed. Dog fell slowly to the ground. But he turned so that when we were on the ground, he was on top of me. The woman towered over us.
"Come on demon. You knew this was going to happen! Is that not your spring you lay next to?""It is," he cried. "I'm sorry, girl."
"Oh! My name-!" I hugged onto his chest. "It's Akane!"
"Akane . . ." he moaned again from the blades.
"No! Don't do this! Get off of me!"
"Just a minute."
"You'll be dead. You are dying!" I pushed him aside as gently as I could. I freed my bleeding hand. It was still pulsing and throbbing. Damn! I have never felt anything so painful before! With one blade in each hand I glared at the woman.
"Why are you doing this?!"
"Because I need your body to become young again. I never wanted to kill anyone else, but you hafta do whatever to get whatever you want." The woman looked past me at Dog on the ground, dying. I glanced back too. Blue ki energy was radiating off of his body. He pressed his palm against his forehead, concentrating.
I charged, my arms before me, the blades out in anger. Tears welded up in my eyes.
There was little grip in my bleeding hand, but I didn't care. I swiped once, twice, missed both times. She jumped back and whipped out a knife and pushed it into my stomach.
"See? That wasn't so bad." She lifted me off the ground. I dropped the knives I held. I felt like I was shot. The bleeding wouldn't stop. With the last of her strength, she heaved me in the spring closeby. I felt my neck pop as my head hit the bamboo pole. I felt worthless, helpless, and scared.
I went under the water.
Dog urged himself to his feet, covered in his blood and mine. "You will not live for this."
"Look at yourself and determine who's going to live, demon." She spat on him. The energy continued to flow off of Dog, getting stronger and stronger.
"A normal person would have been dead by now." He formed fists, a ball of blue power forming at the end of each arm. His veins began to pulse stronger, his muscles clenched tightly. He wipped his arms across in front of him. The end hit the woman, the rest of the energy soaking into her. She fell aside, stumbling in the grass into the spring.
"Akane!" Dog crawled to the spring. "Akane! Akane!"
"You failed to save her," Akane came out of the water. Only it was the woman. But it was Akane too? Her hair was down to her waist, red with gray streaks.
"Oh no . . ."
She came out of the water. "I'm still . . .? I'm still aged?"
"You old mummy! You killed her for her youth?!" Dog screamed. He gave out the last of his power, draining his blood away at her. She was smacked in the face. She fell over backwards, her body still in the water, but her head staring up at the sky in a dead glare against the grass. "May you rot in hell!" Dog crawled to the spring, the one he felt so strange over. The one he died in. "Again . . ."
And he fell in, sinking to the bottom with a heavy heart.
My name . . . It's Uirha.
The End
Cyberella@hotmail.com
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