Flame Of Recca Fan Fiction ❯ Not So Simple Wish: Prologue ❯ Prologue ( Prologue )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Not So Simple Wish: Prologue
by Ranwolf(ranwolf@hotmail.com)

All anime characters that show up in the story are rightfully owned
by... I'm not sure actually. They are being used without the permission
and/or consent of the owners. Any original characters are the property
of the author or those who had assisted in the completion of this story.

It was just past sundown when the apartment door of the Macleod family
opened. "Mom? Dad?," the young man called out. "I'm home!" There was no
answer to Jared's call. The apartment was dark except for the light
coming from the kitchen. He set down the large bag he carried containing
his school books and martial arts gear, and walked towards the kitchen.
As he expected, the kitchen was empty. Jared sighed his parents were out
again. He spotted the note on the counter that was addressed to him. He
picked it up and read it.

Jared,
Your father and I are at Mrs. Palagreni's.
I left $20 in the coffee jar so order some
food from Hunan's. We should be back by 9:30.
love Mom
P.S. Order a small wonton for your father.

"Uh-oh," Jared said abit worried. I hope it has nothin' to do with that
fight with Clarkson last week. He sighed again, he didn't need any grief
from his parents about getting into fights. It's not like he went out
picking fights, but there was always some moron who thought they could
pick on him because he was in an advanced computer class in school.
Apparently, being into computers automatically categorized him as a
geek. He left the kitchen, heading to his room, deciding to order dinner
later.
His room was typical of a 17-year-old. A single bed in the corner, a
dresser next to it and posters of various cars, models, and animes
adorned the walls. In another corner of his room atop his fathers old
writing desk, were two of Jared's most prized possessions. The first was a
computer his parents had bought him some month's before for his
birthday. When he received it, it was basic, nothing flashy. But with
the help of a part-time job and some connections he had with friends, he
managed to tweak and upgrade it until it equaled a high-end computer.
The other item, set in a simple frame next to a monitor, was a photo of
him and an attractive Japanese girl with long brown hair, held away from
her heart-shaped face with a white bandanna, and clear blue eyes.
"Hi Kaze," he addressed the photo, using the girl's nickname. He felt
stupid everytime he did that. I really gotta break that habit, he
thought. He sat in his chair and powered up his computer to check his
e-mail. Finding nothing but spam and his daily subscription to Risky
Mail (if his mother found out about that...), he checked his favorite
websites for updates, then logged off.
He glanced at the picture. "I don't know about you, Fuuko, but I'm
gettin' hungry." He left to the kitchen and grabbed the phone, dialing
the number to Hunan's. After three rings, there was an answer. However,
instead of the chinese man who usually answered with a pronounced accent,
a woman answered. In a clear carrying voice, she said: "You have reached
the Goddess Relief Department. A representative shall arrive shortly.
Thank you."
"The hell? Wait! I dialed the wrong-" Click. "number." Jared sighed.
"That was damn weird." Thinking nothing more of what happened(after all,
how could they know where he lived? They never asked his address), he
redialed the number to Hunan's more carefully, this time with success.
Gathering his things to do some homework, he headed back to his room.
Jared was about to enter his room when he realized the television in his
room was on. Wha?, he thought, I didn't turn on the set. He entered his
room and looked at the t.v. It was showing nothing but static. Thinking
that he hit the remote by accident, he retrieved it and pressed the
power button. A moment later the television switched back on. "The
fuck?" He pressed power again, the t.v. turned off then back on. "O.K.,
this is gettin' weird." This time he pressed the manual power button on
the set. It remained on.
"Mind stepping back and giving me some room?" The television asked in a
feminine voice.
"Huh? Oh yeah sure...," he said before thinking. Jared jumped back away
from the set, wide-eyes and slack-jawed when he realized what just
happened. "The t.v. just talked to me," he stammered.
He stared dumbfounded as the static and snow slowly cleared to reveal a
beautiful woman with flowing white hair, tanned skin and odd markings on
her forehead and cheeks. She smiled seductively at him as her hand
pressed against and, somehow, through the screen. A slender yet muscular
arm followed, then the other arm passed through, joining the first. Her
sun-browned arms clasped the edge of the television and began pulling
herself out of the set.
Oh God! I'm goin' nuts, Jared thought to himself. His knees became weak
and he dropped to the floor onto his butt.
"Don't worry, kid. You're not going nuts." Her grunts even sounded sexy.
With a final push the woman was out of the television and in his room.
She stood up straight and smoothed out the tight,
might-as-well-be-painted-on, dress she wore. "Ahh," she sighed, "much
better."
"..." Jared just stared at the woman from his seat on the floor. The
woman frowned slightly at Jared. She walked over to his bed and gingerly
sat down on the mattress, crossing her legs and placing her hands on her
knees.
"Maybe it'll help if I introduce myself." Jared nodded. "I am Urd,
Goddess of the past, second class, and the cupid of love."
"..."
Urd frowned again. "Listen, I know this might be hard to believe. I
really am a goddess."
"Might?," Jared croaked.
"Finally. Progress." Urd rose from the bed and proceeded to walk around
the room, inspecting the various items there. All the while Jared's eyes
followed her, slowly recovering from his state of shock.
"Uhm, why... Why are you h-here?," he asked some minutes after Urd
arrived.
"Finally come around I see." She walked back to his bed and sat down
again, legs crossed and hands crossed over her knees. "Jared Macleod,
you've been found to be a decent young man and The Lord has sent me to
grant you any one wish you so desire."
Jared blinked. "Did Uncle Conner put you up to this?," he asked,
straight-faced.
It was Urd's turn to blink. "Who?"
"Nevermind." He rose from the floor with a little difficulty, his butt
had gone numb. "You're really a goddess? And I can have any wish I
want?"
"Yeah. But within reason. No resurrection, no killing and no making
people fall in love."
"Makes sense," Jared conceded. "How abou-"
"And no wishing for more wishes. I saw that movie too."
"Damn." Must be somekind of dream.
"This is all quite real, Jared," Urd said calmly.
Jared flinched. "Alright, alright. Stop doin' that, will ya!" He let out
his Nth sigh of the evening.
"So? What's it gonna be?"
"Honestly. I got no idea. I mean, this is a pretty big decision, ya
know?"
"That's true, this is a big decision. So think carefully."
Jared didn't really think it right to sit on the bed next to a strange
woman who pulled herself out of his t.v., as tempting as it was in Urd's
case, so he sat at his desk across from her instead.
"You wouldn't happen to have any suggestions, would you?"
Urd shook her head. "I'm not allowed to make suggestions. But What I can
do is tell you the wishes other people have made and give you the
results."
"Cool."
Urd proceeded to tell Jared of some of the wishes people had made over
the years granted by herself or her two younger sisters, Belldandy and
Skuld. She told how a skeptical college student named Keiichi Morisoto
wished her sister, Belldandy, to be with him forever.
"Eww!," Jared winced. "Bet she wasn't happy 'bout that one."
"Well, she was definitely surprised, that's for sure. But things worked
out."
"Yeah? How?"
"She ended up marrying him." Urd laughed when Jared fell out of his
chair in shock. "It was really love at first sight, but I like to think
I helped out."
"In other words: You started meddlin'."
"Hey!," Urd cried, feeling insulted. "I don't meddle. I.. ah.. I-"
"Meddle." Jared started chuckling.
"Matchmake," Urd corrected, a cloud of annoyance crossed over her lovely
features. "You want the wish or not?!," she finally snapped.
"O.k., o.k. Don't have a aneurysm on me." Temperamental Goddesses, sheesh,
he thought.
I heard that!, Urd's voice echoed in his mind.
Jared winced. "Sorry."
He settled down and thought about what wish he could make. He turned his
head and looked at the photo next to his computer.
"Is she your girlfriend?" The question startled Jared. He looked at Urd
questioningly. "I said, is the girl in the photo your girlfriend."
"Uhm... well, no..." It was the goddess' turn to look questioningly.
"Fuuko lives in Japan," Jared explained. "I met her about a year and a
half ago when my father took me with him on one of his business trips to
Kyoto. I was playing 'Lost Tourist' one day and bumped into her. She was
with her cousin. My Japanese was non-existent at the time, so Fuuko and
Sho decided to play tour guide and translator while I was there. We
became pretty good friends. We still keep in touch."
"You're in love with her." Urd said with a slight grin on her face. The
knowing glint in her eyes made him nervous.
"Wh-What makes you th-think that?," he stuttered, his face reddening
slightly.
"You have a picture of her on your desk..."
"What? You don't have any pictures of your friends?," Jared interrupted.

"You call her at least once a week. She's the first thing you think of
when you wake up. She's the last thing you think of when you goto sleep.
And whenever you see or do something interesting, you wish she was with
you to share it. That about sum it up?" This time Jared paled.
"How..?"
"You mean I was right?" Urd looked astonished. "I was just guessing."
Jared face-faulted.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU GUESSED?!," yelled Jared, demon-head. Urd cringed
at the mortal.
"Well, you are, aren't you?"
"That's besides the point." Jared visible calmed, his head shrinking
back to proportion.
"So you admit it. You could always wish to be with her."
Jared sighed, running his hand through his long hair. "I thought you
weren't suppose to make suggestions."
Urd shrugged. "I won't tell if you won't." She winked at him, making his
young heart flutter briefly.
"Uhm Urd?," Jared asked hesitantly."
"Yeah?"
"Are conditional wishes allowed?"
Urd was silent for a few moments, apparently contemplating the question.
Finally, she answered. "I don't see why not. As long as its within the
rules."
"Alright. Cool..." Jared paused for a moment. "You want me to fold my
hands and pray to you or what?"
Urd smiled as she rose from the bed. "No, I get enough worship from the
guys back home. Just say the wish clearly."
Jared bit his tongue to keep from saying the first thing that popped
into his mind. He glanced at Fuuko's picture one last time before
speaking. "This is gonna sound pretty cheesy, so don't laugh." Urd
promised she'd _try_ not to. That was the most he was going to get. "If
there's a chance Fuuko has the same feelings for me... I wish to be with
her as soon as possible."
Urd smiled softly with what could easily be thought of as approval. Her
body began emitting a brilliant , Jared had to squint his eyes to be
able to look at her. A breeze flowed through the room, steadily
increasing in strength. Urd's body suddenly lighted off the ground. The
wind picked up to a point, that any loose paper began swirling around the
room. A huge, 'ID4' sized beam of light shot out from the marking on her
forehead, through the ceiling.
What the hell you get yourself into this time?!, he thought to himself
as the wind died down.
Urd was once again standing in the middle of the trashed room.
"Congratulations. You're wish has been approved," She said sounding
weary.
"Really?," Jared asked. "Does that mean...?"
"Yeah, you should be going to Japan soon."
"YES!!" Before Jared knew what he was doing, he was hugging the tall
goddess for all he was worth, managing to left her off her feet. Then,
after realizing how much of a over reaction that was, he released her.
Sorry," he apologized, his face aflame with embarrassment.
Urd just smiled at the delighted young man. "Don't worry about it. You'd
be surprised how often that happens."
"I bet." Jared could hardly contain the excitement in his voice. He was
was going to be with Fuuko. Going to Japan and... And what? Live there?
What about school? What about his folks? "Aww man," he groaned.
"Something wrong?," Urd asked. She had retaken her seat on Jared's bed,
Wish granting was tiring work, fortunately her strength returned
quickly. One of the perks of having one of Kami-sama's favorites as a
sister.
"Yeah, my parents. They'll _never_ let me goto Japan. Hell, my mother
gets nervous when I go across town by myself, let alone the Pacific."
He made a gesture of defeat, he could feel his excitement and glee
draining. "And what about school?"
Urd chuckled at him, her laughter sounding rather musical. "The Ultimate
Force will take care of everything."
"The what?," Jared asked, reasonably confused.
"The Ultimate Force," Urd repeated. "Basically, it's what makes sure the
wishes granted comes through." Urd paused, as if realizing something.
"Come to think of it, some of its methods are kinda over the top. Me,
Belldandy and Skuld might have to get involved. It might decide to kill
your parents to get them out of the way." Jared paled. "I'm joking. You
know, haha, hehe."
He glared at Urd. "That wasn't funny," he said flatly. "What 'bout the
language barrier? Fuuko knows english, that's obvious, but what about
everyone else? I only know a little Japanese." Urd seemed to think on
that for a moment.
"Do you trust me?," she asked after a few moments.
Jared looked at her as if she just asked the dumbest question possible.
"Ya basically break inta my house talkin' 'bout goddesess and wishes and
I'm not tryin' to brain you. What do ya think?"
"Smartass little brat." She said with little anger in her tone.
"Mom always said Ritchie was a bad influence on me. So, what are ya
gonna do? Gimme lessons?"
"Actually, I'm going to put a spell on you."
"You're gonna what?"
"Don't worry. This won't hurt a bit." She raised her hands in front of
her with the palms facing each other an inch or so apart.
"Urd, how many times have you done this?" Jared asked nervously, seeing
the Goddess' hands begin to glow.
"Honestly? This is only the second time I've ever done this spell."
Jared gulped. Urd began speaking in a low murmur in a language he did
not recognize. A pinpoint of light formed between her hands, slowly
growing to the size of a baseball. Urd turned her hands upwards, the
ball of light, floating just above the skin of her palms. She blew a
soft breath on the globe as she parted her hands. The glowing ball
slowly drifted towards Jared, where it burst into a mosaic of lights and
color. The specks swirled around his head in ever tightening arches,
until they came in contact with his head. They then slowly faded into
nothingness.
Jared blinked several times in confusion over what had happened. He
looked around, for some reason, expecting to see something unusual. As
if having a goddess in his bedroom wasn't unusual enough. "Daijobu?,"
Urd asked him.
"Hai, daijodu des," Jared answered in Japanese. "Wha?!," this time in
english. He grinned. "Ichi, ni, san..." He counted to twenty. He whooped
in triumph then began reciting the most complicated nursery rhymes he
could think of, confident he was translating correctly.
"If you don't stop with the rhymes this instant, I swear, I'll take the
translation spell off." Urd snapped at him after a horrid rendition of
"Casey at Bat".
"Sorry," Jared apologized in english. "This is so cool."
"Pocahontas thought so too."
Jared did a double take. "I'm not asking." Just then, the doorbell rang.
Jared looked between Urd and the door. He didn't want to seem rude
leaving his "guest" alone. "Ah... hold on a minute."
He left the room. A few minutes later he returned. "Hey Urd, I was
wondering if you-" He saw the room was empty, the t.v. was on, again
filled with snow. "Oh.. ah o.k..." Jared stepped in front of the
television and squatted down. "Well, if you can hear me uhm thanks."
"You're welcome, Jared. Just take your time with her. I *will* be
looking in on you once in a while." With that, the television set
abruptly turned itself off.
Jared chuckled to himself as he left his room heading to the kitchen. He
shook his head wryly, remembering a reputed Chinese curse. "May you have
an interesting life." If things worked out the way he hoped, the phrase
would out to be more a blessing than a curse.

*****

"Bullshit," Jason said to Jared, after he told the young man what had
happened the night before. A goddess was in your room last night? And
she granted you a wish?"
"Yup," Jared answered. The two of them were outside of the training hall
they attended after school. Jason was a taller boy of mixed black and
puertorican descent, with short hair and a stocky frame.
"Bullshit," he said again. "You're makin' this shit up."
"It's the truth. She pulled herself out of my t.v. and said I can have a
wish. Why would I make this up?"
"So many reasons..." Jason said. "You could just be nuts."
"Suck mine, Jason." Jared snapped.
"Why don't you have this goddess do it for you? I ain't into that gay
shit. Oh wait, she doesn't exist." He laughed at his own joke.
"Fine. No problem. I'll send you a post card from Tokyo when I get
there."
"You do that, bra," Jason replied. "Anyway. Did you tell your folks
about this goddess? What's her name again?"
"Urd," answered Jared. "I told them I entered a contest to goto Japan
and that I might've won. If I told them the truth, they'd think I was on
drugs."
"*I* think you're on drugs!" Jason shook his head disapprovingly.
Jared sighed to himself. He had to admit, the story was *very*
farfetched. The only reason he didn't think it all a dream was the fact
that there was a rather large scorch mark on his room's ceiling. He only
told Jason because the two of them have been friends since they were
seven. He figured if anyone was going to believe him it would be Jason.
Looks like he thought wrong.
"Jay, I know ya don't believe me, but just humor me, alright?"
"O.k., o.k. Saying this isn't a bad trip. Why? For what's her name?
Fuuko? If it was me, I woulda wished to be immortal and maybe Tyra
Banks." Jason grinned.
Jared snorted. "You would."
"Hell Yeah!"
"That's probably why you'll never get a wish."
"Whatever, man." Jason bent down and picked his bag up from the ground.
"Anyway, you comin' to my place tonight for dinner or what? Ma said she
was gonna make Pollo Guisou and Acapuria's tonight."
"Acapurias?" Jared's mouth began to water at the thought of eating some
of the food his friend's mother was going to make. "I can't," he said
with a reluctant sigh. "I have to get home and finish some homework I
put off."
"Alright, Bra. See ya tomorrow," Jason said.
"Right." The two parted ways. While walking home, Jared began thinking
again about the previous night, about Urd, the wish and how his life was
going to change within a month's time. That is, if this wasn't smoked
of dream. If indeed he was going to be living in Japan he Definitely had
to call Fuuko and tell her. He wondered how she would react.
He arrived at the building he lived in, when he suddenly got a odd
feeling in the base of his skull. He stopped and looked around. Except
for a few people walking down the street, nothing seemed out of place.
He shook his head, chastising himself for being so paranoid. He entered
the building and walked up the two flights of stairs to his apartment.
"Mom, Dad, I'm home," he said closing the door behind him.
"I'm in the kitchen!," his mother called out. As Jared approached the
kitchen, the odd feeling from before started up again. Ignoring it, he
entered the kitchen. He saw his mother sitting at the table opposite an
attractive young woman in her early twenties, with medium drown hair,
and friendly blue eyes.
Oddly, just looking at this woman seemed to put his mind at ease quickly
and lift the usual feeling of nervousness he felt when meeting someone
for the first time.
"Jared, this is Belldandy Morisoto," said Mrs.Macleod. "She's from the
exchange program you told me and your father about this morning."
"Belldandy? Urd's sister?" he said in surprise.
Belldandy smiled sweetly. "Yes, Urd is my older sister." She turned to
Mrs.Macleod and explained. "My sister is, I guess you could say, in
charge of Jared's file. She was the one to accept him into the program."
"I see." She turned to Jared. "I still don't understand why you didn't
tell us about this sooner." She gave him a almost hurt expression,
making the young man wince guiltily.
"Uhm.. well..." Jared stumbled over his words, trying to come up with a
reasonable explanation without letting the truth slip out.
Belldandy came to Jared's rescue. "Jared wanted to keep this as a
surprise, he didn't want to build up anyone's hopes until he knew he was
accepted or not," said Belldandy.
"I suppose that makes sense. Jared has always been considerate.
Sometimes a little too considerate." Jared coughed nervously, while
Belldandy gave a small musical laugh.
Thanks so much, he thought sarcastically, hoping the goddess heard his
thoughts.
You are very welcome, came Belldandy's voice to his mind.
"Anyway," Jared tried to change the subject. "What brings you here,
Mrs.Morisoto?"
"I came here to discuss the details of the program to your parents. Urd
would have done it herself, but she was unable too."
"More interviews?," Jared asked, curiously.
"Among other things."
"She trying to matchmake again?" Belldandy laughed. "I mean can't you
talk to her?"
"Trust me, Jared, I've tried. Skuld tried. Keiichi tried. She can be as
stubborn as a boulder sometimes."
"A jackhammer can do wonders."
"Funny..." Mrs.Macleod sniffed. She turned to Belldandy, letting the
smart remark slide. "Mrs.Morisoto-"
"Belldandy... please."
"Belldandy. Where would Jared be staying. I've heard teenagers are aloud
to live alone in Japan, but I'm not comfortable with that idea." She
paused for a moment, as if contemplating something else. "What of the
language barrier? A... friend of Jared has been trying to teach him, but
he's just started."
Jared would be staying with a family near the school while he is in
Japan. As for the language... He shouldn't have much difficulty. You may
be surprised to know Jared is quite fluent in the language."
"He is?" Mrs.Macleod seemed surprised. She knew how often her son called
the girl he met in Japan and that she was trying to teach him the
language. She just didn't realize how much progress he had made in the
year or so since his trip to Japan.
"Yes, he is. Apparently his friend, Fuuko, I believe is her name, is a
good teacher." Belldandy smiled slightly, seeing Jared blush at the
mention of the girl's name. "He would also receive an allowance of
sorts."
"I'm gettin' money?" That surprised Jared. He didn't really think
about the need for money. "How much?"
"The equivalent of about one-hundred and twenty-five dollars per week.
And a twenty-five dollar bonus for every grade above the 90 percentile
on your monthly report card."
"Monthly report card? I didn't know they had monthly report cards in
Japan."
"Actually, they don't. This system was designed by my.. employer. He
believes a student can more easily gauge which subject they need to
concentrate more on." Jared blanched knowing Who Belldandy was
referring to. After all, He would know how best to teach.
"I like that idea," Mrs.Macleod said with a wry grin. Jared frowned
slightly.
The conversation continued on for some time. There were many more
questions about the school and the family Jared would be staying with
Belldandy answered ease. It was passed six o'clock when Jared's father
returned from work. He was given a condensed version of the
conversation. Unlike Jared's mother, Mr.Macleod seemed more open to the
idea, saying this was a rare opportunity for his son.
Belldandy left a short time later. She told the Macleods, when they made
a final decision, to call the number she wrote onto a piece of paper and
tell the person who answered, their answer.
Jared looked at his parents apprehensively, though Urd said the Ultimate
Force would ensure, he would be with Fuuko, he still had his doubts.
"Do you really want to goto school in Japan, son?" Mr.Macleod asked
"What about all your friends."
"Dad, ya know Jason, Mikey and Charlotte are my only real friends. I'll
miss em, but like you said, this is a rare opportunity. 'Sides, it's not
like I'm not gonna call or anythin'. I'll keep in touch."
"You better." Mrs.Macleod said with a smile.
"You mean I could go?" Jared's mother nodded. She let out a gasp of
surprise when he hugged her. "Sorry," he apologized sheepishly,
releasing his mother. "I should call Fuuko and tell her." He headed
towards his room.
"Wouldn't she be in school right now?," the elder Macleod asked.
Jared shook his head no. "It's a holiday today in Japan, she has the day
off." With that he left the kitchen before they asked how he knew that.
After he closed the door, he went to his desk and retrieved one of the
many pre-paid phone cards Charlotte's father got for him at a huge
discount.
Jared had to wait a full minute, after he finished dialing all the pin
numbers and country codes and such, before the phone began to ring. He
just hoped he didn't screw up the math and wake anyone.
"Moshi moshi. Kirisawa residence," the person on the other side greeted.
Fuuko's mother.
"Ehh... Ohaiyo gozaimas, Mrs.Kirisawa. This is Jared," he said mentally
switching over to Japanese. "Is Fuuko in?"
"Ah Jared-kun, it's nice to hear from you again," The older woman said
in a pleasant tone. "Fuuko-chan was about to go out to meet some
friends, but she's still here. Hold on..."
"Domo."
He heard Mrs.Kirisawa call Fuuko. "She'd be here in a moment. Ogenki des
ka? Eeto... I mean, how are you?" Jared couldn't help grin at the
surprise he heard from her when he answered in perfect Japanese. He
noticed, for the first time, he didn't have his Brooklyn accent when he
spoke Japanese. "Sugoi. I didn't realize you spoke Nihon-gou so well,
Jared-kun."
"Fuuko's a good teacher." A moment later, one of Jared's favorite
individuals took the phone.
"Hello? Jared?"
"Ohaiyo, Kaze." His voice was full of excitement. "I got some news for
you."

*****

Mikagami stood on the edge of the pier, letting the wind blow his hair
way from his face. The water beneath the pier was so high the pier
itself was almost underwater. The Louisiana air was so thick he thought
he could make blade for his Ensui out of the humidity alone. The full
moon hung low just above the half-underwater cypress trees on the
horizon. Mikagami could understand well why Kyo Za had chosen New
Orleans to run to. The scenery was absolutely beautiful, and Louisiana
had such a diverse culture.
He could not understand a word of the zydeco band's music that come from
the building behind him. He had never studied French but he was sure he
would if he ever returned home to Japan. The music was loud, and he
found it strange that a washboard could be played as a musical
instrument. Only classical piano had charmed his ear as music, just like
his sister used to play, yet he caught his foot tapping to this zydeco
more than once.
Inside the pavilion behind him, the party raged on. "It's just a
crawfish boil. It's not a formal party!" Zack had promised Mikagami to
get him to come. Upon their arrival, Mikagami learned the truth. It was
a party. A party that served boiled crawfish, however. He found out that
he did not care for crawfish. They tasted like mud. But the corn cobs
that were boiled in the same spiced water as the crawfish were
wonderful. His eyes had flown open with the spices hit him, a sharp
stinging on his lips occurring. Zack had laughed at his reaction. After
trying another bite, his lips began to numb, leaving them feeling cool
and tingly. It felt nice. He had lost Zack in the dancing crowd and
found the pier. He had decided to patiently wait there for Zack.
The pier behind him creaked slightly as he heard someone walking towards
him. He turned to see a girl about his age, dressed in a pink shirt
reading "GODDESS" in silver letters and denim shorts. She wore
sandals and her hair was held in a high ponytail much like his own.
She carried two glasses of what looked like the fruit punch they were
serving inside. She walked up to him and offered him the second cup. He
saw no reason to be rude, so he took it. "Thank you," he said, taking a
careful sip. His accent was quite thick, but he was told he spoke
English well.
"It's kinda hot out here. I saw you standing out here and thought you
might be gettin' kinda thirsty." Tokiya had to pay close attention to
her words in order to make them out. Her southern "twang" was heavier
than most he had heard, yet her voice was like music to him. He grinned
slightly behind his cup. He knew she probably found it absurd that he
was wearing a suit in the heat of the night, and for someone his age as
well. After all, she had no way of knowing he had a low body
temperature.
His eyes began to gave back out over the bayou when she said, "You're
Tokiya, right?" His eyes flew back to her, suddenly thinking that only
one of Kyo Za's henchmen would know his name. But the girl stammered,
and took a step back. "Uhm... Zack told me your name. I hope that's
okay," she said.
Mikagami calmed himself visibly. "Yes. I'm Tokiya." He let out a breath
and took another small sip of his punch.
"I'm Dani. Dani Renaud. Nice to meet you," she said, smiling once more
and offering her hand.
He could not get used to giving your family name last, and he could not
get used to shaking girls' hands. But he took her hand and shook anyway,
finding her palm sweaty. "Nice to meet you, Dani."
A moment of silence fell as he let go of her hand and noticed her bright
green eyes. As if she knew what he were seeing, she flushed and turned
away. "Is it true that you're from Japan? I mean, you don't really look
it," she said.
"Do you think that all Japanese men are short with dark hair and slanted
eyes?" Mikagami knew the stereotype well. "If you believe that, then
it's okay for me to believe that all American men are white, blonde,
and blue-eyed men. Any change from the normal isn't an American."
Dani's eyes squinted at him. "Gee whiz, it was just a question. I didn't
need a lecture." Her arms folded and she looked away from him.
"Yes. I'm from Japan," he said, then finished off his punch. He turned
around and began to walk back under the pavilion.
"Hey! Where are you going?" Dani asked.
"To find Zack," Mikagami replied, and found she was following him.
"I'll take you to him, if you'd like," she said, smiling once more.
Mikagami held his tongue, wanting to tell her he was capable of finding
Zack himself. Instead, he just walked on, depositing his cup into a
trash can and putting his hands deep in his pockets.
"Aren't you hot in that suit?" Dani asked.
"Not uncomfortably so," he replied.
"You don't see many people dressed like you are at these kinds of
gatherings," she said.
"I usually don't attend these gatherings, to begin with," he said coolly,
looking about for Zack.
"Oh, so this is your first crawfish boil?" The girl seemed determined to
have a conversation. Mikagami's eyes found Zack standing in a corner
talking with a girl. He decided then to let Zack alone and go wait back
on the pier, but Dani apparently could not read his mind. "Hey Zack!
C.J.! I found him!" she called out.
"You found him?" the girl, C.J., asked loudly as they approached. She
gave a small laugh. "I was under the impression you've been keeping tabs
on him...." C.J. stopped when Dani curtly kicked her in the shin. "Ow!"
C.J. yelped.
Mikagami kept a straight face as he realized what Dani's true intentions
were. Too bad he had no time for romance while trying to find Kyo Za. He
brushed the hair out of his eyes.
"Can you dance, Tokiya?" Dani asked him suddenly, smiling up at him.
"Dance? Not that kind of dancing, no," he said, nodding at the dance
floor behind them.
"Let me teach you, then. It's not that hard." Her smile looked so
hopeful.
"I have no want to learn," he said.
"Not even if I begged?" Dani asked.
"Come on, Tokiya. I bet her five bucks that she couldn't get you to
dance. It'd be a shame for a lady to lose money over you," Zack said,
grinning.
C.J. was still rubbing her shin.
Tokiya glanced behind him. It wasn't that he didn't want to dance, it
was merely that he did not want to get Dani's hopes up. She seemed a
nice, pretty young lady and it didn't make him feel good to crush that
kind of person's spirits. He could not count how many girls back in
Japan had thought they had a chance with him merely because he said
hello to them in passing. He opened his mouth to reject her again when
she grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the dance floor. He could have
jerked away, but this girl's boldness intrigued him.
"Can you do any kind of dancing?" she asked, as if he were a willing
partner now.
He looked at her. When he didn't say anything, and merely put his hands
in his pockets, her hands went to her hips. "Don't make me cause a
scene," she said, grinning wildly. He looked blankly at her, as if to
call her bluff. Her grin faded as she opened her mouth and when he saw
how much air she was taking in, he knew she wasn't bluffing and was
about to yell.
"Ballroom dancing!" he said quickly, moving his hand to cover her mouth
in case his answer wasn't fast enough.
She let out her breath and grinned again. "Scared ya, did I? Well,
ballroom dancing is good enough. I won't even need to tell you what to
do, I'm sure you can catch on. It's very similar."
Soon their hands were joined and she was leading him into the steps. She
had been right. It wasn't hard to catch on, and after watching a
twirling couple next to them, he even threw her for a spin or two. He
kept a straight face as he took over the lead. She had a smile plastered
on her face, yet he could tell it was genuine. He ended up dancing with
her through the rest of the song, and right into the next. They both
gave evil stares to the band when the song was over and they announced
they'd be taking a thirty-minute break.
He let Dani pull him by the hand back over to Zack and C.J. "Way to go,
Tokiya! That was awesome!" Zack said. "Hell, even I can't dance like
that! I think I got my Grandfather's dancing genes."
"Yeah, thanks, Tokiya. I couldn't find anyone else to dance with me,"
Dani said, letting go of his hand. He instantly put in his pocket. "Did
you enjoy it?"
He looked back down at her. Not only had she made him dance, but now he
had to admit he had fun? "It was new," he said.
"I can show you a lot of more new things if you want me to," she said.
"Thank you," he said, trying once more to stay polite. His patience was
wearing thin, though.
"Zack knows my phone number. Just get it from him and call me sometime,"
she said.
Mikagami fought rolling his eyes. He had walked into that one. "Zack,
I'll be out on the pier when you are ready to leave." He left the
wide-eyed Dani standing with her hands on her hips and went back out to
the pier, sitting down carefully on the boards this time.
"What bug crawled up his ass?," Dani asked aloud, watching Mikagami walk
away. "You'd think someone died or something."
"You'd be surprised...," Zack muttered under his breath.
"What was that, Zack?," C.J. asked. "I didn't hear you over the music."
She smiled, grabbing the hand of the taller teen, which laughed nervously
at the blond girl.
"Nothin', don't worry about it." He waved off the question as best he
could, but Dani got the feeling there was more to Tokiya Mikagami than
her friend was letting on.

End Prologue