Groove Adventure Rave Fan Fiction ❯ Groove Adventure Rave: The Journal ❯ Past Pages ( Chapter 2 )

Groove Adventure Rave: The Journal
By Adam Carr

Groove Adventure Rave is copyright of Konami and Kodansha. No infringement is intended.


Part two, and this is where things really kick off, as Elie begins to delve into Haru's thoughts...
As always, please enjoy, and review.

> > indicate diary entries



"Here you go, freshly cooked!" Herby proudly announced as he stepped out of the kitchen and into the mess hall where the crew ate their meals.
He carried a large pot, and went from person to person, pouring out some brown, lumpy goop onto each plate.
Musica looked ill. Griff stared at his plate. "You don't expect us to eat this do you? It looks like dog food."
"And I don't eat anything that hasn't been shipped overnight from Experiment City." Rosa said disdainfully
"Look! Even Plue won't touch it." Griff pointed toward the Rave Guardian, who shoved his plate away.
Herby was insulted. "This isn't dog food! This is prime cutlets of beef in a fine wine and sauce. Delicious!"
To prove his point, he swallowed a mouthful of the food. His face grimaced almost immediately.
"Now I know why dogs lick themselves. Its to take away the taste of their food." Musica quipped.
Everyone laughed, save Herby who was wiping his mouth.
"Har-de-har. Well I'm sure Haru will…." He looked around. "Hey, where is Haru? And Elie?"
"Elie hurt her knee in that little skirmish earlier, and she's resting in her room. I think Haru's out on the front deck." Let answered.
"Oh. Well, can someone take their meals out to them…"
Immediately, Go, Rosa, Ruby and Griff shook their heads.
"No way! You saw what he did to that guy earlier! He'll do worse to us when he sees what we're eating!" Go protested.
"Good Grief, I'll do it!" Let huffed, silently wondering just how he was able to put up with these idiots
He took a plate of the food, and walked out onto the main deck. The air was still pleasantly warm. He walked around the now light-lit decks, until he found Haru sitting by the head on the ship, writing in a thick book.
"Haru… am I interrupting something?" He calmly asked. Haru looked up at him.
"Nah. Just filling in the events of the day."
"A diary? Never knew you had one of those."
"Yeah…" The Rave Master sounded nervous. "Just a place for my thoughts."
Let nodded, his concentration on trying to read Haru's face. He knew, something was troubling him…
"You… wish to talk about what happened earlier?"
"Not really." Haru's voice seemed forced. "I mean, I just lost control for once. Everything was going so well, then some Demon Card jerk ruins it. Haven't you even just walled on someone like that?"
Let lowered his head. "I'll admit… there have been times where I have let my emotions get the better of me. But I have always felt ashamed at those times. It is not a warrior's way to attack a defeated opponent."
"I know. I do feel bad about it." Haru sighed. "I just wish you hadn't seen it. How do you… prevent yourself from doing stuff like that?"
"For a while, I just blamed it on lack on concentration." Let replied. "But now Julia's come back, she reminds me that there is more than just beating someone because you think you are right. There are other things to consider, about you and your opponent. Your cause, family… love."
Haru looked at him with clear eyes. "Yeah. I know what you mean." He smiled. "Thanks for talking Let."
"Anytime." Let put the plate down and walked away to collect another portion of food.
He took this food to Elie's room. Entering. He found her lying in bed, playing with Plue.
"Elie… I brought you some food." He announced.
"Oh thank you Let." Elie took the plate. "Have you seen Haru at all?"
"He's out on the…"
"What does he look like? I mean, is he angry or what?" She sounded quite concerned.
"Well, he feels sorry about beating that Demon Card flunky. But there's something else… I can't tell what it is, but there is something on his mind. And its troubling him immensely."
"Oh I knew there was something wrong! That's why he's been acting so strange." She moaned. "Let, what can we do?"
"For now, nothing. But I think it would be wise to talk to him tomorrow. We should badger him until he talks."
"All right then."
Let excused himself and left, and Elie drew her knees to her chest. An arm reached out and hugged Plue.


Out on the deck, Haru continued writing in the journal. He felt extremely tired - he was aware it was very late- but he was determined to finish this.
He looked at the page before him with drooping eyes, at the last paragraph he had written. It was something he had never wanted to put down, but somehow, he had. Looking at his statement, he knew it was the last thing he wanted to do… yet also, he knew it would be needed.
For her sake.
He tried to come up with some kind of counter argument, but as the deck lights dimmed, sleep overcame him before he knew it, and he slumped against the railing.


Elie suddenly felt herself wake. She was frightened, she didn't normally wake up this suddenly.
She looked at her watch on the side table. It was 1:30 am. Not feeling able to sleep, she decided to take a short walk. She got out of bed, being careful not to wake Plue. As she tip-toed out, she picked up her belt and ton-fa guns, and put them on. She didn't like the idea of being surprised by another Demon Card attack.
She stepped out, the night air still rather warm. Therefore, she could go out in her thin nightshirt. As she padded softly around the moonlit deck, her thoughts were entirely on Haru. This whole bizarre attitude he displayed around her was really starting to worry her. She could never stand to see anyone upset, let alone Haru. And she knew that he needed help. Even if he didn't like her the way she felt for him, she would help him with this problem, whatever it was.
Somehow, fate had drawn them together. The Rave Master and the reincarnation of Resha Valentine. And in this partnership, she had found the one person who made her truly happy. If only it could be more…
She stopped when she saw Haru, sleeping against the bow of the ship. The large trenchcoat he wore flapped slightly in the breeze, and his hair wafted around his face. Elie sighed. For all the toughness he displayed, he could still look rather cute.
She walked quietly up, knelt down next to him, and stroked his face. He shifted slightly, and she got a small buzz, touching him like this while he didn't know.
"Oh Haru." She said softly. "I wish you could see I want to help you. I wish you could see… how much I care about you.."
She moved over so she was by his side, and leant her head onto his shoulder. "I want to tell you… but I don't know if you want me…."
He shifted, and as he did, something heavy fell out from under his arm. She picked up the object, and realised it was a book.
`Haru's Diary' was written in ink pen on the leather cover.
He heart skipped a beat. Haru had a diary, somewhere were he wrote about his thoughts. She was surprised she'd never seen him write in it before. Had he kept it hidden? Maybe this contained the answer to what was bothering him.
The rational part of her mind told her that this was Haru's and undoubtedly it was private. She shouldn't really invade on his privacy. But her heart screamed that this would enable her to help him.
And besides, who didn't want to take a look inside of the thoughts of the person they loved?
She opened the first page….

>Well, this is the first page of my new journal, my written account of the adventure that has been placed upon me. My quest to find the Legendary Stone Rave, and restore peace to the land.
Sounds just like a manga, right? I still can't believe this is real, this is happening to me. I have become a hero.
And right now, I'm totally lost.
This city is huge. I've never seen anything like this in my life. I'd seen the pictures, but to be down here, among the crowd and bustle… amazing. Yet also slightly annoying. People keep tripping on my legs as I write this.
At least the large crowds will keep me hidden from any Demon Card. I figure that red-haired guy who attacked the island is looking for me and Plue, and guards will probably be out in force. I'd best not stay in this city too long. I'll just see a few sights, then see if I can find this Musica guy and get the Eisonmeteor repaired.
I haven't a clue where I'm going, yet I've never been more excited. This will be cool.>

Elie realised that this was from when he came to Hip Hop city, the first city he had ever been to. Where his quest had begun. Where they had met….
She read further, coming to an entry dated at later that very day…

>Man, the first city I come to, and already I'm in trouble. Though it was all Plue's fault. If he hadn't pigged out on those sweets and got captured by the owner, who sold him to a dog track, I wouldn't be here, sitting in a dusty hole miles below the city with only a mad miner and an even nuttier girl for company.
Let me explain. I tracked Plue down to this dog track. Well maybe slaughter house would be the better word. They had all kinds of torture devices to make the dogs run. Anyway, after I found Plue, the owner attacked me, this Demon Card member who had a Dark Bring which turned him into smoke. Obviously, I couldn't attack him, so I ran into this nearby casino to hide and come up with a plan. Me and Plue, we ducked under the tables and started crawling to stay out of sight. The next thing I know, I walk straight between this girl's legs. Thank God I was distracted enough not to see her panties.
This girl went berserk, complaining that I had ruined her winning streak at the roulette table. She was about to throttle me, when the Demon Card guy stormed in. She then got out these guns.. shaped like those nightstick thingies, and started shooting the place up. I was in the dirt begging not to get hit by debris. Then the smoke man attacked her. And I was not standing for THAT!
Rave's power knocked him out long enough for me to destroy the Dark Bring. Boy was I pleased. The second Demon Card I had beaten.
Plue got me a dog cart to get me away from there, but the girl with the guns jumped in there too….
So here we are, hiding in a sewer with a miner who says she can dig us a way out to the docks. This weird girl is now playing with Plue….>

Elie blinked. Haru had thought she was weird? Then again, their first meeting hadn't exactly been perfect, him appearing between her legs and she going off the handle and calling him pervert. Still, she was beginning to see herself as he saw her…

>She's nothing like any of the girls on Garage Island. I mean, I've never seen such long legs. And her boobs are huge! It amazes me that she could run back there without falling over. Despite that, she's pretty small and cute, though she's a real loudmouth. Elie… that's her name… has been thanking me for saving her since we came into this dank hole. I guess she's grateful, even though she complains she could fight for herself.
Plue seems to really like her for some reason. Guess he's got good taste in women.
Right now though, I have to figure out what to do once we get out of here…>

Elie's face went bright crimson. She could hardly believe Haru had written this stuff about her. Haru was hardly the type to think about sex, at least in her mind.
And her boobs weren't THAT big.
She sighed, and flipped to the next page.

>Well, now I don't have to travel alone with Plue anymore. Elie has decided to join me. Why? I'm not really sure….
She told me earlier, that she couldn't remember her past life, that she has amnesia. I admit, I didn't believe her… but she told me about it with such sincerity and loss in her voice, that I really couldn't doubt she was telling the truth. And stupidly, I offered to let her come with me and Plue on our quest.
I mean, I don't know why. I know that having a partner besides Plue would be great. I don't relish the thought of doing this alone. But… I'm about to take on Demon Card. I she wants to find her memories, she could surely find a safer way than staying with me.
Ah well, we're stuck with each other now. I guess I'll just have to see if we can be friends…>

Elie read the passage, touched that even back then, he was concerned for her safety.
She read forward, noting events such as when they had first met Musica (and he had referred to him as a vain pretty boy) the events of meeting Musica's grandfather, getting the Eisonmeteor repaired and defeating Lance, and when they met Griffon and Tanchimo. (And where Haru ranted for about a page about the ridiculousness of letting a pervy blue blob lead them toward Rave.)
The next large paragraph she came to was dated shortly after they had defeated Go and Rosa. She chuckled, remembering what a joke those two were when they were in the employ of Demon Card. Still, they had proved to be pretty nice after they had learned the error of their ways, and a while later, they joined the good guys. This entry seemed to be dated the night before they entered the mountain where they found the second Rave.. and Shuda….

>Man its good to rest. I couldn't sleep until I knew that perv Griff was asleep. God knows the last thing Elie need is that creep crawling around her chest…
Ah, I shouldn't be so hard on Griff. After all, he did lead us to this place, and after I explained to him about Rave, he got totally excited and demanded to travel with us. Guess he's got the adventure bug too.
But right now, I'm concerned about Elie.
She was really upset after that whole incident, apparently, she got a vision, or an old memory. She says it was her being hurt by a tall man who could command lightning. She was totally spooked, so when she heard about how Go was controlling the weather, she rushed out, thinking it was the man in her memory.
She seems worried, but she's asleep now, and looks really peaceful.
Funny. Elie seemed really annoying at first, but now, she's become the closest friend I've ever had.
I never really had that many close friends back home. Sure I've got buddies, but I tend not to get into their games and activities easily. And while Ken, the guy who owns the Tsubomi Café is close, he's more like a father figure…
Father….why am I thinking of him… I doubt I'll meet him on this trip.
Anyhow… Elie has become a really good friend. She risked herself for me quite a few times. And even though she gets in trouble sometimes she always tries her best to fight back, and if she can't, just keeps smiling and takes it head on.
She's got to be the bravest woman I've ever met. I imagine she's gone through quite a bit trying to find her memories.
How long has that been, I wonder? Months, years? It seems sad that she'd gone through all that alone. Maybe that's why she was so eager to join me.
She wanted a friend…>

Elie blinked at this statement, amazed that Haru had found the truth. True, she had followed him as he was going to the similar circles she wanted to go to find her past, but he had figured out the true reason. She had wanted to travel with someone, anyone. Just to have some company, someone who would understand.
Suddenly, she felt so glad Haru had met her as he had. They could very well have not met each other. Another thing for her `we met by fate' theory.
She flipped to the next page. This one was dated about a day after the gang had escaped Shuda's battleship, and found the second Rave.
She was surprised by the first sentence.

>What the hell am I doing? This is insane.
I shouldn't be here, travelling around looking for some stupid sacred stone.
I should be back home, doing chores and fishing, hanging with my friends and my sister, not here.
Why me? Why did Rave choose me to be its heir?
I'm no hero. And I never will be.>

Elie gasped. This didn't sound like the Haru she knew and loved. Haru was upbeat about everything. This sounded like a man who had tired of his lot.
No. Surely Haru didn't hate being the Rave Master. She knew it was a big responsibility, but did he hate it…?

>I accept the fact that I am the Rave Master. I accept the fact that I have to stop Dark Bring. But I don't understand why the stone didn't stay with Shiba? He's a warrior, a much better one than I will ever be. I… can't do this.
Yesterday, while we were searching for the second Rave, we were in an underground cave system. And everything seemed to go wrong. First we got lost. Then we met some guy, Snieder, who said he was stuck down here, but knew a way out. We followed him, but it turned out that he was an assassin for Demon Card. Fortunately, Musica came up and saved us, (Yep, he's back, but at least he got his hair cut so he looks less pretty) but then he insulted me and said I wasn't cut out for the task of Rave Master.
I almost battered him there, but Elie stopped us. Then Musica said he'd help out with our search.
As we carried on, I couldn't help but wonder if Musica was right. I should have been more suspicious about Snieder.
But then… it got worse. We found a door with ancient writing on it (Oddly, Elie could read this perfectly. Maybe she was a teacher before she lost her memories.) Behind it, we found this… giant talking bear with an axe. Seriously.
He told us that he was called Deerhound, and that fifty years ago, he had been human, and had fought along side Shiba against Dark Bring.
He told us this sad story… about how he, Shiba and three other knights had battled to the death in a furious battle against Dark Bring's forces. Only Shiba had gone on to take on Dark Bring, and we all know what happened after that.
But after Rave had split into pieces, the knights were somehow reincarnated as animals, and sent to guard the pieces of Rave until the Rave Master returned. They are waiting for me.
I was stunned by his story. This guy had given his life to stop Dark Bring. He'd died and then come back to protect Rave.
Did he have family, friends? How had he been able to just sacrifice himself like he did? Knowing he might never come back? I… don't think I could do that.
Then he showed me the grave. This massive mass grave of all the soldiers who had battled Dark Bring. Swords were buried in the ground, hundreds of them.
It hit me then. I wasn't up against just some group of thugs with weird powers. I was facing an evil so powerful, people would rather die fighting it, than be killed doing nothing for it.
I cried for them. All those men and women. They were real heroes.
Who am I? Some dumb hick with a big sword.
I'll never be what they were….>

Elie blinked back tears and looked at Haru. She could hardly believe these words had come from the same person.
Haru was upbeat about everyting, and was almost always smiling. And whenever they faced an enemy, he flung himself head first, determined to win for his friends.
Was it all a façade? Had he pretended to be a warrior all this time, just to hide his inner sorrow, and lack of confidence? Good God, how had he hidden this all this time? Any normal person would have cracked.
She wanted to wake him up and demand answers, but if he found out that she'd read his book… how would that affect him?
No. She would read more. Maybe it got better. It had to get better. She couldn't bear to think Haru was like this…
She skipped through a few normal entries, then came to a large one. She shivered when she noticed the date. The day after they had been attacked by Sieg Hart
She hardly thought of that day, the day she almost died. She could still remember slipping into a cold embrace, into darkness. Then Haru had revived her, and she'd never been so glad to see his face. He had been overjoyed as well, in fact, she was certain he had been crying. Just knowing he had fought for her, warmed her heart. She read on…

>I feel a lot better than I used to.
Lately, I've been feeling rotten, useless. I still hadn't gotten over seeing that grave. Or not saving Shuda. It seems funny, feeling bad for one of the Orashion Seis (That's the official name of the Demon Card generals) But even though he was evil, I never wanted him to die. I didn't want that on my conscience.
But no, that fool just told me to find my father and let go, falling to his death.
I could have saved him.
For ages now, I've been depressed, thinking I can never be what people expect me to be, the man who will defeat Dark Bring. I can't beat these guys. I'm just some punk from an island.
But yesterday, something happened. Something special, which made me see things in a whole new light.
And I owe it all to Elie. Oh and some time master guy, but I'm not too fond of him.
It all began while we were at the beach….>

From there, it was an account of his battle with Sieg Hart. Elie skimmed through it, she was rather too familiar with this part of the story.
She came to a certain part….

>Somehow, Elie came back to life. And… well, call me a wuss, but when I looked into those bright eyes of hers, I almost cried.
I had saved her. I had managed to save someone's life. Not just from something like a monster attack she could have gotten herself out off. I'd saved her from the brink of death.
She looked at me with such gratefulness, and I think, admiration.
And for just a few minutes, the time it took for Musica to beat Reina, Sieg Hart to apologize to us and guide us to our next location, and us to return to the hotel and put her in bed…. I felt like a real hero.
Oddly, I felt compelled to just stay by her bed that night, just to see that she would be alright.
Looking at her on the bed… it hit me just how good-looking she really is….
Her hair… sometimes it looks brown, but when the sun hits it right…. Its almost like shimmering gold…
Heh, I'm rambling again…. Back to this morning….
I made her some breakfast, and as she ate, she kept going on about how brave I had been. I just shrugged of this hero worship. Anyone could have done what I did. (provided they had a magic transforming sword, of course.)
But she kept going on. She talked in this soothing voice, and just kept praising and thanking me. Even when I told her it was nothing, she kept telling me that no one else but me could have done it.
I began to feel… better about myself. And after a while, it came to me, that I really was being too hard on myself.
Or course I couldn't be a hero to everyone. Not everyone would want me to be a hero.
But if I can be a hero to those how count on me, who believe in me, than that's good enough for me.
I feel ready. I'll keep my promise to Deerhound. I'll do it for him, for those who died, for Cattleya, Ken, Shiba, Plue, Griff, Musica and Elie.
It's strange, I never thought that anyone could cure me from what I'd been feeling, but somehow, she made me feel better. This strange, mysterious girl.
She's so sweet sometimes, I wonder if I'd get diabetes if I licked her. And yet, she's also headstrong, and quick to anger.
After the events of last night, I now know that she's someone very special.
I just hope I don't come close to losing her again….>

Elie stared at the page in awe. He had been on the brink of total despair, and unknowingly, she had made him feel better about himself. She had encouraged him to carry on in his quest. And from his determination, she'd been encouraged to carry on and find the answer regarding her and Rave's creator, Resha Valentine.
It was funny. They had met purely by chance, and yet, both of them were connected with Rave. It would have sounded ludicrous before, but after a while, she wondered if maybe fate, or Rave's power had drawn them together. Whatever it was, she was eternally grateful.
Even if Haru had no feelings of love for her, she was honoured to be his friend.
The question of what was bothering Haru in the present was still there to be found out, but she felt these old entries gave a clue as to Haru's state of mind. At times, he seemed lost and unsure of himself, a side he never showed. She wondered why he'd never told anyone about his depression. Surly she, Musica or even Plue and Griff would have been able to help. Why hide it.
The answers had to be here somewhere… she turned the page…

>Ah, another sunny day. Things have been pretty quiet since that fight with Sieghart and Reina (apart from meeting these three weird dudes with gigantic asses who tried to rob us) so it's just been wandering toward our next destination, Rabarrier, and enjoying the sun.
I'm writing this under a tree right now. There's forest and greenery all around us. I'd better take in all in, we're supposed to be reaching desert all the way to Rabarrier from here.
Musica is right now engaging in his second favourite hobby, after chasing girls, annoying Griff. Those two haven't really hit it off since meeting each other. Maybe because Griff is the only one who can come up with decent smart-alek comebacks to Musica's smart-alek remarks. Plue is eating, as per usual. Makes me wonder if his stomach is really a black hole.
Elie-chan is sunbathing. I think I'd better wake her before she gets sunburn.
It's strange, but I can't stop looking at her. It doesn't sound odd… who doesn't just stare at a pretty girl, especially one as amazing looking as Elie-chan
But I've seen loads of good-looking girls on Garage Island. Hell, I'm the expert of Garage Island's girls. Since I was fifteen, they kept coming up to me, asking for dates and a little more…. (Maybe later, I'll take Musica there. He'll have a field day.)
But I always refused. And it wasn't just because quite a few of them were shallow. I even turned away the nice ones, the ones I felt I could go with.
The truth is…. Dating scares me. I mean, I like girls… but I just can't handle myself over them. I don't know what to say or do… I'm afraid of upsetting them.
I keep thinking back to the day I called my sister a daft cow after an argument. She burst into tears, and I didn't quite understand why. I throw mild insults like that toward Ken and my pals all the time. But I felt bad for making her cry, and apologised.
I just don't want to let a girl down.
And really, I can't see myself with a girl right now. Girls are the last thing on my mind. Just about all the girls I've seen on this trip seem to be the same. Reina was a heartless bitch. Melodia was nice, I could see why Musica liked her. But really, they all seemed to be the same.
Except Elie-chan. She's…. different somehow.
I don't know why. Maybe it's because, despite all her tough tomboy talk, she is still venerable. Maybe because she is always smiling. Whenever a situation comes up, Elie-chan just smiles and carries on. She's always optimistic. She keeps putting so much faith in me to win the day. I'm not sure if I can live up to that, but whenever she looks at me, I feel compelled to try my best, to fight for her. She's always encouraging us.
Maybe it's this whole mystery behind her. I keep speculating about what she did in her past. Was she a singer, a scholar, a writer… there's just so many things. Yet its nice to see her like this, totally carefree. It brings out her whole character.
Heh. She's just too cute for words….
I've just realised I've been writing about her for a while now. And for some reason, I keep calling her Elie-chan. The weirdest part is, I wasn't even thinking about it. It just flowed out on paper…
Am I… getting a crush on her?….>

Elie gasped. Haru… getting a crush on her?
She tried to remain calm. After all, a crush isn't a declaration of love. But to know he had thought that about her, even if only for a few days, was the best thing she'd ever heard.
He looked over at the sleeping Rave Master. She so wanted to talk to him about this. But she couldn't right now, it would be too hard to explain what she'd been doing reading his journal. Plus, maybe it would be for nothing, and he would not want her. Plus, he did look rather cute sleeping…
She was about to turn the page, intent on finishing this mystery, when she realised what the date on the page was. Suddenly, she froze.
She thought back about when Haru had been depressed over Shuda's death and the grave. His words had been so melancholy.
What on Earth would he have written about the most awful experience of his life?
The week he found his father, Gale Glory.
The day Gale died.