Shaman King Fan Fiction ❯ A Gift of Love ❯ Her Reason ( Chapter 12 )

This chapter is basically a prologue for the next one. Despite that, I think this was one of my favourites to write so far. I hope you all enjoy it.

 

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A Gift of Love - Chapter Twelve: Her Reason

 

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“So what do we do with her?”

 

“She can't stay here. It's another mouth to feed.”

 

“Come on, Anna. She can't go home right now, she's too scared.”

 

“So she feels more comfortable in a place where she hardly knows the people and can hardly speak to them…riiiight…”

 

“At least until tonight, okay?”

 

“Fine, but you're paying for what she eats.”

 

“Aw… Anna…”

 

Yoh, Anna, and HoroHoro looked out to the koi pond in the backyard where Pin-Mei was standing. Her clothes, stained with blood, were being washed, and she had been given Yoh's old Shaman Fight clothes to wear. She just stared into the pond.

 

Niisama…why…why did you kill all of those people?

 

That wasn't the Ren she knew. Not the Ren who saved her from drowning, from a dog, who taught her how to swim, who had a snowball fight with her, who had bought her those beautiful butterfly clips.

 

She took on of her braids and touched the clip attached to the end.

 

He's still Ren. Even if it was the wrong choice, he said he did it for me… Should I be so afraid of him just because one thing went wrong?

 

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned to see Yoh standing behind her.

 

“Yo!” he said cheerfully, raising his hand in greeting.

 

Not knowing what to do, she mimicked the gesture.

 

“You like fish?”

 

She stared at him, stunned that he was speaking Chinese. “H-How do you know Chinese?”

 

“Ren taught me when we were all traveling together. So, fish?”

 

“…um…yeah…sure…I guess…”

 

“Good, because we're having it for dinner. We dragged one of our friends over, and he's cooking tonight.”

 

“Oh, good.” She turned back to the pond.

 

Yoh thought for a moment. Then, a light bulb went off. He grabbed her wrist and lead her inside.

 

“Hey! What are you doing?”

 

Yoh ignored her. “HoroHoro, Manta, come with me; I've got an idea!”

 

“What?”

 

He looked back at them, smiling. “We're going to give Pin-Mei a Japanese lesson!”

 

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“Yeah! Yeah! That's funny! Make her say it again!”

 

Pin-Mei just blinked at them.

 

Yoh put his headphones on her head and behind her ears and grinned. “Okay, now say it.”

 

She looked at him again before she stood up, folded her arms, and beamed.

 

“I want to become the Shaman King so I can live an easy life!”

 

“Pfft!! That's just like him!” Horo cried.

 

Manta laughed uneasily. “It almost seems cruel, though. She doesn't know what she's saying.”

 

“C'mon, Manta! It's not like we're making her say anything nasty.”

 

“Dinner is served!” Ryu called from downstairs.

 

Yoh turned to Pin-Mei. “Okay, chow time!” She cocked her head at him. “Um…chi fan?”

 

“Ah!” she nodded furiously, showing she understood. She jumped up and headed for the door, then struck a triumphant pose. “Bestou Plasu!”

 

Manta looked worried. “I think we taught her a little too much.”

 

“Don't worry about it,” Horo said. “It's harmless.”

 

But as they finished their dinner, it became apparent that his statement may not be true. The boys were about to get up and leave when Pin-Mei pretended to take a drink and closed her eyes.

 

“You better pay for what you eat and drink,” she said.

 

The whole room stopped. All eyes were on Pin-Mei and Anna. The medium looked at her copycat, then stood up.

 

“At least now I don't have to say it,” she said calmly as she left the room. Pin-Mei beamed.

 

“Funny!” she exclaimed.

 

The boys sighed with relief. But Yoh noticed her fading smile as she stared at the milk bottle in front of her.

 

“Ren…”

 

When he walked over to her, he realized she had barely eaten any of her food. He bent down to her level.

 

“Hey, let's go for a walk.” He smiled.

 

She didn't look too pleased.

 

“Alright.”

 

She stood up and followed him slowly. He handed her one of his old coats, and they left the house.

 

Pin-Mei marveled at the snow on the trees. “It's so beautiful here. I wish it snowed back in China.” She gave a small laugh, which faded until she ultimately hid her eyes. He looked at her sympathetically.

 

“You're thinking about him, aren't you?”

 

She nodded slowly. “Is it that obvious?”

 

He chuckled. “Yeah, kind of.” When she didn't smile, he continued. “Why wouldn't you go home with him?”

 

They were on a small bridge. She stopped and looked out onto the water.

 

“I was… scared,” she said slowly. “When I was in that closet, hiding, all I could hear were the screams of the men outside. I even heard the blood splatter against the door.” She was shaking again.

 

“That person out there wasn't Ren.”

 

“What do you mean?” Yoh asked.

 

“No matter what anyone else says, I know that Ren has always been a kind person. Even when he was full of hate.” She smiled faintly. “Even though I was very young, the moment I saw him, I decided that I wanted to be with him. Even when he yelled at me or ignored me, I still clung to him.

 

“My older brother left after I was born, even though he was about my age. No one has heard from him since. Ren filled that void I had. He protected me. Even though he was cold, I felt like he cared about me. He was the big brother I always wanted. I was happy. It was enough for me…but…”

 

Yoh dipped his head and looked up at her. “But…?”

 

She folded her hands and kept her eyes on them.

 

“Last year, on my birthday, my father told me that back when I had first met Ren, it had already been decided that we would be married. It was then that I realized my natural feelings for him; feelings that weren't forced just because we were set up as a couple. I had always wanted to be close to him, always wanted to hold his hand. Now I knew what it all meant. After that, I began counting down the days until January 1, when I would be able to see him again.

 

“My father never said when we would be leaving this time, so I could just be made to leave at any time without saying the one thing I want him to know.”

 

“So just go ahead and tell him.”

 

“I…I can't.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“I promised myself that I would wait until I wasn't a child anymore.”

 

Yoh sighed. “If that's what you've decided…”

 

She bowed her head. “It must have hurt so much…”

 

“Huh?”

 

“The girl you taught and gave gifts to and risked your life to rescue…flinches and hides from you.”

 

“He understood why you were upset.”

 

“But he looked hurt, didn't he?”

 

“Well…yeah…”

 

She breathed in quickly. “I was wrong. Twice now. TWICE I've hurt him when he was trying to do something for me…” Her voice quivered. “I'm such a fool! I don't even deserve to have these feelings!”

 

“Hey, hey, calm down. Don't be so hard on yourself.” He put his hand on her shoulder.

 

“Yoh-san…”

 

“What?”

 

“I…” She looked at him, tears streaming down her face.

 

“I want to go home…”

 

He smiled at her.

 

“Okay, let's go.”