Shaman King Fan Fiction ❯ A Gift of Love ❯ Seigi no Shisha ( Chapter 47 )

Yeah, I know. I've gotten irregular. I'm dealing with senior things at school. I'll tell you why when this is over. No, you may not guess. A lot of you probably won't even care. -shrugs- I care, and that's all that matters. -beams- -gets shot-

 

I miss Ren -cries-

 

Believe it or not, I used the song “Advent: One Winged Angel” while writing this. That song owns my soul. Entirely.

 

Notes: There can be some dispute as to whether or not spirits can touch people. For all purposes, we're going to follow the anime's lead and say that they can (Bason puts his hands on Ren's shoulders in the last episode, and they don't sink through). And even if this is wrong, I say that people can manipulate the age of their spiritual appearance once they die…cause I want to do that when I die.

 

“Di Yu” is the Chinese realm of the dead. There are 18 levels which correspond to the different crimes people committed. Look it up in wikipedia. It'd take too long to explain here, but I will tell you that in The Chamber of Avici, the condemned stand on a platform above an inferno. The unlucky ones fall in and their souls are forever lost. The “lucky” ones stay on said platform. These souls will never be reincarnated.

 

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A Gift of Love - Chapter Forty-Seven: Seigi no Shisha (Messenger of Justice)

 

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Rong smiled as she exited the carriage, breathing in the fresh air. “Ahh…It's so nice to finally get some clean air. Everything at…that place smelled like death. I wanted to absolutely hurl. Right, Lady Pin-Mei?”

 

She turned to see the little girl trudge past her and into the house. Rong could only stare after her for the first few moments. She finally followed her to her room. As they opened the door, they saw a girl straightening out the stuffed animals and the various dolls that were around her room. The girl stopped for a few moments when she came to two life-size dolls. One had very short light green hair dressed in a short, modern version of traditional Chinese robes, and the other had red-violet hair tied back in a long ponytail and armor-like robes, complete with bracers. She soon realized they had entered and quickly turned around to greet them.

 

She had turquoise buns in her hair and wore a magenta blouse with matching pants. She smiled as she sweetly held out her hand. “Hi, Lady Pin-Mei! My name's Ling! I'll be helping take care of you starting today!”

 

Pin-Mei looked at her with disinterested eyes.

 

`She's going to throw a tantrum. She hates it when someone other than me tries to take care of her.' Rong braced herself for yelling, but none ever came.

 

“Oh…Thank you…Nice to meet you…” Pin-Mei weakly shook the girl's hand and walked past her on her way to the bed.

 

Rong just stood gaping at the situation. `What? What happened? Why didn't she throw a fit? Who are you and what have you done with the bratty Pin-Mei who was here a month ago?'

 

Ling was still smiling, convinced that her new master would if she did it enough. She watched her get into bed and hide under the covers, and then went to go sit near her. She rubbed her back gently through the covers. The small girl's body shook under the blanket as she cried.

 

“What's the matter, Lady Pin-Mei?” Ling asked.

 

“I…I miss Niisama…”

 

Her new servant blinked at her. “Nihao?”

 

Rong groaned. “Niisama. She means this bratty kid from the Tao family. Rotten personality. Ego the size of the Great Wall.” She hit her palm with her fist. “Riles me up just thinking about it.”

 

Ling turned back to Pin-Mei. “I'm sure you'll see him again soon.”

 

The lump under the bed seemed to shake its head. “Father said we're not going back. I'm never going to see him again!” She started wailing into a pillow.

 

A few minutes later, when her bags arrived, she went and took out the few photos Ran had given to her. She sat on her bed and went through them. Once. Twice. Three times. Four times. Ling eventually lost count. She finally reached out her hand.

 

“My Lady, may I look at them?”

 

Pin-Mei studied her, then cautiously placed them in the older girl's hand. Ling sifted through them, finally taking out one in particular.

 

“May I borrow this one?” she asked holding up a photo of Ren and his little shadow sitting on the porch with his precious basket of milk. Pin-Mei was confused, but nodded. Ling smiled and excitedly jumped off the bed. “I'll be back later tonight! You're going to love this!” She ran out and shut the door.

 

That night, as Rong was putting Pin-Mei to bed, Ling rushed into the room, panting. There was an accomplished smile on her face. She walked over to the little girl, who was now under the covers, getting ready to turn in for the night. Her arms were behind her back as if she was hiding something.

 

Pin-Mei's tired eyes were only half open as Ling approached her. She looked up at her as if to say `Am I dreaming yet, or is this real?'

 

Her new servant just smiled and produced a 14 inch plush toy. “I spent the whole afternoon making this for you, My Lady,” she said. She handed it to her.

 

Pin-Mei took it and squinted her eyes at it. She was so tired that it was hard for her to see anything at this time of night (it was nine, a half hour past her bedtime). But when the image finally registered in her brain, her eyes became enlarged with shock and disbelief. She turned to Ling.

 

“This is Niisama!” she cried.

 

Ling giggled. “Yeah, I know. I used that picture you gave me so that I could make it. I thought it'd bring you comfort until you get to see him again.”

 

Pin-Mei looked at the plushie again. She smiled and hugged it. “Thank you.”

 

Rong gave a small smile as she rolled over, clutching the doll.

 

“What are you going to name him?” Ling asked.

 

Pin-Mei opened her eyes slightly, then closed them again.

 

“Lián.”

 

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The group stared at the ensemble of stuffed animals in the center of the room. They hovered behind Pin-Mei ominously with glowing eyes. Lián showed no sign of life, however; he only sat on her shoulder, observing.

 

HoroHoro pointed at the scene in disbelief. “WHAT THE HELL??? She has a doll of him? That's so creepy! She's friggin' obsessed! Dude!”

 

“Regardless,” Rong said. “She found comfort in that doll, and that's the only reason why I didn't burn it.”

 

Hua put her hand on her shoulder, smiling. “And because I told you I'd haunt and possess you for the rest of your mortal life if you did.”

 

The Wei heir flinched, then sweatdropped. “Yeah, that too.”

 

“But what is she going to do with that doll?” Yoh asked. “Is she going to use oversoul on it?”

 

“Actually--,”

 

“Shh, Rong! Don't spoil it!” Hua giggled. She turned discreetly as she coughed up some blood.

 

They looked up to see two life-like dolls floating down from the ceiling. One with lime green hair; the other with red-violet hair. Rong recognized them right away.

 

“Lord Zhang gave her those dolls…”

 

“That I did,”

 

Hua froze. The others turned. Rong and Jun's eyes widened.

 

“Lord Zhang…”

 

Zhang's spirit stood before them, seemingly in his twenties. He smiled and raised his hand. “Hello Rong, Jun, and all these new faces.” He tilted his head to look past them. He smiled. “Who's that beautiful girl I see over there?”

 

Hua was still tense, shaking, her arms grasping each other. She was paralyzed. She couldn't turn even if she had the courage to.

 

“Miss Hua, you don't have to stand so far away from me. I'm not going to hurt you.”

 

Hua lifted her head slightly, remembering that these were some of the first words he had spoken to her. She practically jumped when she felt his hand on her shoulder. He gently turned her to face him. There were tears in both their eyes.

 

It had been fourteen years since he was able to see her. After her death, he had begged Suo to help him develop any sort of sixth sense so he could see her spirit, but she refused. After a while, he lost all hope and fell into his deep depression that lasted over a decade.

 

“Heh. I'm here ten seconds and I've already made you cry. What a wonderful husband I am.”

 

Not knowing what to say, she just buried her face in his chest and cried. He chuckled and patted her head. “How old are you now?”

 

“T-Twenty-eight…you know that…”

 

“And yet you still cry like you're twelve.”

 

“Don't make fun of me…”

 

“And still sensitive, too.”

 

Rong let a small smile through, but then looked serious again. She stepped forward, knowing what she was about to do was out of line.

 

“I apologize Lord Zhang, Lady Hua, but your daughter is fighting what could potentially be a losing battle…”

 

They looked at her, and amazingly, laughed. The group stared at them like they were crazy.

 

“Forgive me, but why are you two laughing? Your daughter could die!”

 

The couple stopped and looked at each other, smiling.

 

“Pin-Mei won't die,” Hua said, her voice full of confidence.

 

“How can you be so sure?”

 

“Because,” Zhang said. “Pin-Mei has a gift that few people possess. And it is that gift that will keep her alive.”

 

“What gift is that?” Yoh asked.

 

“The gift to gain power from your emotions.”

 

Hua nodded. “Most people are clouded by anger when they fight. Ren was, despite what he said. But Pin-Mei deals with her anger like Ren dealt with his pain. She kills the anger and keeps it inside, turning it into pain, so as not to hurt others. She's been doing this for more than ten years, and she's mastered it.”

 

“Pin-Mei hates fighting, which is a reason why I never forced her to learn the DaDao. Sometimes I would pay her teacher off when Suo wasn't around so she didn't have to do it,” Zhang said. “But she knows that there are things that can't be solved by running away from them and hiding, nor from talking it out. And right now, she is fighting for a lot of things.”

 

“Yeah, cause she's pissed that Ren's dead,” HoroHoro said, trying to sound intelligent.

 

Zhang gave a half-nod. “Yes, but there are other things.”

 

“Like what?”

 

“She's fighting to save his pride, for him dying before he was able to kill her. She's fighting to avenge myself and Hua, as well as the others Suo has killed. She's fighting to free the village from the fear they had to live with all their lives.” He paused, giving a small smile. “But for the first time in her life, she's fighting for herself.”

 

The boy tilted his head. “Herself?”

 

He nodded again. “She's finally able to let out all the pain and anger she's bottled up over the past ten years. It hurt her so much to do it. She'll finally be able to break free of the shackles Suo put on her the moment she was born. She'll finally be able to be her own person. It'll be her chance to bloom.”

 

The team looked back over at Pin-Mei, who was still staring at Suo, stone-faced.

 

“But really, what's she going to do with that Ren doll? Is she going to use it to fight?” HoroHoro asked again.

 

The couple both shook their heads.

 

“If this were a few centuries ago, Pin-Mei would probably be the example of how a wife should treat her husband,” Zhang said. “She respects Ren, you all know that. She worships the ground he walks on, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. She honored him like a wife of that time would have been expected to. Because of the respect she has for him, she would never use Lián to fight. Never. She knows that the mere fact that she has a doll version of him is something he would not approve of or appreciate. She's trying to do something by herself. But again, why do people have plush toys like that? For comfort. Even now, she still needs his comfort, and that's why Lián is there.”

 

“I see now.”

 

“SUO!”

 

Everyone snapped their heads back to look at Pin-Mei, whose face with creased with anger. “I don't need a stupid sword to kill you! You're weak enough as it is! Anyone who had any sort of strength wouldn't take their sorrow out on others like you have!”

 

Suo glared at her, but then smiled. “I was weak enough to have a hand in killing your precious fiancée…”

 

Pin-Mei's eyes quivered, as if remembering the pain she had felt.

 

She clutched his body close to her and screamed. “REN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

 

Pin-Mei clenched her fist and gritted her teeth. Her eyes flared, but then her head drooped to the ground. Lián seemed to poke her head, and she lifted it again. She spread her arms out, palms up.

 

“FAN YAN!! WEI SHAN!! SPIRIT BALL MODE!!”

 

Suo and Rong froze as a spirit ball appeared in each of her hands.

 

“INTEGRATE!!!”

 

Pin-Mei ran a few feet, jumped, and slammed each of the spirits into one of the two lifelike dolls. The dolls opened their eyes and she smirked.

 

“Go have your revenge.”

 

Both rushed toward the stunned woman on the far side of the room.

 

“Y-Yan…? How…” She blinked and finally realized that she had to block. Her fan opened 360 degrees and shielded her. The green-haired doll pulled out a pair of bladed fans, five times larger than her adversary's, while her partner opted for a Song sword.

 

They charged at her, but some kyonshii got in their way. They quickly disposed of them and continued toward Suo.

 

“Yan!” Suo cried. “Please, darling! You don't want to hurt Mommy, do you?” Before she knew it, Yan was in her face.

 

“Mommy, you left me outside by myself…I screamed for you…but you didn't come. They touched me, Mommy. They hurt me, Mommy. Mommy…why didn't you save me?” she whispered, her voice full of child-like innocence.

 

Her mother's eyes widened as she remembered standing by the window, too frightened of the mob of men to go and save her daughter. She shook. The sight of her daughter's small and bloody body filled her mind.

 

Yan raised her fans to strike her, but Suo sidestepped out of the way. She took out a tag, but Yan grabbed her wrist and twisted it.

 

“Are you going to make me go away again, Mommy?”

 

Suo screamed and slapped the charm on her, exorcising Yan's spirit from the doll's body. As she sat on the ground panting, Wei Shan stood in front of her.

 

“You killed my mistress,” she said. “You killing me is not my biggest problem. But because you forced Lady Hua to have a child, you cut her life short. I refuse to tolerate that.” She raised her blade.

 

Suo screamed and backed away.

 

“Woah, Pin-Mei's dolls are even creepier than Ren!” HoroHoro exclaimed.

 

“Lián,” Rong corrected him, her voice airy. Pin-Mei was using her sister's spirit to combat the evil mistress. It was something she was having a little difficulty swallowing.

 

“I bought her those dolls for her third birthday,” Zhang said. “I was foolish and hoped she would leave me alone after that…” He looked at the ground with shameful eyes. Hua put her hand on his cheek.

 

“It's alright, darling. It's all in the past. No use worrying about it now.”

 

He sighed. “You and Pin-Mei; forgiving to a fault.”

 

They looked back to Suo and Wei Shan. Pin-Mei was standing on the opposite side of the room, her arms folded, and her hands cradling her elbows. She was smirking with dark malicious eyes as she watched the doll torment her grandmother. Suo kept leaping away, her eyes wide with horror as she stared into the doll's vengeful eyes. Shan's sword almost made contact numerous times, but her target always seemed to slip away.

 

Suo's back hit the wall. She was trapped. There was nowhere to run. Shan raised her sword over her head and went to bring it down. Suo let out a blood-curdling scream and slapped another tag on her attacker's forehead. The doll collapsed, dropping the sword. She stared at it with wide eyes, panting, trying to calm down.

 

“Oh, grandmother…you broke my dolls…Father gave them to me…they were very special…”

 

She looked up to see Pin-Mei come and squat in front of her. Her eyes were malicious with what seemed to be a tint of red. She patted the middle-aged woman on the shoulder.

 

“You seem a bit shaken, ne? Well, I should be the one upset. You broke my favorite dolls.” Lián poked her again. “Except for you, of course, Lián.” She turned back to the quivering mess against the wall. “Well, I guess I'll just have to break something of yours…”

 

She looked around and spied Kai's body. She smirked again and stood up, making her way over to it. As she approached it, Hua's eyes widened. She tried to run to her daughter, but collapsed and started coughing up more blood. Rong turned to her.

 

“Lady Hua, what is it?”

 

Hua looked up, obviously trying not to cry. “Don't let her hurt Kai's body! Please Rong! He has nothing to do with this!”

 

Rong held her stare for a few seconds, trying to decide whether to interrupt her master's revenge, or to honor Hua's wishes. Finally, she turned to Yoh and HoroHoro.

 

“You two, come with me. We have to stop Pin-Mei.”

 

The boys nodded and began to run after her. Anna held Yoh back.

 

“Yoh isn't going to get into this any more than he already is. Sort it out yourself,” she said coldly.

 

“Anna…” Yoh whispered, too timid to argue.

 

Rong glared at her, then nodded to HoroHoro. “Prove to me that you have a pair; let's go.”

 

Pin-Mei had yanked Kai up by his hair and pulled a small dagger from his shirt. She held it to his neck. Suddenly, her hand was frozen. She looked down at it, not amused, and turned to see Rong and HoroHoro.

 

“What's this for?” she asked in a bland tone.

 

“Pin-Mei, stop this. You're going too far. Suo's your target, not Kai. Your mother wants you to stop. He has nothing to do with this,” Rong reasoned with her.

 

Her eyes flared in rage. “Nothing to do with this? NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS??? DID YOU REALLY JUST FUCKING SAY THAT??” she screamed. “HE MADE THIS HAPPEN!! HE CURSED REN AND MADE US GET SEPARATED!!! THIS IS ALL HIS FAULT!!!”

 

She shook the ice off and went to slice through Kai's throat. Rong grabbed her hand. Pin-Mei glared at her and grabbed her arm. With a flick of her wrist…

 

SNAP

 

Rong looked down at her limp arm, the pain surging through her. “Pin-Mei…What's happened to you?”

 

Her master laughed. “I've come alive.”

 

She was about to stab Rong through the heart when something cold punched her. Stumbling, she looked up to see HoroHoro standing in front of her bodyguard.

 

“That's a lousy reward for all those years of service,”

 

Pin-Mei gritted her teeth and grabbed the dagger. “Piss off.” She charged.

 

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her. She looked back to see Yoh with cold eyes.

 

“Pin-Mei, I know you're trying to avenge me, but stop.”

 

Her eyes widened.

 

“…Ren?”

 

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“Has the jury reached a verdict?”

 

“We have, your honor.”

 

“What say you?”

 

“We, the jury, find the defendant, Tao Ren, guilty of all the sins he has been accused of.”

 

The judge nodded. He looked down at Ren, who had his hands bound in front of him. Ren's eyes showed neither fear nor shock at the events, as if he were expecting them.

 

“Tao Ren, in accordance with the jury's verdict, you will atone for the over three hundred innocent lives you stole throughout your thankfully short life in the human world. Your sentence: You will spend one century in The Chamber of Oil Cauldrons for your crime of attempted rape and other offences of that sort. Then, you will serve five centuries in The Chamber of Pounding for your numerous murders. After two centuries in The Chamber of Heart-Digging, you will spend all eternity in The Chamber of Avici. And I hope to God you fall in.”

 

Ren lowered his head to hide a smirk. At least they can't give me the death penalty.

 

“Do you have any last requests?”

 

Ren thought for a moment, then looked up. “I want five minutes in the real world. Someone needs me.”

 

The judge studied him, then talked with his officials.

 

“He DID have that one girl.”

 

“But don't forget the crime he committed against her.”

 

“What more harm could he do?”

 

“Just let him go as a spirit. If something happens, we pull him back and push him straight into the inferno.”

 

The judge sneered as he looked at Ren. “I like that idea.”

 

“Alright, Tao Ren. You'll get your five minutes. Make it quick.”

 

The chains on Ren disappeared, then so did he. He found himself running down a dark tunnel. A light at the end never seemed to get any closer. Frustrated, he tried to run faster.

 

Pin-Mei…I'll be there to help…just wait…