Shaman King Fan Fiction ❯ Ivy, Shaman Runaway ❯ Forgetting Yourself ( Chapter 44 )

 

Forgetting Yourself

Everything was black, but I could hear voices. They seemed very far away, and I could barely hear them, but they were there.

 

“How is she?” an anxious and guilty whine.

 

“I'm not sure; she took a pretty bad blow to the head…” a low, tired mutter.

 

“Well, be sure!!” a child's shrill cry. “Mistress…”

 

“Oh God, why do you torment me?” a grieving moan.

 

“Master, don't be so dramatic; I'm 33% sure that she won't develop a worse case of amnesia and forget you completely.” The elderly voice tried his best to be reassuring, but failed miserably.

 

“Last time I checked those weren't good odds.” The first voice sighed bitterly.

 

“33%? Ivy always loved the number 3!” The child sobbed even harder. “Oh Mistress!!”

 

“Her head is bleeding pretty badly, but I don't think it's enough to kill her. It shouldn't be…at least I don't think so…” Still no encouraging words escaped the man's lips.

 

“LUCA!! Is Ivy going to live or not?!” The child screeched.

 

`They're talking about me…but, who are they? I remember their voices, but I can't place their names. Maybe if I look at their faces?' I silently slid my eyes open and looked upon the three other people in the tent. I slowly sat up and noticed that I was dressed. The top was white, frilly, and lacy, designed to look like a corset, and the skirt was a black Hispanic looking number. I had to admit, it looked good on me.

 

No one seemed to notice that I was awake and sitting up though; they were too busy yelling and screaming at each other. I looked them over to see if I could recognize them.

 

There was a small African American boy no more than a few years old bawling and screaming at the others. He had an afro and wore a small orange poncho. He was soooooooooo cuuuuuuuute!! Opacho was his name.

 

Opacho was currently yelling at an older man with a go-t and cross tattooed on his chin. The tall gentleman kind of scared me, but I could tell he was there to help as best he could even if it wasn't much. The doctor/priest figure of the group was called Luca.

 

Luca was currently strung up by his neck by a certain fire-wielding shaman. He had long mahogany hair, dangerous chocolate brown eyes, and a muscular physique that was to die for. He looked like an angel, fallen from his heavenly perch, and I knew I had met him before, but I couldn't for the life of me remember his name. He was so beautiful, and I suddenly found that I couldn't breath or pry my eyes away from him.

 

He felt my gaze upon him, and turned around, shocked and wide-eyed that I was conscious. “Ivy…” he whispered as he slowly approached me. He sat down on my bed and started stroking my cheek lovingly. “Oh thank God.”

 

`What's your name?! What is it?! I can't remember!! Why can't I remember?!—Oh God. Oh God no…No…nonononononono!! Ashil that bastard!! He—I—NO!!' I no longer had time to think as I collapsed into a sobbing pile of tears in the handsome young shaman's arms.

 

He looked shocked for a moment at the thought of me clinging to him, crying with my face buried in his bare chest. “Shhhhh…it'll be okay. I won't ever let anything like that happen to you again.” He tightened his embrace and ran his hand soothingly up and down my back, resting his head on top of mine.

 

`Hao. His name is Hao. He's your fiancée.' My heart told me. I snuggled even closer into him, sobbing a little less, but still to the point where I was scarcely able to talk.

 

“You're not hurt, are you?” Hao softly raised my brine-soaked face to look at his.

 

“N-no…” I tried to say more, but I couldn't control the flow of tears.

 

Hao laid me back down on the bed and started to cover me up, all the while looking horribly guilty. “I'm so sorry Ivy. I shouldn't have left you all alone without an attendant or anything. This is all my fault—“

 

“—Stop.” I put a finger over his lips, and he lifted a confused eyebrow at me.

 

“Wha—“

 

“I said `stop'. It's not your fault; I don't want to hear it. It's my own fault for being so blind and totally lacking in all common sense. I should have known better, but…I don't know. I just—It's not your fault, so don't beat yourself up about it, okay?” I faltered and fumbled through my mini speech. “I should be thanking you…for saving me…”

 

Hao sat back down on the bed and started lightly stroking my hair. “No thanks are necessary. It's my responsibility to protect you, and it looks like I'm doing a pretty lousy job of it, letting you get in that situation in the first place. I'd never let anything happen to my Ivy, I love you too much.”

 

I could feel a bright blush paint my face when he kissed me on the cheek. “I love you too.”

 

My reply was apparently unexpected, by everyone in the room, for they all had looks of pure amazement stuck on their faces, none more so than Hao. “Wh-what did you say??”

 

“I said, `I love you too.'” I repeated.

 

Blank stares greeted me accompanied by open mouths. “I'm sorry, I must have miss heard you. I thought I heard you say you loved me.” Hao apologized.

 

“Your hearing's fine; that's what I really said.” I assured him.

 

“But I thought you hated me!” Hao sat agape at me.

 

“Hehehe! Don't be ridiculous! Why would I marry someone that I hate? Of course I love you.” I sat up in bed and planted a light kiss on his lips. “Very much.”

 

Luca walked up to me and started feeling my forehead and cheeks for fever. “Excuse me for interrupting this tender moment, but Miss Ivy, I believe that you are very ill.”

 

I slapped him away, “I'm absolutely fine…um…one sec, who are you again?”

 

Opacho sat down on my lap and looked up at me. “She's totally forgotten everything, hasn't she Luca?”

 

“`Fraid so.” Luca nodded gravely.

 

“Ivy?” Hao drew my attention towards him.

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Do you remember who I am? My name? Our relationship? Anything about your past? Anything at all?” Hao resumed worrying over me.

 

“Yes I know who you are.” I rolled my eyes at him. “You're Hao Asakura, my fiancée. The little guy is Opacho, and the creepy priesty dude is Luca.”

 

“Anything else Mistress Ivy can remember?” Opacho urged me on.

 

“No, not really.” I admitted.

 

“Maybe it's best that she doesn't remember. It will work out better for you two this way. You can be together without the mistakes of the past looming over your heads to destroy your happiness.” Luca whispered in Hao's ear. Opacho got up and slunk over next to them to hear the conversation.

 

“Well Ivy, you don't have to have your memory, do you? I mean, what is there to remember?” Hao tried to comfort me, but did a pretty shady job of it.

 

“What's to remember?! My mom and dad, my brothers and sisters, my friends, my enemies, you own fiancée even! Our first kiss, when you proposed to me, how we met! That's what's to remember. Hey, what happened to that son of a—“

 

“—Dead.” Hao cut me off. “Torn into a few million bloody pieces strewn all over his tent's floor. Then the pieces were promptly burnt to ashes, and the ashes grinned into a fine powder that blew off into the wind.”

 

“Good.” I stated bluntly as I wrapped myself back into my fiancée's arms. “I would have liked to have killed him myself though.”

 

“I know…I know…I'm sorry I—“

 

Hao never got the chance to finish his sentence because I enveloped his lips in a deep, passionate kiss.

 

I heard Opacho whisper somewhere off in the distance, “Hey, Luca isn't that Mari Opacho hears calling for Luca and Opacho?”

 

Luca didn't get the underlying meaning, and responded. “No, I don't hear anything.”

 

“Idiot!” Opacho hissed under his breath as he dragged Luca from the room, leaving Hao and I to make out in peace.