Chapter 4 _Don't Go_

Chapter 4 "Don't Go"

Coming to the heart of time gardens, Kyoko slowly sat down in the grass in front of the maiden statue, looking up into the maiden’s face. She focused on the face that she knew mirrored her own looks. That image belonged to her ancestor that the statue was made in memory of. If living at the same time, they could have been twins.

Kyoko shook the thought away, remembering why she was now sitting in the grass in the first place. Her thoughts began to battle amongst themselves as if she wasn’t even there to listen.

‘Toya is such a jerk!’ She had just come back and ‘all he could do was yell’ at her. Sometimes she just… ‘Hated him…. OK, maybe that was a lie.’ Kyoko sighed, 'I can't lie to myself. I do love Toya and when no one is around to witness it… he often proves that he loves me back.' Kyoko narrowed her eyes in thought. “But then he has to go and blow it.”

She was going home and maybe she’d never come back. She jumped up with every intention of laying her hands in the maiden’s hands, knowing it would take her home.

‘But then you’d never see Shinbe again.’ Her eyes widened and her mind screamed, ‘You have feelings for him!’… ‘This is ridiculous,’ she argued with herself, ‘I only have lingering feelings because I dreamt about him, that doesn’t mean anything.’ She backed away from the statue, lowering her hand hesitantly and sat back down, leaning against a cool stone.

‘But what if he has feelings for you too? Had the kiss gone further, then would he have kissed you back?’ ’Who was it that did the kissing again?’ ‘But he’s a player… he’d kiss any woman.’ ‘And he stuck up for you with Toya.’ ‘Only because he felt threatened and besides, that’s just the way Shinbe is.’ A deep voice brought her from her scrambled thoughts.

“Kyoko,” Shinbe’s husky voice called out to her. Kyoko’s head shot up and she blushed, feeling as if he had heard her thoughts.

“Um, hi,” she looked away from him, in hopes he didn’t see the blush she knew was there.

“Are you going home?” he took a couple slow steps as he talked, “I can’t really blame you, after the way Toya acted.” Shinbe kneeled in front of her with his hand out stretched to help her up. She took the offered hand and stood up, patting the dust off her skirt.

“I just can’t stand to be around him sometimes, Shinbe... I… I’m really sorry about all the trouble I’ve caused you,” she took a step toward the shrine.

Shinbe didn’t want Kyoko to leave, but he knew there would be no stopping her once she had her mind made up. He was well aware of how much she hated it when Toya demanded she not leave, and he didn’t want her to resent him for the same reasons. But in truth, he felt the same as Toya… he didn’t want her to go.

Withholding his true feelings, he tried to cheer her up. “It’s okay, Kyoko. You can cause me trouble anytime,” he grinned at her pretending to slowly reach for her.

Kyoko didn’t miss his hand as it inched its way towards her. She giggled, flashing him a smile. Then she was gone.

Shinbe stood there staring at the statue as his smile faltered. He wanted to tell her not to go. He’d no compulsion to grope her… well, maybe a little. He made the action so she would feel at ease about leaving and know nothing had changed between them. He could tell she was upset and all he wanted was to see her smile, or show some other emotions besides sadness and anger. His plan worked better than he thought when she had laughed at him.

Shinbe’s haunted amethyst gaze jerked away from the maiden shrine. He hated the time portal’s ability to take her away from him and wished he could follow her into her world… just once. His eyes darkened attractively, then narrowed with the jealous thought of Toya being able to follow her through the heart of time. Why had the time portal picked the silver guardian and only him? It just wasn’t fair. Toya wasn’t her only guardian.

***** When Kyoko found herself on the other side of the maiden shrine, she laid down inside the privacy of the shrine house, resting her head against her backpack and closing her eyes. She didn’t want to have to face anyone right now.

Thoughts of Shinbe making love to her kept sneaking their way back into her mind. Why did she have to dream about him like that? It just made her wish... ‘What am I thinking?’ she asked herself. She had to stop thinking about it.

Shinbe and Suki obviously liked each other, even if they wouldn’t admit it. Plus, he hits on all women. It’s just the way Shinbe was.

Kyoko slowly stood up and walked out of the shrine house that protected the maiden statue. ‘I’ll just go to my room and study. Yeah, then I’ll go to school tomorrow, and everything will be fine. I’ll maybe even call my friends and go hang out with them for a little while.’ Kyoko stopped in her tracks and nearly crossed her eyes thinking aloud, “New rule, no eating fruit around her friends.”

***** Toya was still fighting his jealous mood as he slowly walked to the shrine. He had every intention of following Kyoko and straightening this out. He couldn’t stand thinking she was mad at him.

His senses spiked, telling him he wasn’t alone. He glanced up to find Shinbe leaning back against one of the surrounding boulders left over from some forgotten castle that used to stand here. His hands were neatly tucked into his trench coat with his staff lying across his lap. He was leaning his head back with his eyes closed, as if sleeping.

“Wake up, you stupid letch!” Toya yelled at him, now more annoyed than ever.

Shinbe cracked open one sleepy eye, then closed it again, “What do you want, Toya?”

Toya fumed, “What do I want? I want to know what the hell you’re doing sitting here.”

Shinbe opened his eyes and quirked an eyebrow at his sibling, “Am I not allowed to rest?”

Toya narrowed his gaze at him, “Since when do you come to the heart of time to rest?”

Shinbe slowly stood up, readying himself, just in case. He knew Toya was a hell of a lot stronger. But he also knew he wasn’t as weak as Toya thought him to be. Their powers were just different.

“I came to say goodbye to Kyoko. After the way you treated her, we’ll be lucky if she ever comes back. Just what is going on in that pea brain of yours anyway?” Shinbe's calm voice held a hint of the agitation he’d been hiding.

Toya gave a soft growl, knowing what Shinbe said was true. Maybe, just maybe he did overreact, but still, he saw them kiss. Kyoko kissed that lecherous guardian. The scene played in Toya’s mind again and his soul screamed, ‘No, it was Shinbe kissing Kyoko, not the other way around.’

He turned his back to Shinbe, “I don’t know what you’re up to guardian, but if you ever lay a hand on Kyoko again… I’ll kill you.” With that, Toya took off into the air, leaving only a single silver feather fluttering in the breeze.

Shinbe sighed and sat back down, leaning against the stone when he heard Kamui’s playful laughter in the distance. A few moments later, Sennin, Kamui, and Suki came into the clearing, holding baskets of herbs and vegetables the old man had been foraging for.

‘They must have met him on the way back to the hut,’ Shinbe reasoned.

Sennin was the old man whom owned the hut they stayed in when they were near the shrine. Sennin had raised Suki and her brother all by himself when his wife, their mother, had been killed by demons during an attack on the village. Suki was too little to remember the mother she favored but she’d been the best human demon slayer within the realm.

To the village, Sennin was a medicine man, but the guardians knew the truth. He was a master at casting spells, and knew way more than most humans within their realm. Shinbe smiled sadly as he watched the old man come closer.

“Why do ye look so glum, Shinbe?” Sennin asked as he approached. He squinted at him with his ageing sight. The amethyst guardian had been acting a bit odd lately… and that was saying a lot because in his opinion, all the guardians were naturally a bit odd.

Shinbe stood up just as they approached, as if he’d been waiting on them, instead of almost getting into a fight with Toya.

Suki looked behind him at the maiden shrine, “Did Kyoko go back home already?”

Shinbe stared blankly at her before responding, “Yes, yes she did.”

Kamui stopped searching through the basket for something to eat and looked intently at Shinbe, his smile disappearing and turning to worry. “Why’d she leave?” Then as if the thought just dawned on him, his eyes narrowed, “What did Toya do this time?”

Shinbe reached his hand out and put it on Kamui’s shoulder to calm him down. He knew Kamui hated it when Kyoko went back to her time, just as much as he did. “It’s okay Kamui. She’ll be back soon,” or at least he hoped so. He inwardly groaned.

Suki looked troubled. Kyoko had come back sometime during the night. She hadn’t even had a chance to talk to her except for a few moments this morning. “So, did she have to Tame him?”

Shinbe glanced over at the girl and smirked, “I’m afraid so. Toya is not in a very good mood.”

“I imagine he is not. Do ye know what they disagreed upon this time?” Sennin squinted at him as he shifted his basket and began to walk towards the hut. Suki followed behind with Kamui, who was once again dipping into the basket for food to snack on. Shinbe followed behind trying to think of how to respond to the question.

“Does Toya think he needs a reason to yell at her?” Shinbe shrugged his shoulders, as if he didn’t have a clue, all the while hoping no one could sense his guilt.

Toya sat in a tree next to Sennin’s hut and listened to their banter as they approached. He heard Shinbe’s comment and wanted to beat him to a pulp. But after he thought about it, it was best not to tell them what he’d seen. His eyes glowed with silver sparks as he thought about the kiss. Deciding to hold it in for now, Toya leaned back in the tree and closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep.

“Are ye awake, Toya?” Sennin called up to him.

Toya continued to ignore the old man. It wasn’t like he owed him anything.

Sennin paused wanting to make his point anyway, “Ye sure did it this time. Ye couldn’t wait until she was back for a while longer?”

Toya leaned forward and glared at Sennin, “Shut up, you old man. You don’t even know what you’re talking about.” He jumped down and headed towards the forest.

Shinbe sighed with relief. He was worried that Toya would tell them about the innocent kiss, and he’d have to explain. ‘Did I think innocent?’ he thought to himself feeling something heavy settle in the pit of his stomach. If it was so innocent, why did he keep thinking about how soft her lips were when they pressed against his? At that thought, he groaned and went into the hut.

Kaen, an ally to the guardians, better described as a fire sprite, appeared before Kamui with a grin. He often helped train Kamui and was very protective of him during battle. It helped that Kaen could change from human form into a dragon… it made the training that much more intense. They practiced sparring outside the hut as Sennin and Suki glanced at each other.

Suki shrugged her shoulders and they entered the hut. Shinbe was lying on a mat, propped up on his elbow with his back to them. They watched him, but neither said anything about his depressed mood. Suki started the cooking fire, while Sennin prepared the food for dinner, both glancing over at him as he sighed.

***** Toya stayed away from the hut all day, until the sun began to sink low in the sky. He approached silently as he heard Sennin and Suki talking quietly. His enhanced guardian hearing picked up every word whispered from their lips.

“Do you think he’s sick, Sennin?” Suki asked worriedly as she stared at Shinbe, who was still lying on his blanket, sound asleep.

“Ai, he ate not a bite,” the old man answered as he cleaned the dinner bowls.

“I sure hope he’s not coming down with something. Without Kyoko’s help, we’re really going to need him tomorrow when we go looking for the missing talisman,” Suki shrugged as she unrolled her sleeping mat.

“Ai, I will make him some herbal tea when he awakens.” Sennin didn’t think the guardian was sick because they had such high immunity to human illnesses. Truth was… he had never known one to become ill. It had to be something much deeper than that.

His old brown eyes sharpened as he thought of the missing talisman. Since the guardian heart crystal had been shattered, the small slivers talisman had been popping up everywhere, and usually in the wrong hands. Any weak demon that held a talisman became strong and very dangerous. Hyakuhei’s evil army seemed to be growing every day. Lately, he had felt the evil getting closer.

Toya stood outside the hut debating whether or not to go in, when he heard his name mentioned.

“I wonder what Toya was so upset about that it made Kyoko want to go home,” Suki stifled a yawn.

Sennin nodded, “Ye would think he’d have learned his lessons by now. We need her just as much as we need the guardians.”

Suki sat down on her mat, brushing aside some imaginary dirt, “Well it didn’t take him long to make her angry. I bet he said something about her smelling like alcohol.” She turned to glare at Kamui when she heard muffled laughter coming from him. Picking up a comb Kyoko had given her, she threw it at him, hitting him on the head, “I thought you were asleep!”

Sennin laughed at the two as he walked to the door, “Goodnight Suki… Kamui.”

Toya stood outside the hut. He’d forgotten about Kyoko smelling like alcohol. So, he didn’t have to tell them what really happened, although it would be nice to get Shinbe in trouble with Suki. He grinned. She’d be so angry with him she’d beat him into the next century.

Jumping into the tree, Toya let out a laugh at the thought of Suki smacking Shinbe, knowing his brother would never lift a finger to stop her.