Never mind. Enjoy!Chapter 1: Light: God's Messenger
Where am I?
She found herself surrounded by trees. She looked around; called out, wishing someone would hear her. Nothing. There was no response.
'This place is completly deserted', she thought. 'Not that I'm surprised though.'
A shiver ran down her spine, causing her to shudder involuntarily. Somehow she felt like she was being watched. She started to run, her shouder-length black hair, brown shawl, & the hem of her dress flying with the wind. She went faster & faster, not looking back, desperately trying to find a way out of the frightening woods. Just then, she stepped onto a soft patch of soil. Cursing herself for being clumsy; she brushed herself off, noticing a large tree near the edge of a deep ravine in the process. But it wasn't the oak that caught her attention.
Long, pale locks of straw-colored hair held together in a loose ponytail wafted in the breeze. Broad shoulders & a tall stature told the young lady that the person was a man. His immaculately white overcoat swayed with the wind. His back was turned; he was possibly looking at the treacherous drop below. 'I don't think he's dangerous' the girl assumed, taking a few steps forward. 'But wait, I may be disturbing him.' She drew back, but it was too late, he had noticed her. The young man slowly spun around, revealing his face. He was quite handsome, with striking sapphire eyes, stubborn bangs that don't seem to stay flat, a pronounced nose & fair skin. The round glasses that he wore emphasized his features, along with the small, clear piece of crystal that hung around his neck by a lace cord.
The woman snapped back into reality, & remembering her manners, she apologized to the person in front of her, expecting that the boy wanted her to leave. But to her suprise, he smiled at her, telling her that he wasn't bothered & she could stay. The strange aura that he radiated made the girl feel at ease with him. Unconsiously, she walked towards him
"May I?"
"Sure. Why not?"
"Thank you."
'This is strange', she thought as she stood beside the blond stranger. 'It's like I know him, from a long time ago...'
She was falling. Falling down into a void of darkness. The odd thing is, she wasn't scared. She closed her eyes, anticipating her doom. She stopped; feeling warm. The smell of white roses captivated her senses. Realization struck her hard when she opened her eyelids. Her previous companion had jumped off to her rescue, his strong arms supporting her weight. Her eyes grew wide at the sight before her. A pair of wings protruded from his back. She whimpered, feeling scared until he tightened his grip, whispering softly in her ear.
"It's alright..."
"Everything's going to be OK, I'll protect you."
"Yuriko! For the last time, please wake up!"
The girl woke with a start. 'W-what in the world was that?' she thought. 'Was all that, just a dream? But, it seemed so real...' She rubbed her arms lightly, still feeling the stranger's warm embrace. Another call from her mother sent her hurtling back into reality, then she proceeded to untangle her legs from the sheets so she could prepare for school.
"Hey Yurii, over here!"
A young man waved from his seat across the room. He was deeply tanned; not too dark, just enough to be appreciated; along with dark blue hair that reached the limits of his upper jaw; the remaining locks at the back were cut, exposing his nape. His striped gold & ash eyes
sparkled mischivously with glee. A pair of long, pointed carnivores gleamed as he flashed a wide grin at his friend.
"Oh, hello Gray." the girl he addressed to replied back as she took her own seat beside his. Gray turned his head to cheer her up, for she looked crestfallen. But when he was about to utter his first word, a girl with long, wavy, green hair greeted them. This seemed to raise Yuriko's spirit all at once.
"Hi Ayame."
"Hi, girl. Nice to see ya."
"Hello ladies." a sneering voice said from behind.
The two girls turned to the unwelcome intruder. Both of them breathed a shigh of relief.
"Oh, it was just you Hatori. You scared us."
"What do you mean 'just me'? I'm the great Hatori Kusanagi; Hacker Extraordinare!" the boy grinned back at them, his emerald eyes glittering with rage behind his wire-rimmed glasses, which was mostly covered by a tangle of ember-red hair. He then turned to Gray, who wore 'I-had-been-forgotten' on his face to cheer him up with a little chat & the constant dead frog shoved under his nose.
"Hey, have you guys heard the latest?" Ayame gleefully said; & when the two boys nodded back, she became crestfallen. It was apparent that Ayame loved gossips. Yuriko, on the other hand, had on a puzzled look. "No fair. How come you boys know while I don't?" She asked, her lips forming a pout. Gray had to laugh.
"You've been daydreaming haven't you?" he asked her with a quizzical stare, making the girl shrink farther into her seat & respond with a quick nod. "The rumors say that there will be an exchange student from England."
"Really?"
"Yup."
"Uh...guys, lets take our seats now before Miss Irumaki comes." Ayame gulped.
As the students scrambled to get to their respective seats, a woman with short, light-brown hair; visibly in her early thirties, entered the room. The children stood up to greet their teacher, to which the respectable woman greeted back. She then announced with a high, chirpy voice that they will have a new classmate. A wave of questions rose from the students. 'That's odd. Who would enroll at this late a time?' Yuriko glanced at the blue-haired man sitting beside her. Apparently, he seemed to treat it normal; like it was no big a deal, as he rested his chin on one palm, softly humming to himself, eyes half-closed, with his legs crossed under the desk.
'Well, at least one of us is mentaly composed.' She chuckled nervously, silently wishing that she had her friend's happy-go-lucky nature.
"Mr. Ashcroft, please come in."
At the mention of the name 'Ashcroft', a messy mane of Prussian hair jerked up, his mismatched eyes sparkled with mixed surprise & glee, which seemed to pique the curiosity the girl beside him was currently entertaining. She turned her head to the stunned man beside her.
"Hey Gray,"
"Hmm?"
"Tell me, do you know this guy?"
"Uh, yeah; sort of. The Ashcrofts have been close aquaintances of mine, especially one feisty & stubborn brunnete."
"Is it a girl?"
"No, a boy. But judging from the smell, I doubt it's the same person."
"Uh, How can you find out just from the smell?"
"....."
The door slid open, & a tall young man stepped in. Long, thick blond hair swayed at his back in the loose ponytail it was tied in. Sapphire-blue eyes twinkled behind a pair of round glasses. His voice was firm yet gentle as he introduced himself to the class. Yuriko was shocked.
'T-that face,'
She was panting hard, trying to catch her breath.
'T-that v-voice,'
"Yuriko!"
The room started to spin dangerously; she felt like throwing up.
"Yurii! Hey, Yuriko! Are you alright? Yuriko!"
Her head hit a hard shaft of wood. She heard inaudible voices.
'I-its him...' Her mind screamed out. 'I-its r-really him.'
She blacked out.
"W-where am I?"
She opened her eyes wearily. She was lying on a bed in a warmly lit room.
"You're in the hospital wing. Are you feeling better?"
She weakly turned her head to see the person beside her. Her eyes widened in surprise. "You..."
His features lighted up at the smile he wore. He stretched up, pulling on one arm & his long-sleeved uniform in the process, allowing it to creep up from the tuck in his midnight blue pants. "I believe I asked you a question, yes?" He spat out in a mocking tone. Yuriko giggled. 'This guy certainly knows how to crack his jokes.', she mused. "I'm feeling better now, thanks.", she replied. Then all of a sudden, she gently pulled on his red tie, drawing his face closer. "And I believe that I didn't catch your name, pretty boy." She spat out in a mock tone of her own, releasing the scrap of scarlet silk wound around his neck. He lowered himself back into his seat, loosening the tie. He merly laughed at her, then regretted the action upon seeing her expression.
?You weren?t listening to me, were you??
?How could I? I got sick, remember??
The young man opened his mouth to speak, but after trying & failing miserably to find a suitable topic to back up his defense, he snapped it shut, silently admitting defeat. Yuriko, try as hard as she might, could not hide her glee when she saw the confused grin on his face.
?Does that mean I win??
?Maybe, maybe not??
Now it was the Englishman?s turn to leer at her. Yuriko?s cheeks burned a violent shade of crimson, & soon she found herself trying as hard as she could to hide her embarrassment. She looked up to meet a pair of apologetic ocean eyes. ?This guy can be full of surprises.? A voice in her head stated out loud. She couldn?t agree more. One minute he was like a sweet, innocent little child, then a joker that could rival her male friend Gray so easily at the next. She was forcefully brought back to reality when the new student snapped his fingers near her left ear. She grimaced.
?Hey! What was that for??
?Gray?s right. You space out easily.?
?And so??
?You remind me of somebody, but the difference is that the person?s a ?he?.?
Both of them remained silent, until Yuriko had the nerve to break the ice.
?Hey, say something!?
?What am I supposed to say? ?Hello, I?m a gawking idiot!??
She broke down into peals of teary laughter. Her description of him suits the blond boy so perfectly; which was quite natural if you had been friends with the spinster called Gray Midorii. Then, she remembered. He still hadn?t told her his name. She turned around to ask him again, but he held up a hand, as if anticipating her question.
?The name?s Gabriel. Gabriel Ashcroft. And you are??
?Yuriko. Yuriko Takahashi.?
The bell rang, signaling the end of classes. ?Oh, is that the time?? Yuriko gasped, thinking about how long she had been sleeping.
?I?m sorry for the trouble I?ve caused you, Gabriel.?
?Call me Riel. I feel more comfortable that way.?
?Is that so? Well, thank you for your time, Riel?
She stood up to leave.
?I?ll walk you home.?
She spun around, practically stunned. ?Excuse me??
Riel turned his head to face her. Then he slowly repeated his words; ?I?ll walk you home.?
?No, thanks. I can manage to get home by myself.?
?Are you sure??
?I?ve been walking home by myself ever since First Grade. So thanks, but no thanks.?
?OK??
He picked up his knapsack, strode towards the window, then opened it. A strong breeze settled in. Yuriko was shocked when he put a foot on the railing. She ran to him & tugged on his arm.
?Hey lady, let go!?
?What do you think you?re doing? Trying to kill yourself??
?No! I was going to take a detour, until you stopped me.?
?The ?detour? you refer to is about three floors above the ground. You must be crazy if you think of jumping from here??
?As a matter of fact, I am.?
?What!??
Riel shrugged her off, leaving her dumbstruck. He climbed on the window frame, then allowed himself to plummet down before changing his position; landing himself on his feet. He glanced up. Yuriko had gone pale, but not as mildly surprised when he pulled out a stunt that she thought could end his life. Smirking with satisfaction, he turned tail & left.
?Hey Yurii! Riel just left a while ago; guess that means ya missed him. Feeling better?? Gray greeted when she came within his view. Yuriko looked flabbergasted. Gray saw the new exchange student jump from the hospital wing?s window, leave unscratched, & still he kept smiling! ?How does he do that?? she asked herself, but angrily gave up for she will never know the answer.
?Hello, Earth to Yurii, Earth calling to Miss Yurii.? Gray catcalled to her as he flailed his hand in front of her face. She gasped out in surprise; flashing him a dark look as she walked towards the gates.
?You? that guy?s messed in the head! Even more than you are! I?m even wondering how you two can be friends.?
???
?Well??
?That man?s decent. He?s not messed in the head like his descendant.?
She was puzzled. ?Descendant? Decent? What the heck did he mean??
?How could you call him decent? You saw him jump down from a high window!?
?That?s fairly decent.?
?How? Why???
?Don?t judge his skill & strength on looks alone.? Gray?s voice was sober; he was deadpan serious. Yuriko was terrified at the usually jolly young man?s expression. She then made a mental note not to cross the college boy that stood across her line of vision. He may not look like it, but he can whip big, grown men twice his size. She swallowed hard. She never knew that talking with one of her closest friends that was known to be the childish one could be this frustrating. Reality claimed her mind when Gray started to talk.
?Are you thinking of avoiding my anger, Ms. Takahashi??
?Uh?um?Yeah?S-sort of??
She was taken aback when the boy cracked a huge grin at her. He then smirked in victory when pure shock registered to her face. Her pretty features darkened into a scowl when he burst out laughing.
?What?s so funny, Mr. Gray Midorii? Tell me!?
?N-no-nothing?.?
"Well, if you have no objections, I'm going home to take a nice long shower."
'Maybe I had been a little to harsh on the girl' Gabriel thought out as he stared at her disappearing form. He leapt to the edge of the next building, constantly asking himself: 'This feels like stalking; why am I even following her when she clearly said NO.....'
Because you're worried. A girl like her shouldn't be traveling alone.
A voice at the back of his head kept nagging him. What was it that drew him to her so much?
"Yahhh! Leave me alone!"
His head snapped up. "That's....no"
Yuriko tried as hard as she might to fight her asailants but she can't seem to shake them off. They were closing in on her. She ran aimlessly into a maze of walls & stopped; it was a dead end. She was trapped in a dark alley, the group of men were closing in on her.
"Hey there, little girl."
"You shouldn't be lurking in this part of town."
"Please, just leave me alone....."
"Hey, why don't humor us, little missy. Hahahahaha!"
"Please, don't...."
"Hey, bozos. She told you to buzz off, right?"
The three men turned around. Yuriko was shocked. The person who was leaning on a wall casually like he was going to face three toddlers instead of three strong, fully-grown men was.....
Gabriel.
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OK, finally finished. I would like some feedback from you guys, so tell me what ya think of this fic.
Cheers!!!