Welcome to Gaia! ::

Tomo pulled himself away from the dojo, deciding what he really needed was a long walk. The breeze had caught up and batted at the decorations bobbling off the trees, while the clouds eagerly swam against the clear sky. He glanced over at a laughing couple, hand in hand, as they passed by him. He never realized how much he had forgotten of his past. Did he ever love someone? Had he ever committed murder? These questions always ate at him rapidly, almost laughing in his face that he'd never know.

However, what was most concerning was the silence of Fenril. Would her next attack be the most powerful? The silence was deadly. How could Pria be ready for the next hit, especially since she's sick? Kaori had a point; she may have no choice concerning the matter of Pretear. She was the one and only one, who could help defeat Fenril...

"Brother?"

The one and only...

"Brother?" Asked a sweet, young voice of a small girl who had followed Tomo for quite some time while he was in deep thought. He stopped abruptly and turned, looking down at the girl with deep scarlet, curly hair and bright green eyes that perplexed her pale skin. "It is you! I found you!"

"Hm?" Tomo stared at the girl as she ran to him, only the height of his waist, and wrapped her arms the best she could around his stomach.

"My brother! Oh how I’ve missed you!" She squeaked in ecstasy. Tomo's eyes widened and he clenched his teeth in an abrupt surprise.

"B-brother?" he stuttered, shocked. Suddenly a small sneeze cut through the air. He looked over in a daze to find Pria. The young girl hugging him tight also glanced over at the Pretear with a small glare. “Pria!” Tomo said suddenly, trying to walk – but unable to barely take a step with the extra weight. “Shouldn’t you be at rest in the dojo?”

Pria had woken feeling very lonely, and unaware that Clive had just left after checking to make sure she was alright. She had picked a random direction and walked, bringing her to where Tomo and this strange girl was. But before her sluggish mind could grasp his question enough to explain any of this, the girl interrupted.

“Brother, who is this woman?” the girl asked, her green eyes glaring at Pria. “Is she your girlfriend?! Tell me brother!”

“G-girlfriend?” Tomo smacked his forhead and sighed. “No, Pria is a friend. But who are you?” he asked the girl, looking down at her from between his fingers. “I think you’re mistaken.”

Pria sneezed as she asked, “Am I interrupting something?”

“Brother, don’t you recognize me? It’s Aiko, your one an donly sister!” the girl said as her grip on him tightened and she glared up at him from beneath her bags. “Geez, can’t you even recognize your little sister?”

This girl… has me confused with someone else, Tomo thought, I must resemble her brother. “Uh, no, Pria. You’re not. She thinks I’m her brother,” Tomo answered aloud, rubbing the back of his head, unsure of what to do.

Pria sneezed. “I could tell that. Contrary to Faia’s not so popula*sneeze* not so popular belief, I’m not an idiot, accchoooo!”

Tomo sweat dropped and grinned to her. “Well of course you’re not an idiot,” he said reassuringly.

“Hey! I’M STILL HERE!” Aiko growled, letting go of Tomo and crossing her arms. “It’s time to go home, Brother! C’mon!”

“But I’m not… I’m not your brother, Aiko,” Tomo said, crouching down so he could face her, a friendly look in his eyes. “I believe you have me confused with your real brother, is that right? My name is Tomogachi.”

Aiko blinked a few times before putting the back of her hand to Tomo’s forehead. “Are you feeling alright, brother? Of course you are! You told me you’d meet me here, at this time, on this day, right after you got back from the military camps!” she frowned, “Did you lose your memory or something up there?”

Tomo gave Pria a pleading glance, unsure of what to say or do.

Pria looked between the two then sighed deeply. “I can prove he’s not your bro *accccchhhooo!* brother. Anyone have a tissue?” she asked.

Aiko walked over to Pria, fumbling through her small backpack for a tissue and handing it to the other girl. “Oh really? Then what is it?” she asked, quirking an eyebrow as Tomo watched with high hopes.

Aiko seems pretty intelligent for her age, Tomo observed silently, I just hope Pria will have something that will live up to her expectations.

Pria took the offered tissue and blew her nose. “Just remember, I’m doing this as a favor,” she said as she pocketed the tissue then hesitantly reached her clean hand out to him. “This is how it works, right?”

Aiko and Tomo stared at Pria’s outstretched hand. Aiko crossed her arms and gave a little “hmph,” obviously not impressed with Pria’s “proof.” Tomo, on the other hand, was looking at Pria with awe in his eyes.

“You want to Pret with me?” he asked. “Are you sure?”

“I’m going to have to eventually, right? And anyway, I need to know I’m not crazy, though doing this is crazy so it’s a *sneeze* catch 22.”

Tomo looked on to Aiko, whom glared unevenly at the two with impatience. “Well, big brother? Is she gonna show me some proof or what?!” Akio demanded.

With a sigh, Tomo reached his hand out to clasp Pria’s. a shocking aura of white light engulfed their bodies. Pria was immediately transformed into the Pretear of Wind. Her outfit was combined into a fluffy, blue and white dress. The patterns much resembled Tomo’s knight

~Are you sure you’re alright with this, Pria?~ Tomo asked in a soft, caring voice within her mind. ~you can stop anytime you’d like.~

Pria practically leapt out of her skin when he spoke. “I’m never gonna get used to ACHHHOOO that,” she mumbled as she turned to the girl. “See? He’s a figment of my imagination… or insane… or something… but I don’t think your brother could do this, and if he could, well…” a sneezing fit saved her from having to finish her statement.

“B-Big brother?! Big brother!” Aiko shouted, suddenly glaring at Pria. “What did you do to him? You… you… WITCH! Give him back to me!” Aiko lunged for Pria, holding her fists as if to strike the older girl.

~Pria, just jump up and she will miss you. But I’m afraid I’ll have to cut this short. I do not want to see Aiko get hurt. My true believe is that her brother was killed, or worse. So, if she believes I am her brother… then so be it. I will serve that role,~ Tomo informed Pria.

Pria gasped in surprise but didn’t jump up. She took the blows, not realizing she wouldn’t be the one who would feel them and put her arms gently around the girl.

The small hits barely hurt, but would leave a few marks here and there. Tomo looked on from within Pria, realizing she was a lot more warm-hearted than she seemed to be.

Aiko fell into Pria’s arms, loud sobs escaping her throat. “What… did you… do to… him?!” she cried, still throwing small but very weak punches into her shoulders. “He’s gone, like he always is!” she stopped wrestling and just cried into Pria’s shoulder. “I miss him so much.”

Pria hugged the girl gently, rocking her a bit. “I know,” she said softly, “I know. It hurts. My sister’s always at work. She works so hard to keep us going. I miss her so much all the time, I’m always so lonely, and wish she would come home. Then she’d come home tired and exhausted and we might argue and for a moment I’d wish she hadn’t come home. But I always regret that wish, when she’s gone again and I’m lonely,” Pria had obviously forgotten there was anyone present but her and the girl, “But it’s just as hard on them. My sister hates it, hates working all the time, and I know she misses me just as much as I miss her. And your brother misses you. But you know what? Maybe when you get lonely sometimes, you can come over and spend some time with me. It won’t be as good as being with your brother, or my sister, but at least we can be lonely together. What do you say?” she asked, smiling a bit gently, still holding the girl. She fought with every ounce of self control not to sneeze.

Aiko stifled a few more sniffles before nodding in agreement to Pria. “That *sniffle* sounds good! *Sniffle.*”

By then, Tomo had already depreted from Pria and had watched with arms crossed against his chest and a warm smile on his face. He had never seen this side of Pria before. Aiko let go of Pria and turned to Tomo, a small blush gliding across her face.

“I’m really sorry, Tomogachi. I haven’t seen my brother in over five years. He’s about your age now, whatever that is. When I saw you, I instantly thought you were him. M-my apologizes!” Aiko bowed several times, stopping only when Tomo crouched down and placed a hand on her head.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I know I won’t be much help, but I can be your older brother until he returns if you’d like,” he told her.

The girl’s face lit up. “Really? And she can be my older sister!” she said, pointing to Pria. “You guys are great! Hehe!”

“Wait… does that make me,” Pria began, staring at Tomo. “Please tell me you’re not related to Faia.”

Tomo laughed. “No, Faia and I are not related. Why do you ask?” Tomo lifted an eyebrow and glanced over at Pria. “Hm?”

“Hey, who’s Faia?” Aiko butted in, looking on with big eyes.

“Because I won’t be related to Faia, he has a lot of apologies to make,” Pria informed Tomo.

“Well, he hasn’t been around lately, but I’m sure he’ll come to and see to it you feel better,” Tomo said with a wink to Pria and then glanced back down to Aiko. “So, where do you live? We should get you home.”

“In the orphanage! C’mon! I’ll show you!” Aiko answered as she grabbed Pria and Tomo’s hands and started to drag them through the park toward the orphanage.

“Orphanage? No! not a chance. We may not have much at home but we don’t let people we care about stay alone!” Pria exclaimed.

Suddenly, Pria was engulfed in a hug by, surprise, Faia. “Hiiiiii Pria! Did ya miss me, oh beloved one?” He asked, grinning. He had decided to start his day off by annoying his Pretear and the look on her face was worth any retaliation she was about to give!

Pria was shocked for a moment, then her fist came up and she decked Faia with an undercut, followed by a straight punch. She brought up her knee, realizing if he was smart enough, he’d be clear of it, but by then she was bright red and seething, good mood gone.

Faia managed to jump out of the way before Pria’s knee made contact. He looked up, rubbing his jaw and grinning at her. “Aww, and here I thought you’d be happy to see me, Pria-Teai. You look kinda red,” he reached up to feel her forehead then jumped back before she could strike him again, “You getting a fever now?” Turning to smile at Tomo, he continued, “Hey Tomo, did you pick up a new friend or something? Who’s the girl?”

“Deal with me first you… you… you… ACHHHHOOOO!” Pria sneezed all over Faia.

Faia wiped his face and flashed Pria a big smile while handing her a tissue. “Okay, if you insist Pria-Teai. So, how would you like me to… DEAL with you?” he winked.

“Dropping dead’s a good start. Ask me after that,” Pria snapped.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, Look, it’s Faia. It seems once a jerk… always a jerk,” Clive smirked, coming to join their growing group. “Although I don’t know why I expected you to change.” It was apparent he did NOT like Faia at all.

Ignoring Clive, Faia had enough problems with Pria and didn’t need to be ganged up on, he thought for a moment before answering the Pretear, “Sorry, I’d prefer to live for now. But how about I tone down the jokes a bit since I see you don’t get them and are getting mad?” He looked over, the sight of a red faced girl constantly glancing their way catching his eye. “Hey! I know you, you’re the girl that ran into Tomo yesterday, right?” he asked.

“If that’s your idea of jokes then your personality needs an overhaul,” Pria grumbled.

Tiffanie’s heart skipped a beat as she realized the hot boy she’d been trying hard not to stare at was talking to her. She looked over at him and hesitated. Blushing slightly, she nodded and managed to say, “I… I think…” She managed a smile but had to look at someone else before her weak knees gave out from under her.

Clive shook his head, ignoring the new girl for a moment. “Still stubborn too,” he said, looking at Faia. “What’s wrong, Faia? Cat got your tongue?” he taunted malevolently, loving every bit of it.

Faia shook his head as well. “Okay, Pria, you win. I don’t want to fight so I’ll try to remain silent when in your presence. You and Clive have a lot in common so maybe you should stay around him during the festival, so we don’t have to deal with each other!” Faia glared at Clive and stuck out his tongue, childish yes, but he still preferred not to speak to the other knight. He then turned to Tiffanie and smiled, “So, what was your name? I didn’t get it last time.”

The girl bit her lip then took a deep breath and said, as she fiddled with the ends of her long hair, “I… uh… Tiffanie… Tiffanie Hanasaki.” She stepped towards him. “Y… yours?” her voice rang out sweetly as she tucked her hair behind her ear.

“Oh yes, because that’s the mature way to handle things,” Pria growled at Faia, glaring.

Faia sighed and closed his eyes briefly before turning back to Pria. “Maybe not,” he said softly in a serious tone she hadn’t heard before, “but I never claimed I was mature, did I?” Turning back to Tiff with a small, less bright, smile, he answered, “Nice to meet you Tiffanie. My name is Faia.”

Tiffanie bowed slightly, her long black hair tumbling over her shoulders and hanging low towards her knees as she did so. She straightened again and threw her hair behind her head. Sensing the tenseness between Clive and Faia, she looked straight at Clive, her eyes cold, then turned her gaze back to Faia, warmth once more in her eyes. “The pleasure… is mine…” she choked out as she felt as though she should leave. He was so cute! She couldn’t handle it.

Clive looked away, rolling his eyes. Being around Faia made him angry. He was despicable. He felt his blood boil and then his eyes turned a shade of deep red. “Come on, you sissy!” he spat, “Talk back, say stupid things. You know you hate me!” His voice was harsh, deeper and not entirely his own… he lost control to his second personality.

Pria walked over to Clive, keeping an eye on Aiko as she did. “What’s his problem anyway?”

Clive, having lost control, had no clue who she was at the moment. “What’s his problem?” Clive repeated then swore a couple of times, throwing insults at Faia before saying, “That’s what’s ******* ***** **** wrong with him!” He paused then asked Pria, “Who the heck are you anyway? His girlfriend?” Inside, he wanted to die, stop this stupid thing before it got worse, but he couldn’t. he wasn’t in control.

Faia’s eyes darkened a bit. “I’m doing what I have to, Clive, and no I don’t hat eyou. I DISLIKE you VERY much, but not hate. Pria still hasn’t made a decision and I’m not going to let my foolishness destroy everyone’s hope!” he sighed. He was starting to get a headache. Looking at Pria, he said, “I think I should go before something else happens. Maybe you should go home and rest a little before going out later, and let Clive calm down a bit. I’m sure he’ll be better once I leave. I would escort you home, but I doubt you want my company,” he bowed stiffly, “goodbye Miss Pria.” He was going to call her princess but figured she’d take it the wrong way. Instead, he turned to Tiffanie, and finished, “I hope to see you at the festival later. Sorry that I must leave so soon. I have… things to attend to.”

Tiffanie almost went after Faia. It was really the first time she had actually talked to someone.

Clive looked over at Tiffanie. “And who are you supposed to be? The girl he’s cheating with?” he asked, having no clue why he was saying what he was saying. He just kept yelling at her. “Well BARBIE, sorry but there is no room in this life for someone like you!” His eyes were narrow and his voice was cold and uncaring.

Pria’s eyes went huge and she turned on her heel to flee both of them, tears on her face as she ran blindly, going anywhere that was away from them.

Tiffanie’s eyes widened as well. No place? In this life? For someone… like… her? She began to shake. “Someone… like… me?” she repeated, lip quivering. She raised a hand over her mouth. Tears filled her eyes, she’d never had good self-esteem, but he didn’t have to go THAT far! She turned, tears streaming down her cheeks very much as they had Pria’s. Her mind was zipping through her whole life. Was any of it worth it? She ran home, sobbing, wishing her mother could come comfort her…

Tomo, who had been standing a little off with Aiko, decided he didn’t want to get into the argument that had spread between the four. Aiko opened her mouth to yell at Clive, but was stopped when Tomo put a hand over it. The group then dispersed, the two girls running off crying and leaving Tomo, Clive, and Aiko behind. Tomo released his hold on Aiko, whom immediately growled in anger and glared at Clive, before running off to find Pria. Tomo glanced to Clive, still a little off from the knight.

“That was pretty cold of you,” Tomo muttered, talking about Clive’s words to Tiffanie and Pria. “They didn’t do anything to ya.” A cold breeze swept between the two as dark clouds started to form above in the signal of rain.

Clive wanted to stop himself, he really did. But he couldn’t, he just muttered, “What’s wrong, Tomogachi? You gonna turn against me too?” His voice was venomous and his once dark blue eyes were a nice maroon color. “You see, they were standing up for Faia. That idiot is such a wimp. He runs instead of fights, a yellowbelly, a codfish, a loser,” his hands shook with rage, “I hate them all.”

“No I don’t! I don’t hate them!” he thought, trying to fight his second personality’s control. “Pria’s my friend! I helped Tiffanie find her home!” he was tearing himself apart, trying to let Tomo know that it wasn’t really him, but he couldn’t get the words out.

Tomo gave Clive a harsh look. “You hate us, Clive? We all serve the same purpose, to protect the Leafe and the Pretear. I cannot say we’re all friends for sure, but I can at least disagree with you on the matter of Faia. He tried his best like the rest of us, and it proves him to be a true individual for running away from worthless, petty bickering.” Tomo usually wasn’t cold, or mean. But for another Knight to insult another, it just wasn’t right. They were supposed to be a team and stop Fenril, not rivals or enemies. Another chilly wind passed them by as the red snow started to fall. The electricity between Tomo and Clive was stressful.

“NO DANG IT!” Clive thought angrily, it was getting very stressful for him as well. Why couldn’t Tomo see that his eyes were different?! He wanted to hit him so hard!

So he did. His second personality agreed, throwing a punch at him. “You are making him Angry!” he said in a taunting voice.

Tomo jumped back, barely missing the angry punch from the other Knight. “Clive, what are you doing?” He asked, his voice concerned. He could see the scarlet surrounding Clive’s normal colored eyes. It wasn’t Clive throwing the punch… “Who are you?” Tomo demanded, pointing accusingly at Clive with a dark glare.

“Oh, I’m Clive, only not. You see after you Leafe Knights banded together against him for working alone, he became depressed. That’s when he created me! His second form.” Clive’s eyes narrowed as he smiled maliciously, his fists up and ready. “So come on, Tomogachi. You know you want to! Hit me!”

“Please hit me,” Clive pleaded silently. “I’m such a jerk.”

Tomo stood straight, his eyes never leaving Clive’s. how long had he been like this? Tomo always thought that Clive was quite, but he had developed a dangerous second personality within him. “I will not hit you, as much as your ‘second side’ wants, you’re still the Leafe Knight of Water. And I stand by my word. I will not become an enemy of another Knight, Clive.”

Clive sighed inwardly. Why did Tomo have to be so noble?!

Chuckling quietly, he shook his head. “I pity you, Tomogachi. I’m not the knight. He is.” Smirking, he threw another punch. “Come on!” His eyes darkened into a deep maroon. His grin full of hatred. “You guys never cared about him anyway!”

Tomo jumped to the side to avoid the next punch, but slipped on a patch of ice that had formed from a puddle. Clive’s fist quickly landed it’s mark into his jaw while he stumbled for stability. Tomo was knocked back a little in shock, Clive had a surprisingly strong hook! He rubbed his jaw, eyes narrowed. “Don’t be so naïve, of course we cared about you, Clive!” he shouted. “We are all part of the same team! You can’t work together without a show of concern for each other, you hear?!” Tomo still refused to hit him.

“DON’T SAY YOU CARE!” Clive shouted bitterly, “Because NONE of you did!” His eyes deepened further, narrowed and full of anger, “No one went looking for him! You all worried about poor Faia after the fight! Oh yes, poor Faia! We aren’t a team! You are! He’s never been included in any decisions, nothing! You don’t care if he is around! None of you seemed worried when he was gone!” he stood at the ready again, “Just HIT me and get it over with! You want all the knights to see you are a wuss? You want them to know that they can do whatever they want and you wont’s top them? Then you are doing a great job, Tomo!” he spat venomously.

Inside, Clive had nothing to yell at himself about those comments. Did he really feel that way?

Tomo’s fists clenched at his sides, but he didn’t let Clive’s other side get to him. “It’s not my control of what the other Knights do, or how they feel… Clive. Personally, if I see any being, Knight or not, get injured or hurt emotionally, I do what I can to help. I wasn’t there during the battle either, for your information. I hadn’t found out about it until afterwards, so don’t make false accusations. If I am weak in doing so, then so be it.”

Clive chuckled again, shaking his head slowly. “You guys still don’t get it,” he sighed, putting his hands down. “And here I was thinking you’d finally get the picture.” He raised his hands and threw another punch. “Just hit me!” He wasn’t sure why Clive wanted to be hit by Tomogachi. It sounded like fun getting into a fist fight, though. “You all think he’s quiet, only because you don’t listen. He bottles it all up, creating me. And I am never happy.”

Exhausted, Clive couldn’t influence his second form anymore, so he just let him be, ignoring the foul comments that were spewing forth from his mouth.

“Hitting you will not solve anything. It won’t make you feel any better. I cannot help Clive for harvesting such thoughts and even letting another personality consume him. However, I do understand how bottled up he must feel. But he shouldn’t be afraid to speak out.” Tomo said after letting the punch land. He didn’t fall from his spot.

Clive spat on the ground in disgust. “Tomogachi, you disgust me.” You won’t hit him to save your pitiful pathetic life. He wouldn’t say that to you if his life depended on it. I don’t get what he sees in you. You are a coward! But for some reason he seems to look up to you. He’s so stupid he couldn’t come up with those thoughts! He just thought he was a big oaf! It’s thanks to me that he finally understands these things!”

Finally he had enough. Clive used a lot of the energy he was reserving. Breaking through the hard shell of his second personality, his eyes turning blue again, he shouted, “HIT ME TOMO PLEASE!” before the red took over once more.

“You can overcome yourself, Clive,” Tomo said, ignoring the comments that were made. “I believe in you, now you can believe in yourself. Don’t let a dangerous being live inside of you.” Tomo knew Clive was strong enough to do it, but was he capable mentally?

“I…can’t…Tomo,” Clive muttered in his thoughts, feeling weak and drained. “The best I can do is make him shut up for a minute.” He tried to stop himself again, but it only resulted in having his other side swear. He wanted to hit himself but he couldn’t do that… could he? He got an idea, he could knock the second side out, couldn’t he?

“Hey, run backwards and then when I tell you to, charge at him, okay?” he muttered in his thoughts to his second form.

The second personality nodded and began to hurry backwards, speeding up so he could charge at him. He wasn’t thinking about how Clive might trick him. He tripped on the sidewalk and hit his head on the wall then fell limp.

“Clive!” Tomo shouted and ran to him, crouching down along side. He couldn’t do anything to help, the man was knocked unconscious. Tomo sighed heavily and sat down, rubbing the side of his head. “At least you had some control, I guess,” he said, deciding to move his fellow knight wasn’t the best idea.

Slowly Clive’s dark blue eyes opened. Wincing slightly, he pulled himself to a sitting position. “Heh, didn’t think about the after effects,” he muttered as he reached up and felt the large bruise. “I… uh… Tomo? Sorry,” he muttered quietly as he looked at the ground.

“Heh, don’t worry about it,” Tomo said with a sigh of relief. “At least you’re okay, although I’m afraid your own battle is still ongoing.” Tomo was just relieved he didn’t have to feel the wrath of “the other side of Clive.” “Your punches hurt like h*ll,” he said with a smirk, rubbing his chin in agreement.

“I… er… thanks,” Clive said quietly as he rose to his feet. He looked around and then said. “I don’t… er… hate you guys…” as he looked away, then added, “And sorry about the punches. It wasn’t my fault,” he sighed, “Did I really yell at Pria?” He felt so guilty and didn’t want Tomo to say yes.

Tomo sighed, still sitting with both legs straight out. “Yeah, something about her and Faia,” he answered, glancing away.

Clive sat back down, obviously upset. He had no hopes now. Pria was bound to hate him. “Could you tell her I’m… er… sorry?”

Tomo smiled. “Well, you could,” he said as he glanced to the sky. The falling snow had stopped shortly after their small feud. “A genuine apology is nothing unless it’s by the true person who had to apologize in the first place,” he added, “Y’know?”

Clive looked at the ground. “Yeah, but… how could I face her? I made her cry, Tomo. She must hate my guts. I don’t want to hurt her again,” he said, continuing to stare at the ground. He didn’t know how he would apologize. It would definitely be harder than knocking himself out.

“You’ll find the right thing to do,” Tomo reassured him, before standing up to stretch. He knew from experience, having to apologize to Tae *and* face her master in just one day. “Why don’t you apologize to her at the festival tonight, hm?”

Clive thought about this for a moment then nodded. “I suppose I will,” he said as he looked off into the distance. “This stinks… Hey Tomo, I’ll catch you later,” he said as he waved. He then teleported.

To Be Continued...

[ Message temporarily off-line ]

sorry this is taking me so long sweatdrop