Part 25- The Next Challenge
The steady hum of the caravans engine eased everyone into a peaceful sleep. Soon after their departure from Hakuren, the members of Raimon snuggled up into their sleeping bags and fell asleep. Everyone, except for Satsuki.
Her head rested against the window, watching the Hokkaido landscape slowly pass by her. The sky began to change into a light purple as the day turned to night.
Satsuki began to think about what had happened that day. Raimon had finally defeated Gemini Storm! It was a miraculous battle, no thanks to Fubuki....
In the beginning of the match, things were slow going. It was a mix of passing the ball from one end of the field to another. But then, because of their speed training, Raimon began to match the movements of Gemini Storm. Later on, Ichinose began to notice a special tactic that the aliens were using and quickly broke down their defense lines. Fubuki had also made a great addition to the team. He proudly led Raimon as a defender and a forward. But Satsuki could still not understand the difference of auras in him as he switched positions. It was odd and familiar. Satsuki vaguely remembered that to be Atsuya's personality....
She shook her head. "That wouldn't make any sense," she thought,"Besides... We have more pressing issues."
After their victory, another strange group appeared before Raimon and Gemini Storm. They were eerie and the leader had a strange darkness to him. Similar to Reize's but different in the strength of it. It made sense, considering that the look on the Gemini captains face was pure terror. He had bowed and begged for forgiveness but the other leader looked sharply and exiled them into nothingness with the kick of a soccer ball. Raimon had just looked at this event with shock.
The darker group had introduced themselves as Epsilon and the captain was named Desarm. They were the Master level team if Aliea Gakuen. Everyone was completely taken aback by the fact that they had not defeated the people that had destroyed so many things. They thought that they had achieved victory. Satsuki, on the other hand, had only gotten confirmation on what she was told by the mysterious boy that had confronted her in the Hakuren music room. She had at first thought that he had been lying, but after what she had witnessed, she knew it was true.
Satsuki looked to her left and saw the shadow of a 5 year old boy. She blinked several times and looked again. There she saw present day Fubuki quietly snoring. A small smile appeared on her face. At least she had gotten him back... Somewhat. After the two had reunited, there wasn't anything she would let separate them apart.
~~~~~~<<~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of minutes later, the bus came to a slow stop. Light footsteps slowly led to Satsuki's seat. Hitomiko kantoku motioned for Satsuki to quietly come with her. She looked at her coach with confusion, but thought that it was best not to question her.
As they both stepped off the bus, Satsuki's breath caught. She realized where they were.... Her mothers home. She looked up at her coach and shook her head, but Hitomiko stopped her.
"I heard that you haven't seen your mother in 9 years. I'd say you miss her." She turned toward the caravans entrance,"Satsuki-san, family should be cherished." she then entered the bus, ending the discussion.
Satsuki sighed and slowly walked up the steps to the entrance of the house. Taking in a deep breath, she raised her arm and knocked on the door. A few seconds passed until footsteps could be heard behind the door. The door opened to a woman that looked just like Satsuki, except she was taller, had dark brown eyes, no highlights, and wore glasses. The lady took a minute to figure out who her guest was, but when she did, her smile fell and she dropped the book that had been in her hand to grab Satsuki into a tight hug.
"My sweet girl! You've gotten so big!" her mother sobbed,"and you're safe!!" After nine years, Satsuki was reunited with her mother; Kaminari Yukie.
~~~~~~~>>>>~~~~~
Satsuki's mom ushered her into the home she had lived in nine years before. There was a jab in her heart from all the nostalgia in the room. Pictures lined the walls of when Satsuki was little. As she looked around more, Satsuki realized that nothing much had changed in the time that she was gone, except for the increase in the amount of pictures and the huge variety of flowers placed throughout the house. It was as if her mother had brought her work home with her.
After the grand tour, Satsuki and her mom sat down to a mug of hot chocolate. For a while, they talked about what was currently going on, but the conversation began to slowly transition into an awkward stage where both did not know what else to say. Finally Satsuki broke the silence.
"I can't stay long... my team and I..." she began to explain when her mother stopped her mid sentence.
"Well I think we have enough room in this house! Maybe your coach will let you all stay overnight! Food, showers, and all!"
Satsuki began to protest but her mother was already up and out of the house.
Surprisingly, Hitomiko did not refuse and took Yukie on her offer. As she woke the rest of the bus up, members of Raimon looked quizzically at Satsuki for answers, but she simply shrugged and helped take everyone's bag into the house. The night went onto to be peaceful, with lots of food and games. Satsuki and her mother talked for hours about what had happened over the past years. Then, as they were going over how Satsuki got to Hokkaido, Fubuki walked by and gave Yukie a double take.
"You seem familiar," he said suspiciously.
Yukie smiled,"I've seen you a couple of times. You come by my store and buy three roses once every year." Satsuki's mouth dropped. Her mother knew Fubuki, known he was alive and didn't tell her!
With tears in her eyes, Satsuki stood up and left to her old room. Minutes later, her mom came in and sat on her bed.
"You didn't tell me..." Satsuki said in a hushed voice.
Her mother sighed,"It was for good reason. He started coming into my store five years ago, but he obviously didn't know who I was or even you for that matter. It was as if everything about you was erased from his mind." She grabbed her daughters hand and made Satsuki look at her,"I swear that I would've told you, but I didn't think you could take it. I didn't know what him not remembering you would do. I couldn't lose you anymore than I already had..." Yukie stood up and looked out the window,"and besides... Your father didn't think it was a good idea either..."
Satsuki's head snapped toward her,"What do you mean??? Were you helping him keep me there? Help him use me as a walking talking trophy?? He didn't let me do the one thing I loved most!" Yukie tried to protest, but Satsuki cut her off,"You both sheltered me away from things and never gave me answers! I don't understand why you two won't let me do things that make me happy!" Shaking her head, tears running down her face, Satsuki stormed out of her room and went into the bathroom, leaving Yukie to feel like she failed as a mom.
~~~~~~>>>>~~~~~~~~
Eventually, Satsuki came out of the bathroom and fell asleep on her old bed. Every so often, her team mates came in to check on her.
Around 6 in the morning, Satsuki woke up to a surrounding dullness in her room. She sighed as she remembered the current night and became mad at herself. She had become angry so quickly without giving her mother a chance to explain. Satsuki decided that this was when she needed to go for a walk. Maybe the cool air would clear her mind. She snuck through the living room filled with snoring boys, exited the house, and entered the woods where everything had started.
~~~~~~~>>>>>>~~~~~~~
Satsuki walked in the dark woods till her shoes were soaked. Her body felt calmer somewhat but she was still mad about her mothers secret. She could've taken it... Right?
She stopped and leaned against a tree. Who was she kidding? She could barely handle it now; him not knowing who she was. Satsuki felt hurt every time he looked at her and couldn't remember their childhood. Shaking her head and bringing her gloved hands to her face, she began to cry.
Satsuki didn't know how long she had been there, but she suddenly heard a distinct sound of a crash. "This deep in the woods?" she thought,"Sounds a little familiar..."
Her curiosity got the better of her and she quickly ran toward the sound. As the sound got closer, Satsuki entered a clearing...... The same clearing years ago where she fell through the ice. And the same as years ago, she saw two distinct figures could be seen across it.
She took a step onto the ice then stepped off. "I'm hallucinating," she thought allowed,"I can't keep doing this!" Satsuki turned and began walking away from the icy lake until she heard something..
"...Satsuki...."
Turning back around, she looked across the clearing to see that the two figures were a lot closer.
"Satsuki...." they called again. The voices were compelling and before she knew it, Satsuki was walking to the middle of the lake. She reached the two figures and realized that they were a much younger version of Fubuki and Atsuya. They both looked at her with gleaming eyes and smiled. "Itsumo sannin wa isho!" Their voices echoed as if heard in a dream. Satsuki brought her hand out and tried to touch them.
"You both aren't real...."
The two figures disappeared in front of her and snapped Satsuki back into reality. She turned away from where her illusion had been and quietly began to cry. There was when she knew that she had to move on. They weren't coming back and nothing would change that. Her cries got louder and louder, echoing through the clearing. She began shaking her head to show her stupidity. Most of her life consisted of depression. Never wanting to let go and it ruined her. Now that she got Fubuki back, Satsuki knew that she should move on and create a new story. One that didn't dwell so much in the past. Feeling that the temperature was dropping, Satsuki began to walk toward the woods, but just as she moved, a large crack formed where she stood and opened a hole that dropped her into the lake.
There she was again, caught in the icy clutches of death. She struggled to swim up to the surf but it was no use, she was completely numb. "Wow," Satsuki thought,"I'm caught in the same near death experience as when I was younger..." But this time, no one was around to help her.
She began to panic. It wasn't supposed to end like this! .... Or was it?
She stopped for a minute and thought. Maybe this was for the best... No more depression, no more hurt.... Satsuki's vision began to blur and her lungs started to burn. Around the mess of floating of her hair, Satsuki's necklace made its way out of her shirt and appeared in front of her face. "Isho"
Eyes flickering, a new thought crossed her mind,"I don't want to die..." And everything went black
~<<<<<<><<<<<<>>><
<<<<<<>><>>>>><>>>>>>
>><<><<<<><>>>>>>>>>>>
<>><>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
<>><>><>>>><><>>><><>>
And that was the story of Kaminari Satsuki..........
<>><><>>>><<>><<><><<>>
<><>><>><>>><>>><>>>>>>>
<><<><<>>>>>>>><>><><><>>
<><><><>><>>>>>><>>>>>>>>
>>~><<><<<<>>>>>>>>
(Just kidding!)
~~~~~~~~~~~>>>~~~~~~~
Deep in the dark, a voice was heard in urgency. "Satsuki???!!!!?????"
A small light.... "Come on!!!"
The light grew increasingly close. "WAKE UP SATSUKI!!!!"
It was Fubuki....
Satsuki pulled herself out of the darkness, sputtering tons of water out of her lungs in the process.
Kneeling beside her with a look of relief was Fubuki. He was soaked from head to toe, hair in his face. Satsuki looked down at herself and saw that she was the same. Slowly she lifted herself into a sitting position.
"I don't know what to say.." she began,"I thought I was going to die, but..."
Fubukie cut her off,"Do I have to keep saving you from the same near death experience," he smiled sweetly.
For some reason Satsuki blushed,"I guess..." she gave a slight laugh,"Even when I was little...." She stopped. Same near death experience? How did he know unless...
"Fubuki? Do you..." She looked up at him and saw that he was waiting for her to figure it out. Satsuki began to cry. "Y-you... You remember me?"
He nodded and reached over to fix Satsuki's necklace...
"I've been wondering why you were so familiar... Ever since I saw you, I kept having childhood images in my mind. After the..." his voice faltered. He couldn't talk about the accident,"well... I knew that something was missing, but that something was completely erased from my mind.." Fubuki looked at Satsuki and smiled. "And that something was you."
Tears were again forming in Satsuki's eyes. Fubuki smiled again and pulled something out from the collar of his shirt. Two necklaces identical to hers lay on the palm of his hands. "Itsumo, sannin wa, isho.." Satsuki read from each necklace. Her heart warmed at the thought of getting her best friend back. She looked up to Fubuki who had a saddened look, but he smiled at the sight of her.
"Here," he said, taking off one of the necklaces,"I think you should hold on to this one, I already have his scarf.." He pulled the necklace over Satsuki's head, adjusted it, and gave a small smile. Satsuki smiled back and looked down at the necklaces. She thought back to all that had happened in her life. The feelings she was having... She had never felt so much joy! How had she made it without Fubuki all these years...
Satsuki's vision began to blur and tears formed around the rims of her eyes. "What's wrong Satsuki?" Fubuki edged closer to her. She looked up at him. "I missed you so much!" Tears began to roll down her cheek,"...both of you",she whispered. Her cries began to get louder, much of it from relief. Fubuki wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug and waited for her to finish. As Satsuki's cries quieted down, she heard something echo in her mind.
"You've always been a crybaby, Satsu!" A voice teased. Satsuki shook her head and smiled. His voice she thought.
Both Satsuki and Fubuki, still soaked to the bone, stood up and began their walk back to her house. This time, arms wrapped around each other, laughing, and together.
The steady hum of the caravans engine eased everyone into a peaceful sleep. Soon after their departure from Hakuren, the members of Raimon snuggled up into their sleeping bags and fell asleep. Everyone, except for Satsuki.
Her head rested against the window, watching the Hokkaido landscape slowly pass by her. The sky began to change into a light purple as the day turned to night.
Satsuki began to think about what had happened that day. Raimon had finally defeated Gemini Storm! It was a miraculous battle, no thanks to Fubuki....
In the beginning of the match, things were slow going. It was a mix of passing the ball from one end of the field to another. But then, because of their speed training, Raimon began to match the movements of Gemini Storm. Later on, Ichinose began to notice a special tactic that the aliens were using and quickly broke down their defense lines. Fubuki had also made a great addition to the team. He proudly led Raimon as a defender and a forward. But Satsuki could still not understand the difference of auras in him as he switched positions. It was odd and familiar. Satsuki vaguely remembered that to be Atsuya's personality....
She shook her head. "That wouldn't make any sense," she thought,"Besides... We have more pressing issues."
After their victory, another strange group appeared before Raimon and Gemini Storm. They were eerie and the leader had a strange darkness to him. Similar to Reize's but different in the strength of it. It made sense, considering that the look on the Gemini captains face was pure terror. He had bowed and begged for forgiveness but the other leader looked sharply and exiled them into nothingness with the kick of a soccer ball. Raimon had just looked at this event with shock.
The darker group had introduced themselves as Epsilon and the captain was named Desarm. They were the Master level team if Aliea Gakuen. Everyone was completely taken aback by the fact that they had not defeated the people that had destroyed so many things. They thought that they had achieved victory. Satsuki, on the other hand, had only gotten confirmation on what she was told by the mysterious boy that had confronted her in the Hakuren music room. She had at first thought that he had been lying, but after what she had witnessed, she knew it was true.
Satsuki looked to her left and saw the shadow of a 5 year old boy. She blinked several times and looked again. There she saw present day Fubuki quietly snoring. A small smile appeared on her face. At least she had gotten him back... Somewhat. After the two had reunited, there wasn't anything she would let separate them apart.
~~~~~~<<~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of minutes later, the bus came to a slow stop. Light footsteps slowly led to Satsuki's seat. Hitomiko kantoku motioned for Satsuki to quietly come with her. She looked at her coach with confusion, but thought that it was best not to question her.
As they both stepped off the bus, Satsuki's breath caught. She realized where they were.... Her mothers home. She looked up at her coach and shook her head, but Hitomiko stopped her.
"I heard that you haven't seen your mother in 9 years. I'd say you miss her." She turned toward the caravans entrance,"Satsuki-san, family should be cherished." she then entered the bus, ending the discussion.
Satsuki sighed and slowly walked up the steps to the entrance of the house. Taking in a deep breath, she raised her arm and knocked on the door. A few seconds passed until footsteps could be heard behind the door. The door opened to a woman that looked just like Satsuki, except she was taller, had dark brown eyes, no highlights, and wore glasses. The lady took a minute to figure out who her guest was, but when she did, her smile fell and she dropped the book that had been in her hand to grab Satsuki into a tight hug.
"My sweet girl! You've gotten so big!" her mother sobbed,"and you're safe!!" After nine years, Satsuki was reunited with her mother; Kaminari Yukie.
~~~~~~~>>>>~~~~~
Satsuki's mom ushered her into the home she had lived in nine years before. There was a jab in her heart from all the nostalgia in the room. Pictures lined the walls of when Satsuki was little. As she looked around more, Satsuki realized that nothing much had changed in the time that she was gone, except for the increase in the amount of pictures and the huge variety of flowers placed throughout the house. It was as if her mother had brought her work home with her.
After the grand tour, Satsuki and her mom sat down to a mug of hot chocolate. For a while, they talked about what was currently going on, but the conversation began to slowly transition into an awkward stage where both did not know what else to say. Finally Satsuki broke the silence.
"I can't stay long... my team and I..." she began to explain when her mother stopped her mid sentence.
"Well I think we have enough room in this house! Maybe your coach will let you all stay overnight! Food, showers, and all!"
Satsuki began to protest but her mother was already up and out of the house.
Surprisingly, Hitomiko did not refuse and took Yukie on her offer. As she woke the rest of the bus up, members of Raimon looked quizzically at Satsuki for answers, but she simply shrugged and helped take everyone's bag into the house. The night went onto to be peaceful, with lots of food and games. Satsuki and her mother talked for hours about what had happened over the past years. Then, as they were going over how Satsuki got to Hokkaido, Fubuki walked by and gave Yukie a double take.
"You seem familiar," he said suspiciously.
Yukie smiled,"I've seen you a couple of times. You come by my store and buy three roses once every year." Satsuki's mouth dropped. Her mother knew Fubuki, known he was alive and didn't tell her!
With tears in her eyes, Satsuki stood up and left to her old room. Minutes later, her mom came in and sat on her bed.
"You didn't tell me..." Satsuki said in a hushed voice.
Her mother sighed,"It was for good reason. He started coming into my store five years ago, but he obviously didn't know who I was or even you for that matter. It was as if everything about you was erased from his mind." She grabbed her daughters hand and made Satsuki look at her,"I swear that I would've told you, but I didn't think you could take it. I didn't know what him not remembering you would do. I couldn't lose you anymore than I already had..." Yukie stood up and looked out the window,"and besides... Your father didn't think it was a good idea either..."
Satsuki's head snapped toward her,"What do you mean??? Were you helping him keep me there? Help him use me as a walking talking trophy?? He didn't let me do the one thing I loved most!" Yukie tried to protest, but Satsuki cut her off,"You both sheltered me away from things and never gave me answers! I don't understand why you two won't let me do things that make me happy!" Shaking her head, tears running down her face, Satsuki stormed out of her room and went into the bathroom, leaving Yukie to feel like she failed as a mom.
~~~~~~>>>>~~~~~~~~
Eventually, Satsuki came out of the bathroom and fell asleep on her old bed. Every so often, her team mates came in to check on her.
Around 6 in the morning, Satsuki woke up to a surrounding dullness in her room. She sighed as she remembered the current night and became mad at herself. She had become angry so quickly without giving her mother a chance to explain. Satsuki decided that this was when she needed to go for a walk. Maybe the cool air would clear her mind. She snuck through the living room filled with snoring boys, exited the house, and entered the woods where everything had started.
~~~~~~~>>>>>>~~~~~~~
Satsuki walked in the dark woods till her shoes were soaked. Her body felt calmer somewhat but she was still mad about her mothers secret. She could've taken it... Right?
She stopped and leaned against a tree. Who was she kidding? She could barely handle it now; him not knowing who she was. Satsuki felt hurt every time he looked at her and couldn't remember their childhood. Shaking her head and bringing her gloved hands to her face, she began to cry.
Satsuki didn't know how long she had been there, but she suddenly heard a distinct sound of a crash. "This deep in the woods?" she thought,"Sounds a little familiar..."
Her curiosity got the better of her and she quickly ran toward the sound. As the sound got closer, Satsuki entered a clearing...... The same clearing years ago where she fell through the ice. And the same as years ago, she saw two distinct figures could be seen across it.
She took a step onto the ice then stepped off. "I'm hallucinating," she thought allowed,"I can't keep doing this!" Satsuki turned and began walking away from the icy lake until she heard something..
"...Satsuki...."
Turning back around, she looked across the clearing to see that the two figures were a lot closer.
"Satsuki...." they called again. The voices were compelling and before she knew it, Satsuki was walking to the middle of the lake. She reached the two figures and realized that they were a much younger version of Fubuki and Atsuya. They both looked at her with gleaming eyes and smiled. "Itsumo sannin wa isho!" Their voices echoed as if heard in a dream. Satsuki brought her hand out and tried to touch them.
"You both aren't real...."
The two figures disappeared in front of her and snapped Satsuki back into reality. She turned away from where her illusion had been and quietly began to cry. There was when she knew that she had to move on. They weren't coming back and nothing would change that. Her cries got louder and louder, echoing through the clearing. She began shaking her head to show her stupidity. Most of her life consisted of depression. Never wanting to let go and it ruined her. Now that she got Fubuki back, Satsuki knew that she should move on and create a new story. One that didn't dwell so much in the past. Feeling that the temperature was dropping, Satsuki began to walk toward the woods, but just as she moved, a large crack formed where she stood and opened a hole that dropped her into the lake.
There she was again, caught in the icy clutches of death. She struggled to swim up to the surf but it was no use, she was completely numb. "Wow," Satsuki thought,"I'm caught in the same near death experience as when I was younger..." But this time, no one was around to help her.
She began to panic. It wasn't supposed to end like this! .... Or was it?
She stopped for a minute and thought. Maybe this was for the best... No more depression, no more hurt.... Satsuki's vision began to blur and her lungs started to burn. Around the mess of floating of her hair, Satsuki's necklace made its way out of her shirt and appeared in front of her face. "Isho"
Eyes flickering, a new thought crossed her mind,"I don't want to die..." And everything went black
~<<<<<<><<<<<<>>><
<<<<<<>><>>>>><>>>>>>
>><<><<<<><>>>>>>>>>>>
<>><>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
<>><>><>>>><><>>><><>>
And that was the story of Kaminari Satsuki..........
<>><><>>>><<>><<><><<>>
<><>><>><>>><>>><>>>>>>>
<><<><<>>>>>>>><>><><><>>
<><><><>><>>>>>><>>>>>>>>
>>~><<><<<<>>>>>>>>
(Just kidding!)
~~~~~~~~~~~>>>~~~~~~~
Deep in the dark, a voice was heard in urgency. "Satsuki???!!!!?????"
A small light.... "Come on!!!"
The light grew increasingly close. "WAKE UP SATSUKI!!!!"
It was Fubuki....
Satsuki pulled herself out of the darkness, sputtering tons of water out of her lungs in the process.
Kneeling beside her with a look of relief was Fubuki. He was soaked from head to toe, hair in his face. Satsuki looked down at herself and saw that she was the same. Slowly she lifted herself into a sitting position.
"I don't know what to say.." she began,"I thought I was going to die, but..."
Fubukie cut her off,"Do I have to keep saving you from the same near death experience," he smiled sweetly.
For some reason Satsuki blushed,"I guess..." she gave a slight laugh,"Even when I was little...." She stopped. Same near death experience? How did he know unless...
"Fubuki? Do you..." She looked up at him and saw that he was waiting for her to figure it out. Satsuki began to cry. "Y-you... You remember me?"
He nodded and reached over to fix Satsuki's necklace...
"I've been wondering why you were so familiar... Ever since I saw you, I kept having childhood images in my mind. After the..." his voice faltered. He couldn't talk about the accident,"well... I knew that something was missing, but that something was completely erased from my mind.." Fubuki looked at Satsuki and smiled. "And that something was you."
Tears were again forming in Satsuki's eyes. Fubuki smiled again and pulled something out from the collar of his shirt. Two necklaces identical to hers lay on the palm of his hands. "Itsumo, sannin wa, isho.." Satsuki read from each necklace. Her heart warmed at the thought of getting her best friend back. She looked up to Fubuki who had a saddened look, but he smiled at the sight of her.
"Here," he said, taking off one of the necklaces,"I think you should hold on to this one, I already have his scarf.." He pulled the necklace over Satsuki's head, adjusted it, and gave a small smile. Satsuki smiled back and looked down at the necklaces. She thought back to all that had happened in her life. The feelings she was having... She had never felt so much joy! How had she made it without Fubuki all these years...
Satsuki's vision began to blur and tears formed around the rims of her eyes. "What's wrong Satsuki?" Fubuki edged closer to her. She looked up at him. "I missed you so much!" Tears began to roll down her cheek,"...both of you",she whispered. Her cries began to get louder, much of it from relief. Fubuki wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug and waited for her to finish. As Satsuki's cries quieted down, she heard something echo in her mind.
"You've always been a crybaby, Satsu!" A voice teased. Satsuki shook her head and smiled. His voice she thought.
Both Satsuki and Fubuki, still soaked to the bone, stood up and began their walk back to her house. This time, arms wrapped around each other, laughing, and together.
