~ Note 1; My drawing of Mika is almost done :D it will be up tomorrow-ish...or late tonight.
~Note 2; Guess who got Shugo Chara hair accessories! XD (not like you guys care...but it must be known!)
Chapter 3 - Part 1
Shadow and Ari eventually made it back to the center of Blooming Cora, all was quiet and all tricksters were sleeping soundly inside their tents. “It’s been a long night. You go and get some sleep okay, Ari?” Shadow sat on some grass and leaned against a palm tree. “What about you? Aren’t you going to set up camp too?” Ari looked at Shadow with a puzzled expression. “I’ll stay out here and stand guard in case that weirdo raccoon comes back.” He crossed his arms and looked around, but then let out a yawn. “You’ve done enough tonight, just get some sleep, you deserve it.” Ari protested. Shadow had already saved her from Zero; Ari felt it was too much if he did anything else for her. Shadow then stood up and walked over to Ari. He placed his hand on the side of her cheek and leaned his face close to hers. “Please, do me a favor. Go. To. Sleep.” Shadow said flatly. Ari stared at Shadow for a moment and her heart began to flutter. Shadow pointed at Ari’s tent and took his hand away. Ari stood still for what seemed like minutes and then finally decided to give in. “Okay,” she sighed. “Good night Shadow. Thanks again for what you did earlier.” She sighed and retreated into her tent. “ ‘Night Ari…” Shadow muttered to himself and stared off into the dark blue of the ocean.
I have been so failing on updating D: but today I have a day off, so I will try to post as much as I can today to make up for it! >=O
Chapter 3 - Part 2
The light of dawn woke Ari up. She yawned and got up slowly. She put on her sneakers and walked outside of the tent. She spotted Shadow still asleep under the tree. She walked up to him and poked his arm. “Shadow, wake up.” He moved slightly and just turned away. Ari poked him again. Shadow yawned and opened one eye. “What happened? Is something wrong?” he grunted. “I guess you were sleeping on the job?” Ari laughed slightly. “I wasn’t sleeping! I was just resting my eyes for a moment!” Shadow lied. “That’s only the biggest lie I’ve ever heard.” Ari then burst out laughing. “What’s so funny?” Shadow asked and got up. “You insisted on staying out here to stand guard and you fell asleep. It’s a bit funny.” Ari said and turned away. “Yup. It’s hilarious.” Shadow said defensively. “There’s no need to get angry.” Ari added an apologetic tone to her voice. “Whatever.” Shadow shrugged. “Well, I have some news, we should probably start heading over to Megalopolis, you should be safe from Zero there.” Ari thought for a moment and realized she didn’t know what Megalopolis was. “Where’s that?” Ari asked. “It’s actually kind of far from here, but I know that way there, so we should be fine.” With Shadow leading the way, the two headed across the calm beaches of Blooming Cora to a place with a different kind of sand.
Sorry about the small font 0_o I don't know why it's that small. I might double-space the next chapter.
Woo. I figured out the problem xD *feels dumb now*
Chapter 4 - Part 1
The air was dry and the sunny beaches soon turned more desert-like. The heat and all the walking were starting to get to Ari. “Shadow, what is this awful place?” Ari groaned and pulled on Shadow’s sleeve. “Well, I think you’d beg to differ, but this place is called Paradise. What makes you say it’s so awful anyway?” Shadow kept walking and looked back at Ari. “It’s hot, dry, and ugly.” Ari sighed. “Odd, that’s coming from the girl wearing a sweater and a skirt. You don’t see me complaining about heat and I’m dressed in layers.” Shadow laughed teasingly. “Please tell me the place we’re going isn’t like this.” Ari shuddered at the thought of it. “It’s not like this at all, so don’t worry about it.” Shadow suddenly stopped and looked around. “That’s weird…” he took a few more steps forward and glanced around again. “What’s wrong?” Ari stayed a few feet behind him but looked around too. “This place is totally empty. There’s usually nothing but people selling things right here.” Shadow looked in every direction and not a person was found, not even the dedicated officer Tera who never left her post. Shadow sighed. “Of course, when I actually need help from Tera, she’s not even here.” He had a disappointed look on his face now. “I don’t know about you, but this place is kind of creeping me out. Something just doesn’t seem right about it, and I guess from what you said, this isn’t normal anyway,” Ari walked forward and stood next to Shadow. “I say we just don’t get involved and leave.” Ari smiled and was relieved this was an excuse to not stay in a place she hated any longer. “I guess you’re right. Maybe we can hear some news about what’s going on when we get to Megalopolis.” Shadow and Ari looked back at the deserted town one last time and kept walking.
Man, I'm on a writing roll now! :D
Chapter 4 - Part 2
The bare land of Paradise was starting to cool down as the sun set, it was becoming a bit more enjoyable, but Ari couldn’t shake the odd feeling that something wasn’t right. “Hey, I forgot to ask earlier, but why is it safe from Zero in Megalopolis?” Ari tried to break the long silence that had been going on. “As far as I know, Zero stays in Blooming Cora because he has more targets and they’re easy for him to kidnap.” Shadow sounded lost in thought. “Does anyone know where he takes the people he kidnaps?” Ari was interested in knowing more about these things. “The only thing we’re sure of is that he takes them to Mika, wherever he’s hiding. But obviously, we don’t know where Mika is.” Shadow kept a serious face but a tone of sadness touched his voice. “And I don’t think you and your flimsy police force will ever find him.” A familiar voice said from behind the two. Shadow and Ari both turned around quickly. Zero stood in front of them with a sly smirk on his face while swaying his tail in the same odd way he always did. “It’s so nice to see you again little bunny. I’m sorry, but this time I have direct orders to capture you specifically,” Zero held up cards in between his fingers and took a battle stance. “But since I’ve grown a bit fond of you, I’m going to make this quick and painless for you.”
*high-fives some random guy* That's like...3 or 4 posts today :D ...I lost count.
Chapter 4 - Part 3
Zero threw the cards between Ari and Shadow. The cards exploded and sent them stumbling away in different directions. Zero saw his chance and blew through the smoke with ninja-like speed and landed in front of Ari. He quickly grabbed Ari by the wrist and started to pull her away. Ari yanked her hand out of his grip and kneed him in the stomach. Zero simply took a step back and grinned. “Is that all you can do?” he laughed. “That was so pathetic it was almost kind of cute.” He stared at her and stood up straight. Ari could hear Shadow calling from the other side of the smoke, but knew this time she would have to fight on her own. Ari let out a low growl and sprung at Zero with a flurry of punches. He dodged all of the punches with what looked like no effort. “The smoke is going to clear soon, I don’t have time to play these games with you anymore.” Zero grabbed Ari’s wrist again and flipped her onto the ground. The impact of hitting the sand so hard knocked the wind out of her. Ari stood up slowly and was knocked back down by Zero. Everything was beginning to swirl and Ari felt incredibly dizzy. She could still hear Shadow calling frantically, and she could see Zero standing above her with such a cold expression. Even though she knew her efforts were useless, she stood one last time, was knocked back into the sand, and blacked out.
I forgot to mention a while ago that my drawing of Mika is up o_o. Fear his non-threatning looks :D (And yet again, I am having issues with small text 0_o)
Chapter 5 - Part 1
She heard Zero and a voice she didn’t recognize. She couldn’t open her eyes. She could tell she was on the floor. It was cold and uncomfortable. All Ari could do was listen. “So this is the bunny that was being guarded by that priest?” the voice said. “Yeah. That’s her.” Zero replied. “You bruised her a bit more than necessary, that’s going to be a slight problem.” Ari felt a hand touch a bruise on her cheek. She cringed and moved away. “Oh, she’s awake.” The voice said. Ari opened her eyes and saw a pair of glowing red eyes staring at her. “Nice to meet you ma’am, I’m Mika.” The lion-boy smiled brightly. “Mika…I thought you were a scientist…not a cyber hunter.” His clothes puzzled Ari. “It’s to throw off the police of course. They all have the same reaction as you. If they’re looking for a scientist, they won’t be looking at me right?” Mika grinned. “001 came up with this idea actually, it’s quite clever.” Zero looked away from Mika and turned to some odd glowing object. Ari flinched and tried to get up, but she noticed she was handcuffed and her feet were tied together. “Don’t bother trying to move. We’re going to start the surgery on you as soon as your bruises heal. Don’t worry, we’ll still give you food and water, we’re not cruel.” Mika kept smiling and walked away. Ari was so scared and angry she felt like she was about to start crying, but she didn’t want to show her feelings in a time like this. Zero was still in the room and was simply pacing back and forth with a sorrowful look in his eyes. Ari started to worry about what happened after she blacked out. “Hey,” Ari spoke firmly. “Did you hurt Shadow?” her voice slipped out a quiver at the end of her question. “Of course I didn’t. He would’ve beat me down and rubbed my face in the dirt.” Zero growled. “Then what happened?” Ari asked. “I knocked you out, picked you up, and ran.” Zero stopped pacing and stared at Ari. He walked over to her slowly. Ari finally managed to sit up and she put her handcuffed fists up. Zero laughed sarcastically. “Easy there, killer.” Zero then put a frown back on his face. “Shut up.” Ari snapped angrily. Zero sighed and sat across from Ari on the floor. “Ari. I’m sorry this has to happen, but I’m just doing what I have to. I don’t like this any more than you do.” Zero locked his eyes on hers. “How would you know how I feel? And how did you know my name?” Ari demanded. “I know how you feel. Trust me, I just do. And secondly, your dragon friend kept calling you that.” He stood up again. Ari couldn’t control herself anymore and tears began to roll down her face. “Come on… I can’t believe you’re crying. You were acting all tough earlier.” Zero was straining himself to try to sound sympathetic. “Just leave me alone.” Ari turned to face a corner. “Just calm down. Don’t worry about things. Leave it to me.” Zero turned and walked silently out of the room.
Man the site being down is annoying D:
Chapter 5 - Part 2
Zero walked into the main lab and tapped Mika on the shoulder. “Why were you being so nice to her? It was so out of character it was creepy.” Zero asked calmly. “A scared victim always puts up a fight, it makes them tense, and that makes it difficult to work on them. I think that’s why you’ve been my only successful experiment. That’s a theory of mine.” Mika took out a notebook and scribbled something down. “You may have been nice, but you have to admit this whole place is pretty creepy on its own. You have those sharp things all over, and its always dark in here.” Zero shrugged. “001, you know I hate light. It hurts my eyes.” Mika mumbled. “And you know I hate being called 001.” Zero reminded Mika in a mocking tone. “If you keep up that attitude I’m going to lock you in that room you hate again.” Mika was starting to get slightly annoyed. Zero shuddered and took a step back. “Sorry to disturb you then Lord Mika.” Zero turned away and went back into the other room.
The writing roll; Day 2!
Chapter 6 - Part 1
“Are you done crying?” Zero asked as he stepped into the small dark room. “What does it matter to you?” Ari let out a small sob and didn’t turn from the corner. “Well you can stop crying because I’ve decided that if I just let Mika do his surgery, there’s no fun in that. So I’m letting you go.” Zero put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall. “Letting me go?” Ari turned around and looked at Zero. “That’s what I said.” Zero walked over to Ari and unlocked her handcuffs. “Why the heck did you go to all the trouble of beating me up if you’re just gonna let me go?” Ari was trying not to yell. “I’m sorry for that. But I have a better plan now. No matter the outcome of that surgery, nothing good is going to happen. You’ll either die, or you’ll end up like me; Mika’s servant for the rest of your life.” He took out a small blade and cut Ari’s legs free. “Mika is pretty much engrossed in whatever he’s doing right now, so if you stay quiet, he won’t even notice you with me when we walk out the door.” Zero started to walk towards the door again and Ari followed cautiously. “What’s going to happen when he finds out I’m gone?” Ari whispered. “People have escaped while he’s been distracted before. I don’t think he’ll care too much.” Zero stepped forward and told Ari to follow with a hand motion. Zero walked slowly into the room and Ari followed closely behind him. Mika didn’t bother to turn around just as Zero had said. They kept walking and Zero opened the door that led to the tunnels. “001, where are you going?” Zero and Ari froze in fear, but realized Mika hadn’t looked away from his work. “I’m just going to go get something to eat. I’m starving.” Zero then pushed Ari into the tunnel out of sight. “In the middle of the afternoon? Won’t you get caught?” Mika suggested. “I’m going to put on a disguise, I’ll be fine, I need to get some sun once in a while anyway.” Zero started to turn towards the exit. “Ugh…the sun.” Mika muttered. Zero quickly slipped out the door before Mika could say anything else.
The chapter was oddly amusing to write XD
Chapter 6 - Part 2
“Well that was too close for comfort.” Zero sighed with relief. He reached into his pocket and took out a small piece of cloth. “I’m going to have to blindfold you. I can’t have you revealing to anyone where this is.” Zero turned to Ari and stared at her with the same cold expression he had on earlier. “How am I supposed to walk?” Ari wasn’t comfortable being led by someone she didn’t trust at all. “These tunnels are perfectly straight, so just keep walking forward and you’ll be fine.” He stepped in front of Ari and put the blindfold around her eyes. He turned her in the right direction and started to walk. Ari just followed even though had her doubts that Zero was actually letting her go. “Stop.” Zero commanded after they had been walking for a long time. “I’m going to carry you from here.” She heard Zero move towards her. “Don’t you dare!” Ari protested. She hated the thought of Zero being that close to her. “It’ll only be for a few minutes. I can’t have you feeling your way around or you might be able to find this place again.” Zero said sternly. Ari then felt her feet leave the ground and she was swept into Zero’s arms. “Put me down!” Ari started to kick and thrash. “The longer you kick me, the longer you’re going to be like this. So deal with it for a bit!” Zero unfortunately made sense. “Fine, but you better have me back on the ground in five minutes!” Ari growled and reluctantly gave up. Zero began to run and Ari could soon feel the warmth of the sun on her face. She could smell flowers and feel a soft breeze. “I know we’re outside now, so put me down.” Ari said flatly. “Gladly.” Zero said happily and simply dropped Ari on the ground. “Ow! That was just uncalled for!” Ari snapped and took off her blindfold. Zero laughed proudly. “You have a sick sense of humor.” She got up and dusted herself off. “When you live with Mika, that sense of humor just happens.” Zero shrugged and kept laughing. “Well this means I’m free to go now right?” Ari crossed her arms and frowned at Zero. “That’s exactly what it means, but don’t you want any help finding that friend of yours?” he said in an embarrassed tone and started to mess with his hair. “Yes I need help, but not from you.” She turned away from him in a snobbish way. “Fine then. But I need to tell you one last thing,” He sighed. “But I have to make sure no one hears it, so come over here.” She turned back to face him again and he stepped closer. They then stood face-to-face; a little closer than Ari would’ve liked. “Well what is it?” Ari took a small step back. Zero leaned towards Ari’s ear. “Fine, no need to lose patience. I’ll tell you.” A sly smile slowly formed on his face, he leaned closer and kissed her quickly on the cheek. Ari’s cheeks turned bright red and she reflexively smacked his face as hard as she could. “What the heck is your problem?!” she shouted. Zero started laughing and placed his hand over where Ari had hit him. “Hey, that one actually hurt a little. I already told you I like you, so why is that such a surprise?” he kept laughing. “How was I supposed to know you were serious? I thought you were teasing me! It doesn’t matter anyway because I’d never like a sick jerk like you!” She turned and stormed off into the forest to go and find Shadow.