War of the Tsurekin

(Happy birthday!)


Skylar sighed, trying her best to fight off her blush. "It's nothing important," she said.

"If it's not important, then why would Elise lock you in a room with me until you tell me what it is?" Kai asked. "Does it have something to do with why you've been so nervous around me lately?"


Meanwhile, Sean was walking down the hall when he saw Elise standing with her ear pressed to a door. He came up to her and asked, "What are you doing?"

She shushed him before whispering, "Skylar's about to tell Kai how she feels about him."

"Really?" he asked, a little surprised. He went up to the door and pressed his ear against it as well.

A few moments later, Akira showed up. "Hey, what are you kids doing?"

Sean and Elise shushed her at the same time.


(When Skylar gets out of there, almost everyone in The Aushalten is going to be right outside the door. )

(((She's gonna want to die. )))

Skylar swallowed and chewed her lower lip.

"I thought so." Kai crossed his arms and eyed her. "Spit it on, whatever it is can't hurt anyone."

"You'd be surprised." She replied as she looked at the floor.

((OY, I'm no good at it in real life or in writing. :S ))

(The only way to get better is to practice, right? But I understand.)


Skylar sighed. She'd might as well just tell him. It was either now or never, and since Elise was blocking the door the never choice wasn't an option. She took a deep breath before she started. "Kai, I... I like you." There, it was out in the open now. There was nothing she could do now but wait for his response. She closed her eyes, as if to brace herself.

Kai was silent for a moment before saying, "Is that it?" Skylar opened her eyes to see him smiling. "I'm relieved to hear that. To tell you the truth, I thought the reason why you were so nervous around me was because your were scared at how strong Ryukin and I had become."

"So... you're not mad?" Skylar asked.

"Why would I be mad?" he asked. "I already told you I liked you. In fact, I was thinking about taking you to the carnival downtown this week, but I wasn't sure how you'd react. So, if it's okay with you, would you like to come with me tomorrow night at nine?"


(It's an hour after Ty takes Shigure to the same carnival. I'm planning on having them see each other there.)

((Ya, I know. ))

Skylar kept from jumping up and down and just nodded. "Ok." She smiled.

"OK?"

"Yes." She grinned laughing. "Sounds like a blast to me."

"Good, now come on." They walked to the door and Kai pushed it open and Skylar's cheeks flared bright red when she saw everyone tumble back not realizing Elise had unlocked the door.

((Sounds good))

(I was thinking of a future plot twist. What if Skylar's father shows up one day to take her back home with him? And what if it turns out he and Skylar's mom got divorced, or if they were never really married, broke up? When this happens, Skylar still sees him as the neglectful druggie he always was?)


It took every ounce of Skylar's will power to keep her composure. She thought it was just Elise on the other side of that door, but Sean was there, and so was Akira, Ceder, Ryukin, Tala, and Ivy.

Skylar looked at the woman and asked, "You too, Ivy?"

The woman smiled. "It's so cute to see young love these days."

That one word made Skylar's eyes go wide. Love!? Her face turned even redder as she pushed her way through the crowd and rushed back to her room. At her speed, she was out of sight in seconds. Elise and Tala both left to chase after her.

Both Sean and Ceder approached Kai and draped an arm over each of his shoulders, both of them were smiling. "I knew you had it in you, you big stud," Sean said.

"You're a way better ladies man than me!" Ceder added.

Ryukin approached next and said, "Looks like you finally found yourself a girlfriend."

Kai shook his head. "Not you too, Ryukin."

(((I was always thinking one or both of the parents would show up. )))

Skylar collapsed on her bed and looked at the ceiling her heart racing. Elise and Tala walke din and Elise closed the door behind her. She slipped under the covers.

"Leave me alone!" She yelled as she pulled the covers tight around her.

"Hey, I didn't mean for everyone to be there." Elise said jumping on the bed. "But you got a date with him!"

"I did, didn't I?" Skylar said sitting up and smiling.

(Let's do a time jump to the next night.)


Shigure looked at the clock one more time. It was seven-thirty, half an hour until her date with Ty. For the first time in her life she was worried about how she would dress. From what she heard from other people who date, she had to look good. But most of the clothes she had were designed for stealth and combat, not special occasions. The closest thing she had was a simple T-shirt and a skirt piece from one of her ninja uniforms, which she never wore because she thought it was too short.

She sighed before getting changed. If she had any other piece of casual-wear that was less revealing she would wear it. She did decide to wear some shorts underneath, though. She made her way to the foyer when she was ready to go. By the time she decided what to wear it was already almost time to go. She made sure to move through the mansion as stealthily as she could, if anybody else in the mansion saw her she wouldn't be able to live it down.

She saw Ty waiting for her at the front door. When he saw her, he said, "I've never seen you in a skirt before."

Shigure's face started to go red. She turned away and said, "D-don't get any funny ideas. I didn't wear it for you."

Ty couldn't help but smile at her reaction.

"I didn't say you did." He smiled at her and held his arm out. "Lets go." He smiled. She looked at him oddly and then put her hand on the crook of his elbow. He led her out to the car he was borrowing from Ivy.

"Where'd you get this?" She asked as he opened the door for her.

"Ivy's letting me use it." He smiled. He walked to his side and drove off.

*~*~*

Skylar looked in the mirror again. "No." She said crossing her arms over her stomach in the tight shirt. "To tight."

"Only other thing I have is a dress." Elise sighed. "Your so difficult."

"Well, that's me." SKylar said her stomach in knots.

"Alright, put this on." Elise said handing her another combination of clothes. It was shorts and a tank top. She pulled them on and Elise smiled. "Perfect, brings out your eyes. Now a little make up, nothing big, just for the eyes to really make them pop."

Shigure stared out the window as they drove, watching as the buildings passed by. She was so nervous, from all the years she spent training the one thing she was never taught was how to interact with someone on a date.

"Have you ever been to a carnival before?" Ty asked, snapping Shigure out of her train of thought.

"No, I haven't," she simply said.

He smiled. "You're going to love it. They've got rides, games, cotton candy, the works." After a few more minutes they arrived at the carnival. The entire place was set up in an empty parking lot in front of the mall. "Here we are," Ty said.
________________________________


Kai was in his own room, trying to figure out what he was going to wear. He changed into a black tank top with blue jeans and a jean jacket. He looked at himself in the mirror before turning to Ryukin and asked, "What do you think?"

"I think it looks fine," he said as he lay on the bed. "I don't understand why humans care so much about how they look on a date. Won't Skylar just be happy going to the carnival with you?"

"Yeah, but I at least want to make an effort to look good." He looked at himself in the mirror before saying, "Well, I think this is good. I'm going to see if Skylar is ready yet. It's almost time to leave."

Ty got out and opened her door before they walked to the front gate and he paid for the tickets for the both of them.



*~*~*

Skylar looked in the mirror again and wrapped her arms around her stomach selfconciously.

"You look fine, put the sandles on and go." Elise said shoving her towards the door where her shoes were. Skylar bit her lip as she slipped them on and then walked into the living room part of their area seeing Kai standing in there.

"This is a strange place," Shigure said as she looked at all the different rides and games.

"Maybe, but it's really fun," Ty said. "Which ride do you want to go on first?"

They stopped in front of a game stall with balloons taped to the far wall. The man in charge of it was saying, "Step right up! Pop three balloons and win a prize!"

Ty smiled. This was his chance to win something for Shigure. "This looks fun, why don't we give it a try?" he asked.

"Okay..."

Ty paid for his first game. He was given three darts to throw. He threw them one by one. He hit a balloon with the first to, but missed on his last try. He shook his head. "These games are always rigged. Do you want to try?"

Shigure looked at the darts, then the balloons on the wall. It didn't look that hard to hit them. "Sure," she said.

Ty paid for another set of darts. Shigure took the darts and placed each one between her fingers, closing her hand into a fist to hold them in place. She flung her arm forward with such speed that her hand became nothing but a blur. The first two darts hit their mark, and the third one traveled at just the right angle to got through one balloon and pop the one right next to it, making the grand total four balloons popped.

"Does this mean I get a prize?" Shigure asked.
____________________________

Kai smiled at Skylar. "You look good."

Sky blushed a little. "Th-thanks, so do you. So, how are we getting there?"

"Sean's letting me use his car. Are you ready to go?"

Skylar nodded. "Yeah." She followed him out the door.

"Have fun, you two!" Elise called after them. A few moments later she noticed Ryukin and Tala heading out the door as well. "Where do you two think you're going?"

"Out for a walk," Ryukin said.

Elise frowned and crossed her arms. "You're not going to interrupt their date."

"We're not going to ruin their night together," Ryukin said. "We're just going to follow them and keep an eye on them in case anyone decides to attack them. We won't interfere unless it's an emergency."

"I still don't like it," Elise said.

"Don't worry," Tala said, "they won't even know we're there."

Ty smiled and nodded. "Sure does." He looked at the guy standing behind the counter who was just staring. "Well?"

"O-oh, right, um, what prize do you want?" HE asked pointing to the overstuffed panda bears, teaddy bears, lions, wolves, and other animals.


*~*~*~*

Skylar's stomach was in knots as they drove down the street towards the mall. They pulled up to a stop and headed towards the front gate.


**I've nothing**

Shigure looked at all the different stuffed animals. She saw a giant stuffed frog that reminded her of Kaeru. Seeing no other ones that caught her interest, she pointed to it and said, "I want that one."

The man looked at it and said, "I'm sorry, that one is for display only." He took a smaller frog from a nearby rack that looked nothing like the one she wanted. "Here, you can have this one."

She glared at the man. "I hit four balloons with only three darts, I want the bigger one."

"I can't give you that one."

Shigure looked at Ty and said, "I want to play one more time."

"All right," he said before paying for three more darts.

She grabbed the darts and said, "I'll make you a deal. If I can hit six balloons with only these three darts, you have to give me the big one."

The guy eyed her. "And if I refuse?"

"Then I'll use your eyes as targets instead of the balloons."

That made the man flinch. "All right, if it'll make you happy you can try."

Shigure moved to the corner of the stall before she threw each dart one at a time. Each one hit its mark, popping all six balloons. She looked at the man and said, "Now, hand it over."

He sighed as he reached up and took the giant frog off its hook and handed it to her. "I hope your happy, just take it and don't come back."
________________________


Kai noticed Skylar's unease as he paid for their tickets. When they got past the front gate he asked, "What's wrong? You seem tense."

"It's nothing," she said.

"You're nervous, aren't you? I can tell."

She sighed. "A little, yes."

"Well, don't be. We're here to have fun, remember?" He grabbed Skylar's hand and pulled her to the nearest ride.


(Can you have Ty take Shigure to the haunted house next? If you post them going into the ride, be sure to end it the moment the first scary thing pops out in front of them.)

Ty chuckled softly as they walked away.

"What?" Shigure asked.

"Nothing." He smiled. "It's a cool frog though." He smiled.

"Yes it is." She smiled a little looking at the frog. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the haunted house.

"Come on, I've always wanted to go on one of these." He said as he pulled her inside after paying for it.

**I've never been in one, I'll let you discribe it**

Skylar followed him smiling as they climbed on the mini roller coaster. It was really just a big disk that spun really fast. She sat on the booth and he sat next to her before they started it up. It started to spin really fast and she held the bar tight as she slid a little in the seat.

The inside was dark and narrow, with plenty of places for someone to hide. It made Shigure a little nervous. She kept her eyes open, keeping a lookout for any kind of movement.

"What is this ride?" Shigure asked.

"It's a haunted house. It's meant to scare anyone who goes through it."

"Why would anyone want to get scared?" she asked.

Before Ty could answer, a skeleton popped up beside them accompanied by a loud shriek. Shigure's reflexes took over as she dropped her large stuffed frog, grabbed the skeleton by the skull and kneeing it in the face, ripping it off its hinges as well. When she realised what it was, the skeleton was a mere heap of plastic bones laying on the ground. The force of her knee hitting it crushed the entire front of the skull.

"...It's not real," was all she said as she stared down at it.
________________________


The ride kept getting faster and faster. Skylar kept sliding in her seat until she was pressed up against Kai's side. They both laughed as the ride kept going around and around, then it stopped and went backwards. They were really dizzy once they got off.

"That was fun!" Skylar said. She had so much fun on the ride that it erased most of her nervousness. "What should we do now?"

Kai spotted one of those games where you had to make a bell ring by swinging a hammer as hard as you could. There were some pretty good prizes on display. "Why don't I win you something?" he asked, pointing at it.
_________________________


Ryukin and Tala had both managed to sneak up onto the roof of the mall. "It was a good idea coming up here," Tala said. "From this high we'll be able to watch them no matter where they are.

As they made their way to the edge of the roof overlooking the carnival they noticed two other Tsurekin there as well. For a moment Ryukin thought they were enemies, but calmed down when he realised it was Kaeru and Quincy. "What are you two doing here?" he asked.

"Ty brought Shigure here on a date," Quincy said.

"So you're here to watch them?" Tala asked.

"I'm just here to make sure that snake's master doesn't try anything funny with Shigure," Kaeru said.

Quincy glared at the frog and said, "And I'm here to make sure your master doesn't try to kill mine."

Ryukin shook his head. "You two could at least make an effort to get along."

"What are you two doing here, by the way?" Quincy asked.

"Is it just so happens, Kai brought Skylar to this very carnival as well. We're here in case Tsurikansen tries to make a move."

"I haven't seen them yet, I've just been keeping an eye on Ty," Quincy said. "He took Shigure into that haunted house ride just a moment ago."