This story takes place one year after Conceptions of Love. Misaki has successfully defended her championship title, and maintains a huge fan following. Hatako was with her the entire way, guiding her through her own self-doubts. They are now in permanent contact with each other, alternating the houses in which they spend the night at. Their love remains steadfast and unbreakable. A thanks to all the people following this story. And so the tale begins... .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. Sea Whispers "One can always look to the sea and find a shimmering beacon of hope on the horizon, a soul and heart unwavering. It is why we will always exist, why we will always love." Yano, unknown source. .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. A light fog descended over the small cottage on the beach as clouds blew overhead. A dim light could be seen through the windows, warm and inviting. Another cottage rested upon the sandy slope, however the lights were out. The occupants of the lit stead had taken a stroll down the beach and were out of sight. A small piece of paper waved in the wind, the previous occupants had lost a dog it seemed. Waves crashed upon the rocks and sand at the shoreline, and gusts of wind flirted with the few trees lining the beach, and they danced in unison. The moon poked through the gray clouds and cast its silver light among the two girls as they walked slowly on the sand, barefoot. Occasionally water would greet their toes, and just as soon as it had arrived, it said goodbye and retreated back to the great sea, silently. Misaki and Hatako held hands as they paced down the sand. Hatako was dragging a long piece of seaweed with her free hand for some reason or another. Hatako spied a longer piece every so often, and dragged Misaki over so she could pick it up after dropping the one she already had. "Silly," whispered Misaki. Hatako turned to smile at her, gazing at Misaki while proudly holding up her treasure. "I'm going to name it Cookie." Hatako replied childishly. Misaki faked a grimace. "To much watermelon for you, I told you 'If you eat to much watermelon, you go weird on me.' Next time, I must remember, no watermelon." "But I love watermelon! Watermelon-san tasted so yummy... I wanted more but he disappeared after awhile..." Misaki slowed to a stop, Hatako following, and they turned to face the water, walking a few feet closer to it. "It's time to head back, the Sun has set already." Misaki murmured, and Hatako nodded. They had been out for much to long as it was, when they promised Misaki's mother that they would be back shortly. Hatako dropped Cookie on the ground and wrapped her arms around Misaki, her eyes still gazing out to sea. Misaki moved to turn away from the waves. "Misaki-chan, the sea... it is saying something to me..." whispered Hatako in the stangest voice Misaki had ever heard. Misaki turned and quite suddenly, a wave rolled in, much greater then anything that evening. It quickly submerged her waist, and she kneeled down, digging her feet and hands into the sand before the water receded. Even before she had finished, she noticed Hatako's grasp on her was lose. Misaki turned to look, and only saw gray eyes. "Hatako-chan!" Misaki called desperately, reaching out with one of her arms and wrapping it around Hatako, pulling her close, soaking wet. "Wake up Hatako-chan!" The great water receded with force, pulling at Misaki desperately, calling her to come. She held firm, and as soon as it had rolled away, Misaki heaved Hatako onto her back and raced up to the dry sand. Crouching, Misaki let go of Hatako, resting her gently upon the beach. She came around behind Hatako and sat down, straddling the child and wrapping her arms around her against her chest. Misaki knew full well that Hatako didn't swallow any water, she had grown to a point where her head was well above the tide. Instead, it was like Hatako was frozen. Like she was so stunned to say anything she couldn't warn Misaki, or run for higher ground. Like the sea had lulled her to sleep. And just as Misaki began to think of the worst possible situation, Hatako moved. Misaki was part relieved and part frantic. She feared she would not have known what to do had Hatako not moved. Electric seemed to race through Hatako's body, and she squirmed in Misaki's hold to face her, tears running down her cheeks, choking her words and blurring her vision. Her eyes had returned to their same color, but now appeared wide open. "It..." Hatako stammered. Misaki brought her into another embrace, stroking Hatako's hair with one hand. "Shh... It's okay Hatako-chan..." But Hatako shook her head violently and clung to Misaki. "It... was cold... very cold... Like..." Hatako stuttered, "... Like death." "Don't say things like that Hatako-chan, you're okay now. Wet, but okay. I know you're cold, I'm cold..." "No! Not... Not that kind of cold!" Hatako sobbed. She opened her mouth to say it once more, but Misaki slid her finger gently from Hatako's hair to her lips. Hatako, under the effect of the loving gesture, lost her sudden spark of anxiety and almost went limp. Misaki was right... shouldn't lose control to such nonsense... But she did see something in that moment of darkness, something terrible. Something that could not be grasped, something that no words were meant for. Hatako stared quietly at Misaki dazed. "Hatako-chan, calm down. Let's go back to the cottage. I'll carry you." Misaki didn't give Hatako any chance to respond, and turned around. Wrapping her arms around her back and Hatako, she lifted her up. Hatako obliged and held on to Misaki, to tired to push the matter further. The moon disappeared behind the clouds, and Misaki walked slowly along the beach in the near non-existent light. Misaki was worried about Hatako, and she soon forgot that it had been a peaceful night not long ago. The wind was no longer a joyful gust of refreshment, but a cold demon dancing amidst their soaking clothing. The sand had lost its warmth, the sunshine it had absorbed was long gone. "Why did we stay out so late, Hatako-chan..." Misaki asked softly. "The sea had something to say tonight, and after it was said and done, it wished us to go home." Hatako replied whispering into Misaki's ear. "All we could do was answer it," Misaki replied. The light of the their cottage was in sight now, and Misaki picked up her pace slightly. She longed to be warm inside. .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. Misaki let Hatako down on the edge of the bathtub, and went to lock the door. The cottage was small, and had only one room. Hence, the bed was in the same room as the toilet, kitchen area, and bathtub. There was no shower, the structure was to old to have one. Fortunately it had a water heater. "I'll make some nice hot tea Hatako-chan, how's that?" Misaki asked, and Hatako looked back into Misaki's eyes. "I would like that, Misaki-chan... But... Bath too?" Hatako asked imploringly as she removed her wet skirt. "Go ahead, Hatako-chan, you should take a nice warm bath. In fact, I'm making you. Take off those wet clothes and hop in there. I'll bring you some tea. Relax time now." Misaki replied, setting a silver kettle on the stove. "Misaki... You too." Hatako looked at the ground, hiding a pink hue amongst her cheeks. "Hmm? Ohhh... I see. Hatako-chan, that bathtub is to small for both of us, you're bigger then you used to be." "I don't care, I just want you to hold me. Just tonight..." Hatako replied, now almost distantly. Her eyes seemed to have lost a bit of life in them, like reflections of dull moonlight on already murky waters. Misaki gazed at the black-haired child intently for several moments, and the child gazed back. The water boiled in the kettle, breaking the silence, and Misaki made two cups of tea and brought them to the side of the bathtub on a tray with a teaspoon and sugar, setting them down on a small table nearby. Misaki then proceeded to removed her wet garments, to Hatako's relief, and again Misaki found herself concerned about Hatako. She was acting funny, but then, her own mind had been following perilous paths lately. She already knew something was suddenly becoming wrong in their lives, but to what extent, she could only guess. She didn't like to think of it, but in retrospect, the heart tells no lies. Misaki couldn't bring herself to share the burden of it with Hatako however, lately things were funny. All funny. The bath filled, and Hatako turned off the water, gesturing Misaki to proceed, which she did. Hatako followed and fell into Misaki's embrace as she leaned her back against Misaki's chest, which was leaned against the tub. They closed their eyes. "Misaki-chan, I can't live without you, you know that." "I know. I will always be here for you. I cannot resist you either, I need you as you need me. We already know this. We have known it for some time." "We will never be apart, right?" Silence pervaded the room for a short moment. "Never." "I want to forget what I heard. I want to remember only this instead." Hatako whispered. She gazed into the water at Misaki's arms, still holding her. "Bad memories are always with us. They are constant warnings of this world and its dangers. You must remember what we learned however, love is the greater power. Never forget what you and I are. One, forever. There is nothing in this world that can stop us. Not even grief, or pain, as long as we trust in ourselves." "The Angelic Layer has proved that to us. We overcame because we worked together." Hatako added. Misaki nodded slightly, brushing lightly against Hatako's ear. "The future will provide many more difficulties, Hatako-chan. All we can do is face them." "But... They are scary you know?" Hatako said quietly. "Scary, perhaps... I don't like scary things, and to tell you the truth, Hatako-chan, you scared me a lot tonight, but we are safe now. Proof it was nothing to really be scared of. Everything is like that. Perhaps it was the price we payed for a good day, perhaps it is the way things are balanced, Good with bad become equal, and we grow and learn and love." Misaki replied, but Hatako didn't reply. Misaki handed Hatako her tea after adding a bit of sugar, and then fixed her own. Several minutes later, Hatako spoke up. "Why are you so strong Misaki-chan?" "Because you love me." .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. Several hours later, Hatako was sound asleep close to Misaki, who was not asleep, but wide awake. A rustle in the bushes had woken in her up, and she thought perhaps it was the pet that had gone missing. She slowly crawled out from under the warm covers of the bed and made her way to unlock the door and peep out. Dew covered the ground, and a few stars could be seen though the thin fog and clouds. Hearing the rustle to the left of the cottage, Misaki stepped out and walked over to look. Indeed, someone did lose a pet. A small dog was fishing around in the bushes for pieces of hidden trash. Misaki crept over and crouched near the animal, hand extended. "Come here Inu-chan... It's okay, I won't bite you." Misaki whispered, "You better not bite me." The dog noticed, and stepped back slowly. "No no, don't be afraid," whispered Misaki. But the dog continued to retreat, and when Misaki stood to move closer, it ran back another dozen feet. "Oh you! I can't help you find your owners at this rate!" Misaki moved to follow the dog, and inched slowly behind it. The dog matched her speed, stepping backwards, and the race continued for several minutes. Soon enough, Misaki found herself several dozen strides from the cottage. "Fine, be that way." Misaki began to turn, only to turn immediately back as the dog began to bark loudly at her. "Inu-chan, what is it? Hush, you're waking Hatako-chan up!" And then it hit Misaki quite suddenly, somebody was there. Somebody was behind Misaki. She spun, only to see the shadow of a female figure and a glimmer of light moving swiftly though the air. Misaki was dead before she even hit the ground. .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. Story Notes: 1. Japanese 101: When using just a person's first name without a suffix like -chan, it is a very personal way of talking to them. 2. READ THE FIRST STORY (or you'll think Im a sick perverted twat that likes anime x.x) 3. I am not a sick perverted twat that likes anime. X.X (I do like anime though...) .o.o.o.o.o.o.o. Author's Notes: I will not reveal any of my story nor my plot, but have faith in me. It is not over yet. Revised July 27th for Logic, Grammer, and Plot errors. .o. Munkii
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