Best Friends Forever <3

[::WOLFURchik::]

It had happened so quickly that neither one of them quite knew what had happened. It was only a training exercise... so what had gone so wrong?

"In failing to exercise proper teamwork tactics, resulting in the death of a squad member, Umika Jaspreet, and Teale Johnson are hereby terminated from the program."

Those words were like death to the two squad members, standing side by side. The young man squeezed his fists together, unable to take anymore of the torture.

"Captain! Y-You can't possibly say this! We have been the best warriors this program has! We've passed every test with flying colors... we beat all of our opponents-"

"And your actions have resulted in the death of a teammate during a practise run! Teale, as leader of this squad, you should never have allowed them to make such a dangerous move!"

The young man dropped his head. His golden hair drooped over his deep blue eyes. He released his fists. "Sir...I have never regretted anything more in my life-"

"And you!" The captain continued, staring straight at the woman of the group. She had wild, dark brown hair and odd, beast like eyes. Red markings ran down her cheeks, which were also stained from tears.

"You should have protected your squad member when you realized the danger! Instead, you abandoned her, knowing damn well that if you helped, you could have saved her! Umika... Teale... I have never been so disapointed as I am at you two right now."

Umika stared at her captain. The tears slowly ran down her cheeks. "Captain, Leigh was my friend. I had no intention-"

"No. We never have an intention to kill our comrades. Unfortunately, you two have done exactly that. You have made the biggest mistake, and for that... you will no longer be warriors for this city."

This time, they both clentched their fists, furious. They weren't upset with their captain, but with themselves. "CAPTAIN!" Teale shouted. Now he himself had a few tears escaping his eyelids. "Give us another chance! We've learned!"

The captain stared down his old students for quite some time, until he finally raised his hands.

"I will give you a second chance... however... this will not be easy for the two of you to accomplish. You are now one member short of a squad. Find yourselves a third member, and a new teacher. I do not want to see your faces back here until you have learned what it means to be a team."

The two looked up with hopeful eyes. The program... it was their life. Without it, they were just two losers who allowed their friend to be killed in a stupid accident.

"Sir..." Umika spoke up, wiping a few tears away with her sleeve. "We... we wont disapoint you!"

The captain lowered his eyes. "I... sure hope not." He breathed, then sent the two away.

----

The two contemplated on that mistake for a long time after they were kicked out of the program. After the incident, they had three different teachers, and four different teammates. None of which stuck around for very long.

It wasn't an easy thing to do for those two... to make a friend. Since the incident, they could hardly stand each other. Still, they stuck around and continued their search.

"Umika... tell this damn tiger to slow down. We're here..." The young man spoke. He wore a rather tight black muscle shirt, with a vest covered in pouches over it, and just slightly baggy pants, which no doubt concealed daggers of all sorts.

The woman glared at Teale, nearly swatting him in the back of his head. Instead, she bit her tongue and patted the massive, golden tiger's side. It stopped and knealed low enough for them to slide off.

"Thanks Willow." Umika said, running her hand along his fur with a smile. "I sure wish you counted as our third squad member..." she sighed and looked over at the place they had stopped.

"Here? Are you sure, Teale?" She asked. The man nodded. "This is the place..." A small smile curled the corners of his lips. This place... it was his old training grounds. It was exactly how he had remembered it from so many years ago...

"Yes. The man who answered our add said he would be here." Umika crossed her arms. "Well, he is late. And so is this "new squad member' we are supposed to be meeting. This had better not be a waste of time."

Teale shrugged. "We have to try to make this one work." Umika bit her lip. "What if it's just like all the other times... what if we don't find anyone?"

Teale was silent. He didn't want to think about it. They needed to make it work. Still... they couldnt just team with anyone. They needed someone strong... someone brave... someone mature...

[✪]

“What’s the time?”
Her large teal eyes flicked to the back of the one in front of her. Eye lashes fluttering as she reached up to smudge at her black eye shadow.
“We’re running late.”
He didn’t bother looking back, he was focused on the rocky steps on the trail.
“Ouch.”
She sniffed, scrunching her nose.
“We’ve been here for years now and I still hate walking.”
He sighed with irritation, fingers reaching and brushing though the locks his pushed back black hair.
“They need trams like Nain Taiyou.”

Kosuke frowned when he heard his adopted sister mutter the words of her former home. An amazing place where the lights of office buildings made up for no sky to be full of stars, where there was the buzz of people and roar of magnetic trams. The place where he found little Chiyo in a metal shanty hut, too weak to stand, her jet black hair oily and knotted, ribs jutting out like some sick, old dog prepared to die and be the host to maggots.
“They don’t have enough technology for that yet Chiyo…”
“Yet… they would if I was allowed to focus fully on giving them that technology.”
The man slowed down, turning his attention to the girl behind him. Though she was still slightly under weight, she was strong. Her bleached blond hair was soft and messy, hanging across one of her bright blue eyes. She stood tall, her pale red knee high sneakers worn out since she had happily accepted them from her new mother. Her arms protected from goose bumps with the deep green arm warmers unlike in the shanty shack, always leaking with water. A long red scarf keeping her warm compared to the army green singlet and cream shorts she insisted on wearing. Nothing like the ratty young teenager he found.
“You know we can’t do that. People will be suspicious. You are a soldier and you really need a team. And I need to teach these soldiers because we need the money for more supplies. We can’t build a tram if we are broke, Chiyo.”
As Kosuke explained this to Chiyo he pushed the thick black rimmed glasses up the bridge of his nose, allowing his dark blackish brown eyes to see better. Chiyo’s gaze fell with the realization he was right and frowned softly.
“Sorry Kosuke…”

The man’s hard expression softened at his sisters apologies and shook his head, replacing the frown with a smile and ruffling her hair.
“Take the stickers off your face, we need you to look presentable.”
“I am presentable!”
Though she protested, Chiyo began to peel the bright colours from her rosy cheeks. She had stars and love hearts, dots and diamonds but soon all had vanished. Chiyo Niigata and Kosuke Ito hoped to bring the Ito company to Shikon Kentsume. Hoped to help the oldest city become advanced and give them the delight of easy traveling, communication, entertainment and so much more. Sure, no one knew about it. But once the two of them had made enough technology in the work space under their house, the cities people would welcome it with open arms. Hopefully.

“Okay Chiyo, this is it. Just pray we aren’t too late.”
Chiyo followed her adopted brother into what appeared to be a training ground. There was no metal in this city, anywhere. She hated it so much. Of course she enjoyed the open air, how her large tabby cat would bask on the warm stones outside their house, how the sky was so blue or how magical the forest looked when there was a mist. But it wasn’t home, nothing would ever be home for the girl again.
“I’m praying Kosuke.”
She replied, crossing a pair of her fingers, inspecting the oil that had found its way under her nails after working on a motorised scooter that morning. Chiyo was positive this wouldn’t work out, she wasn’t a people person, no matter how hard Kosuke tried to get her to be. She would just stand there and allow him to do all the talking. That wasn’t much team work was it?

Kosuke pulled at the black vest he wore, shoving his fingerless gloved hands deep into the pockets and wrapping the material more around his white button up shirt, smudged with oil and the black tie done loosely around his neck. Though Kosuke had graduated university many times, his look of professionalism in skinny black jeans and worn out tennis shoes failed to show as it did on the certificates that hung off the walls of their house. For a moment he looked back to Chiyo, an arm wrapped around her flat stomach while her other set of hands gently brushed the scar running down under her left eye. He wanted to smile and give her stomach butterflies a reason to settle, but he knew Chiyo was suffering one of her own minor panic attacks with the realization she would have to work with total strangers. Kosuke just prayed she would feel better once acquainted to her two new partners.
He cleared his throat, pushing the glasses back up the bridge of his nose, the leather book bag on his shoulder landing on the ground with a gentle thud.
“Umika and Teale, I presume?” Kosuke flashed a wide smile, almost something of a Cheshire cat grin.
“I apologize for us being so late. Time just gets by quicker than it should.”
Chiyo shifted from her position behind Kosuke, trying to swallow the ball of nerve that sat in her throat as she took her place beside Kosuke. Showing off the height difference as Chiyo only came up to his shoulder.
“He’s secretly just a really slow walker.” Kosuke glanced towards Chiyo who half smiled. At least she was trying.

[::WOLFURchik::]

Umika folded her arms across her chest. "These are them? We are supposed to believe that this is our teacher and that is our squad member?" Teale shot her a glance, shutting her up. Still... she was right. He didn't like the looks of these two. They were nothing like the people they had met before. They looked like they were no where near in the same league as themselves.

Still... they had no choice. They were running out of people who were willing to work with them. Teale copied Umika, crossing his arms. "We can't afford to be late. Timing is everything. That is basic training stuff." He obviously sounded like he was talking down to them.

Umika however didn't think he was being harsh enough. "By the look of you two... you are no where near what we are looking for. We need someone who can keep up. We need someone strong, smart, and flexible. You..." She said, staring straight at Chiyo. "Remind me of a child. And we are supposed to take you seriously?"

Teala gave Umika a harsh glare. "Umika! Have you forgotten that we have no other choices? These two have proven, if nothing else, that they have courage, just by accepting us." Umika glared at Teale. "But they are nothing like us! If we can't find someone to keep up with us, then they don't have a chance."

Without warning, Teale reached out and grabbed hold of Umika, anger in his eyes. "Svella was one of us!" He nearly shouted at her, outraged. "She stood right beside us, and kept up with us! She was one of the most skilled fighters in Camauren, and she DIED, because you couldn't protect her!"

Umika yanked herself away from his grip. "Don't you dare blame Svella's death on me. She was my best friend! How do you think I felt?! It was because of your stupid orders that we were in that danger!" She stopped yelling, and sadly glanced down. "It was the both of us... I... I guess that's why we're here."

Teale looked back over at Chiyo and Kosuke. "Look... we are two of the toughest fighters in the program. This has to work... Me and Umika... we didn't think we could be shaken. Obviously... we still are missing something. You... the both of you... are our last chance."

Umika glanced away. There was no way in hell she was going to admit that. Still, she had to atleast try to make it work. "This is Willow..." She spoke up, resting her hand against the masssive tiger's pelt. "Willow is the third member of our team. Don't expect us to trust you."

(( omg terrible post))

[✪]

Kosuke could already see irritation flare in his young sister after being called a child. And as the two team mates began to argue she shifted her attention to Kosuke. “I don’t think I can do this.”
Kosuke frowned at her words. “You have to try.”
“That girl is going to rip my head off.”
Kosuke tried not to smile at Chiyo’s worries. “I’m more afraid of you trying to rip her head off.”
“Why couldn’t they of just given me an assassin position like you?” She muttered quietly, watching the two argue a few feet away. “How am I supposed to cooperate with people who think I wet the bed? I could take them both on easily”
“Hey, don’t get cocky there. They just need to take time to look past the cover of the book and read the pages.”
The two non biological siblings exchanged frowns. Kosuke realized this would be a lot of work, and if he didn’t put the pressure on them and make them work to their max they would not succeed. Even now he could see the two would be nightmares to train. Especially the girl. Adding Chiyo into the mix would be even worse. And like icing on the cake, already they were talking down to their new teacher. This would be a challenge.

But as Teale explained their situation, Kosuke wanted to take the challenge. He didn’t want to fail them, two determined soldiers. He wanted to make their last chance the best chance they had at joining the program once more. It was also a chance for Chiyo to get more people skills then talking to her dam cat, two birds with one stone as they say. “I understand.”
Chiyo’s attention was on the tiger, if its owner hadn’t already gone into Chiyo’s bad books, she would have been ecstatic. But she only pulled a sarcastic smile. “Don’t worry, I don’t trust anyone.”

Kosuke sighed lightly at Chiyo’s comment, rolling his eyes. “Alright, that’s enough.” He warned her, his tone becoming more serious. Chiyo knew this as the switch over, when Kosuke became a teacher instead of a mechanic. Either when he was talking about the history of Nain Taiyou or pushing his students for another ten laps. It was a serious tone and one that always dominated Chiyo’s stubborn behaviour when it flared.
“Let me first introduce ourselves professionally, I am Kosuke Ito, I am a part of one of the special forces and also train and teach for the military. You two obviously need me to help develop your poor team work.”
Kosuke’s attention turned to Chiyo who still stood beside him. “Go over and stand with them Yoyo.”
Chiyo hesitated, she didn’t want to but Kosuke didn’t ask her, it was an order. Chiyo sighed and pulled at the scarf around her neck, her nerves turning again as she moved towards the two. She either had the choice to stand beside Umika or Teale. But with the clear dislike for the brown haired girl she chose to place herself beside Teale, he had to be a year or two older than her and he was intimidating enough to keep Chiyo’s eyes from looking for long.
“And this is Chiyo Niigata, you’re new team mate, she is also my sister. But as a teacher I will treat her just like the rest of you.”
Great, Chiyo thought as she rubbed her cheeks that felt so bare without stickers, I will get treated like dirt both by my brother and these two. “Adopted sister,” she corrected.

Kosuke let the disturbance slip by and ran his fingers through his black locks. “First off, I want you three to realize that you all have to stop being stubborn and blaming each other. Not like how I just watched Umika and Teale. If I didn’t believe you had the potential to work as a team I would off told you to start finding work in a general store because you would be so screwed. So either listen and do what I tell you or I will happily fail you.”

[::WOLFURchik::]

Umika crossed her arms. She had never felt so insulted in her life. To be treated like she was just a child in school... she hated it. She had already gone through school. Now she was a well known warrior. These two strangers made her blood boil.

Teale on the other hand just wanted to get it over with. He knew that getting an attitude wouldn't help their situation. He just had to go with it, and endure it. Even if they couldn't get along with this girl, they could eventually find another. What he was sure he wouldn't find was another teacher.

Not trying to take over the teacher's job, but simply curious on how things were going, Teale spoke up. "Me and Umika are used to each others fighting style. I suggest that as our first assignment? Getting to know Chiyo's abilites would help us to know what she is capible of so that we could make the right choices as a team."

Umika rolled her eyes. "Teale has always been the leader of the team." She explained. "Honestly, it wont be easy for us, working with a teacher when for so long we've been on our own."

The massive tiger lyed down beside her, curling its thick tail around her legs. Umika scratched at the top of his head, which he seemed to enjoy.

Teale crossed his arms. "To really introduce ourself, yes, I am Teale Johnson. I specialize in small blades, mainly daggers." Umika patted Willow. "This is my main weapon. Willow is smarter than most people, and a better fighter too. I currently have no weapon other than Willow, but don't underestimate us. I'm quick, and I can take a hit."

Teale nodded, waiting for their new teacher and teammate to share their abilities.

(omg epic fail of a post)

[✪]

Now Kosuke had got his serious formalities over with, he allowed the two of his students to explain. They were right before, though they had spoken down to him, the two were intellectual and capable of developing a good team work. They just had to get past their immature views of each other. He stood with his arms crossed over his chest, listening to the two explain their skills. From what they explained they were unlike Chiyo, the two did not possess an attack base fully themed around their powers, if they had any. It could be a disadvantage to Chiyo, but then again it could be a twist of surprise the team could give. Kosuke shook his head, he was getting to far ahead of himself, he still had to get Chiyo and Umika passed glaring at each other.
His attention turned to Chiyo, who was looking at the two she stood beside. Matching their appearances with the abilities they used. “Chiyo, care to explain your power?”

The blond snapped her attention back to Kosuke as he spoke her name. She nodded, shoving her hands deep into the pockets of her shorts. “I’m Chiyo… like Kosuke… Mister Ito said. I don’t really have any skill in blades or daggers, but I am learning, right now my true skills lie with in my power.” As she explained she pulled out the small balls of compact barbed wire, for a moment allowing the grey spikes to gently roll across the scared palms of her hands.
Suddenly they came to life, uncoiling themselves and the wire acted as charmed snakes. The base still sitting in her hand but the wire coiling all around her, slowly to make sure she was not cut. “I can control metal, pretty much of any sorts. I can make it change form, move it with my mind, it can attack simply on the emotions I feel. But I normally use barbed wire, it seems the best... plus there is no source of natural metal for me to control here.”
After she explained, the barbed wire gave a sharp jolt, returning itself and coiling it into the small balls in the palm of her hand.
“Simply, I use my speed to fight and I plan my actions to be fast and fatal…” Chiyo felt awkward, this was the first time in a while since she had truly explained her powers, let alone talk to people in her age group. She shifted the balls back into her pockets and glanced towards Kosuke.

Their teacher waved a hand, “You don’t need to know my abilities.”
“But you are a part of the team too, you’re the one who needs to get us to work together. So work with us.” Chiyo protested and made Kosuke sigh.
“I am trained in all type of weaponry as well as hand to hand combat. My main weapon is one I designed my own and has been developed from my travels across Camauren. I don’t have powers like Chiyo so I have to rely entirely on my brain to help me strategize and execute missions.”
Chiyo offered a slight smile as Kosuke explained, if she had to work with these people, so did he.

Kosuke pushed his glasses up from sliding down his face once more. “I might be your teacher, but I am also just a guide to how you all must work. You are all young adults now, so I am happy to hear your suggestions such as that one. Don’t think I am the teacher form hell, I am here to help you pass and reach your personal best.”
Kosuke had trained for two years to become a teacher, and many who had him spoke highly of his methods. Though if you were out of line he would work you to your outermost limits. But it made him that much better as a teacher. “Alright, now you all know the rough outlines of each other abilities, care to explain to me how you would vitalise each person’s talents. As a whole team, taking into view not only the main powers and weapons, but also stamina, strength and other attributes.”

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale was intrigued by Chiyo's powers. In this environment, she couldn't do anything completely massive, like she probably could in Nain Taiyou or Kagirinai Arashi, but there was a seperate source of metal that he knew she could probably feed off of.

He reached his fingers into the pockets in his vest, pulling out numerous blades. Some were similar to kunai, there were a few odd shaped throwing stars, erasor sizes round blades, and a mini dagger. He spread them out in his hands. "Then you could munipulate these? " He asked, a little too excited.

Umika rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. "Metal bending... Don't think you're so special because you have a power. My entire family was born with powers, that which I did not have. Instead, I had to work. Hard. I busted my ass to become strong, and because of that, I'm still alive." Ofcourse, she wasn't going to admit that it was really Willow that kept her alive. Willow had taught her everything he knew, which is why Umika's style was so animal-like.

Teale glared at Umika, but she knew where she was getting at. He had seen how hard she worked to become strong, despite not having any powers. She really had come a long way. Still, now wasn't the time to fight over such things. He looked back at Chiyo. "I carry around pockets full of these weapons! "

[✪]

It took Chiyo a moment to realize someone had actually taken notice in her power as something other than destructive. The Ito family had welcomed her power, embraced it. Others had not. Chiyo rose her eyebrows at his question. Looking to the small metal weapons in the palms of his hands. At the idea she half smiled. “Sure, I can manipulate them.”
Chiyo out stretched her hands, leaving them hovering over Teale’s. It was as if their hairs were sets of magnets as the small daggers, blades and throwing stars lifted from his hands and hovered in between the gap.
Umika’s comment’s only caused Chiyo to glance up for a small second, frowning at her words. Chiyo did see herself as special yes, but not in the stuck up way you would expect. Her powers had kept her alive for over a year, and had brought her sweet revenge. She felt special to have them simply because she found herself lucky enough. But Teale’s words snapped her back to reality and she pulled her hands away from above his, allowing the blades to spin around Teale.
“If I could acquire enough it would be like a summer shower of blades.” She could imagine the blood shed it would bring and the pain of tiny daggers digging into your skin and blood soaking your skin like water drops.

Kosuke watched with a small smile, not only for the fact they were actually showing signs of getting along, but Chiyo was actually contributing. “That is a great idea, and solid team effort. Combine powers together to create an even more powerful one. See you are already getting a foundation together.”
His dark eyes shifted towards Umika then and her tiger. She was going to be harder to persuade, Kosuke could see the hate she already spawned for Chiyo and Kosuke himself. “Umika, would you like to add any… positive… ideas to the discussion?”

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale had such a silly grin on his face, excited about the different things they could do through combined abilities. He already knew that his own powers were compatible with Umika, and he wanted to know more about what they could possibly do all together. He looked at Umika. She was only slightly smarter than the average person, but when it came to war, she was a genious.

However, the look on her face was not one that someone would make while thinking. Infact, Umika looked downright pissed. She glared at Teale. He was so excited all of a sudden to be working with Chiyo... he had never treated her that way.

Umika scoffed, then she turned on the heels of her feet and grabbed hold of a tuft of Willow's fur. Quickly, she threw her weight on top of the tiger, and patted its side. Willow stood up and gently shook the dirt from his fur. "Go ahead, have fun bonding." She spat, and without another word, rode off into the trees.

Once they were out of ear shot, the tiger opened its massive jaws. "Umika... you should atleast try. You've worked too hard to let this get in your way." He stopped, and let her off. Umika slid down his fur, then leaned herself against a tree. "I can't do it Will. You've seen her... You know why I can't."

The tiger nodded. "You are right about that... her appearence is so similar to Leigh." Umika crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't do that, Umika... it looks so akward on you." Moving on, he wrapped his tail around her legs. "You can't let that incident get in the way. Leigh wouldn't have wanted this."

Umika punched the tree. "But it was my fault, Willow! I could have stopped her from dying! All I did was sit there! I... I was too scared to move." Willow nodded. "I remembered the first time I saw you so scared... after I killed your sister. You forgave me. And Teale forgives you for what happened. You have to move on, or you will never grow."

Umika ganced down at the ground. "These few past years... her death took a toll on me and Teale both. I can already see that he finds this girl attractive! It's going to turn out just like last time. What if I mess things up!? What if the same thing happens again?!"

Willow shook his head. "That wont happen Umika. You've learned. You have become so strong... so quick. I know that you will be great. You just have to trust people." Umika sighed, dropping her arms. "Will... I still don't know. I don't feel like I can get close to someone again. I don't... This job just isn't right for making friends."

"This job is only possible because of your friends. Cheer up Umy. Thing will be fine... you just have to keep working for it."

[✪]

Kosuke sighed quietly as he watched the scene play out, Umika’s anger getting the best of her as she climbed onto the tiger and rode off. The teacher clearly observed everything, as Umika was cut at how Teale easily began to accept Chiyo and become interested in her power. All of Umika’s words, meaningless, now at how Teale reacted. It seemed she was a lone when it came to trust issues, no he was wrong with saying that, if Teale made one wrong move Chiyo’s friendliness towards him would drop with the small amount confidence she seemed to have gained. They were all still unstable, and had a long way to go. The pain of trying to replace their dead team mate also made this a delicate subject, Kosuke had to tread lightly.
“Leave her for a moment.” He called towards the two soldiers still left, shoving his hands into his pockets as he moved towards them.

Chiyo’s gaze turned from where Umika had left towards Kosuke, frowning up at him. “And she thinks I am a child?”
Kosuke simply shook his head at his sister’s question. “Chiyo don’t start,” he warned her, causing Chiyo’s bright blue gaze to fall to the ground.
“Team work takes patience, and even if others in the team get along better than others, it isn’t a team until you can all work together in harmony and respect each other.” Kosuke explained, reaching up to scratch his cheek. “I will go find her if she doesn’t calm down soon, unless you two want to. It is something team mates would do for each other.”
Chiyo shifted with Kosuke’s option, hugging her arms around her stomach now. She would rather stay here, with Teale smiling and actually taking interest, rather than trying to find Umika who Chiyo already disliked greatly. But then again, it was as Kosuke said, it was a team decision and she would probably have to go even if she didn’t want too.
Chiyo gently nodded in agreement with her brothers words.

{ worst post ever nyeeh }

[::WOLFURchik::]

"No." Teale finally spoke up. He snatched the blades from the air and quickly tucked them back into his many pockets. He was used to being leader, and he was used to being around Umika.

He sat down on the grass, criss-crossing his legs. He folded his arm and closed his eyes. He needed to explain something to them. "Umika already has somebody to calm her down... someone very wise, so don't worry about taking off after her. Besides, she hates confrontation. Confronting her about anything will only upset her further."

He frowned, opening his eyes to get a good look at his teacher and teammate. "We will never work out as a team unless we really know and understand each other. That's why we could never find a new squad member. Trust does not come easily for Umika. You have to understand why..."

He reached into one of his pockets, and pulled out a dagger with a blade shaped like a crescent moon. "The woman who gave this to me was nicknamed the crescent dagger." He began his story. "Like me, she exelled in using daggers and other small blades. Actually, you may of heard of her."

He twisted the dagger in his hands, his eyes glued to it as if it was his most treasured possession. "The Crescent Dagger was the most skilled in all of Camauren at using daggers... that was what we heard all the time from the citizens here. She wasn't the best, but she was damn good. And like Umika, she had no powers. She fought hard to get to where she was. That was why she made such a perfect team member for us. We were quite the trio..."

He gazed up at the sky, not even caring that the sun was half blinding him. He was lost in the momentum of his past. "She and Umika got along quite well. They were best friends, but they called each other sister most of the time. She caught my eye, and well..." His frowned took over his face, and he had to close his eyes again to make sure no tears would escape his eyelids. "Her real name was Leigh. I loved her. The three of us... we were inseperable."

"We aced any test that the program threw at us, and we quickly rose to the top of our class. Many of our teachers commented on how we were the best students that they had ever seen... that they had hope in our future." He felt like he was about to explode with tears, but his eyes were still dry. He opened them and looked at Kosuke sadly.

"But as good as we were, we were still kids. We weren't ready. Umika and Leigh looked up to me as the leader, but I wasn't ready to be a leader. We didn't know what we were doing. We went after each battle with such determiniation and courage... but we never really stopped to think. Our team work fell apart, because we loved to show off. It was because of that, that we each made a terrible mistake, and Leigh was killed..."

His voice trailed off, and he paused. It was still so unbelievable, that the trio had been broken. That Leigh was dead-

"You, Chiyo... You look a lot like her. Umika noticed that right away, and I think she feels like if she lets you in, then she will be betraying Leigh. I feel the same way... no matter how much I try to hide it. The truth is, the two of us are very stubborn, and mistrusting. Its not really that we don't trust you. Its that we find it hard to trust ourselves... Leigh's death could have been prevented. It was our mistake that lead to her death..."

He looked off into the distance, out where Umika probably ran off to. "Don't go after her. She will return when she is ready. Only she can calm the anger in her heart..."

[✪]

Chiyo had placed herself beside Teale on the ground, using her scared hands to prop herself up and stretching her legs out, the ends of her sneakers gently clicking together as Teale opened their eyes to past effects that reflected the emotions and actions of the present. As Chiyo listened, she knew she could never speak as freely as Teale did about the past. Even if she could see the pain in his eyes, the strain in his voice. Her own story was morbid, not even Kosuke knew the extent to her story. Never had she told anyone what she was, not only orphan. But murderer.

Even now it was hard to ignore the guilt, the sheer terror, the scars that were never going to go away. It had made her sick, though the Ito family tried to help as much as they could. The cocktail of medication every night, the countless hours of therapy. She was grateful for all their support, their kindness. They had given her a home and a family after the years of never having one. But it was too late even then.
Chiyo was like your favourite rag doll as a child, you forget about it. But one day it creeps into the corner of your mind and you want to find it and hug it so tight. When you do find it, down in the basement, collecting dust in a box, you notice it has been ripped and rats have been using it as a nest to sleep in. You want to bring it back to life and you take the needle and thread, you wash it but the horrid smell of vermin never leave and it just doesn’t have enough stuffing left any more. You can buy new stuffing sure, but the child hood memory will never be the same.

Teale’s words brought her from the past back to the present, where the wind began to ruffle her hair. It was here, it was now, that she was meant to become a part of this team. One so damaged and emotionally wrecked. Chiyo could only frown softly as she watched him. Leigh… she was meant to replace her. Replace one of the finest fighters, replace Umika’s best friend, replace the one Teale loved. Was there even more pressure now to know Chiyo looked like her? Would they see Chiyo, or would they see their team mate’s corpse, dragging itself along with skin peeling off to expose the bone. Weathering away faster and more morbidly than the comforts of a coffin. She didn’t speak though as he finished his story, only diverting her gaze to the grass under her hands, gently coiling her finger tips in the soil.

Kosuke still stood, arms over his chest as he quietly listened. Teale and Umika had gone through an emotional roller coaster. He could see it, the sadness in Teale’s eyes. It was one thing to lose a team mate, but to lose a loved one. Kosuke frowned softly, it only made it worse that they blamed themselves for her death and that it was the failure of team work that she died by. But now he and Chiyo both new what they were up against, a solid wall of emotions. Hate, guilt, un easy tendencies.
Kosuke would have to focus on bringing that wall down with sticks of dynamite before the two could finally find closure. Not only did this training have to work on team work, it had to work on the emotional issues that bound each of them down. Even Chiyo.
Kosuke loosened his arms from around his chest. "Teale… if it is any consolation prize. Though you were young and reckless and blinded by the idea of being number one… and even if it lead to her death… I can see you have improved so much, simply acknowledging your reckless behaviour is enough to see that.”
Chiyo shifted at Kosuke’s words. Was this team support? She watched her brother reach out and gently pat Teale’s shoulder. “I’m sure Leigh is proud of your desire to change and learn from your mistakes.”
Kosuke pulled away and turned his back to them, looking across into the forest Umika had run off to. “We shall wait here until Umika returns then.” He pushed his glasses up his nose once more before placing his hands back into the pockets of his vests.

As their teacher began to move back to his bag, Chiyo’s attention moved back to the tips of her shoes. Lifting one of her hands off the ground and push back at her fringe, exposing both her teal eyes to the sun and causing both her pupils to change in size.
“My brother is right… you are learning from those mistakes… and, I am sure Leigh is proud like Kosuke said.” Her words were hardly anything compared to the ones Kosuke had shared, but she had to at least try. He was trying to trust her, the least Chiyo could do was try and help.
“And I promise I’m not trying to take her place or anything… like I could. I could hardly be like she was. I don’t… I’m hardly anything special compared to that. Just lucky I suppose…” Chiyo’s eyes were focused on the bleached locks of her hair, watching them fall back into place as they left her hand as it pulled further away. It was weird, to talk to someone who would reply back. Normally her cat would just blink and take in everything she said, then meow for food.

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale sniffled and wiped his nose nonchalantly with the back of his hand, then stood up and brushed the grass from his pants. Without looking at Chiyo, he shook his head. "No... you never could replace her." He looked at her through the corner of his vision.

With a sigh, he tucked the dagger away. "Anyway. I'm the new Crescent Dagger. I learned a lot from Leigh. She noticed my talents with blades, and taught me everything she knew. " He glanced away. "I'm only doing this because this is what Leigh would have wanted. I have to go back to the program. I have to fight... to take revenge on someone. That was Leigh's dream, and it's my dream now. Excuse me if I don't really bond. I'm not in the mood for it."

He cooly shrugged it off. "In anycase, while we wait, perhaps a duel?" He said, glancing over at Chiyo. "The best way to get to know each other's weaknesses and strengths are by fighting them yourself." In reality, he wasn't asking to fight her to find out about her strength and weaknesses. He wanted to test his own abilities. Up against an enemy that could control most of his weapons, would he be strong enough? He knew that if the time came, he was the only one he could rely on. He had to make sure that as the leader, he could take care of himself.

[✪]

Revenge. As soon as the word passed his lips it caused Chiyo’s bright eyes to brighten even more, lifted up to look at Teale who stood above her now. That word struck a nerve, one Chiyo hadn’t felt in a long time. Revenge was the sweetest thing Chiyo knew. Though revenge had brought her the title of murderer, it was the one single memory she owned that was the clearest and the sharpest. It was something Chiyo couldn’t explain, the emotions that rushed through your body. The joy, the anger, the intense feeling of relief or sadness. Chiyo’s revenge was burning with the tears in her dull blue eyes, the anger and sorrow bubbling in her chest. But it held the one small spark of immense joy, the last spark of true happiness she would ever feel.

Chiyo didn’t care to bond and his words hardly fazed her as she climbed to her feet. Chiyo only trusted two beings in this world and only two. One sat idly by, Kosuke’s back propped against a tree and sat with a large text in his hand with pen between his teeth, marking test results of one of his theoretical classes. Kosuke trusted Chiyo, and Chiyo trusted Kosuke. The second was at home, Hige, the large blue British shorthair cat. Who slept at the end of her bed or sat on the spare seat in the garage beside her when Chiyo was creating a robot, Chiyo told Hige everything. Simply because he was just there to listen.
“Well, team work won’t come from just sitting there. Might was well.” Chiyo took the scarf from her neck, unwrapping it and letting it drop down beside her. Chiyo had developed her abilities of fighting from Kosuke and trained with him whenever the teacher was free. She had gone up against people before, sometimes loosing, sometimes winning. Teale was strong, she could see that just by his determination. Yet Chiyo would be able to control the daggers hidden away in the pockets of his vest. It was an advantage, and Chiyo was determined to use it. Not only for her benefit, but one needed skill and passion to win at the game of revenge.
“Come at me whenever you’re ready.” She shifted, pulling four balls of barbed wire from her pockets and dropping three of them into the grass, keeping one in the palm of her hand. Once more, like snakes, they exploded to life, coiling in the air and around Chiyo.
“I’ll try not to cut you, promise.”

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale possitioned himself, one foot infront of the other. "Don't make a promise your opponent can't keep themselves. I'll try not to harm you, but light cuts are quite possible." He already knew Chiyo's power, and his weakness against her. Now it was time to text the limits of her abilities. Just how much would she be able to control?

He reached into his pockets and pulled out ten seperate blades of all sizes, entertwining them in his fingers. With a quick flick of his wrist, he threw them at her. They flew with speed and accuracy. Teale just waited and watched, scanning the scene as it unfolded.

----

Umika dropped her arms to her side. "Willow... can you take me back to Teale now?" The tiger nodded and crouched for her. "Of course, Umika." Umika grabbed hold of his fur and swung herself over his back. "I'm still uncomfortable... and if she is too much trouble, then I will refuse to work with her."

Willow rolled his golden eyes. "Don't let it get to you. Just relax Umika... If nobody else, you can trust Teale." Umika sighed. "Well... I guess so."

((short and terrible Dx ))

[✪]

“I’m not here to look pretty, cuts I don’t mind.”
The idea of cuts didn’t bother Chiyo. You only had to look at her scared hands to know it took a lot to make her scream in pain, not to mention the other countless scars hidden beneath her cloths. Her weapons damaged her too, if she was reckless with how she moved around the wire she could be cut. When holding onto the wire in her hands she easily gained scars and it would take hours to stop the blood pouring.
She was use to finishing her fights in blood shed, if didn’t matter if they were alive or dead, but when Chiyo had finished the gashes left horrid scars. She gently bit her lip, she had promised not to leave him with many scratches. But her fighting style would make this hard. The idea of defence seemed easier, but then it wouldn’t be a duel.

Now the blades shot out across the air with the simple flick, Chiyo stepped back as the daggers quickly advanced on her. The barbed wire dancing around her latched out onto as many daggers as they could catch, throwing them to the ground around them. It left her to focus on the few that still came at her, Chiyo’s hand quickly rose and it only took a split second for the daggers to stop mid-air. She copied Teale’s last action, flicking her wrist towards him and the blades followed her commands, shooting across the gap between them and at her next quick command shot down into the ground in front of Teale’s feet.
Her attacks didn’t end there as Chiyo rose the daggers she had stopped with the wire before shooting them back at him.

Kosuke could only admire his younger sister from under his glasses once he glanced towards the two. It was calming to know Chiyo was actually out there, even if Teale or Umika didn’t intend to trust her and welcome her with open arms. It was better than Hige and the dam allergies he gave Kosuke.

{ crappy post ;; }

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale was prepaired to move out of the way in a hurry, knowing that fighting such an opponent would mean having to constantly avoid her attacks. When he watched the blades hit the grass just before his feet, his face became distorted and angry.

"Chiyo!" He barked at her, his leadership role sneaking its way into the open. "I can't fight you unless you try to fight me back!" There was no way he was going to hold back on her, so she had better not hold back at him. He glanced at Kosuke. "If it gets too rough... stop us." He suggested, then turned his attention back to Chiyo.

"Now, fight like you mean it. Fight like you are trying to kill me!" He reached into his pockets again, pulling out twelve blades of numerous sizes. Knowing that that she already had control of a few of his weapons, he tested her capacity even further. He had to find her weak point, what he called the moment before the second trip to the car to get to the remaining grocery bags. The moment when your hands were full, and for just that moment, you were weak.

(meh. short)

[✪]

Chiyo flinched at the harsh tone Teale used, it caught her off guard, but when she realised that these were orders she frowned lightly. She was hardly used to orders from people other than Kosuke, it caused her own irritation and stubborn emotions to rise to the surface. The idea of being a child in their eyes resurfacing. If he wanted to fight, then Chiyo would fight, and the word kill caused her attention to shift towards Kosuke who watched from the side lines.

Kosuke knew Chiyo did this to kill, and that she was uneasy with this battle. She clearly didn’t want to hurt him, much at least from the expression on her face. In training with Kosuke she knew she could not harm him, even at her highest standards. So she never held back. This was different. “Go on Chiyo, I’ll step in.” He motioned her towards attacking Teale.
With Kosuke’s reassurance Chiyo nodded. Her attention turned back to Teale, she did not bother replying as she eyed the blades in his hands. If he wanted her to fight she meant it, she would.

She out stretched her arms, and the wire reacted. It attacked her, wrapping around her arms who were thankfully protected by the coarse material of her arm warmers. But her hands were not as she held the barbed wire snakes like double ended whips, the sharp points digging into the palms of her hands and surfacing the blood. If it made her flinch it would show she could feel pain, to not feel pain was an act of intimidation, so she gently bit at her tongue as scars were reopened. To warn him would leave her without surprise, so she attacked.
Chiyo was known for not only her powers, but also her abundance of speed, Chiyo was a fast mover and her defence was being able to dodge. Chiyo quickly closed the meters on them, it would leave less room for Teale to perform more damaging throws, and the close concentration of metal would make it easier to control. She swung one set of the live wires, the sharp barbs flicking out in hopes to latch onto the arm that held one of the dagger sets. Chiyo would learn from what happened next what she was up against. Was Teale fast enough to keep up?

[::WOLFURchik::]

Teale smirked. He lived for this. For the fight. For the blood rush... And this girl, she had ultimate power over his weapons, but he was well skilled. He had faught many battles, and many opponents. He was ready for this. The fact that she refused to flinch when the barbed wire wrapped around her hands... that meant that this could be fun. Even though she may not have had as much experience, or be as ranked as he was, he was in no way going to underestimate her. She had the upper hand, but he also had his own little tricks.

As the barbed wired struck out towards him, he threw a hand full of blades, not at her, but at the barbed wire. They clanked as they collided, and it gave him just enough time to duck and roll out of the way. Almost immediately, he jumped to his feet and leapt back a few more feet, making sure to keep his distance at the time. While he had to admit that Chiyo was fast, he himself was no tortoise.

He reached into his pockets once more, and again, both his hads were full of daggers and blades between every finger. If Chiyo was busy with the barbed wire, he might have been able to get a blade through. He crossed his arms, gathered up as much momentum as he could, and launched all the blades but the smallest, which he kept conceiled in between his pointer and middle fingers.