Day 13: Lovers Through Time

"Ame~," Gura whined, lying on the floor, hugging Amelia's leg. "I'm hungry~"

"Gura, you ate an hour ago," Ame grabbed Gura with both hands, lifting her up so that she would be eye level with her. "Don't you want to let your food digest?"

"Nope! I want food!" Gura exclaimed. "Where do you want to eat?"

"Hmm, maybe we can go back to KFP," Amelia replied. "I was just there yesterday with my sister, but I can take you today as well."

"Thanks, Watson!" Gura chirped, leaning forward to give Amelia a peck on the lips.

"No problem, Gura," Watson said, pulling the apex predator into a hug.

-

"Thanks for healing me," Ryan said as Suisei channeled magic power into a particularly nasty gash, causing it to close up.

"It's only natural, since I'm the one who hurt you in the first place," Suisei smiled at Ryan. "You didn't scream as much as I hoped, though."

"Sorry, I guess I have a high pain tolerance," Ryan sighed. "You were pretty terrifying, though. I have to admit that."

"Thank you," Suisei said, her smile widening. "I try my best."

"I really shouldn't be enabling this kind of behavior," Ryan shook his head.

"I appreciate the gesture nonetheless," Suisei said as Ryan stood up.

"I'm gonna go to work," Ryan said.

"I'll see you later tonight," Suisei said.

"Actually, I have something going on tonight," Ryan said, giving Suisei a serious look. "Please don't go looking for me. I'll be back in the morning."

"If you insist," Suisei shook her head. "If you hang out with other girls, though, I won't be nearly as nice as I was last night."

"I'll keep that in mind," Ryan chuckled as he walked out the door, closing it behind him.

-

"Morning Tenchou," Ryan said, opening the door.

"Hi Ryan!" Kiara said, a bright smile on her face. "How did you sleep?"

"I pissed off Suisei," Ryan said simply.

"I better thank Matsuri that you're alive," Kiara said. "I'm really sorry you had to experience that."

"It's fine," Ryan sighed. "It's not your fault anyways."

"Exactly," Kiara said. "Now get dressed. We have work to do."

-

"Morning," Ryan walked out to see Gura and Amelia sitting at the counter, Kiara standing on the other side.

"Morning Ryan," Amelia said. "I heard you pissed off Suisei."

"Yeah, it didn't go well," Ryan said before turning to Gura. "Would you like salmon and rice again today?"

"Sure!" Gura smiled at Ryan. "Thanks, chumbud."

"No problem," Ryan said. "I already know what Ame wants, so I'll go make it right now."

"But Ryan~," Kiara whined as Ryan started to turn around.

"What's up, Tenchou?" Ryan asked.

"I didn't cook yesterday. Can I cook today?" Kiara pleaded, giving Ryan her best cute phoenix eyes.

"Fine," Ryan heaved a sigh. "You are my boss, after all."

"Thank you!" Kiara cheered, dashing to the back room.

"So, when are you two getting married?" Ryan turned to Gura and Amelia, the sudden question causing both of them to turn red.

"M-married?!" Both Gura and Ame exclaimed at the same time.

"Well…" Amelia shuffled uncomfortably.

"I was joking," Ryan said, waving his hand dismissively. If they started making marriage preparations tomorrow, Amelia would be crushed when she went back in time.

"You better be…" Amelia shot Ryan a glare.

"You better keep one eye open when you sleep, Ryan," Gura said. "I might be there to bite you."

"Suisei likes to spend the night at my place," Ryan said. "She also doesn't appreciate me hanging around other girls, for some reason. I don't know why, but whatever."

"On second thought, I'll stay home with Ame," Gura said, her face pale.

"Thought you would," Ryan sighed. "Anyways, what's going on?"

"There's this really fun thing we're doing tomo-," Gura was cut off when Amelia clasped her hand tomorrow.

"Let's not ruin the surprise, alright Gura?" Amelia smirked at her partner, removing her hand from Gura's mouth.

"Alright," Gura said. Of course, Ryan knew what was going on, but he still tilted his head to play along.

"What fun thing?" Ryan asked. "You know what, never mind. It's not my place to pry."

"Thank you for being respectful, Ryan," Kiara said as she walked out of the back room, placing a cup of tea before Amelia along with a bowl of salmon and rice in front of Gura.

"Oh, so you're involved in this too?" Ryan said, perking up. "Now that's interesting."

"How is that interesting?" Kiara tilted her head. "We're friends and friends hang out."

"No reason," Ryan shrugged. "Just thought it was interesting."

"Fair enough," Kiara said, waving you hand dismissively.

Ryan looked up when he heard the door open, seeing none other than YAGOO himself. "Good morning," YAGOO said, sitting next to Amelia. He was wearing a suit, which Ryan had never seen YAGOO not wear and a fedora for some reason.

"Good morning," Ryan said. "My name is Ryan Shade. It's nice to meet you."

"My name is Tanigo Motoaki, but you can call me YAGOO," The man said with a polite nod, offering his hand.

Ryan returned the handshake, a polite smile on his face.

"Your hands are callused," YAGOO noted. "Do you practice swordsmanship?"

"I may have at one point," Ryan shrugged. "My memory is a bit hazy."

"So I've heard," YAGOO said. "Kiara here has told me a lot about you."

"I see," Ryan nodded. "I wonder how Kiara learned about my amnesia."

"I wonder indeed," YAGOO said. "Some questions may not exactly have answers."

"That is true," Ryan said. "I guess I'll let it go. It's not like I have anything to do about it."

"That's good," YAGOO nodded. "Well, I must get going. I have a lot of things to do today."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, YAGOO," Ryan said.

"Likewise," YAGOO said, adjusting his tie before turning around and leaving.

"That was tense," Kiara said.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to ask," Ryan turned to Kiara, smiling. "I'm sure you have your reasons in knowing. You're a good person, so I trust you."

"Thank you, Ryan," Kiara said with a smile.

"No problem," Ryan said, turning to Gura and Amelia. "Anyways, would you like seconds?"

-

"YAGOO," YAGOO turned around when he saw Storm with his mask on.

"Welcome to the mortal plane, Storm," YAGOO smiled as he shook the man's hand. "What brings you here today?"

"What do you think of Ryan?" Storm asked.

"He's quite something," YAGOO said. "He seems to be far more observant that reported, but he's willing to let it go. It's as if he knows something he shouldn't."

"I see," Storm rubbed his chin. "Do you think he's ready to reobtain his magic?"

"Naturally," YAGOO said. "He would make a great mage."

"I see," Storm said. "Maybe he is, maybe he isn't. Only time will tell."

"I was planning on doing it tomorrow," YAGOO said. "Will you be there? I kind of need you there since you made the barrier in the first place."

"I'll be there, but whether or not it happens is up to fate," Storm said.

"You're being cryptic again, Storm," YAGOO sighed.

"My words are easy to discern," Storm said. "You just don't care to discern them."

"Fair enough," YAGOO said. "Now, is that all you wanted to talk about?"

"Actually, I wanted to ask something else," Storm said. "Would you know where Anya is?"

"You gave Anya to me a few months ago. You did an ancient ritual to turn her into a human," YAGOO explained. "Why are you asking me this? You were the one who gave her to me."

"Huh, I don't remember doing that," Storm said. "It doesn't matter. I was going to do that anyways."

"I see," YAGOO said. "I wish you well."

"Likewise," Storm said as darkness started to cover him. When he was fully consumed by the darkness, he sunk into the shadows.

"It looks like my work isn't over yet," YAGOO shook his head. "No matter. I have an entertainment company to run."

-

"So, how did it go?" Nux asked as Storm rose from the infinite blackness.

"It went alright," Storm said. "Say, do you remember me giving Anya to YAGOO a few months back?"

"I don't, actually," Nux said. "Then again, I wasn't around a few months ago, so I don't really know."

"I remember," Aloe piped up. "Why do you ask?"

"Forgive me," Storm shook his head. "I seem to be having problems with my memory."

"That's pretty serious, ya know?" Nux put a hand on Storm's shoulder. "That can only mean one thing."

"Yeah," Storm sighed. "I guess it's bound to happen."

"No," Nux put his other hand on Storm's shoulder, shaking him a couple times. "What the hell has gotten in your head? You can't just accept death like that. You have people that care for you. We'll find a way out of this. Together."

"You're right," Storm shook his head, taking off his mask. His grey eyes meeting Nux's. "We'll find our way out of this. We can do it."

"Damn straight," Nux smirked. "Now, turn that dumbass frown upside down. We got work to do."

-

Ryan sighed as he looked at Grimm's grave. "Sorry for bothering you, but I have nowhere else to go and think."

"Who are you bothering?" Ryan didn't even turn when he heard Grimm's voice. Grimm appeared from a torrent of black flames. "It's been a while, Edhas."

"Sorry old man, but I'm not Edhas," Ryan turned around, looking up at the tall man. "You're looking considerably better."

"You're not Edhas?" Grimm tilted his head. "If that's the case, how do you even know who I am?"

"Probably because of this," Ryan raised his wrist, pulling up the sleeve of the hoodie enough for Grimm to see the jet black watch on his wrist.

"So, you're a time traveler," Grimm said, narrowing his eyes.

"Yeah, Nux actually came back with me," Ryan said.

"I assume something bad happened then," Grimm said.

"Nothing cataclysmic happened. You made the phoenix dimension, MILF was dismantled, and life became a lot better for magical beings. I even had a fan club if you could believe it," Ryan chuckled to himself before giving Grimm a sad smile. "But things went south. Storm got his free will destroyed by the void. Things would have been very bad if… if Edhas didn't sacrifice himself."

"I see," Grimm said. "You came back in time to reunite with your previous self? That's kind of selfish of you."

"I know, and I've had a lot of time think about it," Ryan sighed. "But honestly, I can't live without him. I know it's selfish, but I don't regret my decision."

"You and Edhas are a lot alike, you know?" Grimm sighed. "I wish you luck. I'll be around."

As Grimm vanished in black flames, Ryan chuckled to himself. "I guess the opening act's ending soon, huh? I guess I better get serious about all of this."