http://clampfix.fanworks.net/x-fix/ayashi1-2.txt </head><body><pre>Ayashi no Yuugi By Ayanosuke Day 1: Resonance Part 2 "Damn!" During that evening, 19-year-old Takara Inoue, a college student, was on her way to the Hishizaki Residence. She planned to meet her cousin there with her uncle's family from her mother's side. Takara's parents couldn't come with her because she was about 9 1/2 months pregnant with her stepfather's baby. Her parents divorced when Takara was 12 and she was faced with the harsh realities of parenthood. She just hoped she didn't have to through all that when she got older. /Then again, you never know..../ "C'mon! I need to get past!" Takara kept beeping her horn while she was driving her foreign car, a '98 Tahoe from the company Chevrolet. Unfortunately, she was stuck in a tight traffic. An incident happened somewhere around Sunshine 60 and the construction people were trying to rebuild it. But it didn't help the people who were driving pass it. "Let me through! I have to get somewhere!" Takara was getting pissed off every time she had to slow down on the road. "If this keeps up, I'll be late for the Christmas ball." She slumped back into her seat and waited until it was almost cleared up. Her eyes suddenly shifted to a clear opening. And it was right by the end of the traffic. "Yes! Finally--" Her words were cut off the minute she noticed another car was about to fill in that position. "Oh no, you're not getting it!" Quickly turning the ignition on, Takara sped up towards the free space while passing by a bunch of cars. Once she arrived there, the car stopped behind her. Takara giggled and smiled with victory. Soon, she would be able to get out of traffic. -------------------------------------------------------------- In almost an hour later, Takara arrived at the Hishizaki Residence, which was actually a very large mansion. The Hishizaki Family were known for their wealth. Her uncle Kenji was a grand priest of his family. He married Takara's aunt and become part of the Inoue family. Her family wasn't rich but at least they had jobs to make money. Once she parked her Tahoe, the young woman got out of the car and quickly straightened her coat and dress. She locked the door and placed her keys inside her purse. At the entrance of the mansion, she spotted a tall man in dark clad wearing a black trenchcoat and dark shades stading at a two-door entrance. He was smoking a cigarette while outside in the coldness of the winter. It began snowing a few minutes ago. Takara walked over to him with a concerned look on her face. The man faced her as he waited for her to speak. "Don't ya know that smoking is very bad for your health?" Seishirou Sakurauka smirked and placed his lighter inside his coat pocket. "Well, I've been smoking for nearly nine years. So I'm used to it." "Yeah, right." Takara responded in a slight cynical manner. Seishirou was her cousin Kaneda's close friend. They both worked as veterinarians for nearly 12 years. When Kaneda first introduced her to him, she thought he was bit too well-mannered for his age. But she grew to respect him and was his friend in a few days. "So did you come here for the party?" "If that's why you're here then I guess I am too." Remembering what Kaneda said about there being no smoking at the ball, the assassin regretfully dropped his cigarette on the ground and put it out with his foot. Then he opened one of the large door and stood aside for the young woman to go in first. She went inside the mansion and took off her large coat. Seishirou did the same thing and held it in his right arm. He was wearing a black suit with a champagne silk shirt. A servant appeared and motioned for them to give him their coats. Seishirou and Takara gladly placed them in his arms, bowed their heads, and walked over to the door which led to the ballroom. Takara was wearing a champagne, sleeveless dress with straps circling across her shoulders. It was almost tight around her chest but it showed she had a very slim figure. She had on winter white leather high heels. And her dark purple hair was wrapped in a elegent french roll. Seishirou eyed her beautiful figures and smiled to himself. He chuckled and they entered the large ballroom. Inside, the room was decorated with gold and silver everywhere. Even the christmas lights hung from ceiling. There stood a huge tree on the far left which was covered with gold, silver, pink, blue, and pure crystal ornaments. A huge star hung on the very top nearly touching the ceiling. Takara's mouth gaped open. She had never seen a ballroom so beautiful as this one before. She could probably come here more often. Seishirou just stared around enjoying the fascinating decorations of the ballroom. He was glad he had met Kaneda, otherwise he'd be bored during this winter season. He placed his hand hands on Takara's shoulders and slightly moved her forward. "I think we should see how Kaneda's doing." "Huh?" Takara snapped out of her hpynotic position and turned her head to see the older guy behind her. "Gomen... What did you say, Seishirou-san?" "I said we should check on Kaneda." "Oh yeah." Takara and Seishirou began walking past the dancing crowd. At the large table, they spotted Kaneda with another woman. She had very short black hair and a black dress with long sleeves. There was a slit on the side of her dress. Both her and Kaneda were drinking champagne while having a chat with each other. "Hey there!" Takara had called out while approaching them. Kaneda turned and smiled towards his cousin and close friend. "Takara! Seishirou! Good to see you!" He made his way over to her. "I'm glad you both came to the ball." "So are we." Seishirou had kept his shades on because he didn't want to cause a comontion these people. It was such a pity though that Promised Day was coming soon. So he decided to enjoy Christmas and see how these people would react when the End of the World arrived within seven days. -------------------------------- Back at the mansion, everyone was done with their dinner. Even Ayane herself felt full. "Arigato, everyone. I really enjoyed the dinner." "Your welcome, Ayane-san." Kamui responded, though he was quite worried about Subaru since he didn't eat much of the food. "Will you be staying here longer or leaving?" Ayane and Seiichirou faced each other and turned back to the others. A smile crept on their faces. "Actually, we were wondering if you'd want to come with us to a ball." "A ball? You mean, a party?" Yuzuriha's spirit brightened at that word. "Hai. I know the people who are having it. One of them is a close friend of mine. She's also a of Hishizaki Kaneda." "That's great. But how did we get invited?" "I asked her if I could bring a couple of friends along with Seiichirou. She agreed." "I see." Subaru drank his eggnog once more before placing it back on the table. "When do we leave?" Seiichirou looked at his watch. "In about twelve minutes." He started getting up and made his way to the coat racket. "Excuse me if I leave soon, I have to go and pick up my wife and daughter. They're coming with us too." He bowed his head, put on his coat and shoes, and made his way out of the mansion after saying good-bye. Karen and Arashi quickly took what was left of the dinner and put them in the kitchen on the counter. Kamui and the others got up and straightened themselves up. Then he looked over at Ayane. "By the way, how are we suppose to get where we are going?" The older woman smiled. "I have a limo waiting right outside. It's been there since we were having dinner." Once clearing off the table and putting up the food, the entire group put on their shoes and coats. Ayane opened the door and they all left out of the mansion. She went first and walked over to the limo, hoping there was enough room for at least six people besides her. The driver had gotten out of the limo and opened the door for Ayane and her guests to go in. A few minutes later, they were already inside the limo. The actress was glad it had enough room for everyone to get in. Soon the driver got back in his seat, turned on the ignition, and drove towards the Hishizaki Residence. ------------------------------------- Back at the large mansion, Takara was talking with Naomi Khan. She was Chinese and also worked as a pianist/singer. And she was going to perform tonight since this was her final concert for the week. It's been awhile since Naomi once left her home in Hong Kong. She was very happy to fulful her dream as both painist and singer. Of course, she was only here to visit her close friend Ayane. She sipped on her wine while she listening to Takara's conversation. "So, you're here to visit your relatives during the holidays, correct?" "Hai. I would of brought my parents with me but my mother is nine months pregnant and will be expecting to give birth very soon." "I see." Naomi kept drinking from her glass until someone from behind tapped on her shoulder. It was one of her agents, Mr. Cheng. "Yes?" "Um, Miss Khan? The concert shall start in 40 minutes." "Hai...." Naomi did not turned to see her agent. Instead, her eyes were still staring at Takara. "I have to go now. I'll talk to you later after the concert." Takara only nodded. After that, her friend began to leave and go straight upstairs. Suddenly, Seishirou appeared once again and placed a hand on her shoulder. He didn't speak until Takara placed her hand on his and sighed. "Is something wrong, Takara-san?" "No. Somehow I just feel bored. But I am staying here." "Need some fresh air?" "Hai." Takara gently let her friend's hand slip from her slender shoulder and walk towards the glass door. She opened it and enter a huge courtyard. It had beautiful gardens almost everywhere. In the center was also a large crystal-like fountain. Takara knew she shouldn't be out while it was snowing. But she really didn't care. The snowflakes kept falling down like sakura petals, nearly touched part of her bare skin. It tingled her very much and almost stinged with coldness. Takara sighed and looked up at the sky. The clouds had completely covered the ocean of stars during the winter season. But ti was something else. Something more than just the winter. It was a sign. An omen of some kind. But what? "Kamui, where are you?" Tears almost appeared from her eyes as she stared at the falling snow and held herself. The only person who was watching her so far was Seishirou Sakurazuka, who finally turned around and disappeared into the large crowd in the ballroom..... End of Part 2 of Day 1: Resonance Finally, I managed to finish the second part. Took me long enough since I had writer's block. Anyway, I'll begin with the last part of Day 1 soon. But don't think this will be the end of my fanfic. I'm just getting started. Comments are available to me.</pre><p><a href="./">Back</a></p><p><a href=http://www.dreamhost.com/donate.cgi?id=216><img border=0 alt="Donate towards our web hosting bill!" src=https://secure.newdream.net/donate1.gif></a></p></body></html>