Nishikido-kun said a thing about them being a moonchild. Does that mean that they are the children of the moon? If Maki haven’t seen or experienced so many strange things, she would have scoffed at the idea. But it was all true, they all have gifts or powers or whatever and some people out there was hunting and killing them. She’s involved in this because she’s in the middle of being like them and being a human.

She turned around and looked at Tegoshi who is sleeping peacefully on the bed. Maki still doesn’t understand most of the things that are happening here but it was clear to her that this person was keeping so many secrets from his friends. She was tempted to tell Yamapi everything that she knew about Tegoshi, about the images that she saw every time Tegoshi touches her, about the silver-haired woman, the blood on the snow and the other things. But something stopped her. Those things are not for her to tell. It is Tegoshi’s secret. She doesn’t have the right to meddle with his private life.

She moved closer to the bed and studied his face carefully. In some angles, he really looked a little bit like her. His face is beautiful, so innocent and peaceful looking. Nobody would even guess that this boy had seen and suffered terrible things. Something stirred inside her and she raised her hand to reach out and his face.

The moment her hand touches his face, the images come again but this time she’s ready.

The silver haired woman kissing a young girl with large beautiful eyes in her arms………………………… Ryo and Ayu laughing together…………… Maki walking in a familiar street, head low and wearing her old uniform, the uniform of her previous school……

She instantly withdrew her hand. What was that? Why did she saw herself in his memories? What is she got to do with him?

The door opened and Massu entered the room. “Maki?”

She looked up at him.

“What are you doing? Why you’re not sleeping yet?” Massu asked.

“I can’t sleep. Where did you come from?”

“I just helped Shige with something.” He looked at Tegoshi. “He still doesn’t wake up yet?”

Maki shakes her head.

Massu sat down beside her and Maki got the time to study his face closely and carefully. He looked so young and lost as watched his best friend sleep.

“Massu, how old are you?”

Massu blinked back at her then he smiled. “My real age or my age on the school records?”

Maki smiled too. “You’re real age.”

“I’m 19.”

“Eh? Really? You’re older than me but you looked like you’re just 15.”

Massu grinned at that. “Tegoshi and Shige are 18, Yamapi-kun and Ryo-kun are 20 and Koyama-kun is 21.”

“What? They’re already over age. Why are they still at this school?”

“The six of us were living in the streets before, always hiding and running away both from our enemies and humans. All of us have no idea of what humans are like, so we’re scared of mingling with them, we supported each other in those times. Then an old man saw us and took us out of the streets. He was just like us, a moonchild too. He taught us how to live like a human and he enrolled us in a school. He changed some information about us like our ages. He said it’s easier that way, we could blend with humans and our enemies won’t easily find us out. He died three years ago.” Massu said

“Why did he die?”

“He died of sickness. He refused Yamapi-kun’s attempts to heal him. He said that he’s so old and tired and he wanted to rest. By the way this school belonged to him.”

“Eh? Then if he’s already dead, who’s the owner of this school?”

“He had no family so he left this school to Yamapi-kun and then he hired someone to take care of all the stuff in this school.”

“Sugoi!”

Massu nodded. “We all love it here. We found some of our people here like Akanishi-kun and Masami-chan.”

“What happened to your family?” Maki asked

“All of us are orphans. Most of our families were killed by them.” Massu said sadly.

“I’m sorry.” Maki said

Massu smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “There’s no need to be sorry about, it happened a long time ago.”

“So how did you find each other?” Maki asked. She wanted to know more about them so that she can understand them further.

“First it was just Nishikido-kun and Yamapi-kun, I found them sleeping in an abandoned house one summer night. I don’t remember it much but I know since then I followed them wherever they go. At first, they ignored me until it annoyed Nishikido-kun. He threatened me with his gift to make me leave them but I know he was just bluffing so I still stayed with them. Yamapi-kun was kind he let me to join them and he was the one who always give me food. Then we moved to another town, it’s amusing because when we arrived there a group of kids tried to scare us away but Nishikido-kun showed them his gift and they all scampered away. Those guys are Koyama-kun, Shige, Kusano and Uchi.”

Maki saw something flicker in his eyes when he mentioned the last two names.

“The food there was scarce so we’re always competing with each other on who’s the first group to get the food. Then they finally confronted us, their leader Uchi-kun and Ryo-kun have a fighting match. Whoever loses their group will leave the town. Uchi-kun and Ryo-kun came from warrior families and both of them wanted to win. They still keep on fighting even if both of them were already lying on the ground, neither of them wanted to stop nor give up. I remember how Yamapi-kun calmly walked between them and healed them both. He suggested that it would be better if the two groups will join and all of us would live together. It is so funny because after that fight Uchi-kun and Nishikido-kun become best friends.”

“I heard Yuihiro mentioned Uchi’s name.” Maki whispered.

Massu was startled when he heard her mentioned Yuihiro’s name. His eyes went sad and then he continued his story. “We were so young then and we still didn’t know how to properly protect ourselves. That makes us an easy target for our enemies. Nishikido-kun and Yamapi-kun were on the other side of the town trying to get some food for us when Yuihiro’s gang came and attacked us all. They are so many and all grown up while there’s only five of us there. Uchi-kun and Koyama-kun valiantly tried to save us all. You already knew what Yuihiro’s power right?”

Maki nodded, she won’t forget those swords and knives hanging in mid air.

“They both got hit…” Massu stopped at this part. Maki saw his Adam’s apple go up and down. She already has an idea of what had happened. “…but it was Uchi-kun who’s injured the most, he was the one who’s fighting Yuihiro. Then Nishikido-kun and Yamapi-kun came, that helped us to overcome them. Nishikido-kun burned them all except for Yuihiro he got away. Yamapi-kun healed Koyama-kun but he was too late for Uchi-kun.”

“So what happened to Kusano-kun? He’s not here right?” Maki quietly asked.

Massu stared silently at Tegoshi’s face for a long time. She saw many kinds of emotion dancing on his eyes, anger, sadness, fear and regret.

“Barely a week after Uchi’s death another group attacked us again. This time we’re all ready but this group is much stronger. We only managed to escape because Nishikido-kun and Yamapi-kun seemed to recognize their leader and they knew his weakness. Kusano-kun was wounded in that fight. We later learned that the sword that wounded him is a cursed sword. He got the curse. We didn’t know what that curse is all about-“ Massu stopped here and gulped some air. He looked like he was about to cry and Maki wanted to stopped him but can’t. She wanted to know about the curse too.

“It’s just that every night he would suddenly scream and cry like he was suffering from a great pain. We couldn’t do anything but watch. Yamapi-kun tried to heal him but his efforts went to nothing. Kusano’s agony went pass through physical pain, I think it’s emotional and psychological too. I can’t really explain it, I don’t know what he’s suffering but I know that he was fighting it. Some nights he would go to a corner to cry and suffer there alone. He bites his lips until it bleeds to stop himself from screaming so that he wouldn’t wake us all. Yamapi-kun can’t reach him, he can’t do anything and sometimes I saw him crying with him too. It got worse when Kusano-kun begged to Nishikido-kun to kill him, to end his sufferings but Ryo-kun said that he would find a cure for him. We don’t know what to do then, there’s no one who can help us. Then one day, when Nishikido-kun and I went home we-“ Massu wiped a tear from his eyes and Maki was surprised when she realized that she’s been crying too.

“We just found his body lying on the floor. Koyama-kun and Shige-kun were crying at his side and they said that Kusano killed himself. Yamaa-kun was sitting at the corner, staring at nothing and not talking. I remember he didn’t speak or eat or drink in one week, if it’s not only for Ryo’s pleading I think we would have lost him too.”

Maki knew that they suffered bad things but she didn’t expect it to be like this. They were blessed and gifted in so many things but the lives that they were living is worse that she could imagine, not to mention that that they were so young when they experienced this.

“You didn’t mention Tegoshi.” She said

“We found Tegoshi six years ago after Kusano-kun’s death. He was lying on the snow covered in his own blood. We already thought that he’s dead but Yamapi-kun saved him.”

Maki remembered the images again… the blood on the snow. That must be it, what she saw must have been his family. The more she thinks about it the more she can’t accept that this group of people suffered so much. The lost of a family and the lost of a friend. What did they do to deserve this kind of punishment?

Massu continued on talking. “We didn’t know what really happened to him because he didn’t talk for two months. We first thought that he’s a mute. Then we also learned that he’s cursed too. Yamapi-kun tried hard to heal him. He didn’t break the curse though but he stopped the effects every time that the curse attacked him.”

“He didn’t really tell what happened to him?” Maki was curious to know.

“The first person he talked to was Yamapi-kun and those were only short replies. He would respond to every affection we gave him but most of the time he kept to himself, just like Nishikido-kun. He only fully opened himself to us when he met Ayu.” Massu said

Maki looked at Tegoshi. “I wonder how they got together in the first place.”

Massu genuinely grinned, the first time in this night. “I don’t really know the details but it all started when Tegoshi found Ayu breaking in his room.”

“I can very well imagine that,” Maki said, grinning too.

“Anyway, he was so happy with her it’s like he finally found a reason to live. It’s the first time that we saw him like that. He completely revealed himself to us, a bright and cheerful boy a very big contrast to when we first found him. I think that’s the main reason why Nishikido-kun and Yamapi-kun allowed their relationship, he’s happy and it lessened the effects of the curse on him.”

“Is he suffering too what Kusano-kun had suffered?” Maki asked.

“I really don’t have any idea. I guess what makes it different is that Kusano-kun fought it while Tegoshi accepted and let it to punish him or something.” Massu said

“It’s funny because you all saying that I was cursed but I’m not suffering all those things that you said.” She said.

Massu looked at her straight in the eye. “Really?”

Maki remembered the whole time that she was coping with her ability to hear other people’s thoughts. There were times when she thinks that she’s going crazy, she wanted to shut it all but she didn’t know how to. It seems like a blessing and a curse too.

“You’re an enigma ne~ Maki-chan.” Massu said

“Huh?”

“I already knew that you’re cursed the very first time that I laid my eyes on you.” Massu said

“How did you know?”

Massu shrugged his shoulders. “I can’t really explain but it’s a part of my gift. What I saw from Kusano-kun and Tegoshi-kun, I saw it in you too.”

“I don’t understand.” Maki said.

“I don’t understand it either. I always saw things that the others don’t see. The time Kusano got the curse, I saw a black thing hovering above him and never leaving him. I’m seeing that same black thing with Tegoshi,” he turned to look at her “and to you too.”

A shiver passes through her.

Massu noticed it. “I guess that’s the curse.”

“What else can you see?”

“Colors,” Massu said simply.

“Huh?”

Massu smiled. “Every things that I saw, when I first look at them they were always accompanied by colors and patterns, like an aura or something. I don’t really understand it too.”

“Isn’t hard for you?” Maki asked

Massu shook his head. “It only happens at the first glance then it will be gone. Sometimes I saw it there, sometimes its not.”

“What did you see?”

“With a human, it’s just a plain color something that would reflect their mood or expression. With our enemy, I only see distortion, a jumble of ugly colors. But with us, with our kind it’s a pattern of beautiful colors. A unique patterns and colors for each of us.”

He laughed when he saw the weird expression on her face. “I know its weird but that’s the way I see it. The most beautiful aura I’ve ever seen is with Yamaa-kun.”

“Really?”

“Un! It’s calming and relaxing. Whenever I’m sad or lonely and when I saw his aura, it always soothes me. It’s almost the same with Nishikido-kun, but his aura has a certain edge in it as if it was scary and reassuring at the same time. I always feel safe and secured whenever he’s around.” Then he laughed. “Maybe that’s the reason why I never leave them ne~ even with Nishikido-kun forcing me to.”

“Sugoi! Then can you tell me what his aura looks like?” she pointed to the sleeping Tegoshi.

“His aura? It’s mysterious and bewitching like-“ Massu suddenly stopped and then looked at her.

He is staring at her for a long time that it already bugs her. “What?”

“I just noticed it. His aura and your aura are the same, perfectly the same.”

Maki was about to ask him why when the door suddenly opened and Nishikido-kun entered the room. “Why are you not still asleep?” he looked straight at her.

“I can’t sleep”

Nishikido-kun raised an eyebrow. “And what are you two doing?”

“We’re just talking Nishikido-kun.” Massu said

“Talking about what?”

“About everything that happened to us,”

The gaze that he gave Massu was intense. Maki was frightened to see it.

Massu met his gaze head on. “She has the right to know.”

It’s after a few moments before Nishikido-kun lowers his gaze, he went to closet instead and rummaged inside it.

Maki shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Massu reassuringly smiled at her and he reached out to pat her hand. The moment his hand made contact with her skin, her surroundings were filled with myriad of colors. It shocked her so much that she instantly moved backwards, away from him. Massu was startled with her reaction and she noticed that Ryo was gaping at her too, a black shirt is hanging loosely in his hand. “What’s wrong?” he said

“N-nothing,” Maki said

Ryo sauntered towards her. “You’re telling me its nothing when your face looks like you’ve seen a hundred ghosts or something.”

He sat in front of her. He raised his hand and touched her face.

A burning white-hot pain passes through her whole body.

She screamed.

_______________________________

sorry i its a little bit messy..
part 3 will come hopefully soon... i didn't expect that this chapter will be this long...

thank you so much for reading ^^