Off the Wall

~…~

I never knew what love was, but I always imagined it was like that feeling you get when a waiter at a local restaurant arrives with your order. I always thought about what it would be like- especially what it would feel like. I would create a scenario and run through it over and over in my mind, changing the outcome slightly each time. But in the end, I never expected it to ever happen. Because love is something that happens to other people, not to me.

~…~

Off the Wall

Chapter 1: Insanity Travels in Packs

Black beady eyes stared in abhorrence at the blob of messy chest nut hair sprawled carelessly across the desk situated at the back of the class room. The wrinkles lining the elder woman's face creased further in distaste as she fixed her miniscule glasses with her boney index finger. She cleared her throat in an authoritative manner as the small clank of her scarlet heels resounded across the quiet classroom. She loomed over the meager girl currently drooling on her test paper as she tried, in the most futile effort, to control her increasing anger. The snickering of the nearby girls danced into her ear drums, mocking her very existence, as she shot them a dirty look before returning her attention to the sleeping child.

"It's only the first week of school and she is at it again…." One of the girls, sitting directly behind the sleeping neighbor, exhaled in disgust as she turned to loudly converse with her classmates, who ardently agreed.

"Why does she even bother coming to school at all?" Another added shamelessly as they glared daggers at the unconscious fifteen year old girl in front of them, "I swear, how the hell did she even get into this school? For crying out loud, she sleeps through most of it!"

The two girls shrunk back as their equally pitiful neighbor joined in the conversation. "Hey, cut her some slack. She is sick."

"Pfff, yeah, mentally," They scoffed in unison as their screeching giggles whispered across the silent classroom.

The elder teacher curled her fist in contempt as she once again cleared her throat, "Ahem."

She received no response. Her posture straightened out in animosity as she held her chin up for another attempt to gain the unconscious woman's attention. "Ahem!"

Not even a twitch.

The teacher's face fumed in rage as she slammed her meaty fist against the hard wood desk before wailing resonantly, "Ahem! Etsuko Miharu, now is not the time to be sleeping in class!"

The petite, runty girl violently twitched against the teachers hardened shrills. Small, dainty arms threw themselves up in fright as she collapsed off the comfort of the desk and onto the chilled tile floor. The loud laughs of her female classmates resounded behind her at the girl's jolting reaction. "How lame," They purposely snickered loudly knowing that the puny girl could hear them now that she was wide awake.

The girl didn't even so much as stir at their comments, much to their annoyance. She sleepily rubbed her eyes, opening them to reveal a dull grey with a colorful kaleidoscope of blue. The said 'Miharu' parted her thin chapped lips to let out a small, groggy yawn as she stretched languidly. She halted when she noticed she was staring at that grotesque scarlet that she had grown to hate. Her gaze impassively strolled up to meet the reddened, angered face of her teacher. "I'm in school…perfect," She contemptuously thought.

"Oh, it's just you Sakata- sensei. What did I miss?" Miharu replied in monotone as she once again situated herself comfortably in her seat.

Miharu inattentively placed her cheek against the palm of her hand as she stared robotically at the gaunt elder woman's perturbed expression. She was hoping she wouldn't wake up. She was enjoying her dream that consisted of a duck walking up to a lemonade stand and not being able to get some grapes. In fact, she inwardly wished she was the man at the lemonade stand and Life was the duck. She wanted Life to just 'waddle away~'

Sakata-sensei seemed taken aback at the child's lackadaisical response. She puffed out her cheeks in annoyance as she held up a paper in front of Miharu, currently dripping in drool. "You got 20 points on your science exam, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Miharu stared blankly at the big red ink blob that spelled 'failure' and pointed an accusing finger at the paper in apathy before replying, "…You seriously woke me up for that? A 20…how delightful."

Delightful indeed. When was the old hag going to realize that she didn't care about grades? Miharu let out a soft sigh as the woman took in a deep breath and prepared for the lecture to come.

This was a common reoccurrence in her life. Miharu had eventually gotten used to the long tedious speeches teachers would give her about 'having a future' and the 'importance of school,' but none of that mattered to Miharu. She just wanted to get home and escape the world by sleeping. Her happy place was under her Egyptian cotton blankets and her best friend was her firm white mattress. Sad wasn't it? But one learns to love it.

She gazed lazily at the teacher in front of her as she rubbed her aching pale arms. Why did her body have to ache so much once she woke up? She inwardly grimaced at the pain that jolted through her. She was sure she wouldn't be able to walk for a few minutes. It was usually what happened after she woke up. Her body would involuntarily twitch or cramp and the muscles in her face automatically drooped. This was the result of being narcoleptic. The spontaneous sleeping moments? She loved them. The aching that followed?…Eh, not so much.

Sakata-sensei waved her arms comically in front of the child as she demonstrated to the passing grades posted on the chalk board before adding vehemently, "No, it is not 'delightful'. You are in Meiou High, young lady. We value academics and expect our students to perform exemplary in every subject. So, I suggest you get out of your dream world and start caring about your grades."

"Oh, I could care if I wanted to, but that requires feelings and effort…neither of which I have." Thin chapped lips quirked in a teasing smile as the teacher stomped her foot in defeat.

Sakata- sensei was about to start an argument that she would inevitably lose. You see, Miharu always had the last word in any argument. Anything anyone else said after that was the beginning of a new argument. It was a never ending cycle until the enemy shut up, but…

…Sakata-sensei wasn't one to give up that easily.

"Where is your book?" The teacher placed her hands on her hips dominantly as she raised a quizzical brow at the girl currently patting down her frizzy chestnut brown mane.

"At home," Miharu replied in a clipped tone as she grunted in frustration, giving up on fixing her hair.

"And what is it doing there? It should be in school with you and opened to the page in which we are covering."

"As you can see, it obviously isn't with me. Since it's roughly around noon, my book should be in my room, throwing a silent party, and having more fun than me," Miharu stated blandly.

She slouched lazily in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest in a stubborn fashion.

"And where is your pencil?" The teacher pushed further as her cheeks slowly started to rouge in anger. She had a feeling she wasn't going to win this one again.

"Certainly not in my hand," Miharu stated matter-of-factly as she quirked a smirk.

"Etsuko Miharu, how many times must I tell you to come to class prepared?" Wrinkled lips pursed in annoyance as she rubbed her temples in distress.

She regretted the day Etsuko Miharu ever stepped foot into her classroom.

"Well, once would suffice, but you don't seem to understand that no matter how many times you do say it, I still won't listen." Miharu stated haughtily and let out a faint chuckle as Sakata-sensei opened her mouth to retort and, after a few fleeting moments, closed her mouth in defeat. Checkmate.

Without another word, the teacher pouted and looked down at the stack of papers in her arms. Her eyes lit up in admiration at the next name in the stack, "Minamino Shuichi," She called out proudly while ignoring the loud squeals of girls in the classroom, "You, unlike some people, scored 100 points on the science exam. Good job! Why don't you make friends with the boy, Etsuko? You might learn a thing or two about responsibility."

"He's so amazing! Minamino-kun is great at everything!"

"He's so cool!"

"We love you, Minamino-kun!"

Miharu cringed at their afflicting shrieks that filled the room. She huffed plainly while blowing her long side bangs out of her pale face as she responded indignantly, "Hn, I don't need help from a boy who looks like he got b*tched slapped with Barbie's beauty. And for your information, I tried to be responsible once. It eventually got boring, so I went back to being reckless. It makes life a lot more interesting."

Void crystal emerald orbs lit up in interest as they reluctantly tore themselves from the book that they were previously fixated on. He forcibly quirked a tiny pleasing smile at his teacher that was currently flaunting over his excellence in academics before his gaze turned to the woman who had slammed her face into the book on her desk.

Her words meant little to him, as usual. In truth, he found it intriguing that she was one of the handful of women in this school that didn't fall head over heels for him. She was just good at hiding her feelings, he concluded, but even he couldn't properly convince himself. He stared disinterestedly at her frail, pale, resplendent form and noted how her body tensed in pain. The smile previously on his lips faltered as doubt came into his thoughts. Something about that woman wasn't right. She could hardly be considered normal if she did not take an interest in him, but that was beside the point. It was as if whenever Shuichi stepped into the room, her body shut off and her narcolepsy would kick in rather strongly depending on their proximity. However, he had noticed that whenever she wasn't around him, or at a long distance, it was as if she didn't suffer from any illness at all.

Shuichi's jaw tightened when the girl halted and turned to face him, her impassive ineludible grey orbs clashing with his calculating treasure emerald. He quickly lowered his gaze on to his book, trying to shake off the electrical feeling that seemed to course through his veins. It was as if every minute he spent in the room with her, his body was growing weaker with each breath she took…almost like she was sucking the life out of him.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Miharu clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth impatiently as she stuffed her school work in her locker. She couldn't hold back the ardent desire to bolt out of the school gates and never return. Her day had rolled through its usual commonplace routine. She went to class, fell asleep, said something witty, and got kicked out. It was just another perfect day in the life of no-good Etsuko Miharu - absolutely riveting.

She slammed the locker shut in a moment of pure frustration as she fixed her bag on her shoulder and proceeded solemnly down the hall. She had stalled at her locker until the crowds cleared. Miharu was the type of person to try anything to avoid human contact. It wasn't that she was anti-social…

She just hated people.

"I don't get nearly enough credit for managing not to kill every single one of these people…" Miharu muttered dryly as she took longer strides to escape the prison she ultimately despised. Her messy, long curly hair fell loosely over her shoulders as the faint hallway breeze floated under. She added a little bounce into her step as her feet grew jittery. She couldn't hold back the temptation. Her feet involuntary moved forward as she darted briskly down the hall. She skidded across the corner, the black soles of her shoes creating skid marks on the purity of the porcelain tile. She parted her mouth to let out a faint chuckle until she ran head long into what she was sure was a brick wall. "Oof!" The momentum of the hit propelled the tiny girl back as she skidded gracefully on her butt across the floor as if it were a thin piece of ice.

"Sweet son of a motherless goat!" She wailed blatantly as she clutched her head in pain trying to ignore the excruciating stab running through her scalp. She cringed her teeth as her muscles tightened beneath her. It felt as if a wave of sleep came over her, threatening to take her. She squinted under her bangs glaring harshly at the boy on the floor. "Why the hell did it have to be him of all people?" Miharu thought.

"Hey pretty boy, watch it next time," Miharu replied harshly as she struggled to her feet, staggering with each step. Her muscles felt strangely weak all of a sudden.

"As I recall, you were the one that ran into me," Shuichi let out a ragged sigh as he clutched his head, trying to relieve the impact of the collision. In truth, he had been in a hurry as well. After meeting the Spirit Detective himself, Shuichi slowly conducted a plan that could potentially save him from harsh punishment as well as save his mother. But if he was to catch the boy in time, he had to hurry.

Miharu patted down her dirtied skirt as she blew her bangs out of her face. She replied nonchalantly, "Well I would apologize for crashing into you, but I am afraid I don't nearly like you enough."

She curled her lips into a taunting smirk at the boy frowning in front of her. It astonished her that he was even frowning, since he rarely did anything besides smile. His smiles always seemed forced, but unlike her, at least he tried to be presentable. Miharu envied him. She envied the way he could easily put on a mask to make people like him while she put on a mask to drive people away. Miharu anxiously glanced down at her feet that were buckling beneath her.

"Why do I feel so weak?" She inquired silently.

"Then it appears we have reached a stalemate," He replied calmly.

The frown on his face then seemed to fade into a small smile. His eyes lit up in poorly concealed amusement as they examined the way her body tensed and noted the fatigue that suddenly took over her.

"Oooh, that really hurt my feelings. Let me go cry about it for a few hours," Miharu retorted icily as she fixed the bag situated on her shoulder and tried to get her feet to move under her, but failed miserably. It was as if she was tied to that very spot.

"What are the chances of you ever apologizing first?" Shuichi bent over to pick up his books, halting in amazement when her weak pale hand became visible in front of him. He looked up to see the girl on her knees stacking up his fallen papers before she held them out in front of her harshly.

"Cloudy with a chance of never." There was a mocking gentleness in her tone as her sly smirk unconsciously spread into a reluctant smile.

Shuichi hesitantly took the papers as they stared in silence for a while - each lost in their own thoughts. Miharu was inwardly cursing at her face muscles for betraying her like that. She jolted to her feet as she tried to fight the pink tint from making its way to her cheeks.

Shuichi stood up, observing her slouched over posture before his smile creased into a displeased scowl. She always became so weak when she was around him. His glacial eyes broke off her form as he replied, "Did I do something to deserve such hatred?"

Miharu stealthily made her way around the idle boy as she let out a slight wave before retreating past him. "Yes, you were born. Later, pretty bo-,"

The world seemed to cease spinning at the event that took place in that second.

Their hands had brushed and, at that moment, a jolt of electricity spread through them. Miharu wildly stared in awe at the relief that took over her body. The moment her hand had made contact with his, all pain in her muscles and all sleepiness vanished. Shuichi, however, felt entirely opposite. The moment their skin had brushed, he felt weak - almost as if his body was consumed in pain. It was the exact same feeling he felt after being locked in a classroom with her for most of the period.

The air around them grew stifling and uneasy as they both unconsciously glared at each other. Shuichi's eyes darkened in suspicion as they narrowed into menacing slits. He had turned on the defensive as his gaze bore into her, evaluating her every move. The demonic side of him was already prepared to attack.

Miharu rubbed her temple trying to relieve the pounding consuming her head. She felt heat coursing through her like wild fire as she unconsciously took a step back at the boy's vindictive and merciless stare. For the first time in her life, she felt frightened. The boy in front of her was not Minamino Shuichi, but something less human.

Shuichi wearily eyed the woman's retreating figure as he stared at his pale porcelain skin where her hand had brushed. There, on the back of his hand, laid a faint red mark of charred skin. He fisted his hands in aversion as he followed suit. The spirit detective…

…would have to wait.

___________________________________________________________________________________

The light sweat of the warm season dripped lazily down his tan skin as his rough pants echoed across the barren back road. He gritted his teeth in malignance as he increased his bolting pace. His punk pompadour hair bounced flightily with each heavy foot step he took as his narrowed caramel eyes darted sprightly across the road until they locked onto his target. "Urameshi!" He bellowed piercingly as he lunged forward with renewed vigor only to be knocked down by a sharp punch to his long slender nose.

"Hey Kuwabara, are you here for your daily beating session or just here to waste the air meant for people worth living?" Yusuke retorted loftily as he cracked that infamous half smirk, rubbing his fist to wipe off the idiotic oaf's blood that had shamelessly stained it.

Kuwabara flinched as the air pierced through his nostrils, stinging the tender skin as crimson liquid made its descent. The fierce wind that was present didn't make the situation any better. Instead, it blew the blood that came out of his now broken nose all over his face and uniform. He ignored the excruciating pain in order to bolster his manliness. "Oh, shut it, Urameshi! You cheated last time!"

Yusuke cracked his knuckles impatiently as he glanced at the spirit detective item tied securely to his wrist. The compass had already locked on its target and he was running out of time.

"No telling how many more souls that d*ck is going to eat. Sh*t! Kuwabara seriously has bad timing. Life just loves screwing up my day," Yusuke thought.

Yusuke sighed. "Look, I'd love to kick your ass, you flock of seagulls, but I'm kind of busy at the moment."

"Yeah, busy chasing down a giant soul eating freak," Yusuke internally added.

Kuwabara fisted his meaty hands in anger as he pointed a threatening finger at the boy in a green uniform before him, "I'm not letting you go until we duke it out right now!"

Yusuke sighed in defeat as he moved his head side to side, the faint cracking reaching Kuwabara's ears. Yusuke smirked insolently as he advanced forward, fist at the ready, before yelling vigorously, "Fine, but hurry up and faint this time! I have better things to do!"

"Let the blood bath ensue."

___________________________________________________________________________________

"Was that your boyfriend, Onee-san?~" A boy with light brown chestnut hair skipped merrily beside the robotic woman. He poked her teasingly. He shrank back in fear from her vindictive glare before she carelessly rolled her eyes.

"Yes Ichiru, every boy I know is my boyfriend..." Every single word that came out of Miharu's mouth dripped in sarcasm.

She tried, and failed, to hide the smile that grazed her lips as she glanced out of the corner of her eye at the thirteen year old boy beside her. Unlike Miharu, enthusiasm was always present in her younger brother's cobalt blue eyes. Ichiru shared many characteristics with his sister. He had the same pale skin with a lovely sun glow that obscured it, but unlike his sister, he didn't look sickly. Like Miharu, he had sandy caramel brown hair that curled slightly at the ends and never seemed to stay in place. He had the same child like angular face, with narrow aristocratic eyes contrasting it. Not only did he have the same thin pastel lips as his sister, but the words that escaped them were similar as well. Ichiru was no Debbie Downer, but he certainly wasn't a positive fella either. It was a trait that they both shared.

"Well, aren't you the Mona Lisa of intellectual debate," Ichiru responded sarcastically, tucking his arms behind his head. "Why do you hate him so much anyway?" Ichiru raised a quizzical brow at the woman who froze on to spot at his unexpected question.

"I hate anything that's prettier than me," Miharu hesitantly responded.

She wanted to forget the event that just took place moments before. Minamino Shuichi was the last person she wanted to think about right now.

"Miharu, the world is prettier than you," Ichiru pointed out only to get slapped on the shoulder. "Itai!"

"My point exactly. I hate the world." Miharu smirked at her brother's pained screams.

"Well I guess that's okay since the world hates you."

"You're just asking to get punched aren't you?" Miharu violently pulled her brother into a choke hold as she noogied his scalp.

"Geez, it's a joke not a d*ck, don't take it so hard," Ichiru cried out as he rubbed his newly abused noggin.

"Oh, shut it you little insect." Miharu unceremoniously let her brother go, causing him to skid face first in the dirt, and stepped over his back, proceeding down the back road. "What do you want for dinner?"

"I'm not hungry…" A mischievous smirk grazed Ichiru's lips. He pushed his sister forward before screaming, "…but I know you want some Minamino Shuichi for dinner!"

Miharu's face blanched in disbelief as a killer intent came over her. She clenched her jaw tightly as she darted after her brother who was running down the road, screaming like there was no tomorrow. "Come back here! I just want to punch you!"

Miharu lunged at her brother as she tackled him to the floor, choking the miserable boy gagging in her grasp. "Ite! Ite! I give! I give!" Ichiru struggled out as he tried to crawl away only to have his curly hair fisted in her hands and yanked back."Someone save me from the wicked witch!"

They rolled down the hill toward the glistening stream nearby, tearing down the roses in their path until Miharu halted seeing a puddle of crimson blood staining the dark earth.

She followed the trail until she spotted a beaten pulp by the river side. She cringed in disgust as she walked up to the boy leaning over his side. Ichiru poked the unconscious boy with the tip of his shoe and looked questioningly up at his older sibling."Ew, what the hell is that thing?"

Miharu scratched the back of her head as she rolled the boy over with the tip of her shoe and nearly gagged when she saw his oh-so-beautiful face. "I'm just going out on a limb here, but I think that's a boy…an ugly boy…"

"Is it dead?" Ichiru pinched the bridge of his nose, sickened with the metallic scent that filled is nostrils. "Poke it with a stick."

Miharu paid no heed to her brother as she kicked back her leg gaining enough momentum until it met the fallen boy's side. "Hey, you walking ball sac, you okay?"

"Gwah!" She fell back in fright as the boy shot up to his feet within a second, knocking her roughly down against the freshly cut grass.

His well-built muscular frame twitched angrily as his beady liquid brown orbs quickly examined his surroundings. Failing to spot the culprit, he sprinted like an Olympian sprinter down the dirt road yelling at the top of his lungs, "Get back here Urameshi! That wasn't a fair fight! I tripped!"

Miharu sweat dropped as she let out a flustered laugh before she glanced down at her sibling. "Well looks like he's fine…"

"….This town…is weird."

She sighed softly, "I couldn't agree with you more…"

___________________________________________________________________________________

Thin, bruised fingers rummaged steadily through her brown leather bag as she fisted the change in her hand, setting it carelessly onto the counter top. Her eyes narrowed impatiently at the woman counting the change, currently chewing on gum like a hungry cow. Miharu's lips fell into a tight thin line, only confirming her annoyance with the woman as she took the receipt and shoved it into her bag.

She nodded a thank you as she picked up the files in her hands and made her way to the door while pushing herself through a tightly packed crowd. She walked up to a pay phone situated at the corner of the library and instantly dialed after inserting some change. She waited for the receiver to clink until she heard his jaunty laughter, "Hello, this is the Etsuko office~"

"Hey dad…" Miharu flinched when she heard his concerned squeal.

"Etsuko Miharu! I told you to call me when you got out of school young lady!" His gruff joyous voice scolded through the end of the phone as Miharu distanced it a good two feet from her ear and could still hear him screaming.

"Comb your beard old man! I was busy picking up your freaking work anyway," Miharu seethed as she stomped her foot stubbornly into the ground.

"Miharu, that is no way to talk to your father," His voice grew cold and firm as Miharu impassively sighed.

"Sorry." She wasn't. "How was New York? You are back at your office in Hong Kong right now, right?" Miharu looked down at the paper marked with today's current date to confirm that this was the location of the office she should have been calling.

Miharu's father was a business man, a successful business man, who had grown a powerful reputation throughout Japan. His business had eventually traveled overseas through his hard work and dauntless efforts. Currently, he had been in New York undergoing a business meeting to make sure everything was in check. But he was to arrive in Hong Kong to attend a conference until he eventually makes his way home.

No, Miharu wasn't some snobby rich kid, but she was well off. Her father, despite having a enormous amount of money, was quite the penny pincher, so Miharu never expected him to splurge. He only brought necessities and diminished all temptation to buying things that were not needed. So, they lived a rather normal, fake middle class life.

"Well…New York-ish? How was school?" He retorted.

"Eh, school-ish…" Miharu shrugged apathetically.

"Meet any cute boys?"

"I met boys…I am still working on the cute thing," Miharu smirked as she heard him choke on his coffee.

Even the old man wasn't used to her bluntness. Miharu and her father were never particularly close. He was always off on business trips, but they still kept in touch when the time called for it. At least he tried to continue a relationship with his kids, rather than just leaving them to fend for themselves.

"Good. I would probably end up murdering them anyway. How are your grades?"

"What is this? Twenty questions? I'm doing fine dad and so is Ichiru," Miharu was slowly growing impatient.

She was never one to converse in lengthy conversations. She despised talking with great intensity. More specifically, she hated talking to her father. He was an enormous, built, and scary man who contained a mother's nature. Ever had one of those dads? It was positively revolting.

"That's good. That's good. I miss you, Miharu… It's so hard to cook for myself when it's a woman who is supposed to belong in the kitchen." His lips curled into a mischievous smirk as he was sure he could feel her face redden in anger at his bias response.

"Oh Fuc-," Miharu stopped mid sentence as her gaze strolled over to the bench in which her younger brother was previously sitting at.

Looming over the smaller boy was a large giant of a man. His muscles protruded from his green shirt as he bent over the smaller boy who bravely held his ground. There, in Ichiru's grasp, was a small glowing ball. Miharu tilted her head in bewilderment as she breathily responded to her dad calling out her name, "Hey dad, I'll call you when I get home….Something's up."

"Wait, Miharu, there is something I need to-," She hung up the phone as she stepped away from the phone booth, making her way cautiously to her brother's side.

His beady malicious black eyes bore into the younger boy beaming at him as he held up the ball.

"You dropped this, aren't you a little old to be playing ball?" Ichiru couldn't ignore the trembling sensation that took over his body as the man's glistening sharp teeth became visible behind his devilish smirk.

"Cute kid. You don't mind being my dinner tonight, do you?" Before Ichiru could question the grey skinned man, his eyes rolled into his scalp as a small last fleeting gasp escaped his lips. He fell forward onto the floor, falling limply against the chill pavement as the ball in his petite fingers rolled into the man's grasp.

Miharu felt her blood run could as she watched her brother fall limply to the floor. She ran at a splitting speed to his side as she tried to shake him awake. "Ichiru! Wake up!" Her face was worry stricken as the crowd surrounded them. She started to feel a convulsing pain in her chest as she heard his murderous devilish laughter bang against her ear drums.

Her wild, angered eyes darted across the opening of the crowd spotting the man carelessly walking away. She cursed under her breath as she struggled to get up to her feet. The sleepiness slowly took over her body, but she tried to resist it as she advanced after the man while letting hatred consume her.

"What the hell is going on? Come on stupid ass! Move!" She mentally cursed at her pale weakened legs as she fell forward, stumbling onto all fours as her knees scraped painfully against the pavement - leaving a large streak of blood.

Due to her illness, she couldn't run long distances without being drained by fatigue. She hated that sporadically her narcolepsy would kick in and she would be tempted to fall into a short slumber.

She winced in pain as the blood slowly trickled down her legs and limped forward until she was on her feet again. She followed the man into the barren forest opening a little ways down the road. She lunged forward as she threw a weak punch to greet his torso. "You asshole! What did you do to Ichiru?!" She shrilled meekly as she blinked away the burning sting that took over her reddened eyes.

"What's this, do you want to be my dinner too? It must be my lucky day," His revolting icy laugh resounded across the park as he noticed her open palm preparing to swing at his face. "Hn, pathetic humans…" His colossal hand instinctively grabbed her wrist until he let out a sharp agonizing scream at the event that took place.

Miharu grunted painfully as her head slammed against the roughness of a nearby tree trunk. She felt the crimson currency of vengeance drip soothingly down the back of her scalp as her vision became blurry. Shadows danced around in front of her as she collapsed on her stomach, the weakness in her knees had once again vanished at his touch, but she couldn't ignore the stabbing in her lungs that followed. She heaved up blood in dry coughs as a rough kick greeted her stomach. "You b*tch!" Gouki waved his hand in pain as his tiny slits glared at the large charred skin now dominating the palm of his hand.

Miharu dangled helplessly in his grasp as she tried to ignore the wildfire burning her insides from the strange, suffocating air filling up her lungs. Her usual impassive eyes drowned in fear as anguish cascaded down her cerulean orbs. Through her blurred vision of incomprehensible shadows she saw his razor sharp, shark like teeth glistening in the afternoon sun. The man in front of her now had a grotesque scarlet skin with small horns multiplying atop his disturbed mane. She shrunk her body against the tree that was currently behind her, still unable to get out of his grasp. She closed her eyes tightly as she tried to melt into the tree. It wasn't working.

Her cloudy eyes widened, horror struck, as he opened his large mouth that looked like it could swallow enormous mountains if it wanted to. She couldn't comprehend what this thing before her was.

This…

This was boarder line crazy.

No - scratch that.

This was off the wall insane.