[Lloyd]
-"Lloyd, do you want to go somewhere?" - Ruby asked.
-"Where?"
-"Any place that comes to your mind"
-"OK - anywhere with you"
I thought about the place where I met my grandfather not so long before, just after we battle the Oni invasion, I know I have been there, but my memories of that place start to fade. I close my eyes, and when I open them again we were there together.
-"Do you remember this place?"- she asked me with a smile
-"I have been here a few weeks ago, I met my Grandfather here, just after we battler the Oni invasion."
-"Ah! I see I thought would be a different memory." - her smile fades a bit, she sits in the grass and I sit beside her.
-"What do you mean?"
-"This place is a gateway, between realms, from here you can very much go anywhere in the cosmos."
-"Have you been here before?"
-"Many, many times, always by your side, none on this lifetime though, until now."
-"Are you jealous I came here without you?"
-"Maybe I am" - She laughs - "I just wonder why he brought you here"
-"I don't know, He was very nice to me but somehow my memories of that meeting are fading away."
I laid back in the grass, and look at the sky, Ruby put her head near mine.
-"Ruby, I have so many questions"
-"I know, and I am sorry to say I haven't got all the answers, and to be honest I probably have more question than answers myself as well."
-"What exactly are you, the Lupa? I was looking for a wolf of some kind, are you shapeshifter?"
-"I am the half of a single God or Entity, called Agape, the Lupa is only a reference from the last life, where the Lupa was a shapeshifter, an Oni, I was cursed, I die, and 22 years ago I was reborn from ashes in the shape of a human baby."
-"And the Dragon?"
-"The other half, also cursed, also die... Destined to born again, in an Oni-Dragon bloodline, after the Lupa was found by one of the guardians."
-"Who are the guardians?"
-"Two immortal beings, originally oni creatures, rewarded by your grandfather for their loyalty."
-"Where are them?"
-"I don't know, I have been looking for them myself, I can't find them"
-"Is one of them Mistake?"
-"Yes, Do you know her?"
-"I do, but I do believe she is dead."
-"She can't be, she is immortal. Why do you believe she is dead?"
-"She was attacked by my father when she was trying to help us. She has vanished after that"
-"That is why I couldn't find her, maybe she is trapped in a different realm or shape."
-"How did you meet her?"
-"I lived with her since I was 15, she knew my parents, and I need a place to stay while I was in medical school. She is the one who told me all about the Lupa, she showed me the books, and explain the legend and the prophecy, but I never took her stories literally, until I come across you."
-"what changed?"
-"we sparkle! I was glowing, the first signs of a Lupa Dragon meeting, and then I start having, what we could call visions, but they were memories instead, and soon after I was hearing your thoughts."
-"And you never thought about telling me all this before."
-"Yes, many times, but how could I? You were still heartbroken, and very much in love for Harumi, I just couldn't do it."
-"You knew she was about to die and took me to her to say goodbye, don't you?"
-"That is not what's happening that evening. I drugged you, sorry, I need to have you there with me, I needed to hold to your hand so I would be able to access the healing power to save her. And that is what I did, but she refused to be healed and asked me to speak to you instead, so I provide the two of you the connection to talk, I was hoping you would change her mind."
-"Could you have saved her?"
-"Yes, I could save her life, but I couldn't bring her back to what she used to be before the accident, she would forever be depending, unable to speak, to move by herself, and she made clear to me she did not want that."
-"You said I need to remember who I am, how am I supposed to remember?"
-"I don't know, accordingly to the books, what we are having here right now, this connection we are sharing would be enough to remind us who we are, If is not working we will need to find out together why."
-"Ruby"
-"Yes"
We look at each other's eyes again, I kiss her hand and pull her close to me.
-"I am in love with you"
-"This is just the beginning!" - she smiles, and I kiss her.
[Ruby]
The travel between realms wears me out.
-"Lloyd" - he stops kissing me and looks at my eyes -"We need to go back"
-"OK"
I bring us back to my house.
-"Ruby, what is going on? Are you OK?" - I heard Lloyd, but I can't any longer see him, as I lost my sense, fainting.
[Lloyd]
As soon as we return to Ruby's house, and release our hands, she turns into white flames, I step back from her, and flames disappear, she goes pale like a paper and collapse, I catch her up and put her in her bed.
I notice both of her hands are burned. I get towels dumped in cold water and wrap her hands into. She is breathing, and her heart is beating normally. I decide just to stay by her side and wait until she recovers her senses.
I walk around her house, exploring each room, I see so much of her in this place, pictures, medals and trophies, I guess all carefully place by her parents. I find the books she has mentioned, they are written in different languages, some of them I can read, but most are this ancient language I have seen in the monastery, I can't understand, I find also lots of notes taken by Ruby, I wonder how much can she understands.
There is also a big parchment, it looks like a map of some sort.
I go back and sit beside her, she is sleeping peacefully. I don't want to leave her alone, so I just stay there watching over her.
[Ruby]
I wake in my bed, still in my dirty clothes and unsure how I end up there. I felt the burning pain in both of my hands, and before I can move I realised Lloyd is sleeping just by my side, with his hand at the top of mine.
As I regained consciousness my arm started to glow from his touch. I call for the healing power, and heal my hands, as the pain fades away I felt more comfortable to stay there watching him sleep.
My memories from previous lives flooded my mind, in none of them he looks so young and innocent like now.
His beautiful pale golden messy hair falls over his eyes, the shape of his nose and chin are so perfect, he is just gorgeous. Though I can't see beyond his green gi, I can, however, follow the curves of his body, and somehow imagine how extremely hot he is, I bit my lips thinking - "that is not right Ruby, get out." - even though the Lupa inside me said otherwise, craving for his body.
I remind myself: 1 - He is not fully aware of the Dragon inside himself, and 2 - Never mind the Lupa, I am still Ruby Okami, I have my principles, we only kiss yesterday, I can't just throw myself on him like that... - I look through the window trying to take my mind out of the god in my bed and realise it is morning already.
I slowly get out, taking care to not wake him up, and go for a long shower, wash my hair, and trying to extinguish my fire...
---
[Lloyd]
-"Oh no! - Did I sleep here? - By her side...." - I might have said that aloud, aware that wouldn't make any difference, she can hear my thoughts anyway, however, I soon realised I was by myself in her room.
The sunlight was coming from the windows between the blinders, letting me know was already later in the morning. I can smell food, omelette or something like that. I get up, feeling a bit awkward, and walk toward the kitchen.
-"Good Morning" - Ruby tells me with her beautiful smile, her hair is a bit wet making it looks even darker, and she is wearing a black outfit, that enhances her shape and her pale and delicate skin.
-"Good Morning. Hey Ruby, I am sorry I... " - I tried to apologise for sleeping in her bed, but she interrupts me, knowing what was in my head
-"For staying here and make sure I was OK? No, I don't think I could ever forgive you for that." - she giggles -" Thank you for look after me!" - She gives me a kiss on my face.
-"Your hands!" - I said, and she shows me her hands, and the burns were gone.
-"Thanks to you they are fine"
-"How?"
-"You stay by my side, so I was able to heal. Are you hungry? - I am not sure 'how do you like your eggs in the morning'" - she does a little singing and I can't stop smiling. -"so I did omelette, I hope you like?!"
-"I love it" - I sit in front of the plate and she sits in front of me.
-"Phew... our first breakfast together I don't want to mess up" - she passes me a cup of tea.
-"Why did your hands get burned?"
-"I am not sure. It happened before when I try to heal Harumi."
-"Ruby, we need help."
-"I know, what do you have in mind?"- she started eating her food
-"My mother, and my Uncle, they know a lot, I am sure they can help us. Will you come with me?"
-"Yes. Where we are going?"
-"My family house!"
-"Lloyd, I know it is a lot to take, I felt overwhelmed when I find out who I was, and I have been prepared for that, well almost"
-"It is kind of the way my life goes, first I was told by the age of 10, I was the Green Ninja, then the golden Ninja, inheriting the First Spinjitzu Master's power. Now you tell I am the Dragon the half of a God, and I have just in front of me the other half, which looks like the goddess herself."
-"exactly, I don't want you to feel like you have to take this as a task as if you need to be the dragon, or you need to be with me, that is not how is supposed to be, I didn't accept to be the Lupa until I felt I was the Lupa."
-"Ruby, I want you to know that whoever we are or not, doesn't change what I have been feeling for you. You have become my closest friend, all the time in the hospital, you help and support me like no other, you are so clever and beautiful and kind and thoughtful, and ... goddamn hot..." - I can't help the fact that all I want is have her in my arms again, and kiss her delicious lips
-"How charming!" - she blushed, biting her lips, I can tell she feels the same.
I walked towards her, and touched her face slowly, her skin responded glowing, she wraps her arms around my neck, I lifted her up from her seat, she stands on her tiptoes and pushes me to the sofa where we collapsed together, with her on the top of me, we laughed, but we don't stop kissing.
She moves to kiss my neck and finding her way inside my gi, I shivered, Sliding my hand under her top, feeling her soft skin, she sighed, I have a strange feeling of deja vu, as I closed my eyes I travel in time, but a time that doesn't belong to me yet, I see the Lupa in her, and I am a green dragon, wrapping her into my wings.
She is glowing so intensely, and suddenly she turned into flames again. I did not want to stop what we were having, but I worried about her more.
-"Ruby, you are in flames, are you ok? I don't want you to get hurt."
She moves away from me, the flames slowly fade, and she went very pale again, I thought she was going to fainting, but she keeps still holding to the sofa. She looks at the hands and they are slightly burning.
-"I don't get it, I thought it would only happen when I am invoking the power"
-"is it me hurting you?"
-"no, it can be, show me your hands?" - I do as he asked. She placed the back of her hands on the top of mine, and heal herself.
-"see, you are not hurting me. But, I don't know what is happening, or why is happening."
-"ok, we better go to my place and get help, get all the books you have about."
-"how do we get there?"
-"do you like flying?"
-"I am ok flying, but what are we flying on?"
-"an energy dragon"
Her face was priceless...
-"ah, before we go."
-"yes"
-"will you be my girlfriend?"
-"what?"
And I thought her previous expression was priceless, now it is....
-"You see, my friends will give me a hard time, so I thought we could agree between us before we arrive there..."
-"so you want to be my boyfriend to avoid your friend's harassment?"
-"no, I just don't want you to feel uncomfortable when I introduce you as my soulmate The Lupa... because that is what you are. And I really want you to be my girl." I threw her a puppy look, and she laughed.
-"I am not sure" - she is teasing me -"are you really boyfriend material?"
-"try me."
-"I am quite serious about having a relationship"
-"I can assure you, I am too!"
-"ok then"
-"is that a yes?"
-"yes!" - she kisses me-"I am going to get the books, back soon!"
I was so happy, my first official girlfriend, my destiny soulmate... I was screaming celebrating inside my head...
-"I can hear your thoughts!" - she screamed from the other room where she went to get the books from.
-"Dammit, is there a way I can have some private thoughts to myself? and how come I cannot hear your thoughts?"
-"I don't know!" - she comeback-"ok, I am good to go, boyfriend"