I walked in front of them for some time. I take it I made both the old wizard and the swordsman somewhat afraid to approach me after what I did. When Masume decided that he could get close enough to talk to me, he asked me why I did that. I just replied that it was my way of dealing with slobs like that.

Winking at me, Masume gave me a half smile; "Now I know that I better keep my hands off of you."

I glared at him, but I couldn't keep from laughing. "You already know that I don't like guys like you touching me."

I looked back at Yokufukai and noticed that he wasn't very amused with the way we were acting, so I decided that I would change the subject.

"Hey… he told me that this ring of mine might have some 'special' something to it… I wanted to know if you'd tell me if he's amateur liar or if he actually did get somethin from it."

I pulled the ring from under my shirt and took it off of my neck. When I tossed it to him, he caught it and immediately stopped in his tracks.

"Where did you get this from?" he turned it between his fingers as if he were appraising its value.

"Where? I found it in a chest with some stuff that belonged to Master… before that, I guess it belonged to my mother…." I gave him a confused look. I didn't know why he was asking.

"I've seen this thing before, but that was quiet a long time ago…. Are you sure you don't know who your mother is or how it got in that chest?"

"Like I already told you, I don't know who my parents are and I don't know how Master got it…. If you can't tell me what it is, then give it back." I walked up to him and tried to take it from his hand, but he raised his arm above his head; far too high for me to reach.

"If you don't know what it is yourself, then I'm not sure I should give it back to you. This isn't some trinket that you can play catch with you know."

Masume laughed as I started to fume. He knew that I was going to get it back, no matter what. I didn't know where it came from, but that doesn't mean it didn't belong to me now.

"I think you should give the lady back her ring and tell her what it is, cause I don't even think you could over power her when she's pissed." He stood there and tried to give Yokufukai a serious look.

"I don't know why she got it in the first place… but I guess I should." Yokufukai held the ring over my head and waited for me to put out my hand… like I was a child begging for candy.

I held my hand out and snatched it from him as soon as he began to dangle it by the chain. As I was putting it back around my neck, I noticed the looks the two "boys" were giving each other. Even though I was mad at them, I kept my cool; after all, I wouldn't find out what Yokufukai knew about the ring if I attacked him.

"I think… I should require a payment for this information; considering that I DID give you two what you wanted before for free…." He spotted a boulder and went over to it. As he started to sit, he beckoned us to do the same.

"With what, haven't you figured out that we're both broke?" Masume obeyed the request and sat down on a smaller rock near the base of his.

They both waited for me to find one to sit on. I walked over to a large, flat stone that was some fifty feet away from them. Yokufukai shook his head and sighed.

"I guess I can't make you come over here… so I assume that I'll have to speak a bit louder.

"You did say you don't know your parents, right?" He looked over to me, expecting some kind of answer.

"No, I don't… I never got a chance to." I crossed my legs and arms.

"I see. Then I guess it's no wonder that you don't know about the ring. But… something I don't get; who was your 'Master'?"

I shifted so I could see both of them. "I'm not exactly sure… I read some name in a book that I found in the chest I got the ring from… something like Haruki… Kojima. The book is in his handwriting, so I guess that name was his. He didn't tell me anything about his past… along with practically everything else he knew." I pulled out the book from the pouch where I had the rest of my belongings.

"I thought as much… no wonder you're so damn stubborn. Haruki and I were close friends. That was, of course, up until a few days after two of his dearest friends died mysteriously; the next thing I knew, he was gone…. I heard that he went to live alone somewhere… I took that as saying he didn't want to be bothered, so I let him be."

The part of two friends dying caught my attention. From the book, I got that Mother and Father were close to Master and that he did indeed live alone for sometime before he found me.

"Did you know these friends of his? I mean, if you are right about it, then those people might be my parents."

Yokufukai nodded some. "Yes, I did meet them once or twice. The one time I remember clearly is when their child was born… in fact, they had a girl. Sadly, once they died, neither of us knew what happened to her; after all, she was barely one. I figured that someone from their village took her in. I guess that wasn't the case… the tragedy of his best friends passing away and their daughter vanishing tore him apart; which is probably why he disappeared."

I noticed that Masume was off in his own world; his eyes were to the ground and a stick in his hand. He was using the stick to draw non-significant pictures and figures. I guess he didn't want to butt in and risk his neck.

Continuing, the wizard turned his back to Masume and concentrated on me. "When you found that ring, you didn't happen to find a picture of sorts, did you?"

I nodded. Pulling the picture of my mother out of it's hiding place; I got up and walked over to him. As I held up the paper so he could see it, his eyes shifted from the drawing to my face.

After a few glances back and forth, the corner of his mouth raised in a slight smile. "You have her eyes. I knew I saw a bit of her kind in you. Although… the short hair is completely different; more like your fathers…."

He must have seen the confused look on my face. He stopped talking for a moment and sat back. "Did I say something that puzzles you?"

"Yes… What did you mean by… her kind? She looks pretty human to me…."

Yokufukai leaned forward again, resting on his staff. "I see. He mustn't have told you about it. She wasn't human… which means you're not completely either. Your father was one hundred percent human, but when he fell in love with her, there were a few that objected. You see, she was pretty much the last of her race…. I heard that the elders of her village forced her give up her 'gifts' and to never speak of what she truly was in order to marry a mer human like your father. She agreed to their rules and left without her birthrights; never to look back."

Although he had cleared away a few of my questions, so many more popped into my head. When I glanced at Masume, I saw that he had dropped the stick and his full attention was on Yokufukai; it seemed as if he had some questions of his own.

"Now I know I've got you both thinking about what I said, but I think it's best that I don't say anymore for now. You may find some answers on your own if you really want to know them."

He stood up and stretched out his body and started to walk again. Masume and I hurriedly got our things back together and quickly caught up to him. He had decided not to tell any more of what he knew and he was sticking to it.

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Again, we walked silently; the wizard in front, Masume close behind him, and me; trailing them with my head down, trying to figure out my questions on my own. As the sky grew dark the old wizard started to slow his pace. The path we were taking lead us into a vast forest, the little light on the floor of it began to fade away.

There didn't seem to be anything but needles and leaves lying on the ground in the clearing, not even a single rock to sit on; but, as Yokufukai had shown before with his magic, a small stack of coverings appeared in the center. Masume shrugged and walked off into the now dark woods to find fuel for a fire.

"It's a warm night… that should be plenty." The old wizard bent down and picked the top one up. He walked over to the base of a large tree and sat down, making himself comfortable.

I too grabbed some; one to lay on and one to cover myself with. Off in the distance (in the direction Masume took off in) I heard the screeching of an animal being attacked. I just ignored it and made a nice place to lay.

It seemed like forever before Masume returned with the kindle. There wasn't much in his arms to speak of; just a few twigs and a couple of small branches. He was cursing under his breath.

"You should of told me there was nothing out there… except for those damn rodents…" He held up his left arm in the weak light to show us a rather large bite near his wrist, red with blood and pieces of shredded skin hanging loosely. It was probably a good thing for him that it wasn't a viper.

"I went to grab a nice looking piece of wood when it turned around and bit me!" he mumbled again and pulled the rather large, dead creature from his shoulder and threw it down on the ground with a bit of mad force.

Trying to cheer him up, I sat up and smiled slightly. "Well, now we have something to eat tonight."

With a shrug and another mumble, he laid the rest of his cargo in a pile next to the left over blankets. When he picked up the blankets, he gave Yokufukai a look and pointed to the wood.

"Your turn…." He slowly walked to the opposite side of the clearing as me with his head down, looking at his arm.

Sighing, Yokufukai took a small object from one of his many inside pockets. He held it in his hand; when he blew on it there was a spark of light. Waving his hand, the spark flew to the pile of sticks and they immediately caught on fire.

I tried not to look surprised, but from the smirk on his face, it didn't work.

I looked at both of them. "Does this mean I have to cook that thing?"

Before I got an answer from either of the men, I stood up and went to where the carcass was. I pulled a small knife from my waist and crouched down beside it. Neither of them bothered to say 'thank you' to me… but then again, Yokufukai was busy meditating and Masume was busy cleaning up his mistake.

________________________________________________________________________

With more energy then he had after his little scuffle, Masume eagerly watched the meat cook over the fire. Once or twice I caught him sticking his hand a little too close to it and I had to yell at him; this was a definite sign that his wound was feeling better. And, surprisingly, we broke Yokufukai's concentration the last time.

"I swear, if you keep pestering the food, I'm going to have your arm for dinner instead of that thing." He gave Masume a stern look, kind of like the type one would give a misbehaving child.

In response, Masume frown and crossed his arms. As he winced in pain after forgetting about the hole in his arm, he went back to his 'corner' and sat impatiently, scowling at the wizard for yelling at him too. "It looks done to me…."

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Finally (about ten minutes later), the meat was cooked enough for any sane person to eat. I motioned to Masume telling him that he could be the one to find a way to get it out of the fire. It didn't take him long to figure out something; he picked up a stick that had yet to be put in the flames and shoved it into the slab. Pulling it out, he gave me a grin showing how gifted he was.

Ignoring him, Yokufukai got up and moved closer to the fire. "What ever the hell it is, it smells good…. Now, I'm going to say this before you both get too into eating. If you're not up by the time the sun rises, I'm leaving you behind."

He seemed to be aiming his words more towards Masume than to me; but by that time, Masume had already pulled a good portion off and was half way through it.

I shrugged and looked at the wizard as I moved over to grab the rest of the food before the pig got a hold of it. Giving half of what was left to Yokufukai, I went back to my area.

"I don't think he'd even feel it if one of us kicked him in the side at this point… he sure doesn't seem to notice us now. Me, on the other hand, almost never sleep past sun rise."

"Hey… I happen to like sleeping… I can't help it if I sleep like a rock…." There were small streams of both saliva and meat juice running down his chin which made me wonder if it was the bite making him act that way… or his brain.

Stifling a chuckle, Yokufukai shook his head. "Don't mind him and his behaviors, he has yet to grow out of them; it'll take another ten years for him to."

As soon as he finished talking, he took a smaller, more human bite out of his portion; he seemed to be showing Masume how to be a bit more 'proper'. On the other hand, Masume taunted him by taking even bigger bites.

I couldn't stand the sight of Masume eating like an animal, so I turned away from the two men and ate facing a tree. To tell the truth, the plant was more entertaining than the commotion stirring behind me.

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After dinner, the boys settled down and kept more to themselves; filling their bellies must have made them tired. Masume yawned and stretched out while Yokufukai went back to his meditating position. Even though he looked like he was concentrating, the old man began to snore; at this, Masume laughed some and grinned at me as he laid out on his share of the blankets.

It was getting late, and they weren't the only ones who were tired. Not just the walking, but the annoyance of Masume following me, irritating me, put stress on my mind that I needed to get rid of; not to mention the questions I had from Yokufukai's speech I still did not have answered.

Although, I did find out a few things about Master and my parents, the amount of thoughts running through my head overwhelmed me… I needed sleep bad… and we had a full day of walking to where the wizard was taking us to come.