Turn Back The Pendulum: Tereya Chronicles

Crimson Roses
Ahatake and Asami were having a sparring match. It wasn't going in Ahatake's favor.

Asami stared coldly at the figure of Ahatake on the ground. Her foot collided with his gut. "You're Kaemon's boy and this is the best you can do? You disappoint me."

Ahatake glared up at her and he forced himself to his feet. He swung his blade at her hand and she dodged it gracefully, and grabbed his exposed arm and flung him down onto the ground again.

They weren't alone, of course.

"You're letting yourself stick out too quickly!" Tereya called out, arms folded across her chest, and her figure leaning against one of the nearby trees. "You have to move quickly to keep her from grabbing you!"

The only thing that disrupted her mood into a more annoyed one was the smug voice of her inner Hollow, who had taken a liking to communicating with the woman more often.

"That's what she said..."

Ahatake growled and launched a cero at Asami. She pressed her arm into the ground and used it to propel herself into the air, effectively dodging the cero and it hit a tree, disintegrating it.

"You're emotions rule you too much." Asami called from above. "No matter how much power you have, if you go into a fight without thinking, you're going to get royally screwed."

Ahatake gave her a very ugly look, and vanished with a crack like a whip, reappearing in front of her and swinging his blade down with a buzzing sound. She blocked it and forced him back.

"Damn..." At the display of power Asami was giving up, Tereya couldn't help but whistle. She had expected Asami to be much weaker, but the sight of pushing back her husband had immediately dispersed any thought of that. No wonder Kaemon had a reason to fear her so much.

Ahatake quickly ripped on his mask. He growled and Asami stared at him for a moment. "Seems that runs in your father's side of the family." She said, eying him oddly, as though she'd love to crush his skull. She merely contented herself with raising a finger and performing her daughter's favorite spell. "Bakudo 61, Rikujōkōrō!" The six binding rods collided with Ahatake's midsection, rooting him to the spot and preventing further movement.

Tereya's assurance wasn't deterred. "That's not going to keep him forever... especially with that Hollow Mask on..." She thought, putting on a little smile.

She slowly walked up to Ahatake and her hand glowed yellow. She tapped his forehead with her index finger once, and Ahatake's mask cracked and shattered, She sealed his Hollow the same way Seireitou had so many years ago.

"Ba..bastard!" Ahatake growled.

Tereya blinked several times, face contorting to one of surprise. "Then again, I could be wrong..." Ignoring the chuckles coming from the depths of her mind, she added her own remark: "That's bitch, dear!"

Asami clicked her finger's, shattering the Kido as she walked away. "We're done for today." She said as she entered the building.

Ahatake threw a look a deepest loathing after her. What the hell was that woman?

"I see you're still standing..."

The female that was still with him took it upon herself to stand before him, one hand on her hip, and the other slung at her side. Her eyes held a serene and apathetic look, almost as if the fact that he had just been overpowered held no meaning.

Ahatake sighed. "I hate that woman." He put a hand to his face, making sure he could still feel his inner hollow. "She reminds me annoyingly of Seireitou."

A light scoff escaped Tereya's lips. "You sayin' that only because she just sealed your Hollow?" She asked skeptically.

"And I couldn't land a hit at all." He added grimly.

"Well, you survived, didn't you? Had she gotten serious, at least from your point of view, you would be taking a dirt nap right now.." The black-haired woman placed a hand on his shoulder for encouragement. "So don't worry about it."

Ahatake smiled for a moment. "Alright. Well I'm getting hungry so I'm going to see what I can whip up within' the next 10 or so minutes!" And he walked into the house, his spirits slightly higher.

"Hmph...glad you're happy..."

Closing her eyes, Tereya followed in a calm manner. But mentally, her mind was swirling with constant thoughts of her encounter with the peddler... more importantly, how she had been so easily beaten in a simple game of fisticuffs. "...cause I'm not." She finished her thought, her scowl deepening ever so slightly.

Ahatake began to feel her discontent before he opened the door and turned around. "Is something wrong Tereya?" He asked.

"Nah, I'm fine." She replied, a deadpan pointed look on her face once more.

Ahatake knew she was lying but decided not to press it. "Alright. If you need to discuss anything though, I'm all ears." And he walked inside the house.

"..." Although she continued to follow him, Tereya's face lightened a small bit. She switched her arms to a folded arms position and kept walking, where they would eventually reach their destination.

Ahatake began pulling out pots and pans, and opening the fridge to get eggs and rice. "I'm starving." He would mutter whenever he pulled out a foodpiece.

When she herself saw what was happening, Tereya turned away and walked in another direction, towards the living room. She waved a hand behind us. "I'll be sittin' in the den, if you need me..." She stated lazily.

"Alright." Ahatake called as he cracked open eggs into a bowl.

In the den, Aoi and Kyuui were immersed in a conversation.

"-and he said your name first?" Aoi asked, sounding impressed.

"Yes!" Kyuui replied eagerly, raising her fists up in front of her to emphasize. "Maybe once he knows a bit more, he'll learn to like me a bit more!"

"Lucky!" Aoi hissed, looking at the baby Chunori, who has on his mother's lap. "He never says anything intelligible to me..." She sighed looking downcast.

"'Course it's intelligible..."

It was at that point Tereya had allowed herself to come in, wearing her usual casual look on her face as she studied the tree. "But only to other babies." She stated.

"Yea, but I mean like my name Grandma." Aoi replied laughing.

"Tereya." Chunori said upon the woman's entrance into the room.

The said woman couldn't help but smirk a bit. "Heh... Chunori." She retorted, in a similar manner to the way Chunori himself had said her name. "Ahatake'll be cooking for today." She added in a reporting manner.

"Really?" Aoi asked. "Sounds interesting."

Chunori placed a hand to his mother's face, as if trying to tell her something. Whatever it was, nobody knew.

Aoi sighed and placed her head on Kyuui's shoulders. "Today has been slow!"

Her expression was shared with the white-haired girls, laced with boredom for the events of the day. She looked back up to Tereya. "Baa-san... haven't you anything to entertain us?"

"Do I look like a clown?" Tereya replied dryly. "...or a comedian?" She added, as an afterthought.

"Yes you do." Aoi piped up instantly as Chunori said "Clown."

"Well, fuck you both." Putting her hands on her hips indignantly, Tereya turned away and walked towards the couch, plopping herself down on it carelessly. "This "clown" doesn't do encores."

"Meanie." Aoi muttered, looking angry. "You're our grandma, you're supposed to be entertaining."

"That's your sis's job." Tereya replied dismissively. "She, along with the people who hang out with you most of the time. Someone like me has too much to worry about."

"Onee-chan, can't you do something about her?" Aoi asked hopefully. "Like make her more entertaining and a hella lot nicer?"

Skeptically, Tereya looked over at her granddaughter, who simply hung her head in sheepishness. "S...sorry, Aoi-chan..." She apologized in a slightly flustered manner. "But I really can't do anything about my elder..."

"Aww..." She sighed and whispered in her sister's ear. "We can do something about her while she's asleep. I have just the things." She chuckled evilly.

"Eh?" Both granddaughter and grandmother turned to look over at her; Tereya with bored curiosity, and Kyuui with amazement. "Aoi-chan!" She scolded, a faint blush spreading over her cheeks.

Light breathing was heard among the clatter coming from the kitchen. Chunori had fallen asleep on his mother's lap.

Kyuui was the first to turn to him, Tereya having turned away. "He looks peaceful while he sleeps..." She commented, leaning over a bit to watch him for a brief moment.

"Yes." Akiko said looking down at her son. "Odd thing is, I always thought after Chunori was born, I'd never be able to sleep through the night. I was wrong." She placed a hand to his head, brushing the hair out of his eyes. "He's the most well behaved baby I have ever seen."

"Tch... what kept you silent all this time?" Tereya mocked, though turning her attention to the child. "Bet he's the only well behaved baby you've ever seen..." Then, she turned her attention towards the doorway, her casual look taking over once more. "Ah... you're done already?"

Ahatake was standing there with a rather large cart of food. "Yeah. Everyone get to to the table or I feed this to the dog." Ahatake ordered.

"Really? What happened to the cat?" Tereya joked as she got up from the couch.

Ahatake laughed as he placed the food on the table and Akiko placed Chunori in a high chair. Aoi sat next to Kyuui as the smell of food finally filled the room.

Kyuui took a deep breath in. The intoxicating aroma made her stomach even more excited, along with herself. "This may not be better as last time, but it'll do..." She judged, smiling Taiki-like at her grandfather.

Ahatake smiled back. "I can't cook like your grandmother, Kyuui."

"I know! But it'll still be good, right?"

"Of course." Ahatake replied, reaching for the salmon plate. "Try it."

Gratefully taking it, Kyuui grabbed a utensil, picked out a peace, and took out a tasting bite. After a few moments of tense silence, she nodded. "Mhm! Though, it could use some salt..."

Ahatake pointed next to Aoi, and she handed her sister the salt. "I think it's fine personally." She said, after eating a few bites. "Tastes better than Grandma's cooking."

"Hmph." Was the only reply from the slightly pride-bruised Tereya.

Aoi looked around. "Where's great-grandpa and great-aunt?" She asked, noticing their absence from the table.

"Kaemon and Asami? If anything, the bitch's probably digging a grave for the poor guy right now..." Tereya implied. "Last time I hear, they haven't exactly been on the best of terms..."

Akiko laughed at this. "No, Mom dragged Dad up to her room. Said she needed to talk to him. Poor guy. Probably getting dissected as we speak."

"My only problem is with the bat screeching she did last time..." Tereya muttered, placing a finger in her ear to emphasize her annoyance. "Maybe I should've bought some earmuffs instead of cigarettes..."

"You should have." Ahatake said darkly, as though cigarettes would be the death of them all.

"Oh, don't sound so dramatic...." Tereya chuckled a bit. "Would it make you feel better if I switched to drinking?"

"Hmm..." Ahatake considered the possibilities. "No. Just use those fake cigarettes that only contain the nicotine and not the tar, etc etc--"

The thought of a drunk Tereya had also crossed Kyuui's mind. An angry drunk? The house'd be torn to shreds. A sad drunk? She'd turn emo and constantly cry about 'hard times', even making several attempts to kill herself. A "dead" drunk?

....

Then again, if the last were to happen, maybe it wouldn't be so bad...

"What? No way. What'd be the point of that?" Tereya protested.

"You wouldn't be in danger of cancer." Ahatake replied.

Aoi was also thinking about a drunk Tereya. Seemed rather tempting actually.

"Oh, please... if I could get cancer, you'd be a fat ass right now." Tereya stated dryly, closing her eyes and frowning slightly.

Ahatake sighed.

"Switch to drinking." He and Aoi spoke it at the same time though for very different reasons.

"Very well..."

Smiling a bit, she turned back to her food and continued eating.

Aoi grinned at her "success" and went back to eating.

Eventually, being fast eaters, they were near the end of their plates. Tereya was the first to set her utensil down, pick up her plate, and stand up silently. Pushing in her chair behind her, she plopped the plate in the sink and walked away. It was strange - her usual mood had seemed to fade again, and not for a moment either.

Ahatake followed suit, but collected Aoi's and Kyuui's plates as well. After placing them in the sink he followed Tereya. "I'll ask again. Is there something bothering you?"

"No..." Her monotone voice sounded out of her mouth automatically. "I'm fine. But I won't be if you keep pestering me about it..."

"It's kind of annoying when you lie to me." Ahatake sighed sadly.

That made Tereya stop in her tracks. Abruptly.

"Fuck. He knows."

Her eyes shadowed over for a moment, though her curved mouth remained in its skeptical position. She stood there for a moment, before folding her arms across her chest. "I really can't hide anything from you anymore, can't I?" She asked, chuckling humorlessly.

"No you can't." Ahatake replied smiling. "So care to share with me, and the grandkids? They'll probably want to know."

"...you're really putting me on blast here." Tereya muttered, walking down and sitting in the nearest chair. Her legs crossed in a ladylike fashion, her hands clasped over her knees. "You sure they would want to hear it?"

"I'm pretty sure they do." Ahatake chuckled as Aoi was getting out a bag a popcorn. "It's been a slow day and they'll probably think this is just a family story."

The grandmother sighed, placing a hand on her head and rubbing it for a moment. "Remember what I had told you about my past in Hueco Mundo? The peddler that had visited..." She began hesitantly. "...I think I know him."

"What do you mean?" Ahatake asked as Aoi and Kyuui came over with a steaming vat of popcorn and Akiko decided to listen in as well. holding Chunori on her lap. Chunori looked the most attentive of all.

"I mean, he could have been one of the children that were prisoners along with me those years ago... a survivor."

"I thought they were all killed?" Ahatake said.

"That's what I thought, too..."

For a moment, Tereya looked unsure of herself, hand on one side of her face. The other half showed her hesitance. "I thought... that crow's attack... had finished them all off...." She whispered. "How could one have lived through hell like that?"

"Care to start from the beginning?" Akiko asked as Chunori said "Beginning."

"I guess I can humor you..." Taking a deep breath, Tereya prepared herself mentally to tell the story which plagued her for all of her life.

Sowing Seeds
''In the time of the Soul Society, it was a day of pouring rain, especially on the small civilization of Kakumei. The raindrops pounded everything, from the house roofs to the umbrella-mounted food stops - one could say it was practically flooding. It had been raining non-stop, from the morning to the evening, and discouraging people from leaving their homes commonly.''

''However, despite the emptiness in the village, there were several children playing together. Laughter could be heard from within the roars of the furious rain, undeterred by the wind and water.''

"C'mon, Na-chan!"

"At that time, I didn't have the name "Tereya". My parents had dubbed me "Nami", which my closest friends had shortened to as "Na-chan."

''The said girl looked up with slight annoyance, as a black-haired child, 8 years of age, came up to her with a cheerful smile on his face. "I told you not to call me that, wolf boy!" She protested. Currently, she was in a crouch on the ground, watching the scene unfold. "And I don't want to play, either!!"''

"Oh, come on..."

''Behind the "wolf boy" were several other children who were playing an intense game of punting a red ball back and forth between each other. The boy who had addressed her put on a pout, folding his arms across his chest. "You know you want to.." He egged on, grinning slightly.''

''Nami couldn't help but roll her eyes, but stood up from the ground and walked over. Her feet splashed into puddles along the way. "Oh, all right, fine..." She grumbled, readying herself immediately.''

Once the ball started, Nami soon found that it was hard to just leave. Pretty soon, she was caught up in a playful struggle, arms and hands knocking the ball up into the air and towards another player. Her laughter and yells joined the group's in general.''

''That is, until, the ball unintentionally hit Nami in the head, making her fall on her back. Comical swirls had appeared in her eyes as she lay unmoving, the rain pouring on her face and drenching her.''

"Na-chan!! Are you--"

''It was unfortunate that the girl had been wearing a skirt at the time. "Wolf boy" had seen all of her glory, which made him stagger back, a huge blush on his cheeks. Shivering out of embarrassment, Nami stood back up, fists clenched."''

"Na-chan, let me expla--"

''A solid blow was enough to make him go flying away into the forest, with Nami yelling out the word "Pervert!" after him."''

Ahatake chuckled and mentally felt sorry for the boy.

"Nami!!!"

''As the game slowly came to a close, both Nami and "wolf boy" looked up, as well as the other children to see two figures in the distance. "Come on, girl!" Her dad shouted out. "Your breakfast's gonna get as cold as a damn Popsicle if you stay out here!!"''

"The same goes for you, Keiji!" An elder voice called out from the boy, although gentler than Nami's dad's voice. "You'll get sick if you stay out for too long!!"''

''A reluctant sigh came from both children. "Coming..."''

''As Nami walked forward, Keiji's hand grasped hers firmly. Surprised, she turned around to see his smiling face once more. "You'll be here tomorrow, right?" He asked hopefully. A blush crawled across her own face, but she nodded slowly and gave a weak smile of her own.''

''"Perfect!" With that, he let go of the girl's hand and ran off towards his house, where his elderly mother was waiting for him. "See ya, Na-chan!"''

''Scoffing, she folded her arms in a poutish manner as she went towards her own parents. After a little bit of scolding, the door shut at both of their houses, and the children began to disperse to their own homes, as well."''

"You can imagine it was a pretty good place to be. Though the weather was bad, we kids romped and played like the sun was shining out. There were no cares for us, no worries about the Hollows that were sleeping inside us, not even of the Shinigami. We were free as birds flying in the skies." At the pleasant memory, Tereya put on a small smile of her own.

"It does sound like a nice place to be." Ahatake smiled.

Night time.

''The children were once again running rampant on the streets, once again alone on the empty streets. A campfire was burning out of logs found from fallen trees, illuminating the entire village with an orange light. Their parents were also out, watching them all with smiling faces. It was like a festival - only with the children running it all.''

There were only two who were sitting down at the campfire.

Keiji and Nami.

''On a sitting log, they were close and side-by-side. Their eyes were on the starry sky, its lights twinkling on and off in a slow display of beauty. Keiji let out a content sigh, closing his eyes and letting the heat embrace his skin gently. "Na-chan..." He said softly, looking over towards the girl beside him. "What do you think?"''

''That prompted Nami to raise an eyebrow out of curiosity. "Hm?" She questioned. "About what?"''

"About animal you'd like to be..."

''"Oh, gimme a break!!!" Nami snapped, turning her head away. "You can't just become an animal! My parents say that if we're born as Shinigami, we die as Shinigami! No changing that--"''

''"I know!" Keiji raised his hands up defensively, a sheepish and stunned smile on his face. "But, still, have you wondered about it?"''

''After a moment of silence, Nami considered it. "Well..." She relented, looking at the ground for a bit. "I'd say a bird. They get to fly high all day and not worry about a thing. You?"''

"A wolf."

''That made Nami's eyes widen of surprise and mild fear. "What?! They eat people!!" She protested, recoiling as if she had just been slapped. "Why would you--"''

''Keiji turned to smile at her warmly. "They do that to survive, just like we built this place around us to survive." He explained. "They work together and live together, like us village kids. With their teamwork, they can topple anything, including ones that a single one couldn't handle on their own."''

''Nami had nothing to say after that, but looked down at the ground. Keiji scooted a bit closer to her, eyes squinting shut. "Can we be like that? To help each other when we most need it?"''

His words touched her. "Kei-kun..."

Ahatake laughed. "I'd bet money I'd be a snake."

"Same." Aoi said, handing the vat of popcorn, which Chunori had turned his attention to, to Kyuui.

"Grandma..."

Kyuui herself had been touched by the story so far, her eyes wavering with emotion. Her hand was to her fingers, as if she herself had been in the very same predicament. She could never handle emotionless moments for very long, and such words brought it all out of her.