PeAcH, Volume 1, Chapter 1

Miharu sat down on a park bench, bored out her mind. She was almost asleep when someone leaned over her and shouted, "PEACH!!" Miharu's eyes flew open and she sat up quickly, shocked. Her eyes were pink and yellow, the colour of peaches. "WHAT?! WHA?" she snapped, looking around. A girl smiled down at her. "Sorry, I didn't make you wait too long, did I?" she asked. "No, it's fine. I just kinda dozed off. . ." Miharu said, stretching. The girl smiled. "Okay, well let's go. The movie is starting soon." she said. "Alrighty." Miharu said, standing up, grinning. "I'm afraid you won't be making that movie." a voice said. They turned, surprised. A girl with long brown hair smiled gently at them. "Miharu? You won a lifetime stay at a gorgeous island!" she said, grinning. ". . .No thanks." Miharu said, taking her friend's arm and sauntering off. "No is not an answer." the girl called, her cute voice cold. Her friend and Miharu stopped, glancing at each other. "No means no." Miharu snapped, turning around. The girl was right in front of her, smiling. Miharu's eyes widened, then the girl's hand slammed into her face. "Sorry, I hope that didn't hurt too much." she said. Miharu was screaming into her hand. Her friend had already dialed for help, talking hurriedly into the phone. The girl's eyes narrowed. She pressed a button on her bracelet, and a light shot out of it, enveloping Miharu and herself. "My name is Yuuna, and I'll be your escort! I am an 'Air Type'. I hope you're not afraid of heights!" she said. Just then, wings spread from her back. “W-WINGS?!” Miharu shrieked, jaw dropping. Yuuna hugged Miharu, then took off running. "PEACH!!!" her friend screamed, running after her. Yuuna turned, her hand outstretched. "Forget!" she hissed. Her friend stopped, blinking. "What was I doing. . .?" she mumbled sleepily, falling over. “NOOO!!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Miharu wailed. Just then, though, Yuuna jumped into the air. Her wings worked powerfully, sending them spiraling upwards. "Pi-Chi Ki Island*, here we come!" Yuuna quipped. (*-Pi-Chi Ki means “Peach Tree”) "Pi-Chi Ki?!" Miharu demanded, thrashing her arms. They weren't high off the ground, but Miharu wanted to throw up. She was dizzy. "Yes! Have you heard the legend, Pi-Chi Eyes? You are one of the descendants of the fisherman in that legend." Yuuna said, her wings beating up and down. "You need to help us fight off the 'Black'." she said. " 'Black'? What's the 'Black'? Let me down!" Miharu commanded. "I can't. We need you." Yuuna said, frowning. "SOMEBODY HELP MEEEE!!!!!!" Miharu shrieked.

"Here we are. Isn't it a beautiful island?" Yuuna said. Miharu glanced up, her throat sore from screaming. She had to admit it was indeed a gorgeous island. Blue water and green forests. Dolphins were scattered here and there. "Blue sky, green land, blue, cool water. It's paradise here." Yuuna said brightly. Her face darkened then. "But the 'Black' is threatening to destroy this haven. I live here, you know. I'm a descendant as well, and I will protect my land no matter what. Now I'm asking you to. I sought out all the descendants with White's help, and you were the last remaining." Yuuna said sadly. "Ah, your name is Miharu, right? Why did that girl call you 'Peach'? Because of your eye colour?" Yuuna wondered. Miharu was trying to sort this out. "Y-Yes. Everyone at home calls me Peach. I don't hate it, but after awhile, I wish they would just stop noticing my eyes." she said. "I like your eyes. They're pretty." Yuuna said. "Thanks." Miharu said. She was processing this. It's not like she couldn't NOT believe it— she was being carried by a girl who was flying. You know. With wings. Real ones. As far as Miharu could tell, anyway. "We're landing. It may be a bit rough." Yuuna said. She landed shakily, skidding to a halt. She set Miharu down, trembling. "I've never flown for that long or with a person before." she explained, laughing sheepishly. "Will you be okay?" Miharu asked, frowning. "After rest, yes. But not right now. We have to get moving." Yuuna said, grinning. "O-okay." Miharu mumbled. "We're going to be near town, but don't bother the inhabitants too much." Yuuna said, tapping her chin. She kept talking, but Miharu zoned out. Inhabitants? That meant this island was like Hawaii or some other tropical place. She couldn't see any boats, but they were farther out into the forests. If she could escape into town, Miharu could hide out while she found an airport or some other means of transportation. Miharu's eyes narrowed as she stared at Yuuna. If she could knock her out, then she could make a run for town. Best to wait to find out where town exactly was though. Running blindly through forests possibly being pursued by a girl with wings who knew the island was NOT a good idea. "Look, down that hill. You see that big building— the one that looks like a school? That's where we're heading." she said. Miharu glanced downwards, curious. It indeed looked like a HUGE school. "Why a school?" Miharu asked, unhappy she wad dragged into ANOTHER school. College was enough. Miharu raised her eyebrow. It was empty, no students or anything. "What's going on?" she demanded. "I told you it would all be explained." Yuuna said, smiling.

Miharu took in the school, cataloging every detail. She noticed a few more people; three girls and two boys. Yuuna had walked off. The boy with pink (!?!?) hair and girl with brown hair were talking. She was cute, and he looked like he had been surfing. The girl with bright red hair a few feet away was sketching, looking antisocial. Another girl with braids just sat and stared at her hands. The other male with blue hair (boys these days, so daring with their hair. . .) lay alone as well, staring at the sky, looking distant. Miharu decided to approach the male, since Red (the girl) seemed busy drawing, and the other girl looked ready to poke her with a fork. The male glanced over at Miharu as she approached and made room for her on the bench, sitting up. Miharu took in his eye colour, somewhat surprised. Yellow and red eyes. She sat down, frowning. "Kidnapped?" he asked. "Uh-huh. And you?" she said, glancing at him. "Same. Name's Kairi." he said, holding his hand out. Miharu shook his hand. "I'm Miharu." she said, nodding. He leaned closer. "I thought MY eyes were weird, but yours are a thousand times weirder. But they're pretty." Kairi said, grinning. She felt her face flush. "Thanks. . .? At least mine are the same colour." she murmured, pouting. "Wha--? Hey, I was complime—" he started, before Yuuna clamped her hand over his mouth. "No arguing now. It's time for all to be revealed!" she said, trying to look scary. "So, been on islands before?" Kairi asked, walking with Miharu, ignoring Yuuna. "I live by a beach, but this is new." Miharu said, nodding. Yuuna stood with the same expression on her face, rejected. "W-wait for me!" she called, sobbing and running after them. Yuuna lead the way to the room they were supposed to be at. She opened the door, revealing a small room with a man in it. He had light blonde hair and blue eyes. He smiled, tapping his cigarette, blowing smoke from his mouth. "Welcome to Pi-Chi Ki Island. You can call me White. I'm here to explain about Black to you." he said. White put his cigarette out and looked at the girl with braids. "Suzu, step forward please." he said. The girl blinked, then stepped BACKWARDS. "How do you know my name?!" she demanded. Before he could answer, she tore a rifle from behind her back, aiming it at him. The dress she wore shredded, revealing armor. "Hiding guns in her clothes. Wonder what her hobby is." Kairi whispered to Miharu. The rifle stretched out far, almost touching White's stomach. It seemed like everyone blinked at the same time, because he was gone then. Two hands squeezed Miharu's shoulders. She whirled, falling backwards. White caught her around the waist, grinning. "I know all your names." he answered Suzu. He pulled Miharu close, examining her eyes. "You're the descendants. I can name all of you." White said, kissing Miharu's forehead. "This one is the beautiful peach-eyed Miharu." he said, patting Miharu's hair, while she blushed furiously. "That catty looking fellow is Kairi. Nice eyes." he said, pointing to Kairi. "That one," White said, pointing to the surfer,"is Kizaku." Kizaku smiled sheepishly. "That lovely princess is Miu." The girl he called Miu blushed, waving timidly. "And this is the aspiring mangaka Hina." he said, looking at the red haired girl. Hina glanced up at him, her eyes cold. White let go of Miharu. She stumbled back, her shoulders gripped by Kairi as he inched defensively in front of her. White smiled. "Let me explain. . .It will only take a second. I promise I'll make it worth your while." he said. While he said this, he looked at Yuuna. She nodded and opened the window. "Ittekimasu*." she said, bowing. (*-'I'm leaving now'.) She leapt from the window, her wings spreading. She spiraled upwards, speeding off. White closed the window. "Yuuna-san had something to take care of. Anyways, back to subject. I am White. I am not a descendant. I am the Other of Black."

"Black isn't necessarily the correct name for it. It's otherwise known as Dementia. We call it Black because it isn't as scary to our town. The 'demons' we speak of are real, but they're still very much human. Listen closely now. You six, along with Yuuna, are the descendants of the fisherman in the legend Peach Eyes." Here, White looked at Miharu. "There's a whole untold story that happened after the legend. Allow me to tell you. The disease back then was called 'Black' because no one knew what it was. However, it was only a disease. After the fisherman gouged his eyes out, his anger and regret and sorrow turned into the demons. He was the cause of Dementia. Demons started to plague the island, and everyone assumed it was the Black. Which it wasn't, but it's too late to fix that tiny mistake. Anyway, the man was the beginning of Black, the Dementia. In the legend, two important women weren't mentioned. One was a simple priestess, wandering the country. She came upon the Black and purified it. The man, before his soul departed, told her that the Black had infected someone. He didn't know who, but he could sense the power of Dementia. This person knew how to control it, however, and the Black was growing stronger. The fisherman was connected to the person who had controlled Black, and he knew how to seal them away. The priestess could not, so she allowed the fisherman to have her body. Now in the priestess's body, the fisherman sought out the woman who controlled Black and sealed her away. Before she was cast away, she warned the fisherman that the Black was sealed for now, but it would be back. And after seven hundred years, the Black is back. The fisherman was ultimately the Hero, in the end. The fisherman, with his Dementia sealed, then slept for eternity. Now you are here. All of you are connected." White pressed his hands to his chest, closing his eyes. He looked peaceful, happy. "I can feel it. Your hearts beating as one." He opened his eyes. "I can see it! The rush of blood throughout your body, the chains holding you close." Hina spoke up. "I can see it." she said. White looked at her, smiling gently. "You can?" he asked. ". . .Yes. It's been bothering my ever since I saw Yuuna-san. There were chains connecting her to me. Then when we arrived here, there were chains on all of us. Except you, that is." she said. "So you can see them. Can you touch them?" he asked. "I already tried. They're like air." Hina said, glaring. "My my~, you can see them! You're a powerful one indeed! I thought for sure Miharu-san would be able to see them." White said. "Sorry for not living up to your expectations." Miharu said sharply, holding Kairi's arm. White laughed. "No, no, I'm sorry. Let me get back on track—" he stopped, looking at Kairi's arm. He stared. Kairi frowned, shuddering. Hina was staring at his arm now too. "WHAT?!" Kairi snapped. "You're chains. . ." Hina said. "They're incredibly strong. You and Miharu. . .You're. . ." White murmured, frowning. Miharu looked down, seeing nothing. Kairi was looking too. "I don't see anything," they said in unison. ". . .Nothing, never mind." White said brightly. "Ah, I'll explain the rest as it comes. Miharu-san, come with me. I want to talk to you." he said. Miharu frowned. She glanced at Kairi. He shrugged, pushing her gently towards White. White took her arm and left the room. "You guys can choose whichever rooms you want to live in~," he said, grinning. They exited the room. "What do you want?" Miharu said, pulling her arm from White. "Eheheheh, straight to the point, huh? Well, I think it's wise you stay near Kairi." he said, tapping his chin. "Wah? Why?" Miharu asked, frowning. "Well, your chains are. . .abnormal, you can say. They're strong, old with corrosion. But they will never break, I can tell already, just by looking. In fact, we better stop walking." he said, halting. "So what? They're strong, whoop-de-do." she said sarcastically. "Well, they must have weakened when you were apart, but now that you're on the same island, they're even stronger than ever." White said. Wait. . .Apart? They hadn't met before, Kairi and her, right? "The chains won't let you separate. . .It might even be painful to be apart. If you're too far apart, you might start to physically, mentally, and emotionally hurt. Hmmm." White said. "H-hurt?" Miharu stuttered. "Don't be afraid of pain!" White cooed, flicking her forehead. "It all passes, eventually. Just stay near Kairi." he said. "Okay, okay, go, go!" he said, pushing her back into the room. "I've decided Kairi-san and Miharu-san are to be roommates while they are here at Pi-Chi Ki Island~, so you two, no hanky-panky in the dorm room~! ♥" White said, getting his foot smashed by Kairi's heel. Kairi stalked off, angry, and White, still smiling, fell over, moaning,"Owww. . ." Miharu followed after Kairi, glaring at White.

"He said it would HURT?" Kairi questioned, wrinkling his nose. "Yea. We had some sort of bond before. . ." Miharu murmured, tapping her chin. "I don't believe a word of it." she finished. "Let's try it out, just in case." he suggested. They both turned and walked in opposite directions. "I don't feel anything!" he called. "Me neither!" she said back. They reached the end of the hall. Suddenly, pain blast through both their bodies. Their knees buckled and the collapsed. "W-What is this?!" Kairi coughed, hardly managing the words. Miharu looked up, dazed. "It was the. . .tru. . .truth?!" she stuttered. There was a thudding noise, as if someone was running. Suddenly, the pain stopped. Panting, Miharu looked up. Kairi, holding his shoulder, smiled weakly down at her. "I think White's right. Let's. . .stick around each other." he coughed. "You ran over here?" she asked. "Yea, why?" he replied, frowning. "No reason." Miharu said, shrugging. She stood up, feeling lighter. "Ah, he said we've met before. That's funny. . ." he said. Miharu studied Kairi. He had a gentle, carefree, happy-go-lucky smile. Red and yellow eyes. His face did not exactly match his body. He was tall, really tall, broad shoulders and chest. Altogether, the smile and rugged body mixed together pretty nicely. He wasn't exactly someone you'd do a double-take at, but he was certainly handsome. And not at ALL familiar. Kairi, in the meantime, was thinking the same about her. Miharu had a serious face, peach eyes that could look right through you. He had only seen her frown, but the contours of her face suggested she was cute when she smiled. She was pretty scrawny, skinny and short. She had a nice waist and average bust line. (Hey, he's having 'dude thoughts', okay?!) She was in no way familiar. They stared at each other for a minute, then burst laughing. "White's a crazed moron!" Miharu said, laughing. Choking back chuckles, Kairi said, "Yea, yea. There's no way we know each other." Miharu saluted him. "I feel refreshed. Let's go explore the island really quick. At least the nearby areas." she said. Kairi grinned. "Alright." he said, following her. "Oh, hey, by the way, all of my friends that are chicks usually have bigger breas—" Kairi started, grinning, before Miharu smacked him. "And all my guy friends aren't perverts!!" she snapped, storming off. Kairi followed her, laughing. Miharu had to smile too.

"Pyuuun~. . ." Kizaku murmured. He always had a content, lazy smile pasted on his face. His eyes were always closed, though he could see everything. "Miu, Miu," he said, his face facing in her general direction. Miu looked at him, tilting her head. "What?" she asked. "Do you want to play?" he asked. "Okay. What do you want to play?" she chirped, hugging his arm. As soon as Miu saw Kizaku, she wanted to talk to him. He was tall and lean, slumping a bit. She didn't know his eye colour— his eyes remained closed, as just said. He had LONG pink hair, which made him interesting. His hair reached past his bottom. She had lent him a ribbon, and he tied it back into a long ponytail. Kizaku saw Miu as well and thought her a good playmate. She must have been the shortest one there, but she was also the cutest— at least Kizaku thought so. She had pink eyes and and a nice body, cute clothes. She was obviously rich, while Kizaku was well-trained in fending for himself. In other words, he was dirt poor. He loved his life, though. He grew up, and even now, living on beaches. Water was nothing new to him, but Miu had been panicking at first. "What if typhoons hit?! Hurricanes?! TORNADOES?!" she had cried. Kizaku reassured her there was no way tornadoes would hit this island, and he predicted no hurricanes would come anytime soon. Maybe heavy rainfall, but nothing besides that. Kizaku was about to reply when he saw the red-haired girl. "Oiiii, Red, want to play with us~?" he called, waving. "How old are you?" she shot back. "Hina, was it?" Miu asked distastefully. Hina stood up, glaring. Her blue eyes were icy and her glare powerful. She was forever frowning. She looked antisocial and mean, and she drew a lot. "Yes, my name is Hina. Refrain from calling me 'Red', please." she said coldly. "Pyuuun~, so mean." Kizaku said, smiling even cuter. Hina glared at him, but turned to the other girl there. "Hey, you." she said. The braided girl looked up, her green eyes lifeless. She was the one who ripped the rifle from her clothes. "What?" she asked. "Suzu's the name, right?" Hina asked. "Yes." Suzu said simply. Hina examined her, wrinkling her nose. Suzu stood up, brushed off her abdomen, then walked away. Hina scoffed and went back to drawing. Kizaku smiled. "With that, the character introductions are over~. ♥ Onto the real story~," Miu blinked. "What was that?" she asked. "Nothing, nothing. Let's go play!" he said, taking her hand and sauntering off.

End