Take my Hand *colored*

"Couldn't get much sleep." Yaldabaoth said. Truth be told, he was crying all night. Lucky for him, Ryu couldn't notice his puffy eyes. "Why are you up so early?"
"I don't really know..." She shrugged. "But I felt the sun rising, and decided to come out... I'm not letting being blind stop me... Why should I? If I let every single thing that went wrong stop me I'd still be miserable..."
"I guess." Yaldabaoth said. "That's pretty commendable."
"Eh, you've been through a pretty similar deal, as far as family goes at least..." Ryu shrugs. "I noticed... you sound a little down.... You okay?" her hearing was getting more sensitive, and she was able to pick up the little bit of sadness left in her companions voice.
"I uh...found my mom last night..." Yaldabaoth said, becoming tense.
"Oh, guessing that went pretty sucky huh?" she said sympatheticly. "Parents... Who needs em?"
"I agree." Yaldabaoth spit into the water. "I don't fracking care anymore. Stupid dog can just do whatever the hell she wants."
"Why should you care? She's never been there for you... Mine hated me for being imperfect so that's that... Cut all ties, dropped my old name, my old life, and all connections to my parents... I know how you feel though, trust me."
"She abandoned me...when me, her, and dad were the only beings existing." Yaldabaoth said. "I spent millions of years searching everywhere to find another living being, but I couldn't find anything..." He started to tear up again. "They left me behind and made me think I was the only thing alive..."
"I know what you're going through, to a lesser extent... It's alright now though. You have us, and we care about you, even if no one else does. We're all here for you... It's alright to hurt because of what they did to you... But you're better of without them, then you'd be with them..."
"...I just want to know if they felt bad..." Yaldabaoth said, now crying, unable to stop himself. "I just wanna know...if there was ever a moment where they felt bad for what they did..."
Ryu walked over to him, and grabbed his hand. "It's alright..." she shook her head. "It sounds to me like they have no clue that they even did something wrong... They probably think they're perfect, that they can do no wrong. Sooner or later they'll figure out they did. Something'll happen so they realize it..."
Yaldabaoth squeezed her hand for support. "Don't...don't tell anybody I cried, alright?"
"I won't... Don't worry..." she smiled gently. "They don't need to know. But, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here... I won't tell anyone anything you do or say. I promise you that. You can trust me..."
"...Thank you..." Yaldabaoth stood up. "I dunno what to say..." It's happened first with Kisu, and now with Ryu. Was he becoming soft?
"You're welcome... Everyone has something going on that they're not proud of, or that hurts. Sometimes you have to talk about your hurt to make it go away... I'm just starting to learn that. You don't need to say anything..."
Yaldabaoth hugged Ryu. He didn't know if it wasn't appropriate of him to do so, but it was all he could think of doing at the moment. And if he was crying in front of her, he might as well hug her too.
She just smiled, and stroked his back softly. "You'll feel better soon. It's alright now... We all care about you... You're our friend."
"...Thanks..." He repeated. "I...I guess I can't thank you enough."
"There's truly no need to thank me..." she said softly. "That's what friends are for..."
Yaldabaoth let go of her. "It...makes me feel better to thank you."
"If you say so..." she shrugged. "Just remember I'll be here when you need me^^" she says and smiles.
Yaldabaoth smiled. "Yeah...I'll remember. You wanna head on back inside?"
"No one's awake yet... Really I was planning on learning my way around this stupid little island," she shrugged.
"Oh...well, I can help you with that...if you want." Yaldabaoth said, feeling it odd to actually offer someone help.
"If you want... Just help me not crash into anything^^" she smirked a little. "You're not that bad a guy, are you? Just a little messed up."
Yaldabaoth gave a slight mutter, although the mutter was of nothing in particular. He grabbed her hand. "So...should I just lead you through any direction?"
"Yes, if you don't mind..."
"Uh...alright...then we'll start around the shore line..." Yaldabaoth said, walking her along.
"Thanks a ton..." She shrugged. ~Well.... this was my choice. Either kill Anubis and my friends, or lose my sight.... I think I made the right choice...~
Yaldabaoth held her hand, walking her along. "Yeah...no problem..." Although he didn't know it [or pretended not to know it], his face had become somewhat red.
~I just hope I'll still be useful to them all somehow....~ "I appreciate it..."
"It's nothing...We're gonna be moving around the trees now, okay?" Yaldabaoth said, walking her through the trees. ~I feel odd...~ He gulped silently.
"Okay^^... Thanks..." she sighed. ~I'm pathetic now though.... I'm probably going to need help to have any sense of normalcy in my life....~
"Careful..." He finished directing her through the trees, and now focused on the mostly barren sand space ahead of them. "There's not much around here, it's pretty open..."
"Thanks^^ Sorry, this is taking some getting used too... I'm glad you're helping... Or I'd probably end up hurting myself..." she chuckled a little.
Yaldabaoth chuckled back. "It's...fine, really..." He re-grabbed her hand to get a better handle, so not to let her hand slip. ~Her hand's so...~ His face went red again, his voice becoming somewhat shaky. "Since there's not much else I'll direct you around the shore again...just tell me when you think you know it well..."
"It'll only take two or three times... I'm sorry I need help with a task this small..." she shook her head. ~ I wonder if I'll still be able to draw and everything like this... I hope so...~ "It doesn't take me too long to memorize things which is good..."
"No it's fine, really...I don't mind..." Yaldabaoth said. Their rounds around the island had eventually ended, a good twenty minutes passing. "So...you think you're good now...?"
"Yeah... I think so^^ Thanks Yalda-san^^" she grinned widely. "You're a really good guy you know^^"
~A good guy...?~ Yaldabaoth, once again, felt his face go red. ~Yalda-san...?~ "I...uh...Thank you."
"I know why you are who you are. I understand it completely. The others don't, because they've had at least one parent who cared. You could have just left me there, and gone off... But you helped. It was very kind of you... Even if you don't think you are... Or don't know it yet, you're good at heart."
Yaldabaoth wasn't really sure what to say. He'd spent probably his whole life creating and aiding humans in their lives with the sole intention of cursing them later. And he was good at heart?
"I try to follow a simple saying. Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. I think if given the chance, you could be a great person... But because of the pain everyone and everything has caused you, you never got the chance. I think if you tried, you could do a lot with your life. You can always change who you are now, if you really want to."
Yaldabaoth sort of just stood there. "You and Kisuhara are the...only one's who've ever said anything like that to me."
"Because he and I are the only one's who even come close to knowing what you've been through. That's why..." she shrugged. "But I believe, everyone deserves a chance to redeem themselves..." ~Even if that belief has gotten me hurt, so many times....~
"You think...I can redeem myself?" Yaldabaoth asked.
"If you want to, yes," she said and nodded. "Everyone can... it's just they don't choose to... But I believe you could, with the right inspiration..."
~Why am I feeling like this...?~ Yaldabaoth felt himself becoming vulnerable. "...Thank you..."
"You're welcome... Everyone deserves a second chance... I believe you've already paid for your mistakes. Your karmic balance should be back to normal... You can start over... And this time, be yourself. Even if you're not comfortable, don't be someone you're not. I'll be here for you the entire way, alright?"
~She's...~ Yaldabaoth smiled. "Okay...Sure."
"You wanna...go back inside?" Yaldabaoth asked, feeling somewhat better about himself.
~Even if I can't help them win... I can support them the entire way.~ "Good^^ So perk up buddy^^ It'll all be alright in the end^^ Even if it's hard, you can do it."
"Thank you...I think I'm ready to head back inside...how about you?" He asked Ryu.
"Yup^^ Me too," she nodded. "Thanks for the help..."
"No problem..." Yaldabaoth said. "Do you need me to lead you back...?" he asked, hoping she'd say yes.
She nodded. "Yeah... From here I have no clue where to go^^..." she chuckled. "Kind of pathetic really..."
Yaldabaoth grabbed her hand again and started to lead her back to the house. "There's nothing pathetic about it...."
"To me it is..... I used to rely on myself for everything... Now I need help for everything, just so I don't get lost, or hurt..." She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "I'll get over it..."
"It shouldn't make you...feel bad..." Yaldabaoth said. ~I'm glad you're depending on me...~ "I...like helping you..."
"Thanks... I'm glad you're willing to help^^... Some people'd just laugh..."
Yaldabaoth opened the door to her house. "Here you...go."
Anubis smiled. "Yaldabaoth...what're you doing?"
"...Just helping her get used to the island..." Yaldabaoth said, the sight of Anubis suddenly setting reality into his mind and somewhat saddening him, although he didn't show it.
"Yup^^ He helped me a lot^^..." she smiled. ~And I think I might have helped him a little too...~ "Good morning Anubis^^"
"Good morning, Ryu..." Anubis hugged her and kissed her cheek. "You're up early."
Yaldabaoth didn't say anything, and just walked off.
"Yalda...baoth...?" Anubis said, watching him go.
"Bye Yalda-san..." she waved. "Yeah... I was up kinda early... It was weird, I felt the sun rising..." she shrugged. "I went outside for a while. And he ended up being out too... And he helped me learn my way around. It was nice of him." ~I hope he's alright... is something wrong with Yalda-san?~
"That was rather nice of him. Surprising." Anubis said, almost bewildered. "He's a big softy though, even if he won't admit it. I made you breakfast."
"Thank you... I'm starving..." she smiled. "He's a good guy... Just broken.... As far as family is concerned Yalda-san and I have a lot in common..."
"Yeah...you do." Anubis said, leading Ryu to her seat. "Just bacon and eggs. I didn't want to cook more than I could handle." He chuckled.
"That's fine^^ Once I get more comfortable with this I'll get back to cooking on my own... I'll just need to figure some way to know one thing from the other..."
Anubis began eating. "So you think you've got the island all figured out?"
"Yup... I think so... It's shaped like a crescent, and in the dip of the crescent is a wooded area... The rest of it being mostly sand..." she said, remembering the comments Yaldabaoth had made, as well as her feel of the environment.
"That's impressive." Anubis said, finishing his meal. "It'd take normal people a little longer to do that."
"My memory is pretty good... We went around three times... So I'm pretty sure I've got it now..." she shrugged. "I'm not letting something like this make me stop living my life. I'm going to try to get used to it... I mean, out of the choices I had, this was the best one... I think at least..."
"You were brave." Anubis smiled. "I think Kisuhara is up...want to go visit him?"
"Yuppers..."
Faintly in the background was the sound of a flute. A simple made up melody. One of Tenchi's less violent vents. She was sitting on her roof playing a simple, hand made flute.
Anubis and Ryu walked over to the house, hearing the flute. "It appears she's taken a break from the combat." Anubis said, smiling and referring to Tenchi.
Ryu nodded. "I guess so^^... But there's no combat at this point... At least nearby... No menacing Aura within a good 200 miles..."
"Seems like peace is slowly taking over..." Anubis knocked on Kisuhara's door.
Kisuhara opened the door. "Morning you two^^..." he yawned a little. "Sleep well?" he asked letting them in. "Yup... Just went out exploring a little earlier^^" Ryu nodded.
"Yes...Yaldabaoth helped her feel out the island. Nice of him, eh?" Anubis said, chuckling.
"Yeah... Very nice of him... Unusual too..." Kisuhara nodded. "He's a lot nicer then he acts..." Ryu insists. ~And a lot more sensitive then he's willing to admit. But there's nothing wrong with that....~
Harlan walked into the room. "Howdy Anubis...Ryu." He sat in a chair, rubbing his eyes. "How's it going?"
"It's going pretty good^^ Morning Harlan..." She smiled, recognizing the voice immediately. "Sleepy still?"
"Just a little. Good to see you're doing fine." Harlan said, smiling.
"Yup... I am^^" she nodded. "You doing okay?" she asked, remembering, Duane was taken over too, and guessing, that he had fought Harlan. ~And is Duane alright?~
"I'm fine...my hair's kinda different now...it's all long and white..." Harlan chuckled. "Still trying to figure out how that happened..."
"That has to be an interesting sight... You with long hair.... Punk rocker long? Or excessively insanely long?" Ryu asked.
"Excessively...insanely long...Like, down to end of my back...It's nut..."
"It looks exactly like the hair from your angelic form, Harlan." Anubis commented.
"...That is a scary thought.... Hair that long on a guy..." she chuckled. "Bet it looks pretty neat though...."
"I like it...always wanted long hair...and Shuichi has yet to complain." Harlan laughed.
"Why would I complain? It looks good on ya^^ A little strange at first I admit... But good^^"
"Hehe...thank you." Harlan said.
Duane walked into the room, still looking somewhat exhausted. "Hello." he said, smiling.
"Morning..." Ryu says turning towards Duane's voice. ~He sounds fine... Did his inner struggle have any after effects?~ she wondered to herself. Just curious of course.
"How's everyone doing?" Duane asked, rubbing his white eye. "You'll all be happy to know I can actually walk now..."
"That's good..." Kisuhara said looking over. "And we're all doing fine." "Yup.." Ryu nods. "We're doing good^^" Her eyes open a brief second before closing again. "Other then yesterdays weirdness it's all good."
"Yeah..." Duane sat down. "When will we be going to fight?"
"Once everyone's fully healed and everything..." Kisuhara said. "If we can wait that long..." he shook his head. "If not my fighting'll be crap but who cares... We made them retreat for now. That's all that matters."
"Yeah...I'll be ready to go whenever." Duane said. "I wanna get this over with."
"As soon as we're able, Duane. Don't worry." Anubis said. "Kisuhara, how long do you think you'll need to heal?"
"Three days... At least..." he sighed. "Less time then humans but can't heal any other way sides my own power..."
"Three days may be too long..." Anubis said. "I don't know if the demons can continue to simultaneously defend all island nations for three days."
"No enemies are in this area within 300 miles..." Ryu said shaking her head. "Not one menacing aura... They retreated pretty far most of them...."
"Assuming they can keep that up, that is." Duane said. "Three days is a long time."
"I know..." Kisuhara shook his head. "I could probably fight pretty well in two..." ~But I'd be risking permanent damage... And there's always pure form...~
"We'll worry about it when the time comes." Anubis said. "For now, we should be safe, so let's not worry."
"Yeah... No need to stress out too much..." Kisuhara rubbed his shoulder. "We'll be fine, what ever happens..." ~No being has god's power... We'll all need to be careful... we can't fix anything that breaks....~

(This isn't a couple pic... he's helping her get around the island now that she's blind... Yalda-san is so kawaii!!! >< Gotta love him) *colored in prismas^^*