Chapter 13: At War With Love, Part 2

Takagi didn't know what to do.

Or say.

In a very short time she had been freed from the nightmarish snow globe of Krampus, flown back to her hometown, and reunited with her parents. Not only had they been beyond delighted to see her, but they'd also helped her recover the last bits of her lost memories.

By reminding her of who had condemned her to such a cruel fate in the first place.

Nishikata. The boy she'd loved. The boy she'd teased. The boy she'd walked with to and from school every day for two years. The boy who had gone to the water park with her, held her hand at the summer festival, and had studied with her in the library many times.

The boy who had killed her with a naïve wish written in a book owned by powers beyond human comprehension.

And yet...the boy who had now also saved her and those who had been trapped inside.

The boy who, like her, was now grown up. And just a day after her parents had helped her remember his foul deed, stood before her now in her small hospital room. Gone were his weapons and uniform. In their place was a meager outfit of navy-blue jeans, brown shoes, and a black button-down shirt.

Yukari and Mina stood at the door, their bodies tensed up like soldiers on guard duty. They may not have known every sordid detail, but they did not need to be experts to detect the tension between the two friends-turned-enemies. The two nurses were there upon Takagi's request. One never really wanted to face their murderer alone, after all.

"Hey," Takagi broke the silence at last.

"Hey," Nishikata muttered, staring at the floor.

Looking over her former crush, Takagi could see the hunched, scrawny posture he'd had before was long gone. Nishikata's arms and upper body had a lot more lean muscle on them, and his legs were much more toned and battle-hardened from all his missions.

But even with all of that greater strength, Nishikata still could not bring himself to look her in the eye.

"How are you?" Takagi said, trying to keep the conversation flowing. "Everything okay?"

Nishikata didn't know what to say to that. What was he to do? List out all his troubles and frustrations at finding Krampus from the past decade?

"Fine I guess," Nishikata mumbled. "I saw Mr. Tanabe again."

"Really? Our old middle school teacher?" Mina chimed in. "Wow! That's so cool! How is he?"

Yukari cringed. Mina never did have a knack for social tact.

"He's okay," Nishikata said, shifting in his seat.

Nishikata's face may have been calm on the outside, but on the inside he was in more anguish and guilt than he'd felt the day he'd wished for Takagi to die. Why had he even come here? What had he thought was going to happen? That a magic wand would be waved and his horrid past be erased? That Takagi would fall to her knees and beg him for forgiveness? How could he even sit up straight now, in the presence of her and her friends?

His medals? Gone. His weapons? Gone. His uniform and armor? Gone. His high-tech combat gear and connection to a powerful satellite network? Gone.

All he was, in this moment, was a feeble joke of a man trying to show one last shred of confidence in the hopes that he could beat Takagi after all the teasing she'd done to him.

No different than the boy he'd been all those years ago.

"I'm glad he's okay," Takagi said, allowing a small smile to slip onto her face.

The room fell silent for a few minutes, as neither party nor the bystanders could think of anything to say.

Then, at last, Takagi asked it.

The question that had been tormenting her every waking moment in that wretched magic prison for the past ten years.

"Why?"

Again, silence.

"Why, Nishikata? Why did you do it?"

Nishikata said nothing.

"If you'd wanted me to stop teasing you, I would've listened," Takagi continued. "I would've toned it down! All you had to do was—!"

Takagi's words, though well-intentioned, struck a chord of resentment deep down inside Nishikata's black soul. Something vile. Something vicious. Something dastardly.

"Liar!"

Takagi, Yukari, and Mina jumped back with a start as Nishikata rose to his feet and looked Takagi dead in the eye for the first time since the beach on Saint Henry's Island.

"Even now you still play the victim!" Nishikata yelled. "Do you not remember all the times I did just that and you refused to stop!"

"Keep your voice down!" Yukari snapped, not sure if Nishikata would even listen to her.

"What? No, that's not true, I—!" Takagi contested.

"Yes it is!" Nishikata hollered, clenching his fists.

"Wait wait, everybody just calm down!" Mina cried, stepping between them. "Let me just go get both of you some refreshments and food, okay?"

"Shut your mouth, you insufferable dolt!" Nishikata snarled. "You sat back and laughed as this witch of a woman teased me every day so you have no say in this!"

"Leave her alone!" Yukari yelled, pulling Mina back.

"I was just joking!" Takagi shouted back, her tears now beginning to flow. "Was what I did really that bad! I was just trying to be friendly with you!"

"Don't you play those games with me, you wretched brat!" Nishikata growled. "I endured nothing but repeated unfair punishment and utter humiliation every day in that classroom because of you!"

Takagi could not stop herself from crying as Nishikata pointed right at her. The force of his words came crashing down upon her like a pile of bricks. Was this really the result of her affectionate teasing?

A man filled with hatred, bitterness, and excuses?

"I never meant to do that to you!" Takagi sobbed. "I'm sorry if I—!"

"No you're not!" Nishikata roared. "I should've made a deal with Krampus to keep you in your globe while I had the chance!"

Takagi felt her body go numb. She opened her mouth to reply, but her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth and her vocal chords felt like they'd been tied off. Tears dripped into the corners of Takagi's mouth as her hands shook.

Nishikata must've been sincere in writing that wish after all.

"Every day in school I sought to beat you at your teasing game!" Nishikata continued to berate her. "But now I see that you were never a worthy competitor in the first place! Had I just ignored your pathetic form and asked our teacher to give me a different seat, I never would've met you!"

"Well at least that's one thing we can agree on!" Takagi screamed, her throat opening up at last.

Nishikata laughed. "Even now, trying to kick it back to me like you're teasing again. You never learn, do you?"

"I'm the one who never learned?" Takagi scoffed. "Did you never stop to think about what I meant by my teasing at all?"

"Oh do please enlighten me, Takagi," Nishikata begged in mock defeat. "Whatever was the reason for your incessant insults and childish games?"

"Because I loved you!"

Now it was Nishikata's turn to be speechless.

"I only ever did playful teasing with you to show you that I loved you!" Takagi screamed. "Don't you understand! That's why I was happy when you took me to the summer festival!"

Yukari and Mina were both beside themselves with tears by now as the two torn-apart lovers beat each other down with their words. Yukari kept looking between Nishikata and Takagi. Would Takagi's long overdue confession finally wake Nishikata up to his senses?

But no.

Nishikata just turned to stomp out of the room, shoving Yukari and Mina out of the way as he did.

"I'm not falling for one of your tricks again!" Nishikata huffed. "Go back to hell, you witch!"

Nishikata froze.

He'd never realized just how bad his pent-up bitterness had become until just now, right when those beyond spiteful words came out of his mouth.

"I've already been there, Nishikata," Takagi cried. "Would you like to book me another ticket?"

..................................

As Nishikata glided through the hallway of his old middle school with unmatched stealth and agility, he kept his finger off the trigger of his pistol and his eyes peeled. The circumstance? The Criminal Elimination Agency had assigned him a new mission right back here in his home country.

The target?

None other than his old middle school teacher Mr. Tanabe himself.

The old oaf had always been a fool, so it was no surprise to Nishikata that he'd been stupid enough to get involved with a criminal gang at the top of the CEA's list.

Because it was a teacher in-service day, there were no students around. Which meant Nishikata would have a clear line of sight once he sighted in on his foe. Soon enough, he reached the door to Tanabe's classroom. Taking a knee on one side, he raised his pistol to an alert carry, put his left hand on the door handle, then ripped it open as he brought his weapon to bear.

He froze.

There was someone here, alright.

But it wasn't Mr. Tanabe...

It was Takagi.

Looking just as she had the day he'd first met her in sixth grade.

Nishikata scrambled to contrive a reason as to why Takagi sat before him in her youthful, middle-school age while he stood there as a man in his mid-twenties. It'd been years since he'd seen her! Shouldn't she be the same age?

Takagi seemed to be equally surprised, her big brown eyes gazing at him with curious wonder. Then, her signature coy smile spread across her face and Nishikata gritted his teeth.

"Good morning, Nishikata," Takagi greeted. "You're here early today."

She must be an accomplice to Tanabe's criminal operations! Yes, that was it! Nishikata stepped into the room, slamming the door behind him and keeping his pistol at the alert carry.

HE was the one in power here, not her. He had outgrown her silly teasing, and he would not let it deter him from his mission.

"Where is Mr. Tanabe?" Nishikata said, not giving her a chance to tease him. "Tell me where he is right now and I won't have to bring you in."

Takagi raised an eyebrow.

"Bring me in? What are you going to do, arrest me?"

"If you are complicit in our former teacher's operations, yes."

"Former? But we're still in school, Nishikata."

"Wha-?!"

As Nishikata looked down at his hands, he suddenly realized that his pistol was gone and his hands were much smaller! He grabbed at himself, feeling something in his pocket...his old middle school ID! But wait, then that would mean...

No, it couldn't be!

But it was...

Nishikata had turned back into his sixth-grade self.

"What the hell is this?!" he growled, clenching his fists. "What game are you-?!"

But his complaints were cut short as Takagi's shadow fell over his weak, pathetic frame. Despite being the same age and grade, Takagi had suddenly grown two feet taller and was smiling down at him in a wicked manner as she patted his head.

No, not Takagi...Takagis!

Eight more copies of the girl who did nothing but tease and taunt him had suddenly surrounded Nishikata, and he swung his hands left and right in an effort to bat away their hands.

But it was too late...

Takagi had won...as she always did.

"Be careful now, ladies," Takagi said to her obedient copies. "We wouldn't want him to wish death upon us again now, would we?"

Tears came to the little Nishikata's eyes.

"Takagi, please! I'm sorry, that was an accident!"

"Oh?" the Takagi to the right said as she pinched his adorable little cheeks.

"Are you sure?" another one added as she grabbed his left ear.

"Yes, yes!" Nishikata pleaded. "Please! I'm sorry, I didn't know! I thought--!"

Once again, Nishikata's pleas turned out to be for naught, as the circle of Takagis began to cackle, grow terribly long claws and sprout horrid fangs.

"Please, please, please!" Nishikata cried. "I can explain! I won't do it again! Have mercy on me!"

"Aw, wook at him!" one of the Takagi clones said in an obvious mocking baby voice, patting Nishikata's head like he was a subservient dog. "The big stwong Nishikata all wiled up!"

"He can defeat all those criminal gangs and jump from helicopters, yet he can't even handle some teasing!" another Takagi clone snickered. Nishikata could do nothing as the monsters encircling him pinched his cheeks, patted his head and ruffled his hair like he was a play toy. The real Takagi, in front of him, even held his hands as if she were to ask him to dance.

"You're blushing," she giggled in her spiteful invocation.

"I am not!" Nishikata lied.

Nishikata struggled to break free of their hold, as the monstrous Takagi clones seized him by his arms, legs, and torso, lifting him up and gazing down at him with a malevolent vengeance in their eyes. One of them raised her clawed hand as if to rip him apart. Nishikata again tried to escape...

"GAAH!" Nishikata shouted as he threw off the blankets. He looked around, raising his hands to fight any intruder that might be there.

But there was no one.

Just him, in his old bedroom in his parent's home. The only ones who had been willing to offer him lodging despite him having had minimal contact with them for the past ten years.

As Nishikata wiped the sweat from his brow and took deep breaths, the festering torment overtook his mind for what must've been the thousandth time.

After all, what Takagi had said in the dream was right.

Even with all the power, strength, and training a man could ask for...Nishikata was still weak.

Even after all the training he had undergone, all the missions he had accomplished, and fights where he had emerged victorious...

Takagi still won.

Even with all his skill in various weaponry, fighting styles, and espionage...

Takagi still won.

Even with all his discipline, battle-hardened fortitude and unmatched persistence...

Takagi. Still. Won.

.............................

Santa had never been more furious in his life as he gazed upon the now pitch-black palace of King Frost.

Never before had there ever been a civil war among the Guardians.

But now, all the right buttons having been pushed, the unthinkable had occurred.

All because of one boy's wish, ten years ago.

Behind Santa stood his allies: Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, Sandman, Beowulf, and Cupid. Tooth Fairy had summoned her legions of Fairies, armored head to toe with glistening blue armor and wings that, though light, had the durability of steel. Santa, meanwhile, had assembled his army of Elves. Who, contrary to what human pop culture had made them out to be, were strong, six-foot-tall warriors willing to die to keep evil contained.

In the palace, where Santa and those with him had declared their opposition moments ago, was King Frost and his allies: Dracula, Boogeyman, La Llorona, the infamous witch who'd killed Hansel and Gretel, and the Big Bad Wolf. An enormous cloud of writhing, screaming darkness engulfed the once-elegant palace as giant bats, wolves, and other nightmarish creatures swarmed around it. 

"So, what now Saint Nick?" Easter Bunny piped up behind him.

"Ready yourselves," Santa said in a serious, low voice. "This battle has scarcely begun."