ghostgirl

A2

At last, when the island grew so small the townspeople looked like ants, Gon looked at Reniku, an encouraging smile on his face. "It's going to be all right!"

Reniku nodded.

The water was a deep blue with some marine creatures swirling around, the sun making the sea dazzle and sparkle like diamonds. The water was calm, soft and gentle waves splashed as dolphins appeared, leaping over the waves and disappearing back under the deep blue. The sky was bright and clear, the sun seeming to smile down on them. Rays of sunlight were cast down on the waters like an invitation from heaven. Seagulls flew overhead, following the ship and catching whatever fish they caught. Their squaks were mixed with the blowing wind, an orchestra of calmness and tranquility. The peaceful scenery made Reniku breathe deeply as she took it in, the scent of the ocean calming her down, before following Gon down to the levels below.

They both headed for the room they were assigned to along with other passengers aboard the ship. "So Gon, what have you been up to earlier?"

"Before we met up, I was fishing. Aunt Mito said that I had to catch the 'Master of the Swamp' before I was allowed to take the exam because my father did the same before taking his exam. She says it's one of the things I had to do to be qualified for the exam."

"Oh, well...did you catch anything?"

"Yeah, I caught it! It was this big!" Gon said, spreading his not-so-lengthy arms as wide as he could. "Uh...a little bigger than this."

"That's cool." Reniku replied. She listened attentively as Gon talked about his adventure to catch a fish earlier that morning, thinking about how Gon was more qualified for the exam than her. This gave her a sense of melancholy.

Just then, a boy wearing a bandanna with a long fringe swept to the right of his face was kicked out of the cabin Gon and Reniku were assigned to. Gon immediately reacted, getting up and running towards him. "Hey! Are you okay?"

"Oh, uh, yes I am. I just caused some trouble. Nothing really happened." He stood up, quite shakily, but otherwise seemed unharmed.

"Hey! Get back to work, boy!" A voice shouted from within the cabin.

Reniku looked inside. A few men and teens waited around for their destination. They all stared at Gon and her, mock overtaking their expressions as they sneered at them. After a few arguments by Gon, the two went and sat against a wall, waiting for their destination. Initially, the strangers, some who were muscular and big, stared at them for a while, before getting bored by their chit-chatting and minded their own business.

"Oh, right."

"What?"

"Where were you yesterday afternoon? I was looking for you all over the place!"

Reniku hesitated. Gon usually had an excellent sense of smell and could always find her easily. If he was looking all over, including her house, he could have followed her scent and found her. This means he had looked everywhere but the Secret Garden.

"I was around the back of my house."

"Really? I went there too!" Gon exclaimed. "I guess you are better at hiding than I can find you. Oh, how about we play hide-and-seek in future?"

Confused, Reniku hesitated for a moment. She was right there. If Gon went there, she would have heard his footsteps.

"Uhh, sure."

"Yay!" Gon replied, his over joyous energy bouncing off Reniku's overly-nervous shell.

At that moment, Gon suddenly stood up. "Reniku, let's go outside!" He said, stepping outside. "Huh...fine." Reniku followed closely after.