El Hazard and it's characters are owned by AIC and Pioneer LDC.  The author 
owns only the writing.

Chapter 13: Hiashi's house 
 
They heard the phone ringing when they were about to open the door. Hiashi 
wasn't looking forward to returning, but the phone brought him inside before the 
memories could return. Shayla heard bits of the conversation, "Afura too? Just 
one? Wow. Mr.Fujisawa hurt his hand juggling a pair? Like a burn and a bruise 
the doctor said. Well he is tougher. We got two of them in the park. Uh yeah, 
vanished too. Yeah, that's what I figured. Tomorrow morning then. Bye." 
 
"Well?" 
 
"The others encountered some Bugrom too. Mr.Fujisawa hurt his hand when one 
phazed in around it. Told you so. They appear to be random encounters. In any 
case, looking for them is more trouble than its worth. Most will self-destruct 
without our help." 
 
"At least until more of them start appearing." 
 
"Now who's got their head stuck in reality?" Hiashi joked. Then he looked 
around. The house hasn't changed since he left a lifetime ago. Lights were still on. 
Father's beer from that morning was warm, flat, and smelled worse than Shayla's 
morning breath after a night at the bars. The belt was still on the floor. 
 
"This place is a pig sty. How could you live here?" 
 
"As little as possible. When I wasn't at the library or school, I was in my room." 
he answered then remembered, "I need to take down that poster or she'll torch the 
place. Hey wait, that's not such a bad idea." 
 
"Isn't this house your's now? I mean as the sole heir." 
 
"Yeah, passed down from father to son for centuries. Never moving unless it was 
to make room for the next generation. I'm a land owner now. Whoppie." Hiashi 
sounded less than thrilled. 
 
"Well maybe we should start by cleaning up YOUR house." Shayla suggested. 
 
Neither of them were homemakers. Fortunately there wasn't much to do apart 
from throwing trash away and vacuuming. Hiashi's mother cleaned the morning 
she killed. Shayla needed to use the bathroom and Hiashi went to one of the back 
rooms to dispose of the garbage. The reality that he owned the house and its 
possessions now was slowly sinking in. He took great satisfaction in throwing 
most of his fathers things away. Still, he couldn't get the feeling Father was 
looking over him, glowering. He wouldn't be surprised if the ghost of his father 
was right then taking ineffective swings at him from the spirit plane. "Forget it. 
I'm free of you." he said out loud. 
 
"Priest Hiashi Shayla! Get yourself in here!" he heard Shayla yell. "She found it." 
he thought. His first instinct was to run, but that was both stupid and futile. 
 
"Yes dear?" he said when he entered his room. His tone was that of a false hope 
that she didn't find it. 
 
She didn't speak. Just point at the poster on the wall. Even though his father was a 
sadistic bastard, he did pretty much let Hiashi have his privacy in his room and let 
him decorate it to his tastes, within the limits of Father's twisted reason that is. It 
was pretty spartan. Most noticeable was his desk and a bookshelf. Both had 
school books and English sci-fi novels. Father never looked closely. Saying that 
they were for school was enough. Plus there were the few childhood toys that 
survived Father's rampages. But to placate him, Hiashi had to try to make his 
room more like "normal, under-class, unsophisticated" teenager's, what in 
American would be called "white trash". The poster of his wife's attention for 
instance. It was a near life size poster of a very attractive naked woman with arms 
and legs strategically positioned to keep it legal. She had the expected smile and 
look. In other words, a poster almost every other teenage boy has in his room. Or 
at least one of many. 
 
"You want me to take it down?" 
 
"Burn it." Shayla said in a low monotone voice. Her body language clearly stated 
that she'd do it herself with gusto if he didn't. Riho sat at her feet trying to match 
her expression. 
 
"Now Shayla, don't you think you're overreacting? It's just a picture I got at a 
store before I knew you." he said as he started to take it down. 
 
"Don't care. Burn it." 
 
"Would it help if I said, Father made me get it?" 
 
"Yeah right. At the least you were willing. If not you shouldn't mind. Burn it." 
 
"You know. This photo brightened more than a few dreary days for me." he said 
in a final attempt to save the poster. 
 
"I know. That's why I want you to burn it." 
 
"Burn it." Riho echoed. 
 
He held it up and took one last look. His eyes went back and forth between the 
two-dimensional picture and his three-dimensional wife. "Well, might as well 
make the best of it and score some points." he said to himself and surrendered to 
the inevitable. 
 
He crumpled the poster as best he could into a ball, tossed it up, and incinerated it 
with a fraction of the power contained in his headband's fire jewel. "Even when 
you're mad, you're prettier than her." he said. 
 
"That should satisfy her anger." he thought. 
 
He was right. In an instant Shayla was happy again, the poster forgotten. She then 
went on to nose around his personal belongings. He let her. He came to El-Hazard 
with only the clothes on his back. Even most of those became too worn or torn to 
wear by now. So most of 'his' stuff was actually 'hers'. She had provided nearly all 
of the material possessions in their life, from the fire shrine where they lived to 
paying for the clothes he wore. For that Shayla now felt justified in what she was 
doing now and Hiashi couldn't bring himself to stop her. Fortunately, not much of 
it held her interest for long. He did have to correct her on the difference between a 
doll and an action figure. She didn't buy it. 
 
Hiashi went to the bookshelf and let his fingers run across the spines. Each title 
brought back memories of reading the book. When he read, he imagined himself 
as a character. Sometimes following the story, more often dreaming up fanciful 
'what ifs' about how he would have done things right. Which books would he keep 
and bring back to El-Hazard? Each one was special. How could he give any of 
them up? Suddenly he heard the light switch flick and the room was filled with 
darkness. "Shayla, that's the light switch. Turn them back on." he said a little 
annoyed. 
 
But they stayed off. He was about to ask her again when she hugged him from 
behind. Putting her lips to his ear she whispered, "You've been working too hard, 
and neglecting your duties as a husband. What do you say we get out these bed 
rolls of your's and ..." 
 
The last part was whispered so softly and was so private only he could hear it. He 
turned red when she spoke. She could feel the surge of heat. Shayla laughed to 
herself and hugged him harder. He blushed easily and she learned he had a shade 
of red for almost every situation from "minor embarrassment" to "nearly 
uncontrolled rage". This one was one of her favorites, "I can't believe you said 
that. Let's do it!" 
 
He turned around and was about to kiss her when he unexpectedly stopped and let 
go. Shayla was too surprised to do anything as he left the room. When he was out 
the door she found her voice, "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" These past 
few days brought them both long hours they've had no time to be alone without 
being too tired to do anything. Now Shayla was getting frustrated. He didn't 
answer. Instead he went closer to the front door. 
 
Car headlights pulled into the drive way. Then another set. A third and forth. 
"Great. Visitors. He must have sensed them coming. Just my luck they ruin the 
mood." Shayla thought. She decided to hang back in the room until she found out 
who dared to interrupt them. 
 
There was a knock the second before Hiashi reached the door. He was greeted by 
a mass of people who said his name and hugged him. Hiashi could barely 
understand their voiced sympathies due to the sheer number of people who let 
themselves inside. His relatives, from both sides of his family, came to help. But 
how did they know he was back? "Aunt, how did you know I was here?" he asked 
the stocky woman currently giving him a bear hug and crying a fountain of tears. 
 
"Your principal called us and said you've been found. We all came as soon as we 
could. Of course we had to wait for 'them'." she said the last word sarcastically 
gesturing to the group of people who were his mother's family. 
 
"Well if you told us instead of wasting time trying to hide it, we would have been 
here sooner." another woman said. Another aunt. His mother's sister. Both groups 
of relatives were small even though Hiashi's extended family was larger than 
most. He wasn't surprised. It wasn't because they didn't care. Well it might have 
been that. But mostly because of distance. 
 
Most of his father's relatives moved away the first chance they got. Being the 
eldest, he got to stay in Shininobe. On his mother's side, well Mother came here 
as a runaway. That was about all Hiashi knew. The details of his parent's meeting 
were never learned. What he did know, he kept to himself. Not even his wife 
knew. He strongly suspected she was suffering from low self-esteem and was 
desperate for some stability when she met Father. Hiashi was under no illusions 
his parents had a loveless marriage of convenience. The only thing that surprised 
him was how he managed to turn out as well as he did. He knew how, teachers, 
the family of his friends, his mother's love, advice columns, and the drive NOT to 
be like his father. Makoto's parents, however, were a big positive influence when 
he was young. They showed him how a family should act. It was a pity they 
drifted apart when Father discovered his son was friends with someone 'above his 
station'. 
 
Over a dozen people forced their way inside the small traditional house. They 
were weeping over the tragedy and offering their homes to him. Some offered to 
move in to keep the 'ancestral homestead' in use. In a matter of seconds, an 
argument broke out between the two families. Hiashi was never asked his 
opinions or wishes. They didn't even ask him where he was or if he was OK. 
Shayla watched from the doorway, crouched down to stay out of sight. She 
watched as her husband's face turned redder and redder with anger and frustration. 
She wanted to intervene but couldn't. This was his family - her family through 
marriage and she had no idea how to do it. Also this is about the maddest she has 
ever seen Hiashi and she wanted to see how he would act. It may seem a little 
sadistic to let him stand there like that, but he's been worried about what would 
happen if he lost his temper. She never saw him do it before and she wanted to see 
it for herself. Shayla was confident he wouldn't do anything violent, but this way 
she could point to this whenever he doubted himself in the future. 
 
Then one of his father's sister-in-laws noticed her and walked over. "Are you a 
friend of Hiashi's?" she asked tuning out the debate. 
 
"Yes." Shayla said embarrassed as she stood. For a second she considered telling 
her she was his wife, but that would be too much. Plus she was distracted since 
she was concentrating on the argument. 
 
The woman noticed the armband on Shayla's left arm and commented Hiashi had 
a matching one, "What are they?" 
 
"Oh," Shayla said absently, "they're contraception bands." 
 
Even though they were married, they were still part of the Elemental Church. 
Which meant they would have to answer the call whenever it happened. 
Pregnancy would put a priestess too much at risk. So in the old days both husband 
and wife wore the black arm bands. The chemical it contained was natural, had no 
long term side effects and were effective for only a short time after being 
removed. It has also been used by couples outside the Church who were not ready 
to become parents for ages. Even though only one was necessary, but often both 
wore it as a symbol of unity. 
 
"Contraception?!" the woman shouted. The debate stopped instantly. "Hiashi! 
Have you been having ... that with this ... this gajin?" 
 
"Gajin?!" Shayla thought. She knew the word, foreigner, barbarian; she's been 
insulted before but that was near the top. Only Bugrom grumbling at her was 
worse, but not by much. 
 
"What do you expect with the stupid father that he had?" someone from his 
mother's side of the family commented. 
 
The argument was back on, more heated than before with blame being tossed 
around like lottery balls. Father's drinking and poor job. Mother's lack of respect 
for tradition. Everything except Father's violence was given as an excuse for 
Hiashi's "deviance". Shayla heard a few reference to her, derogatory terms about 
her looks, apparent intelligence, even skin color. She was tempted to just turn on 
her Lamp, but unfortunately they were family and she couldn't just incinerate 
them and be done with it. Shocked as she was, she noticed Hiashi twitching. This 
was it. He was going to justify his fears or prove Shayla right. 
 
"Enough!!" he shouted. They only quieted down slightly. "I said enough!! I'm 
sick of this! My father was a monster! He was cruel, violent, and self-centered. 
He never amounted to anything and did what he could to try to force me to be 
less. My mother and I suffered for years until we finally had the courage to leave. 
But he killed her. Ran her down like she was nothing. You knew what he was 
like," he said pointing at his paternal relatives, "but you did nothing! You were 
still scared of him weren't you!? You never saw fit to warn anyone! 
 
"And you!" now pointing at the other side of the room, "Never did you come 
down to visit us. You never bothered to check in on your sister or nephew. It was 
too inconvenient to travel 60 kilometers even though we asked. You might have 
noticed what he was doing. I think you knew but didn't care. Neither of you cared 
about me or my mother. You're only here now to use me as a pawn. Don't act so 
shocked. I know how high real estate values are around here. Get custody of me, 
sell the house, kick me out after a year when I become a legal adult. I knew what 
you wanted the instant you came through my door. 
 
"The day we were going to leave this was the day he murdered her. Then he tried 
to kill me. I was literally driven off the face of the Earth. I found a portal to 
another world and I dived into it. I didn't care if it opened up in the tenth level of 
Hell and do you know why? Because even though I blame you! And you!" he 
gestured to the two families, "I blame myself the most. I blame myself for not 
speaking up earlier. For letting this go on in silence like it did. The only one who 
doesn't deserve blame is her." he spoke softer as he pointed to his wife, "She's the 
only one here who truly loves me and cares about me. I met her in the world 
where I landed, El-Hazard. In the first hour I was there, she's helped me more 
than the rest of you did combined for over 15 years! She supported me 
emotionally when my world was turned upside-down and inside out. Even after I 
knew Father was dead, I could still feel the pain of what he did and my wife has 
been with me every step of the way. Time between this world and that is twisted. 
I've been there 9 long happy months and I intend to keep it that way. I admit, she's 
not perfect. She has an appetite that would close any all-you-can-eat buffet, snores 
like a freight train, and her shopping habits are a major factor in the local 
economy. But that love of life is one of the reasons why I love her and I plan on 
staying with her for as long as I live. 
 
"I'm only here on business. Once that's done I'm going back there happily and 
hopefully forever. Then you can squabble over the property all you want. But 
until I leave -- get out!" 
 
From the back of the room, Shayla smiled. It wasn't because Hiashi was kicking 
these so-called relatives out for insulting her. It was because he was doing it 
without resorting to violence, threats, or swearing. He was mad. Who wouldn't 
be? The maddest Shayla has ever seen him. Yet never did he act as if he was 
going to strike them or even activate his Lamp. His voice, though angry, hadn't 
crossed over to rage but had stayed even and stern. Best of all, he wasn't watching 
himself. He wasn't intentionally controlling his emotions. When he and Shayla 
argued, he always tried to end it quickly, even when he was right. She knew it 
was because he feared losing control over himself. Now 15 years of frustration, 
pain, and anger were being freely released and without even a hint of him turning 
into his Father. Shayla was proud of him. He was cured. While the pain would 
never leave, the cycle of violence from parent to child ended with him. There 
would be no fear; he would never pass it onto his own children. Now all that lie 
ahead was tho make him realize that. 
 
A few acted insulted, like what they were doing was some grand charity and left 
without a word. Most of the rest hesitated, as if realizing what they had done, but 
left anyway. Only three stayed, one paternal relative, two maternal. Hiashi looked 
like he was unsure whether or not to repeat his demand when Shayla walked up 
and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Let them stay." she said. He didn't notice, but 
they were the only ones who said nothing during the whole exchange. 
 
"Hiashi, you may not remember me. Takao Nose. I married your aunt 3 years 
ago." 
 
"Yes. Father wouldn't let us go to her wedding. Or funeral. I'm sorry about what 
happened." Hiashi said. His aunt was killed when a cult leader released poison gas 
into the subway. 
 
"So am I. I can't speak for the rest of us, but I never knew what was happening 
here. She never talked much about you or your parents. If I had any idea, I would 
have rushed over and done something to help you. That's easy to say now though 
isn't it? Actually the only reason why I was asked here was to estimate how much 
the house was worth 'for tax purposes'. They didn't really keep in contact with me 
after she died and my own family are on the other side of the country so I jumped 
at the chance. I was going to offer you my place, but since it looks like you 
already have a home, I'd be willing to sell this house for you and donate the profit 
to a charity." 
 
Hiashi was stunned. This man wasn't even a blood relative yet he was willing to 
open up his home for him. Of course he learned that bloodlines do not a family 
make nine months ago. 
 
The two from his mother's side were cousins. Siblings, one in college the other 
about to. Both came of their own accord (without their parents) and both were 
never told about the horrors their aunt and cousin suffered through. They 
expressed similar feelings as his uncle. The same offer could not be made because 
the cousin already in college was a woman and lived in a women-only dorm. But 
both wanted to help and all of them wanted to get acquainted with this abandoned 
member of the family. 
 
Take-out was ordered and the five of them sat in the living room as Hiashi and 
Shayla told them what happened in El-Hazard. A few things were skimmed over 
or left out (like Shayla's first attempt to kiss him). Hiashi told most of it with 
Shayla explaining her actions when necessary. By the time they were done, the 
food was eaten and the visitors were trying to absorb these events. Shoko (his 
older cousin) said, "And you want to go back to that weird place?" in disbelief. 
 
"Yes he does!" Shayla said quickly before Hiashi could answer, "How can you 
call El-Hazard weird? Your world has these glowing screens and talking boxes 
but no magic whatsoever. And these cars, I get the creeps just looking at them. 
They smell awful and they're noisy." 
 
Shoko was a bit taken back. She didn't think about how Japan would look to 
someone from another world. It might seem a little weird, but Shininobe is pretty 
a normal town. Weird is not a word associated to it very often. "Like it's normal to 
have a doomsday weapon floating around." 
 
"Don't you? I remember being told about something called Intercontential 
Ballistic Missles. They don't float, but there's more of them." 
 
Shoko and Shayla stared at each other for a moment thinking the same thought, 
"She wants to take Hiashi away from me." 
 
Hiashi asked Takao about himself, what he did, hobbies, work, and the like. He 
learned Takao and Shoko were in the same town, but family differences prevented 
the two from meeting. Shoko and her brother were next. Without shared family 
experiences, bonding with them was difficult, but not impossible. There was a 
genuine desire to make up for lost time. Meanwhile Shayla felt left out. No one 
was speaking to her, at least not directly. She tried to figure out why each of them 
were doing that. 
 
With Hiashi, this was probably the first positive experience with his extended 
family. Being an orphan herself, she could see herself doing the same thing in his 
place. Plus, there were times when the situation was reversed. Not everyone in the 
Elemental Church was eager to accept men. More than once Shayla's old friends 
casually mentioned their opinion that Hiashi was the exception, and not the rule, 
when they knew he was in earshot. He said nothing about it. Shayla never brought 
it up, instead she changed the subject with her friends and gossiped for hours. 
Hiashi never joined in even if he was in the same room. He accepted the fact 
Shayla had her own cliche of friends and didn't want to intrude. This was the 
same case, but in a way, Takao and the rest were part of her family too. Weren't 
they? 
 
Takao had a different reason. He was part of the family the same way Shayla was, 
by marriage. He also understood Hiashi would be leaving and this was his only 
chance to learn about his nephew. When Shayla saw his eyes, she knew Takao 
had no ill will for her. 
 
But Shoko had. She deliberately kept Shayla out of the conversation. She talked 
about her college and the social activities there including its sci-fi club. Shoko 
was also careful to point out the number of single women there who she was 
willing to introduce to Hiashi. Shayla couldn't figure out why Shoko didn't like 
her. Well the feeling was mutual. 
 
Shoko's brother was worse. He spoke only when spoken to and spent the rest of 
the time ogling Shayla. He was two years younger than Hiashi and looked like he 
never dated because no one in their right mind would want to date him. He made 
Shayla very uncomfortable. 
 
To Shayla's relief, the hour was getting late. Shoko mentioned a hotel, but a quick 
phone call confirmed the rest of her family already checked out. Takao offered to 
drive them home. Shoko was reluctant, but didn't really have a choice. Not 
without the money for a room. She almost asked to stay there for the night, but 
that would mean spending more time around 'her' and she didn't care for it. She 
promised to come back tomorrow with more money and friends and have some 
fun. Hugs were exchanged. Shayla broke away from Shoko's brother when he 
almost grabbed her rear. 
 
After they left, Shayla tried to be in a good mood. "So...what did you think?" 
Hiashi asked nervously. 
"I like your uncle, but your cousins...." she answered, drifting off because she 
didn't want to hurt him. 
"I know. You handled yourself perfectly, Shayla, when he tried to ... you know. 
Better than me." 
"What are you talking about?" 
"When I lost it earlier." 
"Were you right? Did they act concerned about you for the money?" 
 
"Yeah, Father boasted about it more than once. About how this old house is worth 
millions yen. Neighborhood has been getting better with a 'higher class' of people. 
He talked about moving to some place more suited to his position in life. I wasn't 
too surprised when he was deciding whether or not to move, half the family 
offered advice. Course they ignored me and Mom. We weren't the ones with the 
money." 
 
"If you ask me, I think you let them off easy." 
"Huh?" 
 
"I haven't seen you that upset before. I would have at least formed a fireball to 
show them how pissed I was. But you controlled yourself. You weren't even 
aware of it. You told them what you really thought and how you felt. No threats. 
No violence. No insults. Think about it. The ones that it didn't apply to stayed. I'm 
proud of you." 
 
"Tha-thank you. I love you. I'm lucky you're in my life." 
 
Shayla put a finger on his nose, "Damn straight." she said. Then kissed him. 
Which led to another ... and another ... and .... 
 
A few hours later they were sleeping in the bed rolls. Well Hiashi slept anyway. 
Shayla faked it long enough for him to drift off. He always did that; making sure 
she was asleep before allowing himself to. Except for nights like this. She tried 
tossing and turning, but nothing was comfortable. Still slumbering, Hiashi tried to 
cuddle. He did that most nights too and always after sex. He was never aware of 
this habit. Shayla wanted to keep it her little secret. She savored his embrace and 
the floor wasn't that hard anymore. She remembered a dream she had almost a 
year ago. It was a month before she found Hiashi. 
 
She was watching Makoto when he was in the Eye of God. He had fallen asleep 
and Shayla was too tired to drag him out. She sat in the hallway and fell asleep. 
She dreamed she was in a black room totally alone. There wasn't anything else 
there except her. She turned and found herself. Her future self by at least 10 years. 
She was looking up and shaking her fist saying, "Damn you Hi--" she paused 
noticing her younger self, "Husband! This is the last time I go to the Eye with 
you!" 
 
Shayla was speechless. All she could to was stare at her future self and point at 
her stomach. She was pregnant. "Yep." her future self said, "We're going to be a 
mother. This is our third one." 
 
"Thi-third? With who?" 
"With the man I married of course. We not the type to let anyone else in our bed 
are we?" 
"<snort> Of course not. Makoto?" younger Shayla asked hopefully. Older Shayla 
thought for a moment, "You know. People aren't suppose to know much about 
their future. But I'll say this. He's intelligent, caring, and the best husband, lover, 
and father we could hope for." she grinned slyly, "And he's from Earth. Oh, you 
will have to fight for him. But I think you already know that." 
 
Intelligent? Caring? Earth? It HAD to be Makoto! Future Shayla smirked and 
faded away, back to her time. Shayla woke up. The dream, like so many others, 
were forgotten except for a few fuzzy details. When she gloated to Nanami, she 
filled in the blanks with her own wishes and assumptions. It wasn't until her 
wedding night did she remember the whole dream and realize who she was told 
about. 
 
She turned over and looked at him. A smile spread across her lips. "My husband" 
she thought, "Those words are so different, so special. It's not like my dress or my 
Lamp or even my friends. He won't wear out like a dress. I don't have to give him 
to the next Priestess like my Lamp. He's more than just a friend. 
 
"What are you? Are you a possession? <heh> No more than I'm your possession. 
What are we to each other? Lovers? Mates? Friends? You've grown too important 
to me since we've met. We've disagreed, we argued, but we're still together, closer 
than ever before." 
 
"I won't give you up without a fight. I want you with me forever." she whispered 
not realizing it. 
 
Hiashi stirred a little. With half-open eyes he muttered, "Again?" in response to 
an assumed, unspoken request. His tone was both tired and hopeful. 
 
"Well..." she thought evilly, "I wasn't going to ask, but if you insist." Shayla didn't 
answer verbally, but with a kiss and proceeded to enjoy one of the perks of 
marriage.