DISCLAIMER: Saint Seiya and all its characters are the property of Masami Kurumada and Toei
Animation and whatever else company I'm not aware of. 

***********

Thunder and lightning were flashing across the sky. Down on Earth, an old lady squatting down
to pick up some clothes that had been blown off by the violent winds was mumbling to herself.
She kept repeating her sentence over and over again as if a prayer addressed to the sky  "My
Lord Thunder" she said, " you must not make it rain."

But dark clouds covered the sky and the rain came, pouring down heavily, and, seeing the
clothes she didn't manage to keep get wet, the old woman sighed heavily as she continued her
task under the rain. Her back slightly bent, her face made up of wrinkles and veins showing on
her arms, her figure was enough to shown the hardship she had gone through. Yet, silently, she
continued, resigned to her fate. Resigned to spending the rest of her days alone.

***********

Tokyo, Kido Mansion:

"Hey Shiryu!" shouted Seiya as he burst in his friend's room "Are you awake?"

He stopped, looking at his friend sitting near his window, eyes closed, in a meditating
posture.

"Hey Shiryu!" Seiya insisted "Are you listening to me, or gone in another dimension again?"

Upon hearing his friend's jovial voice, Shiryu opened his eyes and said to his friend
half-amusingly "Seiya, you're never going to learn to knock on doors before coming are you?"

Seiya looked at Shiryu with a twinkle in his eyes "Aw… c'mon…" he laughed "don't tell me that
you didn't hear me, I was shouting from the stairs onwards!"

Shiryu smiled "With you around Seiya" he remarked "none of us need alarm clocks, you're a
walking alarm clock all by yourself!"

Seiya looked at him and retorted "And what if I oversleep, what would you all have done then?"

Shiryu chuckled, "Then we could all finally have some peace and quiet in the morning, which
would really be a world first, not to mention a miracle!"

"Why you insolent…" said Seiya jokingly as he took a pillow nearby and threw it on Shiryu "is
that what you call your sense of friendship? "

"No" Shiryu retorted avoiding the pillow sent at him, and smiling "that's what I call my sense
of truth! Anyway, my point is that as much as it is nice to have a walking speaker as a friend,
it would be nicer if from time to time, you would knock instead of speak to inform me of your
presence!"

Seiya blushed "You know it's a habit that I have"

Shiryu nodded, "I know, and that's what makes you so Seiya!"

They both laughed as good friends.

"It's good to see you laugh" said Seiya "you should do that more often."

"I don't really have a lot to laugh about do I, when you ponder about it, " answered Shiryu
"but apart from that, what would be the reason of this brutal eruption so early in the
morning?"

Seiya made a face "There you go again, all serious, I shouldn't be surprised if you got
wrinkles faster than me!"

Shiryu looked at him.

"Anyway," Seiya said hastily "I just wanted to know if you wanted to join us for breakfast
before you left for China this afternoon, everybody's downstairs!"

Shiryu sighed, smiled, got up, stretched himself and got up "I'm coming" he said.

************

The old woman had finished picking up all her clothing, and, as she went into her house, she
wiped away the raindrops that had fallen on her face. Despite all the hardships she had went
through, she had nevertheless never given up hope, and her attitude was that of a resigned, yet
determined person that was not afraid of looking in front of her, that was not afraid of the
future. What was to be, was to be.

She lighted three joss sticks, blew onto the flame of fire, carried them up and down three
times before placing them in the incense pot, on the family altar. She stared for a moment a
the gods placed above her, stared at the offerings place in front of them before turning away,
amidst the smell of incense slowly surrounding the small room.

*************

Japan, Kido Mansion:

"Good morning Shiryu!" exclaimed Hyoga in the middle of a toast.

"Good morning Shiryu!" smiled Shun.

"Good morning Shiryu." greeted Saori.

Shiryu looked and smiled at the faces around the table.

"Good morning everybody" he said as he took a sit. "I think I'll take something light this
 morning."

Hyoga laughed "Shiryu, you practically always take the same thing in the morning. Let me guess,
porridge with a bowl of light soup?"

Shiryu smiled "Are my eating habits that obvious?" he asked.

"Not really," replied Shun, grinning, "it's just that after seeing you eat the same thing or
practically for years, we kind of start remarking the food you take at breakfast!"

"Shfmhryu!" exclaimed Seiya suddenly "Whmofff ifh goinggnmf to accomfptanie you to the
airmpofrt?"

Everybody stared at Seiya who was in the middle of a hearty breakfast.

"What?" asked Shiryu, astonished "Seiya, please finish your food first, I can't really
understand you."

Seiya gobbled down his food, got choked in the process, so he quickly drank a glass of water
before beating his chest to make sure that all the food he just ate went down his digestive
tube properly.

"I said" he repeated quickly "Shiryu, who is going to accompany you to the airport? Because, as
I have nothing to do today, I could always see you off!"

"Oh you don't have to do that." Said Shiryu hastily "I can go all by myself, I do not really
mind. Really Seiya, please don't trouble yourself with such a small matter."

"It's alright," replied Seiya, not really getting the hint "I'm free anyway. As are all the
others, we can all accompany you if you like!"

Saori laughed softly "Seiya doesn't really get a hint when he hears one does he?"

"I think that it's not so much the fact that he doesn't get the hint that he refuses to get
it!" exclaimed Shun happily.

"What hint?" asked Seiya, puzzled.

"Oh don't fake it!" said Hyoga bluntly and loudly "remember what happened the last time we went
to send someone off to the airport, we almost got kicked off the airport!"

"Hey! It wasn't my fault!" protested Seiya.

"Maybe" retorted Saori clearly "but it was definitively you who had the bright idea to bring
the dog and release him, creating mayhem and disaster in the airport!"

"Actually…" said Shun embarrassed "it was my idea to bring the dog to the airport, I though
that he would have liked to say goodbye too!"

"Don't gloat Seiya" said Saori, looking at his triumphant face "it was maybe Shun's idea, but
who had the idea of releasing him, arguing that he was a well-behaved dog?"

It was now Seiya's turn to look embarrassed.

"Aw…" he said, "how was I supposed to know that he would run about like he did?"

"Considering the fact that he was your dog" said Saori sternly "you could have guessed."

"Whatever the reason" said Shiryu conciliatory, "all of this happened in the past so let's
forget about this unfortunate incident shall we?"

"But you still don't want me to see you off do you?" asked Seiya hopefully.

"No. I would prefer it if you enjoyed your afternoon doing what you want."  Said Shiryu,
smiling.

**********

The rain had stopped. So had the thunder and the lightning. But the sky was a violent red
despite the fact that the sun had already gone down. The old lady let out a sigh. "Tomorrow is
going to be a rainy day again" she remarked.

She went out of the house and looked at the sky, trying to see whether the moon had come out.
She heard laughter and turned her head. A group of children were quickly rushing back home.
They stopped as the saw her and, smiling and grinning cheekily, they went towards her as they
greeted her in a single voice "Goodnight granny Chen!"

The old lady smiled and looked at them affectionately.

"Wait, wait, wait." She as gestured them to come "Granny Chen has something for all of you."

She quickly went into the house and reappeared holding a tin of Chinese biscuits and
distributing them to the children, who gobbled them up happily.

"Thank you Granny Chen!" they exclaimed "Goodbye!"

And the old lady saw them and smiled as she looked at them run away.

***************

Rozan peaks, China:

"Shiryu you're back!" exclaimed Shunrei happily.

Shiryu smiled and looked at her lovingly "How have you and Old Master been?"

"Fine as usual." she smiled "Come in the house, you must be tired."

With that, they both stepped in the house, Shiryu entering first to put in his suitcase and
then going out on the peaks again.

There, he saw the figure of a person and bowed "Old Master, I have returned."

The person turned, smiled and nodded. "It is good. And you will stay?…"

"For as long as Athena will permit me" replied Shiryu. "But the house of the Balance? "

"Even now, I am guarding it" he simply said, "Come my son, Shunrei is waiting for us."