A/N: First story in a long while but hope you all enjoy it.

The Goal: Write a series of drabbles that connect the post-series up till the epilogue. The criss-crossing relationships (romantic, rivalry and friendship) and stories (crack, implied or otherwise) that eventually lead up to that reunion 25 years from now (Could be Canon epilogue, Could not be? Who knows) The characters will remain as "in character" as I can possibly make them. All the drabbles remain in the same universe and will all be expanded on as time goes on. Everything happens for a reason and has a domino effect. I hope this gives me a chance to explore the possibilities of variety of different relationships and events that weren't covered in the show and I hope you enjoy it as well

Tale 1: Looking

Pairing: Slight Ken/Mimi

Synopsis: She walked home one day

Warnings: None

It is flower season

Mimi walked along the streets of Odaiba on her way to her house. Her red heels clicked as her green school uniform sashayed with every step. Her bag felt unusually heavy today and her once pink hair-turned-natural auburn was out of place. She took a right and entered the pathway leading up to her apartment. Passing grand arches of ivy with flowers in full bloom that were sending a sweet fruity perfume across the city.

Yet she walked in dread

The sun was setting

And Mimi was lost in thought

She had only moved back from America for a couple of weeks and she was still uncomfortable. Try as she might, hard as she smiled, no matter how much effort she put into it she still didn't feel it was her home. She felt alone. She felt lost

It didn't make sense

This was her childhood home. She had grown up here. She was going to the same school as her childhood friends. Her parents had even been able to secure the same exact apartment they had left behind so many years ago. Everything had stayed the same.

So why?

Have I changed too much?

It didn't matter however

She could still act the same, just as she always was.

There's nothing wrong with that

As if on cue, her reverie was broken by the sudden awareness that someone was staring at her. Call it intuition, call it Mimi's increased self-awareness but she could feel the aura of observation around her. It was palpable. She had never felt this before.

Someone is looking

She stopped in the middle of the path, ever aware of the pair of eyes that seemed to be drilling into her back with the kind of heat only hot tea could emit. It sent a jolt down her spine. She took one step forward, and still she could feel the stare.

She turned and her eyes widened

"Ken, what do you think you're doing?!" she shouted and flailing her arms, startling her former teammate who was perched on one of the Sakura trees. With a thud and a slight groan, the boy fell off his branch and landed right in front of her.

"Why were you on that tree?! You scared Mimi half to death!", Mimi raised her red heels ready to kick him in the face as punishment and pouted her lip in her usual fashion

Keep appearances

Ken was not afraid nor did he lose his composure despite his fall. He spoke softly, barley a whisper, "Because I was looking at you". The unexpected answer stopped the descent of her foot. "What?"

Ken stood up from the ground slowly, dusting himself off.

"I was looking at you," he repeated, staring into her amber eyes. "Y-You baka! What could you possibly be looking at?!" Mimi spluttered

"You," he said quietly. "I was trying to really look at you"

Again the answer stilled her body

Run

But...

He took a step forward

"Look at your face," he told her with more conviction, searching with his eyes. "And more importantly your eyes."

He placed his hands in his pocket and turned to the sky

"Your eyes betray your smile. You skip and giggle but then as soon as people's backs are turned you revert to this lost state. There's more to you then what you allow yourself to present and ultimately, you fascinate me Mimi Tachikawa. I haven't figured you out just yet"

A blush spread over Mimi's face, igniting a heat within her body

And he wouldn't let go, he kept looking into her eyes as if he was trying to see what was behind them and Mimi could feel how weak it was making her.

What is this?

Ken closed his eyes and with a smirk walked closer to Mimi. Despite her trembling form as he approached and the intoxicating smell of Sakura surrounding the two, he reached out to her and placed a soft kiss on her hand.

"Stay that way, Mimi, I'll solve this puzzle soon", he told her almost inaudibly but with a slight smirk before finally walking away

Mimi stood in the middle of the pathway, shocked, shaking, unable to look away from his retreating form

Lost in thought

What just happened?

The bud is growing

Review channel my imagination and suggestions for pairings and scenarios are always appreciated

womynrule

Signing out