Mai woke up with a start; she had 'that' nightmare again. She looked over at the clock; five in the morning. Too late to go back to sleep, she got up with a moan and began dressing. The standard shoes and the school uniform, the one with the long skirt. It was still in dress code, they came in two sizes: short and long. Mai had begun opting for the long ones after she began hanging out with a new group of friends. After she joined SPR, she had begun distancing herself from her normal friends at school, Keiko, Kuroda, even Michiru. Than after Naru left, she still met with the remaining members of SPR, but even those visits became less and less frequent.
Soon, she started hanging out with a new group of friends. Some girls who called themselves the Red Tails; the reason being, they would line the inside of their skirts with red fabric and when they walked, the red would flash at the back.
Mai began wondering what Naru was doing. He had recently published another book on paranormal research, not that Mai had the money to buy it. She had grabbed a copy when she was out with some of the girls at the outdoor mall last week. They had teased her so badly.
"Why the hell do you want a book on ghosts?" Makoto had said, snatching the book from her.
"I bet it's 'cause of the sexy guy on the back cover!" Hikaru had shouted, "She's been peaking back at it every two minutes since she picked the thing up!
Makoto flipped the book and stared intently at the picture of a glaring Naru, "Nah, he's like a little boy. And, what kinda name is Oliver Davis anyway? What is he a grandpa?"
"You know I love ghost shows, Makoto." Mai snatched the book back and tucked it under her arm, "That's all we ever watch when we're at your apartment. I just wanted to learn more about it."
"That's our little bookworm, Mai!" Hikaru tackled Mai onto the grass, ignoring the disapproving looks of passerby.
Although Mai could never tell if people stared at the Red Tails because of their dyed hair or if they really were a different species altogether, Mai knew that if her parents were still alive today and saw their daughter for the first time in six years, they defiantly wouldn't recognize her. Mai had bleached her own hair after joining the group, as something of an initiation into the sisterhood (the group was a different matter altogether). She had also pierced her ears in numerous places and, at the pressure of Makoto, her naval as well.
Even though the girls pushed Mai out of her comfort zone, it was the first time she had felt as if she had a family since SPR disbanded. Even if her new family was a gang.
Does anyone know where I can find more about Sukeban/Yanki culture? I can hardly find anything…