21 QUESTIONS: A Ghost Story

The air was warm and humid, holding the promise of rain in the near future. The late evening sky was darkened with heavy rainclouds, obscuring the sunset. Naruto sighed deeply as he clutched his jacket closer; summer was almost finished. Soon fall would begin, bringing with it another year of school and hard work.

For the past two months, Naruto had managed to make some decent money working at the beach as a lifeguard. Unfortunately, he could only work for the summer, and had been forced to look for new employment. He had found it in the form of Konoha Cemetery. The job description had been simple enough. They were looking for a night security guard from 10pm to 2pm. Naruto had passed the interview and had been shown around in the morning. Tonight was his first night.

He sighed again as he looked over at the map clutched in his hands. Constant worrying had caused it to become crumpled and unsightly. He tucked it into his back pocket and unlocked the front office. The smell of earth and rain was replaced by disinfectant. It looked just like a normal office, save that it was closed for the night. Naruto supposed that it was a lot more welcoming in the daytime. In the dark, it looked a bit creepy.

After locating his locker, Naruto changed into his uniform. It was a simple task, helping calm his jittery nerves. Naruto closed his locker and grabbed a flashlight from the rack. It was cool and heavy in his hands. He left the same way he had entered, carefully tucking the keys into his pocket. He made his way to the front gates and sat on the smooth wooden bench, just out of sight of the quiet street. He was supposed to lock up at 10:30, and he wanted to make sure that he did just this. At least, that's what he told himself.

The truth was that Naruto was a bit uncomfortable being in the cemetery. He was not a stranger to the place, having visited his mother numerous times in the past. It was just the feeling of sadness that lingered in the air. Sometimes, he would sit for hours by his mother's grave, watching the other mourners pass by him. Their drooping shoulders and wet eyes told him everything he needed to know.

Lost in his thoughts, Naruto suddenly jerked to attention as his watch beeped. He turned off the alarm and fumbled the gates closed. Then, as he had been instructed, Naruto activated the security system. Now came the worst part of his job. He had to walk around the cemetery once every half an hour to make sure nobody was in the graveyard. Not that there would be anyone, visiting hours had ended at 9:30 and most people had left by then. It was mostly vandals that he was supposed to watch out for.

Naruto stretched and began to walk around the familiar path that would lead him to his mother's grave. He had already planned the route he would take on his patrol, and had made sure that he would pass by the grave at least twice. He turned on the flashlight to illuminate his way. It was very dark and he didn't want to trip on something.

Naruto took in the shapes of the shadows, trying to reconcile them with the images of the cemetery he had. He remembered stone pathways and trees around the perimeter of the large ground. The grass was bright green, and interrupted only by the different headstones. There were some older tombs at the west end, and the newer graves were found at the north end. The entrance was in the middle of the south wall, not far from the cemetery parking lot and the bus stop. His mother's grave was in the eastern section, and this was where he was headed right now.

There were more and more trees lining the path, and he could see the fallen flower petals in the beam of his flashlight. Naruto jumped slightly as the breeze blew more petals into the night. He shouldn't be this jumpy, but the lack of noise was setting him on edge. He would've brought his iPod, but he was scared of being caught off guard by any vandals. Naruto had to be alert at all times.

The peacefulness of the cemetery made him wonder why anyone would bother breaking into the place. Sure, there was the thrill and the creepy factor, but beyond that…it was too cruel. Hoping that he wouldn't meet anyone tonight, Naruto continued to walk. Unfortunately, this was exactly when he spotted her.

He first spotted the pile of rose petals beside the bench. Then the beam of light illuminated a pair of pretty pink shoes, longs legs partially hidden by a skirt, and a pair of pale hands shredding a bouquet of roses. Startled, Naruto nearly dropped his flashlight. Composing himself after the initial surprise, he lifted the flashlight to better see the woman.

He saw her pale hands again, still shredding the roses on her lap, as if she hadn't noticed him at all. Her head was bent over her simple white dress and her pink hair hung in front of her face. Naruto gulped slightly; the woman was motionless except for her hands. The overall image was quite strange, and a little bit creepy. Frowning slightly, he approached.

"Excuse me, but visiting hours were over a few hours ago. I'm really sorry, but you're going to have to leave. Please allow me to escort you to the front gate." The speech, which had been practised in front of his bathroom mirror, seemed to hang in the air between them.

The woman didn't respond but her hands stopped tearing the flowers. Looking up slowly, she met Naruto's surprise with her eyes. The green colour suggested vibrancy, but her eyes were dull and dark. She stared at Naruto, taking in his flashlight, uniform and expression. Then she resumed her work.

Naruto just gaped at her. Reaching hesitantly, he tapped her on her shoulder. "I said, visiting hours are over. You have to leave now." He hoped he sounded more insistent. The silence was starting to creep him out.

"I haven't left in three years. Besides, I have nowhere to go." Her voice was soft, and had an echo to it, as if she was speaking from a deep tunnel.

Naruto took this in and sat down awkwardly beside the woman. She didn't look homeless; Naruto had been warned that some vagrants were liable to sneak in for some shelter. Her clothing and bearing did not suggest any hardship. She didn't even seem lost. Confused, he touched her shoulder again.

"It's my job to make sure that nobody comes into the cemetery at night. You can come back in the morning, when the place is open. Is there anyone I can call? Anyone who could come get you?" Naruto felt bad at implying that she was unable to take care of herself, but she didn't seem to be normal. Grief did that to a lot of people, but the woman didn't even seem to be mourning. She was just ripping the petals of a dozen roses. They seemed fresh; he could even see the florist's tag. It read Yamanaka Flowers in a fancy script.

"I'm serious. You really shouldn't be here. I'll get in trouble if I let you in here." Naruto wasn't sure if he was allowed to bodily remove people from the cemetery.

"This is the only place I have. I'm supposed to be here, I think. Anyway, I'm not going to move. I can't." She didn't even look up at him.

"That doesn't even make sense."

"I suppose not. You wouldn't understand."

"Yeah? I really can't let you be here. Give me one good reason to let you stay."

"I'm bored." She sighed slowly, and looked up at him once again with her sad eyes.

"What? That's not even a reason!" Naruto's temper was starting to flare. This woman was infuriating.

"Ok. Let's play a game." She didn't even seem to notice Naruto's anger.

"NO! You have to go." His voice was loud and harsh.

"I can't go. Besides, I want to play 20 questions." She didn't blink as she stared at him.

"And you'll tell me why you won't leave?" Naruto's curiosity got the better of him. He nodded his acquiescence. "Alright."

"I want to go first. Here's my question: Who are you?" She seemed genuinely curious now. Her expression changed from depressed to interest.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I'm 18 years old and I go to Konoha High. I'll be a senior this year." Naruto replied hurriedly. "My turn. Why can't you leave the cemetery?"

"That's simple. I can't leave because my body is here." She pointed straight ahead, at a row of graves.

Naruto jumped at this. She was not a ghost, was she? That was impossible. He peered at the darkness, seeing only the dark mass of the headstones. He would've laughed at this had it been daytime, but the night seemed to make him doubt his common sense. He turned to face the woman next to him. Only she wasn't there anymore. All that was left were 12 rose stems and a pile of rose petals.

Shivering in the warm air, Naruto tugged at his shirt. He got up quickly and looked around. There was no sign of her. Shuddering, he walked quickly, leaving the stone bench behind. After walking halfway around the cemetery, Naruto realized that he hadn't visited his mother; he had been too preoccupied.

Deciding to complete his rounds, he continued around the perimeter, occasionally shining his flashlight along the graves. Passing by the entrance, Naruto checked that the security was still up. Then, he finally reached the bench. It was exactly the same as he had left it.

Maybe the lady had left and he just hadn't noticed.

She was probably joking about 'her body'.

She might be crazy.

That last thought worried Naruto. He didn't know how to deal with an insane person. At least she didn't seem dangerous. He hefted the heavy metal flashlight in his hand, hoping he wouldn't see her again.

There will be one or two chapters after this! Please review and tell me what you think! I'm sorry that it's not that scary…but it'll get better soon (I can't promise that it'll get any scarier though)!

Thanks! And review please!