It really has been a long time since my mission, since my lot in life came to an abrupt end one dreary night. It ended with the bad guys defeated, love conquering all, and enough idealistic garbage to fill a dump.

I don't like that I'm the one that has to break Mai and Midori's dream, but someone has to do it.

For every good that happened that night, two bad--two horrible, unsavory secrets came up for each and every one of us to deal with.

Mai is terrified to let go of her brother and boyfriend, and her relationship with another HiME... doesn't look so good.

Mikoto and Nao actually both got something they hadn't been expecting. Mikoto her brother and Nao her mother. I don't know about the former, but I can guess at what happened with the latter. Figures I would be the one to understand.

Either way, a mountain of idealism wouldn't be enough for the other HiME's to trust them again.

Akane and Yukino both came out shaken to the core. Soft-spoken before, now they hold terror close to heart.

Shiho came out worst of it all. No one can fool themselves into caring, though.

Yukariko, the head nun... well, former 'head' nun, eloped with her most precious person. She lost her livelihood, while it turned out he's less than a romantic and more unstable than her faith.

Unsurprisingly, Midori came away unscathed... from what everyone can see, at least. No one can really tell. As for that Akira girl... no one really knows anything at all. Not even Takumi, her 'boyfriend'.

As for me? All the unsavory edges of life came up and swallowed me whole, spit me out, and expect me to go back. No matter how much I think about it, however passionately I feel as though somehow it could have ended up differently for... everyone, I'm always left confused. Depressed. Angry.

Honestly, I'm trying.

The Wolf and the Dragon

Reputation

"The growth of a palm tree is a delicate process. Frequently, the question of which fertilization practice should be used is overlooked, leading to a substantial lack of growth. You must care for the tree, thrice a year, while following a three month slow release..."

It's at about this point when Natsuki decided burying her head deep within her arms would be more productive for her than listening to this drivel.

The regular school lessons had always been bad before she had even chosen to attend them regularly, but now she had to deal with a distraught school system that hired demented substitute teachers. He was talking about plants, overgrown desert island plants that not one person here would ever see. Why were they even talking about plants? Plants are useless, they don't help anyone, and this was Arts and Crafts. She wanted to go find her regular teacher, bring him back, and kick this guy's ass out.

Actually, that's not the entire truth. She wanted out of this school.

She groaned. Somewhere during her inner diatribe the man had asked her a question. Wasn't he abstracting about palm trees?

"Yes, Sensei?"

Hook-nose looked at her like she was a bug. "Were you not paying attention..." he looked down at his desk, "Kuga-san?"

No, you god-damned tree hugging bastard, you're too boring to try living through. "Yes, Sensei, I was—"

"You were what, Kuga-san—doing nothing? It seems like it."

In all of her short experience and life, she had operated under fire, been arrested, and actually, true to form, killed, but she still couldn't deal with a wise-ass to save herself. Why did she still try, why oh why oh why? Teachers seemed to live to cut her off, and it pissed her off to no end. "Yes, Sensei."

The man nodded, pompous and petty and pretentious all at once. Move on with the lesson, spare me my life. I've gone through too much to die like this.

He turned back to the board, book in one hand, chalk in the other, and he stared. It was confusing at best, and she didn't like it. He seemed as though he'd forgotten-- "So where was I?"

Natsuki sighed. Somehow she knew this lesson had only just begun.

(III)

It was an hour later of boredom, which felt more like an eternity in hell, when Natsuki finally stumbled out of the class. She had the compulsion to gasp for air, but decided against it. Freedom was enough as long as she was away from that asshole. Never again will I look upon Nature the same, thanks to you.

Tossing her hair over her shoulder, she dismissed the classroom easily, in spite of her melodrama. Instead she peered at the sheet she held, drudging up the dislikable fact that she still had a few classes left for the day.

School would be the end of her. Fate declared it.

These were classes she needed to attend, though she hated to say it. She promised to finish them, best to her abilities, for herself as well as for a few others that will not be mentioned. Political Science, followed by Chemistry, and rounded up with... Dance. Why in the world she had dance of all things, she still didn't know. She blamed Shizuru.

This isn't right, she thought, walking through the halls. This isn't fair.

Brooding, she was brooding. Fortunately, as she sulked, the few other students around her seemed to sense it. They didn't seem to move out of her way as much, but when she looked up, glaring all the while, they decided they should. That brought a little pride to her strut.

It was as she made her way past the Student Council room when Natsuki stopped. Haruka's exploits--or voice, whoever you spoke to said differently--were famous around the school, and Natsuki could understand at least one of the reasons everyone knew Haruka whenever she heard her shouting.

Natsuki shook her head. How Shizuru could even begin to put up with that girl, she would never know. Why she would in the first place—that's another matter entirely.

It was only what happened after she continued on, away from the living blow horn, that stunned her so quickly she wouldn't be able to explain to herself, let alone Mai, why it happened.

She started heading towards her classroom, only a dozen feet away, but she saw a quick gleam off of a window, like the flicker of the sun on tin. It reminded her so very easily of how her bike would shine on beautiful days like this, and it left her reminiscing of times when riding her bike everywhere and nowhere were only a day apart. All of a sudden, she wanted to see that same gleam on her Kawasaki ZX... but she couldn't.

Yes, I can, I've done it before.

Before you had your vengeance, answered her overly rational voice. Now you have school.

So? I'm catching up, and if I don't do this I'll miss important stuff when I fall asleep.

You won't fall asleep.

Yes, I will.

Your next class has Mai in it.

When that voice wanted to be right, it could be god-damn forthright. Natsuki shook her as violently as possible, and darted past her next lesson. The bell had long since rang, and she was not walking in late. She had enough earfuls with Hook-Nose, and she had enough monotone lecturing with palm trees. Absolutely no frigging way was she doing it again.

Natsuki walked upon the trimmed grass, heading dead-straight for the parking lot. Oddly, she noticed there were students loitering here or there, playing guitars, chatting amiably, huddling together and playing sports. Must be lunch, she reasoned, but did they have to look at her and smile?

Storming forward just a little faster, she made record time to the parking lot. It was fairly empty, only a Pick-Up and a Beetle there alongside her Kawasaki, so it made it a little easier noticing the final thing—no, person there.

Shizuru? It was safe to say Natsuki was dumbfounded by the Student Council Presidents presence there, all alone and so very near her bike. It wasn't really the randomness, she just swore Shizuru was being yelled at by Haruka a second ago.

Even so, there was a certain majestic calm to the way the girl stood alongside the bike, just-barely tracing it with her fingers. Natsuki registered that this was probably the first time she had ever found Shizuru without Shizuru finding her, but it took just a little longer and it hit a little harder than she could handle. There was neither a smile on Shizuru's face, nor any pretense and serendipity, which compared to the regular lazy calm Natsuki's mind ascribed to her, made her look like so much more. Raw and intense, like an open book; what did the words say?

As hard as she could try, she focused on those rich carmine eyes that looked so... vulnerable. They looked as though they could bleed their dark depths away just for her. It was too much.

She ran back to class, hoping that Shizuru didn't see.

It was only later when Mai would tease her for coming in so late and getting scolded, and when Shizuru would stroll on by in her lazy-calm way, that Natsuki would look into those carmine orbs again, holding together the courage to keep contact. There would be a smile, and Shizuru would nod, walking on by just like usual, but Natsuki would continue to stare so very intently at her back, confused.

She still saw that sadness, where she never did before.

"Nat-su-ki!"

"AH?!"

Mai stumbled back, a mystified look on her face. "Whoa, whoa, what's gotten into you?"

Natsuki just glared at her, wondering what had gotten into HER. "I could ask you the same!"

Her friend just shook her head. "You were spacing off again."

She harrumphed. That was her business.

"Natsuki?" Mai tilted her head.

Far be it from Natsuki to admit, but she found that look horrifying. "...What?"

"There are a couple of guys looking at you down the hall," Mai said, pointing. "Do you know them?"

"No, and I CAN tell you that without looking. People seem to be looking at me everywhere I go." She crossed her arms. It was actually getting on her nerves now. How can Shizuru put up with it?

Of all things to happen, Mai giggled. "What's so funny, now?"

"Nothing." Mai said it too innocently, too cheerfully. Something was up. "It just seems that our Ice Princess is starting to become too common for the school not to notice."

Despite herself, she felt the tell-tale heat spike up. "...What are you talking about?"

Mai just pointed right at Natsuki's nose.

Fending off her need to slap the finger away, it took her only a moment, this once, to understand. She turned her head away. "Idiot."

Series Disclaimer:

All Characters, Stories, and Intellectual Property original to Mai HiME belong © and ™ Sunrise. Used without permission. All Characters, Stories, and Intellectual Property original to HiME-Tales belong © Prozak.