Thank you.
=^._.^=
It was a peaceful, early morning day in Tokyo. Across the city, people peacefully slept. At the horizon a faint lightning of the sky singled that dawn was slowly but surely arriving.
Across the city, in a quiet ward, stood a large building, a dormitory for the local boys school. Within this three-story brick building were the sleeping forms of several staff members, two hundred boys, and a silent visitor who was quite awake. This visitor silently floated up the stairs, paused at room 211, and entered. The visitor then silently made his way to the bunk beds resting against the wall.
Both occupants of the room were sound asleep. The alarm clock wasn't due to go off for another half an hour. The visitor raised himself to the top bunk and gazed down at the bed's occupant.
A handsome young man with a flawless complexion and wavy auburn blond hair lay sleeping. The visitor knew that if the young man's eyes were open, they would be the clearest crystalline amethyst. Eyes that could, and did with a great deal of frequency, cause girls of all ages to fall in love with him. So beautiful he was. The visitor smiled. The young man rolled over, shuddered ever so slightly, and opened his eyes.
* * * * *
"Ohayo . . . "
"Kyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
*thud*
"Itai!"
Mitsuru sat up off the floor gingerly and checked out the new lump on the back of his head. At the same time he glared at the person who had startled him out of a sound sleep (and incidentally, bed).
That person, the visitor, brought clenched fists up to her (yes, her) mouth. Her eyes glimmered with prospective tears. In the bottom bunk, Shinobu sighed softly to himself.
"Good morning Misako-san. Mitsuru, don't you think you are a bit old to be falling out of bed?" It must be pointed out that Shinobu knew exactly what had transpired without opening his eyes(and having been sound asleep up until Mitsuru had hit the floor.)
"Gomen nasai . . . " Misako wailed softly. This was not how she had planned things to go this morning.
Mitsuru stopped glaring at his best friend and turned to the pretty light-green haired ghost who was convinced that he was her boyfriend. "Miiisaaakooo . . . " he growled and slowly got to his feet. His head was not the only part of his anatomy that had been hurt by his fall. He was not going to enjoy his classes today; that was for sure. "What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to see you Ikeda-san," she said, hiccupping softly. She hadn't meant for him to fall out of bed.
"Just wanted to see me?" He glanced at the clock. And then gave it a harder look as he saw exactly what time it was. "At this time of the morning?" his voice began to rise. "Are you crazy?!"
"No . . . " Misako sniffled softly; a warning of things to come that Mitsuru did not pay attention to. Meanwhile, on the lower bunk, Shinobu silently pulled his covers over his head and turned his back to Mitsuru. He knew exactly what was coming.
"Then why won't you just leave me alone?!" he demanded.
"Because I love you!"
"I don't want your love!"
In the three seconds before the eminent irruption, Shinobu sighed. It looked to be another one of those days again.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" Misako wailed at the top of her lungs. "IKEDA-SAN DOESN'T LOVE ME ANYMORE!!!"
And just in case ~that~ hadn't woken everyone in the dormitory, a telekinetic storm swept through all the rooms, rattling the windows, tossing the furniture, and just making a general mess of everything.
"Nooo . . . " Mitsuru moaned, covering his face with his hands as he sank to the floor; clearly audible was the sound of roughly thirty doors slamming open and a babble of very irritated teenage boys making their way to his room. Misako sniffled once, tears streaming down her face.
* * * * *
An hour later Shinobu, Mitsuru and their two immediate neighbors, Kazuya and Shun (they had the misfortune to have the room next door), were eating breakfast in the dining hall. They were the only four people at their table, due to the hard feelings that the other one hundred ninety-six felt toward Mitsuru at the moment. None had appreciated how they had been woken up that morning. Nor had they been happy to discover that Mitsuru was once again being cruel to Misako (Their point of view. They liked the cute ghost and she wasn't haunting them.) thus making her cry. Making sure Misako didn't cry was a high priority in the dorm.
Kazuya yawned, Mitsuru swiped a fish off of his plate, and Shun sleepily propped his head up at the table.
"You know Mitsuru, if you would let her go to her rest, things like this wouldn't happen any more."
Mitsuru glared at the silvery haired young man sitting next to him. He was probably the only person who didn't look irritated by being woken up so early in the morning. He probably was, but it wouldn't show. "And how am I supposed to accomplish that?" Mitsuru asked tartly. "She said she would leave if I kissed her."
"And that didn't work at all," Kazuya pointed out. "She just came back." He shuddered at the memory. Misako had indeed returned . . . with three spiritual friends. He was still a bit nervous taking baths by himself, in fear that a ghost would decide to join him.
"Something is keeping her here," Shinobu took a sip of his miso soup. "As the haunted, it is your responsibility to find out what that is and put her to rest."
"And how am I supposed to do that?"
Shinobu just arched a silver brow at him. Mitsuru glared back.
"At least you won't have to worry about her in school." Shun cheerfully pointed out.
"Yeah, that is true."
* * * * *
Nothing else strange occurred until they reached the gate to Ryokuto Academy.
The four young men stopped and stared ahead of them. Milling around the gate were several dozen young girls, ageing from thirteen to eighteen.
"Oh _great_!" Mitsuru said with feeling. "With everything this morning, I totally forgot what today was."
"Saint Valentine's Day," Shinobu commented lightly, seeming not to care what the date was. But the slight hardening around his eyes said a lot more about how he felt about this day than his lightly voiced comment did.
"Not my problem," Shun said airily with a quick toss of his long pink hair. "Come on Suka-chan. We don't want to get caught up in the mob." The red-haired young man quickly nodded his agreement and started to follow his pink-haired friend. It wasn't as if any of these girls were going to give them chocolates. They were all members of the Ikeda and Tezuka fan club. There had been only one girl that he had been interested in. She had married his brother (which lead to him moving out and into the dorm). He was over her now (kinda-sorta) but it still hurt. He wasn't looking to receive any chocolates this year.
"It would be best to get this over with before class starts." Shinobu started to stride toward the girls. He had pasted a cheerful smile across his face. With one last sigh, Mitsuru joined him.
* * * * *
Sitting on the stone fence surrounding the school, Misako watched. There were some advantages in being a ghost. That didn't completely cancel out the disadvantages, but choice in some things was beyond a girl's control.
For an example of one of the things she did have control over, she did not have to let herself be seen if she did not wish to be seen. This made spying on people very easy. Eavesdropping as well. It also was a great way to keep an eye on Mitsuru (Providing she wasn't too close. Shinobu was very sensitive to her, any ghost's, presence.) without him being aware of it.
Usually this was the greatest joy and pleasure in her life. Today it was hell. Today was Valentine's Day. The day when a girl showed the boy she loved how much she loved him. And she was a ghost, and could do nothing. Even worse, she was watching all sorts of girls give her Mitsuru chocolates! Her Mitsuru! How dare they?
She glared at them. They didn't love him, not as much as she did, they couldn't! All they saw was his pretty face and lovely eyes. Experienced his exquisite manners. That was all they saw, all they knew. But that wasn't him. They did not know how sweet and kind he was. Or how brave he was. They did not know he protected those weaker than him. Or what his true personality was like. She would bet that none of them knew what his temper was like, or what embarrassed him. They would not appreciate his sense of humor or feel his pain whenever he thought about his birth family and how he felt that he didn't belong with his adopted family.
No, they knew nothing about him. And she could do nothing for him. He was the dearest person in her life (or more accurately, her afterlife). He cared about her; she knew it. Had seen it in his eyes, heard it in his voice. He cared about her, as a person. Not as Hayashi Misako, the third daughter and youngest born child. Not a young girl whose family had no expectations for her; young girl who was always, just there.
Why couldn't she have met him before she had encountered that truck? If that had happened, he would be smiling at these girls, shaking his head at the offered chocolate. After school she would have been waiting for him with a box of handpicked chocolates garnished with candied violets to match his eyes. He would smile at her, a real smile. A warm smile that would show her what was in his heart. And then he would have told her how much he loved her, only her . . .
Misako wiped away a phantom tear. But that would never happen. She had wanted to be there when he woke this morning. She had wanted to greet the morning with him, to tell him that she loved him. But that turned into a disaster and now he was angry with her.
A slight commotion from the crowd drew her attention. She looked up.
* * * * *
"Here Tezuka-san." Miagati held out a gaily-wrapped glass jar containing what looked to be chocolate syrup. Shinobu gave it, and then her, a suspicious look. There was an evil glint in her eyes. "I thought that we could use it after school," she purred. The way she held her body and the suggestive look in her eyes signaled to all what she was intending to use the chocolate syrup for. The girls in the crowd twittered. Mitsuru flushed a delicate shade of pink. Everybody present was embarrassed to some degree.
Shinobu smiled at her, a soft gentle smile that hid the fury within. He was _not_ amused. "Thank you Miagati-san," he said as he took the jar from her. He would get rid of it later. "But I am afraid I have plans for later. Some other time perhaps."
Miagati gave him a frozen look, quickly covered it, and laughed. "Oh, I am sure."
On the fence Misako was aghast. To walk up to a guy, and offer that under the guise of chocolate! She would never go that far. Ever. Sure she took a bath (sort of) with Mitsuru, but it was in all innocence. She was a ghost after all.
She watched as one of Miagati's friends cast a speculative glance toward Mitsuru. No. Misako shook her head, her short pigtails bobbing at the movement. Not her Mitsuru. She couldn't watch that. Not today. Not ever.
With a thought, Misako vanished.
Unnoticed by everyone, Shinobu gave a speculative look at the now unoccupied fence. His eyes narrowed slightly, but he said nothing.
* * * * *
Misako stood outside the candy store. School was over and business was brisk as girls of all ages bought all sorts of chocolates for the men they adored. Several of them wore the same blue school uniforms as Miagati and her friends. She wondered how many of those chocolates would make their way to Greenwood.
"Ah, excuse me, but is there something wrong?"
Misako paid the voice no attention. Her eyes were locked on all the chocolates.
"Miss?" The voice repeated, and a hand waved up and down in front of Misako.
She jerked backwards in surprise. The person had been talking to her!
"Pardon me." Misako turned and looked at the girl who was speaking to her.
She was around her age, with long wavy blond hair. Her eyes were a bright emerald green and gold and she was wearing an unfamiliar green school uniform. She smiled at Misako, a smile full of sunshine.
"I am sorry I scared you so. It is just that," the girl hesitated for a moment; then continued in a rush, "you looked all sad and depressed. Like your world had ended."
Misako dropped her gaze. "I am sorry. I did not mean for my sadness to intrude on your day."
The girl gazed at Misako for a long moment. "Do you wish to talk about it? Sometimes talking to someone helps."
Misako bit her lip and looked up at the other girl. Tell her what was troubling her? Talk about the sad love life of a ghost? Slowly Misako nodded.
"Then it is settled." The girl looked around. "But we need somewhere more suitable to talk. I passed a soda shop on my way here. Lets go there."
Misako nodded, and the two girls quietly started down the street.
* * * * *
Five minutes later Misako and the girl sat at a widow booth. A waitress immediately appeared and asked if they would like anything. Misako shook her head. The blond ordered a huge banana split sundae. The waitress nodded and walked away. As soon as she was no longer in hearing range, the blond girl turned to Misako.
"So what kind of problems are you having with your boyfriend?"
Misako's eyes fell to the table. "Well . . . " she whispered. "It is kind of hard to explain . . . "
"Does it have something to do with your being a ghost?"
Misako's head shot up and her startled eyes met the calm emerald eyes of the blond girl. "How did you know . . . "
"That you were a ghost?" the other girl finished gently. "I just knew. That is one of the reasons I paused to speak to you. You know, it is rather unusual for ghosts to be so firmly attached to this plane of existence as you are. It caught my attention."
"Oh."
The waitress returned to their table, two glasses of water and the banana split on her tray. A moment later the blond girl was eagerly dipping her spoon in the ice cream concoction before her. Misako winced. After several happy, ice cream filled seconds, the girl looked over at Misako.
"So what kind of problems are you and your boyfriend having that upset you so much? Did he take your turning into a ghost very hard?"
"Ummm . . . well actually . . . " Misako started to play with her fingers. "We didn't meet until after I became a ghost."
"Really?" Misako nodded and the blond girl looked at her with curiosity-filled eyes. "Now that is a new one to me. How did the two of you meet?"
"Well," a faint wave of pink crept up Misako's cheeks. "Its kind of strange, actually . . . " Misako proceeded to tell the blond girl what had happened, from the very beginning. How the truck had hit her after an argument with her parents. Finding out that she was now a ghost with no apparent purpose. Deciding that she might as well haunt someone, isn't that what ghosts were meant to do? Picking Mitsuru out of a dorm of two hundred. How she had fallen in love with him.
"I don't want to leave him, I am so happy with him and I know he likes me." Misako continued. "I wanted to wish him 'Good morning' this morning, but things got all messed up and now he is angry with me."
"And to make things worse, at his school all of these girls were giving him chocolates." Misako sniffled. "I love him, and I can't even give him chocolates on Valentine's Day."
The girl slowly sat down her spoon. During the story she had finished her banana split. "I see," she murmured. And then she gasped softly. "Oh my. I just realized it, we haven't introduced ourselves." She inclined her head. "I am Azami Kirei."
"Hayashi Misako."
The two girls looked at each other, and smiled.
"So Misako," Kirei tilted her head to one side quizzically. "What kind of chocolates do you want to give to Ikeda?"
* * * * *
In room 211 of Greenwood a small crowd of boys had gathered to count chocolates.
"Okay." Mitsuru was sitting on the floor with a small notebook. "Tsuru received ten, Kazama received fifteen." A slight mummer filled the room. "Miyashita received twenty-two." The murmur grew louder.
"Man, he beat last year's score by three," Hamatsu said. "What were the odds on that?"
"Six to one," Shinobu supplied from where he was sitting at the desk. The sound of dark mutters filled the room.
"How many did you get?" Kazuya asked Mitsuru.
"Forty-one."
A low whistle filled the room.
Shun turned to Shinobu. "And how many did you receive?"
"Thirty-eight." He was -not- counting the chocolate syrup.
*ping*
"Ikeda," the manager's voice came across the intercom. "Please go to the visitors room."
The ten teens looked at each other, then they all turned to Mitsuru.
"It is a bit late to be having visitors," Shinobu idly commented.
Mitsuru sighed and closed his notebook. "I will be back in a few minutes." He stood up and left the room.
Silence encompassed the room, for all of ten seconds. They all looked at each other, then they turned to the door.
"Wonder who it can be?"
"Can't hurt to go see."
"I must admit, I am curious myself."
They looked at each other once again, and then started for the door.
* * * * *
A bit apprehensively Mitsuru walked down the hall to the visitors room. Who would visit him this late at night? The manager never let girls in to see him, no matter what, so it wasn't any of them. He reached the windows and peered in. Misako. He sighed and entered the room.
"Hello Misako-san."
"Ikeda-san."
Mitsuru gave her a closer look. She seemed nervous about something. "I take it you wanted to see me about something." Shyly she nodded. That just served to make him nervous. What was she planning?
"I am sorry about what happened this morning."
"Eh?" Mitsuru stepped nearer. He had to have heard her wrong.
"I just wanted to wish you a good morning. I am sorry you fell out of bed. And for getting all of your friends mad at you." She clasped her hands and bowed down to him. "Please forgive me."
"Heh heh heh." Nervously Mitsuru ran his fingers thru his hair. This was not something he had been expecting. "Couldn't you have told me all of this upstairs?"
Misako looked down at her lap. "Well, yes. I suppose. But I also . . . I wouldn't have been able . . . I couldn't . . . " She took a deep breath and raised wide violet eyes. "Iwouldn'thavebeenabletogiveyoumychocolates," she blurted out in one breath.
It took Mitsuru several seconds to sort out what she had said, and when he had, he turned pale. "Chocolates?" he questioned in a weak voice.
Misako gave a small nod, and pointed to the small table next to the wall. Slowly he turned and looked at it. A small gold box wrapped with silver and gold ribbon was sitting on it. With a hesitant look at Misako, who was watching him wide-eyed, he walked over and picked it up. He slid the ribbon off and carefully opened the box.
Inside were five heart-shaped chocolates. Each had a delicate white icing trim on it. In each center was a candied violet. Mitsuru swallowed past the lump in his throat and looked up at the ghost sitting across the room. She was still watching him, her eyes full of anxiety. "Misako-san," he all but whispered, having a hard time speaking at all. "Thank you."
* * * * *
On the other side of the window Shinobu, Kazuya, Shun and their friends had watched the entire scene.
"I don't believe it. Misako-chan gave Mitsuru chocolates!"
"He has girls falling all over him, dead and alive, and I can't even get a nod."
Shun frowned. "Shinobu-senpai, how did she buy the chocolates? She can't touch anything, and she doesn't have any money."
Kazuya's eyes grew wide and he peered back into the room. Mitsuru and Misako were staring at each other, the box still in Mitsuru's hand. Shun had asked a good question.
Shinobu was thinking the same thing, and he was gazing hard at Misako. If he had the presence of mind to check, he would have found the answer to Shun's question casually sitting on the fence around the dorm, watching Mitsuru and Misako thru the open window with a pair of binoculars. Kirei sighed the sigh of a girl who had reached the happy ending of a love story and jumped down to the sidewalk. Time to get back home. She would be returning soon enough.
The End
=^._.^=
* * * revised 2003 * * *