The House of Sorrow by Child of the Faeries
Kind of a dark piece. Really weird title. I'm not sure if it's very good..... but I tried. Please tell me what you think. Oh, I don't own Digimon or any of it's characters. And the song Matt and Mimi sing is "Little Star" by Madonna........so I don't own it either.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
On top of a tall hill there was a lonely house. All of it's shutters were closed, and the roof had large holes in it. The front deck had fallen into disrepair, and a veil of sadness seemed cloak the entire hill.
Inside of this house there lived a very handsome man. He had golden blond hair and heart-breaking blue eyes. Being only 28 years old, all of the ladies in town looked at him lustfully whenever he went grocery shopping or picked up stuff for his work.
But this man wore only black, and his eyes were filled with a grief that no one could understand. No one, that is, except his daughter. For his wife had died many years before, and the townspeople whispered among themselves that someday he would die of a broken heart. His soul had left the same day that Mimi Ishida died, they told newcomers.
"That's the home of Matt Ishida," Sora Yagami was told when she moved into a house nearby. "He's a widower, and he's not looking for any type of romance. He just wants to be left alone. Just him and his daughter."
Out of curiosity, she ventured up to the Ishida House one cold, grey day. She wanted to see Matt again, and see what his daughter looked like. She knocked as rain began to fall heavily on the small town, drenching her. "Hello?" she called, hoping desperately that someone would come and open the door. Finally she heard the doorknob creak, and she fell inside, glad to get out of the rain.
"Who are you?" a man asked coldly. Sora looked at him.
"Matt! It's me, Sora. Sora Yagami." His cold eyes didn't flicker or show any sights of recognition. "Sora? C'mon Matt, you have to remember me. "
He regarded her coolly. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, I recently got divorced....and now, I'm living here. And I heard you lived here....... and I thought maybe I'd stop by and see you and your daughter."
"Hope is at school right now, and I'm working, Sora," Matt said hollowly. "I think it would be best if you would just leave us alone." He opened the door, and Sora found herself back in the rain.
As she walked down the driveway, she glanced back at Matt standing in the doorway. All she could see was an empty soul, the shadow of man that was ceasing to exist.
Matt closed the door softly after Sora had gone beyond his view. He knew that he had been rude with her, but....... she brought back painful memories. Memories of Mimi.
He collapsed in a chair, taking a sip of his Scotch. Mimi.... even the thought of her still made his blood turn to ice and choke the life out of him. She had been his life.....
I never should have let you go that night. We both knew that the roads were slippery. I should have been the one that ran to the store. You could have stayed and watched over Hope. Then you would still be alive.
*~* It's not your fault.*~* Matt thought he heard a voice say. Man, you are losing it, he told himself. You've got to pull it together. For Hope.
He turned back to his work, drowning out his sorrows with another glass of alcohol.
Late into the night, Matt sat at his desk, working on his newest short story. A can of beer sat next to an unfinished peanut-butter sandwich Hope had made him when she got home from school.
The door to his office opened, and Hope walked in. "What are you doing up, honey?" Matt asked, looking at the clock. It was well after midnight.
"I heard someone singing, Daddy," Hope said, running over and curling up in Matt's lap. "They were singing Mommy's song."
"There's no one else here, Hope. Just you and me." He smiled, hugging his eight year old daughter close. "Why don't you go back to bed and I'll come sit with you?"
"Okay." Her bright blue eyes sparkled. "Will you sing to me? The way Mommy used to?"
Matt hesitated, then took his daughter's hand. "Of course I will."
When Hope finally climbed into bed, Matt turned off the lights and sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Never forget who you are, Little Star. Never forget how to dream, Butterfly," Matt sang softly, running his fingers thrown his daughter's beautiful hair. It was a mixture of gold and brown, swirling and intertwining. "May angels protect you, and sadness forget you, Little Star....."
Mimi had sung this song to Hope every night until she died. Matt had heard it so often that he knew the words by heart. And Hope loved to hear him sing it...... it reminded Hope of her mother.
He watched as Hope drifted off to sleep, smiling. He loved his daughter more that his own life. He would be lost without her.
Going back to his office, he poured out the rest of his beer. He needed to stop drinking. He drank too much, and it wasn't good for him.
Hope needed him. He was the only one left to take care of her now.
"Ms. Yagami says she knew Mommy," Hope said one night at supper. Matt looked up quickly.
"When have you been talking to Ms. Yagami?" he asked, almost sharply. Hope looked startled.
"She's the librarian at our school now. Mrs. Ginger quit."
"Oh." Matt continued to eat his food.
"She says that Mommy was her best friend. Is that true, Daddy?"
Sora, screw you, Matt thought angrily. Why did Sora have to talk to Hope? "Yes baby. Sora and your Mommy were very good friends."
"Ms. Yagami says you're very sad," Hope said softly. "Are you, Daddy? Cuz I try and try to make you happy...."
"I'm happy, Hope. Whenever you're around, I'm the happiest person in the world. And you know why?"
"Why?"
"Because you remind me so much of your mom." Hope's face lit up.
"Really?"
"Really." Matt said, scooping his daughter up in his arms. "I love you."
"Love ya, too, Daddy."
Matt thought they were getting along just fine. He was still in mourning, but still.... after a girl like Mimi, the only thing you could do was mourn. It was only natural.
He woke up one night to the frightened screams of Hope. "Honey, honey, what's the matter?" Matt asked, turning on her lights.
"She was here, Daddy," Hope said softly, her eyes frightened.
"Who was here?" Matt asked, trying to soothe her back to sleep.
"Mommy was. And she was an ghost. I could see through her and stuff. And she said......."
"She didn't say anything, Hope, because your Mommy's dead. Okay honey? She isn't coming back and she can't tell you anything anymore. She's gone."
"But Daddy.......I saw her."
"It was just a dream. Nothing more. C'mon. You need to get to sleep. You've got a busy day tomorrow."
After she had fallen asleep, he started to go back to his bedroom. Walking through the dining room, he thought he heard a noise in the kitchen.
*~* Yamato....... I love you.....Always and forever....*~* He saw a flicker of light. Blinking his eyes, nothing was there.
You must be drunk. Or hallucinating. Or both. Get a grip. You can't act like this. Hope is starting to see and hear things, too.
Sighing, he grabbed a beer and headed for bed.
A few days later, Matt went into town to mail his latest set of stories. He stopped to eat lunch in town and Sora sat down with him in the restaurant.
"Shouldn't you be in the library?" Matt asked coldly, and Sora laughed.
"Even librarians get a lunch break." The waitresses were giving Sora evil glares, but she ignored them. "Matt, I'm worried about Hope."
He narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
"Because she's got no friends. Everyone teases her because her mom is dead and her dad is a drunk...." Her face vaulted. " Oh my gosh... Matt....... I didn't mean it......"
Anger rising within his body, Matt stood up. "I really don't think you should be passing judgment, Sora."
"Mommy visited me again last night," Hope announced at breakfast. "She sang to me just like she used too."
"Hope...." Matt started, then stopped. "Don't tell anyone you Mommy is visiting you, okay?"
She nodded gravely. "Okay Daddy."
"Now get ready for school. You're going to be late!" he teased, kissing her on the head. She giggled and ran out of the room.
It's just a stage, Matt thought to himself. Every little kid has an imaginary friend. Heck, I did. Hope's just looks like her mother because......... she misses Mimi. Just like I do.
Matt looked around his house and saw how broken and dirty it had become. It's been almost 4 years now. Time to move on.
*~* You don't want to move on. *~* a voice whispered. Matt turned around.
"Who's there?"
*~* You want everything the way it was. *~* the voice replied. *~* I'm here, Matt. I always am.*~*
"Hope?" Matt said warily, and Hope hopped into the room with one shoe on. "Do you hear someone in here?"
Hope smiled and nodded her head innocently. "Yep. It's Mommy."
As the days progressed, Matt heard the voice more and more often. *~* I love you Matt......*~* he heard whispered as he wrote late in the night.
*~* Hope has grown so sweet and brave. *~* he heard as he played soccer with Hope outside.
*~* Love lasts even beyond death......*~*
Hope started talking more and more about her mother as the days progressed. One day Matt received a phone call from Sora.
"Do you know what your daughter just told me?" she demanded. Matt didn't answer. "She told me that yesterday she and her mother went for a picnic down by the stream, but you couldn't go because you had to work. Matt, Mimi is dead. You have to spend more time with your daughter, or she's going to end up in some shrink's office completely confused."
"Why can't you mind your own business?"
"Matt, don't you see? She thinks Mimi is still alive. She thinks that she can talk to her and see her!"
"She.....can," Matt said slowly. His voice halted, and then he whispered," I've seen her and heard her, too."
"Matt, you're drunk," Sora said angrily. She slammed down the phone.
Matt stood on Mimi's grave. "I miss you, Mimi. I wish you were still here."
*~* I am still here. *~*
"Hope misses you. I wish she had a mother to raise her up, but..... I don't think I will ever fall in love again. Not after you.
*~* That's so sweet..... I love you, Matt. *~*
"I still love you, Mimi." He kicked the ground. "Four years today. My soul has been in this shallow grave with you for four years now."
*~* Hope needs her father. *~*
"And I need you!" Matt cried out angrily. "I've never forgiven myself. It's my fault you are dead. I remember, it had started to snow, and we were so happy because that meant it was going to be a white Christmas. But then.... it kept snowing..... and Hope got a fever....... Why didn't I drive that night? I could have run to the store and got the medicine and everything would have be fine....."
*~* Matt, you can't blame yourself. *~*
"Why not? I let you go........ and the next thing I knew, I got a call from the police chief saying that you slipped on the ice and swerved into the ditch....... At least I know that you died without pain and hurt." He clenched his fists. " We need you, Mimi. How could you just leave us?" Turning, he wiped his bitter tears from his eyes and walked away.
"Mommy says she's sorry. She didn't mean to leave us, but God said it was her time to go," Hope said the next morning.
"What?" Matt said, looking up from his newspaper.
"Mommy didn't want to leave us, but God made her. He said that it was time for her to come and visit him," Hope said solemnly.
"Hope, I don't like it when you talk like that," Matt said crossly.
"Are you mad at me, Daddy?" Hope said, her voice wavering. Matt looked at her, and his face softened.
"No honey, I'm not mad at you. You're my little princess. I love you."
Hope got up from the table."Do you still love Mommy?"
Matt's smile faded. " I love your mother more and more everyday."
"Good. She says that she still loves you, too."
Matt began to notice things were being moved around his house. A picture that he had hidden away after Mimi's death found it's way unto his desk. His harmonica that he never played anymore was placed on his bed. One day, after a particularly bad afternoon, he found their wedding album in Hope's room.
He stumbled into her room, dropping his fifth beer of the day.Turning through the pages, the memories haunted him. Mimi looked so pretty and happy....
"That was the best day in my life," he whispered softly.
*~*The best day in my life was the day I met you. *~*
"Mimi?" Matt whispered. He knew that he was drunk, but he could swear that he heard her voice.
*~* I'm here, Matt. *~*
"Why can't I see you?"
*~* Do you believe that love can last even beyond death? *~*
"Of course I do, Mimi."
*~* When you truly believe that, you'll see me. *~*
"Mimi.........." But the voice was gone.
"Merry Christmas honey," Matt said as Hope opened her presents very early on Christmas morning.
""Oh Daddy! They're beautiful!" Hope exclaimed, holding up a pair of silver ice skates.
"I thought that maybe you and I could go skating sometime. It was something that your mother and I liked to do."
A cold breeze filled the room, and Matt shivered. He walked over and turned up the furnace. But the cold didn't go away.
"Mimi?"
"Mommy's not here, Daddy. She's up in heaven eating birthday cake with Jesus." Matt smiled at his daughter's naive mentality. She didn't know the truth.
"Yes honey. That's where she is. But I still miss her."
"I miss her, too."
When Matt went to bed late that night, he found a piece of paper on his bed. He unfolded it and read the writing.
"Merry Christmas, Yamato dear. Four years have we been apart, but I will never leave you. My soul will never descend from here, because I know that you need me. I wish I could be with you, just for one more night, my dear, but as we both know, that is impossible. So I hide in the shadows, waiting until we are together. Sweet dreams, beloved. ~Mimi."
This is just a cruel joke. How could Hope do such a horrible thing? Matt was appalled. And yet.... the letter sounded so much like Mimi.........
On New Year's eve, Matt went into town to get some wine to celebrate New Year's night. He walked down the main street, lost in his own morbid thoughts about death, sadness and grief.
He walked into the liquor store, only to see Sora standing near the back. He knew that if she saw him, he would be in for a lecture about his drinking problem. Ducking back out of the door, he stepped into the street. Immediately, he felt a hand pulled him back, just a car came speeding past.
Matt hadn't even seen the car coming. If that person hadn't pulled him back..... Hope would have been an orphan....
He turned to see who had saved him life. He gasped, and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Mimi's smiling face and beautiful body had disappeared.
Matt didn't go home. Instead, he headed to the bar and got himself drunk. He knew that it wasn't a good sign, seeing your dead wife on the street corner.
Sitting in a dark corner, he reminisced about the past. He thought about when he first saw Mimi, at summer camp. She had been so prissy and perfect, Matt had immediately been turned off. But when they were sucked into the Digital World, a small affection for her grew in his heart. And then she moved away........ and well, then he knew the truth. He loved her. And eventually, that love turned into something eternal and forever......
Then Hope had been born........ Matt looked at his watch and cursed under his breath. It was 9:00. Hope had been home alone all day, and it was already past her bedtime.
Paying his bill, he dashed out of the crowded bar and up to his house. He opened the front door softly, and took off his shoes.
"Hope?" he asked, walking upstairs. "Are you in bed?"
"Never forget who you are, Little Star, Shining brighter than all the stars in the sky. Never forget how to dream, Butterfly, Flying higher than all the birds in the sky. Never forget who you are, Little Star...... Never forget where you come from..." Matt could hear someone singing sweetly. He walked over to Hope's room and turned on the light.
"From love, Little Star. From love..."
"Mimi......." Matt's voice drained away. He leaned against the door, shock overcoming him.
"Matt.... turn off the lights. You're going to wake up Hope. I just got her to bed. She was worried about you, but I told her that you would be fine."
"You're as beautiful as always," Matt whispered, awe in his voice.
Mimi stood, a glimmering light surrounding her. Her chestnut hair swirled around her hair, making her look like supernatural.
"But I am supernatural, Matt. Because I'm dead."
"Are you an angel?"
She laughed, her pure laughter sending shivers up Matt's spine. "An angel, in love with a rebel? That wouldn't work, my dear. I'm just a ghost."
"Are you real?"
She looked at him, her eyes sparkling with happiness." As real as you, or the air that surrounds you." She paused, moving closer. "I was given a second chance. A second chance to be with my family, because I knew that they needed me."
"When will you leave us again?"
She moved closely, kissing Matt. Her ghostly kiss made Matt shiver, but she smiled. "I'll never leave you again."
Matt grinned. "Is that a threat or a promise?"
Mimi smiled, taking hold of Matt's hand. "A promise. For forever."
The two dashed away, smiling. And Hope peeked her head out from under the covers, smiling. She had her family back again.
It had been many years since Sora had last talked to Matt. Everyone in the town had decided that he and his daughter were insane, that the loss of Mimi warped their minds, causing them to think that she was haunting them.
The townspeople laughed and joked about it, but Sora wondered if they were right.
Matt had taken Hope out of public school, homeschooling her. They rarely came into town anymore, only to buy food and pick up school supplies.
Sora thought perhaps Matt was hiding, trying to find himself. At least his drinking problem seemed to have stopped. He never entered the liquor store when he was in town, and he was always smiling.
Tales circulated town that his love for Mimi had kept her on this world, and the three Ishidas dwelt together on their dream house on the top of the hill.
The three Ishidas...... Matt, Mimi and Hope. Which meant that their love was so strong that even death couldn't separate them.
Sora didn't believe in such things. Ghosts weren't real, and no one could talk to someone dead for many years.
But when she looked up the hill to the Ishida House, she couldn't help but think that the three of them were there........
Even if one was only there in spirit.
Kind of a dark piece. Really weird title. I'm not sure if it's very good..... but I tried. Please tell me what you think. Oh, I don't own Digimon or any of it's characters. And the song Matt and Mimi sing is "Little Star" by Madonna........so I don't own it either.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
On top of a tall hill there was a lonely house. All of it's shutters were closed, and the roof had large holes in it. The front deck had fallen into disrepair, and a veil of sadness seemed cloak the entire hill.
Inside of this house there lived a very handsome man. He had golden blond hair and heart-breaking blue eyes. Being only 28 years old, all of the ladies in town looked at him lustfully whenever he went grocery shopping or picked up stuff for his work.
But this man wore only black, and his eyes were filled with a grief that no one could understand. No one, that is, except his daughter. For his wife had died many years before, and the townspeople whispered among themselves that someday he would die of a broken heart. His soul had left the same day that Mimi Ishida died, they told newcomers.
"That's the home of Matt Ishida," Sora Yagami was told when she moved into a house nearby. "He's a widower, and he's not looking for any type of romance. He just wants to be left alone. Just him and his daughter."
Out of curiosity, she ventured up to the Ishida House one cold, grey day. She wanted to see Matt again, and see what his daughter looked like. She knocked as rain began to fall heavily on the small town, drenching her. "Hello?" she called, hoping desperately that someone would come and open the door. Finally she heard the doorknob creak, and she fell inside, glad to get out of the rain.
"Who are you?" a man asked coldly. Sora looked at him.
"Matt! It's me, Sora. Sora Yagami." His cold eyes didn't flicker or show any sights of recognition. "Sora? C'mon Matt, you have to remember me. "
He regarded her coolly. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, I recently got divorced....and now, I'm living here. And I heard you lived here....... and I thought maybe I'd stop by and see you and your daughter."
"Hope is at school right now, and I'm working, Sora," Matt said hollowly. "I think it would be best if you would just leave us alone." He opened the door, and Sora found herself back in the rain.
As she walked down the driveway, she glanced back at Matt standing in the doorway. All she could see was an empty soul, the shadow of man that was ceasing to exist.
Matt closed the door softly after Sora had gone beyond his view. He knew that he had been rude with her, but....... she brought back painful memories. Memories of Mimi.
He collapsed in a chair, taking a sip of his Scotch. Mimi.... even the thought of her still made his blood turn to ice and choke the life out of him. She had been his life.....
I never should have let you go that night. We both knew that the roads were slippery. I should have been the one that ran to the store. You could have stayed and watched over Hope. Then you would still be alive.
*~* It's not your fault.*~* Matt thought he heard a voice say. Man, you are losing it, he told himself. You've got to pull it together. For Hope.
He turned back to his work, drowning out his sorrows with another glass of alcohol.
Late into the night, Matt sat at his desk, working on his newest short story. A can of beer sat next to an unfinished peanut-butter sandwich Hope had made him when she got home from school.
The door to his office opened, and Hope walked in. "What are you doing up, honey?" Matt asked, looking at the clock. It was well after midnight.
"I heard someone singing, Daddy," Hope said, running over and curling up in Matt's lap. "They were singing Mommy's song."
"There's no one else here, Hope. Just you and me." He smiled, hugging his eight year old daughter close. "Why don't you go back to bed and I'll come sit with you?"
"Okay." Her bright blue eyes sparkled. "Will you sing to me? The way Mommy used to?"
Matt hesitated, then took his daughter's hand. "Of course I will."
When Hope finally climbed into bed, Matt turned off the lights and sat down on the edge of her bed.
"Never forget who you are, Little Star. Never forget how to dream, Butterfly," Matt sang softly, running his fingers thrown his daughter's beautiful hair. It was a mixture of gold and brown, swirling and intertwining. "May angels protect you, and sadness forget you, Little Star....."
Mimi had sung this song to Hope every night until she died. Matt had heard it so often that he knew the words by heart. And Hope loved to hear him sing it...... it reminded Hope of her mother.
He watched as Hope drifted off to sleep, smiling. He loved his daughter more that his own life. He would be lost without her.
Going back to his office, he poured out the rest of his beer. He needed to stop drinking. He drank too much, and it wasn't good for him.
Hope needed him. He was the only one left to take care of her now.
"Ms. Yagami says she knew Mommy," Hope said one night at supper. Matt looked up quickly.
"When have you been talking to Ms. Yagami?" he asked, almost sharply. Hope looked startled.
"She's the librarian at our school now. Mrs. Ginger quit."
"Oh." Matt continued to eat his food.
"She says that Mommy was her best friend. Is that true, Daddy?"
Sora, screw you, Matt thought angrily. Why did Sora have to talk to Hope? "Yes baby. Sora and your Mommy were very good friends."
"Ms. Yagami says you're very sad," Hope said softly. "Are you, Daddy? Cuz I try and try to make you happy...."
"I'm happy, Hope. Whenever you're around, I'm the happiest person in the world. And you know why?"
"Why?"
"Because you remind me so much of your mom." Hope's face lit up.
"Really?"
"Really." Matt said, scooping his daughter up in his arms. "I love you."
"Love ya, too, Daddy."
Matt thought they were getting along just fine. He was still in mourning, but still.... after a girl like Mimi, the only thing you could do was mourn. It was only natural.
He woke up one night to the frightened screams of Hope. "Honey, honey, what's the matter?" Matt asked, turning on her lights.
"She was here, Daddy," Hope said softly, her eyes frightened.
"Who was here?" Matt asked, trying to soothe her back to sleep.
"Mommy was. And she was an ghost. I could see through her and stuff. And she said......."
"She didn't say anything, Hope, because your Mommy's dead. Okay honey? She isn't coming back and she can't tell you anything anymore. She's gone."
"But Daddy.......I saw her."
"It was just a dream. Nothing more. C'mon. You need to get to sleep. You've got a busy day tomorrow."
After she had fallen asleep, he started to go back to his bedroom. Walking through the dining room, he thought he heard a noise in the kitchen.
*~* Yamato....... I love you.....Always and forever....*~* He saw a flicker of light. Blinking his eyes, nothing was there.
You must be drunk. Or hallucinating. Or both. Get a grip. You can't act like this. Hope is starting to see and hear things, too.
Sighing, he grabbed a beer and headed for bed.
A few days later, Matt went into town to mail his latest set of stories. He stopped to eat lunch in town and Sora sat down with him in the restaurant.
"Shouldn't you be in the library?" Matt asked coldly, and Sora laughed.
"Even librarians get a lunch break." The waitresses were giving Sora evil glares, but she ignored them. "Matt, I'm worried about Hope."
He narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
"Because she's got no friends. Everyone teases her because her mom is dead and her dad is a drunk...." Her face vaulted. " Oh my gosh... Matt....... I didn't mean it......"
Anger rising within his body, Matt stood up. "I really don't think you should be passing judgment, Sora."
"Mommy visited me again last night," Hope announced at breakfast. "She sang to me just like she used too."
"Hope...." Matt started, then stopped. "Don't tell anyone you Mommy is visiting you, okay?"
She nodded gravely. "Okay Daddy."
"Now get ready for school. You're going to be late!" he teased, kissing her on the head. She giggled and ran out of the room.
It's just a stage, Matt thought to himself. Every little kid has an imaginary friend. Heck, I did. Hope's just looks like her mother because......... she misses Mimi. Just like I do.
Matt looked around his house and saw how broken and dirty it had become. It's been almost 4 years now. Time to move on.
*~* You don't want to move on. *~* a voice whispered. Matt turned around.
"Who's there?"
*~* You want everything the way it was. *~* the voice replied. *~* I'm here, Matt. I always am.*~*
"Hope?" Matt said warily, and Hope hopped into the room with one shoe on. "Do you hear someone in here?"
Hope smiled and nodded her head innocently. "Yep. It's Mommy."
As the days progressed, Matt heard the voice more and more often. *~* I love you Matt......*~* he heard whispered as he wrote late in the night.
*~* Hope has grown so sweet and brave. *~* he heard as he played soccer with Hope outside.
*~* Love lasts even beyond death......*~*
Hope started talking more and more about her mother as the days progressed. One day Matt received a phone call from Sora.
"Do you know what your daughter just told me?" she demanded. Matt didn't answer. "She told me that yesterday she and her mother went for a picnic down by the stream, but you couldn't go because you had to work. Matt, Mimi is dead. You have to spend more time with your daughter, or she's going to end up in some shrink's office completely confused."
"Why can't you mind your own business?"
"Matt, don't you see? She thinks Mimi is still alive. She thinks that she can talk to her and see her!"
"She.....can," Matt said slowly. His voice halted, and then he whispered," I've seen her and heard her, too."
"Matt, you're drunk," Sora said angrily. She slammed down the phone.
Matt stood on Mimi's grave. "I miss you, Mimi. I wish you were still here."
*~* I am still here. *~*
"Hope misses you. I wish she had a mother to raise her up, but..... I don't think I will ever fall in love again. Not after you.
*~* That's so sweet..... I love you, Matt. *~*
"I still love you, Mimi." He kicked the ground. "Four years today. My soul has been in this shallow grave with you for four years now."
*~* Hope needs her father. *~*
"And I need you!" Matt cried out angrily. "I've never forgiven myself. It's my fault you are dead. I remember, it had started to snow, and we were so happy because that meant it was going to be a white Christmas. But then.... it kept snowing..... and Hope got a fever....... Why didn't I drive that night? I could have run to the store and got the medicine and everything would have be fine....."
*~* Matt, you can't blame yourself. *~*
"Why not? I let you go........ and the next thing I knew, I got a call from the police chief saying that you slipped on the ice and swerved into the ditch....... At least I know that you died without pain and hurt." He clenched his fists. " We need you, Mimi. How could you just leave us?" Turning, he wiped his bitter tears from his eyes and walked away.
"Mommy says she's sorry. She didn't mean to leave us, but God said it was her time to go," Hope said the next morning.
"What?" Matt said, looking up from his newspaper.
"Mommy didn't want to leave us, but God made her. He said that it was time for her to come and visit him," Hope said solemnly.
"Hope, I don't like it when you talk like that," Matt said crossly.
"Are you mad at me, Daddy?" Hope said, her voice wavering. Matt looked at her, and his face softened.
"No honey, I'm not mad at you. You're my little princess. I love you."
Hope got up from the table."Do you still love Mommy?"
Matt's smile faded. " I love your mother more and more everyday."
"Good. She says that she still loves you, too."
Matt began to notice things were being moved around his house. A picture that he had hidden away after Mimi's death found it's way unto his desk. His harmonica that he never played anymore was placed on his bed. One day, after a particularly bad afternoon, he found their wedding album in Hope's room.
He stumbled into her room, dropping his fifth beer of the day.Turning through the pages, the memories haunted him. Mimi looked so pretty and happy....
"That was the best day in my life," he whispered softly.
*~*The best day in my life was the day I met you. *~*
"Mimi?" Matt whispered. He knew that he was drunk, but he could swear that he heard her voice.
*~* I'm here, Matt. *~*
"Why can't I see you?"
*~* Do you believe that love can last even beyond death? *~*
"Of course I do, Mimi."
*~* When you truly believe that, you'll see me. *~*
"Mimi.........." But the voice was gone.
"Merry Christmas honey," Matt said as Hope opened her presents very early on Christmas morning.
""Oh Daddy! They're beautiful!" Hope exclaimed, holding up a pair of silver ice skates.
"I thought that maybe you and I could go skating sometime. It was something that your mother and I liked to do."
A cold breeze filled the room, and Matt shivered. He walked over and turned up the furnace. But the cold didn't go away.
"Mimi?"
"Mommy's not here, Daddy. She's up in heaven eating birthday cake with Jesus." Matt smiled at his daughter's naive mentality. She didn't know the truth.
"Yes honey. That's where she is. But I still miss her."
"I miss her, too."
When Matt went to bed late that night, he found a piece of paper on his bed. He unfolded it and read the writing.
"Merry Christmas, Yamato dear. Four years have we been apart, but I will never leave you. My soul will never descend from here, because I know that you need me. I wish I could be with you, just for one more night, my dear, but as we both know, that is impossible. So I hide in the shadows, waiting until we are together. Sweet dreams, beloved. ~Mimi."
This is just a cruel joke. How could Hope do such a horrible thing? Matt was appalled. And yet.... the letter sounded so much like Mimi.........
On New Year's eve, Matt went into town to get some wine to celebrate New Year's night. He walked down the main street, lost in his own morbid thoughts about death, sadness and grief.
He walked into the liquor store, only to see Sora standing near the back. He knew that if she saw him, he would be in for a lecture about his drinking problem. Ducking back out of the door, he stepped into the street. Immediately, he felt a hand pulled him back, just a car came speeding past.
Matt hadn't even seen the car coming. If that person hadn't pulled him back..... Hope would have been an orphan....
He turned to see who had saved him life. He gasped, and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Mimi's smiling face and beautiful body had disappeared.
Matt didn't go home. Instead, he headed to the bar and got himself drunk. He knew that it wasn't a good sign, seeing your dead wife on the street corner.
Sitting in a dark corner, he reminisced about the past. He thought about when he first saw Mimi, at summer camp. She had been so prissy and perfect, Matt had immediately been turned off. But when they were sucked into the Digital World, a small affection for her grew in his heart. And then she moved away........ and well, then he knew the truth. He loved her. And eventually, that love turned into something eternal and forever......
Then Hope had been born........ Matt looked at his watch and cursed under his breath. It was 9:00. Hope had been home alone all day, and it was already past her bedtime.
Paying his bill, he dashed out of the crowded bar and up to his house. He opened the front door softly, and took off his shoes.
"Hope?" he asked, walking upstairs. "Are you in bed?"
"Never forget who you are, Little Star, Shining brighter than all the stars in the sky. Never forget how to dream, Butterfly, Flying higher than all the birds in the sky. Never forget who you are, Little Star...... Never forget where you come from..." Matt could hear someone singing sweetly. He walked over to Hope's room and turned on the light.
"From love, Little Star. From love..."
"Mimi......." Matt's voice drained away. He leaned against the door, shock overcoming him.
"Matt.... turn off the lights. You're going to wake up Hope. I just got her to bed. She was worried about you, but I told her that you would be fine."
"You're as beautiful as always," Matt whispered, awe in his voice.
Mimi stood, a glimmering light surrounding her. Her chestnut hair swirled around her hair, making her look like supernatural.
"But I am supernatural, Matt. Because I'm dead."
"Are you an angel?"
She laughed, her pure laughter sending shivers up Matt's spine. "An angel, in love with a rebel? That wouldn't work, my dear. I'm just a ghost."
"Are you real?"
She looked at him, her eyes sparkling with happiness." As real as you, or the air that surrounds you." She paused, moving closer. "I was given a second chance. A second chance to be with my family, because I knew that they needed me."
"When will you leave us again?"
She moved closely, kissing Matt. Her ghostly kiss made Matt shiver, but she smiled. "I'll never leave you again."
Matt grinned. "Is that a threat or a promise?"
Mimi smiled, taking hold of Matt's hand. "A promise. For forever."
The two dashed away, smiling. And Hope peeked her head out from under the covers, smiling. She had her family back again.
It had been many years since Sora had last talked to Matt. Everyone in the town had decided that he and his daughter were insane, that the loss of Mimi warped their minds, causing them to think that she was haunting them.
The townspeople laughed and joked about it, but Sora wondered if they were right.
Matt had taken Hope out of public school, homeschooling her. They rarely came into town anymore, only to buy food and pick up school supplies.
Sora thought perhaps Matt was hiding, trying to find himself. At least his drinking problem seemed to have stopped. He never entered the liquor store when he was in town, and he was always smiling.
Tales circulated town that his love for Mimi had kept her on this world, and the three Ishidas dwelt together on their dream house on the top of the hill.
The three Ishidas...... Matt, Mimi and Hope. Which meant that their love was so strong that even death couldn't separate them.
Sora didn't believe in such things. Ghosts weren't real, and no one could talk to someone dead for many years.
But when she looked up the hill to the Ishida House, she couldn't help but think that the three of them were there........
Even if one was only there in spirit.