Summary: Foxxay high school AU. Misty Day moved a lot because of her family's occupation. On the first day of her new high school, she met a mysterious person Cordelia Goode. They gradually developed a friendship and helped each other find who they truly were.

"Ghosts don't haunt us. That's not how it works. They're present among us because we won't let go of them."

―Sue Grafton, M is for Malice

Misty was indifferent. Nothing around her upset her or amused her. She had passed that phase a long time ago. As she made her way through the crowd on the first day of her senior year, Misty made a mental note not to get too involved with anyone. Her parents told her they probably wouldn't stay there for more than six months. Misty didn't have high expectations. The same kind of place and the same kind of people, just like places she had lived before.

Her father's occupation was unique, and the family moved a lot. Misty had lived in Hong Kong, Canada, and many states in the US. When she was little, moving would upset her greatly. It was hard to leave her friends and adapt to a whole new environment. But over the years, she had learned not to get attached to anything or anyone. It was the only way to protect herself from heartbreaks.

She still talked to people of course. Trying not to be attached and being rude were totally different things. She just didn't care to know anything about other people's personal lives. One of the kids she met that day, named Zoe, was actually a sweet person. A little bit shy and nervous, but nice enough. As soon as the brunette found out Misty was the new girl everyone was talking about, she asked if the blonde wanted to join the cheer leading team.

"I think you could be really popular, you know. You have the body and the face." Zoe inquired with enthusiasm.

The wild blonde didn't have a clue what the girl meant but decided not to ask any questions. "No thanks. I'm not interested." Misty simply replied. She didn't care to do any extracurricular activities. She just needed to stay out of trouble until the end of time there.

00000

After a chime had indicated the end of her last class of the day, Misty immediately made her way out of the school. The whole building was sickeningly clean, and Misty found it odd. The school was in a wealthy community, but it's not an easy task to keep such a big place with teenagers so neat. The whiteness of it made Misty feel a little uneasy.

When she stepped out of the school's property, Misty noticed something in the corner of her eye. There was another building next to the school that looked much older than the one Misty had just walked out of. Broken windows and grey walls. So, that's why the school is so clean, the girl mused. The old set of walls used to be the school building.

Misty wasn't one to usually adventure, but some invisible hand pulled her in the sleeve of her dress. The front door of the building was locked so no one could enter. Still not convinced, Misty went around checking if there were any other entrances. Making a turn to her left, she thought she had heard something. She stopped her movement and listened more carefully. The wind was starting to blow hard, making it hard to search for the sound. Misty concluded whatever that was, her ears were playing tricks on her. When she was going to walk away, she heard another faint sound. It sounded like some sort of a musical instrument to the wild blonde. She attempted to find the source of the sound rather desperately, but it was interrupted by a ding of her phone. It was a text from her mom. Can you get milk on your way home? It read. Misty had to fight the urge to ignore the text and continue her quest. Another ding. And shredded cheese. Misty sighed and finally gave up. Walking towards her car, she turned around and looked at the old building for the last time. She was certain she had heard someone play music.

00000

The second day was more eventful than the day before for Misty. Some people came over to her during the lunchtime trying to be friends with her. Some people even tried to get her number and asked her out, which Misty politely declined. It was her routine; she was used to being the center of the attention and getting bombarded with questions. The girl hated all of it, but she had learned to deal with it over the years. They'll find something new to entertain themselves with pretty soon, the wild blonde thought. When another whatshisname approached her and got gently rejected, Misty let out an exasperated sigh and glanced at Zoe, who was sitting across the table.

"Wow, it was like the fourth guy that asked you out today. You're really killing it." The brunette had an admiring look on her face.

With no desire to carry on this conversation any farther, Misty shoved the rest of her sandwich in her mouth. She wanted to go home and get away from all this nonsense, but that moment, an event from yesterday popped up in her mind. "So, I have a question." She said with eager, which was quite rare for the perpetually unamused girl. "I see that there's another building on this property. Is it still partially used? Because, I heard someone play music yesterday."

Misty expected Zoe to laugh at her delusion or tell her she had no clue. What she didn't expect was the other girl's face to freeze and go pale in terror. Misty sensed the other had a better answer than she expected, so she demanded an explanation with her eyes.

"Um, well, I don't think you want to hear that…" Zoe stammered, to which Misty only responded with a raised eyebrow. "It started about a year ago. People hear things from inside that building? Some kids say that it's a ghost, but… you don't believe in ghosts, do you?" The girl leaned in and whispered to Misty as if she was sharing a top government secret. Her eyes showed a great deal of concern, and Misty had to suppress her laugh.

"A ghost? A ghost that plays the piano?" Misty wasn't particularly interested in the subject of invisible entities floating around, but she decided it couldn't be such a bad thing if it's a musically gifted one. Zoe continued her speech with a serious face, but Misty was already in her own head. A kid in a football uniform approached her, but Misty just ignored him, too busy with her amusement for the ghost.

00000

As soon as the last class ended, Misty gathered her things and harried her way out. Zoe came to her and asked if she wanted to hang out, but Misty declined the offer. She had something better to do. Walking through the mass of students, Misty headed to the old building. It was still as old as it looked yesterday, but there was something different about it. Maybe it's just the weather. She looked at the black clouds above her. The forecast had predicted it was going to rain that afternoon.

Misty went back to the part where she had left off the day before and resumed her exploration. She wasn't sure if the ghost was in the mood for playing music today, but it didn't stop her from searching. To her delight, Misty heard a faint sound of piano from somewhere near. She tried to look at the inside from one of the broken windows, but there was nobody there. The farther Misty went, the louder the sound became. She kept looking inside, knowing the source of the sound must be close. When she examined from yet another window, which had its curtains shut, she saw a grand piano located in the center of the room. Misty was 100 percent confident this was what she was looking for, but… Who's playing? The room was kept dark, and the curtains blocked most of her view. Leaning into the window in an attempt to have a better look at where the chair was supposed to be, Misty saw a blurred silhouette of something white. "A white ghost, classic." She murmured to no one. It took a little while, but Misty recognized the song that was played; Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven. A good taste for a ghost, Misty mused, and that's when the white ghost repositioned itself in the chair, revealing its face to the young blonde. It's a woman. A surrealistically beautiful woman with blonde hair. Misty's whole body froze in the place, and she felt shivers all over her. She kept watching the ghost's performance for what felt like an eternity. The girl was so caught up with what was before her that she didn't notice the rain threatening to get worse.

When the song stopped, Misty blinked, reminding herself to breathe. The figure abruptly stood up and left the room, leaving Misty still in the state of daze. The girl hoped the ghost would come back and play another song, but she heard a thunder above her head. It was raining harder. "Crap." Misty cursed the weather and ran to the parking lot.

00000

It's been two weeks since Misty had found the ghost pianist. Every afternoon, she would go to the ruin of a school and sit under the window. She tried to look from between the curtains for the first a few days, but as soon as she realized she could only get a blurry shape of a person from the angle, she gave up. But the image of the white face was glued to her brain. The music was enough for the girl for now. The ghost was such a talented pianist, and Misty couldn't help but drown herself in the sound of it. There was something enchanting about her ghost friend and the music she played. It felt soothing. The white ghost, who remained nameless, could play from classical music to modern songs. Misty wondered where the ghost learned new songs. Can she go outside? She had so many questions that had no answers.

At the same time Misty noticed the music had stopped, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocked. Her mom wanted her to get groceries again. Misty stood up and looked inside the room for one more time, only to find out the ghost had left for the day.

00000

It was lunchtime, and Misty was sitting alone. As soon as Zoe came to realize that the wild blonde wasn't interested in their friendship as much as the brunette was, she went back to her usual group of girls. Of course Misty was apathetic, but today she needed to talk to the girl.

"Zoe, I have a question." Misty finally caught the other girl at her locker after several attempts of the day. "What can you tell me about the piano ghost in the old building? Do you know anything about her?" She was as serious as she was in biology class, which was her favorite.

"Ugh, no. Misty. Why are you so obsessed with it?" The brunette was slightly offended by the fact that the blonde had come to her only to talk about something that had nothing to do with her or their friendship.

"I'm just really curious, is all. She plays the piano quite well." Misty replied, struggling to hide her disappointment.

"Forget about it. Hey, I wanted to ask you something, too. So, my parents aren't home tonight and I'm throwing a party. You want to come? You know, as much as you want to spend time alone, there are some people who are legit wanting to get to know you." The girl questioned.

Misty was never a social butterfly, so she was going to decline when the other added "Some people might know something about the ghost." Misty was amazed by how easily the ghost could persuade her into thing like this. But it's worth a try. The blonde agreed reluctantly.

000000

When Misty arrived at Zoe's house around 10, there was already a mass of people inside and outside the house. The wild blonde fidgeted on the sleeve of her favorite red lacy dress before walking through the crowd. Some kids recognized her and gave her greetings, but Misty was too nervous to reply to them properly. The fact that some people were dancing and grinding on whoever within their reach made the situation even worse for the wild blonde. She needed to find Zoe; otherwise she wouldn't be able to survive in this warzone.

"Misty, come over here!" Zoe shouted, effectively getting the girl's attention. "I'm so glad you made it!" The brunette stumbled over with a cup of god-knows-what in her hand, smiling from ear to ear. It was obvious the daughter of the house was heavily intoxicated. "Hey, you want a drink? We have vodka, tequila, amaretto…"

"Just orange juice will do. Thanks." Misty interrupted the other's rambling, pointing at a bottle of juice on the kitchen counter. She could hear Zoe's discontent and others' mockery, which the wild blonde simply ignored.

Just as the brunette finally poured juice for the other after spending a whole minute trying to open the bottle, the music suddenly stopped. Everyone booed at what might have been the cause, but they fell quiet after seeing the person standing in front of the speakers.

When Misty turned around to see the center of the attention, she couldn't believe her eyeballs. That can't be. The white ghost that she had been secretly admiring for two weeks was now standing right there. The ghost looked just like Misty had remembered in the dark room, and that's why the young blonde was astounded when the ghost opened her mouth.

"What on earth is going on here? Aren't you kids letting go a little bit too much?" The white ghost's voice was huskier and stronger than Misty had imagined, if the young girl had thought the ghost could speak, that is.

All the kids except Misty and Zoe started to sparse, hoping to stay away from the trouble. Zoe was cursing under her breath behind Misty. Her friends were already gone as the rest of the crowd.

When the ghost found the hostess of the shenanigan standing in the kitchen, she strolled towards her and gave the obviously intimidated girl a cold glare. "What made you think you could get away with this, Zoey? You didn't think your parents would tell me to watch over you?" The woman reprimanded the younger girl with a quiet tone, which made her sound even more intimidating.

Zoe murmured a sorry and tried to make an excuse, but the older woman stopped her with a hand. "Look, I don't care what you do. You need some time to relax without your parents, and I understand that. But as your cousin, I'm responsible to keep you out of trouble." The blonde's face was calm, and her voice remained emotionless.

While the two people were talking, Misty was standing like a fool, not knowing what to do. The wild blonde was still in the process of grasping the situation. The beautiful blonde she had thought a ghost actually existed and walked freely on earth just as Misty did. She couldn't help but stare at the woman, who appeared to be only a few years senior than herself. The woman was wearing a white blouse and a pair of black slacks. She was slightly shorter than the wild blonde and smelled like peppermint.

Misty was so occupied with her reverie that she didn't notice when the older woman finished the conversation and turned around to her. Misty had imagined the eyes of the ghost would be pale blue, but the ones looking back at hers were dark chocolate brown. The wild blonde gasped rather loudly and swallowed hard. She froze there until she registered the perplexed expression on the other's face.

"I don't believe I've seen you around. Are you a student?" The woman questioned softly.

"She's new. Her name is Misty." Zoe answered for the girl after seeing the wild blonde had no ability or intention to speak.

"I see. Nice to meet you, Misty. I'm Cordelia, Zoe's cousin." The older woman offered a hand, which Misty timidly took with a quite hi without taking her eyes off the woman's face. The warmth of the woman's hand reminded Misty once more of the fact that she was a living human being. "I'm sorry to crash the party like this, but I think you need to go home." The girl heard the other's suggestion and nodded her head stupidly.

After Misty said a goodnight to her brunette friend, she exited the house. Walking towards her car, she heard Cordelia call her name. "Misty, do you have a ride? If not, I can drive you home." The older blonde came close to Misty and asked the other.

"No… I mean, I do have a car. Thanks." Misty responded quietly, taking her keys out of her purse. She watched the other woman nod in assurance. Her pale blonde hair bounced under the street lights, and Misty was in awe of the sight again. "Can I ask you a question, Miss. Cordelia?" The younger blonde asked innocently. She was used to speaking to older people with politeness, but this one left a little tickling feeling on her lips.

"Sure. What is it?" Cordelia smiled at the other.

"Do you play the piano? I mean, I think I saw you a couple of times in the old school building." The wild blonde couldn't possibly tell her that she visited her every day. It wouldn't be pleasant to appear like a loser in the older woman's eyes.

Cordelia didn't expect that kind of question and was at a loss for words for a few seconds. "I, ah, yes, I do. I never thought someone would see me, though." She stammered, blushing like a little girl. She thanked the darkness of the night; otherwise the girl would've seen it.

"You're a really good pianist. I like listening to your piano." Without noticing the older woman's embarrassment, Misty continued. The girl was delighted and perhaps overwhelmed even; it was like talking to one of her favorite celebrities. "That's nice of you to say, Misty." The other woman flashed a smile at the girl. "You can always come and say hi to me if you want."

The woman said it merely to be polite. Misty knew it, but it was still too lovely an offer to turn down. She gave the other a nod and said goodnight. When she started her engine and drove away, she looked in the side mirror. Cordelia was walking down the street, and Misty was again captivated by the ghostness of her. She looked at the road momentarily, but when she looked back in the side mirror, the white figure was already gone from her sight. Yeah, it was definitely worth a try, she grinned on all her way back home.