Chapter One

Nakamura Edward walked down the sidewalk, school bag over his shoulder. He glanced at his watch, eager to get back home so he could start dinner before his foster parents got back. And there might still be dishes that needed to go in the dishwasher…

"Yo, Nii-san!"

Edward looked back to see his brother running towards him, waving.

"Whatever happened to your advanced class?" asked Edward, slowing for a moment so Steve could catch up.

"Cancelled," panted Steve, slowing to match Edward's pace as soon as he reached him. "Sensei fell ill, so we're just going to skip it this week and catch up another time. Slow down, Nii-san!"

Edward sighed, but slowed down again. "You've really got to get out more often. Sooner or later I'm going to end up having to carry you to class."

Steve indignantly adjusted his glasses. "Maybe some day I'll end up having to think for you," he retorted. Edward rolled his eyes, but didn't reply.

A few minutes later, they passed the old Itou house, and Steve slowed to wave at his buddy James in the yard. James glanced up and gave him a tiny smile, managing only a curt nod for Edward before turning back to his gardening.

"I have no idea how you stand that guy," muttered Edward, glaring at the scrawny Itou's back. "He's just an antisocial know-it-all."

Steve pushed his glasses up his nose again. "I like know-it-alls," he replied. "Besides, he's fun. If you were a genius I'd tell you all about the debate we got into the other day, all about life and death and the meaning of the universe. Interesting stuff."

Edward rolled his eyes again. "If you're into things like that, I suppose. Anyway, I'm planning on fixing roast beef for dinner, so you can go ahead and plan dessert around that. Any ideas?"

Steve smiled. "Ooo… I have a few."

"What?"

"You'll see," he said with a sneaky smirk. "I might have to experiment a bit…"

The conversation trailed off for a moment, before turning to the newest chapters of their respective favourite mangas, then mangas in general. Soon enough, though, the conversation turned into argument.

"Your manga never go anywhere!" complained Edward. "There are entire chapters where nothing happens, where everyone just sits around talking. Seriously. Now… when your main character is a super-powered ninja with magic spirit swords, that's a good story. And the fights are epic…"

Steve sighed. "Have you no class? Isn't it embarrassing that you're about to graduate and you still only read Shonen?"

Edward snorted. "The fights are great, and that's what makes a good manga. The character development isn't too distracting, either."

"That's because there is no character development. A few flashbacks when a main character 'dies' for the first time isn't development."

"Yes it is!" protested Edward. "Kami Katana is really getting into Nisshoku's backstory, and it makes me think they might just bring one of the Shirokage back. No character development…" He trailed off, shaking his head at Steve's foolishness.

"Uh, huh. That is a cheap trick the writers use when they want to change the character's behavior. Just make up flashbacks so it seems they must have always been that way. Not like an intelligent story where they never give you cheap answers and half the story is hidden from everyone who isn't paying attention."

Edward frowned. "I don't want to have to reread a chapter ten times just to notice the oh-so-important sign behind the random police officer so I understand why the… waiter… kicked the bucket. Kicking the bucket should have obvious reasons! Like being stabbed through the chest with a sword that sucks out your mage-energy!"

"The mere thought of such a thing existing is ludicrous," Steve said as they turned up their sidewalk. "You should broaden your interests a little, or you'll never get anywhere in life."

"Say that to my karate Sensei. He'll kick you through the window. Hey, Kuro! Miss me?" He stopped in the yard and snatched his black cat from the grass. "Where're your siblings, silly boy?"

Steve glanced around the yard and spotted the other two kittens by their peach tree, and pointed. "Over there."

"Shiro! Ichigo! You didn't come to greet me," called Edward, sounding insulted. He went to pet his cats for a few minutes, leaving his adopted brother to unlock the door.

"Couldn't you have come up with more imaginative names?" Steve asked, almost as an aside. "If you were going to name them after their color, why 'Strawberry'?"

"Because I wasn't about to name him 'Orange,'" replied Edward, as if it should be obvious. "Seriously, I can't think of a more idiotic name for a cat than 'Orange.'"

Steve had no real response for that, so he shrugged, pushing open the door.

.

Tochika Tamotsu carefully buttoned the cuffs of his suit, checking his reflection one last time before nodding decisively. His parents were hosting a dinner party for several important families, and it wouldn't do for him to look anything less then splendid. Of course, he thought as he flicked his golden hair out of his eyes, he never looked anything but.

He knew how it would go, same as every other dinner. His parents have him mingle with their guests, he would shake hands and smile and repeat names, and then, in the end, it would end up being just him, Chikuma and Erina at their own little table in the corner.

A light flickered across his room, and he turned to glance out the window. A car was crawling up the driveway, no doubt one of the early arrivals. Tamotsu squared his shoulders and headed for the door.

The evening began as he expected it would, and after an hour of greeting, talking and generally being a proper son for his parents, he found himself exactly where he had expected. Chikuma was there of course, his parents had been partners and friends of Tamotsu's for several years, and Erina, predictably, as the daughter of wealthy entrepreneurs who were establishing their empire with the help of Tamotsu's parents.

The three were as close friends as they could be, given their respective upbringings and the formal atmosphere that surrounded practically their every meeting.

Erina, with her friendly, outgoing attitude, was always the first to establish a conversation, and Tamotsu was always quick to keep it strong. Chikuma, while a brilliant young man, was rather awkward around people and tended to sit quietly, nodding, saying "Yes," or "I agree," and little else.

At some point, the conversation turned to the series of accidents in one of the less-wealthy areas of the city. Apparently Erina, who walked through the area to get to her karate lessons each Wednesday, said they were supposed to be the fault of broken electric wires, and that the company was looking into repairing them now.

"But," she said, lowering her voice as she leaned in. "I think it's something else."

Tamotsu cocked his head, drawn in by her conspiratorial tone. "What do you mean?" he asked.

She glanced around for a moment. "I think it's aliens," she said after a moment. Chikuma perked up.

"Aliens?" he asked curiously, and Erina nodded.

"I saw one of them," she said. "Right there in the road, and it was breaking the wires when it walked past them."

"You saw an alien," stated Tamotsu, rather skeptically. Erina blushed.

"Well, I sort of saw it. It was invisible, but I know it was there, and I could see its outline. Don't get me wrong, it was definitely there, it was just hard to see."

"Why didn't everyone see it, then?" asked Tamotsu. "If it was really there, then there should be a lot more witnesses."

"Most people don't notice," said Chikuma, then ducked back slightly when they both looked at him. "I-I mean, I agree."

"Can you see them too?" asked Erina, excited. Chikuma lowered his gaze.

"Maybe…" was all he said.

"Now I'm feeling left out," said Tamotsu, crossing his arms and leaning back. "You're saying you can both see invisible aliens that are going around breaking electric wires that no one else knows about?"

Erina crossed her arms, mirroring his position. "Kuma-kun can see them too, which means I'm not crazy. Which means I can show you I'm right."

Tamotsu chuckled slightly. "How in the world would you do that?" he asked.

"We can head down to that area, and when I see an alien coming towards something breakable, I'll warn you. That why, when the 'accident' happens, you'll know it was actually an alien! And, who knows, maybe you'll actually be able to see them too!"

"Do you realize how crazy this sounds?" asked Tamotsu, and Erina narrowed her eyes stubbornly.

"The aliens are real, and I will prove it," she said, and Chikuma nodded silently next to her.

"I agree," he said quietly, looking at Tamotsu expectantly.

Tamotsu sighed. "This is ridiculous," he complained.

"So you're coming?" asked Erina, taking his statement as his consent.

"Despite the fact that it is ridiculous?" he asked, then sighed again. "Fine, but if I get squashed by an alien I can't see, I'll… come back and haunt you."

Erina waved a hand airily. "Ghosts don't exist," she said confidently.

"But aliens do?" retorted Tamotsu.

Chikuma said nothing, merely smiled knowingly at them both.

.

Itou James pulled the last weed from his sadly pathetic garden, sitting back against his heels. He looked it over carefully to make sure he had truly gotten every last weed, then picked up his trowel and walked back to the porch of his sadly run-down house. He took off his work shoes and set them neatly aside, took off his hat and hung it on the edge of the rotting rocking chair. He hesitated, realizing just how sad the fact of the rotting rocking chair truly was, and then shook his head and opened the door.

The house, despite its derelict state, was surprisingly cool, even in the heat of summer. James looked into the kitchen, with the neat, clean dishes already drying, then in the hall, where the washing machine was running jerkily. His fish was swimming slowly around in its clean bowl of fresh water. After a moment, he mentally admitted there was nothing else for him to do and wandered down into the basement, flicking his laptop on and picking up his keyboard.

Steve wasn't online, not that it was that surprising. He actually had a life, after all. A brother, parents. James gave a slight sigh and opened his language program, getting out his Spanish notes.

A spirit walked down the stairs, crying softly. James looked up at it, watching until it sat down in the corner.

"What a pointless existence," he said to himself, turning back to his computer. "Wandering around, alone, no purpose and no improvement…"

His pale fingers typed out a quick sentence, and he settled down to study, the spirit's quiet weeping becoming nothing more then background noise.

He was used to it. These spirits were always nearby, always crying, always alone. What did they expect him to do? Or were there simply so many of these aimless souls wandering around that they truly filled the world? Somehow that possibility didn't surprise him.

It seemed death was as empty for most as life was for him.