Note: Thanks everyone for the support! I'm hoping this story doesn't die, especially since I've got such wondrous plans for it, so your reviews certainly help me plod along. If I update every week, then I only have a few to knock out before summer comes along! Woooo! And well know summer is an excuse to write fanfic. Thanks again, and enjoy.

DOVE'S NOCTURNE

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?"
--Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

The Ghost Arc:
JACK'S TALE

Part Two

Claire just might be the best playboy bunny I've never met. Now, granted, I'm tipsy so I'm probably a little off, but my gaze keeps wandering from her startling blue eyes downward to where her curves wind like an inviting road. Those overalls don't cover all, let me tell you.

"I'm afraid I have a favor to ask you." Her painted fingers play with silky blonde hair, and I can't shake the thought that it's a shame my fingers aren't playing with it, too. I'm kind of hoping that's what she needs help with. "Would you be so kind as to help me out?"

"Uh, yeah, yeah." I stumble into the moonlight and try not to look stupid and stoned. I don't think it's working. "Shoot."

She purses her lips—full, gorgeous things, plump and red. "You own this farm now, correct?"

"Yeah. That's me." I smile like an idiot. Despite all the laws of the world that should decree otherwise, she smiles back.

"It's nice, isn't it? I always did love it." She leans on the wall of the house and I swallow a bit as her body turns with the slow movement. "I lived here, once."

"No kidding?" Nice hips. Great hips, actually. And killer legs.

"Mhm. I bought the farm, just like you. That's why I'm here." She rolls her head towards me and smiles. "I left a few things when I moved out. Well, one thing."

"Oh?" Screw it, I'm not even pretending to look at her face, that's how messed up I am right now. In my defense, she's totally worth looking at, and is actually not slapping me in the face. The instant she does, I'll stop, I swear. In fact, right now, I'll be a gentleman and quit staring. Right…now.

"Something very minor. Nothing big." Her voice is nice, too. Kind of sweet and pleasant on the ears. She looks skyward and the moonlight reflects in her eyes. For a moment, I notice they're rather dull. Her eyes, I mean. Then she blinks and once again I'm entranced by those beautiful blues. She laughs. "I had a little diary."

The cuteness of that melts me. Girls still write about their lives in little pink books? Seriously? Immediately I feel like a sleazeball because I want to read it. "You want to go in and find it with me?" I ask, and immediately she shakes her head.

"Oh, no. I don't remember where I left it, actually. " She laughs again. "I, uh, sort of want that back. It's private."

"Private? Right. Gotcha."

"You wouldn't read it, right?"

Heh, I totally would. "Of course no—"

"Right?" Ice slices into my soul and I blink, wondering why we're suddenly swallowed in darkness. Then my ears pick up on the sound: the wind, something that has been absent all this time, is howling. Claire's golden hair swirls about her and everything beautiful about her—those eyes, those supple legs, those juicy lips, and that smooth, smooth skin—suddenly begins to go cold. I can't even…explain it. Everything that I've wanted to embrace now seems of stone, as if all the warmth has gone out of her body. And yet, a fire has lit in those eyes, something monstrous and—

I'm remembering the last time a girl hit me. She'd slapped me hard, actually; blood trickled down the side of my jaw. "You son of a bitch!" she'd screamed. "No one's ever going to love you, and it's because, no matter what you say, you're just a child! A stupid, selfish child!" Same old story, but not the same old ending. Unexpectedly, it'd hurt. I'd…cried, when she left.

"Oh, of course you wouldn't." Her features soften and I blink, wondering what the hell is up with me tonight. "You're a sweet boy, aren't you?" Her hand reaches forward to cup my cheek. My whole body goes numb as her head tilts towards mine, and those red lips come dangerously close to my own. "You'll help me out," she breathes into my ear. "Won't you?"

I'm lucid dreaming. Right now. That's the only explanation for the fact that her fingers are on my chest, stroking me softly with nails sharp as blades. "Will you go get dinner with me afterwards?" I blurt out. She hesitates. It's a stupid request, but I have to do it. If it's a dream, she'll agree, and if it's not, she'll turn me down. That's how the real world works, and I…need to know I'm awake.

"Oh, baby, you don't want me." She smirks a bit and laughs. Eerily, I'm reminded of Ann earlier. That kind of laugh. The kind where it's not funny, or you just don't get the joke. Maybe because you are the joke. "The diary, please?"

It's real, then—and this knowledge only makes my heart sink more. "Yeah. I'll go get that." I raise an eyebrow and look to the east. "It's almost morning, do you want to go inside or—?"

"Shit." She tenses and pulls away from me like a snake. "My boat's going soon." She rubs her neck gingerly and looks over her shoulder. "Alright, how about this. I'll come back in three days."

"Three days?" I squeak. She nods. Her hand falls to her side, and I notice something strange about her skin for moment. A single flaw on a perfect body.

"I'll grab the boat then, and you'll have had enough time to find the diary. Fair?"

Impassive, she stares me down. It doesn't feel like a fair request, even though I know it is. Something about her voice just turns me off a bit. It's almost like I have no say in the matter.

Maybe you don't.

"You can't read it. If you do, I'll know." She smiles at me and it feels like she's tucking a secret into her cheek. "See you in three days, Jackie-boy."

I don't know when she leaves. I'm not sure what direction she goes. I just sort of nod, and then throw up.

I want to know why she left Mineral Town behind. It's haunted me since this morning, since I'm not sure last night was a dream even though I know it couldn't be. I have to think it was real, because it's eating at me so damn much. But after looking through all the items on the bookshelf and turning the whole room upside-down to find that diary, it's possible I imagined the whole stupid thing. It's likely, but still. My mind just won't accept it. Accepting that would be suffering this ache forever, so I've hoed my whole field to try and work off the stress that's enslaved me. I want to find that diary. I want to see her again.

"Jack? Hello?"

My head snaps up from my work and then lowers when I see it's just Ann who's spoken. "Ah. You. What do you want?"

She gets on her tiptoes and looks over my shoulder to see my field. She whistles. "Someone's actually been working."

"It happens."

"I'm actually impressed. How long did this take you?"

I shrug. "Been at it since this morning."

"Well, hot damn, you just might work as a farmer after all." Ann grins and it irks me. She might've noticed because she backs off a bit from my bubble space. "Hey, so, last night. The pepper thing."

"Yeah?"

"It was uncalled for. Also, I shouldn't have given you the wine and let you make a fool of yourself." She kicks at the dirt and looks at me imploringly. "I apologize."

"I'm sorry? Is this the part where I forgive you?" I wipe the sweat from my forehead and grunt. "You're funny, Ann, you know that? Funny as hell."

Her shoulders droop and she bites her lip. "Oh, let's not be like that. Jack, you know I didn't mean it."

"I don't even care anymore."

"Uh huh. That's why you're acting like a wounded puppy?"

I bristle at her and concentrate instead on the importance of diaries and a great body. Which, sorry to say, Ann probably has neither of. Ann writing in a dairy is a mental image too funny to ignore, and as for her body, well, she covers a little too well and besides—she's Ann. Who looks at Ann like that?

"I have more important things to deal with than you right now."

"Like weeds? Sheesh, you're taking this farmer thing too far." She props her chin on my shoulder and whines. "I miss the lazy old Jack!"

"Get off me, woman!"

I knock her away and, instead of pouting, Ann frowns. "Geez, you really are being an ass right now. I come to apologize and get treated like cow manure."

"Yeah, well, I have to deal with important business."

"Like what? Cuz it sure as hell isn't the field you're tending."

"For your information, it's a girl!" I throw down the hoe that I don't even care about and launch into a diatribe: "I met a girl last night who needs me to do her a favor and it's bothering me! Okay?!"

For a moment, Ann goes silent. "You…" She shakes her head. "You were really out of it last night. No girl would be up at that hour, anyway. Drunk fantasy?"

"No."

"Oh, come on Jack, you can't be serious—"

"Ann, just shut up and get off your soapbox."

"Why don't you pull that hoe out of your ass first?" she retorts. "For the love of God! I wanted to apologize."

"Apology not accepted."

"Screw you!"

"Maybe if you were as hot as Claire, I'd consider it!"

Immediately I know I've said the wrong thing. I'd hoped to explain who Claire was, what had happened last night, but instead it's almost as if Ann already knows what I'm going to say. Her lips move but form no words, and her eyes stare at me as if stunned, watching someone die.

"How could you," she whispers. "You monster."

I can't even begin to fathom the damage I've done as she slowly walks away. I don't know how to react, I'm not sure what I've even done wrong besides what's simmering on the surface. It's another crime I won't be forgiven for, and I wonder if I should start keeping track of them all.

"Look, man, I make snow cones, not miracles." Kai's little Snack Shack, for some reason, was the first place I could think of running. The traveler packs ice on a cone for a waiting Popuri, whose puffy pink hair keeps bouncing as she paces about impatiently. "Strawberry, right?"

"Mm, thank you!" She beams and begins to munch on the dessert. "Kai, where do you learn this stuff? This is so goooood!"

If I had puffy pink hair, it'd be bouncing impatiently now, too.

"Can you just, you know, fix Ann's moodiness or something?" I whine. "I don't know why she always gets mad at me."

Kai laughs. "If I understood women, do you think I'd be working here? No way, bro. I'd be making some serious money off that."

Popuri tugs his sleeve and I groan inwardly. "Kai, can I get another one?"

"Sure, pretty lady, what would you like?"

She pauses and tilts her head. "What's your favorite?"

"Pineapple, no doubt."

"Pineapple then!"

Oh, for the love of—I need help with real problems, and this teenage girl is too busy flirting up my friend for me to get a word in. "So anyway," I say the moment Popuri buries her face into her snow cone, "I think I made Ann jealous."

Kai raises an eyebrow. "Maybe that's a bit presumptuous, my friend."

"Well, we started fighting because she didn't believe—okay, so last night when you leave, this girl shows up at my house. Gorgeous girl."

Kai's eyebrow rises higher. "Huh. While you were a little drunk?"

"And she said she owned the farm before me and that she needed me to go find what she'd left behind. Some diary or something."

"…Why would that make Ann jealous? If anything, she probably thought you were making it all up."

"Well, I don't know what to tell you! Claire visited me last night, and if I could prove it I would."

Once again, her name wakes up something that I rarely see on anyone's face in Mineral Town. I don't know what to call it. Not anything particularly positive, anyway. "Claire. Ah." Kai nods. "Lovely girl, indeed. I met her last year."

Popuri's head snaps up from her snow cone. "Ohh, but—"

"How did you hear about her?" Kai inquires, and suddenly I feel like I'm on trial, and Kai is one chill prosecutor.

"I—I didn't! I just met her. "

"Hm. Well, let's say that's true. What did you tell Ann, exactly?"

"Oh, oh, but guys—" Kai puts a hand over Popuri's mouth and she frowns a bit.

I clear my throat. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm turning red. "Uh. I may or may not have said I'd consider screwing her if she was as hot as Claire?"

"Imbécil." He wipes his face with his hand and shakes his head. "I told you not to do anything stupid today. Did I not tell you that?"

"Yeah…"

Kai covers his face and chuckles darkly. "You're a mistake magnet. That is what you are. Don't you even know who Claire is?"

No, I'm definitely turning red. "The old farm owner and possibly a former model?"

"Cliff's old girlfriend."

"Hm?" I think for a moment. "Cliff…"

"The other traveler at the Inn. Ah, that's right, you wouldn't know him." Kai draws out a slow breath. Strokes his chin in thought. "Left around the same time Claire did, so I'm told. Probably ran off together. Anyway, Cliff and Ann may or may not have almost had a thing, and, you did not hear this from me, my friend, but what you said would hurt any spurned woman."

Popuri is hopping up and down as if she's about to explode with the words she's keeping in. It amuses me, so I don't acknowledge her.

"Huh. Well, if Ann is insecure it's not like I'd know about it."

Before I know it, I've been lightly whacked on the head. "Calling Ann insecure is wrong," Kai corrects me quietly. "She's no child. She was happy for Cliff, friends with Claire. But just because one can accept another's happiness, doesn't mean they can't receive your insults. You are still in the wrong here."

I'm still overcoming the shock that Kai, of all people, has slapped me. Gently, but still. I could've sworn the guy was a pacifist. "Uh. So, what should I do?"

"Apologize. Though from what you've told me, it's possible you won't get forgiven." He shrugs and turns to Popuri, who's turning blue I swear from lack of talking. "You need something, sweetheart?"

She lets all the words roll out with the breath she's been holding: "He couldn't have met Claire last night, though, it's completely impossible!"

"But I did," I reply, getting more and more irritated at this town for doubting me. A little alcohol apparently goes a long way.

"Nuh uh, see, you're wrong." She shakes her head and pink flies everywhere. "See, Claire isn't here anymore."

"I know, little angel, she moved," Kai says with a smile.

But this only makes her flap her hands about more. "No, you don't understand! She's not here here." Popuri stomps on the ground firmly and crosses her arms. "Didn't anyone tell you? She's dead."