Chapter 1

"AGEHA!"

Her ears were still ringing from those last words that were granted to her, head still reeling from the crash. Groggily aware of the cold feeling on her forehead, Ageha thought back on what happened. 'The car, the blood, the lack of pain…Arisaka's tears…they hit me. I...died…' The pain in her head forced her to come out of her thoughts and made the migraine apparent. 'Wait, if I'm dead, then why do I have this splitting headache?' Casting her mind out, she flexed her fingers first, then her toes, followed by her feet, and continued till every piece of her body moved. That was weird to her, because if she had indeed died, then she would not be able to move these limbs.

Ageha ventured, testing her eyes to open them. The first light that spilled through the cracked lids was bright enough to blind her momentarily causing her eyes to shut again. The light was even harsh to her closed lids so she forced them open again and willed them to remain that way. It stung, to keep her eyes open to allow them to adjust back to the point where she could see. But she kept them open, surveying the room she now rested in. 'I'm inside V.B.R.' the lounge to be exact. 'Maybe it was all a dream, being hit by the car. I'm here, I still feel everything, aren't you supposed to go to a big fluffy white world when you die? Then why am I in V.B.R. if I'm dead? It must have been a dream, a really scary, freaky dream.'

Staring around the room gave Ageha a weird feeling, like something was off. Placing her feet on the ground, she swayed slightly on the couch from blood rushing to her head. Staying seated, Ageha tried to pin point what made this lounge feel so different then it normally was. It felt like it was missing the main components that created her second home. Shaking her head she went to stand. She wobbled a bit but regained her balance quickly by holding the arm of the sofa. Taking a slow steps forward on unsteady feet she walked halfway to the hallway when her legs gave out, sending he to the ground with a loud bang. Rubbing her face where it had hit the cold ground, she fought to keep back the tears.

The sound of things being dropped echoed her fall as the front door burst open and the sound of running footsteps reached her ears. Concentrating her dizzy gaze on the entrance way, Ageha prepared her apology speech. But the face that turned the corner had her throat clenching closed.

It was the face she had grown to love and cherish staring back at her, but it lacked the scowl that made it famous. This face showed a variety of emotions she never thought she would see twice. Worry scrunched his eyebrow, relief softened his eyes, and a warm smile graced those beautiful lips. It wasn't only the face that was wrong; the normally shoulder length honey brown hair was now longer, pulled back in a high ponytail and still reaching almost to his lower back. That gentle look mirrored the one she knew so well, but lacked the fiery personality behind them. But those different, yet familiar eyes kept gazing at her happily without a care in the world.

This was not her Arisaka-san.

The clone that stood before opened his mouth to speak when the door burst open again, startling them both. Turning to face the front entrance with a confused look, the man was barreled over by a blur of black and white. Tumbling to the ground with the one who clung to him, he let out an 'off' upon landing with the extra weight. The high pitched squealing that followed hurt Ageha's ears, but was able to make out the words that accompanied the squeal.

"Aoi-san! I LOVE YOU! MARRY ME!" Ageha stared at the high school girl that had literally just glomped the man and was now sitting on top of his sprawled out form on the ground. 'Is that how I sound when I come to see Arisaka-san?' The man, Aoi-san, rubbed the back of his head where it had smacked the floor. He looked to be grimacing a bit, but held his tongue as he tried to sit up again finding it difficult with the weight of the teenager sitting on his legs. Finding that it was impossible to accomplish in his current situation he sighed in exasperation. Ageha stared at the girl who was smiling ear to ear down at Aoi-san. She looked really familiar, but she just couldn't put her finger on who she reminded her of.

"Ririko-chan, could you please let me up. I'm getting to old to have you jumping me every time you walk through the door." He sighed again while shaking his head. Having sat through the whole incident with no reaction, Ageha's mouth dropped open. 'Ririko? Wait, Aoi? Holy crap, these people can't be…' She was having a serious mental breakdown and it must have shown on her face (like always) because Aoi-san continued, "And see what you did? You frightened my poor guest into a stupor."

The high school Ririko looked over into the living room and spotted Ageha staring. For the slightest of seconds Ageha saw the evilest look cross Ririko's face before it settled into an innocent smile. Ageha shivered with dread as a creeping feeling of being threatened settled over her. She quirked a strained smile in response, 'Is this what Arisaka-san meant when he feels weird about Nat-chan? Cause if it is, then I really owe him.' There were some serious sparks flying from this girl and none of which Ageha wanted to get hit with, so she pulled a Kana-san and stank away from her look. Aoi-san saw that as got another worried look on his face before turning a reprimanding scowl to Ririko, which she returned with an innocent puppy-dog face. Ageha was trying to disappear into the floor; the last thing she wanted was to get on the bad side of Ririko is this was the same Ririko she knew. But that's where she got confused again. How could they be the same person, Ririko was older and Aoi-san wasn't even alive. So, how could this be happening? A small voice in the back of her head answered her, 'the crash.'

Ageha was starting to make some sense of the possibility of having been thrown back in time (which sounded crazy even to her) when a light touch on her shoulder made her jump. Looking up she saw that Aoi-san had finally freed himself from Ririko and had ventured over to her with a questioning look in his eyes. "I'm sorry to have scared you. Are you alright?"

Ageha could see a sulking Ririko over his shoulder as he offered his hand to help her up. Looking between him, his hand, and Ririko, she reluctantly took the offer and was helped back to the couch. Now safely seated on the soft cushions, Aoi-san knelt in front of her to check how her head was. "Now can you tell me who you are and why you were laying in the middle of the road?"

Ageha stared at him before dropping her eyes to the floor. She was debating on whether to make something up or tell him the truth. 'How crazy would he think I am if I told him that? Maybe he would believe me…' She took one last long look into his eyes before deciding what to do. Taking a deep breath, she began, "My name is Ageha and I'm…."

She let the sentence trail off. She wasn't looking at Aoi-san anymore, but rather over his shoulder at a young child that had just walked in. He was observing the scene before him with mild interest when his child's gaze locked with hers. Time seemed to slow down around Ageha and the boy, while they looked at each other. Then his wide gaze shifted into a scowl. A beautiful scowl that had been etched into her memory on the face so handsome it could be mistaken as an angel.

The world spun around her while she continued to lock gazes with this small boy. The name that came to the fore-front of her mind, resonated inside her mind until it was felt like her head would burst. Then the world fell around her, eclipsing her in a black abyss.

Arisaka-san.