Disclaimer: I do not, and probably will never, own Vocaloid or UTAUloid...sob. Anyways, I don't own Gemini, either.
Hey peoples...;-). Chapter 2 has been sitting in the document manager for awhile, but I thought that the middle part was a little awkward and not how I wanted Len's character to turn out, so I added a few words so it wouldn't seem "permanent". A one night stand~whatever that means. I just thought it and said it...lol. Anyways, I usually post a chapter after I have a few pages done of the next chapter, but that doesn't take long, I write this fanfic during math class :D :D. Geometry. Puh.
Anywaaaaays. I'm getting off topic. Len and Rin don't actually meet each other in the next chapter, but they're starting to act a little weird...even though they haven't made contact yet. And when they do...well...I dunno yet xD. *shifty eyes* Len seems to be having memory problems. I incorporated the song Gemini sung by Rin and Len in this chapter, so if you've never listened to it with subtitles or read the lyrics, I suggest you do now...because otherwise you won't really get it. Also, I changed the lyrics around a bit when Rin is speaking, so it would seem more like speech than a song. A song is just a poem with music ;-) or says my language arts again, constructive criticism only, unless it's like a review about what you think about the fanfic without any bashing. If you find any grammatical or spelling errors, please include that in your review. So anyway...if I write any more, I think this author's note thing will be longer than the chapter. So...read...review...but please be nice . *twirls off* I'm an odd one, aren't I?
In a story which has already ended, a new character appeared, opening a new road of possibilities.
The door has opened, the music has started, and there is no turning back,
for it has already begun…
Rin's foot caught on the loose hem of a skirt tossed onto the floor, and fell, catching herself before falling face flat. Unlike the days before the black minivan had driven up the narrow driveway of the mansion, Kagura had been rushing in and out of her room all day, bringing with her various dresses for Rin to try on.
"Rin, do be more careful," Kagura said, pursing her lips. It was obvious that she was nervous, the way she moved about the room in an agitated manner, and how she snapped every time Rin tried to make a suggestion. "Try on this dress, please, sweetie." She handed Rin a frilly white dress, and Rin grabbed it, walking toward the bathroom.
When she walked out of the bathroom, Kagura was no longer in the room. Rin panicked for a second, but then sat onto the bed shakily. Her heart beat with heavy thumps in her chest, and she took deep breaths. "Heart beat," she murmured to herself. "Breaths…" All of these things were new to her. Ever since she saw the photo in the newspaper, her emotions have steadily began to return, as well as some personality quirks that she supposed she had before. "Calm down, Rin. The party already started, and Kagura probably has some guests to deal with anyway…I'm sure you can take care of yourself." Another thing was that she loved hearing her own voice, for some reason. It wasn't only her own voice; she felt comforted the first time Kagura had stepped into her room and asked her for her name. "And it's about time you met other people, too," she continued murmuring to herself. Confidently strapping opulent silver sandals to her feet, she took in the fluttering feeling in her stomach, and the cold sweat appearing on the backs of her shoulders, gently fanning herself. This "nervousness" feeling really wasn't all that great.
A sudden burst of confidence caused Rin to jump up, and before she could change her mind, she ran toward the door and slammed it open, almost ripping it off its hinges. A muffled "Ow!" came from below her, and she jumped in surprise. "Holy oranges!" Rin stepped back and took in the scene as a boy that was perhaps her age with short, aqua blue hair rubbed his head tenderly on the ground. She widened her eyes as the boy noticed her, and the room behind her. Even though there really wasn't much danger in letting the boy in, the many years in which nobody has set foot in it ticked her off, and an involuntary shiver ran up her spine. She spun on her heels and slammed the door in his face, rushing to get as far away as possible from the stranger.
"Hey, what gives?" Rin shuffled away from the door as the boy's muffled voice penetrated the door keeping them apart. Her heart beat to every second that the boy didn't push that door open, and her eyes darted around the room frantically, finally resting on the bed.
"Hello?" The boy's voice sounded significantly louder, and Rin cringed, folding herself up even more, even when her body was barely hidden by the bed. She heard footsteps coming around the bed, and sucked in her breath, squeezing her eyes shut and desperately wished the footsteps would disappear. "Aha!" This time, the voice rang out right by her ear, and she jumped, bumping her head on the bottom of the bed. The boy laughed, and pulled her out against her will from under the bed. "Now we're even!" Rin grimaced.
"I'm Hatsune Mikuo," he held out his hand boyishly. "But I'm sure you've already heard of me."
Rin shook his hand nervously, and quickly extracted it away when a polite number of shakes had ensued. "Uh, actually, no."
"Oh, come on, you can't never had heard of me before, I'm number two on the top 10 list of hotties in Japan, second only to Kagamine Len..." he trailed off, raising his eyebrows. When Rin returned his look with a blank stare, he sighed, and held up his hands in defeat. "Well, now you know."
"So, why are you here?" Rin backed up the furthest she could without it being apparent. The boy looked genuinely nice, but you could never be sure. She suddenly felt very self-conscious about what she was wearing, and tugged down the white skirt. Mikuo reached into his pocket and dug out a pair of shining silver scissors, snapping them with a coy grin. "Is that...for my hair...?"
"Guilty as charged," he replied, grabbing her and forcing her to sit. "Kagura-sama hired me, but the only thing she told me was that there was "a girl who needed tremendous help"."
Rin coughed violently, and gave him a defiant glare. "I didn't know boys were interested in such things as hair."
"Well, originally, I was the heir to a successful company, but I wasn't cut out for that business, 'ya know? So I ran away. I had a younger sister, who was good at everything, so it's not like they're missing me or anything. I met Kagura-sama and started a career as a hairdresser; I'm only 18 but I'm already considered a prodigy. Kagura-sama saw that in me, okay?" He rubbed his head sheepishly, and spoke quickly, like he was a little embarrassed to say it. He quickly took a strand of Rin's hair, changing the subject. "I'm just going to cut your bangs today, since that's all we have time for, but remember to give me a call after the party, okay?" His eyes sparkled, and Rin felt nervous having her hair at the mercy of such a weirdo. "You have nice hair. Silky, smooth, and not too oily...plus I've got a lot to work with." His eyes swept her hair, which landed near her waist, from all the years she's lived without scissors.
Rin shifted her head, and for the first time, she realized how heavy all that hair felt. "Maybe it won't be that bad to cut some off..." she murmured. She didn't even bother to glare at Mikuo when he grinned. "It's all part of my charm," she heard him mutter happily, but ignored it as he brushed her hair. It nearly brought tears to her eyes; never had anybody done this for her, not even a motherly figure she might've had a long time ago. It was vaguely comforting, and when Mikuo stopped brushing to begin cutting, she wanted to rebel and bring the brush back to her head.
Snippets of golden blonde hair fell around her as Mikuo trimmed her overgrown bangs back into what they were before. Her hair had always been the cause of her vision troubles, and now that they were gone, she almost...missed them, because when she brought Mikuo's hand mirror to her face, she gasped, almost in glee. Mikuo held up his hands, and backed off as Rin admired herself in the mirror. "I will never understand girls," he muttered. "But I have to say, I did a pretty dang good job."
But Rin wasn't happy about that part. She turned her face at every angle possible, but she could not find any trace of the vocaloid her. She was as human as Mikuo, except, perhaps, she still had some work to do on her reactions to other people and her emotions. She sat still as Mikuo tied a perky silver white bow into her hair and applied a gentle layer of makeup onto her face. The guests were already here, and she could hear them downstairs, partying the night off only the rich businessmen of Japan could do.
"All done," Mikuo announced, stepping back. "I won't be going down with you, though." He looked away sadly, and Rin couldn't help but ask why. "Well, you see, my younger sister is undoubtedly going to come; she's had a crush on Len since kindergarten, or preschool, whatever it was." He frowned. "Crypton wouldn't want me to be there anyways. I am no longer one of them."
Rin nodded awkwardly, not knowing how to respond, and said a quick goodbye, opening the door that would lead her to the rest of the world.
"Len! Come meet Kamui-san."
Len trudged over to his father's side and listened half-heartedly to introductions about a business man who had enough guts to die his hair purple. Or maybe it was natural; either way, nothing about the man was very "natural". His white and purple suit made him stand out from everyone else, and his hair did nothing to mask it.
"You're not old," he commented wryly, and remembered the countless middle-aged businessmen his father had introduced to him earlier. Crypton gave him a stern glare, but 'Kamui-san' just laughed and patted his back.
"You're right about that, I hope. I'm only 21, so just call me Gakupo," he said with a twinkle in his eye that made Len want to puke. He's the type that I hate the most, Len thought to himself. The pedo-type.
When Crypton and Gakupo discussed how the gasoline prices were rising to unbelievable prices and how the government was doing nothing to stop it, Len slipped away into the crowd, hoping to find something exciting, or at least more interesting, to do. Without realizing it, he stopped by the staircase his mother had descended from earlier, and stared lazily at the darkness beyond it. A sudden interest in what was beyond it overtook him, and he hesitated for a second before setting foot on the first step. A second too late.
"Lenny!" Miku bounded up and wound her arms around him. "Where are you going?"
None of your business, he thought, annoyed. "My mother was searching for you earlier, I think it'd be best if you searched for her, too. I've got some business of my own to take care of," he lied.
Miku's face suddenly turned somber, and she took a step away from Len. "We need to talk. Or, at least, I need to talk with you."
Another time, Len immediately thought. Please, he added.
"But, I guess, the least I can do is talk later..." she rocked back on her heels and pretended to look for Kagura. "I'm really not that clingy, Len." She brushed past him, and disappeared into the crowd. Len looked at the place where she had disappeared, and shrugged to himself. Girls.
He quickly hopped up the stairs, skipping every other step to quicken the pace. A sudden excitement that he hadn't felt for years filled his every thought, and he felt braver than he actually was. As he neared the top of the staircase, he noticed that the path separated into two hallways, and he plunged into the right hallway without thinking. A melody of a song he heard back in his childhood popped into his head and an uncharacteristic smile spread cross his face.
It was amazing. Actually, it was a little weird. For the first time in a long while, Len felt free. He opened a door to his right, and found that at the end of that room an open door with flowing curtains was already open, leading to a small balcony with an amazing view. He sat on the side of the balcony that was attached to the wall, and tilted his head to the sky. A gentle breeze blew against his face, and a sudden sense of nostalgia overtook him, forcing him to remember all the good things in his childhood that turned sour once he hit the tender age of ten.
It had been the last day of summer vacation. Len, Ted, and Miku had sneaked off from one of their parent's business parties, and had spread a picnic blanket on the grass. They had lain side by side, staring at the vast, starry sky. Even back then, Miku had liked Len, and insisted that he lay in the middle. The three of them had stared at the twinkling stars for hours until a little whisper interrupted their reverie.
"Once, when everybody was asleep, I suddenly found myself awake at 2 A.M ," she had whispered, almost inaudibly. "I had a terrible nightmare that haunted my dreams..."
Nobody had heard her except for Len. He had reached over and clasped her hand, and their small palms had fit perfectly together. Ted and Miku suddenly began whispering excitedly, and pointed to the sky. A million shooting stars fell from the heavens, and they all watched in amazement.
"When I am frightened, and nobody is with me...will someone be able to help me?" she continued to whisper, staring at the sky. Len had been staring into her eyes, and noticed how the flashing lights in the sky reflected on her cerulean irises. "You will never be alone," he whispered. "And even when nobody is with you, and you are frightened, I will be there." The two's cerulean eyes locked, and they whispered simultaneously, "Pinky-promise. Even if the heavens collapse with the world that we know."
He had held her hand to his chest, and felt his heart beat against her hand. "Close yours eyes and you will always feel my heartbeat, R---"
Len's eyes suddenly snapped open, and he jumped off the balcony, and held a hand up to his head. No matter how he tried to remember, he could not remember what he was going to say next. Had there been somebody else, a girl, who had been there with them? That couldn't be possible, he didn't have any close girl friends, and one that he would be so sincere to, at that. He covered his eyes, and laughed sarcastically. "I made a promise. And I can't even remember the person I made it to." His mouth opened, and suddenly, the melody which had tied the two children together in the past exploded out, and a melodious tune drifted into the night sky.
"Even if we are apart, split in two yet joined as one, together we make up both sides of a constellation..."
His heart throbbed terribly, and he wondered if a girl's heart hurt like this when he broke up with her. How long had it been since he had let his feelings out in a song? Ever since six years ago, he hadn't even been able to do anything with his emotions. He had figured that wearing his heart on his sleeve was stupid; he would only be hurt in the end. Not even Ted had been able to make him smile a genuine smile, and he had fed off of negative emotions.
"Even on those noisy days, even on those lonely nights, we are fated Gemini, to meet beyond the night sky..."
Yes, even on those noisy days, those lonely nights. Len laughed mentally and bitterly at that, at how accurate this song foretold a lot of his life so far. But something about this mansion, this old, rusty mansion, had triggered something he had tried to bury a long time ago, and he wasn't sure he liked it...he wasn't sure if he hated it either. "Useless" emotions he had thrown away, such as sympathy and kindness, were suddenly coming back to him, and he wasn't sure if his heart was hurting because he felt cheated from the years he had spent reforming himself or because there was something out there that he cared dearly about, but had thrown away.
"Suddenly I found myself up at 2 AM. I had a terrible nightmare that haunts my dream..."
Len snapped his eyes open with a jolt, and pressed his ears to the wall behind him, straining to hear the voice coming from the space behind it. It was a girl's voice, and a beautiful one at that. A beautiful, familiar, one...he shook his head and continued listening. Somebody was on the other side of the wall. Somebody had heard him sing, and somehow was continuing where he stopped singing.
"When I am frightened, and nobody is with me...can someone, anyone, help me let go?"
The voice waned as Len sprinted back into the room and out the door, reaching for the handle to the room next door...
"Even if the heavens collapse with the world that we know..."
The voice suddenly stopped. No! Dammit! Len looked around hurriedly. It was way too dark to see, and he no longer knew which room he had just stepped out of, and which room the singing had come from.
"Even if the heavens collapse with the world that we know..."
The voice sounded choked this time, as if the singer was about the cry, and Len calmed down, straining his ears again for every single sound he could possibly hear.
"What's wrong, R-chan?" Len heard a boy's voice and walked toward the source.
"I don't know. I thought I heard somebody singing, and I knew the song, so I continued it when he stopped singing it. But, when I think about it..." a girl voice emanated through the empty corridor. "The voice sounded so familiar, but I can't remember it. When I sing that line, the one about the heavens collapsing, I feel so sad...I feel like crying."
Silence ensued once again, but this time, Len had found the door.
"I am an idiot."
Rin jumped onto the bed and buried her face into her pillow. Mikuo laughed and patted her shoulder. "What's wrong, too many people for R-chan?" She lifted her head and bit Mikuo's hand menacingly. He winced, but backed away from her personal space.
"I thought I was ready to face everybody, but I guess I'm still considered a tangerine compared to the oranges downstairs," Rin said into the pillow, her voice muffled. Mikuo muttered incoherently about her usage of metaphors, but plopped down onto the end of the bed instead.
"So, Miss Kagamine-but-not-related-to-Len, what are you going to do for the rest of the night?" He raised his eyebrows sarcastically. "And you're messing up the makeup I did for you."
Rin kicked her legs and hugged the plushy pillow she had stolen from Mikuo. "I suppose I can keep you company, Mikuo-kun." He snorted in response, and took out a bag of hair ties from his pocket. He reached over and snapped two onto Rin's head before she could bite him again.
"What the heck, Hatsune!" She jumped off the bed and examined herself in the mirror. Two pigtails rested on either side of her head. She muttered curses, but couldn't argue that it looked bad. Mikuo snickered, and crossed his arms. "Fine, sure, whatever...it doesn't look bad, but it's just not...me."
"Okay, okay, I got it. It was the first hairstyle that popped into my mind, since I always used to do it for my sister." He removed it had tied her hair into a side ponytail instead. Rin huffed satisfactorily, and sat back onto the bed.
"Do you think it's weird that I can't remember anything from before six yea--" Rin suddenly stopped, and Mikuo looked at her questionably. Her eyes widened, and she walked over to the wall behind Mikuo, leaning against it. An old song from a long, long time ago poured into her ears, and she listened greedily, but when the fourth line ended, she heard no more. She sat back, disappointed, but the lyrics to the rest of the song suddenly popped into her head. She lifted her hands and swept her bangs behind her ears, but her hand remained over them, blocking out any sounds that would distract her...
...and then she started singing. Mikuo stared, mesmerized, by the way her voice rang. But suddenly, Rin stopped singing, and a sad look overcame her face.
"What's wrong, R-chan?"
"I don't know. I thought I heard somebody singing, and I knew the song, so I continued it when he stopped singing it. But, when I think about it..." Rin looked into her hands. "The voice sounded so familiar, but I can't remember it. When I sing that line, the one about the heavens collapsing, I feel so sad...I feel like crying." Tiny drips of salty water landed on her palms, and she began hiccuping.
Mikuo hugged her around the shoulders like a good friend, but when he cast a sharp glance at the door, Rin didn't notice.
"Rin...stay here, I have to go somewhere..."
And when the knob turned on the door, and the door opened, Rin was the only one sitting on the bed.
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