A/N: I've been very busy with work, so this is all I could get out at the moment. I read every review, and I thank you for dropping by. I'm sorry I don't have time to reply to every single one of you, but I really appreciate it. Oh, and I don't think I'll be getting back to Legend of the vampire soon. That story takes a lot of energy to write, and I just don't have it at the moment. +_+

That's it. See you all around next time!


Chapter 3: Like Lavender

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Along the narrow path, Natsuki trekked uphill right behind Mai. Located just a few kilometers away was the Fujino burial ground, where tombs of their ancestors lied. The Fujino family practically owned most parts of Fuuka Island, and the cemetery itself was twice as large as the manor as it included the temple at the top of the hill. From where they were, she could hear distant crashes of waves against the shores. Her mother once took her to the cliff, and she still remembered how terrifying the rocky shores and the angry waves below were. She fainted that day, and her mother never took her there again.

Natsuki wiped the sweat off her forehead. The sun was strong, and the walk seemed further than she expected. "When will we get there?"

Mai chuckled as she turned to look over her shoulder at Natsuki. "Come on. It's not that far away."

"But it's very hot today." Natsuki grumbled. When they were just a child, her friend had visited the sacred ground several times, but Madam Fujino never allowed her to go. Now that she was all grown up, she was surprised that Madam Fujino herself suggested her to visit the place.

Each step deeper into the woods, Natsuki found herself gradually lost in the clouds of thoughts. Many questions passed through her mind without any solid answer to satisfy her. How could she prove Madam Fujino wrong? Why did she end up accepting the task to come search at the cemetery? She wasn't sure if it was pity that brought her here today. She had to admit that she was curious as to what could have made her mother so devoted to Madam and the mission to find the treasure. Could it be faith? Natsuki grimaced. She had never walked the path of faith ever since her mother's death.

"Hey, Mai… I think… I want to go back now—" But Natsuki suddenly stopped in her tracks at the smell of lavender. Her head turned to find the source of the scent. It was the same scent she often smelled at the manor.

Mai frowned. "Oh, please, it's really not that far. We're almost there!"

"Do you smell something… like… lavender…?" Natsuki wrinkled her nose. The closer to the cemetery, the stronger the scent became.

Mai sniffed for a second, and then made a face. "I smelled nothing. Natsuki, you've never changed. You always have that weird, creepy thing about lavender smell."

Natsuki always thought that she had such a good nose, but the lavender smell was something she could never pinpoint where it came from. It followed her like shadows, only she could not see it. At times, it struck her out of the blue, when her thoughts were drifting—her mind absent. But she would catch the smell most strongly whenever she was despairing.

However, after she left Japan, the scent eventually faded, and it rarely happened as she grew older. Natsuki almost forgot about it now, and she was caught off-guard when it greeted her the first day she arrived the manor. She wasn't alarmed by it, but rather peaceful to feel it—sense it again.

"Lavender… you smell like lavender…"

Natsuki froze. Her eyes widened, her heart beating fast. The words came out of nowhere, yet they sounded so familiar to her as if they were her own. Somewhere she had said those words to someone she could not remember.

"Natsuki, look! That's the cemetery!" Mai pointed forward.

Natsuki looked up and saw a narrow path leading up to the bamboo gates. Behind the fences were the old temple and a vast field of green. They walked up to the gates and looked around for a sign of anyone. Natsuki noted that the grass had grown tall enough to hide most of the stony, cracked tombs. It looked deserted and uncared for.

"Nobody lives here anymore? It doesn't look like they have been taking care of the cemetery at all," Natsuki frowned in disapproval. It was such disrespect to the Fujino ancestors, and somehow it angered her.

"Madam Fujino has never come up here again since Fujino Aiko died, so a few workers were left in charge."

"Somebody has got to be responsible for it. You can't just leave a cemetery like this. This is a great insult." Natsuki clenched her fists as she swept her gaze around the area.

Mai scratched her head. "Umm, it's always looked like this ever since I can remember."

Natsuki didn't feel the need to knock anymore. She pushed the gates open and marched in. Mai hurried after her friend. They headed towards the temple to look for people.

"Madam Fujino once said that she wanted it to be forgotten. I guess that is why she left it the way it is now."

"She's the one who's never forgotten this place. She sent me here today." Natsuki wiped more sweat off her cheek. Her chest felt heavy with anger, and her body heated by the hot air.

"Oh, what's with you? It's just an old cemetery in the woods. No one really comes here anymore. Why do you care so much?"

At that, Natsuki stopped mid-step. "No—I—I don't care…"

Mai sighed. She came to stand beside her friend and patted her on the shoulder. "I know that you've noticed how the manor has changed, and now seeing the burial ground like this. We all know that the end is near. We can't help but fear for the worst… but things will happen for better, Natsuki." Taking in a deep breath, Mai looked up and around, smiling widely with hope. "Someone will come and take care of the manor, this—this place and the whole island! It will only get better... again…"

Natsuki remained quiet for a moment. Mai seemed to realize how Natsuki felt faster than Natsuki herself. Undeniably, she was afraid that it all would end. She didn't want the only place she shared memories with her mother became only something of the past—abandoned and forgotten.

"What will happen then? Who will take care of the manor after Madam is gone?" Madam Fujino and her husband, Kazuo, were childless, and Natsuki had never seen any relatives visiting the old lady.

Mai sat down upon a large, stony bench, patting her skirt a little. She then took a sip of water from her bottle. "Aiko-sama had a son, Fujino Takeshi. But Ms. Maria said that he wasted his life on drugs and women, and he committed suicide when he was around thirty years old. What a shame."

"Indeed." Natsuki sank down on the same bench, and drank some water from her friend's bottle.

Mai nodded. "We never knew why Takeshi-sama decided to do such a thing. He had an illegitimate daughter with his Italian girlfriend, Marisa Viola. The baby was only one-year-old when the tragedy happened. Ms. Viola then took her daughter back to Italy. Shizuru Viola should be about our age now."

Shizuru Viola…

Natsuki squinted up at the falling sakura that poured down upon her by the strong gush of wind. "Never heard of the name."

Mai brushed the sakura off her shoulders and head. "Madam absolutely despises Ms. Viola, but she just adores Shizuru-sama. She used to visit the girl now and then, but not so much in the past three years due to her health problems."

Natsuki gulped more water down to satisfy her thirst. "Why doesn't the girl come instead?"

"I guess Ms. Viola hates Madam back." Mai chortled, but her smile died down soon afterwards. "Madam contacted her several times and asked if Shizuru-sama could come. I hope that Ms. Viola will understand one day. I just feel bad for Madam. She'd love to see her grand-niece again before…"

Natsuki couldn't help but sigh aloud. "But you seemed so confident that someone will come to save this place."

Mai grinned from ear to ear, clinging to Natsuki's arm. "Oh, that's because I believe that you will find the ruby bracelet and save this family from the curse!"

"Oiiii! Stop the nonsense!"

"Here's the catch. I overheard something about the emerald bracelet last year."

"Huh. What about it?"

Mai leaned even closer to her friend. "I think Madam Fujino has been planning to give it to Shizuru-sama. That's why she's growing desperate, fearing that Shizuru-sama would one day fall to the same fate like her ancestors."

Natsuki rolled her eyes. "Madam should just destroy the goddamn bracelet. Problem solved."

"It is the token of eternal love. What could have destroyed it? Even if that insane lady would decide to do it, I will never allow it to happen for as long as I live!"

Both Mai and Natsuki flinched at the interruption. They shot to their feet and turned at the voice coming from behind them. There was a long-haired woman in orange, patterned kimono, holding the bucket of water in both hands. She was standing by the gates, glaring back at the two intruders.