Ok! 4th chapter is up y'all WOW today's been a fanfictiony day for me, I just wrote chapter three this morning, and then I started that Shiznat fic too, and now it's like almost 1 a.m. THAT STILL COUNTS AS THE SAME DAY CUZ I STARTED at like 11 lol, anyways I'm pretty proud of myself. Well, You know when you're watching anime and sometimes there are just those annoying as hell filler episodes that make no sense at all? Well, expect that from this chapter! But it does have to do with the next one so it's a filler...but not really. I was going to actually write the date chapter, but then thought to myself, "Natsuki isn't that well kept together! She'll need help! So I called in a professional! MAI! AHAHAHA, anyways, I like this chapter, it was fun to write. ENJOY!
Shiznat: Thanks again! You must fight the urge to think of Shizuru! If you do that, then I will do my best to keep the Naoness in my shinat fic at bay! We must FIGHT!!
Glowie: lol, I know i have like millions of mistakes, but one, spell check isn't all that reliable, two, I was too lazy to read over the chapter and review it(same with this one) thanks for pointing them out! Please bear wth me and my mistakes! Thanks for reading and reviewing! I'll appreciate any other mistakes you catch!
Natsuki woke up Sunday morning, displeased with the lack of presence near her. She swung her legs over to the side of her bed and groggily rubbed her eyes. She was wearing the same clothes she had worn last night, grey sweatpants, and a black long-sleeve. She rolled her left sleeve up to her elbows before slowly standing up and scratching her stomach under her shirt. She walked over to the kitchen and pulled out a bowl, milk, spoon, and cereal. Today seemed especially slow to her for some reason. She knew she had something important to do today, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
When she was about mid-way done with her cereal, her doorbell rang. Natsuki gave a confused look and averted her view up to the clock above the television in the other room. The clock read…8:34…who the hell could be coming to see me this early in the morning?...Natsuki groaned as she slowly moved up from the table and to the front door. The doorbell rang again and Natsuki's patience was growing thin, it was only 8:30 in the morning, she was still sleepy, and she couldn't remember what the hell she was supposed to do this morning, "Yeah! I'm coming, keep your pants on!" unless it's Nao that is…heh. Natsuki couldn't keep the smile that grew on her face as she opened the front door.
To her dismay, it wasn't Nao, but instead…Mai and Mikoto??!! Natsuki looked fairly surprised. Mai rubbed the back of her head, while Mikoto took in her surroundings. There was a small moment of silence before Natsuki shook her head out of its confused state and asked, "Mai? Mikoto? What are you two doing here? At 8:30 in the morning nonetheless…"
Mai sighed and looked down in defeat…so she forgot after all…jeez…she was the one who asked me too…Mai regained her composure before responding, "Well, you're the one who called Natsuki-chan…remember?" Natsuki looked extremely puzzled and tilted her head to the side, oh man…does she really not remember??? This girl will need more help than I thought…, "Remember Natsuki? You called me around 6 o'clock last night and asked me to help you. You said that you had a date with Nao tomorrow and that you could seriously use my help. Then you went through an endless list of everything that could possibly go wrong and how you didn't know what to even say or do…and then I remember a fair amount of panicking…"
Natsuki then slapped her forehead with her left palm and gave a silent curse. She gave Mai an apologetic look and motioned for her to enter her apartment. Mai smiled and dragged Mikoto along, who was fairly entertained by a stray cat hanging around the hallway. When they made it inside Natsuki gave a sigh and then turned to face Mai, "Ah man, sorry Mai, I really spaced out didn't I? Well anyways, just take a seat anywhere and I'll be back. Hold on for a minute okay?" Mai nodded and sat down, dragging Mikoto along with her while Natsuki made her way to the bedroom.
Natsuki quickly undressed and found a pair of blue jeans, a belt, and a white hooded sweater. She redressed and cursed silently at how irresponsible she was. When she walked out of the room, she found Mai trying to keep Mikoto from running out of the window to chase a cat she had seen climbing the tree. When Mai noticed Natsuki, her hold on Mikoto faltered and the small girl dashed out the window, with the agility of an inhuman creature. Mai just reached out to her and yelled, "Wha- Mikoto! At least don't go too far!! Wai-Mikoto! Mou!"
Natsuki smiled and laughed at the situation. Mai pouted at her and leaned back on the couch. Natsuki walked up to Nao, "Don't worry; she'll probably be back by lunch."
Mai noticed Natsuki's unusually gay expression, but decided not to press it, "Yeah, I know, but it's what she tracks when she comes back is what I'm worried about…It took me about three hours to clean out all the dirt and other nasty things she tracked into our apartment last time."
Natsuki chuckled a bit before settling down next to Mai. Then, Mai remembered the purpose of her visit, "Oh! Natsuki-chan, I guess we should start now right?" Natsuki stared wide-eyed at Mai and just rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly as she nodded. Mai had an overjoyed expression on her face as she clapped her hands together, "Well then, let's start at the basics shall we?" Natsuki shrugged, "First things first, what do you plan on doing tomorrow?"
Natsuki just stared at Mai, a confused expression plastered on her face. She thought about it a bit more and then sighed, "I don't know…I don't know what we should do tomorrow…"
Mai just gave a sympathetic pat on the shoulder to the girl across her who was bowing her head in defeat. Then, she brought her right index finger to her mouth while focused on the ceiling saying, "Well…if she really just enjoys spending time with you…then it shouldn't be that hard to think of something. I think something simple would do." Natsuki nodded in approval, "Well then…something simple that Nao-chan would enjoy…hmm…Oh! Why don't you guys take a romantic walk through the park?"
Natsuki sighed at the suggestion but shook her head, "That sounds nice…but I'm afraid Nao isn't very, shall I say, friendly with some of the people there due to her previous encounters with them. Doing that would most likely end up in chaos."
Mai just sat there, laughing slightly, her left eye twitching…Does Nao-chan really have that many enemies? She must have made a mother lode from all those people she robbed…, "Well…ok then…you don't have to do that…how about…umm…how about dinner? Maybe dinner in the moonlight, or in nice restaurant?"
Natsuki just sighed once more and said, "Nao doesn't really deal well with people, as you know. The last time I remember seeing Nao eat at a restaurant…she called the waiter a retarded asshole and sent the poor guy crying. Then I remember her laughing her ass off at him…He was a young boy, a sensitive one at that…In any case, I don't think that would work very well with Nao, until a while that is."
Mai was twitching all over the place now…she couldn't believe the reputation that Nao had worked over the years. She then calmed herself and they both sat in awkward silence until Mai had a sudden idea. She clapped her hands together and began once more, "Well then, how about you guys go on a nice picnic under the moonlight. There's a nice hilltop I know by the school grounds. Nobody ever goes there, but it's really nice up there, a view of the city is available, and the trees and stars create the perfect romantic atmosphere." Mai closed her eyes and sighed at the thought.
Natsuki couldn't help but be suspicious, "Hmm? Could it be that you experienced it before with someone Mai?"
Mai looked shocked and blushed saying, "O-of course not…it just seems like it…" Natsuki didn't miss the look Mai gave the window Mikoto had escaped from before answering.
"Well, that sounds like a good idea, except for the fact that I can't cook for shit."
"That's not a problem! I'd be glad to cook for the two of you! I'll take care of the food, you just worry about what you're going to say and do during the time you have together."
Natsuki gave Mai a grateful smile and said, "Thanks Mai, I owe you one, I honestly don't know where the hell I would've ended up without you."
"Well you can thank me by making sure this date goes well ne?"
Natsuki smiled at Mai and managed to shyly ask, "So…what do I wear?"
Mai couldn't help a laugh as she got up and said, "Well, that depends, where's your closet?"
Natsuki got up and led Mai into her bedroom. When she got there, she showed Mai her wardrobe. Mai couldn't help but frown at all the boyish clothes that Natsuki loved to wear. She sighed and decided that it couldn't be helped. She turned to Natsuki and smiled mischievously, "I hope you're used to changing a lot Natsuki, 'cause it'll be a while before I let you out of here."
Natsuki gave a frightened groan as Mai tugged her to the closet. After about an hour of rummaging through Natsuki's closet and not coming to a conclusion, Mai sighed. Natsuki looked as troubled as ever as she sat on the bed. Mai looked at Natsuki and said, "Mou, Natsuki-chan, don't you have anything nicer than these old pants and shirts? Some of them would look good if only they weren't worn out or wrinkled…"
Natsuki only shrugged and said, "Well, I don't go clothes shopping very often, I buy whatever I need, and nothing more."
Mai huffed at her comment and glared at Natsuki disapprovingly. She then thought of something as she rushed out of the room and grabbed her purse. When she came back, she had that same mischievous smile on her face. Natsuki was a bit frightened, and she had every right to be, because Mai's next words were her worst nightmare, "Come on, we're going to the mall Natsuki-chan."
Mai had gotten Natsuki to slip on her shoes and grab her bike keys after a few minutes of arguing, or more like Mai slapping Natsuki in the face with each word she said, such as, "Oh come on, it can't be that bad, besides, what if Nao-san thinks you smell with those old clothes in your closet?" As Natsuki drove her bike, she couldn't help but feel hurt, her pride at least. Mai had apologized for what she said when they got on the road, but they both knew that Natsuki would have never complied unless she said them.
When they stopped at a stoplight near the mall they heard a strange commotion. Soon after they found a huge hurdle of cats meowing their way across the street, passing them by. Natsuki and Mai looked at each other, dumbfounded, but Mai's confused expression was soon replaced with an aggravated and worried one as Mikoto was found in the middle of the herd and a large trail of mud following her, along with leaves, twigs, and other unsanitary items surrounding the smaller girl. Natsuki could feel Mai twitch after they had left and braced for impact as Nao threw her head up and yelled, "MOU! MIKOTO!! WHY?!!!"
Natsuki sighed as Mai plopped back down on her back and smiled. When the light turned green, she pulled the throttle and headed into the mall parking lot. When they entered the mall, Mai led Natsuki to a store that sold nice, but cheap clothes. The first thing Mai did was make Natsuki wait by the dressing rooms, before returning with a heap of jeans, cargos, shirts, polos, and hats, "Well, I tried to match your taste, so I hope you like these.!"
Mai started off with a white and brown polo with tan khakis, her shoes were fine, it's just her other clothes that needed help. The polo fit nice and tight on Natsuki's upper body showing off her nice body. The khakis fit nicely and went well with the wardrobe, but the hat that said, 'Sexy' really ruined the whole outfit and ended up with Mai giggling a bit at the sight.
Natsuki sighed and went back in. Instead of the skater look, Mai decided to go with something different. Natsuki then came out with a shirt about twice her size, pants that fell to her mid-thigh, and a jacket that made her look twenty pounds heavier. Mai laughed and laughed at Natsuki, apologizing as she did, but doing nothing to stop herself. Natsuki was blushing now, and she puffed her cheeks to show her annoyance before retreating back into the dressing room.
The two spent the next hour or so in the store, Mai picking out different styles for Natsuki, such as emo, which consisted of all black clothing, and some black eyeliner, which Natsuki quickly wiped off after seeing herself. She also tried the surfer look, beach shorts, sandals, and a Hawaiian styled shirt, then the business look, a turtleneck with black dress pants and a sport coat. In any case, Mai's laughter only increased with every different style.
It was nearly lunchtime when the two finally agreed on an outfit. They had agreed on faded blue jeans, not too baggy, but not too tight as well. The shirt they picked was a blue one that read 'hands off' with an arrow pointing to the right, as if pointing to the person standing to her right side, while on the back it read, 'that's mine'. The jacket they picked out was a dark blue one that was made out of light material, the waist of the jacket reached just the right above the beginning of her pants. Her shirt was tight enough, but not tight as if to fully show her features. She topped off the outfit with her white-sneakers.
Natsuki paid for the clothes and gave a sigh of relief. Mai just smiled as they walked towards the food court, both starving. Mai from laughing so hard and Natsuki from all the embarrassment she had recently received. They weren't at the food court for long before Mikoto showed up smelling like she had just been thrown mercilessly into a dumpster full of chow mein and pizza. Mai couldn't stand the stench and she dragged Mikoto into the bathroom, giving Natsuki an apologetic smile.
Natsuki had decided to just order what she thought Mai would like. In the bathroom, Mai was struggling to keep Mikoto still, luckily for her, the one single bathroom was free, "Mikoto! Stay still will you? Jeez, this is why you shouldn't go out and chase random things like that." Mai scolded Mikoto as she wiped her face and arms with a wet paper towel.
Mikoto only struggled even more wriggling out of Mai's grip, "I hate being cleaned like this! I don't even like baths that much, so why do I have to do this?!"
Mai stared at Mikoto helplessly, but suddenly had a raise in spirits as she got an idea, "Mikoto," she purred, Mikoto gulped helplessly, "If you comply…I'll reward you with something good…" Even the thick-headed Mikoto understood where Mai was getting at and she soon stopped struggling.
Natsuki had been waiting for over twenty minutes now. She decided to order some ramen for herself, an extra large bowl for Mikoto, and dry noodles for Mai. When Mai and Mikoto finally joined her, she found them both to be a bit flustered. Mai's hair was a bit unruly, though she tried to fix it, and both of their clothes looked a bit messy. Natsuki couldn't help a smile as they sat down. She turned to Nao and said, "So, it took some bribery to get her to sit still huh?" Mai blushed and began to eat.
It was already half past two when they reached Natsuki's apartment. Mai sighed at how tired she was, and Natsuki set her clothes in an especially careful manner on top of the dresser in her room, while Mikoto was sniffing around her kitchen and everywhere else.
When Natsuki returned to the living room she sat next to Mai, "So, is there anything else I need to know, like what do I say…or what do I do…?"
Mai only smiled at Natsuki and winked, "Those are things that you'll need to figure out on your own. But a little advice, do something that fits the mood Natsuki-chan." Natsuki blushed and just looked down, "For example, if it's a chilly night, take your jacket off and put it around her shoulders, and if she's still cold put your arm around her, and hold her close…but…if she's still cold…that means she wants something from you…and I can't tell you what she wants because I don't exactly know Nao-san's taste in things like that." Mai couldn't help but giggle as she saw her friend blush at what she had just said.
Mai and Natsuki spent the rest of their time talking about old times and of course, Mai teased Natsuki to no end about her date the next day. Natsuki ended up blushing most of the time Mai was over. Before the two friends knew it, it was already five o'clock. Mai looked at the clock and said, "Oh, it's already this late? I'm sorry Natsuki-chan, but Mikoto and I have to go check on Takumi."
"Don't worry about it Mai, man, over two hours already passed since we got back, we must have been really deep in conversation." She averted her attention to Mikoto who was comfortably sleeping on Mai's lap, "She's pretty harmless when she sleeps huh?"
Mai smiled and petted Mikoto's head, waking her, "Yeah, it's about the only time I get peace around here. Oh, and I'll stop by tomorrow with the stuff for the picnic okay? So be sure to wake up!" Natsuki nodded and got up as Mai and Mikoto did. Mikoto clung on to the side of Mai with sleepy eyes. They walked to the door together and said their good byes. Natsuki then sighed and climbed in the shower, "tomorrow's gonna be along day I take it…"
Wellllll, that was chapter 4 for ya! I hope you guys like this one! It was fun to write for me! I thought that Mai and Mikoto never got enough credit in the fics here, it's always natsuki shizuru this or natsuki nao that Let's show these two some love shall we?? Thanks for reading and I appreaciate suggestions, criticism, and WHINING! I'm quite a whiner myself.lol, R&R PLZ! p.s. sorry for any confusing details, spelling, or grammar, I miss stuff sometimes.