Ever since the ghost's appearance, life for Gray hadn't quite ever been the same, much to his distaste. He certainly lost quite the amount of sleep, with Lucy being the irresistible alarm clock she was (hey, Gray was not a boy without hormones), and her incredibly antsy antics.
And by antsy, he meant incredibly antsy. She fretted over trivialities in a similar of manner being over caffeinated—like a pink energy bunny. If the lights just happened to shut off for half an hour, she'd prod him three times longer the temporary blackout duration if he had paid the bills yet or not. If he'd cough a little, just a little, from the overcooked breakfast she'd serve him, she'd moan for days on end.
Lucy was definitely an annoyance.
"Yet why didn't I kick her out yet?" Gray grumbled as he crawled his way to the bathroom one day, on an ungodly hour. He had no school today yet sleep was robbed from him again. "…god I'm going crazy…what the hells does that ghost want?!"
Truthfully, the blonde spirit wasn't the only antsy one of the pair. Gray had been undergoing thorough research, careful hours spent in front of a gleaming computer screen (Lucy wasn't above privacy). The verdict of his hard work contained nothing of the blonde's unachieved goal, only of her identity. It turned out she was a writing prodigy, able to capture the coldest of hearts with even the simplest of phrases. Her achievements, Gray had to admit, were remarkable and it was only recent that her retirement was announced, ending the Heartphilia legacy.
"So during that time she must've wanted something," he mused, brushing his teeth, "and the only way of knowing is asking her," which was useless when the person in question had no recollection of such matter, "…or pay a visit at her household."
Unsurprisingly the girl lived in a district not so far away from his, her house situated in a neighborhood of affluence and prestige. It fitted Lucy very well considering her status and achievement, arousing questions from Gray. What could have possibly made a girl want run away from all of that? Did she enjoy living that way? What did she like –he stopped himself. His curiosity was starting to venture well past the appropriateness of the situation. (He will, under no circumstances, have any attachments for the blonde, he swore).
Ring! Ring! Ring!
He closed the faucet, spit into the sink, and walked over to where the phone was, the curious blonde already waiting. He mustered much of his willpower from shooing the girl away. He could never contain the crabbiness inside of him once it was unleashed.
"Hello—"
"GRAY FULLBUSTER!" The boy sighed, holding the phone an arm-length away from his ears for a few seconds before pressing it back to the side of his face. "Hai, hai, Ultear-neechan, no need to yell so much."
"Why not?" came her quick reply, "Mama placed you under my care. I have to work twice as hard you know to pay for both my expense and yours. Why can't you just move in with me?"
Gray made a face at the thought of living with his obnoxious older sister. If living with Lucy was like staying at a bug infested motel, Ultear's was like the dungeons back in the unsanitary Middle Ages. But things could be better now being that he heard rumors of his sister capturing the heart of an affluent bachelor.
"Cause you're gross?" Gray smoothly replied, producing an agitated yell from Ultear, "besides, I'm doing fine on my own."
"…are you now?" her voice was not absent of suspicions, "I don't know whether I should trust you or…"
"I am," Gray insisted, a part of him realizing there was some truth to the lie he was feeding. Up until now he had started to care a little of the world around him. And it was entirely due to a certain blonde. "I'm doing great."
"…." There was a terse silence before a male voice sounded in the background, an indication of an end to their conversation. "Ah, there's him. I got to go. I'll tell you about him another time, 'kay? Talk to you soon."
The line clicked and Gray stared at the handheld for awhile before confirming that the rumors he heard must be true. Whether it was a good thing or bad, he wasn't too sure. In all honesty, his sister wasn't exactly the wife material, her inability in almost everything proved that. Despite being absolutely incompetent, she had the notion that butting into other's business was a good thing which led to more bad than good. Gray's lips twitched upwards a bit, his mind drawing a comparison of his sister to Lucy.
"So who was that?" Gray screamed, the sudden upside-down view of the ghost in his face was more than alarming. The perpetrator of his shock giggled, floating to a proper position. "Scared ya, didn't I?"
"…sure," he sneered, ignoring the rapid thuds of his poor heart, "good damn…don't do that next time!"
"You should've seen your face!" she continued giggling, "it was hilarious!"
"Right, right," he picked himself up, brushing the dust off, "by the way, I won't be needing breakfast."
"Eh?" Thankfully her laughter died out. "Why? Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!"
"I have something important to do," was all he answered before disappearing into his room, his aloof attitude causing the blonde to pout at the uninviting bedroom door.
—
He stood in front the ivory, black gates, his mouth a gap. He had seen pictures of buildings twice the size the house he was in front of right now but in person was whole other kind of experience. The land on the other side of the gates seemed to span miles and only then can a guest truly approach the Heartphilia Mansion. But the mansion itself was something to be in awe of, its design resembling those from the Victorian era, complete with the delicate balcony for teatime. Gray was so in awe that he had nearly forgotten why he was there, almost readily leaving from feeling completely out of his comfort zone.
Gathering the courage to ring the door bell, he pressed the intercom slowly, his back arching from the volume. At first nothing happened and he wondered, half relieved half scared, if he had gotten the wrong address. Perhaps the address he found online was of the Heartphilia museum (they had those of retired renowned artists, right?) or perhaps it was a home to a local codger. But at the second he decided to leave, a face appeared, catching him completely off guard.
"Yes?" the beautiful features of her face contorted in slight irritation, a sign of the wealthy, "is there a reason for your presence?"
"I-I-" he had somehow lost the capability to speak, "a-am looking for information about Lucy Heartphilia—"
"—yeah?" the gates creaked open, a welcoming hand popping out. Under the early sun light, Gray's nervousness peaked to its climax. The girl stepped out fully now, her blonde hair shimmering and smile dazzling.
"I suppose I have time for an interview. Can't deny a fan of Lucy Heartphilia, can't I?"
Word count: 1208
A/N: Completely horribly written, sole reason was of the long break I took. ;3 Gomen, I think I'm only capable of writing shorter length chapters in order for regular updates. Sigh. Ah wells, I hope this was fairly enjoyable/readable. Any thoughts, feel free to name!
-forever in debt from your reviews!
Sapphy-chan and Vivi-chan: (I can call you guys that right? ;D) Yesh~keep your hands off Lisanna! Well I hope not to make too much of a role of Lisanna since I tend to get overboard with side characters. But yeah~;] don't ruin things for Lucy, Lisanna!
jdcocoagirl: I love how on the spot your insight is! Infinite brownie points for you! :D
GoldenRoseTanyaTemporaryHIAT US: Secret~ ;)
Hachibukai: Haha, I wonder if your patience was even enough for this! Gomen! :/
bananapower: Thanks! =D hope this chapter was cute as well!
thedoggydog2: Thanks so much!
R10Hattan: Ah, I see. I tend to have trouble finding humor in Bleach, etc. But lol, it's shounen, there's bound to be a lot of fighting scenes. ;D If fighting scenes aren't your tastes, they're not mine either. xD I'm more passive than active anyways~hope you're way more on top of your fanfics than I am and good luck! =)
XxCamixX: Thanks for your reviews as always! :) They're always loads of fun to read. And I don't mind the spelling/grammar. We all have those plenty of times~ (:
Fullbusterrulesmyheart: Haha, hopefully this chapter sheds some light on their past? (well…not much buuut….)
IloveCelestialIce: Yeaaaah, AnoHana was the bomb! I really wished Menma was still there though...really loved her. ;3; And thanks! (:
MartiaLae: Thanks! :D Hoped you enjoyed this chapter!
Angel-Wings Naya: Haha, you're right about the "no one can predict the future," even I haven't planned much of this story! Thanks for the compliment!
Blue: (: Yeah, ghost fulfillment stories have a sort of charm about them, don't they? Hoped this chapter is just as good!