Shi-chan13: Here's the 3rd chapter! As always I hope you like it. You guys (at least those that like this story) are pretty lucky. I was in a really bad mood while writting this and I thought about just stoping the story and not writing any more chapters, but then I thought that I really like this plot and I doubt anyone would read the same story just called a different name and all, so I decided to continue! Yay!
Ikuto: Hey, is there any Amuto in this chapter?
Shi-chan13: Wait and see...or read. Anyway, Ikuto, you need to remember that this story will not only be Amuto, but OCxAmuxIkuto. (^o^) I like complicated relationtionships!
Ikuto: Since when was it going to be OCxAmuxIkuto?
Shi-chan13: Oh, that's right! You don't know...so I wrote a new summary for Lost Memories. I have to say it doesn't suck half as bad as the last one. So READERS please CHECK IT OUT!
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Chapter 3: Lock and Key
I checked the black fossil watch on my wrist. I still had 1 hour until I had to meet Amu upstairs and for the past 2 hours, Hinata had been dragging me place to place, from showing me the mess hall to the best bathrooms. The guy was starting to get on my nerves, but we only had one more stop to go so I could suck it up. After all, we were going to get my rank stars. On the way, Hinata explained about the rankings.
"The rank system is simple enough." He began as we entered a rooom in one of the side corriders. A little gold plaque on the door read; Supply Room. Manager: Emma Kratzer. Inside were shelfs and shelfs of boxes with little labels on them ranging from stars to hair clips. Hinata continued. "You've got ten different ranks called stars, lowest being First-Star, then Second-Star, then Third-Star, and so on until you reach Tenth-Star. Then above the regular ranks are the three High Ranks, starting from 1st Counsler, then 2nd Counsler, and finally the High Commander.
"The three high ranks are always filled and hand picked by the High Commander. There's less chance of the 1st and 2nd Commanders picking someone loyal to them only and causing mutiny. Of course, since the rebellion is only three years old, Hinamori-sama is the only High Commander we've ever had." Hinata went over to the first shelf and opened a box labelled 'stars'. Pulling out eight gold stars, he walked over to a woman sitting behind a counter with me following behind.
A surpprised woman. "Already back? Have you gotten another promotion?
Hinata shook his head. "Nope, sorry Em. I'm just helping out a new recruit, Tskuiyomi Ikuto." I stepped forward. So this must be Emma Kratzer. Holding out my hand, I greeted her. "Hello ma'am."
Emma pionted a finger at me. "Listen, sonny. I'm no ma'am, got it? I'm still in my twenties."
"Sorry. My bad." I tried to put on a repentive look, but it was so hard keeping in the smirk that wanted to break out on my face.
"Yeah, well, remember it. Okay?"
"Will do."
Emma turned back to Hinata. "Hinata-kun, why do you need so many stars? He's a new recruit. They only need one."
He shook his head. "Tsukiyomi isn't a First Star. He's an Eigth Star and starting tomorrow he'll be High Commander Hinamori-sama's assisstant."
Emma's face became distant and hard. "Amu's assisstant huh? You do know there will be rumors. right? That sorta thing doesn't go unnoticed even here in the rebellion. We're people too and we all gossip sometimes."
"Of course. And we can keep those rumors from spreading by you keeping a hold of that forked tingue of yours. Even if it just postpones them." He smiled at her. "No one knows as much as me how much you like to gossip, Em."
"Fine. I'll try to keep my mouth shut." She pulled a very thick, theather-bound book from under the counter. "Just let me record what you took and then you can be on your way."
Hinata sighed. "Thanks Emma. I'll owe you one!"
"When have you not owed me?" Mary mumbled as she wrote down our withdrawal of my rank stars. Right before I shut the door behind us I heard her call out to me. "Tsukiyomi-kun! I'd be careful if I was you! Amu-chan has a lot of admirers. You never know when someone will get jealous of your position!" I let out a little laugh, though a nagging doubt crept into my mind about whether she was serious or not. The hidden message in those words scared me a little; Watch your back, just like anywhere else, the rebeellion has corruption too. I toook my stars from Hinata and pinned them on my right shoulder.
*****
Six o'clock rolled around and I was waiting in the upstairs office just like I had been told. Amu came running in, her breath coming in short, fast puffs. I got up from the chair I had been sitting on and crossed the room to her. I grabbed her shoulders. "What's wrong?" I asked, genuinely worried.
"N-nothing." She replied between gasps. "I just ran out on in the middle of a counsel meeting because I thought I was going to be late. Let me tell you, running the distance between the counsel chamber to here is not a walk in the park. "
I guided her to a chair and then shut the door. "Why don't you sit down until you regain your breath." What was phrased as a suggestion was really a command. I wasn't about to let Amu pass out on me. She seemed to have caught the command and sat down. Inwardly I let out a slow breath of relief. I'm so happy she's not hurt. "Amu, if the meeting is really that important, then you should go back. I'll just hang out in the bar until you get back and then you can show me around."
"Don't worry about it. Actually, I'm grateful I got out of it. Those meetings are so boring and they go on forever! You'd be down in the bar until 10." She sighed. "Sometimes I just wish I could quit this job. You know, give the position over to someone else and just be a normal teenager for once."
I didn't know how to reply to that so I remained silent. It was only a few minutes before Amu stood up. "Ikuto, come on. We've got to show you your quarters in the next half an hour. Dinner is served down in the bar at 6:30."
" Okay, let's get started then." I left my chair
Amu went over to the far right corner of the room and removed a body-lengthed mirror that I hadn't notinced hanging on the wall. Behind it was a dark and very narrow staircase. How many secret pathways does this room have?! Bekoning me to follow, she started climbing the stairs two at a time. I matched her pace.
With a quick glance back at me, she said, "This staircase is only for Eighth Stars and above." We stopped. Before us was a splintered and aged wood dooor. Amu opened it and stepped through with me close by her heels.
The room we entered was actually a hallway with six doors on the right, six doors to the left, and one in the very center. Amu pionted to the first door on the left. "This is your room and living quarters. Since your my assisstant starting tomorrow, there's a door inside that connects to my room. We'll be right next to each other for conveince sake." She must have seen that I wanted to go inside because she added. "It's your room. Just go in already."
I turned the handle and stepped into what would be home and sancutary for me in the up coming months. A simple, wood-framed bed took up the back wall. Sunlight was streaming in through a window above. Just as Amu had said, another door was on the right wall. I was confused for a moment at the sight of another door on the left, but discovered it was only a bathroom. Besides a nightstand, a few few shelves, and a matching wardrobe and cbainet for my things, there wasn't much in the little space. But it was enough for me. It had been so long since I had a place to call home.
My ears picked up a slight creak in the floorsboards behind me and my instincts took over. It was as if I had the reflexes of a cat. Spinning on my heel, I faced whoever had come up behind me. The person was too close and we collided. Amu and I fell down in a tangle of limbs. Damn, I forgot that Amu was the one behind me!
"Ugh, that hurt..." The words faded on my tongue. Beneath me, Amu was blushing bright red. One of my hands were on each side of her head and my legs on the outside of hers. The fact that I had accidentally pinned down Amu wasn't the only thing I noticed. Our faces were only inches away.
The same electricity that I had felt when Amu's hair had brushed my cheek now filled the air. I knew she felt it too. She looked too surprised not to. This time it wasn't uncomfortable. More like...compelling. My head moved closer to her's just a bit.
Closer. I could feel Amu's short exhales of air.
Closer. I could see her chest rise and fall with the wild beats of her heart.
Closer still. She shut her eyes. Her breathing stopped as she held her breath.
The gap between our lips was barely an inch, our noses a hair's breath away. The electricity refused to let us escape and insisted on pushing Amu and I together. I had the strange thought that I didn't mind and was even somewhat grateful.
Closer. Our lips were almost touching. Only a milimeter apart now. We were so close it was consuming my world. All that was in my head at that moment was the hateful distance between us and the want to cross it and kiss Amu. But I was brought back to the real world before our lips could touch.
Amu turned away and I pulled back. The electricity flickered, then died. "C-could you please g-get off me?" She was shaking beneath me.
"Of course. I-I'm sorry." Standing up, I held out my hand to her. A lot of good it would do. It couldn't even support her. She's not the only one shaking. She ignored my hand and got up herself, avoiding my eyes. I didn't expect her to accept my help after what just happened, but I wanted to see her face. I wish she wouldn't hide from me.
We stood there, in an awkward silence for what seemed like forever until Amu spoke. "Dinner should be starting. Go down to the bar." When she walked passed me I only saw a light pink where the bright red had been. There was a cold hole where Amu's warm presence had been. I shivered.
When she had shut the door I collapsed on my bed. "What the hell did you think you were doing? Baka!" I whispered then fell into a fit of laughs as I imagined something. "Man, if Hinata found out or seen it he would have been so mad that he would be pissing his pants!"
After I composed my self enough, I headed down to the bar. I sat down on the stool I had used when I first came in. Whispered words drifted through the air and tickled my ear. They were men's voices coming from the booth behind me.
"Did you hear about that guy? The one with blue hair?"
"He's an Eighth Star, right? We haven't had one of those at Clover in a while."
"He's an Eight Star alright, but that's not the only thing. He's a new recruit, just came in today."
"What! That's impossible. Unless he got into the High Commander's good book."
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Probably slept with her. Outside the rebellion there's some pretty nasty gossip about her. My wife's been telling me them lately."
"Well. isn't it just like what I've been saying? No good organization can be successful under a teenager, let alone a woman."
I couldn't stand it any longer. Talking about me was one thing, but Amu? It was unforgivable. How could someone think that she could give herself out to any passing man like that? She was too innocent and smart to do that. Swivelling on my stool, I confronted the idiots. They stopped talking when they realized I was staring at them. I smiled, but my eyes showed how angry I was. Both of their throats bobbed as they swallowed.
"You know, it's not very nice to talk about people and didn't your mothers ever tell you not to gossip. That's for old ladies," I smirked. "Though if your friend here keeps gossiping with his wife then he may as well be one." One of them, a brown-haired man who I thought was the one with the gossiping wife, was about to give a retort when I strode over and slammed the side of my fist down on table. I kept my voice loow, not wanting to be overheard. Even if it was hard, it was worth it. I wanted these two to be the only ones to embarassed and my words were for only them. "Don't go spouting nonsense about a person when you don't even know them."
A small flash of red caught my attention. Grabbing the brown-haired man's collar, I turned it inside out to reveal a lipstick stain. It was practically invisible from the outside. "Saying I slept with people, somehow I don't think your wife would have let you leave for work with this on your shirt." I turned to the other man. This one was black-haired and lanky with thick framed glasses.
A geek! A geek was talking about me! Oh, this is rich. "As for you, don't you ever wonder how Hinamori-sama"-I had to use her last name, it just support their theory if I didn't-"could have gottne the rebellion started if all woman were as you say? What about your mother? Is she someone that could lead a group of people and bring about a successful and powerful rebellion like Hinamori-sama has? With your attitude towards woman it's no wonder you look like you've never had a girlfriend in your life. And just one more thing; if I'm an Eight Star and since you both are only wearing three stars, don't you two owe me a little bit more respect than you've beening giving me?"
I want back to my stool to finally have my meal as the two stammered apologies to my back. Assholes. So this is what Emma meant by rumors. I'll probably have to talk to Amu about this.
*****
Relaxing on my bed later that evening, I heard a door shut in the room next to me. Am's back. Reluctantly, and only because I knew it had to be done, I knocked on the door connecting our rooms. "Amu? May i come in? I want to talk to you."
"Um...sure." Her reply barely carried through the door.
I walked in. Amu was sitting on a bed not to different from mine. In fact her room's layout was the mirror image of mine. Held in her hands was the lock that resembled my key. I sat down in fron of her. "Amu, I'm really sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to do that. I know that's probably hard to belive since that's the second situation like that today."
"N-no! The first was my fault. After all, I was the one that hugged you first!" She cast her eyes down and then at me. Her face was red. "Please forgive me." Why is she apologizing? I don''t want her to feel bad, but she's so cute when she's flustered!
"It's fine."
With that done, we didn't have anything to talk about. An open invitation for another awkward silence. Amu was turning the lock over in her hands and I was syaring at it. Suddenly, I had an idea that might just take care of this stupid silence. "Hey, you remember how I said I have a key with the same pattern as your lock?"
Amu nodded.
"Well, what if they were a pair. I mean, what if my key unlocks your lock? Would you like to find out?
Each time I experienced another one of Amu's emotions I felt like I was putting together a puzzle to eventually see a grand picture; who Amu really was. It was no exception this time. Seeing her excited face was seeing a new side of her. I smiled. "I'm going to go get my key."
"Don't bother." From under her bed, Amu pulled out my violin case. On it's fine gold chain, my key dangled from the handle. "You left it at the bar when I first brought you in the office so I had Hal drop it off in my room. I never really thought about it, but he's the only one that's not an Eight Star or above that doesn't need to ask for permission to come up here. I...I hope you don't mind I had him do that."
She must have thought I was scowling at her. "Nah, I'm just upset that I was stupid enough to leave it lying around. Thanks a lot." I slippd the key off the violin case. "Do you want to try it now?"
"Sure."
We were sitting head to head, watching intently as we moved the lock and key together. Something about the atmoshpere made this simple action seem like a life changing event. Maybe it was because the electricity was back, though this time it felt more foreboding.
I faintly remembering a knock on Amu's door , but niether Amu or I were paying attention. We were in our own little world, never to be interrupted by something from the outside, just the two of us. I fit my key in the lock's keyhole and turned.
The last thing I remember before both Amu and I fell into unconsicousness was five little flashes of light; purple, blue, red, green,and gold.
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Shi-chan13: Don, Don, DON! Oh no, Ikuto and Amu are unconsicous! What will we do! Hehehe.
Ikuto: Oi! Can the characters know why we got knocked out by unlocking a lock?
Amu: Yeah!
Shi-chan13: Oh, okay.
*whisper whisper* *whisper* *whisper whisper*
Amu: I guess I can live with that.
Ikuto: Same here.
Shi-chan13: Okay, that's all there is for now! Next time I upload a chapter, there will be a few changes! So be watching for the 4th chapter of Lost Memories: Remembering. Find out what happened to Ikuto and Amu! Why did they pass out? Could there be a connection between them through the lock and key? Find out more later!
(Wow! I sound like one of those commercial annoucers! Srry to those of you who find it annoying! I'll try my best not be, but it's sorta hard.) Please R&R! I will only put up the next chapter if I get more than 5 reviews! (that also includes reviews for any other chapters too.) ^o^ Bye!