Disclaimer: I'll let Amano Akira have this one... for now.

Author's Note: In case you guys were wondering why I asked about the ghost hunting last chapter, I actually got to go on one since then. I wasn't sure at first but I decided to go. It was fairly uneventful though, and I'm not too sure the place was haunted per se but it was definitely creepy. Would not suggest going into an abandoned building just for funsies, kiddos.

(Thank you to Alice aquabld, CrystalHeart27, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, Eclipse130, Yamiroo Alice, NinjaDemonAngel, ddmahan922, Uzumaki Kana, lacomptessa, Zivyx, LuzElvaParra17, NightlyRowenTree, ghostsmile96, mika1617 and xenocanaan for the reviews. I know I say this every time and I doubt you all even look at this anymore, but seriously I wouldn't be able to do this without you guys! )

Target Twenty One:

Life Is For The Living

"Good morning, Setsu-chaaaaan!" Doctor Shamal sang as he basically pranced into her room. The older man also puckered his lips as he did so, but the blonde chose to ignore that for now.

"Is it true that I'm being released today?" she scrawled out on her dry erase board, the felt tip marker leaving faded streaks against the white from overuse. Earlier that morning her actual doctor told her she was almost completely recovered, and there was little more they could do for her here.

'It's honestly astounding how fast you've healed,' her doctor had said, sounding rather surprised as he scanned over her chart for what seemed to be the third time. Apparently any normal patient would be stuck here for another week at least. Although, despite that her voice had yet to return. She could form a few words - easy words - but nowhere close to being able to spout a full sentence, much less carry on a conversation.

A part of Setsuna wondered why she had been able to recover so quickly, but quite frankly she couldn't care less as long as she got to leave. It worried her that her voice had yet to find its way back to her, but what could she do about it at this point?

"We'll see about that actually," Shamal mused as he made his way over to her side. Now that she no longer had a roommate, the doctor found it much easier to maneuver the room. The fact that he didn't have an assassin chasing him around with steaming plates of poison helped as well. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," she pursed her lips irritably. "I just want to get out of here."

"I can tell," he nodded sagely. After a moment he assessed her neck, which had been freed from the bandaids that had covered it previously. For the most part it seemed as if the wounds had all but healed over, however there were tiny pink crescent shaped marks that he could tell would scar. Faintly of course. After all they weren't that deep to begin with, but she would more than likely notice them for the rest of her life.

At least off memory alone.

Clapping his hands together, he leaned back - his assessment essentially done. "Now, how would you like your voice back?"

Before she could even respond there was a sharp pinch on the back of her neck. Instinctively Setsuna reached up to slap away what she thought to be a bug, but it was too late as the thing was already gone by then. "Wha - ?" she croaked, the pain in her throat gone as if it had never existed in the first place.

Amber orbs wide, a small grin began to overtake her features. "What..." she tested her speech, gaining confidence with every syllable. "What did you do?" The doctor scratched at the back of his neck, a sheepish blush dusting his stubbled cheeks.

"It's what I do," he said simply, as if it were something trivial.

Setsuna's eyes narrowed at that. As thankful as she was for the help there was no way something like this should even be possible. A little voice in the back of her head reminded her that if a bullet that could resurrect people and force them to act out their last regret was possible so was basically... anything else.

Realizing that he couldn't get away with simply writing this off he sighed. Then he explained how he had been born with an inordinate amount of diseases, eventually finding a way to counteract them with the side effects from other diseases. He uses Trident Mosquitoes, as he called them, to carry out this insane balancing act and has even reverse engineered quite few diseases himself for his own purposes.

That was what the pinching sensation had been from.

Shamal had sicced a Trident Mosquito on her. One that had given her her voice back from the sound of it. It was absolutely ludicrous, and Setsuna was pretty sure that that wasn't how medicine worked in the slightest. Despite that however, she was thankful. As much as she refused to admit it, a small part of her had been terrified since initially waking up that she would never be able to speak correctly again.

Tears of relief welled behind her lids, but she refused to let them fall. "Thank you," the blonde uttered, a full smile wide on her lips.

"Thankful enough for a kiss?" he winked at her, and she swore she saw a cartoon heart fly her direction.

"No," she deadpanned.

Defeated but not deterred, he seemed as if he would spring one on her anyway. However, Shamal was pretty sure if he did Bianchi would castrate him and Reborn would pump him full of so many holes even cheese would be jealous.

"Anyway," he cleared his throat, standing up straighter all of a sudden. "Everyone is waiting for you in the lobby to sign you out. Want me to go get them for you?"

"I'll meet them down there actually," she replied, a sudden thought coming to mind. "I have something I have to take care of."

He lifted a curious brow, but let the subject drop before leaving her to her business.

-Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ-

Painted pastels swirled in the sky - the mid afternoon sun tucked behind a cloud, which cast an ethereal glow onto the familiar rooftop. The moment Setsuna crossed the threshold the sight immediately consumed her. Beauty showed up in such the strangest places some times. In the distance she could see the tops of buildings, but aside from that the horizon was far off. Making the sky seem as if it stretched endlessly in every direction, barely perturbed by any blemishes.

The blonde's breaths came in short huffs, whether simply from the walk up or dodging spirits on the way she didn't care to discern. It was probably both anyway. However, the heaviness that had accompanied her lungs the last time was no longer present. It was as if an anchor that had been tied around her neck had been lifted.

She could breathe, she could walk of her own strength, and she could speak. She was herself again. She was Sawada Setsuna. Then in a fashion not unlike herself, she called out: "I know you're up here! Show yourself."

A giggle escaped her lips at how liberating it was to yell again. It was a freedom she hadn't really noticed she had until it was gone. Now that it was back though, she definitely appreciated it. A part of her wanted to yell at the top of her lungs, for as long as they would allow, but something stopped her. He stopped her.

"What's... The... Point... Anyway?" the Replay from the last time she was on the roof appeared. Once again he was wobbling on the edge of the building, ready to topple over at a moment's notice.

Despite how exhausted she was, Setsuna darted forward to catch him before he jumped for God knows what time. Just as his extended foot seemed as if it were about to take that final dip he halted in his tracks. One of his hands wrapped in her own, the blonde lightly attempted to tug him back. Resolute in repeating his death though he didn't move an inch.

Aside from his head however. Glancing over his shoulder at her, he regarded her with clouded orbs. A gaze that was long gone, but still somehow stubbornly holding onto his sanity.

"What's... The... Point... Anyway?" he repeated at her, like a parrot reciting what it had learned from its owner.

As she held his hand, a desolate feeling seeped into her veins. She couldn't tell if it was his emotion or her own, but decided it ultimately didn't matter. Even though her body screamed at her to run - that she would be attacked once again if she didn't - she stood firm.

Pleasedon'tchokemedon'thurtmeagain.

Closing her amber orbs, Setsuna forced her frantic thoughts to subside. As well the fire that had been rippling up her arms from the frosted touch of the ghost.

"What's... The... Point... Anyway?" he asked, his face twitching in and out, as if he were falling apart without participating in his routine. Did it offer him some semblance of comfort to repeat his death, Setsuna wondered. Did it allow him to stay himself that much longer? To convince himself for even a moment that he was still alive?

"I'm sorry," Setsuna apologized as she tightened her grip on his hand. "I want to say there's a point to all this, but I can't. Because I don't know if there is. I don't know where you all go after you're set free from this world. But I like to think that you go some place better. Some place where you don't have to struggle like this anymore."

The man tilted his head to the side, as if he understood, but no sense of recognition passed over his dull eyes.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is..." she looked him directly in the eye, forcing contact. "You're dead. You've been dead for awhile now probably. You have no reason to stay here anymore."

"I... am... dead?"

"Yes," Setsuna replied sadly. "You can't stay here anymore. Plus, I'm sure someone is waiting for you... wherever it is you go." Thinking it finally safe to let go of his hand, she released her grip on him. Rather than turn towards her or reply in any way, he fluidly took another swan dive.

"Don't!" she shouted, but it was too late. Flapping like wings behind him his jacket ruffled in the wind as he fell face first towards the ground. Aside from that however, beams of light shot out of him in all directions. Making it seem as if a white hot star were falling to the earth than a man. Just before he reached the busy street below, his body disintegrated.

Leaving nothing but tiny motes of light in his place.

Not sure whether to cry, laugh or rave from some emotion altogether she shakily fell to her knees.

Even though she had been attacked. Even though she had been hospitalized. Even though it hurt not only herself but the people around her. Setsuna knew it was her duty to do this. To help the wayward souls that needed guidance to wherever it was they were destined to be.

She had once heard the saying:

Life is for the living, not the dead.

While it was a common thing to say to people in mourning, it meant something different to her entirely. To Setsuna it meant that the dead didn't belong here, and even though it may hurt. Even though it may cause problems for her. She had to help who she could. For both the living and dead suffered when the dead lingered too long.

Gokudera and Lavina were a prime example of just that. Lavina stayed too long. To the point where she was losing herself, on her way to becoming nothing more than that dark shadowy flame that had flickered beneath the surface of her solid form. If left alone both of them might have been lost.

Setsuna let out a resigned sigh. She hated to look back, and think of the what ifs but she had truly helped them. She helped people. That was who she was. Denying that because she got hurt was foolish.

As mature as she felt at times, the blonde could sure be naïve.

"Dame-Setsu," the voice of Reborn broke through her thoughts. "Everyone is waiting on you." The toddler leisurely sauntered over to her, his chained specter following lifelessly behind him, as if she were nothing more than a mere annoyance.

"Sorry," she replied, somehow finding the strength to stand. Her cheeks were wet with the tears that had finally found their way free. "I had something to take care of up here."

A smirk splayed on his lips, the rest of his expression hidden beneath the shadow of his fedora. "Life is for the living, don't spend all of your's on the dead."

It would seem that Reborn had his own interpretation of the saying as well. As much as Setsuna wanted to agree with him however, in the end she preferred her own.

-Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ-

The next day Setsuna had to get back to school. After spending so much time absent in the hospital she expected she would have a metric ton of work to make up. Not that she minded all that much. It was nice to fall back into the mundane routine of going to school and doing her class work. Albeit she probably had a lot more to do than she usually did, it was a well needed change of pace.

After quickly finishing her breakfast, hoping to get to class early, she ran into her brother Tsuna as she hurried from the kitchen.

"Ah, Setsu-chan," he said, somewhat surprised to see her after her being absent for so long. "Are you leaving already?"

"Oh, uh, yeah."

"Do you want me to... to..." the brunette averted his caramel orbs. "Nevermind."

"What is it?" she tilted her head to the side. What was he trying to ask her? Then it dawned on her. After everything that happened - or at least what he thought happened - it made sense. "I can wait for you if you'd like to go with me. I don't mind."

Tsuna's eyes widened just a fraction, and he nodded.

The walk to school was rather uneventful.

The twins didn't talk all that much, but the company eased both of their minds. With everything going on since Reborn showed up Tsuna didn't mind a quiet trip for a change. Haru didn't stalk him. Gokudera and Yamamoto didn't show up and start a fight with each other. It was quaint, and aside from that... he couldn't let Setsuna walk by herself.

Even though he knew he was a weak, pathetic excuse of a brother he couldn't take it if she got attacked again. If it took everything he had he wouldn't let anyone lay another finger on her. Or at the very least he'd take the brunt of it so she could run away.

Setsuna truly didn't mind as well. Ghosts weren't like to notice her when others were around. Some did of course, but if she had someone else to divert her attention towards it happened less often. Not to mention she couldn't remember the last time the two of them had been alone. Well, mostly alone.

Despite the fact that she couldn't see him, she knew Reborn had followed. Probably purposefully staying back to give them room.

Once they reached the school gates though, they finally met up with Gokudera and Yamamoto, whom had been waiting up for them. Then as if a switch had been flipped the air had been filled with life.

"So, how're you feeling today, Setsu-hime?" Gokudera asked as they made their way to homeroom. He tried to seem casual about it, but from the way his jade orbs looked her up and down it wasn't difficult to tell he was worried.

"I'm feeling better," she replied, trying to seem more awake and alive than she felt. "Really, you guys need to stop worrying about me. What happened, happened. I'm okay now, alright?"

"Maa maa," Yamamoto interjected. "You ready to come back to work then?"

At that Setsuna's shoulders slumped forward. "Not yet."

Yamamoto chuckled in response, and soon his laughter infected everyone until the entire group was effected.

Immediately any doubt, any ounce of darkness that tried to weed its way in was dispelled. If there was anything Setsuna was thankful for having Yamamoto around for it was that. He could wash away anyone's problems with just a laugh and a smile.

Seeing him the way he was in the hospital reminded her that even someone like him needed a little help and cheering up from time to time. And she knew exactly how she could. She had been so distracted lately, what with being hospitalized and all that, she almost forgot that the raven haired athlete was being haunted himself.

In fact he had been rather hurt as well by the spirit.

Setsuna closed her eyes. As much as she knew it had been out of her control she felt guilty for not helping him sooner. Yamamoto deserved her attention. Especially after everything not only he but his father as well had done for her.

"You know what, Takeshi-kun," Setsuna straightened up. "I'll come by tomorrow."

"Oh," he raised his brows. "I was only joking."

"I know," she waved a hand dismissively. "I should at least stop in to speak to your father."

"Pops would like that."

"It's settled then."

"Hell if it's settled!" Gokudera protested, glaring up at Yamamoto. "You can't expect Setsu-hime to go to work after she just got out of the fucking hospital!"

"It's fine," Setsuna insisted, but she ended up getting ignored regardless.

Before she knew it the two were firing back and forth at each. Well, primarily Gokudera hurling insults and Yamamoto taking them in stride. The conversation eventually degraded to the other asserting that they were in fact Tsuna's right hand man - whatever that meant.

The blonde let the two of them wander their fight into the classroom, choosing to stay out in the hallway for a moment until it passed. As much as she hated to admit it, she was still drained from the past weeks events.

As she stood there however something caught her attention. A glaring yellow flier was tacked to the bulletin board posted next to the classroom door. Curious, she took it off and read it over.

Namimori's EXTREME Boxing Club is looking for new members!

No auditions needed, but try to take on the EXTREME captain if you can!

Also in need of a team manager!

JOIN NOW TO THE EXTREME!

Setsuna merely blinked in response. Aside from the obviously passionate advertisement, it seemed as if the captain - whom was likely the only person on the team - was desperately in need of members.

To go to the lengths of using such a gaudy flier just to get people's attention though they probably really needed a lot of people to join. If they were that desperate however, would they be willing to take her on?

Setsuna would be lying if she said she wasn't even remotely turned off by the flier, but truly she could benefit from knowing how to fight. Even if it was just learning how to defend herself or throw a punch, it would help her out in at least some way. Although, she doubted they would be willing to accept a girl into the club.

The least she could do is try though, surely that wouldn't be too extreme of a task would it?

-Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ-

Author's Note: So, yeah, there's that chapter. Not too sure what I think about it, but I wanted to get this story out of the hospital as fast as possible. When I linger too long on a single section I get severe writers block, and I don't want to go there again. Writer's block is a dark place full of what if's and temptations to start new stories that aren't needed.

Question: What character would you like Setsuna to meet?

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.

It went from happy to depressing to happy again, so hopefully I didn't give anyone whiplash.

See you soon! :)