IV.

"I mean it, Suguira," Nao firmly planted her hands on Midori's desk, "I'm worried. Aren't ghosts supposed to be bad news? Kuga could be in trouble and not even know it."

Midori scoffed, "It's not like Kuga to overlook danger. But, as far as ghosts go, I've been doing some research. First, not everyone who dies becomes a ghost, right? So, what separates a person who becomes a ghost from one who doesn't?"

"I have no idea," Nao said hotly, "But if you don't get to the point, we're going to find out which category you fall into."

Midori took Nao's threat with the seriousness it deserved and chuckled, "Look, the basic factor that seems to separate a person who becomes a ghost from one who doesn't seems to be about motivation. Here…"

Midori stood up and went to the dry erase board, "There are only a few basic reasons someone becomes a ghost.

"First we have unfinished business. A promise they need to keep, or a goal they need to complete before they can pass on."

Nao nodded, "Okay, I follow you so far. "

"Next we have closure. The ghost just needs to say farewell to someone before they can move on.

"Then we have Warning. The ghost is trying to alert someone to something so that they can prevent a tragedy.

"There's also Revenge. A ghost feels wronged, and someone has to suffer. These sorts of ghosts aren't prone to moving on, because they're stuck in a blind fury. Given that the Fujino Ghost is has been having conversations with Natsuki suggests that she's not one of these.

"Related to Revenge is Justice. The ghost was hurt by someone, and the ghost wants to see the wrong righted, not in a bloodthirsty way, but to see that actual justice is done.

"Then you have a ghost who simply can't let go. They loved life and they aren't in any hurry to pass.

"And of course, there's the ghost that knows where they're going, and aren't in any hurry to get there.

"And finally, we have ghosts who were cursed by someone else, and can't move on until the curse is broken."

"Whatever the case," Nao said, "None of those are good things. Either the ghost at Kuga's place has something she needs to do so she can move on, or she's here with bad intent. And I don't necessarily buy that she didn't deliberately scare off the other people who were there, no matter what she told the Pup. So, if that's the case, why did she choose not to drive off the Pup?"

Midori frowned, "Look, I get that you're worried, Nao, I do. But Kuga's seems fine. Should we interfere?"

"She's my friend, Suguira. We look out for each other. Have since we were kids. I need to know that she's safe."

Midori sighed, "Fine. I'll look into a few things, let you know what I find."

"You do that. I'm going to go check on the Pup."

~~*~~

The heat was sweltering, and Natsuki was laying on the wooden deck in the shade, Duran curled up in a ball beside her.

"Adorable," Shizuru chuckled, "And Duran looks cute, as well."

Natsuki opened one eye, "Very funny. You're a regular comedian."

"I see the heat has made my Natsuki uncharacteristically crabby," Shizuru grinned.

"I'm surprised you're not resting, yourself, given the heat," Natsuki replied, closing her eye again.

"I'm afraid I don't really rest. I don't know if it's part of being dead, or just something unique to myself, but I have been conscious since I shed my mortal coil."

Natsuki grimaced, "That sounds tedious. I hope I never become a ghost."

"Then we should pray for Natsuki to die of old age in her sleep," Shizuru nodded.

"So…" Natsuki rolled onto her stomach and looked up at Shizuru, "They told us you died of a broken heart. So…Is that true?"

Shizuru blinked.

"I'm sorry, that's probably none of my business," Natsuki said.

"No, it's fine," Shizuru said, "It's just been over ten years, but I remember it as if it were yesterday. Natsuki has never dated, so I don't suppose she knows what it feels like to love someone with all of her heart, to give every part of herself to someone, only to have them turn on you?"

"I…can't say I do," Natsuki admitted, "Look, if it's not something you want to talk about, you don't have to."

"I'd been betrothed, of course, to someone else," Shizuru sat on the deck, "But I was able to cancel that engagement when my parents passed. I went to my lover's apartment to deliver the good news, to say that we were free to be with one another. Only to find him on top of her! I was crushed! I was betrayed, and so utterly! I fled the apartment, never looking back. After that…I simply faded away. I couldn't eat. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't wipe that image from my mind, of their bodies entwined. And so, my body failed me after a time, and I found myself in this state which you now see."

Natsuki stood up, and cocked her head, quizzically, before she attempted to embrace Shizuru to comfort her. But whatever a ghost is composed of, it isn't solid enough to be embraced, and her arms passed through.

"Ara, was Natsuki trying to give me a hug?"

"Well…yeah. You seemed like you needed one."

Shizuru smiled, "Your gesture is appreciated, dear Natsuki."

"For all the good it does," Natsuki muttered.

"You're wrong. It does a world of good," Shizuru smiled, tilting her head and closing her eyes, "It shows that you care. And that is no small thing, Natsuki. Sometimes, knowing someone cares is the most important thing in the world"

Duran sat up, yawning, then stretching. He walked over to Natsuki, and curled up on her foot.

Shizuru chuckled, "I see that Duran agrees."

"Hey, Shizuru…why were the others scared of you, when they could have just talked to you like this?"

Shizuru looked thoughtful, "Ara, perhaps they were not able to see me as Natsuki sees me. They saw me through a lens of fear, and so to them, I was a fearful thing. Most of them never seemed to hear my voice, and those who did seemed terrified of it. It may well be that someone observing us from a distance might not see me at all, or perhaps would see me as something horrifying."

Natsuki gave a short laugh, "They'd have to be blind, Shizuru. There's nothing horrifying about you."

"Ara, but there are those who would see me for exactly what I am and still be horrified," Shizuru muttered to herself, but Natsuki didn't hear her.

~~*~~

Midori was filing through the schools' microfiche files, looking at the local paper for ten years ago. If someone as powerful and important as Shizuru Fujino had broken an engagement, it was likely to have made the paper, in one way or another. Midori scoured the articles, frowning. She did manage, after awhile, to find the announcement of Shizuru Fujino's death. Midori read the article to see if it could offer up any clues. And then she reread it. And then she grimaced. But no matter how often she reread the article, the part that troubled her wasn't going away.

-Shizuru Fujino expired at the age of twenty-three, yesterday. She had recently experienced the loss of her parents, Shinji and Kagami Fujino, in a plane crash, and broke her engagement to Nagi Homura to focus on running Fujino Heavy Industries. It is believed that her death was the result of overwork combined with grief. Shizuru Fujino is survived by her second cousin, Genichiro Kuga, and his daughter, Natsuki Kuga –

Midori sat down in her chair, hard. She blinked a few times. Kuga was a second cousin, once removed, from the Fujinos. She had a link to that house. And possibly a link to the ghost.

"Nagi Homura, huh? And who is he when he's at home?"

She did a search through the phone book, and to her surprise, there was a phone listing for Nagi Homura. She called him, not knowing if she would even get a reply.

"Houmura," she heard a voice on the other end of the phone.

"Listen, you don't know me, but my name is Midori Suguira. I work at Fuuka University, and I was looking into a genealogy issue for an acquaintance of mine. It concerns the Fujino Estate, and…"

"The Fujino estate, you say?" She heard the reply. The voice on the other end sounded mildly amused, "And just how is Natsuki Kuga, these days?"

"Wait, you know?"

"Oh, I know many things, ma'am," he sounded like he was grinning ear to ear, "I know, for example, that Natsuki is a second cousin, once removed, to my late former fiance. I also know that she recently purchased the old family homestead, though I seriously doubt that she has any knowledge of her own ties to it."

Midori wasn't sure she like this conversation.

"Can you tell me anything about how Fujino died? It's important."

"Well, now," Midori could practically hear Nagi rubbing his chin thoughtfully, with an oily expression on his face, "I suppose it has something to do with the night she found her precious Ahn Lu in bed with Genichiro Kuga."

"…with…"

"I told Shizuru, our marriage could have just been for show, and I would have been her beard, but these modern girls who insist on marrying solely for love…Tsk Tsk. It was unfortunate, but I'm not one to force a maiden's hand."

"…I see. Thank you."

"Not at all. Give my best to Miss Kuga. It's really a shame about her family. If Shizuru had agreed to let me be her beard, we could have adopted Natsuki after the unfortunate passing of her mother, and the abandonment of her philandering father. Such a shame."

"Yeah," Midori said sourly, "You really sound broken up about it."

She hung up the phone, and slumped into her seat.

"Oh, man oh man, this is bad. This is very, very bad."

Midori reached for the phone, again.

~~*~~

"What? Suguira, could you repeat that, and maybe slow it down to three-thousand RPM?" Nao grumbled. She listened as Midori explained what she'd learned.

"Wait…Ahn Lu, as in that idol singer from a few years back?...I see. Wow, Old Man Kuga really got around. I mean, he fathered that girl with that actress, Lena Greer, right?...Yeah I know that's not the point right now. Right…I'll tell the Pup."

Nao tried dialing Natsuki, but no one was picking up. Nao didn't own a vehicle of her own, so she was going to have to take a cab up Asura Hill and try to warn Natsuki about what was going on. Not that she fully understood it, herself.

~~*~~

Natsuki was sleeping in her bed.

"Your father was a troublesome beast," Shizuru sighed, sitting beside the lovely creature before her, "He stole the woman I loved from me. He hurt me deeply, Natsuki. And your mother. And you. But I won't let anyone hurt you ever again, dear, dear Natsuki."

She reached out, hoping to run her hands over the elegant curves of the beauty in the bed, but she held back. Dare she touch this radiant creature? She'd already stolen a kiss in the darkness once.

Shizuru withdrew her hand, tears streaming down her face, and she rose from the bed, "Sleep, dear Natsuki. I will stand guard and keep you safe. You will not be made to suffer for the sins of your father."

She turned to walk away, when she felt overwhelmed by her own whims. She spun on her heel, and leaned over, putting her lips to Natsuki's once again. There was a softness, and a warmth.

Shizuru rose, breaking the kiss. She reached up with one hand, and slapped herself as hard as she could.

"No! That's the end of it. Natsuki must never know of my wickedness!"

She faded from sight.