Hola, mi hermanita. = Hello, my dear little sister. (Well, basically.)
Brownie Points:
Athena: 5
Shadow@ngel: 5
The lyrics were from the first Digimon Adventure 02 movie :P Brownie points to whoever knows where this chapter's lyrics are from! I dunno, maybe whoever has the most when I finish the fic will get a prize. Whee. Fun stuff, right?
Disclaimer(s): Still don't own FY, gosh darn it. Don't own Hershey's Kisses, either. Yes. And once again, any resemblance of teachers to real people is purely coincidental and unintended. Really. @.@;
Warning(s): School? Indecipherable Meaningful Looks. Perky, conniving little sisters. And eventual shounen-ai. But not yet.
This Time Around
[Chapter Two: In Which Miaka and Taka Exchange Meaningful Looks]
Thunk.
Such was the sound of my forehead hitting my locker.
Taka raised an eyebrow at me. "You okay?"
"Tiiiired..." I moaned into the cold metal, fiddling with the combination lock and finally jerking the locker open.
"Late night last night?" Taka said, grinning. "Who's the lucky guy, eh?"
I shot him a look which I sure could have made Heero Yuy wince. Never works on Taka, though. Or maybe the bags under my eyes ruined the effect. Or something.
"If you must know," I said with the air of one who feels he is above disclosing information to his best friends.
"I must. Humor me," he interjected, amused.
I grinned and rolled my eyes. "Kourin-chan had a nightmare last night. And I couldn't sleep. And that's all. There were no other guys involved," I said firmly and Taka wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Suddenly, Miaka appeared over Taka's shoulder. She was munching on a chocolate bar.
"Waaiii, Ryuuen, you have a boyfriend!?" she exclaimed, her large green eyes sparkling. "Why didn't you tell meee?!" I slumped back against my locker and Taka laughed. "Whaaat?"
"I don't have a boyfriend, Miaka-chan," I said, sticking out my tongue. "I'm still getting over the second grade when you refused my marriage proposal, 'cause you mom made better cookies than mine." Then I quirked a smile so she would know I was kidding.
Miaka squealed and grabbed my arm. "But that was a long, long time ago! I'll marry you now, Ryuu-chan!!" The brown-haired girl began dragging me purposefully down the hallway. "And we can have a honeymoon in Nicaragua!"
"Nicaragua...?" I laughed. "¡Olé! Onward, my pretty!" We stumbled, laughing, down the hallway with linked arms, until Taka caught up with us.
"Where are you going?" he asked rather perplexedly.
"Nicaragua!" we exclaimed together, bursting into giggles. "For our honeymoon," I clarified, and Taka rolled his eyes.
"Ryuu-chaaan." He draped himself over Miaka, kissing the top of her head. Then he flicked my shoulder and smiled amiably. "You're gay, remember?"
"Minor detail," I said, waving a hand dismissively.
"Don't worry, Taka," Miaka whispered loudly, eyes dancing. "I'm only marrying him 'cause Kourin makes good brownies!" As if to prove her point, she fished a Hershey's Kiss from her pocket and popped it in her mouth. "Mmmm, chocolate."
Taka and I laughed. "It's so good to be loved," I declared.
Suddenly, I was assaulted from behind by a purple-haired freshman.
"'Niichaaaann!!" Kourin said, clambering onto my back like a little kid who wants a piggy-back ride.
"Hola, mi hermanita," I replied, kissing her cheek. "What's up?"
"I finally got a math tutor. Now I won't faaaail!" she sang. "He's coming over right after school. Hullo, Taka-san and Miaka-san."
"Hullo, Kourin-chan," they chorused. Kourin slid off my back to give them hugs. Taka ruffled her hair. "Ryuu-chan says you had a nightmare last night," he said.
Kourin nodded emphatically, her violet hair bobbing in its ponytail. "Mm-hmm! It was awful." She reattached herself to me. "I dreamed that 'Niichan was dead in the snow. He was really bloody. It was scary," she admonished.
Miaka and Taka exchanged what I'm sure was a Meaningful Look, but I didn't quite catch it as Kourin continued.
"But after I went to 'Niichan's room I had a nice dream," she said, practically bubbling. "There was a really pretty man in it. Not pretty like 'Niichan, though. Like, handsome-pretty. And then there was..." she trailed off and coloured prettily.
"Was what, Kourin-chan?" Miaka and I asked simultaneously. I nudged Kourin playfully, but Miaka suddenly seemed very interested in Kourin's dream.
"There was a boy," Kourin said, and stuck out her tongue. "And nothing else that's your business."
"Touché." Taka grinned, pulling Miaka away from Kourin before she bore holes in my imouto by staring too hard. "Like brother, like sister, ne?"
Kourin and I gave him identical Looks, and Kourin tugged at my sleeve. "Ne, 'Niichan, what's-her-name the sociology teacher wants to see you in the guidance office. Something about community work and extra credit. Rolling her eyes, she turned to Miaka and Taka. "And you two should get to the cafeteria. Lunch is almost over, you know."
Taka glanced at his watch and his eyes went wide. "Oh, crap!" he exclaimed, and dashed off. Miaka smiled fondly after him.
"I've already eaten," she informed us, then thought for a moment. "But I'm sure he wouldn't mind some company."
-------
The guidance office was small and rather dusty. I probably spent more time there than any normal student, but only because Mr. Methaney, my counselor, was also the baseball coach. He liked to call me in to discuss my "Academic Process," then spend half an hour going over exactly how he planned to upend so-and-so's team this year.
It was rather frightening, really.
"Ah, Ryuuen," he said as I slipped in the door. "Good to see you."
He's in a good mood today, I thought. Wonder what new plan he has...?
I smiled, raising an eyebrow. "Community service?"
"Hey! That was true, believe it or not!" he said, laughing.
I raised the other eyebrow, too, creating an effect which I knew made my face look rather too large for my head.
"Ms. Capizzi will be here in a minute. Or a second," he amended and the door opened to reveal the resident sociology teacher.
"Hello, Mr. Methaney. Ryuuen, I need a favor," she said, getting right to the point and making herself comfortable in a plump armchair. "There's a freshman in one of my classes. He's a brilliant child, he really is, but he's very quiet and withdrawn. I talked to his other teachers, and they thought the same thing."
I blinked at her. "And you want me to...?"
"Well, makes friends with him. You'd be such a good influence, Ryuuen! And I'd give you extra credit." Ms. Capizzi stared at me imploringly. "He's not very well off; he lives with his aunt and uncle. I can't be sure, but I think they... mistreat him..."
"I'll do it," my voice said. Damn me for being nice. Stupid voice, not even waiting for my brain to process information. I inwardly rolled my eyes. "Er... how much extra credit?"
"An extra hundred points into your final grade," the teacher smiled innocently.
I sensed there was something I was missing. I decided not to ask. Teachers are weird. But, hey, good grades...
"So," I said, pushing all suspicious thoughts aside, "Who is this kid?"
Coach grinned. "That's my boy!" I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, his name's Doukun Ou. Shortish, brown hair, usually alone."
"I'll assign you as his tutor," Ms. Capizzi said. "Now, I'm sure your other teachers would appreciate it if I would let you go back to class."
I nodded, gathered my things, and slipped out the door.
The rest of the day passed rather uneventfully. I kept an eye for that Doukun kid, but couldn't find him. When I told Miaka and Taka about him, they exchanged another one of their Looks, then said they were sure it was just a concerned teacher.
Riiiight.
I've known Taka for a long time, and Miaka for longer, but, really... they can be so weird sometimes.
Anyway, Gen-chan and I decided to walk home instead of taking the bus. I told him it was because we needed to get in shape, baseball season was fast-approaching, but he just laughed and told me it was 'cause I didn't want either of us scaring off whatever snot-nosed freshman Kourin's teacher had assigned to tutor her.
And he was right. I hate it when that happens.
"You have such a fuckin sister complex, Ryuuen," he told me as we strolled briskly through the park. "You walk home so's not to scare off little mister tutor, but then walk really fast so you can get home in time to check 'im out and make sure he won't fuck with your precious sister."
I made a face, then grinned brightly. "Well," I said thoughtfully, "then why are you walking so fast?"
Gen-chan glared at a bare-branched maple tree. It quavered fearfully. "'Cause if any little bastard ever tries to hurt her, I'll roast him alive," he said vehemently.
"And I have a sister complex?"
"Don't count. Kourin-chan's not my sister."
"It's the same concept, Gen-chan."
"Is not," he mumbled.
We reached the house, and I fumbled for my keys as Gen-chan admired the sleek, black Ferrari that had somehow ended up in my driveway. "Snot-nosed freshman, eh?"
We stopped in the kitchen for chocolate-chip cookies -- Kourin's specialty -- and for its strategic conjunction with the living room, where we could hear people talking softly.
"So, to find 'x'," Kourin was saying, "I just find factors of c that can add up to b, then... x is..."
There was a short pause.
"Exactly!" A deep, melodious voice rang out. "Very good, Kourin-chan. You're a fast learner!"
"Arigatou, Saihitei-sempai."
I caught Gen-chan's eye. He was glaring through the door. Personally, I though Mr. Deep-and-Melodious sounded quite nice, but Gen-chan is very protective of Kourin-chan. Actually, he's protective of everyone.
He gave me a Look that said, plainly, "I'm going in." I sighed and followed him as he swung the kitchen door open wide. "Oi! Kourin-chan!" He gave a fangy grin. "We're home!"
Kourin looked up, startled. "'Niichan!" she exclaimed, and rushed first to hug me, then Gen-chan. "You're just in time. Saihitei-sempai was about to leave, and I wanted to introduce you."
It was then that I noticed the man sitting on the couch. I'm quite certain my jaw must have dropped. He was -- and I say this very seriously -- the most gorgeous man I had ever seen. He had gentle, golden eyes and long, silky brown hair. It fell over his wide shoulders onto his way-out-of-my-league sophisticated clothing. He smiled.
I hope I didn't drool.
"...a senior at Emerson High," Kourin was saying as Gen-chan brought me back to reality with a subtle pinch in the back. "He's my teacher's sister-in-law's nephew, actually."
"I think you missed 'former roommate' in there somewhere, Kourin-chan," Gen-chan chuckled.
Kourin gave him a Look. "Anyway. Saihitei-sempai, this is my 'Niichan, Ryuuen. And this is his obnoxious friend, Shun'u Kou. Call him Genrou; everyone does."
Gen-chan faked hurt. "Aw, Kourin-chan, you'll make me think you don't love me," he pouted. She grinned and hugged him.
"But he's such a mother hen it makes up for his obnoxiousness," she appealed. Gen-chan rolled his eyes.
Mr. Deep-and-Melodious -- Saihitei -- stood up. He was very tall. At least a head taller than me.
"It's very nice to meet you both," he said, looking straight at me. It took all my willpower to keep from melting.
"Y-you, too," I managed to squeak.
"Same here, man," Gen-chan said distractedly; he was busy trying not to laugh at me.
Saihitei assured Kourin-chan that he would be back Wednesday. She walked him to the door, and he drove off in his Ferrari.
"He's gorgeous, isn't he?" she said, bouncing back into the living room. Gen-chan was attempting to peel me off the floor.
I shook my head to clear it. "Kourin, he's three years older than you."
A wide, slightly malevolent grin crossed my imouto's face. "Of course. So I'll just admire him from afar, ne?"
"Damn straight you will," growled Gen-chan.
"Besides," Kourin said, bending to whisper in my ear, "I think he's much more your type."
Dore dake kimi wo aishitara kono omoi todoku no darou
Mitsumerareru to ienai kotoba ga chuu ni mau
Hanarereba hanareru hodo itoshii hito da to kizuku
Motomereba motomeru hodo ni setsunai kyori wo kanjiteru my heart...
[Whoever you love, these images will reach them, right?
Don't say you can find them, your words are dancing in space.
The further apart you go, the more it hurts the person you love
The more I chase them, the more my heart feels the cruel distance...]
[End Chapter Two]
Whee, another chapter finished. I'll try to get the next one out sooner, I promise o_o;; Brownie points if you know where the lyrics are from. Extra brownie points if you can tell me what Kourin was learning ~^.
Many reviews makes B-chan a happy writer. :D