Hi all! Sorry that I made you wait for so long...I guess I'm not going to do
better than 15 reviews on chapter one (so sad...) so I'm giving in and sending
in chapter two for all you lovely people! ^_^
I'm recently keenly interesting in Harry Potter. I know, either you're going
to hate me because it's 'sinful' (I am a Christian btw) or love me because
you love it too, so I want to take the time here to advertise an increadable
piece of fanfiction that I'm currently reading.
It's on fanfiction.net too and is written by a girl called "Just Like Hermione".
It's called: "Harry Potter And the Truest Power" and is currently longer than
the "Order of the Phoenix"! It's such a well written story! Wow! If I hadn't
known better, I would have thought that J.K. Rowling wrote it herself! It's
on my fave. stories list, so check it out! Dont forget to tell her Bunny-chan19
sent ya! hee. ^^
Ok...on to the story!
Rating: PG-13 for extremely mild cursing.
--------------------------------
I had watched the group talking for only a few minutes when I spied Matoki
looking over at me. He grinned sinisterly at me before turning back to the
girls. Great. He's got some new plan. Well it was sure to be pretty easy to
figure out if he was working together with Odango-head over there. Speaking
of the little minx, she was currently giving Matoki one of her angelic-looking
smiles. Then she turned to Minako and the two blonds put their heads together
wispering excitedly in the corner. Suddenly Rei leaned forward and said some-
thing in a low voice that evoked a rather loud response from Usagi.
"What! No Way Rei! You have *got* to be joking!"
A soft flush had bloomed on her cheeks as soon as Rei had finished speaking
and she was doing her best to glare at her friend who was giving her some-
what of a triumphat look while she folded her arms and leaned back against
backrest of their booth.
Seconds later Matoki stepped in and shushed Usagi, shooting a glance my way.
I ignored them. Whatever it was that had upset Odango wasn't my problem. The
group continued to speak for a few more minutes and then Matoki returned to
the counter to ofter me a refill of coffee; an annoyingly smug look on his
face. As he topped off my mug I raised an eyebrow at him.
"So Matoki, ran out of ideas and had to conspire with a few high schoolers
did you? I hope you realize that whatever notions she put into your head
about romance are merely childish fantesies and that this whole plan will be
a complete flop."
Matoki let me rant all the while grinning at me with that same stupid grin
that he had been wearing while talking with the girls; one that said he was
one up on me and I wouldn't know what hit me until it knocked me nine-ways
from Sunday. That irked me.
"You know Mamoru, you really are too hard on her."
Of course he knew which girl I was talking about. I couldn't help myself.
Something about the odango-haired girl, who I had some uncanny knack for
running into at least once at day, got under my skin. Of course it wasn't
because I *wanted* her to, she just...did. Must be something in the air.
"Define 'too hard' Matoki. That girl lives to make make my life a living--"
"She says the same about you, you know. Quite often in fact." Matoki
interrupted me. "They say opposites attract, you never know Mamoru...."
He let the sentence trail off.
I glanced over at the booth in the corner where Usagi was taking a sip of
her hot chocolate. Makoto made a joke of some kind and Usagi began to laugh
again. Her laugh, it was so...sweet...and innocent. Like something that just
refused to grow old. Rei added her two bits and Usagi fired some rare
intellegent quip back causing Ami and Makoto to laugh and Rei to give her an
indignant stare. Seconds later the traditional tongue war began. Something
drew my gaze to a certain pair of soft, pink, lips and the accompanying
tantalizing flashes of tongue. I quickly tore my eyes away and all but
dropped my cup in my haste to set it on the counter. What *was* I just
thinking about?! Must be something in the coffee. I suddenly wasn't thirsty
anymore.
Matoki saw everything that took place in the few seconds in which his friend
spent looking at the table of gossiping teens in the corner but bit his own
tongue and said nothing. He silently wiped up the spill Mamoru had made and
pretended that he had been busy with the coffee pot; facing the other way by
the time Mamoru turned back. He knew what was going on even if his best
friend was refusing to admit it, and he was determined to force Mamoru to
admit it to himself if it was the last thing he did.
"Not likely, Matoki." I muttered, more under my breath then actually to him,
but my blond friend had the grace, or the bad-hearing, to pretend not to
have heard anything.
I knew that Matoki had been watching me closely during this short
encounter and I knew what he was thinking. However, there was no way I was
going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that something had rattled me.
I threw some money on the counter for my drink and made for the slidding
doors of the arcade; still keeping a sharp lookout for the smallest *hint*
of anything that reproduced using photosynthasis. Matoki was good...but I
was going to show him that I was better.
* * * * *
A week had passed and Matoki had suddenly ceased pulling any type of x-mas
prank on me. For the normal man this would have been a releif. For me, *I*
was doubly suspicious. Seconds later something pink and white and shrieking
loud enough to wake the dead came wizzing toward me full speed.
"Eyaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!" Shrieked the aformentioned thing, which turned out to
be a person with long trails of blond hair streaming out behind her, as she
skidded on a hidden patch of ice and crashed into Mamoru.
I threw my arms around the girl instinctively, as she slammed into me full
speed, drawing her close against my body and tightening my arms around her
small form as I suddenly found myself loosing my own footing and we both
crashed unceremoniously onto the snowy sidewalk.
The creature I had cradled in my arms now lay on my chest, and as for me, I
was laying on my back, a nasty bump prodding the back of my head. A squeek
signaled that the girl had realized her own comprimising postion and she
suddenly began to struggle to untangle herself.
As Usagi raised herself off the man she flushed deeply. It was Mamoru! Just
her luck.
"Ohmigod! Mamoru-baka! Why didn't you get out of my way! Are you alright?"
she cried, bending forward and peering into the dazed eyes of one confused
raven-haired man with concern.
Pushing myself up to a sitting position I blinked at Usagi, who was still
straddling my legs and now clutching at the front of my winter coat with two
light pink gloved hands. She wore a white jacket and a matching pink whool
headband over her ears. Her long blond ponytails were spilling over her
shoulders and across my legs and the surrouding sidewalk. Her face was only
inches from mine.
"Hey Chiba! Did you freeze your tongue to the sidewalk or someting? Are you
alright?" Usagi demanded, giving the man in front of her a shake. A sudden
memory of Matoki and the girl careening toward him in the arcade flashed
through my mind then and I quickly extracted myself from under Usagi and
jumped to my feet; causing her to fall into a somewhat crab-like postion.
"What's the--" She sputtered as I all but shoved her off of me. Still, as I
did it I had the strangest urge to hold back; hold on to her. Somehow when
she was in my arms I didn't want to let her go. Usagi was blinking up at me
from her position in the dirty snow of the sidewalk and giving me an equally
strange look. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and absently held out a
hand to help her to her feet, muttering 'sorry' as she raised an eyebrow at
me and allowed me to pull her up. I must be over-reacting. Surely Matoki
hadn't sent Usagi to-- I quicky cut that thought off. He wouldn't be that
cruel as to attempt to get his best friend's attention with the most annoying
...childish...beautiful enemy-- there I went again. Usagi was speaking then.
"I--I'm sorry I ran into you." Usagi managed to get out as Mamoru's strong
fingers closed over her gloved hand and helped pull her to a standing
position. He was helping her? After she had just bowled him over? He sure
was acting queer. "But I--"
"Whatever...Odango. The sidewalks are slippery. I don't know what you and my
supposed best friend are planning but stay away from me before you get me killed,
or worse!" I fired at her, each word carefully calculated for maximum effect.
There was no way she was going to get to me. I cast my eyes around for the
mistletoe that was sure to be hanging somewhere above me.
"Where is it?" I demanded, looking into her eye and having a sudden start.
Usagi was looking at me with what was first shock and then...tears? She was
crying? Why on earth would she be--?
"Where is *what*, you arrogant jerk!" she shot back.
"Why are you crying?" I sighed, frustrated that she was denying everything.
She obviously was in legue with Matoki, there was no other explination.
"Why are you such an asshole?!" she threw back at me rather angrily, before
turning and brushing past me with a non-too-innocent elbow jab in my side as
she went.
What was *her* problem? Lately Usagi had been taking offence to practically
everything I so much as *breathed* on. And as for me, I was so confused about
my feelings for her that I didn't know how to act. She was an annoying little
high school prat-- who I found caused my day to be suddenly 'empty' if I
happened to miss our regular run-ins for some stroke of what I used to consider
'luck'. Watching her stalk down the street, nearly loosing her balance once or
twice and catching it just barely in time before she continued her haughty
tirade down the road, I noticed an envolope laying on the ground.
Picking it up, I inspected the neat characters printed on the front. Wait,
those weren't just any charcters, it was a name. *My* name. I glanced back up
the street but Usagi had already disapeared into the crowd. Shaking my head, I
walked over to a bench near a bus shelter and sat down while slitting open the
envelope. It contained an invatation for a Christmas party at the Temple that
one of Usagi's friends, Rei Hino's, grandfather owned. The card read that a party
was to be held there on December 24th and and that he was to come for 8pm and
bring a small gift for a gift exchange.
This card wouldn't have been so unusual because he and Rei had had what she
would call a relationship, and *he* would call hanging out with a cute high
school girl who he liked on a friendly basis, for a while, except that Usagi
had dropped it. Why had she had it? Maybe Rei had simply asked her to give it
to him because she was too shy, after all she had her school-girl ideals about
romance and asking the guy you liked to your party was bound to make even the
supposedly boldest girl somewhat shy, or maybe she knew that Usagi ran into
him, on purpose or not, so often that she was more likely to see him before Rei
did? Either way I was suddenly feeling not a small amount of guilt for the way
that I had treated Usagi ealier. Well, I would apologize somehow when I saw her
next. For now, I had a present or two to buy.
* * * * *
better than 15 reviews on chapter one (so sad...) so I'm giving in and sending
in chapter two for all you lovely people! ^_^
I'm recently keenly interesting in Harry Potter. I know, either you're going
to hate me because it's 'sinful' (I am a Christian btw) or love me because
you love it too, so I want to take the time here to advertise an increadable
piece of fanfiction that I'm currently reading.
It's on fanfiction.net too and is written by a girl called "Just Like Hermione".
It's called: "Harry Potter And the Truest Power" and is currently longer than
the "Order of the Phoenix"! It's such a well written story! Wow! If I hadn't
known better, I would have thought that J.K. Rowling wrote it herself! It's
on my fave. stories list, so check it out! Dont forget to tell her Bunny-chan19
sent ya! hee. ^^
Ok...on to the story!
Rating: PG-13 for extremely mild cursing.
--------------------------------
I had watched the group talking for only a few minutes when I spied Matoki
looking over at me. He grinned sinisterly at me before turning back to the
girls. Great. He's got some new plan. Well it was sure to be pretty easy to
figure out if he was working together with Odango-head over there. Speaking
of the little minx, she was currently giving Matoki one of her angelic-looking
smiles. Then she turned to Minako and the two blonds put their heads together
wispering excitedly in the corner. Suddenly Rei leaned forward and said some-
thing in a low voice that evoked a rather loud response from Usagi.
"What! No Way Rei! You have *got* to be joking!"
A soft flush had bloomed on her cheeks as soon as Rei had finished speaking
and she was doing her best to glare at her friend who was giving her some-
what of a triumphat look while she folded her arms and leaned back against
backrest of their booth.
Seconds later Matoki stepped in and shushed Usagi, shooting a glance my way.
I ignored them. Whatever it was that had upset Odango wasn't my problem. The
group continued to speak for a few more minutes and then Matoki returned to
the counter to ofter me a refill of coffee; an annoyingly smug look on his
face. As he topped off my mug I raised an eyebrow at him.
"So Matoki, ran out of ideas and had to conspire with a few high schoolers
did you? I hope you realize that whatever notions she put into your head
about romance are merely childish fantesies and that this whole plan will be
a complete flop."
Matoki let me rant all the while grinning at me with that same stupid grin
that he had been wearing while talking with the girls; one that said he was
one up on me and I wouldn't know what hit me until it knocked me nine-ways
from Sunday. That irked me.
"You know Mamoru, you really are too hard on her."
Of course he knew which girl I was talking about. I couldn't help myself.
Something about the odango-haired girl, who I had some uncanny knack for
running into at least once at day, got under my skin. Of course it wasn't
because I *wanted* her to, she just...did. Must be something in the air.
"Define 'too hard' Matoki. That girl lives to make make my life a living--"
"She says the same about you, you know. Quite often in fact." Matoki
interrupted me. "They say opposites attract, you never know Mamoru...."
He let the sentence trail off.
I glanced over at the booth in the corner where Usagi was taking a sip of
her hot chocolate. Makoto made a joke of some kind and Usagi began to laugh
again. Her laugh, it was so...sweet...and innocent. Like something that just
refused to grow old. Rei added her two bits and Usagi fired some rare
intellegent quip back causing Ami and Makoto to laugh and Rei to give her an
indignant stare. Seconds later the traditional tongue war began. Something
drew my gaze to a certain pair of soft, pink, lips and the accompanying
tantalizing flashes of tongue. I quickly tore my eyes away and all but
dropped my cup in my haste to set it on the counter. What *was* I just
thinking about?! Must be something in the coffee. I suddenly wasn't thirsty
anymore.
Matoki saw everything that took place in the few seconds in which his friend
spent looking at the table of gossiping teens in the corner but bit his own
tongue and said nothing. He silently wiped up the spill Mamoru had made and
pretended that he had been busy with the coffee pot; facing the other way by
the time Mamoru turned back. He knew what was going on even if his best
friend was refusing to admit it, and he was determined to force Mamoru to
admit it to himself if it was the last thing he did.
"Not likely, Matoki." I muttered, more under my breath then actually to him,
but my blond friend had the grace, or the bad-hearing, to pretend not to
have heard anything.
I knew that Matoki had been watching me closely during this short
encounter and I knew what he was thinking. However, there was no way I was
going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that something had rattled me.
I threw some money on the counter for my drink and made for the slidding
doors of the arcade; still keeping a sharp lookout for the smallest *hint*
of anything that reproduced using photosynthasis. Matoki was good...but I
was going to show him that I was better.
* * * * *
A week had passed and Matoki had suddenly ceased pulling any type of x-mas
prank on me. For the normal man this would have been a releif. For me, *I*
was doubly suspicious. Seconds later something pink and white and shrieking
loud enough to wake the dead came wizzing toward me full speed.
"Eyaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!" Shrieked the aformentioned thing, which turned out to
be a person with long trails of blond hair streaming out behind her, as she
skidded on a hidden patch of ice and crashed into Mamoru.
I threw my arms around the girl instinctively, as she slammed into me full
speed, drawing her close against my body and tightening my arms around her
small form as I suddenly found myself loosing my own footing and we both
crashed unceremoniously onto the snowy sidewalk.
The creature I had cradled in my arms now lay on my chest, and as for me, I
was laying on my back, a nasty bump prodding the back of my head. A squeek
signaled that the girl had realized her own comprimising postion and she
suddenly began to struggle to untangle herself.
As Usagi raised herself off the man she flushed deeply. It was Mamoru! Just
her luck.
"Ohmigod! Mamoru-baka! Why didn't you get out of my way! Are you alright?"
she cried, bending forward and peering into the dazed eyes of one confused
raven-haired man with concern.
Pushing myself up to a sitting position I blinked at Usagi, who was still
straddling my legs and now clutching at the front of my winter coat with two
light pink gloved hands. She wore a white jacket and a matching pink whool
headband over her ears. Her long blond ponytails were spilling over her
shoulders and across my legs and the surrouding sidewalk. Her face was only
inches from mine.
"Hey Chiba! Did you freeze your tongue to the sidewalk or someting? Are you
alright?" Usagi demanded, giving the man in front of her a shake. A sudden
memory of Matoki and the girl careening toward him in the arcade flashed
through my mind then and I quickly extracted myself from under Usagi and
jumped to my feet; causing her to fall into a somewhat crab-like postion.
"What's the--" She sputtered as I all but shoved her off of me. Still, as I
did it I had the strangest urge to hold back; hold on to her. Somehow when
she was in my arms I didn't want to let her go. Usagi was blinking up at me
from her position in the dirty snow of the sidewalk and giving me an equally
strange look. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and absently held out a
hand to help her to her feet, muttering 'sorry' as she raised an eyebrow at
me and allowed me to pull her up. I must be over-reacting. Surely Matoki
hadn't sent Usagi to-- I quicky cut that thought off. He wouldn't be that
cruel as to attempt to get his best friend's attention with the most annoying
...childish...beautiful enemy-- there I went again. Usagi was speaking then.
"I--I'm sorry I ran into you." Usagi managed to get out as Mamoru's strong
fingers closed over her gloved hand and helped pull her to a standing
position. He was helping her? After she had just bowled him over? He sure
was acting queer. "But I--"
"Whatever...Odango. The sidewalks are slippery. I don't know what you and my
supposed best friend are planning but stay away from me before you get me killed,
or worse!" I fired at her, each word carefully calculated for maximum effect.
There was no way she was going to get to me. I cast my eyes around for the
mistletoe that was sure to be hanging somewhere above me.
"Where is it?" I demanded, looking into her eye and having a sudden start.
Usagi was looking at me with what was first shock and then...tears? She was
crying? Why on earth would she be--?
"Where is *what*, you arrogant jerk!" she shot back.
"Why are you crying?" I sighed, frustrated that she was denying everything.
She obviously was in legue with Matoki, there was no other explination.
"Why are you such an asshole?!" she threw back at me rather angrily, before
turning and brushing past me with a non-too-innocent elbow jab in my side as
she went.
What was *her* problem? Lately Usagi had been taking offence to practically
everything I so much as *breathed* on. And as for me, I was so confused about
my feelings for her that I didn't know how to act. She was an annoying little
high school prat-- who I found caused my day to be suddenly 'empty' if I
happened to miss our regular run-ins for some stroke of what I used to consider
'luck'. Watching her stalk down the street, nearly loosing her balance once or
twice and catching it just barely in time before she continued her haughty
tirade down the road, I noticed an envolope laying on the ground.
Picking it up, I inspected the neat characters printed on the front. Wait,
those weren't just any charcters, it was a name. *My* name. I glanced back up
the street but Usagi had already disapeared into the crowd. Shaking my head, I
walked over to a bench near a bus shelter and sat down while slitting open the
envelope. It contained an invatation for a Christmas party at the Temple that
one of Usagi's friends, Rei Hino's, grandfather owned. The card read that a party
was to be held there on December 24th and and that he was to come for 8pm and
bring a small gift for a gift exchange.
This card wouldn't have been so unusual because he and Rei had had what she
would call a relationship, and *he* would call hanging out with a cute high
school girl who he liked on a friendly basis, for a while, except that Usagi
had dropped it. Why had she had it? Maybe Rei had simply asked her to give it
to him because she was too shy, after all she had her school-girl ideals about
romance and asking the guy you liked to your party was bound to make even the
supposedly boldest girl somewhat shy, or maybe she knew that Usagi ran into
him, on purpose or not, so often that she was more likely to see him before Rei
did? Either way I was suddenly feeling not a small amount of guilt for the way
that I had treated Usagi ealier. Well, I would apologize somehow when I saw her
next. For now, I had a present or two to buy.
* * * * *