( I'm sorry this storyline is going kinda slow right now, this just goes
back to that THING I have with properly setting something up before I dive
into it. ^_^ I think I'm nearly done though. keep in mind I only THINK.
lol. Cya. )
~*~*~*~
~~Mugen School~~
Michiru walked into her third class of the day, which happened to be her favorite out of her entire schedule. With her violin at hand, she walked into the large warm-up room, where classes would be held for a Advanced Orchestra. Most of her classmates had already arrived and were getting prepared. Saying nothing to anyone, she walked to the violin section in-between two fellow musicians, one male and one female, both of whom looked to be much older than herself. In fact, looking around the room, Michiru noticed that most of these players were older than her. She was probably the only freshman student in that entire room, but considering that this was the Advanced Orchestra course, she wasn't really surprised. Looking forward, she noticed the door that led into the auditorium where concerts were held.
Placing her violin case upon her lap, she gently unfastened the silver latches and flipped the top open. She reached in and pulled the instrument away from its hold. Noticing that the class professor was approaching the podium in the front of the room, she quickly closed her case and slid it off her knees to onto the ground.
Seeing the girl's quick movements, the male student next to Michiru chuckled. "Don't worry about working fast in this class, Miss."
Caught off guard, Michiru slightly jumped. She turned her head toward the student at her fight, not knowing what to respond to first, his statement or his politeness. She cleared the throat as she rested her Violin upon her lap. "I'm sorry?"
The student chuckled again as he rested his bow on the stand before him. "You seemed a little apprehensive when the director took the podium. You don't have to worry about time, he's always quite frazzled at the beginning of class. If you get here on time, you'll usually have about ten minutes before we actually play something."
Michiru looked up at the director's podium only to see that the professor had disappeared. Feeling somewhat silly, she turned back up to the more experienced student at her right. "It's going to take a while for me to get used to not being kept on such a tight leash anymore."
The student cocked his head to the side in confusion as if he didn't understand what his fellow musician had just said. "A 'tight leash'?"
Beginning to relax, Michiru giggled as she leaned over her Violin. "I mean High School."
Lifting a brow in disbelief, the student leaned back in his chair with a smirk. "You mean, High School as in you just came from one?" Michiru nodded, causing him to look around the room and examine all of his classmates. He knew for a fact that no other student in that room were Freshmen. He turned back to Michiru, still with a smirk flat on his face. "You've got to be kidding me."
Michiru laughed as she shook her head back and fourth. "I'm not. I'm fresh out of High School." She wondered if he would be so polite now that he knew what he was dealing with.
Thinking for a moment before he acted, the student dropped his smirk and replaced it with a smile as he extended his hand. "Well congratulations! It's not every day someone right out of High School gets accepted into the Advanced Performance Orchestra."
Michiru looked down at his hand as if it were a joke. Just a minute ago that's the way he had looked at her, a joke, and now here he was congratulating her for her accomplishment. She had seen Haruka pull this same trick on lower-classmen many times in he day, but was this guy really anything like her? Maybe he wasn't trying to pull anything on her. Maybe he was being sincere. Taking a small chance of embarrassment, she reached out to make contact with his hand. Surprisingly, he didn't move it away like Haruka always had, which mean he was being serious. "Thank you. My name is Michiru."
The student smiled. "The name's Taro." He looked back up to the podium and took notice that the director had returned to the podium. "I think we're finally ready." He exclaimed as he glanced up at the clock.
Tapping his baton against the podium, the professor gathered his class' attention. "We will be starting class now. Before we do anything I want us to play something out of the warm-up book so I can get a feel for how this group plays together. Let's try page thirty-eight selection four."
It was at that moment that the girl next to Michiru placed her bow on the stand in front of her and stood up. She calmly looked into the Professor's eyes. "My bow has broken, Professor."
The Director nodded back at the girl. "Do what you need." The nodded back and carefully set her instrument down on her chair.
Michiru was absolutely amazed. She had never seen such an event take place in any classroom environment. The teachers had always demanded that students first ask permission before leaving, but here it were as if students could just get up and leave whenever they please.
She turned her eyes back upon the director, who was ready to begin. Suddenly, she realized she had been so amazed that she hadn't opened up her warm-up book to the correct page, but Taro had her covered. He quickly moved his stand between the two of them in order to share.
~*~*~
Kaori walked into the dimly lit Arts Wing with her silver box. Just as she was entering, she noticed someone leaving one of the rooms. She continued on her way down the hall, carefully watching the mystery student who had just left. She paused once the student walked into the sunlight that shone through a huge, glass window. Recognizing the girl, she smirked. "Just the person I was looking for!" She called out.
The student didn't stop on her way to the music locker room where she kept her extra bows. She hadn't realized that she was the only one in the hall. Becoming disgruntled, Kaori quickened her pace. "Excuse me, young lady!"
The girl turned her head from side to side, realizing that there was no one else in the hallway. Turning around, she addressed Kaori. "Were you talking to me?!"
Setting her box down, Kaori nodded. "I was wondering if you could help me with something?"
Curious, the girl began making her way back the way she had come in order to help the woman. "Sure, what do you need? If you're lost I can direct you to the nearest office."
Kaori chuckled. "It's nothing like that. You see, I have this mission."
"Mission?" The girl interrupted.
Kaori nodded. "Yes. I need to find three items, three very special items. I believe you have one?!" She knelt down and began unlatching the latches on the box.
The girl seemed to be confused at Kaori's statement. "I think you have the wrong person, I don't have anything out of the ordinary." She began backing away, fearing what the woman was doing.
Kaori laughed aloud as she pulled open the box, which sent a cloud of smoke into the air. Nothing more out, which cause Kaori to growl with anger. "Come out you stupid thing!" She kicked the box twice.
The long, slithering creature that she had used the day before emerged from hiding. The female student screamed when she lay her eyes upon it. "What do you want?!" She watched in horror as it neared her.
Kaori frowned as she stood up. "Your Heart Crystal! Get her now!" She screamed at her creature.
The slimy, slug-like creature completely erected itself, making sure to make its head as pointy as possible. It chased the fleeing student, hurling itself into the air when it got close enough for contact. Kaori watched impatiently as the creature did its job as it cut through the girl's chest, causing her to fall lifelessly to the ground. "That's how it's done." She casually walked to her creature to retrieve the Heart Crystal. She turned her nose up the moment she saw it. "This isn't a Pure Heart Crystal!" She kicked the lifeless body in anger. "What the hell are you trying to pull!?" She bent down and prepared to give the Crystal back its rightful owner, but stopped herself short. "Well, it never hurts to stock up for the future." Smirking, she herded her creature back into its little box and latched it back shut. She calmly whistled to herself as if nothing had happened as she picked up the body and began making her way back down the hall. She didn't want anyone to come down the hall and it just lying there. It would need to be properly disposed of.
~*~*~
~~10th Street Middle School~~
A screaming bell filled the 10th Street Middle School as its students piled out into the hallway. It was because on this day that Usagi and the gang were happily one of the first groups out of class. While their teachers had mercilessly assigned homework on the first day, they had been merciful and not given home.
Usagi was more than thankful to her teachers. She happily skipped her way down the stairs with her friends close behind, not caring about the rules. No one really ever yelled at her when she ran in the hall or skipped down the stairs. Occasionally she would get a stern warning about safety. With Mr. Koch around now, it was sure to be different, but she didn't care. He couldn't really do anything to her, that is, unless he really wanted to take matters up with the office. Then she would definitely get into trouble with the principal for breaking school rules, in which her mother would be notified about. She wouldn't have cared when she was younger, but now her mother was beginning to trust in her and she would do anything to keep things that way.
She paused when she got to the bottom of the stairs, turning back up to see her friends walking at a normal pace. "Come on, you guys!" She turned back around and ran a bit further, only to stop once again and check the status of her friends. They were just reaching the bottom of the stairs. "You guys are so slow!"
"What's with you?" Rei asked with a slight giggle.
Usagi shrugged as she walked back to her friends. "I dunno. I'm bored. I wanna do something. I need to get rid of some of this energy."
Rei grinned. "Alright, let's run to my place. I've got something to ask my grandfather." She said, turning over to Makoto. "Right?"
Makoto nodded. "Let's get going."
The five girls pushed their way through the crowd in order to make it outside. Again, they were faced with groups of people congregating all over the place. "Why do these people insist on staying here longer than they need to?" Minako asked as she secured her book bag tightly on her back.
Usagi shrugged. "All I know is I try not to be here any longer than I have to, so in saying that, LET'S GO!" She didn't even bother waiting for a response before she shot out in a burst of yellow. It wasn't long before she was joined by her friends.
The students in the courtyard dropped their jaws in awe. Many of them had never seen these girls nor had they seen anything like their power. Most of them just stood there, dumbfounded, as if they were waiting for some sort of explanation for what they had just seen.
~*~*~
~~Mugen School: Student CoffeeHouse~~
Haruka was lost without Michiru. Sure she enjoyed having only two classes every other day, but she soon found it was boring with out Michiru. She didn't know what to do with herself for two hours without anyone to talk to, not anyone that was worth the trouble anyway. All there was to do was and watch all the preppy students come in and out for the next two hours while she waited for Michiru to get out of class.
"Don't you look bored?" Mamoru casually strolled up from behind Haruka and sat in the chair next to her. He remembered talking to Michiru early in the summer about their schedule, as he was curious when he would be able to hang out with them. She had mentioned something about a two-hour period where Michiru would be in class while Haruka wasn't. He knew right then that a schedule like that was going to cause trouble. Haruka had grown very attached to Michiru over the course of their friendship. He had long ago noticed that whenever the two were separated for long periods of times, Haruka usually became very bored, which had always resulted in bullying of anyone weaker or younger. So instead of having her run a rampage through the school, he decided to keep her company until Michiru got out of class, not that he had anything better to do anyway. With those two at college he was finding life very boring. He had no one to hang out with anymore.
Haruka wasn't at all surprised to see Mamoru's face. The guy always did have a habit of showing up out of no where. "Why if it isn't Mamoru, the man who caused me to lose my free games at the arcade. You could have at least asked what I thought before just going out on a whim and giving the place away."
Mamoru cupped his hands together on the table before him. "I didn't know I needed your permission. Next time I'll be sure to ask." He smirked at the girl, only to gain a sharp glare from her. "Come on, it's not that big of a deal."
Haruka grinned as she motioned for the waitress to come by the table. "Yeah, yeah. You know I just like givin you a hard time. The tailed brat gave her half away to, at least that was my understanding. Michiru said there was an agreement to let her resign into ownership if she wanted to once she got out of school."
"Odango gave her half away too?" Mamoru paused to grin. "I guess my good charm is finally starting to rub off on her. She's finally decided to follow in my footsteps."
Haruka rolled her eyes as she snickered at her friend's conceited comment. "Good charm," She snickered, "that's a good one."
Mamoru deviously frowned at Haruka as he picked up the glass of water on the table and dumped it over her head. "What was that you were saying?" He laughed as he scooted his chair away from her.
Haruka frowned as she shot a piercing glare at him. "You're in for it now. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, it may not be in the next few days, but believe me, there WILL be some SERIOUS payback for this." She reached out and grabbed the entire pile of napkins out of the dispenser and began wiping herself dry, or at least trying to. "You're such an ass."
"I try." Mamoru chuckled as he moved his chair back to the table. He would have to watch his back for a while until Haruka got her revenge, but he would be ready for her. This had been going on for years, and would probably never stop. "So why're you just sitting here alone?"
Haruka ran her fingers through her wet hair as she reached for Mamoru's jacket, which sat on the back of his chair. "I'm waiting for Michiru to get out of class so we can go hang out." She quickly snatched the item off of Mamoru's chair and began wiping herself dry with it, seeing as the napkins weren't of much help. She wrapped it around her head to soak up all the water in her hair.
Mamoru's eyes grew wide at her actions. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?" He reached out for his jacket, but was met with nothing but thin air. Haruka had evaded his reach by moving to the next seat over, out of his reach. "Get that thing off your damn head!" He yelled, not caring if anyone around heard. "Do you know how expensive that jacket was?!"
Haruka took the item of clothing off the top her head and carefully examined. "Well," She squeezed it, causing water to drip to the floor, "it doesn't look like it's worth very much anymore." She innocently looked up at her friend as if she hadn't done anything and handed him back his jacket.
Mamoru quietly growled as he violently snatched his jacket back from Haruka. "That was really screwed up."
Proud of herself, Haruka smirked. "It wouldn't have happened if you hadn't dumped water all over my head, but don't worry, the worst is yet to come. I'm not through yet."
Mamoru was up for a challenge, which he knew he would come out on top of. No one had ever been able to beat him when it came to getting revenge. "We'll just wait and see who gets the last laugh."
~*~*~
It didn't take long for the girls to arrive at the Haiwaka shrine. Once they were out of school grounds, they headed straight for the back roads and raced all the way to Rei's. Rei led her friends up the main steps, pausing at the top. She noticed her grandfather talking with a strange young man with black, ragged hair that went down to his shoulders. He wore slightly baggy jeans and a black, leather jacket. He didn't look like the average visitor of the shrine. He looked more like a punk street kid.
Usagi stepped to Rei's side, taking note of the young man as well. "Hey, Rei, who's that guy your grandpa's talking to?"
Rei frowned at the young man, having no idea why he was there. He couldn't possibly be there for educational or prayer purposes. He didn't look the type. "I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this."
Minako knelt down on the side of the stairs. "You mean a feeling that he's an enemy?"
Usagi groaned at the mentioning of yet another enemy. She was getting to the point where she wanted a break from it all. Sure she enjoyed fighting, but not when it was to save the world. There was too much at stake when it was in defense of the world. She didn't like the feeling knowing that if she made even the smallest mistake the entire world could come crashing down. "I so hope he's not an enemy."
Makoto frowned. "But what if he is? Why would he be coming here?"
Rei knelt down and crawled a bit further away from the stairs, hoping to hear what they were talking about. "Maybe he's going to try to take over all the shrines, you know, get into people's heart and start spouting out all sorts of dogma to get them under his control." She crawled out even further, but suddenly stopped short.
Usagi squatted down. "What? What is it?" She whispered.
Rei frowned at herself as she made a quick dive back for the stairs. "Why am I going out there? You have the better hearing, Usagi. You get out there."
Usagi nodded as she got on all fours and began crawling forward. She wasn't out there very long before Rei's grandfather shook hands with the young man as if some sort of an agreement had been met. "That doesn't look good." She turned back to the girls. "They just shook on something."
"Well what was it about?!" Minako asked rather impatiently.
Usagi shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't get a chance to hear what they were talking about before they shook hands." Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming closer and closer to their position. "Oh no, here he comes! Act natural!"
The girls acted natural just as Usagi had commanded, well, as natural as five girls sitting rather suspiciously on a stairway could act. The strange, young man began jogging down the stairs, but was caught off guard when his peripheral vision picked up the image of the five friends who just happened to be lounging around. He looked at them in fascination, especially Rei.
Rei began to feel uneasy at the way he was staring at her. She leaned into Ami, who leaned into Makoto, who leaned into Minako, who then leaned into Usagi, who did nothing but stare up at the man in a daze. Rei frowned as she barked at the girl. "Move!" All at once the other four jumped to their feet and high-tailed it outta there.
"Grandpa!" Rei called out as she ran for the old man. She looked over her shoulder to make sure the young man wasn't following her. He was no where in sight, which made her feel a little better.
"Mr. Hino!" Usagi waved her hand in the air to grab the man's attention. She too was guilty of looking back to make sure that boy hadn't tried to come back for them. He HAD been staring at them awfully strangely.
Mr. Hino calmly turned around to face his granddaughter and her friends. "Hello, girls." He put his hands behind his back and looked toward Rei, who was now at his side.
"Grandpa, who was that man?" She asked, pointing back to the steps where he had last been seen.
Mr. Hino smiled as he turned around and slowly began walking for the house. "That was our new help, Yuuichirou."
Rei's eyes widened. "THAT was our new help?! He can't be our new help. He's too," Rei paused, she didn't know how to put it.
"Scruffy?" Minako asked.
Rei rolled her eyes. "Could you possibly have any less tact?"
Minako grinned with a giggle. "Probably not." She sarcastically chirped.
Mr. Hino chuckled at the girls with a slight frown. "It's not about the way a person looks, it's about what you think. It's who you are inside that determines whether or not you're a good person. You five, of all people, should know this. That boy came to me as a street beggar, but he wants to change, so I've given him a job."
"Phew." Usagi sighed in relief as she wiped her forehead.
Rei shot a glare at Usagi. She didn't want her grandfather to hear anything about what they truly thought of the boy. "Grandpa, would it be alright if Makoto stayed with us for a while?"
Mr. Hino turned back around to look upon his granddaughter. "How long?" Rei shrugged as she looked over to Makoto for the answer. Makoto shrugged back. "Am I correct in assuming that it's going to be for a while?"
Makoto nodded. "My parents are getting away a little alone time. If it's too much of a bother for me to be here I can always find another place. I realize this is somewhat of a burden."
Mr. Hino smiled widely. "No, it's no trouble at all. You tell your parents we'd be happy to have you for as long as they're gone."
Excited over his answer, Makoto smiled. "Really? You wouldn't mind?"
Mr. Hino shook his head. "Not at all."
~*~*~
~~Two Hours Later~~
Two hours had passed and the girl who had left the advanced Orchestra class hadn't returned. No one had really taken notice until the class session was over, when it was time to pack up. Michiru was the first to realize the girl hadn't returned. "Hey," She started as she turned over to Taro, who was almost completely packed away. "Didn't that girl leave to get a new bow?"
"Who, Michiko?" Taro leaned back in his chair in order to see past Michiru. He had been too busy with the class to notice that she hadn't come back yet, but now that Michiru mentioned it, he found it odd that she hadn't returned yet. "That's strange."
Michiru closed up her case, wondering where the girl could have gone. She stood up and pushed the stand to the side so she could walk out from her chair. Taro did the same and joined Michiru at her side. "So how long have you been playing the Violin?"
Michiru pushed her way to the door, pushing it open when she arrived. "Since I was very little. I hated it at first, but now I love it."
Taro grabbed the door on his way out and made sure it didn't slam shut like it always had a habit of doing. "Are you into any other art, by any chance?"
Michiru nodded as she turned down the hall. "Recently I've started enjoying what the world of art has to offer. I've even begun a few paintings of my own."
Taro seemed extra interested now. "Really? If they're anything like your Violin playing they ought to be excellent."
Michiru blushed as she lowered her head. She wasn't used to being praised like this. She wasn't even used to talking about art to anyone else. Haruka never really took an interest in the subject. She had always said that art took Michiru away, which had always flattered the aqua-haired girl. The only thing Haruka had ever liked was her Violin playing. "I don't know."
Taro grinned as he pushed the door open at the end of the Arts wing, which led into the main hallway of the second floor. He chuckled at the girls' shyness. "Your playing is beautiful, and I'm sure anything else you do is as well. What kind of paintings do you do?"
Michiru didn't have to think long to answer that question. "The ocean."
"Ah, the ocean is a lovely thing. There are so many moods to capture, from calm and serene to a raging monster." He paused his movement forward, causing Michiru to do the same. "Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?"
Michiru wasn't quite sure how to go about answering that. She wasn't sure if this man was coming onto her, nor did she know how to tell him she as already seeing someone if he was. "I don't believe so."
Taro smiled wide. "Great, because my father is opening his museum of art tomorrow night. There's going to be a ceremony for it, but it's invite only. If you're interested I'll put you on the list, and anyone you might want to bring with you."
Michiru didn't know what to do first, count her blessings that he hadn't asked her out, or shower him with gratitude. Smiling at the man, she nodded. "I would love to attend."
Taro smiled even wider. "Great, then I'll see you there. Would you like me to put someone else on the list with you as well?"
Michiru thought for a moment. She didn't think Haruka would mind going if it meant spending time together. "Could you please reserve a spot for my friend Haruka too?"
Taro nodded as he took a step back. "It's done. I'll see you tomorrow night then." He turned around and began walking away to his next class, only to stop short in his tracks. "Oh, Michiru?" He turned back around to see the girl still staring at him. "Don't forget to bring some of your work. I'm interested in seeing what you can do."
Michiru nodded with a giggle. She couldn't believe she was actually going to a ceremonial opening of an art museum. "Sure."
~*~*~
~~CoffeeHouse~~
Haruka shifted around in her chair and threw her arm over the back in order to become comfortable. She reached down and grabbed her cup of soda she had ordered and took a quick sip. "So how's the apartment search coming along?"
Mamoru leaned his elbow onto the table with a sigh. "It's slow. Most places I've visited aren't interested in taking such a young tenant, especially one who has no job."
Interested, Haruka nodded. "But you have plenty of money for now."
"Exactly! I've tried arguing with them, but they all say the same thing. They think if I don't have a job I won't be able to pay rent." Frowning, Mamoru took a big gulp of his own soda. "These landlords are asses."
Haruka chuckled at her friend's comment. "You got that right. It's all about money these days. They could care less if you're homeless and living on the streets. If they don't get their pay, you're shit outta luck." Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Michiru approaching the table. Leaning forward, she smirked. "Finally. I thought you'd never get outta there."
Michiru smiled down at Haruka and Mamoru. "What a nice surprise. I didn't expect to see you here, Mamoru."
With a smile that showed how full of himself he is, Mamoru pushed himself out of the chair. "Yeah, well what can I say? I'm just a nice guy."
Michiru giggled at the glare Haruka shot at their male friend. "You didn't have to wait for me, you know?"
Haruka shrugged. "I had nothin better to do." She wrapped her arm around the girl with a smile. "So how was it?"
"I'm happy to report that it was nothing like High School Orchestra, which was huge relief. I met a very nice boy whose invited me to attend his father's ceremonial opening for the new museum of art."
Michiru reached out to help Haruka to her feet, but the other girl didn't respond. She only glared up at Michiru as if she were some sort of scoundrel, which caused Michiru to giggle again. "I know what you're thinking."
Haruka quirked an eyebrow in interest. "Oh you do, do you?"
Michiru knelt down next to Haruka and looked into her eyes. "Yes, silly. Don't worry, you're the only person I want to be with."
Haruka growled as she glanced up at Mamoru, who was laughing hysterically. "Mamoru!"
~*~*~*~
~~Mugen School~~
Michiru walked into her third class of the day, which happened to be her favorite out of her entire schedule. With her violin at hand, she walked into the large warm-up room, where classes would be held for a Advanced Orchestra. Most of her classmates had already arrived and were getting prepared. Saying nothing to anyone, she walked to the violin section in-between two fellow musicians, one male and one female, both of whom looked to be much older than herself. In fact, looking around the room, Michiru noticed that most of these players were older than her. She was probably the only freshman student in that entire room, but considering that this was the Advanced Orchestra course, she wasn't really surprised. Looking forward, she noticed the door that led into the auditorium where concerts were held.
Placing her violin case upon her lap, she gently unfastened the silver latches and flipped the top open. She reached in and pulled the instrument away from its hold. Noticing that the class professor was approaching the podium in the front of the room, she quickly closed her case and slid it off her knees to onto the ground.
Seeing the girl's quick movements, the male student next to Michiru chuckled. "Don't worry about working fast in this class, Miss."
Caught off guard, Michiru slightly jumped. She turned her head toward the student at her fight, not knowing what to respond to first, his statement or his politeness. She cleared the throat as she rested her Violin upon her lap. "I'm sorry?"
The student chuckled again as he rested his bow on the stand before him. "You seemed a little apprehensive when the director took the podium. You don't have to worry about time, he's always quite frazzled at the beginning of class. If you get here on time, you'll usually have about ten minutes before we actually play something."
Michiru looked up at the director's podium only to see that the professor had disappeared. Feeling somewhat silly, she turned back up to the more experienced student at her right. "It's going to take a while for me to get used to not being kept on such a tight leash anymore."
The student cocked his head to the side in confusion as if he didn't understand what his fellow musician had just said. "A 'tight leash'?"
Beginning to relax, Michiru giggled as she leaned over her Violin. "I mean High School."
Lifting a brow in disbelief, the student leaned back in his chair with a smirk. "You mean, High School as in you just came from one?" Michiru nodded, causing him to look around the room and examine all of his classmates. He knew for a fact that no other student in that room were Freshmen. He turned back to Michiru, still with a smirk flat on his face. "You've got to be kidding me."
Michiru laughed as she shook her head back and fourth. "I'm not. I'm fresh out of High School." She wondered if he would be so polite now that he knew what he was dealing with.
Thinking for a moment before he acted, the student dropped his smirk and replaced it with a smile as he extended his hand. "Well congratulations! It's not every day someone right out of High School gets accepted into the Advanced Performance Orchestra."
Michiru looked down at his hand as if it were a joke. Just a minute ago that's the way he had looked at her, a joke, and now here he was congratulating her for her accomplishment. She had seen Haruka pull this same trick on lower-classmen many times in he day, but was this guy really anything like her? Maybe he wasn't trying to pull anything on her. Maybe he was being sincere. Taking a small chance of embarrassment, she reached out to make contact with his hand. Surprisingly, he didn't move it away like Haruka always had, which mean he was being serious. "Thank you. My name is Michiru."
The student smiled. "The name's Taro." He looked back up to the podium and took notice that the director had returned to the podium. "I think we're finally ready." He exclaimed as he glanced up at the clock.
Tapping his baton against the podium, the professor gathered his class' attention. "We will be starting class now. Before we do anything I want us to play something out of the warm-up book so I can get a feel for how this group plays together. Let's try page thirty-eight selection four."
It was at that moment that the girl next to Michiru placed her bow on the stand in front of her and stood up. She calmly looked into the Professor's eyes. "My bow has broken, Professor."
The Director nodded back at the girl. "Do what you need." The nodded back and carefully set her instrument down on her chair.
Michiru was absolutely amazed. She had never seen such an event take place in any classroom environment. The teachers had always demanded that students first ask permission before leaving, but here it were as if students could just get up and leave whenever they please.
She turned her eyes back upon the director, who was ready to begin. Suddenly, she realized she had been so amazed that she hadn't opened up her warm-up book to the correct page, but Taro had her covered. He quickly moved his stand between the two of them in order to share.
~*~*~
Kaori walked into the dimly lit Arts Wing with her silver box. Just as she was entering, she noticed someone leaving one of the rooms. She continued on her way down the hall, carefully watching the mystery student who had just left. She paused once the student walked into the sunlight that shone through a huge, glass window. Recognizing the girl, she smirked. "Just the person I was looking for!" She called out.
The student didn't stop on her way to the music locker room where she kept her extra bows. She hadn't realized that she was the only one in the hall. Becoming disgruntled, Kaori quickened her pace. "Excuse me, young lady!"
The girl turned her head from side to side, realizing that there was no one else in the hallway. Turning around, she addressed Kaori. "Were you talking to me?!"
Setting her box down, Kaori nodded. "I was wondering if you could help me with something?"
Curious, the girl began making her way back the way she had come in order to help the woman. "Sure, what do you need? If you're lost I can direct you to the nearest office."
Kaori chuckled. "It's nothing like that. You see, I have this mission."
"Mission?" The girl interrupted.
Kaori nodded. "Yes. I need to find three items, three very special items. I believe you have one?!" She knelt down and began unlatching the latches on the box.
The girl seemed to be confused at Kaori's statement. "I think you have the wrong person, I don't have anything out of the ordinary." She began backing away, fearing what the woman was doing.
Kaori laughed aloud as she pulled open the box, which sent a cloud of smoke into the air. Nothing more out, which cause Kaori to growl with anger. "Come out you stupid thing!" She kicked the box twice.
The long, slithering creature that she had used the day before emerged from hiding. The female student screamed when she lay her eyes upon it. "What do you want?!" She watched in horror as it neared her.
Kaori frowned as she stood up. "Your Heart Crystal! Get her now!" She screamed at her creature.
The slimy, slug-like creature completely erected itself, making sure to make its head as pointy as possible. It chased the fleeing student, hurling itself into the air when it got close enough for contact. Kaori watched impatiently as the creature did its job as it cut through the girl's chest, causing her to fall lifelessly to the ground. "That's how it's done." She casually walked to her creature to retrieve the Heart Crystal. She turned her nose up the moment she saw it. "This isn't a Pure Heart Crystal!" She kicked the lifeless body in anger. "What the hell are you trying to pull!?" She bent down and prepared to give the Crystal back its rightful owner, but stopped herself short. "Well, it never hurts to stock up for the future." Smirking, she herded her creature back into its little box and latched it back shut. She calmly whistled to herself as if nothing had happened as she picked up the body and began making her way back down the hall. She didn't want anyone to come down the hall and it just lying there. It would need to be properly disposed of.
~*~*~
~~10th Street Middle School~~
A screaming bell filled the 10th Street Middle School as its students piled out into the hallway. It was because on this day that Usagi and the gang were happily one of the first groups out of class. While their teachers had mercilessly assigned homework on the first day, they had been merciful and not given home.
Usagi was more than thankful to her teachers. She happily skipped her way down the stairs with her friends close behind, not caring about the rules. No one really ever yelled at her when she ran in the hall or skipped down the stairs. Occasionally she would get a stern warning about safety. With Mr. Koch around now, it was sure to be different, but she didn't care. He couldn't really do anything to her, that is, unless he really wanted to take matters up with the office. Then she would definitely get into trouble with the principal for breaking school rules, in which her mother would be notified about. She wouldn't have cared when she was younger, but now her mother was beginning to trust in her and she would do anything to keep things that way.
She paused when she got to the bottom of the stairs, turning back up to see her friends walking at a normal pace. "Come on, you guys!" She turned back around and ran a bit further, only to stop once again and check the status of her friends. They were just reaching the bottom of the stairs. "You guys are so slow!"
"What's with you?" Rei asked with a slight giggle.
Usagi shrugged as she walked back to her friends. "I dunno. I'm bored. I wanna do something. I need to get rid of some of this energy."
Rei grinned. "Alright, let's run to my place. I've got something to ask my grandfather." She said, turning over to Makoto. "Right?"
Makoto nodded. "Let's get going."
The five girls pushed their way through the crowd in order to make it outside. Again, they were faced with groups of people congregating all over the place. "Why do these people insist on staying here longer than they need to?" Minako asked as she secured her book bag tightly on her back.
Usagi shrugged. "All I know is I try not to be here any longer than I have to, so in saying that, LET'S GO!" She didn't even bother waiting for a response before she shot out in a burst of yellow. It wasn't long before she was joined by her friends.
The students in the courtyard dropped their jaws in awe. Many of them had never seen these girls nor had they seen anything like their power. Most of them just stood there, dumbfounded, as if they were waiting for some sort of explanation for what they had just seen.
~*~*~
~~Mugen School: Student CoffeeHouse~~
Haruka was lost without Michiru. Sure she enjoyed having only two classes every other day, but she soon found it was boring with out Michiru. She didn't know what to do with herself for two hours without anyone to talk to, not anyone that was worth the trouble anyway. All there was to do was and watch all the preppy students come in and out for the next two hours while she waited for Michiru to get out of class.
"Don't you look bored?" Mamoru casually strolled up from behind Haruka and sat in the chair next to her. He remembered talking to Michiru early in the summer about their schedule, as he was curious when he would be able to hang out with them. She had mentioned something about a two-hour period where Michiru would be in class while Haruka wasn't. He knew right then that a schedule like that was going to cause trouble. Haruka had grown very attached to Michiru over the course of their friendship. He had long ago noticed that whenever the two were separated for long periods of times, Haruka usually became very bored, which had always resulted in bullying of anyone weaker or younger. So instead of having her run a rampage through the school, he decided to keep her company until Michiru got out of class, not that he had anything better to do anyway. With those two at college he was finding life very boring. He had no one to hang out with anymore.
Haruka wasn't at all surprised to see Mamoru's face. The guy always did have a habit of showing up out of no where. "Why if it isn't Mamoru, the man who caused me to lose my free games at the arcade. You could have at least asked what I thought before just going out on a whim and giving the place away."
Mamoru cupped his hands together on the table before him. "I didn't know I needed your permission. Next time I'll be sure to ask." He smirked at the girl, only to gain a sharp glare from her. "Come on, it's not that big of a deal."
Haruka grinned as she motioned for the waitress to come by the table. "Yeah, yeah. You know I just like givin you a hard time. The tailed brat gave her half away to, at least that was my understanding. Michiru said there was an agreement to let her resign into ownership if she wanted to once she got out of school."
"Odango gave her half away too?" Mamoru paused to grin. "I guess my good charm is finally starting to rub off on her. She's finally decided to follow in my footsteps."
Haruka rolled her eyes as she snickered at her friend's conceited comment. "Good charm," She snickered, "that's a good one."
Mamoru deviously frowned at Haruka as he picked up the glass of water on the table and dumped it over her head. "What was that you were saying?" He laughed as he scooted his chair away from her.
Haruka frowned as she shot a piercing glare at him. "You're in for it now. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, it may not be in the next few days, but believe me, there WILL be some SERIOUS payback for this." She reached out and grabbed the entire pile of napkins out of the dispenser and began wiping herself dry, or at least trying to. "You're such an ass."
"I try." Mamoru chuckled as he moved his chair back to the table. He would have to watch his back for a while until Haruka got her revenge, but he would be ready for her. This had been going on for years, and would probably never stop. "So why're you just sitting here alone?"
Haruka ran her fingers through her wet hair as she reached for Mamoru's jacket, which sat on the back of his chair. "I'm waiting for Michiru to get out of class so we can go hang out." She quickly snatched the item off of Mamoru's chair and began wiping herself dry with it, seeing as the napkins weren't of much help. She wrapped it around her head to soak up all the water in her hair.
Mamoru's eyes grew wide at her actions. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?" He reached out for his jacket, but was met with nothing but thin air. Haruka had evaded his reach by moving to the next seat over, out of his reach. "Get that thing off your damn head!" He yelled, not caring if anyone around heard. "Do you know how expensive that jacket was?!"
Haruka took the item of clothing off the top her head and carefully examined. "Well," She squeezed it, causing water to drip to the floor, "it doesn't look like it's worth very much anymore." She innocently looked up at her friend as if she hadn't done anything and handed him back his jacket.
Mamoru quietly growled as he violently snatched his jacket back from Haruka. "That was really screwed up."
Proud of herself, Haruka smirked. "It wouldn't have happened if you hadn't dumped water all over my head, but don't worry, the worst is yet to come. I'm not through yet."
Mamoru was up for a challenge, which he knew he would come out on top of. No one had ever been able to beat him when it came to getting revenge. "We'll just wait and see who gets the last laugh."
~*~*~
It didn't take long for the girls to arrive at the Haiwaka shrine. Once they were out of school grounds, they headed straight for the back roads and raced all the way to Rei's. Rei led her friends up the main steps, pausing at the top. She noticed her grandfather talking with a strange young man with black, ragged hair that went down to his shoulders. He wore slightly baggy jeans and a black, leather jacket. He didn't look like the average visitor of the shrine. He looked more like a punk street kid.
Usagi stepped to Rei's side, taking note of the young man as well. "Hey, Rei, who's that guy your grandpa's talking to?"
Rei frowned at the young man, having no idea why he was there. He couldn't possibly be there for educational or prayer purposes. He didn't look the type. "I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this."
Minako knelt down on the side of the stairs. "You mean a feeling that he's an enemy?"
Usagi groaned at the mentioning of yet another enemy. She was getting to the point where she wanted a break from it all. Sure she enjoyed fighting, but not when it was to save the world. There was too much at stake when it was in defense of the world. She didn't like the feeling knowing that if she made even the smallest mistake the entire world could come crashing down. "I so hope he's not an enemy."
Makoto frowned. "But what if he is? Why would he be coming here?"
Rei knelt down and crawled a bit further away from the stairs, hoping to hear what they were talking about. "Maybe he's going to try to take over all the shrines, you know, get into people's heart and start spouting out all sorts of dogma to get them under his control." She crawled out even further, but suddenly stopped short.
Usagi squatted down. "What? What is it?" She whispered.
Rei frowned at herself as she made a quick dive back for the stairs. "Why am I going out there? You have the better hearing, Usagi. You get out there."
Usagi nodded as she got on all fours and began crawling forward. She wasn't out there very long before Rei's grandfather shook hands with the young man as if some sort of an agreement had been met. "That doesn't look good." She turned back to the girls. "They just shook on something."
"Well what was it about?!" Minako asked rather impatiently.
Usagi shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't get a chance to hear what they were talking about before they shook hands." Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming closer and closer to their position. "Oh no, here he comes! Act natural!"
The girls acted natural just as Usagi had commanded, well, as natural as five girls sitting rather suspiciously on a stairway could act. The strange, young man began jogging down the stairs, but was caught off guard when his peripheral vision picked up the image of the five friends who just happened to be lounging around. He looked at them in fascination, especially Rei.
Rei began to feel uneasy at the way he was staring at her. She leaned into Ami, who leaned into Makoto, who leaned into Minako, who then leaned into Usagi, who did nothing but stare up at the man in a daze. Rei frowned as she barked at the girl. "Move!" All at once the other four jumped to their feet and high-tailed it outta there.
"Grandpa!" Rei called out as she ran for the old man. She looked over her shoulder to make sure the young man wasn't following her. He was no where in sight, which made her feel a little better.
"Mr. Hino!" Usagi waved her hand in the air to grab the man's attention. She too was guilty of looking back to make sure that boy hadn't tried to come back for them. He HAD been staring at them awfully strangely.
Mr. Hino calmly turned around to face his granddaughter and her friends. "Hello, girls." He put his hands behind his back and looked toward Rei, who was now at his side.
"Grandpa, who was that man?" She asked, pointing back to the steps where he had last been seen.
Mr. Hino smiled as he turned around and slowly began walking for the house. "That was our new help, Yuuichirou."
Rei's eyes widened. "THAT was our new help?! He can't be our new help. He's too," Rei paused, she didn't know how to put it.
"Scruffy?" Minako asked.
Rei rolled her eyes. "Could you possibly have any less tact?"
Minako grinned with a giggle. "Probably not." She sarcastically chirped.
Mr. Hino chuckled at the girls with a slight frown. "It's not about the way a person looks, it's about what you think. It's who you are inside that determines whether or not you're a good person. You five, of all people, should know this. That boy came to me as a street beggar, but he wants to change, so I've given him a job."
"Phew." Usagi sighed in relief as she wiped her forehead.
Rei shot a glare at Usagi. She didn't want her grandfather to hear anything about what they truly thought of the boy. "Grandpa, would it be alright if Makoto stayed with us for a while?"
Mr. Hino turned back around to look upon his granddaughter. "How long?" Rei shrugged as she looked over to Makoto for the answer. Makoto shrugged back. "Am I correct in assuming that it's going to be for a while?"
Makoto nodded. "My parents are getting away a little alone time. If it's too much of a bother for me to be here I can always find another place. I realize this is somewhat of a burden."
Mr. Hino smiled widely. "No, it's no trouble at all. You tell your parents we'd be happy to have you for as long as they're gone."
Excited over his answer, Makoto smiled. "Really? You wouldn't mind?"
Mr. Hino shook his head. "Not at all."
~*~*~
~~Two Hours Later~~
Two hours had passed and the girl who had left the advanced Orchestra class hadn't returned. No one had really taken notice until the class session was over, when it was time to pack up. Michiru was the first to realize the girl hadn't returned. "Hey," She started as she turned over to Taro, who was almost completely packed away. "Didn't that girl leave to get a new bow?"
"Who, Michiko?" Taro leaned back in his chair in order to see past Michiru. He had been too busy with the class to notice that she hadn't come back yet, but now that Michiru mentioned it, he found it odd that she hadn't returned yet. "That's strange."
Michiru closed up her case, wondering where the girl could have gone. She stood up and pushed the stand to the side so she could walk out from her chair. Taro did the same and joined Michiru at her side. "So how long have you been playing the Violin?"
Michiru pushed her way to the door, pushing it open when she arrived. "Since I was very little. I hated it at first, but now I love it."
Taro grabbed the door on his way out and made sure it didn't slam shut like it always had a habit of doing. "Are you into any other art, by any chance?"
Michiru nodded as she turned down the hall. "Recently I've started enjoying what the world of art has to offer. I've even begun a few paintings of my own."
Taro seemed extra interested now. "Really? If they're anything like your Violin playing they ought to be excellent."
Michiru blushed as she lowered her head. She wasn't used to being praised like this. She wasn't even used to talking about art to anyone else. Haruka never really took an interest in the subject. She had always said that art took Michiru away, which had always flattered the aqua-haired girl. The only thing Haruka had ever liked was her Violin playing. "I don't know."
Taro grinned as he pushed the door open at the end of the Arts wing, which led into the main hallway of the second floor. He chuckled at the girls' shyness. "Your playing is beautiful, and I'm sure anything else you do is as well. What kind of paintings do you do?"
Michiru didn't have to think long to answer that question. "The ocean."
"Ah, the ocean is a lovely thing. There are so many moods to capture, from calm and serene to a raging monster." He paused his movement forward, causing Michiru to do the same. "Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?"
Michiru wasn't quite sure how to go about answering that. She wasn't sure if this man was coming onto her, nor did she know how to tell him she as already seeing someone if he was. "I don't believe so."
Taro smiled wide. "Great, because my father is opening his museum of art tomorrow night. There's going to be a ceremony for it, but it's invite only. If you're interested I'll put you on the list, and anyone you might want to bring with you."
Michiru didn't know what to do first, count her blessings that he hadn't asked her out, or shower him with gratitude. Smiling at the man, she nodded. "I would love to attend."
Taro smiled even wider. "Great, then I'll see you there. Would you like me to put someone else on the list with you as well?"
Michiru thought for a moment. She didn't think Haruka would mind going if it meant spending time together. "Could you please reserve a spot for my friend Haruka too?"
Taro nodded as he took a step back. "It's done. I'll see you tomorrow night then." He turned around and began walking away to his next class, only to stop short in his tracks. "Oh, Michiru?" He turned back around to see the girl still staring at him. "Don't forget to bring some of your work. I'm interested in seeing what you can do."
Michiru nodded with a giggle. She couldn't believe she was actually going to a ceremonial opening of an art museum. "Sure."
~*~*~
~~CoffeeHouse~~
Haruka shifted around in her chair and threw her arm over the back in order to become comfortable. She reached down and grabbed her cup of soda she had ordered and took a quick sip. "So how's the apartment search coming along?"
Mamoru leaned his elbow onto the table with a sigh. "It's slow. Most places I've visited aren't interested in taking such a young tenant, especially one who has no job."
Interested, Haruka nodded. "But you have plenty of money for now."
"Exactly! I've tried arguing with them, but they all say the same thing. They think if I don't have a job I won't be able to pay rent." Frowning, Mamoru took a big gulp of his own soda. "These landlords are asses."
Haruka chuckled at her friend's comment. "You got that right. It's all about money these days. They could care less if you're homeless and living on the streets. If they don't get their pay, you're shit outta luck." Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Michiru approaching the table. Leaning forward, she smirked. "Finally. I thought you'd never get outta there."
Michiru smiled down at Haruka and Mamoru. "What a nice surprise. I didn't expect to see you here, Mamoru."
With a smile that showed how full of himself he is, Mamoru pushed himself out of the chair. "Yeah, well what can I say? I'm just a nice guy."
Michiru giggled at the glare Haruka shot at their male friend. "You didn't have to wait for me, you know?"
Haruka shrugged. "I had nothin better to do." She wrapped her arm around the girl with a smile. "So how was it?"
"I'm happy to report that it was nothing like High School Orchestra, which was huge relief. I met a very nice boy whose invited me to attend his father's ceremonial opening for the new museum of art."
Michiru reached out to help Haruka to her feet, but the other girl didn't respond. She only glared up at Michiru as if she were some sort of scoundrel, which caused Michiru to giggle again. "I know what you're thinking."
Haruka quirked an eyebrow in interest. "Oh you do, do you?"
Michiru knelt down next to Haruka and looked into her eyes. "Yes, silly. Don't worry, you're the only person I want to be with."
Haruka growled as she glanced up at Mamoru, who was laughing hysterically. "Mamoru!"