Author's Note: Okay, I'm really really REALLY sorry for the delay on this chapter but work had me exhausted, I was sick for a few days and my internet connection is a git. But I suppose not it exactly but the port supposed to get the internet on my computer. Stupid unstable screws...

Anyways, here is Chapter 8. I will get around to naming these chapters eventually. Just bear with me and I will eventually get it done. And Chapter 9...I'll get that done too...somehow...hopefully.

Meru: You said that last time!

rowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfea

Meru very carefully looked about halfway up from her doodling when Hio Mio entered the classroom, and then tried not to jump in startlement. Starflower?

Yeah?

There's something strange about this Hio Mio...

You're just jealous...

Am not, there really is something strange. Meru looked back down to her doodling, not saying a word or allowing her facial expression to change in all that time. The teacher decided to leave Hio for the moment as she was, it being her first day but Daisuke really wish she wasn't so close...she was very energetic and very forward towards him. All through class she was chatting away to him under her breath as they took notes and so on, Daisuke simply nodding and smiling nervously when she joked. He didn't know what to make of her...

Hope this transfer isn't here for long, Meru thought to herself darkly, then added with a small laugh, She might kill Daisuke if she does. She's an American like me alright.

Hio clung to Daisuke most of the day, even sticking, almost literally, to him all through lunch, offering him some of hers, which he refused as politely as he could. Takeshi didn't speak to him the entire day and Daisuke felt like banging his head on the desk, wishing the day was over.
He could sense Dark's amusement in his mind and it really didn't help.

At lunch while Daisuke was stuck with Hio, Meru decided to go over and talk to Takeshi and see what he made of this Hio Mio. Takeshi looked up as Meru approached and almost recoiled in surprise. After what had happened at the museum he wasn't going to underestimate her.

"Meru...umm...how are you?" he asked nervously, trying not to look like he was.

"I'm fine. How have you been?" Meru asked him, actually rather pleasantly. She was actually over the whole breaking into the museum thing and was trying to be friendly.

"Okay...pretty much." He said, forcing a smile. "So..." He had no clue why she was talking with him. He was sure she'd have been doing everything to avoid him.

"So may I sit with you today?" Meru asked. She was a little strange this way but would leave if he asked her to instead.

"Uh...okay." He pulled a chair over for her and then leaned on his desk. "We have swimming class after next. First of the year. Looking forward to it?" he was trying to make conversation and keep the subject away from the museum.

"Oh my gosh, I love to swim, don't you?" Meru gushed. She really loved to swim. "I was on a team before I moved into this area."

"Really? Uh...that's cool." Takeshi said with a slight laugh. He glanced jealously in Daisuke's direction as Hio started laughing quite loudly, probably at one of her own jokes. Daisuke looked as though he'd like nothing better than to get up and run from her. Meru notices his gaze and asked Takeshi what was the matter and if he actually thought Daisuke is enjoying himself over there.

"He has the cute new girl hanging off his arm, why wouldn't he be enjoying himself?" Takeshi replied angrily, leaning back in his chair and glaring at Daisuke's back. Meru folded her arms over her chest and looked at Takeshi with an eyebrow raised. "Because Daisuke likes a different girl, and to me he looks like he wants to die right now."

Takeshi just shrugged. He was jealous, he knew that...but after the museum he was still suspicious of his friend. As the bell rang announcing the start of class again, Daisuke tried to pry his arm away from Hio so he could use it to take notes. During the class, Meru took notes without looking up from her desk, growling to herself about this Hio Mio. She knew that if she did look up, she might be tempted to stab her with a pencil or something.

Finally the teacher told them to get ready for swimming and the gym teacher would meet them there. Everybody seperated to the different dressing rooms except Satoshi, who wasn't paticipating, and he went to go sit and watch.
Daisuke was relieved to get a break from Hio, trying to rub feeling back into his arm and ignoring the jokes from the other guys. Though he kinda wished Takeshi would talk to him...

Hio was wearing her own swimsuit rather than the school one and while some of the girls found it good, others thought she was perhaps showing off, Risa and Riku in particular. "I know she's a new student and all but you'd think she'd try fit in a little more."
Risa nodded a bit. "I can kind of understand her hanging out Daisuke though. She does need a friend it being her first day."
"But she acts so clingy..." Riku said, almost glaring at her.

Meru dressed in the school swimsuit, silently wishing she could have used her racing one, and put on a cap over her hair. She went over to Hio to ask her about her swimsuit. Hio was taking something out of her bag and then looked up as Meru approached, giving her a friendly smile. "Hi." She greeted. "I so didn't realise there was a school swimsuit...I just thought you brought your own." She giggled, straightening.

Meru smiled. "I think you have to order it, I didn't have a school one either when I moved here. Where did you get yours, though?"

"Mine? Oh I brought it with me from America. You like?" She did a spin and then heard a whistle blow outisde from the pool. "We'd better get moving." She smiled at Meru, going quickly to the showers before heading to the pool. The boys were already lined up waiting and Hio found her way to Daisuke in seconds. Meru rolled her eyes and lined up with the rest of the girls.

"Okay, let's start with warm-ups first and then I'll seperate you into partners. One boy, one girl." The teacher said, then instructing them on some slight warm-ups.
"Oh, Daisuke, do you wanna be my partner?" Hio asked him, looking at him with big puppy-dog eyes.

"Uh...well I think we should just go with the teacher's choice for now, okay?" It was as close to saying no as he could do. The teacher started to call out names. As their was an odd number in the class, Hio said she didn't mind sitting out the first laps so she could go when somebody else was free.
Daisuke was paired with Riku who was telling him just say no to Hio. But he didn't have time for a reply as the teacher gave the girls stopwatches.
"The boys will go first, then the girls will switch. Time your partner on how long it takes to swim to one end and back."
The boys stood at one end and waited for the whistle.

Meru simply took the stopwatch and waited at the end of the lane with her partner.

The whistle went and the boys dived in, starting to swim to the opposite end of the pool, the girls walking along and following their pace. While everybody was headed down the other end of the pool, Hio slipped into the water and moved into Daisuke's lane, something clutched in her hand.
When Daisuke swims back this way, I'll slip this pendant around his neck and he'll be mine! she thought gleefully. Diving under, she swam towards Daisuke but the pendant slipped from her hand and sank to the bottom and got caught in one of the drains. She swam down to it and tried to tug it free but to no avail. Needing air, she left it and kicked back to the top.
But Daisuke had seen her on his swim back. Forgetting about his time, he took a deep breath and dove to the bottom to see what she had been pulling at. Discovering the pendant, he carefully worked it free but the second he had, it glowed oddly and it was then he realised with a jolt...
I can't move!

Starflower woke with a jolt, sensing the magic of the necklace. Meru!

What?

Get underwater. NOW. Someone's in trouble. Meru dove in, and seeing Daisuke, swam towards him rather quickly. Somebody swam towards Meru and Daisuke, reaching him as the same time. It was Hio, looking concerned. She pulled the necklace from Daisuke's hand, breaking the spell but his eyes closed and he started to sink, having lost his breath seconds ago.

Meru grabbbed Daisuke and swam as quickly as she could to the surface and started screaming for the teacher as she pulled Daisuke to the side and up over the edge of the pool. She didn't give Hio a second look, but Starflower mulled over how to get that necklace away from her so that she wouldn't be tempted to use it on anyone else.

The teacher, followed by the rest of the class, went over to Meru and helped pull Daisuke out of the water. "We've got to get the water out of his lungs." The teacher said. "Who can perform CPR?"
"I'm a licensed life-guard if that helps." Satoshi called, running over to them. The teacher drew back...

Daisuke coughed up all the water in his lungs and groaned, blinking up at all the worried faces around him. The boys looked disgusted and then girls were giggling between themselves. Daisuke sat up, wondering what had happened, still feeling woozy.
"100 marks for that CPR Satoshi." The teacher was telling the boy who just shrugged and looked at Daisuke. "Are you okay?"
Daisuke's mind suddenly raced as he looked at the faces around him, the light-headed feeling growing stronger.
CPR?
He passed out, last thing he heard was the class gasping again.

"Oh, wonderful." Meru muttered to herself, and in a louder voice asked the teacher should they try to take him to the nurse's office, or would it be too dangerous in his current condition. The teacher shook her head.

"Take him to the nurse's office. He should be fine once he wakes up after a rest." Hio went to help get Daisuke to the nurse's office along with the teacher, Takeshi, Riku and Risa. The teacher told the rest of the class to continue laps, leaving Satoshi in charge. Meru helped the others pick him up and carry him, making sure to be the one who carried his head and shoulders. She was now very suspicious of Hio, but was in no position to do anything about it but to keep an eye on her. When they reached the nurse's office, she wrapped Daisuke in towels to dry him off and keep him warm before they put him on a bed and left him to rest as the nurse and teacher talked.

Meru walked behind the others back to the pool, musing to herself about this whole stupid matter. Well, this isn't good, Starflower. Now you have to go confiscate that necklace, and you'll be exhausted for your surgery Wednesday.

Daisuke didn't wake up until after school had finished and the class was either gone or still changing and discovered that Hio was sitting by his side, looking worried. When he turned his head towards her, she smiled widely at him.
"Daisuke! You're awake!" She grinned.
"Yeah...what time is it?"
"School's just out. I thought I'd wait for you." She left to let Daisuke get changed and then started to walk with him back towards class where he had left his belongings.
"You don't have to come. I can walk myself..." He said.
"I don't mind. It's not like I've anywhere important to be." She grinned back. Daisuke really wished she wouldn't follow him. He quickened his pace and rounded the corner before Hio and then broke into a run. He was down all the full length the next corridor by the time Hio turned at the corner. Giggling, she gave chase.

Meru came around Daisuke's next corner with his stuff, grabbed him, and pulled him into the next door, which led conventiently into another hallway, to the garages. She kept up the quick pace though. Daisuke smiled at Meru gratefully. "Thanks Meru." He sighed, though still moving fast. Something told him Hio would eventually find him again if he stayed around the school.

"You're welcome. Now c'mon, I'll give you a ride home." Meru answered as they enter the garages of the school. She gestured to a black motorcycle in the corner and says, "We'll take my motorcycle. I hope you don't mind."

"Uh...no...You have a license for that?" he asked, thinking she was a bit young to have a motorcycle in the first place. He took his belongings from her, putting his bag on his back.

"Of course I do." She handed him a helmet and put one on herself and got on the motorcycle. He put on the helmet and hopped on behind her. "I didn't know you had one of these." he said, smiling a little. His smile vanished as he heard a voice nearby, along the corridor leading to the garage.

"Hey Daisuke! Where'd ya go?" Hio called, giggling. Meru revved the bike and went straight ahead out of the garage, rounded the school, and drove away. The helmet would hide Daisuke's hair anyways. Daisuke held onto the back to the bike, so relieved he had finally gotten away from Hio, if at least for today. He let out a sigh. Meru slowed down once they got off of school grounds and out of sight. "Daisuke, I need to take you to my house before I take you home. I need to give you something, is that okay?"

Wondering what she could possibly want to give him, he nodded. "Sure, okay." He was just glad to have gotten out of the school.Meru sped up again and turns to head westward through town. "I'll explain when we get there."

He nodded in reply, still puzzled about the whole thing. A while later, Meru parked next to the curb in front of her house when they got there and dismounted, taking off her helmet and placing it on the seat of the motorcycle as she does so. "Come on inside, please, Daisuke. It'll take me a moment to get it, and you've had a stressful day, haven't you?"

Daisuke removed his helmet and followed her, not making a reply to her comment, unsure if she was teasing him or not. And right now he wanted to forget about Hio. Meru's house was a small townhouse sort of thing, not what you usually see in Japan, with a white dogwood tree in the front yard. Meru walked up to the door and showed him into the kitchen and had him sit down at the table while she went upstairs. The kitchen looked like a basic kitchen with cabinents and a fridge, and there were various potted plants, including a fern in the window above the sink.

Meru entered her room and went to a music box on her dresser in a corner of the room opposite to her bed and started rummaging through it. She found what she was looking for and held it up in the air, turning it this way and that as it shone iridescently in the light of the room. Meanwhile, Daisuke waited, feeling a bit awkward just sitting there. What could she possibly want to give him?

Meru sighed to herself. She really liked this ring, but it appeared that someone really needed it now, at least until Starflower is better. She turned and returned downstairs to give the ring to Daisuke. The ring was made of metal, but it was so thinly and finely made that the metal was clear, except for an iridescent sheen. He looked up as she returned to the room. Seeing the ring, he raised an eyebrow and wondered exactly what this was all about.

Meru sat down at the table and put the ring on the table between them. "Alright, look you. Starflower can't bust Hio on this necklace thing just yet, she has surgery, so in the meantime, we're going to have to ask you to wear this ring. It's a ward against most harmful magics, and the only person who can take it off once you're wearing it is the person who put it on. Is that all right?"

"Yeah, but why are you so concerned about my well-being?" He asked curiously. "What happened with the necklace was an accident I'm sure...but Hio's just new and a bit...over-friendly. The fact that the necklace had magic is possibly something from it being old and passed down, much like the artworks."

"Daisuke, that was no accident. Consider the circumstances. Hio was not wearing that stupid necklace at school, I saw her dive into the pool with it still in her hand, and Hio has made herself my enemy by attacking one of my friends." Meru says rather rapidly, looking tense. She takes a moment to calm herself down and says, "Although, I do partially agree with you. I'm sure she knew it was magic, but she obviously didn't know what it did, or she wouldn't have used it in such situation as this. It probably did come down her family line with some sort of vague story attached."

Daisuke nodded and then he frowned a little anxiously. "What's wrong with Starflower?"

"Starflower's having surgery because while angelic bodies are the most efficient in most of the universe, their bodily reparation systems have evolved into almost nonexistence, so they take forever to heal when they do actually get hurt."

He nodded. "Okay. Well I hope Starflower will be okay and I'll wear the ring." He said. "I really think I do need help where Hio is concerned." He ignored Dark's comments in his head.

"Okay, thank you Daisuke. I don't think anything else will happen after a few more days. I think we can keep her hands off you for that long, or at least I hope so." Meru says, smiling in apparent relief. She got up and went to get a drink from the fridge. "Would you like something to drink before I take you home? We have everything except teas and coffees."

"Just water, thanks." He smiled at her. The events of the day had made him realise now how tired, hungry and thirsty he was. Meru handed him a glass of water and poured herself a drink of cranberry juice and sat down at the table to enjoy it, not saying anything. Daisuke took a long drink of it and then sighed, sipping the rest slowly. "If Starflower's going to be out of action, is there much point in giving you a copy of the next notice? Dark's wondering." He added, shrugging.

"Yes, of course. Her not being able to be there doesn't mean that we won't be able to do anything about Dark breaking in to steal. Albeit, regular defenses will probably not be as effective, but that's not the point." Daisuke shook his head. "It's not hitting the museum this time." He told her, handing her a piece of paper.

I will steal Neptune's Horn at midnight tomorrow The note said.
"You know the historical ruins out beneath the bay? That's where it is." He told her. "Darks expecting the whole police force to make a show with their ocean fleet and scuba divers...I wouldn't be surprised." Daisuke looked a bit nervous about it.

Meru winced. "Oh, good lord." She got over it and shrugged as she goes to tack the notice to the wall, saying, "You two might not see us then. Like I said, Starflower has surgery, and I don't use fire magic, I use lightning, and it's not like I want to kill you."

Daisuke smiled a little. "That's ok. Though it is just the entrance that's underwater. But we've been sensing a lot of things lately...one of them is Krad. Since the first time we faced him, Dark's been able to keep a faint track on his and Satoshi's movements. Krad's starting to get stronger and if this is as big a turn-out as Dark thinks it will be, Krad will most likely make an appearance." He sighed.
"But maybe it would be better for you both to take a break from this one."

"Well, I can call her doctor and step up Starflower's surgery two days to tonight. Because now she's being a spaz about the possibility of Krad showing up and whatever. Sheesh, even if she has her sutures replaced today, it doesn't mean she'll be able to come tomorrow and she knows that." Meru replied, looking somewhat irritated at Starflower.

"Seriously, if she's not up to it, she shouldn't go. I don't want her to get hurt and neither does Dark." Daisuke said. "I'm sure we can handle Krad..." he glanced at the time and sighed. "I should get home."

Meru took the glasses and put them in the sink, saying, "I'll take you home then. I'm sure your mother will worry if you aren't home soon, if she isn't worried already. You have the ring on?" He pulled a slight face at the comment about his mother worrying. Sometimes he really felt she was over-protective of him simply because he was Dark's host. He raised his hand to show her the ring. "Yeah, I have it."

"Okay, just making sure. It is rather hard to see, y'know." She picked up her motorcycle keys off the counter and shook them. "Alright, I guess we're ready. Let's go." she said, heading out of the kitchen. He followed her out, really wanting to get home just to think over some things and to prepare for tomorrow night. It was going to be difficult, he could feel it.

Meru said nothing as she walked back outside to the motorcycle and mounted it, handing Daisuke his helmet again and donning hers as well. Daisuke hopped on after pulling on his helmet. "Meru? Thanks." he said.

"You're welcome." Meru said as she started the motorcycle on the short trip to his house.

rowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeathersrowofdarkfeat

Kitty: Squee at last it is up! And yay, more excitement.

Daisuke: So you can now work on the next chapter without interruption right?

Kitty: ...

Dark: Come on, I haven't been in this for two whole chapters!

Kitty: I'm working on it. Y'see...the next chapter had a little accident...

Dark: And that was?

Kitty: A rollback on the board of about two months...

Dark: NOO! The story is doomed!

Kitty: It's okay, I'm writing it from memory

Dark: NOO! The story is doomed!