Ultra Special Note #3: And we're back, people! I hope you have enjoyed this so far, 'cause there's plenty more where this came from. My birthday was yesterday (on the 7th), and while we were celebrating my fourteenth, I thought, 'well, why not start a Ranma ½ fanfic about someone's birthday?' So be on the lookout, 'kay? And here's chappie three!
Disclaimer: Even if I desperately wanted to, I still wouldn't own Crescent moon, so don't ask, okay?
Warning: Bad words ahead, but not many…at least I think so…
Chapter 3:The Clue
Books. Rows upon rows of written records. Thousands of pages that were a gateway to an unknown world. The wolf put his hands deep into his militia pants-pockets, and looked, for what seemed like miles, all the way up the shelf, scanning the titles for any sign of legends. Too bad none of the titles seemed to hold a gateway into the world of Teardrops…
"Hey, Akira!" Nozomu walked over next to him and stared up at the shelves.
"Eh?"
"Found any thing yet? I can't seem to find anything…"
"Me, either. I've checked this section a thousand times over, but there isn't anything on our subject!" He lowered his ears in frustration. Nozomu clapped his hands over Akira's exceptionally large wolf ears.
"Put those away…it's just not…normal, ya know?"
Akira whined in disappointment, and began to sort out the titles by genre. "There's nothing here, I'm telling you…"
"Hmmm…want me to help you pretend to look for something? I'm sure he won't notice!" He looked over his shoulder at Misoka, who was absorbed in his studies.
"Sure! We've been looking too hard, anyway…"
About five minutes later, the fox came over. "May I ask what you're doing?"
"We're looking for a book!" Akira put on a wide grin.
"Uh huh. Then tell me why you haven't moved from you're spot for five minutes?" Misoka put his hands in his sweatshirt pockets, looking up at them.
"He's onto us," Nozomu whispered to Akira.
"What?" Misoka looked at him suspiciously.
"Er-I said there were a lot of books in this area to check, ya know? Ha ha…ha." The vampire scratched at the back of his head nervously.
"Whatever. If you're not interested in this project, I'll accomplish it alone. I'm perfectly fine with that."
"No! We've just looked over this a billion times, that's all." Akira looked flustered.
"Well, there are a lot more shelves to check. I suppose I should have told you that I already took all the books from this row."
"Eh! And you just let us look!" Nozomu stared.
"Well, you never bothered to check in with me…" Misoka walked back to is table, which was littered with literature.
"Umm…Akira? Does he ever make you feel really stupid?"
"Yep. And right now is one of those times…" The flustered teens made their way back to the table, feeling like the fox had outsmarted them once again.
XXXXX
After a delicious dinner of baked shrimp and lobster (prepared by master chef, Akira), Misoka called the group to a meeting once again.
"Now that we have finally found some basic information from which to start searching, with or without help-" Nozomu and Akira gulped-"we can finalize our results to create a plan from which to proceed-"
"Can you repeat that in English?" Akira wondered.
"Take a few moments to calm down-breathe in, breathe out-'cause for some reason you always start using weird vocabulary after reading a few books," Nozomu said patiently, looking at the fox demon across the kitchen table.
"We have enough facts to create a map from which to start looking for the Legendary Teardrops ("Ooh! I thought that's what you said!" Akira beamed). They seem to be down in southern Japan, perhaps even in the mountains."
"Are we gonna go camping!" said Akira curiously.
"Hell no!...Right?" Mitsuru glanced at Misoka.
"We'll see…" the fox's features weren't distinguishable in the light produced from the fireplace, but his tone was uneasy. "We may have to split up to look more carefully, but…we'll have to see." He pointed to a pile of notes sitting in front of him. "These notes contain historically proven facts and a poem that holds a riddle inside of it (most likely). Many of the Legendaries have been found in the past-"
"What did I tell you! A bunch of riddles that'll lead you from one place to another! It's a load of-"
"Sit down and shut up." Misoka had finally lost his patience. "How can I tell you anything if you refuse to let me speak? You never believe anything unless it bites you in the nose! Try having a bit of imagination and a positive mindset, for once! If you want to go and leave you to this 'nonsense' you are quite welcome to, Mitsuru! But I will not tolerate it while I am here and listening!" He glared at the tengu with distaste.
Mahiru stared. "Wowww…" Misoka must have been furious, since he's never lost his temper while I've been here (except for when he thought I was hiding something)…
Mitsuru slid down in his chair and sat there in his chair, silently sulking.
"Now…as I was saying…" Misoka scanned his notes, stood up with his hands in his pockets, and began pacing the room. Akira and Nozomu regarded the fox warily through their wide eyes. "The Legendaries have been spotted within the last 500 years and thankfully the people were smart enough to write down their findings…but they never touched them." He flipped through a couple a pages. "In fact, in all of the journals…that seems to be the last entry. Finding the teardrops. So strange…"
"You said they were in the mountains, right? Maybe on their way back down, they got mauled by cougars or somethin'." Mitsuru traced circles on the tabletop with his fingers.
"Such cheerful thinking," Nozomu noted dryly.
"Maybe they just didn't feel like writing anything else!" Akira looked hopeful.
"Yeah! Or they had another journal to write in!" guessed Mahiru.
"Possible, but…no. I don't think so." Misoka laid out an old, yellow-looking article and read it aloud. " 'Four Archeologists Gone Missing!'" There was silence.
"Or maybe they just went insane, or felt like ditching the country," Mitsuru spoke quickly, to fill in the silence. He laughed nervously. For some reason, that made him afraid.
"I think that's enough info for one night!" Nozomu stood up and clapped his hands together. "Especially when we're about to go to bed…"
"Yes! Think happy thoughts!" Akira pushed Mahiru and Mitsuru up the stairs ahead of him, turning on every light as he went.
"Maybe right now isn't the best time to share such joyful thoughts, hmm? Let's try the morning, when it's nice and sunny and bright." Nozomu grinned.
"I just thought that they'd like to be updated, you know…" Misoka began picking up his papers, placing them in a precise order.
"Yeah, I know what ya mean. And you'd think that werewolves and tengus wouldn't be frightened…"
"It's not a pleasant thing to think about, is it?" He went and stood in front of the fire.
"We all just need to go to bed and wind down a bit; take a break." Nozomu headed for the door.
"I suppose…"
"You too, Misoka. You'll need it the most of all of us." He smiled, and headed for his room.
"Indeed…" the fox squatted down, snuffed out the fire, and made his way upstairs in the dark.
XXXXX
"Hey, Mitsuru?"
"What?" he had expected her to nose into his business again. Girls just seemed to like doing that.
"Are you sure what you're hiding is nothing?"
"I'm not hiding anything." He rolled over irritably, feeling guilt wash over him in waves. Stupid Princess. Was she a psychologist or something? Using reverse psychology just got him feeling harassed and irritable.
"Are you sure?" She raised her eyebrows.
Was he a criminal or something? Last time he checked, it was legal for him to avoid conversations…
"On you way out, shut the door, will ya? Thanks." He pulled the sheets over his head.
Mahiru smiled slightly. She couldn't help it. Closing the door, she whispered, "Mitsuru?"
"What now!"
"If you need to talk to someone…I'm ready to listen, okay? If you want, I'll be there for you."
"Hmmpf."
"Well…goodnight."
"'Night."
She closed the door, letting darkness flow around him once again, and headed down the hallway. Mitsuru didn't exactly know why, or what the reason was, but he felt comforted. He didn't feel alone. Oh, snap out of it, you sappy idiot, he thought, the happy blush still spreading like fire across his face. For the first time in months, Mitsuru fell into a deep and dreamless sleep, a slight smile transforming his features into a peaceful, gentle surface.
XXXXX
When Mitsuru woke up…his face hurt. And he had woken up extremely late. To put him in an even better mood, he felt happy. It wasn't a feeling that was native to his personality, but he had vague memories of what it was. And man, did that make him annoyed. He was perfectly content with his angry self, but…for some reason, it just didn't seem right to be cruel and nasty today, either. For the young tengu, it was one of those days where he had no clue of what he wanted to be. His solution to this problem: not saying a word until his personality sorted itself out. Noises were fine; just not actual human speech. This might five your confusion away.
If you want to talk to someone, I'm ready to listen. I'll be there for you.
He started for Mahiru's door, then stopped. Yeah, right. Since when did he…! Mitsuru started downstairs, passing Nozomu on the way.
"Hey, lightning rod! You're late this morning. Might just have to eat cereal; I don't know if Akira still has any of his dishes out."
"Mmmph."
"Okay, see you later!" He went upstairs. What's his problem?
As Mitsuru continued on his long, treacherous journey to the kitchen, a dark sphere whirled past him, and he heard the vampire yell, "Could you possibly be more careful! Especially with the mail, Mr. Bats! Explain yourself! What have you got say!"
SQUEAK! (YAY! I'M BACK!)
"You idiot!"
"Well, well, look who finally decided to show up for breakfast!" Akira looked cheerful, as always. He snuck a look at the clock. "Or, should I say, lunch. Would you like an omlette?"
"Hmmph."
"Eh? What's with you? Fox got your tongue today, too?"
Finally, Mitsuru decided on his personality: "Shut up."
"Ouch…" Akira handed him a plate of eggs, toast, and bacon. "Did you have a bad night's sleep?"
"You could say that…or just the opposite." He took his lunch out into the back stairway to torment the alleycats with his food.
"Huh?" the werewolf paused in his scrubbing of pots and pans. "He's weirder than usual today…too bad Mahiru isn't around. She probably knows a bit about what's going on with him…" Akira tapped a plate against his chin thoughtfully. "She's been terribly quiet lately…" The rest of his thoughts and mutterings went unheard by everyone that didn't have the last name of Akira Yamabuki as he finished his last bowl and went outside to take a walk. Unknowingly going by an observing Mitsuru, he headed for the nearest candy shop to empty his pockets of all the spending money he had. The observer groaned in a bored tone, and continued to finish off his toast and bacon. With curried rice, of course.
"Mind if I join you?" Mahiru appeared next to him, looked around, and sat down across from him.
"Doesn't look like I have a choice, does it?" he said dryly.
She didn't answer, and picked up the kitten mewing at her feet.
"What do you want? You obviously didn't come out here to sit and play with cats." Mitsuru glanced at her.
"I have a feeling that whatever you're hiding from us-"
"I'M NOT HIDING ANYTHING! IF YOU GUYS DON'T TRUST ME, THEN WHY DON'T YOU JUST KICK ME OUT OF THE HOUSE!"
"-is connected to our finding those Teardrops." She locked eyes with him. Mitsuru shifted uncomfortably, and glared at the nearest cat as if it were its fault he didn't have anything to say.
"Look, why won't you tell? Misoka needs to know…" she trailed off, looking at Mitsuru's face.
"And you really think that I'm in the mood to help him after the way he screamed at me last night? Next time you talk to me, try coming a little more prepared." He stood up. "Besides, you need counseling lessons. Have you ever heard of those? An idiot much? 'Cause that's what you sound like!"
"What! I do not! Mitsuru, you-"
The tengu ran off, smirking.
"-big loser! Jerk! Meanie!"
"Whatever dork!" He grinned in the dark hallway.
"Go away!" She stood up and stalked outside.
"What do ya think I did!"
Nozomu watched the commotion sadly from behind his door. And he thought that they were getting along so well… he could tell what kinda day this was gonna be. The vampire went to hide while he could. Maybe they'd be gone soon…
Mitsuru closed the door to his room, grinning. It was so easy to pick on Mahiru when she took what you were saying so seriously. Girls were so testy and emotional…
XXXXX
He walked down a passageway, lined with lanterns that hung crookedly upon the walls. Footsteps were echoing behind him, but oddly, he wasn't afraid…The corridor opened into a cavern, lined with rocks and roots from the trees above it. A blue light rose up from the floor, making the walls behind it glow with an unearthly light. Inside, he knew, it was waiting for him…the treasure he had been looking for, watching for so long. He could sense it vibrating, calling out…he reached inside of the light, and someone yelled…it was him…A burning warmth spread up his arm, through his very being. Small, cold hands grabbed his shirt from behind as he was pulled into another realm…then the cold hit him.
Mitsuru woke up. Bright light filtered into his room through his windows. Must be afternoon. Strange how I didn't even realize that I was asleep…He needed to be in a crowded room. Yes, that was it. That way, he wouldn't look like a loser and fall asleep. Taking his sweatshirt downstairs with him, he entered the café. He could smell the drinks and hear the laughter from the hallway. Lazy bunch of people.
"Hey, come to help out, have you? Good. You can start by polishing the glasses, as long as you promise not to rub the label off." Akira laughed good-naturedly.
"Whatever, man."
"Hmm?" Akira looked at him over his teriyaki steak that he was grilling for the man at the back table.
"I won't rub off the labels. Now give me the darn wine glasses."
"Okey Dokey! Be careful!" he turned back to his cooking.
What was he having those dreams for? Mitsuru believed that dreams could be dangerous, and many of the ones he had were, but… what if it was a warning? He probably wouldn't know until it was too late…
"Psst."
"What, bat abuser."
"Huh! What'd ya mean by that?"
"I saw what you did to Mr. Bats."
"Oh…well your girlfriend says hi."
"Tell her to leave me alone. What'd you call Mahiru!"
"Heh. How'd you know I was talking about her? I swear…kids these days…"
"Grrr…" Mitsuru blushed, then got angry. "Why do you keep on me about that, anyway! You didn't before!"
"That's because I didn't know…"
"Well, let's pretend you still don't…or maybe I can arrange that for you…" He glared dangerously at Nozomu.
"No respect for their elders these days," Nozomu muttered.
"You're only two years my senior!"
"So? Still makes me older."
"Shut up."
"Hmm? Suddenly my ears quit working, can ya believe that! The nerve…" He grinned.
"Whatever, man."
"She also says that she'd like to be able to speak with you without you calling her an idiot." Nozomu clucked his tongue. "How awful…"
"Who says?"
"Your girlfriend…" He stopped, looking shocked at himself. "Oh no! I'm sorry! Whatever shall we do?"
"I know what I'll do if you don't get out of my sight in the next three seconds, man…" Mitsuru took a step towards the other teen.
"I'm leaving, man, I'm leaving," he said, backing out of the room with a tray prepared with hot and spicy foods. "Do me a favor and take a chill pill, okay?"
"Go."
Nozomu gracefully exited the bar, acting as though he had not just confused Mitsuru to bits, and nothing had happened at all.
"Why did he come in here to ruin my day?" Mitsuru asked the wine glass clutched in his hands. In reply, it shattered into large, jagged pieces scattered all over the tile floor. "You too!"
"What was that?" Akira headed towards the sound.
"Nothing! Just go back to your little stove!" Mitsuru picked up the pieces, and just before he dumped them into the trash can, he froze. Then slowly, he placed them in his pocket. They'll come in handy someday. He continued to polish the rest of the glasses to perfection. I don't know when or how, but I know certain…they will.
Okay, Peeps! Review! Onegai!