Chapter 3 Two Steps Forward, Five Steps Back

After the pandemonium caused by the ghost troll, some white-haired ghost boy clad head-to-toe in black sped through the air and ended the fight pretty quickly, turning the troll back into the geek he was prior to the possession. Sam had explained that the boy, who was apparently named Danny Phantom and not Inviso-Bill, was a hero that occasionally dropped by to fight ghosts and protect the people. She would have gone into more detail, but after that experience, Ari just wanted to go to class and avoid anymore weirdness. Ghosts? Superheroes? What kind of school experience did she sign up for?

For the rest of the day, she had tried to focus on her classes, but the fear of some ghost showing up put her on edge. Her newest pencil was already gnawed through and when she was done with that, she started chewing and sucking on a piece of her hair. She would have chewed the gum she had in her satchel, but you weren't allowed to chew gum in school. Even though everyone else broke that rule, she didn't want to get into trouble on her first day.

She had to use one of the spare gym uniforms for third period, which was a nice rousing game of dodgeball. Gratefully, she was rather good at that. She couldn't throw, but she was excellent at dodging. It was nice to channel some of her energy into the game. She was all about strategy and thought about giving some of her teammates some pointers. Unfortunately, she was too chicken to give any of her teammates advice and help them win the game.

She was the only person who couldn't be hit, but when you're the only one left, the only option is to throw out the rest of the opposing team. Her throwing ability was so bad, the other side caught it easily and ended the game. After the match, anyone who was impressed with the new kid's dodging skills forgot and focused on how she couldn't throw a ball to save her life. She ended up hiding in the girls bathroom's stalls in shame until everyone had left. Somehow that didn't stop someone from finding her.

"You almost done in there? Fourth period's about to start," said a girl who knocked on the stall door. Ashamed she had been caught, she pulled up her hoodie and crawled off of the toilet seat lid. When she left the stall, she was startled to see that the girl was Katia.

"Hey, chickie. I wondered when I'd see you again." She smiled before she noticed Ari's despondency. "Are you okay?" Ari nodded shortly before she quickly brushed by her and ran to her next class. The hood of her jacket helped hide the shame and embarrassment she felt. She just wanted to avoid anymore awkward situations and get through the day with the least amount of drama. But surprisingly enough, she had Katia in her fifth, sixth, and eighth period English lit, U.S. History, and Pre-Cal classes. So much for avoiding her. By the time she was done with her eighth period, she noticed her neighbor was already at her locker. No turning back now.

"Well hello there, chickie. Looks like we've been bumping into each other quite a bit," Katia grinned, showing off her lip piercing rather nicely as she pushed her stuff into her locker. She didn't look like she was going to press matters any further as to why Ari had hidden in the bathroom, and that made her feel a little more comfortable to talk to her.

"...Why do you call me chickie?" Ari asked, finally working the nerve to talk.

"Ah, finally! She speaks!" Katia exclaimed, holding up her hands like she was praising the universe for a miracle. "I call you chickie because you haven't told me your name. Also, I like calling you chickie. Got a problem with that?" She was taken aback by the girl's casual, laid back attitude. Katia cocked her eyebrow, which also had a rhinestone stud in it, waiting for an answer. Ari shook her head. For whatever reason, she didn't mind that someone had given her a nickname.

"M-My name's Inari Faux, b-but I go by Ari..."

"Inari, huh? Cool. Foreign name. I like it. Why would you want to change your name?" Ari looked down at her feet, not really sure how to explain her situation. "Well, if you're not comfortable with either, I think I'll just call you chickie instead. How about that?"

"...O-Okay, I guess," Ari mumbled.

"Jeez, chickie, you need to spit out whatever you want to say, otherwise people like Foley will walk all over you." She was right. Ari had had this tick ever since middle school. She had a real difficulty trying to talk to anyone she didn't know, so for the most part, she was quiet in class, which always docked her participation grade. The only reason she had any friends was because she had known most of them since elementary school, so she didn't have to get to know anyone new until now. She felt bad about having this habit, so she decided to step up and make conversation.

"S-So... the whole ghost thing... Does that happen often?" she asked.

"Ah, so you've met the local residents. You're really not from around here, are you?" She shook her head. "That's kind of refreshing, actually. Yeah, the whole ghost thing happens pretty regularly. I'm surprised you haven't seen it on the news, since ghosts are pretty mainstream these days. But if it makes you feel any better, they're not like the Hollywood movie versions of ghosts; it's not like we have large scale fatalities or anything. For the most part, some of the stuff that happens is pretty tame compared to that. Truth is stranger than fiction, I guess."

"So... a-about the whole thing about my l-locker being cursed," Ari said anxiously, asking the question that had been plaguing her mind all day.

"Oh, that? Yeah. It's said that when the school was founded, some kid named Sidney Poindexter was bullied a lot. Apparently, the last name wasn't enough to blackmail him on the bully list of for life. He was shoved into his locker so many times, they say he still haunts it from within, but I wouldn't worry about it. As much as this area is infested with ghosts, I haven't once seen the guy, so I think it's just a rumor."

"Oh... o-okay." That made Ari feel a little more relieved. She was still absorbing the fact that ghosts were real, but at least she wouldn't have to worry about her locker actually being haunted. The broken mirror inside was still a bit ominous, if anything else. If she looked hard enough at one of the shards, she could have sworn she saw someone looking back at her. The slam of Katia's metal locker door jarred her from thoughts before she hesitantly shut her locker door as well.

"So... see you tomorrow?" Katia asked, like Ari was the kind of person who ditched school and would only show up once in a blue moon.

"...Yeah. See you tomorrow," Ari smiled shyly.

"Hey, you didn't stutter," Katia realized before displaying a proud smirk. "I'm growing on ya, aren't I?"

"Uh... Bye!" Ari babbled, moving with haste towards the school buses. The first day and she already possibly made a new friend. The thought made her smile a bit. Curious how her old friends were, Ari pulled out and checked her cellphone. No new messages. She texted a large group message towards her small circle of friends: Miss u guys. 2day wuz totally cr8zy, before sending it out into cyberspace.Sitting back in her seat, Ari also checked to see if she had any missed calls. Her voicemail box was also empty.

It made her realized that along with her friends, it had been a while since her dad had called her. She hadn't heard from him in almost two weeks, but then again, that's nothing compared to the two months it had been since he'd been away. Because he was one of the engineer supervisors for the board members of Chevrolet, he was often away on business. These work trips sometimes had him gone for weeks, maybe months on end before he'd finally return home, tired and exhausted from jetlag and work overload. It certainly didn't help that he was a workaholic. He loved what he did, which is what anyone could honestly hope for in a job, but it did make Ari miss him an awful lot when he was away.

Trying to not to dwell on this fact, she thought it would be better to spend her time and energy on the bus getting a jumpstart on doing her homework. Pooling over her Pre-Cal book, she began scribbling down equations and formulas as other people on the bus decided to leave the quiet girl alone with her studies. When she arrived at her stop, her mother's car was still in the driveway, which meant that she hadn't gone to work yet. The transition of the new house was still fairly new for Ari and, honestly, she didn't feel up to staying cooped up in her new room doing homework with her mom popping in to ask her how her first day went. So instead of going home, she detached her BMX mountain bike from the back of her mom's car and pedaled off towards parts unknown, leaving a note stuck in the doorway telling her that she was going out and that she had her cellphone with her.

As bitter as Ari was towards her mother at the moment, she was mildly curious about her surroundings. The streets had long stretches of asphalt roads and buildings, with many different kinds of people walking down the sidewalks. The stores weren't the locally-owned businesses that knew everyone by name, the roads weren't made out of tar, dirt, and gravel, and there were more people in one block than there were in miles of her old neighborhood. It was exciting and terrifying at the same time to think about. It was also her way of taking her mind off of things.

Ari circled the block about five or six times before she made her way back. Apparently, she could have just as easily pedaled her bike to school than take the bus. It was that close. Maybe if she got a proper bike chain, she could park it at the school's bike rake and might not need to beg for a car. She didn't exactly like owing people money or favors.

The further she went into the neighborhood, the more she missed home. There were no farm cats to feed their leftovers to or fields of clovers to make flower bracelets with or bird nests to discover on the side of the road. They didn't even have to burn their trash anymore.

She started to grow more and more depressed before she decided to head back. Noting the street signs she had mentally jotted down before, she easily navigated herself back towards her aunt's house. She was about to quietly retreat to her room before she overheard her mother talking in the kitchen. By the note of her tone, she sounded like she was talking on the phone and that she was mildly irritated at the receiver to boot.

Moments ago, late afternoon was starting to circle into early evening as Ari's mom Kimiko began nervously tapping the tabletop counter in the kitchen, her hand fidgeting with her coffee mug.

"I don't know, Aya. I'm worried that she'll get lost. She doesn't know this city very well."

"She said she has her cellphone, so don't worry so much, Kimmy. She'll be fine," Ayame reassured her younger sister as the latter turned the mug in her hand.

"Well... if you're sure," Kimiko said, unsure of her actual feelings towards her daughter at the moment. Inari had been so distant ever since she had heard about the move. She was normally cheerful and kind to others, but since then, she'd been more despondent and moody. Sometimes it frustrated her mother to no end. Ever since she had turned sixteen, Inari had been gradually becoming more independent and yet, at the same time, introverted. She liked to spend time with her friends, but she would hardly say a word about it at home. It used to be that Kimiko and Inari would tell each other everything, but nowadays she just couldn't figure out what her daughter was thinking anymore.

"Maybe it's a good thing that Inari wants to go out and explore," Ayame shrugged. "Didn't you say she loved exploring as a child?"

"Yes. Inari was always so curious, even when she was little. I remember she'd often get into trouble after all the times she'd end up in some sort storm drain pipe or exploring an animal den in the fields." She looked back at the phone on the counter, feeling her hand creep towards the landline.

"...Maybe I should call her and check to see if she's okay," she began before her older sister stayed her hand.

"No, Kimmy. Your daughter needs some space right now. She's trying to process this in her own way. It's hard for a teenager to move to a new town, especially at her age. Let her come to you when she's ready. Until then, you'll just have to be supportive."

"Thanks, Aya... Since when have you been so smart?" Kimiko smirked playfully.

"Since when? As I recall, you were the exact same way as a kid when I was stuck raising you, while mom and dad were working out on the farm." They both laughed at as they relived some of the memories both of them had as children before she heard the phone ring.

"Hello?" she answered before remembering she didn't state who had picked up the phone. "Faux and Kishimoto residence, Kimiko speaking."

"Well, don't you sound formal, Kimmy," said a male voice. She stopped a bit, shocked she was hearing her husband's voice. It was unusual for him to call first, so this must have been something important. Ayame read this situation as her cue to leave the room, leaving her younger sister to deal with her marriage.

"Felix," Kimiko inquired crossly. "Would it kill you to pick up a phone every once in a while?"

"Hey, I called you, didn't I?" replied her husband. "Anyways, the office has been swamped with paperwork lately, and Judy hasn't given me all of my messages because she's out sick right now."

"Judy," Kimiko ground her name out. "I swear, I've talked more with her and your answering machine, combined, than I have with you in the past four months."

"...I hope you guys got settled in okay," he said smally. "The movers handled all your stuff with care?"

"They were exceptional, Felix, as usual," her mother sighed, running her hand absent-mindedly through her hair.

"What's with the sigh, Kimmy? It's like you're not happy that I sent you guys the best movers money could buy."

"How am I supposed to feel, Felix?" she voiced in frustration, tired exhaustion heavy in her voice. "I'm supposed to feel grateful that you left and didn't even say goodbye to your daughter, on moving day, but that we had exceptional movers? I'm trying to be positive and make this move a good thing for her, but so far, this hasn't been a good experience for either of us. I had to pull her out of her senior year of high school, Felix. Do you know what's that like for young girl to deal with?"

"I thought she wanted to go University of Minneapolis-" he defended before he was quickly cut off.

"That's not the point, Felix! You weren't there! You never are! That's why..." She took a breathe, trying to bite back saying something she'd regret, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I just can't do this anymore, Felix... I have to tell her."

"...Tell me what?" Kimiko turned around to find that Ari had been standing in the kitchen.

"Felix, I might have to call you back...," Kimiko muttered into the receiver.

"No, I want to talk to dad too," Ari said, deciding to be assertive for once. Taken aback at her daughter's sudden attentiveness, she slowly lifted the phone away from the receiver.

"Alright...," Kimiko said quietly, pressing the speaker button on the receiver. "I have your father on speaker phone."

"Hey kiddo, how've ya been?" Felix spoke loudly into his phone. He sounded like he was happy to hear from her, but also artificial, like it was something you just had to ask when greeting someone.

"Alright," Ari lied, wanting for her mother to press onto the real news. "What did you want to tell me?" she asked again, this time her mother being the one who was hesitant and quiet.

"Inari... you might want to sit down for this," her mom suggested, but since her daughter made no move to sit down, she decided to continue. "See Inari... your father and I... we're getting a divorce."

The words made Ari freeze and turn to stone. Suddenly, the entire weight of the world felt like it had landed on her shoulders as she felt the pit of her stomach drop.

"...What?" Ari managed to breathe out. She felt like all the air had been knocked out of her lungs, her esophagus starting to constrict around the lump beginning to form in her throat before her mother quickly added, "I want you to know that the divorce has nothing to do with you, and that your father and I love you very much."

"Yeah, kiddo. We're sorry you had to find out this way," her dad added solemnly.

"It hasn't been working out with either of us for a long time," Kimiko said in worn remorse. "And the only reason we stayed together for as long as we did was for you, honey."

Ari's eyes widened. So it was her fault? It was her fault that her parents had decided to be miserable to each other?!

"No... Of course it doesn't have to do with me," Ari spat angrily towards her mother. "It has to do with YOU! It ALWAYS has to do with you! You're the reason we're even here in the first place!"

"Now Inari, I-" her mom began before her daughter swiftly cut her off.

"You couldn't have at least tried to get along with dad when he came home or deal better with him being gone. I know I had to! But you couldn't suck it up at least once, could you?!"

"Inari, don't talk to your mother that way!" Felix interjected.

"No! NO! It's your fault! It's all your fault dad left!" she yelled at her mom, leaving the latter shocked to the point of tears, threatening to break from her eyes. Anger and adrenaline flooded through Ari's system like jet engine fuel in a fighter plane. She couldn't be here. She had to get out. She had to get out of this hellhole, this... toxic atmosphere.

"Where are you going?" her mother demanded as her daughter abruptly left the kitchen.

"Anywhere but here!" Ari fired back as she stormed out the front door.

"Inari Faux, get back here! We aren't done talking about this!" her mother ordered, dropping the phone on the table before she chased after her daughter.

"NO! I'm done with doing what you want to do! Right now, I wish I was anywhere but here, especially with you!" she spat out angrily as she began running down the street. Her mother called out her name, trying to get her anger-ridden daughter back. Unknown to either, a female ghost in the shadows laid in wait.

"And so you have wished it, so it shall be..." Desiree crooned as a mysterious green fog began to wrap and surround Inari before completely engulfing her.