Note: I don't own anyone or anything except the concept of the story and the mentioned pianist in-story. Isshinta Asakura, better known as (cough cough cough) Uzumaki Shinta (cough cough cough), Gekkō Miyako, and Gekkō Keisuke belong to Lang.

Originally written as a whim and a passing muse, because a certain redhead deserves a companion in the afterlife.

The theme for this little thing is the piano version of Home from RWBY. Because it's Lang's favorite song from the Volume 4 Soundtrack and I found it fitting. :)

Sparkle 7: Befriend Me

"So you're the guy who's been stealing my act!"

Shinta tried not to jolt from his seat up in the clouds, looking up from his window into the real world to meet bright green eyes. "Um," he started politely, "your act?"

The apparent blue-haired man blinked, appearing to have not expected the confused reply. "I mean, there's only so many windows up here. I thought I was the only guy who flew down to haunt the place every now and then." He stood back up to rub the back of his spiky head, laughing. "But I guess that was an awkward way to start a conversation now, huh?"

"I don't believe it was even a conversation," Shinta said as politely as he could, doing his best to avoid a stammer. Even after so many years of adjusting to life after death, he still wanted to curse his mind for thinking like the 15-year old boy who couldn't even muster the strength to aid Tomoe-chan in the end. Tomoe-chan… No… she was Miyako now.

He glanced back at the window one more time from habit before making eye contact. "Asakura—no," he shook his head, adjusting his long red ponytail. That clan was no more. To—Miyako made sure of that. "Uzumaki Shinta," he amended instead, shrugging his shoulders. "Could I get your name?"

The blue-haired man was staring straight at him again, before beaming. "Johan! Johan Anderson. Johan is just fine." He offered a hand towards Shinta, and Shinta stared at it for a moment before taking it and shaking as firmly as he could without rustling his sitting space in the clouds. "So, fellow ghost, Shinta?"

Shinta wondered how Johan was still grinning, even with the large slash mark hidden behind the slightly rusted Leaf hitai-ite tied around his neck. A ninja. The slash said more than enough at a possible story, but Shinta held his tongue out of habit. The dead didn't ask one another about the methods on how they passed from the real world out of common courtesy. "Ghost," he agreed mildly. "Do you visit loved ones too?"

Johan's smile turned a bit more wistful as he let go of the handshake. "All the time." He proceeded to plop himself down on Shinta's cloud to sit next to him, glancing down at the same window all the while. "The way I died… well," Johan laughed, a bit bitter. "It wasn't great. I hurt my best friend." He wasn't looking up at Shinta now, his green eyes dark while still focused on the window. "I protected him, but I didn't even know of his feelings until now. So, I watch over him to make up for it." He laughed again. "Silly, huh?"

Shinta shook his head immediately. He knew the feeling of leaving someone behind with regrets, even if his experiences with Miyako were different. "No," he said quietly. "Not at all. I feel the same." He turned back to the window, making out some forest foliage before turning his head back to face Johan again. "Do you want me to move the window to where your friend is? Or open it so you can fly down and visit directly?"

"Really?" Johan chuckled, mirth in his voice again. That was better. "Thanks for the offer. Sure, move the window. Or, give me a sec," he reached over past Shinta's haori to wipe at one of the window panes that served as the main map for the window to follow, "I got this."

The glass instantly clouded over with Johan's action, and Shinta watched out of curiosity and interest as the forest changed to that of the inside of a dojo. Besides him, Johan grinned. "Here we go…"

The image beyond the panes blurred a bit more before voices could finally come through.

"Strike-one! Strike-two! Block!"

Shinta froze almost immediately. That was Miyako's voice.

"Hah, hah!"

"Tomoko-chan, you are faltering again! More force in that swing! Strike again!"

"Y-Yes, Miyako-shishō! Hah!"

"Block again!"

"Hah!"

Shinta blinked at Johan just as the other man turned to him, apparently having noticed his shock. "I'm guessing one of your loved ones is down there?" Johan pointed at the window, grinning sheepishly. "I mean, I forgot to mention that I watch over my niece there too, so I guess we're even in that case!"

"Niece…" Shinta echoed in disbelief, turning his eyes back to the window from a lack of any words.

It had been years, but the spark of light that was originally in Uesugi Tomoe's eyes was still present in Gekkō Miyako's, just brighter now. Her smile too, was softer. "You are improving, Tomoko-chan."

The girl standing across from Miyako was sweaty, panting in her training gi and clenching her shinai, but she was giggling. "Th-Thank you, Miyako-shishō."

Miyako chuckled in return, a warmth in the sound that Shinta could barely connect to the Tomoe he was originally engaged with. "Tomoko-chan, again, you do not have to call me 'shishō.' 'Miyako-bachan' is more than sufficient."

"I mean, Tomo," Another person spoke up, and Shinta nearly threw his neck out to stare at the other child walking into the dojo area with Miyako's likeness, grinning. Miyako's daughter. "Keisuke" was the name. Shinta still questioned the reasoning behind that one. The eyes were enough proof of the blood relation, but the hair… "It's still Mom. You don't have to be so stiff."

Tomoko's blue eyes widened to an almost comical degree as her kenjutsu stance laxed. "But, but, Kei, it's a respect thing…" she squirmed, trying to straighten herself while turning back to Miyako. "I-I mean, you teach me a lot of things, Miyako-shi— bachan!" She flailed in time to Johan's quiet laughter. "From tea ceremonies to meditation to swords! Shishō just…" A bright pink colored the girl's face. "It just seems fitting."

Kei laughed in time with Miyako's warm chuckle.

"D-Don't laugh, I'm being serious…" Tomoko clutched her shinai with puffed cheeks. "Mugu."

"Aren't the kids adorable?" Johan cooed, and Shinta, even through the confusion, vaguely realized that he was still there, glancing at him. The sparkles bouncing off of him this time were hard to miss. "Tomoko-chan's still shy but so cute! I still can't believe how lucky Judai got!"

The names gently bounced off of Shinta's head before the words sank in. "Tomoko…is your niece?"

Johan noticed his confusion again, with no time in-between sitting silence and replying. "Kinda." The grin on his face this time was proud. "She's the daughter of my best friend, and she calls me 'Uncle,' so she's my niece!"

That was quite a thought to sit on. The daughter of Johan's best friend was also the apparent niece of Miyako. Who shared the same character of "Tomo" in name as Miyako's original identity. "…Uncle," Shinta repeated, blinking.

"Uncle!" Johan put his hands in the clouds behind him while glancing up towards the sky, avoiding looking into the sun. "She's a sweetheart, really." His shoulders slumped. "She's done a lot more than me, and she still tries to visit me when she's not busy. Makes me wonder where she got it all from, the sweet."

"I can certainly believe that," Shinta said mildly, glancing back to the window in time to see Kei hand Tomoko a water bottle. "Considering Tomoe—Miyako-chan's face down there."

It was about time for Johan to stop his train of thought too. The blue-haired man turned on him so fast to the point of Shinta questioning if he'd get whiplash from his spiky hair flying around. "Miyako? You know Miyako, Shinta?"

From old memories, or perhaps habit, Shinta flushed, tugging on his ponytail. "We…we were once betrothed. Before she came to be 'Miyako.'"

Johan's expression changed to that of compassionate realization. "Oh," he said, before turning back to the window. "I guess it's a small world, huh?" He laughed again. Shinta didn't know if it was sad or happy or both. He could at least take some relief in how Johan didn't ask any more questions. "The daughter of my best friend Judai is friends with the daughter of your previous fiancé. What a world."

Shinta mustered a smile back. "What a small world indeed," he concluded solemnly.

Without thinking, he glanced back down at the window again. Tomoko had put away her shinai via leaning it against a wall in favor of chasing after Kei, who was laughing, probably from some kind of teasing joke, but Miyako—

Miyako was looking up towards their window.

Shinta lurched back from shock. Did she notice?

Those same black eyes were continuing to stare, an amused smile on her face before she lowered her head, shaking it. "No, it must be something else," she picked up her shinai absently before shouting. "Girls! Back to training! We still have an hour before lunchtime!"

Kei threw her head back in time for Tomoko to collide into her from behind. "Ow, Tomo," she sighed. "Darn."

"Aaaaaah, I'm sorry!"

"It's okay. Don't get your heart rate up about it." Kei proceeded to reach out towards her friend's hair to ruffle it.

"Surprised, huh?" Shinta glanced at Johan as soon as Johan rocked forward to rest his hands on his knees. "The living do notice us. Like that."

That was new. There was never a moment in the times before, when Shinta looked through the window, that that happened. "All the time?"

"Sometimes." Johan rolled his shoulders forward in a shrug, still resting his hands on his knees. From Shinta's point of view, he looked like a curled up blue owl. "Judai nearly did when that little girl was born. I wasn't expecting Tomoko-chan to reach out to me like that anyways," he laughed loudly. "I know it sounds weird as all hell, but it's nice, being noticed."

Shinta glanced back down at the window again. Miyako had gone back to her instructing, and Kei—

Kei was the one staring this time. Shinta could only find himself gaping as she grinned and gave him a small thumbs-up before turning back. "Tomo, you're slouching again!"

"E-Eh?! Where!"

The smile was already blooming on his face. That was the first time someone noticed him, and it was Miyako's daughter. Of course. This was the same feeling Johan must've had.

"I get it," Shinta said quietly. "I get it."

Johan turned his head to beam in his direction, green eyes bright like before. "Hey," he leaned in with that same grin. "Wanna exchange stories?"

Shinta smiled. A friend. It was a nice thought. After death, Shinta never thought of entertaining that kind of relationship again. Now was a better time than any. "Alright. Who should start first?"