3. Moving In
For Bali Bali?
Soul picked up Mimiko's jacket and followed Kid down to the courtyard. The two of them joined the group around Mimiko, who had risen to her feet and was brushing off the skirt of her dress. Her pupils had returned to their normal round shape and she tried to keep much embarrassment from showing through them.
"Ignore Black Star." Soul advised her, holding out the burgundy jacket, "His head's just a little from showing big to hold up sometimes."
"Yeah." Mimiko said, accepting her jacket and slipping it back over her shoulders.
"Excluding getting into a fight your first day, what do you think of the Academy so far?" Kid asked. Mimiko looked up at him with one eyebrow arched.
"I haven't even been inside yet." She reminded him. Kid shrugged one shoulder. The new girl looked around, seeing that everyone (including Black Star and Tsubaki, who had ambled over to join the crowd) was watching her expectantly. Resigned, Mimiko turned and looked up at the towering school. "It's very..." She searched for the right word, "symmetrical?" Patty burst out laughing while her older sister slapped her palm against her own forehead. Death The Kid stared at the new girl unblinking, his eyes were wide and his cheeks were pink with delight.
"Yes!" He shouted, spinning on his toes, "Finally, someone who understands!"
"Now you've done it." Liz sighed, Patty clutched her stomach as she continued to laugh hysterically.
"What did I say?" Mimiko asked Maka quietly as Kid continued a rant about the school's perfect symmetry.
"Kid just has a thing for symmetry." Maka answered.
"And now he'll be going on about it for hours." Liz complained, stretching her arms over her head for emphasis.
"Sorry." Mimiko grimaced, "I panicked."
"Don't worry about it." Stein advised as he rolled toward the group of students on his chair. He fixed his spectacled gaze on Mimiko, "As you know, Maka and Soul have been charged with showing you around the school. They'll also be showing where you're staying. It is them that you are to go to if you have any questions." Mimiko nodded solemnly and the Professor continued, "Your luggage has been left with the landlord, he'll meet you in the lobby. You'll be staying after class tomorrow for your first lesson with me."
"You're making her attend extra lessons on her second day of school?" Black Star asked in horror.
"Not cool." Soul muttered.
"I am sorry to rush into this." Stein's gaze didn't move from Mimiko, "However, you must understand that you should start your training as soon as possible." He waited for an answer.
"I understand." Mimiko answered softly.
"Good." Professor Stein swiveled his chair around and started to propel himself back towards the school. After a few feet he craned his next to look back at Mimiko once more, "And welcome to Death Weapon Meister Academy, Mimiko doh Harou." The girl winced when she heard her name, but nodded in thanks.
"So, if that's all out here..." Maka planted her hands on her hips and glared at Black Star, who shrugged, "We can still look around inside a bit before going to class."
"That sounds great." Mimiko said hurriedly, obviously not eager to linger outside for much longer.
"If you want you can come over for dinner tonight." Maka suggested as she and Soul escorted Mimiko home after class.
"None of us can cook, but I guess it's the thought that counts." Soul put in before receiving and elbow to the ribs from his partner.
"Really, we'd love to have you." Maka pressed, "It could be a 'Welcome To Death City' dinner."
"As long as you don't tell Kid, he's probably planning a party for it."
"That sounds great." Mimiko smiled wearily.
"But maybe you just want to rest." Maka said, detecting Mimiko's tired tone, "I'm sure it's been an exhausting day."
"I'm always tired." Mimiko insisted, "Don't worry about it. What are you making?"
"Spaghetti."
"My favorite." The three of them walked back to their building and entered the lobby where a grumpy-looking man with a walrus mustache and bald crown was waiting for them, a suitcase and a single cardboard box were at his feet.
"Mimiko doh Harou?" He asked irritably. Maka saw Mimiko wince again before nodding. The landlord held out a clipboard for her to sign while Maka grabbed the handle of Mimiko's brown suitcase and gestured for Soul to carry the box. Glaring, the Scythe crouched down and gathered the box (about the size of a standard crate) in his arms.
"You don't have to carry those." Mimiko said nervously when she turned away from the landlord, who was quick to make his escape.
"Don't worry about it." Soul's voice was strange as he heaved the box up with him.
"Then be careful with that." The new Meister warned gently, "It's very fragile." Maka led the way up the stairs to the second floor where she stopped in front of the apartment neighboring her and Soul Eater's. Mimiko took out the key she had received from the landlord and fit it to the keyhole. She opened the door and turned on the lights to reveal an apartment almost identical to the one next door, only this apartment was terribly bare. There was nothing on the walls, the furniture was dull and worn, everything felt too sterile, and there were no personal effects. Soul set the box he was carrying down on the kitchen table, Maka placed the suitcase on the ground beneath it.
"Is this all you have?" Maka asked, eying the pittance of luggage.
"All I own." Mimiko answered, looking around her new lodgings appraisingly, "Tomorrow I'll go shopping for food, pillows, and a new comforter." Maka stood next to the redhead and also observed the room uneasily.
"I'm sure you have pictures to put up on the walls." She said, thinking of ways to make the apartment more appealing.
"Just one." Mimiko said. She walked to her luggage and unzipped her suitcase. On top of her clothes was a single, black picture frame with a picture inside it. Mimiko held it out at arm's length and Soul and Maka moved to look at it over her shoulder. The snapshot was old and faded, it was creased as though it had remained folded into fourths for long periods of time. The picture was of a woman with wild red hair tucked under a black witch hat, her amber cat-slit eyes sparkled at the camera from under the brim. She was wearing an orange tank top that fit to her skin, running out of frame, and she was smiling mischievously.
"Is that your mother?" Maka asked.
"Ferishia the Tigress." Mimiko grinned, "My Bali Bali."
"Professor Stein told us about her." Maka smiled.
"I heard part of it." Mimiko informed them.
"He said that he didn't know how much of the story you knew."
"I know all of it. I was there. I remember it. My mother told me to stay in kitchen, but I watched out the window." She set the picture frame on the end table by the couch, turning her back on her new neighbors. Maka clasped her hands in front of her.
"That's terrible." She whispered.
"It was a long time ago." Mimiko sighed, "I know she loved me, but so did my dad." She shrugged. Mimiko turned back around with a small smile, Maka smiled back hopefully.
"What was that you said a minute ago?" She asked. Mimiko sat down on the couch and Maka joined her. Soul, feeling awkward, pulled a chair from the kitchen to the coffee table. "Bali Bali?"
"That's what I'd taken to calling her after she died. Dad never wanted to talk about her, he didn't even know I had this picture. I think he was hoping that I'd just forget, so I started referring to her in code."
"What does it mean?" Soul asked.
"Oh." The girl giggled, "Bali Tigers were never very populated. The island of Bali, off Indonesia, is too small to support such creatures. They're said to be extinct. On record, that last Balinese Tiger, an adult Tigress, was thought to have been killed in 1937. However, reliable reports continued to come in through the 50s, claiming Tiger sightings. Even as their habitat shrunk and their food source was no longer supported, there were sightings as late as 1972. There were then various searches of the island. They didn't find any of the tigers, but they found dead animals which had obviously been attacked by some form of carnivore, they also saw claw marks at a height consistent with a tiger. It was as though the Balinese Tigers kept coming back as phantoms. They'd appear every now and then and leave evidence, but under a search they could never be found. As it is, they seem to be extinct now and it's highly unlikely that they'll be rediscovered."
"I don't get the connection." Soul said flatly.
"That's how I came to think of my mother. She died when I was five, but she was an amazing, majestic creature. Even after she was gone, it was like she was still around. I could sense her magic, like hearing the sound of her voice, like she was still with me, watching over me. She was a phantom, thought to be dead but never entirely gone. Of course, I don't feel like that anymore. The traces of her died with my father, understandably."
"Does that mean that Stein was right?" Maka asked, "He guess that your mother unintentionally put a spell on him."
"It sure seems that way." Mimiko admitted, "Dad used to get sick when I was mad at him, he only got better when I wanted him to. It kind of sucks, being the only thing that kept him alive. I didn't know I was doing it, but I caught on a little too late. Like I said, I sensed my mother's presence when I was around him, but when he died those traces vanished. I guess it means that she really did kill him." They sat in silence for a few moments, "She didn't mean to." Mimiko added hastily, "It was an accident. Anyway, sorry to bring things like that up. It's my first day, you don't need to hear about it."
"We're just getting to know you." Maka looked at her weapon partner, "I'm going to stay and help Mimiko unpack. Why don't you go tell Blair about our plans? Then you can start dinner." Soul blew out a sigh, resentful of being told what to do (or rather, it was what she asked of him that he was resentful of), and dutifully stood and left the apartment.
"You don't have to help, I can do it." Mimiko said, "It's not like there's a lot to do."
"I want to help." Maka grinned. Mimiko picked a few things out of her suitcase and placed them on the kitchen table before zipping it up again, ready to move her clothes to the bedroom. "What's this?" Maka asked, picking up the large sketchbook Mimiko had just set down and flipping it to the first page. Mimiko blushed. Maka's eyes widened as she took in the design: it was a small gray dress wrapped around a faceless model. The dress was short and strapless, wrapped around like a real high-fashion item. The model was also wearing a black fedora with a gray feather perched on it. "Did you draw this?" Maka asked in wonder.
"Yes." Mimiko reached for the pad but Maka pulled away, flipping to the next page, "They aren't very good."
"Are you kidding? These are wonderful." Maka breathed, flipping through dresses, skirts, jackets, all kinds of clothing, "You're very talented."
"I like to make my own clothes, it's just a hobby." The aspiring fashion designer muttered. She picked the small wicker basket off the table and took off it's lid. "My sewing kit." She revealed. She tucked the sewing kit under her arm and picked up her suitcase, bringing it into her future bedroom. Maka skimmed the rest of the pages before hurriedly following. The two girls spent a while unpacking clothes and placing them in the dresser and closet. Maka recognized a couple articles from Mimiko's sketchbook, and others that were sure to have been designed by Mimiko herself.
"Don't worry about the box." Mimiko said when they were finished, "I'll do it later."
"Then let's go." Maka giggled, leading the way next door.
I know, three chapters of just talking. Don't worry, we'll be seeing some action soon (Maybe next chapter...? Teehee)
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