Chapter 11 is up! I think this chapter is interesting. I apologize in advance for the sadness, but it was necessary. You'll see ;). I own nothing, and enjoy!
That night, Rima slept surprisingly well, despite the previous night's events. She didn't have a dream she remembered. She woke up that morning, yawning. She looked at the clock. It was eight o'clock. Perfect. Rima needed to get up at eight so she could make the guardian meeting, and school began at nine. She began to get dressed, and brush her teeth. Rima passed Utau's room, which was obviously empty. Rima wondered where Utau was staying… Rima walked downstairs. On her way out the door, she passed Nikaidou and Yukari eating breakfast in silence. She continued her way out the door, and started to walk to school.
"Things are different, you know…" Rima whispered out loud.
"What do you mean?" Kusu-Kusu wondered. "Haven't you realized that already?"
"Yeah, but…" Rima sighed. "I've always thought of my changes as negative. Yeah, the majority of them are negative, but is everything really bad? There are some good things…" Kusu-Kusu had a wide grin on her face.
"Oh Rima; you don't realize how long I wanted you to realize that!" Kusu-Kusu exclaimed. "Of course things are good! Like, Nagi…" Rima's face turned red.
"Well… I wasn't really thinking of him, but…" Rima sighed. "I meant more about my parental situation; what Nagi said yesterday. Maybe it is better for me that I'm with Sanjou-San and Nikaidou-Sensei. My parents were annoying anyway… Perhaps it's for the best." Rima arrived at the school. She made her way to the Royal Garden, to find a note on the front door. It read: I have to do something before school starts today. Come after school. –Tadase. Rima sighed. Now what?
"Well, school's going to start soon! Might as well get to class early!" Kusu-Kusu suggested.
"Kusu-Kusu, we're twenty minutes early." Rima pointed out. "We'll have to figure something better to conserve our time. Like…" Suddenly, a dog running by caught Rima's attention. Normally, Rima didn't care about animals at all, but she wondered why a dog was on school property.
"Benny, come back!" A familiar voice wailed. Benny? Why was Yaya chasing a dog?
"Yaya?" Rima questioned. Yaya paused, and looked back, grinning at Rima.
"Rima-Tan! Yaya's chasing a dog that belongs to her friend; can you help her catch him?" Rima nodded, following Yaya to chasing the dog.
"Why are you chasing the dog anyway?" Rima wondered. "Why did your friend make you watch it?"
"Because she needed to get something for Benny!" Yaya moaned. "Come back, Benny-San!" Rima sweat dropped. Why would any of Yaya's friends entrust Yaya with taking care of anything, let alone a dog?
"Oh…kay…" Rima muttered. She was getting bored of chasing the dog. Finally, Yaya caught up to him, and grabbed his leash. "It's about time…" Yaya grinned.
"That never happened!" Yaya said, grinning innocently. Rima stared at Yaya with a stoic expression. "Hey Rima-Tan, do you know why Tadase-Tan cancelled the meeting?"
"No, I was wondering the same thing." Rima agreed. "I wonder what Tadase was doing…"
"Hey guys." Rima and Yaya turned, seeing Amu. She smiled, walking over to them. "What's up with the dog?" Yaya explained she was watching it. "Interesting…" Rima could tell Amu had the same thought as her.
"Ah, thanks Yaya-Chan!" A girl exclaimed, getting the dog back. Yaya grinned, winking at Rima. The girl left.
"Who was that?" Rima wondered.
"That's Yaya's friend, Tetsu!" Yaya said, grinning. Rima blinked.
"Who's Tetsu? Is she new?" Rima wondered.
"No, she's always been there, even before you came!" Yaya said. Rima shrugged it off. "Hey, Amu-Chi might know!" Amu looked at Yaya, confused. "What is Tadase-Tan doing that he had to blow us off?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, I don't know…" Amu admitted. "I'll ask him during class. I'm sure he just got busy at the last minute; nothing big…" Yaya nodded.
"Why does no one know about Tadase-Tan?" Yaya complained. "Yaya's super curious!"
"Well, I suppose you have to stay patient, if that's physically possible for you." Rima muttered quietly. She crossed her arms. "Class will probably start soon. Amu, let's go." Amu nodded, following Rima.
"H-Hey! You guys can't ditch Yaya!" Yaya moaned. "Wait for Yaya!" Rima smirked.
"Well, you're not in our class. We need to get to class." Rima said, specifically to annoy Yaya.
"But…we can walk together, right?" Yaya begged.
"No."
"Yes." Rima and Amu said at the same time. Yaya grinned at Amu, hugging her tightly. Rima sighed in defeat.
"Hey guys." Rima didn't need to look up to see Nagihiko.
"NAGI-TAN!" Yaya yelled, hugging him tightly. Rima knew that there was 0% romance in that, but she still felt a sting of envy. Ugh, why did that need to happen?
"Hi Yaya-Chan…" Nagihiko said, trying to pry out Yaya's grip. "Does any of you guys know what's up with Hotori-San?" Amu and Rima both looked at Yaya.
"Omigosh, Yaya has been trying to figure that out!" Yaya moaned. "Yaya's so curious!"
"Does it really matter?" Rima wondered. "I'm sure he's fine. It's probably irrelevant."
"Well, nonetheless, we should get to class!" Amu said.
"Yeah Amu-Chi! Let's walk ahead!" Rima opened her mouth to protest, but closed it quickly, knowing she wouldn't be able to stop them.
"So… how did you sleep?" Nagihiko asked to make conversation.
"Fine." Rima snapped. She clenched her fists. She pretty much promised herself she wouldn't be mean to him a few days ago. "So, um, do you have anything going on today?" Rima asked.
"No… are you trying to ask me on a date?" Nagihiko said, one of his eyebrows raised Rima glared at him.
"Of course not! I was doing what you were doing; I was making conversation!" Rima said, blushing.
"Okay." Nagihiko said, smirking. Rima glared at him. "Hey, besides all that happened yesterday at the dance, I really enjoyed dancing with you. Lately, I've been hard on myself and doubted by dancing. When I danced with you, I really felt the feeling I usually get from dancing. Thanks for dancing with me."
"Whatever." Rima grunted. The school bell rang.
"See you later Rima-Chan." And just like that, Nagihiko kissed her on her lips, taking Rima by complete surprise. She kissed him back. They stayed like that for a few seconds. They broke up, both red-faced. "Think of that as a little payback." Like that, Nagihiko walked away. Rima felt she was floating almost. She was in shock. That's when she realized there was many people looking at her.
"W-What are you staring at?" Rima barked at the people who stared at her. "Well, I don't want to be late to class. Get out of my way!" Rima ran past, running to her class. When she walked inside, there was barely anyone there.
"Mashiro-San, do you know where the rest of the class is?" Nikaidou wondered. Rima opened her mouth, when the rest of the class, with the exception of Tadase, walked in. Nikaidou smiled. "Alright, let's begin." Rima looked at Amu, and they both were thinking the same thing; where was Tadase?
Kiyona Hotori loving wife, mother, friend, and grandmother. Tadase read it over and over, making the reality even truer. His grandmother was really gone. Staring at the gravestone was all Tadase could do. He didn't think it would happen for at least a few years. Yeah, his grandmother was sick. However, she was just beginning to get better. She was remembering things. She was beginning to become her old self. However, this gravestone represented how she never would. Tears were in Tadase's eyes. Kiseki didn't know what to do or say to make Tadase happier. There were flowers all over the gravestone. Out of the corner of his eye, Tadase saw someone place more flowers on the gravestone. Who it was, made Tadase look up at him.
"What are you doing here?" Tadase whispered.
"I knew her too." Ikuto whispered. Having Ikuto with him made Tadase feel slightly better. Despite all that happened with Rima, Ikuto still cared to show up. It made Tadase feel like he had his brother that he never had back. "Tadase, you should leave. You can visit her later."
"Not yet. I need some time alone with her." Tadase whispered.
"You've just had hours of that. Your parents didn't have the heart to tell you that it's time to go. Look, you'll feel better when you're away from her."
"You don't understand!" Tadase whispered, suddenly feeling younger. "My grandma meant the world to me. She's gone… I don't have anyone like her anymore…" Tadase was crying now.
"Tadase…" Ikuto sighed. "I know it's hard, but you have to go. It will take a while to think, but you have to go. Didn't you promise the guardians you would meet them after?"
"They don't really matter…" Tadase whispered, sighing. "I think I should quit."
"Don't let your grandma's death screw up your life." Ikuto said. "When my father disappeared, I devoted my whole entire life to finding him, even though he's probably dead. Don't become me. You'll regret it. You still have things to live for, like…" Ikuto's eyes darkened. "Amu." Tadase looked at Ikuto, shocked. "After I broke her friend's heart, I doubt she'll ever forgive me. Besides, I know you'll take good care of her." Tadase stared at him.
"Ikuto-Niisan…" Tadase hugged him. "I never thought…"
"I know." Ikuto snapped. "Look, let's go." Tadase nodded following Ikuto out of the cemetery. Meanwhile, a hooded figure whose blonde hair showed a little bit had just placed flowers on the gravestone…
School was over. Rima stood up, and left the classroom. She started walking quickly, so she wouldn't have to talk to any of the fan-boys.
"Mashiro-San, wait up please!" Rima paused, unhappy. She turned and saw Kirishima. Oh great… Rima once had feelings for this guy, but they were gone. Now that Rima thought back, she wondered how Nagihiko felt about Kirishima coming closer to her…
"What do you want?" Rima snapped.
"Look, I, um, I'm happy for you and Fujisaki-San."
"What about us?" Rima wondered, biting her lip.
"Well, you know…" Rima sighed.
"We aren't anything." Rima said.
"YOU AREN'T DATING HIM? YAY, GO OUT WITH ME!" Rima turned, and saw a stampede of fan-boys galloping over to her. She was surrounded. Rima immediately regretted saying that.
"Uh, well, we aren't anything…yet…" Rima muttered. That was sort of true…?
"Rima, we have a guardian meeting! Let's go!" Amu called. Rima nodded, using that as a chance to escape. Rima caught up to Amu and Nagihiko, who was behind her.
"YOU ARE GOING TO DIE!" The fan-boys shrieked at Nagihiko. They all glared at him.
"A death threat?" Nagihiko wondered. "That could be serious, you know. Just because I might be dating 'the love of your lives,' doesn't mean you need to kill me…" Nagihiko led Amu and Rima to the Royal Garden. Yaya was already there when they walked inside.
"Wow, you guys are slow!" Yaya complained. "Where were you?"
"We got caught up with some of my stupid fan-boys." Rima grunted.
"What did they want?" Yaya wondered. Rima stared at Yaya, as if she was stupid. Yaya stared back, puzzled.
"I didn't really get to hear what they were talking about; just some death threat towards Nagi…?" Amu said.
"Well… I-It really doesn't matter." Nagihiko said quickly. "Where's Hotori-San?" Everyone went silent.
"He did say he was coming after school…" Amu said. "Oh no, I hope he's okay!" There was a panicked expression on her face.
"I'm sure he's fine Amu." Rima muttered, some uncertainty on her face.
"Well… I suppose we have to make-do, since Hotori-San either isn't coming or is late." Nagihiko said. No one said anything.
"Hey… While we wait for Tadase-Tan, can we get candy?" Yaya exclaimed giddily. Rima frowned at Yaya, and shook her head. "Why not?" Yaya moaned.
"I'm sorry I'm late." All eyes peered up at Tadase, as he walked inside.
"Tadase-Kun! Are you okay?" Amu exclaimed.
"Not really… My grandma just passed away." Tadase admitted.
"I'm sorry." Nagihiko whispered. Rima nodded, uncomfortable.
"Thanks… However, I have realized something. I can't give up on you guys. We're a team. That's why I have thought, before we graduate, we need to do something, something that will impact the guardians in the future; something that will mark us as 'us." Tadase said.
"Yeah!" Yaya agreed. "What should we do?"
"Well… I need some help." Tadase admitted.
"We need to do something that will help the school." Amu said, thinking. "Maybe we should add something to the scenery?"
"That will be forgotten very quickly in the future." Nagihiko pointed out. "I believe, even though most of the school will never know, we've done more than any guardians have ever done before. Being in other groups of guardians has helped me realize that."
"Yeah, but we need something everyone will notice." Tadase said. "Why don't we call it a day, and think at home. Tomorrow morning, we'll meet again and show our ideas." Everyone nodded, and left the Royal Garden.
"OHMIGOSH, WE SHOULD HAVE A PARTY!" Yaya exclaimed.
"Why?" Rima wondered.
"Just for fun!" What do you guys say?" Yaya wondered.
"Yuiki-San… I'm not really in the mood…" Tadase whispered. Amu took his hand, and squeezed it.
"I know it hurts, but she wouldn't want you to act this way." Amu whispered.
"I know… If it wasn't for…" Tadase stopped. Everyone looked at him. "If it wasn't for Ikuto-NiiSan, I don't know what I would do." Amu looked astonished.
"Ikuto… he helped you?" Amu exclaimed.
"Ikuto… He's one of the most compassionate people I know." Tadase whispered. "Even though he hides it, he really is. He's a great person." Amu was blushing. Rima narrowed her eyes. Maybe all of the others still loved him, but Rima refused to.
"Well, speak for yourself." Rima grunted. "I'll be on my way. See you tomorrow." Rima walked away.
"Maybe we should give him another chance…" Kusu-Kusu said.
"Kusu-Kusu, he broke my heart! He refused to apologize for it, and he simply crushed it like a soda can!" Rima snapped angrily. "I don't care if everyone else forgives him, but I won't!" Hot tears formed in Rima's eyes. "Maybe I'm over-reacting, but…"
"No Rima, I understand." Kusu-Kusu whispered, a smile on her face. They arrived in front of Yukari's house, and walked inside.
"I want to confront her and tell her…" Yukari looked up as Rima walked in. "Oh Rima, perfect timing! Yuu and I were just talking about Utau. Do you think we should just confront her?"
"Uh… Sure?" Rima wondered. Yukari grinned.
"It's dangerous though! We should talk to all of the guardians." Nikaidou said. "Or Kukai. He'll know, since he loves her."
"I'm going to go to bed." Rima muttered, retreating to her room. When she got changed and fell on her bed, she fell to sleep right away.
Keep in mind, that when Ikuto mentioned how Amu was perfect for Tadase, that doesn't necessarily mean that this story will end in Tadamu… Enough said. Rate and Review, please!