This fic is an orignal with a few references to certain anime later on,
nothing too heavy. Thanks to all the efforts of my prereaders this is
finally coming out.   Thank you, Mechamorph, Ray "The Texas Ryoga",
Alandra, Prince Alarming, and Nason Waniska! Due to their efforts and
time I've finally been able to bring you:

                     		             Into the Mist	
	                             Chapter One: The Empty Tome
			       By: MurasakiKaze

	Her short, light brown hair was accentuated by the bright red ribbon
tied in to hold back the bangs of the page boy cut.  The girl turned
slightly and the warm afternoon sunlight made her dark blue eyes sparkle
like sapphires.  All around her seemed to radiate an air of perfection,
of total beauty.  Tokiko Tsurumi glanced over her shoulder and waved to
her friend, Hazuo Komori.  Hazuo discreetly waved back and waited for the
school day to end, for the bell to ring and set them all free.
	She twirled her long silky black strands of hair around her slender
fingers and sighed.  The day had been so dull and it wasn�t getting any
better.  Tokiko sat about three seats ahead of her and was asleep from
boredom.  Hazuo smoothed out the wrinkles in her pleated purple skirt and
leaned back.
	"And remember," the teacher spoke quietly, making the atmosphere only
that much more boring.  "You have a report due Tuesday.  Have the rough
draft ready for editing on Monday."
	The bell overhead rang its long cacophonous song and diminished
gradually to nothingness.  The teacher stood and pulled his papers into a
briefcase.  With the quiet rustling of papers and zipping of backpacks,
the rest of the student body soon exited with the usual, "Thank God it�s
over."
	"Have a good weekend everyone.  See you on Monday," the instructor
waited for everyone to leave and locked the door behind them.
	"Oyaoya!  That was so boring!!" Tokiko stretched and put her hands
behind her head in a casual manner.  "I can�t wait to get home, how about
you, Hazuo-chan?"
	Hazuo shook her head and smiled, "I�m just glad that tomorrow is Sunday
and school is over for the week, Tokiko-san."
	"Un, so am I.  What are you going to do tomorrow?" Tokiko was only
slightly annoyed by the fact that Hazuo refused to stop calling her -san.
 She sighed and she loosened the top buttons of her long sleeved blouse
before continuing.  "I think we better hurry, Hazuo-chan.  The bus leaves
in two minutes."
	Hazuo checked her watch and nodded.  When she looked up again, Tokiko
was running down to the bus stop, "Tokiko-san!  Wait for me!"
	She grabbed her blue book bag and ran after her friend.  Twenty minutes
later both girls were riding home on the Japan Railway Trains.  These
trains ran all through Japan and luckily made a stop very close to their
homes.  Tokiko grabbed Hazuo�s hand and pulled her over to a small bench
with two open seats.  She flopped down into the chair and smiled.
	"You never answered my question, Hazuo-chan, what are you doing
tomorrow?" Tokiko pulled out her manga and as Hazuo sat down she showed
her a picture.  "Wouldn�t you love to meet this guy?"
	Hazuo gazed down onto the black and white picture of a young man,
"Zerugadisu?  Zelgadis?  You want to meet him?"
	Tokiko nodded her head and sighed in contentment, pressing the book to
her heart, "I love Zelgadis!  He�s just so kakkoi, don�t you think?"
	Hazuo thought for a moment, "He is, but I still like Gourry-san better."
	"Your opinion," Tokiko shrugged and buried her face in the story.  "But
Gourry looks weird in this manga."
	"Not in the anime," Hazuo closed her eyes.  To everyone else it was just
the usual schoolgirl chattering, but Hazuo loved every second of it.  She
opened her eyes and gazed over at her older peer.   "But what are you
going to do tomorrow?"
	"Me?" Tokiko looked up and thought for a second, staring up at the
poster covered ceiling of the train.  "I�m going to hang around home and
then head out to the shopping center."
	"That sounds like fun," Hazuo smiled and adjusted her glasses.  
	"Ne, Hazuo-chan, why don�t you come with me tomorrow?  We could make an
outing of it," she smiled and wagged her finger at her.  "Now, don�t you
say no."
	The girl couldn�t refuse and bowed politely, "Hai, I�ll see you tomorrow
then."
	The train pulled up to the stop and both girls jumped off.  Hazuo waved
goodbye to Tokiko and walked off in the opposite direction.
	"I�ll call you!" Tokiko yelled before disappearing down the long flight
of stone steps to the lower level.  Hazuo nodded and walked down a
separate staircase leading to another exit.  Tokiko Komori was always so
nice to her.  Maybe someday she could tell her the truth about
everything, but not now.  It�d just ruin everything she�d worked so long
and hard for. She had labored so long just to meet her.
	Tokiko ran over and slipped her small metal key into the bike lock. 
After wheeling the large red bicycle out of the lot, she hopped onto it
and sped off. The night air was cool and a thankful break from the heat
of the day.
	"Aa, this feels great!" she smirked and cut the corner to hurry home. 
Hazuo-chan was so much fun to be around, but so quiet.  It took her years
to get her to talk to her and now she was fun to be around.  After dinner
and the bath, Tokiko wandered up to her room where blissful sleep took
her into its depths.
	The morning came quickly as it always did in Japan.  The sun was up and
warming the black asphalt road before Tokiko even opened her azure eyes. 
When she finally did, however, it took her five minutes of frantic
dressing to reach the downstairs phone in time to hear Hazuo�s worried
voice on the other end.
	"Moshi-moshi!  Aa, sorry, Hazuo-chan.  I overslept," Tokiko laughed
slightly and rubbed her head.  "Anyway, what did your mom say about our
shopping trip?"
	Tokiko listened for a few moments and then hung up.  She smiled and ran
back up the two flights of very narrow stairs to get her hairbrush. Like
most typical Japanese homes, hers was built straight up with lots of
stairs connecting each floor.  As she brushed her short brown hair she
thought about Hazuo�s home.  She was lucky to be living in a temple on
the outskirts of town.  No traffic and lots of fresh air. 
	"Tokiko!  Ne, Tokiko!" her mother�s voice floated up to her from the
kitchen.  This was also the source of the very tantalizing odor of her
breakfast.  "You better hurry if you�re going to meet Hazuo-chan at the
shopping center!  Your breakfast is getting cold too!"
	The young schoolgirl tied a dark purple ribbon in her hair to keep back
her bangs and bounded down the steps, "Asa-gohan!  Asa-gohan!"
	She smiled at the thought of her mother�s cooking and the meal waiting
for her.  As she burst into the dining room she waved to her little five
year old brother, Kei.
	"Morning, Kei-kun!" she smiled and patted him on the head.  He was too
busy playing with his Pokemon� figures to notice her come in and only
slightly nodded his head.  "Good morning, Mother."
	Tokiko�s mother was a very tall woman by Japan�s standards and that�s
where Tokiko got her five foot eight height from.  She grinned and set
the plate down before her daughter, watching her inhale the food like
there was no tomorrow.
	"Hora!  Tokiko, chew every once in awhile, will you?" she scolded her
lightly and moved to wash the dishes.
	"Sorry, Mophur," she choked out and polished off what was left.  "I�m
running late though!"
	Tokiko waved goodbye to her mother and picked up her bag on the way out.
 
	"I�ll be back later!" she called and pulled on her shoes.
	"Just remember to be back by two, okay?" her mother called from
upstairs.  "Your father is coming back from his trip then and we�re to
meet him at the train station!"
	"Un, I�ll see you then!" she leapt down the stairs to the garage and
wheeled her bike out onto the street.  She checked her watch as she
hopped on the  bicycle and pedaled harder than she ever had in her life
to get to the station on time.  
	The people were nothing but a blur as she sped along.  Small shop
windows and street vendors selling daily groceries just melded together
and passed her vision.  The wind ruffled her tank top and whistled past
her jean clad legs as she stood to increase speed.  The station was busy
as usual when Tokiko slid her bike into her slot at the bike yard.  She
locked the wheel and dropped the key into her pocket as she ran to the
front of the large modern building.  Things had been remodeled and a lot
had changed over the past year.  Now a small man-made river flowed
through the front to add a bit of beauty to the otherwise drab train
depot.  
	"Hazuo!" she yelled and waved to her friend, who was sitting and reading
a book in the first bench to the left of the front doors just as she had
said she would be.  "Hazuo!"
	The girl stood and waved back as her friend came to a panting halt in
front of her, "Are you okay, Tokiko-san?"
	"Hai, hai, I�m fine," she managed to gasp out.  
	Hazuo smiled and the reflection of the sun caught her thin, wire-rimmed
glasses, "I�m glad.  Should we go?"
	A few minutes later the two friends were walking down the main street of
 town.  So many little shops were lining the crowded sidewalks and people
were bustling in and out everywhere.  Tokiko sighted a small, nondescript
bookstore and grabbed Hazuo�s hand.
	"You like to read, right?" she smiled as Hazuo nodded, not quite sure of
herself.  "Great, let�s go!"
	"N-nani?!" Hazuo was forcefully pulled through the crowds and into the
small shop.  It wasn�t just a bookstore, but also a trinket shop and a
rare antiquities store.  Hazuo�s eyes seem to light up.  She normally
spent a lot of her time in ancient, cluttered places like this.  
	"Wow, this stuff is really old," Tokiko gingerly reached out to touch a
small figurine of an orca.  There were hundreds of similar dolls and
other shelves held delicate pins, gifts, and stationary all shoved into
any available space.
	"Oi!  What do you think you�re doing, miss?" a sudden loud voice boomed
out from behind a counter at the back of the store.  The old man stepped
out from behind the booth and moved into their line of view.
	"We�re just looking, Ojisan," Hazuo called out meekly, trying to calm
the suspicious storekeeper.  "Tokiko-san, let�s go see the books."
	Tokiko noticed her pleading look and nodded.  Hazuo seemed at home here.
 Tokiko watched the young girl move gracefully through the narrow aisles
of dusty materials, her long black hair curling behind her.  She was just
glad that Hazuo was finally happy.  She was always so quiet in school.  A
small noise was heard from her direction as her eyes fell upon the rows
and rows of ancient, dust covered books.  She went directly to the very
end of the first row and pulled out a book at random. 
	"Nani.." Hazuo flipped through the pages and turned it over in her
hands.  "Tokiko-san, please come here�"
	Tokiko moved slowly over to the her and her eyes roamed over the
intricately carved front.  There was a small blue and green gem set in
the very middle and Tokiko ran her fingers along the length of the
emperor style black dragon winding around the jewel.
	"It�s so pretty," she murmured.  The dim light from the bare bulb above
barely gave her enough of a view.  The entire book was a deep mahogany
color with gold ribbons running along the spine.  "How much is it,
Hazuo-chan?"
	The other girl was still staring at the cover, "I don�t know, but
there�s something so odd about it.  All the books here are probably
written in and contain stories, right, Tokiko-san?"
	Tokiko nodded, "Naturally."
	"Well, not this one," Hazuo handed the book over and Tokiko flipped
through the pages.  Each and every one of them was blank.  The pages were
frail and yellowed with age and yet, none of them had a mark on it. 
"Very strange, ne?"
	Tokiko bobbed her head in agreement, "What�s the title?"
	Upon turning the book to the front again it was discovered that there
was no title.
	"What are you two up to?!" the store owner could be heard getting up
from a large, creaking, old rocking chair.  The metallic swish of a bat
pulled out of its hiding place was audible.  "You better not steal
anything!"
	Both girls tried to cram the book back onto the crowded shelf.  It just
wouldn�t fit anymore.  Hazuo grabbed the volume back and hid it behind
her thin frame.  The elderly man stepped out from behind the second row
of books and leered at them with yellow teeth.  His wrinkled brow and
wild frame of white hair only heightened his scary appearance.  
	"Omae, what are you doing?" his voice was quiet, but menacing.  "Well?"
	"J-just looking, Ojisan," Tokiko stammered out, trying to regain her
composure.  Her blue eyes were keenly fixed on the bat by his side.
	"Well, I�m not a library.  Buy something or be ready to go," he muttered
and sauntered off.  Hazuo sighed as he went.
	"T-tokiko-san?" Hazuo�s voice was smaller than usual and the other,
older girl turned to see what was wrong.  A strange sight greeted her
eyes.  All she could do was stare.  "Tokiko-san�.help me�"
	Reflected in Tokiko�s deep blue eyes was a glowing blue and green light.
 Her mouth dropped open as Hazuo, now almost transparent, reached out to
her for help.  
	"H-Hazuo!" she reached out for her friend�s hand and barely caught it as
it disappeared into thin air.  
Time seemed to stop.  Tokiko looked around her and saw the particles of
dust swirling down around her.  She could see her breath exhaling out and
slowly bring oxygen back in.  It seemed that the rest of the world
slowed, but she didn�t.  Tokiko dropped her eyes to her hand and saw it
disappearing rapidly.  From somewhere far away a voice called out to her.
	"Don�t be afraid," the voice was definitely female, but calm and quiet. 
It held a soothing quality thought to only be found in the voice of a
mother cooing to her newborn baby.  
	"I�m not afraid�" Tokiko�s own voice was distorted and faint.  "I�m
not-"
	The storeowner grabbed his bat again.  Those damn kids were probably
lifting something from his store!  He hustled as fast as his short legs
could take him to the back row of shelves again.  He came around the
corner growling.
	"Oi!  What are-" he stopped dead and saw the last remnants of a ghostly
girl evaporate into the musty air.  The only sound was that of a metal
bat clattering to the wooden floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MurasakiKaze

Any C&C can be sent to muteki@juno.com and will be greatly appreciated. 
Below is a little glossary of the Japanese I used in the story.

Ne= hey
Asa-gohan= Breakfast
Oi= hey (masculine form)
Ojisan= respectful form for older men
Nani= what
Un= slang for yes
Oyaoya= this is sort of like a sighing sound you'd say when tired or
bored
Moshi-moshi= hello (on the telephone)
Hai= yes (polite form)
Omae= you (used for people of lower standing than you, generally used by
men only)

Just to explain something, Hazuo is really polite like Anthy or Fuu.  She
was just raised that way and she calls everyone -san.  

Any flames will be fed to the monster under my bed, he moved back in.

"What do you mean the voices told _you_ to?  The voices only speak to
_me_!!"


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