=======================================================================
Nikholas "elf" F. Toledo proj25@yahoo.com
=======================================================================
Disclaimer: 'Rayearth' and the following characters borrowed in the
making of this fic are all property of Clamp.
It's amazing that some people actually think this fic is
worth following... but, don't worry, there's always some
poor schmuck who's worse off than you guys--ME!
So bear with me, okay?
=======================================================================
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Through The Looking Glass
Chapter 2
Tea and Sympathy
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Once there was a frog that fancied himself to be a prince -
the great ruler of some obscure kingdom in some forgotten
land. An evil witch cursed him and turned him into a frog,
(or so his story goes) and only a kiss from a beautiful
maiden could break the spell. This was a tale he loved to
tell over and over again, whether his audience cared to
listen or not.
One day, he decided to approach a fortuneteller to know the
girl who was destined to break the spell. There, the frog
once again rhapsodized about his woeful fate. The
fortuneteller finally agreed to tell him his fortune
just to get rid of him.
"Very well." The madam sighed, and started chanting
incantations while her hands fluttered around her crystal
ball.
"Ahhh, I see something..."
"Really?! Is it her?" the frog asked excitedly.
"Yes."
"Is she beautiful?"
"Very beautiful. With light blue hair, and eyes like
sapphire."
"Wow!" The frog was now jumping excitedly on the table, "So,
when do I get to meet her?"
"Next year, in her biology class..."
One year later
Umi Ryuzaki eyed the green slimy amphibian with distaste. The frog
looked back with its large unblinking eyes. Suddenly, its pink tongue
shot out to catch one of the flies buzzing around inside the jar.
"Gross! There is NO way I'm touching that... that thing." Umi
shuddered.
"Umi, you're wearing surgical gloves. Besides, you already agreed
to pith the frog. Remember?" Fuu grinned as she put on her own surgical
gloves. "Or would you rather handle the dissection instead?"
"Waittaminute!!!" Hikaru suddenly burst out. "What dissection?!"
Fuu blinked. "Oh, my." She pulled Umi closer and whispered, "You
didn't tell her?"
"Why should I? If I did, there's no way she would've agreed to
catch that frog for us."
"But couldn't you have told her earlier before Biology class!?"
"Umm... I, ah, forgot," Umi timidly replied, pushing her
forefingers against each other.
"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now," Fuu sighed as she
opened the jar and looked at Umi expectantly.
"Do I have to?" she whined.
Fuu nodded.
"I still think it's disgusting!"
Umi gingerly reached out to poke the frog. Its skin was cold, wet,
and slimy. She wanted to recoil in disgust, but Fuu's watchful gaze told
her otherwise.
<Gulp.>
Fuu handed Umi a huge needle, she was about to jab it behind the
frog's head when she heard Hikaru gag.
"Hikaru, are you okay?" Umi worriedly eyed her friend's greenish
pallor.
"No." Hikaru shook her head, holding her fist against her mouth.
"Fuu, I think she's gonna be sick!"
Her statement was enough to cause a mild commotion around them...
"What's going on?"
"Is she going to be all right?"
"I think she needs to go to the clinic."
"What's happening over there?"
"Hikaru's not feeling well."
"Oh dear."
Soon, almost everyone was crowding around their table.
Umi was not one to pass up a great opportunity like this,
especially if it meant being excused from a gruesome lab experiment.
"I'll ask Presea-sensei if I can bring Hikaru to the clinic!" she
eagerly volunteered. With frog in tow, she squeezed through the crowd and
promptly had her foot squashed.
"Ouch! Hey, watch where you're going!" she shouted to no one in
particular, since she didn't have any idea who the offender was.
"Ribit."
Umi blanched when she realized that she just dropped the frog. It
was staring up at her from the floor. It hopped six paces away, stopped,
then croaked again.
She crouched down and started inching her way towards it. "Come
here, froggy, come on-" She felt stupid talking to the thing but could
not help give out a warning, "Don't you dare move from that spot!"
"Ribit."
Umi saw that it was about to hop away again. "Oh, no, you don't,
you slimy little freak!" She slid across the floor and managed to grab
the darn thing. The problem was, she grabbed on to it too tightly,
causing it to slip between her hands and fly into the air.
"Eeeeps!"
Presea-sensei, 3rd period Biology teacher, calmly pried the slimy
amphibian from her vest, took one look at her student sprawled on the
floor and decided to take matters into her own hands.
"Ryuzaki-san, hallway!" She pointed at the pair of water buckets
tucked at the right backend corner of the room.
_It's not exactly the way I planned it, but it'll do._
Umi thought to herself as she dusted off her skirts. "Bye, guys!"
She cheerfully waved at Hikaru and Fuu, "See you at lunchtime."
* * *
Clef was taking a leisurely stroll down the deserted hallway of the
junior high school building. He had just come from a meeting with the
Administrative Board and was pleased that everything was running smoothly
- well, academics-wise, at least.
As he walked, he mentally counted off the things listed in his
agenda. There was the much-needed upgrade for the school's database
network, the plumbing on the east wing of the boy's dormitory, etc.,
etc., etc.
And then there was his ever-growing fan club to consider.
The last part, being the least important, was actually the thing
that bothered him most. He was rather embarrassed by the attention he was
getting from the female students. Besides, he was not quite sure if this
was good for his image in the academe - however, that particular line of
thought was shelved at the back of his mind when he saw Umi Ryuzaki doing
her once-in-a-week stint on the hallway once again.
"Good morning, Principal Clef," Umi greeted him, a bit too
brightly.
"Ryuzaki-san. And here I thought that you would actually get
through this week without doing your 'bucket routine'," he said, with a
severe look that did not sit quite well with his boyish features.
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she replied cheekily.
Clef assessed their location and smiled when he realized that they
were standing outside the laboratory. "Bio class?" He took the buckets
out of her hands and placed them on the floor.
As they walked down the corridor, Umi waited for the lecture that
was sure to follow.
"Well, aren't you gonna ask me what I did this time?" she blurted
out.
"What for? You're going to tell me anyway."
"Do you have any idea what goes on during Biology?"
"Been there. Done that. So, what's your excuse?"
Umi frowned. Heck, so he's a genius... not to mention young,
handsome, brilliant...
"Yes?" Clef prompted, putting an end to her musings. "Biology
class?"
"Oh, the brutality of it all!" Umi said in her most theatrically
tragic voice, "Presea-sensei actually gave us step-by-step instructions
on how to mutilate a poor, defenseless frog!"
Clef raised his eyebrow and gave her a smug look.
Umi bit her lip. "You're not buying it, are you?"
He shook his head.
"I thought so. Well, here goes..." She took a deep breath and
poured out the whole sordid tale.
"... then it just flew out of my hands and landed right smack at
her. The next thing I knew, Presea-sensei was showing me where the
buckets were kept. Didn't take me long to figure out where she wanted me
to stand."
Clef stopped walking and looked down at her. "Whatever am I going
to do with you?" he asked in an exasperated sigh.
Suddenly, the bell rang, heralding the end of the third period
class. Students streamed out of their classrooms, some headed for the
cafeteria while others headed toward the quad. It was lunchtime.
"That's my exit cue. Bye, Principal Clef. Nice talking to you." She
bowed, waved goodbye and started to run down the hallway.
"Umi...," Clef called out.
She turned around and grinned at him. "Yeah, I know, I know..."
"... stay out of trouble," they both said at the same time.
Clef stood there as he watched her shake her head and walk away -
as if she didn't have a care in the world. But he knew that he could
expect to see her again, in a slightly different predicament, next week.
The funny thing is, he was actually looking forward to it.
* * *
"Over here, Umi!"
Hikaru waved at the blue-haired girl from under the shade of a huge
sakura-tree. The ancient tree served as the friends' usual meeting place.
The open air was more preferable to the stuffy atmosphere of the
cafeteria, especially during lunchtime.
"Thanks for waiting up for me," Umi said as she plopped down next
to Fuu.
She was pouring tea from her tumbler into three small cups that
were lined up in front of her. "Here, have some while it's still hot."
Fuu served the tea to Umi, then to Hikaru.
"Would you like some sushi? Eagle made enough to feed a small
army."
Umi was quick to take her up on the offer. "This tastes great!" she
said after swallowing three slices in succession and washing it down with
her tea.
"Here, have some, Fuu," Hikaru offered.
"Thank you. Why don't you try some of this tempura?"
"I didn't know you could cook this well, Fuu." Hikaru bit into the
breaded shrimp and smiled. "It's almost as good as the ones Eagle makes."
"I don't - Kuu made them this morning. I hope your brother likes
them as much as you do." She glanced at the pebble-washed table where Kuu
sat eating lunch with Eagle.
"Don't they look cute together!" Umi gushed.
She was patting herself at the back for her brilliant matchmaking
when Tarta arrived. "Drats! It's just what I need, Tarta spoiling the
romantic scene."
Hikaru took one look at her brother's smile and said, "That's not
Tarta - it's her twin, Tatra."
"How did you know? I couldn't tell them apart unless they start
talking."
"Well, I only have to look at my brother to know it." She nodded at
Eagle. "Besides, do you think he would actually hug Tarta?"
"Not unless he has a dagger to stab her back," Umi smugly replied.
"Umi, that is so mean!" Fuu cried, only to add in a serious tone,
"Though I find it odd that Eagle would have Tatra for a best friend,
while he avoids Tarta like she was the bubonic plague."
"NOW who's being mean?" Umi whispered at Hikaru.
* * *
"Hey, you all right?" Eagle asked, trying to see through his
friend's bland expression. "I called Monday night, but your sister
obviously didn't give you my message to call me back."
"She did. In spite of what you think, Eagle, Tarta isn't that
petty."
Eagle heaved a defeated sigh. "Okay, I'm sorry. But can you blame
me for worrying? You and Geo just broke up, and -"
"And you figured that I needed a shoulder to cry on?" she finished
for him. "I appreciate your concern, but I just needed some time to
think, alone."
Eagle reached out for her... or was it her who went into his
embrace? Tatra wasn't exactly sure who moved first, but she found herself
standing with her head cradled against Eagle's shoulder... his arms
around her... his breath feathering against her brow. God, would it be so
bad if... if she... if she what?
_Is it really worth it?_
Kuu had not moved from her seat since Eagle left her with their
lunches to meet Tarta's twin sister. She noticed the flash of surprise in
the girl's eyes when Eagle hugged her, only to be replaced with a
different kind of emotion all together.
"She's -" Kuu stamped out the sudden spark of jealousy she felt
towards the girl and angrily berated herself: "Give it a break, the girl
just got dumped by her boyfriend, and Eagle IS her best friend..."
_Is it really worth it?_ Tatra asked herself again.
No. She would rather have him like this than risk losing him if he
were to know the truth. He might end up hating her if he did.
"Do you hate me?"
Tatra didn't realize she asked the question aloud until Eagle
pulled back and frowned down at her.
"What gave you that idea? Just because you and Geo broke up doesn't
mean I have to pick sides."
"But..."
"It just wasn't meant to be. Let's just chalk it all up to
experience and leave it at that, okay?"
Tatra forced a smile and nodded.
"That's what I wanted to see." Eagle pinched her cheek.
"Cut it out!" Tatra playfully punched his ribs.
He draped his arm companionably across her shoulders and led her to
their table. "C'mon, I want you to meet someone."
* * *
A man threw open the door and stood silhouetted against the light
at the top of the dark stairwell. "Hey, slowpokes! Hurry up with those
things!"
"We're going as fast as we can, okay?!" Ferio shouted back
irritably. "Hell, it's not exactly easy balancing six orders of ramen,
you know?" he muttered to Ascot as he tried to maneuver up the stairs.
"Speak for yourself! I'm the one who's carrying three bags and a
laptop!" Ascot said. Lugging that kind of weight up five flights of
stairs wasn't exactly his idea of a picnic either.
"Stop complaining and get a move on it!" Zazu said, poking one of
the bags on Ascot's back.
He ran smack, face-first into a knapsack when Ascot paused to catch
his breath. He would have fallen if he had not managed to grab hold of
the banister.
"Giyaaah!"
"Hey, Zazu, you all right back there?" Ascot asked in concern.
"Serves him right for being such a pain in the ass!" Ferio shouted
from the top of the stairs.
"I heard that!" Zazu angrily cried.
When Ferio finally reached the top, a tall, dark-haired man
suddenly whisked away the six bowls of ramen that were precariously
stacked together.
"Huh? Hey, what the-!" Then he was suddenly grabbed by the collar
and lifted an inch off the floor by Geo Metro.
"Were you, by any chance, picking on Zazu again?"
"No way! Now, why would I do such a stupid thing like that?!"
"Good answer." Geo glanced down the stairwell and saw Ascot,
"Excuse me, for a moment." He dumped Ferio and started down the steps.
Ascot gulped when he saw Geo coming for him. He felt the beads of
cold sweat run down his back and knew that he was doomed.
"Go on! Do your worst and get it over with!" he suddenly cried out,
flinging his arms wide open.
Geo, Lantis and Ferio blinked and face-faulted.
"Hey, chill out, kid." Geo gave Ascot a friendly tap on the
shoulder that almost sent him tumbling down the stairs.
"Eeeek!"
"Careful!" Geo warned as he pulled him back up. "I just wanted to
give you a hand, not rip you heart out or anything." He smiled and
reached out to relieve Ascot of the bags he was carrying.
"Oh." Ascot nervously laughed as he finally set foot on the
rooftop, "Hehehe... I knew that."
"Sure, you did," the tall, dark-haired man said with a faint
semblance of a smile. He walked up to him and thrust out his hand,
"Lantis Shido, sorry 'bout this."
Ascot's hand was enveloped in a firm handshake. "Nice to meet you.
My name's Ascot." His brow knotted when he suddenly remembered someone.
"Shido... are you by any chance related to Hikaru Shido?"
He belatedly realized that it was the wrong question to ask.
Lantis's face barely registered any emotion but his grasp sure did
tighten painfully.
_Hell, what'd I do now!_
"In a way," Lantis answered.
"Hikaru's his little sister. His only sister," Geo supplied,
glancing briefly at Lantis's bone-crushing grip before turning his
attention back to Ascot's pale face. "Personally, I think she's the
cutest li'l redhead in this school, don't you?"
Ascot knew that his answer could very well cost him the bones in
his right hand. He could feel Lantis's eyes boring into him and sizing
him up.
Then he abruptly released his hand.
_This is one guy who knows how to make his message painfully
clear,_ Ascot thought to himself as he rubbed his sore hand.
"Hi, the name's Ferio."
"HE doesn't know your sister!" Ascot was quick to point out as
Ferio offered his hand to Lantis.
"Are we gonna just stand around here all day? Let's eat!" Zazu
said, tearing the cover off his ramen bowl, "Hmmm... smells great!" and
proceeded to noisily slurp the broth.
Geo calmly reached out to cuff him lightly over the head.
<BAP!>
"Hey! What d'you do that for!!!" Zazu protested.
"Please excuse Zazu's manners, he simply doesn't have any."
"Here, have some," Lantis said, offering two ramen bowls to Ferio
and Ascot.
"Thank you," the two chorused.
"Zazu," Geo started.
"Whaddya wab? Cab't byu dee I'b eding beer?" Zazu mumbled around
his noodles.
"Did you bring it?"
Zazu nodded his head. He reached inside his backpack and came up
with pair of hi-tech binoculars. "Here, catch."
"What's that for?" Ascot curiously asked.
"Bird watching," Geo answered as he fiddled with the lenses and
tried focusing them.
"The only birds I see down there are chicks," Ferio pointed out.
Geo turned to flash him a brief smile of male bonding. "Exactly.
You're catching on fast, kid."
"By the way, where's Eagle?" Lantis inquired.
"See for yourself." Geo turned to hand him the binoculars when Zazu
quickly snatched it and decided to do just that.
"Zazu!" Geo growled.
"Hey, what's HE doing with your ex? Three days and Tatra's already
got Eagle to take your place!" Zazu frowned when Geo failed to show any
signs of jealousy at his jibe. "Ah, since he's down there, can I have his
ramen instead?"
"Gimme that!" Geo snatched the binoculars away from Zazu. He
dragged Lantis to the other end of the rooftop, out of everyone's earshot
and there, handed him the binoculars.
"Zazu wasn't kidding this time," Lantis said as he squinted through
the lens, "That's definitely Tatra."
"Of course, it's Tatra. It couldn't possibly be Tarta, since Eagle
would sooner cuddle up to a python than her."
"You have a point there." Lantis turned to look at Geo's resigned
expression. He had a feeling that a confession was forthcoming.
"It wouldn't have worked out." Geo shrugged and leaned against the
concrete balcony. "Tatra was just kind enough to keep her sister off my
back by volunteering to pose as my girlfriend for a year."
"That sounds like a fool-proof plan. So what happened?" Lantis
asked as he handed back the binoculars.
"My conscience kicked in." Geo peered through the binoculars,
watching Eagle lead Tatra to sit across the toffee-haired girl. "She
likes Eagle and he doesn't even have a clue."
Zazu switched on his laptop. After typing in some commands, a
familiar scene appeared on the screen - the very one that Geo happened to
be viewing at the moment.
"Hey, cool! You got some spy cameras planted around the campus?"
Ferio asked, watching the screen over Zazu's shoulders.
"No, just one." Zazu nodded towards the binoculars.
He selected the area enclosing the unknown girl and clicked the
mouse to zoom in. He watched as Geo suddenly jerked back in surprise from
the lens. "Enjoying the view, Geo?"
"Dammit, Zazu! Will you stop that!" A bright shade of red matted
his cheeks.
"Hey, Ascot," Zazu pointed at his knapsack, "Mind handing me my
phone, it's somewhere in my bag... thanks."
"What are you doing?" Ferio asked.
"Research." Zazu answered as he proceeded to hack into Ryudo's
student database and ran a search program through the picture archives.
"Ah, forgive me for asking, but isn't this illegal?" Ascot asked.
Zazu shrugged noncommittally. "Only if we're caught."
A sweat drop appeared beside Ascot's head. "That's comforting."
"Ah-hah! Here we are, a perfect match!" He downloaded the necessary
info. "Hey, Geo! Want some nice little info tidbits to go with that great
view?"
Geo's curiosity got the better of him. He walked over to crouch
behind Zazu and started reading through the personal data scrolling right
before his eyes. "Ho'oji?"
* * *
"Hikaru!"
Hikaru turned to see her brother walking up to her. "What's up,
Eagle?"
"Can we make a little detour later, I want to walk Kuu home and-"
"Oh, no problem!" Umi cut in to graciously volunteer, "Hikaru and
Fuu will be riding with me after class." Umi spared her friends a glance
that would not accept 'no' for an answer.
"Yeah, right," the two obligingly chorused.
Too obligingly in fact, that Eagle gave the three of them an odd
look. "O-kay. And tell Niisama that I may be late getting home."
"Hey, it's your turn to do the dishes tonight."
"I'll make it up to you. Promise."
"That's what you said last time, and the week before, and the week
before that, and-" Eagle gave her pigtail a sharp tug, "-Ouch!"
"Bye, sis. And save me some dinner. Thanks!" Then he ran off to his
class.
Umi was all starry-eyed as she watched him go. "God, Hikaru. You're
sooo lucky to have Eagle-sempai for a brother!"
Hikaru rubbed her smarting nape and transferred her glare from
Eagle's retreating back to Umi's adoring expression.
"You can have him. FREE. There's only one policy: No return, no
exchange."
* * *
Lantis stifled another yawn from behind his textbook. He tried to
make sense of the discussion but his brain refused to cooperate. He'd
been slipping into a series of microsleeps for the past half-hour and was
reduced to doodling at the back of his notebook just to keep awake.
Geo glanced at Lantis and kicked the leg of his chair just when he
was starting to nod off into oblivion.
"Huh?!" Lantis jerked from his slouch, blinking in surprise. Then
he saw Geo frowning at him. "Is it over yet?" he whispered.
"No, there still another half-hour-"
"Wake me up when it's through," he said, slouching back in his
chair.
Geo kicked his chair again.
"What now?" Lantis sleepily asked.
"What is a 'budget constraint'?" the teacher asked the class after
writing the words on the blackboard.
"You're the only guy in this class who's dozing off," Geo muttered.
"So?"
"Can we have other volunteers other than Mr. Torque?" The teacher
sat on top of the table and crossed her legs as she scanned the anxious
faces around her.
"Everyone knows that you DON'T doze off when Caldina-sensei is in
front of the class," Geo said as he ogled their teacher's long legs. "You
get to miss the great view!"
Just then, the teacher glanced at their direction. "Mr. Shido,
would you care to give a brief definition of what a 'budget constraint'
is?"
"A budget constraint specifies the combinations of goods a consumer
or any economic unit can afford to buy," Lantis rattled off without
missing a beat.
"Excellent."
Geo stared at his friend in amazement, "I thought you weren't
paying attention."
"I wasn't," Lantis replied on a yawn as he settled comfortably in
his chair.
"Then how'd you-?" Geo gave up when he heard his friend snoring
softly, he shook his head and decided to listen to the lecture instead.
"As an example-" Zazu was practically waving his hands at the
teacher's face. "Very well, Mr. Torque," she finally relented and
motioned for Zazu to step in front of the class.
"All right." She walked behind him and placed both hands on his
shoulders. "Suppose you have, not one, but two girlfriends-"
Class participation just went up another notch as everyone started
clapping and issuing catcalls.
"Whoa! Whatta man!"
"You Casanova!"
"Hey, Geo, finally got around to teaching him the tricks of the
trade?"
Caldina-sensei raised her hand to get the class's attention,
"Quiet, please! Now, where was I? Okay, suppose that Zazu's part-time job
pays about - say, 120,000 yen. This is then divided between Girl A and
Girl B, both of whom he likes very much. Treating Girl A out costs 10,000
yen, while Girl B, who has more expensive tastes, costs 20,000 yen-"
"I say dump Girl B!" one of their classmates interjected.
"Nah, I'm keeping them both!" Zazu cried, which earned him a round
of applause from his male classmates.
"In deciding how many times he can go out with each girl, Zazu has
to take into account the fact that he can spend only 120,000 yen a week.
His income and the expenses entailed in dating the two girls he's
interested in determine his budget constraint."
"This means he'll be spending either more time or money on one of
his girlfriends," Geo observed.
"Correct. This is what we call a 'trade-off'," Caldina-sensei
explained.
"Trade-offs occur in general because resources are scarce." Lantis'
sleepy comment carried from the back of the room.
"Well done, Mr. Shido," Caldina-sensei remarked, "Even if you are
sleeping in my class. Again."
Everyone turned to look at Lantis and face-faulted. He was slumped
in his seat, his head rested against his forearms on top of his desk. Not
even Geo, who was violently kicking at his chair, could wake him up.
"No, just let him be. He gets more points for class participation
this way," Caldina-sensei said, and went on with her discussion. "As I
was saying: in our example, scarcity appears because Zazu's income is
limited. Because there is a trade-off, Zazu faces a problem of choice."
"I know! I know! Zazu, why not just dump both of them? That way you
get to keep the money all for yourself!" This came from the same guy who
suggested that Zazu dump Girl B. Poor guy, he was soon bodily thrown out
into the corridor when Caldina-sensei wasn't looking.
Somewhere from the back row, Geo raised his hand, "Ah, Caldina-
sensei, there's another expense that we forgot to take into account."
"And what is that?"
"The bribe he has to pay for us not to tell either of his
girlfriends about his grand scheme."
Zazu whined, "Gimme a break, I have enough money problems with two
girlfriends. If I were to pay you guys, too, what's to become of me?"
Lantis sleepily called out, "A flat-broke two-timing jerk."
* * *
Ascot was about to lock up the lab when he heard a muffled sound
somewhere inside the room.
"Who's there?"
No answer.
He shook his head - he could've sworn he heard something. He was
about to close the door again when someone tugged his sleeve from behind.
"Giyahhh!!!"
"Ascot-sempai, are you all right?"
He was plastered to the door, clutching his chest in fright.
"Hikaru! Don't sneak up on me like that!"
"We're even then. Call it payback for scaring me last Monday."
"I just finished feeding the rabbits," Ascot explained.
"I wanted to check on them - is Nezumi doing okay?"
"Yup, he seemed to have gotten his appetite back."
"That's great. Well, I guess I'd better get going now."
"Have a nice weekend."
"Thanks, you, too. Bye."
Ascot watched her disappear around the corner. For some reason, he
couldn't quite reconcile the fact that Lantis happened to be her brother.
The guy could give you frostbite with just one icy glare.
The silence was broken once again by that obscure sound. Ascot
turned on the lights and scanned the room. There was nobody there.
Suddenly, a slight movement caught his eye. "One of the rabbits
must've gotten out of its cage."
Something darted towards one of the lab tables. Ascot followed
suit. He looked under the table and found the culprit.
"There you are." He carefully reached out and grabbed the thing.
"Guess some juniors happened to make do without you for their lab
experiment today." He slipped the creature in his breast pocket.
As they made their way out, Ascot paused in front of the display
shelves to look at a well-preserved frog floating in a jar of
formaldehyde.
"Ribit."
Ascot looked down at the frog peering up at him from his pocket.
"You are definitely one lucky fella."
* * *
Ferio stopped in front of the music hall and listened for the
ripple of piano keys.
There was none.
He sighed and started to walk away. After three steps, he turned
back.
Taking a deep breath, he opened the door to peer inside. The lights
were off; the fading sunlight streamed through the wide glass windows and
was dully reflected by the polished black wood of the grand piano. No one
was around.
He was about to leave when he spied some papers lying on the floor
near the bench.
"Hmm, what's this? 'Sonata of the Wind'," Ferio read the title of
the piano piece he just picked up and glanced at the script written at
the lower corner of the paper.
"Uh, excuse me - but I believe that belongs to me," a soft voice
implored from the doorway.
He turned around and saw her approach. Her long-sleeved dark blue
sailor blouse and white skirt told him that she was a junior high
student. As she came closer, he took a brief inventory of what she looked
like. Average height - shorter by a foot, compared to him. Her light
brown hair was almost blond, the soft curls ending just below her chin. A
pair of leaf-green eyes looked at him warily from behind wire-rimmed
glasses.
"Can I please have it back?" she asked, extending her hand.
"Pardon?" Ferio blinked and looked at her uncomprehendingly.
"The piano piece," the girl explained with infinite patience.
Ferio was thankful that the light was behind him. She couldn't see
his scarred face or the blush that was stealing up his neck.
"Oh, here." He was about to give it to her when he suddenly changed
his mind. "Wait, I don't see any name written on it. So, how do I know
it's truly yours?" he asked, holding the paper behind his back.
"But it's there at..."
"Tell you what. If you're able to play the song, I'll let you have
the piece back."
The girl looked at him in bewilderment. She sent a brief glance at
the piano, the piece in his hand, then back at him again.
"All right," she said, and promptly sat down on the bench.
Ferio let out a silent sigh of relief as he arranged the piece on
the stand. For a moment there, he thought she was going call his bluff.
He stood beside her and watched her graceful hands as they lightly
skimmed the ivory keys.
The haunting music stirred from the tightly wound cords in the
bowel of the instrument. The strains, faint at first, soon became a
sonata. She played as if in a trance, her eyes half-closed as she savored
the melody, barely glancing at the piece before her.
With the last crashing chords still echoing in the still air, Fuu
opened her eyes to find the young man staring at her with the most
peculiar expression in his eyes.
"That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard," Ferio said
softly.
"Thank you."
Fuu found herself staring up at him. She could not see his face
clearly, but his eyes held an expression so sincere that she found it
hard to look away.
"I'd better go."
"What?" She watched him helplessly as he turned to leave the room,
"w- wait!"
He paused by the doorway. "It's an honor to hear you play again,
Miss Ho'oji," and he walked out of the door without a backward glance.
* * *
"Fuu? Hello-oh, are you there?"
"Oh, sorry." Fuu blinked and pushed her glasses up her nose. "I ah,
I didn't quite get what you just said."
Umi exchanged glances with Hikaru. Both agreed that their friend
was not quite herself. Fuu had been awfully quiet on the ride home. She'd
been staring blankly at the car window since they left school.
"I asked if you found what you were looking for," Umi repeated the
question for the third time.
"Yes." Fuu glanced down at the piano piece at her lap. "Yes, I
did." She smiled and turned her attention back to the passing scenery
outside.
The car stopped, the chauffeur got out and opened Fuu's door. He
stood waiting for her to alight from the car. Fuu didn't budge an inch
from her seat.
"Uh... miss?"
No response.
"Fuu-chan." Hikaru started waving her hand in front of her face.
"Hmmm?"
"It's your stop," she explained.
"That's nice."
Umi and Hikaru stared at Fuu's somewhat lost expression.
"Oh!" Fuu suddenly snapped out of her trance, "Oh, dear. I'm
sorry!" She blushed furiously, "What was I thinking?!"
"I was about to ask you the same thing," Umi slyly replied.
"I'm sorry, I really am." She gathered her things and got out of
the car.
Umi laughed, "Well, that's a first. It's good to know that you're
still human, like the rest of us."
"Thank you... I think, and for the ride home, too."
"Bye, Fuu!" Hikaru cheerily waved from the car window. "Do you
think something's wrong with Fuu?" she asked, as she settled back in her
seat.
"No," Umi declared, "something's wonderfully right with our
friend."
Hikaru was almost afraid to ask - Umi had that 'look' in her eyes.
"1000 yen says it's a guy."
* * *
"Kuu, isn't that your sister?" Eagle asked, pointing at a blond
woman dressed in a soft pink sweater and jeans.
"It is," Kuu replied. Emi was on her way home carrying a bag of
groceries.
"She's beautiful," Tatra exclaimed, "how many sisters do you have,
Kuu?"
"Two. I'm the middle child."
"Hey, Emi!" Eagle called out to the woman just across the street.
Emi turned around and waved at them, "Hi there!"
"Here, let me carry that for you," Eagle offered as he reached her
side.
"Thank you."
"So, how's the flower shop doing?"
"Oh, we're doing fine. I did arrangements for three weddings this
week alone. I'm so tired that I'm liable to fall asleep on my feet."
"Well, good thing Niisama insisted on driving you to and from
work."
Emi blushed. "Ah... yes, it was really nice of Zagato to do that."
Eagle hid a snicker and Kuu managed an innocent look - 'nice' was
definitely the understatement of the year. Tatra simply gave a distracted
smile, not knowing what was going on.
"By the way, Emi, this is Tatra, she's been a classmate of mine
since grade school."
"Hello, I'm glad to finally meet Eagle's girlfriend."
This time, it was Tatra's turn to blush. "No, no, no, no. You got
it all wrong," Tatra shook her head, "We're just friends."
"The very best there is," Eagle threw in.
"Really?" Emi took note of their mixed reactions: Tatra was
blushing furiously; her sister was green with jealousy; and Eagle seemed
to be the only one who was blissfully unaware of the whole thing.
Emi smiled her most charming smile and invited them over, "Would
you two care to join us for some tea?"
* * *
Eagle insisted on carrying both their bags as they made their way
to Tatra's house. He noted that the sun was already down and the air was
starting to get quite chilly. If it were earlier, they would have spent
an hour or two sitting at the grassy incline by the river, just talking.
"So, you mean to tell me that Emi is your brother's girlfriend?"
Eagle snapped out of his reverie, barely catching her question.
"Zagato and Emi? Yeah, it was quite a surprise when we found out about
it."
"Are you...," Tatra fidgeted, "... by any chance gonna be following
your brother's footsteps?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"C'mon, even you can't be that dense."
Eagle gave her a blank look.
_Okay, so maybe he IS that dense._
"Kuu. She really... likes you," Tatra had great difficulty getting
that last part out.
"So do you," he replied flippantly.
Tatra stopped dead in her tracks and stared at him.
_The jerk! All this time he knew how I felt and...!_
"What?" Eagle saw the panic in her face and thought she was making
faces at him, "Hey, I can't be THAT bad." He frowned.
_He doesn't know._
"I mean, you're a girl and you hang around with me." Eagle tucked
her arm against his as they continued to walk.
_He knows!?_
"Sure, your sister hates my guts, but then that's a different
matter all together."
_He IS dense._ She sighed to herself.
They stopped in front of Tatra's house. Unknown to both of them, a
pair of shrewd eyes watched them from the upstairs window.
"Eagle, can't you find one thing, just one good thing to say about
my sister?"
"Hmmm..." Eagle scratched his chin.
"Well?" Tatra tapped her foot impatiently.
"Don't rush me! I'm thinking, I'm thinking..."
"C'mon, she can't be THAT bad!" she said, using his own words.
"Actually, she is."
"Please," she pleaded, "for me?"
Eagle heaved a defeated sigh. He glanced at the windows then looked
back at his friend. "She looks exactly like you."
Behind the curtains, Tarta stifled a gasp at his reply.
- It hurt.
- It wasn't supposed to, but it did.
- It shouldn't have meant anything to her, but it did.
"Damn you, Eagle Shido," she angrily wiped at her tears, "I hate
you."
She tried to turn away from the window but was compelled to watch
him wave her twin sister goodbye. "But I think I hate myself more."
* * *
"I'm home!" Hikaru hardly finished speaking when she suddenly found
herself flat on her back with a wet doggy tongue washing her face.
She laughed and tried to wrestle from beneath ninety pounds of
muscle, fur, and dog slobber. "That's enough, Hikari! I still have to
prepare dinner."
Her pet dog gave her face one final lick before backing away.
Hikaru went straight to her bedroom and changed into an old black
cable knit sweater and a pair of knee-length cut-off denims, both of
which she salvaged from her brothers' wardrobe. She went downstairs to
the kitchen, put on her red checkered apron and got started on the miso
chanko.
The sound of shinais clashing prompted her to glance towards the
dojo.
_Niisama must be working overtime with the team._
Ryudo's kendo varsity team sparred under Zagato's supervision
during Wednesdays and Fridays after class. He also served as the team's
coach during competitions.
"Owarimasho."
"Arigato gozaimashita, Sensei." The words signaled the end of the
session.
Zagato entered the kitchen to find his sister cooking. She had to
stand on a small wooden stool when she cooked, since the counter was a
bit too high for her.
"What's for dinner, Hikaru?" Zagato asked, thinking what an
adorable picture she made standing there.
"Miso chanko," she said, handing him the tasting dish.
"It needs more salt."
"By the way, Eagle said he's going to be late. He's walking Kuu
home."
Zagato nodded, he flexed his shoulders and winced. "Call me when
dinner's ready, I'll be in the bath."
"Niisama, did Lantis call to say if he was coming home tonight?"
she asked as she added a dash of salt into the soup.
"No," Zagato answered from the bathroom.
Hikaru covered the pot and turned down the heat to let the broth
simmer. She walked around the counter and reached for the phone to dial
the dorm's number.
"Hello."
"Hello, you've just reached the infamous Ryudo Boy's Dormitory. Who
would you like to talk to, miss? I would volunteer myself, of course,
since I happen to be the only one in this place worth conversing with.
But, if you prefer to talk with some poor degenerate, it's your loss -
and don't say I didn't warn you."
"I, unh... Lantis Shido, please."
There was a slight pause at the end of the line, then a coughing
sound.
"Ah - excuse me, but who should I say is calling?"
"His sister."
The moment she said the words, a wild riot erupted at the other end
of the line. Hikaru frowned and wondered what the commotion was all
about.
"Uhm... hello?" she started.
"Hi, I'm Zazu! You don't know me, but Lantis happens to be a
classmate of mine-" His next words were rather faint, but it sounded like
he was arguing with someone:
< "Give it back, you big buffoon!" >
< "Hmmm... I wonder who's at the other end of the line." >
< "Give it back, or I swear I'll take a chunk outta ya!" >
< "I'd like to see you try you - Aaack! Dammit! YOU BIT ME!" >
< "Don't say I didn't warn you!" >
"Where was I?" The voice was a bit muffled, but was the same that
answered. "Oh, yeah, weren't you the cute little redhead he-?"
There was another bout of skirmish over the phone, then silence...
"Hikaru?" a deep, familiar voice said at the other end of the line.
"Uhm, who is this?" she ventured tentatively.
"It's Geo. Don't pay any attention to that weirdo - there seem to
be a lot of them running around the dorm lately."
Hikaru giggled, "And am I talking to another one now?"
"Could be. Weirdness is a contagious disease around here, you
know."
"Is Lantis there?"
"He just left - he said he had to pick up some things on the way
home, so he'll be little late."
"Oh, well, thanks, Geo. Bye." Hikaru placed the phone back in its
cradle.
She fiddled with the worn edge of her apron and glanced at the wall
clock: 7:30... it was time she got back to her cooking.
* * *
"How's it going, Red?"
Hikaru looked up from her journal to see her brother lounging
against the doorframe. He was still in his uniform, with his dark blue
jacket slung over one arm.
"Have you eaten yet?" she asked, taking off her headphones as she
sat cross-legged on her bed.
Eagle nodded and sat down on the floor next to her bedside. "What's
that you're wearing? You look like you've been dressed by the Salvation
Army."
"Lantis gave me this sweater," Hikaru defended, "and these denims
used to be yours. Besides, I like them. They're very comfortable."
"You're almost sixteen. You're a girl, so start dressing like one."
"I don't intend to go out wearing these," she replied in a hurt
voice.
"I certainly hope not," eyeing the cutoffs with a grimace, "Mother
will probably turn in her grave if you did."
There was an awkward pause before Hikaru finally decided to change
the topic. "Did you remember to wash the dishes?"
Eagle decided to lighten the mood and gave her a lopsided grin,
"How could I not? You left them stacked on the sink with a neon post-it
telling me to wash them."
Hikaru laughed. "So, tell me, how'd it go?"
"How did what go? I told you I washed them already, don't you trust
me?"
"Not that! I meant you walking Kuu home."
"What exactly are you getting at?"
"Are you courting her?" she asked.
"So, what if I am, you jealous?"
Hikaru promptly whacked him over the head with a pillow. He
retaliated by grabbing her comforter and tossing it over her head. Hikaru
was laughing as she struggled to get it off. She managed to get her head
free but Eagle jumped on the bed and bundled the comforter around her,
trapping her hands to her sides.
"You look like a sushi!"
"Well, I sure feel like one!" She rolled off the bed as she
struggled against the confining folds and ended on the floor.
"Owwww! That hurts!" Hikaru grunted. "Get me out of this!"
Eagle was laughing so hard his stomach hurt. He heaved her over his
shoulder and slapped her bottom. "Stop wriggling, I might drop you!"
And he almost did - Eagle barely managed to regain his balance. He
paused for a moment, breathing hard as he clutched his chest in fright.
His sister, who was slung over his shoulder, caught sight of his
face in the mirror and started giggling hysterically. "Jeez, what a
klutz!"
"You ungrateful little brat!"
"Klutz!"
"Am not!"
"Are, too!"
"Yiikees!" Eagle lost his balance.
His first thought was to prevent Hikaru from hitting the floor. He
angled his body to absorb the impact as they fell with a resounding thud.
Hikaru blew her hair out of her eyes and looked down at her fuming
brother. "Told you so."
* * *
<Krack!>
"Eeep!"
<Krack-ack!>
"Owww!"
<KRACK!>
"Aaack!"
"That ought to take care of it," Zagato said as he started to put
things back in the first-aid kit.
Eagle bent his torso to the right. "Hey, it doesn't hurt anymore."
He bent backwards and heard a crick, "Ouch!"
Zagato leaned forward and pressed a pressure point, "There."
"Thank you, Niisama," Hikaru solemnly said, "It won't happen
again."
"It had better not," Zagato said, glaring at Eagle. "Next time you
decide to break your neck, tell me. I'll be more than happy to break it
for you." He closed the kit with a final snap then went out of the room.
"You okay?" She sat across Eagle on the sofa, just fresh from the
shower and clad in her pink silk pajamas. "I take it that the lecture's
over."
Eagle nodded. "He most definitely was not amused." He himself had
changed into a pair of sweatpants and was pulling on a T-shirt over his
bandaged torso. "Hey, want me to braid your hair for you?" he offered by
way of apology.
"Not just yet, my hair's still damp." She reached for the remote
control, "Wanna watch some TV?"
"Sure." Eagle made himself comfortable on the sofa.
He was surprised when Hikaru tossed him the remote and went off to
the kitchen. "Hey, I thought--"
"I'll just get some snacks, be right back." Hikaru paused in front
of the stairs, waiting for Zagato to come down.
"Niisama, you aren't really that angry at Eagle, are you?"
Zagato looked down at a pair of troubled amaranth-colored eyes - he
sighed and ruffled his sister's damp bangs. "No, just a bit... annoyed. I
just wish he'd be more responsible sometimes and start acting his age."
"But he is! I'd be the one with a broken rib if he hadn't taken the
full brunt of that fall!" Hikaru tugged at his sleeve. "Please, Niisama.
Don't be angry with him anymore, it was my fault-"
Zagato knew he couldn't refuse her and decided that Eagle was lucky
to have their sister on his side.
"Okay, you win." He knelt down to tweak her nose. "Now, how about
you helping me make some popcorn?"
Hikaru hugged her brother briefly, "Thanks." She stepped back and
gave him a winsome grin, "but let's just open that pack of wasabe
crackers instead - the show starts in two minutes."
* * *
It started raining.
He looked up and felt the raindrops against his face. Spring
showers have a way of sneaking up on you, but then a little rain never
hurt.
He shrugged his shoulders, paying no heed to the steady downpour
and continued walking.
The temperature dropped - he turned up his collar and was rather
thankful that he was wearing a trenchcoat instead of his jacket.
The rain continued to pour.
The wet pavement dully reflected the streetlights. He caught a
glimpse of himself in front of a store mirror. He was thoroughly
drenched: his hair was plastered against his forehead and his lips were
starting to turn blue from the cold. In one hand, he carried a duffel bag
full of laundry, and a bouquet of yellow daisies in the other.
God, he looked pathetic.
He should have gone home hours ago. Instead, he spent the whole
afternoon after class just wandering around town, not knowing what to do
or where to go. He strolled down the beach to clear his head, but all he
got was sand in his shoes. Heading back to town, he soon found himself
standing outside a flower shop and bought the daisies on impulse.
_The daisies?_
Their fragrance seemed more perceptible in the damp night air.
He wiped the florist clean of yellow daisies because the flowers
reminded him of her. He hoped she like daisies - then again, in a
perverse kind of way, he almost wished she'd hate them.
Who cares? He would end up dumping them in the trash anyway. Just
like he did with the last five bouquets that he never got to give her.
The rain stopped.
The sky was starting to clear up, but his thoughts were still
muddled as the puddle on the wayside.
Lantis exhaled a weary sigh and started on his way home.
* * *
The door opened just when he was about to knock.
"Welcome home." Zagato took one look at him and frowned, "You look
something like a cat dragged in."
"Wrof! Wrof!"
Zagato glanced down at Hikari sitting at his brother's feet and
amended, "Or, rather, a dog dragged in."
"Sorry, Niisama."
Zagato nodded. "You'd better change. There's some miso chanko
left."
"Not hungry."
"All right," Zagato's gaze fell on the flowers but said nothing -
instead he turned and headed for the stairs. "I'm going to bed. G'night."
Lantis heard a noise from the TV and headed for the living room.
There, he found Hikaru sitting on the sofa, leaning against Eagle. Both
of them were fast asleep.
He turned off the television and Eagle suddenly blinked awake.
"Huh? What was that?" His eyes fell on Lantis's disheveled
appearance. "Oh, it's you. From what sewer did you crawl out of?"
"Very funny," he grimly replied.
"Here, you can take Hikaru up to her room," Eagle mumbled on a yawn
as he gently eased his sister away from his side.
"Why don't you do it yourself?"
"Because I am in no condition to do so." He showed Lantis his
bandaged torso and grinned. "See? She almost broke my ribs this evening.
There's a good chance she'd end up breaking my back, too, if I carry her
up those stairs."
"I see," he finally conceded.
"Good. Take off your coat, you're dripping all over the floor,"
Eagle ordered, "and while you're at it-" and plucked the daisies from his
hand, "I might as well put these in water before they wilt."
Lantis was left staring down at Hikaru. She looked so peaceful,
curled up on her side with one hand beneath her cheek.
He leaned down to scoop her up in his arms and headed up the
stairs.
He entered her room and laid her gently on the bed, careful not to
wake her up. He turned on the bedside lamp. The sight of her hair strewn
across her pillow drew his hand. Combing his fingers through the red
tresses, he plaited her hair in a loose braid and tied it with a ribbon
he found on her bedside drawer.
Lantis smiled, a sad bittersweet smile, "Goodnight, Hikaru."
The room was once again plunged in darkness and the door closed
with a soft click.
- end of chapter 2 -
=======================================================================
Okay, now everyone knows who's annoyed with whom, who's got the thing
for whom and who's currently involved with whom. Or do you?
Don't ask me who's gonna end up with whom.
These characters have an irritating habit of chasing someone who's
supposed to be meant for somebody else. I don't know if it's hormones,
true love or just a conspiracy to make this fic more complicated than
I planned it to be.
By the way, no amphibian was mutilated in the making of this fic.
=======================================================================
find all of TtLG at http://nikholas-f-toledo-zu.webjump.com/thrulg.html
=======================================================================
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Nikholas F. Toledo Zu @ WWW: The Entertainment Capital of UP Village
Vector, Switch, Yebah, Rain Man, goo, Pervert, Scruples, Hollie, NomaD,
Blitz, Gee, Datzo, Jewel, elf, Radler, Pinball, Mayhem, Chaos, Father,
Attar, Llewe and Katana @ http://nikholas-f-toledo-zu.webjump.com/ OLD!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------