Note: I found the edit button! It's in stealth mode next to the report button. xD
Edit: Removed all the -chans.
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Index
Bright Lights and Dark Angels - Part 1, below
Close Encounters of a Miki-kind - Part 2
Into the Bat-cave - Part 3
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Bright Lights and Dark Angels - Part 1
I sit on a bench outside the school grounds with my face in my hands, my eyes hurt and I have a headache that isn’t going away. I wish I had something that would kill the pain instantly, but everything I have takes at least an hour or two to kick in. I heave a sigh as I listen to the world around me. The bus that bought me to the school is just now traveling out of earshot, people behind me are moving into the school grounds, and, I can hear the wind rustling the trees all around me. It would actually be quite pleasant if my head didn’t hurt so damn much.
Eventually my surroundings grow quite except for the occasional songbird off in the distance. I was told someone would come help me around the school within half an hour, but it’s been at least an hour since I got off the bus.
Help me. I dislike those words; with my condition I need it a lot. I hate feeling helpless and weak… and the light presence of my compacted cane sitting on my lap reminds me of it too much. But sometimes during the day I can’t get around without it. I have tried using extra-dark sunglasses, but they are useless, even with them on, my world is washed in painful whiteness.
“Umm…” says a soft feminine voice to my left. “Are you Harada Matsuri?” She asks with just a hint of a foreign accent. It’s kind of cute actually. I look up, squinting through the brightness at the feminine form beside me. I can tell she has dark hair and dark skin, and why are her legs shining like they are metal?
“…yes,” I respond, dropping my head back into my hands. I don’t care if I sound rude or standoffish right now. I just want to go someplace dark and wait for my painkillers to rid me of this migraine.
“Oh… well, um… I’m Molly. Molly Kapur… I was told to show…” She screeches to a verbal halt, obviously seeing the cane in my lap. I can’t help but smirk a little. She wouldn’t be the first to assume I’m blind. I hate the feeling though, I wish I was a normal girl that could see in the day time. I let out a heavy sigh and set up. I stuff the cane in my purse and try to look at her but all I see is white and a ghostly shadow of the girl standing before me.
“It’s ok… I’m not really blind. I just can’t see worth... anything during the day.” The ghost in front of me visibly relaxes.
“Ah… oh, ok,” she mumbles trying to figure out where she left off. “Oh! I’m Molly.” She states again.
“Yeah, you told me your name already.” A cloud passes across the sun and for a moment I can see the girl fade into view and the cute blush that’s washed across her face. She has sienna brown skin and wide dark brown eyes. Full lips that are painted red, but her skin colour makes it more of a black-cherry colour. Her chocolate coloured hair is long and braided into two tails that sit over her shoulders. She’s wearing a black camisole-top that’s edged in pink, and a pair of jean shorts that expose what’s left of her legs. Her stumps are covered in black socks and attached to a pair of metal prosthetics, with the feet inside a pair of running shoes. Before I can take in more of her, the sun assaults me and Molly turns back into a ghost.
“Oh… well, welcome to Yamaku. I was told to show you around the campus and answer your questions… do… do you have any?” I get up and adjust my t-shirt and brush off the butt of my jeans. I pick up my purse and sling the strap over one shoulder. Molly is definitely taller than me, not that I expected her to be shorter. At 152 centimeters, just about everyone in Japan is taller than me. She takes my hand and gently leads me into the world of this disabled school where I am going to spend the next couple years of my life.
“Is there someplace dark I could sleep for ‘til night?” I ask with a bit of a smile, I can’t tell how she reacts to my joke, except that she is quiet - until we arrive under a huge oak tree that’s casting a welcome shade around it. My sight slowly fades into view, still fuzzy and washed out, but I can see the buildings and some people making their way around the environs. Taking up most of the scenery before me is the school itself, three stories high, with an auxiliary building and what must be the administrative building. I don’t know how I come to that conclusion; it just has an office-feel to it.
“Better?” She asks brightly, I look up to see she has a really pretty smile, her dark eyes seem to sparkle with the reflected sunlight. She’s almost flat-chested, but with a curviness that makes up for her lack of a bust. My own breasts are big enough that I could easily share half of them with her and still fill out my t-shirt nicely. I wouldn’t mind having a couple more centimeters in height in trade though, maybe I wouldn’t feel so… tiny.
I sigh in annoyance at my stature and reply: “a little, yes.” I rub at my left eye, that one always seems to hurt the worst. “So… where to first?” I ask. I don’t really care I just want to get this tour over and go to my room. I’m sure my room will have heavy curtains. Then I can nail them down and prevent them from being opened. She smiles sweetly and plays with one of her long braids, looking about as if she too is new here and isn’t sure what to do with herself.
“Well, I am sure you need to visit the nurse’s office, all new students go there. But seeing as a bunch of you just got here, he is probably swamped, so… umm…” she trails off, looking lost in thought. The sun takes that moment to peak through the foliage and I am blind again. I must have made a sound because she has her hand on my shoulder. “Are you ok?” She asks alarmed, did I really sound that bad? I don’t even remember making any noise. My headache fades to a more tolerable, but not totally ignorable pounding at the back of my head. My meds should be kicking in any time now. Or so I hope.
“I…” I mumble in a pained gasp. “I’ll be okay in a moment.” I reply, hoping I sound believable. I must have because she sighs a moment later and her hand slides off my shoulder. Her fingers are soft and gentle, I notice as my heart pounds loudly in my ears. I think I've always liked girls over boys, though I didn’t really notice my attraction for them until I was 14 and found myself daydreaming about my old school’s most popular girl. Am I weird? I wonder idly as Molly takes my hand again and leads me away from the wonderful shade of the tree and into the hateful sunlight.
Bye my friend. I say to the tree silently, glancing over my shoulder at the shade longingly.
“I know where we can go… it’s not a usual stop in the tour, but this is my favorite place in the whole school.” She tramps me across the commons and into the school itself. In here it is both cool and the lighting muted; school hasn’t started for the year yet so it’s empty as well. I let out an audible sigh and slump against the wall, bracing myself against the handrail. My vision fades in from the edges, the white being eaten away like someone is painting in the world around me. It’s a strange feeling, but eventually, Molly’s smiling face greets me instead of the outline of her body like moments ago.
“Are you okay?” She looks a bit curious and a bit concerned at the same time. I bet she is wondering what is wrong with me. Wait, didn’t I tell her I’m day-blind? I think I did… between the headaches and the sun torturing me, it’s hard to keep things straight. I smile as I feel the pain in my head melt away and the pressure behind my eyes lessens. Thank you sumitriptan, I love you.
“Yeah, I’m okay now… medicine just kicked in.”
“Good… we’re going outside.” I groan and Molly giggles. “I think you will like this though.”
As it turns out, she was right. I like the idea associated with where she had taken me. We’re back outside, but inside a shed that’s situated at the back of the roof of the main building. Inside, sits a telescope - several of them actually. A few folding chairs, and some other associated odds and ends for stargazing also occupy the shed. “Welcome to the Astronomy Club!” She exclaims cutely, her smile a little shy but excited at the same time.
I blink up at the girl; she definitely looks like she would be in such a thing, she gives off a nerdy vibe. Not that it’s a bad thing.
“It’s kinda small… and cramped.” I note off-handed, not totally serious. She giggles, one hand covering her mouth, the other playing a bit nervously with a braid.
“Well, were not in here at night.” She teases, looking about the place, I feel an awkward silence about to descend upon us and narrow my eyes up at her. Being several centimeters shorter my intended glare loses its punch.
“Are you trying to recruit me to your club..?” I accuse with a smile to let her know I'm not serious. I would mind if she was though - I generally love anything at night… well almost anything. I don’t think I would like being mugged any time of the day or night. I blink and bring myself back to the blushing Molly and her cute awkwardness.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about Matsuri.” She replies innocently, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “Anyway, how about we go and continue our tour?” She pulls me out of the shed and back into the daylight, but thankfully a side-effect of my pain meds is that it reduces sensitivity to bright light… I remember being told once that it’s more commonly used for treating seizures, but it’s being cocktailed with my headache medicine. Honestly though, I don’t care if they used it to treat stupidity as long as it works.
Ah! A medicine for stupid people… I’d be rich if I could make something like that! I could use the money and build an underground paradise and never have to see the sun again!
My day is spent in the pleasant company of Molly and her occasionally clunking metal legs. I have images of robotic Mollys marching in formation flitting through my mind and can’t help but giggle at the thought. She looks at me curiously, but doesn’t ask, she seems to enjoy my company and just smiles as she shows me around. I wonder as we arrive at the nurse’s office if she was born that way, or if she lost them in an accident.
“Okay! Last stop, then we can go to your room… or you can, and I’ll…” She trails off again. I notice she does that a lot. Is she scatterbrained, or does she just not think about her sentences ahead of time?
“Go to your room?” I offer.
“Yeah! Though, I was thinking more about going to supper. We’ve been running around for hours.” That we have, and at the mention of food I notice just how hungry I am. I haven’t eaten anything since that morning when I left home. But before I can put more thought into it, a man that looks no older than 25 opens the door with a big grin.
“I was wondering if you two were going to spend all day out here talking, or were going to come in.” He says in a manner I can only take as teasing. He’s cute enough I suppose, if you like men. Black hair that’s practically indigo, and a somewhat fox-like face. He seems kind.
“How are your knees, Molly?” He asks as we sit down on a pair of stools, I can hear her knees crackle as she bends them behind their prosthetics. She pretends to not have heard it. “Are they giving you any troubles? No swelling, rawness, or rashes? No bleeding?” She shakes her head no several times, trying not to look embarrassed. She’s doing a horrible job, her fingers of her right hand playing with a braid, occasionally her other hand joining in. I’m surprised she doesn’t have a head full of split ends.
Wait, bleeding? So she was in an accident? I wonder how recently. I notice belatedly that they have both fallen silent and are looking at me. I blink and stand up and give a polite bow, feeling embarrassed butterflies springing to life in my stomach.
“Harada Matsuri. Please take care of me.” The nurse grins widely and waves at me to sit down.
Okay… Matsuri.” He says to himself as he scoots back in his wheeled chair and sorts through a stack of new folders. “I was wondering if I would have to hunt you down and bring you in on a leash… all the other new students have shown up already.”
“Ummm…” Is all I can say, and then: leash? That sounds a bit kinky. I blush and glance at Molly who giggles. God, everything she does is cute.
“Right, right.” He breaks into my thoughts like a… thought-thief. Suddenly his fox-like appearance makes sense… or is that tanuki? Then an unwanted image pops into my head and I am nauseated and giggling at myself at the same time.
“Sorry…” I laugh, trying to control myself. Nurse just grins while Molly is laughing as well, I guess it’s infectious.
“Right… anyway. Have your eyes been giving you much trouble?” He glances at Molly and then at the door. She stares at him confused, and then blushes as comprehension brightens her dark eyes.
“Oh! I need to use the bathroom…” Nice save Molly, I congratulate her silently. The nurse continues on when the door closes.
“My eyes are always giving me trouble… I hate sunlight.” I mutter finally. “I can’t do anything during the day without a constant headache.” I reach in my purse and toss the sunglasses on his table. “Those are useless. I can’t see with or without them.” I feel bitterness creeping into my voice and I hate myself for it. There are people worse off than me and I am complaining about sunglasses.
“Hmm… well, we could paint the lenses black.” He offers with a hopeful grin. I glare at him, and he rubs the back of his head feeling a little awkward. Good, that was an awful joke and you should feel ashamed. He sighs in mock-dejection. “That was my best one too…” A smile twitches my mouth, but I quickly suppress it, hoping he doesn’t see.
“So, how about your medications?” What about them, I want to ask. But I don’t think sarcasm will help get me out of her any faster, my stomach is growing quite insistent about getting something to eat, and I am getting pretty sleepy.
“I’m on naproxen and sumitriptan. It works like a charm when it finally kicks in.” I answer with a bit of relief as I remember how everything just kinda melted in my head earlier. It really is a wonderful feeling when my migraines just stop instantly like they were never there.
“How are you handling the side effects? Any muscle weakness, nausea or dizziness… sudden attraction to cute nurses?” I blink at the last part and blush, I can feel it spreading up my ears, I wonder if it shows like it feels. Does my face go red like a girl in an anime?
“I… I… umm… have Reglan for nausea. But, I don’t get sick much. I get weak in the knees sometimes, and have to sit down for a few minutes. Dizziness…” I remember back to when I first started taking my medications and the nasty spill I took down a flight of stairs back home in Shizouka. I feel my hand going up to the top of my head and stop it halfway. I’ve only gotten that dizzy a few times since then, but thankfully not at the top of stairs. “I think dizziness if my second worst enemy, next to the sun.”
The nurse chuckles and writes this all down. He goes over some notes written there as I fight off a yawn. “Alright Matsuri, looks like you are doing as well as could be expected. If you have any nasty spills or any other problems arise, please come see me. But for now, you are good to go.” I get up from my seat feeling a little tired and stiff, its then that the yawn wins and I cover my mouth. “And get a good night’s sleep if you can.” He adds on as I leave the office. Right, that’s going to be easy! I always sleep well in new locations… I had insomnia for three days when I was in the hospital.
“Ah, you’re done! I’m starving.” I am a little surprised that Molly waited for me. She didn’t have to, she could have gone to supper or whatever. I find it a little sweet. She grins and takes my hand as one of her prosthetics clunks metallically against the corner of the door, making her stumble. She falls forward but catches herself just in time on a hand rail. “Sorry… I’m a bit of a klutz.” She mumbles her apology, her hands once again on her braids. I wonder if she wears her hair like that to give herself something to play with, or if she started the nervous habit after she started wearing her hair like that…
She looks down at the door as if worried that she dented it. I’d be more worried about damaging my prosthetics! Maybe she has superhuman strength in her legs; that’s an amusing thought. I can imagine her bounding tall buildings and kicking down 60 centimeter thick doors instantly. I’m smiling like an idiot, but she doesn’t pay any attention as she chatters and leads me outside.
It’s dusk and my arch-nemesis has gone to bed for the night to plot my demise tomorrow… or whatever villains do when they go to bed. “…we should go into town sometime and get something to eat. There’s a couple restaurants down there and a convenience store, but not much else to do.” She seems to have been rambling on this whole time.
Hold on, when did we become friends? All this talk is what friends do. I mean, not that I mind, I could think of worse people I would rather spend all my time with; my cousin for instance. May he be eaten by tentacle-monsters. Molly turns back to me, having finally noticed I stopped, a quizzical look on her pretty face.
“Matsuri..?” She asks after a moment.
“Were… friends?” I say incredulously. Ack! I didn’t mean to say that out loud! Rewind! Delete! Purge! I wish there were such buttons in life. I feel myself squirming a little bit under her bemused gaze.
“Of course… I mean, you… we don’t have to hang out if… if you have someone else you’re friends with.” Oh crap, did I hurt her feelings? What do I do? I’ve never had friends before, I don’t know what to do! Do I hug her? That seems like a good idea.
She lets out a cute squeak as I wrap my arms around her and give her a light hug. I notice my head reaches up to her shoulders and that she smells like lilacs, and she’s really soft and warm. She giggles nervously and suddenly I feel like I stepped over a line. Oh no…
“I’m sorry! I just th… you looked… I-I-I didn’t…” My face feels like it’s going to melt as hot as it is. This is so embarrassing, what if she thinks I’m a weirdo? She probably does anyway.
“It’s okay!” She exclaims toying with her braids again, in the growing darkness, I can see the blush burnishing her dark cheeks. “Really. You… I mean, it felt kinda nice.” She turns around quickly, I can see her hands up at her mouth and she’s squirming a bit like she’s embarrassed. She’s too damn adorable for words. “Ah, I’m so hungry!” She suddenly exclaims. “I bet Miki has something to eat… lets go bug her. It’s too late to go into town anyway…”
So thank you for the reccomendations!