Missed me? well, I'm back so no worries well, I could go on and on with excuses, but I don´t really feel like writing it and I'm sure you aren't very interesting. But just two words: moving and school. Yes! I´ve moved againU I guess I´m feeling what Hitomi is at first had, but thankfully my first day wasn´t as bad as hers…;; and well, every year gets harder, so you can Imagine the life of a high school student…(my other school was so much easier…not fair)

Well, I hope you've all had a good summer and a happy Halloween! (the story seems to fit the mood, ne?) today is the day of the dead, so it's okay too. Today was the American election (vote or die!) let´s just hope that the Americans have made the best decision for their country. Well, I´m posting the chapter now because I can´t stand looking at it and not post it. So I´ll re-post this chapter again with the review response (same thing for chapter 8) so now you can finally read chapter 8! Haha, took long enough, didn´t it? sigh

Well, I would like to thank all of the readers that have been reading and reviewing from the start, thank you! I´m sorry that you´ve had to wait for so long for the chapters to come, but as I have said this before, I don´t plan on leaving this story unfinished, even if it takes me years! (which I hope not) and also thank you for the lovely reviews and e-mails, really guys, it makes me so happy and I´ll let you in on a secret…it gives me inspiration to write! So I would like to dedicate this chapter to those special people that have been patient and understanding for this story to come out so far. And I would like to give special thanks to Aleqz. Thank you so much for supporting me, it really means a lot to me, so, thanks

Okay, let´s get on with the show!

Mediator Hitomi

Chapter nine-Disastrous First Day of School

I woke up with a shrilling noise that bombarded my fragile ears. I placed my hand over my throbbing head. Damn. My hand searched blindly for the alarm clock as it continued to ring and when I found it, I wasted no time and smacked the little devil silent. Blinking my eyes to rid off the sleep, I looked at the ceiling. I heaved a sigh in annoyance. I hate being woken from my sleep. But since there was nothing I could about since I was awake, I started my morning routine and stretched my body with my arms over my head as I prepared myself for a new day.

Yawning I sat up in my bed and I squinted my eyes and tried to remember the events from the night before. I rubbed my stomach as a yawn escaped my lips once again. Turning to my side I grunted and continued to cave my mind. Once my conscience was awake and I was aware of what happened, I closed my eyes. I groaned from the lack of sleep and covered the duvet over my head trying unsuccessfully to block the penetrating light that consumed the room. I squirmed under the covers trying to fall back asleep. Realizing that the attempt was futile, I peeked my head from under the duvet and mustered a silent curse as my eyes drooped a little.

I glanced at the window and noticed the bright light seeping through the curtains as they seemed to dance with the wind blowing softly. The day was young and I could see the sun high and smiling down at me. I cocked my head to one side and frowned as something felt odd. I slowly sat up on my bed and rubbed my head. I caved through my brain and glanced around the room for some clue until stupidly I looked at the clock and stared at the blinking numbers at me. Suddenly I remembered the voice of my mother trying to wake me up before I was mentally capable of leaving my warm bed. Something flashed through my mind and my eyes grew large at the realization of the time. Shit.

"SHIT!!"

The house shook for a moment, and Mizuki glanced at the top of the stairs with amusement dancing in her eyes, "Well, it seems like Hitomi is awake."

I grumbled under my breath as I waved good-bye to my traitorous mother as she drove back home and left me standing in front of the school gates alongside my good buddies Brain, Barbie Boy, and Bookworm. I swiftly started to stride through the gates and to what I presumed the school office. My face was twisted in a scowl as I groused about annoying mothers and their weird ways of helping.

You see, during the middle of the night—and I have no idea what my mother means by the 'middle of the night', since I had slept really late—she had sneaked inside my room and changed my alarm clock about thirty minutes ahead. So instead of being 8:15am (school starts at 8:30am) it was really 7:45am. I didn't know if I wanted to smack my mother on the head or kiss her. Choosing to be rebellious and annoying, I chose the foremost.

I could faintly hear footsteps quicken its pace and growled quietly once I knew who it was. Barbie Boy quickly fell into pace with me and had a wolfish grin plastered on his face as he swung one arm over my shoulder and pulled my body flush to his and said in a cocky voice, "Geez, Hitomi, you should have seen your face this morning, it was priceless! You almost made me piss in my pants!"

Ignoring the uncomfortable proximity, I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth. Barbie Boy started to laugh like a hyena as I´m sure he remembered the sense when I came rushing into the kitchen with my shoes in hand and my kipper open and my hair uncombed with a open mouth look when I discovered the actual time. I tried to control my anger but sadly, Barbie Boy was one of those people that brought out the worst in me, and I'm glad he did.

I snapped my head towards his cackling face and without a thought I swung my fist to his face. Barbie Boy choked on his laughter and fell back hard against the grass. His surprised eyes looked at my smug expression as I passed him. He barked loudly as I continued to walk, "What's got up your ass!?" I halted on my steps and turned back to him with a frightening glare. Barbie Boy quickly shut up and ran passed muttering 'sorry' as he passed by me. My lips quirked upwards as I shook my head and continued walking.

I looked as I stepped inside the school building and felt odd as people were reunited after the summer and continued with their lives where they had always been. I turned my head away as some students noticed me and regarded me with curiosity. My eyes glanced over the doorplates until my eyes stopped at 'School Office'. My hand hesitated for a moment and I gulped nervously as I turned the knob. The door creaked slightly, and I stepped inside the cool office.

The room was small; there was the secretary's desk, two couches with a coffee table piled with magazines, and the principal's office. I sat down quietly as I looked at the secretary munching on a chocolate. She grinned to herself as she was reading a magazine while her plump fingers she scooped another chocolate from the box and popped inside her mouth.

I glanced towards the clock and noticed my class would start in about ten minutes. Apparently noticing she was not the only person inside the room, the fat lady licked her thumbs and stored away her chocolate and shoved away her magazine. Her eyes swept towards me and made a nod acknowledging my presence, "Are you new here, honey?"

I nodded slowling as I felt my throat dry and I couldn't stop fidgeting with my fingers as I crossed the room and stood in front of the lady's desk as she searched for something. Her eyes widened behind her thick glasses as she picked up a paper and squinted her eyes as she read silently. She looked at me with a calculating look, "Are you Hitomi Kanzaki?"

I nodded my head, "Yeah."

The lady looked at me curiously, "It's very rare to see a transfer student in this school, and even less in high school," the woman glanced at the clock, "I'll be right back." The woman pushed herself from her chair and with heavy footsteps she walked towards the door behind her that said 'Principal'. A few moments later she came out again and smiled at me warmly, "You may go in."

I smiled nervously and it had crossed more than once to spring out the door and run all I was worth outside this school. I stopped momentarily outside the door and contemplated whether I should really enter the room or not. I was about to open the door when it was swung open and I was met with a tall and broad man. I stepped backwards to take his full height and was quickly thinking to proceed with my thoughts.

The man looked at me hard and cunningly and stepped back as well. Do I have something on my face or something? Suddenly he smiled happily and squinted his eyes, "Hellooo there! And welcome to our school! Please, do have a seat," he mentioned as he stepped inside and indicated the chair in front of a very messy desk. I quickly sat down as my heart raced. He skipped back to his seat and swung from one side to the other.

If I weren't so nervous I would have actually considered it funny to see such a huge man swing from side to side like a kid, but I kept a straight face as the man continued to ponder with his eyes closed and still swinging in his seat, "So….," the man said as he opened his eyes grabbed a sweet from the jar that stood right next to me, "you're the new student Hitomi. I've spoken to your mother –lovely woman by the way– and I know what happened back in New Jersey, right? Right. Want one?" the man offered in a childlike voice as he held the jar in his hand and looked at me with the lollypop hanging from his mouth. I shook my head slowly and he shrugged, setting the jar back to its place.

As the man started to shuffle through his desk in search, I presume, of my records, I examined him quietly. The man was awfully tall, and made me wonder how he didn´t bump his head against the doorframe. He had tanned skin and dark and thick black hair and two dark eyes. He had a mustache, and full lips and a thin face. But the thing that attracted me the most was this large scar that ran from his right eyebrow to his cheek. I quickly distracted myself as I noticed I had been staring at him more than I should have.

The man opened my records and his eyes glided through the pages and made sunny noises form the back of his throat as he nodded his head. He would stop once and a while and glance at me, and turn to the next page as he continued to suck on the candy inside his mouth. He closed the folder and looked at me with understanding. He grinned and abruptly slapped his head, "Oh! Silly me! Here I am reading all I about you when I haven't even presented myself! Well, I'm Mr. Bulgus, but really, just call me Mr. B," the man grinned as he extended his hand to shake.

I looked at his hand for a while and didn't even notice I was staring until Mr. Balgus looked at me with laughter dancing in his eyes, "Ya know, I won't bite you." I blushed and quickly shook his hand. How embarrassing! I turned my face to the side and looked outside the window as he laughed, "Don't worry. Everyone is nervous during their first day of school." Mr. Balgus stopped swinging from his chair and said to me, "We're glad you've come to our school, I'm sure you're going to enjoy it," he paused and looked at me, "our community is a very quiet and peaceful one." I nodded my head and looked down at my hands.

"Now…" said Mr. Balgus as he picked a few papers, "Let's talk about your schedule."

I shut my eyes and sighed as the door closed behind me as Mr. Bulgas said, "Good luck, kiddo." I opened my eyes and stared at the paper clutched between my fingers. I bit my lip nervously and was uncertain what to do next. I slowly loosened my hold and looked at the piece of paper. I slowly unfolded the paper and gazed at my schedule. Thursday, first block: English, Room 723. I turned my head back to the office, debating with myself if I should burst back in the room and ask for directions or not. I slapped myself mentally. Idiot, pull yourself together.

Funny how going to school seems more frightening than facing ghosts after my skin. I snorted imagining a horror movie, Teachings of Terror. 'No teacher, please, anything but that! Anything but the homework, no, no!!!' I shook my head and concentrated at my task at hand. I started walking brusquely with my head held straight. The patio and the halls were deserted and I cursed under my breath as more than once a thought that a ghost could be floating around troubled me. It was almost impossible to ignore the silence that I could even hear the wind blowing!

I shuddered and walked more quickly as I began to feel desperate as the numbers only seemed to be so far away. 578…621…. 689…705… My heavy footsteps clicked loudly as my heart pounded against my eardrums. I began to slow down as I noticed the English room was only five doors ahead. I was suddenly out of breath and paused as I felt my legs throb. I guess I didn't know I had been holding my breath that long.

As I continued to regain my composure, I swore that I herd something. There was a distinctive noise that not too long ago I was faced with. A whimpering noise caught my attention and my eyes roamed across the hall and found it the same way it was before: deserted. I started to feel a dreadful sensation tug inside my stomach as I continued to hear a sniveling noise coming from not so far away. I noticed next to me there was a girl's lavatory. Interesting that I didn't notice that sooner. I looked at the knob of the door as the sound seemed to become louder, as if it was chanting me to follow it…I shuddered despite myself and gripped the knob fiercely. I must be going insane. I blinked. Oh yeah, I am insane. Sluggishly I turned the knob and jerked it forward. I swallowed as I poked my head inside the lavatory.

Facing her back towards me, I noticed a girl hunched over the sink balling her eyes out. The girl hiccupped every now and then to stop the crying, but it seemed fruitless as more tears were spilt and I felt a pang of shame as I continued to look at her at such an embarrassing moment. When I was about to shut the door back again, the face of the girl snapped back and looked at the mirror. I forgot to breath at that moment.

The face of the girl was as white as a ghost and her violet bloodshot eyes were staring back at herself. Her blonde hair was plastered to her wet face as she began to hiccup again. My eyes widened. It's her again! I can't believe it; even here she can't leave me alone! All the fear and sympathy I felt was drained away and before I was able to call out to the ghost, she said in a very weak voice, "Oh, Marlene…" her eyes saw something in the mirror and swirled around to see my head peaking out the door.

I didn't care if it was a ghost or not, I could only remember that I had never left a lavatory and gone to a classroom so fast and with such enthusiasm. My eyes spotted the English room and in a heartbeat I yanked the door open.

"And so has…" the voice of the professor died out as he glanced his eyes towards me with an evident surprise behind his thick glasses. I stood outside holding the door ajar and breathing heavily with my cheeks burning brightly that I might have resembled a Christmas tree. The teacher regarded me for a moment and than he smiled sadly, "Well, it seems we have a new student." I rather felt than heard the whole class turn their eyes at me with interest and the hushing sound that filled the air as the room became silent. My cheeks burned deeper and with a nervous glance I looked back at the lavarotory in hope to see the ghost come out again and take me away from here. My thought was interrupted when a calm voice called out to me, "Come in."

I snapped back to the real world and came face to face with the teacher that somehow was next to me guiding me by the arm towards the room. I looked at him with my mouth gaped and looked back at the lavatory in a desperate plea. Traitor. The teacher grinned at me and said again in his wheezing tone, "It's all right, first days are always the worst." I felt a lump in my throat as my eyes moved towards the classroom. The students looked at me closely and I could see some girls whispering to each other and scrutinize me with a mixture of curiosity and distaste. I rolled my eyes and ignored the students as I shuved my hands inside my pockets.

"Welcome to English class for eleventh grade, where you find that words are not as scary as they seem!" the teacher laughed but quickly coughed embarrassedly when everyone remained quiet and still staring at me. His smile faltered slightly and looked back at me, "I'm Mr. Mole."

"Hitomi Kanzaki," I whispered as I noticed his pink pointy noise and rough skin that reminded me of a creature that suited his name more than it was hoped for. He was a man around his mid-forties, with white thin hair tied to a ponytail and a large abdomen that weighted down his belt and he wore plain and creased clothes. His eyes were small and beady, and he had large front teeth that stood out like a rabbit. He was a peculiar man, as he stood next to me with his scruffy appearance and his two front teeth sticking out as the students continued to stare at me.

The professor seemed pleased and waved his hands for me to come closure, "Come, come. Choose a seat so we can get on with the class," Mr. Mole motioned the empty desks around the classroom. I looked uncertainly around the room until my eyes lay on the seat closest to the window and farthest away from the whispering girls that were still looking at me oddly. I quickly made my way to my seat and crossed my arms over my chest.

"All right…now, I hope all of you help your new classmate around," Mr. Mole nodded towards me and at the mention everyone snapped their eyes at me. I hate schools. I huffed in annoyance in my seat as some students continued to stare at my face as if I had grown another head. I mean, really, is there something on my face? They've been looking at me that way since I've set foot inside the room. I began to contemplate whether I should pound the next student that dared to look back at me or if I should rather wring their little necks. Umm…both options seemed so tempting.

"And now," began with a cough Mr. Mole as he started to walk towards the white board with a marker at hand, "Can anyone—" Mr. Mole was once again interrupted as the door flew open. Mr. Mole sighed and looked at the intruder that stood quietly outside the classroom. A frail figure stepped inside the class and everyone seemed to whisper quietly as they continued looking at her with concern. The girl's shoulder rose every now and than with both hands holding tightly in front of her jeans. It was quiet hard to see her face as it was hidden behind her mass of fair hair. My eyes widened, it's her!

Mr. Mole walked carefully towards the girl and said in a caring tone but still wheezing, "Feeling better?"

The girl nodded slowly and Mr. Mole smiled slightly and faced the board again, "Now, as I was saying…"

The girl lifted her head up and she instantly saw me. I could tell that her eyes had widened, but she quickly looked down and sat close to the whispering girls as they surrounded her and caressed her shoulder caringly.

I squirmed in my seat as the girl continued to look at me without embarrassment. I could almost tell she wasn't blinking. I closed my eyes and wished people would just stop looking at me like that!

"Look at you in what way, Miss Kanzaki?" asked Mr. Mole amusingly as many of the students sent snickers headed for me.

I blushed as I pulled my arm down and cursed under my breath as I didn't notice my thoughts were verbalized out loud. I mumbled something and looked towards the window with a solemn look on my face. How embarrassing. Did I mention that I hate school?

Finally! The bell has rung! I didn't wait a minute longer, I was out the door practically skipping as I headed anywhere but the English classroom. I sighed in relieve as I passed many unknown faces that weren't staring at me throughout the whole class period, I was almost humming in joy. I slowed my pace as I closed my eyes. One class down, five to go. I opened my eyes as I felt someone bump against me. "I'm sorry!" I held the person's arm as she steadied herself.

The girl smiled, "It's okay," the girl looked at me and cooked her head to the side, "are you new?"

I blinked, "Uh, yeah."

Something flashed before her eyes, "Ah, I see," the girl began to move and pasted me by as she flipped her almost white hair over her pale skin.

I looked oddly at her but shrugged it off as I took out my schedule and examined it. I squinted my eyes as I tried to read where my next class was.

"Do you need help?" The same girl asked me as she strode back towards me. Her eyes looked amusedly at me as she stood next to me with her books in front of her.

Examining the schedule for the last time I looked at her, "No, I think I'm okay."

Her eyes shone brighter as a sly smile graced her lips, "I'm sure, especially with your schedule upside down."

I flushed as her words proved to be right, "No wonder I didn't understand a thing…"

The girls giggled, "Well, are you still certain you don't need my assistance?"

"Uh, I think I might need it after all," I said in embarrassment. You just can't make a fool of yourself for one second, can you? I laughed as well and smiled at the girl, "Thanks. It's nice to find someone that is not looking at me as if I grew another head. My name is Hitomi Kanzaki."

The girl's violet eyes sparkled mischief, "Pleasure, it's nice to find someone that isn't contaminated by the common virus known as popularity." The girl swirled around and started to walk again but looked over her shoulder at me and smiled, "are you coming or what? You don't want to be late for your chemistry class, do you?"

I flushed once again as I ran next to her.

The girl smiled again and glanced sideways at me, "By the way, the name's Sora Baker."

well, not much has been answered (sorry, sorry!) but, you have met a few new characters. haha, there doesn't seem to be many stories that have Mr. Mole, and I just thought it would be funny to have him as the English teacher. Imagine that? (his voice says it all!!) and we have Mr. Bulgus and Sora. Yeah, yeah, Sora is from the movie, but still you´ll also find out she has a very important role in the story hint hint

and to solve the confusion with the ghost problem: it was not Eries, it was in fact….Marlene! well, this chapter should have given the hint, but whatever I am glad some people figured that out, but if you didn´t, that´s okay too, all of Aston girls have blonde hair and blue eyes, it's understandable :p now, next chapter, I guarantee, you´ll see the relation between Millerna, Marlene, and Eries. I have no idea when chapter ten will be ready so enjoy chapter nine in the mean time! Gotta go and finish my homework and wake up really early! Have a great week and if you have any questions I can answer, you can do so by e-mailing me so you don´t die from anticipation before the next chapter is posted! Ja! waves

ps-some people have been confused why I had written th last chapter as 'Disastrous First Days of School'. That´s because the original idea was to add this chapter as well because I was desperate to post it and I felt the chapter wasn´t long enough. Well, I wasn´t expecting to take this long and I didn´t know that the chapter would turn out this long, and the first day hasn´t even ended. Lol. Well, as someone has said to me once, it doesn't matter the length of the chapter, it matters when it´s ready to stop. So there, chapter nine will stay the way it is and I can busy myself with chapter ten now

hitomi-chan

2/11/04