The table was in a raised dining area, the genkan behind and to one side and the kitchen next to that. Across the room from the couch and behind the black metal and glass coffee table was a black piano that gleamed dully. Light wood floors seemed to glow under buttery lights. To the left of the genkan from where she was Misao could see an old fashioned wood-and-paper sliding door that led to another part of the house.

She stirred and glanced at the walls around her. Black-and-white pictures of people in black frames hung on the walls in clusters. On the end table at the opposite arm of the couch was a black-and-white picture of a beautiful young woman. Her ebony hair was pulled back in a low ponytail and her bangs framed her cheeks. A tiny sad smile pulled at her lips. She was dressed in white overalls and a black t-shirt. Small spatters of paint covered the front of both shirt and overalls. Behind her in the photo were people, blurred in motion.

Misao craned her neck and caught a glimpse of a photo in the same style as the others sitting on the opposite end table of handsome young man with the same serious expression as the girl. Both had slim faces and straight noses. The young man was wearing a dark gray t-shirt with a black jacket. His eyes wore a far-off expression. Above him the a branch of cherry blossoms hung. A few pale petals floated around him. Tucked under his arm were a few books and a sketch pad. A large official-looking building brooded in the background.

This picture gave Misao a start. ‘It’s him!’ She realized. ‘The boy from before! His name… what’s his name!?’She glanced back up at the man at the table. She watched him raise a cup of tea to his lips and take a sip, and it all seemed to crash into place.

…five shadowy figures walking away…

…a forced smile…

…the smell of tea…

…ice blue eyes in a handsome face…

"…a young man that he placed his trust in. I think I understand it a little now…""A- Aoshi?" Misao whispered to herself in surprise, half-guessing. The young man turned.Blue eyes met from across the room. ‘BLUE EYES!!’ Both thought in shock."So you finally woke up," Aoshi said, rising and walking down the few stairs to perch on the coffee table. "How do you feel?"Misao slowly sat up and leaned against the cushions. "Okay, I think. A little sore and tired, but nothing that’s too serious."

Aoshi nodded, apperantly pleased with her diagnosis."Can you tell me what happened?" Misao asked."I was coming out of the building," Aoshi lied easily, "and I heard somebody scream. I went to the back of the school and found you in a bad situation. I tried to help out, and…"

"Where did you learn to fight like that?"

Aoshi blinked at her. "I should be asking you that. You’re so small, I thought for a minute you had tripped and didn’t have the strength to get back up when they found you." Misao glared at him. He raised his hands defensively. "Joking, joking.""Please, just answer my question.""I don’t know. I saw you in trouble and I couldn’t let you get hurt," Aoshi admitted."Thank you," Misao said around a yawn. She blinked her eyes owlishly at Aoshi.

"Why don’t you go back to sleep, Misao?" He suggested, rising. "I’ll be here when you wake up if you need anything." She nodded and yawned again, then curled up in the blanket. Aoshi heard her cry out and whirled around.Misao was sitting up on the couch, staring out the window. Below them, Tokyo spread out like a spider’s web covered in dew. Skyscrapers rose past them and smaller buildings clustered below them. Bright lights from businesses glowed in many colors. Preched above the entire scene a three-quarter moon hung over the skyline.

"I- It’s incredible," Misao breathed. She rose onto her knees and stared out the picture window in rapture. Aoshi returned to the couch and sat down on the back next to Misao."Beautiful, isn’t it," he said with a touch of nostalgia. "My sister found it for us before she died." Misao saw his eyes travel to the picture of the painting girl. "I’ve lived her for almost as long as I can remember."

"You’re so lucky," Misao pouted, resting her head on her arms, gazing up at Aoshi. "My house is one of those little dots out there somewhere." She pointed to a tall apartment complex, then waved her hand. "Somewhere," she repeated dismally."Which reminds me, Aoshi-kun. What time is it? Won’t your parents be upset when they see me?" She glanced down at herself as if to emphasise the fact that she was wearing a torn skirt and a leotard that was ripped on the back.

He shook his head. "They won’t be back for another week or two at least. My mother and father run a restaurant. They went to the sort of convention that restaurant owners go to.""Yeah, now there’s a convention for every damn profession." Next to her, Aoshi stiffened in surprise. "What’s wrong, Aoshi-kun?" Misao asked worriedly.

"How do you know my name?"

"I dunno," Misao shrugged. "I must have heard it around somewhere."

"How do I know you?" He whispered, his eyes widening.

"What?"

"I know things I about you I don’t know about any one else. You… you like watermelon." Misao gaped at him. "And you always want to help, but they never let you."

"I- I remember that," Misao whispered. "And you like it quiet. You’re always closed up in your room with a cup of tea. And you never show anybody any emotion, too," she added, slightly miffed.

"That’s not true," Aoshi snapped. "I show emotion all the time."

"Right," Misao drawled, turning to face Aoshi straight on, "you show aloofness, impassiveness and indiference all the time."Aoshi stared at her blankly. ‘Did I never show her I cared? Ever? She’s important to me…’ He stopped himself. ‘Why do I keep on acting like I’ve known her for so long?’ He asked himself irritably."I’m sorry," Misao said after a silent moment. "I just feel like I’ve known you forever. I shouldn’t be accusing you of things I don’t know about." She sat back down on the couch in sullen silence."What about you? Don’t you have a family to go back to?" Aoshi asked, rising and stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Jiya’s out of town on vacation," she answered shortly."And there’s no one else, is there," Aoshi said softly. Misao shook her head. "Then just stay here until your grandfather gets back. It won’t be safe for you to be going around alone. Those gangsters could come after you again."Misao looked up at him in surprise and thanks. "Really? Oh, thank you so much!" Before he could react, Misao had leapt up and thrown her arms around his waist and leapt back just as fast."It’s nothing," Aoshi told her in embarrassment. "I bet you haven’t eaten in a while, but I don’t have much."

"If you have ramen, I could make that for the both of us," Misao suggested. She sat up and pushed the blanket to one side. She glanced down at her torn and dirty skirt and her ripped leotard and mouthed a small ‘oops’. "Do you have my bag? I can put on my normal clothes," she suggested, gesturing to her outfit.

"I do," Aoshi said, "but the shirt got trampled. You’ll probably need a new one.""Oh…""But my sister went to Yakihata. She was small; her old uniform might fit you. C’mon," Aoshi said as he gestured her towards the paper door. Misao followed, pausing to grab her coat from the back of a chair and slip it on.The young man slid the doors back and stepped inside. Misao was amazed. ‘It’s like two different houses! One’s modern, the other’s old-fashioned.’ She was standing in the doorway of a large group of tatami rooms. One of the shoji doors was open on one side to expose a hall of dark wood with other rooms to both sides. There was a window seat to her right with storm shutters closed tight against the powerful updrafts from the lower stories of the apartment building.

Across the room Aoshi had rolled back one of the tatami mats and was lifting up a trap door. He pulled a chest out and lifted off the lid. Misao crossed the room and knelt at his side. "Are these your sister’s old things?" She asked."No, just old things. Our old school uniforms, old toys, just junk, mostly." He removed two winter coats from the top of the pile and set them to one side, then took out a blouse and skirt similer to the Yakihata uniform. "I guess I was wrong," Aoshi muttered, refolding them."Oh, I can fix that. I’m good with my hands." Misao swiftly lifted the cothes out of Aoshi’s hands. "I can use my scarf from my uniform and just tie it instead of this red one," she explained, deftly removing the bright red scarf that was on the old uniform. "And I’m sure nobody will mind that the collar’s a little bit lower than the new one."

"The skirt’s too long," Aoshi noted, handing her the item in question."I could hem it with a big stitch and it’ll work. If it’s okay," she added cautiously.Aoshi shrugged casually. "I don’t think my parents would mind.""Great! Do you have needle and thread?"

"I think."

A few minutes later, Misao was perched on the edge of the couch, looking over her handiwork. The shirt now had a yellow scarf instead of a red one and the skirt was now five inches above her knee instead of two inches below it. With Aoshi in his room, Misao was free to change. She slipped the blouse over her head and settled the two ends of the yellow fabric so that they didn’t stick out at funny angles. Then she slid the skirt on.

‘A perfect fit!’ She thought happily. Misao got her socks out of her bag and pulled them on. She picked up her shoe from the ground where it had fallen and glanced around for its mate. She searched for it for almost ten minutes before wailing, "Oh-no! It fell off!"

"What!?" Aoshi emrged from his room and glanced at her cautiously. When he found she had all her clothes on, he stepped into the main room. "What fell off?""My shoe!!" Misao sat down on the couch and showed him the single shoe. "It must have fallen off during the fight."

"Do you another pair at your house?""No, Jiya said that I only needed one pair of school shoes a year.""You’ll have to wear something, though.""I’ll wear my boots," Misao said, picking up her shoe and boots and dropping both off in the genkan. "I’ll probably get in trouble, but they have spare shoes at the school."It’s Tuesday night," Aoshi informed her, "or Wednesday morning," he ammended. "Either way, we’ve stayed up way too late and we’ll both be zombies at school tomorrow. Why don’t you get some sleep."

"Okay, but promise me you won’t come out here after I go to sleep."Aoshi was about to ask why, but shut his mouth quickly. ‘She’s probably going to sleep with not very much on. Don’t mention it…’ "Sure," he said outloud with a shrug. "Did those thugs take your money?"

"No."

"You’ll probably have to buy food for lunch. I never bring a luch from home."Misao grimaced and clicked her tounge. "You poor, poor thing," she said in a sympathetic voice."Good night, Misao," Aoshi said with finality as he headed to his room"Good night, Aoshi-kun," Misao chirped. He caught a glimpse of her standing with her back to him and lifting the hem of her shirt. Quickly, he darted into his room and shut the door.

"By the way, Aoshi-kun!" Misao yelled from the living room. "Thank you very much for saving my life!"

"No problem."

‘Wow,’ he thought with a shock, ‘I actually did save her life.