So, you've come back for more, ne? I'm glad! Even though Sailor Moon does not belong to me, I choose to use the characters for my story. ^_~ Enjoy the fic!! Forest Walker Chapter Three by:Lazuli Usagi leaned her head on her hands as Aiaka began the story. She knew that legends and tales could get blown up over the years, and she couldn't *believe* she was listening to anything that came out of a prep's own mouth, but she was intrested, and listened. "Well, you know that the Kishuku family had been murdered that night, right?" Aiaka asked. Usagi nodded. She wondered if it was going to be the usual spirts of the dead coming back for revenge story. "Well, the youngest male in the family had come home from hiking in the woods to get some firewood, when he came upon his house, and the men who had killed his family. He looked around and saw that they were looting the house now...taking precious items even from the hands of the dead, and he grew furious. He knew that he could not bring his family back, but he vowed not to let them take a single item from the house, and before he was killed alongside of his family, that was his final wish. The men ran out of the house, only to die later on it the woods, and the items returned mysteriously to the home, seemingly as if they had never left." Usagi was silent. "Is that why you all were so scared of the forest? I saw nothing strange." Four pairs of eyes turned to look at her. "That's what's strange! He supposed to show up in the forest and drive any and all intruders away! You come out of the forest, practically skipping!" Usagi was amused by all this, and waved off their fears. She decided to see if she could get in touch with Mamoru. The paper might have his phone number on it or something. She smiled happily at the thought of being able to talk to him, and she wondered if he would laugh at the story, too, being that he was always in the woods. She said goodbye to Aiaka and the rest of the girls, and retreated to her own room, to relax on the bed. She pulled out the paper Mamoru had given her and stared at what was written on it. No number, but just a name written there in flowing script. 'Mamoru Kishuku.' Usagi's eyes widened. It couldn't be! Mamoru had said that the family name was dead, had been killed off all those years ago. Then her mind started to reason. He may have that family name as a branching of the family. That was it. She decided to look him up, as she had requested. She looked up in the phone book first, and found nobody by that name, not even an address. She frowned. That was strange. She began to wonder...could Aiaka's story be true? Nothing had happened to her, though. She just met a perfectly charming young man, who showed her the nicest spots in the forest, and kept her company in her walk through it. He hadn't done anything to harm or frighten her. He, in fact, had been more of a gentleman then most people out of the woods. Her mind continued to make up excuses, and then she decided to end the deal once and for all, but going to the library and researching the Kishuku family. Every last bit of information she could find, including the names of all the family members at the time of their untimely deaths, and more about the legend of the woods. She would prove that there was nothing wrong about Mamoru, that he was either new to the area....doing some friendly teasing, or was just a recluse. That was it! Usagi walked quickly to the library, making a beeline for the history section, and soon was immersed in the family tree of the Kishuku's. Her fingers traced the names slowly down, until they paused on one name. Her eyes got wide, and she blinked for a few moments, willing it to go away. It wasn't logical!! 'Mamoru Kishuku.' That was the same name Mamoru had given her. Was this his idea of a sick joke? Was he crazy? Living in the woods, pretending he was some ghost from the past? She slammed the book shut, and headed out of the building, to the woods. She would find this... lunatic and have a few words with him. Usagi stared at the woods, almost dumbstruck. When had all this growth appeared? It hadn't been there when she came out earlier today! This was....strange. Her eyes took the overgrown path in, the trees looming high and forboding over her. It suddenly got darker, and out of nowhere, raindrops began to fall down, making the place even spookier. What had happened to the small bit of forest she had so easily walked through? She decided that she must be going crazy herself, and continued to walk forward, determined to find Mamoru...or whoever he was, and wring his neck! She shivered, pulling her jacket closer to her, and trudged foward, often getting bits of her clothing snagged in brambles, and once she tripped over an extended tree root that she *swore* she had never seen before! Had she taken the wrong path or something? She finally walked for several hours, the woods pitch black now, but Usagi couldn't rest. She had to reach some sort of shelter, and the only one she knew of was the house. Her steps wavered as the ground seemed to move underneath her. She knew it had to be only a few more steps. As overgrown as the forest seemed, she rememberd the tracking of steps it took, and how long it had taken to get there. She looked up to see the house hidden in the trees, but it wasn't a whole house anymore. Instead it seemed to be barely standing up, the trees around it seeming to be growing from it, as if the house was being claimed by the forest. Usagi sat down on the ground, hard, choking back a sob. This wasn't right..couldn't be right. That was her last thought before she fell into a dead faint on the ground, the rain pounding on her, soaking her through. When she awoke, she found she was in a bed, and covered in warm blankets, and sunshine cheerfully streamed through the window. Usagi put a hand to her head and tried to sit up, her head pounding. A sound at the door made her look up, and she saw Mamoru come in, regret in his eyes, and a sorrow deeper than anything she had ever seen. She suddenly forgot her pain and tumbled out of bed, glaring at Mamoru. She wasn't sure about anything...if he was some sicko...or a ghost. She was angry, and wanted some answers. Ending it here! What do you think, minna-chan? I will try and get out the next part, ASAP. Feedback, onegai!