A Little Slice of Heaven

[HIKARI YUREI]

After lots of persuasion from Tabby, Hikari left her friend at the dorms and walked towards the library. She'd wanted to stay and help her friend unpack, but she also yearned to explore the rumored floor-wide library. She absolutely loved books, and if not many people were in the library, she hoped to make it a kind of safe-haven for her to go to so that she could escape the world for a little bit and disappear into some books. She left her belongings with her friend and set off on her new 'adventure'.

She faded into almost nothingness as she sneaked past other students on her search for the library building. Once she foud it, she timidly gripped the door handle and was about to pull it open when she realized that would bring too much attention to her, so instead, when she saw no one looking, she simply slipped through the closed doorway and came out on the other side. She then walked to the library floor and stopped in her tracks. 

The sight was mind-blowing. Quite literally, the entire, gigantic floor was a library, covered wall-to-wall in more books than Hikari had ever thought humanly possible for a building to hold. However, these weren't humans they were dealing with, either. She looked around to see books hanging from places no human could reach; only people with magic or wings could do so. She was spell-bound. She slipped past the front desk and walked through the many bookshelves, eyes wide with wonder and absolute adoration.

She casually took random books here and there that looked interesting, holding them in a large stack in her arms. She then found a secluded, quiet corner and curled up in a comfy looking bean bag chair, setting the many books down beside her. A small smile graced her lips as her eyes combed over the many colorful, intricate book covers, hungrily reading the titles with an eagerness only a bibliophile would understand. Then she picked up the first book and began to read. This must be what heaven felt like...

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[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

Greyson had been spending a LOT of time in the library the past couple weeks. His class loads were down, but he didn't really like going off campus on his own, and while he wasn't busy this new semester, anyone he could have spent much time with was. He didn't mind really, he quite enjoyed searching the shelves. He preferred his fiction works, but recently he hadn't been so focused on those as much as what he was, what he was becoming.

In his past 3 years at Xorinthia the boy had learned that his powers were supposed to grow, get stronger and become more....but he also learned that was for NORMAL necromancers.

One thing that caught his attention in one of his last classes a few weeks ago was that the static ghosts as he called them, were more seen by older stronger necromancers... But he had been seeing them since he was five. He hoped he would find something in the library to help him figure it out. The only problem with that was how massive the library was, with books on almost any subject he could think of... Looking through them was hecktick!

Just as he was about to leave for the day though he noticed someone walk in through the door, and he smiled softly. Through the door. She was a ghost, and a lovely one at that. He figured he would take a moment to say hi, though he let her look around and grab her few books, not seeming to notice him. He assumed she was new based on her awe of the size. Yes, an entire floor dedicated to books. He was in awe the first time he saw it too.

As he watched her curl up on the chair he approached her his charming grin plastered to his face. "Hi there," he said announcing himself, "I'm Greyson." The young boy sat down in the chair across from hers with a welcoming smile.

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[HIKARI YUREI]

Hikari was so immersed in her reading (A book on the ancient Greek, if you were wondering) that at first, she didn't notice the boy walking up to her. The stack of books beside her were scattered in a small pile, the ones she'd been reading off to the side a bit. Among them were books such as How to Deal With Life After Death , The Basics of Necromancy , How to Best Appear Human , Controlling Chilling Powers , etc.

"Woh..." She murmured to herself as she read an interesting paragraph on the ancient spell-caster named Circe. Her eyes widened as she read about the woman turning a group of men into pigs. She covered her mouth with a hand, giggling. Of all things, pigs .

It was then that she chose to glance up. She immediately saw a (cute) dark-haired boy and she froze, dropping her book to the floor in front of her with a small jump. She faded into her seat, turning a small shade of pink. There was a boy there, staring at her with a warm smile. How did this boy find her??? THERE WAS A BOY SMILING AT HER! She had no idea how to react to this, so she just sat there, turning a bit pinker every second. She squirmed a bit and eyed her book, now splayed open onto a random page. She furrowed her brow in frustration. She forgot the page she'd been on...

She flicked her light blue eyes back towards the boy, Greyson, and timidly took his appearance in, subconsciously committing it to memory. He was pretty tall (compared to her), and he had deep, dark eyes that seemed to pierce her soul. Again, she wondered, why was a boy talking to her? Was he going to pick on her? Mock her for what she was?

She sank back deeper into the seat, unaware that her ghostly powers were literally making her sink into the bean bag chair.

"H-hello. C...can I help you?" She practically whispered, unable to take her eyes off of him, she was so shocked.

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[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

'H-hello. C-can I help you?'

The ghosts response was adorable, he thought as he continued to grin at her. "Actually, yes. he told her grinning slightly more, " I was wondering what this adorable girl might go by. Perhaps what she likes, too. I can tell she likes to read, and I do too. He continued giving a gentle chuckle at her. "So... What is your name?"

He gave her a gentle smile, he thought she was so cute. Timid, but cute. It actually disappointed him a little bit to know she was dead, but it was undeniable. He had seen her walk through the door, and even as he watched her then he saw as she fell into the chair a bit. He was okay with that, of course, though he didn't voice it.

He didn't make any reaction to note he could tell she was a ghost, no reaction to let her know that he could tell the difference. He figured if the young ghost girl wanted him to know, she would tell him on her own rather than let him pick up on it because she was frightened. That was Greyson, though. If he didn't figure someone wanted him to know something, or if they didn't tell him directly, he would happily pretend he had no clue.

Some times it was taken offensively, though the young male didn't care to much. For him he did it out of courtesy. He didn't like when people acted on ideas or facta he had yet to share so why would he do the same? Well, quite simply put, he wouldn't. Not even when it was so bluntly obvious, such as the fact this beautiful you girl was a ghost. He did voice that opinion though, and he had never found someone who wasn't okay with being called beautiful unless they already hated him. "You're beautiful, you know." he gave another big smile his cheeks giving the faintest shade of red.

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[HIKARI YUREI]

Hikari just continued to stare up at him in shock until she realized she was staring at him. Once she realized that, she shook her head, coming to her senses, and hesitated before answering the boy's question. She wasn't sure she wanted to talk to him, for he may start being mean to her, but judging by the kind smile he kept giving her, and his honest looking, dark eyes, she was compelled to believe that he wasn't entirely out to get her. However, she was still wary when she replied.

"Um...I'm Hikari. Hikari Yurei. I'm kind of new here..." She practically whispered, glancing back down at her book, wishing it was on the right page. That frustrated her more than it should have, and she yearned to pick the book back up and flip to the right page, continuing where she left off, but she was still too timid to move.

She wondered again why this boy would choose to talk to her, and it made her a bit suspicious that he was being so kind, but she couldn't help but notice that he showed no signs of malice or mockery. It almost seemed as if he knew what she was and accepted it, but that was obsurd. However, he did seem to see her quite clearly, which was odd for people who weren't necromancers like Tabby, or other ghosts. This made Hikari curious, and paired with the fact that he was a guy (a rather attractive guy, at that), she wanted to get to know him; although she was far too shy to initiate conversation, or fully open up to the fellow student.

She was lost in though, contemplating all of this, when his next words caught her off-guard. She almost fell out of her chair, it caught her so by surprise. What had that boy just said?

"B...beautiful?" She whispered in shock. She must have heard him wrong. She looked around to find the girl he was talking about. It absolutely couldn't have been her...

She glanced back at him uncertainly, and saw him looking straight at her with a big smile and a small blush. She was dumbfounded, and she turned a deeper shade of pink. In response to what he said. No, she absolutely didn't know she was beautiful. Her entire "life" as a ghost, she'd been ridiculed, hated, and feared by all humans except for Tabby. She didn't know how to handle this, and she had no way of knowing whether he was being truthful or just mocking her. She sank slightly farther into her seat. She wished Tabby where there....

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[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

Hikari. He smiled softly at that, for it was a unique and beautiful name, much like the ghost herself. He was a little disappointed to have to understand she was dead. It was okay, though, because he wouldn't have met her otherwise. He shook that away a bit, though. She was a young ghost, maybe 17 by appearance. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to die so young, to lose everything you had. Hopes and dreams of the future, they would be gone. And the idea of love? Who would love what they couldn't touch?

Well, Greyson would if he thought a ghost wonderful enough. Besides there were some perks too! The male smiled a bit as she repeated what he had said, her entire body glowing a soft pink. Was that what a ghosts blush looked like? Blood didn't run through them, but they were still a spirit, so the glow must have changed with emotions.

"Very." he told her softly. He glanced down then as he had realized the girl was for a moment and he leant down and lifted the book up looking at it for a moment before setting it down on a small table like thing the chairs surrounded. There were multiple set ups for the chairs and tables, they happened to be in one of the more cozy book club around a coffee table set up in the corner.

"I'm sorry I startled you, Hikari," he apologized being sure he said her name. He didn't know why, but he always felt he got a better reaction when using names. He smiled at her in his charming way before adding, "If you would rather read right now I can leave. I know you certainly didn't come to the library to be distracted by a silly boy." he gave a soft light hearted chuckle with that. He really didn't want to leave, though if she asked him to he would, and he hoped his gentle sound of a sort of laugh expressed that to her if his words did not.

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[HIKARI YUREI]

Hikari was quickly realizing that she had absolutely no idea what to do or say. She didn't know how to handle any situations with people these days. Was she different before she died? She figured she'd never know. She might as well just forget it and focus on her life now. It killed her not to know, though. (No pun intended)

The pink aura around her flickered a bit with a flash of blue, too soft and quick for most to notice, but it was back to pink once more when she looked back up at Greyson to see him still smiling at her. What did he see in her? She was so confused...where was Tabby? Probably sleeping in the dorms. Why was it so hard for her to handle being around people? She was so scared, but she decided that just sitting there like a deer in the headlights wasn't going to get her anywhere. She just hoped what she said wasn't going to embarrass herself or get this boy to hate her.

"I...I'm sorry, but I just don't understand why you're here or why you keep saying I'm beautiful. It's confusing, because you can't really mean it. Are you...mocking me?" She said quietly, a hint of sadness in her voice as her eyes followed the book he picked up. She really hoped in her heart that he was being sincere, but she had no way of knowing. She wasn't even a bit psychic, like Tabby.

It was hopeless for her to even think he really liked her. It's probably because he didn't know that she was a ghost. That must be it. Should she tell him? She just didn't know anymore.

"You don't have to leave." She whispered. "Please don't. Just...before you keep talking, I feel like I should clear something up."

She didn't know why she said it, but she couldn't bear for him to leave like this, while she was still just so confused. If he was going to mock her, why didn't he just do it already. She couldn't see how a person could just look at her with such kind eyes. Tabby'd looked at her like that once...

She built up as much courage as she could muster in her small ghost body and earnestly looked him in the eye.

"I'm a ghost."

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[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

The boy couldn't help but find the ghost to be adorable. Honestly, he was quite happy to be there with her. She was cute, and she really seemed like a sweet girl. He wanted to be a friend to her, perhaps even to protect her. That was Greyson, though. He had always done his best to protect those who needed him. Why would it change, even for a dead girl? He would've happily tried to help her find her memories, actually, if he knew she was missing them.

He was actually curious as well. What could have cut short the life of such a beautiful young girl? Especially such a sweet one. Car accident maybe? 'Course, when the girl spoke he stopped contemplating that but gave her a puzzled look. "Mocking you? Love, I wouldn't mock you." he gave another soft grin, "I can honestly tell you that you're beautiful. Just like this: You're beautiful!" He gave an honest smile to her. He couldn't help but like the whole body blush thing. That must've been how a ghost blushed. It made sense, they were after all spirits. Why wouldn't their tinting represent their feelings? He planned to look into this later. For now, he just smiled at Hikari.

He was very pleased when he didn't have to leave. He had been hoping she would let him stick around, and so he was very happy to relax into his chair more. "Goodie, 'cause I was hoping I could stay and get to know you." He paused for a moment when she continued. She was going to tell him she was a ghost now? He gave his best look of interest before shifting a bit with a soft grin. "A ghost, huh? That's cool. Far more interesting than a necromancer." He chuckled softly with those words. "Well, it's great to meet you, Hikari the ghost."

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[HIKARI YUREI]

Hikari managed to let a small smile curve her lips, and she "blushed" again, hearing his words. For some reason, she fully believed him. She relaxed in her chair, less tense than before, and placed her hands on her lap, looking at the strange boy in front of her. Why, again, had he chosen her to talk to? It was so hard for her to grasp that he found her so beautiful, but the words made her really, really happy. Then she paused, fully processing his words.

Love?

Her eyes widened, and she got very dark pink, avoiding the boy's gaze, hiding a growing smile and fading a bit. Was that just a phrase he usually said, or...

She giggled.

Her eyes widened again, and she froze, again. Did she just...giggle?

Smiling and still "blushing", Hikari realized that yes, she did just giggle. What was coming over her? She looked over at Greyson again, shyly, and felt her heart speed up. He was making her really happy, and his kind eyes kept pulling her in, making him seem so believable, paired with his soft smile.

So, she decided to be his friend.

She offered Greyson a smile and held out her hand shyly. "It's nice to meet you too, Greyson." She chuckled a bit, her eyes lighting up when he said he was a necromancer. Like Tabby?!

"Necromancers aren't all bad. My best friend Tabby is part necromancer." She said softly, still shy but getting warmed up to him, making it easier for her to talk. She was slowly coming out of her shell around him, which is very hard for her to do with anyone but Tabby.

She was still sunk back into the chair a bit, and offered Greyson a series of shy glances, still focusing on the pile of books and her hands, but occasionally looking at Greyson, her blue eyes full of curiosity and hope.

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[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

Seeing the smile begin on Hikari, Greyson's own Grey even bigger. She was so cute, and seeing her go from the super shyness to having a smile... Grey couldn't not feel accomplished. They way her entire form glowed a soft pink was also a very cute very nice touch. It was a very good thing to see her relaxing a bit, because Greyson didn't want to see her frightened of him. In fact, he wanted her to be happy around him, because ghost or not he liked this girl. She seemed sweet as could be, and besides, with all the magic running about this place Ghosts could easily solidify to a physical form. Something he could hold while watching a movie, or plant a kiss on to make her glow that cute pink.

She seemed so shy, it really was cute. While love was generally just something he said, saying it to her was a bit for the purpose of that cute blush. And the giggle, well that made it even better. He almost teased her, but he stifled it into a gentle chuckle. Though, the fading was a bit disappointing. Lucky for him, his sense of her was much higher than a normal person, as was the nature of his power, so she didn't really fade. She became slightly translucent, but she wouldn't be able to hide from him. Not that way, at least. She didn't need to hide either, though. Greyson wouldn't hurt her, he wouldn't hurt a fly most of the time.

It seemed, however, he wasn't so left without anything. She finally spoke, holding a hand out for him to shake. He smirked though, and playfully too her hand and moved to kiss it, then winked at her. She said it was nice to meet him, and he was happy with that. He was quite pleased to meet her too, and it showed in his playful flirting. When he heard the ghost continue he lit up a bit. She liked necromancers, and her best friend was a necromancer? He smiled a bit with that. Part necromancer. He wondered what that meant, since necromancy was a dominant trait when active. One active gene was all one needed to be a necromancer. Maybe she was part something else too? Either way, it was cool. "That's wonderful~! I have to ask then, who glows more?"

He grinned with that. According to texts he read in his first year at the school, necromancers gave off a glow to ghosts. It was something of a beacon, apparently. The brighter the glow, the more powerful the powers were. The stronger the necromancer was. The more they could do. Grey wasn't exactly one to worry about being super powerful all that much, but..hey why not? It wasn't like the ghost would realize it had anything to do with that. She hadn't known he was a necromancer based on glow at first, so she might not know that part of it. She probably thought it was just something weird that happened to some people. Or, if she did know, she must not have thought about it when he walked in. Either way, here was a good chance to see where he stood compared to other necromancers... Or, part necromancers.

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He would have a strong glow, being that he has two active genes. He's an incredibly rare case, and it makes him rather over powered for a necromancer, but he is still to young to fully use his power to its best extent so~ yeh. Hehe ^~^

[HIKARI YUREI]

(<3 love this new code, Vappy!!!!)

Hikari shyly looked up at Greyson again, and her smile widened when she saw his. It was practically contagious, and her heart fluttered. She fought hard to keep from "blushing" again. What was wrong with her?

Keeping her hands clasped and resting on a book on her lap to keep them from shaking, she listened intently to Greyson's words, hanging on to every one, like each word was a precious jewel. You couldn't blame her, really, since the only kind words she ever heard were from Tabby, and not a cute, caring boy like Greyson.

Oops, there it was. She was pink again.

Ignoring the intensifying glow on her face, she focused her eyes a bit to see the necro-glow of Greyson. She didn't do this much. Not from disliking it, she just never really acknowledged the fact that she could tell how powerful a necromancer was, since she'd only ever known Tabby, and she'd grown used to her friend's soft purply glow. It was just the norm for her. So when she focused in on Greyson's, she was completely awed, her eyes wide.

"Oh..." Was all she could say at first. Greyson's glow was unlike any she had ever seen. She'd thought Tabby was pretty powerful, since she could see ghosts and everything with complete ease, but her abilities must pale completely in comparison to Greyson's. He had an intense, warming aura about him, which spoke to her of complete trust and power. Was it just because she was dead that this attracted her so much, or was it more?

A few moments later, she realized she was staring. She hadn't even noticed him kissing her hand in the shock, until she looked down to see him holding her hand. Her eyes widened more, if possible, and she turned extremely pink. "Oh my gosh!" She squeaked, her free hand flying up to her mouth in shock. "I'm so sorry, I...uh...didn't mean to stare..."

She squirmed in her seat, fading a bit more, and cast very quick, shy glances his way. "It's just, um...your glow...it's..."

She mustered up some courage and looked into his eyes, steadily glowing pinker. "It's absolutely magnificent...so much brighter than Tabby's. I'd never realized...."

Her voice trailed off, and she caught herself staring again. Another wave of trust washed over her, and she reveled at the light he gave off. She could follow him anywhere.

Ok, now she was so pink she didn't know if she could get any pinker. Flustered beyond belief, she stood up so quickly she'd have stumbled with vertigo if she could do such a thing in her ghostly form.

Gathering up all of her books in her arms, some of them tumbling to the ground due to how many there were, she solidified (to her regret, since she had to to pick the books up) and stammered out an apology.

"I-I'm sorry, but I have to go. Tabby's probably looking for me. And, um, I..." She closed her eyes in embarrassment and started to walk away quickly, ignoring the books that tumbled from her arms as she started to leave. "Sorry..."

Tears formed in her eyes as she left. She didn't know why, but she really didn't want to leave that boy just yet. She was just so, so embarrassed. She wasn't used to this yet. Any of it. She just wanted Tabby. The only thing she was truly certain of in this world. Her only comfort. She fought back a hiccup and paused at the front desk, forgetting that she still had to check the books out if she wanted to take them up to her dorm. And she had no idea how. Mortified and still completely pink, she looked around desperately for a librarian or someone to help her figure out how to check the books out. Her mouth sloped down into a wobbly frown, and she silently wished Tabby were there. Her eyes flickered around to see if people were looking at her, but not many people were in the library. She couldn't possibly ask Greyson for help now, could she?

She was so lost and confused....She slumped against the check out counter and set the books on the floor in front of her, covering her trembling face with her pale hands.

Words: 731

Code by Vaporeon for Lizard

[GREYSON SHAWN MOROSA]

To say Grey had a contagious smile probably was an understatement. He had the kind of smile that would light up a room, and he wore it like a badge. He smiled a lot, and it only of brighter when he saw color take the ghosts form, it was adorable. He was actually really fond if this ghost, and to Grey it didn't really matter that she was dead. His sights were set. He wanted to know this girl, why she was so shy, why she was dead to begin with, who she was... He wanted to know everything he could about this beautiful girl named Hikari.

Of course, it only helped when she fed his ego. Just a single word of amazement. If that wasn't a good sign, then what else was? He had known he was fairly powerful as a necromancer but it amused him to know it was that powerful. There was a soft chuckle as she had began to stare, and he just watched her with a bright smile. Kissing her hand was something he had hoped would make her go "Ahw," but it seemed as though it had a bad effect. Or good? She turned a deep red that was for sure.

Her shout in shock took Grey back a bit. Was he coming on to strong? Had he ruined any chance with her? Great, what a flop. He wondered what Alex would say as he watched her respond, a hand over her mouth apologizing. "I-its okay love. I'm sor---" She was speaking again before he finished. His glow. Okay, hr couldn't not grin in satisfaction. So much brighter than her friends glow. He smiled softly then frowned seeing her stumble up. "You don't have leave" he began to protest, bug she was already scrambling away like a panicked kitten.

He watched for just a moment before giving a small chuckle standing up and walking over to her. He gave his charming grin. "Just give me a list of the titles, I'll hand it to the librarian." he said watching her trying to catch her eyes. "What do you say we meet up again? I'd love to know you more."

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[HIKARI YUREI]

Hikari stiffened when she heard that beautiful boy's voice again. She slowly brought her hands away from her face to make sure he was really there, and her eyes widened when she realized he was. Why wasn't he laughing at her? She was making an absolute fool of herself, and she doubted any possibility that the boy could ever like her. He seemed to accept the fact that she was a ghost, but did he accept who she was as a person? Did he even see her as a person? Her aura flickered a soft blue again, before flashing pink.

She was too busy thinking to hear correctly. What had he just said? She fumbled to pick up her books and write the titles down on a nearby pad of sticky notes. She took off the note and shakily handed it to him.

"I-I'm sorry. Could you repeat that?" She asked softly, her voice trembling.

Had he just asked her to hang out? Get to know her? But...that was impossible, right? No one wanted to get to know her. How could someone be friends with a dead girl? Tabby had, but that was different...right?

She flickered blue again, not able to believe it, and sad that she couldn't.

"Y-you want to meet up? U-uhm." Oh gosh I sound so weird. She kept stumbling over her words, growing pink again. It's like the color pink just kept following her, like a scar that refuses to go away. A cute scar, but still. She took a deep breath and avoided looking at Greyson's eyes, attempting to calm herself down. His cute smile and deep, dark eyes were not helping her heart calm down. If it could beat, it'd be beating a hundred beats per second.

In all honesty, Hikari really wanted to get to know Greyson better; solve the puzzle that was the handsome boy in front of her. Why was he so nice? Why'd he take so much interest in her, without being afraid or scornful of her? How was he so powerful? He intimidated her, but she didn't want to back away. It wasn't a scary kind of intimidation. It was more that the feelings he filled her with intimidated her. He himself seemed strong, caring...safe. Her eyes met him and she swear she could have melted right there on the spot.

She was staring again, but she didn't want to look away. After a moment though, she jumped, gathering her books to her chest and avoiding his gaze again. "Oh, um...sorry. Crud." She stammered, turning pink. Again. She fought to keep herself calm, and she took another deep breath, meeting his eyes with a small, shy smile. "Um..I......If I heard you right, then yes. I-I'd like to meet you again and um...get to know you better."

She fought to keep from getting red again, biting her bottom lip to keep it from trembling. She fought the urge to flee again, and waited to see what Greyson said. She had to know if she'd heard him right, and if he really wanted to talk to her again, because if he didn't, she felt like she'd run crying to Tabby. All of this was just so overwhelming, she wanted to leap right into it and flee at the same time. Gosh, why did her heart feel so weird?

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