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Keeping a Promise
By Twisteddarkness225
Rated: T
Rated: T
Sequel to "Christmas Wish". Kazumi hasn't been spending a lot of time with Sayo lately. The reason, she's been up to something behind the ghost girl's back. Rated T for teens.
Kazumi Asakura was a good student. She did well in most of her classes, including science. But still, she wasn't anywhere near as good at is as Satomi Hakase was. And it is due to the outstanding skill that said girl has in science that Kazumi had enlisted Satomi's help in a very important endeavor, the resurrection of Sayo Aisaka.
It was well over a month since Sayo had come back to life on Christmas day, only to have passed on again that same night. Both Sayo and Kazumi had been very upset by this but Kazumi had silently vowed to find a way to bring Sayo back to life again, but for good this time. And so Satomi was enlisted.
Kazumi had sought the girl out first thing after Christmas break was over. It had taken some convincing but in the end the girl had agreed to aid Kazumi in her seemingly impossible mission. Ever since, Kazumi had checked in with Satomi every day either in person or via text message. And each day she would get the same response of 'I'm working on it as fast as I can.'
Nevertheless Kazumi still asked and even went through the trouble of going to see Satomi in the lab she was always working in just to ask her in person. However this resulted in Kazumi spending much less time with Sayo. And what's more, Sayo was completely unaware of Kazumi's plans. So each day when the girl took off, Sayo was left feeling lonely and concerned for Kazumi's odd behavior.
(It's like she's trying to avoid me) the ghost girl thought to herself. Sayo shook her head, (That's silly, she isn't doing that. She's just…been really busy…for the past few weeks.) She sighed and floated near the classroom window. (Whatever's going on, I hope it doesn't go on too much longer. Kazumi won't even talk to me much anymore and I'm really starting to miss her. I know! I'll just go to her room.) And with that she left.
-X-
Meanwhile Kazumi was en route to Satomi's bedroom in the dorms, performing yet another check on the girl's progress. Arriving at her destination she knocked on the door. It was answered a moment later by Satomi who let out a sigh.
"I thought it would be you Kazumi. Come on in and have a seat. I'm actually trying to work on it right now."
Kazumi entered the other girl's room, the entirety of it in disarray. Papers and various bits of machinery where scattered all over the desks, bookshelves, floor and even Satomi's bed. Paying the mess no mind, Kazumi turned her attention to the other girl. "Anything yet?"
Satomi sighed again. "No Kazumi and it's really not surprising either. You're asking me to bring a ghost back to life. It's a lot easier said than done. The main issue is what we're going to do about her body. Now if you'd just let me make her a robotic one like Chachamaru's, it would make things much simpler."
"No, I don't care how easy it is. Sayo got her original body back before and that's the way it has to be this time too."
A small groan escaped Satomi's lips, "Okay, okay. But please understand that that's only going to make this whole thing take longer."
"Well is there something else we can do to make it easier?" Kazumi asked. Satomi thought for a moment. "Actually it would be a huge help if you could get Sayo involved in this. I know you want it to be a big surprise for her, but it's probably for the best is she knows and therefore be of some help. Besides, I'm sure she'll still be very surprised when you tell her what you've been up to."
"Yeah, I guess. I think she's starting to suspect that I'm up to something anyway. I'll go see if I can find her."
Satomi nodded and looked at her desk. Seeing the current time according to her clock, she gasped. "Oh crap! I was supposed to be at the lab in fifteen minutes!" She grabbed her cell phone and flipped it open. "Listen, could you just grab that blue folder on the shelf above my bed? I'm calling them and just letting them know that I won't be coming in and just stopping by to drop off some stuff."
Kazumi nodded and climbed up on Satomi's bed. The shelf was a little high up so she needed to lean upwards a little bit. While she looked for the requested item, Satomi made her call.
Meanwhile out in the hallways, Sayo made her way down to Satomi's room. The girl had checked Kazumi's room only to find that the girl wasn't there. She would've just waited for her if it hadn't been for something she had heard before she had left the classroom earlier.
-Flashback-
"Hey, have you noticed that Kazumi's been spending a lot of time with Satomi lately?" Haruna asked her two best friends Yue and Nodoka. Nodoka looked up at her. "They have?"
"Yeah, everyday Kazumi talks to Satomi in homeroom. And it seems like she's going to her room a lot too. There's definitely something going on between them. I bet they're going out!"
Nodoka blushed, "G-going out! You mean...like a couple!"
Haruna smirked. "Yep, you know that Kazumi is into girls right? Who knew that Satomi was her type?"
-End flashback-
(Could it be true? Satomi and Kazumi-chan? I didn't even know the two were spending time together. But…if it is true, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It only makes sense that Kazumi-chan would want to be in a relationship with someone who isn't dead.) She looked at Satomi's door as she arrived at the girl's room. (I guess there's only one way to find out.)
Back inside Satomi's room the girl finished her phone call and put her cell phone away. Kazumi was still standing on the bed, searching for the folder Satomi had asked her to get.
"The blue folder right? Um, there's more than one. Could you be more specific?" Kazumi asked. "Open it, if it has blueprints inside then that's the one I need." Satomi told her. Kazumi opened one of the blue folders and saw some prints. She took it off the shelf and turned to hand it to Satomi. "Is this it?"
At that moment she lost her footing and slipped. Reacting in time Kazumi kept herself from falling onto the floor. However she ended up landing on Satomi instead. The two wound up flat on the bed, Kazumi on top of Satomi, whose glasses had been knocked off.
"Ow, that wasn't fun. You okay Satomi?" Kazumi asked, sitting up. Satomi gave a slight nod. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little bump on the head." Kazumi looked down at Satomi and smirked. "You know, you're pretty cute without your glasses."
As fate would have it, it was at this moment that Sayo entered the room and caught the two on the bed as well as hearing Kazumi's comment to the other girl. Sayo's mind worked a mile a minute, absorbing the scene she had come across and jumped to conclusions.
(Ka-Kazumi is seeing Satomi-san! And I've interrupted them when they're just about to be intimate with each other! This is so awkward. I…I…) "I'm sorry for intruding!" She cried out before leaving the room in a hurry and taking off with fresh tears in her eyes.
Contrary to Sayo's belief, neither Kazumi nor Satomi had been aware of her presence until her outburst. Kazumi was barely able to register the face that Sayo had been in the room before the girl up and took off. She got off of Satomi and rushed to the door, opening it and going out into the hallway. "Sayo-chan wait! Oh crap, she's gone! She must've gotten the completely wrong idea when she found us like that!"
Satomi came over, having retrieved her glasses and put them back on. "Calm down. You just need to find her and explain. She'll understand."
"That's if I can find her! She could be anywhere by now! I could spend the whole night looking for her and still not find her!"
"Yes, you will Kazumi." Satomi said, turning Kazumi so the girl was facing her and placing her hand on Kazumi's shoulders. "Out of every girl in our class, only a handful of them know about Sayo. And out of them you're the one who knows her best. She spends a lot of time with you, talks to you the most and the two of you are in love. So if anyone can figure out where she's gone, it's you. Now quit worrying and get moving!"
Kazumi nodded, a look of determination coming to her face. She turned and started to head out to search for the on-the-run ghost girl.
-X-
Sayo floated near the world tree on the school grounds, taking in the view as she tried to calm down. She was still upset over what she had seen. (I still can't believe what I just saw. To think that Kazumi was really cheating on me. And that they've even been doing it too. I'm so upset about this; the least she could've done is told me that she wanted to see someone else. I would've understood. I…I would've…)
"I would've told her that she could!" Sayo sobbed aloud, fresh tears falling from her eyes. "It only makes sense that she would want to be with somebody she can actually be with. Someone she can actually touch, actually hold in her arms, actually kiss."
The ghost girl managed to calm herself down and stopped crying, but was still very upset. Sayo continued to stare out at the campus, her mind closing in on a decision. (Kazumi-chan deserves to be happy. She has her entire life ahead of her and I've already lived my own.) She thought. (I'm going to just tell Kazumi that I'm happy for her and Satomi.)
"She'll be happier with Satomi and that's all that matters. Besides…maybe it's time for me to move on from this world."
"Don't say that!"
Sayo turned and found an out of breath Kazumi standing only a few feet away. The girl caught her breath and closed the distance between them, looking highly irritated.
"Sayo-chan if you weren't intangible I'd slap you so hard right now! How the hell could I be happy if you weren't with me anymore!" She said, stomping her foot on the ground, trying to fight back tears in her eyes. "I know you saw me and Satomi but I swear it wasn't whatever you thought it was! I've been seeing her every day, working with her on a very important project!"
"A project?" Sayo said. Kazumi nodded. "I wanted to surprise you when it was finally ready, but it's probably better to just tell you now. Satomi says she's going to need your help for it anyway."
"Why? Sayo asked, "What is it she needs my help for?" Kazumi smirked, "You can let her study you. You see, we're trying…to bring you back to life again!"
Sayo's eyes widened as she heard the news. The urge to cry happily welled up inside of her and she gave in. Letting out a cry she threw her arms around Kazumi to give the girl a hug…only to phase straight through her instead. After getting over the cold, uncomfortable feeling of having a ghost phase through her body, Kazumi giggled at her girlfriend and started to head back to the dorms. "Come on, let's go back to the dorms. The sooner Satomi gets a chance to study you the sooner we can see some results."
Sayo hesitated a moment before following. "Kazumi-chan! What do you mean she needs to 'study' me?"
-X-
And so followed a week of the busiest work Satomi had ever endured. A majority of the work was studying Sayo and trying to develop a device that could scan her so Satomi could find a way to turn a ghost back into a physical, living human body. Kazumi continued to pay Satomi visits every day when classes were over, mostly to provide Sayo with moral support. The ghost girl was liking Satomi's tests less and less every day and it was all she could do to not just abandon trying to come back to life again.
The bells rang, signaling the end of classes for the weekend. Kazumi waited until everyone else including Negi had let the room before turning to talk to Sayo. "Hey Sayo-chan, did you notice that Satomi wasn't in class at all today?" she asked. Sayo thought a second and realizing that Kazumi was right nodded in response. Kazumi smirked, "Well she skipped school today. She was up all night working and she wants us to come over. Apparently she made a major breakthrough."
"Does this mean that she doesn't have to probe me anymore?" Sayo asked hopefully. Kazumi rolled her eyes. "Oh for crying out loud. She only did that once and the stupid thing was in your shoulder for ten seconds. Twelve at the most."
"It was still really weird! And I don't care if she only did it once! That was still one time too many!" Sayo said. "Oh quit whining. Now let's hurry. I can't wait. If it was enough to keep Satomi from attending school then it just has to be good news!"
The two made their way to the lab that Satomi worked in. Normally it would have been open to any and all science loving students. But Satomi had managed to close the whole thing so she had it to herself and those she would permit to enter, which was only Kazumi and Sayo.
The moment they arrived Satomi rushed them inside, shutting the door and locking it. "You two are so lucky that I'm a genius. This is my best work ever, not counting Chachamaru of course."
"Awesome! Does that mean that you have an idea for some machine that can bring Sayo back to life!"
Satomi laughed. "Even better, I was up all night building it! And I spent the whole day testing it and running theoretical outcomes for just about any scenario. After checking out a few other things I'd say that there's a 97.5% that it will work!"
"Um, what about the other 2.5%?" Sayo asked, a bit nervous. "Oh, well look at it this way. You're already dead, so no worries."
(That isn't very reassuring) Sayo thought. (But still, this is too good to be true. If it works then I'll be alive again. And I can finally be with Kazumi-chan.)
"So," Satomi said. "Are you ready to live again Sayo? The machine is ready whenever you are."
Sayo nodded without a moment's hesitation. Satomi had her come over to the machine that would resurrect her. It was a round chamber about the size and shape of a bed. It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, the top made out of high-density polyurethane that would allow one to monitor whoever was inside of it. Satomi had Sayo enter it and then the bespectacled girl situated herself at a control panel to the side of it.
"I'm not entirely sure how this is going to feel for you, being incorporeal and all, but please bear with it. The process shouldn't take more than five to ten minutes depending on whether or not I need to slow it down. We wouldn't want to rush it and screw something up right?"
Not expecting or waiting for a response from either of the other girl's, Satomi activated her invention. The chamber hummed as it began warming up. A mild green glow filled the chamber and intensified over the next minute. As the glow consumed her, Sayo felt her consciousness fading. From the side of the chamber opposite Satomi, Kazumi watched on with her fingers crossed. The next several minutes passed by much slower than she would have liked, but soon enough it was all over and lying inside of the chamber was the living, breathing girl that was Sayo Aisaka.
Kazumi could only stare for the next few moments before an overwhelming joy consumed her. "I-it worked! It did right? Why isn't she moving?"
"Don't worry. It's just that her new body has absolutely no nutrients and she's probably at risk of dehydration. If we don't get her some nourishment right away, she'll die again."
"WHAT! And just why shouldn't I worry! Quick, we need to…"
"Relax, I already told you I've been preparing all day for this." Satomi cut in. She entered a command at the control panel and the chamber Sayo was in filled with a light mist. "That's a special nutrient solution I prepared. It'll keep her hydrated and alive long enough for us to rush her up to the infirmary and get Shizuna-sensei to take care of her."
Satomi entered another command at the panel and a set of eight wheels came out of the chamber, four on each side. "You'll need to help me push. This thing is pretty heavy."
-X-
It took an entirety of fifteen minutes to wheel the chamber to the school infirmary, find Shizuna and get Sayo set up in a bed with and I.V. hooked up for her. After that it was left to Kazumi and Satomi to explain just what was going on. By the time they finished Shizuna decided to allow Kazumi to keep watch over Sayo while she went to see the dean with Satomi to tell him about what they had done.
As the other two left, Kazumi settled down in a chair by Sayo's beside and proceeded to watch the girl sleep. She didn't know how much time passed since she began, but at some point Sayo stirred. The girl's eyes fluttered open halfway and searched her surroundings before locking onto Kazumi. A faint smile came to the girl's lips before sleep overcame her and she slipped back into its sweet embrace.
Kazumi smiled softly at the other girl and leaned forward to plant a chaste kiss on her forehead. "Rest as much as you need to Sayo-chan. I'll be here when you're ready to wake up."
From directly behind her Kazumi heard someone giggle. Turning to see who it was she saw Shizuna had returned and was watching her with a slight air of amusement. "You must be very close to her if you're being so affectionate."
A blush came to Kazumi's cheeks. "I…I love her." She said somewhat hesitantly. "I see" said Shizuna. "Well that would explain your reason behind going through so much trouble to get her to come back to life. You had better take care to make the relationship between the two of you last. It would be a waste of all that effort if things didn't work out."
Kazumi let out a nervous giggle, "Yeah, I guess so. So how did things go with the dean?"
"He's currently talking with Satomi about her achievement and making some arrangements. I'm not sure on what exactly, but I'm sure he'll let you know in due time. For now let's just see how Sayo is doing." Shizuna took a step over to the bed Sayo was lying in and gave her a quick check. "Well she looks perfectly fine, that is aside of her being so exhausted. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she sleeps until tomorrow."
"Oh, well would it be okay if I spent the night here? If she does sleep for the rest if the day?" Kazumi asked. "I don't see anything wrong with that. Just make sure that you come and get me if you need anything." Shizuna said before going to her office.
As expected Sayo slept for the rest of the day, through the night, and late into the following morning. Kazumi spent every minute by the girl's bedside, not counting bathroom breaks. Her diligence was soon rewarded as Sayo stirred from her sleep. Kazumi greeted her girlfriend with a smile and reached over to brush a stray hair out of the girl's face.
"Hey Sayo-chan, how do you feel?" She asked. Sayo let out a yawn. "I'm feeling alright Kazumi-chan. But I'm a little hungry." She said before a loud growl escaped her stomach, making her blush. "O-okay, maybe not just 'a little'" She corrected herself.
Kazumi giggled at her, "Well I'll see about getting you something to eat. But I've got something else I've been waiting to do with you first. And I've got you just where I want you." She said before climbing up onto the bed. Sayo blushed as Kazumi crawled on top of her. (What's she doing? And what did she mean by 'I'm right where she wants me'? She isn't going to do something naughty to me is she?)
Another giggle escaped Kazumi's lips. "You look so helpless right now. Just perfect. You're all mine now, Sayo-chan. Here I come." She said and leaned forward. Sayo closed her eyes, expecting Kazumi to ravish her. But instead all she felt was Kazumi's lips gently pressing against hers. When Sayo reopened her eyes she saw Kazumi smirking at her.
"Aw, you look a little disappointed. Were you expecting me to do something else?" She asked almost teasingly. Sayo's blush grew and Kazumi let out a laugh. "You were! That's so cute you little perv." Kazumi said leaning in to give Sayo another kiss, a more tender, long-lasting one.
It was during said kiss that two visitors stopped by to see Sayo: Konoka and Negi. The moment Konoka saw the couple in their moment of intimacy, she covered Negi's eyes and looked to the side.
"Um, are we interrupting?" She said, mostly to alert the two to the fact they had company. The two blushed and Kazumi got off of the bed and back into the chair next to it. Konoka giggled and removed her hand from Negi's face. The two went over to join the girls.
"First of all, I just want to congratulate you Aisaka-san. It must be wonderful to be alive again. And we've got some good news for you." Negi said before letting Konoka take over.
"Grandpa has arranged it so you can attend school here; you even get to keep your seat next to Kazumi. And he's even agreed to let you stay in the dorms with her too. He should have the furniture you'll need by the time you can leave the infirmary."
Sayo thanked Konoka as did Kazumi. Konoka and Negi then left, wanting to let Sayo get some rest. On their way out, Negi stopped and turned back to face them. "Just one more thing. Hakase-san was told by the dean to dismantle her machine. He said it would be too risky to allow her to keep it since it could be dangerous in the wrong hands. She's very upset about it; she kept telling him that it would be worthy of a Nobel prize, but he refused. So it you see her, it would be best not to bring it up."
And with that they left. Once again alone, Kazumi kissed Sayo on the cheek. "I'll go see Shizuna-sensei and let her know that you're awake and need something to eat."
She got up and went to Shizuna's office, heading in to talk with her. Sayo looked out the window, feeling the warmth of the sun. Her first full day back to life would be mostly spent in bed, but she was alright with that. Because she knew that Kazumi would be by her side until she could leave the infirmary and that she'd still be there with her from then on.
End
It was well over a month since Sayo had come back to life on Christmas day, only to have passed on again that same night. Both Sayo and Kazumi had been very upset by this but Kazumi had silently vowed to find a way to bring Sayo back to life again, but for good this time. And so Satomi was enlisted.
Kazumi had sought the girl out first thing after Christmas break was over. It had taken some convincing but in the end the girl had agreed to aid Kazumi in her seemingly impossible mission. Ever since, Kazumi had checked in with Satomi every day either in person or via text message. And each day she would get the same response of 'I'm working on it as fast as I can.'
Nevertheless Kazumi still asked and even went through the trouble of going to see Satomi in the lab she was always working in just to ask her in person. However this resulted in Kazumi spending much less time with Sayo. And what's more, Sayo was completely unaware of Kazumi's plans. So each day when the girl took off, Sayo was left feeling lonely and concerned for Kazumi's odd behavior.
(It's like she's trying to avoid me) the ghost girl thought to herself. Sayo shook her head, (That's silly, she isn't doing that. She's just…been really busy…for the past few weeks.) She sighed and floated near the classroom window. (Whatever's going on, I hope it doesn't go on too much longer. Kazumi won't even talk to me much anymore and I'm really starting to miss her. I know! I'll just go to her room.) And with that she left.
-X-
Meanwhile Kazumi was en route to Satomi's bedroom in the dorms, performing yet another check on the girl's progress. Arriving at her destination she knocked on the door. It was answered a moment later by Satomi who let out a sigh.
"I thought it would be you Kazumi. Come on in and have a seat. I'm actually trying to work on it right now."
Kazumi entered the other girl's room, the entirety of it in disarray. Papers and various bits of machinery where scattered all over the desks, bookshelves, floor and even Satomi's bed. Paying the mess no mind, Kazumi turned her attention to the other girl. "Anything yet?"
Satomi sighed again. "No Kazumi and it's really not surprising either. You're asking me to bring a ghost back to life. It's a lot easier said than done. The main issue is what we're going to do about her body. Now if you'd just let me make her a robotic one like Chachamaru's, it would make things much simpler."
"No, I don't care how easy it is. Sayo got her original body back before and that's the way it has to be this time too."
A small groan escaped Satomi's lips, "Okay, okay. But please understand that that's only going to make this whole thing take longer."
"Well is there something else we can do to make it easier?" Kazumi asked. Satomi thought for a moment. "Actually it would be a huge help if you could get Sayo involved in this. I know you want it to be a big surprise for her, but it's probably for the best is she knows and therefore be of some help. Besides, I'm sure she'll still be very surprised when you tell her what you've been up to."
"Yeah, I guess. I think she's starting to suspect that I'm up to something anyway. I'll go see if I can find her."
Satomi nodded and looked at her desk. Seeing the current time according to her clock, she gasped. "Oh crap! I was supposed to be at the lab in fifteen minutes!" She grabbed her cell phone and flipped it open. "Listen, could you just grab that blue folder on the shelf above my bed? I'm calling them and just letting them know that I won't be coming in and just stopping by to drop off some stuff."
Kazumi nodded and climbed up on Satomi's bed. The shelf was a little high up so she needed to lean upwards a little bit. While she looked for the requested item, Satomi made her call.
Meanwhile out in the hallways, Sayo made her way down to Satomi's room. The girl had checked Kazumi's room only to find that the girl wasn't there. She would've just waited for her if it hadn't been for something she had heard before she had left the classroom earlier.
-Flashback-
"Hey, have you noticed that Kazumi's been spending a lot of time with Satomi lately?" Haruna asked her two best friends Yue and Nodoka. Nodoka looked up at her. "They have?"
"Yeah, everyday Kazumi talks to Satomi in homeroom. And it seems like she's going to her room a lot too. There's definitely something going on between them. I bet they're going out!"
Nodoka blushed, "G-going out! You mean...like a couple!"
Haruna smirked. "Yep, you know that Kazumi is into girls right? Who knew that Satomi was her type?"
-End flashback-
(Could it be true? Satomi and Kazumi-chan? I didn't even know the two were spending time together. But…if it is true, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It only makes sense that Kazumi-chan would want to be in a relationship with someone who isn't dead.) She looked at Satomi's door as she arrived at the girl's room. (I guess there's only one way to find out.)
Back inside Satomi's room the girl finished her phone call and put her cell phone away. Kazumi was still standing on the bed, searching for the folder Satomi had asked her to get.
"The blue folder right? Um, there's more than one. Could you be more specific?" Kazumi asked. "Open it, if it has blueprints inside then that's the one I need." Satomi told her. Kazumi opened one of the blue folders and saw some prints. She took it off the shelf and turned to hand it to Satomi. "Is this it?"
At that moment she lost her footing and slipped. Reacting in time Kazumi kept herself from falling onto the floor. However she ended up landing on Satomi instead. The two wound up flat on the bed, Kazumi on top of Satomi, whose glasses had been knocked off.
"Ow, that wasn't fun. You okay Satomi?" Kazumi asked, sitting up. Satomi gave a slight nod. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little bump on the head." Kazumi looked down at Satomi and smirked. "You know, you're pretty cute without your glasses."
As fate would have it, it was at this moment that Sayo entered the room and caught the two on the bed as well as hearing Kazumi's comment to the other girl. Sayo's mind worked a mile a minute, absorbing the scene she had come across and jumped to conclusions.
(Ka-Kazumi is seeing Satomi-san! And I've interrupted them when they're just about to be intimate with each other! This is so awkward. I…I…) "I'm sorry for intruding!" She cried out before leaving the room in a hurry and taking off with fresh tears in her eyes.
Contrary to Sayo's belief, neither Kazumi nor Satomi had been aware of her presence until her outburst. Kazumi was barely able to register the face that Sayo had been in the room before the girl up and took off. She got off of Satomi and rushed to the door, opening it and going out into the hallway. "Sayo-chan wait! Oh crap, she's gone! She must've gotten the completely wrong idea when she found us like that!"
Satomi came over, having retrieved her glasses and put them back on. "Calm down. You just need to find her and explain. She'll understand."
"That's if I can find her! She could be anywhere by now! I could spend the whole night looking for her and still not find her!"
"Yes, you will Kazumi." Satomi said, turning Kazumi so the girl was facing her and placing her hand on Kazumi's shoulders. "Out of every girl in our class, only a handful of them know about Sayo. And out of them you're the one who knows her best. She spends a lot of time with you, talks to you the most and the two of you are in love. So if anyone can figure out where she's gone, it's you. Now quit worrying and get moving!"
Kazumi nodded, a look of determination coming to her face. She turned and started to head out to search for the on-the-run ghost girl.
-X-
Sayo floated near the world tree on the school grounds, taking in the view as she tried to calm down. She was still upset over what she had seen. (I still can't believe what I just saw. To think that Kazumi was really cheating on me. And that they've even been doing it too. I'm so upset about this; the least she could've done is told me that she wanted to see someone else. I would've understood. I…I would've…)
"I would've told her that she could!" Sayo sobbed aloud, fresh tears falling from her eyes. "It only makes sense that she would want to be with somebody she can actually be with. Someone she can actually touch, actually hold in her arms, actually kiss."
The ghost girl managed to calm herself down and stopped crying, but was still very upset. Sayo continued to stare out at the campus, her mind closing in on a decision. (Kazumi-chan deserves to be happy. She has her entire life ahead of her and I've already lived my own.) She thought. (I'm going to just tell Kazumi that I'm happy for her and Satomi.)
"She'll be happier with Satomi and that's all that matters. Besides…maybe it's time for me to move on from this world."
"Don't say that!"
Sayo turned and found an out of breath Kazumi standing only a few feet away. The girl caught her breath and closed the distance between them, looking highly irritated.
"Sayo-chan if you weren't intangible I'd slap you so hard right now! How the hell could I be happy if you weren't with me anymore!" She said, stomping her foot on the ground, trying to fight back tears in her eyes. "I know you saw me and Satomi but I swear it wasn't whatever you thought it was! I've been seeing her every day, working with her on a very important project!"
"A project?" Sayo said. Kazumi nodded. "I wanted to surprise you when it was finally ready, but it's probably better to just tell you now. Satomi says she's going to need your help for it anyway."
"Why? Sayo asked, "What is it she needs my help for?" Kazumi smirked, "You can let her study you. You see, we're trying…to bring you back to life again!"
Sayo's eyes widened as she heard the news. The urge to cry happily welled up inside of her and she gave in. Letting out a cry she threw her arms around Kazumi to give the girl a hug…only to phase straight through her instead. After getting over the cold, uncomfortable feeling of having a ghost phase through her body, Kazumi giggled at her girlfriend and started to head back to the dorms. "Come on, let's go back to the dorms. The sooner Satomi gets a chance to study you the sooner we can see some results."
Sayo hesitated a moment before following. "Kazumi-chan! What do you mean she needs to 'study' me?"
-X-
And so followed a week of the busiest work Satomi had ever endured. A majority of the work was studying Sayo and trying to develop a device that could scan her so Satomi could find a way to turn a ghost back into a physical, living human body. Kazumi continued to pay Satomi visits every day when classes were over, mostly to provide Sayo with moral support. The ghost girl was liking Satomi's tests less and less every day and it was all she could do to not just abandon trying to come back to life again.
The bells rang, signaling the end of classes for the weekend. Kazumi waited until everyone else including Negi had let the room before turning to talk to Sayo. "Hey Sayo-chan, did you notice that Satomi wasn't in class at all today?" she asked. Sayo thought a second and realizing that Kazumi was right nodded in response. Kazumi smirked, "Well she skipped school today. She was up all night working and she wants us to come over. Apparently she made a major breakthrough."
"Does this mean that she doesn't have to probe me anymore?" Sayo asked hopefully. Kazumi rolled her eyes. "Oh for crying out loud. She only did that once and the stupid thing was in your shoulder for ten seconds. Twelve at the most."
"It was still really weird! And I don't care if she only did it once! That was still one time too many!" Sayo said. "Oh quit whining. Now let's hurry. I can't wait. If it was enough to keep Satomi from attending school then it just has to be good news!"
The two made their way to the lab that Satomi worked in. Normally it would have been open to any and all science loving students. But Satomi had managed to close the whole thing so she had it to herself and those she would permit to enter, which was only Kazumi and Sayo.
The moment they arrived Satomi rushed them inside, shutting the door and locking it. "You two are so lucky that I'm a genius. This is my best work ever, not counting Chachamaru of course."
"Awesome! Does that mean that you have an idea for some machine that can bring Sayo back to life!"
Satomi laughed. "Even better, I was up all night building it! And I spent the whole day testing it and running theoretical outcomes for just about any scenario. After checking out a few other things I'd say that there's a 97.5% that it will work!"
"Um, what about the other 2.5%?" Sayo asked, a bit nervous. "Oh, well look at it this way. You're already dead, so no worries."
(That isn't very reassuring) Sayo thought. (But still, this is too good to be true. If it works then I'll be alive again. And I can finally be with Kazumi-chan.)
"So," Satomi said. "Are you ready to live again Sayo? The machine is ready whenever you are."
Sayo nodded without a moment's hesitation. Satomi had her come over to the machine that would resurrect her. It was a round chamber about the size and shape of a bed. It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, the top made out of high-density polyurethane that would allow one to monitor whoever was inside of it. Satomi had Sayo enter it and then the bespectacled girl situated herself at a control panel to the side of it.
"I'm not entirely sure how this is going to feel for you, being incorporeal and all, but please bear with it. The process shouldn't take more than five to ten minutes depending on whether or not I need to slow it down. We wouldn't want to rush it and screw something up right?"
Not expecting or waiting for a response from either of the other girl's, Satomi activated her invention. The chamber hummed as it began warming up. A mild green glow filled the chamber and intensified over the next minute. As the glow consumed her, Sayo felt her consciousness fading. From the side of the chamber opposite Satomi, Kazumi watched on with her fingers crossed. The next several minutes passed by much slower than she would have liked, but soon enough it was all over and lying inside of the chamber was the living, breathing girl that was Sayo Aisaka.
Kazumi could only stare for the next few moments before an overwhelming joy consumed her. "I-it worked! It did right? Why isn't she moving?"
"Don't worry. It's just that her new body has absolutely no nutrients and she's probably at risk of dehydration. If we don't get her some nourishment right away, she'll die again."
"WHAT! And just why shouldn't I worry! Quick, we need to…"
"Relax, I already told you I've been preparing all day for this." Satomi cut in. She entered a command at the control panel and the chamber Sayo was in filled with a light mist. "That's a special nutrient solution I prepared. It'll keep her hydrated and alive long enough for us to rush her up to the infirmary and get Shizuna-sensei to take care of her."
Satomi entered another command at the panel and a set of eight wheels came out of the chamber, four on each side. "You'll need to help me push. This thing is pretty heavy."
-X-
It took an entirety of fifteen minutes to wheel the chamber to the school infirmary, find Shizuna and get Sayo set up in a bed with and I.V. hooked up for her. After that it was left to Kazumi and Satomi to explain just what was going on. By the time they finished Shizuna decided to allow Kazumi to keep watch over Sayo while she went to see the dean with Satomi to tell him about what they had done.
As the other two left, Kazumi settled down in a chair by Sayo's beside and proceeded to watch the girl sleep. She didn't know how much time passed since she began, but at some point Sayo stirred. The girl's eyes fluttered open halfway and searched her surroundings before locking onto Kazumi. A faint smile came to the girl's lips before sleep overcame her and she slipped back into its sweet embrace.
Kazumi smiled softly at the other girl and leaned forward to plant a chaste kiss on her forehead. "Rest as much as you need to Sayo-chan. I'll be here when you're ready to wake up."
From directly behind her Kazumi heard someone giggle. Turning to see who it was she saw Shizuna had returned and was watching her with a slight air of amusement. "You must be very close to her if you're being so affectionate."
A blush came to Kazumi's cheeks. "I…I love her." She said somewhat hesitantly. "I see" said Shizuna. "Well that would explain your reason behind going through so much trouble to get her to come back to life. You had better take care to make the relationship between the two of you last. It would be a waste of all that effort if things didn't work out."
Kazumi let out a nervous giggle, "Yeah, I guess so. So how did things go with the dean?"
"He's currently talking with Satomi about her achievement and making some arrangements. I'm not sure on what exactly, but I'm sure he'll let you know in due time. For now let's just see how Sayo is doing." Shizuna took a step over to the bed Sayo was lying in and gave her a quick check. "Well she looks perfectly fine, that is aside of her being so exhausted. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she sleeps until tomorrow."
"Oh, well would it be okay if I spent the night here? If she does sleep for the rest if the day?" Kazumi asked. "I don't see anything wrong with that. Just make sure that you come and get me if you need anything." Shizuna said before going to her office.
As expected Sayo slept for the rest of the day, through the night, and late into the following morning. Kazumi spent every minute by the girl's bedside, not counting bathroom breaks. Her diligence was soon rewarded as Sayo stirred from her sleep. Kazumi greeted her girlfriend with a smile and reached over to brush a stray hair out of the girl's face.
"Hey Sayo-chan, how do you feel?" She asked. Sayo let out a yawn. "I'm feeling alright Kazumi-chan. But I'm a little hungry." She said before a loud growl escaped her stomach, making her blush. "O-okay, maybe not just 'a little'" She corrected herself.
Kazumi giggled at her, "Well I'll see about getting you something to eat. But I've got something else I've been waiting to do with you first. And I've got you just where I want you." She said before climbing up onto the bed. Sayo blushed as Kazumi crawled on top of her. (What's she doing? And what did she mean by 'I'm right where she wants me'? She isn't going to do something naughty to me is she?)
Another giggle escaped Kazumi's lips. "You look so helpless right now. Just perfect. You're all mine now, Sayo-chan. Here I come." She said and leaned forward. Sayo closed her eyes, expecting Kazumi to ravish her. But instead all she felt was Kazumi's lips gently pressing against hers. When Sayo reopened her eyes she saw Kazumi smirking at her.
"Aw, you look a little disappointed. Were you expecting me to do something else?" She asked almost teasingly. Sayo's blush grew and Kazumi let out a laugh. "You were! That's so cute you little perv." Kazumi said leaning in to give Sayo another kiss, a more tender, long-lasting one.
It was during said kiss that two visitors stopped by to see Sayo: Konoka and Negi. The moment Konoka saw the couple in their moment of intimacy, she covered Negi's eyes and looked to the side.
"Um, are we interrupting?" She said, mostly to alert the two to the fact they had company. The two blushed and Kazumi got off of the bed and back into the chair next to it. Konoka giggled and removed her hand from Negi's face. The two went over to join the girls.
"First of all, I just want to congratulate you Aisaka-san. It must be wonderful to be alive again. And we've got some good news for you." Negi said before letting Konoka take over.
"Grandpa has arranged it so you can attend school here; you even get to keep your seat next to Kazumi. And he's even agreed to let you stay in the dorms with her too. He should have the furniture you'll need by the time you can leave the infirmary."
Sayo thanked Konoka as did Kazumi. Konoka and Negi then left, wanting to let Sayo get some rest. On their way out, Negi stopped and turned back to face them. "Just one more thing. Hakase-san was told by the dean to dismantle her machine. He said it would be too risky to allow her to keep it since it could be dangerous in the wrong hands. She's very upset about it; she kept telling him that it would be worthy of a Nobel prize, but he refused. So it you see her, it would be best not to bring it up."
And with that they left. Once again alone, Kazumi kissed Sayo on the cheek. "I'll go see Shizuna-sensei and let her know that you're awake and need something to eat."
She got up and went to Shizuna's office, heading in to talk with her. Sayo looked out the window, feeling the warmth of the sun. Her first full day back to life would be mostly spent in bed, but she was alright with that. Because she knew that Kazumi would be by her side until she could leave the infirmary and that she'd still be there with her from then on.
End
