The next morning finds Natsume recalling the fight yesterday to Shuichi.

"… And then they left," she finishes with a shrug. Shuichi frowns at Natsume's flippant attitude, easily keeping up with Natsume's fast pace this morning.

"I don't think it is a good idea to be around those boys," Shuichi insists. Natsume looks at her friend with a frown, countering, "You don't know them. They're rather nice."

"I'm just worried, that's all," Shuichi explains with a sigh and a shrug. Natsume smiles softly and bumps shoulders with Shuichi, teasing, "Between you, Kaito-san, and Dad, I think I'll be fine." She pauses and adds, "I might also stay single for the rest of my life because of you three…" Shuichi sighs again, looking down the road and ignoring Natsume's joke. Natsume fidgets in the silence, walking with him for about another block, before blurting out, "What's going on in the Gardening Club?" Shuichi perks at the change of topic.

"Well, the Club finally raised enough money to purchase rose bushes…" Shuichi begins excitedly, Natsume grinning and listening.

Natsume once again walks home alone, Shuichi helping the Gardening Club this afternoon too. After walking in silence for a while, she sighs, "I need more friends." Suddenly, she hears a fight up ahead, peaking her curiosity. Jogging closer, she recognizes an adult from Urameshi's wake, hiding behind a bridge's support beam, looking stunned at what was happening ahead of him. Ignoring the man, Natsume creeps closer, spotting a prone form on the ground, surrounded by three of the boys from Kasanegafuchi. Without thinking it through, Natsume levitates a sheet near the boys and lets out a shriek. Once she has the boys' attention, she points a trembling finger past them, at the sheet.

"GHOST!" she cries, putting as much fear in her voice as possible. The boys glance back at the sheet before fleeing, shoving each other and yelling, with the man running in the opposite direction. The sheet drops as Natsume rushes over to the curled up figure, who is surprisingly Kuwabara, and shakes him awake.

"Hey, Kuwabara. C'mon man, get up," she coaxes. Kuwabara sits up slowly, blinking blearily at Natsume.

"Fujiko? What are you doing here?" Kuwabara mumbles around a split lip, allowing Natsume to throw his arm over his shoulder.

"This is my route home. What's your excuse?" Natsume jokes, dragging Kuwabara toward her house. He stumbles to his feet and starts explaining his situation.

"One of the Kasanegafuchi guys, the one I punched, ended up in the hospital. The other guys whined to their teacher and the teacher told Mr. Akashi. He tried to get Okubo fired from his part-time job. Luckily, we managed to get a chance to change Mr. Akashi's mind. If we don't get in a fight at all during the week, Okubo gets to keep his job," Kuwabara finishes as they arrive at Natsume's house. She clicks her tongue as she somehow manages to open the door. Yuki looks up from her book at the sound, raising an eyebrow at the two.

"Yuki-san, please get the first aid kit," Natsume orders, helping Kuwabara onto the couch.

"At once, Natsume-sama," Yuki answers, placing her book down before bowing and leaving the room. Natsume hurries into the kitchen and soaks a towel, returning to the living room and handing the towel to Kuwabara.

"What's going on out here?" Hikari demands as she enters the living room, Yuki following close behind with the first aid kit.

"Mother! You finished work early?" Natsume asks, stepping out of Yuki's way to allow her to patch up Kuwabara.

"Nice try, Natsume. Now, introduce me to your friend," Hikari orders, an amused smile on her face.

"Mother, this is Kuwabara. Kuwabara, this is my mother, Fujiko Hikari," Natsume introduces.

"It's nice to meet you," Kuwabara says, bowing his head while Yuki applies medication to his injuries.

"The pleasure is mine," Hikari offers in return, bowing deeply. Yuki stands abruptly, snapping the first aid kit closed with finality.

"It is done," Yuki announces, turning to return the first aid kit back to its proper place. Kuwabara stands up from the couch, grinning sheepishly.

"Thanks for helping me," Kuwabara insists, bowing deeply at Hikari.

"Think nothing of it. Come visit whenever you like," Hikari waves off with a smile. Kuwabara bows again before leaving. Natsume raises an eyebrow at her mother.

"Why did you say that?" Natsume asks, getting a sly smile from her mother. She huffs and rolls her eyes, heading upstairs to change.

The next afternoon finds Natsume walking home alone once more, Shuichi still helping the Gardening Club. Pausing briefly to shift her bag, she notices Kuwabara up ahead with his nose buried in a book.

"Kuwabara! What are you doing?" she calls, hurrying up to him, surprising him enough to look up from his book.

"Oh, hey Fujiko," he answers, returning back to his book. Natsume peeks at the book's content, raising an eyebrow at all the science jargon.

"Huh, didn't really peg you as a science fan," she comments, moving out of his personal space.

"I'm really not," Kuwabara mumbles, squinting at a word on the page. Natsume raises an eyebrow at his comment.

"So, what's this for?" she asks, easily keeping stride even as she peeks over the cover and judges the terrible state of the book.

"Mr. Akashi said we also need to pass his test with at least a 50 to help Okubo keep his job," Kuwabara explains, flipping to the next page. Natsume hums in understanding, asking curiously, "What was your last score?"

"7," he answers. Natsume blinks in surprise at Kuwabara's answer, before grabbing his wrist and dragging him to her house. She lets go of his wrist once they're in the sitting room, running up to her room and grabbing a multitude of science books and notes. She returns to the sitting room to grab Kuwabara and drag him into the library, ignoring her mother's amused look. She drops the books on the table and motions him to sit down.

"We're gonna study our butts off and make sure you pass this test. It's the least I can do to help you guys," Natsume sighs, sitting down and pulling over his book, matching his chapter to the chapter in her book. Kuwabara blinks before grinning in earnest, cheering out, "Yeah!"

The week passes quickly, with Natsume's afternoon filled with checking over Kuwabara for any injury, tutoring him in science, and sending him home in time for dinner. Finally, Friday comes around and school ends, Natsume exiting the building with a sigh of relief.

"FUJIKO!" Someone yells, startling her and making her turn toward the voice. Abruptly, she's swept up in a hug, getting a yelp of surprise.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" Okubo cries happily, squeezing Natusme tightly. She huffs out a laugh and pats him on the head as the other boys catch up as Okubo chatters about how Kuwabara pulled through and passed the test. Natsume catches a glimpse of Shuichi, getting a smile in return as he casually slips his hand into his pocket.

IT LIVES! Yes, this is not a dead piece... Just one I lost interest in... I'm so sorry... I love you guys...