A/N: Examinations have ended and I have only failed Chinese so far! This popped into my head on the second night of the examinations and I abandoned them to type out a draft… so I guess I cannot expect too beautiful results. Please read and review!

Titania

Megurine Luka loved the color turquoise. Looking back on her life, she realized that it only started to mean something when that beautiful color came into it. It was six years ago, in high school, when it all begun, and every sweet memory she treasured from then on had something to do with the color turquoise.

Luka did not have many friends, not that it bothered her. Friends were annoying, they made it difficult for you to focus on the purpose of school, studying. That was what she thought, at first, before she caught a glimpse of a certain girl amongst the new first years, at least two years her junior, and had her breath taken away. That girl was petite, thin and cute and perpetually smiling, a bubbly ray of sunshine that brightened the school the moment she stepped in it. Unlike Luka, this girl was friends with everyone, and everyone loved her. She was too sweet to hate, too sweet to be annoyed at, like a little puppy no one could ever bring themselves to scold. She wasn't spoilt, she was kind and gentle and caring, and her voice was high-pitched like a child's and so warm it melted Luka's chilly heart. She was two years younger than the other first years at fourteen; she had skipped grades in middle school. Luka remembered the day she first befriended the girl, the girl was seated up a tree with turquoise butterfly headphones on, listening to music. Luka had gone to the school garden to seek a quiet place to study, but before she could slip away the girl called out to her.

"Hello, you're Megurine Luka, am I right?" Her smile was dazzling; Luka gave in to it and nodded. The girl tilted her head to one side and smiled, "I'm Miku. Hatsune Miku."

"Nice headphones," Luka had offered lamely, "Like your hair." To her eternal surprise, the girl, Miku, replied, "You like them? Here, you can have them." Miku placed the headphones in her hand and asked hopefully, "See you again sometime?"

Luka nodded, watching the girl run back toward the school with her graceful stride, and looked down at the pair of headphones in her hand. The butterfly wings were an exquisite turquoise, just like Miku's long and beautiful hair. Turquoise.

The second memory was a few days later. Luka had gone out to town in her free time (she had plenty since she had no friends), and bought a pink version of Miku's butterfly headphones to give to her. The school thronged with gossip when they found the popular sweetheart of the first year had given her favorite headphones to the third year anti-social ice queen, but neither girl had been bothered by it. No one wanted to hurt Miku anyway, and Luka was too icy to be hurt by such trivial matters.

Luka had gone to seek out the popular first year after choir, the Extra Curricular Activity they shared, and shyly handed her the headphones with a barely audible, "For you." Miku had looked up at her in surprise; her eyes were the same amazing turquoise as her hair, and smiled. She took the headphones eagerly and wore them around her neck, signalling to the turquoise pair around Luka's neck and saying with a sweet smile, "Now we match, Megurine-senpai."

Blushing a little, Luka had responded, "Please call me Luka, Hatsune-san." Miku tilted her head to one side and said with a grin, "Alright, but you have to call me Miku." For the first time in years, Luka had smiled back, amazed by the glittering pair of turquoise eyes that belonged to the petite twintailed girl before her. Turquoise.

The third memory was weeks after that, she and Miku had started hanging out more often and Miku, sensing Luka's discomfort around people, always found a way to untangle herself from her adoring fans and hang out with just Luka. It made her feel special, she was the only one Miku would treat that way, and she was pleased to see that Miku went everywhere with her pink butterfly headphones just as she went everywhere with her turquoise ones. It was after a choir performance, pretty late at night, and Miku had declared an impromptu sleepover at Luka's. The girl's parents didn't mind that their fourteen year old daughter was staying at the house of a person they did not know who was four years her senior, and Luka's parents were delighted that she finally found a friend. Hence, the two of them were seated on Luka's bed, trying to dry off their hair. Choir had required everyone to have a strict hairstyle of a simple ponytail with the fringe hairsprayed so thickly to the head that it felt solid. Miku disliked the change from her usual twintails but Luka felt it made her look more mature, more like a high school student.

"Which way do you prefer it?" Miku asked suddenly, it seemed that she could read Luka's mind. Her length of wet, gleaming turquoise hair was certainly giving the hairdryer a tough time.

"Your usual style," Luka had replied, "Because that's you; and I like that." Miku had giggled and thanked her with that sweet way of hers, and then glared at her hair like a pouting kindergartner. Luka chuckled; it made her look adorable, and then grabbed her own hairdryer and shifted closer to the younger girl. Her own hair, though long, was not as ridiculously so as Miku's, and it had already dried.

"May I?" she asked, feeling a little self-conscious, and received a grateful go-ahead from the petite girl. She threaded her fingers through the silky expanse of Miku's hair the way she always wanted to, carefully drying it as if it were a precious artifact. It was, in a way, precious to Luka, for it was the hair of the girl she had fallen in love with. The sweet smell of the sea, the smell of clean salt water with a hint of rain: that was the beautiful scent of Miku. Running her fingers through the turquoise hair, Luka had never felt happier, more complete. Turquoise.

The fourth memory was months into their friendship, they had gotten closer than a usual senior-junior relationship and were like best friends, their matching headphones always with them wherever they went. Miku spent less time with her mob of friends and admirers and more time alone with Luka, people began betting on if they were together. Luka wanted that, but she was afraid of scaring Miku away. Firstly, the girl was fourteen for goddess' sake, and Luka herself was eighteen. Secondly, she didn't even know if Miku liked girls or felt it morally wrong. With such a carefree and innocent girl as a friend, the topic of homosexuality is not one they would ever mention in conversation.

Miku had asked Luka to go to the beach with her that day, alone, and they met up at a bus stop in town. At that moment, they were seated side by side staring at the clear turquoise waters of Miku's secret beach, away from the polluted waters of the public beach. Miku was quiet, but it was a sad sort of quiet, and it worried Luka. She wanted to get Miku happy again, but she did not know how. Staring at the endless crystalline water that lapped at the shore, something gave her the courage to say what she wanted to say.

"Miku," she spoke quickly, she feared her moment of courage would fade, "I like you." The petite girl had turned to her with a confused and slightly hurt smile, saying, "I like you too, Luka." The older girl shook her head and said, "No, I mean… I love you, Miku."

She had forced herself to look into the beautiful turquoise eyes she loved so much and hoped that she would find no disgust in them. She was surprised when Miku responded by throwing her arms around her and saying, "I love you too, Luka." It was the best day of her life, the day the turquoise haired girl became hers on a beach with glittering turquoise water the same color as her eyes, the day the turquoise and pink butterfly headphones officially became a sign of their relationship. Turquoise.

The fifth memory was a few months into their relationship; Miku had been bullied and was extremely upset. She was a fragile, childish girl who believed the words people said about her, and the words of a stuck-up second-year transfer student had badly wounded her. That girl had made fun of Miku's lovely turquoise twintails, and said that Miku acted like a "little kid" and should "grow up". That girl also called Miku "ugly", "attention-seeking" and "stupid", which saw the entire Hatsune Miku Fan Club on that second-year's heels, and that stuck-up brat who was not even worth a hair on Miku's beautiful head dared to call herself the most beautiful girl in school and Miku the ugliest. Luka felt the insane urge to pound that girl into the ground and dissect her for Biology class, but she wisely held herself back and went to find Miku instead.

Said green-haired girl was crying on the school roof; completely alone save for the biting wind, dressed in nothing but her school uniform. Luka had to pull her jacket tightly around herself before she could step out of the warm stairway, shivering slightly as she made her way to the corner where her beloved girlfriend was crying. The pink-haired girl knelt down before Miku and wordlessly embraced her, feeling the younger girl wrap her arms around her in return.

"Miku, you're beautiful, you're amazing and you're absolutely perfect the way you are. I don't ever want you to change," Luka said softly, passionately, hoping that it would help comfort Miku a little.

Looking up at her with large, teary eyes Miku replied, "I believe you, Luka. You wouldn't lie to me." The conviction in which she said it touched Luka's heart; how could anyone bear to say mean things to a girl as adorable and puppy-like as her Miku? She hated seeing her girlfriend upset, it made her feel bothered and angry and pained, she wanted to take that look out of Miku's eyes.

"I love you, Miku," she breathed, and then found herself closing the distance between their lips. It was her first kiss, as it was Miku's, and it amazed her how soft her girlfriend's lips were. Before she had closed her eyes, she caught the surprised but willing look in Miku's eyes. After she closed them, she could see the fireworks they described in the cliché romance novels she used to despise and her senses were completely filled with Miku. The turquoise color of the fireworks like the color of her hair and eyes, the softness of her lips, the briny scent of her skin, the sounds of their equally rapidly beating hearts, it filled Luka completely.

The kiss that had lasted a few minutes felt like it had spanned hours, and when they reluctantly parted for air Miku had whispered back, "I love you too, Luka." It was a day she would never forget, the day of their first kiss, the day where she had first wrapped her arms around Miku after they kissed and whispered huskily, "You are mine, and I am yours." That look in Miku's beautiful turquoise eyes, love and passion and gratitude, it would forever stay within Luka. Those few minutes had let her enjoy turquoise in a far more sensual way than she had ever done before. Turquoise.

The sixth memory was after her graduation ceremony, two years later. They had gone strong through many challenges and their parents approved of their relationship, and they were happy. Well, at that time Miku wasn't happy, for Luka was going on to college without her. Luka had smiled and assured her that they would still meet every single day, for she picked courses that interested her and left her free after three o'clock, the usual dismissal time at Miku's high school. She set those criteria and ensured every single one of her choices met them, so no matter what happened, they could still see each other.

What Luka remembered wasn't the long graduation ceremony speech, the concert nor the party. None of those left many impressions on her, and if they did they weren't good. To Luka, they were simply hours without Miku and nothing else, and hours without her beloved girlfriend were pretty colorless in her opinion. The speaker was droning on and on about the future and the importance of money and a good job, which didn't really click with Luka then. Examinations had separated her from Miku for months, she was impatient to set eyes on her girlfriend once more. What she remembered, what she would never forget, was that night where Miku slept over at her house and she discovered the whole of Miku. The night where she found out Miku's sacred spot was guarded by a small patch of turquoise hair, the color she loved the most, the night that they first made love, that is what Luka remembered and would always remember. That was special to her, to Miku, for it was their promise that turquoise and pink would not part. Turquoise.

The seventh memory was when Luka decided to pay Miku a surprise visit in school. She knew when Miku's free period was up and camped out opposite her girlfriend's locker, well-hidden behind a large trash can, desiring to give the younger girl a pleasant surprise for her birthday. Luka had pretended to be none the wiser to the occasion when they met for breakfast as usual that morning just so she could drag it out to that moment.

Miku was walking to her locker, talking to a bunch of first years. Luka had gotten a little jealous of the blonde twins that had captured her girlfriend's attention, but Miku had assured her the Kagamines were simply friends and that Rin liked boys while Len was too girly to chase anything but butterflies and other small, cute animals. Miku looked a little down somehow, and the reason why was conveniently explained by the younger twin, Len, who said, "It's okay, Miku-nee; I bet Megurine-san has a big surprise in store for you. I'm sure she didn't forget your-" He was cut off by a glare from Rin and quickly shut up, leaving Miku to walk to her locker in silence. Luka felt a little guilty about making her girlfriend worry, she might have acted a little too clueless and nonchalant at breakfast that morning. Alright, enough hiding, she decided as she snuck out from behind the trash can, Time to surprise my little Miku.

She glided soundlessly to the trio's backs and then wrapped her arms around Miku's neck suddenly, pressing her chest into her girlfriend's back and purring, "Happy birthday, Miku." as seductively as she could. It worked, Miku blushed furiously and yelped, turning around to shyly greet her girlfriend and then scold her for skipping lectures to come and annoy her at school. Pouting, Luka had teased, "I thought you would be happy if I came to see you, but it seems like I'm unwelcome…" She might have acted a little too well again as Miku became worried immediately, assuring her it was alright and she loved having Luka around. She could see it in her girlfriend's lovely turquoise eyes that she had not meant to wound with her words and was only behaving that way out of embarrassment; she almost squealed aloud at how adorable Miku was and gave her a kiss on the lips before everyone in the hallway before producing a large pink dolphin plush toy seemingly from thin air. Miku had blushed, the scarlet on her cheeks contrasted nicely with her turquoise hair and eyes, while Luka placed the toy in her hands. Before Miku could protest as to how she could not carry a huge dolphin around for the rest of the day, the bell rang and Luka leaned forward to kiss her deeply once more before telling her vividly blushing girlfriend, "Have a nice day, sweetheart." Luka escaped the school quickly and calmly and made it to her car before the giggles escaped her; she loved the adorable, stunned and embarrassed look that was on Miku's face just before she left. It was the greatest thing she ever skipped a lecture to do, to see the adorable embarrassment burning in Miku's large turquoise eyes. Turquoise.

The eighth memory was Miku's prom night (the school only started organizing prom after Luka's batch graduated). Miku could bring anyone she liked, for she would go alone if that were not the case, and Luka found herself back at her old school in a black and gold suit awaiting Miku's appearance. All the graduating students had to report to school where a professional makeup artist would tend to them, and Luka was eager to see how her girlfriend looked. She knew Miku would be breathtakingly beautiful no matter what she wore, but when Miku finally stepped into the hall Luka could no longer remember how to breathe. Dressed in a simple and elegant black dress that was form-fitting to the waist, the color brought out the paleness of Miku's milky skin and her amazing length of turquoise hair. The makeup artist knew her stuff because the simple makeup seemed to serve the purpose of bringing out Miku's large turquoise eyes which drew Luka in like a moth to a flame.

Miku had been shy, she blushed when she saw, and felt, Luka's gaze burning into her from across the hall. When Luka approached her, Miku could not meet her eyes for she felt so out of place and strangely dressed that she was uncomfortable and insecure.

However, two words from Luka made everything feel alright, better than alright, even. In a husky and awed voice, Luka had whispered, "You're beautiful." Knowing that her girlfriend would never lie to her, it put all bad thoughts and emotions out of Miku's head, and they enjoyed a night of slow dancing they probably would never experience elsewhere. With their bodies pressed closely together, fingers intertwined where their hands met, they danced the hours away lost in one another's eyes. Miku had rested her head on Luka's shoulder and looked up at the older girl with such a trusting, sweet and loving look that Luka's heart had melted. She ingrained that image into her memory, carving every detail of Miku's sweet face into her brain, especially the way the light glinted in her amazing turquoise eyes. Turquoise.

The ninth memory was when they first moved in together after Miku's graduation from high school. The ceremony had been boring, as usual, and they skipped the party so Miku could move into Luka's apartment. It was small but cozy and smelled like the girl who lived in it, it was a welcoming and homey atmosphere Miku fell in love with immediately. She moved in to the bed beside Luka's and they pulled them side by side so they could share. One bed was pink (Luka's) with a turquoise dolphin plush toy Miku got for her at a school trip to the Aquarium (she couldn't find a tuna), and the other was turquoise (Miku's) with a fluffy pink teddy bear with 'I love you' emblazoned on its tummy that Luka had gotten for her on Valentine's Day.

When they had finished moving things around in the apartment, the dull colors of it no longer struck out at Luka as much. For they had ensured that on nearly every piece of furniture was something pink and something turquoise; it suited Luka immensely and made her happy. She loved having more color around the house, though it was the same two, and she liked that her favorite color lingered in her gaze no matter where she looked. It reminded her of them and their promise to never part, regardless of what life would throw at them next. What pleased Luka the most was that the most important person in the world, to her, was going to be by her side every night and every morning, greeting her with those shining twin orbs in her favorite color.

That night, they fell asleep tangled in one another's arms, the turquoise and pink sheets entangling on the bed, their long hair twining with each other. The last sight Luka saw before dropping off into a pleasant dream was the length of Miku's turquoise hair, let down and tumbling loosely over her milky white bare shoulder. It was one of the most beautiful sights Luka had ever seen in her life. Turquoise.

The tenth memory was when they went on a trip together to Paris. The trip was amazing, Miku frolicked down the streets of the City of Lights and Love looking and acting like a girl six years younger. Despite the years, Miku retained her childish innocence past her twentieth birthday, and Luka felt sure it would continue onward to eternity. She could imagine Miku, white-haired and shriveled, still longing to play in the snow and chase butterflies like a carefree child. It made her chuckle, she loved that about Miku, and the French didn't seem to mind a twenty year old Japanese girl dashing by them with as much energy as a bolt of lightning. In fact, they too seemed taken by her, smiling briefly at her before scuttling about their separate ways.

It was a delightful holiday; and a romantic one as well. At the top of the Eiffel Tower, Luka proposed to Miku. It was so cliché the pink haired young woman nearly laughed, though what she held in her hands stood out as undoubtedly original. Instead of a bouquet of flowers, Luka held a bouquet of leeks, and the ring was turquoise in color with a pink diamond. It was custom-made and had cost Luka quite dearly, but the look on Miku's face had been more than enough payment for it. Miku had said yes, of course, and they shared an impossibly long kiss after Luka slipped the ring on her slender finger.

It happened when they were at the airport, waiting to board the return plane to Tokyo, Miku had excused herself to the bathroom a few moments before. Luka was smiling absently when she heard the sound of gunfire, making her jolt upright. All around her, people were on high alert, and a bunch of armed men raced toward them. Luka had learned French in college and understood the situation quickly; the men were now using all of them as hostages.

The airport security tried to creep up on them, but the men were alert and angry and demanded the French government release their captured leader from prison and grant them safety to leave Paris. They shouted that for every hour their demands were not met, they would kill someone. Just then, a security officer edged closer to the men, and a shot was fired randomly into the crowd. No one was hurt, the bullet had punctured through Miku's seat, and it felt like a bad omen to Luka. The men yelled their warnings once more.

One of them gestured to Luka, she probably stood out due to her bright pink hair, and she was muscled forward until she stood close to them. The men shouted that they would make an example of her, and Luka felt her heart hammer in her chest. She was going to be killed… The man raised his gun, and Luka heard the shot and closed her eyes, awaiting the pain.

Strangely, the pain never came. Luka opened her eyes to see Miku before her, arms spread and back facing the men, her turquoise hair swaying lightly in the direction she had run from. Miku had intercepted and saved Luka's life by using her own body to block the shot… Luka looked in her girlfriend's eyes, shocked and disbelieving; those amazing turquoise eyes were unclouded, clear with love and devotion. Miku was willing to forfeit her own life for Luka's…

"I'm… sorry…" Miku's voice was weak, and she collapsed before Luka in a pool of blood. Her beautiful turquoise hair fell around her in waves, filling Luka's vision suddenly as she collapsed on her knees and wailed.

The shock had been enough for the commandos of the French military to apprehend the men before any more damage was done. Besides Miku, another passenger, a little boy, was killed, and his mother wounded, but that was all. It had not been a terrible incident, with only two dead and one injured, but to Luka, the worst thing in the world had happened.

She would never forget that look in Miku's eyes when she took the bullet, right before she died. That is why she would never take her own life nor let it go to waste, for Miku had died to protect it, to give the one she loved more time in the world. Those turquoise orbs would forever be ingrained in Luka's memory. Turquoise.

That brings her back to now, where she stands quietly in the office of the funeral planners looking at the details of her beloved's funeral, to finalize them before the actual event in the evening. The headstone will be gray, carved with her name, birthdate and familial details, with mention to her engagement with Luka. Miku's smiling face will be on it, and the words "Dearly missed by all who knew and loved her. One could not know greater goodness in the world." However, the more Luka looks at it, the more she finds herself hating it. The color gray is too dull, too sad to represent the bundle of sunshine that was Miku's life.

"Can we change the color of the headstone?" she asks, her voice is hoarse from the night she spent crying when she stepped back on Tokyo soil with nothing but Miku's body.

"Of course, Megurine-san, anything you want," the director is sympathetic, "Would you prefer white, or marble?"

Luka shakes her head and replies, her voice quivering slightly with pain, "It should be turquoise, for that is the color of all the memories we shared." She looks down and realizes that tears are dripping onto the backs of her hands, but she does not bother to wipe them away. She knows that losing Miku will always be a part of her, but she will try her best to live the life her beloved gave her to the fullest. Luka knows she will never be able to love another the way she loved Miku, which is why she will now live every single day for Miku's sake.

The director is surprised by the strange color but agrees to make the changes for Luka's sake. That evening, Luka bade farewell to the girl she loved and watched her get laid to rest in the ground. Looking at the turquoise headstone, bright and standing out clearly amongst rows of white and gray, Luka felt slightly at ease. It was a perfect headstone for the perfect girl whose turquoise colored presence in Luka's memories would never fade.

Turquoise.