Chapter Thirty-Nine: A Ghostly Presence

A chill overcomes the household as the sun sets and the stars glitter ominously in the shadowed sky. Irish finds herself typing absentmindedly on the computer, unsure what she should write her Biology report on. Her teacher suggests basing the report on plants, knowing that Roxanne has a large garden with a variety of rare plants. But Irish doesn't think that's the right project for her. No, her report needs to be experimental. "I need to push the envelope between what is known and what can't be known." Irish mutters, oddly poetic for such a serious gal.

She writes a few lame suggestions, then shrugs them off. "A plasma fruit with a life plant graft would be interesting, but what vampire wants to live even longer?" Irish mumbles to herself, her mind racing as ideas bounce all about her brain. If only she could think up the perfect idea...

Nathalie goes to the backyard to look out at the unusually bright sky through her telescope. But she grows misty-eyed as she finds an even brighter sight lingering near Ned's grave.
"Ned..." Nathalie whispers softly as she grabs onto the ghostly hand. She feels like the hand is there, yet not. She wonders if that's what he's like now, just a wisp of what he once was.

"Nathalie." Semi-vacant eyes struggle to focus on the person right in front of him. His voice is distant, yet still more aware then it was days before his death.
"You're better. You're actually better." Nathalie softly pulls her hand away, unsure of what she is feeling right now. She's amazed, but wary. "Death cured you of what medicine could not." Nathalie stares into his ghostly white eyes, remembering the beautiful brown they were before.

Irish swivels away from her computer, suddenly feeling a tingling urge to get out of the house for a moment. "I've never felt like this before, but yet it's oddly familiar." She mutters to herself. Not one to normally go with her gut feeling, Irish ignores the sensation and tries to put her focus back onto her Biology project.

"It's been so long, I've missed you for so long..." Nathalie chokes out, salty tears running down her wrinkly cheeks. Why is it that she doesn't feel overwhelming joy by seeing him? Why does she just feel an overwhelming sense of loss?
"Me too Nathalie, me too. It's not the same without you." Ned smiles softly, clearly reminiscing of a life once lived. Nathalie frowns slightly, her feelings a complete mess right now.
"I know Ned, but I just question if this relationship can last through death. The grandchildren are growing so fast, and you've missed it all. I wonder if we've been too long apart?" She wishes that she didn't have to say this out loud, as she knows it will hurt him deeply. Despite the internal conflict she has with her words, Nathalie feels lighter as she reveals her emotions to the one person who she trusts more then anything.
"No! I've missed you so much Nattie! No, Nathalie, NO!" Ned lets out a haunted scream at the thought of losing the one he loves to something as simple as time. She shivers as she watches her love loses himself to his emotions for a moment. It's just a moment of many, among moments of sweet kisses and tender love. But it's enough for Nathalie to make her decision.

"I'm sorry Ned, but I'm just so tired of grieving. Tired of not truly living because I can't move past our love. I'll never be with another, but I need to live my life." Ned tries to fight the translucent tears running down his face, but ultimately fails.
"But I love you Nathalie! Please don't leave me!" Nathalie smiles softly, ironically at peace with her decision while Ned is in such emotional straits.

"Dammit, I just can't focus!" Irish curses as she taps impatiently on the keyboard. "It's like my brain has died today or something. Ugh, maybe a breathe of fresh air will help me focus again. If nothing else, I can harvest a few plants for that dorky Plasma/Life Fruit graft idea." Irish sighs as she pushes herself away from the computer.




















"I'll always love you, and we'll be together forever once I pass on. I just can't mourn anymore, not when my life is so short. I only have so much time left, and I need to live it." Nathalie tells Ned as she turns around and walks towards her family. Ned watches with teary white eyes, horrified at her decision. Why was he even here, if not to be with his love?

"GAMPA NED!" Irish screams, momentarily forgetting that she doesn't have the vocabulary of a toddler anymore. She runs over to a miserable Ned, babbling nonsensically about how much she's missed him. Slowly he starts to smile again, he's always loved his grandchildren with all his heart.

"Nathalie was right, you grandchildren have really grown up while I've been gone." Ned whispers, in awe. "You look just like my mother, your great-grandmother." Irish beams, she's always dressed to reflect her Chinese heritage. They stare at each other in silence for several moments, both trying to permanently etch the site into their minds forever.

 Irish grows more serious as she realizes what an opportunity this is. She's finally able to ask all the question about her grandfather that she never could as a child, not to mention that the mentality of a ghost versus a human would be the perfect topic for her science project.
"Grampa, are you really alive over there? How is it being dead?" Irish asks, her eyes alight with curiosity.
"Irish sweetheart, if I could reveal the secrets of the dead to you, do you not think I wouldn't have already done it? There are laws, otherwise the world would already know the ways of the dead and it wouldn't be a mystery anymore." Ned smiles softly as Irish stomps her foot like a perpetual child. "One thing I can tell you however is that science is not the path to happiness for you. You need to use your gifts, logic and writing, and discover the world's secrets. Just not the secrets of the dead, or else you could get punished by the Fates-I mean, by somebody." Ned just said too much, and he feels his ghostly form start to fade away.

 "Goodbye Irish, I know you'll be great someday, just as long as you follow your heart. And try to convince your grandmother of taking me back!" Ned shouts as he turns into vapour. She stares as the grave and cries for the man that she and Isadora never really got to know.

Nathalie is pumped, she is going to be the most fabulous old lady Brooklyn Heights has ever seen! She'll even make the granny jammies stylish again!
"Hopefully Ned isn't too upset, I'm just doing what's best for me at this point." Nathalie thinks to herself as her muscles contest such rigorous exercise. She stops the machines and stares up at the ceiling, praying that she'll find true happiness once again before she dies.

 Irish opens her laptop again, ready to write her report. She may not wish to explore the ways of the afterlife anymore, but she doesn't see a problem with writing a report about the biology of a ghost versus human biology. After all, ghosts are common in her town, and she has the testimony of a level ten Ghost Hunter to make her report less biased. She just won't mention anything about Ned or his vague information on the Fates, hopefully that's enough to not piss off the Fates.