Description

"I got me, so why do I need anybody else?"
Nobody Praying For Me
Believer | Save Me | I'll Be Good | Me, Myself, and I

| Full Name |
Takeo Tachibana

| Role |
Role 3

| Nicknames and Aliases |
Tak - Shorten version of his name, prefers.
Pipsqueak - Hates, used for his short stature.
Skaterat - Hates, used by those foolish enough to try to bully him, they promptly get a busted nose, knee, and usually a few ribs, but many kids at school tend to call him this behind his back due to his low social standing.
Pyro - Indifferent, due to him setting a man on fire, and nearly burning him to death.

| Gender |
Male

| Age |
17

| Birthday |
November 25th

| Sexual Orientation |
Heterosexual

| Scent |
Usually like a bakery, though this can be drowned out by sweat from his skateboarding.

| Accent |
Japanese

| Nationality |
Japanese

| Romantic Interest |
Autumn

| Ethnicity |
Presumably Japanese, beyond that it's unknown

| Social Class |
As a orphan, or 'throw away child' he has a rather low social standing, which is only made worse by his criminal record, and rather poor attitude.

| Occupation |
Dish washer at a bakery, and occasional delivery boy

| Place of Residence |
Currently he lives in an attic above the bakery he works at.

| Oddities |
Tak is never without his beanie, even when he's sleeping.He also tends to listen to his headphones, usually just to tone people out, and avoid talking to them. Though he's quiet, he does have a rather foul mouth when he does talk.

| Personality |
{Quiet | Antisocial | Protective | Pessimistic | Lonely}
What is there to say about Tak Tachibana? Well, general consensus is that he is nothing but a scary, and violent thug. And Tak certainly doesn't do anything to disprove these views. After all everything that he presents to the world is design to keep others away, from his clothes, his posture, and the steely glares that he gives everyone. So he wouldn't have you think of him as any other way. This tough exterior is something that he's always had to put due to him being a 'throw away child', a orphan. While normal children can be cruel, ones that are abandoned are even more so. So in order to survive he had to be tough.

Given his upbringing it is no surprise that Tak has a pessimistic outlook on life. Given the social stigma that comes with being a orphan Tak has no grand plans for his future. While most people his age would have plans for college, he has no delusions about higher education, and believes that the best he could ever hope for is some low paying job, and a dump of a place to live. He is a rather big cynic, and adamantly believes that people always have some sort of angle, and want something from each other.

Though Tak may not take his school work very seriously, it does not mean that he's stupid or anything. In fact if he were to apply himself he would actually get fairly good grades, but he doesn't see much point in it. It's not like he'll ever be able to afford college, so what's the point? He is surprisingly well read, he spent quite a bit of time in juvie, and there wasn't much else to do than read, and they had a surprisingly decent library.

Tak does have a quiet nature to him, being the strong-silent type, but it's not due to shyness, it's merely because he simply doesn't want to deal with people. It's not that he can't, he just chooses not to. Though when he does talk you'll find that he has a rather foul mouth, with the few times that he does take the trouble to talk to people it's usually to cuss them out. To further his antisocial behavior, and keep others away he tends to keep his headphones on, and tone out people with his music. Another factor to his antisocial behavior is his severe abandonment issues stemming from his parents, as he has never met them, and is secretly afraid of getting close to others, only for them to leave him as well. Due to this Tak has a strong independent streak, preferring to rely on himself rather than others.

Tak can be rather temperamental at times, and has little patience when dealing with others. Especially when his height, or upbringing is brought up, which are both sensitive subjects for him. He'll start throwing punches right away. Though most kids at school have learned not to bring it up anymore in front of him. But that doesn't stop people from talking about him behind his back, and he's the victim of many vicious rumors, and often ridiculed. Unsurprisingly Tak doesn't many, if any, friends, and lives quite the lonely life. While he doesn't show this outwardly, deep down Tak, like any other orphan, merely wants to be accepted, and loved by others. Though he's seen far too much bad in people to ever think that's possible.

Though beneath all these negative traits Tak can be a surprisingly protective, and almost kind individual, but just in his own way. Contrary to popular belief Tak has never gone looking for a fight, he's always either been provoked or else he fought to protect someone else. In fact most of the fights that he got into when he was a kid was usually to protect the smaller and weaker kids(despite him actually being one of the smaller kids) from the bigger kids. He was never one to sit by and let the weak suffer at the hands of the strong. But his intentions never really did matter much in the eyes of adults who didn't see him as any different than the bullies he fought. Tak can have a kind streak to him, this being especially apparent towards children and animals. He's a rather big animal lover, preferring their company over that of people, and has a tendency to take care of strays when he finds them.

Tak can be rather awkward when around girls, especially when alone with one, and is easily prone to blushing, though to counter this he often scares them off with a simple glare, so usually it's no problem. This is due to him having spent most of his life around boys, and having very little interactions with girls his own age during his formative years. So he's unsure how to act around them, and is easily flustered.

| Morals |
Tak lives in a morally grey area, and has a 'ends justifies the means' sort of mentality, and has no qualms about using violence. Though he wouldn't harm someone who he didn't feel deserved it, nor would he act without provocation. He's very protective of those who can't protect themselves. He has a cynical nature to him, and believes that people are only out for themselves, and that they are, as he would put it, "Bastard coated bastards with bastard filling."

| Likes |
✔ Skateboarding
✔ Baseball
✔ Reading
✔ Sci-fi Novels
✔ Gardening
✔ Animals

| Dislikes |
✖ People
✖ Bullies
✖ Gossip
✖ His Height
✖ Baking
✖ Bringing Up The Past

| Talents |
★ Skateboarding
★ Baseball
★ Baking
★ Brawling
★ Lip Reading

| Flaws |
☢ Cynical
☢ Pessimistic
☢ Temperamental
☢ Antisocial

| Weaknesses |
☠ Pessimism
☠ Friendless
☠ Unforgiving
☠ Abandonment

| Hobbies |
❤ Skateboarding
❤ Reading
❤ Batting Cages
❤ Gardening

| History |
Poor little Takeo Tachibana, always unwanted. Little to nothing is known about his birth, or his parents, he was two years old when he was just simply abandoned with no reason, too young to have any memories of his parents. He was sent to a orphanage like any other abandoned child. It was a poorly funded, and under staffed institution, with thirty or so other boys.

Tak's childhood was a rough one to say the least. The other boys didn't come from much better backgrounds than him, with many having been taken from their parents due to abuse, so most of them were angry little boys who only knew how to express themselves through violence. As with most other orphanages the children there developed a hierarchy among themselves, with the bigger, older kids having absolute say on everything, and they would savagely beat those that disobeyed them. While the staff did what they could, at the end of the day they were just too under staffed to do any real good.

Tak was often a target of these bullies, not just due to his small size, but also because he wasn't one to go along with the status quo. He would often stand up to the older kids in defense of the younger, which would earn him the beatings instead. Tak valiantly tried to fight back, but in the end he was just one small boy against several other boys twice his size. Eventually Tak learned that the only why he could win was to be meaner than they were, more brutal. To even stand a chance against them he had to fight like his life depended on it. He would fight almost like a animal, with little regard to what he did to the other kids.

Tak became quite feared among the kids, and eventually they learned to stay away from him. And for a time things got better for the smaller, weaker kids, since Tak's presence deterred the more violent kids, so he naturally became the de facto leader of them. As they began to depend on him more, they started coming to him with their problems. And several of them came with the same problem. The older boys weren't the only ones who preyed on the smaller, weaker boys. There was one staff member with a......unhealthy interest in them.

His victims came to Tak, unsure of what to do, as they were too scared to go to another adult, and were convinced they wouldn't be believed. Tak was livid, he told them that he would handle it. Tak confronted the man, telling him to leave the boys alone or else he will tell the other staff members. But the man called Tak's bluff, knowing full well that the other adults wouldn't believe a troublemaker like him.

He was right of course, the only way this was going to stop was if Tak took drastic measures to stop him. But not just that, Tak wanted him to suffer for what he had done. It was a easy thing really, step one get a lighter, luckily one of the caretakers had a nasty nicotine addiction, so lifting a lighter off of her wasn't too difficult. Then step two, get some ignition, which came in the form of a can of air freshener. And boom, homemade flamethrower(don't try this at home kids).

With supplies in hand, all Tak had to do was walk into his office, spark the lighter, and then used the can of spray on the open flame, setting him on fire. The man naturally flailed around, and set the entire room on fire, nearly burning down the entire orphanage. In the aftermath the man was nearly burned to death, but he managed to barely survive, and Tak was arrested.

Afterwards Tak was placed in a juvenile correctional facility. Basically prison for someone who almost burned down an orphanage. Though Tak had good intentions to protect the boys, this fact was hidden by the other staff members in order to not lose funding. Tak was once more a small fish in a big pond.

Tak spent four long years inside, though it wasn't anything that he wasn't used to. It wasn't too different than the orphanage after all. When he was released Tak didn't have anywhere to go, it's not like another orphanage to go to. But luckily for him there was a sympathetic worker at his former home, and put him in touch with someone who would help him.

While initially hesitant about accepting help, he figured he didn't have much else to lose and contacted a couple that owns a bakery. Apparently the wife of the bakery's owner was a orphan herself, and was informed about the details of his imprisonment. And when she found out what else could she do but help him? Her husband allowed him to live above the bakery, so long as he helped out. It didn't take long for Tak to figure it out, in fact he took to it rather quickly, and displays natural talent. Though he himself has zero interest in baking.

However he still hasn't quite adjusted to the outside, and dealing with people in general.

| Other |

| Face Claim |
Misaki Yata

So begins...

Tak Tachibana's Story

Seen 7 Times • Page 1 of 1

Setting

Higashi-Naruse, Akita

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#2017-06-10 14:39:29, as written by Kura Ravengade

”It's okay to feel weak sometimes. It's okay to be afraid.
The important thing is that we face our fears.
That's...that's what makes us strong.”

From the beginning of time, humans have worshipped some form of a deity. Where they got the ideology that another, more powerful being existed, over watching them and judging their every movement, their every decision - their every thought - is beyond the understanding of modern day scientists. All that is known is that they have worshipped some sort of ethereal being since the beginning of their existence.

Jesus. Allah. Moses. Zeus. God.

Those are but a few of the many, many deities and omnipotent beings that the humans have ‘thought’ of as their creators. Obviously, none of them came close to the truth - the truth that the Sun and the Moon, two ‘planets’, as they were deemed by humans, were the actual creators of all living creatures - but that was partially the doing of said deities. Ever since the humans began to wonder how they came to be, how they were created, or in general questions anything related to such a subject, the Sun and the Moon have ventured to Earth to regularly spin stories, and spread them across the world in an attempt to slow the discovery of their being. Once their children were born, however, they put far more effort into keeping their existence hidden, into preventing them and their children from being discovered. Any human that came close to the truth was promptly dealt with, usually by the Senior Star given her memory suppression capabilities, and so far so their web of lies and legends has held up.

The lies were put into place to not only protect the Sun and Moon, and not only their children, either, but also the human beings themselves. If they were to discover the true origin of their beginnings, there is no telling what the outcome could be. What could become of the children and their parents is unknown, seeing as the two deities never once claimed to be omnipotent, and they have lived in slight fear of their existence becoming known one day.

They don’t, of course, plan to hide themselves forever. Simply until they deem the humans to be capable of accepting their existences without any repercussions; and so far, they have yet to prove themselves worthy to know the truth.

The main cause of war in human society stems from religious views. The main cause of disputes between people is caused by their differences in beliefs.

Many, many issues in human society, both currently and throughout the past, can be traced back to religious differences. The Crusades are a prime example of holy wars, during which time countless lives were lost.

The witch trials across Europe and early America are another example of the religious influence that causes mass genocides to take place. World War II, in which Adolf Hitler attempted to wipe out all of those belonging to the Jewish faith.

To sum everything up, human beings as a whole are not ready to accept the truth. They are close - God, they are so very close - to being able to hear the real truth and accept it without negative consequences or outcomes.

But they aren’t quite there yet; and so the Sun and the Moon are not ready to take the chances of revealing their existence to any human being, out of fear of them spreading the knowledge their being to other humans throughout the world. And so we hide.

We always hide.

Velonix glanced up from the blank, old book that she had been writing in. It had been given to her by the owner of the bookshop that she had just recently been given a job at, as a welcoming present. She had seen it through the window when she had been walking by, and it had prompted her to enter the store, almost as though it were calling for her. When the owner, Mr. Zwemmer, saw her inside and staring at it, he had removed it from its case and allowed her to look more closely at it. While she was studying it, they began a conversation, and one thing led to another, and she ended up with her first real job in the human world. After her third of fourth shift, during which times she would stare at the ancient book, Mr. Zwemmer finally caved and gave her it as a gift, much to her happiness. She had promised vehemently to care for it as though it were a living creature, and he laughed in response, knowing that she would.

Setting down the quill - yes, she still wrote with a quill and ink, deal with it - she put the stopper into her ink bottle and pushed back her chair, rising from her seat. She placed the book and writing utensils behind the main counter before turning to go through the boxes of new books that had arrived that morning.

She could still remember the day that her siblings pushed her into returning to Earth, which was only two weeks prior to the present day. The idea had been hers - a decision that still surprised her, even though she was the one who came up with it.

~’.’~Two Weeks Prior~’.’~

Soft whispers slithered beneath the door that led to the library. They could only be heard if one were to be standing directly outside of the door, and it was almost necessary to press one’s ear to said door in order to actually understand what was being said.

Not that there was anyone to listen to the discussion. Sun and Moon were currently overwatching the Earth, as they did at that exact time each and every new day, and The Senior Star Astra was currently assisting them in their Earthly decisions. The Junior Star Vyasa was at her side, attempting to intake any new knowledge to be gained from the actions that his more powerful Godly comrades were performing.

Now who, one may wonder, was making such noise in the library?

There could only be one group of culprits behind it; the four children of the Sun and the Moon.

The very embodiment of the Seasons themselves.

Beyond the large, oaken door, the children of the Gods sat on the comfortable furniture within. The two eldest were on one couch, while the two youngest had taken seats on the armchairs on either side of the larger furniture. Harmony had taken the liberty to start a fire in the massively beautiful fireplace that adorned the equally gorgeous library, which was quadruple the size of the area that they were currently nestled in, and she folded her legs beneath her bottom on the chair, tucking her skirt underneath her shins in an ever-present drive at modesty. A mug of her ever-present hot chocolate, decorated with whipped cream, marshmallows, and sprinkles of cinnamon, was clasped firmly between her oddly cold palms, which were damp with a nervous sweat. The same wetness was sprinkled across her hairline, both along her forehead and the nape of her neck, and a small tremble of anxiety resided in her hands. In addition, she was doing her bad habit of bouncing slightly as she sat, constantly shifting her weight in an obvious attempt to get comfortable, despite it being a futile effort.

After several moments of silence had ticked by, Harmony obviously too nervous to start the discussion of why she had asked her siblings to join her in the library, her sister spoke.

”Har, I understand that you’re nervous, but you should know by now that there’s no need for you to feel that way around us. Whatever’s bothering you - whatever’s weighing on your mind - just speak.” Her voice was gentle, almost a coo, in an obvious attempt to draw her shy younger sister slightly more out of her shell.

In response, Harmony fidgeted a bit more for a moment longer, before forcing herself to settle and heaving a sigh. After a long sip of her delicious cocoa, she lowered her feet to the floor and leaned forward, setting the mug on the coffee table before her. She dropped her hands to her knees, drew in a long breath in preparation, and in one long heave, blurted out what she had rehearsed at least thirty-two times in her mind.

”I … I want to go and visit Earth!”

Almost instantly the girl squeezed her eyes shut, her shoulders hunching in readiness for her siblings expected outbursts of rejection at her wish. When nothing was immediately said, she slowly allowed herself to pry open one eye, and then another when she noticed the blank stares of surprise from her brothers and sister. Squirming a bit under their piercing gazes - they all had equally beautiful eyes in her mind, and ones that could unsettle even the most rigid of people - she gnawed on her lower lip, looking down at her hands on her legs. Her fingers were curled inwards, digging into the flesh of her knees, and she was bouncing her one foot anxiously.

A few more beats of silence passed before anyone spoke, and it was one word.

”No.”

Harmony’s head snapped up, her heart stopping for a brief moment before skipping a beat and regaining its regular pattern. Her eyes met her older brother’s gaze, which was dark and stern, unrelenting in its own way.

”But, Phoebus, at least let me explain wh-”

”No. Absolutely not. This shouldn’t even be up for discussion, Harmonix,” he interrupted, not even allowing her to finish her sentence. Her eyes welled up with tears in immediate response, and she lowered her head once more, her action holding all of the defeat she felt. She had known it was a long shot from the beginning, getting her siblings on board with her idea, but to be shot down so quickly and so assuredly definitely stung.

A soft scoff was heard from the girl that sat beside Phoebus. Her cotton candy hair was illuminated in the glow of the fire, and an eye roll could be seen.

”Oh, come on, Phoebus. At least let her explain why she wants to visit Earth. You can’t just shoot down what she says without allowing her to tell us why she would want to do it. Harmony very rarely speaks her mind about issues that she knows are controversial, so you can at least respect her courage to do so right now, given the subject.”

Harmony glanced up slightly, looking at her sister through her lashes, her gaze holding the gratitude she felt towards the older girl. Aurora definitely wasn’t wrong, though; very rarely would Harmony bring up a subject or idea that she knew would cause an argument or negativity of any sort, so when she did, it was usually for a good reason.

Turning her gaze to her older brother, she allowed her eyes to take on a puppy-dog look, and she jutted out her lower lip. This was her signature expression - something that she reserved only for times that she really wanted something - and her older brother instantly melted like butter.

Quickly averting his own eyes from hers, he looked away, his pale cheeks taking on a soft flush.

”By the stars above, Har - not the eyes,” he groaned. He flicked a glance at the girl, only to find that she was still holding the same expression, and slapping his hand over his eyes, he slowly dragged it down his face, before heaving a loud sigh.

”Fine, I’ll at least listen to this insane idea that you’ve come up with,” he muttered.

Instantly Harmony brightened, her puppy dog look diminishing, and she leaned forward, her previous nervousness replaced with obvious excitement. A twinkle shone in her eye, and she had a gentle smile on her lips. She still did, however, speak with hesitancy, a slight stutter taking away some of the confidence she felt.

”I … I’m hoping that if I were to go to Earth … That it could maybe help me come to terms with everything that’s happened since … Since the incident,” she finished, her voice ending almost in a murmur. What little courage she felt when she began speaking had quickly faded as she finished, and she felt her shoulders slightly slump with dejection. She picked at her fingernails, suddenly extremely fascinated with her hands.

”I know that … I know that I’ve caused a lot of unnecessary trouble and problems over the years, ever since that day when we were children … And I know that because of what happened, I’ve changed a lot as a person ...” She trailed off for a moment, having to pause to garner a bit of bravery. Turning her face back upwards, she met each one of her siblings gazes before continuing.

”I’ve been keeping it hidden as much as possible, but recently … Recently, what Astra did to help me contain the Phoenix … The walls that she built to help seal my two separate minds, or identities, or whatever you want to call them … I can feel them beginning to crumble,” she said softly, her shoulders once more slumped, but this time instead of the cause being defeat, it was more so worry. She pressed her lips together for a moment before continuing.

”I … I’m really scared,” she whispered, tears prickling at her eyes. ”I’m scared of what will happen if those walls disappear completely, and the Phoenix is allowed out and into the physical world once more. I don’t expect any of you to understand … You’ve never had anything like this happen before … But I ...” Drawing in a shaky breath, she felt a ball of anxiety curl in her chest. ”I can hear her … I can hear her voice, in the very back of my mind, hiding behind those walls. She keeps telling me to do things … Things that I know I shouldn’t do, but things that I really want to do. So far I’ve been able to ignore her and push down my urge to do what she says, but … But I’m afraid of what might happen if I can’t get a handle on her.”

There was a lapse in words being said, before Phoebus once more spoke, his voice slightly heavy, given the equal weight of the current conversation.

”And how do we know that it isn’t Phoenix’s idea for us to go to Earth? How do we know that this is actually your own idea, Harmonix?”

Harmony hesitated before slowly responding.

”I just … It might be hard for me to resist the temptation that she gives me to do certain things, and I may not have been able to discern my thoughts and her thoughts before Astra helped me, but … Right now, I can tell which thoughts are mine and which are hers. I don’t really know how to explain how I can, but … But I can. And on that, you’ll just have to trust me, Phoebus.”

Another moment of silence ticked by - there seemed to be a lot of those during this discussion, Harmony idly thought - before anyone responded to her words.

”I think … That if you think that it’s a good idea, and if you think that it really will help you, Sundown … That we should do it.”

Harmony turned her gaze to her younger brother, her lower lip trembling slightly. She had known before even asking for her siblings to meet her that out of all of them, Ellyion was most likely to support what she thought was best, and he had definitely proved her correct in that assumption.

Turning back to her older siblings, she looked at them with her wide, umber eyes, which spoke volumes over her expectation for an answer. Aurora was studying her nails, and while filing at the tip of one of her index fingers, she shrugged and spoke.

”I think that if you think that it can help you, and that you can handle it, we should at least give it a shot. Who knows? Maybe it’ll prove beneficial for all of us. Wouldn’t you agree, Phoebus?” she dragged out, purposely doing so in order to annoy him.

The boy in question narrowed his eyes slightly at his older sister, a soft growl of sorts escaping his lips, before he turned to Harmony, his gaze a smidge less stern than it was before. After several calculated moments, during which time she could practically see the gears turning in her older brother’s head, he spoke.

”Seeing as I’m clearly outnumbered, I’ll have to say yes. What kind of brother would I be to just let all of you run rampant down on Earth? Someone has to be down there to corral you,” he sighed, rubbing his temples.

Harmony immediately brightened, her skin taking on a slightly golden glow, and she was across the gap between them in seconds, her arms thrown around her older brother’s neck.

”Thank you, Phoebus … You … You have no idea what this means to me,” she whispered into his neck, her tears soaking into his long hair.

Slamming her forehead dramatically onto the counter that held the register and basic supplies for the bookstore, Velonix let out an equally dramatic sound that could only be described as a mix between a sigh and a whining wail. Turning her head slightly, she looked forlornly out the window, inhaling the scent of the book directly before her face.

The sun was shining brightly through the clear window, giving the interior of the building an ethereal glow. Dust mites danced in the sun’s rays, and for a moment, she felt an unwanted sadness in her chest.

Somewhere, far up in the sky and even further beyond that, her parents were looking down at the world below. She could picture her mother, wringing her hands and a worried crease between her brows, and her father, pacing with long strides across the hall that enclosed the enormous, hologram-like image that showed them the entirety of the planet. It was used to view in on any place at any time, past, present, or future, and to interact with said reality. There were many of times that her parents had altered the past in order to benefit the future - they went back and prevented world-wide catastrophes.

Why, then, did they allow certain events to occur? Why did they allow countless lives to be lost to the hands of evil humans who wished nothing but death upon the masses?

It was all for a better goal.

To think that they enjoyed watching the humans suffer - you couldn’t be further from the truth. Countless times had Velonix ventured into the great hall, as a young child and beyond, to find her mother weeping over the hologram of the beautiful planet. She had seen unimaginable things in that hologram, and heard screams that still echoed in her ears to this very day. As soon as her parents spotted her they would shoo her away fairly quickly, of course, but that didn’t stop her from seeing things.

People being torn limb-from-limb by ancient Roman Gladiators.

Children being burned alive alongside their parents during the European Witch Trials.

Animals being killed by toxic chemicals sprayed down upon the humans by large flying machines from above.

Tears pricked at her eyes at the memories, and she squeezed the large umber orbs shut in an attempt to stem their flow, and to shield herself from the visuals flashing before her eyes.

Closing them only prevented herself from seeing, however. It didn’t slow what she could hear, not by a long shot; and the screams continued to echo inside of her mind.

Making a fist, she struck herself repeatedly on the side of the hide, rather aggressively if anyone were to look upon her action.

“Stop ... Stop it, please ...” she whispered, her lips a slight grimace.

After a few moments, the screams slowly faded and she had managed to qualm her rapid breathing, having only just then realized how quickly she was panting. She remained like that, bent over with her hand resting on the counter, for who knew how long, and only rose when the alarm to the door made its soft sounds, the pre-recorded melody of Fur Elise announcing the arrival of a newcomer.

Smiling at the person who had ventured inside, she stretched out her arms, her elbows crackling at the motion.

“Welcome back, Mr. Zwemmer! Did you have a pleasant afternoon?”

The elderly man gave her a kind yet beaming grin in return, making his face slowly into the business, his cane that was honestly just used for sure - he really didn’t even use it, the trickster that he was - clacking away with each step.

“Ah, Velonix - always a warm and joyous face to see. I enjoy being able to leave my store, knowing it’s in good hands, and also being able to return to it, knowing that I’ll be able to see your cute face when I come back,” he chuckled. Velonix instantly turned beat red, lifting her hands and waving them sporadically before her.

“Oh, Mr. Zwemmer, you’re too kind!” she laughed, her embarrassment evident in her flushed face.

Chuckling once more, he approached the counter that she stood behind, lifting his cane and gently resting it on top of her head.

“Now that I’m here, you get on outside and enjoy the sunshine. You’re young and deserve to enjoy your youth; not spend it cooped up inside of a bookstore all day.”

Velonix gave the man a reassuring smile, clapping her hands together in front of her. “Oh, I really don’t mind, Mr. Zwemmer! I love being surrounded by the books, so it’s no hassle for me at all!”

Rolling his eyes in a very young action, he made his way behind the counter, nudging her with his cane.

“Go on, shoo - I can handle it for the rest of the day on my own. Go outside and enjoy yourself! Make some friends!”

She barely had enough time to snag her book and writing supplies before the old man had hustled her out from behind the counter. She wasn’t worried about anyone reading it - if anything they would assume that it was nothing but a fiction novel she was working on - but she felt almost as though she were missing a part of her when it wasn’t within her reach.

Stumbling to the door - he accidently tripped her a bit with his cane - she spun back around and waved to the man. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Mr. Zwemmer! Make sure to tell Ms. Ponsi that I said hello!”

She was, of course, referring to his beautiful, snow-white Persian kitten. He had adopted her shortly after his beautiful wife had passed, which wasn’t long before Velonix arrived on Earth, and the kitty was the apple of his eye. Although he and his wife had loved each other endlessly, they had never had children - something to do with Mrs. Zwemmer being unable to conceive - but had had countless pets over the years. After their last one died, with Mrs. Zwemmer’s ailing health, they decided not to adopt another animal for fear that they wouldn’t have time to care for it. After his wife passed, however, he was recommended by his doctors to adopt an animal to help with the grief, and not too long afterwards did he hire Velonix, so that he could have more time to spend with his precious pet.

Velonix shook the thoughts from her head. Of course, she wasn’t meant to know all of these things. It wasn’t as though Mr. Zwemmer had told her all of this. But then again, that was one of her specialties - knowing too much about the humans that she came into contact with. It’s why she tried very hard not to come into physical contact with a human; she had enough difficulty with her own memories, she didn’t need any added into the mess that was her brain.

Once outside, she tilted her head back and closed her eyes for a moment, inhaling the crisp, Autumn-like air. It wasn’t too cold, but neither was it unreasonably hot in this part of town. It was a happy middle ground, much to her delight, as her season normally was, and she was enjoying the beautiful weather - not that she couldn’t control it or anything. She giggled at the thought, opening her eyes and gazing up at the sky, shielding her eyes from the sun with her hand.

If only her parents could see her now - unafraid of the human world and its inhabitants. When she arrived on Earth with her siblings, she spent the first couple of days hiding in her bedroom, absolutely petrified to leave the house. However, after some gentle coaxing from her little brother, Ellyion, she managed to bring herself to step outside - and my, oh my, was she glad that she did so. The beauty that the Earth held was shameful to miss out on! She had forgotten over the years how gorgeous the nature was, and how bewitching the scenes that played before her eyes were. Obviously she was in town, currently, but even where there was a heavy lack of nature was she mesmerized. The shops, the people - everything was so fascinating to her, and she hadn’t even begun to explore this one little town, let alone the entire planet! Who knew what else was out there for her to discover? Her siblings and she had done their fair share of studying of the planet and its inhabitants over the hundreds of years that they had been alive, but nothing even came close in comparison to actually seeing it in person.

She had forgotten the beauty that the Earth held, and how kind the humans could actually be. What she once viewed as a dark and frightening place, she now saw as a light and gorgeous environment. The creatures that she once saw as vile and terrifying beings, were in actuality extremely caring individuals, rich with their own histories and memories, their own personalities.

She was a fool to ever believe that such an alluring and prepossessing place could be scary, and she was giddy with her newfound knowledge.

*Continued In CutupxKuraRavengade Collaboration Piece*

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Higashi-Naruse, Akita

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#2017-06-10 14:45:01, as written by Kura Ravengade

~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~Nobody Likes Me ~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~Going Through Changes~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~
"People only see~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~"Don't be so quick
what they want to see,~'.'~'.'~'.'~to judge me. You only see
and that’s all they’ll ever see."~'.'.'~what I want you to see."

Quickly pulling herself from her reverie, Velonix turned on her heel and approached a nearby traffic light. The signal across the street was a blue person, and when she heard her human name called, she glanced over her shoulder in the direction that the voice came from, continuing her walking as she did so. It was one of the storeowners whose business resided next door to Mr. Zwemmer’s, and the woman had taken to her rather quickly, as did many of the other surrounding owners. The community that her siblings and she had chosen to reside it wasn’t necessarily close-knit, but the people were unbelievably kind and welcoming, and had immediately opened up to her.

It probably helped that she had bribed them with deliciously baked goods, brownies being one of their favorites.

Lifting her hand in a wave, she beamed a smile in the woman’s direction, feeling herself step off of the sidewalk and onto the crosswalk that would lead her to the other side of the street - and directly in the way of an oncoming bus. The store owner’s eyes widened, and she let out a loud shout in warning, but Velonix only had the time to turn her head and see the vehicle barreling down towards her. She froze, and in those seconds, she felt a cold fear wash over her entire body; seconds turned into milliseconds, her eyes widening in absolute terror, her hands flying up in an attempt to do something to stall the bus from hitting her, even if it meant revealing her abilities to the few humans who were watching the events unfold.

An unbelievably warm touch wrapped around her wrist, gripping it tightly, and at the last moment she was yanked out of the line of sight of the impending vehicle. She stumbled to the side after the pull, nearly tripping and falling, but whatever it was that was holding her forearm also helped to keep her upright and prevented her from hitting the cement face-first.

Just as quickly as the warmth had touched her skin, it was gone, and Velonix was left trembling and attempting to get her bearings. It took her a few seconds, but once she had verified that she was, indeed, still alive, she snapped her head around in every direction, before finally keying in on a figure that was growing increasingly further away from her.

Her hand raised and she stared at her wrist for a moment, flicking her gaze between her skin and the slowly diminishing body, before she made a split-second decision - something that if anyone who knew her saw her do, they would think she was crazy, seeing as she never made decisions without thoroughly thinking them through first.

In an instant she was pushing through the people, ignoring the yelling from the store owner behind her, and despite her small stature, she somehow managed to catch up with the figure. Throwing out her hand, she snagged his own with it, a small jolt going through her body as the memory of a older man looming over a small and terrified child assaulted her brain. She quickly pushed the memory aside to study later, instead pulling on the hand that she now gripped, stopping the person in their tracks.

This earned her a glare of the shoulder of the boy, who spun around and yanked his hand from hers, almost as though her touch stung him. Realizing that she had grabbed him and allowed skin-to-skin contact so impulsively, she pulled her own hand back, clutching it to her chest. A few moments of silence ticked between them, and in those moments, she swore that time stood still - and not by the doing of the Senior Star, that was for sure.

No, this - this was something entirely different. As she stared into those intense orbs that looked at her with a mixture of annoyance and nervousness, she felt an unfamiliar electric shock slam through her body. Her breath hitched, and she clenched her fingers, curling them into the front of her shirt.

Was this a heart attack?

It couldn’t be. She wasn’t able to suffer from physical ailments such as a heart condition or failure.

So the question remained:

What was this feeling?

The boy wasn’t fairing much better than her. It took all his willpower to remain cool, and collected, and not let his nervousness take over. Most girls avoided him, or else he avoided them. He wasn’t quite sure how to act around a girl, so he took a deep breath, and exhaled with an annoyed sigh. He had to do the only thing he knew to do, drive her away.

"Listen lady, I didn't steal your damn purse or whatever the hell you’re bugging me about. So buzz off and bother someone else. I don’t have time for an annoying fly like you.”

Velonix turned a bright red color in the cheeks, sputtering something unintelligible that even she couldn’t understand. The boy, in response, raised a brow before rolling his eyes and propping a skateboard that she hadn’t noticed until he moved it on his shoulder.

“Great, we got a real smart one here - can’t even form coherent words.”

The sentence stung a bit, but she quickly pushed it aside, not allowing his harsh nature to overcome her immense gratitude towards him. She bowed forward at the hips, her hair falling around her face - she had read that it was Japanese custom to bend when showing thanks to someone - and clasped her hands before her legs, her book tucked safely between her arm and her side.

“I-I wanted to say ... I want to thank you for saving my life. If it weren’t for you ... I ...” she trailed off, unable to imagine what could have become of her had he not intervened. Straightening, she rubbed her arm absentmindedly, focusing her gaze on her shoes so as to avoid those intensely electrifying eyes. She inhaled slowly, before letting it out in a small puff, attempting to gather her wits and her courage.

“Look, I don't know where the nearest mental asylum is so piss off.”

The words hit her in the chest. She hadn’t heard such a rude statement directed towards her since that day so many years ago, and to be honest, it did hurt her feelings. He didn’t have to be so incredibly cold towards her. All she wanted to do was thank him.

Why, out of all of the humans that she had come across, was this one capable of scrambling her brain without even uttering a word?

Turning her eyes back towards him, she looked at the boy through her lashes, her quiet and shy nature obvious in her actions.

“If it isn’t a bother, I’d like to do something for you to show my immense gratitude. Allow me to purchase for you a drink of some sort?” she offered, cringing at her odd way of speaking. She knew that her accent was thick, and she knew that the way that she spoke was extremely meticulous and out of the ordinary, but she hoped against hope that he wouldn’t comment on it. She wasn’t sure that she could take another remark like the two before.

Moments ticked by, and as the boy stared at her without responding, she slowly grew more and more nervous. Something was building up inside of her - familiar feelings that she couldn’t place nor understand in that moment, let alone begin to fathom how they could be considered ‘familiar’ to her - and as he continued to stare at her without saying anything, she jerked her head up and snapped, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer!” It was the first thing that came to mind - something that she had heard someone say in one of the humans moving pictures that they referred to as ‘movies’ - and came out completely unfiltered.

Velonix immediately slapped her hands over her mouth, her entire face turning an even darker red than before, her eyes going wide with alarm.

“I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to say that - it ... It just popped out! I apologize,” she stammered out.

What was it about this boy that caused her to act so impulsively, without care and without thinking things through before moving or speaking? She had spent so many years perfecting her ability to think before acting, and this boy - this boy made all of those years disappear.

By the stars above, why did her frazzle her brain so well, and yet seem so ungodly familiar in the aura that he gave off?

The boy rolled his eyes, and let out a deep sigh. Why couldn’t people just leave him alone? Why wouldn’t she just take the hint, and leave him alone? “Listen psycho, I'm gonna be late for work! You don't owe me dick. I don't even remember doing that. However if I did do that I would tell you to keep your goddamn eyes open, and not walk around like a wide eyed idiot.” He harshly stated.

Velonix’s eyes widened considerably, and an odd emotion curled up in her chest. Her arms grew warm, and she felt an odd tick in her cheek. It was something that she hadn’t felt in a very long time.

Anger.

What gave him the right to speak to her that way? To use such foul language and direct it towards her? No one had the right to speak to anyone in the way that he was talking to her.

She closed the small distance between them in two quick steps, lifting her hand and poking him hard in the center of the chest and focusing large, narrowed eyes on him, which were ablaze with irritation. He had spoken to her as though she were an unintelligible creature enough - she wasn’t just going to let him treat her that way. The boy was caught off guard, and the moment she touched him he lost his composure. His face turned bright red.

“Listen here, you - you - you arsch*,” she snapped, poking him hard again, “I don’t care what your personal issue is. You have no right - no right whatsoever - so speak to me so disrespectfully. All I wanted to do was thank you and show my gratitude towards you; the least that you can do is say you’re welcome! It’s called common decency and manners, and to stand there and insult me - Pah!” she huffed, jabbing him once more. The boy opened his mouth to try to speak, but he was cut off before a word could come out. “You have no idea who I am, so you have zero right to speak down to me as though I’m nothing more than an ant!”

Shoving her hand into her pocket, she pulled something out, grabbed his hand, and shoved a crumpled wad of money into his palm - around forty-five dollars worth - before stepping back and drawing in a deep breath. Tears prickled her eyes, and one escaped and trickled down her cheek.

“Now have fun at work, jerk,” she said quietly. Velonix spun away on her heel and shoved through the crowd away from him, rubbing at her watery eyes in irritation.

“Hey! You....you....Psycho! Get back here!” The boy futilely called out, but got no more reactions. He glared at the wad of money that she forced upon him, anger began to swell up inside him. He gritted his teeth, and started after her.

Why, by all of the stars above, was that measly human able to make her react and act so recklessly and angrily?

Rounding the corner, she ducked under an awning, facing the wall of the building, the small area slightly secluded. Velonix pressed her hand against the side of the building, forcing her breathing to slow from the heavy pant that it had once been. She to just barely even it out, before a sudden burst of anger assaulted her body. Her eyes flashed with a sheen of red-orange, and in a split instant the dumpster beside her erupted into blazing flames. She jumped and stumbled back, her eyes wide, and after several moments of simply staring with a startled gaze at the dumpster, she felt her lower lip tremble. A few stumbling steps later, and she was completely hidden from view of the sidewalk. She dropped down beside the dumpster, pulled her legs to her chest, and dropped her forehead to her knees. A small tremble began in her lower lip, and tears began to spill over and trickle down her cheeks. With a shaky hand, she managed to reach into her pocket and press two quick buttons, placed the phone at her ear, and as soon as a tired ‘Hello’ echoed through the device, she said with a quivering voice, “I-I did it again. I don’t know what to do … Please … Please help me, Aurora …”

Her sister’s voice instantly gentled on the other end, and after a very brief discussion - it literally lasted maybe ten seconds - the older girl clicked off, Velonix having told her where she was.

“Hey you damn bit-” Takeo shouted as he began to round the corner, stopping mid-sentence. Velonix’s head jerked up at the shout, instantly recognizing the voice of the rude boy that had saved her.

He hesitated with the raging dumpster fire, but he quickly overcame the initial shock, and roughly yanked Velonix away from the fire. “Hey dumbass! Don't just stand....” He began to shout once more before stopping as he got a good look at her crying face. The boy began to fidget, and avoided direct eye contact as his own face began to grow red. When she saw his gaze focus on her wet cheeks and red eyes, she tore her hand away from his grip, using the heels of her palms to rub feverishly yet futilely at the dampness that was her face.

“Look....just.....I don't think it's the safest idea to..s-stand by a flaming pile of garbage,” he stammered, his nervous composure causing confusion to cross the girl’s face. He then swiftly flicked her nose. “He-here....the Old Hag gave it to me before I left, but I don't want it. Already around that shit enough anyway....so quit ya crying.” The boy grumbled as he rummaged around in his cargo shorts, and pulled out a small wrapping filled with assorted baked goods. As the boy handed over the food, she reached out hesitantly, her fingers closing around the small pack. He accidentally brushed the charred and rough palm of his hand across Velonix's soft white skin. The girl jumped, a flash of a raging fire and the same man from the last vision screaming and flailing about. The sight moved down to view the hands of whoever she was seeing the memory through - in this case, the boy that currently stood before her - and they opened to reveal a palm scalded with a large, red welt. As she saw this, all the boy before her would see was a blank look in her eyes, as though she were blind. The boy quickly pulled his hand, fidgeting, and looking almost physically uncomfortable from the skin-to-skin contact. He looked up at her eyes to catch them returning to normal. He blinked several times, wondering if he was just seeing things.

He peered down the alleyway, staring at the fire, clearly wondering what started it. He then looked the girl up and down, he didn’t see anything on her that looked like it would start a fire, so he merely shrugged it off. It was probably set by someone else, not that he really cared. It wasn’t any of his business. “W-well, I got stuff to do, and can't be standing around with you! So...so just leave me alone, and go home or whatever! And here's your money, use it to buy a bus ticket or something.....B-besides, I'm not your damn charity case!” He shouted as he threw the wad of money back at her. She somehow managed to juggle it for a moment before catching it, and once she had, she looked up to see him already backing down the alleyway. The roaring fire was diminishing, running out of fuel in the dumpster, but she could still feel the comforting heat across her cheeks, drying the tears that still lingered there.

“And you're welcome by the way! I'm not gonna make a habit out of saving your life, so next time make sure you don't need it. Ain't nobody gonna take care of you if you can't take care of yourself.” The boy bitterly added, dropping his skateboard to the ground. Before he jumped on his skateboard, she jerked herself into focus and took a few quick strides down the alleyway.

“Wait!” she called out breathlessly, coming to a sudden stop when he didn’t look back at her, but instead stood in place. After a brief second, she gathered her courage and placed a large smile on her face, forcing down the jumble of emotions that she felt mere minutes before, and focusing on the small amount of joy that she could see feel residing within her.

“I’m Velonix. I … I hope that I run into you again … Um …” she trailed off, unsure of his name.

“It's Takeo. People call me Tak.” Tak answered hesitantly with a sigh as he peaked over his shoulder at Velonix. Why did he tell her his name? And why would she hope to run into someone that moments earlier called her names again? There was something odd about her, well other than the obvious. He just couldn't place his finger on it. “Yeah... well don't go getting any ideas. You're better off not hanging out with jerks like me.” He added, turning completely away from her so she couldn't see his bright red face. A small amount of guilt rose into Velonix’s chest, and after a moment of quiet, she managed to say, “I apologize for that,” in a rather soft voice, but one that carried with the wind towards his ears.

Nobody had ever said that they looked forward to seeing him, nor have they apologized for calling him names, so why did some complete stranger just do so? Those questions would have to wait for a time he wasn't late for work. “You were right thands. She slowly looked down, untied the top of the small pouch-like container, and blinked at the e first time.” He added before he hopped on his skateboard and rode off.

As she watched his retreating figure, Velonix clutched the package and money in her hdelicious goodies encased within it. She flicked her gaze back upwards, but at that point Takeo was gone from sight.

Would she ever see him again?

Maybe. But the likelihood of that happening was very slim.

*Velonix continued In Zodia195xKuraRavengade Collaboration Piece*

*Ass

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#2017-06-17 20:50:54, as written by CutUp

♫ Let Yourself Go ♫

I … I hope that I run into you again.

Those words replayed over, and over again in Tak's head as he rode down the street on his skateboard. 'Dammit, she's just some weirdo! Just forget her!' But no matter how hard he tried to forget her words were all he could think about. Why would she say that? He just couldn't wrap his brain around it. He let out a sigh, trying to shake it off, and focus on skateboarding. He focused on the sound of the wheels as it rolled across the pavement, the wind as it hit his face. Skateboarding was always freeing, and relaxing to him, and it was always the best way for him to clear his mind.

It took him ten minutes before he finally made to his work/home, Bake My Day. As he approached the front entrance, and looked up at the sign he let out a sigh, the same sigh he does every time he sees the sign. He just knows that the Old Hag had something to do with naming the place, she'd find such a bad pun funny. He opened the door, causing the bell above it to ring. Inside was two teenage girls looking at the various pastries in the glass counter with Ruri behind it. He recognized the girls from school, though he's only seen them in passing, and has no idea what their names are, not that he cares.

As soon as he entered the girls looked at him, and whispered something among themselves before leaving abruptly, he tends to drive away costumers upon sight. As they left Ruri glared at the girls, it bothered her seeing people treat him like he had the plague. He might not make it easy to be around him, but she knows that he's a good kid, even if he won't admit it. "Well, you're as popular as ever with the ladies." Ruri smirked as she leaned over the counter. "Wow, you're actually on time today. I'd be impressed if you didn't live up stairs. Where were you?"

"Out." Tak coldly replied as he headed towards the back of the store. "So I gathered. What were you doing?" Tak let out a sigh, it was gonna be one of those days. "Stuff." He simply replied. "Stuff huh? What kind of stuff?" Tak gave no answer as he entered the kitchen. He propped up his skateboard against the wall, and grabbed on of the aprons that was hanging on a hook next to the door. "Let me guess.....you were out seeing a girl. That's it right, my little Taky got himself a girlfriend?" She as with a playful smile as she followed him into the kitchen.

"S-shut up. As if that'd happen." Tak's turned bright red, as it always does when he's in a conversation about girls, and romance. "Oh come on! If it wasn't for that attitude and mouth of yours you'd be quite the catch. I mean you're a pretty good baker, and you're pretty cute." She smirked. "W-what the hell you talking about?! And the only reason I bake is because you make me ya Old Hag!" Tak growled, getting increasingly flustered. Ruri's eyes widened for a moment, and then narrowed in on him, looking like she was trying to burn a hole through his head.

"What'd you call me Pipsqueak?!" She snarled at him. "Who you calling a Pipsqueak ya old bitch?!" He shouted back as he met her glare with his own. "I'm sorry, I can barely hear you from all the way down there, cause it sounds like you're asking me to beat the snot out of you." She smirked as she cracked her knuckles. "Pfft, sure you won't break a hip Grandma?" He replied with a chuckle as a shit eating grin crossed his face. Ruri opened her mouth several times as she tried to think of a comeback as she fumed over his words, but she was far too frustrated to think of one.

"You....you....um.....Shorty!" Was all she could come up with in the moment. "Ouch, how will I ever recover from that one?" He smirked, feeling pretty confident that he won this round. Steam could almost be seen coming from her ears as her face turned bright red in anger. "Will you two please wait until after business hours? Your yelling is going to drive people away." Yosuke chimed in as he entered the kitchen through the back entrance, with several bags of groceries in tow. It was always up to him to play peacekeeper between the two.

"Whatever! I got better things to do than stomp you into the ground!" Ruri said, almost pouting. "Must be bingo night at the senior center." Tak added. Ruri then swiftly elbowed him in his side. Tak groaned loudly in pain, and nearly doubled over. Ruri quickly snapped out of her frustration as a worried expression crossed her face. She didn't hit him that hard. "Tak, are you o-" "I'm fine....just go bother someone else." He growled as he held his side.

Ruri and Yosuke looked at each other for a moment before leaving the kitchen together. "I bet he got into another fight. What are we gonna do with him?" Ruri whispered once they were behind the counter. "There's not much we can do. He's almost an adult, and we're not his parents. He's just gonna have to deal with the consequences of his actions. Some people just don't want to be helped." Yosuke replied as he grabbed a rag, and some window cleaner from underneath the counter, and began to wipe down the already clean counter top. Ruri let out a sigh. Of course he was right, there was only so much they could do, and Tak certainly wasn't making it easy to help him. "It's just so....so frustrating." Ruri groaned.

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#2017-06-18 15:36:31, as written by Kura Ravengade

”If you change the that way you look at things,
The things that you look at change.”

The ride home was uncomfortably silent, at least to Velonix. She never once turned her gaze away from the open window, instead opting to continue staring out of it sulkily. As they drew closer to their Earthly home that they shared with each other, she felt her mood gradually decline even further. It was nearly gloomy enough on her side of the car that one could expect a small rain cloud to appear above her head, ready to drown her in not only her emotions, but also physical liquid.

As soon as the car stopped in their driveway, however, Velonix was out of the car and launching up the front steps to their beautiful house. She flung open the front door, book underneath one arm and goodies from the mysterious boy named Takeo clutched in the hand attached to the other. Before her siblings could catch up to her, she took the stairs two at a time, her destination obviously her bedroom.

Like Hell she wanted to talk to Phoebus, of all people, right then. She really didn’t feel up to being spoken to like she was stupid or a child, neither of which being actual attributes that she held. At least, not in her views.

When she finally reached her bedroom, she strode inside with a heavy sigh, practically slamming the door behind her. Two heads belonging to Mio and Dusk perked up from their castle of a bed combined with a play house. They were currently sleeping together in the bed portion, and had been jerked away by her sudden and abrupt intrusion to the room. Rolling her eyes, she lightly dropped her two packages onto her desk, which was placed directly beside her door.

“Don’t give me that look; you’ve both been sleeping all day,” she sighed softly. Rubbing the bridge of her nose in an attempt to rid herself of the building migraine - she seemed to have been getting a lot of those lately - she flicked off the light that she had only just turned on. Stripping as she walked, she closed the distance from the door to her bed in a matter of seconds, and slowly she crawled into bed. The covers were promptly pulled up to be snugly placed directly beneath her chin, and in moments she was fast asleep.

~’.’~’.’~’.’~’.’~’.’~

Hot.

So incredibly .... Hot.

Harmony blinked open her eyes, the heat surrounding her suffocating. It was abnormal for her to have that type of reaction to a fire, seeing as she herself controlled the substance, and what struck her as even more odd was the lack of said entity from what she could see. Or rather, what she couldn’t see. Although she could feel the heat of the fire flooding across her skin, and could smell the smoke that it was giving off, she couldn’t actually see anything. And by anything, she meant anything. The area surrounding her was pitch black, so intensely so that she could only just barely see the outline of her hand when placed directly before her face.

A small ball of fear curled in her chest. She had never been one to fear the dark, but instead she tended to embrace it. In fact, she much more loved the nighttime than the day time, a bit of that prejudice stemming from her love for astronomy and the stars. However, in that very moment, something felt off about the whole situation.

There was definitely something wrong.

The sound of slow, over exaggerated clapping jerked her from her thoughts. Immediately goosebumps prickled up and down her arms, and her hair began to stand on end. The heavy aura that she sensed behind her was smothering and held an air of negativity to it. She would perhaps go even further to say that the energy itself was tinged with the darkness of evil.

”I give you mad props for your little performance out there, cupcake. You’ve definitely gotten your siblings fooled into believing your little ‘sweet girl’ personality. I know that if it were me, I’d have a bit more difficulty pulling off such a disgustingly cute persona; just being inside your head was enough to give me diabetes.”

Harmony drew in a slow, deep breath, steadied her shoulders, and then forced herself to turned around at an aching pace. When she raised her eyes to the one that had spoken, they were met with something that was ungodly familiar, but at the same time completely alien and unknown to her.

Amber eyes.

Orange hair.

Porcelain complexion.

A splay of freckles across a dainty nose.

And the one thing that stood out the most - a simple, crimson colored birthmark, in the shape of a crescent moon, placed so perfectly on the right side of their neck.

Squeezing her eyes shut for a solid second, she forced herself to collect herself, and after a moment, she reopened them, her eyes holding a slightly darker hue to them. She crossed her arms over her chest, building a slight defense between the two of them.

“What do you want, Phoenix?” she practically growled out, her teeth clenched tightly together.

The other girl, who was literally an exact physical replica of Harmonix, let out a loud, echoing laugh in response to her words. Whatever she thought was funny was beyond Harmony’s comprehension, but she felt her lips turned down into a scowl at the sound of the amusement.

What gave her the right to find anything about the current situation hilarious?

Giving a slight head shake, Phoenix smirked over at Harmonix, her eyes holding a devious look to them.

”Trust me when I say that I currently want nothing from you, Harmonix dear. You’re already doing everything that I could ever wish for you to do, so don’t stop now,” she giggled, her fingers playing with her lower lip and giving her a childlike appearance. Stretching her arms above her head, her eye twinkled a bit with her next words. ”You’re doing everything I want you to do.”

A burst of rage slammed through Harmonix. Hands curling into tight fists, so tight that she could feel her nails digging into her palms, she crossed the area separating her from Phoenix.

“Whatever you’re planning, Phoenix, isn’t going to come to light, and I’ll make damn well certain of that!” she snapped, fighting down the urge to strike the dopple ganger. “And if you even think about hurting the ones that I love, I will personally take delight in slowly torturing you within my own mind, no matter the repercussions that will befall me in doing so.” Her voice had faded to a snarl, and Phoenix no longer looked amused at her bravado. Instead, the other personality had crossed her arms, a slow sneer beginning to form on her lips.

”You really think that you can speak to me like that? Are you forgetting who actually holds all of the power here?”

As if on cue, a burst of white light flashed before Harmonix’s eyes. She was assaulted with a mind shattering pain, and it immediately withdrew a strangled cry from her lips. The pain pushed her to drop painfully to her hands and knees before her copy, who looked down at her with a malicious smile across her lips. Her foot came down heavily on Harmony’s head, shoving it towards the ground and crushing her face against the cool floor below it. Pain exploded through her head, and she let out a soft whimper. The Phoenix leaned forward just enough to grab Harmony’s hair, removing her foot and using the hair to pull her head up. Tears prickled at Harmony’s eyes, and she grabbed desperately at Phoenix’s hand, the red hue that was slowly building in the other girl’s eyes making her blood run cold.

”You may have been in control over the last few centuries, but let me tell you this, dear sister,” she snarled, yanking hard on Harmony’s hair and pulling a soft cry from her lips. Bringing their face so closely together that their noses brushed, she focused her blazing eyes on the tear-filled ones of her main counterpart. ”Your little reign of ‘power’ is going to be over soon. It’s only a matter of time before you lose all control. You may as well stop fighting right now.”

And with that, an excruciating amount of pain slammed through Harmony’s body. Her vision dotted with stars, and then instantly went black.

~’.’~’.’~’.’~’.’~’.’~

”No!”

Shooting up in bed and throwing back her covers, Harmonix let out the strangled word as a scream. Her entire body was covered in a thick sweat, and a few of her blankets had been kicked to the point of no longer being on the bed. She could feel that her hair was everywhere, and it was sticky with the greasy sweat that coated her skin.

Her rapid heartbeat thundered in her ears, causing her to lift her hand to her chest, where a swell of anxiety was currently knotting. Forcing herself to slow her breathing, she closed her eyes.

Just a dream.

It was just a dream.

The soft nudge of a furry head caused her to open her eyes and glance down. Mio was nuzzling her fingers, his worry evident in his movements, and she could sense the anxiety that she felt being absorbed into him. His concern hit her in a wave with the touches, and she could feel her fear being slowly taken away the longer that she touched him.

After allowing herself a few minutes to calm down, she threw her legs over the side of her bed and rose. It was only dinner time, meaning that she had more than enough daylight left to accomplish at least something. She obviously wasn’t going to be falling back asleep any time soon - another issue that she had been dealing with since arriving on Earth - so she might as well be productive.

A quick shower later, Harmonix was dressed in a simple pleated skirt, with a white tank top and a light brown cardigan. She slid on a pair of sandals as she approached her bedroom door, a gentle thought flitting from her mind.

Come.

Almost immediately Mio and Dusk were at her side, ever her accompanying companions.

It didn’t take long for Harmonix to leave her house. She didn’t bother to sneak out - in her mind she should be able to do whatever she wanted - but she was courteous enough to scrawl a quick note to her siblings and stick it to the fridge.

Wanted something to eat. Too lazy to cook. I’ll behave myself, and I won’t be out late. Don’t worry. XoXoXoX Harmonix XoXoXoX

Spinning a set of keys on her finger, Harmonix whistled as she and her cats approached her Mclaren P1. The lights flashed and she opened the passenger door, allowing Mio and Dawn to hop inside, before jogging around to the other side to slid into the driver’s side.

With no set destination really in mind, the Autumn season took off from the glorious home in the direction of the town that she was slowly becoming accustomed to.

She tended to do that a lot - go for drives around the town, with no idea of where she was going. Instead, she would allow her body to take over the natural movement of driving, while her mind wandered, delving deep into thought.

Before she even realized it, an hour had passed. Her grumbling stomach was what warned her, and a look at the clock told her it was almost seven in the evening. She really didn’t feel like returning to her house, where she would simply be smothered as soon as she walked inside, so she opted to continue to drive until a restaurant could snag her eyes.

The first one she came across she chose. It was a small building, but gave off a warm and welcoming aura. Her car always garnered her quite a bit of attention, she as soon as she pulled into a spot, the people passing by on the sidewalk slowed to ogle it with wide eyes. It was rare to see such an expensive car in the small town, and so the townspeople tended to take in the sights whenever they could.

Before she climbed out of the car, she turned to her ever present animals. In a few quick movements - it was easy since they sat still and allowed her to do it - she had Mio and Dusk clad in the light vests that read ‘Therapy Animal’ along both sides in large, red bold lettering. It was her idea for her siblings and herself to use the vests for their familiars, and besides, it wasn’t like it was a huge stretch to refer to their familiars as their ‘therapy animals’. It was basically what they were there for, anyway.

Finally, she grabbed her wallet and left her car, Mio and Dusk happily trotting along either side of her. She ignored the stares of the people in front of the bakery, just faintly noting that the name was called ‘Bake my Day’, something that she smothered a soft giggle at.

As soon as she pushed open the door, a soft bell chimed throughout the nearly empty bakery. She was in the mood for sweets, sweets, and more sweets, but was also halfway hoping that the small business offered sandwiches or wraps of some sort, too.

Turning her wide gaze to look around the inside of the building, she paused. It was definitely as gentle on the inside as it was projected on the outside, and the warm tones that the decorators had used throughout the bakery weren’t hard on her eyes in the least.

”Hey there!”

Velonix jumped, clearly startled by the sudden greeting, and a soft pink hue rose to her cheeks. The person who had called out to her stood behind the counter, and she was currently brushing what could only be flour off and onto her apron. A bright smile was across the woman’s features, her short black bob helping to frame her tiny face perfectly.

When Velonix failed to respond, the woman made her way out from behind the counter, her step faltering a bit at the sight of the cats, but she quickly adjusted herself and continued towards the young girl.

”Sorry if I caught you off guard. I didn’t mean to startle you,” the woman laughed, a small twinkle in her eyes. Her skin gave off a yellow glow, with lacerations of red tinged with black racing throughout it, and Velonix felt herself relax a bit.

This woman was far from evil. She clearly had her issues, but didn’t everyone? From what her aura gave off, she didn’t intend any harm upon anyone, let alone Velonix.

Allowing a smile to cross her lips, Velonix tilted her head slightly.

“It’s quite alright. I should’ve been paying closer attention,” she laughed along with the woman. It was the first natural smile that she had felt since just prior to leaving work earlier that day, and it felt nice to have one across her face.

The woman thrust her hand in Velonix’s direction, catching the girl a bit off guard. She had forgotten to slip on a pair of gloves before leaving her house, so instead of taking the woman’s hand, she awkwardly took a step back. After a few moments, the woman seemed to get the picture and slowly lowered her hand.

”Well, anyways - I’m Ruri. Ruri Hiroto. I’m the owner of this bakery, alongside my jokester of a husband. Welcome!” she exclaimed, causing Velonix’s eyes to widen slightly. She looked around the entire building, before returning her gaze back to Ruri.

“You own this entire place?” she asked.

Ruri grinned in response, her pride evident in her features. ”Why yes, yes I do! Proud co-owner and baker of Bake My Day, at your service!” she said dramatically, throwing in a slight bow to add to it. Velonix felt another smile cross her lips, but before she could respond, Ruri piped up again. ”Come on, let’s get you sat down. It looks like you need to get something in your stomach.” Ruri turned on her heel and started back behind the counter once more, which had five bar stools placed on the guest side of it, and after a moment of hesitation, Velonix followed. She took one of the stools as her seat, Dusk and Mio dropping down to lay down on either side of the stool that their mistress had chosen. Leaning forward against the counter, she followed Ruri with her steady gaze.

”So, anything that you had in mind for what you wanted to eat?”

Working her lip, she mulled over her response for a moment, before ordering a tuna salad wrap with a side salad with thousand island dressing, and a slice of strawberry and cream pie as a dessert. Ruri set to work preparing the order, which could all be done within eyeshot of where Velonix was sitting, so in an attempt at small talk, she began to speak.

“I’m sorry for being a bit rude before, Mrs. Ruri, but-”

”Oh, please, just call me Ruri! Adding the title makes me feel old!” she laughed.

Clearing her throat, Velonix began again.

“I’m sorry for being a bit rude before, Ruri, but my name is Velonix. Velonix Orako.”

Ruri turned back from the salad bar area to place the salad before Velonix, a brow raised.

”Oh, so you’re a part of that new family that moved in a couple of weeks ago. You live just on the outskirts of town, don’t you?” A nod was the only response that Velonix had time for before Ruri began speaking again. ”How nice! I can’t wait for you to bring your whole family in! If even half of them are as sweet as you are, I’d consider it a blessing to serve you! How are your parents taking the move?”

The color immediately drained from Velonix’s face, and she found herself unable to come up with a response to the question. When the air of awkward quiet between them extended a few moments too long, Ruri piped up with a different question to clear it out.

”How are you liking our quaint little town so far?”

Relaxing a bit, Velonix wrapped her fingers around the hot chocolate Ruri had made for her, drawing it towards her across the counter. She stared down into the whipped cream, clearly mulling over her answer before speaking.

“So far … I personally love it. I’ve met so many wonderful people that I could never have even begun to imagine myself meeting before coming here,” she said softly, her fingers tightening around her mug. A flash of chestnut hair and intense hazel eyes crossed her mind, and she felt her heart quicken a bit in her chest. A small smile crossed her lips. “I actually had a very interesting introduction to someone new today.”

Ruri perked up a bit, as though sensing the small uplift in Velonix’s mood, and she approached with the girls tuna salad wrap. Sliding it across the counter, Ruri leaned forward, a sparkle in her eyes.

”Oooo, do tell,” she purred, waggling her eyebrows in such a comical way that Velonix couldn’t suppress the laughter that bubbled up and out of her throat. Once her laughter had died down, she looked down at her hot chocolate again, fidgeting a bit in her seat.

“Well … It was a boy, and he looked about my age,” she began. Immediately Ruri shot up, her eyes going wide.

”No way! You met a boy today? Now you have to tell me everything!”

Smiling, Velonix rolled her eyes a bit before continuing.

“I wasn’t paying attention, as usual, and this boy who was walking by pulled me out of the way of an oncoming car. If it wasn’t for him, I would’ve died today.” Ruri’s gaze grew a bit darker at that but Velonix waved off the drop of the mood. “But that’s okay! Because I met someone new out of the event!” she laughed. Letting out a sigh, she sipped her hot chocolate. “But anywho. He pulled me out of the way, and when I turned to thank him, he was already halfway through the crowd, so I had to go chasing after him. And when I finally caught him - goodness, he was so rude!” she exclaimed, a small amount of lingering annoyance at the way that Takeo had spoken to her returning to her. She pushed it away, though, and continued.

“One thing led to another, and after a bit of drama, I realized that he really …” she trailed off for a moment, picking her words very carefully. A small smile tinged her lips, but instead of overwhelming joy being conveyed in it, it simply gave off a sweet, gentle happiness.

“I realized that, despite how cold and off putting he was in the beginning … In actuality, he has a large heart, and just doesn’t seem to know how to show that he does. He’s … He’s sweet,” she said softly. Ruri stared at her for a moment, and Velonix felt her cheeks turn pink. “What? Is there something on my face?” she asked, rubbing at her lips and nose. Ruri furrowed her brows, staring for a moment longer, before straightening and grinning down at the ‘younger’ girl.

”Sounds like someone has their first real crush. Or, dare I say, first love,” she drawled out. Velonix’s cheeks turned a deep crimson, and she stammered a bit for a moment, her words completely incoherent, before she dropped her head quickly, staring down at her food and unable to form an understandable sentence. Ruri laughed again, dropping her hand onto Velonix’s head.

”Relax, kid. It’s nothing to get too worked up about. Usually first crushes just stay that way; I doubt that you’ll ever see the boy again, anyway.” Velonix deflated a bit at her words, but she knew that Ruri was right. The likelihood of her ever running into Takeo again was slim to none.

Tilting her head, Ruri looked down at Velonix. ”Speaking of which, did you even bother to get his phone number? His name? Anything?”

Velonix nodded, taking her forking up a bunch of lettuce. “I didn’t get his phone number, but I do know his name. Or, well, at least his first name,” she said with a soft sigh,staring forlornly at the wad of lettuce. Ruri perked up a bit, beaming down at the girl.

”Well, that’s great! Than we have something to go off of! What’s his name?”

Taking a bite of the lettuce, Velonix chewed it slowly, as if mulling over whether or not she should tell the woman. She was, after all, a stranger, so there was only so much trust that she had for the human woman. After a moment, however, she decided that giving the woman his name was harmless enough.

Swallowing thickly, Velonix forked up another wad of lettuce.

“His name? He said it was Takeo, or Tak for short. I think it’s a really love name, don’t you?” she asked.

When silence greeted her, Velonix turned to look at Ruri, an expression of puzzlement across her face. The older woman had a blank look to her, and for several moments, she simply stared at Velonix.

“Um, Ruri?” Vel asked, lifting her hand to wave it in her face. She slowly lowered her hand, squirming a bit in her seat.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Ruri’s expression slowly began to change, until a large, slightly malevolent grin crossed her features. Instantly she was laughing, so much so that she had to brace herself against the edge of the counter, her hand smacking down on it. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and she clutched at her side, attempting to speak through the laughter.

“T-T-Takeo? Sweet?” She burst into a whole new bunch of laughter after that, and Velonix simply grew more and more confused, the area between her brows creasing together.

“I’m sorry, but I’m really confused right now …” she trailed off. Ruri forced herself to straighten, her laughter dissolving into uncontrollable giggles, and she began wiping at her eyes.

”Oh, trust me, you aren’t going to be confused for long … T-A-K-E-O!” she cried out, drawling out the name in an exaggerated manner. ’You have a visitor!”

Immediately Velonix blanched, and she shot up from her seat, the stool falling back and clattering to the ground. Turning, she scrambled to pick it up and straighten it, her entire appearance disheveled by the mere thought of seeing that boy again.

“Ruri, w-what’s going on?” she stammered, her anxiety evident. Ruri simply gave her a waggle-browed smirk, her aura giving off a feel that wasn’t necessarily evil, per-say, but almost a maliciously good mixture, which was something that Velonix had never felt from a human before.

”Oh, you’ll see. You’ll see,” she snorted, her laughter uncontrollable.

Setting

Higashi-Naruse, Akita

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#2017-06-22 03:06:31, as written by CutUp

♫ Someone Who Cares ♫

"You're hovering again." Tak grumbled as he scrubbed the dirty dishes in the sink. "Sorry." Yosuke replied as he continually looked over his shoulders, watching his every move. Whenever cleaning, be it Tak or Ruri, Yosuke isn't too far behind to closely supervise, and make sure it's to his liking, especially when it's in his pristine kitchen. It's not something that he really means to do, it's just that he takes cleaning very seriously. "Whatever." Tak sighed. He was fairly used to it by now, even if it still annoys him. Though usually it's something Tak can let slide without too much argument, given that him and Yosuke get along fairly well. Well, as well as Tak can get along with anyone. Though mostly it's because neither one of them talks too much to the other.

Once the last dish was cleaned Tak looked up at the clock on the wall, and the smallest hint of a smile crossed his face upon seeing that it was almost seven o'clock. "Gonna feed those strays again?" Yosuke asked as he examined the dishes that were just cleaned. "Yeah. Gotta problem with that?" Tak replied as he grabbed a saucer, and a jug of milk from the refrigerator. "No, but make sure they don't get into my kitchen. I can only imagine how dirty they are." Tak rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Tak said as he poured the milk into the saucer.

Tak stepped outside the backdoor in the kitchen, and into a small alleyway. As soon as he stepped out he was swarmed by five stray cats. They all began meowing as they rubbed up against Tak's legs, nearly causing him to trip as they eagerly waited for him to put down the saucer of milk. "Sheesh, hang on for a second." Tak leaned down, and placed the saucer on the ground. The cats gathered around the saucer, lapping up the milk, save for one, a Japanese Bobtailed cat that stood on it's hind legs, using Tak to keep itself balanced. The cat was mostly white in color, save for the patches of brown fur on it's tail, and ears. It was an odd eyed cat, with a left blue eye and a right brown one. The cat let out a soft meow as it looked up at Tak.

"Oh, you again." A smile crossed Tak's face as he knelled down and rubbed it's forehead, causing it to nudge against his hand, and purr loudly. "Alright, alright that's enough. You better get you some milk before the others drink it all." He said as he scooted the cat towards the others. It let out another meow, and then joined the others. Tak let out a pleased sigh as he stood up, and watched them finish the milk. Once they were done he picked up the saucer, and returned inside.

"T-A-K-E-O! You have a visitor!" Ruri cried out to him almost as soon as he got through the door. Tak groaned loudly, and rolled his eyes. 'Great, now what.' Tak let out an annoyed sigh. "Yeah, yeah, yeah I'm coming!" He shouted back. "Now who the hell wants to see-" Tak opened the kitchen door, and was surprised to see Velonix standing there at the other side of the counter with Ruri standing there grinning from ear to ear. Tak's face began to turn red as he saw her face, and his heart began racing.

"Y-y-you?! W-what the hell are you doing here?! Y-you a stalker or something?!" Tak shouted. "Hey! Is that anyway to speak to someone?!" Ruri said as she smacked him on the back of the head. "It must be destiny Hero. She told me all about your little meet and cute earlier. Who knew you had such a romantic side?" She said, barely able to keep her laughter contained. "Y-y-you told her!" Tak's face grew redder as his embarrassment grew, he was never going to hear the end of this. "Aww, isn't he just the cutest when he's embarrassed?" She said in a baby voice as she pinched his cheek.

"Knock it off you Old Hag!" Tak snarled as he swatted away her hand. "I'll let that one slide since your girlfriend is here." Ruri growled through her teeth, trying not to lose her temper in front of Velonix. "G-g-girlfriend?!" Tak stuttered, growing more flustered. "It is almost closing time, can't you two wait to continue fighting till then?" Yosuke stated as he exited the kitchen. "Oh Darling perfect timing! Come and meet Tak's girlfriend! Velonix, this is my wonderful husband Yosuke!" Ruri introduced him as she latched onto his arm. Yosuke's cheeks turn slightly red, and he greeted the girl with a simple nod.

"You gone deaf in your old age?! S-she's not my girlfriend! Stop calling her that!" Tak shouted, growing increasingly frustrated. Ruri gave Tak her signature death stare in response. "I apologize for my wife, and Takeo. They can both be....spirited." Ruri looked up at Yosuke with her cheeks puffed out slightly. "What's that supposed to mean?" She asked as she poked his cheek. "Well, perhaps we should give you two some privacy! C'mon Darling, a nighttime stroll sounds so romantic!" Ruri said with a slight squeal in her voice as she tugged Yosuke's arm towards the door, acting like a giddy schoolgirl. Tak rolled his eyes, and made a loud vomiting sound.

Once they were gone Tak fidgeted slightly, only now realizing that he was entirely alone with a girl. His eyes went to the floor, and then he noticed the two cats in vests labeled therapy animals, causing him to raise an eyebrow. Why would she need therapy animals? Tak then let out a loud sigh, and returned to the kitchen. A moment later he came back with a saucer of milk. He came from behind the counter, and placed it down on the ground for the cats. "You're lucky that Yosuke didn't see your cats. He doesn't like animals 'dirtying' up his shop. He's got this thing about germs......and....um....I-I'm sorry about the Old Hag....she doesn't know how to mind her own business."

Setting

Higashi-Naruse, Akita

Characters Present

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#2017-06-29 05:21:33, as written by Kura Ravengade

"If you want a~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~'.'~"No one is sent
Fair and just world~'.'~'.'~'.'~By accident"
Go find a different one."~'.'~'.'~'.'~to anyone."

Y-y-you?! W-what the hell are you doing here?! Y-you a stalker or something?!"

"Hey! Is that anyway to speak to someone?! It must be destiny Hero. She told me all about your little meet and cute earlier. Who knew you had such a romantic side?"

"Y-y-you told her!"

"Aww, isn't he just the cutest when he's embarrassed?"

Everything was happening so quickly that Velonix barely had time to even process what was transpiring. A small bit of anger bubbled inside the pit of her stomach when Ruri struck the back of Takeo’s head, and she took a step before realizing that she had done so, her irises flashing red. When they continued their banter immediately afterwards, though, she forced herself to calm down, pressing her flattened palm against her chest and inhaling deeply and slowly. It was obviously done in a playful manner, she reasoned.

“U-um, excuse me …” she began, holding up one finger, her voice feeble and hesitant. They continued despite her ‘interruption’ - could it even really be called that when it was very clear that they didn’t even hear her small voice? - and she felt her discomfort increase.

"Knock it off you Old Hag!"

"I'll let that one slide since your girlfriend is here."

Velonix blanched, and immediately afterwards began to turn a bright red. She may not be from Earth, but she knew of Earthly customs. While back in the olden days it was typical to court a woman before proposing marriage, that had lost some of its sophistication and had turned into an easier approach called ‘dating’. Courting tended to consist of at least one older family member watching over the couple during their ‘rendezvous’, while ‘dating’ was far more private. It was no longer required for young people to have an escort, and she knew from watching over and visiting Earth that there could be some serious intimacy involved in those moments. She would be lying if she said that she had never been jealous - she may be a Goddess, but even she had always fantasized about one day meeting her own eternal love, and having grown up watching such a love story as her parent’s, it wasn't surprising.

“U-Um, Ruri, I think you may have confused the-”

She didn’t get the chance to finish, but instead was immediately cut off by Takeo’s next exclamation. "G-g-girlfriend?!"

"It is almost closing time, can't you two wait to continue fighting till then?"

It was almost as though a halo had enveloped the man who had just entered, and Velonix looked at him with so much gratitude in her eyes that she thought they may have bulged out of her head. He was her saving grace from what was the mass chaos of Ruri’s and Takeo’s relationship.

“Oh, thank the Gods,” she muttered, wringing her hands nervously together. She had never been more happy to see anyone - mortal or otherwise - in her entire life. And that was definitely saying a lot, given how long she had been alive.

"Oh Darling perfect timing! Come and meet Tak's girlfriend! Velonix, this is my wonderful husband Yosuke!"

Velonix squirmed a bit under their gazes, before offering him a slightly nervous smile, but not offering a hand in greeting. Instead, she gave him a gentle curtsy, her short skirt not allowing for a much more grandiose hello.

“It’s a pleasure, Mr. Yosuke.”

"You gone deaf in your old age?! S-she's not my girlfriend! Stop calling her that!" Velonix flinched a bit, straightening and placing one hand over her ear. Were all humans this loud all the time, or was it just reserved for when Ruri and Takeo were in the same room as each other?

"I apologize for my wife, and Takeo. They can both be....spirited." Velonix took in a breath, composed herself, and gave him a reassuring smile, but before she could respond Ruri once more piped in, her voice a bit defensive.

"What's that supposed to mean? Well, perhaps we should give you two some privacy! C'mon Darling, a nighttime stroll sounds so romantic!"

Seriously, did the woman ever take a moment to breathe before speaking? Her husband had one thing correct - spirited is definitely a word that she would use to refer to the scene that had just unfolded, or rather, Ruri and Takeo as individuals entirely. Finally, though, the couple left, Takeo making slight gagging sounds after them which drew a soft giggle from Velonix. She quickly stifled it, though, placing her hand over her lips to hide her small grin.

A few moments of awkward silence ticked by, with Takeo staring at the floor and Velonix looking everywhere but at him or the floor. After what seemed like forever, he turned abruptly and left the room, leaving her confused and slightly disappointed. Did she really expect him to stay after all the problems that she had just caused for him? Her shoulders slumped a little, and she went to withdraw her wallet to pay for her food, when he suddenly reappeared through the swinging kitchen door, much to her mixture of delight and surprise. He carried a saucer of milk with him, placing the bowl before Mio and Dusk - another complete surprise to her.

So she was correct in assuming that he wasn’t a bad person.

Of course, his aura helped to point that out to her. It was a gentle blue-orange, with streaks of red and black snaking their way throughout it, slightly marring the pretty mixture. In their own way, though, they added to the beauty of the blue-orange, which turned slightly brown at the areas where the two colors met.

"You're lucky that Yosuke didn't see your cats. He doesn't like animals 'dirtying' up his shop. He's got this thing about germs......and....um....I-I'm sorry about the Old Hag....she doesn't know how to mind her own business."

Velonix slowly returned to her seat, and after a moment of studying his slightly-flushed features, she propped her chin on her hands and offered him a smile.

“You don’t need to apologize. I actually kind of … Enjoyed the lively atmosphere. To be honest, this has been the most interesting day that I’ve experienced since coming to Ea-er, to your country,” she hastily corrected herself. Her outward features didn’t change, but she inwardly scolded herself, hoping that he hadn’t noticed her slight slip. “Thank you for the milk for Mio and Dusk. I don’t want what I say next to undermine how appreciative I am of you doing that for them. However, I wouldn’t make it a habit of giving cats or kittens too much milk. It can be really bad for their health, despite what cartoon depictions have given you of felines and milk. Most adult cats are lactose intolerant, actually,” she said, taking a breath before continuing. “I’d personally recommend giving them some sort of meat, fish, cheese, eggs, or vegetables, with simply a bowl of water to wash it down. It’s a lot better for them, and not to mention a great deal more filling. Milk should usually be reserved as a special treat every now and again, and only given in small amounts.”

Turning her gaze down to her wrap, she muffled a sigh. “I’d much rather have been here listening to you and Ruri squabble, than home where I would just be smothered. At least here there's room to breathe,” she murmured, picking up one half of the wrap and focusing her eyes on him. “It’s a lot more lively here than at my house, so it can get a bit boring. I’m … Glad that I came here tonight,” she said, taking a bite out of the wrap and setting it back on the plate immediately afterwards. After a moment of chewing, she continued. “And besides, I was able to see you again, just like I had hoped,” she told him honestly, not a waver in her voice to say she felt otherwise.

”Well, you’d be the first to be happy to see me…” Tak muttered to himself as he rubbed his burnt skin on his hand.

Returning her gaze to the counter, she eyed her hands, having suddenly growing weirdly interested in them.

“... I’m sorry that I’ve been causing so much trouble for you today, Takeo,” she said softly, her voice holding an odd tone to it. Her hands clenched together, and she felt her lower lip tremble, her vision clouded with tears. “That’s all that I really seem to be good at - causing trouble for the people around me.” Pressing the heel of her palm against one of her eyes, she attempted to rub away the warm liquid pooling in it. The action did little to stem it from freeing from her lids, however, and before she knew it she had tears trickling down her cheeks, and shame rose up within her. Tak fidgeted uncomfortably as she cried, and avoided direct eye contact.

Why did she have to be such a cry baby all of the time? Rubbing futilely at her cheeks, she felt a dry, humorless laugh escape her lips. “I’m sorry, I don’t even know why I’m crying,” she said during the laugh, shaking her head at the same time. After a moment, she felt the tears flow and she drew in a shaky breath.

“Don’t worry, I won’t bother you anymore, Takeo,” she spoke softly, pushing herself up from her seat. Dusk twined in figure eights between her legs, obviously sensing the emotional turmoil her mistress was in.

I’m okay. Don’t worry.

Clearly you’re not, so just let me do my thing, Harmonix.

”We might not know each other very well, but trust me, when it comes to causing trouble you’ve got nothing on me.” He stated, trying to cheer her up for some reason. Though he had no idea why he was trying to.

Stifling a sigh, she retrieved her wallet from the pocket in her cardigan, having lost her appetite entirely. She snapped it open, removed a fifty, and set it on the counter, clearly not expecting any change.

“Let Ruri know that I really appreciated the opportunity to talk to her, and that I also enjoyed the food. I’ll come back soon with my siblings …” she trailed off for a moment, turning her gaze to her shoes. “But I won’t bother you when I do, Takeo, I promise. I’m sorry for being such a bother.”

”You….you’re not that much of a bother….” Tak said softly, surprising himself that he’d say something like that. ”W-well at least no more than any other bastard on this miserable mud-ball.” He said as he folded his arms, and looked away from her.

To say that she was surprised by Takeo’s words would have been an understatement. Velonix turned her eyes back up to him, the tears still shining across them, and a tiny smile crossed her lips. Before she could stop herself, she had reached out, her fingers coming to gently rest on his upper arm, which was thankfully clad in clothing. Tak glanced at her for a moment before looking away once more, trying to remain composed.

“As cold as you tried to make that seem, Takeo, I know your heart is in the right place. Thank you … For the comfort,” she said quietly, her expression soft.

”But you’d be better off not hanging around me. It’s not a good idea to associate with throw away kids like me.” Tak said with a bit of sadness in his voice. ”Just ask around, everybody will tell ya the same.”

Her fingers clenched slightly in the material of his shirt at his words, and her lips tightened into an unnaturally serious expression. Why was it that humans put so much concern into what the other humans said or thought about them?

Velonix paused. She supposed it wasn't much different from her worry over her family's views of her, but the fact of the matter was that they were her family, so they deserved that type of honor. The people that Takeo spoke of, though, were complete and utter strangers, or simply people he didn't get along with.

Taking in a deep breath, she closed the small distance between them, her fingers still curled in his sleeve. He was short for a guy, even a human, but still superseded her own height by a good couple of inches, which prompted her to slightly tilt her head back in order to meet his eyes, or at least attempt to. It was difficult when he was averting his gaze.

“Pardon my language, but why should I give a flying fuck about what anybody else thinks about you?” she asked, her voice holding a mixture of sternness and confusion. “The last time I checked, I have a brain and I'm perfectly capable of forming my own opinions of someone. I don't need to rely on the words and rumors of the simple minded people that you speak of to do so,” she scoffed. Dropping her hand from his sleeve, she didn't move from where she stood, which was nearly toe-to-toe with him. “As for your ‘throw away’ kids statement …” She hesitated, obviously grappling for the correct words. After a moment, she squared her shoulders and planted her hands firmly on her hips, her entire stance one of disbelief and, to be honest, a bit of attitude.

“If anyone had the audacity to throw you away, Takeo, than that was their idiotic mistake. They're the ones missing out on something amazing, so if anything, they're the ones that should get the grief over it. You shouldn't be treated with any less respect and dignity just because you were born, and born to people who couldn't appreciate the gift that they were given. They should be the ones targeted for irresponsibly conceiving a child and then abandoning it.” Her voice conveyed her disgust with such an act, along with her expression of anger. “I've known you for barely a day and i already know that you're an amazing person, and even though it's been a short time that I've been of your acquaintance, I'm already a better person from our interactions.”

She allowed her sassy stance and attitude to disappear, but instead replaced it with genuinity. “I really am glad to have met you, Takeo, and I'm even happier knowing that you don't find me to be a nuisance. The only people here that I know are my siblings and my boss … So I'm glad that I can call you a friend,” she smiled brightly. A feeling welled up in her chest, and before she could stop herself, she had wrapped her arms tightly around his abdomen. She couldn't resist; she had a natural urge to comfort anyone and anything in distress, and Takeo had looked like a wounded puppy when she had met his eyes. It had always been her views that a person's eyes tended to tell a much deeper story than their lips often did, and the ache that she saw buried deep into his irises was enough to bring tears to anyone who gazed at them.

Plus, she couldn't deny the comfortable, yet odd, familiarity he had about him. There was something so painstakingly similar about him to something that was buried within her memories, but she couldn't for the life of her remember what or who it was.

Talk about deja vu.

[I]And you like it, too. Just admit it.[I]

Tak was taken by surprise by her hug, with his entire face turning beet red, and his heart pounding loudly. He held his arms out, unsure of what to do with them. Hugs wasn’t something that he’s gotten a lot of. She was so warm, and smelled so sweet. Being in her embrace felt so comforting to him. His arms instinctively hovered over her back as he hesitated to hug her back. Instead he clenched his fists, and held his arms to his side.

Her kind words ran through his mind, why would someone that he just met say that he was her friend? A friend, it has been awhile since someone said that they were his friend. His mind immediately went to the day he was arrested for setting that monster on fire, and nearly burning the orphanage down. His ‘friends’ all just watched as he was taken away in cuffs, without saying a word. And that was the last he ever heard from any of them. They never tried to contact him, write him letters, or anything. It made him wonder if they were ever really his friends, and if they considered him anything more than a bodyguard.

With a jolt, Velonix snapped back to reality, only then realizing how long she had been hugging him for. Almost instantaneously her cheeks turned a bright, crimson hue, and she quickly jerked away, her embarrassment obvious.

And as much as she'd have liked to have blamed the thought on Phoenix, she knew better.

That thought was wholly and completely Harmonix.

“S-sorry, I shouldn't have … I-I mean, I didn't …” She tapped her forefingers together nervously, her heart hammering and even her ears turning red.

”I-It’s fine….just forget it happened…..” He rubbed his arm uncomfortably as he kept his eyes to the ground. ”You don’t know me, there’s plenty of other reasons why you shouldn’t hang around me. So don’t go calling me a friend…..I don’t do friends. I don’t need the extra hassle.” Tak turned his back to her, and started his way to the kitchen.

“... What if I don't want to forget?” She asked quietly, an aching sound hovering in her voice. She knew that there wasn't any possibility that he knew how touchy the subject of memories was to her, but for him to so easily throw out the word ‘forget’ when it came to something that had happened stung her deep in her in her chest.

Velonix’s discomfort and melancholic attitude vanished immediately, instead replaced by irritation, this time aimed towards the boy in front of her. Throwing all caution to the wind, she threw out her arm and grabbed his hand, stopping him in his tracks. A moment of silence ticked by before she spoke, during which time she found herself stunned that no memories from Takeo had assaulted her vision. She quickly shook off the surprise, though.

“I want to get to know you, Takeo. And you said so yourself that I'm not much of a bother, so I doubt that you would think of me as a hassle,” she said softly, her accent thicker due to her emotions. She finally let go of his hand, a bit of disappointment coming from the action - his hand was callused and scarred, undoubtedly from skateboarding and the memory she had seen earlier that day, and it felt nice against her soft skin. Crossing her arms over her chest, she stared at his back, her annoyance held in her gentle gaze.

“I don't need to ‘know’ you to know what type of person you are, Takeo. I pride myself on my easy judgement of character. You wouldn't have helped me not just once, but twice[b] today if you weren't a good person, and I refuse to accept any argument that you're otherwise,” she said stubbornly. She wasn't able to reference her powers to see his aura, but she could definitely tell him the other reasons why she saw something good inside of him. “Besides that point, I'm almost certain that there are reasons why I shouldn't associate myself with you; but trust me when I say that that's true about everyone, especially me. There are a lot of reasons why people shouldn't try to be friends with me, but I know that everyone has their negatives, so I ignore those thoughts. Because along with those negatives are even more positives, and it's just a matter of finding the people that are worth the time and the pain that it takes to weed through those negatives to discover the positives. Besides, you aren't a person if you don’t have cons. Everyone has bad attributes, because no one is perfect. No one.”

Reaching out and snatching her keys off of the counter, she turned and glanced out at her beautiful car, hesitating for a moment before looking back over her shoulder at him.

“I don't care if you don't think of me as a friend, because I think of you as one to me. While I wish that you thought of me in the same way, I understand why you don't. But,” she emphasized, narrowing her eyes slightly, “I hope that you understand that I'm not going to just let this go. I'm a pretty determined person, if you didn't notice, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let you go through life without one genuine confidant. It's a waste of a life to do so, if you ask me, and I don't plan on letting you waste your life that way.”

Velonix pulled out her billfold once more and easily removed a small, brown card with intricate gold scrawl on it. [I]Velonix Orako[I] was written across the top, and below it was her phone number. “I want you to know that if you ever need anything - and I mean ever, Takeo - you can rely on me,” she said, slapping the card on top of the fifty dollar bill on the counter. She once more turned away and this time strode to the entrance, the two felines on either side of her. She paused only once she had opened the door, but this time didn't look back at him.

“Believe it or not, Takeo, there are people in this world who do care about you and that you can trust. Yosuke and Ruri are two prime example. Don't spend your life afraid of the consequences of opening yourself up to others. Part of the experience of living is to also go through pain. I can tell that you've been through enough to last a lifetime, but that shouldn't prevent you from forming future relationships,” she said, her voice once again holding the gentle chidings of one that a mother's would hold. It wasn't surprising; she was the daughter of the Moon.

Tak turned around to watch her leave, and saw what was most likely her car parked out on the street. He clenched his fists, and gritted his teeth. So she was one of those. [b]”I get it now. I'm just some charity case to you. Just a way for you to feel better about yourself, and feel important in your boring little life.” He narrowed his eyes on her. He knows this song and dance far too well to believe in the goodness in people's hearts. ”I'm no one's charity case! And I don't need saving! So don't waste your time, and just leave me alone!”

Velonix stifled a sigh, her shoulders sagging slightly. She massaged the bridge of her nose, a headache beginning it's slow throbbing in her temples, and when she spoke her voice held a hollow exhaustion usually reserved only for those who had seen and experienced enough sorrow in their life that they felt urge to just give in.

“Trust me when I say that I have no wish to feel any more important than anyone else is in this town,” she said quietly, her fingers tightening around the doorknob to the point that her knuckles grew white. Tears threatened to spill and she was thankful to be facing away from him. “You're the farthest thing from being a charity case and I know that. I just … Didn't realize that it was such a crime to be nice to you, and to try to help someone that I consider to be a friend.” Her voice wobbled a bit near the end, betraying her tears.

“Good night, Takeo. I hope that we can be amicable towards one another should we cross paths again.”

With that, she left the restaurant, again ignoring the stares that she was given as she approached her McLaren. The doors whisked up and she slid inside along with Dusk and Mio, started the engine, and sat back for a moment. Inhaling deeply, she rubbed roughly at her eyes to try and rid them of their wetness. Why did he have to be so mean to her? And why did she care that he was anyway?

Shoving her thoughts aside, she swiftly and efficiently maneuvered out of the parking space, her destination clearly home.

Tak let out a loud sigh. Why did she have to try so hard to be his friend? Why would she want to be his friend? And why was it bothering him so much? He looked down at the counter, and saw the card she left for him. He picked it up, and examined it closely. He then crumpled it up, and threw into the trashcan next to the counter.

He stood at the door of the kitchen, hesitating to open it. He looked back at the trashcan, and felt a knot in the pit of his stomach. He turned back, and picked up the crumpled card, and placed it in his pocket. Why did he have to run into someone like her?

Once Velonix returned home, she removed the vests from Mio and Dusk, tossing them haphazardly on the entry way floor alongside her kicked off shoes. Far too tired to make her way upstairs due to a combination of a long day and her rapidly growing migraine, she instead went to the living room, hobbled over to the couch, and did what was basically a face plant into the couch. She was asleep almost as soon as she hit the pillows, not even bothering to cover her self with a blanket, and her companion felines made themselves comfortable on her legs and back before joining their mistress in her sleepm

Setting

Higashi-Naruse, Akita

Characters Present

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#2017-07-27 09:36:21, as written by Kura Ravengade

"If you want a~'.'~'.'~'.'~"No one is sent
Fair and just world~'.'~'.'~'.'~By accident"
Go find a different one."~'.'~'.'~'.'~to anyone."

Tak tossed and turned on his bed several times before he finally decided to just lay on his back, and stare up at the ceiling. He let out a loud, almost animal-like yawn as he stretched up his arms. He knew it was gonna be a bad day. He slowly rose out of his bed with an almost zombie-like quality. He tried to shake off the restlessness of the night.

For whatever reason, he couldn't get Velonix out of his head. He replayed the conversation they ended the night with over and over in his mind. Each time his chest tightening up. He's said worse to people over seemingly trivial matters, and never felt bad about it. But for some reason after hearing the shakiness of her voice he just couldn't get it out of his head and felt a strange, unpleasant sensation swirl inside him.

Tak looked around his ‘room’, the old storage space of the bakery in the attic. It was covered wall to wall with extra chairs and tables of varying sizes for a variety of occasions they may cater to, but with some ingenious stacking techniques he had himself a decently sized open area for his small bed, old box TV set with stolen cable, and a decent sized bookshelf with an underwhelmingly small amount of books, just a few copies of some of the Dune series, and a couple books by Arthur C. Clarke. Not nearly enough to warrant the size of the bookshelf.

He rummaged around one of the two laundry baskets that held two pile of clothes. One basket was for clean clothes, and the other dirty. Rather than just using a dresser or closet to keep his clothes he just leaves them in their respective baskets until laundry day. While he might live on a small island in an ocean of chairs and tables, it was a surprisingly clean and tidy area. After spending time in what was pretty much a prison he's found that keeping his room tidy to be a particularly hard habit to break.

Despite him being invited to stay in the spare room of Ruri and Yosuke, Tak preferred to stay alone, and away from people. While hesitant at first, the couple eventually allowed him to stay, since he doesn't really do any harm to the place. Once he was dressed in a pair of black shorts, and a white sleeveless shirt he quickly made his bed, another habit that he picked up inside, he went down stairs for some breakfast.

Tak scrounged around in the kitchen cabinets until he found himself a box sugary cereal. After making himself a bowl of cereal he stepped out of the kitchen, and hopped up on the counter, and began eating his breakfast.

Right in the middle of his meal, he was interrupted by the front door bell chiming, signaling someone had entered, and that someone was Ruri. Looked like it was her turn to open up the shop today. ”Well good morning Ladykiller, strange seeing you here so early. How'd the date go?” She greeted him with a mischievous smirk. Tak merely rolled his eyes. ”It wasn't a date! Besides, she's just some rich kid bored with her life, and wanting a charity case.” He stated, his cold expression and tone covering the unease he felt over Velonix.

Ruri puffed up her cheeks and flicked him on the nose. ”You're such an idiot! She obviously had a thing for you, and you obviously have a thing for her! Sheesh! I'm gonna have to get her number to invite her over so you can apologize!” She growled at him, starting up their usual bout of fighting. ”As if! She's just using me for something! Either to make herself feel like a good person, or else to piss off someone! My guess she's just hitting her ‘rebel’ stage, and looking to piss off her parents! So just drop it!” He shouted.

Ruri let out a loud, and frustrated sigh, scratching her head over what to do. Then a slick grin crossed her lips. ”Ok Takeo, I won't talk about her, but you gotta make those delicious treats of yours! That's the price of my silence!” She said, her mouth nearly watering. Tak groaned, wiped some milk off the corner of his mouth. ”Pfft, fine.”

It took awhile, but he was finally finished with the many imagawayaki that Tak was forced to make to satisfy Ruri. Once he was finished, he grabbed a tub and began filling it up full of dirty dishes. ”I swear, one of these days you're gonna tell me how you make them this delicious!” Ruri nearly squealed in excitement, it was a treat to be able to eat his cooking, despite how good he was at it, he's never been enthusiastic about it, just treating it like a chore. ”You just suck at cooking!”

Tak felt an intense gaze fixed in on him, causing him to turn around and see Velonix standing outside the shop's window, just staring at him. His heart almost stopped at that moment, his throat getting dry, and a strange surge of emotions swelled up inside of him. He focused his intense gaze on her, his stern face not betraying the strange sensation he felt when she looked at him.

Their eyes met for a moment that felt like an eternity, with her amber eyes becoming his sole focus. What was it that those eyes saw of him? Was he just some charity case to her, or some stray animal to be nursed back to health? The more he wondered about it the redder his face became. And then he noticed something: her eyes were moist; was she going to cry? Velonix suddenly turned away, catching Tak by surprise. He looked away from her, keeping her in a small corner of his vision. Once she was out of sight Tak let out a frustrated sigh. Why was she about to cry? Did the mere sight of him just cause her to cry? Did he hurt her that much? Or did she hate him that much? Why did he even care? He pushed those questions aside as he hurled the tub of dishes to the kitchen.

Ruri stood in the doorway of the kitchen, silently watching as the two gazed at each other. Her eyebrows were perked up in curiosity, and slight amusement. She pressed down on a plastic container full of Tak’s treats, securing the lid on top of it. She gave him a mischievous grin as he passed by her, awkwardly shuffling along, keeping his eyes to the ground.

After getting the dishes into the sink, next was the load of garbage that needed to go to the dumpster. Tak carried two full black garbage bags, both almost the size of him. He managed to wrestle them into the dumpster, and afterward he dropped down to the ground, taking a breather on the back steps.

”Dammit….why is she so goddamn irritating!” He sighed, never once has one person managed to irritate and confuse him like she has.

~You know, he’s kind of a silly human. Why is he shouting at himself?~

Dusk peered around the corner of the bakery, Mio peeking his head just over hers. They had branched off from their mistress not too long before, having told her that they were going to explore some more of the quaint town that they had so abruptly found themselves in. Obviously, that was a lie - or was it? - given that they had opted to, instead, spy on the human boy that had piqued Harmonix’s interest so much. Whether their interest was out of concern for her well being or general curiosity, neither of them could say, but it was definitely there.

~I’m not really sure, Selene. Maybe he’s not mentally stable? I don’t want a mentally unstable human so close to our Harmony.~ Dusk scoffed in response to that, rolling her dazzling blue eyes. ~You do realize that that’s a bit hypocritical, don’t you? Seeing as Harmonix isn’t quite mentally stable herself~ Mio growled slightly, looking down at the top of her gray head. ~Don’t talk about her like that. You know as well as I do that none of that happened because she wanted it to. Dusk turned a cool gaze up to meet Mio’s slightly hotter one, and if anyone looked at her, they could have sworn that the cat raised an eyebrow - if she even had one. ~I do realize that. But that also makes me wonder if something may have happened to this boy, as well. I don’t believe him to be unhinged in the same way that our lovely lady is, but I do believe that he’s been through quite a bit in his short life. How can you rightly stand there and adamantly defend Lady Harmonix for a mental disability, just because she didn’t want it to happen to her, but then judge this boy for perhaps having similar circumstances?~ The lack of a response from Mio was enough of an answer for Dusk, who straightened, pushing him slightly off of her. With her head high, she strut around the corner and walked right up to the boy, letting out a loud yet pretty, ”Myow,” as she reached him. She moved her head against his calf, nuzzling him through his clothes. ~Hey, Mio, he smells really good! Like the best tuna and salmon!~ ~No way he smells just like the fancy stuff,~ Mio argued, trotting after her, his own curiosity winning out as well. As he neared the boy, he sniffed, and immediately darted to his side, sniffing around his ankles. ~Ooooh, he does smell really good!~

Tak looked down at the two cats that suddenly appeared. They looked familiar. He looked up and down the alley, looking for any sign of their owner. Once he was sure she wasn't there he began to relax. He looked down at the two cats, his expression softening. ”You're the Cinnamon Roll’s therapy animals or whatever right?” He asked as he leaned down, and rubbed underneath Mio’s chin with his index and middle finger. He's been around stray animals to realize how to approach animals in a surprisingly non-threatening way. He then reached his other hand down, scratching at the back of Dusk’s head. He moved his hands in a circular motion, causing them to purr loudly. Mio tried to hold it back, but when Tak slowly moved his hand from underneath his chin to the back of his head he couldn't contain it any longer.

”I'm surprised you two like me so much, since Miss Goody-Two-Shoes can't seem to look at me without being a big cry baby.” Tak sighed. Why did it bother him so much? He's used to getting scornful looks from people, but that. He's never been looked at like that. ”Why is it so hard to deal with her? What does she want from me?” He sighed. People were so complicated, it's so much easier to not deal with them. ”And why am I asking her cats for answers?” He let out a stiff laugh. ”This is why I hate dealing with people….it's too much of a hassle.”

They were then interrupted by the sudden arrival of the Bob-tailed cat that always hangs around the shop. The stray cat waltz over to Tak, slipping in under his arm, and sat down his lap. She started nuzzling her head into his chest in a jealous manner. ”Well, at least you guys like me…...I guess that's something.” Dusk rolled her eyes at the stray. ~Oh, come now. No need to act so territorial, child. Trust me when I say that you can have the boy. We’re simply curious; investigating him out of worry for our own mistress. We don’t want him.~ Mio snickered a little, obviously trying to seem more masculine after having crumbled under the hand of the boy. ~We really don’t want anything to do with him; we’re just looking out for our own lovely lady. He’s all yours.~ The stray glared in their direction, slightly baring her teeth. ~Don’t talk about Takeo like that! He’s a good person! You should want him - he’s the best! And why would you need to ‘investigate’ him for your mistress, anyway? He’s not a bad person - he’d never do anything to her!~ Dusk fixated a cool stare on the cat, sitting down directly beside Takeo’s foot so as to be pressed up against his leg. ~He’s already made her cry twice, and they’ve only met each other twice. Of course, that’s reason enough for us to find out what type of person he is. However … Our findings so far have been quite promising. I’m looking forward to seeing how things play out and go between him and Lady Harmonix. We will not interfere unless he proves to be a directly negative impact on our mistress.~ The stray looked away in a huff, nuzzling her face against Takeo’s chin. During the conversation, though, Mio had made his way over to the dumpster, where Takeo had recently tossed the garbages. After searching through it for a minute - all the while grumbling over how disgusting and lower class it was of him to dumpster dive - he emerged with a very specific pastry in his mouth. It had been tossed due to it being burnt on one half, and he scampered down from the dumpster and over to Takeo. As soon as he reached him, he promptly dropped the vanilla frosted cinnamon roll on the ground before him, nudging it closer with his nose, before sitting up regally. Dusk made her way to his side, dropping down beside him in the same position, and together they fixated what they hoped to be serious looks on the human boy. What they were attempting to convey was their wishes for him to not lose hope over the interactions that he had had with their mistress, but instead follow the lead that his piqued interest could take him in.

Or something along those cheesy lines. It wasn’t as though they could just tell him what they wanted to say; if they did, he’d think he was going crazy, or worse, would suspect otherworldly magic or mysticism, and they couldn’t have someone suspicious of the siblings running amok. So the best thing that they could do, at least for now, was to give him subtle hints that nothing was as it seemed, and that he should push through the self-doubt and confusion.

Tak raised an eyebrow at the two cats, as they seemingly presented him a burnt cinnamon roll from the garbage. He stared deeply into their eyes. There was something off about those two. ”Sheesh, you two are so weird. If you're hungry you don't need to go rooting around in the trash.” Tak said as he picked up the stray cat off his lap, and placed her down on the ground. ”Wait here, I'll be back in a sec.” Dusk and Mio looked at one another, rolled their eyes in unison, and sighed internally. Clearly, manipulating him was going to prove to be more difficult than they initially thought. The boy was a bit slow.

Tak returned to the kitchen for a brief moment. The stray cat began circling around the two unfamiliar cats, sniffing them as she did so. ~This mistress you keep talking about. How do I know if she's good enough for Takeo? For all I know she doesn't deserve him!~ She stopped in front of them, and sat down, keeping her gaze fixed on their eyes. ~Takeo saved my life, he saved me from getting run over, and he's been feeding me every day since then. He's cared for me while other humans ignored me. Without him, I wouldn't be here. And it's not just me either! He cares for other strays as well! He's the kindest, and bestest person!~

~As I said before, child; the boy has already made her cry twice. Not simply once, but twice, and both of those times were the only times that they’ve met. However …~ Dusk trailed off, seeming to lose herself in thought. ~... However, we can both tell that she has an odd interest in him. And believe us when we say that for her or anyone in her family to take an interest in someone from here is very, very rare. They’re … Solitary people, so none of them really like outsiders. But Har-Velonix, that is, for some reason likes the boy.~ Dusk refocused on the conversation. ~Trust us when we say that we know our mistress’s feelings very well. And while Takeo appears to be crude, rude, dishonorable, immature, and sloppy on the outside, because let’s be honest, he does give off such an appearance.~ She held up her paw as the mortal cat began to argue, silencing her. [i]~However, that doesn’t seem to be the case behind closed doors. He clearly uses that brutish demeanor as a defensive maneuver so as to keep humans at an arm’s length, minimum. Obviously, there are some mental scars caused by previous traumatic events that are stunting him from becoming the kind person that he so very clearly is in front of people of his own species.~ Mio bared his teeth slightly, his eyes glinting in warning. ~And besides that, our mistress is one of the most gentle and sweetest of girls that anyone could ever meet. Don’t you dare insinuate that she is anything but. Any man, especially a mortal, should count his blessings and consider himself so far beyond lucky to have her, if he were to win her heart. She couldn’t harm a fly, but instead would opt to do whatever she could to help it.~ His tone was snappish, obviously taking it as a sore topic to probe, and Dusk gave the cat a slightly apologetic look.

Tak returned with a small plate with a single slice of turkey on it. He ripped the turkey up into three pieces, and sat the plate on the ground for the cats. The Bob-tailed stray quickly ran over to the plate, making sure to be the first one to get a piece. ”Huh, you hang around here so much I guess I should really give you a name.” He looked the cat up and down, trying to think of a good name for her. ”Hmm….how about Mochi? You look like a Mochi to me. What do ya think?” The stray looked up at Tak, and let out a pleased meow, obviously showing a liking to the name. ”Glad you like it. Mochi it is.” Dusk and Mio stood back for a moment and exchanged glances. A memory momentarily flickered between their minds.

“Thank you for the milk for Mio and Dusk. I don’t want what I say next to undermine how appreciative I am of you doing that for them. However, I wouldn’t make it a habit of giving cats or kittens too much milk. It can be really bad for their health, despite what cartoon depictions have given you of felines and milk. Most adult cats are lactose intolerant, actually,” she said, taking a breath before continuing. “I’d personally recommend giving them some sort of meat, fish, cheese, eggs, or vegetables, with simply a bowl of water to wash it down. It’s a lot better for them, and not to mention a great deal more filling. Milk should usually be reserved as a special treat every now and again, and only given in small amounts.”

Mio nodded slightly, turning to face Takeo once more.They had gotten what they had come for, so without bothering to approach the plate, while he was focused on Mochi they took off silently, and so swiftly that when he looked it, it would be as though they had simply disappeared.

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Tak Tachibana

0 · 1,442 views · located in Higashi-Naruse, Akita

a character in “Akita's Seasons”, as played by CutUp

Description

So begins...

Tak Tachibana's Story

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