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 Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2016 3:37 pm
A lot of things had happened for Ai in the past couple of weeks. It all seemed to have changed in the blink of an eye. She was no longer trapped in a tiny forest with only those of her own kind. She had stepped out of the shadow of her family, out of the overwhelming....prejudices that could be found there. She was in a whole new world now, entirely different from the one she grew up in. It gave her time to reflect on her past and contemplate her future.
There was one Kumiho she had to thank for all of this. And it was someone she had honestly been horrible to their entire lives. Ai had always known she wasn't the nicest 'friend' for Tomoe. She wanted to make excuses for herself, like she had seen the way the others acted and just went along with the crowd. But that wasn't true at all. She had known she was better than him. Her five extra tails told her that. She was just the better Kumiho! Anytime Tomoe even started to look a little happy, she had to make him miserable again. And yet, he had done this great thing for her. He had freed her from that dark forest and opened up the world for her to explore.
She had settled into Below nicely, found a decent apartment she could afford while going to school. A University! Where there were students that didn't look like her! The world was very different from what she had been told it would be like outside her forest. Somewhere during all of this settling in, she had realized that she had acted like a brat the majority of her life. She wouldn't feel right until she could apologize, and in person at that, It took a lot of...favors. Some worse than others, for her to finally get Tomoe's address. This was something that had to be done in person. She wouldn't settle for some phone call, letter, or text.
The night before she had stayed up working on a cake. She watched so many videos on how to make the perfect one that she didn't know how she couldn't have made it perfectly. Finding the right sort of wrapping and bow for the box had been a whole other challenge. And then actually wrapping it? It would be worth it though. Hopefully. She debated for a long time if she should give him some sort of warning that she was coming. In the end she decided against it, because he'd probably just run away from her.
Even now as she made her way down the street, box held awkwardly in front of her, she knew if he spotted her he'd never answer the door. That only made her feel worse. How was she going to make this seem sincere to Tomoe of all Kumiho? She was growing nervous, her tails flicking behind her in irritation. She accidentally whacked a passerby with one of her tails and had to apologize. Well, that was a nice warm up. By the time she made it to the door she had at least stopped her tails, they gathered around her feet and with ears held up high she knocked on the door.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2016 6:31 pm
 Tomoe's life had changed rapidly, and he wasn't sure he was happy about it. The guilt was overwhelming, and, honestly? Back when he thought his life was going to end for his crimes he had almost welcomed it. For years he had failed everyone around him, and lowering the barrier could have killed everyone he loved. It hadn't, but what if it had? Out of all the mistakes, all the mess ups and clumsy incidents, that one had been the worst, and it had been entirely fueled by a selfish desire to protect himself.
He had betrayed his people.
When the decision came to spare his life he had wept. Joy didn't reach him, neither did relief. Simply an agonizing guilt weighed deeply in his chest. He had risked everyone, even the newcomers, and he did not agree with the Elders decision. He didn't argue, he couldn't bring it in himself to bring more trouble. Tomoe had simply hidden deep within the village, allowing Rinko to care for him as he fell into a deep depression. When the barrier came down for the second and final time he had fled, eventually being gathered by the place the newcomers had spoken so fondly of; the academy.
There, he stayed for two days, until during his brief rambles the school therapist (Kirket) picked upon the name he kept repeating; Neptune. It wasn't long before directions were gently set in his hand, and that night a small and broken fox stood at Neptune's door. The kindness both Neptune and Maria, Neptune's partner, showed him had only cemented the guilt, and yet what he could only assume was selfish desire pushed him to accept their offer to stay. They were warmth and comfort, and they offered safety from a world he both did not know and feared.
It was there he remained, succumbing into his negative thoughts as he buried himself into their home. Their unassuming adoration had opened up a brief ray of light to him. He was still the traitor. Still the Kumiho that shouldn't exist, but these two people loved him without any need to, and he found himself wishing he had been there since the start. They had, in a short period of time, become family.
They were home.
Not only that, but they slowly began to introduce him into the world he didn't understand. He still feared leaving their home, but a phone was given to him and slowly the internet, a concept he still struggled to understand, was brought to him. The world seemed less hopeless, and yet he couldn't leave the door. Not yet.
Today, the two had left. He wasn't sure where, but he remained home, cleaning up here and there and cooking various sweets from his own culture as he waited for their return. Normally, a knock at the door was something he ignored. He was often too anxious to answer it, but after a discussion that Maria was expecting a package he knew it could be that, and he needed to answer. Swallowing thickly, Tomoe summoned all his courage.
What was he afraid of? It was the Elders. They have no clue where he was. In fact, no one knew where he was, he was sure! Unless news spread through the academy.... or Rinko gossiped...
Now that he thought about it, Rinko did have a hard time keeping secrets...
No! It was okay! It was just the package, or someone trying to sell things! Sighing slowly, Tomoe straightened his spine before opening the door, a faint smile on his face that, instantly, dropped, eyes widening slowly.
Ai.
His stomach dropped, mouth opening before snapping shut. Nothing would come out. He couldn't spit out a response. He couldn't say anything. His eyes stayed on her, hands trembling against his sides, which he hurriedly tucked into his yukata. He still hadn't adapted to the more "modern" style of wear, and now he wished he had as he examined her. She had. She probably was judging him right now.
'It's not my fault you have two tails.'
He wanted to throw up. He remembered her. He remembered her so well. She was here. She was here to remind him how he betrayed them. How he hurt everyone in their village.
Of how he never should have been born.
Leopleuradon I hope adding that memory snippet was okay!
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Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2016 10:06 am
Ai was close to chickening out. There wasn't an answer right away and she was beginning to think anything she could possibly say to Tomoe now wouldn't do either of them any good. Had she even really changed all that much in the last month? Would Tomoe believe she had changed at all? She had never been so nervous before in her life. Her heart was slamming away in her chest for someone that she had disliked her entire childhood and well into her young adult years.
She was seriously about to turn around and run away when she heard the sound of the doorknob turn. Some last minutes fears ran through her head. What if someone else answer and she had to introduce herself in order for them to bring Tomoe to the door? She could only imagine the angry looks she might get from a stranger. She was definitely not used to looks like that at all. She shifted her shoulders to face the door, but couldn't quite put a smile on her face. For once in her life she probably looked shy, unsure about what was going to happen.
When it was Tomoe and she caught the look on her face her heart sunk. Was she even capable of of fixing all those years of damage. This was probably what being punched in the face felt like. Her ears drew back on her head and she looked down, unable to look him in the eye. She took a step back, thinking about leaving. But no. That wasn't why she was here. If she was going to try fixing this, then at the very least she needed to try.
"I-I'm...not here to be...mean." Cause let's face it, before, being around Tomoe meant she was mean. She had practiced this up until the second she had left her little home. "I'm sorry." She took a deep breathe after that. There, she had said it! Not that that would fix anything. She held out the box that she was carrying. "I baked this cake....for you. I mean, you can share it. There's plenty to go around...." She held it out rather awkwardly before realizing there was really a little too much space between them. Oh wow...she stood where she was, just wondering if he'd even move to take it from her.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 2:59 pm
'I'm not here to be mean.'
He didn't believe her. He usually believed everyone, but her words felt like lies. Probably an attempt to kick his guard down. To mock him for what he had done. Remind him. His eyes drew slowly to the box she mentioned, trailing back up to her face with wide eyes.
Share a cake.
He couldn't help the expression that crossed his face. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion, mouth parting as he tried to speak. What was the cake for? Celebrating his failure? 'Good job, you finally proved how incompetent we all knew you were?' His eyes drew to the distance between them, grateful. For a second, a morbid second, he felt a flicker of power rush through him as he observed her stance. She looked awkward. Silly, even. Was she nervous? Good. Yet, that inherently sweet part of him took over, hands reaching out and feet moving him within distance of the box. He could have made her stand there for minutes, but he wasn't a bad person. No. He was a stupid person, but he knew he was gentle to a fault. It's what made him such a doormat.
It's what let her bully him as kids.
His slender fingers touched the box, accepting it from her and gentling bringing it to his chest. He stared at her again, still wordless. What was he supposed to say? Awkwardly, his mouth opened again and he managed a croaked, tired response.
"Thank.... you."
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 3:27 pm
Ai could see in his eyes that he didn't trust her, not one single bit. Could she say that she blamed him for this? Of course not, it was her own fault. Her's and all of those other little minions she had grown up with. Her old self would have laughed to see Tomoe so scared, she'd probably warn him that he'd better move, pack up, and run away all over again. Big, ole', scary Ai had tracked you down again! Better make extra sure no one knew where you'd gone to this time around....
Her ears had been slumped the whole time, making her look very much ashamed of all the things she'd done in her past. If ever she found a way to time travel, she'd go back in the past and slap herself as a child and tell little Ai to behave. Her ears perked up a bit though when Tomoe actually stepped forward. Did it cross her mind that he might actually reach out and hit her? yeah, for a second. But that wouldn't be something Tomoe would do and besides, there was no denying the fact she deserved it. Instead there was just a slow exchange of the cake in her hands going over to his. A very timid smile spread across her face when he actually thanked her for it. Oh, what did she do to deserve that?
"It was really, really, the least I could do after everything I've put you through...." She bit her lip carefully and laced her fingers together behind her back. "Have you...been out and about in Below yet? I started school down here and it's a....nice change of pace. And I guess what the cake is really for, aside from trying to make up for me being...awful as a child, is a thank you for opening up this world for us." Okay, so she hadn't really planned on saying all of that during this visit. But only hearing two little words from Tomoe wasn't enough to put her mind at ease.
"Without you...we'd probably have all eventually died in that dark forest. The world would have no idea and we'd have no idea what was going on around us either...." She sighed and pointed at the box in his hands. "There is a...uh...card in the box. It says a few more things and has my number in it. I know I'm probably the last person you'd want to talk to down here....But just in case something comes up....Don't hesitate to call me...." She very much doubted that he'd ever call her, but a part of her hoped this wouldn't be the last time she saw or heard from him.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 3:43 pm
Did she just smile? He didn't return it, unable to. Instead, he just stared, mouth tightening at the comment. Everything he'd been through? Which? His childhood? The recent screw up? His ears flopped down, eyes locked on the cake. Ayame should have killed him. They should have let him.
She kept speaking. He didn't look up, shaking his head numbly about the comment of Below. No. He hadn't been out and about. He felt too guilty to do so. Too afraid. However, it was the thank you that caused his head to snap up, eyes locked on her. Without listening to her further speaking he blurted the first, frantic and confused thought in his head.
"What do you mean?" She finally had his earnest attention.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 4:26 pm
He really hadn't been out yet? Did he spend all of his time cooped up in this house? That was...honestly did she expect him to have moved on already? She had absolutely no idea exactly how traumatizing it must have been for him to have...well almost died due to his...'negligence'. When she had heard of the emergency council meeting from her parents she had been shocked that Tomoe had seriously done such a thing. First of all, it had to be hard work to take down those barriers, and second of all, was he really going to get himself killed over such a thing? She had no voice in the ruling though, and had to wait anxiously for her parents to return home with news.
When he finally spoke up she gave him a little puzzled look, unsure exactly what he didn't understand. She had said a lot just now....
"It's...hard to put into words exactly. But, I think it's an understatement to say growing up in any Kumiho family brings it's own amount of hardships. It was only a matter of another couple of generations before we all would have been lost to the world. Stuck in a rather....unfair culture as well. Not to excuse any of the things I ever did to you though. I was truly a hellion of a child to many of my peers." But enough rambling on about herself, she didn't want Tomoe to think she excused anything she ever did in the past. For a long time she thought she could just live with herself, but coming to Below had really opened her eyes.
"I think....I think what you did will go down in history as something that ultimately benefited the Kumiho. If we'd remained in that forest it was only a matter of time before we were all complete history. And on a more...personal...note. I did even think twice about leaving home when the opportunity came. I've learned a lot about myself and others since I've moved. And so....I want to help you...in any way I can. If I even can. I understand you may not want it, at all. I never really had a bully and so I wouldn't really understand what you're going through right now. But, if you want someone to...talk to that sort of....understands...a small part of what you went through...I'm here...."
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