The Fireworks Show Part 2
The next morning, Roll felt the sunlight on her face as she slowly began to wake up. She smacked her lips a few times as she sat up. Then she brushed her hair a bit since a few stands were in her face despite her headband. She couldn't help but fan herself a bit as well.
"Man and I thought the island was hot and stuffy!" Roll remarked.
"It's pretty bad here," said Lemon, who was apparently wide awake and just hugging a rather large rabbit pillow plushie as she lay on her bed. She had slept outside her blankets last night like Roll did, "I'm just glad they don't have gnats that suck the blood out of you here."
"I thought that was mosquitoes?" said Roll curiously. Lemon just chuckled as she sat up from bed.
"Gnats don't leave massive bites," said Lemon, "but they can make you skin irritate to the point that you wanna scratch and scratch and just tear your skin right off your body." Roll just chuckled, she was already adjusting to Lemon's way of talking about things. At least she wanted to say that she was as the brown haired girl just propped up a knee and got comfortable on her bed. Roll decided to take a seat along the edge with her legs crossed.
"What's up little Roll?" said Lemon noticing the blonde girl sitting on her bed.
"Guess I just wanna know what you are thinking about," said Roll, "you seem rather comfy hugging that pillow plushie." Lemon looked at her rabbit pillow and giggled to herself as she gave it a squeeze
"This rabbit plushie is my favorite," said Lemon, "I've had her since I was six years old. I always sleep better with this plushie in my arms. Besides, if I used her like a pillow, I'd be afraid I'd crush her. But yeah I was just trying to be comfortable. I hope that's okay." Roll just smiled.
"No problem," said Roll, "You don't have to get up right away. I was gonna ask if we could just relax and talk together about stuff."
"Oh! Girl talk with a girl my age!" Lemon gushed as she sat up, "can we do what those anime girls do while we talk?"
"Like?"
"Maybe brush each other's hair and such," said Lemon, "I mean you look so cute with bed hair but I'm sure you could use a brush." Roll just giggled shyly as Lemon sat up and put her rabbit pillow next to her.
"Just don't be too rough, okay?" said Roll, "my hair is a bit sensitive."
"Of course little Roll," said Lemon, "do you have a..."
"Oh yeah, over here!" said Roll as she crawled off the bed and grabbed her hair brush out of the rococo drawer Lemon let her borrow and the climbed back on the bed where Lemon was just sitting on her knees. Roll tried not to show that she was nervous and just let Lemon comb her hair.
"You're hair is so soft and pretty!" Lemon commented, making Roll chuckle as she relaxed as Lemon continued brushing her hair. Then Roll had a thought.
"Lemon, can I ask you something?" Roll spoke after a few minutes of content silence.
"Okay," said Lemon as she continued to stroke Roll's hair.
"Are you interested in dating boys and such?" Roll asked. Lemon said nothing for a second before answering.
"Yeah," said Lemon, "but I'm not really looking into dating or a relationship. Are you?"
"Not really," said Roll, "but I guess my question is. If a guy asked you out would you want to..."
"No thank you," said Lemon, "The last few boys that tried to ask me out were crazy. They acted all like they wanted to flirt with me and asking me if they wanted to go home with them and such. It's was disturbing! All they wanted me for was for their own fun! Sakura said you had the talk so I think you're smart enough to know what I'm talking about!" Roll cringed a bit and made a face before humming.
"I see," said Roll, "Well...not all men are like that."
"Maybe," said Lemon, "but they certainly were in my old town. Those boys were crazy! Yet they said I was the crazy one!"
"Is that why you came to Flower Town?" Roll asked.
"Pretty much," said Lemon, "I felt like a misfit in my home and my family didn't understand me. So I came here where I could be myself and not be judged about it. Why did you move to Animal Town Roll? Did your family not understand you?" Roll just took a long deep breath and sighed to herself.
"Roll?"
"My mother didn't want me," said Roll quietly, "She made it pretty clear when she threw me into a trash can...I was barely three years old. Then ended up in an orphanage where nobody else wanted the little girl in a corner all alone." Lemon stopped brushing her hair.
"Wow...I...I mean...and I thought I only knew the feeling of rejection," said Lemon quietly, "I...I've heard of people who've had it worse but...I'd never thought I'd meet one in my life."
"I said I was freak," Roll remarked.
"You're not a freak Roll so stop saying that!" Lemon scolded, her tone making her southern accent more noticeable, "being rejected doesn't make you a freak!"
"So you don't think being barefoot makes me a freak?" Roll asked curiously. Lemon turned her around despite not being done with her hair.
"I think that it's very cute that you like to be barefoot," said Lemon, "It's what make you who you are and why are you special. If you're mother can't see that then that it her loss! You don't need her! You have plenty of friends who will love and care about you...including me."
"Really?" said Roll.
"Well...if you want me to..." Lemon didn't need to finish before Roll embraced her in a loving hug.
"Hey, I'm suppose to hug and poke you!" said Lemon.
"Well if you're gonna be my big sister, you gotta let me give you hugs and pokes first!" Roll replied and they both laughed as Lemon finished brushing Roll's hair. Roll then grabbed Lemon's brush so she could do her new sister's hair. Roll was rather surprised that despite the ponytail that Lemon's hair was much shorter. Roughly just an inch past her shoulder's.
"Well you're hair shouldn't take too long," said Roll, "it's much shorter than mine. How come you never wear it down?"
"I just like it up," said Lemon, "What about you?"
"I kind of like either pony tails or downward pigtails," said Roll, "I only wear it down once in a while or when I sleep sometimes. Sable is the one who said that my long hair was beautiful so that is why I wear it down yesterday. It just felt right." Lemon hummed in understanding.
"So...is Sable another close friend of yours?" she asked.
"She's my Mom...the Mom that I always wanted," said Roll with a smile on her face. Lemon awed.
"Aww, I'm so glad you found yourself a Momma who loves and cares about you," said Lemon in her giddy tone. Roll wasn't sure if Lemon was gonna kawaii overload again. But Lemon didn't.
"Thanks," said Roll as she continued to comb Lemon's brown locks until she remembered something.
"Lemon, there is something I wanted to ask you," said Lemon, "about...Kabuki!"
"KABUKI!" she squealed and Roll bit her lip to avoid laughing.
"You seem to really like him...alot actually," said Roll, "And I was wondering if..."
"Stop right there, little Roll!" said Lemon, "I do NOT have any romantic interests with Kabuki. He's just really cute with his face paint and the fact that he looks like someone who does actual kabuki performing arts."
"I see," said Roll, "Well he has trained in kung fu, if you recall from yesterday."
"I remember," said Lemon, "He said that he wanted to be able to protect me from any more crazy men. He's so sweet." Lemon giggled to herself as Roll just looked at her surprised.
"So...it's never occurred to you that maybe...just maybe," said Roll slowly, not wanting to be too direct, "he may have done that because he likes you?" Lemon blinked in surprise and then laughed.
"Well I know that I don't see him that way," said Lemon and Roll decided to press the issue further.
"Okay," said Roll, "but just tell me this Lemon. Let's say if...Kabuki did try to woo you...would you really just shut him down?" Lemon was rather stunned by the question and turned to face the blonde girl.
"Why are you asking me this?" she asked in a rather serious tone. Roll just looked at her sadly.
"I just don't see you as the type of girl to break a boy's heart...or be closed off to love," said Roll, "especially if it's by someone who would accept you for who you are..." Lemon just stared and then gave the blonde girl a soft smile.
"Well, I'll admit that I'm not really looking for love, but if someone...even Kabuki...was interested..." Lemon replied, "I...I guess I could keep an open mind about it. As long as they don't try to rush a relationship...or get flirty with me all the time..." Roll smiled and gave Lemon a nod that she would close the subject. Well Roll would close the discussion with her for now. Since Lemon made it clear she wouldn't shut down Kabuki completely, Roll wanted to see if there was any way she could help Kabuki woo Lemon.
"Hey, Roll how about we hang out? Just the two of us?" Lemon asked. This put a roadblock on Roll's plans to help Kabuki but she really did want to spend time with her new sister. She then remembered that her friends would be able to help Kabuki, and she was sure that Lemon's best friends would be able to help out as well. They had to know Kabuki alot better than she did.
"I would love to," said Roll happily, "Your hair is all finished so..."
"Come on," said Lemon, "I have my own spa bathroom in the basement. We can wash and get dressed down there!"
"Isn't that spa a bit...public?" Roll asked. Lemon shook her head.
"I have a special curtain so that when its occupied people don't walk down there and see anything," said Lemon, "Now come on!" Roll just nodded, grateful that it was at least private to some extent. They didn't take too long taking turns in the spa bath and were surprised that they had worn similar outfits. Roll had put on a yellow strapless top with some light colored denim pedal pushers and her sunhat and locket. Lemon had worn a yellow thin strapped tank with darker colored blue denims just like Rolls with her own sun hat with downward pigtails. They just looked at each other's outfits and then laughed at each other before they headed upstairs. Lemon went into the kitchen to make breakfast as the rest of the group, who had already gotten dressed, were just chatting amongst each other. They couldn't help but giggle as they saw Lemon and Roll's matching attires.
"You two look like sisters, silly," said Rosie.
"What's with the matching attires, kitty cat?" Kiki asked next.
"We wanna just hang out one on one and by some random chance, we matched our clothes with each other," Lemon explained as she turned to Roll, "Other than our tops, since Roll's is strapless and mine has thin straps, we look exactly alike."
"Except for the slippers, doyoing," Coco mentioned. Lemon looked down at her feet and sighed sadly.
"I like my slippers," she said quietly.
"It's okay," said Roll, "just because I go barefoot all the time doesn't mean you have to." Lemon just looked at her quietly before removing her slippers and tossed them away from her. Roll just looked dumbfounded and shook her head.
"Lemon, I told this to..."
"I wanna do it," said Lemon, "I might bruise and scratch up my feet to the point I'm spilling blood everywhere I go, but for you...it's worth it. You look so pretty in your outfit barefoot. I wanna be pretty too..." Roll just sighed and gave her a warm smile.
"Oh ok," said Roll, "Can I..."
"You hang out with the group," said Lemon, "I'll fix breakfast. I can do that on my own thank you." Roll wanted to protest but the look in Lemon's eyes showed that this southern girl wasn't gonna back down and just conceded with a nod as Lemon headed into the kitchen. Roll took a seat between Bunnie and Tabby, crossing one leg over the other and letting it bounce a bit before remembering something.
"Hey, you guys," said Roll, "I wanted to ask you a question...about Kabuki." The fact she said his name put everyone in a long, awkward silence as they looked at her with curious eyes.
"Kabuki?" said Rosie, "Why are you asking about him all of a sudden, silly?"
"Because Kabuki has a crush on Lemon, kitty cat," said Kiki.
"Yeah, it's so obvious too, me-Wow," said Tabby and then looked at Roll, "did he really ask you to keep that a secret?" Roll was stunned. She had no idea Lemon's friends already knew.
"Pretty much," said Roll, "He seems like a nice guy and I thought..."
"I see what you're saying, doyoing," Coco interrupted, "and I agree. Kabuki shouldn't feel so shy wanting to ask Lemon out. I think they would make a cute couple."
"Same here," said Roll, "I think it would be nice if Lemon had a boy to love and look out for her you know. Kabuki was always looking out for me when I was training with Yumi. I don't think she knows just how much he wants to be closer to her."
"That is actually very true," said Coco, "We may be her best friends, but it took a while before she actually wanted to open up with us. Plus her past has made her a bit distant with the boys in our town."
"She's mentioned a few things to me," said Roll, "But I know Kabuki would treat her well. So...can you help him woo her? I would do it but..."
"Breakfast is ready!" Lemon shouted, "and yay! I didn't bruise my toes, cut my fingers off, or burn myself this time!" She then turned around and banged her left foot on the side of the doorway.
"Ow!" she yelped and grabbed her foot, "Well...two out of three I guess..." She then limped into the kitchen while the rest of the girls just chuckled at her clumsy nature as they stood up and followed after her to eat. That was when Rosie put a hand on Roll's shoulder.
"You and Lemon go have some fun, silly," said Rosie.
"We're help Kabuki sweep Lemon off her feet, tee hee," said Bunnie with a giggle, "I just love playing match maker."
"Who doesn't, me-Wow?" Tabby added as the three peppy snickered to each other. Roll just nodded, but she was worried just what they would make Kabuki do.
Once breakfast was finished and Roll and Lemon had left for their sister-sister hang out, the six friends headed straight for Kabuki's house. The white cat was just doing some meditating on a lemon patterned zen pillow (Lemon had given it to him on his birthday that year) when he heard a knock on the door.
"Now I wonder who that could be, meooo-OH," he said to himself as he got up to answer. He was surprised to see the six girls just smiling at him.
"Hi Kabuki," said the six girls. Kabuki just looked at their toothy smiles before he huffed in irritation.
"Roll-chan, you failed me!" he yelled angrily.
"No she didn't, tootie," Margie said firmly, "All she asked was what Coco, Tabby, and Kiki thought about you. They answered by saying that they already knew you have a crush on Lemon."
"Did you really think you could hide it from us, kitty cat," said Kiki, "We've known for a long time."
"It's pretty ridiculous that you even asked Roll to keep it a secret, doyoing," said Coco, "but the point is this. She didn't tell us. Your reaction pretty much confirmed that what we're saying is true." Kabuki lowered his defenses but was still rather upset. Not at Roll or at the girls per se, but rather at himself. He felt embarrassed and for a cranky villager, any type of vulnerability was a sign of weakness.
"Just leave me alone! Meooo-OH!" He bellowed and went to shut the door, but Bunnie blocked him.
"Kabuki listen to me, tee hee," Bunnie replied, "I...I know what it's like to have a crush on someone and be afraid of speak up. The fear of rejection isn't something to be ashamed of. You're not the only one who feels that way. Let us help you Kabuki. Master Yumi wouldn't want you keeping to yourself with your problems. She'd expect you get help." That last part Bunnie made up but Kabuki seemed to believe her as he opened the door and let the six girls inside.
"Alright, if you girls claim to be experts about love, then tell me what I need to do," said Kabuki. There was some deep pondering by the entire group before Bunnie got an idea.
"The thing is Kabuki, nobody likes a guy who is, in my words, an easy catch, tee hee," said Bunnie, "You gotta show that you are worth Lemon's time."
"Okay," said Kabuki slowly, "What do I need to do, meooo-OH?"
"Well first off you seriously need a change of clothes, tee hee," said Bunnie as she looked at his attire with a purely unimpressed expression on her face.
"What's wrong with my misty tee?" he asked indignantly.
"It doesn't give you the ideal look that ladies want, tee hee," said Bunnie, "Cuteness can only take you so far. You gotta look cool as well as cute if you get my meaning." Kabuki just looked at his shirt and just sighed.
"Fine," said Kabuki, "but FYI, the red stripes are NOT washable! Those are natural, meooo-OH!" Bunnie just looked at his face and shrugged with a bored look on her face.
"Well work around it, tee hee," said Bunnie, "Now come on! We've got shopping to do!" Before Kabuki could answer, Bunnie pulled him by the arm and dragged him towards Lemon's main street. The other girls just looked at them disappear and rolled their eyes at her.
"Does she really think that is going to work, doyoing?" Coco asked.
"I know right?" Margie added, "You gotta be romantic, tootie!"
"I agree, kitty cat," said Kiki.
"Yeah right!" said Tabby, "He's gotta be manly, me-Wow!"
"Oh yeah, silly!" Rosie added.
"You're crazy!" Kiki retorted.
"No you're crazy!" Rosie shot back.
"You're both crazy!" Coco added, "I know what men like!"
"Sez you!"
"Oh yeah!"
"YEAH!"
As the rest of them argued, Bunnie was busy dressing Kabuki up for his chance to woo Lemon. Kabuki didn't exactly feel comfortable in his new get up, but he really wanted to impress Lemon so he was going to give Bunnie suggestion a try. After a few practicing sessions on how to talk, which in Bunnie's view he barely passed, she had him lean against a palm tree as Lemon and Roll were slowly approaching. They had decided to do some fishing by the beach and Roll figured Lemon would feel more comfortable being barefoot on the sand and letting the waves washing over their feet. At least that had been the plan until Lemon had just stubbed her toe against a giant clam shell.
"Are you sure your toes are okay?" Roll asked since Lemon was limping a bit. Lemon just smiled as she patted her pockets.
"I'll be okay," Lemon replied, "It was my fault. I wanted to show how tough I was by kicking that shell out of the way. Neither of us knew it was a giant clam shell. I just wanted to show that a few bruised toes weren't going to ruin my day."
"But you do know," said Roll, "Trust me, the more you do it. The stronger you feet become and eventually you'll be bumping and hurting them less."
"I don't mind the bruises, scrapes and cuts," Lemon answered, "I'm just not as comfortable walking barefoot around here. I'm not as confident that my feet are pretty." Roll chuckled.
"Oh Lemon, I'm not really that..."
"What's up ladies?" Kabuki asked, trying to use a lower tone of his voice to speak. Lemon and Roll slowly turned their heads to see the white cat and were rather stunned at his appearance. Kabuki was donning a leather black vest that was opened with a white undershirt that was barely noticeable due to his fur. He also had some pilot shades on with a plain black cap. His pose was familiar. At least to Roll since she remembered some of the Uchi gang members making that pose.
"Kabuki is that you?" Lemon asked. Kabuki lowered his shades slightly and made eye contact with her. The stare he gave made Lemon feel rather uncomfortable. The same could be said for Roll as well, who was rather stunned at the way he was smirking at her big sister.
"What's up?" he asked in a smooth tone as he gave her a wink and lifted his shade back over his eyes. Lemon blinked at his question as well as his flirty wink.
"Umm...I'm...doing...okay...I guess," said Lemon rather uneasily.
"Cool," said Kabuki with a very cold and apathetic tone. Lemon just looked at Roll, who just shrugged her shoulders and was unsure of what to think about Kabuki at the moment.
"Kabuki?" Lemon asked slowly.
"What's up?" he said again.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Kabuki just looked at her behind his shades. He was well aware of the fact that Lemon looked a little disturbed but he was told that this would help him win Lemon's interest for dating so he decided to keep on with his new persona.
"Just keeping it real, chilling, that sort of thing, meooo-OH," said Kabuki bluntly, waiting to see if Lemon would keep talking. Lemon did smile, getting his hopes up.
"Oh...okay...if you say so," said Lemon, "See you!" With that Lemon walked away rather quickly with Roll right behind her. Roll couldn't help but give Kabuki a glare before they were out of sight. Kabuki just watched them leave before a long sigh left his mouth. He was clearly disappointed and upset. Bunnie peeked out of her own palm tree. She had seen everything.
"Well you blew it, tee hee," said Bunnie out of the blue. Bunnie immediately bit her tongue when she saw Kabuki steaming at her. He was furious that her advice didn't work. Bunnie just chuckled sheepishly before Kabuki threw the jacket at her face, changed back into his misty tee, and dumped the glasses into the sand before stomping away. He didn't walk too much further before he noticed Rosie and Tabby approach him.
"I take it that Bunnie's "Play it Cool" approach didn't work out too well, me-Wow?" Tabby asked out of the blue.
"Gee...Ya think!?" Kabuki snapped angrily as he kept moving forward before Rosie cut him off and stopped him.
"The trouble with her idea, silly," Rosie explained, "was that she said that you needed to play it cool, but you can't just stand there looking mysterious all the time. It might entice interest but if you just stand there and acting all apathetic there is no way a girl is going to take any long term interest in you!"
"Yeah...I kind of figured that out, doctor," Kabuki retorted sarcastically, "anything else I probably learned that you wanna say, meooo-OH?" Rosie looked indignant at his attitude before Kabuki sighed in defeat.
"Sorry," said Kabuki, "I just feel really stupid right now, meooo-OH!"
"Well, it is one thing to be cool," said Rosie, "but you gotta show Lemon why you be considered cool, silly."
"You gotta show the ladies your manliness, me-Wow," said Tabby, "give girls a reason to give you the light of day. I mean you did train in kung fu correct?"
"Yes I did," said Kabuki, "So...you girls say that Lemon will find me cool enough to date if I show off some of my kung fu moves to her, meooo-OH?"
"Yeah," said Rosie, "and don't be modest about it either, silly!"
"Yeah, push your limits and show her just how tough and manly you can be, me-Wow," Tabby added, "Girls like guys who can show off their muscles and their strength."
"I see, meooo-OH!" said Kabuki and noticed their anime style smiles, "We're going shopping for an outfit again aren't we?" Rosie and Tabby giggled to each other before each grabbing one of his arms and pulling him towards main street once more.
An hour later, Lemon and Roll were busy gathering perfect peaches. Roll had offered to take Lemon back to her town so she could sell them off in order to make a handful of bells. Lemon was guaranteed a good profit since she had over 60 perfect peach trees and Roll got word from Whitney that their Re-tail branch was paying double for the delicious fruits.
"I really appreciate you helping me collect all these fruits Roll," said Lemon as she set down another basket of fruit into her pockets. Roll was sitting on the branch of one tree.
"Heads up!" she called out as she shook the limb to let another batch of peaches fall from the tree to the ground. Lemon reached out her basket to try and catch them only for three peaches to clock her on the head.
"Oh Lemon I'm so sorry," said Roll as she climbed back down quickly to make sure her new sister was okay. Lemon just rubbed the back of her head a bit before she gave the worried blonde girl a warm smile.
"I'm okay," said Lemon, "it's not like I have to worry about my head rolling off and all my guts spilling into the ground." Roll made a face before she laughed and Lemon laughed as well until they saw that while they had been chatting someone had set up a small collection of bricks that had various amounts of wood planks sitting on them.
"MEOOO-OH!" shouted a voice as they leaped from the top of a tree and landed before the two girls. Kabuki had changed into a pair of dragon leggings with a tiger tank. He began to flux before the girls.
"UGH! UGH! MEOOO-OH!" said Kabuki in a macho tone as he posed, "Now I show off my manliness! MEOOO-OH!" Lemon and Roll just looked at him with enlarged eyes, glanced at each other and then at Kabuki. Who was just doing a few punches and kicks as he made his way towards the set of bricks with one wooden plank. He gave a loud grunt and chopped the first plank in half. Lemon and Roll smiled as he proceeded to repeat this, but this time with two wooden planks and then three. Rosie and Tabby appeared next each holding three planks in their hands. Kabuki then successfully jump kicked the boards being held by both girls.
"Wow!" said Lemon and Roll as they applauded Kabuki. He then motioned for them to get five planks each and hold them above their heads. Rosie and Tabby weren't sure of what he was about to do but then surprised them as well as Lemon and Roll with a handstand split kick, smashing them in half.
"MEOOO-OH!" Kabuki cried out and then shouted in his macho tone, "Now...for grand finale! MEOOO-OH!"
"Oh no!" Tabby and Rosie groaned. They had warned Kabuki not to do the last move, but Kabuki was determined to complete the last move to show off his manliness, which was to break ten planks of wood stacked on the final set of bricks. Lemon and Roll stopped smiling when they saw the stack and looked at each other worried as Kabuki acted like he was trying to charge up his inner chi, which is just another name for internal energy.
"Hi-yah-hoi!" Kabuki chanted as he fake chopped with his left.
"Hi-yah-hoi!" Kabuki repeated fake chopping with his right. Then he spread out his arms.
"YAH-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kabuki made everyone cringe when he slammed his head full force into the planks of wood, successfully breaking them all in half.
"MEOOO-OH!" Kabuki shouted loudly, trying to make it seem like he was shouting in victory and not because his head was in serious pain. He then front flipped towards Lemon and Roll, nearly colliding into them since his coordination was off a bit as he began to show off his nun chuck skills. Lemon and Roll just looked at him with concern before Kabuki then clocked himself in the center of his with one nun chuck and topped onto the ground.
"MEOOO-ohhhhhhhhhhhhh!" He groaned. Lemon and Roll just at each other.
"I...think I may have hit my head a bit too hard..." said Lemon as she put a hand over her forehead and walked away.
"I think we've been in the sun too long..." Roll added in agreement and held her own head as they both walked out of the perfect peach orchard. Tabby and Rosie helped Kabuki to his feet. He still looked quite dazed as Tabby and Rosie looked at him in disappointment.
"You had to go for the final move didn't you, silly?" Rosie asked with her hands on her hips. Kabuki just looked at her with deluded eyes and his body was teetering dangerously.
"I JUST WANT TO BE MARRIED!" he cried out in a dorky macho tone before falling face first to the ground and passed out for real. Tabby just shook her head while Rosie facepalmed herself. Their plan now in ruins and Kabuki was nowhere close to wooing Lemon...and he clearly needed some medical attention. It didn't take a genius to see that rather large purple bruise that had formed on the center of his head.
A couple of hours later, Kabuki let out a long groan as he held a hand over his head. He felt the bandage that was clearly wrapped it now as he looked around and found that he wasn't in his own home.
"They couldn't just take me home and let me be," he muttered until he realized that he was wasn't at Tabby's house like he had originally thought. He found a familiar black kitty cat just busy working at her sink when he sat up as his vision had finally cleared.
"Meooo-oh?" he groaned as Kiki turned around and rushed towards him.
"Oh thank goodness, your alright, kitty cat," she replied, "I was very worried about you! Especially with the size of that bruise that was on your head.
"Ooooh!" Kabuki groaned as he held his head since it was beginning to hurt. Mostly because he now remembered what had happened.
"Easy there Kabuki," said Kiki gently, "I've got some medicine that will cure that right up. I already applied some to your bruise so it should be healed by the end of the day. I also tied the bandage karate style so no one asks you too much about it." Kabuki just looked at her sadly and nodded contently.
"Thanks..." he groaned as Margie handed him some fresh fruit to eat.
"This should also make you feel better, tootie," said Margie. Kabuki nodded as he grabbed the peach and took a huge bite. Despite the headache, he was rather hungry as Kiki appeared and handed him the medicine to take. The minute he took it, the headache he had cleared up for the most part.
"Much better, meooo-OH," said Kabuki as he finished his peach.
"Good to hear, kitty cat," said Kiki.
"Now tell us," Margie asked, getting right to the point, "Why on earth were you breaking planks of wood with your head?" Kabuki groaned again, but this time out of embarrassment.
"I was trying to impress Lemon," he explained slowly, "With...my manliness?"
"Your manliness?" said Margie and then snorted, "That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard, tootie!"
"Don't remind me," said Kabuki, "I've got the lump to prove it, meooo-OH!"
"Woman these days aren't into men who act manly," said Kiki, "All that proves to a girl is that such men are all brawn and no brains, kitty cat."
"I said I feel stupid about it so don't rub it in, meooo-oh!" Kabuki retorted angrily.
"Alright, I can see that, kitty cat," said Kiki, "now settle down Kabuki. We wanna help!" Kabuki just snorted to himself.
"I don't think I want any more help," said Kabuki.
"Trust me Kabuki," said Margie, "What we have in mind won't cause you any more head injuries. We promise." Kabuki was doubtful but their warm smiles made him concede. Since Kiki and Margie were more mature. Maybe they would have more legit advice. It wasn't long before he was led towards Kiki's ranch sofa as she and Margie sat on the edges with Kabuki in the middle.
"If you want to woo a girl," said Margie, "You need to learn how to be charming and romantic, tootie."
"Precisely, kitty cat," Kiki nodded in agreement, "nothing is more romantic to a girl than a guy who romantically serenades the girl he loves."
"Really?" said Kabuki with much doubt in his voice.
"Just watch this movie with us, tootie," said Margie as she pop in a dvd into the grey box underneath it, "It will give you a good example of how to be romantic!"
"And it's one of our favorite movies!" said Kiki. Kabuki groaned. If there was one type of movie that he hated to sit through more than anything, it was chick flicks. He waited dreadfully for the movie to begin and was surprised to see that it was one of those classic romance movies of the older days. So it was not as painful to sit through. He didn't have to wait long before the male actor began to speak to the female.
"Oh my darling, how I love you so!" the male actor said to a female actor from a bedroom window above him, "you're eye shine brightly like the moonlight! Your beauty could capture the heart and soul of many men...and it has certainly captured mine. I am indebted to you, for you are my one true love..." His serenade continued and he noticed that Margie and Kiki were shedding happy tears, making it clear that they were deeply touched and finding the whole scenario very romantic. Kabuki couldn't help but smile a little.
"I would give anything to make Lemon smile like that," he thought, "I wonder if I could possibly serenade her..." He paid more attention to the movie after that, taking mental notes on what he needed to do. This time he went shopping on his own for an outfit.
By now, the sun was setting as Lemon and Roll arrived back at the house. Lemon was clearly exhausted from the perfect peach exchange as well her feet were now pretty soiled and sore from walking barefoot all day. Roll took notice as she took a seat next to her on one of the chasse sofas.
"Lemon?"
"Yes, little Roll?" she asked tiredly.
"I want you to know that I really appreciate you going barefoot all day," said Roll, "I know your feet weren't used to it but I'm glad you did it for me." Lemon smiled.
"I was glad to do it," said Lemon, "even if it meant me scratching up and deforming my feet so they look like claws of a monster ready to eat your brains." Roll laughed.
"You're feet are just fine," said Roll, "and you only scratched your foot once. The medicine already healed the open wound. You're feet are prettier than mine!"
"Are you serious?" said Lemon as she sat up, "Roll I still have a huge burn on my left foot from when I dropped that frying rice pan on it during lunch!"
"No you don't," said Roll as she lifted Lemon's left foot, "See? It already healed thanks to the medicine packs." Lemon just chuckled, giving her toes a slow wiggle. She was already promising herself to pay back Roll for all the medicine packs she had used on her feet that day when she heard the sound of something "plinking".
"What's that?" Lemon asked curiously as she heard the "plinking" sound again.
"I heard it too," said Roll as she tucked a leg in while sitting sideways on the sofa. She listened quietly and heard the "plink" again.
"It sounds like its coming from upstairs," said Roll as she and Lemon quickly rushed upstairs. As they reached her bedroom, they heard the "plink" again and saw a small stone tap the window towards Lemon's side of the bedroom. Lemon opened the window to see that it was Kabuki just outside, wearing a cavalier's hat and shirt.
"Good evening my darling Lemon," he said in a majestic tone. Roll couldn't help but groan as she covered her face with her left hand.
"Not this train wreck again," she muttered as Lemon shushed her.
"My darling Lemon," said Kabuki, "Oh how beautiful you are to my eyes! You are so sweet as you are sour!" Lemon blinked in shock as Roll slid down the wall, feeling embarassed for him.
"Sour!?"
"I mean," Kabuki stuttered, "Your skin is like the fur of a cat..."
"What?!" Lemon exclaimed, rather offended.
"I...I mean that it is so soft..." Kabuki tried to continued, realizing that he was blowing it big time, "every time my finger strokes it..."
"Kabuki, since when have you ever touched my hair?" she asked, rather sternly. Kabuki just looked nervous and tried to do damage control.
"Never, my darling!" he exclaimed, "but I'm sure that it very soft. Its...looks very soft...meooo-OH!" Kabuki wanted so badly to toss himself over a cliff at this point. He couldn't think of anything else to say. Apparently he should have taken more than just ten minutes rehearsing his words. Lemon just looked at him rather funny.
"Kabuki, you've been acting weird all day today," said Lemon, "Are you sure you're feeling alright?" Kabuki just sighed in defeat.
"I'm fine, meooo-OH," said Kabuki quietly, feeling rather defeated. Lemon just smiled and closed her window.
"I'm sorry," said Lemon, "I don't know what has gotten into him today." Roll just nodded, but deep down she knew what he was up to but didn't want to say anything. Yet she did peek out the window and noticed a very sad Kabuki walk away dragging his cavalier hat along the cobblestone path. She also noticed that Lemon looked rather uncomfortable too all of a sudden.
"Are you okay Lemon?" she asked. Lemon blinked a few times and smiled.
"Yeah, I'm okay," Lemon said simply. Roll looked concerned for a moment before just smiling back. She figured if there was something else bothering Lemon that her big sister would tell her later.
"Okay then," said Roll, "Hey, why don't we eat at one of the restaurants on main street so you don't have to cook? I think some time away from here might help you relax too."
"Well...okay," said Lemon, "but you mind if put on some shoes. I have these cute lemon flip flops I wanted to show you." Roll giggled.
"As long as you don't mind if I stay barefoot," said Roll. Lemon giggled back as they walked hand in hand out of the house. Once Lemon had slipped on her own sandals, they left for main street to eat. Along the way, they bumped into Coco.
"Hey Coco, hugs and pokes," said Lemon as she tapped the rabbit's cheek with her lemon wand. The rabbit chuckled since the tap tickled a little.
"Hi there Lemon," said Coco, "Where are you guys off to, doyoing?"
"We're just going to eat somewhere for dinner," said Roll.
"Yeah," said Lemon, "it's been a rather long and stressful day."
"Stressful?" said Coco surprised.
"I said too much again," said Lemon quietly, not wanting to say more, but Coco wasn't going to let Lemon go that easily.
"Come on Lemon," said Coco, "we're best friends after all. You can tell me what's bothering you." Lemon just sighed as she looked at her feet.
"Kabuki has been acting really weird lately," Lemon answered, "I don't know what's gotten into him." Coco just looked blankly at her. She was well aware of the fact that Kiki, Tabby, and her new friends were supposed to be helping Kabuki woo Lemon for a date. She was also very irritated that their attempts to help the cat had apparently upset Lemon to some extent.
"Idiots..." Coco muttered under her breath.
"Huh?" Lemon asked since she heard Coco mumble but not what she said.
"Oh nothing, doyoing," said Coco, "I'll take care of this Lemon. You and Roll just go have a nice dinner together okay." Lemon smiled and gave her a big hug.
"Oh thank you Coco!" said Lemon in her peppy nature, "I love you so much!"
"I love you too, Lemon," Coco replied as they pulled apart. Lemon and Roll made their way towards main street as Coco headed straight for Kabuki's abode. She was surprised to see him wearing his cavalier outfit and just sitting against the fence of his house looking very glum.
"What happened to you?" Coco asked, wanting to hear his side of the story. Kabuki just looked at her sadly before sighing to himself.
"I've been trying to woo Lemon," said Kabuki, "First by trying to be cool, then my trying to show my manliness, and then by trying to serenade her. All I've done was creep her out and made myself look like a complete fool, meooo-OH!" Coco just looked at her sympathetically.
"You know Kabuki there is one thing that you've forgotten about Lemon, doyoing," she said as a matter of fact.
"What might that be, meooo-OH?" Kabuki asked her curiously.
"For starters, Lemon is not your ordinary girl," said Coco, "You couldn't have expected her to fall for you by using traditional, not to mention stupid and old fashion, ways of wooing girls, doyoing." Kabuki groaned and dipped his hat to hide his face. Coco couldn't resist feeling sorry for him.
"Don't give up Kabuki," said Coco as she helped the cat to his feet, "I have an idea that could help you."
"I hope it's better than the last three ideas, meooo-OH," said Kabuki and Coco gave him a smile.
"Of course," said Coco, "Come with me, doyoing."
"We aren't going to go shopping again are we, meooo-OH?" he asked.
"Nope," said Coco, "Let's just get into your house and I'll explain my idea okay?" Kabuki just started for a moment before he allowed Coco inside of his house. He offered her a seat before he sat down as well on a zen cushion to hear what Coco had to say.
"You know Kabuki," said Coco, "One of things that Lemon loves about you is not just the fact that you are cute, but also because of your name, doyoing."
"My...name?" he asked puzzled.
"Of course," Coco answered, "don't you remember what your name means?" Kabuki looked puzzled for a moment before he suddenly realized what Coco was talking about.
"Oh that is true," said Kabuki, "And it's the reason I was born with all these patterned stripes on my face too, meooo-OH!"
"I figured," said Coco, "You once told me a few years ago that you actually knew how to perform kabuki."
"That is true," said Kabuki in deep thought and then realized what Coco was saying, "Wait a minute here, meooo-OH! I...I haven't performed the kabuki arts in years! And to top it all off, what exactly am I supposed to perform if I do a kabuki?"
"What are kabuki plays most commonly about, doyoing?" she asked.
"They are...about...expressions of love...through dancing and singing," said Kabuki nervously, "Do...do you really think..."
"There is no harm in trying," said Coco, "I think Lemon might be rather impressed if you were to express your feelings to her through a kabuki dance." Kabuki just pondered a bit before he just nodded.
"Alright," said Kabuki, "at least this will feel more closer to home. I can just do what I'm good as well as what feels more natural to me, meooo-OH."
"Exactly, doyoing," said Coco with a smile. Kabuki then headed downstairs into his basement where he had a chest containing various items that were used for the art of kabuki, including additional makeup, kimonos, yukatas, and even a collection of paper fans. Once he found what he was gonna wear, Coco helped him come up with a routine to perform.
The sun had set outside of main street so the stars were beginning to populate the dark blue skies as Lemon and Roll had finished eating and Lemon was feeling much better and less concerned about Kabuki.
"That was a yummy dinner," said Roll, patting her stomach.
"Yes it was," said Lemon, "I didn't realize just how hungry I was until I saw all that food! Good thing I know my eating limits. I'd hate to explode and my guts and blood spill all over the town...I said too much again." Roll giggled.
"Don't worry about it," said Roll, "Now let's get back to the house. Didn't you say that new magi girl anime had a new episode tonight or something?" Lemon's eyes widened in surprise.
"You're right Roll!" said Lemon, "We better get home so we can watch it!" Roll nodded in agreement as they made their way back to the town. They had just arrived at the train station when they noticed a rather large crowd gathered just south of the station. Lemon and Roll cautiously approached the crowd where they bumped into Coco.
"Hey there, doyoing, you're just in time!" said Coco excitedly.
"What do you mean Coco-chan?" Lemon asked curiously.
"Kabuki is doing some sort of ancient dance of some sort, silly," said Rosie, "and it's pretty good by the looks of it."
"It's called a kabuki dance," said Margie, "I've yet to actually see a real performance of it, tootie. But I never thought that Kabuki would know how to do kabuki."
"He is?" said Lemon excitedly as she scooted over the front and saw that Kabuki was dressed in a plain yellow yukata, black kimono sandals, a geisha wig, and was holding a pair of lemon yellow colored fans as he began to dance about. He had a CD player close by that was playing KK Jongara at the moment as he showed off his dancing abilities. He was about halfway done with his dance routine when he noticed that Lemon was now upfront and approached her as he continued his routine. Lemon couldn't help but smile as he gave her a wink and continued to do his kabuki dance for her. He finished the routine with a dramatic pose. Lemon and the other gave him applause before he approached Lemon fairy.
"Soshite ima," Kabuki said in Japanese with a bold tone, "Watashi wa watashi ga daisukina on'nanoko ni utaimasu!" Lemon suddenly felt her face blush and she began to feel uncomfortable.
"What did he say?" Roll asked curiously.
"He...he said he's gonna sing to me..." said Lemon, not wanting to add the fact he said he was in love with her. Kabuki then cleared his throat and began to sing in a very rich and powerful tone. While his song was in Japanese, the emotion and the passion was clearly there in his tone and could be felt by the crowd as they listened to him. Everyone except for Lemon, who looked rather flustered as her cheeks were deep red. Kabuki was just expressing his feelings to her in Japanese through the use of kabuki style singing. Suddenly it made sense to her why he started dancing for her specifically. He was doing a kabuki love dance. Suddenly everything he was doing made sense to her. It wasn't much longer before he finished his solo song and everyone cheered. He gave her a warm smile.
"That was all for you, meooo-OH," he said gently, holding one fan to his face and extending the other so she could hold his hand. Lemon just looked at him. Suddenly her eyes watered and soon she took off crying. Kabuki just watched her leave as he lowered his arm in sadness. The rest of the villagers just watched as Kabuki dropped his fans to the ground. No one was too sure of what to do. But Roll was the first to break the silence.
"Kabuki?" Roll asked. The white cat just turned to face her and everyone's could feel a tug on their hearts at what they saw.
Kabuki was crying. It was a pretty rare sight too. Ever since Kabuki had moved to Flower Town. He had never cried about anything. At least no one had ever seen him cry in public. He noticed their sad faces and snarled.
"Hey, I have feelings too you know," said Kabuki, voice cracking, "Just cause I look fierce...don't mean I don't have feelings you know! Hear that everyone?! I HAVE FEELINGS! MEOOO-oooooh-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho..." Kabuki then just broke down. Roll wasted no time pulling him into a hug.
"I'm a pathetic fool...doomed to be all alone..." he sobbed in a tone so broken that Roll barely understood him.
"No you're not," said Roll, "I've noticed that you've had a bad day Kabuki. So don't feel like you're all alone. Your town loves you. And so do my friends." That was when Coco, Kiki, Margie, Rosie, Bunnie, and Tabby made their way towards the sobbing cat and just group hugged him as he continued to cry. Soon the rest of the town followed, letting Kabuki know that they cared.
From afar, Lemon was in her bedroom sobbing as she buried her face into her pillow. She could hear Kabuki shouting and crying from her bedroom window. She was sure what to think about his dance or his failed efforts to woo her. All she knew was that she had hurt her best friend and not even a few hard lemon pokes to herself were gonna help her feel better.
There was a reference to the mini-series called Monster Hunter Diaries Living to the Edge G. Kudos if you found that!
The magic girl anime that Roll was referring to is known as Precure. It happens to be one of the Lemon Fairy's favorite Animes.
I use a translator for the foreign language and have it typed in English characters so if it's not precisely accurate or grammatically correct. I apologize for that.
And NO bashing Lemon! She's no jerk. If you wanna find out why she ran off on Kabuki.
Stay tuned!