((This chapter has been fixed so that you can read it easier.))
Kathrine sat lazily at her desk, the instructor's monotone voice was easy to ignore and one could fall asleep without him noticing. Her eyelids drooped as she thought about the events of the day. It was the same as every other day; get up, go to school, get lectured, and get heaps of homework that her Japanese transfer friend, Nanami, managed to get done in class. She absently doodled little cats on the margins of her paper.
…Five minutes to go…
Kathrine was looking forward to a three-day weekend.
…Four…
The instructor's continuous drone stopped. "On Tuesday we will be welcoming a new student to our school."
Kat's head shot up at the mention. I wonder who it'll be? She thought.
"His name is Mabataki Kadoshima. He's transferring from Japan, like Nanami. He's not too good at English, so you'll have to help him and be kind if he says something funny." He finished.
Mabataki? Like twinkling stars?
The bell rang at that moment, dismissing the class.
"Hey Nanami, wait up!" She yelled at the sixteen-year-old upperclassman. The Asian girl stopped and waited for her friend to catch up.
"You always take so long to get your things together. It's surprising you don't miss the bus." Nanami said, only half joking.
"Sorry, if we both missed the bus because of my lethargy, my parents wouldn't feel sympathy and we'd have to walk home." They laughed nervously and hurried to the bus.
They found a seat across from Katie, one of Kathrine's friends that was a year younger. She was reading Black Beauty. Katie was their official 'Anime Provider'.
"Konnichiwa Katie-san!" Nanami practically yelled in Katie's ear, startling the poor girl. Nanami was grinning from ear to ear. They were staying at her Uncle's traditional Japanese house for the three-day weekend. It was like a field day for the small group of friends.
"H-hello, Nanami." Katie was still a bit shaken up.
"So, are you excited?" Kathrine prodded.
"Heck yeah!" Was Katie's reply.
"Do you have the DVDs?" Nanami asked quickly.
Instead of answering, Katie opened her bag, revealing at least twenty anime DVDs.
"Kat, you're drooling." Nanami scolded. Kathrine blushed, sending Katie and Nanami into a laughing fit.
The bus screeched to a halt.
"Yatta! We've arrived!" The over-excited Nanami announced as they piled out of the crowded school bus. Kathrine and Katie's smiles faded.
"Where…is the house?" They asked in unison. They hadn't been paying attention to the scenery on their way there, and now all they saw was a shabby gravel road and trees. Lots and lots of trees.
Nanami's smile never faded. "It's this way." She led the way into the forest. The other two girls hurried to keep up, not wanting to get lost in a place like this.
A shriek shattered the silence. Kathrine and Nanami stopped dead in their tracks and turned to look at Katie, to whom the scream belonged.
"A snake!" The two momentarily 'sane' ones blinked. "I saw a snake! It was HUGE!" She put emphasis into the word 'huge'
"Huh?" Nanami looked down at the forest floor. There, a large constrictor of some sort was making its way across the path in front of Kathrine. "Kat! Look out for that snake!" Katie warned. Kathrine heard nothing but a pile of gibberish.
"Dammit! Kat, it's headed straight for you!" Nanami screeched. Kathrine looked down dumbly to see a rather large snake slithering over her feet. She blinked, not knowing whether to panic, or to pick up the limb-less reptile.
Kathrine watched the creature slither across her foot, and picked it up, draping it across her shoulders like a (ahem) boa.
"I think it likes me!" The python was just sitting there; calm and content.
"I think you're crazy." Nanami chuckled.
Nanami took Katie's feet and Kathrine grabbed her arms and they walked on until the most beautiful thing Kat had seen in her life appeared through the trees. It was a traditional Japanese palace, not a house. It had paper walls, sliding doors, a wooden deck, and a blue-shingled roof.
"Woah…" Katie said dreamily.
"Kat, don't you start drooling again." Nanami snickered. "And you better get rid of that snake of yours. Uncle's not too fond of them."
Kathrine pouted and set the snake on the forest floor, allowing it to slither away. "So, ready to go in?" Nanami asked in a teasing tone. The two girls nodded their heads vigorously and they walked up to the wooden porch.
Nanami tapped lightly on the paper door. "Ojisan, tadaima." She called quietly and slid the door open.
"Itoko Nanami-san!" A boy about ten rushed at his cousin and clung tightly.
"Itoko Taki-kun! Dochirahe?" Nanami asked the little boy.
"Yukai." The boy grinned happily.
"We're going to need subtitles for this place." Katie said after a few seconds.
"This is my cousin, Kadoshima Mabataki. He's twelve." Nanami explained. She turned back to her cousin. "Taki-kun, will you say hello to our guests?"
The boy scrunched up his face like he was struggling and slowly sounded out the words. "H-herro Kat-san. Herro Katy-san." He said with some difficulty.
Kathrine thought for a minute. "Mabataki? Isn't he transferring to our school next week?" She asked Nanami.
"Hai, I'm going to help him with his English. She answered simply.
"What's going on in here?" A man who appeared to be in his late twenties entered the room. He was wearing a blue bathrobe, and had dark violet eyes. It was pretty obvious that he had just gotten out of the shower because his short, dark brown hair was wet and messy.
"Nanami? You're home already? I thought it would be at least another hour." He said, then reached for his glasses on a nearby table.
"No, Ojisan. I specifically said three-thirty!" Nanami scolded her uncle, which was a pretty funny sight in Kathrine and Katie's opinion.
"Huh? Hmm…I guess I heard wrong." He turned his attention to the two girls. "Well hello. When did you get here?" He said with a cheery, yet clueless grin.
"Ojisan! They got here when I did!" Nanami said.
"Ah! So you two must be Kathrine and…um…uh…" His grin dissolved as he frantically tried to remember both of their names.
"Katherine. We're both named Katherine." Katie finished for him. A blank look appeared on his face.
"…But wouldn't that get confusing?" He was completely dumbfounded.
"Yes, but that's why I'm called Katie." His cheery smile reappeared.
"And I'm Kadoshima Isamashii!" As he left the room, he said one more thing: "If you need anything, just ask! Oh, and please don't wreck the house!"
This left the three totally confused. Along with the fact that Mabataki had somehow left during the conversation without being noticed.