"I thought I had it under control!" Kyou stared at Ame.
"Huh?"
" I used to sleepwalk at- when I was younger." She sighed, trying not to think about it. "I wonder why I started again. I haven't sleepwalked in years." Kyou cleared his throat.
"Actually, um, the last time I was at your house, you sleepwalked then too." She turned to him.
"Was I saying anything?" He shifted around uncomfortably.
"Well, yeah. The first time you were looking for Chiisa." He paused, as if gathering courage. "And the second time. the second time you didn't want to go." She stared at him, not understanding. "You were saying you didn't want to go. You'd be good, but you didn't want to be sent away."
"Oh. When I first went there, I would walk to the front door and yell. No one spoke Japanese, so I have no idea what I yelled." She stared at the sky, stubbornly refusing to look around. "Everyone avoided me for ages, until I stopped. I think I gave up trying to go home."
She went to the edge of the roof and swung her legs over. "What are you doing?!" Kyou yelled, grabbing her and pulling her back. She pulled out of his grip.
"If you hadn't noticed, we're above the veranda on my room. I'm going to talk to Shi-kun and thought this way'd be quicker." She frowned at him.
"Oh, sorry. What are you going to talk to him about?"
"None of your business." She snapped. Her face softened. "Sorry, don't worry about it, it's just something I organised to see him about. Listen, can you not tell anyone about the sleepwalking thing?" He nodded "Thanks." She leapt down onto the veranda and went into the house, leaving Kyou to look at the sky.
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"Hey Shigure-kun!" Ame walked into his office. He stopped typing on the computer on his desk, and looked up. "You actually work? I thought you just played computer games." He smiled knowingly at her.
"I do. After writing my literature, of course." He motioned for her to sit down. "Now, why did you want to talk to me Ame-chan?" She shifted around slightly.
"Well, I was wondering if you knew where my Mum was?" She said nervously. He smiled broadly and asked the question she knew was coming.
"Why not ask Ha-san? He'd have more of an idea where she is than me." She shook her head forcefully. "He told me when I first came here that she lived with someone else and they didn't know where she was. I thought you might be able to help me, because I have no idea, and I heard you kept in touch for a while." He sadly smiled at her. "Could you?" She asked hopefully. "Please?" He shook his head sadly.
"Sorry, but if Ha-san doesn't know, then I'm no help. I stopped writing when she moved a second time." Ame stormed out calling out behind her that she was going for a walk. He watched her go and went back to his work.
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"Stupid.annoying.why." Ame grumbled. "Argh!" She kicked a tree in frustration. A few seconds later she rubbed her now throbbing toes. "Ow." She slid to the base of the tree. She leant against the trunk with her head in her hands. Feeling a tickle on them, Ame opened her fingers and looked to see who (or what) it was.
'Hello. My name is Kitahara, are you alright?' A wild rabbit looked up at Ame, and she swore it looked concerned.
"Um, hi? I'm Ame. I guess I'm ok." Ame replied cautiously. Kitahara hopped up and sat on her lap. "Do you live around here Kitahara-san?" The rabbit started cleaning his paws.
'Yeah, my whole family live around these parts. Just call me Kita, everyone does. I don't normally come this close to the house, there's always a lot of noise and a big risk of being landed on by the redhead that smells of cat.' Ame laughed at Kita's description of Kyou being beaten by Yuki.
"Do you have a big family?" Ame asked. Kita looked up from his cleaning and nodded.
'Yeah, it's huge! D'you want to meet them?' She nodded eagerly. Kita jumped up and hopped off. 'Follow me!' he called to Ame. She stood up and walked along, following glimpses of Kita's tail as he kept ahead of her. After a while, they came to a clearing. 'They'll be here soon. You'd better sit down, you're too tall.' Ame laughed.
"That's a new one!" She commented while sitting down. "I'm always told I'm too short." As soon as she sat, a rabbit hopped out of the bushes.
'Kitahara, where have you been?' Kita's ears drooped as he mumbled apologies and explanations. While Ame was watching Kita's mother scold him, a tiny rabbit peeked out from behind a nearby bush. Ame lay down on her stomach to be at the same height.
"Hello, I'm Ame." The rabbit hopped over and started snuffling over Ame's face.
'I'm Natsuko. You smell like us!' She exclaimed. Natsuko had a smiling face, and Ame liked her straight away. 'Kita-chan, is this a new friend of yours? I like her!' She interrupted Kita's lecture, and his mother hopped over.
'Another friend! She doesn't look like a rabbit, - I know she smells like one Nat-chan, I heard you! - but at least she seems friendly. You can all come out now!' All of a sudden, rabbits came out of every bush there was around the clearing. Kita introduced them all, but only a few got through the blur of names. '-This is Noka-chan, he's a little mischief maker- Natsuko you know, she's always happy- Kameyama's the oldest (and the biggest)- Hiromi-chan is the youngest, but Nat-chan isn't much older. She's always running around and bumping into things-' Rabbits climbed all over Ame. She was having a great time, when someone came crashing through the trees. All the rabbits ran away, leaving Ame all alone.
"Wait, come back!" She turned to see who it was. "What the hell do you want!?" Yuki stopped abruptly. He had heard her laughing just a second ago, he was surprised by the change in her mood. "Well!? Are you going to tell me, or just stand there and ruin my life some more!?" She knew he hadn't done anything wrong, but she yelled at him just the same.
"Honda-san asked me to find you. Lunch will be ready soon." Living with Kyou had accustomed him with people yelling at him, but this was different. "What's wrong?" He asked.
"You scared off my friends. You're the rat, can't you move quieter!?" There was movement out of the corner of her eye. Natsuko came out of a bush and went over to Yuki. "Nat-chan, what are you doing?" Yuki was as surprised as Ame with the rabbit going up to him.
'Can you tell him to sit down, all I can smell is his shoes, and personally, they stink.' Ame smiled and passed on the request, leaving out the part about the shoes. He knelt down so she could smell his face. She sneezed and turned to Ame. 'He smells like a mouse, like you smell like us. Mice make mistakes, just like we do at times. Come back and visit soon please, but go with him, he seems ok.' Ame nodded and stood up.
"Ok, what's for lunch?" She asked him. He stared at her, wondering what changed her mood again. "Well, I need to now if it's something like leeks, so I can tease Kyou about it." He smiled and the walked back to the house, watched by eyes in the surrounding bushes.
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"Huh?"
" I used to sleepwalk at- when I was younger." She sighed, trying not to think about it. "I wonder why I started again. I haven't sleepwalked in years." Kyou cleared his throat.
"Actually, um, the last time I was at your house, you sleepwalked then too." She turned to him.
"Was I saying anything?" He shifted around uncomfortably.
"Well, yeah. The first time you were looking for Chiisa." He paused, as if gathering courage. "And the second time. the second time you didn't want to go." She stared at him, not understanding. "You were saying you didn't want to go. You'd be good, but you didn't want to be sent away."
"Oh. When I first went there, I would walk to the front door and yell. No one spoke Japanese, so I have no idea what I yelled." She stared at the sky, stubbornly refusing to look around. "Everyone avoided me for ages, until I stopped. I think I gave up trying to go home."
She went to the edge of the roof and swung her legs over. "What are you doing?!" Kyou yelled, grabbing her and pulling her back. She pulled out of his grip.
"If you hadn't noticed, we're above the veranda on my room. I'm going to talk to Shi-kun and thought this way'd be quicker." She frowned at him.
"Oh, sorry. What are you going to talk to him about?"
"None of your business." She snapped. Her face softened. "Sorry, don't worry about it, it's just something I organised to see him about. Listen, can you not tell anyone about the sleepwalking thing?" He nodded "Thanks." She leapt down onto the veranda and went into the house, leaving Kyou to look at the sky.
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"Hey Shigure-kun!" Ame walked into his office. He stopped typing on the computer on his desk, and looked up. "You actually work? I thought you just played computer games." He smiled knowingly at her.
"I do. After writing my literature, of course." He motioned for her to sit down. "Now, why did you want to talk to me Ame-chan?" She shifted around slightly.
"Well, I was wondering if you knew where my Mum was?" She said nervously. He smiled broadly and asked the question she knew was coming.
"Why not ask Ha-san? He'd have more of an idea where she is than me." She shook her head forcefully. "He told me when I first came here that she lived with someone else and they didn't know where she was. I thought you might be able to help me, because I have no idea, and I heard you kept in touch for a while." He sadly smiled at her. "Could you?" She asked hopefully. "Please?" He shook his head sadly.
"Sorry, but if Ha-san doesn't know, then I'm no help. I stopped writing when she moved a second time." Ame stormed out calling out behind her that she was going for a walk. He watched her go and went back to his work.
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"Stupid.annoying.why." Ame grumbled. "Argh!" She kicked a tree in frustration. A few seconds later she rubbed her now throbbing toes. "Ow." She slid to the base of the tree. She leant against the trunk with her head in her hands. Feeling a tickle on them, Ame opened her fingers and looked to see who (or what) it was.
'Hello. My name is Kitahara, are you alright?' A wild rabbit looked up at Ame, and she swore it looked concerned.
"Um, hi? I'm Ame. I guess I'm ok." Ame replied cautiously. Kitahara hopped up and sat on her lap. "Do you live around here Kitahara-san?" The rabbit started cleaning his paws.
'Yeah, my whole family live around these parts. Just call me Kita, everyone does. I don't normally come this close to the house, there's always a lot of noise and a big risk of being landed on by the redhead that smells of cat.' Ame laughed at Kita's description of Kyou being beaten by Yuki.
"Do you have a big family?" Ame asked. Kita looked up from his cleaning and nodded.
'Yeah, it's huge! D'you want to meet them?' She nodded eagerly. Kita jumped up and hopped off. 'Follow me!' he called to Ame. She stood up and walked along, following glimpses of Kita's tail as he kept ahead of her. After a while, they came to a clearing. 'They'll be here soon. You'd better sit down, you're too tall.' Ame laughed.
"That's a new one!" She commented while sitting down. "I'm always told I'm too short." As soon as she sat, a rabbit hopped out of the bushes.
'Kitahara, where have you been?' Kita's ears drooped as he mumbled apologies and explanations. While Ame was watching Kita's mother scold him, a tiny rabbit peeked out from behind a nearby bush. Ame lay down on her stomach to be at the same height.
"Hello, I'm Ame." The rabbit hopped over and started snuffling over Ame's face.
'I'm Natsuko. You smell like us!' She exclaimed. Natsuko had a smiling face, and Ame liked her straight away. 'Kita-chan, is this a new friend of yours? I like her!' She interrupted Kita's lecture, and his mother hopped over.
'Another friend! She doesn't look like a rabbit, - I know she smells like one Nat-chan, I heard you! - but at least she seems friendly. You can all come out now!' All of a sudden, rabbits came out of every bush there was around the clearing. Kita introduced them all, but only a few got through the blur of names. '-This is Noka-chan, he's a little mischief maker- Natsuko you know, she's always happy- Kameyama's the oldest (and the biggest)- Hiromi-chan is the youngest, but Nat-chan isn't much older. She's always running around and bumping into things-' Rabbits climbed all over Ame. She was having a great time, when someone came crashing through the trees. All the rabbits ran away, leaving Ame all alone.
"Wait, come back!" She turned to see who it was. "What the hell do you want!?" Yuki stopped abruptly. He had heard her laughing just a second ago, he was surprised by the change in her mood. "Well!? Are you going to tell me, or just stand there and ruin my life some more!?" She knew he hadn't done anything wrong, but she yelled at him just the same.
"Honda-san asked me to find you. Lunch will be ready soon." Living with Kyou had accustomed him with people yelling at him, but this was different. "What's wrong?" He asked.
"You scared off my friends. You're the rat, can't you move quieter!?" There was movement out of the corner of her eye. Natsuko came out of a bush and went over to Yuki. "Nat-chan, what are you doing?" Yuki was as surprised as Ame with the rabbit going up to him.
'Can you tell him to sit down, all I can smell is his shoes, and personally, they stink.' Ame smiled and passed on the request, leaving out the part about the shoes. He knelt down so she could smell his face. She sneezed and turned to Ame. 'He smells like a mouse, like you smell like us. Mice make mistakes, just like we do at times. Come back and visit soon please, but go with him, he seems ok.' Ame nodded and stood up.
"Ok, what's for lunch?" She asked him. He stared at her, wondering what changed her mood again. "Well, I need to now if it's something like leeks, so I can tease Kyou about it." He smiled and the walked back to the house, watched by eyes in the surrounding bushes.
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