Chapter 24: Fallen Leaves
"Hey, is it supposed to do this?"
Yasui turned towards the voice of Yufine as she whisked heavy cream in a bowl to make some whipped cream for the crepes they were cooking. They hadn't had any better ideas and Yufine liked crepes, so that's what they did. Yasui looked at her work. The cream had lots of bubbles in it and was still liquidy. He scratched his head.
"Uh… maybe? Actually… uh… y-yeah! Totally!"
(I have no idea, it's been so long since I made whipped cream.)
At that thought, Yasui paused for a moment. Today, Monday, was the first day of October. He had made whipped cream last during the Festival of the Meteor. It didn't feel like it, but it had been a pretty long time. He shook his head to clear those thoughts out and gave Yufine a thumbs up.
"Yeah, uh, just keep whisking! You're doing great!"
Chaussette gave him a deadpan look as she attempted to cut up strawberries across the counter.
"I think that thisssss would be easssier if I had limbsssss."
Yasui rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah…. I can take over if you want."
"No, I want to get usssssed to cutting sssstuff. My knife ssssskillsss are awful."
"Well, okay. Just let me know if you want any help."
Yasui went back to what he was doing, which was managing the club budget. He had come to the realization that they had never really established how they would get more money after they used all the cash from the Festival of the Meteor. And as such, he was trying to get a handle on what they had left and think of what they could do to make more money. He pursed his lips and idly tapped them with his finger, making a quiet *pop* noise each time.
(We could… have a bake sale? Like, make cookies and muffins and stuff like that and sell them one afternoon. We could… maybe… do something… an idea… I have none… this is hard….)
Yasui sighed.
"I don't know. The only idea I really have is for us to have some sort of bake sale."
Yufine nodded as she stuck her finger into the whipped cream and sampled it.
"That could be fun! We could decorate cupcakes! This one bakery I like has this edible glitter frosting that's super pretty. Maybe we could do something similar."
Yasui groaned and put his head in his hands.
"Yeah, but I still can't think of any better ideas! Just the one! My stupid brain isn't working today!"
Yufine flounced over and rested her hands on his head. She bobbed it gently back and forth and giggled as his ears flopped slightly.
"You've just gotta shake out those cobwebs!"
She held the tips of his ears and pressed them together so they formed an absurd triangle above his head. Yasui groaned.
"Yufine…. Please stop playing with my ears."
"But they're so ~cuuuuuuute~ and big! Like a cartoon character would have!"
Yasui let his head flop onto the table.
"Great, not only do I look like a kid, I also look like a cartoon. It's every guy's dream."
Yufine pouted and moved to Yasui's side so she could lean down next to him.
"Somebody's got a bad case of the gloomies today! I know what will fix it!"
Yasui groaned wearily.
"No please, not today. My ribs still hurt from—"
"A hug from your favorite tiger!"
She squeezed him in a tight hug and laughed as he groaned slightly. Yasui didn't like being treated like a stuffed animal or played with like some sort of toy, but despite his annoyance at that bit he had to admit Yufine was very good at cheering him and Chaussette up if they started getting down. Yasui grunted and tried to hide his smile as she let him go. He rubbed his side.
"Don't squeeze me so hard! You'll break my ribs!"
"Nah, you're tougher than that!"
Yasui gave Chaussette a baleful look.
"Thanks for helping, Chaussette."
Chaussette waved her tail lazily.
"How exactly would I pry her armsssss off of you? Bessssidess, it'sss ssso cold in here I'm having trouble ssstaying awake."
Yasui winced and mentally berated himself for not thinking to turn on the heater. Chaussette was cold blooded, and as such would get lethargic in the colder weather that came with the end of summer. She had already bemoaned the end of warm weather earlier in the week, stating how hard it was to leave the buildings and go outside now. Yufine gasped.
"Oh, Chewy! You poor thing! Come here!"
Chewy was the nickname Yufine had given Chaussette because she insisted that it was "cuter" sounding than her full name. Yufine carefully picked up the snake and draped her around her shoulders. Chaussette gratefully huddled against the warm fur of Yufine and rested like a massive scarf on her shoulders. Yufine rubbed Chaussette's scaled body as she went and turned on the heater.
"There, is that better?"
"Hmmm… yessssss. Nice and warm."
Yufine laughed and posed comically, facing Yasui.
"It's this season's hottest accessory! Chewy!"
Yasui raised his eyebrows.
"Indeed, very stylish. She matches your fur pattern beautifully."
"Oh yeah, splotched and striped patterns are the new combo."
Chaussette happily snaked her head around to a better position to see from.
"I would be fine with thisss all the time. I feel sssso tall."
"Hey, Chewy! I have an idea! Slide your tail down one of my sleeves! You can control my arm!"
Chaussette let out her strange, sibilant laugh and did as Yufine had said. The tip of her tail poked out of Yufine's left sleeve and worked downward until it wrapped gently around the arm. Yufine walked over to the whipped cream and giggled.
"Feed me whipped cream, Chewy!"
Chaussette began to awkwardly manipulate Yufine's arm.
"I've alwayssss wanted to know what it'ssss like to have fingersss! Jussst make your arm limp, I'll do the resssst."
Yufine giggled and Chaussette awkwardly slid her arm across the counter before bumping it into the bowl of whipped cream. She lifted the arm and dropped it, missing the bowl. She tried again and got her whole hand in the fluffy dairy.
"Oopsssss. Ssssorry!"
"It's fine! I'll lick it off!"
"Okay! Coming right up!"
Chaussette lifted the arm and began moving it towards Yufine's face. Yufine stuck her tongue out.
"Come to Mama!"
Chaussette aimed and jostled the arm. It missed and smeared whipped cream across Yufine's cheek. She tried again and got it on her forehead. Then on her other cheek, her nose, her ear, and finally her mouth. Yufine licked her hand and smacked her lips.
"Yup, it's tasty! Nice teamwork, Chewy!"
"Thankssss, Yufi."
Yufine cupped Chaussette's head in her other hand and pressed their cheeks together, smearing cream onto Chaussette
"Gal pals!"
Yasui pointed at Yufine's face.
"You have a little something on your cheek."
Yufine and Chaussette exchanged looks before smiling evilly. Chaussette swung Yufine's whipped cream covered hand out in front of her and Yufine darted forward.
"Mwahahaha! Come here, Yasui! I have a snack for you!"
"Hey, no! Stay away!"
"But you need to try what we made, right Yasssssui?"
"Stay away!"
While this was happening, a very different club was having a very important meeting. Louis sat with Sheila and Dom in the room he had been using as his personal dressing room and office. He steepled his fingers and glared at nobody in particular.
"This isn't going particularly well."
Sheila rubbed her elbow and sighed.
"Yeah, with how many of our members graduated, we're still having a tough time placing all the new members."
Dom the peafowl clasped his wings.
"I think we're making some progress! These first years are pretty talented. Especially that Tem fellow! He's a natural!"
Louis sniffed.
"He has some talent, yes. But he's complacent. Still, it's better than some of the actors I'm stuck with now. That mongoose to name one."
Sheila winced.
"So there was that little mistake during the performance of Adler. It happens with newbies. I remember I tripped during my first time on stage."
Louis stood and paced towards his mirror.
"I can forgive one mistake, but he seems to keep making them."
Dom sighed.
"I don't envy you two. The stage crew has a much easier time than dancers or actors."
Louis crossed his arms.
"If that wolf wasn't so… whatever he is, he could make a convincing villain. He has the face for it."
Dom laughed airily.
"Yeah, Legoshi does have a scary face when he's intensely thinking. But he's too shy to get on stage."
Louis huffed.
"Then there's nothing for it. We'll need to have intensive tryouts today. The winter performance will be here before we know it. I would have liked to have started rehearsals already, but we needed more members that wouldn't waste our time."
Sheila groaned.
"Don't tell me…. Are you planning on having an extended meeting?"
Louis gave her a stern look.
"Why? Have something better to do?"
"No, but I'm not looking forward to missing dinner. And neither will anyone else."
As Louis marched towards the door he shot back,
"Well just keep your appetite in check. We need all the competent members we have."
As the door closed Sheila pulled a face.
"Rude."
Dom bustled over and patted her hand.
"He's just frustrated. He'll be a lot better once we get the casting nailed down."
Out in the main room, Louis gathered all the members and gave them the announcement. A chorus of groans came from the assembled beasts when they heard that Louis planned to have them practicing until nine that night. As they broke off into groups to prepare for their auditions, Bill the Bengal tiger clutched his stomach and growled at Tao.
"Son of a—"
"Language dude. I do not want to get chewed out by the club president for swearing again."
Bill looked where Tao was pointing and saw the Sanu the pelican talking nearby.
"—gun…. This is a load of bull… crap. Can't we at least take a break for dinner?!"
"Gee, maybe you can go ask Louis yourself. See how it goes."
Bill sighed and thumped his fist into his open palm.
"I knew I should have gotten a snack before coming to the club meeting today! This sucks!"
Tao shook his head.
"I never understood the phrase 'starving artist' until now. I just hope that there's something good in one of the vending machines when we leave."
Backstage, Dom had just broken the news to the other members of the stage crew. Kibi the anteater scratched his chin.
"But how does that affect us? Can't we just leave? We don't have to try out for anything."
Fudge the red panda nodded in agreement and Legoshi just stared at Dom. The peafowl sighed.
"Yes, but they still need the props and lighting. So at least one of you needs to stay."
Fudge pointed at the large wolf.
"Why not Legoshi? He already does the lights. So he can cover the props with your help."
Dom looked at Legoshi.
"Legoshi, are you fine with that?"
The large canid clasped his hands and turned his thumbs over themselves as he slowly responded.
"…I guess so."
Kibi smiled and stood.
"Great! Thanks a bunch, Legoshi! I'll treat you to an antshake later!"
Fudge waved goodbye as he joined Kibi in leaving the building. Legoshi sighed and pulled out his phone. He typed a message to Jack and sent it.
L: Jack
L: Clubs going to be late today and I'll miss dinner
J: Oh no :(
J: Do you have something to eat?
L: Not really
L: I'll get something from a vending machine when we're done
J: Why not see if Yasui and his club can make you some dinner
J: He'd be happy to if you paid him some money for ingredients I bet
L: I'll text him
L: I don't think I have his number so can you send it to me?
J: no prob :)
Once he had received Yasui's number, Legoshi texted him.
L: Hey Yasui
L: This is Legoshi by the way
L: Do you think you could make me some food
L: I'd pay you for it
L: It's just that Drama Club is going to go really late today and I'll miss dinner
L: I understand if you can't I just thought I should ask
At the same time back in the club room of the Cooking Club, Yasui was standing in the small closet pantry they had as the sound of running water came from beyond the door. He raised his voice.
"Can I come out now?"
Yufine called back.
"No way! I still can't get this stuff out of my clothes! I'll tell you when I'm done washing them off!"
Yasui rolled his eyes. Just then his phone dinged, making him jolt.
"Hm? I wonder who it could be?"
"What was that?" Yufine called out.
"Nothing! Just talking to myself!"
He read the message and typed a reply. He hesitated and then retyped it before sending it to Legoshi.
Y: Hello, Legoshi. I will see if the other members want to do that. I will let you know what we decide shortly.
L: Ok
L: Thanks
Once Yasui had been given the all clear, he exited the pantry and held up his phone.
"So, I have a way we can get a little money. A friend of mine wants to know if we could make him something to eat for dinner because he won't be able to go to the cafeteria tonight. He says he'll pay."
Yufine clasped her hands and smiled brightly.
"Ooo! What should we make! Maybe soup, or something a bit heavier."
Yasui shrugged.
"I don't know. What do either of you want for dinner if you had to choose?"
As they all thought, Chaussette raised her tail a bit to get their attention.
"Well… how about ssssome curry? I've alwaysssss wanted to learn how to make curry from scratch."
Yufine gasped.
"That's perfect! Curry is amazing for a chilly, autumn day."
Yasui nodded.
"And it's filling enough to be a full meal! Way to go Chaussette!"
If she could have blushed, Chaussette would have. As it was her scaly face creased as she smiled embarrassedly and averted her eyes.
"It wassss not that impressssssive. You would have thought of sssssomething elssssse before too long."
Yasui retrieved the recipe book from where they stored it and flipped to the curry recipe. He skimmed it and nodded.
"Huh, it doesn't seem terribly complicated. So who wants to be in charge of veggie prep, who wants to start the sauce, and who wants to handle the rice?"
Time passed, and it was soon close to five o'clock. Legoshi glanced at his phone again. He hadn't heard back from Yasui, which he took as a sign that he wasn't going to be able to cook him anything. He sighed.
"I'll just get something from a vending machine."
He was about to return his attention to the lights when he heard the door to the club room open. He glanced down and saw a familiar red fox of diminutive stature carrying a plate covered in tinfoil. He was accompanied by a female tiger he didn't recognize who at first glance seemed to be wearing a massive scarf that covered her shoulders, but upon further investigation was revealed to be a snake coiled around the tiger. Yasui glanced around, and Legoshi took that as his cue to climb down from the catwalk where the lights were situated and down towards his friend.
As Yasui looked around for the tall canid, he muttered under his breath.
"Sheesh, for how big he is he sure is hard to find."
Some of the members of the Drama Club were sitting around in groups rehearsing lines for their audition, and they looked up in confusion at the intruders. Yasui looked past them and saw Legoshi drop from a ladder and begin moving towards them. Yasui waved.
"Legoshi! Check it out! Did we come through or what!"
The wolf stopped in front of the three members of the Cooking Club and nodded.
"It smells good. Oh, uh, I don't know these other two. Are you both in Yasui's club?"
Yufine grinned sweetly and flashed a peace sign.
"I'm Yufine! And this is Chaussette! Hiya!"
Legoshi raised his hand in greeting.
"It's nice to meet you. So… uh, what did you end up making?"
Yasui handed Legoshi the styrofoam plate he was carrying as well as a plastic spoon. They had found some old disposable cutlery and plates in one of the cabinets, and had put it to use. He lifted the tinfoil and the pungent aroma of curry wafted through the room. Legoshi took a deep breath.
"Mm… smells good. Thanks."
He was about to take a bite when he paused.
"Oh, right. I forgot to pay you. How much do you need?"
Yasui blinked a few times. He had forgotten to come up with a good number for what Legoshi could pay them. He did some quick guesstimation in his head and looked up at the wolf.
"Uh… how about… five… hundred yen?"
"Five hundred yen?"
"Is that too much? I'm not sure how expensive things are here."
"No, it's actually really cheap. You tend to pay that much for a prepackaged sandwich or some small snack like that, not a hot plate of fresh curry."
Yufine giggled.
"It wasn't expensive to make. We just used whatever leftover ingredients we had!"
Legoshi handed the plate to Yasui so he could get out his wallet. He removed six hundred yen and handed it to him.
"Here. I'll give you a little extra…. As thanks for bringing this to me. Now, uh, sorry to run off, but I need to get back to the lights."
"I understand. See you later, Legoshi!"
Legoshi nodded as he accepted his plate back and headed back towards the ladder. Yufine clasped her hands behind her waist.
"He seems nice, if a little quiet."
"Yeah, Legoshi's a solid guy."
Yufine placed her hands on the snake around her neck and said,
"Let's get going. I think the walk over here put Chaussette to sleep."
The snake drowsily yawned.
"No… jusssssst made me a little ssssssleepy."
As they were about to leave, one of the other members approached. Yasui recognized him from his study group and waved as Tao approached with a large male tiger in tow.
"Hey, Tao. How's it going?"
The panther shrugged.
"It's fine. Hey, uh, you wouldn't happen to have any more of that curry? For your buddy from the study group? And his pal?"
The tiger wrapped his arm around the shoulders of Tao.
"Yeah! I mean, that makes us practically friends-in-law! Name's Bill by the way."
Yasui looked to his club mates.
"What do you guys think? We could possibly make a little more?"
Yufine shrugged.
"Maybe? It needed a little bit to simmer, but we can always put the pot on and go get ourselves something from the cafeteria while we wait."
Bill clasped his hands together and rubbed them.
"Great! Six hundred yen a pop, right? Can you make me an extra large portion for eight hundred?"
Yasui shrugged.
"Probably."
Other members of the Drama Club began to approach.
"How about me? Can I place an order?"
"I'm small, so that means I don't need too much! So you could just make a little extra for me to have, right?"
"I want a plate!"
Yasui was taken aback by the sudden onslaught of orders. He held his hands up for quiet.
"Hold on! I can't—"
However, everyone was talking over him. After about a minute of this Yufine growled in her throat and raised her voice.
"Everyone shut it!"
The crowd fell silent. Yufine smoothed her dress and gestured to Yasui. The small fox was a bit taken aback but nodded at her.
"Right, so…. How about we do this one at a time. Then we won't miss anyone."
Fifteen minutes later, Yasui was looking down at thirteen orders for curry. As the Cooking Club returned to their kitchen, Yasui gulped.
"We, uh, well I might have bit off more than I can chew."
Chaussette flicked her tongue out.
"We might need a sssssecond pot."
"Yeah."
Yufine pulled Yasui against her and rested a hand on Chaussette who was still around her neck.
"We can do it! It's just curry! The first time was a breeze. And there's still some of that batch left! We can put it in a smaller pot and warm it up somehow, right? That's how curry works? I'm seriously asking you that because I don't know."
Yasui scratched his chin.
"That could work. We already have enough for the five small animals who ordered. So we just need nine more servings. Well, eleven because two were double portions."
Chaussette hissed.
"Thatsssss not too bad. Much more manageable."
Yufine giggled.
"I'm ready when you are! Tell us what to do, President!"
And so, together they made the largest pot of curry that Yasui had ever seen. It was so full that he could probably have dunked half of his body in it if he felt so inclined. And as for the rice, they had to make multiple batches and put them in a huge bowl they found and desperately hope it stayed warm. Once the curry had finished cooking, Yasui looked at the imposing vat of food they needed to transport.
"So… does anyone have a cart or something we can use? Maybe a wagon?"
Yufine frowned and tried to lift the massive pot. Despite the considerable strength she had as a tigress, it was still not enough to lift the pot for more than a few seconds. As they were looking up in dismay at the heavy container, Chaussette spoke up.
"I have an idea. I think that the bassssseball team hasss a trolley they ussse to hold their water. Maybe they will let usss borrow it?"
Yasui nodded.
"Maybe. I've met the head of that club before, he's nice. Maybe he'll let us borrow it."
And with that, Yasui ran as fast as he could towards the baseball field where he hoped that the Baseball Club was still practicing. As he approached, he heard the sounds of shouting and the crack of a wooden bat hitting a baseball. He slowed to a jog as he approached the field. He scanned the team for any sign of Ojiro the lion. Sure enough, the handsome lion was leaned against the dugout calling out encouragement to his teammates.
"There we go! Much better form! No more pop flys for you, eh?"
"Ojiro!"
The lion turned and looked around before noticing the diminutive fox addressing him.
"Uh… hi? Can I help you?"
"Ojiro, can I borrow your water trolley thing?"
The lion froze for a moment before raising his eyebrow.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Your water trolley thing! The thing you hold water with! Can I borrow it! Not the water container, just the trolley."
Ojiro frowned.
"Uh… why? And also, who are you?"
Yasui smacked his head.
"Right, sorry. We met once before. I'm Yasui, president of the Cooking Club."
"Oh yeah! Now I remember! Long time no see."
"Yeah, but can I borrow your trolley?"
"Why?"
"We need to move a huge pot of curry that's way too heavy for us to lift."
"I… what?"
"Long story."
Ojiro shook his head.
"I… you know what, I don't want to know. Sure, you can borrow it. Just don't break it and bring it back."
"Thanks! I will!"
As Yasui moved towards the metal trolley that the lion pointed out to him, Ojiro called from behind.
"Yo, Yasui!"
Yasui turned.
"You owe me a favor! You'll have to cook me something sometime!"
"Will do! Thanks again!"
And so Yasui hurriedly pushed the contraption back to the kitchen. Once they successfully pushed it through the door, it was time to load it up. They tried a few ways to lift the pot, but couldn't make it work. Eventually they found the best way to do it was for Yasui to stand on the countertop on one side of the pot and Yufine stood on the other side. Chaussette held the trolley steady and directed them as they carefully hoisted the pot and carefully placed it in the metal vehicle. The trolley creaked in protest but held, much to everyone's relief.
"Right," Yasui wiped his brow. "Now who's wheeling the cart and who's carrying the rice?"
Eventually they decided the Yasui would move the trolley while Yufine would carry the rice. Chaussette was in charge of plates and spoons, which she slid into her backpack and put on. They had to make multiple stops as they walked to the Drama Club building. In the cool weather, Chaussette would start to slow down and have trouble keeping up, so they would pause to let Yufine rest her arms while Chaussette would wrap herself around the rice container for warmth. Finally, they arrived back at the building where the Drama Club was rehearsing. Yasui pushed open the door and wheeled the cart in. The club members looked up as they entered, and those who had been sitting in the front area before got to their feet and hurried over for their food. As they got the bowls and rice ready, Yasui noticed a slight problem.
"Uh, did anyone get a spoon or ladle to serve the curry with?"
The three members of the Cooking Club looked between themselves and sighed. Yasui adjusted his shoes and headed towards the door.
"I'll run and get a spoon for the rice and a ladle, I'm pretty fast."
Yasui walked out the door and stretched briefly before taking off towards their kitchen. Yasui had to admit, he was always a little proud of how fast he was. His long, spindly limbs and slight form made him a natural sprinter, and he showed it as he tore across the grounds of Cherryton. He slid to a clumsy stop in front of the door to the club room and almost slipped and fell, but managed to catch himself. He pushed the door open, panting heavily, and grabbed the first spoon and ladle he saw before turning and running back towards his club mates. By the time he reached the building, he was completely spent. He staggered through the door and handed Yufine the serving utensils before slumping against a wall gasping for breath. One of the Drama Club members offered him some water, but he was too out of breath to drink. Eventually he managed to get his breath back, but he was still exhausted.
While Yasui was out of commission, Yufine took over handing out curry and accepting payments, which she then handed to Chaussette for safekeeping. Chaussette looked on in admiration as Yufine naturally and jovially greeted and served the members of the Drama Club, chatting with them easily as she prepared their food. The same large tiger from before reached the head of the line and grinned at her.
"You know, I don't think I've seen you before. I'm Bill."
"Yufine, it's nice to meet you!"
"Your hair clip is nice. Looks good with your stripes."
Yufine giggled and tilted her head a bit to show it more clearly.
"Thanks! I just got it a little bit ago."
"Well it suits you. I don't want to hold up the line, so maybe we can find each other during territory day? Or some other time, like maybe lunch or dinner?"
Yufine smiled sweetly as she handed him his food.
"Maybe. Enjoy your curry!"
He grinned and accepted his food, walking over to Tao and excitedly talking to him. Once they had handed out all the food, the Cooking Club gathered their various things (president included) and headed back to their room. As they did, Chausette said,
"I think that tiger wassss hitting on you."
"Oh yeah, definitely."
"Sssso…. What do you think? Are you going to meet him ssssometime?"
"Eeeeeh, probably not."
"Not your type?"
"Nah. I like cute, shy boys. Not egotistical philanderers."
"Oh…. Sssso are there any guysss you do like?"
"Well… that's a bit complicated. But fortunately I have our adorable president to cuddle whenever I need to!"
Yasui grunted from his place on the trolley.
"I'm… not… cute…."
Yufine reached out and rubbed his ear.
"Keep telling yourself that."
Back in the Drama Club's quarters, Louis walked out from where auditions were being held accompanied by Sheila, Dom, and the handful of animals who had been auditioning for the first role. Upon walking into the main area, he was greeted by the sight of the other club members sitting around eating plates of curry. He narrowed his eyes in confusion and looked back at Sheila and Dom.
"What… did we miss?"
Tuesday saw Yasui once again working at Cafe Lapin, and as sometimes happened a now familiar beagle walked through the doors and greeted them both in Japanese.
"Good morning… the friends. Yasui… Mimi. I am being… delicious day today?"
Yasui returned the wave, but replied in halting English.
"Mr. Branson! I am being very happy to see you again! Your Japanese… is getting… uh… pretty good! Is now close!"
Branson made it to the counter and sighed, swapping to his native English.
"Thanks, learning Japanese is bloody hard! It's so… different from English! How is your English so good compared to my Japanese?"
"Ah… language is easy to learn when young. Had English all through… ah… elemen…tary school. Also… in… middle school. Only… not now. Now I have Seaspeak class. Is very hard."
"I can believe it. Japanese is bad enough, I couldn't even think about learning Seaspeak. No bloody words, just sounds! It's nutters is what it is!"
Yasui smiled.
"So… are you going to be having the same? A latte with… whole milk and… vanilla?"
"That's the ticket! I swear, someday I will have to bring my wife with me. She'd love to meet you."
"I… would like that!"
The door opened behind him and Branson glanced over his shoulder.
"Ah, I can't talk your ear off all day. I'll shove off for now so you can get him. Great to see you too, Mimi."
Mimi stared blankly at him and began to make his coffee. He had once said he found Mimi's attitude and clothing very comforting. According to him, lots of people dressed and acted like Mimi back at his home in England. Yasui took care of the next customer, a hedgehog, and then carried Branson his coffee.
"Ah, here you go! It's… coffee… for you!"
"Ah, lovely. Cheers, Yasui!"
Branson took a sip and then looked back over the counter at Mimi. He swapped to Japanese.
"Is good! Thank you very much! Good afternoon!"
He changed to English again.
"How was that? Was that right?"
"Ah, close. You no need last part. Last part mean… good afternoon."
"Ah bullocks, I meant to say 'have a good day' or something like that."
"It… was close."
Branson nodded and gave Yasui a curious look.
"So tell me, do you lot celebrate Halloween?"
"Ah, sorry. What is… Hall-al-een?"
"Halloween. It's a holiday. It's huge in America and pretty popular in England too. People have parties, and kids go trick or treating."
"What… trick or treat?"
"So, kids dress up in costumes and walk around their neighborhoods knocking on doors. Then the neighbors give them candy. People even decorate their houses and everything."
"I… don't know if people here do your… Hall Between?"
"Halloween."
"I have not done it. But… I come from small village. We have different holidays. I have never done Rexmas before. This year… my first!"
"Bloody hell! Never celebrated Rexmas!? I'll have to get you a present! Maybe a fancy hat or something."
"Oh, no need! I… will be fine just seeing what everyone else do."
Mimi raised her voice a bit, speaking Japanese.
"Yo, Yasui! Gonna hand out this order some time today?"
Yasui spun around.
"Sorry! I'll get it!"
Yasui nodded to Branson, speaking English once more.
"It… was good talk."
"It was indeed. Always a pleasant experience."
Work went on like usual, and eventually the store was closed for the night and Yasui was heading back to school. He checked his phone as he walked and saw a message from Shinrai.
S: yo im hanging out in my dorm common room if you wanna chill
Yasui smiled and typed back.
Y: Okay. I'll get there in a little bit.
S: (_)
(I'll assume that's a smiley face.)
Yasui rubbed his arms as he walked towards the hill where Cherryton was located. It had gotten chilly once the sun had set, and he was wearing jeans and a thin shirt with short sleeves. Yasui let out a "brrr" and shuddered.
(I'll need to bring my jacket with me from now on.)
Among the clothes he had brought from home was a thin jacket treated with beeswax his mother had made for whenever it was either raining or just a little bit cold. In the winter they would wear thick clothing and a warm coat or shawl over them. As such, Yasui was happy to enter the warm interior of the male herbivore dorm. There were a few scattered students around, and they all gave him cautious looks as he walked by. In the common room, Yasui saw Shinrai sitting in one of the comfortable chairs located around the place. The squirrel waved as he chewed on some unknown snack he was enjoying. Yasui sat down in the chair beside him.
"Hey, Shin. What are you eating?"
Shinrai crunched loudly and swallowed.
"Some walnuts. Want some?"
"Sure."
Shinrai handed him a few of the hard shelled nuts and went back to work gnawing his open. Yasui inserted his thumb claws into the small seam of the shell and pulled in opposite directions. The shell opened with a crack and Yasui ate the savory snack inside. Shinrai spat out some shell and asked,
"How was work?"
"Pretty good. One of my favorite customers came in today."
"Whi un?"
"The dog from England."
"Ahhg."
"I have a question. Do you have something called Hall-low-leen here? He was talking about it and said it was a holiday back in England."
Shinrai extracted the walnut from its shell and looked at it as he held it in his fingers.
"Hmm… kinda. Instead of Halloween like they do in other countries, we have what's called the Mask Festival. It's like the best of both worlds. We still do the costumes and stuff, but it has all the cool things of a festival. Plus, lots of the vendors get money from the organizers to hand out treats for free to kids. It rocks."
"Oh! Sounds fun! When is it?"
"The thirty-first. Same day every year."
"Oh… so do you want to do this Mask Festival together?"
"I'm game. We can pick where we go later."
"Where we go?"
"Yeah, it's more of a community thing than a city wide thing. Different blocks or neighbors or whatever will have their own thing going on. And some places will have a super huge one you have to pay to get in. To cover all the candy and snacks and whatever."
"Oh. So… why is it called the Mask Festival?"
Shinrai popped another walnut in his mouth and spoke through his bite.
"So you're supposed to dress up in a costume, and then at the festival itself there's always a stand where you get to choose your mask. They're always traditional masks made from either plastic or wood, depending on how swanky the joint is. It's always fun to choose which mask you'll wear. Last year I had a duck mask, and before that I had a deer mask."
"This sounds really cool. I'm glad I asked, otherwise I wouldn't have known."
Shinrai nodded.
"Yeah, sometimes I forget you have weird holidays instead of the usual ones."
Shinrai froze and held up a finger.
"That came out wrong. I meant different holidays, not weird."
"I understand."
Shinrai shook his head.
"Whatever, let's just watch some tv."
Shinrai turned on the tv and put it on some show Yasui didn't recognize. He enjoyed just sitting on the couch beside his friend and idly chatting over the show's dialogue. It was starting to get late before Shinrai grunted.
"I need to go finish up some homework. It's due tomorrow, so I have to get it done tonight."
"You shouldn't procrastinate. We can work on homework together, if you want. I always try to be a bit ahead so it's not a problem."
Shinrai sneered comically and made a sound of disgust.
"Don't you ever get tired of being responsible and mature?! Be a teenager for a change and do something stupid!"
"You sound like Miss Diana, she said the same thing."
"We're both right! Like, I dunno, go on a junk food binge or something! Or become obsessed with a game and pull an all-nighter! Otherwise you'll regret missing out on your teen years."
Yasui shrugged.
"I'll keep it in mind. Good night!"
"Mhm, going to bed at nine something like some sort of old man. Why am I not surprised?"
Yasui stuck his tongue out at Shinrai and walked out the door. Shinrai leaned over and called out,
"G'night, Yasui!"
The next day saw Yasui exiting the dorms for breakfast and seeing how the leaves were beginning to change from green to yellow and orange. He frowned.
(There aren't as many trees here as back home, so I won't get to see how pretty the leaves are this year. That sucks.)
The entire school was on edge. Their first round of big tests was coming up. They'd had some tests and lots of quizzes before this, but this was the first test that would take multiple hours to complete. Studious animals were hurriedly looking over their notes, and unstudious ones were desperately looking for someone's notes to borrow. Hence why as the week progressed, Yasui would frequently be in the library with Shinrai desperately clinging to his shoulder to read his notes with him.
"Oh crap! How are we supposed to remember all this junk! Like, what even is all this?! Protons? Electrons? Are those even real?"
"Yes, they are."
"I'm going to fail! I'm going to fail and my parents will kill me! Literally kill me! I've been screwing around all semester! Why didn't I just do what you did! Oh geez, Mom was right! I should have let you rub off on me more! That sounded weird! It came out wrong!"
"Shinrai… can you quiet down a little. This is a library."
The squirrel cringed and looked around the various students giving him dirty looks. He gulped.
"Sorry."
"Besides, you'll do fine. We can study together every night."
"Promise?"
"Mhm."
"Can I hold your tail?"
"No."
"But it's even fluffier now!"
Yasui just gave his friend a heavy lidded stare. It was true, with the weather getting colder by the week he was growing his winter coat. His fur had gotten thicker and longer, making his already oversized tail massive. And he didn't even want to think about how scruffy his neck and face were now. He needed a trim, and soon.
Soon it was dark outside the library, and Yasui walked with Shinrai back to the dorms. As he got into bed for the night, he worked his jaw as he thought about what he could do for his fur. Finally he pulled out his phone and texted his main source of information about the city.
Y: Hi, Miss Diana. I hope you're doing well. I was wondering if you knew any good places where I can get my fur trimmed. I'm getting a bit shaggy.
There was a pause before she replied.
D: Hello Yasui
D: I'm doing very well. And I think I know just the place where we can take care of that. How does Saturday sound? Around ten?"
Y: Sounds good! See you then!
D: Alright
D: Goodnight Yasui
Y: Goodnight, Miss Diana.
Yasui set his alarm and sighed. Miss Diana still gave him such a warm, fuzzy feeling in his gut. He just wanted to hug her and have her kiss him while they cuddled. She was so pretty and soft and smelled good. Yasui wished he could think of an excuse to spend the night with her again. Sleeping nestled up beside her had been so wonderful. If he had to guess what the best part of being married was, it was probably that.
(If only there was a chance. But there isn't. I just have to keep this to myself. It's too weird, it could ruin our friendship.)
Yasui sighed and rolled onto his side. If he closed his eyes and concentrated, he could almost pretend that his pillow was her shoulder, and that he was pressed up against her again. But it was a poor alternative.
[Many years ago, when Yasui was in First Grade.]
Yasui was walking back from the water fountain during recess when three much larger boys approached him. Yasui felt a pit in his stomach as they surrounded him. Ever since he had started coming to school these three had been tormenting him. Because his school was a combined school where carnivores and herbivores had classes together, the teachers and staff were extremely vigilant about any bullying or abuse that the carnivores might try to inflict on the herbivores, and meted out severe punishment if it was discovered. As such, the aggressive carnivores had to settle for the smaller and weaker carnivores of the school. In this case, the runt of the school, Yasui.
The ringleader of the group was a wolf named Ijime. He sneered and condescendingly leaned down towards Yasui.
"Well look who it is. If it isn't Yu-yu-yu-Yasui. The fru-fru-fru-freak from the mountain. Did your mommy pack you dirt for lunch? Or was she being fancy today and gave you a rock?"
Yasui tried to scoot around him but was blocked by his right hand crony, a lion named Yabana. Yabana shoved Yasui backwards and laughed.
"Oops. Didn't see you all the way down there, runt. I've always wondered why you're so pathetically tiny, did you get dropped as a pup? Or maybe your parents just couldn't afford to feed you?"
The third of the boys, a bear named Heishi, laughed at Yabana's joke. He was the muscle of the trio, and did whatever the other two told him to do. Yabana laughed before leaning over and adopting a look of mock concern.
"Daaaaaw, does ikle Yasui have some dirt weft on his face fwom wunch? Heishi, I think he needs you to clean him. We wouldn't want to let him stay dirty all day."
Heishi was familiar with this form of torment. Quick as a flash he was on the smaller boy and pinned his arms against his torso by holding him under one arm. He turned on the fountain, which made Yasui immediately stop calling out for help and take a deep breath. Heishi plunged his face into the stream of water and began roughly scrubbing Yasui's whole face as the fox desperately kicked and writhed. The bear pulled his victim's face out of the water, causing him to gasp for breath, and redoubled his scrubbing. Heishi had actually managed to draw some blood with this move on a few occasions, something that amused the other two boys immensely.
Ijime had noticed something and walked over to check it out. He chuckled and pointed to a small cubby that had been left open by whoever had taken out the cleaning supplies stored inside.
"Hey guys, check it out. I found the little freak a new home."
Heishi kept Yasui pinned and followed Yabana over. The lion began to howl with laughter.
"Yeah, it's probably roomy compared to the shed he and all his siblings live in with their deadbeat parents."
Ijime gestured towards the bear.
"Alright, Heishi. Let's throw him a housewarming party."
Heishi nodded and began to cram the struggling fox into the tiny cupboard. Eventually they managed to compress him into the tiny space where only his muffled cries could be heard. They locked it once again and Ijime called out,
"Don't worry. I'm sure someone will eventually open that up again. I'd say that the teacher would look for you, but who's going to care that you went missing?"
Yabana sneered.
"Not us, that's for sure. C'mon guys, let's go play kickball."
They left the fox to cry out for help and feebly rattle the door to the cubby he had been squeezed into. Fortunately someone walked by within the hour and let him out. As had been usual ever since the bullying started, Yasui told the teacher about what happened. However, he had no proof, and it was his word against the testimony of three other children. Ijime was clever, he knew how to make it seem like he was a good kid and was able to cover for his friends while leaving Yasui's stories sounding less than believable. This led to his teachers reporting his "lying" to Yasui's parents, ruining his credibility.
Yasui's parents began to wonder why their usually enthusiastic and curious son suddenly hated school and didn't want to go. He would beg them to let him stay home, but would never tell them why. Unfortunately they misunderstood this as laziness, and would never allow it. Because of the way his teachers and parents had reacted, Yasui was convinced that nobody believed him when he said what was happening. He felt like he couldn't tell his parents, and would try to make excuses as to why he was acting like this when asked. This only further served to strain his home life as his parents became disappointed with how gloomy and sullen he had become for no reason. The torment continued until late during the winter of Yasui's first grade year.
It was a particularly cold day, and Yasui had needed to go to the bathroom during lunch. Unbeknownst to him, Ijime and his gang had followed him. When he turned to wash his hands, he saw the three larger boys blocking his exit. Ijime crossed his arms.
"Yasui, Yasui, Yasui. Did you really think you could go anywhere without my permission? I must not have noticed when you asked me if I would let you go to the bathroom. So now you need to make it up to me."
The wolf snapped his fingers and Heishi, with Yabana's help, managed to grapple Yasui and twist his right arm behind his back at an odd angle. Ijime laughed.
"I know how you can apologize to me! Heishi, help Yasui here sing a song for us."
Heishi snickered and began to apply varying amounts of pressure at rhythmic intervals to Yasui's right arm. This made Yasui yelp and squeal in discomfort in varying pitches as Ijime and Yabana laughed at him. Ijime began to pretend he was conducting, and began to speed up. Finally he called,
"And now the grand finale!"
He made several sweeping movements, gesturing for Heishi to increase the volume like their music teacher did during class. Yasui's discomfort began to grow louder as his arm was further twisted and pulled.
"Aaah! NAAah! NOoooOOh! noOOOOOOOOOOOO! *RIP!*"
The typical sounds of discomfort and pain were interrupted by a horrific popping, tearing sound that was immediately followed by a blood-curdling scream. Ijime and Yaban looked down in shock at the fox now shrieking in agony on the ground, and then up at the dumbfounded bear holding the bloodsoaked right arm of Yasui. Heishi began to breathe heavily and cry.
"I! I! I didn't! I didn't! I didn't mean to! Uh, UH, AAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"
The teachers and students came running to investigate the sound and found a brutal scene. Ijime and Yabana were staring in shock and terror as a now one armed Yasui writhed while clutching at his empty shoulder in a growing pool of blood. His hysterical screams and calls for his mother were enough to sicken even the most stalwart of teachers. And directly above him was a bawling Heishi holding the missing arm.
He was rushed to a hospital where emergency reattachment surgery was performed in an attempt to save his arm. Yone was pulled out of class as his and Yasui's parents were called and told the news. The three bullies were brought before the headmaster and punished accordingly, and rumors began to fly around the school. The story warped and twisted until nobody knew what the truth was anymore. Even after Yasui was able to return to school, things didn't get better. Not only had he become a pariah and object of curiosity and speculation, but he had developed a deep-rooted fear of any larger carnivores. His social anxieties only grew worse and worse, and soon he spent every day lurking in the corners of classrooms avoiding everyone. His only escape was the constant stream of books he used to distract himself from his sorry state.]