Happy Birthday, Shizuka! Jou's Great Trek!
A/N: I may have like... the Japanese stuff wrong, so please, no stoning. I like my oh-so-anime style title though... Other then that I don't think I have anything to say... other then YES I think I hate Jounouchi's mom. Haha. Enjoy.
DISCLAIMOR: I am not the owner of Yu-Gi-Oh! I'm just a crazed (modestly so) fan.
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Shizuka's birthday was on May 6th, and that day just happened to be today. When young ten year old Jounouchi Katsuya woke that morning it was the first thing on his mind. Of course it was! It was his sister's eighth birthday! How important was that? Well, not any more important that her sixth or seventh, but the point was it was HER birthday, and that was important to Jounouchi! More important than watching Ninja Turtles, this just happened to be on the television at that moment.
Ninja Turtles was usually made a priority to the young boy, but when it came to Shizuka even green, fighting mutant turtles that eat pizza have to take a back seat. When he jumped out of bed he ran into the kitchen, glancing at the clock. 10 A.M wasn't too late or too early. It was probably the best time to call. Shizuka would be up – maybe watching Ninja turtles like he usually is, but probably watching Sailor Moon on a different channel- and his mom would be asleep! Or he hoped she was, because Dad was still asleep. ALL adults slept in on Saturdays. It was law, or something, with dire consequences if disrupted.
Reaching for the phone he planned what he would so. First, he'd make sure he was talking to Shizuka, then he'd sing "happy birthday". He took the receiver off the hook and then started dialing.
"What are you doing?" A groggy adult voice came from the kitchen door.
"..." Jounouchi stared at his father, as if he had asked the stupidest question (and really he kind of did) before answering. "Um...Calling Shizuka. It's her birthday and I wanna wish her a happy birthday."
"Hang up the phone." His dad demanded. Jounouchi still stood, phone receiver in one hand and a little index finer on the number 8 key. He blinked at his father, unsure of what to say.
"But...it's her birthday."
"You're NOT calling her, so hang up the phone."
"...But it's her-"
"I don't care, Katsuya!" His father grunted. Jounouchi was officially confused now. Birthdays were always so important before, why weren't they now? True, his dad hadn't cared about his birthday since the divorce, but Shizuka was different. Dad liked Shizuka still. Then again, Jounouchi wasn't allowed to call Shizuka's house. Ever. But Jounouchi had thought maybe this would be different. It WAS a birthday. The older man walked to his son, and Jounouchi recoiled, bumping into the wall. He was frightened his dad might get angry and hurt him. Instead his father took the phone from his hand and hung it up, before picking Jounouchi up and carrying him into the living room. He dropped the boy on the floor in front of the T.V and turned it on.
Jounouchi sighed, and stared at the screen two feet in front of him, watching Ninja Turtles. Looked like he'd be watching it today after all. His dad was lying on the couch behind him, and he cracked open a can of beer, much to Jounouchi's annoyance. Those drinks were the yuckiest things he'd ever tasted. Once he had tried them, when his dad wasn't looking. Yuck, yuck, yuck, YUCK!
Jounouchi was suddenly struck by an idea. He jumped to his feet and turned to his father.
"May I go to Honda's please?"
"Will they feed you? They better feed you because I'm not going to if they don't."
"They will."
"Good, go ahead." His father lied on his back, chugging his beer. Jounouchi thanked his father and went to his room. He needed to pack a few things for the long journey. No Honda's house was only a 20-minute walk, not a very long trek at all. But Shizuka's home out in the country was VERY far away.
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As was typical, it had started to rain once Jounouchi had gotten off the bus. He glared at the sky and wished he had brought an umbrella. Stupid rain. Stupid countryside that didn't have buses. It was up to his feet and thumb now.
Walking would have been fun had he brought a friend along with him. Unfortunately he didn't think of that. Honda SO would have wanted to come too. Another thing he hadn't thought of was how to GET to Shizuka's house. A third thing he forgot to take into consideration was how he would get home. A fourth factor he forgot about was his mother Hmm...Now while he was thinking about it, he realized this wasn't actually a great plan. But it was for Shizuka, and he was determined to wish her a happy birthday. If not over the phone, then in person.
"A rock star Billy left the town, punk rock kids no where to go. No-stop crime every Saturday night!" Jounouchi sang out the lyrics to Nicotine's Punk Rock City. If there was one thing a kid with a neglectful parent could be grateful for it was the lack of censoring. He could listen to anything he wanted, and he chose to listen to heavy rock, punk, and death metal. He thought himself a pretty cool kid because he could listen to music with swearing in it! Honda couldn't. Honda was only allowed to listen to polite bands. Ha, ha.
Jounouchi frowned as it was getting darker out. What time was it? He figured since it was a rainy and miserably day it probably wasn't that late. It was just dark. The clouds were so dark, and the rain was falling pretty hard. He glared at the sky once more, and it seemed to thunder in defiance at him. Lightening flashed and thunder followed it immediately. Jounouchi cringed and thought, not for the first time, that this idea wasn't his best.
He glanced behind him and saw a car was coming in his direction. Perfect. He stuck his thumb out, and smiled. As if anyone would just drive past a poor little kid on the side of the road in a pouring thunder storm. The car didn't seem to slow down, and sped by him, splashing him. Jounouchi stared after the car, un-amused. As if that guy just...grr. He pushed his bangs out of his face, and growled when they fell back into his amber eyes. Stupid rain. Stupid car. Stupid...stupid-head driver.
"At this point, it'll be Shizuka's 12th birthday by the time I get t'er house!" Jounouchi said out loud. A large transport drove by, completely splashing Jounouchi as it left him in its wake. "I HATE WATER!" Jounouchi screamed in absolute rage and frustration. "AAAAAAARG!" He kicked rocks onto the road and stomped his feet. Temper tantrums just happened to be his forte. He got them from his father.
After a moment of rage release Jounouchi took a few deep breaths and continued to walk. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Honda had told him that when they were trying to walk to the cliffs. It was a pretty long walk to the cliffs, especially on a hot, hot day. But this was a longer walk, and Jounouchi was cold and wet and MISERABLE. He hoped there would be cake at Shizuka's house.
He heard another car coming and sighed. After his last attempt and failure to hitch a ride, he didn't see the point in trying again. But he stuck his thumb out regardless and hoped he wouldn't get a face full of dirty water again. He smiled as the car slowed down. He frowned when he realized it was a police car.
"Eep!" Jounouchi watched the tall police man get out of the car.
"Hey, little guy, um. What are you doing out here in this weather all by yourself?" The officer asked.
"I'm trying to get to my sister's house for her birthday! She turned eight today!" Jounouchi explained, at ease now that he could tell this cop was one of those nice, kid friendly ones.
"Oh, well where does she live?"
"With kaa-san."
"Yes, but where?"
"...In the country side, her house is blue and is near a lake!"
"Does your Tou-san know your doing this?"
"...No. He wouldn't let me if he knew, but he wouldn't let me call Shizuka either. So..." the cop smiled and told Jounouchi to get into his car. He explained the only lake around there was up the road more. It was a ten-minute drive. Jounouchi informed the nice policeman about what things where in Shizuka's yard, and how Shizuka had a pet cat and it was a really fat cat too. He told the officer about a time when the fat cat got stuck in a tree and his father had to climb up and get it- this was before the cat was fat though.
"So your parents are divorced, right?" The cop asked.
"Yes, I live with tou-san in Domino and I haven't seen Shizuka in a long time. I'm not supposed to talk to her or Kaa-san at all. But it's Shizuka's birthday so I think its ok." The officer smiled. He was sure a talkative little guy. Wait a minute...
"Domino? That's REALLY far from here! You came all this way by yourself?" he gasped.
"Well, yea." Jounouchi shrugged. "I took the bus 'til there wasn't no more busses. I use to take Shizuka on the bus to go to the beach. She liked the bus. I like it ok. Some people are weird on the bus though, and some smell too. I saw a nun on the bus once, and she said I was a nice boy for helping her carry her bag on the bus. I just helped her 'cause Shizuka likes God."
"You really like Shizuka." The cop stated. Jounouchi nodded. "That's very good. Some kids hate their siblings."
"My friend Honda hates his big sister, and she's bad. She has a boyfriend and they kiss in front of us, and it's gross. Honda says she's goin' t'have a baby 'cause she and her boyfriend are so gross."
"Keep an eye out for your sister's house." The cop chuckled. Jounouchi looked out the window and waited for a house to come up.
"There sure aren't a lot of houses." He thought out loud. They finally passed one but it was white. After a moment there were a few more houses, but they weren't Shizuka's. Then he spotted a blue house. "Oh there!" He pointed. He'd never been to Shizuka's house, but in a letter she sent him (in secret) she had described the new house.
"You sure?" he asked. Jounouchi looked at the mailbox. 'Kawai'. That was his Mother's and Shizuka's new name.
"Yep! That's their mailbox!" He smiled.
"I'll walk you up to the house." The cop stopped the car. Jounouchi jumped out of the car and waited for the policeman to get out. They approached the front door, and Jounouchi was smiling like mad.
"I ring the door bell!" Jounouchi announced, pushing the button. He pushed it several times very quickly, to the rhythm of happy birthday. After a second the door was opened, and there stood a little girl with brownish-red hair and big brown eyes.
"Onii-san!" She squealed, and glomped the drenched boy.
"Shizuka! Happy birthday!" He smiled. He didn't notice his mother standing at the door looking shocked and somewhat annoyed.
"Katsuya!" She snapped. "What are you doing here? Is your father here too?" Then she noticed the police officer. "Oh my! Officer...did you bring him here?"
"I found the kid on the road, in the pouring rain. He was VERY determined to get here. Happy birthday Shizuka-chan." He smiled at the little girl.
"Thank you!" She bowed and pulled her brother inside the house. "Onii-san come play with me!"
"He's a sweet one." He smiled at Jounouchi's mother. "I hope you don't get mad at him, he told me he's not supposed to come here."
"He's not, but I'd rather him come alone then his father come." She frowned. "That boy is so...disobedient. Well thank you, officer. I'll bring him home, you've done enough."
"Well, just make sure you tell him what he did was dangerous, and he was lucky I picked him up and not someone who would want to hurt him."
"I will, don't you worry about that." She bowed and he turned to leave. She shut the door behind him as he left and turned to her children playing on the floor. She frowned. Katsuya was playing rough again. He was ALWAYS playing rough. The little blonde tackled his little sister and she pushed him away. The two chased each other around the living room until Jounouchi caught her and lifted her up. She kicked and giggled madly as he pretended to be a big dragon about to eat her for dinner.
"Katsuya! Stop playing rough with your sister. Put her down this instant." His mother demanded.
"I'm sorry." The boy put his sister down and put his hands behind his back.
"Come with me, Katsuya. You're soaking wet, and getting Shizuka wet. Shizuka-chan you stay here please." Jounouchi's mother grabbed his hand and dragged him into the bathroom. She instructed him to remove his clothing as she got a large towel from the top shelf. She turned to the naked boy behind her and wrapped the towel around him. "Dry yourself off, and I'll put these in the dryer for you." She sighed.
"Ok." The blond nodded as she left. She dropped them in the dryer and turned the machine on. She turned back to her son and frowned once more.
"You were very bad today Katsuya." She said sternly. Jounouchi looked up at her with big sad eyes.
"But it's Shizuka's birth-"
"I know, and I'm sure she's very pleased with you, but you know the rules. ALSO, hitch hiking is VERY dangerous. A bad person could have picked you up and hurt you, and then you never would get to see Shizuka ever again. You don't want that now do you?"
"No."
"Good. So you'll never, EVER do this again?" She crossed her arms and practically glared at the child.
"Yes, kaa-san." Jounouchi looked at his feet. His mom hated him. She always did, and he REALLY wished she hadn't been around tonight, but he supposed she wasn't like his father. She didn't leave Shizuka home alone. He didn't so much care for his mom because she was mean. Not the same mean as his father, but an equally hurtful mean. She took Shizuka away, and forbid them to see each other, thus putting her right in the bad books.
"Stay in here till your clothes dry."
"Can't I play with Shizuka?"
"No." She closed the door behind her and he glared at it, despite the fact that the door couldn't be blamed. What did she think he was going to do? Hurt Shizuka? He would NEVER hurt Shizuka. His stomach grumbled suddenly and he pouted. He was hungry. He was also afraid to leave the bathroom until his clothes were dry. He was also bored with waiting for them to dry.
"I hate waiting! I hate waiting! I hate waiting! Waiting is dumb! Waiting is dumb!" Jounouchi sang rather loudly. "Waiting, waiting! Waiting is stupid! Stupid waiting!" He started to hop around, continuing his random singing. His mother came in after a moment and glared at him.
"Katsuya! Stop singing so rudely! Can't you just sit still and be silent like a good child?"
"Can I eat? I'm hungry!" He pleaded, putting on his sad face.
"Fine, but stay quiet and wait for your clothes." She left again, leaving Jounouchi in the bathroom alone.
"Stupid wet clothes." Jounouchi muttered. "Be dry!" He laid on his stomach and let his mind wander for a while, when the machine stopped. Jounouchi jumped up and opened the dryer door and pulled his clothes out. They were warm and dry. He smiled and put the clothes on, then trotted happily out of the bathroom. He found Shizuka and his mom in the kitchen. Shizuka was colouring, and his mom was drinking tea.
"Here's a bowl of rice for you." His mother pointed at a bowl on the opposite end of the table from Shizuka. Jounouchi thanked his mother and began to wolf the food down noisily.
"Onii-chan! You're so funny!" Shizuka smiled, and Jounouchi made a funny face at her.
"Katsuya, do not make faces at the table- or anywhere. It's rude." His mother scolded. Jeez, his mom sure was strict. Jounouchi wasn't use to having her nagging him anymore, and she seemed to be nagging him for EVERYTHING. Next she'll tell him his blinking or breathing is being done rudely. He finished and pushed the bowl away, placing his chopsticks on the top of it.
"Can Shizuka and I play now?"
"I'm taking you home, right now." His mother stood up.
"Oh." There was no arguing with her.
"Can I go too?" Shizuka asked brightly.
"Yes sweet heart." His mother smiled at her fondly. Everyone loved Shizuka. Sometimes he was a little jealous, but only sometimes. Not today. It was her birthday today. She put a little pink raincoat on Shizuka that had purple flowers on it. It was very girly and plastic looking. They piled into the car and Jounouchi briefly thought about how he didn't get any cake.
"How long is the drive to onii-san's?" Shizuka asked.
"Long." His mother answered briefly. She glared into her rear view mirror at Jounouchi in the back seat. The rest of the ride was quiet; except for Shizuka telling her mother about the frog her and her friends found that only had exactly ONE speckle. Jounouchi was content to just hear his sister. He was afraid to say anything, catching the drift that his mother was VERY angry with him. About an hour and a half later they were in Domino. Both Shizuka and Jounouchi had fallen asleep. Jounouchi's mother stopped the car in front of his apartment. She got out of her car and opened the back door. She woke her son up and told him not to wake Shizuka.
He watched her drive away, without as much as a good bye. This was the second time he'd watched her drive away, with Shizuka. He wiped a tear away that had started to form and went into the building, feeling lonely and rejected.
"Home already?" His dad grumbled from the living room.
"Yes." Jounouchi remembered he'd lied to his Otousan about going to Honda's. Well at least his dad wasn't going to get him in trouble today.
"Oh. I thought you would stay over night or something. Oh well, I'm going out anyway." His dad stood up and shrugged. "Don't wait up; I don't know when I'll be home." He grabbed his jacket and ruffled Jounouchi's hair. "See you later, Katsuya." Then he was gone. Jounouchi sat on the floor, and suddenly felt very, very sad. He hugged his knees and just sat staring into space, waiting for his bed time to come.
END