Late February, 2002
"Daniel!"
He turned in his bed, still fast asleep when the sun shined down through the blinds. His left ear twitched slightly while his eyes opened slowly, then closed again. He didn't want to wake up now, not when he was in the middle of a really good dream. "Just ten more minutes," he muttered under his breath while pulling the sheets over his head again.
"Daniel, get up! You're going to be late for your first day at school!"
Now he was up. "Ah, crap!" he exclaimed as he threw the sheets off and quickly scrambled around his room to get dressed. "Not good, not good!" came his worried words as he pulled a shirt on, slipped his long hair out of the neck hole, and grabbed a series of hair-ties to keep it held back. He grabbed a wallet from his dresser, shoved it into the front pocket of his pants, then quickly struggled to get his shoes on before snatching a jacket from his chair.
Bounding down the stairs, He was looking around, sure he was forgetting something, other than obviously breakfast. "Backpack, backpack, where's my-"
"Next to your motorcycle, along with your helmet," Grace said as she held out a ten-dollar bill that quickly vanished from her hands. His first day, and already, Daniel was going to be late for school. Better the middle of the school year than the start.
He uttered a fast thanks before opening the garage door and letting the door swing shut behind him. Grace sighed and went back to drinking her coffee while she could hear the garage open and the distinctive sound of a street bike starting up rang out. A minute later, that same 'cycle and its rider tore off, leaving her to shake her head in dismay. "Better have been worth the fight with the district to get him into high school this late in the year."
"I am so gonn'a be late!"
The light had barely turned green before Daniel gunned the engine and tore down the road, going as fast as legally allowed, and probably a bit over that. He lowered his foot while making a right turn, using his leg as a prop, then pulled it back up against his motorcycle and shot down the street. He's not even had time to stop somewhere to grab some breakfast, and he had, if he was right, about ten minutes to get his butt to the high school, get his schedule from the main office, and get to his first class.
Damn his tendency to oversleep!
He finally saw the school, Harman High, pulled into the student lot and silently thanked his mother for picking up that parking permit from the office for him. With only a minute of a delay as he shut off the shiny red and white Kawasaki street bike, Daniel ran as fast as he could toward the main building. There were a few students still milling about outside, who stared in shock at the large trail of dust that erupted in his wake. If Daniel was one thing when in a hurry, it was inhumanly fast.
His hand grabbed the door handle and pulled out to open the door, and Daniel breathed heavily as he finally pulled lifted the front piece of his helmet, which opened up both visor and face guard. After getting directions, he made his way to the office and sighed as he walked in. "Excuse me," he intoned to one of the office staff. "Where do I got to pick of my class schedule? I just transferred in."
"Guidance Councilors, just down the hall," the man replied, almost not paying any attention. "What's your last name?"
"Stevens."
"You'll be seeing Mister Jansen then. First door on your right when you reach the corner."
Daniel quickly thanked the man, then walked briskly through the office. He hesitated in taking his helmet off, even though his ears were starting to hurt. A few people stared at his shining silvery-white hair that trailed behind him, reaching to his waist. He'd gotten used to that after fourteen years of being the way he was. He turned the corner, found the office he'd been informed of, and silently thanked the greater beings that the councilor was in there. "Mister Jansen?" he asked, the man inside giving a nod. "I'm Daniel Stevens, I just transferred in."
"Come in," Jansen replied with a smile, waving for Daniel to enter and take a seat. "Did you run all the way here?"
"Just from the parking lot," Daniel replied as he slipped off his backpack and set it next to the chair. "But, first day, and I don't wann'a be late..."
With a laugh, Jansen shook his head and started tapping keys on his computer. "I'll excuse you. Go ahead and take that helmet off while I look up your schedule."
Daniel hesitated. Would this man be so friendly once he got a look at those ears that the helmet was hiding? More over, did many of the administrators know about his condition? It was better to just get it over with, Daniel decided, and so he undid the chin strap and slipped the helmet off. Jansen looked over, then stared at the very obvious dog-ears that perched on top of Daniel's head. "I'd prefer you not stare too long," the boy said, his face flushing.
"Sorry," the councilor said as he shook his head and went back to looking up Daniel's class schedule. "I was told you have a mutation, but I didn't think it was that extreme." He was silent for a moment, then found the needed data just as the first bell rang. "We still need to fill out a couple classes," he said with a touch of concern. With a quick tap of the keyboard, Mister Jansen took a look at what classes still had open slots. "How does Video Production sound?"
That got Daniel's attention. "Fine with me," he quickly replied. He'd probably get stuck as cameraman, considering his looks didn't exactly lend well to the screen, but it was worth a shot.
"That's your fourth period filled, which leaves second though..." Scrolling through the list of classes, Jansen paused as he came to the foreign language classes. He took another look at the boy, then brought the cursor to one in particular. "I have a hunch," he intoned, "that Japanese might work."
The boy blinked a few times as that rang through his head again. "Japanese?" he questioned just as the second bell rang. "I can hardly understand the Spanglish they use at Taco Bell, let alone real Spanish. Why Japanese?"
In response, Jansen shrugged. "Always nice to branch out your horizons, isn't it? Plus, best to get those practical arts credits filled out so you're not scrambling on them down the road. You will be a month behind..." He paused for a moment, reflecting on that point. "But I'm sure you can find someone to help you catch up, and I have no doubt that Mister Watanabe won't mind taking a new student on, considering the circumstances."
Learning Japanese. He couldn't think of why that stood out, but it sounded alright. It most likely wouldn't be like the last time he'd been in public schools nine years ago. He might even actually make some real friends here! That would be a first, Daniel said to himself. Sensei Ookami was always trying to get him to build up his self-esteem, and if he could make some friends now, that would probably do him a world of good. "Sure," he finally said aloud. "Though I'm not sure how quickly I can pick up on the language..."
With a few more keystrokes, Mister Jansen finished the schedule, then picked up his office phone and dialed a room extension. "Best let your teachers know," he quipped. After a pair of rings, there was a greeting from the other end. "Missus Gallagher? It's Kevin Jansen down in the office. I got a Daniel Stevens here who just transferred in and will be joining your fourth period Video Production class starting today. Yeah, I know, it's late in the year, but...uh-huh. Yeah, we just finished setting up his schedule, so, sorry for the short notice. Alright, that'll work out fine."
As he hung up, Mister Jansen dialed another extension while Daniel watched curiously. He'd heard every word from the other side of that conversation, though he wasn't sure if he wanted to let the councilor know that. He was already late for his first class, wherever on the campus that was, though Mister Jansen had said he'd excuse the tardy.
"Mister Watanabe, this is Kevin Jansen in the office," he greeted again. "I just wanted to clear a new student with you. Yeah, I know, but he's just transferred in, and we needed to fill a couple of his classes. What? Yeah, he'll be behind, but I'm sure he should be able to get some help from one of the other students to help catch him up, he's only a month or so behind. He'll be in your second period class, so, just add his name to the attendance sheet when he gets there. His name is Daniel Stevens, and he's impossible to miss. What does that mean? You'll see when he gets there. Alright, bye."
"Wanting me to be a surprise?" Daniel asked with a raised brow. "Or is there another reason you didn't tell him about what I look like?"
Jansen shrugged and hit a key to start printing out Daniel's schedule. "Well, Mister Watanabe is originally from Japan. He's also the teacher sponsor of the Anime Club here on campus, which goes without saying considering he teaches Japanese." The print-out finished, and he pulled the sheet from the printer and handed it to the boy. "Just head on up to your first class, I'll give your teacher a call to let her know why you're late."
Picking up his backpack from the ground and slipping it back over his shoulders, Daniel gave his thanks and headed out of the office and into the main building of the school. He noticed the odd looks a couple of administrators gave him, or more accurately, his ears, especially when those ears twitched to reveal that they weren't fake. Now, he headed up through the building, looking at his schedule for where his first class was. He was going to be later than he should be, considering he'd have to look around for the room in question.
"This is one hell of a way to start high school off," he muttered while walking up a set of steps and onto the second floor. It was a bit of a problem to be so lost in here, and it didn't help he'd not been to any kind of orientation at all, so, he had no idea where he was going. "Man, this figures!" Daniel sighed and headed down the hall, and it was another five or so minutes before he found the classroom he was looking for.
There was already a lesson going on as he carefully opened the door and peaked inside. I'm so in trouble, he thought even as he entered. Everything stopped when the teacher paused and looked his way. Predictably, she began staring at his ears, then noticed his golden-yellow eyes and silvery-white hair. So was the rest of the class. "Uh...I'm Daniel. Sorry I'm so late, but I got lost."
She was silent as she was unable to process what she was looking at; a boy with dog ears on his head, eyes that were not humanly possible, and white hair. Finally, though, she shook off the shock and gestured to a seat on the window side of the room. "Amy, would you share your book with him?" she asked of the girl who was sitting in the desk next to where he parked himself.
He sighed, very upset at himself for having messed up so much already, and he hadn't even been there for an hour. The class probably thought he was a freak, and they weren't wrong, and he'd already made a bad impression on his first period teacher with how late he had been. He wasn't sure how this could get any wor-
Was someone playing with his ears!
"Are these things real?" the girl behind him asked curiously while she, of course, was tweaking his ears, oblivious to the fact he might not like it.
If he'd said to stop, she probably would have done so. If he said he didn't like it, she might have believe him and not done it again. But he'd have been grossly lying, because having his ears rubbed like that actually felt pretty nice. "Yeah," he whispered quietly. He noticed the teacher glare at the girl behind him, who quickly stopped playing with his ears and picked up her textbook again. So much for that.
About an hour later, while he was getting the cliff notes from the girl who had been sharing her textbook with him, Daniel heard the bell ring and sighed, both with relief and depression. "Thanks," he said to the girl, whose name was Amy, and packed up his papers. His English teacher, one Miss Michelle Travis, again accepted his apologies for being late, and handed him a copy of the class textbook. That quickly was slipped into his backpack, and Daniel made a mental note to see his councilor about a locker when he had a chance.
Just as he went out the door, he quickly turned back around. "Miss Travis," he began while making sure to stay clear of the incoming students. "Could you please tell me where room..." He looked at his schedule. "Three-fifteen is?"
"Just up the stairs and straight down the hall to your left," she replied. Her expression in regards to him actually softened a bit when she heard him ask so politely, not to mention how much he'd apologized his head off. "It'll be on the right side of the hallway."
Well, maybe he'd managed to fix that first impression after all. "Thank you so much," he said just before heading out of the classroom and down the hallway toward the stairwell. He had about three minutes to book it to his Japanese class, and he had to ignore the stares he got from just about everyone in reaction to his ears and hair.
About a minute before the second bell rang, he managed to find the room and get inside. Daniel didn't see any sign of the teacher, but the standard reaction to him was, of course, in action once again. Everyone, as they looked up to see who'd just arrived, stared in bewilderment at his ears and hair. He couldn't really blame them one bit, because how often did one see a kid with dog ears and hair like that?
He wasn't too sure which seats were taken, so, he moved to the far side of the room and settled for waiting for the teacher to show up. It wasn't long after the second bell rang that a tall Asian man walked into the room and shut the door behind him. He glanced around at the class, then saw Daniel waiting to see which desk he could claim. "Inuyasha..." he whispered, staring with wide eyes, but then shook his head. What he was looking at was impossible.
"My martial arts teacher calls me that too," Daniel replied softly. "I'm Daniel Stevens, Mister Jansen called you earlier about me and mentioned that you can't miss me."
"Ah, yes!" came the stuttered reply. Mister Watanabe glanced to his students and gestured for them to get to their desks. "I'm so sorry, it's just...you look like something out of the legends from my homeland."
Yes, that much he had figured out just from the word used. "Animalistic mutations," Daniel stated calmly. He weakly smiled, then headed to an empty desk in front of a girl with chestnut brown hair. Something seemed familiar about her as he took his seat, thought it was probably just the way she was staring at him. He got that a lot.
Mister Watanabe quickly took roll, looking for who was in which seat, since he'd long worked out a seating chart from where people had sat in the first few days, then noted Daniel on the bottom of the attendance sheet and set it on his desk. "I'd like to welcome our newest student," he began. "Class, say hello to Daniel Stevens."
"Konnichi wa, Daniel-san!"
Great, first time in the class, and he was completely lost as what was said, thought he had a feeling that it did translate to "hello" or "good morning." That and he'd seen Karate Kid enough times to get the "-san" part. "Uh, hi," came his terse reply.
"We'll get you a textbook later, Daniel. We're just about to start the first part of Shogun." Watanabe continued while he pulled out a DVD box and opened it. He glanced to the class while opening the DVD player and loading in the disc. "Be sure to keep notes, class. There's a lot on Japanese culture to be learned in this mini-series, and there will be a test." He noted the groans. "And I hope that at least some of you did as I suggested and read the novel. Oh, and if someone would start helping Daniel catch up during the movie, I'll excuse you from the test."
Predictably, at least six students raised their hands, but one stood out among them; the girl sitting behind Daniel. "I'll handle it!" she audibly volunteered. A few groans as Mister Watanabe nodded his approval just before he switched off the main lights and started the movie. She picked up her textbook and gestured for Daniel to join her at the back of the room. Even as he set down his backpack and sat at the round table, she just about squealed at him. "I cannot believe it!" she whispered excitedly. "Why didn't you ever call me when I moved back!"
He blinked. Did he know this girl? She looked a bit familiar, and he didn't mind her attention, since she was rather cute, but he couldn't place her face, nor her voice. That chestnut brown hair and those hazel eyes of hers sparked something in his memory though, even if he couldn't figure out what it was. "Have...we met before?" he questioned, not at all trying to hide his confusion. "I'm grateful for the help, but, I don't think I know you."
Now it was her turn to be confused. "You don't remember me?" she asked, actually sounding quite sad. "Danny, we knew each other in grade school."
Okay, now he was getting weirded out. "I never went through elementary school, not since kindergarten when..."
"Your mom pulled you out because of how much you were getting beaten up by other kids," the girl finished for him. It was like she knew exactly what he had been about to say. "I'm Lily Bennett, the girl you hung out with when we were five."
Again, he shook his head. The fact this girl knew about his past in elementary school was a bit creepy, and she genuinely acted like she had known him. But he couldn't remember anyone like her. Yes, the name rang a bell, but he couldn't quite...
And then he just about melted when she started scratching him behind the ears and rubbing them in just the right spot. That felt so good, he almost lost himself right then and there. "Don't stop that," he cooed, almost forgetting where he was.
"Now do you remember?" she quipped with a sly grin. "Or need I refresh your memory some more?"
"I don't know, will you keep doing that?"
She giggled. "Maybe later," the girl replied as she finally stopped playing with his ears and cracked open the text book. "You've missed about a month of class, it's gonn'a take a bit to catch you up."
There was a nod, and Daniel sighed as he got to work in what was probably a futile attempt to get caught up. Now that he really thought about it, she was very familiar, not to mention the fact she was really friendly with him and knew exactly where to rub his ears to get that reaction out of him. Maybe he had know her as a child, but then, why would he have forgotten someone like her? If she had been this friendly then, why was it he didn't have a coherent memory, and why hadn't they kept in touch?
Wait, there was something more to what he could remember, now that he was focusing on her, instead of the class curriculum like he should have been. She looked a lot younger now, in his mind, and her hair was a lot bouncier, with curls. And then there was the feeling that he was getting hungry. Wait, that was the fact he hadn't had anything to eat today. His own fault there.
"Danny? Are you even paying attention?"
He snapped out of his daze finally. "Huh, what?"
With a sigh, Lily pulled lightly on one of the side locks of hair that came down from where he would have had ears if he was a normal human. "Earth to Danny," she whispered. "I appreciate the attention, but you need to focus on catching up on a month's worth of work, not oogling me."
"I wasn't oogling," he replied. "I was just..."
"Staring off into space at me," came the amused statement. "Nine years since he last saw me, and already he's got a waterfall nosebleed." Lily giggled a bit while writing something down on a piece of paper. "Wonder what mom and dad would think if I told them 'he followed me home, can I keep him?'"
For a moment, Daniel wasn't sure if he'd just been complimented or insulted. He decided to hope on the former. "My nose isn't bleeding," he said, though he rubbed there just to make sure. Yep, no nosebleed. "And I'm not that bad."
The girl rolled her eyes at him, then finally pulled on that same side lock and got his attention on the textbook and not her. While she wanted nothing more than to catch up with Daniel on what had happened to them in the past nine years since they had last saw each other, it was more important to get him caught up with school. Besides, they had about twenty minutes of brunch after class, and then there was after school. Lily made a mental note to find out where Daniel's fourth and sixth periods were so she could find him later.
"I am so lost."
Figured. "Danny, you're reading where we're at, of course you don't get it!" Lilly sighed and turned the book back to the first page. "Start with the basics, baka."
"What's a 'bah-kah'?"
This was going to take a while.
