Hello my habitués! Do you like my new, fancy word? It means a devotee, like a fan. I tried to find a word that was sophisticated enough for your guys' standards, but not something awkward like disciples. Ugh, disciples. I don't even like the sound of that word; it bothers me, and if someone called me a disciple I would kinda hate them forever, so I won't torture you guys like that. Wow, I'm off topic. Anyhow, I made a playlist for Arisu! It's not of the songs I used in here (hmm… that is a good idea though…); it's just songs that she would like. I know the songs seem kinda random, but Ari likes songs for the music, not necessarily for the vocals or the message. She knows what she likes and that's all there is to it. I'm having link issues, so just go on YouTube & search 'Arisu Takahashi' & it'll show up. ~Stormy:3
We managed to make it to the market right before it closed, and got what we needed for dinner, plus I managed to grab some hair bleach, color stripper, and blue hair dye (stupid brown roots), and other things we'd need. When we finally got home I made dinner, and I had to hand it to myself; it was pretty damn good.
"This is simply delightful, Arisu. My palate has never been as pleased as it is now," Shigure commented, further inflating my ego.
"The same goes for me Ms. Takahashi," Yuki said with a smile. Kyo only nodded in agreement because he was too busy stuffing his face, which was compliment enough.
"Thanks. Now my ego will forever be over inflated," I joked, then heard a knock on the door. "I'll get it!" I ran over to the open the door, and at the door was Hatsuharu Sohma. I shouldn't have been surprised, they are family after all. After a moment of staring at each other, wide-eyed, I spoke. "Oh, hi! Come on in." I stepped aside as he removed his shoes, and practically power walked ahead of me into the dining room.
"Oh, hello Haru! I wasn't expecting to see you this evening," Shigure said.
"Could I ask you guys something?" Hatsuharu asked; when I came from the door to stand by him, I saw him pointing one hand at me, trying to hide it with the other.
"Do want some dinner? It's tempura donburi," I offered, walking past him toward the kitchen.
"Um, no thanks, uh…"
"Takahashi Arisu. You can call me Ari." I said, retaking my seat at the table.
"So, Shigure, like I was saying, could I talk to you-" he started.
"Oh! Wait a second!" I got up and acted like I was going to walk past him, but at the last second, I grabbed him, and pulled him in for a hug from behind.
"Shit!" he yelled, jerking away. Then he, like many others before him, was lost.
"Scared ya, didn't I?" I said, grinning like a fox. "I'm a freak and proud of it. I know about everything; including you, so don't bother with the 'Could I talk to you alone?' crap." I walked over to my seat to clear my dishes, and walked away to the kitchen, hoping to give him a moment to process things.
"Shigure-" Hatsuharu started.
"We can't seem to explain it either. Maybe she's just a very special girl."
"You god damn perv! What the hell is wrong with you?!" I heard Kyo yell, and I stifled a giggle as I walked back into the room.
"Ok, so, I figure you guys are gonna have some import stuff to talk about, so I'm gonna be in my room. See ya!"
"Her room?" I heard Hatsuharu whisper-yell.
"Heard that!" I yelled from the top of the stairs. "Yes, my room. I happen to live here. Hope that cleared some things up!" I ran up to my room and changed into a black tank-top and guy-shorts, grabbed the dye and bleach, and headed to the bathroom. After finishing with the color stripper and bleach, I tried to find some hair ties, to hold part of my hair in place as I did the separate dye jobs.
Crap. I think I left mine at moms. I thought. I wonder what they'd do if I came down with blonde hair… I walked out of the bathroom and headed for the stairs.
"Hey do you guys have any hair ties?" I yelled, not yet within their range of sight.
"Why the hell would we have hair ties?" Kyo said from the kitchen.
"Touché," I finally walked out from behind the wall. "Then to you guys have some ribbon or something? I could really use some right about now." I was disappointed when none of them looked up except for Hatsuharu.
"Nice look," he commented. "Did you ever consider leaving the roots like that and dying the rest black?" At that, everyone else finally looked up. I laughed at their stunned expressions.
"What? You guys never seen a blonde before? Wow. I thought you would be used to it with Hatsuharu around. Or, well, I guess you have white, not really blonde hair, huh?"
"Call me Haru," Haru said with a smile. "But seriously, consider the black with white roots."
"Sure thing. But like I was saying, do you guys have ribbon or string or something?"
"There should be some in the drawer next to the sink," Shigure answered. I managed to find some old ribbon, probably meant for wrapping presents, but it would do.
"Well gentlemen, next time I see you, I will no longer be blonde. Be strong for me!" I said dramatically.
"Yeah whatever," Kyo said, still shoving food in his face.
"Shut up," I told him, momentarily breaking character. "Like I was saying, be strong! We will meet again! Adieu!" I finished with a flourish of my hand, and bowed and backed out of the room to the stairs, earning a couple laughs. In about an hour and a half, I was finally done. I also had a really bad craving for ice cream. When I walked back down stairs I found the boys minus Shigure watching TV.
"Your lovely Ari-chan has returned! I just made your day better," I said getting smiles from ever one, even Kyo.
"Gasp; Kyo is that a smile I see? See guys? I wasn't kidding. Kyo's day just got better." I walked past them still in my tank top and shorts, both of which now had white and blue spots on them, especially my shirt. I began humming, and then quietly singing Lights by Ellie Goulding (one of my favorite songs in English) to myself as I looked through the freezer, trying to find ice cream.
"You show the lights that stop me, turn to stone. You shine it when I'm alone. And so I tell myself that I'll be strong and dreaming when they're gone, cause they're calling-" I finally found the ice cream and turned around and saw the three boys all leaning to the side so they could see in the kitchen and they were all looking at me, stopped singing mid-lyrics, and my eyes widened.
"What?" I asked, getting no response. "What?! Stop looking at me like that!" More staring. "What the hell guys? I swear I'm gonna start crying if no one tells me what's going on that I'm not seeing." Yuki was the first to snap out of it.
"Sorry Ms. Takahashi. I guess we were all simply enjoying your beautiful singing," he said with a smile.
"He's right, you know. You're really good. No one's ever told you that before?" Haru asked.
"Well, no. I've never really sang in front of anyone before. I didn't really think you could hear me from in there," I said with a small smile, an embarrassing blush creeping its way into my cheeks.
"What was that you were singing? I've never heard it before," Yuki said.
"Oh, it's a song my cousin Tessa, she lives in America, showed me. It's called Lights, and it's by a singer named Ellie Goulding." I said, locating a bowl and spoon. "I've been taking American English, so I'm able to understand what most of it means."
"Oh. I wasn't aware you had a cousin in America," Yuki said. "Do you get to see her often?"
"Not really," I answered honestly. "I really only got to see her when her parents could afford a plane ticket for me. Most of the time we would talk with webcams, her at home, and me at the library. I remember beating up her boyfriend last time I was there. Unlike my epic battle with Kyo, I actually won."
"That, I would've liked to see," Kyo said.
"Fought Kyo, huh? How'd you do?" Haru asked a smile on his lips.
"Got pinned, only after pinning him; for about half a second."
"How'd you manage to pin him?"
"Tried to kick him in the face before he got my hands tied behind me, I missed and hit his shoulder, but he loosened his grip, so I kept kicking and he lost his balance. I managed to sort of pin him but he flipped me. Apparently, self-defense classes don't help you with someone with Kyo's skills."
"Why'd ya take self-defense classes? What good are they?" Kyo asked.
"They're the reason this," I held up my still bandaged, but on-the-mend hand. "Isn't my face."
"Man, what'd Kyo do to you?"
"Hey! Why do you assume it was me, huh? You tryin' to say something?!" Kyo yelled.
"Hey! I'm tryin' to say something! Calm the heck down! Jesus Christ, do you guys not stop fighting? You all need couples counseling. And Kyo didn't do this, it was just an accident," I lied. I didn't want to explain everything to him; it's not like I didn't like Haru, he's nice and all, but it felt like he was watching every move I made. It creeped the hell outta me.
"More like that stupid cat needs, counseling, period," Yuki said snidely.
"No! Ok, see, that's what I meant. The childish name calling is getting old already! So are the snide little side comments that just have to be made!" I felt a second headache coming on. "Have you guys ever heard the saying 'If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all'?" I groaned and covered my face with my hands. "Ugh! Why do I even have to tell you this? You guys are young men, not babies, so don't make me treat you like them!" When I finished my rant, Yuki and Kyo were silent and Haru was grinning and gave low whistle.
"Wow. Never seen anyone yell at them like that. You got guts. I like that. Well, I'll just be on my way. Later." He let himself out, leaving Yuki and Kyo staring at me, and me staring right back. I was still fuming so I just grabbed the bowl of ice cream, basically threw the tub back in the freezer, and went to make an attempt at unwinding in my room.
Yuki…
She's right. He didn't want to admit it, but there was no avoiding it. They were being childish; squabbling like children. He still hated Kyo with a burning passion, but he would no longer show it in front of Ms. Takahashi. Around her, he felt normal, like he was like everyone else. He didn't want to risk losing that, because if he did, he was sure he would go completely mad.
Arisu…
(Fall For You- Secondhand Serenade)
I cannot believe I did that! I totally flipped a bitch on them. They're probably arguing over who hates me more now. I shoved my over-ear headphones cord into my IPod and began blasting my music while lying on the floor, seeing no reason to get up. Despite the loud music, my headache slowly began to fade. I allowed the music to take over, letting myself to drown in it like I had many times before. It had taken me a long time to gather enough money for my precious IPod; years of keeping change from shopping, of putting water in with moms booze to make it last longer. It all paid off in the form of a fourth generation IPod touch. I must have fallen asleep, because I woke with a start to a different song and someone shaking my shoulders. I pulled the head phones off my ears, and sat straight up, hitting heads with whoever was shaking me.
"Ouch! Crap! What the hell?" I said, blinking at the bright lights that were now on. I heard whoever I hit groan, and saw it was Kyo sitting a little behind me.
"Can I help you?" I said, sounding a little more pissed than I'd intended.
"Hey! It ain't my fault! You're the one who was passed out on the floor! How's that gonna look?" he snapped back.
"Ugh, I don't even care right now. My head hurts too much to care," I said, lying back down and putting my headphones around my neck, and now my head was right next to his legs. "Like I said, can I help you?"
"Well, uh, about earlier. I, well, me and tha- um, Yuki, we shouldn't of-" I smiled at his attempt at apologizing.
"Please don't tell me you're apologizing. I'm the one who totally flipped a bitch on you two. It's not your guys' fault," I said, finally adjusting to the light so I was able to see into his copper-red eyes with my indigo ones. They say the eyes are the window to the soul, and Kyo's seemed guarded, like he had so much he wanted to keep hidden. I sat up to get my IPod and change the song, but when I turned back to look at Kyo, I didn't realize how close this made us; there was only about an inch or two between us. I could see his eyes really well now; they were guarded, but not vulnerable. He was strong. He'd obviously been through a lot, or else he wouldn't have be so guarded, or so strong. I could feel my blush creep into my cheeks at the same time his did. I almost began to close the gap, almost, but he got up abruptly.
"I gotta go," he said, quickly leaving.
Kyo…
What the hell am I doing?! Kyo asked himself, retreating to his room and throwing himself down on his bed. She was right there, looking right at him. Any guy who knew anything wouldn't have hesitated to kiss her, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He just… he didn't even know. Panicked maybe? But why would he panic? It's just Ari. Sheesh… this is so damn stupid…
Arisu…
"Morning," I said once I got downstairs. "Slave! Make me food!" I yelled at Kyo, before promptly flopping down on the couch. I heard him mumble something about, "damn game."
"Hey Kyo, do you smell that?" I asked.
"No," he responded, raising an eyebrow.
"Exactly. Now stop complaining and get in the kitchen and make me food!" I saw Yuki come downstairs looking as tired as me.
"I assume this is what you meant about him being your slave for a day?" he asked.
"Yep. This is gonna be the hardest day of his life."
"Then you must plan on working him pretty hard if you're going to beat wrestling bears in the mountains for four months."
"I didn't wrestle bears!" Kyo shouted from the kitchen.
"I believe I'm out of the loop on this. When was Kyo in the mountains for four months?" I asked, very curious and now more awake.
"Kyo was training in the mountains for four months with his master a while back. It was shortly after that that he moved in with us," Yuki clarified.
"Really? That's so cool! That must have been really hard; I know I probably would've died of exhaustion before the first day was over," I said, totally serious. I'm like Rin, I'm healthy (ish), but I don't work-out or anything. The only muscles I have are in my legs from waking up late and then sprinting to school almost every morning. "Slave! Hurry up! Me hungry!"
"Shut up!" Kyo yelled back at me.
"You shut up!" I shouted, like I was playing the five-year-old-copy-me-game.
"I told you first!" he argued, sticking his head through the door way.
"Yeah, well you're my slave so that's too god damn bad, isn't it?" I retorted, earning a kinda scary glare but finally silencing him, and making Yuki smile more than I'd ever seen him smile before noon. After a while, Kyo stiffly walked out.
"Food's done." He said, before walking away. I walked after him over to the table to find enough okayu and miso soup for all of us. It was actually pretty good. After eating and clearing our dishes our dishes, I sat back down as Kyo and Yuki got ready to leave.
"Ya comin' or what?" Kyo said, waiting for me to get up. I stuck my arms up in response.
"Carry me!"
"No way in hell! Ya gotta be kiddin' me!"
"Slave..." I taunted. He only scowled and probably swallowed his pride before coming over and bending over for me to get on for a piggyback. "Yay!" I hopped on and he carried me outside. Yuki was outside waiting.
"How long does… it… take…" he trailed off as he stared. He didn't laugh, but I swear every one of his face muscles tensed as he just turned away and began walking, but I swear I could see him just barely shaking with laughter.
"What?" I asked. "You ain't never seen someone giving someone else a piggyback ride? You got a problem with that? Come at us bro! We'll kick your ass!" I had to make him laugh; now my morning wouldn't be complete until I did. I saw his hands clench, and I could tell all of his muscles flexed by how stiffly he was walking. I will break you…
I pulled out my IPod and headphones and began blaring House of the Rising Sun by Pip (bless his bowties).
"Do ya mind? I'd like to be able to hear in the future if ya don't mind!" Kyo said irritably as I began lip synching. I understood a majority of the words, and the others I'd memorized from listening to it so often.
"Yuuuuukiiii….. you know ya wanna turn around and seeeee it," I tempted. Sadly, he didn't seem to care. I sighed in temporary defeat and slumped over, resting my chin on Kyo's shoulder. Hmm… I slowly got off Kyo's back, but I quickly shoved my finger to my lips to tell him to be quiet as he breathed a sigh of relief. I walked forward, ever so quietly; until I was right behind Yuki. I waited for his arm to swing forward before I gently but quickly jabbed him in the side and wiggled my fingers. Finally, a small gasp of laughter escaped his lips.
"Yes! I finally made the almighty Price Yuki laugh!" I yelled to the heavens while laughing myself. He completely ignored me and turned away to keep walking, but not before I saw a slight blush creep across his face. Suddenly, Kyo was behind me.
"Nice one," he said with a nod of approval. "Not easy to catch him off-guard." I hopped back up on Kyo's back and he began walking again toward school. Yuki didn't say anything the rest of the way.