A/N: I have no excuses for myself. Well, that sounded more stupid then I thought. I'm back! I don't know where I went though. Maybe I was in a coma.
"You don't have a chimney. Stupid." Youko slapped the back of Tyson's head, pointing up to the houses roof afterwards. Laughing it off his crouches down, staring at the front door of the house. A mere locked door had transformed into a mote guarding the entrance to a castle.
"Hold on...knock on the door." Tyson stood up, looking to the top floor of the dwelling, targeting the window to the right side. Moving on his own accord, Tyson approaches the door to bang his right fist upon its hard wooden surface. Jumping back almost immediately to view that top window once more. With all the others mirroring him out of intrigue, they all flinch, while Tyson smiles as the room behind the window lights up. Otome jabs the American boy on his arm, pointing to the window everyone was so focused on. Ignoring her, the anxious states continue as a loud series of steps are heard, and the latch on the front door eventually clicks open.
*BAM!* the door flies open immediately. Struck by said door, Tyson flies off to the left as he stumbles from the contact. A bright light shines on the group, and Yukoto barely makes out the barrel of a gun before he decides to raise his own weapon. Shifting to his right he blocks to two young girls from possible danger as they cower on the lawn.
"Put the gun down!" The boy makes his demands behind his quivering hands, his finger jittering at the base of the trigger as his shoulder stiffens under the end of the rifle. Seeing his weapon, the one at the door shuts off the light at the base of their guns barrel. A tall, busty woman was standing in the doorway, her clothing torn and tattered, blood staining her torso and parts of her long brown hair. Witnessing Yukotos determination and resolve, she drops her weapon, a sleek black shotgun, on the floor beside her.
"The hell, Amy! You don't know how to say 'who is it?'!"
"Tyson? Tyson, you're okay!" the woman hoists him up, smashing his cheek against her bosom, until he pushes away out of embarrassment. Shaking the poor boy like a pendulum the woman does not cease her display until seeing Yukoto heave over in his loss of strength. Throwing out a few words in english, she instructs Tyson to bring his company inside, to diagnose the white haired boys current trouble.
"...?!" the woman sat Yukoto in a chair, shouting at him in her foreign dialect as she barraged him with questions he could not answer.
"Amy, you're speaking English!" the woman slaps herself after hearing Tyson's remark spoken in Japanese. "Just speak Japanese, and stop switching between the two!"
"Well then..." the woman blushes in front on Yukoto as she lets her hands wander over his trembling form. Feeling his fourhead, he had shown no signs of having flu symptoms, yet alone any othe basic health problems.
"I told him he needed to slow down. This is what he gets for being so ignorant." Youko scoffed at Yukotos weakened form, paying him no mind as she bypassed him, moving to kitchens sink to wash her face. Otome sighed, not able to help but agree with the statement, as she and Tyson both nodded at eachother with affirmation. All but two had placed the big at fault, and those two angels had crowded around his side to show their affections. Hanako had clasped to her brothers torso, while Hotaru squeezed his hand. By now he had passed out, his snoring the only vocal noise within the room.
"So, aren't you going to introduce me to your friends, Tyson?" the woman stood up, her eyebrows bouncing up and down as her eyes switched glances between Tyson, Youko, and Otome.
"We are NOT friends! And who are you, his mom or something?" Youko, speaking for the group, mostly herself, points her finger at the odd woman. Giggling at the fiery teenage girl, Amy steps next to Tyson, throwing her arm around his body.
"I'm only twenty-eight years old, a little young to be a mother, but I'm not. I'm his sister, Amano Amy, at your service."
"And that service, would entail..." Youko started.
"The dunce is actually pretty smart. She came along with me to get a job at the school as a nurse. She was hired, not that it matters now. " Tyson cut through the formalities, spitting everything out into the open. Then, his eye twitches in anger, recalling something before he pushed his sister away from him. "Smart, I take that back! You held us at gunpoint just now!"
Youko and Otome catch on as well, adding in a simultanious 'He's right!' as they both stomped the ground. Amy only giggled again, pointing at the gun which she had held. Asking Tyson to lift it from the floor, he cringes stupidly as the 'weapon' rattles around at the slightest of movements. Poking at the trigger, he sighs as a tiny puff of air escapes from the barrel, with nothing but a plastic red pellet editing the barrel.
"It's an...airsoft gun."
"Just like the one that boy had aimed at me, yes?"
"Not...exactly. Sorry sis."
"Im sorry about that, actually." Amy jumped as Yukotos hand patted her right shoulder, yet she pouted when she saw him walking to the front windows. peeking outside he relieves himself by seeing an empty street. "My names Yukiko Yukoto, and I apologize for our form of meeting, Ms Amano."
"If only you were older..." Amy whispers.
"What was that?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all! Now there's plenty of rooms to rest in now make yourselves comfortable I'll be upstairs okay bye!" Amy turns around to bolt up the flight of steps, her brother chasing after her, demanding a debriefing of how she became covered with blood, and how her garments were so tattered.
As things slowly began to settle, everyone stood silent, merely standing or sitting around various places among the homes first floor. Youko had taken a seat at the kitchen table, Otome was standing, leaning over the countertop, while Yukoto leaned back in a recliner in the livingroom, Hotaru and Hanako sitting with him on the arms of the chair. Things had seemed peaceful, the noise of death and chaotic anarchy had all but disappeared, but from where the were it wasn't a problem.
As minutes went by, the sandman had cast his spell on the young children, their almost lifeless forms slouching against Yukotos sides. Creeping out of the chair, he watches them both slowly tumble into his previous seat, and into a full form of rest. Too filled with worry and fear, the boy walks into the kitchen, grunting first as he sees Youko staring down at the table in front of her, her hair hanging down the front of her face as her quiet whimpers drowned out the quick pitter-patter of her falling tears.
"You should be resting. You do look more exhausted than the rest of us." Otome stopped Yukoto, sitting him at the small two person table near the kitchens refrigerator. "Are you still not eating anything?"
"You know that already. I worked from after school, until I went to bed that same night, every night for the past three months."
"We'll yes, I know you haven't eaten, but why? Surely you had the time to do so?"
"The time, certainly. But no food to eat. Any food that was aside for me, I gave to Hanako. Before I left for work everyday, you would show up to look after my sister, yes? Well, as you know, I cooked dinners for you, my mother, and my sister, and stored them away for later. Thinking ahead, I needed to save money to pay for our accumulated bills, so I cut my portion out of the equation. I only bought food intended for the three of you."
"Why didn't you tell me!? I would've worked for free if you had needed me too!"
"Because of Hanako. She adored you. If paying for you to look after her day after day would keep her happy, then I would gladly starve."
"But you paid me by the hour!"
"I know I did. "
"I feel so rotten...Let me cook you some food for a change! Here, I'm sure Ms Amano wouldn't mind!" standing up excitedly, Otome gathered some pots and pans, and began rummaging through the refrigerator for ingredients. As he watched her go about her business, Yukoto noticed something odd about her. A red glow spread across her face, along with a thin layer of sweat atop her brow.
'Is she...' he stared at her some more as she threw some vegetables onto a cutting board, and couldn't help but notice that she was trying so hard. She turned more red as the seconds went on, and even gritted her teeth out of nervousness. But soon enough, as expected, his energy had gone, and he had finally fallen asleep.
The Next Morning...
Yukoto hadn't woken up until the next morning. Noticing the exact second he had fallen unconcious, Otome had ceased her cooking, returning the uncooked ingredients to the refridgerator. As of now, everyone was now awake and alert, worried about whether or not they would be able to stay in their current haven for much longer. All had gathered in the living room to converse, debating on a course of action. The discussion had escalated quickly, the group separating into two factions with different opinions. Otome and Yukoto, with the children blindly following them, wished to surround themselves with a multitude of other survivors, while Youko and the others planned on waiting out the entire endeavor where they were.
"We're not going out there to die!" Youko, shoved a finger into Otome's face, and then turned to Yukoto next. "Talk some sense into her, red!"
"And who said I'm siding with you!? You saw the newscast, they're evacuating citizens from the city via Onbetsu bridge!"
"That's no evacutation, it's a buffet line!"
"Be nice to my big brother! It's our birthday today!" Hanako stepped between her brother and Youko, wiggling her finger at the angry girl in a 'no' type of gesture. Everyone reeled back at the girls demand, staring at both her and her brother wide eyed.
"Did you say 'our'?" Youko tilted her head, putting her hands on her hips as if to call shenanagins on the declaration.
"Yes I did! We were both born on the same day, so we share this day together! Now shut up, so I can give him his gift!" pulling down an eyelid she makes a face at Youko before running off into the other room to drag in the large black backback they had brought with them. As he watched her, Yukoto smirked as she started digging through the large bag. "It's a very special gift, that mommy told me to give Koto-Kun on our birthday."
Finally grabbing hold of the seemingly important gift, Yukoto closes his eyes per his sisters request, and holds out his hands. As she passes on the item, he feels the light touch of leather, yet heads the small rustling of metal. Opening his eyes, he glows in delight of the item, a short rapier that had belonged to his mothers family since she was a child. The blade was about half the size of his katana, yet held a point just as sharp, if not sharper. Pulling it from its leather sheathe, he becomes teary eyed at the added engravings on the blade. On each side of the blade were the family names of Yukiko and Drago, and along the rounded piece of metal above the handle in small letters, was an engraved message.
To my beloved son, I will always love you.
Your Mother,
Lucinda Drago
Seeing these words was enough to have him waver on his emotions. To Yukoto these words were his mothers last, so it cut a thin line between happiness and sadness. It also brought him warmth, knowing that his mother was thinking about him even as she approached death. Realizing finally that his sister is without a present, he snaps his fingers loudly, reaching around his neck to remove a platinum chain from around his neck. On the end of the chain was a silver locket, containing pictures of their parents, in much happier times. Looking at the small photos one final time, he holds out the chain, and drops into Hanakos cupped hands.
"What's ironic is...I need this for my daily life now. And when did you find the time to stash this in that bag?"
"It's a secret. I'll never tell!" Hanako quickly threw on her new necklace, then ran foward to hug her sibling. In the backround everyone had stopped bickering, and Tyson had started singing 'Happy Birthday', while the others joined in along the way. When the chant had finally ended, it was because of a bang on the front door. The room became silent in an instant, and then, shortly after, a moan sounded from behind the door, and a multitude of bumps sounded. One of 'them' was outside, drawn in by the noises of happiness and merriment. From then on out, there was only silence and realization. Realization that safety could not be attained.
"Should we?" Youko looked to the others, who only made gestures to refrain from taking action.
"Just let it be. The noise made killing it will only bring others nearby." Yukoto moved to the door, bringing an eye to the peephole. The zombie had turned around, distracted by something else.
"Noise? They're attracted to noise?" Amy raised her hand like a child, asking her question to whomever would provide an answer. Seeing the nodding of heads she made a face, as if she were thinking about something. "Since we haven't decided, we should figure out whether we leave, or stay."
"We're leaving. At least I can say that for the children and I. Nothing makes more noise then a mass of frightened people, so maybe staying in a big neighborhood like this isn't such a grand idea." Yukoto peered out the front windows, seeing a small mass of the dead forming towards the left of the home. Walking back into the kitchen Yukoto swiftly leaves the presense of the others, returning with the gun he had received the night before. Walking up to Tyson, he holds out the gun for him to take.
"What for?" Tyson asked.
"I have two great weapons already. And I figure that this will be of more capability in your hands." Tyson slowly takes the firearm from his hands, and shows off his smile. "Carry that backpack. It has all our ammunition, and our water."
"Sir yes sir. And may I ask that my sister and I join you? I don't want to die." Yukoto grinned, nodding his head, while the other two girls pitched in their requests as well. The group would leave as a whole, and would hopefully remain a whole.