I do not own Highschool of the DEAD or its characters.
Updated: 10/16/13
Takashi stood at the top of a hill looking down the road with binoculars. To his left, Kohta was doing the same with the scope of his rifle. Saeko, to Takashi's right, guarded while they scouted.
Rei and the others watched behind and to the flanks, just in case, but they had yet to see one of Them during their trip.
"This is really creeping me out," Takashi said. "I keep getting a feeling like we're being watched, but I don't see anyone. What do you see, Kohta?"
Kohta raised his head from the scope, "Nothing out of place. I've looked at roofs, windows, alleys; anywhere someone would be hiding and watching, but I don't see anything suspicious."
Handing the binoculars to Kohta, Takashi sighed, "Well, the pharmacy is at the bottom of the hill and hopefully Tanaka-san is okay. We'll plan what to do next once we talk to him."
Waving for the others, he started down the hill with Zeke beside him. Kohta stood watch as they passed and fell into their marching order. The last was Saya who stopped beside him.
"How you holding up?" She asked, smiling at him.
He smiled back, "Okay, a little winded, but it feels good to be moving around. I just hope we don't have to do any running, I'm not sure I'm up to more than a short sprint."
She squeezed his hand and then moved up to her position near Shizuka and Alice.
Kohta let them walk a short distance ahead and after checking behind him, he followed, sweeping his gaze from side-to-side watching for threats.
Five minutes later Takashi stopped in front of the building with the pharmacy sign. He set the others to watching as he, Saeko and Shizuka went inside. Within a minute he was back and motioning for the rest to follow.
Inside they found Saeko and Shizuka in the back of the store talking to an older man with a slight stoop to his shoulders. He stood about Saya's height, and was happily chatting away with the two women as Shizuka hugged one of his arms to her chest.
After making introductions, Takashi got down to business. "Tanaka-san, have you seen any of Them lately?"
Shaking his head the man replied, "No Komuro-san, I have been out several times since you were last here but have not seen a single one of Them."
"What about other survivors?" Takashi asked.
"There are twelve or fifteen left in the area, mostly old people like me," He said. "I told most of them about you and your group. I let them know you were good to me and they should not be afraid if they see you walking around with guns."
Takashi nodded understanding what the old man meant. He had watched their own reflections in store windows before, and if you did not know them, you would think they were some armed gang roaming the streets.
Takashi, Kohta and Saeko talked to Tanaka-san about the best place for them to get clothes while the others looked around the store seeing if there was anything they needed.
After making sure she knew where they were heading next Saeko whispered, "Don't forget!" into Takashi's ear and then went to see what the other girls were up to.
With the women out of earshot, Takashi blushed and asked quietly, "Ah, Tanaka-san, can I make a special request of you?"
Leaning in closer Takashi made his request while Tanaka-san chuckled slightly. Motioning for them to follow him he led them in to the storeroom where he had been living. Over in the corner he pulled down a box and opened it. "Eh, help yourselves; I've got six cases of them!"
Takashi and Kohta, red-faced, each picked up two boxes of condoms while Tanaka-san chuckled. He then picked up two more of each and pushed them into the boy's hands. "Eh, I know young men and women; you'll need more than that!"
Takashi asked him what he needed in exchange and Tanaka-san shook his head. "Not this time, Komuro-san. The two of you are being responsible young men, thinking of your ladies and what might happen. Hmm, come to think of it, since you are going for clothing, I could use some undergarments and socks. I get tired of rewashing the same few pair over and over again."
After learning what sizes Tanaka-san needed, they all went back out front to where the girls had picked a few items they needed. Tanaka-san waved them off when they tried to barter for them. "No, no, Komuro knows what I need. That will take care of it."
Tanaka-san told them he was just about to make tea and asked they sit and have some with him. Knowing the old man was probably lonely Takashi agreed.
After a few minutes and with Shizuka's help, he presented them with cups of tea and a plate of cookies from his stock.
They talked about how things were before the outbreak and Takashi asked if Tanaka-san had any family.
"Eh, my wife died several years ago and I kept this place to have something to do more than anything else. I have a daughter who lives in Kyoto. She and her husband have a pharmacy there. I hope they're alright, but who knows."
As they packed to leave, Shizuka slipped over and gave the old man a quick peck on the cheek to which he fussed at her about bothering old men. All the while he was blushing with a huge grin on his face.
He stood in the door and waved as they formed up and marched off down the street.
000
Half an hour and several turns later, Takashi held up his hand for the group to halt. They had stopped in front of a department store that still had a couple of its front windows and one door intact. They did a sweep and clear of the building, then settled down to find what they needed.
Takashi and Zeke watched the front door as the others dug through the racks of clothes.
Kohta returned first wearing boots, black cargo pants, an AC/HP t-shirt, and a leather jacket. Setting his backpack down by the door, he said he would cover them while Takashi picked clothing for himself.
Takashi could hear the girls laughing and talking in the back of the store as he hunted for pants that would fit him. Hearing the soft rustle of clothes moving, he felt Saeko ease up behind him and wrap her arms around his chest.
"Finding what you need?" She asked as she peeked over his shoulder.
"I think," Takashi replied. "Kohta picked cargo pants and some other things that suit our current situation."
She squeezed his shoulder, "Let me see what else he got so I can advise you."
She was only gone a minute. "He made some very sensible choices. He recommended you also get a pair of heavy jeans, extra socks and underwear. He said they breakdown faster when you do a lot of marching."
Takashi watched as she began search through the cargo pants. She pulled out a pair and held them up in front of her.
"Hmm, I think these will work. I need to try them on to make sure they do not bind me and slow me down."
"You're going to give up your mini-skirt?" He asked.
"No, but I do need a change, I like my skirt…don't you like my skirt, Takashi?"
Takashi grinned lecherously, "I love your skirt. I love you in that skirt. I would love to be taking you out of that skirt right now."
Saeko laughed, "And that is why I'm not going to let you into the dressing room with me! We might end up staying in there all day."
Takashi grinned and nodded as she headed back to where the other girls were.
Saeko found Saya and Rei picking clothing for Alice, who stood to one side with one eyebrow raised.
Saeko squatted down beside the child and asked, "What are you thinking?"
Alice looked at her meekly, "I'm thinking they are picking stuff I would wear to a party."
Trying to hold back a smile Saeko asked, "How do you feel about that?"
Alice looked over at the older girl. "Papa and Mama always said to dress in sensible things while traveling. We could always dress up later when we got there."
"And what are you going to do about it?"
Alice thought for a second and then turned back to Saya and Rei. "Saya-chan, am I going to a party?"
Saya and Rei turned toward the child and looked at her in surprise.
Alice pointed at the dress Saya held in her hands. "That looks like a dress mama would have me wear to birthday parties. When I was running around playing with my friends I wore pants or shorts. Don't you think that would be better with us walking so much?"
Saya and Rei both blushed as they looked at the dress in Saya's hands.
Saya knelt down, "Your right, munchkin. Rei and I got carried away with the fact you're a little girl and how we would like to see you dressed."
Saya tossed the dress over her shoulder. "Knowing what we know, what do you want to dress in?"
Alice headed for a rack of pants and shorts. Digging through them she came up with a pair of each, and then headed to t-shirts. She picked two that had puppies and kitties on them before pointing at blue jean jackets and asking if they would help her find one to fit.
"Kohta recommended everyone get extra underwear and socks since we are walking so much," Saeko told the other girls.
Saya nodded, "Good idea, I didn't think about it in that way."
As Rei led Alice off to try on her clothes, Saeko leaned over and whispered in Saya's ear, "Why don't you come with me?"
Wondering what was up, Saya followed Saeko to another area where racks of women's underwear and lingerie stood.
"Why are we over here?" She asked.
"I would like you to help me pick out something special I can wear for Takashi. Men like to see their women in sexy things, they like to see their women taking off sexy things as well as taking them off themselves," She said.
"Why me and not Shizuka-sensei? I'm sure she has a lot of experience with stuff like this."
Looking at the pink haired girl, Saeko said, "Sensei would be too loud and give the secret away, and I very well can't ask Rei now can I? Plus I just thought you might want to look for something for yourself and…well you know what I'm saying."
"Me?" squeaked Saya. "Why would I want anything like this?"
"Think about it."
Saeko watched as Saya's brain began to process the information. Eyebrows went up and down, mouth worked back and forth and eyes narrowed before she looked back at Saeko and asked, "What color do you think would suit me?"
Saeko smiled, "Pink or white I believe, black or red would be too dark for your skin tone."
Nodding with a smirk on her face Saya began to dig into the racks on clothing.
000
A couple of hours later saw Takashi and Kohta sitting in chairs by the front door discussing how long it was taking for the girls to get done.
"You ever been clothes shopping with a woman before?" Takashi asked his friend.
"Oh yeah," Kohta replied. "Mother used to drag me around to a bunch of shops when the new styles came out so she could see what the other design houses were up to. I only stopped going a couple of years ago when she noticed how much attention I was paying to the models."
Takashi chuckled, thinking about Kohta drooling over a bunch of fashion models while his mother looked on. "Mom always let me pick most of my clothes myself unless I got too outrageous. I never knew it took this long though to pick out a few things though."
Zeke, who was lying quietly at their feet, huffed in agreement.
"That's because you have a lot to learn about women yet, Takashi," Saeko interjected as she walked up the aisle to meet them.
Takashi grinned, "Will you teach me, Saeko-chan?"
Saeko grinned back and wrinkled her noise at him, "Oh, you just don't know what you're in for."
The three were still chuckling as the others walked up still wearing the clothing they came in with.
"Didn't find anything, Saya?" Kohta asked with a smile on his face.
"Baka," Saya replied. "I want to wash what we picked before wearing it. Most of it is dusty. It has been hanging for a while. Stand up and let me look at you."
He stood and let her walk around looking.
She stopped with her hands on her hips, "Okay, boots, cargo pants and t-shirt I understand, but why the leather jackets? You and Takashi finally showing your Yankii colors?"
Smirking, Kohta held his arm out, "Feel it and tell me what you think."
She took ahold of his sleeve and squeezed and pulled. She got a surprised look on her face, "Takashi, let me see yours."
Takashi held out his arm for Saya to inspect. Where Kohta chose an old style motorcycle jacket like a 1950's biker would wear, Takashi had taken a more modern style in red and black like someone who rode new race bikes.
"Get it now Saya?" Kohta asked.
Smiling she hugged him, "Yes! Leather armor! That was so smart of you! How well do you think it will work?"
He hugged her back, "Well if it slows them down even for a couple of seconds it might mean the difference between life and death. What about you? Can I get you to put one on?"
Looking up into his worried eyes she nodded, "Yeah, I think that might be a good idea. Help me pick one out."
Kohta looked back as they headed to the racks, "Anyone else? There are plenty here."
Saeko shook her head, "Good idea, but I think it would hinder my mobility."
Takashi looked at Rei, "What about you, Rei? How do you feel about it?"
She also shook her head, "I'm with Saeko, I think it would take too much getting used to right now and would slow me down. Maybe later when it starts getting colder."
Looking at the nurse next he asked, "Sensei? What about you?"
She simply shook her head and glanced down at Alice. Takashi understood what she meant; if things got that bad, it would not make a difference.
Saya and Kohta came back with Saya wearing a pink leather jacket like Kohta's.
Looking at her Takashi asked, "Pink? Really?"
"Shut up baka!"
Takashi looked around, "Well, if we're ready let's head out and find some food."
Taking the lead, he stepped out into the street and scanned for trouble. Finding everything clear, he waved for the others to follow him down the road.
000
Walking towards the pharmacy, they continued further down that street to the market Tanaka-san had sent them to several days before.
On the way, Kohta saw what he had been looking for. He made a quick whistle and the others stopped to see what he wanted.
Motioning to a gardening shop to his left, he waved the others back to him.
As they gathered around he said, "I want to look in here and see if we can find a cart that will suit our needs."
Takashi, Saya and Kohta, went in while Saeko and Rei guarded Shizuka and Alice.
A short while later they came out with Kohta pulling a two-wheeled cart with rubber tires. He had taken some rope and made a harness which looped around his shoulders and behind his neck. This allowed him to pull the cart and keep his hands free at the same time.
Putting several of their packs in the cart, they moved on to the market.
Reaching the store, they quickly checked for undead before gathering items to put in the cart.
"Pickings have gotten a lot slimmer since we were last here," Takashi told Saya.
Saya frowned as she looked over the selection of canned meat. "Ugh, most of this stuff wasn't edible before Z-Day much less now."
"What?" Takashi asked. "There's nothing wrong with those little sausages or that potted meat. I used to like them as a snack with crackers."
"Eww," Saya said with a look of disgust on her face. "That would figure coming from you."
Takashi smirked, "I bet you didn't like them because of what they looked like."
Saya blushed and punched him on the arm, "Baka! Don't be vulgar!"
Takashi laughed as he went to check on the others. He helped Alice pick dog food and treats for Zeke and then carried bread mix, flower, rice and sugar to the cart for Rei.
He found Saeko putting bars of chocolate in the cart.
"Stocking up on sweets?" he asked with a smile.
She smiled and patted him on the cheek, "Takashi. Here is another woman lesson for you. You do not ever want us to be out of chocolate when that time of the month comes."
"Ah, okay. I think I see," he blushed and rubbed the back of his neck.
It wasn't long before the cart was full and everyone's backpacks stuffed. They had formed up and started back down the street when suddenly Zeke began to whine and run in circles. Something they had never seen before out of him.
Takashi stopped and stared at the little dog as Alice called out, "Zeke? What wrong?"
They all looked up as suddenly they heard cats yowling, and all the birds took flight in a rush of wings and feathers.
Dust started to rise in the air as low rumbles seem to come from everywhere at once.
"OH SHIT! EARTHQUAKE!" Saya screamed as the ground beneath their feet began to tremble.
"EVERYONE GET IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET! HUDDLE DOWN AND HOLD ON TO EACH OTHER!' Takashi hollered as he and Saeko staggered towards the others.
They all huddled together as the shaking got stronger and stronger.
Just when Takashi thought it was starting to let up the land gave way to their left and two older two story buildings started sliding down the slope they were built on.
It was like watching a ship sinking. One moment they were there and the next they were slowly disappearing from sight. Just as the top windows reached street level they folded in upon themselves and shot debris into the air.
Luckily the road held and the area where the teens squatted stayed solid.
Long seconds of silence followed as dust rolled in the air and the landslide slowly stopped.
Takashi and Kohta checked to make sure the others were alright before standing and looking around.
Zeke, who had crawled between Alice and Shizuka came out and stood for a second before starting to snarl and growl.
A collective moan erupted as if every undead in the city began to groan at once.
"Oh FUCK," Kohta said as a horde of undead came out of a church down the road behind them.
A/N: Here's chapter 5 for your reviews. Chapter 6 is over half written and I hope to post it very soon.