Rosario + Vampire "A Confession and a Vampire: Reboot"
Chapter 39 "Back To School"
Based upon characters created by Akihisa Ikeda.
Original idea and story written by Gamera68.
Pairing: the real Moka Akashiya and Tsukune Aono
Rated K.
Alternate Reality, set after the events of the now-finished manga series.
Comedy / Drama / Slice-of-Life
Moka and Tsukune are 19 years old.
…
A/N: This chapter concludes Tamiko's introductory arc. It will be her first day at school as a first grader. She will still be in the story of course but won't be the central focus unless the chapter is about her. Tsukune and Moka will finally get some well-deserved alone time very soon since Tamiko will be at school from 8:30 AM until 1:30 PM Monday through Friday.
Just a reminder, her elementary school is a private school. She will also be making some new friends as well. I'd also like to thank everyone who has Followed, Fave'd, and left reviews for this little story of mine that has grown in popularity.
Anyway, enough rambling... onto chapter 40!
Or 39, since I had miss-marked the previous chapter, LOL.
Oh, can anyone guess who the teacher is? Same goes for Tamiko's new friends? ;)
…
Monday morning, April 6, 2015. Aono residence, Kanazawa Japan.
Since it was Tamiko's first day at her new school, Moka decided to prepare a hearty breakfast for her. Moka had also promised the chibi vampire that her and Tsukune would take turns walking her to and from school everyday since her the private academy was close to home and only a 10 to 15 minute walk from the house.
Tsukune and his mate awoke at 7 AM to get an early start on the day. After they had gotten dressed, Moka made her way downstairs to get breakfast started. While Moka was occupied in the kitchen, Tsukune walked down the short hallway to see if Tamiko had awoken yet. He then tapped on her door before he opened it.
"M-mm... daddy?" she said as she turned to her right.
"Good morning," he said with a warm smile as he waited by the door for her reply.
"M-mm... good morning," she replied with a yawn which she quickly covered with her left hand. She then sat up and looked at the clock on her nightstand. With a sigh she threw the blankets off of herself and then sat up.
"Would you like some help getting dressed?" he asked in a teasing manner.
"No thank you! Um, I'm a big girl – so I can do it by myself" she said as she hopped off the bed, slid her pink slippers on her petite feet, and then swiftly wrapped her color-coordinated robe around her thin frame.
"Alright. I understand. Mommy's making breakfast so come downstairs after you're done," he said as he turned around and left her room. She then ran over to the door which she quickly closed and locked to avoid any further interruptions. Tamiko then ambled over to her closet to retrieve her school uniform which was the typical "sailor" type.
The private school's female uniform consisted of a navy blue, knee-length skirt, a white, short-sleeved blouse with a navy blue tie, white tights, along with a pair of navy blue 'Mary Jane' type shoes.
* knock knock knock * came another tap on her bedroom door a minute later. Tamiko walked over to the door with another sigh.
"Who is it?" the chibi vampire asked from her side of the door.
"It's me, grandma. Would you like some help getting dressed, sweetie?" Kasumi asked from her side of the still-locked, bedroom door. With a bright smile Tamiko quickly unlocked and then opened it.
"Oh grandma... good morning," she said with an adorable smile.
"Good morning, sweetie," Kasumi replied.
"Um, I can't reach my uniform in the closet, grandma," she said as she nervously poked her index fingers together out of habit, which Kasumi found to be quite cute.
"So I'll take that as a yes," Kasumi said as she walked over to the open closet and removed the uniform from the hanger which was too far up for the little girl to reach on her own without assistance.
"Um, yes please," her granddaughter answered with a polite bow.
"Oh of course sweetie. I'd be more than happy to. I guess since you're a girl you don't want your daddy to help you."
With a blush Tamiko gave her grandmother a quick hug out of thanks.
"Alright, let's get you dressed – okay sweetie?"
"Um, thank you grandma," Tamiko said with a bashful smile after their brief embrace.
…
Twenty minutes later, Tamiko was finally dressed for her first day of school. Kasumi even brushed and styled her long, ebony hair into twin tails. Each was held in place with a white ribbon that matched the blouse of her sailor, school seifku. (uniform)
Kasumi went over to the stove to help Moka serve breakfast which consisted of scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast, pancakes, and a tall glass of chilled tomato juice.
"Good morning mommy," Tamiko announced after she climbed onto her seat at the round, kitchen table.
Moka nearly dropped the plates she carried over to the table when she saw just how pretty Tamiko looked in her new uniform, even though the mini vampire had tried it on when she was fitted for it two weeks earlier.
"Oh good morning sweetie. My... look how beautiful you are today," Moka said with a bright smile as she set a plate of hot food in front of Tamiko, whose face blushed bright pink from the compliment.
"Your mommy's right. You do look very pretty in your uniform," Tsukune said with a smile. Kasumi carried the remaining plates of food to the table herself and set one each in front of Moka and Tsukune. Koji was still in bed since he usually woke up a bit later.
"Itadakimasu!" they called out in unison per the Japanese custom once the morning greetings were out of the way.
"M-mmm... Mommy's pancakes are almost as good as grandma's!" Tamiko beamed with a bright grin.
"I have to agree – Moka's becoming a better cook and will make a wonderful wife soon," Kasumi added after a few bites. Moka's cheeks then tinted light pink from the sincere praise of her cooking skills which had vastly improved since her 'other' self was no longer around. She had made an honest effort to learn how to cook a wide variety of dishes since she was Tsukune's mate.
"Yeah Moka. These are great," Tsukune happily agreed once he swallowed the first mouthful.
"Oh – thank all you so very much," Moka said as she placed both of her hands on her warm cheeks. She then took her seat next to Tsukune per her morning ritual.
"So Tamiko, are you excited about your first day of school?" Tsukune asked in-between bites of his morning meal.
"Oh yes daddy. I hope I can make some friends there," Tamiko said with a smile, even though she was moderately nervous to a small extent.
"That's good to hear. I'm sure you'll make a lot of new friends. Just do your best, and you'll be fine," he offered with a warm smile which helped her to relax a bit. Tamiko simply nodded 'yes' in understanding after she had a sip of her tomato juice.
"Just remember what we talked about, sweetie. You can't say anything about yokai or vampires. You also need to hold back when you're in gym or playing, alright?" Moka said with a serious look and tone in her voice. Tsukune knew what Moka had gone through when she attended human schools when she was younger.
Neither one of them wanted their adopted daughter to go through the same feeling of isolation and ridicule that Moka had suffered when she had went to school near Tokyo. Thankfully Tamiko's appearance was considered 'normal' as her hair was nearly jet black and not pink like Moka's was when she was younger. The vampiress's unusual hair and eye color were due to the sealing nature of her original Rosary which was destroyed by Alucard.
Although Moka had her powers re-sealed now due to the incident with Kurumu nearly seven months ago, she looked like an average human woman with her normal, hair and eye colors. She no longer brought any unwanted attention to herself despite the fact that her otherworldly beauty was quite noticeable to anyone she happened to come across.
"I'll remember mommy," the chibi vampire replied with a nod and a smile. Tamiko knew it would not be easy, even though she was quite strong for her young age. At least she would not grow into her full powers until she was a pre-teen, for another 5 to 6 years at the least.
"Oh before I forget, here's your bento," Kasumi said as she slid the pink lunch box in front of Tamiko. It just so happened to be shaped like "Hello Kitty".
"Thank you grandma!" she said with a grin.
…
Once breakfast was finished and out of the way, Kasumi wanted a few more photos of her cuter-than-average granddaughter in her school uniform. Tsukune pulled out his digital camera from his front pant's pocket, switched it on, and then handed it to his mother. She asked Tamiko to stand in the hallway while she snapped several photos in a row.
"Smile for the camera, sweetie."
"Now turn to the left and strike a pose."
"Oh my goodness! How cute!"
That went on for several, awkward minutes which embarrassed the young girl in question to no end.
"Um, mom – it's getting late. We should head out soon," Tsukune interjected. He could tell by her body language that his adopted daughter was somewhat flustered.
"Oh sorry about that. I guess I got a little carried away," Kasumi answered with a sweat-drop. She then handed the camera back to her son who turned it off then stuffed it back into this pocket until it was needed again.
"It's okay grandma. Let's go mommy and daddy," Tamiko said after she grabbed her red, leather, backpack and walked towards the front entrance-way. Moka, Tsukune, and Kasumi were right behind her, hot on her heels.
"Do you need help with your shoes, sweetie?" Moka asked.
"Yes, please" she replied after she sat down on the wooden stoop. Moka quickly slid her navy blue "Mary Janes" onto her smaller feet with ease. Once the vampire couple had their own shoes on, Tsukune opened the front door for Moka and Tamiko who exited the house first.
"Bye bye grandma!" Tamiko said with a wave of her right hand as she walked down the walkway, Moka holding her free hand in her own.
"Bye sweetie. Have a good day at school!" Kasumi replied as she waved farewell to her for now. Tamiko answered back with another bright smile.
...
Both Japanese elementary and middle schools begin around 8:30 AM. Japanese schools do not have school buses, both because of the small size of most school districts and because of the availability of public transportation.
The first fifteen minutes of each day is set aside for either a school-wide assembly (on Monday mornings) or attendance and announcements in homeroom.
Classes are between 40 and 45 minutes each, with a 5-10 minutes break in-between each period. Academic subjects include Japanese language, social studies, arithmetic, and science. Japanese language is an emphasized subject due to the complexity of the written language and the diversity of its spoken forms in formal speech to elders.
Nonacademic subjects taught include art (including Japanese calligraphy) and crafts, music, haiku (Japanese traditional poetry), home economics, physical education (gym class), and moral education. Children also take part in "special activities," scheduled time each week to take care of class business, plan for field trips and ceremonies, and other, similar tasks.
After four morning classes, at about 12:30 PM, students are sent to pick up their homeroom's lunches from the school kitchens. Lunches are typically served in bento boxes, with small portions of a variety of high-quality, freshly prepared foods.
Because there are relatively few cafeterias in elementary schools, meals are taken in the classroom with the teacher, providing another informal opportunity for teaching nutrition, health, good eating habits and social behavior.
All students eat the same lunch and are even assigned to shifts for serving lunch to their homeroom. Lunch lasts about 40 minutes. In lower elementary school, classes are over after lunch and children are allowed to go home around 1 PM or so.
Some students even bring their own bento (boxed lunch) from home as an alternative.
…
As the trio walked towards Tamiko's school, they admired the warm, springtime, weather. Thankfully the sakura were still in bloom as most parents wanted to take photos of their children with the pink and white blossoms in the background. Most schools had several of the colorful trees on their campuses for such the occasion.
Once they arrived at the massive brick and mortar building, a simple sign hung from the white, metal fence that read, "Welcome Students to Sakura-ga-oka Private Academy". As a result of the still-early hour, Moka wanted to take a few, more pictures of Tamiko in front of the school itself.
Dozens of cherry blossom trees added to the serene environment. Tamiko brightly smiled as her surrogate mother snapped a few photos. She even asked her dad Tsukune to pose with her, which made him very happy to comply.
Moka had her opportunity as well and posed with Tamiko a minute later. Once they were eventually done, they walked up towards the entrance of the pastel pink, elementary school.
"Sweetie – will you be alright?" Moka asked as she could sense a bit of uneasiness coming from Tamiko. It was her first day in a new school, after-all. It was natural for anyone to be nervous on their first day at school, no matter who they were or where they were from.
"I'll be okay mommy. My teacher seems like a nice lady," she replied as she removed her shoes as she stepped up into the actual entrance itself. Several rows of shoe lockers were lined up that ran the length of the wide entryway which had a deep, red carpet on the floor. The walls were a lighter shade of pink, hence the school's theme of cherry blossoms.
"Alright sweetie. Do you remember your way to your classroom?" Moka asked as Tamiko gave her parents a warm hug.
"Yes mommy. I remember. Class 1-A," she said after they ended their embrace a few, moments later.
"We'll see you at one thirty, then" Tsukune said as Tamiko walked over to the first row of shoe lockers. As soon as she found her name on the small door, she opened it up and then pulled out her school 'slippers' which were made of a soft, cloth material with rubber soles. They just so happened to match the students' white and navy blue uniforms. After she slipped them on her feet, she placed her navy blue dress shoes in the locker until they were needed again at the end of the day.
"Bye mommy and daddy. I love you and I'll see you later," she said as she jogged off down the hallway towards her classroom with her backpack in tow.
"Alright – we love you too," Moka said as Tamiko disappeared around the corner.
"Do you think she'll be okay?" Tsukune asked as they turned around and started their walk towards home.
"I think she will be just fine even though I could tell that she's a bit anxious," Moka said as she grabbed his right hand as they walked along the sidewalk.
"Well – I remember my first day of elementary school and I was a nervous wreck, myself," Tsukune said with a chuckle.
"I see. Well, she will be alright. I just hope she can make some real friends," Moka answered as she gave her mate's hand a gentle squeeze. She felt somewhat melancholy as she was still concerned about Tamiko if she would fit in or not.
…
As Tamiko entered her classroom, she could see other children her age seated at their desks and talked amongst one another. She walked to the far, left-hand side of the room and quickly found her assigned seat near the long row of windows. Her name was printed on a simple placard that was affixed to her desk which was made of a soft, yet firm blonde-colored wood with a matching chair. She hung her backpack on the provided hook that was attached to the left side of her desk.
Before Tamiko could take a breather before homeroom started, a girl around her age slowly walked towards her seat with her hands folded in front of her.
"Um, good morning. My name's Chi Motosuwa." the young girl said who had just approached Tamiko's desk. Her most striking feature was her long, light blonde hair that went down past her knees, and amber eyes. The sides of her long hair were held in place what looked to be similar to sewing thread spools that were light pink in color.
"Um, good morning. My name's Tamiko Aono. It's nice to meet you," Tamiko said as she stood up and bowed to the girl. Chi bowed likewise per the custom when meeting someone for the first time.
"Is this your first year here, too?" Chi asked as she returned to her seat that was located in the next aisle over, directly on Tamiko's right,
"Um, yes – it is," Tamiko answered.
"Really? Mine too. I don't know anyone here. My mommy and daddy moved here because of his job," Chi explained.
"I see. Me too. I mean, I don't – know anyone because I just moved here, too," Tamiko sadly replied which Chi happened to pick up on almost immediately. It was true to a certain extent. Tamiko was new to the area and had not had a chance to make any friends yet.
"Well – um... I was wondering – if uh – you'd like – to be my friend, since we both don't know anyone," Chi requested with a small smile.
"Um – sure. I'd like to be your friend," the little vampire happily replied.
"Oh thank you! I wasn't sure if I'd make any friends or not this year since I'm new around here," Chi said as she reached over and shook Tamiko's hands rather energetically.
"Um – sure. Let's get along then, Chi-chan," Tamiko beamed back with her patented grins.
"Okay. Let's get along then Tamiko-chan," Chi said, just as their teacher entered the classroom.
"Of course," Tamiko agreed as they both focused their attention towards their instructor.
The talking ceased as the female teacher walked up to her desk at the front of the room. Kiriko Takemura was a young woman of slender build in her early twenties and below-average height for a native, Japanese woman. She barely stood around 160 centimeters tall. (5 foot, 3 inches tall)
Kiriko's long, light brown hair was pulled up into a bun and held in place with a simple, black hair-clip that matched her suit jacket and knee-length skirt. Her sky blue blouse accented her suit while she still looked professional. The morning bell then went off, which indicated the start of the school day and homeroom.
"Good morning, class. My name is Miss Kiriko Takemura. Welcome to your first day at Sakura-ga-oka Academy," she said with a bow. After she stood up, she smiled at all 30 of her pupils, which was an equal number of boys and girls.
"Good morning, Miss Takemura," the class replied in unison.
"Very good. You may call me Miss Takemura or Sensei," she said with another smile.
"Yes, Sensei," they answered once more as a group.
"Excellent."
Miss Takemura then pulled out her seat and sat down at her desk. She opened the top drawer and removed her classroom attendance book, which had a burgundy leather cover. She also grabbed an ink pen, red in color from the cup on her desk.
"Alright. Let's get down to it, shall we. I'll now take attendance. When I call your name, please answer clearly with 'here'."
…
After she took roll-call, Miss Takemura had an announcement for her class.
"Since today's the first day of the school year, we'll have a short assembly where the Headmaster will have a brief welcoming speech and also go over the Academy's rules. Let's all line up in a single line, starting with the last row, near the windows."
The first student in the row sat up from his seat and walked towards the door. Each of the remaining students quickly followed his example and formed the line in an orderly fashion.
…
After the brief assembly, the children marched back to their classroom in single file, and then returned to their seats. Miss Takemura began writing on the blackboard with a piece of white chalk.
"Alright everyone, this will be our weekly schedule for the remainder of the first semester. Please write this down in your notebooks. Mondays extra-curricular activities will be arts and crafts. Tuesdays will be physical education. Wednesdays will be music. Thursdays will be home economics and Fridays will be Japanese poetry. Any questions so far?"
After she waited a moment for a reply, she turned her attention to a pile of books on her desk.
"I'll now ask each of you to come up to my desk and take one of each book for each of your subjects for this year. First row can come up now."
With that the first of five row's students each walked up to her desk to retrieve each of the four books then return to their seats.
Approximately five minutes later, each student had their books that they would need for the year.
"Everyone, please open your reading books to the first page. It's the red book like this one," Miss Takemura explained as she held up the brightly-colored book over her head so each of her students could clearly see.
…
Since it was the first day of school, Miss Takemura quickly went over each subject as her pupils scribbled notes in their notebooks. Before anyone realized it was already lunchtime. She had volunteered the first two students form the first, two rows to fetch the lunch cart from the school's kitchen. As soon as they returned a minute later they distributed the bentos to anyone who had not brought their own from home.
Tamiko opened her leather backpack and pulled out her Hello Kitty-shaped bento and place it on her desk. She also had a can of V-8 juice which she set next to her bento. Her new friend, Chi then walked over to her desk as she had something on her mind.
"Um, Tamiko-chan – um – can I eat lunch with you?" she asked with a bashful smile while she dug the toe of her left shoe into the red carpet below.
"Uh – sure. Id' like the Chi-chan."
"Thanks Tamiko-chan!" Chi happily answered as she ran over to her desk then pushed it up to Tamiko's desk. She then picked up her chair and placed it next to Tamiko on her right.
"Oh – your bento is so cute!" Chi commented as she pulled out her own lunch box from her backpack and set it down on her desk. Chi's lunchbox was light beige in color and had Totoro screen-printed on the top, from the famous Studio Ghibli anime film "My Neighbor Totoro".
"Um – thanks. Yours is really cute, too," Tamiko said with a grin which caused Chi to blush.
Before Chi could reply to Tamiko, another girl their age walked up to the pair. She had dark, violet hair that was styled into a long-bob cut, just above her shoulders. The ends of her hair were curled down and inwards a bit which gave her a unique look. (Shaped like an "M") Her eyes matched her hair color which was not uncommon in Japan for some peculiar reason or other.
"Um, I was wondering if I could eat with you?" the girl shyly asked.
"Uh, sure," Chi said after Tamiko nodded yes with approval.
"Thanks! My name is Karin Maaka," the purple-haired girl said after she pulled up an empty chair and set it on the right edge of Chi's desk.
"Um, you're welcome. My name is Chi Motosuwa," Chi answered as Karin sat down and placed her bento on the table. She too had a can of tomato juice which the blonde girl found to be rather unusual.
"It's nice to meet you, Motosuwa-chan," Karin said after she popped the top of her V-8 juice.
"My name is Tamiko Aono. It's nice to meet you Makka-chan," Tamiko replied.
"It's nice to meet you, too Aono-chan," Karin answered with a small smile.
"Um, I was wondering – um – would you like to be my friend, too?" Tamiko asked.
"Sure! I'd love to be your friend. What about you, Motosuwa-chan?" Karin inquired with a bright grin. Tamiko noticed something strange about the new girl, but decided to keep it to herself until she was certain.
"Oh yes. I'd like that as well Karin-chan," Chi happily replied.
"Thank you. I just moved here recently because of – family issues," Karin sadly explained.
"Oh you're welcome. You just moved here too?" Chi asked with a surprised look on her face.
"Um, yes. I don't know anyone here and I saw you and Tamiko-chan talking before class," Karin said with a sigh.
"Oh I see. I guess none of us know anybody then, since I just moved here too," Tamiko said with a nervous laugh that caused both Chi and Karin to giggle. Tamiko honestly felt much better. She had made two, new friends on her first day of school. She had worried for naught, it would seem.
* gurgle... gurgle *
"Um, I guess we should eat now," Chi said with a blush after her stomach loudly protested for food, much to her chagrin.
"Itadakimasu!" the three girls chimed in harmony as they ate their lunches with light and amusing conversation.
"Class, after you have cleaned up, we're all going to have recess for the rest of the day," Miss Takemura said which resulted in a happy "yay" to come from her students. She smiled as she continued to eat her own lunch in moderate silence. Sensei was quite thankful that her students seemed to be well-behaved for the most part.
…
As soon as everybody was finished with their lunches and the classroom back to the way it was earlier, Miss Takemura had her class line up once more according to rows then led them down the long, wooden, hallway towards the back of the school. Once they approached the double-wide doors, Kiriko held it open as they marched outside. It was a bit warmer than usual for the time of year but a gentle breeze kept the playground somewhat comfortable.
The playground itself was rather large on grassy field. In the center of the field, was a jungle gym about ten meters, round. It stood about a meter and a half high. Underneath it was a soft, spongy, floor so as if anyone fell, they would not get injured. It also had several slides, each one painted in bright, primary, colors.
On either side of the jungle gym were swing sets, that matched the red, yellow, and blue colors, four in total. The three girls ran up to one swing set and each sat on a swing.
"Let's see who can go the highest," Chi said to her new friends.
"Okay! You're on," Tamiko said with a competitive grin.
"Um, isn't that dangerous?" Karin asked with a sweat-drop.
"We'll be fine as long as we don't go too high," Chi said.
...
After the girls each swung as high as they could Karin slowed down a bit as she seemed to be out of breath.
"Ahhhh!" Chi yelped as she lost her grip a moment later and tumbled to the ground. Without thinking, Tamiko jumped off her swing and landed near Chi, who held her bruised knee with tears in her eyes.
"Chi-chan! Are you okay?" Tamiko asked as she knelt down near her friend who sobbed.
"Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Chi cried out as Tamiko attempted to comfort her new friend.
"Oh my gosh! Are you okay Chi-chan?" Karin asked after she trotted over to Chi's side as well.
"Karin-chan, please tell Sensei what happened."
"Um – sure. Please be okay, Chi-chan!" Karin said as she quickly ran off to inform their teacher what had just happened to Chi.
"Can you stand up?" Tamiko asked. Chi just shook her head 'no' as she continued to softly sob.
"You'll be okay. It's not – that bad," Tamiko said as she did her best to comfort her new friend.
'Oh no... her blood... I knew I should have had an extra can of tomato juice,' Tamiko screamed to herself. Chi's sweet scent had permeated her sensitive nose and caused her small fangs to throb with a dull ache.
"What happened, Aono-chan?" Miss Takemura asked as she raced over to where Chi had fallen. Karin was right behind her of course. She was just as concerned for her new friend, naturally. When Karin saw the blood, she quickly averted her eyes and covered her nose with both of her hands.
"Sensei! Chi-chan fell off the swing and hurt her knee," Tamiko simply explained as she pointed over to the swing itself.
"Here, let me see," the teacher calmly asked. She had brought with her a first aid kit that was kept near the doorway. It was stored in a small box for just an emergency. Kiriko visually examined her wound and then opened the red first aid kit. She pulled out a pair of rubber gloves and put them on her hands. Next she opened an antiseptic pack and gently dabbed it on her knee.
"This might sting, but please hold still, okay?" the teacher asked with a smile.
"Ow..." Chi lamented.
"Sorry about that. There we go. All clean. Now for a band-aid," Kiriko continued.
Miss Takemura then found the proper sized bandage and tore it open and removed the paper from the adhesive side. She then gently placed it over the wound on Chi's right knee that was still red and somewhat sore.
"There we go, Motosuwa-chan. All better. Can you stand up for me?"
"Um.. * sniff * Thank you, Sensei. I think so," Chi said with a pained expression. Tamiko helped her friend to stand up and offered her a shoulder to lean on.
"You're welcome. Let's go back to the classroom, okay? I'll call your folks and let them know what happened," Miss Takemura said as she helped Chi to her feet.
"Don't worry, girls. She'll be just fine," the kind teacher offered with a warm smile that eased both of the girls' hearts.
"Sensei – can we walk her back to class?" Karin asked as she furrowed her brow.
"Sure thing. Let's go then," Kiriko said with a smile. She knew that Karin and Tamiko were just worried about their friend. At least Chi's injury was not too serious and she would be alright by the time of the last bell of the day.
…
After they had arrived back to the classroom, Chi went back to her desk. Karin and Tamiko waited with her while their teacher contacted Chi's parents to let them know what happened.
"Are you going to be okay?" Karin said as she pulled up an empty seat and sat across from her friend.
"Um – I think so," Chi sadly replied.
"That's good to hear. I was so worried about you," Tamiko said as she stood on Chi's left.
"I'm sorry that I made you worry," Chi said with a frown.
"Don't say that. That's what friends are for, right Tamiko-chan?" Karin said.
"That's right. My daddy always said that friends stick together, no matter what," Tamiko said with a small smile.
"Your daddy sounds really smart," Chi said with a giggle.
"He's pretty smart, even though mommy calls him baka sometimes" Tamiko added that caused her friends to laugh heartily.
"Motosuwa-chan – your parents are waiting for you in the Headmaster's office," Kiriko said as she returned to her classroom.
"Oh thank you Sensei," Chi said after she gathered her backpack and hobbled towards the door. Tamiko and Karin sweat-dropped as they watched her nearly fall over. Kiriko met Chi halfway and helped her towards the doorway.
"Bye bye Karin-chan and Tamiko-chan. Thanks again and I'll see you tomorrow," Chi said as she waved farewell to her friends.
"Bye Chi-chan. Feel better!" Karin said as she waved to her friend with a smile.
"Yes, bye bye Chi-chan. We'll see you tomorrow!" Tamiko replied with a wave of her own.
"Girls, you can go back to the playground. You still have twenty minutes of recess left," Miss Takemura said as Karin and Tamiko followed behind her. They were grateful that their teacher was quick to come to Chi's aid and that her injury was not worse since she had fallen rather forcefully.
…
Once recess was over, Miss Takemura called her students over to line up by the door once again. They made it back to their classroom in time to take attendance.
A few, minutes later, the last bell of the school day had rung.
"Stand. Bow. Sit," Miss Takemura said.
"Class dismissed. Have a good afternoon and I'll see everyone tomorrow morning," she added with a smile as her students filed out of the room as fast as they could.
"Thank you for your help, Sensei," Tamiko said with a bow.
"Oh yes. Thank you for helping Chi-chan, Sensei," Karin said likewise.
"You're welcome, girls. See you tomorrow," Miss Takemura said as she sat up from her chair and gathered her books together. Karin and Tamiko then waved to her as they left the classroom. They then walked down the hallway towards the shoe lockers to swap out their school shoes for their outdoor shoes.
As soon as they reached the shoe lockers, Tamiko saw Moka and Tsukune standing outside with smiles upon their lips. Tamiko quickly found her locker and changed her shoes. After she closed her shoe locker, she ran up to her parents.
Karin just watched in mild fascination with a sad look on her face. Her older brother, Ren stood outside for her in the shadows it would seem with a smug look on his face. He was quite tall with light blue hair and dressed in all black. He noticed Moka and Tsukune but kept his distance.
"Mommy! Daddy!" Tamiko said as she gave them both a warm hug.
"Hi sweetie. How was your first day?" Moka asked once they ended their embrace a few, moments later.
"Oh it was great – I even made some friends. Karin-chan! Come meet my mommy and daddy!" Tamiko said.
"That's good to hear. I knew you'd make some friends. So are you going to introduce us?" Tsukune asked as Tamiko then ran up to Karin and practically dragged her over to meet her parents.
"Oh um – good afternoon. My name is Karin Maaka. It's nice to meet you," Karin said with a bow.
"It's nice to meet you too, Maaka-chan. I am Moka Aono," Moka replied with a bow.
"It's nice to meet you as well. I'm Tsukune Aono. Thank you for looking out for Tamiko-chan," he said in a similar fashion. Ren then glared at Karin and tapped his wrist watch with his right index finger with a scowl on his face.
"Oh – um – it's not a problem, really. Um – I have to go now, but it was nice meeting you Mister and Misses Aono. I'll see you tomorrow, Tamiko-chan. Bye bye!" Karin said as she sprinted over to her older brother who quickly grabbed her hand and left as swiftly as possible. Moka and Tsukune thought it was rather strange but let is pass as they did not want to upset Tamiko by saying anything unnecessary regarding Karin's older sibling.
"Well she seems nice," Moka commented as they started down the long sidewalk that lead them back towards home.
"Oh she's very nice, I made another friend too but she went home before recess ended..." Tamiko sadly replied with a slight frown.
"I see. So you made another friend?" Tsukune asked as Tamiko's grip on his hand became firmer for a moment.
"Yes. Her name's Chi Motosuwa. She fell off of the swing during recess and had to go home early," Tamiko explained.
"Oh - that's too bad sweetie. Will she be alright?" Moka asked with concern in her voice. She was just as happy as Tsukune was that Tamiko had made two friends on her first day of school.
"Yes, she just hurt her knee but Sensei made it all better," the chibi vampire said with a sigh.
"Oh well – at least she is alright. That's good to hear. Do you like your new teacher?" Moka asked.
"She'll be back tomorrow, I hope. Oh yes. Miss Takemura is very nice and really pretty," she answered.
"Well – what about your friend Karin-chan? What do you know about her?" Tsukune asked.
"Oh she just moved here like Chi-chan. She's kind of quiet, but she's really nice, too."
"I see. So – there's nothing – odd about Maaka-chan?" Moka asked as she looked at Tsukune.
"Um – no. I don't think so, anyway," Tamiko answered with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Well, we're just happy that you made friends already," Tsukune added as they walked up to their house a moment later. Tamiko spotted her grandmother who waited outside with a smile on her lips.
"Grandma!" Tamiko shouted as she ran into her grandmother's arms and gave her a warm hug.
"Welcome home sweetie. I missed you so much!" Kasumi said as she pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Grandma! Can't – breathe!" Tamiko loudly protested as she frantically waved her arms.
"Sorry sweetie. But I missed you as did your mommy," Kasumi teased as she released her from her hug a moment later.
"I missed you too, grandma," Tamiko admitted with a slight blush.
"Well, let's go in the house. I'm sure you'll want to clean up and get started on any homework you might have," Kasumi said as she opened the front door.
"I don't have any homework, grandma."
"I see. Must be nice," Tsukune said with a weak smile. Moka and himself followed them into the front entrance-way and promptly removed their shoes.
…
"Mom, can you take Tamiko up to her room and help her get out of her uniform, please?" Tsukune asked as Moka gave an all-knowing look. Apparently she had something on her mind and needed a few minutes alone with her mate.
"Oh sure. It'd be my pleasure. Let's go upstairs sweetie and you can tell me all about your day," Kasumi said as she held her granddaughter's hand and led her towards the stairway.
"Okay grandma. I think mommy wants daddy all to her self anyway," Tamiko joked as she followed Kasumi up the stairway. Moka and Tsukune both blushed from her always-honest insight.
Moka then grabbed her mate's hand and led him into the living room. She then sat down on the tan, microfiber sofa and looked at her fiancé while she went over in her mind what had her so preoccupied. He had a clue to what it could be but waited for her to actually say something.
"Uh, Moka – what's up?" he asked. Moka squeezed his hand and smiled a bit.
"I am glad Tamiko made some friends but I am a bit concerned about that Maaka girl," Moka said after a moment of silence.
"Me too. So you noticed it too, huh?"
"Yes, love. I am almost certain that Maaka-chan is – a vampire."
"* sigh * I kinda thought so too but I wasn't sure. Her yokai was very weak. But she does seem like a good girl and I could tell right away that she needs a friend as much as Tamiko does."
"You're right love. Maybe we could have Tamiko ask her to come over sometime so we can get to know her better," Moka answered as she leaned against Tsukune and let out a sigh of her own.
"That sounds like a good idea. I'm sure my folks wouldn't mind if Tamiko had a sleep over."
"What's a sleep over?" Moka asked as she sat straight up. She had never heard of such a strange-sounding term before.
"Oh that's when you ask a classmate to come over and spend the night. Like a small party or get-together," he said in the simplest way.
"I see. Yes. That sounds like a great idea. Maybe Tamiko could also ask her other friend over as well," Moka replied once she digested the idea. She had to admit. Tsukune knew a lot more about the human world and Moka was eager to learn. The vampiress was rather thankful for that.
"I'll ask mom later on and see what she says. Maybe over the weekend once Tamiko's adjusted to her new school," Tsukune said as he reached over and pushed Moka flat on the couch.
"M-mmm. How bold of you and in broad daylight, nonetheless," Moka remarked with a slight blush across her cheeks. He then reached down for a kiss before he was suddenly interrupted.
"What are you doing, daddy?" Tamiko inquired as she skipped into the living room since it was almost too quiet. She was quite curious for a child her age it would seem. Moka then pushed Tsukune off of the sofa with a loud "oof". She then jumped up and acted as though nothing had happened.
"Nothing to see here, go on about your business!" Moka quipped as she gave Tsukune a hand up from the carpeted floor.
"Okay mommy. Whatever you say," Tamiko added with a wide grin. She then skipped into the kitchen to have a long chat with her grandmother about her first day of school.
"Sorry love. She just surprised me, that's all." Moka then pushed him back, straddled his thighs and then – well... I'll leave that up to your imagination. This chapter is rated K, ya' know.
As Moka and Tsukune made amends, they both realized that their daughter's first year of elementary school would be quite interesting, especially since her classmate was a vampire.
Yes it would be quite intriguing, to say the very least!
...
...
Author's Notes: Please READ!
Wow. I know this chapter is kinda short but I packed as much into as I could regarding Tamiko's first day in elementary school. Yes, she made two, new friends who seem rather familiar, don't they? Chi from "Chobits" and Karin Maaka from "Karin". (Chibi Vampire)
Chi is a human in this story, by the way. She resembles Chi from the CLAMP anime series, of course and I tried my best to describe her the best I could.
As for Karin Maaka – did I catch you off guard? I added Karin at the last minute since I thought Tamiko could use more than one friend. Karin is a vampire (or reverse vampire) based upon how she looked in the anime series with the violet hair and eyes. She won't be as clumsy or as she was portrayed in the anime though. I will do my best to depict her and Chi's personalities to the best of my writing ability.
If anyone has a good idea how the sleep over will go, please leave it as a comment below and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. I have one more chapter before that so the "sleep over" won't be for 2 more chapters.
Next update in a week as usual. Any and all feedback is always welcome and appreciated!