Rosario + Vampire "A Confession and a Vampire: Reboot"
Chapter 45 "Family Vacation Part 2"
Based upon characters created by Akihisa Ikeda.
Original idea and story written by Gamera68.
Pairing: the real Moka Akashiya and Tsukune Aono
Rated T.
Alternate Reality, set after the events of the now-finished manga series.
Family / Drama / Slice-of-Life
…
A/N: Here is part 2 of the Family Vacation arc.
Please enjoy. :)
...
Thursday, April 30, 2015. 10:45 AM, Osaka, Japan.
As the blue, family, four-door sedan arrived at Tempozan Harbor Village, Moka, Tsukune, and Tamiko marveled at the sheer size of the massive complex that was home to the Osaka Aquarium 'Kaiyukan', which was located next to the Osaka Harbor.
As soon as Koji found a good parking spot, not too far from the main entrance, everyone exited the car and began the short walk towards the largest of the buildings, which housed the aquarium itself.
Located next-door to the red and blue monolithic structure was Tempozen Marketplace, which is consisted of over 100 shops, restaurants, and other forms of amusement. They even have various forms of entertainment during the busiest of seasons.
This is the first "Festival Market Place" in Japan, where the lively market and the festival are combined into one area. Based on the theme "Sea and Port," the Market Place serves as an exchange spot of various cultures and new information.
"Mommy! Look at the big Ferris wheel!" Tamiko shouted once she saw the 110 meter-tall attraction. Moka smiled at her daughter's exceptional enthusiasm.
The view from the top of the "Giant Ferris Wheel" offers riders a wide, panoramic, view of Osaka Bay and the surrounding areas, such as Ikoma Mountains to the east, Akashi Strait Pearl Bridge to the west, Kansai International Airport to the south, and Rokko Mountains to the north. It takes about 15 minutes to complete a ride.
"Good morning. Welcome to Osaka Aquarium" greeted the friendly, female staff-member who sat behind the glass enclosure. Grandma Aono smiled at the younger woman as she pulled out her purse.
"Good morning. One senior, four adults, and one child admission, please," the elder Aono said.
"That will be eleven thousand yen please," the park employee said as Grandma Aono slid the money through the small slot that was located on the bottom of the window.
"Mom, I was going to pay," Koji protested in a fruitless endeavor. He was too slow since he had not paid close enough attention to his immediate surroundings and was distracted somewhat by his wife who held him close by in an affectionate manner.
"It's alright sweetie. If you'd like to, then you can buy me lunch later on" his mother said with a giggle, after she was handed their badges. Each one was attached to a long, blue, lanyard that was to be worn around the neck. She quickly handed one to each of her family members with a smile on her lips.
"Thank you, grandma-ma," Tamiko beamed.
"Thanks grandma," Tsukune said.
"Oh, thank you very much, grandmother," Moka replied with a warm smile.
"Thanks mom," Koji and his wife, Kasumi stated in unison.
Moka abruptly stopped as she felt a wave of anxiousness that swiftly overcame her when she saw the direction they walked towards. She suddenly halted in her tracks, pulled Tsukune and Tamiko back with her, since their hands were linked together.
The vampire couple's adopted daughter was in the center of them, per her usual custom whenever they went out.
"Moka? What's wrong?" Tsukune asked his mate who seemed as if she were glued in place and refused to budge a centimeter any further. Tsukune's grandmother wondered to herself what had bothered her adversely, without any warning, whatsoever.
It was just her natural fear of water since it had a debilitating effect on vampires and could sap them of their youkai due to its 'purifying' properties, unless it was neutralized via a special blend of herbs.
"Are you certain that it's safe for us?" she whispered as she felt a knot in the lower pit of her stomach.
"Of course it's safe. You have nothing to worry about. You do trust me, right?" he replied with a first-class smile that eased her pounding heart. He knew what had her so distressed, since they shared their thoughts and feelings via their blood-bond.
"O-okay Tsukune. I do trust you. Sorry about that," she answered with a small smile.
As soon as everyone was back on track so to speak, they continued to walk into the first part of the actual aquarium itself. Their first stop of their excursion was an 11-meter long, plexiglass, tunnel that traveled through the largest fish tank they had ever seen.
"Wow!" everyone said at the same time. Literally hundreds of species of fish and marine life could clearly be seen as they slowly wandered through the glass-like structure. The entire, immediate, vicinity was bathed from above by a serene, blue, light.
"Mommy! Look! A turtle! Oh what's that! Oh my gosh! That's so neat!" Tamiko exclaimed every, few seconds when something interesting caught her keen eyesight.
"That's a whale shark, honey," Tsukune said as he led her over to the side so she could see it better. The massive mammal was easily 12.5 meters in length. It was a sight to be seen, that was most certain.
Since she was a vampire, like her surrogate parents, she would never have had the up- close and personal, chance to learn about these types of sea-creatures in the actual ocean, itself. Their outing to the marine-themed park, was a much safer alternative, naturally.
"Wow. It's so big, daddy," she commented as her eyes grew at the sight before her. Moka knelt down to her level and held her hand in a comforting gesture.
"Well, they're actually quite harmless, sweetie. They mostly eat plankton and algae," Moka explained.
Whale sharks have five, large pairs of gills. The head is wide and flat with two small eyes at the front. Whale sharks are usually a shade of dark gray with a white belly. Their skin is marked with pale, yellow spots, and stripes which are unique to each individual.
The whale shark also has three, prominent, ridges along its sides. Its skin can be up to 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) thick. The shark has a pair of dorsal fins and pectoral fins.
Juveniles' tails have a larger upper fin than lower fin, while the adult tail becomes semi-crescent shaped. The whale shark's spiracles (a small hole behind each eye that opens to the mouth in some fish) are just behind its small, forward-facing, eyes.
"Oh I see. Oh mommy! Look look look! What's that?" Tamiko asked as she pointed to another sea mammal, one of which she had never seen before. It was barely a meter and a half in length with an aerodynamically-shaped body, which was a light shade of gray in color.
"That's a Pacific White-sided dolphin, sweetie," Moka said.
"Oh it's so pretty," Tamiko said in awe. She just waved to the dolphins that swam by her side and went about their business, if it were.
"We have a lot more to see, honey," Tsukune said so they could be on their way. It was true, though. The aquarium was home to over 30,000 mammals, fish, and marine life; which consisted of 400 species, in total.
"I'm with you daddy. Let's go!" she said as she grabbed her parent's hands and then led them over to her grandma and grandparents with a bright, happy smile upon her lips.
Moka and Tsukune both smiled as well. They both knew it would not only be another one of their "firsts" together as a couple, but Tamiko's as well. At least it would be an excellent chance for the young girl to learn something new, right?
"Grandma-ma, look! Those fish are kissing just like mommy and daddy do!" Tamiko said rather loudly, when she saw a pair of brightly-colored parrot fish 'kiss'. Tsukune and Moka both blushed bright red from her rather outlandish statement.
"Um, let's go over here, sweetie," Moka said as she desperately wanted to leave that embarrassing moment behind. She quickly guided everybody towards the end of the long tunnel and into the next habitat.
…
The next stop on their self-guided tour was known as "The Japan Forest".
With its numerous types of trees, it was designed to take in fresh air and natural sunlight from outside, which allowed the atmosphere to change from season to season. Several local wildlife populate this area of the park which included the Asian small-clawed otter, Japanese giant salamanders, so forth.
"Tsukune, look. Aren't they adorable?" Moka said as she spotted several of the park's most famous animals: the small-clawed otters. The small dark-brown critters played with each other amongst the rocks and pool that surrounded their habitat. A few of them were seen eating a small type of fish, most likely mackerel.
Asian small-clawed otters can be found in southern India, southern China, Southeast Asia, Indonesia and the Philippines. The small otter has also become established in England after escapes from zoos and also are mainly diurnal, commonly observed sliding on mud banks, foraging in the shallows, and chasing others through the water.
Being the world's smallest otter, they range in size from 4.4 to 11 lbs. (2 – 5 kg), with a head and body length of 16 to 24 inches (41 – 64 cm) and a tail length of 10 to 12 inches (25 – 30 cm) long. Their short-furred bodies are also adapted for diving, in that its heart rate and oxygen consumption are reduced while submerged. The Asian small-clawed otter can also seal its nose and ear canals while underwater. They are also very streamlined as to swim swiftly through the water as well.
"Not as adorable as you, though," was his honest reply.
"Oh Tsukune, stop it. You're embarrassing me," Moka said as a slow blush crept across her cheeks. Thankfully nobody in their small party saw her reaction.
"You know I wouldn't have said if it weren't true," he replied. She then held his hand lovingly as she blushed even harder.
"Oh my gosh! Look look look! So cute!" Tamiko squealed with delight when she saw the mammals that played with each other as well. Several of the otters saw the family, swam up to their side, and then began to show off for their spectators with jumps and somersaults out of the water.
"Awww," everybody said when two of the otters 'kissed' each other.
'Is this an ongoing theme of some sort?' Moka quietly thought to herself. She admitted it was cute for them to show affection towards each other, in their own, particular, way.
After they took in the sights of the Japanese Forest area, they walked along the sidewalk that led into the next area of the sea-life-themed, attraction.
The Aleutian Islands.
That area of the park was home to the sea otters. Unlike their distant cousins, these otters were much larger in size and are usually a mottled white in color, along with black spots on their short fur. Their diet consists mainly of saltwater fish.
"Hey daddy... what's this animal? And why aren't they doing anything?" Tamiko asked when she saw the sea mammals that seemed to be on the somewhat lazy side. Most of them were either asleep or just sat there and groomed themselves.
"These are the sea otters, honey. They're a lot bigger than the other otters we saw a little while ago. The water they live in is usually around five degrees, Celsius. That's why they seem so sleepy, I guess," Tsukune said.
"How boring. Next!" Tamiko said as she stomped down the walkway while she dragged her folks along. She was not happy for some reason but she would be back to her sunny disposition soon enough. The next area they walked into was three times the size as the previous one and was called "Monterey Bay."
It happened to be inhabited by the Harbor Seal and Sea lion.
"Wow, so neat!" Tamiko said as she ran up to the plexiglass wall that enclosed the deep waters, where the sea lions and sea otters were located by.
"Sweetie, I know you're really excited but please stay close to us, okay? We don't want you to wander off and get lost," Moka said as she walked up behind her daughter and then wrapped her arms around her in a caring fashion. The rest of the family soon joined them a moment later.
"I'm sorry mommy. I just got too happy, I guess," Tamiko replied as she poked her index fingers together, just like somebody else she knew. Without a doubt, Tamiko was a miniature version of Moka.
"It's alright sweetie. Just try to be careful from now on, okay?"
Tamiko did not have a chance to answer as Moka gave the young girl a tight hug into her impressive firm, yet soft, bosom.
"Mommy! I can't breathe!" the little vampire complained as she waved her arms around in a mild panic as she tried to squirm out of Moka's "hug of doom" but found it to be a futile effort of epic proportions.
"I'm sorry about that, sweetie. But you're so cute!" she said as she released her a few, seconds later.
"It's okay mommy," Tamiko said with a sweat-drop after she was freed from her foster mother's rather firm embrace. It did not hurt the little vampire, but she did need to breathe, right?
"Let's go over here, as we have a lot more to see," Grandma Aono said, as she attempted to gain everyone's undivided attention.
"Okay," was the group reply.
They all followed Grandma Aono towards the opposite side of the large area and admired the sea lions that frolicked happily as they swam in the chilly, icy, waters.
"Oh these are some big ones over here!" Tamiko said when she saw just how "full-bodied" the sea mammals were.
"Well sweetie, they have a lot of extra body fat which helps keep their bodies warm in the cold water and their natural habitat," Moka explained.
"Oh I see. Just like your big boobs, mommy?" Tamiko asked with a smirk.
"N-no. D-don't be silly. Big b-boobs just run in my mother's side of the family, that's all," Moka huffed out, as she was entirely caught off guard by Tamiko's rather audacious inquire.
"I'm sorry mommy, I was only joking," Tamiko said as she gave her surrogate mother a quick hug around her waist.
"It's alright. I'm not upset sweetie. I was – just surprised, that's all," Moka answered as she returned the embrace.
"Thank you, mommy. Let's go over there," Tamiko said as she wanted to see what else the immense complex had to offer.
"Um, Moka? Are you okay? Your face is still red," Tsukune asked his mate as he could clearly see that she was rather discombobulated to no end.
Their adopted daughter was a very bright child, but she had a bad habit of saying whatever was on her mind, most of the time it would seem. Even if she was only teasing it was something they all would have to get used to, before she grew out of it, they hoped.
"Oh yes, I'll be fine. But thank you for asking, love," Moka said as she slid her right hand into Tsukune's left hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"I can see that little Tamiko can be quite a handful," Grandma Aono said to her son and wife.
"She's just too smart for her own good more often than not, but she's a good kid who has the highest marks in her class," Koji said while he and the misses were lost in their own little world it would seem.
"I can see that. Well at least she's learning something today," Tamiko senior replied.
"It's true, though. She's a well-behaved girl, mom. You can see that for yourself. Besides, Tsukune and Moka love her without question," Kasumi added in a moment later.
"I can see that too, dear. I'm just still trying to figure out how she ended up here? And what if Moka has a child of her own, someday? Then what?" Koji's mother asked with a frown.
"Like Tsukune explained to you mom; her birth mother – the other Moka had sent her here from an alternate world in order to save her life. To give her a second chance..." Koji said as his features softened.
"And?" Tamiko senior continued.
"We're really not at liberty to say anything about – that, mom. Moka would have to tell you that herself, if she ever decides to or not," Kasumi added, as she could see that her spouse did not want to bring up that painful subject. The short answer just meant that Moka was barren and unable to ever give birth, herself.
It was due to how severely injured she was by Alucard, when her other half had died nearly two years ago, midway through her second year at Yokai Academy.
"Oh, I see. I'm sorry I brought it up," Tamiko senior replied.
…
They eventually walked through two, more areas and saw many different types of animals and marine wildlife, which included the Ring-tailed Coati (a species of hog-nosed raccoon from tropical and subtropical South America), Long-spine porcupine fish, along with the Pirarucu (a type of boney-tonged fish, one of the largest species of freshwater fish in the world), and Capybara (the largest rodent in the world whose closest relatives are guinea pigs, but can grow up to over a 1.5 meters, in length).
The next stop on their long excursion was the Antarctica area of the aquarium. It happened to be home to several types of penguins, which Tamiko found to be quite amusing.
"Mommy look! They're wearing coats!" she said with excitement as she brought up their tuxedo-like appearance.
Dozens of penguins, mostly of the King genus, played along a slope that ran down a side of a snowy hill. Each of the penguins on the top of the ice-covered incline, took a turn and slid down the slide that dunked them into the frigid water below.
"I see. They're cute, aren't they?" Moka asked as Tsukune picked Tamiko up so she had an unobstructed view of the comical scene before her. Luckily, the arctic-like environment was behind a thick pane of plexiglass so as to prevent the park's visitors to shiver from the frosty surroundings.
Tsukune had brought along his digital camera to take photos of the park's numerous displays and of his wonderful family. Tamiko was somewhat camera shy all of a sudden, but with a little coaxing from Moka, she cutely posed and waved for her adoptive daddy. He was rather relieved that his daughter's mood had vastly improved, compared to earlier, of course.
…
The next area on their agenda was the Tasman Sea exhibit.
It was home to one of Tamiko's new, favorite, sea mammals: The Pacific White-sided Dolphin. The main area was over four times the size of the previous one at 260 square meters.
"Look look look!" Tamiko shouted as she saw a few of the dolphins jump out of the water as one of their handlers fed each of them some fresh fish. Each dolphin 'talked' in their own 'language' as they asked for the delectable treat. Thankfully that area in particular was also surrounded by a tall, plexiglass wall as well, since the dolphins had a natural habit of splashing, whenever they leaped out of the water.
"I see sweetie. That's very nice," Moka said as everyone admired the entertaining scene before themselves. They stayed for a few minutes until the handler left just as he fed all of the dolphins their lunch. After they watched the dolphins swim happily in the large saltwater tank, everyone had walked into the next area of the ocean-themed park.
The Great Barrier Reef.
Coral reefs are also referred to as the "cradle of the ocean".
Corals are marine invertebrates in the class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria. They typically live in compact colonies of many, identical, individual polyps. The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.
A coral "head" is a colony of myriad genetically identical polyps. Each polyp is a spineless animal typically only a few millimeters in diameter and a few centimeters in length. A set of tentacles surround a central mouth opening. An exoskeleton is excreted near the base.
Over many generations, the colony thus creates a large skeleton that is characteristic of the species. Individual heads grow by asexual reproduction of polyps. Corals also breed sexually by spawning: polyps of the same species release gametes simultaneously over a period of one to several nights around a full moon.
Although some corals can catch small fish and plankton, using stinging cells on their tentacles, like those in sea anemone and jellyfish, most corals obtain the majority of their energy and nutrients from photosynthetic unicellular algae that live within the coral's tissue called zooxanthella (also known as Symbiodinium).
Such corals require sunlight and grow in clear, shallow water, typically at depths shallower than 60 meters (200 feet). Corals can be major contributors to the physical structure of the coral reefs that develop in tropical and subtropical waters, such as the enormous Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Queensland, Australia. Other corals do not have associated algae and can live in much deeper water, with the cold-water genus Lophelia surviving as deep as 3,000 meters (9,800 feet).
Examples live on the Darwin Mounds, located north-west of Cape Wrath, Scotland. Corals have also been found off the coast of the U.S. in Washington State and the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.
Everyone marveled at the beautiful, serene scene before them. Thousands of fish such as the Butterfly and Damsel fish, along with invertebrate such as shrimp, surrounded the huge coral which was a light yellow, in color.
"Wow," everybody commented once more in unison as they were stunned silent. It was rather, somewhat mind-boggling, to witness it with their own eyes.
…
As they left the impressive display behind, the family walked into the second to last exhibit.
The Arctic.
When the family looked up they were amazed at the sight that played out, above their heads. It appeared as if they were under the ice. There was a large, round, plexiglass window that allowed them to see the Ringed seals who swam about with a playful expression on their faces, almost if they were smiling. The actual exhibit area itself was carved out of ice, as the massive room was on the chilly side.
"Tsukune... would it be alright... if I sat down for a moment?" Moka said as she admired the surrounding area as she felt lightheaded all of a sudden, for no particular reason.
"Huh? Are you alright?" he asked his mate.
"No. I uh," she said as she wobbled from side to side.
That was all Moka could reply. Her vision then grew dark as she slipped into unconsciousness.
"MOKA!" Tsukune yelled as he quickly caught her in his arms before she tumbled to the hard, cold, floor below. His daughter, parents, and grandmother profusely panicked and quickly encircled the fallen vampiress as they wondered what had happened to her without any prior, warning.
... to be continued ...
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Author's Notes:
I'm really sorry for the lateness of this chapter - even though it's rather short, I had a difficult time coming up with a conclusion, so I left it as a cliffhanger.
Don't worry though.
I will try to get the next chapter will be up before the end of November, even though my birthday falls on Thanksgiving this year. (Nov. 27th)
It will pick up right after the last scene. If you liked this chapter, please feel free to leave a brief comment below. Thanks for the continued support. :)