"Kitsuna!," Yui called out to the girl, who stopped just short of the school gate. She glanced back, then turned and pulled her headphones down. Yui rushed over, stopping to catch her breath.

"Yui?," Kitsuna was out of practice with interactions lately, and didn't know how to proceed with that awkward shouting.

"Ah! Sorry. I was gonna ask, before we left for summer break. Are you gonna be alright until fall?," the girl stood up but wouldn't meet Kitsuna's gaze.

"Probably. What's up?"

Yui studied her face, but it was unreadable even if she looked dead on. She sighed and patted the other girl's shoulder, ignoring the flinch. She fished around in her pocket and produced a stuffed bun.

"Here. For good luck?," she held it out, and Kitsuna took it with a small chuckle.

"Thanks. I'll see you around," Kitsuna waved and smiled, for the first time in a while. It was awkward, and didn't reach her eyes. But it was there. And Yui smiled back, somehow relieved with just that as she watched the back of Kitsuna's uniform disappear down the street.

Kitsuna stuffed the bun in her mouth as she walked, eager to finish it before she got home. Her father was likely already drunk, and he also likely hadn't eaten all day. She wasn't about to share her free melon bread with him. She knew it'd be trouble if he knew she had it, too. So she wolfed it down and discarded the wrapper well before she got to the house. She noted that the door was open, and the house was silent.

"Weird. Jackass," she cursed her old man and pulled the door shut. Slipping off her shoes, she scanned the living room and kitchen. Beer cans and bottles littered the space, as usual. The place reeked of alcohol and smoke, but she didn't feel like dealing with it yet. She instead headed quietly to her room and flopped on her bed, enjoying the silence. She drifted into a fitful sleep until later, when she woke with a sinking feeling in her gut.

"Where is that shithead?," she rolled out of bed, ignoring her headache, and pulled on an old hoodie. Her old man was gone still, though that was more a relief than a worry. For now. Someone else was missing from the house, and that was a big worry. Her old cat was nowhere to be seen, even after several hours of her being home. She slid on her shoes, then ran back to her room to grab something. She dug under her mattress, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes and an old lighter. Stuffing those in her pocket, she dashed out the door and checked the yard first.

…

"Eh? Kitsuna! What're you up to?," Yui flagged down Kitsuna, who was running around pretty frantically. The redhead stopped and caught her breath, kneeling over.

"Sorry. Have you seen Koshi?," Kitsuna asked breathlessly as she stood back up, holding her side.

"Eh? Your cat, right? Did he get out?"

"Yeah. Dickwa-uh. Dad. Left the door open when he headed out. Koshi was gone when I got home," Kitsuna glanced down the alley and froze up.

"Ah, I haven't seen him. Do you need help looking? I'm-"

Yui was cut off and shoved aside, and behind Kitsuna. There was a loud crack as something connected with the other girl's wrist that made Yui sick. The more timid girl fell back on her backside.

"You! You're the rat that keeps my girl out late huh?! She's always out late, and doesn't make me any damned dinner! Come 'ere, you little whore!," a man's voice rang out from the other side of her friend's back. Yui glanced between her legs and spotted a pair of dirty slippers. There was a bit of blood too, which ran down Kitsuna's arm from her wrist.

"Yui. Run," Kitsuna spared a single glance backward before shoving the slovenly man backwards, into the alley. A scuffle continued, with Kitsuna being forced to block with her already injured wrist as a metal pipe swung about violently. Yui was frozen with fear, torn between helping her friend or running. The man grabbed Kitsuna by the hair and rammed her head into the brick wall of the building on the left.

"Yui.."

"Shut up you little ginger bitch! Just like your damn mother! Always getting in the way," the man picked up a broken bottle, and held it up ready to strike.

"No!," Yui screamed, and the man started toward her instead. He was stopped by a strong grip on his shirt, from Kitsuna. Yui bolted finally, into the store where she screamed at the clerk to call the cops. Then she ran out and flew down the streets and up a hill. To a house she was familiar with, but not for the usual reasons this time. She slammed the door open and collapsed on the ground.

"Yui?," Daichi rushed over expecting one of his siblings to be face planted on the floor, but instead found his best friend. She clung to his shirt as he tried to help her up, stammering incoherently between gasps of air. Her eyes were pouring over with tears, and she was clearly in a state of panic.

"Yui, calm down. What's wrong?," Daichi shook her shoulders, trying to jostle her back to her senses.

"Kitsuna! She's! Her dad! By the store! He's gonna kill her!"

"What?," Daichi could only make out some of the words, and they weren't good. He pulled his shoes on, ignoring his siblings' questions.

"You guys, tell Mom I'm heading out. Yui, can you run more?," Daichi helped her stand, and she finally caught her breath. She nodded her head, and once they were outside they started into a full sprint. Night had fallen while Yui enlisted Daichi's assistance, and their sense of dread deepened as they reached the store and heard shouting around the corner.