– Vibrant –
December 5th, it's been nearly a year since I became a squirrel. I'm still not quite sure how it happened, and honestly I don't know how Kuon hasn't given up on me yet. I'm just a pet squirrel now. I look at my paws wondering if the tears I feel will ever come, or if it's even possible for a squirrel to cry. I've done my best to still be a good girlf… fiancé, but it's just so hard to do anything when I'm this small…
~A few months ago~
BANG!
CRASH!
Tinkle tinkle tinkle
The sounds of pans and dishes falling from the cupboard fill the kitchen. "HELP! HELP ME! KUON!" I scream but of course the only thing that comes from my mouth is shrill squeaking.
THUD THUD THUD, SLAM! Kuon races into the room running headlong into the wall as he does. "KYOKO?! What's going on? Are you ok?"
"I'm fine, Help! I'm going to fall!" I squeak back as I dangle precariously off the cabinet door.
He carefully steps through the mess covering the floor and rescues me from my apparent doom.
"What in the world were you trying to do?" he questions, handing me my pencil and a small stack of paper. I step onto the page and begin scribbling away.
'I was trying to make dinner, you've only been eating fast food and onigiri the past few weeks and that's not good for you! You need real food!'
"I know, I know, I'm sorry for making you worry, but how were you planning to cook like this? You're smaller than the smallest frying pan I have." He reaches out to stroke my cheek.
'I don't know! But I can still try! I can still hold a spatula, and I can turn the knobs on and off just fine!... I just can't pick up the pan… or open the fridge…' I set my pen down beside me and sit on the page dejectedly. I really can't cook for him anymore can I? Of course, I should have already known this, the first few months of this Kuon saved me from becoming squirrel stew, or a squirrel latte many many times.
"How can you still love me? I'm just a stupid squirrel?" I squeak looking into his eyes, of course I don't expect him to understand what I'm saying, he almost never does.
But then he scoops me up, cradling me gently against his chest "I will always love you Kyoko, no matter if you're squirrel or human, you're still you."
~ Present ~
As the memory fades, I feel the dull ache in my heart begin to soothe itself. I'm still me, I'm still Kyoko! Squirrel or no I'll make this the best Christmas EVER!
I hop down from the dresser where my little "Bedroom" is set up and scurry out to the living room where Kuon left a laptop set up for me.
He's currently on set filming a new movie, and we found out pretty quickly that the director and other actors didn't take kindly to a squirrel on set. The only ones aside from us who know of my predicament are the president, Moko-san, and Yashiro… so it's made it a bit difficult for me to do much of anything outside the apartment. The cover story is that I've gone overseas to visit with my dying grandmother.
I hop up onto the coffee table where the laptop sits open for me and place one paw on the touchpad to wake it up. "ok now how did he say to do this again?" I stare at the screen before me, there's a small picture in the center of the screen with a little textbar underneath "Right, password!" I climb onto the edge of the laptop and begin carefully hopping through the keys
"B!"
Hop!
"0"
Hop! "T, H!"
Hop!
"E"
Hop!
"C, H, I!" Hop! "C!"
Hop!
"K"
Hop!
"E"
Hop!
"N"
I hop off the keyboard and pause for a moment to catch my breath. "There's got to be a better way to do this…
Glancing around the coffee table I catch sight of my pencil "PERFECT!"
I scurry over to pick it up then hop back onto the laptop and finish typing the rest of the password, standing on the shift key as needed "L, O, V, 3, , 3, !"
The picture in the center of the screen disappears and a small spinning circle takes its place, I sigh shaking my head at Kuon's ridiculous password, apparently he'd decided to change it the day he found out I was Bo… which makes me really wish I knew what it had been before, perhaps something like "C0RN!STHEB3ST123", or "MUSTD3FEATD D!" I giggle, then a blush inducing thought occurs to me as I realize that knowing him it likely would have been more like "SETSU1SH0T" or "KYOKOMAKESTHEB3STF00D3"
Sighing I notice that the screen has now fully loaded to the desktop where a picture of the pair of us from a magazine cover announcing our engagement is proudly displayed (not the magazine cover itself of course, the photographer was kind enough to send over the photos to us).
"Now, what would make for a great Christmas?" I trace my paw along the touchpad opening up a web page to Doogle and use my pencil to type out 'best couples Christmas spots'. The page loads up several results, I scroll through them trying to find something that would be romantic even if I am just a squirrel.
"Christmas tree lighting in the city center, no too crowded, he'll be swarmed in an instant….. Ice skating in the park? -sigh- no, I'd be crushed before he'd know what's happening…"
I continue scrolling, finding myself losing hope at each passing idea. Baking cookies, visiting Santa, snowboarding, all things that require me being human in some variety…. Then I see one result that sparks my interest a bit, not particularly romantic, but possibly doable?
"Kyoko! I'm home!" Kuon's voice echos through the apartment.
"EEK!" I startle rushing to close the page before he can see what I'm looking at, not that he'd really be able to tell what I'm planning….
"Kyoko? Are you ok? I heard you squeak" he questions coming into the room, where he finds me lounging on the coffee table one paw propping my head up, my legs crossed delicately, and my fluffy tail draped across my body like a blanket.
"What in the world are you doing?" He laughs, "are you posing for a painting? Like Titanic?" "Draw me like one of your French squirrels" I squeak as he pulls out his phone to take a picture of me, I droop my eyelids in a way that if human would be seductive, but as a squirrel… he shows me the picture….well I look like I'm stoned….
"Really Kyoko, it's obvious you're up to something, tell me you don't go on the laptop all that often." I turn away from him and pout
"You want it to be a secret?"
I nod
"Alright, well if you need help will you tell me?"
I shake my head, floofing out my tail as I do
"ok, not me then… Yashiro?"
I ponder for a moment, then nod and turn back around.
"ok as long as you'll ask for help I'll leave it be, now there's something I want to show you" My ears perk up as I look up at him. He pulls a small coat and scarf from his pocket
"here put these on, then come here"
I gingerly take the coat and scarf "I don't need these, I have fur?" I squeak in question
"Yes, yes you have fur but put them on anyway, it's very cold out" he says as he takes the coat and starts helping me into it.
"Out? We're going out?" I squeak
"Come here", he holds out his hand for me to climb on. I do so with ease this now being a bit routine for us, he gently places me up on his shoulder and heads out of the apartment.
Once in the elevator I turn and squeak at him again in question "Where are we going?"
"Patience Kyoko, you'll see" he murmurs, for a moment I believe that I'm actually speaking again, and not just squeaking in squirrel.
Minutes pass as the floors tick by, before we reach the ground floor, he walks outside to a waiting car. I tilt my head in confusion 'why would we be going anywhere by car this late? If we're getting food the grocery store is attached to the building, and all his favorite restaurants can deliver…'
He climbs in placing me down in his lap now.
"All set?" Yashiro asks from the front seat
"We're all buckled in" Kuon replies
'Yashiro-san? Why is he here I ponder, trying to reach up to peek out the window, Kuon gently pulls me away.
"just wait, you'll see" he shushes as I pout silently on his lap.
Finally after a quick drive through town Yashiro pulls the car to a stop, and Kuon gets out his hand hovering in front of my eyes as he does. I get the urge to bite his finger…. Not hard, just a little…. But resist in favor of trying to pull it out of the way instead, when finally he lifts his hand
And before us is brilliant shimmering light, falling from the sky in a sea of sparkles
It looks…
Almost as though it's raining glitter…. But that's not possible…. Is it?
I look on in awe as my eyes adjust to my surroundings, I note that we're in a park a beautiful water fountain before us, the water beginning to freeze as my breath puffs out in front of me. The sparkles I soon realize is snow, the first snow of the year…
I glance up at Kuon his eyes already on me the green in them shimmering with emotion the snow falling behind him the lights making the snow appear as sparkles having the same effect on his blonde hair, "You're a snow fairy" I squeak
"You've seemed a bit depressed lately, I thought seeing the first snow together might cheer you up a bit" he smiles
And it does, the snow, his eyes, the fountain, his face, the love I feel so strong, so beautiful, so vibrant I feel like I'm glowing. I hug his thumb tightly "I love you! I promise I'll be human again! I know I will!" I shout "Squeeak! Squeak squeak squeakity squeak!" is all he hears. But in this moment, I know he understands as he tenderly hugs me just a bit closer.