Day 2... Writing in Progress
Hotaru Tomoe is walking on the fringe of the woods behind her house. The forest holds her gateway to Milliways. Cypress, and fir, and her favorite, poplar trees - on the trees Autumn is deepening. Wafting scents of burning leaves, and roasting sweet potatoes is on the breeze. And the air is getting more crisp.
She walks at a leisurely stroll, kicking up her legs just a bit for fun, as if there were already heaps of dead leaves lying around for her to trounce through. The sunlight is thin and cool on her upturned face, and it dances on some of the dew leftover from the storm last night. She's wearing shiny black boots that come halfway up her calves, and a dark green skirt with her sweater pulled on to match. Her small hands are clasped behind her back as she prances relaxedly.
"Who's there?" it's another little girl, sitting on the ground. She has long brown hair and large brown eyes, and a startled expression. Hotaru stops dead in her tracks, looks down at the girl, and blinks.
"What do you want??" the girl jumps to her feet, apparently ready and raring to brawl with the smaller-in-stature Hotaru.
"Um..." Hotaru gazaes at her, puzzled. "What do you want?"
"I'm busy here!!" the girl says. "Get away from here!"
Hotaru frowns, quizzically. "Busy with what...?"
"How is that any of your business?!"
"This is my family's property, and we don't allow trespassers," Hotaru firmly answers.
"Hmm..." the other girl answers. Then haughtily, "Well, if you must know," she points to the ground by her feet, her eyes never leaving Hotaru for an instant.
"What's that...?" Hotaru walks to the girl and crouches, folding her skirt under her, by the previously unseen hole.
The girl does not seem wholly trusting of the other, but crouches beside her, "...They're... Badgers."
Hotaru turns to the girl with wide eyes, "Badgers!?"
"Yeah..." the girl says, remorse for revealing her project setting in.
"Wow!"
"Yeah," she replies impatiently. "I'm gonna get one."
"What? ...Why?"
"I want one!" the girl answers in a huff. "They're just little babies in there, the mama is gone. I'm getting one out of there and raising him myself."
Hotaru stares into the hole, silently. The girl looks over at her apprehensively, waiting for a plea to be let in, or a blackmail not to tell the adults. but Hotaru stands, brushes herself off, and turns from the girl and the badger burrow. "What's your name?" she says over her shoulder.
The girl stutters, "T-Toki!"
"Well," Hotaru shrugs, "see ya, Toki." Hotaru continues on her walk, not missing a beat.
Surprised, Toki looks after her at first. Then, she hurriedly goes back to trying to scoop a badger baby from its home. "Stupid, weird girl. What was her deal?" she mutters to herself.
Hotaru gets about ten paces before the girl shrieks, "Hel---help me!!" Hotaru turns briefly to note a round brown shape charging at the girl, low to the ground. "Aiiiee!" She shrieks again, "Hey, you, help me!!" she runs off, into the woods.
Hotaru walks on. "Don't stumble into any hidden paths, Toki," she says quietly.
alternate:
sets off on a new path, away from the forest at the same leisured stroll. The girl stares after her apprehensively.
So, Hotaru is wlking across the manicured grounds of her house now, instead of by the forest. Not at all fazed, she observes new interesting things to relax by, like the tall white house, sturdy and looming in seeming majesty not too far away. Then Michiru's beloved gardens, the blooms all gone. The greenery of most of the plants is still vibrant, though she knows that won't last long.
What happens to gardens in the Winter? she wonders.
She doesn't like the cold... but she does like the decay of Autumn. And after her first Halloween in this life, it will be unequivocally her favortie holiday. Winter will be uncomfortable... a season she will speand primarily indoors. Perhaps her dislike of the cold is a throwback to the sensitivites of her previous life.
She strolls around a bit more. It's the weekend, and quiet. What was that girl doing here, she also wonders. Was she a neighbor? A runaway? She was scuffled, but not dirty. And she seemed secretive. No matter in the end to hotaru, but it doesn't hurt to wonder.
After a while, she's in front of a noodle cart, a distant shop set up in the community. She checks her skirt pocket. Eight hundred yen should be enough.
She climbs up onto a stool, "Do you have Nihon Soba?"
The proprietor turns around, another start. "Oh ho, cutie little girl. What do you think this is, a fast food joint? Of course we've got NIHON Soba," he berates her playfully.
She smiles, "One Nihon Soba, please."
"Right away," he grins, and sets to work.
Her legs swing back and forth as she's perched upon the stool.
"Where are your parents little girl?" He says over his shoulder.
With her chin cupped in her palms, she does a quick shrug, "Dunno."
She doesn't keep tabs on their every whereabouts, when they don't offer.
"Ehh..? Don't know?"
"They do what they want to," she gazes off into the boughs of the trees over his stall.
"I see," he says. He turns around with a miniture flourish, "One NIHON Soba, for you, cute little girl."
She bows her head to him, and takes the bowl with both hands. "Itadakimasu."
He laughs. He watches her from a moment, leaning on the back counter.
"Do you know of a little girl around here?" she says between one mouthful of noodles and the next.
"Little girl?" he strokes his stubbled chin. "You're the only little girl I know of around here."
"She has long brown hair. She was in our forest this morning..."
"Oh, her!..."
"You know her?"
"Comes and goes," he says, and turns around.
"I see," she says. He's wiping down the counters in the stall.
After some time, she lays the chopsticks down. "Finished!"
"Oh! You have a big appetite for someone so small." he figures out the counting in his head, "Ah, that's 850 yen.
"..But for you, 650."
Hotaru bows again and counts out the money.
"Thank you cutie little girl!" he says, and she dismounts from the stool. Sure, the noodles were worth five hundred and fifty at most. A hundred yen, he thinks to himself, off a kid in this neighborhood is no big deal, though. He goes back to wiping down the counters.
The little girl is still there when Hotaru returns. She's lying under a tree, asleep. Hotaru comes close, sits on her haunches, folding her skirt under her and stares at the girl. Then she shakes her, firm.
"Ah!" the girl sits up with a start. Drool runs down one side of her face. "Who are you?"
Hotaru stares quietly at the girl, unanswering. Toki edges away, grimacing at Hotaru for her strange behavior, then remembers suddenly, "Oh! You... you're that girl. From before."
"That's right."
"Well..??" Toki stands up defensively. Hotaru stands as well, keeping her eyes fixed on Toki. "What do you want now!?"
Hotaru sighs, looks up and above at the quickening twilight, and shakes her head. They look at each other a moment, and as slow realization sets in, Toki seems quite disheartened by her disinterest. "you don't want me to leave? ...Are ... are you going to call my parents?"
Coldly, Hotaru replies, "As long as you don't go into those woods," she motions with her chin, "you can do what you will."
"Oh." Toki thinks about this, then trying to be nonchalant, continues, "I'm... I'm getting hungry. Then.. I'll see you around."
"Bye," Hotaru answers in kind.
Toki stumbles off into the evening, to be berated by her parents when she returns home.
Hotaru, elsewhere, eats a cordial dinner with her parents, kisses them goodnight, and goes peacefully to sleep.
She walks at a leisurely stroll, kicking up her legs just a bit for fun, as if there were already heaps of dead leaves lying around for her to trounce through. The sunlight is thin and cool on her upturned face, and it dances on some of the dew leftover from the storm last night. She's wearing shiny black boots that come halfway up her calves, and a dark green skirt with her sweater pulled on to match. Her small hands are clasped behind her back as she prances relaxedly.
"Who's there?" it's another little girl, sitting on the ground. She has long brown hair and large brown eyes, and a startled expression. Hotaru stops dead in her tracks, looks down at the girl, and blinks.
"What do you want??" the girl jumps to her feet, apparently ready and raring to brawl with the smaller-in-stature Hotaru.
"Um..." Hotaru gazaes at her, puzzled. "What do you want?"
"I'm busy here!!" the girl says. "Get away from here!"
Hotaru frowns, quizzically. "Busy with what...?"
"How is that any of your business?!"
"This is my family's property, and we don't allow trespassers," Hotaru firmly answers.
"Hmm..." the other girl answers. Then haughtily, "Well, if you must know," she points to the ground by her feet, her eyes never leaving Hotaru for an instant.
"What's that...?" Hotaru walks to the girl and crouches, folding her skirt under her, by the previously unseen hole.
The girl does not seem wholly trusting of the other, but crouches beside her, "...They're... Badgers."
Hotaru turns to the girl with wide eyes, "Badgers!?"
"Yeah..." the girl says, remorse for revealing her project setting in.
"Wow!"
"Yeah," she replies impatiently. "I'm gonna get one."
"What? ...Why?"
"I want one!" the girl answers in a huff. "They're just little babies in there, the mama is gone. I'm getting one out of there and raising him myself."
Hotaru stares into the hole, silently. The girl looks over at her apprehensively, waiting for a plea to be let in, or a blackmail not to tell the adults. but Hotaru stands, brushes herself off, and turns from the girl and the badger burrow. "What's your name?" she says over her shoulder.
The girl stutters, "T-Toki!"
"Well," Hotaru shrugs, "see ya, Toki." Hotaru continues on her walk, not missing a beat.
Surprised, Toki looks after her at first. Then, she hurriedly goes back to trying to scoop a badger baby from its home. "Stupid, weird girl. What was her deal?" she mutters to herself.
Hotaru gets about ten paces before the girl shrieks, "Hel---help me!!" Hotaru turns briefly to note a round brown shape charging at the girl, low to the ground. "Aiiiee!" She shrieks again, "Hey, you, help me!!" she runs off, into the woods.
Hotaru walks on. "Don't stumble into any hidden paths, Toki," she says quietly.
alternate:
sets off on a new path, away from the forest at the same leisured stroll. The girl stares after her apprehensively.
So, Hotaru is wlking across the manicured grounds of her house now, instead of by the forest. Not at all fazed, she observes new interesting things to relax by, like the tall white house, sturdy and looming in seeming majesty not too far away. Then Michiru's beloved gardens, the blooms all gone. The greenery of most of the plants is still vibrant, though she knows that won't last long.
What happens to gardens in the Winter? she wonders.
She doesn't like the cold... but she does like the decay of Autumn. And after her first Halloween in this life, it will be unequivocally her favortie holiday. Winter will be uncomfortable... a season she will speand primarily indoors. Perhaps her dislike of the cold is a throwback to the sensitivites of her previous life.
She strolls around a bit more. It's the weekend, and quiet. What was that girl doing here, she also wonders. Was she a neighbor? A runaway? She was scuffled, but not dirty. And she seemed secretive. No matter in the end to hotaru, but it doesn't hurt to wonder.
After a while, she's in front of a noodle cart, a distant shop set up in the community. She checks her skirt pocket. Eight hundred yen should be enough.
She climbs up onto a stool, "Do you have Nihon Soba?"
The proprietor turns around, another start. "Oh ho, cutie little girl. What do you think this is, a fast food joint? Of course we've got NIHON Soba," he berates her playfully.
She smiles, "One Nihon Soba, please."
"Right away," he grins, and sets to work.
Her legs swing back and forth as she's perched upon the stool.
"Where are your parents little girl?" He says over his shoulder.
With her chin cupped in her palms, she does a quick shrug, "Dunno."
She doesn't keep tabs on their every whereabouts, when they don't offer.
"Ehh..? Don't know?"
"They do what they want to," she gazes off into the boughs of the trees over his stall.
"I see," he says. He turns around with a miniture flourish, "One NIHON Soba, for you, cute little girl."
She bows her head to him, and takes the bowl with both hands. "Itadakimasu."
He laughs. He watches her from a moment, leaning on the back counter.
"Do you know of a little girl around here?" she says between one mouthful of noodles and the next.
"Little girl?" he strokes his stubbled chin. "You're the only little girl I know of around here."
"She has long brown hair. She was in our forest this morning..."
"Oh, her!..."
"You know her?"
"Comes and goes," he says, and turns around.
"I see," she says. He's wiping down the counters in the stall.
After some time, she lays the chopsticks down. "Finished!"
"Oh! You have a big appetite for someone so small." he figures out the counting in his head, "Ah, that's 850 yen.
"..But for you, 650."
Hotaru bows again and counts out the money.
"Thank you cutie little girl!" he says, and she dismounts from the stool. Sure, the noodles were worth five hundred and fifty at most. A hundred yen, he thinks to himself, off a kid in this neighborhood is no big deal, though. He goes back to wiping down the counters.
The little girl is still there when Hotaru returns. She's lying under a tree, asleep. Hotaru comes close, sits on her haunches, folding her skirt under her and stares at the girl. Then she shakes her, firm.
"Ah!" the girl sits up with a start. Drool runs down one side of her face. "Who are you?"
Hotaru stares quietly at the girl, unanswering. Toki edges away, grimacing at Hotaru for her strange behavior, then remembers suddenly, "Oh! You... you're that girl. From before."
"That's right."
"Well..??" Toki stands up defensively. Hotaru stands as well, keeping her eyes fixed on Toki. "What do you want now!?"
Hotaru sighs, looks up and above at the quickening twilight, and shakes her head. They look at each other a moment, and as slow realization sets in, Toki seems quite disheartened by her disinterest. "you don't want me to leave? ...Are ... are you going to call my parents?"
Coldly, Hotaru replies, "As long as you don't go into those woods," she motions with her chin, "you can do what you will."
"Oh." Toki thinks about this, then trying to be nonchalant, continues, "I'm... I'm getting hungry. Then.. I'll see you around."
"Bye," Hotaru answers in kind.
Toki stumbles off into the evening, to be berated by her parents when she returns home.
Hotaru, elsewhere, eats a cordial dinner with her parents, kisses them goodnight, and goes peacefully to sleep.