Wednesday//December 21//Late Morning//Home

[lovely_warumono]

Slowly, Ai opened her unusually sad eyes as she laid on her western style bed. She was feeling horribly homesick once again, and she had only been in Tokyo for a day now. Just thinking about Junpei, her grandmother, or Kyoto in general made her want to curl up and cry. To make matters worse, her bedroom walls still remained disgustingly bare and

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[kyouuchi]

Kyou looked at the girl who had just arrived at the park with a dog, and felt a small stab of jealousy. She wanted a pet so much, but her parents hadn't allowed her to get one. Maybe they'd change their mind now they were in Tokyo? She watched the dog chase after a stick the other girl had thrown, and surveyed the thrower.

The pink hair caught her attention first, and although it didn't shock her, she was still surprised. Kyou hadn't seen very many people with dyed hair before, and especially none that bright. It certainly did stick out against the dark-haired people she usually saw.

She reached down to toy with the blanket she was sitting on to stop her jeans from getting dirty, mentally debating over whether the fact she was staring at the new arrival was creepy or not.

[lovely_warumono]

Ai laughed as she and the puppy continued to play. She could always count on Momo to make her feel better when no one else could. Throwing the small stick once again, she let out a sigh of content.

The active puppy was about to pick up the stick Ai had thrown, when he let out an excited bark. Before Ai could fully react, the pug had taken off running. Ai's eyes grew wide with worry; he had never ran far from Ai before, at least not without a reason.

"Momo! Momo, stop!" Ai yelled across the park to her dog as she ran after it. Though the dog's legs were short, it certainly did run fast. Ai could see the busy street at the end of the park, and pushed herself harder to catch the dog before it was harmed.

"Momo~!" Ai yelled again, her voice thick with worry and her eyes beginning to water with tears.

[kyouuchi]

The dog's barks sounded over her music, and she pulled out her headphones from her ears, just in time to hear "Momo~!" being yelled by the girl she'd been watching. Kyou looked at the dog as it was running towards freedom, to the gate behind her.

"Uh, Momo?" She raised her voice, calling out to it as well, since it's owner seemingly had no chance of getting to it in time. It'd probably not react to the sound of her voice either, but it was worth a try. If worst came to worst, she could always try to catch it, being closer than it's owner.

[lovely_warumono]

Ai watched the puppy run with delight to the stranger she had just noticed. Momo ran excitedly around the girl, barking a friendly 'hello.' With a sigh of relief, Ai realized that Momo just wanted to greet the stranger, and slowed her pace to a slow jog. She knew he had to have a reason to just take off like that.

Reaching the girl, Ai came to a halt. Putting her hands upon her bare knees, she took the opportunity to catch her breath.

"Momo, silly," she said between breaths, "don't scare me like that." The puppy only stared up at the new girl, panting happily and waiting to be pet.

[kyouuchi]

Kyou smiled down at the dog, reaching out to scratch the pug behind the ears.

"Hello, you!" She said to it, before looking up at it's owner. "And, hello to you too." Kyou moved her hand to scratch the dog's back, tilting her head. "She's so adorable! Ah, it is a female, isn't it?"

[lovely_warumono]

Her breathing back to normal, Ai stood to her full, rather short, height.

"Actually," she smiled, "Momo is a boy."

She looked to her puppy who seemed to be in heaven at the attention the other girl was giving him. Ai giggled as he dropped to the ground with a 'flop' and rolled to show his soft belly.

"I'm Ai Kohara," she smiled brightly, turning her attention back to the unidentified girl.

[kyouuchi]

"Oh! My apologies." Kyou exclaimed, blowing a short puff of air at the pup. She idly scratched his tummy with her short nails, making sure not to press too hard. "Kyou Qiu. It's nice to meet you, please take care of me." She said, bowing her head and being as polite to Ai as she'd be to anyone she'd just met. Again, her attention was drawn to the bright pink hair atop the Ai's head.

"Your hair is very bright, if you don't mind my saying so. I like it!"

[lovely_warumono]

"Really? Thank you so much!" Ai exclaimed, smiling even more. She wanted to hug the girl, Kyou, so badly at the moment for her compliment. She knew, though, that she might offend the girl. Ai disliked how public, physical contact was considered rude; she loved to give hugs.

Searching in her mind for something else to focus on, Ai found herself repeating Kyou's last name.

"Qiu...Qiu..." Ai thought aloud, tapping her slender index finger against her chin. "That doesn't sound Japanese..."

[kyouuchi]

"You're welcome! I've always admired bright hair, it just seems so," she paused, searching for the word. "Spunky." Kyou tangled her hand in her own dark brown hair, mussing it up while she tried to picture what she'd look like with a vivid hair color.

"Oh, it's not." She smiled warmly, pleased that Ai had been up front about it. Most people just gave her a strange look and didn't mention it, making her feel slightly awkward and like an unwanted intruder. "My parents are Chinese."

[lovely_warumono]

"Whoa~! That's so cool" Ai said, her eyes shining with pure interest. "Have you always lived here?" Ai asked; her curiosity had been lit once again.

Not forgetting about Momo, she glanced down, only to find him laying comfortably on Kyou's blanket. Smiling, she quickly turned her attention back to Kyou. 'Maybe I've found a friend,' Ai thought to herself cheerfully, hoping she was right.

[kyouuchi]

"Yes, I was born here! Well, not really here, I just moved to Tokyo from Osaka a week or two ago. I return to China a fair amount, but Japan is my 'permanent residence', if you want to be official and government-like." She winked, showing she wasn't being serious about it. "I still haven't managed to shake my accent, though."

Kyou realized Ai was still standing up, and moved over on the blanket. "You can sit down if you want, there's plenty of space."

[lovely_warumono]

Ai giggled as Kyou finished her sentence with a wink, and added, "Whoa~! No kidding? I just moved here with my mom and dad a couple of days ago from Kyoto. And I think your accent is pretty," Ai smiled, and it was true.

At Kyou's offer, Ai quickely scurried onto the blanket next to her. She situated herself in the seiza position, turned towards Kyou, her eyes sparkling in excitement.

"So, how old are you? Where do you go to school? Do you like candy? Is China pretty? What's your family like?" Ai fired off question after question. She was feeling better then ever after her depressing morning, much like a small child in a toy shop.

[kyouuchi]

"It seems everyone wants to move to Tokyo. Well, I know I did when I was a child, then I kind of gave up hope, but here I am now!" The look on Ai's face made Kyou want to laugh, but not out of spite. She looked so excited to be taking to Kyou, like she was deprived of human contact. "Thank you! Not many people do, so it's refreshing to hear that

[lovely_warumono]

Ai could feel her jaw literally drop. 'There's no way...' she thought, staring at Kyou in disbelief. Pinching a small part of one hand with the thumb and index fingers of her other, Ai let out a small yelp; she wasn't dreaming

[kyouuchi]

Kyou let out a small 'squeak' when she felt Ai hug her. She didn't expect it at all, but it didn't bother either.

"Oh, no, don't worry about it!" She said rushedly, trying to reassure the other female. "It's no problem, I'm not offended. It takes an awful lot to offend me, and hugs are nice. Hugs aren't even on the offensive scale for me. Not even a tiny, tiny bit."

Kyou saw the tears in Ai's eyes, and started digging around her bag for the packet of hand tissues she always carried. She found them and pulled one out, passing it to the tearful girl with an even warmer smile than she'd had earlier. "You're going to Gakuin too...? That's great!" She placed one of her hands on Ai's shoulder reassuringly

[lovely_warumono]

"You weren't offended? Are we still friends then?" Ai looked up at Kyou, hoping she would reply with a 'yes.'

Raising herself from the bowing stance, she gently took the tissue that Kyou held out to her. With a sniffle, she wiped her eyes. Kyou's hand was warm on her shoulder, making Ai feel relaxed as she nodded her head 'yes' to Kyou's question.

"I'm suppose to start after winter break, too. I'll be in the tenth grade. Its wierd, changing schools at third term, but my dad got a promotion and we had to move here," Ai sniffled, explaining the situation as she stared at her knees.

"I'm sorry for crying. I just really like you and you're the first person I've met since being here, and I thought you wouldn't like me for hugging you," Ai apologized, looking up at Kyou again. Her smile was so warm and kind, Ai couldn't help but feel calm under the gaze.