Two birds and a fox.
Still asleep, no signs of waking yet. Kyosei stared at Laguna's snoozing face for an entire minute, his own ear and nose twitching as he recalled the dream he'd had. His roommate had been talked into a massive prank spree by a trio of manipulative students who convinced her none of it was mean and it had ended in her nearly drowning him. One single tail arched around his hip and loomed over the mermaid. After a brief hesitation the tail sank down and poked Laguna's nose…..and nothing happened, really. She just wiggled her nose and frowned for a moment. Kyosei matched that frown and wrinkled his brow, he'd need a bit more effort to get his vengeance.
The three tails remaining behind the youko's back alternately writhed and flicked in frustration, nervousness and curiosity but the tool of his 'prank' remained perfectly focused. Now the tailtip began to gently sway back and forth across Laguna's nose, mercilessly tickling the sniffer until she grumbled and softly swatted at it. Kyosei couldn't hold in the giggle. At last, revenge for his dreamt up mistreatment! She was squirming now, he let out a tiny quiet 'evil' cackle only for Laguna to mumble something and lazily wrap her arms around his tail. Kyosei's eyes bulged and he made a desperate scramble away only to fumble and flop pathetically to the floor.
Laguna rolled over onto her side and very slowly opened one eye part way. "Kyo? What are you doing on the floor. "Nothing, go back to sleep." He grumbled in defeat, laying the same tail that had been trying to pull a joke on her moments ago across her face. The warm floof and calming scent had her back out in moments.
Ok so the petty vengeance was a failed and paltry attempt, but it was Saturday, dammit. Saturday means fun! Adventure! One must take advantage of every day off from school! Or so Kyosei's mother had told him, at least. That's why he'd decided to visit the town near Youkai Academy. It had been several years since he visited a human settlement, he wasn't as mischievous as when he was a kit but surely he could find some entertainment there. It really didn't take long for him to get there and once he did he immediately began to wander around, examining every curiosity and interesting sight that caught his eye.
The second Kyosei was distracted by a scent that seemingly was coming from a small ramen shop , he managed to bump into a relatively slender boy with green hair, dropping him to the floor. "Ouch…" The green haired lad rubbed his back. "Noel! Are you okay!?" A girl with green hair immediately tended to him. The two teenagers looked very similar, so much that it was obvious that they were siblings. They looked so similar in fact, they could very well have the same face. "Look out where you're going!" The girl immediately snarled at Kyosei. "I'm okay Sophia… Help me get up." the boy whose name was Noel spoke to his sister who then helped him back on his feet.
"Oh, oh no! I'm so sorry!" Kyosei exclaimed, wishing he'd been fast enough to help the boy up himself. "Sorry I just..smelled some really good ramen and turned too fast, then… My nose is very sensitive and sometimes it feels like it takes over my higher brain functions…Did you scrape anything?" When he asked the question Kyosei was already examining this Noel person, looking way too closely at his face, then his arms, then his legs. "I carry medicine with me whenever I'm out and about, and I found some good herbs on the way here, I can make it better if you're hurt at all!" The worry on his face was blown out of proportion and he could feel a twinge in the top of his head. His ears were trying very hard to pop out and flatten themselves in shame and concern, it took all of his self control to keep his appearance purely human.
"I'm okay, really…" Noel spoke shyly, rubbing the back of his head. His sister was the complete opposite and seemed enthusiastic, as if she had forgotten that her brother was pushed to the floor only moments ago. "Medicine? Good herbs? Wow you really are prepared!" Sophia clasped her hands together and was almost in Kyosei's face with her curiosity. "Are you from around here? You don't sound like you're from around here." She asked, taking a step back and resting her chin on the back of her hand while her elbow rested on her other arm.
Kyosei tilted his head. "No, I'm not from around here. I suppose I'd be from a more rural area in the countryside. I used to visit towns like this a lot but in recent years I've been more reclusive. He felt his ears aching desperately to twitch at her invasion of his space, but he'd been no better only moments ago. "Noel and Sophia, was it? It's nice to meet you, my name is Kyosei."
"Kyosei, huh? So you do have a japanese name!" Sophia waved her finger around and playfully winked before resting her hand on her heart and bowing. "Sophia de la Rey, at your service. This here is Noel, my younger brother." At that moment. Noel bowed as well. "Noel de la Rey. She calls me younger brother but she's merely 2 minutes older." He gently spoke. "As you can guess from our names, we're not from around here as well."
"Yes, my parents are originally from Japan." Kyosei explained. "They have their own way of doing things so I can't say I was raised totally Japanese, but I have been taught many Japanese customs like tea ceremonies and such… and now I'm back to go to school here as well after being away for some time." He tilted his head at the twins and smiled curiously. "Where are you two from?"
The twins glanced at each other and nodded before turning their faces to their new acquaintance. "We're from Korea. Our mother is Korean but our father is from France." Sophia explained but had a sad expression that she tried to hide with a smile while doing so. Noel rested his hand on her tiny shoulders in an attempt to comfort her. "We lost them a long time ago. We're taking care of each other now." Noel said. Sophia sighed and sprung up. "Anyway! What school are you attending? There are not many schools in this area." her curiosity showing.
The disguised Youko blanched immediately. "O-Oh it's...just a little place, neither here nor there… It uh… It's more like a social thing to try and help me get more used to interacting with people again. Too much time in the boonies, you know., I'm not supposed to tell anybody about it because they don't want people who aren't part of the classes wandering in and disrupting things. It's a very delicate curriculum."
Sophia raised an eyebrow at the very dodgy answer the boy in front of her was giving. It was obvious he was trying to hide something. She shook her head and returned to the situation with a lovely smile spreading across her lips. "Well, now that we're here anyway, let's go eat some ramen!" The girl suggested. Noel seemed to be internally panicking at the thought. "U-Uh Sophia? L-Let's not bother him too much, shall we…?" He tried to convince her but she wouldn't budge. "How about it, Kyosei? Weren't you enchanted by the scent?"
Kyosei smiled. "Why, yes, I was. It was the very smell that distracted me so thoroughly I bumped into poor Noel. I have to watch out more in the future. It's been a long time since I had a bowl of good ramen, I think that's an excellent idea." He didn't have a lot of pocket money but some ramen wouldn't break the bank.
"Excellent!" Sophia called out. She walked towards either of the boys and held her arms intertwined with theirs to pull them along. "Let's go!"
Once inside what seemed like a small ramen shop on the outside, inside was a bit more spacious than one would suggest. Everything was made from wood and the chairs at the bar had red leather cushions on them, as did all the other chairs. Sophia picked a table near the window and sat down, Noël sighing at his defeat and sitting down right next to them while Kyosei sat in front of them. Almost immediately a young japanese man with dark brown hair arrived at their table. "Good evening. Here are the menu cards. Would you like something to drink in the meantime?" He asked, laying three menu cards in front of them and resting his eyes on Sophia. "I'd like a Calpis soda!" Sophia spoke dignified and grabbed the card. The man didn't seem to be writing anything down though. He stared at the girl, seemingly being captivated. It wasn't until Noël coughed and spoke out his order that was the same as his sister that the young man started to write down the orders. "T-Two Calpis Soda then… and you sir?" He turned to Kyosei.
These two sure stand out, don't they? Once again Kyosei felt his ears twitching and was glad they couldn't be seen. "I would like some green tea, please." He dipped his head and smiled softly with his eyes closed. "With some mint, if you have any." Human body language is so much more subtle that he now felt like he truly understood why his family always knew what each other were thinking implicitly and most people had to read deeper with each other. He picked up the menu in front of him and began to peruse it, thinking maybe the next time he saw his mother he'd see if maybe he could actually lie to her successfully while in his human form.
"Alright, I will be back with your order." The young man shot one last glance at Sophia before he went back to the kitchen but seemed rather surprised when seeing Kyosei's dark orange hair that progressively becomes lighter orange at the tips. Like fire. The ramen shop seems to be having rather odd guests today.
"You seem to be distracting them again." Noël told his sister without bothering as much as to look at her. "Of course we stand out dear brother. We're Korean-French. We look like tourists here. Besides, it's not just us." Sophia replied and shot a glance to the boy. "I-I don't think… No matter…" Noël soon gave up but Sophia could hardly contain her giggling. It didn't take long for the waiter to return with their drinks. "So Kyosei, what brought you to town today?" Sophia asked their new friend in front of them gleeing from pure curiosity.
"Curiosity more than anything else." Kyosei began frankly. "My school is strictly boarding-only and I've been in there the past few days. I really just wanted to see the town and spend some time outside of school. I'm not a very social person so people watching and plant-tending are much more my speed, and even I can only spend so much time in a greenhouse before I get antsy." He sipped his tea, revelling in the relaxing coolness the mint added to it. His breath always smelled of mint but now with his tea each sigh of contentment he let out spread the scent and a cooling sensation over the table.
"French and Korean, hmm? That's an interesting split of ancestry. I certainly understand being looked at strangely, even if it's to a lesser extent. Most people assume my hair is dyed thanks to the strange colors but it really is just the colors of both of my parents blending together… even if it's in an abnormal way." He blinked when it struck him how much he was talking with these two and he wondered what was making him so vocal, but shrugged it off after a moment and another sip. "Why did the two of you choose today to visit, if I may ask?".
Suddenly, it was quiet. Noël and Sophia broke the silence at the same time. "Shopping!" Yelled Sophia. "Searching for a school!" Said Noël at the same time, making the two of them look at each other before turning their gaze back to Kyosei. "S-Shopping for school supplies while searching for a school…" Sophia said with a sheepish laugh, wondering if their new friend would fall for that.
Curiouser and curiouser. "And what school might that be?" Kyosei asked, having a harder and harder time fully maintaining his human form. "Is there anything special about it? Perhaps we're future schoolmates?"
Noël was no longer able to hide his discomfort with lying. He never really understood why it came so naturally to Sophia. "I-I don't think so." He answered. His twin-sister was looking rather worried as well. "Iiiittt's somewhere andddd… our cousin is employed there so we came to visit." Sophia gave Kyosei the best smile that she could give. "Anyhow, I'm sure we'll find it." Sophia tried to wave her worries away but then Noël opened his mouth again. "Yeah it's not in a forest or anything!" As Noël spoke, Sophia facepalmed. Her brother was a terrible liar.
So many questions ran through Kyosei's head in a blur so rapid and frantic that his eyes darted around and one of his ears actually popped out for a split second before disappearing again. Finally, he stopped, took a deep breath and tipped the teacup to his mouth again. After an abnormally long sip he inhaled through his nose and looked at the twins, eyes calm. "What is your cousin's name? Perhaps I know them?"
"I-I'm
sure you don't know them." Noël said scratching his chin and wondering if he was going crazy. Did Kyosei have non human ears for a split second? When he opened his mouth again, his sister jumped in and slammed at the table. "Food! What kind of ramen are you getting Kyosei? I'm totally going for the Shoyu ramen! I wonder if I can get an extra egg with that…"
"I enjoy the pork-bone tonkatsu the most, myself." Kyosei explained. "And I also like to have an extra egg or two." He smiled at her with his eyes closed before giving himself a moment with a bit more tea. "You know, my school happens to have co-ed dorms, I think it would be quite a nice place for you two." Kyosei sniffed for a few moments, trying to look like he was enjoying the scents of food in the air - which he certainly was - but what he was really after was more subtle. He hoped to really peg down the scent of the twins, perhaps he might recognize it - or at least realize if it wasn't quite human.
It was silent for a while. Everyone was anxious and nervous at the table, until the waiter came back to retrieve their orders for the ramen. Noël and Sophia both ordered a Shoyu ramen with an extra egg while Kyosei ordered his pork-bone tonkatsu ramen but as soon as the waiter left, the awkward silence returned. It was then that Sophia got annoyed and leaned in towards Kyosei, holding a hand next to her mouth to whisper. "Do you perhaps attend Youkai Academy?" Sophia boldly asked.
At that there was a loud thump from one of Kyosei's tails appearing underneath the table and smacking into it before disappearing again. In that short moment the twins felt the soft warm fluff brush their legs and the youko couldn't stop his eyes from lighting up with the promise of sated curiosity. "Yes, is it the one you're looking for?!" He leaned forward, eyes twinkling with intrigue. "You aren't human, are you? Please tell me you're not-I'm in so much trouble if you are."
Sophia sat back in her chair and chuckled, chuckled until it evolved into an uncontrollable laughter. "S-Sister! Please contain yourself! People are staring at us!" Noël tried to calm her down. It's as the brother said, everyone inside the shop was now staring at them. It wasn't until Sophia stared back at them and slowly calmed her laughter into just a quiet giggle. "I mean… What are the odds? We bump into someone and they happen to not be human at all. It's almost too perfect to be true." While her giggle was still evident, she seemed a bit upset at that moment before returning to her usual bubbly self. She made wing signs with her hand towards Youkai, hopefully giving him a clue at their non-human identity.
"Wings?" Kyosei muttered, tilting his head. He tapped his chin and stared at the table as if the entire world had disappeared around him, totally absorbed into finding the answer. "Harpies? No, they're known for kidnapping people, not enchanting them. Dragons aren't around anymore…" His eyes widened and he leaned back in his chair as if preparing to flee. "You aren't a succubus and an incubus, are you?!" Though he exclaimed such frightened words, he at least had the sense to keep his voice low enough not to travel beyond the table.
Sophia and Noël glanced at each other for a moment before turning their faces back at the surprised fox in front of them. "... No. Oh god no." Noël spoke in disgust. How did he even come to that conclusion?
"We're Sirens." Sophia said quietly. "You know what Sirens are?"
"I thought Sirens were aquatic Youkai?" Kyosei queried. "I haven't actually spent much time around other Youkai or even in the youkai realm aside from my parents' home, you see…" He looked embarrassed. "Even though I've spent a lot of time around humans I guess you could say I'm very sheltered."
"It's okay. Siren are winged Youkai. We have a pair of wings and our voice is our strength. We have a couple of other powers but we're basically singing birds." Noël explained while Sophia nodded excitedly. "What are you, Kyosei?"
His eyes crinkled at the edges of a vulpine smile. "Would you look at that, my tea cooled while we were speaking." He raised his cup at the tips of all his fingers and before their eyes it began to steam again as the smell of mint overtook the table and filled them with a coolness that starkly contrasted the warmth around him. "I am a Youko." He explained with a tone of mischief, the pupils that bored into the twins changing from circular voids to vertical slits as his smile widened to show his pointed teeth.
Noël hastily looked around hoping that no one had seen that. Not long after, Sophia gave him a soft smack against the back of his head. "You're obvious, stop that." She told him, not letting her gaze wander away from their newly acquired Youko friend. "That's so cool! I once had a Yok-" before the girl could finish her sentence, the waiter had returned with their ramen orders. They had to drop the subject for a little bit until the man left. All the waiter saw in the end was the young man with the long hair smiling with his mouth and eyes closed at his two new friends over his cup of tea.
"Thank you very much, sir." Kyosei dipped his head in gratitude when his bowl was placed before him, nose wiggling in delight at the scent emanating from its contents.
The waiter left with Noël taking a better look at Kyosei. "Now that you say it… you do look like you could be one." the boy said. "All that aside, you said you attend Youkai Academy right? Would you happen to know an individual going by the name Solomeya?"
"I've only ever heard that name as the name of a character from a show I once watched." Kyosei explained before tilting his head. "Why, do you have a friend or relative at school by that name?"
Noël and Sophia glanced at each other. They shrugged and sighed, taking it one shortly before returning their gazes back to the fox boy in front of them
"Ah… Don't worry about it." Sophia replied with a sheepish grin.
The three kids enjoyed their food and talked some more. From outside the restaurant a man wearing sunglasses and a black fedora stared at the three kids sitting by the window. He stood there for a while longer… then he smirked and headed off.
A JP with Sephear