Fur-al High

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Veronica blushed instantly as Shinzuu's voice reminded her again that she wasn't alone. "Oh great, you just sang in front of him! Well...at least he said it was nice and now we're talking again..." She thought hurriedly to herself. "Oh, um, thanks." She said in a nervous tone. "Actually, it's a different singer. Her name's Taylor Swift. I think the one you're thinking of is Kelly Clarkson, but I like her too. The song is basically about how this boy the singer likes has a girlfriend, but the singer feels that the boy belongs with her and not the girl he's with. Basically she's saying that she knows him better than the other girl and that she has more in common with him than the other girl does too." She hoped he wouldn't think that she was singing it as a hint to him with the description she gave him.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

Schad had followed Reno into the store, but she didn't take as long as he did given that the two things she wanted were near the door. She had bought a chocolate milk and some gummy worms because since they had moved here, she hadn't really had them. She was only lucky to occasionally get them at americanized stores. She was often disappointed with the lack of her favorite candy: Pop Rocks. Sometimes her friends on the net would mail them to her, which she was thankful for. As she stood outside reminiscing with her bag in hand, it wasn't long before Reno joined her. When he asked if she was heading his way, she nodded, "I think I should given that all my stuff is at the hotel and I need to pay for it." Upon using the card in the store, she had gotten some cash back; enough to pay for a few nights until she could get to the bank.

[Srgntcuddles]

Reno walked with Schadenfreude back to the hotel. Along the way to his room he spotted something in the hallway. He bent down and picked it up. "My charger, wonder 'ow it got out 'ere...?" he shrugged and went into his room, set the bags on his bed and plugged in his phone. For laughs he checked his missed calls, there was three over the passed couple days. All from Jessica. He called her back, when she picked up her voice sounded sad. "Jessica? You called? What's up?" "Reno it's bad! Something happened!" "Woah woah, calm down, tell me what happened." "It's Nero, he-..." There was a pause on the Jessica's end. "What happened to Nero...?" "...He was shot..." Reno lost his ability to hold himself up and he just fell onto the floor at the foot of his bed, barely grabbing onto the bed. "Is he-" "He's dead!" "I-...Wh-...'ow did it 'appen?!" "He was shot in a driveby!" Reno flashed back to the dream he had been having, it filled his head until Jessica spoke again. "Reno...Are-" "I'll be fine...I'll fly out as soon as I can to attend the funeral..." "Thanks, Reno..." Reno hung up and tossed the phone. He sat there for a moment. He shook his head. "I can't believe this..." He stood up and looked at his door which he left open. He went over and slammed it closed. He didn't notice if Schadenfreude was inside, outside, or where ever. He was too caught up in the news. "Why!?" he shouted kicking over his chair. He shoved the stuff on his desk onto the floor and started punching it, screaming "No" every time he did. Soon tears ran from his eyes and he collapsed on his bed.

The next day...

Reno woke up early and went to school, straight to the Principal's office. He explained his situation to Ms. Yass. She understood and decided to give him a few excused days to go to his best friend's funeral. She was going to express her condolences but he left before she could. He went home to arrange a flight for the next day. If anyone had seen Reno he looked very angry but depressed and sad. He was also unresponsive to anyone the whole day.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Shinzuu felt a little stupid for the mix-up, but it didn't show. He didn't really listen to American music anyways, so it didn't much bother him for more than 1 second. He was always more of a Hiroshi Aoyagi fan and, of course, Satou Akemi. But he feigned a smile and chuckled, "Yea, I guess you're right. I'm not really up with the whole American music fad. However, it still sounds beautiful." Of course, Shinzuu was completely oblivious to Veronica's hints, being so tired from all the running he's done today. By the time they reached Veronica's gate, he was hesitant to pass at first, but forced himself inside.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Veronica didn't really think of it as a fad, she just really liked American music. Of course, she also liked the Beatles and they were British. She didn't say anything after Shinzuu spoke though. She walked through the gate in silence then closed it after he walked through. Then she walked up the walkway to the steps and then up to the front door. She opened the door and stepped inside, leaving the door open for him as she dropped her bag on the floor and bent down to take her shoes off.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

Schad was in utter awe as it seemed like Reno dashed off and completely ditched her slamming the door in her face. She really didn't know what to say at it, so she just made her way in her room where she put her chocolate milk in the mini fridge and the gummy worms on the bed. She decided she'd go pay rent on where she was living, so she made her way to the front desk, laying what she had to pay for her night there and then silently returned to her room. She popped in Fatal Frame in her PS2 and played.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Shinzuu followed Veronica after they had entered the house and taken their shoes off. Memories of his past in this house flooded his mind, and made him kind of fade into the past. However, he snapped out of his daze as he remembered why he was here in the first place. Shinzuu knew this house too well, despite the redecoration, but he let Veronica tell him where to go.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Veronica walked into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of chocolate milk then grabbed a box of Triscuits. "Do you want a drink or something?" She asked him and then walked out of the kitchen. "You can help yourself if you do. Drinks are in the fridge, obviously. Glasses are in the cupboard to the left of the microwave. Snacks are in the cupboard to the right of the fridge." She said, pointing out each spot as she mentioned it. She tucked the box of Triscuits under her right arm and kept holding the glass in her right hand as she picked up her bag from the floor by the shoes with her left hand. "So where do you want to study? At the dining room table *gestures toward the dining room* or in the living room *gestures toward the living room*?" She took a drink of her chocolate milk while looking at him and waiting for him to reply.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

She sat there, a little bored and unentertained.. She was playing through parts of the game she had already beaten because she had accidentally saved over her more senior game. It wasn't really as tense the second time around, which was a relief to her. She stuffed a few gummy worms in her mouth as she continued on through the haunted house, taking a few minutes to stare at her phone as if to expect a call. She was bored stiff and she didn't really have very many friends.. She knew she shouldn't expect calls.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

The rest of the study session went well. Shinzuu was now able to identify and pronounce 5 words in English, poorly, and was able to work on his penmanship. At the end of the night, at around 10pm, he had met both of Veronica's parents and was sweating as he suffered her father's stares the entire evening since his return. Shinzuu yawned and stretched as he packed his things to go and had done well to play dumb about his surroundings. Before he put his shoes on, he felt the urge to use the bathroom. "Oh, excuse me, I gotta go to the bathroom first." Without thinking, Shinzuu went up the stairs right next to the entrance and went in the bathroom on the first door on the left. He relieved himself and washed his hands after flushing and went back down the stairs, bending over to put his shoes on.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Veronica assisted Shinzuu as best she could but she had never thought she was any good at explaining/teaching things to people. She could tell that Shinzuu had become uncomfortable when her father got home but she didn't really see any reasoning for it. When Shinzuu went to leave, she stood there so she could say goodbye when he left and close the door behind him. When he mentioned that he needed to use the bathroom, she opened her mouth to tell him where it was but was caught off-guard by him heading in the right direction. "Did I tell him where it was already? No...I never even said what was upstairs... How'd he know?" She thought with a confused look on her face. The confused look was still on her face when Shinzuu came back downstairs and started to put his shoes on. "Uh...how did you know where the bathroom was? I know I didn't tell you." She asked as she looked at him.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

After she got too bored to play any further into the game, she got her laptop and checked her messages. She wondered what was wrong with Reno, not only had he acted funny when he got a phone call, he also blew her off, which was unlike him. She wondered if it had anything to do with "googling the symptoms" that he had talked about earlier before he knew she was behind him. She read through messages and messages, until she was tired, then she curled up in her bed to go to sleep.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Shinzuu hastened putting on his shoes and slung his bags over his right shoulder. "I just... had a hunch, y'know? Plus, I had to go really bad. Well, I'll see you at school tomorrow. Thanks for helping me out and having me over." Shinzuu rushed right out the door and waved to Veronica before disappearing into the darkness. Oh, ******. That was close. Shinzuu you idiot. It was extremely late by the time he got home, so he just left his bags at the door with his shoes and went straight to bed.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Veronica knew he wasn't telling the truth. No one had hunches about where people's bathrooms were the first time they went to their houses, they always asked. She went back to her mom in the living room. "Mom...who did we buy this house from anyway?" She asked, looking at her mom. Her mom turned her attention away from the TV. "Hmm...I believe it was the Katame family. Why?" Her mom responded. "Just wondering. Night." Veronica went upstairs, brushed her teeth and used the bathroom, then went to her room and changed into her pajamas. "So that's why he has been acting strange when it comes to this house... Well, I'll just see if he tells me on his own sometime." She crawled into her bed, set her alarm, and went to sleep.

[Goblin Cat 😸]

The next day seemed harder than usual for Schad to get out of bed. She felt unusually depressed, and didn't really care to see herself in the mirror that morning as she took her medication and her shower. After getting dress in her uniform, she sighed and pushed the door open. She was running a few minutes late as she started on her morning walk to school without Reno. When she got to class, it seemed as if things were running as if they were at the bottom of the ocean, she wound up falling back asleep on her desk.