1449A Annunciation St. - The Aidou Residence

[More than Music]

Kagayaki Aidou

“I can't believe he got up there...wow..”

”Yah, is very silly," Kagayaki said with a smile, letting Momo put his paw in his hand. "You okay, silly. Will be. Yah?"

“Well, let's get this going, shall we?”

They somehow got the mattress into the kitchen, through much bumping and laughing and apologies. But how were they going to get Momo to jump down? The poor puppy just sort of looked at them, wondering what on earth these two silly people were thinking. He wasn't much of a jumper... then again, he must've jumped to get up on the fridge... This was all so confusing!

“Come on, Momo!” Lily called sweetly, gesturing for Momo to come to her. The puppy whimpered helplessly, starting to move to jump, but only making the fridge jolt before holding still again. Kagayaki stepped back and winced a little as the fridge shifted with every move Momo made... what if he knocked it down? True, there wasn't much in there -- there hadn't been for a while -- but still... he couldn't afford to fix a broken fridge or a broken dog... and they definitely couldn't pick up the fridge by themselves.

It was times like this that made him wish he was a big, tough guy. But no, he was skinny little Kagayaki. And Lily wasn't much tougher-looking than he was.

“Come on down! Pleeease?" Lily continued. "We'll give you your treats if you come down, you goof!”

Kagayaki smiled. 'If I was a puppy, I'd come down if Lily called me like that!'

Sighing, he looked in Momo's eyes. "Mite, Momo. Look. See? Safe-safe!" He gave the mattress a pat, grinning. "Daijobu! A-Okay!" The dog moved a bit at that, making both Kagayaki and the fridge jump, but he gave up again without trying. Sighing, Kagayaki fell back onto the mattress dramatically. "See? I fall, and I--"

That, of all times, was when Momo decided to jump. Apparently, the idea of cuddling on the mattress was enough to make him move. Kagayaki let out a strangled cry like a scared laugh as he curled up, and before he knew it, Momo landed with three paws on the mattress and one on his stomach.

Letting out a groan that was drowned by giggles, Kagayaki pushed the dog back before it could lick his face all wet. Jumping to his feet, Kagayaki stood with his legs and arms parted in a triumphant stance.

"We do it, Momo! Yaaay!" The dog panted happily, moving about in excitement. "YAY!" Kagayaki rushed over to hug Lily's arm, laughing. "Yay Lily! Good ideas, yah! Yay!"

He sent Momo a bit of a hard look. "No more on there, yah!" He thought for a moment, fumbling in his pocket for the little bag of treats he kept on him. Finally finding one, he threw it up in the air. Momo grabbed it and sprawled out on the mattress to chew on it. Kagayaki laughed, grabbing Lily's hand as he bounced excitedly.

"We do it! Thank you, Lily-san!"

'This is what friends are for.'


Kagayaki is done here. :3

[Elda Forever]

Lilith Eytinge

She could see Momo trying to get up the courage to jump down, shifting the fridge and stopping. He looked so big and scared, it made her want to laugh. He reminded her of the Cowardly Lion from Wizard Of Oz. With further beckonings, Momo gave little whimpers, and it was beginning to look hopeless, even when she bribed him with treats. Next to her, Kagayaki gave a sigh, his Japanese words mixing in with his English like they were one and the same. "Mite, Momo. Look. See? Safe-safe!" He gave the mattress a pat, grinning. "Daijobu! A-Okay!"

The dog shifted forward a bit at that, making everyone and the fridge give a surprised jolt, but he didn't go through with it. Patting her knees with a big, reassuring smile pasted on her face, Lilith tried to mimic Kagayaki's word. “Die-joy-boo, Momo! Die-joy-boo!” It made her grin, hearing the strange combination of butchered sounds escape her, but she kept it up, but to no avail. Relinquishing a sigh, Kagayaki flopped onto the mattress with a dramatic air, and Lilith stood up, while Kagayaki called up to his dog with, "See? I fall, and I--"

Lilith let out a cry of warning as Momo decided that the intense temptation to follow his master onto the bouncy mattress was greater than his fear of the jump. The enormous dog flew down from the top of the refrigerator and landed, one paw pouncing painfully into Kagayaki's gut and making him groan. After her initial shock, Lilith let out a laugh, mingling with Kagayaki's giggles.

“Your dog is ridiculous!” Lilith declared, watching boy wrestle off dog. Kagayaki jumped to his feet and stood, proud to have his pup down.

"We do it, Momo! Yaaay!" The dog panted happily, moving about in excitement. "YAY!" Kagayaki rushed over to hug Lily's arm, laughing. His super-energetic elation had Lilith's side hurting from giggles, while he seemed to do a happy dance. "Yay Lily! Good ideas, yah! Yay!"

“Yay!' she giggled, not as enthusiastically but choking a bit on her laughter.

Then, after his initial jubilation subsided, Kagayaki sent his dog a stern, fatherly look. "No more on there, yah!" Lilith arched an eyebrow, crossing her arms on her chest, while Kagayaki pulled out a treat for Momo. The dog flopped down on the bed, almost furious in his munching attempts at the snack, and Kagayaki moved to celebrate more with Lilith, who was pursing her lips together at the reward he'd given the dog. True, he'd gotten off the fridge like they'd asked. But he'd gotten up there, too.

“Ah, so you give him treats for jumping on the refrigerator now, eh?” Lilith shook her head, half-teasing, half-warning. “You know, since you keep the treats on the fridge, that's probably why he got up there. You should get a box you can lock for his snacks. At least he won't get stuck again..” She smirked, brushing her hair away from her eyes, which were sparkling with humor. “I think I have an old tin cookie jar that could work for now, if you want it..” She leaned down to rub Momo's belly, as he gave little grunting noises of pleasure. “And let's get this mattress put back where it belongs!”

Lilith is done here!

[issie]

Liv Aldis

Liv kept her eyes to the ground, only looking up occasionally to glance at Chance or Kagayaki when they spoke to her. She hadn't said a word since the event that had left her and others in the hospital, mainly because she felt responsible. If only she had done what she was told and not gone to the party... no one would have been hurt. But now her family was erased, wiped out in the course of one night with too many innocent victims. All because of her.

How many apologies could she say that would make it right? None. Because there was no way to make it right. No matter what she did, Liv would never be able to atone for what she had done. And Yukito... A shudder went through her body. She had heard about what had happened to him. The one who offered her help once and had loved her sister.

Guilt weighed her shoulders down, to the point where it almost hurt. 'I deserve it though,' she thought to herself.

And now she was going to stay with Chance and Kagayaki, if she had understood them correctly. They were at his apartment then, moving things in. Silently, she questioned how he could take her in- especially after all she had done. 'Like inviting a murderer into your baby's nursery.' Her mom knew Liv was good for nothing, and for once she was starting to see why.

She couldn't even find the courage to touch Chance, backing up at even the slightest sign of physical contact. She was dirty. A filthy naive girl with a head full of dreams and a guilty conscience. He deserved better, she knew. And it hurt her to see his happy smile and the way he acted like this was all one big slumber party with friends. Like nothing had gone wrong.

'I'm sorry. I'm so sorry...'

[Elda Forever]

Chance Savege

The apartment was green, with a little porch on it that he liked. Sure, it wasn't a big place by any means, but it was a really sa-weet deal, all things considered. Brian was open to having a couple of people just drop in within days' notice and just move in with him? It made him very cool in Chance's book. He may have also been a fan of it because it made him feel a bit like a wandering gypsy, just moving from one place to the next. Who knew where they would be in a year? Maybe they would still be here, maybe not. But it felt good to be out of his parents' home. Away from the tension and the unfinished conversations.

Liv, however, seemed less enthusiastic. He was pretty sure it wasn't the apartment or Brian, or even the fat guy who lived upstairs that bothered. (Well, maybe the fat guy did disturb her just a teeny bit, but hey, he shouldn't be around too much.) Chance actually suspected that it had more to do with the fact that her whole life had just been completely uprooted this week. And it wasn't by her own choice in any way, shape, or form. As much as his dad seemed to hate him, Chance knew there was a faint hope of them reuniting again, maybe getting along better once his dad saw that he was serious about taking care of himself, man enough to stand on his own two feet and worth being allowed to make his own decisions. But did Liv have that choice? Her dad's brains had been blown out. And he was actually thankful she hadn't been physically able to go home that night and see the carnage her mother had left.

“Heeeey baby!” he cooed, leaning in to give her a kiss over the box he held with his scarves in it. “Brian says you get the second room, and I'll be moving into his room with him. Stupid rules,” he stuck his tongue out, rolling his eyes. “Let's go see your new room, okay?”

“Hey, Brian!” he called out, “Do ya have any music to play while we work, maybe? I'd ask you to play us guitar, but...then you can't help me lift the bed in, haha!”

[More than Music]

Kagayaki Aidou

A lot of things had happened since they'd gone to that party.

Even though he still had no shortage on hope, Amane hadn't woken up since that night. Life felt very... different, without her awake. But her parents and him had stuck together, and they would keep doing that, until she woke up. Because she would, right? She would. She had to.

Another thing was Yukito being in the hospital too. He hadn't seen much of Yukito or Erin outside of the hospital since the party, but they looked like they were pulling through too. Of course they would. They were strong like that.

Liv had gotten out of the hospital pretty soon after the party, and she looked like she wasn't feeling sick, but she looked like she felt heavy. Kagayaki didn't want her to help move too many things looking like that, so he had made a list of things that morning of things she could do that didn't involve straining herself. Maybe she was sad, but she definitely didn't look right, and he didn't know any other way to make sure she didn't hurt herself.

While in the hospital, he'd run into his neighbor again. Raiu. Raiu was a pretty nice person, but he kept to himself a lot. They used to work at the restaurant together. It was thanks to talking to Raiu more that Kagayaki had found help for moving today. It was that Clarence that used to date Cassie. Though he felt a bit intimidated by how much bigger and stronger Clarence was than him, he knew could use the help.

Because, he had to admit, him and Chance weren't that strong. And he didn't want Liv trying to help them. So he'd pleaded until Clarence finally decided to come help, 'to help the girl, not Sparkles' had been his words. Kagayaki wasn't sure where that nickname had come about, but secretly he was just happy it wasn't for him. But it seemed that Clarence didn't like Chance.

It kind of reminded Kagayaki of cartoons, where an elephant was afraid of a mouse.

But he'd gotten a tip from Raiu that cookies were a good way to get Clarence to stick around, plus, he wanted to make some for Liv and Chance. And maybe he could get Liv to help work on them instead of moving things that could make her tired. So it really worked out in all ways. He could use things working out like that.

“Hey, Brian!”

Kagayaki turned on his heel, smiling as he wiped some flour off on his jeans. "Hi!" he chirped, running over for a hug from both Liv and Chance. "Hi-hi-hi! How you doing, yeah?"

“Do ya have any music to play while we work, maybe? I'd ask you to play us guitar, but...then you can't help me lift the bed in, haha!”

He smiled, nodding. "Yes-yes, I thinked of that," he said, winking, then running over to turn on the stereo. He'd gotten a CD from someone... Raiu or Lilith, he couldn't remember. But he liked it. Buddy Holly. It was old music, for America, but for Kagayaki, it was very new. And he liked how it sounded. "Oh, I thinked of moving bed too," he piped up, running over to see how warm the oven was. "Got help for that. Neighbor." He opened the door and felt the air with his hand for a second, then closed the door, glancing over at Chance. "You remember... Clarence? From Yukito and Erin wedding? He come over, help. Got him come..." He pointed to the recipe that was laying on the counter, which had a picture of the sugar cookies he was going to make. "With cookies," he finished, winking.

Kagayaki looked over at Liv and felt his smile grow a bit sad. "You okie-dokie, Libu-chan?"

[issie]

Liv Aldis

“Heeeey baby!” Chance cooed to her, pulling her out of her thoughts and into reality again. He leaned in then, moving to give her a kiss and she obliged silently, not wanting to hurt his feelings and make things worse. Liv was carrying a box of clothes and her tote bag full of art supplies, but she wasn't really sure where to put them. “Brian says you get the second room, and I'll be moving into his room with him. Stupid rules,” She nodded absently in reply- but her eyes were wide, trying to figure out why Kagayaki would want Chance to share a room with him. But then she realized it might not be because he wants Chance to sleep in the same room, it's that he didn't want him to sleep in the same room as Liv. “Let's go see your new room, okay?”

She didn't bother translating. He could have asked her if she was a crossbreed between a spider and a hippo and she wouldn't have known the difference. But it sounded like a question- so she just nodded again.

“Hey, Brian!” Chance called out, causing him to turn on his heel and wipe something on his jeans.

"Hi!" he chirped back, running over to them to get a hug. Liv situated her box between her body and her arm for a moment as she used her free arm to hug him gently, and only for a moment before she backed away and moved the box in her arms around again. "Hi-hi-hi! How you doing, yeah?" Needless to say, it was a tad hard for her to understand his accent and how he phrased everything. She almost needed a translator even though she knew he was speaking English. Or... sort of knew.

“Do ya have any music to play while we work, maybe? I'd ask you to play us guitar, but...then you can't help me lift the bed in, haha!”

Kagayaki/Brian smiled, nodding. "Yes-yes, I thinked of that," he said, winking at Chance as if it were some sort of secret. Liv kept her eyes on the ground though, almost studying every inch of the floor. Like she did with the things she drew- analyzing the details and picturing it on canvas or in a sketchbook. The sound of music made her jump a little and her eyes lifted momentarily to see where exactly it was coming from. It was just a stereo, she just didn't notice him turning it on. The song that was playing didn't sound bad by any means- it just sounded different than what she was used to. Liv could tell that it was in English though by a few words she happened to recognize. "Oh, I thinked of moving bed too," he piped up, she watched his feet as he went over to the stove. Her fingers tapped on the box in her hands lightly in time with his footsteps, then to the music. She was spaced out again. "Got help for that. Neighbor. You remember... Clarence? From Yukito and Erin wedding? He come over, help. Got him come... With cookies," More tapping.

"You okie-dokie, Libu-chan?"

She lifted her head up a little and looked at him questioningly, not sure if 'Libu' was her or not. Sure enough though, he was looking right at her. "I'm.. okey dokey." She said, trying to mimic how he formed his words but failing because of her Norwegian accent. "How... how is Ka..geh yekii?" She asked but winced a little, knowing that somehow she just butchered his name.

"Sorry." she whispered, holding the box tighter than before.