Yokai High (Cammy and Zen)

[Cammeh]

<Good morning. My name is Miyamoto-Watts Kaede. I have just moved to Japan from America. I am living here now with my father. Everything is very new and I am still learning Japanese, to speak and to act. Please forgive my rudeness if I make a mistake. I am depending on you all from today.>

The practiced speech was made with a quiet seriousness, with a bow to his teachers and his new classmates. Everything felt strange. Wearing a uniform, wearing special indoor shoes, speaking Japanese, bowing. But this was to be his new life. Ma was not here. Nobody he knew was here. Kaede's face tightened slightly as he fought back the homesickness, and the grief. He needed to be here. And not just because of the Agreement.

The teacher allowed questions from his new classmates, and Kaede answered them the best that he could, with help and explanations, and even a few translated words, from the teacher. The school had admitted him based on his grades and a translated exam, and he was going to a tutor and juku to help with his Japanese and History. He was from California, and no he didn't know any celebrities but yes, he could surf a little. He played a little baseball, but he preferred track and field. He liked rap music and some rock, but also Native American music, as his mother was Native American and Black. He also spoke Spanish and a bit of a Native American language called Chumash. He played the electric bass and also the native drums and flute. Yes, he had dyed his hair blond. Yes, he missed his family in America very much.

When Kaede was asked why he had moved to Japan, he snapped his mouth shut for a moment before finally answering that he was uncomfortable talking about it, and the teacher quickly brought an end to the questions. The class welcomed him in unison, and he was able to take his seat, near the front and close to the window. The rest of homeroom went on as routine, with announcements and attendance, before the first teacher arrived for the first class.

Kaede spent a lot of time watching and listening hard, trying to keep up with the teacher. It was too slow to write in kana, the Japanese lettering, but too time-consuming to translate into English, so he simply wrote the Japanese using Romaji to properly transcribe later. After the first class, he found himself slightly mobbed by his classmates, but they gave him a bit more space when he began to look a bit too overwhelmed. He heard the girls giggling and caught the word 'shy'. He'd take that if it meant being mostly left alone for now.

 

[Zen]

Ayami sat in the back row of the classroom, head tilted with meek interest at the new student who was introduced to her classroom.

"Another new student?" One of her classmates whispered, glancing sidelong at Ayami who smiled brightly back. "That's the second one this year."

It was true, Ayami was also transferred to the school six months ago but unlike Kaede she blended in perfectly. After all, she was full Japanese and didn't receive nearly as many questions as Kaede did. Still, she felt a pang of sympathy for him when one of the students asked why he moved here. It was obvious that he was uncomfortable about the question.

The class had settled down once their first teacher arrived, the energy shifting between splashes of curiosity and amusement with waves of boredom. Ayami too settled into the daily pattern of school life until flickers of red flashed to her left side. Every time she looked to try to find the source, the color and feeling would subside. It wasn't until the first class ended did she finally find the source.

It was the new student, Kaede. From the corner of his desk she saw how he was having trouble keeping up with the new language. Words and characters were scratched out, Japanese mixing with English and perhaps something else. The young girl bit the tip of her tongue, knowing exactly how he must be feeling.

She hung back when the class let out, watching as Kaede was mobbed by overenthuastic students. Her laugh was masked by a cough, and she tapped him on the shoulder once he was alone.

"Hello there, I'm Ayami Yamamoto. Welcome to Tokyo." She bowed from the waist, black hair cascading down from her shoulders before meeting his eyes again. "I couldn't help noticing that you're having trouble understanding the language. I am fluent in English and Japanese if you'd like some help."

She spoke in English, and sounded like one too. Ayami definitely didn't have a Japanese accent, nor did she sound American. British, more like, the posh and upscale kind as well.

Her smile was genuine and sincere, but a second later the smile was replaced with a slight frown. Ayami's head tilted to the side and she muttered, "Curious..."

 

[Cammeh]

Kaede fairly jumped out of his seat when she tapped his shoulder, spinning around and trying to get his heart to slow down as he looked at her. He blinked a few times listening to her introduction, but after hearing so much Japanese swirling around him, her English seemed to cut through it all like a cool breeze, calming him. He returned the smile and was about to respond to her offer, when she started frowning at him. "W-what is?" he asked warily. She had an odd presence around her. It seemed familiar somehow, but he couldn't place it. There was something about her that made him think of his grandparents' reservation. Soon, he was frowning curiously at her as well.

Their little staring match was interrupted, however, by the next teacher arriving. This was supposed to be Maths. He hoped this would be easier than the history they'd just had. He sighed and pulled out a fresh notebook.

 

[Zen]

Ayami looked up at their teacher, grateful for the interruption. She wasn't quite sure Kaede would be up to hearing about what she saw. The boy had an interesting aura about him, but there seemed to be something more looming underneath him. It made her want to literally prod him, to see if she could coax whatever thing was inside him. Of course... That would be extremely impolite. And not to mention weird.

It would be better to land into Kaede's good graces. So, whenever she noticed him struggling with the lecture Ayami would whisper the translation into his ear. She tried not to do this too often, as she didn't want to hurt his pride, but it seemed like he appreciated the help. Fortunately, the lecture was an easy one, introducing the concept of functions.

The lunch bell rang and Ayami closed her notebook shut with a snap. "Kaede, would you like to join me for lunch?" She knew what it was like to be the new kid at school. Lunch period was always the worst because there wasn't anyone to sit by.

 

[Cammeh]

"Oh, uh..." he hesitated, his eyes sliding sideways to avoid her gaze. He'd been hoping to have some time to himself, to escape from all the eyes on him. But he didn't want to seem rude to her for some reason. She wasn't someone his instinct was telling him to avoid, like it often did with people he was uncomfortable around, which was odd. He wanted to get to know her more, but he was just feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"I, um, if we can go somewhere quieter?" he compromised, seeing other hopeful girls circling behind her, waiting to hear his answer. Being around one person probably wouldn't be so bad. "I did want to talk to the teacher who coaches the track team as well. I want to ask if it would still be possible to join the team for this year..."

He slowly pulled his bento from his satchel. His father's cook (Kaede still couldn't get over the fact that his father had staff at home!) had made it for him. If Ayame was looking, she'd also spot lots of snacks in his bag as well. Some more healthy than others, but there were certainly a lot more than one would expect, especially for a boy his size and build. He grabbed a couple of them as well as his water bottle before standing.