fiction ° open

∞ ∞

Rest in peace with my sorrows

[/b]
Or are you my greatest war?[/font][/color][/I][/size]

<sub>Aven was up to her usual awkward business. Parking herself under a tree, she sat in the grass for a moment before pulling out a book. To the casual observer who had any inkling who the Russian was, they would have been thoroughly surprised to see that this book was a novel instead of the usual technical literature for her classes. But today was Saturday, and Aven had never been more grateful.

Yes, reading in the park was awkward.

It was as good a place as any, however, and being cooped up in her residence had been driving the usually active Russian mad. As she hoisted her Zune up to eye level, Louis Armstrong began trumpeting a tune in her ear. Maybe this wasn't going to be as awkward as she had initially thought. People strolling by seemed to ignore her for the most part, something she was glad for. Concentrating on her book, she immersed herself in the story, reaching down to change the song on her music player every once in a while.

Things were about to get more interesting than Aven had wanted for that particular afternoon.

She wasn't sure what subliminal tendril breached her concentration at first and made her look up, a frown creasing her pale face, but later on, she would tell herself that cats were fickle creatures who had inexplicably powerful magic that got them into more trouble than should have been universally allowed at any given time. The frown only deepened when the Russian was unable to find the source of the sudden disturbance.

About to return to her reading, the brown-haired girl caught a flash of quick movement out of the corner of one eye, turning her head, she could only gape as a very familiar long-haired tabby cat leaped from her hiding spot in some nearby bushes and fairly tackled a small toddler who was trundling by with his parents. The Allerca, considerably large for a feline, sat on the screaming child's chest for a moment, savoring her victory.

Aven promptly ripped her earbuds from her ears and sprang up, almost tripping over the strap of her shoulderbag, mind you, to the scene of the crime and snatching the tabby from the toddler.

"No! Bad cat, bad girl!" Aven admonished, glowering down at the feline, who only looked lazily and innocuously up at her.

"I'm sorry, she belongs to me...Is your little boy alright? She's really friendly, she just likes to pretend she's hunting big game..." Too much. Aven's face flushed as the couple exchanged glances. Awkwardness abound.

Yu, however, had other ideas. The tabby sunk her claws into Aven's arm, making the Russian yelp and loosen her grip just enough for the feline to spring free, and she was off, sprinting gracefully across the green grass of the park.

"Oh, gods..." Aven muttered as she started off after her cat, "Sorry!" She called back to the young family as an afterthought.

"Yu! Come here, you fat chudovishche! YU!" And the chase was on.</sub>

So many words that I can't always tell you[/b]
Do they live on in my head, and could my head steal my soul?[/color][/font][/center]

^NOTES:[/size] Had to write this. Was eating my brain. MY BRAIN, FOLKS. xD Thread is open, and Aven needs help chasing down that cat![/font][/sup]

The only thought in Akihito's mind when he saw his mother that morning was to get our of the house as soon as he possibly could. He could see the anger her blue eyes and while he was relatively sure that he wasn't the object of said anger the tall orange haired boy knew that there was a chance he would get the brunt of her anger. His father was out of the house, that much was obvious, and his sister had managed to convince both parents to let her stay with a friend all weekend. Get out before she has the chance to yell at you. Or make you do some kind of horrible task, Akihito told himself. Slipping out of the living room, he grabbed his shoes and slipped them on outside, leaving the grounds as quickly as his long legs would allow him to do so. Of course, someone just had to stop him.

"Akihito! Since you're going out take this list with you and go buy the food." The orange head sighed and turned around, his hand already out to accept the list that the old woman was speaking of. The old woman was their cook and at one point had been Akihito's nanny when she had first begun working for the household, and she held a considerable amount of control over the teenage boy. "We have your sister's birthday in a few days and I need everything on that list in order to make the preparations. Don't you dare forget anything." He nodded and agreed, sticking the list into his dark jeans while heading out of iron gates. She didn't say when she wanted the food to be brought back and he had no plans to go anytime soon. To the park, he told himself.

His overall appearance seemed to make quite a few people stare at him, something that he managed to get over a while ago. It was his hair that attracted the whispers, at least at school. Honestly, Akihito wasn't sure if normal people talked about his hair while he was walking down the street, and while he could pretend not to care, it kind of bothered him that no one ever seemed to believe him when he said it was completely natural. Entering the park he stopped suddenly when he heard someone yelling "you". It wasn't until he saw the dark haired girl and got hit in the leg by a large cat that Akihito realized she was calling over said cat. He stepped forward once more and scooped the cat up in one arm, starting to turn around when its claws went into his arm.

Akihito let out a hiss of pain and almost dropped the damned thing, but his own cats had a habit of clawing him quite often. "I'd appreciate it if you took the thing before I drop...it...again," Akihito growled, shoving the cat out to the girl. He didn't know whether it was a boy or a girl, and at this point he didn't much care.

Words:: 535
Tagged:: Aven
Notes:: he likes cats, I swear =)

∞ ∞

Rest in peace with my sorrows

[/b]
Or are you my greatest war?[/font][/color][/I][/size]

<sub>Darting around a very large and inconveniently-placed rock, Aven's feet got tangled up in themselves, and down she went, sliding on the grass. Hair askew, the Russian raised her head, eyes wide as she searched for her beloved feline companion. She finally found the Allerca in the form of her golden-yellow eyes staring balefully down at her from a slight distance and the arm of the boy holding her.

Wait...Urgh. A boy. So much for her peaceful afternoon. Stupid cat.

Scrambling up with an inelegant grunt, Aven trotted over, brushing herself off and tugging her hair out of her face irritably. Never again would she wear it down; too many unexpected things had happened to her as of late to allow such a mistake again. Nothing like this had ever happened in Russia. Stupid Japan.

As the boy handed the cat to her with a snarky comment, she lifted the long-haired cat and inspecting her for a moment with wide green eyes, glad the creature was unharmed, but stalling until she could remember the proper words to thank the boy. Japanese was tricky. Eventually, she figured that the situation called for a more formal and respectful expression of thanks, since she did love the feline so, and she turned back to the tall boy after admonishing Yu lightly in Russian.

"Uhm...Domo-arigato." The Russian bowed to the other, a hand scratching at Yu's soft ruff gently. The cat began purring loudly, vibrating warmly against her human. Squirming her way free of Aven's grip, she laid her front half on the human girl's shoulder, round ears forward and golden eyes watching the family of three she had just assaulted disappear into the distance. Fluffy tail flicking in irritation, the feline whapped Aven in the face with the appendage repeatedly. So much for her hunting expedition.

"She is...important to me...arigato." She murmured her gratefulness again as she straightened herself, spluttering and pulling Yu's tail away from her face, and finally caught sight of the boy's hair.

"Oh, wow. That's a...an unusual color." Aven blurted, face scrunching up as she too late realized her error. Glancing around uneasily, face as red as nature would allow, she looked for an escape route. Nice going, Russian.

"I'll just...go...thank you, again..."</sub>

So many words that I can't always tell you[/b]
Do they live on in my head, and could my head steal my soul?[/color][/font][/center]

^NOTES:[/color] Durf. Work on that brain-mouth filter, Ava. xD[/font][/sup]

Akihito blinked as the girl stumbled over who knows what and fell, sliding along the grass in the most ungraceful manner he had seen in...well anyone really. She looked up at him and the cat and he blinked, wondering if she was ever going to take the thing or if he was going to have to hold onto it for even longer. Generally he loved cats. Okay, so he loved kittens, when they were still innocent and cuddely. Grown cats were a different story and it usually depended on the cat. Right now it was easy for him to say that he didn't quite like this cat.

Finally the cat was lifted from his arms and Akihito frowned as he looked at his arm, relieved that it hadn't drawn any blood. She was silent and looked as though she was concentrating on something when the thanks finally slipped from her mouth. He knew she was foreign, that much was obvious, but Akihito wondered about her accent, being unable to place it right away and he reached back to scratch the back of his head as he thought it over. Russian maybe? Or is it German? I can never remember which sounds like what, he thought to himself, wondering if she would take offense to him asking.

The cat began whipping the girl in the face and a small smile appeared on his face as he was reminded of his own cat whenever he got annoyed. Her words were interuppted by the tail hitting her in the face, but he understood what she meant. It wasn't easy to lose a pet, even if the animal was merely running away from you in the park. Her eyes flashed to his hair and Akihito knew what was coming before the words even left her mouth, though the manner in which she said it was more of a shock to him than anything else. It didn't sound like the same tone others used when commenting on the orange mess on his head. Instead it seemed more like evident surprise.

His usual response was forming on his lips but he stopped quickly, his mouth hanging open slightly in mid word at the dark red blush appearing on her cheeks. Instead he frowned slightly and ran a hand through it, wondering if there was something else he could say. "Its natural if that's what you're wondering," he grumbled, realizing that it probably didn't sound any nicer than anything else he could have said. She began to turn to walk away and he took a short step forward, stopping himself quickly. "Um wait, can I ask you something? What kind of cat is that?" He didn't bother waiting to see if she was willing to answer the question, just coming out with it.

Tagged:: Aven
Words:: 481
Notes:: Sorry that took so long. My net died -_-

∞ ∞

Rest in peace with my sorrows

[/b]
Or are you my greatest war?[/font][/color][/I][/size]

<sub>Stroking the long-haired tabby, Aven started to beat a hasty retreat, intending to head back the way she'd come, retrieve her stuff, and take Yu home. The voice of the boy stopped her. What kind of cat was she?

"Oh, she's part shark, but mostly Allerca. They're, ah, not so full of dandruff as other cats, so they're good for bad allergies," Oh dear, now she was trying to be funny, "and they're supposed to be pretty mild-mannered, but she just jackknifed a three-year-old back there..." The Russian trailed off, having turned halfway to answer his question. Mouth set in a tight line, she flicked her eyes back up to his hair again. It certainly was interesting to have natural hair that color.

"I...didn't mean to be quite so rude about it. Just kind of came out that way. Sorry." Aven said humbly, gesturing vaguely to her head to indicate her apparent lack of timing and/or politeness filter. At least she was making things right now. Yu squirmed around in her arms again and turned her golden eyes to stare at the boy, letting out a soft chuff. The Allerca flicked her tail again; if she could only escape! Her human's hand stroking down her back soothed her slightly, but her eyes still remained locked on the tall boy.

"I'm Aven, by the way. Aven Ivanova. I'm from, uh, Russia, in case you were wondering." The dark-haired girl started. Not many could place her obviously strange accent, and she had often found herself explaining her home to others. Those conversations generally ended with speculations about the rise and fall of communism there, a topic which irritated her greatly. It seemed that when anyone heard the name 'Russia' anymore, they automatically shoved 'Soviet' in front.

Stupid Russia.

Yu's claws sinking gently into her shoulder got Aven's attention, and she frowned, looking down as the big cat began kneading at the area, appearing to be content just to be held. The Russian knew what she was up to, however! Dirty cat mind tricks! As soon as she relaxed her grip a fraction, the cat would be gone again. Huffing quietly, she adjusted her hold on the feline so she wasn't in quite such a position to flee again.

Thinking back on the current situation, Aven decided that she must look pretty silly; a fluffy cat slung up in her arms, grass stains on the front of her jeans and t-shirt, and an antagonized look etched onto her face.

She'd look like she was crazy. The crazy Russian with the cat. Yes, that was what she'd come to be known as at Ouran, she could see it now.

Stupid Japan.</sub>

So many words that I can't always tell you[/b]
Do they live on in my head, and could my head steal my soul?[/color][/font][/center]

Akihito wasn't one that generally smiled, laughed, or even chuckled at the jokes that people made, but he couldn't help the half smirk that pulled one corner of his mouth or the small, and quiet, snort that came with it. It had been the "half shark" comment that had made him do so, and mostly because it reminded him of his own cat. "Allerca? I haven't heard of that breed before, but I'm not exactly an expert on all things cat," he said, sticking one hand into his pocket and the thumb of his other linking through the chain that led to his wallet. His wallet...the food he was supposed to go buy for the house. Damn. Akihito's mind had wandered for a fraction of a second and he came back in time to hear the last half of her sentence "...they're good for bad allergies."

He was looking at the cat again, but he still saw her eyes flick up to his hair and he could see the same look he saw in other people's eyes. Natural? Sure, whatever. But maybe he was mistaken, because the next words out of her mouth wasn't a comment about how odd or how unbelievable it was. It was an apology and Akihito blinked, unsure of how to respond. There was an arsenal of smart ass answers and defenses stored away in the back of his mind, ready and prepared to be used against anyone who continued to talk about his hair. But he had never actually received an apology, at least not one that didn't follow a fight of some sort. Akihito's brain ran around in circles for a couple of seconds while he tried to think of what the most appropriate response would be.

"It's okay, I'm just use to people not believing me when I say its natural." It was probably the lamest thing he had said in quite a while, certainly in this whole conversation they had going, for the moment anyway, and he wasn't sure whether he should apologize for assuming she was making a personal attack against his hair color. "I thought about coloring it something normal at one point, but my mom refused to allow it." His brown eyes focused on the squirming cat and he couldn't help but take a fraction of a step forward. There was a feeling in his gut that was telling him that if it got away again they probably weren't going to have an easy time trying to catch it.

She introduced herself and told him where she was from and Akihito scratched the back of his head for a quick second, wondering if it was obvious whether or not he was trying to figure out where she was from. "I'm Akihito Hashi. Um...I was actually wondering where you were from, but I couldn't figure out if it was Russia or Germany. I've always had a hard time with accents," he admitted, hoping he didn't offend her by saying that. He was currently at a loss for words and he wasn't too sure how else to continue the conversation. Akihito had never been one for small talk, though he did alright for the most part if there was something specific being asked. "I know I just shoved her at you, but do you mind if I hold her again?"

Tagged:: Aven
Words:: 595
Notes:: --

∞ ∞

Rest in peace with my sorrows

[/b]
Or are you my greatest war?[/font][/color][/I][/size]

<sub>"Yeah, there seem to be quite a few of them where I come from. I guess people have allergy problems in Russia." She shrugged slightly, shifting the feline in her arms. Upon seeing the small quirk of the boy's mouth, she blinked. Perhaps she was making progress on telling jokes?

The boy seemed a little out of sorts, and surprised by her reaction to him.

"It's not my job to judge people, so I find it serves me best to keep my mouth shut when it comes to things like that." Aven threw her traditional lopsided grin at him, but it flickered out of existence almost immediately. Now was not the time to reveal all of her stupid little quirks. "Well, it's a nice color. I think it suits you..." She tried, then internally reprimanded herself. It had sounded way too awkward. Of course, what wasn't awkward about this situation?

Aven tried her hand at sounding cool once more; "Well, I'm glad to know you, Akihito Hashi," pausing, she thought over her next words, "a lot of people wonder that, actually. But yes, Russia. I lived near Munich, actually, but when I say 'near', I...uh...nevermind." She stopped herself before she could ramble again. She was surprised the other had stuck around this long. Maybe it was because they both had something in common? The fact that they'd both been judged based on their difference from everyone else?

...No, that was too sappy and dumb.

Maybe they just both liked cats? That was better.

Aven ducked her head slightly as her stupid grin returned, scratching behind Yu's ears as the boy asked to hold her again.

"Sure. She tends to have that effect on people, dazzling them with her charming personality and all..." Sarcasm crept into her words as the cat squirmed a little upon registering that she was being talked about. Aven presented the long-haired tabby to Akihito, "She likes it when you scratch along her spine."</sub>

So many words that I can't always tell you[/b]
Do they live on in my head, and could my head steal my soul?[/color][/font][/center]

Akihito never would have imagined that a long haired cat could ever have been good for allergies. As far as he knew that only allergy friendly cat were the ones that had no hair, and they were so ugly that he wasn't entirely sure as to why you'd want one like that anyway. "I have a cat of my own that is generally bad mannered, though mostly towards my sister," he admitted, his thumb running down part of the chain at his side as he stood there. It was just a habit, nothing that showed whether he was bored, anxious, or had any other kind of feeling that leaned towards this or that. If anything, the fact that he was still attempting to have some kind of conversation should be proof enough that he wasn't bored. Otherwise he probably would have stopped talking by now...or walked away.

The lightest of blushes came over Akihito's cheekbones, giving them a pale pink color that may or may not have been noticeable. A lot of it depended on how much attention one was looking at him with, and he hoped that as long as he didn't make a deal out of it then she would pay any attention to the light coloring. Instinctively his hand reached up and ran itself through his orange hair before slipping back into his pocket. "Thanks. I've gotten use to the color, to the torments which don't happen to often anymore, and am slowly starting to like it. At least I think so." Okay, so that was his own lame attempt at a joke, but it wasn't like he could take it back now or anything.

Much to his own surprise, Akihito was actually enjoying this conversation, despite the fact that there was some awkward silences and complete lameness on his part. Conversations weren't his strong point and while everything he said seemed lame to his own ears, at least the words were coming out with minimal amounts of "ums" and too many long pauses. Not to mention that he was actually paying attention to the things that she was saying. That in itself was a miracle, as his mother would say. Akihito wondered why she stopped herself in mid sentence and his curiosity got the better of him. "What did you mean by 'near'?" He hoped that she didn't think he was trying to humor her or anything since he actually was interested.

Akihito reached and took the cat, easily keeping hold of her despite the wiggling that she was doing. There was no doubt in his mind that she was probably trying to find a way to get away and start running around again, but he was able to keep hold of her. With her resting in one arm, he reached up and started to scratch along her spine, a half smile coming over his face as she let out a purr. "She's not half bad when she's enjoying the attention. My cat's the same way though. If we let him out of the house then we need luck on our side to get him back."

Tagged:: Aven
Notes:: I swear...I'll get more consistent with my posts >.<

Post coming soon! <3