The world which dyed grey isn't real

Ayumu looked at Kako without moving her head, "Hontô? Where did you live, Kako, some kind of kid and young adult prison?" she said only half jokingly with a serious tone, in her traveling she had seen such places, and they seemed as close to any prison as she could imagine getting.

"I don't know how you can tell that your dress is... and you can tell that your scarf and shirt is...." That's what Ayumu had always assumed, that there were people who could and couldn't sense colors. She also noticed Kako carefully and bluntly avoided the names of different colors, she assumed it was because of where she had lived.

"It's just a feeling, like that feeling you get when you can't see but you know there is someone watching you... You can sense the colors the same way, or some people can certain colors. At least I've gathered as much." Ayumu said quietly and slowly, drawing attention. She'd learned long ago it was easier to get someones attention by speaking quietly then trying to be loud, it made them want to hear you, and they had to be perfectly quiet too.

"I can sense red, Lucille can sense yellow. All through our childhood for different reasons those colors effected us and were important to who we are today. You may have a color you just haven't found yet that you can sense, or you may have none, some people cherished all the colors so much, that when they were striped of them, they had nothing left." she finished by looking outside, it was starting to get dark.

"It's beginning to get late..." Ayumu stated, "We've all traveled a lot today, I know I have at least, and I'm beginning to get tired and a bit hungry... Anyone else agree?" she asked looking at poor stressed Kako and then to Lucille.

/authorsnote
Hontô? = Really?
/endnote

Lucille gave a small smirk as Ayumu called Kako's home a Young Adult Prison. And from what Lucille had heard so far of it, it sounded like a very accurate name for it. She faintly wondered why Kako didn't say the color's names. There wasnt anything wrong with the color names was there? She whispered them quietly to herself, just to see if they sounded bad for some reason. When they didn't she mentally shrugged and listened to the conversation around her again.

She nodded as Ayumu spoke, agreeing with what she said. She'd spent ages trying to figure out why she could figure out that that was yellow and that wasn't. She was beginning to wonder if there was just a certain shade of gray that gave the hint that the item was yellow. But she like Ayumu's view on it more, and quickly added that to an accepted theory in her mind.

At Ayumu's last sentance she muttered a quiet "Shoot..." (She rare to never swore, it was unlady like.) and stood up, starting to put on her trenchcoat. "Yes, I need to make reservations at the hotel. I meant to do that earlier." her mood had gone from excited to rather sad now. "Is there anyway I could contact you tomorrow?"

Ayumu breathed in deeply and sighed. Tilting her head to the side she looked at Lucille, "Leaving so soon?" she asked. "It would be unmindful of my manners to not invite you both to stay at my house as my guests." she spoke slowly, as was her normal nature. She did not want to go back to her house - not after all this time - but what else could she do? It was impotent to respect manners, something Ayumu had learned since she was young.

"It's not very far from here... Probably about 20 minutes walk." She mentioned, a small hope inside that they might decline and not want to walk, but her inner politeness took it's hold. "We could go there and sleep the night. The market isn't very far from it, I could go get something for us to eat tonight and in the morning while you two make yourselves at home."

"Great..." Ayumu thought to herself, "If they accept this is going to be another rough nights sleep..."

Lucille stopped, one arm in her jacket completely, the other stuck at about the elbow. She hadn't thought to ask and stay at Ayumu's. She'd been on so many trips, her mind had automatically gone to the first option being a hotel room."Really? Oh, Ayu, thank you! A twenty minute walk isn't that bad to me. How about you, Kako, are you up for that? Maybe we could get a cab?"

She pulled her arm through all the way through her jacket as she spoke and pushed in her chair so she could lean on it with both hands. She was too antsy to sit now, the hot chocolate was finally starting to take it's effects. She smiled in excitement, looking forward to getting to see Ayumu's new home. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ears to keep it out of her eyes.

Kako's eyes were still fixed on the table, "I could pay for a cab to take me to the other end of Japan if I wanted..." She said remebring they wouldn't know she was that well off. Kako's family had been strugling worse then most familys in Tokyo. Some times Kako didn't have money for lunch at school. She knew this would be a real shock for her friends to hear. "I can pay for it..." she said, "The lest I can do if your letting us stay with you Ayumu."

Ayumu got out of her chair and stretched, "I don't really like cars... What if I give you two the directions to get there and I walk, it'll let me go to more markets along the way and get better stuff to eat." she said smiling. She really did not like cars. "I prefer walking anyway." She said reassuringly.

/Authorsnote
ITS SO SHORT! Dun keel meh Q_Q
/Endnote

/Auther'snote
We kill peolpe over short replys? Oh NO!... I'm dead. O.O
/End

Kako looked up then back bown to keep from looking at the screens again. She could since Ayumu really didn't like the idea of getting into a cab. The thing was, Kako didn't like the idea of walking... Not that she was lazy, just all the screens and noise there would be. She started to offer to pay for the food, but stopped herself becose that could be taken as rude. "Alright..." Kako said, "That sounds like a plan."

Ayumu nodded to Lucille, "That's good, I was hoping you'd go with her." She babbled off the address quickly to Lucille for her to write down. "Just go on in when you get there and make yourselves at home, I'll be there probably only a few minutes after you get there, traffic moves slowly at this time of day I've noticed." she said and smiled slightly.

She adjusted her fedora and nodded, "See you two there, then?" she asked, an implied question of weather she was permitted to leave yet or not.

Lucille bent over her pad, writing quickly. She was about halfway finished with the first words when she realized she'd begun to write it in French, then quickly crossed it out and wrote it in the Japanese kanji. She inspected her work for a moment before holding it up for Ayumu to see, making sure she got the name right. "Alright, we'll see you soon then." She smiled, reaching over to hug Ayumu once again before offering a hand to Kako to help her up. Once Kako got up, she popped up the handle on her small suitcase and led the way out of the Cafe, making sure to watch where she rolled it.

"If we get there particularly early, where should we set up shop?" she asked, looking over her shoulder at Ayumu. "And any particular rooms we should stay out of?" she pushed open the door, then held it open for Ayumu and Kako to walk through.

Kako was able to grab her own sutecase before she was led out the door. She was so relived to be leaveing and going some place that was posibly calm and quite. She stayed quite just folowing the other two. Outside horns blared and peolpe were yelling. Some were running down the streets and side walk. It was darker so Sako looked up forcing herself to take it all in. She saw peolpe talking full speed on cell phones in Japanees and every once in a wile she picked up the chopy forin English words she only hear her father use when he didn't want her mother and her to undrstand him. She notced some teens with the boxy english words written on there shirts which Kako thought was waird.

"Greeting room and livingroom obviously are okay to go in. The two doors on the left of when you enter the door are two extra bedrooms, you can use those." Ayumu told Lucille smiling slightly.

She grabbed her backpack and slung it over her shoulder and headed out the door after Lucille and Kako. Ayumu walked down the street briskly stopping at different shops buying different items she thought would make a good meal.

/authorsnote
Sorry it's so short xD I'm brain-dead right now. almost time for bed xDD
/endnote

Kako almost didn't hear Ayumu tell them where they could go in her houes. When she saw her leave she waved goodbye evein thought Ayumu didn't see. Kako called a cab and once Lucille and her were inside she rattled off the address she had memorized when Ayumu had given Lucille. Then she got closer to the driver, "If you can get us there quickly there's an exstra 1615 Yen in it for you." Kako offerd him. His eyes got wider. He griped the weel and promist to get them there in Five minits. He swerved in and out of trafic probuly braking plently of trafic laws on the way.



/Auther's notes

1615 Yen is about 20 dallers.

end\

authorsnote/ MWUAHAHAHA CHALLANGE ACCEPTED! Also, I have an evil idea! Mwuahaha!
/endnote

Ayumu was very quick at the market stores, she always paid the next even amount over what an item cost, so she didn't have to wait for change, and she liked helping people out, even a little. She had a set list of what she wanted to get, which allowed her to pick it up, pay for it quickly and leave within less than 20 seconds.

She stopped and bought rice, along with pasta, the woman also was selling small fabric bags, she bought one of those also. She stopped at the next little shop run by the young boy of a fishing family, he had to only be about 11 or 12. Ayumu felt a small pain go through her heart and bought some nice fish from him, they were of good quality. She stopped and bought the rest of the items she wanted, noticing fortune cookies, something she hadn't planned to buy. She scooped up three and paid for them along with the rest of her stuff and continued on her way.

Ayumu smirked, it had only taken her about 3 minutes, that left her the time she needed. She made sure everything was secure in her bag and took off running down the last of the road the market was on. She took a sharp right into what looked to be an empty alleyway. She got to the end of it and looked around, making sure no one else was around. With the coast clear she pushed a brick in and stepped out on the other side of the alley wall with one fluid motion. She turned around and inhaled deeply, she was standing in a garden now, and some of its flowers were in bloom. She smiled her first real smile in months.

She had about a minute and a half's walk to her house from here. But was she going to walk? Of course not. She took off in a quick dash across the garden, bending down and plucking a handful of the blooming buds as she went.

/authorsnote2
HA! I hope you have a save driver, Ayumu is quick! xD What? You thought she didn't have shortcuts? She's traveled for the past several years, of course she knows all the good shortcuts!
/endnote

/Author'snote
Awwwww! Shortcuts? Lucille very much wishes she'd gone with Ayumu now T_T""


Lucille stepped into the cab after Kako and flipped through her notepad to find the page with the address. But by the time she'd found it, Kako had already told the driver. She stared at Kako when she bribed the driver with the yen. "Woah, why are we in such a rush? Ayumu said she was going to go shopping for us first. We don't have to be there so early!" she whispered, fishing around for her wallet. "Plus, a thousand yen for a short cab trip?" she shook her head, looking for cash to at least pay for what the actual fare would have been.

But she was soon distracted by the car's erratic swerving. She'd never been carsick before, but she was nearly about to throw up. There was a couple of times where the driver sped through crosswalks, nearly mowing down pedestrians. At one point they went through a light, and despite Lucille's desperate 'Stop, stop, stop!'s the driver plowed through, nearly causing them to be creamed by a huge truck. Eventually, she gave up trying to set reason to the law and sank low in her seat, muttering something about the things people would do for a thousand stupid yen. She gripped the car door, her eyes and mouth shut tightly, hoping to ward off anymore sickness.

By the time they were at Ayumu's, Lucille practically fell out of the car. Her legs were wobbly and her head spun, and she found herself looking at the ground on her knees, trying extremely hard not to let the day's lunch rear its ugly face again. No matter how good food had been, it wasn't as good the second time around. By then, she'd completely forgotten about paying half the fare, and was too focused on the fact that she was now on solid ground and did not plan on moving anytime soon. She rubbed her temples with her fingers, trying to forget the cab ride.

"You okay?" Ayumu said, caught mid-step up onto the porch. She had just stepped up when the cab came around the corner at blazing speeds. Lucille looked sick and Kako hadn't gotten out of the cab just yet, as far as Ayumu could tell, she must be paying the cab fair. "You two got here fast, I'm impressed." she said matter-of-factly. "You two wanna come in while I fix something to eat?" Ayumu asked.

/authorsnote
Mwuahahaha! Yes a short cut. Don't worry, I'm sure one of you will eventually manage to worm your way into the garden somehow! xD)
/endnote
/authorsnote2
As a heads up, it's considered rude to try to see the kitchen at another persons house in Japan. I have yet to look up the reason why but I know it is! xD The host/tess will always prepare and cook the meal for the guest unless they have maids/servants/cooks or someone to fix them for them.
/endnote2

/AN

Good to know about the kitchen... Oh is it okay if I just say AN insead of Auther's notes?..... T.T I'm lazy!

end\



Kako felt sick too but all she card about was getting someplace quite fast. She payed the cab driver the full fair along with the extra amount. Then she herd Ayumu's voice and she felt like she was in a time worp. "You couldn't beet someone walking and shopping?" she scolled him. The man's eye widdend as he looked at Ayumu. By this time Kako was out of the cab with her and Lucille's bags. The driver shruged and sped off. "Sorry Lucy... I didn't think he'd go that fast." she said. Then she ternd to Ayumu, "I thought you said it was a 20 minit walk? Plus shopping should have made it longer..." she said mostly confused.

"Well," Ayumu said, with an innocent look on her face, "That was if I was walking with you two. I've traveled for the past several years, so I'm very quick and know a few shortcuts." she said and smiled a bit at the end.

"You look hungry." Ayumu said trying to lighten the mood with a happier voice, stepping up and opening the front door. "Why don't we all go inside and you make yourselves at home while I prepare the meal?" she asked.

/authorsnote
I don't see why not xD Just some kind of heads up its OOC
/endnote

/AN

Uhhh found a website on Japanese Etiquette. Might be helpful...http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e622.html But lets not kill Kako over a mistake I make! XD Lucille could posible get away with something small though.

End\



Kako wasn't convinced but she didn't let it show. She offerd a hand to Lucille who was still on her knees. When she was up Kako smiled and said, "Wasn't that fun though?" and smiled as if she had done that before. With out technoligee the kids at her school had odd ways of intertanment. It was possible she had done similer things before. Kako's head ack was gone and she was more herself. She picked up Lucille's bag and handed it to her since she still seemed off killter. Picking up her own she kind of led Luciell up to the houes giggling a little on the way. "The kids from my comunity sometime think peolpe WITH technoligee are the one in pressons." she said, "Your always soooo, safe."

Ayumu turned around as Kako helped Lucille up and walked through the door. She smirked as they kept it up, shoeing her shoes off and slipping on the slippers that waited for her. Luckily there were enough pairs for Kako and Lucille when they came in.

"There's an actual couch to sit on here." she mentioned loud enough for them both to hear, "It's very comfy, feel free to sit there and talk amongst yourselves. You're also free to read any of the books on the shelfs." she said, waving her hand around at room to point out the many objects.

"Make yourselves at home." Ayumu said finally and smiled, "I'm going to prepare the meal, you're both welcome to take bathes after our meal." she said, her inner gracious hostess coming out.

/authorsnote
Yay~ Thank you for the link Sarah, I had fun reading it ^-^ learned a couple of things for general use and for roleplay use.
/endnote

"Thank you" Kako said politly. She looked back at Lucille as they made there way to the living room, "But we didn't get creamed! And he wasint a lunitick... Cab drivers are normoly really good at driving like that." Kako pointed out. "I'm sorry... I probuly shoulden't have done that to you..." she said before Lucille had a chance to get really upset with her. "I mostly wanted to get some place more quite sooner..." she sat down on the couch and scand the book across the room. She felt like it would be rude to read them with Lucille there. "You two werein't upset with me when I left with out saying goodbuy?" she asked ready to exsplan what had happend.

Ayumu walked into the kitchen with her bags and began fixing the meal. She put the popped the rice in the rice cooker and cooked the fish. She put water on to boil for the pasta and busied herself with what all else needed doing to prepare the meal.

/authorsnote
Yay! Sounds exciting~ Have lots of fun and we'll make sure not to get too far ahead! ^_^
/endnote

Kako leend back and looked up at the ceiling as well. She had gone over exsplanning this hundrets of times years ago when she still thought she'd get to see them again. Evein when her mother gave her the tickets to Tokyo it didn't evein cross her mind that she'd fine her old friends. She bit her lip then said, "No we left everything..." Kako said materafactly, "Exspet my water colour paintings... We only took the clothing on our backs. We evein left the car at the air port." she exspland, "My dad just came home and anounced we were moving... I didn't evein know where untill we got there."