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Touch: The Fluffy Tail (Tek&Wing)

W

Wingshadow

Guest
It had all begun on an afternoon much like many others before it, in a sleepy town nestled at the base of the mountains. The distant setting sun on the horizon cast long shadows across the asphalt before her as she stood at a crossroads, the gentle, pleasant breeze ruffled her hip-length straight brown locks. She reached up her right hand and brushed away a stray strand of hair that had drifted in front of her wide, green eyes. There was the strange calmness in those eyes, full of life and adventure as she had seen and experienced many things through those angled, mischievous eyes of hers.

There was little to do in that town, where the population barely reached into the hundreds of thousands. The local university was renowned for its research and the aptitude of its professors, so there was a fairly large population of students, but aside from the university itself and the relatively high concentration of monster girls it was rather unremarkable. Although this in itself might have been rather unusual in the eyes of outsiders, such was not the case for the locals. It would have been like coastal dwellers finding the presence of seagulls on the beach unusual.

The locals hardly thought much of them, for they had been there even before the city itself was founded. Many of them had originally lived in the mountains and provided aid to the towns as they sprouted up to stave away the boredom of their solitary lives by joining themselves to their populations. Humans are so interesting, after all. Due to their unexplained appearance and unusually long lives among other things, however, their presence was held with suspicion yet tolerated for the sake of peace. Relationships were eyed with distain, especially romantic ones, due to the social stigma of being joined with one that they considered inhuman.

Tama and Nick, however, had a slightly different relationship than most others, for they had been together since they were both very small, almost as far back as either of them could remember. It had all begun on an afternoon much like many others before it, but for Tamamo, or Tama as she preferred to be called, it would be a day like none other.

Nick, aged six, was on his way home from school, the shuffle of his shoes and the distinct sound of sobbing in the distance. It sounded like a young girl around his own age, and unable to ignore her cries of sorrow he ducked down, peering inside the shrub from where the voice came from. Huddled by herself sat a small girl clothed in an elaborate robe-like garment. Upon her head were two triangular ears, and her single brown, white-tipped tail was wrapped around herself protectively, obscuring her face from view. Her soft fur was soaked with the tears that flowed freely from her wide eyes.

"Hey... Why are you crying?" he reached his hand out toward her, "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"No... I'm not hurt," the kitsune replied softly, making no effort to restrain the tears which poured from her eyes, "B-but why does everyone hate me? T-those boys set some dogs on me, and they tore my yukata! Mommy is going to be mad at me... Why did mommy leave me?"

"There, there," Nick reached out and gently patted her head, causing her to flinch and draw back, "I'm not going to hurt you... Lets be friends, me and you. What's your name, little girl?"

"B-but... I'm a monster girl. Don't all humans hate monster girls?"

"I don't hate you," Nick flashed her a smile that would steal the heart of any young girl, "My name is Nick, what's your name?"

That was how the two of them met, all those many years ago. Tama never again mentioned that day, but she never needed to since they both treasured it as a precious memory, the day that had brought the two of them together as friends. As she waited for him at the street corner to return from his afternoon collage class, she couldn't' help but remember that kind, gentle touch and insistence that he know her name. For most of her early life, she had been bullied and tormented by the local children. Yet, Nick never once was unkind or cruel to her. Instead, he reached out to comfort and support her. She had never felt so happy before in her life, but she had only recently become aware of why.

She fell in love with him that day.
 
The professor was going on and on about some sort of quantum theory or whatever. The sound of paper shuffling, pencils and pens scribbling on paper, and laptop keyboards clicking gently filled the room. And oddly? The snoring of one young man. Nick snored softly, several of his classmates either rolling their eyes or sighing in disgust around him. He didn't care. He already passed the class with good enough grades, even though he could pretty much memorize the textbook within a week if he actually put for the effort. Despite his lazy nature, Nick was actually a pretty great student. Well, minus the poor work ethic. But, hey. That was boring. Why not go around and do stuff fun? Party. Pranks. Video games. Movies. All that good stuff. That was fun!

"Remember students. The term paper is due this Friday. Please refrain from asking me extensions... like always." The professor said dully right before the bell rang loudly. Nick suddenly snapped to attention and looked around swiftly. "What? I wasn't sleeping. No." The young man said randomly, rubbing his eyes and yawning noticeably. Apparently, people were just staring at him or laughing at him before walking out of the room. Nick gathered his barely touched notebook and slid it into his backpack. Though suddenly, a small note slid out of it. "Hm?" Nick picked up the small slip and opened it up, raising an eyebrow. Widening his lips into a smile, the young man remembered he was supposed to meet his long time friend later today after class. That just made him more excited to run out the building and into the bus that nearly closed the door on him. Ten minutes later, and he'd be right at their meeting spot. Like always.

After the full ten minutes, the auburn haired Italian student hopped off the steps and immediately spotted Tamamo, or Tama for short. A bright smile filled his face again, walking up to her with a pep in his step. "What's up, Foxy?" He said, sticking out his tongue and chuckling softly. "Miss me?" Teasing the young kitsune girl while patting her on the head. Of course, it was all friendly and in jest. Nick would never ever make fun of Tama or even think about it. She was his best friend, and he cherished that about her. "I'm just messing with you. So, what's on the agenda for today? If you've got nothing, I was thinking we'd grab some ice cream at the shop down the road. It's kinda hot out, so a frozen treat sounds good."

Adoring a simple v-neck ocean blue tee with dark gray, relaxed jeans, Nick's hazel eyes looked expectantly to Tama. She always seemed to know what to do with fun. That was the best part about hanging out with her. Even if they did something a thousand times over, it was still lots of fun. He loved it. And no matter what heat he got from others at school, Nick could care less. Tama was a someone dear to him, and no one would rain on his parade about it.
 
"I have a name, stupid," Tama stuck her little pink tongue out at him, "Do you have any idea how boring it is to stand around waiting for you every time we meet up to hang out? Why do you humans go to collage anyway? You just learn a lot of boring stuff that has absolutely nothing to do with everyday life. Its not like you actually need to know all that stuff to live in the real world. It sounds like such a waste of time to me, when you could be..."

She began to poke her forefingers together in a slightly sheepish manner, her mind drifting as she began to imagine the two of them spending the entire day together, relaxing in the sun and watching the clouds drift by or running through the cool mountain streams with bare feet and rolled up jeans. She could imagine the look on his face when he smiled at her and asked if they could meet up again soon, to which she would reply with an enthusiastic nod.

Just then, she felt Nick's hand on her head, rubbing her soft ears affectionately. The young kitsune's cheeks instantly flushed and she jumped back as if stung, "What the hell are you doing?! I'm not a puppy you can reach out and pet whenever you feel like it, you dolt!"

"Humph... You really don't know how to treat a girl, do you? I pity your girlfriend. She must be so irritated, having tp put up with you on a daily basis," Tama huffed, turning away from him although the wagging of her fluffy tail and the visible blush on her cheeks would tell anyone she was actually very happy with how things where, "I suppose we could get some ice cream... It has been rather hot out lately and I do like to eat sweet things from time to time."

She turned back toward him and looked up to meet his eyes, a slight grin tugging at the edges of her lips, "Fine, but you'll be treating me today. I happened to forget my bag back at home so don't even think about copping out on me this time, you little con artist."

Tama swang her arms as the wooden sandals that she wore on her feet made a distinct 'clup-clup' sound as she ran. It was days like these that she often wished would last forever, like the days so long ago when they woudl spend countless hours together. Now, Nick spent a large portion of his days at collage or with his girlfriend, whom she envied and lothed above all other humans in the entire world. She had a refined and intelligent air about her, often urging Nick to be more serious in his studies yet clinging to him all the same whenever Tama was around as if she were some sort of parasite. The two females likely saw each other as potential threats, or in Tama's case, a bit more than just a potential threat. She could smell that woman's perfume a mile away, and even though the lingering scent of it was often on Nick's clothes after their dates together, Tama would try her best to ignore it. The most she would ever to Nick was his childhood friend and nothing more, however much she might wish things to be otherwise.

"Ice cream, ice cream!" Tama giggled as she ran, making sure not to run too fast so as to cause Nick to loose sight of her as she made her way over to the park, "Hurry up, you slowpoke!"
 
"Annnnd, your name is Foxy." He quickly interjected and stuck his tongue out in return. Though, when she mentioned college, she seemed to have a point. Well, at least in his mind. Throwing his hands behind his head, Nick sighed in boredom before dully staring up into the sky and answering her. "To get a good job to pay for partying, I've got to get good grades, and a good degree, and good recommendations. And good this. And good that. And good blah blah blah." Nick finished sarcastically, waving his hands dramatically to add effect. "As if. I'll probably hate my job or something. I'd rather just do something fun all day. I'm sorta envious of you, Tama. I'm pretty sure you do all sorts of fun stuff all day. Must be awesome."

Just to spite her, Nick did it again, playing with her ears a little bit too. "Of course I know how to treat a girl. I just tell her to go in the kitchen and make me a sandwich right?" Of course, it was completely bull shit. So, he laughed in response to himself, clutching his sides as he stood there and laughed. It went on for a bit, a big grin on his face once he was done and wiping a tear from his eye. "Whoa, oh boy, phew. I thought I was gonna pass out. Hahaha!" She just was too cute, and too easy to fluster. Calming down since his cheeks were starting to ache, Nick nodded about the day, and of course, her sweet tooth. "Yeah, I know. Trust me, I know. What flavor don't you like?" He teased, already spinning around and walking towards the shoppe.

Though, he immediately tripped over himself at that comment about him paying. "Whoa, wait! I paid last time we went to that bakery shop for breakfast Saturday! That's not fair, you're breaking the chain, Tama!" And then she used the excuse about forgetting her bag at home. Oh, yeah, he was sure. She probably planned this ahead. She was a kitsune, so he was certain that was her game. "I'm sure. Whatev's. You owe me twice now, so seriously. Next time you're paying." Nick honestly wondered if he could really keep up with that, or if he'd cater to her again. Damn her, sometimes...

That's right, Tama and his girlfriend, Yuki didn't really get along. Often times, he tried to hang out with them separately, because when together, it felt like World War III just waiting to happen. Yuki was always on his case though. Nick, study that. Nick, have you filled out an application yet? Nick, let's go to an opera together. She was getting clingy on both ends of the spectrum from sound like a responsible housewife looking out for her husband to a clingy, overly attached woman who wanted to always hang out with him. Sometimes, he'd have to sneak out and hang out with Tama. She was his best friend, he wasn't going to ditch her.

It only then that he noticed he had been dozing off. And, Tama was way ahead of him. "T-The hell?! I'm wearing sneakers, so I should be way ahead of you!" Nick could be seen in the back behind Tama, waving his hands and shouting humorously. He quickly made haste to catch back up, both entering the park with Nick panting lightly. How did she do that? "Yeah, I'm definitely up for some cookies 'n' cream, the largest cup they got!"
 
"Try and make me! I might live a carefree life, but its hard to feed myself and buy myself sweets at the same time. I'm on a fixed income, you know, so why shouldn't I take advantage of a foolish young human who is wasting his time away in collage?" the kitsune teased him, "You're behind because you were too busy contemplating your navel, idiot!"

When the two of them approached the ice cream stand, Tama looked over the familiar list of flavors with large, beaming eyes that glistened like stars in the twilight sky. She was practically drooling thinking about all the possibilities, as she had tried them all at one point or another. She usually tried whatever Nick did when they ate ice cream together, though, but he didn't seem to notice why. Was it such a bad thing to want this guy to notice her? The two of them had known each other for so long, all of her subtle hints were taken as playful joking, and she lacked the self-confidence to simply confess her feelings to his face. He had a girlfriend already, after all, and a human one at that. He probably preferred girls that were actually human, not some cry-baby monster girl that he grew up with.

"Well, you're paying so I couldn't care less how big of a scoop you get as long as mine is just as large," Tama flashed him a slightly devious smirk, trying to hide the inner pain that stabbed at her heart, "That will be two large cookies 'n' cream, right?

She turned toward the older man behind the counter, "He'll be paying as soon as he catches his breath, Gramps, so make it snappy!"
 
Sadly, Tama had a point. Knowing the rough life that the monster girls in this town had, yet knowing that they could easily perform the same jobs the same or better, it was wrong to see them treated like this. Of course Tama didn't mean it seriously, but Nick couldn't help but give it some thought. Sure, he was lazy and a slacker, but that didn't make him unaware of the segregation and unfair treatment of monster girls. It was even worse relationships were seen amongst humans and monster girls, though the fear of social turmoil on one's life made it nearly impossible for an actual romantic couple to stand out publicly. He even gathered that one in secret didn't exist in this town. Hell, Tama and Nick got some heat sometimes, though because of the small town, most people knew that they were like two peas in a pod. The bestest of friends, despite Nick's obliviousness that she wanted another title that someone else had right now.

For now, he cast away such negative thoughts and stood before the ice cream stand, seeing once again the huge assortment of original flavors like vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry, to wild names like "Montezuma Mountain" and "Peanut Butter Fanatic Delight". He never went for the fancy ones, kind of a one flavor at a time man himself. "Heh, I know the routine, Foxy. But, that just means the next time you're paying, I'm making sure we're going out to some fancy steak house, and I'm ordering the juiciest, biggest piece of steak ever grilled in mankind's history." Nick could picture it now. So vast and wide that it took a team of ten men and a huge grill to cook. Brought out upon a slab of marble, so hot that it was still cooking the meat throughout his meal. And then he would feast. Oh would he feast! Angels would sing, demons would weep from such holy flavor!

Ahem. "Huh?" Pulled from his daydream, Nick wiped the drool from the corner of his lips and nodded. "Uh, yeah! Two cookies 'n' cream for us both. Largest you got!" He ignored her little teasing, waiting upon their order patiently. Though, since they got the largest cups and this ice cream was hand made, that gave them a bit of time to chill and catch up.

"So, Tama," Nick walked on over to a little table for the both of them, hoping up on the actual table and sitting down. Yup, a true rebel. "Whatcha been up to while I'm in class?" He asked curiously, always finding interest in her daily routines or whatever she did, no matter how tedious it sounded.
 
"Did you have something against foxes in a previous life or something?" Tama nudged him with her elbow in a slightly irritated manner, "You know full well that carnivorous appetite of yours would run me bankrupt before the end of the week. I like meat as much as the next person, but its got a deadly price tag. You should be thankful I only order sweets, since sugar is cheap."

She sat down beside him on the table, scooting over until her side was pressed up against him and her hand gently placed on top of his. Her cheeks flared up once again and she avoided looking directly at him, instead stealing glances at the corner of her eye as she replied, "W-well, I went down to the older part of town to talk with that old lady with the hundreds of cats. She gave me some fried tofu like she always does, but I'm starting to wonder if she will ever figure out that I'm really not a cat... I mean, I appreciate her kindness and all, but is she really that senile or is she just messing with me? Sometimes I wonder how people really see me. I'm not an animal, after all, but I'm not a human either..."

"You know, I spent a long time trying to think of things to tell you about, but its all stuff that we already know so well. The weather changes with each season as it passes and yet this city stays the same throughout all of it. There are the same old kids down the streets which chase dogs and kick over trash cans. There are those dogs around that rich person's house in the aflluent part of town which always look so lazy... I mean, who would ever even consider breaking into that place?" her toes wiggled as she glanced down at her sandal-shod feet, "Everything seems to stay the same in this town... From the old lady's cats, to us..."

She tried to look up at Nick, but she failed to even meet his gaze due to her embarrassment, "D-d-do you think we will always be best friends, Nick?"
 
He laughed at her comment, shaking his head and looking over to the old man holding up their treats. "Hold that thought, Tama. Desert." Hopping off the table, to procure the frozen treats they so desired. The bits of cookies were mixed in perfectly, yet Nick knew he and Tama would be picking them out immediately. The real challenge was to keep each other at off their own deserts. Because once they were out, they were going to seek more very soon. Returning the table with that in mind, he hopped back on and passed her cup to the vixen, red plastic spoon sticking out like a giant flag pole in a winter mountain and battlefield. "Anyways, now that I'm back, I know that. Hah, I'll spot us that night, no worries. My dad gets paid enough that spoiling ourselves one night would barely be noticeable." Nick reminded Tama, winking at her playfully before popping the first bite into his mouth.

Leaning back to savor the flavor, he felt their hands touch, both their bodies nudged against one another. He curiously looked over at her with a raised eyebrow, red spoon dangling between his lips. His oblivious nature failed to really ever pick up on the kitsune's cute little gestures. She'd have to come out and say it, but her nature wouldn't allow her that, would it?

Listening intently, Nick nodded a bit before taking another bite of the cookies and cream ice cream. "Old crazy, cat lady? Cool, cool." He started, stabbing his ice cream for a moment to look at her seriously. "It wouldn't matter if you were either. You're still awesome, Tama. Don't let what people think about get you down, seriously. You're made of tougher stuff than that." Nudging her body with his own, the smile he wore this time was much warmer and friendly. His words were heartfelt, and he hoped she wasn't plagued with the constant prejudice the monster girls suffered.

Her next set of words seemed to take on a more serious tone too. He wondered where this sudden bit of seriousness came from. Was she pondering it all day? If so, why? Nick was a bit perplexed by her, scratching his cheek gently while taking a bite of ice cream once again as he gave her words some thought. "It does, doesn't it? A real bore, if you ask me." Despite saying that, Tama and Nick always found ways to make the days fun and exciting. To say he wasn't looking forward to it after class was a lie. Though, the question that seemed to pick at his brain a bit was what she said next. About them. "To us..."

Raising an eyebrow, his face wore a small bit of concern, as if contemplating if she truly thought that they would ever stop being best friends. "What're you talking about? What's up with the gloom?" He said, perhaps mistaking that as Nick didn't quite interpret her non-verbal cues correctly. "Come on, we're like destined to be stuck with each other for the rest of life. Like you could get rid of me." Nick chuckled and took a big bite this time, shuddering as he clutched his head. Brain freeze! No!!!

After the pain passed, he continued on. "But, for real Tama, we'll always be best friends. Are you afraid I might end up like all of these jerks in the city? Well, I won't, so don't every think that." The auburn haired slacker assured her, giving her a confident smile and bumping their shoulders together. Best friends forever. Best friends...

OOC: I'm off to pass out. G'night! = 3=
 
OOC: Ok, RP with you later, then ^_^

"W-well... I've known you for so long, I guess I worry that things won't always be the same between us. Its like you're a permanent part of my life and I don't want it to ever go away," she blushed furiously, her hands tightening into fists as she fought against the desire to run away. No, she had to stand strong... She had to tell him! She could picture the two of them at the top of a hill covered with spring flowers, the wind filled with tiny pink cherry blossoms as she said those three simple words to him: "I love you." He would take her into his arms and whisper sweet nothings into her hear, holding her to himself as he twirled her around and around, the world around them falling away as it were. She parted her lips to make an effort toward making her fantasy a reality, but the possibility vanished right from before her eyes as the next few words left his mouth, shattering what little hope she had built up within her like a hammer slamming into a thin pane of glass.

Always be best friends...

Best friends...

Friends...

But never more than friends...

"You're already a jerk, Stupid!" Tama took a scoop of ice cream and flung it at his face, "idiot, idiot, idiot!"

The fears and doubts within her continued to grow. Yuki would marry Nick, probably moving off to some faraway city she had never heard of and send the occasional post card in order to make an appearance of keeping in touch. She'd be left out in the cold, forever longing after the days and years that they had spent together as children as friends. If they didn't move away, it might be even more painful for her. Humans were very active creatures, and she would doubtless hear them going at it all night, making babies. At best she might be able to stick around their home as the household pet, watching the children as they grew up and watching their parent's loving marriage from afar. She clenched her teeth together with rage and jealousy, although her outward expression was still playful and deceptively lighthearted. From the first time Rick introduced Yuki to her, she knew there was no place for her in their lives. Even if Nick tried his best to maintain their friendship, the pain within her would never go away. He would be forever out of her reach, not because she was any less attractive, smart, or fun to be around than Yuki but...

Because she wasn't human.

If it was something about her personality or appearance that kept the two of them apart, with enough work and effort she might have been able to do something about it. But, she couldn't stop being a kitsune any more than she could turn herself into a cucumber. Briefly entertaining the thought of how she might look as a cucumber, she mentally shook her head in protest. It was simply not possible. She inwardly cast hate toward herself and toward fate for causing her to fall in love. Why did she have this emotion, if all it brought her was pain and suffering? She could never let Nick know her true feelings... He probably never even considered that she would ever have such feelings toward him, and if he knew he would surely come to loathe her very presence.

Why did she have to be born a kitsune? If the two of them had been both been humans, they would have met and fallen in love with each other. She could have just told Yuki off and left her on the sidelines, but as she currently was she had no right to do so. Nick had chosen Yuki instead of herself, the coursing pain of acknowledging the truth of her condition but her to the bone, but her anger had an odd way of venting itself on Nick instead of staying all welled up inside.

"Idiot!" Tama hurled another glob of ice cream at his cheek, then began shoveling it down into her own mouth instead upon realizing that she probably shouldn't waste more than a few spoonfuls of the delicious cream on revenge, "You're so dense... Whatever, this topic is boring me already anyway. How about you tell me how your day went, instead?"
 
Nick shushed her by swiping a bit of cold, delicious sludge on to the tip of her nose, chuckling. "Well, duh. We're stuck like salt and pepper. So, even if you did, you're stuck with me for life. Tough luck." If only he knew the truth. It wasn't like some people didn't mention it already. "Are you going out with that stupid fox?" "Why do you hang out with that gross thing?" Every time, Nick would snap back at them, reminding them that even if she was a monster girl, Tama was an extremely important person in his life. Yet, the way the hung out so much, people thought he was cheating on Yuki with her. Nick assured them otherwise, really. It was just Nick and Yuki going out. But, what if he knew about Tama's feelings? How would he react? How would it change their relationship? Even deeper still, would it change it for better or worse? If Nick thought about it, perhaps he wouldn't even be sure. He didn't hate Tama, not one bit. But when it came down to feelings of the heart, would he reciprocate those feelings?

Immediately hit in the face by ice cream, Nick shivered and set his own ice cream down. "Holy Hell, that's so cold! I mean, what you did was cold, but the ice cream is also cold!" He exclaimed, swiping it off swiftly. He had a minute to enjoy the refreshing warmth sting his face until another attack claimed his cheek, making him shiver in response again. This time, it even stained his shirt, making Nick widen his eyes in shock. "What? Seriously? Gah, I can't walk around like this!" Nick complained pointlessly. Honestly, it was just a stain, and it wasn't like anyone would care. The most they would say is, "Oh look, he's got a stain on his shirt". To Nick, it was almost the end of the world. Oh well.

It was hot outside. Almost sweltering hot for Nick. Why not? Without a second thought, he slung the tee off without a care and sighed. [color#CC0000]"You owe me a shirt too, now."[/color] He teased, sticking his tongue out. Despite the slacker attitude and outlook on life, Nick was surprisingly fit. No, he was no absolute muscle man. But, he did have some abs and a decent amount of muscle. Having hit up the beach every now and then, Nick had a nice tan going on. All in all, it was a nice package to see from a woman's perspective.

"My day? Hm, what did I do, hm?" Slinging the once clean tee over his shoulder, he pondered in thought. "Well, ran into class late and then slept through it all. I've already read up on what the professor was talking about, so it wasn't really necessary for me to stay up and take notes. That was pretty much all my classes today. Y'know, a couple people were petitioning to allow monster girls into the academy. They were in the hallway, so I stopped by to take a look at it. They actually had a nice list going on." Nick told her with a friendly smile. The thought of equal rights for monster girls in this town sounded lovely, but he felt they wouldn't get far. Maybe the academy petition... but nothing else. "Think about it. We can sleep in class together. Or, I can shot spit balls at you. Hah."

Scarfing down the ice cream, he gave a content sigh and leaned back a bit, looking over to the kitsune. "After all that though, I'm here now. Munching down on some treats with you, Foxy." He then peered up at the soft glowing orange sky. It was a lovely sight, and Nick was glad to be out. "Seriously, I'd rather be out here hanging out with you though. Yuki always cages me up, telling me to study. Or, even if we do go out, damn! We're always inside doing something lame." He muttered absentmindedly. Sure, Yuki was a pretty and proper young woman. She was also boring most of the times. Almost all, really. Nick could only imagine if a woman with Tama's personality came along. Or... maybe even Tama herself? No, that would cause her a ton of grief. If she just had a lot of teasing from just being a monster girl, imagine her during a relationship with a human.

Hm, which made him think curiously if she had a boyfriend. Nick really only knew monster girls. Were there monster boys? He felt compelled to ask, and before he knew it, the words were coming out. "Yo, Tama. Are there monster boys?"
 
"Well, if you where't such a lazy bum you could just wash it off with a little water before the ice cream dries and it won't leave any noticeable stain. Its just vanilla," Tama huffed and crossed her left arm in front of her chest before shoveling another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth, "The American throwaway culture has too strong of a hold on you, Nick. Show some intitiative for a change, at least when it comes to taking care of your stuff."

She glanced back at him just in time to witness him pulling his shirt up and off of himself, revealing his hard, toned body in all of its glory to her shocked, widened eyes. To Tama, it was as if Atlas or Mars himself were stripping in front of her, the tone of his muscles and distinctively masculine shape of his back and shoulders causing her face to burn bright red. Her ears perked up and bits of steam puffed out from them as if he had caused her brain to overheat and turn into mush. Her spoon dropped from out of her hand and silently landed in the grass as she began to fidget uncomfortably and look around frantically for some way to distract herself from the utter shock she was experiencing. She could hardly endure the temptation to jump on him and press herself against that wonderful, manly body of his and indulge in the lust which flared up within her in that at that very moment. It took every ounce of her strength to resist her instincts, to pounce on the man that she desired so eagerly without respect for his own feelings.

She could imagine how wonderful it would feel to be held in those strong arms of his, held tightly as she kissed his lips and wrapped her arms and legs around him, enjoying the combined warmth of their naked bodies pressing up against each other. She would arch her back with utter joy and pleasure, upon feeling his-

Tama instantly shut down her own fantasy by dumping the rest of the ice cream in her bowl right down her throat in order to cool off her head and retain control of her thoughts before she began acting them out. The last thing she needed was to have something like that on her conscience. She was better than that, more than just an animal in heat who desired to mate.

"A petition, you say?" Tama coughed, pretending that it was due to the surprise of hearing about such a thing, "I'm surprised they even allowed them to post it in public. I doubt the sentiments of a few humans will be enough to reshape public oppinion, but I suppose its worth a shot."

She managed to recover most of her composure by that time, but when he mentioned sleeping together in class, however, her thoughts naturally concluded that he was referring to sex instead of something more chaste in nature. She could barely resist the urge to smack him clean across the face, "S-s-stupid! Why would I want to sleep with you in public! You can't just ask a girl to do something so indecent!"

Tama took a few deep breaths and managed to once again get a hold on her emotions, "Yeah, to be honest I don't really know why you like Yuki in the first place... I really don't know her that well since we don't get along, but from what I can see you really don't have as much fun with her as you do with me. She's just rude, pushy, and obnoxious if you ask me, but I can sort of understand why she would want to keep a tight leash on you... Wouldn't want you to get away, after all."

She looked up at Nick with a soft smile, wondering why she had fallen for him in the first place. He could be so irresponsible and almost as random and mischievous as herself. They were like two peas in a pod, cut from the same length of cloth and sewn together as complimentary colors of the same piece of clothing. It had all happened so naturally that she had hardly even realized it until that very afternoon, but a part of her always knew, knew that she loved him with every fiber of her being.

"Monster guys? No, there aren't any male counterparts for us monster girls if that is what you are asking," Tama reached up and fiddled with her right ear in a somewhat nervous manner, but at the same time making her appear unbelievably cute, "At least, not that I know of anyway... I never met my father, but Mother would often talk about him. She missed him dearly, but she never told me what happened to him. I guess its all for the best, though, since he didn't have to worry about the social stigma of having joined with a monster girl and having a daughter from her..."
 
He wasn't throwing it away! He just couldn't be seen with a stain on his shirt. Besides, a bit to inflate his ego, Nick looked pretty good without a shirt on. Plus, it was just so damn hot out. How could she do it with that yukata on? She had to be suffering a bit. He'd probably go nuts wearing a robe like that. Though, he remembered her telling him about it.

Nick recalled the fond memory of when he asked her about her yukatas. She had plenty, he remembered, with many different patterns and colors mixed in them. Though, the one thing he remembered deeply about them was how they felt. It was the softest material he ever felt. Softer than jeans, softer than his cotton tee, softer than even silk itself! And, they did look pretty. Nick momentarily berated himself for what he remembered saying next.

"Do you think I can get a pretty yukata like yours?" Oh god, why?

Turning to Tama after the little bit of memory recollection, he was treated with the interesting sight of watching her swallow the rest of her ice cream delight. He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in pure curiosity at the sudden attack of her treat. "Is it melting or something? We just got them." He would say, having completely missed Tama's little moment of naughty, naughty thoughts. But, she didn't seem to answer him and instead queried more about the petition. So, Nick just gave a nod. "Yup. I was too. It's nice to see though. I mean, you'd have a really better life if people would realize how unfair you're being treated. None of the businesses here would even give you a full time job, and getting a part time one is nearly impossible. That's not fair to you, or any monster girl." Nick said sternly, swiping her cup and shooting it into the farthest trash can he could see. Nothing but... can? Yeah, can. "Two points."

Suddenly, her loud and shocked voice pierced into his ear, the human turning around and leaning away at her outburst. "Whoa, what?" He blinked with a blank expression, the gears slowly turning at what she was referring to. The moment it clicked in 100%, Nick burst out laughing, clutching his sides again. "Hahaha! You were seriously thinking I meant that?! Hahahaha!" He carried on his fit of laughter for a good minute before calming down, once again wiping the tears from his eyes. He then looked at her teasingly, poking her forehead playfully. "Is a certain fox thinking something perverted? Naughty, naughty." Nick stuck out his tongue and then hopped off the table, holding on to the sea blue tee to keep it from flying off.

When Yuki was mentioned, he looked over his shoulder curiously. Rarely did Tama ever continue on about a conversation concerning Yuki. Usually, he'd just mention his girlfriend and that would be the end of it. Though, she seemed generally interested in her and their relationship now. Nick didn't mind. "Yeah, yeah." Nick began, placing his hands behind his head as he looked back up to the sky. "Well, we started off good. Maybe it's just a little rut in the middle of the path or something, I don't know." He seemed to be hiding something, his voice gave that away. Whether it was about Yuki and their relationship status or something else was difficult to tell. Though, he agreed with Tama, that was for sure. "Get away?" Nick turned around to look at her with a tilted head, not sure he understand that. "You think I'm gonna run away from her or something?"

Nick listened as she answered his question, tapping his chin lightly. It sounded like these monster girls were born then from human fathers and monster girl mothers. It made sense, what else would explain their appearances? "It sounds like your mother really loved him. I'm sorry he's not around though." For a moment, he thought about his own parents... or parent. A father always away on business trips, he never even paid much attention to Nick. Perhaps if he had, maybe he would've taken his studies more seriously instead of just wasting the tuition money on a boy who slept throughout class. And, what might his mother think? Nick never interacted once with his mother. She died right after child birth, her last breath spent naming him. Was she kind? Was she loving? Every time Nick asked about her to his father, he simply would avoid the subject. Did his father even love the woman? The thought drew a sad sigh from his lips, but he quickly shook it off. "Hey, I'm not bothered by that stupid social stigma. I enjoy hanging out with you, Tama. And, I guess it's good there really aren't any monster guys. Heh, I don't have to beat up any ex's that are stalking you." He teased, sticking his tongue out again.

The day was starting to move into the evening, the sky growing darker. It was getting just a little cooler, but Nick felt nice without his shirt on. The breeze was well welcomed as he sighed and craned his head in the direction he was walking to Tama. "C'mon, let's go do something else before we head home. Let's mess with someone, go see something, anything." As long as he could stay out for a little bit, Nick was happy. Not to mention that tomorrow he would be going on a date with Yuki. He would try and avoid if it weren't for the fact that he promised her that he would take her. But, they'd just be going out to dinner to some fancy restaurant and a stupid movie. That wasn't fun at all.
 
When Nick broke out laughing, Tama felt another painful twinge in her heart. He thought it was so unbelievable that they would ever be together in such a manner? Her face burned with embarrassment and frustration that he had hit the nail right on the head, so to speak. How could she help it when he said something so unexpected? What was she supposed to glean from his reaction?

"Shut up, Stupid... Its not my fault you're so frustratingly difficult to understand. What was I supposed to think? I'm just a perverted little kitsune after all, chasing after men and charming them with my deceitful wiles," the kitsune's eyebrow twitched, but she wasn't really listening too intently to him anymore as her thoughts continued to dwell on her mother. She was so beautiful and kind, teaching her only daughter every thing she knew but more than anything she ensured that Tamamo would never raise a hand against a human. She had doubtless seen the effects of such violence with her own wise eyes. She said little of her own lineage or how her own mother (Tama's grandmother) had lived and found love, nor why monster girls had no male counterparts of their own. What mattered was that her daughter would be safe and find her own way in the world when her own time came to an end.

"...If it doesn't bother you, why aren't I good enough for you," Tama retorted in a voice so soft, even she could scarcely hear it before looking back up toward him and smiling, her soft fluffy tail wagging in an excited manner, "Let's do our usual number on someone in the park."

A group of young collage boys where gathered around a vending machine, chatting about the latest football game. They were so engauged in their conversation that they hardly even noticed that the soda vender begin to shake. The first boy, who wore a football jersey, turned to one of his buddies, "Could you believe that play? I mean, they broke right through their defenses and completed a forty yard pass for a touchdown! I'm glad my TeeVo was recording it, so I can go back and watch it over and over again. You don't see plays like that more than once a game, totally unbelievable!"

"I know, right?" one of the other boys wearing a tank top and shorts laughed, dropping a few coins into the vending machine and pressing the buttons indicating which drink he wished to receive. There was a loud clank, indicating that the drink had dropped into the bin, but when he reached inside to obtain his drink, however, he felt something grab his hand, "W-wait! something's caught my hand!"

"Are you kidding, bro? How lame can you be, getting your hand stuck in a vending machine?" a boy wearing jeans and a baseball cap snickered.

"No! Something's grabbing my hand!" the young man screeched in a cold panic as his arm began to be pulled in, "H-help!!!"
 
Nick quite honestly meant nothing in that regard, to pick fun at her feelings or anything. To him, Tama thought of him as only a dear friend. The thought of them being together was an old memory thought about by a young, 13 year old version of the man that stood before her that day. Why didn't he act upon it? Well, Tama was so wild and all over the place at times, Nick felt like they would only be best friends. Not only that, but as time grew on, he felt more fearful that their friendship would be destroyed. Then what? Spend nights walking around on the streets doing absolutely nothing? Nick couldn't imagine stopping with Tama. It was like a nightmare in a way, strolling down an empty street where no one bothered with him. He could imagine Tama hanging out with other friends and such. To lose that, it made him panic. He was lucky that his father was always away that he didn't care what Nick did. What if he tried to pry them apart? Another bit of worry. For now, they would only be friends. Or, so he would think...

With a small chuckle, he just patted her head and shook his head. "Take it easy, Tama. I wouldn't want you to change. You're too awesome already. Anymore, and my mind might explode." Nick told her, though meant it all. "And besides, even if you are, that's cool. I always wanted a perverted kitsune friend." He told her, but saw that she seemed to be deep in thought. Curiously, he wondered what might be going through her head. Since they spoke about her mother, he was curious as to what the woman was like. Nick didn't recall meeting her, even as she was a child. He only remembered always rushing home after elementary school to a house where his uncle would be caring for him for the season. Until Nick was old enough to take care of himself, only then would he spend more time out with Tama. Even then, he didn't remember her mother. He felt like he should meet her, though. Perhaps another time he'd ask.

"Hm, you say something?" Nick looked over to her, seeing her wagging tail and bright smile. He raised an eyebrow as they suggest their usual banter. With a small shrug and crack of his knuckles, Nick gave a sigh and cocky smile. "All right, all right. Sounds like good ol' fashioned fun time for some unsuspecting victims!" He proclaimed and pumped his fist, already spotting their targets. He felt his reticule lock on to them, sensors functioning at nominal levels, and missiles at the ready. "Target locked! You're up, Tama!"

Watching from afar, Nick snickered deviously. Oh, this was going to be good. This was their usual pranks among pranks, the duo always tricking someone everyday. This would be fun too since they had a group. Whoa, he nearly missed it as he was plotting his speech. As the college jock reached to grab his soda and released a panicked shriek, that was Nick's cue. He immediately rushed on over, startling the others while he placed his hands upon the victim's shoulders. "What the hell?! Why did you buy a drink from this one?!" He feigned exerting himself to help pull his hand out. Nick's face was written with pure terror... fake pure terror, that is. He released the man's shoulders and gripped his auburn hair, swallowing nervously.

"No no no no. Not another one. Please don't take another soul, you accursed, haunted vending machine!" Nick heard everyone gasp and ask about what he meant by haunted. "You idiots! I mean exactly what I mean! This thing is H, A, U, N, T, E, D. Haunted! It's possessed by the soul of a vengeful spirit who's drink was stolen from him. Having passed away from thirst, he now resides in this machine, taking the souls of those who want but a simple can of soda." Expecting it, Nick laughed mentally when he saw everyone look at him in disbelief, yet worry for his friend. And, he would wait for Tama to give a forceful tug, which would elicit further screaming from the young man.

Nick stomped his foot and pointed to the arm in the vending machine. "Do you think this is some joke?! Your friend will become spirit food if we don't appease this vengeful spirit! The only way to do so," He sighed, looking with furrowed eyebrows to the vending machine, and then back to everyone else. "Is to give it something of equal value. Quickly! What do you all have?!"

Each and every one of them began to fidget madly, trying to provide something. Most of them had spare change, bubble gum wrappers, make a carton of cigarettes. Oh boy, what lame bounty. Not that he wanted to steal them, he just thought they'd have something interesting on them. Nick flailed his arms about, running around in circles as he kept screaming about something like, "Please, oh please be merciful spirit! These foolish men know not what they have angered!"

Hm, perhaps they could get some free drinks off of them. All this acting was making him parched.
 
Tama was having a hard time containing her laughter as the poor jocks freaked out, trying desperately to find something, anything that might save their friend. She figured it was about time to finish up their little prank with a bit more flashy of an exit than usual. Concentrating her magical power into the box around her, her eyes gleamed with excitement.

"FOOLS!" came the dark, ominous voice from inside the vending machine as its sides began to glow, "Do you think you could possibly appease my wrath with such trifles? I could take all of your souls and not be appeased! Prepare to meet your DOOOM!!"

The vending machine itself lifted up from the ground and began to float as several nearby trash cans, benches, and even rocks soon joined it on the air, swirling about in a menacing manner. The poor fellow with his hand still stuck in the vending machine made another desperate attempt to pull his hand free, but was instead pulled deeper inside until his shoulders, hips, and finally even his feet were pulled inside. His piercing screams were heard throughout the park, but just as he vanished from their view and the flap slapped shut, his cries abrupt ended.

"Itadakimasu..."

The remaining three jocks clung to each other and screamed at the top of their lungs, their eyes rolling back into their heads on absolute terror before passing out, still clutching each other as they fell together into a pile. All the floating items began to drift back to their original locations and the vending machine's back hatch opened to reveal a very pleased kitsune with a jock slung over her shoulder. She was practically beaming from ear to ear as she tossed him back into the pile with the others and walked past Nick, giving him a high-five.

"Works every time," she snickered, "Did you see the looks on their faces?!"
 
The moment Tama let out a dark sounding voice, Nick stopped in front of it besides the jocks. He went to his knees, throwing himself down to the ground as if worshiping it. "Oh mighty spirit! Please forg-" Hearing her continue on, Nick smiled and barely could contain his loud laughter, thankful that she was loud enough to silence the sounds of his giggle fits. It was around that time that she began making everything take flight and float about. His head came up to watch as the college boy stuck in the front row was consumed by the vending machine. His friends only screamed like little school girls before they clung to each other. Oh god, this was priceless.

"We're all going to die!" He sad to each one of them, shaking them and joining in their screaming until each one passed out right before him, Nick silencing himself before dropping the one in his hands. Hah, that was good. Looking around, all the items floating about returned to their rightful homes as Tama came out from behind the vending machine, throwing her victim on to the other men. He returned her high-five, listening to it reverberate throughout the air slightly.

"That. Was. Awesome!" Nick exclaimed and jumped up, laughing again as he usually did. Loud and obnoxiously. However, he then slung an arm over Tama's shoulders, making their cheeks touch as he pointed to the passed out men. "Seriously, the look was priceless. Bwahahaha! Oh man, oh man! I should've recorded this! This one has to be the best reaction we've ever had from someone. I can't believe they actually passed out. Hahahaha!" Nick continued, truly unable to stop as he soon found himself on the ground, rolling around and tearing up from such heavy laughter. His sides were hurting, oh no! Oh, but all good things came to an end, and as he caught his breath, Nick stood up before Tama and tried to keep himself from diving into another round of it all. He'd probably pass out on the next segment if he didn't catch his breath.

Damn, that was good. It was hilarious. He almost felt bad too that he couldn't trade with Tama sometimes and be just as powerful with his pranking. Instead, he had to resort to simple human tricks that probably didn't get any better than a stink bomb. "Seriously, awesome job, Tama." And suddenly, she would find herself wrapped up in a hug with those muscular arms of him. Easily picking her up and laughing, Nick kept her like this for a couple seconds before plopping her back on to her wooden sandals. "Phew, that was awesome. I can't stop thinking about it! Hahahaha!" The oblivious, young man spoke momentarily casting his gaze upward. As much as he wanted the fun to continue, he noticed that it was growing darker still. The day just really flew by, didn't it? He was a bit depressed by it, but he hid it well.

Picking up his shirt, he gave a long sigh and placed a hand in his pocket. "Looks like fun time is over. That blows." A pouty expression crossed his features, comically fitting for the slacker. "I wish I could say same time tomorrow, but I promised Yuki I'd take her out tomorrow night." It almost sounded like he was complaining. In a way, he sort of was. Bored and not really wanting to go back home, Nick looked over to Tama and stuck his tongue out again. "It's dangerous out at night. Do you want a bodyguard to walk you home?" Referring to himself, he flexed his muscles but soon dropped the act and laughed afterwards, awaiting her response for the time being.
 
Tama's visage turned cold as soon as he mentioned his date with Yuki. She already knew, but that still didn't make it any less painful to hear him talk about it. She always seemed to be cutting in on their time together, the long afternoons after school that the two of them would spend in each other's company. No, it was she who was cutting in on Yuki and Nick's time, for it was she who really didn't have any justified claim on Nick. They were friends, best friends even, but nothing more than that. He had his own tastes, and she had hers, but there wasn't anything between them... From her point of view at least.

"No, that's alright," Tama shook her head slowly, her tail swaying side to side in a slightly sorrowful manner, "I can find my own way back home. Besides, you don't even know where I live, do you?"

Tama had never once brought Nick to her home, so she felt relatively certain that he had never even seen the little old cottage way out in the outskirts of town. It was a lonely little house that she built herself up on one of the old mountain passes out of old timbers, bark, panes of glass for windows. To anyone who was brave enough to venture into those mountains, well known to be infested with monster girls, it would appear as nothing more than an old shack with a fresh coat of yellow paint and carefully trimmed annual blooms planted all around it. It only had two rooms, a makeshift kitchen and a bedroom with a simple wall and open doorway dividing the cottage into two parts. When she wanted to bathe or do her laundry, she had to go to the nearby mountain stream and wash them by hand as she always did. She could remember the days when the two of them would play in that very stream, the sounds of their laughter being a distant dream that she would remember late at night.

"I'll see you later, then... I hope you two have fun," she whispered softly and began to run off by herself toward the winding mountain road leading out of the city, "Goodbye, Nick."

The slowly fading clup-clup of her wooden sandals in the distance had a lonely tone to them, but at the same time it was clear that she didn't want him to follow after her. As the sun slowly set in the west, the first day of Tamamo's infatuation came to a close... But their story was far from over.
 
The moment she turned him down, Nick seemed to be caught off guard. It seemed weird that they wouldn't spend the last bits of the night together, but perhaps he didn't have any right to pry. Secretly, he did want to learn where she lived, having not once been shown her humble abode. Did she reside in a nice, warm home or some apartment? He was curious. Always curious. To him, these monster girls were pretty awesome. Especially the very first one he ever met, Tama. Yet, it seemed she wouldn't give him the pleasure of seeing her house. He frowned a bit at that. Maybe next time...?

"Hm..." He began, nodding slowly to her response before watching her turn around and begin her departure. It was sudden, and that bit made him even more suspicious of what was going on. In fact, Nick wanted to throw his hand out and catch the kitsune, but she was already way ahead of him on that, dashing towards the path that would lead her home. "Uh, bye." Nick replied weakly, not really sure how to take it all. To him, Tama suddenly went from one end of the scale to the next in an instant. Sure, she didn't really like Yuki, but this just seemed oddly different than usual. It sounded a lot more colder, and oddly depressed. So, stuck in his thoughts, Nick stood there completely baffled and unable to really understand why she decided to abruptly end their night like this. Things were getting pretty weird today. Was she sick?

"Tama..." He muttered. Not really having much else to do, Nick turned around and began walking back home.

Alone...

The next day, Nick gave a light sigh as he smiled at Yuki. The young woman who stood at 5'5" and was pretty slender, came walking along dressed up in a flowing, pink top with white lace around the edges. She wore a cute, navy blue blazer that was made of the perfect material for the night's summer air with matching deep dark indigo skinny jeans. Her wedges matched as well, the straps the same pink as her top. Her lips formed into a cute smile as she carried her books and purse with Nick out into the courtyard of school. "So, how was class, baby?" Yuki asked curiously.

She was top of her class, queen of every academic program there, and winner of many scholastic awards. It was an interesting contrast between her and Nick. Yet, she was imposing that same mentality on him. Sadly for her, it just wasn't possible. Nick continued to slack off despite his own skills and would much rather prefer to sleep all day. So, therefore, it really wasn't a shocker to hear Nick's reply to Yuki: "Dreamed about the most delicious slice of pizza ever made. Yum." He said dreamily, recalling the visions within his mind while the professor said something about trigonometry or something like that. Or maybe pandas.

Yuki gave a gentle sigh and shook her head. "Nick, you have to take things seriously. How do you expect to get a good paying job? Or get any awards? I'm aiming for valedictorian of our class, you should too." Nick felt like he was being lectured, so as usual, he tuned it out and simply nodded. "Yes dear." This would illicit a giggle from the young school girl, who nudged Nick gently. Ugh, and the night only begun. Why couldn't they do something fun like egg someone's house or spook some jerks from the university wearing costumes or something? Instead, they had to sit down, eat, and then go see a lame movie. What a kill joy.

"Nick? Did you hear me?"
"Hm?"
"What're you going to have? I want to have something that'll compliment your dish."
Nick just stared back at her with a confused expression. Was it really that important? Ugh...
 
Tama, of course, had been unable to restrain herself from coming along for Yuki and Nick's date, hidden behind a large potted plant on the far side of the restaurant. She wore a cap to hide her ears, a large brown trench-coat to cover her yukata, and dark sunglasses to conceal her distinct green colored eyes. Her tail, however, still popped out from a part in the trench-coat, rendering her disguise completely useless to anyone who actually spotted her. So far, nothing that they had said or done really surprised her. Yuki was still being pushy, egging Nick to be more serious about life when she really seemed more concerned about her own image and having a "perfect date" with her boyfriend, who seemed bored out of his mind. Why did it even matter if their dishes complimented each other? Yuki's behavior, as usual, nearly made Tama gag.

She bit down on a handkerchief, stifling her growls of envy. Her sensitive ears could pick up on every word of their conversation, which only seemed to add fuel to the flame of jealousy burning within her. As the young couple finally ordered and their drinks were brought around, Tamamo inconspicuously dropped a grasshopper into Yuki's glass and waited with baited anticipation for it to jump out at her and send her into a panic. The waiter approached them and gave them a polite bow before picking up Yuki's cup of tea to place it on the table before her. Just as he did so, however, the grasshopper hopped out of the hot water and vanished into one of the potted plants without anyone seeming to notice, much to Tama's frustration. Why couldn't it have waited just a little bit longer?!

For her next ploy, Tama waited until the food was prepared and switched Yuki's dish with another one of the orders which was waiting to be delivered: a plate of snails. Convinced that she would be successful this time, she returned to her hiding place behind the shrub and waited to see her exasperated expression. Instead, however, the waiter actually re-checked the order before bringing the plates out...

Yuki 2, Tama 0

After they left the dinner and headed for the movie theatre, Tama followed after them from a distance and slipped in through the rear enterance. She watched carefully what seats they would take and slipped in to the row behind them. The lights dimmed and the opening credits began to roll, and almost on cue Yuki rested her head on Nick's shoulder, snuggling up beside him comfortably in a position that Tama had oh so often wished she could take. Silent flames burned within her gleaming eyes once again as her head dipped down...

Prick!

Yuki suddenly bolted up from her seat and looked around, utterly confused. It felt as if someone had just pinched her on the butt, but when she looked around she couldn't see a thing other than the startled expressions of the other movie-goers. She mumbled an apology and sat back down, visibly concerned, "Hey, Nick... Would you mind changing our seats? I think someone behind us kicked me."

Yuki 2, Tama 1
 
Nick began twirling his shrimp parmesan all around his plate, gazing over at Yuki in utter boredom as she talked about her day. Which, was pretty much every single word that poured from her professor's mouth. Oh if he could pull his hair out, he would. It got so bad that when the waiter came by and began taking their order, Nick actually appeared glad. "Yeah! Refill! Totally bro. So, how's it going?" Sadly, the man simply just nodded, smiled, and refilled his drink. And completely oblivious, Yuki simply kept on talking and talking like nothing was wrong. All and all, it was boring at the restaurant. Though, it got kind of interesting when a grass hopper somehow wound up in some fat lady's lap and she freaked out, flipping a table over. Yuki jumped a little in shock and wondered if she was okay. Nick? He was hitting the table and laughing his. Ass. Off..

Nick himself straightened up when Yuki jumped up a little. "Hm? Uh, sure." He replied and flip flopped seats. Nick saw Yuki constantly looking around, her expression showing that she was becoming exasperated. She was starting to distract him a lot, so with a bit of an annoyed expression on his own face, Nick checked behind the seats. Nothing. "Ugh, what the hell? What's going on?" Nick asked Yuki, the girl shrugging and shaking her head. "I don't know. Someone keeps kicking my seat, but no one's there." She replied, checking again but seeing now one. Whoever this person was, they were good. Nick was sure about that. But, it was a constant distraction since Yuki would constantly shift against him and wonder what was going on. By the fifth time, Nick succumbed to the idea that he would not be able to enjoy this movie. And he was waiting for several months to see it too! Lame...

By the time the movie finished and the credits were rolling, Yuki and Nick were standing outside in the crowd. Still a nice warm night, rather enjoyable as Nick once again dawned a simple pair of jeans and a short sleeve buttoned up shirt. It was a bit fitting, so it clung to his body nicely, the first button on top revealing a bit of his bare chest underneath. "How'd you like the movie?" Yuki asked curiously. Nick's response was a dull "It was okay", mainly because he couldn't enjoy the movie one bit. Though, for once, Yuki seemed to pick up on his dull reply.

"You seem a bit distant. Is something wrong?"
"Nope."
"Nick... I can tell. What's wrong?"
Nick gave a deep sigh and just shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Just a little stressed out."
Yuki seemed to reply right away, stopping him in his tracks. "I understand, baby. It's okay. I just... wish you would've told me sooner."
A bit taken aback, Nick simply blinked and looked around, seeing if there was something that could explain what she was grabbing at. There really wasn't anything. "Uh, y-you do?" Yuki seemed to nod in response, looking deep into his eyes before clutching him in her arms and hugging him tightly.

"I do, Nick. I'm so sorry. This whole time, I thought I was being a good girlfriend for you. I was trying to be wonderful, caring, and wanted to make you happy. Instead, you've been dreading something this entire time, haven't you?" Whoa, she was actually getting it right on the money. That made Nick chuckle lightly as he returned her hug. Finally! She would understand that she had been on his case for pretty much their entire relationship. He imagined that she would apologize again for constantly pressuring him to do better, to work on this and that, to try not to be a slacker. Nick was really hoping for that, and it was about to turn this date from crappy to-

"You've been having trouble studying for the midterms? Are you stressed out, baby? Don't worry! Every night I can come by and help you study! It'll be fun!"

... to even more crappy crap. Nick's face just started out into the night air, a deep sigh escaping his lips as his arms fell to his sides. Good lord, he was doomed with this girl. He should've canceled the date. Why oh why didn't he cancel the date?!

Dropping her off at her home, Nick waved her goodnight, watching the door close in his face. "... That was highly unenjoyable." He muttered, turning around and walking down the steps with a bored expression. And it was late too. He practically wasted his day! He groaned in frustration and stomped off, starting to walk down the street, unaware that he had a follower this entire night. It would be interesting to see Tama's own reactions to this night and all. Especially how annoyed Nick was after what Yuki thought was a wonderful date. They apparently operated on two different scales.
 
"You've been having trouble studying for the midterms? Are you stressed out, baby? Don't worry! Every night I can come by and help you study! It'll be fun!"

Tamamo facefaulted hard upon hearing those words leave Yuki's lips. Just how clueless could this girl be? Nick and Yuki were birds of a feather in that respect, but in all other ways they couldn't be any more different. They were both quite intelligent and had far more education than Tama, but they had completely opposed views of life. Although she had successfully disturbed their date, Tama couldn't feel the least bit proud of herself. Yuki alone was enough of an impediment to their relationship than Tama could ever be. She let out a sigh and pulled the hat, glasses, and trench-coat off of herself, stashing it away into that bottomless satchel that she always seemed to carry around with her.

"Ohhh... He looks so depressed and worried," Tama whispered to herself, crouching down onto the ground and rolling up with her tail wrapping around her such that she looked like a rather large, fluffy ball, "Should I go over there and talk with him? I could cheer him up and show him how much more fun I am than that Yuki girl... Perhaps this is my chance to confess my feelings to him!"

Tama envisioned herself running up toward Nick, hugging him from behind much to his surprise and playfully bitting him on the ear. She would swing herself around and rub her head against his chest affectionately before bending up to whisper into his ear the words that she so much wished to say to him. He would scoop her up into his arms and press his lips to hers without hesitance, his left hand gently stroking her ears as his right reached down and brushed the base of her fluffy tail. Then, he would take her hands in his and lead her back toward his house, to his room, their eyes seeing nothing but each other as he gently guides her onto her back and slips his hand inside of her yukata to cup her right breast-

"YA!!!" the Tama ball suddenly jumped and rolled around in the middle of the street, "What is wrong with me?! Am I in heat or something?!"

Of course, in doign so she had entirely blown her cover and revealed her location to Nick, assuming he would recognise the rolling ball of fur as his childhood friend, Tama. She rolled about, bumping into light poles and trash cans, generally making a ruckus and a total fool out of herself, growing dizzy and disoriented from the rapid changes in direction that she was taking as she bounced about like a marble inside a shaken bottle.

------

OOC: I did a bit of word play there, since "Tama" means "ball" in Japanese, so a "Tama Ball" would be a "Tama Tama"
 
OOC: Haha! Clever word play. Sadly, I have none to return with. ; 3;

With a depressed sigh as he walked down the sidewalk, Nick grumbled to himself about why exactly he didn't make up some lame excuse about not being able to go on this date tonight. He was quite skilled in bull shitting himself out of many different situations. This wouldn't be that difficult. Nick could have said something like, "Sorry, Yuki. I'm going to study super hardcore for that test next week!". Or something like, "I'm slammed in homework, and I know you want me to work hard, so I have to cancel." Hell, even an excuse like, "Yuki, my people need. The world is being attacked by rapist dolphins, and I'm the only one that can stop them." That last one at least brought a small chuckle to his lips, straightening his drooping posture as he wondered what to do now. He didn't want to go home, but it was a little late in the evening. Not many places would be open and such.

Almost as an answer to his problem by some divine force, the young man jumped when a ball of fur suddenly popped out of his peripheral vision, rolling about and causing minor mayhem and destruction no matter where or what it hit. He even dodged it as it rolled by him and knocked over a trash can. "The hell...?" He muttered, watching it for a little longer, purely dumbfounded about what the ball of fur was doing going back and forth. However, Nick began to notice that fur pattern. The colors, the stripe of what looked like a tail tip. It didn't even take him a second to realize that it was Tama's tail. So, that meant the rest of the ball had to be Tama. Her path was starting to become a lot more erratic and swerving left and right, no doubt the kitsune girl probably experiencing some serious disorientation. Shaking his head, when she was headed towards him, Nick simply let her bump into her without budging. He'd watch her just roll against his shin, giving her a raised eyebrow.

Kneeling down, he began turning her somewhat to find where her tail tip was and began to unwrap her like some Christmas present. "Yo." He told her, finally finding her face in that mess of fur. "What're you doing out here, Tama? You're usually home at this time of night, so what's up? Pranking someone without me? You jerk." Nick stuck his tongue out and laughed lightly, though it seemed a bit down, no doubt from the night's events. Anyways, he gently helped her up, offering to help steady herself if she was still a bit off balance. Though, Nick was a bit curious as to why she was out. From the whole time he's known her, she was never out this late. Not a lot of people were, but Nick was for certain that she was not. So, forgive him if the question burrowed deeply into his mind and refused to leave.

"So... spill it, Foxy. Whatcha doing out here?"

OOC: I feel like I ended this a bit quickly, the date that is. Sorry about that. ;____;
 
OOC: Na, its fine. It helps keep the story flowing at a decent pace

"I... I'm alright," a dizzy Tama staggered about a bit after Nick helped her up onto her feet, "No, I'm not pranking anyone, nope, and in case you were wondering I definitely was not snooping around and following after someone. I was just... You know, enjoying the night air for a change. You know me, always looking for a new adventure, ha ha ha..."

Her words were hardly convincing aside from her poorly formed excuses, given that she had never even suggested staying out so late at night before, no matter how much fun they were having together. Perhaps it was a holdover from when her mother would call her back home from playing in the mountains, or perhaps she had some lingering fear of the dark despite the fact that kitsune have excellent night vision. For whatever reason, Tama clearly didn't want Nick to pry too deeply into her presence there that afternoon. Given her upfront, and in some cases brutally honest nature, she had always been terrible at lying to such an extent that Nick could always tell when she was lying to his face or generally making an attempt to dodge the issue. She might have been amazing at playing with other people's fears and insecurities, but when the tables where turned and she was on the spotlight, she fled like a rabbit from a pack of hungry wolves.

"So, uhm, how did that date with Yuki go?" Tama made a desperate attempt to shift the focus of the discussion off of herself, "Was the movie any good? Perhaps we could watch it at your place after the DVD or BlueRay comes out. I don't have a player for either of those, so its not like I could see it on my own, plus crowds of humans make me nervous and it would be pretty weird if the two of us went to see the movie on our own, wouldn't it? So, uhm, did anything special happen on this date, hm?"

The kitsune nudged Nick's shoulder playfully, forming a circle with her thumb and middle finger on her right hand and thrusting her pointer and middle finger on her left hand through the center, "Did you... Do it?"

"Oh, don't act so surprised... You two have been going out for, like nearly two years now? I've heard humans who commit themselves to such long-term relationships often do such things even before marriage," Tama shrugged, "And yet humans claim monster girls are loose. Perhaps they need to look in the mirror a bit more closely!"
 
Still helping her balance herself, the auburn haired student watched her with a doubtful expression. As if. Maybe looking for new adventure, but he was doubtful of everything else. Even worse, she practically gave herself away. Like she could hide her true intentions to begin with, but it didn't really occur that she was following him. Instead, Nick was just wondering what mischief she could be up to this late at night. Maybe it was a monster girl thing? Could be possible. Nick wasn't an expert on them, but that didn't sound out of the ordinary right? Then again, monster girls weren't technically ordinary, were they? Good lord, all this over thinking made his brain hurt. Did he really need to do all this?!

With a sigh and rub of his temples, Nick just shook his head. "You've been acting weird lately. Everything all right? Like, serious weird junk and all that." He told the fox girl, looking into her eyes with a questioning gaze. But, then she threw him for a spin with his date. Ordinarily, he'd press on about his dearest friend, but he had to get this off his chest. With a groan of aggravation, Nick motioned walked past Tama and motioned for her to follow. "Holy cow, do you know how clueless she is?! Seriously! First off, all she's talking about at dinner is pretty much what she learned today. She probably memorized the professor's speech and shot it right back at me. Okay, that's not the worst part. That entire movie? Couldn't fucking watch it! Yuki was jumping up the entire time, telling me someone was kicking her seat when no one was there." As Nick went on, his hand motions were extravagant and over the top, throwing them up or flailing them about to add emphasis. "I bet it was good. Too bad I couldn't focus on it with how much she kept screwing around with her seat. Jeez..."

"By special, do you mean wanting to kill myself because of how boring it was? Then yeah, something special did happen." He joked sarcastically, following her hand motions after the shoulder nudge. A clueless expression was written on his features as she made a circle, but the moment she started thrusting her fingers into the circle with her opposite hand, Nick jumped back a bit. After he recovered, he was suddenly in her face, flailing her arms about with a bright blush across his cheeks. "What?! No! Just because we've been dating for two years doesn't mean I'm going to sleep her!"

He was fuming a bit, now completely red in the face as he pulled his collar a bit, feeling the steam leaving the confines of his shirt. Wiping his brow of sweat, Nick looked off and to the sides, shoving his hands into his pockets. "We've talked about it, but trust me, her legs are more secure them damn Fort Knox. I won't be getting in anytime soon." He muttered, though fared his eyes to the ground for a moment. "Besides, I don't know. I feel like if we do have sex, she's just gonna freaking get on my case more. Ugh, doesn't help sometimes with the way she dresses. Especially cute dresses and all that jazz." It seemed he was letting his mind wander as his face grew more red, Nick quickly looking away.

"A-Anyway, let's talk about something else. What have you been doing all day?" He asked nervously, looking at her from the corner of his eyes.
 
"Oh, aren't you just precious," the kitsune nudged her friend, obviously pleased at how flustered Nick had gotten from their little discussion. However weak she might have been against such teasing, Tama enjoyed making observations concerning human sexual activity, much like most other monster girls. Tama in particular was quite upfront and frank with such discussions, although she was quite clearly inexperienced in such areas herself. She had someone in particular in mind, after all.

"Well, you know, kitsune stuff... I spend my mornings tending to my traps I set up in the mountains around my cottage. I usually check on the ones I set the day before and set down a few more... I don't have a regular source of income like you humans often do, so I have to make due with living off the land. I'm sure I've told you about the fishing and mushroom picking I do in the fall months," Tama shrugged, realizing that she had gotten a bit off-topic, "Other than that and laundry, I usually wander around town looking for people to pull pranks on since I'm so bored... Today wasn't much different than any other day, I suppose."

Tama started making her way down the street, swinging her small cloth handbag from side to side as her large, fluffy tail wagged behind her with each stride. She didn't have the same aura around her as the day before, as she had perked up slightly and wasn't nearly as depressed. Being around Nick had that effect on her, although he probably never noticed it before since she always behaved the same way when he was nearby. Energetic and somewhat random at times, she never seemed to have a dull moment as she strove to live each moment of her life to the fullest. From the way that she spoke about her everyday life, however, this didn't seem entirely accurate. Even Tama had dull (or mundane in the very least) tasks in her life.
 
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