leave me behind ,

[Kioshi Nori]

The noontime sun hung high in a pale blue sky, while busy people going nowhere bustled in and out of the square. Many held a copious amount of shopping bags, while others looked nervously at their watches, as if they were wishing that they could control time. It was always at this time that the square was the busiest, but Kio was at a loss as to why. So he had dubbed this particular time of day “business time,” since that was all people tended to do around this hour. Business. Buy, sell, trade, upgrade, haggle — you name it, and they did it. The nineteen year old had never been one for material items, was never the sort of person to fawn and get all pumped up over getting a new pair of shoes or a wristwatch.

For that very reason, the shifter wasn’t really quite sure why he was here, where the number of materialistic people had skyrocketed through the roof. Even though he’d always question the priorities of regular, normal humans, Kio still found them all insanely intriguing. How one could get so worked up over the fact that the pair of shoes they had been coveting for days was sold out was always something for Kio to chuckle over. Sometimes, people didn’t know how well they had it, not in the least. Which was why he was never part of the crowd, but just one who stated in the shadows, taking note of all that was going on around him.

He was leaning against a wall of the local pawn shop, a small notepad in hand, as well as a thin-tipped, black Sharpie marker. It was hard to gather inspiration for his latest song here, in a place where the various people and shoppers here were about as deep as a puddle after the rain, but Kio prided his work on the fact that he could draw inspiration from anywhere. Although, it was proving hard to gather any inspiration today. His tattered notepad was already filled with three pages worth of cross-outs, scribbles, revisions, and had basically become unreadable. The teen had scrapped those, trying to start afresh, but that was proving hard to do as well.

“Busy people going nowhere,” he muttered to himself, knowing that he was keeping that one lyric in there for sure. However, the rest of the song had pretty much come to a dead end. Bringing his sapphire blue eyes upwards and away from the notepad, he scanned the crowd, watching them once more. More people had entered the square, make it look even more like a cluster of rats, all racing through a maze in which there was no ending. At the thought, his eyes lit up, scribbling onto his notepad again. “Racing blindly towards a goal, taking a wrong turn, towards oblivion…” As he said this, ironically, he watched as two shoppers colliding into each other, all of their items crashing to the floor, a verbal fight breaking out.

Shoppers are insanely protective of their purchases, Kio noted, stopping his scribbling to watch the both of them argue. One shopper, the person who had bumped into the other, seemed sincerely sorry about the event, while the so called ‘victim,’ was beyond frustrated, and would stop at nothing to make sure that the other was chewed out before she was through. Kioshi bit his lower lip at the sight - he honestly hated to see people — especially innocents — being abused, but what could he do? Nothing, really. Groaning, the lad attempted to keep his anger under control. It was never good when he was angry, never good at all… However, his attempt to check his anger failed, for before his eyes, a shift began to occur.

His hands, which had been normal-looking before, instantly morphed, gryphon-like claws taking their place. “Damnit,” he muttered, wincing at the pain. Despite the agony, Kio managed to keep himself quiet, not wanting to bring attention to himself. Yet, if anyone was to look over in his direction, it was obvious what was going on. He hated when this happened, hated when his animalistic qualities had to take over… Such was why he was leaning against this pawn shop wall, so no one would notice his lion-like tail. With claws, there was no way he could hold his black sharpie, which now dropped towards the floor. Abandoned, like Kio had been feeling for so many years now.

note — totally open!

[Kitsune Aname]

It was noontime, the day still going strong with the sun high in the sky. No clouds could be spotted. Of course, this was probably the worst time of day to go to the town square. People were everywhere. It was like a zoo -- except worse. How can this be any worse than a zoo? Well, it was! There was no point in coming here, unless you want to get sucked into the crowd and never come out. Kit really had no idea why she was here. She just was, even though she knew there wasn't any point.

Well, Kit was here for a particular reason. She needed some new jewelry, like for her wrists or neck. She loved silver. Silver was the best kind of jewelry, even better than gold. It looked good with everything, pretty much. She loved it. Approaching the jewelry store, she adjusted her shirt and tugged up on her pants a little -- they had fallen slightly --, before curling her fluffy tail around her small frame and holding it like a baby would its doll. She wondered if normal humans thought oddly of her because of her strange appearance. Though, more and more shifters were appearing in the city every day.

Bright sapphrine eyes searched her surroundings as she entered the jewelry store. It was pretty packed in here, too, and the line was terribly long. She sighed to herself and almost dragged her feet as she moped silently to herself. Moving around the store, she looked through the glass boxes and down at the beautiful silver jewelry. She smiled to herself and bit her lip as she looked up ontop of the glass table to view bracelets that were out in the open.

Sapphrine eyes sparkled as she reached to take a couple silver braclets. She slipped them over her hand and let them jingle on her wrist. "Perfect!" she whispered to herself, then looked around quickly to make sure no one had been around to hear her. There was no one around her, thank the lord. She sighed quietly to herself and took the two braclets off her wrist before picking up four more so she had a total of six. Then, she waited in line for which seemed like an eternity before paying and leaving with her small bag filled with her beautiful silver jewelry.

Now, Kit stood outside of the jewelry shop and saw a pawn shop across the way. Ugh! All the way over there? She sighed to herself and rolled her eyes. Then, something caught her eye. Well, someone. Looked like a male leaning up against the wall from what she could see. She moved through the crowd toward the pawn shop-- no, toward the male. As she came closer, she looked down to see his tail. Ah! A shifter? Perhaps. She smiled to herself.

Approaching him slowly, she also noticed the notepad in his hand. Song writer? Sketcher-person? She shrugged to herself and brushed the thoughts off. She was just curious of him and felt like being friendly to at least one person today. "Hello!" she said, standing a comfortable distance from him. Her tail curled around her, as she was tempted to grab it again, but she didn't. She waited quietly for a response and smiled gently.

[Kioshi Nori]

Change back, change back, Kioshi urged, his bright blue eyes staring down at his eyes, praying to whatever god there was out there that the morph would go no farther than changing his hands. He took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm himself down, so he would at least look slightly normal again. Thankfully, his body seemed to listen, for the eagle-like claws slowly but surely morphed back into his regular human hands. Kioshi gave a sigh of relief, now scooping down to pick up his abandoned sharpie marker, brushing off the bits of dust that had clung to it from it’s fall. Sighing, he noticed that the lyrics he had been writing on his notepad had now been torn — the claws had torn at the page, ripping the sheet clean in half. The lad bit his lower lip; now his whole afternoon had practically been wasted. “It wasn’t worth much anyway,” he tried to console himself. How good could a couple of lyrics be that had been based off of the lives of everyday shoppers? Not very good, no. But still, it had been the only thing he had been working on today.

He began to sketch rapidly again, but the words made no sense. They were mainly thoughts, random, bitter thoughts that could probably piece together a story, if rearranged properly. He did this often, the silver lad did, especially when he was frustrated. And was there anything more frustrating than seeing his lyrics sheet ripped in half? Sure, he could probably put together the pieces, and maybe write them over anew, but why bother when they hadn’t been any good in the first place. Kio thanked the heavens for his human hands, for he was sketching at a mile a minute at the rate he was going. Nothing could hold him back, and should anyone bother to look at his notepad now, they’d be rightfully confused, seeing nothing but a bunch of seemingly random words scribbled on a crinkled paper. The smell of permanent ink wafted to his senses, made him feel slightly dizzy, but he didn’t care. So engrossed was he in his surroundings that he barely even noticed a stranger slowly walk up to him, greeting him with a cheerful and bright, ‘hello!’

Kio jumped, his right hand shaking feverishly at the greeting. So violent was this shake that he dropped his notepad and marker once again, quickly bringing his eyes upwards to see just who was it that wanted to talk to him. His bright blue eyes were greeted by a shopper, carrying a small bag with her, smiling, as if waiting for something. He stared at her, confused. What did she want from him? Did she seriously just decide to randomly say hello to a total and complete stranger? Careful eyes scanned her, looking her over, scared that she might be part of the FBI, or some other troublesome law force, but the exact opposite was true. The stranger had a fox’s tail, and the ears to match, a clear sign that she was not one to be afraid of. Unless she was one of those crazy shifter that went mad after being transformed. Like him. He grimaced at the thought, but managed to console himself with the fact that she was, at least, cordial, if not a bit strange for wanting to strike up a random conversation with him.

Unless she wanted something from him? Maybe he was standing in her way? Maybe she had seen his lion’s tail and wanted to know what kind of shifter he was or something… For the love of all that was good and holy, Kio could not wonder why she had said hello to him. The thought of someone actually being nice to him for no reason was not a thought that he could wrap his head around. She must want something. But it wasn’t nice to just leave her hanging, it wasn’t. “Greetings,” he mustered awkwardly, his voice hoarse from rarely ever being used. And now… he was at a loss of what to say. Never the conversationalist, Kio would rather watch others talk rather than actually talk to others. “Did you… need something, miss? Am I in your way?” Kio questioned, tilting his head. He made sure his tail was kept promptly in the back of him, wondering if he should pick up his notepad from the ground, but decided against it. He wasn’t too fond of the idea of having it in his hands again, anyway. What good had it done for him?

[Kitsune Aname]

Biting her bottom lip, Kit fiddled with the bottom of her shirt, then reached her hand into her bag and picked up a bracelet. Then, she dropped the bracelet and pulled her hand out of her bag. Now she was nervous because this male was shaking so violently that he dropped his notepad. Sapphrine eyes watched him with curiosity and also deep concern for him. What was the matter? Did she frighten him? Was it the way she looked? Her ears instinctively flattened against her head, as if she were embarrassed or scared. She didn't understand what was the matter.

She definitely knew it wasn't the way she looked. She stared at herself in the mirror for at least three minutes this morning before she went out! Her little canine teeth were revealed as she bit her bottom lip again and slowly stepped forward to where the male dropped his notepad and pen. She scooped both items up gently, curling her tail around her thighs as she stood back up straight again. "Greetings," he had said right after she came up.

Licking her glossy lips, she looked down at the notepad and then back up at him. She felt a little shaky now and unsure, but didn't let herself show that. "Did you… need something, miss? Am I in your way?" He had spoke again, his voice sounding a little odd to her. Maybe it was just like that, she didn't know. She supposed it didn't matter though. Maybe he could be a new friend? Yeah, that'd be excellent!

"Oh, no, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was just coming to say.." she trailed off as she leaned to one side, looking behind him toward his tail. Then, she stood straight again, "...coming to say hi." She finally finished, arching a brow and smiling, trying to reassure him. "Oh! I almost forgot," she said, looking down at his notepad in her hands then back up at him, "Your notepad and pen." She reached out toward him, taking a few small steps closer, trying to keep a comfortable distance for him.

[Kioshi Nori]

Apparently, the fox-girl hadn’t meant to startle him. Well, she had failed at that, obviously, for Kio could not understand how anyone would not be startled by someone sneaking up on him and exclaiming a bright and perky hello at him. She might as well have found a mega horn and screamed her greeting in his face… He shook his head, silver hair bouncing along with the movement. No, it wasn’t her fault that he was easily lost in his work, not her fault that he had left reality for a brief moment, lost in his own lyrics. “It’s quite alright, miss,” he muttered softly, bringing a hand to his face in order to wipe a silver lock away from his eyes. He was used to hiding behind the silver curtain that was his hair, but thought it would be rude if he was to do so now, when attempting to have a conversation with another person. With this lock of hair gone from his face, it was easier to see him arch an eyebrow now, at the next part of her statement, where she muttered that she had came here to say something. To be honest, Kioshi hoped it was something important.

No such luck was had, for she was only coming over here to say hi. Hi? That was it? She had ceased in her oh-so important shopping and walked across the town square, just to say hi? At these words, Kio stared at her, trying to figure her out. Was she really happy with starting frivolous conversation with totally and completely random strangers like this? He wondered if all people were like that, but decided that was a negative statement. No, there had to be something wrong with her, or maybe she was just overly nice? Or perhaps she didn’t have any of her usual friends to hang around, because Kio was certain that a person like herself had to have friends. She was strangely bubbly, and didn’t seem to have any qualms with starting up conversations. So why wasn’t she with such friends now? Why was she talking to him? Why was she standing in front of him, smiling like that, being unexplainably nice? It completely baffled the shifter, to be honest. Although, it would be quite rude to ask such a bold question like, ‘why are you even talking to me?’

Suddenly, as if she had just remembered, the girl handed him back his notepad and marker. He cast his sapphire eyes down at it, taking it gently. “Thank you,” he managed, quietly unscrewing the cap off of the marker, sticking it on the bottom of the pen, and racing the tip across a clean sheet of his notepad. Scribbles, yet again, but they were confused, this time. And they were not about himself now, no, now they were about the girl. He stopped suddenly, staring at her again, trying to figure out why anyone would just randomly say hello to him. “Just coming to say hi?” he echoed, his tone indicating that such a thought had to be the most incredulous thing in the world. “Why say hello to me?” It was probably a blunt question, but hell of Kioshi cared. When he had a question, most times, he asked it. “I’m no one special.” Despite what the FBI told him, despite him being a legendary, Kio did indeed feel that he was no one special most of the time. Just a kid with a gryphon inside him, that was all there was to that.

[Kitsune Aname]

Of course, Kit was the kind to walk up to strangers that looked rather interesting to her, and especially to those who looked like a shifter. He had a tail, she knew he had a tail; she saw it and it was as if he were hiding it. He was a shifter, he had to be. Unless she was going completely insane, then that's another story. But she was sure she saw was real, and that was that he had a tail! She smiled at him again as he muttered, wondering why he seemed so... she didn't even know the word. He was something, though, alright, but she didn't mind. If he was afraid, nervous, or just had a shell over him, she'd pull it right off and toss it over her shoulder. She had this weird thing where she could bring almost anyone out of their shell or out from behind whatever they're hiding behind.

Kit noticed his staring and just simply smiled, tilting her head and wondering what was going through his mind. He probably thought she was a freak for coming over and just saying hi, you know? A lot of people have told her that when she's come up to them. They've told her she's a freak and walked away. Not in those specific words, but in a way, they did. She didn't feel bad or hurt or anything like that, she just felt.. well, like her. She doesn't really care, she's just a kind and curious - very curious person. And if she sees something or someone interesting, she will most likely approach just to say hi.

Once she had given him back his notepad, he thanked her, and she nodded, "No problem," she said with another one of her smiles. Oh, you could never smack that smile off her face no matter how hard you tried. Unless you were a complete asshole and insulted her... then you might succeed. She did get mad pretty quick, but was smart enough to walk away and not make a scene. Kit pricked her ears toward him, sapphrine eyes gazing into his own as he echoed what she had said. "Yes, just coming to say hi." She nodded her head before looking toward where he was hiding his tail again. Then, she looked back up at him when he spoke, blinking. He was no one special, hmm? Well, she thought he might be. "Well, I think you're special. Just like I am," she said and pointed to her tail then let her hand relax at her side again. Hopefully, he got the hint and realised what she meant.

[Kioshi Nori]

He was sketching at a mile a minute now, wanting to capture this feeling of confusion that was swimming about his system. A multitude of adjectives were written down, along with a brief sketch of the area, Kio’s wrist flicking quickly as the thin-tipped Sharpie marker waltzed amongst the snow white paper, words that probably would not make sense to the normal person dotting the page. He’d sort out these thoughts later, he knew, but in the meantime, it was Kioshi’s duty to document his feelings all of the time. The shifter did it mainly because he hoped to keep track of his feelings, to hope one day that he would feel less depressed about what had happened with his sister. He knew that would never happen, though. He would always be haunted by her memory, probably until the day he passed away. If that day would ever come, be allowed.

“Well, I think you're special. Just like I am,” the fox girl assured, referring to her tail. Kioshi tilted his head to the side slowly, studying her tail, darting his eyes back to her face, noting how she was all smiles. Did she really think she was special, because the FBI had chosen her, had molded her into a freak? At that, he whipped out his own tail so that it was brought into full view, a bit sad that this claws had faded, for they would be more useful for proving his point. “Special?” he echoed, stepping a bit closer. “How can you say that you’re special, like that’s a … like that’s a good thing?” His voice cracked, the pain of remembering how his sister had looked at him after returning home and revealing his lion’s tail for the first time…

Squeezing his bright blue eyes shut for a brief moment, he continued, focusing his eyes on her. His voice was hushed now, so ordinary passersby would not have to listen to him rant. “We shifters are not special. We’re freaks, outcasts of society, made by society. Is there not a worse fate?” He could not think of one, could not think of any situation that could be worst than being shunned by most of the world’s population. Despite how bad your situation might be if you were a normal human, you could always find someone to help you out, because you were a human, and you were accepted. With shifters, things would not be so easy. “Have you ever had someone close to you, who looked at you with cold eyes after finding out your identity? Ever truly felt the cold shoulder that humanity casts upon us?” He took a deep breath. “We are not special. Not in the least bit.” His eyes trained back down his notepad, sketching again, his words violent now, angry, yet lonely at the same time.