Satou Residence {floor 2, number 213} [Private]

The apartment is in Die's paternal grandfather's name. Rent is paid from his savings while the kids are still in school. Die babysits children of the neighbors to earn the money to buy groceries and everything else.

The decorations are old, comfortable, and neutral or dark in color. Bamboo and dark wood are especially prevalent. The floors are all tatami mats, and there is little glass or porcelain left out in the open. There are two bathrooms and three bedrooms, a decent sized kitchen, a dining room/living room combination, and a small balcony. There is one cream colored couch that can seat three, a matching love seat, a dark brown recliner, a medium sized TV on a dark wood stand, and a dark wood coffee table. Light fixtures are either standing bamboo or hanging wood/metal combinations. The walls in the public rooms are a neutral beige, as with the hall and bathrooms.

The master bedroom is done in beige and tan, with white accents, and white and dark wood furniture. The second largest room is obviously a girl's; pale yellow and pink, with the occasional bright pink flourish, dark wood furniture, and a twin size bunk bed/desk combo. The last room is the furthest from the front door and is decorated in pale blue and green, with dark blue touches, dark wood furniture, and a full size bed.

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Die struggle with the lock for a moment before realizing she had the key upside down. She giggled and flipped it, unlocked the door, and opened it wide. She strode in and deposited the bags on the floor near the coffee table then turned to her companion with her arms spread wide and a smile on her face. "Home sweet home. The pink room's mine, but you can take either of the other two rooms. You can even have your own bathroom," She grabbed the girl's arm and pulled her into the apartment before taking the bags from her. "You'll want to explore and find everything, right? I'll make some glasses of chocolate milk, if you'd like some?"

I blinked quickly as Die drug me about, though I smiled. “I would like some chocolate milk.” I removed my wedge sandals and left them near the front door, before looking through the rooms. I could hear Die moving about in the kitchen. I looked into a large room. It was set in neutral colors, brown and beige, though I liked the size I figured this must have been ‘grandpa’s’ room. I moved to another room, noting the pink room that must be Die’s room. I liked the blue room, I wondered if this was the little brother’s room. I moved back to the kitchen setting myself in a seat at the table.
“So do your grandfather and brother ever visit you here?”
Earlier we had talked about them, but I didn’t want to stay in a room that could possibly be frequented. It would just cause undo stress to Kitten.

She brought the glasses over to the table and shrugged as she set Dice's down in front of her, hunching over her own glass and sipping, leaning a hip against the table. "It'll be school holidays before I see them again, and we always gather at that particular cousin's house anyway, so I don't think you have to worry about waking up one morning and seeing Sheng Li or Gramps in bed with you. They both prefer to stay out in the country, say it's quieter. Normally I go visit them, and we all seem to be ok with the arrangement, if not happy." She set her glass down and grinned brightly at the girl as she kicked off her own heels. "In fact, they'll both be extremely happy that I've got company in case of an emergency." The tone of the younger girl's voice showed that she clearly believed that statement and the implication that her family would leave them to their own devices Her eyes were wide with excitement at the thought as she leaned forward, her palms flat against the table.

I looked up at Die as she approached the table. “Thank you.” I listened and smirked at her. If anyone needed to be worried about someone else crawling into bed with me it wasn’t me, it would be them. At least not without permission, I nodded. “Then you don’t mind if I take the blue room?” Though she had said earlier that I was welcome to either of the two rooms I still wanted to make sure she would be comfortable with the arrangements. I thought it odd that her family would accept me staying here. But she was right, I would be here for an emergency. If I was out, she did have my number. I looked at Kitten, as she leaned on the table, waiting for her to speak. At least I thought she was going to speak.
"Hmm?"
I prompted her.

The girl blushed and leaned back and sat abruptly in her chair, her tail curling around the tines. What was I going to do? Her ears flattened back a bit but she perked right back up; it was a little forced, but she figured the girl wouldn't notice. "Oh sure, knock yourself out. But we'll need Gramps's permission for any redecorating." She sipped her chocolate milk and stared down at the table surface for a minute before looking back up. "I bet you're tired. Why don't you go take a nice long hot relaxing bath while i put everything away?" She forced herself not to pay attention to the fact she was blushing a little; noticing it would only make it worse. She jumped up and ran off to the linen closet to grab a clean towel for Ice. "Here you go. Just don't steal all the hot water, okay?" She turned away and grabbed the shopping bags to start taking them little by little to Sheng Li's old room.

"Actually I picked the room because it didn't need anything changed in my opinion. So don't worry yourself about that." I finished up my chocolate milk, before moving to the sink and rinsing out the cup. I turned and looked at the towel. "You should go bathe, I can get my stuff to my room. Besides all my stuff are in these bags." I gently took the few bags Die held and gently smiled at Kitten.

"But you're my guest. I should-I should be taking care of you." Die looked up at the older girl, and her ears flattened against her skull. Her tail frizzed and she frowned at Ice. "I'm not going to be able to change your mind, am I?" The younger girl stomped her foot on the floor and turned away throwing her hands up in the air in defeat. She grabbed as many of Dice's bags as she could carry and ran to the room with them, dropping them on top of her new bed with a mischievous grin. "At least I helped a little," she said to herself, nodded, and turned to leave, the towel tossed over one shoulder.

I watched her wide eyed as she grabbed a handful of bags and ran with them. I followed toting my own set and watched her as she deposited her handfuls of bags onto my bed. I laughed at her words finding them cute. “Thank you for everything Die…” I had been leaning in the door way as she set the bags on the bed so I turned sideways to let her pass me. I slid a few of the bags up my arm so I could ruffle Kittens curls before she got into her tub. I moved father into the room and set the bags down, going back into the living room to collect the last few. I moved the bags to one side of the room and off the bed so I could hop up and relax on the bed.

She had just started toward the door when she noticed Dice there. The girl looked like she was having fun, and Die couldn't hold on to the speck of temper she'd had and found herself grinning in response. "You're welcome, Ice. She slipped past her and allowed the older girl to mess with her hair. Normally, the young girl didn't like being touched, but she didn't think it mattered since she was about to take a bath. She reminded Dice that there was a second bathroom if she wanted to take a bath of her own before bed in case Die fell asleep in the tub, again.

A tiny hand closed the door behind her and turned on the water. A child's face met her in the mirror as she set out her before bed ritual while the bath ran. She never used bubbles, preferring scented scrubbing sand or bath oils. She tossed off the offensively dirty garments from the day and slipped into the water up to her chin within the blink of an eye. She scrubbed until her skin was nearly raw, desperately trying to get all those people off her skin. She washed her hair until she felt clean again; finally able to relax, the back of her head resting on the edge of the tub. She closed her eyes and smiled; it'd be so easy to just drift off again.

I hopped off the bed, grabbing pajamas and my shower stuff. I slipped into the un-occupied bathroom. Turning on the hot water and setting my items around the bathtub. I listened for Die. Just making sure I wasn’t stealing any water from her. I stepped up to the door and into the hallway. Walking down the hall and standing at Die’s bathroom door. “Die…I know you said that you fall asleep in the bath. I’m just checking to see if you’re alright and to let you know I’m getting into one in the other bathroom.”

She had started to drift off when Dice's voice came to her through the door. She grunted and sat up, calling out, "I'm fine! Have fun!" The girl slipped out of the tub and let the water drain. She dried off and slipped into a lavender night set, shorts and a tank top. She went through her nightly routine, brushing her teeth, flossing, scrubbing her face again, rubbing all sorts of creams and lotions on it, and wiping her face clean with the towel before tossing her dirty things into the hamper. Finally, she was ready to unlock the door and face her first night with a room mate.

The hallway was empty, so Die guessed that Ice was still bathing. It was oddly quiet for more than one person, but then again, the white haired girl hadn't struck her as the loud type. She smiled to herself and hugged the pink fleece robe around her. Finally, she wasn't alone in the night. It was a wonderful feeling, just knowing some one else was there.

I cleaned up fairly quickly, brushed my teeth and braided my hair. I slipped on a lavender nightgown. I breathed in the last bit of the steamy room and opened the door. Cold air hit me, raising goose bumps across my exposed legs and arms. I scratched my head and yawned, flipping the light in my room on. I tilted my head. It was silent in the house. That was odd, well at least it seemed odd. Die didn’t seem like the silent type. I turned around and walked back to the bedroom door, sticking my head into the hall and looking for a sign of Kitten. My braid dangled over my shoulder and swung back and forward.

The girl heard the sounds of Dice returning to her room, so she peeked her head out in time to see the older girl doing the same thing. Die smiled, "Good night, Ice! Sweet dreams, and don't hesitate to wake me if you need anything!" She decided not to mention that she only slept roughly two to three hours every night; her issues weren't the girl's problems. She wiggled her fingers as a kind of wave and closed her door again. She tossed her robe onto the desk and climbed the ladder to get to her bed. Slipping between the sheets, she sighed happily; finally, she'd get some sleep. The day had seemed to go by too quickly, and to last for months at the same time, but tomorrow was a new day, and she had school to attend. The girl whispered a prayer that she hadn't just made a mistake. Her eyes closed, and she was asleep in minutes.

I waved back at Kitten. Though I left my door open. Usually it was left closed since noises and light would wake me. But I left it open feeling that if she wanted too she could wake me if she needed company. I shook my head as I moved to the bed climbing in and rolling over so my back faced the door. It had been a very full day. Meeting Die, shopping and what was with the word on our ankles? I rubbed my cheek against the pillow and smiled. Drawing my knees up to my chest this was comfortable, warm bed and calming atmosphere. I wondered what would happen in the morning?

A nightmare woke her, but she couldn't remember what it was; the last images faded when she opened her eyes, as always, but this time there remained the image of eyes - feral almost, and penetrating. Her breath caught in her throat, and Die fought to calm herself before her panic woke the girl in the other room. Her limbs were still shaking as she sat up, but she was no longer in danger of whimpering or crying out. The bedsheets were soaked with her sweat, as was her pillow, but she needed time to fully regain her mind from the terror before she did anything about them. She didn't slip on her robe or house shoes, preferring to move as soundlessly as possible; after all, her issues were not Dice's problem. The young girl slipped quietly from her room, her bare feet making barely a whisper on the floor as she made her way to the living room, and her usual early morning.

A glass of cold milk, and she was out on the small balcony. Her shorts stopped midway down her thigh, and the thin spaghetti strap of her tank top left her shoulders mostly bared to the night air. She shivered, but it wasn't from the cold; the outside temperature was just a convenient excuse for the way her body was acting. She set the now empty glass down just inside the door way, curled herself up into her normal ball - knees up to her chest, her back to the wall, her chin resting on her knees, and her arms hugging her legs - and watched the night become morning. The silent time when the dark clutched at life with its last quivering breaths and day slowly opened its eyes again. A child's face and ancient eyes watched the sun struggle against the stars, whispering encouragement to the night to win this time, just this once.

Dice slept through the night, not even bothered when Die got up, she didn’t even hear her. Normally one would have dreams through the night, but Dice was not visited by any. Just darkness and peaceful silence, she was curled into a fetal position, her arms extended in front of her. A small smile graced her lips the soft covers keeping her warm.

She did not know of Die's restlessness or anything else. But if she had been up then she would have been sitting next to her trying to offer comfort through silence.

Fuzzy ears flattened into the mess of hair as the dawn broke. She had watched the sun triumph over the night yet again, but the sight never filled her with joy or awe, only fear and sorrow. She uncurled herself reluctantly, not wanting to face another day. Die grabbed her glass and stood; the sun would only continue to ignore her pleas, and the young girl wanted nothing to do with its victory.

Inside, she washed the glass and put it back in the cupboard. She made her way to the bathroom, smiling slightly to herself; her new room mate hadn't woken up. She brushed her hair and tossed on a little pink bow between her right ears. The girl slipped back into her room and changed into her school uniform. She was adorable in it, and she knew it too. The dark olive green complimented her skin, and the white and gold emphasized her eyes. While appearing twelve might have been considered a disadvantage, Die knew by now how to make it work to her advantage. She picked up her messanger bag and swung it into place across her chest as she slipped on her black converse. Time for another day of school, unfortunately. The young girl slipped out the door soundlessly, locking and closing it behind her before bounding down the stairs.

[Die has left her apartment and gone to the Amusement Park: Easily Distracted]

Dice awoke, slowly. She rolled over and uncurled. A small smile gracing her lips as she sat up. Dice ambled into the front room, rubbing her eyes, she stopped mid-step. Ears tuned to hear any noise, when none was forthcoming she wandered around and through the house searching for Die. A slight downturn of the lips was the only indication of her unhappiness. She shrugged lightly and moved about the house, tidying up before picking up a book and sitting to read. She would not move from that spot for several hours.