Tall Tails

Chapter I: The Fox Without A Tail

Miyuki straightened her blouse and knocked on the apartment door in front of her, not sure who or what she would find. She had just moved halfway across the world from Kyoto and had made up her mind that this time she would try her best to be more outgoing and meet people instead of just holing up in her apartment between classes. She turned the camera around on her phone checking to make sure her golden fur and fluffy fox tail were in an acceptable state.

The sound of a lock being undone jarred her from her thoughts and she quickly hid her phone and hands behind her back as the door swung open revealing a rather tired looking human with short white hair and grey eyes who looked to be in his mid 20's. "Yeah? Did you need something?" The request caught Miyuki off guard, she wasn't used to being social and the sudden derailment of her train of thought prior left her trying to scramble to regroup. "I...er...yes, hello. My name is Miyuki, I just moved here from Kyoto, and I'm-" The man's eyebrows raise and he interrupted her with 本当です京都からいきましたか。日本語を話しますか (really, you came from Kyoto? Do you speak Japanese?). Miyuki's train of thought was halted for a second time as she stared at the man in disbelief. The last thing she had expected when introducing herself to her neighbors was to find someone else who spoke her native tongue. She quickly snapped herself out of her daydream and responded はい、日本語を話します。(yes, I do).

The man seemed to relax and leaned against the door frame crossing his arms. "二年前に私も京都から来ました。他の日本人に会えて素晴らしいです。どこで京都に住んでいましたか。(I also came from Kyoto two years ago. It's always nice to meet another Japanese person, where in Kyoto did you live?)" At this point Miyuki was feeling very flustered. This whole conversation was already playing out much differently than she rehearsed, she hadn't expected to find someone fluent in Japanese and that paired up with the man's relaxed nature left her barely able to organize her thoughts. Realizing she'd been asked a question she almost automatically replied "上京区... (Kamikyouku)". The man's face seems to light up at the mention of Kamikyouku. "上京区はきれいですね。私は京都の外の山村ですんでいました。" (Kamikyouku is really pretty isn't it? I lived in a small village in the mountains outside Kyoto). The man seemed to relax and smile a bit more "小さいでも平和です。(it was small, but peaceful)"

Miyuki decided to try and wrestle control of the conversation back to herself and shifted back into English. "If you're also from Kyoto...what on earth brought you here? Do you miss Kyoto at all?" The man smiled and sighed giving a small shrug. "That...is a long story." Miyuki's curiosity was piqued, and she wondered if the man was a student like her. "I'd be interested in hearing it if you don't mind and have the time..." The man stopped for a moment and glanced back over his shoulder for a moment before seeming to think of an answer. "You know what...sure, I'm technically at work but I'm currently waiting for a build to finish and there's not much I can do until then. Do you want to come in for coffee or tea?"

"Tea would be lovely" Miyuki replied feeling very pleased with herself, she felt like she had accomplished her goal of being more social and hadn't expected to even have this long of a conversation let alone be invited in for a chat. The man left the door open for her and headed into the kitchen putting a kettle on the stove and pulling out a teapot and two tea cups. "You said your name was Miyuki?" He asked, glancing over his shoulder at her. Miyuki nodded in response and the man gave her a small half smile back. "Nice to formally meet you, my name is Grey by the way, I don't think I introduced myself before. Miyuki nodded in response and smiled. "Nice to formally meet you Grey, how is it you came to Los Angeles?" Grey carefully measured out the tea and placed it in the teapots strainer before coming to sit at the table with Miyuki while he waited for the kettle on the stove to boil.

"To understand how I got here I'll need to tell you a bit about where I grew up, and also about the area I grew up in," Miyuki tilted her head. "Oh?" Grey thought for a moment. "Well, I could just say I moved for work, but if I do that then your next question would be..." Grey gestured towards Miyuki who answered almost as if scripted "What do you do for work?" Grey chuckled "Exactly. The problem is,without understanding my background there's not really an easy way to explain it." Miyuki nodded, understanding what Grey meant and waited eagerly for him to continue.