𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝒯𝓌𝑜 / 2 / 𝒜 𝒩𝑒𝓌 𝐸𝓃𝓋𝒾𝓇𝑜𝓃𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉
The summer passed by rather quickly, and Taz was fully comfortable and relaxed with Cadence, Trinity and Micah. He was content and happy. Today was the first day of school, Cadence had said. Taz was still wary around large crowds and groups, but Cadence assured Taz everything would be fine. Taz had surprised everyone, including himself at how quickly he picked things up that Cadence taught him.
They'd signed Taz up to attend twelfth grade, despite having no academic history, and let the school administration board know of Taz's situation, and they promised that they would keep an eye out for Taz.
"Taz! You almost ready?" Taz heard Cadence call from downstairs. They'd just finished breakfast, and Taz was shoving the few notebooks he had left in his bag, grabbed it and flew downstairs, nearly taking Cadence out as he came up to look for Taz. "Woahh, easy there tiger." Cadence chuckled. "I know you're excited, but let's not have any causalities today, okay?" Taz nodded enthusiastically, and Cadence just laughed.
"Have a good day, boys!" Trinity called from the kitchen. Micah had already left for work, and so it was just Trinity at home. She would go off to her job in a couple hours. Taz climbed into the front seat of Cadence's car, and then they were off to school. Cadence had warned Taz that there were multiple other shifters, and there were some people that were probably best to avoid, given their "history" at the school. Taz didn't really understand, but he trusted Cadence.
The ride to school was Cadence talking, explaining to Taz how everything worked, and Taz listened intently, memorizing everything that Cadence told him. When they parked, Taz got out of the car, backpack hugged to his chest, and glanced at Cadence. He could feel all the other presences of supernatural beings around him, and he felt that strange stirring inside of him that he hadn't felt in years.
Imp had woken up.
Trying his best to ignore it, Taz followed Cadence into the building, tilting his head at the people who greeted Cadence, waving. Three boys approached rapidly, two of them screeching and throwing themselves at Cadence. The third boy looked at Taz curiously. He had mussed up black hair and blue eyes, and he looked quite tired. Taz lifted a hand in greeting, and he was surprised when the boy immediately signed to him.
Hey there. What's your name?
Taz. What is your name?
I'm Arielle. The boy with the amber eyes and brown hair is my brother, Estra. The taller and more muscular one is Jamie.
Before Taz could respond, the taller one - Jamie - turned his attention to Taz. Before Jamie could open his mouth, Cadence slid an arm around Taz's shoulder, ruffling his hair and Taz beamed. He loved it when people ruffled his hair. It filled him up with warm fuzzy feelings and made him incredibly happy.
"This is Taz, my adopted brother."
"Oh! Your parents were talking about adopting an older one." Estra said, tilting his head at Taz and regarding him with an almost calculating look. Taz blinked, and Arielle suddenly slapped him upside the head. "Ow! Ari!" Arielle scowled.
"Don't stare at him like that." Arielle said, voice quiet. "He's a phoenix shifter. So his eyes are typically sharper than others." Arielle explained, turning to Taz, who nodded.
Are you all friends? Taz signed. He caught the surprised look Estra and Jamie shot him, and Arielle nodded.
"Where's your boyfriend?" Cadence suddenly asked, looking at Jamie, who flushed a little bit.
"Late. As usual." Jamie pouted. As if on cue, an almost intimidating presence was felt and Taz let out a little yelp, hiding behind Cadence again as a tall male approached, exuding an almost terrifying aura. Jamie didn't seem deterred, and his face lit up. "Xerum!" Jamie practically took a flying leap at the tall male, who laughed and caught him, pressing his lips to Jamie's before setting him down. Xerum's eyes fell to Taz, who stared up at him with wide eyes.
"Oh, hello there. Sorry if I'm scaring you. I can't really help it." Xerum rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Xerum's a hellhound!" Jamie chirped, bouncing at Xerum's side. Xerum's eyes lit up with interest when he saw Taz's tail, and crouched down to appear smaller. Taz inched his way out from behind Cadence, letting Xerum see his tail in better lighting. Xerum was clearly entranced by his tail, and Taz didn't really understand.
"I've seen that tail shape somewhere down in Hades." Xerum mumbled, and Taz tilted his head, signing in response.
But I do not know who my family is. I was in an orphanage for almost eighteen years in the human world. Xerum frowned, and straightened, sighing softly.
"Well, I'm not completely sure anyways." He chuckled. "Welcome to our little group. We hope you'll feel welcome."
Cadence told me about you guys. He said that you are all very nice. Taz signed, and he was still surprised that the most of the understood. Arielle was the one who translated. Cadence was getting a lot better at reading and responding in sign language, but Taz still wrote most of the times to communicate.
They were just about to head into the school when they heard a loud shriek of joy. They turned, and Taz recognized the same little girl he'd seen the first day that he was with Cadence's family. He was even more surprised to see.. Mikael, Pyro and Shiro. There were others with them that Taz didn't know.
"Mikael! That's the boy I talked about before in the summer! Hello Mister! Do you remember me?!" The girl was practically bouncing on her feet, and ran up to Taz, a toothy grin on her face. She was missing a couple, and Taz remembered Cadence telling him it was natural in younger kids. Taz nodded and waved, and the girl grinned even wider, if possible. Mikael and the others hurried up to them, looking a little sheepish.
"I'm really sorry about that," Mikael said in a rush, rubbing the back of his neck and Pyro gently took the younger girl's hand.
"Oh, that's no worries." Cadence laughed.
"This is one of the juveniles in our pack." Pyro explained. Cadence waved at his friends, urging them to go on ahead, and turned back. "This is Nanook. She was very excited to see you that day." Pyro smiled wryly, and Nanook had made her tail and ears visible.
Hello, Taz signed. When Nanook tilted her head, Cadence translated.
"He said hello. He doesn't talk out loud." Cadence explained gently.
"How come?" Nanook asked, looking a little sad.
"He doesn't feel comfortable," Cadence replied, and Nanook suddenly lit up.
"I want to help make him feel better! So he can talk to everyone!" Cadence smiled, and Taz felt a bubbly warmth in his chest. Nanook pouted as Pyro tugged her hand, reminding her that the little girl had to start school soon. "Okay." Nanook turned to Taz, and to his surprise, she hugged him quickly before running off across the field to the elementary school, tail flailing wildly behind her.
"She's... quite energetic." Cadence mused, and Mikael and Shiro groaned.
"Tell me about it." Mikael grumbled.
"It's absolute hell trying to get her to go to sleep. She has too much energy for a six year old." Shiro added. The others that they had been with in the beginning had disappeared, and Taz guessed that they went inside already.
"Well, Taz, we should get going. Get you to the office and get your schedule and things." Cadence said. Taz nodded, and waved farewell to the three wolves, catching a glimpse of Mikael looking rather disappointed, and followed Cadence inside. There were so many people here. Taz was amazed, and a little intimidated at the same time.
They arrived at the office, and soon Taz had everything he needed. They had lockers next to each other, and Cadence helped Taz figure out how the locks worked, and told him what he would need for their classes. The only different thing about their schedules was that Taz had an empty block at the end of the day, and Cadence had something called coding. They headed to their first class, math, and met up with Shiro and another male. He was even taller than Xerum, but he didn't seem so intimidating.
"Oh, hey Shiro." Cadence greeted. "Koda," the male dipped his head, glancing at Taz curiously. Taz waved, tail flicking, and peered into the classroom. Cadence gently ushered him inside, and they sat down at a table near the back. Shiro and Koda sat at the table behind them. "They're siblings," Cadence explained as Taz looked behind him curiously. "They're part of the massive wolf pack that the school's likely to talk about here and there. Mikael, Pyro, and the little girl, Nanook are also part of the pack." Taz nodded, a little confused on how a wolf pack worked. Was it like a huge family?
He shrugged the thoughts off as an older woman walked in the door, and Cadence told Taz that it was the teacher in a low murmur.
"I heard that we have a new student this year, and so I expect you all to treat them with the same amount of respect and kindness as you do with your friends and peers." The teacher said. There was a collective murmur in the class. "Would you like to introduce yourself?" Taz glanced at Cadence, who shrugged. Taz slowly stood, and Cadence with him. Taz waved, tail flicking, and Cadence spoke up.
"This is Taz, my adopted brother. He's an extremely selective mute, so the way he communicates is through signing or writing. He's pretty shy, so please don't approach him too quickly or in large numbers." He glanced at Taz, who signed a few things, and Cadence nodded. "I know that what I'm saying right now makes it sound like I'm referring to Taz as a wild and wounded animal, but he's quite nervous and skittish around people he doesn't know. So... yeah. He just wanted to have me tell you that." Cadence shrugged, and Taz waved again. The teacher smiled.
"Welcome to the classroom, Taz. Please, if you need anything or have questions, don't be afraid to ask, or have Cadence grab my attention. I'm Mrs. Raegen." She smiled, and Taz nodded.
Each class was about the same, and Cadence helped Taz start off with each assignment. Thanks to Cadence' tutoring over the summer, Taz was able to get through the math, english, and the arts class easily. Neither Taz nor Cadence knew where it came from, but it turned out that Taz was fluent in German, a required class at Cadence's school for a second language.
The teacher was pleasantly surprised when Taz turned in his assignment, a written page about what they did for their summer. Geography was the class Taz struggled the most in. He didn't understand maps, or the graphs that were being shown, and Taz was grateful that the teacher let him skip the assignment that day, and sat down next to him, teaching him the basics.
Lunch was a little overwhelming, with the amount of people in that one room, and so he, Cadence, Arielle, Estra, Jamie and Xerum all sat outside where it was quiet. They all chatted about what they did over the summer, and Taz was happy that he and Arielle could communicate easily through signing. Taz noticed Shiro and Pyro a few meters away beneath another tree, joined by other people he guessed were their pack mates.
Taz's last period was a little awkward. He didn't know what to do, since everyone else he knew had a class. So, he told Cadence that he would be in the spot they'd eaten lunch, and headed that way. Taz was just sketching in his notebook when he sensed another presence, and looked up, surprised to see Mikael standing there, along with another boy. Mikael offered a wave, and Taz waved back.
"Can we join you?" He asked. Taz nodded, gathering his things to make more room. "This is one of my packmates, Aspen." He gestured to the other boy, who mumbled a soft hello. Taz waved in greeting, and started slightly as Mikael peered over his shoulder at his notebook. "Oh wow, did you draw that?" Taz nodded proudly. "That's really good." Taz's tail flicked, pleased with the praise, and put the notebook and pencil into Mikael's lap, looking at him expectantly.
"Mikael can't draw for shit." Aspen suddenly laughed, and Mikael scowled at him, cheeks flushing. Taz shook his head, this time taking Mikael's hand and shoving his pencil in it, before pointing to the paper, tail flicking behind him. He wanted to see Mikael draw too. Mikael made a move to protest, but Taz huffed, crossing his arms over his chest, and Mikael sighed, giving in.
"Whipped." Taz heard Aspen say. He blinked, not completely sure what that meant, but it must've been embarrassing, because Mikael hissed Aspen's name.
"I thought Cadence said you were shy." Mikael grumbled beneath his breath. Taz shrugged. Mikael's drawing was a little messy, but Taz could still understand what it was. When Mikael handed the sketchbook back, and Taz wrote 'Mikael' in neat, small print beneath the wolf sketch. "Oh wait no, don't do that-" Mikael reached for the notebook, but Taz scrambled to clutch it to his chest, shaking his head. He wanted to keep it.
"Just let him keep it, Mikael." Aspen snorted. Mikael's cheeks were flushed, and he sighed, flopping down on his back on the ground.
"Fiiine." He glanced up at Taz. "You can keep it." Taz beamed.
Cadence found Taz, Mikael and Aspen after school, with Arielle and Estra close behind. He smiled wryly at the animated gestures that Taz was giving, how Aspen and Mikael were watching intently, as if trying to figure out what he was saying. Estra bumped Cadence's hip with his, and murmured quietly.
"I think Mikael has a crush on Taz." Cadence blinked, tilting his head as he watched the big wolf shifter and his brother. Any time that Taz smiled, or his tail flicked against the other's shoulder, a slight pink would take over Mikael's cheeks.
"I'm sure Taz has no idea." Arielle laughed softly. Taz suddenly looked up, and broke out into a big grin when he saw Cadence, leaping to his feet and practically tackling Cadence in a hug. Cadence stumbled back a few steps, laughing and hugging Taz back. Cadence was so happy when Taz began to fill out, after proper nutrition and food from his mom, and he looked healthy, no longer that skeletal figure they'd picked up at the orphanage.
"How was your last period?" Cadence asked once Taz had pulled back. Taz's hands flew in the air at lightning speed, and Cadence laughed, reaching forward to still them. "Too fast, tiger. You can tell us all about it when we get home." Taz nodded enthusiastically, and turned back to Aspen and Mikael. Cadence saw the tip of Taz's tail glow, and figured out what he was going to do moments before he did.
Thank you for hanging out with me. A small stream of blue hellfire raced from the tip of Taz's tail, writing a small message in the air before dissipating. Both Aspen and Mikael looked awed, and Taz simply wiggled his fingers in farewell, shoving his things in his bag and jumping onto Cadence's back. Cadence laughed, letting the smaller boy cling onto his back as he, Arielle and Estra bid the wolves farewell.
Arielle and Estra both got into the car with Cadence and Taz, to which Taz was pleasantly surprised. Arielle was happy to talk to Taz through signing while Estra and Cadence talked at the front. When Cadence dropped Estra and Arielle off, Taz waved farewell and climbed into the front.
"You had fun today?" Cadence asked, as he looked over his shoulder to pull out of the driveway. Taz nodded. Taz wished that he could talk, because he wanted to tell Cadence everything that he liked about the school. Well, he guessed that would have to wait for later. When they got back to the house and got through the door, Trinity was before them, hugging each of them tightly.
"How was it?" She asked.
"It was fine," Cadence replied. "Taz loved it." Taz nodded, bouncing eagerly on the balls of his feet. He wanted to write everything down before he forgot. Trinity chuckled, ruffling Taz's hair.
"Go ahead," she smiled wryly, knowing what Taz wanted to do. "I'll bring up some snacks for you in a few minutes." Taz signed a thanks, hugged her again and darted up the stairs, hearing Cadence and Trinity chuckling behind him. Writing things down helped Taz calm down, and he enjoyed having little journals chock full of his adventures and experiences. Everything was still new to him, and he was eager to keep learning about it. Cadence, Trinity and Micah loved reading Taz's notebooks.
Over the summer, he'd gone to Cadence's volunteer job at an ice cream store. He and Cadence managed the counter together, Taz scooping while Cadence talked to the customers. The first time that a customer handed him a rectangular piece of green paper as a tip, Taz was surprised, but signed a thanks. The customer had smiled, and ushered her two children outside. That's when Cadence explained - though briefly - how money worked.
Both he and Cadence got small slips of paper at the end of every week, something that Cadence called a check. The moment that Taz had a better understanding of money and purchasing items, he'd dragged Cadence to the stationary store and bought notebooks and pens, and that was how he'd started logging his days.
Taz was writing almost furiously on the notebook when Trinity walked in, and he glanced up, offering a wide smile and his tail flicked behind him happily.
"How was it?" She asked, coming over to place a plate of strawberries on the table, along with a glass of lemonade she placed down on a coaster. Taz offered her the notebook, and she sat down on the side of the bed to read. Taz nibbled on the strawberries and drank, humming softly beneath his breath. Trinity was smiling the entire time, and when she finished reading where Taz had stopped, she handed it back. "It sounds like you had a wonderful time. I hope to hear more at dinner." She winked, and ruffled Taz's hair before ducking out of the room.
The rest of the evening was pleasant and calm, Micah and Trinity reading Taz's journal as he and Cadence played Mario Kart together. Cadence's phone lit up with a notification, and soon there was another buzz somewhere from beneath the couch. Taz blinked, setting his controller down and crawling over to peer beneath it. So that's where his phone had gone.
Trinity and Micah had purchased Taz an older and used smart phone, as Taz never really showed interest for such devices. Taz had managed to misplace the phone three days after getting it, and had felt absolutely terrible about it. But, now he found it. He pulled it out, lifting it in the air triumphantly, and he heard Trinity laugh.
"Oh! You found it!" Taz nodded, beaming proudly. Taz crawled back over to Cadence, waking it to see that Cadence had just added him to a group, which was why his phone buzzed.
"I just added you in a group with Arielle, Estra, Jamie and Xerum." Cadence grinned. "They wanted to have your number just in case." Taz nodded, though he wasn't sure why people would need his number. He peered at his phone screen, and was surprised when another notification appeared at the top of his screen. It was from an unknown number, but the message let Taz know who it was.
Unknown Number: Hey! This is Aspen, from last period. I got your number from Cadence. I hope you don't mind.
Taz: Oh hello! That is alright, no worries.
Taz tapped Cadence's shoulder, and when he glanced over, Taz pointed to his phone. Wordlessly, Cadence smiled slightly, and showed Taz how to save people in his contacts. Trinity and Micah had finished reading Taz's journal, and came to sit down on the ground with Cadence and Taz.
"I loved reading about your day." Trinity smiled.
"Sounds like you had a great first day, though." Micah added. "The teachers were very patient with you." Taz nodded, happy that Trinity and Micah were happy. Trinity and Micah took over the console to play a few games while Cadence and Taz focused on their phones for a little while longer.
Aspen: Don't take this offensively, but it's a little weird, well, different, to see you responding in text. Since you don't talk, and all.
Aspen: Oh crap, that sounded rude. I'm sorry.
Taz: Don't worry about it! (/^▽^)/
Aspen: Oh my God you are adorable.
Taz: Why does everyone say that?? (〃＞＿＜;〃)
Aspen: Because it's true, lol
Taz: What does that mean?
Aspen: What does what mean? "lol?"
Taz: Yes
Aspen: It means "laugh out loud." But it's mostly used now really generally, so not anything specifically funny, if that makes sense.
Taz: I guess so ヽ('ー' )┌
Aspen: My not-related-by-blood brother wants to know if he can have your number.
Taz: Who?
Aspen: Mikael
Taz: Oh! Yes! That is okay! ٩(◕‿◕)۶
Aspen: It'll be a moment, then.
A new notification slid down from the top of his screen, and Taz pressed it, instantly having the screen open up to a new conversation, this one the group Cadence had added him to. It was fun, talking to everyone in the chat, and Taz found out that he could change people's nicknames for his contacts. When Taz heard Trinity screech at Micah for cheating on Mario Kart, Taz put his phone down and scampered over to where they were sitting, patting Trinity's shoulder.
She smiled wryly at Taz, before shooting a glare at her husband. Taz held out a hand, offering to play for Trinity, and she grinned, handing Taz the controller. Micah gaped as Taz managed to lap him twice in the game, taking the win for Trinity, who whooped and high-fived Taz. A few more rounds later, Cadence called Taz's name, and he looked up, cocking his head curiously.
"Mikael's texted you." Cadence said, a small smile on his face. Taz scrambled up to take his phone, and he heard Trinity speak up behind him.
"Mikael? As in from the River Bane Pack?"
"Yep." Cadence responded, popping the p. Taz tuned out the rest of their conversation, saving Mikael's name in his contacts, and responding almost immediately.
Mikael: This is Taz's phone, right? It's Mikael.
Taz: Hello! (°▽°)/
Mikael: Oh God, Aspen wasn't kidding about the emoticons.
Taz: Emoticons?
Mikael: The cute little faces.
Taz: Oh, these? ( ' ∀ ' )ﾉ
Mikael: Yes. They're cute :)
Taz: Thank you!
Taz was unbelievably happy to have people, friends to talk to. He loved talking to Cadence, but sometimes Taz felt that he annoyed Cadence sometimes.
"My friends love you." Cadence chuckled, shifting to look over at Taz. Taz beamed, shifting closer and curling up to Cadence's side, glancing at his screen. Cadence snorted, resting his cheek on the top of Taz's head. He, Trinity and Micah knew that Taz was rather touch-starved, and loved to cuddle with those he felt comfortable with.
I like them too. Taz signed. The group chat that Cadence had open was moving so quickly, and Cadence rolled his eyes. "There's only four of them talking too." He grumbled, thumbing the screen to scroll upwards. "You having fun talking to others?" He asked. Taz nodded, but held up his phone to show that it was dead.
Cadence snorted, and when Taz yawned, Cadence pressed a kiss to Taz's temple. "Go ahead and get ready to sleep." Cadence said. "I'll charge your phone and everything." Taz nodded sleepily, and climbed off the couch, accepting the hugs and goodnight kisses from Micah and Trinity before padding up the stairs.
Taz got ready for bed pretty quickly, and passed out immediately as soon as his body hit the mattress, a small smile on his face.