Disclaimer: K-on! Is! Not! Mine!
"Fucking rain."
Amber eyes glowered at the sky.
The torrent flooded the streets, but the girl didn't care. She was too numb to feel anything, too tired to think. She just kept running, going nowhere. A crumpled piece of paper lay in her hand, the only part of her that has managed to stay dry.
The captive closed her eyes and sighed in an effort to clear her mind.
All she could think of was that the hangar smelled of damp oil rags and jet fuel.
"It's raining..." she announced to no one in particular.
"It might stop raining if you shut up." replied one of the more amiable henchmen.
The raven haired girl stared at the man blankly.
For kidnappers, they were remarkably unprepared. The weather forecast declared a moonsoon warning almost a week in advance, a fact that her kidnappers were clearly ignorant of. No ordinary aircraft could fly in this storm; flying in this weather is fairly risky, even for specialized aircraft. Delays were inevitable. Unsurprisingly, they were stuck for hours. Bored, she studied her captors.
Both of them were dressed in well-tailored suits, the kind commonly seen on rich businessmen and their cronies. The bigger one gave off the impression that he beats the crap out of people for a living. He had a habit of cracking his knuckes repeatedly, irritating people with the sound of popping synovial fluids. His comrade was rather frail in comparison. With the two of them side by side, it was like comparing an ape to a viper. By appearances, he seemed rather young, perhaps around a year or two her senior. Yet for some reason, the bruiser respected, or at least kept his distance from the boy. Apparently, he was the one in charge.
The fumes were starting to make them irritable. An argument started, although it was rather one sided, as the boy didn't really care.
"It was supposed to arrive hours ago!"
"I've been informed that there has been a slight delay in schedule."
"Six hours is more than just a slight delay."
"I've been informed that there has been a slight delay in schedule."
"I know that."
"I've been informed that there has been a slight delay in schedule."
"Shut up."
"I've been informed that there has been a slight delay in schedule."
The girl rolled her eyes. Their incessant bickering was chafing at her patience, and so were the rusty cuffs around her wrists. She closed her eyes and tried to block out the noise. Now was her chance.
"Focus."
The men were too busy arguing to notice that the her cuffs were now unlocked. Despite the situation, her accomplishment made her feel a tad bit elated.
"Last week, I couldn't even untie a knot!..."
"Oi! Why are you smiling?" Her captors finally stopped arguing long enough to remember her existence.
"N-no reason..." Unfortunately, the bruiser decided to vent his frustrations out on her.
"Is that so?" the man drew closer. His fist closed around a crowbar.
"Oh crap." By the time he finishes with her face, nobody will be able to recognize her. Even dental records would fail, as this man seemed prepared to quite literally beat the shit out of her.
"Each bruise on her is fifty grand less for us," said the boy matter-of-factly.
With a sigh, the man threw the crowbar near her feet. The sheer force of impact crated a fairly large hole on the floor.
"I can't stand this shit, is all." He skulked away like a caged beast denied its prey.
"Shit! The floor caved in!" Her face blanched. Clearly this man was not normal.
"Is he-?" Grey eyes widened in alarm.
The boy nodded, completing her thoughts.
"Oh, you'll know soon enough..." Dark, hollow eyes stared at her. "You're one of them too." He laughed again.
A frantic anger shot through her.
"I'd rather die."
"Are you sure about that?"
A bemused grin twisted his otherwise impassive features. His eyes flicked towards his subordinate. An unspoken signal.
The thug reached into his coat pocket.
The raven-haired girl closed her eyes.
This is it. She would die in an abandoned warehouse, alone, with a bullet through her head. Her parents had no idea of her whereabouts and her body would never be found. Her friends...
That friend...
Her eyes stung, and tears threatened to spill from them.
However, she refused to give these bastards the satisfaction of breaking her. She was not some frightened little girl. Rather, she was a mature woman capable of facing her death with dignity. Or at least, she tried to look like one.
She waited for the sudden roar of noise that would signify the end of her existence.
She waited.
The roar never came. In its place, she heard raspy guffaws.
Slowly, she opened her eyes.
"Did you really think I was going to shoot you? Give yourself some credit... You're worth more alive, than dead."
The girl ignored him and glared at his hand. It was clenched around something, but clearly, there was no gun to be found. She glanced at him in confusion.
With a grin, he walked over to the girl and dropped the object onto her lap.
A broken yellow headband.
They might as well have shot her.
"It's here! Prepare the subject for transport." A strange whirring noise pierced the silence.
The men removed her restraints and put a bag over her head. A syringe bit into her arm, making it feel heavy and useless.
Useless. That was what she was.
A useless little girl who put her friends in danger, and failed to protect them.
"Don't fight it. It will help you adjust to the jet lag."
She didn't fight the numbness. Rather, she embraced it.
It was the only thing on her side now.
"Subject Akiyama Mio, succesfully restrained. Arrival time?"
"Fifteen hours."