A man was sitting on a chair in his office, watching through the Windows the beautiful sight of London. The night had just fallen and the stars were beginning to shine on the sky. He was worried of the future of her granddaughter, there had to be a place she could hide so the members of the Yakuza clan wouldn't find her.
The man went on searching through his mind for places that the mafia wouldn't think of. He turned around and looked at the picture on his desk where he was standing beside one of his oldest friends, a Chinese man he met on the United States when he went on vacations with his family. That was many years ago.
That's when it hit him. The answer had been right in front of him all this time.
"Hey guys! I'm back"
"Chris! Yay! Now we can play!" Pon-chan said happily as she ran to hug the human boy.
"Detective, how many times do I have to tell you this isn't a day care center?" The Count was tired of repeating the same thing almost every day. It wasn't as if he didn't like Chris, on the contrary, he thought the kid was the only human he didn't despised, but at the same time, he didn't want to get too attached to a human and if his father knew about it, the poor child would suffer a lot.
"Yeah, whatever. Listen D, I have a very important meeting today, 'kay? And I'm already late. So, just take care of the child. See ya!" and with that, Leon turned around and left the shop.
"So, what are we playing today?"
"mmm…what do you say if we play hide and seek?" Pon-chan suggested
"Again? Pffttt we always play the same, we should do something else, like going out. The day is perfect for playing outside."
"T-chan! Stop being so grumpy!"
"Then you should choose a different game! You always choose hide and seek."
"I've got an idea. Why don't we play hide and seek and then you choose a different game T-chan?"
"That's a great idea, Chris! T-chan you go first, now turn around and star counting. And NO cheating."
"Fine! Whatever…1…2…3…4…"
"Come on Chris! Let's go!"
Pon-chan and Chris went to hide in different places. She ran into the farthest room in the shop, knowing that T-chan would find her immediately due to his great sense of smell.
Meanwhile Chris wandered through a corridor he'd never seen before. It was dark and at the end of it there was a fading candle lighting a door.
He opened it when he heard Pon-chan's voice getting closer to his position.
The room had two lanterns that brightened the place and showed piles of papers all around the room. A small desk was standing in the middle of the room and on top of it Chris could see a small photograph of two people. He got closer and saw the Count standing beside a beautiful woman. Both of them were smiling.
"Chris? T-chan I found him!"
"Kid, what are you doing? The Count will get mad if he knows you're here."
"I'm sorry. I promise I won't come back. Who's the woman in the picture? Is she the Count's girlfriend or something?"
"Er…no! hehe That's…umm the Count's grandfather and the girl is just one of his clients hehehe" Pon-chan answered nervously.
"Let's get out of here before the Count finds us."
"Oh! There you are! It's tea time, come before it gets cold"
The afternoon in the shop went pretty slow, the Count didn't have many clients that day. Just a girl looking for a cat and a guy who wanted a mate for his iguana.
Before they knew it the clock stroked the 9 o'clock.
"Chris it's bedtime already, you can shower in the morning. Come on, let's go"
"'Kay. I'll see you guys in the morning. Night."
Chris followed the Count to his usual room, he changed to his pajamas and D grabbed a chair and placed it besides the bed.
"So, what story would you like to hear today?."
"Count, today, we were playing hide and seek and accidentally I got into the contracts' room. I'm really sorry about that, but when I was there I noticed a picture of your grandfather and a very beautiful girl, Pon-chan told me it was one of his clients, but I think she was lying. And I was wondering if you could tell me more about her."
"Sure. My grandfather used to tell me the story of that picture when I was a kid."
"Really?" the boy's eyes were shining with curiosity.
"Why yes. It was many, many years ago. It happened when he was working in England."
"Please, tell me more."
"There had been a hurricane and many people had lost their homes. The rain hadn't stopped in three days, so my grandfather was having trouble with his deliveries. It was late at night when a sound outside woke him up.
When he opened the door, there was an unconscious woman laying at his feet.
My grandfather took her inside and placed her on the bed.
She had a very high fever, so my grandfather tried with many Chinese remedies to stop it. He spent the whole night with here hoping for it to stop and finally in the morning, the fever was gone and the girl woke up.
Her name was Marcy and she was a Goddess.
My grandfather offered her to stay in the shop so she could rest. Marcy stayed there for a few days and before she left one of my grandfather's clients took the picture you saw. When she was about to leave the shop, he told Marcy to stay until the Hurricane was completely gone. She refused the offer, and said she had to go back to Japan. My grandfather wished her luck and Marcy left the store…"
When the Count spoke the last words his eyes were facing the floor.
"What happened to her?"
"I asked my father the same question."
"And what did he say?"
"He said the last thing he heard of her was that she was engaged and got married with someone in Japan. Okay, Chris is late, try to sleep. Goodnight!"
And with that the Count left the room. After he closed the door he felt a pain, a pain he had been able to keep locked up in the deepest corner of his heart.
"Dad, I think it's time" A voice spoke through a telephone.
"My son, even though I did not allowed you to raise my grandson, this is the first time I agree with you." Another voice answered
"It is time for him to have a descendant"
"Yes, I know. Leave it to me"
"I thought he was going to do it when he met the goddess, she was a perfect mate. What happened? Why did she leave?"
"She fell in love with a mortal. She chose a human even though she knew about us. But, I've got good news"
"Surprise me, father."
"Hours ago, I received a phone call from one of my oldest clients. It happens that a member of the Yakuza clan is after his granddaughter, who happens to be Marcy's daughter, and just like us, they pass to their offsprings all of their genetic. My son, the Higarusukis are a very rich and powerful family."
"Why did he called you?"
"He wants to send his granddaughter to my petshop"
"So, basically he's doing us the task easier. I believe you accepted to help him, right?"
"Of course I did. If not now, when will another opportunity like this appear? He asked me to give my grandson a wedding ring. They must pretend they are a married couple."
"These are great news" If she looks just like the mother, then my son will not reject her"
"Yes, but he must not know until he meets her. I'm sure he won't be happy but I know it won't be a problem convincing him to accept this. He really doesn't have a choice, I already made the arrangements. The girl will arrive tomorrow at noon."
"You must keep me informed, father"
"Of course my son. But please, I ask you not to interfere, you know he will get mad if you do."
"I understand. Then I'll be waiting for your next call, father."
"Yes, until then my son."