Guardian Demon
A/N: I was insomniac at the time I wrote this. My mind was not exactly working on high gear, so this is just a little something that started from nowhere, and ended with me falling asleep…finally. Basically I don't know where the story is headed. If you get any idea where it's going, please tell me. Otherwise I'll remain as clueless as ever.
The bar was a slimy den of smoke and vomit, and I am glad to be going far from it at last. As usual, I am tailing Lady Poison. Watching her carefully, observing. She is leaving with Doctor Jackal, her back on the neon lights of the club.
They had entered the bar at different times, Lady Poison having come in much earlier. It seems that hakobiya of their caliber spend just as much time out of jobs as the Get Backers do, but they are not destitute. Doctor Jackal does his job for the thrill of the kill. Bloodlust pure and simple, the path that presents itself for the strong and extremely bored. Kudou Himiko became a transporter perhaps as a sort of revenge against Midou Ban, the Jyagan wielder. Also the man who killed her brother.
Ah, revenge. I am doing this for revenge, too. I want to make her pay for what she did to me. Although I admit that I do find her…intriguing. But, yes, the dreaded question: Am I really doing this for revenge? But I don't need to find an answer that quickly, do I?
I lose sight of them only once, when they turn around the corner of a building. I leave my perch on the roof and follow them as they stride down the street. This road is quite familiar to me, so I do not have any trouble with stealth. And I am an illusionist after all.
As I have anticipated, they round another corner to an alley that ultimately leads to a dead end. They head for an apartment building, which, while it was not upscale, was not exactly slummy either.
It was where Lady Poison's apartment was.
It's strange, that a woman would take up residence in a rough neighborhood such as this. I can tell first-hand that she is a good fighter. She can very well deal with any trouble caused by unwanted drunks who think her easy prey for her femininity, maybe even with her hands tied on her back. But still, the idea seems strange, like her beauty did not belong here. I bypass these thoughts and concentrate on observing them. I can't afford to be distracted now.
Several beer-belly louts glare at them as they passed by, but Akabane no more than smiled and those who recognized him…nervously went back to what they had been doing before. A man, who either had too much to drink, or who was just that unintelligent, fondled with Lady Poison's backside when she walked past. He suddenly found that very hard to do with both his arms missing, courtesy of Doctor Jackal.
Lady Poison seemed highly offended by the gesture, for she suddenly hissed at him, though I was too far to catch her words. The black-clad man literally shrugged her irk aside. They were not on a job, so she had dispensed with acting out her part as a professional. Instead she played the part of an irritable child. But he did not seem to mind her either way.
They linger in front of her apartment door for a moment longer while she dug in her pockets for her keys. Akabane dutifully stood guard, maybe without Kudou Himiko's prompting. She opened the door and disappeared quietly through, closing it immediately after exchanging a few curt pleasantries with the other transporter. Doctor Jackal stood there for a while, not moving, even after she had gone.
Suddenly, he looked up and stared straight at me.
Time slowed down for an infinite moment when we just looked at each other. He must have seen the surprise in my eyes, for he allowed his grin to slide several notches wider. I felt the urge to cut that smile off his face with one of my mirrors, but I am not entirely sure it would come down to a fight. He waggled his gloved fingers at me. I give him a cold glare in return, which only seemed to further amuse him.
His eyes told me what he wanted me to know, that he would kill me if I so much as touched Lady Poison then. We glared at each other maybe for a whole minute before breaking eye contact at the same time. Then he was already moving, walking in graceful strides away from where I stood on top of a light post. I finger my earring, displeased by my own indecision.
But there was nothing else to do but leave. It's kind of hard to hurt somebody with a guardian demon watching over her shoulders.
-
Yaah! Told you it stinks. But hey, it's better than nothing. Anyway, could you blame me? I already drank several quarts of milk and still couldn't sleep. Is it possible to have a hangover from drinking too much milk? And it's not like I'll even gain a little weight from it; I was born genetically thin (sigh).
And for those who did not get it, Kagami is the one doing the talking. But it's pretty obvious, right? At least I hope so.
Well, minna, just leave a little feedback if you feel like it.