Space Cadet's Notes: I don't know about you, but when I come to a stopping point in my book, I make predictions as to what will happen. They're never right, but at least it's fun to imagine. Anyway, when I finished Black Cat Volume 10, the book left the readers at a cliffhanger: What will happen when Sven, Eve, Train, and the others meet Tearju? Naturally, I envisioned the scene where they meet for the first time. So I decided to put it down on paper and upload it here as a Fanfiction.
It's told from Tearju's point of view. Eve and Sven are at her house, and the other characters are…somewhere…I don't really care because this is just a random thought I had. I'm not going to pour too much effort into a lowly Fanfiction. One Shot.
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The Meeting
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"Dr. Tearju? Are you there?"
The voice rang though my hallways like an unfamiliar siren. It was a man's voice, but not one that I recognized.
"Is anyone home? Your door was open."
There it was again. The mere sound of it turned my blood to ice. After all, any voice—man, woman, or even child—sent me into the all-too-familiar spiral of fear. It meant that another human had found me, despite my endless efforts to stay hidden. Usually my anxiety was needless. But now, this strange man was in my house.
"Hello?"
I felt my breath shorten.
"Can you hear me?"
There was only one thing to do. I had to defend myself. With the quiet footsteps of the intruder as motivation, I slipped silently into my kitchen and pulled a large steak knife from the silverware drawer.
Again, "Please answer if you're here!"
He was right next to the kitchen now. If I let him see me first, there was no doubt that my past would repeat itself. Horrifying memories of being forced to use my gifts for destruction—and having no choice but to make the worst mistake in my life—made my fingers grip the handle even tighter.
I couldn't let that happen. Not again. I hid behind the doorway, listening to the clicking of his shoes against the floor. As expected, he turned the corner into the kitchen, his arm not six inches away from me.
"Dr. Tear—WAH!"
I slammed him against the opposite wall, my knife held dangerously close to his neck. "If you try to reach for a gun, you're a dead man!" I shouted.
"I-it's o-k-k-kay," he stammered, his face as white as his hat with shock.
I already had him pinned, so I took a step back (without lowering my weapon, of course). "Show me your hands," I ordered.
Slowly, he raised his hands. "I-I'm not here to h-hurt you."
"Then why are you here?!" I demanded. "To get information, right? Or to use me to create another weapon?!"
To my surprise, the surprise and fear on his countenance was suddenly replaced with stifled anger. "Is that what you think?" he snapped. "A weapon, huh? That's what you'd call your own—"
"Shut up!" I cried, grazing his neck with my knife. He tensed as a small scratch appeared. "You know nothing about me! Nothing!"
He probably hadn't realized how deep he'd cut with his words. Although he was likely talking about a different wrong I'd made, my mind had abruptly turned to Eve. My dearest creation, my daughter, who was thought to be nothing but a weapon.
He deserved the fear that had returned to his face.
"Hey, calm down," he said nervously, taken aback by the fury that was undoubtedly radiating from me.
"If you don't leave—" I began.
"SVEN!"
No sooner had the shriek reached my ears than I felt a jarring thrust against my side. The knife flew from my hands and clattered to the floor, several feet away, as I slammed into the wall.
Oh god, no! I thought frantically. They caught me! It's all over!
I pulled my hair away from my eyes and looked up to see my captor. As my vision cleared, I saw a sword hovering right over my forehead. In a futile attempt to escape, I backed away slightly, only to hit the wall once again.
"Hey, calm down!" the man said hastily. I heard him hurriedly walk to his accomplice. "It's okay! She didn't hurt me."
The other one was silent.
"Really, I'm fine! Don't hurt her for nothing!" He gently pushed the sword away from my head, to little avail. Nevertheless, the holder's face came into full view.
If his voice had turned my blood to ice before, this sight transformed it into solid nitrogen. The swordsman was a solemn-faced little girl. Her long blonde hair was swept into two ponytails that rested on her small, sweatshirt-clad shoulders, and her rose eyes burned with anger. She was very different: taller, kinder-looking, and with casual clothing, but there was no mistaking her.
"I'm serious!" the man sighed. "Get rid of the sword. I'm sure she's really a nice lady."
"Is that why she was holding you at knifepoint, Sven?!" Eve growled, speaking at last.
"Well, she was just scared," Sven said. "You're reacting the same way."
Eve's eyes flickered at these last words. Reluctantly, she lifted her arm, and the sword shimmered and vanished. "If you're going to hurt Sven, you have to go through me first!" she warned, glaring at me.
Sven seemed to have given up on calming her down, so he turned to me as well. "I'm sorry. Anyone can get nervous, and Eve just has her own way of dealing with it… Hey, are you okay?"
No doubt my face was even paler than his had been. Finally, I found my voice. "E-Eve?" I whispered, hazarding a small scoot forward.
Eve took a step back in response. Without her weapon, she seemed so helpless, and I saw now that she was just afraid. Instinctively I reached forward, triggering another backwards step. Her hands clasped around Sven's arm like a frightened little girl clinging to her father.
He put his arm around her tiny shoulders. "Hey, it's okay," he assured her. "She's not going to hurt us, are you, Dr. Tearju?"
I felt moisture build up behind my eyes. After all these years… "N-no, I'm not," I murmured, fighting back the tears.
Sven offered his hand. "Can we have a little chat, please?"
For the first time in too long, I trusted someone enough to take their hand.