One year ago:
He was falling asleep, his head back, feet propped on the desk. The blinds in his office were open, and he was being rude, but he had come too far, climbed too high, to let someone tell him to get his boots off the desk. Gamagoori Ira stretched lazily, bored and on the brink of restlessness. All he could do was wait, and he hated it. Frowning, he halfheartedly lifted a foot and let it pound back down onto the wood beneath.
Desk job… disgraceful.
He should be out there, looking for them. The Dragon. The Mayfly. Both still at large. His fingers clenched involuntarily, huge knuckles going white. He wasn't willing to rest on his laurels. The Seamstress wasn't enough. They needed to be behind bars, and he would be damned if he wasn't going to be the one to put them there.
As if summoned by his thoughts, the phone rang. Hastily, Gamagoori snatched up the receiver. The voice on the other line was terse, brief.
"She's here. You have less than an hour."
He didn't bother to put the phone back into its cradle.
xxx
Bored, Ryuko put her head back and sighed internally, but still she smiled brightly, jauntily baring her pointed eye-teeth. The bar was crowded but well-protected, several looming bouncers at the door and milling about. She liked to pretend that it was dark outside, that the stars were shining, but she knew that outside it was hot and bright and sticky. Out of old habit, her eyes twitched towards the bar, eyes roving for a face she knew she wouldn't see. Wincing, she put her head down.
Ryuko, you stupid fuck, she berated herself, Stop looking. It's been five years.
She couldn't help it. It was how it always used to go. They were a team, the Dragon, the Seamstress, and the Mayfly.
Now I'm the only one left. To alleviate the sudden aching swell of her heart, Ryuko forced her eyes to flicker over the crowd, looking for customers from her seat at an empty table. It was harder to attract them, these days, without Nui's provocative charm and Satsuki's smooth beauty. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Ryuko raked her fingers through her wild mop of hair, wishing she had bothered to wash it. As she rolled her dirty red streak between her fingers, her roving eyes lit upon a blind man standing (somewhat awkwardly) by himself. To her surprise, his guide dog was a bloodhound, and she suddenly yearned to scratch the black saddle of color on the excited creature's shoulders. The man startled suddenly, as if impossibly catching her gaze, and tromped out, looking incongruously over his shoulder.
Stupid dork probably just wanted to bring his dog in, Ryuko thought, grinning goofily to herself.
Her gaze snapped back to the foreground as a nervous face appeared before her.
"Hey," he whispered, licking his lips and continuously looking over his shoulder. "You selling?"
Noob, Ryuko thought, mentally rolling her eyes.
"Yeah," she drawled. "You buying?"
"Gimme a teenth of the red stuff."
"Fat chance, buster. Let's see that hand!" Growling a little, but still swinging his head back and forth, he sat down and offered her his hand. He looked away and rolled his jaw as she punctured the tip of his finger and squeezed a tiny drop of blood onto a plastic slide. Whistling a few notes, Ryuko slipped the glass into the little machine and drummed her fingers as she waited for it to beep.
"Sorry, bud. You might be able to fool your friends, but this lil' fucker doesn't lie."
"No! It must be a mistake. I'm a hybrid, I swear!"
Always the same.
"I can give you the blue stuff…"
"Fuck, no! Take my another reading! Damn machine must be broken!"
Ryuko just stared at him, bored.
"Nope. You want the blue?"
"Everyone knows that shit's just food color and coke! I want the real stuff!"
Slowly, Ryuko stood, cracking her knuckles.
"You heard about me…?" Paling a little, his scowl faded to be replaced by sallow, shivering fear. He shook his head repeatedly as he backed away. "I could give you the red, and let you kill yourself, but you know what? That's just bad business. Can't run around killing your customers, heh?" She leaned over the table, planting one white sneaker in the middle of it. "As it stands, though, you ain't my customer, so I could go either way on the killing business. So…" Lazily, she plucked a toothpick from a stand on the table and rolled it between her fingers, grinning wolfishly as she glanced sidelong through her bangs. "You want the blue?"
The transaction was pretty simple after that point.
Huffing, Ryuko sat back down, waving sarcastically at the hastily retreating back of her newest customer.
This was so much easier when Sats sold to the non-hybrids. I can't stand these losers. Sighing, she leaned an elbow on the table, resting her head on her hand. Eyes slipping shut, she tapped a steady rhythm on the table, letting it lull her aching nerves.
xxx
Seven years ago:
Wild! Ryuko thought, grinning with all her might as she stood atop the table stamping her feet and waving a shot of tequila over her head. No one cared that she was underage. Even if they did, no one dared to stop her. The room, a faceless mass of hot, excited bodies, howl with appreciation as she tossed the shot back. Laughing outright, she threw herself backward into a bar stool, letting the spinning of the chair bleed out her momentum.
"Dragon! Dragon!" The chant began quietly, but quickly tore into an insistent, swelling roar. Ryuko lifted her hands and leaned back against the bar, feeling the chant throb in time with her heart. She took one last spin, and as her back was to the crowd, swiftly dumped a packet of red powder into her mouth. Holding a finger up, she instantly hushed the throng, waggling her eyebrows at the sweaty, glowing faces before her. Pausing for a long moment, she grinned with her mouth closed, feeling the excitement bubble in her chest. Finally, Ryuko suddenly threw her head back and, with a coughing roar, blew out the powder she held in her mouth, creating a billowing cone of red dust that sparkled in the muggy air. The crowd screamed, delighted, and Ryuko turned back to the bar to order another drink as some poor desperados struggled to collect enough dust from the air to make a proper line.
Dipping her nose into her drink, Ryuko's eyes roved the bar for her sisters. She found them quickly, despite their unassuming positions. She rolled her eyes at Nui, who was in the middle of an entirely unnecessarily sexy drinking game. From the looks of it, it was a cross between beer pong and strip poker, and the blonde was either losing badly or winning by a landslide, depending on your point of view. Ryuko found Satsuki at the bar, sipping at a cranberry juice.
Leaning a little onto her elbow, Ryuko allowed herself to stare, drinking in the line of Satsuki's jaw, the glow of her skin in the orange light of the lamps, wishing she could bury her hands into that lush charcoal hair and kiss her silly right then and there. A sleepy, goofy smile crept over her face as her heart throbbed painfully against her breastbone. Unfortunately, Satsuki caught Ryuko's eye and promptly destroyed her with her eyebrows. What are you doing? she mouthed. Stop it. Unfazed, Ryuko made petulant kissy faces at her, but Satsuki had already turned away.
Whatever. I'll get her back later.
Ryuko turned back to the business at hand, jumping up onto her stool.
"You hybrids ready to know what it's like to be alive?"
She wished she hadn't asked - the screaming was ear-shattering. "All right, line up, line up!" Nui sauntered over, somehow fully clothed again. She handled the blood and the money, and Ryuko looked hastily away as her sister pricked several hands in quick succession with her sharp needles. Once cleared and skinned of their cash, each patron received a tiny envelope from Ryuko, who grinned and winked with abandon.
The bar continued to pulse and swell with its human contents, even as several of its occupants began to trickle out. Out of the corner of her eye, Ryuko noticed Satsuki slipping from her bar stool and beginning to mingle among the crowd, grasping elbows and whispering into ears. Smaller, more discreet packages slipped from her finger to be quietly pocketed. Ryuko was content to watch her flit silently through the shadows of the large room, but soon an unpleasant commotion caught her attention.
"I don't care what it says! I can take it!"
"Back up, cutie, you don't wanna get hurt, hm?"
Ryuko's heart stopped, her throat going dry. Nui was looking at her over her shoulder, purple eyes lidded and pleased as she held back a tow-headed girl with the tip of one pinky. Angry, the muscular youth pushed at Nui, but the seamstress' thin arms didn't budge an inch. Struggling a little, she huffed and turned to shout at Ryuko.
"Give it to me! I got the cash! What do you care, anyway?"
"Only your health in mind, sweetie," Nui purred. Someone chuckled nervously, but the air had been sucked out of the room. Revelers turned to spectators in the blink of an eye, and a small circle formed around the three. Ryuko sat down and put her head into her hands. She hated it when this happened. Glancing up quickly, she locked eyes with a pale, stone-faced Satsuki. The only sound was the heavy swell of breath in the sticky air. Happily, Nui took over.
"You think you're special? Better than any other non-hybrid out there?" Nui scoffed, moving as if to brush a feather out of the air. Despite the lightness of her movement, however, the furious girl grunted and flew back, crashing into a chair on the fringe of the unsteady circle of interested bodies. "What makes you so strong?"
"I-"
"Shut up! I'll bet you're weak! Look at you." Wheezing, the girl moved to stand, but Nui planted a pink heel into her chest. Someone gasped, but no one moved. "You want some red, hm? Fine, I'll give it to you. Prove yourself." Grabbing a packet from Ryuko's limp fingers, Nui drew two shimmering lines on the table. Nui's malicious sneer turned sadistic as she turned to the crowd. "Any other Nonnies around?"
Silently, Ryuko begged her not to raise her hand, begged her to just go and wait outside and they would figure it out from there. She winced as she saw her sister's hand rise up, alone. This was how they played the game. Ryuko was suddenly struck with the sick horror of her own life, making her stomach tighten and flutter like a hand clenched too hard and too long.
"Hey," Ryuko piped up, forcing the light jauntiness of her earlier tone. "Come on, we don't need to turn this into a…" She stopped suddenly, teeth trapping and holding her lip as Nui caught Satsuki around the waist as she broke the circle. The crowd suddenly cawed with appreciation as Nui suddenly locked lips with Satsuki, dipping her over her arm. After a little too long, Nui spun her into the chair across from the tow-headed rebel still panting in her chair.
"You a Nonnie, sweetie?" Ryuko hated Nui for the way her fingers stroked across Satsuki's shoulders as she leaned in to her ear. Feigning interest, Satsuki nodded. Ryuko scoffed, disgusted with the crowd for falling for a few insincere flutters of her sister's eyelashes.
Keep it in your pants fellas, she thought, fists clenching on her knees, or I'm gonna take those-
"Wanna try some red?" Satsuki shrugged, peeking out over her shoulder in false shyness, playing the part she had been given. Still, she found time to flick a reassuring smile at Ryuko, rolling her eyes as if Nui's theatrics were some hilarious inside joke. The knot in Ryuko's stomach softened, but still she glared at the other girl at the table, hating her.
This wouldn't have to happen if you'd just buy the fucking blue like everyone else, you little shit!
"Look," Nui sighed, leaning across the table. "You think you can handle red, fine. Try it out, but I bet you this fine lady can hold her fibers better than you." The girl sneered at Satsuki, taking in the glossy sheen of her hair and her manicured fingernails.
"Bet not," she rasped, folding her arms and leaning back.
"Bet your life?" Startled by the question, the girl leaned away from Nui, eyebrows quirked. "Look," Nui drawled, planting a hand on the table and tapping a finger between the red lines she had drawn before. "Here's the deal. You handle this line better than sweet cheeks over here, you have my blessing. Free pass to all the libers you can snort. If not…" Ryuko didn't want to know what Nui whispered into the girl's ear, but she wished she would just get up and walk away. Her eyes widened, but just as quickly narrowed, and she pounded her fist onto the table like some kind of big-shot and shouted,
"Let's do it!"
The silent mass spoke up, pleased. A chant picked up, but Ryuko couldn't hear over the buzzing in her ears. Softly she rose and sat down again next to Satsuki, leaning over as she pretended to try to see better. She considered dashing the lines to the ground with a sweep of her hand, but Satsuki must have sensed her intent, for she grasped her hand under the table and squeezed it gently.
Shh, her eyes said, it's going to be fine.
People were pumping their fists in the air now, hot, red mouths open. Still Ryuko couldn't hear. All she knew was the feel of Satsuki's fingers between hers as her sister drew the powder through a straw and into her nose, neatly cleaning up the line. She sniffed a few times, brushing the red from her nose with the tips of her fingers and settling her face into a hard mask. Ryuko squeezed her hand, wanting to lean over and kiss her cheek. Ryuko turned a hateful gaze towards Nui, trying to bore into her face with her mind. Nui only winked and looked on, eyes lidded in sadistic lust.
The crowd held its breath, waiting for the drug to take effect. Ryuko closed her eyes as she felt Satsuki's body go rigid, muscles seizing. The grip on her hand suddenly grew unbearably tight, but she refused to pull away, gritting her teeth and whispering nearly inaudible encouragements to her sister.
The circle of bodies around them tightened as the girl across the table suddenly began to scream in agony. She threw herself from her chair, writhing as the pain grew more intense. One of her wild fists beat into the ground, leaving a crater in the concrete floor. If you asked one of the spectators, they would have claimed it went on for hours, but Ryuko wasn't paying any attention to her. Ceasing to care if anyone saw, she put her free arm around Satsuki, frightened by how still her taut frame had grown.
"Breathe, Sats, come on!" she hissed under her breath, rubbing her hand up and down her back, ignoring the sweat that was pooling between her shoulder blades and at the base of her spine. Ryuko never knew what went on in Satsuki's mind when Nui forced her to take life fibers, but judging from the look on her face, it was something along the lines of "fuck all you bitches, you think you can break me with some measly powder?" Finally, it ended. The blonde girl ceased struggling on the floor, glazed eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, as Satsuki slowly began to relax, slumping over the table.
Face proud, Satsuki stood, extricating her hand from Ryuko's, and flashed a bright smile. The people before her, stunned by the spectacle they had just witnessed, cheered halfheartedly.
Ryuko breathed a sigh of desperate relief, putting her face in her hands.
It's fine, she thought, smiling, there's nothing in this world that can hurt Sats! She's stronger than-
She looked up suddenly at the rattle of chairs. Satsuki was muscling her way through the dense mass of bodies, clawing frantically to the bathroom.
"Sats?" Tripping over herself, Ryuko ran after her, screaming like an animal at those in her way. "Sats! Satsuki!"
She caught up with her sister just as she collapsed into a bathroom stall, falling into the crack between the partition and the toilet. Frantic, mind a buzz of confused panic, Ryuko grabbed the hand that was holding desperately to the toilet seat, trying to tug her sister back up. Finally, as she saw Satsuki's body began to heave, she grabbed her by the hips and yanked her up to the toilet. Hands like claws, Satsuki, clutched the toilet seat with both hands, dragging her mouth over the opening as she retched.
Far from calm, Ryuko held her up with a knee on either side of her waist and pulled her hair back with both hands.
What the fuck is going on! This has never happened before! She's usually fine! Just tired and… oh, shit! The water in the toilet bowl was bright red and chunky, and Satsuki wasn't done yet. Fuck! Fuck! No!
"Someone call an ambulance!" Ryuko screeched over her shoulder, begging every god she knew of that someone would hear her. Tears were coming and she couldn't stop them. Still yelling for help, Ryuko put her face into her sister's back and sobbed. "Come on, come on! No!" Satsuki turned suddenly in her grip, mouth and chin bright red against her pale face. She opened her mouth as if to say something, reaching to touch Ryuko's cheek, before her eyes rolled back into her head and she collapsed onto Ryuko's chest, smearing her shirt with blood. Her sudden weight pushed Ryuko to the floor, and for a long moment all she could do was hold her, cry, and scream for help.
xxx
"What do you mean? She's done it loads of times and she's been fine!"
The Kiryuin family doctor sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with the tips of his finger.
"Miss Matoi, that's exactly why she isn't fine now - because she's done it "loads" of times. Were you aware that your sister is not a hybrid?"
"Yeah, but I -"
"What were you thinking? Surely you realize that life fibers are lethal to non-hybrids. Any one of those hits she's been taking could have killed her. It's a miracle she's alive now. "
"But… Sats is different."
"I assure you, Miss Matoi, she is not."
Ryuko stared up at him, mouth twisted down, nothing to say. He sighed again, pushing his glasses up onto his forehead. Completely devoid of energy, he gently pushed her aside. "Excuse me, I must give her care instructions to Mr. Soroi." fixing Ryuko with a firm stare, he suddenly towered over her. "Take better care of your sister from now on."
Ryuko nodded, biting her lip. When he had disappeared down the hall, Ryuko took off, running faster than she ever had in her life.
xxx
She smashed the door open, literally splintering it off of its hinges.
"Ah, Ryuko, so good of you to-"
"Shut it, Mom! What the hell is your problem?" Ragyo's face darkened. It was rather amusing to have her daughter break down her doors to get to her, but that tone was unacceptable. Faster than the eye could move, her hand lashed out and took Ryuko firmly by the throat. Ryuko shut her mouth, but fixed her mother with a hideous glare.
"I'll speak with you, daughter," Ragyo murmured, sitting Ryuko down in an armchair, "but only civilly, do you understand me?" Rubbing at her neck, Ryuko nodded, shaking her red-streaked hair out of her eyes.
"Why…" she started, mouth opening and closing silently a few times. "Why are you making Satsuki take life fibers?" Ragyo shrugged, cheeks curling into a smile.
"It is the Kiryuin legacy."
"But…"
"It is the fate of the weak to die."
Ryuko stopped as if struck.
"You… you want her to die?"
Her mother purred and sat down upon the arm of the chair, softly stroking Ryuko's hair.
"Shh… no, no. It is a shame that there must be those who are selected naturally for death, but it's for the best. Haven't you found that she holds you back, keeping you from what you could be?" Ryuko squirmed to the other side of the chair, hot tears suddenly brimming. The thought of standing over a closed coffin, listening to the priest drone on about eternal life, was utterly unbearable to her. She considered shoving her mother away from her, but instead curled in on herself, drawing her knees up to her chest.
"Why… why didn't you kill her before?" Ragyo stood and tossed her head.
"She has her…merits." her mother paused to lift a provocative eyebrow at her, "An excellent little bed-fellow, as you well know."
The comparison caught Ryuko off guard, and a hideous flame burst to life in her chest.
"Don't you dare."
"Or what? You'll kill me? This is what it comes down to, Matoi Ryuko. Your sister is a miserable failure, and like it or not there are consequences to being weak."
"Please, just stop making her take it!"
"So what?" Ragyo whipped around, baring her teeth, "I can have one daughter whose only value is in entertainment value, and another attached to her hip?" Ryuko pressed her lips together, tilting her head back as her hands clenched.
No, please. I don't want… No! There'd be nothing left… nobody…
"No… no, I'll be good. She'll be good! I'll make sure!"
"Ha, is that so? And what do I get out of this arrangement?"
Ryuko gulped, steeling herself.
"Anything you want, Mother."
xxx
A few hours later, Ryuko trembled violently as she pushed the door open to Satsuki's bedroom. Her skin was hot and red and her hair slicked with water against her neck. She hadn't bothered to dress after leaving the bathhouse, and she was dripping all over the carpet.
She didn't care.
She had done what she needed to do.
Carefully, mindful of the new bruises on her thighs, Ryuko slipped into the bed, shivering as the cool sheets brushed soothingly over her hot skin. Desperate, broken, she snuggled up next to Satsuki's still body, pressing her face into the crook of her neck. Looking up at her face, she was suddenly filled with rage. She wanted to tear the oxygen tubes out of her nose, rip the IV out of her arm and shake her awake, tell her she was fine, to get up. As soon as the feeling came, it passed. Tired, Ryuko leaned up and softly kissed Satsuki's cheek before rolling over and snuggling her bare back into her sister's side, feeling every slow breath ripple through her spine.
I'll take care of you, sis. Whatever it takes.
xxx
Ryuko jerked awake, finding a puddle of drool in her palm.
Gross.
Shaking herself, she looked around the bar. It was nearly empty.
Shit, I hardly sold anything! Nui's gonna kill me… oh, wait. She grinned suddenly as she remembered that Nui was safely in prison. Ha ha, the little asshole. Hope she rots. She shook herself, confused. Why she was still dreaming about events that occurred over five years ago was beyond her. It suddenly struck her that, for better or for worse, she was alone now.
Sighing, she stretched and began to gather her things.
xxx
Outside the bar, Gamagoori had forced his massive frame into an alleyway much too small for him. Tired from his long stakeout, he waved over the blind man and the hound with a motion somewhat less than discreet. Noticing, he scurried over, taking off the glasses and revealing a pair of decidedly not-blind eyes.
"She's still in there, boss, but I think she's getting ready to leave."
"Good, good, get ready." Gamagoori tensed every muscle he owned, itching for the chase sure to come.
Dragon, today you will be mine. His determination, however, did not distract him from his colleague's odd taste in disguise. "Uh, is that a bloodhound?"
"Yeah, it's, like, my seeing-eye dog."
"I'm pretty sure they don't use those as seeing-eye dogs. You couldn't get a lab or a retriever or something?"
"Look, sir, this was all they had at the pound." the man rolled his eyes and walked away to take up his position. Gamagoori resisted the urge to slap his palm against his face. Shaking his head, he stared at the door, begging her to come out.
Ryuko exited the establishment to find a gun against her head.
"Dragon," a huge blondie boomed at her, flashing a badge. "You're under arrest."
Aw, hell no!
Before Gamagoori could blink, she had jumped onto the roof, tearing open a package with her teeth and practically dumping its contents up her nose. Gamagoori grinned. The chase was on.
When Ryuko came back to herself, she was in handcuffs.
"Well, fuck me."