Chapter Four
The Beginning Of A New Life.
Harry was roused to awakening by one of the cats, who he later found to be Jang Keng, jumping his his injured ribs. This caused him to yelp and spring up, sending the cat flying across the room. The reaction stirred his two companions awake, as they also sprang up.
"Harry!" cried Ami, "what's the matter?"
"It's nothing, Ami," Harry tried to comfort her, "one of the cats just touched a tender spot."
"And you said you'd be fine by morning," Mused Yumi with sarcasm.
"I usually am, and" Harry started,
"But you're not!" Interjected Yumi firmly, before getting out of bed. "Come on, we're gonna get you to a hospital or something."
"But we don't have-" Harry began, but Yumi cut him off again,
"We'll find one. Now come on. We can't let you stay like that. You'll worry Ami to death." When she put it like that, Harry lost his will to refuse anymore. He got up as well. After both showered, separately of course, the two got ready to go.
"You gonna be okay by yourself, Ami?" Asked Yumi,
"I should be okay," Ami stated, "as long as you two don't take too long."
"We'll be quick," Harry assured her. Then he and Yumi set out to find a medical pavilion of some kind or another. As the pair walked along, it was inevitable for conversation to spring up.
"How long have you lived in this dump, Harry?" asked Yumi.
"Since I moved out of my parent's house," he replied, "I finished high school and wanted to strike out on my own. I got on the plane and let it take me wherever. It was the biggest mistake I've ever made. No sooner did I move here that BMB found me and decided I was his regular punching bag, his old one wasn't around anymore."
"What happened to him?" Yumi asked,
"I never found out," said Harry, "BMB said he beat him to death, and I don't wanna believe him."
"Well," said Yumi, "You don't have to worry about him anymore; he's behind bars."
"Even so," said Harry, "I'm strap myself to a missile if it meant getting outta this dump."
"You'd be dead, moron." Shot Yumi,
"But I'd be dead in a new place," countered Harry. "Moving on; how did you and Ami meet?"
"We just ran into each other." Yumi explained. "It was a chance meeting, but one I don't regret for a moment. Meeting her changed my life, for the better."
"I get the feeling," said Harry, "that it may change mine for the better too." Yumi's eyes slid over to look at Harry, but she said nothing. The two continued, and eventually they managed to find a small but mostly functional medical pavilion. It was borderline rundown with peeling paint on the the outside, and with some of the shingles all but falling off the roof.
"Looks sketchy," mused Harry, "which means it's just what we need."
"After how far we had to walk," complained Yumi, realizing the pain in her feet from walking a long distance, "It better be." Harry walked over to the door and tried it. It pulled right open, so he walked in. Yumi sat down in one of the lawn chairs waiting outside. She checked the time on her phone; it was already three in the afternoon! How did they lose so much time? Yumi groaned as she tilted her head back.
"Ami's gonna freak out if we're not back before dark." She stated, then looked up to see two guys looking at her. "And what do you want?!" she snapped at them, causing them to bolt off. "Pfft, cowards." Just then, Harry came out.
"There's those people skills, hard at work." He joked.
"Out already?" asked Yumi, genuinely surprised, "what did they do?"
"Gave me an aspirin." SAid Harry, patting his once sore ribs, showing no pain. Yumi facepalmed.
"If that's all we had to do," she whined, "we coulda been back by now!" So the two began to trek back to the apartment, but something was amiss...there was that feeling of bad things to come in the air.
"I got a bad feeling all of a sudden." Said Harry,
"Wait!" Cried Yumi, smelling the air, "do you smell that?" Harry did: Smoke. Suddenly, Yumi's phone rang. She checked the caller ID; it was Ami. Yumi answered.
"Ami," she said "how are-"
"TASUKETE!"* Screamed Ami into the receiver. They could hear it; the crackling of a raging fire. "THE APARTMENT'S ON FIRE! I'M TRAPPED!" They could hear a slight mumble in the back. "I-I MEAN WE'RE TRAPPED!"
"Hang on Ami!" Shouted Yumi, "We'll be right there." Harry and Yumi took off with the speed you only see in cartoons. Blazing through the streets in record time, the two came up upon the apartment. There were people gathered the building, displaced residents, but wouldn't you know it...no fire truck in sight. Harry ran to the front doors, but they were sealed with debris and fire. He frantically searched for another way, and saw the fire escape. He took off and scrambled up it, with Yumi hot on his heels. Harry had taken this before, he'd used it a few times to climb up if BMB was coming up the street.
Before long, Harry was exactly where he needed to go; his apartment, soon to be former home. Ami stood on the bed, with the cats clinging to her hair, as the fire slowly approached them. Harry was amazed that most of the furniture wasn't burning yet, but now was his chance. He drew back his fist and threw it at the window. It shattered, and Harry would have been amazed at his strength were he not in such a hurry. He sprang across the furniture like he was playing "The floor is lava." Which it kind of was. He quickly made his way to Ami and scooped her up in his arms, the cats still clinging to her. Then he sprang back across the way he came, Yumi waiting to help them climb down. Seconds before the flames engulfed his shoes, Harry sprang through the window.
"You okay, Ami?" he asked. Ami nodded, then threw her arms around Harry,
"Thank you so much!" She cried, clinging to him tightly. The trio was about to attempt the climb down, but suddenly there was a horrid and loud sound; the sound of metal giving way under their feet. The shock and scare of sudden freefall overcame all five of the beings, as they tumbled from the fire escape and fell down quickly into the blackness of the evening ground. But thankfully, all three landed softly.
One by one, Harry, Ami, and Yumi rose from the dumpster, Ami and Yumi with their cats clinging to their heads. All three looked back up, horrified that the building would fall onto them. But no, today Murphy of the famous Murphy's law took it easy on them, as the building caved in on itself, sending only dust their way. The three ducked back into the dumpster until the dust settled, and it was safe to rise up and breath again.
"That was a close one." Said Harry. Before anyone could say anything else, Yumi let out a yelp of pain.
"What's the matter?" asked Ami.
"Stupid couch got me again!" yelled Yumi, jumping out of the dumpster.
…
Harry was a bundle of nerves at the moment. He knew he should feel upset, no, not upset, enraged. BMB had to have friends on the outside; there was no way that fire was an accident. Not only was he out of a home, not only were several innocent people who never even heard of BMB out of their homes, but if he hadn't been able to break his window so quickly, Ami wouldn't be around anymore.
He looked at his knuckle, which had recently been bandaged by a good samaritan, it was sore, especially in the evening air. He knew he should feel stressed about the lack of a home as well. Sure, BMB was in jail, but that didn't mean living on the streets was safe. But his feelings, whatever they were or should have been, were quelled when he looked at Ami, alive and well, hugging Yumi and their cats.
"I'm so glad you're okay!" exclaimed Yumi,
"If it weren't for Harry," said Ami, casting her eyes onto him, "I wouldn't be." Eventually, she broke her hug with Yumi and gave one to Harry. But something was different about this hug. It was tighter than Ami had ever hugged Yumi, and it seemed like she didn't want to let go. She'd never seen her like this before, not even Chad had come close to bringing out this side of her. Suddenly, looking at the ruins of what was once an apartment, something dawned on Harry.
"So, Harry." She said, "do you have anyone to live with?" Harry hesitated before shaking his head. Ami gasped.
"We...we…" Before she could finish, a bright light shone upon them, briefly blinding all three of them. Eventually, they could see again, and what a sight it was.
"Come on, girls!" Kaz called from the driver's seat of the running, functioning bus, "we've got to leave now if you're going to make it in time to your next stop on the tour."
Harry watched as Ami and Yumi started to walk towards the bus, his heart heavy. But then, they stopped and looked back at him.
"Come on!" Cried Kaz, "What's the hold up. We gotta get moving! Money doesn't make itself you know!" Yumi looked back at Kaz, then pointed at Harry,
"He's coming with!" She cried. Harry couldn't recall the last time he smiled so wide.
"What?!" Asked Kaz, baffled, "No! I forbid it! He's not coming!"
"Yes he is!" Said Ami, firmly, "He saved my life! And theirs!" Ami held up Tekerai and Jang Keng, who nodded vigorously.
"That's great!" Kaz said flatly, "but he-"
"HE'S COMING!" Yumi shouted so loudly the bus slid back a few feet, "END OF STORY! Besides, he doesn't have a home anymore; it's the least we can do for him after he saved Ami's life." Kaz wanted to argue more, but he knew that Ami and Yumi wouldn't get on the bus unless this guy was too. He didn't want it, but what he did want was the money; he knew he'd have to cannonball through several towns to get the girls to their show on time, so time was of the essence. There was no time for a stalemate.
"Fine!" Kaz yielded, opening the doors and letting all three people on the bus.
…
As the bus finally left Liberty Town, Harry couldn't help but look back at it one last time, his eyes staying on it until it was gone. Mr. Break My Bones was behind bars. And he was finally leaving that town he'd been forced to call home for the last five years. Finally, he was free.
