Kyrie

Chapter 4: Welcome to the Pearl Piari

"Michel, you're late."

Michael dropped his backpack behind the reservation desk and glanced at the clock. Four o'clock. Not bad considering he had stayed a half-hour after school and returned home long enough to change clothes.

"I'm sorry." He said. "I told Lucia-san I was staying late, and she said she would tell you. Did she not tell you, then?"

Nikora frowned. "I haven't seen Lucia yet this afternoon." But there'll be trouble when she finally gets back.

Suddenly she noticed Michel was still standing there. "Don't worry about it. It was Lucia's fault for not letting me know. Just get to work. My other three helpers have skipped out, so we're shorthanded."

Michel nodded, then headed for the reservations desk. I wonder what she means by 'skipped out'…

"Lucia, Hanon, Seira, you are so late…where have you been!?"

Lucia rubbed the back of her head nervously. "Well, something…came up?"

Nikora scowled at her. "And exactly what came up?"

"We had to fight a monster," Hanon told her.

"And we found anther Heart Orb." Seira piped up.

Nikora crossed her arms and gave the three of them an incredulous stare. "It took you an hour and half to fight a monster? What did you have to do? Sing every song you know?"

She doesn't realize we left school after lunch. Lucia realized. Thank you, Kaito.

"Well, we got distracted." Lucia said. Then a thought occurred to her. "Oh, ah, Michel said he was going to be late…" She stopped when she saw Nikora's face.

"He's already here." Nikora said shortly and she used her thumb to point at the reservation desk.

There was a long pause. Nikora sighed. "Never mind. Just get to work."

"Michel's definitely not as aggressive as he used to be." Lucia said as she lugged the vacuum to the next room.

"I guess losing your memory can do that to you." Hanon said as she followed with a trash bag. "So, do you think Rina's having a good time with Hamasaki?"

"I dunno. Let's ask her when she gets back. She'll hate that." Giggling like idiots, the two of them began working on the next room.

The best thing about the job, Michel had decided, was that very little happened. Only two people had checked in so far that afternoon.

In the meantime, he was free to work on his song. He added another note to the music, then hummed the line under his breath. No, that was the wrong note. He erased it and tried a different one.

"Dusting, dusting, dusting!"

Michael looked to the left to see Seira dusting the reservation table.

"Could you move your book please? I need to dust there." Seira said.

Michel lifted the notebook up, allowing Seira to finish dusting the reservation desk.

"So, does everyone have a job here?" Michael asked.

Seira nodded. "Yep. Nikora says since we all live here, we all have to help."

"I knew Lucia was Nikora-san's younger sister, but I didn't think you all actually lived here." Michael said.

"Everyone except Rina." Seira replied. "She has her own house. And a really big TV."

"Of course, you're more than welcome to stay if you wish, Michel."

Both Michel and Seira turned to see Madame Taki standing there. Nikora was right behind her.

"Ah, Michael, this is Madame Taki. She owns the Pearl Piari." Nikora said. "Taki-san, this is Michel…" Nikora hesitated as she realized she could not remember his last name – assuming Lucia had told her.

"Yoriwofuruis." Michael supplied.

"Yoriwofuruis." Nikora finished.

"It is my pleasure to meet you, Micael." Taki told him. "You don't appreciate where you're staying now, do you?"

Somewhat hesitantly, Michel shook his head.

"I knew it." Taki said, somewhat triumphantly. "Well, you're more than welcome to move into the Piari, if you wish. As you can see we have plenty of room, and since you work here, it's not like you would be underfoot if you stayed."

"Thank you. I will consider your offer."

"You do that." Taki said. "It's a standing offer."

With the air of someone who has completed a mission, Taki turned and swept away, Nikora following her. But before either Seira or Michel could say anything, a couple came in to rent a room for the night. Michel checked the guests in, and Seira wandered off to find something else to dust.

When Michel showed up the next afternoon, he told Taki he was ready to take her up on her offer.

"So he's moving into the Piari now?" Seira asked from where she and Hanon were eavesdropping behind the door.

"Yep." Hanon replied. "Now we can really keep an eye on him."

Before Hanon could say anymore, the door suddenly swung wide open and Michel stepped out of the room. He paused, realizing that something behind that door had just crunched. He turned and shut the door, only to see Hanon and Seira behind it, looking slightly squished.

"You two were behind the door?" He asked.

Hanon saw no point denying the obvious. "Yep."

"Were you listening through the door?" Michel asked.

"Not at all." Hanon said as she racked her brain, trying to figure out what excuse she could give. "We were just talking about Lucia's birthday, you know, how we should celebrate. But we want a surprise party so don't tell her about."

Michel nodded his agreement then walked away.

After he was gone, Seira turned to Hanon. "Hanon-chan, Lucia's birthday isn't for two months!"

"You know that, and I know that, but Michel doesn't know that." Hanon said. "Besides, he doesn't need to know we were talking about him."

"Seira, Hanon, what are you doing?" Hanon turned and saw Lucia and Rina standing there.

"We were picking up information," Hanon replied.

"Michel's gonna stay with us at the Pearl Pairi!" Seira blurted out.

"Good." Lucia decreed. "Now we can keep an especially close watch on him."

Then Hanon noticed something. "Rina, where did you get that necklace?" The green-haired girl was wearing a necklace Hanon had never seen before. It was a silver, oval-shaped pendant necklace with a silver chain connected to each end of the oval. On the pendant were two small red stones, with a bright white stone in the center.

The white stone was so bright, it almost seemed like it was glowing.

Rina laid a finger on the silver pendant. "I found it in a shop last night while I was out with Hamasaki." She explained.

"Okay, but, why'd you get it?" Hanon asked. "Did Hamasaki give it to you? It doesn't really look like it's your style."

"No, I bought it for myself."

"Well, no offense, Rina, but, it's not exactly the prettiest thing…"

Rina scowled at Hanon. "I didn't buy it for looks." She then turned to Seira. "Did that one, Arella, did she tell you were the Heart Orbs might go?"

"No." Seira replied. "Why?"

Rina fiddled with the white stone for a moment, then held up a ball of white energy.

"That's a Heart Orb!" Seira exclaimed.

"Better go get the mirror." Rina told her.

Seira hurried up the stairs, heading for her room to get the mirror.

"That's odd." Lucia said. "It was in the necklace."

"Well, it makes it easier for us." Hanon pointed out. "And that girl that Seira talked to didn't say where the Heart Orbs would go."

Before either Lucia or Rina could reply, the door swung open, and Nikora entered the room. She paused, having heard something behind the door.

"Is someone back there?" Nikora asked, looking at the door.

"Just forget it." Hanon, her voice muffled by the door, replied.

"So, you're moving in?" Hanon asked Michel.

"Taki-san said it was alright if I did." Michael replied.

Hanon looked around the empty lobby. "Well, where's your stuff?"

Michel frowned. He was trying to finish another line of his song, and Hanon kept distracting him. He used the end of his pencil to point at his backpack. "In there."

Before Hanon could come up with another question, Nikora poked her head into the room. "Michel, could you come here for a moment? Taki-san would like to speak to you."

Michel set his pencil down and turned to follow Nikora into the other room.

This was the opportunity Hanon had been waiting for. As soon as Michael was out the door, she reached for his backpack.

"Hanon! What are you doing?" Hanon glanced behind her to see Rina and Lucia, who had just come into the lobby.

"I want to see something." Hanon replied. The front compartment of the backpack was partly open. Hanon opened the zipper further and dumped the contents out. "Maybe we can get another clue to what's going on. Michel may not even know he has more clues to this whole thing."

Hanon began sorting through the stuff. There was an instrument case, "I think we all know what's in that." She said as she set it aside.

There was also a music book, their school's lit book, a second note book, a pencil case, and a coin purse containing 32 dollars in Yen.

"No clues here." Hanon decided.

"What are you doing?"

Lucia and Rina both look like they had swallowed lemons. "Look, Michel, this isn't what you think it is."

Michael had returned from his talk with Madame Taki to find Hanon going through his stuff. "Just what is going on here?"

"Nothing…" Hanon quickly put everything back into the backpack, zipped it up, and handed it back to Michel. Then she turned and walked hurried away.

"What was that all about!?" Michel demanded.

Rina and Lucia stared after Hanon.

"If we figure it out, we'll let you know." Rina told him.

"Yeah." Lucia agreed. "But anyway, here." She handed a key to him. "Nikora said to give this to you. It's the key to your room."

"Thank you." Michel took the key, and headed for the stairs. I think I'll go put my stuff away before someone decides to go through it again.

"This gets stranger and stranger." Rina said after Michel had left. "Hanon might have been on to something. But I think the only clue he has that he's not aware of is that flute. I'd love to get my hands on it and see if it can transform into a whip or a bow."

Lucia nodded. "In the meantime, I guess all we can do is keep looking for those Heart Orbs."

We're not enemies anymore, Michel. But somehow you got back to Earth. Who are the Dark Ones? And why are they after you?

T.A.R.N.S.: So many questions, Lucia has. Good thing those'll be answered in a future chapter. Anyway, I have no notes this time, other than that I hope the chapter wasn't too boring.

Please Review, and I'll see y'all next time.

[EDIT: 2-16-17]