Hey everyone. I really appreciated the reviews! They got me to get off my lazy streak and right another chappie! I hope you all enjoy this one! Btw if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm making Boris extremely evil! I don't know how much Voltaire will be in it.
Chapter six: Lime and Laughter?
Mariah continued to stare at the ceiling. Kay had been on the computer for several hours now. It annoyed her to no end that someone could be still for so long. She herself didn't even meditate for half this time. The least she could do would be talk, but no! All she got was the typing of a keyboard. Mariah had never felt so invisible.
A nock sounded on the door, but Kay never took her eyes from the computer. How rood can you get? Mariah was about to answer when the door opened. Snickers poked her head in and said in a sweet voice. "I thought you were in here Kaiyu." Mariah thought she saw Kay bristle at the name. "I was just wondering if you had wanted to help me do the pickles."
For a moment, Mariah wasn't sure what was going on. Kay was silent, and making no gestures that she was staying or going. Then she heard a sound and glanced at the computer. It said shutting down. Now even though Mariah grew up in a village without modern day technology, she knew what that meant. So, she's going to go. The pink haired girl turned to Snickers, who was still waiting at the doorway. She had a pleasant smile on, and seemed to have figured out Kay's answer long before she did. I guess if she raised Kai, she must have raised Kay too. She must be used to all the cold shoulders, she thought with a shudder.
Kay stood up slowly and began to walk toward the door. Mariah, not being one to give up, sat up like a light. "Wait! What are you going to do?"
"Pickles," Was the short answer.
"Can I come?" Kay turned around so fast; Mariah wasn't sure when she did it. The glare she leveled on her was suspicious and calculating. She wanted to say it reminded her of Kai, but not this time. No, not this time. She had seen a look like that twice, and they had come form the same man. Boris! Even Tala hadn't been that distrusting when he was under the man's control. The look had sent shivers running down her spine. But just as quickly as it had come, it vanished, being replaced by the same indifferent look. With a simple jerk of her head, she told Mariah she could come.
Surprised at the acceptance, she hopped of the bed and followed the other two women into what she assumed was the kitchen. Besides the fact that it was jumbo sized like the rest of the house, it looked like another kitchen. It had a door that had connected to the entrance way, and another in the back. She glanced over at a huge basket of cucumbers. Having never made pickles before, she briefly wondered what they were for. She didn't have time to wonder long, when Snickers spoke:
"I only have enough ingredients for one batch. If you girls could make that, I'll go get some more, and we'll finish anther day. It'll take most of today for me to find the right stuff. If you need anything at all, ask Nina."
With that, she grabbed a purse and headed out the door. Mariah watched curiously as Kay made her way over to the cabinets, as though she knew exactly what to do. She pulled out two knives and what appeared to be a churn. Then she walked over to the cucumbers. Hoisting them over her shoulder, she jerked her head toward the door in the back. Mariah shot past her and opened it.
When she went out behind Kay, to say she was surprised would be an understatement. It was as though they had stepped back in time. They were in a wooden porch, with a couple rocking chairs on either side of the door. It was elevated about a yard of the ground. Kay waked over, set the basket down, and hung her legs over the side. When Mariah copied her on the other side, she was handed a knife. She looked back at Kay, curious.
"Never made pickles? I thought you come form a village that was made on the old ways." As she spoke, a sneer made its way on her lips, one of her petite fangs gleaming in the light.
Bristling indignantly, Mariah shot back, "We don't exactly do a lot of pickles, okay?"
"Peel the skin off, then cut then into long slices about the length of your hand. Then just put them in the in the churn. That should be simple enough for your tiny brain." The last part was muttered, but Mariah's keen ears heard it. She yanked up a knife and began to peel. "And don't forget to be careful not to…" she was too late. Mariah had already sliced open her finger. Kay sent her a look of disgust, so much like Boris that Mariah froze on the spot. Then the girl got up and walked through the door. Mariah's breath came out in gasps, as she tried to regulate her heartbeat, remembering the day she lost Galux.
Her distress faded when Kay came back in the room, her emotional mask back in place. She sat down with two cloths, one wet, one dry, and a bandage in her hands. She firmly took Mariah's arm, and pulled it so she could see the wound. She washed it, and then said.
"It isn't deep, you'll heel quickly." Drying the spot she tied the bandage and went back to her own cucumber.
They sat in silence for a while. Mariah was contemplating over what she had just witnessed. The girl next to her had held the same air as the evilest man she had ever met. But then, Boris would have never bandaged her hand that way. It was becoming apparent to her that whatever happened to Kai was nothing compared to Kay. She frowned. Kay can't be as bad as she seems. Maybe if she got to know her…
"So…" She said clearing her throat. "Why did you get into this… 'pickling' business."
Kay sighed. "You never give up, do you? When I was little, my grandmother used to let me help her in the kitchen. Even though we had plenty of servants, she always insisted on doing the canning herself. After she died, Snickers continued the habit… for me." She shrugged.
Mariah blinked. Was it just her or was Kay being more open? When the churn was full, Kay got up and carried it inside, sitting it on the island (A/N: table in the middle of kitchen) She went to the cabinet and got out a pan, a quart jar, and what looked like a fifty pound sack of flower. She went over to the sink and filled the gar with water, and poured it in the pan. She repeated the action several times, with Mariah watching confusedly.
"Is there anything I can do?" The neko-jin asked slowly.
Kay looked hesitant for a moment; then pointed at the sack. "Poor the lime in the water, while I get a spoon. Be careful with it. If you disturb the lime up to much, the smoke it creates is very hard to breath, and if there is smoke, try not to inhale it."
Mariah took a deep breath after Kay walked off. Ok, I can do this. She kept repeating that in her head as she picked up the sack. She tore the top off, and turned the sack upside down. She wasn't prepared for it to come out so fast. As soon as it hit the water, the powder turned into white smoke. In shock, she dropped the sack, and the rest shot out. The smoke blinded her, and she took several steps back, coughing. When she tried to inhale again the air was so thick, she couldn't get it down. She let out a shriek of fear and stumbled backwards. Before she hit the ground, she felt something grab her shirt and pull her back up. She was yanked forward, and she heard her feet hit wood. Then in a few steps, the wood was gone and she fell. She landed on what felt like grass, and gulped down as much fresh air as she could get in.
When she was able to open her eyes, she glanced to her left. Kay was lying next to her, panting as well. She felt tears come to her eyes, as she took in both of their clothes. Their entire bodies were white, from their heads to their toes. When she glanced at the door, she saw white smoke billowing out. She heard Kay make an odd sound, and turned, ready to face being yelled at for messing up the kitchen. But Kay was quiet, and her mouth seemed to be turning up. She dipped her head down and let out a snort. When she brought her head back up she was laughing so hard there were tears in her eyes.
Stunned, all Mariah could do was stutter, "W-what's so funny?" It took Kay several minutes to calm down enough to talk.
"Y-your fa-face haha is com-completely ha whi-white!" She was laughing so hard, Mariah barely got what she had said. When she did she started chuckling with her.
"Speak for yourself! You look like a ghost!" With that she burst out laughing too. She wasn't sure if it was from the hilarity of it all, or the fact that the only thing she had to do to get Kay to come out of her shell was to cover herself in white powder. On that thought, she nearly fell over from laughter. She couldn't resist asking:
"This doesn't mean I have to do this every time I want to make you laugh." Kay stopped laughing so quickly, it surprised Mariah. She had a blank look on her face for a moment, then understanding washed over her face.
"No, no you don't. I think I might just like you kid." Then she threw her head back and began to laugh even harder than she had been. Mariah managed to smile through her laugher, and then felt the tears running down her face from laughing so hard. She really was coming out of her shell.
16161616
Kai's POV
Everyone in the room jumped when they heard scream. He thought it sounded like Mariah, but wasn't sure. One look at Ray's ashen face confirmed his suspicion. Adam stood up and headed straight for the entranceway. He made a sharp left turn through a door in the wall, and froze when he got through the door. Elizabeth was right behind him, and she non to gently knocked him out of the way. When she let out a gasp, Kai peered around her. The entire room, which appeared to be a kitchen, was covered in white powder.
"What in the world happened in here?!" Elizabeth finally managed to get out. She seemed to be just as shocked as the rest of them, so she had nothing to do with it.
Adam's head turned toward an open door in the back. He turned and began to slowly make his way to the back, as though he was scared of what he was about to find. He glanced at Kai over his shoulder.
"I hope your friend didn't do anything to piss Kay off. There's no telling what she'll do when she's angry. We try our best to avoid her, and she actually likes us"
Kai heard a distressed sound come from behind him, and knew it was Ray. Damn! If that brat had done anything to hurt Mariah, there was going to be a fight. He didn't care how nice they had been. Ray would want revenge, and Kai was going to make sure he got it.
When Adam reached the door, he stepped back as though he had been slapped. Kai made short work of pushing him out of the way and stuck his head out of the doorway. What he saw made his jaw drop a little. He heard footsteps and several gasps come from behind him.
Mariah and Kay were in the yard a couple feet from the porch. They were lying on the ground, completely white. Although he doubted that was what had everyone so surprised. No that was the fact that they were both laughing their asses off.
He heard Elizabeth whisper from somewhere behind him, "I haven't heard her laugh like that since she was first taken to Biovolt, and that was over ten long years ago. I just can't believe it!
That was just mainly a little more introduction on Kay. I promise, I will get to Boris and tell you where that all fits in, just not now. I already have the basic plan in my head, but I'm open to any suggestions! And don't worry, Kai is still the STAR! Lol, more of him to come! R&R!!
Kyasurin out!