The Path Of Fate - 7

Amy glanced at her cell phone as the screen lit up. It slowly danced across the table to the beat of a strong vibration, until she picked it up. Sensing her touch, it stopped vibrating, although the screen still flashed insistently at her.

"Answer." She said, bringing it up to her ear.

"Amy." She recognized the sound of her boss. She straightened up, and muted the music and chat on her computer.

"Sei, how are you?" She asked, taking her feet off her desk.

"Not bad." Was the answer. "Listen, sorry to bother you at home, but could I have you come straight to my office tomorrow morning?"

"Yeah, sure, anything wrong?"

"Well...I'll discuss it with you tomorrow morning." She said. "See you tomorrow."

With that, the conversation was over. Amy hung up, then stared at her computer for a moment, wondering if her job was in danger. She highly doubted it. Shrugging, she un-muted her music and turned back to her laptop.

"Who was that, Princess?" Kouta's voice sounded softly in her ear.

She smiled, despite him not being able to see it. She had muted her speakers, but not her microphone. He had heard the whole conversation. He knew who it was.

"Just the boss, you know that." She said.

He chuckled. "Well, had to make sure. She fire you?"

Amy laughed. "As if! Come on, they wouldn't know what to do with themselves if they fired me!"

He 'tsk'ed in her ear. "Such arrogance, it is unbefitting of a lady." He chided.

"Mmm, then come put me in my place." She said. She had more to say; wanted to, but decided against it.

He leaned back, and grinned at her. "Speaking of," He said. "I have Monday and Tuesday off next week." He said.

"So not tomorrow and the next day, but the Monday and Tuesday after that?" She asked.

He nodded. "You got it."

"So you're gonna come see me Friday night and stay with me the entire time, riiiiight?" She asked.

"I'm certainly going to try." He agreed.

"How's your car coming along?" She asked. "You haven't told me much about it lately."

"Ah, well, I bought a Lexus ISF-350, but I'm thinking about taking the S13 down to see you if I can finish it this week."

She blinked. "S13?" She asked.

He laughed. "For someone who is so smart, you know so little about everything else!"

She waved him off, uncaring. "Ah, not my scene." She said. "Anyway, I thought you had a car you were working on called a...a Nissan 240sx?" She said.

He laughed loudly. "Hesitation? Really? What did you do, look at the sweater I gave you?"

She couldn't keep the guilt out of her voice as she denied his claim.

"N-noo..." She said.

"Aha, you totally did!" He said. "Anyway, the S13 is the same as the 240sx. S13 just denotes a particular set of years the 240sx was made. There are also S14's, and S15's, but each of those years came with a body styling change, and I don't like them." He said.

She nodded to herself. "Ah, okay, I see." She lied. "I got it!"

He smiled. "Sure you do."

"I want to see you." She blurted out, ignoring his teasing. His smile disappeared, and he tilted his head to the side.

"You'er going to, Princess." He said softly. She blushed, embarassed at her outburst.

"I hope so." She mumbled. "Hey, listen, I gotta go. Text me." She quickly signed off and stood up, stretching. She glanced at the clock. It was quarter after six. Several hours too early to be offline, but she was scared. Scared of how strongly she felt for him. It was unsettling. Yet, also exciting.

She picked her her cell phone as it vibrated, and she carried it with her to her room. Kouta was probably questioning her speedy retreat from the internet. She sighed. She didn't know what to tell him.

...

Meg slipped quietly into the room, and handed the cup of soup to Johan. The bloodied girl accepted it, raising it to her nose to sniff at it for a second. Meg smiled at her curious behaviour, as the silver haired girl slowly took a sip. After a moment's consideration, the girl nodded her approval.

"It's good." Johan said, nodding. She took another sip, and decided that it was downright delicious.

Meg couldn't understand any of the harsh-sounding language that emitted from the girl's throat in a rough growl, almost toned down to a purr, but the nodding and continued consumption was a good sign, she thought. Surely, no one could dislike Kyohei's cooking.

As Johan continued to drink the soup from the cup, Meg got to work on her arm. As Meg picked up the tweezers, Johan caught on to what she wanted, and reached forward with her right arm. She placed it back in her lap, fingers caressing the inside of her thigh once more.

Meg blushed lightly, unused to any kind of touch near there, but resumed her work. After a few minutes, she fell into a steady rythm of pulling and cleaning, and it wasn't long before she became aware of a steady gaze upon her. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and she slowly raised her head to meet Johan's predatory gaze. Those deep ruby orbs were unnerving, and Meg felt like the silver haired girl was...She wasn't sure, but it felt like the girl was analyzing her, picking her apart. As silly as that seemed.

She couldn't hold her gaze for long, before she looked away meekly, returning to her task. It wasn't long before she was finished, and the clank of a cup signified that Johan was as well.

Meg stood, and stretched, looking down at the girl who stared back up at her.

"Shower?" She asked her.

The girl stared. So unnerving, those entrancing eyes.

Meg sighed, then mimicked rubbing her skin. She pretended to scoop up water, then wash her arms with it.

The girl nodded suddenly, and stood. Meg took a step back as the girl swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood quickly, before stopping and grabbing her side.

Immediately concerned, Meg moved closer and put her arm around the girl's shoulders. Johan looked at her, then straightened up slowly. Meg tilted her head in the direction she wanted the girl to walk. As she did, she noticed the scent that the girl gave off. She smelled like sweat, dirt, and blood. She wrinkled her nose, and shook her head.

"Gah. You need a damn bath, girl."

The girl looked at her questioningly, but Meg shook her head once more. She began to lead, and moved her arm to around her hips, helping support her as she slowly began to move.

It was a few short steps to the bathroom across the hall, and it was there that Meg stopped. She pointed to the shower. Surely, as foreign as this girl was, she would recognize one of these...right?

Johan stared dumbly at it, unsure of what to do. She awaited instruction, as Meg wondered idly if the girl was actually this stupid, or possibly suffering amnesia.

As they just stood there, it became obvious that Johan did not know what was expected of her.

Sighing, Meg released her, and moved over to the shower. She swiftly turned on the hot and cold knobs, adjusting them for perfect temperature as she pulled out the stop-knob for the shower head.

"Now you just get in and wash yourself." Meg said. Johan merely turned her gaze from the now-steaming shower, to her, and raised her hands in a questioning gesture.

Meg transfered her weight to her right leg, her hip jutting out, as she stared back at Johan. She ran her hand through her long red hair as she considered what to do. She did not miss how Johan followed every movement with her eyes.

Well, there was no way this dirty, unkempt girl was sleeping in her bed tonight, so she would have no choice but to show her how to use the shower.

She stepped forward, and reached out for the hem of Johan's shirt. Johan's next movement caught her by surprise.

Johan, caught off guard by the sudden reach for her, swiftly reacted and grabbed both of her wrists in a tight grip, twisting them inward until her wrists faced outward, and she was unable to move.

Meg let out a yelp of pain at the sudden twist, and tears formed in her eyes. Panic shot through her as she wondered what this violent girl would do to her, and she considered hollering for Kyohei.

Just as quickly, the pain was gone, and she steadied herself as her wrists were released. Johan had taken a step away from her, arms up in front of her.

Meg stared her, blinking away the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. She held up her hands to show that she was unarmed, and non-threatening, before slowly moving forward again. She slowly reached out, wondering if she would be attacked again. She wasn't sure why she was in the first place; it wasn't like the girl was adverse to touch. She had spent the last twenty minutes picking glass out of her arm.

Johan allowed the red-haired girl to slowly touch her hips. After that it was clear what she wanted. She let the girl pull off her black shirt, revealing her body, but wasn't expecting her reaction.

Meg gasped, horrified, when she saw the multitude of cuts and bruises adorning her body. There were also old scars, and what looked like one or two puncture wounds near her stomach. Said stomach was toned with light abdominal muscles rippling under the other-wise unmarked skin, and Meg wondered what could have caused her to recieve so many wounds. The black sleeveless shirt slipped from her grasp and fell to the cold tile floor, forgotten as Meg saw the black and blue heavy bruising covering her right side. It looked like she might have a few broken ribs. She really needed to see a doctor.

Johan took the initiative, sliding off the rest of her clothes. The rest of her body was just as toned, smooth skin over firm muscles.

Now, as Johan turned around and moved toward the shower like Meg pointed, her eyes caught another detail she hadn't noticed. Overlaying the curves of her shoulder and back was a black tattoo, with many sleek curves and sharp points. It looked like it extended down her left arm, but Meg hadn't noticed it until now. It was clearly tribal in nature.

Johan stopped and turned around to look at Meg. Meg hastily brought her gaze up from her narrow waist and lower back dimples to return the look. Completely comfortable in all her nakedness, Johan simply beckoned for her to join.

Meg was caught off guard. Why did she want company in the shower? Perhaps all her various soaps and shampoos were unknown to her? Not unlikely, considering she didn't even know how to turn the shower on. Perhaps there was another reason...?

Meg shook her head. Now her imagination was just getting naughty. And she had no business thinking those thoughts.

She hurriedly stripped off her clothes, letting them land on the floor. No point in letting the water run, she thought. Her water bill was high enough.

She stepped into the shower first, and as she took Johan's hand to help her in, she couldn't even feel awkward. After everything she had been through all day today, the hot water felt nice.

Johan stepped under the hot stream of water, and closed her eyes. Meg took a second to look over her body again. The tan really worked for her. The scars weren't that noticeable unless you were actually staring, and there weren't so many of them that they detracted from her beauty. They were still a mystery, though. Who, in this day and age, got into that many fights?

The silver haired girl tilted her head back under the stream of hot water, and ran both her hands through her long hair. With her head tilted back, the tips hung down to her well curved behind, the color darkening slightly as it got wet.

Her right arm had stopped bleeding, and the pain didn't seem to bother her as the hot water pounded down on her cuts. Although, Meg thought, from the look of it, it took a lot to hurt this girl.

Meg moved closer so she could get wet from the water, and Johan immediately somehow felt her movement, for she opened her eyes and stared at her.

Meg froze, fearing another attack, but the girl only backed up and motioned for her to come closer. Meg did, and the hot water sprayed down onto her. She sighed softly as the water soaked her hair, dripping onto her nose as her bangs stuck to her cheeks.

"I can't help but notice, you're very well endowed." Johan said. Meg stared up at her, uncomprehending. Johan paused. She had forgotten the language barrier. She repeated herself slower, pointing first to her own chest and then holding her fingers about an inch apart, then pointed to Meg's chest, then held her fingers as wide apart as she could.

It was entertaining to see the red-headed girl flush bright red, her vibrant blue eyes widening as her hands covered up her chest.

Johan allowed herself a grin, and shrugged, palms up. There was nothing wrong with appreciating the healer's assets, she thought. Although she sure was shy. Had she never mated with anyone before? Although it did make sense. Dedicated healers in her time also never took mates.

The blue eyed girl looked away now, focusing her attention elsewhere. Johan watched as she grabbed a small container. The lid easily popped open, and a white cream was squeezed into her hand. Johan watched curiously as the red-head massaged this cream into her hair. She was unsure of it's purpose, but soon, it started to bubble in her hair. It also had an enticing scent.

After a few moments, the girl stopped. She opened her eyes and saw Johan watching her. She offered the bottle to her, but Johan was unsure of what to do. She shrugged, holding her hands up questioningly. The girl rolled her eyes in response. She proceeded to squeeze some of the liquid into her hand, then reached toward her. This time, Johan ignored the reaction to grab her arms, and allowed her to gently scrub at her hair.

It felt rather good, Johan thought, as she leaned into the touch. She closed her eyes, and let the healer scrub at her scalp.

After a few minutes, Meg had stopped. Johan didn't like that. She opened her eyes, and stared at Meg. She looked up at her questioningly. Johan gently reached down and grabbed her hands, ignoring the flinch that the gesture received. She then placed Meg's hands back onto her head, and leaned in close.

Meg blinked as she realized what Johan wanted. She wanted her head rubbed more. She blinked again. This girl was strange. No doubt about it. Cuts and bruises everywhere, what looked like a broken rib, and she wanted her damn head scratched. She sighed, and gently scratched at her skull like she would a dog. After a few minutes, she moved a bit closer so she could slide her hands from the top of her head, all the way down her back, through her hair. She didn't want all the soap sitting in one spot, even as the shower stream was washing it away.

Minutes ticked away unnoticed by both of them as Johan entrusted her life completely to the "healer." She had been in too many critical situations NOT to trust people offering help. Either way she would have died, so might as well take the chance that someone was being honest about wanting to help.

Meg, on the other hand, had no idea what was going on in the girl's head. She gently began to wash the soap out of her hair, being careful to get as much as she could. She didn't want to leave her with an itchy head later.

Meg soon finished with that, and pulled away. When Johan opened her eyes, it was clear she wanted her to continue, but did not make a grab for her hands like she had before. Meg took this opportunity to carefully wash the rest of her body, knowing that Johan was watching her every move. She seriously hoped Johan had perfected the art of imitation at this point; washing down another girl wasn't something she wanted to do.

Luckily, all she needed to do was squirt some body soap into the girl's hand, and she mimicked Meg, washing herself pretty thoroughly.

Meg exited the shower, dripping wet. Her own hair had long since rinsed itself free, and her body was clean. She was now feeling pretty tired, and ready for bed.

She yawned, as she thought about sleeping arrangements. She was far too tired to wash and dry her sheets tonight, and she wasn't sleeping on the bloodied fabric, so the girl could take the bed tonight. Tomorrow, she would clean them, and find out what to do with her. Part of her mind still insisted on making her go to the hospital, but another said that there was no way her ribs were broken. She was standing, bending, talking and moving normally. People with broken ribs didn't do that. Tomorrow would tell her all she needed to know.

She began brushing her teeth, staring at her reflection in the still-foggy mirror. She reached up and wiped away the condensed moisture, and was mildly surprised when Johan's face appeared beside her own.

Spitting out the toothpaste, she looked over her shoulder at the girl questioningly. The girl stared back, apparently waiting for direction.

Meg grabbed a towel from the rack on the wall, and tossed it to her. Immediately, the girl understood, and Meg looked away as she began drying herself.

'It's like dealing with a child.' Meg thought idly, resuming her brushing. 'But at least the child catches on quickly.'

Meg threw her toothbrush onto the sink, and wiped her mouth. She needed to dry off herself, she thought, as cold droplets of water dripped down her back from her wet hair. She suppressed a shiver, before taking a towel of her own. She wrapped it around her body, and opened the bathroom door. The cold air rushing in made her shiver, but a glance over her shoulder revealed no response from the similarly toweled silver haired girl.

Meg let the girl follow her back to her bedroom, where she was presented with another dilemma. She couldn't let her get dressed in her dirty, torn, bloody clothes, which meant she would need to find something to fit her. The bottom would be easy, she thought, as she rooted through her drawers. She glanced over her shoulder, and compared chest sizes. So would the top. Anything would fit that girl.

Meg quickly picked something out for herself, then gathered some clothes for the girl.

Turning around, she tossed them at Johan. She caught them swiftly, ever on guard.

Meg walked up to her, with her own clothes in hand.

"Clothes." She said firmly, holding up the mass of clothing.

Johan stared at her.

"Say after me, clothes. Clothes."

Johan nodded, holding her own bundle, but said nothing. Just that penetrating gaze...

Meg blinked, unsure of what to do. "Repeat!" She said. "Clothes."

"Clothesch." Johan said, the ending sounding a bit harsh from her native tongue.

Meg's mouth quirked up into a half-grin, and she coaxed the girl into trying again.

"Clothes!" She tried to enunciate the ending, and she saw Johan's brow furrow in concentration.

"Clothesh." She said. Meg nodded. "Good enough! The rest will come in time!"

She held up the bundle of clothes once more, and repeated the word clothes, then dropped them on the floor. She picked up one item, a shirt, and held it in front of her.

"Shirt." She said.

Johan looked at the item for a second, before reaching out and touching the fabric.

"Schirt." She said. Meg noticed that she was having trouble with pronouncing the 'sh' sound. It was rough, unrefined.

"Good, that one was easy." Meg said, using a tone she would on a dog or cat. She dropped the shirt, and picked up a new item. Holding it in front of her, she pronounced loudly and clearly what it was.

"Shorts."

As expected, Johan couldn't nail the 'sh', but she caught on. Meg smiled, and picked up the bundle of clothes.

"You have your clothes, now put on your shirt and shorts." She said. The girl only recognized the three words, and hesitated like Meg knew she would. Meg began putting on her own clothes, and the girl immediately followed.

When that was done, Meg sat on her bed and patted the space beside her. Johan walked over and sat down beside her. Meg took her arm, and placed it once more in her lap.

"Once I'm done wrapping this, it is bed time." She said, as she fished a roll of bandage from the still-open medkit. "I am really tired."

Slowly, she began wrapping the bandage around her arm, sealing up the cuts. They had already been disinfected, but she wasn't risking further infection later on.

Meg sighed softly. She wasn't really sure what to do. This girl seemed in no hurry to go back to where she came from. Whether she was a local or not, she wasn't sure. Johan had made no move to indicate her desire to leave, to go home, wherever that was.

Meg gently readjusted a section of bandage, before continuing. Did she want a roommate? She wondered. She wasn't sure. She would have to totally support her. Not even speaking Japanese, or even proper English, she would be hard pressed to get a job. Although, at the same time, she couldn't just throw her out. That wouldn't be fair, especially after taking her in.

She groaned, closing her eyes. She wasn't sure. She didn't know. Best to worry about this problem tomorrow, she thought. She leaned down and tore the bandage with her teeth, before securing it with a small piece of tape.

"All done." She said. She patted her arm gently, then looked up at her. "Get some sleep." She said. "We can...er...talk...tomorrow. Night."

With that, Meg got up. She packed all her tools into her medkit, and shoved it carelessly under her bed.

"I'm going to sleep out there," She said, pointing outside the door. "But come get me if you have any problems, or need anything. Night." With that, she left. She was supposed to go to work tomorrow, but she would have to call in sick. She didn't want to...couldn't afford to. Yet she couldn't leave her home alone.

Sighing exhaustedly once more, she let herself fall onto her couch, eyes closed. All this, she could deal with tomorrow. Right now, she just wanted sleep.

A/N: Yay for more interaction! Can't wait for more! Please read and review, let me know what you think! This should have been up sooner, but document manager wouldn't let me upload :( Ah well, I look forward to your thoughts, comments, and criticism.