Hoorah! Another chapter! I've decided to pace myself because summer (and more importantly, finals) are coming and I tend to get really busy around then. So to make sure I can update on time, I shall be sticking to one chapter a week...unless I can't help myself and the reviews are just too awesome to resist sneaking an extra one...Yeah, I'm not good with those types of promises. You guys just make it difficult with all your wonderful reviews!
So a big thank you is in order for: YuujouKami, xxtoushirou, Alexandria Voulturi, anna the viking XD, Preppy-Stealthy-Ninja, and April Marciona! You guys are great!
I also want to thank the adds and favs!
I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!
Chapter 7 A Magnet for Trouble
Lily sat up with a start. She looked around quickly, scanning for any signs of danger before forcing herself to take deep breaths and to calm down. She pressed a hand over her eyes as she tried to shake the uneasy feeling scratching at her gut. Her nightmare had left her shaken and feeling completely vulnerable. Actually it had only been the second part that scared her so badly. It told her that her past was going to be dredged up in one of the worst ways possible. The first part of her nightmare had been bad, but it felt more like a premonition than anything else. She had, had dreams like that before where she would see something she had never seen before, then the next day or even several months later she would see that same scene. But she usually just chalked it all up to déjà vu. The first part of her nightmare felt like one of those dreams, yet she found herself hoping that it wasn't going to come to life because there was still a lot of pain involved, though she couldn't feel it properly like she felt the gunshot wound.
When Lily finally looked up, she realized that it was in the early, early hours of the morning. As in, the ones she usually avoided in favor of another few hours of sleep. The sky was just starting to turn blue with a little orange on the lower edges of the horizon. And while it was sort of invigorating and refreshing to look at, the images of Lily's dream was still flashing through her mind.
Deciding that she needed to work off a little steam and anxiety, Lily got up and dressed herself in capri sweatpants and a tank top so that she could go for an early morning jog. She'd have to run through the forest since what she was wearing was considered indecent to the people of this time, but that would probably fit her best right now since she didn't want to see anyone. The raven haired girl popped open her window wide open and hopped out. She jogged a distance into the forest before stretching and heading off. It felt great to work her muscles and to run through such beautiful scenery unperturbed. The only problem was that it seemed to take twice as much running to work herself into a good sweat, which was strange because Lily knew that she could only run about three miles with an even breath. But eventually she started to get to the point she desired and decided that it would be wise to turn back.
However, on route back to the mansion, Lily chanced upon a trapped bear. It was roaring in pain with its foot trapped under a fallen tree, her cub whimpering by her side. When the poor creature noticed Lily, she roared and tried to scare the human away. But Lily took a few steps forward to get a better look at the bear's situation. With a nod, she ran off and grabbed a sturdy branch and a decent size small boulder. She placed the rock close to the nearest end of the tree and bear, then shoved the branch under the other end of the trunk.
"If I place the fulcrum close to the weighted end, then I should have the optimal lifting capability," Lily muttered and with a grunt she pushed down on the other end with all her might.
Just because she was a whole lot stronger than her usual self, it seemed that lifting a tree was still out of her league. But the bear needed her help, so she was going to give it her all. After all, she couldn't just let the mama bear die and leave her cub behind. The bear seemed to realize what Lily was doing because she stopped trying to bat the girl away and focused on her back paw once more. The raven haired girl gave another almighty push, just as the bear gave a great tug on her foot, and the two managed to get her free.
Lily fell onto her butt panting and observed the mama and her cub reunite. She figured that now that the bear was free, they would both go running off as far away from the human as possible. But the mama bear surprised her by plodding over. Lily stiffened, expecting the bear to attack. But the mama bear sniffed the girl and then licked her. The cub also climbed onto her lap and licked her face as well.
"Ew! Knock it off you two! That's gross!" But Lily smiled as she wiped off her face. "But I'm glad I could help. Do you want me to bandage your paw for you?"
The mama bear shook her head.
Lily hummed a little and ruffed the fur on top of the now hyperactive cub's head. "Is it okay if I come up with a name to call you two? Even if we never see each other again, it'd be nice to have a name to remember you by."
The mama bear nodded once and her cub rubbed his head into the crook of the girl's neck.
"Okay! Hmmm~…Then I'll call you Honey," Lily nodded to the mama then turned toward her cub, "and you can be Charlie!"
The cub gave the girl a little baby growl and nuzzled the girl again before climbing off and going back to his mother.
'Only in an anime could a human like me gain the trust and become friends with animals like this.' Lily smiled and placed a hand on the older bear's forehead and rubbed the surprisingly soft fur. "You should get going with your day. I'm sure you have lots to do. But if you ever want to, feel free to visit me! I find that most of the time I like the company of animals more than humans. You guys don't judge based on appearances and you lead a simpler sort of lifestyle."
The bear seemed to smirk, but nodded and headed off.
"Alright! Now to build the emotional wall against judgmental old villagers who won't approve of me!" Lily pumped a fist into the air and took off again.
After getting cleaned up and dressed, Lily traveled down to the kitchens to eat breakfast. She was horrified to see Alaude sitting by the counter drinking from a small cup. She would have backtracked and asked a maid to get her something, but the man had spotted her the moment she walked in. So now Lily was frozen stiff by the door, trying hard not to react with that critical gaze on her.
"Erm…Hi…" Lily said awkwardly.
Alaude just closed his eyes and looked away, to the girl's relief.
Lily moved robotically and took the seat farthest from the man, eating her breakfast in a way that she hoped didn't look too hurried.
"After you get back from town, report to my office." Alaude stood up and left before the other had time to respond.
"Ah…" Lily just gaped. 'What the hell was that all about?' She sighed and finished up her breakfast.
But as she was heading out to look for the blond leader, she passed by the conference room and heard something interesting. As in someone was translating wrong interesting. Despite knowing that it was rude and probably life threatening if she eavesdropped on an important meeting between mafia bosses, Lily backtracked a little and stood next to the door.
"(Chinese) Vongola Primo has proposed to lower the price to only ¥10,000 and no less," A man said to the wealthy man seated across from Giotto.
The man stroked his beard and studied the other boss in front of him. "(Chinese) Then I suppose that shall be good enough."
Lily opened the door silently and leaned against the frame. "(Chinese) I wouldn't listen to that translator if I were you sir."
The group looked up and around at the girl.
Giotto raised an eyebrow at the girl. "(Italian) What are you doing here Lily?"
"(Chinese) Who are you?" The Asian boss asked.
"(Chinese) No one of importance. But you should know that the number Vongola Primo agreed to translates to ¥8,000 not 10,000. From the looks of it, your translator is trying to make a profit through your business dealings and he's probably gotten away with it so far. Does anyone see him buying this and living a life he shouldn't really afford? Though I'm sure you pay him well, there is still a limit to how much he should be able to have money for."
"(Chinese) How dare you, you insolent woman!" The translator hissed.
"(Chinese) You'd be even more foolish if you thought I was inferior to you. I'm positive that I have more knowledge than you, not to mention essential life skills," Lily said coldly.
"(Italian) Oi! Lily, knock it off," G said firmly.
The black haired girl shook her head. "(Italian) Hold on. This guy has been translating wrong so that he can make a profit." She turned back to the other boss. "(Chinese) I mean you no disrespect, but I would advise you to get a new translator. Vongola Primo would not be so inconsiderate and unfair with his business dealings. I may think he's a bit of an idiot, but I know he is a good man who gives more than he really should to benefit others."
The other boss stroked his beard thoughtfully. "(Chinese) I believe you girl. I've been suspicious of Li here for a long time. I thank you for giving me the proof I needed."
Lily's eyebrows shot up. "(Chinese) You mean, you actually believe me even though I'm a woman?"
The old man chuckled. "(Chinese) I have lived long enough to know that even a woman will have a sharp mind, and a few will have even a sharper mind than any man. I can tell by your eyes that you have a strong mind and body. I assume that is the reason that these men," he gestured toward Giotto and G, "trust you enough to deal with this situation."
Lily eased into a smile. "(Chinese) Thank you for your trust."
"(Italian) How dare you, you lowly woman!" The translator dove forward to attack, but his movements were slow and clumsy showing that, despite his relatively high status, he had been living a life of luxury and ease.
Lily dodged his blow easily, spinning around to elbow his stomach, then continuing the motion to shove the heel of her palm into his nose. But she froze just before she hit and released the man, allowing him to stumble back a few paces. "(Chinese) You should be more careful. I almost killed you there."
The man would have tried attacking her again, but a couple of the Chinese Boss' bodyguards stepped forward and restrained him.
"(Chinese) I apologize. I had not expected that reaction." The old man nodded his head forward a little.
But Lily smirked. "(Chinese) I think you did. But you let him so that you could see a bit of my combat ability, no?"
But the old man just chuckled.
"(Chinese) If there is ever the chance, I would love to sit down and have tea with you. I love talking to elders, they always have the most amusing stories and life lessons, and you seem like a good companion to play mahjong with."
It was the elder's turn to raise his eyebrows. "You know mahjong? Are you any good? I'm always looking for a new challenge."
"(Chinese) Well, I'm really just a novice still. But I could give it my best," Lily said humbly.
The old man laughed. "You're an amusing one. You must come to visit my palace sometime! I'm sure my sons and daughters would like your company! You can tell the Vongola that I agree with his price and he has my alliance for sure now."
The raven haired girl smiled brightly. "(Chinese) Really? Thank you very much! Ah! By the way, my name is Lily Hong."
"My name is Chen Wáng."
Lily nodded and turned to the confused Primo and storm guardian. "(Italian) Mr. Wáng has not only agreed to your price for whatever it is you were talking about, but he says that you also have his alliance now."
The duo's eyebrows shot up. But G was the first to recover from shock and answer while Giotto just studied the raven haired girl curiously. "Really? I guess we can ask after this, just tell him that we're very thankful and we'll contact him soon about the formal matters of the alliance."
Lily nodded and translated what the red head had just said to the old man, who nodded then announced that it was time for him to leave, as he had other matters he had to attend to that day. Lily stood up and bowed, allowing the man to leave with the promise that they would play a game and sit down for a cup of tea soon.
"So what exactly happened just now?" G asked dubiously. "We've been trying to get him to form an alliance with us for over a year now, but we've only managed a few business dealings."
Lily shrugged. "Guess he liked me."
"Can you translate everything said between the three of you?" Giotto inquired, still studying the girl. It was almost as if he was trying to decide something.
"Sure, just don't ask again an hour from now." Lily proceeded to tell the duo everything that was said the moment she first heard their conversation and stepped in. "I really wasn't planning on listening in. I was actually on my way to your office, but when I heard the numbers being translated so far off, I really just had to step in."
"Well, thank you for that." G smiled softly. "It's good to know that someone was able to step in just in time."
"I'm just glad he believed me. I know how Asian cultures look down on females, so I thought he might try to kill me for my insolence," Lily said dreadfully.
G shook his head. "I can't believe you didn't think of that until now."
Lily rolled her eyes, but before she could say her witty retort, Primo cut in.
"I'd like you to be my translator for now on." The blond kept his eyes on the girl to gauge her reaction.
"…Hah?" Lily deadpanned.
The sky guardian chuckled. It was amusing to watch such a usually wordy person become incapable of even the simplest forms of speech. "You have a fair number of languages under your belt, many of which even my guardians don't know, and it would be beneficial to my famiglia if I didn't have to use temporary interpreters or rely on the other famiglia's translator to decipher everything for me. It has proven time and time again to be a mistake on my part to do so, as you demonstrated today."
The raven haired girl just continued to stare at the man with an blank, if not slightly bored, expression "No."
"And why not?" The blond asked calmly.
"Honestly, I also think it would be a good idea," G agreed.
"I've run about 127 scenarios of what could happen through my head, and 86 percent of the time I ended up dead or heavily wounded," Lily told the men expressionlessly. "It wouldn't be a good idea for a woman to take that place. It doesn't matter if I can fight. I'm not bullet proof, nor am I capable of living through multiple stab wounds. There's also the case that many of your business dealings will not be as agreeable as they were before and you would lose many alliances. I may have free reign to do what I want here and where I came from, but it would be foolish to think that I had that same privilege everywhere else in the world."
"I think we could handle those situations well enough. Besides, you have proven that you can take care of yourself just fine. Or did you not notice the poisoned blade in that Li man's sleeve?" Giotto pointed out.
Lily nodded hesitantly. "I saw it. That's why I knocked his arm back when I rolled into him to strike his stomach."
The blond nodded. "You see. As for the bullets, G is with me more often than not, especially since I don't have a Consigliere, and he is more than capable of taking out any potential threats before they get the chance to act. You also showed that you just as good as any man, if not more so, and I'm sure that you can prove that once again like you did today."
Lily grimaced. "That position is suicidal…But," she sighed heavily because of what she was about to do, "because I hate owing people or getting something without paying properly, I'll do it. That way I'm not staying here for free anymore."
The sky guardian and his right hand man smiled warmly.
Lily sighed. "I hope I don't come to regret this."
Giotto chuckled. "We'll make sure you won't. Now let's head to town. I'm sure there are plenty who would like to personally thank you for your help nearly a week ago."
"Right, right." Lily waved them away casually. But when their backs were turned, she frowned. She had a sense of foreboding about going back to that town. Normally her dreams would have disappeared by now. But both of her nightmares were still sticking to her, and that was a bad sign on its own. However, she didn't know how to put the feeling into words without sounding foolish, so she kept her worries to herself. She would just have to be extra vigilant and try not to get separated from the others.
That last thought proved to be nearly impossible, because the moment they stepped into town, their group was practically mobbed and Lily was pulled into many handshakes and kisses by the townsfolk. And while she wasn't afraid of contact or closed spaces, this amount of crowding was going to drive her insane.
"So what's your name?"
"Where did you come from?"
"We are all eternally grateful!"
"Where did you learn to fight like that?"
"How old are you?"
"Are you married?"
"Did you always Primo and the others?"
"Thank you for all your help!"
"How is it that you can speak Italian now?"
"I…I…" Lily didn't know where to start, and it didn't look like she would get a chance anytime soon either. Her eyebrow twitched a little in annoyance. She was sorely tempted to switch to another language just so they would leave her alone, or at least take the time to ask Primo and the others one by one so that their questions could be translated. Then again, she could always just run away and feign a fear of being surrounded…Running away sounded nice.
But before the girl could attempt a hasty retreat, Giotto decided to jump in. "Calm down everyone, it's not like she's going to suddenly disappear anytime soon. Maybe we should try this again."
"Or I could just answer everything all at once," Lily piped up. She took a deep (and dramatic) breath before beginning. "My name is Lily Hong; I came from somewhere really, really, really far away; You don't have to thank me, I wanted to help; I learned how to fight a number of years ago and I learned from a lot of different people; I'm 18 now, but I'll be 19 soon; I'm not married, and I'm not looking for such a relationship at this point; I only just met Vongola Primo and company the same day your town was attacked; Again, please don't thank me. I couldn't just stand by and watch all of you get hurt; And I know so many languages that I forgot, plus I forgot that I wasn't in France anymore," Lily finished answering in a rush and all in one breath. She kept her answers vague as possible, only lying when she had to.
It was then that the children took over and pulled her away before any of the other adults could continue to bombard her with questions. They pointed to where they wanted to go, laughing and giggling, all of them happy that they had a new playmate and story teller. The kids ran ahead knowing that the girl knew where she was going and would meet them at the fountain at her own pace. In a few moments the girl was left eerily alone as she traversed over to the center of town where the kids were waiting for her. Everything was going smoothly, too well in fact.
So when Lily was thrown and pinned to an alley wall, she knew she was in trouble…again.
It seems that I have left you with another cliffhanger again...sorry about that. ^^"
Well, I hope you liked this chapter despite that!
Reviews are lovely!
