A/N: I shall put this shortly... My laptop died, and weeks afterward my PC died, and I lost EVERYTHING I had worked for on this story... It took me a while to recover from the soul-crushing blow, but I'm going to try and rifle through my brain to get the plot back... I had this one planned from start to finish, too, and it's all gone. _;
Honestly I could kick myself for leaving this one in such a horrible place! "That is for you to find out," I said, just as Cobra said to Nezumi! Find out when!? Next fucking year!? I should go flog myself in the streets...
With just a few customary knocks to the door Cobra invited himself into the spectacular manor, and with a playful smile he announced his presence, "Oh? What's this? Is nobody home..?"
Nezumi followed Cobra uncomfortably as he walked right through the door uninvited, but just as his words echoed through the hallways countless voices responded to him. In seconds there was a stampede of feet running into the foyer, the sound rivaled only by the excited laughter of several young children. Instinctively Nezumi darted behind Cobra's legs, but rather than being shielded he wound up in the dead center of the crowd.
Cobra chuckled over the rabble of the kids' endless stream of questions, and for Nezumi's sake he reached down to lift the nervous boy into his arms. Perhaps he should have warned Nezumi at first, given his unpredictable and occasionally violent outbursts, but more than anything Cobra wanted this to be an enlightening surprise.
Under normal circumstances Nezumi would have fought back against Cobra, or at least glared at him, but in this case he felt much safer being raised above the horde - even if it did draw more attention to him.
"Who's that, Cobra?"
"Is she going to live here, too?"
"Hey Crobra, what's that thing over your eye?"
"Huh? Is that a boy or a girl?"
"It's a girl, silly!"
"No, look closer, she could be a boy, too!"
"Are you pretending to be a pirate?"
All at once the children asked their questions, leaving Cobra at a clear disadvantage. He could only manage to laugh helplessly as they all vied for his attention, until finally the calvary arrived.
"Okay, kids, I think you've kept him at the door long enough," a stern, but kind and motherly voice called out over the rest, "Go clean up and get ready for him."
"Get ready for him..?" Nezumi's mind repeated, causing him to shiver as he thought the worst, "He is a pedophile..!"
As the sea of children scampered off Cobra sighed in relief, and with Nezumi still in his arms he offered a greatful nod rather than his usual bow. "My thanks, Lady Noriko," he said with a smile, "I didn't expect such an overwhelming greeting."
The woman returned the smile solemnly as she stepped closer, and once in range she placed a tentative hand on Cobra's left cheek. "Well you have been gone for longer than usual," she replied plainly, then carefully lifted the eyepatch to inspect the wound.
"It isn't near as bad as it looks, I promise," Cobra said gently, but regardless of his assurance she tilted his head upwards towards the light for a better view. With just a faint sigh he surrendered, allowing her to appraise the damage for herself.
Nezumi could only stare in quiet awe as Cobra submitted to the woman, and for a while he questioned his judgements even further; it was almost as if Cobra enjoyed having her attention. "Who is she..?" the boy wondered as he intently watched her.
She was fairly tall, for a woman, with auburn hair pulled into a bun and elegant-but-subtle clothing consisting of a white blouse with a faded violet jacket, and a knee-length skirt in a brighter purple hue. As soon as she was done with Cobra her pale green eyes turned straight to Nezumi. "I see you've brought us a new family member, Cobra," she said with a gentle smile.
With a smile Cobra held on to Nezumi tighter, and happily nuzzled against his cheek. "Actually, this one's mine," he replied contently, but left it simply at that. "Nezumi, this is Lady Noriko. She's responsible for the children who live here. Noriko, this adorable little one is Nezumi."
"I'm shocked," Noriko stated honestly and turned to Cobra with an intrigued expression, "I never imagined you would take in a child. He must be really special for you to get so attached."
Nezumi blushed shamefully and hid his face against Cobra's shoulder to brood. Sure, he was 'special' alright! Special enough for Cobra to kiss and cuddle in ways that no man should do to an innocent child! ... well... not exactly innocent, but murders aside he was still just a kid!
Cobra raised his bare right hand to the back of Nezumi's head, further shielding him from view. "Special indeed. Nezumi isn't from around this area and he isn't exactly people-friendly yet," Cobra explained with a laugh, "He got himself into a lot of trouble recently, so I figured it would be best to look after him myself; the last thing you need is a trouble-maker."
"I see," Noriko said idly, her eyes scanning Nezumi carefully. He seemed tame enough, if a little shy, but she knew better than to question Cobra's judgement. "The children should be ready for you by now; you probably shouldn't keep them waiting," she said after a brief pause, and politely moved aside.
Cobra nodded and walked further into the manor, cutting through the hall until coming to a large open room filled with tables. Brightly he smiled at the room's crowd of occupants, then made his way across the room to the workstation in the farthest corner.
Again Nezumi felt greatly discomforted as the eyes of dozens of children watched him, most of them smiling or waving as Cobra walked by. As they reached the workbench Nezumi was set down in a large chair, and quietly he watched as Cobra riffled through the various drawers. Screw drivers, a hammer, pliers, bolts, nuts, springs, wires, metal scraps and pipes of all sizes, in seconds the workbench was neatly covered in an assortment of supplies, but at first Nezumi had no idea what they were for. Finally Cobra pulled up a seat at Nezumi's side, allowing the boy to ask the question at last, "What is all of this junk?"
"You'll understand soon enough," Cobra replied with an enigmatic smile, but with sorrow residing in his tone. "First table, come on up!" he called out to the crowd, and a small group of six children eagerly made their way to the workbench. "So, who all needs repairs?"
Immediately three hands were raised into air, and with the truth bared before him Nezumi understood: the hands held above him were made of metal instead of flesh and bone, and the supplies Cobra laid out were for them.
With his gloved left hand Cobra picked out one of the metallic appendages and brought it closer, and with his right he carefully tested the movement between the parts. "I see you've managed to get it sticky again, Aoi," he said lightly, but glanced at her suspiciously, "Have you been stealing the sweets again?" The girl shook her head innocently, but Cobra knew better as he took the pieces apart to clean them individually; the half-sticky, half-dried mess of sugar and syrup was all the proof he needed. "I'll have to swap out the locks to the pantry before I leave again," Cobra said with a smirk as he pieced everything back together, "Though I'm sure you'll have it mastered in no time, Little Miss Lock-pick."
Aoi giggled proudly and tested the repaired limb, turning the knobs and repositioning the fingers to various positions before placing it in a thumb's up.
Cobra gave her a smile before setting his sights on the next hand, and sighed loudly even before he took a closer look at the damage. "So what was it this time, Hiroshi? A wall? A tree? The table again?" he asked with a kind but subtle strictness, and got to work carefully bending the metal with the pliers in order to remove a few crushed metal fingers.
"... a door," the boy answered guiltily, "Kana stole my desert and ran into the bathroom with it so I punched the door..."
"Did not!" a voice called out from one of the far tables.
Cobra chuckled and patted the boy on the head, dissolving his anger before he could react, "I'll have a talk with Lady Noriko then."
"Not like she ever listens to me..." Hiroshi grumbled, staring idly at what remained of his prosthetic hand.
"Perhaps if you came to her before breaking things she'd be more inclined to listen. She isn't made of patience you know," Cobra replied with a smirk, then got to work on hammering the metal digits back into form against the corner of the worktable. With a few minor tweaks with the pliers the job was done, and he quickly attached them back to the hand.
Hiroshi went through a few cycles of repositioning his fingers, and finished off with a balled fist that he brought down in a confident fist-pump. "Thanks, Cobra," he said with a bold smile, "I'll try to keep my temper in check..."
Cobra nodded and set his sights on the third child, clearly the oldest of the group, but the boy's hand was hidden beneath the table, and his eyes were downcast. "Come on, Rei, let me see it," Cobra encouraged gently, and kept his gloved hand held out until the other surrendered. "Caked with mud again, I see?" Cobra smirked and eyed the child suspiciously, "Has a certain someone been helping Rina with the garden?"
A blush rose to Rei's cheeks and he nodded shortly, clearly embarassed by the topic.
"So have you told her yet?" Cobra asked, his smirk growing wider by the second as he took the metal pieces apart to clean them.
Rei shook his head and sank even lower into the chair. "I'm scared to..." he admitted in a hushed whisper, "What if she doesn't like me back?"
Cobra could only smile as he replaced some of the eroded pins and springs, but once the hand was pieced back together he glanced over the workbench to the girl in question, "Trust me on this one: she does."
"Really?" Rei replied and immediately perked up, "But how do you know?"
With an impartial shrug Cobra pointed over Rei's shoulder, prompting him to turn around and see for himself. As quick as he turned away Rei whipped back to the front, his blush practically glowing as he broke eye contact with the subject of his affections. "She's had her eyes upon you the entire time," Cobra answered with a sly grin, "That's how I know."
With an unsteady hand Rei tested out the new parts, and left the center pin of his wrist loose as he turned around, pressed his lips to his fingertips, and flicked his wrist to let the palm fall as he exhaled, blowing a kiss to the girl. Rina smiled as she caught the invisble kiss, and placed her own kiss upon it before blowing it back to him in return.
Cobra smiled proudly as Rei turned back to face him, then he curiously set his sights on the other three. "So... what brought the rest of you up here?"
"We wanted to see the new girl!" one of them answered quickly.
"I'm telling you, it's a boy!"
Nezumi raised his gaze to them both with an unamused glare, but before he could speak up the third child interrupted.
"I want to know why you're dressed like a pirate!"
With a lighthearted laugh Cobra set his sights on the crowd of children, all eyes waiting for him to answer. There was no way around it, not even for Cobra. He set his hand on Nezumi's shoulder first to get his attention, then without warning he rose to his feet and lifted Nezumi back into his arms. "This is Nezumi, and though I did bring him here for today, he won't be staying with you all."
"Aww, why not?"
"See! Told ya it was a boy!"
"So where is he staying, Cobra? Does he have a family?"
Cobra paused until the responses subsided, and with a bright smile he gave his answer, "He'll be staying with me."
Immediately the room was flooded with the envious responses of dozens of children, each of them wondering why Cobra had decided to take this one home unlike the rest of them. As quick as he could Nezumi hid his face against Cobra's neck, trying in vain to ignore them while he bared his teeth in rage. How could they not know what Cobra was like? The unwanted kisses, the forced embraces, the licks!?
"And while it's true that my attraction has always been towards my own gender I can say that currently you're the only one who has my interest - child or not."
Nezumi's anger subsided as Cobra's voice crossed through his mind, and the truth finally clicked. Cobra wasn't some sort of creepy pedophile... The children didn't shy away from him or fear him; they loved him, as a child would love a father or an older brother, and that's exactly how he treated them. There wasn't even a hint of Cobra trying anything inappropriate around them - he was completely harmless! "Why..?" Nezumi asked himself, desparately trying to reach an answer, "Why only me..?"
"Because Nezumi isn't like the rest of you," Cobra's voice cut through, loud and clear over the clamor of other voices. The room quickly fell silent, and with a brief sigh Cobra continued, "Nezumi isn't a child anymore. What he's been through, the things he has done... no one here would be able relate to him. He wouldn't be able to function in a place such as this, and yet he had no chance of surviving on his own either. I took Nezumi as my own because I can accept him for who he is, and I know that one day he'll be able to accept me. I realize that you are all envious of him, but please try to understand." Cobra paused a moment as he glanced at the room's many saddened faces, and with another sigh he raised his gloved left hand to the white eyepatch. "My life is one filled with peril and strife, as my latest wound can clearly attest," he said gravely, then lowered his hand with a somber smile, "I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I dragged any of you into it. You deserve better."
"But you can drag him into it?" one of the children rebutted, still clearly hurt by this new development.
Cobra's lips parted as he started to speak, but before he could utter a single syllable Nezumi clapped his hand over Cobra's lips. He had heard enough, and he was growing weary of the other childrens' complaining. "He can because it's my fault that Cobra lost his eye," Nezumi stated firmly, and turned to Cobra with a sharp glare the instant his lips moved again. "Shut up, Master," Nezumi demanded, interrupting Cobra before he could even speak, then set his sights back on the stunned children. "I killed three people when I came here, and I wounded another by stabbing him in the left eye. I was chased down and beaten, and I would have died if Cobra hadn't made a deal to save me. He sacrificed his eye so I could keep mine, and now he basically owns me," Nezumi said bluntly, laying down the facts in simple terms to get his point across, "Cobra's a sentimental idiot who gets himself into a lot of trouble, and he's way too irresponsible to take care of a bunch of whiny brats all day; none of you would last a day before begging to come back here." With his statement given Nezumi moved his hand away from Cobra's mouth, but his glare remained firm, "Now quit parading me around like a damned trophy and put me down."
For just a few seconds Cobra stood still, his lips just barely parted as he stared at Nezumi in shock. He had definitely not expected him to speak out so directly to the other children, but it served well to prove many of Cobra's points; Nezumi definitely would not have fit in with the other children, and without a shadow of a doubt Cobra was now certain that Nezumi would lay claim to his heart - whether he wanted it or not. With a smile forming Cobra rested his forehead against Nezumi's, his eyes closing as he settled in the moment. "As you wish, my little rat," Cobra answered at last, and set Nezumi back down in the chair.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in a strained silence for Nezumi. The other children came and went as Cobra made repairs to their prosthetic hands, but the chatter had died down immensely as their eyes lingered apprehensively on Nezumi. His fierce scolding had put them all in their place, and it took a fair amount of coaxing for Cobra to get a response out of them.
Eventually the last of the prosthetic hands was repaired, and Lady Noriko called the children to play outside. With the room cleared out Cobra leaned back in his seat and stretched, then with a smile he set his sights on Nezumi, "You seem tense, my little rat."
Nezumi averted his stagnant glare with a huff. "Isn't that why you brought me here?" he asked dryly.
Cobra laughed and shook his head, "Actually, no. Your outburst was most unexpected, but I am grateful for it."
"Huh?" Nezumi asked and curiously turned back to him, "Why would you be glad that I told them all off?" He was expecting Cobra to be mad at him, or at least a little upset.
"Because it's something important that they needed to hear, but I didn't know how to say it," Cobra answered with a smile, and pecked Nezumi on the cheek, "I still need to make a few repairs to the manor itself; would you like to tag along with me or would you rather wait here?"
Nezumi glared at the unexpected kiss, but with a sigh he stood up from the chair. "I'll tag along," he answered quietly, then looked up at his master with a threatening scowl, "But I'm done being carried around."
Cobra smiled and took Nezumi's hand instead, and gently kissed the back of his fingers. "I only carried you because I was worried that the kids would get too bothersome, and I didn't want them to be within your striking range when you finally snapped," Cobra explained with a smirk and rose to his feet, with Nezumi's hand still held, "After your display, however, I feel I have little to worry about; they'll be too afraid to get near you now, which is exactly what I anticipated. I was right from the very beginning... You wouldn't last a day in a healthy environment like this."
Nezumi frowned at the comment, but deep down he knew it was the truth. Quietly he followed Cobra around the manor, lost deep in his thoughts as he came to terms with his situation. Cobra was right, about everything. Even if he tried his best Nezumi would never be able to understand the carefree lives of the other children, even with their physical scars and traumas. For most of their lives they were protected, shelterred, loved... while Nezumi had fought from the very beginning, betrayed, hunted, and hated. He wasn't a child anymore, not since he had taken his first life, and those marks on his soul would never disappear. He was broken...
"I took Nezumi as my own because I can accept him for who he is, and I know that one day he'll be able to accept me."
Nezumi frowned as Cobra's voice once again invaded his thoughts, but he couldn't deny that in that moment, he was grateful for them. Cobra did accept him. His hatred, his pain, his fury, no matter what he did, or what he had done, Cobra looked past it... No, he embraced it. Even if he was overbearing with the affection, it was completely genuine. There were no hidden motives behind Cobra's actions; he just wanted a companion who could understand him, and Nezumi happened to be the only candidate around.
With a muffled sigh Nezumi glanced up at Cobra, now standing on a ladder ten feet high to replace the lightbulbs in the chandelier, and for he first time, he smiled at his master.
A/N: Yay character growth! There's nothing like watching how healthy, normal people live their lives to help you take a good, long look at your own faults! Nezumi's finally going to understand what it truly means to not be a child. :D
