The first thing I did when I woke up was try to figure out what outfit I was going to wear. Though I've said before that I don't necessarily try and be stylish, it more or less just happens. I've got an okay eye for style, at least. Today, I obviously didn't want to wear something that was pink and fluffy. I didn't even own anything like that, so that wasn't a huge concern. However, I also didn't want to wear one of the black-themed outfits I normally wore. That might seem like I was being over-eager to be evil. I ended up grabbing a short, dark blue skirt with a navy blue and red striped sleeveless shirt. It wasn't my favorite outfit in the world, nor was it the most professional outfit in the world. I'm not entirely sure why I picked it, other than the fact that I owned very few okay-looking outfits that weren't totally black. It's not that I was goth or anything. I just liked black. On top, I put on a good-looking jean jacket for the sake of having some pockets to put some money in. I didn't have a huge array of shoes to choose from, and eventually just went with an average looking pair of black shoes that slid easily on to my feet. They were comfortable, which was the important thing when I was going to walk all the way to Easter.
Next was the process of convincing my mom to let me leave the house. It shouldn't be too hard - even under the circumstances of my unofficial grounding, I doubted she would make me stay in the house on a nice Saturday like today. My dad was at work, despite the fact that it was the weekend. It would probably take me over an hour to walk to the main headquarters of the Easter Corporation, so I needed my mom to let me stay out for a while. Probably past lunch, at least.
I found my mom doing the laundry downstairs. "Hey mom!" I said, talking over the noise of the clothes dryer. Before she turned around, I went into a chara-change. I was starting to get pretty good at it - I had found that I could turn it on when I really needed it, but it was sort of a given that I didn't want to go around with it on all the time. Someone would figure out something was wrong with me, eventually. Despite this control over my chara-change, it still happened just as often when I wasn't expecting it. I'm not sure if this was Azami's work or something that just happened when a person has a chara.
My mom turned around, only to find herself unable to look away from my red eyes. "Mom, I'm going to be going to a friend's house today. I'll probably be there most of the afternoon, and maybe even into the evening." I poured on the pressure of my gaze.
"Uhh... but you really shouldn't be going anywhere..." she said, though it sounded weak.
"Why not?" I asked. "It's a gorgeous day, and I really don't want to stay cooped up in my room all day."
"Well... I.... I should at least know where you're going." My mom said. She sounded a bit more certain in this, so I focused more of my gaze with my next retort.
"Come on, Mom. I've been good all week. Can't you start to trust me? Besides, you're working so hard with the laundry, and I don't want to bother you. As I said, it's really nice outside, so I thought I'd just walk."
"Oh... All right." She said, finally giving in.
I snapped out of my chara change. "Thanks mom!" I shouted as I headed quickly to the door. I wanted to get out of there before she changed her mind. It was only about eleven in the morning, and since I had eaten breakfast fairly soon before leaving, I probably wouldn't need to eat until after my little meeting. I pulled the directions I had written down on a notecard out of one of the pockets of my jacket. Though I was fairly sure I knew where to go without it, I still wanted it with me. Just in case. I took up a fairly brisk pace, just fast enough that I would hopefully cover some good distance, yet slow enough that I hoped I wouldn't tire myself out. Azami alternately flew by my side and sat on my head. I carried nothing with me - I really didn't want a purse of something getting in my way.
True to my prediction, it took over an hour for me to arrive. In fact, it was nearly twelve forty-five before I got there. Admittedly, the last thirty or forty-five minutes had been pressing buttons and waiting for walk-lights to give me the 'okay' so I could safely cross the busy streets of the business district. That last while of stop-and-go for me allowed me to catch my breath. Not to say that I was out of shape or anything, but I had walked quickly over a good distance. My legs were sore by the time I made it to the first busy intersection, and I was glad for those short chances to stop walking. As I made my way through the busy streets and sidewalks, I thought about what I was going to commit myself to.
Well, obviously, the only thing I really want from them is power. But what about what Ikuto had said?
"Azami?" I asked.
"Yeah?" she said from on top of my head.
"What if I do end up losing my freedom in this deal? I mean, I'm going into the den of the beast here - they might try and force me to make an agreement that I wouldn't normally take."
"So?" she asked. "You still want power, right? And you still want to join up with the bad guys, right?"
"Well, yeah, but..." I said.
"But nothing. Do what you want to do, and live with the consequences later. Besides, what are they gonna do to control you? As much as you care for the guardians, you're still betraying them. I doubt they could use them as a threat. And though I'm sure you care about your parents, you've got a dragon heart somewhere in you - I know you could live without them. And they could threaten us personally, but what fun is there in this whole thing if there isn't a little bit of danger? If we really wanted to stop working for them, how are they gonna stop us? It's like when I hatched. You can more or less do whatever you want. The only question lies in whether or not you would do it." Azami said. As always, she had no doubt in her answer.
"You're so mean!" I said, partially joking. But then again, maybe she was right. I wanted to be a dragon. And though I cared about some people in my life, I doubted I would give up my freedom for any of them. Plus, if I showed Easter I didn't care, they were much less likely to use them against me. And it wasn't like I was selling my soul to the devil - just making an agreement. They could do nothing to ensure that I upheld my end of the agreement. Of course, I was planning on doing what I agreed to unless they ordered me to do something I was totally against. Azami and I discussed it a bit more after that, but that little exchange more or less summed up the whole argument. In the end, very little doubt remained in me. I wanted power. I wanted to be important. I wanted to do something totally unexpected. And this would definitely fulfill all these requirements.
My legs had recovered a bit by the time I reached my destination. It was a huge skyscraper, and in big bold letters at the top the word 'EASTER' pretty much cleared away any doubts that this wasn't the right place. What I didn't notice as I walked towards the building was the blue haired teen sitting on the steps of a building across the street. Nor did I hear what he muttered to himself before walking away, hands in his pockets and chara nowhere to be seen.
I walked in the glass doors at the front to enter a large, rather plush lobby. Furniture was scattered around in a fashionable way, and all of it looked expensive. I walked up to the front desk, where a woman was typing away at a computer. She stopped when she saw me approaching and smiled. It wasn't a kind smile, more like an 'I-have-to-do-this-because-I'll-get-fired-if-I-don't-seem-happy-to-see-you' kind of smile.
"May I help you?" she asked. Her eyes seemed skeptical, like she didn't want some fifth grade brat bothering her.
"I think I'm expected." I said. At the very least, I hope Ikuto had told the boss here that I was going to come. If he had been spying for Easter, then telling them that probably would have been part of his job. But he seemed pretty independent - if he didn't want to say something, I guessed he wouldn't. "My name is Yamada Miyuki." I finished.
"What?" said the secretary, shocked.
"I said, my name is Yamada -"
"No, I got that. But I expected Yamada Miyuki to be someone a bit-" she broke off, and the look I had challenged her to finish the sentence. Which she did. "...someone a bit older. Anyway, you are expected. Please proceed to the fifty-ninth floor." She said, gesturing to the elevators that were positioned in the wall a little ways from the front desk. Personally, I was just glad that Ikuto had actually delivered the message.
"Thanks for all your help." I said sarcastically. As I started walking, I heard a little exclamation of pain come from the woman. I turned to see her examining her arm, which had a single long scratch down its length. Azami flew back to me from the desk, smiling her customary evil smile. I didn't say anything until I had pressed the buttong for the fifty-ninth floor and the elevator doors closed behind me.
Then I burst out laughing. "Did you scratch her?" I asked.
Azami smiled. "What do you think? Of course I scratched that woman. Which was fun in itself and made more entertaining by the fact that she had absolutely no idea where it came from!"
"What's even better is that she'll have some time trying to get it to stop bleeding!" I said. Most people would think that it was awful that I was getting so much enjoyment out of hurting that woman. But I was. Total lack of empathy on my part. I just thought it was hilarious. I tried to compose myself then, which wasn't too hard. The elevator was going fast, and we were nearly there by the time the seriousness of what I was doing hit me. It seemed like my whole life had been leading up to this moment. Azami didn't care too much, and just kept on chuckling every now and then. She was a true dragon - not scared or phased by anthing. I stepped out once the door opened. To either side of me, dark hallways extended in either direction. In front of me, a big set of double doors stood. Though the lack of lighting made it hard to tell, it didn't seem like there were any doors anywhere along that hallway. And so, I went the only direction that made sense: forward.
I pushed open one of the double doors without even knocking and stood in the doorway for a minute. It was a large office, perhaps emphasized by the fact that it was almost completely empty. A large office desk sitting right in front of a window at the back was essentially the only item in the room. The blinds were partially drawn, letting just enough light in that the desk and chair behind it were silhouetted. But there was enough light for me to see that there was a man - an older man, by the looks of him - sitting in the chair.
"Please come in, Miyuki-san. I understand you have a bit of a proposition you'd like to make." said the man in the chair.
I quietly closed the door behind me and walked forward so that I was just a few feet in front of the desk. "If you were expecting me, then you already know part of my offer." They were awfully big words coming from me. I still wanted this as much as ever, but that didn't stop my wariness and fear at my situation. Azami landed on my shoulder, and her familiar touch gave me courage.
"You want something, to my understanding. And you're willing to use your... unique abilities for us in return for what you want. So what is it that you want? Money?" asked the man. I couldn't make out his features too well, but he sent out a sort of aura of control. I decided it would be best not to try using my chara change on him.
I shook my head. "No. What I want is..." I paused for a moment, as if I was an actress trying to increase the dramatic effect of a scene. Then I continued. "What I want is power." and now that I think about it... "And money wouldn't hurt. But why I really came here was in hopes that you might be able to give me the power that I want."
The man leaned forward, as if interested. "I think we could work something out. But first, may I ask you a few questions?"
"You can ask, but I may not answer." I said. Am I a natural at this, or what? Despite my little heart pounding away in my chest, I was actually quite composed. Hardly flustered whatsoever. Not like last night, with Ikuto.
"Did your egg hatch recently?"
I shrugged. "You could say that."
"And you just joined the guardians earlier this week, correct?"
I'll admit, I was a bit weirded out by how much he knew about me. Perhaps knowing about the guardians wasn't so creepy, but knowing that Azami had just hatched? How would he have any idea about that? "Yeah, they invited me to join on Tuesday." I replied.
"And they don't know about your... ambition?" he asked.
"Not as far as I know." Am I sure I want to answer these questions?
"Hmm..." said the man.
Before he could get another question in, I blurted, "And what would your name be? I'd at least like to know who I'm dealing with."
I could tell that the man smiled at this. "My name is not important." He said. Like that line hasn't been used a billion times before. "Don't think of it as dealing with me - think of it as dealing with Easter. As managing director of Easter, I can more or less speak for the company as a whole."
I frowned, but didn't push the issue. These villains. Always so... enigmatic.
Now the man continued. "Now, I'd like to hear any conditions you might have. We wouldn't want to hire you if you'd end up refusing to do something."
I already had this planned out. I already knew what I would refuse to do, and had tossed out any of my own preferences that Easter would almost certainly refuse to agree to.
"I don't want to be ordered to kill anyone. Or ordered to seriously hurt anyone. Even in my regular chara-change, I could probably seriously injure someone. But I don't want that happening. I'll attack and defend to your heart's content, but I don't want to be forced to hurt anyone in any sort of permanent or major manner." I was thinking of the guardians with this condition. And of myself. As dragonish as I wanted to be, I don't think I could kill just yet. And while I'd be more than happy to fight the guardians, I didn't want to have to purposefully hurt them in a big way.
The man nodded. "Understandable. Anything else?"
"Yes." I said. I was surprised at how quiet Azami was being. Maybe she was testing me. Maybe she just wanted me to crash and burn. I never knew with her. "If you want me to keep the guardians unsuspecting, then it would be best for you to agree that I need to keep up my normal behavior around them. Even if it would mean directly opposing someone from Easter. Of course, if I was ordered to quit this act by you or some other Easter official, then I would stop. What I'm asking for is permission to oppose Easter in any way in order to keep up my secret affiliation with you, at least until I am ordered differently."
"This would be beneficial to both of us." He said, then waited to see if I had anything else to say.
"And... I suppose it would be too much to ask for me not to have to betray the guardians?" I asked. I knew this one was more or less impossible, but I had comitted myself to at least asking.
"Yes, I'm afraid that would be a bit hard for me to agree to." said the man. "Other than that last one, if those are all your conditions, then I think we can certainly come to some sort of agreement. I would be willing to give you power and say... a hundred dollars a week should you agree to use your abilities for us. And we will not go against any agreed conditions."
That sounded great, but I concealed my enthusiasm. "Can you be more specific as to what kind of power you're giving me?" I didn't want to be cheated.
"Well, there is a concept our researchers have been investigating for a while. It involves powering a person using the power of X-eggs. You do know what X-eggs are, correct?" I nodded, and he continued. "We haven't had anyone to test it on, since we have very few people with charas working for us, and those that we do have refused to try it out." My mind flashed to Ikuto. Was he not interested in power?
"And so what does this power do?" I asked.
"We don't know yet. You would have to be willing to be the first to try. Though due to the power of the negative feelings of X-eggs, I would think that the results would be satisfactory to you. I'm afraid that's all I'm able to tell you on the matter - our scientists are the only one who understand the exact mechanics of it. Is that enough for you?"
"And what if it doesn't work? What if I don't get any power from it?" I asked.
"Then we at Easter will either keep working to give you power, or the agreement will be null and void. So, do you accept all these terms?" He asked.
I thought about them. Easter had agreed to my conditions, and were going to give me power and money. If I'd thought about it, I probably could've gotten a much higher pay, but my mind was mainly focused on the power. I turned my head to Azami, who gave a evil, satisfied smile and nodded.
"All right. We have a deal." I said.
"I'm glad to hear it." said the man. "I'll have a contract written up, and you can come by and sign it tomorrow."
"I don't think that's necessary." I said. Man, I'm really staying level-headed throughout this. I thought to myself. Perhaps it's because this guy doesn't seem nearly as threatening as the guardians made Easter out to be. He has agreed with practically all my requests, and hasn't done anything more threatening than sit in his desk and make deals. No wonder I can handle this.
I continued on. "I mean, contracts are for matters that apply to the law. I would say that quite a bit of this is more or less outside of the government's hands. And a contract is just words - actions are what really speak. I'll keep to my end of the bargain as long as you keep to yours. A piece of paper isn't necessary."
"Very true. Then we are agreed, and the unwritten contract can start now. Come back here a week from today. The scientists should have everything ready for you by then, and my side of the agreement can come into full effect. Until then, keep in good relations with the guardians. It will be very helpful to the Easter corporation to have them trust someone like you." I could sense that the man was smiling, and not in a good way. This was more like an... evil smile of victory. I had probably been tricked, and my heart sped up at the thought. Then again, what was it that he could do?
"If that's all..." I said. "Then I guess I'll be going."
The man nodded. "I look forward to seeing you in a week." I walked to the door, closing it behind me. Once the elevator doors closed behind me, Azami began circling my head enthusiastically.
"You did it!" She said, smiling. "Now we can get more powerful! All we have to do is wait one more week!" I was actually in a bit of a glum mood. I knew, by that guy's expression, that I had been tricked. I didn't exactly like the thought.
"Hey, come on! We did it!" said Azami, trying to cheer me up. "What's your problem? Are you maybe missing Ikuto?" she teased.
"No!" I said as she laughed. I tried to stay serious, but I could never keep a straight face if my dragon chara was bent on making me smile. "It's just that... didn't you see the look on that guy's face? I think he tricked us, somehow."
"What do you mean, tricked us? You were the one doing all the talking. If he tricked anyone, it was you. Anyway, I saw the guy's face quite a bit better than you probably did. He definitely thinks he's got the better of us, somehow."
It was now that the elavator door opened. I could see the secretary sitting at her desk. She had put on a jacket, but I thought I saw just a bit of toilet paper sticking out of the sleeve. Did she really try and stop the bleeding with toilet paper? As I walked out the elevator, the woman looked at me and glared. She probably blamed me for the scratch. Azami, seeing the glare, decided to give another little reminder of the feel of her claws. This time the dragon scratched the lady in the shin, where her skirt didn't cover. She yelped louder than before, saw the wound, then glared back at me. I smiled and waved before heading towards the door, while Azami settled for making faces at the lady. I let her do it, seeing as the lady couldn't see my chara anyway. We laughed again once we were out of the door. The look on that woman's face had been completely priceless.
It took us a while to stop laughing, but we eventually did. I had about fifteen dollars and I was getting kinda hungry, but then I realized that I really didn't know where any fast food places were around here. So I just started walking home. As I walked, I returned to our topic from the elevator.
"But doesn't it bother you a bit that we were tricked?" I asked Azami.
She started flying around my head again. "Perhaps a bit, but a dragon doesn't feel the need to worry about things until they're happening. Plus," She smiled her wicked smile, "Once they do trick us, then they get to taste the wrath of a dragon. And then we'll be the ones smiling and he'll just be a smouldering pile of ash." I laughed. It was finally done. Whatever was goning to happen now was going to happen whether I worried or not, so I took Azami's advice and relaxed. I'd done it.
I was now officially a member of Easter.
Thanks for reading once again! This chapter was pretty fun to write. And I'm sorry - I'm really bad with fashion. Whenever I'm describing one of Miyuki's outfits, feel free to just ignore that paragraph and come up with your own outfit to imagine her in. I have no eye for style at all, and can't even color coordinate very well. Anyway, Please review!
Also, about that note in my last chapter, the thing about anyone wanting to draw Azami is only if someone seriously WANTS to. If you don't want to, then don't worry about it. I just thought I'd mention it, just in case someone did.
Another thing - I just realized that Japanese schools have different breaks and such than schools like mine in the U.S. They've got the trimester thing, while I'm only familiar with the semester school year. So you'll just have to excuse me if I write this as if Miyuki was going to a semester school, not like how it actually is. Sorry about that, but I don't want to attempt to write about something that I don't really know too much about.
Speaking of which, I've got school starting tomorrow... which means less chapters, probably. I'm going to try and write as much as I possibly can (because I'm really enjoying it), but don't expect one a day. There is the chance that I could shorten the chapters, and hence have chapters come out more often but with less in them, but I don't think I'm gonna do that. You'll probably just have to live with long chapters that take a while to get finished. Trust me, I'd bet I'm more sorry about me going to school than you are about me going to school. But I am sorry to those of you who like reading this and want more updates. Darn school! _
