NO REST for the WICKED
CHAPTER ELEVEN: ENTER: THE DEVIL
by: PLATINUM KUSH
"I watch the city burn. These dreams like ashes float away. Your voice I never heard. Only. Silence."
RED, "LET IT BURN"
[]
"Natsuki, be a dear and run down to the store and get me some beer."
Natsuki rolled her eyes as her father's sing-song voice sounded from the kitchen where she was undoubtedly searching through the cupboards of her mother's house for something alcoholic. Her grandmother frowned.
"She's sixteen, Regan. They're not going to sell her alcohol." Namiko said.
"Dad's a VIP at Ryoko's which means they make special exceptions for her," Natsuki replied, rising from the couch in search of her shoes, "And that includes selling alcohol to her underaged daughter."
Namiko merely sighed and returned her eyes to the picture book in her lap that she and Shizuru were viewing. Shizuru glanced at her girlfriend. "Ara, does Natsuki wish for me to accompany her?"
"Nah." Natsuki shook her head. "It's only a few blocks away. I'll be back in like ten minutes. Do you want anything?" She leaned over the couch to give the brunette a kiss on the cheek.
Shizuru was about to decline out of habit, but couldn't find it within herself to do so. Lately, she had been craving candy; lots and lots of candy, and icecream. "Ara, icecream." She said, a nearly transparent blush staining her cheeks.
"What kind?" Natsuki chuckled as she twirled her house keys around her middle-finger.
Shizuru thought for a moment. "Ara, something chocolate. I trust Natsuki's judgment."
"Chocolate icecream for the lady and cheap beer for the savage. Got it. Do you want anything, Obaa-san?"
"No thank you, dear." Namiko replied with a grateful smile. Natsuki had decent manners for having being raised by someone who seemingly lacked them entirely.
But she had been with her mother for the first nine years of her life, and from what she remembered from her younger years, Saeko had grown up practicing strict etiquette.
It was a shame to Namiko how things ended between her daughter and Saeko. She'd honestly loved the girl and thought she was the perfect match for Regan, but she guessed some things just weren't meant to be.
As Natsuki walked out the door with Duran by her side, Regan returned from the kitchen with a full bottle of gin in one hand and a red-velvet cupcake in the other. She plopped down next to her mother.
"Want some?" She asked, holding out the bottle.
Her mother just rolled her eyes and pinched her cheek. "Ah, I remember this!" Namiko cooed, pointing to a picture of a newborn Regan who was cradled against her bosom, looking up at her with those infant blue eyes and those deep dimples of hers.
"You were so cute." Shizuru almost squealed, hearts in her scarlet eyes.
"She had my heart as soon as I saw those adorable little dimples." Namiko said fondly, sparing her daughter a gentle glance, which turned into an eye roll as Regan downed half the bottle in one gulp and belched afterwards.
She made a face and smacked her lips, as if trying to rid her mouth of the unwanted taste. "Is there something wrong with your gin, dear?" Namiko inquired, a mischievous smirk on her lips.
Frowning, Regan squinted at the label on the bottle trying to see if she'd accidently grabbed the wrong beverage. The bottle was indeed labeled Gin's Have You On Your Ass Gin, but it tasted like…
"Tea!" Regan gasped, appalled. "Mom, really?!"
Namiko giggled. "You know how I feel about the amount of alcohol you consume on a daily basis, sweetie. You need to drink more herbal liquids before you destroy your liver."
"My liver is perfectly fine." Regan replied through gritted teeth. "You planned this. C'mon mom, playing with my alcohol is like playing with my emotions. You know I hate tea!"
"I, however, do not." Shizuru said as she swiped the bottle from Regan's grasp and proceeded to finish the bottle. She was shaken by a surprise belch, and promptly raised her perfectly manicured fingers to her lips with a sheepish, "Excuse me."
Namiko found herself absolutely smitten with the honey-blonde. "Would you like to stay for dinner, darling?"
"Would you like to stay forever?" Regan replied with a naughty smirk. "You don't have to answer, Shiz. It's inevitable. You saw my baby pictures. I can't possibly let you leave after that, now could I?"
"Ara, will there be more tea?" The brunette asked, and received an earnest nod from Namiko. "Ara, I would love to."
Regan regretted even entertaining the notion. Now they'd never leave.
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Natsuki tied Duran's leash to a pole and kneeled in front of him. "I'll be right back, boy." She told him as she ran her fingers through the soft fur between his ears. He licked her cheek.
She'd already gotten Shizuru's icecream from the local hole in the wall vendor in the way, and she wanted to hurry so it wouldn't already be melted by the time she got home.
After making sure the rambunctious canine was secure, Natsuki stepped over the threshold of Ryoko's bar and slipped inside. The place had obviously seen better days. There were bullet holes all over the walls, bodies all over the floor, broken glass, forgotten articles of clothing strewn everywhere.
There were only about four employees in total. The sleazy bartender who had a habit of getting himself drunk rather than catering to the customers. The cook who did nothing of the sort.
The lone waitress who really should be putting her punching skills to good use in a gym or something, and the janitor who liked to go around finishing forgotten glasses of beer and picking cold fries off of people's plates.
"Natsuki, hon, how are ya?" The waitress said as she approached the teenager, a fond smile on her lips. She's known Natsuki for years. Regan used to come by with her perched on top of her shoulders all of the time.
Although the bar was no place for a child, Ryoko's was special. There was beer and humor, and a distinctive homy atmosphere. "Hey, Sakura. I'm good. How 'bout you?" Natsuki replied.
Sakura obnoxiously smacked her gum. "Been better. How's ya daddy? She send you to come and do her dirty work again?"
Natsuki chuckled. "She's fine. And doesn't she always?"
Sakura laughed and shook her head. "That girl will never change. C'mon, we just got a fresh supply of Colt .45 straight from the States. Go ahead and take the whole thing. Your daddy's the only one who drinks 'em anyway."
The willowy blonde led Natsuki to the back room and gestured to the far right corner where a few packages labeled '45's' were stacked hazardously against the wall.
"This oughta keep her busy for a while." Natsuki mused out loud as she bent over to grab the crates of liquor.
"Knowing Regan she'll probably clean 'em out within the week." Sakura snorted and produced a small red blowpop from in between her breasts. "You need some help, darlin'?"
"Nah, I got it." Natsuki said.
Sakura walked the young woman to the door and leaned against it. "Come back soon now ya hear? I'll have Ichigo make ya somethin' to eat when ya do. Take care, Natsuki, and tell your daddy I said 'hello' alright?"
"I will. Thanks, Sakura." Natsuki replied. The older woman gave her a warm smile and a brief nod before disappearing back into the rowdy bar.
However, as soon as Natsuki began walking towards Duran, she ran smack dab into someone and nearly dropped her precious cargo. If it wasn't for the stranger's quick reflexes she might've dropped the beer and made quite a mess.
"Whoa, sorry about that." Natsuki said, her vision still slightly obscured by the crates.
"No harm, no foul. Is this your dog?" The voice obviously belonged to a woman. It was mature and very soft-spoken, only slightly above a whisper. Like Natsuki's it was husky and pure, but it had an indistinguishable undertone to it that sent shivers down Natsuki's spine.
She frowned slightly, thinking Duran had somehow gotten himself into another sticky situation. He had a habit of doing that. "Yeah, he didn't pee on or bite you, did he?"
The woman chuckled. "No, but you look like you could use a hand."
Natsuki was about to decline, but the woman had already made a move to assist her. She figured she needed the assistance anyway, unless she was okay with possibly running into a cop or a crackhead.
After the first two crates were removed from her stack, she was finally able to look at the mysterious stranger.
She was tall, really tall, possibly as tall as her father, who only missed the six-foot mark by mere centimeters. Her hair was incredibly long and incredibly dark and shiny. It was styled into some sort of fauxhawk complete with twin undercuts on both sides of her head.
Her ears and face were littered with piercings. She had three in her left brow alone, followed by a septum, double snakebites, twin microdermals, and a single horseshoe in her right eyebrow. Natsuki couldn't see any tattoos, but she'd bet money on their existence on this woman's body.
In all, she looked like the poster child of a teenage rebellion.
She was probably in her late teens to early twenties. And beautiful in a way that was considered bold to modern society.
"Judging from the fact that your dog is here instead of waiting in the car I can conclude that you came here on foot. Your house must not be far, no?" She said.
"Two blocks away. I didn't think she'd give me the entire supply." Natsuki replied sheepishly.
"It's not safe for such a pretty young thing to be parading about all by herself. Especially carrying alcohol. Allow me to accompany you."
"Oh no, It's no big deal. I can-"
"Oh, but I insist." The woman cooed. There was something about her word that was final. She had a commanding aura about her that implied arguing with her would be futile. "Cat got your tongue?" She mused when Natsuki grew silent.
"My dad told me not to talk to strangers unless they were asking for a light." Natsuki said lamely, drawing forth an amused chuckle from her dark-haired companion.
Shifting the crates into one arm, she stuck out a perfectly manicured hand complete with a set of black nails and the beginnings of some sort of tribal tattoo on her wrist. "Namikaze Shinobu. There, you know my name. Therefor I am no longer a stranger."
Natsuki was still a bit suspicious, but she couldn't deny the help and she figured if the woman tried something she and Duran could take her. "Kruger." She said finally, offering no elaboration.
The woman smirked but didn't press the issue. She understood why the girl offered no means of elaboration. She was still a stranger after all.
"Well, Kruger," Shinobu purred, "Lead the way, sweetheart."
Natsuki unhooked Duran's leash from the pole and ushered the dog forward. He leaned in close to Shinobu's ankle and gave her leather-clad figure a hearty sniff. When he was satisfied with what he smelled, he trotted ahead of the duo.
"Cute dog. Siberian Husky. Very beautiful as well as intelligent. Is he yours?" Shinobu asked.
"He used to be, but I gave him to my grandmother." Natsuki said. She didn't know why, but she felt like she could trust this woman. Well, trust was a strong word, but she felt like there was no harm in conversation. "She lives by herself so I thought she'd appreciate his company."
"That's very sweet of you. You look like someone who values family above all else."
Natsuki spared her a sideways glance. "How do you know that?"
Pursing her lips, Shinobu replied, "Just a feeling. Tell me, Nat-su-ki, how far would you go for the ones you love?"
Natsuki faltered slightly and almost ran smack into a lampost as she gaped up at the woman who was slowly growing more and more unnerving by the second. Shinobu wasn't looking at her, but she could see the smirk on her lips.
"You knew my name this entire time." Natsuki realized, her green eyes burning with accusation.
"Perhaps." Was the nonchalant reply.
Natsuki quickly swerved around and put herself between the woman and the rest of the road. Her grandmother's house could be seen from the corner they were standing at. "Who're you really?" She demanded.
Shinobu was honestly slightly taken-aback at the girl's audacity. She hadn't been spoken to like that in decades. She was growing more and more interested in this girl with each passing second, each defiant flash of her beautiful eyes.
She bowed dramatically. "I've already told you. I am Namikaze Shinobu. I'll admit, I knew your name even before you ran into me."
"How?" Natsuki pressed.
Shinobu shrugged. "I heard it from your little waitress friend."
"Oh." Natsuki blushed and internally cursed Sakura for her loud mouth. Then she realized something. "Y-you played me!" She cried.
"How so?" Shinobu asked innocently.
"You knew my name this entire time!"
"We've already established that, Nat-su-ki."
"Gah! Stop saying my name like that!" Natsuki barked. Only Shizuru had the right to do so. "You knew I wasn't just going to give you my name so you expected me to just give you my last name. Now you know my whole name! Exactly what I was trying to avoid!"
Smart and beautiful, Namikaze mused to herself as they continued walking again. You prove to be just as interesting as I initially thought, Kruger Natsuki. They walked in silence the rest of they way, and when they finally reached the veranda, Shinobu gently set the liquor down and crossed her arms.
"It seems as though our journey comes to an end," She said softly, almost dejectedly. She turned on her heel. "Farewell, Natsuki Kruger." She cooed over her shoulder.
"Wait."
Shinobu turned around to see Natsuki staring down at her from the veranda, a bottle of the precious liquor in her outstretched hand. "Here. It's the least I can do for you since you helped me carry it back, Shinobu Namikaze. If that is your real name." She added with a raised eyebrow.
Shinobu laughed beautifully and accepted the treat. "I assure you it is. But you never answered my question."
"About my loved ones?" Natsuki asked. Her companion nodded and reached down to pet Duran, who had taken it upon himself to sit near her leg. "I would do anything for them."
"Anything?" Namikaze echoed.
"Anything."
"Would you sacrifice everything if it meant their happiness?"
"Their happiness is everything to me." Natsuki said softly, briefly glancing toward the house where she could hear the gentle peels of merry laughter. She smiled. "I would go above and beyond just to see them smile… to see her smile…"
"I see." She sounded pleased with her answer, but didn't elaborate as to why. "May our paths cross again, Natsuki. Until next time."
Natsuki watched her go until she couldn't make out her statuesque shape any longer. "Yeah, seeya." She mused, picking up the crates and awkwardly shuffling into the house.
Natsuki shrugged off the entire encounter. There was a small possibility that she may see her again, but she wouldn't hang her hat on it. After all, you only meet someone like that once in a lifetime, right?
Little did Kruger Natsuki know that this little encounter was the harbinger of greater things to come.
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Namikaze hummed to herself as she popped open the bottle of Colt .45 and took a hearty sip. Her night had gone better than she expected. She had been in route to Ryoko's to shake their sleazy owner out of the five grand he owed her, but she was pleasantly surprised with what happened instead.
Natsuki Kruger.
The name was easy to remember and hard to forget. There was something about the fierce glint in Natsuki's eye that drew her in. She was truly something special.
"You won't believe the night I had." Namikaze said cheerily as she approached a woman who was standing on the corner, awaiting her arrival.
The woman- girl really- looked up at her with sparkling baby blue eyes, a rather odd color for a Japanese woman since their eye colors ranged from light browns to the darkest of blacks. She was wearing a sinfully short miniskirt, an off-the-shoulder black top, and a pair of dark heels.
However, this girl was no hooker.
"My Lord," She whispered, gracefully dipping her head, sending brilliant waves of chocolate brown hair cascading down her shoulder. She leaned up on her tippy toes to promptly kiss the dark-haired woman on her full red lips.
"Aoi." Shinobu greeted somewhat fondly. "Were you successful?"
"Of course, My Lord." Aoi smiled, extracting a wad of cash from the purse lying near her stilettos. "Negi D'Artai Homura no longer has control of the Shibuya District's washhouses. They now serve you, My Lord."
"Excellent as always, my dear." Namikaze swept the young woman into her arms and began heading westward, towards the penthouse she was currently 'renting.' Aoi deserved a… reward… for her excellent work.
"How did your night go, My Lord?" Aoi asked, snuggling into her master's side.
"I met the most interesting young woman." Namikaze said matter-of-factly. Then it occurred to her. Natsuki was young, young indeed, which meant the girl was still probably in high school. How interesting.
The remaining question was which one? There were only four possible choices. Natsuki looked like a troublemaker, but she couldn't possibly attend Cardair. She would've met her a long time ago if that were the case.
Windbloom and Gaderobe were out of the question as well. Natsuki didn't look like the prep school type. The only possible answer was Fuuka High, not quite a Windbloom or Gaderobe when it came to rules and regulations, but not quite as rowdy as Cardair.
She smiled softly and leaned down so that her mouth was level with her favorite girl's ear. "Aoi, how would you feel about attending high school?"
Aoi's eyes lit up at the question and she nodded furiously. "Yes… Yes! I mean, if My Lord wishes it…"
Laughing, Namikaze said, "Good, good. Because I need you to keep an eye on someone for me."
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Sorry for the wait everyone! I hope this chapter is to your liking! I love reading your thoughts, I always encourage you to review!