Author's note from TTY7: Black Cat Angel did a splendid job with this chapter. I couldn't be more proud of her. Since we're both writing this story, none of the grandeur you've experienced would have been possible without her. My sista, you come up with fantabulous ideas. Anyway, onto the chapter.
Chapter 10: Are we a Team or Not?
Train's POV
I watched Liana pace back and forth in front of me as I sat on a sofa in the now disserted lobby. It doesn't take a genius to know Liana is worried about Kagome and Pretty Boy, ( but especially Kagome). It feels like hours have gone by. Glancing down, I checked the time in my wallet communicator. Correction, only two hours, thirty minutes, and forty seconds have gone by. Ugh, I am so bored of waiting that I might consider taking a nap.
My eyelids got heavier and they began to slowly close until I heard my teammate scream in frustration.
"WHERE'S THAT GOOD-FOR-NOTHING-PRETTY-BOY WHEN YOU NEED HIM!" she yelled. I can hear my ears ringing from the volume of her voice. So much for my nap...
I sighed. "Did you forget already? He went on his own to search for Alex."
"I know, but what's taking him so long? It feels like an eternity!"
"Actually it's been-"
Liana gave me her coldest glare. "I don't want to know Train Heartnet."
I gulped down my saliva and turned my attention to another direction. Man, she may be cute but she can be really scary when she wants to be. Not only did she get her looks from her mother, she got her attitude from the woman too. Now that I think about it, how long is Miss Diamondblade going to give me the cold shoulder? Man, when someone holds a grudge they sure know how to show it.
My mind replayed the scene of Liana backing me up. Why did she do it? Does she do it to repay the favor? Because I'm her teammate? Or maybe she likes me?
Could it be she, perhaps, loves me?
I'll admit I like her, but if I, by chance, go out on a date with her it'll look weird. She's younger than me by seven years! And did I mention her mother still hates the fact that I exist in this world?
I sighed again. I sure got a lot on my mind. Far too much if you ask me.
I notice someone sitting beside me on the sofa. I shift my eyes to the right. That someone happens to be the same person who called me hot.
Ms Clover.
As long as the day went by Ms. Clover tried her best to get my attention. I've acted as if I haven't noticed. You know, pretending to be oblivious. Inside, I kept praying for this long day to end. Somehow my prayer hasn't been answered yet. Maybe Father Time has this weird sense of humor to watch romantic comedy today.
Right now though, it's different. Instead of her flirtatious blue eyes winking at me every ten seconds, they show a bit of concern.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I replied. "Don't worry about me."
She scoffed. "I beg to differ."
I gave her a confused look. "What do you mean?"
"You're either more worried about your friends than Liana is expressing, or you just have a lot on your mind."
"It's more like the latter."
"So you're not worried about them?" She lifted her eyebrow in a questionable gaze.
I let out another sigh. "Of course I'm worried about them. I'm worried about Kagome getting hurt, but more than that, I'm concerned for Lelouch."
"Is it about how Chronos covered up his mother's murder?"
"Yes," I answered. "I mean think about it, why else would he drop everything he's done so far just to be a spy and save the world?"
She places her index finger under her chin. I knew that gesture meant that she was thinking of an answer to my question. It wasn't long until I felt like ten minutes had passed by. After a long moment, she finally made a fist and pounded it on her other hand.
"I've got it!" she exclaimed. "Maybe he did it to learn what teamwork and dedication means! Or he could be in it for the shopping!"
I fell out of my seat. Honestly, she can't be this dumb to not know the obvious.
She laughed at my reaction. "I'm only kidding Train. Anyone who knows what it's like in the real world can tell he's in this for revenge." Her eyes bore into mine while I sat back on my side of the sofa. "What are you going to do when he tries to kill the murderer?"
I leaned back on the sofa's back cushions. My head bent back and I set my gaze up on the chandelier above. The light from the bright sun hits it and I could've sworn I was seeing fireworks.
Suddenly, I was pulled back to the night of Saya's death. I remembered how much anger and grief I let out while fighting Creed. The sound of our weapons clashing once again rang in my ears.
For some reason, Lelouch reminds me of myself. He'll do whatever it takes to get revenge on his own. But there's one big difference between us: I know how to move on. Of course it's painful at first but in time it relieves you. He wants to finish this mission on his own, but he needs to know that he has a group of friends by his side. When the time comes I can't do anything, but give him that one piece of simple advice.
I heard Clover calling my name, bringing me out of my train of thought.
"...I don't know", I replied, my eyes never drifting from the chandelier.
"You sure take your sweet time in La La Land," she muttered.
I totally heard that. Nevertheless, I hope Lelouch makes the right decision. Revenge isn't going to solve anything.
There was a bang coming from the front door. Our eyes, including Liana's, widened as someone burst into the expansive room. It was a young woman with shoulder-length dark hair and tanned skin wearing the Thailand soccer team jogging suit. She must be Alex.
But she wasn't the one who I was surprised to see. No, it was the two people behind her that made my eyes widen with terror. Lelouch was holding Kagome bridal-style with his jacket laying over her. My eyes locked on something dripping out of her body.
That was when I came to the realization that it was something I didin't want to see; blood.
"Someone please help her!" Alex yelled. Her face was full of terror like she just went through a traumatic experience, which is exactly what had probably happened. When I looked at Pretty Boy, his face was emotionless. It didn't matter though, his eyes shows his true feelings. They were full of sorrow, guilt, grief, and anger.
I saw Miss Diamondblade coming up to them from out of the corner of my eye. "Thank goodness I've got my master's degree in medication and surgery. I'll see what I can do for her." She took the wounded girl from Lelouch and gave the guards some order to prepare a room for all the supplies she would need.
Once everyone was gone, the lobby was nearly empty once again. Well, there was only Pretty Boy, Liana, and yours truly, me. It would seem that Clover went to go console Alex.
Liana was giving Lelouch her most deadly glare. I just hope she doesn't pounce on him like a panther. I know a glare when I see one. Instead of pouncing him though, she went up to Lelouch and...slapped him! Ooh, talk about harsh.
Lelouch's face was still emotionless. The slap didn't have any affect on him. Liana yelled and punched him, sending the poor guy collapsing on the ground. Before she could continue, I wrapped my arms around her, trapping her arms by the side of her waist. She struggled her way out of my grip, but there's no way I'm going to let her kill him. As much I hate to say this, we need Lelouch on this mission.
"HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?" she yelled. "Why didn't you protect her? Don't you even care if she lives or dies?"
"Stop it, Liana!" I ordered, trapping her in my arms again. "This isn't his fault!" She wasn't paying attention to a word I was saying. She kept struggling and yelling colorful words that I dare not repeat.
"Let me go, Train!" she screamed. "Let me go so I can wipe out this worthless piece of scum his remaining existence!"
"Not going to happen!" I shouted back. "We're not enemies, remember? We're allies. We're a team of spies that have to save the world." She continued to struggle. "Liana, this is not a good time to put in the blame on anyone. Right now we need to worry about Kagome getting better." She struggled more at this point my own frustration burst from me. "Pull yourself together or so help me I am locking you up in your room with no escape and no gadgets whatsoever! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"
My words must've sunk into her then, because she stopped her struggling. Now she wasn't moving an inch. I waited for a couple minutes to see if she was still in her 'I'm gonna kill you' anger mode. She still wasn't moving a muscle.
In a soft whisper she told me to let her go. Slowly, I let my arms slide away from her, but I stood behind her just to be on the safe side. She may want to finish what she started, but instead she didn't do anything. Liana went in the direction where her mother took off. Probably to check and see if she can help with the operation on Kagome.
Before she goes on though, my courageous ally glared back at Lelouch, who was still sitting there with his poker face on as if the pain he's feeling is nothing new to him. Knowing him, it probably isn't.
"If she doesn't live through her operation, you better pray to God to have mercy on you", Liana warned. "If he doesn't answer you by then I'll be the judgment of your faith. That's a promise." With that she takes her leave, abandoning me and Lelouch the Mindless Puppet.
I sighed. "Great, today must be 'Pretend-to-be-Dr.-Phil' Day." I've had to give advice to a girl who may or may not hate me, and now I have to get Lelouch back to his normal self while trying to keep myself strong. After all, this was all painful for me too. All of it reminded me of Saya. Ugh, what a drag.
I extended my hand toward him. He flinched. I guess I already had his attention. He stared at my hand for awhile, probably deciding if he should take my hand or not. So, I spoke to him to speed this along.
"I'm just going to help you up," I told him. "If you want to sit down, I would prefer the lobby's sofa. At least it's more comfortable than the floor." Lelouch wordlessly took the offer. After I pulled him up, his eyes stared dimly at the floor.
I glanced around the room. "If you're not in the mood to talk I understand. I just want to know what really happened so I can prove to Liana that you're innocent."
We went to the sofa and the both of us plopped down on the soft cushions. I noticed a small smile coming to his face causing me to do the same though at the same time, I could tell that the smile was a bitter one.
"What are you?" he mockingly teased. "A detective? Or a lawyer perhaps?" At least he's still got his sense of humor intact. Still…
"Funny, I was going for therapist." Seconds later, Lelouch let out a bellowing laugh. I couldn't believe what I was seeing: I made Lelouch laugh. Sure we're nowhere near being best friends, but he acts like we've known each other in a long time.
He wiped a tear from underneath his eyes and after a few snickers and giggles, he finally calms down. "I saw a mental image of you, Train Heartnet, being a psychiatrist." Another laugh escapes him. "That was hilarious."
"I'm laughing on the inside," I replied sarcastically.
"But I will give you credit for your talents in the art of comedy," Lelouch stated, his voice a bit softer now. "Thank you. I really needed the laugh."
I swiftly took out my wallet communicator and pressed a few buttons.
"What are you doing?" Lelouch asked.
"Trying to see if this thing can record videos."
"Dare I ask why?"
I smirked. "Because I want to savor this moment! Lelouch Lamperouge, a serious strategic spy, thanking me, an everyday stray who also became his teammate. I really don't want to miss this!"
His eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "You are ruining it and I'm thinking of taking back what I said. This might be my first and last thank you I give you. So think before doing anything reckless."
I put my wallet-communicator away. "Fine, I'll savor it in my memory."
"I'm serious, thank you," Lelouch continued, his eyes darkening. "If it weren't for you Liana would've continued punching her rage through me. Also, thank you for making me feel better." He let out a gracious smile.
I did the same. This is my chance to continue our casual talk. "So, are you ready to tell me your side of the story? Or do you want to wait for the operation to end. If I were you I'd talk about it instead of keeping it in. It's better than wasting time in deep silence."
Pretty Boy ran his hand through his hair, letting each strand slide off his fingers. "I don't know. It all happened so fast." His fists clenched. "I saw Kagome running toward me and Alex. The next thing I know, she's shot and hurdling down the stairs. The way she was hit was directly from behind her. However, I didn't see anyone at the top of the stairs when I ran up to her along with Ms. Alex behind me. Whoever it was, that person knew how to make a clean getaway."
I pondered his story. The way he talked about the sneak attack sounded like this person is a professional killer. I don't know why but all this sounded too complicated.
"This person could've been hired by Chronos," I heard Lelouch say.
I shook my head. "Can't be. Like you said, this stranger was a professional." I turned my gaze back toward him. "And last I checked, Chronos didn't have any professional gunman, besides me."
"They could've trained one to outmatch you."
I let out a dark laugh. "HA! If they were then I would've met them after I left. They would've found someone to replace me by now."
"Then tell me, O Wise One, who do you think did?" Lelouch demanded, his anger boiling now.
"How should I know?" I asked. "I'm a spy and ex-assassin, not a know-it-all genius." I crossed my arms over my chest in concern. "Judging from the blood loss though…she might not make it out of this alive.
"SHE CAN'T DIE!"
I cringed at the sound of his anguished voice. His head was lowered and he was tightening his fists. "She can't die. I know she can't die. I ordered her not to die."
"You ordered her?" I noticed his body jolt. I raised my eyebrow in suspicion. How can a human being, such as himself, demand someone when they are nearing death? Poor guy must've been in deep pain and might've said some nonsense. I guess I'm over thinking things again.
"Look Lelouch," I chastised, "I know you're used to like taking charge, but no one made you leader since we didn't take vote. You got it?"
His body relaxed as if he had dodged my suspicion. I know he's not telling me everything, but after what he went through I'll let it slide...this time.
"Yes, I got it," he said finally.
Three hours came and went. We passed the time in silence, waiting for someone to deliver the news of Kagome's condition. At this moment, it could go either way.
Suddenly, I saw a figure moving toward us. It was Miss. Diamondblade. She glared at me before looking at Pretty Boy as if I wasn't in the same room as they were. "Kagome Higurashi will live," she said.
Lelouch released a relieved sigh. "Thank goodness."
"It took awhile to find someone with the same blood type as hers until Alex volunteered," Miss Diamondblade continued. "She said it was the least she could do to help. As of now, Ms. Higurashi is resting upstairs."
"Can we see her?" Lelouch asked.
"Yes, you can." She glared at me. "Only you." Wonderful, we're back to that again.
"Whether you like it or not I'm not going anywhere," I told her as I rose from off the couch. "I care about Kagome as much as Liana and Lelouch. So in short term, I'm going with him."
She kept glaring at me for a while. Then, she turned to the same direction she came in from, never uttering a word to either one of us.
After checking to be sure Miss. Diamondblade was out of earshot, I whispered to Pretty Boy, "If you're wondering who that was a moment ago, that's Liana's mother."
"I figured," he whispered back, "she's like the adult-version of her daughter. She even has her attitude."
"At least you're not the one who's receiving it," I replied.
"Yeah, I'm glad I'm not you right now." He chuckled as we followed Liana's mom.
I glared at him. "I don't know what's worse; depressed Lelouch or know-it-all-then-mocks-me Lelouch." Out of all the people that could have helped me on this mission, it had to be him.
Still, I can't help but think that he'll want revenge on whoever attacked Kagome.
To be continued…
