Pieces
Amah looked like a former shell of herself, so frail that her cheeks sunk in and her copper skin held tightly on to her bones. Her sun kissed hair had lost its luster, appearing as dull as the eyes that now stared into the opaque room. She breathed out tiredly. This was no position for a woman who was barely aged past sixty.
The door to the room opened, bringing with it the only scent she could tolerate these days. Alcina walked towards the large bed and sat next to her ailing mother in a humble wooden chair. She treasured the piece as one of the first items Amah had bought upon moving to Faye. It squeaked under the pressure of being used for so many years, but the women were confident it could still hold.
"How are you feeling?"
Amah appreciated her daughter's gentle voice. "Eh," she shrugged. "Guess I had a good life."
Alcina did her best to put forth a smile. As a doctor, she was aware just how these things worked. The human body was so frail. "Say, I looked up the profile of Herma Locke."
Amah felt the color drain from her face. "How?"
Alcina didn't have it in her to display a triumphant grin, but she felt proud. Finally things would come out into the open. "So you knew they were in the private archives?"
Amah turned her head away. "Did you read it?"
"I got some information," Alcina nodded. "Not the full extent but if it's worth it to you, I'd dig deeper."
"How much do you know?" She still refused to settle her gaze on her daughter. Amah knew very well where this was going, and she could feel the shame already disturbing her empty stomach.
Alsy dug through her purse, answering with the points she had retained by memory. "That she was a participant in Project Eir, a carrier for the female subject, but she's deceased now. Oh, and of course, she was my dear ol' Aunty Herma."
Amah sighed. Her sight had been failing for some time now, but she enjoyed looking at the silhouette of the birds and the trees beyond her window.
"Hmm."
"So that makes Eir my baby cousin." Alcina held on to the pictures. When her mother felt ready, she would show them to her.
Amah nodded solemnly. "Well I'm gonna die soon anyway, so it's not like they can get me."
"Who are 'they'?"
Amah's round emerald eyes landed sternly on her daughter. "Herma and I came to this country with nothing," she began the familiar story, however this time with the added character of Herma Locke. "As refugees we had very few options for income, one of them being test subjects for the government. It paid well, and you can attest to never having been hungry."
Alsy smiled. Of course she could, and her proud curves were proof of that.
"Once the sanctions rolled in we didn't have as many options for experiments. We took what we could get and asked questions later. The importance of not starving made us take risky gambles." And the results were now haunting Amah. "Herma was offered one of the best positions at the time. She couldn't tell me the details, but the payment was five gold coins. She and four other girls were chosen and kept in the facility for almost a year. When they finally released them she came directly to my door to make sure we were still alive. She wasn't supposed to discuss the experiment, but she was desperate."
Amah took a deep breath, readying her strained lungs to continue the exhausting story. "She had birthed a child along with another of the four girls. The other three had unsuccessful pregnancies. Herma delivered a daughter, who the doctors dubbed Eir. She, along with a boy named Pez, would contribute to the next round of negotiations and give leverage to our small country."
Alcina nodded. This sounded almost identical to what she had read.
"But Herma had fallen in love with her child, as most mothers tend to do. She had spent the entire nine months growing fonder of the girl, and didn't want her to be an experimental subject. The child was a human being after all, and her mothering instincts were fierce. Herma wanted to escape with Eir."
"What?" Alcina covered her mouth with the back of her hand. She hadn't meant to be so forward, but it seemed her mother hadn't been startled.
Amah nodded lowering her eyes. "I told her it was risky. And even though I understood her position as a mother myself, I tried to convince her to think this plan through. She could raise Eir in the lab; it was in their contract. But she was adamant. She wanted to take Eir and run away."
And thus the deceased title in her profile made perfect sense.
Alcina stared at the picture in her hand, and braved a smile through the emerging sorrow. Herma looked so serious in her photograph, from the neatly braided copper hair, to the expressionless green eyes and stern lips. It was the same way Amah photographed, even for holiday photos.
"She was killed, wasn't she?"
Amah nodded again. "Before going through with her plan, she made me promise that I would look after Eir should she fail in her attempt. They would need a mother figure to take her place, and at least she could trust me."
They were silent, and the fluid sound of the wooden ceiling fan overwhelmed the small room as they each struggled to put their thoughts into words.
Alcina swallowed through the lump forming in her throat, and forged on. "But you didn't take it?"
"I couldn't," Amah corrected. "Because I was a living relative of Herma's, the council threatened me. If I were to forget what happened, I could resume my duties as a test subject. If I were to speak to anyone about it, I would be stripped of my job and we would starve. As much as I wanted to fulfill my sister's last wish and take care of the new member of our dwindling family, I had my own child to protect."
Alsy rubbed her temples.
"It is my biggest regret," she continued, her wispy voice faltering. "I think I could have still asked to be named her guardian. But I guess I might have had an angel watching over me, as the explosion wiped every member of that experiment out. Had I been her guardian, I too would have died. You were still so young; I can't think of something worse."
So everyone does think that the fire killed them? She bit the inside of her lip nervously, no longer doubtful that Faye had used the fire as a coverup. Alcina felt her heart beat at a faster pace. Her little investigation had just gone beyond what she had ever hoped to find.
"I truly hope that there is no afterlife." Tears threatened the corners of Amah's eyes, and Alsy reached for a tissue from the nightstand. "I don't think I can face Herma when I didn't even fight to keep my promise."
Alsy dabbed gently around the wrinkled skin of her mother's eyes. "Mom, she's not dead."
Amah stopped her daughter's hand. "Who's not dead?"
"Eir," she smiled. "We found her profile, and nowhere does it says she's deceased."
"That can't be," her voice broke down further, and she placed a shaking hand over her mouth. "It was all over the news, covered by every newspaper..."
Alcina sat back leaving her mother with the tissue. It seemed she wouldn't be crying after all, but maybe Amah could hold on to it for comfort. "My companions and I have reason to believe that the fire was a cover up, since in the files we found, all of the doctors have a new identity. There are also 23 folders with Eir's files, which means they studied her extensively." Something they could not have done if she died when they said she did.
Amah's mouth opened and her eyes widened with the same intensity. "Can you find her, Alcina?"
"I'll try, Ma, and if I can I'll bring her to you."
For the first time in a long time, Amah smiled. "Please do. I'd like to see her, apologize..."
"I'll do my best, Ma."
[*24*]
Maru went around the empty crystal table, picking up the session notes that had been left behind by her senior members. Len waited patiently behind the podium, his own clean up job already completed.
"For a second there, I felt so passionate," he said, watching his companion gather the last of the notes. "As if things were finally moving again and all of our days in this shitty lab just became worth it."
Maru smirked. "I think we all felt it," she replied. "We're not just seeing small progress here and there anymore. With the new lab and the subjects reaching the training age, I think we can finally see our goals materialize."
And it felt damn good. Soon the breadth of their work would come to light, and Faye would become a big player amongst the other nations. They would sit at the table and make decisions like a respected sovereign nation. Their experiments wouldn't be censored, and the village could finally return to its former glory.
Len accepted the papers his companion gave him. "I'm still surprised everyone agreed on punishing Alcina." It's not everyday the entire group settled on anything, but picking up new test subjects seemed to be a shared hobby across the board.
Maru sat on the largest chair, and rested her feet on the glass table in a manner that would make her father furious. "I already have a plan to get the pictures back and paint her as a traitor to the village."
Lens's smile widened and he grasped the edges of the podium for some stability. He didn't remember the last time he had such an interesting person to play with. "Do I have the freedom to do as I please?"
The younger woman swiveled in her chair leisurely. She shrugged. "Just don't get carried away," she warned him. "You're still in charge of organizing the rest of the move."
"Not to worry, I'm working on that." He moved around the podium, bringing the papers with him. "The second section of our lab should be arriving in Marsh Country very soon; and once we've secured that, we can take the rest with us."
They looked around the plain conference room which had served as their meeting place for almost five years now. The dull cream walls with their shoddy, uneven paint. The large glass table and matching podium. Not a single shred of decoration to liven up the drab atmosphere. Even the lightbulb that hung from the ceiling was bare.
Maru scoffed at the sights. She couldn't wait til' worms decomposed the damned place.
"Well, I have to go to Lyra and get some friends to help me escort the latest addition to our little family." She stood up and gave her black jeans a quick dusting.
"I'll make sure she goes out with a bang," Len assured, watching his younger companion straighten. Both of their smiles reflected a hint of nostalgia. This would be the last experiment before they moved to a more deserving lab.
"I'd go for plague #0099 if I were you."
Len began creating the seals to dissolve the wall for their exit. "Great minds do think alike, eh Maru-chan?"
[*24*]
The night was calm around him. No breeze to break through the chill, or to play with the leaves scattered around the tranquil pond. Even the cicadas seemed to be quietly hiding in the darkness. The shinobi sighed, cracking his neck. For once, Kakashi felt like a piece on someone else's shogi board, unable to see his next move, and without a gut feeling to guide him.
"Kakashi-san?"
The jonin recovered quickly at the sound of the familiar voice. "Elin..." He breathed out a sigh of relief as the young woman approached him.
She wore her hair neatly fixed into two braids at each side of her head, which joined at the back, becoming one. The black of her tresses looked striking against her vibrant red coat, and matched almost perfectly with the little black dress underneath. Kakashi felt like he hadn't seen her in such a long time. "Day off?"
She nodded. "I'm meeting someone in a bit."
Kakashi moved to the side of the bench leaving a decent sized space for the inn maid.
She tightened her grip on the clear waxed paper bag, and accepted the silent offering. "How have you been?"
His gaze dropped to his empty hand. "I've been good." He could feel her eyes looking over his shoulder and winced, knowing he had just been caught in a lie. "I guess I can't hide much from you, huh?"
Elin shook her head, lowering her own eyes. "It's a pretty obvious color."
He breathed out slowly, fighting the urge to smile. "Which color is it?" Maybe he needed to be forced to talk about things.
She stared off into the distance where the moon peeked between naked branches. "It's a very light red."
He nodded, accepting the intriguing information. The frustration he felt was a branch from the same angry tree that grew from his inability to accept that Risa Kido could possibly be alive. Seemed only a few more hacks of damaging events before he reached the core. Anger was probably a red that could rival her coat. "What about happiness?"
"Different shades of yellow usually go with happiness."
The jonin wondered how often his chakra glowed with the sunny color.
Her hand presented him with the small waxed paper bag she had been carrying.
"No thank you, I'm not really hungry." It was filled with fish shaped snacks which smelled fresh and warm.
Her offering remained firm. "It's not for hunger," she said. "It's for comfort."
Kakashi chuckled. Sweets were never his way of finding comfort, but he found it hard to say no to her smile. He had been so neglectful of this blossoming friendship these past few days, after she had gone out of her way to help and care for him.
"When our cook's wife is feeling nostalgic for her country, he makes her these fish shaped cakes with cream inside. It makes her feel better because she was from a fishing village. If you go to him and tell him you're feeling down he'll make them for you too."
Gently, he retrieved one and lowered his mask to get a good whiff of the fresh baked smell. "Thank you." He bit down on the center, taking with him a good portion of the cream. It was a dull sweetness that melded well against the spongy outer shell, bringing out a peculiar flavor that tamed the taste of the sugar before it became too strong. Kakashi rather liked the snack.
She smiled as the red of his chakra dissipated into a more manageable pastel.
"Is something making you feel down?"
Elin hesitated, and he didn't need the Sharingan to see that his companion felt uncomfortable.
"It's nothing really." She wrapped her fingers around the opening of her snack bag.
Kakashi twirled his thumbs nervously. He had really hoped listening to her worries would put her at ease, just as she had done with him. A listening ear was the only good thing he ever had to offer.
They sat in silence, and Elin watched her companion drift into the tumultuous internal struggle that played out so clearly over his shoulder. Terrible emotions masked behind delicate reds and purples, with hint of apricot that made her lips tremble. Anger, sadness and fear… His own issue put her petty jealousy to shame.
"Kakashi-san?" She called out to him gently, hoping her voice would break the rising intensity of his alarming chakra color scheme.
But it seemed his mind hadn't learned to navigate through such difficult trenches.
Elin leaned closer, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Kakashi-san?"
It took him a brief second, but the jonin tilted his head slowly, as if his mind struggled to make sense of her presence so close to him.
"I'm sorry," he breathed out. "I lost myself for a moment."
Elin offered him a sympathetic smile. "Rena-san is waiting so I have to get going. I think you could use this more than me though." She placed the bag in his palm, giving it a reaffirming pat to keep it in place.
The inn maid stood up and took one last glance at the empty road in front of her. She debated whether her presence would truly bring him any sort of comfort, but as he lost himself deep in thoughts once more, the younger woman decided to continue with her original plan. "If you find yourself needing someone to listen to you, you can come find me Kakashi-san." However, she could still offer him the opportunity for any future use. "Have a good night."
The jonin wrapped his fingers around the small bag and sighed, watching the young woman disappear down the curving path. He couldn't even say goodbye in a timely manner.
Rena-san?
He felt his heart constricting again. Maybe he was becoming too affected by this case.
Author's Note: Thank you for reading! Thank you LilyVampire for always dropping a little review, I really appreciate it :) Thank you Montilyetron for your amazing editing skills! Lastly, thank you to those who added this story to their alerts or favorites!
So sorry for the lateness, but I promise chapter 25 will be out this week as well to make up for it :)
Til next time!
Rhiuss