Chapter Twenty Five: Adversity
The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.
-The Emperor, Disney's 'Mulan'
xxXxx
"Are you ready for this?"
"No. Let's do it," Haru answered, fastening the last strap of her harness.
"I mean, you're clearly terrified."
"You're getting paid for your time. What's next?" she asked while fastening on a helmet with goggles.
The instructor sighed and made sure the cords were properly connected and anchored down. "Just jump."
Haru could feel her head spin as she looked down the side of the country bridge. The valley far below was lush and green, but all it would take is one mistake for her to turn at least a spot of it red. Taking in a deep breath, she climbed up the side of the iron bridge, whispering encouragement to herself as she continued to tremble.
"Do it. No more shackles. No more fear. I am my own master." Closing her eyes, she let herself fall off the bridge before she or her instructor could talk her out of her decision.
Her lungs immediately screamed for all they were worth, but her blood was racing with the wind that seemed to embrace her.
Something strange happened, just as the bungee was starting to stretch with her weight. Her eyes were shut tight with terror, but it was as if a secondary wind wrapped itself around her, setting her free from most of the protective gear.
Even as she panicked from the sensation, one word was whispered into her ear.
The ugliest word that she'll ever hear.
Her large eyes snapped open in shock as she was drawn gently against a strong chest with blue spandex stretched over it.. A red cape billowed around her before the intruder carried her back up to the bridge.
Her instructor was gaping in shock as he saw who it was. "S-Superman?!" he gasped.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I need to borrow this young lady. Have a nice day!" he greeted while setting the empty harness on the bridge's railing. With that, he changed his grip on Haru to a bridal hold and flew away.
Despite her terror of the man, she threw her arms around his neck as the world seemed to race beneath them. She'd have to return the helmet later; it and her heavy clothing were quickly proving useful against the fierce wind fighting them. "W-what do you want?" she stammered, not bothering to pretend bravado. "Why do you know that word?!"
He kept his gaze forward as he answered, his blue eyes narrow with intent. "A friend told me to pass it on. We need your help saving another friend's life, and the word was to prove that you're the only one we can reach that has a prayer of saving him."
She stared at the legend, feeling her cheeks flush at meeting even more people that knew her horrible secret. "But… I doubt my kind can do much, if you haven't fallen for the mermaid bit and what I am is important enough for you to bring it up. I mean, you're Superman! What could I do that you can't?!"
"You can give blood," he answered in a heartbeat.
Haru could only feel a chill, although she couldn't explain why. "Who could need blood from me?"
xxXxx
'Okay, I can do this. I know Mom better than anyone, this is going to be a cakewalk.' "Wish me luck," she whispered to Julia, who nodded silently.
"I'm making lunch if she asks after me. Go get her."
Yuki nodded, slipping through the door and unleashing Toby.
He barked happily before racing for the bed and jumping onto the foot it.
It didn't disturb Haru's slumber, so Yuki curled up next to her and started reading her parents' diary. Toby wasted no time cuddling between his two masters with a contented 'woof'.
My, this is strange. What should we speak of first?
I'm not certain. How is the weather faring?
Pleasant, though a little cool. My rabbits are becoming more reluctant to separate, and there's some cumulus overhead. I can hear little Herald practicing his flute. He… could use more practice.
Yuki had to fight back her giggles.
It's the same as ever in the library. The fire is crackling, and I can hear birds outside the window. I've already placed every book in its home, and I just finished reading Hilary a story. I love how eager she is for stories that aren't as common as the usual favorites.
Human tales again?
They fascinate me! You know the one where Lord Stiltskin had to jump through hoops to help a mother keep a child when he forgot that she didn't have anything for that third night of spinning?
I remember. How terrified she must have been, not knowing that he didn't want her baby.
Yuki cocked her head. "Interesting," she murmured. If that story was based in fact, she needed to comb Baron's books for a history lesson.
"Mmh?" Haru moaned, twisting herself awake.
The young girl briefly panicked, shutting the book and sliding it under her side of the mattress. "Sorry if I woke you, Mom," she apologized even as she reached to her uncle and queen with her mind. 'She's waking up, Uncle Humbert, your majesty.'
"Excellent. Show no mercy." The queen wasted no time looking in on the two as her uncle did the same, making Yuki feel more than a little guilty about intentionally making her mom talk about something that had hurt her badly enough to not even hint at before now.
"Meh, you know I can't stay angry with you," the woman crooned, wrapping her arms around the girl and holding her close, making Toby whine in protest since he was still between them. The older girl lovingly rubbed her face against her child's hair, enjoying the scent of it.
Yuki let her have this moment, since she needed it too. But duty was still duty. "Mom? I think we need to have a talk about what to do if another monster pops up."
"I will order you to crawl under the bed after I pull my sword out. I wouldn't want you to cut yourself on it, after all." She patted her pillow as if to say that was where the sword was beneath the bed frame.
Yuki indulged herself by checking for a scabbard before resuming the conversation. 'Good thing I consider this normal.' "No, I mean, in the future. Timothy won't tell me a lot about your injuries, but the look on his face was pretty grim when talking about meeting you. Can I have Uncle Arthur's phone number?"
Haru looked at her in surprise. "I'm surprised that you still remember him. I mean, he and Mera only dropped by once. Sorry, Sweetness, but I don't have his number."
"What about an email address?" the child persisted.
The brunette actually giggled while shaking her head in good humor. "I don't have that, either. Snow Angel, your uncle Arthur has a delicate position in his work, and he's pretty dedicated to a charity project that's heavily linked to his work. If people found out that he considers me his sister, it would be bad. He intentionally keeps himself away to protect us. I'm still a bit shocked that he came by for a look at you after getting word of the adoption."
Yuki pouted angrily. "So what happens if you need his help in a hurry?"
Haru gave a smirk that seemed as directed at herself as her daughter. "Oh, he made sure I'd be given an emergency way of contacting him and his close friends. But it's kind of like pulling a fire alarm; you get an immediate response, but you can't say in the alarm what the emergency is. I can't guarantee that Arthur would be the one to answer, and they trust me not to use it until I'm in absolute need of help."
"And I suppose a hydra wasn't a big enough emergency?! What will it take for you to admit that you need help without needing to be bullied into it, woman?!" Baron snapped in exasperation.
"What will it take for you to ask for help?" Yuki couldn't help repeating. It took all of her willpower not to laugh at her uncles frustration.
"O-Oh boy! The trouble I'd have to be in for that one!" Haru laughed, partially in mortification. But then she winced and started favoring a wound on her side. "Let's hope we never find out, okay Sweetness?"
Yuki wasn't about to relent. "I just don't like this, Mom. How else are we going to get Arthur if you're the one that needs a blood transfusion?"
All the good humor drained from her face. "No."
Yuki blinked. "No, what?"
Her mother responded in that slow firm tone that left no room for argument. "Arthur will not provide a blood transfusion. It would… create too many complications."
"Hey, that's not fair! You were willing to do it for him!" the girl pointed out with indignation.
"It's not that he isn't willing, Sweetness. He and Mera are probably the only people on the planet that would be willing to donate a pint for my life and have it do a lick of good. It's… just… my blood… Oh, dear, I didn't think I'd have to talk about this for a while," she fretted.
Yuki reached up and patted her cheek with a needy smile. "Please, Mom? I just don't want to lose you."
Haru's eyes melted with love and worry. She gently ran her fingers through Yuki's thick white hair as she tried to think of a response. "Honey? My blood's… more… flexible than anyone you're likely to meet. Being compatible with Arthur doesn't mean he's compatible with me. You wouldn't believe the rampage he went on when he found out where the blood came from."
This was too important for Yuki to give up now. "So who is compatible? Vicky?"
Haru gave a dismissive snort. "Even if she were, she'd sell her soul to send me to my death."
The little girl stared up at her mother, feeling even more confused than she had before confronting her mother. "How can she not be compatible? She's your twin sister, isn't she?"
One brown eyebrow twitched. "We're fraternal twins, even if the only physical difference is that she's a redhead and was allowed to be his confident and beautiful 'little princess' while I had to be the plain tomboy that had to show a bra strap just to use the girl's bathroom without getting harassed growing up." She then breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Man, was I relieved when Dad found out for work that my birth certificate had 'Haru Yoshioka' instead of 'Harry Jones'. Sure saved the fee for changing my name to something a little more feminine. I was thinking of 'Rose', but couldn't decide on a last name. 'Thorne' felt a little pretentious with 'Rose', even if I liked it best."
Yuki didn't waste time with her next bet as Toby hopped off the bed to reacquaint himself with his water bowl. "I'm guessing Grandma picked out your name, if the old man went that far to not let you know about it."
Her mother nodded grimly. "According to the guy that recorded my name and Vicky's, the old man slapped my mom hard for filling in a name for me while he was distracted with telling the clerk that 'Victoria' was a name fit for a queen, which is what 'his little darling' was born to be." Haru gave a dismissive sniff. "Now look at her. The queen of solitary confinement for killing four rich husbands. Ugh, I wish no one found out that we were disowned twins. All that plastic surgery she put herself through to make people stop comparing her to me didn't save her from a life sentence, even with her husbands' families constantly petitioning for her death."
Yuki refused to believe there wasn't a back up plan for her mother. "Well, is there anyone else? Did Grandma have any family that might be compatible?"
Haru's face turned hard as a stone. "They are unimportant," she stated in a tone that sent chills up Yuki's spine.
"I thought no one was unimportant."
"Where this matter is concerned, they don't mean a thing." Haru reached for her music notes, but Yuki was able to hop over her mother and push them beyond reach.
"Mom, I'm worried sick about you. Do you have any relations that are compatible with your blood type?" Yuki asked again
"It's… Yuki, I really don't want to talk about this!" Haru said with unexpected anger, since it had been three years she had raised her voice in anger to her beloved child.
But that wasn't enough to stop the little girl's mission. "Mom, your life could be in the balance! If you need a blood transfusion and you're unconscious, who do I call? I know I'm little, but I should know that much!"
Haru gave her a look of despair. "Honey… thank you for not questioning why I wanted to keep certain things from you until you're older. It hurts to hear you talk like this."
Yuki crossed her arms with a scowl. "Don't avoid the question, Mom. Who do I call?"
Her mother bit her lip painfully before forcing herself to lock eyes with her child. "… There's a fair chance that I would die if I need a transfusion, Snow Angel. The only people that can help me are kept under constant watch and lockdown, and they'd pretty much have to be strapped down and sedated before anyone can speak of pulling out a needle. But that plan has just a few ethical problems."
"Your family's that dangerous?" Yuki asked in a horrified whisper.
Haru unexpectedly erupted into laughter, louder and harder than the girl had ever heard before. It was all the brunette could do not to roll off the bed as Toby gave a few questioning 'woofs'.
"Well. On a good note, she knows exactly what her kind can do," the queen noted after a few minutes of listening to her giggle through holding her wounds from the pain.
"… Um, Mom? Mom?" Yuki tried to ask after her mother was finally able to calm down from her mirth.
"Oh… man! I'll have to remember that joke for Arthur! He and Mera will be in stitches the rest of their lives!" she giggled between sounds of pain, finally forcing herself to be still. "Sure hope I didn't rip up my own stitches, or Timothy will have my hide."
Yuki took the time to fix the covers. "But you said they had to be watched and strapped down. Why did you laugh that hard?"
Haru's next cleansing breath sounded full of remorse. "Because they're cowards, Sweetness. Remember everything I said about how I was when Dad found me?"
Yuki nodded.
"Compared to the rest of my… genetic relations, I was as unexpected as the Rabbit of Monty Python, even before Dad brainwashed me into a fully sentient being. The rest of them were sure as easy to scare as normal rabbits."
"May I ask who Monty Python is?" Baron asked, but Yuki was a little too stunned to answer anyone for a while.
"… But… doormat. Pushover. Spineless?" she tried to remind her mother, who only nodded in confirmation.
"I repeat; I had nothing on them, Sweetie. Do you remember the time a raccoon got into the chicken coop?"
"And you ordered me to the other side of the house while you ran to help the chickens with an axe," Yuki finished in a heartbeat.
Haru flinched, but nodded. "… That's more or less how different I am from the others, Sweetie. They cower, run, and shriek for someone to come save them from whatever is currently slaughtering or enslaving them, and I'm the one that rushes head on if…" she blushed weakly. "Well. Like I have to tell you about how I react in those situations. Even before I could fight or thought I could help, something in me wouldn't allow for escape."
Yuki nodded, cuddling against the woman and rubbing her face into one shoulder to savor that ocean scent. "I wish you'd stop treating it like being a hero's something to be ashamed of."
"Maybe it's a little hard to think you're a hero when you're washing the blood off your hands," Haru muttered, snuggling her child close. "My… relations are kept under watch and lock because they refuse to protect themselves, but they love freedom more than anything. Even tattling on someone for abducting a loved one is bold enough for all the kin to ostracize the brave one. When trouble happens, the only hide any of them care about is their own. The ones holding them for their own good have been trying to beat it into their heads for centuries that if they want to be free, they have to be willing to defend themselves, but it's all in one ear and out the other."
Yuki was having trouble seeing her mother as related to anyone so selfish, but knew from her gift that her mother wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. "But if they've all been under watch and lock for centuries, how did you get out?"
Her mother didn't answer, but her grip tightened until Yuki had a bit of trouble breathing. She waited patiently for a reply, but none could be heard.
"Mom? How did you escape?"
Still no answer.
"Mom? You didn't fall asleep, did you?" she asked suspiciously, turning her head up to check.
There was that self-loathing again. It had been happening less frequently and with less intensity since the first time she'd seen that look, but now it had returned with a vengeance. Using her tried and true technique, she wiggled high enough to give a swift lick to one of her mother's cheeks.
Haru broke out of her trance, shaking her head slightly as her lungs took in a few deep breaths. "Hey, Sweetie. Did you need something?"
Yuki stared in horror. "Holy peanut butter, it must have been bad. You didn't call me a goofball for doing that again."
"Uh… yeah. My goofball. What must have been bad?" Haru was still struggling to fight off her black mood.
'Maybe I should ask later,' Yuki thought desperately to the eavesdroppers.
"Yes, perhaps that's enough for now," Baron agreed, sounding worried. "She gave us at least a few answers to work with. Your majesty?"
"I agree. She's already had a long day, and we do have at least six months before Drac resumes filming. Provided, of course, he doesn't take out a restraining order against your mum."
'Don't get my hopes up,' Yuki answered miserably, startled when her mother suddenly gave a sharp whistle.
"Here, Toby! Here, boy!"
The basset hound gave a happy bark, leaving his water bowl as he hopped back onto the bed and came close for a good ear scratch.
But instead of that, Haru reached for the bedside table and grabbed the leash Yuki had thrown there after the long walk. She held it in front of the dog, carefully studying his reaction.
Toby gave a woof of happiness, licking her hand and resting a paw on her chest so that she could clip it onto his collar.
"You have no fear of this whatsoever, do you, boy?" Haru asked him in her sweet, warm voice.
His little tail was wagging happily at the thought of another walk, but after she didn't clip the leash on, he gave a disappointed whimper and made himself comfortable at her side.
Yuki had no idea why her mother was asking such an odd question. "Why would Toby fear the leash? We only use it when we're out around people."
"Why do we use the leash around people, Yuki?" Haru asked, sounding interested around her depression.
Her daughter was having trouble understanding why her mom wanted to know something so obvious. "So that he won't get lost and someone else doesn't steal him, of course. He's a good boy, any dog lover would adore him."
"Then what keeps him around when we don't use the leash?" She seemed to be asking herself this while giving him the wanted ear rubs. "We let him run free as a bird in the Refuge, yet he never strays far."
Toby himself answered that by licking her hand again; more than happy to stay exactly where he was.
'What is wrong with Mom?' "Because he loves us, Mom. And we love him. Isn't that reason enough?"
Toby rolled over for a belly rub, whining hopefully as he wiggled for attention.
Haru left his ears alone and started rubbing, using her free hand to set aside the leash once more. "All of my kind have a leash," she admitted miserably.
Yuki's senses tingled at the word 'leash'. Metaphor.
"All of them but me. I'm the only one that can go wherever I please, whenever I please. Free as a bird. No special obligations, just consequences to my actions. I'm the only one of my kind that's ever earned a lick of respect, let alone had whole countries bow even when I beg them not to. All in exchange for never knowing a true leash." Haru said all this in a sad monotone, her eyes far and distant as she kept rubbing Toby's tummy.
It was as if her soul was no longer in the room.
Yuki bit her lip, making a random guess for just a touch more information. "So were you born without this leash?"
"No. All of my kind have the leash at birth, even if something happens to the parent."
"So Vicky had it, too?"
The suddenly very tired-looking woman slowly looked at her child, the mother's expression as if she were already dead. After a long minute of thought, she tugged a little harder, encouraging Yuki to wiggle upward again. As soon as her head was resting on her mother's shoulder, she could feel her mother tilt her head close to her ear, close enough to feel soft lips brush against her hair before whispering, "The old man wasn't my birth father. He wasn't my mother's husband."
Yuki ripped herself out of her mother's arm with a gasp of horror, covering her mouth with both hands. "No!"
"That goes no further than us, young lady. Am I understood?" she asked sternly.
The girl kept staring at her mother, not wanting to believe it despite the truth ringing like a bell in her mind.
"Now you know why he tried so hard to drive me to suicide so he would be 'blameless' if the police ever bothered to investigate my death. Why he was so happy to be rid of me the night I ran, despite never being able to keep a housekeeper after I was gone. Can't have reminders of anything that makes him feel like he's less than right all the time, now can he?" she asked, trying not to sound bitter about the injustice.
"Did… did he…?" Yuki couldn't even bare to ask.
"Yes. The old man's why I don't have a leash. He decided it was more convenient for him if mine…" She gave a deep sigh. "Sweetie? Life isn't about what's fair, okay? It's about getting up and dusting yourself off when something knocks you off your feet. Bad things happen to everyone whether they deserve it or not. Baron will back me up on this."
If she weren't still horrified by the implications of what had happened to her mother and grandma, Yuki might have wondered why her uncle wasn't speaking, either. Or the queen.
"But quite frankly, sometimes bad things happen for a good reason. Like, if that creep had half a shred of decency in him, I would have been even more of the black sheep in my genetic family. Thanks to the ones that used to hunt my kind, I'd be dead by now for not running or trying to cover someone else's escape. No one would have been willing to train me for combat even if I had ever gotten the nerve to ask. If I had stayed with the old man and Vicky, it's extremely likely I would have been either tossed to the streets after turning eighteen or been an accomplice for Vicky's crimes if I didn't run in front of a car first. If I hadn't run off with Louis instead of by myself, I never would have met Dad, or you. I never would have known how strong I can be if I just keep pushing myself. All the lives I've saved through my monster-slaying would have been lost since other help couldn't come fast enough. You don't want to know what would have happened if Arthur didn't get that blood transfusion. I don't want to know who would have found you that Christmas morning if I had gotten the quiet loving life I've always wanted. Even if we would have met anyway, I wouldn't have been strong enough to take care of you all these years by myself, physically or mentally since hard work's about the only thing I've never been afraid of. Come here, Sweetness. I need a hug."
Yuki was lying down by her mother in half a second, wrapping her arms around her mom and squeezing as hard as she could. "I-I'm so sorry, Mom," she wept into the front of her mother's shirt. "I swear I didn't know."
Haru gave an especially loving kiss to her daughter's thick white hair. "I've said it more times than I can count, but I never get tired of repeating this. You are worth everything it took to meet you. Getting to be your mother is a privilege I will never take for granted. I love you so much, my little snowflake. For you, it was all worth it."
ooOoo
Sonya closed the connection to Haru's room, fighting back her own tears. "Those details stay between us, agreed?"
"Agreed. I thought I couldn't feel worse than she already made me feel," Baron admitted shamefully. "I can't believe I had the gall to judge her!"
The queen slowly sank onto the nearest couch. "We all did, unfortunately. But this does explain why you never smelled a drop of human blood in her. But if a mere human can strip her birthright at his convenience, that should help narrow down the possibilities of what she could be."
"Does that even matter at this point? You care if what she is will become a problem for the kingdom, and it's apparent that the most dangerous thing about her are her choices."
Sonya pursed her lips in thought. "… She does try her best not to let them be for her own behalf. I will speak to Phoebus, but I fear he will still want to know what she is. We both know how he gets when he wants something." A fond smile crossed her lips at the quirk. "But I personally feel that her legacy's no longer a matter of urgency."
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
She tapped her fingers together, coming to an important conclusion. "… It seems to me that while she can make herself a nuisance when she so wishes it, Lady Haru will prove herself a loyal friend if she is shown the same treatment."
"And sometimes when she isn't," he responded miserably.
The queen could only smile in sympathy. "It may be best to wait to tell her the whole truth until after we encourage her attachments for a few months. From what I have overheard, she will understand why we kept certain things from her until we have an assurance of matters. That way she knows we will not abuse knowledge of her heritage."
"Oh, thank you," he responded with relief. "I was this close to telling her I'm not wearing a costume before she yawned. Drac never outright forbade me from telling the truth after making it clear that my chances with Yuki were better if her mum thought I was a method actor."
"Well, you're forbidden now." She smiled, remembering another little detail that needed addressing.
But it didn't require the baron's assistance.
ooOoo
Yuki eventually looked up through her tears with a fierce expression. "What did you do for revenge?" Forget that her uncle and queen weren't watching anymore; she needed to hear this!
"To which people, Sweetie?" her mother asked, not bothering to hide that she had done such a thing.
"The old man. What did you do to him when you found out the whole truth? About what he did to you and Grandma?" Yuki pressed with a barely controlled snarl.
Haru gave a light laugh as her eyes turned distant. "I knew exactly what he did when I got my memory back. It's what helped inspire me to talk to Dad about learning to use a gun instead of depending on someone to protect me. Every time I started thinking 'I can't do this, it's too hard', I'd remember what he did to us. There were no bodyguards, no police. If no one came to my rescue, what would happen to me? Selfish as it is, I learned to fight so that no one would be able to do anything like that to me again." She managed another laugh, though it seemed directed at herself. "It figures that I wind up using those skills more for other people than myself. I'm the knight in shining armor that I used to wish would come rescue me from the old man. So much for goals, right?"
"So you let him get away with it?" Yuki asked with disgust.
"I was going to. I wanted him to see the success he always said I couldn't even dream of being. I wanted him to see me gain all the money, praise, and respect he had always decided was Vicky's just due. I wanted him to enjoy all the reporters that would come to him and offer money in exchange for talking about me. Even when his cancer started catching up with him and he could have used the money, he'd always chase them away with whatever he could get his hands on and deny that he had any connection to me. Dad told me that having a happy successful life would be the best revenge against that monster."
Yuki wasn't sated. "You said 'going to', Mom. What changed your mind?"
Her mother almost seemed to wilt like a flower. "… Meeting my genetic relations. Let's just say when you turn twelve, you'll understand my list of very understandable reasons for never talking about them, as well as why Arthur and Mera decided that I'm their little sister. Because my birth family isn't exactly held in high regard, Arthur wound up taking me to my roots, partially so that people would stop scoffing at him and Mera when they tried to tell them about me and partially as a call to action for my relations after I killed the ones that had been hunting them for centuries. Anything I can do, they would be able to do if they were just willing to apply themselves. When I was done screaming at them for not being willing, the first thing I did was track down the old man. By then Vicky had been caught and was going through her hearings, and the old man was wasting away in a hospital. Vicky tried to spin her deeds as good since she was using a good portion of her dead husbands' money to try to cure the old man, but no one really went for it except a few ignorant prats."
Haru's next smile was as grim as a reaper's. "It was two months before he died. He couldn't move, and even if he could talk, the air tube down his throat wouldn't let him. He was drowning in debt even with Vicky's help. He was so sick and miserable with not being able to boss or bully people around, that he was actually happy to see me."
Yuki's eyebrows shot up in disbelief.
"He recognized me through the disguise, and thought I was finally there to kill him," Haru quickly explained. "I could see it in his eyes that he wanted me to do it whether I got caught or not. It wasn't until after I was leaving the hospital that I realized just how much better of a revenge it was to let him know that despite everything he did to make sure that I amounted to worse than nothing, he's the reason I have my best chance at finding happiness. His doctors told me after the fact that those two months were definitely the worst they had seen him, even without the cancer."
Her daughter stared at her. "So… you forgave him?"
Haru nodded. "I also paid for all his medical bills, and his burial when the end came. I made sure he knew Vicky would get flowers on our birthday and Christmas, even if she just tears it to pieces while screaming profanities at me the times that a guard at the prison doesn't keep it for themselves. But that's not my concern; I'm keeping my word. Heh, that's my other revenge. Not being too exhausted or busy to break that promise."
Yuki was a little surprised that her mother went as far as a visitation, considering some of the things she had heard of Vicky. "Why did you bring them yourself before adopting me?"
Her mother scoffed dismissively. "I did no such thing. She bullied and screamed at me too much growing up. I doubt she has anything new to say, so it's an automatic delivery from the closest florist. I'm paid up until we reach a hundred years old."
"Will she live longer than that?" Yuki couldn't help asking, even if she had to keep herself from asking 'will you live longer than that?'
"Even if she does, she'll more than likely be too senile to remember me. But with how little she has to look forward to, I'll be shocked if she hits eighty."
A strange sigh followed her words. It sounded… longing, as if she could only dream of dying that soon. Or was it the lost chance to be close to her half-twin? The only blood relation that had been named in their five years together.
"What was Grandma's name?" Yuki asked randomly.
"… Naoko," Haru whispered, her mind clearly a million miles away. "Yoshioka Hasho is her husband. You will never hear me call him 'father'."
Yuki bit her lip before snuggling deeper into her mother's embrace. "So, this leash… no replacements?"
Her mother turned on her side, making Toby wiggle around the bed until he was nearly crushed between them again with a happy whimper.
"I would have to steal one from one of those spineless pansies. As I'm sure you can tell, I refuse to consider that an option."
Yuki couldn't fight the smile of pride as she snuck a kiss to her mother's cheek. "And you dare to wonder why I worship you."
ooOoo
Still feeling a bit nervous about being around humans, Julia was careful to cover up her emotions as she opened the needed door.
Only a handful of musicians were within, all of them looking over at her in surprise.
The tall disguised feline closed the door after herself before taking in a breath. "Which of you is Steven?"
An elderly human stepped closer, though he looked a bit nervous himself. "That would be me. What do you need?"
"Lady Haru was wondering if she could book you for an appointment next Monday at noon," she dutifully recited.
His dark eyes lit up as he threw his fist in the air. "YES! She's going to do it, everybody!"
The other musicians made a similar happy ruckus, some rushing for the door to inform the other musicians.
Julia wisely stepped away from the door to avoid the stampede, looking at the conductor with surprise. "How did you know she's been writing music?"
Steven rolled his eyes with a warm smile. "Oh, she always produces a cd and donates the proceeds to charity after slaying something. I guess it helps with the guilt since she hates making a kill. But since she can't possibly do all the instrument work herself this time, at least for a few months if your doctor friend has anything to say about it, we were hoping that she was going to ask for help this time. It'll sure beat hanging around the castle doing nothing for months."
Julia couldn't be shocked at this. Not with how Haru had fought so hard to avoid fights before Drac forced her hand.
But still…
"Why didn't anyone try harder to tell my lord about her abilities?" she asked with a stern look, but was only given a rueful laugh for a reply.
"Oh, believe me, we tried. If the director hadn't put a block on the internet service so that we can't look up anything that so much as has Lady Haru's name somewhere in the comments, we would have for sure at least shown him her battle with the T-Rex."
Julia blinked in surprise. She had never heard the tyrannosaurus addressed as such, but… "A robot of some sort?"
"Nope. Cloned."
Julia's mouth fell open in horror.
Steven held his hands up in a calming gesture. "Don't worry; Lady Haru's done everything in her power to shut that amusement park down and keep the remaining dinosaurs in quarantine. It would have made millions, but it really was too dangerous to work. Unless they cloned Lady Haru into an army."
Julia shivered at the thought. "I don't think this world can handle more than one of Lady Haru."
"It sure would be a safer place to live, though," Steven mused wistfully before giving a heavy sigh. "Is there anyone else she wishes to contact for the meeting next Monday?"
"She said you would be willing to help me with George Mason."
The conductor beamed happily. "I thought so. You can't make a cd without a sound engineer. Come, I'll introduce you. Oh, I hope we can talk her into at least one music video before the director heals!" he gushed while leading the maid out of the music room. "Music videos sometimes make more money than the movie they're intended for!"