A Tail of Two Brothers Chapter 29
I do not own Big Hero 6 or any of its characters
"Alistair Krei?" Hiro whispered. "I've heard that name before."
Krei turned his attention back to Hiro and continued to smile at him.
"Like I said child, I'm all over the place. I sponsor and make geniuses, I give them opportunity to excel in learning and research," Krei stated proudly. "This is no exception."
Hiro shivered over the look Krei was giving him, this man looked as if he knew him but Hiro didn't know him. So why was he addressing him with such familiarity? His question would soon be answered as Krei leaned closer and knelt before Hiro's cage. Hiro was still backed away from him, he didn't like this man and he didn't want him anywhere near him. But Krei seemed to enjoy his scare tactics as he continued to do so.
"I really have to thank you Hiro, this whole mission started with you," Krei said.
"With me?" Hiro questioned.
"That's right, without you none of this would be possible. I never would have found these potential subjects without you," Krei stated. "I've spent a great deal of money and resources on you… but I never thought that it would led me to all of this."
He held his arms out and gestures at the rest of the children, Hiro already decided that he didn't like this man. He could tell that Krei didn't think that he did anything wrong when he took them away from the comfort of their kind. Not to mention that he kept referring to them as if they were nothing more than subjects than actual children. Despite not aging as quickly as humans, they were still technically children. Hiro may have not been born as a kitsune but he considered himself one at this point. And he considered the rest of the other kitsunes to be his family, friends and community.
Hiro was starting to get over the fear he held for this man and actually got closer to the cage bars. He glared at the man and his associates. Never in his life had he hated someone as much as them, not even his own parents earned this much rage from him. He figured that the main reason for this was because they were no longer a part of his life anymore; after all it was hard to hate someone if they weren't there.
Krei noticed the glare he was receiving from the young boy and gave him an evil smirk. He got closer to the cage once again but this Hiro didn't move. He stayed in his spot and he continued to stare down at the man. Meanwhile, Krei continued to go on with his explanation. Hiro quickly figured out that the man liked to brag and gloat about himself and his actions, it was annoying.
"Although I must admit it did take a while to find you, after all I had no leads or anything to on… oh but I knew better. I knew that your disappearance was the work of supernatural forces," Krei said.
That caught Hiro's attention as well as the other children, by now all of them were awake and they noticed the environment they were in. However, all of their attentions were on Hiro and Krei.
"You know we're kitsunes," Hiro simply stated.
He didn't think it was a secret at this point. Krei said supernatural forces; he wouldn't have said that if he didn't know about it. Besides, Hiro already figured out that was the one thing they had in common. Why else would Krei consider them to be the perfect research subjects?"
"Precisely dear Hiro," Krei stated.
"But that doesn't explain why you have been looking for me this whole time," Hiro quickly added. "I wasn't born as kitsune."
Krei didn't look impressed by that statement, in fact he looked bored. To him it was like opening a present that he already knew what was inside it. There was no surprise or shock, just boredom.
"Oh I already knew that Hiro," Krei responded.
That confused Hiro even more.
"How?" Hiro asked.
Krei smiled again and he stood up from the ground.
"Well it's not like you can do anything about it now at this point, I don't see the harm in telling you. I'm sure you wouldn't care about it anyway," Krei stated. "Let's just say it was out of love for a certain woman."
Krei then turned to the direction of the still opened door and Hiro couldn't help but look as well. Krei held out his arm towards the door and motioned for someone to come in.
"Come on in darling," Krei stated.
Suddenly a figure appeared in the doorway and Hiro could tell that it was a woman. He couldn't see her face though but he could make out what she was wearing and her hair. Her hair was black in color and it was tied back in a bun. Her outfit consisted of a long black dress that reached her ankles; there was a slit on the sides too. Black high heels decorated her feet and golden hoop earrings were placed on her ears. Whoever, she was she sure did look fancy. And she certainly did look like someone who would be by Krei's side.
The woman made her way over to Krei and as she did so her face became more and more apparent. However, as that happened a huge wave of déjà vu came over him. And he couldn't figure out why until she stepped beside Krei. Hiro's eyes widen and his face filled with horror and shock as he saw who it was.
It was someone he had thought that he would never see again… especially after his rescue. There standing in front of him and standing beside Krei was his mother, Ryoko Takachiho. He couldn't believe it.
"Y-you," Hiro stuttered.
She hadn't changed that much since the last time he saw her. Her hair was longer and it was tied back but other than that nothing changed. In fact, she looked more radiant than she did before. He wondered why that was. However, he knew that her personality hadn't change a bit because of the look she was giving him at the moment. It was the same look Krei was giving him.
"Well fancy meeting you here of all places," she said in a sarcastic tone. "You haven't changed a bit."
She got a closer look at him and still looked unamused.
"Then again I was told that youthfulness came with being a monster," she added.
Hiro flinched at her response and his eyes flash with anger for a brief second. That answer showed him that she knew about his current state and about these other children. That's why she called him a monster. Well to him, she was the monster. But Hiro pushed that aside and looked at her.
"What are you doing here?" Hiro asked.
Ryoko titled her head a little; it was like she was silently insulting him. But she did give him an answer.
"Isn't it obvious? I went out and finally found myself a real man unlike that wretched, deadbeat father of yours," Ryoko stated as if she didn't have a care in the world. "Oh by the way he's dead."
Hiro was startled a little bit by that answer. It was certainly not one he was expecting. However, he wasn't surprised by the way she said that. It was no secret that Ryoko and her husband, Keiichi, didn't like each other. In fact, they never missed an opportunity to remind Hiro that it was his fault that they were forced together.
"What?
Ryoko nodded her head.
"That's right. About two months after your disappearance I came home one day and found him slumped over the couch. He had a bottle of beer in his hand and a cigarette hanging from his mouth; even before I walked in I could smell the stench of death. I knew that he was gone," Ryoko stated. "The old fool drank himself to death."
Hiro couldn't believe what he was hearing. Keiichi Takachiho, the man he owed half of his existence to, was dead. And he had been dead for sometime now. Hiro never thought that the man would meet his end at the end of a beer bottle. He knew that Keiichi hadn't always been the most healthiest person but to hear that it finally caught up with him was surprising. However, Ryoko didn't stop there.
"Imagine my surprise when I couldn't find you anywhere. I came home not too long after you disappeared and you weren't there anymore," Ryoko added. "What shocked me the most though was that there was no sign of anyone else being in our house, and I knew that you never had the guts to leave before… so how did my brat escape?"
Hiro was beginning to remember the reasons why he hated this woman but she continued to go on. And just like always she didn't even care about his feelings as she spoke bluntly about the past.
"Well I didn't wonder about it for too long, honestly I was just upset that there was no one to do the chores while I was gone. Keiichi seemed to take your disappearance as an opportunity to drink more and that's what led to his death. After that I saw no reason to continue staying or coming back to that house so I packed up what I could and left. That was when I met this handsome gentlemen here."
She gestured at Krei and she leaned her head against his chest, Krei returned the affection back wrapping his arms around her. And he gave Hiro a mocking look as he did so.
"It was love at first sight," Krei added. "It wasn't until Ryoko here talked more about her history that I found out about you. She told me about your disappearance and how strange it was. As soon as he I hear those details I knew what it was."
Krei then looked at the children and they cowered under his stare.
"I knew that it had to be the work of kitsunes. For you see you aren't the only child to go missing from a home or from the street. I began to notice patterns in children going missing in the San Fransokyo area. However, it was then that I began to notice that all of those disappearances had one thing in common: the children were from unfortunate backgrounds," Krei explained. "I once heard that kitsunes tended to take these children and adopt them into their society by changing them and making them into one of their own. However, that wasn't the only pattern I began to see. I saw that there were certain houses that would go on sale on the market not too long after those children disappeared. I knew that there had to be a link between the two. However, I was never able to pin point where the exact location of the kitsunes were because some of them would either move to another house or they would leave the state altogether. In other words, I had no ties to the missing children so therefore I couldn't properly track them. But that all changed when I met your mother."
Krei looked down at the woman with a proud look.
"Once she explained everything to me I finally had a link or a starting point to locate other kitsunes," Krei said. "And my search did not disappoint me because now I have all of you right where I want you."
Hiro shook his head, this man was insane. He was the definition of a madman, someone who would risk anything and do anything in order to get what he wanted. But there was still another question on Hiro's mind.
"But if that's the case then why didn't you take the adults as well, you must have known that they were kitsunes too," Hiro commented.
"True, but you see I have no need for adult kitsunes. I already have what I need from them. I have their children and the ones they changed. Besides, young and growing subjects are much easier to tame and to experiment with," Krei stated.
The children cried out once they heard that and Hiro couldn't help but express his anger. He couldn't believe that in the end his own mother was the reason why he and the other children were here. In a strange way it wasn't just Hiro who had been freed from his past life. In a way, Ryoko had too. After Hiro's disappearance and Keiichi's death, Ryoko no longer any reason to stay behind in that old house. She finally had the opportunity to leave and be free without the need to go back. That's how she met Alistair Krei, she had moved up in the world. And yet despite that her past played a key part in Krei finding him and his friends.
That was when Ryoko spoke again.
"I can't believe that you actually allowed yourself to become a monster Hiro," she stated. "Then again I suppose that it's not that far from what you were at the beginning. You always did have a habit of making a mess of things and ruining others."
Hiro could feel himself losing control with every word she spoke but she didn't seem to notice as she kept on going.
"Maybe you were a monster from the very beginning; after all it's because of you that I was forced to be tied down to Keiichi for four years. Four years! I wasted four years of my life on that drunk and on you, you monster!"
The children couldn't believe what they were hearing. They had never heard such harsh words before and from a mother of all people. Some of them were adopted and they had seen terrible people in their lives but this woman was something else. Ryoko Takachiho was downright heartless and cruel.
"You ruined me Hiro," she said. "You ruined your mother."
With that Hiro snapped, he couldn't take it anymore. Even now she still acted like the victim and she continued to put herself before others. But now he finally had the chance to bring her back to reality, the reality where she was the monster.
"You have no right to call yourself a mother! Let alone my mother!" Hiro exclaimed.
That caught Ryoko's attention as she gave her full attention to her son. It also caught everyone else's attention as well. But Hiro didn't pay them any attention, he just glared at his mother and he poured out all of the raw emotions he had held for her over the years.
"Mothers are supposed to love their children!" he added. "You never loved me and I know for a fact that you didn't care when I left that terrible home of yours!"
Ryoko clutched her hands into fists and she was beginning to lose her temper. Krei could see this but he chose not to intervene. He wasn't at all concerned with the mother and son pair. In fact, he never considered Ryoko to be the mothering type and Hiro's outbursts had proven him correct. Honestly, it was one of the reasons why he was attracted to her. When they first met she made it clear that she wasn't interested in having any more children. She stated that having a child was what ruined her life in the first place. He didn't mind this at all because he was more interested in the field of science and business than family life. Either way he was entertained by the confrontation between the two and he continued to let it go on.
Hiro reached deep inside his soul and allowed the inner kitsune to take hold of him. He didn't care about anything or anyone at the moment; he blocked it all out of his mind. His sole focus was on the woman who dared to call herself his mother.
"You know I used to think that it was me who was to blame for the way you and your dead husband treated me, but now I can see," Hiro stated. "I can see that it wasn't my fault. You chose to be that way, just like how you chose to forget about me! Well you know what I chose to stay with the kitsunes and I chose to forget about you and your husband too!"
It was like the whole world had stopped for this moment, and Hiro didn't stop there. Much like Ryoko, he continued to keep going.
"And guess what I'm glad I did. Because of my choice I was finally able to have something I never had since the day I was born!" Hiro shouted. "I got a family; Tadashi has loved me enough for both a brother and a father. And Aunt Cass has loved me enough for both an aunt and a mother!"
That caught Ryoko's attention and she finally expressed emotion. Hiro could see that there was a look of rage on her face but he didn't care. He wasn't afraid of this woman anymore. This woman was nothing to him; she had been that way for a long time now. He had always backed down from her in the past but not this time, he was determined for her to hear what he really thought about her and how he was better off without her and her late husband in his life. After all, hadn't she proven time and time again that her life was better off without him? Well now it was his turn to show her that.
"Aunt Cass is more of a mother to me than you ever were!" Hiro exclaimed. "I'm not nothing to her! But you're nothing to me!"
Ryoko snapped. Hiro could see it! She actually lunged at his cage and reached out to him through the bars. However, he didn't move and she grabbed onto the front of his shirt. Hiro heard the sounds of gasps emitting from both the children and the scientists. But before anyone had the chance to react or do anything Hiro beat them to it. He did something that he had learned was an instinct for kitsunes. He grabbed onto her hand and brought his mouth close to it. He bit down as hard as he could, he could that his teeth pierced through her skin and he could taste her blood.
Ryoko let out a cry of pain and she struggled to free herself but Hiro wasn't letting go. What he was doing to her was nothing compared to what she used to do to him. He didn't care if it hurt her! Krei and some of the other people tried to pull her away from him but he still didn't let go. It even got to the point where the other children were actually cheering for him. They were proud of the small kitsune for taking a stand against this woman. They may have not known the whole story but it didn't take a genius to figure out that she deserved this.
After a minute or two of struggling Hiro finally let go of the woman he used to call his mother. Ryoko and Krei fell backward along with the associates. Ryoko's was holding her hand tightly to her chest as blood ran down it. She was panting and panicking at the same time. But that all turned into rage once again as she looked at Hiro. She couldn't believe that he had done such a thing to her. She had always been used to being the one who initiated any form of punishment but now the tables had turned. It was her son, her own flesh and blood, who initiated the punishment.
Despite her pain and injury, Ryoko lunged forward to the cage again but once again Hiro stood his ground. He could still taste the blood in his blood and even felt some dripping down his chin. He glared at his mother once again but just as she was about to reached through the bars again she stopped. She saw that Hiro's eyes were cat-like and glowing red!
"Do it again," Hiro dared. "This time I'll bite your neck."
And he meant it to. Hiro didn't even realize that his more feral side was appearing. Ryoko surely noticed and shivered in response. She backed away from the cage and she leaned close to Krei. The man wrapped an arm around her and motioned for the people to take her.
"Ryoko my dear you must get your injury tended to," Krei stated. "Leave these brats to me and my associates."
"A-alright," Ryoko stuttered.
With that two of the people led Ryoko out of the room but before she left she gave Hiro one last glare and he returned it. He hoped that she felt pain and he hoped that it would leave s scar. That way she would never forget him and she would never forget the marks she left on him. As soon as she was out of sight Krei turned his attention back to the young boy. He looked impressed with the boy's actions but it soon faded away. Believe it or not but there was something else Krei wanted to know about Hiro.
"You said your brother is named Tadashi?" Krei questioned. "My associates took the field trip roster your teacher had; you go under the name Hiro Hamada now. So he is Tadashi Hamada then is he not?"
Hiro merely nodded his head.
"Why? What's it to you?" Hiro asked.
Krei gave Hiro another evil smirk.
"It's everything to me young Hiro. I know that you must be blaming Ryoko for this whole ordeal but this has been in the process for decades now."
Hiro gave the man a puzzled look.
"What do you mean but that?" he questioned.
"I'm glad you asked. You see Hiro my family didn't start off in business or science. They started off as simple folk who lived in the country side of San Fransokyo. My grandfather was the patriarch of the Krei family and as such he was the provider," Krei explained. "However, he was also the storyteller of the family as well. He used to tell his children stories of creatures that lived beyond our world. None of them believed him of course, they all thought that they were just stories. But one day that all changed. One day he came home with a bigger prize than before. He came home with two pelts but they didn't belong to any wolf or coyote in the area. Instead they were something far greater than any of us could imagine. They were kitsune pelts!"
All of the children gasped as they heard that, Hiro looked just as shocked as they did. They couldn't believe that Krei's grandfather had actually killed not one but two kitsunes and had taken their furs as prizes. It made them even more fearful over what this man was capable of if he had a grandfather like that.
"The only reason why he didn't bring it to the attention of the public was because he was too proud and stubborn to relinquish his prizes to the proper people. It wasn't until the Krei family started to die off that I became the sole beneficiary of the pelts. However, instead of simply showing them to the public I decided to do something even better," Krei added. "My grandfather was too foolish to see the true value of having a kitsune. Instead of why skinning one and taking its tails, I decided that science should be used to properly examine the creatures. As soon as I obtaining enough wealth and status, I dedicated my life to find and trap a kitsune in order to introduce it to the world of science."
Despite the dear rising up in his stomach, Hiro spoke.
"W-why are you telling me this? What does this have anything to do with Dashi?" Hiro asked.
"My grandfather actually got the name of the kitsunes, their last name at least and he heard them say one last thing before they died," Krei stated. "Their last name was Hamada and they cried out to their son, Tadashi Hamada."
Hiro's eyes widen as well as Jasper and Dionne. It felt like their worlds had come crashing down, especially Hiro. He couldn't believe that standing before him was the descendant of the human that killed his brother's parents. He remembered hearing how Cass and Tadashi had found the bodies, not only were their tails cut off but their furs were taken as well. Tomeo and Maemi had been killed by the Krei family!
"No…" Hiro whispered. "No, no, no, no!"
"Yes," Krei stated. "In fact I still have their pelts hanging in my personal office, sometimes I just stare at them and think about what other kitsunes are out there."
Tears of frustration and anger welled up in his eyes and he could feel his feral side taking control.
You monster!" Hiro cried. "You're a monster!"
Hiro was going to transform again when the collar sent out another shock, he screamed in pain as he fell to the floor. Krei chuckled as a result and started to walk away from the cages.
"Those collars are there to remind you who's in charge here, this is your life now," he simply said. "Get used to it. Prepare them for the tests and make sure that everything is secure. I don't want there to be any mistakes, we have worked to hard for this."
"Yes sir!" the people exclaimed.
With that Krei left and the scientists started to look at their new subjects with interest. It was like they were apply picking and they were waiting to find the right apple. This worried the children as the scientists would lean next to their cages and write down things on their clipboards. Devious smiles were on their faces and their eyes showed nothing but greed and eagerness. They were very eager to finally start this project after many months of waiting.
"Which test should we run first?" one asked.
"And on whom first?" another asked.
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