14AmyChan: I don't own anything~! *^_^*
Train: now we are finally coming to the party! The story's getting back on track!
14AmyChan: yep~! *^_^*
Rinslet: Weren't you going to put another scene in here?
14AmyChan: Yeah, but I decided to cut it. ^^;
Saya: Why?
14AmyChan: because this party isn't for dancing, it's for action! *^_^*
Train: All right, so let's go…
"Get in there, do your thing, then get back in here, we've still got stuff to do!" Sven barked at the duo before they left the car. They heard him snap something about a nap as they went in to face their doom. Hardly comforting.
As Train walked in the door, he noticed Rinslet right away. Though her hair was now the same color as his and the eyes only slightly dimmer than his own, no one could mistake the flamboyant style as anyone but Rinslet's. She wore a dark purple dress with the sleeves replaced with the most fluffy—and most certainly fake—scarf. She seemed in deep thought as she tucked away a small pistol into her purse. The bag of evil… he thought as he led Saya over to her.
"That's some accessory you have there, sis" Train dryly remarked, pulling the disguised thief out of her thought. However, unlike the disapproving smile he expected to be able to tease, Train was rewarded with a sly and mischievous smile.
"We're not staying long, just enough to grab some dinner" Saya added on. She was just as frustrated as Train with this gig and eagerly wanted to make everything better again. Maybe if she caught an extra bounty, she'd be able to make it up… only time will tell.
"Why the hurry?" Rinslet asked, feigning innocence. She batted her big muddy eyes. "I told you that you could see something interesting, didn't I?"
"Let's just get in and see what's going on" Train said, effectively fizzling the impeding fight. But just to bug them both, he added "But if there isn't anything worthwhile over here, I'm blowing your cover."
Saya mentally cheered as she saw some of the color fade from Rinslet's cheeks. However, the thief seemed to brush of the threat as she led the duo into the fancy hotel where Madame Freesia was celebrating her fiftieth birthday.
"She's a collector of animals. Made her fortune in the pet industry. She's got to be more than $70 million!" Rinslet explained about the birthday woman. "Everyone wants to get closer to her. We've got crime bosses, executives, royalty… even politicians. Not one person in here is average. Well…"
"Don't you even continue that statement" Saya cut off the impending insult. She watched as Rinslet began to snicker and found herself instantly unamused. Saya's curt glare caused the thief to get a mischievous glint in her eye. The message was quite clear.
Bring. It. On.
"Who's the lady with the freaky hair?" Train asked, pulling the women out of yet another impending catfight.
"It's not polite to make crude remarks about your hostess" Rinslet jabbed at the male Sweeper. Even though she, too, found Freesia's hair to be somewhat of a joke. Actually, it looked like a big, fat joke. Like two drumsticks permanently attached to the side of her head. One thing did catch her attention: the being that had perched itself on the shoulder of the multimillionaire. "And that on her shoulder is a lamb-monkey hybrid."
Train was about to reply when he saw something behind Freesia. Or rather, someone. He recognized the look of a predator behind her. Cold and calculating it was. Yet thirsty for the next kill. The eyes reminded him of a time long ago, and yet he felt himself slipping into predator mode as well.
"You see him, too?" Saya asked, and Train just knew she was looking in the same direction as he. Her voice was well-guarded, but even he could tell the excitement of a meal ticket finding its way here.
"Oh my, how many gate-crashers will there be?" Rinslet mocked, also looking in the same direction as the other two, but discreetly. "And if you two keep staring, you're going to get caught."
"I'm cool" Train said, slipping into a carefully laid façade of carefree. Saya, too, decided to relax, knowing that the gamble was well worth it. Famous assassin, Lugart Won, had decided to dress himself up nice and pretty before getting caught and having his $200,000 bounty redeemed. Saya just needed to make sure that they got him before the night was over.
"Hello, my Dah-lings!" a heavily accented voice announced over the speakers, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schhhedules to help me celebrate my 50th birthday! Thank you dahlings, thank you!"
As Madame Freesia's speech expanded, Rinslet was having a hard time concealing her laughter. Saya, too, was finding it hard to constrain the giggles.
"Someone actually talks like that?" Rinslet's muffled voice finally broke through the quiet chuckles.
"You mean you've never talked to her and she let you come to her party?" Saya asked, wiping away the tears of laughter.
"It's different here in the land of the rich" Rinslet said, still trying her best not to laugh at the ridiculously overdone accent. "You can only talk through email and text and become the best of friends."
"Well, that stinks" Saya replied, taking deep breathes to counter the fit of funny. "Personally, I like to talk to my friends before inviting them to a party."
"And that suits your poor personality" Rinslet jabbed.
"At least I don't need to make up stupid names for people to want to hang out with me."
"Well, I—"
"A toast, dahlings, to the future!" an accented voice drove the girls to giggles again as they raised their glasses respectfully. After that, Saya noticed that Rinslet was intensely listening to Madame Freesia and her servant, so Saya paid attention to Train as he left for Won.
He can handle him… Saya thought as she roamed around. Maybe I should grab a quick bite to eat and then see if he needs any backup… Saya walked over to the snacks table, grabbed a cracker, ate it quietly, then walked to the doors to see what Train was up to.
By the time she made it to the doors, she noticed something. Or—again—someone: Eve. She had made her way to the party and now had a crowd surrounding her.
"Is that child lost?"
Someone hmmed in agreement. "I found her wandering the halls. Does she belong to one of the guests?"
"Oh dear…"
Saya was just about to go and get Eve when she looked over in a specific direction—away from Saya—and stated in a very loud voice "There she is, auntie!"
The squawk that came out of the crowd came from none other than Rinslet, and Saya was more than happy to let the poor woman sink into this precarious situation. After hearing a bunch of apologies and reassurances that the child had come to find her, Saya decided to move in closer to talk to Eve and ask her what she was doing there. But by the time Saya had gotten there, Rinslet had beaten her to the punch after muttering something about 'auntie'.
"I… I just wanted to see a party" Eve smiled at Rinslet as Saya showed up. While Saya found it cute, she did not think that Sven would be pleased with her at all on this matter. But then again, that wasn't her department.
"All the guests are moving to the hall" Saya told the two, surprising Rinslet from behind. Saya wished she had a camera to record that. Eve remained unsurprised, and that was fine by Saya. "You two should get going."
"What are you going to do?" Eve asked, realizing that if Rinslet asked, then they would start squabbling, and Eve had just come down to see a party, not a fight.
"I'm going to check up on Train, so you two have fun" Saya left the two with question marks as she made her way to the area where she believed Train to be. Whether or not he needed backup, she didn't know. She sincerely hoped that he didn't.
"That sounds like a challenge…" she heard Train's voice from across the wall. He sounded like he was having fun. Well, fun was better than dead. "I accept. Let's see who dies with regrets, shall we?" Saya felt her stomach go icy as she heard several roars and a sound that reminded her of thunder go across the always on the other side of the wall. Train couldn't afford to be distracted now. It only took Lugart Won a second to kill his intended target. And right now, that was Train.
As Saya opened the door, she found that a stampede of people was headed straight for Train, but Won was no where in sight. Train, upon seeing the open door, made his way to the door quickly and allowed it to shut.
"What happened?" Saya asked, quickly scanning Train for any damages. He looked a little bruised, but otherwise unhurt. And Train got bruises all the time. From getting hit in the head with a book by Eve (or her for that matter) to the usual squabble with Sven. Not having Train bruised even slightly would be a weird thing.
"Me. Won. Fight. Later" Train replied casually as if nothing were wrong. To emphasize the normalcy, he cracked one of his huge contagious grins. Doing its job, Saya smiled a little bit as well, then returned to the matter at hand.
"What were those noises?" Saya asked, noticing that the sound of the stampede had gone by. Just as she asked the question, she saw a look of mischievous curiosity in Train's eye that she had grown to love.
"Let's go check it out" he said, leading the way. Saya would have laughed at his behavior if she weren't so concerned for Rinslet and Eve…
A few seconds later, she and Train were seeing something they were sure was from a dream.
Eve was attempting to fly Rinslet to safety with her angel wings. To safety…away from a dinosaur. Thinking quickly—for the girls were about to be dinosaur chow if someone didn't do something fast—Train pulled out his gun, aimed, and shot out one of the teeth of the dinosaur.
"Nice shot" Saya complimented, still taking in the scene. Eve fluttered—more like fell—to the ground with Rinslet in tow. Saya wanted to go over and make sure she was okay, but the dinosaur was in hers and Train's path.
"So…" Train started, his catlike eyes scanning the scene before him. "We've got a dinosaur… and an angel…" Train's eyes cut over to the two on the ground and he broke a small smile. "Well, you did say we'd see something interesting, Rinslet" he joked.
"Train, Saya!" Rinslet sighed of relief. "Just in time-!" But Rinslet could say no more. The dinosaur had turned around and barged its way to the door. Right where Train and Saya were. Thinking quickly, Train and Saya exchanged quick glances before jumping or skirting out of the dinosaur's way. Train jumped on top of it to avoid its rampage while Saya skirted to the side and darted to the two in the middle of the almost empty ballroom.
"She got away…" Saya heard Eve pitifully moan. To her, it sounded like the girl was going to cry. Then, in a switch of gears, Eve practically bounded to her feet shouting about how she had to stop her. Then she almost fell to the floor. Saya caught Eve just before landing her face on the ground. Everyone watched as the angel wings shrank into Eve's back, and Saya could feel the increase of tremors in the small girl's body. Saya began to panic a small bit when Rinslet came around.
"You overdid it, Eve" Rinslet comforted. Saya could tell that Rinslet was just as worried, but had decided to take a logical path to safety. Because she wasn't there to know what Rinslet was talking about, Saya kept quiet as the other woman continued. "You're not used to transforming continuously like that… you need to rest"
"B-but…" Eve began to protest, but she only continued to shiver. Saya noticed that as Eve attempted to push herself out of the older Sweeper's grasp, the tremors only became stronger. Saya also felt the great urge to get Eve to calm down and think rationally enough to rest.
"So, who wants to tell us what's going on around here?" Train asked, strolling to the spot where the women had convened. He held Hades at his side.
"Madame Freesia financed the genetic engineering of a dinosaur so she could keep it as a pet!" Rinslet was obviously frustrated and—if Saya had to say so—a little scared. "But the thing freaked out and broke free!"
"huh?" Train seemed to be at a loss for words. As he mentally scratched his head and searched for answers, almost no one heard Eve's small sniffle. Almost no one heard it until she decided to make a final ditch plea.
"T-Train…" she began, grabbing the attention of everyone. It was the closest they'd ever heard her to crying. Eve brought her face up and instead of the tears everyone expected to see, Eve's face only showed harsh determination. "Stop her, please! She has to be stopped now… or people will panic and kill her…" Everyone stopped to listen to that. It shocked them when she continued. "She was created artificially… she's just like me, and now she has no place to go… she's just confused…" Her face began to fall to her pleading tone. "It's not her fault! But… unless we do something, she'll pay the price for someone else's arrogance."
Train, Saya, and Rinslet only stood there for a few seconds, contemplating at how the young girl had phrased her plea. "Please…" Eve continued, finally bowing her head in defeat. "I hate to say it… but I'm useless to help her right now."
You could have heard a pin drop. Everyone knew that Eve was a curious and somewhat stubborn child, so this was a big thing for her to say. And even though Train had no idea what was going on, he decided to protect the girl who'd become part of their little band of sweepers. "I'm going after the lizard, Rins, Saya, you two stay here and look after the Princess."
Though Saya felt like she was being brushed off, she listened to what Train said and watched as he left the ballroom. She looked at Rinslet and Eve and decided to get some movement out.
"We should get out of here and get you something to eat, Eve" Saya said, helping the young girl up. Receiving an agreeing nod from Rinslet, Saya then helped her got to the lobby until the girl was able to walk on her own. Rinslet walked over to the window to check on the situation while Saya kept a steady eye on Eve.
"Looks like the boys are going to catch us a lizard" Rinslet laughed dryly. Turning around, she saw Saya's small smile and Eve's slightly bigger frown. "Looks like everything's going to be okay, no need to worry."
"I'm so hopeless…" Eve murmured, her eyes downcast. This caught the attention of both women. "I'm so hopelessly dependent on all of you guys…"
Before Saya could think of anything to say, Rinslet decided to take her route of cheering Eve up. "What are you fussing about?" she asked cheerfully. "There's nothing wrong with relying on all of us at your age. You're still just a kid!" Saya only nodded to show that Rinslet was spouting out sense for once.
"You both think so, too?" Eve asked, not even looking up to see Saya's nod. "You both are going to treat me like a child, too?" Rinslet and Saya were lost on what Eve meant. So she clarified with "Sven does it, too. He only really relies on Train and Saya…" Eve took on a contemplating look. "I guess I should have expected it… I only wanted to help out, but I'm always being rescued by him…"
Saya and Rinslet got it at the same time. While Saya just messed with the girl's hair, Rinslet practically glomped the child once more. "YOU ARE SO CUTE!" Rinslet squealed. Though Saya wasn't near as loud, she did add on with "It's just amazing how that brain of yours works…"
"Auntie and Mommy are very proud…" Rinslet sniffled. If this weren't such a tender moment, Saya would have come back with something about Rinslet's age. But there was a time and place for banter, and this wasn't it.
"Eve, you've thought of everything, except the number one most important thing" Rinslet continued, her attention solely on Eve. Eve's face only showed her inner curiosity and confusion. To enlighten her, Rinslet continued. "You think you're weak, right? But that's so far from the truth. How many people do you think could pull off what you did today?" she asked. "I'd take you as a partner any day of the week" Rinslet smiled. "It's just that the people you hang out with right now aren't exactly normal…"
Now that, Saya knew all-too-well. To be raised by a man that can glimpse the future and have an older brother figure from the man feared by the highest criminals as the "Black Cat" would raise some self-standards.
"So what I'm trying to get at is…" Rinslet started to grin and poked Eve's cheek playfully. "Don't worry you're pretty little head."
Even as Rinslet continued to try and console the girl, Saya noticed that the thief had completely lost all attention from her. It wasn't too long before Saya's phone began to ring. Pulling it out, she looked at the caller ID to see it was from Train.
"Hi, Train" Saya said, catching the attention of both thief and biogirl. She smiled at both of their expressions. Eve's was caught between relief and expectation, and Rinslet's face was just plain funny.
"Yo!" came the voice from the other side of the phone. "We stopped it, just like she asked. It's not seriously hurt, so we'll leave the rest to the police. I don't think they'll hurt it either."
"That's great" Saya said, searching Eve's face for relief. And sure enough, there was plenty. "I'm sure she's relieved."
"Then could you get her on the phone?" Train asked. From his voice, Saya could tell he was extremely proud of himself for a job well done.
"Yeah, here she is" Saya replied, handing the phone over to the youngest there. Smiling, she whispered "You really ought to say thanks, even if he is your rival for Sven's attention."
Both women watched as Eve awkwardly took the phone and stared at it silently for a second. Then placing the phone to her ear, she murmured a small "T-thank you…" Saya and Rinslet nearly cracked up when they heard Train's response from the other side of the line.
"Wow. That's all the enthusiasm you could muster?"
14AmyChan: Okay, one chapter done~! *^_^*
Train: that took awhile, didn't it?
14AmyChan: uh… ^^;
Saya: oh well, at least she didn't make us dance in the party
14AmyChan: Only cause I couldn't fit it in anywhere… ^^;
Rinslet: Eve is so cute!
Sven: …
Eve: what?
Sven: nothing, why don't you do your thing?
Eve: all right… Please take your knowledge of this chapter to form your own honest opinion. When that is done, input your opinion with the 'review' button.
14AmyChan: PLEASE R&R~! *^_^*
