And here we go.
read, review, enjoy
Disclaimer: I do not own Sekirei; if I did, the situation with certain characters would've turned out very differently and we'd have more than two seasons of the anime. It belongs solely to Sakurako Gokurakuin.
"You missed a spot."
Tamotsu glanced over and frowned as she spotted a smudge on the sink. "Drat. I thought I glossed over it well enough."
His self-proclaimed "boss" harumphed, "Gloss doesn't clean anything, Tamo. Now get to it."
"Yeah, yeah."
It had been three days since Tamotsu had been taken under Sanada's care and ever since the second day, he'd been at it. He'd been slapped with cleaning duties after he felt his arm was ready to go, though he was ordered not to do anything strenuous.
Once everything had been squared away – and Sanada had kindly helped him get a new phone – Sanada had properly introduced him to his…girls, and even now there was something really wrong with that sentence.
What was even more wrong with how they preened when he called them as such, especially Kujika and Kuzuri. Those two were all over him like white on rice.
"Tamo, quit gawking and get scrubbing! Kuzuri is working on the bathroom, and she'll want you next!"
Speak of the she-devil.
"Yeah, yeah."
Oh yeah, they also disliked him for some reason. The reasons varied of course but he was willing to bet yen on the fact on what he asked Sanada before.
"So, are these your…kids?"
"NO, WE ARE NOT!" the trio shouted at him, making him jump back out of instinct.
What else was he supposed to think? Why else would three children be living with a single man? But in the end, he had decided that it wasn't his place to judge his benefactor's relationships especially when he was staying there rent-free.
Anyways, the twins weren't welcoming but neither were they cruel which was a plus in his book. They were very, very demanding though and expected him to pull his weight.
It had been a tough job at first and even more so keeping everything up-kept; Sanada clearly lived a rather care-free life when it came to his living environment.
As it turned out, Sanada Nishi was quite the slob. Candy wrappers, potato chip bags, instant ramen cups and the like were strewn all about in places Tamotsu couldn't have even imagined.
'Who the hell eats instant ramen in the shower, anyways?!'
"There, I think I got it," Tamotsu said, turning to the dark-skinned girl.
If there was one thing about Kujika he'd earned is that she had an eye for details, and it had taken him several tries at cleaning the counters before she was satisfied.
Satisfied being the operative word there.
"It'll do. Now go help Kuzuri. I'll finish up here."
It wasn't lost on him that he might as well have been a servant to these two, doing all the cleaning and such.
But they had taken him in when he could've very well have breathed his last that night. If nothing else, he owed them whatever they could ask for.
'But if they ask me for anything out of bounds, I'll take my chances with the street thugs again,' he groused as she stepped into the bathroom.
A bucket and brush were shoved into his hands the second he walked through.
"Here. There's a bit of grime on the top there in the shower. Get to it," Kuzuri barked, glaring at him.
This one however had the biggest problem with him though. Kuzuri was perhaps the most antagonistic towards him and he wasn't anywhere near figuring out why. Kujika was a hard-ass but at least she was willing to work with him.
Kuzuri just flat-out disliked him and didn't seem to care how much he busted his ass for her.
"What about you, then?" he challenged.
"I'll get the mirror," she bit out.
"You always get the mirror."
"Got a problem with that?"
The two glared at each other, neither willing to give ground.
Deciding to be the bigger man, Tamotsu sighed. "Look, I'm gonna ask again – what have I done to you? Because if it's something I can do, I'll do it. I'd rather work in harmony than the opposite."
Kuzuri sized him up, her face twisting into a scowl as she folded her gloved arms over her chest. Unlike her twin, she was the only one who hadn't bothered to cover up around him and was still in that same bikini outfit. "Yeah? Tell me this – when are you planning on leaving?"
'Again with this?'
"As soon as I'm able to, but since I have no money to my name I'm kinda stuck here. Trust me, I'm not happy about it either," he shot back, narrowing his eyes at her. "Now can we please just get on with this? The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can be out of each other's hair."
Kuzuri held his glare for a few more moments before giving a huff. "Fine. Get to it."
Tamotsu nodded at her, "I'm on it." As he stepped into the shower, he started brushing away the grime and pulled away some to examine it. "Bleh. How does someone let their place get this bad?"
"That's because he's not here a lot," Kuzuri pointed out snidely. "We only come back here when we need to sleep. Otherwise we're all out there on the streets."
Tamotsu rolled his eyes, "You'll have to forgive me if I don't see how all three of you can fit on that bike of his."
Kuzuri's chuckle sent shivers up his spine, "We make do for the ones we love."
There it was again, that little hint at something more between him and these girls. Sure, he called them his girls, but Tamotsu still didn't know how deep that went.
He wasn't about to poke that hornet's nest after the other day, though.
'I know they're hiding something but I'm not exactly in a position to really say anything, now am I?'
The encounter with…with Uzume still remained close to him, even if nothing came of it. Her smile didn't pain him as much as it did before but it still hurt like hell. He was sure Sanada knew something was up with that too but he respected Tamotsu's privacy if nothing else.
It didn't take long before they finished up and Tamotsu began packing up his supplies when he took notice of something on Kuzuri's back.
It was a faint image of what appeared to be a bird with one wing flanked on the lower left and right by a pair of magatama, a ying-yang symbol in the center.
'What a strange mark. Is it a tattoo? For her age?'
Whatever his musings were, they were blown away when Kujika burst into the bathroom, "All through in here?"
"As much as we can be for now," Tamotsu remarked. "What's wrong?"
"Get cleaned up Tamo. You're coming with us," Kujika ordered. "We need to make a delivery."
A delivery? "Sanada-san forget something, I take it," he ventured.
Kujika sighed, "Yeah he did. He usually gets something while out, but he made something to take with him today. Shijime-chan was a little hyper this morning and burst out before he could pack it, so he left without it."
"That sounds like Shijime-chan alright. Ok, I'll get changed. Where is he anyways?"
Kujika just shrugged, "We'll find him. He never goes far where we can't sense him."
"Sense?" Tamotsu parroted.
"Nevermind, just get cleaned up!" Kujika said quickly – too quickly, and rushed away.
Kuzuri also surged out with her twin, leaving him there to ponder just what the hell was going on.
'Curiouser and curiouser…'
"You are the worst at keeping a secret," Kuzuri snarked, walking up behind her twin – and sister-wife.
"Like you're one to talk," Kujika shot back, "with your crest on display like that. I told you to wear something less revealing."
Kuzuri's eyes widened, her hand shooting to her back in a panic. "Do…do you think he knows?"
"About us? Not sure. But he more than likely thinks we're hiding something even if he isn't sure what it is. He's a lot sharper than he lets on."
"That almost sounds like a compliment," Kuzuri teased her. "If we weren't paired with Master already, I'd say you were reacting to him."
"Don't even joke about that!" Kujika snapped, clenching her fists tightly.
Kuzuri sighed, "You're right, that was on me. I'm just a little on edge around him is all."
"Are you reacting to him?" Kujika returned with a sly smile.
"Don't-!" uzuri made to snap, only to shut her mouth with a click. She chuckled, "I had that coming, didn't I?"
"Yup. You know he's not a bad person, right? Master wouldn't just take in complete strangers if he didn't have a good feeling about them."
Kuzuri still didn't look convinced, "I don't know. Ashikabi or not, there's just something about him…something that puts me on edge. I think I might've gotten a glimpse of it back there."
"What do you mean?" Kujika asked, now concerned.
"It's like-"
The door opening cut off whatever she was about to say, with Tamotsu stepped out in a set of street clothes. "Alright where to, girls?"
Kuzuri exchanged a knowing glance with Kujika, giving her a small nod.
Whatever their suspicions, if anything did happen, they'd handle it.
Nothing would touch their Ashikabi – not even another.
"Lunch break!" the foreman called out. "You've got thirty minutes. Make it count."
Kaoru Seo could've sagged with relief at that, finally free from this hell he called employment – at least temporarily.
Stabbing his shovel into the ground, he made his way over his "buddy" and patted him on the shoulder. The jackhammer went silent, the man tacking out his earplugs to give him a look. "Lunch break Sanada-kun. Let's get some grub."
Sanada also showed a bit of relief at that, setting his equipment down to join Seo over at what had become their spot. He reached into his bag to pull out his bento but froze halfway there. "Damn it…I must've left it on the counter."
"Problem?" Seo asked, chuckling.
"I forgot my bento. Guess I'll need to get something from nearby," the biker muttered, made to rise but came to a halt. "Hey wait a sec – where's yours? Normally it's here by now."
Seo grinned. "Ah, well you see-"
THWAP!
A bento smashed into his face, somehow perfectly intact but yet he didn't expect any less.
"-mine's being delivered," Seo finished, now sporting a bloody nose.
"ASSHOLE! How many times do we have to tell you – don't forget your lunch!"
Sanada cast a look over to the edge of the zone, spotting two twin sisters dressed in matching maid outfits. They both looked annoyed but the one who had thrown the bento looked absolutely livid.
"Ah, but you see then I would miss seeing your wonderful face at lunch, Hikari-chan," Seo returned, not in the slightest bit remorseful.
The maids stormed over to them, glaring down at Seo. Sanada swore he could see electricity coming off of them which made sense of course. They were Sekirei after all.
Sanada just stared at a loss. How Seo managed to bag these two as their Ashikabi he would never understand, nor why they still put up with him. In the short time he'd known him, Kaoru Seo had proven himself to be able to walk a fine line between decency and indecency, see-sawing between each.
Then the two turned to him and bowed quickly.
"Sorry, we're so sorry," they said.
Sanada would've chuckled if he wasn't so used to it by now. This scene had played out quite a bit already. He gave them a nod before returning once more to his own dilemma. "Damn…guess I'll need to go get something."
"Shijime says wait!"
The other two Sekirei and Seo jerked as Shijime appeared from nowhere like usual, the little white-haired angel smiling widely at them.
"…seriously how does she do that?" Hikari muttered, blinking.
To be fair, it had unnerved Sanada at first too but he'd gotten used to it by now. If it meant at least one of his lovelies was always nearby, he was quite content. Rubbing the top of her head, she cooed at his touch and mewled like a cat.
"Nya~"
"Grrr," both Hikari and Hibiki growled, glaring daggers at Seo.
"What? What'd I do?" the man grunted, biting into his food.
"Sanada-san!"
Sanada and Seo both turned towards the voice, finding his Sekirei and their resident house monkey – guest – heading towards them. In the twins' hands was his lunch that he'd burst out without this morning. Sanada glanced down at Shijime who smiled brightly back up at him, prompting another headpat.
"And there's mine, I guess," he remarked as the trio walked over to him, taking the bento from them. "You guys are lifesavers. I didn't want this to go to waste!" He glanced over at Tamotsu who was gazing around the area, taking in the scene. "How ya feeling kid?"
Tamotsu frowned a bit at that which only made Sanada smirk. He really hated being called that, which only made it funnier. "Better I guess. You really need to stop eating in the shower, Sanada-san."
Sanada almost choked on his onigiri.
"He does what?!" Hibiki exclaimed, aghast.
Tamotsu just shrugged, "It shocked me too, now it's just irritating."
Recovering from that choking spell, Sanada aimed a glare at the kid who actually smirked at him.
'Oh that cheeky little shit…'
Seo grunted. "Haven't see you with him before, kid. You got a name?"
"Uemoto Tamotsu – Tamo's fine," the kid answered.
"Tamotsu-kun eh?" Seo smirked. "Shouldn't you be in school, kid?"
"Just how young do I look, old man?"
This time, Seo choked on his bento. His Sekirei for their part were having a hard time deciding whether to be indignant or in stitches.
Sanada on the other hand didn't give a shit and laughed, "He's got ya there, old man," the biker chuckled not even caring about the glare he got from his "friend".
"Don't you start," Seo growled before giving the kid a dark look. "look kid, you can make a lot of enemies with that attitude. Might wanna shape up."
"Why? You going to try and kill me too?"
Sanada froze, and so did Seo. The Sekirei there all stared at Tamotsu, Seo's Sekirei actually put on edge.
Tamotsu stared at them coldly, his lavender eyes almost dead and with none of the light that was present before.
It actually sent a chill down Sanada's spine.
But the moment passed, Tamotsu shaking his head a bit and giving a fake smile, "Sorry, a little cranky still. Kujika-san, Kuzuri-san, I'll just be outside when you're ready to leave."
"H-hai," the Sekirei answered slowly, watching the kid as he turned to leave.
"The hell was that about?" Seo muttered.
Hikari kicked him in the shin.
"OW! The hell, 'kari?!"
"Jerk!" she snarled.
Rubbing his shin, Seo grumbled. "Seriously… What was his deal, anyway?"
Sanada sighed, "My guess – Kei."
At that name, Seo's face immediately twisted into a snarl of his own, and his Sekirei actually shuddered. "What about him?"
"...I think the kid's lucky to be alive."
The twins shot a look at him, blinking. "He…took on Kei?" Hikari mumbled, eyes wide with shock.
Sanada shrugged, "That's what he said, and given how I found him that night I'm inclined to believe him if not for one thing."
"Which is?" Hibiki pressed.
Sanada's face turned grim, "That there were signs of a Sekirei being involved."
They all went quiet at that, the Lightning Twins tensing up while Kujika and Kuzuri exchanged glances.
"…does he know?" Seo asked quietly. He didn't have to explain; the meaning was there.
Sanada shook his head, "Nah, but I get the feeling that won't last long."
And rarely were those feelings of his ever wrong.
I was originally going to post a much longer chapter, but halfway through the scene kinda shifted and it would've felt out of place. So I decided to split it; the other part should be up by tomorrow.
I did my best trying to establish Tamotsu being the one kept out of the loop but I think it came off forced more than anything. I'm not used to writing sequences like these and even after all this time, I've still got a lot to learn regarding writing. That isn't stopping me though.
No Uzume this chapter and she won't be showing up until after Mitsuha shows up. Don't worry; things with her and Tamotsu will be fixed before long - I just want to establish Mitsuha a bit more first.
Till then,
Take care.