Act 5 [First Meeting]
AN: Hullo :) Sorry for the extremely long break in chapters. Here's the newest one; expect more frequent updates. Hope you enjoy & please leave C+C! ^^ ~ Sakka, Dec 2002
* * *
Hanako checked herself in the tall mirror, straightening her white lab coat with a sharp tug, and brushing a few strands of hair from her eyes. "Midori?"
The green haired girl poked her head out from a door. "What is it?"
Hanako turned, and with a grin said, "How do I look?"
"Wonderful. Now help me out here."
It was a few months after their first lunch at the Roketto-dan HQ. The team of Midori and Hanako had taken over one of the Hibino Breeding Center establishments without a struggle; a smooth transition was necessary to avoid any involvement with the authorities. The previous workers were tied up and sent via truck to the headquarters, never seen again.
Now, daily, they stole Pokemon. Since the Breeding Center also was like a kennel, people would leave their prized Pokemon there while they went on vacation. They returned to hear Midori or Hanako innocently saying that the Pokemon Center had gotten too full and, with a small smile, had been sent to another center. Would you like for us to call them for you?
It was that easy; and since there were thousands of Hibino Centers sprawled across Kanto, it was that difficult to track down just one Rattata. One could be easily "lost". However this surprisingly leisurely life of crime had not left either girl a hardened criminal.
Hanako and Midori were daily trained to only use Pokemon; they had no feelings or thoughts, therefore they were just tools. Don't grow too close to them. They're just pets. Despite all this, Hanako found herself growing closer to her Ponyta, letting it out in the small living quarters occasionally so she could pet it and talk to it. She even had given it a nickname - Flame. She knew it was corny and cliched, but....
Today was going to be the last day of their final week working at Hibino Centers. They had been doing this for at least 12 months now; and were going to get their first promotion.
Hanako glanced at herself in the mirror again. 19 years old. One year older; one year of improvement. She never regretted her decision to join the Roketto-dan but often, in the darkness of waiting for sleep to arrive, she thought about her mother.
Even now her mom's sad face floated back to her. Hanako shook her head forcefully and opened the door that Midori was behind. Her green-haired compatriot toddled out, carrying large empty cages.
"Stop admiring yourself in the mirror, Hanako-chan!" She cried as her steps swayed. Hanako grabbed a cage and they both look relieved.
They walked out through the halls of the underground living quarters; up to the maze of more halls in the workplace. They finally reached a parking garage where large, low-profile common vans waited for employees to use them. They loaded one up and headed out to work.
* * *
"Hibino Center #432 to HQ; over." Midori released the button on the radio's microphone. A voice crackled over in reply.
"HQ to 432. What's up?"
"Shipment prepared... affirmative." Hanako listened from the sidelines. Pokemon were being packed into the cages and then sent to the headquarters for experimentation, training, bait, anything imaginable. Midori caught Hanako's gaze and rolled her eyes. "I hate doing this!"
Unfortunately, her hand was still on the button when she spoke. "I heard that." Their friend over at HQ was easy-going though. "Shipment will be picked up in fifteen minutes. Code: 39236. Over and out."
Midori grinned. "This is so easy!" She squealed. "And we're gonna get a promotion in two days!"
Hanako burst out laughing; she could hardly contain her excitement anymore either. "I know! I just can't believe we've gotten this far."
Fifteen minutes later, the truck lumbered up and burly men hopped out of the cab, then tossed the cages into the back of the truck. Hanako wasn't about to let this scene dampen her excitement. But she couldn't help seeing some of the Pokemon in the cages. They were frightened and scared. If she could tell that, how come they were taught that Pokemon had no emotions? No feelings?
Midori ran up to her after talking to one of the men. "We can leave after shutting down the shop. He gave us this list to make sure we cover up our tracks."
They went through wiping anything possible with clean cloths; white sterile gloves and disinfectant spray. Windows were boarded up and the back was thoroughly cleaned. The Center was closed for good.
Hanako placed the "Closed" sign on the front entrance with a strange sense of excitement. Midori and she walked out the back door for the last time.
* * *
"Two days of relaxing. Two days of a break---" Midori yawned widely, her mouth seeming like a vacuum, "--- off our routine."
"Two days of boredom." Hanako muttered as she hung a small picture up on the wall. As promised, she was decorating the room with the few things they were allowed to have.
"What do you mean? We get to go guy-hunting!" Midori flung open her arms. She was laying on her back on the top bunk. "Look out boys, here comes Midori!"
Hanako rolled her eyes with a smile. "Did you ever find out if that was Madame Boss' son?"
"Who?" came the reply, evidently the incident gone from her memory.
"Remember our first lunch, we saw that guy... he had brown hair and ..." Hanako didn't continue to tell her about their eyes locking. She got kind of flustered even thinking about it.
"Oh, yeah. It is him. He's in the same rank as us. Weird, huh? I thought he'd be catapulted into right-hand-man since he's her son."
Hanako stood back, trying to see if the picture was straight. It was a picture she had found in a magazine laying around of one of the sunsets of Orange Islands. She wanted to go there someday, maybe if she ever got a great position and was able to travel...
"I'm going after him. Is that okay?" Midori questioned after the break in conversation, looking off the edge of the bed at Hanako's back. "I mean.. he's so cute! And if we get serious, I have a major shoe-in with the Boss."
Hanako couldn't help but to roll her eyes again, "Sure, go ahead. I didn't join Roketto-dan to meet guys." She whirled around and stuck her tongue out. Midori gave her a glare, but also a grin.
* * *
Promotion day. Thousands of young Roketto-dan members were gathered in a large room, waiting for their new instructions. The first period of commissions were vital to their career in the gang. If they screwed up during even one or two, they were definitely out of there.
Hanako and Midori wandered in, looking lost. That seemed to be the general expression fixed onto everyone else's features. Were they supposed to wait for a speaker? Or get pamphlets with their mission instructions?
"I think there's something over there." Hanako pointed to a large gathering by the left wall. "Be back."
"Okay," Midori replied, eyes busily looking for some other information -- or boys; Hanako couldn't decide.
She jostled her way through the crowd just to get to this larger crowd. People were aimlessly walking around, some talking with friends and some looking like wallflowers at a school dance.
BUMP. Hanako walked straight into something. No doubt a person. She looked down in embarrassment and began to quickly murmur apologies.
"It's no problem." The reply was voiced by a soft-spoken male. Hanako dared to peek up. His eyes, which were a murky brown, registered some recognition, but he remained quiet.
It's HIM! Hanako's heart jumped into her throat. The gaze... Madame Boss' son... "H-hello."
He smiled calmly and kindly. The entire throng of people surrounding the two seemed to disappear. "Haven't we met before?" he asked finally.
"Uh, um..." Say something! Anything!! "Well, sort of, not really in person but kind of... like across the room kind of meeting." Hanako... you... dumb... idiot. She gritted her teeth at her response.
He laughed. "I know what you mean. I remember... it was my first day working. I think we sat together at lunch or something."
He remembers! ... Well, sort of... "Actually, we just saw each other across the room." Hanako replied.
"Well, here's to knowing another Roketto-dan member." He offered his hand. "I'm Sakaki."
Hanako shook it shyly. "I'm Hanako."
They stood in awkward silence, unsure of what to say next...
"Hanako!" Midori's voice called through the buzz of the crowd. Everything came rushing back to her. Sakaki's eyes were averted to see the green-haired girl bound up to her friend.
"Hanako-chan, did you find ou--" she stopped and glanced at Sakaki who was inquisitively looking at her, then at Hanako. "Why, hello!" She smiled girlishly. "You must be Madame Boss' son..."
"Yes.." he said uneasily. "My name is Sakaki."
"I'm Midori." Hanako watched as Midori put her charm attack on maximum. Blinking the eyes, smiling that one smile that always got the guys, body language going just right. Hanako would never have dared to do that in a first meeting.
Suddenly a booming voice echoed through the room over a loudspeaker. "Attention! Attention! Quiet down!"
The crowd was instantly silent. A tall man and slightly shorter woman carrying papers walked out on the empty stage before them.
The man began to speak. "Thank you for attending your promotion meeting. By now you have completed task one; running a business and capturing Pokemon." He paused, taking a paper from the woman and glancing over it. "R. Mitsukawa, N. Yudo, and E. Watanabe, you have not successfully finished the task. Please report to the main office for discharge information."
Hanako swallowed as she watched three people trickle out the doors.
"They looked kinda wimpy anyway," Midori dared to whisper to her.
"You will be partnered with whomever you are rooming with now. You will be working almost independent of headquarters; only receiving a packet of information on your next mission. Each group is to capture a high-profile Pokemon and present it to Roketto-dan within six months. This can be achieved by any means, as you are no longer restricted to instructions by headquarters." The man's eyes scanned the crowd. "The most important lesson to be learned from this task is to be as stealthy as possible. You must not have any contact with authorities. If you get injured, you must report back to Roketto-dan Headquarters -- not a hospital." He seemed to stress the last words. "Junko will be handing you the packets now." He turned and left; the woman began to call out names over the loudspeaker.
* * *
"We got a Growlith that has saved seven children and three adults from burning flames." Hanako read off a sheet of paper after Midori and she had retired to their quarters. "The past two years he has been named Dog of the Year."
"That's a title you can earn?" Midori asked as she hunched over her food, doing something carefully to it.
"I guess," Hanako said, glancing between papers, unsure of what to make of all the information. It gave where he was living, who his owners were, some information about them in case they decided to post as long-lost relatives or something...
The cafeteria was full of newly promoted members. Rookies now were one rung higher on the ladder.
Hanako watched Midori sculpt the strange green food into a bust of Madame Boss. She let her thoughts drift off into meeting Sakaki. He was friendly, and benevolent... with that soft voice and deep brown eyes. She was letting herself go a little too far into the daydreaming area... but she couldn't resist. She hadn't had any silly thoughts like this since seventh grade. That seemed like eons ago.
She wondered if she'd even get to speak with him again.
"Try this food." Midori motioned to her lump of green food. It had been looking like the Boss, now it just looked... strange. Hanako took her fork and sliced off the top of Madame Boss' head.
Midori's eyes popped. "Why did you do that?!"
"Do what? You said to try the food," Hanako asked, regretting that she did... the green food tasted like children's modeling clay.
"I saaaid," Midori grumbled, exasperated, "take a look! What were you doing, you looked 50,000 miles away!"
Hanako smiled apologetically, "Sorry... I was just... thinking about our new assignment." She mumbled.
No one was ever going to find out she had a crush on the Boss' son.