Snugness.
That's what two people felt together as they woke up, with the man opening his eyes before the woman. The two of them held each other tightly, like lifelines.
The man looked over to his bedmate, who was looking rather pleased with her eyes not turning away from him.
Her red, delicate eyes were not an easy sight for him to ignore. Then again, his blue eyes had the same effect on her. Both didn't even dare to think about looking away at that moment.
"You're not dreaming," he whispered playfully.
"Finally," she responded, giggling. "And neither are you."
"I don't want to get up," he smiled, blinking every ten seconds or so.
"That makes two of us," she said, her smile slowly fading. "But, we have to."
"Yeah. I know," he nodded in a mix of disappointment and satisfaction.
Thus, the couple let go of each other and got up from the futon they were just sleeping in. They looked over to the nearby window - the sun was shining down on the room with amber beams. They figured it wasn't that early, but not too late in the morning either.
"I've always liked the sun," the woman said. "The sight it creates in many places can be memorable and shows me hope. I haven't seen it at all in years, so I'm still getting used to its presence," she continued, then turned over to her bedmate and friend. "Do you think so too, Kouta?"
"Sometimes," he shrugged. Kouta himself didn't like the sun too much, but he did appreciate it for what it represented. Plus, seeing Lucy happy with it does make him reconsider his opinion more deeply about it. "Maybe I'd like it more if I didn't find it annoying to deal with."
"I can guess why," Lucy smirked.
She then went over to him and took his hands with her own. A surprised Kouta noticed her grip strength, which he understood the reasons as to why upon looking at her cheerful, yet simultaneously wistful expression.
"I missed you."
"I missed you, too," he responded with a smile.
Suddenly, they heard increasingly loud footsteps and the room door opened rather quickly.
"Kouta! Hurry and get up, you la-" the entrant instantly paused her yelling as she saw there was another occupant.
Recognizing the entrant, Kouta had to respond quickly and calmly, so he did.
"Yuka, we can explain. Last nig-"
"Don't," Yuka interrupted him as she closed her eyes, with her eyebrows on even level and lips closed as she slowly breathed from her nose. "I get it, Kouta."
"Yuka, we didn't-"
"I said I get it," she interrupted him again, her body beginning to shake. "We'll be late for class, so just...get dressed and I'll go make breakfast."
Yuka, her body still shaking, walked out of the room and into the kitchen. Then, she felt a hand grab her right arm.
"I SAID I-"
Yuka paused her yelling for the second time, noticing it wasn't Kouta who grabbed her, but Lucy. Kouta was looking on, his eyes widened in worry and surprise at Lucy's sudden and bold decision. Yuka couldn't get her arm free as the pink-haired woman's grip was too strong. Lucy looked at her with a calm face.
Try as she might, Yuka just couldn't get her arm free, so she gave up and relaxed slightly. She looked back at Lucy and noticed that she wasn't trying to antagonize her, while at the same time also silently speaking to her about wanting to settle this matter. Calming down, Yuka looked aside before speaking.
"You two have slept together."
"Yes," Lucy said immediately. "I missed him for half of my life and I needed it."
"How far have you gone into doing it?" Yuka said as she looked straight at Lucy's eyes and tried her best - 'tried her best' being the keywords - not to lose control and punch the Diclonius square in the jaw.
"We've only hugged and cuddled. Nothing more," Lucy shook her head as she continued. "We did not kiss, and we did not take advantage of each other."
"Is this true, Kouta?" Yuka questioned Kouta as she kept looking at Lucy.
"Yes. All of it," he responded honestly. "We've been meaning to talk to you about this, as well."
"And what do you mean by that?" Yuka said, one of her eyebrows raised at Kouta.
"I've only slept with him once. Next time, I'll sleep with you," Lucy answered.
"Wait, what?" Yuka's serious expression faltered at the answer. Kouta himself was somewhat amused by the choice of words Lucy used.
"We've decided that Lucy will take turns sharing a room every day with each of us - except for me, obviously," Kouta detailed.
"Why?" Yuka blinked at the idea.
"Because I don't like being alone," Lucy answered. "And besides, do you want my other self, "Nyu", to wake up alone?" Lucy questioned Yuka.
"...No, I do not," Yuka said, seeing her point.
"Good."
For a few moments, the three of them were silent as Yuka gathered her thoughts. Obviously, she was even now trying not to flip out at the both of them, still rather angry at what happened between them, but also somewhat confused at this sudden new idea involving the sharing of rooms. Kouta noticed - out of the corner of his eye - two other individuals looking on from a spot they were hiding in, but it was obvious they weren't doing that great of a job.
Eventually, Yuka finished with her thinking. "All right. I'll agree to that," she reluctantly accepted the idea. She then looked over at Kouta, saying, "I hope it was only this once with you, Kouta," then she turned her gaze over to Lucy. "And I'm not sharing my futon with you."
"Fine by me," Lucy said. Yuka pointed over to her right arm - and Lucy did let her go, gently.
"Um...are we good, Yuka?" Kouta questioned her.
"Yeah," she nodded, her shaking stopped. "Now, go get dressed, you idiot."
Kouta quickly sprinted back to his room to grab and put on his day clothes.
"Don't call him that," Lucy rebuked Yuka for her name-calling. "And at least try to be nicer to him."
Yuka looked back at Lucy not with a glare, but with a more neutral and wary expression. "You think I'm not? He makes it difficult. And he does make dumb decisions at times."
"Regardless, you should try not to be too angry with him," Lucy said. "Also, thanks for being reasonable and listening to us."
"Oh, please. A murderer talks to me about being reasonable and thanks me for it?" Yuka responded with a sarcastic tone.
Lucy felt irate at that term being used on her, especially coming from Yuka, even if she was correct. However, now was not the time for physical retaliation, tempting though it may be.
"Funnily enough, yes. Even a murderer like me can talk about being reasonable. As long as you act reasonable, too. I hope you understand that."
Yuka sighed - in a way, Lucy was right, but she couldn't come up with a good response mostly due to not wanting to continue this conversation and having college classes today, so she just left to the kitchen to make breakfast. Lucy was relieved at the results of this exchange, but she held out her hopes for any future ones involving the three of them ending just as harmlessly.
Nearby, Mayu and Nana came out of hiding and walked over to Lucy.
"I'm guessing you two heard us?" the pink-haired older woman said.
"Yes," Mayu admitted.
"It was kinda scary seeing Yuka-san and you being like that..." Nana shuddered.
"It's not like it won't not happen all the time," Lucy said. "At least, for now."
Kouta came over to them, wearing different clothes for the day.
"Morning, Mayu-chan and Nana-chan," he said to them. "I suppose I don't need to explain what happened?"
The two young girls shake their heads.
"Having Lucy-san share a room with each of us would be nice," Mayu said.
"But...do you think this will stick?" Nana questioned Kouta and Lucy. They had a feeling that she didn't just mean about the 'sharing rooms' part, but rather about Lucy living with them in general.
"Probably. At least, I hope so," Kouta responded, somewhat uncertain in his tone. He looked over at Lucy. "You gonna be alright?" he smiled.
"Yeah. Don't worry about me," she smiled back. "Go get ready for today, Kouta."
"Okay."
"Have a good day, Kouta-san," Mayu said to Kouta, with Nana nodding towards him wordlessly, giving him hopes.
A content Kouta left them and went over to Yuka, who was still in the kitchen. Mayu left Nana and Lucy alone to prepare for her day's school classes, as well.
"Are you sure you still want to do this?" Nana questioned Lucy.
"I have to try. No...I must try."
During the next several days after Lucy's return...
Lucy began to adjust to a so-called "normal life" at the Maple Inn. Of course, it was not a completely welcome decision, as there were still lingering suspicions, fears and dislikes among the others, despite most of them having generally positive attitudes toward her.
Mayu and Kouta still had fears of her killing again; Nana was suspicious of her putting on a facade; Yuka simply didn't like her that much because of her impolite nature and grabbing Kouta's attention more often than she preferred. Wanta was the one exception - always staying happy with her, no matter what state she was in.
Yuka was certainly not in favor of Lucy's presence and attitude, but she was willing to tolerate her for Kouta and the others' sakes. However, she didn't want Lucy to simply be a directionless slacker, so she had Lucy help around the Inn, such as cleaning floors and setting up tables, among other tasks the residents do in order to stay.
Lucy herself was compliant to whatever Yuka says she has to do; because for the most part, she did want to stay and live with them, even if working around the Inn felt annoying and dull at times.
Kouta came back around to an old hobby of his - drawing. Thus, he would go out sometimes to look at nearby environments to draw from, usually forests, parks and the sea. He wasn't too confident about drawing animals or humans yet, but he figured he had the desire to practice for it. In the meantime, he focused on his college studies along with Yuka, doing grocery shopping, learning to cook and reading some manga.
Nana began getting her lessons taught by Yuka, with Nana already having difficulty with some of the subjects involved - mainly math and history. At times, Mayu came around to help her with her homework - Nana was especially grateful for it.
One of Nana's newfound interests was listening to music - starting with both classical and contemporary music, the particular sounds of certain instruments playing to create harmonies, rhythms and atmosphere was a new experience that she found mesmerizing. She came to like the sound of the piano and the atmospheric synths playing in the background of some songs. She wanted to know more, but she felt that she didn't have the knowledge to dive deeper into music at this point in her life.
After finishing her classes, Mayu occasionally went out for peaceful walks while also having a hobby that involved taking pictures - preferring to be on the beaches. She also met up with the lady who gave her bread crusts when she and Wanta were without a home. The reunion was sweet, as the bread lady was happy for her life getting better and Mayu wanted to buy full stacks of bread from her as gratitude.
During her walks on the beaches, Mayu had not met that one man wearing sunglasses at all. She figured he wasn't around often and liked to travel, but she still wanted to meet him. Rude or not, she had taken a certain interest in the man. She even still had his phone number to call him, but she didn't want to interrupt him while he was busy, so she held off on it.
Wanta had limited movement with a limp leg, so he kept staying at the Inn. He was fed and treated well, but he wasn't shown any signs of getting better. The inner feeling of misery slowly started to seep into the dog, but he remained positive.
Despite Lucy stating that she was still around in her mind and even conversing with her, Nyu has not come back yet. Lucy herself said that Nyu (with her limited vocabulary) wanted Lucy to live together with the other residents more and get used to being around them. The others understood as to why, but a part of them still wanted Nyu to come back, wanting to at least hear her say her own name, over and over again. Clearly, Nyu had an impact towards them.
As for the other voice, Lucy did not hear it at all during these several days, which she was thankful for. She had hoped it would be gone permanently, but she knew its silence wouldn't really last.
For the most part, all was calm and well in the Maple Inn.
At least, for the time being...
The early Friday morning was a peaceful time to wake up to. The sun was rising up from the distant east with its rays of gold, as if it was going to save the world from a biblical catastrophe. Birds were chirping, stray dogs and cats were wandering around, people were walking to work, children were trekking to school and cars and bikes were moving through the streets with the occasional honk.
The Maple Inn was lively during this time. The residents were having breakfast in the living room, with Nana gobbling down Yuka's freshly made food like a machine as the others watched in both awe and disgust. Lucy was there as well, eating more calmly in contrast to Nana.
"So yummy!" Nana squealed. "You're the best cook in the world, Yuka-san!"
"Thank you, Nana-chan, but it's not proper manners to just eat it like that! Slow down, young lady!" Yuka was exasperated. "Use the chopsticks! Not your hands!"
"But I don't wanna do it with the chopsticks!" Nana whined.
"You'll just have to get used to it!" Yuka said.
"Hmph!" Nana just kept on gobbling down.
Kouta chuckled at Nana's behaviour, while Lucy continued eating calmly.
Having already finished her food, Mayu - already dressed in her school uniform - spoke up, "Well, I guess I should be going to school. Thanks for the meal, Yuka-san."
Mayu calmly packed her bag and got up. "I'll see you later," she said as she waved goodbye to the others and they waved back, with Nana in particular waving fast as if she was wielding a flag. Mayu noticed Lucy's more subtle wave, making her smile.
"Goodbye, Wanta!" she said as she patted her canine friend, laying beside his doghouse. "I hope you get better!"
Wanta wagged his tail in response as Mayu left through the main doorway.
"I gotta agree about the food. You ain't half-bad with this," Lucy said nonchalantly.
"'Half-bad'? Am I detecting a tiny amount of criticism coming my way?" Yuka responded.
"Well, it needs more meat."
"That's a rather unusual choice," Yuka raised an eyebrow. "We rarely have meat for breakfast."
"Then 'un-rare' it."
"How is that even a wo-nevermind..." Yuka stopped speaking, then eyed Lucy carefully like a hawk. "You're lucky Kouta cares about you. Otherwise, I wouldn't have set a single plate of food for you by now."
"Yuka, I'm right here," Kouta sighed.
"Got a problem with that?" Lucy fired back at Yuka.
"Maybe I do, maybe I don't. What's it to you?" Yuka had a tiny patch of venom in her tone.
"It matters to me," the pink-haired Diclonius glared at the brunette.
Nana began sweating a little from the tense mood, eating slower.
"Girls, please," Kouta tried to play negotiator. "Can't we just eat in peace without hurling yourselves at each other? You can always continue this later."
"Hmph," Yuka looked away, annoyed.
"Whatever," Lucy looked back at her food.
The next few moments of quietude were pretty awkward for Kouta and Nana to deal with. Even after several days of living together, Yuka and Lucy still shared a mutual animosity. The man and pink-haired girl wondered if the both of them would ever get along - of course, it wouldn't happen so easily, so time was needed for their relationship to improve eventually. At least, they hoped.
Thankfully for the four on the table, Kouta remembered one of his tasks for today and broke the silence.
"Anyway, I should go shopping. Anyone wanna come with me?" Kouta got up and looked at the three.
"Sorry, Kouta, not today. I gotta stay here with Nana-chan, 'cause she needs some tutoring done. Also, I need someone else to help me with the chores in the meantime," Yuka said while eyeing the older pink-haired lady.
Lucy shrugged, "It's not like I have much else to do, anyway."
"Good," Yuka's expression softened a little at her answer, even if it was nonchalant.
"Well, all right, then. Not a problem. I'll be back in an hour or two," Kouta packed some of his necessary belongings before going over to the gate to put on his shoes.
"Stay safe, Kouta," Lucy gently smiled at him.
Kouta turned back in surprise, then smiled. "I will, don't you worry," he responded as he went on his way.
Jealousy and irritation aside, Yuka was honestly a little curious while looking at the Diclonius woman. It seemed like Lucy was changing with the way she talked and behaved since she came back, if only a little. They still had the occasional disagreements, along with back-and-forth sarcasm.
"Yuka-san! I'm finished!" Nana yelled happily as she got up off the table.
"Next time, use the chopsticks, all right?" Yuka sighed, seeing Nana's face smeared in bits of food.
"No promises!" the young Diclonius exclaimed.
"Figures," Yuka sighed again. After living here for a few weeks and learning some normal everyday manners, Nana still definitely needed more table discipline and self-control when it came to food she overly enjoys. "Well, let's go prepare with your tutoring. Go to my room while me and Lucy wash the dishes. After I'm done, I'll be there soon," Yuka said, then she pointed at Nana. "And don't even think about sneaking out!"
"Okay!" Nana happily jumped with each step as she ran out of the living room.
Even now, Yuka would gush at the idea of actually teaching a young, innocent (somewhat) girl the basics of education. Momentarily, it brings a tear to her eye, but she doesn't let it drop. Not while the other, less innocent girl is close by.
"You come with me. You already know what to do," Yuka said to Lucy, in a rather orderly tone.
"Yeah, yeah," Lucy rolled her eyes as she stood up, knowing the usual drill.
The both of them picked up the dishes from the table and went over to the kitchen's sink, beginning to wash them. Lucy came with Yuka to the kitchen, ready to help her out with drying the dishes while not looking at her. Yuka hoped it would be a silent task, but luck wasn't on her side - Lucy decided to be in a more..."social" mood today, so to speak.
"So," Lucy muttered.
"What is it?" Yuka sighed, already dreading this conversation.
"How long have you known Kouta?"
'Yep. This is dreadful.'
"Since we were very little. Like, in kindergarten," Yuka paused for a moment before answering Lucy, trying to clean a plate without breaking it out of frustration. "Why do you ask?"
"Just curious."
"I see," Yuka again paused for a bit, almost stabbing herself with a fork she was cleaning - whether it was accidental or not, she was unsure. "What about you? How long have you known him?" Yuka questioned Lucy.
"Close to a decade, probably," Lucy said as she took one plate from Yuka and began drying it with a towel. "I kinda lost track of time. I was in an experimental facility for the last several years, if you must know."
At that moment, Yuka gave out an expression of shock at what Lucy just said - of course, she was expecting something similar to be told that involved the Diclonius, but not to this level. Plus, she still didn't exactly know how to respond to that at the moment - it was so shocking that she momentarily stopped washing the dishes. Not to mention this 'experimental facility' possibly being nearby gave her significant chills.
Yuka quickly calmed down, continued washing her current dish plate and changed her expression back to a small scowl but with a tinge of sympathy, then said, "I'm guessing you don't wanna talk about it?"
"No. Not now, at least," Lucy had her eyes downcast.
Yuka began to wash the last dish plate, eager to get out of there. However, out of a strange desire to know more, she added another question, her curiosity peaking.
"Where did you first meet him?"
"In this city. Kamakura. I met him in a forest, after I escaped from an orphanage," Lucy responded as she was drying another plate.
'Orphanage? Why does that sound familiar to me?' Yuka thought about Lucy's words, before answering her. "I'm assuming you didn't have a good time there, either?"
"...You have no idea," Lucy said as she exhaled through her nose; she stopped drying a plate for a bit, then continued.
Despite the awkwardness, Yuka was kinda surprised that she could hold a semi-civilized conversation with Lucy of all people, without any sarcastic and unfriendly quips. For some reason, Yuka wanted to continue this with a question she didn't know she would ask.
"Was Kouta your first friend?"
"My first true friend," Lucy responded, smiling as her eyes threatened to tear up, which Yuka noticed as the brunette began to look towards her. "He gave me the best time of my life. We played in a lake, splashing each other with water. He took me to a zoo, where I saw these animals I've never seen before. We sang the song from his music box. He gave me true happiness. I will never forget that time," she went on happily until her smile faded, sniffling a bit. "But...then he had to leave...and-" she paused, trying to hide her discomfort by clearing her throat.
Yuka frowned and started to regret asking that question. Even if Lucy was an annoyance and a murderer, she actually felt somewhat bad seeing and hearing her like this, especially after she shared bits of her past that were likely not pleasant to experience. Thus, Yuka decided to try lessening the intensity of the mood.
"Don't say anything else," Yuka said as she dried her hands on a nearby towel after being done with washing the dishes, trying her best not to look at Lucy, who still tried to dry the last dish plate through her momentary distress. Lucy looked at Yuka in mild surprise as the latter continued. "I still don't like you, but I'm willing to hear you out if that's what you really want, like what you tried to do now."
"I didn't mean to-"
"No, you did," Yuka interrupted her. "Listen. I'll try not to force you to say too much about things you don't like talking about. I'd prefer you not to hate me even more than anything," Yuka said calmly as she began going upstairs to her room where Nana currently is.
Lucy was blinking some of her small tears away, whispering to herself, "It's me who should be hated. It's what I deserve..."
She didn't know that Yuka heard her say that - the brunette stopped for a second at that statement, but kept on going so as to not make this moment any more awkward.
Trying her best to calm herself, Lucy stood up and got to work on her house chores. It was rather unusual to soften up and be more vulnerable in front of the one woman she dislikes the most, but she felt...oddly better.
After a short time had passed, a nearby landline telephone rang - Lucy was a little startled by it. Not seeing Yuka come down to answer it, Lucy huffed as she picked up the phone off its case.
"Hello. Maple Inn residence."
"Um, hello? I-Is there a woman named 'Yuka' over there?" the caller said, in a nervous tone.
"She's busy. Can I take a message?"
"Oh, uh, yes! I'm almost at the Inn! It'll take me a little while to get there, but I'm close! Tell her that I'm from her former high school! She'll know who I am!"
"All right. I'll let her know, if possible. Anything else?"
"N-No, that is all! Thank you very much! Goodbye!"
"Bye," Lucy ended the call. 'Fantastic. As if we didn't have enough people here,' Lucy thought, clearly not looking forward to having another person involved with her. Sighing in frustration, she went back to doing her chores.
She had also decided to wear the green jester hat that she had grown personally fond of, despite its silly appearance.
'I think I understand why Nyu likes it so much,' she thought as she started playing with the bells.
On the outside areas of the Diclonius research facility...
The day was mostly sunny - clouds were dominating the sun over control of the blue skies. Below, something similar was going on - the blue ocean waves hitting the island that the facility was on were rather indicative of what was potentially going to happen next.
"This is your second warning! Surrender now, or we will open fire and enter this facility by force!" yelled out an aged, beret-wearing man through a portable radio, bearing medals on his military uniform.
"Wait! Please, wait!" yelled back a slightly younger man in panic, wearing a labcoat and small glasses, also equipped with a portable radio. He was sent out by the other facility staff as the 'negotiator'. "This has to be some mistake! We're just a biological research division working for the Japanese government! We don't have anything of suspicion that could jeopardize the human race! You have got to believe me!"
"That is not what our information says!" the officer replied. "You people are experimenting on innocent, young girls and have even committed mass infanticide, all for the sake of gaining power and taking control! That is completely unacceptable!" the officer paused to take a breath. "Final warning! Surrender immediately, or we will open fire on you!"
"Who gave you this information?! I demand an explanation!" the negotiator pointed a finger at the officer.
"You will not demand anything! You were warned!"
The officer had his hand raised during all this, then after a moment, quickly put it down.
"Wait! Maybe we could-"
SPLUGH!
The negotiator's last words were spoken as a bullet hit the side of his head, splattering the ground with blood, skin, brains and bone marrow, with some pieces sticking to his body, barely hanging on. His body effortlessly fell to the ground and blood kept pouring out of his half-destroyed head.
"Target is down. Repeat, target is down," stated a faraway sniper's spotter, his teammate having his M40A3 rifle in hands. He pulled back the bolt, with an empty cartridge flying out of the chamber and landing on the cold, metal surface.
"I can only think of what Hell has in store for that bastard," the spotter mused.
"It sure won't be full of cookies and milk," the sniper teammate jokingly responded.
Meanwhile, the officer could only sigh in disappointment at the negotiator's foolishness, giving out a bad first impression. However, he had to set that aside, as he now had a job to do.
He went back to his command post on his ship and was greeted by a lower-ranking officer.
"Any luck, Rear Admiral?"
"No, Lieutenant. Surprisingly, I guess they aren't smart enough to know how negotiation even remotely works," the Rear Admiral stated. "We are doing it. I'll send the signal."
"Understood, sir. I'll send the Special Ops Teams."
The Rear Admiral began signaling to everyone involved in the operation: "All naval and aircraft units: surround the island. Shoot any facility staff member and security guard that tries to escape. Do NOT hurt the hostages when they come out of there. Repeat, do NOT open fire on the hostages."
The Lieutenant began to play his part: "Special Ops Teams 1, 4 and 7! This is 'Leader 5'! You're the lucky ones going in! You already know each of your primary objectives! Your secondary objective is to open fire on anyone who's hostile, no matter their occupation! You must also give out a report in between 5 to 10 minute-intervals! Now, move in there!"
"Team 1, copy that. On our way."
"Team 4, on the move."
"Team 7, we're rolling."
The three SO Teams got aboard their boats and sailed onwards to the island.
"Good luck...and Godspeed to you, gentlemen."
In the submarine pens of the facility...
"Damn. So much for negotiations. Plan B, it is."
A panicking Kakuzawa was more than eager to get out of the hole he put himself and his workers in. A nearby staff member protested, however.
"But sir, our evac submarines can't hold everyone in the facility aboard!"
"Oh? And how is that my problem?"
"Sir! How can you-" he went immediately silent at a shocking sight.
Kakuzawa pointed a Glock 17 handgun at him, eyes crazed with paranoid authority.
"Don't question me! Or I'll have you shot on the spot!" he yelled out. "Understood?!"
"Ye-yes, sir! My apologies!" he was bowing frantically, begging to be spared for another hour.
Kakuzawa put down his gun, rather unimpressed. Then, he said something - to himself, mostly.
"I bet they've come here to change the world for their own visions. The world itself will be much different from now on, but probably not in the way I want it to be. All these years of work...and it's come to this?"
The staff members nearby were too afraid to answer properly, with only one of them able to do so.
"W-we-well, we're not sure what to do about it ourselves, sir."
Kakuzawa began looking at the man who answered. Then, he casually fired a shot. The 9mm bullet pierced the man's soft neck, now with a gaping hole and the man's hands covering it, desperately trying to stop the blood from flowing and air to not go out of it while breathing and choking. The man quickly lied down in terror as he thought of not wanting to die like this, along with seeing his life before working in the facility flashing by in his mind, until his movements slowed and he started to twitch. Then, the life in his brown, dull eyes was no more. He stopped twitching as his blood kept flowing out of his throat.
"If that's all you can say, then why do you bother?" Kakuzawa uncaringly muttered. The other staff members were obviously left horrified, and Kakuzawa continued. "If that Arakawa was here, she would know how to respond."
"But, she was not here today, sir," one of the staff members pointed out.
"So it seems. Of all the times for her to go missing...unbelievable," Kakuzawa sighed as he facepalmed. "Worst case scenario, she might've known something like this would happen and decided not to tell me, for the sake of saving her own hide. She might have even been part of this in the first place."
"W-Who knows at this point, sir," one of the staff members said, careful not to anger Kakuzawa.
"No matter. She can go rot in Hell for all I care. I never agreed to any of her ideas, anyway," Kakuzawa shaked his head, then made a statement that the rest could agree on. "Now, let's get in and hike the hell out of here."
Kouta walked along the sidewalk, giving out a subtle smile. He felt like today was going to be a good day, if a little windy.
At least, he hoped it was a good day.
He looked at his shopping list: "Let's see...bread; eggs; ham; bacon; tomato sauce; salt..." he added another thing to the list with a pen. "And some meat," he grinned, remembering that Lucy liked meat. She wasn't being specific, but he guessed she just meant meat in general. "And the newest volume of Saiko Garu Adventures!" he added that too, for himself. "All right!"
As he was walking, he wondered what he should do about himself and the others' current situation.
Considering that Nana lives with them and that Lucy has returned recently, they have to keep a low profile. There's no doubt that they're still being hunted down by those soldiers and scientists. He will not allow that to happen to them again.
He and Lucy also have to eventually tell the others about their rather unique relationship, along with their issues. It was only a matter of waiting for the right moment. He hoped it would make things at least slightly better for him and the others to just talk about it and move on, but he very much doubted it. It definitely would have serious repercussions. There's still a thing or two that even he doesn't know about Lucy.
He's aware that Lucy and Yuka are having a hard time tolerating each other despite Lucy's slow change in attitude, and he is worried that the peace wouldn't last for very long. He could tell that even if Nana looked and acted otherwise in his presence, she still harbored a deep-seated grudge against Lucy. It was like living in a minefield.
He has currently no idea on how to further help Mayu, either. Him and Yuka adopting her and having her officially live in the Inn away from her awful parents was a step in the right direction, at least. He and Yuka recently figured out that Mayu's family could have done something particularly horrible for her to just run away, with Mayu's mother's unusually uncaring behaviour during the adoption process kind of giving that idea.
He knows that he will most likely never forgive Lucy for killing Kanae and his father, but for some strange, unexplained reason, he still loves her. She did apologize and will still try to do so, which he still doesn't know if he should accept or not. He knows that she will try not to kill anymore, but she would have to do a lot more than that. He realized that it will be a very long time for both of them to truly move on and heal their past wounds.
He remembered the promise of him killing Lucy if she ever got out of control. If things ever came to that point, he would fulfill it, but he hated it. He'd instead have Lucy change for the better rather than just die, knowing only pain in her life.
Kouta sighed. Thinking too much can get the better of him, and he hasn't moved much from his previous spot, either. He crossed a street and into a large stairway.
As he walked up, he noticed a lone girl - around college age - with a backpack and a briefcase on the stairway, staring out into the city with a sad look on her face. She heard his steps and turned to him.
"Oh, excuse me! Did I disturb you?" Kouta said while putting his hands up.
"Oh! No! Not at all! I was just sightseeing a little before going somewhere," the girl smiled.
"I see," he put his hands down. "Are you feeling alright?"
"Y-Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for your concern," she bowed at him.
"Okay, then," Kouta responded. "Um...forgive me for prying, but, might I ask where you are going?" he questioned her with a raised eyebrow.
"A-A place called the 'Maple Inn'."
Kouta did not expect that, so he reacted appropriately.
"Woah, really?!" he exclaimed, startling the girl. "I live there! Along with my cousin Yuka and a few others!"
The girl did not expect that, so she reacted just as appropriately.
"Yuka-senpai is your cousin?! Oh, I'm so glad to hear that!"
"I was going shopping, but if you want, I can take you there. It's actually not too far from here," Kouta said, glad to have met someone else he would get along with easily.
"Yes, I would appreciate that! Thank you!" she bowed again.
"What's your name? I'm Kouta. Nice to meet you," he offered a handshake. She stiffened.
"N-Nozomi...pleased to meet you too," she said as she was fidgeting. Kouta noticed that she probably had the same problem as Mayu.
"Oh, my bad! Sorry!" he threw his hand back, scratching his neck and nervously laughing.
"Um...I can come shopping with you. It's no problem," Nozomi twiddled her thumbs.
"No, no, I got time! I'm in no rush! Let's go!" Kouta motioned her to follow him, still trying to appear positive.
"O-Okay, Kouta-san..."
As they walked towards the Maple Inn, the wind speed went up rather quickly. Kouta noticed Nozomi's footsteps stop for a moment and looked back at her, holding down her skirt. He quickly turned away from her and kept on walking silently, understanding that she didn't want to reveal her nether areas in public.
'She picked a bad time to wear that right now,' Kouta thought in mild concern as he continued walking.
Echoing sounds of gunfire, explosions and screams were filling an already alarm-filled facility building. Silence usually accompanied such moments, followed by radio chatter.
"This is Leader 5. SpecOps Teams, report."
"This is Team 1. Encountered minor resistance from security guards. Got 4 of them down. We're moving forward to cut the main power. Over."
"Team 4, here. We have captured a few dozen of the staff members. They have decided to surrender and are now ready for questioning. Over."
"Team 7, reporting. We have found our informant. He's currently leading us to the hostages. ETA: 1 mike. Over."
"Roger that. Team 1: move on with your objective. Team 4: bring those staff members to the boats. Team 7: I pray to God you try not to anger the hostages. I repeat, do NOT anger OR threaten them at ANY cost. Is that perfectly understood?"
"Team 7. Understood. We'll be as gentle as a teddy bear. Over."
"Copy. Good luck to you all. Leader 5, out."
On the outside...
"Leader 5, do you copy? This is 'Leader 2'. We've detected underwater activity coming from inside the island. There must be at least two submarines. Over."
"Well, it looks like Kakuzawa is slipping out of the fishing net. Too bad for him that we came prepared," the Lieutenant muttered out to himself, then responded to the radio call. "Affirmative, Leader 2. Send in the Scuba Squads. Over."
"Copy. Scuba Squads 6 and 2, you're up."
"Scuba 6, at your service."
"Scuba 2, ready to make some bacon."
"We're thinking Director Kakuzawa is in one of them. Capture him at all costs. Leave the rest to drown. Over."
"Copy, Leader 2. Scuba 6, going for a swim."
"Roger, Leader 2. Scuba 2, pursuing in blue."
In the submarines...
"Now, all we have to do is stay quiet and hope they don't notice us."
Kakuzawa and over 2 dozen staff members have boarded one submarine, trying their best to remain undetected. Another submarine beside them held around the same number of people.
"We could still be found out, sir! They're sure to have the technology to locate us easily!"
Kakuzawa merely stared down at him for suggesting that possibility.
"A risk that I'm going to have to take. We just have to-"
The sound of rumbling was apparent. The submarine shook violently, greatly spooking the staff members inside. Kakuzawa, in contrast, was getting more visibly angry at things not going his way.
"What was that?!"
"Was that a whale or a shark?!"
"...No. Worse."
Suddenly, they could hear water flowing in the submarine. Next thing they knew, they were completely submerged in seawater.
Outside...
"This is Leader 2. Report, Scubas."
"This is Scuba 6. We submerged one of the submarines. No sign of Kakuzawa. Over."
"This is Scuba 2! We've got him! Repeat: we've got him! He's still alive! Currently on our way to the surface! Over!"
"Damn fine work, Scuba 2. Bring him up here. Leader 2, out," Leader 2 began to relax as he smiled while bringing his cup of coffee over to his mouth, taking a sip of victory.
"This is Leader 5. We heard. Good job, Scubas."
"Our pleasure, Leader 5."
The Lieutenant sighed in relief at one of the main objectives being completed. He took out a half-full cup of coffee and drank it down to the last drop, exhaling and taking a breath after that.
"Rear Admiral, the Scuba Squads have captured Kakuzawa."
"Excellent," the older officer nodded at the Lieutenant. "And the Special Ops Teams?"
"The Special Ops Teams are making progress."
"Good. The rest is up to them. We will pray for their safety," the Rear Admiral closed his eyes. "Especially Team 7's."
"Yes, sir. All of us will."
Having cleaned the majority of the first floor rooms and windows in under an hour (with the tiniest bit of help from her vectors, of course), Lucy decided to go upstairs to talk to Yuka. She heard Yuka and Nana behind the former's room door, discussing some simple math problems which Nana was having a bit of a difficult time figuring out, but she was getting used to it.
"Hmmm...so, if I subtract 8 from 16, does that make it...8? And dividing 8 by 8 makes it...64?"
"Very good. For ONE of those, Nana-chan!"
"'One' of those...? Wait, did I confuse myself again?" Nana sighed.
"You sure did," Yuka smiled evilly.
"Aw, darn it. I should have 'multiplied' 8 by 8. This is hard to follow, Yuka-sensei..." Nana said as she clutched her head.
"Oh ho, wait until you learn how to convert fractions to percentages, missy."
Nana could only widen her eyes in despair at what these new terms could mean. Having second thoughts, Lucy quietly got out of there, not wanting to disturb. Telling Yuka about the upcoming visitor could wait.
Lucy went to Kouta's room, having lost to the desire of wanting to clean it. 'It smells like him,' she smiled in thought, sniffing the familiar aroma of the room. She started going through his closet, grabbing his clothes and putting them out in order to clean the inside (she sniffed his clothes, including his Number 9 and Batman shirts, for her own pleasure). After she got done with that, she went to clean the room's floor. Not too long after that, she cleaned the windows.
As she was going through his drawers, she found a manga volume. She grabbed it and looked at it. Despite having learned basic Japanese in the orphanage, Lucy had a bit of trouble reading the letter symbols, as they were done in such a stylized way that they seemed somewhat unrecognizable.
'Saiko...Garu...Adventures...Volume 12.'
Just from the cover alone that involved female characters using superpowers, she was interested. Kouta apparently always liked weird looking people even as a kid, thanks to manga like this. She smiled as she took the book for herself.
As she continued searching his drawers, she found a familiar box.
'Oh...this is...' she thought in nostalgic awe.
It was Kouta's music box. She stared at it, smiling with her eyes softening. 'He still kept it...' she thought as she shed a tear, but she quickly wiped it off as she put it back in the drawer. After such a long time, she hoped she could listen to it again soon.
Next, she went back upstairs to the second floor, going over to Nana's room. There was not much of interest, save for Nana's headband lying on top of a shelf. It was a new one given to her by Mayu, as she lost her previous one with her Papa.
'Kurama...' Lucy thought in a conflicted mixture of anger and understanding. He hunted down Lucy for a long time, not knowing how and when to quit. Even capturing her didn't put a stop to him bringing her pain. Guess he actually did have a heart in the end, both for his real daughter Mariko and Nana. That didn't completely excuse his actions towards Lucy, in her opinion.
He also hurt Nana through his death. But Lucy hurt her, too. Having prosthetic arms and legs is not something a young child should live with, no matter if human or Diclonius. She didn't have much choice at the time. And she was different back then, though how different she was now, she was unsure. She was not yet convinced if she was changing or not, still having serious doubts that she can change. The last time she heard the voice in her head over a week ago, it kept telling her to just kill and kill. The voice's influence was strong, but she ignored it, much to its annoyance.
She left pretty quickly after cleaning Nana's room.
She went over to Mayu's room next. She still remembers the day she came back and slept in her futon, which was a much needed relief for Lucy after what she went through.
On a small cupboard, Lucy found a picture of Mayu and Wanta together, obviously taken from Mayu while in the Inn. 'They look so happy,' she thought. 'I wish I could be like that, too.'
After a few moments of admiring the photo, she put it back where it was. Afterwards, she cleaned the floor, closet and windows, then simply exited the room.
One thought of self-doubt came to Lucy's mind.
'They'd probably prefer Nyu to be here. Not me. Not Lucy.'
She then heard a distinctly familiar call of a male from downstairs.
"I'm home! Yuka, we got a visitor!"
'Ah, must be that girl on the phone,' Lucy thought. 'I couldn't even tell the slave driver about it, but oh, well.'
"Coming!" Yuka responded from inside her room, then turned to Nana. "Come on, Nana-chan, we'll continue this later."
Yuka then opened the door as she and Nana went out of Yuka's room. Nana was a bit confused on why Yuka would let her come over if her studies were pretty important; though she agreed to the idea and needed a small break, anyway.
With a hand, Lucy stopped Nana from moving further.
"Hey, what gives?!"
"Your horns," Lucy told her. Nana gasped as she remembered. Before she could respond, Lucy came first. "Your headband is in your room."
"Ah, right!" Nana quickly went over to her room, then came back after a few moments. "Thank you, Lucy-san," Nana blushed as she looked down in embarrassment.
"Yeah, yeah, let's go."
Downstairs, Kouta waited with Nozomi as Yuka arrived. Immediately, Yuka recognized the dark-haired visitor.
"Nozomi!?"
"Yuka-senpai!"
They speedily went to hug each other very tightly, both of them laughing and giggling. Kouta looked on, slightly surprised at them quickly getting along.
"My Gosh, what are you doing here? How did you find us?" Yuka happily said to her former kouhai.
"It wasn't too hard! I contacted your mother and she told me that you live here now!" Nozomi happily responded.
"Ah, of course. My Mom's always been privy to giving out info about things I'm involved in," Yuka rolled her eyes, but then smiled at Nozomi. "I just didn't know you'd come here!"
"Well, I really wanted to see you again! It's been so long! How are you doing?" Nozomi said.
"Oh, I'm fine! Just trying to get by with college, my idiot cousin Kouta here, and the kids!"
"K-Kids?! You two have kids?! Like, with each other?!" Nozomi yelled in surprise, with Yuka and Kouta flushing.
"N-No, they're not our own! Um, they're uh, adopted!" Kouta quickly and awkwardly interjected.
"Oh? How many?" Nozomi said as she calmed down a bit.
"Well, there's two girls, around middle school age," Kouta said, using two fingers to signify his answer.
"Also, there's another woman around our age. It's a little complicated," Yuka added, eyes looking briefly to the side as she scratched her cheek.
"Yeah, you could consider her a roommate of ours who lives here," Kouta shrugged.
"Oh, I see. I apologize for any misunderstandings," Nozomi bowed.
"It's fine, Nozomi. Really," Yuka put a hand up.
"Is that dog also adopted?" Nozomi pointed over to Wanta, who was napping beside his doghouse, still on a leash.
"Well, you could put it that way. He belongs to one of the girls," Kouta scratched the back of his neck.
As Kouta finished his sentence, Nozomi saw two girls of different ages coming down the stairs. She noticed that both of them had unusual hair colors.
"Oh, hello there!" Nozomi waved at them.
"Woah! A new person! Hello, new person!" Nana waved at Nozomi.
"...Hey," Lucy just moved to Nozomi's position and awkwardly greeted her.
"My, you have such unusual hair! Did you dye it? It looks good on you!" Nozomi was smiling with curiosity.
"Well, actu-mmph!" Yuka put her hand on Nana's mouth.
"Ahahaha! Yes, they dye it! Bit of a silly color, in my opinion!" the brunette said as she let go of Nana's mouth.
"Well, I think it's cool," Kouta shrugged. Lucy blushed and gave a subtle smile towards him, with Nana doing so, too.
"Yeah, of course YOU would find that kind of stuff cool, you stupid otaku!" Yuka playfully slapped Kouta's head. "You always read that manga with those girls having weird hair and going on space adventures! No wonder you don't have a girlfriend," she smirked, eyes looking at him smugly.
"Sheesh, Yuka. Harsh much?" Kouta huffed.
"Seriously, go try reading some actual literature. Then you might change your mind," Yuka rolled her eyes, still smirking.
Kouta folded his arms in mild annoyance, expression full of unamusement. A fleeting thought of mocking Yuka back came to mind, but he decided against it. The others could only chuckle at this exchange.
"Oh, right! I didn't get your names!" Nozomi said to the two Diclonii.
"Ah, that's right! My name is Nana! Pleased to meet you!" she cheerfully said as she bowed to Nozomi. "And this is-mmmph!" Lucy put a hand to her mouth.
"...Lucy. That's my name," the Queen said as she let go of Nana's mouth.
Nana got annoyed over being hand-gagged twice in a row, but she let it slide.
"Pleased to meet you, Nana-chan and Lucy-san!" Nozomi bowed. "Are you two sisters? You look so similar!"
"Well, about th-" Kouta got nervous.
"Yeah, they are! In a way..." Yuka saves the day.
"That's good to know. Sisters should help each other. Even though I never had a sister..." Nozomi looked down. Lucy and Nana looked at each other, before turning away and looking sideways awkwardly.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"
"It's fine," Lucy said, then looked at Nozomi a bit more closely. "Though, you look...kind of familiar..." Nozomi and the rest blinked at her in confusion. "...Eh, nevermind. Could be wrong," Lucy shrugged.
"Uh, so! Nozomi! You must be really hungry!" Yuka changed the subject.
"Y-Yes, I am! Very much so!" Nozomi nodded.
"All right, I'm gonna prepare some food for you!" Yuka went to the kitchen.
"I'm gonna help out, Yuka-san!" Nana raised her fists up as she followed Yuka.
"Not before you tell me what's 40 divided by 8," Yuka smugly said to Nana, challenging her learned math skills. "To the power of 1."
"Uhh...4-No, 5! 5! Wait, what's a 'power of 1' again?!" Nana answered, still having trouble remembering things she just learned in a short period of time, not to mention the concept of indices still making her confused.
Nozomi smiled as she looked at them going to the kitchen, then looked at Lucy, bowed at her, then went to check out the rest of the Inn. Lucy stared at her for a bit in thought before going outside.
'...Have I really seen her somewhere before?'
Kouta, meanwhile, was curious as to why Lucy found the newcomer familiar earlier. However, he almost forgot that he had something rather important to do today.
"Well, I'm gonna go back to shopping, then," he said, grinning. "Don't worry, I'll get the meat for ya," he gave out a thumbs up.
"Thanks, Kouta," Lucy smiled back as Kouta left through the front yard.
In the front yard, Lucy found a leashed Wanta lying on the ground. The tiny canine saw her, got up and looked at her with a panting mouth and a wagging tail. He moved a bit towards her, his limping being more noticeable.
'He does not look that good,' she thought in worry.
Since she came back to the Inn as her Lucy self, the young woman mostly avoided him due to not being used to receiving positive reactions from animals. However, something sparked an old want in her.
She crouched down to him.
And began petting him.
She couldn't help but smirk at something she hasn't done in nearly a decade.
Not since that time...
Inside the Diclonius research facility...
Team 7 and the informant are standing in front of a large metal gate, closed tightly.
"All right. We'll start here," said the informant.
"Are they as powerful as you say they are?" Team 7 Leader questioned him.
"Just you wait and see."
Among them was a staff member who had been taken prisoner by the informer's suggestion, his hands being tied up.
"Please! Stop! You're going to release monsters into the world! You don't know what you're doing!" he yelled in utter panic, eyes wide with mortal fear.
"We'll see who's the real monster, pal," the informant casually responded to the prisoner.
A nearby alarm began beeping as the gate slowly began to open, another Team 7 member having found the control panel for it.
"Remember: No. Hostility. Even if they act hostile themselves."
The gate revealed what might have been one of the most sick examples of human cruelty they could have ever seen.
Inside the large, hospital white room, there were at least a dozen of these horned young girls with varying light-colored hair, who were also stark naked with their arms and legs trapped in chains, like animals. Some looked malnourished, nearly gaunt. Others had bloody spots and bruises on their bodies, some of whom were still bleeding. There were noticeable dried spots of urine and even fecal matter on the ground under some of them. A few others were already dead, limp bodies on the floor, while some had their brains out of their skulls.
Of course, Team 7 had expected this and were trained to be desensitized to such events, but even then, experiencing it directly was another matter. Especially for the newer, more inexperienced soldiers.
"Oh...Oh, my Go-" said a shocked team member as he quickly took off his balaclava and went over to a different spot to puke on the floor.
"You sick. Fucking. Bastards," a calm, but vexed Team 7 Leader muttered as he buttstroked the prisoner's gut.
"Argh! Wait...! I had nothing to do with this!" coughed out the prisoner, struggling to speak. He got another buttstroke to his chest. He fell down on his knees in pain, continuing to cough and wheeze. The other men could only glare at the prisoner in disgust.
Not wanting to waste any time, the informant walked over to the captive Diclonii girls.
The girls noticed the informant and the soldiers. They immediately tensed up - some just shivered in fear, others had their vectors at the ready, tempted to kill some of them.
"Put your weapons down on the ground, Team 7. All of them. Now," the informant said as the team members looked at each other. They nodded and slowly put their weapons on the ground. Including their grenades, knives and tasers.
"God, this is beyond messed up," one of the soldiers quietly muttered, giving his honest thoughts.
"Shut up, Carter," Team 7 Leader said to him.
At this, the Diclonius girls were left confused, some still scared and others even more cautious.
"Who are you? What are you going to do to us?" said one Diclonius girl, shivering in fear.
"Why did you put your weapons down? Are you asking for a death wish?!" yelled another, quaking in confused anger.
'Well...here goes nothing,' the informant thought, inhaling and exhaling while getting ready to speak. "Girls. Listen. Believe us or not...but, we're here to free you," said the informant.
A few moments of stillness permeated the room. Obviously, most of the Diclonius girls were immediately in disbelief.
"...You're joking."
"Liars, all of you."
"R-Really? You're saving us? But...you're humans..."
"I know that some of you are scared, and some of you are angry at us humans," the informant softened his expression as he continued. "You do not deserve to live a life full of suffering and pain. I joined this facility as an undercover staff member. I work for several of the world's governments as an international spy and informant. Do you know who Director Kakuzawa is?"
"...Y-Yes..." one of the girls looked down in fear.
"Yeah...we do. He likes to come around and watch us sometimes," one of the girls nodded, eyes squinting in disgust.
"That old man? What do you want with him?" one of the girls raised an eyebrow.
"After I discovered what was going on with this facility, I informed several of the world's leaders, including those from the United States, Japan, Mexico, Germany and several other nations about this 'Lebensborn Project'. Needless to say, Director Kakuzawa has become the pinnacle of racial cruelty and the worst example of a human being in their eyes. To put it simply, he is to be executed for abusing his position in order to endanger the human race, committing mass infanticide and unauthorized experimentation on young children."
This explanation left some of the girls relieved - prompting one to the point of laughing.
"Hahahaha! About time! Serves him right!"
"So...you mean...?"
"Yes," the informant smiled. "You don't have to worry about him any longer. Additionally, we have enacted new laws in response to this discovery. Namely, laws for those of Diclonius origin. Including Silpelits, who are half-Diclonii," he straightened his tie.
"Hah! That sounds WAY too good to be true! And you expect us to just believe you with that?!" one of the girls yelled out in doubt.
"No. At least, not now," the informant shaked his head. "I completely understand your hatred for humanity's shortcomings and how it has affected all of you in ways I don't want to imagine, but not all of us are like Kakuzawa or the staff members of this facility. I'm going to ask you about how you can trust us. We don't want any more violence. Please."
The girls looked at each other, some in doubt, some feeling optimistic. They still couldn't fully comprehend this turn of events, but they were willing to go along with it for now.
"What's your name? Do you have a family? Where do you live?" one of the girls questioned him.
"My name is Katsuo. I don't have a family or a permanent home. I do own a pet bird, though. Parrot," he smiled. "I try my best to be there as often as possible for the little guy, considering my job."
"Can those soldiers take off their masks?"
"Of course," Katsuo nodded, then looked over at Team 7. "Do what they say."
The soldiers complied, taking off their black head cloths. At least two of them had scars on their faces and hardened, grizzled expressions. But they tried to soften up their faces and smile at the Diclonius girls in the best way they could. Some of the girls smiled back, while the rest were left unimpressed.
"Can we have some food...? And water...?"
"No problem at all," Katsuo responded, then motioned to Team 7 Leader, who nodded in response.
"There's a cafeteria nearby. Go get something for them."
"Yes, sir," two members went on their way.
"That food better not be poisoned," one girl said while gritting her teeth.
"Why would you think so?" Katsuo said. "The staff members ate fairly healthy food here. And these soldiers here don't have any such chemical weapons on their persons," he continued, Team 7 members nodding. "You have our word that we are under direct orders NOT to threaten or injure you. Certain powerful people actually care about you."
"HA! I bet they'll throw us in another prison, just like this one!"
"I guarantee that you will not be. I promise you that," Katsuo said.
"How are we supposed to believe you with that? There's just no way that you're gonna let us go so easily."
"I'm so scared...please don't lie to us..."
An increasingly worried Katsuo sighed as he looked over at the team members - they were all getting nervous. He really couldn't blame them.
'This is gonna take a bit longer, it seems.'
In the afternoon, Mayu was coming back from school, humming a happy tune as she hopped on the sidewalk.
She opened the Maple Inn gate and entered the front yard. As she was about to call out that she was back home, she noticed a certain woman holding her dog Wanta, without his leash. Her eyes went wide in both surprise and worry at the sight.
"L-Lucy-san?!"
Lucy jerked up at Mayu's direction, calming down a bit at seeing her.
"Oh. You're back."
"What are you-"
"I fed him and then he wanted to play with me," Lucy said. Mayu didn't say anything back, which made Lucy raise an eyebrow. "Is that a problem?"
"No...no, that's okay, Lucy-san," Mayu smiled nervously.
They were both silent for a few moments, with at least one cough coming from Lucy, until someone else saw Mayu come back.
"Mayu! Quick, get in here! We got a new person with us!" Nana pointed over to a direction inside the Inn.
"What? Really?" Mayu blinked in surprise as she began moving over to Nana, but then quickly looked over to Lucy holding Wanta.
"I'll be here with the dog. Don't worry. Go in and meet them," Lucy reassured Mayu.
Nana could tell Mayu was worried about Wanta being in Lucy's hands, despite the pink-haired woman being gentle with him.
"Okay," Mayu eventually nodded. "I'll be back here soon."
"Alright," Lucy responded.
Nana took Mayu's hand and led her over to the Maple Inn's living room.
"Like she said, Mayu - don't worry. Lucy doesn't dislike animals," Nana comforted her friend.
"Are you sure?"
"Come on, Mayu! She must have not had a moment like this in forever! At least let her have it!" Nana tried to convince Mayu out of her worries.
"Yes...you're right, Nana-san. What am I thinking?" Mayu smiled as she shakes her head, slightly chastising herself.
In the living room, Mayu saw the new guest sitting at one side of the table, with Yuka and Kouta opposite to her as they were discussing something. On the table, there were plates of food for six people, with chopsticks over each of them. The meal consisted of potato salad, mixed with some ketchup and eggs.
The others noticed Nana and Mayu coming in, with Yuka being the first to speak. "Hey, Mayu-chan! How was your day?"
"Hello, Yuka-san, Kouta-san," Mayu waved at them. "Today was alright, but the teachers still keep giving me more homework just because I'm doing well in class. It's a little exhausting," she shakes her head.
"Don't worry about that for now. We've got a new guest here! Say hello!" Kouta motioned over to the new, dark-haired guest.
The guest stands up to bow at Mayu, with Mayu doing the same.
"Hello, Mayu-chan. My name is Nozomi. Pleased to meet you," she smiled as she closed her eyes.
Appreciating her refreshingly polite nature compared to the others, Mayu responded just as politely. "Hello, Nozomi-san. My name is Mayu. I'm pleased to meet you, too."
Mayu, along with Nana, began to sit down at some free seats on the table.
"What brings you here, Nozomi-san?" Mayu said.
"Well...one reason is that I really wanted to see Yuka-senpai again," Nozomi said, looking at Yuka. "I missed you a lot after you graduated."
"Hey, now, you already said that to me," Yuka chuckled. "But yeah, I guess you did. I missed you too, but...I had things to do in my life that were really important."
"Uh, Yuka?" Kouta had to respond. "The way you just worded that sounded like you didn't miss her as much."
Yuka was about to retort, until Nozomi interrupted with a chuckle. "No, it's all right, Kouta-san. I understand. Usually, what we find vital for our lives to function in the future is more important."
"Yeah, that's true," Kouta shrugged.
"Another reason is..." Nozomi hesitated to continue her sentence.
"What's that?" Yuka raised an eyebrow.
"I'm sure you've seen how much stuff I've been carrying on the way here, right?"
"Yeah, I was gonna ask," Kouta said. "Where are you planning to live? You must have the money for it, right? Or are you going back to your home after today?"
"...I want to live here. I want to live in the Maple Inn," Nozomi said, with a confident expression. "Permanently."
The others widened their eyes and raised both of their eyebrows, with at least one or two gaping their mouths in surprise.
"Yes, I know, it's sudden, but I just didn't know where else to go," the dark-haired woman continued. "I'm not exactly on good terms with my father, and we had another argument that just...escalated to a point where I didn't want to be there with him anymore."
"Oh, Nozomi. I'm sorry to hear that," Yuka softened her expression, her momentary shock gone, along with the others.
Mayu could instantly relate to having a bad relationship with a family, so she understood where Nozomi was coming from. "And your father simply let you go?" she said.
"Yes. I don't know why, however. I'm just glad I'm away from him," Nozomi exhaled, closing her eyes.
Nozomi then felt someone's hand on one of her own - Yuka's. The brunette was smiling at her.
"Nozomi. I'll gladly let you stay here. After all, you are my friend. And I can't exactly let a friend live by herself with all that baggage on her shoulders," Yuka comforted her.
As a natural response, Nozomi grabbed Yuka's hand gently - she was really glad to have Yuka as her closest friend, as well as her inspirator.
"Thank you, Yuka-senpai."
The others smiled at this, but at the same time, they were full of worry at this new development, with Yuka realizing this too. Mainly, Nozomi didn't know about the two Diclonius that she was gonna live with yet - she would have to be informed about them as soon as possible, and the results might be potentially bad if they don't do it right.
Deciding to change the topic momentarily, Kouta said to Mayu, "Uh, Mayu-chan? Can you go see how Lucy is doing? I'd prefer if she was eating her food here with us."
"Oh, yes. Of course," Mayu agreed, standing up from the table and quickly running out of the living room.
Nana kept looking on towards the area where Mayu left.
Outside, Mayu saw that Lucy didn't really move from her spot - and she still held Wanta in her hands.
"Hello, Lucy-san," Mayu tried to greet the Diclonius Queen.
"You've met the new girl?" she answered with a question.
"Yes. She's refreshing," Mayu smiled.
"...I guess."
"She also says she wants to stay here with us...I'm not sure how you feel about that."
Lucy didn't respond, which in itself was an answer that didn't need explanation. Mayu decided on another question.
"Aren't you coming over to the table and eat with us?"
"Nah. Not hungry," Lucy said, then she coughed twice.
Mayu was about to leave, but she had another thought. Deciding to be a little bold, she asked Lucy another question.
"Mind if I sit here?"
Lucy merely shrugged.
Taking it as her way of saying 'yes', Mayu slowly went closer and sat beside Lucy, carefully eyeing her. She noticed that Lucy seemed tired, her red eyes half-closed - probably not due to doing all the chores that Yuka put her through for the day, since she knew she would use her vectors for most of the work, so it appeared a little odd.
A small part of Mayu was afraid that Lucy might lose it all of a sudden and kill Wanta and then her, but she pushed that thought aside.
Wanta licked Lucy's face, making her smile in response. Mayu found this heartwarming moment picture-worthy.
"His name is 'Wanta', right?"
"Eh? Um, yes. I named him," Mayu nodded. "It's not too simple, is it?"
"No. That's a cute name," Lucy smiled.
"Yeah. It is," Mayu slowly grinned as well.
"Where did you find him?"
"We met at Yuigahama Beach, some time after I ran away from home," Mayu said, trying not to remember what happened before that. "I was ready to do...something that...I'm still regretting...until he caught my attention. He still had his leash on. We lived together in the shack for a while, surviving on bread crusts."
Mayu's face looked somber. She left out the parts where she saw Lucy running and crying, meeting Bando and helping him.
As well as not telling Lucy about seeing her and Nana fighting in the graveyard.
She now knew that it was Lucy who almost killed Bando and Nana. She still didn't want to think about it, but it was there.
Lucy made a soft, empathetic expression. Mayu continued after a deep breath. "His previous owner called him 'James'. She was searching for him, but Wanta preferred to stay with me, instead. And with apparently good reason, as the owner sounded real angry when she found us. Then, she took him away. I felt so miserable without Wanta. But, he eventually came back to me on my birthday," Mayu smiled a little.
"Did his owner abuse him?" Lucy looked at her.
"...I think so," the thought made Mayu's smile and eyes drop down.
Lucy grimaced at that possibility. She softened her face as she looked at Wanta, panting with his tongue out.
"How did he sprain his leg?" the Queen asked.
"Oh...well, it happened not too long ago," the younger girl responded. "I let him outside the Inn so he could play around. Somehow, while I wasn't looking, he seemed to have either bumped his leg on a rock somewhere or he didn't adjust his timing right while running," she paused. "I think the injury was delayed, as he started limping later that day."
Mayu looked down at him, eyes slightly narrowed with a tone that didn't match her expression. "You should be more careful next time, Wanta."
Lucy could only grin a bit on the inside while she was looking at Mayu scolding the little canine in her own, gentle manner.
Then, she remembered something.
"I had a puppy like him, once."
Mayu blinked in surprise. "You have?" she said.
"Yes. He didn't bully me or torment me. He was my first friend, before I met Kouta," she smiled in remembrance. "He was so fun to be with. I fed him and we played in the woods together."
"Wow..."
Mayu could only look at Lucy in elated awe as she thought about the Diclonius giving out bits of her past. She believed it was both heartwarming and a necessary step forward to building trust with Lucy.
"But, I didn't give him a name. Rather...I couldn't," Lucy began to grit her teeth and have her tone change in a darker manner. Mayu's happy mood quickly began to fall down, eyes widening. She knew that look.
"I lived in an orphanage. They gave me so much pain back then. It was so unbearable to even live. When I found that puppy, things seemed better..." she inhaled deeply. "...but I was so wrong..." Mayu listened intently, fearing the worst.
"A girl that I had put my trust into...lied to me. She had the bullies take my friend away. They beat him with no mercy or hesitation as they forced me to watch. I saw blood. The puppy stopped moving. They did not stop beating him..." Lucy began to tear up as she began to hug Wanta. "Then...something inside me snapped," Mayu was shivering from the horror she was about to hear as she began tearing up as well.
"Lucy-san? What did you do...?"
Lucy looked at her with a wide-eyed, glaring expression and said these five words to her in an angered whisper:
"They were my first kills."
Mayu put both of her hands on her mouth in shock. She believed she was ready to hear Lucy's confessions of murder, but she was very, VERY wrong.
Lucy looked at the ground, continuing. "After that, I left. And I never came back. I buried the puppy in a forest. I still remember where it is. Where I met Kouta-" Lucy paused with a shaky breath, then began wiping her tears off. She coughed twice, sniffling.
"Lucy-san...I'm so sorry that happened to you..."
"No. You're not sorry. You're scared of me. And you should be. I'm nothing but a murderer. I was always a murderer. I'm a Diclonius. I was born to kill humans like you," Lucy's tears kept falling as she frowned and gritted her teeth. She gave Wanta to Mayu, not looking at her.
Mayu grabbed Wanta off Lucy's hands. "Lucy-san, I-" Lucy quickly got up and went inside, going up the stairs with her tears and choking never seeming to stop.
Mayu desperately looked on at Lucy disappearing from her eyes. Then, in a moment, she was quietly sobbing, holding Wanta for comfort.
Nearby, behind some windows, Kouta, Yuka, Nana and Nozomi listened in, each of them having varying degrees of devastated looks. Kouta sat on the floor and leaned on the wall, his hands to his face, gritted teeth and flowing tears in tow. Yuka and Nozomi couldn't stop their own tears from falling either as they put their hands in their mouths, trying not to give themselves away.
Kouta and Yuka were obviously aware of Lucy being a murderer, but to think she just confessed her first bout of killing as a child all due to violent levels of bullying and a betrayal from another made them not really scared, but moreso saddened at how it began a long life of even more misery for the woman.
Nozomi herself was shocked, confused and horrified at what just occurred - her new roommate's confession of being a murderer immediately set her on the verge of having second thoughts on coming here.
Nana, in contrast to the other three, seemed calm, yet slightly frowning, as she already expected something like this to happen eventually.
Nana then walked over to Mayu. Before the raven-haired girl could even say a single word as she noticed the Silpelit, Nana knelt down close to her. She hugged Mayu and Wanta as tightly as she could. Mayu was now sobbing more loudly on Nana's shoulder. Wanta's own feelings of distress were intensified by Mayu's increasing wails.
The rest of the afternoon was left silent.
Author's Notes:
...Well, hello there. It's been a while, hasn't it?
I did say my schedule was inconsistent and I don't want to be posting something until I really think it is ready, so you can blame me for those 4 months of pure waiting, haha! At least this was a lengthy one.
By the way, I recently had my birthday and started another year of college classes, so unfortunately, I might write at a slower pace. Don't worry too much, though.
Also, I'm not apologizing for ending this chapter in this way, but I definitely understand if you feel wanting things to get better ASAP. I honestly want that, too, but sometimes, I just have to leave things like this or it wouldn't be right. I'm trying not to be sadistic, trust me. Like you folks, I'm a reader, too. I know what it's like.
I don't have much else to say for now, except 'Thank you for staying patient and reading through this!' (or, 'Welcome to this story, if you're new!')
See ya people next time! Keep your hopes up and your expectations low!