Disclaimer: I don't own Iria (though I wouldn't mind it….) and I'm not making any money off this. (If I was, do you think you'd see this disclaimer?) The only thing I own here is this story and Shiv. She's mine, do you hear me? Mine! *laughs nervously* Okay…on with the show…..
Rating: PG-13 - language, violence
Ghosts of the Past
Part 6: Mistress
The early morning light peeked through the windows, spotted the pair sleeping peacefully on the couch, and sped toward their eyes. It pounded furiously on tightly shut lids for a moment, then settled down and simply shone. After a minute or two, the sleeping pair was asleep no longer, but pleased themselves by pretending so.
"Are you awake?", Akira whispered after a moment.
"Are you?", Shiv whispered back, then giggled insanely. "Dumb question, neh? I guess the lack of sleep is getting to me."
Akira smiled. "I'm sure it'll be getting to me before much longer. Think we should get up?"
Shiv batted the idea aside with her hand. "Nyah. The Four Stooges will be in here before long, so we might as well enjoy some quiet time before - "
"If I remember correctly, there are only three Stooges," Bob interjected.
Shiv sighed. "Speak of the devil. Are the others up yet, Bob?"
Bob's icon shook back and forth. "No, not yet."
Shiv nodded and got up. "I might as well get ready, then." She slipped into Fujikuro's bedroom, not very surprised to see him sleeping in it. "Since I stole the couch, stands to reason he'd be here," she muttered. Gathering her clothes, she slipped off to the bathroom, paused in the doorway long enough to throw a sock on his head, and ran snickering out of the room.
After showering, dressing, and making a quick phone call, she headed to the kitchen, only to find an omelet ready and waiting. Her eyes widened and her mouth watered. "Who…who made this?", she wondered.
Akira stuck his head around the corner. "I did."
"I didn't know you cooked," Shiv said, attacking the omelet.
"You've only known me a few days," he chuckled, ruffling her hair. She made a feint at him with her fork and he laughed again. As he turned back to the stove, a drowsy Iria staggered in, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Noticing the omelet, she inhaled deeply with a dreamy look on her face.
"Mmm…I'd pay good money for a breakfast like that," she mumbled.
Akira stuck his head back around the corner. "How much?"
Iria blinked dazedly. "You made that? Hm…how's about I pay on delivery?"
Akira grinned. "Deal." He headed for the refrigerator for more eggs.
Suddenly, a small blur sped into the kitchen, nearly knocking Akira over. Everyone turned to look, discovering it was Kei with one arm wrapped tightly around a cereal box and the other elbow deep in said cereal.
"Um…do you want a bowl?", Shiv asked, stunned.
Kei shook her head and shoved a fistful of sugary puffs into her mouth.
Iria cringed. "How can you eat that stuff?"
Kei grinned and licked something from her upper lip. "I eat what I eat." She shrugged, then froze, a second fistful of cereal half way to her mouth. "Um…"
Everyone turned and gaped at what they saw. Fujikuro stood in the doorway to the kitchen with Shiv's sock still firmly seated on top of his spiked hair. "What?", he demanded.
Akira stood frozen with three eggs in his hand, afraid to laugh for fear of dropping them. Iria began laughing hysterically; so hard, in fact, when she sat down, her jaws clacked together. Shiv snickered, laughed harder, then stopped because she began to choke on her omelet. Kei blinked for a moment or two, then burst out laughing and ended up dropping the cereal box, sending sugary puffs scattering across the floor.
"What?!?", Fujikuro demanded a second time, quite frustrated by the whole goings on. Suppressing snickers, Iria managed to drag herself out of her chair and walked over to Fujikuro. Taking the sock from his head, she waved it under his nose and said, "I always thought these went on your feet. Or are we starting a new fashion trend, hm?"
Fujikuro stared at the sock, at Iria, then Kei, Akira, and Shiv respectively. When his eyes fell on Shiv, she grinned and wiggled her fingers playfully. "By the way, Fuji," she smirked, "have you perchance seen my sock?"
"OOOOOHHH! YOU! Why I oughtta - "
"You oughtta what?"
"I'm gonna get you!"
"I'm waiting…" Shiv shrieked in delight and sped past him into the living room, Fujikuro hot on her heels. He had taken the sock from Iria and was waving it like some sort of bizarre banner; threatening to choke Shiv with it, shove it down her throat, or shove it some place else this author is currently not allowed to name, for fear of legal action.
Just as it seemed one of the three threats would be carried out, the doorbell rang. Shiv skidded to a halt, grinned wickedly at Fujikuro, and opened the door. Her face broke out into a genuine smile and she chatted briefly with the person on the other side of the door. "Come in!", she said, opening the door slightly wider and allowing the visitor to enter. Into the room stepped a woman. She was several years older than Shiv, dressed in an light yet elaborate green kimono. Her dark brown hair was done up in a bun, with two jeweled hair sticks thrust through it. She smiled pleasantly at the group that had hurried in from the kitchen and adjusted her grip on the large bag at her side.
Shiv smiled also. "Ladies and gentlemen," she began, "as I have no desire to repeat the previous Tedon Tippidai incident, I decided a plan was in order. My friend here is how we are getting in." She nodded at the woman. "It seems that Mr. Putubai, deceased or no, still has a habit of inviting courtesans to his office. They often come two, even three at a time." She pointed to the woman, herself, and Iria in turn. "It is not uncommon for said courtesans to have bodyguards." She nodded to Fujikuro and Akira. "In this way, we can waltz right up to the 94th floor and a certain Vice-Presidential-Bastard won't suspect a thing."
Iria, Fujikuro, and Akira nodded, impressed. "I just have one question," Fujikuro said. "Who's you're friend?"
Shiv grinned. "Oh, did I forget to mention her name? How stupid of me. Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to Ranfan."
Iria fainted.
"Iria…Wake up, Iria!…Damn it, kid! Wake up!"
"Ouch!", Iria shrieked, putting a hand to her stinging cheek. "Who did that?"
Shiv looked sheepish. "Hey, it woke you up, didn't it?"
Iria glared at her, then remembered something. She sat up and spun to face the new woman. "What did she say your name is?", she demanded.
The woman smiled. "My name is Ranfan."
Iria looked pale and Shiv grabbed her by her shoulders. "Oh no you don't!", Shiv shouted. "I don't want to have to give you CPR or some crap. You stay with me, kid, you hear?!"
Iria nodded shakily. "I'm…I'm okay. It's just…Are you the same Ranfan I think you are?"
Ranfan grinned. "If you're the same Iria I think you are."
Iria plowed forward with a rush of questions. "You! And the pendant! How did you get that? Was the pendant yours the whole time? Why did you make the recordings? When? How?!"
Ranfan laughed and held up her hands. "I surrender! Slow down, child. I can only take so many questions at once!"
Iria ducked her head, a little embarrassed. "Sorry…it's just…I have to know."
Ranfan nodded. "I understand. I can explain. Shiv had called me in to find out about the Zeiram project and- "
"Shiv!", Iria shrieked.
Shiv tried to sneak out of the room, then stopped and turned back around. "All right, so I've got some explaining to do. I knew Tedon Tippidai was up to some shit, so who better to get the info from than the Vice President himself. I knew about Putubai's little invites to courtesans so…" She drifted off and waved her hand idly.
Ranfan grinned. "Anyway, Shiv called me in to find out about the Zeiram project and, with the aid of my pendant and large amounts of wine, I managed to get recordings of Putubai spilling all the details. Unfortunately, Putubai figured it out, stole my pendant, and I only got away by the skin of my teeth. I haven't been able to surface for a while until he trusted me a little again and I am now very ready to pay the bastard back."
"Um…one question…," Iria asked. "Did you ever…actually…With him?"
Ranfan threw back her head and laughed. "God, NO! Please, I doped up the S.O.B. on so much wine and sleeping pills that he didn't know what the hell happened! I told him how wonderful he was and he believed me! What a moron!"
Iria grinned. "Always knew Putubai wasn't too heavy in the brain department. So what's this grand plan anyway?"
Shiv made eye contact with Ranfan and the other woman nodded. Shiv picked up Ranfan's bag and opened it. "All right, here's the plan…"
*******
Haha! Betcha didn't see that one coming!! Remember the line? "Ah, so Ranfan is your wife then. Or perhaps Ranfan is your mistress!" LOL this was a fun chapter to write. Hope you like. I'll try and put up more chapters tomorrow. For now, thanks for reading, the feedback, and your support.
PS: Paul, I updated now. Ya happy, spazwad? *grins*
~Kat-chan~
Rating: PG-13 - language, violence
Ghosts of the Past
Part 6: Mistress
The early morning light peeked through the windows, spotted the pair sleeping peacefully on the couch, and sped toward their eyes. It pounded furiously on tightly shut lids for a moment, then settled down and simply shone. After a minute or two, the sleeping pair was asleep no longer, but pleased themselves by pretending so.
"Are you awake?", Akira whispered after a moment.
"Are you?", Shiv whispered back, then giggled insanely. "Dumb question, neh? I guess the lack of sleep is getting to me."
Akira smiled. "I'm sure it'll be getting to me before much longer. Think we should get up?"
Shiv batted the idea aside with her hand. "Nyah. The Four Stooges will be in here before long, so we might as well enjoy some quiet time before - "
"If I remember correctly, there are only three Stooges," Bob interjected.
Shiv sighed. "Speak of the devil. Are the others up yet, Bob?"
Bob's icon shook back and forth. "No, not yet."
Shiv nodded and got up. "I might as well get ready, then." She slipped into Fujikuro's bedroom, not very surprised to see him sleeping in it. "Since I stole the couch, stands to reason he'd be here," she muttered. Gathering her clothes, she slipped off to the bathroom, paused in the doorway long enough to throw a sock on his head, and ran snickering out of the room.
After showering, dressing, and making a quick phone call, she headed to the kitchen, only to find an omelet ready and waiting. Her eyes widened and her mouth watered. "Who…who made this?", she wondered.
Akira stuck his head around the corner. "I did."
"I didn't know you cooked," Shiv said, attacking the omelet.
"You've only known me a few days," he chuckled, ruffling her hair. She made a feint at him with her fork and he laughed again. As he turned back to the stove, a drowsy Iria staggered in, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Noticing the omelet, she inhaled deeply with a dreamy look on her face.
"Mmm…I'd pay good money for a breakfast like that," she mumbled.
Akira stuck his head back around the corner. "How much?"
Iria blinked dazedly. "You made that? Hm…how's about I pay on delivery?"
Akira grinned. "Deal." He headed for the refrigerator for more eggs.
Suddenly, a small blur sped into the kitchen, nearly knocking Akira over. Everyone turned to look, discovering it was Kei with one arm wrapped tightly around a cereal box and the other elbow deep in said cereal.
"Um…do you want a bowl?", Shiv asked, stunned.
Kei shook her head and shoved a fistful of sugary puffs into her mouth.
Iria cringed. "How can you eat that stuff?"
Kei grinned and licked something from her upper lip. "I eat what I eat." She shrugged, then froze, a second fistful of cereal half way to her mouth. "Um…"
Everyone turned and gaped at what they saw. Fujikuro stood in the doorway to the kitchen with Shiv's sock still firmly seated on top of his spiked hair. "What?", he demanded.
Akira stood frozen with three eggs in his hand, afraid to laugh for fear of dropping them. Iria began laughing hysterically; so hard, in fact, when she sat down, her jaws clacked together. Shiv snickered, laughed harder, then stopped because she began to choke on her omelet. Kei blinked for a moment or two, then burst out laughing and ended up dropping the cereal box, sending sugary puffs scattering across the floor.
"What?!?", Fujikuro demanded a second time, quite frustrated by the whole goings on. Suppressing snickers, Iria managed to drag herself out of her chair and walked over to Fujikuro. Taking the sock from his head, she waved it under his nose and said, "I always thought these went on your feet. Or are we starting a new fashion trend, hm?"
Fujikuro stared at the sock, at Iria, then Kei, Akira, and Shiv respectively. When his eyes fell on Shiv, she grinned and wiggled her fingers playfully. "By the way, Fuji," she smirked, "have you perchance seen my sock?"
"OOOOOHHH! YOU! Why I oughtta - "
"You oughtta what?"
"I'm gonna get you!"
"I'm waiting…" Shiv shrieked in delight and sped past him into the living room, Fujikuro hot on her heels. He had taken the sock from Iria and was waving it like some sort of bizarre banner; threatening to choke Shiv with it, shove it down her throat, or shove it some place else this author is currently not allowed to name, for fear of legal action.
Just as it seemed one of the three threats would be carried out, the doorbell rang. Shiv skidded to a halt, grinned wickedly at Fujikuro, and opened the door. Her face broke out into a genuine smile and she chatted briefly with the person on the other side of the door. "Come in!", she said, opening the door slightly wider and allowing the visitor to enter. Into the room stepped a woman. She was several years older than Shiv, dressed in an light yet elaborate green kimono. Her dark brown hair was done up in a bun, with two jeweled hair sticks thrust through it. She smiled pleasantly at the group that had hurried in from the kitchen and adjusted her grip on the large bag at her side.
Shiv smiled also. "Ladies and gentlemen," she began, "as I have no desire to repeat the previous Tedon Tippidai incident, I decided a plan was in order. My friend here is how we are getting in." She nodded at the woman. "It seems that Mr. Putubai, deceased or no, still has a habit of inviting courtesans to his office. They often come two, even three at a time." She pointed to the woman, herself, and Iria in turn. "It is not uncommon for said courtesans to have bodyguards." She nodded to Fujikuro and Akira. "In this way, we can waltz right up to the 94th floor and a certain Vice-Presidential-Bastard won't suspect a thing."
Iria, Fujikuro, and Akira nodded, impressed. "I just have one question," Fujikuro said. "Who's you're friend?"
Shiv grinned. "Oh, did I forget to mention her name? How stupid of me. Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to Ranfan."
Iria fainted.
"Iria…Wake up, Iria!…Damn it, kid! Wake up!"
"Ouch!", Iria shrieked, putting a hand to her stinging cheek. "Who did that?"
Shiv looked sheepish. "Hey, it woke you up, didn't it?"
Iria glared at her, then remembered something. She sat up and spun to face the new woman. "What did she say your name is?", she demanded.
The woman smiled. "My name is Ranfan."
Iria looked pale and Shiv grabbed her by her shoulders. "Oh no you don't!", Shiv shouted. "I don't want to have to give you CPR or some crap. You stay with me, kid, you hear?!"
Iria nodded shakily. "I'm…I'm okay. It's just…Are you the same Ranfan I think you are?"
Ranfan grinned. "If you're the same Iria I think you are."
Iria plowed forward with a rush of questions. "You! And the pendant! How did you get that? Was the pendant yours the whole time? Why did you make the recordings? When? How?!"
Ranfan laughed and held up her hands. "I surrender! Slow down, child. I can only take so many questions at once!"
Iria ducked her head, a little embarrassed. "Sorry…it's just…I have to know."
Ranfan nodded. "I understand. I can explain. Shiv had called me in to find out about the Zeiram project and- "
"Shiv!", Iria shrieked.
Shiv tried to sneak out of the room, then stopped and turned back around. "All right, so I've got some explaining to do. I knew Tedon Tippidai was up to some shit, so who better to get the info from than the Vice President himself. I knew about Putubai's little invites to courtesans so…" She drifted off and waved her hand idly.
Ranfan grinned. "Anyway, Shiv called me in to find out about the Zeiram project and, with the aid of my pendant and large amounts of wine, I managed to get recordings of Putubai spilling all the details. Unfortunately, Putubai figured it out, stole my pendant, and I only got away by the skin of my teeth. I haven't been able to surface for a while until he trusted me a little again and I am now very ready to pay the bastard back."
"Um…one question…," Iria asked. "Did you ever…actually…With him?"
Ranfan threw back her head and laughed. "God, NO! Please, I doped up the S.O.B. on so much wine and sleeping pills that he didn't know what the hell happened! I told him how wonderful he was and he believed me! What a moron!"
Iria grinned. "Always knew Putubai wasn't too heavy in the brain department. So what's this grand plan anyway?"
Shiv made eye contact with Ranfan and the other woman nodded. Shiv picked up Ranfan's bag and opened it. "All right, here's the plan…"
*******
Haha! Betcha didn't see that one coming!! Remember the line? "Ah, so Ranfan is your wife then. Or perhaps Ranfan is your mistress!" LOL this was a fun chapter to write. Hope you like. I'll try and put up more chapters tomorrow. For now, thanks for reading, the feedback, and your support.
PS: Paul, I updated now. Ya happy, spazwad? *grins*
~Kat-chan~