(Note: Riho will be replaced with my own character, Hiromi Takabe, because
I don't really like Riho's totally innocent maiden attitude. Hiro is a
little bit more real. Also I often switch character prospective from Hiromi
to Shido: three stars indicate this)
Disclaimer: New story, new beginnings. Isn't that right Hiromi? *Talking to the wall* So, you guys know the drill. Hiromi and Shido tell me what happened, and I write it down for fun. You can't sue me for having fun, so don't even try. And I do not own James Clemens wonderful Wit'ch books so don't try to pin that on me either. Oky-dokes? ^_^
" 'So you know your orders then," the oily voice said, menace leaking into the clearing as another scream from the Blackhall was heard from the portal.
Vira'ni bowed low, touching her head to the ebon'stone bowl, both as supplication to her master, and as protection to her children, "Yes my lord; all must die..."
"Watcha reading?" came a small voice close to Hiromi's ear. The girl bent and grabbed her Venti Coffee Frappichino of the small coffee table and took a drink before turning to the Urban Fairy sitting on the couch's back.
"Its called Wit'ch Storm by James Clemens."
"Is it any good?"
Hiromi scoffed and took another sip of her drink, letting the creamy coffee warm her throat and stomach, "Are you kidding? James Clemens is one of my favorite authors, next to Laurel K. Hamilton."
"Ugh," Guni said, studying the book's cover, "spiders...how can you like something about spiders?"
"Well for one, I like spiders; always have. For another, just cause the cover's ugly or worn, doesn't mean it's worthless." The girl paused and smiled, unable to resist, "Though in your case..."
Guni stuck you her tongue and floated above Hiromi's head, staring down at the girl over folded arms, "Why do you hang out here anyway? Don't you have school or something?"
Hiromi opened her book again, blocking Guni's view of her face. Though a tear leaked from the corner of her eye, her voice was steady as she said, "I quit school a year ago, after my parents died, and after...well, after the events following. I hang around here just cause I can."
"Doncha get lonesome?" Guni asked sitting on Hiromi's head.
"I would, except a certain pipsqueak won't quit bugging me."
"Hey, I'm bored. Things have been absolutely dead around here since Cain showed up. And since Shido wouldn't let me come with him today..."
"Where'd he go anyway?"
"I went to give a statement on a new case," came a calm voice. Hiromi immediately stood as the door opened and the tall lavender haired vampire walked into the room. "Turns out, there was an exceptionally savage murder just last night, and they needed me to put in my two cents."
"So what do you think?" Guni said, flying up to Shido's face.
The vampire sighed and pulled off his trench coat, gloves, and shades. Moving the long way around the couch, being careful to stay a distance away form Hiromi, he took of his top hat and laid it on the desk, "The victim was a young girl, about seventeen, and her throat and stomach were completely torn out."
"My God..." Hiromi breathed, and then noticed that Shido was carrying his shoes in his hand. She couldn't help taking a quick look down...blue socks. The Breed exterminating vampire, Shido was wearing blue socks. That little bit of knowledge brought a faint smile to her face.
"Hiromi? Hello?"
"Hm, what?" she blinked.
Guni floated back, her hands on her hips, "Man, are you in the ozone today, or what?"
"I'm sorry. Did the demon Barbie doll say something?"
"No, the Urban Fairy did. Are you even conscious?"
"Yeah, I was just daydreaming. Shido?" she said, sidestepping Guni and putting her book on the table. The vampire turned his strange sea-green eyes to meet Hiromi's violet ones.
"Why are you carrying your shoes like that?"
Shido shrugged and moved to the small kitchen just off his office, "The crime scene was soaked with blood. You couldn't take a step without walking through a red puddle. I thought I'd give the landlord a break," a moment later there was the sound of running water. Guni followed Shido, a faint, "Wow, you weren't kidding," followed.
Unsure of what to do with herself, Hiromi sat down again, only to stand up as Shido called, "Hiromi, there's a manila envelop with crescent moon stamps on it, in the top left drawer of my desk. Could you get it you?"
Alright," she said, and with some trepidation went behind Shido's old oak desk and stared at the said drawer.
"This is stupid," Hiromi thought to herself," What are you expecting to find? Don't answer that..."
Hiromi let her hand close around the drawer handle and pulled it open. What she found was worse than anything her mind could've imagined.
***
"Okay," Guni said, sitting on Shido's shoulder as he wiped the blue-black leather of his shoes clean, "what did you leave out?"
The vampire leaned back a little and saw Hiromi was just outside the kitchen door, sitting on the couch. She could hear everything he said...
"Hiromi, there's a manila envelop with crescent moon stamps on it, in the top left drawer of my desk. Could you get it you?"
There was a pause and then Hiromi stood, saying, "Alright."
Shido watched the girl move to his desk, and let out a silent breath of relief. She didn't need to hear this, not until he could find a gentle way to tell her.....
"Shido!" Guni whined, floating upside down in front of his face, "Spill!"
"The girl from last night, the murder victim. She had red hair, a little lighter that Hiromi's. And she wasn't seventeen. She was sixteen, about to celebrate a birthday in a week."
Guni's eyes went wide as she righted herself and looked into the other room with Hiromi.
"You don't think Cain..."
"Actually, yes I do. It was like the girl was on display, laid out just so in her bed. The mother was so distraught, the EMC had to give her a sedative; it took both her husband and myself to hold her still long enough."
"He's warning you, Shido. Didn't you say something about Hiromi intrigued him?"
Shido wiped his shoes dry and slipped them back on, "Yes. There is something strange about Hiromi: it seems to call to my vampire half."
"I wonder why I can't feel it..." Guni mused, before turning back to Shido, "When are you going to tell her?"
"I think the best course right now," Shido said, turning back into the office, "is to let Cain make the next move. I already told the police what I thing, so all we *can* do is wait...Hiromi, what's wrong?"
The girl was bent over his desk drawer, staring fixatedly at something. At the sound of his voice, Hiromi's head snapped up, her eyes wide. Snatching something out of the drawer, she held it behind her back, using her other hand to pull the envelope out and drop it on the desk.
"There's the....the..."
"Envelope?" Guni put in.
"...Um, yeah...envelope. I um, I got to go. I have an appointment," and with that Hiromi stood, still clutching that something behind her back. She backed up, grabbing a backpack off the floor.
"Hiromi?" Shido began, but she shook her head and grabbed at the doorknob.
"I'm okay. I just have to go. If you need me, you've got my number, so call me, and uh, yeah...bye!"
The door slammed and Guni flew over to it and pressed her ear to the glass, "She's running down the stairs. Hard...man, would you listen to that heartbeat?"
Shido shook his head and went over to his desk. Before she had left, Hiromi's hear had been going three times its norm. Whatever it had been, had clearly terrified Hiromi. Shido looked into the still open drawer, and groaned, falling back into his desk chair.
"Shido? What is it?" Guni asked, flying over to look in the drawer. "I don't see anything."
"The cap and sunglasses Hiromi used to wear were in that drawer. I had forgotten I put them in there..."
Disclaimer: New story, new beginnings. Isn't that right Hiromi? *Talking to the wall* So, you guys know the drill. Hiromi and Shido tell me what happened, and I write it down for fun. You can't sue me for having fun, so don't even try. And I do not own James Clemens wonderful Wit'ch books so don't try to pin that on me either. Oky-dokes? ^_^
" 'So you know your orders then," the oily voice said, menace leaking into the clearing as another scream from the Blackhall was heard from the portal.
Vira'ni bowed low, touching her head to the ebon'stone bowl, both as supplication to her master, and as protection to her children, "Yes my lord; all must die..."
"Watcha reading?" came a small voice close to Hiromi's ear. The girl bent and grabbed her Venti Coffee Frappichino of the small coffee table and took a drink before turning to the Urban Fairy sitting on the couch's back.
"Its called Wit'ch Storm by James Clemens."
"Is it any good?"
Hiromi scoffed and took another sip of her drink, letting the creamy coffee warm her throat and stomach, "Are you kidding? James Clemens is one of my favorite authors, next to Laurel K. Hamilton."
"Ugh," Guni said, studying the book's cover, "spiders...how can you like something about spiders?"
"Well for one, I like spiders; always have. For another, just cause the cover's ugly or worn, doesn't mean it's worthless." The girl paused and smiled, unable to resist, "Though in your case..."
Guni stuck you her tongue and floated above Hiromi's head, staring down at the girl over folded arms, "Why do you hang out here anyway? Don't you have school or something?"
Hiromi opened her book again, blocking Guni's view of her face. Though a tear leaked from the corner of her eye, her voice was steady as she said, "I quit school a year ago, after my parents died, and after...well, after the events following. I hang around here just cause I can."
"Doncha get lonesome?" Guni asked sitting on Hiromi's head.
"I would, except a certain pipsqueak won't quit bugging me."
"Hey, I'm bored. Things have been absolutely dead around here since Cain showed up. And since Shido wouldn't let me come with him today..."
"Where'd he go anyway?"
"I went to give a statement on a new case," came a calm voice. Hiromi immediately stood as the door opened and the tall lavender haired vampire walked into the room. "Turns out, there was an exceptionally savage murder just last night, and they needed me to put in my two cents."
"So what do you think?" Guni said, flying up to Shido's face.
The vampire sighed and pulled off his trench coat, gloves, and shades. Moving the long way around the couch, being careful to stay a distance away form Hiromi, he took of his top hat and laid it on the desk, "The victim was a young girl, about seventeen, and her throat and stomach were completely torn out."
"My God..." Hiromi breathed, and then noticed that Shido was carrying his shoes in his hand. She couldn't help taking a quick look down...blue socks. The Breed exterminating vampire, Shido was wearing blue socks. That little bit of knowledge brought a faint smile to her face.
"Hiromi? Hello?"
"Hm, what?" she blinked.
Guni floated back, her hands on her hips, "Man, are you in the ozone today, or what?"
"I'm sorry. Did the demon Barbie doll say something?"
"No, the Urban Fairy did. Are you even conscious?"
"Yeah, I was just daydreaming. Shido?" she said, sidestepping Guni and putting her book on the table. The vampire turned his strange sea-green eyes to meet Hiromi's violet ones.
"Why are you carrying your shoes like that?"
Shido shrugged and moved to the small kitchen just off his office, "The crime scene was soaked with blood. You couldn't take a step without walking through a red puddle. I thought I'd give the landlord a break," a moment later there was the sound of running water. Guni followed Shido, a faint, "Wow, you weren't kidding," followed.
Unsure of what to do with herself, Hiromi sat down again, only to stand up as Shido called, "Hiromi, there's a manila envelop with crescent moon stamps on it, in the top left drawer of my desk. Could you get it you?"
Alright," she said, and with some trepidation went behind Shido's old oak desk and stared at the said drawer.
"This is stupid," Hiromi thought to herself," What are you expecting to find? Don't answer that..."
Hiromi let her hand close around the drawer handle and pulled it open. What she found was worse than anything her mind could've imagined.
***
"Okay," Guni said, sitting on Shido's shoulder as he wiped the blue-black leather of his shoes clean, "what did you leave out?"
The vampire leaned back a little and saw Hiromi was just outside the kitchen door, sitting on the couch. She could hear everything he said...
"Hiromi, there's a manila envelop with crescent moon stamps on it, in the top left drawer of my desk. Could you get it you?"
There was a pause and then Hiromi stood, saying, "Alright."
Shido watched the girl move to his desk, and let out a silent breath of relief. She didn't need to hear this, not until he could find a gentle way to tell her.....
"Shido!" Guni whined, floating upside down in front of his face, "Spill!"
"The girl from last night, the murder victim. She had red hair, a little lighter that Hiromi's. And she wasn't seventeen. She was sixteen, about to celebrate a birthday in a week."
Guni's eyes went wide as she righted herself and looked into the other room with Hiromi.
"You don't think Cain..."
"Actually, yes I do. It was like the girl was on display, laid out just so in her bed. The mother was so distraught, the EMC had to give her a sedative; it took both her husband and myself to hold her still long enough."
"He's warning you, Shido. Didn't you say something about Hiromi intrigued him?"
Shido wiped his shoes dry and slipped them back on, "Yes. There is something strange about Hiromi: it seems to call to my vampire half."
"I wonder why I can't feel it..." Guni mused, before turning back to Shido, "When are you going to tell her?"
"I think the best course right now," Shido said, turning back into the office, "is to let Cain make the next move. I already told the police what I thing, so all we *can* do is wait...Hiromi, what's wrong?"
The girl was bent over his desk drawer, staring fixatedly at something. At the sound of his voice, Hiromi's head snapped up, her eyes wide. Snatching something out of the drawer, she held it behind her back, using her other hand to pull the envelope out and drop it on the desk.
"There's the....the..."
"Envelope?" Guni put in.
"...Um, yeah...envelope. I um, I got to go. I have an appointment," and with that Hiromi stood, still clutching that something behind her back. She backed up, grabbing a backpack off the floor.
"Hiromi?" Shido began, but she shook her head and grabbed at the doorknob.
"I'm okay. I just have to go. If you need me, you've got my number, so call me, and uh, yeah...bye!"
The door slammed and Guni flew over to it and pressed her ear to the glass, "She's running down the stairs. Hard...man, would you listen to that heartbeat?"
Shido shook his head and went over to his desk. Before she had left, Hiromi's hear had been going three times its norm. Whatever it had been, had clearly terrified Hiromi. Shido looked into the still open drawer, and groaned, falling back into his desk chair.
"Shido? What is it?" Guni asked, flying over to look in the drawer. "I don't see anything."
"The cap and sunglasses Hiromi used to wear were in that drawer. I had forgotten I put them in there..."