When Ayaka woke up, she found herself laying on a mattress staring up at a brown ceiling. The smell of earth was fresh in the air, and she could feel a wet rag on her forehead. The first thing she checked for was her gun. It was still there, thankfully. A young man's voice spoke to her. "You're awake. Good. I was worried you might have been injured in the fall."
She looked up quickly, nearly drawing her gun. There was a boy sitting in a chair not too far from her, and he had a smile on his face. Judging from his attire, necklace, and hair, he was of native decent. He didn't have much in the way of muscles, but he wasn't fat.. She also realized the walls, floor, and ceiling were all a grainy brown. "Where am I?"
"In my room. I was the one that was picked to make sure you were alright while the others gave your brother the teaching and talking." He had a trusting enough face, and a soft smile to match. "You fainted."
"The spider." Ayaka said, shuddering.
"There was a spider? It's gone now. How are you feeling?"
"Alright, I guess."
"I'm Rob, by the way. I have another name, but, well. For the sake of keeping things simple we all normally just go first names, except at formal things. We're pretty relaxed here."
"I'm Ayaka."
"Pleasure to meet you, Ayaka. I've heard of you."
"Oh?"
He nodded. "I heard there was a reluctant woman with a good back ground, that they were trying to get to come here.. You must be her. I don't think there's any women with quite as good a.. Hm.. How to describe it.. As you."
"I believe the terms you're looking for are paranoid and spastic."
"No, it's hard to describe. I think I heard the word 'pedigree' a time or two. How long will you be staying?"
"Until my brother is taken care of."
"That could be a couple days, you know. Maybe longer. He needs to learn how to shift well, the Litany, decide on a Tribe to train for.."
"Tribe? Litany?"
"You really have been out of the loop, haven't you?"
"You could say that."
"A Tribe is a group of Werewolves with a certain background and set of ideals, simply put."
"Okay. I don't see how it really matters."
"It does to them. And your.. 'Pedigree' matters... Because it means that any kids you have will be reflected as such. And they will have a higher chance of becoming Werewolves."
"I don't think I like having the term Pedigree applied to myself or my brother."
"I'm just using it as a relative term. I can't think of a better way to say it. I'm sorry, I meant no offense. You should see about finding a place to stay here, unless you want to stay in this room."
"Can you tell me where Shinji is now?"
"Right now, they are probably walking around the woods, or talking to him in one of the rooms around here. Why? He's fine, really."
"I trust you all no further than I could throw you."
"Well, that's fine and all. But I did take care of you, and I did watch you to make sure you were ok."
"I did mention that I was paranoid."
"If I was going to hurt you or do anything to you, wouldn't it have made sense to do so in your sleep?"
"I've had two different men offer me thinly veiled threats against myself and my family when I turned them down since Watson showed up at my store. I don't like the take chances."
"Two men? Who was that? Probably that Shadow Lord.. I know Watson wouldn't have, and the Fianna likes getting things without that sorta stuff."
"One of them was a red head, and the other was a slightly older man."
He blinked. "Yeah. Shadow Lord and the Fianna. What did the Fianna say though?"
"I got the impression that he might come back."
"Some girls would be flattered." He chuckled. "And so would some of the men around here."
"You only confirmed my suspicion that they are interested in me for one reason, and I want nothing to do with it."
"The Fianna is mostly interested in anything with a pulse. The fact you happen to be well... bred is just a added plus. Not all of us are like that though. I hope you don't think I am."
"Frankly, you don't look old enough to be interested in such things."
He chuckled and shook his head. "It's not that. I have better things to pursue. Yes, you are a woman, and not a bad looking one. But, I believe when it is time for me to mate, Gaia will provide. Just let me know if you need anything." He picked up some nearby materials and began to work on making a necklace of some sort.
"I think I'll go look for a place to stay for a little while, thank you." she said, getting up.
"Ok. Go .. Hm.. Go down the small passage, make a right. Take the first right, then second left, and another right. It'll lead you to the man in charge."
"Thank you." She headed out the door and shut it, then looked around. It was a few moments before it dawned on her. She was underground, and was in a tunnel that was sloped and turned so she couldn't see past six feet ahead, or back. This did nothing to improve her moral. At least she still had her gun. There wasn't enough room for them to shift, either. She followed Rob's directions, keeping an eye out for anyone and anything.
Ayaka didn't see anyone.. But that could be blamed on the passage themselves. They seemed to be designed to make things hard to see ahead or back, twisting and turning.. It was almost like one of those ant farms. Maybe there was a being watching her from the outside.. Eventually though, she came to a wooden door, like all the other doors. She knocked twice, then waited.
"Come in, please." a male voice said.
Ayaka opened the door and came inside. She found the room to be bigger then the last, a few book shelves filled to the brim with old tomes and new books alike. Another with paper work and such. There was a desk, and some various things laying around. A man in a chair got up and turned to greet her. He was wearing a simple enough soft brown robe that matched the earth, and his hair, and his eyes. He was a big man, but everything about him indicated a gentle giant. "Can I help you?"
"I'm Ayaka Mori... my brother was brought here a little while ago. I was wondering if I could get a place to stay... until Shinji's ready to go home."
He nodded to her. "Of course. Shinji's sister. I heard you fainted.. Good to see you are ok. I am Dave, just Dave. Would you like a single room? A shared room? Do you need anything?"
"Just whatever kind of room you have free."
"I think I have a small store room that isn't really being used at the moment.. There are some spare mattresses in there you can sleep on."
"That'll do, thank you."
***
Ayaka rolled over on the thin mattress and groaned. The first thing she did was reach for her gun. The room was oddly comfortable for being underground, cool, yet warm. It was clear these were back up mattresses though, and not really meant for sleeping on for long. A snake slithered out of the floor by her, then disappeared into another small tunnel like she wasn't there. She shuddered... but at least it wasn't a spider.
In fact, underground... it seemed there were no spiders. She had yet to see any webs.. Must be a plus to living down there. Everyone also seemed to be helpful enough, if she needed anything.. Maybe it was because of her 'pedigree'. She hated that term. It made her feel.. Well.. Less human. And it wasn't a term for humans.
Ayaka had already decided that as soon as things were settled for Shinji, they were both getting the hell out of there. Some of the people weren't that bad though. The guy in charge seemed nice enough, as did the Indian boy that had taken care of her. Neither had even attempted to hit on her. a decided plus. Still.... it didn't hurt to be careful. She'd been on enough dates to know that all the pleasantness could be a mask.
There was a knocking at her door, quick and hard, delivering a feeling of urgency about it. Ayaka got up and ran a hand through her hair to get it into some kind of order. "Who is it?"
"Me, um, Rob! Some guys are talking to Shinji, your brother? I was topside and saw it. They're talking about taking him home for training, I thought you might like to know!"
She threw the door open quickly. "No one is taking Shinji anywhere else. Where are they now?"
"Up, topside! The grass has been lowered again. C'mon, we got to hurry." He took off at a run up the tunnel, but not so fast as to leave her behind. She followed him as quickly as possible.
Rob slowed when they came to a burst of fresh air, and stepped aside to let her run past. She saw one elder man with two younger looking ones, all with decidedly neutral faces, talking with Shinji. They looked down at him as the lead man talked with him quietly. Unlike the rest of the people at this place, they were all Asian. Very clearly so. "But what about Hiro... Ayaka.. Mom.." The man shook his head and replied again in a quiet whisper she couldn't make out. Rob just watched Ayaka, and them.
"Shinji?"
Her brother turned and faced her, and the others looked up to her too. ".. Ayaka, I think I might have to go away..."
"You don't have to go anywhere with anyone, Shinji." she said, walking up to him and putting a hand on his shoulder, facing the group.
"Yes, he does." One of the men spoke.
"Though he could stay here." another other offered.
"His learning here would be limited as there are none of us.."
"And he'd be more useful back over the ocean."
"He's. Not. Going. Anywhere." Ayaka said, her hand tightening on Shinji's shoulder. It took her a few more moments for it to finally come, but she saw.. He was her father, the middle man. "Ayaka, he can't learn here, why would it make sense to stay?"
"As I recall it, you didn't think he'd ever have to learn this at all."
"Well, I was wrong, but now I see so. We need to take him now though, can't you see that?" Shinji seemed to be half confused, half thoughtful as he pondered it all
"You seem to be wrong about a lot of things that affect your family."
"Shinji, what do you think?"
".... I .. Don't know.." He looked down at the ground, letting out a sigh.
"Well it's best you decide quickly."
Ayaka crouched down next to her brother. "Take your time. No one will make you do anything." she whispered, squeezing his shoulder.
Shinji nodded his head a little bit then stepped away from the both of them. "I need to think on it... Give me a couple days, please?"
There was a pause. "You have forty eight hours, two days. Choose wisely, young one. We should see about getting a room.."
Ayaka stood by her brother, waiting for them to leave. Her father watched Shinji for a few minutes then turned and walked off with his companions. They disappeared into the tunnel near the Indian boy, without so much as a glance. "What do you want to do, Shinji?"
".. I don't know. I mean.. You and sis and bro and mom are here, but I also need to help with things back there, and learn how to.. Get better, I think."
"We could always go somewhere else."
"What do you mean, Ayaka?" He looked her square in the eyes, and she could clearly tell he was torn between the two choices.
"We could move to somewhere else.... somewhere where no one knows us. There've got to be more of these guys around other places, right?"
"But.. Dad said I had to go back with him over the oceans to study right. There are more like us... But they said there were many of our.. Tribe or something like that left here.."
"Dad left, remember? He walked out, and he never even looked back. The only reason he's here now is because you changed."
"Yeah.. I know.." Shinji sighed. "But I'm still a werewolf, and I need to do something.. They said something about defending our homeland, but I don't really get it.."
Ayaka snorted. "America is your homeland. You were born above the shop."
"Yeah.. I know... Ayaka? If I go, will you stop loving me? Will mom?" He shuddered at a thought, and Rob looked off to the side as he heard that.
"Oh sweetie.... neither of us would stop loving you." She hugged him.
Shinji hugged her back tightly, and she could swear she heard a couple voices say 'Awwwww'. "T-Thank you Ayaka.. I love you, and everyone, but I have to think.." Shinji let her go then offered a weak smile. "I'm going to go think now.. I'll see you later.." He turned and waved, heading off down a tunnel quickly.
Ayaka stood up and straightened her shirt, looking around. Whoever had said 'Aww' wasn't in sight, and the Indian was looking off awkwardly to the side, unsure whether to stay or go. Ayaka opted to go back to her room for the time being. She didn't say anything.
She looked up quickly, nearly drawing her gun. There was a boy sitting in a chair not too far from her, and he had a smile on his face. Judging from his attire, necklace, and hair, he was of native decent. He didn't have much in the way of muscles, but he wasn't fat.. She also realized the walls, floor, and ceiling were all a grainy brown. "Where am I?"
"In my room. I was the one that was picked to make sure you were alright while the others gave your brother the teaching and talking." He had a trusting enough face, and a soft smile to match. "You fainted."
"The spider." Ayaka said, shuddering.
"There was a spider? It's gone now. How are you feeling?"
"Alright, I guess."
"I'm Rob, by the way. I have another name, but, well. For the sake of keeping things simple we all normally just go first names, except at formal things. We're pretty relaxed here."
"I'm Ayaka."
"Pleasure to meet you, Ayaka. I've heard of you."
"Oh?"
He nodded. "I heard there was a reluctant woman with a good back ground, that they were trying to get to come here.. You must be her. I don't think there's any women with quite as good a.. Hm.. How to describe it.. As you."
"I believe the terms you're looking for are paranoid and spastic."
"No, it's hard to describe. I think I heard the word 'pedigree' a time or two. How long will you be staying?"
"Until my brother is taken care of."
"That could be a couple days, you know. Maybe longer. He needs to learn how to shift well, the Litany, decide on a Tribe to train for.."
"Tribe? Litany?"
"You really have been out of the loop, haven't you?"
"You could say that."
"A Tribe is a group of Werewolves with a certain background and set of ideals, simply put."
"Okay. I don't see how it really matters."
"It does to them. And your.. 'Pedigree' matters... Because it means that any kids you have will be reflected as such. And they will have a higher chance of becoming Werewolves."
"I don't think I like having the term Pedigree applied to myself or my brother."
"I'm just using it as a relative term. I can't think of a better way to say it. I'm sorry, I meant no offense. You should see about finding a place to stay here, unless you want to stay in this room."
"Can you tell me where Shinji is now?"
"Right now, they are probably walking around the woods, or talking to him in one of the rooms around here. Why? He's fine, really."
"I trust you all no further than I could throw you."
"Well, that's fine and all. But I did take care of you, and I did watch you to make sure you were ok."
"I did mention that I was paranoid."
"If I was going to hurt you or do anything to you, wouldn't it have made sense to do so in your sleep?"
"I've had two different men offer me thinly veiled threats against myself and my family when I turned them down since Watson showed up at my store. I don't like the take chances."
"Two men? Who was that? Probably that Shadow Lord.. I know Watson wouldn't have, and the Fianna likes getting things without that sorta stuff."
"One of them was a red head, and the other was a slightly older man."
He blinked. "Yeah. Shadow Lord and the Fianna. What did the Fianna say though?"
"I got the impression that he might come back."
"Some girls would be flattered." He chuckled. "And so would some of the men around here."
"You only confirmed my suspicion that they are interested in me for one reason, and I want nothing to do with it."
"The Fianna is mostly interested in anything with a pulse. The fact you happen to be well... bred is just a added plus. Not all of us are like that though. I hope you don't think I am."
"Frankly, you don't look old enough to be interested in such things."
He chuckled and shook his head. "It's not that. I have better things to pursue. Yes, you are a woman, and not a bad looking one. But, I believe when it is time for me to mate, Gaia will provide. Just let me know if you need anything." He picked up some nearby materials and began to work on making a necklace of some sort.
"I think I'll go look for a place to stay for a little while, thank you." she said, getting up.
"Ok. Go .. Hm.. Go down the small passage, make a right. Take the first right, then second left, and another right. It'll lead you to the man in charge."
"Thank you." She headed out the door and shut it, then looked around. It was a few moments before it dawned on her. She was underground, and was in a tunnel that was sloped and turned so she couldn't see past six feet ahead, or back. This did nothing to improve her moral. At least she still had her gun. There wasn't enough room for them to shift, either. She followed Rob's directions, keeping an eye out for anyone and anything.
Ayaka didn't see anyone.. But that could be blamed on the passage themselves. They seemed to be designed to make things hard to see ahead or back, twisting and turning.. It was almost like one of those ant farms. Maybe there was a being watching her from the outside.. Eventually though, she came to a wooden door, like all the other doors. She knocked twice, then waited.
"Come in, please." a male voice said.
Ayaka opened the door and came inside. She found the room to be bigger then the last, a few book shelves filled to the brim with old tomes and new books alike. Another with paper work and such. There was a desk, and some various things laying around. A man in a chair got up and turned to greet her. He was wearing a simple enough soft brown robe that matched the earth, and his hair, and his eyes. He was a big man, but everything about him indicated a gentle giant. "Can I help you?"
"I'm Ayaka Mori... my brother was brought here a little while ago. I was wondering if I could get a place to stay... until Shinji's ready to go home."
He nodded to her. "Of course. Shinji's sister. I heard you fainted.. Good to see you are ok. I am Dave, just Dave. Would you like a single room? A shared room? Do you need anything?"
"Just whatever kind of room you have free."
"I think I have a small store room that isn't really being used at the moment.. There are some spare mattresses in there you can sleep on."
"That'll do, thank you."
***
Ayaka rolled over on the thin mattress and groaned. The first thing she did was reach for her gun. The room was oddly comfortable for being underground, cool, yet warm. It was clear these were back up mattresses though, and not really meant for sleeping on for long. A snake slithered out of the floor by her, then disappeared into another small tunnel like she wasn't there. She shuddered... but at least it wasn't a spider.
In fact, underground... it seemed there were no spiders. She had yet to see any webs.. Must be a plus to living down there. Everyone also seemed to be helpful enough, if she needed anything.. Maybe it was because of her 'pedigree'. She hated that term. It made her feel.. Well.. Less human. And it wasn't a term for humans.
Ayaka had already decided that as soon as things were settled for Shinji, they were both getting the hell out of there. Some of the people weren't that bad though. The guy in charge seemed nice enough, as did the Indian boy that had taken care of her. Neither had even attempted to hit on her. a decided plus. Still.... it didn't hurt to be careful. She'd been on enough dates to know that all the pleasantness could be a mask.
There was a knocking at her door, quick and hard, delivering a feeling of urgency about it. Ayaka got up and ran a hand through her hair to get it into some kind of order. "Who is it?"
"Me, um, Rob! Some guys are talking to Shinji, your brother? I was topside and saw it. They're talking about taking him home for training, I thought you might like to know!"
She threw the door open quickly. "No one is taking Shinji anywhere else. Where are they now?"
"Up, topside! The grass has been lowered again. C'mon, we got to hurry." He took off at a run up the tunnel, but not so fast as to leave her behind. She followed him as quickly as possible.
Rob slowed when they came to a burst of fresh air, and stepped aside to let her run past. She saw one elder man with two younger looking ones, all with decidedly neutral faces, talking with Shinji. They looked down at him as the lead man talked with him quietly. Unlike the rest of the people at this place, they were all Asian. Very clearly so. "But what about Hiro... Ayaka.. Mom.." The man shook his head and replied again in a quiet whisper she couldn't make out. Rob just watched Ayaka, and them.
"Shinji?"
Her brother turned and faced her, and the others looked up to her too. ".. Ayaka, I think I might have to go away..."
"You don't have to go anywhere with anyone, Shinji." she said, walking up to him and putting a hand on his shoulder, facing the group.
"Yes, he does." One of the men spoke.
"Though he could stay here." another other offered.
"His learning here would be limited as there are none of us.."
"And he'd be more useful back over the ocean."
"He's. Not. Going. Anywhere." Ayaka said, her hand tightening on Shinji's shoulder. It took her a few more moments for it to finally come, but she saw.. He was her father, the middle man. "Ayaka, he can't learn here, why would it make sense to stay?"
"As I recall it, you didn't think he'd ever have to learn this at all."
"Well, I was wrong, but now I see so. We need to take him now though, can't you see that?" Shinji seemed to be half confused, half thoughtful as he pondered it all
"You seem to be wrong about a lot of things that affect your family."
"Shinji, what do you think?"
".... I .. Don't know.." He looked down at the ground, letting out a sigh.
"Well it's best you decide quickly."
Ayaka crouched down next to her brother. "Take your time. No one will make you do anything." she whispered, squeezing his shoulder.
Shinji nodded his head a little bit then stepped away from the both of them. "I need to think on it... Give me a couple days, please?"
There was a pause. "You have forty eight hours, two days. Choose wisely, young one. We should see about getting a room.."
Ayaka stood by her brother, waiting for them to leave. Her father watched Shinji for a few minutes then turned and walked off with his companions. They disappeared into the tunnel near the Indian boy, without so much as a glance. "What do you want to do, Shinji?"
".. I don't know. I mean.. You and sis and bro and mom are here, but I also need to help with things back there, and learn how to.. Get better, I think."
"We could always go somewhere else."
"What do you mean, Ayaka?" He looked her square in the eyes, and she could clearly tell he was torn between the two choices.
"We could move to somewhere else.... somewhere where no one knows us. There've got to be more of these guys around other places, right?"
"But.. Dad said I had to go back with him over the oceans to study right. There are more like us... But they said there were many of our.. Tribe or something like that left here.."
"Dad left, remember? He walked out, and he never even looked back. The only reason he's here now is because you changed."
"Yeah.. I know.." Shinji sighed. "But I'm still a werewolf, and I need to do something.. They said something about defending our homeland, but I don't really get it.."
Ayaka snorted. "America is your homeland. You were born above the shop."
"Yeah.. I know... Ayaka? If I go, will you stop loving me? Will mom?" He shuddered at a thought, and Rob looked off to the side as he heard that.
"Oh sweetie.... neither of us would stop loving you." She hugged him.
Shinji hugged her back tightly, and she could swear she heard a couple voices say 'Awwwww'. "T-Thank you Ayaka.. I love you, and everyone, but I have to think.." Shinji let her go then offered a weak smile. "I'm going to go think now.. I'll see you later.." He turned and waved, heading off down a tunnel quickly.
Ayaka stood up and straightened her shirt, looking around. Whoever had said 'Aww' wasn't in sight, and the Indian was looking off awkwardly to the side, unsure whether to stay or go. Ayaka opted to go back to her room for the time being. She didn't say anything.