Chapter 7: Echoes of the Past
Disclaimer: Still don't own Shadow Hearts, and I've never been to London, so if I got it wrong, I apologize. Also, for those who have commented about Yuri's dialectic: I often think he speaks with an accent (and it showed up a bit in the game as well). As I am surrounded by Russians in my town, it's Russian. He is half-Russian after all.
WARNING! You getting tired of that yet? ADULT SITUATIONS!!!
It seemed to Yuri that the winter chill would never leave his body. He was better dressed now than he had been in years, with heavy stock leather trousers and a leather vest topped by a long coat. These items had been given him by the grateful members of the village of Kyzyl for the rescue of the missing child. He had actually asked for the clothing up front as his own stolen clothes were sure to get ruined.
The child had wandered off and, if not for intrepid family members who had searched for her, they never would have located the old well shaft. It was deep, dry, and very narrow and Yuri wasn't at all sure he could get down. But the village provided lengths of rope that allowed him to repel down the shaft to the dark and narrow bottom. To his dismay, the child was no longer in the shaft. At the bottom was an opening just barely big enough for a small child. Disgusted, Yuri called up for a pickaxe and bags to carry the dirt away. After another couple of hours, he was able to remove enough of the dirt at the opening to allow for him to crawl through and into a large cavern. The underground stream that had once fed the well had receded in the preceding centuries and a large cavern was exposed to Yuri's torch. He raised the smoking brand over his head but could not see the roof of the vault.
"Hello kid? Anfisa?" he called out, but only echoes greeted him, the sound crashing back and forth over the rocky surface. "Shit," he muttered and clambered down to a ledge that led to the bottom of the cavern. The ground was dry, with no signs of the once plentiful water that must have run this course in times past. Yuri moved the torch back and forth in front of him, casting about for signs of the missing child. Finally he spotted a dragging mark that led him to another passage.
"Oh for god's sake," he growled. "Can't the damned kid stay put?"
Disgusted, he followed the drag marks into the side passage. Here there was no vaulted ceiling, but a low narrow arch made by centuries of running water while the side walls were mottled with flecks of mica and labradorite and glittered seductively in Yuri's torch. He scanned the dark dusty ground ahead and watched for occasional drag marks as he walked, hunched over, torch thrust out ahead of him. He counted out a hundred paces and then thirty more before coming to another side passage even smaller then the one he was in. This one too led downward and the drag marks showed where the girl had gone that way.
"What is with this stupid girl? Doesn't she know to stay in one place?" Yuri muttered as he hunkered down, walking bent nearly double to fit into the passage. He had gone another hundred paces when he heard a faint sound echoing along the stony corridors. It was a child's scream. Yuri began to run, his back hitting the roof as he tried to move quickly down the narrow passageway. He came abruptly to a halt as the tunnel suddenly opened up into a large chamber. He waved his torch to get a quick look around and his heart jumped into his throat. The walls were vaulted like the first chamber and stacked row after row were cocoons, their sticky webbing attaching them to the walls nearly up to the ceiling. Across the expanse Yuri spotted the little girl, cowering in a dark shadow that loomed above her. Yuri's torch could barely reach that far but he could make out the glitter of multi-faceted eyes.
With a curse he tossed aside the torch and pulled the only weapon he owned, a knife. With this in hand he ran across the expanse of the chamber toward the cowering child. As he approached he could hear the chittering noise the large insect was making, and he knew he only has seconds before the thing would attack. His heart was pumping madly and his survival instincts were telling him to run away; but in the back of his mind was a voice that he had not heard in years, telling him to be brave, be strong and to fight! His father's voice and his father's commands during their mock combats; he had not thought of his father in years, not since Vladivostok. But now those remembered words came to him with encouragement and he lashed out with his knife at the large shadow, his other hand reaching down to grab the girl by the scruff of her clothing. He felt the knife graze the giant insect's body and, with girl in hand, jumped back, hoping to escape without further combat. But the insect had other ideas; it chattered and scrabbled in the dark, its legs carrying it out into the guttering torchlight and Yuri, his own eyes shifting to deal with the darkness, added his own screams to that of the girl. The spider was enormous; its abdomen was as big as a pair of oxen and its head was bigger than Yuri. Swallowing his next scream Yuri tossed the girl behind him, yelling at her to get out. The spider raised one hairy leg to swat at the annoying human, and Yuri ducked, scrabbling under the creature's chest and grazing it with his knife before jumping and rolling aside as the spider turned quickly for another attack.
Before Yuri could turn to defend himself he felt the hard leg of the spider as it slammed against him, throwing him back down onto the ground. Instantly the spider had covered the short distance between them and held Yuri down with one leg while its palps tasted him. Yuri yelled, struggling against the overwhelming strength of the spider, pushing against the leg holding him and when that didn't work, lacerating it with his knife. He cursed as the creature's palp worked across his face and down his chest, and he knew he had to move now. Even as he thought that, the spider's mouth was in his face and its fangs, dripping poison, were inching toward him.
Suddenly there was pain, screaming agony cutting through his mind, and his body arched with the intensity of it.
*... fusion ... your monster ... use it ... destroy sp..er ...*
The voice and the pain passed and Yuri panted, his whole body struggling to recover quickly from the pain in his mind. In that instant the spider struck, its fangs gouging deeply into Yuri's chest, the venomous poison pumping into blood vessels and spattering over his exposed flesh. The spider pulled away and Yuri collapsed into a fetal ball, his scream of agony wailing out in the now dark cavern. Behind his own echoing screams he could hear the girl, Anfisa; too frightened to run, she was huddled in the dark, her sobs a tremolo to his alto. The instructions of the voice were lost in his agony as the poison coursed through him and the darkness of his mind joined the darkness of the cavern.
Dawn broke in pinks and greys as the late March light filtered in through the small window in Yuri's upstairs bedroom. Alice, snuggling closer, awoke to find she was still on his lap, one of his arms around her back, the other ... She sighed. How he could manage to slip his hand into her robe and fondle ... but then she smiled; it was Yuri after all. She looked up to find his head tilted to one side, his mouth open slightly and his breath coming slowly; he was still asleep. She looked closely at his face, the slight almond shape to his eyes, the thick dark lashes, and the arch to his brows; when he was awake he was the devil incarnate, but now, when he slept, his inner boyishness was evident. She tilted her head and kissed the tip of his nose, then smiled as he wiggled it; again she kissed his nose and again Yuri wiggled it before rubbing his face in her hair. Silently she chuckled, and then gently blew air onto his face, the long bangs lifting to reveal his forehead. Yuri snorted, but did not awaken, so she blew again, this time catching his eyes. With another snort, amber jewels greeted her as the eyelids opened. Yuri smiled.
"What do you t'ink yer doin'?" he slurred.
"Good morning."
He raised his head slightly and took note that she was still on his lap. "Did you sleep okay?" he asked.
Alice nodded. "And you? No more nightmares."
"Nope; slept fine with you here," and he chuckled softly.
"Perhaps a little too fine?" and she tapped her fingers on his errant hand.
Yuri could not help the wolfish grin that suddenly appeared when he realized where one of his hands was located.
"And you didn't hit me?"
"You were asleep; it hardly seemed fair after all."
"Well, that is an improvement," he said with a chuckle, his errant hand caressing the soft flesh beneath the robe. "So soft, and you don't mind my touching? Can I look, maybe?"
Alice shook her head, "No."
"Ah, why not?" he asked with a breathy sigh. "They must be beautiful, but how can I know? How can I know what to expect, eh? What if they are unpleasant to look at? What if you've got warts or something?"
"I don't have any warts, Yuri. And that hand is getting fresh," she said and tried to swallow her smile.
"Ah yeah, but something else is gettin' fresh too," he replied.
"I – I'm not sure what you mean," she said softly.
Yuri smiled and kissed her head. "Little virgin breasts are interested in what Yuri has in mind."
"You – you're not a virgin, are you, Yuri?"
"Ah," he chuckled softly. "Not hardly."
Alice thought for a moment, letting the gentle thumb of his hand caress her then sighed. "I guess I don't mind so much," she finally said.
Yuri grinned again and a deep chuckle erupted from him. His hand continued its explorations and he bent down to kiss her again, his lips pressed against her closed mouth, and then followed the line of her jaw. Alice shuddered slightly and Yuri's hand wandered a little lower.
"You don't suppose we could do this again, yes?"
"I don't know," Alice said softly.
"I mean, yer mum won't fly off the handle or anything if she catches us sleeping together?" he asked as his hand reached the hem of her night dress.
"Nothing happened."
"Not yet, but it might," he said huskily.
Alice could feel him getting distracted and she moved his hand away, her fingers quivering. "I think we better stop now, Yuri," she said quickly.
He sighed and put his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace. "If I have to; but I want you Alice."
"I know."
"And you want me too, yes?"
Alice did not respond, merely pulling her robe closed as she climbed off his lap. "I'm not one of your conquests Yuri. Just be patient; soon."
Yuri swallowed audibly. "Soon; not soon enough maybe," he said but by then Alice had left the room. Yuri lie back against his pillow and grinned, his mind following pleasant reveries.
"Yuri, breakfast!" Alice called up two hours later. Yuri had gotten up and bathed and was just putting on yesterday's clothes. With a shrug he put on the same soiled shirt, frowning at the red one that Margarete had torn.
"Damn stupid spy tearing my best shirt even if it was dirty and I hadn't washed it in a week and had blood on it damn woman always getting under foot anyway …" he continued to mutter imprecations as he walked down the hall and took the stairs two at a time.
"Good, I'm hungry," he said as he entered the kitchen.
"You're always hungry," Margarete said from her seat at the table. Her plate was already half empty and she was serving up more stewed fruit into a bowl.
"Save some for me, pig!" Yuri growled.
"Hollow legged vagabond!"
"Old baggage!"
"Russian terrorist!"
"Terrorist! You're the one with the damned bombs!" Yuri cried.
"Yuri, enough!" Alice said as she brought the tea pot to the table.
"He's feeling better, Alice."
"Yes, I can tell. Sit and eat and don't say a word, Yuri," Alice instructed.
"Yes ma'am," Yuri muttered with a grin. Breakfast was a mixture of food and conversation; mostly Margarete explaining about the spy who was using 'her' name. But once the last of the tea was sipped, and the dishes cleared, Yuri headed for the vestibule and his coat.
"Alice, are my claws around anywhere? They weren't upstairs."
"Front chest, Yuri; second drawer."
Yuri pulled open the chest and rummaged through the miscellaneous items to find his leather pouch with his Nightbird Claws. He took them out of their bag and inspected them closely, running his thumb over their razor sharp edges. A trickle of blood welled up and he used it to mark the claws' edges. He was just putting them away when Margarete joined him.
"You truly are a barbarian, aren't you; blooding your weapons?"
"Shut up Margarete. These are important tools of my trade. I respec' them. You should too."
"I do; but I prefer a gun," and she pulled her Luger 9mm from its holster.
Yuri smirked. "Still using those little popguns, eh? I thought you were looking for a shotgun?"
Margarete shrugged. "I have one. Doesn't travel well when trying to be incognito," she answered with a smile.
"In-co-what?"
"Under cover, kiddo; like you and Alice last night."
Yuri looked startled before he suddenly grinned. "You know about that?"
"Hard to miss the satisfied smirk on your face; or the one on hers."
Yuri grinned and stood a little taller. "I am good, aren't I?"
Margarete laughed. "In your dreams, sonny boy!"
Deflated, Yuri pouted and pulled open the front door. "I am going now, Alice!" he yelled before stepping out and slamming the door shut behind him.
"He left me!" Margarete said with a snort.
Yuri was headed for the nearest trolley station when Margarete caught up; he was making quick time and Margarete, for all her swiftness and fleetness of foot, could barely keep up with him.
"Where's the fire, kiddo?" she asked Yuri's back.
"What?"
"You're rushing!"
"Yeah, but I'm half Japanese. So?"
"No, no, no, Yuri, what's the hurry?"
"Furry? What are you on about Margarete?" he called back as he ran across St. Johns Wood to take the alleys to Wellington Road and the trolley stand.
Margarete sighed and ran faster to keep up. When Yuri was in a moving mood there was no point in talking about anything; looking at his broad back had become second nature in China and Europe and it would be no different here in London. She finally caught up at the corner of Wellington Road and High Street where the public trolley came for passengers. When the vehicle came, Yuri put in his coins for himself and Margarete and headed for the back.
"Just where are we headed, kiddo? Have you any idea?" Margarete asked as she swung into a vacant seat.
Yuri nodded, looking quickly to see if anyone sitting nearby was listening. He leaned over to her and said quietly, "I think we should check the wharf area; an' maybe the pub. That's where the murders have been happening; at least that's what the Captain was sayin'. We can check around before we go talk to him."
Margarete nodded. "I thought they were sending a car for you today?"
"Yeah, but I want to get out on my own 'fore I have to answer questions I don't know the answers to."
Margarete thought about that for a few blocks, watching as people got on and off the trolley.
"Do you have some idea who or what is doing this, Yuri?" Margarete asked quietly.
"I dunno. Maybe. I was thinkin' about that last night, that's why I had the bad dream I guess. I was tryin' to remember all morning."
"But do you know what to look for?"
Yuri shrugged and one arm gestured haphazardly at the passing scenery. "I don't know. I just wanna check. You know, see if anything rings a bell."
Margarete smiled. "You know, your English has been improving lately. Must be all the lessons I heard you were taking."
Yuri scowled at the red-headed spy. "Yeah? An' when you gonna stop lookin' so funny? You dress like a prostitute."
Margarete stared at Yuri with icy eyes. "I do not," she said through clenched jaw.
"Yes you do. I know; I saw one jus' like you in Shanghai," Yuri said and scratched his head. "No, wait that was you."
Margarete punched him. "I'm gonna kill you, Yuri Hyuga. I don't know when or how, but someday I'm gonna put paid to your contract."
Yuri was chuckling quietly.
They got off the trolley just down from Blackfriars Bridge. The pub that Yuri frequented was three blocks further down across the bridge and the wharf where he had been working was just beyond that. With nearly a week passing since he was last here he didn't think there would be much to see, but perhaps his own senses would be better than whatever the local constables used. He was of the opinion that they were all hounds but with the noses of kittens. Except for Cashiel. Yuri respected Cashiel; the man was a son-of-a-bitch, and Yuri knew damned well he'd been manipulated by the Captain, but couldn't hold it against the man – he had a case to solve after all.
They stopped first at the pub, skirting the building and entering from the alley. Margarete scrunched up her nose at the mixed smells that rose from the filthy alleyway, and looked with jaundiced eyes at the pile of trash.
"Do you think it's the same garbage as when you slept here?" she asked.
Yuri smirked. "What do you t'ink; they change it for the best customers? C'mon, let's go on back." So saying he passed the pile of filth and turned the corner behind the pub; there was no sign that the police had ever been there, just a smear of darkness along the filth strewn ground. Yuri dropped to one knee, poking at the black smear.
"Blood," he said. "Old and gummy with the fog; it's human so it belongs to Lars." Yuri stood and looked up and down the alley. "He woulda left from the back door, same as me. His brother an' him live just a few blocks away through the alleys. He woulda taken the shortcut, drunk or not."
"So whatever got him would have been here in the alley already?" Margarete walked to the next cross street in the alleyway. On her left the narrow street went down to the wharf, on her right it led to warehouses and old buildings. "Someone or something could be in those warehouses," she said and pointed them out.
Yuri nodded silently, scanning the street. "I think it came down from the roof maybe."
"What did it do? Walk the phone wires? That's impossible!" Margarete exclaimed, stepping out from the alley to stare up at the thin wires crossing the street. "Even if it used the power lines, it couldn't make it. The lines would break."
Yuri glanced up at the wires and grunted his agreement. "Okay, then it walked, but from where?" He scanned the dark warehouses across the street. "I'm gonna check it out."
The first warehouse was locked and bolted from the outside with warning signs plastered along its length. Yuri rubbed at the nearest window and looked through, trying to make out the dim interior. What he could see was row upon row of boxes, stacked higher than a man and marked with lettering. The warehouse was not lit but the windows along the ground floor let in filtered light. Yuri backed away, a scowl creasing his brow.
"What's the matter, kiddo?"
He shrugged inelegantly, hunching his shoulders. "I dunno. Something keeps nagging me; almost as bad as you."
"You're welcome. What is it though?"
"Shit if I know. Something about the dark; this warehouse has too much light."
Margarete looked around. "So we find one not in use or without windows."
"Shit, Maggs. There's a war on; there's stuff movin' in and out of London every day. You find me an empty warehouse ferchristsakes."
"Okay, okay. We'll just keep looking." She moved off down the row of warehouses, Yuri a few paces behind. "And Yuri, it's Margarete; I'll tolerate Maggie. But if you ever call me Maggs again you'll be singing tenor."
Yuri didn't answer but Margarete could hear his deep chuckle.
For the next several hours Margarete and Yuri investigated warehouse after warehouse along the wharf. The activity in the area meant that whatever had hit on the pub that night, had likely moved along. Finally a little after noon they stopped to get food at a local worker's stand, taking their meat pies and coffee to sit on the sun side embankment beside the Tower Bridge. The day had turned out warm, with spring now sending up new shoots and new blossoms to delight the eye. Yuri sat with his back to the bridge support and watched the sun glitter on the Thames in an almost hypnotic fashion. He finished his pasty and stretched out his legs, settling down to let the food digest, listening to the lap of the river on the bank and the sounds of people walking along the quay. Before long he was dozing in the sun.
His insides felt like boiling acid and his guts were grinding. That was Yuri's first thought upon awakening. He tried to grab his stomach but found he could not move; something sticky was holding him securely.
'What th' fuck?' he thought and opened his eyes. The darkness was absolute, but with a few blinks he managed to shift his eyes; an imperfect technique he had accidentally discovered when using his monster. It allowed him night vision and limited spectral eyesight that afforded him the view of monsters, dead things and occasionally naked ladies – dead ones of course. If it didn't hurt so much, Yuri would have chuckled at the thought of any naked ladies in these damned caves. Looking around he could barely make out the silky cocoons lying around him, and he knew he had been wrapped up by the spider.
"God damn," he muttered and jerked his arms, trying to pull loose. The motion sent his innards to protesting and a cramp threatened to turn him inside out. "Musta poisoned me, fucking shit," he cursed. A chittering sound caught his attention and he strained to look over his left shoulder; beyond his own wrapped up body the spider was hunched over another form, wrapping it in silk. The little girl he had come to rescue was now in no better a position than he was, wrapped up for food.
"Gotta get out," he growled and pulled harder, thrusting his right shoulder upward, straining the sticky silk. The strands stretched but held and Yuri pushed again and again, harder each time until he felt a few strands give. Taking a deep breath he tried to bring his right arm up; slowly he began to make progress, each push against the silk giving him a millimeter of room to move in. Finally he could feel his belt beneath his fingers and the other knife he kept sheathed there. It was nothing more than a dagger, a small blade used for trimming or slicing, certainly not for killing. He felt his fingers touch the hilt and work their way around the haft pulling gently to get it free.
'Now,' he thought. 'Now I can get outta here.' He carefully twisted the dagger until it was slicing along the cocoon, giving him more and more room until his right hand was completely free. With an upward thrust he sliced through the webbing holding his arms and freed his upper body then bent to slice and hack at the bindings on his legs. In another minute he was free and looking around for his other knife. He spotted it just a few yards away and mentally measured the distance to get it and get away before the monstrous arachnid could catch him. But then the muffled cries of the child caught his attention again and he cursed; there was no way he could leave without her.
With a muffled curse he rolled onto his belly and slowly crawled toward the knife, each movement slow and agonizing as the poison still coursed through him and the possibility of discovery was imminent. An eternity later the cold knife hilt was in his hand and he took a deep breath. Barely twelve feet away was the spider and just beneath it the cocoon with Anfisa. He watched as the spider finished its work and picked up the small package, carrying it to a stack of larger cocoons and setting it securely in place.
"Damn if it's not collecting food," Yuri muttered. "I gotta get her now!" With a growl the young harmonixer leapt to his feet and sprinted across the dark cavern floor, the spider looming ahead of him. He ducked under the creature's abdomen and slid to one knee, his knife held in both hands, blade upward. With his body, he thrust upwards, plunging the knife into the upper body, severing blood vessels and ganglions within the chest cavity. Not stopping, he withdrew the blade and turned to slice at the creature's head, fending off the fangs and pedipalp as the spider tried to defend itself. Wounded, it skittered back a few feet allowing Yuri to reach the girl's cocoon. With the ichor covered knife he sliced through her webbing and dragged her from its suffocating fibers.
By now the spider had patched itself with webbing and was turning its multifaceted eyes onto its attacker. Yuri grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her along, keeping one eye on the dim exit and another on the spider, but when the creature turned suddenly back toward him he shoved the girl toward the exit.
"Straight ahead is th' opening; go damn it! I'll be right behind you. Hurry!"
The little girl nodded her understanding even if Yuri couldn't see it and fled into the opening. This time she did not let her fear grip her, this time her little legs worked to carry her though the opening and into the narrow passage. Turning left she scrambled nearly on all fours down the dirt tunnel. In the cavern Yuri was fending off the spider, its front legs trying to snag or pin him to the cavern floor. He waved the knife blindly as he inched back toward the opening, giving the girl the precious few seconds he could to escape. Finally he made one final slash with his knife and ducked into the opening. In another second he was through and running down the narrow tunnel, catching up to Anfisa in a few heartbeats. He grabbed her up with his spare hand and pulled her to his chest, holding her tightly as he ran quickly for the large cavern and the well beyond.
By the time he made the narrow opening to the well bottom his heart was pounding fiercely in his chest. Sweat poured off him in rivers and his vision, returning to normal now that he was out of the dark cavern, was spotted with sparkles. He set Anfisa down and knelt, panting.
"An-Anfisa, little flower. I need you to tie this rope around yourself," he said between breathless pants, and handed her the rope end that dangled from the well head.
"You – you're hurt mister?"
Yuri nodded. "Yeah, poisoned. I don't know if I can make it but you gotta get outta here, eh?"
"I – I got scared. You helped me," the little girl said softly and touched Yuri's sweat-soaked and begrimed face.
"Come on sweeting. Tie up." With enfeebled fingers Yuri tried to help the girl tie the rope to her waist but the girl would not stop touching his face. It was then he felt it, a warm sensation coming from her hands. He sat back on his heels and breathed in wonder as light seemed to emanate from the little girl's hands, a faint almost silver light that tingled where it touched him.
"You – you can do magic?" he asked.
"Uh-huh. Poppa says I can help when I pray. We pray a lot and I can help a lot. Can you pray?" she asked her eyes wide and expectant.
"I never have before. I don't know how," he answered.
"Oh," Anfisa looked disappointed, then brightened. "You pray with me, all right?"
Yuri nodded, the girls fingers still gently touching his face. "All right."
"Dear God," she said, and Yuri repeated her words. "I send my prayer to you. May we be restored to health of mind and body so we can turn to you with gratitude and love. Amen."
"Amen," Yuri agreed and watched in awe as the light of the little girl's fingers grew to a golden hew bathing them both in its iridescence. Warmth flooded him and he felt the cramping of the poison relinquish at last and a feeling of health and strength restored, left him wondering what kind of power this little girl truly possessed.
"Come on, precious flower," he said at last. "Let's get you outta here." He secured the rope and yanked on it, signaling those above to pull. Up she went, a smile beaming on her face and a few minutes later the rope returned and Yuri used it to climb out.
Facing the delighted villagers Yuri was reticent to give them the bad news but once they understood the need, they brought fuel oil and torches. By sunup the next morning the smoke of the fire burning in the abandoned well rose black and oily into the pink dawn. And the next day, after sleeping in a soft bed, Yuri left the little town with a full belly, food in his pack, new clothes and new weapons; the blacksmith had taken his leather gloves and added small curved blades to the knuckles giving Yuri claws to replace those he had lost many months before.
Some hours later he reached the crest of a hill that overlooked the east-west railroad. In the distance a train was chugging its way eastward, steam billowing behind the engine. Yuri looked down the tracks, back the way the train had come and wondered about the world of the west, what it was like; what kind of people lived there. Then with a shrug he descended the hill; the west was no place he was likely ever to visit, and so he headed east along the tracks, the clack of the railroad wheels fading into the distance.
Yuri opened his eyes to a wondrous sight, two well-proportioned breasts couched in a black bustier were in front of him and without thinking, he reached up and put his hands on them. Instantly his face was full of pain and he was alert. Margarete, kneeling beside him, was flicking her hand with pain.
"I'm awake!" he shouted.
"Damn but you have a hard head!" she said and Yuri realized he had awakened to Margarete leaning over him.
"Sorry. You don't have to get mad!" he exclaimed, then ruined the apology with a smirk. "Nice breasts, by the way."
Margarete sat back on her heels, frowning but then broke into laughter. "You are incorrigible aren't you kiddo. You didn't wake up; I didn't expect you to grab me though. Were you in that graveyard place?"
Yuri tilted his head to one side and eyed Margarete's revealing outfit. "Well, you do like to show 'em off. I couldn't help myself. And no, I wasn't there."
"Just don't do it again, okay?" She stood up and looked around. The quay had quieted down in the last couple of hours with foot traffic reduced to a few strays crossing the bridge. "We should get going, don't you think?"
Yuri rose from the grass and brushed dirt from his coat. "Yeah, I guess so. I wanted to look around some more but," he rubbed the back of his neck. "I just remembered something," he said cryptically and walked away, crossing the Tower Bridge ahead of Margarete.
"What? What did you remember?" Margarete called to his retreating back. "Damn it, slow down!"
Yuri paused and waited for Margarete to catch up, then continued walking, this time at a slower pace.
"I told ya I was tryin' to remember something last night. I could not but I just remembered what it was."
"So, tell me!"
"No." He continued to walk in silence for a while until they were climbing up King William toward Cheapside.
"Why not?" Margarete finally asked, stopping him with a tug on his coat sleeve.
"Well, 'cause I'll just have to tell Alice anyway, so I might as well wait," he answered.
Margarete continued to walk beside Yuri for a few more blocks, barely noticing the parade of shops along Cheapside. There were times Yuri's take on practicality drove her nuts; if he weren't such a good companion and friend ... By the time they reached Saint Paul's Margarete had had enough. She reached out and pulled Yuri around to face her.
"What is going on with you, Yuri? Are you having trouble with the Masks again or what?"
Yuri blinked, surprised at the question. "What are you on about, Maggie?"
"You; you've been acting strange – intense. It's not like you. And you never keep secrets; you're not capable of it! So why are you claming up now?"
Yuri scratched his head and shrugged. "What do you mean I can't keep secrets? I keep 'em all the time," he paused then snorted. "What? You want the story of my life or somethin'?"
Margarete chuckled. "No, just what is going on inside that half-breed brain of yours."
"Oh, well, nothing is going on." He turned away and continued up the street leaving Margarete standing by herself.
Margarete watched Yuri's back as he walked away from her, the usually jaunty stride missing.
'He's lying like a rug,' she thought. "Yuri Hyuga, what are you afraid of?" she called and was satisfied to see him suddenly stop and turn around, anger briefly showing before he hid it behind diffidence.
"Nothing; I am not afraid of anything, you know that."
"So why is this little murder bothering you so much? It's not like you did it."
Yuri shrugged. "It's not like that; not the deaths alone, really. It - it's a lot of things."
Margarete caught up to him again and took his arm, leading him to a stoop. Pushing him down, she sat next to him, their knees touching.
"So what is it? Come on kiddo, I thought we were friends!"
"Are we really? I had never thought that," he said sheepishly, then shrugged. "Sorry; didn't mean it that way. I just never trusted you, that's all."
"And well you should not have, but of course we're friends. Why do you think I came here all the way from France?"
Yuri looked at the beautiful spy, the red hair dye making her look considerably different than her usual blonde good looks. If it weren't for her green eyes she would remind him of Koudelka.
"You knew I was in jail, right?"
She shook her head. "Not until I got here. Doesn't that prove I'm your friend?" She reached out and took one of his hands, the callused and roughened fingers dwarfing her own fine-boned hands.
"Well, I guess," he said quietly.
"So what is bothering my friend?"
Yuri shrugged. "I think I know what is doing the killings, yes," he said with a nod. "I do not know for sure. And I do not know that I can take it by myself."
"I'll help, you know that. What else?"
"Well," he dropped his chin and curled his fingers around Margarete's hand. "I – well, do – this is stupid but, do you think Alice likes me? I mean enough to marry me?"
Margarete gasped before she could stop herself. 'This was the last thing I expected,' she thought. "What brought that on?" she asked.
"Well, you know I asked her; and she said yes? But now it's always soon, soon – what th' fuck is 'soon' anyway?" he gripped Margarete's fingers tightly and Margarete bit her lip but refused to let him know he was hurting her.
"I know she loves you, kiddo. It shows in everything she does."
"So why won't she marry me?" he looked up at her and the look of confusion in the young harmonixer's eyes tugged at Margarete's heart.
"I think she will, Yuri. Just give her time. You've been patient with her this long. And I thought you made progress last night? What's the hurry?"
"Ah hell," he grumbled and loosened his grip on her hand. Standing he stepped once more onto the sidewalk and turned toward Alliston Road. Margarete watched as he walked away, one part of her screaming that Alice was not good enough for Yuri and the other wishing things were different. With a sigh she stood and walked up the street behind him.
Nearly an hour later they approached the Edwardian on Alliston Road and Yuri stopped on the street looking up at the house. Over the weeks he had brought in enough money to have the house repainted and the eaves repaired. New wrought iron was being installed on the Widow's Walk where Death Emperor had slid through and demolished it and additionally he had replaced the smashed upper floor window. New rose bushes lined the walkway and a few pale blossoms had popped their heads above the dirt in planters and pots set about the front by the gardener. In all, the house now looked lived in and loved.
"You know, I've given them a lot of money to fix up that place," he said to Margarete as she approached. "I've worked my ass off to bring in the money, an' I don't mind … hell, I've never needed money for myself anyway. But I wanted to do this for Alice an' her mum. I wanted to do this for Alice too; get her a place … for her ... for us." Yuri paused and waited for Margarete to say something, but when she didn't he turned to her and smiled. "You know, it's just me. I'm horny," he said with a laugh and climbed the stairs.
Margarete chuckled and followed him up, but she knew he'd managed to obfuscate his feelings again and yet, she also knew he was a randy young man living in a restrictive household; he might very well be in dire need. The thought occurred to her that she could help, but as they entered the prim Elliot household, she tabled that thought for later.
Yuri called out upon entering, and when Alice answered from the sitting room he pushed though the vestibule and joined her.
"Alice, sorry I'm late – oh!" Yuri pulled up short, seeing the room's occupants; sitting in the room Alice was Captain Cashiel and Lieutenant Carter. The captain wore a bulldog look that told Yuri he was in deep trouble. "Oh shit," he said. "I forgot."
A moment later Margarete joined them she looked from the homicide detectives to Yuri and back before patting Yuri on the shoulder. "It's been nice knowing you, kiddo."
Yuri nearly got whiplash looking from Margarete to Alice and then to Cashiel seated across the room. When he took a breath he turned to Cashiel.
"Are you here to take me to prison?" he asked flatly.
Cashiel stared at the young man for a full minute, his eyes boring into the fusionist. "Do you want to go to prison?" he asked.
Yuri jumped back a pace, his hands coming up in a defensive gesture. "No! No, no. It's just I forgot, really."
"Yuri, where did you go?" Alice asked.
"We, we went to the pub. Where Lars … I wanted ta see for myself. Figure out how he died; maybe where th' killer was hiding."
"And?" Carter prompted.
"Well, we checked the warehouses up and down th' wharf, but most are full and there are lots of people. I don' think the killer is there anymore."
"Do you have any idea what we're looking for?" Cashiel asked.
Yuri shook his head, and then rubbed the back of his neck. "Well ..."
"Go on, sonny boy," Margarete piped up from behind him. "You said you had a clue; that you remembered something. Spill the beans, damn it!"
Yuri looked back at Margarete, and then sighed.
"Well yes, I did. I was gonna tell Alice." He turned at looked at Captain Cashiel, a lopsided grin on his face. "I really did forget, I wasn't runnin' away or anything," he said.
Cashiel cleared his throat and smiled a broad lipped grin. "I believe you. So tell us what you discovered."
"Well it kinda goes back to what your man Brittey was sayin'; about the monastery and all."
"Do you think we had something to do with a monster escaping from there, Yuri?" Alice asked her hands clasped in her lap.
"No, no, not us really, but Simon, yeah. But even so, it goes back to when Koudelka was there too. Ya see, when Halley an' me took her back to London, she wouldn't shut up about it. She talked the whole way back to town."
"Don't tell me you pestered her all the way to London!" Alice exclaimed.
Margarete stepped around him and pulled up a chair next to Alice. "This should be good."
"No! It's not like that," Yuri said and chuckled. "You know me, I like stories! And she kept saying as how it was important. I thought she meant for Halley, but he fell asleep half way through; I guess she meant for me, tho' I don't know why."
"But what does that have to do with this? Don't tell me Koudelka killed these people, kiddo," Margarete said with a sly grin.
Yuri frowned. "Don't be stupid," he said.
"All right, tell us Yuri," Alice said and indicated the last remaining chair across the room.
