Chapter 3: Bookworms Unite
A/N: (laughs) time to address reviews: Yes, Ziggy cooking bad (see below).
Spacing is a problem I've noticed because, well, it looks fine on word processor…oh well, I'll see what I can do…as for the yaoi, well, I like fluff yaoi really (the cute stuff, hugging, silly fights, kissing) but after that I find analness weird. And the Little Master thing…I figure "Throw it in once in awhile" since everyone's closer now and such. And also chaos is 16 (yeah right!).
By the way Kawaii Karen…what Jr meant was when he and chaos talked in the hallway during the night, thus 'Other night' not as in 'when you and I did the thing in the place'.
Plus, I think it's going to end up being Jr./MOMO after all…(nods) yep, most likely. Maybe chaos will be sad and alone…or I might feel towards pairing him elsewhere…remember that I change my mind a lot…well, anyways this chapters longer with a plot and everything! So huzzah for me!
"Ziggy, you're doing it all wrong!" MOMO cried for the fifth time and quickly rushed over to put out the small fire that had started. As part of their duty to chaos, MOMO had decided to do a test run of sorts, to see if Ziggy could cook at all. So far, the answer was pretty clear. "You CAN'T just flip it like that! It causes the liquid in the pan to overflow and then you end up with a fire from the stove!"
"I'm sorry MOMO." Ziggy moved out of the way as she took over the dish. "I'm afraid I never did cook much."
"That's alright!" MOMO sighed but still smiled at the older man. "It's your first time cooking then?"
"Oh no…I've cooked before." Ziggy paused "But…my wife usually cooked the meals…she said I was more of a liability in the kitchen." MOMO giggled but noticed a sad look on Ziggy's face.
"Hey, that's alright, really!" MOMO nodded, her mood upbeat. "chaos gave us this job and he knows we can do it!"
"You're such an optimistic girl." Ziggy smiled at her and went over to the veggies. "How about you handle that part of the cooking and I just get the ingredients ready?"
"Good idea Ziggy!" MOMO turned to him, and pointed at a screen not to far away. "The list is on the screen ok? I think this will work just fine!"
"Shouldn't we wait though?" He asked. "The party is tomorrow night."
"Yes but we should make sure we have the recipe down before then." MOMO checked the stove temperature and re-adjusted it. "We don't want anything to go wrong for Shion. I want her to be really really happy!"
"Yes, you're probably right." Ziggy went back to the screen and careful followed the instructions on it. "Though this food will go to waste then…"
"Nope, don't worry about that!" MOMO grinned cleverly as she took the pan away from the flame. "I've already got that figured out! Right now, we should just focus on this meal turning out…"
"No banners." Jr. shook his head while his two friends frowned. "What? What's the matter? I just don't think we should have a banner!"
"But Jr, you've already said no to balloons and confetti!" Allen groaned. "C'mon, what CAN we have to make the café look good?"
"What's the matter with the way it looks now?" Jr asked.
"Err, well, nothing…I guess…" Allen stared hopelessly at the boy. "But…it still doesn't…" Allen looked around and sighed. He just couldn't find the words…
"I think it needs to look more festive, to acknowledge the birthday…" chaos was also glancing around the diner. "Not much you know, it doesn't have to be a big change but we can't leave it like this."
"Yeah, what chaos said." Allen grinned at the man, who smiled back. "See, chaos knows what he's talking about."
"Still!" Jr. crossed his arms and sighed. "I don't know, I mean, what are we supposed to do to it?"
"I don't know!" Allen cried in frustration. This had been going on for at least three hours. "Maybe, err…color! Yeah, color and umm…"
"Maybe at least a few balloons." chaos suggested.
"And some streamers!"
"Or some lights."
"And we HAVE to have a banner!"
"Allen's right, confetti would look good…"
"The banner could be right there, then she'll see it and she'll be so surprised!"
"We could have some of those crackers…the ones that you pull and they explode…you know what I'm talking about right Allen? Sometimes there's candy in them…"
"Alright already!" Jr yelled, though it was halfhearted. Both men stopped talking and looked up. "Fine, we'll get all that stuff…we need to go shopping then…"Allen and chaos grinned at each other, they had won. Jr propped his elbows up on the table and rested his head on his hands. "But you know, even though I think you guys named off every party item in the book, I still feel like I'm forgetting something…"
"Forgetting something?" Allen frowned and looked thoughtfully into space. "What could we be forgetting?" It was at that moment that chaos smelled something strange.
"Hey, guys, do you smell…" chaos sniffed the air again. "…smoke?" The three turned towards the kitchen door and saw a bit of a gray blot floating in front of them. They jumped up and barreled into the kitchen to find MOMO and Ziggy, armed with fire extinguishers, beating back the flames of what looked like a stove fire.
"Ziggy, you should have asked me if you wanted to try again!" MOMO cried as she shot out the foamy jet from her canister.
"I'm sorry MOMO…" Ziggy apologized again. "I thought I would be able to do such a simple looking task after watching you for a while." The two finished and set down the canisters. The three men walked over slowly, examining the damage for themselves.
"Ick, that smells…" Allen grumbled, waving his hand in front of his face. "What happened?"
"I went to get some supplies from the pantry and Ziggy tried to cook again…" MOMO sighed. "Please don't be mad, he's still learning…" Jr. looked at Ziggy, then looked at MOMO.
"You're learning?" He asked. Ziggy nodded automatically.
"Yes, I haven't had much experience cooking." Ziggy explained. "I'm sorry, I should have waiting until MOMO got back but it looked done so…"
"Hey, chaos, I've got an idea." Jr said, walking over to the remains of the meal they had been making. "How bout you take Ziggy shopping and I help MOMO…I've had plenty of cooking time so I think I could help more here."
"Well, what do you think MOMO?" chaos asked the girl. She glanced at Ziggy.
"W-well, Ziggy is a good assistant but I really could use some uh…more experienced help so…If Jr really wants to help me…but it's really Ziggy's decision!" She said, her words fast at the end.
"I would be more helpful with chaos and Allen then here." Ziggy walked over to them. "I will help them gather materials then if Jr will be helping here."
"Then its settled." chaos smiled and looked at the clock. "Well, we should get going you guys, we have a lot of stuff to buy."
"Have fun cleaning Jr!" Allen grinned and waved as the trio left. Jr groaned and looked at the mess made by the white foam.
"Ahh, dammit this is going to take forever to clean up…" He cursed but MOMO was already cleaning, mop in hand.
"It will only take forever if we wait…" MOMO smiled at him. "If we start now, then we'll have time to review the recipes list." Jr stared blankly at the pinked haired girl, then nodded.
"Err, yeah, you're right!" He hastily grabbed a washcloth and began to clean off the stove area. He wiped away all the foam but there were now burn marks all over the range. He looked down at them, as if they'd disappear like the foam.
"Don't worry about that." MOMO said, peering over his shoulder. "I'm not sure how to get them off but I know they won't effect our cooking." Jr turned around to face her.
"So, what do you want me to do now?" He asked. MOMO looked around and sighed.
"Well, I guess we'll have to clear out all this food…" MOMO seemed depressed.
"Ah, forget it." Jr smiled at her. "It's not your fault, and if you're worried about the food we've got plenty more!"
"No, I was going to make this your dinner…" Jr was surprised and found himself watching her stupidly again.
"You, made me dinner? You didn't have to…MOMO…that's really…nice…" He suddenly stood taller. "But really, don't worry, I just, you…making me dinner?"
"Oh, not just you!" MOMO said, placing the mop back in the corner. "For Allen and Ziggy and chaos too!"
"Oh, ohhh….o-of course!" He laughed but somehow he felt disappointed and wanting to change the subject. "So, how did you learn to cook?"
"I'm an Observational Realian silly!" MOMO smiled and walked over to the sink carrying her pots and pans. "I can watch people do tasks, then I can do them myself…well, most of the time."
"Oh, that's cool…" Jr stood there, in the center of the kitchen, watching MOMO wash the dishes that had been whitened by the fire. "Err, let me do that!" He said quickly. MOMO looked over at him and shook her head.
"That's ok Jr, I've got it. You can go if you want…" MOMO went back to the dishes. Jr frowned and sat down on the edge of the island.
"Nah, I'll stay here…" He watched her clean, feeling guilty that he wasn't helping her. "Are you sure you don't need me to do anything MOMO?"
"Well, not really…" MOMO continued to scrub when she suddenly thought of something. "Hey Jr, you three took care of the decorations right?"
"Yep, they went out to buy everything."
"And…we're cooking the meal?"
"That's right."
"KOS-MOS is going to keep Shion away?"
"Yeah, something wrong?" Jr. asked.
"No, I just…" MOMO paused. "I just feel like we're forgetting something."
"Hey, you feel that way too!" Jr grinned. "I think we are too!"
"But then…what are we forgetting?" MOMO wondered aloud.
Shion looked around the room and sighed. Filled with books, ancient weapons and tons of guns but still the room didn't have the one thing she wanted: Jr.
"I thought he was in his room?" Shion sighed. "I guess not…and chaos is no where to be found…or Allen…or MOMO…" She sat down on Jr's bed. "Come to think of it, where is everyone?" She glanced at the bookshelf. There were at least a hundred books on it, some thick, some very thin, others with faded titles and some that seem to have been restored. She stood up and looked through the titles.
"I doubt it will just say Zohar on it but…" Shion ran her fingers lightly over the spines. "Grimm's Fairy Tales…doubt it…History of Sports? No…Lord of the Rings? Sounds like one of Jin's books…Harry Potter? Stupid title…Guns: A guide into the past present and future?" Shion sighed and moved down the rows of books. None seemed to have anything useful in them at all. "It's no wonder why people don't use these. They're full of useless data, nothing needed at all."
"Hang on, what's this?" Shion grabbed a small book off the shelf that read 'Greatest Discoveries of the 2000 Years.' She opened it and looked under the table of contents. Nothing about Zohar…however, she decided to look through it anyway. She returned to Jr.'s bed, lying down on his pillows and now reading his book. "I'm sure he won't mind anyway…"
"Umm…how much again?" chaos asked, his cheeks slightly red. He knew this was a lot of stuff but…
"I told you three times already, it's 4,000 dollars." The lady at the party store said again, looking highly annoyed. chaos winced at hearing such an insane amount of money. He turned back to Ziggy and Allen.
"I've got 1,000…" chaos said, pulling the money out of his pockets (A?N: yes he has pockets in those hot pants!). Ziggy shook his head.
"I have no money whatsoever." He stated. The two turned to Allen who shook his head.
"I've got maybe 500…" He said, reaching into his wallet and showing it to the two men. chaos sighed and shook his head.
"Great…so how are we going to pay for all this?" he wondered.
"Well, that's why Jr should have come! Then we could have him buy all this." Allen put his wallet away. "He's rich you know, he could have given us money…"
"So what now chaos?" Ziggy asked.
"I, I don't know…" chaos looked depressed as he held their money. "I don't know if there's anything we could sell or…" Ziggy put his hand on chaos' shoulder and smiled.
"I've got something we can sell…" Ziggy left the store and returned about five minutes later with about 10,000 dollars. He walked to the counter, paid the woman and volunteered to carry everything back to the café.
"Wow, now that was something!" Allen grinned. "What did you sell?"
"My old armor pieces." He explained. "I no longer need them and cyborg armor pieces are rare, selling for high on occasion." chaos smiled, his color returning to normal.
"Thank you Ziggy, that was a great idea."
"Well, c'mon!" Allen was getting very excited. "Let's go and decorate!"
"Hmm…" Shion was getting close to the end of the book with no mention of Zohar at all. "It's got to be in here…I could have sworn Zohar was found or made or something in the 2000 era…" Shion flipped a few more pages and saw exactly what she wanted: A bright, gleaming photograph of a Zohar placed over a lake pier greeted her eyes. She nearly dropped the book with surprise.
"The Zohar!" She quickly read the page next to it. "Near the end of the era of 2000, an amazing discover was made, buried deep within Lake Turkana of Kenya was an ancient relic of wonder and myth! Archeologists had been searched for what was dubbed 'The Power of God' for nearly one hundred years and now here it was. In early 2000, researchers found a key in it's shape along with an ancient scripture reading 'The Key to the Power of God, where we shall join Him, find this item and you control Humanity's fate…' and with that, the race was on! Archeologists searched the world over but none so much as Dr. Masuda." Shion turned the page.
Instead of another Zohar picture, there was a picture of a man in dig clothes with the title 'Doctor Masuda' underneath. Shion continued reading the page next to his picture.
"Dr. Masuda was the top in his field of 'Ancient Weaponry' and said that he thought this was a weapon, so powerful that even God would bow before it. He researched for years, until he made another statement: 'It is not a weapon but something more wondrous indeed! I believe it lies somewhere in Africa and may even be an ancient power source of some kind!' Dr. Masuda soon after found the item, after placing the key in some ruins. However, strangely enough, many of the people on that dig disappeared after making contact with the now called Zohar. Dr. Masuda himself did not but instead seemed to have gone mad. 'It, it will not be stopped…God's return…the keys…it all will happen…my fault…my fault…it's all my fault…humans will die…'"
"However, the Zohar itself proved to be a power source, better then that of any other power source to date. It powers everything, including the new large-scale robotic combat machines in development. The story ends in a twisted way: Dr. Masuda committed suicide after hiding away his Zohar research. Also, strangely enough, something odd appeared right before this book's dead line: People in Kenya, saying they saw spirits of some unknown animals going to Lake Turkana as if looking for the Zohar. The tribes say that the spirits are evil and touching them turns you to powder…and interesting tale for the tabloids but in this fact book, such a myth is proved ludicrous."
Shion went back to the page with the Zohar's picture. She stared at it, confused and feeling strangely, like this was all a fairy tale.
"So then…the Zohar was used back then as a power source…and then the Gnosis came but it seems in a small group…" Shion checked the publication date of the book. It said 3004. She sighed, shutting the book and placing it back on the shelf. "I still don't understand anything…" Shion looked at the clock and sighed. It was very late, so where was everyone? Maybe in the café, since it was always a favorite place to hang out. Shion left Jr.'s room and made her way back to towards the Elsa. However, she was stopped dead in her tracks by KOS-MOS.
"KOS-MOS!" Shion said in surprise. "What are you doing?"
"Shion, come with me." KOS-MOS said, beckoning her to the Durandal. Shion followed KOS-MOS until they were back in the room Shion used while on the Durandal.
"KOS-MOS, do you need something?" Shion asked. KOS-MOS blinked, her empty eyes staring at Shion.
"Shion, you are to stay here with me tonight. You are not to leave my company." Shion found herself taken aback, yet at the same time she also felt her heart beat increase.
"You want me to…stay with you all night?" Shion asked.
"Affirmative." KOS-MOS nodded and walked over to the table. "I have prepared dinner for you and warmed the bed to optimum warmth level in preparation. Would you like me to do anything else?" Shion stared at the android with a mix of disbelief and joy.
"You did all that for me? Wow…KOS-MOS…that's so…kind of you…thank you." Shion smiled gently at her.
"I am happy to be of service Shion." KOS-MOS stated. "However, I am merely tending to your needs so that you may enjoy yourself."
"Hmm, is that so?" Shion grinned and patted KOS-MOS on the back. "Concern for your friends…it is definitely an emotion…Kevin did you showing emotions…"
"My built in set of emotions does indeed contain the emotion 'concern and worry'. However, in this situation worry is not needing, therefore making 'concern' a good choice by elimination." KOS-MOS said in her usually robotic tone. Shion frowned and tapped KOS-MOS in the forehead.
"You know, I really don't get what goes on inside that brain of yours sometimes…first you want me to spend the night with you and now you're saying it's just part of your emotion set?" Shion sighed and shook her head. "Your actions are so confusing…you do as you please and I can't stop you…"
"Shion as I've stated before, you as my programmer, should understand my purpose is only to fulfill certain tasks and duties. I am merely doing so when I choose my actions. It is really the same process humans go through is it not?" KOS-MOS asked.
"Well, I guess…when humans choose their path, they have certain goals and responsibilities in mind…" Shion admitted. "So I guess it's the same…"
"Thank you Shion for understanding my purpose." KOS-MOS stood next to Shion's food. "Food temperature has decreased by 10% since our conversation began. Shion, eating now would be wise if you wish for your meal to remain heated." Shion sat, defeated, in front of her dinner and sighed heavily.
"You know, you could have just said 'Eat you're dinner before it gets cold'." KOS-MOS remained silent and Shion sighed again. She ate her dinner without another word and turned back to KOS-MOS.
"Say KOS-MOS, you and chaos seem close, you two are always talking…what do you guys talk about?"
"The content of our conversations is to remain private unless I am given consent by chaos to revel them to you." KOS-MOS said.
"Oh, it's a secret huh?" Shion felt out of it, like she had missed the punch line of a joke.
"Affirmative."
"I see…I guess I'll have to ask chaos then…" Shion sighed and looked back at the clock. "It's so late…I guess I should go to sleep…" This wasn't at all what she thought would happen. "Well, good night KOS-MOS…"
"Good night, Shion."
That night, Shion had another dream…this time, she was in a black and white area like before but instead of Nephilim standing there, she saw the outline of the same man she saw the night of the Woglande attack.
"It's not her fault, she didn't ask for it, to be sealed inside…" He said, his voice oddly familiar. Nephilim appeared by Shion and nodded.
"I never wanted this, not once in my life…but I know you can save us."
"Nephilim…" Shion said softly. "What should…I do next? I read the book, it said the Zohar was a power source…"
"It's so much more then that…they want it, to resurrect their God…" Nephilim looked sadly at Shion. "Shion, you can't let them get any farther…they have already destroyed a planet…phase one is complete and it's only a matter of time before the 13 doors are opened and 'it's' existence is reborn."
"Who, who's behind it?" Shion asked. The man's outline spoke again.
"Please don't be afraid Shion…we're here…we can help you…" He said.
"But you're only in my dreams…" Shion looked down.
"Second Miltia, you must go there and speak with your brother Jin…he knows so much more then you may think he does…" Nephilim urged. "And also…KOS-MOS…the order and him…they will guide you…" Nephilim pointed at the man cloaked in mist.
"But I don't even know who that is." Shion looked up at the man's outline, which was now becoming clearer…his silver hair, green eyes…the way his bangs flipped up and his gloves were far to large…was it really him? "chaos…?" Shion asked. He smiled at her and the area, Nephilim and chaos faded away, his face still in her vision…
"There, done!" chaos looked over the café. It looked wonderful, the streamers wrapped carefully, crackers sitting on the table, balloons and so much more had been placed around the room. "It looks great, bright and happy, perfect for a birthday!"
"Man this looks awesome!" Jr. grinned as he and MOMO walked out of the kitchen. "And MOMO and I've got the food under control, it tastes great!"
"Good, then we've done everything!" Allen was nearly jumping up and down with excitement.
"Guys, it's getting really really late…" MOMO yawned widely and wiped her tired eyes. "Shouldn't we go to bed now?"
"Yes, we've done enough for today but…" chaos paused. "Shouldn't we guard the café?"
"Nah, I saw KOS-MOS head Shion off earlier…I bet she'll keep her busy till the party tomorrow." Allen said, stretching. "So I think I'll head to bed." Allen left and Ziggy nodded.
"I need to rest as well…" He was leaving when MOMO ran up to him.
"Wait for me Ziggy!" She cried and the pair left. Jr. nodded as he looked around.
"You guys did a good job…" he commented lightly. "It looks great."
"Thank you." chaos smiled and turned to him. "Would you like to talk now?"
"Huh?!" Rubedo looked at the man, his eyes wide. "Now? Why now?!"
"Just asking…" chaos shrugged. "Just don't bottle it up too much longer…" He raised his arms high in the air, even if they felt heavy as bricks. "I need some sleep, good night Jr." chaos walked out of the café, without giving Jr time to say anything in return.
"I still don't get that guy…he's always like that…"
****Flashback****
"Hey, Little Master!" Mathews grinned and walked up to the boy. Jr. turned around and sighed.
"Bout time you got back! I've been waiting forever you know!" Jr. crossed his arms. "So how did the mission go?"
"Complete failure!" Mathews said, still smiling.
"What?! That cargo was worth a lot of money! I'm adding it to your debt!"
"I knew that!" He said.
"Then why are you still smiling?" Jr. asked, his face turning red.
"Because we lost the cargo when some Gnosis attacked us!" Mathews nearly laughed as the color drained from the Little Master's face.
"Gnosis?!" Jr. stared at the Captain. "How did you guys even escape that?!"
"We almost didn't!" The captain acknowledged. "But that's what I wanted to tell you…we found this kid…well, he's great and we took him with us and, you won't believe this I know but…well…he defeated ten Gnosis all by himself!"
"What is he, a new Realian?!" Jr.'s mouth was slightly hung open.
"Well, err…tell the truth I don't know!" Mathews shrugged. "He just, well, he's just himself I guess…" Mathews watched Jr.'s face screw up with confusion. "Anyways, he made the Gnosis freeze and then he touched them and they just faded away."
"H-h-how is that even possible?" Jr. looked behind Mathews, seeing if this incredible person was really there.
"Oh, he's waiting outside…" Mathews turned and called out, "chaos! Hey, you can enter you know!" Jr watched the doors and even the Durandal's crew turned to see this mysterious man. The doors slid open and a young boy, looking sixteen, entered. He walked with a strange grace his motions fluid and deliberate. His short silver hair was a bit messy and flipped oddly at the top. His piercing green eyes studied the room with innocent curiosity and a gentle smile was on his face.
"Hello everyone." chaos looked around the room beaming. Jr. heard Mary whisper something to Shelly and glanced at were they were talking about. chaos seemed to be wearing odd clothes: huge gloves and boots, a ridged looking vest with all black skintight leotard otherwise and short shorts. In fact, the shorts seemed to have created a bulge around his groin area and Jr. could hear Mary fall into a silent fit of giggles while Shelly hit her in the arm. Jr. looked back up at chaos and walked forward.
"Hi there, name's Jr. but everyone calls me Little Master." Jr extended his hand and, after a few short moments, chaos shook it.
"What an odd nickname…I am chaos. I think I'll call you Jr, if that's alright with you." chaos let go and Jr, without thinking, launched into questions.
"So, how can you do that? Are you a Realian? Can you kill any Gnosis like that?" Jr. asked eagerly. chaos smiled and shrugged.
"So many questions…well…it's my skill firstly…and I don't think of it as killing so please don't say it like that and no I'm not a Realian." Chaos finished, sounding slightly lamer then a man who could make a Gnosis disappear should.
"That's it?" Jr. said his arms crossed. "But you make it sound like those were simple questions! It's not just a 'skill'! I've never heard of a person who could just touch a Gnosis and make it go away!" chaos looked Jr. over closely.
"Are those your guns?" He asked. Jr. nodded and pushed back his coat to reveal his guns strapped to his sides.
"Yeah, their GK3.45's…it's their prototype name, Safari's new gun, just testing it for them…" Jr always felt proud when talking about his guns.
"You're good yes?"
"Best around."
"Well, then it's your skill." Chaos grinned at the red haired boy. "You can shoot well and I have my ability…see, it's easy."
"But…that's not really an explanation at all!" Jr. complained.
****End Flashback****
"Ahh, dammit…hang on chaos!" Jr. ran out of the café as chaos turned back around. "Fine, I'll tell ya…what's been bugging me…" chaos smiled the same way he always did, waiting patiently for Jr.'s story…
A/N: ok, so they didn't do the party but hey! I got the plot more or less started…I did some of chaos' past (well, him meeting Jr. anyway) and I started the Zohar part of the plot (if you watch Shion's dream in the beginning, you can tell it's chaos.) I hope the Zohar plot sounds ok…it was hard, putting all this data together…but it makes sense, to me anyway. I also hope it's better then the last chapter, I like improving you know…well, keep the helpful reviews coming and maybe I'll figure out pairings…