Home Sw- Erm… Home

Whoever said "Home" was "Sweet" had

Never been to the Inverse house.

            For the first time since she had begun her trip with Gourry, Lina was positively glowing about the prospect that he had promised to be her bodyguard.  When Gourry verified that she was going home, he asked what she would need a bodyguard for there.  Lina laughed it off, saying that he would see soon enough.  To bide time before the inevitable encounter, Lina planned to have lunch at a nearby restaurant.  She stopped dead in her tracks as soon as she opened the door.  When Gourry asked what was wrong, Lina only said, "She's here.  I can sense it."  As she looked around tentatively, she added, "Gourry, what restaurant is this?"

            He answered in a somewhat surprised fashion.  "Huh?  This is the Star Li Restaurant.  I heard it had the best lobster in all of Kanto.  Wait, you live here don't you?  Haven't you ever been here?"

            As Gourry nudged her into the restaurant waiting area to make room for new customers behind them, Lina replied, dazed, "No, we never had enough money to go here after we moved here."

            Slowly he asked, "…Do you have enough now?"

            Lina shrugged.  "Not really, but I think I can probably convince whoever gives us the check to lower the price, if I really wanted to."

            "Then let's go get a table."

            "I don't know…I'm not prepared to meet my sister again yet."

            "You were going to go home sooner or later right?"

            "I'd rather choose later."

            "If you happen to see her, it's better to get it over sooner, where there's a lot of people, right?"

            Lina mulled over this, and smiled softly.  "I suppose you're right.  Okay, let's go."

            They were given a table in the back dining area, by the window.  As they were looking over their menus, their waitress came, chilling them to the very bone.  Lina recognized the voice, but didn't want to say.  Gourry had felt the same cold chill, but managed to make his order of two lobsters and seven different "side dishes" which were really meant to be main meals.  The waitress said nothing as she took down his order.

            She turned to Lina, "And you Miss…" she stopped in mid-sentence as she tried to get a better look at the other person, who was trying to hide behind the menu.

            Lina quickly ordered in a squeaky voice, "I'm not feeling very hungry – I'll just have a baked Salmon."

            As she wrote this down, the waitress studied what she could of the mysteriously familiar customer.  Bright red hair, black cape and boots, that frightened, squeaky voice…  And she immediately locked in on the verdict.  "Lina?  Is that you?"

            By the way the person immediately froze up, she guessed it was.  The waitress laughed and patted Lina's head lightly as she took their menus with the other.  As she strolled away, she said quietly, "I'll ask for a little time off, imouto-chan.  Your order will be arriving shortly."

            After she had taken someone else's order and had gone into the kitchen, Lina finally let out a deep breath she knew she had been holding.  From what had happened, Gourry slowly discovered, "Lina…was that your sister?"

            Lina could only nod.  Gourry seemed amazed, but Lina only heard it in his voice, since she was looking solemnly at the white table mat, as if the end of her life was coming.

            "She looks nothing like you."

            The waitress that had served them was a tall young adult with neatly cut purple hair that came to just above her shoulders.  Her bangs covered her eyes, hiding just about as much of her expression as her purple waitress outfit with the white over-apron hid her curvaceous figure.  She held herself with poise usually seen only in movies of royalty, which was combined with her nonchalant accent and honey-like smile.

To which Lina replied in a deadpan voice, "Our parents look just as different, so we have different genes.  Besides, she's six years older than me."

            Gourry thought this over (what was there to think about?  How should I know?) before asking, "She doesn't seem so bad."

            Lina glared at him with deadened eyes.  All she said was, "Just wait.  It's always calm before the storm."

            In a rare moment of intellect, Gourry asked, "Isn't it supposed to be calm after the storm?"

            "If I say before, I mean before.  Afterwards come repercussions."

            Gourry laughed nervously.  Lina's gloomy foretelling was anything but enlightening.  Only a few minutes later, their order came.  Before that, Lina asked that Gourry come over to her side, for protection's sake.  When Gourry looked slightly dubious of anything that Lina's sister might do, Lina reminded him of his promise.  He consented; Lina slid down to the window side with Gourry next to her, separating her from the aisle.

            When Lina's sister came with four plates balanced on her arms, Gourry instinctively helped her put it on the table.  She thanked him before surveying the seating arrangement.  She sighed and said that she would return with four more of their plates – the rest would come after the table was cleared.  After she left again, Gourry asked what her name was.  Lina took a deep breath and recited, "Luna Marie Elizabeth Hachimenreirou Nakai Itoku Naraku Inverse.  But just call her Luna-san."

            Gourry sweated, already forgetting the long name.  "Okay, if you say so Lina."

            Half to himself he added, "I'd hate to ask what your full name is…"

            Still dazed, Lina recited hers as well, while Gourry gulped down massive amounts of food.  "My full name is Lina Lesliana Lewella Okibi Shoukyaku Reichou Inverse."

            Gourry almost choked when he heard it.  He sweated as he requested, "Lina," he gulped down his food, "Could you not do that when I'm eating?"

            Lina had a faraway look in her eyes as she murmured, "I only answered your question; you're the one who started eating before I answered it."

            Gourry sighed and started scarfing down food again.  Lina didn't say another word until he finished, which was past the time that Luna came back with four more dishes; she was not surprised that Gourry had already finished all four plates (considering she grew up with Lina).  She asked if they would like any drinks.  Gourry said that he'd take a jug of milk, while Lina said she'd just have water.  While saying this, Gourry finished of another plate.  Luna took the almost polished five plates and left, due to return soon.  Lina sat in silence, polishing her badges mindlessly under the table.  With the last few plates, Luna had their drinks on a tray in one hand and two plates on the other.

            She sat down across from them and watched somewhat wearily.  Lina took one sip from her water and a small bite of her Salmon, and she was done.  Gourry was eating as if there were no tomorrow, but started eating much slower and more politely once Lina "tapped" his shin and glared at him.

            Luna sighed.  She began to question Lina, lightly at first.  "So how have you been, little sis?  You catch a lot of Pokemon?"

            Lina solemnly nodded.  "Yes, onee-san."

            Luna raised an eyebrow.  "Really?  How many, exactly?"

            Lina looked down and checked her Statidex underneath the table.  She answered,"178…378."

            Luna seemed a bit surprised.  "Three-hundred seventy-eight you say?  My, you've been busy without your big sis, haven't you?  And how many badges?"

            Taking another deep breath, Lina recited, "18.  The Boulder, Cascade, Thunder, Marsh, Ghost, Rainbow, Soot, Soul, Track, Volcano, Earth, Shadow, Evolution, Light, Movie, and Wave Badge.  Then I have two Master Badges that I received after I passed a really hard test about Pokemon.  The second one I got with my marketing skills."

            Lina's two companions looked at her with surprise.  It was a bit unrealistic for someone like Lina to be boasting in a deadpan voice.  Luna recognized this for what it was and commented on it.  "What's wrong Lina?  You look like you just had a terrible ordeal.  It wasn't that hard, was it?"  When Lina didn't reply, she sighed.  As swift as a driver switching gears, Luna turned to Gourry.  "I don't believe we've met.  I'm Lina's older sister, Luna Inverse.  And you?"

            Gourry immediately chirruped, "Um, Gourry Gabriev.  I'm a substitute Gym Leader at Cerulean 'cuz my sisters are the official Gym Leaders.  I'm Lina's bodyguard."

            Once again, Luna seemed very interested.  "Bodyguard?  And, pray tell, why would Lina need a 'bodyguard' for?"

            Before Lina could stop him, Gourry started talking about how she was taken by this guy while they were on a boat and how they looked all over the island for her but then she ended up finding them…at which point Lina kicked him.  This, in the end, only proved to make matters worse, because now Luna wanted Lina to tell her.  Lina took another sip and bite before reluctantly telling about everything that had happened with that encounter.  As soon as she finished, she held her breath, waiting for her sister's reaction.

            Luna leaned back and stroke her chin thoughtfully.  Softly, she remarked, "So that's what happened…interesting.  Lina, go on home.  Here's the key.  Take your friend with you too.  I'll meet you there after my shift is over.  I'll pay for your lunch.  We'll talk more there."

            Lina nodded as Luna stood up, inclined her head in a farewell gesture, and went around, making sure that the other tables had been served.  Lina breathed a sigh of relief and quickly finished off the rest of her lunch.  She then nudged Gourry and told him to get out so that they could go.  After Gourry stood up, Lina started for the door, just as listless as she had been throughout the whole meal.  Rather hurriedly, Gourry put 40 PD on the table to cover most of his bill and the tip, before following Lina.

            Lina led Gourry across town to a modest two-story house next to a tree-lined street.  She put the key into the lock, and slowly turned it.  Her demeanor was really making Gourry suspicious by this time.  After all, she looked as pale and lost as a ghost of a child.  Lina took off her boots next to the door and Gourry followed suit.  Lina closed the door behind him and there was a long pause of silence.

            Suddenly, Lina yawned and murmured, "Hey Gourry, I'm going to take a little nap in my room, okay?  You can look around the house, just don't touch anything in my sister's room – it's clearly labeled as hers, plus it's the one with all the purple bed sheets and wallpaper.  'k?  Good night."  Lina yawned again and trudged up.  Gourry shrugged and started to look around.

            The front room was the typical parlor room.  A pair of beige leather couches faced each other in the middle of the room, with a glass coffee table sitting in between them.  In the corner beside the stairwell was a tall antique lamp, which would give off light if the large window adjacent to the door did not suffice.  A large tropical jungle bouquet with red flowers among green leaves, sat in the corner right of the window, confined within a black scalloped vase.  On the other side of the window, next to the door, stood an equally tall Poipu bouquet filled with lavender petals contained by a white bud vase.  Besides those few things, however, the room was absolutely void of imperfections, though some would say that the sparse furniture was just as perfect and orderly as the cleanliness of it all.  Shaking his head, Gourry followed the tan carpet through the hallway at the bottom of the stairs.

In the short hallway, he passed by a closed closet door that had a sign saying, "KEEP OUT – IF YOU WANT TO STAY ALIVE!"  Gourry shuddered and moved on, having every intention of living his life to the fullest.

            The next room appeared to be a large family room in which to entertain the kids while the adults conversed elsewhere.  Gourry's first hints of this were the assorted Pokemon plushies that lined two of the walls, three layers thick.  There was also a small TV diagonally placed in the corner between the hallway-wall and the brick fireplace.  Below it on the shelf of the small entertainment center was a VCR.  Below that, practically resting on the ground, was a small stereo system.  A red bean bag chair rested a few feet from the TV and a blue bean bag chair.  Behind them was a soft, plump sofa with a Cheltam Cabernet flowery design.  A basic lamp hung from the center of the room, and thus completing the homely, but still remarkably neat room.

            Turning the corner, Gourry found himself facing a large Walnut(wood) dining table with six chairs – two on both lengths, and one on each end – that had a polished, refined look about it.  An overflowing bouquet of forget-me-nots and other seasonal flowers had been placed in the center of the table in a short glass vase.  The hardwood beech floor that connected the dining room and kitchen was so well polished that Gourry swore he could see his reflection in it.  A transparent sliding door on the other side of the dining table led to what could only be the back yard, but Gourry left that to later.

            The kitchen was amazingly well organized from Gourry's point of view.  On his left, was a trash dispenser and dishwasher boxed in by white cabinets – four across the top, two on either side of the pair.  In the corner, "right" of this wing, was a stainless steel sink that stood as a barrier, protecting a small bouquet of white and purple orchids that was currently being showered with rays of sun from the two windows the formed that corner of the house.  On the other side of the sink, more in front of Gourry, was a stainless steel stove, just below a similarly silver microwave.  They divided the four cabinets on the top and bottom evenly into pairs (two on either side of both appliances).  Then, to the right, there are two cabinet pairs, one on top, one on bottom, next to a large stainless steel refrigerator.  Having just eaten, Gourry passed by that and looked into an adjoining hallway, much shorter in comparison.

On his left was a door left ajar.  He poked his head in and looked around; it was a guest bedroom by the looks of it.  A neatly made bed with plain blue sheets was in the corner, below a flower-curtained window.  An antique dresser was at the foot of the bed, facing the wooden bed frame.  In the corner adjacent to the top of the bed and the door was a corner desk, with a mirror hanging on the wall above it.  A trash can beside the desk, and a floral lamp on the same edge of the desk, completed the room.

On the other side of the hallway was a small bathroom.  The sink was a part of the cabinet to the left, while the toilet was blocking part of the passage to the shower area.  A white hamper stood in front of the toilet, further narrowing the space to the shower.  At the end of the hallway was another door, which led to the laundry room, complete with a washing machine and a dryer.  Above them was a pair of double door cabinets.  At the other end of the small laundry room was another door.

Inside this door was a slate gray wall filled with workout equipment.  In one corner was a treadmill, while another had a bench press.  The corner flanking the treadmill was home to a large red punching bag.  Separating the two said objects was a pair of bicycles – a blue mountain bike and a smaller red kid's bike – hanging on the wall.  On the opposite side of the room were three vertical layers of shelves that gave way to a wooden workbench.  The middle of the room had a large patch of blue tumbling mats that stretched from one machine corner to another.

Gourry backed out and retraced his steps, and stopped at the foot of the stairs near the parlor.  He had explored the whole of the first floor, and his basic impression was that it was very well kept and flowers were placed wherever they seemed appropriate.  With a misplaced sigh, he climbed up the stairwell that was split in half – it went eight steps left, then turned right and went eight steps the other way.  The first room he came to was a library.  As the walls were lined top to bottom with bookshelves that contained probably a total of three hundred neatly arranged books, Gourry had no interest in this room.  He saw a red sofa adjacent to the door with a lamp on an end table beside it, before he passed by it.

A little bit farther along was a set of double doors, but it was locked.  Since a sign reading "Luna's room – Do Not Enter" hung from the doorknobs, Gourry guessed that this room was off-limits, and so he moved on.  Again, there was a whole row of cabinets before another bathroom came into view.  This one was slightly bigger, as it had mirrors on both walls, above two separate sinks.  Then there was the toilet, followed by a bath/shower.  A small ventilation window was situated near the ceiling on the far side of the bathroom.

Past the bathroom was one more room before the circular corridor connected the last door with the stairs by a long work desk with a computer.  Inside the last room, slightly opened, was Lina's room.  Compared to the rest of the house, it was positively cluttered with things, but it still had a sense of cleanliness (see first chapter for description; I don't care to repeat it).  He looked over to the bed and found Lina slumbering away the time.  Instinctively, he lightly picked her up and put her under the covers, before leaving her to her sleep.  Just as he was heading down the stairs, he heard the front door open, before he saw Luna coming through the door.  Surprised, Gourry remarked, "That was quick."

Luna blinked up at him before responding wearily, "What are you talking about?  It's been almost five hours since you two left.  Speaking of which, where is dear, little Lina?"

Not noticing the hint of malicious intentions in her poisoned honey voice, Gourry answered that Lina was sleeping in her room.  Luna nodded, and sighed.  By this time, Gourry had made it to the foot of the stairs.  She greeted him formally as a host would an acquaintance/guest.  She gestured towards the whole of the house as she asked, "So, how do you like my decorating skills?"

Gourry blinked.  Quite honestly in his opinion, he answered, "You decorated it yourself?  Wow.  It looks really nice and presentable.  I like the kid's area."

Luna laughed at that, mechanically taking her shoes off before gesturing Gourry towards said place.  "You don't say?  Well, feel free to hang out there if you like.  We don't have any other guests today, so you two will rein my full attention.  Do you have a preference for dinner?"

Gourry shrugged.  As his grandmother had instilled chivalrous kindness in him, he said what came natural, "Anything's fine.  I'm sure you're a great cook."

Luna laughed again and thanked him.  She asked how long he planned to stay, and he responded as long as Lina was staying.  Luna accepted this, and said that since she was tired and she wanted to properly welcome Lina home, she was going to order pizza, but she would cook the next night.  Gourry agreed, and asked if Luna had anything specially planned for Lina.  Luna's laugh rang through the room once again, but she said nothing as she left Gourry to "wake up her dear little sister."

Gourry was calmly sipping tea that Luna had set out for him, when he heard an ear-piercing scream from upstairs that was suddenly cut off by something.  Luna had told him to stay downstairs no matter what he heard, but it was hard on his conscious.  The house itself shook as Gourry's sharp ears heard something being dragged on the carpet.  A doorknob turned, and a door softly closed a few moments later.  More struggling was heard; then Gourry could have sworn that he heard water running and another muffled shout.  It took every fiber of his being for Gourry to stay put, but the stories Lina had "hinted" at about Luna were more than enough incentive to stay where he was.  After about an hour or so, Gourry heard a blow dryer at work before Lina came trudging down the steps.  As soon as Lina came into view, the shower could be heard overhead.

Gourry looked over to her and saw that she was wearing black pants and a small "graphic tee" that had a picture of Lina riding a Ponyta when she was young.  Lina was drying her hair out with a pink towel; she stopped as soon as she saw Gourry sitting there.  A light blush spread over her cheeks as she covered the picture and tentatively asked, "You're still here?"

The boy shrugged.  "Don't really have anywhere else to go, Lina."

Lina's back was turned to him while she took out some orange juice from the fridge.  "So…um…you heard?  Upstairs, I mean?"

Gourry nodded as he responded, "Yeah."  Lina's blush deepened a little bit, but Gourry went on obliviously, "It sounded like a big struggle.  What were you doing?"

Lina poured herself a cup, returned the juice carton to the fridge, and joined Gourry at the table.  After taking a big gulp, Lina sighed and seemed to go slightly off topic.  "Hey, Gourry, do you have any pets?"

Playing along, Gourry thought about it before answering, "Umm…I don't think so, unless you count my pokemon that I take with me everywhere."

"Do you," Lina paused to take another gulp, "Do you wash them yourself?"

Gourry shrugged.  "Of course."

"Imagine that.  That's what Luna did to me up there."

His mind whirled slowly, trying to connect the pieces…"She turned you into a Pokemon?"

Lina's head slammed into the dining table as she facefaulted.  "No, dummy!  She – she…bathed me like you would your pet Growlithe."

"I don't have a Growlithe."

"You don't?  Lucky.  I love mine, but, it's a horrible example for my sister to use to torture me."

"Your sister tortures you?"

"You wouldn't call what I just told you about 'torture'?"

"…What were you talking about again?"

"Ugh…Never mind – forget it."

"Okay, if you say so Lina."

A long pause filled with the sounds of drinking invited itself to spare either wasted breath.  Finally, Lina asked what Luna had told him, to which Gourry replied that he had forgotten.  Lina sighed again, and waited for her sister to actually come down the stairs from her own shower.

Upon her descent, Luna ordered an ultra combo pizza from the nearest Poke Papa Mon.  While waiting, Luna asked that Lina bring down all of her badges and show them to her, in fact, bring down her whole cape.  Lina consented, going up and down the stairs in record timing.  Luna first looked at the eighteen badges, nodding as she inspected each one like a jeweler would a possible prospect.  Before going on to check through her cape, Luna remarked that though legitimate, Lina's badges were in poor shape - in need of heavy polishing.  At Luna's command, she went to retrieve a bucket of polish and a polishing rag in which to start cleansing her badges.

Meanwhile, Luna found Lina's bottle of "Gloomy Violet".  Luna smirked as she held it in her hand.  She locked eyes with her sister and smirked, saying that she had received her present, and she thanked her little sister for remembering.  Lina grinned back and continued to polish, but noticeably happier.  Luna set the bottle down next to the flowers and went on to find Lina's money pouch.  Emptying the contents out onto the table, she counted Lina's money.  She told them with a hint of surprise that there was a total of 50 PD.  When Gourry asked what was wrong with that, Luna glared at Lina as she told him that she had given Lina 2000 to last her the trip.  Lina laughed slightly and commented, "A girl's gotta eat, right?"

Luna sighed and shook her head, hopeless for her little sister.  She continued her rummaging and found her extra store of pokemon.  Luna raised an eyebrow and asked what these pokeballs were for.  Lina explained that she wanted to keep more than six pokemon for things other than battling, so she coated those pokeballs with anti-transfer wax.  To show that she had good reason for doing so, she added that she had already sent more than enough pokemon to Prof. Oak, so she kept a few more to lift a little of the burden off of him.  From the way Luna let out a disgruntled sigh, it was obvious that Luna did not completely believe Lina, but accepted the answer for the time being.  Thankfully, it was at that time that the pizza arrived.

They all took a break to eat, with Luna making sure that they all washed their hands hard with hot water and soap.  Gourry felt as if the water burned off all of his dirty skin, and Luna only commented, "Good."  The trio ate in relative silence, and washed their hands again afterwards.  Luna asked if Gourry wanted to take a shower or bath before going to sleep; he answered that he'd like to, but his change of clothes were dirty.  Luna told him to follow her to the guest room, where she found some comfortable blue pajamas that just happened to be his size.  Gourry thanked her, and she told him to use the downstairs shower, the one directly across from that room.  Once the door closed, Luna went back to Lina, and had a long talk about their schedule for the remainder of time before the tournament began.  Gourry went to sleep that night happy, but Lina's was plagued by nightmares of things to come, in the comfort of her own town.

A/N:  *Sigh* I think I can finish this story with the next chapter!  Yay!  Review as you will!