Chapter 2
Lina stared at the Doctor in front of her with a quizzical look. Hatori had thought about how to broach the subject with the girl, but in truth, he just wasn't one to beat around the bush. But will she admit it, or will she make me say what she is thinking. The staring match continued until both of them realized that once Momiji returned it was going to be a difficult subject to discuss. Finally the girl sighed and hung her head, black bangs falling over her eyes. "I was hoping that someone could help me find my father." Her voice was quiet and defeated.
Well, Hatori paused in his train of thought, it could be worse. She isn't actually assuming one of us IS her father… she just wants help finding the man who is. And how I wish it was that simple… The dragon nodded slowly. "I think perhaps I can make a few phone calls." And kill the person on the other line for lying to me 15 years ago. Hearing that, the girl raised her head eyes sparkling.
"Really?" There was hope in her tone. "Do you really think you can help me?" Hatori nodded.
"I can not promise anything, but I can try. And while I do, why don't you go outside and wait for Momiji to return. This may take a little time."
"Oh yes, of course. Thank you so much Dr. Souma." She jumped to her feet and bowed, far too much than she should have, but then again… she wasn't exactly versed in the culture of this country so the gesture was noted.
Hatori ran a hand through his hair as he watched the small figure disappear from his office, how am I supposed to handle this. I already know who her father is… and I know that once he finds out he would be more than happy to take her in. But is that really fair to do to a person? This girl has managed to escape from the curse of this family all her life; and would it be right to make her accept it now. She would be better off if she never knew… if Akito never knew she existed. Once he finds out it will all be over… he won't ever accept the fact that she didn't know about the family. The fact that she is a child of one of the members of the Zodiac will be enough. With a grave sigh, the Doctor picked up the phone and dialed. After a moment of waiting a voice on the other side picked up and said hello.
"This is Hatori… We need to have a conversation. And a very long one at that." His voice expressed his seriousness.
Lina walked down one of the many paths in Souma House. She had been sitting outside and waiting for Momiji just like she was supposed to, but the place was so amazing and she couldn't help but spare herself a glance around. The gardens were beautiful as was the architecture, but the place had an aura of loneliness surrounding it.
As she turned a corner a small, brightly colored top rolled onto the path in front of her. Kneeling down she picked up the toy and glanced around to see if she could find its owner. Sitting on a porch and looking down at her was an amazingly beautiful man. The sun had caught on his long dark brown hair and made it sparkle and there was an odd glint to his eyes that she just couldn't place. He was dressed in robes, like the kind her mother wore when she wasn't going out that day. And yet he was sitting outside… It was true, Lina wasn't familiar with the culture here, but even to her that seemed a little strange. But there was no one else around, and the man seemed to her as lonely as the rest of the house was.
She smoothed out her jacket as she stood and walked up to the porch, holding the top out in her hand. "Um… was it you who dropped this?" The man stayed quiet for a moment as he plucked the top from her outstretched hand.
"Yes, it was. Thank you." He moved over a little as an obvious indication that she should sit. "I don't believe I have ever seen you before. Who are you and what are you doing here?" His voice was polite and quite, but somewhat cold an empty.
"I well… my name is Lina Belmont, and I was just speaking with Dr. Hatori about my mother." It seemed like a simple enough answer. The man ran a hand over the robes and set the top spinning again. There was something unsettling about the way he watched it as it spun and spun right off the porch, falling down into the path again. Lina stood to retrieve it but his hand reached out and stopped her. She was almost surprised by the strength of the grip and the way his eyes made her halt in her action. It was almost as if his mere being commanded attention.
"It is a pleasure to meet you Lina Belmont, please sit, stay…" He pulled her wrist until she was seated back on the porch, a little closer to him than before.
"Of course." She replied quietly. He smiled at her, but even his smile made her nervous.
"You seemed frightened… then again, this is a big place… and big places tend to be frightening for little girls. But you can relax; no one will hurt you here." There was that smile again. His eyes were more intense that she could take, and yet she couldn't bring herself to look away. "My name is Akito Souma."
"He- hello Mr. Souma." Akito nodded.
"Now then, you were telling me about your mother. Do continue." His words were more a command than a request, and yet the girl didn't even notice. She just started talking again.
"Well my mother's name was Karen Belmont and she went to school with Dr. Hatori and two of his cousins…" The man seemed to be interested as she poured out her story to him. She told him about her mother's death, about finding the picture, and about not knowing who her father was. And all the while he watched her, his hand resting on hers.
"Well that is a very interesting story Ms. Belmont." He finally said as he brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes.
Lina felt as if she had been released from a trance… maybe she was just tired, but it was still odd. "T-thank you… I hope I didn't bore you."
"Oh never… I don't get to talk to people very often." His voice had gotten softer, kinder maybe… there was just so much about him that made her head spin.
"That must be lonely." She commented.
"Very lonely…" He brushed a hand against her cheek and she flinched. "Will you be staying here at Souma House?"
"I- I don't know… I mean, I don't think so." She stammered.
"Do you have another place to stay?" Akito crooned.
"I… yes… I think I do." She paused, that wasn't entirely true. And she wasn't sure why being around Akito made her nervous, but she was pretty sure that it was the right answer. After all, maybe he was just lonely.
"Very well then. I do hope you come and visit me again, I have had a very nice time talking to you." He caught her eyes again.
"Of course, I would like to come and visit again." She replied, unable to break his gaze.
"That's good." He placed a hand behind her back and nudged her to her feet. "Now, why don't you get back to Hatori, I'm sure that he is expecting you." She ran down the hill and picked up the top, bringing it back again.
"I will, and thank you for the company Mr. Souma." She placed the top down next to him and bowed.
"Akito is fine… if you call everyone you meet Mr. Souma it is going to get awful confusing." He picked up the top.
"Yes, well, thank you then Akito." She smiled.
"You are welcome, and do be careful on your way back… it is easy to get lost here." She nodded.
"I will." Turning, she ran back down the path that she had come from. The Head of the Souma Clan watched the girl's dark hair blowing behind her as she disappeared down the path. Spinning the top, he let it fall from the porch again as his mind wandered. What is Hatori up to? And why hasn't he told me about this yet? I'll speak to him later. Slowly getting to his feet, Akito Souma walked back into his room. She is a very pretty girl, though. I think she would fit in well here.
Lina Belmont ran back towards Hatori's office, not really paying attention to where she was going. There was something strange about Akito, and yet the more she thought about it, the more "normal" the event became in her mind as she rationalized everything. She was so lost in thought that she nearly collided with Momiji before the blond dove out of the way. "Woah Lina, calm down, what are you running from?" The Rabbit brushed off his skirt and smiled at her. She returned the smile and clasped her hands in front of her.
"I wasn't running from anything, just going back to see Dr. Hatori."
"Well that's good, because he is looking for you." He smiled.
"Okay then. Race ya?" She grinned.
"You're on." Momiji said as he bolted back across the compound gaining a head start.
"Cheater." He heard her yell from behind him as she ran after him laughing. The children came to a stop in front of Hatori's porch, where he stood waiting for them.
"And where did you run off to Lina?"
She smiled, "oh I just took a little walk. But I had fun and made a new friend." Momiji blinked and wondered who she could have possibly run into while wandering around here. He would have asked too, had Hatori not gotten there first.
"And who did you meet?" He asked while walking back inside.
"He said his name was Akito." She replied cheerfully, jumping up on the porch. The other two Souma's stopped. Momiji suddenly looked very afraid and Hatori's face hadn't changed.
"And what did he say to you?" The Doctor knew he would hear about this from the Clan Head later.
"He said that I could stay here if I didn't have anywhere else to go. But I said I had somewhere else to stay, and thanked him of course." Hatori nodded.
"Do you?" Hatori asked.
"Do I what?" She replied
"Have somewhere else to stay…"
She shrugged. "I don't know yet."
"I see, well please sit down and we can discuss what I have found out." Lina obeyed and sat in the chair. "Though I can not tell you the identity of your father as of yet, there will need to be numerous blood tests done just to prove anything, I do have a place for you to stay." She nodded and listened carefully. "Out of the three of us, myself and my two cousins, who were friends with your mother… Shigure was the closest by far. So he has offered you a place in his home while I complete the blood tests and do some more research. Is that acceptable by you?"
"Oh yes thank you so much." She jumped up. "If you weren't a stranger I would hug you." Hatori's eyebrow twitched.
"While we're on that subject… As a note this family is very avoidant of physical affection. So I would not recommend trying to hug anyone while you are here."
"Aww that seems kinda sad." Lina gave a teasing smile.
The dragon shrugged. "Never the less, if you wish to respect this family's customs… just refrain from it." She nodded,
"well of course I will. I would never want to disrespect you or your family Dr. Hatori. You have been so very kind to me."
"You are welcome." Hatori stood. "Do you need to pick up anything from elsewhere?" She shook her head.
"No, though I may want to consider going out and buying some clothes if I am going to be staying here for a while." He nodded.
"I'm sure Torhu would be more than happy to go out with you. Ms. Honda is another resident of Shigure's Household. Along with Momiji's cousins, Yuki and Kyou."
"All right, then I will wait until later to worry about it."
"Very good, in that case I will drive you over there now." Hatori put on his coat and patted Momiji on the head. "You two say your good bys and Momiji can take you out to my car. I need to get something first." With that he walked into the main hall of the house and headed off down the corridor.
"I'm glad that you are staying around Lina." Momiji smiled.
"Yea, me too. Everyone here seems really nice."
"They are… well… most of them are." Momiji tilted his head to the side curiously.
"You- you said Akito was nice to you?" He had been wary to broach the subject.
"Yes, he was very kind. He listed to my story and everything. I promised that I would come back and visit him sometime soon. He seems very lonely."
Momiji frowned. One might describe Akito as lonely, but the rabbit was scared of the Clan Head, so he wasn't one of them. Akito was scary… and dangerous… and not someone he wanted his new friend so be involved with in any way. But if she had agreed to come back and see him… it was better if she kept that promise. Momiji didn't want to think what Akito would do if she broke it.
"Well I guess I will see you then." He faked a smile, he was good at that.
"Sure you will, and maybe you can come over to Mr. Shigure's house and see me there."
"Definitely, I go to school with Tohru, Yuki, and Kyou." They talked as he led her around the house to the garage.
"Well it's settled then." She grinned. Hatori was standing beside the car and opened the door when the children came into view. "I'll see you soon Momiji." She waved as she ran over to the car.
"Bye Lina… take care of your-self." He called back, as he watched the car pull away. She was a cool girl; and a lot of fun to hang around. The rabbit was happy to have made a new friend, and he hummed to himself the whole way back to his room… until his mind rested on Akito again. Then the frown made it's way back. Why would Akito be nice to her, what did he have to gain? What did he want from Lina?
Kyou went flying across the room again and Yuki just shrugged. "Better luck next time you stupid cat." He mumbled to himself.
"Oh… please don't fight." Tohru frowned at the two of them.
"I need to speak with all of you for a moment." Shigure's voice interrupted them as he walked into the living room.
"Sure Shigure." Tohru smiled. "What is it? Is something wrong?" The rice ball sat down next to Yuki, Kyou was leaned up against the wall ready to leave as soon as the dog was done.
"Thank you Tohru. I just got off the phone with Hatori a little while ago, and as it would appear, we will be having another roommate soon." There was silence across the room for a time.
"Who is it… Haru… Rin?" Yuki was frowning.
"Not quite Yuki. Her name is Lina Belmont. Her mother was friends with me, Hatori, and your older brother back in High School. Apparently Karen died a year ago, and Lina needs a place to stay." It wasn't the full truth, but it was close enough. There would be time for explanations later.
"What… You are letting ANOTHER girl live with us… I would think that you learned your lesson you damn dog." Kyou shouted. "Look how long it took for Tohru to find out about the curse… How long do you think this will last?"
"Leave Ms. Honda out of this. And if I remember correctly, was it not your fault that she found out in the first place." Yuki countered with a glare.
"That's it, you're—" Kyou never finished, because at that moment there was a knock on the door.