Notes: If you are new to this story, please begin with chapter one named accordingly like the
title. Other than that enjoy!!!!
Chapter Three:
One Step at a Time
- - -
"I never think things through, damnit! When am I going to learn?"
Ryoko and Ryo-ohki had been walking almost a full day now.
After her initial flight from the Masaki household, she had returned her gem to
Tenchiken before thinking of where the hell they were first. She had flown over
a hundred miles per hour with no sense of direction. Why with all she knew,
they could be in Australia now!
The two sisters had been walking on the side of what looked liked a deserted
road. Ryoko feared she would be walking forever. And what was worse, she was
bored, had been bored for a while now, and that was something the pirate was
not used to. She blew a strand of hair from her face and pouted. She had never
really walked before, always flew, phased, or the closest thing she had come to
walking, floated everywhere.
She now held a new appreciation for Tenchi when he swept the longest stairs in
Okayama stairs that led to his grandfather's shrine.
"I wonder if they have noticed I'm gone?" She asked herself. Probably not.
Ryo-ohki stirred in her sister's arms and settled back down. Her head resting
on Ryoko's shoulder with her mouth open with a quiet snore answering her
sister's question.
Despite
the threat of her heartache to double in pain from its already alarmingly large
amount, Ryoko started to entertain various sexual scenarios with Tenchi and
Ayeka, but by sheer force of will forced those thoughts out of her mind.
Out of sight, out of mind.
Instead she focused on all the new sensations she felt coursing through her
shivering body. When Washu decided to create Ryoko, she gave her almost no
physical feelings to better suit her "daughter" to the harsh environment
uninhabitable planets and of space. For instance, she had no taste buds. Ryoko
could do many things, but tell the difference between miso and …… soup was not
one of them. The texture was what drove Ryoko to eat. That plus she didn't want
there to be more differences between her and the rest of the family. The space
pirate hated the idea she and Tenchi were probably as different as night and
day. Like a blind man would develop his sense of hearing to compensate his
disability, Ryoko over developed her sense of feeling. Not that Washu ever
meant to give her daughter a disability. Ryoko had not even known such pleasure
existed with Kagato. She never ate. And
what she didn't know existed couldn't hurt her, or make her feel like she
didn't belong, even with Kagato as her only companion apart from Ryo-ohki. She
tried to emulate him to avoid being cast away. Above anything else, the space
pirate feared being alone.
One over powering sensation jolting through her body right now caused her
muscles to involuntarily spasm and a chill to run up her spine, making her
hairs stand on end. Her teeth grinded against each other and she bit her tongue
twice. The more she tried to control her shaking mouth, the more her teeth
chattered. She glanced down at Ryo-ohki as her sister nestled comfortably in her
arms. The cabbit had been sleeping for a good while now, about four hours
judging by the length the moon had moved across the sky. Ryoko yawned out of
habit when she was bored and scanned the horizon for some signs of life.
"Beep! Beeeep!"
Ryoko stopped dead in her tracks and swerved to look over her shoulder in the
direction of the noise. After having being accustomed to almost absolute quiet
in the deserted road, the loud honk made her ears start ringing, and yet,
Ryo-ohki remained asleep. She didn't even stir!
She was definitely related to Ryoko. Of course, now the space pirate didn't
have the luxury of blocking out the world for a quick snooze; she was
responsible for the cabbit. And worried about how her body was adjusting
without her gem.
"Beep! Beep!"
" 'ello cutie. I don usually stop fo' girls wit deir babies-" the man in the
car leaned out the window blew her a kiss. "'ow much?"
Ryoko's eyes went wide. Who the hell does this guy think I am? She just
stood there, her teeth chattering, her legs slightly shaking, but her arms as
solid as ever as they cradled her sister. Ryoko's acute eyesight had not
diminished with the absence of her gem, thankfully!
She noticed the man's ravenous eyes traveling over her body, his gaze lingering
on her breasts. She glanced down and remembered her clothes being torn by the
wind as she was flying. Her eyes flashed with pain and regret. Flying, she
missed it. Just as quickly that forlorn look was replaced by a cold, determined
stare. She never gave up and she was not going to start now. She had already
done the hardest thing of her life; she had faced up to failure.
She ate her pride and decided to give Tenchi the happiness both he and Ayeka
had been dreaming of.
If she could survive that, well, then she could survive anything.
She offered him her most charming smile and the man opened the passenger door
in a flash.
"Boy oh boy, I sur' hit de jack-o-pot wid you tonight baby."
Ryo-ohki still in Ryoko's arms was gently laid down between Ryoko and the
passenger door.
The space pirate did her best not to gag as she turned to face the man. Man
does this slob smell like shit or what?
Unfortunately for her, her acute sense of smell remained as strong as ever.
Ryoko would have breathed through her mouth, but had a disturbing image of her
tasting that god-awful smell. But now she had to concentrate, she could not
mess up. She smiled demurely at him, lowering her eyelashes like she had seen
Ayeka do when she was flirting. Behind her back, she balled her right hand into
a fist, ignoring the pain caused by the wounds her fingernails had made in her
palm.
Her breathing stopped, her eyes calculated the man in front of her. He was
about medium height, with the biggest gut she had ever seen. Judging by his
stocky legs he would not be able to run very fast. As her eyes moved upward she
noticed his jeans were not buttoned.
Ryoko shuddered. I could kill him without blinking twice. Just exert the
right amount of pressure on his neck and wait for the pop.
Her eyes studied his neck; well what she though was his neck. It seemed his
face was attached to his shoulders with only a huge rooster type skin thing
hanging just underneath his chin. No necked slob. Her fingers unconsciously got
in the position to take him out. She only needed her index and middle fingers,
and she would put this man out of his misery.
No. Tenchi wouldn't approve. Tenchi?
Her eyes instantly began to fill up with tears that threatened to cascade down
her face if she blinked. Her face burrowed and using all the self-control
techniques she had forcefully acquired under Kagato's tutelage, she rid herself
of his image.
She would not kill this man because it was WRONG to kill.
She would not start her life like that.
This time around she would try her best to do things right, for HER, for
Ryo-ohki.
Besides the universe, it seemed, wasn't without a sense of irony.
Ryoko was sure she would see them again, and when she did, she planned to be…
Ready for them. Show them she could make it by herself. Show them she wasn't a
demon. She was Ryoko Hakubi and that's all she was.
The man gave Ryoko a lustful, toothless smile and leaned in for a kiss. His
mouth smacked open as he closed his eyes, his fat shapeless lips began to part.
Ryoko caught site of the thickest string of spit connecting his top and bottom
lip.
She grinned at him with eyes of a tigress eyeing her prey.
Her body no longer felt shaky, her legs quit shivering on her.
She was a tiger, completely still, arching her back, claws out, fangs bared,
and a second later… Still having not tested her strength, she prayed to the
heavens she remained strong enough to…
"BAM!"
The man's head made an odd noise as it backlashed and pounded the steering
wheel before rick-a-shaying to the frame of the window on the driver door.
Ryoko smirked and snorted.
These humans weren't so tough; one just needed to learn how to handle them.
Holding her breath, using as little contact as she could, she moved the
unconscious man to the back seat of the car, and rubbed her hands hard on her
torn dress as she got on the driver's seat, trying to rid herself of any
possible germs she might have caught from the physical contact of her hands on
his body.
As she settled comfortably on the driver's seat, she noticed that she was
having trouble breathing. Ryoko froze in the seat and tried to give name to
what was happening to her body.
Her teeth chattering and her legs were shaking. That had returned in full
force. Ryoko was almost sure she was "feeling" cold.
How weird thinking that. She silently mouthed the words and started
laughing. She said it with more strength in her voice,
"I'm cold."
It felt wonderful! A real, pure human emotion! Her face wore the goofiest smile
while her teeth continued to chatter away. She no longer minded. Everything
that was happening to her was because she was cold! Being out of breath was a
little harder to place. She remembered a while before Tenchi's disappearance,
Kiyone out of the blue it seemed, asked Ryoko to join her in some exercise.
Ryoko waved her off with a laugh.
"Why are you laughing? Hey I'm just trying to help you loose all that weight
you've gained, thunder thighs."
Ryoko glared at her with eyes a blaze. Kiyone stoically didn't bat an eyelash,
though now that Ryoko remembered, she was holding her breath. The
pirate's eyes softened at the memory.
After Kiyone's comment she had disappeared to the bathroom and scrutinized
every inch of her body. Satisfied that she was as beautiful as ever, went to
watch some TV.
But every time she had found something interesting to watch and settled
comfortably on the couch, she imagined a little fat roll forming here and
there, adjusting to her figure with every movement of her body. With an
exasperated sigh, she phased into a short, tight, white T-shirt and even
shorter and tighter shorts.
If I'm was going to exercise, it doesn't mean I'm not going to look my best.
She then phased outside and joined a surprised but grateful Kiyone. By the
twenty-fifth lap around the lake, Kiyone was out of breath and rubbing her
upper stomach gently. Ryoko having not even broken a sweat asked her if she was
ok. By the end of their exercise session, Ryoko found out Kiyone had been
overexerting herself to see if she could keep up with the famous pirate, and
had given herself an annoying cramp in the process. The pirate had felt honored
at being set up as a goal to achieve to, and for some time after, took it upon
herself to train Kiyone. That is until Kiyone started to evade her, too tired
to strain herself under Ryoko's never ending stamina.
Yeah, that must be it, Ryoko thought. Just like Kiyone had done a few
months back, I have overexerted myself carrying that grotesque man to the
backseat.
"Meow?"
"Ryo-ohki! Man! You finally woke up! I swear your worst than me when it comes
to quality sleep time." She winked at her cabbit as Ryo-ohki looked in the back
seat.
"Meow!?" She pointed with her little hand to the back and questioned Ryoko.
Without even glancing, Ryoko now began to turn the key on the ignition switch
while answering Ryo-ohki's obvious question.
"Well, we needed are ride, and I have a feeling he would have said no if I
would have asked him nicely." Ryoko's smile had not diminished in the slightest
as the car jerked a bit before the engine grumbled and turned on.
"Ahh." She rubbed her hands together excitedly. "Lets see if I can drive, shall
we baby?" She looked at Ryo-ohki and somehow her smile grew as she observed her
putting her seatbelt on.
"Well, thanks for the vote of confidence."
It couldn't be THAT hard. She had driven some of the most complex ships
in the universe… only they used mental and holographic projections to operate.
This car looked completely hands on. Well, Nobuyuki had no trouble driving his
car everyday to work.
How did he do it?
Ryoko closed her eyes momentarily and searched her mind for the answer.
D to drive, R for reverse, N... What's the N for? I guess I'll find out soon
enough.
She moved the gear stick next to the steering wheel to D and the car strolled
gently down the road.
Why am I not going faster? She tapped her foot in frustration and felt
something underneath. She glanced down and remembered Nobuyuki playing with his
feet. He had said that it wasn't really playing but accelerating and breaking.
"Ok choose Ryo-ohki. Which one do I press first? The left pedal or the right?
Two meows for left, one meow for right."
"Meow."
The car started to move steadily faster without further problems and Ryo-ohki
gave her sister the biggest grin ever.
"Ha!" Ryoko laughed and took off Ryo-ohki's seatbelt with her right hand while
steering with her left.
"Come on baby. It's only right that the person who guessed right should drive
don't you think?"
Ryo-ohki's mouth dropped opened and before Ryoko knew what was happening she
had settled herself comfortably on Ryoko's lap, taking control of the steering
wheel. Ryoko wisely enough still controlled the breaks and accelerator.
She kissed the top of Ryo-ohki's head and despite herself; she felt a tear make
its way down her cheek. The difference this time was the tear held a mixture of
happiness and sadness, a bittersweet goodbye of sorts. This would be the last
time she would cry. She could not afford any more tears, both emotionally and
physically. She was still not completely sure how a normal human body worked.
After all, the only truly normal person she knew was Nobuyuki, and he had never
cried, at least not in front of her. Maybe all this crying had dehydrated her?
"Meow, meow meow."
Ryoko looked down as her cabbit talked and drove at the same time. She had her
face to an angle waiting for Ryoko to answer.
"I can't understand a thing your saying Ryo-ohki. Perhaps we should set up a
system until I have time to properly teach you?"
"Meow"
"Well, lets use the same system as for the breaks and accelerator. It brought
us luck. One meow for yes, two for no. Got it?"
"Meow."
"Don't worry Ryo-ohki, I promise as soon as I can I will… Look! I see some
lights up ahead. We'll stop for some clothes and food in town and drop this guy
off somewhere."
She applied more pressure to the accelerator. The man in the back seat had
begun to move and twitch slightly about fifteen minutes ago.
- - -
So much for the town.
The lights she had seen were actually a gas station in bad need of repair, and a
stop-and-go type of store. She parked the car a few yards from the gas station
and opened the backseat door. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she dragged
the man's body out and laid him where in the day there would be no trouble
spotting him. He moaned and she applied pressure to his temple to make sure he
didn't wake up any time soon.
"Meow?"
"You wait in the car Ryo-ohki. I'm going to go into that store and see if they
have any clothes or jackets or something."
Ryoko pulled the torn kimono to better hide her body and walked swiftly to the
store. When she opened the door, a little wind chime announced her entrance,
yet when she looked at the cashier desk, nobody was there. She knew better
though. In a store, somebody was always around watching.
She carefully moved to a rack of clothes on the deep left end of the store. She
chose three articles of clothing without really looking at them, a hat,
sunglasses and a few candy bars, and then made a hasty exit. Once outside, she
made a mad dash to the car. In less than sixty seconds she was back on the road
again. Ryoko set the car to cruise control, at least that what she thought the
C stood for, and changed into a jeans and a shirt that said,
"Industrial House of Crack" on it. She shrugged her shoulders and put in on
anyway.
Perhaps now that she was human, she would feel the effects of a few drags of
opium?
Ryo-ohki
steered the wheel while approving of Ryoko's outfit.
"Ok baby, my turn to drive. Don't give me that look! You can't even reach the
petals! Besides I got some candy bars for you."
Ryo-ohki gave her a disgusted look. She only ate carrots. Ryoko instantly
picked up on Ryo-ohki's mood shift. Grumbling the cabbit moved to the
passenger's side as Ryoko again took the wheel.
"Sorry baby, but I couldn't very well stay and ask if they had any carrots I
could steal. I will get you some as soon as I have some money ok? Besides, you
should at least TRY some new food. Who knows? Maybe you'll like it?"
Ryo-ohki eyed the candy suspiciously, and started to tug and pull at the
wrapper. When she had one opened, she hesitantly inched the candy bar to her
mouth, she closed her eyes and as she was going to taste the chocolate with the
tip of her trembling little tongue, Ryoko eyeing her all the while, simply shoved
the candy into her mouth.
"Chew."
Ryo-ohki glared at her but dutifully obeyed. It seemed like forever, until she
swallowed.
"Well?"
Ryo-ohki didn't meow a word, simply started to unwrap the next one.
"I knew you'd like it. The people on TV are always raving at how delicious
chocolate is."
It was Ryoko's turn to grin at Ryo-ohki. Ryo-ohki finished the second candy,
and as she was going for her third, Ryoko suggested she save it for morning.
I have no idea when I'll be able to get more food. Better make it last.
Ryo-ohki yawned and before settling down to sleep, gave Ryoko a kiss on the
cheek, immediately followed by a wet willy.
"Hey! You little sneak!"
Both laughed and Ryoko stuck out her tongue. "Go to sleep will ya?"
"Meow."
She yawned again and as her eyes closed fell to sleep. Ryoko kept driving.
She stole quick glances at Ryo-ohki here and there, while thinking where to go
next.
I'm glad Ryo-ohki is here with me. She gave a mental sigh. I have to think of a plan. I can't go
around stealing from people. I have to do right by Ryo-ohki. Though I don't
feel too guilty of leaving that guy back there. He probably deserved it.
The sun made its way into the sky. Forming beautiful colors of orange and pink.
She would make it. First thing is to find a job and a place to stay. Then…well
one step at a time. One step at a time.
- - -
By mid-morning the smell in the car had gotten unbearable and she had to open
the window.
Fortunately the weather had warmed up considerably and she tried the radio for
some tunes. The radio surprise, surprise, didn't work. She glanced at Ryo-ohki
again and pulled up the jacket over her body to better cover her. The jacket
she had managed to get along with the pants and shirt back at the store. She
turned her sight back towards the road and this time really spied a town.
Judging be the tall buildings the outskirts of a city.
She pushed on the accelerator, anxious to get to wherever they were going. She
had lived with Ayeka in Tokyo for months and she was pretty sure she could at
least get a waitressing job. But now waitressing didn't sound that good at all.
She couldn't imagine doing that day in and day out for the rest of her life.
She had to find some other job, something she enjoyed doing. She only had to
find out what that was.
By mid morning she reached the first tall buildings of the city. She looked at
the road signs to see in which city she was in, at least she could read what
they said. She was still in Japan.
She slowed the car to about twenty-five miles per hour to find a motel or a
similar place to stay. As she turned the corner on twenty third and fifth, she
almost missed seeing a woman completely covered in a shawl try to cross the
street. Ryoko hit the brakes as if there was no tomorrow. The woman slipped on
the road and fell inches from the car's bumper.
"Shit! Don't they look before they cross the damn road?!"
Ryoko got out of the car to check on the woman, what she found was a sobbing,
hysterical mess.
"Are you okay lady? Listen, sorry I missed seeing you, I was just looking for
an apartment or something."
The woman didn't even acknowledge her, just kept on crying and crying, pulling
the shawl closer to her body.
"Hey Lady! Move will ya? You're holding up traffic here!"
Ryoko turned to see a long line of cars waiting for her to move. She looked at
the woman,
Why does this always happen to me? Ryoko sighed. She gently but quickly
led the woman to the back seat and started the car.
"Meow?"
Ryo-ohki had woken up and was seated in the back trying to comfort the wailing
woman. As soon as she saw an empty parking space, Ryoko parked and turned her
body to face the woman in the backseat. Ryoko opened her mouth to speak a few
times, but really had no idea what to say.
I wish I could communicate with Ryo-ohki right now. She'd tell me what the
right thing to do would be. She sighed again and noticed the woman was
trembling. Ryoko took the wrinkled jacket Ryo-ohki had been using as a blanket
before and offered it to her.
"Here put this on. That shawl of yours has more holes than anything."
The woman looked at her. She had soft, gentle brown eyes. They reminded her of
Tenchi's eyes. Ryoko's own eyes softened at the revelation.
"Please take it lady."
The
woman smiled and rubbed her face on her sleeve, trying to dry her tear stained
cheeks.
"Thank you," she replied in a whisper. As her hand extended to reach the
jacket, her shawl fell from her shoulders and Ryoko could see she had a
terrible bruise on her right arm. Ryoko frowned, but she was smart enough not
to ask about it. It was not her affair.
Ryoko cleared her throat a few times and waited for the woman to put the jacket
on.
"My name is Ryoko, and this is Ryo-ohki." She pointed to her cabbit with a nod
of her head before asking, "And your name is?"
"It's Fei," she answered with a small smile. "And thank you again for helping
me back there."
"No problem." An uncomfortable silence followed. Ryoko had nothing else to say.
She shifted in her seat. She had never held a conversation this long with
anybody outside of the Masaki clan. Her mind was blank.
"You have beautiful eyes Ryoko. I've never seen any with such a clear honey
color." Fei said this with such sincerity that Ryoko blushed slightly. She
looked at the floor before muttering a thank you.
"Meow, Meow."
Both women looked at Ryo-ohki. Feeling left out; the cabbit pointed out her own
pair of striking amber eyes.
"Yes, your eyes are just as beautiful Ryo-ohki."
Ryoko was about to explain why Ryo-ohki meowed instead of talked, but Fei
seemed not to be interested in details. She was simply there, smiling and
talking, completely at ease.
Ryoko for the umpteenth time since she left Okayama frowned. She definitely
wasn't accustomed to people being nice to her right of the bat. What was more
disturbing though, Fei did not criticize her hair, or how rude and obnoxious
she was always told she was.
Her eyes narrowed. Who is this girl? Well, she wasn't about to let her
guard down so she could double-cross her the first chance she got.
"So, um listen Fei. It's Fei right?" Ryoko didn't wait for a response and
continued, "We have to look for an apartment or motel or something. It was… um,
nice meeting you."
She was about to continue but noticed Fei's face change from happy to depressed
so fast she would have missed it if she had blinked. Now she felt awful.
Damn my conscious!
"I- I understand. Thank you again. Nice meeting you Ryoko, Ryo-ohki."
"Meow."
She got out of the car and started walking away. Ryo-ohki glared at her sister.
"Alright! But if she turns out to be a psychopath who's secret fetish has
something to do with stringing bananas peels and lighting them up like
Christmas candles, we are never talking to strangers again!"
She got out of the car and quickly caught up with Fei.
"Fei! Fei! Listen … I'm sorry. It's just I've had an awful time these past few
days, and well, um… do you need a ride anywhere?"
Fei awarded Ryoko with one of those warm, gentle smiles and nodded her head.
"My uncle lives on thirty-two and eighth. He owns a photography store. It
should be about seven or eight blocks from here."
Ryoko looked at where Fei had pointed and couldn't help but notice the dark
bruises on her right wrist. She shivered and momentarily became alarmed until
she remembered that that sensation meant she was cold. They made their way to
the car and went to meet Fei's uncle.
"Turn left here Ryoko. I think it's the building with the orange brick."
"Meow?"
"Yes, the one with the beautifully carved stoned color doors."
Ryoko had not said a word since they got in the car. She was amazed at how well
Ryo-ohki and Fei were getting along. They were talking like old friends; Fei
answered every meow Ryo-ohki said correctly. Who is this girl? She
peaked at her through the corner of her eye.
Fei was seating in the passenger's side, Ryo-ohki on her lap, the seatbelt over
them both.
Ryo-ohki was seating sideways, back to the car window, feet towards Ryoko,
conversing wonderfully with Fei.
They had devoured the three remaining candy bars awhile back and had been
pointing at fast food places with hungry eyes as the car passed them. Ryoko had
to laugh.
Her mind wandered back to the bruises she had seen on Fei's right arm.
She decided she would not criticize, Fei had not criticized her, and Ryoko
truly appreciated that. She would return the gesture.
"Ok, we're here." They got out of the car, and Ryo-ohki raised her arms at
Ryoko, wanting to be carried to the door. Ryoko grinned and happily complied.
She loved being so close to Ryo-ohki. She felt loved, and no longer felt afraid
to show her love in return without being made fun of, or being asked if she was
"feeling well". She hugged Ryo-ohki while Fei knocked on the door, a nervous
smile on her face.
A thin, tall man who Ryoko judged to be about fifty answered the door. He was
holding a small hand towel, and had little beads of perspiration on his
forehead. When he realized it was Fei knocking at his door, he gave them the
same gentle, warm smile that Fei had given Ryoko.
"My Fei is home! You're early darling!" The man yelled in Fei's ear as he gave
her a deep hug. He laughed a deep, rich, hearty laugh. One that Ryoko had never
heard in her life. It made her cheeks flush with embarrassment at realizing she
was probably intruding in an intimate family moment.
The man relaxed the hug, but still had a strong hold on Fei's shoulders. His
eyes shined with happy tears, and his arms were shaking. He was obviously moved
with Fei's arrival. Ryoko was glad she had helped her. His gaze moved from Fei
to a nervous Ryoko and a smiling Ryo-ohki. Again Ryoko was caught of hard as
she found herself in the same position Fei had been a few moments earlier. This
man, without knowing a single thing about her, was hugging the living daylights
out of her and Ryo-ohki. Fei observing from a short distance laughed at
Ryo-ohki' grin and Ryoko's bewildered expression.
"Welcome Fei's friends, please come inside and warm by the fire. You are as
cold as ice."
He looked down and picked a giggling Ryo-ohki off of Ryoko' s warm embrace.
"What a beautiful daughter you have ma'am," he said to Ryoko while shooing them
to the living room of his home with a nod of his head.
"And the most unusual eyes. Just like a cats. Why, Serla will love to meet
you."
He sat Fei and Ryoko down on the couch next to the fire, and went with a still
giggling
Ryo-ohki
to the kitchen.
Ryoko and Fei looked at each other before exploding with laughter. Ryoko had
not laughed like this since… She did not remember when, but it felt absolutely
intoxicating. She was definitely glad she had helped this girl out. Perhaps she
could ask if they knew about a good place to stay?
Ryo-ohki came from the kitchen skipping while stuffing herself with carrots and
a visible chocolate bar in the pocket of her pink sundress. She sat on Ryoko's
lap, while Basho handed Ryoko and his niece a glass of lemonade.
Ryoko and Ryo-ohki were seated on a peach colored love seat.
To Ryoko's left was a huge chimney that illuminated the entire room, giving it
a warm, family glow. Opposite of Ryoko, on a double love seat sat Fei and her
uncle. As he sat down beside her, he took her hand and squeezed it gently. He
gave her an understanding look that Ryoko could not quite place. Perhaps he
knows of her bruises? Maybe not since she still had the jacket on even
though the room was rather warm.
"Ryoko and Ryo-ohki were kind enough to offer me a ride Uncle Basho. I'm lucky
that they happened to be passing by me slow enough while looking for a place to
stay. All the cars here drive like madmen."
"A place to stay? Why Fei! Where are your manners darling? Ryoko and Ryo-ohki
will stay here!
Ryoko's mind had wandered from the conversation. She was looking at the
apartment. The walls were covered by portrait after portrait of smiling,
beautiful people.
Ryoko mentally sighed. Fei was lucky to have such a loving family. She could
tell they were the type that showered affection on each other just by the way
they decorated.
The coffee table for instance, was full of miniature statues of angels and little
adorable fat men. She looked at one more closely and noticed at the bottom it
was signed "Botero."
She carefully placed it back with the others. Ayeka always got infuriated when
in her excitement would break the delicate trinkets around the house. There
were also more pictures on the table, wonderful portable memories. What did
Fei say her father did? Photography?
That's when she heard her name being mentioned in their conversation and
snapped back to pay close attention.
"It's settled! Ryoko, you and your daughter are staying here with us! And your
timing could not be more perfect! I am in terrible need of an assistant in the
store. How do you feel about developing pictures? The pay is not terrific, but
the hours are good!"
He laughed that deep, hearty laugh of his, and while Ryoko meant to say she had
to leave, she had other plans, her mouth betrayed her and said,
"We would love to!"
As soon as she said this she covered her mouth with her hand. Where the hell
did that come from? A second later she was about to correct herself, but
was instead whisked of with
Ryo-ohki
and Fei to the second floor to see their room. The walls on the upstairs were
an eggshell color and at the top of the stairs on the right were rice paper
doors leading to a balcony. On the left was a long hallway with four doors on
the left side and five on the right.
Basho led them along until he stopped in front of the fourth door on the right.
Ryoko took note that the doorknob was oddly placed in the middle of the door
instead of on the side.
Before opening it, Basho looked back to whisper to her. "This room was made for
you."
Ryoko's heart sank. These people knew who I am. Through those doors they can
somehow imprison me and punish her for all the crimes I committed. I was foolish
to trust these people I hardly knew. I should NOT have helped that girl out.
Damnit!
The door opened and she positioned herself to grab Ryo-ohki and run. Light
filtered into the hall and she was momentarily blinded. When her adjusted to
the light, she saw she was in a room full of light. It was everywhere.
Illuminating even the darkest corner.
The walls were painted light pastel green. The bed was huge and the bedspread
was fluffed up in such a way that you felt drawn to sleep in it for ages. There
was a boudoir on the left wall next to the door. It was so big that you could
have walked in it and closed the doors if you wanted to. It was white with
peach flowers painted on it. Little humming birds sucking their neck tar.
Ryo-ohki jumped on the bed and sank about five feet. Fei smiled and led an
opened mouth Ryoko in room.
"Isn't it beautiful Ryoko? Serla decorated this room three years ago, though
nobody has slept in here once since. She said it was for her angel of light. I
guess you're her angel." Fei whispered before joining a laughing Ryo-ohki on
the bed.
"So what do you think Ryoko?" Basho more than asked simply stated. As if
anybody would not be less than enamored by the room.
"I …we … we can't stay here. I'm very sorry. This is too nice a room for us. We
don't deserve this. I-"
"Don't be rude girl. Never refuse a gift of such grandeur proportions."
The group turned to the door and there stood a woman about fifty-five to sixty
years of age.
She had a million bracelets on her wrists, and a ring on every finger. Her hair
was a rich, dark brown and curly, but pulled back to a messy bun. Her skin was
bronzed, but not the kind on bronze you're born with, but the one you earn with
years of hard labor under the sun. Her eyes were painted black and her lips
shined a ruby red, her teeth were an eggshell yellow. When she spoke, Ryoko
could tell she was missing her fang tooth.
"I made this room for you. I read your arrival in the stars and they did not
disappoint me, though I almost gave up on you." Her eyes squinted against the
light in the room. "The stars were right."
Ryoko's right eyebrow rose in question.
"You
are … very … feline."
Her laugh was raspy, like an old smoker would have. She sat down on the bed and
glanced at Fei then at Ryo-ohki before turning her complete attention to the
cyan haired woman near the boudoir.
"Hmm. Let me see your eyes girl. Come closer."
Ryoko not used to being ordered around stood her ground. Serla chuckled. "As
fiery a temper as the very stars. Very well. I will see them later. Meanwhile
you will stay and that's all there is to it. Come Fei, you and I need to talk
some. Basho, make dinner and don't forget to cook the carrot soufflé-e I taught
you."
She grinned at Ryo-ohki and all three promptly left the room and closed the
door behind them.