Looks like this story is going to be way longer than I predicted at first. Whenever I run the story through my head, I always add on something new…oh well, so much the better! Onward ho!
Let's see…I own a computer, a little lamp, a cool stereo, a decent TV, an unmade bed, a digital clock, and this really cool CD I burned the other day, but I don't own Elfen Lied. So don't sue me. I also don't own any money.
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A tantalizingly sweet aroma now filled the old inn's kitchen; tiny wisps had invaded every corner and crevice; the battle against the black smog had been won. Nana breathed the new scent in deeply; getting as much of it into her lungs as she could; she hadn't known that so much joy could come from a simple smell. It gave the air a distinct friendliness; the previously cruel pot now embraced Nana lovingly with many warm, sweet arms. Nana felt almost as if someone was holding her, protecting her with this wonderful steam; Nana was reminded of her Papa for a short moment. The white cloud that now came out of the large, charcoal-colored pot was the complete antithesis of the offending musk that had been accidentally created.
Nana's head sunk a little when she thought about the mistake that she had made. Once again, her efforts had only led to trouble for the ones who had taken her in. Yuka had been patient as always, explaining to the horned girl exactly why the food had been ruined and why she must never do that again…it was beginning to become a routine experience. Nana had listened, though. She had absorbed every word and taken it to heart, as she had always done, and would try her best to never do such a thing again. If Nana had to choose between scorching another meal and her own death, she would have had to think long and hard about it.
But this time, I won't ruin it. Nana thought, determinedly. I won't let them down this time…Yuka had decided to explain the fine art of soumen preparation to Nana, and the diclonius had eaten up all of it, branded every step into her mind, word for word. Now, with the help of Mayu, Nana was attempting to cook the entire meal. And she was very glad for the company; just knowing that her friend was in the same room was surprisingly comforting. If Nana had been all alone, the pressure of cooking an entire dish would have stressed and upset her, and that always brought about disaster. But with Mayu next to her, ready to help with anything that might happen, Nana could relax and enjoy the unique experience. Taking all the different ingredients, inedible by themselves, and bringing them together to make something new and good: it was all wonderfully magical to Nana.Mayu looked up from the swirling, bubbling water she was watching to check on her friend. Nana was focused completely on her task; her head was down, her eyes were set, and her hands were in constant motion. The horned girl looked very serious about what she was doing. Watching her, Mayu couldn't help but feel a small sense of admiration for Nana. After all, she had come a very long way and overcome obstacles that, to Mayu's knowledge, hadn't been placed in front of anyone else. It really hadn't been that long since Nana had lost her arms and legs…Mayu had only seen her lose one of her legs, but Nana had apparently been cut up brutally, left with only her head and torso. Mayu hadn't been told how it was done, but a few days later, when she had found Nana all alone, the diclonius had four prosthetic limbs, all of them remarkably real and versatile. But, every once in a while, one of the poor girl's appendages would just fall off and clatter to the ground, giving off a dull, unnatural clank when they did so. Nana drew absolutely no attention to her misfortunes and she worked so very hard, that everyone would completely forget that Nana's body wasn't all her own, until she lost her concentration and let something slip. The clatter of the fake arm or leg would echo down the halls of the old building, and everyone would hear it; everyone would be reminded of Nana.
But it had been awhile since that had happened. It was becoming more apparent with each passing day that the lost appendages were not going to stop Nana from living life just like anyone else. No, the things that prevented a completely happy life grew out of her head…
"Looks like you're getting better with those arms, Nana." Mayu commented to her friend, breaking the pleasant silence that had grown in the room.
The sound of her friend's voice woke Nana from the trance she was in. "Oh please, anyone can do this." She said, matter-of-factly. Inwardly, though, she had a small bit of pride growing, now that she was getting into the swing of cooking soumen.
Without missing a beat, Mayu hefted the heavy noodle-filled-pot and spouted, "At least it isn't totally burnt yet."
"Ah, that was mean!" She didn't say it in a cruel way, or a cold way; it was a warm insult, one that you can roll off your back, because a friend said it. Nevertheless, Nana looked up from her work, and glared for a moment at Mayu's back; she was now pouring the pot's steaming contents into the old sieve she had found in one of the inn's cupboards, with a thoughtful smile. Nana couldn't see her friend's face, but somehow, she felt the smile, she felt the warmth, and she stopped glaring. She began her constant, rhythmic work again, with her own thoughtful smile. The sweet arms of steam squeezed her tightly one last time before Mayu doused the noodles with cold tap water.
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"There is just no end to the work here…" Yuka said, looking out on the shameful condition of the hall in front of her. Someone had let Wanta inside the back door and he had brought in grass and dirt with him, covering the hardwood floors with a nice mess before he had been caught and put back outside. "I explicitly told Mayu to keep that dog tied up…" Yuka said to herself, grabbing a broom from a nearby corner. She had been doing that a lot lately, talking to herself. She would dictate aloud as she cleaned and cooked, while she worked in the endless, winding halls, as she contemplated weeding that horrible garden. Sometimes, she would whisper to herself at night, so low that she couldn't even hear herself. It wasn't because she had no one else to talk to; Nana and Mayu would ask her for advice constantly and would listen carefully to everything she had to say. No, Yuka just didn't like silence, she liked to hear someone's voice when she was alone, even if it was only her own. So, as she swept the huge hallway, she complained, she told herself which areas she would do next, and she sang along with the sad tune that could still be faintly heard from Kouta's open music box. Yuka had never really liked that song, it was too sad sounding, but she hummed along with it anyway, because Kouta was fond of it.
As she swept, Yuka smelt the savory smell of correctly cooked food wafting down from the kitchen. "Good," she said, thankful that the meal was going to turn out okay, "Nana will be happy when she's finished." For a moment, Yuka thought about going in the kitchen to check on everything, but decided against it. The girls were doing just fine on their own, and Yuka didn't enjoy walking around in the maze that she called her home was if it wasn't necessary. On more than one occasion, she had actually gotten lost in the old inn, wandered the halls in big circles looking for hidden bathrooms or broom closets.
Yuka stopped for a moment and leaned against her broom, tired. Normally, sweeping a segment of the huge floor wouldn't be much of a task for the young woman, but today it was so hot that Yuka felt it took twice as much energy to move her broom. The large, curtainless windows that lined the hallway let the sun beat down on Yuka mercilessly. Sweat was beginning to form on her brow and run down her face; the perspiration defied gravity, hanging just barely on to her upper lip and chin. "Can't you please ease up a little?" Yuka begged, squinting out of a window at the cruel sun. If it heard Yuka, it didn't show it; the rays continued to rush down; almost like a waterfall, but with scorching heat instead of cool water. Yuka looked down lower and blinked many times to clear her vision – she had looked almost directly into the sun's glare – and gazed off into her back yard.
"I still haven't done anything with those flowers…" she started, going through her to-do list out loud, "and those bushes have to be trimmed…and that lawn!" She closed her eyes and sighed in frustration; there was still so much to do. Her eyes cracked open again and she began to look away from the window, but as she turned back to her broom she heard a small rustle, the faint sound of that overgrown grass being bent over.
"Oh, I wonder what animal it is this time…" Yuka wondered; already she had seen rabbits, rats, a badger, woodpeckers, hummingbirds, countless songbirds, thousands of insects, and a mongoose in her lawn. Mayu had even claimed that a doe once made an appearance. But the animal that Yuka saw turning around in the grass was one that she had seen many times, although he was very allusive.
"Kouta…" without realizing it, she spoke his name aloud. There he was, lying down, almost perfectly camouflaged in the tall grass. His eyes were shut, almost like he was asleep, but Kouta looked restless, he kept changing positions, bending the grass around him. Already there was a small clearing in the forest of grass with Yuka's cousin in the middle; he looked like a giant surrounded by very thin trees. His face was a little troubled, Yuka saw, and he was obviously deep in thought. He was always deep in thought nowadays. Whenever Kouta thought he was alone, his eyes were closed and he was thinking. Every morning, Yuka had to walk in to Kouta's room just to get him out of bed where he was 'oversleeping.' His baths were far longer than anyone else's, he would stay in the water until it got cold and his extremities were like raisins. He would take long walks everyday to God-knows-where, wouldn't be back until dark, and would eat the cold leftovers from dinner. Yuka was worried. Many times she had spoken to Kouta about his currently standoffish nature, but he would always deny any such actions, say that he had just overslept, had just felt like a little walk. Always, he would change the subject, and Yuka would let him, tired from his excuses. Kouta was spending a very long time by himself, thinking. And Yuka knew who he was thinking about.
Yuka felt a little silly about it, but she was jealous of her. Jealous of Nyuu, even though she was dead, jealous of all the time that Kouta was spending on her memory. She chastised herself for it, she felt horribly guilty about it, but there was a part of Yuka that was happy that Nyuu was gone. Yuka certainly mourned her death; she was such a sweet, innocent girl, always trying to help around, always doing wonderful things to wipe the frown from Kouta's face. Yuka was definitely not happy about her life ending…but, although it shamed her to no end, she whispered a silent 'thank you' every night that Nyuu wouldn't be there in the morning, rubbing up against Kouta and purring her sweet gibberish into his ear. Kouta had always spent so much time with her, worrying about her, talking about her; there had been days when Yuka had regretted seeing the horned girl on the beach.
Looking out at Kouta, Yuka sighed. He was hurting now…and she would just have to wait until he was over this. Eventually, the pink haired vixen would fade from memory and Yuka would be able to slide in closer to the man she loved. She would have to wait, though, it would be too hard for Kouta now, so soon after Nyuu's death, and the timing had to be perfect. Yuka had waited for years; she could wait a little bit longer. But it was so difficult being in the same house with him…
Involuntarily, Yuka began to look Kouta up and down, admiring everything about him as she had done so many times before. His clothes were fairly simple, a black and white tee with blue jeans: an outfit that couldn't have cost more than thirty bucks, but they became priceless when Kouta put them on; he seemed to bring out something special that was hidden in anything he wore. Kouta's slender, yet strong arms were sprawled out to the side now, behind his head now, seemed to be everywhere at once. Yuka suddenly wished that she could know again how it felt to be held in those arms. His dark black hair was getting a little long and it came down over his closed eyes, further hiding their magic from the world. Kouta's deep, blue eyes were starting to become a rare sight, they were closed more and more with each passing day; something that saddened Yuka – his eyes were one of the most fascinating and beautiful things she had ever known. They were truly the windows into his soul; they gleamed when he was happy, they were dull when he was bored, and they always held a subtle sadness that could diminish infinitely, but never truly disappear. His windows were shut now. His soul was hidden. I wish he would open his eyes…she thought to herself, beginning to slip away from reality, open his eyes and look at me, smile and ask me to come and lay in the grass with him…
"Yuka?"
It would be horribly itchy and I'd be very uncomfortable, but I would nestle up near him anyway; feel his warm breath on my neck even in the hot sun… I would close my eyes and confess to Kouta how much I loved him…
"Yuka? Umm…Yuka?"
He would smile and tell me how much he loved me…We would both lean in slowly…I would close my eyes…
"Yuka?" The fantasizing young woman was woken from her wonderful daydream by a series of gentle taps. There stood little Mayu, wearing the light pink dress that Yuka had bought her for warmer weather. She looked absolutely adorable, up on her tiptoes to reach her guardian's shoulder.
"Ah, yes? What is it?" Yuka asked, still shaking away the figments of her imagination.
"The food is done, if you're ready to eat." Mayu said, sounding both proud and relieved with Nana's success. Her tone changed, though, to one of slight concern. "You've been staring out that window for a long time…"
Yuka's face turned a little red at this comment; she had lost all track of time looking at Kouta. "Oh, it's nothing…" she stammered, "I was just taking a break. It's so hot today…"
"Oh, okay…" Mayu wasn't entirely convinced, but didn't push it any further.
"Why don't you and Nana go and put the soumen on the table…I'll go and get Kouta." Yuka suggested, placing her broom against the wall.
"Alright," Mayu said, turning away, "I think everyone will enjoy this…"
"I'm sure we will!" Yuka said, her voice growing a little bit louder as she spoke. Mayu had disappeared behind a corner, going back to the kitchen.Yuka had to take a steadying breath…Mayu's entrance during her daydream had embarrassed her, made her feel a little awkward. The young woman looked into a hanging mirror on the wall for a moment and scrutinized her appearance, running a hand through her hair a few times before heading outside to call her cousin in for dinner.
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What should I do?Lucy stood at the entrance of the inn, her head pulsing with pain in time with her heartbeat. The large, semi-transparent gate was like a giant mouth, one that was securely shut; and Lucy didn't have the strength to pry it open. She hadn't moved for a while, she honestly didn't have the faintest idea about what action she was going to undergo next. The obvious answer was, of course, to enter, but the diclonius found that solution to be full of faults, completely out of the question.
But I can't just walk in…she thought. I can't just show up on his doorstep like this and say, "Kouta, I did not want to die, so I'm back. I'm sorry, but I changed my mind." What will he think of me? Coming back here like a little lost dog. I'm pathetic… I'm selfish…
She could imagine it now, Kouta's shocked reaction to her horrible, bloody appearance. It would sink in slowly, maybe he would give out a little scream like the others, and maybe he wouldn't even recognize her. Maybe he would tell her to leave, to go back and die…No, Kouta wouldn't do anything like that. Lucy reasoned. Kouta is far too…she searched for a word to describe him, and found that she had none that would do adequately. 'Compassionate' and 'kind' didn't begin to do him any justice. 'Sweet' or 'warm' seemed far too small for Kouta. 'Good natured' was what you would call an animal. She had no word for Kouta, had no word that would explain why he wouldn't throw her away, wouldn't spit on her like all the others. Kouta is far too…Kouta to do any if those things. She knew it sounded strange, but his name was the only word she had.
I suppose I have no idea what Kouta would do. She admitted to herself, which was a surprise. Lucy had the uncanny ability to know exactly what people were going to do as long as they had the hidden prejudice and cowardice that most humans had, buried deep within their dank, rotten souls. From the awful children of her school to the cruel men in the cold lab, Lucy had learned to recognize signs: body language or words that would foretell a painful test, or a fired gun. Whenever someone called her a freak, or a monster, whenever someone tried to hurt her, Lucy saw it coming, because so many others had tried to do the same in the past. She had gotten so good at reading people that she could (and would) kill them before they had a chance to try and hurt her.
But the people from this inn in front of her, they could not be read. Lucy had no idea what one of of them would do next. Nana, for instance: that little pest had given her one of the toughest fights of her life; she was unpredictable because the strange ways her heart made her act. She didn't give many of the signs that Lucy had depended upon to kill easily; she had only lost because of her frailness, her inexperience with fighting. That little girl was not a fighter, couldn't ever hope to win against a hardened murderer like Lucy.
And Kouta; he was the most unpredictable man she had ever known. Everything that he did surprised her, he always had a new, different outlook on a situation. Even when they were children, his actions sometimes seemed to Lucy to have no rhyme or reason. Like when he had snuck away from home, even when he had heard that a vicious killer was on the loose, just to see her, a little horned girl he had met merely by chance. Taking her away to see amazing animals, buying her strange frozen treats, holding her hand, spending an entire day with her, Kouta did so many things that were unpredictable. She had actually begun to lose her lose faith in the system of predictions she had built up from her cruel classmates and teachers. When Kouta disappeared from her life, however, she began to see the patterns clearly again. Nothing that the scientists behind the glass threw at her was at all surprising to Lucy. It was a talent that made her very cynical and cold-hearted.
Now, though, she had absolutely no idea what would happen if she opened that gate and stepped inside. Lucy wasn't an easily deterred person; she could handle many things that would drive normal men insane, but not knowing what would happen if she opened the gate in front of her held her back Going into an absolute unknown wasn't all that bad, it was going into an absolute unknown that involved Kouta that kept Lucy's hands away from the hatch. Anything could happen…she thought, Kouta could do anything… She suddenly felt every cell of her body grow very cold, as if an icy hand had clenched her heart; the pain in her head became much more evident. Lucy didn't recognize the sensation at first; it had been such a long time since she had felt it. It slowly crept under her skin and chilled what little blood she had left in her veins.
She was frightened.
Lucy, the diclonius that had stood against barrages of bullets without blinking; the horned monster who had faced the most sickening carnage imaginable without a bit of fear, was frightened. Frightened of seeing the one who would give her the most kindness, the most sympathy. She wanted to see him more than anything in the world, to feel his smooth cheek again, to hear his kind, even voice again. But she was afraid of showing her face, of showing Kouta her bloody, mangled, ugliness. She was afraid to knock on his door, an unwanted problem and burden. So she just stood there, paralyzed, unable to move closer or further away from the gate – from Kouta.
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"Thanks for the food!" Everyone was seated at the table together, something that Yuka had insisted upon. They hadn't eaten a meal with everyone present since the day before last, something that she found despicable.
Nana's stomach rumbled with a vengeance; it took all of her willpower not to dunk her head into the large, soumen-filled bowl set on the old table. She watched as Yuka filled everyone's dishes with agonizing slowness, Nana was almost drooling in anticipation. When her bowl was finally filled, she almost forgot about utensils and nearly went in with her bare hands. Her left hand hit the table and she groped for her chopsticks blindly, her eyes were completely glued to the meal in front of her. It glistened in the sunlight, tempting her and making her tummy grow very impatient. When she finally felt the thin sticks, she grasped them tightly and wasted no time in slurping down a mouthful of the noodles that she had worked so hard to make. As soon as they hit her tongue, her eyes widened, like she had just seen a ghost.
This is strange…but… good. Cold…but not cold like my old home. It's almost as if the sun has just been covered. The air doesn't seem quite as sticky or uncomfortable anymore…and I made this? I can do things like this?
"This is delicious!" Nana cried suddenly, slightly startling everyone. It was unlike anything she had ever tasted, not surprising to her in the least, but she certainly wasn't prepared for the air around her to change, for the heat beating down on her to slacken. What shocked her most was the fact that she had produced this wonderful thing and it made her heart swell with joy.
"Oh?" Yuka commented. "Is this the first time you've eaten soumen?"
"Yes, I didn't get the chance to try it earlier." Nana replied, wrapping more noodles around her thin pieces of wood.
That's right…she didn't get to have them the last time we tried…Yuka thought, looking at the little girl in front of her. And that had been her first chance. Nana had been acting so helpful and independent lately that her strange past and her differences from all others had, for a moment, been erased from Yuka's mind. Nana's horns were invisible to her guardian.
Kouta gazed at Nana, she was beginning to tremble slightly. A very strange thought suddenly popped into his head: Nana's hair…her horns…her eyes…she looks a little like Nyuu…
Mayu had been looking at the people she considered her new parents, she thought it was a little rude the way they were staring at Nana. But when she heard a quiet sniffle coming from her right, she tentatively turned to look. Nana had tears welled up in her eyes; her swelling heart had begun to overflow.
"There are so many wonderful things…" She was shaking all over, but not from the soumen. Seemingly without cause, a small, crying horned girl flashed in front of her eyes; the same girl that had taken her Papa away. "So many…" Then, the cold woman who had cut off her limbs. The only other horned girls she had known invaded her vision, but she wasn't frightened. Although both of them had hurt her, had stolen valuable things from her, she still felt a small sense of sympathy for them. Now that they are gone…they won't be able to taste soumen…or feel this hot, sticky air… A tear ran down her face and fell from her chin. It silently dropped into her bowl.
"Nana?" Mayu ventured, feeling concerned for her friend. Nana's tears were starting to make her feel very sad as well. The little diclonius broke way from her thoughts and sat up straight, tears still left in her eyes. In the short, uncomfortable silence that followed, Nana looked around at her family, at all the wonderful things that she had, and would have; she wondered if she deserved it.
"I-I'm sorry!" she stuttered, wiping the remaining tears away with the back of her hand. "Well then, let's eat!" she called, grabbing more noodles than could ever fit into her small, already filled bowl.
"Go ahead, if you don't eat well then you won't grow up." Yuka called, finally taking a bite of her own. Kouta's gaze still hadn't left Nana. He held a great responsibility with her, but he was ready for it. This little girl had many things that she still needed to experience, and he would to try his best to help her. For the first time in a long while, Kouta wasn't thinking about that woman – but all thoughts that do not pertain to Nyuu are soon interrupted: this time by a faint, but sharp, series of yips and barks from Wanta.
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The little puppy had been sleeping peacefully, worn out by the girls he watched and protected. But a horrific scent, magnified a hundred fold by his keen canine sense of smell had given him a very unpleasant awakening. He had started off with an intimidating growl, but the scent didn't get the hint – whatever was producing it didn't flee in terror as Wanta had predicted. So he let out a few barks between growls. Still nothing. The puppy's little eyes darted around trying to find the source of this powerful assault on his nose. Normally, he would have smelled where the air was fouler to pinpoint an object, but everything was so completely filled by the scent…
There it was, a dark figure at the gate. The smell generating from it was almost visible to Wanta. He wasn't about to let this horrible smelling thing get to his girls; he pulled out the heavy artillery.
Yip! Yip-Yip! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr… Bark! Bark-Bark-Bark! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…Bark-Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark- Bark!
But there was something familiar about this scent…it was far, far stronger than it had been, and it was mixed with others he had never smelled before, but Wanta seemed to remember somebody…
Yip! Yip! Grrrr…Yip! Bark-Bark! Yip, yip, yip!Yes, there was definitely something familiar hidden in this overpowering musk. Singling it out, Wanta's mind raced through its instinctive filing system to put an image with the smell…
Yip! Yip! Yip!Wanta's tail began wagging and his growls gave way to welcoming calls. He remembered this one, she was just like one of his girls, always gave him scraps to eat and gentle pats on the head. Although Wanta hoped she would consider a quick roll in the mud to hide her horrible smell, he couldn't wait to see her again. He began to run out, trying to greet her, but was yanked back by the short rope attached to his house. Deciding that a different approach was needed, the little dog opted to simply make as much noise as he could. That usually helped things.
Yip! Yip! Yip! Yip! Yip!------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Oh?" I wonder if we're getting visitors."
"I'll go and see." Kouta said, getting up from the table and leaving the women alone.
Who would visit us? He thought – he couldn't remember anybody who he had given this address to. He didn't think much of it though, Probably just a sales person trying to unload encyclopedias. He skillfully navigated to the front door, counting in his head to see how long it took. He made it in just les than ten seconds. A new personal best, he thought to himself, but it looks like Nyuu still has me beat…she had made it in less than five that first night, that night I yelled at her for breaking Kanae's shell…It didn't surprise him anymore that he remembered little things like that.
The visitor's outline could be seen on the inn's screen gate. It wasn't moving at all; if Kouta hadn't known better, he would have thought that someone had just erected a statue in front of his family's house. It had the thin and shapely form of a woman, but whoever it was they had awkward posture, the shape was slightly hunched over. No sounds could be heard from the person at the gate, there weren't any attempts to slide the gate open, and the shape didn't even lift one of its shadowy fingers as Wanta yipped at it.
Slightly puzzled, Kouta slipped into the shoes he had left at the doorstep and stepped out into the unforgiving sunlight.
A melancholy tune was still floating lazily through the air; Kouta's music box was still open nearby. He didn't even think about it – the song had become a natural thing to hear; it ran through his mind on a continuous loop whether his box was open or not. So Kouta didn't even notice it when the song began to slow. Or when the gears inside stopped turning, finally exhausted, and the box fell silent.
He did notice it however, when the old grandfather clock suddenly struck out a deep, rich chime from within the inn. It resonated down through all the halls and grew stronger with each hall it bounced off of - by the time it hit Kouta's ears, it had grown into a truly powerful sound. The dusty sound gave the impression of faded glory; the dusty clock was an aging and wrinkled king; although it had certainly eroded with age, its voice was still booming and powerful, still demanded attention and respect.
Kouta stopped dead in his tracks.
"It's working…" Kouta was assaulted with memories – Nyuu staring at the pendulum, fascinated. He had remembered the exact face she had when she first set it into motion with a tentative push, the way it had bloomed into a shining smile when the dusty bronze rod began its constant back and forth swing. From that moment on Nyuu had been intrigued by the mysteries that the old, broken grandfather clock held. She had even go so far as to completely take it apart, piece by piece, and put it back together. Kouta hadn't thought much of it then, but now he saw hidden meaning in all of it…
Kouta shook his head to clear away his thoughts and turned back to the gate. The shadow still hadn't budged from its original position. Wanta gave a small yip of encouragement to Kouta, more or less telling him to take the initiative. He walked toward the gate, growing slightly apprehensive as he did so. As he grew closer, the shadow grew clearer. She was definitely female and she was very slumped. He saw now that her arms were lying at her sides like dead weight. Kouta hesitated when he reached the gate, there was really to telling who was behind it… but he didn't hesitate for long. Something deep inside him was working together with Wanta, urging him on.
He slid the door back…
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Cliff hanger :)
If you liked it, review it! I can't really explain it, but I always seem to have inspiration after reading a nice, long review. Also, chapters always seem to come out quicker when I get constructive feedback. So tell me what you think!
Anyway, Time to shout out to all my homies!
ZionCross: Yeah, I think that Nana is also an important character, and she has had it tough. Maybe she'll be happy now…Or maybe, if I'm feeling nasty, I'll find a way to make her miserable again. (Evil cackle) Thanks for the clarification about the nature of a 100-series. And yes, I am one.
Paniwi: Thanks; I appreciate somebody commenting on that little-girl-and-her-mother scene I got going. Just thought I should put it in to help show why nobody would help Lucy. Oh, and "anyhooble" is the coolest word I have seen all day. I may have to steal that from you.
Baron Noir: Cool, you like the Nana parts? Well, then…let there be more Nana! (It's pretty fun being God of a little universe)
DSJF-X18: Aw man, that review made me feel all warm and tingly. Yeah, that's kind of the reason I wrote this puppy: I couldn't let it end that way. And that OAV ticked me off. What the heck was that? I mean, it was set in the middle of the series! I wanted a better ending! GRAHHH!……………………..sorry. Thank you for your kind comments, and don't sweat not logging on. Please, please, please do write an Elfen Lied fiction, by the way. As great a review writer as you are, I just know that an EL story written by you would make an awesome addition to the section. (Man, that was a pretty long shout out…)
A Now Dedicated Reviewer: Many thanks, and I absolutely L-O-V-E the name you've given yourself. It's too late to back out now…you have to read and review every chapter of my story from now on, or I'll be forced to…you know. XD
Warui-Usagi: Can't thank you enough – putting in two reviews! You are the coolest Evil Rabbit I know. At least the coolest Evil Rabbit from Australia I know…nope, you take the cake! Putting me on your favorite author and author alert list just put you on the top of the standings. You rock!