Chapter 17

Well that certainly made things a little different now didn't it? The bedroom situation would need to change again to accommodate a little girl into the mix, however, Haruhi was quite happy to share with Chiharu since the little girl had somehow become attached to Haruhi since her arrival that morning. It was kind of cute really and even Ranka couldn't help but say as much.

Ritsu however was feeling a little weird about it. They'd taken in a kid because her dad told some story about being infected and now he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Call it intuition, call it yakuza experience… call it what you will but Ritsu had an iffy feeling about it all and he was happy to tell Nanako as much when they walked around the grounds to make sure everything was still secure.

"Look… I'm not saying that the little girl is suspicious but I am saying I am not sure about this" he spoke low as they walked beside the wall.

"Why though? I mean he told us he'd been bitten, he seemed torn up leaving her with us" Nanako chewed her lip a little.

"I know… but think about it… we are in one of the most secure buildings in the area and some guy just takes a chance on this place? Took a chance on there being people here?" Ritsu raised a brow "It just sounds fishy to me, that's all…"

"Maybe you're just feeling paranoid…" Nanako suggested with a shrug

"Or maybe we just fell into a big ass trap… we didn't actually see any bites on him, we just assumed he was telling the truth because he had a bandage on his arm… look" he sighed softly "you were saying last night about the adults and how they'd not bothered with us kids when it all went down… what if this is some kind of ploy for a group of adults to come along and take over here. Sure, this home belongs to your family but a group of adults would easily overpower us and before you know it, you're sleeping in a tent in the yard while they've got the house… or worse? They kick us outside the gates so they can be safe"

"Sounds like you really thought about this…" Nanako eyed him "I'm sure we'll be fine… I mean I'm the only person that knows the codes for the gates and the keypad in the camera room requires the codes… there is no way that little girl could let anyone in…"

Nanako tried to shake it off but now Ritsu had planted a seed of doubt in her mind… could this little girl be as innocent and sweet as she seemed to be? Or could it be some plan for a larger group to take the place over? She needed to talk to Kyoya about this. He'd know about things like bugs and hidden cameras. The girl had come in with nothing but the clothes on her back and soon enough she was going to have to get changed for a bath and then bed… if her clothes were bugged, Nanako anticipated Chiharu wouldn't want to take that bath or be parted from her clothes… Thanks Ritsu for over thinking things.

Nanako's POV

Ritsu really had to go and say that didn't he? Now all I could think about was that sweet little girl being some kind of spy for a group of survivors that would do anything they felt they had to in order to survive. Sure, it was true that we had the space here to accommodate more survivors but we weren't a big group to start with and it wouldn't take much for a vote to sway out of our favour and we'd find ourselves without a safe place to stay.

There were a lot of things wrong with how that morning had gone… Genji hadn't looked all that bad for someone who was nearing the turn… I should know, I'd seen someone turn… also, we never actually saw his bite mark… then there was the way he seemed surprised that we were armed… did he maybe think we'd just be a group of teens with no idea on what to do out there… rich spoiled teens with no experience out in the shit?

Now I was paranoid. I wasn't the only one though.

Kyoya approached me with some excuse about wanting to check out the wood stores in the yard, taking my arm and guiding me outside rather quickly, out of earshot of Chiharu.

Once we were halfway across the grounds he finally spoke.

"I think something is wrong… I think we missed the bigger picture" he adjusted his glasses.

"Oh god… not you too" I groaned "I already got Ritsu going on about how this is some kind of long game setup and how the kid is bugged… don't tell me you've gotten all weird about it too"

"Firstly, yes, I think this is odd and secondly… Ritsu?" he questioned with a raised brow.

I opened my mouth and closed it quickly, choosing my words carefully before speaking again "yes Ritsu… we decided we were friends enough to drop the formalities"

Oh no no… you liar Nanako! It's totally because you kissed and admitted you liked each other and are kinda girlfriend/boyfriend without the label because you don't want to freak Ritsu out about it all!

"I see" Kyoya nodded "well, anyway… I do believe this all seems too convenient… this guy shows up here with a little girl, he admits he's been bitten but we don't actually see it… he asks us to promise to look after her, looks taken aback by the fact we are somewhat armed and casually strolls off once his little girl is inside our gates… all of this happening literally the morning after we get here"

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair "I see your point… I really do… but I also find it hard to believe… that's all…"

"I can also see it from your point as well" Kyoya nodded "but I think we should really air on the side of caution… maybe check the kids clothes later, convince her to take a bath… even though she doesn't look all that dirty"

Kyoya did have another point there… for people who presumably have been out there since this all started, they both did look a little too clean but again… I really don't think it's possible… I mean why do that when they could have just stormed the gates the minute I opened them? On a slightly less menacing note, what if it was some kind of test to see what kind of people we were before they came to us for help? Seems a bit cruel that they'd use a child like that but adults could be sneaky and I guess someone is more likely to accept a child into their ranks than a random adult who shows up at the gate asking for shelter.

I finished my little chat with Kyoya and moved back into the house to check on what was going on with lunch prep. We had enough food to share, though the one extra mouth to feed would mean a supply run would have to happen a little faster than I'd have hoped, mostly because we can't live on ramen for every meal of the day, no matter how tasty it is.

"Ranka, how's lunch prep going?" I asked, hopping up to sit on the counter.

"Ah! Nanako! Yes well… I am making something with rice… I am not sure what until I look through the spices and things you have here" he smiled "something on your mind?"

"Mm nothing for you to worry about right now Ranka" I smiled softly "all you have to worry about is what to make that rice into for lunch… speaking of, I need to talk with the others about organising a supply run… stuff is going to run down a little quicker with a kid to feed"

Because seriously, kids eat and eat and eat and never seem satisfied… hopefully we could keep the snacking down to a minimum to help stuff last longer.

"Nanako?" I heard a small voice from the doorway.

"Yes Chiharu-chan?" I smiled softly.

"How does that big gate work?" she asked and boy did that set off red flag one for me.

"Well… like most other gates, it opens and closes" I smiled, unwilling to delve further into that.

"Okay!" and off she went.

By the time night fell I was seriously starting to think we were playing a waiting game. Not because of the zombies but because that sweet little girl just seemed too suspicious and all I had floating around in my head was the conversation's I'd had with Ritsu and Kyoya. When Chiharu decided she was tired and wanted to go to bed, she wouldn't settle for anyone other than Ranka to tuck her in for the night.

I'd managed thankfully to have a little chat with Ranka earlier in the day about how Chiharu seemed rather interested in the gates and how I was planning on a group meeting that night once the kid was asleep. It was agreed that Ranka wouldn't answer anything she had to ask about the gates or anything else that would seem odd.

I watched as Ranka lead Chiharu upstairs and once I knew they were out of earshot, I motioned for everyone to follow me to the back of the house where the larger office was.

"Okay we need to talk" I looked around the group as we all sat on the couches in the office.

"About what?" Tamaki asked, blinking a few times.

"About our little guest" I sighed softly.

"What about her?" Haruhi frowned a little.

"Look… I didn't want to have this conversation with you all but Kyoya-senpai and Ritsu have both bought up some valid points and I'd like to share them with you" I cleared my throat and continued to explain, filling the others in on what had been said.

"… and so, that is why I am asking you all to be careful what you tell her about the house, about the gates, about anything that is keeping us safe" I finished with a sigh.

"You really think that little girl is part of some master plan for another group to force us out?" Tamaki seemed surprised but somehow also a little upset that I'd even suggest it.

"All I am saying is it's convenient that's all" I rubbed my face "just think about it okay? Dude turns up here with a little girl, seems to be in good health, the only time a bite is mentioned is because we asked if he was bitten… we never saw that bite. He claimed he didn't have long left but he looked in REALLY good condition for someone nearing the end"

"So if you noticed that at the time, why did you let the girl in?" Kaoru asked

"I don't know if you guys noticed but the guys story was pretty damned convincing" I looked around at each of them "I am hoping I am wrong… god you guys… I really really want to be wrong about this…"

"You don't sound like it" Haruhi had an accusatory tone to her voice.

"W-what?" I blinked

"You let Kasanoda get into your head and convince you something was wrong. Chiharu is a child for crying out loud! What are you going to suggest next? That we turn her loose and let her get eaten?" Haruhi narrowed her eyes, arms crossed over her chest.

"Unless you spaced out during what I said… Kyoya-senpai said pretty much the same thing!" I couldn't believe this was happening "why did you immediately jump on Ritsu for this?"

"Ritsu?" Haruhi quirked a brow "first name terms already? You hardly know him… he's already got you on his side"

I could see Ritsu doing his damned best to reign in his anger before it exploded.

"What is your problem Haruhi?" I asked "Really, what is it? I'm not saying we kick the girl out, I'm not saying we do anything like that… I just want us to remain vigilant and not let anything fly under our radar that could put us in danger"

"And suspecting a little girl is going to make that so much easier to do… right?" Haruhi stared at me like I was something nasty she'd just stepped in.

"Haruhi" Kyoya spoke up "everyone new that joins us must be under some form of suspicion. We don't know how other people are dealing with this crisis and we need to be prepared"

"Oh I understand that" Haruhi nodded "I just don't understand why a child is so suspicious and why she's taking advice from Kasanoda"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ritsu finally spoke up

"It means… Your judgement is skewed from your upbringing and should be taken with a pinch of salt" Haruhi eyed him.

"So… you saying his opinions aren't as important or as valid as yours or anyone else's?" I asked quietly.

I was in a little bit of shock upon hearing Haruhi's words. For someone so level headed and willing to listen to everyone, she was certainly showing some cracks in her façade. Was it the fact the world was crumbling around her? Or was it that we'd all been inseparable for almost a week? Something was eating at her and she was taking it out on the wrong people.

"Maybe I am" she shrugged "maybe I'm not… but the fact that you are coming out here saying a little girl is suspicious is just insane!"

The conversation wasn't going anywhere and I rubbed my face.

"Fine, let's take it to a vote" I offered "All who think the circumstances under which Chiharu arrived are suspicious, raise your hands"

I put up my hand, so did Ritsu and Kyoya

"Okay, and who thinks we have no right to be suspicious?" I looked around as Haruhi and Tamaki raised their hands.

"I see" I sighed a little "and who doesn't know what to think about this?"

Mori, Honey, Hikaru and Kaoru raised their hands slowly.

I tried again to come across a bit more diplomatic than I had before "Can we all agree not to share important information with outsiders?"

Nobody said anything, all looking at each other before Haruhi spoke up.

"That sounds fair" she nodded

"Including Chiharu or any other children we might end up coming across?" I was internally crossing my fingers, hoping she wasn't going to fly off the handle again.

"I still don't see why you're so suspicious but fine" she huffed a little.

I guess some people find it hard to think of children as anything other than innocent… and Haruhi was one of them.

Haruhi refused to talk to me for the rest of the evening, as did Tamaki. They kept to themselves or only spoke to anyone who wasn't me, Kyoya or Ritsu. Ranka even seemed a bit torn about the whole ordeal, mostly hovering over Haruhi because well… she was his daughter after all and I'd be disappointed if he took my side over hers.