Hey Everyone.

Betcha didn't expect to hear from me again. Sorry about not uploading in so long, Life and a general lack of motivation got in the way and honestly I forgot I'd ever wrote this. I didnt really like the direction the Tokyo Ghoul manga was going in so my interest in the series just sort of tapered off.

I received a random PM from someone asking if this was abandoned and decided to have another crack at it. Having said that I'm not making any promises that I will end up completing the story but I will at least try. Its a fairly short Chapter and don't expect another one for a while since I need to actually figure out where I'm going with this story. Up until now I was basically making it up as I go with no real plan or direction in mind. So I'm going to spend some time mapping it out and developing some actual plot. I have the ending in my mind but I need to figure out how I'm going to get there.

Chapter 9

"This is quite the serious matter" Yoshimura said as he looked around the room. The staff along with Hinami had gathered on the couches in the small break room at the back of Anteiku and Kaneki had just finished retelling the events of the last few hours in as much detail as he could. The only one absent was Touka who had retreated to her room almost immediately after arriving, only stopping to let the old man look over her injuries.

"How is she?" Yoshimura turned to Irimi, who had been patiently standing by the doorway.

"Her injuries are fairly minor, mostly just a cut on her arm and a bump on the head. From what I can tell it was probably just the shock that caused her to pass out. I doubt the kids ever seen a dead body before, let alone had to watch someone die before" she elaborated. "She's sleeping soundly upstairs".

"I see…" Yoshimura took a moment to process the situation before speaking. "Kaneki, this girls a friend of yours isn't she? How do you think she will react now that she knows what Touka and Hinami are?"

Kaneki took a nervous sip of his coffee. "Honestly, I have no idea. I've only known her for a while and I have no idea how she feels about ghouls" He admitted. "Honestly, she's has a closer relationship with Hide than she does with me".

"She won't tell…"

"Hinami?"

Everyone turned to the young girl curled up in a blanket on the couch

"She tried to save me. And even after she knew what I was she tried to get the man to let me go". Tears were beginning to well and slowly run down her face. "She won't tell…"

Yoshimura gave her a reassuring smile before turning to Yomo.

"And what about Touka?"

"Hard to say really. She hasn't said a word since we got back, but I doubt she's going to take any of this well".

Silence fell over the group. No one wanted to say what they were all thinking. In the end it was Koma that spoke up. "Look I like the girl so I didn't want to be the one to say it but… This is dangerous, I mean really dangerous. Just having her here puts not just us at risk, but everyone that relies on us. If this goes badly then all that we've worked to build here could fall apart." It was obvious this wasn't a conversation he wanted to be having. "Now I'm not saying we do anything drastic. But we need to be able to guarantee that she isn't going to run straight to the doves and tell them everything first chance she gets".

"I think," Kaneki began. "From what Hinami said before and from what little I do know about her she'd probably at least be willing to listen to us. On top of that she's from the States so it's not like she grew up hating ghouls or anything right? Let's at least try talking to her, explain what it is we do here and that not all ghouls are like what she been told".

It was Irimi that decided to speak up next. "I'll admit, I don't like the idea of this girl knowing about us. We've all lost friends or family because they were exposed but… I don't like the idea of killing her either when there's a chance we won't have to. To do that without at least giving her a chance goes against everything we're trying to accomplish here. To that end I'm willing to monitor her when I'm not working, and I'll make sure the local's know she's off limits too".

"I can do the same" said Nishiki their newest member. "After everything that happened with Kimi, it'd be hypocritical of me to okay with killing her. We go to the same university even if we are in different departments, I can still watch her. Maybe I can introduce her to Kimi too" he added sounding somewhat hopeful "maybe meeting another human in the know will help her see us differently. At the very least it'll make it easier to keep track of her if they become friends".

Yoshimura looked around the room to see if anyone else wanted to make their opinion known. Yomo remained stoically silent, a trait not that uncommon for him. Hinami had wiped her eyes with a handkerchief Kaneki had silently handed her and was now staring up at him to see what decision he would make. He smiled as noted the determination in her eyes. The poor girl had lost everything to the CCG and yet she was still willing to speak out in defence a human she barely knew. Maybe it was because she was still young and naive but even still, it gave him hope.

"I see everyone has already made up their mind then? Very well then, when Miss Swan wakes up I will have a talk with her and explain the situation. If she is willing to listen then I will tell her what it is we do here and why". He stood and started heading toward the door "for now let's call it a night. Hopefully tomorrow will turn out to be much brighter for us all".

He really hoped she was willing to listen…


Bella woke feeling groggy and disoriented. Slowly she sat up, looking around the unfamiliar room from her position on the small bed trying to figure out where the hell she was. The room was dark save for a small sliver of light creeping in from behind curtains but she could still make out the silhouettes of a desk and wardrobe on the opposite end of the room. She was in someone's bedroom that much was obvious. But who's? And how did she get here? She was still in her clothes though someone had taken off her shoes and put them at the foot of the bed. She racked her brain listing the events of the day before trying to piece together how she had somehow ended up in such an unfamiliar place.

The last thing she remembered was walking home from Haruko's when…

Oh God…

She could feel bile in her stomach as memories came rushing back, hitting her like a freight train and she found herself fighting back the urge to gag as the events of the night before replayed in her head. She looked down at her arm to inspect the injury she'd gotten trying to run from that man and was surprised to see her arm had been cleaned and bandaged. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and slowly got to her feet and drew the curtains. Squinting against the bright morning sun she looked down at the street below where people were going about their day. It didn't take long to figure out where she was. For a moment she just stood there watching the customers come and go from the store as she pieced everything together.

At some point last night she'd passed out and someone presumably Touka or someone else had taken her back here. Where they had gone so far as to treat her injuries. The creaking of the door behind her drew her attention back to the present

"Ah miss Swan, good to see you on your feet". The old man said as he stepped into the room. "I thought you would probably be hungry so I took the liberty of making you some breakfast". He had the same kind expression he had the last time they spoke. She followed him out and into the next room where a small platter of sandwiches was sitting on the coffee table along with some glasses and a pitcher of water. She took a seat on the couch and took one of the small triangle sandwiches, inspecting it a more closely than was strictly necessary.

"It's just a ham sandwich. I can assure you we've done nothing untoward with it".

She took a few small bites careful not to upset her stomach. Once she was sure she could keep it down she dug into the rest.

"Now I imagine you have quite a few questions so why don't we take this opportunity to answer any questions you no doubt have after last night?"

Bella was at a loss for words. Where to even begin? "Well." She bit her lip "I guess the first the first thing I'd like to know is what happened exactly? How did I get here? Because I'm pretty sure I didn't make it all the way here on my own".

"Shortly after you passed out Kaneki and another associate of mine arrived and were able to get the three of you back here safely. As far as we can tell no one is aware of your involvement in last night's incident."

"I see… so that's what happened" She let that sink in.

"What happened to the others are they alright?"

"While understandably shaken. Young Miss fueguchi and Touka are a both alright and recovering from their ordeal."

"Then are you also…?"

"A ghoul?"

"Y-yeah".

"Yes. This establishment is owned and run by ghouls. And in time in time I'd like to show you what we do here. But first I want to thank you"

"Thank me?"

"For standing up for young Miss Feuguchi. Very few people would have done what you did".

"It didn't really help though, he was still going to…" she felt he stomach lurch at the thought.

"And yet you still put yourself in harm's way. Not just for a stranger but for a ghoul. That alone is very telling of the kind of person you are. It's for this reason I want to thank you, and assure you that no harm will come to you here." The old man smiled.

"Then you're welcome I guess…"

"That said. I would ask that you do not speak of what happened last night or of what we are to anyone. Our lives depend on absolute secrecy and for better or worse you now know of us." He said looking her in the eye his expression neutral as he waited to observe her reaction.

"I won't say anything" she assured him "who would believe me anyway?"

"You'd be surprised. This isn't the United States, there are many ghouls in Tokyo. More than the CCG or the government would ever publicly admit".

"I see" she pondered that for a moment. How many ghouls were there? Surely there had to be a limit. Too many and the number of missing persons would go through the roof. Wouldn't it?

"So… what happens now?"

"How do you feel about a job?"

"I'm sorry what?" That caught her off guard.

"It would be a good way for you to get to know the staff more, and perhaps gain a better understanding of how we live" he explained. "Don't misunderstand, I'm not forcing you too, but I think it would be good in the long run, one of us would always be responsible for your safety at any given time and I dare say it would give everyone here a little peace of mind".

"You mean so that they can keep an eye on me and make sure I don't go running to the police"

"It's not the police we are worried about, but yes I admit that some of us are concerned about how this could play out."

That made sense. Given what she knew about them that they would want to keep her close. It wasn't a bad idea though.

"Alright I'll do it. I could use a part time job anyway."

"Well then it's settled" Yoshimura picked up the empty plate and stood up. "I'll prepare the necessary paperwork." A moment later knock at the door alerted them to the presence a familiar young girl as she quietly made her way into the room. The old man patted Hinami on the shoulder as he made his way out the door and down the stairs leaving the two alone.

"Uh... Hey". She awkwardly greeted Hinami as she made her way over to where Bella sat. "The manager said you were resting". She just sat there staring at the floor looking broken and miserable. For what felt like an eternity neither of them moved or said a word. The hell was she even supposed to say? In the end it was Hinami who broke the silence.

"Are you scared of me?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. Bella looked at her. Really looked at her at her. She was a ghoul, a flesh eater capable of ripping her to pieces with those strange protrusions that she seemed to conjure from nowhere. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes she would never have believed it. This was all so messed up and none of it was fair. Is not like she'd wanted to involve herself in all of this. But none of it was the fault of the scared lonely child. An orphan, who sat in front of her now. She reached across and wrapped her arms around the poor girl bringing her in for a hug.

The damn broke and the tears came as the two sat in silence.

Hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to use the review function to leave any constructive criticism you have. I'm always looking to improve and I cant do that If I don't get honest feedback.

Let me know your Thoughts!