"Aw," Mew's catlike voice taunted from across the aisle, "someone's got a crush."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kaito said, knowing full well Mew caught him rubbing his thumb over the handkerchief Ms. Miku gave him a couple nights ago before gently tucking it into his coat pocket. What a night it was. Kaito didn't expect to really talk with or even meet any of the Cinderellas at the ball, yet he got to know one whom he danced with for hours that felt like minutes.
Before they said their good nights, Ms. Miku handed him her handkerchief. It was a sign that he was favorable in her sight and she hoped he would remember her in the future. Or, as Mew so delicately put it, "She wants you to court her, idiot."
"For someone who graduated at the top of her class in an academy for proper ladies," Kaito began, "you sure talk like a soldier."
"That's because I am a soldier." Mew leaned back in the hovercraft chair and stretched out her legs in an unladylike manor. Gone was the dressed up, well-mannered woman from the ball. Sitting face-to-face across Kaito was a soldier in camouflage running shorts, black combat boots, and a solid black shirt with a low V-neck. Her inky hair was tied up in a messy bun, and not a smidge of makeup was on her face. When she grinned, it was with the confidence of someone who knew she could beat Kaito up without breaking a sweat.
Since Kaito was always the kid who skipped physical education to hide away in the library to read, he didn't doubt Mew would be the one to win a fight between them.
"What's the old saying?" Wil mused as he entered the hovercraft and sat next to his wife. His outfit was similar to Mew's, the only difference being his shirt was a tank top while Mew's was a short sleeve. "'You can take a Cinderella out of the military, but you can't take the military out of a Cinderella'?"
"Why do you think Mistress Prima detested me so?" Mew, Kaito recently learned, was born and raised on a military base. Her father and Alice mother were both soldiers, and they made sure their only child was perfectly capable of defending herself. Things such as table manners and what not to say at a formal event were not touched upon until the academy forced them onto Mew. Why her parents sent Mew to the academy in the first place, Kaito couldn't guess.
"Who else will be joining us?" Kaito asked, looking at Wil.
"Kiyoteru," Wil answered, "my brothers, and I think Ona."
Kaito's eyebrows shot up against his will. "Isn't Ona a Cinderella? I believe I heard Ms. Hatsune mention the name."
"She is," Mew replied, smirking. "There are more of us undercover, you should know."
"Or else I wouldn't be at this blasted school." A brown-skinned girl waltzed into the hovercraft and plopped down next to Kaito. She wore beige cargo shorts, a forest green top, and boots like Mew's, her attire contrasting the silver crown tattooed onto her left wrist.
Shaking his head, Kaito mused aloud, "I used to think all Cinderellas were proper ladies with perfect manners and etiquette, who wore only the best designer gowns and ruled over society with grace and poise; and in the past few days alone, I have met two Cinderellas who proudly prove me wrong."
The girl, who Kaito assumed was Ona, tsked. "Just because a group of old women decided to ink a silver crown onto my skin when I was five doesn't mean my personality is going to change to fit that stereotype."
"Careful how you speak of the Sisters, Ona," Mew teased, "lest the goddess curse you for mocking her daughters."
Ona snorted. "If there was a goddess, she would have smitten me to ashes years ago."
Laughing, Mew exclaimed, "I like this one! Wil, can we keep her?"
Wil's brothers, Kyo and Yuu, boarded at this time. All it took was one look at all three of the brothers to figure out they were each adopted: Wil had dark skin and hair, Kyo's skin and hair were brown, and Yuu was pale-skinned and blond. The two younger Zola brothers gave their greetings before keeping their conversations to themselves, communicating in sign language even though neither of them was deaf nor mute.
Since they were still waiting for Tonio and Kiyoteru to board, Kaito turned to Ona and asked, "If you feel so inclined, would you please tell me why you're going to a school you clearly hate? For what purpose are you undercover?"
It took so long for Ona to answer that Kaito jumped when she replied, "My cousin's here. After she received her blood rose tattoo, her parents sold her to get rid of the 'shame' she brought upon them. We were best friends when we were little, so her getting sent away broke my heart. Of course, I don't know if she's still here, or even alive – the Juliets don't receive the best food and medication, you know. Not to mention it's been over ten years; I probably wouldn't know her if I saw her."
Ona sighed. "Besides, I had to get away."
Kaito wondered if it would be polite to ask from what Ona was trying to get away, but it was then Tonio and Kiyoteru, a brunet with glasses and a small computer in his hands, entered the hovercraft.
Since Tonio wore the same black trousers and gray crew neck shirt Kaito had on, Kaito couldn't help but wonder if Tonio purposely sent him those clothes so they could match or if Tonio simply didn't have a large wardrobe for events such as this.
"As you may or may not know," was how Tonio greeted his crew, "there has been a slight incident in the Feyre District yesterday."
"Slight?" Mew laughed without humor. "That small community college for Cinderellas who didn't get accepted into an academy blew up. I don't call that a 'slight incident.'"
Tonio frowned. "I suppose you have a point."
"Why bother explaining what a Cinderella college is?" Ona asked, eyebrow raised. "I don't think anyone here would be ignorant."
"Yeah," Mew crossed her arms, "but I like to rub in how I of all people got accepted into an academy while other Cinderellas didn't. Honestly, I can't help but wonder what qualifies a Cinderella to get to attend an academy. If we're all so blessed, why do we not all get the same treatment?"
"Enough of that." Tonio cleared his throat and continued, "We, as well as others who were called, are heading out to investigate. Fortunately, the bomb went off on a holiday, so very few people were inside the building. However, those few lives lost is still few too many. Now, before we go, any questions. Okay, anyone else besides Mew?"
Huffing, Mew put her arm down and pouted.
"What should we expect?" Ona asked, not bothering to raise her hand as Mew had done.
"Nothing complicated," Tonio answered. "Kiyoteru"– he indicated the young man –"will use his computer to check the security footage. The rest of us are simply there to search for clues."
"And to keep this mess from getting out," Wil supplied. "If this really is a Juliet rebellion, we don't need other Juliets hearing about this and getting ideas. You don't know what will push a Juliet to become completely dauntless, but hope is a reasonable start."
"Why are Juliets rebelling, anyway?" Ona questioned. Kaito was sure Ona knew the answer but wanted someone else to say it aloud.
Tonio didn't hesitate to respond, "They want to bring down the society."
Avalon, the city in the Feyre District, was practically a ghost town when they had arrived. The students all returned home to their families, and most families used this opportunity to visit friends and relatives in other districts, if not other continents. Some remained, but they were mostly men of lower class and their Alice or Juliet wives and daughters.
"Not as bad as I thought," Mew said waving her hand at the building still half standing. "Honestly, I was expecting to see a pile of rubble."
"It's still going to take months to clean and rebuild, Mew," Wil said, standing beside his wife.
"But it is a comfort to know our enemies aren't capable of doing that much damage," Mew replied.
"Unless this was no more than practice for them," Ona cut in. "For all we know, they can do much worse but decided not to show us."
"Considering Juliets generally aren't well educated," Kaito began, "I'm more inclined to believe Mew. However, Ona does make a point: we shouldn't underestimate our enemies."
"Yes," Tonio agreed. He led them towards a man who seemed to be waiting for them. "What's the status, Li?" was how he greeted the man.
The blond handed Tonio files as he said, "See for yourself. The explosion originated in a janitor's closet, on a lower floor. That's why so much of the building went down even though the bomb was weak. How it was made, we don't know. Although a body was discovered in the rubble, close to where the bomb went off, belonging to someone we couldn't identify. Either this was a suicide mission, or some poor soul was at the wrong place at the wrong time."
After Tonio handed Kaito the documents, Kaito read through them while Li showed the group around the debris. There was more written about the incident than what Li had said, but not enough to truly add to the story. For all anyone knew, this attack could have nothing to do with rebellious Juliets. Someone could have been practicing how to make a bomb and the whole thing blew up in their face, figuratively and literally.
"We did find . . . something of interest," Li said at the end of the tour. No one spoke a word, instead choosing to look at Li expectantly. "We found something we think you should see."
Silently, Kaito followed his group, the files still clutched between his fingers. Mew and Ona discussed what this thing might be. Tonio and Wil conversed with Li. Kyo and Yuu were engaged in a silent conversation, as usual. Kiyoteru, who had not taken his eyes off his screen since their arrival, still typed away at his computer.
"Here," Li said, pointing ahead.
Sitting in a makeshift prison of the rubble was a young woman with white hair and red eyes. She was chained to a part of the wall that still stood, and she hummed to herself as she sat on the floor, knees tucked into her chest. Instead of showing fear or distress, the girl seemed well at home.
"We found it lingering by the building shortly after the explosion," Li explained. "Seemed pretty pleased with the outcome."
"Oh," the girl said, sounding bored, "please don't talk about me like I can't hear you."
Kaito, handing Tonio the files, approached her makeshift cell and asked, "What is your name?"
The girl blinked. "Why do you want to know my name? Certainly, there's something else you want to learn about more."
"True, I want to know if you know about the attack, but what's the point? You're not going to tell me anyway, are you, miss . . . ?"
"My parents named me Tei," the girl answered, "but I lost my right to my name. I lost my right to be a person. Here, take a look."
Slowly, Tei stood to her feet and walked as far as her chains allowed. She reached out her hand and exposed her left wrist. Her blood rose tattoo was thoroughly mangled by a thick, twisted scar.
An Untouchable.
"What happened?" Kaito asked, neither blinking in surprise nor stepping away.
"I killed my master's son," Tei answered. "He was beating a fellow Juliet, and I couldn't tolerate such injustice. He obviously turned on me. I wasn't trying to end his life, but it was either him or me. I chose me."
"Your master didn't have you executed for the crime?"
"He claimed this was a worse fate, but I think allowing me to keep my life was some sort of expression of gratitude. This was a son who gambled a lot, and always lost. Now there won't be any rivalry with the remaining son since the dead one can't be disinherited anymore." Tei shrugged. "Funny how the world works."
"Funny indeed," Kaito agreed. "I'm sorry there isn't anything to be done for you. Life must be far more difficult than I can possibly imagine."
"I get by, and that's good enough for me."
"Thank you for talking with me, Tei," Kaito finally said when he saw that Tei was finished. He turned to walk away, but Tei told him to wait.
"I don't know much about the attack, if anything useful," Tei said, smiling at Kaito. She frowned. "However, I can promise you the Thorns don't want anyone like me. They want to tear down the caste system, but they don't want anything to do with someone who's been stripped of her caste." She snorted. "How ironic."
"The Thorns?" Kaito questioned. "I'm afraid that means nothing to me, Ms. Tei."
"The rebel Juliets," Tei replied. "From the phrase, 'Every rose has its thorns.' It's what they call themselves. If you haven't heard the name yet, then I suppose they're still too small for anyone on the outside to know about them."
"I see." Kaito nodded. "It's not much, but I believe the information can be useful for our investigation. Thank you."
"No, thank you. It's been a long time since someone talked to me like I was a person." Tei smirked. "You probably did it on purpose, to get me to spill what I know. Not a bad strategy."
Now she sighed. "But the right one. If I had more to share, I would, but they changed much since the months they disowned me. Trust me, if anyone has reason to see them fall, it's me."
Not knowing what else to say, Kaito again thanked her for her information and promised to do what he could to see her free. "You might not be let go, however," he warned her.
Tei shrugged, a defeated gesture. "Honestly, I hope they decide to kill me. No matter what my previous master intended, he was right: Life as an Untouchable is a fate worse than death."