NeonHorizon: Hn. Missing Speed o' Sound Sonic? Try checking out my other One Punch Man story "Frigid". I have him there as a love interest. I just wanted to focus on Genos as the love interest in this fanfic so...I have Sonic as an enemy. Which will still be fun.
Rain pattered outside, lulling her into a relaxed mood. Noriko was sharpening her swords, taking the day off from training due to the weather. As much as she wanted to work to get stronger, her feline side really disliked being in the rain. Not to mention that it made her somewhat lethargic. More than anything else, she really wanted to take a nap.
She shook her head and continued her task, glancing toward the door. It had been a few days since the incident in City W. She had relocated to the apartment beside Saitama's for safety reasons, but also to be closer to Genos. The cyborg had gone out early that morning, before the rain, and she was excited for his return. Another glance toward the door had her frowning.
Saitama hasn't left today. Lifting her right sword, she examined the edge with a slight frown. Wasn't he planning to go somewhere? Or is the rain stopping him? He doesn't seem like he would be put off by weather. Her frown deepened and she sighed. Setting the blade into its sheath, she bowed her head. He would be. He would say that it was a pain.
Leaning back against the wall, Noriko closed her eyes and focused on the gentle sound of the rain. She was becoming more and more tempted to let herself doze off, but something was bothering her. The incident at the Grey Corporation facility in City W had proved to her that they knew she was planning to take them down. They were bound to send someone after her now. She already knew that they had contacted Sonic to try to bring her in.
Drawing her knees to her chest, she sighed. That creepy ninja. I can't get in a fight with him again. He's too fast. And he got so excited about my feral mode. Remembering the sticky, warm feeling of his blood on her face, she shivered. She could almost smell the coppery tang of blood and tried to drive the memory away, only to realize that it was real. The smell of blood caught her attention and made her snap her head in the direction of her door.
Another scent mixed with the metallic aroma of blood and it made the fur on her tail puff up. I smell wet dog. She pushed herself to stand, grabbing a sword and warily making her way to the door. The smell became stronger the closer she got and goose bumps began to form on her arms. Noriko swiftly opened the apartment door and peered outside. There was nothing directly in front of the door, but she spotted a small, huddled form on the floor to her left.
The child looked pitiful. Her caramel colored hair was matted and wet. Her white uniform from the facility was soaked and bore a number of marks. Grass stains, blood, mud, and some stains that Noriko did not recognize. Emiko looked up at Noriko through her long bangs, her canine tail wagging subconsciously and smacking the floor at her side. "Nnn…Neechan, it hurts," she whimpered, hiccupping.
Noriko slung the sword strap over her shoulder and grabbed the child's hand. "Inside. Now." When the girl stood, it was revealed that she had been hiding an injury. A vicious slash across her chest had turned her shirt crimson there and it was obviously a fresh wound. Ignoring the scent of wet dog that emanated from Emiko, she led her over to the futon and had her sit down.
The little girl continued to hiccup, wiping at her eyes with dirty hands and smudging something dark on her face in the process. "It hurts, Neechan! It really hurts!"
"Hn. Calm down…I'll take care of it." She gently helped Emiko out of the button up shirt and saw it. The wound was jagged and gaping open. Wincing in sympathy, she knew that she had to keep her calm. "Okay…okay. Take a deep breath and squeeze my hand. I have to clean this."
"Neechan, make it stop hurting!"
"I'm trying! Just hold still, please." Noriko gathered some supplies and let the child squeeze her hand as she one-handedly tended to the wound. When it was wrapped up, she rubbed behind Emiko's floppy canine ears and was pleased to see her tail wag. "See? Better?" She heard a stomach growl and sighed. "One second."
Emiko curled up on the futon with her back to the wall, watching the catgirl rummage in a box. "Why'd you leave? If you didn't leave, I wouldn't have had to be a guard dog and get hurt!"
She returned with a wrapped custard bun and offered it to the child. The canine girl immediately tore into the plastic with her teeth and started munching away at the food. It quickly became apparent that she had been trying to survive on her own the past few days and the stains on the front of her shirt that had previously been mysteries were from digging in the trash. "Hn. So. What happened?"
"What's it look like, Neechan?! I got hurt! I was in the forest and I was hungry! I couldn't find food so I saw these chickens and I know that chickens are food if you kill them! When I tried to catch one, a big monster with five arms came out of the trees and attacked me! He said he wanted to eat the chickens and wasn't gonna let a littler monster get them first!"
Noriko heard a slight whine at the end of her sentence and reached over to rub the top of her head. "You…didn't go back?"
"I can't go back!" Tears streamed down her dirty little face and she tried to wipe at her eyes again. "I failed! I had a mission to protect the lab and I failed 'cause you and that guy destroyed everything! And you killed the security guards! I let people get killed and I couldn't protect the lab! Grey-sama won't let me stay alive, Neechan! She'll let the big guy tear me apart! I can't go back!"
Feeling a pang of guilt, the catgirl wrapped an arm around Emiko and pulled her into a hug."Hnn. You don't have to…and it's not your fault. I didn't know you would be there. You weren't supposed to be there." She reached behind the child to pull up the blanket. Setting it around Emiko's shoulders, she frowned. "Look. Grey Corporation is bad. You understand that?" Surprisingly, the child nodded. "Alright. I…want to stop them from hurting anyone else. So I became a hero."
"You're a hero, Neechan?" Emiko sniffled, settling into the blanket.
"Hn. That's right. A hero. I save people…so…"
"You saved me."
"…I guess…?" Noriko ran her fingers through her long violet hair, frowning. Did I save her? I guess I did unintentionally free her from Grey Corporation. Sighing in defeat, she settled in beside Emiko. "We're going to save people. The two of us…and my friends. Okay? But to do that, you need to heal. So get some sleep."
She sat with the child, her sharp green eyes focused on the apartment door. Her mind raced with a number of thoughts and fears as she absently smoothed the girl's hair away from her face. Emiko. They didn't even try to collect her, did they? Grey Corporation just let her run loose. They don't care if she lives or dies. It's unforgivable! She could have been killed by that monster!
A faint whimpering drew her attention to the little girl. Tears were running from her closed eyes as she twitched in her sleep. Noriko stroked behind one of her ears to calm her and frowned. I'll have to check her for tracking chips, but…I know what to expect next. They'll send someone else. Damn it. I didn't need an extra thing to worry about! But…I am glad that she's free now.
The catgirl dozed off and was woken hours later by the apartment door opening. She sleepily lifted her gaze and spotted Genos. Lifting a finger to her lips, she nodded toward the dog girl sleeping against her side. "Hn. She tracked me here. So…did you finish your errand?"
He stared down at the two in the dimly lit apartment, frowning. "Yes. I have scheduled an upgrade and will be gone in two days. Noriko, do you think that it is safe to have her here? If Grey Corporation implanted a tracking chip on her, they will be able to find you more easily now."
She carefully maneuvered away from Emiko, putting a pillow in her place. The canine hybrid nuzzled her cheek against it, whimpering and kicking a leg. Noriko walked over to Genos, trying to ignore what was happening behind her. "An upgrade…?"
"Yes." His facial expression changed, shifting from concern to satisfaction and a hint of pride. "I have scheduled an upgrade that I intend to surprise you with so I will not tell you what it is. I asked Doctor Kuseno specifically for this to-"
A louder whimpering interrupted Genos and drew both heroes' attention to the girl beneath the blanket. Emiko snarled and kicked, her hands clawing at the pillow. Her lips drew back, a growl emerging from her throat and finally escalating to a barking that pulled her from slumber. Sitting upright, she panted and looked around. Her dark eyes settled on the two heroes and it took her a few minutes of staring to remember what had happened. Pulling the blanket around her tighter, she huffed and turned away. "Neechan, I'm still hungry."
"Hn. I guess, maybe…we should have dinner soon," Noriko determined. "Is Saitama still here?"
"Yes. Master Saitama is home. Noriko, I will begin cooking and-"
"No! I want Neechan's food," Emiko protested. "You smell like metal. Like the big guy. I don't wanna eat your food. You probably make it taste bad!" Despite speaking with spite in her voice, her tail was wagging enthusiastically behind her.
Noriko glanced from Genos to the huddled form on the futon and shook her head. "Emiko. Put this on," she started, throwing a clean shirt to her. "And let's go next door."
Introductions were given and Emiko dutifully seated herself near the apartment door as if to guard it from intruders. Noriko helped herself to supplies in the kitchen and began cooking. The last time I made anything, it was just for Genos. It feels weird. I'm cooking for him…Saitama…and Emiko. This feels sort of surreal, but natural. Like this is something…that would be normal for me…in another life, maybe?
"Hey. Can you do something about the kid?" Saitama spoke up from the kitchen doorway.
"Hn? What…is she doing something…?" She looked toward the apartment door and saw her just sitting there.
"No, but she seriously smells like wet dog. It's kind of gross."
Noriko stared up at him, her lip curling to bare a fang. "Hnn. She's just a kid…and it's not like it's her fault…that she's part dog. It's just her natural scent."
"Well it smells pretty bad."
"Listen-!" She went silent as Genos walked past, carrying a towel. Both she and Saitama watched as he knelt in front of Emiko and began towel drying her hair and floppy canine ears. A blush rose to Noriko's face at the sight of him doing something so cute and she had to quickly glance away when he looked over. What is this? Why is my heart beating so fast?