-Oxford - Wednesday: Part 26-
Kuu was not expected the young woman who sat up, her eyes glanced down as she straightens herself up without so much as looking at any of them. 'How is she not terrified?' Perhaps he had been mistaken in what he had thought he had seen but he saw the way she closed her eyes, taken several deep breaths the first couple seemed almost to be far too hard to do but she was calming herself. Slowly she lifted her eyes and he smiled some at her but she didn't smile back at him. Her face shown nothing but dignity as she stared at him. "I'm a friend," he said in Japanese. Again she didn't response she simply stared at him not moving but she was differently listening to him. He nodded his head once more to himself 'Right, she did speak English' he looked back at her and repeated the words, again nothing.
"What the hell do you think you are doing? That's my fiancee." Sho didn't feel any fear from this man, he felt a pressure and anger but compare to the one he had gotten from that demon walking around his Kyoko was more than enough to make him want to say or perhaps do something. "Kyoko, come here," he said simply holding out his hand for her. He had kept to Japanese because he figured now she would not deny him. Not after what they just shared but she didn't move towards him, she didn't even look at him.
Kuu's eyes turned towards Sho for a moment, "Fiancee you said?" he looked at her she didn't even look confused to him No to Kuu she simply looked as if she was waiting for something more to happen. Something different or perhaps even more along the lines of being told she was free to go. "Do you want to go with him or come with me?" he figured he would speak in English to her seeing that's what he had seen in the video even if she wasn't really responding to him at the moment.
Her eyes turned towards Sho for a moment before she closed her eyes taking another deep breath, "prosto ostav' menya v pokoye," there was a coldness to her voice, a deadness that seemed to have lost any warmth. Slowly her eyes turned back towards Kuu and while he knew that she was speaking Russian seeing as his beloved wife always spoke Russian at him whenever she was angry and he mentally cursed himself once more for never having been able to pick it up after over 20 years together. He knew right away she was directing it mostly at Sho but at him and when her eyes turned towards the two men by the door he also knew for sure it was directed at all of them.
Reino's head snapped up after having just sent the photos to the unlisted number in his phone. The one thing Reino had not expected to hear from anyone, not his family was Russian. The fact it was spoken so clearly by a petite Japanese woman, from England of all places really took him by surprise. He wanted to ask why she was speaking Russian but he realized something before anyone else in this room could pick it up. She was exactly like his Aunt had been. Bad shit happened but she would not show a damn soul until she was alone just how bad off she was. There was one more thing he noticed, the grudges that seemed to move in a circle her at that very moment she uttered those words. He had never seen this from a living person, normally only the dead became a grudge and then they clung to a living person. Yet here was this woman with so many grudges but they were all hers, it was as if a small part of her very being had unlocked something that should never have been allowed. Souls who became a grudge couldn't really be saved, they lost that part of their humanity. The fact that she had so many and they were all hers told him that she had been hurt in such a way that all was lost, that all that was left was revenge and darkness. Yet when he looked at her prior to this, he didn't see that, no all he could see with her prior to this was a light and goodness that was why he had felt the urge to take action. If he understood this correctly and he wasn't very sure he did, it meant that her soul couldn't fully accept losing herself into the darkness but couldn't let it go either and that the only response her soul could make was to allow both free range. Which meant that like the grudges there was empathy and he was sure there was a great deal of it.
Sho stared at her "What the fuck did you just say now?" he demanded but before she could repeat herself Reino's eyes turned towards him.
"She wants you to leave her alone," Reino said putting his phone in his pocket as he leaned against the edge of the door frame.
Miroku shook his head from where he stood next to Reino he was no longer touching him but he was near regardless, "Actually I think it wasn't just him but all of us. I'm pretty sure that's what her look means anyways."
Kuu's eyes shot towards the young men at the door, the silver-hair boy Reino wasn't bad when it came to being a translator though he didn't exactly say it word for word he got to the point. He also had been smart enough to notice something was going on, but he was more impressed by the long blonde hair boy Miroku, who couldn't understand what she had said but knew exactly the point she was making by her body language alone. That boy would go far if any profession he picked.
Sho eyes narrowed as he looked at Reino and Miroku, "Likely because she's scared what Ren Tsuruga will do to her. Th-" Something was wrong, something felt like it was choking him but there wasn't anything there and Reino's eyes seemed to narrow. It wasn't blocking his airway, but it was making it very difficult to get any words out at the moment. Every time he tried he found himself unable to say more than get the first of the word out.
"I think it's best you don't say anything more," Reino said back to him, his eyes moving towards Kyoko, 'She doesn't want you to say it, I don't even think she realizes her own abilities yet.' Though he also knew that if that was the case it would likely be based on the emotions that stirred them, which apparently wasn't fear. It was anger. She wasn't fearful of what he would say she was angry at him. 'Why is she though?' He knew Miroku wasn't surprised by what he was said but the other two men were and the older man had turned towards Kyoko who simply stared at Sho it was clear she didn't understand what he had said or perhaps the correct to say that she didn't care that he had said anything because if she didn't understand what he was about to say then there was no way she would be so mad to stop him from saying something more. Not that she seemed to really know what she was doing.
Kuu eyes show a hint of worry as he looked towards Kyoko, "Did Tsuruga do something to you?" her eyes turned towards him and Reino noticed that the grudge had removed itself from Sho throat. Her eyes narrowed slightly but she said nothing, "We should report this to the police," and the look that she gave Kuu had him pausing in his place. 'She doesn't want this reported?' He didn't understand this but he would have to tell Lory regardless, Lory could likely push this matter. 'Why do I feel like she plans to use this in a completely different way... as if this plays into some bigger plan now?'
"She needs to go back to Kyoto where she belongs." Sho was at least smart enough to not finish the line of thought he had wanted to say prior, not if it meant that he could speak again. He could figure out the rest later. Her eyes never moved towards Sho as he spoke.
"ya ukhozhu," she said turning and making her way. Kuu had noted how Sho started to turn to go after her but he stood in the man's way blocking him. He knew that saying if nothing else in Russian and if she was going to leave then that was her right. Yet as she passed Reino he reached out, he didn't know why he reached out touching her upper arm only that something inside of him told him to do just that.
I found myself staring at several photos, mostly of men. I knew this man, or I should say I knew of him. This was who Tomi was searching for and the fact that he was allowing this girl to see said he trusted her. Black hair fell in front of his eyes as he turned to look up at Tomi, "I don't understand Tomi-sensei..." he placed a hand on her shoulder for a moment, everything but his name had been in Russian, almost perfectly at that.
"This is the man I'm looking for, the reason I am here at this place at the moment," he said tapping the photos in front of her.
Something inside of him knew that this person was important for the peace of his mind, or at least that's what she had felt. It was something powerful that was moving him because he felt like he had failed that he hadn't seen everything that he so carefully planned around him when something took his interested. That this man now was going to pay a very heavy price but she couldn't pity this man either. There was something about him, something that Tomi hadn't told her that was setting her off something inside of her. The single thought that if Tomi was here looking for this man, that he was part of this place. "He doesn't look like the same person. How can you be so sure?"
"Shall I teach you?" this had taken me not so much her by surprise. Her heart seemed to be beating with joy and happiness. As if he had just shined a light in an otherwise dark world for her. "I cannot stop what is happening, not without losing my target," Yes that sounded like him, he would never put friendships before business and this was business for Tomi. No matter what he felt for this girl, I knew for a fact that she had less meaning that the business that brought him here to get this man.
"Will you really?" and for the first time in my life I saw the faint smile across Tomi's face.
"It will help you get your revenge in the end if you can remain strong. So I will teach you everything I know as long as you want that knowledge." He felt Tomi's fingers through her hair almost as if to comfort her. That worried me slightly but she didn't seem to mind at all. Yet at the same time, I could tell that this was rare and almost as if he didn't realize he was doing it at all. His hand stopped and she lifted her head towards him for a moment he was lighting up a cigarette and she frowned at him. His eyes turned towards her for a moment and I understood that she wasn't pleased with him smoking. Yet I could tell she was backing down this time and allowing him this because he had shared something important with her.
"Can you teach me how to protect myself?" she whispered so low that had I not been here at the moment I may not had heard the words.
"Your mind will become your weapon. That's the most powerful thing you need. It will protect you from everything and everyone no matter who they are if you can keep control over your mind and thoughts. If you can remove yourself when things are getting worse, no one can get anything out of you. No matter what they do or who they use." I knew those words. I had heard those words uttered by both Boris and Vas before his harsh lessons had begun to make him able to withstand things I didn't want to even imagine. I had seen the smallest of glimpse in passing, but I never allowed myself to focus on those memories. She nodded her head before looking back at him.
"Teach me Tomi-sensei" and I knew she was smiling and I saw something inside of Tomi change. Somehow this girl troubled him in a way that didn't make a damn lick of sense to me. Yet I knew one thing. I had fucked up big time.
Kyoko had pulled away from Reino. His eyes focus on her, "You know him, fuck you know him." he swore as she looked at him confused. He shook his head back and forth, "Fuck..." he banged the back of his head against the door frame, his friend looked at him. Yet Kyoko turned and walked away, she would not acknowledge the fact he had spoken Japanese to her and he knew that. He knew she knew it, he knew that whatever she lived through during her time with Tomi couldn't have been good. Yet he also knew one more thing, her mind was strong, that had been a memory that he had forced out of her by his own willpower, his own desire, her mind was not one he could easily see into. Which meant that what he had seen from Tomi had always been what he allowed and that worried him more than he wanted to admit.
"Are you alright Reino?" Miroku was shoulder and shoulder to him at the moment, as if worried that he might be seeing more than he wanted to see. Seeing more than he wanted to know. Reino shook his head no but his eyes turned towards Sho.
"You fucked up... you fucked up big time," he said as his phone went off. "We both did," he said narrowing his eyes as he pulled out his phone seeing the unlisted number. He didn't look back to the confused look of the three men as he walked out. He had bigger things to deal with. He had gotten an idea of Tomi's feelings for Kyoko, feelings that he had never shared for anyone else. No that wasn't exactly true there had been a young man a long time ago, though he wasn't exactly sure when that boy had come into Tomi's life all he knew was that he had been there for some time. That the man in those images was connected to that boy somehow. Yet to his knowledge that boy was never taught a damn thing from Tomi. Yet now he couldn't even be sure about that. He couldn't be sure of anything anymore when it dealt with what he knew about Tomi, other than that image he saw from Kyoko. That told Reino that Kyoko was quickly becoming important, like Natasha important to Vas and Boris and that would not be good for anyone if that was the case.
Reino looked down at the phone trying to clear his mind as he took a deep breath, he answered it. He had to keep his friends safe and that man Kuu safe. He didn't hold out much hope for himself at the moment but perhaps by doing just that he would be able to get out of this without much pain. "She's fine," that was the first thing he said when he answered.
Tomi didn't say anything and he knew that could be a good thing or a bad thing but he also knew that right now he could not hang up on the man. No that would only make matters worse, "Is he still alive?"
"Yes," he said carefully. Reino had no idea if this was the correct response but he figured he should go on "It seems that she is letting this slide."
"Of course she is," he heard Tomi laugh if you could call it a laugh it was more like a release of air but Reino knew better. "You still like to sing right?"
"Like's a strong word." Reino wasn't sure he liked where this was going.
"Tell me, Reino, what would you mother say if I came to visit?" Reino knew exactly what his mother would say and even do. How his father would react and none of it was good. His mother would slowly go insane and his father would worry that Vas would be coming for a nice visit to his father for not keeping his baby sister all happy and cheerful. Even if it was his sons doing and not his father's fault. "As I thought," Reino hadn't said anything but he supposed the pause was long enough to hint at something more. "I want to hire you and your band. I want to see her game plan for this man. I'm sure her revenge will be sweet... and I won't be bored."
Reino knew it was pointless to ask but he did anyway, "and what if I refuse?"
"Oh, I'm sure your mother will help you see things my way." There was a twisted feeling in Reino's words. This time there was no joking, there was none of that family feeling or boredom feeling. Reino would cross a line and if he crossed that line then Tomi would become very disappointed and he would paint a target on his back that he didn't want on his back.
"What's so special about this girl?" he figured it was better to stir the topic elsewhere. He remembered asking the same question for about a boy many years ago, a boy that had no connection to any of them but Tomi seemed to like regardless.
"Everything, I have a phone call. I will be in contact soon." there was a pause, "and if you ever allow that man to put her in such a position again and do nothing about it but take photos. I will put you in such a position, do you understand?" Reino couldn't help but shudder "Fact I'll put everyone you care about in such positions, those friends of yours. Your mother is the only one safe Reino from such treatment because of my father's and uncle's love for her. I have none of that for any of you."
"Yet you do for the girl?" He knew he was digging himself in deeper. Yet Reino seemed unable to help himself from that matter.
"She is my little Hana, nothing more and nothing less." and Reino wasn't sure what that exactly meant but all he knew was that right now Sho was being allowed his life, that they all were. As long as Reino didn't allow it to happen again because it was something he wanted Kyoko to do. To handle on her own, which made him wonder exactly what she was taught by the man and if he was done teaching her at that.
A/N: "prosto ostav' menya v pokoye" is Russian for "Just leave me alone" and "ya ukhozhu" is "I'm leaving"
That said I read your comments. Kyoko may learn some fighting skills but it won't be for some time. She is holding to Tomi's words more than anything that she doesn't need them because her mind will be her weapon.