"Excuse me?" you say before you can stop yourself. You know logically that you should be more afraid, but right now your dominant emotion is defiance. Something has been reawakened in you. There's a fire inside whose flames you had long forgotten. You find fight forged from those flames. It's the same fight that had been on Alana's face when she had confidently told you in front of her friends that she was going to Po Town. The same feeling that had led her on a wayward adventure earlier that night. You hope that this feeling, now that you've found it again, won't lead you astray too. "I'm taking the Yungoos and leaving," you say to the half-man-half-beast standing above you midway down the staircase.
Guzma looks perplexed for a moment. Then, in a flash of fur, he covers the space between you in an instant. Now he stands in front of you, looming down, eyes glowing, and teeth bared. Now that he's close, you can see his fur is a different color from the rest. Where the others had a muddy red to their coats, his was a deep blue-green. You glare up at him, refusing to back down, your hands on your hips.
He emits a low growl, but you do not move. Then he slumps a little at your stoicism, the growl dying in his throat, and his lips lower. His head turns to the side a bit as he stares at you, like a dog that's heard a high-pitched noise. "Ain't you afraid?" he asks.
"Of some wannabe gangster furry and his bunch of mutts? No. Should I be?" you say sarcastically.
Guzma gives you that toothy smile again and lets out a laugh that sounds almost like a bark. "Yeah, you should." He suddenly swoops down and picks you up in his paws, throwing you over his shoulder. You fight, but he's too strong. All your efforts don't seem to affect him at all. He carries you up the stairs as the Lycanrocs bound beside him, howling and carrying on. Guzma talks over them. "We call this place Shady House, princess. You, get to call it home."
"I call it a dump!" you yell at him.
He huffs, amused. "I'll be sure to tell the interior decorator." When you don't respond, he continues. "You need anything, Team Skull is happy to oblige. Only, ya know, that's gonna be a little difficult at night." He gestures to two of the Lycanrocs who are engaged in a tug-of-war over a sock. "Things are a little more civilized during the day. Mostly."
"So you really are cursed?"
"In more ways than one." He continues further into the mansion.
"I'm not helping you break the curse."
"Did I ask you to? Nah, you've got another purpose."
"And what would that be, huh? Team dog walker."
"Nope," he says. "Entertainment."
"I'm afraid I didn't come armed with squeak toys."
He laughs again. "You sure got a fire up your ass, don't you?" He comes to a stop in front of a door. "Don't often get visitors. I'm sure they're all gonna be anxious to hear what the outside world is like now."
"Won't be hearing about it from me. As soon as I find that Yungoos, I'm gone."
"Oh come on," he says, opening the door and setting you down inside. "We ain't so bad, and hey! You get your own little room here, princess." You look for a way to escape, but he's blocking the doorway. "When you've calmed down, you can go anywhere you want as long as it's within the town." He looks away. "... except the far east room."
"And why's that?"
"Don't worry about it."
"What are you keeping there?"
"It's none of your business."
"Is that where-"
"It's forbidden!" he roars, slamming the door closed.
You immediately run for the door and try the knob, but it is, of course, locked. You look and see a window, but it's a long drop down and you don't see anything climbable nearby. You sigh and look around. You're in a small bedroom. It's neat and sparsely decorated, though it is dusty. It seems as if Team Skull left this room relatively untouched. You sit on the bed, and the sheets feel soft, thick, and expensive. What little there is in the room all looks like the furniture and decor of a wealthy family. Well, it is a mansion.
You rest your elbows on your knees and place your face in your hands, emotions swirling. You're angry, curious, excited, and scared all at once. This hardly feels real, but you're strangely giddy that it is. You had wanted a change of pace for some time now. Be careful what you wish for. You shiver. Your clothes are still soaked from the rain outside. Well, you don't plan on staying here long anyway. You're sure you can think of a way out.
He sure is touchy about that far east room. What's he keeping there? The Yungoos? His mistake in telling you. Now you're determined to get there.
Guzma paces in his throne room. Two of the Lycanrocs sit, watching him. What a full night. What a full damn night. First those kids and now, this woman. This is the most excitement Team Skull has seen in a very long time. He pauses to glance out the window. Won't be long now till the sun is up.
He really does hope she grows to at least be ok with this place. He really could use someone to talk to at night. It gets awful lonely when everyone else looses the ability to talk back to you. But she's also so feisty. Could she really come to accept this place? Could he really keep her here? Well, she did trespass. He does his best to mentally shove his guilt aside. The sun was rising now, and these would be questions he'd ask himself later.
The first golden rays of day creep their way in, and it happens: the transformation. He closes his eyes and heaves a huge sigh as fur disappears, claws vanish, and his features grow smaller. In a matter of moments, he's no longer a half beast, but a full human again. A naked one. He moves toward a dresser, getting out clothing.
Where there had previously been two Lycanrocs, there now are Plumeria, and a male grunt named Liam. They're moving now for clothing they've stashed in his room. Out of all of Team Skull, they were his closest and most trusted friends.
"So," says Plumeria, pulling up sweatpants. "That was a night. We've got a woman held captive now."
"Sure do, eyy boss!" Liam says, nudging Guzma with an elbow. "Time to break the spell and shit, huh?"
Plumeria glares at him. "It's not that simple. These things don't happen that fast."
"But we ain't got much time. Comfey's dyin'.
"I'm well aware, but love doesn't happen just because you want it to."
"Who wouldn't love Guzma!" Liam throws his arms wide. "He's got... a gang, and uh, he... owns property?"
"Yeah, yeah alright, that's enough." Guzma interrupts. "I'm not - there's not - I don't think that's gonna happen, ok?"
They both look at him questioningly. "I wasn't saying don't try," says Plumeria.
Guzma sighs. "You saw the girl, Plumes. She's beautiful. And I'm, you know."
"But boss, you're at least, like, uh, two times better looking during the day!" It's Liam's best at encouragement.
Guzma groans and runs a hand down the side of his face.
"Let's just take this one step at a time, Plumeria says. "We've got her here, she's cute enough; we can at least give this a go."
Liam grins. "We'll be your wingmen!"
"I dunno, Plumes. We haven't had anyone outside Team Skull here in a long time. Where do we even start with this?"
"Well, did you at least make her feel welcome? Give her dry clothes?"
Guzma shrugs, and puts a hand behind his head, nervously rubbing at his neck. "Uh, gave her a room."
Plumeria rolls her eyes. "I'll find some clothes. You offer them to her, and invite her to eat breakfast with you."
Guzma stands in front of the locked door, hesitating. How to do this? Their interaction had been a little less than charming before. How does he talk to her in a way that will win her over? Was that even possible? This is so beyond anything that he's prepared for. He remembers now that this is the first time she'll see him in human form. He makes a halfhearted attempt at self-consciously fixing his hair, but gives up with a frustrated sigh. Screw it.
He clears his throat and knocks on the door. He undoes the lock while saying, "Hey, I, uh, brought you some dry clothes."
"So leave them and go," she says from within the room.
He glances at Plumes and Liam who are listening at the end of the hallway. Plumeria makes an eating motion with her hands. Liam is scratching at his ear, looking very much like a dog.
Guzma looks back at the door. "Are you hungry? We could get something to eat."
"Not interested."
"Hey, come on. I know we didn't exactly have the best start but... you should eat something."
"Not hungry."
"Well, you can't stay in there forever!"
"Not coming out there with you!"
"Hey I own this place! I'm always gonna be around, so you might as well come out sometime!"
"What's in the far east room?"
"What?! I - don't ask about that!"
"Why not?"
"Because! Would you just come out here!"
"Nope!"
"Fine!" Guzma throws the clothes on the ground. "Then go ahead and starve!" He storms off past Plumeria and Liam and back towards his room.
Plumeria sighs. "Go after the boss," she tells Liam. "I'm gonna do damage control."
When the footsteps fade away, you open the door. There's a set of clothes on the floor. As you bend down to get them, a pair of sneakers appear. You look up to see a girl with pink and yellow hair standing there. She gives you a smile. "Hi," she says. "I'm Plumeria. Are you doing alright?"
You watch her apprehensively. "I mean, considering I'm being kept here, no."
"Yeah, that's... hmm." She glances off, clearly doing her best to choose her words carefully. Then she looks at you pleadingly. "Can I come in? Can we talk?"
You hesitate. Can you trust her? Honestly, after the night you've had you could really use a friendly face. Besides, you've got questions and this might be your best bet at getting answers that aren't coming from Guzma. You step aside and let her in.