Good evening! I hope you have enjoyed this story up till now! I actually have an ending in mind for Niji Meets Neko, so I will try to stick with the plot line. If I start getting off topic pleeeease tell me so I can fix it. To Salt_the_Catgirl: I changed her reaction to Karoku in Chapter 4, thanks for pointing that out! :) I fixed the age discrepancy, too. Yuki got her brand when she was seven not twelve. Also, Yuki was never on the same slave boat as Gareki, in fact she has never been on a boat before...I'll explain that a bit more later. ;P Thank you again for your reviews! :D
I now present Chapter 5: Let's Make a Deal
*Ring*
*Ring*
*Ring*
*Cl-click*
Mmnn?
"Tsukitachi?" Hirato questioned.
Whasamatter?
"Are you drunk again?" the captain asked with a long sigh.
Yu-hic-p. Why? You lonely? Tsukitachi loved teasing his old partner. Even when he was drunk it still pleased him.
"Of course not you idiot," Hirato pinched the bridge of his nose. While he did appreciate Tsukitachi's company he did not enjoy the man quite as much when he was drunk. He was absolutely incorrigible like that. "I merely wished to discuss something with you. However, I suppose I called at a bad ti-"
Aww! Don't hang up Hirato! I'as just kidden with ya! I might not be totally sober but I'll listen to ya complain!
"Who said I wanted to complain?" Hirato huffed.
Weeeell…whenever ya call me in the middle of the night, especially on a weekend, you know that I always drink on the weekends, ya don't really want me ta answer. Just listen ta ya. So-hic, ya must be callin' ta complain.
Hirato hated it when Tsukitachi actually gave him a reasonable answer. "Haaah…fine. Yes I called to complain. But only a little. I really do need some…as much as it pains me to say this…I need some advice." He closed his eyes, hearing the line go quiet. If Tsukitachi remembered this in the morning he would never live it down.
What's wrong, Hirato? Tsukitachi couldn't think of a time were Hirato, THE Hirato, had ever asked for advice. From anyone…okay…maaaybe his brother, but not often and not lately. This was an incredibly rare experience for Tsukitachi and there's no way he was going to pass it up.
"Hmph…now you're going to be helpful?" Hirato was actually glad the other man would listen to him seriously, but he wasn't about to let on to that, "Oh well, I suppose you are making an effort." He sighed once more. He was not interested in explaining the situation or admitting the fact that he had lost to a child! Even though he wasn't feeling very enthused, he gave a brief overview of the events of the previous few hours (and although he was tempted to leave out a few…ahem…embarrassing points he didn't for the sake of his friendship; he knew Tsukitachi would be astonishingly peeved if he found out on his own). After he was done, the other man was, again, quiet. At first Hirato suspected that he had fallen asleep, and was about to hang up, when there was a sound, something like a covered up snort of laughter, along with a few coughs for good measure. Hirato groaned inwardly. He had a terrible feeling that his friend would be sharing this little story with two people the Second Ship Captain didn't want finding out about (*cough*Akari and Woody *cough* *cough*). He suddenly felt stupid for not risking a few weeks of silence just to save his dignity.
Ahem…sorry about that Hirato. I…um…choked on some water. So, you want another opinion on what you should do with…uh…
"She calls herself Yuki."
Yeah, yeah, that's right. Yuki. Hmm…personally, I'd've thrown her out the minute she let her guard down.
"Well, considering how she had, not even an hour before, kicked my backside in our fight, I'd say my chances of that were slim to none." Hirato was beginning to wish he had called someone else.
Oh…ummm…in that case I guess doing nothing is the only thing you could ha-
"I'm not asking you about what I should have done, I've already run every scenario through my head, I simply want to know your opinion on what I should do now!" Yeah…he really regretted deciding against calling someone else or consulting Iva.
Ah. He he…sorry! Uhh…I think you should listen to her side of the story. If she seems like someone who needs help, help her. If she is someone who needs to be killed, kill her. Simple as that. Also, see if you can make some kind of deal with her. She may have information, plus she might be a useful test subject for Akari-chan. He'd love it if you let him have his way with her.
"Hmm…I thought of that too. Unfortunately, Nai is dead set against anything happening to the brat," he rolled his eyes, "Apparently, he believes she isn't a threat and should be treated with consideration instead of violence."
Hahaha! That sounds like something he'd say. Well, in that ca…actually…you said she was willing to make up for it right?
"That's right. Why?"
Maybe you could use that to your advantage. Tell everyone else you wanted to simply get information from her, while secretly forcing her to let Akari-chan run tests and experiments on her. Just have her keep quiet about them.
"I see…good idea," Hirato thought for a bit, "Would she really stay silent though?"
If she values her promises she will. If not…get rid of her, I guess.
"Okay, sounds good," Hirato leaned back in his chair and sighed for a third time that night.
You okay, man?
"Yeah, just really tired of having to take in strays. Not that I mind Gareki, Nai, Karoku, Yogi, or Tsukumo, but this is definitely getting out of hand. If she decides to stay you have to take her every other week."
This brought out a cackle of laughter from the other man. Alright. But to do that you'd have to at least introduce her to me and my crew, right? Wanna set a date?
Two violet orbs gleamed with mischievous glee, "I'd love to introduce her to you three. I'm sure she would adore Kiichi and Jiki. How about this Thursday?"
Sounds good. See ya then! Later! *Cl-click*
"Kukuku," the dark-haired man laughed evilly, "Now this is going to be entertaining!"
Ω
The next morning, about seven hours after Hirato spoke to Tsukitachi on the phone, everyone gathered in the dining room for breakfast. Tsukumo and Iva were the first to arrive. They looked a little tired, but all in all put together. Nai and Yogi came next. Nai had large circles under his eyes and Yogi had multiple bruises and bumps all over his body. The next two to join them were Gareki and Yuki. They looked exhausted, but were still bickering with one another. When Yuki walked into the room, Iva immediately leapt up from where she had sat down and proceeded to throw herself at the cat-girl in an untamable fury. Yuki, in defense, began to fly around the room kicking up objects in the hope of throwing her off guard. Unfortunately for her, Iva was anticipating a move like that and evaded the distractions to continue on her quest for vengeance.
Hirato and Karoku, the last to get there, were greeted by an assortment of flying objects, such as plates, food, people and silverware.
Yuki was bolting around the room trying to avoid Iva's attacks. Gareki was still trying to argue with her (it wasn't working quite as well as before, but you've got to give him credit for trying). Yogi had passed out on one of the chairs. Nai and Tsukumo were attempting (yet failing) to calm Iva before she lost it entirely.
The two men blinked simultaneously, before looking at each other. They sighed, not keen about having to calm everyone down.
"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTL- Ah! Hirato-san, good morning!" Even though Iva sounded cordial her actions toward the (terrified) cat-girl were anything but.
Hirato gave two very loud claps, getting everyone's attention. Well, everyone except Yogi, who was still asleep on the chair.
"Has everyone calm enough to listen to what I have to say?" he asked in a controlled voice.
The room went dead silent. Even Yuki had stopped jumping/flying around in the face of his authoritative question.
"Good. Now then, Yuki, I'd like to speak with you in my office, please. The rest of you clean this mess up and, after eating, meet me in the library." He then turned and walked back down the hall. Yuki raised her eyebrows slightly. She hadn't expected him to command her the way he had, or even use her actual name for that matter. She jumped down off the table that she had been standing on and dashed after him. Nai caught her as she went past him and quietly asked if she wanted him to come along. The cat-girl shook her head 'no' before bolting away.
She eventually fell into step with the dark-haired man as they walked in silence toward what she assumed was his office. Haaah…I hope he doesn't ask me to do something stupid. Or kick me out. I don't really want to leave yet…well, that isn't entirely true…I would be perfectly happy to leave if he's gonna make me be in the same room with that green-haired lady. Even though I beat her yesterday she still scares me more than even Uro-sama when he's mad!
"This way, Yuki," he turned down a different hall and stopped in front of one of the doors, "Here we are. Please, have a seat." Hirato gestured to the couch.
Yuki gently sat down, bracing herself for the worst. Thankfully, Hirato didn't feel like being cruel to her so he simply seated himself opposite her, cleared his throat, and began laying out the deal he had come up with after talking to Tsukitachi.
"Alright. I am willing to make a deal with you, Yuki," he paused glancing at her to make certain she was listening. He was impressed when he saw how business-like she had become. He then continued with his speech, "If you agree to let one of our best lab researchers…experiment on you and run tests, and cooperate with us by voluntarily divulging information on what you know about Kafka and its associates, I shall let you stay here as long as you are compliant. Is that good enough for you?" While he kept his face neutral, Hirato was genuinely interested in her answer.
Yuki tilted her head and flicked her tail in thought. After about a minute, she replied with, "Yes, those terms sound adequate. However, does this mean I shall be considered part of Circus while I am here?"
"No. You will be thought of as either a guest or a prisoner, depending on how many of my terms you accept."
"Well, I accept all of the terms. I'm not quite as susceptible to pain when it is someone else inflicting it upon me, so the experimentation and testing shouldn't be too big of a deal, as long as whoever's cutting me up doesn't actually cut me up, I'd die if that happened. The information part though…I was never really kept in the loop when it came to important business, but I will tell you everything I do know." She fell silent after this last comment and waited for him to speak.
"Very well then. I shall have the sheep arrange a room for you. Would you mind bunking with Iva or Tsukumo if the need arises?" He knew full well that the two women he mentioned would hate him for even suggesting such an atrocity but he wanted to see who she was okay with.
"…Which is which?" Yuki asked with a frown.
"Iva is the one with green hair, Tsukumo is the blonde."
"I don't think either of them would prefer me as a roommate but if I had to choose, I'd pick Tsukumo. She hates me a lot less than Iva does."
Hirato snickered a little, "She really doesn't like you?"
"Well, let me put it this way…I have a sinking feeling that if I fell asleep in front her I would never wake up." She gave a little huff and leaned back against the couch.
"Haha! Oh, and by the way, how is your arm? I was surprised last night when you passed out. Normally, Post-Humans heal very quickly. Why didn't you?" he was honestly curious (verging on worried, in my opinion).
"Call it a mistake in my genetic make-up. While most creatures like me are capable of speedy regeneration, I have no healing abilities whatsoever. If I get injured I have to deal with it the way a normal human would," she paused and looked down at her arm. Then she continued in a soft voice by saying, "That's why I cut myself the way I did. In my mind, injuring my own body like that is an action of ultimate submission. I was showing you that I was willing to trust you enough to, quite literally, put my life in your hands." The cat-girl stopped again, a slight blush adorning her features.
Hirato's eyes widened ever so slightly. This was an interesting revelation. He tilted his head to the side a bit then said, "Why?"
Yuki gave a shiver and tucked her legs underneath her as if she was cold, "I…I'm not sure. Technically, I could have run away when we first fought. Even after, it just would have taken a little more work. But, the thing is, I don't understand why I didn't, and it infuriates me to no end to not know WHY?!" she shouted this last part and glared at the coffee table in front of her.
The captain gave a small smile. Even though he didn't like her very much, she was beginning to interest him. She didn't ever act like he expected her to and he thought her reactions to different situations were amusing.
"Maybe this place feels more like home to you than where ever you came from," he pushed his glasses up a little, "Does that sound about right?"
She twitched, whipped her head up (now blushing a ruby red), and proceeded to spit out curses in embarrassment. Hirato simply laughed at her interesting choice of language. She certainly was fascinating.
Thanks for reading! I hope you liked it. I'm really starting to enjoy writing this story. Oh, and by the way, I'm thinking of beginning a new story I'll call Silver and Gold. It will be another Karneval fanfic, but there won't be any OCs. It is still in consideration though. Anyway, thanks again for reading! Please, don't be afraid to review! Constructive criticism, encouragement, complains, suggestions, frustrations, etc...anything is appreciated!
Later!