Chapter 9- Reunion
The first thing Mirei noticed was the lack of movement. The second was how soft the cargo hold floor felt underneath her. Her eyes flew open, and as she blinked, she realized she wasn't in the shuttle any more. She sat up, and saw she was on a bed. The sheets felt smooth and cool on her skin. She looked around- she was in a tastefully appointed bedroom. One side of the room opened up to a screened-in pavilion of traditional Chinese style. Mirei could see the sun setting outside the pavilion. The room itself was sleek and elegant, with a low dresser against one wall, and an abstract painting in muted tones over the head of the bed. The walls were paneled in satiny, chocolate-brown wood of exotic grain. She rubbed her eyes, and swung her feet out of bed.
"What in the world…" Mirei said to herself.
This was definitely a new wrinkle. She couldn't imagine any kidnapper putting her up in such comfort. She wondered exactly where she was, and how long she had been sleeping. As if in reply to her unvoiced questions, a door swung open, and the man from the alley walked in. He waved his hand and told the room processor to bring the lighting up to 250 lumens. As the light chased away the gathering dusk, Mirei gasped. She knew this man.
"Well, its about time you woke up, Sleeping Beauty. You slept through a rough landing, a change in shuttles, and being carried up a flight of stairs on my back. In all, you've been out about fourteen hours."
"You. I know you. You're…" Mirei stopped, as the words stuck in her throat.
"You sure do know me- or at least I hope you do. Otherwise, I snatched a complete stranger off the streets! That could get ugly- kidnapping is frowned upon, you know." The man said jokingly as he closed the distance to the bed. His golden eyes were laughing.
"Jouichirou!" Mirei squeaked. She began to sob convulsively.
"Oh, hey! Don't cry, Mirei. I didn't mean to frighten you. I just didn't expect that girl to make a move so quickly, so I had to improvise…" Jouichirou stumbled awkwardly over the words as he ran a hand through his chin-length brown hair.
"You did the same thing...w-w-with your hair. That day." Mirei said in a hiccupping whisper.
"It has been a while, hasn't it?" Jouichirou said quietly as he sat down on the edge of the bed next to Mirei. "I don't even know where to begin. For the longest time, I was afraid I had lost you forever. Those bastards did a thorough job on your memory. I was out of commission for a while, too, but they didn't get to me like they did you…"
"Where did you go? Where did the rest of STAND go after the incident?" Mirei asked as she looked probingly into his eyes.
"We were all injured- none of us like you, though. Raven was able to get us out, put us in hiding in Oceania- a small town about 80 kilometers outside of Melbourne. But you were too badly injured. To move you was to risk your life. So, we decided that we would keep watch over you. Protect you until the time was right. Unfortunately, they wiped your memory before we could get you. So our protection detail went on a little longer than we planned. I personally watched over you every day of those five years, hoping you would remember, that you would…remember me."
"You were there? All that time? Why didn't you say something? Try to contact me?" Mirei asked.
"I did on a couple of occasions in the beginning, but you didn't recognize me at all. Raven thought it best to leave you alone, to only interact with you if you showed signs of remembering. He thought that would keep you safe from them, and he was right. As long as you didn't remember, you posed no threat. They could use your skill and knowledge without worrying that you might expose them. So I contented myself with watching over you in secret." Jouichirou replied.
"Who are 'they'? Who did this to me?" Mirei asked through clenched teeth.
" 'They' are the Hive committee of LL. Somehow it leaked that Serge had acted on his own initiative, not as an agent of LL. After End of Incubator, LL took a lot of flak for planning to leave New Hong Kong to Virus. They orchestrated Tai Mo Shan as a way to get rid of us, to silence us. You were the only one they were able to completely incapacitate, though. Stock prices plummeted, and there was a call for a legal investigation into the Hive's actions. So, they quietly stepped down, and disappeared. After public indignation cooled a bit, Atlas Corporation suddenly bought out LL, and it seemed like everything was over. But the Hive had really just realigned themselves with Atlas, and they were still controlling things behind the scenes."
Mirei was shaking with anger. "So all of this time, I was working for the people who tried to kill me! I put my life into Sonata for all of that time, and now they are going to profit from my work! They even had a spy in my team- a person I had counted on, a person I had thought of as a friend… I want to take them down. I want to make them pay."
Jouichirou put his hand over Mirei's. "You have every right to feel that way. For what it's worth, I don't think they ever wanted to kill you. They wanted to use you- and they did. Plans have all ready been put into play to hold them accountable for their actions- all of their bad actions. Raven is on his way to explain this to you in detail. He should be here in about an hour. I also have things…of a more personal nature to discuss with you, but that can wait. I know you have a lot to absorb right now. I think the best thing to do at the moment is to concentrate on mundane things- give yourself a little time to catch your breath. I've set out some toiletries and some fresh clothes if you'd like to take a bath, and I'll get you something to eat."
"Don't leave me. Not now. I don't want to be alone." Mirei said, as tears welled up again in her eyes.
"I will never leave you, and you're never alone, OK? Even all of that time you thought you were alone, you weren't. I was right there. I'm just going into the other room to get some food. I'll be back here, waiting for you when you get out of the bath." Jouichirou said in a low, reassuring voice. He squeezed her hand, then stood to go.
"Thank you, Jouichirou." Mirei called out.
"You're welcome Mirei. It was my pleasure."
The warm water of the shower felt wonderful on Mirei's skin. After a quick, vigorous scrubbing, she shifted to the enveloping luxury of the deep bath. Slowly, the tension in her muscles subsided. She looked around her- this was a beautiful bathroom. Everything was covered in cream and peach marble, accented by glittering gold fixtures. One entire wall was a mirror, and Mirei watched her reflection as she bathed.
"Who am I? Who am I really?" The questions cut through the steamy air, as she addressed them to her reflection. "My life...has been a lie these past five years. How do I start over?"
After soaking for about half an hour, Mirei emerged from the bath. She wrapped one of the plush towels Jouichirou had laid out for her around her shivering frame. She turned to the outfit he had prepared for her- a pair of traditional silk Chinese pajamas in a bright peacock blue, with intricate embroidery scattered across the fabric. She slipped the lovely outfit on, and deftly closed the silken frog closures that marched at a diagonal across the top, and stepped into the matching silk slippers.
When she went back out, Jouichirou was waiting on the bed with a tray of food. His eyes lit up as she crossed the room.
"Mirei, you look wonderful in that color. I felt kind of bad- those were the only women's clothes I could find in the place, but they suit you perfectly. You look like some sort of ancient princess."
Mirei's cheeks colored at the compliment. "Mmm. Something smells great! What is it?"
"Ramen Jouichirou!" he said pointing to a steaming bowl. " A cool glass of barley tea, and a plate of fresh fruit. I remembered how much you liked mangoes and lychee, and I found some here, so…"
"Thanks! I'm starved. I didn't realize it until just now. It all looks heavenly!" Mirei gushed as she tucked into the food.
Jouichirou smiled proudly as he watched Mirei devour her food. He stroked her hair as she ate.
As Mirei finished, the door to the room opened.
"I guess the party's in here." A calm voice intoned.
Mirei looked up, let out a terrified shriek, and dumped the food tray into the floor as she jumped to her feet. Every muscle in her body was tensed, ready to strike.
"Chief Harata… How? Jouichirou! Get down! They found us!"
The man in the door approached the bed, his blue eyes impassive behind the wire rims of his glasses. "I take it you didn't inform Mirei that I would be coming, Jouichirou."
Mirei looked back and forth between the two men. "Jou? How could you… you sold me out to them?" Her voice rose to a terrified shrill. She turned, and in a flash was sprinting towards the glass door to the pavilion.
Jouichirou called out as he lunged towards Mirei. "Mirei, no! it's all right. This is Raven! I told you he was coming!" He grasped her arm, but she twisted free from his hold, and continued toward the door. As what Jouichirou said sank in, Mirei stopped mid stride. She turned, facing Raven.
"B…but I saw you. You're Harata. You're working for Atlas." Mirei was crying, a strained look on her face. "Jou… this is a trap. He lied to you. Get out now…"
Jouichirou grabbed Mirei by the shoulders, and looked directly into her eyes. "Mirei, it's Raven. It really is. He has been working at Atlas as Harata. It's part of the plan."
Mirei was trembling uncontrollably. "Papa Raven? No… Why. Why did you let them…" her knees sagged, and Jouichirou lowered her slowly to the floor.
Jouichirou looked at Raven, visibly shaken. "I didn't realize she had come into direct contact with you at Atlas. This is my fault. I've failed her."
"No, Jouichirou. It's my fault. I should have kept you better informed. I never actually met with her in person, but she saw my face and heard my voice in memos and calls." Raven spoke quietly as he walked over, and kneeled down beside Jouichirou and Mirei.
"Mirei, you're safe. I'm not here to hurt you. Whether you call me Raven or Harata is irrelevant. I am who I am; who I've always been. And who I am is the person who brought you to STAND, and who has been watching over you and guiding you that whole time. I would like to explain it all to you, if you feel you are ready. If not, I can wait. The choice is yours."
Mirei looked up at Raven with a tear-streaked face. She flung herself around his neck, and sobbed. "Oh, Papa Raven. I missed you so much."
Raven's blue eyes softened a bit as he patted her gently on the back. "I missed you too, Mirei. But now we're back together, and everything is as it should be."