"Corrine…?"
Moving her hand along the sheet in search of her dog's warmth, Sheena quickly discovered that not only was Corrine no longer curled up in a ball beside her, but the sheet had gone entirely cold. Once the situation sank slowly into her sleepy mind, Sheena finally sat bolt upright, wide awake. Oh no…
Corrine had definitely been here when she'd checked into her room in the Sylvarant Hotel last night, which had honestly been just as much of a surprise as his absence was now. Hotels like this didn't usually allow pets, after all, but then again, she strongly suspected Zelos had pulled a few strings when he'd paid for the room. He'd offered to escort her to a place she could stay for the night, and she'd assumed he'd bring her back to the Aselia Motel.
If Sheena had known Zelos would take her here, she never would have agreed to let him pay. She didn't like being beholden to shady strangers, but on a scale of not liking things, Corrine's mysterious absence was first and foremost in Sheena's thoughts. "Corrine," she repeated, a little more loudly, and patted the bed insistently in the hopes that he had simply not heard her. But no familiar flurry of motion greeted her, or even his little whine-like yawn.
Somehow or other, Corrine had disappeared.
Before Sheena could start turning the room upside-down in search of her dog, however, a note on the bedside table caught her eye. She snatched it up, fingers trembling, only to find that it was written in… cursive. Of course. "I can't read cursive," muttered Sheena to herself, glaring at the note in deep concentration. Even focusing as hard as she could, it took her at least five minutes to piece together everything the note said.
Good morning, honey! Sorry for taking Corinne with me, but I made a deal with the folks at the hotel, and they don't like dogs. (She'd guessed as much, but the confirmation made her even angrier.) If you want him back, ask for Detective Café at the police station. (The hell kind of name was 'Detective Café'?) If they refuse to see you, just show them this note.
His signature was just as obnoxiously fancy as it had been on the dinner bill last night, but that wasn't the end. Sheena squinted at the postscript, which was even less legible than the rest, as if it had been more hastily scrawled. After another solid minute of analysis, her eyes widened in embarrassment and horror. P.S. Sorry about your grandpa—you talk in your sleep.
"That bastard!" exclaimed Sheena, crumpling the note in her hand as she balled it into a fist. However, even as she did so, she remembered she might need it, and smoothed it out again with an effort as she attempted to calm herself down. Walking right into a police station was probably the last thing Sheena wanted to do right now, especially after the events of last evening, but she didn't exactly have much of a choice if she wanted to get her dog back.
"Here goes nothing," Sheena muttered to herself, plucking up her rucksack, and wrenched open the door—cursing her alleged benefactor and his stupid pretentious face as she locked it behind her and stormed away. "You win this round, Zelos Wilder."
"You," remarked Aurion, brought up short on his way out the door, and there was an uncertain note in his voice that might have been surprise. Sheena froze in place, almost tripping in earnest. This was the last thing she needed after a solid couple hours wandering the city in search of the police station.
"Y-yeah," returned Sheena apprehensively, stumbling out of his way, but he didn't move. This could be trouble; she should probably explain herself so she didn't get accused of trying anything. "Me. Um, I was told to ask for Detective Café at the police station," she added in a rush, displaying Zelos's note as an afterthought. "I think he has my dog…?"
As Aurion took in Sheena's stricken expression, or perhaps Zelos's scribbled explanation, his stoic countenance softened slightly in something like sympathy. "So that's what he was talking about," he said, crossing his arms and looking away. "I should have known Wilder would pull something like this. You'd better go inside and explain." Before Sheena could ask what he meant, Aurion strode past her, shaking his head slowly… but then paused, glancing back over his shoulder. "I hope you've come ready to work."
"W-work?" stammered Sheena, taken aback, but Aurion had already disappeared around the corner and taken all hope of understanding the situation with him. Taking a deep breath and clearing her mind just like Grandpa taught her, Sheena turned back to the station entrance and pushed the door open.
She stepped inside cautiously, her senses on such high alert that the sound of the door closing again almost startled her. Still, she relaxed quickly; the front office was thankfully deserted except for a sole receptionist, whose placard read Pronyma—no last name given.
Prior to encountering this woman, Sheena thought that dark green hair and pale gold eyes were a difficult combination to work with, but she pulled it off effortlessly with flawlessly applied violet eyeshadow, dark nail polish, and darker lipstick. In a word, Pronyma looked formidable, which didn't do much to boost Sheena's confidence.
"U-um, excuse me," she began, stepping shyly up to the counter, but Pronyma didn't so much as look up. "Excuse me," she repeated timidly, but almost flinched as the receptionist glared up at her, evidently irked by the interruption. "Can I speak to Detective Café?" As she spoke, Sheena slid Zelos's note across the counter for clarification.
Scrutinizing the contents suspiciously, Pronyma let out a short sigh, and her eyes flicked swiftly back up to Sheena. "Detective Cah Fay is in his office," she explained disdainfully, pronouncing the syllables with odd emphasis. Sheena frowned; had Zelos given her the wrong name? "Last door on the left." As Pronyma gestured down the hall, Sheena nodded once, swallowed, and wandered off in the direction she indicated.
It wasn't long before she arrived at her destination. Y. Ka-Fai, read the sign on the frosted glass, and Sheena stopped short. Oh. Well, that explained a few things; apparently Zelos hadn't even bothered learning how to spell his contact's name. However, there was no time for any further value judgments, as whoever was talking on the other side of the door was suddenly and rudely interrupted.
"No, you listen," shouted a sharp tenor, so forcefully that Sheena half thought the glass would shatter. "This wasn't my idea! If you have a problem with it, talk to Wilder! Gods know I will if you don't!"
Even as he spoke, the door opened, and Sheena staggered into the opposite wall. A tall blond man with a perpetual sneer stalked out of the room, vanishing around the corner without so much as a glance at Sheena and leaving the door open behind him. Detective Ka-Fai let his visitor pass, then turned his sea-green glare onto Sheena so fiercely she couldn't think for a moment.
Thankfully, he couldn't stare her down for long; his turquoise hair was pulled into a long lopsided ponytail, half his bangs loose and disheveled and falling into his face so he had to brush them irritably out of his eyes. "And just who the hell are you?" demanded Detective Ka-Fai, looking her up and down coldly, and crossed his arms in undisguised impatience. "I'm busy. Unless you're here to file a report that your dog is missing," he added, looking her up and down with guarded interest.
Sheena's heart leapt. "Uh, y-yes, I am," she managed, and Detective Ka-Fai's eyes widened slightly before he jerked his head aside in an indication that she should come in. Sheena followed him apprehensively, expecting the office to be in shambles, but everything seemed to be in order. What had been the problem, and where was he now?
The thought had only just crossed Sheena's mind when Corrine started up from his position cowering in the corner and raced towards Sheena, his curly tail swinging from side to side frantically. "Oh, Corrine!" exclaimed Sheena, plucking him up and lifting him above her head before spinning around once. He gave a faint squealing half-bark of excitement in response. "I'm so glad you're safe, puppy!" She brought him down to nestle her face in his fur.
"I haven't gotten anything done all morning thanks to him," muttered Detective Ka-Fai, running a hand through his ponytail. "He was sleeping on one of my files, at least till Remiel came in and started snapping at me about my allergies." He did look distinctly haggard, but Sheena couldn't help but think he might be exaggerating his misfortune slightly. "So this is Corrine?" he added, raising an eyebrow. Corrine wiggled in place as if trying to face him, tilting his head in recognition of his name.
"Yes, and I'm so sorry he caused you so much trouble," said Sheena, words spilling out of her in giddy relief. "Thank you for putting up with him. I know he can be a handful sometimes." Of course, he could have been destroying Detective Ka-Fai's office, she added privately, but sleeping on important papers wasn't exactly helpful either. "Um… how much did Zelos tell you?" added Sheena, realizing that the detective was still staring at her in apparent shock and disapproval.
"Next to nothing, as usual," said Detective Ka-Fai bitterly. "He showed up at my apartment this morning and told me the owner of this dog was in need of a job, so if I looked after him for a few hours, I'd get an assistant out of the deal." He frowned down at Sheena. "I assume he meant you. How old are you, anyway?" He stepped aside to close the door behind her.
"Uh, almost sixteen," said Sheena, petting Corrine as much to calm her pounding heart as to pamper him. After years on the open road, Sheena really didn't like being trapped in offices, especially if she was being interrogated like this. It always gave her the impression that she was in trouble, and with as few resources as she had, that usually meant the threat of losing all her freedom.
"So, you're fifteen," muttered Detective Ka-Fai, rubbing his forehead in one hand. Evidently, swaying her answer towards 'sixteen' hadn't fooled him. "And you're not in school… why?"
"I'm not from around here," replied Sheena carefully. If this was really the job opportunity Zelos had told her about last evening, she couldn't afford to sound incompetent—even though that was probably the case, given that her skills extended to survival and not much else. "I've been traveling for a long time."
"Probably ran away from home," muttered Detective Ka-Fai half to himself, scowling, and Sheena tried with limited success to suppress her discomfort at how easily he could see through her. (Then again, he was a detective; she shouldn't have been so surprised.) "He owes me an assistant, and he sends me a goddamn runaway."
"I—I know the streets," Sheena supplied, stung. "I don't know these streets, yet, but… I could learn them?" She wasn't even sure where she was going with that, but if Detective Ka-Fai was implying that she was somehow worthless just because she'd run away from home… "Please," she continued, shelving her misguided pride and bowing her head. "I only need a job until I have enough money to skip town, anyway. You could just take me on till you find someone better."
Even as the words left her mouth, Sheena had to fight the urge to bury her lips in Corrine's fur and muffle them. Informing a police detective straight up that she was not only underage, but intended to leave town as soon as possible… well, that could easily be enough to get her packed up and shipped home on the next express. But instead—
"All right, you're hired," snapped Detective Ka-Fai, slamming his hands down on the desk: Sheena and Corrine both jumped and stiffened. "I don't like it, but I don't have much of a choice. I've been shorthanded long enough, and they don't pay me enough to do everything myself."
Sheena could only blink in astonishment for a few moments. There had to be a catch here somewhere. In a city this size, there must have been plenty of much more qualified people ready to take the job—so why was Detective Ka-Fai willing to hire someone as inexperienced and unqualified as Sheena? "Is there… some kind of… paperwork?" she asked instead, haltingly. "That I need to fill out? Before you can hire me?"
"I'll check in with Pronyma," said Detective Ka-Fai, waving a dismissive hand as if it was none of her concern. "First thing's first, get out of my office and find yourself some work-appropriate clothes. A girl like you might be good at gathering information if your outfit wasn't so shabby." The last part was a mutter, as though he was no longer addressing her, but Sheena narrowed her eyes. Seriously?
Still, she took a deep breath and reminded herself that this was only temporary, and she could endure anything as long as she didn't have to tolerate it forever. Besides, neither of them were especially happy about this arrangement, but there weren't exactly a lot of alternatives. For now, they were stuck with one another.
"I don't have any money," confessed Sheena, hugging Corrine for comfort. She debated adding that this was why she needed a job in the first place, but bit her tongue to avoid talking out of turn. Saying too much seemed downright dangerous around Detective Ka-Fai. (Maybe that spiky aura was part of why he had so much difficulty finding an assistant…?)
"Then tell me where you're staying and I'll have Pronyma send some along," said Detective Ka-Fai, gritting his teeth as though that was somehow obvious enough that he shouldn't have to voice it.
"I don't have an address…?" responded Sheena, the sentence curling into a question. For one reason or another, Zelos had only paid for the one night, so she couldn't even give Detective Ka-Fai the number of her hotel room.
Detective Ka-Fai stared at her in stunned annoyance. "Excuse me?"
Sheena closed her eyes and tried to gather her courage, focusing momentarily on the dog in her arms, but she could still feel her ears begin to burn. "Uh, I—I haven't found a place to stay yet," she mumbled, shifting in place and trying to make herself look as small as possible. It had never been easy admitting her poverty, but when she was under this much pressure, telling the truth seemed almost akin to confessing to a crime.
"You what?" thundered Detective Ka-Fai, and Corrine whimpered. Sheena hushed him, resting her chin on his head. "Wait till I get my hands on that son of a bitch," growled Detective Ka-Fai, cracking his knuckles. "If I told Aurion even half the dirt I've got on Wilder, he'd be in jail so fast he wouldn't know what hit him." He paused, his expression turning sourer still. "Of course, he's got more than enough money to make bail, but…"
Corrine gave a small whine, and—realizing that she had started squeezing him a little too tightly—Sheena loosened her grip on her dog, pressing a quick and apologetic kiss to his snout. "You don't seem to like Zelos very much," ventured Sheena, glancing back up at Detective Ka-Fai.
"Nobody likes Zelos Wilder," he scoffed. "And I mean nobody. If he didn't come from the richest family in the county…" He trailed off into a humorless laugh, and Sheena's eyes widened. So that was why Zelos had shut down when she'd mentioned his money. Despite his obnoxiously carefree attitude, he seemed just self-aware enough to understand that he wasn't particularly likable. It couldn't be easy knowing that people only interacted with him because he was rich. By comparison, Sheena's solitary life was arguably healthier. At least people liked or didn't like her based on her personality, since that was all she had.
But at least Zelos had money, even if society did see it as his only redeeming feature. And besides, he'd stolen Corrine just to hook Sheena up with a job she hadn't even agreed to take in the first place! Bolstered by her recollection of the injustices done to her, Sheena resolved to stop feeling sorry for him, and put him as far from her mind as possible.
By the time she looked up again, Detective Ka-Fai was examining her expression through narrowed eyes, and from the looks of things, he'd been doing so for some time. How long had she been zoning out? Certainly long enough for his irritation to have ebbed away. "Get Wilder to find you somewhere to stay. Preferably more permanent than a hotel. This is all his fault to begin with."
"Um… how can I reach him?" asked Sheena, raising her eyebrows. "He didn't exactly tell me much before he took off last night." Nothing, in fact, other than sweet dreams and he'd see her around sometime.
"Your first investigation," announced Detective Ka-Fai, drawing himself up to his full height of about six feet as if issuing some sort of official command, "is to get his number. It's not as hard as it sounds," he added, wryly amused, as Sheena opened her mouth to protest. "Almost any young woman will probably have it, so it'll just be a matter of getting them to tell you."
Sheena almost snorted; that didn't increase her chances half as much as Detective Ka-Fai seemed to think. Judging by Melissa's attitude, Zelos's social circle wasn't always the most welcoming to newcomers. "And what if they don't tell me?" she asked, shifting Corrine's weight in her arms.
Detective Ka-Fai only smiled grimly. "Then you can always pay him a visit in person. His mansion's at the top of Fooji Hill—they call it Tethe'alla Castle." He paused, shaking his head as if he thought it was exactly as ridiculous as it sounded. "You can't miss it."
"Tethe'alla… Castle," repeated Sheena dubiously, and Detective Ka-Fai gave the ghost of a smile, as if that had been his initial reaction too. (In that moment, Sheena experienced her first hint of kinship with her new boss.) "Right…"
"Oh, and if you do have to go there yourself, I'd advise you to do it sometime before sunset," added Detective Ka-Fai, almost startling Sheena with the suddenness of his afterthought. "Otherwise, you might stumble into one of Wilder's parties, and I'd hate for my new assistant to get caught up in anything illegal." He paused, staring Sheena down so intently that she almost staggered back. "Got it?"
Sheena nodded and swallowed, burying her face briefly in Corrine's fur for comfort, and he turned his head to lick her cheek in his familiar gesture of reassurance. "Got it," she said, her voice cracking.
"Come back after you deal with Wilder," said Detective Ka-Fai, plucking up a nearby pen and yanking off the cap abruptly with his teeth. "I'll probably have to stay late this evening anyway, just like every other day this week," he continued sourly, speaking around the cap in his mouth as he scribbled something on the back of a business card.
Sheena watched him, mesmerized. His handwriting was small and swift and almost delicate, although she felt some apprehension as she observed that his script was arguably less legible than Zelos's. "If you're still not done by the time I'm gone, here's my address," finished Detective Ka-Fai, capping the pen and handing Sheena his card. "Don't drop by unless it's an emergency."
"Th-thank you," said Sheena, carefully balancing Corrine in one arm as she accepted the card. "I won't let you down." She wasn't totally sure whether that was the right thing to say, since her current mission had more to do with taking care of herself than helping Detective Ka-Fai, but it felt a little awkward just to take his address and leave.
Her new boss's only response was a quirk of an eyebrow and a jerk of his head to tell her to get out. Jolting to action as if reprimanded, Sheena scurried out the door and resolved not to look back. That was a weird set of interactions, and her current instructions were weirder still, but she could handle anything now that she had her dog at her side once more.
"Well, Corrine," she said, stalking out the door—doing her best to avoid Pronyma's line of sight. "Time to get a guy's number for the first time in my life."
