After the whole bloody incident in the marble quarry, the prison guards finally did their fucking jobs and dispersed us inmates. They rounded up the inmates and brought us all back to Block B in a hurry, hoping that we'd all cool off in the falling rain.

The guards took away Chief Ninomae and her posse of plucky, misfit cops aside too. I'm guessing they'd spin it as something they did for 'their protection', but I know those off-beats well enough to know that they don't need protection.

They have more than their fair share of experience with riots. I've seen it with my own eyes, of course.

Heh, and I know that they were the best damn cops in this whole damn prison. Better than either Ravencroft or Enma, at least. Way better.

How the hell did they know I was here, though? And why are they here, so far away from The City?

I didn't have the time to ask.

In the chaos of it all, the guards just threw us back into our cells. They didn't even let us take a shower or get out of our muddy, squelching work boots or anything. All that was waiting for us in my cell was yesterday's clothes. It wasn't pristine, but it was dry.

A quick sniff of it, though, made me think otherwise. Eugh.

Before I could decide whether or not yesterday's clothes were still salvageable, though, the frantic guards brought another person back into my cell.

The lioness, Botan Shishiro.

She grinned at me.

"Hey there, friend." Botan started, "Seems you're still alive."

"Same to you." I answered, smirking back at her, "Wet. But alive."

"Hah! Truth." Botan guffawed.

As she laughed, I shuddered where I stood and sneezed!

A-CHOOO!

Botan's expression became serious in a heartbeat.

Just as the guards moved to close our cell, Botan swiftly grabbed one of them by the collar and pulled her close to her face. Then, she spoke with her gruff, heavily accented growl, "Hey there, copper. My friend and I could use some fresh clothes. Be a dear and get us some, yeah? Towels too."

The prison guard's face went pale. None of her fellow guards dared to come to her aid, so the guard nodded sheepishly and scurried off. She returned with everything Botan 'asked' her for and skittered away as quickly as she came.

"Go get changed." Botan urged me, "You'll catch a cold."

"Sure, sure."

Botan and I stripped off our damp, dirty clothes and changed into our new fresh changes of clothes. While we took off our clothes, I paused and fell silent as Botan took everything off: knickers, brazier, everything! Without any hesitation whatsoever.

Plus, now unobstructed by her shirt or the straps of her bra, I got a good look at the lioness' broad back and the tattoo that sprawled out on her rippling muscles.

"Hot damn."

I knew that Botan had muscles, but she was built like a machine!

The tattoos on her back were Pekolandese letters written around something that looked like a fuse bomb with lion ears. I don't really know Pekolandese so I didn't know what all that stuff said, but it looked pretty cool.

Just as I was thinking this, Botan's own cat ears twitched and her lion's tail swished behind her towards me like a snapping whip. She probably noticed my gaze - and my jaw that had dropped down to the ground.

"Hey, whatcha lookin' at?" Botan turned to me and pouted. Her cheeks were blushing ever so slightly, "We're ladies and all, but I see you looking pretty intensely…"

Huh. She's got a cute side to her too.

A meek Botan. I wonder how many people can claim that they've seen that - and lived to tell the tale?

I cleared up my throat and answered her honestly.

"Your ink." I pointed to her back, "What the hell is that?"

"Ah." Botan chuckled. She used her tail to point to her back tattoo as she explained, "This means S-S-R-B. Shi-Shi-Ro-Bo."

Botan flexed her muscles and made each Pekolandese letter bulge out independently. Mother Sora, she's ripped!

I… uh, really shouldn't tell Mumei that I've been looking at 'anatomy' this respectfully. Sheesh.

"Cool, huh?" Botan asked cheerfully.

"Y-yeah…" I stammered my way back into the conversation, "But that bomb thing with the lion ears. What is that?"

"Oh! I fought with the Pekolander grenadiers during The War. That bomb was our insignia." She put on her shirt and beamed, "Koro-san helped me design it. I think it looks cool."

"It does." I concurred.

Botan beamed. Her lion's tail wagged placidly.

On that note, the two of us finished getting changed. Botan finished first and sat down on her upper bunk, rubbing the mattress gently. From that perch, she looked down at me earnestly.

"Listen, Ouro. I wanna be frank with you. I'm sorry about what happened after Mine-Craft yesterday." Botan apologized, "An Enforcer of that rocky girl and the Warden waved wads of cash in my face and told me that I was gonna get moved to Block C whether I liked it or not. I didn't really have much of a choice in that matter."

My own smile wavered. I turned around and looked out the window to the dark, rainy skies.

"Which Enforcer are you talking about?" I asked her.

Botan scratched her face and sighed, "It was Koro-san."

Koro-san…? The finger-obsessed mad dog Korone Inugami?

Dangerous people draw dangerous people I guess.

Botan hummed and folded her arms.

"She and those doggy twins she's taking care of usually leave me alone, but they wouldn't take no for an answer that night. And - hell - I didn't know if I could trust you yet either, Ouro. A night in the comfier cells of Block C didn't sound too bad of a deal."

So, Botan and I were thinking the same thing about each other.

"Fair enough, fair enough. You and Miss Inugami seemed to know each other. I figure you'd trust her over some washed-out Jenny-come-lately you just met in prison anyways." I spoke frankly.

"Exactly! Koro-san is… how do you people in this country say it? She's my 'sworn-sister'. Yeah." Botan admitted, "Nothing personal, kid."

"I know, I know." I waved my hand, "I wasn't born yesterday. I know how this game is played."

I say that, but I should have trusted my own sworn-sister Mumei over those Vanguard greaseballs and listened to her more.

Botan glanced at me curiously and continued to speak.

"I did, however, hold out hope that you weren't just some washed-out floozy, comrade. I haven't known you a long time, but you lasted on my good books longer than most of my other cellmates. So, when I accepted Koro-san's offer, but I did ask her for some information."

"Information…? What kind?"

"Information about you." Botan clarified, "Who you were - what you did and all that. I learned about your history with Enma - the big cheese of Fort Whiskey."

"... I see." I paused.

"I also learned about your copper friends from The City." Botan continued proudly, "Didn't think I'd have a cellmate who rubbed elbows with not one but TWO chiefs of police, but strange things happen in this town."

"... wait a second." My jaw dropped, "So, the reason they're here is because…"

"I used my phonecall to get in touch with them." Botan revealed proudly, "They happened to be in town for some event or whatnot, so you lucked out." She laughed, "They wouldn't even give me the time of day at first. But that changed when I told them about you and your situation here in Fort Whiskey. And the rest is history."

"Gosh… things would've gotten ugly if they didn't come by." I shook my head.

"You're friends with some really interesting characters, Kronii Ouro." Botan smiled with intrigue, "If it's alright with you, i'd like to be one of them too. You can count on me to watch your back, Kronii Ouro. Fort Whiskey isn't a place that you can survive alone in. So if there's anything you need help with - anything at all, just say the word."

I smiled back at Botan, "I appreciate it."

From where she lay, Botan held out a fist to me. I bumped it with my own fist.

"Gosh, I wonder how different things would have been if you were with me at Kovalskia National Bank that night…" I thought out loud.

Botan stirred in her bed and looked at me, "Still thinking about how the Vanguard Syndicate shafted you, huh?"

I furrowed my brow and sighed, "How could I not? I have something of a sworn-sister myself - maybe something more than that - and she's out there in the streets of Winningson fending for herself from those four clowns on her own because of my colossal fuck-ups. She's one of the toughest cookies I know… but Winningson is vicious. More vicious than I thought."

"Ouro…" Botan mumbled with concern.

I hobbled over to the bars of our cell and slammed my fists into them.

"I shouldn't be stuck here. I have to be out there protecting her!" I argued.

Botan sat upright on her chair and faced me wholeheartedly, "Listen here, Ouro. If ever you and I get out of this dump, my offer stands."

I snorted and managed to smile once more.

"When that time comes, Botan, the Vanguard boys are gonna be quaking in their boots."

I just have to hope that good ole' Chief Ninomae isn't as wet-behind-the ears as she was back when I was still in City PD.

…

…

…

Meanwhile, at the Visitor's Center of Fort Whiskey Medium Security Prison, the prison guards and staff watched as a showdown unraveled before their eyes. Ina'nis Ninomae, Amelia H. Watson, Kiara Takanashi and Subaru Oozora, guests from out of town, marched through the halls. The flustered Warden Nerissa Ravencroft puffed up her chest and tried to stop them.

"Now listen here…!" Nerissa squawked, flustered and frustrated, "You can't just march into my prison, shoot firearms in the yard and strut around like you own the place!"

Ina didn't give her the time of day and kept walking.

She gestured to the gawking guards and urged them, "A little help here, please, jailbirds?"

A gaggle of Prison guards, Nerissa's 'jailbirds', heeded her call. They tried to intercept the outsiders, but Ame, Kiara and Subaru held the guards at bay.

"We'll handle things here, Ina." Ame grinned confidently, "Go and see that snake."

"And say hi to her for us too!" Kiara added, beaming as the jailbirds try and fail to dislodge her.

Subaru, on the other hand, gives an eager thumbs up. Then, she pulled out a baton and held Nerissa's jailbirds back.

"Will do." Ina smiles and continues to march down the hall.

"Hey!" Nerissa stubbornly tries to intercept her, "I don't know who you are or what force you're from, but I am the Warden of Fort Whiskey. You have to listen to me."

"You're the warden?" Ina chuckled. She glanced at Nerissa's nameplate, "Warden Ravencroft, huh? If that's the case, then you clearly failed to protect the inmates you've got in your jurisdiction - or to stop a potential prison riot. My girls and I had to do your job for you. Doesn't sound like something to be proud of… 'warden'."

Nerissa furrowed her brow, "You can't boss me around! I outrank you!"

Ina paused and raised her brow at Nerissa, "You, a captain, outrank a police chief? That's news to me."

Nerissa's jaw dropped, "YOU'RE a police chief?"

Ina's smile widened. She put her hands on her hip and hummed.

"That's right, warden . I'm the one who booted your old boss, Miss Enma, out of her job too. So, unless you want to have some bad citations in your evaluation reviews this quarter, then please get your inmate, Kronii Ouro, ready for visitation and get out of my way." Ina's smile became sly and she added with devious sweetness, "Okay~?"

With that, Nerissa fell silent. Then she grumbles, "Fine… but Miss Enma will be hearing about this."

Ina chuckled, completely unfazed.

"Oh, I hope she does, Warden Ravencroft. I hope she does. She got out of a death sentence, somehow, but she can't get away from me."

…

Queenpins 2: The Big Brass Ballad of Kronii Ouro

Friends In High And Low Places

…

To Be Continued