Catch-22: The Hollow
By: M14Mouse
Summary: Sae really wished that this silly shadow would go away.
Disclaimer: Don't own them.
There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth, unless someone rises up to tell you the truth.-Louis Farrakhan
"GO AWAY!" Sae shouted for what felt like the millionth time.
The strange shadow gave her a look.
"NoOoo…" The slimy shadow said.
She wasn't a child. She was a manager of this casino, but she had a strong impulse to stomp her foot on the floor in frustration. This annoying little shadow slipped into her office and kept bugging her.
Her guards couldn't seem to catch him because he slipped into the shadows and under her furniture.
She tried to shoot him.
And chase him away….
BUT HE KEPT COMING BACK!
"Why don't you go away, you annoying creature?!"
"Be…BeCauSe….YoU lost."
"I WON'T LOSE!"
The slimy shadow bounced up and down if he was saying yes.
"LoST! No…NoT LOSe!"
"It doesn't matter!"
"QuEeN saY THEre iS A DiFferEncE!"
"My sister isn't always right."
"QuEeN Is RiGht!"
Then the strange creature gave her a look that clearly said that he had been hanging around her sister.
"I don't have time to talk or listen to you. Leave!"
"No."
"How dare you….Fine, I'm going to call…"
CRUNCH!
"You bite me!" She shouted in shock. The bite didn't break the skin but it hurt!
"YeS."
"You…You annoying little creature! Listen, here…I'm…"
"Do NoT CarE!"
"I have thieves to deal with. They left one of those cards and they came to change my heart. I will win! I will…"
CRUNCH!
"I'M GOING TO!"
The stupid creature started hitting his head on her foot.
"STOP IT!"
"No! LiSten!"
"I have to!"
BLAHHH!
"EEWWW! What did you spit out?! Get it off!" She shouted as she tried to shake off the item that this awful creature spit on her!
"LoOk!"
"NO!"
"LoOk!"
Her eyes darted down to a brochure on the ground.
Was that…a college brochure?
"She is…looking at schools?"
The creature bounced up if he was saying yes.
"QuEen said Tell DAITo AlL aBouT them! BuT QuEeN SaD…."
She paused for a moment. They talked about it before…visiting schools and pouring over the brochures. They talked about the pros and cons of each school.
But…they don't talk about that anymore.
Or anything for that matter.
"After I win…"
"No! NO! HoLloW!"
"Hollow?"
What was this creature talking about?
"AnOThER! AnOTher! AlL SaE WiLl Want! OvEr And OvEr aGain! NeVer Be HapPy!"
Daito started to spit out books on her feet.
"What is this…?" She asked. She recalled some of these titles. It was some of the books that she read with her sister…and some that her father read to them.
Slowly, she began to understand the creature a little more and his voice didn't sound so…off?
"DaiTo was HoLlow. EaT…Eat…EaT. Always hungry. Never happy. Then…Then SENSEI CAME! AND! AND! Sensei did not run over Daito in Mona! He kneeled and patted Daito's head. It made Daito feel! Then…then Sensei took Daito to Lila, Black Frost, Nom Nom…to his family! Daito felt something…full! Sometimes, Sad…Sometimes, happy. But full! See! See! Queen read Diato books! All about Pink Chomps…and sleepy bears…Kung Fu…family. Daito understands now. Family. Sae lost. Queen and Daito will bring Sae back."
"Not without a fight."
The strange creature beamed.
"Queen fight. Sae Fight. Queen wins. Sae found her own heart."
What a silly thing for this creature to say.
"Win. Win. Lose. Lose. Sae accept. Sae is smart."
She was angry at these thieves who dared to challenge her. She was angry at her sister for endangering her future. She was angry at her bosses. She was angry at everything. The case. Her life.
Winning made her feel.
Strange creature was right.
She was hollow.
"I will win."
"Okay…If it makes Sae Feel Better."
This strange creature sounds like her sister.
-P4P5P4-
She kneeled on the ground as she struggled to catch her breath. She heard the thieves shout at each other before leaving her alone.
They probably stole her heart.
She lost. She lost to these thieves…her sister. She could feel her palace shifting around her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the strange creature.
She tilted her head and smiled softly at the creature.
"You're right. They did win. Soon, this place will be gone and so will I," She said.
"Nope!" The strange creature said as he bounced.
Blah!
The strange creature spit out something before her on the ground.
"Queen told Daito to keep it safe. So Daito did."
Her eyes widened at the picture of her father, sister, and her when she graduated school. It warmed her heart to see them together. What the picture was attached was the most important to her heart….her law degree.
Her reason…right in print.
"Makoto probably told you everything. Our father….I had to take responsibility for Makoto after his death. To be strong but to guide her on her path. She didn't need much help. She was smart and driven like everyone else in our family. I was so proud of her when she said that she wanted to be like me and father. It scared me a bit because of the dangers. She wanted to serve. To help. Like father…like me."
The little creature stared at her.
"To serve justice. I thought that me winning all my cases would prove justice to Japan…the families. Winning may prove justice but I was never happy with it. It was hollow. At one time, I would visit the family to tell them the verdict but not…I don't even do that anymore. It was an endless gamble. To be the best and to win. I forgot about the people I serve and the justice that I uphold. I lost sight of that."
She saw herself glowing….it was…pretty.
"But…But! Sae found it! Daito proud! Queen proud too!"
She shook her head.
"It is nothing to be proud of. To be a fool."
"Do Not Say that! Sae did it by herself! Sae changed her own heart!"
The creature wrapped its arms? around her arm. She grinned as she patted its head.
"What a wonderful, strange creature you are. I hope that I get to see you again," She said softly.
As she slowly slipped away, she swore that she heard the creature say…
"Do not worry! Daito will be there soon!"
-P4P5P4-
There was a guard between her and her car. The guard didn't pay much attention to his surroundings, more so than his sandwich.
And Ren wasn't getting any lighter. She glanced around to see if there was anything to use for a distraction.
Bark! Bark!
She watched as a tiny dog rushed the guard, jumped, and grabbed the sandwich out of the guard's hands.
That was…very impressive.
"HEY!" The guard shouted as he chased after the dog.
This was her chance. Carefully and quickly, she guided Ren to her car. She put her key into the key slot in the car door and twisted it to hear the familiar click. Once she unlocked the door, she leaned Rean against the car. She opened the door and unlocked the rest of the car. She threw open the door and slipped Ren into the car. He stumbled onto the seat.
Bark! Bark!
The little dog jumped into the car as she tried to close the door.
She let out a curse.
"You need to get out!" She whispered angrily.
The little dog barked and wagged its tail.
"Daito?" Ren mumbled.
"You know this dog?" She asked Ren, who looked drugged and confused.
"Kind of? He was bigger and slimer…"
She shook her head.
"Never mind. Let's go," She said as she closed the door.
Quickly, she got into the driver's seat and turned on her car. Calmly, she drove out of the parking garage and toward Souji's place.
After a few moments, she heard the sound of feet jumping into her passenger side.
She glanced over to see the tiny dog.
It was the ugliest dog that she had ever seen.
She could tell that it was a chihuahua. He had a big underbite with a few of his front teeth sticking out along part of his tongue. One of his eyes was bigger than the other. It looks like he was crazy. Most of his body was missing hair but he did have a tuft of red hair on the top of his head.
But…in a way…it was almost cute.
Daito started to shiver…poor thing.
"After we drop off Ren, we are going to get you a coat to keep you warm."
In the back seat, she could have sworn that she heard Ren trying not to laugh.
End of the Hollow
Next Chapter: The Point Where We Return
A/N: She lives! This chapter drove me nuts because writing our little slime's speech pattern was a pain. I decided to slowly have Sae understand the little guy. Again. For my sanity and yours. I also want to do a different take on the boss fight. Daito as a little dog. Pretty much an excuse for Makoto to dress Daito up in a little outfits (which he will love). Thank you for the reviews, kudos, etc. Read and Review if you wish.