Birthday Bash 2024

Prompt Two: Library/ Museum

Or

Part Two of Inheritance

Haru ran into her grandfather's private museum before slamming the door shut and locking it behind her as her lungs fought for air. Then she rested her back against the solid wood and let herself slowly sink to the ground as every fiber of her thin being trembled from the exertion and shock.

"How… did they know?" she panted as her brain turned blank. She looked around the large room frantically to be sure that there were no windows, even though she knew it would be a bigger security breech than her miserly grandfather would have allowed near his precious hoard.

Left without another thing to be done about her new situation, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and hit 'redial'. She held the device to her ear as she tried rocking herself gently to get her heartbeat under control.

"Hello, you've reached the Grand Priann Museum. How may I direct your call?" the same person as before answered, sounding even more cheerful than when she called less than an hour ago.

"It's Haru again. Tell Mr. Biggens it's an emergency," she told him in a harsh whisper.

"Right away!" he promised before the elevator music returned.

At least it didn't last as long as last time before the director was back on the line.

"Are you safe?! Can it get to you?!" Toto Biggens demanded like a scared parent.

"How did you know?" Haru demanded back at him as the rocking turned fast and hard enough to make her fall over her knees. "How did you know about the cat?!"

His laugh sounded on the verge of hysteria. "Oh, the stories you'll hear when I get to you."

"Do any of them talk about how stubborn the cat is?" Haru demanded. "This manor has more windows than Grandpa had treasures! I tried walking to a different room, he's at the new window. I run down a hall, he jumps from windowsill to tree to windowsill to keep pace with me, I try using curtains, but he always knows where I am anyway! He keeps meowing and following me even when he can't see me!"

"Yep, that's the one you can't let touch you," the gruffer voice from before noted darkly. "Do you at least have some food in that manor until we can get there?"

"I'll check later. Too many windows between the museum and kitchen, and I'm really freaked out right now. You know the worst part?!" she demanded at the top of her lungs.

"What?" Toto asked like he was going to be sick.

"He's so cute!" Haru wailed in frustration. "I've wanted a pet cat my whole life, made up my mind that it's on the list now that I inherited the money for it, and he's perfect! If I'd been a bit slower about calling you the first time, he'd have been on my lap by the time you gave me all those warnings."

"If you'd been a little slower, you wouldn't have made it to the warnings," the gruff voice growled. "Listen, do you have someone that can run and get food and necessities so it can't get you?"

"No," Haru admitted while using the edge of the red scarf to dry her face. "The people in town were rude once they knew I was Yabuki's grandkid, and my lawyer isn't the type I can ask."

"In that case, I'll send my wife ahead of the team," Toto decided firmly. "She'll be able to keep you company, make runs into town and whatever else you need. I was reminded after our first call that I'd need time to gather a team and make arrangements for supplies, so I can't come as quickly as I'd like."

"Is she nice?" Haru couldn't help asking sadly. It hadn't escaped her that both before and after finding out that she'd inherited a fortune, no one could be bothered to show her compassion.

"She's a doll. Actually, I'll send my wife too," the gruff voice decided just as firmly. "That way Chicky isn't alone at any time until we get the business with the necklace taken care of."

Haru unconsciously touched the green gem through the red scarf covering it, as per their request. "I'd like company. The manor has ten bedrooms," she remembered to add. "If your crew doesn't mind bunking up, I have enough room to house eighteen people when you come. Maybe more if they're not offended by couches or the floor."

"Thank you, I forgot to ask that earlier," Toto sighed in relief. "It should take about eight hours for Tara and Pelia to get to you, can you survive that long on your own?"

"Physically, yes. Mentally?" Haru couldn't help laughing at that like she was having a nervous breakdown. "I apologize in advance if I scare your wives."

ooOoo

"I'm sorry!" Haru cried as she ran down the hall and clawed frantically at a doorknob before managing to open it.

Her speed did nothing to stop the mewing sound from drumming her mind as she slammed that door behind her as well.

Just what was going on?! That gorgeous ginger had to eat sometime, but she could see no evidence of that.

'Maybe it's the ghost of a cat?' she couldn't resist thinking as she stumbled to the sink to turn on both the water and the food processor to drown out the insanely cute mewing she could still hear through the door. 'No, it could enter the house if it was a ghost. Unless it needs to be invited? No, that's vampires.'

Haru conducted a swift survey of the kitchen, although she already knew she wouldn't find much.

The bread was moldy and already in the garbage, thanks to her conducting the same inspection the day before. She'd managed to grab a few things at the grocery store before she got tired of defending her own character against people that refused to understand that only blood linked her to Ryuichi Yabuki. There was some rice, a little fruit, and a modest amount of noodles forgotten in a cupboard.

Compared to what she'd rationed herself for the three years after her mother's death, she could probably live for a week on this, but she still wished that she hadn't let herself basically get chased out of the store to try again another day.

Haru got a sick daydream about the cat following her into the store and chasing her around. The locals hated her anyway, they'd have a field day laughing at her and thinking that she was afraid of cats. Knowing their attitude, they'd probably hold her fast after a while so that the cat could try jumping on her or rubbing against her ankles.

Her heart throbbed, wanting to feel the texture of that orange and cream fur, feel the vibrations of his purr, and loudly start trying out names for her new pet.

"Why now?" she sobbed, burying her face in her hands. "Why did a cat decide it wanted me, now?!"

It wasn't worth the risk. She could hold out at least until the two wives showed up.

ooOoo

Although she wasn't happy about it, Haru decided that the museum was the best place to sleep that night. It sat at the center of the house, so there was plenty to buffer any cute calls of little kitties without extra noise, and other than one of the bathrooms, it had no windows.

What it did have, was nightmare fuel. The artifacts were interesting when the lights were on, but when she tried to turn them off, she could feel cats' eyes on her, so many cats' eyes! Priann must have the cat as its national animal, because there were a few too many antiques devoted to something involving felines.

The scariest one was a statue taller than her, almost in the same style as an Egyptian god with a cat's head perched on top of a man's body in clothing that would have been the style a good thousand years ago.

Haru couldn't help it. Every time she turned out the lights or closed her eyes, she'd feel like that statue was just waiting to carry her off somewhere like a damsel in a traditional horror movie.

"I don't fit the profile," she muttered to herself, even as she wished she'd curled up in the bathtub instead of the lounging couch that would have been comfortable in a different room. "Beautiful girls are the ones that get carried off, not half-starved wretches."

ooOoo

Haru's leg twitched as her phone started ringing. She groaned, still dead tired and unable to open her eyes as her hand felt blindly for her phone. She accidentally pulled the charger off while raising it to her reluctant eyes.

An unfamiliar number was calling. Maybe it was someone from the museum? She tapped to accept the call before uttering a weak, "Hello?"

"Hello, Miss Yoshioka! This is Tara Biggens and Pelia Moon, we're right outside your front door?" a sweet voice asked, though there was relief that she had answered.

Haru snapped up straight, wide awake in spite of her weariness. "Oh, gosh, really? Thank heaven, I'll be right down!" She looked down at herself, feeling a bit gross that she was still in yesterday's clothes, but she certainly didn't want to run down the hallways in her pajamas, even if no one but the cat would ever see her.

Speaking of the cat…

Haru groaned at the idea, but maybe he gave up? She stood up and listened at the door.

Nothing.

Feeling a bit of dread anyway, Haru twisted the knob and pushed it open a little.

Her ears were immediately assaulted by feline pleas to be let in, and the familiar tabby was pawing at the window with big, pleading eyes.

"I'm sorry!" she wailed, taking off down the hallway again. She ran into a few odds and ends while unable to keep herself from checking that the cat was keeping pace with her, just like the day before.

'Must be nice to be born an athlete!' she couldn't resist thinking enviously, at least keeping her focus on the stairs when she needed to reach the foyer.

Much to her surprise, she heard gunshots as she tackled the second half of the steps.

"Get out of here, you little monster!" one of the voices screamed as the cat yowled in protest before more gunshots were heard.

"Isn't that a bit far?!" Haru called, more than a bit out of breath by the time she reached the front door.

"If you knew what we knew, young lady, you'd think I was going easy. It's best to keep the door open just long enough for us to come in," the voice from the phone told her seriously.

Haru tried to calm her racing heart before turning the lock. "Three, two, one!" She twisted the knob and pulled the door back with her.

Two women with dark hair ran in, carrying all their baggage in one go so that the girl could slam the door shut behind them and quickly lock the door again.

"Did you actually hurt him?" she asked, turning to look at the two women before stiffening worriedly.

They were openly staring at her with horror. Haru looked down at her clothes to see if that was the problem, but no. Clean clothes were something she could control. A half-glance at the mirror in the corner also revealed nothing out of the ordinary… until she realized how prominent her cheekbones were compared to her thin cheeks. Her clothes were clean enough, but they hung off her frail bones like robes. The fact that she was also still tired from a terrible night's worth of rest also didn't help.

"Oh," she laughed a bit nervously. "Yeah, I was in a lot of trouble before finding out I'm an heiress. I haven't had time to put meat on me."

The two women looked at each other with fierce expressions.

"I've got the gun, so I'll get groceries," the taller one said with steel, leaving her luggage where it lay. She came up to the door and pressed a kiss to Haru's forehead before unlocking the door. "What are the directions to the store from here, dear?"

Haru was surprised that she was able to recite the directions since she'd only been there once, but it helped that there was a place to get food within walking distance.

"I'll be right back, stay with Tara, dear," Pelia said, pressing another kiss to her hair before quickly letting herself back out.

Tara wasted no time locking the door after her friend before looking at Haru with that same haunted expression.

The young woman squirmed under such scrutiny. "So, um, how about I show you the room you two can share?" she asked while grabbing random bags, but gentle hands stopped her. She looked up with confusion as Tara mutely pressed a finger to the scarf still over her throat to feel the gem.

Tara looked like she was ready to cry. "It felt nice to wear something nice for once, didn't it?"

Haru looked down at her feet. Her throat suddenly felt too dry to speak, and she could feel her thin cheeks flush with the old embarrassment of only owning second or even third hand anything.

Tara pulled her in for a tight embrace that was desperately needed. "There's no shame, sweetheart. I think I'd have done the same."