Pet Shop Of Horrors Fan Fiction ❯ Predator and Prey ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Sesshy81 
Anime/Manga: Pet Shop Of Horrors Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Supernatural / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.08.2007 | Updated On: 04.09.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 295 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Pet Shop Of Horrors Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Supernatural / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.08.2007 | Updated On: 04.09.2007 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 295 | Status: Work In Progress
Predator and Prey
Disclaimer: Petshop of Horrors not mine, someone else's. I just wished I lived there. Also, Lee Sinhg, Coyote, and Entai are the sole property of Akita and Subu-chan, who have graciously allowed me to write my own fic that ties in with their PSOH fics. Any other characters from any other series that may pop up also belong only to their respective companies.
Co-authored by: Kita and Subu-chan.
Chapter Two:
Running a hand through tawny hair, Tetsu yawned and expertly flipped Chris's morning eggs. He hadn't gotten much sleep, even after that girl had been put into a proper bed. He kept seeing the last few moments he'd caught before he'd intervened; when he had seen the brilliant fire in her eyes die while her body was brutally violated. He might not be human, but he'd seen something similar in the eyes of zoo animals, that same "dead" quality that took over as the realization of imprisonment crept in. He hated seeing it. He fed as much on the life as the flesh and blood of his kills, for any creature to lose that spark of life ... well, such creatures didn't make very good prey, they were the ones who would let him kill them without a sound, without a fight. Not any fun at all.
Behind the busy, and pensive, Totetsu, Chris slid into his chair at the table, also yawning. It was likely that he’d just woken up, given that he was still in his pajamas, Tetsu noted when he glanced back at the kid.
*T-chan? What was going on last night? Who’s in the room next to mine?*
Sighing, but knowing that the bright human child was rather like a bulldog when he wanted to know something, he put the eggs on the plate next to the toast and slid the whole thing in front of the hungry child. “We don’t know her name yet. She was attacked and I decided to rescue her. Try not to bother her too much if she wakes, okay? She badly hurt and needs to rest.”
*Okay! Thanks for breakfast, Tetsu!*
“You’re welcome, kiddo. Eat that and then you need to go take a bath. Your lug of a brother should be here soon to take you to the beach for the day, remember? It’s his day off.”
*Oh, yeah! Hey, T-chan? Do you think you could come with me?* Chris was shoveling food into his mouth so quickly and eagerly that Tetsu was afraid he was going to choke.
“Sorry, kid. I need to stay here and help the Count. You just have fun with your brother.” Shaking his head, he moved around the kitchen, cleaning up the small mess made by breakfast. He didn’t want to admit it to himself, but he was going to miss the kid when he returned to the human race. Everyone at the shop was, really. Chris was well liked by all the inhabitants, most particularly himself, Pon-chan, and Count D. And it hurt to remember that he was still just a human.
***break***
Awareness came back slowly to the injured girl. At first, all she could tell was that she was very warm, and comfortable. Pain was secondary to a comfort she hadn't felt in a very long time. And then she tried to sit up. She groaned as she was stabbed by a sharp pain in her left side and an aching burn from the slash cut diagonally across her chest, from her left shoulder to just under her right breast. Hissing, her eyes snapped open and then squeezed shut, leaking tears of pain. Quickly her hands went to her sides and felt along them, finding the edges of the bandages that had been placed loosely over her wounds. Her gasp of astonishment was turned to a cough by a renewed stab of agony in her chest.
Opening her eyes again, she took several shallow, fast breaths in effort to control the pain as she eased herself slowly up into a sitting position. Her right hand throbbed dully and she remembered that the bastard had stabbed a knife through it. Lifting it so she could see it, she was surprised to see that it had been neatly bandaged. She frowned. Surely, they would not go to such lengths for her, not after the trouble she had caused. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she carefully put her feet to the floor and stood, trying not to fall over as a wave of disorientation swamped her.
When she felt steady, she took a careful breath and opened her eyes again, slowly. She found she was dressed in a … well, she did not know what to call it. She had never seen anything like it. It was long, with a stiff, high collar, and no sleeves. It was lightly embroidered along the edges with a flower and vine motif. It also seemed to be made of a dazzlingly red silk. It was like nothing she had ever owned. Fingering the fine garment, her frown became even more pronounced. What was going on here?
Finally taking notice of the rest of the room around her, she realized the place she as currently in was like no place she’d ever seen before. Her bed, cut low to the floor, was ornately carved with a repeating pattern of phoenixes. It was evidently ancient; the once brown wood gone dark with age, though it was kept in otherwise pristine condition. In the far corner, was a tall wardrobe to match the bed, the birds overlaid in copper or bronze. Its clawed feet rested on what seemed to be the finest of cherry wood. Flung around the room like there’d been a pillow fight were several flat cushions large enough for her to sit on, in the same rich blue and gold as the bed coverings. It had the appearance of a room for a welcome guest, not a prisoner.
Swaying slightly, she wobbled her way over to the door, surprised to find it unlocked, and quietly let herself out, half intent on finding a way out, and half intent on finding a bathroom. The constant pain from her wounds seared through her with every step she took. Grateful that years of living on the outskirts of Dublin had increased her pain tolerance, she managed to push it to the side. She’d had worse injuries, but not many.
Stopping at the end of the hallway, she found she had to lean against the wall and gulp down a few shallow breaths of air, steeling herself to continue. She knew subconsciously that she was deliberately avoiding thinking about something, but she felt she didn’t have the extra energy to face that particular truth at the moment. She kept shoving it to the side, where it wouldn’t bother her more important objectives. Panting harshly with the effort of subduing the pain caused by each jarring step she took, she began to feel a little light-headed.
Behind her, a smooth, young sounding voice spoke, half scaring her out of her wits. “Excuse me, but where do you think you are going?”
Turning slowly, because her injuries wouldn’t allow her to move quickly, she came face to face with a handsome young man … and she was certain she must have blacked out, because fanned out behind him were nine fluffy, white fox tails. Eyes growing wide, she couldn’t help but stare at him, even as he gave her a worried look when she didn’t answer.
“Who … who are you?” she finally gasped out, as her legs gave way underneath her.
Now he was the one looking surprised. A frown crossed his face even as he held out a hand to help the shocked human to her feet. He didn’t know what she was doing so far from the “public” areas of the shop but knew she would need some help getting out of the maze of hallways. “The Count calls me Ten. Who might you be, doll?”
Flinching from the outstretched hand, she gulped convulsively as she tried to make some sort of answer come out of her frozen throat. Finally, she squeaked out her name. “R-Ronan. I’m Ronan.”
Hunching down, he brought himself to eye level with her, meeting large gray-brown eyes filled with shocked wonder. “Hello, Ronan. Sorry if I frightened you. Let's get you up and find wherever it was you were going.” Holding out a hand again, Ten waited for her to accept.
Slowly a smile worked its way across her face, edging the shock and fear out as it filled with amazement. “I must be dreaming,” she said, and giggled. “I must be, because you seem to have nine tails. I mean, where else would I see someone with nine fluffy, white, fox-brush tails?”
Ten’s legs went out from beneath him and he sat down hard. She saw him, he realized. She was seeing his true form, something only Chris had been able to do. “Well,” he said with a laugh, “It seems my legs aren’t too steady either. So where were you headed? I live here so I can show you where just about anything is.” Even as he spoke, his ever-busy mind was working; his first thought being that Count D needed to know what had happened.
Carefully Ronan took the steady hand and had to bite back a hiss of pain as he lifted her to her feet. “I was looking for a bathroom.”
Ten watched her carefully, knowing what that barely audible whimper meant. “Are you hurt, doll?” Stepping closer, he sniffed cautiously, picking up the thick scent of blood that wreathed her natural smell so completely it was blotted out. “What happened to you?”
Yanking on her hand, which was still clutched in the other’s, with as much strength as she could muster, she tried to pull away. “It’s none o’ yer business.”
Letting the matter drop, as it seemed rather touchy at the moment, Ten kept his grip on her hand. “Come with me. I’ll show you where the bathrooms are,” 'And then I can take you to D,' He added silently. 'He’ll want to see you, I’m sure.'
She didn’t know why she felt she could trust this … creature, but every sense she had was clamoring at her to accept his aid. He was nice, he hadn’t tried to hurt her, and those fuzzy tails kept flashing across her mind. She was certain that wherever she was, she was not back in the brothel. That alone was enough to ease her mind, temporarily, at least. Once she found out what was going on it might be a different story altogether.
Ten kept a firm hold on Ronan as he led her toward the nearest bathroom. She was trying to hide it, but his sharp ears caught every pant and wheeze of pain. He knew she was in terrible agony. He was simply amazed she was still fighting to stay on her feet. She stumbled suddenly and her shriek of agony pierced his ears even as he leapt forward to brace her before she could fall. "Hey, careful there! The Count would have my lovely tails for a scarf if anything happened to you. The few people he lets in here tend to be ... um ... "special". In fact, the only other person he lets wander back here without an escort is Chris, and he's only six, and he lives here too, most of the time."
Confused, but in too much pain to consider it for too long, she leaned against Ten and shook with the effort of breathing. She felt dizzy, and her vision was beginning to blur. With a shocked start, she realized she was crying. Hot tears poured down her face and, not even thinking, she turned to Ten and clung to him like the only stable thing in the world, even as a video-like replay of the previous night ran itself through her head. She could feel the bite of the knife, and the slimy touch. For the moment, it did not matter that she had only met Ten less than ten minutes ago, only that he was there, and he was carefully lowering them to sit on the floor, as he cradled her shaking, shivering body.
The sudden breakdown of the girl wasn't too much of a surprise to the nine-tails. Being what he was, he'd felt her internal conflict, and smelled the faded scent of terror and sex even underneath the cloyling scent of blood. He'd been wondering when she was going to collapse, not from physical pain, since she was handling that rather well, but from the weight of mental fatigue. Sending out a pulse of magic, he called out to the others he knew might be able to help her. He only hoped that someone was nearby.
***Break***
Three hallways away, Count D felt the spike in Ten-chan's energy and stilled for a minute, listening to the murmuring of the walls. They painted a surprising picture for him. Ten-chan sitting on the floor, cradling the unnamed girl in his arms. She seemed to be weeping uncontrollably. Turning on his heel, he swept in the direction of their location, wondering what she was doing so far from her room. Lee Sinhg had been fairly certain that she wouldn't wake till later. Yet here she was, having clearly been trying to make her way to the front of the shop.
Slowing in a swirl of jade colored silk as he neared the pair, he silently paced up to Ten-chan and put a hand on his shoulder. "Ten-chan?" he asked quietly.
Twitching, the nine-tails looked up at the taller man. "Count D. Boy am I glad to see you. I would assume you know what this girl is doing back here?" he asked impishly, though very quietly so as not to disturb Ronan.
Count D nodded. "Yes. Sometime last night T-chan heard a disturbance and intervened in the altercation on her behalf. As of now we do not know if she has anywhere to go. We placed her in the room next to young Chris's after Lee Sinhg had seen to her injuries." He paused as Ronan stirred against Ten-chan's arms. "I must confess I am surprised to see her moving about so quickly."
Dimly hearing a conversation going on about her ears, Ronan finally took a shuddering breath and looked up from where she had burrowed into Ten-chan's chest, leaving his loose, tunic-style t-shirt damp. Gulping nervously, she licked her lips and looked at Ten. "I'm sorry about that. I don't know what..."
Ten-chan shook his head, and placed a finger on her nose to silence her. "Of course you know, Ronan. But it's okay if you don't want to talk, doll. This is Count D, by the way. He owns this petshop. His is pretty much the final word on anything that goes on here. If he says you stay then, well, you stay, unless you want to leave on your own. He's a firm believer in free will." Ten tossed his head up at the man standing behind him with a small grin.
Looking up at the figure behind him, Ronan squeaked as her eyes went wide, then ducked behind Ten so that only the top of her head and her eyes were still visible. "Um ... hello?" murmured shyly, as her face flushed pink. This man was nothing like anyone she had ever seen, much like the rest of the whole building. Jade green silk covered him from neck to toes, while dark, forest-green pants peeked out from the slits in the overgarment. But glittering brightly over all of that was the oddest pair of eyes she had ever seen. One purple and one amber eye stared at her from out of a face that she could easily have mistaken for being female.
D couldn't resist a smile at her reaction to him. The surprise was understandable, but there was none of the fear or bedazzlement that most other humans exhibited. The fact that she had ducked behind Ten-chan of all creatures was funny in and of itself, being that Ten was the biggest flirt in the whole petshop. Chuckling softly, he lowered himself to eye level with her and smiled encouragingly. "All is well. You are most welcome here. Your attacker was driven off, and it is doubtful that he will return. Feel free to wander, but please do be careful of what rooms you enter. Not all of the inhabitants of the shop are as benign as Ten-chan." He stood. "But come, I will help you to a place where you may sit and speak with others. I will also have Tetsu bring you something to eat shortly. Please be careful not to overstress yourself; several of your wounds required stitching and it would not be wise to tear them out."
Blinking in bewilderment, she automatically reached up to grasp the extended hand. The hand was tipped, she noted with an odd detachment, with inch-long nails any woman would be proud of, and those were painted a shocking red. D eased her gently up, careful not to pull on her cuts, only steady her, always mindful of her physical state. "Your name is Ronan, yes?" he asked while she found her balance on shaky legs. "That is what Ten-chan called you, isn't it? Ten-chan, would you see T-chan in the kitchen and ask him to bring something light for her to eat? I'll put her in the Library while you do." D asked, easily switching topics as his agile mind darted around, thinking of all the things that would have to be done, if the girl were to stay.
"Yeah, that's right. Ronan Ransom," She said as he led her away from Ten and his many tails.
"Your accent says you are Irish. Have you been long in the United States?"
"No, tha's how I got inta this entire mess in the first place. Took some fool American's offer of paying my way and wound up ... well, I'd rather not speak of it. It's not somethin' for casual discussion. So what is this place? Ten called it a petshop, but I've never seen a petshop like this." She shied away from the topic, not wanting to think about the shame she'd brought onto herself. It would forever haunt her nightmares, and to her, that was more than enough.
Opening the door to the Library, D guided her to a softly padded chair and eased her down into it. He smiled. "My petshop caters to the rarest and most unusual pets. In order to accomadate such rare creatures, certain alterations were made so they would be comfortable." Retrieving a light blanket from a cupboard hidden in the shadows of the room, he placed it over her lap and let her settle herself. "I have other tasks I must attend to, so I must take my leave of you. Is there perhaps a book you might be interested in reading?"
Looking about her with increasing wonder, she bit her lip and finally settled on a title. "Do you happen to have "The Chronicles of Narnia"?"
Surprised again, but not showing it he searched about in the appropriate bookshelf for a moment until he found the correct title. "This one, correct? If I am not mistaken, this has all of the titles in the series in it."
"Yeah! Um ... thanks." Her face brightened as he gave her the leatherbound book.
"It is no problem. Rest here. T-chan will be here in a few minutes to bring you something to eat." Turning, he let himself out the door and continued his rounds. The animals still had to be fed, no matter what else was happening. Let T-chan deal with her, he decided at last. The Totetsu could use having something to protect. He would finally learn why his kind were so highly valued, so long ago.
Disclaimer: Petshop of Horrors not mine, someone else's. I just wished I lived there. Also, Lee Sinhg, Coyote, and Entai are the sole property of Akita and Subu-chan, who have graciously allowed me to write my own fic that ties in with their PSOH fics. Any other characters from any other series that may pop up also belong only to their respective companies.
Co-authored by: Kita and Subu-chan.
Chapter Two:
Running a hand through tawny hair, Tetsu yawned and expertly flipped Chris's morning eggs. He hadn't gotten much sleep, even after that girl had been put into a proper bed. He kept seeing the last few moments he'd caught before he'd intervened; when he had seen the brilliant fire in her eyes die while her body was brutally violated. He might not be human, but he'd seen something similar in the eyes of zoo animals, that same "dead" quality that took over as the realization of imprisonment crept in. He hated seeing it. He fed as much on the life as the flesh and blood of his kills, for any creature to lose that spark of life ... well, such creatures didn't make very good prey, they were the ones who would let him kill them without a sound, without a fight. Not any fun at all.
Behind the busy, and pensive, Totetsu, Chris slid into his chair at the table, also yawning. It was likely that he’d just woken up, given that he was still in his pajamas, Tetsu noted when he glanced back at the kid.
*T-chan? What was going on last night? Who’s in the room next to mine?*
Sighing, but knowing that the bright human child was rather like a bulldog when he wanted to know something, he put the eggs on the plate next to the toast and slid the whole thing in front of the hungry child. “We don’t know her name yet. She was attacked and I decided to rescue her. Try not to bother her too much if she wakes, okay? She badly hurt and needs to rest.”
*Okay! Thanks for breakfast, Tetsu!*
“You’re welcome, kiddo. Eat that and then you need to go take a bath. Your lug of a brother should be here soon to take you to the beach for the day, remember? It’s his day off.”
*Oh, yeah! Hey, T-chan? Do you think you could come with me?* Chris was shoveling food into his mouth so quickly and eagerly that Tetsu was afraid he was going to choke.
“Sorry, kid. I need to stay here and help the Count. You just have fun with your brother.” Shaking his head, he moved around the kitchen, cleaning up the small mess made by breakfast. He didn’t want to admit it to himself, but he was going to miss the kid when he returned to the human race. Everyone at the shop was, really. Chris was well liked by all the inhabitants, most particularly himself, Pon-chan, and Count D. And it hurt to remember that he was still just a human.
***break***
Awareness came back slowly to the injured girl. At first, all she could tell was that she was very warm, and comfortable. Pain was secondary to a comfort she hadn't felt in a very long time. And then she tried to sit up. She groaned as she was stabbed by a sharp pain in her left side and an aching burn from the slash cut diagonally across her chest, from her left shoulder to just under her right breast. Hissing, her eyes snapped open and then squeezed shut, leaking tears of pain. Quickly her hands went to her sides and felt along them, finding the edges of the bandages that had been placed loosely over her wounds. Her gasp of astonishment was turned to a cough by a renewed stab of agony in her chest.
Opening her eyes again, she took several shallow, fast breaths in effort to control the pain as she eased herself slowly up into a sitting position. Her right hand throbbed dully and she remembered that the bastard had stabbed a knife through it. Lifting it so she could see it, she was surprised to see that it had been neatly bandaged. She frowned. Surely, they would not go to such lengths for her, not after the trouble she had caused. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she carefully put her feet to the floor and stood, trying not to fall over as a wave of disorientation swamped her.
When she felt steady, she took a careful breath and opened her eyes again, slowly. She found she was dressed in a … well, she did not know what to call it. She had never seen anything like it. It was long, with a stiff, high collar, and no sleeves. It was lightly embroidered along the edges with a flower and vine motif. It also seemed to be made of a dazzlingly red silk. It was like nothing she had ever owned. Fingering the fine garment, her frown became even more pronounced. What was going on here?
Finally taking notice of the rest of the room around her, she realized the place she as currently in was like no place she’d ever seen before. Her bed, cut low to the floor, was ornately carved with a repeating pattern of phoenixes. It was evidently ancient; the once brown wood gone dark with age, though it was kept in otherwise pristine condition. In the far corner, was a tall wardrobe to match the bed, the birds overlaid in copper or bronze. Its clawed feet rested on what seemed to be the finest of cherry wood. Flung around the room like there’d been a pillow fight were several flat cushions large enough for her to sit on, in the same rich blue and gold as the bed coverings. It had the appearance of a room for a welcome guest, not a prisoner.
Swaying slightly, she wobbled her way over to the door, surprised to find it unlocked, and quietly let herself out, half intent on finding a way out, and half intent on finding a bathroom. The constant pain from her wounds seared through her with every step she took. Grateful that years of living on the outskirts of Dublin had increased her pain tolerance, she managed to push it to the side. She’d had worse injuries, but not many.
Stopping at the end of the hallway, she found she had to lean against the wall and gulp down a few shallow breaths of air, steeling herself to continue. She knew subconsciously that she was deliberately avoiding thinking about something, but she felt she didn’t have the extra energy to face that particular truth at the moment. She kept shoving it to the side, where it wouldn’t bother her more important objectives. Panting harshly with the effort of subduing the pain caused by each jarring step she took, she began to feel a little light-headed.
Behind her, a smooth, young sounding voice spoke, half scaring her out of her wits. “Excuse me, but where do you think you are going?”
Turning slowly, because her injuries wouldn’t allow her to move quickly, she came face to face with a handsome young man … and she was certain she must have blacked out, because fanned out behind him were nine fluffy, white fox tails. Eyes growing wide, she couldn’t help but stare at him, even as he gave her a worried look when she didn’t answer.
“Who … who are you?” she finally gasped out, as her legs gave way underneath her.
Now he was the one looking surprised. A frown crossed his face even as he held out a hand to help the shocked human to her feet. He didn’t know what she was doing so far from the “public” areas of the shop but knew she would need some help getting out of the maze of hallways. “The Count calls me Ten. Who might you be, doll?”
Flinching from the outstretched hand, she gulped convulsively as she tried to make some sort of answer come out of her frozen throat. Finally, she squeaked out her name. “R-Ronan. I’m Ronan.”
Hunching down, he brought himself to eye level with her, meeting large gray-brown eyes filled with shocked wonder. “Hello, Ronan. Sorry if I frightened you. Let's get you up and find wherever it was you were going.” Holding out a hand again, Ten waited for her to accept.
Slowly a smile worked its way across her face, edging the shock and fear out as it filled with amazement. “I must be dreaming,” she said, and giggled. “I must be, because you seem to have nine tails. I mean, where else would I see someone with nine fluffy, white, fox-brush tails?”
Ten’s legs went out from beneath him and he sat down hard. She saw him, he realized. She was seeing his true form, something only Chris had been able to do. “Well,” he said with a laugh, “It seems my legs aren’t too steady either. So where were you headed? I live here so I can show you where just about anything is.” Even as he spoke, his ever-busy mind was working; his first thought being that Count D needed to know what had happened.
Carefully Ronan took the steady hand and had to bite back a hiss of pain as he lifted her to her feet. “I was looking for a bathroom.”
Ten watched her carefully, knowing what that barely audible whimper meant. “Are you hurt, doll?” Stepping closer, he sniffed cautiously, picking up the thick scent of blood that wreathed her natural smell so completely it was blotted out. “What happened to you?”
Yanking on her hand, which was still clutched in the other’s, with as much strength as she could muster, she tried to pull away. “It’s none o’ yer business.”
Letting the matter drop, as it seemed rather touchy at the moment, Ten kept his grip on her hand. “Come with me. I’ll show you where the bathrooms are,” 'And then I can take you to D,' He added silently. 'He’ll want to see you, I’m sure.'
She didn’t know why she felt she could trust this … creature, but every sense she had was clamoring at her to accept his aid. He was nice, he hadn’t tried to hurt her, and those fuzzy tails kept flashing across her mind. She was certain that wherever she was, she was not back in the brothel. That alone was enough to ease her mind, temporarily, at least. Once she found out what was going on it might be a different story altogether.
Ten kept a firm hold on Ronan as he led her toward the nearest bathroom. She was trying to hide it, but his sharp ears caught every pant and wheeze of pain. He knew she was in terrible agony. He was simply amazed she was still fighting to stay on her feet. She stumbled suddenly and her shriek of agony pierced his ears even as he leapt forward to brace her before she could fall. "Hey, careful there! The Count would have my lovely tails for a scarf if anything happened to you. The few people he lets in here tend to be ... um ... "special". In fact, the only other person he lets wander back here without an escort is Chris, and he's only six, and he lives here too, most of the time."
Confused, but in too much pain to consider it for too long, she leaned against Ten and shook with the effort of breathing. She felt dizzy, and her vision was beginning to blur. With a shocked start, she realized she was crying. Hot tears poured down her face and, not even thinking, she turned to Ten and clung to him like the only stable thing in the world, even as a video-like replay of the previous night ran itself through her head. She could feel the bite of the knife, and the slimy touch. For the moment, it did not matter that she had only met Ten less than ten minutes ago, only that he was there, and he was carefully lowering them to sit on the floor, as he cradled her shaking, shivering body.
The sudden breakdown of the girl wasn't too much of a surprise to the nine-tails. Being what he was, he'd felt her internal conflict, and smelled the faded scent of terror and sex even underneath the cloyling scent of blood. He'd been wondering when she was going to collapse, not from physical pain, since she was handling that rather well, but from the weight of mental fatigue. Sending out a pulse of magic, he called out to the others he knew might be able to help her. He only hoped that someone was nearby.
***Break***
Three hallways away, Count D felt the spike in Ten-chan's energy and stilled for a minute, listening to the murmuring of the walls. They painted a surprising picture for him. Ten-chan sitting on the floor, cradling the unnamed girl in his arms. She seemed to be weeping uncontrollably. Turning on his heel, he swept in the direction of their location, wondering what she was doing so far from her room. Lee Sinhg had been fairly certain that she wouldn't wake till later. Yet here she was, having clearly been trying to make her way to the front of the shop.
Slowing in a swirl of jade colored silk as he neared the pair, he silently paced up to Ten-chan and put a hand on his shoulder. "Ten-chan?" he asked quietly.
Twitching, the nine-tails looked up at the taller man. "Count D. Boy am I glad to see you. I would assume you know what this girl is doing back here?" he asked impishly, though very quietly so as not to disturb Ronan.
Count D nodded. "Yes. Sometime last night T-chan heard a disturbance and intervened in the altercation on her behalf. As of now we do not know if she has anywhere to go. We placed her in the room next to young Chris's after Lee Sinhg had seen to her injuries." He paused as Ronan stirred against Ten-chan's arms. "I must confess I am surprised to see her moving about so quickly."
Dimly hearing a conversation going on about her ears, Ronan finally took a shuddering breath and looked up from where she had burrowed into Ten-chan's chest, leaving his loose, tunic-style t-shirt damp. Gulping nervously, she licked her lips and looked at Ten. "I'm sorry about that. I don't know what..."
Ten-chan shook his head, and placed a finger on her nose to silence her. "Of course you know, Ronan. But it's okay if you don't want to talk, doll. This is Count D, by the way. He owns this petshop. His is pretty much the final word on anything that goes on here. If he says you stay then, well, you stay, unless you want to leave on your own. He's a firm believer in free will." Ten tossed his head up at the man standing behind him with a small grin.
Looking up at the figure behind him, Ronan squeaked as her eyes went wide, then ducked behind Ten so that only the top of her head and her eyes were still visible. "Um ... hello?" murmured shyly, as her face flushed pink. This man was nothing like anyone she had ever seen, much like the rest of the whole building. Jade green silk covered him from neck to toes, while dark, forest-green pants peeked out from the slits in the overgarment. But glittering brightly over all of that was the oddest pair of eyes she had ever seen. One purple and one amber eye stared at her from out of a face that she could easily have mistaken for being female.
D couldn't resist a smile at her reaction to him. The surprise was understandable, but there was none of the fear or bedazzlement that most other humans exhibited. The fact that she had ducked behind Ten-chan of all creatures was funny in and of itself, being that Ten was the biggest flirt in the whole petshop. Chuckling softly, he lowered himself to eye level with her and smiled encouragingly. "All is well. You are most welcome here. Your attacker was driven off, and it is doubtful that he will return. Feel free to wander, but please do be careful of what rooms you enter. Not all of the inhabitants of the shop are as benign as Ten-chan." He stood. "But come, I will help you to a place where you may sit and speak with others. I will also have Tetsu bring you something to eat shortly. Please be careful not to overstress yourself; several of your wounds required stitching and it would not be wise to tear them out."
Blinking in bewilderment, she automatically reached up to grasp the extended hand. The hand was tipped, she noted with an odd detachment, with inch-long nails any woman would be proud of, and those were painted a shocking red. D eased her gently up, careful not to pull on her cuts, only steady her, always mindful of her physical state. "Your name is Ronan, yes?" he asked while she found her balance on shaky legs. "That is what Ten-chan called you, isn't it? Ten-chan, would you see T-chan in the kitchen and ask him to bring something light for her to eat? I'll put her in the Library while you do." D asked, easily switching topics as his agile mind darted around, thinking of all the things that would have to be done, if the girl were to stay.
"Yeah, that's right. Ronan Ransom," She said as he led her away from Ten and his many tails.
"Your accent says you are Irish. Have you been long in the United States?"
"No, tha's how I got inta this entire mess in the first place. Took some fool American's offer of paying my way and wound up ... well, I'd rather not speak of it. It's not somethin' for casual discussion. So what is this place? Ten called it a petshop, but I've never seen a petshop like this." She shied away from the topic, not wanting to think about the shame she'd brought onto herself. It would forever haunt her nightmares, and to her, that was more than enough.
Opening the door to the Library, D guided her to a softly padded chair and eased her down into it. He smiled. "My petshop caters to the rarest and most unusual pets. In order to accomadate such rare creatures, certain alterations were made so they would be comfortable." Retrieving a light blanket from a cupboard hidden in the shadows of the room, he placed it over her lap and let her settle herself. "I have other tasks I must attend to, so I must take my leave of you. Is there perhaps a book you might be interested in reading?"
Looking about her with increasing wonder, she bit her lip and finally settled on a title. "Do you happen to have "The Chronicles of Narnia"?"
Surprised again, but not showing it he searched about in the appropriate bookshelf for a moment until he found the correct title. "This one, correct? If I am not mistaken, this has all of the titles in the series in it."
"Yeah! Um ... thanks." Her face brightened as he gave her the leatherbound book.
"It is no problem. Rest here. T-chan will be here in a few minutes to bring you something to eat." Turning, he let himself out the door and continued his rounds. The animals still had to be fed, no matter what else was happening. Let T-chan deal with her, he decided at last. The Totetsu could use having something to protect. He would finally learn why his kind were so highly valued, so long ago.