Witch Hunter Robin Fan Fiction ❯ Miracle ❯ Chapter VII ( Chapter 7 )

Miracle:

Chapter 7

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With a rather loud screeching of tires that was probably not necessary, Amon pulled into a parking space in the garage beneath the STN-J building. Unfastening his seatbelt, he glanced over quickly to make sure Robin was all right, (even though he knew she would be) and slid out of the black vehicle.

Robin followed right after him, pausing by the car's side after she had shut the door.

Taking a few steps towards the upper level of the building, Amon stopped when he realized that the younger hunter was not with him. Half turning around, he gave an irritated grunt and gave her a pointed look.

She remained silent and motionless for a few moments longer before venturing, "Amon, I…I'm scared. What if they-"

But he cut her question off with an exasperated sigh. "Stop worrying. Things haven't changed. Now let's go." He whirled around, this time with an air about him that demanded absolute obedience and compliance. The blonde girl followed meekly in his footsteps; she could tell that Amon was in a mood right now, and when he was, it was best to listen to him without question.

Even if she didn't believe him, didn't believe that things hadn't changed, she knew she would eventually have to face her co-workers; that fact was undeniable. But the young girl found herself wishing that she could have put it off just a little longer.

The elevator made next to no noise as it ascended towards the top of Raven's flat, where the STN-J team worked. Amon looked over to find Robin glancing listlessly at nothing, her hands clutching one another tightly. As the elevator came to its inevitable stop, Amon took the lead, then paused. Turning back, he rested one hand on Robin's shoulder, ignoring the fact that she flinched away from his light touch.

"You'll be fine," he said, voice still slightly gruff. His dark eyes bored into her emerald green ones with a curious look in them that Robin found hard to decipher.

But this time, she did not look away.

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"Aw, what's the use?" Sakaki grumbled, flopping into a chair and putting his hands behind his head. "Who cares anymore?!"

"I do!" Karasuma exclaimed, turning upon the slightly younger boy with unbridled fury. "This is partially your fault you know! This backlog of hunts! If you would just keep your mind on work for once-"

Casually flipping the page in her magazine, Doujima hid her smirk behind one manicured hand. Their little love spats were really heating up these days.

"Well, what about Doujima?! She hardly even bothers to come into work at all, and when she does, she's late!"

"Hey! When did I ever ask to be pulled into your little lover's quarrel?!" Glancing up from the newest fashions, the blonde haired girl glared at them.

"L-lover's quarrel?!" Sakaki spluttered.

Her cheeks turning pink, Karasuma turned away and said, "Well, the fact still remains that you don't come into work very often anymore, Doujima-"

"She hardly ever came in the first place," Sakaki interjected.

"-And there are now so many hunts piled up that we may not get any vacations for the rest of the year!" Karasuma continued, choosing to ignore the rookie hunter.

"Found him!" Michael cried, ending any further argument. "Found the slippery bastard!" He ripped his headphones out of his ears and tossed them down on the desk amidst the collection of candy wrappers and soda bottles. "Come check this out, guys!"

But just as the STN-J crew started to gather around his computer, the two remaining members of their team walked into the room, their steps slow but purposeful.

Eyes widening, Doujima's hand flew to her mouth as if to stop the one word that leaked out. "Robin."

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"Well?" Zaizen's irritated voice grated harshly in the young doctor's ears; he was glad the old man only came in a few days a week, for when he wasn't here, he didn't have to be at his beck and call like this.

"Robin is scheduled for another visit in about 3 weeks," he said, making sure to keep his own intolerance hidden. No use ruining his skyrocketing career over something so trivial.

"And how is our…other test subject doing." A small smirk flitted its way across the Factory owner's face before being replaced by a more appropriate regal look. The fool did not even know he was being used as their guinea pig, and the fact that it was so easy to pull something like this over on him made it all the more amusing.

"He's doing excellent," Dr. Nakano replied. "His mind has reverted to its normal state and there seem to be no lasting effects on his body. My field team has managed to establish that he has no memory whatsoever of that night and that he feels to residual effects of guilt or anger. The drug is, in a word, perfect."

The chilling emphasis the young doctor placed on the word 'perfect' made Zaizen shiver with anticipation. "Wonderful. If I keep getting results like these, your promotion may come faster then I had originally planned."

Nakano inclined his head.

"As for now, continue to keep an eye on our 'guinea pig'; we don't want him getting himself into trouble, now do we? And as for Robin, I want every bit of information from her examination in my hands no more then an hour after she has been in your office."

Nakano inclined his head again, this time in understanding and acceptance.

"You may go."

The sound of the doctor's retreating footsteps echoed in Zaizen's ears loudly, before fading away into the near silence of his office. "Perfect," he whispered to himself. "Just perfect."

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Biting her lip nervously, Robin watched as various expressions flew across the faces of her co-workers. The women looked more worried then the two boys did; Michael's face looking slightly helpless, as if he did not know what to do, and Sakaki's face flitting between looking confused and looking embarrassed.

Doujima's voice reached her ears and she focused her gaze on the other blonde girl. One hand covered her mouth, but she quickly brought it back down to her side. Karasuma stood next to her, her own eyes staring at Robin with worry in them.

Black flickered in the youngest member's vision as Amon brushed by her and entered the room fully, heading towards the meeting room. "I'll see you all in here in ten minutes."

An awkward silence ensued, in which Robin merely stood where she was, hands wringing nervously and teeth almost shredding her lip. Her head had long since fallen and her green eyes stared at the tiles on the floor. The others just looked at her, not really knowing how to express what they felt.

Tearing his eyes off Robin, Michael glanced at the others, taking it upon himself to do something and break the ice. Getting up, he walked slowly over to Robin, stopping in front of her and waiting until she raised her head before speaking.

"Welcome back," he said softly. "I missed you."

A tear slipping free of her eyes, Robin nodded and whispered back, "I missed you, too."

There had been a bond between the two since the very beginning. Not only were their ages similar, but their situations as well. Michael was stranded at the STN-J, held captive by a promise he had been forced to make to save his life. He had no family and no one to care for him; he was virtually alone in the world.

Robin was stranded in Japan, everyone she knew was back in the convent in Italy; she too had no family and no one to look after her.

Perhaps it was this similar trait that brought them together, or perhaps it was because of the time they spent in each other's company, before Amon had trusted Robin enough to take her out on hunts with him. Or maybe, it was a combination of both. But for whatever reason, Michael had been Robin's first friend, and he remained her closest to this day.

Sitting down in her usual chair next to the hacker, Robin stole a peek up at the others.

"Glad you're back, Robin," Sakaki mumbled uncomfortably, before moving away a little to sit in another one of the chairs.

"Don't mind him, Doujima said, crouching down by Robin, her spell apparently broken. The concern in her eyes almost forced another tear from Robin's eyes; these people actually cared about her…

Karasuma also crouched down, her worry-clouded eyes looking Robin up and down as if checking for any remaining signs of pain.

They honestly and truly cared…and yet…they had not been there when she was raped.

Forcefully, the Craft User pushed away the sinking feeling in her gut and smiled a little at the two women.

"Are you feeling ok?" Doujima asked, not catching the demoralizing glance Karasuma shot her way. Of all the stupid questions…

With another smile, Robin answered, "Yes, I'm fine."

But with those words, it was as if a dam had burst somewhere inside the older blonde. "Oh, Robin!" she exclaimed, her own eyes welling up. "When I thought of how I too, could be pregnant like that, and how you're younger then I am, and you have to deal with this, I-I-I just didn't know what to do! It's horrible!"

Shocked by this outburst, Robin merely stared down at Doujima, speechless. Muttering something about idiots needed to keep their mouths shut, Karasuma put an arm around the younger woman and sighed.

"What she means to say is that she's glad you're back and doing ok and that she wishes she could do something about all this."

Sniffing a little, the younger girl nodded and wiped at her eyes with a handkerchief produced and offered by Sakaki.

"It's good to have you back," Michael said with a grin.

"If there's anything we can do, let us know," Karasuma added, letting her feelings and her concern show through in her voice. "We'll help you out in any way possible." She had not said much up until this point, but everything she had wanted to express shone through in her eyes and her promises.

After dealing with emotions for as long as she had, the brunette had come to appreciate the weight they carried. She had also come to realize that oftentimes, it was better to let things show by your actions or your body, rather then by your words.

"And track down the asshole that did this!" Sakaki exclaimed, the emphasis in his voice causing both Doujima and Karasuma to smile.

Nodding seriously, Robin watched as the women rose to their feet and headed in the direction of the meeting room.

"We'd better get going before Amon gets mad," Doujima said, finishing with the hanky and handing it back to Sakaki, who handled it with two fingers and stuffed it back in his pocket.

"Of course," Robin replied, standing and walking beside Michael.

"We will find this man," the hacker told her in an undertone. "I'll hunt him down myself if I have to, but he will pay for what he's done."

Not sure of how to reply to this vehement statement, Robin simply nodded once more and took her seat around the table in the meeting room.

"Here we go again," Sakaki sighed as the lights dimmed. "No more vacation days until Christmas!"

"Hah!" Doujima exclaimed. "Christmas?! We'll be lucky to get off work if we're in the hospital!"

And though the bickering and the banter and the noise swirled around her in an ever escalating jumble, deep in her heart, Robin was glad to be back. Amon had been right in the end…nothing had changed.

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*Phew* I seem to just keep getting worse and worse on my updates. T-T Please give me your patience and stick with this story! I swear, I'll finish it! (I'm just not making any promises on when. And the way things are going, this is shaping up to be my longest fic yet…)

Hmm…I've got mixed feelings about this chapter. I kind of liked writing the interactions between the STN-J crew, but I'm getting the feeling the plot is moving along a little too slowly…ugh…I'm hopefully going to bring in a few more twists and turns in the next chapter that will really start the plot off.

The one thing I'm really having fun with (and I mean really!) is Karasuma and Sakaki. Heh-heh. *evil smirk* This is a new pairing for me, and I've got to say, it's becoming one of my favorites. They're just so darn cute!

And what did you guys think of Amon? I know we really don't see too much of him later on in the chapter, but how about earlier? Isn't he getting way out of hand?! I mean, he actually touched Robin! *calms down a little* I don't think I'll ever be happy with the way he turns out…but, oh well!

As always, reviews, suggestions, and constructive criticisms are welcome!

-SanoGirl