Gaijin

Part 7: The Joy of Work

by Sean D'Anna

=====

Carrot's job was rather easy he thought. All
he really did was run around the neighborhood with
small envelopes and take them to people. Sometimes
it was shopkeepers, sometimes shady characters,
sometimes offices. From what he had gathered, he'd
never come in contact with anyone important, and
over the past week, he'd never had any trouble.

The faint hope was there that things would
continue to be this way for a long time to come.

+++++++++++++

The boy walked through the streets, dressed in
a pair of slacks with a white button up shirt. He
easily navigated the crowds, his skill gathered
from his time as a small time thief. No one
noticed his passing, he figured it was because no
one cared, but the truth was, no one really saw
him. His travel method was something of a habit.

He turned into an office building, moving past
the doorman silently without stopping. The man
hadn't even acknowledged him as he walked in with
a couple of people. He paused in the lobby, off to
a small corner in the shadows and looked up at the
directory on the wall for a moment. "Third floor,"
he muttered to himself as he dashed off, not even
pausing at the security desk.

After a short elevator ride he turned down the
hall and rushed by several office doors. Weaving
around to avoid the others in the hallway. He saw
the room number he was searching for and slipped
inside.

The man sitting behind his desk was mulling
over his computer with a frown on his face. He
didn't look up as the boy approached him and was
muttering to himself. He was an older balding man
that looked somewhat like an accountant. Which is
pretty much what he was.

"I have a delivery," he said to the man.

The poor man about jumped out of his chair as
the boy seemed to appear out of nowhere. This
wasn't all that unusual for him, he'd seen several
half-drawn weapons since he'd started his job
because of it.

"Who are you?" said the man fearfully.

"Are you Mr. Kojiro?" asked the boy calmly as
he ignored the surprise.

"Yes..." said the man with an uncertain fear
on his face.

"Here," replied Carrot as he tossed the
envelope on the man's desk. "Have a nice day." He
stepped back and appeared to vanish from sight as
he left the office, causing the man to simply
stare at the door dumbly.

"What the?" He shook his head and took of the
thick pair of glasses from his eyes in order to
clean them. He then looked down at the envelope
and opened it, it was several documents from one
of his more...unscrupulous customers. "Oh my," he
muttered with a slight shudder. Sending someone
like that boy to do mere deliveries? It seemed his
client was moving up in his organization to have
someone like that under him. He was used to dumb
looking thugs and greasy looking punks.

+++++++++++++

Carrot whistled cheerfully as he walked out of the
building, a smile on his face as he started back
towards the small Laundromat that housed his
boss's office. He ducked through the streets and
was there in a matter of minutes.

As he walked in he saluted the old man who ran
the business and smiled warmly. "Mornin."

The old man jolted, but only slightly. "Oh.
Hello Carrot."

"Wonder if he's got anything else for me
today?" said the boy more to himself than the old
man.

"Only a few more I think," replied the old
man.

"Good," said the boy as he walked into the
back and smirked.

Spike was standing in front of the man with a
bored expression on his face.

"Ah, you're here," said the greasy looking man
with a smirk on his face. "I've got another
delivery for you. Spike is going with you this
time, he has to have a talk with the man you're
taking this too."

Carrot smiled. "Okay."

"Hiya kid," said the large man cheerfully.

"Hey Spike," replied the boy casually. "A know
where we're goin?"

"Yeah, I been dere a couple o times," said the
man with a smirk on his face.

"Oh, one of those huh?" said the boy with a
shrug.

"Yeah," said the large man with a small shrug.
"Some peoples is just stupid."

Carrot reserved comment on that and took the
envelope.

++++++++++++

"Hey kid, were ya at?" muttered Spike for the
sixth time as they walked through the streets
towards their destination. The man was growing
slightly nervous.

"Right here," said Carrot casually as he
tapped the man on his shoulder. "I've been right
next to you the whole time. What's with you man?"

"Nuthin," said the larger man. "Quit doin
dat."

"Doing what? This is how I always am," said
the boy as he blinked and looked up at his
companion.

"It is?" said Spike dumbly.

"Yeah, what of it?" said the boy in confusion.

"Nuthin I suppose. Dat's kinda neat," said
Spike cheerfully.

They paused as someone appeared in front of
them. They were currently in a quiet area, moving
between two streets in an alley.

"Shit," grumbled Carrot fearfully.

"Who's dis?" asked Spike.

"The reason I've grown to hate alleyways,"
responded Carrot.

"Well, hello," said the woman in front of them
with a smirk on her face. She was wearing a white
kimono with a bright floral pattern on it. Her
skin was milky white, and she had long shiny black
hair.

"Do I know you lady?" asked Carrot.

"No, I am called Kasumi," replied the woman
casually. "I know you though boy. To think, I was
the first to find you."

"Who is dis chick?" said Spike.

"Chick? That's a man," replied Carrot dumbly.

"Really?" said Spike as he looked at the
'woman' for a moment.

"What?" snapped Kasumi angrily as she took a
step back.

"She's got tits though?" muttered Spike.

"Yeah, he's probably some kinda weird pervert,
but he's a guy," replied Carrot cheerfully.

The woman narrowed her eyes at them and
growled. "I am one hundred percent woman, you
hateful little boy."

"Really? You've got a very pronounced Adam's
Apple," replied the boy as he pointed at her
throat.

The woman's hand moved up reflexively and she
gasped. "How dare you?"

"Look lady, I got a delivery, can this wait
until later?" said Carrot as he held up the
envelope.

"I'm afraid not child," said the woman as she
frowned and crossed her arms in front of her.
Between each of her fingers was a long needle.

"Crap. This again," grumbled Carrot with a
sudden fear growing in his voice.

"What's goin on?" muttered Spike as he moved
into a fighting stance.

"You keep going, I'll meet you there. I've
handled this sort of thing before," said Carrot.

"Huh?" said the larger man in confusion.

Carrot pulled a long metal pole off of the
wall next to him. "Ya know, these things always
seem to be around when I need them," he commented
more to himself than the cross dresser.

The ninja narrowed his eyes at him and
frowned. "What? That wasn't there... No matter,
die!" she snarled as she suddenly jumped to life.

Spike gasped as the needles in her fingers
shot forward, revealing a thin metal wire attached
to the base that ran into her sleeve.

Carrot growled and spun the metal pole in
front of him without realizing what he was doing
as he moved in front of his companion. The needles
aimed at the man were barely deflected by the rod,
as the ones aimed for Carrot passed by harmlessly
and stuck into the ground. "Damn!" growled Carrot.

"What's goin on?" muttered Spike in awe.

"Get going Spike! I'll take care of this!"
snapped Carrot.

The man nodded and backed away. He started to
run, and the woman jumped into the air, with an
entirely new set of projectiles in her grasp. "You
won't escape me!"

Carrot jumped into the air after her, swinging
his pole skillfully in a complicated attack
pattern that knocked all the needles out of the
air. The woman gasped and Carrot snarled angrily.
"You'll deal with me first!"

The woman's eyes narrowed and she shifted her
stance to a more defensive posture. "I see. I'll
deal with him later then."

Carrot was too busy looking at the pole in his
hand dumbly. "How the hell did I do that?" he
muttered to himself.

"I shall enjoy killing you boy," taunted the
cross-dresser hatefully.

"Huh? Yeah, whatever," said Carrot as he
started to back away.

The ninja jumped up into the air again and
landed on top of a fire escape, lashing out
repeatedly with the weapons, forcing Carrot to
dodge desperately around them. He couldn't find an
opening to escape as he had planned and was forced
into the open light by the strikes.

"Ha! Now you'll find out why I'm known as the
White Spider! Kasumi! You're caught in my web of
death!" said the woman triumphantly.

Carrot spun around and found himself
surrounded in a complicated web of wires. "Shit."

The woman slowly drew a kodachi from her side and
heald it across her forearm as she tensed to
pounce on him. "This is my fang little fly, you
won't escape."

Carrot stepped back but jumped forward
suddenly as a sharp pain formed on his thigh. He
looked down for a moment and saw a thin line of
blood running across one of the wires that
crisscrossed the alley. "Man! This sucks!"

"Die!" screamed the woman as she dove for him.

Carrot cursed and jumped straight up to meet
her. His pole extended up to catch her as she fell
on him before she could strike.

The woman chuckled as one of her feet lightly
touched one of the wires, she shifted to the side,
unharmed by the razor sharp lenght of metal.

Carrot cursed as he twisted in mid air as she
slashed at him and landed just above the ground,
held aloft like a tightrope walker on her own web.

The boy landed and staggered. His face
exploded in pain as his cheek caught one of the
wires, leaving a long cut on the side of his face.
"Shit!" he growled irritably as he managed to
balance himself before he sliced his own face off.
Turning quickly he faced the ninja and frowned.

"You won't escape," said the woman with a
small chuckle. "No one has ever escaped my web.
Maybe I should wrap you up, and have a little fun
first?"

Carrot choked and looked in horror at the
sudden bulge in the front of the woman's kimono.
"Mister! That's just plain sick!"

"I am a woman, if not in body, then in mind. I
think you'd be absolutely delicious," she replied
as she licked her lips and smirked at him
seductively.

"Oh, I am so gonna kick your ass now,"
grumbled Carrot as he glanced around for an
escape.

She jumped among the wires, completely
unharmed as she navigated her web with expert
skill. Carrot frowned as he noticed she was
circling around him, he kept facing her as she
speedily bounced around above him.

He growled and looked at the pole for a
moment. With a small grunt, he lashed out,
striking one of the wires with as much force as he
could muster.

The woman gasped as she found herself tumbling
from the air with a look of shock on her face. The
wire hadn't broken, but it had vibrated with
enough force to shake her off. She cursed as she
curled up and tried to land on one of the wires
below her. Carrot was already moving to attack
though and jumped up to meet her while swinging
his weapon.

She curled and snarled angrily, barely
avoiding the wide swipe of the iron pole. "Damn!
He is skilled! I begin to see what Kei was
speaking of! No matter," she performed the splits
and halted herself between two wires just above
the boy.

Carrot looked up and immediately regretted
doing it. "Oh! Gross! Wear some boxers or
something you pervert!"

The woman flipped so that she was upside down
and smiled at him. "You should be flattered,
that's for you."

"Can I take it back and exchange it? It's not
my style," he said as he glared up at her face
hatefully.

"So, you're rejecting me?" she said with a
frown on her face.

"Is it that obvious?" said Carrot as he leaned
against his pole and continued to look her in the
eyes.

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned!" she
snarled as she let go of the wires and fell
towards him with her sword ready to swing.

Carrot planted his pole in the ground and
stepped back. "Too easy," he muttered to himself.

The woman's eyes went wide as she twisted and
landed on top of the pole.

Carrot gasped and stepped back sputtering in
embarrassment and disgust. The woman had landed on
her ass, and had stopped her decent by clenching
her muscles tight.

"Ooh, you know what I like," said the ninja
woman as she worked herself back off of it without
using her hands or her feet.

"Oh god," said the boy in horror as he
shielded his eyes and almost became sick on the
pavement.

Kasumi landed on the ground lightly and
smirked at him. "You've lost it seems, your gamble
didn't pay off. Well, not for you anyway. I could
let you live a bit longer..." She smirked as she
walked up to him with the blade held in front of
her.

Carrot dove forward rolling below one of the
lower wires and around her. Her slash caught the
wire and bounced away from the thin razor.
"What?!" she gasped in shock.

The boy was standing behind her, his weapon
back in his grasp. Kasumi found herself pressed
against the brick wall with the pole in her back.
"What? I...failed?" she muttered in shock.

Carrot blinked and gasped in shock. "What?
Oops..."

He hadn't even realized that there was another
wire between her and the wall. She had been cut in
half at the waist, the wire was now almost
touching his belly with blood dripping from it.
The woman's legs were sprawled out across the
ground in front of him. He was holding her torso
up against the wall with his pole.

With a final gasp, the woman went still and
died.

Carrot frowned and let her fall to the
pavement. "Shit." He looked at the pole in his
hands and suddenly remembered where it had been
before he tossed it aside in disgust. "Gross!" he
cried as he wiped his hands on his shirt
reflexively. "Sorry Mister, got caught in your own
web in the end I guess." Carrot gave a small bow
and turned to find his way out of the mess of
wires. "Shit."

++++++++++++++

"Yous is alive!" cried Spike as he lifted the
boy off of the ground with tears in his eyes.

"Yeah, that was too close for comfort,"
muttered the boy sheepishly.

Spike put the boy down and smiled at him.
"Wow! You escaped dat crazy woman?"

"Something like that," grumbled Carrot as he
turned his head away and sighed. "I'm tired. Let's
get this over with."

"Right!" said Spike cheerfully.

The pair walked into the building they were
standing in front of. There was a younger looking
man behind a counter. It was a small store.

"What do you want?" snapped the man angrily as
he noticed the pair.

"I'm supposed to give you this," said Carrot
as he handed the man the envelope.

"You tell that bastard I won't have anything
to do with this!" snapped the man hatefully.

"I'm just a mailman," replied Carrot with a
shrug. "I got nuthin to do with this. You want to
tell whoever sent you this something, you talk to
him." The boy jerked his hand back at Spike and
calmly walked out of the store.

Spike was chuckling as he cracked his
knuckles. "Don't worry, I'm da friendly one. I
just beat ya up. Next time, dey send someone else
ta break parts o ya."

The man blinked and looked up at the
intimidating figure. "Get out! You're not wanted
here!"

"Dat wasn't very nice," said Spike with his
grin widening.

+++++++++++++

Carrot sat outside with a soda in his hand as
he leaned against the wall and drank it lazily. He
didn't want to know what was goin on inside the
store, and ignored any cries of pain or the sound
of things smashing. That was Spikes job, not his
to worry about.

The larger man walked out of the store with a
smirk on his face.

"All done?" asked Carrot.

"Yeah," replied the man cheerfully.

"I got a question for ya," said Carrot.

"Huh? I thought ya didn't want ta know about
stuff like dat?" said Spike in surprise.

"Naw, not about that," said Carrot with a
shrug. "I wanna know why the boss just didn't give
you that letter."

Spike blushed and turned his head away. "I
tend ta lose tings," he replied sheepishly. "I
ain't good about keepin money either, boss won't
use me fer stuff like dat."

"Oh, makes sense I guess," said Carrot with a
shrug. "Well, let's get back."

"Yeah," said Spike with a cheerful smile. He
rubbed at the back of his head in irritation.

"Somethin wrong?" asked Carrot.

"Guy had a bat," said the larger man.

"Oh, maybe you should stop by and see Gia
tonight?"

"Yeah," said the man with a smile on his face.

"Just, don't come by too late, I gotta work
again tomorrow," commented Carrot.

"Haw!" laughed the man crudely. He blinked and
looked at Carrot again. "Hey, youse got a cut?"

"Yeah, got one on my leg too, crazy ninjas.
They really piss me off," snorted Carrot.

"Huh?!" cried Spike in shock. "Dat guy was a
ninja?"

"Yeah, pretty good one too from what I saw,"
said Carrot. "They've been after me for a while,
but I never saw him before."

"Dis about why youse was layin low?" said
Spike with a serious frown.

"It's part of it," confirmed Carrot. "It is
getting easier to deal with them, but they're
still a pain in the ass. I've almost gotten myself
killed more than once."

Spike nodded and fell down to one knee.

"What the?" said Carrot as he turned to face
the man. "Hey. You all right? Maybe you got a
concussion. I think we should take you by to see
Gia before we..." He trailed off as the man
slumped to the ground. "Whoa!"

His fear deepened as he saw yet another person
walking by that fell down suddenly. "What the?
What the hell is going on?"

"I feel so tired," muttered a woman from
nearby. She slumped against a wall and fainted.

"Oh man," muttered Carrot as he glanced around
in search of the problem. "Not again! Twice in one
day?!"

"Spike! Talk to me man, we gotta get outta
here!" said the boy as he kneeled down beside his
friend and smacked his cheek a few times. "Shit!"

"Ha! Give me your power fools!" snarled a high
pitched voice from behind him. Carrot stiffened
and slowly turned to glare at the thing. "Man. Not
again."

It was a lamppost with a woman's face where
the light should be. It was an old European style
lamp, and had two tiny little arms poking out from
it's side. "What the hell kinda stupid thing is
this?" snapped the boy in disgust.

"You! Give me your power!" snapped the thing.

"Man, at least the other two were a little
scary," grumbled the boy as he glared at it.

"Die human!" it snarled as it realized it
wasn't draining him.

"Shut up!" snapped Carrot as he dodged aside.
It was slower than the other one he had fought,
but the crater it had made in the pavement told
him that fighting it head on wasn't any more of a
good idea as it had been last time.

"Burn!" cried the creature as its head
suddenly illuminated. Beams of white light filled
the street and Carrot found himself blinded.

"Argh! Damn!" A powerful blow slammed into his
chest and he was thrown back into a wall. He
lurched forward, blood seeping from between his
lips. "Damn it!" He growled and stood up, his hand
now clutching yet another weapon. He gasped in
shock and looked at the pole. "Where did? This is
a little too much. Where are these things coming
from?" He shoved the thought aside and struggled
to regain his sight as the creature released its
blinding light.

He was starting to feel very warm, and noticed
that his face was becoming red. "Damn."

He glanced away from the thing, shielding his
eyes as it closed in on him slowly. There was a
woman next to him, a burn becoming clear on her
skin. He gasped as he noticed something else.
Without really thinking, he pulled the sunglasses
off of her face and put them on.

The thing was visible now, not clearly, and it
was still insanely bright, but it was no longer
unbearable. It was stalking towards him, it's arms
ready to attack. He snarled angrily as he jumped
just in time to avoid the blow that shattered part
of the wall into a pile of bricks. He cursed as he
flipped over its head and landed behind it,
twisting and tossing his weapon at it from behind.

There was a sound like breaking glass and the
thing cried out in pain as the light subsided. The
pole was now stuck in the wall having passed
through the thing's head.

Carrot readied himself and slowly backed away.
"I gotta get away, but I can't just leave Spike
here!" he thought angrily.

The creature shrieked suddenly and vanished
into a pile of dust that blew into the wind.

Carrot blinked and relaxed, his arms falling
to his side. "Huh? That was relatively painless."
He turned and his gut exploded in pain from the
thing's strike. "Ouch! Man!" He stumbled to his
knees and a small amount of blood spurted from his
mouth again. "Shit! Damn it! This hurts."

"You interfered," said a cold voice from above
him.

Carrot's eyes went wide and he looked up
slowly. Nephrite was standing over him with a cold
frown on his face. ""Wha?"

"I'll destroy you for that," said the general
calmly.

"Hey! I was saving my own ass you jerk!"
snapped Carrot irritably.

"Then you should have died, or ran away," said
the man with a small chuckle. "Now, I'll just
destroy you."

"Well, I would have run, but your monster got
one of my friends. Sorry pal, I don't feel like
dying today," said Carrot as he stood upright and
smirked at the man with a false confidence.

Nephrite narrowed his eyes. "Perhaps I can
change your mind?"

Carrot knew he was in trouble, the thing
standing in front of him was much more powerful
than the monster he'd just killed by luck alone.
"Can we do this later? I ain't feelin too good
right now."

Nephrite smirked. "I don't think so."

"Damn," grumbled the boy as he fell down and
laughed. "Well shit. Guess I'm screwed then."

Nephrite blinked at this and frowned. "I
suppose you're lucky for today." He jerked his
head around and frowned. "Perhaps." He vanished
from sight and Carrot blinked in surprise. "He's
just letting me go?"

"Evil Monster that holds no love for man! For
draining the energy of innocents I shall punish
you!"

Carrot hung his head. "Oh man! I just can't
win!"

"What the? No way!" cried a familiar voice.

The boy staggered to his feet and looked at
the five girls standing in the middle of the
street. "Well. Hello again." He didn't sound like
he was happy to see them.

"You!? That's...It's not possible!" cried
Jupiter.

"No way! He survived!?" cried Venus.

Mars was the only one who didn't look
surprised. She scowled at him and cursed. "Damn, I
was afraid of this."

"You knew?" asked Mercury. Her eyes darted
back at the boy for a moment.

"I suspected, but I didn't have any proof,"
said the girl with a slight nod.

"Yeah, well I'll see ya," muttered Carrot as
he started walking back towards Spike.

"You! You did this!" cried Sailor Moon in
shock as she looked around the ground at all the
fainted people.

"Do I look like I just drained all these
people of their energy?" snapped the boy angrily.
He was tired, beaten, and sore. It showed clearly
all over his body. "Leave me the hell alone you
crazy bitches!" He turned to ignore them and
kneeled down next to Spike. "Hey, you all right?"

"What happened?" muttered the man as he slowly
opened his eyes.

"One of those youma things attacked," said the
boy with a frown.

Spike sat up and blinked. "Ouch. I don't feel
so good," he said as he shook his head for a
moment.

"Yeah, same here," commented Carrot.

"Hey! Is dose da Sailor Senshi?" said the man
as he noticed the girls watching them. He didn't
seem to notice that they didn't look happy, and
were on the verge of attacking.

"Yeah, that's them. Can you walk?" asked
Carrot as he ignored them.

"Wow! Dat's neat!" said the man cheerfully.
"You tink dey'd let me have deir autograph?" asked
the big man dumbly.

"I doubt it," muttered Carrot as he helped the
man to his feet.

"What's he doing?" asked Mercury in confusion.

"Helping that man up," pointed out Jupiter.
She looked surprised more than anything else.

"What should we do?" said Moon with a confused
frown on her face.

"We have to destroy him," growled Rei.

"But, he's helping that guy," said Moon with
an uncertain frown on her face.

"That doesn't make him any less dangerous,"
said Rei.

"She's right," agreed Mercury reluctantly.
"But I don't think we should attack him right now
either."

"Maybe he's not so bad?" offered Moon.

"Ya know, he's not all that bad looking now
that he's cleaned up a bit," commented Venus.

The rest of the girls looked at her for a
moment.

"I didn't say he wasn't a jerk," said the girl
in response to the glares.

Carrot was standing in front of them with
Spike hanging over his shoulder. "Being a jerk
doesn't give you the right to harass me, and it
certainly doesn't give you the right to kill me."

The girls all glared at him.

"Get out of my way," he said coldly.

"Look you monster," snapped Rei.

"You attacked me, tried to kill me, and now
you're discussing what you should do with me as if
I'm not here. You tell me who's being a monster.
Now move."

Sailor Moon stepped aside and watched him walk
past them.

"What do you think you're doing?" snapped Rei
angrily.

Makoto was looking at the ground, she hadn't
moved, but she hadn't tried to stop him from
passing either.

Mercury was showing no emotion, and remained
silent.

"We can't just let him escape," snapped Rei.

"He's right you know," said Usagi with a
slight frown. She looked at her friend and smiled
at her with tears forming in her eyes. "He hasn't
really done anything."

"What about all this?" snapped Rei as she
waved her hand.

"We have no proof that he did this," countered
Mercury calmly. "His claims have valid points. He
looks awfully beat up for someone who just drained
all these people of their energy."

"What about that Youma we..." started Rei.

"He's killed one before," said Makoto as she
broke her silence. She continued to stare at the
ground and mulled over the problem on her own.

"And that evil guy we heard him talking too?"
said Rei as her voice suddenly calmed.

"He claims he was turning him down," said Ami.

"We should take his word for it?" asked Rei
coldly.

"No, but we should find out more before we
attack him again," said Ami calmly.

"We can't hesitate, we have to destroy the
enemy," said Luna as she walked up to them quietly
from behind.

"You think we should fight him?" asked Sailor
Moon in shock.

"If he is our enemy, yes," said the Cat.

"We aren't so sure of that anymore," said
Makoto quietly. "It may be our fault if he is
now."

"I see," said the cat as it sat down and
looked at them.

"Just because he doesn't like you, doesn't
make him your enemy. He's hostile, but from what
you've told me, he's never actually attacked you."
Artemis appeared beside Luna, walking up from
wherever he had been hiding.

Sailor Moon turned to look at where he had
gone. "What should we do?"

"There is no easy answer to that," commented
Ami. "We'll just have to wait and see."

+++++++++++++++

"Man, what a day," said Carrot as he staggered
into the apartment with Spike. The man was walking
on his own now, and seemed to be feeling much
better. The boy turned to look at him and frowned.
"Look, you need rest. You and Gia behave
yourselves tonight."

The man nodded numbly and Carrot opened the
door to her apartment. She looked up at them and
blinked from where she was standing. She wasn't
wearing a shirt, and was ironing the one she was
planning on wearing.

"What the?" she stammered with a blush on her
face as the pair staggered in.

"You ain't got nothing I ain't seen before
lady, your boyfriend is hurt," said Carrot as he
made Spike sit down at the table.

The man looked somewhat dazed, and hadn't even
noticed Gia was bare breasted.

She rushed over to his side and kneeled beside
him, ignoring her nudity for a moment. "Spike?
What happened?"

"He got hit on the head with a baseball bat,
and we ran into one of those Youma things on the
way back from that," replied Carrot before the man
could respond. "He's a little banged up, but he
should be fine. I need to use your phone. I should
call our boss so he doesn't get worried about
where we are."

Gia nodded and made Spike lie down.

Carrot made the call and explained things to
his boss. He only told him about the baseball bat,
and that they would probably not be in until
tomorrow. The man accepted that rather easily.

The boy hung up the phone and turned around to
see Gia looking at him with a worried expression
on her face. She had her arms crossed in front of
her, but they weren't hiding her naked breasts.
"He's much worse than he should be. The wound on
his head is just a slight bruise as far as I could
tell. Whoever hit him, didn't do it very hard."

"That's good. He'll be fine then. He just
needs a little rest to regain his energy. That
monster that attacked us drained his power. Let
him get some rest and he'll be fine. That also
means you have to behave yourselves tonight. He
cant use up energy with other activities or he
won't be feeling any better for a while."

The woman blinked at this and nodded. "Thank
you for bringing him."

"Yeah, well thank you for not remembering to
put a shirt on. I'm going home to catch some sleep
myself." He turned and stumbled suddenly,
clutching his belly in pain. "Oh man..."

Gia caught him and sighed. She was blushing
heavily from his comment and she forced him to the
ground as well. After a moment, he found himself
lying next to Spike.

"These cuts are nasty," said the woman as she
examined him closely. "Look, not that I'm
complaining, but if you're gonna be this close to
my face, please put a shirt on. I don't want Spike
getting mad at me later for this."

She stood up and put on a shirt before
returning. "Sorry."

"Don't be," said the boy with a small sigh.

"You are a terrible little pervert," she said
with a small scowl on her face.

"Hey. I thought I was behaving myself pretty
well actually," he retorted irritably.

She lifted up his shirt and gasped. "My god!
What happened to you?"

"That stupid monster thing hit me," he said
through the pain as she poked at him gently. "Stop
that! It hurts!"

"You could have serious internal damage! This
is brutal!" said the woman as she stood up.

"Bah, I've had worse," said the boy as he
turned his head aside. "It's not as bad as it was
an hour ago."

Gia sighed and shook her head. "I've got
something to help with those cuts of yours, it'll
help keep them from scarring, and a balm for the
bruising. You're staying over here tonight though.
I want to keep an eye on you overnight at least.

"Aw, man," muttered the boy lamely.

"It's not that bad!" snapped the woman as she
dug around in her medical bag again and began to
put a few jars on the table. She also pulled out a
few bandages. "After I apply this stuff, you're
going to go to sleep."

"Yes mother," said the boy sarcastically.

"I'm going to get some water for Spike's head,
you stay here and behave yourself!" she snapped.

Carrot sighed as the woman left the pair
alone. "Damn it. Why do I put up with this crap?"


"Youse looked at my Gia," said Spike as he sat
up suddenly.

"Huh?" said Carrot dumbly. The last thing he
remembered seeing was a big meaty fist closing in
on his face.

"Sorry, youse understands right?" said the man
in an almost zombified state as he slumped back
down to the ground again.

+++++++++++++

Gia stood in the hall and frowned at the man
who walked by her. He had a cigarette in his mouth
and was wearing a long trenchcoat that just
screamed 'cop'. "Can I help you?" she asked him as
he stood in front of Carrot's door with a frown on
his face.

"I'm looking for the boy who lives here," said
the man as he frowned at her.

"He's not home at the moment," she replied
honestly.

"Is that so? Where is he? I've been trying to
get in touch with him for a while now, but he
always seems to slip away," said the man calmly.

"May I ask what you need him for?" replied the
woman with a somewhat pleasant smile on her face.

He showed her his badge and smirked. "I just
want to ask him a few questions."

"Oh, well I'm not sure when he'll be back,
Inspector. He keeps odd hours," said the woman
with a shrug.

"Yes, I'd noticed that," replied the man with
a shrug. He reached into his pocket and pulled out
a business card. "If it's not too much trouble,
I'd appreciate it if you'd give me a call the next
time he's in. I'd really like to talk with him,
he's not in any trouble or anything."

"Well, I'm afraid that even though I'm his
neighbor, I don't see him much. He likes to keep
to himself I'm afraid," replied the woman with a
shrug. "I'll let you know, but I'm not home for
most of the day."

"Oh?" said the man as he arched his eyebrow.

"Yes, I run the clinic a few blocks down the
road from here. I'm afraid I'm not home much
myself."

"Well, thank you anyway, anything you can give
me would be helpful," said the man with a small
shrug.

"I'll do what I can," said the woman with a
cheerful demeanor.

Gia walked over to the sink and filled a small
pan with cold water. He walked out and she turned
and frowned at the door for a moment. "What would
he want with Carrot?" She turned back to her room
and sighed. "I hope this isn't about that job that
Spike got him."

She walked into the room and blinked in
surprise. Both of the males were out cold on the
ground. Carrot had a slightly pained expression on
his face and his arms and legs were sprawled all
over the floor. "Well, I guess that makes this a
little easier," she said cheerfully as she knelt
down and put a cold rag across her boyfriend's
forehead. She briefly considered walking down to
her office to pick up some ice for his bump, but
decided it was minor enough to ignore.

Carrot winced in his sleep as she began to
apply the medicine to his face, leg, and belly.

"Damn, bitch, that hurts," he muttered.

"He's an asshole in his sleep too?
Unbelievable!" snapped the woman as she conked him
on his head.

++++++++++++++

Mamoru Chiba frowned as he slowly stood up and
hobbled over to the window. His teeth were grit in
pain as he glared out over the city from his
apartment. "Damn. That bastard, I'll get him for
this. Another week and I'll be able to walk right
again hopefully."

He growled angrily as he remembered the most
humiliating moment of his life once again.
"Bastard! I'll have my revenge." He hung his head
and turned slowly back to his chair, and the
inflatable ring he still needed to sit on to
prevent aggravation to his wound. He hobbled over
with a bowlegged stumble and sat down slowly again
to fall asleep.

He grit his teeth angrily at the thought. He
couldn't even use his bed right now it was so bad.
"I will kill him for this humiliation. I swear
it!"

+++++++++++++++

Carrot sneezed in his sleep and sniffled
before rolling over. He sneezed again suddenly and
woke up groggily. "Huh?" he muttered sleepily.

Spike was moving around a little, having a
dream of some kind. "Oaf, you woke me up,"
grumbled Carrot irritably as he rolled over to get
some more sleep.

"Oh Gia!" cried the man as he rolled over on
top of him and grabbed him in a hug. Carrot
screamed as the larger man nuzzled his neck
affectionately.

Gia woke up on the other side of the table and
sat up. "What the? Quiet down would..." She
trailed off and looked at the scene with a smile
forming on her face.

"Don't just sit there! Help me!" snapped
Carrot as he glared at her and tried to squirm out
of the man's arms.

"Kiss me dumplin!" said Spike in the throes of
his dream.

"Gah! Help! Help! Stop laughing and help me
damn it!" cried Carrot as he struggled even more.

Gia was almost rolling on the floor, and
stumbled over to a dresser.

"What the hell are you doing?" screamed
Carrot.

"Sorry, I can't pass this up!" said the woman
as she pointed an instant camera at him.

"No! I'll kill you!" screamed Carrot as he
tried desperately to escape the man's grip.

Gia took a few shots and chuckled to herself.

"Bitch! Die!" screamed Carrot loudly. "Let me
go Spike! Damn it! I'm not Gia!"

"Not Gia?" muttered the man sleepily.

"No! Lemme go!" cried Carrot as he continued
to fight with the larger man.

"Gia has a twin! They's is both here?" said
the man with an odd looking grin on his face. "I
done died and gone to heaven!"

Carrot screamed again, and Gia was laughing so
hard she couldn't breathe.

++++++++++++

Usagi stared out into the moonlight and
sighed. "Luna, I'm still not sure what to do!"

The cat looked at her from her perch on the
end of the bed. "Is this about that boy again?"

"Yes, I mean. I really don't like him, he's a
terrible person, but..."

"You don't think he's one of the enemy do
you?" asked the cat with a sigh.

"Yes, I don't think he is," said the girl.

"So, we should ignore him then," said the cat
lazily. "If he is the enemy, he'll have to attack
sometime, then we'll know."

"Rei says we shouldn't wait, I don't know,"
said the girl with a frown on her face.

"Yes, I know," said the cat as she sighed and
rolled onto her back to look at the ceiling. "If
we don't attack him, the only thing we can do is
wait until he attacks. There's nothing else we can
do really."

"I suppose, but Rei says he's too dangerous
for us to wait for him to attack us. Makoto seems
to agree, but I can tell she doesn't like it. I
don't think Minako or Ami care either way." The
girl was clearly frustrated with her dilemma.

"You have to decide, it's part of being a
leader," said the cat as she looked at the girl.

"Well, I hate this part," said the girl with a
deep frown on her face. "What if I'm wrong? We
almost killed him once, I felt terrible for doing
it, but now, I'm not sure if he's even the enemy
really."

Luna merely nodded, not saying anything for a
long moment. "You'll just have to do your best,"
she finally offered.

"I guess so," muttered Usagi.

+++++++++++

Rei sat before the sacred flame once again.
Her face contorted with effort as she struggled to
find answers, proof that the boy was the enemy.
She knew it was, but she had to find some way to
show that to the others.

The flames flared, and a vision came to her.

"The boy, he was standing with the Senshi
around him with a cold looking smirk on his face.
He had an iron rod in his hand and he turned to
face them.

His face changed to an unreadable expression,
and they stood simply looking at each other,
neither speaking nor reacting to the other.
Finally, the vision ended and Rei gasped.

"What does it mean?" she growled in
frustration. She shook her head and sighed. She
could feel nothing from it, but there was
definitely a connection there. She knew the boy
was somehow tied to their destiny, but as a foe,
or something else? She had no feelings from him at
all, nothing, not anger, fear, or hatred like she
had been expecting. He was just sort of there.
"This means nothing at all, it's still not proof,"
she growled angrily. "I've got to find something,
anything."

With a heavy sigh she stood up and turned away
from the flame to think. "Damn. Slippery bastard."

++++++++++++++++

"Kasumi has failed," said one of the shadows
that loomed over Kei. She was standing in the
middle of a room and smirked at them.

"I did warn you, but you didn't listen to me,"
she replied calmly.

"Where is your mother?" asked the larger of
the two males.

"She is taking care of the police. Seeing to
it that they do not expose my Uncle. His body was
found earlier, cut in half in an alley."

"He is dead?" said the skinny shadow in
surprise.

"Yes," replied Kei calmly. "Quite dead. I saw
the scene, whoever did this, killed him with his
own web."

"That isn't possible, Kasumi is a master
of..." the large shadow trailed off and frowned.
"I see. So this one is as skilled as you had
claimed, and now my brother is dead."

"Yes," said Kei indifferently.

"This is not what I had in mind," said the
skinny shadow angrily. "This weakens the clan, and
he must be destroyed now. We have no choice."

"I told you that from the beginning," replied
Kei calmly. "You blew this off as the mere
weakness of one you considered a mere child. Now,
Kasumi has paid the price for her arrogance."

"Insolent brat! He was my brother!" snapped
the large shadow angrily.

"And my Uncle," she responded coolly.

"Kasumi was very skillful, you should respect
your betters, even in death," said the skinny
shadow calmly.

"I survived, twice," replied Kei.

"Point taken," agreed the thin shadow.

"Still, this becomes more serious," said the
larger one.

"I will kill him," said Kei coldly.

"Not if we get to him first," said the large
shadow coldly as he faded away.

"Indeed," agreed the thin shadow as he
followed.

"So, the game begins?" said the aged voice as
he chuckled from where he was hidden away.

"Yes," said the girl with a frown on her face
as she turned towards the sound. "I plan to win
this game."

"Heh, we'll see," replied the old man with an
amused snort.

Kei turned towards the door and walked out of
the room.

"This boy, is very interesting," said the old
man with a thoughtful chuckle. "Very interesting
indeed. I wonder what it is my daughter is not
telling us?"

++++++++++++++

TBC...