Gaijin  
 
Part 8: China Rose

By Sean D'Anna
 
=====  
 
Carrot stood on the roof of his apartment  
with an iron pole in his hand, he spun it  
around him self in a defensive pattern and  
attacked an invisible opponent. Sweat  
glistened off his forehead as he worked and  
the sun rose into the sky behind him. He  
worked through his kata silently, controlling  
his breathing and moving along the gravel  
surface in a rather complicated attack  
pattern. After several moments, the exercise  
ended and he relaxed. He closed his eyes for  
a moment as he stood upright from the last  
stance and tossed the weapon aside  
carelessly. It hit the ground with a metallic  
sounding clang.  
 
He smiled to himself and looked at the  
pole for a moment. He knew there hadn't been  
one up here, but it had been waiting on him  
when he'd come to practice. "Where are these  
coming from?" His smile faltered suddenly and  
he sighed again. "I still haven't figured out  
a lot of this."  
 
He brushed it aside and brought up his  
hand. From inside his sleeve, a long needle  
protruded from between his fingers. He'd  
bought several of them, and lengths of strong  
metal wire. They weren't the razor wire the  
ninja he'd fought was using, but they were  
flexible almost to the point of being string  
like. He'd found them in a small hardware  
store near where he lived.  
 
He snorted and flicked his wrist. The  
needle shot from his grasp and stuck deep  
into the concrete ledge that ran along the  
edge of the roof. He snorted as it stuck  
fast, with the wire running to it from inside  
his sleeve. "I suppose it's all in the  
wrist." He shook his head and sat down,  
flipping his wrist slightly.  
 
His eyes went wide in shock as instead of  
just removing the needle from where it was  
stuck, it flipped up and returned to his  
hand, coiling back into his sleeve. "Whoa!  
Shit! He muttered as he looked at the weapon  
that was now stuck between his fingers again.  
"What the? How the hell did I do that?" He  
jumped to his feet and stared at it for a  
moment in awe. "No freaking way!" He repeated  
the attack, with the same result. "What the  
hell is this?" he muttered to himself quietly  
as he stared at it and repeated it again.  
After about seven tries, he stopped and  
slumped down onto the ground, sitting there  
and mulling over the new development. "What  
the hell?"  
 
++++++++++++++++++++  
 
Gia walked up onto the roof and paused in  
the doorway. She smiled a little as she found  
Carrot there. He was practicing martial arts,  
and putting on an impressive show of it.  
 
She had decided to speak to him about a  
few things, and had seen him coming up to the  
roof earlier. Now she stood in the doorway  
content to watch him for a moment. She paused  
when his kata picked up speed, the Bo staff  
that looked like it was painted black spun in  
his hands with an almost impossible speed and  
skill. Her smile faded as she stood up right  
again watching him in awe. "What? He's...  
this good?" she muttered to herself.  
 
The boy either didn't realize that she  
was there, or ignored her as he continued.  
Finally, he stopped and stood there,  
controlling his breathing for a long moment.  
He tossed the weapon aside and she started to  
speak. The pole hit the ground with a rather  
noisy clang and she paused and blinked again.  
"Metal?" She had thought the pole was wooden,  
one of those practice weapons or something.  
By the time she recovered, he had already  
started something new.  
 
The boy was tossing some sort of line out  
of his hand and it stuck into the ledge. With  
a skillful flick of his wrist, it returned to  
his palm. He peered at it for a moment and  
seemed to think about it before staring  
again. After several tries, he slumped down  
onto the ground and appeared to be mulling  
over something.  
 
She stepped out onto the rooftop, moving  
out of the doorway. "Carrot?"  
 
The boy looked up at her, his thoughtful  
frown still on his face. "Huh? What is it?"  
 
"That was impressive," she said  
cheerfully.  
 
"Huh?" He blinked and looked at her in  
confusion. "Oh, you were watching me?"  
 
"Well, I sort of stumbled onto you," she  
said as she waved her hand at him. He was  
being unusually humble at the moment.  
 
S'no big deal. You want something?" he  
asked.  
 
"Yes actually." She turned her head away  
from him, not sure why she felt worried about  
it at all. "There's a man looking for you. He  
came by again last night. It's not the first  
time I've seen him. He says he's with the  
police, and he wants to talk with you."  
 
Carrot blinked. "Police? What the heck  
would the police want with me?" he wondered  
out loud.  
 
"I don't know. He wouldn't say. He just  
says he wants to talk with you. I was hoping  
you might know what he wanted," she replied  
with a small frown.  
 
"I'm not sure," said carrot as he  
shrugged. "I can't think of anything. Maybe  
it has something to do with that job Spike  
got me?" He frowned at the thought. "Damn,  
shoulda known that would get me into  
trouble."  
 
"You didn't have much choice," replied  
the woman with a small frown. She didn't  
mention that she wasn't so sure of that  
anymore.  
 
"I guess you're right," he said with a  
small chuckle. "Still, I don't think it would  
be a good idea for me to talk with him. Maybe  
I should lay low..."  
 
"Isn't that what you're doing now?" asked  
Gia as she stared at him.  
 
"I haven't been doing a very good job of  
it," he responded with a snort.  
 
"I guess you're right," agreed Gia with a  
slightly nervous laugh.  
 
Carrot frowned as he stood up and walked  
back towards the stairs. "Some cop? Those  
ninja maybe, or one of those Youma  
Generals...? I wouldn't put it past any of  
them to disguise themselves like that." None  
of them made a whole lot of sense though, he  
hadn't been attacked at home yet. It was  
something else to think about. He looked back  
at the rooftop before walking back inside and  
brushing past the woman. He continued down  
the hall and walked out of the building. He  
was off, but maybe it would do him some good  
to take a walk. Things had only gotten  
weirder since he'd settled into his new  
place.  
 
++++++++++++++++++++  
 
Gia couldn't help herself, she walked  
over to the pole and picked it up. She  
briefly wondered why Carrot had just left it  
there. Then she paused and moved it up and  
down in her grip for a moment. "Hey, this  
thing is heavy..." She gasped as her mind  
went back to what the boy had been doing with  
it. He had been spinning it around as if it  
was some lightweight wood. She gasped and  
dropped it on the ground while she stepped  
back. "What the hell? What kind of kid is  
he?"  
 
She turned around and looked at the  
doorway. After a moment, she jogged towards  
it, intent on asking the boy just that. When  
she reached the hallway, he was already gone.  
 
"Damn."  
 
++++++++++++++++++++++++++  
 
It was a beautiful day in Tokyo. The sun  
was shining, and the sky was a clear blue  
above. It had rained briefly earlier, and the  
pavement was still slightly damp. Carrot had  
been walking around for a few hours already.  
The climate was cool, and a light breeze made  
it only slightly chilly. He enjoyed the  
weather, and decided to stay out rather than  
return. He'd stopped thinking about his  
problems a while ago and simply enjoyed his  
time outside.  
 
He found himself walking through a small  
crowd of students. School had just ended for  
the day, and now the streets were packed with  
uniforms from the various schools in the  
area. In an hour or two, they would all be  
gone. Still, it was a rather pleasant  
atmosphere for a fourteen-year-old boy to be  
walking around in.  
 
He was forcing himself to walk out in the  
open to take in the warmth of the sun. As a  
result, people were noticing him. A few  
students gave him curious stares as he walked  
by. He blinked and realized why as he looked  
down at himself. Beside the fact that he was  
a gaijin, he was also dressed in a dogi.  
"Damn, forgot to change." He'd bought it for  
training shortly after moving into his home.  
Clothes had to be washed in a Laundromat near  
to the building. He didn't like going out,  
and getting all his clothes sweaty from  
training left him with an unpleasant odor.  
 
He sighed and continued walking, it was no  
big deal, and he could deal with a few stares  
and giggling schoolgirls. No one tried to  
speak with him, and that was just fine by  
him. Well, almost no one...  
 
"Your face!"  
 
"Huh?" said carrot as he turned to see a  
girl about a year older than him looking at  
him through a pair of thick glasses.  
 
"It's ominous!" said the girl.  
 
"What the hell?" he muttered as he stared  
back at her for a moment.  
 
She wasn't Japanese, it was fairly  
obvious. She was wearing a Chinese style  
dress and had her long dark green hair tied  
into a bun on the top of her head. The dress  
was form fitting, but full length. It  
appeared to be quite ornate, with a golden  
pattern of cranes and clouds on top of a  
rather expensive looking red silk cloth. She  
adjusted her glasses to stare at him and  
frowned. "You have a dark cloud hanging over  
your head!"  
 
So, tell me something I don't know,"  
snorted Carrot irritably. The girl's grasp of  
the language was excellent, but her accent  
gave away her Chinese heritage.  
 
"I am Me-lin," said the girl as she bowed  
to him.  
 
"So? Did you want something?" he replied  
irritably.  
 
"I will help you," said the girl as she  
peered at his face a little too closely for  
his comfort.  
 
"Help me with what?" he grumbled as he  
frowned at her.  
 
"You are cursed, and I shall remove it  
from your soul!" said the girl firmly. She  
gripped his shoulders and shook him lightly.  
 
"Don't touch me, you loon!" he grumbled  
as he pushed her hands away. "Get lost."  
 
"Not until your curse is lifted!" said  
the girl firmly. She shook her head from side  
to side slowly.  
 
Carrot growled and started walking again.  
"Fine. I'll leave then."  
 
This caught the girl by surprise. "Wait!  
We haven't set up a payment plan yet!"  
 
"I'm not paying you, go away," he said as  
he turned his head to frown at her as he  
walked.  
 
"It is a small price to pay for peace of  
mind!" cried the girl as she continued to  
move after him.  
 
Carrot felt the hairs on the back of his  
neck rise slightly. Everyone was staring at  
him and the girl now. She was obnoxiously  
loud, and it was starting to get to him. He  
slowly turned around and glared at her again.  
"You're getting on my nerves, go away."  
 
"I cannot leave you! It is my duty to  
help those in need. Even though you are a  
cheap bastard who will not pay me!"  
 
"Cheap bastard?" grumbled the boy as his  
frown deepened. "I'm not going to pay you for  
irritating me, now go away!"  
 
"To think! A young boy would refuse the  
charity of such a beautiful maiden from the  
East!" lamented the girl. "A shame to my  
family, my honor, and my name! Oh! The shame  
of it all!"  
 
"You're damn right I...what?" the boy  
blinked as he stared at her again.  
 
"Oh! Perhaps I worded that wrong..." said  
the girl as she blushed and realized that  
most of the boys in the immediate area were  
now staring at her exclusively.  
 
"Look lady, I don't want help, and I  
don't need it," grumbled Carrot as he turned  
away.  
 
"I sense something terrible is about to  
happen to you! Please! You must accept my  
help!" exclaimed the girl.  
 
Carrot was growing extremely irritated by  
this strange girl. He turned and pointed at  
a nearby boy and snorted. "What about him?  
He doesn't look ominous enough for you?"  
 
"Yes. His face is ominous as well, but  
not nearly as much as yours," replied the  
girl calmly. "Plus, he does not have a cute  
butt."  
 
"Carrot paused again and stared at her.  
"Huh?"  
 
"I would not be so charitable with you if  
you did not," she replied as she nodded to  
herself.  
 
Carrot just stood there looking at her  
for a moment.  
 
"Shall you allow me to help you?" she  
said with a satisfied looking grin forming on  
her face. In her mind, she had him now.  
 
"No," he responded as he turned away and  
started walking calmly.  
 
"I take it back, you do not have a cute  
butt!" she said angrily as she continued to  
follow him.  
 
"Yes I do," said the boy as he continued  
to walk away. "That doesn't have anything to  
do with this though. Stop bothering me!"  
 
"Wait! Do not step any further! That  
street is ominous!"  
 
Carrot looked up at the street sign and  
frowned. "Looks like Sakuragami Street to  
me."  
 
A short distance down the street in  
question, a manhole cover exploded up from  
the pavement. "I told you! Ominous!" said the  
girl as she smirked at him. The manhole cover  
landed in front of him a few feet away,  
clattering to the pavement noisily.  
 
"I didn't need your help to tell me  
something bad was going to happen to me  
today," muttered the boy irritably. He looked  
down at the disk and snorted.  
 
"I still sense a dark presence!" said the  
girl as she narrowed her eyes.  
 
"Well, you take care of the dark  
presence, I'm going to go have lunch," said  
the boy as he pointed at a small street side  
cafe nearby.  
 
The girl's head snapped around and she  
stared at him dumbly. "What?"  
 
"You're the one that's so gung-ho about  
all this. Go right ahead. Your ominous evil  
is climbing onto the street right now," said  
Carrot as he pointed out the large brown blob  
that was moving into the street from the  
manhole.  
 
"What is this?!" cried the girl as he r  
face became serious. She moved into a combat  
stance that Carrot didn't recognize.  
 
"Oh shit," said Carrot as he frowned at  
the thing. "It's a shit monster." His eyebrow  
arched slightly at the sight of it. "Well,  
good luck." He pat the girl on her shoulder  
and started walking towards the restaurant.  
 
"Wait!" cried the girl angrily as she  
watched him walk away. She shook her head and  
focused on her new problem. The thing that  
had oozed up from the ground below, now  
appeared to have grown a mouth and eyes. "So,  
the evil I sensed in Japan, is worse than I  
had feared. Something terrible has descended  
upon this place!"  
 
Carrot was now sitting at a table,  
reading a menu calmly. "It appears some of  
the citizens are already jaded by such a  
mystical evil! So I shall fulfill my  
destiny!" said the girl to herself as she  
steeled her mind for the coming battle.  
 
The boy paused as a soft glow started to  
form around Mei-lin's body. "Neat."  
 
The waiter had come out, and was looking  
at the scene with his jaw open.  
 
"Hey! I'm hungry damn it!" snapped Carrot  
as he kicked the man in his shins to get his  
attention.  
 
"Are you nuts? I'm getting the hell out  
of here!" cried the man. A long thin metal  
wire that now protruded from the boy's sleeve  
blocked his escape path. "Not till I've had a  
sandwich."  
 
"Are you crazy?" exclaimed the man in  
horror.  
 
"Maybe I am, but I'm also hungry. You're  
not leaving until you've taken care of that,"  
said Carrot as he narrowed his eyes at the  
man. "Don't worry, that chick looks like some  
sort of demon hunter. We should be fine." The  
boy turned to glance at the girl as she stood  
off against the thing.  
 
The waiter looked at the boy fearfully.  
"Devil Hunter?"  
 
"What the hell else could that thing be?"  
asked Carrot. "Hurry it up will ya?" The  
smell is starting to get to me."  
 
The shit monster's odor was starting to  
fill the street. It roared angrily as it  
stared down the young girl in front of it.  
She started to mutter something under her  
breath as she concentrated, and the thing  
started throwing itself at her. She dodged  
the blobs of fecal matter and kept her eyes  
on the thing. She was very skilled, but her  
concentration was suffering.  
 
The thing moved slowly, sliding across  
the pavement like a slug. It was huge though,  
about half the length of a bus, and just as  
tall.  
 
They were about twenty yards away from  
where Carrot was sitting, and he appeared to  
be mostly ignoring them.  
 
She wasn't watching him though, and  
continued to move back away from the thing.  
Finally, her voice got louder. She was saying  
something in Chinese, and it's volume was  
getting louder. She ended up shouting, and  
thrust her arms forward. A wave of visible  
energy seemed to ripple across the sky and  
slammed into the thing's left arm. It was a  
very impressive looking attack.  
 
Unfortunately, all it really did was  
splatter Mei-lin with shit.  
 
Carrot arched his eyebrow at the display.  
"Hey, neat."  
 
The girl was having trouble though.  
"What? He wasn't defeated?" It had never  
happened to her before. She promptly stated  
exactly what the thing was made of, and  
started again.  
 
The monster chuckled and a crystal  
appeared in it's grasp. It started to glow  
and it loomed over the Chinese girl.  
 
Carrot blinked as he realized what the  
girl was doing. "What? That's it? That's all  
she can do?" He sighed and shook his head.  
The attack was taking just as long as it had  
the first time. "Man, she's worse than  
Sailor Moon!"  
 
The waiter appeared from the restaurant with  
a tray in his hands. He was watching the  
battle fearfully and had a sandwich and drink  
with him. "Can I go now?"  
 
"Yeah, sure," said Carrot as he shoved  
some money into his chest before he'd had the  
chance to put his food down.  
 
The man stumbled suddenly and passed out.  
Carrot caught his food and blinked in  
surprise. The man was lying on the ground in  
front of him. "Oops! Sorry, I didn't think it  
was that hard..." He frowned though when he  
realized that it wasn't that hard. "Oh man,  
this again?" He turned around and started  
eating while he watched the girl working.  
 
Mei-lin was shaking in terror as the  
thing moved towards her slowly. She was  
backing towards a wall as the crystal in its  
hand became gorged in power. She could feel  
her energy slowly fading and staggered  
slightly. She was fighting it with minimal  
success, but it was only a matter of time.  
"No! I must...it's too strong!"  
 
The thing laughed at her as she slumped  
against the wall and slowly struggled to  
stand again. It was already sliding over her  
legs. She shook her head and flailed her arms  
around, desperately trying to find something  
to grab as she felt herself being pulled into  
it slowly. "No! I cannot fail!" she cried in  
horror as the glow began to flicker around  
her again, but it was far too weak this time.  
 
"What was this crap about you saving me  
earlier?"  
 
The creature roared in anger as its head  
was split in half. Carrot was standing behind  
it with an iron pole in one hand, and a half-  
eaten sandwich in the other. He was holding  
his pole up at an angle, with it sticking  
inside the monster.  
 
A giant fist formed out of the side of  
the thing and slammed into Carrot. The boy  
was sent flying through the air. He slammed  
into a wall hard, crushing the stone and  
creating a crater. "Damn!" he muttered as he  
grit his teeth and closed his eyes. "Son of  
a..." He fell out of the hole his impact had  
made and staggered to his feet.  
 
He looked up and frowned. Mei-lin was out  
cold and sticking from the thing's belly. She  
was in up to the bottom of her breasts. He  
growled and glared at it. He'd made a serious  
miscalculation about the girl. Somehow, he  
didn't think the senshi were going to appear  
until it was too late. "Great, I hate being a  
hero." He knew he didn't have much choice.  
 
He jumped into the air with his pole held  
high over his head.  
 
The thing shifted, and he realized that  
he'd jumped a little too high. It opened his  
mouth below him and waited on him. Without  
thinking, he flicked his wrist and twisted in  
mid air.  
 
The creature growled in anger as its face  
was swiped off as the boy swung just over its  
mouth with his pole held down below him.  
Carrot was swinging from a thin line that  
hung out of his sleeve and stuck in a nearby  
wall overhead.  
 
Carrot chuckled and turned to look  
forward. "Oh man!" He promptly slammed into  
the wall, once again knocking him senseless.  
He managed to cling to the wire and shook his  
head. "Ouch.... That was really stupid." He  
flicked his wrist again and the spike was  
pulled from the wall. He landed and turned to  
face the thing, only to find that the girl  
was now stuck up to her neck.  
 
"Son of a bitch!" he growled as he jumped  
up and shot out another line. He swung  
towards the monster, and promptly landed face  
first into the pavement. He slid for a few  
feet and groaned in pain. His chest, arms,  
and legs were scraped up pretty badly, and  
one of his cheeks was now turning red as well  
from the impact.  
 
He managed to roll away just as a massive  
shit fist slammed into the ground where he  
had been, forcing him to roll away. He jumped  
to his feet and then jumped back, landing on  
the hood of a car just ahead of a large blob  
of crap that slammed into the ground below  
him. His landing was a bit wobbly, but he  
managed to keep on his feet. "All right  
ugly..." He didn't have a clue about what to  
do now. He wasn't really hurting the thing,  
and only one of the girl's arms was poking  
out of its belly now.  
 
"Oh...son of a..." he cried as he jumped  
into the air again in a last ditch effort. He  
sent out another line and it stuck deep into  
a wall. He grit his teeth and closed his eyes  
to prepare for impact.  
 
Carrot swung through the air, moving in  
close to the ground, no more than a foot  
above it. With a quick motion he reached out  
and snagged the girl's hand before it  
vanished into the thing's belly. The force of  
his momentum almost jerked her out of his  
grip, but he managed to hang on. He kept  
going, pulling the girl from the thing with  
his momentum mostly, and somehow managed to  
pull her to his chest. She coughed violently,  
splattering his face with shit in the  
process. Still, she was conscious enough to  
grab his neck and hold on tight.  
 
Carrot cursed as he saw the wall moving  
towards him and flicked his other wrist,  
shifting the girl's weight as he did it. He  
held her with his legs to free his hands, her  
grip on his neck helping with this a great  
deal. He pulled one line free just as the  
other one went tight and swung through the  
air once again, this time swinging sideways  
as his momentum shifted suddenly. After a  
moment, he started to swing downward at an  
angle, and he repeated it, switching the  
lines again.  
 
Halfway through the next swing he shifted  
and turned around, shooting a line in the  
direction he'd just come from. His momentum  
sent him up this time, almost to the point of  
doing a complete loop in the air with his  
line, being almost directly above it at one  
point. The line started to slacken as gravity  
took over, and he released another line while  
pulling the first one back. Jut before they  
hit the ground, they swung back into the air.  
"Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this,"  
muttered Carrot to himself.  
 
Carrot chuckled to himself and the girl  
hanging from his neck started screaming as  
she became aware enough to realize what was  
going on around her. She stopped when she  
realized that the boy was saying something as  
they moved back towards the Youma. Or more  
precisely, singing something.  
 
"...Spiderman, does whatever a spider  
can! Spins a web, any size! Catches thieves,  
just like flies! Look out! Look out for the  
Spiderman!..."  
 
"What are you dooooiiiiiiinnnnnnggggg!?"  
screamed the girl as he flicked his wrist  
again. This time they landed on the ground.  
Carrot shifted just enough so that he could  
pull her into his arms before they hit. He  
stopped cold and stared forward at the  
monster with an angry frown. The girl paused  
after he didn't move for several seconds, he  
was just hunched over with her in his arms,  
glaring at the thing. "Um...is something  
wrong?"  
 
Carrot spoke quietly. "The ground...is  
very hard."  
 
"Of course it was! You didn't do anything  
to slow us down before you stopped idiot!"  
she snapped as she jumped down from his grip.  
 
The shit monster noticed that they had  
returned and slowly lumbered towards them.  
 
"We should probably run now," said Carrot  
as he managed to straighten himself out a  
bit.  
 
"We can't just leave that thing here!" cried  
Mei-lin irritably as she growled at it.  
 
"Why the hell not? I haven't got anything  
that will kill it, and that little trick of  
yours won't do any good!"  
 
"That isn't a trick! It's the invincible  
power of my soul!" screamed the girl angrily.  
 
"Yeah, well it's no match for he  
invincible power of a pile of shit," he  
snapped back at her.  
 
"I can't run away! Look what that thing  
did to me! Do you have any idea how much this  
dress cost me?" she screamed angrily.  
 
"Yeah, I'd noticed," he said lamely. He'd  
gotten a good bit of the thing on him in the  
process of saving her. "I hate being the hero  
lady, we've got people in Tokyo who take care  
of this sort of thing, and they don't like me  
much. I'd rather not be around when they do  
show up."  
 
"What's going on here?" said the girl in  
confusion.  
 
"I'm taking off. If you want to hang  
around and get yourself killed by a giant  
blob of shit, it's your business this time.  
Be my guest." Carrot started to turn away and  
frowned as the girl started to face off  
against the thing again.  
 
"I can't run, it is my duty to face evil  
like this! I cannot admit defeat!"  
 
"What an idiot," he said as he shook his  
head. He glanced back and realized just how  
close the thing was now. It had started  
throwing itself at them again.  
 
He growled and cursed under his breath as  
he turned to face it. A huge blob landed in  
front of him and he was splattered again as  
it shattered on the ground. He casually  
picked up a pole from the ground, knowing it  
would be there and twirled it in his palm. He  
stalked forward and stood next to Mei-lin.  
 
"You came back!" said the girl in shock  
as she looked at him and smiled.  
 
He ignored her and turned his eyes  
towards the sidewalk next to the thing. It  
lumbered forward and he threw his pole like a  
spear. It never went near the monster, but  
hit a fire hydrant on the sidewalk. The front  
of it was broken away by the impact and  
nothing came out. He frowned and aimed  
carefully with his hand before shooting one  
of the needles with as much force as he could  
muster. It hit the bolt on the top, glancing  
off the side and spun it around, unscrewing  
it completely.  
 
A powerful jet of water slammed into the  
thing's side from the broken hydrant.  
 
The monster roared as a huge hole was  
blasted into its side. It shuddered and  
started to actually collapse into itself, the  
water washing it away quickly.  
 
The pair blinked as they watched the  
monster die. Carrot was hoping to distract  
the monster long enough to force the girl to  
run. He blinked and watched the thing's  
remains being washed into the storm drains  
along the curb. "Holy shit. I flushed it!" he  
said dumbly.  
 
Mei-lin looked at him with an unreadable  
expression on her face. Carrot walked away  
from her calmly and put himself in the path  
of the water. The pressure was dying down now  
and he washed himself off as best he could.  
"At least it didn't sing too."  
 
The girl sighed and joined him in the  
water as well, trying to wash the layer of  
shit that was now caked onto her.  
 
Naturally, Carrot turned to look at her  
for a moment as she stepped out of the water.  
She was wearing a wet silk dress now, and he  
was male after all.  
 
The girl turned to face him as well and  
smiled. "Thank you! You were amazing! Are you  
a demon slayer too?"  
 
"No," he replied curtly as his daze  
turned into a frown.  
 
"Oh," muttered the girl as she looked at  
the ground in frustration. "Our meeting must  
be destiny! You must be one of the ones fated  
to help me!"  
 
Carrot snorted at this. "I'm afraid not,  
I've got enough problems lady."  
 
"But you must! It's fate! You just have  
to be one of the other seven celestial  
warriors that are foretold in ancient  
legends!"  
 
"Legends?" said Carrot as he narrowed his  
eyes.  
 
"Yes! I was born with this mark,  
signifying that I must be one of these  
warriors!" said the girl as she showed him  
her wrist . There was three small dots on her  
wrist.  
 
"So? What the hell is that supposed to  
be?" he grumbled irritably.  
 
"It's Orion's belt! Do you have a mark  
like this?" she said with a frustrated growl.  
 
"No," he said pointedly. "Besides, it's  
nine celestial warriors, and you aren't one  
of them."  
 
The girl blinked at this. "Huh?"  
 
"I said it's nine warriors, one for each  
planet except for Earth," he replied calmly  
as he turned away. "Mercury, Mars, Venus,  
Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus, Pluto, and  
one for the moon."  
 
"What?" said the girl dumbly.  
 
"Look lady, you can play devil hunter all  
you want. I'm going home," he said crossly as  
he started walking.  
 
"You know of the legend?" she asked as  
she grabbed his arm.  
 
"Yeah? What of it?" he responded  
callously.  
 
"It's just... you've met these others?"  
 
"Yeah, they don't like me, and they'll  
probably be here any minute. Can I go now?"  
 
"I am in your debt! You must let me repay  
you! A fellow warrior, even if what you say  
is true!"  
 
Carrot sighed, but didn't try to break  
the girl's grip on his arm. "Look, all I want  
is to be left the hell alone."  
 
"But..."  
 
"But nothing! I'm not a celestial  
warrior, I don't have anything to do with  
this. I wish it would quit biting me in the  
ass though! Now if you don't mind, I'd like  
to leave."  
 
"Very well, I shall accompany you! My  
life is now yours!"  
 
"Can we work some sort of payment plan  
out instead? It's a nice gesture, but I'm  
afraid I don't have much use for you. What's  
the return policy on this?" he replied  
sarcastically.  
 
"Meeting fellow warriors of justice is  
not what I imagined it to be," muttered the  
girl as she stared at him. He'd just offered  
herself to him in a round about way, and  
he'd turned her down.  
 
"Well, you go and find justice, and I'll  
go and find lunch. Your stupid monster ruined  
my sandwich." Carrot jerked his arm out of  
her grip and turned to walk off. Of course,  
as with every other day like this, it was  
just starting.  
 
"You!"  
 
He found himself looking a pretty irate  
Sailor Mars right in the eyes.  
 
"Oh! For God's sake! It's my day off!" he  
cried up to the sky in anger.  
 
"What are you doing here?" said Rei  
angrily as she pointed at him.  
 
"Who is this girl?" asked Mei-lin in  
confusion.  
 
"Mei-lin, meet one of your 'celestial  
warriors'," replied Carrot as he jerked his  
thumb at Rei and put his head into his hand  
in frustration. He wiped his face off and  
sighed.  
 
Both girls blinked and Mei-lin bowed to  
Rei. "It is an honor to meet you."  
 
Rei turned towards Carrot and snarled  
angrily. "You won't get away this time!"  
 
"Get away? You...I've just finished doing  
your damn job for you again, and that's all  
you've got to say?" he snapped.  
 
Rei frowned at this. "What do you mean?"  
 
"This man helped me defeat a nameless  
dizzen of the dark world," said the Chinese  
girl cheerfully. "Is he working with you to  
defend the world from evil?"  
 
"No!" was the reply from both of them.  
They stopped to look at each other for a  
moment and Carrot sighed. "Look, I'm sure  
your friends will be here soon, and they'll  
hate to see me as much as I'll hate seeing  
them. I'll just be on my way."  
 
Rei snorted at her and turned away as  
well, leaving the girl standing in the street  
alone.  
 
"I'm confused," muttered Mei-lin.  
 
+++++++++++++++++++++++++  
 
It was getting late, the city was closing  
down and people were returning to their  
homes. Carrot walked towards his apartment  
with a lazy stroll. Once again , he was  
moving through the shadows. He was covered in  
scrapes and scratches, and generally felt  
like hell. Of course he'd had worse, but the  
cool breeze did little more than irritate his  
newly sensitive skin.  
 
He avoided alleys and empty streets, past  
experience told him wandering around those  
areas was not a good idea. Unfortunately, his  
home was on one such street, and no sooner  
than he'd stepped out, then a rose planted in  
the ground at his feet. "Son of a bitch."  
 
He stared at the rose, not even bothering  
to look up. "Ya know, I thought you were  
smart enough to learn your lesson after the  
last time."  
 
Mamoru stepped out of the shadows in  
front of him and growled in a low voice.  
"I've been looking for you."  
 
"How is it anyway?"  
 
"Because of you, I couldn't sit down for  
a week!" snapped Mamoru hatefully.  
 
"Really? I figured a pervert like you  
would be used to that sort of treatment.  
Maybe you're just upset I didn't hang  
around."  
 
"Joke all you want, you're going to  
suffer this time," said the boy as he raised  
his cane into a fencing position.  
 
"What? You attacked me fool. You got what  
you deserved as far as I'm concerned. Sorry I  
couldn't let you hang around and grope me  
like that slut you've been hanging around."  
 
"Sailor Moon isn't a slut, I'll make you  
pay for that statement."  
 
"Like last time?"  
 
The boy snarled hatefully. "You were lucky."  
 
"I was hurt, I'm not in the best shape  
now, but I'm more than enough to take you  
this time," snorted Carrot.  
 
Mamoru noticed his injuries and chuckled.  
"Had a rough day?"  
 
"Finding you like this just made it  
better," replied Carrot with a cold smile  
forming on his face.  
 
"You won't be so happy about it in a  
moment!" growled Mamoru as he charged. He was  
still limping slightly, but he was still  
faster than Carrot expected.  
 
The boy ducked under the older boy's  
strike and passed under him. He felt the  
disturbance in the air of the cane passing  
over him and frowned as he jammed his fist  
into Mamoru's gut hard.  
 
The older boy was sent to his knees and  
coughed for a moment before standing up  
sharply and whirling around, only to find an  
empty street. "Damn! He's gone!" He growled  
in frustration and turned into the shadows,  
not even bothering to look for his target.  
 
Carrot frowned from the top of a street  
lamp nearby, ready to pounce. He hadn't  
expected him to give up quite so easily.  
Still, he breathed a sigh of relief, he was  
hurt, and didn't really want to risk taking  
him on in his condition. "Still, this could  
become annoying pretty quickly. He jumped  
into the air, and sent a line into the top of  
a nearby building, swinging towards the one  
opposite it skillfully.  
 
Naturally, he missed and slammed into the  
ledge gut first. He managed to catch the  
ledge with his arms and groaned painfully as  
he hung off the side of the building for a  
moment. "Shit, that really hurt." He sighed  
and looked up at the moon as he pulled  
himself up. He as hurting all over, he stunk,  
and he knew that his problems weren't over  
just yet.  
 
"Well, hello," said Kunzite from where he  
was standing on the rooftop.  
 
"Why me?" muttered Carrot as he hung his  
head.  
 
"You're quite an interesting man," commented  
Kunzite casually.  
 
"Only because you idiots won't leave me  
alone," snorted the boy in reply irritably.  
 
"Come now, Nephrite didn't care for you,  
but that doesn't mean we can't be civil,"  
said the man as he leaned against a chimney  
and smirked at him.  
 
"I already said no, and you haven't done  
anything to prove I should change my mind,"  
said Carrot calmly.  
 
"Yes, I know. I was wondering if you'd  
changed your mind anyway. They've been giving  
you quite a bit of trouble I understand. I  
must apologize for Nephrite, he shouldn't be  
bothering you again."  
 
"Not really, last time I talked to one of  
you, it almost got me killed," snorted  
Carrot. "How is that asshole Nephrite  
anyway?"  
 
"Huh? I never found out," said Kunzite.  
It was obvious he hadn't understood the  
question. "How did you know about that?" His  
face was contorted into a deep frown.  
 
Carrot looked up at him and blinked.  
"What?"  
 
Kunzite turned his head away as he  
realized that he'd misunderstood the  
question. "It's nothing. Nephrite is dead."  
 
"Really? Wish I could say I'm sorry to  
hear that," said the boy with a small sigh.  
"Look, are we gonna fight? I've had a bad  
night..."  
 
"No, I still think you'd be useful,"  
replied Kunzite.  
 
"Well, that's two of you dead, and all of  
them alive. Why should I join the losing  
side?" replied the boy crossly.  
 
Kunzite narrowed his eyes at the boy. "We  
aren't losing?"  
 
"Oh? How many senshi are dead then?"  
responded the boy as he arched his eyebrow.  
 
"I see..." said Kunzite with a small  
chuckle.  
 
"Yeah, you kill four of em, and then come  
back and ask me again," responded the boy as  
he started walking away.  
 
"If we could do that, we wouldn't need  
you," said Kunzite under his breath. "I'll  
kill them all, and then see what you have to  
say."  
 
+++++++++++++  
 
Finally, he was home.  
 
Unfortunately, a man in a long trenchcoat  
was standing in front of the entrance with a  
cigarette in his mouth. He appeared to be  
trying to hide, but the orange glow and puffs  
of smoke gave him away in the darkness.  
 
Carrot snorted and jumped down beside the  
man silently. He reached into his coat pocket  
and lifted his wallet easily before moving  
back into the darkness. "Inspector? Hmmm.  
Interesting..." He narrowed his eyes at the  
man and moved around the building, walking up  
calmly. He paused a few feet away from the  
door and looked directly at the man as he was  
stepping out.  
 
"I was wondering how long you were going  
to hide there Inspector," said the boy  
calmly.  
 
The man blinked and looked up at him.  
"So, she told you about me did she?"  
 
"Well, she said you wanted to meet me.  
What's this about?" said the boy as he  
watched the man calmly.  
 
The man frowned at this and brushed back  
his slicked down hair. "I got the impression  
you were avoiding me." He tried to peer at  
the boy for a moment and frowned.  
 
"Something happen? You look like hell.  
What's that smell?"  
 
"It's along story, it involves a sewage  
problem," replied the boy with a small shrug.  
"I'm tired, what do you want so I can tell  
you no?"  
 
"I want your boss," said the man with a  
small chuckle as he took a drag off his  
cigarette.  
 
"I can't help you," he said as he turned  
towards the door.  
 
"Can't, or won't?" asked the man with a  
smirk forming on his face.  
 
"Can't, I'm just a mail boy. I do it to  
get out of the apartment for a while. What I  
do for him is legit. I run messages, and I  
don't know about his other operations,  
although, I'll admit I do know they're there.  
I've got no interest in finding out what they  
are."  
 
"Not even if I can make it worth your  
while?" asked the man with a dangerous glint  
in his eyes.  
 
"I'm not poor, my neighbors are pushy  
though. They thought it wasn't healthy for me  
to sit around the room all day. She sort of  
forced me to get this job."  
 
"She working for him?" asked the man.  
 
"No," replied Carrot calmly. "But she  
knows someone who does."  
 
"Who?"  
 
"That's a secret, doctor patient  
privilege and all that," said the boy with a  
small shrug.  
 
The man chuckled at this and shook his  
head. "You could do a lot of good?"  
 
"Bringing down a small time hood? I'm  
young, but not stupid," said the boy.  
 
The man laughed out loud at this for a  
moment. "I can see that." He blew smoke into  
the air and looked at his cigarette. "My wife  
says these things will kill you."  
 
"I can think of things a lot more  
dangerous," said Carrot.  
 
"Oh?"  
 
"Yeah, some people can get pretty nasty  
if you piss them off," said Carrot. The man  
naturally thought he was speaking of someone  
different, like his boss. Carrot had very  
little fear of the man.  
 
"Is that some kind of threat?" asked the  
man as his face contorted into a nasty  
looking scowl.  
 
"Actually, I was talking about me,"  
replied Carrot with another shrug. "I'm not  
involved in your little game. I might lose my  
job if you catch him, but I don't mind that.  
I'm not willing, or able to help you. I'm not  
being indignant about it either. I'm just not  
going to go out of my way."  
 
"What's yer name kid?" asked the man as  
his frowned deepened.  
 
"Why do you care?" asked Carrot.  
 
"I'm wondering what a kid like you is  
doing here, in a place like this, all alone?"  
 
"Trying to disappear," said Carrot with  
another shrug.  
 
"Got trouble somewhere? Maybe I can help  
with that," said the man as he prodded for  
another opening.  
 
"No, not what you're thinking of anyway,"  
said Carrot calmly.  
 
"You sure?"  
 
"Yeah, you're thinking I'm in trouble  
with the law, or something like that I'll  
bet. Possibly in another country perhaps?"  
 
"I was thinking of Yakuza trouble  
actually," said the man with a small chuckle.  
 
"Heh," said Carrot as he shook his head.  
"If I was, it wouldn't be anything you could  
help me with anyway."  
 
"Well, I could make your life very hard  
if I wanted too," said the man with a  
somewhat warning tone. He sounded more amused  
than anything else.  
 
"I'll bet you could," said Carrot as he  
turned to look at him. "It wouldn't do you  
much good, you're welcome to try if it'll  
make you feel better."  
 
"You got balls kid," said the man as he  
snorted.  
 
"And you're missing your wallet still,"  
said Carrot as he tossed it back at the man  
and opened the door. "I'll see you around."  
 
"I could arrest you for this," said the  
man with a sour frown. "I should..."  
 
"You really want to take me down, write  
me up, and book me at this time of night?"  
asked the boy as he turned to look at him.  
 
"No, not really. It seems you're not  
worth my time, at least not at the moment."  
 
"Well, good luck with my boss. I'm not  
going to lose any sleep over losing my job,  
that's for sure," said the boy as he entered  
the apartment and closed the door behind him.  
 
"Yeah, I'll bet you wouldn't," said the  
man as he put his wallet back into his  
pocket. He smirked to himself and turned  
away. The kid was into something, he was  
sure. What he wasn't sure of was whether or  
not it was what he was after, or something  
bigger. He smiled as he turned away and  
turned up his collar before walking into the  
street again. "My gut tells me I should keep  
an eye on this one."  
 
+++++++++++++  
 
Mei-lin frowned as she sat in the small  
sparse room she was staying in. It was little  
more than a closet with a bedroll in it.  
 
Her eyes were closed and she sat in a  
meditative position on the floor. Her mind  
worked over the battle earlier in the day.  
 
"My power, as great is it is, was nothing  
to this beast! I did not train hard enough."  
She frowned at the thought of it. At one  
time, she had thought her power to be the  
strongest of her kind. The demon had shrugged  
it off as nothing.  
 
She had read about the disturbances in  
Japan in the papers. She had taken it upon  
herself to travel here and face the darkness.  
She had believed it to be the prophecy. It  
seemed she may still be correct, but the fact  
that she might not be one of the celestial  
warriors was a new element.  
 
"Still, my power and skills are needed.  
Even if I am not the one, I must assist all I  
can. It is why I came here." She had almost  
been defeated, if she had survived she would  
have been forced to return home in shame.  
Now, the boy had given her another chance to  
prove herself. The evil had been vanquished.  
 
She blushed slightly at the thought of  
him. He was foreign, like her. It was a  
common bond she felt they shared. The customs  
of this place seemed strange to her, but she  
accepted them. In any case, he was rather  
handsome in a roughish sort of way. She just  
had to get past his formidable defenses. He  
appeared to be somewhat harsh, and callous.  
"He must have had a hard life, my life was  
not easy either, but him..."  
 
She had considered a few other paths,  
like that girl that had come at the end of  
the battle. However, the strongest feeling  
she had gotten was from the boy. "Somehow, my  
destiny lies with him." She opened her eyes  
and sighed.  
 
It was a formidable task indeed. She  
would help him, and he would soon realize  
what he was. He was like her, a warrior in  
opposition of the darkness. After such a task  
had ended, and the evil vanquished, surely  
she would return home with a new husband. He  
was a strong man, in body and mind. His skill  
was exceptional, and he was not hard on the  
eyes. She smirked to herself and chuckled.  
"We'll see what you've got to say when I show  
you what I've caught, sister."  
 
Before she could do anything else, she  
needed sleep.  
 
+++++++++++++++++  
 
Carrot winced as he tried to open his  
door quietly. His efforts were in vain  
though, and a soft coughing from behind him  
stopped him cold.  
 
"Dang. I'd almost made it."  
 
"You and I need to talk," said Gia as she  
grabbed onto his shoulder.  
 
"Ouch! That hurts! Stop it!" he cried  
angrily as she pulled him into her room.  
 
++++++++++++  
 
"Can't this wait? I'm tired," he muttered  
as he looked at her pathetically.  
 
"What on earth happened to you? Did you  
get drug behind a leaky sewage truck?" she  
said as she looked him over and began to  
rummage through her medical bag.  
 
The boy sighed and hung his head. "That's  
actually not too far off."  
 
She paused and looked up at him for a  
moment, not saying a word. Finally she shook  
her head and continued digging, pulling out a  
few bandages, and some really painful looking  
creams and ointments.  
 
"You live to torture me don't you?" said  
Carrot as he looked at one of the bottles. It  
was familiar too him, and it wasn't a  
pleasant memory.  
 
"You'd have died from infections if not  
for me! Show a little gratitude!" snapped the  
woman.  
 
"I've lived through worse than this," he  
responded as he looked away.  
 
"I'm starting to believe you," said the  
woman as she looked up at him and started to  
apply some of the cream to his wounds.  
 
The boy hissed in irritation and grit his  
teeth to hold in his scream. "Damn it! Does  
every thing you use on me have to hurt?"  
 
"Just how strong are you?" she asked him.  
 
"Huh? What do you mean?" he said in  
confusion as he blinked. The question  
appeared to be out of the blue.  
 
"I saw you training earlier, with that  
pole. Just how much does that thing weigh?"  
 
"Only about fifty pounds," said the boy  
with a shrug. "No big deal."  
 
"You were swinging it around as if it was  
made of wood!" said the woman as she smacked  
him on the back of his head.  
 
"Oh, I've been training a while I guess,"  
he replied with a shrug.  
 
"You're good at throwing things too?" she  
asked.  
 
"Yeah, I guess so," he replied with a  
slightly pained looking frown as she started  
to wrap a bandage around his chest. "I've  
been doing martial arts for a long time. I'd  
just gotten serious about a year ago though."  
 
"Right," grumbled the woman. He had to  
have been training his whole life to do what  
she'd seen him doing. "It's not like you to  
be this humble about something."  
 
"Well, I've got crazy ninja's after me,  
girls with magical powers, and these weird  
guys keep asking me to join something called  
the Negaverse or something. I've got to stay  
sharp."  
 
"The scariest thing about this is that  
I'm starting to believe this crazy crap!" she  
said irritably.  
 
"Oh, well sorry," he responded with a  
small sigh.  
 
"What for?" she snorted. "Lying to me, or  
making me believe in this obvious bullshit?"  
 
"That last one," said the boy as he  
grinned at her. "Hey, you wore a shirt this  
time. Thanks for remembering!"  
 
She promptly punched him in the nose and  
growled. "Sometimes I don't know why I bother  
with you. You're a perverted little asshole  
kid."  
 
"Ouch," muttered Carrot as he rubbed at  
his nose and glared at her. "Well I haven't  
been given much reason to act otherwise.  
Every time you drag me in here you put  
something on me that burns, stings, or do  
something that gets your boyfriend angry at  
me."  
 
"Spike likes you," said the woman with a  
small sigh.  
 
"Yeah, I'm glad he does. I'd hate to see  
what would happen to me if he didn't," said  
the boy with a slight shiver.  
 
Gia frowned at this, she wasn't so sure  
if Carrot would be the one hurt. Still, the  
pair got along great when they were together,  
so it didn't worry her much. He was weird,  
but she knew she didn't have much to worry  
about with him. He was remarkably jaded and  
well behaved when confronted with what a  
normal fourteen year old boy would consider a  
sexual situation.  
 
"Carrot...are you sexually active?"  
 
"Huh?" said the boy as he froze up and  
turned to look at her. "Why?"  
 
"I guess it makes sense," she said as she  
frowned at him. "I hope you're taking the  
proper precautions."  
 
"For what? I haven't done anything," said  
the boy as he looked confused. "Oh, you think  
I'm getting laid?"  
 
Gia blinked her eyes a few times.  
 
"Would I be in this bad a mood all the  
time if I was?" he replied calmly.  
 
"I wouldn't know," she said honestly.  
 
"No, I've been a good boy. Can I go to  
sleep now? I'm tired."  
 
"You were at one time though?" she  
prodded.  
 
"Not since the day I came into this  
world," said Carrot with a small frustrated  
sigh. His mind went back to Kei, and what he  
could have done. "Not that I haven't had the  
opportunity though. I can't believe I turned  
it down that time. What the hell was I  
thinking?" He hung his head. "Oh yeah, she  
was trying to kill me. That was it."  
 
"What?" said the woman as she looked at  
him.  
 
"Nothing, just talkin to myself," he said  
as he stood up and walked out of the room.  
 
Gia sat there for a long time staring at  
the wall. After about a half-hour, she  
decided it would just be best to sleep it  
off. Not before she had a few drinks to clear  
her mind though.  
 
She rose to her feet and walked over to  
grab a bottle from one of her shelves. She  
took off the cap with her teeth and started  
to gulp it down for a long time before  
stopping to take a breath. She stood there  
for a moment waiting for something to hit  
her. After a moment she was satisfied with  
the results and put the bottle back before  
turning off the lights and going to lie down  
on her bedroll for the night.  
 
+++++++++++  
 
TBC...  
 
Next Time: Fire and Flowers?