City of Angels (Chapter 15 on 10/20)

[strawb3rrykream]

...Fine, I'll admit that Aika and Momo flirting was cute. The beach party/audition is pretty awesome, not only b/c Eri and Sayu are running it, but b/c H!P girls in bathing suits= *imagines Erika in a bikini* Mmm...yum~ Beach gangsta volleyball...?

[rokun]

I'm really sorry I don't have comment replies today... It's just already so much past when I should be sleeping. I know I should have done them a few days ago lol. Anyway, you know I love you all, and I'll do my best to give sufficient replies next time. There might be more to say after this chapter anyway... ^^; So it continues...


Chapter 13

“Okay!” Kamei cheered as they finally got the net mounted. All the activity and the action that seemed imminent, not to mention likely all the cute young girls in bathing suits, had begun to draw eyes from the other patrons on the beach. There were couples… there were families… there were groups of friends… It all was something I was definitely not used to.

“Now that we have you all separated into pairs, we will…” Kamei blinked, cocking her head as if distracted by something. “We will…” As I began to wonder if communication with those aliens of hers had resumed, she leaned over to Sayu, who whispered something quickly to her, after which she pulled back quickly and beamed at us again. “Yes! It’s time to start the tournament!”

“But first of all,” Sayu broke in as Kamei stared blankly yet giddily at all of us, “A little demonstration of how the game is played!” Then she looked around as if making sure she had our complete attention, before suddenly pointing peace signs above her head and going, “Usa-chan… PEACE!”

A few of us exchanged glances with each other, and some even began to giggle a little again. “And I thought Kamei was the only crazy one…” I heard Maimi whisper down to Saki, who grinned.

“It’s… kinda cute though, don’t you think?” Koharu murmured to me, her eyes still focused on the bunny girl.

For my part, I think I began to realize why these girls were so popular. Somehow they were so confident in themselves that they were able to act however they wanted without worrying what others think. That’s a very difficult thing to do in the City, where in general what you mean to others determines your place, and usually even whether you live or die. Somehow these girls were able to carve out their own path without having to just rely on others.

Despite everything I’d heard about them before, that was when I really began to envy them.

After Sayu spoke, she and Kamei took places on one side of the net, and the newly arrived older girls – Tsuji and Aibon, they had called them – took the opposite side. They began hitting a ball between each other while Kamei and Sayu bent toward the boom box, which had been placed at the corner of the net. Within moments a strong hip hop beat below quick quasi-melodic lyrics began emanating from it again.

“All right!” Kamei cried as the two took their spots again as if to receive a serve. They began moving with the music – shuffling in the sand and swaying their shoulders – and some of us watching joined in too.

I particularly enjoyed seeing Saki and Maimi turn to each other and begin playing off each other to the music as well. Mostly they just moved precisely, thrusting limbs just off the other, but they also occasionally spun one another, or one would slide through the sand through the other’s legs before popping up and spinning to face each other again. It was very intricate, and I could tell the two of them were quite accustomed to coordinating in this way.

Again, I envied them. I wondered what it would be like to have someone you were actually so close to that you could even anticipate her movements and act almost as if you were one. I glanced over at Koharu, the only one I could think of that would be anywhere near that for me, but we were both just so uncoordinated… However, she was engrossed in watching what was going on in the sand. Before looking back myself, I gave a glance to my other side to Momoko, my teammate for this “tournament”, and she smiled up at me before reaching over to take my hand. Feeling myself blush, I turned away, but smiled too as our fingers laced together.

Back on the sand, the two teams were engaged in a furious exchange… if you call getting the ball over the net maybe a time or two before it fell to the ground because the person who should have responded was busy break dancing and spinning in the sand a furious exchange. Apparently it didn’t really matter if the ball actually fell, because when it did they would just do a slide toward it and kick it up before connecting into a flip in order to head the ball back over the net.

I had to admit the moves were pretty impressive, although had absolutely no clue how they actually scored the game. I quickly got the idea that what happened with the ball was actually much less important than how cool and athletic you looked while dancing. The senior girls out there definitely showed their abilities, although Sayu looked an obvious step behind them. She for one wasn’t doing any sand flips.

“I…” I began, leaning a bit toward Momoko. “I can’t do those things…”

“Oh don’t worry about it,” she comforted, squeezing my hand. “Kamei just likes to show off, and until those two showed up I hadn’t seen anyone else who could do most of those things either. Even Saki still falls half the time when she tries to flip.” She frowned a bit as if in thought. “Though maybe in the sand it’s easier…”

I glanced over to Saki again, although their dance had apparently evolved into being pressed up against each other with hands at their waists seeing how wide a radius they could swing their mutual hips in. They were also of course making out while doing so. I quickly darted my eyes back toward the sand. I wonder why Momoko’s hand in mind was starting to feel sweaty…

Eventually the “demonstration” was over, and after a multi-person effort managed to pry Saki and Maimi apart, the teams began rotating to play each other. Thankfully Momoko and I got to play the pair of Erika and Koharu, and despite Erika looking quite sexy as she played in the sand, Momoko and I were judged the winners. Somehow I think Koharu could have done better, but her mind seemed elsewhere again. I was definitely going to have to talk to her about that…

At the same time, Momoko was very avid in her praise for how I did. I wondered if the girl was just exaggerating to make me feel better until Saki and some of the others said the same. Even Kamei gave a nod of approval. I started blushing before I realized I might have actually preferred it if Momoko was just being especially nice…

Saki and Maimi went next against Yurina and the girl I think was called ‘Nakki’. It was closer than I expected, although of course I didn’t know what the other girls were like. Their chemistry seemed to be almost as good as Saki and Maimi’s though, and so it was apparently a close match by how excited Kamei and Sayu seemed to be as they moved their heads with the beat to the side. I figured these two younger girls must be going out as well.

Of course this resulted in the next match being Momoko and I against Maimi and Saki. “We better be careful Maimi-chan,” Saki told her as they prepared, both girls watching us carefully across the net as they stretched. “Momo apparently knows how to pick ‘em. But if they beat us…”

“You kidding?” Maimi replied. “We can own them any day.”

“You guys don’t know Aika-chan,” Momoko teased, grinning over at them as I gestured frantically for her to take it easy. “You take her lightly, she’ll kick your ass!”

“Momo,” I protested, looking nervously at a smirking Saki and Maimi, “Stop it! What would you know about me kicking anybody’s ass anyway?” She may be Saki’s best friend, but to me the two girls were still the leader of the track team and captain of the cheerleaders. Still, I suppose you never knew…

The result of the match? They owned us.

At this point the random onlookers from around the beach seemed to be really getting into things, some even starting to dance a little themselves along with the music. Kamei seemed to appreciate this, and even acted as an MC of sorts calling out to them and trying to get them to imitate her moves while our match with Saki and Maimi was going on. The crowd seemed to like what they saw though, as they cheered all of us after the match was done. Some of them appeared to even be cheering me!

“You know they’re never gonna let me live this down…” Momoko said in a haunted voice as we sat in the sand off to the side by the other teams.

“Why?” I asked. “Aren’t they usually good at everything?”

Momoko gave me a nasty look, and I suddenly felt bad without exactly knowing why. Then she stared off toward her two friends as they watched Kamei and Sayu and Tsuji and Aibon getting ready for their own match – the winner of which they would get to play next.

“I’m happy at the rewards and glory they get for all their hard work,” she replied. “They know I can keep up with them in anything they do though – that’s part of why we’re all such good friends. I’d just rather not make such a big deal of things, and maybe also make myself a target for others who want it all too.”

I felt a bit surprised at that, since everything I’ve always thought about was to make a name for myself and to make something out of myself. That was my sister’s philosophy… I suppose I’d never realized how much I’d really taken it to heart. After all, why else did I join in with Ai-chan and Reina and them? And why was I here at the beach today with UFO?

Oh, that was right... As to the second question…

“Plus,” the girl sweetly named after peaches continued, smirking over at me, “A true princess is safe enough in her superiority that she doesn’t worry about what other people think.”

As I stared at her, wondering exactly what kind of girl I seemed to be getting myself involved with, out of the corner of my eye I saw Erika glance at something down the beach as she sat next to Koharu. Before I could blink, I saw her gasp and flare her nostrils before diving at Koharu to knock her to the sand.

I was just about to jump up and run to Koharu to see if she was all right when shots rang out across the beach to clash with the rolling tide… and the resulting screams from people on all sides. Somehow instinctively I altered my movement as I was about to jump and instead threw myself at the person closest to me – Momoko – flattening her down into the sand as she screeched beneath me.

The initial deluge of gunfire tapered off, and I glanced up to see people still running sloppily across the thick sand in attempts to flee. However, since it wasn’t immediately clear where the shots actually came from, most just ran in haphazard directions. The area was wide open to begin with, so it was a long way back toward where their cars or the streets awaited them. Still, some headed that way. Yet others seemed to be wading out into the water, thinking it would keep them safe too.

I looked down to see Momoko’s frightened face looking up to me, though because of the pressure of my body above her she was almost half-covered in sand, with specks muddling tousled hair hanging over her face. “Stay here,” I cautioned her, and pushed myself up a little more, darting my eyes around to try and figure out where the bullets still being fired came from.

I quickly saw we weren’t the only ones around the net to react, with most of the other girls down on the ground as well. However, Erika and Yurina were crawling over toward their bags whispering to each other as they watched their surroundings warily, while Kamei and Sayu huddled near one of the poles holding the net up. Shockingly, Kamei had produced a gun from somewhere, and as her eyes rove around the scene, from time to time she thrust it forward to fire off a shot of her own.

In my surprise at seeing UFO’s strange leader armed and fighting back at whoever was attacking the beach, I didn’t notice that Erika and Yurina had apparently reached their bags, the older girl grabbing a gun of her own to help Kamei out. Seeing that, I decided I was not going to let myself stand by idle without helping them out as well. With a quick glance back down at Momoko to see that she was still safe I started crawling slowly toward my own bag before, feeling confidence growing, scurrying across the sand.

Within seconds I reached my bag and quickly dug into it until my fingers found cold steel. I pulled my own piece free. For the first time, I gave a close look to our surroundings. People were still fleeing in various directions, although apparently they’d gotten over the initial fright enough so they weren’t yelling anymore. By the directions Kamei and Erika were firing, it seemed our assailants were taking cover behind the outhouses to either side closest to us, as well as some rocks nearby. When I saw a head pop up from behind one of the rocks, followed shortly by the glint of metal, almost before I knew it I raised my weapon as Reina had taught me and fired. The bullet ricocheted off the rock, but the person quickly ducked behind it again after not having fired himself.

“Aika!” Erika shouted in a low tone, and I looked over to see her and Kamei giving me hard looks, apparently not expecting me to join in the exchange. However, the sound of more shots echoing dully across the sand broke our eye contact, and we focused back onto our attackers.

I was trying to figure out why they had come here. They weren’t going through all this effort just for me, were they? Plus it wasn’t like I was trespassing or anything, so it didn’t make any sense. Plus, Kamei and Erika seemed involved with it all somehow as well. I may not have known what was going on, but I did know I wanted to try my best to keep all my friends safe.

It seemed Momoko hadn’t moved from where I left her, and Koharu the same after Erika had done the same for her. I’d have to remember to thank the girl for that later, once we sorted out what was going on. Most of the others just huddled low to the sand, taking cover behind poles or bags as they were able.

Because of the distance, none of the shots seemed to hit their targets. I wasn’t sure who they originally might have been, but it seemed to now mainly be focused on those who were fighting back… which of course included me. I did my best to shoot whenever I caught sight of someone popping up from cover, and with the apparently unexpected magnitude of return fire they found, it seemed like they wouldn’t keep this up much longer.

Thankfully most everyone had cleared the beach, and sirens were beginning to become audible as apparently one or two other patrons had gotten hold of the cops. I didn’t particularly want to stick around when they arrived, and I guessed they didn’t either. The police may give only light attention to the vast labyrinthine ghettos where these things happened daily, but a public beach was a different story.

When it sounded like the sirens were almost here, I caught sight of one of our assailants trying to flee from behind an outhouse. Feeling my anger beginning to boil at these bastards who not only raided my sister’s funeral – it made no difference whether this was actually the same group – but now ruined what seemed like it would be one of the best days of my life, time seemed to slow as I targeted the retreating back, curled my lip in satisfaction, and fired.


It’s funny how you never actually realize when life changing events are going to occur. When Risa was killed I was on my way home from my first piano lesson, bright-eyed at being able to learn something unique and trading jabs with her as we always did in our sisterly love. I could never have thought just a few minutes later I’d be crying over her body as the life was draining out of it, trying to decipher her last words from within my grief.

Today, after a stormy weekend with the funeral and the assault there, I had hoped and prepared myself for a relaxing day, even if I didn’t quite know how things would turn out. Koharu and I were both excited about it, and the world just seemed to become more and more incredibly unbelievable when I met Kamei and Sayu and the rest of the girls who had some kind of connection with UFO. Beyond my hopes I was getting along with Momoko, even holding her hand, and I’d begun to wonder if when we parted we might even kiss.

I’d fired many bullets during the attack on our paradise, but none carried even a fraction of the significance of that last one – that last one I’d focused particularly on in my rage at those who had upended that paradise. I’d focused so hard on my intended victim that I didn’t notice a girl a few years younger than me who was running up the beach to join her family.

Time may have slowed as I fired, but it became molasses as I saw the girl drift between myself and my target. A scream began to issue from my lungs, but it would do no good. I didn’t see the bullet rip into her, but I did see her suddenly falter in her sprint before falling to her knees. Then time crashed into full speed again as she fell forward onto the sand.

Since this happened in plain sight of everyone, suddenly the gunfire which was already petering out fell into complete silence, and the rest of our attackers took to the streets, quickly disappearing as if they were but ghosts on the sand.

For my part, I dropped my gun to my side and my butt to the sand behind my knees, my eyes fixed on the girl. She was still moving, but rather feebly, trying to hoarsely call out to her family. Seeing that there was no sign of a further firestorm, after a moment they ran back to her, petting her and comforting her as the first cop cars became visible skidding to a halt just at the border of concrete and sand.

Through some grasp I still held on reality, I felt a hand on my shoulder and heard Koharu saying something to me before finally taking my eyes away from girl and family to see everyone else near me making sure each other was okay, but also giving furtive glances in my direction. Erika outright stared. I think Momoko did too, but I couldn’t bear to look at her right then.

“Aika.”

Koharu’s voice suddenly seemed to register in my mind.

“Come on,” she continued desperately, and her face swam into my view. “We need to get out of here.” She glanced nervously toward the family, but didn’t seem to want to actually embrace the idea of what was happening.

She pulled me out of the sand, grabbing my bag with her other hand, and toward the volleyball net. I almost broke out in laughter. Beach gangsta volleyball… What a ridiculous thing…

When we got there the senior girls were taking the net down, with Kamei and Sayu especially scrutinizing me carefully as if wondering what I would do next. “Why are you taking the net down?” I asked in what sounded to myself a far-off voice. “The tournament isn’t even over yet…”

“Aika,” I heard Saki say, and I swung my head to face her, feeling like it was moving through jelly. She and Maimi had their arms around each others’ waists, and were also watching me with expressionless faces. “Do you want to come with us? We’ll go somewhere and…” She looked up at her girlfriend. “Well, we’ll just stay low until this blows over.” Then she glanced nervously toward the streets, where cops were beginning to emerge cautiously from their cars. “But we need to go soon…” she finished hurriedly.

“I…” I began, and then noticed Momoko walk up to join us. The look on her face sent my heart down into the furthest reaches of my being. It wasn’t angry. It wasn’t scared anymore. It was just… sad. I looked back over at the family, whom cops were arriving at to assist. What looked like the father was gesturing vividly, partly in our direction. “Is she okay?” I asked.

“Listen to your friends,” I heard Erika say, walking up behind Koharu and stuffing her gun into pants which she must have hurriedly donned. “This isn’t your problem anymore. Just get out of here.”

“But I…”

The cops were now walking over to us. Their own weapons weren’t drawn since they didn’t see any on us, and for some reason I thought that rather amusing and strange. If we wanted, we could mow them down before they even knew it…

Koharu was tugging on my arm, but I didn’t move, my eyes fixed still on the downed girl and approaching officers. “Come on,” I heard Maimi whisper from behind me, and there was shuffling in the sand as if some began running off.

I didn’t know quite what happened when the cops reached us, as my mind began to fog while I watched the girl become stiller and stiller. She couldn’t have been more than twelve or thirteen. I didn’t really register it when I was stuffed into a car with caged windows while cops outside examined my gun and Koharu looked on. I didn’t feel it as they felt me up in the search upon reaching the station or when they had me put on loose clothes to cover myself better than my bathing suit did before asking me questions I could only respond vaguely to.

When they swung shut the metal door to the small cell I’d been led to, and the steps of the officer faded away into silence, it was only then that I noticed I was crying.

[slasha]

Aika in jail?! Noooooo!!

The volleyball/break dancing competition was pretty interesting. That shootout was a shock, even though I half-expected it to happen. But the random girl getting shot was completely unexpected.

Why would she run the middle of a shootout anyway? Will Aika get life in prison? What will happen to Koharu now that her best friend is jail? So May questions

[rndmnwierd]

Oh shit! Aika shot a civilian!And went to jail!

[Hart]

A shootout on the beach: saw that coming. Aika drawing first blood: it was inevitable. Aika accidentally shooting a little girl: didn't expect that to happen.  If Gaki's death or joining Ai's gang aren't turning points in her life, shooting a girl just a few years younger than her and spending time in jail will be. Nothing will ever be the same for Aika from now on. I doubt Aika would be able to lead a normal school life after this. I even doubt if ANY of her friends would want to see her again if she ever gets released. Except for maybe Koharu of course, but in future chapters their friendship will probably get tested again and again. I don't even know what will happen with Momo as well. I guess the only people she can turn to will be Ai's gang. Just thinking about what happens next reminds me of A Young Girl's Odyssey, what will how both protagonists start out on similar paths, slowly changing as they find out not everything is what they see or believe in.........

wait a minute....*searches through the Library* .....you wrote that too, rokun.
argh! Should've realized that as soon as Gaki died.

This also got me thinking:

“I’m happy at the rewards and glory they get for all their hard work,” she replied. “They know I can keep up with them in anything they do though – that’s part of why we’re all such good friends. I’d just rather not make such a big deal of things, and maybe also make myself a target for others who want it all too.”

I felt a bit surprised at that, since everything I’ve always thought about was to make a name for myself and to make something out of myself. That was my sister’s philosophy… I suppose I’d never realized how much I’d really taken it to heart. After all, why else did I join in with Ai-chan and Reina and them? And why was I here at the beach today with UFO?

But this just made me laugh at what kind of girl Aika got a crush on:

Oh, that was right... As to the second question…

“Plus,” the girl sweetly named after peaches continued, smirking over at me, “A true princess is safe enough in her superiority that she doesn’t worry about what other people think.”

[rokun]

Well! Because I still feel bad about it, and in order to perhaps get some of you to comment on the new chapter, I thought I'd do those replies to comments on chapter 12! Chapter 12 only though - I don't want to have anyone who hasn't commented yet on 13 feel left out and perhaps not do so.

Chapter 12

e-girl: Where were the rest of those comments you promised??? I feel sad... This chapter was for you and Shikyo after all. Surprised at Eri being the leader, eh? Well... as you'll see in the most recent and further chapters... She may be the leader, but is a bit... interesting. As for your surprise appearances, Saki/Maimi/Momo of course wouldn't be the only ones invited to this, would they?

Kuji: Thanks for the in-depth comment! I know you liked that I wrote Saki/Maimi, but I'm not sure if you'd expressed your love quite that much before. Glad you're enjoying it! They are fun, aren't they? Glad you relaxed this chapter. I won't comment on the ensuing ones. Yes, Sayu the original kissing demon There'll be much more of her evilness to come... Good observation about Eri and sayu Enjoy the rest of the beach trip in the new chapter...

rndm: Your comment for the current chapter is a bit short (in your surprise I imagine), but I wonder what you think of the relationship possibilities now.

Hart: Aibon and Nono is kind of unique for me. In fact, I don't think i've ever written them before. That's the question: was Momoko joking or being serious when she talked about seducing Aika. But why not? And Koha, Koha, Koha... What is the matter with her indeed.

Shikyo: Commenting on what you said in relation to the story now! lol. Sayu's good enough at dancing, but in general there are other reasons for her being there. P9D concert? What happened there? *whistles* I take it you enjoy the new additions other than Eri too, eh? And LONGEST COMMENT EVER! Awesome Thanks~ Speaking of which, I need to give you one...

slasha: Glad you also enjoyed the new appearances. I have a feeling you'll be forgetting about Aika's mom and her bf before too long...

sbk: Yay! You enjoyed cute AikaMomo! H!P girls in bathing suits is always pure win.

Ok, feel free to continue reading/commenting chapter 13. Hopefully the next chapter won't be so long in coming, even if I start a new job in the next few days.

[rndmnwierd]

Yeah, my comment was short, heh sorry.

Anyway, now that I'm mostly over my shock, I have a few more things to say. Eri and Sayu are so awesome, break dancing volleyball, lol. Is that a little interest Koharu is showing in Sayu? I guess UFO is kinda like a light in the dark in that they are independent enough to make names for themselves and rise above all the violence that the others are subjected to. Although you might have mentioned something like that about them in earlier chapters and I'm only now really realizing it.

Kinda like Aika.

The volleyball game was pretty awesome too, judged by cool points, lol. I'm glad Aika impressed some people, maybe UFO will be looking at her later? Though of course, Saki and Maimi pwned.

But Yurina and Nakky? I don't think that's something I usually see.

I also like how Saki and Maimi played off each other; and the resulting make out session of course. But Momoko and Aika, I just don't like the pairing. I know that you probably have something up your sleeve for later but I just don't like Momoko. And I don't usually say that about people I don't know personally but she just rubs me the wrong way. Though it is kinda cute how nervous Aika gets around her.

Then the shootout.

Somehow instinctively I altered my movement as I was about to jump and instead threw myself at the person closest to me – Momoko – flattening her down into the sand as she screeched beneath me.

This is probably my favorite line just because whenever I read it, I always picture Aika tackling a crow and wrestling it in the sand.

But damn those rivals gangs, though I was surprise that Kamei was shooting too, somehow I expected Sayu to bust a cap or something. And Erika, also.

Poor Aika, did she really kill that girl? If she did, that, more than anything she's experienced lately, might break her. Or not, she's a strong girl. I am totally interested in seeing what happens next, though, so hurry up and post another chapter!

By the way, what the hell was up with the random W cameo? Not that I'm not happy about it, I love Aibon and Nono, but they were only mentioned, like, twice.






Is this better? Don't expect a monster like this outta me very often...

[Fenrir]

I don't know why, but when I read Aika is in jail, I can't help but laugh.

I'm not sure why.

[DO Me DO Me]

Gomen, rokun. I've been so distracted lately (someone can back me up on that hehe). But all I remember from that grand wakening was YAYYY!!! ERI'S FINALLY IN THE STORY!!!! You made her really cool yet still Eri. I admit I skimmed through the recent chapter and just read the parts that mentioned Eri   and WoW   is all I have to say. BUT, I will read it properly this time. hehe

[ShikyoxYaiba]

I didn't comment right away cuz I was taking a break from calculus homework when I read it. School started for me...how depressing. Anyway...

I CALLED IT. I SO FREAKING CALLED IT. I knew something would go wrong as soon as Eri said "gangsta". "¬¬ But what surprised me is that Eri, Yurina, and Nakky all got in the fray. *imagine Eri with a gun* ...Quite and interesting -ahem- image... xD -suddenly thinks of Kamei Eri vs. Morning Musume and Guardian Angel-

...

But Aika!!!! Oh Aika... -wants to give her a hug- D: Letting the emotions get the best of you isn't good...right now anyway. ><

I wonder where Eri & her group fall into this. Are they like a third group, or...? .__.;; ROKUN I WANT ANSWERS. D:

[rokun]

^^; I'm sorry, I think I got a little frustrated after this last chapter. It was very hard for me to write, and I still wasn't completely satisfied with it lol. Thank you for all your comments though. You guys are the greatest~ Hopefully things should get better from now on...

slasha: Glad something was unexpected to you! And I'm glad the volleyball was interesting. That was one of the hard parts for me to write. As to your questions, one of them will be pretty much answered in this coming chapter, and as for another... Since the shootout was taking place basically across the whole beach, people were running every which way to try and escape it, but they didn't really know where to go. Young kids especially would be quite confused... She was just trying to make her way back to her family. Aika, unfortunately, was too focused on her target to notice any of this...

Hart: You had some great thoughts there on how this will affect Aika's life! For sure it's going to make things somewhat different. Some of her friends there certainly looked at her a bit differently after it happened, and even Momo wasn't sure what to think... And now, will she even be back at school? And if so, anytime soon? Her other friends are sure to have noticed. Koharu stayed with her to the last moment before she was taken away though...
Glad to see you've read A Young Girl's Odyssey! There were certain similarities between the beginning of that and of this, weren't there? There may be others too... Oh, and Momoko is quite a girl, huh? You might find it a bit surprising when you learn more about her...

rndm: Gomen! orz >_< I'm sorry for making it sound like I wasn't satisfied with your first comment... You didn't need to follow it up like you did. ^^; But thank you very much! I think you're very creative, and am quite interested in hearing what you have to say about my own writing since I bet it could help me improve. For one, you picked up on something that nobody else really seemed to. And I appreciate that. You'll know what I'm talking about before too long. Yurina and Nakki is kind of the crack for this fic. Somehow it seemed kinda fitting though... Then again, there's some other stuff coming soon that at least some of you may think is way beyond that kind of crack! After everything that's happened so far, things definitely are going to start getting shaken up.
About your not liking Momo: Just wait. Perhaps not in my fic, but she will get to you eventually. It happens to all of us... And for W, yes it was a random cameo. They just seemed to fit well there. They're minor characters, but I imagine they may make another appearance or two later on... And again, sorry and thank you for the awesome comment!

Fen: Maybe Aika doesn't seem the type? She's a cute, happy girl after all. However... bad things do happen to even cute and happy girls sometimes.

e-girl: Good luck in reading through the chapter's non-Eri segments! I definitely know how that is... You can't help but focus on your favorites. Unfortunately... it may be a little while before you see much of her again. Ganbare~

SxY: Good job! School started for me too. It sucks, even though thankfully I only have class a few hours 2 days a week... Everything went by kinda quickly with Eri and her gun in this part, but I promise you will get to see more of what it's like later on. You know what she's like when she's not wielding one, and well, people don't change that quickly...
Yes, poor Aika and her emotions. She now sees what can happen when she lets them get the best of her. That might change how she looks at things from now on...
Also, you've now seen quite a few different people getting into fights in various places, some obviously involved with Ai and Aika and some not. The City is kind of a cesspool of poverty and violence, and there are many people that have a need to protect themselves and those nearest and dearest. It's not really a matter of a simple war among some gangs, but of a massive conglomeration of forces at work over a large area. What I'm saying is, don't try to think of it as "this group" or "that group", as numbers vary and loyalties are shifting all the time across a vast network. Am I making sense? Probably not. There's actually a whole general history of the setting that I've developed and told to a couple people. Perhaps I'll make a side chapter about it eventually.
Oh, and you should IM me sometime.

Thanks again! And after editing, look for the continuation up soon.

[ShikyoxYaiba]

-wedges between the comment reply and new chapter, even though it's not supposed to be for a while longer-

I SHOULD IM you sometime. Maybe tomorrow since it's Friday, and I hardly do anything on Fridays.

[rokun]

Nice wedge! And it's not too long between chapters. Not as long as it has been before at least...


Chapter 14

Hours passed slowly as Aika sat in her small, dirty cell. They told her she was just in a holding room until they officially filed charges, when they’d likely move her to a cheaper but perhaps less secure facility. The quietness and emptiness seemed to allow her to find herself again, and she was able to rationally think about the events that led her here and her current situation.

She wondered at the freak chance and irony that the girl would be running across the sand just as she fired the shot in her anger at all that had happened to her. There had been people running around the whole time who were just unable to keep composure while not even knowing from which direction the next bullet could come, and she was just one of them – a random bystander. In a part of her mind Aika wondered how she could even blame herself for it when it could have happened to anyone, but she also knew she was completely responsible.

As for everything that had been happening to her lately, it all seemed meaningless as she stared hour after hour at the dusty, cold stone walls surrounding her. If they thought she murdered the girl, she would probably be continuing to stare at them for a very long time, and it would barely matter if Risa was dead or alive, or if she had thrown in her lot with the neighborhood gang, or if she had a great time at the beach meeting new friends and maybe establishing new relationships. None of that would matter anymore.

Around what must have been evening she was taken to a small mess hall where she sat at a long table with a number of others who were being held in the police cells, and had a meager but satisfactory meal. Afterward she was sent back to her cell, and she accepted the treatment calmly because for one she didn’t want to argue with the authorities, but also because she wasn’t sure she wasn’t guilty.

The other prisoners were varied. Some of them were young people like herself, barely more than children, and likely there for similar gang-related reasons. There were also older men and women, most disheveled but some looking strangely professional who could have been in for anything. There were even a few foreigners. Just as if she was walking down a street or into a restaurant though, hardly any of them even acknowledged her, which she was perfectly happy of as she was not curious to meet the criminals… the other criminals… who also occupied cells here.

The pattern of strict schedule continued into the next day, and the next, and the next without much variation, and soon they all began to meld into each other. The silence and solitude she found herself in allowed her to think about all the things that had happened, and discover what was really meaningful to her as well as what maybe wasn’t. She thought about the things she still had. She had her house, but wondered if that would even be her own. She became amused when thinking about this, because she wondered if her mother even noticed she was gone.

Other than that… What did she have? She supposed she had her best friend, Koharu, who she remembered staying with her until they shoved her into the police car, and even still watched her through the window before they drove away. The only other thing she felt she really possessed was her sister’s legacy, which included both the gang she had followed her into as well as the mission Risa endowed her with to make something of herself. That was another thing that looked quite bleak from where she was standing right now.

She had virtually no contact with the outside world, as she expected that even were the friends she might still have able to visit her, they likely wouldn’t dare the trip to the police station if they could help it at all. She actually hoped Koharu, as helpless as the girl was, wouldn’t attempt the trip as who knew what might happen to her along the way. Plus, after paying their ways to the beach she may not even be able to afford it.

Her only contact with other people aside from the impersonality of the meals and short occasional workouts first occurred after what seemed like a few days when they pulled her into a room where some officers questioned her about what happened. She gave honest responses of her motivations and actions of the time, but the grim men didn’t seem satisfied and just sent her quietly back to her cell. This happened again in the same fashion, and a third time, which she judged to be perhaps a week or so since she had arrived there, she accompanied the officer meekly to what she thought would be more of the same.

However, he led her on a different path this time, and eventually she reached what looked almost like a service window, except there were bars covering it but for a tray at the bottom where items could be exchanged. She blinked and glanced around, unsure what was happening, until she heard a clinking and looked down at the tray, where a neat pile of clothes and small items was being shoved through. The officer behind her advised her in a businesslike voice to take her things and change back into her own clothes.

“Wh… what is going on?” she asked, in speech that had gotten more foreign as the solitary days dragged by.

“You’re being released,” the man said, his voice not containing an ounce more emotion.

“Released?” she asked, as if it was the last word she expected to hear. “Why? Ain’t I here for murder?”

The policeman shrugged, and seemed to be getting a bit irritated with her. “Look cutie, they don’t tell me details. All they tell me is who to lock up and who to let go. You’re gonna have to check that out once you’re on your own again on the outside.”

On her own on the outside? What on earth was she supposed to do, and where was she supposed to go? Plus, she wasn’t sure she wasn’t a murderer. Didn’t she deserve to be locked up? Despite her questions though, she thought she might as well follow orders just like she’d done submissively since arriving here, and took her things.

When she’d pulled off the oppressive-feeling jumpsuit and was about to pull her pants on, she felt eyes on her and looked up to see the cop watching her quietly. “You know, when you get outside the world can seem like a big and scary place. I could take an extended break if you’d like some company…”

Aika froze with her pants halfway up her legs, before pulling them up quickly the rest of the way. She’d been used to an amount of humiliation since coming here, though mostly just in her complete submissiveness to authority. This was something new, if still not completely foreign to her.

She heard a laugh from the man behind the window, who she noticed was also watching her as she tried to quickly find the right holes in her shirt. “I gotta say it’s been awhile since we’ve had one as cute as you come through here. Reminds me of my pal’s daughter, actually… She’s a ripe and frisky one, that,” he said, grinning lasciviously and winking at the cop with Aika.

Aika just decided it was best not to respond, and finished tugging on her shirt before tightening her belt and jacket as well. “Where do I go now?” she asked.

The cop with her frowned as if displeased at her unspoken rejection of his offer, but leaned against the door he stood beside and pushed it open to reveal a small lobby area with the sounds of activity filtering from it. The taste of the real world was almost like music to Aika’s ears.

She glanced out through the door, and then back again at the officer, and when he didn’t change his position she pulled her cap low over her eyes and strode out with her hands in her pockets, quickly yet trying not to appear as if she was hurrying. She half-expected some kind of aggression from the cop as she passed him to go through the doorway, but before she knew it she was out in the bright lobby with its front wall made almost entirely of glass, and the heavy metal door swung shut behind her.

Taking a deep breath, still not believing what was happening, she began to think about what she was going to do now when she heard someone call her name. Blinking, she looked around the busy lobby until her eyes fell on a girl that was perhaps as small as her heading in her direction. When she recognized who it was, her eyes widened under the brim of her cap.

“There you are,” Ai said, smiling, and took her arm in a friendly way to lead her toward the door. She nodded and smiled toward the receptionist as she walked, though the woman just frowned back at her, and the two girls didn’t say any more until they reached the street.

Aika took a deep breath almost unconsciously, absorbing the comparatively fresh scent after having inhaled only the stale air of her cell and the other prison rooms for what seemed like ages, and Ai let her relax a bit, though still pulled her onward.

“It’s nice, isn’t it?” the girl asked. “Nothing smells as fresh as the sweet polluted air of the City after a stint inside.” She glanced over from beneath her own cap at Aika. “I almost envy you experiencing it for the first time.”

Aika’s first instinct was to blurt out her astonishment that the woman had been in prison before as well, but quickly realized it was a completely stupid thing to ask. She was a leader of a gang after all, and had been involved with it for who knew how many years, so of course she would have been arrested for some reason or another before. Still, it was something she hadn’t yet thought of, and it gave her a suddenly different impression of things drawn from the intense reflection she had done over the past days.

“What did you do?” she asked instead in a quiet voice, much less full of the confidence and strength she felt the last time she spoke with the girl. “Why did they let me go?”

“Ah,” the girl responded, facing back forward and smiling again. “Well. We have certain arrangements with the police in case they interfere with our associates. That includes bail procedures and a rush on processing.” She glanced sidelong at Aika again. “Sorry it took as long as it did, but even rushed, these things take time. Still, normal hold time for someone like you would be at least fifteen days.”

Aika didn’t respond immediately as she processed what the girl said. “How long was I in there?” she asked. “It got a bit hard to tell after a while.”

“That’s something else that happens too,” the girl responded, smirking faintly. “It’s been eight days,” she stated matter-of-factly. “It’s Tuesday, and the seventeenth if you’d like to know.”

Eight days completely cut off from the world and her life… Aika thought, her mind seeming to spin as if in a blender. “What…” she said finally, “What about school? If it’s Tuesday, I should be there now.”

Ai’s arm rose to snake lightly around her shoulders. “Don’t worry about things like that now,” she said. “You’ll have plenty of time for that later.”

They walked on in silence for a few minutes, until Aika had to ask something that’d been burning in the back of her mind ever since they stuffed her in that car eight days ago. “Who… who was the girl? Is her family all right? Do they totally hate me?”

Ai glanced toward her with a serious expression before looking back forward and even donning a small smile. “The girl is a middle school student from Meadow Park,” she said. “She’s still in the hospital, but is now in stable condition.”

Aika’s breath caught, feeling as if some grace she was unworthy of had just been bestowed upon her. “She’s… she’s alive? And she’s gonna be okay?”

“She’ll have a nasty scar from now on,” Ai replied, “But yes, she’ll survive.”

Aika finally let out the breath she’d been holding, feeling like with it everything else that had been torturing her ever since that day was cast off as well. She leaned her head over onto Ai’s shoulder, and eventually murmured, “That’s good…”

“Due to that,” Ai said, “The only charges that were considered to be brought against you were assault and possession, and with the testimony of multiple witnesses the assault charges were dropped, leaving only possession, for which I’m sorry to inform you that you’ll have to appear for a hearing in a couple weeks. Shouldn’t be a problem though – there’s no way they can legitimately prosecute a kid in your situation for that. Don’t worry, pretty soon it’ll feel like it never happened.”

“But it did…” Aika reasoned after a short amount of consideration again. “It doesn’t change what happened. Except I’m really glad to hear she’ll be all right…”

“No,” Ai replied, peering over at her again, “I suppose it doesn’t.”

“Do you…” Aika began, before choking up a little. “Do you know her name?”

“Is that something you really want to know?” the other asked.

“Well…” Aika said, and clutched tighter at Ai’s arm. “I just figure… We’ve suddenly had such a big impact on each others’ lives… She probably knows about me, right? I just thought it would be fair that I know something about her too, so she’s not just this girl I shot that one time…”

Ai was silent for a moment, but when Aika looked up she thought she saw a smile on her face. “Her name is Mizuki,” she responded finally, and glanced over at me. “Do you feel better now?”

“Yeah…” Aika responded, thinking of that name and trying to imagine what she might look like.

“You never forget your first,” Ai continued, and Aika wondered at how the girl spoke of it. When she didn’t respond, the older girl continued, “Although I’m not sure it gets any easier afterward.”

“You remember everyone that you’ve…” Aika said, “That you’ve…”

Ai nodded. “The list constantly scrolls by in my head,” she replied. “Some of them I don’t know their names. Some I don’t even know their faces. But some fact about each one is stuck there and never leaves.”

Aika blinked up at her. “With all of that… How do you keep doing it?”

This time it was Ai’s turn to flash surprise across her features. Then she smiled again though before murmuring under her breath, “You really are Risa’s sister…” and then replying, “They’re dead.” She walked on a few steps before finishing. “I’m not.”

Aika spent the next moments thinking carefully about the words of the woman she was beginning to think of as her mentor until they reached the subway station. Ai produced two tickets, and the girls eventually boarded the train. Noticing the station they were at and how far away it was from their small neighborhood, Aika immediately felt bad about how far out of her way Ai had gone to come here and to take her back home.

“Ai-chan,” she said, and immediately felt something more respectful should have been used instead. “For coming here… for getting me out… for taking me home like this… I… I couldn’t begin to repay you.”

“You don’t get along with your mother, do you?” Ai asked, and Aika stared at her. “I somehow got that impression at the funeral last week.”

“No,” Aika replied, looking back down. “Things were already bad before then, and now I’m not sure I ever want to talk to her again... or that she’ll want to talk to me.”

She felt Ai’s hand tenderly stroke her arm. “We’re all a family now, Aika. We take care of each other.”

Aika looked up to see Ai expressing that tenderness that seemed so foreign to her again. Something she saw in there made her remember something she knew must be very important.

“Risa,” she began, and Ai’s smile faded a bit. “That night, before she… before she died. She tried to tell me something.” In curious intensity the girl watched her closely, and Aika thought she was beginning to see the Ai Takahashi that was feared across perhaps half the City.

“I think there was someone she loved, and who she wanted to know it.”

Ai’s face darkened with her words, but Aika held her ground, looking up into those tumultuous eyes. Then the girl looked away, and clenched her jaw.

“That someone was you, wasn’t it?” Aika said, and this time she took Ai’s hand, squeezing it softly.

“Your sister was very special,” the girl responded in a melancholy tone.

Aika continued squeezing her hand gently, looking intently up into her face. “I never knew she had someone like that. Can you tell me about it? Can you tell me about… what having a real family is like?”

Ai glanced over at her, holding her eyes strongly for a moment. “All right. Like I said, she was a special person. What you just said,
it was something she’d never told me.”

[maiZe]

I know I've been bad and haven't been commenting recently, but I've definitely been reading. The prospect of Takagaki background info has forced me out of hiding... I can't wait for the next chapter!!

Lots has been going on. o_O The funeral was so sad! I wanted to smack Aika's mom for making her leave the funeral and not letting her be there as they spread the ashes. From the looks of it, the mom wasn't there for Risa anyway, and it's just so irking that she's kicking out all the people who Risa actually cared for.

That shootout at the beach was interesting... Poor Aika and the bad luck of shooting an innocent bystander. But now I'm intrigued to find out why Eri has a gun, and how she fits in with all that's going on in this crazy city... Why did she have a gun, but Sayu didn't? Same with Erika and Yurina... Lots of questions were brought up in that chapter. I'm looking forward to finding out more.

I don't know about this Momoko/Aika thing... Maybe it's 'cause I've never been hugely fond of Momoko in addition to the fact that she seems to be out to get Miyabi in Berry Beautiful (lol, how does Miya always somehow find her way into my comments? ). Maybe I'll warm up to it later... Or maybe with this whole episode, that possibility has already gone down the drain. I never know with your writing.

Anyway, back to work for me. I hope chapter 15 comes out soon!!! ^_^ Also... a new chapter for The Sword and the Dove, maybe? *crosses fingers*

[rndmnwierd]

Ah, maybe this time in jail will help calm Aika down a little, maybe help her cope in a way that she couldn't before. I think this is a big wake up call for her that should help her decide things more rationally.

Or not.

Anyway, just how influential is Ai's gang that they have agreements with the police? Though I'm glad that she came down to pick Aika up, she right, they are family now.

And the part about Risa in the end, was she really together with Ai? Like that? Or was it just wishful thinking on both ends? Did Risa really never tell Ai she loved her? Was there a reason she didn't?

Aika blinked up at her. “With all of that… How do you keep doing it?”

This time it was Ai’s turn to flash surprise across her features. Then she smiled again though before murmuring under her breath, “You really are Risa’s sister…”

Could this maybe be indicative of the future? And the past? Oh oh! Will we get flashbacks?

Sorry, lot's of questions. BTW can't wait for more crackiness!

[slasha]

Man jail in the City sounds like a horrible place! But thanks to Ai and her connections, Aika won't have to suffer through a lot of that.

Glad to see that the girl will be alright. Now hopefully, things can go back to normal.

Also I can't help but point out this:

“You don’t get along with your mother, do you?” Ai asked

No one gets along with Aika's mom  .

[ShikyoxYaiba]

Oh mai gass, she got out! Yay for Aichan! (Though how they did it, even I'm not sure... xD) There it is! The TakaGaki. u__u I hope Aika really learns how it feels to have true family, especially in a place like the City. D:

...So when do we get a flashback of TakaGaki? o-o xD Jkjk.  I wonder what'll be up for the next chapter. Hmm...

[DO Me DO Me]

Haa~ I'm good. No longer distracted. False alarm. I finally read the latest chapters properly and again, Wow at gun wielding Eri. So badass But I wonder what side she's on or if she has anything to do with the other shootouts. That's ok, I can deal with the Eri-less chapters, the whole story is interesting anyway without having Eri in it. Sucks about Aika getting jail time, I didn't know she was in there for that long, but I'm glad she got out. She can add shooting someone and jail time to her list of Firsts. Looks like it's going to be tougher from here on out. Hopefully some good things will happen in the next chapters?

[Hart]

After reading this lastest chapter I've almost given up on figuring out Ai's character. Almost. I don't know what side of Ai we're gonna see next. I didn't even know she had that kind of presence in the city. Don't know whether that's a good thing or not later on. Remembering every person she has shot and/or killed, now that's what I expected from Ai. I wonder if it's one of the many things Aika will learn from her. Speaking of Aika, I'm surprised that her time in jail was that short. I thought she would be there for much longer, say a few weeks at least. And that officer releasing Aika from jail: Ew. I know it's something to expect at a place like that but still very very wrong considering Aika's age. *shudders* I don't care if he was kidding or not.

So now that Aika's free, the girl she shot is fine, and finding out she has a new family to turn to, what's next for her? Hopefully good things, for now....

Shoud I really want to know the truth behind Risa's final words? Somehow I get the feeling it's something I would never suspect.

[rokun]

Hmm, it's been a bit of a while, but I think I should reply to comments anyway It's late though, so I think I'll try and keep 'em short...

maize: Glad to see you here, and hope you're still around! ^_^ TakaGaki potential... hmm... This story jumps around a bit, but hopefully your questions will be answered eventually. ^_^ Another not so Aika-Momo fan, eh? Well... just stayed tuned. And yeah, this isn't Berry Beautiful.

rndm: I think a lot of your questions will be answered soon. Crack? Hmm, I wonder what's up this time.

slasha: Many parts of the City are horrible places. You actually get a few hints of the broader setting in the next chapter. Also, more small references to Aika's mom, who I know you all love

SxY: Read on

e-girl: Hope you continue finding it interesting! Though this chapter is gonna be a bit different... The first paragraph should give you a bit of a tip-off on that.

Hart: Wonder what you'll think about the side of Ai shown in the next chapters?

Soon...