Disclaimer: Puff, my goodie-two-shoes half, doesn’t own a thing related to Witch Hunter Robin. She, however, does own the characters Reika and Javan. You’ll have to face my wrath if you steal them from her.
Puff: You know, she’s the one who torments me.
Kitsune: Insiders such as myself have a right; Outsiders and norms do not. Do you understand, Puff-chan?
Puff: Don’t call me that! I’m just as old as you are, and you know that, Kitsune.
Kitsune: But I’m so much more mature. *bats her violet eyes*
Puff: I’ve been on my best behavior lately. I haven’t really done anything annoying.
Kitsune: *under her breath* besides living?
Puff: What was that? I didn’t hear you. *mutters* stupid fox-brat.
Kitsune: I heard that, imbecile! Suffer at my claws! *charges Puff*
Puff: *turns chibi and dodges*
Kitsune: Is that all you can do? I should end your miserable existence now!
Puff: Look who’s talking?
Kitsune: Are you trying to imply something?
Puff: Only that I’m the one that gets let out of her mind-holding-chamber everyday.
Kitsune: I don’t want to leave, that’s why.
Puff: Yeah, and I’m the Queen of Mars.
Kitsune: You’re ugly enough, stupid!
Puff: I’m very pretty!
Amon: If I’m lucky, they’ll kill each other. *settles back to watch the fight*
Chapter Ten: Day at the Park
Once the elevator had reached the ground floor, Javan snatched both of their hands again. They were dragged out of the building, led by the eager little girl. Amon was taken by surprise when he glanced over at Robin and found she was smiling brightly, as if she enjoyed being pulled along by her hand. The craft user must have felt his cold eyes on her because she glanced up from watching Javan happily run along to cast her slightly confused green eyes at him. The unemotional hunter averted his gaze, letting his obsidian orbs settle on his daughter.
Javan slowed her rapid pace a bit when she came the realization that she didn’t really know the way to get the park. Her blue-gray eyes flicked from Amon to Robin and back again, silently asking one of them to take the lead. Amon let Robin show the way, as she was pointing out little landmarks that he had never paid any attention. Memorizing such things would be very useful in a battle.
“What’s going on there?” Javan asked, pointing towards a church. A bride and a groom were walking out the front doors while their friends and family cheered for them.
“It’s a wedding,” Amon said pointblank, his eyes scanning the passing crowds.
“What’s a wedding?” Javan inquired, her voice bewildered. Robin knelt down on the ground next the dark-haired girl, so they could see eye-to-eye.
“A wedding is where two people get married. They get married because they want to spend the rest of their lives together,” Robin explained plainly, her sea green eyes dancing merrily. Javan nodded and grinned.
“Let’s get married, Robin!” Javan exclaimed, throwing her arms around the shocked craft user. Amon finally stopped his visual search to turn and observe the pair of girls. He couldn’t wait to see how Robin handled this one.
“Well, Javan, you have to be a lot older than you are to get married,” Robin elucidated, smoothing Javan’s dark locks. The little girl chewed on her bottom lip while Robin ran her hands through her loose hair. Amon let his eyes resume their search for suspicious people, figuring that the conversation was winding down and they would soon continue along to the playground.
“But I don’t ever want you to go away, Robin! Never ever,” Javan cried, pulling herself closer to Robin. The craft user’s green eyes became liquid as she held the little girl to her.
“I won’t leave you. As long as I can, I’ll stay with you,” Robin soothed gently, wiping the little girl’s tears away.
“Promise?” Javan questioned, her eyes shimmering.
“Promise,” Robin confirmed, “Now let’s go on to the playground.” She stood, brushing dust off of her black skirt and scarlet coat. Javan followed suit, brushing any dirt off of her pink skort before capturing Robin’s gloved hand. She would have held her father’s hand as well, but Amon had his hands inside his coat pockets.
The trio walked along in silence, catching more than a few glances from passerbies. Amon couldn’t believe his bad luck; the pair of rude old women spotted him in the crowd.
“Look, there’s that ominous man again,” the first friend stated unpleasantly, pointing a bony finger at Amon.
“He’s still got that poor little girl with him,” the other friend responded, sighing out of concern for Javan.
“He must be forcing that blonde girl to stay with him. She looks a little young to be the child’s mother so he must have kidnapped both of them,” the first friend pointed out. Robin was giggling lightly, enjoying herself at Amon’s expense.
“No, I’d say that the blonde kidnapped the little girl and that man is the crime leader. She’s an underling,” the second voiced. The soft laugher that had been bubbling from Robin halted at that sentence.
“You’re right! We have to get the police and rescue that child,” the first stated confidently, picking up the slow pace a bit. Amon and Robin exchanged glances before turning around to catch and confront the old women. Robin scooped Javan in to her arms so that she wouldn’t have to worry about the women trying to snatch her away.
“Hurry, they’re after us! They’re going to kill us because we figured out their scheme,” the second cried, trying to run away. They didn’t get very far as Amon leisurely jogged in front of them and Robin glided to block them from behind. The pair of women huddled together and backed off of the sidewalk, onto the grass.
“Listen, if you don’t kill us, we’ll never tell anyone about what we figured out,” they yelped together, before hurrying off. Amon, Robin, and Javan watched them hobble off before returning to the sidewalk.
“Don’t worry about them; they just have overactive imaginations,” a female voice crooned from behind them. They turned and found themselves facing a foreign looking woman and her children.
“Excuse me?” Robin inquired politely, setting Javan down on the ground.
“Those elderly women. They have overactive imaginations because they don’t get out much. Though, your story is, by far, the most outlandish they’ve come up with so far,” the woman joked, “Oh, I’m sorry I haven’t introduced myself. My name is Ophelia. My kids: Dionne is four, Lillith is two, and Tristan is two months.”
“I’m Robin. This is Javan; she’s two,” Robin said, patting Javan’s head then gesturing to her partner standing a short distance away, “That’s Amon.” Ophelia’s sky blue eyes flashed with mischief.
“You caught yourself a good one,” Ophelia whispered into Robin’s ear, keeping one eye on the three girls playing on the grass.
“What?” Robin asked innocently, completely mystified.
“Your husband,” Ophelia said plainly, jerking her head towards Amon. Robin’s green eyes widened, her astonishment easily read on her visage.
“Amon isn’t my husband,” Robin said, blushing furiously and keeping her eyes locked on her gloved hands. This time is was Ophelia’s turn to be shocked.
“But your daughter…” Ophelia began, but stopped when Robin shook her head fiercely.
“Javan is Amon’s daughter. I’m just a friend,” Robin said, earning a sigh of relief from her newfound friend.
“Oh, because I was going to say that you looked much too young to have a child and not have a ring your finger,” Ophelia said softly, so Amon couldn’t privy himself to the conversation. Both girls giggled when Amon cast them a suspicious glance out of the corner of his eye. He had placed himself a discreet distance away, just enough to give them privacy but close enough that he could observe every person’s actions clearly.
“If I weren’t married, I think I might just try and sink my claws into your friend,” Ophelia said teasingly, tossing her platinum hair over her shoulder. Robin smiled, peeking quickly at Amon. The hunter was starting to look annoyed, as the girls whispered and laughed.
“What’s your husband’s name?” Robin asked, hoping it would be polite to ask.
“Isaac, he’s at work. Actually, his job is why we moved to Japan,” Ophelia explained, “You see, he couldn’t climb the corporate ladder any higher in the branch where we lived. His boss said that a branch in Japan needed a supervisor and offered Isaac the position. It opened up a whole new realm of possibilities for us. You don’t look like you’re Japanese; where are you from?”
“I was raised in Italy,” Robin responded simply, not really too sure how much information about herself she should disclose to a person outside STN-J. Ophelia eyed her momentarily before her infant son started to cry and she had to divert her attention.
“Can you hold Tristan while I get his bottle out of the diaper bag?” Ophelia questioned, pushing the baby into Robin’s arms. The craft user bobbed her head while she adjusted the infant to make it more comfortable. His mother stealthily dug in the bunny-printed bag, pulling out a formula bottle. She handed the container to Robin while shifting her baby back into her own arms.
“Dionne, get your sister. We should be going home,” Ophelia told her oldest daughter, sending the blonde child to retrieve her sibling, “Robin, there’s a card in the front pocket of the diaper bag. It has my phone number on it. You can call me sometime and we can arrange for Javan to play with my girls. They seem to get along so well.” The craft user pulled out a small business card out and studied the front.
“I’m sorry, I don’t have a card to give you,” Robin said apologetically, slipping the piece of cardstock into the pocket where she kept her half-moon glasses.
“I’ll just get your number off the caller I.D.,” Ophelia said, standing up and grabbing her things in one hand, “See you around!” Robin watched the family walk around the corner of the path before she turned around to find herself face to face with Amon.
“What did she give you?” Amon asked sharply, letting his icy eyes settle on Robin’s slightly nervous ones.
“A business card so I could call her,” Robin said, handing him the slip of thick paper. Amon grasped it in his gloved fingers, studied the writing, and returned it to her.
“You can never be too careful. Especially after that witch revealed to us their secret society,” Amon warned, clandestinely looking around the general area.
“Are you saying that Ophelia is a witch?” Robin asked snappishly, surprising her partner. His dark eyes opened wider momentarily before he blinked and his eyes returned to normal. Amon snatched Javan’s hand and began leading her to the playground. Robin hurried after him, trying to get him to slow down a bit as the two-year-old was having a difficult time keeping up with his long strides.
Finally, Robin got him to slow enough that Javan wasn’t panting heavily and could walk at a decent pace. The little girl cast appreciative eyes at the craft user, who smiled in response. When they reached the playground, Javan ran off to play on the jungle gym with a few of the kids she had met the last time they had come to the park. Amon found a nearby park bench to rest on, and Robin followed him.
“Why did you run off like that?” Robin asked softly, still standing so she could run if it came down to it.
“If you do call your new friend, tell me,” Amon ordered coolly, leaning back on the bench. Robin, after deciding he wasn’t going to snap at her, settled down on the far end of the bench. She didn’t want to push her luck.
“Why?” Robin inquired inoffensively, keeping her eyes on Javan as she played.
“Just tell me if you call her,” Amon responded, his voice half way to lukewarm. Robin turned her head so she could look right at his face.
“Would you be worried about me if I didn’t tell you?” Robin asked decorously, keeping her tone as neutral as humanly possible. Amon finally looked at her, his eyes clearly showing he didn’t know how to respond to her question. He was about to respond when Javan came running over to where they sat.
“Daddy, Robin, I have an idea!” Javan exclaimed, climbing on to the bench between them.
“For what?” Amon asked, grateful he didn’t have to answer Robin.
“How I can always be sure Robin will be around,” Javan responded, flashing smiles at each of them.
“And how would that be?” Robin inquired, wondering just what the child came up with.
“You and daddy get married,” Javan said simply. Amon and Robin looked from the little girl, to each other, and back again. Both were at a momentary loss for words.
Author’s Note: Ok, peoples, I’m thoroughly overjoyed with how many hung out while I moved. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. *huggles* I want to know what you all would think of a vampire/witch sometime in the future. Bad idea? Good idea? I just wanted to know, because vampirism has recently caught my attention and I’ve done a lot of research. ^_^
To the Reviewers:
The Cowboy Beboper: Hm, I’ve never quite realized that I’ve had nothing to work off of. I suppose that makes me special. *smiles*
Bana: Yes, but Amon is quite new at this whole parenting thing. (Be happy I’m not basing this off of how I baby-sit. At sword point. *evil laughter*)
Cali1043: Thanks
Haruya: *acts clueless* Are you trying to suggest something? *grins* Yes, I feel better. It’s the others I’m worried about. ^_^
Malster: I’m glad you agree. I would have had *cough hack* hurt you *cough hack* if you didn’t agree. *looks innocent*
Speaker for Psychopaths: Perhaps my little Amon-chan *dodges the vase Amon threw* was a little colder. I really didn’t notice, but he was a little annoyed with Javan’s slight complaint.
Marlingrl: Thank you, I try. I’m planning some very…fun things for future chapters. I just need to figure out what torture device, sorry plot device, I use first against Amon.
Ayeka Penor: *glomp* Shiny, shiny. Puff loves shiny. *sticks star on the computer monitor* Shiny, shiny…SHINY!!!!
Suki1: *bounces*
Kagome-Buffy-Robin-Ravin: Forgive me if this sounds scathing… I advance the plot at my own pace. Any romance will not be added until later. Action also will come in due time. This is a well-balanced story and I try to incorporate all elements of literature at some point in the plot. I personally hate stories that have every single element mixed together like some sort of potluck stew in every chapter. I believe that it ruins the plot if a person does that, so I try and keep my elements in harmony throughout the storyline by subtly adding them. And, I’m sorry, but I don’t tend to read other peoples’ fan fiction. It’s a habit of mine that I picked up when I started writing. I sometimes, by complete accident, dredge up some fragment of someone else’s plot. It’s unnerving to be writing and wonder if you read that somewhere. So, I’m sorry, but I have to politely say no.
Wake-Robin: Yes, she is rather obedient child. Much like myself at the age. Puff always was mature, at least emotionally and psychologically, for her age.
Slysilverinu: Javan kinda throws off his whole images, no? I think that what Javan did in this chapter was much better than any joke…
Dreamangel1130: It’s all right. You should punish your teachers, eight tests. *laughs coldly*
MissRobinSena: It’s going to get worse for Amon now that Kitsune has entered the picture. *walks off with a notebook full of blueprints for new plans*
Row: You missed me? *eyes widen to twice normal size and fill with tears* *huggles*