Disclaimer: No rights to Witch Hunter Robin. If I did own WHR, do you think I’d be writing fan fiction? ^_^ I do own a few characters that I’m too lazy to list.
Kitsune: Amon-chan! Amon-chan! Come out wherever you are.
Amon: *facial twitch* *hiding in the ceiling rafters*
Puff: He’s in this room. I know it. The muse-tracking device is going haywire.
Kitsune: Like I’m going to trust a ningen device. Especially if you invented it. I rely on my keen tracking skills alone.
Puff: Then, pray-tell, why are you holding the mini-muse-tracker?
Kitsune: *acts surprised and drops the device* How did that get near me?!
Puff: *giggles*
Amon: *looks for escape route*
Kitsune: *sneezes* The dust is getting disturbed in the rafters!
Puff: Amon, are you up in the ceiling?
Kitsune: You twit! He won’t answer. Amon is smarter than that!
Puff: Why don’t I just use the muse-retrieval device?
Kitsune: What?
Puff: Whenever I get a muse, I place a little microchip/conductor under their skin. If I push this little button on my tracker, it activates the chip and shocks the missing muse into a daze. It makes them really easy to find.
Kitsune: *reaches over and pushes the button*
Amon: *gets electrocuted and falls to the floor*
Kitsune and Puff: *run over to Amon*
Amon: *twitching*
Puff: I forgot to say I never quite got all the bugs out of the system. You know, like over-shocking the muse. ^_^
Kitsune: You idiot! Twit! Stupid! Ignoramus! Fool! Brat! Baka! Ninny! You could have killed him! *slashes Puff with her claws*
Puff: Sorry. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were forming feelings for our stoic friend. *runs off*
Kitsune: *eyes widen to twice normal size*
Chapter Thirteen: Furniture Shopping
“Daddy, what are we doing today?” Javan asked sweetly, sitting very still as her father teased her ink black hair into some semblance of orderliness. Amon didn’t respond for a few seconds; he was focusing on not ripping out half of his two-year-old daughter’s hair. There was a knot to end all knots at the base of Javan’s neck and Amon wasn’t feeling up to having her cry bloody murder for hours on end. He took his sweet time in getting it out, resorting to a little cooking oil in the end.
“We need to get you furniture for your bedroom, so we are going shopping,” Amon stated composedly, spraying most of the water in the squirt bottle onto Javan’s hair to get the shiny oil out. He had wisely learned to keep a towel around the little girl’s shoulders when he fixed her hair, because he had a tendency to use a lot of water and it dripped onto her clothes if the towel wasn’t there.
“Can Robin come with us?” Javan inquired, batting her luminous eyes at Amon.
“If she wants to,” Amon responded coolly, wiping a little of the extra water off of Javan’s hair. In reality, he was hoping that Robin would want to go; he didn’t think he could handle shopping with Javan alone for more than an hour, let alone the several it would take to hunt down something a toddler would like in her bedroom. After Amon got Javan looking presentable, they left for the office.
“Robin!” Javan cried, running towards the craft user, “Me and daddy are going shopping. Daddy said that you could come if you wanted to!” Robin’s highly amused emerald eyes flicked towards her cold partner who was glaring at his daughter. Apparently, he didn’t like how Javan made it sound like he had brought up the subject of his partner going along on the shopping expedition.
“I’d love to go,” Robin announced brightly, speaking to the child but watching her father for any sudden movements. Being around Amon, especially after their little ‘bonding time’, was like letting a panther out its cage; you never know just when it will kill you or, at the very least, try to. Of course, you just have to know how to keep the proverbial panther tame and you wouldn’t get killed. Javan’s head bobbed up and down rapidly as she scampered off to fetch Robin’s scarlet overcoat.
Robin and Amon kept exchanging glances, looking away when the other looked up. Michael was observing their actions with curiosity; usually Robin would keep her eyes cast towards her feet and the only time Amon seemed to notice what his partner was up to was when they were on a hunt together. The hacker couldn’t help but wonder what had happened between the pair.
Javan returned a few minutes later, her entire form all but covered. Robin’s scarlet coat was draped over the child, blue-gray eyes peering out from an opening in the wraps the only indication that the coat hadn’t taken on a sense of consciousness and wasn’t walking by itself. The craft user giggled lightly, Michael grinned widely, and even Amon had to allow the tiniest of smiles to twitch the corners of his mouth.
“Here,” Javan panted, desperately trying to unwind the crimson material from around her. The craft user took pity upon her and helped free the little girl from the heavy material.
“Thank you,” Robin said, patting the top of Javan’s head. The toddler was sitting cross-legged on the floor, trying to breath normally again. Robin fished around in one of her coat pockets, searching for a specific item. She pulled out an extra hair ribbon; Amon was starting to believe her coat pockets were portals to another dimension, since it was starting to seem she always had what she needed despite the fact it didn’t look like there was a single thing in the pockets.
Robin procured a pair of scissors from the chief’s assistant, sliced the ribbon in half, and scooped Javan into her lap. Painstakingly, the craft user parted the coal black locks down the middle and finger-combed each half into a pigtail. She tied a piece of burgundy ribbon into a bow around each of the pigtails, capturing the soft strands into twin bundles on the sides of Javan’s head.
“Let’s go,” Robin stated happily as she walked out of the office, casting her eyes towards her stoic partner who was watching her with a look in his dark gray orbs that couldn’t be placed. Her partner followed, turning around to glare at the hacker who was making gestures to resemble a dog on a choke chain behind, or at least he thought, Amon’s back.
“Daddy, do you like my hair?” Javan asked cheerfully, patting one of her newly acquired pigtails.
“It’s cute,” Amon said cautiously, keeping his eyes fixed on the closing elevator doors.
“Well, keep it or lose it?” Robin questioned, tilting her head to the side slightly.
“Keep it, I suppose,” Amon stated coolly, “It reminds me of your hairstyle.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?” Robin inquired teasing, trying to test the limits of Amon’s patience for some odd reason. The black-haired man simply chose to ignore her question, regretting his choice of words immensely and devising a plan to put her back in her place.
The pair of girls were rushed along, trying to keep up with Amon’s long strides. His thinking: the sooner we get to the stores, the sooner we’re out. Unfortunately for him, he forgot that he was going furniture shopping with girls; he should have gone as near to closing as was humanly possible.
They quickly were settled into Amon’s car, Robin sitting in the backseat with Javan. The craft user was teaching a clapping game to the child, yet another test on Amon’s nerves although this test was completely unintentional. Amon was beginning to look forward to shopping; at least then he could let Robin and Javan look around while he sulked a short distance away.
Robin discovered that Amon drove over the speed limit even when he wasn’t on a case; it seemed to be a reflex of his to speed up when approaching a turn in the road. Therefore, she developed a reflex to hold onto the nearest door handle until her knuckles turned white; it was soon an unconscious effort. The craft user was quite pleased with the lack of traffic where they were driving; she could only take Amon’s driving skills for a short amount of time. At least Javan seemed to enjoy the speed, squealing happily each time they took a turn.
“We’re here,” Amon said, pointing out the obvious as he pulled his car into a parking place and set the hand brake. Robin scrambled out, pulling Javan out of her car seat as she set her booted feet on the pavement. She ran to catch up with her partner, black skirts stirring in the breeze as she rushed. Amon glanced out of the corner of his eyes at the girl, noticing her face was slightly more pale than normal. His revenge to get back at her fishing for a compliment was effectively completed.
“Javan! Get back here,” Amon ordered icily, stopping the running girl in her tracks and catching the attention of a few of the other shoppers. The small girl slowly walked back to her father’s side, her eyes darting around and taking in the size of the furniture store.
“Sir, may I help you?” a sales clerk asked, his eyes displaying his nervous state. Amon glared, testing the boy’s mental resolve. The sales clerk smiled weakly in response, making Robin step forward to speak with him.
“We’re looking for furniture for a two-year-old,” Robin explained gently, as if trying to apologize for Amon’s slightly rude behavior.
“Right this way, miss,” the sales clerk said, leading them towards the brightly colored part of the store. He seemed thankful that he was dealing with Robin, instead of her intimidating companion.
“Thank you,” Robin said, bowing slightly as she remembered how Doujima had forced her head down.
“Of course. If you need any help, don’t hesitate to call on me,” the sales clerk said happily, talking only to Robin. Amon’s dark eyes narrowed in to slits, sending the clerk rushing off as he bowed awkwardly. Robin turned her head just enough so she could see Amon, her eyes matching his in ferocity.
“Let’s look around,” Javan whined, pulling on their coat hems impatiently.
“Well, first we should figure out what we basically want,” Robin said warmly, looking between father and daughter as they thought.
“Black,” Amon said simply, not about to throw of his carefully orchestrated décor.
“No!” Javan stated, crossing her arms, “I want something with butterflies and fairies.”
“You heard the lady,” Robin said, smiling sympathetically at Amon. He conceded, figuring he could just keep the door to his daughter’s room closed at all times. Javan beamed, scampering off to look at the bedroom sets with canopies. Amon expected Robin to hurry after her, but the girl waited for him. She gestured for him to take the lead, obviously going to stay put until he moved.
They spent hours looking at different furniture sets, pointing out flaws in design or construction to one another. Javan ended up being carried by her father, her boredom taking over her as she looked at the seeming endless rows of furnishings. She nodded off into a light sleep every few seconds, her lack of a nap during the day showing through.
“What about this one?” Robin questioned, pointing out a black lacquered four-poster bed with a sheer white-silver canopy. Amon liked it, though all he did to show his approve was nod slightly. Javan clapped her hands energetically, absolutely adoring the silver embroidered butterflies on the canopy and the matching silver handles on the dresser that went with the set.
“Let’s go get the clerk,” Amon said sadistically, his mind flashing with images of how he could effectively terrorize the young man without saying a thing. As if on cue, the clerk turned the corner and spotted them discussing their choice.
“Have you made a decision?” he asked, his mind calculating just how much commission he could make off of the sale.
“Yes, we’ll take this one,” Robin said, her gloved hand raised towards the black bedroom set.
“Good choice! Now I’ll just have you sign a few forms, miss,” the clerk said, pulling the papers from behind his back, “Don’t worry; I’ll explain everything to you.”
“Oh, Amon is the one who’s paying,” Robin explained, almost laughing at how quickly the boy’s face fell when his eyes settled on the sinister hunter.
“Alright, sir. Just sign where it’s marked,” the clerk said gloomily, “Will it be cash, credit, or financing?” Amon eyed the clerk for a few seconds, just enough to make him twitch, before handing him a credit card. The nervous boy gathered the forms and scurried to a back room. After fifteen minutes, right when Amon was started to get mad, the clerk returned to them.
“Here, sir,” the clerk said edgily, warily handing Amon his credit card and a receipt, “It will be delivered tomorrow.”
“Would you stake your life on that?” Amon questioned, his voice utterly emotionless. The clerk timidly nodded his head, backing up a few inches.
“We better go now,” Robin said serenely, ushering her cold partner towards the exits. Amon walked off with her, enjoying the intense terror he instilled into the clerk.
“That was rude of you, Amon,” Robin snapped the second they were outside, “That clerk was just doing his job.” Amon was about to say something back when she turned towards him, her green eyes shining with an odd light. He quietly accepted her criticism, praying that wasn’t the light her victims saw right before getting flamed.
Author’s Notes:
Is it just me, or is Robin getting a lot braver when she faces Amon? Okay, I’m keeping this short. I’m not going to update next week. I’m going to California for a little vacation and to check on my Grandma’s property.
To the Reviewers:
Wake-Robin: Well, the witch was a little depressed so that made him an easy target. ‘Sides, the next witch will MORE than make up for this one. {evil laughter}
ShiroKitsune: I try, doll, I try. Sorry, about the ending. I guess I’ll just have to…work a bit harder.
Bana: Oh, well that’s true. But at least you can draw. My people have no depth. Kindergarteners can draw better than I can. (That’s why I write, instead of doing fan art {laughs})
Haruya: {pops in Culture Club’s ‘It’s a Miracle’ } (I don’t own Culture Club) Had to put that! I’m sorry about Robin, it’s just that she never seems to stay mad in the series so I had nothing to work off of. Like that stopped me. ^_^ {Goes Chibi}{Bounces}
CuriousDreamWeaver: Yeah, even I freaked out a little when I read over the chapter and saw how… sweet…Amon seemed.
Slysilverinu: Amon with a cold? I was already planning on doing something like that after a while, once I settle down in my plot.
Konbyashii: It’s so nice that you found time to review, especially after your loss. My deepest condolences.
Malster: Everyone was saying Amon seemed in character, I guess I just like stoic pretty boys. They seem out of character when they aren’t cold, at least from my point of view.
ROW: Yes, long way to go. Not till towards the end, if at all. ^_^
Suki1: Can you live without it for a week? (see author note)
Jazzywolf( Jasmine Jackson: Yeah, I’m not about to stop now!
Raya-the-Ninja: Obviously, I love Witch Hunter Robin. I’m still warming up to Naruto, though. Hikaru no Go is the Shonen Jump manga for me!