Disclaimer: Uh, no. I don’t own Witch Hunter Robin.
Amon: *basking in the peaceful silence*
Kitsune: *in a different room* I think we may have really pushed him over the edge.
Puff: Maybe. But, if he did snap, it wouldn’t be a first for me.
Kitsune: You drive everyone crazy.
Puff: Thank you. ^_^
Amon: Life is good. *puts feet up on a table*
The Joys of Parenthood
Chapter Forty-Three: Winds of Change
For what seemed to be an eternity, Amon sat enclosed in the box of thick ice. As he waited, the seconds seemed to drag on as near-freezing water dripped onto him, seeping through his coat and clothes. His raven locks were soaked, glittering frost lightly coating the strands. The hunter grew cold and he knew quite well that he’d soon end up like Sakaki if the ice didn’t go away like the witch told him it would.
After what were only a few minutes, the ice suddenly melted and Amon found himself in the middle of a cold puddle. He tried to push some water out of his hair, but quickly gave up and hurried over to check on Sakaki. The other hunter was unconscious and a pale blue; his limbs were half frozen to the ground. Amon futilely attempted to pry the boy from the ground, sighing with annoyance as he realized his numb fingers wouldn’t be of any use since he could barely feel what he was doing.
“I’d better go get Robin,” Amon muttered to himself, running as fast as he could down the pathway, “I just hope she’s learned to control her craft while she’s been increasing the strength of the flames.” When he rounded the last corner, Amon’s dark eyes immediately zeroed on Robin’s quietly trembling form.
“She’s been talking in her sleep, Amon,” Robin said tearfully, praying she wouldn’t start crying, “Javan kept saying that Bryton is dead and Sakaki is very close. She’s been moaning like she’s in pain, first grasping at her throat and now her arms just turned blue.” The craft user pulled the toddler closer to her, cradling the girl as gently as was possible.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but Javan’s words are right. Some witch killed Bryton and said it was to teach everyone a lesson. The witch also froze Sakaki, but he’s still barely alive,” Amon said hurriedly, grabbing at Robin’s arm and pulling her along with him as he ran back to the clearing, “You need to warm him up. Can you do that without burning him?” Robin stumbled repeatedly, her mind overwhelmed with all the information that was being presented to her in such a rushed fashion.
“All I can do is try,” Robin said after thinking for a second, “But what about Javan? Why would she suddenly collapse, start mumbling things that are true but she couldn’t possibly know about, and act like she’s suffering?” She readjusted the small girl in her arms, holding her tightly so that Javan wouldn’t be dropped in the mad dash to get to Sakaki.
“I don’t know and, since she seems to be stable, it’s not a top priority,” Amon said coolly, pushing his daughter to the back of his mind, “It’s unexplainable at the moment and we don’t have the time to sit down to think things through, Robin. When we get to the hospital with Sakaki, we’ll hunt down Dr. Takahashi and have him examine her.” Robin nodded quickly, letting her green eyes flick down to Javan’s face. After that, the craft user poured all of her attention into getting to Sakaki to save him.
Robin’s breath caught in her throat when she saw all the blood splattered over what was once a pristine circle of trees. She forced the wave of nausea down, knowing if she didn’t concentrate she’d run the risk of pushing her friend even closer to the edge of death. Amon quietly pulled Javan from Robin’s arms and pushed the craft user forward. She tripped vaguely and carefully lowed herself to kneel beside Sakaki. Her hunting partner stood behind her, his near-black eyes darting around to every corner of the clearing.
“His color is better already, Robin,” Amon said, his voice mildly incredulous, “You work quickly.” Robin confusedly turned her head around, her green eyes pinned to Amon’s face as she spoke.
“Amon, I haven’t done anything yet,” Robin said seriously, her eyes drifting to Javan who was softly whimpering and shivering in her sleep, “I think she might have, though.”
“Why do you say that?” Amon asked tensely, unconsciously running a finger over his daughter’s cool arm. Javan’s breathing had become shallow and precarious; each intake of air was accompanied by a faint liquid sound. Robin hung her head and let the loose blonde stands slip over her face as she turned back around to face Sakaki.
“Amon, this is going to sound very far-fetched and I know you’re not going to even like the thought of it, but isn’t it possible that Javan’s craft is awakening already?” Robin questioned, though Amon knew she didn’t want an answer before she had a chance to explain herself a bit more clearly, “She could be developing a kind of psychic power instead of a physical one. She did know that Bryton had been killed and she also said that Sakaki is hovering near death. The more I think about it, the more I don’t think her collapse was coincidental. Javan had probably been trying to help all the while and she just exhausted herself because of the extreme effort on such a little girl. Now, while she’s out of it, her subconscious is still trying to help by absorbing some of Sakaki’s pain.” Amon’s dark eyes frosted over with every syllable that Robin spoke; not because he thought she was spouting nonsense to upset him but because he knew she could be right.
“We’ll discuss this later. For now, concentrate on unfreezing Sakaki enough so that we can get him to a hospital,” Amon said coldly, not bothering to even glance down at his hunting partner. Robin nodded, closing her eyes as she let her hands float just above Sakaki’s back. Her fingers glowed softly as she mellowed her flames down to mere heat that radiated perfectly from her hands into her friend.
As she worked, Sakaki’s skin began to return to a healthier color than blue even though he was far from a safe pale pink. The frost that covered his clothes chipped off in chunks and slid into a rapidly expanding puddle of the melted ice. When the boy began to moan from the pain that filled his body, Robin stopped pouring her dulled flames into him knowing that he’d be better off being anesthetized by the remaining cold until he could be given proper medication.
“I’m done with him for now,” Robin said coolly, standing up sharply and holding her arms out for Javan, “I’ll carry her and you get Sakaki. I’ll wait for you at your car.” She hurried off, slightly hurt by how Amon seemed unwilling to even let her speak; Robin knew that her hunting partner was cold but she had thought he had been starting to warm up to her. Javan was strangely silent; the only sound was that of her labored breathing, as she lay trapped in a seemingly unnatural sleep.
Before Robin had gotten halfway, she heard soft footsteps behind her. She whirled around, expecting to see someone who looked threatening, and her eyes zeroed in on a pair of children. They were obviously twins, since the brother and sister looked so much alike and appeared to be the exact same age. They were dressed primly in black, with pale blue silk underneath. Their piercing red eyes burned into Robin and she stepped back out of pure instinct. Both children were absolutely blank-faced, their pale features showing not a single trace of emotion as they stared at the nervous craft user.
“Hello,” the girl said suddenly, her eyes lighting up with a hinting of happiness, “My name is Juliana. His name is Julian. We’re very pleased to meet you, Miss Robin. We never thought we’d be so lucky, to simply run into you like this.” Juliana and her brother smiled softly in unison, but there wasn’t any warmth behind their grins.
“How do you know my name?” Robin asked apprehensively, pulling Javan closer to her and stepping back even further from the twins. The children looked at one another, as if they were debating something silently between the two of them.
“We know you quite well. You, however, don’t know us,” Julian said enigmatically, smoothing his suit over with the back of his hand, “Juliana, we should be going. Miss Robin has already been disturbed by our presence and her friend is quickly approaching. Good day to you, Miss Robin. I hope may we meet again and be able to talk more freely. For now, I’d like you to have this.” The boy gently tossed a tiny package wrapped in dark gray and purple cloth towards Robin, waiting to see if she caught it before snatching up his sister’s hand and walking off in the direction Robin had come from.
Mere moments later, Amon was standing by Robin. He couldn’t help but stare at her obviously shocked face, though he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind and hurried her along to the car. The pair of hunters rushed to get Javan and Sakaki secured in the backseat, both hoping that traffic wouldn’t be bad on the way to the hospital.
“I need to speak to Dr. Takahashi,” Amon said coolly to the nurse at the front desk, who was worriedly watching the two unconscious people that were carried or half-dragged in by Amon and Robin.
“I’m sorry. Dr. Takahashi is with other patients at the moment and, when he finishes up with them, he’s going home for the day,” the nurse said politely, folding her hands primly on the countertop, “I’ll have one of my assistants show you to the emergency room where another highly qualified physician can examine and treat your friends.” Amon roughly set Sakaki down in a nearby chair, his eyes freezing over as he walked back to the nurse.
“I’ll be speaking with Dr. Takahashi, no matter what I have to do. Now you just call on up to wherever he is and tell whoever answers the phone to tell him that Amon and Robin are back,” Amon said frigidly, making the tone he took with Robin earlier sound like he had been lovingly speaking, “If you don’t, I’m afraid that I’ll have to find him on my own. There’s no part of this hospital I won’t search.” The nurse gulped and did what she was told, trying desperately to sound calm as she spoke to another nurse over the phone.
“Dr. Takahashi said he’ll see you right away,” the nurse stated quickly as she hung up the receiver, “Just take the elevator up a floor and go down the hallway to your left. That’s where he’ll wait for you.” Amon nodded curtly, snatched Sakaki back up, and led Robin to the row of elevators. They followed the nurse’s instructions and found themselves in a very quiet, almost spooky, part of the hospital.
“Amon, you just couldn’t stay away from me for more than a day,” Dr. Takahashi teased, walking towards them, “Robin, you’re looking quite well. Much better than the last time I saw you. But what is the matter with little Javan and your friend here?” He gestured them into a large room, quietly shutting the door when the two hunters had brought their charges in. Sakaki was laid out on an examining table behind a curtain with heavy blankets draped over him while Javan was set on a small bed that had been brought in.
“They have frostbite. I don’t see how, at this time of year,” Dr. Takahashi muttered, rubbing at his temples, “I can treat them quite easily, with some of my tools in my laboratory. They’ll have to stay overnight for treatment and there shouldn’t be any lasting damage. If you’d like, I could have my assistant take them down and start getting things ready.”
“That’ll be good,” Amon said, hints of gratefulness in his voice, “There’s something else about Javan, but we can discuss it after she’s gotten over her frostbite. In fact, it has to do with the frostbite but you should go treat them first.” Dr. Takahashi nodded slightly, watching Amon for clues as to what the hunter was getting at.
“You two can stay here, in case something happens. I know you probably will want to be near them, so you can watch over them or at least be close enough in an emergency,” Dr. Takahashi stated, pointing at two doors, “Those are bathrooms. In each, I keep spare clothes. You should each be able to find something to wear, if you want to stay here through the night. I’ll be back to report on the progress in about three hours.” He opened the door and a pair of tall young men silently hurried in, wheeling Sakaki and Javan out of the room. Dr. Takahashi followed after them, giving a small wave before shutting the door.
“I guess we stay,” Amon said uncomfortably, moving the curtain a bit more so it completely divided the room in two. Robin nodded her head, her bangs slipping over her eyes. She set herself down on a soft chair and immediately felt the small wrapped package in her pocket. She fished it out and stared at it, wondering what it was and if she should actually open it.
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