"Well that answers where this all came from,"Miyuku says stowing the tablet in her gear. "It looks like Tree's story is legitimate."
She sits at the foot of one of the beds and begins peeling a piece of fruit.
She shrugs, "Okay.....I already knew he needed help." She eyeballs the chocolate and looks it over. Smiling she says, "Well I guess if Ishi-san sent this, it should be safe to eat." She happily unwraps the chocolate and takes a small bite. As she lets the rich flavor of the chocolate melt on her tongue, she falls back on the bed, closes her eyes, and makes the small satisfied sounds she makes when eating something she considers to be especially yummy.
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Miyuku shakes her head smiling. It always made her happy to watch her daughter enjoy something, because she embraced her emotions with all of her heart.
After she savors the last morsel of the chocolate bar, she sighs and sits up with a huge smile on her face and a twinkle in her eyes. Getting up she goes over to her duffel bag and starts pulling stuff out. Changes of clothes, swimwear, her night shirts, underthings, a raggedy stuffed rabbit she called Mr. Floppy, and her toiletries.
After a few minutes debate she stuffs the bag under the bed, then goes and gets her bathing suit out of one of the drawers. She looks over at Miyuku, "What time was that opening ceremony again? I was wanting to get a swim in before we had to leave. The brochure from the lobby said they had some kind of spa here with a pool, hot tub, and I think a steam room." She cocks her head to the side as she regards her mother with one of her impish smiles, "It might be a good idea to get some of my energies out now, before we have to go to some long winded boring ceremony. Don't you think so?"
Once they were synced up, Kehanu said, "Given much thought on where to stay? It might be prudent for us to stay in the same building at least." The man couldn't help but keep looking around the room, something kept bothering him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Taro shrugs. "SPECTRAL is footing the bill so why not live it up?"
"Where did you have in mind kid?" Kehanu asked.
"Cerulean Tower. Fanciest diggs in the city." Taro replies.
'... and the most likely place to find competition with the finest Tek.'
Miyuku chuckles softly. "I think that's an excellent idea." she says, taking an encrypted tablet from her gear. "I'll meet you down there in half an hour. I just want to get us set up. Just remember to keep your com set to personal." she says to her daughter, accessing the hotel schematics along with detailed maps of the city and its traffic grid.
Hmmm, fancy living. Might be a nice change of pace for once. He thought to himself. "Alright then. Cerulean Tower it is then." After making his reservations, Kehanu added, "I'll go see about getting a cab."
Kehanu and Taro find themselves waiting for a cab along with about fifty other people standing around outside the restaurant. After about twenty minutes of waiting, they are able to slip into a cab with a pair of loligoth girls. One plays on a portable gaming system with the sound turned up without regard for anyone else. The other stares out the windows, counting under her breath.
It takes another thirty minutes to finally reach the Cerulean. The line into the building goes out the door and wraps around the corner of the street.
Yama smiles and hits the button that sets the com to personal. Turning she heads into the bathroom to change into her two piece suit. It took what came to be known in the Saito household as the Summer Bikini Battle, for Yama to get the kind of swimsuit she wanted. At fifteen years old, she was starting to develop her own sense of style, which meant she wanted to look more than just cute. A good diet and regular daily physical activity had her developing a little earlier than most girls, and now she was quite pleased with the effects that all her hard work had wrought.
She was slim, but fit with subtle if not defined curves and ample.....assets. Her musculature was just right, not so much that she looked like one of those gross body builders you see on t.v., but just enough to be considered fit and slightly noticeable in the outfits she wore. While her mother was fairly open minded, she didn't want her as she said, "Looking like one of those girls from the Koyto red light district" Thus, the great Summer bikini battle ended in a compromise. Yamaneko was allowed a two piece bathing suit as long as it was decent and "age appropriate". This amounted to a two piece that had almost a tank top style top that came to nearly her belly button with a ruffle and cute bear on the front, and bottoms that had a short skirt around it.
In her suit she turned from side to side and looked at herself in the large mirror while applying sun block to her skin. She didn't really burn, but she didn't want skin cancer at 30 either. She sighs as she finishes up and goes back out to the main room. Grabbing her towel she looks at Miyuku with just a slight pout on her face.
"Well, what do you think? I think it makes me look like a baby." She stands there holding her towel in her classic, are you happy now? stance.
"Just because you aren't showing everything doesn't mean you look like a baby Yama-chan." Miyuku sighs. "We made a deal, when you turn 16 you we can pick out something.....more....grown up. Not that you'll have any trouble drawing attention in that one." she says with a tone of amusement.
The battle of what to wear was one that added the normal touches to her life that made her happy. "Normal" moments were few and far between, and she savored them, as frustrating as they could be sometimes.
She sighs and tries not too roll her eyes too much. "Fine....I get it. I'll see you in thirty then." With that she slips on her flip flops and out the door.
Walking down to the pool she keeps an eye on the people as they come and go. Some kids with their families, on vacation no doubt. The pool area is nice with shaded areas, and reclining chairs for sunning oneself. She lays her towel out on one of the chairs and sets her flip flops next to it before diving into the pool. She floats around for a bit getting used to the water and just relaxing before starting to swim laps.
Yamaneko catches sight of Tree sitting in one of the gardens off the side of the pool, meditating. He wears a black robe with red trim, red lotuses embroidered on it.
Miyuku finishes gathering general information on the immediate area they are in and full details on the hotel, emergency exits and other details. Once she is finished she unpacks, putting clothing in the drawers, and going to different places in the room, stashing a handgun behind the toilet, another under the bed and a combat knife under her pillow.
While she didn't have Yama's ability to seemingly summon weapons from thin air, she could make up for it by being prepared.
Yama swims a few more laps and then gets out of the pool as a family with four young children start setting stuff out by one of the tables. It looks like the youngest one can't be more than 2 or 3, but is adorable in her little swimsuit and floaters that she wears on her chubby little arms.
Yama goes back to her lounge chair and starts to dry off while watching Tree in the garden. He looked almost absolutely still, almost like a statue. She wanted to go over and say something, maybe see if he could sense her walking up to him. But she knew better than to interrupt someone when they were busy preparing themselves. She knew a warrior when she saw one, but everyone fights for different reasons. He fought for his freedom and the children he had decided to protect. Her mother was right, it was a very noble cause. Turning her chair around so she could lay in the sun and watch him, she thinks about why they came to the tournament and what it would mean for them if they won.
No more constant moving, no more tutors, not that she minded that part so much. School was boring and Yama detested going. Thankfully she only had to do that for a little while. Private tutors were easier and didn't ask a bunch of stupid questions.
Yama just sort of loses herself in thought as she watches Tree meditate.
Tree opens his eyes a few minutes later and Yama can swear she hears a crack of thunder as he gets to his feet. "Did you enjoy your swim?"
She nods a bit lazily, "Yeah, the water was nice.....hey, how'd ya know I was there? I thought you were all meditative and stuff?"
"When I am meditating, my senses are stronger. I can see all around me," Tree says. "It's bad when I'm hungry though...Cheeseburgers smell a lot nicer too."
She looks over her shoulder at the family enjoying their time together. The mom in the water with the kids, while the dad was...yup, grilling burgers on the outside grill. How had she not noticed that earlier? An almost wistful expression crosses her features before she wipes it off her face and replaces it with one of her impish smiles, "Yeah...all that swimming worked up my appetite again too. Miyu-chan should be down here soon. If ya want to, we can wait for her and then go get a bite to eat? I think we still have time before the ceremony begins."
Changing into her bathing suit, a simple black bikini, that while not overly revealing it definitely drew attention on her...well endowed form.
Compared to most people Miyuku's views on things like modeater were rather liberal, but she was aware of the likely reactions of those she encountered and adjusted to match. She smiles in the mirror, knowing the look she'd get from Yama at the "unfairness" of it.
With a sigh she slips a handgun into the bag she throws over her shoulder and heads out of the room, locking the door before going to the elevator.
"That'd be fine," Tree answers after a moment of thought. "I am ready to go whenever you two are."
She smiles, "Okay, she'll probably want some time to relax in the sun as well. We don't get to do stuff like this very often, it's kinda nice. I'm sure she'll be down in a bit, wearing whatever she likes." At that she sort of scowls and crosses her arms.
Miyuku exits the elevator headed towards the pool. Seeing Yama talking to Tree. The massive man seems to emanate calm.
Even with the slight frown on her face, most likely in reaction to wanting to wear something like Miyuku's suit, Yamaneko made her smile.
She's grown up so much.
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As she watches her mother saunter outside, she furrows her eyebrows slightly. She shakes her head and puts one arm down at her side while using the other to point at her, "You see this? This is totally not fair! How come you get to wear that, and I have to wear this?" Her voice starts to take on a slightly whiny tone, but she manages to regain some composure in the end so that it only comes off as sounding somewhat sulky.
"It's a small price to pay for someone who loves and cares about you," Tree chimes in. "Someday you will win the battle of what you want to wear."
She turns and looks at Tree. Gesturing to the funny looking bear on her suit she asks, "Is it right to make almost a grown woman wear something so childish?" There's a slightly frustrated tremor in her voice, but she manages to keep her emotions slightly in control in front of him.
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She looks down at her feet and sighs, "Of course you'd take her side, who wouldn't?"
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Miyuku walks up to the two, recognizing the tone in her daughter's voice. "Maybe I have a hard time dealing with the fact that my...little sister is growing up so fast." she says quietly.
"Nice to see you again Tree."
"But you said it yourself, you are almost grown, but not fully grown," Tree says kindly. "I take the side of the protector, as that is what I do. You may not fully realize what your sister has to give up to care for you, but someday you'll understand. It's not easy to swallow such an explanation, but it's the only one I have."
He looks to Miyu. "Good to see you as well. So has Yamazaki-sempai told you all about me yet?"
Frustrated and upset by how unfair everything seemed, her cheeks got a little red as she looked back up at the both of them. Taking a deep breath she tried to steady the hammering of her heart as it felt like it was going to beat out of her chest. She finally gave in and looked back at Miyuku, "Fine, I understand....but, you need to understand something too. I know it's not easy to see me growing up, but I am and I need for you to let me." With a teary look to her eyes she takes hold of Miyuku's hand, "I may be growing up, but I'll always be your little sister....no matter what. Nothing could ever change that." With that said, she let go of Miyuku's hand, and walked back over to the pool to dive back in the cool water.
She decided to swim around for a bit longer to give the adults some privacy and time to talk. Being careful of the young children in the pool, she swam from one end to the other. The pool was actually pretty a pretty nice size. It had been a long time since Yama had been anywhere with a pool like this and she was determined to enjoy it for as long as she could.
Sighing quietly to herself she watches as her daughter goes back to swimming. "He's mentioned you. Sounds like he trusts your motives and would like it if you had someone looking out for you in the tournament.I have to say, Yama trusting you says a lot, she may be....is impulsive, but she's an excellent judge of character."
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Almost as if she could hear what they were saying, she turns around in the pool and swims to the side. She gives Tree a thumbs up signal and a small smile, then goes on about her business in the pool. The older children in the pool stayed clear of her for some reason, but the little one seemed to really take a liking to Yama's tale and insisted on holding on to it and letting Yama guide her around the pool with it.
"I figured he would. He asked me to do the same for you," Tree says. "But I'm sure with a sister like Yama-chan, that you'll hardly need me."
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"I trust her with my life." she says, watching Yama swim with a smile. "But having an extra person watching our backs is a welcome change, especially if it means there's someone else looking out for her."
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"I will do my best then," Tree says.
From the pool, Yama smiles and then nods. The little girl that had been playing with her tail had started getting fussy, so Yama picked her up and after gliding in the water with her handed her back to her mother, who promptly took her out of the pool and back over to where the dad had been fixing lunch.
Tired from toting around the tireless toddler, Yama makes her way to the shallow end of the pool and gets out herself. Making her way back to where the other two stood, she grabbed her towel and once again began drying herself off. Shaking out her tail she looks at the two of them, her gaze drifting up to Tree. "So...I'm fairly starving now. I thought for sure that little girl was gonna try to drown me, she was a tail full. Can we take Tree to eat with us? I'm hungry Miyu...." She stops mid sentance as she stretches and her stomach let out a loud and rather embarrassing growling noise. She turns around as she blushes, pretending to look for her flip flops.
Smiling she reaches out and ruffles Yama's wet hair. "Let's get you fed my little bottomless pit." she teases. "Is there anything you would prefer Tree?"
She smirks and raises an eyebrow as she smooths her hair back down, "You were the one that said I was growing up....well, part of that includes my belly, as in my appetite. Growing is hard work, give a girl a break."
Before Tree has a chance to respond she blurts out, "I want meat, lots of meat....the kind that's still red in the middle." Thinking about food gets her stomach growling again, "C'mon, we better hurry, we need to get changed because I'm not gonna have any sister of mine go out in public looking like that. So there." Her words might have been smart, but there was a rather playful grin on her face and her eyes were almost twinkling in the late afternoon sun.
"There's a good teppanyaki place nearby," Tree suggests.
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"Alright, we'll go back up and get changed and meet you down here in a few." Miyuku says to Tree with a grin.
"Take your time."
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Wrapping the towel around herself, Yama turns to leave with Miyuku. As they start heading back upstairs, she turns her head back and winks at Tree then giggles.
She's a little quiet on their way back to the room. As she's changing into her body suit, leather shorts and what looks to be a bikers jacket she says, "I don't think there's anything wrong with his roots. He just hasn't had a chance to spread them out yet." She has a thoughtful expression on her face as she picks up her Hello Kitty shoulder purse from the nightstand next to her bed. "I'm ready now..." As she pulls on her wedge heeled combat boots.
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Changing as well, Miyuku dons a sleeveless, strapless bodysuit of her own with a pair of low slung black tactical pants. She accents it with a short leather jacket, left open, rolling the sleeves up to just above her elbows before putting on high heeled combat boots.
Opting to carry just a single sidearm holstred on her hip and her combat knife strapped behind her back, she smiles at Ymaneko as she picks up her shoulder bag, slipping the tablet in it.
"Ok, let's head down, I'm sure Tree is waiting. He may not have had much of an opportunity to spread roots because he's always having to pull them up to stay ahead of the people after him, little one."
She nods solemnly, "I know.....but, that's why we have to help him. So he doesn't have to keep pulling them up and then he can spread those roots and continue to help those kids. I mean, what would have happened to me if you hadn't found me?"
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Miyuku brings her hand up to Yamaneko's cheek. "I've asked myself that at least a hundred times and I've never been able to bring myself to imagine the answer , little one."
"You're right, they deserve to have him in their lives and he deserves the chance to help them and have them in his." she smiles warmly looking at her daughter. "Finding you saved me just as much as it did you, and I would never deprive anyone of that."