What goes bump in the night

Samuel's hands jumped out of his pockets and came up in front of him defensively. He was extremely flustered and his pale skin turned beet red. "W-well, she is...I mean, its only natural, because she is attractive...I-I-I would be insulting her if I denied such a-an allegation...b-b-b-but please d-don't tell her, it w-w-wouldn't do any of us good if sh-she thought I would be trying to woo her. Which I-I-I have no p-plans of doing!"


His mind was thinking even faster than he was speaking. Why was Neimi asking him this? Why did she care?


..........why did she seem sad?


Not that it mattered: love wasn't about to happen for Samuel any time soon. He'd gotten close to a woman once and that...ended badly. Samuel pushed the horrid memories out of his mind. He wasn't fond of remembering that he was a murderer.


-----


Adrian just laughed. "Please do," he said light-heartedly. For some reason, he wasn't worried about getting harmed at all. This was just a friendly skirmish to him. He waited until she was safely out of sight before he addressed the nearby tree. "You can come out now. I know you have to be in there, Privrak. There's no where else to go on this beach, after all."
 
"I'm just surprised that she didn't look closer." Vojta said as grabbed his field book and jumped down quietly. "Though I should hope that you fight her before she takes out all this fury on me. I'm certainly not as hardy as you are Kindjal. I must apologize if she seems...tense during the fight." Vojta said looking downward.
 
"Haha! Let me worry about that," Adrian said and laughed again. "As far as I'm concerned this evening can't come soon enough. Though, there is something I've been meaning to do before then..." he let his sentence trail off, perhaps on purpose. He strode back into the building, and headed straight for the medical wing. After briefly discussing with Sarisa - and finally taking the bandages off - his suspicions were confirmed: he'd been fitted with a Multipurpose Utility Input Reciever Type, or MUI-RT. This would allow him to attach...well, attachments called plugs into the shoulder socket, giving him a bit of versatility and act as a way to compensate slightly for his one-armed-ness. After collecting a few Plugs, he headed to his room, eager to use the one that both surprised him the most and made him happiest.


He strode into his room, forgetting to close the door. Instead of heading to the workout area he made a beeline for his painting area, setting up the easel and attaching the Plug that was little more than an adjustable 'arm' that he used to hold a palette. Within minutes, he had begun painting. After a few more minutes, a picture began to take shape: fighting some grayish humanoid monsters were a well-dressed man with long gray hair; some kind of cat-like humanoid; a man with black hair, two guns, and a rather bored expression; a woman with twin blades and a mask of sorts over half her face; and Adrian himself, wielding his kindjal with a grin on his face. Though it was a still image, you got the impression of a furious battle. Adrian painted with an intense focus, his grin gone from his face, his tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth a bit, and his brow slightly scrunched in his concentration.
 
"I'll never tell her that." Neimi sighed, gazing far off into the distance over the ocean. Her genetic oddity had made her an outsider among her own kind. Somehow, a werecat had been born into a family of werewolves. None of the others wanted to get close to her, much less have a relationship with her. The thoughts of her past, when she had been so alone, made her hug herself involuntarily. Neimi had never thought that she would be accepted anywhere or by anyone. Was she just really happy that someone wasn't shunning her away? Was that why she enjoyed Samuel's company?


----


Haiku went back to her room, feeling too frustrated to even train. After washing off the remnants of the sandwich, she laid down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Involuntarily, she started to sing softly. "Carry on my wayward son...." The volume started growing gradually as she closed her eyes and focused on the words coming through her mind. "There'll be peace when you are done...." A small smile crossed her face. "Lay your weary head to rest...." Now the volume was loud enough to echo throughout the hallway. "Don't you cry no more!"
 
Samuel just now noticed Neimi apparently shrinking into herself. If he seemed flustered before, now it was kicked into overdrive. He turned to her, concern etched into his face. "Neimi are you alright? Was it something I said? I'm sorry!" He seemed like he wanted to grab her shoulders for a moment, but then reconsidered, which made him look very awkward in his motions. He perked up a little, putting on a small smile. "D-don't mind my ramblings. Weren't we out here to find you a suitable resting place for the coming night? Would you like to continue pursuing that objective?" he asked gently.


-----


Adrian was about two-thirds done with his painting when he started to hear a beautiful melody drift through the hallway. It took him a little time to identify the voice responsible for singing. There was no way it could be her...


Adrian's grin widened as he listened. She had a surprisingly good singing voice; shouldn't judge a book by its cover. "Sounds good!" he projected over his shoulder and into the hallway, "I admit I didn't guess you to be the singing type, but you have a great singing voice!" He hadn't sung in a long time, since his early days in the KGB. Hearing Haiku sing made him feel nostalgic.
 
"Oh...it's nothing...." Neimi sighed. She was foolish to believe that he would ever be interested in her. She was a werecat, something to be feared, not loved. "....maybe I'll try sleeping indoors. They do have a cage in my room, after all. But I might wake everyone up by being loud...."


----


Haiku ignored Adrian's words and launched promptly into another song. "Mama, just killed a man. Put a gun against his head. Pulled my trigger, now he's dead. Mama, life had just begun. But now I've gone and thrown it all away." Haiku stood up and began gesturing dramatically as she sang. "Mama, ooh. Didn't mean to make you cry. If I'm not back again this time tomorrow. Carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters."
 
Samuel seemed genuinely confused, which had the humorous side effect of calming him down. "A cage? Why the devil would they put you in a cage?"


-----


Adrian began matching his brush strokes to the beat of her singing. However, she apparently sped up slightly when she started gesturing. "Oi! Keep the tempo even! It's hard to do this if you rush or lag," he said, oblivious to the fact that she had absolutely no idea what he was doing to need a tempo in the first place.
 
Shepard let out a sigh and let his head fall against his crossed hands


"Young lady, you must understand that I am in a difficult position. I will take whatever help I can get, from wherever I can find it."


His gaze traveled above his hands, directly at the young woman


"I don't mean to press you for time, but I'm going to need an answer. We can offer you sanctuary here, as well as a possible means to restore your memory."
 
Roy stood there for a moment and then headed to his truck. He didn't really know where anything or anyone was so he'd stay where they could find him if they needed. He continued making the potion from earlier.


Shavings of bamboo, a drop of hippo sweat, the tip of a geecko's tail, and dried mandrake for flavor. He began to grind the ingredients in his mortar and pestle before dumping them into a small gold bowl painted with a red star of power. He then began to focus with his hands on either side of the bowl and he transferred power into the potion. He waited for a moment then stood up and plucked a bottle from a shelf and poured the potion into it. He placed it on his shelf in a cubby labeled 'healing' and sat back down.


"I'm probably going to need more bullets." He said to himself and he got out his equipment and began the month long process of making one of his magical bullets.
 
"For when the full moon comes, Samuel." Neimi turned sad eyes on him. "When I turn into a mindless beast and start trying to go on a rampage. I'll be put into a cage during that time period and I won't be allowed to leave until the full moon is over."


----


The singing paused for a moment. "What on earth are you doing that requires me to keep an even tempo for you to go by?" Haiku's voice was filled with confusion.


----


"....yes." Kerza looked at him straight in the eye, though her voice was soft. "I'll help you, as long as you help me." She had no other place to go and no other feasible means of her memory returning. This just might have been her lucky break.
 
Samuel's eyes widened in surprise. "Is...is there no way to control it?" He asked weakly. "Certainly there must be something you can do...some thing WE can do...?" he had seen her use her werecat form in France: while it scared him, he was able to get past the fear because he knew Neimi was still the same person, regardless of her appearance...but if she went berserk...he shuddered slightly at the thought. How long did they have until the next full moon, anyway...?


-----


"Painting," Adrian replied simply. "and...I'm just...about..." he paused as he put the finishing touches on his work. A bit more blue, a shade darker of green, a splash of white... "...DONE!" he shouted triumphantly. "I think it came out rather well." True, his painting was a sight to behold, though he somehow had managed to get just as much paint on himself as the canvas.
 
"There is something we can do. I can be locked up until the full moon is over and no harm will befall anyone." Neimi saw the look in his eyes and quickly looked away. It hurt to see that he was obviously afraid of her, but she couldn't really blame him.


----


Haiku stepped out of her room and began walking down the hallway. "I didn't take you for an artist." She approached the door, but did not enter. It was courtesy in her eyes to wait till she was invited inside. However, the canvas was pointing away from the door and she could not see what he had painted. "What did you paint?"
 
Samuel's brow furrowed. "That's not the solution, that's another problem. I have great difficulty believing that, after eons of civilization, the best society has come up with is monthly imprisonment." He was surprisingly adamant at he moment.


-----


Adrian looked over the canvas to te woman in the doorway. He had a wide smile in his face, to the great surprise of nobody. "Get in here and look for yourself!" He said merrily.
 
A very small and very brief smile broke Shepard's face.


"Very well."


Shepard pushed himself to his feet, leaning on his cane slightly


"Do you have a particular preference of where you would wish to stay?"
 
".....not around scary people, please." Kerza half-smiled. "I have enough nervous issues without dealing with intimidating neighbors."


----


"It's the best we've got right now." Neimi sighed and stopped walking, gazing across the waves. "Even in the colony we all had individual cages for the full moon. It was our way."


----


Haiku walked in hesitantly and rounded around to try to get a good luck at the painting. She studied it intently for a few minutes.
 
Samuel stopped alongside her, biting his tongue. Eventually, though, he couldn't contain his curiosity. "...What is it like? Are you mentally cognizant at all during the full moon? Do you remember what you do and experience once you regain control?"


He was unconsciously drawing on his own resentment of his powers - or as he would say it, his 'curse'. He's a bit jealous of Neimi's power: even though she goes berserk once a month, at least she has control for the rest of the time. Samuel has very little control over his curse, and can never turn it 'off' by his own efforts.


-----


Adrian stood next to her in satisfied silence as she studied his work. "...I hope I captured everyone's likenesses adequately," he mused. "What do you think?"
 
"I become a raging monster who kills without thought and destroys without a care." Neimi's eyes narrowed. "I remember every face of the people that I kill and the lives I destroy." She turned to face away from him, hiding the shame in her eyes.


----


"Looks pretty good to me." Haiku nodded. She studied the image that was supposed to be herself. "You are a good artist. You can manage to even make me look good." There was no sarcasm in her voice, only complete sincerity.
 
Intimidating neighbors . . . well that ruled out pretty much the entirety of his female agents at the moment.


"All right then. We'll set you up in your own room. I'll make a few arrangements before the evening is up. In the meantime, feel free to look around the facility and familiarize yourself. Though it would be more helpful if you asked Haiku to help you."
 
The color drained from Samuel's face as he realized he'd stepped upon a landmine...made of atomic bombs. "Ah...I'm sorry Neimi...I didn't mean to..." he was having great difficulty finding words. He cleared his throat as he gathered his thoughts. Finally he spoke, slowly and carefully...and from personal experience. "Sometimes the most horrible events come to some of the nicest people...including ending the life of another." He was wringing his hands again, his eyes darting around him. He hoped she didn't ask where he got the inspiration for that sentence...


"Neimi...you're one of the nicest people I've ever met. P-Please don't think of yourself a-as a monster."


-----


Adrian opened his mouth but closed it when he realized Haiku was being honest. He studied the woman for a few seconds. "Do you...not see yourself as attractive?" His grin had given way to a somewhat concerned expression, his head cocked as he asked. "What you see on this canvas may appear exaggerated to you, but this is how I remember things. When you look at something I painted, you are peeking into my mind - my memories. You may not agree, but I don't see my style as much different from true-to-life," he said, his face cracking a gentle grin.
 
"....you sound like you know this from experience." An understanding look came onto Neimi's face. "You sound like you think of yourself as a monster as well." She turned back to him, awaiting an answer.


----


"....I've never worried about my appearance. I was the one who trained constantly and Minuet was the one who carried about her appearance." Haiku froze. She had mentioned Minuet's name in the presence of someone she didn't know extremely well.
 
Samuel blinked in surprise, but looked up at Neimi with small smile, his expression equally sad and pained. "...Am I not?" he began softly. "At the very least I cannot, on good conscience, say that I'm a regular human being. A regular human being can experience the world through the tactile stimulation of their hands. I do not have that luxury. These gloves of mine prevent my cursed hands from affecting all that they touch. Before I came here, to the PDA...I had nothing protecting the world from me. My left would heal injury from another but in exchange cause me great discomfort and pain...and to ease my own pain I would have to use my right hand to pass it on to something or someone else. I feel jealousy by simply witnessing a handshake. I can't do that. Not without these gloves robbing me of all sensation." He drew a deep breath and sighed. "I doubt that there is anyone on this island that doesn't have blood on their hands. We aren't here because we're normal. We're here to protect people from that which is not," he muttered. "Including ourselves. In effect, this island is a cage for all of us." He stared at his feet, his feeling of isolation evident on his face.


-----


"...Minuet?" Adrian asked simply, before quickly adding "Nevermind, not my business." He stopped himself for two reasons: the expression on Haiku's face, and the fact that she'd used the word 'was' when referring to this person named Minuet.
 
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Vojta held his breath. He had followed Adrian back to their room so that he could sulk in the shadows and think about how best to approach Haiku to apologize about earlier. When she entered the room he froze up and could do nothing but listen to the conversaton. 'I am in no way ready to face her. She has to still be furious about earlier, but she has no reason to be mad at Adrian. That's probably why she doesn't seem as angry. Maybe if I jus-' His thoughts were cut off as he tried to hide further in when he slipped on the sand that had yet to be cleaned out.


'F***.'


If the loud banging from him falling hadn't made them both aware that he had been here the whole time, he certainly did no better job hiding his mad dash into the shadows. 'Ohnoohnoohnoohnoohno.' Vojta thought to himself. 'This is beyond bad. She's going to find me I'm sure of it.'
 
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Haiku's eyes probably turned red about then when she saw Vojta. "....you....ARE GOING TO DIE!!!!!" She dove at the shadows and barely missed. "Come out, you little coward! I have a score to settle with you!" She kept striding around, looking for Vojta.


----


"At least it's a comfortable cage." Neimi put arms around Samuel, sensing the sadness in his words. "We may both be monsters, but at least we try not to be. You wear gloves to protect other people; I stay in a cage during the full moon. But...." She squeezed him tightly. "At least we're not alone anymore."
 
Blank.


That was Samuel's mind for the next few long seconds. Because of his hands, physical contact of any kind with any one had been mentally ruled out. He'd never so much as shook hands with someone in greeting. Now, he was being embraced by a rather fetching young woman. It was warm and comforting, two things he'd rarely (if ever) experienced before coming here. He hesitantly put his arms around her as he spoke softly. "No...I suppose we aren't," he said with a soft smile.


-----


Adrian, his smile full of amusement, snatched Haiku by the collar just before she lunged at Vojta again. He effortlessly raised her a foot off the air, holding her at arms length, almost like she was a doll. "Whoa, there, Haiku. I'm sure we can sort this out without 'settling scores' or doing anything equally as rash," he said, like a teacher settling a dispute among his children. "Vojta is more than willing to apologize, isn't that right?" he said, eyeing the shadows where Vojta last dove into.
 
Neimi remembered suddenly that Samuel had issues with being touched. "...is this...okay....?" She smiled up at him reassuringly, hoping that it was. It was peaceful here, in someone's arms. It was something she had never really experienced before. In her clan, she was the freaky cat that should be left alone, much less never touched.


----


"An apology....would be nice...." Haiku struggled. "Put me down, you baffoon!" Her glare could have melted ice as she stared him down. "I will not be held up like a mangy cat!" Haiku's cheeks were red at the ridiculous situation was in. This was almost as embarrassing as the sandwich falling on her face, being restrained by Adrian.
 
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