Working for Three

[gotmilk]

"Welcome to the Ichiraku Ramen Shop!" she was told to say with a wide smile as always at her new job. It was an alright job, better than the ones that she's had recently at least. Hiro's hair was tied up to keep it away from her eyes and she wore her school uniform under a lavender colored apron.
She didn't need help smiling and welcoming customers of course, Hiro has always been one to smile much and laugh happily. Just like her mother. Her mother, of whom she's always looked up to even now, was a real woman. The role model of girls everwhere. A true definition of an artist. Her hero.

This job, however, was somewhat important to her. It supported her family and helped pay for her brother's college so it was definately worth to work hard and keep it. The ramen aroma didn't bother her at all, being that Hiro had gotten use to it pretty quickly. She also got along with people easily which helped when dealing with customers that might be tough. It wouldn't be the first time though.

Hiro still recalls times when people are extremely picky about their order or are impatient, often grumbling about how hungry they are or yelling angrily at however was trying to serve them. This is when her natural patience and stress relieving personality comes in. This is also one of the reasons she was hired in the shop by the old man. To deal with these kinds of people.

Today wasn't going to be like any other day, however. She was sure of it. Hiro could feel a tingling sensation in her spin that made her believe that something remarkable or life changing may happen on this day. Though it was highly impossible, she's tried to force herself to believe it instead of facing the usual disappointment as always. But, she digresses.

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

It was one of the things she hated about Tokyo. The crowded places. Everywhere she went there was someone there! At school, at home, at the park, at the mall, in the restroom! She never got any privacy! Never! N-E-V-E-R. Maybe she was being overdramatic. Maybe she wasn`t. She didn`t know, and she didn`t care. She just wanted to get away from the drama that was called life. But no. Being the daughter of the Head of the Hyuuga clan meant, no privacy, no down time, no day dreaming, and nothing ordinary ever happening! Everyone thought she was a brat! But didn`t they know, it was just how she was. She was rude. She was sarcastic. She was blunt. But that was who she was.

Hanabi growled as she punched the wall. She was so frustrated! No one`d leave her alone. People would just come out of nowhere and ask if they knew her from somewhere. Probably from a magazine or on TV. But she`d always give the same answer.

"Get out of my face you moron!"

Yeah. That`s what she had always said. And she wasn`t planning on stopping either. Not until they`d finally get it through their thick skulls. She wanted to be alone! Not for a few minutes! For days! Weeks! Years! It didn`t matter how long they stayed away from her, just as long as they didn`t get anywhere near her.

She stopped walking along the street. An aroma filled her nostrils. She then realized how starved she was. Ramen. She had NEVER aten ramen before. But... maybe.... just maybe she`d give it a try. So Hanabi walked into the ramen bar. It was a small place. But it was homey and comfortable. Something she`d thought she`d never feel in a million years. Her mansion wasn`t homey or anything like this. It was big, dark, and somewhat lonely. Being the runt of the family wasn`t much help either.

Sadly she hadn`t brought any money... or so she thought. As she turned around and put her hand in her pocket, she felt something cold and hard. She lifted up her hand. Of course a Hyuuga never leaves home without money. It would be ridiculous if they did. Of course this certain Hyuuga would`ve forgotten that she had left some money in her pocket, with all the things she had been thinking about.

Hanabi sighed and turned around. She slapped the money on the counter and laid her head down. She closed her eyes and sighed.

Today... was going to be a long day.

[gotmilk]

Lunch time.....

Almost her favorite time of the day. Hiro smiled cheerfully as she prepared her own lunch; BBQ ramen with all sorts of ingrediants in it. She was never really much of a simple person. But fFor the first time ever, she was hungry at work. And, just her luck, for the first time ever; she left her bento box at home. She sighed a little bit, Hiro did that alot. But her mother would always come to her at lunch time and drop it off for her, grinning widely. Hiro still have times when she daydreams about those days. Her smiling while holding up a box wrapped with a blue polka dotted cloth. The smell always got through though...ALWAYS, she recalled.

When the bell ringed signaling someone was coming through the shop door, Hiro's ears perked up as she smiled widely. "Mother?"

Her smile dropped like a lead in vacuumed space, seeing that it was only one of many customers. Not that it was bad, but she only had high hopes that her mom would appear as always. Sighing again, she scolded herself for forgeting that her mother had long passed away and leaned her chin on her palm. She picked up the chopsticks and snapped them in half with a half hearted, "Welcome to the Ichiraku Ramen Shop..."

This was when she fully noticed the customer who had just walked in. A young girl, only a few years younger than Hiro herself, had seated herself on a seat and laid her head down on the counter while slapping down some money for food. She seemed to be having a bad and long day, she thought. Hiro heard the girl sigh and leaned over to rest her chin on her hand again in front of the customer. "You and me both." Hiro sighed a little in deppression.

It was a bit odd for her to be like this. Usually, her personality would never let herself be down or deppressed. It just wasn't her. But lately, she's been a little disappointed. Hiro's schoolwork was going on like normal, so that wasn't a problem for her. Her jobs are still paying her fully so that wasn't much of a trouble either. It was her master, Mikomi. He was young and skillful at music and art, but was extremely strict and seemed never pleased with whatever she did.
For a while now, Hiro's been working extra hard to please Mikomi so he would make her his apprentice. But so far, no luck. All he's been focused about was some mysterious student of his that he always talks about. How much skill that person has, how they put so much effort and heart into their works of art. It seemed such a person would never exist. The only person who fit those categories was her mother but Mikomi was much too young for that. Hiro sighed again. It seems like forever since her master had last talked to her.

Her stomach growled under her apron. Hiro almost forgot that it was lunch time and she still hasn't eaten. She looked towards her specially made ramen and then towards the girl who looked rather beaten. She knew of course, her life wasn't so bad. Most people had it worse than her. So she shouldn't really talk. Hiro grabbed the bowl of ramen, careful not to spill a drop and placed it in front of the girl.

"Here. I think you could use this more than I do. It won't completely heal whatever it is you've got, but it will help." She said, giving her a tired smile. If she couldn't make at least one person's day better everyday, then her life wasn't worth living she always thought. There are worse things than what she's experianced so far. This girl probably had it bad. Hiro stood up straight and readjusted her apron and hair to look official again. Well, sort of.

"Its on the house." Hiro stated pushing the girl's money towards her gently before turning around and going back into the kitchen to make herself a quick snack.

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

The sound of a moving object caught Hanabi`s attention. Her eyes slowly moved up. There was a girl standing there in an apron. It looked like she worked there. The bowl was now in front of her face. She wanted to say,"I don`t want your pity! I just want to be left alone...". But no. Being taught the polite and nice ways of her family she just pushed the bowl back and stared at the girl. "Look. I don`t need your pity. It`d make me feel better if I`d pay for my own food." Hanabi said in a strained voice. She was trying to be... not like herself for once. Which was really hard, since if she couldn`t be herself... then what was she being?

The thought gave her a migraine. Hanabi grunted and pushed her money toward the girl. She didn`t want anything that made herself feel like she was the center of attention. She wanted something that made her feel like a normal person. She knew being normal wasn`t what it looked liked, but it was worth it. Her sister then flashed through her mind. Was this what she wanted? To be normal? Was this the reason why she was so timid?

No.

It was probably father. He always pressured them into being like 'ladies'. The thought angered her. She wanted to punch something. Kill something even. Her father was the reason why they were living like this. It wasn`t fair! Living by these stupid rules, every freakin day! She was sick of it. Absolutely sick of it. She was going to do something about this. She was going to teach her father a lesson. She was going to run away.

The thought had never appeared in her mind before. But now, thinking of it, it wasn`t such a bad idea. The only problem was sneaking out and finding a place to hide out for a few days. Knowing her father he`d probably send out a whole army of police men to find her. Not that he was worried about her, because he didn`t want his reputation to get destroyed. By not keeping an eye out for his own daughter.

The thought would`ve made her smile if she weren`t so serioud about what she was thinking. She wanted to do this. This was for her. It was her time to show people that she wasn`t just a brat, she was a genius. She hadn`t skipped grades for nothing. Of course she`d need to get a disguise. A wig maybe. A whole new wardrobe. Some make up.

Hanabi was so busy plotting her escape she had forgotten that the bowl of ramen in front of her was there and that she wasn`t the only in the area. A small smile creeped onto her face. Maybe she could get someone to help her. Maybe she could find a friend. No. She didn`t have any friends. Hinata might think she did, but she only hung out with does bakas because she didn`t want to be caught alone. The smile quickly disappeared. There would be a lot of planning. She`d have to be somewhere they`d least expect her to be.

But where?

Hanabi didn`t know. Then she remembered where exactly she was. She looked up and found another plan. Maybe coming into the ramen bar was a good thing. Hanabi licked her lips and smiled politely. "Help me run away...please?" Hanabi asked. She knew it was a strange thing to ask, but it was worth a try.

Wasn`t it?

[gotmilk]

Looking over her shoulder, Hiro was a bit intruiged by the girl's behavior. She didn't accept free food like most other's did. Not even ramen from the Ichiraku too. What an odd personality...or she could just want to pay her own way. That works too. Still, Hiro had to admit, she was pitying her and herself. It never even occured to her that someone would be strong enough to reject any pity or any comfort. Well, if it made her feel better. She took the money gently and quietly so it wouldn't disturb the quietness of the shop. "Sorry..." Hiro apologized with a bit of a flustered face.

There was an odd silence after that. It wasn't as odd as it was awkward though. She had taken the time to fix her own lunch during the quiet time though. There weren't as many ingrediants in the refridgerator as before, but luckily, there was enough for her to fix herself some quick onii-giri. She was lucky that it was easy to eat and quick to make as well. Her mind was so fixed on things, there was no way Hiro would be able to concentrate on anything for a while. She took off her apron and set it aside as she sat at a small table behind the counter and started chewing the rice while in deep thought. Hiro felt that she should get her priorities straight. Family and friends were on the top of the list for sure. Next came job, and then dream. It seemed straight enough for her. Then why did it seem so complicated all of a sudden?

Hiro looked back to the girl to see how she was doing. She seemed pretty deep in thought as well and had a smile creeping onto her face. Normally, this would mean as a sign of happiness or cheerful thoughts. Not this time it didn't. Her smile resembled that of a devious but ingenious plan about to unfold. And she was looking at her.

She pounded on her chest slightly when Hiro started choking at the customer's straightforward and awkward question, "Help me run away...please?" She was a bit taken back by it. It was all so sudden and she was still young. Younger than Hiro even. It would definately not be easy to run away nowadays.

What was she thinking? Kids should not be running away from home! "Ano, what? Help you run away?" The only reason a child should run away from a home and their loving parents is if they are not satisfied with things going on. But there should still be some reasoning in between. Running away is rationalizing it a bit. Hiro stared into the distance as she finished eating. Wiping away the last of the rice, she stood up and walked over to the girl bringing the chair along with. She sat down and leaned foward ready to listen intently.

This was what her mother use to do all the time and this is what she will do as well. Sit down, look them straight in the eyes and ask them: "Anything you want to talk about?"

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

Hanabi scowled. "No. I just want to get away from... my family for a while."She replied. She didn`t want to go into specifics. She just needed time away from her father. To her it seemed like the perfect solution. The perfect plan. But things are never perfect. She wanted, no needed to do this. She had to get away some how. She had to get away from her father. There was no way she was going to go by his rules anymore. No freakin way. Her eyes scanned the area. Good. No one was there.

Hanabi stood up."Look, there are rules, and sometimes you have to break does rules to make a right. I know some people say that 2 wrongs don`t make a right, but this is different."Hanabi said boldly. She didn`t care if the girl was older then her. In fact Hanabi didn`t care about many things. She may be a spoiled brat, but she was mature, everyone who was around her knew that. Hinata knew that, father knew that[[After she had taken an IQ test of course]], Neji knew that. Everyone. She wondered what Hinata`s reaction would be. She`d probably panicing. Even though Hanabi had treated her elder sister poorly, Hinata still showed some kind of care and understanding for Hanabi.

When Hanabi had thought of it, it made her feel quilty. Like she wanted to take away all those rude and hurtful comments that she`d made. This was also for her sister. For Hinata to take a break from Hanabi herself. She might not seem like it, but she did truly care for her family, to a certain level of course.

She looked at the girl who seemed like she had also a rough past. But, right now she didn`t want to talk about each other. She needed a plan. She could go live with someone. Her father didn`t know Hanabi had any friends at all. But that was because Hanabi didn`t have any friends. In fact she was bullied on a daily basis. Not like Hanabi cared. At least she was noticed. Though she didn`t want to be noticed that way...

Great. Just great. Maybe she should`ve aten her food. Now it was cold. Hanabi glared at the ground. She broke her chopsticks apart. She knew it was a little to late, but she said it anyways.

"Itadakimasu."

She quickly downed dow her ramen and put her chopstick down. She was now dabbing her mouth with a napkin and staring at the girl. Her name was still unknown, so Hanabi decided to introduce herself first. "Hyuuga Hanabi."Hanabi introduced boredly. Her eyes wondered to the counter. She, for some ridiculous reason, was now observing it. She was noticing strange things like, how one spot was lighter the the other. though it had happened before. Usuaully during dinner parties and such.

She wondered how the girl would react to her last name. It was quite famous. It would surprise her if she didn`t know of her.

[gotmilk]

As she listened, Hiro had closed her eyes and imagined what it would be like to live in her shoes. She didn't give much of a description for her, so it must have been something awful. As the silence came again, a small but noticeable smile plastered itself onto her face. She was eating her food. It made her happy for some reason.

They were different, she'll give it that. Yet, they were similar in some way. Hiro couldn't figure out why. Their situations were almost completely different but somehow, there was some connection in it. Hiro pushed the thought to the side and continued sitting quietly and embracing the quietness that came. She never really minded. Loud music often made it hard for her to concentrate on what she was doing so she was naturally a more solitary, peaceful person.

"Business is slow today..." Hiro thought the obvious, eyeing the almost empty resteraunt save for her only customer. She still had to know what comes first, she remembered. Her family of course. It'd make her life alot easier if her good-for-nothing father would just get off the couch and get a simple job. Maybe then they'd be able to live in a nicer, less cramped house and Heiji (her brother) could finally go to college.

She still remembers. Heiji had dreams of becoming a life saving doctor. He was so intent on his dream ever since their mother died of sickness. He worked the hardest out of everyone to recieve the best grades but in the end, they didn't have enough money to send him to college or become a doctor. It was a sad day when they found out though. He's always been a good, hard worker and he never asked for anything in return. The one thing that Heiji had wanted, he had it taken away.

'Its okay, Hiro...' he had assured her that day, his voice serene like velvet. He sounded calm and unquivering, but she knew he was really sad on the inside. He didn't look disappointed or anything, only that he accepted that he wasn't meant to become a doctor anyways. Hiro, on the other hand, didn't hide her sadness. She felt sad that her brother couldn't have the only thing he ever asked for. She felt bad that she couldn't do anything to help since she was still too young to get a job. For some reason, she was always the one feeling lousy for another person. It had always been that way ever since.

That was one of her dreams. Hiro wasn't about to ask for it. She was prepared to earn it. So when that day comes when Heiji gets certified to become a doctor, she would be standing off to the side smiling and thinking 'You earned it'. But it was still a way to go. Hiro's barely got a fourth of the money saved up currently because she still has to support the entire family. And she's worked so hard too...

"Hyuuga Hanabi."

The voice pulled her out of her thoughts as she finally noticed this was the part where she introduced herself. "Ah, um, Yukime Hiro. I'm pleased to meet you." Hiro said standing up and bowing like she always did. Emperor to beggar, they all recieved the same greeting fron her. Something intruiging caught her eye though. It was HER eyes. Light pupil-less eyes, almost lavender. A soft smile curled onto Hiro's lips as she sat back down.

"You have very pretty eyes, Hanabi-san."

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

Why has Hiro asked that so suddenly? It confused her to no end. So Hanabi just nodded and crossed her arms. "Arigato..."Hanabi said in a confused tone. No one had ever commented on her eyes. Usually people would stare and ask,"What the heck happened to you? Are you blind or something?" It would only lead to her replying,"Get out of my face you moron!" Of course she was right. Who ever asked about her eyes like that were morons. To actually come up to a person for no reason but to ask such a stupid question like that was either a baka, or a BIG baka.

"So, what is your answer... Yukime-san."Hanabi said formaly. She was used to formalities, and wouldn`t call someone by their first name until they had earned her trust. Which is a rare sight.A very rare sight indeed.

Her instantly went behind herself. She had heard small foot steps. She didn`t know why she was so nervous. She just had a bad feeling. As a matter of fact, she had that feeling when she had left the mansion. Like someone was stalking her. But of course it wasn`t anything new, they`d ask her questions on why the Hyuuga`s heir had decided to work at a book store. Hanabi had always ignored them and continued. But this feeling was different. Like someone was out to kill her or something.

Hanabi breathed in and shook the thoughts away. It was just another reason to get away from her family. She`d cause them danger. Even if she didn`t seem like she cared, she did. She cared deeply about her family, even if she wished that they could just leave her alone. She still cared.

Another thing to add to her list of annoyances. She had learned a very important lesson. Never think to much in one day, it`ll only cause you to have a headache. Hanabi closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. If this girl was willing to help her out she could run away successfully. It`d only be a couple of days really. Maybe just a week. Hiding out at someone`s house.

She once again heard the foot steps. Then a kunai flew pass herself. [[This is SO going to be like an adveture. If you don`t mind, I`d like to add some danger into this thread.]] There was a note on it. She touched her cheek. It was small, but deep cut. She`d need to maybe get stitches. Blood was flowing out of the wound. Hanabi bit her lip angrily. Who dared disturb her? Who dared wound her in anyway?

They would definately pay. Hanabi ripped the note away from the kunai. It read:

gIvE Me thE 50,000 RYoU UnLESs YoU WAnT tO DiE. teLL THe cOpS ANd IlL cUT YOuR THRoaT.

The only solution to this dillema was to go to father. But she wasn`t willing to go ask her father for money. So Hanabi looked to the girl for an answer.

It sent shivers down her spine. She didn`t have any ryou.

[gotmilk]

She disliked disappointing people. Scratch that, she HATED it. It made her feel as though all she could do is bother people all the time. But there was a limit to how far you could go until you do the completely wrong thing. During this time, it was either a win-win or lose situation for her.

If Hiro chose to help Hanabi, then she would get what she wanted and successfully run away. But if she did, people would be franticly searching for her and trouble would stir. They'd be on the run for quite a while until she chooses to go back home. On the other hand, she could refuse to help so that everyone doesn't get troubled with finding her. But Hanabi would be angry and/or sad and have to put up with her life continiously.

A swish of air blew past Hiro of which she shrugged off as the wind. Her eyes widened when she saw blood trickle down the young girl's face and almost instantly panicked. "H-Hanabi-san! What happened to your face?! I-I'll go get a bandage!" Then, she noticed that something had cut off a few strands of her hair. She looked back to see what it was in curiosity and saw some kind of weapon she never knew existed. There was a note attached to it but she hesitated reading it. The look on Hanabi's face when she read the note only assured her that it definately wasn't a love note...

"F-F-F-Fifty thousand Ryou?!" Hiro exclaimed when she peeked onto the note. She franticly reached into her pocket and counted all the moeny she had currently. The look on her face also told Hiro thought that she didn't have that much money. "I have 150 ryou right now and another 1900 ryou in my savings. So that makes a total of 2050. Still short!" she counted as quick as she could.

"What do we do?!" she asked, trying her hardest to keep her voice volume under control but finding it more difficult than expected. Hiro placed the money on the counter but kept pacing around nervously. She couldn't sit. She couldn't relax. It was so suffering! Sitting down in the chair to try and calm down, Hiro closed her eyes but she knew and felt herself quivering anxiously.

Something like this was way far out of her league. She wanted to live an average, happy life with her family with nothing sooo dangerous happening. That's all she asked for. And what happens? A ransom note for 50,000 ryou appeared with a threat for a young girl. Why, Kami?

Taking deep breathes to calm herself down, Hiro was finally able to talk with quivering as much. "I think this is where the 'running away' plan commences..."

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

She wiped the blood away and took hold of the kunai. Maybe it`d become useful later. Hanabi put the kunai in a pocket and looked at the frantic Hiro. It had seemed like she had never been through this before. Hanabi looked over the note once again. They had cut out letters from magazines and had glued it. Hanabi`s eyes narrowed. No calling the police. No going back home, she`d only cause danger to her family. The only thing left to do was...

"I think this is where the 'running away' plan commences..."

Hanabi looked at the girl. She was going to help her afterall. "Arigato... Yukima-san." Hanabi thanked awkwardly. She wasn`t used to thanking people. She was used to smirking and saying," I knew you`d come along." But she was trying not to be herself. She re going to start all over. She picked up the note and pushed it into her other pocket.

Ok. She`d need a disguise first. "Yukime-san, I think it`s time to go shopping." Hanabi said with a slight smile.

[[Hehehe It`s short. I didn`t want you to write a long post or anything ^^]]

[gotmilk]

[Thank you so much!]

Shopping...

Hiro stared a little dumbfoundedly put a finger to the bottom of her lip in confusion. Shopping...she's never actually done such a thing before. Usually, her brother would be the one who went out and shopped for her clothes. (She just bought and cooked the food...) This 'shopping' was, she heard, an enjoyable activity for a young girl. Buying actual girl clothes, make up, jewelry, shoes. It seemed so expensive. Maybe girls enjoyed spending money?

On the other hand, maybe Hiro could use a little girl help. All her clothes were messy with paint and pastel or just oversized. And she was alright with that too. It was comfortable and efficiant and she thought it looked okay. Her school uniform, though, was probably the girliest clothing she had. Sweater and skirt. It was pretty, but it looked really plain on her. She looked down at the money on the counter in worry. Hiro would rather assure Hanabi's safety than take the money to spend on a disguise. But she didn't have much with her. Not even half of what the ransom note held for. She took a deep breath and nodded her head before turning back to inform the Ichiraku ramen shop owner. Her shift was over anyways.

[Hyuuga Hanabi]

[[No problem ^^ Do you want to continue this at the mall?]]

Hanabi stuck her hands into her pockets and sighed. She wanted to get going right now. But she had to wait. If she wanted to get things right, she`d need to be patient, nice. Which is just the opposite of how she usually acted.She touched her wound. It wasn`t bleeding anymore. Hanabi dug into her pocket and pulled out a bandaid.

As she finished putting the bandaid on she fingered the kunai. It was sharp. She`d need to practice using it. Hanabi took the kunai out and held it in an up position. It seemed to go better if you swung at a person from the left. She wasn`t used to holding such a thing. But is she switched it, and put it in the down position she could swing to both sides.

It interested her. That such a weapon, had to be held in a certain position so it could be used correctly. The swish of the wind, feel of the heavy weight on her hand. It felt like it belonged there. Hanabi sighed and sat on a stool as she waited for Hiro.