Walk forward, into the world

Title: Walk forward, into the world
Author: Ainzfern
Genre: Ai no Kusabi – Post OVA
Code: Iason/Riki
Rating: NC-17
Parts: WIP - 17/?


“So, tell me,” Katze asked. “What was so urgent that I had to take yet another half-day away from my own business affairs to help you?”

They were sitting in the dealer’s car outside of one of the many fabrication plants that he held an interest in. In the passenger seat beside him, Riki turned to him, smirking slightly. “The fact that you like me?”

Katze returned his smirk. “Try again.”

“Look,” Riki suddenly grew serious. “I know that this plant is one of your financial interests.”

“Of course you do,” Katze dipped into his pocket, extracting his cigarettes and lighting one up with evident pleasure, “I was your boss here for a time, right?”

“Yeah,” Riki glanced out the car window at the hulking grey mass of building beside them, “And I still wonder about that.”

“Oh?”

“Sure.” Riki’s gaze was very direct as his met Katze’s eyes, “I mean, why would you – the man in the Ceres black market – have been sitting in as plant manager in this place?”

“Would you accept that it was the fact that I liked you?”

Riki snorted softly. “Try again.”

“All right,” Katze nodded, almost seeming to brace himself before answering. “It was because Iason asked me to keep an eye on you.”

Riki spent some moments after Katze’s reply just staring down at his hands. “I see,” he murmured eventually.

Katze’s warm hand closed over his shoulder, gripping firmly. “Hey. It’s old soup, man. Don’t chew on it, okay?”

“I know.” Riki lifted his face, setting his chin firmly. “So… the reason we’re here, is that I need a liaison for the ex-Pets.” He smiled sadly, “I might have been a Pet for a while, but I wasn’t born one, I wasn’t made to be one. They won’t trust me, because they have no reason to trust anyone who isn’t one of them. All they’ve ever learned since being abandoned by their owners is that the citizens of Midas are only capable of treating them like dirt. And, once we start bringing them in, they’re gonna need someone that they can trust to tell them that everything is going to be okay. Only another Pet will be able to do that. And I need you here, because I don’t want any hassles. I need you here because the plant manager will know you. Because it’s your face that is going to open the door for me.”

Katze considered it for a moment, blowing a stream of smoke at the windscreen of the car. “Okay,” he nodded at Riki. “Okay, I can accept that there’s merit in that.”

“Good.”

“So,” Katze looked at him interestedly, “Exactly which ex-Pet is on your mind?”

Riki took a deep breath. “Enif.”

“You’re shitting me.”

“I’m serious.”

Katze stared doubtfully at him. “Are you sure you want him, Riki?”

“Yeah. Maybe,” Riki shrugged sharply, “I’ll have to talk to him first to be sure.”

“Why? Why him?”

“Mainly because of the last time that I saw him,” Riki answered, his expression growing pensive.

Katze snorted softly. “The last time we saw him, if I recall, he was getting the crap beat out of him.”

“But that’s just it, Katze,” Riki shifted in his seat, looking into Katze’s eyes, “He was rebelling. Showing anger, causing trouble.” He grinned suddenly. “That takes guts, man. That takes spirit.”

Katze’s grin slowly bloomed to match Riki’s. “I get you.”

“So, if he’s still shaking ‘em up in there, it means that they haven’t broken him.” Riki spread his hands in a reasoning gesture, “As I said, I need someone to smooth the transition for the ex-Pets. Someone who is obviously one of them, but who is still strong enough to help them understand and, maybe, not be so frightened.” His face grew vey somber as held the red-head’s gaze. “And they are going to be frightened, Katze.”

“All right,” Katze flicked his cigarette out the window and opened the driver’s side door. “You’ve convinced me. Let’s do this thing.”

Grinning again, Riki climbed out of the car and fell into step behind the ex-Furniture as Katze strode, head high and expression slightly superior, the appropriate persona already falling seamlessly into place, towards the hulking fabrication plant looming up in front of them.


*****


It was the plant manager, Karden Maxx, who led them down to the fabrication levels. A huge man with gunmetal gray hair and enormous calloused hands, he kept shooting puzzled looks in Riki’s direction as if he recognized him but couldn’t quite place him, even after Katze had firmly, even somewhat tersely, introduced Riki as one of his own Black Market associates.

“Well, yeah, the one you want to talk to is here, all right,” he told them, leading them toward the service lift that would take them to the lower levels of the plant, “But, fuck if I know what good he’s gonna do ya’.” Maxx grunted a disgusted sound in the back of his throat, “Fuckin’ Pets… too dumb to take directions worth a damn and that one’s the worst.”

“Oh?” Keeping his voice mildly interested; taking a silent cue from Katze’s almost haughtily distant expression, Riki maintained a cool and calm outward appearance, even though Maxx’s entire tone, his entire attitude, grated along Riki’s nerves like a wire brush. It was more than just offense he felt. It was deeper than that, on a fundamental level.

It so easily could have been him. Riki would never forget that.

It so easily could have been him…

“Oh hell, yeah,” Maxx continued obliviously, “Fuckin’ dumb turd just keeps causing trouble. I’ll tell ya’, if I was actually payin’ him, I’d have fired his ass by now.” He shrugged, shaking his head, “And it doesn’t seem to matter how many times my Foreman and his crew kick the shit outta him, he just doesn’t learn.”

Riki pressed his lips together tightly.

“What kind of trouble are you talking about here, Karden?” Katze asked him. .

“Hah! Just about anything you can name,” Maxx snorted grossly, “I mean… well, even for a dumbass his work’s not bad,” he allowed grudgingly, “When the fucker works, that is. But he’s got a mighty big chip on his shoulder. Keeps trying to take off all the time. Gets out sometimes, too,” He vented a vicious little chuckle. “Last time, it took nearly four days for him to drag his sorry ass back here, all covered in bruises and God knows what else. I kept telling him – ain’t a soul out there gives a shit about him. Ain’t nowhere for him to go to.” He shook his head again, almost sadly. “And y’know – even after I let him back in, got him cleaned up, he still gives attitude. And... get this one… he sees himself as a little savior for his Pet buddies on the floor. Sticks his nose in practically every time one of ‘em fucks up, and the Foreman ends up giving him a seein’ to, instead.”

Behind the man’s stiff and offended back, Riki met Katze’s eyes, smiling slightly as the ex-Furniture nodded and winked at him.

So, Enif had become the kind of man who kept taking the heat for his friends? Riki faced forward again as the lift door opened onto their destination.

Sounded like Enif was exactly what he was looking for.

“So,” Maxx stepped out of the lift and turned to face Riki and Katze, “D’you want to have a word with the Foreman first?”

“No,” Riki said firmly, his face hardening up like stone. “We only need to speak with Enif at this point.”

Frowning, his expression a peculiar mix of curiosity and unease, the big man tilted his head. “What the hell did he do, anyway?” he asked softly, “Must’ve been somethin’ pretty damn bad to get you two fella’s down here after him.” He nodded at Katze, “Especially you.”

Looking at him, Riki composed his face into a serious, even somber, expression. “Mr. Maxx,” he said gravely, “I am not at liberty to discuss that with you. But what I can tell you is that, within the next two days, the private security forces of the Tanagura Syndicate leader, Iason Mink, will be arriving here to take Enif, and any other ex-Pets that you have, into immediate custody. I would advise you, in the strongest possible terms, not to hinder them in that action.”

Maxx stared narrowly at Riki for a moment, almost as if he was trying to gauge if the young man had meant what he had just said. Apparently deciding that he did, he whistled softly and turned his suddenly wide eyes towards Katze. “He serious about that, Katze?”

Utterly poker-faced, Katze nodded grimly. “Every word, Karden,” he answered with an ominous tone to his voice. “Every single word.”

“Shit,” Maxx’s face paled slightly as he looked back at Riki. “So you, uh… you’re on the Elite’s payroll, huh?” His voice had suddenly taken on an undeniably diffident and respectful note at the thought that he was obviously dealing with a man who ‘facilitated’ solutions for the Elites.

Riki simply continued to stare levelly at him in silence.

“Right,” Maxx cleared his throat, shifting his feet awkwardly. “Right. Well... he’s right down there.” He pointed down between the rows of workers laboring at various workstations towards a young man operating a hydraulic press near the far wall of the plant floor.

A young man Riki recognized, even at this distance.

“So he is,” he murmured, absently noting that Maxx looked even more uncomfortable.

“We won’t actually need your help from this point, Karden,” Katze told the sweating plant manager firmly. “We’ll take it from here.”

Riki had to struggle not to snicker in amusement as the hulking man literally fled back into the lift.

Turning back to face the workers once more, Riki drew in a deep breath and stepped forward, mentally bracing himself to meet a moment from his past and perhaps, just perhaps, re-write it by offering the chance of a future.

TBC…