Witch Hunter Robin

Fire and Rain

Chapter II - Adjusting to Change

Rated : PG-13 for Mild Violence, Mild Profanity, and Mature Content

Summary : After the bout with Nobunaga, the STN-J is under review from Solomon Agent Saunders and his deputy, David Rica, but is there more to Rica than meets the eye? And what about Robin and Michael's continuing romance?

Disclaimer : I do not own Witch Hunter Robin® or any characters. They are registered Trade Mark™ of Sunrise® and now apparently Sci-Fi™. If I owned WHR it wouldn't have just been 26 episodes/

Nor do I own the song Fire and Rain ; I just borrowed its title.

Storyline, Plot, Joe Saunders©, and David Rica© are all my property.

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Pain boiled up in Sakaki's legs as he tried his best to walk along the narrow platform. He had to keep his arms steadied on both arm railings and walk across, but it wasn't that easy. Recovering was a hard business, he knew that.

Sakaki had been stabbed, stabbed with a six inch bowie knife in his waist. Kita Nobunaga had been the stabber, and now he was stuck with the incredibly long and painful process of moving again.

Apparently the shock from being stabbed was still in effect, because Sakaki couldn't walk: hence the psychical therapy. He had always loved Gym class when he was just a boy, but now he hated doing the exercises the nurses gave him. He felt so . . . helpless. He hated the feeling of helplessness. He wanted to go somewhere, anywhere. He just wanted to take another road. Find a hiding place. Find a place to disappear from his world now.

It wasn't because of the pain, the deep searing pain that he felt in his body. It was the deeper, hotter pain that he felt down in his heart whenever he remembered what had happened. It was the pain of knowing he failed Amon and Robin.

But most of all the pain of knowing what happened. He had been there; he had been there to protect Karasuma and Doujima. They were in a hospital, they couldn't protect themselves. They needed him. And he had failed. If Amon hadn't been there, if Amon hadn't been ready, if Amon wasn't so damn good at his job then three witch hunters would have died that night, and Nobunaga may never have been stopped.

With a sigh the weight of his heart seamed to become almost unbearable and he dropped from the railings and back onto the floor. Suddenly he heard footsteps walking to his side, the nurse, no, it was someone else. The nurse would have ran after him, this person was walking.

“Sakaki.”

Sakaki shifted his weight and looked up at Robin's worried face. He hadn't heard her come in, but he wasn't surprised. She had come to visit him before. Part of him still felt guilty that she was being so nice to him after he had shot her, but he didn't dare bring that back up again, he knew she'd only tell him the same thing she had before.

“Yeah, I'm okay Robin.” He lied, trying to get to his feet.

”Those things suck, eh?”

Sakaki turned his head to see Doujima sitting on a chair in the end of the room, a magazine in her hand.

”Are you too lazy to even come over when someone needs help?”

“You just said you were fine.” Doujima laughed.

Sakaki sighed and, with some help from Robin, managed to stand up once more and hold onto the railings. Robin sighed and looked hesitant to move, in case he should fall again, but Sakaki wasn't going anywhere. Not yet.

“So is this the one who refuses to come into work?”

Sakaki looked over up at the door to see an American man in a navy STN jacket. He wore dark sunglasses and a smug smile. Sakaki didn't know who he was, but he didn't like him.

“He was stabbed.” Robin said, Sakaki turned and saw angry passion burning in her eyes. Whether it was because she was sticking up for him, or because she hated the American man with the southern accent, he didn't know.

“And in Japan that's a fitting excuse?” David Rica said with his always smug smile on his face. Sakaki opened his mouth to speak but Doujima beat him to it. Instead of Robin's anger filled explanation, or the four letter words that had been floating around on the tip of the rookie's tongue. Doujima had stood up and slapped David Rica across his face so hard that it left a large, red hand print.

“He was stabbed you stupid son of a bitch!”

Robin and Sakaki were taken aback by Doujima's sudden fury and they both stepped back into the railing behind them.

David Rica stood, his head tilted to the left, sunglasses lopsided over his ears and eyes and the smug grin on his face was gone. He reached out and grabbed Doujima's wrist and anger seamed to surge from his entire body.

”Now I hope you know you just lost your job.” Rica spat violently. Doujima merely laughed. She'd heard that threat before from Kosaka, and yet, as anyone knows, she had connections.

Rica turned around and left the hospital room, only to stop and stick his head back inside. “And you, boy, if you're not back on the active roster by next week you can join her!”

When Rica had vanished Doujima gave a great huff and walked over to the two younger STN members with her arms crossed.

”I hate that man.” She said bitterly. “I really, really hate him.”

“Who is he?” Sakaki asked, though it was obvious he would still hate the man no matter what the answer was.

”A Solomon review agent.” Robin said quietly, her face still flushed from watching the outbreak of Doujima's anger.

“What!?” Sakaki yelled and he nearly fell over onto the blue mat beneath them once more, but both girls grabbed one of his arms. “Doujima! You can't slap a Solomon review agent!”

“Relax.” Doujima said, ruffling Sakaki's hair. “Number one, I can get away with most anything, remember?”

“Well I can't.” Sakaki mumbled.

”And number two.” She continued ignoring him. “There's another Solomon agent here, that guy's boss. So don't worry.”

“I guess . . .” Sakaki mumbled quietly.

”Robin!”

Michael's voice filled the room from the small communication device. Robin brought it up to her face.

“Michael, what's the matter?”

”We've got a serious emergency! Are you still going to visit Sakaki?”

”We're here now.” Robin asked. “What is the emergency?”

”Suicidal man on the roof.” Michael said.

”What, this roof?” Doujima blinked. She ran to the window and looked out onto the hospital grounds, and sure enough several police and firemen were parked on the street around the hospital, and a large crowd had gathered.

“Michael.” Sakaki asked, puzzled. “What does a suicidal man have to do with us?”

”He's a witch, what do you think?” Michael shouted back. “Robin, look, you gotta stop him from jumping. If he does we're in a lot of trouble.”

Robin blinked. “Why? What will happen?” She hadn't meant it like that. She thought suicide was a horrible thing, but she wondered what made this so urgent.

”He won't die.” Michael's voice said bitterly. “He doesn't know what he is, but he knows he has powers. Robin, if that man jumps he's going to survive it without a scratch, his powers will protect him, and if they do that a whole lot of people are going to be curious about it. Some of them may even try to re-create his stunt.”

----

Robin and Doujima ran from the room, leaving Sakaki behind. He wanted to come along, but both of them had strictly forbid it. Running up the hallways they used the elevator to get to the top floor and finally found the stairs leading up to the roof.

”Hold it!” A police officer stood at the door and shook his head. “No one gets by.”

”STN-J.” Doujima said.

”What?” The cop blinked confused.

”Us, we're with the STN-J.”

The cop quirked his brows. “Even if you are, what does the STN-J have to do with a suicide?”

Doujima narrowed her eyes and began to speak, but Robin had beaten her to it this time.

”Sir, if it means a man's life what do you care who we are and what authority we have?”

The cop blinked and began to say something that sounded like “No” but Robin continued to speak and cut him off.

”Please, rules and regulations can wait, a human life is so much more important.”

Somehow the way the reddish-blonde haired girl spoke those words made the officer realize she was right and he stepped aside. Doujima was impressed, very impressed. She made a mental note to ask Robin how to sound so sincere later. Then again Robin really was that sincere.

The man on the edge of the roof turned around and looked at the two young women who had appeared from the doorway.

”Stay back or I'll jump.”

”Why?” Robin asked. “Why do you want to do this?”

“You won't understand.” The man said, and in his voice was real fear. “You won't understand.”

Robin took a timid step forward. “Is it because of your powers?”

The man's eyes widened and he moved closer to the edge, causing a nervous gasp from the crowd below. “How do you.” The man began with terror in his voice. “How do you know?”

Robin took another step forward and gently smiled. “It's okay.”

“No it's not!” The man screamed. “I'm a freak!”

Robin shook her head. “No, it's more normal than you think.”

The man looked even more afraid of this. “C-can you, Do y-you--?”

”Yes.” Robin said, she extended her petite hand out in a friendly fashion. “It's quite okay.”

The man reached out his hand and shakily took Robin's. She smiled a genuine smile of friendship and began to lead him away from the edge.

Then the gun fired.

Robin watched in horror as the man's chest exploded with small bullet holes and he fell backwards over the roof.

Doujima spun around to find Rica standing at the doorway with his gun drawn. He wasn't using a Orbo gun, just a basic 9mm. Doujima screamed: “What are you doing!?”

“Calm down lil' puppy.” Rica said with his annoying smile. “If the witch is dead his powers can't save him.”

“Robin had already convinced him to stop!” Doujima screamed even louder. “You murdered him in cold blood!”

“Oh? It looked to me like he was trying to take lil' Robin and pull her down with him. You should thank me.”

Doujima tried to slap him again, but Rica was too fast and he grabbed her wrist and began to twist it painfully. Doujima felt tears well up in her eyes but she bit them back and shot a deadly glance into Rica's eyes.

”Now listen here.” David said with venom. “I'm your boss whether you like it or not, and if you hit me one more time it'll be you who falls off the next roof.”

Turning around he disappeared down back into the hallway. Doujima growled and kicked her foot on the ground. David Rica was a smug jackass and she would do everything in her power to make him suffer while he was in Japan.

Doujima then turned to Robin, who hadn't moved at all. The youngest of the Witch Hunters just stood, a few drops of the man's blood on her youthful face, and a look of sheer foreboding in her eyes.

----

Touko stood in the kitchen while she waited for the pot on the stove to boil so that she could finish preparing the tear. Amon said nothing from his seat at her table; he just looked down at his gloved hands. It was completely silent except for the bubbling of the water.

Finally the whistle on the tea pot let out its steam and scream and Touko grabbed it to fill up the two small glasses that contained the tea bags. She did it in silence, and Amon added no sound. She glanced back at the table from the corner of her eyes just to make sure he was still there at all. It was hard to be sure of that at some times.

Then the front door opened and the eyes of both Amon and Touko shot to where Robin now stood. The young girl had noticed both of them and her cheeks filled with a distinctive pink blush.

“I'm sorry, I didn't --“

”It's fine.” Amon said standing up. “I was just leaving.”

The dark hunter walked by her without a word to Touko and the blonde sighed quietly. Yet just as Amon's shape threatened to disappear through the door of the apartment, Robin's voice stopped him.

”Amon.”

”Michael told me.” The dark hunter said before she could begin to explain about the hospital or about what Rica did. “He's from Solomon; there is nothing we can do.”

And with that Amon vanished away. Robin sighed and dropped her head, and then she walked over to where Touko stood.

”I'm sorry. I didn't know that you were busy.” The younger girl said.

”No, it's alright.” Touko smiled and handed Robin the cup of tea originally intended for Amon. “Here.”

“Ringraziarlo.”

Touko blinked and then Robin shook her head and sighed. “I'm sorry, I meant Arigato.”

Touko laughed and sat down. “It's alright Robin, switching languages must be hard.”

Robin nodded. “It's not that. I learned Japanese while in Italy, it's just small things like ‘thank you' that I still have trouble with.”

Touko nodded and the two sat drinking the tea in silence. Robin sighed and looked out the window at the sky. Less than a hour ago it was clear and blue, now it was dark and rain was building.

Below on the street rain was beginning to fall quietly and as it did Amon got into his car and drove away without a backwards glance.

----

David Rica stood in his hotel room with a sneer on his lips. His sunglasses were off and lying on the nightstand and he stood in front of the old oak dresser looking the mirror at himself.

His face was pale and his hair was dark, but as he looked down at the reflection it wasn't his pale skin or his dark hair that made David Rica look unusual. It was his eyes. Only his eyes knew the truth about what happened. Only his eyes told the grizzly story of David Rica's life.

Only his eyes told what kind of horrors he had seen and what kind of horrors were contains within his memories. Memories are an odd thing, people love them, and they live for them. People spend years when they are old, simply sitting and thinking about, trying to relive their memories.

Yet David Rica's memories were the kind no one would want to relive.

The STN Reviewer from Solomon screamed and punched the mirror before him, watching the glass shatter into his hand. Blood trickled down and fell onto the TV guide on the dresser top below him.

With another scream Rica ran into the bathroom and turned the water on at its fullest. Making quick use of his craft he made the water fly up into his face and wash it. The water was cold and it chilled him to his bones.

When at last the water had washed his face he looked into the mirror before him, but still his eyes told the same, horrifically sad story. With a scream of fury and anger he smashed the mirror with his fist, only causing more blood to seep from his old and new wounds on his hands.

He then fell down to the ground and began to cry. He couldn't understand why the darkness inside his eyes wouldn't leave him alone. He couldn't understand why he kept seeing those memories.

They weren't his memories. They couldn't be. They were the memories of a man who had been viciously and brutally murdered in cold blood for doing no more than his job.

The memories of a police officer who had done no more than try to stop some Mardi Gras punks from smoking illegal drugs.

The memories of a man who was dead.

Those were the memories that stared back at David Rica from his eyes.

From his cold, dead eyes.