Sukeban

“Let us in to see, Rina.”

Tomomi, who stood at the back of the group, was taken aback by the way Mami had spoken to the elderly male who had opened the door. Just after a small greeting he gave them and the blonde was already rudely making demands. The male in question seemed displeased about the tone the blonde had used. He raised an eyebrow, looking down at the shorter teenager in front of him. His eyes moved along the other teenagers until they fell on Tomomi who continued to cower at the back of the group.

Why was Tomomi even here? She was beginning to question that herself. Mami had offered to let her stay behind at school, knowing how much trouble she would be in if she got caught ditching school, but Tomomi had rejected the offer and insisting on coming with… Now that she stood in front of the problem, she really didn’t know why she had agreed to leave school just like that. The only thing she had been thinking about at the moment was knowing if Rina was okay, and that was still one of the things she tried to keep on her mind.

“You’re quite rude, young lady,” the man replied. Tomomi could hear Mami growl lowly and see her clench her fists at her side. She couldn’t really be thinking of hitting the only person with a lead to Rina’s whereabouts… Even Mami couldn’t be that utterly careless. “That’s not a way to gain entrance into someone’s house, I’ll have you know.”

“Just let us in to see her already, would you?” Mami continued with her tone. Tomomi shifted uncomfortably in the back, resisting the urge to move closer to the front of the group and somehow grab hold of Mami to stop her from doing anything rash. Although Tomomi didn’t know why she even bothered with those thoughts; Mami could toss her off as if she weighed nothing if Tomomi tried to hold her back.

“First, tell me… How do you know Rina?” Mami bit down on her lip, trying to quell the anger that was rising in her. Finally, they had gotten a chance to ensure Rina was okay and this man was blocking their only path to finding out if Rina really was okay or not. Before Mami could regain her senses enough to speak though, she heard a feeble voice come from inside the house.

“Omar, stop being mean to them…” The male that the girls now knew as ‘Omar’ turned around, letting the four at the door have a glance into the house. Mami stepped forward a bit when she saw Rina standing in the hallway but managed to stop herself before she went too far.

“Mean? Did you hear the way she spoke to me? She’s about as rude as your other friend is, Rina.” Mami’s head snapped to look at Omar with a harsh glare on her face. He had to be talking about Haruna; no one else seemed to know who he was and Rina wouldn’t be hanging out with anyone else that Haruna and the others weren’t aware of.

“What was that, old man?” Mami growled out. Her eyes went back to Rina when she saw the brunette step forward. Omar moved his body a bit, ensuring that Mami wouldn’t be able to get past him even if she tried.

“Mami, sometimes your mouth is as bad as Haruna’s,” Rina told her before Omar could answer. Mami looked at her bewildered when Rina gave her a small smile before turning to Omar. “They’re my friends. Let them in… Please?” The attention of all four girls was turned back to Omar when he sighed softly just before stepping aside.

“They can come in for just a few minutes,” Omar finally agreed. Rina nodded, beckoning silently for the group to come in. The four followed her directions, Tomomi being the only one to murmur a small apology to Omar. They could have at least apologized for Mami’s unnecessary behavior she thought.

Rina led them only a short way into the house, just far enough for them to get into the living room. She went to sit on the couch and Mami moved with her, but the others kept themselves against the wall, forcing to Tomomi to stay with them instead of following after Rina and Mami. They all felt that this was something better left for Mami to handle; she did appear to know more about this whole situation than any of them did. Omar came into the room with them, sitting in a chair just across from the couch.

“Rina, you need to give me answers now,” Mami started nearly immediately once everyone was settled. “Who is this man and why are you here? What did the police do to you? Are you okay?”

“M-Mami, please…” Rina’s former smiling demeanor crumbled now that they were all sitting on the couch. It seemed to Tomomi as if Rina had finally remembered that Mami was going to be asking her a slew of questions and wasn’t looking forward to them. “One question at a time…”

“Who is he?” Mami asked in a venomous tone, pointing a finger accusingly at Omar. She didn’t like Rina being with him. Haruna had never made any mention of someone named Omar and Mami couldn’t imagine she’d let Rina hang around with someone she didn’t know well enough.

“Careful there, kid,” the male butted in before quieting down to allow Rina to speak. Rina shifted uncomfortably; the first meeting between Omar and Mami was going about as well as the first meeting Haruna had with him.

“His name is Omar,” Rina began in a soft tone that the girls against the wall could barely hear. “The last time Haruna and I stayed out, we-we ran into some trouble. He helped us get out of it and gave us a place to stay for the night.”

“What did the police do to you? Did they hurt you?” Mami began her next question, not bothering to give a response to the response that Rina had just offered her. So Haruna had known Omar but Mami got the feeling that the boss wasn’t overly fond of the male or else she would have mentioned him. Rina did seem fond enough of him though…

“They didn’t hurt me…” Rina’s tone was soft and it wavered just enough to tell Mami that the police had hurt Rina. Rina didn’t seem hurt physically but with as frail of a person as she was, the blonde knew it was very possible that they had hurt her emotionally, intentionally or not.

“What did they say to you?” Mami asked in a demanding tone to let Rina know she wasn’t going to be getting out of answering this one. She could hear Rina whimper softly, her hands beginning to pick at each other. Her teeth began to sink into her bottom lip and her eyes looked everywhere but Mami. The blonde’s own eyes narrowed; Rina had just given herself away in the biggest way possible. “Tell me what they said Rina.”

“T-they asked me questions about Haruna and I… So I answered them but then they…they started asking questions about my home life.” Rina’s sentence trailed off, her eyes still refusing to look at the blonde who was now staring at her in bewilderment. Mami knew where this was going, as much as her mind didn’t want to admit it.

“Rina,” Mami began in a warning tone that she hadn’t truly meant to use. “Please tell me that you didn’t tell them anything.” Mami was attempting to be vague about her words seeing as a stranger was sitting right there, perfectly within earshot. But she had to figure out what had gone on with Rina; she had made a promise to Haruna and she fully intended to keep her promise. She was going to bring Rina back safely no matter what the cost.

“I had to tell them…” Rina’s voice broke as she spoke, a sign to Mami that the fragile girl was on the edge of crying. “What else was I supposed to do? They weren’t going to let me go… And they said they wouldn’t separate us.”

“And you believed them?!” Mami hadn’t meant to yell that time but she couldn’t stop the worry that had instantly consumed her self-control when she heard those words leave Rina’s mouth. How could Rina be so stupid? How could she believe such a blatant lie? Mami thought that even Rina might have had more sense than that.

“I’d highly suggest you stop yelling,” Omar butted in again to scold Mami. The blonde’s head snapped over to him and she narrowed her eyes in a glare that would normally send shivers of fear through anyone.

“Why are you even with him?” Mami asked when she turned her attention back to Rina. She wanted to converse with Rina; she wasn’t going to pay any mind to Omar. She knew she’d lose control of herself easily if she focused too much on the male who she knew had something to do with this.

“He’s giving me a place to stay until…until…” Rina wanted to finish her sentence, but how could she? How could she tell not just Mami but everyone else that they were possibly going to take her away because she’d made the mistake of telling them about her? Rina took in a deep breath just before she felt someone’s hands cover her own shaking ones. She looked up to see Mami staring right at her.

“Tell me what they said, Rina. Tell me why you’re with him,” Mami coaxed her a bit more. Rina whimpered softly again but nodded her head. She took in another deep breath before deciding to try and answer again.

“They said that they want to find my parents or they’ll-they’ll put me in the foster system.” Rina could feel Mami’s grip on her hands tighten as soon as she had said those words. She looked back up at the blonde to see an odd emotion on Mami’s face. It looked like a look of worry; more worry than Rina had ever seen on Mami’s face. She was always about as composed Haruna was in the face of danger.

Rina wanted to look at the others but she found herself unable to. She could barely continue to look at Mami; she didn’t know how she’d ever be able to handle the possible looks of the others. The trembling brunette could feel Mami’s hands leave her own just before the blonde pushed herself off the couch roughly. She wanted to reach out and grab onto Mami to stop her but found herself unable to move when Mami turned to Omar.

“You…” Mami growled lowly. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!” The girls against the wall who had been dead silent now jumped from the suddenness and harshness of Mami’s shout. Omar coughed lowly before pushing himself up, his taller form beginning to tower over Mami even with how tall she was.

“What I have done to her?” Omar began, taking a few steps towards Mami. The blonde stood her ground, clenching her hands into fists and continuing to glare menacingly at Omar. “What about what you have done to her?” Omar continued in an accusing tone. Mami resisted the urge to falter back at his words and kept her stance hard. “Aren’t you one of the ones who kept her on the streets for months? Who kept her completely endangered?”

“Rina was never endangered,” Mami fought back. “We always gave her a place to stay and we always protected her…”

“She didn’t look very protected when she and Haruna were running for their lives!” Omar shot back. This time, Mami did lose her composure. Her feet stepped back a bit and a look of shock took over for a few seconds before she was able to compose herself again.

“In all of those months, that had only happened twice.”

“She still could have gotten killed. What happened is just proof that you won’t always be able to give her a place to stay. What happens the next time no one has a place for her to stay? What happens if the next time she isn’t so lucky and does end up dead? Are you still going to feel like this is the best life for her then?”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about! Rina needs us…”

The brunette in question watched helplessly as the two went back and forth, her eyes moving between them as they took turns yelling at one another. She knew she should step in and stop them, but what was she to say? This was all her fault. Everything thus far had been her fault. If she’d been smarter and more responsible, none of this would be happening.

“What Rina needs is a family. Even if that means she gets transferred away from Tokyo.” Mami clenched her hands tightly, her nails beginning to dig into her palms. She was using everything within her body to not reach out and hit Omar for every word that left his mouth. She simply wanted the old man to stop talking; he only angered her that much more every time he bothered to speak.

“Rina has a family. She has us; we’ve cared for and protected her. We are her family and we’re not going to let you take her from us,” Mami bit back with a venomous tone that caused Omar to narrow his eyes in anger at her. At this point, Mami seemed even worse than Haruna had been. What sort of company did Rina keep?

“Isn’t anyone going to ask me what I want?”

The feeble voice that squeaked through the room stopped Omar and Mami before either one had a chance to exchange another round of harsh tones and rough words. The two slowly turned to face Rina who still sat on the couch, her hands now on her lap, picking at her fingernails. Her eyes were directed down at her lap as well. Mami could feel a small sense of guilt go through her. Of course. Neither Omar nor Mami had thought about asking Rina what she would want.

“Rina…” Mami murmured softly. She turned her back fully on Omar now, her attention completely diverting itself as she moved to go sit down next to Rina once more. She reached a hand out, laying it over one of Rina’s. When the younger girl looked up, she gave her a reassuring smile. “I’m sorry.”

“We’re both sorry,” Omar spoke up now. “We both got caught up in each other’s attitudes that we didn’t think about even asking you. And for that, I’m truly sorry.” Rina nodded her head while Omar took a seat as well.

“Rina… Do you want to go with them? Do you… Do you want this?” Mami hated the fact she was asking a question like that. She hated the fact that there was a possibility that Rina would really tell her that she wanted this to happen – that she didn’t mind if they were separated or not.

“No… I don’t want to go with them,” Rina murmured. Mami could feel a bit of happiness come back to her but she knew by Rina’s tone that not everything on her mind had been said yet. “But it would be best.” The emotions that Rina’s previous words had caused all but disappeared from Mami when she heard the continuation of Rina’s explanation.

“Best? Why would it be best? You’d be leaving us… You’d be leaving Haruna.” Mami’s final words seemed to break a little, something that came as a shock to the girls still pressed silently against the wall. They could all see the sadness in Rina’s eyes as she took her hands away from Mami.

“And it would be easier for you all if I did,” she began softly. “I’ve been nothing but a burden on all of you. I can’t take care of myself and it’s forced you all to take on an added responsibility on top of all your own problems.”

“A burden?” Mami offered up suddenly, ending Rina’s meek explanation quickly. Rina glanced up but she was fast to divert her eyes again. “You’ve never been a burden on any of us. We’ve always been happy to take care of you; we’d do the same if it were any of the others in the same spot as well.”

“But, Mami…” Rina stopped herself this time, unsure of how to continue the protest she had begun to say. What did she say? She didn’t want to be put into the system and she certainly didn’t want them to take her away from the only family she had left, but how could any of them stop it at this point?

“Rina…” Mami’s voice rang through the brunette’s ears, gaining her attention back. Rina glanced up, this time managing to keep her eyes on Mami. “If you leave… How do you think it would make Haruna feel? If you can’t see how we would feel then see how she would feel.”

“Mami… I… I…” Rina had no ideas on what to say. She couldn’t find any words through the whirlwind of emotions that Mami’s words were causing inside of her. She couldn’t think as she stared at the usually strong blonde begin to break down and show emotions that were becoming increasingly rare in Mami

“There’s something you need to know.” Mami paused, taking in a shaky breath. She knew Haruna would probably beat her for saying this not just in front of Rina but in front of everyone, but she no longer had a choice. If she didn’t say this then Rina was going to leave by her own choice. She’d handle Haruna’s wrath; she just had to stop Rina from leaving. “Haruna has never told you about her childhood, has she?”

“No…” Rina barely managed to murmur out. She diverted her eyes again and felt Mami grab onto one of her hands once more.

“Haruna is a harsh person and she’s rough around the edges at best, but she has a reason for it. Haruna’s suffered and she’s still in pain. She’s held it inside herself all these years without telling anyone; she won’t even talk to me anymore. But you… You make her happy in a way that none of us could ever accomplish. You bring out the kind hearted girl I knew as a child… You bring out the friend I lost when Haruna gave up on her life. She may never admit it but she needs you. She’ll fall apart again without you.”

“Haruna has more stress with me around. She’d be better off if I wasn’t around to cause this much trouble for her.”

“No, she wouldn’t be better off,” Mami instantly countered Rina’s words. She squeezed Rina’s hands tighter, causing her to look up again. “I spoke to Haruna yesterday. She’s worried about you; she wants you to come back to her safely.” Mami could hear someone shifting in their seat and she knew it wasn’t Rina; she hadn’t felt Rina’s hand moving.

“You spoke to Haruna?”

The voice hadn’t come from Rina nor had it come from any of the other girls. Mami turned her head slightly, peering through her blonde locks at the elder male who was now sitting forward in interest. She scoffed and rolled her eyes. She didn’t need to answer him and she wasn’t going to answer him. From in front of her, Rina sniffed softly and finally moved her body a bit.

“Tell him, Mami,” she spoke softly. Mami was about to deny the feeble request when Omar spoke up again.

“You need to tell us where you found Haruna. The police couldn’t find her and there’s good reason to believe that she’s in danger.” Mami’s head snapped over to Omar, a sense of rage beginning to fill her. So they had gone “looking” for her, except they hadn’t actually looked. She knew they couldn’t have or else they would have found Haruna.

“What do you mean the police can’t find her?” Mami asked in a harsh tone, showing how still displeased with Omar she was. Omar sighed heavily, rubbing his temples before snapping his eyes to Mami. He was getting too old to deal with mouthy teenagers like her and Haruna.

“When Rina called me, I called in a tip to the police. They went to Haruna’s house to search for her; they spoke with a male and female who identified themselves as Haruna’s aunt and uncle… But they never encountered Haruna. She wasn’t in that house and as far as they know, Haruna is still missing.” Mami held her breath without knowing it, only realizing she was holding it when she had to slightly gasp for air. Her eyes went in between Omar and a clearly worried Rina before she looked down at the carpeting in thought.

“Haruna was there…” She muttered softly.

“Excuse me?” Omar prompted her, hoping she would speak just a hair louder so he could hear what she was saying. Mami looked up at him, the hard look back on her face. Mami considered for a split second of backing in saying this but she knew she couldn’t. Haruna would be mad but having her mad was better than letting her stay there and risking Madoka injuring her too much. She’d rather have Haruna be mad than have her end up dead.

“Haruna was in that house but you idiots didn’t actually search it, did you? You listened to Madoka and took her word for everything,” Mami barked at him harshly. Omar recoiled back at the sudden anger the blonde was showing. “Haruna has been in that house this entire time and you would have known that had anyone actually bothered to do their job and actually check!”

From where they stood, Tomomi took a small step forward. She could see Mami’s temper was beginning to flare out of control; she wanted to help Mami control it before she did something stupid again. She didn’t get that chance though. Both Aina and Hinako grabbed onto one of her arms respectively, pulling her back against the wall. She desperately looked over at Aina who simply shook her head, telling her clearly enough not to get involved with what was going on. They knew this wasn’t their place to say anything.

“Send them back,” Mami continued. “And this time, check the house. Look in Haruna’s room. If she’s not there, check in any room that has a closed door and make Madoka open the ones she has locked. You’ll find Haruna behind one of them, I guarantee it.”

A silence took over the room when Mami was finished speaking. A silence that filled the room with a heavy tension that weighed down on the shoulders of everyone there. No one understood what Mami had meant but they knew well enough by her tone that she knew what she was saying. Omar shifted in his seat again before pushing himself up, clearing his throat to end the silence.

“I think it’s time to go,” Omar said suddenly. Mami instantly pushed herself off the couch, ready to refuse his words but Rina stopped her. Rina grabbed onto her wrist and Mami looked back to see a look that told the blonde to leave without a fight. “You don’t have to worry, kid.”

“My name is Mami,” she growled out lowly. She was sick of this ‘kid’ talk; she hated the condescending way this man spoke with her.

“Let me rephrase that then… You don’t have to worry, Mami. Rina will be allowed to keep contact with you but she will not be leaving my sight. The police have entrusted me with her protection until we get her situation sorted out, so she won’t be going anywhere with you.”

“Please go, Mami,” Rina continued after Omar had ended her sentence. The blonde sighed heavily but found no use in trying to fight it. She knew there was nothing she could do to bring Rina with her today. She turned to Rina, getting the brunette to let go of her wrist.

“Fine; we’ll go, but you have to promise to call me if they decide anything. No matter how small, I want you to call me… Okay?” Mami told her. Rina gave her a smile that didn’t reassure anyone and nodded her head. With a heavy feeling in her body, Mami returned the nod before stepping away from Rina.

Omar led the quartet of students out of the house and to the front door. As the girls stepped out, Mami was the last to leave and she stopped just as she got outside. She turned to Omar, the harsh look still on her face. Omar sighed softly, running a hand through his hair.

“I don’t want to separate any of you but Rina needs a real home,” Omar said in the hopes that Mami would stop reacting so harshly to him, but Mami wasn’t ready to stop her actions so soon. The others stood out on the lawn, watching as the next exchange between the two at-odds people began.

“Can I ask you just one question?”

“Only if I can ask one first. A question for a question, a fair exchange, wouldn’t you say?” Omar countered. Mami scoffed but nodded her head regardless, crossing her arms and impatiently waiting for Omar to speak up. “Haruna. How does Haruna treat Rina? Has she ever purposefully harmed Rina? Does she have anything to do with why Rina is no longer in contact with her parents?”

“That’s more than one question,” Mami replied sarcastically. Omar grunted lowly in dissatisfaction and Mami laughed softly. “But I’ll answer anyway. No, Haruna has never hurt Rina. She may be rough but there is no way that she would ever hurt Rina intentionally.” When Mami stopped speaking, Omar could take note immediately how she had ignored his last question, but he chose to push it aside for now.

“Now it’s your turn, Mami,” Omar said instead.

“You imply that you care highly about Rina… So if you do, then why don’t you foster her until she’s of age? If you want us to stay together so much then I don’t see why you’re refusing to help her out.” Omar faltered a bit from Mami’s question before he was able to gain composure. He had thought about it a time or two but he had always pushed it out of his mind. He didn’t see how he could give Rina the family that she did deserve.

“I don’t have to answer that.” Mami laughed softly before shooting him a harsh glare. He stepped back again from the glare while the guilt from before began to come up. He wanted to help her but he didn’t see Mami’s suggestion as much of a real possibility.

“It’s because you don’t actually care for Rina. You’re treating her as just a project; you’re just hoping to get something beneficial for yourself out of her problems. If you cared, you would try to do what would make Rina happy. You’re just like everyone else though, aren’t you? You’ll never care enough for Rina to do what is truly best for her.”

With those last words to Omar, Mami turned her back on him, walking away. The remaining three exchanged glances before quickly following after the distraught blonde. As she walked, Mami gripped her bag tightly and grinded her teeth together.

Someway, somehow, Mami was going to find a way to get Rina back.