Chapter Two, Part Two: Sakura
Another day at the restaurant. Mom and Dad were letting me take the day off from my home schooling and even my training in exchange that I work the counter where we take to-go orders. All in all, it was a nice peaceful day and I was enjoying being able to play with Jexton and Chi — our two Chimaera — during my breaks. Today they were in the form of dogs, as they always are when they are allowed to hang out by the counter (away from the food of course) and they acted as great attractions for the café. Jexton was in the form of a beautiful, all white Germen Shepard and Chi took on the looks of the most adorable American Eskimo breed you have ever seen. I was playing a game of tug-of-war with both of them when my father called me over to the back door, two black trash bags in hand.
“Would you take these to the dumpster out back for me?” he asked, gesturing to the overflowing bags filled with who-knows-what that the cooks had stuffed inside of them.
“Ah, yeah, I guess so.” I replied, eyeing the bags suspiciously. “Just watch the counter for me, please.”
I hauled the garbage onto both shoulders, which looked ridicules considering the enormity of the bags compared to my petite stature. Never the less, the bags were no match for my alien strength and they were tossed into the gross, green dumpster behind our building in no time. I was just about to head back inside to my post when I heard a voice. Two voices, actually. I tuned in, using my advanced hearing to easily pick up on every word.
“Come on,” a male voice cooed. “Let’s just hang out. We can rent out a nice room—-” the rest of his sentence was cut off my a disgusting sounding cough that could only belong to someone who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day, if not more.
“No!”, came a female voice, shaky and frightened. “I don’t even know you! Get away from me!” By this time I had walked around the corner into another little alley where the man had his arms against the wall on either side of the woman, trapping her. As I thought, this scum was a smoker and had a cigarette in his mouth now, blowing the smoke into the woman’s face. She was a small thing, almost as short as I was, probably around five foot four. The woman was a big-haired blonde dressed in expensive and stylish camping gear. She must belong to that rich group who are eating inside now, I thought to myself. What is she doing out here?
I was practically right in front of them now, but the man was just now noticing the small Asian girl who had come to rain on his parade. “What do you think you’re doing here, girl?” the man spat, causing the cigarette to fall from his mouth onto the dirty ally floor.
"I think it’s time for you to leave now." I told Smoker Man, a smile plastered on my face but a glare in my eyes. I looked into his beady eyes and dared his scrawny butt to argue.
Despite the withering stare I gave, the man only laughed, then broke out into a wheezing cough. His stringy brown hair fell into his face as he coughed his lungs up. Fortunately, though, my presence was such a nuisance to him that he backed away from the blonde, releasing her from the cramped space between his body and the wall. Unfortunately, he was now stalking toward me, a scowl on his face. Oops. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a master at wielding my legacies, but when it comes to hand to hand combat, I’m about as dangerous as a kitten. Sure, I could throw this guy down the mountain, or levitate him 50 feet off the ground, but this is Earth, and I can’t exactly go around showing off my powers. So, with jitters flitting around in my stomach, I went for the next best thing. When Smoker Man reached for my shoulder, I duked under his arm and reached for the back of his neck. My thumb pressed onto his temple and two fingers found their place at the base of his spine. I technically had mastered my legacy of persuasion, but I still need a direct link to the target. Apparently, some Garde could use this legacy without even having to touch the other being, but that was something you were born with, not something you could practice and master. For the time being, though, this worked just fine.
“I think,” I said in a low voice, “That it would be best if you got back into your car, drove all the way home, and forgot you ever saw me.” I released Smoker Man and stared into his eyes where his pupils were just pinpricks of black in a sea of brown. I pushed the image of him driving away into his mind and he slowly started to turn around back to the parking lot. By the time he reached the middle of the ally he was going at a full out sprint.
I turned around to check on Blondie and give some sort of explanation but the spot where she was standing moments ago was now empty. She must have run off when I was talking to the man.
I hurried back inside, hoping that my father didn't notice my extended absence. Thankfully, he was busy with something in the kitchen and I slipped behind the counter unnoticed. Suddenly, a young guy emerged from a suspicious looking white kidnapper van that hadn't been there when I had left to take out the trash. He was just as untrustworthy looking as his transportation with his long black hair secured in a messy ponytail. He was over a head taller than me and his arms looked like they could break me in half. He started toward the front door, ignoring the blonde haired guy in the driver's seat, and stalked right up to me, a menacing look on his face.
