I ain't afraid of no ghost [closed]
Characters: Bradley, Zeetha, Ichigo, and a ghost of a certain NPC from a long time ago. You remember, the one that strung Hughes up from the mast of the Winding Way? Yeah.
Content: Ichigo caught one of the ghosts for interrogation, as per Zeetha's request.
Setting: Halls of the Amestris
Time: Near the tail end of the ghost infestation
Warnings: ( Read more... )
Content: Ichigo caught one of the ghosts for interrogation, as per Zeetha's request.
Setting: Halls of the Amestris
Time: Near the tail end of the ghost infestation
Warnings: ( Read more... )
Ichigo was undecided. Did he come clean here and risk getting thrown off the ship sooner, or did he hide it and let the ghost spill it all? Ichigo didn't know how much the ghost knew, but neither option seemed appealing in the slightest.
However...it'd be better to speak up now, before he was caught in hiding what he knew from the captain. "Actually," Ichigo said, "I've got a pretty good idea why they're all here." So no one needed to cut this ghost up on a lab table just yet.
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But now she was afraid Ichigo was going to say something about Watanuki, or...no, he wouldn't do that if he didn't know that Watanuki had informed her already. Pieces of things she'd rather not think about were starting to click into place.
Goddess, if it's not an artifact, he's going to implicate himself, isn't he, she worried. He'd never tell an authority figure about someone else unless he was sure people were going to die, but maybe not even then. I never did learn about what happened the night that he changed. Damn! Whatever he's going to say, I wish I could hear it before the Captain, so I could decide if it needs spinning, or if no one needs to know at all. It goes against my duty but my impulse is to try and protect Ichigo and the others I know, so long as I still protect the rest of the ship!
It was a disturbing and potentially dangerous realization and one that was going to need examining.
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He hated the situation, but what could he do? Ichigo would find another ship. Not Serenity. Maybe that Convoy thing Jean and Ness were on...
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"Keeping the ship safe is important, but if we don't figure out how to stop this problem, we'd only be sending you out to cause problems everywhere else you go. People won't appreciate it if word gets out we kicked a public nuisance off the ship so he could cause problems for everyone else."
Zeetha glanced towards Bradley, waiting to see if she'd be overruled.
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"It's quite a nuisance for us, as well, but if you know how to deal with them, then by all means, stay. That way the... 'threat' will be contained to a small area, and you'll have an easier time of taking care of things. Furthermore, if you stay here, we have a higher chance of figuring out what's amplifying your tendency to attract spirits and rectifying the matter."
That, and he needed Ichigo to say around so he wouldn't run off before his usefulness had been determined.
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Like hell was Ichigo spilling that the reason the ghosts were worse than usual involved Watanuki. He knew that Watanuki kept the fact that he could see spirits just as secret as Ichigo was used to doing, maybe even more. Zeetha was absolutely right -- he wasn't going to blow Watanuki's cover if he could help it. Ichigo was glad they'd reached that decision, though. He still planned on leaving once he'd taken out the current ghost infestation, but it gave him time to say goodbye to a couple of people.
Giving a firm nod, Ichigo said, "Right. I'll deal with as many as I can." He glanced down at the cowboy under his arm. "...what do you want me to do with this one?"
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But, personal closure aside, could she really afford to have such a highly personal talk in front of her new Captain? It was one thing for him to know her skill as a warrior. It was another to rub in his face the fact that she killed people, and also unthinkable to ask him to step outside for a moment.
Pushing down her own feelings and whatever portion of pity was mixed with her contempt for that being, she turned to look at the Captain. He was the one who had the power to make the final decision.
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He didn't give any impression that he'd picked up on her change in demeanor... though, he was certainly intrigued by her reaction to the spirit.
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Ichigo wasn't paying attention, though. "Resolved? How is anything resolved? You don't have any way of preventing another wave of ghosts the second we touch ground again. What if someone...what if someone dies next time?" He couldn't stay quiet, not in good conscience. He looked from one to the other. "How can you just say I can stay on the ship?"
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"Use some sense!" she snapped, slightly impatient. "How can we 'just say' you should leave the ship? What if walking through the town we dump you in, you attract enough spirits that someone dies over there? With that logic, our only choice would be to drop you off in the middle of the desert." She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose a little before continuing. Why did young people have to be so impulsive and thoughtless? Surely she had never been that hard headed, right? Okay, maybe. No wonder her superiors had barked out orders so much.
"We have at least one other person on the ship who can deal with spirits, several more we can put to the test. Logically, the place you want spirits drawn is the place they are easiest to destroy. Compared to a town the ship is a small space that keeps them contained. With the resources we have on board, it's unlikely anyone will die."
"After this batch has been taken care of, we can use the resources of the ship to find a solution. A request for assistance from the Amestris carries more weight in most circles than a request from some random orange-haired hothead."
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He turned to Zeetha, his expression slightly more serious than it had previously been.
"Keep those people you know of who are capable of dealing with spirits on high alert. When we touch down in Bydan... perhaps it would be a good idea to see if there are any exorcists in the city.]
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The idea of the Amestris finding a solution, a way for him to stay on board the ship, was tempting. It was good of Zeetha to offer something like that. It...it made Ichigo want to stay twice as badly. Maybe he could...
...but what if they didn't find a solution? What if someone died before they found a way to repel the ghosts? Ichigo couldn't take that chance. Quietly, he resolved to leave. Before they touched down.
Outwardly, Ichigo nodded. "Thanks, Zeetha. Captain. If you do find out anything, any way to stop this from happening again...I want to know."
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She felt pleased her logic had worked on Ichigo. For a moment it had looked like he was going to argue, but then he seemed to understand the sense of what she said. Maybe he trusts me now, she thought. Of course, he'll probably get impatient and mouthy if this takes more than a week, but you take what you can get.
"Of course you do!" she told him. "We'll let you know first thing!"
She smiled. "Don't worry, we'll figure something out."
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It was a lie, though considering that neither of these two could possibly know anything about that.
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...he wouldn't run. He'd leave, but he wouldn't go without saying anything this time. He'd say goodbye.
Crushing the feelings down to keep them off his face, he nodded again. "So I'm guessing you want me to send this guy to whatever afterlife he's headed to, right?"
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