Fish don't walk on land, stupid! (Open~)

[Bao Yu Chao]

THE HELL WAS HE GOING ON ABOUT?! Oh geeze this guy was NUTS after all being happy about this! It was almost like her freaky childhood rival, damn weird glutton for pain...but at least she could tolerate him a bit better. Following through with her attack with determination burning within her soul to restore a sense of honor...she was just getting more and more irritated. Did he honestly take her lightly to go on and leave himself so open?! If she aimed to kill would he STILL have stood still or what? Pulling her fist away from his ribs quickly so he wouldn't grab onto her wrist in a little trap, she was honestly...for the first time...torn between asking if he was alright or a variant of `It was a better idea NOT to underestimate me!`.

Giving him a glare of sorts, she was about to ask if he had enough and would rather throw in the towel...er...he...still seemed so happy...stunningly so....what the hell was going on here?! NO ONE was so much as a fragment of happy getting into a spar with her! Taking a couple steps backward while adjusting her stance so her hands were at a little more level with her chest, she exhaled and stopped a couple feet away to give some distance. They were on fairly good terms...enough for her not to keep throttling forward with a barrage of attacks while he checks on the point of impact his body took. Didn't that hurt at all? With the way he was prodding his wounds...she really couldn't tell if he was in pain or confused about what just happened while keeping a good mood. But...when he announced that he had his rib cracked by a beautiful woman, she grit her teeth...a trick, a trick, A TRICK!

This had to be some method to lower her guard... "Tch...what did you think, I was? Weak?!" Snapping out those words in retort, determined not to let his PRETTY WORDS screw with her again, especially during this fight. Motioning with her right hand's fingers to silently tell him `c'mon` and a look that said `I'm not letting this be one sided`. WHAT THE CRAP DID HE JUST TELL HER?! THAT SHE LOOKED STUNNING?! Ok, why the HELL was he flirting with her in the middle of a spar?! A slight blush invaded her cheeks and her eyes widened slightly as she stammered out "W-what!?"

OH DEAR SWEET BANK ACCOUNTS!!! He lifted the table?! He was bringing TABLES into the fight now?! Continuing to give herself more distance by backing away, it was NOT smart to see how strong he was with just her fists. She needed something other than her gun and knife...cause it wasn't as though she wanted to kill him. Or hurt any of the peanut gallery. Shit....well she DID want her grandpa's furniture to be ruined for acting like such an ass earlier...make his bank account writhe in pain...clenching her hands into fists...she had a plan to smash that damn thing into pieces...but...again with the crazy compliments?

Ugh...when would he cut it out and actually do someth-the light blush on her cheeks got a tint darker at the question of her being single. What....? Her heart raced and...OH SHIT TABLE! RIGHT! AND IT WAS ON ITS WAY OVER! CRAP! Loosening her hands to preform a somewhat high back flip to offer even more distance with a `OH GOD WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!` look on her face and found herself landing on another table...thankfully avoiding a knife close to her foot. That....REALLY would have hurt a lot....! But she preformed one more flip while holding her breath landing on a chair with one foot before swinging the other into a scoop and lift motion to kick it RIGHT in his path giving it enough force to fly in his general direction....but the chair leg was cracking. Feeling her balance waiver and screwing up her intended path for her table attack, the Piggy Heiress' heart slipped into a panic as she jumped down on the side....oh sweet sturdy ground....how she loved it s-FORK!

Jerking her head back with a look of surprise and a slight twitch of her mouth while instinctively whipping out her knife by unsheathing it. FREAKING FORK BARELY MISSED HER! Sweeping the flat portion of the blade across to knock a a steak knife off balance and ram her opposite fist into the chair to take care of some of the other silverware. GAH! ANOTHER ATTACK CHAIR! Round housing that evil piece of furniture causing it to fly into another rabid chair like clock work, her breathing seemed to pick up...that...was way to close for comfort. Hey...where the hell did he go?! Quickly whipping her head in the direction of his voice with a look of `WHAT THE HELLLLLL?!` and blushing a bit at his persistence in combat AND trying to figure out if she was up for the taking.

Seeing the table was STILL trying to go after her....probably because she missed thanks to lack of balance....that had a tendency to screw with aim. Crouching down to sweep kick the table as hard as she could into another cluster of seating arrangements like a game of bowling with a restaurant. "FINE! HERE'S YOUR ANSWER! Relationships would only get in the way with my line of work!" Standing upright while snapping out those words, glaring at him as though she had half a mind to murder him while sheathing her knife. BAH! First the table now HE was flying at her! THAT'S IT! No more nice Bao Yu Chao!

Angrily grasping onto a chair, still blushing a bit while her heart fluttered momentarily for some reason she couldn't even figure out. Flinging it in his direction with a great amount of force while hearing him try to feed her some line of how she caught his attention unlike any other woman. Even though she wouldn't outwardly admit it...she was going through some serious inner turmoil...he said he wouldn't lie to her but... "TCH! How many times did you use THAT line before?!" Jumping onto another table, she looked in his direction snapping out in what almost seemed like a scornful manner, "I'm rich, not stupid, Captain Mako! I have class and REFUSE to fall for your little traps with ease, don't mix me up for those stupid...easy...PATHETIC females of your time!"

Picking up a metallic pitcher of water before dumping its contents on the ground with her eyes slightly narrowed. Lightly tossing it up as if it were a ball or something along those lines. Bringing her fist back, before punching the pitcher in mid air toward his path of flight. "Besides, why would you care if I'm single or not?! It's completely irrelevant to what's going on!" Jumping off the table before giving it a swift uppercut...she let out a heavy sigh.... "Ladies and gentlemen, isn't it funny how the Jovial Devil tries to pursue my granddaughter? Everyone knows Bao Yu doesn't need anyone, especially not an ancient pirate who stole from her family...I'm sure others would agree with me. She'll be sure not to lose to the likes of him, my wonderful guests."

A person in the `observer's` section couldn't help but blurt out "Oh myyyy so they weren't having a lover's spat of some sort? Hmmmm..." Kinda softly to their dinner buddy. "滚蛋!" Snapping those out with her race's roots accent loud and clear with that crude demand...screw not using the gun! Geezer was pissing her off! Whipping out her revolver magnum she aimed for a speaker gripping it tightly with both hands and fired a shot out of sheer rage causing her to skid a bit backward and her hands to go up a bit after the bullet went flying into its inanimate target like clockwork.

Lowering her arms soon after...that...hurt a bit but it was worth it to hear the sweet...beautiful sound of static in place of his annoying commentary. Ok...now she looked like she was going to REALLY kill someone...even though she was holstering her gun being fast about securing it again. Letting out one hell of a heavy sigh, she twisted her body back in the direction of where she last had to deal with the Captain, bracing herself in case MORE furniture wanted a piece of her.

[Captain Mako]

Bao had been surprisingly well equipped to handle Mako's barrage. She had dodged or knocked aside everything that he threw at her in a very impressive display, not even the table had slowed her down. She was a goddess amongst the wreckage, a amazon in her element, a force of nature. She even was able to retaliate a bit against his storm. The knife had bounced off, not enough mass or velocity to penetrate his hardened skin that could shrug off low caliber gun fire and thus a common knife slid off his flesh like rain water. The metal water pitcher had been a bit more impressive though. He had not been in a position to avoid it when she fired it at him... so he caught it in his teeth instead. The metal projectile had actually been shot with enough force he chipped a few teeth. Not that he worried about that as he crashed into a group of tables sending wood shrapnel all over from his impact.

He watched with interest as she 'argued' with her grandfather. Her part had been simple and too the point with a good amount of punctuation. It had rendered the speaking boxes quite unable to reply. Mako stood from the wreckage of a table a piece of wood poking five inches from his shoulder, his own speed and momentum achieving what a knife had been unable to do. His surprisingly red blood running down his bare chest. He held the pitcher in his mouth and slowly closed down, the sound of protesting metal filling the air as his teeth scraped the sides of the container. Soon though the strength of the container was reached and half the pitcher fell to the floor, a bite shaped void taken out of it. Slowly Mako chewed and then spat the now balled up piece of metal at the nearby remains of a speaker, lodging into the speaker. The piece of metal arched electricity within the box and a few chandilers exploded sending fragments of glass down. The floor getting more and more into a hazard and sending the room into shadow. Mako was back lit by some of the remaining lights.

The ancient shark reached up and pulled free the piece of wood, red drops splashing upon the polished wooden floor. His eyes seemed darker then before and his smile seemed bitter, a bit more withdrawn and his posture was not as straight as a moment ago.

"... is that really what you think of me Princess? Some charmer who tries to get into the dress of every woman he meets? You don't understand me at all yet. Look at me Miss. Really look at me. Not look at those around us. Look at their fear ridden eyes, the disgust in the eyes of that woman in the silver dress, the desire for someone to kill the 'freak' radiating from the woman in the red dress. Do you have any idea how often I saw those looks? Read those intentions? Smelled their distaste?"

Mako kicked the remains of the pitcher, the sharp metal easily imbedding itself in a wall as it shimmered in the flickering lights. Mako looked out at the world and saw how some things had not changed at all in three hundred years. The same faces, different outfits. His shoulders straightened and he pointed at Bao. The grin returning.

"YOU! But you.... you alone of so very many... you look at me with none of that. Not a trace, not a hint, not a wiff. You look at me as a person... a real person. Your only disgust was seeing my fashion sense, my scavenged outfit. Do you have any idea how long I waited for that? I had to spend centuries in a horrible frozen prison, waking up from time to time just to find myself still unable to so much as blink, just to meet you... and I find that so worth it."

Mako walked forward, foot claws clacking with each step as he carried himself towards Bao, his eyes only on her, the rest of the world pushed away, the pain, the watchers, the glass his feet crunched under foot, all of it forgotten as he looked down at her smiling but slowly the smile faded a bit and he felt so very old.

"...but. I will never force myself upon a woman. I will never allow myself to fall that far. I will burn in the fires of hell in my own time but I will know how far I have fallen. Tell me you are truly completely without interest. Look me in the eyes and tell me straight to my face that no part of you even wants anything to do with me other then as a business relationship and I will accept that. I will burn, but for my reasons, my black heart, not for tearing out anothers."

[Bao Yu Chao]

....ok...the pitcher didn't go zooming by his head...in fact when she was able to give him her attention...from the broken table rubble which he rose from....it was in his mouth. It looked like he was unharmed...aside...from...the chunk of wood rammed into his flesh. Oh damn...that looked BAD! Certainly far from being the nicest person in the world...normally not giving a damn about someone she hardly knew being injured to such an extent. Yet...here she was combating the rage threatening to possess her and take control of the situation to bring this little show to an end and turn out as the victor yet the concern over his injury was keeping it tame. Stopping her from doing what she would normally do to call check mate on this spar. Then the sound of metal being chewed on flooded the air as her bloodied opponent...and all she could do was watch both shocked and impressed that he gradually chomped it in half.

Normally she would have sprung into action...take advantage of this whole scenario...but...he was injured and bleeding....why the hell did she give two shits about that?! Part of her wanted to bolt over and help him, but instead she stood there and slowly brought her hands clenched into fists up. They weren't friends....she didn't have friends...there was no such luxury...it was to be feared and respected not loved and adored...that was her path....but...why did it seem like he was as close to a humanoid friend as she presently had? Y'know aside from the kick ass Mayor she teamed up with before the zombies showed up.... The collision of metal being spat out like some sort of makeshift mini cannon ball with the speaker's remains snapped her out of her thoughts while she lightly bent her knees. Pretty damn durable...and the ability to chew on metal without losing a mouth full of teeth was...well...astounding. Not a very common ability...sure her teeth could withstand hard candy but she could NEVER chew up metal and do that! Darkness...shadows...this wasn't out of her norm...the flickering light remains occasionally managing to hold up hand in hand with the undamaged lights to display the tall Captain Mako...who...did not look all that happy was definitely new.

All this time she was seeing....a happier side to him...this side though...it was oddly foreign yet familiar and somewhat reminiscent of previous missions and cases...but not quite. What got her a bit more concerned was the fact that he actually pulled out the big freaking splinter causing additional blood flow. Not the bitterly withdrawn smile he wore....not the additional darkness to his odd optics...but he was...more hurt than a cracked rib...a pretty bad flesh wound. SCREW IT! SHE HAD TO HELP! That injury was partially her fault and she had to do SOMETHING! But before she could bolt over...his words stopped her from even moving her foot forward. ....was....he actually hurt by her words? Weren't they true...didn't people of his time flirt their way out of trouble with a female?

Glancing around at their peers..she hadn't been paying much attention...but...when he mentioned it...pointing people out...he...had a point. It was as though a lot of them were hoping she'd make him stop moving...yet there were some who had this look that were like `OMG YAY I BET ON THE RIGHT PERSON` because they say he was something to be feared. WHY THE HELL DID SHE ACTUALLY FEEL BAD?! What was with this Captain Mako guy?! Gritting her teeth, she quickly turned her attention back to him trying not to show off sympathy since her deep rooted instincts kept telling her as true as it may be....and probably is...she shouldn't so easily drop her guard. Yet...in her eyes there was some concealed concern despite her composure being shown off to the public. For good measure to his speech, the bitten pitcher got kicked like a lethal football into the wall as if to be a new sort of display.

BUT...then his grin came right back and he pointed to her after readjusting his posture...o...k...now she actually let the world see that she was confused.... What....just...what? She even quirked up a brow as though to say `Me?` when he started off on the new section of his speech...and...it was about her?! Even her hands lowered a bit for a moment while a slight blush returned with vengeance with a little flutter of her heart....being trapped in a block of ice just to meet her felt well worth it to him...?! Such words were a first...it's not like other creatures...even ones she didn't beat the tar out of and actually helped out in her own way didn't say anything close to that. Maybe a thank you but not anything remotely close to `MEETING YOU WAS GREAT!`. GAH! Now he was walking toward her?!

What to do what to do....strike...offer help....WHAT?! This situation was messed up by her standards, so unfamiliar that she could barely grasp any concept of what to do right now. So for now she stood her ground and kept her gaze on the man from many many years ago who messed with her ancestors. ....woah...wait...was he actually only focusing...on her? THIS WAS AWKWARD! REALLY REALLY AWKWARD! And...he was stepping on glass like it was nothing?!

Smiling at her....sure it was gradually fading but there was still a smile...and it was geared at her. Was he even alright?! Just about to make an attempt to ask for herself...her eyes widened at his next words about never forcing himself on a woman. What...in...the....what was he gearing at?! Staring up at him...and...holy crap she felt really short without her boots....the tint upon her cheeks darkened, feeling like her brain was just going to explode from an overload of WTF going on right now. Not looking scared...but almost lost...confused....a little bewildered, even. His request to look at him and tell him that all she wanted was a business partnership and that's all....it should have been easy...should have been such a piece of cake...telling people off was something she was pro at.

Hell, she told people off like a boss that she was damn fully aware that all it was is a business transaction and there were no such things as bullshit friends in her life. ....and....for some reason...it...hurt...his words hurt...why? Why did it hurt? Why did it make her heart ache to hear him cut himself down as though he was so rotten?! Why did it hurt when he made it sound like she was one in a million who didn't want him dead?! "Stop it...just...stop it....!" Clenching her hands tighter with the sound of leather slightly cracking away at the air as she muttered those words in a way that actually hinted off she held tightly onto some pain while veiling it with anger in a dangerously low tone.

While shifting her gaze downward while muttering in a fashion indicating a serious...yet...almost unsure nature with bits of edge here and there, "You...you don't get it...you really don't get it, do you Captain Mako? I can't have anything more than business, business and MORE business in my life...partnerships guiding to transactions so I can further my goals...that's all I can have...not what-" Glaring down at the floor...those...stupid...tears....were coming back from what she could tell by the dampness rimming her eyes. But she stopped them from going further than a couple droplets hitting the ground.

"Father...I'm sick of being surrounded by people who only care about whether I live or die because money's involved! Can't I just watch out for myself?! I'm strong enough, much more competent than those fools...you know that!" Snapping out those words, looking not too much younger while slamming her hands down on the large oaken desk. "I DON'T NEED BOTTOM SCRAPING LITTLE COMMONER LEECHING BASTARDS TO HELP ME!" "Don't be foolish, my dear daughter...just think of them as pawns on your chess board. You have a privilege unlike most of your consumers...be happy with that." "...fine...that will just have to do...won't it? Tch...I'll show you how to truly build an empire with these pawns." turning away from the busy man who helped bring her into this world, she left the office and...

BACK TO THE PRESENT! "...not...wh-what will only get in my way of all my plans. Just...just do yourself a favor and give up, throw in the damn towel! Or I'll MAKE YOU give up!" Muttering those words in way which hinted off to whoever heard her she was annoyed and not joking at all. Tilting her head up a bit, fixating her gaze on him while swinging her fist in his direction but...if it made contact...it...wouldn't hurt at all. It'd be like a light tap against the crimson blood flow. Why? Well to her...it...just...felt wrong to hurt him anymore...but she wasn't going to give up...it wasn't in her nature to say `I quit` or `I lose`. Even her nerves felt like they were trembling....not out of fear toward her opponent...but hurting him anymore...his wounds were bad...she was just...so sick of hurting him...and it was strange. Maybe it's because she actually saw some sort of friend in him...sort of like Panda Pig and her pets...but not quite that...but similar enough to make her will to fight drop down. Those ancestors....she was probably going to make them roll in their graves and WTF in the afterlife. "I'm...sorry....I can't just give up...so just say you lose before I have to get serious again...."

Those extremely soft words escaped her in barely even what could be called a whisper. Gentle...yet with a slight edge is how the nature of her tone was toward him...as if she cared but such a threat was FAR from empty. The blood...there was so much of it...he needed help...yet she twisted her fist up and...what a weak uppercut...seriously it was the equivalent of someone grazing their knuckles against someone's arm. This was so....pathetic....at least the spectators didn't hear her...THAT would have been waaaay more degrading. Weird thing was her speed was still there and it would appear to people that she was still putting effort into it regardless. At this point...she wasn't even sure if it mattered that his whole speech may have been a trap just to get her guard so low. ELSEWHERE.....her grandfather was throwing one hell of a huge hissy fit!

Not only did his granddaughter swear at him in Chinese, but she SHOT the speaker AND ON TOP OF THAT, as if his situation wasn't bad enough....the sea's own devil was trying to get closer to Bao Yu! Those were things in addition to the messed up dining area...soooo didn't make him a happy camper. He would figure out something to get his revenge...from the cameras he could see that placing his faith in Bao Yu for eliminating the Jovial Devil would have been good if only she was enraged again. But...he couldn't get his message across at this time so he'd have to cook something else up later.

[Captain Mako]

Mako took the blows without reservation none of the usual force was behind them, it was taps that his skin took without harm. He took them looking down on her and began to understand her a bit more. She had made her business her entire life, her entire existence, everything building it up, molding it. For what purpose he didn't know but he could see the pain this had caused her, could see the tears rolling down her face, could see her barely able to meet his eyes. She was lying... not to him but to herself. The worst lies a person could say and she had told them to herself so many times that she believed them.

He reached out to the side with one hand and waiting till she was blinking back some tears he grabbed a table clothed and sprung into action. Wiping it around her quickly he wrapped it tight about her form, mostly around her arms and upper legs, taking care to spin her to farther complete the entrapment, soon enough only her shins and head was poking out of the 'present' there. He briefly wished he had a ribbon to complete the look but he decided to not bother searching he had damage control to do.

"I believe I win my dear. No. I know what you are thinking, no I did not manipulate you just so I could win this way. Truth be told I would rather win in a more honest fashion but we are both far to stubborn to admit defeat so I had to finish this. But I will take both a win an a loss. I will take my rightful place to your right my lady... but I will also take the place as a bodyguard. I will be there for you, to protect you expecally to protect thine heart. It's part of you, so part of my job... though I must be truthful. I am going to protect your heart... because I intend to steal it."

Slowly Mako lowered his head till it was near level with hers... and he pulled the cloth towards him and planted a soft kiss upon her forehead, his cool, slightly clammy skin against her soft warm flesh. He pushed her back so she could see him eye to eye and grinned.

"Yar."

That done he yanked on the tablecloth and began to unwrap her, letting her spin and then reaching out to catch her and hold her upright as the room spun for her as a private dance. He grinned happily at her and then looked to the side as one of the bodyguards handed him his phone. Mako looked at it and pointed questioningly.

"Speak into the bottom part, put your ear to the top part."

Mako nodded thanking the guard and put it to his ear... and pulled it away as various Chinese swears spewed forth. He just looked at it amused as continued for a while. Occasionally replying.

"Ah so you are her Grandfather, nice to talk to you sir.... ruin me financially sir? I don't have finances........ deportation?... What is?........... ah... I see... yes... well would any other those places be anywhere I could not swim back from?.... then you are really just wasting time don't you agree?...... 'agents'? Well That just sounds VERY interesting! You send as many as you want. I'll tell them you will send flowers to their funerals. Well I gotta go. Have a nice day."

With that Mako lobbed the phone back to the guard and looked back down upon his new boss.

"I like your grandfather. He is silly."

Reaching to another table Mako picked up a leg of a turkey and took a bite out of it and then turned to regard the crowd. His smile vanished as he looked upon them feeling revulsion at this face of humanity.

"Everyone of you who so much as giggled at my new mistress have a two minute head start. I suggest you make use of it. No... I am really not kidding."

Every ounce of warmth vanished from his voice, the voice seemed to come from some deep dark place, a fresh wound upon the world. Disregarding them fleeing he looked down.

"... hey... I am bleeding?... when did that happen?"

[Bao Yu Chao]

Stuck trying to figure out WHY IN THE WORLD would she even want to STOP hurting someone since that's one of the rare few things that made her happy. A sadistic nature but...this time it was just messed up. This was wrong upon many levels of wrong! ...WHO THE FRICK WAS HUGGING HER?! Wait...wait...there was a table cloth around her?! Struggling to get free but getting spun, gritting her teeth and narrowing her eyes at the table cloth....things were spinning even though it was a big ol' fact she was standing completely still . "You bastard..." Her tone was barely audible and most certainly dangerously venomous as though if she COULD move she would make him suffer sooooo much.

Being taken advantage of....pirate or not....it pissed her off to a whole new level, so much that only a defined friend could escape her horrible wrath. Which of course had a tendency to result in A LOT of limbs being broken intentionally as well as an all expense paid...if they were on her good side...trip to the hospital. Staying still to maintain her balance...those narrowed sapphire optics held nothing short of rage. Through each and every word, her glare remained even though some of his words were nice...even a bit confusing...but still...hell hath no fury like an angry Bao Yu Chao! This is what she got for being nice...this is what she got for lowering her guard....maybe her father was right. Lowering her head about how fatal this mistake could have been...she was listening...quite intently too. Those loose cotton candy color theme locks hid her face as she kept loathing how she tried to do a good deed and it BACK FIRED.

Letting out a heavy sigh...trying so very hard to calm down, she took a moment to quickly review his words...he won...yes in one of the lowest ways possible. According to him he wasn't trying to manipulate her...and that very temperamental side of her that ALWAYS seemed to be the dominant personality to her various sides sorely disagreed but supposed she'd have to just deal with this later. In her opinion...it would have been better to be knocked out cold...this was defrading and she could hear the gasps and snickers...she wanted to shoot them all in the damn mouth to show em' what happens when they say the wrong thing mafia style. Win and loss...it sounded like a tie and he didn't seem to care cause no matter what he made it sound like he was the true victor. Yes she got a damn good piece for her chess board for those who oppose her to learn what it is to live in fear...maybe even that thing....uh....right a friend. Things she had very few of...and...ironically were mostly animals. Save for the fact that that her only other friend who wasn't an animal didn't flirt with her.

Whatever she didn't have time to focus on possible romance for sure that was just ludicrous! The part that caused her to slowly bring up her head a bit was recently spoken not too long ago...what the hell did he want her heart for?! Last she heard those words, a diseased freak of a vampire tried punching a hole through her chest! But they weren't on bad terms so why?! OH CRAP AND SHE WAS BOUND UP! This guy was a living breathing contradiction! With a confused frown and a death glare...she wasn't going to say it but her brain was like `wtf` but her composure was obviously `wtf do you want now? Isn't it enough you won?!` when he first got to eye level with her. GAH! HE WAS GRABBING THE CLOTH!

Tilting her head back so the `WTF DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!` look on her face was completely visible. ........Why....why was his face getting closer?! OH DEAR SWEET LENDERS!!! HE WAS GOING TO EAT HER FACE!!! Letting out a really soft...rather freaked out squeak of sorts escape her throat, he....kissed her forehead...HE KISSED HER FOREHEAD?! EEP IT WAS LIKE BEING KISSED BY A SHARK...wait he was part shark for sure...BUT IT WAS STILL ONE HELL OF A TRIP OUT! WTFWTFWTF said her brain as she felt like she was having a mini heart attack. The audience was baffled and one guy looked like he won the lottery...oh he probably bet on Captain Mako.

Feh...her face felt warm from the blush invading her cheeks and she just looked...really bewildered yet kinda annoyed at all this. Being a loser WAS NOT something she enjoyed for sure and feeling a bit used regardless of his reassurance didn't help her anger subside. Though the forehead kiss definitely swarmed her brain like an angry bee hive trying to figure things out. OH SH- now she was SPINNING! Damn it damn it DAMN IT! Staggering trying her best not to fall while blurting out a sting of Chinese and English cuss words not safe for a child's ears if they could actually make a lick of sense about what she said. Trying her best to keep balance, her eyes tried to lock onto his form...and as she was leaning forward to deliver an attack that would certainly turn the tables...her foot slipped.

Good...job in the most sarcastic way EVER! Bao Yu hated falling SO MUCH! Forgetting about her plot for revenge, she let out yet another freaked out squeak...just a little louder this time which caused people to chuckle cause she sounded like a broken squeaky toy with how brokenly soft it sounded. SHE WAS GOING TO KILL THEM ALL! SEND HIT MEN AND DEAL WITH THOSE STUPID FOOLS! Feeling her cheek smoosh slam into his abdomen due to her shorter height and the angle of her fall combine like an epic fail sandwich. Tightly wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace out of reflex...even though she was getting some blood in her hair from his open wound leaking out the crimson liquid which coursed through his veins. ....and...on top of that he felt kinda soggy....which wasn't too horrible.

This...felt weird....really weird...just...weird....there was no other words her brain could conjure up. The situation itself was odd considering a creature that fell right into the bracket of things she normally killed or relentlessly issued experiments on was actually making sure she was going to be alright and not fall. Not only did being dizzy suck a whole lot but she felt pathetic....depending on someone else...it was awful in her opinion. Slowly and carefully she looked up at him and caught a glimpse of his happiness toward her....why did he seem so delighted in her company anyway? Right, yeah...he answered that earlier with the whole list of things he liked about her. Still it was baffling and confusing to someone like her...who pretty much had business as oxygen and friendships were borderline non-existent considering how it was EXTREMELY rare not to be completely pushed to the outer rim of her life. Lowering her head and closing her eyes letting out a bit of a grumpy grunt, she listened to the conversation unfold after he got instructions for how to use a phone.

....aaaaaand the old man didn't sound happy at ALL. Pffff and the threats....they were pointless against someone like her new....er...what was it again...she'd just think of him as her right hand man body guard for now. The other words were too hard to think about for now and only made things worse for her thinking process! What....he thought her grandfather was silly? "Is that what people call controlling, power hungry business men in your day? Tch...and I thought I payed enough attention in history class..." Muttering out those words as she gradually moved her hands upon his waist while slowly opening her eyes.

Seemed like the room stopped trying to act like a merry-go-round at least! Gently, she pushed herself away and adjusted her posture....dropping her hands at her sides with her head lowered a bit...being a loser of any degree...was horrible even if she had a shiny new body guard and right hand man. Just as she was about to snap out the threats...her lips already lightly parted, it seemed like she went from mildly irritated while listening to the devious shark man speak in a way completely void of the happiness he had not too long ago. All while threatening the very people SHE was going to strike fear into! ....and what a success...as a light blush chilled out on her cheeks for a moment while tilting her head up at him as though she couldn't help but wonder why he was so protective of her. A body guard usually didn't go so far in her experience...maybe just because he was the only one doing the job right. One person of all the people seemed to remain who was like "I do say, I won the bet."

Kinda...excited in a rich n' snooty way. Quirking a brow when he FINALLY acknowledging his gaping wound. Looking a little on the pissed off but concerned side, one of the crankiest bosslady types EVER crossed her arms while speaking in an authoritative fashion, "That was my doing at some point during the spar, Captain Mako. Whether you like it or not your first orders will be to follow me. We're going to my suite so I can take care of that gaping wound for you. Even though I absolutely loathe how you claimed victory....I do take care of my employees, you're included on that....do I make myself clear?"

If she got confirmation that he was going to follow her, then she'd start guiding him on through the wreckage and onward to the part of the restaurant connecting to the luxury hotel so that they could get him to her room sooner rather than not. On the other hand, if he declined...well...she was going to need to teach him she is to be respected and orders were to be followed.

[Captain Mako]

There were times when Mako was extra glad of his near permanent grin. Times like now as he watched her spin around like a top an squeaked, actually squeaked... as she fell over a bit and grabbed around his waist. In any other circumstance he would be restraining a grin at what he thought was absolutely adorable and... pleasant to feel. He was always amazed at how warm and dry humans were, it seemed odd that something so different from the creatures of the sea spent so much time near or on it and where he was rough she was smooth, where his flesh was cool her was awash in heat, where his skin was moist her was dry as a desert and where his was firm hers was.. pleasantly soft... softer in some places then others... he ignored the feelings the hip she was leaning against was having and just continued the glare as the rich idiots filed out.

He listened as she described what she considered her grandfather to be. Truth be told ties of blood were foreign to him. Family, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, was something he only understood from watching others. Ties to people around him were based upon more personal things instead, personal emotions rather then chances of birth. He considered that more... sensible but... how would he know he knew it was just his own thoughts on the matter. But he did know how he felt about this woman holding onto him for the sole reason of steadying herself. She was smart, cute, passionate, brave, and oh so very very interesting. True she was rich but Mako was honest with himself usually he would count that against a woman it tended to turn them... spoiled. She instead made it work for her oddly enough.

"Well usually we called them eccentric but I figured I would be polite and not mention that after thirty seconds of talking to him I feel like a need a bath."

She had pulled herself away from him as he finally noticed the blood coming off his shoulder. It wasn't bad, nothing that would slow him down but he did notice he seemed to have ooze onto her hair. He felt a bit bad about that vaguely, his conscious and him barely on speaking terms in the best of times he could feel it doing some vigorous arm pumping at the fact he actually heard it. He salved his guilt by noting that she looked even cuter just a bit disheveled as she was now. She was no insisting on treating her wound saying it was he fault. He didn't see it as he was slowly recollecting that his own jump had imbedded a splinter in him. That said her crossing of arms, her glare up at him. He wouldn't say it but she looked more little-girl-lecturing-an-irresponsible-adult then tough-bad-to-the-bone-bosslady as she was trying to project. He didn't say it... he wasn't an idiot and he felt she might actually shoot him for that. That said he wasn't about to object to her laying hands on him and nursing him a bit. His grin just intensified and he bowed sweeping his hat from his head in salute as he bowed before her.

"Of course my lady, as thou commands. I wouldn't dream of arguing. Besides now I can see the dramatic advances your people have made with bandages sooo exciting don't you think? Do you still even use bandages? Or is it something in a bottle, or a pill, or maybe a scent that makes wounds shut instantly?"

He slowly straightened as he looked at her replacing his hat upon his head. He was so excited the future was SO wonderful.

[Bao Yu Chao]

Normally one who didn't bother communicating with her grandfather since he was usually the sort who just tried to boss her around and that didn't fly well with her at all. So to that she quietly snickered at his feelings on her dear ol' elder and how he even made him want to take a bath. How amusing...but she wasn't going to encourage him to keep on with the insults. Thooouuugh....his comment did kind of reminded her of a journal entry she read once to try and find clues on a case or even some evidence: I need a shower and a good cry. Save for the fact her new ally wasn't needing a cry! MAYBE resisting the urge to rip the old man's arm off and slapping him silly with it but not a good cry for sure. Anyway...glancing around at the almost empty place...the musicians were putting away their instruments and putting on janitor hat so they could all get to work.

As for the one guy who actually didn't laugh...he was attempted to approach the two...buuuuut even though the seven foot shark man PROBABLY wouldn't agree...a bitchy girl who was known for throwing people into walls just for looking at her funny with blood in her hair was kiiiiinda hard to approach. Quiiiieeetly he got up and tip toed through the obstacles as carefully as a rich man in blue suede shoes and a suit could. Rich people always got awkward around cleaning crews in public places, true story. Well, just by LOOKING at him as if he might of thought he was the luckiest shark man pirate in the history of EVER. Not only that but it seemed almost like he looked forward to his new boss taking care of his wound. All her other employees didn't seem to think it was a good idea to have her help them since she may very well just make it worse out of any left over rage and aggression she harbored for the wounded. ....plus he was showing her a bit of respect with the whole bow and salute with his hat.

Nothing short of being polite and in his own way, respectful as he spoke to her as well. Though...when he went on about their advancements....she....was starting to think his hopes were too high for the future in the category of medicines and medical advancements. Sure she didn't doubt that the things he was hoping for existed....she....just didn't have access to it. ...........yet....definitely worth looking into again. The medical supplies she had in the room were definitely not super shiny or extremely fancy like her was hoping....but she kept up with her composure. While he straightened up, she quirked a brow and spoke in the same ol' professional tone, "We still have and use bandages, Captain Mako. In fact I'll be using some to help you this evening. You'll see for yourself soon enough...anyway let's hurry up and get that flesh wound dealt with. Wouldn't want it getting infected."

Motioning for him to follow her, it seemed like her guards got out of their positions and when she turned around to start on her little walk over to the door connecting to the hotel the followed along. Of course there was a chunk of broken table in the way....so she preformed a heel drop styled kick and snapped her fingers. Two goons rushing on over grab and move the pieces away as she left her hands at her sides lightly swaying them in tune with her hip movement while walking along. Those goons rejoined the game `FOLLOW THE BOSSLADY!` as she poked a button getting a bit of blood upon the button. When an elevator opened on up, she walked on in and spun lightly on her heel to hold it open for everyone...getting a little blood on the frame as well...oh she was just ENJOYING this whole leaving bits of blood all over the place. Save for the fact that this wasn't Mako's blood. It was actually hers since these gloves had a slight knack for SLIGHTLY cutting her hands when using her abnormal strength...especially with how much she used against him. Her gloves were doing a good job at concealing it but...the thick fabric could only hide the odor for so long.

Those gloves were designed to keep the scent of blood from reaching the noses of predators such as weres and vampires for a while. Guh...she could only hope it was still doing its job even though at this point it was leaking a little. So...uh...probably some serious wishful thinking. Whenever everyone got in the elevator, she poked the button for her floor. The elevator music was clearly of Chinese origin...and from what was playing...she could only assume one of her workers who was a Journey to the West fan got his request for a change. IN FACT! A lot of her bodyguards were humming for the duration of the elevator ride which...made her feel like it was an eternity and a half longer than usual. Bumbling idiots...she let out a sigh of relief as though to say OMGFINALLY in a single breath once they got to the floor and began guiding them on over to her suite.

Though once she opened up the door...she lowered her head and slapped her palm upon her forehead soon after seeing one of her guards was up there....baby talking to her koi fish like..."Who's a cute fishy wishy face going bloop bloop bloop? You are! Who likies bwead cwumbs? ALL OF YOU DO THAT'S WHO~!"....oh good merciful employers....why her? "Dexter, silence your stupidity this instant and get out before I shoot you in the face, please. My patience is thinner than usual if you can't tell...."

Grumbling out those words which had a great deal of edge, more so than usual while having an undertone of professionalism. He quickly got up and scampered away as she was lowering her hand toward toward her gun and looked up at him with a glare insinuating unadulterated rage. Shuffling by her and joining the others, she held up her fist signalling for them to stay put and glanced over to her...fffffff......ffffffffffffffffffffffffff.........ffffffffffffffffff......the f word that didn't end with a k that she said often in the Chinese language when people irritated her....oh right, friend? Maybe...she still wasn't sure about that so she just kept thinking of him as her shiny new employee of paranormal discovery, Captain Mako! "Follow me and don't eat my fish, Captain Mako." Lowering her fist after speaking out those stern words, she turned her attention forward and...looked toward the indoor koi pond....where were her fishes...? THEY were her friends for sure.....oh well....pointing over to the couch as though to direct the ancient shark fellow working for her, "Take a seat..."

She walked along the little stone path across the indoor koi pond's bridge which yes she had fallen off of via sleep walking once or twice and headed over to her bedroom where her ridiculously large bed was located and Panda Pig was waking up and looking JUUUUST a bit annoyed...he could SMELL something fishy that was out of the norm! Going into her ridiculously fancy bathroom, she opened up the closet and looked at the shelf which was reserved for medical supplies. Glancing over to her gloves which soaked up quite a bit of blood that was both his and hers...she cringed slightly and thought about how her hands were going to be dangerously close to his face...and more so that freaking metal chomping blender bear trap mouth. Unbuckling and tugging away the gloves while tossing em' in the trashcan...it was in this moment that she realized the power of friendship must really be trying to mess with her or something. Helping something she damn knew might have the instinct to chomp her hands off from the scent of blood being too tempting to such an extent....this was almost insane yet she wouldn't forgive herself if she didn't help him. Snatching up some alcohol, antibiotic ointment, cotton, gauze and bandages balancing it on one arm. Rinsing off her hands as thoroughly as possible with anti-bacterial soap which stung like a beeotch when it made contact with the slightly deep scratches upon her knuckles. Cringing and gritting her teeth REFUSING to so much as let out a squeak, she continued tending to her own wounds first after drying off her hands.

The gauze was like a thick layer of padding in hopes of making it so the scent of her blood would be a little muffled complete with a layer of the ointment upon the wounds beneath it. THEN proceeded to wrap up her knuckles and a bit of her hand with the bandages. Wiggling her fingers and clenching them into fists off and on....she figured it was alright and she wouldn't fumble the supplies that were going to be used all while not smelling like a potential after dinner snack. ESPECIALLY after that line that was probably going to haunt her in her dreams that he planned on stealing her heart...that line NEVER EVER ended well! Sure it didn't SEEM malicious but with all the life threatening crap she's been through, she wasn't going to start lowering her guard again! Shuddering a bit as she twisted the caps back on and balanced the remaining stuff on her arm again. It wasn't enough to use on Mako's injuries so she'd have to get one of her kits.

Returning over to the cabinet and putting everything back before looking through for one of the well stocked kits. ...aaaah hah! There we go! Grabbing onto a first aid kit that looked a little bigger than the ones most people brought on trips, she looked to Panda Pig and held up her free hand quietly telling him to stay while she closed the closet and went out of her room closing her eyes for a moment while sighing. "Alright Captain Mako...it's time for me to save you from the horrors of infection..." Letting her edgy yet somehow casual tone coated words pass her lips, she began reopening those sapphire optics of hers into a glare hoping nothing was ruined by her employed guest if he opted not to listen to her instructions....

[Captain Mako]

Blood. Mako could smell it. Mako heard people talk about the stench of blood but had never understood it. To him blood didn't have a stench... it had a smell... a wonderful almost intoxicating smell. It was so easy to get lost in it but he restrained himself. The biggest and some would say most scary part of him versus a normal shark was his ability to control himself. He had liked that so he practiced self control... when he had to. Besides the scent was coming from Bao. He worried about this but as she touched things without saying anything about the blood stains he slowly began to understand she didn't want to talk about it. He decided to respect that even if she did get more flavorful as time went on and he was curious why they were entering a tiny room and...

The room was moving! It was lifting! Mako looked around with amazement as music also played from the ceiling... annoying music. He disliked it... alot. Self control proved tricky that day as his claws went through the music emitting... thing and with a jolt of electrity it stopped. He shrugged an apology to Bao and followed her and her men followed him to... what could only be her room.... and her guard talking to fish in the floor. The room was saterated in her smell. Despite the various cleaners he could smell her. Smell her when she was sweaty, smell her when she was clean, smell her when she was asleep, smell her as she walked around. Sight was nice but the great thing about smell you could see into the past with it. He decided tactfully not to mention this. After all the relationship was already off to a bit of a bumpy start.

Mako did considered it a relationship if for no other reason then he wanted it to be one. He had been interested in her mildly the moment she had seen him and not run or been violently ill when he had turned around but the more he talked to her the more he liked her in ways he was not used to. It had to be love... no other emotion made you want to rip out the throat of a stranger who emotionally hurt someone you barely knew. He regarded her short of stature... but that just seemed to condense her in his eyes.... plus her smallness made her adorable. Her strong attitude and williness to do what it took for her goals... he liked that level of ruthlessness. It was very familiar... and then there was her body. Small yes... but firm, strong with a rear end that...

His thoughts were derailed and he thanked whatever demon had spawned him that she could not see where he was looking with his blank eyes as she commanded him not to eat her fish.

"I would never do that... I am much too full right now."

Another grin that deepened when he saw her expression upon that comment. As they reached the destination the smell of blood intensified as Bao removed her gloves and began to treat her hands. The gloves must have cut into her hands when she hit him... not well designed he would have to talk to her. Weapons that hurt you aren't the best weapons. But he was derailed as he looked at the medical supplies... so clean... so sterile... so... white. He had never seen anything like them. They looked like they had never been used. They weren't that unfamiliar from what he was used to through the poultices she was using were new. They didn't smell familiar either. He kept sniffing, blood, medicine... and.. something else that was in this place alot. As she spoke about infection he sniffed, not passively but outloud now.

Sniff.

"You... have had livestock in here?"

Sniff.

"...pig..."

Sniff.

"Healthy... not overfed either."

Sniff.

"No... not livestock... too clean. Soap... water..."

Sniff.

"No one bathes their livestock... but some do their..."

Sniiiiiffffffff... and a large grin.

"You have a pet pig? It even sometimes has the same perfume as you doesn't it?"

[Bao Yu Chao]

Quite frankly, she hadn't given much care at all to the damage of the stereo but some of her guards were a bit bummed about it for a moment. After all it took them SO LONG to get a Journey to the West song as elevator music! Oh whatever she ignored the occasional little grumbles and proceeded as she normally did, like a boss. Thing that caused her to grit her teeth and nearly crack at the seams though just so happened to be how he didn't completely agree or disagree with her order. Well he wasn't threatening to snack on her fish friends and seemed to like tugging away at her leg like everything was a bit of a joke. If this is what having fffffff...........ffffffffffffffffffffffff..........people who don't completely focus on the business aspect of a partnership based on professionalism with hints of casualty in her life......she had to keep it to a minimum or risk going further off the deep end. Shooting him nothing short of a `you hurt my fish you're DEAD` sort of glare as she turned around, progressing on her merry way to deal with her wounds. He almost seemed to be DELIGHTED by making her annoyed!

WELL WHATEVER SHE HAD WOUNDS OF HER OWN TO DEAL WITH FIRST! Not even bothering to glance in the mirror hoping he would actually listen to her request of waiting in the living room area by taking a seat. When she finally finished gathering everything....it....seemed like he just HAD TO see where she went...oh well she couldn't hold it against him. This guy was ancient and just getting a grasp on the brave new world he had woken up to. From what glimpses she caught with her peripherals of him being absolutely fascinated by all her medical supplies. The word to describe her opinion on it all was at a loss since she didn't use it much at all for anything other than animals so she'd just forget about it for now....oh! Adorable...it was oddly adorable that something she KNEW was above her on the food chain could have a small moment of confusion and wonderment toward the simple things in life.

If he was more comfortable with him and wasn't in such a crappy mood she might have actually smiled. Keyword being might but who knows, one thing was certain is she guided them out and back toward the living room area as she gave him a heads up in her own way that she'd take care of his wounds. But......he didn't respond normally....he was sniffing....and it was....obnoxious. Narrowing her eyes slightly....she was doing a favor for him...being nice....something she didn't do very often so openly.....and he was sniffing the air loudly! Before she could start showing her aggression more than through the flickers of emotion within her eyes as she did her very best to keep her composure....he interrupted her by having what she now dubbed the sniff list. Which....made her nearly drop her stuff because Panda Pig was keeping himself out of sight to avoid getting in any trouble....like the fish. Wait....wait.....then again he was undoubtedly a predator with EXTREMELY good senses similar to other creatures of the night which opted to give her way too much trouble more often than not.

The detail he went into was more than those which did have the gull to taunt her....so that guided her to believe her pretty blue n' pink haired self would need to be extremely careful and keep this sort of thing in mind more-so than she had originally intended. "Impressive, Captain Mako...since you know it's my pet, I don't need to tell you what consequences would take place if he was hurt. It should be incredibly obvious but in case it isn't, you would be made an example of immediately." Saying those words as a slight blush invaded her cheeks. Oh yes...it dawned on her that he noted her perfume AGAIN! GAH! What was with him! Wanting to take her heart as a snack and pointing out her perfume on more than one occasion, couldn't he make up his damn mind?! DELIGHTFUL OR DELICIOUS?!

Man she'd have to be SHARP around him... With a touch of irritability lingering in her TRYING to be professional tone, she said "So get your smart ass to that couch and have a seat already. I don't want my newest employee having an infection! SIT." Snapping out the last sentence with a hint of concern she got behind the sharkman of a captain and held tightly onto the medical supplies while pressing her back against his back attempting to push him in the direction of her couch as if he was some sort of tall crate in a puzzle game. OBVIOUSLY she was too short to properly treat a wound so high up and actually needed him to take a seat to help him effectively! Clearly she was worried about his current state and was just a pinch bit flustered while being pretty pissed off all at the same time.

[Captain Mako]

With as much drama as Mako could manage while bleeding on a woman's carpet he slowly saluted the little princess and slowly sat down his 'smart ass' and lifted up his leg to cross it over the other as he leaned back and put his arms up on the back of the coach to be spread out as much as possible. Apperently she intended to tend his wounds herself. Really it wasn't bad and he wasn't prone to infections but heaven forbid he refuse a lady... a lady who wanted to lay hands on him in a medical manner... a lady who might decide to shoot him in the head instead. In a choice between being tended to by a beautiful woman or being shot at by a beautiful woman it was Mako's experience that the tending was usually more pleasant.

"I suppose I will just lie back and think of the fields of England."

He laid his head back theatrically.

"Just be gentle this is... owowowow careful that stuff is burny. Ow Stop it."

Mako tried to squim away from the disinfectant but found Bao just as relentless in the pursuit of cleaning the wound as she would find him in the pursuit of her.

"Can't we just get me drunk. Disinfect from the inside out?"

He leaned backwards bracing against the floor with his long legs as she leaned forward, he pushed back and... well suddenly and predictably the laws of science happened. The couch began to tilt and the back of the couch impacted on the floor, banging Mako's head on the floor with a crack. Bao on the other hand was secured. In the middle of the fall Mako's arms wrapped around her and pulled her close to him to keep her from going flying. He just hoped she didn't bite her tongue or anything. Ignoring the pink bubbles flashing in front of his eyes Mako pushed her away enough he could blearingly focus on her face.

"Are you okay Princess?"

[Bao Yu Chao]

Good, he wasn't being stubborn and listening....better than some of the idiots she managed to hire! Though....er....he seemed to make that fairly big couch of hers look...really....really....small. Quirking her brow for a moment with a slight hint of confusion gracing her features...maybe she had to invest in bigger furniture for her new body guard and right hand shark man to be comfortable. One thing she tried to do was make sure her workers who lived under her roof were in comfort when it came time to relax. Bah, it was just chump change after all, a few hundred thousand dollars for new furniture...that was almost NOTHING to her bank account! IT WAS SO GREAT TO BE RICH! Letting out a heavy sigh as he commented about how he'd just lay back and think about the fields of England before theatrically laying his head back.

"Well you do that, I'm going to make sure your wound is patched up so stay still and think about your stupid fields," mumble grumbling out those words as she busted out the antiseptic and a lovely cloth to pour it on. The stuff she had was some seriously potent kung-fu in a bottle and was going to hurt like hell but it did the trick. Captain Mako could handle it though, right? He was a pirate, a guy who got into scuffles almost all the time...not like this was going to hurt him too much. In fact, she was almost sure her punches and full force hurt more than this stuff! Dampening the cloth with the antiseptic to disinfect his wound, twisting the bottle cap closed since she figured it would be more than enough for his injury and set the bottle on the ground.

Placing one hand upon his shoulder to keep him still JUUUUUST IN CASE, she reached over and began pat patting the wound focusing on it to the best of her ability. As adorable as it was for him to actually ask her to be gentle, then follow up with a series of ows and a stop it, she practically hissed out while applying pressure and tightening her grip on his uninjured shoulder trying to keep him still. "It'll hurt LESS if you stop moving, Captain Mako! So quit whining and stay still!" Gritting her teeth feeling her patience being tested more and more as she tried her best to keep him AT LEAST in one spot while continuing her disinfection mission on his wound. OH NOW HE WAS ASKING FOR BOOZE SO HE COULD GET DRUNK?! "Tch! Even if I had any alcohol, I wouldn't give you any! DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO HELP A DRUNKEN IDIOT?!"

Snapping out those words letting her anger get the best of her by applying a little more pressure to his wound than she originally intended with the antiseptic soaked cloth. Some of the guards wondered what was going on but then they remembered how bitchy the young mistress got when she actually helped with their wounds....so they did a group shudder at the thought and pitied the creature she hired. Unfortunately, it seemed like her applying more pressure due to a small anger outburst wasn't good at all. It got him to brace against the floor so hard that he pushed the freaking couch backward! On some SERIOUSLY STUPID reflex, instead of backing away she tried to pull him to his feet....by the shoulder....but gravity had other plans for them! Sapphire optics widening in complete and utter shock at feeling her body get pulled forward, she even let out a soft, barely audible squeak when she was pulled in close....and...now her face was smooshed against his chest. OH GEEZE OH GEEZE OH GEEZE THIS WAS SO FREAKING EMBARRASSING!

With a bright blush having a hostile invasion of her face, she felt him push her away and just had this wide eyed look like she was a deer staring at headlights wondering if it'd be a FABULOUS idea to run away or somethign...buuuut just opted to stay still. Part of her was torn between the OHGAWDHE'SGOINGTOEATMYHEARTOUT thought and PLEASEPLEASEPLEASEDON'TLETMETOUCHTHEGROUNDOHFORTHELOVOOFBANKSTHATWASCLOSE! Blinking a couple of times, she pouted a bit and was shocked to hear him ask if she was ok. But...didn't she hear a CRACK come from his head when the crash took place?! Wait...wait...it was his duty to be at least a bit concerned.

"O-of course I'm okay...you did your job and broke my fall, s-s-s-so good work, Captain Mako..." Trying to sound like her usual `matter of business and blah blah` self, there was actually some slight undertones of nervousness lingering about. "What about you...? Th-that fall sounds like you might have a concussion...even though you brought it on yourself..." Managing to let some of her concern show itself even if she was a little annoyed toward the end of it all, she slowly reached over to the back of his head with a bit of a frown across her lips being worried that the shark man body guard was even MORE injured. Even if part of her thought he deserved it for making such a fuss! ....aaaand the crash caused the guards outside to open up the door and not take any chances what so ever!

....all of them...each and every one of them had a blank look on their face as they saw the young mistress sitting on the new guard she was patching up. All of them exchanged glances and stared trying to figure out what the hell just happened all silent like as if to deliberate with non-existent ESP powers or something. One of them decided to blurt out in a small fit of confusion, "Uhhhh....young mistress...what happened?" OH DEAR SWEET MONEY!!! Of course the noise summoned the idiot brigade's attention! Quickly moving her hand away, she looked over her shoulder THANKFULLY having her hair covering most of her face to conceal the degrading blush of sorts, "OBVIOUSLY he was making a fuss and dragged me down with him! THIS IS ONLY AN ACCIDENT THAT WILL NOT BE REPEATED TO ANYONE! Do I make myself clear?!"

Yeah there was definitely a lot of aggression in that response which caused all of them to nervously nod and rush back outside like it meant free ice cream...or their lives...only to close the door again hoping that they wouldn't suffer or something. Letting out an annoyed huff of sorts, she CAREFULLY got off of Mako making sure her palms didn't touch the ground and held out her hand while slightly crouching down. Quietly offering to help him up to his feet...geeze...she was so ready to call it a day and sleep off all the craziness...

[Captain Mako]

Mako grinned as soon as she started complaining again. From what he had learned about her as long as she was complaining loudly things were probably gonna be just fine. As she got off him he got a silly little grin looking up at her from his position laying on the overturned couch. Others might remark he looked oddly comfortable. Slowly he reached up and was just about to take her hand when he kicked his legs towards his head and the momentum carried his legs over his head, bending his spine he allowed them to contact the floor flatly and then sank them into the floor and slowly straightened till he was standing at his full height. He then reached forward and took the hand before it was retracted and once again bowed and kiss the back of it while with his free hand he picked up his hat which had come off his head and as he straitened he put it firmly back on his head as he gazed with affection at Bao and soaked her in.... for a moment before he staggered just a bit. He was a little light headed and as spots exploded in front of his eyes he remarked.

"Hmmm you know as fun as that was I suppose standing that quickly after hitting your head is a bad idea."

Shaking his head and focusing his eyes he waved off any look of concern as the lights vanished.

"No worries princess. I have survived worse blows to the head with nary a lump on my head. Wither God or the Devil were my maker I was made durable."

Mako paused and tapped his foot after taking a second to pull his toeclaws free. He looked down upon his three toed foot, his white belly seen through his 'vest' felt the water from his damp hair run down to the floor. His hair, always damp even in the hottest of days. His lips twitched and the corners of his mouth lowered in thought.

"You investigate monsters, demons, and things like that right Lotus Blossom? So... what am I? Do you know? Priests in my time thought me a demon... but I do not bleed nor burn at the touch of crosses or holy water or flee from the readings of the bible. I can bare the touch of silver without effect so I do not think I am like those creatures at the dock... so... what am I?... I always figured that I am a left over from God flooding the world and drowning the wicked but... if I am wrong what would I be? It is getting late. So I choose that as my last question of the night, after all a lady like yourself must have her beauty sleep and if I am to be your body guard I have to look after you health."

[Bao Yu Chao]

Pouting a bit out of sheer irritation when taking in the sight of that silly grin he had on his face, she couldn't help but worry a bit since he was injured enough as is. Putting one hand upon her hip as she continued to hold out the other for him to grab on to should he choose to actually accept her help. Sure she was a tiny little thing, but she was really strong for having such a petite form so it's not like helping him would result in MORE completely unwanted falling! He wasn't on the ground for very long after she got off of him...how the ancient shark fellow could POSSIBLY be the slightest bit comfortable on something like the ground was totally beyond her....but it seemed like he was getting up on his own. Impressive, he didn't need nor take her help which said more than some of the idiots working for her. On the verge of pulling her hand away to avoid looking absolutely STUPID with her hand out like some kinda manikin. Though she was a little distracted by what he did to the floor....if...she actually cared enough about all her pennies to pinch em' all....then she would have thrown a HUGE fit!

Considering his clawed feet were sinking into the floor, but to her the repairs were chump change and not worth complaining about at all! Letting out a soft sigh as thought to quietly say `whatever`seeing how he was fine enough to help himself just as she was lowering her hand, it was no sooner she felt the hand which was gradually dropping back to its side be stopped in place. Dejavu...that's what this was! Except now she could feel his slightly damp skin making contact with her injured and bandage wrapped hands. ...OH NO NO NO NO WAS HE VIEWING HER AS A SNACK?! Quickly tilting her head upward to make eye contact with him...it soon followed to kissing the back of her hand...and...could actually feel it more so than when her hands were clad in leather. A deep strawberry red invaded her cheeks as she let out a soft squeak and blinked a couple of times being completely and utterly confused.

Why was he doing this again...? Maybe he was confused and the hit on the head didn't help any?! Letting her hand drop down to its side as she stared up at him in a bit of flustered shock...he....was looking at her as though he sincerely cared....well they were on business friend terms. Maybe that was why? On the verge of breaking her brain trying to figure it all out, she noticed his balance was a bit off and her eyes widened a bit fighting off the urge to grab onto his hands. After all he was playing this off like some sort of joke! "Of course it isn't a good idea, Captain Mako! You could have made your injury WORSE!"

Clenching her bandaged up hands tightly into fists and she glared up at him sounding annoyingly concerned with the words that slipped passed her lips. ...and...and he just waved it off! THE NERVE! Gritting her teeth a bit, she listened to him say how he had to deal with worse....she...didn't care! Sure, sure it brought SOME solace but an injury was an injury! ....wait...wait...why was she even annoyed that he was so careless? Huffing out a sigh, she crossed her arms over her chest and half shrugged while he pulled his toe claws outta the ground. Yeeeeeaaaah....she had to fix that later for sure.

Didn't want this place looking like it belonged to a poor peasant! Being so far up above the riff raff, it was her honor to gloat and live in luxury, after all! Eh...wait....what the hell was bothering him? So far from what she had seen in these hours of knowing him, he was mister `I'M SO HAPPY! SMILE SMILE EVERYONE! UNTIL YOU PISS ME OFF THEN I'LL RIP YOUR HEART OUT AND HAVE IT FOR LUNCH OR SOMETHING!`....didn't seem like he let much get to him...at least in the sorrow department.

Bringing up her hand to lightly brush some of her hair back into place a bit more, her annoyed look seemed to soften to one of thoughtfulness and concern. Hearing him out once more, she could see where this was going....the prize she owed him...those questions he wanted answered. This was just the start of a VERY long string of inquiry, wasn't it? Nodding a bit as he asked for clarification on her hobby turned into a career feeling her heart do a light skip as the tint of her blush didn't seem to fade much at all...especially being called Lotus Blossom as though its intention was to be endearing. That bandaged up hand was brought over to her chin as she listened intently to the rest of his words...looking to her for some kind of answer about his origins. Sadly....it was going to be hard as hell to figure out who or what was attached to his family tree. From what she gathered with monsters and creatures who took the time to actually let her interview them....there were some who knew quite a bit about themselves...others who just hadn't a clue and hoped she could be the one that gives them a sense of solace.

Something to hold onto...something, anything that could make them feel like they have a background of some kind. All of her help toward them was played off as purely business and minimum amount of sincerity was usually displayed to keep them assured that she was serious to take on their case and look into it. Honestly...she expected a series of lighthearted questions...but a deal was a deal. They had to start somewhere...even if it was at his origins.....or trying to get to them. For tonight though...this was the only question that sharkman captain intended on asking her since it seemed like he actually cared about how much sleep she got. Letting out a soft huffy sigh while the hinting remains of a blush continued to invade her cheeks, she motioned her hand slightly off to the side lightly smacking away some of her hair banishing it behind her shoulder. Her tone was oddly thoughtful but still serious as though this was business....which it was....delicate business...., "Captain Mako, I'd need to travel back to your time to find out the facts...so for now all I can do is speculate and give you my educated guesses. It's obvious you're a sea monster of some sort....or...a sea creature...."

Looking off to the side, she mumbled out rather quickly as though to conceal the sympathy about to fumble pass her lips, "Sorry, didn't mean to group you up with the real freaks I beat to death." Lightly spinning a strand of hair near her index digit with a slight look of embarrassment, she then glanced back to him picking up her previous tone.... "Anyway....you may have some creature in your family tree that was left over from the flood as you put it since you're way too young to be directly part of something that happened before you were born." Unraveling the piggy ping strands around her finger, she blinked a couple of times and continued on.... "I'll run some tests on you...the ones you'll survive from anyway...and see what results we get from that. I don't know if the results will be useful or completely useless but I'll make sure there's efforts made to answer your questions." Not like she was going to say it but...by the nit picky standards of the Chao family....her answer sucked.....a lot....it just made her feel like one of the crappiest paranormal investigators EVER.

Putting her hand down to rest it on her arm again, she looked down not able to really make eye contact any more since a chibi rendition of herself dolled up like how she normally is was too busy beating up the chibi version of her now which was squeaking out `OWWWW! TO BE FAIR WE'VE NEVER ENCOUNTERED A HUMANOID SHARK THING UNTIL NOW!` as regular chibi Bao Yu was snapping out `DON'T GIVE ME THAT CRAP! WE'VE DONE MORE THAN ENOUGH TO HAVE A BETTER ANSWER THAN WHAT YOU JUST TOLD HIM! FATHER'S RIGHT WE NEED MORE WORK!` ..........and then the present Bao Yu chibi got pissed off and started doing a battle cry of cuss words while fighting back against her chibi usual self. Then there was the cows jumping over the moon pajama wearing Bao Yu chibi who was resting her index finger on her chin mumbling `We should try to help our new employee just because it's the right thing to do....father's an asshole who has a gold brick stuck up his butt...at least that's what Phin says and I think she's right. Let's just do a good deed in the name of ourselves rather than father for a change.` so the two chibi Bao Yus which WERE fighting had their fists slammed into each other's cheeks looking at the pajama'd chibi saying at the same time `Agreed.`

As for normal Bao Yu who had her hair down and partially hiding her face before mumbling out as she gripped onto her elbows, "I've never seen anything like you so my knowledge is lacking....sorry I didn't give you a better answer. I'll let you ask another question to make up for my incompetence on the original subject....alright?" Tilting her head back up a bit, she looked...disappointingly irritated with how GRRRREAT she was able to answer. Apologizing wasn't out of her norm....in business you always had moments where it was required to barf up an apology or two....but this was different. A bit more personal than business yet on the same subject...it was kinda strange to say the least.

[Captain Mako]

Truth be told Mako didn't really have much hope she would be able to answer that question but he had to try it... would have been some nice closure. All those years in that basement, staring at the stone walls, the wooden doors, able to hear the games the children played. The same food, the same books, the same schedule year after year. Then a few moments with his teeth upon the door and his freedom was there, freedom to go wherever he wanted, to be what he wanted... as long as it was what society would allow him to be. There had been few choices back then, freak show, hobo, or pirate... he never once regretted his choice. Because now he had so many choices. Like what to ask now. Mako turned and thought, tapping his chin as he regarded his mistress. His grin still residing but a serious look in his eyes.

"Hmmm well I have known you a day so I suppose asking you to marry me is much to soon. That will have to wait for another day. Besides a question like that would have to be a special occasion for such a special woman, flowers, the right location, me not wearing tatters. It would have to be in a place to suite a gorgeous woman such as yourself."

Mako ignoring her hysterics for once, taking her request for another question fairly seriously turned to her suddenly clapping his hands together and pointing at her. His eyes gleaming with curiousity. He spoke quickly his words dancing out one after another.

"Why me? That is my question. Why me. Why did you choose me for this position. Why not a human, why not another monster, why a man, if I might be so bold as to use that word for myself despite what I am, who you met today for the first time, who barely knows this world, who spent more time on ice then he did alive and walking around. Why me and not a thousand others o beauty of the empire? Why me. I ask that and then I will take my rest as soon as you grace me with an answer."

Mako reached down and tilted the couch back into place as he talked, straightened up a table it had nudged and walking near the fish pond sprinkled a little bit of food in the pond for the fish who were hiding as far as they could from the predator in their midst.

[Bao Yu Chao]

DAMN. IT. SHE HAD AN AGENDA TO KEEP! Like a meeting in the morning then business things and BLAH DE BLAH way too much crud for a young woman. YET she took on each and every one of her tasks LIKE A BOSS. Lightly tapping her foot in slight impatience....her urge to tell him to make up his damn mind on a question bubbled away on the inside like someone left the soup on high long after it was done. When he FINALLY managed to say something....though, her eyes widened...her face became COMPLETELY red and her jaw dropped. Marry....her...was this a bad joke? Oh for the love of honest salesmen!

Was she getting what the internet liked to call `trolled`?! The shocked jaw drop ceased and she grit her teeth before bringing her hands to her sides clenching them tightly into fists. This `I feel bad for not being able to give you a good answer about a touchy subject` feeling she had burdening her earlier poofed into nothingness. Sure, it was kind of flattering but they hardly knew each other and last time she checked, bosses don't go around dating their pawns or the other way around! Had to be messing with her...he just had to be! "Marry me? MARRY ME?! WHAT THE HELL KIND OF QUESTION WOULD THAT BE?! I THOUGHT YOU HAD MORE CLASS THAN THAT CAPTAIN MAKO! THINKING ABOUT MARRIAGE WHEN YOU MEET SOMEONE ON THE FIRST DAY?!"

Giving off one hell of a death glare that somehow gave off of chilly vibe to her bodyguards outside all gulped and shuffled away from the door a bit. They...so didn't want any part of that what so ever. Plus her anger filled ranting and raving didn't seem nice to deal with either. Whipping up her hand into a point, she continued snapping at him as though her rage was going to go on cruise control with some serious butt whopping...like normal. "B-BESIDES...YOU....YOU ARE ON A LOWER LEVEL THAN ME! I'M YOUR BOSS, YOU'RE MY EMPLOYEE! KNOW. YOUR. PLACE! "

The Honey Bao Yu is known in the Guineas Book Of World Records as the most fearless animal in all of the animal kingdom. She really doesn't give a shit. If she's pissed she'll yell...IS THAT A SHARKMAN SHE'S SNAPPING AT?! The Honey Bao Yu doesn't give a shit! SHE'LL BITCH ALL SHE WANTS. Even though great white sharks, which good ol' Captain Mako was DEFINITELY part of had a tendency to look at humans as their versions of vegetables, they were still known to be ruthless and mean like monsters of the sea. CLEARLY knowing this didn't stop her from going on her rant.

Letting out a huge ol' huff of sheer annoyance and aggravation, she grumbled out while STILL blushing up a storm..., "Such...such nonsense! It's inappropriate for our social ranking and status! I'm not even going to ask WHY you're having such crazy thoughts! ARE YOU LISTENING TO M-" CLAP CLAP! Her heart was flippin' out about all kinds of things and the little chibi representations of herself were beating the crap out of each other...but...stopped when the clapping he decided to do took place. Even she shut her mouth and narrowed her eyes with a slight TWITCH taking place in the exposed sapphire optic with a frustrated frown. Why was he pointing at her...?

Pouting a bit, she flailed her arm up and down as thought to silently say `OH NO NO NO YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME! I'LL GO HONEY BAO YU ON YOUR MONSTER OF THE SEA BUTT!` Oh....she felt kinda stupid....he had another question! Why did she choose to employ him? Lowering her hand and blinking a bit....she....didn't know why he was asking. It seemed fairly obvious. Bringing her bandaged hands to her hips, she tsked him right out loud and looked a bit on the serious side.....still....trying to shake off the blush... Plus...he was cleaning up a bit without her even having to demand it....that...was oddly nice of him.

"You really couldn't figure that out? Here I was thinking it was painstakingly obvious..." Shaking her head soon as the now slightly annoyed business woman-esque words escaped her before continuing on, "Captain Mako, you're useful and a lot more brave than some of the idiots I end up using as meat shields. Cowards flee to escape, brave people like you and I who are on the top of the food chain come up with a strategy and make a disadvantage into an advantage. I'd have to be an idiot not to hire you after helping me. Besides, it'd be a waste to kill you in the name of science. As a paranormal investigator and business woman, I not only get to research you but have a body guard and right hand man that won't run off to a corner crying all at the same time."

Turning around, she stretched her arms a bit and walked off to her room at a mellow pace while continuing to talk. "...maybe I even made a....what's that thing called that doesn't want money....friend...? Right...friend...out of all this. But we'll see. If you ask me, I hit a bunch of birds with a single stone out of employing you." When she got on over to the door frame of her bedroom, she muttered out a simple "Good night, thanks for cleaning up and don't kill my fish."

Looking at him with a `Touch my fish and you die.` style pout and closed the door before anymore banter could continued and locked it so she didn't have to worry AS MUCH about wake-up calls surprising the hell out of her in the form of a grinning shark trying to propose or bite her friggin' face off. "SLEEP WHEREVER IS COMFORTABLE FOR YOU THAT'S NOT MY ROOM." After yelling out those last words, she just flopped into her bed and cuddled her pet pig who was without a doubt her BEST FRIEND FOREVERz! Drifting herself off to sleepy land to dream about what ever random rick and roll her brain damn well felt like showing. THOSE FISHIES ON THE OTHER HAND...they noticed food raining down on their living area....their tummies said YES but their brains said NOOOOO DON'T FALL FOR IT cause...they weren't stupid! They knew a predator in or out of the water! Buuuut...they were engineered to understand people talk....if this guy ignored orders their BESTEST FRIEND would make him learn the meaning of suffer.

CAUTIOUSLY....the colorful koi fish peeked out form their little leafy hiding places and swam on over to the raining food pellets for delicious yum-yums time!

{KAY! Bao Yu is gonna sleep now XD so exitin' her. YOU CAN HAZ FINAL POST IF YOU WANTS :3 !}