Mommy's got a scarecrow, gotta let the corn grow

[joinmyreunion]

When the others had said they were going back, Kadaj had said he'd join them.

He wasn't sure if he was ready to go home. He knew that when he did things would have changed, things would need to have changed. Orochimaru was gone, and Kadaj wasn't going to be viewed as just the impulsive idiot riding Kuja's coattails any more. His relationship with Gin was going to have changed as well. Kadaj had always trusted Gin in that he'd trusted Gin to be Gin; whose actions and motives were utterly beyond Kadaj's comprehension, but in the very least he got the impression that Gin wouldn't hurt him for the fun of doing so, which was more than Kadaj could say for any of the rest of Khamja. Where Gin was concerned, Kadaj tried not to be a hindrance, even if he didn't know how to be a help.

Now Gin knew secrets about Kadaj that no one else did. No one barring Nnoitra, and now Grimmjow, Tayuya, and Yylfordt. It would have put Kadaj on Gin's radar, he knew, he just had to hope now that whatever game Gin played didn't have need of a playing piece with Kadaj's moveset.

Then there was Kuja. Since he couldn't occupy the safe spot hiding behind Kuja's skirts any more, Kadaj might be surplus to Kuja's requirements. He could play him; play at being the loyal little ex-minion, but Kadaj knew he probably wouldn't be able to keep that up for too long. Better, then, to play at ingenue ally, in need of guidance, who may be inclined to owe Kuja some favours. It hurt to think it, but Kadaj trusted Kuja marginally less than he trusted Gin when it came to his own safety if he wasn't immediately useful to him.

And then, then there was Aizen. Kadaj doubted very much that his defeat of Orochimaru had put him on Aizen's radar, but he doubted Aizen disregarded the whole affair, either. It might, at worst, or at best, have put Kadaj down as an upstart to keep an eye on. Kadaj wasn't wholly sure how to ingratiate himself with that one yet, or whether doing so was even wise.

So returning to the Palace was frought with nerves and second guessing himself. Kadaj took the time to chase down one last Hollow before he headed back; a mean thing that a Gotei Lieutenant might break a sweat over, but which Kadaj could take down almost leisurely, now. Then and only then did he head back, driving the bike through the caverns and parking her with the airships.

Yylfordt could keep the Ragnarok. Kadaj was quite fond of his bike, now.

He approached the Palace doors with a sigh, steeling himself before he let himself in. The Palace felt very, very different to what he was used to. The usual suspects were all here, of course, their reiatsu interwoven with the general feel of the place, but there were dischords in the usual symphony. Reiatsu signatures missing, faded, no longer detectable, and intruders that were too new to have found their place in the piece, yet.

One of them felt familiar, though Kadaj couldn't really pinpoint why.

He was full of sand and dust from the desert, so the first thing he did was head off to have a shower and change. On his way, he left something outside Kuja's door, and once he'd showered, he headed straight to the kitchen, where the others tended to lurk.

Comments

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra looked at the Ryoka, visible eyebrow raised.

He had a point.

Orochimaru had been killed because of what he had done to both him and Kadaj, though the story suggested it had been in self defence. A witness had attested that he had seen Kadaj in a difficult position, having been attacked by Orochimaru, and gone to help him. Nobody would ever have believed that Nnoitra had help in him, but that didn't matter. The victim was somebody they both hated, so although it was opportunistic, it didn't go badly for him in front of Aizen.

In reality, it had been slightly more intricate than that, and all Kadaj's idea, pre-planned with the sort of clever reasoning that nobody would ever think to give Kadaj credit for, let alone him. They were both tarred with the same brush when it came to impulsive brawling.

And now it turned out that the man who had been given Orochimaru's old work space knew both of their mothers. He, much to Nnoitra's irritation, insisted on referring to him as his mother's child, rather than by name, something that needled him because his mother had never thought much of him. He doubted that she'd ever used his name to Hojo back when they worked together, and expected that she'd just called him 'the boy'.

Kadaj was, apparently, one of Hojo's own experiments and a later re-test of the Project-S experiment, the same one that had spawned Sephiroth, somebody that was considered to be finest Soldier ever turned out by Shinra.

After years of distance, Hojo apparently thought himself capable of taking Kadaj back, as property. That wasn't going to go well for him, Nnoitra figured.

Still, should Kadaj have need somebody unaverse to smashing his face in to back him up, he'd be happy to do an encore, not that he thought that he'd need help for this one.

[doesthissmellofchloroform]

Hojo made a scornful exclamation that would have been a laugh, had he been anyone else. "Orochimaru was little more than a hack collector, more interested in accumulating jutsu than real science." And look where it had got him. He'd died, and his collection had died with him; he'd left nothing to carry on after his death because he hadn't planned for his death. "It gives him undue credibility to refer to him as a scientist."

His lab, however, had been usable, with some modifications and equipment changes. "The fact that his laboratories were adequate is the best that can be said for him."

At least on the science front. Hojo didn't doubt he'd been a formidable fighter, but Hojo had little use for fighting himself; that was why he made SOLDIERS. Let the meatheads fight, and Hojo would pick over the data and the remains later to make better, more effective meatheads.

[joinmyreunion]

"I killed him," Kadaj said, his eyes unnaturally wide and his reiatsu still creeping upwards. "Nnoitra and I," he said, his gaze fixed on Hojo, "we both did."

He adjusted his grip on Souba but didn't draw her. "And I'll kill the next scientist that tries to touch me without permission, too."

No samples, no experiments, no data. Kadaj wasn't being turned over and studied and mentally restrained to be someone else's subject ever again. Orochimaru had done enough for one lifetime.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel snorted, quietly, as if he found something funny. "Please," he murmured, rolling his eyes.

As if anyone really believed it had been without permission with Orochimaru. Though he had to admit, Kadaj had a flair for the dramatic when it came to making a stand that he could appreciate.

[declaregamuza]

Nel glanced sharply in Szayel's direction, but he seemed to be oblivious. What they didn't need right now was Szayel sticking his oar in and upsetting Kadaj further.

She moved slowly and carefully around the table to get behind Kadaj, keeping a respectable distance so as not to set him off, and making sure not to move too suddenly, so as not to set him off.

He was holding on by the skin of his teeth, by her reckoning. If he let it out verbally, things should be okay, but Hojo had demonstrated a knack for being as oblivious as Szayel, so far, to the possible consequences of him running his mouth.

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra smirked at Hojo, cocking his head to one side.

Hojo, apparently, didn't know what kind of thin ice he was walking on. Sure, so he might consider Orochimaru little more than a hack, but his scientific prowess, or lack thereof, had absolutely nothing to do with how he had died, nor was Hojo's own likely to factor in to his imminent death if he carried on.

"He ain't lyin'," he said, fixing him with a look that was at once both amused and dangerous. "And there are enough other people here that will make your life really fuckin' hard if you do mess with him. Or try to."

[thechillyacademic]

Even sighed and shook his head, rolling his eyes.

Hojo was absurdly single minded, wasn't he? Even couldn't say one way or another whether Orochimaru's own scientific abilities were good or not, but that wasn't the point he had been trying to make, though Kadaj had explained quite adequately himself.

Even Hojo couldn't be so blind as to not realise that Kadaj was losing control and that, when he did, he'd be unlikely to come out of it well. It was a wonder he'd made it this far if this was his attitude to unwilling participants.

[doesthissmellofchloroform]

"Really?" Hojo asked, sounding slightly surprised, and very intrigued. "You're even more successful than I'd estimated!" He also sounded rather thrilled with this news, and adjusted his glasses.

"Hebira's child too," he murmured, turning his attention to Nnoitra for a moment, "very interesting. I'll require data from you both."

Sephiroth would have had no problem defeating someone like Orochimaru on his own, but Sephiroth was older, had completed all the procedures, and had been formally trained to become the standout specimen he was. The sibling, however, didn't have such advantages, so he'd done very well to have become adept enough to beat someone of Orochimaru's level with an accomplice.

[joinmyreunion]

Kadaj wasn't sure if this guy was being willfully obnoxious to try and get him to flip out, or if it was a scientist thing to be about as persistent as Szayel, and nearly as infuriating.

"You can't have any data," Kadaj hissed. "Am I not making my point clear enough for you?"

The fingers of his free hand twitched as he resisted the urge to grab this guy by the collar and make his point very pointed.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel murmured, approvingly. "I'm afraid I have to agree with Kadaj," he said, as if such a concept pained him. "Nnoitra's data isn't yours to take."

Though Hojo could help himself to Kadaj as much as he liked, for Szayel Nnoitra, however, belonged to Aizen, and the scientific part of his data belonged, as far as Szayel was concerned, to him, until they got to Draklor and then he was forced to share it.

He wasn't prepared to share it here. To say nothing of the fact that Aizen wouldn't approve of Arrancar being studied by someone like Hojo.

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra watched Hojo's expression turn to glee and then looked sharply at Szayel, the bridge of his nose wrinkling in annoyance.

"Shut the fuck up," he snapped, barely resisting the urge to grab him by the face and pull him off the chair. "You don't get to speak for me."

He did, however, join Kadaj in standing. Unlike Kadaj, he towered over Hojo, radiating threat without flaring his reiastu. He narrowed his single eye and glared down at the man, teeth showing in a snarl.

"I don't give a fuck what you 'require' of me," he said, still keeping his Chakra under control. "You ain't gettin' it. Not because that obnoxious little prick forbids it," he jabbed a thumb in Szayel's direction, "or because it belongs to somebody else, you ain't gettin' it because I fuckin' say you're ain't gettin' it and if you try," he bared his teeth in an unpleasant grin. "My boss being pissed off is gonna be the least of your worries."

[declaregamuza]

Nel frowned when Nnoitra got to his feet too. She could probably restrain Kadaj, but there was no way she'd be able to restrain both of them. The infuriating thing was that Nnoitra wasn't making empty threats, even though he in particular should be trying to keep his head down.

Besides, if Aizen wanted to let Hojo have Nnoitra's data, or whatever else he might want of him, if, for example, Nnoitra pissed him off again, there was very little outside of open rebellion that Nnoitra would be able to do about it.

"I suggest you leave," she said to Hojo, her voice firm.

[doesthissmellofchloroform]

Hojo smirked, putting his hand to his chin and supporting his elbow on the other hand.

So, Hebira's child was volatile. Hojo knew exactly how to get data from people like that. You simply set up the experiment, some simulated fight against an opponent, and told them there was no way they could beat it. You pushed the fact that you expected them to be soundly defeated, that they were weaker than what you had created, until, pride on the line, they went ahead to prove you wrong.

And then you got your data. He'd done it dozens upon dozens of times at Shinra with stupid meathead SOLDIERS who were out to prove their strength.

As for Sephiroth's sibling, he was, as anticipated, emotionally unstable, a trait no doubt picked up from the mother. He was easy to rile, which made him easy to study.

He'd already let the guard on his reiatsu drop, although he hadn't pushed it to full throttle, and if Hojo was any judge, and he was, he carried a zanpakuto, which was intriguing in itself.

"I've already taken the data I can from this meeting," he said, glancing at Kadaj. He might have to give it a few days and then steal a toothbrush, or hairbrush, for his genetic comparisons. "A kitchen is no place for proper analysis," he added, turning to look at Nel and Nnoitra.

"Perhaps my being sequestered in this Palace won't be such an inconvenience after all," he said, turning away to head for the kitchen door.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel rolled his eyes at Nnoitra's bravado. If Nnoitra laid so much as a finger on another member of Khamja, he'd stand to lose it, so if he continued like this he'd get himself returned to Draklor in a crate.

Still, Szayel had to admire the way Hojo had apparently come in to press Kadaj's buttons and find which ones were big and red. He hadn't flipped at the mother reference, for once, Szayel noted. Perhaps that one wasn't as sensitive as other subjects, lately.

Still, there was no way anyone could miss that Kadaj was back now; he'd practically advertised it letting his suppression drop like that.

Apparently he'd found some of Nnoitra's too, while he was at it. Not that Nnoitra's were easy to miss once you exchanged a few words with him.

[thechillyacademic]

Even looked at Kadaj when Hojo had made his exit.

"I suggest," he said, carefully, "that you lock your door whenever you're not there and, if you use anything in here, that you wash it when you've finished."

He didn't look at Nnoitra. He was a lot taller than he thought he should be and was one of the few people that Even had to look up at. Quite a way, at that. It was a little unnerving. He didn't doubt that he'd be taller, if less imposing, than Lexaeus.

"If he wants a sample, he doesn't need to have you present to obtain it."

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra glared at Hojo when he left and sat back down, looking grouchier than he had done.

He pissed him off, but he was a weakling, and obviously not a fighter, so murdering him wouldn't prove anything. A half-assed cero would take him out. Besides, if he touched any of the Arrancar, he wouldn't need to. Aizen himself would probably do it for him.

"I won't touch him," he sighed, pre-empting Nel's inevitable warning to keep his head.

[declaregamuza]

"Good," Nel said, eyeing Nnoitra. At least he knew exactly what she'd been gearing up to say to him. "It's not worth it. If he keeps on like that he'll annoy someone who won't be punished for killing him."

Once they'd got their use out of him, anyway. You also had to take into account that someone as infuriating as that had survived in Khamja for years. Admittedly by faking his death, but he had to have some allies, and some use to the clan.

She turned back to Kadaj, whose reiatsu was still wobbly after the conversation. He still seemed stunned. "Kadaj?" She asked, softly, her voice gentle and concerned.

[joinmyreunion]

Kadaj was still staring at the door Hojo had left through, his grip tight on Souba's hilt and his breath still too fast.

He took a deep breath and swallowed when Nel said his name, and looked at her. Then he looked at the blond ryoka who had spoken to him, and nodded.

Yeah, he had a point. Kadaj would have to watch his every step if he wanted to prevent this guy getting 'samples' from him. "Mother told me I'd fallen into the lifestream," he murmured, audibly, but quietly. "She lied."

It turned how he thought of his childhood on its head. He'd thought his mother had abandoned him but-- had she run away and left him behind to draw that guy away, and stop him getting to Kadaj again? All the times she'd cried and wouldn't tell him what it was over, could it have been his...

Brother?

He had a brother. That was huge enough.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel snorted. "Apparently even your mother wasn't that bad a caregiver," he said, in an undertone that was intended to be audible but not exactly noticeable.

It was interesting, though. Kadaj, of all people, being related to Sephiroth. It really did make you wonder just what he could have achieved with further enhancement.

And had anyone else known? Kadaj certainly hadn't. Kuja? L? Those two had connections, surely. Aizen? Perhaps not, as the activities of Shinra weren't on his radar until he had the opportunity to make a philosopher's stone out of one of their cities.

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra looked up at Kadaj when he spoke. Kadaj was famous for having issues with his mother, but this did shed a whole new light on it.

"She probably said that to protect you from that creep," he said, not unkindly.

Again, he resisted smacking Szayel very hard, but only because it wasn't his smack to deliver. If Kadaj wanted to do it, he was more than capable.

[joinmyreunion]

Kadaj's attention snapped to Szayel.

In the past, he'd have flown into a rage, screamed and swung, and tried to blindly hurt Szayel for speaking about Kadaj's mother that way. It didn't work, though. If you wanted to make a point, it was better to be controlled about it.

He'd learned that while he was gone. He had to control his temper. An attack made in anger was a stupid attack.

He stared at Szayel for a moment, and then chaneled his chakra, shifted his foot, and pushed a spike of rock up out of the ground underneath one of Szayel's chair legs.

"Don't talk about my mother that way," he said, sounding a little more unstable than he'd intended, but getting the point across nevertheless.

[sipthehoneylikeabutterfly]

Szayel found his chair tipped up, sharply, and fell back and sideways off it, landing with a small crash.

Still a hot button topic, then, from the sound of it. He clambered up out of the tangle of his limbs and the chair and brushed himself off, haughtily, trying to recover some dignity. He stroked his hair straight, too.

"That's a new trick," he said.

[prayingmantis]

Nnoitra couldn't help but snort. Kadaj, up until recently, hadn't had the Chakra control required to pull that kind of trick, so seeing him do it so casually showed some kind of improvement. Granted, he wasn't anywhere near on the same level of casual Chakra Element usage as the Ryoka tended to be, but it was better than he had been.

"I'd have punched him in the teeth," he said, shrugging. "But that works."

[joinmyreunion]

Kadaj sneered at Szayel before he cast a glance at Nnoitra. "He wasn't worth walking up to," he said, settling back down with a metaphorical smoothing of his own hackles.

Szayel had pissed him off, but Kadaj had controlled it, and channeled it, and he was a little bit pleased with himself for that.

He inhaled, and concentrated, drawing the small spike of rock back down until the floor was level again, a task which was much more difficult than driving the earth upwards had been in the first place. It wasn't perfect though; the floor still showed the mark where the tile had cracked.

Kadaj shrugged that off. It wouldn't be his explanation to give.

[declaregamuza]

Nel watched the little display with one raised eyebrow.

Kadaj had grown up, hadn't he? Tayuya had said he was a bit different, had discovered his independence, although that wasn't exactly how Tayuya had phrased it. It seemed to have done him good to get out of the Palace, obviously.

Out on his own, that was.

"Nice trick," she said, ignoring Szayel to come and examine the floor, "but you broke my floor." Her tone was ever so slightly scolding, but her expression wasn't. She wore a smile, and stepped nearer Kadaj to give him a concerned look. "Are you all right?" He had just had a few frightening revelations dumped on him at once, but if you looked at him thinking that he might have been used as a Shinra experiment, you could see it. You could see it in the glow of his eyes, and the eerie similarity in appearance to Sephiroth; similar eye shape, and noses, although Kadaj's face was more rounded, he was also younger, and slighter.

"Even's right, you know," she said, softly, "you should keep your room locked up."

Hojo was a whole new ball of problems for the kid. She felt sorry for him.