Missing Piece

Chapter 24

Charlotte spun back to standing, huffing and very angry. "Would you two focus?!" She grunted through gritted teeth. "I am tiny and have only one good arm. Work with me!" The three of them fell, tripping over each other and avoiding another pink glowing hand.

Charlotte cursed at the two's happy and flushed face as they face their pretty assailant, Ain. The two had been falling over her the moment they two saw her, caught up in her beauty. The huntress exhaled, kicking Shachi's hat lower and blocking what his shades was failing to do. "Don't you two have a job for a doctor to do?" She was supposed to be the annoying reckless one disobeying orders, not the two loyal lackeys. Because of them, she hadn't even had a chance to go after Ain and to figure out her abilities. "Pretty sure, he won't be happy to hear that you two are fooling around with the enemy."

The words seem to do the trick as in the next moment, the two shot up to their feet, ready for battle. "You won't tell him, right?" Charlotte snickered at the nervous question and shrugged. Her gaze focused on the swordswoman. "I won't if you can get me to her."

Ain eyed the child with a slight frown. "You'll die if I as much as touch you again with my ability." She said and the two men jolted, gaze darting back towards Charlotte who seemed unconcerned. They stepped forward, shielding Charlotte behind them wordlessly. Or that was their plan. She ran head first between their legs.

"That's if you can touch me again."

"The damn reckless idiot..." Penguin cursed under his breath and charged forward. He should have known better. She did the same thing when she faced off against Law when they first met. "Shachi, take the fruit out of here first. I'll get Charlotte."

"Avoid her hands when they glow pink." Charlotte warned. Penguin managed to scoop her up much faster than she'd like. Damn those long legs. She fluttered her eyes close, focusing on finding Shachi an escape route instead now that she wasn't in control of where she was going anymore. "Down the hall, take you're the first two lefts and then jump out of the third window."

"The window?!" Shachi blanched, but nevertheless darted off. "Better not be a far fall." He muttered and Charlotte simply grinned much to his dismay. It was going to be a long fall. "You know I'm human, right?!"

"Modo Modo!"

"She can throw them?!" Penguin exclaimed when the pink glow shot off her hand like a disc, flying straight towards Shachi. The pink disc Shachi straight in the back. "Shachi! Shachi?" Penguin stared at the younger boy whose appearance he hadn't seen since their childhood together.

"I-I'm fine?" Shachi blinked, patting himself for injuries. The largest damage seemed to be that his clothes no longer fit him.

"How old is Shachi?" Charlotte questioned with a grunt. Her karambit pressed against Ain's short sword. She flung Charlotte back and Charlotte skidded to a stop, cursing her smaller and lighter body. "Subtract twelve years from his age. If he has twelve more years, he can take one more hit or else he'll be a goner."

"He'll be a goner either way. He'll just be babbling sitting idiot at the age of one!" Penguin exclaimed and immediately snapped his head towards the huntress that had somehow gotten free, Ain's earlier words now making much more sense. "What are you doing?! You don't have another twelve years!" A yelp and a thud made him spin around back to Shachi who had tripped over his long pants while trying to get out. Penguin stared at the scene around him and exhaled loudly. Much feeling like a babysit with an unstable toddler and a hyperactive child. His arms shot out, grabbing the huntress by her large red bow and Shachi as he passed him.

"W-what are you doing?" Charlotte choked out after fixing her scarf from cutting off her oxygen.

"Running." He admitted easily, swallowing thickly. "There's no point in risking you two—"