As shards of glass rained around them, the ear splitting scream almost rendered Kimiko deaf, making her snap her eyes shut. One minute she was covering Gin and in the next she felt herself being pushed to the side, scraping her arms against the rough pebbled ground as she fell. She paid no attention to the bruise and looked up to see Gin running back into the mist, telling her to go get help. "No - wait - damn it, Gin, you don't have to do this!" she yelled, but her cries to call the kitsune back were drowned out by the rabisu's scream. 

[i]Why the hell is she sacrificing herself? And for humans no less?[/i] Kimiko thought angrily as she got to her feet, staring at the whiteness before her, the screams of the rabisu echoing through the alley. Her hand clenched around the handle of her umbrella as she stood rooted to the spot, unable to move. [i]I-I'm useless. I don't know how to fight...[/i] She hadn't ever needed to protect anyone before, she was the one who was always protected, and even so, she'd always been cautious and the number of dangers to her life were minimum. But it was different now. Someone else's life was in danger. And though Gin had told her to get away, Kimiko was afraid that if she left the scene, she'd probably never see the kitsune again.

"Damn you!" she cursed, hitting her folded umbrella against the wall beside her. The movement made something fall out of the folds of her dress and clatter to the ground. It was her cellphone, lying innocently on the ground without a scratch. 

She hastily picked it up, her shaky hands almost making her drop it again. But who was she going to call? Her previous bodyguard? They were long out of town and wouldn't be able to do anything. If there was ever a time Kimiko had regretted not making any friends, this was it. She was on the verge of giving up when an unexpected name stood out. Before she could question her decision, she called him. 

And it went to voice mail. 

"Are you kidding me?! The one time I call you and your phone is off?" would be the first words Capello would hear if he ever got around to hearing his voice-mail. Kimiko sighed. This was never going to work. But she had to try. "I don't know if you'll hear this in time, but I'm near the sushi place in 22nd Street. A rabisu attacked us and that stupid, [i]stupid[/i] kitsune is hell bent on suicide, so please, if you get this, I need you-" At that moment, she ran out of time and she trailed off her next words. "...to send help... UGH!" The phone broke into pieces as Kimiko threw it at the wall and took off into the alley, having given up on calling for help again. 

She arrived just in time to see the creature looming over Gin. Without thinking, she rammed her body against the rabisu with her umbrella in between them, pushing it away from the wounded girl. 

----

"Well, hello, Mr. Li," are the words Yuen would hear first, followed by the sudden appearance of the landlord beside him, his friendly smile ever in place. He hands a pen to the young man, along with his room key. "You're in apartment 5B. I hope you'll like your accommodations."