Episode 7

New York, 2/3/1994

Rin groaned in frustration and flung the knife at the door. It landed dead center, but failed to stick. She shook her head slowly, more from chagrin than irritation. Plunking herself next to Daryl with an air of exasperation, she asked why he was set on killing her.

"And the reason better not be something mundane," she scolded. "Did I kill your brother?" Before he could answer, she changed her mind. "Ooh, I know, the commandant was your dad."

When Daryl didn't say anything she went on. "I really enjoyed watching him squirm in agony. It lasted a very very very long time. Did you know he died like a complete pathetic coward? I always wondered how unmanly someone possibly can be, and he provided the answer."

Daryl smiled. "Yes, I am glad to hear that."

"Then, your fellow soldiers. They were your comrades, and I murdered them. Here I am, take your revenge." Rin stretched her neck out invitingly.

"No, they were assholes."

Rin slumped back in frustration. "Then what? What the hell do you want, boy?"

"I need to kill you because you cannot be killed," he explained.

Rin looked at him in disbelief before breaking into a knowing smile. "Ah, I see. You're not right, up there." She tapped him on the forehead.

Daryl slowly shook his head. "No, it's not that."

Rin sighed. "That's what they always say." She looked up at him. "It sure sounds like that. Try making sense. My patience is wearing thin, and I don't give crazy people any special consideration. They scream just as loud, sometimes louder."

Ignoring this, Daryl clarified. "I don't believe you cannot be killed. I just need to find the way."

"If I haven't given you reason, why go to such lengths? Would you die trying?" Rin smiled at him. "And you would die trying."

"There is a reason," he replied. "I belong in this world and you don't. I must defend it against you."

Rin's jaw momentarily dropped, before she recovered herself. "Well, that's very presumptuous of you. Self-appointed defender of the world." She reached for his gun. "Why don't I pin a special medal to your chest."

"It's not loaded," Daryl pointed out. He barely managed to dodge the gun flung at his head.

Something suddenly occurred to Rin. "You knew I couldn't be killed, so why reload? You could have been certain after a bullet or two." She smiled maliciously. "No need to kill a baby. More important, no need to ruin my damned chair."

Daryl cringed at the reference to the baby, but shrugged at the rest. "I know you can't be killed. But it felt good shooting you."

Rin felt something quicken inside her. This could be interesting.

After a moment, she looked up and smiled innocently. "What's not to say that I belong here and your kind does not?"

"It doesn't matter. It's us against you."

Rin adopted an air of disgust. "Well, I suppose that is how a soldier would think. So basically, you're some narrow-minded bigot who wants to kill me because I'm different."

"You're not some helpless girl," Daryl protested. "I want to kill you because you are a threat."

"Most sane people avoid unkillable threats."

"I cannot kill you by avoiding you," he pointed out.

Rin studied him. "So you came here to bore me to death? Oh, I see. You came to martyr yourself. You figure that if you die trying now, it will release you from the obligation of actually trying to accomplish something impossible. You're looking for the easy way out. All the glory and none of the work."

Rin placed her hands on his cheeks and smiled into his face. "But, Daryl, this isn't the easy way out. It's a very very hard way out. You should have used one of those bullets on yourself."

"I cannot learn how to kill you from afar," Daryl explained, frustration seeping into his voice.

It took a moment for Rin to realize the intended meaning of his words. "Ah, I see. You can't be shy. Know your enemy, and all that nonsense. So you came to declare war on me so that what ... we'd become frenemies like in some afterschool special? That I'd reveal all my secrets, so you can blow your new friend's brains out?"

"Why after school?"

"Don't change the subject," Rin snapped. Then she grinned. Ah yes, this would be good. That was what she had seen in his eyes. It had been a while, and she had been remiss, detached. Such detachment could weaken her, thwart her purpose. She needed a reason not to be detached. And he would do nicely.

"I don't believe you," Rin announced. What was it that he really wanted? If he was in love, and trying to kill her just was an excuse to himself for being with her, then it could be troublesome down the road. Fun, but troublesome.

On the other hand, if he only could love somebody he wished to kill ... well, that would be much more interesting. Either way, there was the prospect for some excitement. But first she'd need something compelling, something to reel him in. He wouldn't bite if it was too easy.

Rin smiled at him sweetly. "No, I think it's pride. Yes, indeed, everything you've said bespeaks a vision of yourself as some sort of saviour. But do not worry, I know how to cure that."

Suddenly Rin draped herself over his shoulders. "Oh Daryl, Daryl, what am I going to do with you?" she opined. "Here you are, pledged to find a way to destroy me. What would you do in my place?"

There was no hesitation in his reply. "Kill you."

"Yes, well that does seem to be your proclivity." Rin quietly walked to the door and retrieved the knife from the floor. Returning to the bed, she contemplated it. Without warning, Daryl felt the blade's chilling hardness against his throat. He had not even seen Rin move. Though she had no special physical prowess, there were some benefits to centuries of training.

Daryl made no attempt to defend himself. Instead, he closed his eyes and calmly announced, "I am ready."

Something about the boy intrigued Rin. Any idiot could have a death wish, but she didn't sense that from him. Nor was he a zealot. He had shown weakness when she mentioned the possibility of a dead baby. But if not affected it certainly could be corrected.

After all, he had unloaded an entire magazine into a woman he did not even recognize. If he had come to the wrong door, an innocent girl would be dead. Either he was very cocksure or he wasn't as scrupulous as he pretended to be. Even if he did feel a selective compunction, it could be cured. There was no better cure for humanity than Rin.

The sensation of cold steel vanished, and Daryl opened his eyes.

Rin donned a cruel smile as she gathered her coat. "No, I think not. I have much worse plans for you."

Despite his general fortitude, Daryl could not suppress a shudder.

"Yes, I think I'll make you my assistant."

Daryl couldn't contain his astonishment. "Your assistant? But, but I want to kill you," he stammered.

"And there's no better way to figure out how than by studying me and my methods up close," she explained in the manner of a schoolteacher.

"You said so yourself," she continued. "What else could you possibly have been hoping for when you came to my door? That you'd miraculously discover a weakness by looking at me and happen to have the right weapon at hand? I don't exactly advertise my whereabouts, and you've probably been searching for me for some time. Surely your purpose wasn't simply to show up, tell me you want to kill me, and then die. It seems a bit anticlimactic."

When Daryl made no move to stand, she gave him a disapproving look and tossed him the gun. "Come now, and make sure you bring this. Do try to be more careful with it in the future. Finding a new apartment is a dreadful nuisance."

They paused two blocks away, and there still was no sign of the police. Rin thought about how best to proceed. She had begun to wonder whether she was making a mistake. She practically had to lead Daryl from the apartment by the hand like a dazed puppy. She wasn't concerned about getting caught herself, but it probably would mean the loss of that puppy. On the other hand, if Daryl didn't get with the programme soon, she'd probably put him down herself. Rin had no use for a dazed puppy, however cute it may be.

A nearby subway entrance caught her attention. That would do. Putting a few stops between them and the crime scene should prove adequate. It was a big city, and they could diffuse into it from there. As Rin considered this, Daryl finally recovered his composure enough to speak.

"Why are you keeping me alive?"

Rin looked at him as if he were an idiot. "Because of what I saw in your eyes."

Daryl didn't say anything, so she rolled her own and whispered in his ear. "Potential."

"Potential?" he repeated, as if in a trance.

"Or not," Rin observed dryly.

Then she turned and walked briskly toward the subway entrance, adding over her shoulder, "and probably sex."