Chapter 123 – The Precious Miss Planner
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Though she would deny it, Miss Planner craved genuine human contact. She was a lonely soul who very few people really took the time to get to know, and her amazing social skills masked the lack of real, genuine friendship in her life. She poured all of the love and energy she had into her work, but it never truly satisfied her. The people at the office weren't her friends or her family; they were her coworkers, her superiors, and her subordinates. They were just the chosen few whom the Chosen Ones had deemed worthy of being in her life.

Lately, the loneliness had begun to weigh on her mind. It was a dark cloud that loomed over her that she couldn't easily dismiss or push away. She'd been making a big effort to talk to the people she worked with on a more personal level, but it was hard. As much as she wanted to connect and make friends, she wasn't always in the mood. Some days, like today, the loneliness was just too overwhelming to even acknowledge.

That was why it was all the more troubling when the people she'd been looking forward to seeing and having fun with didn't even bother showing up to the big Spirit Life Day event she'd gone through an incredible amount of pain to attend. Black Smoke was having a little party of his own with some friends from Animal Brotherhood, Erica wasn't answering her phone and nobody knew where she was, Milly was running very, very late... so poor little Miss Planner was stuck by herself in the lobby, barely able to move as her petite frame shook and shivered with fatigue.

The entire party was starting to feel rather unpleasant. It was such a weirdly isolating experience to be surrounded by hundreds of people and all of them strangers to her, attending a party to celebrate a holiday she loved, when all she really wanted was to lay her head down on a couch somewhere and go to sleep. But she'd forced herself to endure it, regardless.

And then, like a bolt from the blue, her silver-haired guardian angel came looking for her, to take care of her. Miss Planner wasn't even sure the Knife Maniac was going to come in the first place. She'd invited her on a whim, and she wanted her to come, she hoped she'd come, but she didn't expect her to come. And now here she was... holding her waist with one arm and feeding her shrimp out of a cocktail glass with the other. The sweet aroma of the Knife Maniac's silky silver hair filled Miss Planner's nose and it smelled amazing.

Miss Planner smiled a small smile as her body trembled in response. The Knife Maniac's soft, warm skin rubbed up and against hers as she hugged her close and Miss Planner found her lips curling up into a little grin. She limply reached her head out to take a bite of yummy shrimp while enjoying the wonderful warmth enveloping her tiny shoulders. It made the rest of the evening seem like a bad dream that had happened in a far-off realm she didn't really care about any more.

"You look better already, cutie pie," the Knife Maniac murmured, brushing her hair aside and leaning in closer to nuzzle her cheek with a kiss. "Do you want a treat? Open up! Here comes the shrimp!"

The Knife Slaves looked on in awe as their mistress gracefully took a little white shrimp from the cocktail glass and slashed its tail off with a hidden pocket knife, popping the tiny morsel into Miss Planner's waiting mouth. Her tiny lips sucked eagerly, her eyelids drooping a little, a content smile spreading over her childlike features.

"Ooooh, I've missed you, Miss Planner. You don't even want to know what I've been dealing with at the Hall of Blades."
"Dip the next one in the cocktail sauce..." Miss Planner mumbled, her eyes drifting half-open.
"Of course, of course! Here!"

The Knife Maniac dangled another shrimp in her long fingers, cut off its rear end, and dipped it into a bath of red sauce that oozed over its slimy flesh. Then she gently brought the freshly marinated morsel towards her blonde friend's lips. Miss Planner swallowed it with an exaggerated little 'gulp'.

"What's that you're wearing, Miss Planner? I love my grandma? You're the cutest, you know that?!"
"Well, last year the party was a little more casual... I called out sick yesterday and missed the memo from the party planning committee, so I just went for something comfy, and... anyway, can you feed me my pretzel next?"
"Hehehe. Sure, sure."

As the little woman with blonde hair munched away at her sweet treat, the Knife Maniac waved over her entourage and quietly asked them to bring some water for her tiny companion (as well as a glass of wine or two for herself). Miss Planner took the opportunity to catch her breath, clumsily wiping away the red sauce smeared all over her lips with a paper napkin. She was starting to feel a little dizzy again, but she knew she was safe in the strong arms of the beautiful silver-haired Knife Slave who stroked her back gently like she was a little puppy.

After she got herself settled, the Knife Maniac started telling her a long, troubling story about the Knife Slaves' board of directors and all the petty, meaningless bickering they engaged in every single day... how the current chairman stole a big shipment of masterwork knives and nobody was willing to go through the trouble to prove that he'd done it, how everyone wanted to keep everything the way it was because that was the way it'd always been even though it wasn't working anymore, the Knife Slaves' open lack of respect for their subordinates, all the time they wasted, the never ending cycle of petty arguments and pointless feuds... Miss Planner was only half-listening, and she found herself sinking lower and lower in her seat.

"Hehehe. Is my story putting you to sleep? You haven't had anything to drink, right? How about we get you some coffee? Or a smoke?"
"Yeah... I want a smoke."
"Well, we can't smoke in here. Let's go outside, okay? Come along now, come, come."

The tiny little girl in a T-shirt stained with brown chocolate and red cocktail sauce walked hand in hand with her guardian angel out to the plaza behind the Tower, where the music and noise of the party was little more than a dull roar. The rest of the Knife Slaves stood by in silence, the tips of their daggers shining in the moonlight, watching the pair of powerful psychic women walk arm-in-arm towards the smoking spot on the edge of the plaza. Miss Planner happily puffed away on her little Nuke cigarette, feeling a slight buzz and savoring each puff with deep lungfuls. It felt wonderful to be out in the open air in her breezy shirt and slacks. A cool breeze caressed her face as she watched the purple night sky above her, and she breathed it in deeply and sighed in contentment.

"Thanks for coming out here. I'm sorry I'm not much fun today."

The Knife Maniac, carrying a tiny glass of vodka on ice with a slice of orange, smiled softly as she looked around.

"You're still so cute, though. I'd never miss a chance to spend time with my precious little Planner, you see."

Miss Planner chuckled and puffed her smoke.

"Precious little me..."

Miss Planner's messy blonde hair fluttered in the cold wind, catching the dim light from Tower. The Knife Maniac swirled the ice in her glass with a little flourish and held it up to the sky.

"I was so surprised to see the precious little you sitting all by yourself at that table, Miss Planner! So lonely! But, but it's a good thing, because now I have you all to myself! Hahaha!"
"I didn't think I'd be all by myself either. Actually, I don't really know how I was expecting this night to go. I probably should have just stayed home... and given you a call... but I didn't even know if you'd be coming in the first place."

"Hehehe. Hahaha! Of course I'd come! You look absolutely adorable when you're all tuckered out like this. Ohhh, the stress makes your eyes sparkle!"
"I should have called you... we could have had a fun little celebration at my place, just the two of us... cough! Cough!"

Miss Planner began coughing, the smoke stinging her eyes and causing tears to flow down them. The Knife Maniac brushed her cheek with the back of her blade and kissed her nose to stop her coughing.

"Hahaha. I wouldn't have minded that. Maybe I'll invite you to my place next time. I've got a nice big condo on the water. You’d love it there."
"Cough... cough..."

Miss Planner's shoulders shook as she fought back another bout of choking. She looked away, ashamed of letting herself be seen in her moment of weakness, and quickly cleared her throat. The Knife Maniac giggled at her little friend and reached out with a gentle smile to hold her close again.

"I should have called you to explain why the consultation paperwork is taking so long. The rioters burned down two of our branches. The board wants to do it, but it's taking us a while to get everything back in order."
"I thought that might be it. It's not a big deal. Look, I'm clearly in no shape to do any kind of work right now anyway. Hey, I'm getting cold... do you want to go back inside? I think I'm ready for some more snacks, maybe a drink to warm me up..."

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