HEX-JHS

[four]

Nine o'clock in the morning and there's loud knocking at Kiyomi's door. She gets out of bed, grumbling and annoyed that someone is at her door like the damn police on her day off. She practically stomps to the door. She unlocks it and yanks it open.

Standing on her porch is a man in a suit with an envelope in her hand.

Well, he's definitely a law officer of some sort so she wasn't too far off with that part.

"Are you Miss Kiyomi Wise?"

"Yes." She doesn't know why he even has to ask.

If they pulled her address, her picture popped up with it. She's so easily annoyed by the police that it's ridiculous.

The man holds out the envelope. "The county pound gave us your information. You're listed as a willing safe space for hybrids. One was just caught as an unregistered and detained yesterday. He's since been registered and is on watch. Due to the nature and length of his crime, he is not trusted to be without a caretaker until further notice."

Kiyomi looks at him instead of reading the papers inside the envelope.

"What, did he kill somebody or something?"

A joke. Had he done that, he'd have been put down or incarcerated. She's just being an ass about the harshness of what couldn't possibly be that big of a deal.

"He's 25 years old and unregistered."

"...oh."

It's all that she can really manage to say. She still doesn't think that it's his fault. Yes, it's the law. But how he'd get away with it for 25 whole years? She thought they claimed to have the best registry statistics in the world? Bullshit, of course. It always is.

"It would be ideal if you went to the Registry at your earliest convenience. He's been a little volatile since he's woken up."

Kiyomi twists her face. "And you want me to take him?" She asks as the man walks down the steps from her porch.

"He's only been that way since we've put him in the cage." He calls as he gets into his vehicle.

"So then take him out." She says in quiet disbelief. "What the fuck." She sighs and shuts her door. "Oh my God."

Kiyomi goes upstairs and starts getting ready for early day. She planned to sleep in and spend the day inside, but no. Apparently, that's not going to be an option for her.

She showers and gets dressed before her keys and her wallet. She makes sure that her ID and medical insurance cards are inside before leaving her home. On her way to the Registry, she turns some music on to ebb the irritation that she feels.

She's not going to be able to make a good first impression if she's annoyed. She can't even imagine how the hybrid is feeling. He must be pissed too. She doesn't blame him.

Being treated like an animal as if you don't have a conscience mind is beyond dehumanizing. Though, she's sure that's the point.

The fifteen minute drive passes quickly and she parks in the lot. She gets out and walks into the building. She's wanded and cleared to go inside. As she walks up to the desk, she gets looks from those sitting in the waiting room. She's not dressed as professionally as they are. They treat taking in hybrids as business meetings and that's not why she's here. She hates that they do this in the first place.

It's a part of the reason that she signed up. If she can help just a little, she will. They don't need to be treated like animals unless they want to be. And most of them don't. They embrace and acknowledge their hybrid status but that's not all that they are.