I'm sorry, I couldn't help it.
Warnings: Gross stuff, Muraki, long waits between chapters, the usual...
As always I own nothing.
When The Bough Breaks
Chapter 1
For a long moment there was silence…
The memory of screams still echoed in the darkened room, and dull green eyes stared unblinkingly towards a blood spattered wall. Muffled at first, growing steadily louder and clearer; a dark, menacing laughter began to reverberate through the walls of the building.
"I'm free!" A raspy and grating voice rang with exultation. "I'm…" The laughter died suddenly, to be replaced by a roar of fury. "Why am I still bound?!"
~XXX~
"Tatsumi's coming."
Tsuzuki whirled around in his chair, nearly sending himself flying in the process, to look at his partner. Hisoka hadn't so much as glanced away from his computer screen, but Tsuzuki was still warmed to know that his partner was still watching out for him, even while engrossed in his work.
Tsuzuki jumped down from his chair and sent it spinning back towards his desk. He threw himself into it and grabbed a pen just as the office door opened.
Trying to look as if he'd just been interrupted in diligently writing his reports, he looked up. "Hi Tatsumi!"
Tatsumi Seiichiro, formidable secretary of Enma-cho, looked Tsuzuki up and down for a long moment. "I think you'll find that you'll have better results if you turn your pen around Tsuzuki-san."
Tsuzuki looked back down and realized he was holding the back of his pen against the paper. "Oops!" Tsuzuki held the pen up in front of his face and glared at it. "Well, there goes a whole mornings work! And I was almost done too!" He peeked up to see Tatsumi's lips twitch, and there was a snort from Hisoka's general direction.
"No Tsuzuki, you can not go to lunch early, even if you do turn the clock ahead," Tatsumi told him, sounding mildly exasperated.
"I wouldn't! How could you possibly think I… I mean, I… really! How did you know?"
Hisoka finally looked up from his computer and looked hard at Tatsumi. "Is there something wrong, Tatsumi-san?"
The question caught Tsuzuki off guard, he knew that in spite of his empathic talent Hisoka normally had a difficult time reading any emotion from the taciturn secretary, so if Tatsumi was broadcasting enough emotion for Hisoka to pick up on it, then he must be truly upset. He turned his questioning gaze on Tatsumi, who sighed deeply and gestured towards him in a way that clearly said 'later'.
"I'm afraid I came in to pass on a missive we just received from the Hall of Candles." Tatsumi reached into his suit and withdrew a folded slip of heavy paper. There was a red spot on the ivory page where it had been sealed with wax. Tatsumi hesitated for a brief moment before handing the message to Hisoka.
Hisoka took it and unfolded it. Tsuzuki noticed the shadows around Tatsumi twitching minutely with agitation, he really was upset!
Hisoka's reaction was similar; although there was no outward change in his demeanour, Tsuzuki noticed when Hisoka's hands started to tremble, the note wavering slightly in his grip. He looked up at Tatsumi. "Is that all?"
Tatsumi raised a brow in question, but nodded once in reply. "Are you alright Kurosaki-kun?"
"I'm fine, I'm…" Hisoka trailed off and looked around as if he had lost his train of thought. "I'm…" He paused, and then looked back up at Tatsumi. "I'm going home."
"Home?" Tatsumi asked.
"Home; my place," Hisoka confirmed.
"Very well, you have the day, tomorrow too if you need it. We'll see you later."
"Hisoka?" Tsuzuki questioned softly.
"It's alright Tsuzuki, I'll see you tomorrow," Hisoka reassured him, rising to his feet. He grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair and walked quickly out of the door.
Tsuzuki stared after him worriedly. "Tatsumi? What just happened?"
Tatsumi sighed a second time and retrieved the missive from Hisoka's desk. "The Count has sent word that both his parents flames were extinguished yesterday evening."
"Oh…" Tsuzuki breathed softly, and unconsciously got to his feet, intent on following his partner.
Tatsumi held up a hand to halt him. "Stop."
Tsuzuki stopped and looked pleadingly at his superior. "But Tatsumi, I just want to make sure he's alright."
"And I would expect nothing less of you," Tatsumi told him with a gentle smile. "But give him today to assimilate, let him be. Tomorrow will be soon enough to pester him."
Tsuzuki shifted as if he was going to continue despite Tatsumi's words, then he met Tatsumi's solemn and direct gaze and nodded. "Okay."
Tatsumi game him another, warmer smile as he left the room, and Tsuzuki returned to his desk. Preoccupied, he began to absently fill in his paperwork, all thoughts of messing with the office clock completely forgotten.
~XXX~
Tsuzuki sighed.
He was sitting at his kitchen table, head on his hand, staring at his phone. He had been home from work for just over an hour, and in that time he had stared at his phone, trying to convince himself that just calling Hisoka wouldn't be intrusive or invasive or… But every time he reached for the receiver, he heard Tatsumi's voiced telling him tomorrow would be soon enough.
While he was lost in these musings, a knock sounded at the door. "Come in!" he yelled at the knocker, barely glancing away from the phone.
So he was more than a little startled when Hisoka stalked by him and into his living room with a pillow tucked under one arm and a backpack thrown across his other shoulder.
He watched as Hisoka threw the pillow on his couch, the backpack on the floor beside it, and took a seat, arms crossed over his chest, staring moodily at the blank television screen.
Tsuzuki got slowly to his feet and followed after his partner. "Hisoka?" he questioned tentatively.
"I don't want to talk about it," Hisoka told him with just the briefest glance up from the TV screen. "I just don't… don't…"
"Want to be alone right now?" Tsuzuki supplied helpfully.
"Yeah, that." Hisoka shot another quick glance at Tsuzuki, this one full of gratitude.
Tsuzuki took a seat on the other side of the couch and sat quietly fidgeting for several minutes before turning back to Hisoka. "Are you hungry? I could…"
"Go order a pizza," Hisoka told him, "it's on me."
"Really?" Tsuzuki gushed, his natural exuberance making an appearance.
"Really, but no peppers." Hisoka's lips twitched in spite of himself as he watched Tsuzuki bounce off towards the phone.
tbc...