Heavy AU. C-ta's a little bit more mentally stable in this fic than in the canon, but I do hope to delve into his obsession in the future. Also, ratings seriously for like one tiny little curse. Wasn't sure if it was suitable for K+.

Disclaimer: I obviously do not own Bookmark of Demise, legally or physically.

"I can't thank you enough for this. I honestly thought I'd have a harder time finding a place to live then I did."

"Nononono! I should be thanking you. I'm glad such a nice man is willing to live with my son. He's been looking for a roommate for a long time you know. His last roommate left about four months ago after she got married. Poor A-ya's been struggling to pay the rent for quite some time. How are you adjusting now that you're back in Japan?"

There was a grunt from the man beside him and C-ta was once again forced into the person in front of him. God, he hated trains. He reeked of sweat and he was sandwiched between some asshole who smelled as if he'd foregone a shower in favor of bathing in cologne and a woman who didn't seem to understand the concept of 'I'm not interested and will never be.' He couldn't wait to get off and take a nice, long shower and relax. "It's… uh… been interesting."

"Well, you'll have to tell me all about your adventures around the world. An old woman like me can only dream of traveling." There was a sad sort of chuckle on the other end. C-ta bit at his lip. He hadn't traveled that much and honestly, and they were in no way adventures.

"Well, after I settle in, I'll tell you all about it, Miss…." He floundered, fishing for the name in his mind. Forgetting the woman who had offered him a nice apartment was not the best way to make a good impression. Thankfully, the woman on the other end didn't seem to mind, "Call me Aki. No need for formalities."

C-ta flushed. That was kind of awkward. "Al-alright, A-…" He couldn't do it, "Miss Aki." Thankfully the train signaled that his stop was coming up, giving him a chance to end this conversation. "I… uh… got to go." He said, words tumbling from his mouth before he could stop himself. He could hear a muffled goodbye on the other end, before the train lurched and he managed to end the call. He didn't have long to think about how rude that was before he was being ushered out of the train by the wave of people.

Finding the little apartment was easier than C-ta had expected. He'd gotten lost only once, a feat that needed documentation. He took off the book bag that held all the things he'd need until his stuff was shipped to his new home and fished around for his key. It took a good minute, a quarter of which was spent silently worrying if he'd lost it somewhere between here and the train, to find, but find it he did. His hands shook a little. Would his new roommate like him? What would he be like? Would he be the messy type or the clean freak type? What if-

As if the universe was sick of his musings and wanted him to shut up, a door slammed into his face. Clutching at his nose, he glared at the offending door and the man who'd used it as a weapon. The man was small and if he hadn't been told, he might have thought he was still in high school. Messy black hair that need a serious trim framed his face and two unnaturally colored eyes glared back at him. Still clutching at his nose, C-ta pondered this. The red eyes brought back memories. "He kind of looks like…."

Then it hit him (a little more metaphorically then the door). Ignoring his nose, which was probably bleeding, he pulled open the door a little more to get a better look at the black haired boy. How could he be so stupid? How had he not connected the dots? It wasn't like A-ya was an overly popular name. "A-ya? Is that you?"

Instead of the warm familiarity that C-ta was looking for, A-ya's eyes widened in terror. His mouth opened up as if he planned to say something, but instead of speaking, he snatched the door from C-ta and slammed it shut. C-ta stared in shock. What in the world was going on?

His face hurt, his apartment door wouldn't open, and his roommate was not only his precious childhood friend, but happened to hate him for some reason. "And," C-ta murmured, glaring out in to the steadily darkening sky, "It's going to rain."

He groaned, and shouldered his bag. A-ya obviously needed to calm down for a while. C-ta didn't know what he'd done, but there was no point in making it worse. Hopefully, he could managed to find a shop to stay in until the rain had passed.

"Oh, aren't you cute. A-ya's mom drag you in?" He glanced to where a young woman stood. Her purple-ish black hair was pulled back in a ponytail and a pair of glasses rested against her nose. Her smirking face annoyed him for some reason.

"Who are you?" He spat. For some reason, he couldn't manage to muster up the energy required to be polite. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a voice screamed to backtrack, abort mission, try to fix things before all was irrevocably ruined, but right now that could voice go fuck itself for all he cared.

"Oh, and you're a gentlemen too. How pleasant. I'm D-ne, A-ya's neighbor. Want to come in before the rain starts?" C-ta weighed his options. He could deny her and hope he could find a café and bypass an oncoming annoyance or he could accept her offer and grit his teeth.

The sky answered the question for him. The flash of lightening, quickly followed by the boom of thunder signaled the beginning of a downpour. He felt D-ne grasp at his wrist and pull him in. His ears rang, but he could make out another high pitch voiced scolding the woman. "D-ne! What did I tell you about dragging in strays?"

Really? That was kind of rude. Sure, he needed a haircut but he was in no way a dog. He wiped a stray raindrop from his face. A woman was standing in the entryway to what looked to be a kitchen, "Who's this?"

"Some kid I picked up outside. I think he's A-ya's new roommate." The woman's frowned, as if she wasn't quite getting why D-ne had brought him into their house (something even C-ta wasn't sure). D-ne, still holding C-ta's wrist in her surprisingly strong grip, continued to speak, "Either A-ya's surprisingly grouchy today, or he and this guy have history. You should have seen his face."

"What's going on here?" C-ta said, wrenching his hand back from the purple haired woman. Honestly, he was pissed right now. Ever since he come back to Japan, he'd gotten nothing but trouble. Maybe he shouldn't have come back after all.

The woman who'd come to join them from the kitchen stepped closer. She looked him up and down before letting out a tired sigh. "I'm not quite sure either. Why don't we all get settled and talk? I should have enough food to feed all of us if you're hungry."

Then as a second thought, "You'll probably want to go wash your face. D-ne can show you the bathroom." Oh, right. He'd somehow forgotten about his nose. It didn't feel like it was bleeding anymore, but he could see the traces of blood on the hand he'd use to cover it.

"The bathroom's down the hall at the very left end," D-ne said, motioning in the vague direction with her hand, "And, since we're feeding you I feel it's only right you give us your name. You never did tell me it."

"It's C-ta."

"Well, C-ta, hurry up. I imagine we have a lot to talk about.