Title; Freefall

Rating; M… I tried to rate it T, but the language is gonna get pretty bad, and there's some violence, so, might as well play it safe, right?

Disclaimer; I do not own Yami no Matsuei. I do not own the names of the angels (I looked 'em up,) but I made their characters. I'm proud of that, goshdarnit.

Author's Notes; I was waiting for a brainstorm before I wrote another multi-chapter fic. At this point, I'm writing this on a wing and a prayer (ha ha, bad pun… you'll understand later) and it's up in the air whether this will be only a few chapters or much, much more. I really wanted to write some Tsusoka, though, since I think I focus on Tatari just a little too much. Gotta give our main characters some love! I'm hoping I could write a lot for this, because I got the idea when my aunt and I were arguing (I'm liberal, she's right-wing Christian and we got on the subject of gay marriage,) and I immediately loved it. So I started looking up angel names, and here we are.

I tried to choose lesser known names to avoid offending people, but at this point, either you'll be offended or you won't, and I'm hoping you all will be open minded and remember this is fan fiction! Not real (I wish.)

"No! Stop! You can't do this! STOP!" It was hopeless, he knew, to be fighting the higher up's will, but logic and reason had left him the moment the small figure passed in front of him. The man wanted to reach out and touch him, but he was too far away for that, just out of his reach.

Blue eyes slid to the side, meeting his own, and he caught the barest glimpse of an encouraging smile, the soft, petal pink lips forming his name in silence. As if the title was something sacred, but then he was too far away, and had to face the taller, older man in front of him. With an impudence that had to be admired in the circumstances, he bowed to his elder, his smile mocking the solemnity and sorrow of the moment.

"This is your decision, then, child?" His tone was not amused, to match the look in his eyes.

The younger man straightened and shook his head. "My decision would have been different, but I was not given a choice in the matter, now, was I?" He was left no time for further comment, instead commanded to spread his wings.

They shone, a pure white that seemed to permeate even the dour gloom of the room around them. It didn't last, though, and the man had to turn his eyes away. He refused to cover his ears, despite the screams that ricocheted off the high walls and ceiling, forcing himself to listen to what he had caused.

He raised his eyes when silence fell, except for the sharp, ragged breaths of the youth, who now kneeled on the floor at the older man's feet. His head was bowed, short, white blonde hair falling over his face. But that wasn't where his eyes were; instead, they rested on the boy's back. Where wings had once been, now were ragged tears, seeping crimson into his shirt, and dripping onto the floor with a sickening wet sound.

And the man who had done it all simply stood above him, not smiling, but eyes serious as he started to mutter the prayer under his breath, his Latin barely reaching the ears of the restrained man.

Without his wings, the youth was no longer an angel. He was no longer immortal.

"Don't do this, no, stop it!" The man tried to move forward, fighting off the ones that held him back. It took too long for them to let go, and even then, the air felt like something solid, actively holding him back. He was too slow, and he watched the slim figure fall.

Even as he knelt next to him, he knew it was too late. He was bleeding too much; there was no light in his eyes…. Tears formed in the man's own, and he could hear the other man, his voice distant and echoing, as if from far away.

"You are sentenced to be forever banished from the Land of Heaven, and you may never return."

That wasn't why the man cried, then. He could live away from God; Heaven had never been his paradise.

------

Mornings in Meifu were bright and glorious, with warm sun and a pleasant breeze to sweep along playfully. However, if seen everyday, they became monotonous, and it was lucky that they at least received some change in the weather during the fall and winter seasons. Spring just meant rain.

Hisoka liked the rain. Not thunderstorms, but the soft drizzles that faded into the afternoon and evening. After work, it was nice to sit in his apartment, curled up on the couch with a book and a cup of tea, listening to the rain tapping against the window panes around him.

Today, though, it was beautiful; the sun shone brightly, and soft, fluffy clouds drifted with lazy abandon across the azure sky. Hisoka glanced out the window of the break room again, his eyes roving across the picturesque scenery that was in the courtyard below. The cherry trees, constantly in bloom, lost petals with carelessness, and the boy noticed no matter how many seemed to drop, there always seemed to be countless more still there.

Without a word, he turned back to the faculty room provided for the Shinigami of the Summons Bureau and sighed. The break room was the equivalent of an interior designer who enjoyed furnishing cheap motel rooms. It clashed horribly, and even the teenager couldn't help but notice that the furniture had taken enough abuse to have been there for decades upon decades.

He was there because of his stupid, idiot, annoying partner. After Tsuzuki had spied Wakaba with a basket of freshly baked confections that practically oozed sugar, he had headed over, interpreting (correctly,) that Wakaba had made at least half of the cakes to satisfy his unending sweet tooth.

This had led to Terazuma calling Tsuzuki offensive names and making crude references to Tsuzuki and Hisoka's "partnership." (Although, in all fairness, a few comments of "Rover" and suggestions about fetching an invisible stick had been made by the other side.) This made Tsuzuki lose his temper in a need to play the knight in shining armor role and start pulling out ofudas, determined to kill Terazuma. Not that Hisoka cared all that much about his "honor." Tsuzuki was one of those hug-happy people and their fellow Shinigami were going to have to find something to talk about. But then Terazuma transformed, and this lasted about all of thirty seconds worth of destruction (surprisingly, quite a bit of damage was accomplished,) before Tatsumi showed up, pissed as all hell and holding everybody in the vicinity with shadows.

Hisoka had decided then had been the best time to leave and let Tsuzuki get his pay cuts and reprimands where he couldn't hear them. In addition, where he didn't have to witness the wrath of the secretary's temper. It was never a pretty thing.

So, Hisoka was stuck doing his and Tsuzuki's reports in the very tacky break room because his partner had been enough of an idiot to wreck about half of the main hall (and was therefore being yelled at/threatened in their offices). The only plus side he was seeing was that he was that much closer to a cup of very hot, very strong tea.

"Bon!"

Hisoka sighed, heavily, and tilted his head up only slightly from the reports to meet the gaze of the bright man standing in front of him. If Watari minded the less than warm welcome, he didn't show it. His only response was to flip his long, blond curls over his shoulder and move closer to Hisoka. It was surprising that Hisoka hadn't noticed the scientist's presence before he spoke, but once he thought about it, Watari's easy optimism was a pleasant feeling against his mind.

"I've got good news."

"I'm being assigned a partner with an IQ over sixty-five?"

Watari tilted his head and smirked. "Tsuzuki happens to hold his IQ at a proud seventy," he teased and winked. "But, nope, you're not being reassigned. You and Tsuzuki have a case, and I've been sent by Scary-Secretary Man to drag you back to his office. Apparently, he doesn't trust Tsuzuki out of his eyesight for right now."

"I don't blame him," Hisoka grumbled as he stood, collecting his papers together and putting away the mug he'd been using. Tucking the papers against his chest, he moved towards the door where Watari waited for him, speaking in undertones to a tiny bird that rested on his shoulder.

"But we already tried that, 003, and that was the one that--" Watari cut himself off with a smile when Hisoka drew even with him, and started off towards Tatsumi's office brightly.

Hisoka glared suspiciously at the blond man as they walked. "What are you drugging this time?" Admittedly, if he was on a case, he might not be there when Watari was finding guinea pigs, but he wouldn't put it past the scientist to wait for Tsuzuki to come back, knowing he was certain to test it.

"Nothing," Watari exclaimed, looking affronted. "Why does everyone always think I'm up to something?"

"You turned Tatsumi-san blue," Hisoka pointed out.

"Minor setback… I thought he'd already gotten his coffee for the day."

------

"A case just came in," Tatsumi said, standing in front of his desk. In his hand was a plain, manila folder, stuffed with a few documents worth of information. He slid it across the mahogany wood towards the two people on the other side of the desk. "It's out of your jurisdiction, but this appears to be more…." He trailed off, searching for a word that danced on the tip of his tongue.

Tsuzuki picked up the folder, half-heartedly flipping through it, but not taking anything in. "More what, Tatsumi?"

Watari, reclining in a chair next to the desk, offered the answer rather than the secretary. "Complicated." He pointed to the folder. "There's more information in there, but this one's a request from upstairs. And I don't mean Enma-Daioh higher; think ascension."

When Tsuzuki's eyebrows raised and he began to peer into the folder with more interest, Hisoka's confusion grew. "Uhm, Watari-san?"

"Oh, sorry, Bon," Watari said, and began to explain. "You know about the five worlds, right? Meifu, Earth, Gensoukai, Heaven, and Hell. Generally, the last two stay to themselves, well, I guess Hell likes to cause a little havoc every once in a while, but, anyway. Heaven occasionally comes in contact with us, either because they feel a job is beneath them, or because they believe one of our Shinigami would be better able to do it. Whenever we get them, though, it always ends up complicating things and causing a huge stir. I think there are only three cases or so on record of them calling on us; never one in any of our time working here."

Tatsumi sat back in his chair with a sigh, removing his glasses and rubbing his temples before fixing them with his bright blue-eyed stare. "So you can see the situation we're in. Ordinarily, I'd offer to take the case myself, but I haven't done fieldwork in years, and considering it seems to be your strong point, Tsuzuki-san, it was decided you should go. Also, Kurosaki-kun's skills may prove useful in this situation. But I encourage you to keep in contact with both myself and Watari, as he knows a good deal more about theology than anyone else here."

Tsuzuki glanced up from the folder, holding it out to Hisoka, who was only too happy to take it. "Then we're dealing with a…" he trailed off, glancing between Watari and Tatsumi as though hoping one of his two friends would deny what he'd read.

"Yup. Rogue angel." Watari nodded towards the folder Hisoka was now hidden behind. "Just be thankful it's not a seraph, just an aerial spirit. He goes by Sadar, apparently, though I couldn't find any variations to that."

"But…." Hisoka glanced over the pages once more to confirm. "It doesn't say here why he's left. Do we know?"

Tatsumi made a face that, on a lesser man, might have been an annoyed glower. "No. When asked, we received notice that it was not pertinent to the case and it was rather firmly suggested that we mind our own business." Whatever heavenly being had suggested this, it seemed, was quite lucky that he wasn't staring down the wrong end of the secretary's temper. He must've been a higher-up.

Watari seemed to be hiding his amusement at his lover's expression. "We weren't told anything more than what was in the report, Bon. Sorry, I realize it's not a lot. On the other hand, though, Enma has convinced the two who sent the case our way to meet with you on Earth." Before either Tsuzuki or Hisoka could speak, he held up his hand. Though he needn't have bothered, as both were waiting for further explanation; the scientist was only too happy to provide. "You're meeting Sariel and Xaphan."

"Xaphan…" Tsuzuki repeated the name to himself, and sent Watari a curious look. "That's not an angel, though. The name's wrong. In fact, if I remember; he's pretty high up on Hell's hierarchy."

"Second rank," Watari admitted, nodding. "And Sariel is responsible for the angels who have sinned. So, that gives us more of a clue."

Tatsumi cut in, "This…Sadar broke one of the Ruler of Heaven's laws." He sighed, and to Hisoka, it seemed as if he were wishing this case had never swung their way. "Anyway, that's as much as we know right now, but we'll keep in contact with you as we find out more. I've asked Watari," and here he nodded to the blond scientist, "if he could put his less important projects on pause for a brief bit to find out more about Sadar, Sariel, or Xaphan."

"No problem-o," Watari remarked idly, before glancing down at his watch. "Speaking of which, I'd probably better head back to the lab. I have something I need to check on." He waved, heading for the door. Opening it, he glanced back, as an after thought adding, "Oh, and, if you hear anything, don't worry, it's supposed to do that." And with that optimistic warning, he had left.

There was a moment of silence which Tsuzuki broke with a mumbled, "I never know if he's serious or not."

"I try not to think about it," Tatsumi said, in something close to a mutter. "Kurosaki-kun, I'll leave you in charge of the expenses. Ignore anything that is not needed, clear? You're hotel accommodations are set up and the meeting place is written down for you inside the folder. A small restaurant, I believe." He reached over, handing Hisoka a small check card, and stood when they turned to leave. Words didn't seem to come to him, though, as he added nothing else.

It occurred to the empath that he was happy for Tatsumi's shielding. Whatever was setting the usually stoic man so on edge was carefully kept from overwhelming him.

------

"This is becoming a major waste of my time, Sariel." The dark man leaned with careless disrespect against the Gates of Heaven. He could step no further inside, but it seemed not to bother him. "I mean, you tell me I have a new recruit, I travel all the way up here to play nanny to some kid who got his wrist slapped," his tone was taking a darker turn, "and now you tell me you losthim?!" Xaphar turned on the man who stood near him, his temper snapping and a mad gleam to his dark eyes. "Care to explain to me what the fuck you guys are doing?"

"Calm yourself," his companion said, looking at the other with disdain, though it seemed to do nothing for the demon's temper but make it worse. "Yes. He is missing. But he's being sought out as we speak." Despite his words, Sariel looked less than convinced it would be so easy to apprehend the rogue.

"'Being sought out'?" the demon sneered. "Drop the freakin' mannerism. He's lost, you have no idea where the hell he is, and you're wasting my time. Who's out looking for him, anyway? Your lackeys? Ramiel, as another punishment? Maybe you pried Dina away from his books for more than five minutes."

The angel sent him a glare, though it seemed to speak more of superiority than anger. "We do know where he is. On Earth, he's chosen to hide himself in… I believe it's called Tokyo." He gave a careless shrug.

"Fine, but that still doesn't answer the question of who is going after him," Xaphan commented.

"Patience is a virtue--"

"Stop with the trite shit and explain." The look in his eyes was disturbing. Having once been the angel who birthed inventions, his creativity had taken a sick and twisted turn. Even Sariel knew his madness was better left untested.

"We called in the Shinigami from Meifu," was the calm remark. "I have been assured that two of their most talented are set out for the task."

This raised an amused eyebrow from the demon. "Oh? Too busy to handle it yourself?" He chuckled. "Really, Sariel, playing minion doesn't have to be a full-time job."

The jibe was ignored, and Sariel instead informed him stoically, "We've been requested to speak with the ones handling the case. This means going down to Earth." His eyes grew stern. "We meet them soon. Do not test my tolerance by trying to use this descent as a stunt for your master."

"Oh, Sariel," Xaphan said, laughing lowly. "Would I do that? No, no, I'll be a perfect little… oh, wait, can't say that anymore." He shrugged, holding out long, slender hands in an expressive sort of gesture. "Either way I'd need the Prince's okay before I pulled any of my stunts, so rest assured."

"He is nota prince!" Sariel hissed, finally looking truly annoyed.

"Yes, yes, all right," Xaphan said, waving him off. "Where am I supposed to meet you and these puppets, anyway?" He received the name of the café along with a stern glare. His smile widened, and he turned to leave, waving his hand in a careless, graceful manner. "See you there, then. What's that phrase they use…? 'Ja ne.'" And with that, he was gone.

------

The hotel was just one step above a dump. And barely a step, at that. There was a connecting bathroom with bath, but no shower, hardly any furniture, and one bed. It was, thankfully, a large bed, but this led to a small argument and Tsuzuki offering to sleep on the floor. They both knew they would share the bed, however, but it made Hisoka feel better if the offer was at least spoken.

There was hardly time to unpack, change after the trip, and curse Tatsumi's miserly ways before they had to head out to the crowded streets of Tokyo for their meeting. It had been set for mid-afternoon, and it seemed as though the day was speeding by too quickly. Hisoka had to hope that the case would continue to pass this quickly.

The small restaurant was on the outskirts of the city, and while it seemed to be popular, at this dull hour between lunch and dinner, it held only a few visitors. Hisoka glanced around the tables set outside on the patio, most hidden under a tall, wide spread umbrella. There was a young couple there, smiling and speaking in low voices to each other (a ruse to make the other lean closer, of course,) and a group of youths his own age, acting with the general stupidity that is only excused because they were that age.

And there was a man reclining in one of the seats. Had not his regal air given him away, his looks would have. He was certainly not Japanese, with dark auburn hair that he wore braided, the longest pieces brushing just past his mid back. A few pieces fell loose in the front to frame his face, though they never seemed to fall into his dark blue eyes. His skin was fair, and his features just…beautiful. Not handsome, because his looks were too soft for that word. He seemed a couple of years older than Tsuzuki, in his late twenties or early thirties.

When Sariel (for it had to be him,) saw them, he stood, folding his napkin and indicating with a subtle motion they should join him. Hisoka couldn't help but notice that even his clothes spoke of opulence; a tan jacket and slacks, a dark blue sweater underneath. But the boy understood. The angel wasn't trying to impress them, he was trying to prove he was better.

Considering Tsuzuki's wrinkled suit and Hisoka's jeans, it wasn't too difficult.

"You are from the Summons Bureau?" Sariel waited until they had taken seats at the table before he returned to his own.

Tsuzuki nodded in response. "I'm Asato Tsuzuki, in charge of Kyushu, and this is my partner Hisoka Kurosaki."

"Tsuzuki-san and Kurosaki-san, then," the angel replied, wrapping his long fingers around the tea cup he had been sipping from when they'd arrived. With a subtle wave of his hand, he beckoned over one of the servers, allowing Tsuzuki and Hisoka to ask for, respectively, black coffee and Kocha tea. "I am, of course, Sariel. To be quite blunt, I don't know what you hope to learn from this that wasn't in the report, but Enma's name holds a lot of influence behind it." He shrugged, a lax movement of graceful muscles. "And my…associate has never been known for his punctuality. He'll show up…eventually."

Hisoka waited until the server had come and left with their drinks before he spoke. "Then, if you don't mind, may we begin without him? I don't think we have time for formalities or protocol."

"Why, of course. I had no intention of waiting for him; his thoughtlessness is amazing at times." Sariel sat back in his seat, arms and legs crossed and looking at the Shinigami in front of him with an expectant expression. "Well?"

"I know someone already asked this and wasn't given an answer," Tsuzuki remarked, "but I'm still curious as to why Sadar went rogue."

"Ask him."

Hisoka raised his eyebrows at this brief answer. "That's rather impossible as we haven't found him yet."

Sariel's face held the slightest bit of amusement when he commented, "Well, when you've found him, then. I wouldn't know why an angel would turn against Heaven."

"Ah." Hisoka couldn't seem to think anything else to reply to such a statement, as Sariel's blunt tone of superiority was off-putting. "Well, then, do you know where he might be, more specifically? Tokyo isn't too large, but if you have any ideas…."

"It is not my job to know." Sariel seemed bored. "It's yours. I only believe Tokyo because apparently he had some connection to this place; it's all second-hand, of course, but it's all we've heard."

"Then your information sucks."

A slender man moved among them, taking a seat next to the angel with a grin. Black hair framed a handsome face, cut jaggedly around his jaw. Equally dark eyes stood out in the somewhat pale face. Unlike Sariel, his clothes of choice were a black long sleeved shirt and faded blue jeans. Apparently comfort over style. Xaphan, at first glance to Hisoka, did not immediately live up to his demonic heritage, lacking the cavalier nature of his other half.

"Check out Ueno Park. Apparently, he's got a thing for cherry trees. Whatever the hell that's about." The demon pulled from his jean pocket a slightly battered box of cigarettes, and without concern for the others at the table, happily began to feed his nicotine addiction. "Wouldn't try looking now, though. I spied him there, but he worked himself into a tiff and flew off."

"Xaphan," Sariel hissed, apparently unable to decide what to deal with; the insult, the fact that the demon had knowledge he did not, or that he had started smoking like a chimney at the first opportunity.

Xaphan blanked, putting on, what seemed to Hisoka, like a falsely innocent look. "What?" he asked, then seemed to have an epiphany. "Oh, I'm sorry." Eyeing Hisoka, he held out the box of slims to the teenager. "Want one?"

"No," Tsuzuki answered, pushing the box back over towards the demon, looking mildly annoyed. "He doesn't."

"All right, all right," the demon muttered. "Christ, it was just a question." Despite his words, a smirk had formed across his face, and he was looking at Hisoka was renewed interest. "Anyway, kid, does that answer your question?"

Hisoka nodded, but added a mumbled, "I'm not a kid."

"Of course you aren't," Xaphan said, idly, as though he didn't really care one way or the other about it. His eyes traveled to Tsuzuki, who was already beginning to become annoyed with the demon's instigating. "Nice eyes."

Tsuzuki's expression turned furious, and determined to stand up for his partner, Hisoka opened his mouth, but was cut off by Sariel. "You've been here hardly five minutes and you've managed to offend everyone at the table. Be silent, unless you have something helpful to say."

Xaphan, who seemed to have been looking forward to Hisoka's retort, leaned back in chair with an expression much like that of a child denied a sweet. "Yes, sir. Is this the point where I should stand up and bow before your eminence, or will that be later?"

Sariel must have decided the best course of action was to ignore Xaphan (who was apparently amusing himself by calling their server over and attempting to see if they served dry martinis before dinner,) and he glanced towards Tsuzuki. "Is there anything else I can help you with at the moment?"

"Yeah," Tsuzuki said, appearing to collect himself. "There was no reference picture included. Can we get a description at the very least?" Underneath the table he reached over, grasping Hisoka's hand.

"I thought they had included that," Sariel commented. "My apolog--"

"You can't miss him," Xaphan said with a dry cackle. He had apparently been able to get the drink, as he now nursed the gin-based drink with ease. "He's the guy over six feet, with blonde hair longer than Sariel's. It's a fruity angel thing, I think."

It was an admirable trait, to Hisoka, that Sariel was not, in fact, twitching by this point. The angel couldn't resist reaching over to take the drink from the demon, though. "The sun hasn't even set and you're trying to drink hard liqueur?"

"Would you believe me if I told you it was virgin?"

"No." Sariel stood, which seemed to be an indication that the Shinigami should do the same. "If that's all you wished to speak with me about?"

"Yes," Tsuzuki said, following the angel's movements, dropping Hisoka's hand as he did. "Thank you for your time."

"Indeed," was the hesitant reply. "I thank you for your patience." He glanced towards the demon that was stretching lazily next to him. "If you should need me again, you know the channels to go through to find me."

"And if you want actual information rather than Sariel's bull, you can find me the same way." Xaphan grinned, his eyes trailing from Tsuzuki to Hisoka. "It's been a…pleasure." When his words elicited a faint blush and glare from the teen, and what seemed to be very hostile thoughts from the older man, he adopted a sly smirk. "Until we meet again." He raised a hand, twitching his fingers in a mocking wave, before throwing his fists in the pockets of his jeans and walking out.

Sariel pulled from his pocket enough money to cover the drinks and a tip, and pushed in his chair. He needed to add nothing else to his previous comment, as he merely gave them a fraction of a smile before turning and walking out, in the opposite direction that Xaphan had taken.

It was only after they were gone that Hisoka realized he hadn't been able to feel either of their thoughts or feelings. He shouldn't have been surprised, but as Tsuzuki's emotions had been as active as usual, he hadn't noticed.

------

It seemed their hotel didn't have heat either.

Hisoka sighed from where he sat on the bed, flipping idly through the manila folder that they had received earlier that morning. It wasn't freezing, just chilly, and annoyingly so. The clock on the bedside table read just past ten, though it seemed later. In the five hours since their meeting with Sariel and Xaphan, the pair had taken dinner, spoke of the case a bit, though after deciding to check the park tomorrow, Tsuzuki turned the conversation to more pleasant things, and Hisoka let him.

Now, though, the teen waited for his partner to finish his shower. The water had stopped running a few moments ago, and that meant he'd probably be out soon. Sure enough, the man emerged no more than a minute later in pajamas, fingers combing his wet, black hair.

Tsuzuki shivered more due to the sudden change in temperature than anything else. "Cold," he muttered under his breath, and when this earned him only a mumbled, wordless response, he moved over to his things, pulling out a sweater. "Catch."

Hisoka looked up, barely having time to hold out his hands to keep the sweater from hitting him in the face. He paused, glancing from the article of clothing to his partner, then back again. "I didn't say I needed this."

"You didn't have to." Tsuzuki cast him a smile. "Doesn't matter; it'll keep you warm at any rate." He pulled back the covers on his side of the bed and slid between them. "Let's go to sleep. We can wake up early and go to the park."

Collecting the file and placing it on the bedside table, Hisoka nodded. "That's fine." He took a look at the sweater in his hands before pulling it over head. Without glancing over at Tsuzuki, he turned off the bedside lamp and curled up.

Despite using a different bed that night, Hisoka slept well, his head curled in his arms and surrounded by the unique smell of sweets and flowers that Tsuzuki always seemed to carry with him.

Author's Notes; This chapter took on a mind of it's own. Evil chapter! -pulls out holy water- But I had fun writing it. Was it too much to read? I hated not having a bunch of Tsusoka in there. I promise to make it more manageable. I wrote it in two or three nights, so it didn't seem like a lot, but looking back, maybe I put too much in. Just some quick notes- Sariel's job is to condemn angels who've strayed from God's path. That might help explain why he's there, rather, than, say, Michael or Gabriel. And Xaphan. Ah, Xaphan, a sick and twisted little demon. But he's fun! Just to explain his, er, erratic behavior, he basically does whatever he does to piss people off. His main goal in life. But you'll find out more about him. Not much Tsusoka in this chapter, but I promise lots more in the next one, okay? I threw in fan service at the end, but I had to get some of the basic plot out in the first chapter. More coming soon. And reviews speed up the writing process.

I remain humbly yours
--Phoenix-chan