A Task, a Choice, a Reward

It was a surprisingly nice day for June. A few fair weather clouds dotted the sky and the forecast from the morning paper gave no mention of rain for the whole day. No doubt the clear skies were one of the reasons Kakei had chosen today to send them on this job at Ueno Zoo.

For all the sunshine though, someone's disposition had been in a downward spiral for the last 10 minutes. It could have been all the waiting in line, but even after they were through the ticket booth, there was no improvement to be seen.

"What put you in such a bad mood all of a sudden? I thought you were excited about coming here." Rikuou walked a short distance ahead before moving off to the side and out of the main walking path. He stopped next to a bed of overly fragrant flowers and put his receipt into the cash pocket of his wallet.

Kazahaya trailed after him, his face taking on a thoughtful expression as he did. "Well, this is my first time coming to a zoo. We…" He returned to his scowling as soon as Rikuou looked up at him again. "No, don't even say it – I don't want to hear any of your wise cracks today."

Rikuou knew just what he was getting at. Those, 'Did you grow up under a rock?' type comments never went over well. He may have refrained from saying it out, but it didn't stop him from thinking it. What kind of parent never took their kid to a movie theater or a zoo? The kind that had led Kazahaya to think there was nothing weird about avoiding every kind of chore until the age of 17.

"Fine, you don't have to answer. Just stand there pouting. I'll finish the job by myself… and take all the pay." Even though he'd only been living with the guy for less than half a year, Rikuou already knew all of Kazahaya's buttons. The ones that made him angry. The ones that made him embarrassed. The ones that put him in a good mood and the ones that made him look as if his heart was breaking. The first set of buttons was always the easiest to push. It was hard to resist when he had a good opportunity. Rikuou was a bit like a child in that sense and there was no adult around to warn him off with a stern, 'Don't touch those.'

"No you won't – I need that money! Besides, I'm not pouting, I'm annoyed. You would know why if you weren't deaf."

"My hearing is fine. Your's is superhuman, if anything."

"I'm a normal human being, damn it! They were right behind us – it would have been impossible not to hear!"

Rikuou did a visual sweep of the area and was able to pick out the group of girls Kazahaya was talking about – they stood a short ways back, just inside the entrance by the pheasants and pigeons, giggling amongst themselves while staring shamelessly in their direction. He hadn't noticed them when they were in line to purchase their entry tickets.

It was tuning out to be a pleasant day. Kakei's side jobs had a tendency to put him on edge but today the world was providing him with a steady stream of fodder perfect for teasing Kazahaya with; it put him in a good mood. "What, were they jealous because you're prettier than they are?"

"Eh? Pret-!" The boy sputtered a few seconds before finding the words he wanted. "I am not pretty! Don't say weird things like that!"

"You shouldn't feel bad about it. It's a compliment." This was the second set of buttons. They were harder to push but were far and away the most fun.

"A compliment?" There was a faint blush on Kazahaya's cheeks for an instant. "Not when coming from you." And there was the end to the moment. Time to move on to the next attack.

"Here, give me your receipt."

Kazahaya didn't have to ask why the hell he should do something stupid like that, his expression said it for him.

"Kakei won't reimburse you for the cost of admission if you don't show him your receipt."

"I know that! That's why it's going right here in my back pocket along with my money." He patted his ass for emphasis. "See?"

Oh, yeah. I see, Kazahaya. The corners of his lips twitched."Don't blame me when you lose it."

"I'm not going to lose it, jerk. Come on, let's just get this over with." Kazahaya turned to stalk off, grumbling something about "another one" when he saw a girl about their age, maybe a few years older, looking in his direction.

Kazahaya really was in a foul mood. The girl was by herself and wasn't even smiling – let alone gossiping about him. In fact, she had an oddly serious look about her for someone at a place like this. Just because she happened to be looking in Kazahaya's direction was hardly reason enough to group her in with the harpies standing over by the bird cages.

The pandas were only a short distance away but Kazahaya had already moved past the giant pandas – most likely due to the crowd gathered in front of that exhibit – and was standing in front of the red panda enclosure by the time Rikuou caught up.

The animals weren't very active. One had itself sprawled across a low branch in one of the small trees contained within the cage. Another was slowly making its way through some tender bamboo shoots as though it were having thoughts of joining its companion in a nap.

He gave his roommate a little space, let the guy watch them in peace while he read the informational plaque. Ailurus fulgens – A crepuscular mammal native to southeastern Asia. Their diet consists mainly of… He was sure he read the whole thing, but the words never really did sink in.

It didn't take long for Kazahaya's mood to improve after that. He generally ignored Rikuou, wandered aimlessly from exhibit to exhibit. Kakei hadn't specified where exactly they were supposed to go once in the park. He had barely given them any details at all. They knew there was nothing to retrieve. They didn't need to deliver anything or have anything special with them. All they did know was that they were supposed to do something, "a task to complete," Kakei had said. Beyond that, the possibilities were wide open.

Rikuou reasoned that the proper place should be easy enough to figure out – just let Kazahaya go everywhere and when he started acting strange or passing out, that was where they were supposed to be. It wouldn't bother him if they never figured it out. Kakei might spout something about obligations and contracts, but that kind of talk wouldn't faze him. Kazahaya would freak out, but that was just more free entertainment.

When he found the petting zoo, Kazahaya's eyes lit up. Rikuou couldn't resist reminding him that this was for children and thus why he fit in so well. Kazahaya groused at the comment but didn't stop petting the animals until a goat decided his shirt would make a nice snack.

They didn't take the most efficient path through the zoo. After they finished with the animals near the petting zoo, they ended up retracing their steps to get back over to the opposite side of the park to see a large number of animals they had neglected to see when they had first come in. Rikuou wouldn't have been opposed to taking the monorail back – it wasn't that they had been walking very long, a few hours maybe, though there was no telling how much longer it would take – but beside the fact that Kazahaya's feet seemed as though they would never tire, it cost money to ride. It wasn't difficult to figure that Kazahaya wouldn't go for that. He was too cheap to pay for his own ticket and too prideful to let Rikuou pay for him.

After taking the downhill path away from the capybaras and tapirs, they rounded the corner to see the sea lions. Kazahaya took to watching them play while Rikuou eyed the rest area on the opposite side of the path. It wasn't particularly hot out, but the sun was bright and they still had no leads for their assignment. They should at least get something to drink while they were here.

Rikuou ordered his drink first and waited off to the side while Kazahaya had his turn at the order window. It was when the other boy went to pay, pulling the bills out of his back pocket, that his admission receipt slipped out of his pocket and fluttered to the ground. If he had been in a different mood, Rikuou might have called attention to it right then, but he was still feeling unusually good, so he snatched the slip of paper off the ground before its owner could notice, and stashed it with his own. Kazahaya was going to have a fit when he finally realized it was gone.

Not long after they sat down with their drinks, Kazahaya's face began to scrunch up. He tilted his head to the side a fraction as though straining to hear something. The guy wasn't clever enough to be pulling some kind of joke about his hearing – not this much later in the day and whatever it was, he looked like he was concentrating pretty hard.

Kazahaya wasn't in the mood to share, so Rikuou was forced to ask a few minutes later, "What was all that about?"

"I thought I heard something. Off in the distance."

"What was it?"

"I don't know. There're too many people around here to make it out." It was enough of an excuse at the time.

Before they had completely finished their break – with Kazahaya noisily slurping the last bits of his drink up with his straw and Rikuou commenting on how much of a little kid he was for doing so – both of them had forgotten the incident entirely.

It wasn't until later in the afternoon when they were over by the gorillas and tigers that the mysterious sound came again. "Come on, Rikuou. Don't you hear that?"

He took a minute – strained to hear anything out of the ordinary. "Hear what?"

"That! It sounds like a woman singing or something."

"Dude, you seriously have ears like a—"

"A cat! Yes, I know! Can we move on, please?" And in a huff, he did just that – stomped across the path to enter the dimly lit bat house.

The bat house of every zoo Rikuou had ever been to had the same exact smell. It was strong enough that it could never be completely ignored but not so potent that it would expedite the walk though the building. Then again, who knew what Mr. Flowers-Still-in-the-Dirt would think.

"So what were the words?" He kept his voice low while they were inside so as not to disrupt any of the other patrons – or to attract unnecessary attention.

Kazahaya tried to follow suit but his whispers always had a way of carrying farther than they should. "How am I supposed to know? I could barely even hear it."

Instead of trying to convince Kazahaya to keep his voice down – a hopeless cause – he waited until they were back outside to finish the conversation. It hadn't taken long to go though the building, so either Kazahaya had no interest in bats or his nose really was more sensitive than normal people's were.

"If you don't know the words, then hum the tune. Maybe if I know what I'm listening for, I'll be able to pick it out next time."

"What makes you so interested?"

"Moron. I can't believe I have to remind you that this is one of Kakei's jobs we're on here. You seem to forget so easily."

"It's not anything weird like that. It's just a woman singing, that's all. Here, it goes something like this," and he hummed a few bars of a simple unhurried melody.

"It sounds like a lullaby or a children's song."

"Are you kidding? It's a pretty song but it's too sad to be anything like that."

"Sad?" There was skepticism in his voice. Not about the debate over the emotional nature of the song, but about Kazahaya's assertion that this wasn't a part of Kakei's task. And if Kazahaya thought this mysterious woman was singing a sad song, well… It seemed that his fun day at the zoo was about to get a lot more serious.

"Yeah, sad."

He decided to get in one last jab before things started going wrong – "didn't sound sad to me; you must have sung it wrong" – but his heart wasn't in it and Kazahaya barely took notice.

"Let's forget it. I want to go see the otters," and he set off in that direction. They managed to walk a whole two minutes before Kazahaya perked up again. "There it is again! How can you not hear that? It's definitely a woman. It's coming from…" Rikuou could see the gears turning in Kazahaya's head as he tried to pinpoint the origin of the sound. He would turn, tilt his head, pause, then turn again and repeat the procedure in quick succession until he was happy. "Over that way!"

Then much to Rikuou's dismay, he took off running in the direction he had just indicated. "Kazahaya! Wait!" The other boy completely ignored the command and Rikuou was left with no choice but to run after him. The narrow side path Kazahaya had turned down wound around a fair amount and with the vegetation that had grown up along the sides of the trail, Rikuou quickly lost sight of his quarry.

He was lucky the idiot had pointed in the general direction he was heading because it allowed him to bypass the turnoff onto the main walkway without hesitation.

When he finally managed to catch up, Kazahaya was kneeling down next to the bronze sculpture of an ibis that was displayed at a sharp turn along the path. The relief at finding his roommate safe was short lived. He could hear the song now. Kazahaya was humming the same tune as before, but he had the whole melody now, not just a few bars, and there was something different about the way he sang it that made him agree with Kazahaya's earlier assessment. There was something sad about that song.

When Kazahaya stood up and turned around, he felt no vindication in learning that his take on the song had also been right; it was a lullaby. There was a small wrapped bundle in Kazahaya's arms and he held it close to him. Leaned his head down and watched it as he sang a wordless tune. He lingered on each note, paused at the end of each phrase as though it were painful to continue.

Was this a part of the job? Was this their task? To make sure this child was taken care of and safe? There wasn't anyone else around. They needed to call the police, but Kazahaya was not himself.

Rikuou moved forward to get a closer look and the other boy seemed to only first notice him then. He stopped his singing, looked up at him with those too big eyes of his, and gave a weak smile. This was not good.

"Idiot! Snap out of it. We have to call the police – this is a real child!" He could see it. Touch it. The child was tiny; it couldn't have been more than a few months old.

"NO!" Kazahaya's reaction was so vehement, he actually paused in the act of pulling out his cell phone, felt bad for an instant for having made the suggestion – even knowing it was the only thing to do. "Please! Please, no police." Now he sounded like he was about to cry and Rikuou's phone fell back into his pocket, his hand losing its grip on its own. "They would take her away. They would take her to a place where there is no one to love her! They may feed her, shelter her, but they would not love her. I'm too sick and her father… Please!" Kazahaya extended his arms with the child. Reached out to him.

Expecting help. Expecting compassion.

Was he seriously asking Rikuou to take care of this kid himself? "I can't." This was crazy. Where had this baby come from? He looked around. Where was the child's mother? Did she abandon her baby here? That kind of thing wasn't unheard of, especially in the last few years, or had something happened to her? Kazahaya said he – she? – was sick… Was she even alive?

"Please." And here Kazahaya switched tactics. "You have someone, don't you? I can see it. You have someone you care about – someone you want to protect."

Of course. There was Tsukiko. So why wasn't his heart filled with thoughts of her?

"Someone you want to keep close beside you?"

Why could he only see the boy in front of him? "I…" He felt strange admitting this to Kazahaya – even if the guy wasn't going to remember when this was all over, even if Rikuou could argue with himself that he was referring to a different person. "Yeah."

Kazahaya smiled then as the tears finally began to stream down his cheeks. Tears of relief. "I knew it. Together, the two of you can do anything. Bear any burden. The three of you – you and your someone and Machiko – you can be a family. Please take her! Care for her!"

He had to look for Tsukiko. She took priority over everything, but Kazahaya was crying, pleading to be free from a burden that was not his own. He didn't know what was compelling him, if it was the look on Kazahaya's face or the anguish that nearly drowned that tiny bit of hope in his voice. He reached out to accept the infant, a promise of, 'I will,' on the tip of his tongue. Those weren't the words he wanted, but they were there none the less.

Kazahaya began to fall the instant the child left his arms and on instinct, Rikuou clutched the infant to his chest with one arm and reached out with the other. It was an awkward save. He managed to stop Kazahaya's head from smacking the ground but the boy's shoulder was jerked roughly in the process. Rikuou had only managed to grab his forearm and after lowering his unconscious companion to the ground, he realized he was left holding only a roughly worked baby blanket – handmade by the looks of it.

He stared at the damn thing for whole minutes – so this is what it feels like for Kazahaya when he has one of his visions – then looked around to see if there was anyone else in the area. There was an itch on the back of his neck like he was being watched. Luckily, it was getting to be near closing time and since this was a more remote part of the zoo – there weren't even any animals along this path – there was no one around.

It wasn't a particularly nice blanket, but despite feeling sure the client would want to keep it, he folded it neatly and placed it just off the path next to the sculpture. Now that he was thinking more rationally, he could remember that Kakei's instructions had been clear: they didn't need to bring anything back with them. Surely a child counted as 'something.' Why couldn't he have remembered that little fact a few minutes ago?

He didn't try to sort out the hows or the whys of what had just happened. Kakei's jobs were always weird like this, and at that moment, he just didn't care. He hefted Kazahaya over his shoulder and headed home.

"Well done boys. The client was very pleased. You both will be receiving your reward – Rikuou 70%, Kudou-kun 30%."

"Wha-t?"

"Hey. No complaining, Boy. The most strenuous part of your job was spending the day walking around the zoo."

"That's right. Rikuou was the one who had to make the important decision that led to the successful completion of the mission. Now, if you'll just give me your receipts for the day, I'll add up your pay."

This was the moment Rikuou had been waiting for but after the day he had, it hardly felt worth the effort. Nothing was supposed to be more important than looking for Tsukiko but every time he saw Kazahaya like that – helpless and worn but still unable to give up – something inside him reacted without his permission. It was like that the day they first met. It was an annoying habit he couldn't seem to break and he didn't like it one bit. No one was supposed to hold that kind of power over him. No one was supposed to be that special.

If he had been thinking about it logically, he would have realized that Kakei wouldn't have sent them on a job where they were going to essentially become parents. He would have remembered Kakei instructions. Logic though, had been the last thing on his mind.

He felt he might be justified in trying to pawn some of the blame off on Kazahaya. He was the one who had the annoying ability to see events from the past. He was the one who had run off by himself and picked up that stupid blanket. He was the one who had decided to accept the job in the first place. It might have made him feel better, but he couldn't quite manage to believe that any of it was really anyone's fault but his own.

As Kazahaya began sorting though the contents of his pocket looking for the receipt he hadn't even realized was missing yet, Rikuou retrieved the pair from his wallet and silently handed them over to his boss.

Kakei studied the papers for a moment before deeming them valid. "Very well. Kudou-kun, Rikuou, each of you will be reimbursed the 600 yen entry fee."

Only now realizing what was going on, Kazahaya spoke up when he should have just let the matter lie. "Wait. How did you… I had that in my back pocket, you creep! How did you get a hold of it?"

Saiga burst out laughing and offered up some advice, "Rikuou, if you can dig around in his pants without him feeling anything, you're doing it all wrong!"

As Kazahaya began to freak out at the implication, Rikuou didn't even have the will to tease him about his sensitivity. That left it up to Kakei to step in with his twisted way of saving them from further embarrassment. "Now, now, don't bother them too much. They're young. They have plenty of time to get it right." Then he gave a better suggestion, "Why don't you boys go upstairs and get some rest."

Saiga was still grinning as they left. "Remember, kids, practice makes perfect!"

"I'm afraid that job was pretty hard on him."

"If you were worried about it, why didn't you just tell Rikuou ahead of time what he was supposed to do?"

"Naturally, she was more interested in hearing what Kudou-kun had to say, but I think Machiko-san would have known if Rikuou were acting. Her adoptive father surely didn't know what decision he was going to make ahead of time. She is a brave young woman. For all she knew, she had been abandoned without a second thought, but she was still willing to help in order to learn something of her birth mother."

"That's really some skill she's got. I don't think I've ever heard of someone who can project solid images like that."

"Yes. It's a bit frightening if you think about it too much."

"Mmm. Then let's not think about it." Saiga closed the distance between them and proceeded to show Kakei how he proposed they accomplish that goal.

"You don't need to worry. You know I don't remember these things when they happen and I'm not going to ask you this time – what it was I did. I'm not going to ask, alright? So you don't need to look at me like that."

Rikuou had been in one of his moods for hours now. He noticed it the moment he woke up on the way back to Green Drugstore and it hadn't let up. Usually, Rikuou was only like this a few minutes at a time.

Kakei said Rikuou had made an important decision. Based on the uneven way the pay was divided up, it must have been a difficult choice to make. He felt guilty somehow and looked down. It was always hard to face Rikuou when he was like this. "I'm sorry – if I made things hard on you today." He'd apologized this way more than once before and Rikuou usually told him he was an idiot for doing so, but Kazahaya still had good manners. He would continue to apologize when he felt the need regardless of insults.

He looked up in time to see that surprised expression that Rikuou gets on occasion – his eyes wide open, his lips just barely parted, and his eyebrows angled in such a way that Kazahaya couldn't be completely sure that he wasn't just a little bit angry as well. This time, when the expression went away, Rikuou didn't immediately have his standard insults ready. He walked over to the bathroom and when he came back a few seconds later, tossed a small container across the room. It rattled as it hit the bed just next to where Kazahaya was sitting.

"Don't apologize when you haven't done anything wrong…idiot." He should have known he wouldn't be able to avoid the name calling all together.

The container next to him was a bottle of aspirin and it set Kazahaya's mind in motion. The last thing he remembered, he was bending down to pick up a piece of knitting – a sweater or maybe a blanket. His shoulder was aching but he didn't remember ever hurting himself enough to inflict that kind of pain. "Hey wait! How did you know my shoulder was sore? I haven't complained or anything."

Rikuou gave him that horrible smirk of his and said with more smugness than even Kazahaya had thought he could possess, "Well, I'd tell you what we did, but you said you weren't going to ask so…"

"I changed my mind, you hav… wait a minute, 'what we did.' WE? It's my shoulder, how did you get involved – just what are you trying to imply?"

"Good night Kazahaya."

"You bastard! You're doing this on purpose!"

There was a soft chuckle from the other side of the curtain and that easily, things were back to normal in the apartment above Green Drugstore.