No one can stop me, for only I am in control.

If you want me, you better contact my people.

In my crown, I am king, I love their endless worshiping.

I've come, it's been fun, but won't you please disappear.

Something tells me that you can't further my career.

-Don't mess with me

Temposhark

Izaya Orihara, an information broker.

There are common things that go together; this was one of those things. Ikebukuro was his current squat spot. A city full of humans, anywhere you went. Only a few really spiked the crimson eyed, dark haired information broker's interest though. Celty Sturluson, a Dullahan. Shizuo Heiwajima, a freakishly strong guy with the worst sense of fashion, bartending suits are hardly the style nowadays.

Izaya smirked, his hands clasped together, supporting his chin.

Two kids with interesting ties to the gang life of the city, Masaomi Kida and his friend Mikado Ryûgamine. This place was a stage, and the broker ran the show.

Izaya hopped off his desk chair and headed out the door of his office, fingering the switch blade in his jacket pocket. 'I've got shit to do today.' He thought, humming.

…...

Shizuo took a drag of his cigarette, its cherry a dull red in the shade of the buildings, and he scanned the main plaza. Shizuo liked this town, and for the most part, the people in it. Except that damn fle- "IZAYA!" the blonde man yelled, throwing off his sunglasses. He uprooted a traffic sign and hurtled it across the street toward a grinning man, with his hands in the pockets of a fur lined jacket.

"Oi! Shizuo! I thought you would be happy to see me." Izaya crowed, dodging the projectile with ease, crimson eyes narrowed betraying the innocence of his words.

Shizuo grunted and took a step, Izaya immediately ducked into an alley way. 'The little shit!' Shizuo bolted after him without a second thought, dodging cars and people in his struggle.

…...

'Too slow, Shizuo.' Izaya hummed, walking down the sidewalk. Losing that hot tempered guy was like outrunning a paraplegic, easy.

Izaya turned toward into the park as night fell over the city. Street lamps illuminated the area. The sound of cars on the highway in the distance, fountain water trickling. He could spare a few minutes. He flopped on a bench and flipped open his cell phone.

-Kanra has entered chat—

Taro: Hey Kanra-chan!

Setton: Hello.

Kanra: Greetings everyone \^o^/!

Taro: We were talking about the Dollars.

Setton: and the Yellow Scarves.

Kanra: Is that so? I heard the Yellow Scarves have been growing pretty violent lately…

Taro: What?

Setton: No, it's true! I heard it too.

Kanra: They've been targeting anyone brave enough to be walking around Ikebukuro alone at night, even school students.

Taro: That's horrible!

A scream, Izaya shut his phone and sat up on the bench, looking in the direction of the sound. He stood up, nothing to be heard but sirens in the distance. He could have sworn…another scream shattered the air.

Izaya crossed the park and made his way over to the bridge that went over the highway. He stood there, casually, at the opening of the metal cage, observing. Two young men, probably his age, were crowded around a heap that was huddled against the chain link. Izaya frowned and shifted his weight.

"Look, you made her pass out!" the standing man complained, hitting the other on the back of his head. Both of them wore Yellow bandannas on their arms.

"Not my fault she's a wussy." The second man, kneeling in front of the heap scoffed. He raised a knife in the air before driving it into the heap, a girl Izaya identified. She screamed.

"Hey!" Izaya called. Both men looked up. "You aren't playing fair, two against one?" he removed a hand from his pocket and waved the switch blade in the air in a 'tsk tsk' motion, "Why don't you let me even the odds?"

The man who had stabbed the girl rose and pointed the bloody knife at the offender, "Get lost. Don't you know who we are?" he sniffed. The other man let out a laugh.

Izaya tilted his head, "You guys are with the Yellow Scarves. Ie: low lifes with a superiority complex that get off from petty crimes, hanging out in parks and stabbing kids for their lunch money."

"You asshole!" the knifed man ran toward the information broker and swiped at him to no avail. Izaya just took his feet out from under him and laughed as the man fell to the ground. He made no attempt to stop them as they scrambled away casting insults behind them.

…...

Izaya turned toward the girl, a red puddle of blood stained the cement under her. He reached out a foot and poked her, with no reaction. "Hm." He looked at her left leg, her jeans were torn and they were a deep wet red, the flesh was jagged and mutilated. The leg also appeared to be broken.

He leaned in and put his hand to his ear, 'still breathing.'

Izaya grabbed her arm and put it over his shoulder, carried her off the bridge, down the steps and to the bench he was previously sitting on. He sat her down and pulled out his phone and scrolled through the contacts. Celty. He hit the call button and put the phone to his ear. She answered.

"Celty, I'm at the park. I have a job for you and Shinra." He spoke into the device and then hung up, knowing full well Celty wouldn't respond.

Not 5 minutes and a horse could be heard as the black bike skidded to a stop in front of Izaya. Celty took out a phone and typed, 'what's the job?' her helmet reflecting Izaya's face.

"I'm not a doctor, buuuuuuut, I would say this kid here might need some work." He gestured to the girl lying on the bench. "I'm not carrying her all the way to a hospital." He trilled with a smile.

Celty nodded as Izaya put the girl on the bike, handed the Dullahan some money and stepped back waving casually as she motored off.

…

Celty weaved in and out of traffic, being careful to avoid abrupt movements. The girl clinging to her was out cold, but Celty could feel her breathing steadily.

'Izaya, he's an asshole but he wouldn't attack a kid. No, he would just set someone else up to.' She thought dryly, pulling into Shinra's place.

He met her in the hallway, putting on his glasses, "Hey Celty! What did Iza-"

Shinra stopped abruptly when he saw blood dripping on the tile and a girl slung over Celty's back. "Hold on. 5 seconds." he turned away and ran into a room, pulling a fold out hospital bed behind him. He set it up in the living room. "Here quick."

Celty walked briskly over and laid the girl out on the bed. She flopped on the couch and pulled out her phone as Shinra set up more hospital equipment.

'Izaya told me he had a job for me and you, I wasn't expecting a butchered kid. Do you think he was involved?' she held out the phone to Shinra, "No, I don't think so. He would have planned it better than this, and you would have had a notice."

'Good point.' She typed, setting the phone on the coffee table and taking off her helmet. The black shadowy smoke coming from her neck dissipated before it got very far. Celty looked over, the girl was in a hospital gown, and Shinra was cleaning up her leg, frowning.

He stepped back for a minute and put his hands in the pockets of his white lab coat, "I don't think I can save her leg. It's been too long and it's pretty messed up." He said, calmly.

Celty snatched her phone and tapped on it, 'what do you mean? She'll die?'

"Of course not, but, she might end up in a wheelchair, or with a prosthetic if I can make it happen." Shinra rubbed his chin, studying the scene before him, amputation for sure. No getting around that.

…...

Izaya shut his phone, looking at the screen. 2:30pm it read.

Shinra had just called him, 6 days since he stopped to help that kid in the park. 'Leg couldn't be saved huh?' he thought. Shinra had amputated her leg and fitted her with a prosthetic that attached directly to her bone. Ouch.

He spun in his chair, facing the window he looked out and sighed. Everything was going just dandy until Shinra called and racked him with guilt. Not his problem. The girl, Emi, was still there. Which was interesting to say the least, no family worried about her? She wasn't wearing a school uniform when Izaya found her.

"I should probably go over and see what's going on." He put both his hands on his head and stood up.

…

Shinra answered the door, Izaya just walked right in, "Izaya! I didn't expect you to drop by. At all. Ever. For anything." He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Izaya chuckled, "Let's just say that I'm very curious about our new friend here."

They both walked toward the kitchen, Izaya stopped behind the couch and observed the scene before him. Celty was playing a video game, racing, with the kid who was still in the hospital bed clothed in jeans, a tee shirt, hoodie and skater shoes. Her black hair was pulled into a loose pony tail, bangs hanging in front and to the side of her face. "Bring it Celty!" she crowed as they both clicked away on the controllers.

He wanted to see the leg; his eyes flickered to her left leg, laying out straight. The jeans on that side weren't hugging anything like the right leg. You tell something was there, but it was a lot smaller, not as round from above the knee and down. Shinra interrupted his study, "It was pretty intense, the knee was completely far gone." He said. Izaya winced, "Y'know, those Yellow Scarves did this." He spoke loud enough for Celty to hear. She paused the game and turned her body, facing him and typing on her phone.

'Those yellow guys?' she held the device out to him. Izaya leaned forward and nodded smiling, "Those would be the ones!" he chirped.

Izaya looked over, his eyes meeting the girls. They were a strange yellow, but not as strange as his crimson. "Izaya Orihara. You're welcome." He smirked holding out his hand. She leaned over the back of the raised bed and shook it, "Emi Yamahizu, uh, what for exactly?" she mumbled the last part, not sure if she should ask or not.

'Weird name. Right, being passed out doesn't usually contribute much to being alert.' Izaya thought.

Shinra leaned against the wall, "Izaya called Celty to come and get you, after you were hurt Emi." He helped out.

Emi's eyes widened with a new respect, "Wow, thanks. I probably wouldn't have been too well off if you didn't come along."

Izaya tilted his head, "No one would be looking for you?" he asked.

"No. I don't really live anywhere with anyone."

"What does that mean? How did you get the Yellow Scarves on your tail?" Izaya questioned. Celty and Shinra were silent; if Izaya was here they knew it would only be for the information. Anything that happened in this city was the brokers business, and he wanted to know.

"I usually hide out at night, at that park. Those guys started chasing me after I stole one of their friend's phone and money." Her eyes were sharp, defiant. Izaya wasn't intimidating her.

He stepped closer, "You mean to say that you're a homeless pickpocket and you stole something that wasn't yours, in other words, they had every right to chase you down?"

She didn't say anything. Izaya just stared at her, 'pickpocket, this kid managed to slip a cell phone from a gang member.' He rubbed the back of his head, "How old are you Emi?"

"…fifteen."

"You don't go to school." It was a statement, not a question.

She didn't speak. Afraid that anything she said might trigger more questions.

"Shinra." Izaya turned and walked out the door of the condo. Shinra followed him, leaving a confused Celty and an uncomfortable Emi behind them.

…...

Shinra sat down outside on a bench, Izaya stood behind him, "Where is she going to go?"

"Not sure, she can't stay here, but I can't just kick her out. Kid doesn't have anywhere else to go." Shinra frowned, he knew where this was going, and he didn't like it.

"My place isn't exactly crowded." Izaya said a smirk on his face, the one he wore when he was thinking of something Shinra noted.

"You, Izaya, are going to take in a teenager? You know she won't be recovered for a whole year right? You aren't exactly the 'parent' type." The doctor looked back at the information broker, doubting.

He was quiet, his eyes narrowed in thought, "Sure. Why not?"

"You can't just give her the boot when it gets too annoying. Or throw her to your wolves, or a gang, or wolves and a gang." Shinra grew more paranoid as he spoke. This was a bad idea, a very bad idea. This was Izaya, not Suzie cupcake.

"Oh please." Izaya stood in front of Shinra, holding his pocketed hands outward, extending his jacket, "I'm not heartless."

...…...

Emi limped gingerly behind Izaya, he walked ahead at a normal pace, no concern for her unhealed leg or that he was being followed. Every now and then he would stop, wait for her to catch up, and then start walking again. Celty insisted on giving them a ride, or at least Emi, but they denied. Emi was regretting that.

Izaya stopped again, turning around to watch her hobble up to him, "We're almost there." He grinned.

"Right." She said.

"No, left." He smirked and turned left into a building. Emi followed slowly.

He unlocked a door and held it open; Emi looked at him before heading into the office. It was open, spacious. A desk, with a computer and chair with file bins sat in front of the large window. Off to the other side of the room was a sectional couch, a coffee table with a laptop and a TV mounted on the wall, stairs to the right of that. Izaya walked past her and sat in front of the laptop on the couch. He entered what appeared to be a chat room, didn't say a word to her. He was lost in his thoughts.

Emi looked around. Wondering what to do with herself, she didn't have any belongings and quite frankly, she felt like she was in a store more than what was supposed to be her home. "Don't act like a stranger, you can sit down." Izaya laughed at her, not looking up from his typing on the laptop screen.

She gingerly walked to the couch and peered over his shoulder, yup, a chat room.

His screen name was…Kanra. Two other people, Setton and Taro were talking as well.

"Who are they?" she asked. Izaya shut the lid, "I don't know, just some people I often talk to." He lied with a sly smile.

"I only have one bedroom in this place. You can take your pick of the bed or the couch. I don't mind either way." Izaya said in a sing song tune.

"I won't kick you out of your room. Couch is fine, and thanks. For uh, y'know, helping me and stuff. They probably would have killed me, I know you drove them off, they wouldn't have left if you didn't." She spoke, Izaya looked at her, "…no problem. I was passing by."

Don't mess with me, I'll shoot you down.

-Don't mess with me

Temposhark