Ch.001 – The past you can't escape
It's the middle of the night, damn it, Kida Masaomi thought, searching blindly for his ringing phone. He grabbed it just in time to see a private number hang up before he could do anything else. Irritated for being woken up, he thought for a moment about throwing the phone away but then his sleepy eyes caught something on the screen. He blinked his gaze into focus and opened the new message.
Fully awake, his eyes widening with every word the read, he could not believe what he was seeing. He felt his whole body tremble with anger. How dare he, he thought gritting his teeth.
Masaomi cursed under his breath and this time really threw his phone at the nearby wall.
'What was that?' asked a sleepy voice at his side and he turned around, feeling slightly guilty for waking up his girlfriend.
'Nothing, Saki, sleep,' he whispered to her as he pulled near to hug her. The girl fell back asleep immediately while he silently raged deep inside. Why, why after all this time he had to contact him again? Why wasn't he gone for good like Masaomi had hoped? He knew hope was never a good partner to rely on but still, he could not help it. And the year of complete silence from the most despicable man was a fuel for that hope and he let himself by blinded by it. Damn it! Damn this all to hell!
He squeezed his eyelids in the silent protest trying to calm down despite the rage storming in his heart. His mind repeated over and over again the words he read just a moment ago.
Long time no see, Kida-kun! Things have been heating up in Ikebukuro lately. Why don't you check what's up?
That night, when he finally fell asleep again, he dreamt about yellow flags stuck in burnt ground, between skyscrapers rotting away and falling apart. He woke up feeling uneasy and angry.
'What's the matter, Masaomi?' a soft question brought him back to reality. He blinked into focus his breakfast and then looked at his girlfriend.
'What?' he asked even though he heard the words but still had to bring his head back in order.
'Did something happen?' she asked. 'You look pretty down today?'
'It's nothing, Saki,' he replied with a sigh and want back to eating.
'Masaomi -' she started and was about to continue but her phone rang with a new message. Kida's head snapped quickly up. It was just a hunch, but he was pretty sure he was right. It was long since he stopped believing in coincidence. And his fears seemed to come true when he saw his girlfriend's eyes widen and turn sharply to him. He withstood the surprised and worried gaze, waiting patiently for what the girl would say. However, instead of speaking, she gave him her phone.
Hello pretty! Tell your dear boyfriend to not ignore me.
Kida clenched his fists at that and gritted his teeth. He looked away cursing in his head like he hadn't for a long time.
'Masaomi, what does he mean by that?' she asked the obvious question quietly. Honestly, what else could he do now? He could omit the truth but he could not lie. And so he told her all about the message he received that night and that he switched his phone off just in case. He told her that and all about how he was planning to ignore him anyway.
'I hope it won't turn into anything nasty,' she said with a sigh and cleaned up the table. 'I really like the life we have now,' she added with such a sunny smile that even Kida's lips turned up a little. He also loved it and he told her so much, making her eyes sparkle even brighter. The past year was had been genuinely good.
After they ran away from Ikebukuro more then two years ago they went through a lot. In the beginning, to make a living, he had to take odd little jobs from the worst flea that walked the Earth. However, with time, as the two of them managed to get further and further, the jobs got less often and they could take up something normal. Working here and there they soon could afford rather normal living and could do it on their own. And then, one day, all contact with the sneaky bastard stopped. Kida even went so far to check on the forum if he was showing up but there was no sign. He vanished. There was a rumor that spying a spy he went himself too far, ended up pretty badly hurt and had to really go underground. And it seemed he did just that. Personally, Masaomi would prefer it to stay this way.
'Anyway, I still wonder what might be happening in Ikebukuro,' Saki's voice reached through his grim thoughts and snapped him into attention. 'It must be something big or else he would do it himself.' Kida snorted at that.
'It's more like he still can't go back and wants to send a bait in his place,' he said bitterly. The girl looked at him surprised.
'You mean, after he got attacked? It must have been really bad if that's the case,' she said thoughtfully and laughed. 'Honestly, I can't really imagine him wandering somewhere around the country and not in the centre of events,' she added and the words made Kida realize something suddenly. His eyes snapped wide open and he stared at the girl incredulously. How come he never though about it? Like in trance he got up and went for the doors.
'What is it?' she asked confused.
'I'll be back in a moment,' he said not turning back and went out. He sped down the stairs and down the streets in the pale light of the early morning, thoughts racing in his head.
How could he forget the sneaky bastard and his wicked ways? He disappeared from Ikebukuro a year ago – would he really give up on everything connected to the city? The man could not live without information and he would surely be on it all the time. And as his safe place he'd choose one from which he could operate immediately, in case something happened. How obvious was that?
Kida turned the corner and saw what he expected to see. There, on the other side of the street from the cafe where Saki worked, a guy was standing and writing on his phone. Masaomi cursed his own stupidity in his head. How could he ignore the guy earlier only because he was not wearing a jacked with furry hood? Damn it, he was so blind in his false freedom!
The man looked up with a beginning of a smile just as Kida was a step away from him, his fist up high ready to land a blow. The guy's expression changed minutely from little amusement to pure seriousness. Ha managed to half dodge – the fist collided with his face but not with all the intended force. Then, he moved with unexpected speed for the slim figure he was.
Right after the blow, next thing Masaomi knew was that he was being shoved around, with the help of his extreme momentum. A firm grip closed around his shoulder, stopping him abruptly, and there was a small blade pressed against his throat. He felt the other close to his back and dared not budge, apart from his heavy breathing. He cursed under his breath – the man has lost none of his skills after all this time.
'Are you done with the pleasantries now, Kida-kun?' asked a silky voice right into his ear. 'Can we talk now calmly?'
'No,' he breathed out through gritted teeth. 'We have nothing to talk about, Orihara Izaya.'
'Oh but I think we do,' the man said with a smirk. 'Since you sought me out all on your own it means you want to talk to me and I am more than pleased to comply -'
'Shut up you bastard!' Kida hissed interrupting, not being able to keep it inside anymore. 'I came here to tell you to get lost –' he stopped abruptly when he felt the blade move closer and actually cut the skin lightly. He bit down the surprised gasp.
'You will listen to me, my dear,' Izaya said with a light tone, completely out of place in the situation. 'Because you will want to work for me and will do all your best. You do want to make Saki proud of your accomplishments, don't you?'
The words made Kida clench his fists painfully hard and he gritted his teeth, his whole body trembling from barely suppressed rage. He lost it at that precise moment and he was too aware of it. And so was Orihara. The man stepped away slowly while the other stayed where he was, afraid that if he moved it would be to punch the older one. He looked at his feet not wanting to even catch a glimpse of the sly bastard.
'It seems there is a lot happening in Ikebukuro lately,' Izaya started in his playful voice, walking a few steps there and back again. 'The color gangs are working very actively and the Dollars are not far behind. And there seems to be another force building up. Unfortunately, no one knows what it is and why is it there. No one lived to tell the tale,' he finished with a sing-song voice.
'Why should I care?' Kida hissed angrily. He didn't want to care.
Izaya came to a halt in front of him.
'You care about your dear friends, yes you do,' he said sweetly. 'Ryūgamine Mikado and Sonohara Anri just might get swept into the affairs and who knows what happens next.'
At that Kida looked straight at the smirking man wishing to burn him alive with just the single glance.
'Don't you dare push them,' he hissed angrily but the man just smiled knowingly and raised his hands up in the gesture of innocent surrender.
'I am not doing anything now,' he admitted, although Masaomi had some doubts about it. 'After all, I can't go back anywhere near there just yet.'
'Coward,' Kida hissed looking away.
'Maybe a little, yes,' Izaya said lightly, surprising the younger slightly. 'But only the stupid do not fear for their lives. I love mine and I intend to live it long. As I suppose you do as well,' he added and stayed silent for a bit longer. The meaning of his words crystal clear, Masaomi had little else left to do.
'What do you want from me?' he asked resigned but still with the anger audible in his voice. The other laughed gleefully, rubbing in his small victory.
'I want you in Ikebukuro gathering all the hot information for me. You will stay there absolutely invisible – away from familiar places and people. You will make sure no one notices you there. It should not be hard as no one will expect you to be back. Everything is already set – tickets for the way there, flat with rent paid for three months in advance, your new name,' he paused to admire the glare from the younger one. 'We are being extra careful here and we know basically nothing of the new force and don't want to step the wrong way. You also should not be associated with the gangs in any way as they seem to be targeted.'
'When do I leave?' Kida asked instead of voicing his doubts and fears about the whole mission. It seemed more like a death wish than anything else but he was sure the other knew about it. Very well. That was the sole reason why he chose his scapegoat. And honestly, what could he do about it?
'Your train leaves today at 4p.m.'
'Today?' Kida screamed incredulously, not being able to hold back any more. Izaya said nothing more just handed him a thick envelope with, as he supposed, all the necessary documents. Masaomi gritted his teeth but stayed silent as well. He took the thing and turned on his heel to leave. He completely ignored the cheerful reassurance that they will be in contact and sped along the streets.
He stopped only in front of the flat's doors, tens of questions passing through his mind. What should he say to Saki? What would she do if she found out he lost once again to the fucking bastard? He was not even sure he could face her at the moment.
Taking a deep breath he finally went inside and from the doorstep was greeted with a really worried gaze.
'Finally! I was out of my mind with fear for what might have happened to you –' she stopped abruptly seeing his grim face and anger-filled eyes. 'Masaomi?' He turned away from her.
'I'm going to Ikebukuro today,' he said in a whisper and gritted his teeth when he heard her catch her breath.
'Did you meet with... with Izaya?' she asked quietly and the worry in her voice angered him to his limits. How dare that bastard worry his Saki! He screamed internally and, in the wave of blinding rage, he clenched his fists and smashed one against the wall. Go to hell, Izaya, he wished with all his heart, go to hell and leave us alone.
Disclaimer: D Gray Man belongs to Katsura Hoshino and Durarara! belongs to Ryohgo Narita. This story belongs to me and was written punerly for fun.
Hello there!
I stumbled upon Durarara! series and I just had to write something about Kida, who I came to like so, so much! Imo, he gets treated so badly in the series, and in the fan fictions he is mostly reduced to Izaya's puppet so I wanted to give him a moment of glory! ^^
The story is set after the first anime series with slight hints to what happened in the light lovel afterwards. I didn't read the lights novel and my knowledge is based on what Wikia offers.
And I think I gotten into the DGM duo way too much to leave them out ^^
I hope you will enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Huge thanks to IcyLady for proofreading! ^^
Inspiration to the story:
www zerochann net / 1522621
www zerochann net / 1598533