Veneer

Author: Green Phantom Queen

Rated: M

Summary: Ryusei Sakuta only had two objectives when he transferred to Amanogawa High: to defeat the Zodiarts and to ensure that his identity as the mysterious Kamen Rider Meteor was kept a secret. Unfortunately, what he did not expect was him becoming the target of one Gentaro Kisaragi, the man to befriend everyone in Amanogawa High. Gentaro invites Ryusei to an organization only he is part of, and Ryusei must learn how to escape what is in store for him before it's too late.

Warnings: Mentioning of slash, violence and more mature themes. As Akibaranger would say, "Good kids, stay away from this show."

Notes: Takes place somewhere after Episode 18 of Kamen Rider Fourze.

I: Coquetry

"Truth is a great flirt."

-Franz Liszt

It was raining the day that Gentaro Kisaragi last saw his parents.

He was only eight years old when he attended his parents' funeral service, sitting alongside his grandfather in a long white robe that went past his feet. There were hundreds of mourners who were also saying their goodbyes as the bodies of both husband and wife were incinerated in a large furnace. Their lives ended too soon, and all that they left behind was a little boy who promised to make lots of friends for their sake. Still, having thousands of friends could never replace the love that his mother and father could give him.

"Be strong, Gentaro," said Goro Kisaragi, placing a hand on his grandson's shoulder. "Your parents would want you to keep smiling for their sake."

Gentaro nodded his head as he saw his grandfather slowly walk to the stage, preparing to send his own farewells to his son and daughter-in-law. Gentaro sniffled as someone approached with an umbrella in hand. He looked up, seeing two young men smiling at him.

"Hello, little one," said the one holding the umbrella. "Do you know who we are?"

"N-no," Gentaro stammered. "I don't."

"It's going to be all right," said the second man, extending a hand out to Gentaro. "We're good friends of your parents. We want to take you in to our little group."

"Really?" Gentaro remembered his parents talking about their jobs, but the terms they used were too big for someone like him. Still, it always sounded so fascinating and one day, he would be just like them. "What is it called?"

"We work for a group called Ouroboros," said the umbrella-wielding man. "Our specialty is helping those who have lost family members and to help get them through their trauma. Will you accept?"

"Will I get to make lots and lots of friends there? That's what my parents would want."

"You can make a thousand friends in ten years if that's what you want," said the second man with a laugh. "All you have to do is take our hands, and we'll show you all that you need to know."

Gentaro blinked as he turned his gaze toward his grandfather. Goro Kisaragi was trembling, trying to keep his voice still as he talked about how he missed his son. The old man was not paying attention to the strange men, but it was probably for the best. Plus, if those two said that Gentaro could make lots of friends, wouldn't that mean he was doing something good? His parents were so proud of him befriending people and making a thousand people happy would make him a thousand times happier.

Without hesitation, Gentaro Kisaragi took those hands into his.

0-0-0-0-0-0

"Kisaragi! YOU BASTARD!"

Gentaro Kisaragi turned and felt a fist connect to his jaw. He fell to the ground in pain, just as he heard the distance cries of hundreds of seagulls flying off. He turned, seeing the transfer student, Ryusei Sakuta, standing over him. Ryusei's face was contorted with anger at Gentaro, but he didn't understand why.

"That hurt…" he muttered, placing a hand where Ryusei punched him. Gentaro saw Ryusei look down in disbelief, apologizing while bowing toward the fallen delinquent.

"I went absolutely nuts!" Ryusei exclaimed, rushing toward Gentaro's side. "Are you okay? I didn't hurt you, did I? I'm such an idiot..."

Gentaro saw Ryusei's eyes and blinked. There was something inside the transfer student that made him feel suspicious. Gentaro shook his head and began to stand up.

"You finally showed your true face to me, haven't you?" he asked. Ryusei tilted his head in confusion, but otherwise let Gentaro continue. "I don't know what you're thinking but…you were pretty angry when you punched me like that." Gentaro smiled as he pulled out something from his pocket. "Here, take this."

Ryusei snatched the item from Gentaro's hand and inspected it. It was some sort of business card with a red serpent biting its own tail surrounded by a cluster of stars.

"Ouroboros?" Ryusei read, seeing the name printed on the card. "What is this?"

"It's an agency that I work in," Gentaro explained. "It's for those who hide their earnestness from others. When you punched me, I felt everything you wanted to tell me, and it reminded me of some mysterious fighter that kicked my ass yesterday." He scratched the back of his head as he continued. "I thought to myself, 'I'll find him, and I'll befriend him.' I also wanted to give him my card—I thought he'd be interested."

"Interested in what you have in store?" Ryusei thought darkly. "I highly doubt that." He pocketed the card nonetheless.

"I hope you can come to the address tonight at 8 PM sharp," Gentaro continued. "It'll be fun, don't you think?"

"S-sure!" said Ryusei, his mouth becoming his biggest "I'm smiling but not really at you" grin ever. "But right now, we should…WHOA!"

The figures of the Libra and Scorpio Zodiarts appeared from behind as if waiting in an ambush. Gentaro prepared the Fourze Driver as Ryusei stepped back in feigned fear.

"Get going, Ryusei!" Gentaro exclaimed. "I'll take care of these two!"

"R-right!" Ryusei stammered, rushing off from the scuffle. As he did, he smirked to himself. His identity had not been discovered, and everything was as it should be. Gentaro was such a complete idiot.

0-0-0-0-0-

Sometime after the fight with both Libra and Scorpio Zodiarts, Gentaro brought Ryusei into the Rabbit Hatch once more where his friends and fellow Kamen Rider Club Members were waiting for him. In the abandoned space station/secret clubhouse, everyone was doing their own business, none of them paying attention to their club leader bringing in someone new to enter their club. Gentaro cleared his throat to gather their attention.

"I met up with Ryusei and saw his earnestness," he explained. "Therefore, I revoke my veto and now accept Ryusei Sakuta as a fellow member of the Kamen Rider Club."

This was met by exclamations of surprise from everyone, particularly of Kengo Utahoshi, who nearly dropped his tools from hearing the news. Ryusei waved hello and smiled as Gentaro placed a hand on the new club member's shoulder.

"We're going to be great friends, don't you think?" he said. "I also hope you go to the address later tonight."

"Sure," said Ryusei, smiling once more. Then maybe I should eat live scorpions for supper.

"Gen-chan," said Yuki, standing up. "It's almost 5! Don't you have another meeting tonight?"

"Yeah," Gentaro answered, nodding his head. "The group needs me to do double-duty regarding a grieving widow and an estranged wife. That's also not counting..."

"Oh," Yuki quickly nodded her head. "Well, be careful. Don't get any more scars and such."

"Scars?" asked Shun, raising an eyebrow. He set the weights down to the ground. "Gentaro, what are you..."

"Don't worry about me," said Gentaro, dismissing the subject with a wave of his hand. "Let's just say that I help out the community in my spare time."

"That's very sweet of you," Miu noted, flipping another page of the magazine in her hands. "I bet it goes with your philosophy with befriending everyone, right?"

"Yep!" Gentaro looked at his watch. "Crap! I better get going! My masters, I mean, lords, I mean...I have to run!"

He rushed out of the Rabbit Hatch as everyone else looked in confusion. Ryusei pulled out the business card that Gentaro handed him and looked at it closely. Written underneath the address was a name written in hirigana.

"Matthew?" he thought to himself. "I wonder who that could be?"

"Yuki," said Kengo, seeing his best friend scribbling something in her sketchbook. "What were you discussing with Kisaragi?"

"Ah, Gentaro works part-time at this special group for those who lost important loved ones," Yuki explained. "He goes there and gets paid to be someone's brother, boyfriend, etc. He treats all of his clients as friends."

"That explains that whole 'I made a thousand friends' thing," said JK, looking up from his laptop. "What's the name of the group?"

"It's...It's..." Yuki scratched her head. "Funny...the name always escapes me."

"Odd..." Ryusei thought, looking at the business card in hand. "Should I tell or...No, that would just raise even more questions. Best keep this a secret for now."

"Well," Ryusei clapped his hands together and smiled. "What are we going to do today?"

"Nothing much," said Tomoko, pouring herself a cup of tea. "We usually do some testing for the Astroswitches, but we can't do it without Fourze. We just hang out and relax."

"Ah. Listen, I have to get going. My parents are going to be worried about my whereabouts. I'll see you guys later..." Ryusei waved goodbye and left the Rabbit Hatch, still looking at the business card. He had this strange feeling in his gut telling him that something was not right with what Gentaro was saying. He was definitely hiding something.

"Let's see where this goes." He thought, walking into the light.

0-0-0-0-0-0

At five till 8, Ryusei rode his motorcycle, the Machine Meteorstar, to the specific address on the back of Gentaro's business card. He slowed to a stop, looking at the building that was his destination. There was a neon sign of a red snake biting its tale and the word "Ouroboros" in golden cursive. In front of the building was a woman with short silver hair and dressed in white.

"Excuse me," said the woman, approaching Ryusei. "Do you have a reservation for tonight?"

"I think so," said Ryusei, showing the card. "I think the card says Matthew or something like..."

"Lucky!" the woman grabbed Ryusei's hand, her eyes wide with excitement. "Matthew is one of the best! You're lucky to have him!"

"For what?"

"You'll see! Oh, my name is Shirogane. I'll be taking care of you and your motorcycle tonight, if you don't mind."

"Um...okay, then." Ryusei dismounted from the Machine Meteorstar. "Take care of her, all right?"

"Will do! Just enter inside and have fun! Matthew should be ready in about ten minutes!" Shirogane waved goodbye as she drove the motorcycle into the alley. Ryusei narrowed his eyes as he entered the building. He saw many teenagers sitting down, filling out some sort of form with serious looks on their faces. Standing guard over them was a bouncer, whose arms were folded across his chest. Ryusei cleared his throat and handed the business card to the intimidating man. The bouncer inspected both sides before handing it back to Ryusei, nodding his head and opening the door for him.

"Well, that was easier than I thought." Ryusei said in his mind, walking deeper into the interior of the Ouroboros building. It was some sort of club, complete with a dance floor, bartending station, DJ and dining tables. Ryusei sat himself down at the bar, letting out a sigh as he started to wonder if going to this strange place was even worth trying to figure out the enigma that was Gentaro Kisaragi. What wasn't helping was the music and the rhythmic thuds that began to bombard his brain.

The bartender handed Ryusei a glass filled with a blue and green liquid in alternate patterns, topped with a candy cane straw.

"It's our specialty," said the bartender, wiping a glass in her hand. "Striped Blue Shepherd. Don't worry, all of our drinks are non-alcoholic."

"What is this place?" asked Ryusei, taking a sip of his drink. He felt a rush of peppermint and blue raspberry wash through his tongue. He downed the rest of his drink before continuing. "And who's Matthew?"

"You'll see when he gets here," The bartender replied. "Now," she went behind the counter and handed a clipboard and pen. "As per club rules, all newcomers must fill out a registration form in regards to the rules and regulations of the Ouroboros organization. Also," The bartender then pulled out a drink menu and shoved it into Ryusei's face. "Feel free to have any of our specialties.

"But I don't think I can pay for any of these..."

"Don't worry," There was a mischievous smile on the bartender's face. "You'll pay soon enough."

"Er, okay..."

The bartender soon helped a few more patrons with some drinks as Ryusei began to answer all of the questions as fast as he could. There were normal ones like name, birthday (His was June 6th), address, occupation, etc. Then there were interesting ones like "Favorite Vacation Spot" (none at the moment), favorite type of sweets (lollipops, cherry-flavored), favorite colors (black and blue), favorite shape (stars), favorite scent (fresh rain) and so on. He ordered three more drinks while he finished off the last four pages of the form—with strange names like Silver Scale, Scorpion's Stinger and Midnight Maiden—which made his head feel slightly funny. Perhaps it was also due to the music that kept blasting away and everyone singing to a set of incomprehensible lyrics, but he brushed that aside as he finally signed his name at the bottom. He then slammed the clipboard onto the counter with a sigh.

"I'm done," he said, handing the clipboard back to the bartender. "And I want a Coral Crab Cluster as soon as you can."

"Hold on, tiger," the bartender chuckled, going through the registration form. She nodded her head, tapped the tip of the pen on her tongue and circled a few things. Then, she handed it back to Ryusei and smiled. "Congratulations! Everything is in order. Now, let me make you that special drink and Matthew will be here with you shortly."

"But you still haven't answered my question: What is Ouroboros all about?"

"It's all about opening up new possibilities in today's society. If the person who handed you the card wants you to see Matthew, then the higher-ups must want a good look at you. Also," the bartender winked at Ryusei as she began pouring ingredients into a glass. "A lot of us really want to get into you, if you know what I mean."

Ryusei just nodded his head as he was handed a rose colored drink with lots of bubbles. He drank it down in one gulp as the bass of the newest track readied his mind for whatever he was going to face.

0-0-0-0-0-

"Here we are!" said Shirogane, bringing Ryusei to Room 007 at the building's second floor. Using the key in hand to unlock the door, she opened it and lightly pushed him inside. "Have a nice time! Say 'hi' to Matthew for me!"

Ryusei just nodded his head as the door closed, Shirogane locking it tight. It was dark inside, so he immediately went for the light switch. When the light turned on, Ryusei saw that it was a large bedroom with black and blue pillows. He looked up, seeing hundreds of white dots mapping the ceiling like the night sky. He took a deep breath—it smelled like rain.

"What the..." Ryusei looked around. "What is this place?"

"Don't you like it?" asked a soft, alluring voice. "You filled out everything on the form so perfectly, and I had to admit you drinking like that was adorable."

Ryusei turned around as something was shoved into his mouth. He was about to spit it out when he realized what it was. It was a cherry-flavored lollipop. Now it was starting to get creepy—wasn't the information on the registration form supposed to be private?

He pulled the lollipop out of his mouth and looked at the person leaning against the door. He was dressed in a long white bathrobe and adorning his neck was a silver necklace of a capital U with a wavy line going through it. What surprised Ryusei the most was the person's face—he knew that face from just a few hours ago.

"Welcome to the Ouroboros Organization," said the person. "I am Matthew, your host for this evening. However, I think you might know me better as Gentaro Kisaragi."

Ryusei felt his heart beating against his chest as everything started to blur together. Matthew was Gentaro's alias and the fact that Gentaro was good at befriending people (if that was what he was truly doing) made him nearly smack himself across the face. He fell for this plan hook, line and sinker. Gentaro just laughed at the look on Ryusei's face.

"Come, Ryusei," he whispered, taking Ryusei by the hand. "We have so much to do tonight."