An orange-haired youth weaved his way through the busied streets of Shibuya, headed through the Scramble Crossing at a swift trot. A second boy followed not too far behind his footfalls (though at a bit more comfortable, leisurely pace), twisting a lock of his silvery hair in his nimble fingers at he pushed his way through the thick crowd. The first boy allowed no time for dilly dally-ish nonsense, and was beginning to increase the distance between him and his companion, who by now was trailing along apathetically.

The other teenager sighed as the bobbing head of a fiery color, which was meant to serve as his guide, nearly disappeared out of view. Offering an abundance of polite apologies and dispensing the "sorry's" and "excuse me's" this way and that, he gently shouldered his pathway through the vast throng of people. "Neku!" he called out in an evident tone of irritation.

Said friend whirled around at the sound of his name and narrowed his dusted blue eyes at him. "Hurry up!" Neku growled loudly. As the other teen neared him, he muttered, "Joshua, you're such a damn slowpoke."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Joshua purred, examining his cleanly cut nails. "I didn't realize the dire need to rush around like a madman. You should be a little more considerate of your surroundings, Speedy Gonzales."

Fed up with the usual snarky attitude that was displayed, Neku yanked at Joshua's wrist and dragged the smart-mouthed boy behind him, rolling his eyes and cursing thickly under his breath as they trudged onward. Joshua smirked and allowed himself to be roughly tugged along. Catching sight of an all-too-familiar building, he opened his mouth once more. "Ah, so this is where you wanted to go so badly."

Neku gave a curt nod, and letting go of Joshua's arm, which fell limply at Josh's side, he closed the gap between himself and his favorite coffee shop.

As he entered through the front door, a voice greeted him. "Welcome to the WildKat. What can I do for y—"

The man stopped mid-sentence when he turned his head and recognized the familiar face. "Oh! Hey there, Neku. What's crackin'?" Mr. Hanekoma grinned at his frequent customer. Joshua entered the shop at about this time, and Mr. H nodded in his direction. "Hey, Josh." Joshua gave a small wave in response. The barista turned his attention to Neku once again. "What'cha need, Phones?"

Rolling his eyes at the irritating nickname, Neku pressed a rather large pin into Mr. H's palm. "This pin . . . ," he began slowly. "It's weirding me out. It doesn't seem to have a psych, and if it does, then I can't activate it. Doesn't seem to be of much value, either. It's not a Player pin or anything else like that, so what gives? I mean, unless Tin Pin has been recently approving totally whack pins that are this huge, then I'm stumped." He paused, staring at the intriguingly intricate design on its surface. "But seriously. Why's it so damn big?!"

Mr. H. looked down at the strange object resting in his hand. "Err, where'd you find this?" he asked, scratching at his prickled chin.

Neku opened his mouth to speak, paused for a short moment, then closed it again. "Uh, that's a good question. I . . . um . . . " He blinked. "Wait. Where did I find it?"

Joshua giggled annoyingly. "Oh, Neku. So absent minded, you are."

The angered Player grit his teeth. "Shut the hell up."


A/N: Wow. This is the first story that I actually plan on updating. With MOAR CHAPTERS. Oh, my sweet Celestia. Jumping Jesus. Asdfghjkl;

So, so very proud of myself. I t-think I'm t-tearing up a little. C':