Haven't done one of these in a while, but this is a theme prompt story. The theme is "Tower".
Prisoner
Chapter One
Conscientious of the wet conditions of the road, Misaki Kirihara travelled along the busy roadway as quickly as possible. Kanami had informed her of the latest location of their main target – the infamous Black Reaper. Considering the current weather, it was no surprise that the man was in action. It was the perfect time for him to operate, but tonight would be different. She was going to do her best to stop him once and for all.
On top of the rainy downpour, she had to contend with local traffic as she decided to forgo the blaring siren and flashing lights. It might get her out of here faster, but it would also be a dead giveaway to her target. After all, he was currently situated in a quieter neighbourhood. Two could play at the same game. If he could use the rain to his advantage, then it was time to learn from his tricks and do the same.
When she reached his vicinity, she purposely parked a couple blocks away from the target building. It would be too suspicious to stop right in front of it; not to mention that he might recognize her vehicle somehow. She wasn't about to take chances when they were this close. Already as it were, he was tricky to catch. She needed all the help she could get; an element of surprise granting her the perfect opportunity.
As she stepped out of the car, she ignored the raindrops that pelted down on her. Instead, she drew her weapon from her purse and slipped it into her pant waistband. It would come in handy later, but for now, she needed to avoid suspicions and blend into the surroundings. Locking her car door, she finally rushed towards the entrance of the nearest building to find shelter from its overhead canopy.
Waiting for a few minutes, she didn't want to act too quickly as he was sure to notice a vehicle driving along this quiet street. Glancing at her watch, she gave herself five minutes of protection from the weather before making her move. Creeping out towards the target building, she tried to stick to the walls as close as possible.
Hurrying, hoping that she wasn't noticed, she finally rounded the corner of the building he was at and found herself in a narrow alleyway. Where she stood was not completely dark as the lights from the street managed to penetrate the curtain of rain – barely. Knowing him, he was bound to be on the rooftop. She just needed to find a way up.
She was forced to wander away from the safety of the street, further into the darkness. Along with the darkness, she had to train her eyes to see beyond the rain that continued to fall. It was both a blessing and a curse. It made her task of finding access to the rooftop difficult; at the same time, not a concern that she would be noticed as she could barely see anything herself.
Eventually, she managed to spot a fire escape ladder; a design from the olden days. Misaki didn't stop to analyze his reasons for being here as the neighbourhood was old; those were all questions for after his capture. For now, she had to make sure she caught him first. Then she could make him answer any and every question that she had.
She shielded her eyes from the rain momentarily as she tested the sturdiness of the ladder with her other hand. There was nothing wrong with it; just a precaution she had to take. She glanced upwards, more rain splattering onto her glasses, to check the height of the building. Only four stories; it wouldn't be that bad. She didn't think that buildings could be built any higher at the time it was constructed; another blessing.
She wiped both hands on her pants before she took hold of the ladder; not that it had helped. The continuous downpour had done nothing to help except to soak through her clothes. Every inch of her body felt wet, but she ignored it. She was on duty. It wasn't time to worry about getting wet. It was time to focus her concentration on the task of capturing the Black Reaper.
She put one hand above the other, one foot above the other and steadily scaled the ladder. She was already halfway when she was forced to take a break. The chill of the metal rungs bit into her already cold hands. Her only option was to blow her warm breath on each one individually. To rub them together for warmth would be suicide.
Already halfway up, she felt her determination flare. Halfway more and she would find herself face-to-face with the notorious Black Reaper. One after the other, up she went. Even so, her mental determination was no match for the physical toll on her body. Her teeth began to chatter from the cold. Her fingers were starting to freeze up and she could barely drag her feet high enough to step onto the next rung.
Unexpectedly, her vision blurred momentarily and she miscalculated the distance she was supposed to push herself up to. Her hand missed the rung and immediately she felt time draw to a pause. It started again in slow motion as she did not have enough strength to pull herself in with her other hand. Her back arched away from the ladder, away from her legs. She began to fall from a three-story height and she couldn't even muster up the strength to scream.
Her life flashed before her eyes and she couldn't believe that her biggest regret would be the fact that she could no longer chase the Black Reaper. With all the terrible things he had done, she had wanted to personally be the one who captured him. Ironic that it was that desire which led her to this very moment. He was only a story's height away from her.
Eventually, she closed her eyes as there was no way to save herself. She was resigned to her fate; to be a title headline on newspapers as a woman falling from an old building's fire escape ladder; to have her head cracked open on the concrete ground awaiting her.
Anticipating the bone-shattering impact of the fall, it never came. Instead, she felt her body slammed into a solid chest as a steady arm grabbed her around the waist. Her eyes flashed open as she peered through her rain-speckled glasses and found herself staring at the ominous white mask of her enemy. She craned her neck the other way to see where they were going, but she saw nothing.
Though she was thankful for his intervention, she couldn't help but be wary of the situation. She weakly pushed against his chest with her arm, but all she received for her efforts was the tightening of his arm around her body. She figured he would drop her off on the ground and continue on his merry way like he always did, but to her surprise, they continued to move; a rush of wind and accompanying rain against her face.
When he finally let her down, it was to find herself on the rooftop of the adjacent building. She immediately reached behind her for her weapon, but he was quicker. The gun dangled harmlessly from his fingertips. She wasn't given the chance to make another move as he approached her. The cell phone from her pocket also disappeared into his clutches. Just like that, he turned and left the same way they had come up.
"Hey!" Misaki shouted. "Let me down from here!"
Either he didn't hear her or he chose to ignore her, but the result was the same; he never turned back towards her. He disappeared into the darkness and she was stranded on the rooftop during a chilly rainy evening… Not even a single item with her to call for assistance from the others.
Mission accomplished within an hour and a half, Hei was heading back to his original location; the location where he had abandoned that police officer. He could have released her, but the goal was to stall her and eliminate her as a potential threat as this mission had been one where he didn't have time for hesitations and distractions. It wasn't like he had forgotten about her.
He couldn't, even if he tried. Her confiscated cell phone had been vibrating in his pocket every five or ten minutes. He finally powered it off moments after his task had been complete. Without a doubt, it would be her men desperately looking for her. After all, she was the only one on her team who was capable of accomplishing anything. That was why he had purposely left her where he did.
When he returned to the rooftop, he didn't see her anywhere. She wouldn't have tried something foolish like jumping across to the other side, would she? He didn't think so as she barely had the strength to hold on to that ladder she had been climbing. Her first inclination would be to search for an exit or a doorway which was where he headed.
As he suspected, he found her. The door did not yield as it was locked. She had been forced to take shelter in a slight alcove. Huddled against the brick wall, her eyes were closed. Every inch of her was soaked by the rain. Even though he had hurried with his task, it appeared as if he had still taken too long in getting back to her.
Unbuttoning his jacket as he approached her, he flicked out his arm to create a makeshift shield from the rain. He knelt at her side, ignoring the wetness which seeped into his pants. Instead, he put a finger to his mouth. Teeth clamped down around the glove, he tugged his other hand free. When he put his hand to her cheek, it was to feel the icy cold of her skin.
She stirred just a little from his touch. Her eyes never opened, but it was like a flower growing towards the sun's rays. She slowly moved towards him and pressed her face against his chest. A soft sigh escaped her lips and Hei did not hesitate to take action. It had been the goal to stall her, not to harm or kill her. He would take full responsibility for nursing her back to health.
He dropped his arm and quickly scooped her into his embrace. First things first, they had to find shelter from this unrelenting downpour. He wrapped her arms around his neck and she held on lightly as he readjusted the jacket in attempts to provide protection for the two of them. The wetness of her clothes soaked into his own, but he paid no attention to it.
When he was ready, he used his wire to carefully lower them to the ground. There had to be something like an inn or hotel in the vicinity. When his wire was fully retracted, he took off his mask before he took off at a run. That was when he spotted her car. He hadn't found the keys when he confiscated the phone and gun. He lightly set her down when they were standing next to her vehicle and searched her other pocket.
As he turned to open the car door, she murmured slight words of protest. Hei turned back to pull her into the protection of his embrace before resuming the task at hand. Perhaps it was better this way as he imagined that this would be the first area they searched for her. When she was settled into the passenger's seat, he stripped off his jacket and used it to cover her before he made his way to the driver's side.
Wrapping the jacket more tightly around her, Hei pulled her out of the car. Slamming the door behind him, he started to rush towards the hotel entrance before he was forced to go back. He had almost forgotten to lock the car doors. He figured no one would be out in this type of bone-chilling wetness, but it was better not to take his chances. He slipped the keys into his pocket again and rushed for cover.
It was a modest hotel, one he would actually be able to afford. Once he was inside, he shook his head to displace some of the water clinging to his hair. Momentarily glancing down at the lady officer, she hadn't stirred much since he had returned for her. Without a second thought in mind, he approached the front counter where the desk clerk was watching them with wary concern in his eyes.
"Please," Hei said with a voice somewhere between his natural voice and the one he used as Li. "I really need a room immediately! She's soaked through to the bone."
"Are there any specific amenities you require?"
"It doesn't matter! Just any available room will do!"
"Yes sir. If you'll fill in this paperwork here," the man stated.
"Can't you see I'm in a rush?" Hei snapped. "I'll come pay for the room in the morning!"
Something in his eyes must have alarmed the man as he quickly nodded his head and scrambled to pull an available key from the key cabinet. When Hei thought that he was moving too slowly, he let out a low growl. The man slammed the key onto the countertop and backed away. Snatching it, Hei muttered a quick thanks before he hurried off towards the elevator.
"W – Wait!" the man cried. "Wh – What name should I register it under?"
"Yamamoto Seiji," he called back before stepping into the elevator.
A/N: I know the story summary is lame... Lol~ But I don't want to give away too much.
The name Hei blurts out at the end has no special significance. It was the first name to come into my mind; that's about all.
Oh. And this was supposed to be a one-shot, but like all my stories, it seems that they end up becoming longer and longer... As a result, I split it into chapters. So in typical Aerysa fashion... I like to leave everyone with cliffhangers... XD You'll just have to wait and see what happens next~
