.Runaway Prince.

Be careful, my little prince. Stay too long in the human world and you'll find that the way back has grown over with thorns your delicate human-tainted hands can't sweep back. (NYS)

"Here, feel free to take one! It's a new detective agency...Please, it's free! Um, tell your friends and family! We're very reliable...!"

Yako slumped as what must've been the millionth person passed her, refusing to take the pamphlet. The sun was fast setting, and the crowds walking the streets were thinning. Lamps flickered, their light still faint against a dark orange backdrop. And she was starving. Not peckish, but starving, as if an acidic spoon was scraping at the lining of her stomach. She muffled a groan as she squatted down. What made it worse was that Neuro had (probably deliberately) dispatched her to a street near the food courts, and the delicious smell of cooking food occasionally wafted over.

How can I hand all these out in just half a day? Damn Neuro and his stupid threats! His stupid hunger for puzzles! His stupid not-leaving-me-alone-to-get-on-with-my-life! His stupid bi-coloured hair, with its stupid little triangles! Why can't I escape from him? Why did it have to be me?!

Beware the hungry Yako. She knew she was being unreasonably childish, but her stomach seemed to block out rationality, and she was deriving an almost vindictive pleasure from cursing Neuro – in her mind, of course. With her nose pressed against her knees to block out the tempting smells, she could only stare at her feet. A line of ants crawled past her feet and she wondered absentmindedly if this was how Neuro felt normally.

Maybe that's why he abuses me so much! After all, we don't get many mysteries or crimes... He must feel this sort of hunger everyday and takes out his frustration on me! Amazing, how can he stand it?... I think...I can understand him a little better now. She smiled. And just like that, Neuro was redeemed in Yako's simple eyes.

"Hey...is that you, Yako-chan? What are you doing?"

"Sasazuka-san!" she cried in relief at the familiar voice. Leaping up, she waved a flyer in his face. "This is a flyer advertising our office, newly refurbished. Here, have one! Actually, why not take the whole lot?"

"But...I already..."

"PLEASE JUST TAKE THEM."

Obligingly, perhaps out of apprehension of her intensity, he took the box of flyers. He skimmed over the ones lying at the top of the pile, and a slight frown formed at the edges of his lips. Strangely mutated people crawled around on the edges of the paper, making a morbidly artistic border. A giant magnifying glass framed a single, almost horrendously large eye, wide, blank and missing eyelashes. In the corner, a small image of Yako holding up various tools of torture was printed. Upon seeing Sasazuka's almost imperceptible change of expression, it occurred to Yako that this was not what most people would associate with private investigators.

"...Did you design this?"

"Um...Neuro, I mean, my assistant did."

"Ah. I see." As if it explained everything, he immediately lost interest in them, instead looking around, chewing slightly at the cigarette in his mouth. "He's not here? Isn't he usually with you?"

"Well, you see, he's...got a bit of a cold at the moment, so I let him stay in the office." Yako answered, uncomfortably aware of the warm breeze playing on her bare arms and the setting summer sun casting shadows of doubt on the officer's face. She could hardly tell him that Neuro had threatened her into it, had told her with that blank little grin, If you don't hand them all out I'll make sure all that you eat for the rest of the week will be paper. Oh, he was evil alright. And she could just imagine how much more evil he could get if she tried to get him arrested.

He raised an eyebrow, head tilting slightly. She felt the oncoming of a blush, and marveled at how people with low blood pressure manage to say so much in so little movement. "Yes, he catches colds easier in the summer you see, ah, you know, how people drop their guards and wear less during the summer, but, but, yeah, he doesn't get used to it and just gets sick, yes, I know, he's a little strange like that, hahah."

She winced as her laugh tilted upwards into the nervous titter range. Attempting to hide her embarrassment and lie, she spotted a person walking nearby and ran to hand them a flyer.

"Excuse me si—sir?" She stumbled to a halt as the person turned. She had assumed it was a male, from the almost overwhelming height and build, but startlingly violet eyes peered at her from under long lashes and soft pink lips parted for a brief moment at the sight of her – wait, were those fangs?

"Would you like one?" hesitant, she handed the flyer to black-gloved hands. It was only then that she became aware of his strange clothing.

From the back, it had appeared he was just wearing a long black great coat, albeit one that had collars that covered the back of his head, a black bowler hat and black pants. But that was only half of it. The front suddenly became a vibrant purple, with a white scarf cascading down the front of the coat in an antiquated waterfall style. The collars were actually separate, as if the man had deliberately bought them to cover his hair and ears.

For a moment, the man simply stood there, staring at the flyer as if in disbelief. Then he turned that same gaze to her. Awkward, Yako kept silent. Then he leaned in and breathed in deeply, closing his eyes with a strange look on his face, like a dog trying to place a scent.

She took a few hurried steps backward. "What are you—" The man's violet eyes snapped open, focusing.

"You! You must know where he is! Tell me, where are you hiding him, you vile human trash?"

A hand reached out and pulled her back as Sasazuka stepped in front of her. With an impassive, almost vacant, look upon his face, he snapped open his wallet. The metal police badge slapped the man on the nose as it appeared, causing him to straighten abruptly.

"Careful...I'm not particularly impartial to people who harass young girls half their size."

Not for the first time, Yako heard his deadly calm voice and rejoiced. It wasn't too bad, being acquainted with a police officer. (Just not with a police officer and ex-yakuza in the same place.)

The man glared at her, then turned to leave, stuffing the flyer into his pocket. Yako felt an oddly familiar sense of foreboding. Most likely due to all those times she had awaited Neuro's decisions in dread.

"You should be careful who you hand out those flyers to." Sasazuka said as they watched him march quickly away. "If those types know where to find you, they won't hesitate to take advantage of it."

"You're right... Thanks for helping me though, Sasazuka-san! It's a lucky thing you turned up at the right time." She grinned at him as he pocketed his wallet.

"Here." He handed her a take-away container of almost cold ramen. "I had come out to buy lunch, but it looked like you were pretty hungry..."

Yako stared at him in amazement. The darkening sunlight created a halo of orange, caught in his pale hair, and infused him with an ethereal light. She latched onto the bag, close to tears.

"Waah! You're a life-saver! An angel, descended to save me from starvation! Thank you!!" she wailed, causing Sasazuka to shift a bit in discomfit.

"No...it was nothing." He mumbled in that deadpan voice. "Though you act as if he never lets you eat."

"Huh? Uh, yeah, I guess." Too happy slurping down the noodles, she completely missed the instant of suspicion on his face. "Mmmfh. Foooood. Hunger is definitely the best spice..." she chewed contentedly.

"Hmm. Well, take care, Yako. Are you heading home after this?"

"Probably, unless he calls me. Thanks again Sasazuka-san!" She gave a cheerful wave before tucking right back into her ramen. The police officer smiled slightly, too small to catch, before turning to leave with a light pat on her head.

Yako watched him go until she realized one vitally important fact. He had left behind the box of flyers.

The office was quiet. Neuro appreciated quiet. It was peaceful, a feeling that wasn't exactly common in the Underworld. He leaned back into the plush black chair and stared at the clock.

He had to admit though, without his slave here, things got a little...boring. He almost missed hearing her cries of indignation as he pushed, pulled and hassled her. Oh well, it wouldn't be too long until she returned. Until then he could sit back, relax, and come up with new ways to torture her.

He was in the middle of a particularly interesting one involving his favourite lengths of rope, spikes and a feather duster, when he heard the doorknob turn.

"Ah, Yako, you're back!" he swung the chair around and his eyes widened a little in surprise. But he hid it quickly and brought up the sweet smile he had practiced. "Oh? Policeman-san, what brings you here?"

Sasazuka stood at the doorway, eyes roaming the office. The cigarette was smoking slightly, not quite lit properly. Finally, his gaze fell on Neuro.

"Aren't you supposed to be sick?"

Neuro hid a smirk. He thought he had smelt Yako on the man. He must've met her on the streets, and the wood louse must've made up some stupid excuse.

"I recovered." He answered without missing a beat, his hand waving nonchalantly in the air. "My sensei exaggerates about my health."

Sasazuka, however, didn't seem convinced. Neuro expected that though, the man had been suspicious of him since the day they had met. The officer walked into the office and leaned casually against the couch.

"So, why aren't you out helping your sensei...?"

Neuro wondered what kind of expression he should make. Should he widen his eyes? Should he smile or frown in earnest? Maybe it would help if he accompanied Yako the next time she watched those silly little series on the t.v.

"She would've just sent me back, my kind sensei worries too much about other people, don't you agree? 'I'm fine by myself, ahehe!' she said."

"...Hm." He was still suspicious, still cross-armed and refusing to leave. "She seemed pretty hungry and tired actually. Maybe you should take better care of your...sensei. That's what subordinates do, after all."

Neuro kept up his smile and innocent face, but he was getting a little irritated. Why was that man so concerned with his slave anyway? One of his fringe triangles tingled, waving almost lazily in the air. The man had the faintest trace of a mystery on him, simmering delicately under the layer of smoke and death and calm he held inside him. But it was tiny, barely enough to whet Neuro's huge appetite. It was unworthy, for now.

"If there's nothing else you want to say, why don't you go back to your department?" His attempt at hinting lacked grace, to say the least. A little menace had crept into his voice, but Neuro wasn't worried. That Sasazuka had overstayed his welcome, and a little human like this – the most he could do was trouble him. And he was most likely here due to something that foolish girl let slip...perhaps he should pay his dear, precious slave a visit?

Though it would have to wait, as that man didn't even seem to want to leave. Neuro stared at him, bright green eyes unblinking. Neither moved, neither spoke. Both seemed tensed and close to snapping, like two bristling dogs about to leap.

The sudden twitch of Akane hidden behind the bookcases almost set Neuro off, but he restrained himself, fangs nipping into his tongue. The Laws, remember. Keep a low profile. Don't kill this man...unless he attempts it first. A reprieve was coming, anyway. Someone Akane recognized.

The door slammed open and Yako burst in, an empty box swinging by her side. "I'm done! Take that, Neu--! E...er...oh.

S-Sasazuka-san! ...um, that gun...?"

Sasazuka relaxed, lowering the gun. Interesting. The man had pulled out the gun and aimed the instant the door had opened – and he done it so quickly, Neuro had only noticed when the gun was already in the air, pointing at him. The man has some interesting abilities after all.

"What's going on?" Yako asked, her voice small, eyes darting between the two men.

"Sensei! Welcome back!" Neuro bounced out of his seat and quickly made his way over to her. As he neared, his fingers sharpened, and a threatening smile slithered onto his face. "He asked some interesting questions, slave. Don't worry, he only came to chat! He was just about to leave, actually! Right, Sasazuka-saaan?" He wasn't sure why he had mimicked Yako's voice at the end, but it certainly irritated the officer. Neuro hid a snicker in Yako's hair as he watched a scowl settle on the usually expressionless man's face.

"Yeah... Don't forget what I told you before, Yako." He walked past them on the way to the door – Neuro, standing with one hand resting lightly against Yako's neck and Yako, looking a little worried for more reasons than one – and in that brief moment he passed, his eyes, sharpened with skepticism and warning, locked onto Neuro's.

Then he was gone, door closed and footsteps fading. The tension that had dissipated from the room began to build again as nobody moved. Slowly, gently, Neuro's finger stroked the back of her neck. Yako felt her spine begin to stiffen, and her eyes locked onto a fascinating spot on the floor. She felt the panic in her mind grow, eating off the tension.

OhmygodI'mgonnadieohmygodhe'sgonnakillmeohmigodohmigodACKohshi—

"Yako. You know, funny thing." Neuro's voice had slipped off into whispers. His hand was now wrapped snugly around her throat with fingertips idly fiddling with the ends of her hair. "Who would've thought? Mr. Sasazuka coming here to talk about little old you?"

Surprised, Yako momentarily forgot her current dangerous position and turned. "Really? What did he—URK." The hand had tightened, and she could suddenly feel the cold concrete wall against her back. She abruptly thought of Akane, who still had her body encased in concrete, here in this very office.

A chill dripped into the pool of her stomach. Neuro grinned, fangs unnervingly close to her face. She stared into his lime-green eyes as they considered her, and a heat tickled her ribs, clawing up her neck. Cold, hot, cold, hot, cold, hot, dizzy.

"Funny, isn't it? My unattractive little slave is maturing!" His head tilted slightly, his eyes narrowed almost condescendingly and their noses nearly, nearly touched. "Should I feel threatened? You won't leave me, right? I might just feel...lonely."

From the snide sneer his grin was quickly becoming, Yako really doubted it. But she couldn't scoff as she usually did, she couldn't even manage the customary grumble of "Shut up." She couldn't because of the warm breath against her lips, she couldn't because of the almost suffocating closeness of him, the icy feel of those stupid little triangles against the warmth of her cheeks, the hysteria of her heart opposing the petrified stiffness of the rest of her body.

"What's the matter, Yako?" What are you doing, Yako?! Push him away! He's just toying with you!

"You think I'm wrong?" J-Just toying! This is Neuro, remember? He's quite capable of killing you! Remember?!

"You don't believe me? Now why would that be, little woodlouse...?" Toying! Toying!! Don't let that soft-as-a-kitten voice fool you! He...that, umm...huh?

Neuro hmmed, a strange look on his face. His hand left her throat and instead moved upwards to grip her chin, twisting it this way and that. The concentration in his eyes increased as they flickered from the soft slope of her cheek to the way the curves on her face dipped from nose to fall of lips. It was almost as if, for whatever odd reason, he was trying to memorize the shape of it, to imprint it into his vast memory.

"Um. Neuro?" Yako finally croaked. His emerald irises blinked at her, vacant in a way she almost didn't recognize on his face. It was only an instant though, before the familiar brightness snapped back with a smile, his grip strengthened considerably and she was tearing up from the pain of it. He took a step back and Yako felt her knees weaken from relief. The hand clutching her chin hesitated for the briefest of moments before leaving her face, light fingertips leaving spots of warmth on her skin.

Yako watched as Neuro turned and strode back to his plush chair, back to his usual brisk and remote self. No command, no explanation, no dismissal. Her emotions still erratic, she grasped her bag and quickly left, swift footsteps pounding in time with her heart. Not looking back, she did not notice Neuro pause in his stride. She didn't see him look down at his hand as if in puzzlement, and she didn't see him take off the glove and hold it almost gently against closed eyes.