Kotori looked around in the dim club.
"I'm worried onee-san.."
"Don't be," Fuuma said with a smile. "We'll be great, I promise."
"But I never sung in front of a audience before!"
"You always sang in
school."
"That's different. No one listens. People paid for
hearing us tonight!"
"Not just us. Kotori.. You know you are amazing. Don't worry."
Kotori smiled weakly. She had looked forward to this, she was the one who talked Fuuma into singing with her in the first place. But it had been Fuuma's idea to participate in this. The club "Sakura no Yume" had a talent hunt every year, where anyone could sing. It was a chance for more work, if people liked what they heard.
"What did you call us?" Kotori asked.
"Kurayami."
Absence of light..
"I don't think I'm cool enough for that name.." Kotori protested.
"I'm cool enough for both of us."
Fuuma did look amazing tonight. He was dressed completely in black, like many of the other Sakura no Yume guests. But he looked better than most of them. He had talked Kotori into wearing a black, tight dress. She thought she looked like a goth wannabe, but her brother assured her she looked great.
"What if they like us?" Kotori asked. "What if Yuuto, or someone else, think we are good? Mom will be so angry.."
Kotori hadn't told her mother how much time she spent with her half-brother lately. Saya had divorced Fuuma's father seventeen years ago and only meet her son at holidays even though they lived in the same town. Saya had remarried to Glen shortly after, a rich American. Kotori had inherited his looks, and no one could guess she and Fuuma had the same mother.
Fuuma was also considered to be a bad influence on Kotori, which was why Glen wanted him as far away as possible. Fuuma was extremely intelligent and kept his grades high without even trying. But he hang out with the wrong crowd, wanting to be a singer much rather than doing something useful with his life.
Kotori thought her brother was very cool. There was one thing she didn't listen to her parents about and that was Fuuma.
"Mom will go crazy, and that's why we won't tell her," Fuuma said.
Kotori had been to parties, but none of them was quite like this. Sakura no Yume was restricted to 18, but they let in singers who where younger. Kotori was only sixteen, and she felt like she was in a new world. Drugs and alcohol was everywhere, people dressed in any way they liked.
"See that guy?" Fuuma said and nodded against a blonde man in his late twenties. "That's Yuuto."
"The owner?"
"No, he
manages the place. I don't know who actually owns it. But the woman
next to him owns 'Angel Sanctuary'."
"Is that the club at the other side of the town?" Kotori had many guesses on what the black haired woman with the skimpy outfit was, but owner of a club was none of them.
Fuuma nodded. "And you see those pale girls with the strange hair colours? They are Catoptromancy. They are very good."
"Is that bad for us?"
"No,
they don't sing the same kind of music as us."
Kotori wondered how she would look like in pink hair. Probably not as good as the Catoptrmancy girl.
"And the two boys over there, they are 'Darkness calling Light'. Also very good. And very hot."
"Mmm.." Kotori agreed.
"But they are so gay, so leave them to me."
The music gave Subaru a headache. Not that it was all bad. Some of it was quite good actually. But it was too loud for his taste. Too loud and too crowded. Subaru hated clubs and he would never had came here by free will.
But this was where his shikigami had lost sight of Kakyou, the person he was tracking.
"Hello Subaru-kun," a voice purred. "I never thought I would find you here.."
Subaru could have recognized that voice everywhere, but this was the last place he had expected to hear it.
"Seishirou," he acknowledged and turned around.
Seishirou looked great as usual. He looked exactly as Subaru remembered him, dressed in an expensive suit as always.
"What are you doing here?"
Seishirou smiled, probably only to annoy his ex.
"What I am doing here? I should ask you the same question. I own this place after all."
"You what?"
"Sakura no Yume. You should have figured it out by yourself."
Subaru shook his head in amazement.
"Doesn't assassinations pay enough?"
"This is just a hobby," Seishirou said. "Yuuto runs the place for me."
Subaru started to walk away, but Seishirou stopped him by grabbing his arm.
"You never told me what you where doing here," he said, mouth only millimetres away from Subaru's ear. "But I think I can guess. Kakyou, am I right?"
Subaru tried to get free, but Seishirou hold him in place.
"Forget about him" Seishirou continued. "After all, your people lost him and he walked right into my domains.."
"Other people will come if you kill me." Subaru managed to say. "They never give him up. I only wanted to talk to him, but they will take him back to any price."
"If the government wants to challenge Sakurazuka, let them try." Seishirou said and released Subaru.