A/N: For those who have remained loyal and have read my updated profile page, I'd just like to thank all of you!

A/N: For any/all fans of "Hamatora", I'm just testing the waters with this chapter. If enough people like it (or if I have enough time) I'll be updating this story every week. I've already made so much progress with it and I'm hoping it's another humble success!

And finally Claimer: I'm sick of disclaimers. Frankly, I think they're ridiculous. So I'm claiming all of my OCs, the L.A.B. Rats. That's it.

Now enjoy!


The Captain

I have a new job for Hamatora. I'm looking for a friend. He'll know who it is. –The Captain

"'The Captain'?" Birthday repeated. "Who the hell's that supposed to be?"

Nice sat quietly as his companions passed around the plain sheet of paper with those cryptic words. Hajime sat beside him eating rice and curry, and as she did so, she watched her partner, having been the only person to notice how abnormally silent he'd become after the job request was read aloud.

"It's really vague, isn't it?" Koneko replied. "That's what I thought too, but the guy who left the note was offering a really nice reward."

"How much?" Murasaki asked. Though he wasn't very interested in doing anything for someone who wouldn't bother to meet them face-to-face and discuss the terms of this "job", the money was still coveted.

"He wrote it on the back."

Ratio, who was now holding the paper with the request, flipped it over and everyone (except Nice, Koneko, and Master) went over to see what price their possibly new client had offered. Everyone's eyes dilated and their mouths gaped like fish seeing all the zeroes at the end of the cash reward.

"Holy shit!" Birthday cried.

"That's the biggest price anyone's ever offered!" Ratio commented.

"Cutlets…" Hajime mumbled dreamily.

"His friend must be important," Murasaki thought aloud. "Did you see what this guy looked like, Koneko?"

She shook her head. "I didn't see his face, but he was wearing a black and white hoodie. He had a cute little girl with him—his little sister, I think. He didn't look like he had that much money."

"I'll take the job." Everyone looked over at the Sonic Minimum Holder, who they now acknowledged hadn't said a word throughout this whole conversation. None of them were very surprised that he would take such an ambiguous job knowing how desperate he usually was for money, but they'd also never seen laidback Nice as staid as he was now.

Taking the paper from Ratio, Nice walked out of the café without another word, leaving the other members of Hamatora speechless and befuddled.


The first time he saw that gray-eyed boy, he took him in like any other student: complete apathy. But he had never seen anyone with gray eyes before, and it was starting to pique his interest.

As the boy made his way into the room, he preoccupied himself by looking through his textbook as he waited for the class to start. Coincidentally, the gray-eyed boy chose to sit next to him, an annoying smile spread across his face. "Hey, what's your name?"

"… Aren't you supposed to introduce yourself before you ask for my name?"

The boy shrugged. "I asked first."

He smirked. "Well, in that case, I won't tell you mine until you tell me yours first."

"Fine by me!"

He did his best to ignore the boy as his attention went back to his book, but he couldn't look away from those gray eyes as they adamantly stared at the blackboard. There was something behind them that was unusual. He didn't look any less interested in the lesson than anyone else, but he also didn't look… right. "So… weird."

"I'm weird, huh? Says the boy who won't stop staring at me." Having realized his mistake, he quickly looked away, his cheeks flaring up in embarrassment as the gray-eyed boy laughed. "It's nice to meet you, Nice." Before he could ask how he knew his name, the boy pointed to his textbook. "Your name's written inside the cover. It's an interesting name for someone like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The boy just smiled, and that was when Nice realized what exactly didn't feel right…

It was his smile.


Nice walked along the sidewalk with his head down and his hands in his pockets. On his way, he passed by an appliance store with the usual duplicate screens playing the same station.

The anchorwoman on the screen was talking about some heiress who was kidnapped. Unfortunately, that meant there was another pathetic lowlife out there extorting his way up the pyramid. It was the third kidnapping reported this week, all the kids belonging to affluent families, and he had a feeling these incidences involved Minimum Holders. He didn't understand why people would go out of their way to waste their Minimums like that. In fact, there was a school for people that desperate—people who were carried to the top of the pyramid rather than taking their time up the stairs on their own.

He realized not many people had the privilege to get admitted into the Facultas Academy. Nice honestly didn't see the appeal, but the instant traces of his "Minor Miracle" were discovered, his parents couldn't wait to ship him out. That was the last he saw of them, and it would be several bleak years later until he had contact with the outside world.

No one received letters or gifts or anything outside of the school and the students were not allowed outside the facilities unless they were given special permission. But no one complained. Facultas Academy had plenty of activities to distract the students, and they even received "allowances" that varied in amount depending on how well you did in school to buy special treats and toys in the shops set up around campus to induce them further into subjugation. In the end, those who worked hard enough to get to the top and had the Minimums to boot got the best privileges.

It made him sick.

Someone broke him out of his cynical state of mind when they accidentally bumped his shoulder. His sky blue eyes met her amber gaze, which seemed to briefly dilate with cognizance before she broke contact. With a halfhearted apology, the redheaded girl continued on her way. She was carrying an umbrella.

Looking up, Nice couldn't help noticing the amount of gray clouds gathering in the sky. The same dithering gray that would neither bring rain nor shine. Just more gray.


Three subjects were sent into the training arena. Only one passed today's exercise. It was no surprise when those other two kids were taken away, like every week. This became a tedious routine for him, and he almost felt sorry for the kids that were always behind. Sometimes he wished he wouldn't try so hard just to give them a break, but he knew it wasn't in his character. They'd just have to try harder next time.

As he walked out of the arena, wiping off the remaining perspiration on his forehead with a towel, he came face-to-face with the gray-eyed boy. "First again, Nice? That's got to be a record."

"I don't really care."

Although they'd come to know each other very well over the past few months, his gray-eyed friend was still left nameless. He was certain their other friends knew his name, but the gray-eyed boy wasn't given any special moniker during a conversation; it seemed out of context seeing as the gray-eyed contributed the most to any conversation. But honestly, Nice he could care less about that boy's name because his eyes seemed to stand out more than any of his other physical qualities, except maybe his smile. That annoying-ass smile.

"Say," he said to the gray-eyed boy, "what do you think when you call me that?"

His gray eyes blinked owlishly. "Well… it's your name, isn't it? I guess it's kind of strange, but it's yours. And it's so simple, too, not to mention the teachers say it to you all the time," he said matter-of-factly. Seeing the auburn-haired boy's puzzled expression, he clarified, "'Nice job.' 'Nice work.' 'Nice going.' It sorta fits." He put his hands in his pockets, kicking his leg lightly back and forth. "They say it to me whenever I finish the exercises too, if I'm lucky enough. But then when I look at the other kids who didn't do as well as I did… I can't help but feel sorry for them. It seems unfair, doesn't it? I mean, they didn't ask for this…"

Nice stopped toweling his head, not expecting such a candid answer. The gray-eyed boy had always been frank whenever he talked to him about nonsense, but he was more sensible than he realized. Nice had also noticed it a while ago, but not too many kids their age understood most of what was going on, not when the instructors could get away with it by offering candy or other conniving ways to assuage them.

Walking towards the gray-eyed boy, he offered him his water bottle. "Come on, Stormy Eyes. Art's waiting for us."

"'Stormy Eyes'?"

"Yeah. I have to call you something, don't I?"

Confusion slowly turned into understanding as the gray-eyed boy flashed him another smile, taking the water bottle gratefully. "Okay then. But you're going to have to come up with something good. I know you can do better than 'Stormy Eyes', Nice."

For the first time, Nice gave the boy a real smile.


"It looks like it's going to rain."

Nice didn't look away when he heard his friend Art approaching, and he heard the creak of the railing as the lilac-haired man leaned over the bars next to him. Being the superintendent of the police department, Art had to look over the investigation of the missing kids and the non-innate Minimum Holders, so the private eye hadn't seen him at all this week, which was unusual considering these cases typically involved Hamatora one way or another. Art probably intended to keep it that way, Nice knew, which meant he probably wouldn't see Honey and her lion-faced guardian for a while, either.

"It won't rain." Nice's gaze shifted down towards the sea. The grin on his face was barely traceable.

"You're usually at the café around this time, unless you have a job. I guess business has been slow, huh?"

Nice shrugged as he turned away from the sight, leaning back with his hands in his pockets. "It's just one of those days. And what about you?"

"Gasuke made me take a break." Art's face morphed with concern seeing his friend so aloof. Well, more aloof than usual. Looking into his cerulean eyes, he could tell Nice was in another place. "Are you okay?"

Before he could provide an answer, Nice's phone went off. He took it out of his pocket and read the text he received.

There's someone waiting for you. –C

Art watched closely as the private detective put away his phone and slowly approached him. "Like I said," Nice murmured. "It's just one of those days." He patted his mauve-eyed friend on the shoulder. "I'll see ya later, Art."

Before Nice walked away, the PD superintendent caught a glimpse of his eyes, the sky blue turning into a misty azure.


The boy in the bed finally opened his eyes, revealing his perpetually captivating gray orbs. Nice almost jerked out of his chair at the abrupt movement, seeing as his friend hadn't moved for the past hour, but he supposed he shouldn't have been surprised he had been caught.

The two had become roommates a few weeks ago, and yet this stormy-eyed boy was still a mystery to him. It was frustrating, almost to the point where Nice had the urge to shake that boyish grin off his face. But as cagey as his smile was, his eyes were much more inimitable. Those grayish orbs were not only appealing, but they were very sharp, expressive, and meticulous to detail, which made his smile even more of a mystery. Day by day, he watched his friend as his eyes did the talking and his smile remained stagnant. As many were aware, Nice could be a straight-shooter at times, especially when it came to the wellbeing of his friends, but otherwise he kept his mouth shut and pretended like he could care less. But now that they were alone, it was about time he brought up what had been on his mind for so long.

"You know," he began, "your smile doesn't match your eyes."

The gray eyes flickered ever so slightly he wondered if he saw them move at all. "Don't you mean my eyes don't match my smile?"

Nice smirked. "How does what I said mean any different?"

"Just hits the ear wrong, I guess." He turned onto his back before he answered the question, his smile softening, and all of a sudden he looked pitiful. Nice had never seen his friend like this before, and for some reason it made his blood boil. "Before I came here, I had nothing, and when you're just a kid with nothing, it's hard not to look pitiful. Seeing people with those looks, as if anything they said would break me, it was so… aggravating." Nice watched as his friend's gray eyes clouded over, struggling as he got towards the end of his gloomy tale. "I didn't want to break. I didn't want to give up and lose myself like all those people expected me to." He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm himself back down. "Being sent here to the Academy and leaving all that behind was the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"Why's that?"

"Because now it's seems I can't stop smiling." When he turned back over to his side, Nice was surprised to see for the first time since they met a genuine smile on his friend's face. "Art and nii-chan—if I hadn't met you all, I don't think I would've lasted my first week here. But to be honest…" He sat up and crawled up to Nice until they were inches apart. His stormy gaze never broke away from Nice's cerulean eyes. "I knew as soon as I saw you… it was destiny—"

Nice flicked his temple before turning away from him again. "Don't be a jackass."

He rubbed his forehead begrudgingly and chuckled. "I guess I deserved that." Once he was sober again, the gray-eyed boy sat back against the wall and folded his arms. "I kinda lied to you. I didn't always have nothing. My dad was a captain in the navy, and my brother joined as soon as he graduated high school. I lost them the year before I was sent to Facultas. They went on a fishing trip. There was a storm and they drowned. I was too young to go."

"Why are you telling me this? It's depressing."

He shrugged. "Just thought I'd mention it since I'm basically pouring my heart out to you now. Now that I think about it, how come you never talk about your family?"

"You don't need to know about my family in order to know who I am. And it's not like you're ever going to meet them."

"I guess that's true… But still, it's the thought that counts!" he griped flippantly.

Nice rolled his eyes before a pensive look crossed his visage. "… Captain."

"What?"

"That's your name. From now on, you're The Captain. Cap for short."

"The Captain" blinked dubiously, and all of a sudden, he let out a laugh. "Well, it's certainly better than Stormy Eyes! I mean, that name couldn't be more obvious. It's okay if you just say it, Nice: You think I'm sexy."

"Shut up." Nice smiled at his friend's goofiness, a soft chortle erupting from him. Today, his friend became a little less of a mystery, and seeing The Captain's usual quaint smile made him happy. He never wanted to see that broken look on his face again.


It took him longer to get back to the café due to the foreboding weather. When he reentered Café Nowhere, he wasn't perturbed by how completely empty it was, with the exception of Master and Koneko, who were always behind the counter. What surprised him was the dog at the bar. It was small enough to sit on the stool, but it still had to slightly lean on the counter as not to fall. Its pointed ears drooped a little but not so much that it wasn't alert. Its tail, which was a little darker than the fur on the rest of its body, with the exception of its ears, forepaws and muzzle, wagged lazily back and forth. A red kerchief was tied around its neck. Nice blinked dubiously as he watched the dog before walking over to the bar and sitting next to it. Their heads turned slightly as they made eye contact.

After a few awkward seconds, Nice finally broke contact and turned to the two behind the counter, who were acting as if this dog was a regular customer. "Um… doesn't this place have a no pet policy?"

"He's a customer," Master said before placing a plate of hamburger in front of the mutt. Nice then noticed the bills under its paw, wondering how he missed that in the first place, and looked back at the dog enviously. He could barely get a scrap of food unless Hajime felt like sharing, and this mutt was practically eating like a king!

"He's a dog," he muttered indignantly.

"Actually, he's a Minimum Holder," Koneko corrected. "And he knows the boy who sent the job request."

"I don't care about the job," he snapped, and both occupants behind the counter were taken aback by the young man's irascible reply. Anger shortly took over his expression as he turned towards the dog. "If you're really a Minimum Holder, and if you have anything to do with that message, then there's only one thing I want to know: What the hell happened to Cap?!"


The gray-eyed boy was not there to greet him after his training session the next day. So he waited. There was a possibility his session was right after, so he stayed outside the training facility, watching kids come and go. Finally fed up, Nice walked up to the girl in his class with the lopsided pigtails. When he asked if she'd seen him, she claimed he had been missing all day.

"Where the hell is he?" he grumbled angrily to himself.

As he made his way back to their room, he saw a notice on the door. As he read it, panic surged through his very being and he rushed inside the room. Half of the room was empty now. All of his friend's belongings were gone. They must've moved him while he was in class. He'd be getting a new roommate, according to the notice, but for now, he was alone.

His fists shook at his side, and his eyes became misty. He didn't understand why he was getting so upset. It wasn't like he wasn't ever going to see his gray-eyed friend again. But living together, seeing his ashen gaze and easygoing smile, it gave him a peace of mind knowing he would be coming back to that pleasant sight every night. So how did they expect him to live in this room without him?

After a while, he went towards the empty desk. The gray-eyed boy didn't have much to begin with, but with the contents of the desk gone, its vacancy only made him feel even lonelier. In a bout of fury, his fist clenched firmly, slamming onto the desk. "Damn bastards…!"

He heard something fall as soon as he performed this action. He looked down and saw a folded piece of paper by his foot. Reaching down, he stared at the white parchment, reading each of the four English characters that made up his name as if each letter held its own meaning. As soon as he read the remaining content, he crumbled it up. It was a warning:

Don't let them break you.

He never saw the gray-eyed boy the next day, or the day after that, or the week after that. After a month, he knew school had something to do with Cap's disappearance; it was confirmed when the instructors blatantly ignored him whenever he asked about Cap.

The next day, Nice left Facultas Academy and never looked back. He was never meant to be a hero—he knew he would never be able to find Cap even if he tried—but he couldn't stay at this school knowing they took one of his dearest friends away from him. He at least owed him that.

"We're not even yet, Cap… I know you'll find a way… I just know it…"


"Why didn't you go and meet him?"

He didn't bother to acknowledge the brunette next to him. His eyes were focused solely on the screen in front of him. It seemed the news never got any better as the days went on, which made him wonder why he kept watching it in the first place.

"I'm just saying," the brunette continued, seemingly obliviously to the fact his friend was blatantly ignoring him, "you've been looking for him for the past two years, and it turns out he's been here in Yokohama this whole time. And then all of sudden, instead of meeting the guy on your own like you promised, you sent out Yan, even though the guy only took this 'job' so he could see you. I mean, that's kind of a dick move, man."

He toyed with the tassels of his scarf as if he didn't have a care in the world. The brunette grunted in irritation at the dull reaction.

"I can solve the most complicated algorithms, infiltrate the most secure bank accounts without leaving my scent—hell, I'm the one who found the guy's damn phone number through cellular interference!—but after all these years, I still can't figure you out." He turned away from his computer, analyzing the boy as methodically as he would a math problem. "You know what I think? It's the scarf. And the hat. Well, maybe not the hat. The ensemble itself is rather—"

"I can't risk seeing him, Beta. You know that." Though the garter stitch covered his face up to his to bridge of his nose, his voice came out as clear as crystal. With the knitted hat on his head, the only thing that was remotely visible was his eyes, the most expressive features on his face. But for as long as they'd known each other, Beta still couldn't read him at all.

"At least consider it. I know you want to see him as much as he wants to see you."

He got up from the couch and began walking over to his room. "Call Yan-Yan, Beta. He and Yuzuki should be back with the groceries by now."

Sighing in defeat, the brunette turned back to his computer screen. "Aye, Captain."


Like I said before, this chapter is more of a... test chapter, so if I don't get enough feedback, don't expect me to update so soon.

So please, R&R!