I don't own these characters; Sunrise does.

2: Predator and prey

"How do I let myself get talked into this crap?" Natsuki growled to the air, even though she doubted the air heard her over the roar of her bike or through her helmet. Before another complaint came out, she spied a parking spot on the darkened street and eased in. She turned the bike off and popped out the kickstand. She groaned as she pulled her helmet off, revealing a tense, wrinkled forehead. "How, oh how, do I get talked into these things?" she asked the night sky, throwing her hands up as if calling for help from the divine.

She then remembered the promised dinners. Mai basically went down a list of things that she would make for Natsuki if only Natsuki were to do them "this small, teeny-tiny favor that did not even involve something totally embarrassing. After all, you just have to go in and look around." Natsuki snorted. Yeah, right! Nothing was ever that simple! Damn Mai! Actually, she added her stomach to that list because it was what got her into this mess.

"Damn hunger. I gotta learn to cook," Natsuki grumbled as she got off of the bike. Mai had always been able to talk her into things because of the food factor. Sometimes, she just hated her metabolism altogether.

She looked around, surveying the semi-busy street. The warm, night air smelled like popcorn, mostly due to the movie theater on the opposite street, a little ways up. The popcorn was mixed with other food smells as well as fumes from passing cars. Noise blared from cars bumping music, as well as a few clubs and a bowling alley with steady, thin streams of people going in and out of those places. Further up the street were some diners that had a steady flow of customers and were puffing out delicious aromas that Natsuki was tempted to follow. She would have liked to be going to one of those places. But, she was not going to any of them. No, she was going to a place that she barely ever paid attention to—the Obsidian Den.

As far as Natsuki knew, the Obsidian Den was a club of some kind. What she did not know was what kind of club it was; and, truth be known, she really did not want to find out. According to Akira, it was a cheap, nasty strip joint. According to Mai, it was a classy establishment with adult-oriented entertainment.

Natsuki doubted both stories. She was there because she had been bribed with great-tasting food to act as an impartial observer and report back to home-base as to what the place was all about. So, that was the assignment both parties had bribed her for anyway. Unbeknownst to the siblings, Akira had secretly asked her to check on Mai and Takumi to make sure everything was fine with them and they were not being subjected to anything filthy. Natsuki had no problem doing that; she was a bit worried about the siblings herself.

The Obsidian Den was housed in an unassuming two-story building that was the shade of the deepest black. There were a few crimson lights in the front, advertising the place as "the Obsidian Den," but there was not any other color about the place. It was almost like the whole area was veiled in shadow, hidden by the dark. She could not even tell if there were any windows. There was a heavy, sinister feel in the air to Natsuki, but she chalked that up to the fact that she had a clue as to what went on inside of the building. A shudder ran through Natsuki, making her feel like she was in a horror movie.

"Oh, that's brilliant, Natsuki. You're in a horror flick and you're the one that's scared," she muttered with a forced half-smile, trying to shake the ominous feeling overcoming her as she got closer to the building. She lightly bopped herself on the head for the sheer ridiculousness of that worry.

She walked up to the door, curious as to why there was not a line or anything like usual clubs. Pausing for a moment, she took in what she could, listening to hum of music inside, smelling cigar and cigarette smoke over any food that might be in there. This satisfied her that the place was at least open and did have business. Now, she needed to go in and see what type of business it had.

There was an imposing-looking blond woman standing at the front dressed in a nice, designer three-piece suit, which surprised Natsuki. She guessed that the place had to have some class if even the bouncer wore an expensive suit. She now understood why Mai picked out her outfit; she was wearing her best black skirt, which was actually a lot shorter than she realized when she brought it. She had on a white button-down shirt that hugged her body much more than her clothes typically did. She had also been specifically ordered to leave her favorite hoodie at home in the closet "or else." Not in the mood to find out what "or else" was, she followed the command and brought her leather jacket instead.

As she got closer to the black wooden doors, she noticed there was also a brunette woman with glasses sitting in a booth by the door with a clipboard in hand. She paused when she got to the door, remembering that Mai told her that she would have to give her name. This was because no one got into the Obsidian Den without a recommendation from someone already on the inside. It was supposed to be a members' only club and only members or staff could bring in new blood. This struck Natsuki as odd, especially since the place was so cautious about letting in potential problems, like mates. Mai had not been able to explain why people could only get in if their names were on the list, but she went with it. So, Natsuki gave her name—although she was not very comfortable with that—and the door was open for her.

Not much of a "gentlemen's club" if women can just walk in easily, Natsuki thought to herself.

Honestly, Natsuki was not sure what to expect in a "gentlemen's club"; she always thought that was just a fancy name for a strip club. She had never been to a strip club before, only seeing them in movies or on television. Finding herself in a refined, tasteful lobby, she considered that she might not be in a strip joint at all. She was willing to think that she might have wandered into a luxurious hotel. But, then again, she thought about how it was easy to slap a nice cover onto something to make it look better than it was.

She cut through the well-lit, light-colored lobby that had lovely paintings and an elaborate fountain that looked like it could have come straight from Rome to a pair of French doors at the end of the room. She hoped that she was going the right way, wanting to avoid seeing anything "funny" if possible. A sigh of relief escaped her when she came into the main room of the club.

The main room was a large, high-ceiling hall with crystal chandeliers hanging, but providing almost no light. The atmosphere was dim, but somehow comfortable; well, for the people there anyway. Glancing around, Natsuki saw more expensive artwork, intricate statues, and some interesting things that she never expected to see in a club. There were a few small man-made ponds with the water lit up by different colors and mini-waterfalls trickling through them. There were couches by the ponds beckoned people to sit and speak by the intriguing and well-made structures. Looking down, she saw the floor was decorated with elaborate mosaics and the walls had beautiful frescoes painted on them. The scenes, though explicit, seemed quite tasteful to Natsuki, which was a little confusing. Natsuki was beginning to wonder what type of business the Obsidian Den really was because it did not seem like a simple strip club.

Beyond the decor, there were normal things that Natsuki expected from the restaurant. There were a few polished, onyx tables in the front and center of the hall evenly spaced out, giving people enough room from each other to not overhear what other parties were conversing about. All of the tables had cushy, large chairs, inviting patrons to recline in them. There were more booths than open tables, though. Booths lined with plush black leather were along the walls for those with bigger parties, seating up to eight in a circular pattern with drapes connected to columns. The drapes could be dropped if a party wanted a little privacy. Small candles with lit ends that smelled like cinnamon illuminated the booths and small, green plants decorated the table and tops of the booths. There were other booths on the floor were tiered and had high backs to the seats to cut off parties from each other, but did not obstruct the view of the stage. There was even a balcony section on each side of the hall. Almost every seat seemed to be set up so that patrons could focus on the stage without disturbing their own private affairs.

At the head of the room was a wooden, large, elevated stage, like they put on plays at the club. Natsuki had a sneaking suspicion that if they started performing "MacBeth," she would have to make a run for it considering what was going on the stage right now. Emerald eyes quickly looked at the tiled floor to avoid seeing anymore of the stage show while a blush burned her porcelain cheeks.

Without really having to look, Natsuki knew that most of the patrons were smoking. The smell was not enough to get to most, but she had a very sensitive nose. Seeing clearly, even in the dim light of the club, she observed that most of the customers seemed to be dressed in semi-formal or business-like attire. She guessed that was what made it a "gentlemen's club" aside from the fact that over ninety-percent of the patrons were male. All of the servers were very beautiful, scantly clad young women or handsome, almost-nude young men. They were all being touched by some patron or another; many in manners that would get them arrested if they were outside. Besides groping the staff, many patrons were occupying themselves by playing cards, or conversing with each other, or dining on rich meals. It was like they were just hanging out…in a restaurant with a very poor dress code for employees and the most perverse dinner-time theater in existence.

"Hmm…maybe Akira had a point. I wonder if Mai saw this place when it was open or just getting ready," Natsuki muttered to herself as one of the servers walked by her and openly leered at her. The biker gulped and tried not to look like a rabbit in a den of wolves. I'm no rabbit. That would be stupid, after all, and I'm not stupid.

Natsuki continued to slowly make her way through the club, ignoring the stares coming from men and women alike, staff and patrons alike too. She wondered where the kitchen was and if they would let her see her friends just for a moment to make sure everything was fine with Mai and Takumi. She also wanted to make sure they were not being forced to wear skimpy clothing or being harassed by clients or even other employees.

-8-8-8-8-

Crimson eyes scanned the crowded the room, like a lioness surveying a herd of zebra. Those eyes were not necessary looking for weak members of the group, although that would be fine if they did come across such a creature. The weak ones always shelled out the most money for the smallest amount of attention, but they were not very amusing. These eyes wanted an item of interest; entertainment was more important than money.

The predatory gaze locked onto what seemed like an odd sight in the Obsidian Den—a lone girl barely out of her teens. Women did not typically frequent the Obsidian Den. When they were as young as her object of interest, they usually came in herds, as if that made the visit less in someway; she was not sure what they were trying to lessen. The lone female clients generally were older and rather successful, much like the men. In fact, sometimes it was hard to tell the difference between the two, which was all well and good…if one liked normalcy and complacency. Not words many would associate with a gentlemen's club, but it was what the owner of the crimson eyes thought. Change was good.

"Ara, ara, Shizuru, you continue to look like that and I'll except you to start growling," Anh commented impishly as she came up behind the crimson-eyed stalker. She rested her head on Shizuru's shoulder, bending down a bit because she was taller than Shizuru. They had similar tan-colored hair, but Shizuru's was longer and she had bangs while Anh's was cropped, a little lighter, and pushed back. A playfully naughty smile settled on Anh's heart-shaped face, mirroring the expression on Shizuru's features.

"I think I've just found a playmate for tonight," Shizuru replied in lighthearted manner. Her eyes sparkled at the idea of having someone to keep her company instead of the other way around.

Anh's gaze swept out onto the wave of people, trying to spot who she thought was Shizuru's "type." The young woman was not hard to miss, wandering around the area like a disconcerted, deserted puppy, completely at the mercy of the sharks surrounding her. Anh chuckled a bit.

"She is quite adorable," the taller brunette decided, nodding.

Shizuru chuckled a bit. "I agree, which is why I am going to go see what a girl like her is doing in a place like this."

"I'm sure she'll wonder the same about you."

"Well, I would just tell her the truth. I'm here to meet cute women," Shizuru joked, earning a soft snicker from her companion.

"You need to get moving before someone else snatches her up and sends her running for the door." Glancing over at the young woman again, Anh was stunned that she had even made it as far as she did without fainting considering her expression.

Shizuru chuckled, even though she knew that was the truth. She was aware that if someone came on too strong that girl would definitely bolt; she just had that look about her. Shoulders squared and confident smirk in place, she was off to ensnare the newcomer with a self-assured sway in her hips.

Natsuki was trying to figure out where the kitchen might be in the place when Shizuru seemed to just appear before her. The ebony-haired girl yelped while Shizuru smiled brightly. Natsuki took a step back and arched an eyebrow, wondering why the hell this other girl was eyeing her. Senses on high-alert, something about those crimson eyes screamed "danger!" but her smile and aura put Natsuki at ease…a little anyway. Not enough to make her want to stay too close.

Shizuru put her finger to her chin. "I don't think I've seen you around here before. Are you new to our little club?" She seemed affable and her smooth voice touched something inside of Natsuki. This feeling kept the biker from running.

Natsuki did take a step back, cautiously eyeing the svelte woman. "Uh…yeah. What's to you?" Her eyes narrowed slightly, making her seem even more skittish.

"Nothing. I was just making a note that I have not seen you around here before. I hope I can do everything to make your stay here enjoyable. Is there anything I might be able to do for you that might make your stay worthwhile?" Shizuru asked, holding her hands in front of her, her palms pressed together. Thankfully, she spoke in a jovial tone rather than a sexy purr because Natsuki would have bolted before she finished speaking.

Emerald eyes glanced down, considering escape, but deciding against it just yet. "Uh…I don't need anything. Just checking the place out."

Shizuru nodded. "I hope that things are to your liking so far. Have you been seated anywhere or had anything to drink yet?"

"No…" Natsuki was about to take another step back, but she was just a little too slow. The fact that she was too slow was enough to surprise her, but the shocker was when the other woman actually touched her. Shizuru reached out and took her by the hand. Natsuki's eyes fell to look at the slim hand clasping her own. The ebony-haired teen looked ready to panic from the contact. Shizuru smiled a little, as if the anxiety radiating off of Natsuki was adorable.

"Please, let me show you to a seat and we can talk for a while. It'll be pleasant," Shizuru promised.

Natsuki was too baffled to form a coherent thought in order to properly object. Before she could get her head together, she found herself being gently pushed into a small booth. Shizuru slid in next to her, smiling sweetly at her. Natsuki barely blinked while regarding this very weird woman—in her opinion anyway. Part of her was telling her to watch this strange creature, but another part of her was telling her that it was all right to relax. She listened to the first part, preferring to err on the side of caution.

"May I order a drink for you?" Shizuru asked Natsuki.

"Uh…I'll have a coke…" Natsuki answered. She did not see anything wrong with having some soda while she was there. She could scope the place out from there and check on Mai and Takumi later.

Shizuru smiled and could not help the next thing that came out of her mouth, "Cute."

Natsuki glared at the crimson-eyed stranger. Shizuru continued to smile as she waved over a waitress and sent her off to get Natsuki's cola. She then turned her attention to this odd girl that ordered soda in a nightclub and did not seem to be looking for any company.

"So, what brings you to our delightful little club?" Shizuru asked, hoping to drum up conversation this time around.

"Just checking things out," Natsuki repeated with a shrug, watching Shizuru with noticeable trepidation due to the fact that Shizuru was repeating herself. Well, it was the partial truth. She did not see the point in telling this stranger her real business, but she did not see the point in lying either. It was not like she planning to see the stranger again since she doubted that she would ever be in the club again.

"Do you frequently check out nightclubs or are we just lucky?"

Natsuki snorted out a light chuckle. "If you put things that way, I guess you're lucky."

Shizuru let out a soft laugh; it sounded almost like music and made Natsuki's ears twitch. The ebony-haired girl was clever and Shizuru was happy to see the biker start to relax. The sound of the laughter made Natsuki noticeably loosen. The sound was so melodious that Natsuki unconsciously leaned forward a little to avoid missing its next sweet occurrence.

"I feel lucky, but then again, I feel that way much of the time. What about you?" the tawny-haired female asked, an amused half-smile tugging at her lips.

A snort precluded the roll of jade eyes. "Yeah, I've got all sorts of luck with me. Mostly bad."

"Now, that I find hard to believe." Shizuru moved a little closer, smiling more when her new companion did not move away.

Natsuki rolled her eyes again. "Believe me, I was born under a whole constellation of really bad stars. My mom says it's because I was born when there was no moon in the sky."

"I'm sure she's just teasing."

"Hell, no, she's not. At least not about how unlucky I am anyway."

Shizuru smiled and she managed to keep Natsuki talking. The soda arrived while Natsuki was in the middle of an example of how bad her luck was; it was not the story about how she ended up in a so-called gentlemen's club. It was actually worse.

"…And that's why I don't trust cats, birds, or children with unibrows when they're all in the same place. Oh, and mustard," Natsuki said seriously, pulling her soda closer to her.

Shizuru released an unrestrained, but elegant laugh as soon as the tale was over. Natsuki was not annoyed or upset with the laughter. She did not even feel like the lovely sound was coming at her expensive. Strange.

"That's not too bad," Shizuru tried to assure her new friend. Her eyes shone as she spoke, not from amusement, but sincerity. It was this shine and the ability to tell it was from Shizuru's genuineness that kept Natsuki talking.

"Nah, I've had worst things happen to me, but I'd rather not share how much of an idiot I can be," Natsuki commented before taking a long gulp from her soda. She was starting to get hungry too; she was tempted to order something to eat. Maybe a burger would hold her until she got back home, she considered. The food can't be too bad with Mai back there.

A small smile continued to grace Shizuru's face. "You make things sound worse than they are. I'm sure of that."

Natsuki shrugged, as if trying to brush that off. Shizuru took that as a challenge and openly declared that she was going to prove that Natsuki made things seem worse than they were.

"All right, Natsuki, think of it this way. If it were not for that demon child with the unibrow and jittery birds, you would have had to spend all of that time with your grandmother and the fact that you described her as a 'crazy old bat' I am sure you didn't want spend your whole Saturday with her," Shizuru pointed out in a calm tone.

"Yeah, but I did have to spend my Sunday at home sick because of that little brat making me go into that pond!" Natsuki huffed, frowning as she recalled that horrible day. Now that she thought about it, she could not believe that she shared that tale with a total stranger.

"Would you rather be home on Sunday or with your grandmother on Saturday?" Shizuru asked.

Natsuki shot Shizuru a glare, answering the question without saying a word. "Okay, fine! But, my bad luck is not some twisted form of good luck in disguise," the pale woman argued.

An impish smile worked its way on to the taller woman's face. "I don't know, Natsuki. It certainly seems that way," she countered with a playful hum.

"Oh, yeah, you might have been able to do that with that little story, but what about this…" Natsuki started into a new story, wanting to prove Shizuru wrong.

Shizuru listened patiently once again. By the end of the story, involving a high-strung horse, a crazy monkey, and a troop of boyscouts, Natsuki looked smug, thinking that she had Shizuru now. Yet, that impish smile that seemed to dance on Shizuru's on face remained. The biker gulped before Shizuru even started speaking.

"Natsuki certainly does have grand adventures. But, these adventures seem to always come out in your favor," Shizuru commented.

"I broke my arm!" Natsuki argued.

"And was able to get a new motorcycle afterward."

Natsuki's mouth practically hit the floor because Shizuru was right. It was because of that accident that she was able to afford her new motorcycle. The biker silently cursed to herself, noticing that she was giving herself away with the deep details of her story. The next one that she went into involved fighting with Mikoto, sinking a ship, and having to pay for the damages. Shizuru was silent through the whole story and found the silver-lining in this one easier than any of the others.

"You say this is how you met your best friend? I am sure you two will be friends forever after meeting through such extraordinary circumstances," Shizuru stated in a gentle tone.

The ebony-haired woman could not even argue that one. It was great luck for her to meet Mai, even though the busty redhead got her into more trouble than she ever would have on her own. Natsuki decided that it was time to switch gears for a moment. She started asking Shizuru about herself and Shizuru seemed happy enough to share, especially since Natsuki did not pry too deep.

"No, my parents really do not have a problem with me working her," Shizuru replied to a curious question from her companion about her parents feeling toward her current employment.

"I guess you either never wear stuff like the waitresses, you don't go on stage, or you lied to your parents about what the hell you do here," Natsuki commented bluntly.

Shizuru let loose a light laugh, causing Natsuki's ears to twitch again."I would never lie to them. They know exactly what I do here and they have no problem with it. My father even visited once. The place really isn't his cup of tea. Mostly because we didn't serve tea when he was here." She laughed again; Natsuki had a feeling that she was missing a joke of some kind here.

"Your parents are weird."

"Well, they are weird, but we thoroughly enjoy tea. In fact, I almost did not work here because there was no tea. I made sure that changed." Shizuru held her chin high with pride. Natsuki figured out that tea obviously meant a lot to Shizuru and her parents. It was not something that Natsuki could understand since she was into any drink with artificial flavors.

The conversation continued on with them learning little things about each other. Natsuki did not seem to notice much of the time how easily she answering questions about herself; she was mostly distracted by Shizuru's pleasant expression and demeanor. Five large sodas and a couple monster-sized hamburgers later, Natsuki glanced at her watch and realized that she needed to get her ass home because she had things to do in about six hours. "Oh, shit!" she hissed under her breath.

"Is there a problem?" Shizuru asked curiously.

"I've got to get home. I've gotta meet my folks tomorrow morning…well, more this morning. Tonight was so not the night to be out until dawn," Natsuki cursed herself. She did not think that she was going to be out so late, which was why she had agreed to meet with her parents in the morning.

Shizuru smiled again. "I'm glad you decided to stay out with me. I thoroughly enjoyed talking with you. I hope that you'll come back soon and sit with me again," she said, a sincere twinkle in her eyes.

Natsuki regarded Shizuru curiously for a moment. "We'll see," she replied in a very noncommittal tone. She suspected that Shizuru only wanted her to come back for business reasons, even though the sparkle in those red eyes told a different story. Natsuki did not think too much on it at the moment and rushed out of the club, thinking about how she was not going to have much sleep and her parents were probably going to notice, which meant tons of questions.

Only later on when Natsuki got back home did she realize something—she had not checked on Mai and Takumi. As soon as she had this revelation, her phone rang and she groaned to see that it was Akira. After a brief internal debate, she answered.

"Kuga here," she grunted.

"Good, you're still up. Did you actually go to the club?" Akira inquired.

"I did."

"And?"

Natsuki scratched the end of her nose and was glad that no one was around to see how deeply she was blushing. Even though she had spent all of her time talking to Shizuru, she had seen enough to put the Obsidian Den light-years beyond a "gentlemen's club." She felt like that was like calling a bar a "self-medicating wellness center." But, then again, she was not too sure what the Obsidian Den was.

"Um…the food is really good there. It is like being at a restaurant. I mean, really good," Natsuki said because it seemed like the safe answer. It was true too, which made her understand Mai and Takumi's argument just a little bit. Unfortunately, other things that she witnessed there just blew their argument out of the water.

"Okay. Did you see Takumi?" Akira inquired.

"Uh…I couldn't find the kitchen…" Natsuki answered. It seemed like the best thing to say rather than informing her friend that she was distracted the whole night by a rather intriguing club worker.

"What? Fine, then tell me what the place was like beside the fact that the food was good. I want to make sure that strippers aren't bothering Takumi and corrupting his good senses or freaking him out or something like that. He's just so naive that I don't think he'd know how to handle anything crazy. I don't want him to be traumatized or anything. God, I don't even want to think about how messed up he would be if he has to work in some cheap whorehouse because he thinks we need money that badly! He's so sensitive and I don't want him to end up hurt." She sounded a little panicked and Natsuki could tell that she was pacing, hearing the little taps of her feet on the hardwood floor.

Natsuki scratched the end of her nose again, trying to think of something to say that would ease her friend's frayed nerves. "Uh…"

"Natsuki, did you even go? You probably chickened out at the door and just made this thing up about the food."

"Hey, I did go! The food was good and the place looked like something out of the Roman empire with all this expensive artwork and junk. Yes, there were plenty of guys there. There were some women too and the waitresses wore really skimpy outfits, like French maid costumes, but red and worse! The waiters had almost nothing on at all! There was a stage show that would've been banned by HBO!" the biker huffed.

"What!" Not only was Akira's voice loud, but it went up several octaves from shock.

Natsuki winced as if she had been punched in the face; she had not meant to let that bit of information slip. "Look, calm down. I didn't see any kitchen staff while I was there, so it's a pretty safe bet that they all stay in the kitchen. I know Mai wouldn't want to expose her little brother or even herself to a lot of the stuff there. I think that when they went in for the job interviews, they probably just saw the club setting up or something because I know it wasn't much of a gentlemen's club," she explained, just so it did not seem like the siblings lied. She knew that they would never intentionally deceive their lovers.

Akira was silent for a moment. "They interviewed in the afternoon and when Takumi came home, it was six, so they probably didn't see much. Still, I don't like this. Natsuki, you've got to go back there and make sure they stay in the kitchen!" she begged.

The biker groaned and rubbed the back of her neck. "I dunno…"

"Please!"

"Akira, why don't you just trust Takumi," Natsuki replied. She thought that love was all about trusting each other and all of that other mushy junk.

"I do trust him. I just don't want anything to happen to him. He's so…naïve. Sometimes, Mai is too. I mean, look at how they went into this. Instead of finding more out about the club, they just assumed it was all right because of the reputation of the chefs and food without considering anything else. So, I really just want to look out for them. I don't want them to walk into something they don't expect and get scarred for life or something."

Natsuki sighed; that made almost too much sense to her. Although, she did note that it was perfectly fine for her to be scarred for life, which she was thanks to that stage show. "Uh…you're right. Okay, I'll go back and make sure they stay back there. I mean, I think that it is a good job for them and everything because the food was good, but the place itself is definitely more than Mai thought." Actually, "definitely more" was a major understatement. Mai obviously did not know what went on in the Obsidian Den during business hours.

"I hope people don't freak out when they see their resumes after this," Akira remarked.

"Well, if it's just about the food, I think they should be all right. I mean, the burger I ordered tasted worth the twelve bucks I paid for it. Can you believe that? Twelve bucks for a burger and a coke cost five for like a tiny cup!" Natsuki ranted. She definitely left the club poorer than she went in, but her stomach was very happy with the outcome.

Akira chuckled a little. "Thank you, Natsuki."

"It's okay. They're my friends too. You guys might as well be family for me," Natsuki admitted. Why did I say something so mushy? I must be overtired or something. "And speaking of family, I need some sleep. I've got meet up with my parents tomorrow and that's always like wrangling rabid wolves."

"All right. See you later, Natsuki."

Natsuki just disconnected the call. She sighed as she stripped off her clothes to get ready for bed. She tried not to think about the fact that she had to go to the Obsidian Den again, but amazingly enough, it did not seem as bad as before. Maybe she would see Shizuru again, but she quickly shook that thought away. She wasn't really interested in me. I was just work for her. That thought sobered her and she vowed that the next time she went to that place, she would do what she came to do and never have to go back there.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: Natsuki finds herself back at the club. Will she do what she came there to do or will she be distracted once more?