September 22, 2012

One year later…

He reached for the knob and tuned it, opening the door into warm summer air as he was just about to step out before stopping short of his front step when he realized it was already being occupied. He stared down into the face of a young blue haired boy in a beret, dark blue lapel and buttoned down jacket over trousers of the same color and material. He wore a white, buttoned up chemise beneath the jacket with a ribbon cravat and black leather boots. Honokaze Yama was quite impressed with this young man's attire and wondered what could possibly have brought him to his door step.

"How may I help you?" Yama asked, leaning against the door frame.

The young man reached into his jacket and brought out a black leather wallet that unfolded when he held it up, revealing a detective's ID and badge within. "I am Detective Shirogane Naoto and I am here working with the Ozukai PD on a case." He folded the badge and returned it back inside his jacket.

"Yes, well, what does that have to do with—"

"I wonder if I may come in to ask you a few questions, Honokaze-san?" Putting his hands into his pockets he waited for the taller man to stand aside, allowing him to enter the home. The entrance area was quite typical for many Japanese homes, having an entrance area with steps that lead up into a hallway that split into various rooms of the main floor. Naoto entered and stood near the wall as Yama closed the door behind him.

"I find it hard to believe such a young man could be working with the police, let alone be a detective. What did you say your name was again?" Yama asked, stepping toward the three steps that lead into his home.

"Shirogane Naoto. If you'd like, I can wait while you call the police chief to confirm, Honokaze-san." He leaned back against the wall and looked up at the man, their eyes locking for several seconds before Yama disappeared into the front room.

Yama picked up the phone and dialed the local PD, asking for the chief by name. It took several minutes before finally a man's gruff voice sounded on the other end of the line. They spoke for another five minutes as they exchanged information and description before he finally hung up. He sighed and looked at his watch before running a hand through his brown hair. He exited the front room and stared down at the boy who stood still leaning against the wall, his arms folded across his chest, his eyes closed.

"May I offer you some tea, Detective Shirogane?"

Pushing off the wall, he opened his eyes as he unfolded his arms, returning his hands to his pockets as he turned to face him. "No, thank you. I only have a few questions to ask."

"Fine, what do you want?" Yama was annoyed and looked at his watch again.

"I don't want to take up any more of your time so I will make this quick. I'd first like to confirm that you are indeed the father of Inazuma Suzume, correct?"

Yama's brown furrowed at the mention of his daughter's name. "What is this about?"

Naoto noted the sudden defensive demeanor in the man at the mention of her name. "There is nothing to be concerned about, it's a simple yes or no question."

"Yes, I am her father. Is she in some sort of trouble?" he asked.

"And is it true that she will be arriving in Ozukai today?"

"How could you possibly know that? Look, if you don't tell me what this is about I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Yama took a step forward and had one foot on the uppermost step just when he opened his mouth to say something more but was cut off before he could get a single word out.

"Honokaze-san, as I've told you there is nothing to be concerned of, these are simply routine questions as I am trying to gather as much information as I am able to. As to the actual relation your daughter may or may not have to our case has yet to be determined, but as of now we are simply doing that, gathering information. No one is in any kind of trouble so I would appreciate it if you'd answer my questions."

Yama sighed again, rubbing the back of his neck as he sat down, his feet resting on the bottom step. "Yeah, I was about to go pick her up but then you appeared on my door step," he explained, propping an arm on his left knee.

"I see," he said, averting his gaze for a moment before returning it to Yama. "One year ago you had offered to care for her after her mother's death, which was witnessed by her. She declined but then she suddenly accepts a year after. Doesn't that strike you as strange?"

"I admit," he began, gesturing with his left hand, "I was surprised by her phone call as well, especially since I hadn't heard from her since her mother's funeral. She didn't really give much of a reason other than she thought it would be best that she came, so of course I accepted, gladly in fact."

Naoto nodded before speaking again. "And your late wife, you and she divorced fourteen years ago. For what reason?"

"Now wait a minute, what does that have to do with anything?" he asked, his tone borderline angry.

"I understand if you'd rather not discuss it, Honokaze-san, but I'd very much like to hear the reason why—"

"You're asking an awfully personal question. The hell kind of case are you doing? Shouldn't you be in school playing with dolls or—"

Naoto's eyes narrowed. "If you'd rather do this downtown at the PD I would be happy to oblige you," he said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a cell phone. He flipped it open and began dialing a number before turning it around to show Yama. Yama huffed indignantly at seeing the chief's personal office number on the screen. "I could call for a car to pick us up and even have one sent to pick up your daughter, Suzume. I can't arrest you, of course, but I can bring you in for further questioning if you'd prefer…" He turned the phone back toward him and pressed the send button, bringing the phone to his ear, all the while never taking his eyes off Yama.

"Now wait, hold on, there's really no need to do that." The young detective lowered the phone and pressed the End button, closing it but kept it in his hand. Yama sighed again, wondering if perhaps he should have stayed in bed today. "Look, how can I explain something to someone who has probably never even been married and has kids?" When Naoto's glare deepened Yama threw his hands up in defense. "I meant no disrespect, please." He lowered his hands back onto his knees before continuing. "Everything started out great. We both had great careers and we enjoyed each other, but then things started to change little by little. I don't know why or how, but after Suzume was born Nana—I mean, Nanashi—she was home less and less. She'd stay at work several nights in a row sometimes, leaving me home alone with a baby. I was young and stupid, I didn't know what else to do to cope, so I…" Yama stopped midsentence and ran a hand through his hair again, visibly having difficulty putting certain things into words.

"So?" Naoto asked, his hands back into his pockets.

Yama rubbed his forehead before continuing. "So I started drinking. It was only a little at first, but then it got to be more and more. Sometimes I'd drink so much I'd pass out for hours." He paused again, avoiding the young detective's stare. "One night I drank so much I was passed out while Suzume had somehow gotten out of her playpen and had gotten her hands on cigarette butts in Nanashi's ashtray on the floor. She put them into her mouth and she choked. If the house next door hadn't caught on fire I wouldn't have heard the sirens, they wouldn't have woken me up and I would never have found her in time."

Naoto wanted to feel sympathy for the man but found that he could not. He had made his choices and someone nearly paid the price in flesh for them. "Then what happened?"

Yama wiped at his face, his demeanor completely different than a moment ago. "I was able to get her to the hospital in time. I picked her up and ran there since Nanashi had the car. They managed to get her heart started again after they cleared her throat. Nanashi blamed me, of course, because I was a good for nothing loser."

"And then you divorced—"

"No, no that's not why. It wasn't entirely because of what had happened with Suzume, but it was one of the reasons. A week later we brought Suzume home and she gave me an ultimatum, told me I could either quit drinking or I had to leave. I told her she was partly to blame because she was never home, what sort of mother doesn't want to spend time with her baby? We argued some more, she got angry, I got angry, she said one thing too many and I hit her. I wasn't really thinking, I just… I just reacted. It was after that that we decided we couldn't be together anymore. I tried filing for custody but it never even made it to court. No judge would give an alcoholic custody." He wiped at his face again with the edge of his sleeve. "I didn't want to leave but I felt responsible, and every time I tried to make contact she'd block me."

"I see. It must have been very difficult for you to have to leave as I am sure you must be glad to be able to be a part of your daughter's life once more."

Yama looked up at the boy detective, his eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to insinuate something?"

"No, of course not." Naoto turned around and reached for the door, opening it into the warm summer air. He turned around to face the man sitting on the steps when he spoke again. "I've heard that they still haven't caught her murderer."

"I didn't kill her, hell I never even hated her. We were young, unprepared and stupid. We made poor decisions but I loved her and I love Suzume. Not a single day has gone by that I haven't thought of her." Yama stood up and shoved his hands into his pockets, staring down at the young detective. "I think it's time you left."

"I am sorry if my questions have brought up painful memories, Honokaze-san. Thank you for your time," he said, bowing his head slightly as he pinched the edge of his hat before turning on his heel and exiting the home.

Yama watched the young boy's retreating back before taking several deep breaths and stepping out into the sun light, locking the door behind him.

(~)

The train car was empty save for just one girl, her straight, light brown hair shining in the bright sunlight that filtered through the windows, her strawberry blond bangs a fiery orange in the light. She had dyed her hair several months after it had happened to a light brown, the same color as her mother's hair. She flipped through the newspaper until she finally found something of interest. Reading the headline her eyes narrowed and her brow furrowed before she crumpled the paper into a ball, tossing it away from her.

Cop killer still at large.

"God damn! Are all cops this fucking useless?" She propped her forehead onto her hand and crossed her legs, the hem of her short, pleated skirt just above her knees. She fingered the two pendants that hung from chains around her neck, one a star that had been her mother's and the other a naginata, a pendant given to her by that weird old man, Igor.

She had visited him often after she had been shot, becoming not only someone she could confide in but also someone she had come to trust. For the past year he and Theodore had been advising her during her recovery and rehabilitation. His tarot cards had guided her through many difficult decisions, including the one about having to contact her father, a man she had no memory of nor even knew where to find. Igor had found him and even though she hadn't wanted to, he told her to speak to him. It was afterward that he gave her the task of finding them, these others that were important somehow to whatever quest she has been trusted with. Either way, she was kind of glad for the task, even though it involved having to live with him. It wasn't that she hated the man, it was simply that she knew nothing about him, nor why he had left her and mother, why he had never called or visited, or any of the sort of things that fathers are expected to do. She had a lot of questions for him, but every single one came attached with a bit of anger and pain because it meant she'd also have to talk about mom.

"We shall be arriving at Ozukai station in five minutes. All passengers disembarking please have your luggage ready."

She stretched her arms out above her, arching her back, before sitting straight again and pulling her green t-shirt back down. She stood up and grabbed the two duffle bags off the seats in front of her. She hadn't brought much other than her clothing since she didn't own much to begin with. After that incident she had spent most of her time living with Miki during her rehabilitation, but as much as they had welcomed her and tried to make her feel at home she never felt quite right being there. It wasn't home. Once Igor had given her this quest, she spent a good chunk of money she had on Miki and her family as thanks for having taken her in without even as much as a second thought or even any expectation other than that she treat it as her home. She had gotten a lot of money from her mother's insurance so she afforded to pay off some of their debts for their home. She just hoped it had been enough. She still had a lot of money left but she never really had any reason to spend it, let alone spending it on herself. Sure she had bought a few things here and there, pierced her ears several times, her hair dyed, a few other things here and there. As for the quest she had been given, she wondered now if maybe they could help her… She shook her head again, pushing the thoughts aside. She was overthinking again and that always lead to nothing good.

She stood in front of the doors and waited for the train to come to a full stop. The doors slid open and a gust of warm air enveloped her. She stepped off the train pulling her luggage with her and into the platform, looking around to find anyone who might be waiting for her. The platform was relatively free of people other than the few passengers that trickled out of the other cars. The sun was bright and the air was warm, the scent of the old diesel train mixed in with the smells of freshly cut grass, apples from the small orchard that surrounded the train station and the faintest scent of cologne from an old man that walked passed her from behind. The station building itself looked like it could use a fresh coat of paint and some knew roof tiles but other than that it didn't look all that old. She took a step forward just when she heard her name being called on her right.

"Inazuma Suzume?" She turned around to find a blue haired boy approaching her. "I'm Detective Shirogane Naoto. Mind if I ask you a few questions?" he asked, flashing a police badge.

She looked down at the badge and chuckled. "I used to collect those when I was a kid. Mom had tons since she was an actual detective. Piss off, brat, I don't have time to play with you." She turned and began walking away.

"I spoke to your father earlier today." Naoto returned the badge inside his jacket. "He confirmed a lot of interesting facts, such as how you—"

Without missing a step she looked at him out of the corner of her eye from over her shoulder. "You're implying I care." She returned her attention forward again.

Naoto shifted his weight onto his other leg, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Were you always a bitch, Inazuma-san? Or did something happen that made you change?"

Suzume stopped in her tracks but didn't turn around, her heart skipping a beat in her chest. Was I always like this? She remembered always being the quiet but straight forward girl and maybe she did change a little bit, but at what point did she become mean? When did the quiet girl become the bitch? A lot has happened, can anyone blame me? … Maybe I was a bit too harsh… She sighed and furrowed her brow before turning around to face the boy who stood about thirty paces away from her. "What do you want?"

Naoto's expressionless face never changed as he stepped forward to stand in front of the taller teen glaring down at him. "I'm simply curious as to why you'd suddenly change your mind, Inazuma-san. A year ago you refused your father's offer and yet here you are now, a year later. What changed your mind?"

Her face softened slightly though she made no effort to hide her annoyance with him. She sighed and averted her gaze, still looking around for any sign that he'd be here. "Personal reasons, all of which are none of your business," she told him.

"And a year ago, you declined him. Why?"

She stopped looking around and stared down at him. "Personal reasons, all of which are none of your business," she repeated.

"I see…" Naoto said whilst looking down and pinching his chin with his thumb and index finger.

"Are you done or do you still want to play detective?"

Naoto chuckled before raising his hand to pinch the tip of his beret before bowing his head. "Thank you for your time, Inazuma-san. I will be in touch," he said before walking away and disappearing behind her into the station building. She watched his retreating back from over her shoulder with narrowed eyes, annoyed with the sudden interrogation and wondering if he was going to be a troublesome character in the future. She sighed loudly, a habit she had always had when she was stressed or annoyed.

"Suzume?"

"What?" she barked, turning on her heel only to find herself facing someone she hadn't expected. "Sorry, I thought you were that annoying guy."

"What guy?" he asked, looking around.

"Just some brat asking me a bunch of questions," she replied.

"Detective Shirogane?" he asked her as he reached for her bags.

She took a step back defensively more out of habit than anything else. "No, it was just some kid in—"

"In a dark blue jacket wearing a blue beret," he finished for her, still holding his hands out for her bags.

"Yeah…" She handed him one of her bags and followed him into the station toward the exit. She noticed he looked much taller and older than the picture she had found on the web. His hair was brown, short and slightly curly, and he wore a black buttoned up shirt over blue jeans.

"You look different than your picture on your Facebook profile," he said, looking down at her just in time to see her shrug in response. He sighed quietly, looking away. "Did you mother ever tell you anything about me?" When he looked back at her the expression on her face was like a knife stab to the heart though he did his best to not show it.

They walked toward the car in silence and she loaded her bags into the back herself, ignoring Yama's offer and the drive was spent pretty much in the same manner. There was a tension in the air that made it difficult for either of them to talk without risking some sort of explosive confrontation. Yama wasn't ready for that just yet, her sudden decision to come live with him had left him little time to prepare emotionally and mentally. Suzume on the other hand had a lot she wanted to say and ask, but didn't want to risk saying anything yet, it was still too soon, today at least.

(~)

September 23rd, 2012

They had spent the rest of yesterday pretty much ignoring each other, likely more out of not knowing what to say or how to say it than anything else. She had thanked him for accepting her request, however, and he had nodded quietly. Every time she had caught him looking at her the look in his eyes reminded her of a wounded animal wondering when the next blow would come. She didn't like it, it made her feel uncomfortable, as it she was somehow responsible for how he currently felt. She was old enough to understand that there must have been circumstances that led up to her parent's divorce, but there were other things she didn't understand and wanted to know. Nothing they did was her fault or her responsibility, they made their choices and had to live with it. But what the hell happened that was so bad that he couldn't even write to me? Fuck… I hate this! She wondered if coming here had been a mistake after all. She sighed deeply, inhaling the crisp morning air and exhaling, pushing all thoughts aside.

"Good morning, Inazuma-san," a familiar voice spoke from behind.

Suzume looked behind her from over her shoulder to see the boy detective from the day before following her from behind, wearing a similar uniform as her. He wore the dark blue trousers and a red buttoned up overcoat, just above the breast pocket was the same school crest as hers. She wore the same overcoat only hers was more form fitting and worn over a white blouse with cravat, the swallow tails fell over her dark blue pleated skirt with black socks that rose to her mid-thigh.

"Don't you think it's a bit early in the morning to be following me, boy?" she asked, watching him come to stand beside her and match her pace, smiling lightly at her attempted provocation.

"I thought I would accompany you since we're both going the same way and I thought you might perhaps require a friend." He shoved his hands into his coat pockets.

She looked down at him with slight contempt. "You're annoying, boy."

He looked up at her this time, his expression showing he was amused. "I see you're still being a bitch. Must be that time of the month."

She narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to say something but clammed it shut, looking away so he wouldn't see that she was blushing. They both walked the remainder of the way to school together in silence.

(~)

Not only had he walked with her to school—or rather, follow her— but he was also in her class and at the desk next to hers. She wondered if this was some sort of conspiracy against her. At least he hadn't spoken to her since then and to her relief the teacher finally walked in followed by a male student. Suddenly the teacher dropped a small stack of books he had been carrying onto his desk with a loud bang, startling several students into paying attention.

"Listen up, maggots. I don't have time or any tolerance for your bullshit, so unless you want to be failing quicker than the other sperm you beat in the race to the mothership," he began, already earning several gasps from the female students and chuckles from the males, Suzume had decided she liked this teacher. He was tall and scruffy looking with his long blond ponytail and wrinkled shirt over a pair of slightly baggy jeans and sandals. "I suggest paying attention. Writing F's takes far less effort than writing A's and B's." He looked around the classroom to make certain he had everyone's attention before gesturing with a thumb to the very confused looking boy standing near the class entrance. "This is Dirk McDonald, he's from the United States. He has a terrible accent and isn't very good with pronunciations yet so cut him some slack."

Suzume watched the black haired boy's face change instantaneously from hurt to a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his neck with a hand. He stepped up to the front of the class and dropped his hand and shoved it into his pocket along with his other hand. "Hello," was all he said before bowing awkwardly. If she hadn't been paying attention she'd never have caught the sudden change, like pulling a mask over one's own face in order to hide something you don't want anyone else to see. With a quick glance around the room it seemed like she was the only one to notice… Except maybe for Naoto who exchanged glances with her before returning his attention back to the boy standing in front of the class.

"You'll be sitting near the other two new students," the teacher said before walking behind his desk and flipping a paper attached to a clipboard. "Right, Inazuma and Shirogane, where are you?" he asked, looking around the room until his eyes fell upon the two students who held their hands up. "See the desk behind her?" He pointed toward Suzume and the boy just nodded before walking over to his desk.

As soon as he had passed her she felt something strange coming from him, almost like the sting of a static shock and it made her hair stand on end. Goosebumps suddenly prickled her arms and a shiver ran down her spine. She turned around to glare at him just as he sat down on the seat behind her, her eyes narrowed and her brow furrowed. Their eyes met and he just looked at her confusedly.

He leaned forward in his seat and whispered. "Sorry, did I do something wrong?"

Without a word she turned around in her seat and caught a glimpsed of Naoto who had been watching from the corner of his eye. She frowned at her desk. Years of living with a cop had helped her gain some knowledge and experience in observing people, noticing things the average person would miss, but it was also something she honed in the past year. It was a great skill to have when you wanted to lie.

Though nothing had prepared her for that.

What the hell was that?