Here you go, the prologue and Chapter One at the same time.

Oh, and the story's title may be subject to change later on. So is the rating, possibly.

I do not own Tokyo Ghoul, in any way, shape, or form. This plot and these OCs are definitely mine, however.

CHAPTER ONE

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It was noisy. Night had fallen, but the streets of Tokyo were still bustling with people walking to and fro, each with their own destination in mind. In a place as crowded as this, few were expecting anything vile to happen - no sane ghoul would attack in a setting such as this.

However, while the lively city streets remained relatively safe, that was not where the heart-pounding action was happening.

In a deserted back alley, isolated from the main city, a terrified scream erupted from the darkness. The cry of fright was punctuated by the sound of frenzied pants and hurried footsteps, and the reek of fear was almost palpable in the air, obvious to any animal that was keen enough to pick it up. The man was running for his life, but it was not a wild animal in pursuit. It was something much, much worse.

He was scared, so scared, to the point where he may have soiled himself. It was clear he knew what his role in this chase was. He was so used to being the one doing the pursuing, always with a sadistic smile plastered on his face as he stalked his quarry, eyes dull and dead as his victims after he was done with them. The tables had turned on him now, however. He was no longer the predator.

Now he was the prey.

"Oh please God, no," the voice was scratchy and hoarse from the physical exertion his body was undergoing, but he didn't have any control over his vocal chords. The words slipped out without his consent, and his mental focus had long since become too broken and fragmented to think straight.

The things a person says when their minds were clouded by fear… he had never been one to believe in something as fickle as a God, but now that his life was endangered like this, he was begging to whatever deity would hear him. 'Please spare me, I don't want to die!'

It was as if, in that moment, he had forgotten all he had done to torment the world. As if he wasn't a rapist, a murderer, and a thief. He was begging some higher power to overlook all of his sins and his wrongdoings, and why? Because he believed he was worth being saved? He had never once lived honestly in his life, and now that he was in a similar position as his former victims, he could only hope that someone, anyone would have mercy on him. 'I won't hurt anyone anymore! I'll turn myself in! Please, just don't kill me!'

But the odds weren't in his favour, as he learned in that moment as he spotted a flash of sinister red zeroing in on him. He only had a second to offer his last prayer to a deity that refused to listen to him – 'I'm sorry, so sorry, please don't' – a jarring impact struck him right through back of the neck, impaling him and severing the delicate spinal cord with swift precision. He dropped down to his knees a second later after the crimson-coloured appendage separated from his flesh, before falling down face first onto the concrete below.

His silent assailant emerged from the shadows from behind, footsteps muted and light. They stopped at the man's feet, watching with eyes hidden behind a red and black devil's mask as blood pooled quickly but steadily from the fresh wound. Two long, thin appendages curled inward from the tail-bone area, as red as the liquid spilling from the body at their feet.

"You thought you'd never be caught," the voice was muffled by the mask, but it was undeniably cold and very matter-of-fact. "Of all the people in the world, your kind are the ones I've always despise the most. You're disgusting. You deserved this."

As the figure bent down to lift one of the dead man's arms, they muttered one last thing to his lifeless body, lifting the bottom of the mask upwards to expose their mouth as they spoke. "You've had this coming to you for a long time - you have no one to blame but yourself. And I," they bared their teeth, getting ready to bite down, "I need to eat. No hard feelings."

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"- this recent string of ghoul attacks is rather curious, in my opinion."

The voice that came over the news report playing on the old TV set finally jerked Yuzumi's attention away from the fashion magazine she had been mindlessly flipping through. She carefully set the flimsy book down upon the table she was sitting at, focusing entirely on the report.

"How so? It seems like the normal kind of behaviour we'd expect from them to me," the woman who was speaking had an air of repugnance about her, and it was clear to see she held nothing but disdain for the ghouls. The other person, a man, seemed more thoughtful about the subject than anything else.

"Well, think about this: the victims lately have mostly been registered sex offenders and criminals of other charges, or they were very highly suspected of such things." The man on the TV tapped his chin once, and then added on, "In fact, the body that was discovered earlier this week was that of a fugitive that had escaped from a nearby prison nearly a month ago. He was killed by a ghoul."

"It's nothing more than a coincidence," the woman scoffed, "ghouls go after whoever they please. They don't have any morals -"

Before Yuzumi could hear the rest of what the woman had to say, a hand reached out and pressed the 'off' button on the aged TV, effectively tearing her attention away from the report. The ginger-haired girl's eyes shifted to the owner of the hand, and a small, almost imperceptible pout formed on her lips.

"What now, Keiko?" Was the only thing that she said to the brunette standing, with her hands now on her hips, next to the very outdated TV set.

"I'm sick of hearing about all these ghoul attacks! Everywhere I go, someone's talking about it!" Keiko made large frustrated hand gestures as she spoke, the frown on her face much more prominent than Yuzumi's little pout.

"They're clearly becoming a problem for a lot of people, Keiko," Yuzumi replied, and was met with a roll of the eyes.

"Then the CCG should pick up their act! What have they been doing while this has been happening, sitting around and playing Go Fish?" Ah, and there it was. Keiko had a good heart, but she had next to no thought-to-speech filter. She often came off as offensive because she just didn't think.

Yuzumi sighed and stood up, picking up the long-empty mug next to the forgotten magazine and moving into the kitchen where she placed it next to the growing collection of other mugs. "I don't know, why don't you go ask them?" She retorted before coming back around into the living area. "But besides that Keiko…" she quickly changed the topic before the other could start something,

"What are you doing in my apartment again?"

Keiko's petulant expression quickly changed into a severely pouty one, but when Yuzumi gave no outward response, she just sighed and whined softly, "Come on, you know why. It's so boring over there when Reika is at school!"

Yuzumi's eyes narrowed. Reika was Keiko's younger sister, and they lived in the apartment across the hall from her. Now, she had no doubt that Keiko got bored over there by herself, but she also knew that the young woman was plenty capable of finding something to entertain herself with. Yuzumi could see right through her – she knew Keiko was worried about her. Hell, she had been since they first met when Yuzumi first moved in a few months back. Keiko was really the nosy type, and she was difficult to lie to on top of that. She knew this was the older woman's way of showing concern – constantly coming over uninvited and demanding Yuzumi's attention. Maybe she saw her as another younger sister of sorts, she really didn't know.

The thing was, though… Yuzumi didn't want or need an older sister. She appreciated Keiko's concern, but that was where she drew the line. She was physically capable of tending to her own needs now. She didn't need to be watched over constantly.

"So you decide to come over here…? I'm not much better company than a brick wall, Keiko." It wasn't a complete lie. Yuzumi never had much to say, and she avoided other people like they were the plague whenever she could. She never could figure out why someone like Keiko liked her company.

Keiko once again rolled her eyes – she did that a lot, Yuzumi noticed – and shook her head in an obviously exasperated manner. "Give yourself more credit, Yuzu. You're not that bad."

"I am though. The only reason I don't avoid you is because you won't let me… and please don't call me that. I prefer Yuzumi."

"Aaaand there you go again." Keiko walked over and placed her hands on Yuzumi's shoulders, who flinched ever so slightly but didn't move away. If Keiko noticed the action, she didn't say anything, and just kept talking. "You always say things like that. Can't you ever say anything, I don't know… positive?"

Yuzumi fidgeted and looked away. "…you make it sound like I never have anything positive to say at all…"

Keiko stepped away reluctantly. "Sometimes it really seems like it, Yuzu. When's the last time you smiled? And I don't mean those fake little smiles you put on for Reika and I. I mean an actual, genuine smile. I don't think I've heard you laugh either, aside from a little chuckle, and I'm not entirely convinced those aren't faked too. You act like there's nothing good left in the world."

Yuzumi didn't respond. This wasn't the first time Keiko had brought up this – but whenever she did, it always left her not knowing what to say. Sometimes all she could was marvel at how blunt the other was. The first time Keiko had said something like that, it had been just a week after they had met, and Yuzumi had been thoroughly floored by it.

Even right now, Yuzumi was a bit clueless as to how the conversation had turned so serious so quickly. She supposed that was just how Keiko was.

"Look, Yuzumi," the use of her full first name had her looking up in surprise. Keiko was giving her an empathetic look. "I don't know what happened to make you like this, but it can't be that bad, right? You're like what, eighteen, almost nineteen? That's too young to go around looking like you've lost all faith in the world."

Yuzumi knew she had a point. She knew that. But at the same time, just like she had said herself, Keiko didn't know what she had been through. She didn't get it, and Yuzumi couldn't think of any way to tell her. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to, or if she was ready to. She was clearly still struggling to come to terms with it herself.

"Keiko, I…" she trailed off, uncertain.

And besides… how would Keiko even handle hearing what Yuzumi had to say? She wasn't ready for the judgemental stare she was positive she would get, and that was an indisputable fact. She hadn't known Keiko that long, and she always acted reserved around her, but that wasn't because of Keiko herself. Yuzumi kept a deliberate amount of distance between them, but even so, she still considered the woman something of a friend. She had wormed her way into her life, and now there was no easy way to get away from her.

"I just – I don't - " Keiko held up a hand, and Yuzumi fell silent.

"I'm not asking you to tell me everything right here and now. You're my friend, whether you see me as the same or not doesn't matter. I won't force you," Keiko looked at Yuzumi with a serious look, and Yuzumi felt like a child under that stare. "But I'm still here to listen if you need me to."

Again, this was something that Yuzumi had heard before, but each new time Keiko said it, it made her feel even guiltier than she did before. Keiko was the type who wanted to fix problems, and Yuzumi knew that she wanted to help her too. But this was a problem that someone like Keiko couldn't fix. This wasn't something that wouldn't get better by just talking about it.

'It's not that simple,' Yuzumi thought bitterly. 'But that doesn't mean I don't wish it was.'

"Thanks, Keiko," she finally said, finding her voice again. "I needed to hear that." She sounded so lifeless to her own ears, and everything about this felt rehearsed. How many times had she replied to Keiko's kindness in such a way? Too many times. It felt like all her words were empty, and she hated that fact.

"It's what I'm here for," Keiko grinned, and suddenly the atmosphere brightened up again and Yuzumi was left pondering once again how Keiko could alter the mood so easily with just a few words and a smile. It was something that only one other person in her life had been able to do, and that was – "Oi, Yuzu! Are you listening to me?"

There was a hand being waved in front of her face, and Yuzumi batted it away on reflex. "What?" She asked, focusing on the here and now.

Keiko once again rolled her eyes – and Yuzumi was tempted to tell her that her eyes would stay like that if she kept it up – and rephrased what Yuzumi had obviously missed the first time. "I said you and I should head to the bookstore."

Yuzumi blinked, not following Keiko's intentions. "Okay… but why?"

"What do you mean 'why'?" Keiko moved over to the front door and snatched Yuzumi's coat from the coatrack. She threw it at her, and smirked. "You obviously have nothing interesting to read if you've been looking at that." She pointed to the fashion magazine that sat forgotten on the table. Keiko walked back over and picked it up, shaking it in front of Yuzumi's face. "This is from three years ago, too!"

"…so what?" Yuzumi mumbled, inwardly sulking as she stared at the coat in her arms. "It's interesting enough."

"You are a horrible liar, Yuzu. I know you don't care about stuff like this, so why're you pretending?" Keiko shook her head in exasperation, making a 'you're hopeless' gesture with her arms as she did. "So come on! Put that coat on and let's get going!" Keiko came up behind Yuzumi and started pushing her toward the door impatiently. "Plus, Reika is going to be back from school soon, and I'd rather not be here when she gets back. She's going through that 'rebellious teenager' phase right now! She's the devil's spawn after school, I'm telling you!"

Yuzumi just let herself be shoved forward, knowing it was useless to argue. Keiko always somehow got her way. Yuzumi often found herself being pulled around at her – mostly – ridiculous whims.

"… I know we're the only ones living on this floor, but I'm seriously starting to regret not locking my door this morning."

"Oh hush! You know you love books! That or you're just an anti-social shut in who'd rather pretend the real world doesn't exist… but either way, you could use the fresh-air and the exercise!"

" … "

"… I haven't read this one before…" Yuzumi mumbled to herself, tracing her finger along the spine of a decently large novel. She was actually somewhat grateful to Keiko for dragging her out of her apartment. The woman was right – she really did need some new reading material. She pulled the book from its place on the shelf and opened up to the first page, reading through the first page or two.

Keiko had wandered off somewhere deeper into the store, leaving Yuzumi to her own devices. She didn't really mind. Yuzumi knew that Keiko wasn't overly into literature. She was likely off looking for some guy to chat up, that seemed like something she would do while her friend was occupied.

A pang of guilt seized Yuzumi. The fact that she knew Keiko didn't really like reading, and yet decided to come here to a bookstore anyway, just for her sake… Keiko was always doing things like this. She probably had other things she'd rather be spending her time doing, and yet here she was. Sometimes Yuzumi wanted to curse her kindness, because how was she supposed to repay the favour? What did she have to give?

"Why does she do these things…?" Yuzumi murmured to herself, her mood sinking again. She carefully placed the book back onto the shelf, deciding that it wasn't for her.

'I just don't get her,' she thought as she turned to go browse elsewhere.

A little while later as she was wandering the store a little aimlessly, still looking for a suitable new book, she caught sight of a book that was lying open and face down on the floor. It was next to a revolving rack, and she deduced that it had probably fallen off when someone had turned it while looking for a book.

Yuzumi walked over with the intention of putting it back where it belonged, sighing. The fact that no one had noticed it yet or had decided to pick it up left her feeling a little exasperated. She retrieved it, and then set about putting it away.

What should have been a simple task turned out to be something much more when she placed the book in the rack, only to have part of it collapse under the sudden added weight. In a few short seconds, gravity had done its job annoyingly well, and the whole section of the rack facing her was now on the floor.

Several books lay at her feet, and she stared down at them numbly. The few people nearby had turned to see what the noise was all about – because books can't fall quietly, can they? – and Yuzumi felt her face burn pink with embarrassment and annoyance as she knelt down to pick the fallen books up.

She should have just left that damn book on the floor.

She quickly gathered them into small stacks, and she was just reaching for the last one when someone else reached down and plucked it up. Her gaze lifted in mild surprise, and her light brown irises met with gray. The two of them froze at the sudden eye contact, but it was the young man who looked away first, holding the book out to her with a quick apology.

Yuzumi accepted the book and placed it on top of the last stack, before standing up. The gray-eyed male, with hair as dark as midnight stood up as well. They stood awkwardly for a few seconds before Yuzumi remembered her manners and mumbled out a quiet,

"Um, thank you." Ugh, even her voice sounded strained and awkward. She glanced down, away. This was why she didn't like talking to strangers. She never knew how to act.

"You're welcome. I mean, it was nothing," the young man sounded just as awkward as she did, and that did make her feel a bit more relaxed. At least there were others out there who were just as socially inept as she was. She lifted her head to get a better look at him.

Normal. He looked normal. Maybe even a bit plain, but with a bit of cute charm that likely came from his awkward behaviour. Yuzumi briefly wondered whether if that was how others saw her as well.

When he started to fidget slightly, Yuzumi realized she'd been staring a bit too long, and immediately dropped her gaze again, forcing out a chuckle that was mainly an attempt to diffuse some of the tension and ever-present awkwardness. If anything, it just made it worse. She cursed herself, but then noticed for the first time that he was holding a book under an arm.

Its title was familiar. So was the author. She blinked at it, realizing it was one she had read before. "You read Takatsuki Sen's works too…?" She found herself uttering aloud. Realizing she had blurted that out unintentionally, colour rushed back into her face, and she rubbed the back of her head nervously.

Because her head was lowered and she was still avoiding eye contact, Yuzumi missed his eyes widening slightly in surprise. Feeling embarrassed, she quickly added, "I-I mean, it's not that uncommon, right? She is pretty well known…" she let out a little laugh, nerves all over the place. She felt like she was just digging herself deeper and deeper into this hole of social ineptitude.

"She's actually my favourite author," Yuzumi heard him say. The words caught her attention, and it was enough to have her lifting her gaze back up to him. There was a small, unsure smile upon his lips, and she then realized that she had perhaps said just the right thing, even if it had been by mistake.

"Ah, she is? She does have a way with words…" Yuzumi murmured. Daring to take a chance, she hesitantly inquired, "So then… which of her works is your favourite? I personally favour 'Dropped Box.'"

What in the world was she doing? Talking to a complete stranger? How out of character was this for her? Yet at the same time, there was no way Yuzumi could deny that she was intrigued by this man who had a shared interest in an author she had come to really like.

Plus, it couldn't really hurt in the long run, right? It wasn't like she would ever see him again after this day. He was just another customer who was browsing the same shop she was, who just so happened to like the same things she did. It was nothing more, nothing less really.

"'The Black Goat's Egg'," he replied to her question. She noticed he was gradually becoming less nervous, and it helped her to do the same. This wasn't so bad. A simple conversation about mutual interests was completely innocent. "It's a really good read. I recommend it if you haven't read it before." He seemed to think of something right after, because the next words out of his mouth were spoken somewhat hastily, "'Dropped Box' was really good too, though. I can see why it would be a favourite."

Yuzumi found herself smiling. It was more of a tiny upturn of the lips to be exact, for the most part only obvious to those who were fairly familiar with her usual facial expressions. It was still there though, and it meant something. She nodded at his words, about to respond to him – but she was unfortunately interrupted before she could even start, by a middle-aged woman clearing her throat behind Yuzumi.

It was then that Yuzumi suddenly remembered that they were standing, loitering and chatting in the middle of a bookstore while others around them were trying to browse. It seemed that her new conversation partner realized the same thing at the same time she did, because they both simultaneously stepped aside and apologized at the same time, his being hasty and undoubtedly apologetic, while hers was quiet and more subdued. The woman just sniffed in response and strutted past them, and Yuzumi caught her words, 'absolutely no consideration these days' as she rounded a corner.

Silence reigned between Yuzumi and the stranger whom she still didn't have a name for. For a moment, she was fearful that the atmosphere would become stuffy and awkward again, but that fear was unmet when a quiet chuckle erupted from the man next to her. She turned her head to give him a quizzical look, and he almost seemed to shy away from it, before explaining, "Sorry. Um, it's just a little funny."

"What is?" Yuzumi asked, wondering what was amusing to him because it certainly wasn't obvious to her.

"It's just that we both seemed to realize where we were at the same time," he explained, and Yuzumi felt a certain pang, a voice telling her, 'what did you think he meant? You thought he was laughing at you?' And to be completely honest, for a moment she had considered that yes, he found her reaction funny. She scolded herself for almost jumping to conclusions.

"Ah, yeah," she agreed, still not sure how it was exactly funny but deciding to just agree with him anyway, "I guess it was kind of funny."

Yuzumi supposed, if she thought about it, that it could be considered a little amusing. It's just that she wasn't really the type to notice the humour in things like that. Maybe she really should get out more often.

"But maybe having a conversation in the middle of a bookstore isn't the best idea," she murmured suddenly, "We're clearly in the way…"

The man agreed, and said something that likely pertained to her own statement, but Yuzumi's attention was drawn away by something over his shoulder, her eyes meeting with the peculiar sight of none other than Keiko, who was ducking down behind a bookshelf a few feet away. The woman was beaming at Yuzumi triumphantly, giving her a thumb up gesture. Yuzumi responded with a confused look, wondering what the hell Keiko was up to now.

Keiko frowned and began to make wild hand gestures that only served to puzzle Yuzumi even more. However, it wasn't long before she was able to come to the conclusion, somehow, that based on her friend's unorthodox actions and obnoxious hand flailing, that Keiko wanted Yuzumi to… ask for this man's phone number?

Yuzumi's expression went flat at the realization, and Keiko smirked, knowing her point had finally made it across. Damn Keiko and her incessant nosiness – just because she was talking to someone of the male gender, didn't mean something was going on. She didn't have time to think to long about it or go over and confront her meddling friend though, because the young man in front of her had finally noticed her distraction.

"Is everything okay…?" He phrased the question hesitantly, and even glanced over his shoulder where Yuzumi had been looking not two seconds ago. Keiko had conveniently disappeared by this point, leaving Yuzumi feeling incredibly annoyed.

"Y-yes, I'm sorry. I just thought I saw something, but it was nothing," Yuzumi quickly explained. She suddenly felt the desire to get out of here, before Keiko resorted to more drastic measures. She desperately tried to think of a way to excuse herself without coming off as rude, but instead she just ended up blurting, "So um, what was your name again?"

Oh God. Well, her social skills – or lack thereof – weren't the greatest, obviously. She cursed herself again, wanting to go hide in a hole and never re-emerge. She was positive he'd never introduced himself to begin with for one thing, but this was how she handled trying to end a conversation? Yuzumi was positive Keiko was shaking her head in disappointment from where she was, listening in on the two of them.

The man seemed surprised at the sudden inquiry of his name, but still gave it nonetheless. "Ah, Kaneki. Ken. K-Kaneki Ken." Some of his own awkwardness sprang up again as he introduced himself, but it seemed to fade just as quickly when he saw how mortified Yuzumi was as a result of the blunt and clearly not thought out question she had just asked.

"Right, right…" Yuzumi mumbled, trying to play her nervousness off, "it's nice to meet you. Ah, and I'm Kazuhara Yuzumi. Or Yuzu, some people call me that too." She clamped her mouth shut before she could say anything else.

Kaneki smiled, and Yuzumi blinked. Seemingly out of nowhere, she had the urge to continue conversing with him. There was something about him that made her step out of her social shell. She couldn't pin point why exactly, but if she had to guess she would probably say that it was because she had spent so much time to herself, never engaging anyone in conversation –aside from Keiko, but she hardly counted – and that she was just craving interaction with someone who shared her interests.

"So," Yuzumi fidgeted, toying with the idea of maybe actually asking for this man's phone number. Just so they could talk about and recommend books to one another, she told herself - Keiko may take such a thing an entirely different way, but Yuzumi wasn't interested in relationships or cute guys at this point in her life. She just thought that it may possibly be nice to talk to someone who wasn't Keiko for once - someone who could actually understand and keep up with her when she wanted to talk about her favourite books and the characters within them.

Kaneki was looking expectantly at her, curiosity and mild confusion dancing in his gray eyes. He was waiting for her to finish what she was about to say, while she was struggling with herself internally.

"I was wondering if…" Yuzumi swallowed, pushed down her nerves and filed them away to fret over later. "I'd like to discuss Takatsuki's works more with you at some point… or maybe just books in general? I –"

A high-pitched, excited giggle erupted from behind Kaneki then, and both he and Yuzumi jolted in surprise. Kaneki turned on his heel to see what it was all about, and was met with Keiko's grinning face. Yuzumi felt instant dread the moment she saw her, and suddenly remembered why she had been itching to leave before.

Yuzumi had missed her chance and now Keiko was about to humiliate her in some way, somehow.

Keiko sauntered around Kaneki to get to Yuzumi, throwing her arm around the ginger-haired woman's shoulders and leering suggestively at the young man.

"What Yuzu really wants here is your number, mister," Keiko nearly crowed, paying no mind to the stricken and furious look she received from her friend.

"Keiko, no," Yuzumi hissed, but was ignored. "Stop it!"

Kaneki's facial expression had gone from surprised to confused in just a few short seconds from when Keiko appeared. But after hearing what Keiko had said after that, his face was quick to turn a vibrant shade of pink, and Yuzumi knew she had to do something before Keiko ruined everything.

"No, no!" Yuzumi raised her voice slightly, frantic and trying desperately to explain, "It's not like that. Ignore Keiko, she doesn't know what she's talking about. I just thought it would be nice to have someone to discuss books with, that's all. Please don't get the wrong idea."

She fell silent upon noticing that a few people had stopped to look at the situation occurring within earshot. Some women were giggling to themselves, having heard everything, while others shook their heads in disapproval or annoyance.

Damn it, she couldn't go anywhere without Keiko causing a commotion, could she?

Keiko had quietened as well, and Kaneki was looking anywhere but at the two women before him. He was clearly also embarrassed by the whole thing, and Yuzumi had a hard time blaming him.

"You're no fun, Yuzu," Keiko finally spoke up indignantly after several moments of more awkward silence. "I was just trying to do you a favour. You were clearly going to take forever to get to the point, so I figured I would step in."

"I was working my way there," Yuzumi bit out forcefully. "You just made everything awkward all over again."

Keiko just shrugged. "Well, he got the point, didn't he?" She gestured to Kaneki who had just worked up the nerve to look at Yuzumi and Keiko again, albeit a bit hesitantly.

"Ugh," that was all Yuzumi bothered to reply with, deciding to ignore Keiko so she could properly apologize to the young man who had just been subjected to her friend's ridiculous whims.

"I'm really sorry about this whole thing," Yuzumi felt heat creep up onto her face as she apologized, bowing. Why did she have a friend like Keiko again?

Right. The woman didn't give her a choice.

"Ah, n-no, it's okay," Kaneki held up his hands in a small 'don't worry' gesture, though it seemed somewhat forced. Yuzumi inwardly cursed Keiko again. Not only did the woman most likely ruin a potential friendship, but now he probably though pretty poorly of her as well. "But, if you still don't mind… maybe we could talk some more?"

"What?" Yuzumi froze for a split second, numbly aware that she had uttered that word aloud. She quickly straightened back up, ignoring the way Keiko seemed to be having the time of her life beside her. "Are you sure? I actually really didn't mean it like that you know –"

"I know," Kaneki said the words without a trace of awkwardness, his tone steady. Ah, maybe not all was lost after all. "Like you said, it would be nice to talk with someone else who shares a common interest."

Yuzumi couldn't believe her ears. He actually wanted to talk some more with her. Someone who wasn't Keiko or Keiko's sister Reika actually wanted to talk to her. She had truthfully been expecting her request to be shot down.

What a strange yet nice turn of events.

"Okay then," Yuzumi reached into her coat pocket and retrieved her phone. "So, should we do this then?" A tad bit of uncertainty still clung to her words, but a side glance at Keiko told her that she shouldn't worry about it.

A few short moments later, and Yuzumi was staring down at the unfamiliar contact in her phone's database. She blinked at it, as if expecting it to disappear. It didn't. A strange feeling swelled inside her, and she wondered if this was what it was like to make a new friend – one who didn't barge into her life unannounced and made themselves at home, like Keiko had. This was a friendship, or at least the start of one, that she had initiated herself.

The ghost of a happy feeling started to bloom inside her, and she looked up at Kaneki with a small, but genuine smile. "Thank you." She felt compelled to say, and then felt a bit silly for thanking him for giving her his phone number.

Still, it was an important moment for her.

Kaneki rubbed at the back of his neck somewhat bashfully, but returned the smile. "Ah, you're welcome."

"Great, now that's been taken care of," Keiko spoke up loudly, and Yuzumi started in surprise since she had been so quiet before. "Yuzu, have you picked out a new book yet? I'm getting bored, and this new book smell is starting to give me a headache."

Yuzumi's little smile grew, flooring Keiko. "I have, actually," she cast a knowing look at Kaneki, "I just need to find it."

"I can't believe you actually have a guy's number," Keiko uttered, sounding utterly astounded. "I never thought I'd see the day."

Yuzumi just sighed and shook her head as the two made the walk back to their apartment complex. "I told you, Keiko, it's just so we can talk and make book recommendations to each other." She was toting a bag around her left wrist, and inside was a hard cover book entitled 'The Black Goat's Egg'.

"Sure, sure," the older woman tittered, and then smiled mischievously. "But you have to admit, he was pretty cute, right?"

Yuzumi didn't respond right away. Kaneki wasn't bad looking, but such things were never her primary focus. Some people were attractive, some weren't. It was often as simple as that to Yuzumi, and Kaneki was no different. He was just someone she'd met and befriended. Why did Keiko always have to turn nothing into something? Yuzumi could only guess.

"You know I don't care about stuff like that," the ginger-haired woman mumbled, eyes on the ground. She really didn't have the time, let alone the motivation to even think about that kind of thing. Besides, with baggage like hers, why would she even want to burden someone with it?

Keiko seemed to pick up on Yuzumi's inner thoughts, because her jovial and trouble-making mood sobered into a more serious one. "Yeah, I know. I get it, I really do. You have more important things to worry about than men." She crossed her arms in front of herself and sighed. "It's just that you seemed to be comfortable talking with this guy. More comfortable than I've ever seen you around anyone else of the opposite gender. I just can't really understand why, you know? All I know is that it made me a bit hopeful."

Yuzumi absorbed Keiko's words. She hadn't been expecting her friend to pick up on that, not since Yuzumi herself hadn't realized it until after. Keiko was more perceptive than Yuzumi gave her credit for. As obnoxious and nosy as she could be, that fact was irrefutable.

It made Yuzumi want to fidget.

"You shouldn't get your hopes up about things like that. I doubt I'll ever find myself in a position to be even remotely ready for a relationship," Yuzumi finally replied, her tone offering no room for contradiction.

Keiko fell silent after that, but Yuzumi could tell there was more she wanted to say to the point at hand. She was infinitely grateful that she didn't.

.

.

Shadows shifted in the pale moonlight. Night had once again fallen upon the busy streets of Tokyo, and it was under the haze of these quiet hours that something sinister was taking place.

This time, however, the prey was not so easily taken care of.

"You'll have to try harder than that," the male ghoul spat venomously, bloody red irises gleaming within hellish black sclera. His nimble body dodged around the rattlesnake-like kagune that lashed out at him, and he continued to taunt his assailant.

"They call you the Devil's Associate," the ghoul growled as they exchanged blows with their kagune, "because you only go after known human criminals like some sort of grim reaper." He swore out loud as the serrated edge of a kagune tail pierced through the flesh of his forearm. "So why the hell are you going after me?" The words were hissed out with inhuman rage, his eyes blown wide open and glaring menacingly at his attacker.

"I didn't choose that name," the other spoke in a cold monotone from behind the cruel-looking mask. "It was given to me by the human public." They curled their tails inward, preparing to dive forward again for another swipe. "And that ultimately means whether you're human or ghoul is irrelevant to me."

"What the hell did I do to get on your bad side?" The man knew he was at a disadvantage here – his opponent was unreasonably strong, and he was already weakened from a fight a few days ago. He hadn't eaten properly in a while. This other ghoul was kicking his ass. He stumbled as he took another lash to the gut.

"Don't you know?" Their voice sounded so detached and brittle, and one of their hands shot out to grasp him by his throat while he was caught off guard. "The humans call me the Devil's Associate," the hand squeezed harshly, and the male ghoul sputtered, "you compared me to a grim reaper, a being that sends wicked souls of the living down into the fiery depths of hell. I already told you that I don't care if you're human or ghoul." They get up close toward his face, and he paled.

"Which means if you do wicked things, I'll come after you no matter what or who you are."

Their prey thrashed against them, becoming wild and desperate. They just watched for a moment, but said nothing. There was no enjoyment in their posture, no maniacal laughter. Just cold, merciless silence. As if they were doing this not because they wanted to, but because they felt they had to.

"You –" the ghoul managed to form a garbled sentence around the hand with a vice-grip around his throat, "you're scum. You think you're some sort of vigilante hero?" His eyes gleamed with mockery, even though he was clearly in pain. "You're just another ghoul… like me, like all the others. This world will never see you as anything more than a monster."

Anything else that he may have had left to say never left his oxygen deprived lips – instead all that spilled from them was a warm red liquid that dyed his skin crimson, dripped down his chin and stained his clothes before finally splashing against the concrete below.

The ghoul dropped his body, his throat slit in a grotesque manner.

"That may be so," they murmured into the air, voice becoming soft and gentle, greatly contrasting with the bloody mess at their feet.

Deft fingers lifted the mask from their face, basking in the feel of the cool night air brushing against their skin.

"But I'm not doing this for the world. I couldn't care less about that."

Locks of ginger fluttered freely in the breeze. Eyes, one light brown and one black and red, were filled with a sort of longing as they stared up at the cloudy, starless night sky.

"I'm doing this for you, Rio."

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And this is what I have written so far. Like I said, this is just an experimental idea right now. If you like it and want to see more, let me know. That said, I'll probably be updating it infrequently in the meantime, until I decide what to do with it.

Thanks for reading.

~ AquaLux Divine