A/N: Sorry for the long gap between the chapters. I had exams, but now I'm free so here's a new chapter for you! Enjoy!
TWO
Transformation
XX-XX-2016, 6 months later
Kazuo groaned. The one day he woke up before his alarm clock, it had to be a holiday, and of course he couldn't go back to sleep. His mind just refused to shut down, so he rolled out of bed and headed over to his balcony.
How the bright, busy 5 AM Tokyo landscape managed to soothe him, he never knew - maybe it was the fact that he wasn't the only one awake and restless early in the morning. While his mind wandered, he absently fidgeted with the large black pendant on his neck, a gift from his mother on his tenth birthday.
'Now that you're two digits old, you should be able to handle some responsibilities as well,' she smiled, giving him the necklace. Kazuo frowned. He had been hoping for that new video game. What would he do with some girly necklace? 'Mom, why don't you give it to Sakura? She's a girl.' he pouted. 'Kazuo…' his mom said in her 'danger voice', but he was too upset to heed it. 'It was passed on from your grandmother to me and she told me specifically to give it to you and not your sister. Like it or not, it's yours.'
And so he was stuck with it for the past seven years. But oddly, now that his mom, dad and sister were on another continent entirely, he couldn't bear to part with it - it was like his link to them. A silly thought, but it comforted him.
A few minutes later, the loud growling of his stomach brought him back to earth. He had some sugary cereal for breakfast, and after a leisurely shower, switched on the TV. Just then, there was a loud, drawn-out ring at the doorbell, as familiar as it was irritating.
"So you're back," he said in mock contempt, as his roommate staggered into the flat, swaying. "Don't tell me you drove here." The latter grunted and collapsed on the sofa. He reeked of alcohol, and Kazuo figured that he'd have one heck of a hangover when he woke up. Not that it was his problem.
"Really, Amaya, they are definitely not the reason behind whatever you saw." Kazuo asserted for what felt like the hundredth time. The trio were at WacDnald's, much to Kenji's chagrin("How kiddy can you get?") but he cheered up at the sight of the food. Amaya was convinced that the Higurashis were somehow behind that girl's disappearance. Kazuo would have felt the same if he didn't know them, but now he was sure that they were innocent.
Luckily, before the topic could escalate into an argument, Kenji spoke up. "I'm bored. Are you gonna find something else to talk about or what?" Amaya glared at him. "Any suggestions?" He smiled lazily. "Well, there is one thing…."
"Cool." Kazuo said, as they walked along a familiar path. "I can't believe you idiots!" Amaya hissed. "Breaking into school when it's closed - are you trying to get expelled?" "Hey, no one asked you to come along." Kenji replied, shrugging. "It's supposed to be a sort of rite of passage for this school. Everyone must have done it and some point." "I don't believe it!" "Ask anyone when we go back, then." Still seething, Amaya went along with them.
As they reached the gates, Kazuo could feel excitement tingling through his veins. Kenji was right, all the seniors he'd talked to spoke about breaking in as a tradition. No one stole or broke anything, of course, they just did it for the heck of it. He was hoping that they'd have to climb over the gates or something adventurous, so he was mildly disappointed to see that they were wide open.
They got in easily. The school looked so huge and foreboding and empty that another excited chill shot through Kazuo. This was it; all they had to do was not get caught. Even Amaya was beginning to look interested by the time they approached the main building. So far, so good; apparently nobody was about. But why were the gates open? Common sense told him that someone, most likely the principal and maybe a few teachers, would be inside. Good thing that they were far from the staff block.
"Let's check that one out," said Kenji, indicating a door to their left which none of them had ever been into before. Amaya tried the door, it was locked. "It's a pantry." she told them. Kenji, for once, didn't look happy at the mention of food. "Ugh. I bet it's all vegetables and stuff." Up ahead was another room, which turned out to be filled with sports equipment. Kenji and Kazuo practically dived in and retrieved a football and a basketball, respectively, with wide grins on their faces. The grins disappeared as soon as they saw what the other had brought. Amaya rolled her eyes. "Oh no, you don't," she said, dragging their protesting selves away from the room.
"Why do I get the feeling you know where we're going?" Kazuo asked her. She didn't even try to deny it. "Because I know exactly where we're going." Kenji broke his sullen silence. " library." he said, a little too loudly. "Kenji, shut up!" Amaya scolded. But it was too late. Footsteps were closing in on them, fast. "I heard voices, sir." Kazuo heard someone say, over the loud pounding of his heart. Why did he agree to this? He wanted to run, but realised with a jolt of terror that he couldn't move.
Suddenly, someone grabbed both him and Amaya and shoved them into a small room behind a hidden door. Startled, he turned around and realised that it was Kenji, who was looking at him warningly. Don't make a sound. Kazuo gulped. He could hear many sets of feet pattering outside the door, and then, without any warning, they all stopped. His stomach twisted into a knot. Any second now, the doorknob would turn. And then, slowly, hesitatingly… It moved a few inches.
And stopped. "Hey, boss, this one's locked." A man called outside. "Eh, ain't no lock on that one. It's jammed." Responded an older, gruffer voice. "Hooligans probably ran away." Footsteps were beginning to move now, and Kazuo found himself able to breathe a little. "I bet they're still around somewhere, old man, see if I'm wrong." said someone else, but they were definitely moving away. A tense minute later, they were gone. Kazuo and Kenji exchanged looks of relief. But where was Amaya?
She was standing in front of a glass panel, calmly wiping the dust away with her jacket sleeve. Apparently, the commotion hadn't scared her one bit. Mystified, the boys got up and went over to her. There were a lot of trophies behind the panel, and a few graduation photos. Suddenly, she pressed her face against the glass, trying to get a closer look at something. The she signalled them to come over, grinning widely.
"Look!" she said, pointing at one of the photos, or more specifically, at someone in the photo. It was a girl, with longish hair and a sweet smile. Underneath her picture was printed a name : Kagome Higurashi. As Kazuo peered at her picture through the glass, something odd happened - his pendant burned and stung his chest. Wincing, he pulled it out, and immediately forgot his pain.
It was no longer black. It shone a brilliant purple in his hands and, within seconds, faded to reveal white lines on its edges and a purple floral design at its centre. The rest of the pendant turned black again, leaving him with a stunning - girly, but stunning - piece of jewelry in his palm.
Dazed, he turned his attention back to his friends. "I told you she was real!" Amaya was saying triumphantly to Kenji. "Yeah, and she's really beautiful…" Kenji responded dreamily. Kazuo immediately decided not to tell them what happened. Shoving his necklace back into his shirt, he told them in a voice that was only slightly shaky, "Guys, lets go before anyone catches us here."
Once safely outside, the three friends reveled in their own discoveries. It was something of a life-changing episode for all of them, but most of all, for Kazuo. What had happened to his pendant? Why did it change like something out of those Barbie movies his sister made him watch whenever he lost a bet? Ew, he hoped it didn't mean he'd become a fairy princess - er, prince. Kenji, on the other hand, was noticing something different. "Hey, Kaz? You look a lot like Kagome." he said her name almost reverently, but Kazuo got the point.
Or rather, he didn't get the point. He looked like a girl? Maybe he should get rid of the necklace before it turned him into something… Oh, who was he kidding. He'd never lose it on purpose. But when he put his hand on his neck to tug it out, he realised that he didn't have to lose it on purpose.
It was already gone.