This couldn't be happening!
Manami had thought she had put that behind her, her old, twisted past. She had nearly forgotten about Izaya, she moved on from her revenge after watching the raven get shot. She lost the urge to kill him, he was as good as dead anyways. She left, went with Kine, became a detective. She did something useful with what used to be her sad, sorry life.
So.. So why was he back?!
Izaya.. Izaya motherfucking Orihara stood in front of her. He was wearing a navy blue yukata with a dark red obi around his stomach, a rose nestled in his long, silky black locks, which seemed to be curly, from what she could tell as it fell down his back.
Despite her sudden, vulgar outburst towards the raven, his lone red eye stared back at her. It was relaxed, calm, he didn't seem surprised or amused by her anger. There was no evil smirk, no insane glee. It was if he wasn't amused by what was going on, and it confused her greatly.
Dazai raised his eyebrows in surprise, before hugging Izaya from behind. "Ehh~? What's wrong? We kept Izaya-chan waiting here because we wanted to introduce him to you two! You should at least be polite to your new kouhai!" He exclaimed, smiling at them through his blonde locks.
"Forgive her.." Kine said quickly,"It's just, we were not expecting to see Izaya here.. We know him from somewhere else"
"Oh~?" Dazai asked, curiosity in his eyes. Meanwhile, Izaya's red eye seemed to stare at Kine, calculating, and seeming to examine both of the silently. Finally, he seemed to have had enough and whispered,"Kine.. And Manami?" He tilted his head, his eye widening slightly.
Izaya felt his heart beating unusually fast, but he knew why. He had remembered something, he had known these two Detectives' names despite never having met them. Kine and Manami… Kine and Manami.. He knew their names, but he couldn't remember anything else about them. He wanted to know, how did he know these people?
Hearing her name in his voice seemed to set off Manami, as she suddenly lurched forward, punching Izaya right in his face, and causing the male to stumble back in surprise. "Why couldn't you have just died?!" She yelled, before turning and running out of the offices.
Izaya watched her go, his whole being a mix of many different, confusing emotions. Placing a hand over cheek she had punched. He didn't feel it, obviously, but it was her words that stung him. Died? Why did she want him to die?
All the other detectives had gone silent, and Dazai stared for a few more moments awkwardly. "Um.. I'm just gonna.. Go over here," He declared awkwardly, shuffling towards the lunch room and away from the awkward situation.
Kine looked back at Izaya, examining him in confusion. This wasn't the Izaya he remembered, he looked.. Softer, more delicate, yet still someone whom was not to be trifled with. Even after Manami left, there was no evil smirk of chuckle of amusement. He looked more.. Confused than anything. His gentle fingers remained on his cheek, before looking down at the ground. "I.. Don't understand.." The raven whispered quietly,"What did I do wrong?"
"Do you not remember?" Kine asked him, wondering if this was some type of trick. Izaya looked at him quietly, before he softly replied,"I'm afraid I can't remember much of anything these days, Kine-senpai"
He grew curious. Had Izaya really changed? Maybe someone out in the universe had heard his request, that Izaya be given a second chance, maybe this was it? He needed to know. "I think this would be easier to explain over some coffee, if that's okay with you?" He asked hopefully,"I think we both need to explain ourselves" Izaya gave a simple nod.
– – – – – –
A few minutes later, they found themselves at the Tsugumi Cafe. The owner greeted Izaya excitedly, hugging him and congratulating him for his new job, before setting them up with a table. Kine stared at Izaya curiously, examining the small things.
He saw the bandages around Izaya's hands and arms, the eyepatch on his right eye, his left eye half open and relaxed. Though, he seemed slightly uncomfortable under Kine's calculating gaze. Eventually, Kine decided he had examined enough for a while. "It's been a long time, Izaya," He began,"Do you remember me?"
"I remember your name.. But not who you are. I'm afraid, ever since I woke up from my coma, I can only remember a few things.." He explained,"When I saw you two, something just clicked. I knew who you were, you were Kine and Manami, but that was all I could remember.."
Doctor Nowaki was right then, Izaya did forget things. It wasn't too surprising, considering all the brain damage Izaya had gained. He also seemed to have undergone some sort of personality change. He was calm, relaxed, nearly emotionless. He hadn't even smiled or shown any type of malice or sadistic amusement yet, and Kine didn't believe he may see such expressions on Izaya's face ever again. "I see.. Do you remember your past?" He asked awkwardly.
Izaya looked thoughtful, bringing his steaming cup to his mouth and sipping his drink. Once he had set his drink back down, he shook his head. "No, but I know I wasn't a good person," He said simply.
"How do you know that?"
"It was easy to deduce. The fact that when I woke up, nobody was waiting, nobody ever came. Nowaki-kun never mentioned any friends or family, he warned me. He told me I have enemies in Ikebukuro and Shinjuku, to stay away from there. And considering the fact that Manami-senpai punched me in the face, and I find it very hard to believe that I managed to run into the only person in Japan who has distaste for me. If I'm able to run into one here out of complete coincidence, I don't doubt that I have a lot more enemies," Izaya explained, his eye never leaving Kine's face.
Kine made an impressed noise. "Good observation, you're right. You didn't have many friends, I think you only had one. We weren't friends.. However we did work together," He explained. Izaya tilted his head again, an insecure look flashing into his face.
"Can we.. Be friends now?" He asked, causing Kine to raise his eyebrows. This was really strange, Izaya was much different than the Izaya from a year ago. However, Kine didn't mind it at all. He had hoped that if Izaya had woken up, he would realize he had been given a second chance and use it wisely. It seemed that was exactly what happened.
Kine decided to take a chance, and held out his hand. "Detective Kine, pleasure to meet you," He said. Izaya's red eye looked up at him curiously for a moment, before he reached out his own bandaged hand, his lips twitching up into a soft, gentle smile. "Detective Orihara Izaya, the pleasure is all mine, Kine-senpai"
They finished their drinks, and began walking back to their homes. "Kine-senpai?" He asked suddenly. "Do you know why Manami-senpai doesn't like me?" He asked,"I would like to remedy the situation if it is possible"
"I do, but I'm not going to tell you"
When Izaya didn't respond, Kine continued,"It's a personal thing, if you want to make it up to her, I suggest you go to her to understand it" He suddenly became so defensive, it caught Izaya off guard. "Don't hurt her anymore than you already had before.. I know you can't remember it but.. She just got over it, and you suddenly come back. Please.. Fix it, don't make it worse" His eyes were filled with emotion, like a protective older brother.
"I promise, Kine-senpai," The raven replied firmly, he felt determined. He didn't know what he did to Manami, but he felt guilt. He didn't want to hurt people who didn't deserve to be hurt, and Manami was hurting because of something he did. He needed to make things between them better.
Kine nodded firmly, before a small smile appeared on his face. "I'm gonna go home now, be safe okay?" He asked, reaching his hand out and ruffling Izaya's hair, before turning and walking down the street. "See you tomorrow," He called calmly over his shoulder.
"Y-yeah.." Izaya called back quietly, wondering what that feeling in his chest was. He couldn't understand it, but he decided to just go home. With the money had had been given from stopping the gunmen, he was able to afford an apartment that was right next to the city's central park, and close to both the Agency and Tsugumi's cafe.
Little Tsugumi and Kaoru had a meltdown when they found out he was going to leave, and did not calm down until Izaya promised them that he would still be coming to help out and train new employees, and would spend nights there whenever the kids asked.
Yoshi had grumbled, saying he didn't need to leave, and that he'd better keep coming to her store or else she would beat him with her cane. Kanade had acted a little weird before he went, and even kissed his lips before he had gone. Izaya's heart had sped up after she did that, but he didn't understand it. What was that feeling called? He couldn't remember.
Izaya walked up to Apartment 1201, his apartment. There was a keypad with a speaker underneath the apartment's number plate. The door had the type of handle that couldn't be broken if you wanted to break in, it was long, and completely metal. There was a small keyhole underneath the handle, and a mailbox slot that was connected to a small metal box connected to the inside of the apartment's door. Currently, the door was open, because while he was in the cafe, he had been given some essentials by some of his superiors at work so he'd be able to work and actually have furniture, and the moving company had been bringing all his stuff in while he left.
His superiors refused to let him pay, saying it was a gift for him stopping the criminals whom had been on the run for over 6 months, apparently because of their trouble with these criminals the government was threatening to shut them down. For that, they were thankful. At least they let him pay for the movers bill.
The movers had just finished, and Izaya bowed politely. "That's the last of it, Thank you very much" The movers bowed back, before heading out. Izaya shut the door behind him and sighed, leaning against the door and slumping down.
Bringing his hands up and running his fingers through his hair. "My head hurts.." He muttered, looking at all the boxes. He wanted to unpack, but he found himself feeling too tired to do much of anything. Moving, getting a new job, and running into two people whom were from an old life he couldn't remember. He really just wanted to sleep.
About an hour later, just as he was dozing off, there was a knock on the door. Izaya jerked up, nearly crashing into a box. He stood up, rubbing the drowsiness from his eye. He opened the door, his eyes widening in shock.
It was Manami and Kine. Manami was holding what looked like a plate of coffee jelly and Mochi ice cream, her eyes were closed and there was a gentle smile on her face. Kine, however, realized who it was and his eyes widened in shock. "Hello! My name is Manami Mamiya, and this is my roommate Kine, we're your neighbors from 1202, we wanted to welcome you to the complex," She said softly, then opening her eyes.
She gasped in shock, realizing who exactly was her new neighbor. Her eyes widened for a moment, before they narrowed at him in anger. Before Izaya could open his mouth to explain himself, Manami angrily shoved the plate so hard in his face that the raven fell backwards onto the ground. "Fuck you!" Manami yelled, before slamming Izaya's door shut.
Feeling suddenly winded, Izaya brought his hand up and wiped the sweets off his face, looking at the plate in his lap in surprise. The plate had broken into several pieces with how hard she had hit him with it. She really hated him.. But Izaya still couldn't comprehend what he had done wrong. He needed to figure it out, he needed to find a way to fix it. But if she was going to be this hostile to him the entire time.. Looking back up at the door, Izaya released a huge, trouble sigh.
This was going to be harder than he anticipated.
– – – – – –
Izaya was getting ready for work the next day, thinking about how he was going to understand Manami more. It was hard, and he had to wonder, would she even be willing to listen to him? So far, ever interaction they had ended in a very hostile way. He could only hope to come up with something, before she found a way to murder him. They were trained in very dangerous ways, she probably knew more than a thousand painful ways to kill him. After all, they weren't exactly normal detectives..
– – – – – –
"We aren't just a normal detective agency, Iza-chan," Dazai had said,"We do the work the government can't, if it's too dangerous or may be seen as illegal in the eyes of the public, they have us do it. We get official pardons from them. So, we're sorta like spies and agents more than detectives, we can pull rank against every uniformed officer except our higher ups, because of our positions! It's so cool!"
Kunikida had nodded, not looking up from his book. "But you only pull rank when it is absolutely necessary for a case or if someone could be in danger, pulling rank when your not supposed to can get you in a lot of trouble," He explained, ending Dazai a pointed look before turning back to Izaya for conformation. Izaya nodded quickly.
"Is that we are getting many types of training instead of the simple ones?" Izaya questioned, and his superiors nodded. Izaya understood it now, in the position they were in, they had to be prepared for whatever assignment was given to them, whether it was a normal police job or a country-wide mission. It was better to be safe than sorry.
– – – – – –
Izaya was really glad they were given that much training, and Izaya himself knew he had much more training to go before he would go through the official ceremony to become an Agent, at the moment he was considered a trainee by the other detectives. However, he learned that Manami was still a trainee as well, just a few months above him. Since Izaya showed what skills he had while fighting the gunmen, they decided to push him up in the system a little bit.
The raven braided his hair, before dressing in a white tank top and a pair of blue shorts with a white line on both sides. Around his neck was a chain, with his badge attached to it and hidden underneath his tank top. He had decided, because Nowaki said it was important to stay in shape, he would jog to and from work every day. It would keep him in good condition, which was especially important with his job.
The jog was nice, right through the residential area of town and to the Agency. On the way there, Izaya examined the world around him with interest. The sounds, the smells, the colors. It was nice, and he enjoyed the run greatly, though he was slightly winded near the end of it.
Hearing a bark, he slowed to a stop, looking towards the gate of a nearby park and seeing a dog sitting and watching him. Izaya walked forward, reaching his hand towards it, and kneeling to the dog's height. The tilted it's head, before resting it's muzzle in Izaya's palm. Izaya smiled a bit, using his other hand to pet the dog's head.
"You are a very sweet doggy," Izaya told it gently, scratching under it's chin. The dog looked like a pitbull, and she was white with brown spots. There was a very prominent spot over her left eye, and her right ear was completely brown. She was rather adorable, for a dog that most people feared.
When he pulled his hand away, the dog looked at him in confusion, wondering why he had stopped petting it. Izaya checked the time, before he softly said,"I have to go, Inu-chan, or else I'll be late for work"
Then, Izaya turned and jogged away, ignoring the saddened whimpers of the dog. The dog looked rather skinny, though it's belly was swelled a bit. Poor dog must be starving, Izaya would have to bring it back some food on his way home.
Izaya arrived and quickly went to the locker room, where he had left a spare change of clothes for after his jog. He took his backpack off his back and pulled out something he had wrapped in paper. Then, he changed into the outfit he had left behind yesterday.
He now was wearing a blue long sleeved jumper, underneath it was a white dress shirt and black neck tie. His pants were black dress pants with black dress shoes. Once he had put his badge back around his neck, he walked out of the locker room with the item wrapped in paper.
There weren't many people in the offices yet, since it was still pretty early. Izaya looked around for a moment, trying to find Manami's desk. Once he did, he unwrapped the paper with bandaged fingers, reveling the plate that Manami had hit him with yesterday, glued back together. He placed it down softly, before quickly moving away. Even though it didn't hurt when he got hit, falling down all the time wasn't that fun.
He went towards his own desk, until he was suddenly hugged from behind. Izaya grabbed at the arm around his waist, only to see that it was Dazai. "Izzy~! Let's go do more training! You're almost done with the first half of your training before your first assignment!" He said excitedly, grabbing at Izaya's sweater and pulling him toward the door.
"But I didn't get to enter anything into my computer yet.." Izaya muttered remembering Kunikida's words about keeping up with paperwork. Dazai scoffed, hugging Izaya again as he replied,"I never do my paperwork~ Nothing has happened to me yet!"
"SOMETHING WILL HAPPEN TO YOU IF YOU DON'T DO IT SOON, DIPSHIT!" Kunikada suddenly screeched towards his partner, throwing a book at him and making Dazai squeak and run towards the door, dragging a bewildered Izaya with him.
Manami watched them as they passed by her in the hall, her eyes narrowing towards Izaya in anger. "Fucker.." She muttered, walking into the offices with annoyance.
She passed a grumbling Kunikida, and was about to slam her breifcase on her desk when she saw the plate. Her eyes widened slightly behind their lenses, as she picked it up and examined it. The chappy patterned plate would have seemed as good as new if you couldn't see the cracks from where it broke. He fixed it..? She thought in confusion, wondering why he would go out of his way to do something.. Nice for her. Is this a trick?
"You know, you could give him a chance," Kine said from behind her, making her swing around in surprise. Manami looked up at him, and frowned, crossing her arms. "Why should I, after everything he did to me?" She demanded angrily.
Kine looked at the plate, and then continued,"I spoke with him yesterday, before we went back to our apartment. We had coffee together. Manami, he remembered our names, but he had no idea who were were or how he knew us. He barley remembers anything. He doesn't remember what he did to you"
Manami looked at the plate again, before roughly placing it on her desk. "That's no excuse, it's still Izaya," She told him firmly,"He could be tricking us for all we now"
"For what it's worth, I think he's telling the truth," Kine said calmly, before walking to his own desk. Manami didn't know what to say.. Kine trusted Izaya, and he didn't before the raven got shot. Maybe she.. NO! No, he was a liar, a creep, and a manipulative bastard. She couldn't trust him. She couldn't let herself trust him.
If she was hurt any more, she wouldn't make it far.
– – – – – –
"So, we're going to be talking about something important right now, okay?" Dazai told Izaya simply, now in the weapons room with the 24 year old. "All of us have our own style of fighting most of us prefer not to use the.. Louder and more violent equipment. But it's still a good idea to know how to use them," He explained.
He slid open a metal sliding door, revealing a large amount of guns. Ranging from large, small, long, and wide. Izaya blinked in surprise, releasing a whistle. "That's a lot of guns.. Are those even legal?" He softly questioned, pointing to the large RPG's.
Dazai grinned, winking and holding a finger to his lips. "Government agents don't kiss and tell, Izzy," He teased, before grabbing one of the larger guns.
"Um.. Dazai-"
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Dazai excitedly said,"These guns are my favorite!" Izaya backed away slightly, not trustful of the skinny male's ability to hold such a large gun, it was at least five feet long.
Kunikida had walked by the doorway, holding a stack of papers, when he saw what was happening. "Whoa! Dazai! You dumbass!" He yelled, dropping the papers onto a nightstand nearby and running in.
"You idiot! What are you doing?!" He yelled, yanking the gun away from Dazai, then glaring at Izaya. "What was he doing?!"
Izaya shrugged. "Teaching a trainee how to handle guns in the most unsafe ways possible," He said bluntly, causing Dazai to gasp at the betrayal.
Kunikida huffed, before placing the large firearm back on rack. The brunette man then turned and cuffed Dazai hard on the back of the head. "Dumbass! This is why Taichou doesn't let you teach the new trainees!" He snapped, making Dazai pout.
"Here, let's start somewhere sensible," Kunikida continued, calming himself down. He reached to the handguns on the shelves, grabbing one of them and putting the safety on. He then grabbed Izaya's wrist, placing it in his hand. The man's lone crimson eye turned to look at the gun quietly.
Dazai smiled, clapping his hands together. "Alright! Now we can start! The gun you're holding right now is a 9×19mm Walther P99, German semi-automatic pistol.. When you use it, it uses the energy of one shot to reload the next and.." Dazai's voice trailed off suddenly, as he realized that Izaya was shaking.
"I-Izzy?" He asked worriedly. Izaya's lone crimson eye was staring at the handgun in his hand, wide and glazed. The second he saw the gun, his breathing began to pick up, the world fading away around him.
Izaya suddenly wasn't in the weapons room anymore. He was in the streets, there were people all around him. His arms and his stomach throbbed, was this what pain was supposed to feel like?
He looked up, there was someone there. Their face was blurry, but they had a handgun on Izaya as another faceless creature watched from behind. They were going to shoot him. He was going to die..
"Izzy?"
He's going to die.
"Izzy?!"
He's going to die!
"Izzy!"
He's going to die!
"IZAYA!"
Suddenly, a hand slammed down on Izaya's shoulder, shaking him from his horrifying flashback. Izaya shook his head violently, before looking at the handgun in his hand. Releasing a clipped breath, Izaya opened his hand, allowing the gun to drop onto the carpet below them. The raven backed away from it, slamming into the metal lockers behind him.
"No.. No no no no.." Izaya stuttered,"P-please.. D-don't make me t-touch it.." Izaya's body was shaking, his heart beating so fast it sounded like someone was banging a drum in his ears. He was so afraid..
Out of his crimson eye, a lone tear crawled down his cheek. It dangled on his chin for a moment, before falling down to the carpet below, along with the gun.
Kunikida could see what was happening, as he quickly said,"You don't have to touch the gun, Izzy, come on, let's go outside, it's okay now, okay?" Izaya's eye remained glazed over, but he managed to nod, clutching to the side of his senpai's tan jacket. Kunikida led the traumatized male out of the room.
Once they were outside of the room, the knot that was in Izaya's chest seemed to loosen, as he leaned against the wall and hugged himself. It took Izaya several deep breaths to calm down, as several others peeked out of the offices to see what was going on.
"I'm gonna go to my desk now.." He stuttered out, before moving quickly down the hall. Kunikida knew the male was supposed to finish his training today to take his first assignment, but after something stressful like that, the poor kid deserved a break.
– – – – – –
Kine heard the commotion, and wasn't sure what to think when the supposedly fearless informant broker he once knew stumbled in, looking terrified. Nobody else was in the offices except him and Manami, so he felt no shame when he asked,"Are you okay?"
"I.. I don't know.." Izaya stuttered out,"I was just.. I was fine looking at it.. But as soon as they put the h-h.. The thing in my hand.. I was so scared.."
Kine knew why, it was pretty obvious if you thought about it for a moment. "Well, just go sit down, do something to take your mind off of it, okay?" He suggested. Izaya nodded, a little more focus coming into his eyes as he walked back to his desk.
Manami watched him in surprise. It was strange to see Izaya scared, even when he was tricking people he never showed emotions such as fear or concern, and she worked with him long enough to figure that out. He was remembering when that Russian woman shot him, he was having flashbacks? So Izaya was actually capable of fear and weakness.
Pfft.. That doesn't mean he's any different..
Though she said that, there was now a growing sense of doubt in herself. Kine trusted Izaya, her coworker trusted Izaya. She knew why she was holding herself back.. She couldn't just disregard that part of their past though.. She needed more time.
– – – – – –
Things settled down after that, and the day went on as usual.
Izaya finished all the work he could possibly do and was preparing to head home. "Goodbye Kine-senpai, Manami-senpai," He called to them, getting a response from both surprisingly. He almost smiled, before walking out of the offices.
He changed back into his other clothes, and began to jog home. Looking up at the sky for a moment, he frowned. It's starting to get dark and cloudy.. He thought. It looks like it might rain.. I hope that Inu-chan found a place to stay.
Oh, he had nearly forgotten about going and getting the dog some food. He wasn't sure, what did dogs like to eat? He was on a low budget at the moment, but he could probably get a pork bun or something and give the dog the inside of it. So, he stopped his run, and went towards the nearest convince store.
He jogged back towards the back, slowing down again and trying to see the dog through the rain. The dog barked at him before, but now he heard nothing. "Inu-chan?" He called out softly, when he heard a terrified howl.
Izaya frowned, and jogged over to the corners of the park. "Inu-chan?" He called, and heard something clinking. There was the clicking of paws against the ground, and saw a figure coming towards him. It was the dog, whom now had cans tied to her legs, and seemed to have many cuts on her poor body. She whimpered, hiding behind Izaya.
Following quickly behind her was three young kids, and Izaya glared at them. "What's going on? Why are you tormenting this animal?" He demanded, crossing his arms.
The kids froze, one dropping the switchblade they were holding. "I don't see why it's any of your business, dude," The taller kid said.
"Actually, it is my business," Izaya declared, pulling out his badge. "Japan's main animal welfare law is the 1973 Act on Welfare and Management of law makes it a crime to kill, injure, or inflict cruelty on animals without due cause, The penalty for killing or injuring an animal in this category is a fine or imprisonment up to one year; abandonment and cruelty by neglect are punishable with fines"
He looked the boys up and down. "I see no injuries on you, and considering one of you was holding a bloody knife, I have reason to believe you were hurting this dog for no reason. I will, however, let you off with a warning if you walk away right now. If not, I'll show you what happens when you pick on someone your own size," He warned.
The three teens said nothing, before turning and running away. Izaya waited until they were out of sight, before turning and kneel, untying the cans around the dog's paws. The pitbull whimpered thankfully, before licking Izaya's cheek.
"Inu-chan, the vet is closed right now, so how about I take you home with me?" He asked softly,"My home is close, and I have bandages"
The dog didn't reply of course, but nuzzled against Izaya. So, the raven picked the dog up and carried her towards his home. The rain had started to come down just as they got to his apartment, and he placed the dog down and opened the door.
He pushed some boxes out of the way, making room for both of them as he bandaged the dog' wounds. "I don't understand how some people can hurt innocent people.." He told the dog softly, while taping down the wrappings around the pitbull's leg.
"But then again, with my apparent bad past, who am I to judge?" He honestly asked, placing the bandages down. He smiled at the dog, before holding out his hands. "Hey look, we match," Izaya told the dog.
He turned around, pulling a pork bun from the bag he had gotten, and unfolding the bread. He pulled the pork filling out, and held it in one hand to the dog. The pitbull gratefully accepted the food, gobbling it down happily. "Though, we both got our injuries differently," He told her,"I would tell you, but all I know is they got broken, and now I constantly need reinforcement around them just in case. Hence the bandages"
The dog tilted her head, and stared at him curiously. "Of course, not knowing anything is rather painful too.. I know I seem rather apathetic, but not having any memories of friends or family is hard. I'm lonely.. There isn't anyone to talk to, and it seems the only people whom I have found from my old life distrust me. It seems I was not a good person, so that makes it even worse.. But you wouldn't understand that, would you?"
The dog whined, bringing herself closer and licking his cheek. "Ah, of course you would," He realized,"You are a hated dog breed, though you yourself don't understand why that is. It's truly unfair, isn't it, Inu-chan?" As if understanding his words, the dog lied her head on his stomach, clinging as close to him as he possibly could.
"Don't worry Inu-chan," Izaya said softly,"I may not understand emotions so well myself, but I will take care of you from now on, okay?"
The dog opened her mouth, tongue lolling out as her tail wagged behind her happily. She then buried her face into his stomach, giving a rough bark of agreement. Izaya smiled again, and put an arm around the dog's neck, petting her calmly. He found himself feeling extremely relaxed at being with another form of life, and listening to the sound of the rain on his balcony. Soon, he followed his new companion into a peaceful slumber.
– – – – – –
"Bastard.. Ditched me on purpose.."
Manami grumbled, her umbrella over her head as she walked towards her apartment complex, an extra key now on her chappy keychain. It was the key to Izaya's apartment. No, she didn't want to try and kill him anymore, Kunikida was actually the one to give it to them.
"Hey, could you guys please check on Izaya for us?" He asked them hopefully,"After what happened in the weapons room, I was worried that he might have gone into shock after that. When one of you leave, could you go check on him?"
Kine seemed to be trying to make some secret plan of his succeed, as he quickly replied,"Manami can do it, I have to stay behind for a while and file paperwork from our last mission" He tossed the key onto her desk, before getting up and lazily walking out of the room. Manami sent him a glare, but any protest she wanted to make was null and void, as he was already gone.
Manami looked at Izaya's apartment door, before using the key to unlock it. She was tempted to slam it open, but even she wasn't cruel enough to try and scare someone who seemed to have PTSD, especially if it was related to him getting shot like they believed.
The light next to the apartment door was the only thing giving her light into Izaya's apartment. She looked around, and noticed a lump around where most of the boxes were. She stepped into the genkan, not wanting to go much farther than that. She felt around with her hand, before finding the light switch and turning it on.
She now could see Izaya and.. A dog? They were.. Cuddling?
Izaya was showing affection to a living thing?
Izaya's long hair was still in it's braid, an arm around the dog's neck as the dog cuddled against his stomach, slightly bloody bandages around it's legs and other parts of it's body. Manami frowned, he had rescued an animal? That's the only thing she could think of with the information in front of her.
She wanted to accuse him of something bad, but..
Her heart began to hurt again..
Angrily, she shut the light back off, and left the apartment as fast as she could. She shut the door quietly, trying not to let Izaya know she had been there.
Manami placed her back against the wall, and stared out at the rain hitting the roads and the par nearby. She brought one hand up to her mouth, trying to muffle her sobs as tears fell down her cheeks, being highlighted by the flashing lightning. "Stop it.." She whispered quietly.
Her legs shook, and she slid down the door, sniffling sadly. She whimpered, pulling her legs to her chest and hiding her face in her knees, tears dropping into her lap."Please.. Stop it.."
"Stop making it so hard for me to hate you.."