A/N
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
Hmm…I'm afraid I've changed my mind. The more I type, the more I realize that I want this fic to be a pairing fic. Hopefully…I'll write it well! Heh, well, on with Chapter four! Hope you enjoy it!
Chapter Four: Trespassing?
Kurei was walking down one of the long, dark corridors in the Uruha mansion, the mask on his face hiding his thoughtful expression. Out of instinct, he looked down at his left hand, the thoughtful expression turning into a frown. If he were to call out his flame-powers now…people would be surprised. Yes, Kurenai would come out as the winged-angel of flame…but she would be followed by another; a tall, well-built, extremely loyal man.
Did I do the right thing, Kurenai? Should I have left him like that, with his soul intact in his broken body? Did I violate the trust he had in me by absorbing his soul?
He had grown accustomed to not receiving answers to his questions; at least to not receiving answers from Kurenai. It was true that her presence within him, as his main source of power, was comforting, but…that was about the only thing that she was able to do – to come out when he summoned her and to protect him. He was not ruing the fact that he had absorbed her into his flame…but every time he saw her in front of him, protecting him, he felt a sharp, bitter pang somewhere in his chest. It was probably in his heart…but he liked to think that he didn't have a heart. Whether or not that was true he didn't know, but he had to at least act that way, unless he wanted…his father to do something terrible.
Kurenai…you promised that you would always be by my side…and you are…but…why did it have to be like this? Why couldn't you be alive? Like…like everyone else here? Why did you leave me…?
"Are you OUT of your MIND!"
"Oi Neon-han…you should have pursued a career in singing," said the tall, dark-haired man who was standing in front of the orange-haired woman – the only person who wasn't affected by her shriek. "With that lovely soprano voice of yours, you could've – "
" – Why in god's name did you even think of doing such a thing!" interrupted Neon, breathing heavily as she stared at him, "Joker! Look at me! She's – she's a member of the Hokage…you know, the team we are supposed to eradicate?"
"Yeah, yeah, I heard the same thing from Kai-han earlier," said Joker, waving his hand dismissively, "But what did you expect me to do? Leave an unconscious, defenseless girl out there? All alone?" He smirked as he saw Neon open and close her mouth, resembling…a fish out of water. He told her that too, and had to duck as a small, round ornament that had been on one of the tables in the room was flung at him – with deadly intent.
"Fine, I…I understand that, but…why bring her here?" asked Neon, calming down, "Surely you could have…taken her back?"
"Kai-han told me that it would look bad if I, a member of the Uruha, were to take her back to them, unconscious," replied Joker, promptly. He sighed dramatically. "Aw, come on Neon-han, it won't be that bad. She'll just stay here until she wakes up, and then head back to where her friend's are…and face Uruha Ma the day after tomorrow."
"Uruha Ma…oh, that's right, the semi-finals are – " Neon stopped as her blue-eyes widened. "You idiot! When they find out that she's been here all this time, they're going to think that we purposely abducted her in an attempt to make her miss the semi-finals the day after tomorrow – or tomorrow, seeing as how it's almost 12:00 a.m.!"
"Neon-han, must we go through all of this again?" he asked, "If you insist; she was unconscious, the street was deserted, there was a risk of being attacked and – "
Neon shook her head. "Joker is your goal in life to irritate Kurei-sama?" she asked, interrupting him. An offended expression found itself on Joker's face.
"Oi oi, Neon-han! That hurt," he said, sounding offended too, "I never irritate Kurei-han…even though he may not admit it he is extremely amused with my antics." A grin formed on his face, "It takes his mind off things happening around him…and he's grateful for that." His grin widened as he stared at Neon. "He even shows me his gratitude…late at night, when no-one's around…when the two of us – "
" – JOKER!" Laughing, he turned around and made a fast exit out of the room as Neon started looking around for something else to throw at him – something else that would inflict the maximum amount of damage possible.
Kagero stared at her son, her arms crossed across her chest and a rare frown on her face (rare because it was directed at her son, and not at any one else). "Well?" she asked, her voice stern.
Her son hung his head, his bangs covering his troubled eyes as he thought about what was going on. Dammit…I should have realized that something was wrong when she didn't come back earlier…
"Recca, its 11:40 and she isn't back yet," said Kagero, her voice still stern, "Do you have any idea where she might be?"
"Kachan, I told you, I haven't seen her since we had that training session in the morning," said Recca, "And…and I just thought that she went for a walk or something…that's why I was positive that she'd return…"
"Gone for a walk…? Must've been a really long walk," said Mikagami, as he entered through the front door, "By the way, don't you know that you're supposed to lock the front door? Especially at this time at night? Who knows who might saunter in, unhindered?"
"Mikagami-sempai!" exclaimed Yanagi, standing up hurriedly, "Did you find her?" Mikagami's expression softened as he turned to the worried girl. He shook his head slowly.
"No," he said, "There was no sign of her. I even asked the referees and they said they hadn't seen her at all." He turned to Recca, "Are you sure you checked the whole park and everything else?" Recca nodded.
"Yes," he mumbled, "And no-one had seen her – at least not since the morning when she was apparently in the park with you…" Mikagami frowned.
"Do you have any idea where else she may be?" he asked, looking at Recca again.
"No!" half-yelled Recca, "I don't! Why is everyone asking me that?" Mikagami raised his eyebrows.
"Because…you're the one who knows her best," he said, simply, "And because – " He was interrupted when the door burst open again, this time revealing a worried Koganei and a frustrated Domon – who slammed the door shut, behind him, causing Yanagi and Kagero to wince.
"No-one at the dome has seen her," said Koganei, hurriedly, "Saicho said he'd be keeping an eye out for her, but so far, no one's seen her…"
"And I even checked the forest, but there was no sign of her at all," growled Domon, angrily punching his open palm with his fist, "Where could she be?"
Mikagami, who had been listening to Koganei and Domon, turned to Kagero as a sudden thought struck him. "Kagero-san…" he said, slowly, do you have your madougu with you?" Kagero smiled inwardly, knowing what the Ensui-wielder was going to suggest. You aren't the brains of this team for nothing, Mikagami-kun…
She nodded, "Yes, I do," she said, "But the Eikai Gyoku doesn't seem to work here…" She lowered her eyes, downcast, "It was working before…but there seems to be something blocking its power…" she frowned. "It's like some kind of…psychic barrier…"
"Psychic barrier?" asked Mikagami, ignoring the lost looks that Recca, Domon and Koganei were shooting him and Kagero, "But…who - ?" Kagero shook her head.
"I don't know…" she said, "I have been trying to locate Fuuko-chan, but I don't seem to be able to…" It was Yanagi who broke the unsettling silence that had settled amongst them.
"Then…what we do, Kagero-san? Mikagami-sempai?" she asked, quietly. Kagero straightened, making up her mind in a split second.
"I think…that everyone should go out together, and look around at least once more," she said, "Just in case…you've missed something. Start with where Fuuko was seen first, to where she was seen last…"
Recca frowned, "Well no-one's seen Fuuko after we had that training session, so that would be the last place to check," he said. Mikagami nodded.
"And from what you said earlier, I saw her in the park before that," he added.
"In any case, I'd say to go and look around the park," said Kagero, "And…see if you can find anything at all. Come on, let's – " She stopped when Recca stopped her, shaking his head.
"No, Kachan, you have to stay here," he said, nodding at the apartment. " – If Fuuko does come back here, it won't do for her to find this place empty; she'll freak out and go looking for us, and we'd all get lost again," continued Recca, seriously. "You stay here with Hime and – "
" – No," said Yanagi, shaking her head, "I'm coming with you. I want to help find her."
"Hime, I know you do, but still…it's too dangerous – just look at the time…" said Recca, "It'd be best if you – "
"Yanagi-chan, Recca's right," interrupted Kagero, understanding Recca's reason for wanting to keep the two of them inside, away from harm. "Besides, if Fuuko's injured, then…it would be nice if you could heal her…" That stopped Yanagi's argument in mid-sentence. Recca flashed his mother a grateful grin, before turning to the others.
"Come on guys; we've got to get Fuuko!" he said, regaining some of his high-spirits.
"Yeah! Fuuko-sama will have her Prince Domon coming to her rescue!"
"That monkey sure knows how to cause us trouble…" Koganei flashed Kagero and Yanagi a grin, before running after the others, slamming the door behind him.
Kagero made her way towards the empty couch and sank down on it, letting out a weary sigh as she did so.
"I hope she's OK…" whispered Yanagi. Digging her madougu out of her robe, Kagero stared hard at it, before closing her eyes, concentrating on the Fuujin-Wielder. Two minutes later, she opened them only to see a hazy mist inside the Eikai Gyoku. She bit back a frustrated moan. That was the same hazy mist she had been seeing when she had tried using the madougu before.
"I wonder though," she said, quietly, "Who created the psychic barrier in the first place…and, more importantly, why?"
'Your Uruha had better succeed in getting that girl of healing. If they fail to do so…you know what will happen…'
'I guess that Kirisawa Fuuko is the coward here, not willing to come out and fight…' Fuuko stirred, unconsciously, her body twitching under the thick blanket that was covering her.
'All I know is that he's basically an evil, corrupt guy who shouldn't be allowed to live any longer…'
'I'm warning you, if you tell anyone about what you saw in the forest that day…you will regret it, understand…?'
'Why do you care? Would it be a nice story to talk about with your friends?' She let out a soft moan before turning to her side and curling up in a ball.
'Why are you so concerned…?' Even more restless than before, she turned so she was lying down on her stomach and buried her face in the comfortable pillow her head was resting on.
'How do you expect to face Kurei in this condition? Do you think he'd take pity on you just because you're a girl?'
'Recca-kun, if he was evil…would anyone have liked him? Would Kurenai-san have fallen in love with him…?'
'Fuuko what the HELL is wrong with you? Why are you suddenly defending Kurei? He's a FREAK!' Fuuko opened her eyes with a start, feeling as though someone had actually shouted the word 'freak' in her ear. She blinked suddenly, finding that she suddenly couldn't breathe. Even though she was still somewhat half-asleep, she realized why she felt this way and immediately turned over so that she was lying on her back, with her face given plenty of room to breathe as opposed to being suffocated by the pillow she had been sleeping on.
Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, she allowed them to focus on the ceiling…the nice-looking, wooden ceiling. Bored of the ceiling, she turned her neck to her left and winced when she felt the previously subdued pain shoot through it once more.
"Itai…" she moaned, raising her hand and attempting to massage it, only making it worse. Two things struck her at once; the large windows that practically covered the wall, leading out into some kind of balcony…and the absence of the other bed that they had in the room.
She propped herself up on her elbows and looked around the room properly, her fatigue forgotten. This…wasn't the room she was used to…The furniture in the room was wrong – with an elegant writing desk in one corner, a large, wardrobe next to it, a…four-poster bed…
I never slept on a four-poster bed in the apartment! What on earth - ?
Glancing at the large windows and taking in the pitch darkness outside, she could more or less guess that it was nighttime – probably in the middle of the night even. But if she wasn't in the apartment that the Hokage were staying in…where was she? It was then that she felt a sharp pain in her chest, causing her to clutch at it. "What the heck is going on? Why do I hurt so – " Nadare! I…Recca and I had a training session and I was hit by Nadare…
"Che, Recca, that Nadare sure is – " Fuuko's green eyes widened when a rather alarming thought hit her. She…she hadn't gone back to the apartment last night…had she…? She remembered heading towards the apartment after her training session with Recca…and – "Shit. I collapsed."
She hurriedly threw off the bed-covers and got off the bed, not too surprised to see her sneakers by the side. Quickly putting them on, she stood up and thought for a moment, before crossing the room to the writing desk. She steeled herself as her chest and gut started hurting, and, upon reaching the desk, looked on it for anything that would help her figure out where she was. Unfortunately for her, there was nothing on the desk.
She frowned. Great Fuuko-chan…this is really great. You've been out for god knows long…and you wake up to find yourself somewhere you don't know… Her eyes fell on the large, wooden-door to her side – the exit. She bit her lip for a while, wondering whether she should walk out. Who knew what she'd stumble upon in the first place?
She grinned as she touched her Fuujin. Since when has Kirisawa Fuuko been scared about what she'd stumble upon? Confidence rising inside her, she headed towards the door. Let's see what this place is…and more importantly, where it is…
Kurei looked up when he sensed the presence of one of the maids outside the large doors. "Come in," he said, curtly, as he heard the faint knocking. He heard the doors being opened but didn't bother to look up as the young, long-haired maid entered.
"Your tea, Kurei-sama…" said the black-haired girl, curtsying as she placed the tray on the low table that was close to the plush, comfortable arm-chair he was sitting on. He nodded.
"Hnn," was all he said, as he waited for the maid to leave. He looked up with a small frown on his face when she didn't. "What?"
"Uh, I was wondering whether you wanted anything else, Kurei-sama…" said the maid, flustered. This was the first time she had seen the masked man without his mask…and the scar on the left side of his face made her squirm.
"No." Curtsying again, the maid took her leave, closing the library doors behind her. Putting aside the book he had on his lap, he leaned forward and, pulling the single tea-cup closer to him, poured out some of the hot tea into it, adding two tea-spoons of sugar afterwards and stirring it well. Testing the tea, he winced and put it back down at once – it was too hot for him to drink.
Glancing ahead of him, his gaze rested on the large windows that were right in front of him. Even though the sky outside was dark, he could see a few specks of glimmering light – from the stars. The library itself was dark, save for the steady light that the lamp on an ornately carved table beside him emitted, just enough for him to read without straining his eyes, and not too bright to light up the whole room.
The library in the mansion had always fascinated him, ever since he had been a kid. The tapering shelves of books of numerous genres and widths had somehow captured his attention…It might have been the nostalgic smell of age that the books carried with them…or it might have been the quietness of the room – with its large doors shut, you couldn't hear anything that happened outside…unless it was really loud – but he had been fascinated by the room from the very beginning. It was like being in a separate world altogether…and it helped that he liked reading.
He frowned as an unpleasant topic popped into his mind. Namely about the prospect of traitors in his Uruha…and the conversation he had had with Raiha earlier, regarding the traitors. It was difficult to figure out every single traitor…but it was even more difficult figuring out who was loyal to him. It was easy to say that Raiha…Neon and even Joker were loyal to him, along with Kai and Noroi…but, at the moment, out of his Jyushinshuu, they were the only ones he was sure of. And there were others that he didn't know about.
He shook his head lightly. It wasn't often that he had the chance to spend a relaxing, peaceful night in the library…he shouldn't spoil everything by dwelling on such dark topics. Letting out a deep breath, he lifted his hand and brushed strands of black-hair out of his eyes…something he tended to do when he was unsure of something or the other. As he lowered his hand, he caught sight of the white cloth that was wrapped around it…the white handkerchief, rather.
Kirisawa Fuuko…
Before he could do anything to stop them, thoughts and events concerning the Hokage's Fuujin-Wielder struck him, as. He couldn't remember much of what happened in the forest – concerning her…but he remembered the look on her face when he had confronted her the next day, threatening her. He remembered the sour expression on her face when he had asked her whether she just wanted to talk about him and his past with her friends. Despite all of his threats, she had still wanted to know why he did it; why he called that man Chichiue…and why he listened to what he said.
It was hard to believe that people could afford to be naive – she had said that if it was her she wouldn't have called such a man 'father.' A small, rueful smile formed on his face. If only she knew why he still called him 'father.' The smile disappeared off his face as he remembered something she had said. She had asked him whether he was doing what he was because there was someone else around with a bomb inside them. Judging by the company she kept, he was surprised at her sharpness at picking things up. He smirked; It must be Mikagami's influence…I doubt whether Recca or anyone else would have influenced her in this way…
Again, the smirk disappeared off his face as he thought back to what he and Raiha had heard her tell Recca earlier that morning, when the two of them had had a training-session/fight. 'We're just judging him from what we've seen him do…is that really fair?' She had even gone to the extent of saying that he had a good-side to him…When no-one else even thought about such a thing before…
It surprised him that a previously normal high-school girl could manage to hold herself together enough to take part in a tournament as brutal as the Urabutousatsujin. Yes, she had only had one match so far…and it hadn't been too impressive, with Fujimaru of Team Kuu attempting to strip her of her clothes…but even then, she managed to stay as calm as possible, before punching the lights out of the pervert.
The smile returned to his face as he remembered that particular scene; the girl in the ring, reduced to her underwear…towering over a cowering Fujimaru. As he had watched the match with Raiha – whose face had turned an odd colour of magenta – he remembered the spark of admiration that had been created in him. Most females, he knew – with the exception of the Uruha females who wouldn't have cared even if they were stark naked in the ring as long as they won – would have crumbled when their clothes were repeatedly sliced off. But not her…oh no.
After witnessing her fight with Recca earlier in the morning, he couldn't help but wonder whether her match in the next round would be interesting. Yes, she hadn't managed to defeat Recca, but she had been very close to winning, not to mention that she had showed Recca how dangerous it could be to face someone who had observed his attacks quite well – Mikagami would probably have been able to defeat Recca in a training-session/fight, given the fact that he was the most observant of the whole Hokage…save for Kagero, perhaps.
The two individuals stared; they couldn't really help it. " – Joker," said Neon, forcing her voice to sound calm, "Where is she?" Joker scratched his head, looking lost.
"I have no idea, Neon-han," he said, sounding surprised, "But I swear, I left her here. Ask Kai-han if you don't believe me; I brought her here, took her shoes off and tucked her in." He glanced at the side of the bed and noticed the missing shoes. "Oi…her shoes are missing…maybe she's gone exploring…?"
"If she's wandering around the mansion," said Neon, sounding too calm, "…Isn't there a great chance of her running into…Kurei-sama?"
Joker cocked his head to a side before nodding. "Hai there is a surprisingly great chance of that!" Neon scowled.
"And what do you think will happen to her when she runs into him and he attempts to fry her for trespassing!" she half-yelled. Joker blinked rapidly – well, you couldn't see him blink, but you could sense that he did.
"Aa…I didn't think of that," he admitted, scratching his head, "Maybe she'll tell him the truth – that she doesn't know how she's here – and he'll believe her?"
Neon snorted, "And perhaps he'd then be so kind as to offer to walk her back to the apartment…" she muttered. She sighed, not exploding on Joker for a change – something that surprised the tall man. "I don't care much for the Hokage or for her, but I think we should go and find her," she said, resignedly, "Especially before she bumps into someone else…someone who's not as…nice as we are…"
She turned around and headed towards the door. "Come on, let's go and look for her. If you find her, just bring her back to the room, OK? Do you have a problem?" asked Neon, acidly, as she saw Joker open his mouth as though to protest.
"Well…if I had one, I've forgotten about it now," said Joker, as she narrowed her eyes in his direction, "Come on Neon-han…time to start Operation; Rescue Fuuko-han!"
Neon fought the urge to moan. Kurei-sama…WHY did you let him join the Uruha? Much less the Jyushinshuu?
Kurei glanced around the room absently and his eyes fell on the book that he had been reading, before certain thoughts had plagued him. As he continued to gaze at the book, everything he had been thinking about disappeared from his mind, causing him to reach out for the paper-backed edition. Testing his tea and finding it perfect, he sipped it for a while, before putting the teacup down and picking up the book in his hands.
It was a novel by the author Louis deBernieres, titled Captain Corelli's Mandolin. He had never read this particular novel before, but Joker had lent it to him, highly recommending it. At first, he hadn't been sure whether he wanted to read it or not – especially given the fact that he didn't really trust Joker's taste in books – but he had finally decided to give it a try, and was pretty surprised to find that it was good. It was set during the time-period of World War II, and it mainly focused on the effects the war had on the island of Cephallonia, a Greek island.
The Italians and the Germans invaded Cephallonia one after the other, although the Italians weren't really quite sure why they did so. It took some time, but eventually, the resilient islanders grew somewhat fond of the Italians…although the Germans were a different story. What surprised him…was that the main female character – a young, intelligent, beautiful Greek woman – fell in love with an Italian Captain…who was a part of the army that was invading her homeland. They were afraid of their love for each other, as they knew that the people around them – society – would not approve of it; he was invading her homeland and she was a part of the people he was supposed to oppress.
He hadn't finished the book yet – he rarely got time to read peacefully – but it intrigued him that the woman had fallen in love with the enemy. He could not fathom how such a thing was possible. Why would they fall for the enemy? Did they not have their ideals? Did they not mind what each was doing to the other? It was like…someone from the Hokage…falling in love with someone from the Uruha…and vice-versa.
He shuddered; there was no chance that such a thing would happen. Recca was already in love with the girl of healing…and it was quite clear that Mikagami was too…and that he wouldn't really love anyone else in the Uruha. Ishijima Domon was obviously in love with the Fuujin-Wielder…and he doubted whether Kagero was in love with anyone else. Koganei…well, he was still young…and that left…the Fuujin-Wielder herself. Now that's an interesting thought. I wonder…
Frowning once more, he shook the thought away from his head. He was not going to dwell more on the Hokage, dammit. Taking another few sips of his now somewhat cold tea, he leaned back in the plush armchair and started reading from where he had left off.
She passed by the corridor aligned with portraits of scary looking people, making faces at them as she did so. It wasn't that she disrespected them…but they just looked so weird…especially in the mediocre amount of light in the corridor, and all over the place at this time at night…or maybe it was already the next day – she didn't know.
As she headed towards the staircase she had spotted, she walked past an opened window. The cool breeze that blew in through it made her stop and walk towards it. Looking out, she could only see a few blobs of light in the distance…the rest was darkness – and trees from the looks of the silhouettes. Lifting her gaze to the sky, she smiled to herself as she saw the mere handful of twinkling stars.
She couldn't help but grin; her situation was something like that of a girl in a fairy-tale or something like that. She had passed out, and woken up to find herself in some place she didn't know – but from the looks of it, it was an elegant place…and now, she was peering out into the night through an opened window whose light curtains were fluttering in the breeze…
All that was missing now was for a tall, handsome male to come up behind her, startling her while flashing a genuine smile that displayed practically all of his pearly-whites. Her grin widened. Yanagi should have been the one in this situation – she was the more romantic type, not her…
The sound of footsteps nearing her wiped the grin off her face, and she whirled around, alert. She didn't know why, but something told her that even though she honestly didn't know how she had ended up where she was, it wouldn't be too good to be caught by someone she didn't know. Frowning, she looked around her and noticed a fairly large statue of some woman – or rather, it was a Greek goddess. Guessing that it would do, she snuck behind it, grateful for the fact that the statue was big enough.
She did her best to stifle a gasp when she saw a cloaked figure stop walking and turn his head in the direction of the window…and the statue. She recognized that cloaked man…with the strange looking mask. Magensha…? Heh, well, so much for thinking that a tall handsome male should come up behind me…Fuuko-chan no baka.
The slight amusement that she felt disappeared when she saw that Magensha hadn't moved – he was still staring in her direction. Magensha…shit! This...this place…what IS this place? Why the hell is MAGENSHA here? She didn't have time to think about it any longer as Magensha started walking towards her. She stiffened; she could really feel his powerful aura.
"…What's this…?" Her face paled when she heard the leader of Uruha Ma speak. "Since when has Athena worn…sneakers?" Fuuko sweat-dropped as she looked down at her shoes. Damn… "Why don't you just come out, whoever you are?" Weighing her chances, Fuuko decided that it would probably be best for her to make a quick getaway. Magensha didn't seem to know who she was at the moment…so she had a slight advantage. If she could just…get away in time…
Taking a deep breath, she raised her arm and shot blades of wind at him. "Fuujin Kamaitachi!" She winced as the statue of the goddess was blasted into separate pieces, mentally apologizing to it.
"What the – " Taking advantage of his momentary surprise, Fuuko dodged out from the corner, behind the now ruined statue, and dashed down the corridor, heading towards the staircase she had seen a while ago. " – You're – Hokage's…Kirisawa Fuuko!" she heard Magensha exclaim, but paid no heed to him as she reached the stairs. "What are you doing here! Stop right there!" She took the steps two at a time, her heart thumping in her chest. She could clearly remember what had happened to Jisho, and she sure as hell wasn't going to let that happen to her.
Jumping down the last two steps, she paused for a brief moment and looked to her left and then to her right. The landing looked pretty much the same as the one she had just left. Forgetting about being picky, she ran to her left, hoping she was getting far away from Magensha, when he suddenly appeared right in front of her. She let out a yelp, before skidding to a halt and running in the opposite direction. Turning the corner, she spotted a set of double-doors. Without pausing to think of anything else, she pushed against the doors. She had to get inside…
Kurei, deeply engrossed in the book he was reading, looked up when he heard a yelp. Mentally taking note of the page he had stopped at, he honed his senses, trying to figure out where the yelp had come from. It was then that he heard it; someone was pushing against the library doors…earnestly too. And what was even more surprising, was that he couldn't recognize the life-force of whoever it was. He stood up, ready to go forward and wrench the door open, when he felt Magensha's life-force nearby, and stopped.
Magensha's here? What's going on? Being no fool, he had been suspicious of where Magensha's true loyalty laid. Thus, he wasn't ready to just sit around and wait as he approached him. Frowning, he stepped into the shadows, half-sheltered by one of the many book-shelves in the library, curious to see what Magensha wanted. Whatever it was, he was sure it wasn't to read one of the books in the room.
Fuuko rushed into the room, and pushed the door shut behind her. Breathing heavily and knowing that Magensha would open the door soon, she looked around the room, trying to figure out where she was. Ignoring the protests of her sore neck and her heaving chest, she took a few steps forward, rather thankful that the room was dark. She saw various shapes…that looked like shelves, and guessed that the room was a library. The only light that streamed into the room was from a small lamp somewhere in the distance – and it only lighted the area it was in.
Hearing something push against the door, she let her body take control of her mind, and ran towards one of the shelves on the side. Since it was dark, she had a better chance of hiding from Magensha…unless of course, he knew where the light switches were…and switched them on. Keeping her eyes on the door, she moved backwards, thinking of seeking shelter behind perhaps the third or fourth shelf, instead of the first, when she knocked into something. Or rather, someone.
She opened her mouth but whatever she had been about to say was cut off when a hand slipped over her mouth, and when she was pulled backwards and pushed on to the ground, with an arm – ironically the one with the Fuujin on it – twisted behind her. What the hell - ?
"Kirisawa Fuuko…" called Magensha, as he entered the library, "I know you're in here…" He listened intently for anything out of the ordinary, but heard nothing. "You can't hide from me, Fuuko…so why not make things easier for the two of us?" He turned sharply to his right when he sensed a different presence in the room.
His stiffened when he heard the familiar deep voice. "What do you want, Magensha?"
"Kurei-sama…" he said, bowing his head slightly, "Forgive me if I'm disturbing you…but, I'm afraid we have an intruder in the mansion. Hokage's Kirisawa Fuuko's somehow managed to get inside. Kurei smirked from his place behind the bookshelf.
"Is that so…" he murmured, applying force on the arm that he was twisting, and pressing his knee on the Fuujin-wielder's back. "And why are you here…?"
"She came inside here, Kurei-sama. We should find her, don't you think…?" asked Magensha.
"If she's in here, she'll eventually have to come out," answered Kurei, "It doesn't matter…you may go."
"But – Kurei-sama – "
" – Do you think that I cannot deal with someone as inexperienced as that, Magensha?" interrupted Kurei, coldly. He sensed the flicker in Magensha's life-force.
"N-no, of course not Kurei-sama…" He bowed his head again, not knowing where exactly his master was. "If…if you're sure about this…I'll…leave.."
Kurei nodded. "Yes," he said, "And train hard for your match against the Hokage. It shouldn't be too hard to get rid of them." He applied more pressure onto the Fuujin-wielder's back as she squirmed around, clearly not agreeing with his comment. Unfortunately for her, the hand he had clamped over her mouth prevented her from saying anything.
"As you wish, Kurei-sama." Kurei listened carefully until he heard the sound of the door being closed…and until he felt Magensha's life-force fade away.
"………" he released the girl when she bit his hand, and stood up abruptly, glaring down at her. He watched her silhouette as she stood up, breathing heavily. Leaving her for a second, he moved forward until he reached the nearest light-switch. He flicked it on, satisfied to see that only the nearest light to him was switched on – the light that hung on the ceiling above him.
He turned back and looked at the Hokage fighter…his eyes narrowed. Fuuko, sensing someone's eyes on her, looked up, still massaging her arm. Her own eyes narrowed when she saw him.
"What?" she asked, rudely. Kurei raised his eyebrows at her as he took a few steps forward.
"It won't do to be rude, Fuuko," he said, calmly, "Especially when you're guilty of trespassing." Fuuko's green eyes widened even more and she stopped massaging her arm.
"T – Trespassing…?" she stammered. It all hit her then. Of course! Why else would Magensha be here? And why else would…would HE be here? "So…this…this is the Uruha mansion?"
Kurei nodded lazily, "Yes," he said, before his voice turned cold, "Care to tell me what you're doing here?" Fuuko opened her mouth to give him a witty response, but quickly closed it, realizing that she didn't have a witty reply. Not to mention that it probably wasn't wise to give him a witty reply.
"I – well…uh…that's to say…erm – " She tried to duck but failed as he reached forward and gripped her neck again, the expression on his unmasked face dangerous.
"What are you doing here?" he hissed, "Were you sent to spy on me?" He was taken aback when Fuuko, for the lack of any other means of brushing him away, dug her nails into his hand – that was gripping her neck – and attempted to kick him…well, somewhere where it would have hurt. He loosened his grip on her neck as he moved to avoid her kick.
"My neck's still sore after what you and – and Neon did to it…so can you please stop targeting it?" asked Fuuko, looking directly into his deep-blue eyes. As he looked into her green orbs, he saw the defiance in them…along with honesty. Shrugging, he released his grip on her neck, pushing her roughly backwards as he did so. As Fuuko steadied herself, he didn't miss the way she grimaced and clutched hurried at her chest.
He didn't take his gaze away from her. "Well?" Fuuko looked up with a scowl on her face.
"For god's sake, I'm not trespassing," she said, standing up straight, "Or rather…I didn't know I was trespassing…" She glared at him. "If you MUST know how I ended up here, I was walking back to the apartment that the Hokage stays in – taking the longer route back because I wanted to think about something – when I collapsed." She placed her hands on her hips, "And the next thing I know what I wake up, is that I'm in this freaky place with even freakier people!"
Kurei raised his eyebrows. Even freakier people? "……………"
"So, would you care to explain to me how I ended up here?" asked Fuuko, staring defiantly at him.
"You expect me to believe that story of yours…?"
"Story of mine - ?" Fuuko's green eyes narrowed again. "Are you – implying that…I'm lying?"
"To put it simply, yes."
"…W-why you…" Fuuko's voice trailed off as she was unable to think of a suitable word with which to describe him. "Look, don't you think that I have better things to do than sneak into the weird-ass mansion?" She sighed heavily, "Besides, if I had snuck in, wouldn't one of your guards have detected my presence and then kicked me out?"
Kurei frowned inwardly. Hmm…that IS true…someone WOULD have spotted her. Then…is she, perhaps, telling the truth…? But then how did she end up here?
Fuuko grinned victoriously at the man's silence. As she looked at his face, she was…surprised to see how relaxed it was. Yes, she had seen him without his mask before…as had the rest of the Hokage, but…she had never seen, or rather thought that he would be this relaxed. Her grin widened as she watched him reach up and brush his bangs out his eyes, rather annoyed. It hadn't struck her before…but…if not for her prior knowledge of him and what exactly he was capable of doing…he would have looked pretty normal. Even though the scar stained the side of his face, it didn't mar his image too much – rather, it…made him stand out…adding to his mysterious image…
Kirisawa Fuuko…WHAT the HELL was THAT? What on EARTH are you THINKING? This…this man…he's…urgh! Never mind him! STOP!
Kurei looked up when he sensed the grin on the Fuujin-wielder's face and raised his eyebrows when he saw her staring at him. He watched her eyes followed his movements, even as he brushed his bangs from his eyes, and watched as her grin stayed on her face. Needless to say, he was somewhat surprised to see her shake her head, looking as though she was immersed in an internal dialogue with herself. She flushed when she looked at him again and saw the smirk that had found itself on his face. Why was…she staring like that…?
"Uh, well, I'm sorry to be wasting your valuable time, Kurei," said Fuuko, bowing her flushing face and mentally berating herself for her actions. What if he started thinking…no, stop it, Fuuko-chan! "I'll be going then…" She headed towards the door, and walked past him – her tensed body relaxing when she made it past him without being attacked, burnt or harmed in any other way. She had only taken a few more steps forward, when he stopped her.
"Wait."
A/N
Heh…I wonder, why did Kurei ask her to wait? Hmmmm? Well, that's it for this rather long chapter! Hope you enjoyed it! Reviews please!
See ya!
Siriusgirl1