Author's Note: So, I didn't finish this fic by the end of 2017 (you really should stop believing me when I say these things), but since my latest update time was less than two years, that's something. Thanks for all of the lovely reviews! Your anguished responses certainly made my day :')
"What did you say about Big Bro?!"
For a moment, Naki's violent response was met with a stunned silence. He even seemed shocked by his own outburst, swinging his head back and forth to find the cause of his anguish. Kaneki took a reflexive half-step back and then instantly regretted drawing any attention to himself or Hide.
Maybe he didn't realize it was Hide who said it. Maybe he thought it was someone else.
Naki had been fooled by less, after all.
Kaneki's fingers tightened their grip around Hide, his dark nails scraping against the velcro padding on his CCG uniform. The only CCG-related thing in the room. Naki snarled and lurched forward, drawing his right arm and kagune back.
"Were you the one who said it? Huh, dove-dove?"
No such luck.
He could feel Hide tense and Kaneki realized he felt just as anxious. What were you thinking, Hide? The words didn't carry the same exasperated fondness as they used to when Hide would concoct ridiculous schemes as a child.
Before Hide or Kaneki could respond, Naki screeched and dove forward.
Whether he was acting on instinct or delaying Hide's death for his own dark purposes, Rakko moved to intercept Naki's attack, wrapping his own kagune around Naki's koukaku protrusion and yanking backwards. The latter instantly recoiled at the personal affront, turning his anger to Rakko.
"Huh? Did you kill Big Bro?" Naki's eyes widened as he lunged towards Rakko, teeth flashing and chomping the air in an attempt to bite himself free. Upon seeing their boss change targets—indeed, a more formidable one at that—Naki's twin bodyguards leaped to his aid, their own kagune drawn.
As this had happened in a few seconds, the rest of the ghouls gawked at the exchange, too stunned to comprehend the sharp turn of events, much less intervene. Ayato reacted first, simultaneously growling under his breath while shouting for Naki to stop. He jerked his head back and forth, from Rakko to the bodyguards and back to Naki, and settled for an even louder bellowing.
Kaneki was temporarily transfixed by the chaos. Naki had landed a particularly deep bite on Rakko's shoulder, ripping his head back and spraying the room with dark ghoul blood. Kaneki's nose twitched instinctually, his spine prickling in uncertainty. Should he activate his kagune? Should he join the fight too?
"Go!"
Hide's hoarse whisper jarred Kaneki out of his stupor. He glanced down to meet Hide's eyes, so wide that his chestnut irises seemed stranded in seas of white.
"Kaneki, run!"
Kaneki nodded numbly before backpedaling, keeping his wary gaze fixed on Rakko. Rakko, who was attempting to extract his leg from the salivating jaw of one of Naki's bodyguards, caught sight of their hasty retreat. He growled something, lost under Naki's shrieks of "Boss! Boss!", but Kaneki could feel the murderous intent. He struggled harder to escape, to catch them and rip them both apart, but another ghoul entered the fray and tangled herself in Rakko's kagune.
The moment Kaneki moved out of sight of the conference room door, he turned and ran, keeping Hide firmly grasped in his iron clutches. If he dropped Hide or if they fell due to his recklessness, then all of that terror and carnage would have been for nothing.
After several minutes of sustained running, Kaneki slowed, fearing his heart would burst if he kept moving. He was stronger than he had ever been, certainly, but he had been carrying Hide for what seemed like hours. Kaneki could feel Hide trembling sharply, though he couldn't blame him. Kaneki always felt at unease when interacting with the Aogiri executive team—and he was part of them.
"Hide—" It still felt so wonderfully strange to say his best friend's name "Hide, are you okay?"
Hide pulled his face away from Kaneki's chest, but Kaneki was surprised to see a crinkled-eyed grin instead of tears.
"Hide—you're laughing…?"
He knew some people reacted to intense situations in different ways. Touka and Nishiki always resorted to some sort of cathartic violence, but Hide's frame-shaking laughter stunned him.
"I'm—I really shouldn't be laughing—aha, and maybe I'm just so—so, ha, nervous. But that worked so much better than I thought it would!"
Kaneki stared blankly at his friend. So Hide did have a plan. He almost regretted asking, but he figured it would be a better conversation topic than some of the other things they were past due to talk about.
"What plan?"
They were far outside of the main compound now. Kaneki knew from past experiences that no one would be patrolling this far outside of range. He gently set Hide down against a fallen tree, watching as his best friend scooted and wriggled with discontent sighs until he was acceptably comfortable.
Typical. He's fine being carried through a high-ranking ghoul conference, but leaning against a tree draws the line. Kaneki hid a rueful smile. He knew they weren't safe—judging by the malice in Rakko's glare, Hide would never be safe—but he felt secure enough to enjoy the small pleasures again.
"What plan?" Kaneki repeated. He reviewed the chaotic events that led up to their escape: Ayato's anger, Naki's loss of control, Rakko's unsettling act. As far as Kaneki could see, it all felt circumstantial and very lucky to him.
Hide prodded at his leg injury while he spoke, investigating the fresh beads of blood that dribbled from the stained cloak binding. Kaneki's stomach twisted; apparently, he hadn't been as gentle as he had thought during their panicked flight. He was, however, relieved to note that at least the smell no longer registered in his normally rolling and rumbling stomach.
"I was hoping that if the leader guy got angry or distracted, then we would have a chance to slip away." Hide winced, patting his stomach gingerly from where Ayato had kicked him. "I didn't think he'd be that angry though. And I definitely didn't expect that other guy to freak out."
Hide paused, a shit-eating grin appearing on his bruised and mottled face. Kaneki eyed the expression warily, knowing it had to be tender.
"He was Touka-chan's brother, right? The resemblance was uncanny."
"Yes." Kaneki mashed his lips together. "That was a very stupid thing to do, Hide."
Hide laughed again and shook his head. "I can't believe I missed hearing you call me an idiot."
Kaneki's stern expression faded as he mirrored Hide's smile. "I mean it," he insisted. "Especially telling them about…Jason." Kaneki swallowed thickly, though he knew there was nothing in his throat other than the soured aftertaste of nightmares. Truthfully, he felt a bit sick that Hide even knew who Jason was. "If Ayato remembers what you looked like, he'll try to bring you to the rest of Aogiri Tree. Couldn't you have come up with a less dangerous story…?" Kaneki trailed off at Hide's suddenly serious expression.
"Kaneki," Hide began gently, almost uncertainly as if he were testing the water. "It wasn't something I made up. I actually did that stuff."
Kaneki blinked, uncomprehending. "What?"
Hide resumed his picking at the Aogiri cloth bound around his calf, yanking on one of the crusty, crimson threads. He jerked his gaze back up, meeting Kaneki's blank expression with a solemn frown.
"I stopped by Anteiku the night you were taken. It was…everything was broken and they were so upset. The door was open—completely off its hinge actually—and the windows and mugs were shattered. I was just standing there, trying to figure out what to do."
"I asked the little girl while she was sweeping up glass. Hinami. I think that's what her name was. She was so distracted that she didn't even realize who I was, that I was a human. She said that Yamori had taken away her big brother."
Hide paused for a moment to order his thoughts. Kaneki listened intently. He had been unconscious at this point, already trapped in Yamori's nightmare. No one had informed him of the aftermath. He hadn't thought to ask.
"I didn't know what else to do, so I decided to follow him and hope that I could figure out a way to find you. There wasn't much else I could do." Hide's voice grew quieter, perhaps a bit meeker. "I wore an old coat from a ghoul and pretended to drop some coins by his feet. I slipped a tracker on him and reported his location to the CCG." Hide's gaze jumped to Kaneki's white hair.
"I guess I was too late to stop everything."
He had read the reports from the other investigators regarding the various torture rooms. The shriveled appendages, the discarded wire-cutters.
Throughout Hide's confession, Kaneki's expression had slowly morphed from confusion to muted horror. He reluctantly recalled the graphic scenes he endured during Jason's torture. He had fought so hard to keep his untainted memories of Hide from the monster's eager, greedy grasp, but Hide—the real Hide—had been in danger the whole time. He had risked his life, waging a battle of skills against a deadly ghoul. All to try to save Kaneki.
Kaneki still wasn't sure how to react, lips faintly parted as his eyes darted around, searching for the right response as if it were scrawled on the nearby tree trunks.
Hide sensed Kaneki's uncertainty and forced an unconvincing chuckle. "But enough about that. It wasn't even that dangerous." Hide tried to downplay it all. "He must have had a head cold or something—which, can ghouls even get sick?—because he didn't even look twice at me."
Hide smiled brightly, but his stomach clenched at the memory. No, it hadn't been as risk-free as he made it all seem, but he didn't want to give Kaneki any more white hairs.
(Hide groaned internally. That was bad.)
He leaned across his desk, propping his chin on his interlaced fingers.
"Shouldn't you be on bed rest or something?"
Amon shifted the weight to his good leg, causing his crutches to creak with the motion.
"I was cleared for noncombative duty."
Marude hoisted an eyebrow upwards. "If so, then what are you doing in my office with a case file? Aren't there waste bins closer to your desk?"
He cleared his throat before hobbling closer to his supervisor's desk. "Our mission from yesterday—the raid on the warehouse."
"Yes, I heard. We took some casualties, didn't we?" Marude's puckered frown tightened. "According to the reports, there was some confusion on entrances."
Amon nodded. He almost began to explain how their assigned entrance had been destroyed, but he decided to skip the nonessential conversations and cut straight to why he had come. After all, Nagachika's life was at stake. Already a day had passed since they had seen him last.
He dropped the file on Marude's desk, causing the older man to lean back in surprise at the papery smack. "Our investigation assistant—Hideyoshi Nagachika—was assigned to be on that mission."
"Nagachika…?" Marude narrowed his eyes, considering the name before snapping his fingers. "Nagachika… Oh, right! That excitable part-timer." He flipped through the file, humming at each familiar name. "That's not possible. Investigation assistants aren't deployed for—" He broke off, frowning when he came to Amon's squad on the assignment list.
Leader: Koutarou Amon.
Squad Members: Akira Mado, Seidou Takizawa, Hideyoshi Nagachika.
Marude's eyebrows knotted together, wriggling on his forehead like frustrated caterpillars.
"There must have been some mistake then."
"Do you know how he got on this list?"
Marude shook his head. "Someone should have caught it. I'll put a strict word in to the Assignments Department."
Amon felt his shoulders slacken. A strict word wouldn't be much help in finding Nagachika, but he doubted his superior could offer any more help on the matter. After all, it would be irresponsible to ask for more resources or agents in tracking down a missing investigation assistant. Especially one who shouldn't have been on the mission in the first place.
"Please let me know if you find out why he was on the list." It was the best that Amon could hope for, since this lead felt like it was growing dry.
"Sure, sure," Marude flipped his wrist dismissively, already distracted by a new thought. The phone on his desk buzzed and he sighed, reaching for the handset.
Amon dipped his head respectfully and turned to leave.
"Oi! That Nagachika—"
He turned expectantly. Marude covered the mouthpiece with a palm.
"I still don't know what brought him to the CCG in the first place, running around with tips on ghoul syndicates. Make sure to keep an eye on the kid." He waggled the phone in Amon's direction for extra emphasis.
He smiled weakly at Marude. "We'll try," he murmured, but his superior had already turned back to grunting in the telephone. Amon moved gingerly to the door and froze when his knuckles brushed against the brass handle.
Tips on ghoul syndicates.
Perhaps they had another lead.
When Amon pushed through the door to their tiny workspace, Seidou was the first to react, rising quickly from his chair. He had been discharged from the hospital earlier that morning, following the completion of a mandated 12-hour observation period.
(Amon had ordered him half-heartedly to take the day off, but after Seidou gave his crutches a pointed look, Amon decided to drop the issue.)
"Did Marude-san say anything?"
"Anything important?" Akira added, her clarification earning an extra roll of the eye from Seidou.
Amon shook his head, settling down in the chair that Seidou had vacated with a relieved grunt. "Not particularly. He didn't know why Nagachika was assigned to be on that mission. Said it must have been some mistake."
Akira's nose wrinkled in disgust. If Nagachika's death had been because of some mistake made by one of their superiors… She sighed. No, it wouldn't be the first time.
"But did he say anything else? Anything that could help?" Seidou pushed harder. To him, this was their best lead.
"Not about why Nagachika might have been on the list. But he did remind me of something—the reason Nagachika was assigned to our team in the first place."
Akira nodded knowingly. It was now Seidou's turn to be confused. He had been the last to officially join the "team" as Nagachika affectionately dubbed it, despite collaborating with Amon and Akira repeatedly in the past. By the time he started working full time with them, Nagachika had already been absorbed into Akira's and Amon's confidence. He assumed that Nagachika's promotion had something to do with his eager, bright personality.
"Huh? Wasn't it just because he was a hard worker? That's what he told me."
Amon shook his head again. Neither Marude or Nagachika had offered an explanation for the full circumstances. Katsuya, who had been beside Marude during Nagachika's impromptu "promotional" hearing, was the one who told him afterwards.
He briefly summarized the story. Seidou absorbed it with an awed blink.
"Honestly didn't think Nagachika had it in him," he murmured, impressed. "But…" Seidou's brow furrowed as he considered his coworker's secret stealth skills. "The raid on the 11th Ward base was how we got most of our intelligence for later assaults against Aogiri. If we didn't have that, we would have been months behind. Do you think the ghouls found out about Nagachika being a spy?"
Amon frowned. He wasn't sure either. If Nagachika didn't even tell his partners about his tip to the CCG, then he doubted that anyone else would have found out. Other than himself, Akira, and now Seidou, the only other people who knew would have been Marude and Katsuya.
"I don't know how they would have. Even if there was a mole in the Bureau, any personal information about informants is confidential." Akira countered, crossing her arms. "None of this is helpful information. We should see if any of the other investigators know anything else." From her perspective, the tip from her father's old partner was their best lead to follow. The warehouse had been dark, but who knows what else someone might have seen?
"I still think it has to mean something," Seidou insisted, leaning forward. "Ghouls don't kidnap random CCG agents for science experiments, so there has to be something that made Nagachika a target."
"How would they have even known he would be there?"
"I don't know!"
Amon remained silent, trying to drown out his subordinates' squabbling. They only resorted to bickering when stressed, but he didn't have the energy to add more volume to the fray. Seidou clearly thought that they should be pursuing Nagachika's past as an amateur ghoul tracker, whereas Akira was eager to interview other survivors of the raid. He wasn't sure which path was the right one, if either of them were.
What did Tanaka-san say again? That the ghoul he thought he was fighting was Eyepatch?
Amon hadn't read any recent reports of Eyepatch since their last encounter, but it was entirely possible that he was going by a new name. He shuddered, remembering how desperate Eyepatch had been, begging Amon to listen to him about ghouls and humans coexisting. According to Tanaka-san's account of the attack, his opponent had been just as anxious to complete some task.
Even though Akira had dismissed the connection between Eyepatch and Nagachika as coincidence, Amon couldn't subdue the twisting in his gut. He could feel that there was something to that theory, but he wasn't sure what.
Amon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. It seemed like they would be splitting up, each chasing after separate leads. He could only hope that they would converge with Nagachika at the end.
Hide yawned, overall content with his position, despite the dull throb in his leg and chest. They had remained by the small forest clearing for several hours, talking and giggling and making the most of their unexpected reunion. Hide could tell by the periodical stiffening of Kaneki's shoulders each time an overzealous squirrel snapped a branch that his friend was far from relaxed, but it felt so good to chatter and chuckle like the old days.
He knew he should have said something, made some sort of remark about getting further away from the Aogiri base, but he didn't want to spoil the moment. Besides, Kaneki still looked exhausted and Hide wasn't ready to be a hefty sack of deadweight again.
However, their conversation trickled down to silence after Hide's enthusiastic retelling of an incident from their childhood, punctuated with a few winces and gasps of pain. Kaneki still couldn't believe that this moment was actually real, that his best friend was alive and not afraid of him.
It unnerved him slightly that Hide had seen through his attempts to hide the truth. He wondered what other conclusions Hide had made; he already knew that Touka was a ghoul and that Aogiri Tree was an organization not to be messed with.
It unnerved him even more that Hide's characteristically-Hide response to Kaneki's self-imposed reclusion had been to risk his life repeatedly until he found him, though Kaneki supposed he shouldn't be surprised.
Hide prodded the next conversation topic gently.
"What's going to happen next?"
Kaneki frowned. The different scenarios had played in the back of his mind during their welcomed respite. Should he run away with Hide? Should he leave Hide at the hospital and return to Aogiri Tree? What would they do without evidence of Hide's death? Kill Kaneki? Hunt down Hide?
"I'm not sure." He didn't want to risk losing Hide again, but he couldn't come up with a situation where everything turned out fine in the end. If he abandoned Aogiri Tree to protect Hide, he knew they would retaliate against his family at Anteiku. If he returned without Hide, he could be punished.
Was he strong enough to protect everyone this time?
Hide sighed loudly, leaning against the fallen tree trunk with a contemplative grunt. "It seems like I've gotten you into trouble, Kaneki."
"Nothing I'm not used to," Kaneki remarked dryly, though there was a ghost of a smile on his lips.
Hide playfully shoved his uninjured foot into Kaneki's stomach, meeting resistance against Kaneki's defined abdomen. "This wouldn't have happened if you answered your phone for once, you idiot."
Kaneki glanced away, reminded again of his lonely days away from his best friend. Back when he thought that Hide finding out about him was the worst thing that could happen.
Hide swallowed before scooching closer. He had been gently trying to reintroduce his touch to Kaneki, laying a hand on Kaneki's shoulder or tapping him with a foot whenever he seemed too tense. At first, the intrusions to his personal space had made Kaneki jump, but after a few more careful adjustments, he quickly acclimated to the tentative touches, even relaxing at the contact.
Hide reached forward for his most ambitious move yet, tucking two fingers under Kaneki's pointed chin and tilting it upwards. Kaneki met his eyes, looking less like a dangerous ghoul and more like a bashful child.
"Hey, chin up, man. We'll get through this somehow." He pulled away, but Kaneki kept his gaze locked with Hide's. "Let's look at it like one of those mystery novels that you're always reading. How do those end?"
"Everyone dies," Kaneki replied flatly.
Hide made a face, remembering the reason he never got into those books. Too depressing.
"Okay, well, no one likes a copycat. We'll think of something else." Hide tapped his chin. "What if we make it look like I died? Then you can go back and pretend that you ate me or something so they won't be as suspicious. You can even take my uniform and shred it up some."
Kaneki's stomach flipped at the thought, but it would probably be their best option. He didn't relish the thought of returning, knowing that there was a chance he might see Hide again on the battle lines again.
Hide seemed to misinterpret his expression. "Hmm, right. They might punish you for what happened back there."
Kaneki shook his head. He doubted they would. Rakko seemed to be the only one who suspected Kaneki's tie to Hide and Ayato trusted him more. If he denied any emotional bond and brought back Hide's blood-stained uniform, there was little Rakko could do to twist the situation to his favor.
"It's not that. I don't want to have to see you again…in that." He eyed Hide's uniform pointedly. He doubted the other ghouls would remember Hide, but he wasn't sure if he could defy orders again to save him. He remembered the white-hot fear of betrayal, wondering if Hide had turned on him after hearing his voice over the CCG radios. His panicked dash towards Hide's scream, not knowing if he would ever get the chance to apologize or explain.
Hide nodded once. "Oh… Yeah…." He scratched the edge of his cheek, glancing to the side with a sheepish smile. "You don't have to worry about that anymore. Being assigned to this mission was, uh, a mistake. I'm just an investigation assistant—it won't happen again, believe me."
He rolled his eyes upwards, picturing Akira's furious (yet relieved) glare when she would inevitably berate him for his suicidal idiocy. He had a feeling he would be on desk duty for the rest of his life. Not that I mind. He winced as he repositioned himself, sliding his injured leg closer to himself.
Kaneki nodded, eyes narrowed suspiciously. Either he didn't understand the technical terminology or he didn't fully believe Hide. Regardless, it seemed like some time would pass before they would risk encountering each other again. He hoped that time would be long enough for Kaneki to destroy Aogiri himself.
He now had a new deadline to motivate him.
With some of the solemn matters taken care of, Kaneki and Hide resorted back to cheerier conversations. However, after the third yawn in a single sentence, Hide belatedly realized he had been up for nearly a day and a half. Although part of that time had been spent unconscious, he didn't feel refreshed.
Also, his stomach was growling horrendously. He wasn't sure if Kaneki missed the sounds or ignored them out of politeness, since there wasn't much he could do to remedy the problem while on the outskirts of the base of a ghoul crime syndicate.
Kaneki took Hide's yawns as a cue. He too was exhausted, but more so from the sharp peak of stress than anything else. He glanced down at the bandage wrapped around Hide's calf and the unnatural way in which Hide held himself up, as if he didn't want to press too much weight against where Ayato had kicked him.
He could feel his own paltry injuries healing, stitching back together under the watchful care of his RC cells, but Hide needed a hospital. He climbed to his feet and Hide responded reflexively, bracing the undersides of his palms against the ground, as if he were about to push himself up as well.
Kaneki waved him down with a shake of the head. "Don't get up yet. I'm going to make sure that no one's nearby to see us leave."
Hide nodded and settled back down into a more comfortable position. Kaneki unhooked his tattered cloak and draped it over Hide. He nestled in it deeper, relishing the residual warmth from Kaneki's body.
"Rest for a moment," Kaneki added, much softer. "I'll be back soon." He hesitated before turning away. "If anything happens, call for me."
Hide mumbled his understanding, heavy eyes drifting shut under the warmth. Kaneki watched him for a moment, enjoying the sight of Hide's chest rising and falling steadily. He cemented the picture in his mind before disappearing back into the thickest section of the forest.
Despite the first swell of exhaustion that broke over him, Hide was unable to slip away to a dreamless sleep. He wriggled against the hard bark of the fallen tree truck, causing a sharp jolt of pain to radiate from his ribs. He immediately fell still, eyes still closed but breathing shallowly through his teeth.
Perhaps angering Touka-chan's brother had been the wrong decision. He had tried to pass off his bluffing as a calculated plan, but quite frankly he had been acting on instinct, trying to rile up the ghouls as much as he could.
Real smart, Nagachika.
This entire plan had been a gamble, but the chance to see Kaneki had been too much to pass up. He shook his head with a fond smile. It had all been worth it, hadn't it?
He shifted again, this time more gently, and tried to fall asleep again. A stillness in the forest caused the hairs on the back of his neck to prickle and he could no longer get comfortable.
He wasn't sure how long Kaneki had been gone, but the birds had resumed their chatter once he had left. He had registered their soft, twinkling tweets in his subconscious as he tried to sleep. Now they were oddly silent again.
His eyelids fluttered and he smiled. It would be just like Kaneki to stay silent to let him rest longer, despite the risk to the both of them. He pictured Kaneki hovering nearby, nervously wringing his hands as he debated between waking Hide up and watching him sleep.
"Don't you know it's impolite to watch people sleep, you creep?" Hide mumbled, still with his eyes closed.
There was no response. The silence felt different, almost overbearing. He slowly pried his eyes open in the late afternoon sun, squinting at the dark shadow a few feet away. He blinked again, rubbing at the thin layer of crust along his eyelids.
Rakko's wide, gape-toothed smile filled Hide's immediate vision. He scrambled backwards, the sharp pain from moving his torso disappearing with a sharp intake of breath. He pressed against the tree trunk, too caught off-guard to clamber over it. He felt like he was cornered in the warehouse again, pinned and motionless under the ghoul's blazing, triumphant glare. He could hear the birds twittering nervously in the background; he imagined they were urging him to flee, but he couldn't tear his wide gaze away.
"Hmm? Where's your sharp tongue now, little bird?"
The response died on Hide's dry tongue. He tried to lick his lips, but his tongue wouldn't work, instead lying languidly in his mouth.
"I don't see that fire in your eyes anymore."
He reached out and clamped a pale hand around Hide's throat. His hand rippled on the neck ly after a strangled swallow from Hide. His grip tightened, pressing Hide backwards slightly.
"You aren't so tough without your ghoul to save you."
Kaneki was proud of himself, apart from one momentarily embarrassing event. He had been away for longer than he had planned, but after straying towards a berry bush, he couldn't help but pause to gather some for Hide. As he stared at the dark, round berries, he rolled one around on his palm and absently popped it in his mouth, wondering if they would be ripe enough for Hide. He immediately gagged and spat it out, blinking before he realized what he had done.
Feeling foolish indeed, Kaneki gently grabbed a few more berries to make up for the lost one and cupped them in his palm. He glanced up at the sinking sun. He should return to Hide soon. Their best chance of escaping unseen would take most of the night.
As he crashed through the thickets, loudly to warn Hide of his approach, he frowned at the empty clearing.
Did I get lost? I swore this was whe—
He broke off at the sight of his discarded cloak. It was flung aside and wrinkled. Kaneki moved towards it slowly, cautiously, as if Hide would leap out from underneath it.
"Hide…" Kaneki whispered, his voice sounding too hoarse and pitchy to his own ears. "Hide…?"
He swung his head around, desperately searching for clues to his best friend's disappearance. The berries dropped from his palm, striking the ground with muted plops.
"Hide! I'm here!" He couldn't hold it in anymore. He was shouting, louder than he should have, since he had noticed an Aogiri patrol only an hour earlier. "Where are you?!"
His wide eyes dropped to the grass. There were clumps of dirt and grass near the stump, like someone had kicked against the ground. Kaneki stared at them blankly before realizing what they meant. The mournful coo of a turtle dove echoed from the branches above him.
Hide… No…
His communicator blared to life, causing the few remaining birds to explode out of the trees with furious flaps of their wings. He tensed and stared down at the closed device clipped to his pants, lights pulsing in the darkening evening light. It only worked when it was near another communicator.
He flipped it open, pressing the cold plastic to his ear. Rakko's rolling chuckles poured from the speaker and filled the clearing like a thick, smothering fog.
"Looking for something, One-Eye?"
"Rakko."
"Your little bird?" Kaneki squeezed his eyes tightly. He felt like they had had this conversation already, but somehow it felt sharper, more dangerous. Rakko now knew how much Hide meant to him.
"Where is he?"
"Come to the warehouse. Midnight."
Kaneki opened his mouth—either to curse or perhaps hiss some frustrated threats—but the line went dead.
Out of the frying pan and iNTO THE FIRE. This will probably get wrapped up in a few chapters, so there won't be too many more cliffhangers.
Thanks for readings! Let me know what you think!