"Sakura, sakura. Noyama mo sato ma."

Hisoka sat up, the words swirling around in the air with the sakura petals. Hisoka reached up, trying to touch one. But whenever he got close, the petals flew away from his fingertips. They looked soft though, soft and delicate.

"Mi-watasu kagiri. Kasumi ka kumo ka."

Hisoka swung his legs to the floor and stood up. He had to find that voice. He couldn't just leave her. She had something important to say to him. He had to find her.

He looked around. He was back in the painting. The painting of perpetual spring where the blossoms were always falling. It was beautiful, and tragic at the same time.

"Nioi zo izuru. Izaya. Izaya." Hisoka stopped looking at his surroundings and decided to start walking.

Hisoka swayed towards the sound, dragging his feet. It was weird, like he was walking through molasses. He also felt sleepy, so sleepy. Maybe that's why it was so hard for him to walk. Occasionally he would trip over a root, or slip on a wet patch of grass. But he continued to march, slow and steady towards the source.

A child laughed. Hisoka turned but could see no one. He shivered and wrapped his arms around his torso. It was so safe here. He could just sleep right now in a pile of sakura petals. They really were soft and gentle flowers. And with the wind caressing his face, everything was gentle and serene here. And the petals, they were so beautiful.

"I think they're beautiful too."

Hisoka jumped, unaware that a woman had been beside him the entire time. He stared at her. She was even more beautiful up close. Her dark hair was pinned back; her skin was as pale as the moon.

"You're the woman from earlier!" he gasped. Why was she in front of the train? Was she a painter? Is that why she had all of the supplies with her?

The woman smiled and him and spread her arms. "I want you to look around and feel what I feel, see what I see."

Hisoka smiled and closed his eyes, feeling the world around them. She wasn't the cause of this misfortune, she couldn't be.

"Hisoka, open your eyes and look at this world."

Hisoka obeyed, ready to see more of the trees and the grass and the sky. His eyes fluttered open, but instead of beauty, he gasped and was overcome with pain.

"What?" His eyes widened as body after body began falling from the trees. He fell back, his hand slipping on something wet and squishy. His eyes darted down to reveal he had fallen on a man, about Tsuzuki's age, with bright green eyes. They were staring at Hisoka, lifeless and like glass.

Hisoka screamed and scrambled back. The petals that had once been pale pink turned brown and stuck to Hisoka's body, suffocating him. The tree limbs twisted and warped, becoming claws. They reached out to Hisoka, reached out to grab him and entrap him further.

And the bodies that had fallen from the trees had started to push themselves up. Some were missing limbs. Others looked as though they had been run over by a train. The man he had fallen on earlier had his head backwards. Hisoka couldn't scream again. He could only stare in horror. A woman was holding the hand of a small child, both with limbs bent at odd angles.

Finally, Hisoka found his voice. "What is this? What do you want?" Hisoka cried, continuing to back away. He could feel the malicious intent pierce his body. It was lustful for more death. It wanted Hisoka gone.

"We want to help you, Hisoka. We want to help." The woman smiled, but already the skin was beginning to fall off her face, rotting like the corpse she was.

Hisoka was about to ask again. He wanted to leave this place. He wanted to be left alone. But before he could, and unknown force had picked him up and was now carrying him. Hisoka tried to get out of the grips of the force, but his kicking did nothing. He looked back towards the woman and the people, only no one was there now.

"Put me down. You don't have to do this!" Hisoka called. He heard the sound of a train in the distance. The sakura trees were getting fuzzier and fuzzier. Hisoka was flying through the air, the force no longer restraining him. His eyes widened as he felt gravity take action and pull him down.

He landed on the floor of a train with a thump, gasping for air.

oOoOoOo

Tsuzuki ran out of the car to see what happened. He had been on plenty of trains before. But it felt like an earthquake had just passed through. He ran towards an elderly woman on the ground.

"Are you alright?" he asked, pulling her up.

"Yes, thank you. Do you know what happened?"

Tsuzuki shook his head. "I don't, but I'm sure they'll tell us soon."

The lights flickered back on and stayed on. The intercom clicked on. "Ladies and gentlemen. We are very sorry about that. A small earthquake has just passed through. We contacted local authorities for safety instructions. We'll let you know shortly of any changes."

"Earthquakes. They're the worst," the old woman mumbled. Tsuzuki smiled and helped her back to her car. Once she was comfortable, he went to check on Hisoka. But something was hammering the back of his mind. He was missing something.

"This doesn't seem right," Tsuzuki said to himself. Could it have something to do with the ghost? It didn't seem likely that it caused an earthquake every time it had a victim, but the dead were weird.

Tsuzuki slipped back into his car, hoping to wake Hisoka up. Only, there was no Hisoka. The protection charm lay crumpled on the ground.

"Hisoka?" Tsuzuki called, looking around the room. No answer. He stepped out of the car and walked to the bathroom. It was vacant. Now Tsuzuki was starting to panic. In Hisoka's state, there was no telling what he might do.

"Hisoka?" Tsuzuki called again, trying not to run up and down the train. Sadly, there was no one in the hallways for him to ask if they had seen him. Despite Tsuzuki's attempts to remain calm, he began running down the train, peaking in every room to see if Hisoka was there. He almost called on one of his shikigami when he heard a shout.

"Hisoka!" Tsuzuki sprinted down the car and towards the back. It was just a storage car for food and supplies. But one of the doors was open. Tsuzuki ran towards the open door just in time to see Hisoka plummeting down towards the water. Diving forward, Tsuzuki grabbed ahold of Hisoka's jacket and yanked him back onto the train. The pair landed on the ground with an audible thump, Hisoka wrapped tightly in Tsuzuki's arms. Tsuzuki breathed a sigh of relief as Hisoka's eyes blinked open.

"Tsuzuki? What happened?" Hisoka asked.

Tsuzuki couldn't believe his ears. Hisoka jumped off a train. He was about to commit suicide. Did he not even remember that?

"You jumped off the train! I barely caught you. What were you thinking?" Tsuzuki cried. He hated shouting at Hisoka, but this was getting out of hand. Hisoka pushed away from Tsuzuki and rubbed his head.

"I was walking through a garden of sakura trees. They were in bloom. Then I remember being picked up and then you." Hisoka looked at Tsuzuki. "I think the ghost may have attached itself to me," Hisoka said.

Tsuzuki slumped back against the wall. Why was it always Hisoka these things happened to? Tsuzuki reached up and ran a hand through Hisoka's hair. Hisoka pushed it away and stood up.

"This is good though. If the ghost is trying to kill me, we know so we don't have to worry about getting there too late." Hisoka began walking towards their cabin. "This makes it so that we only have to worry about finding the ghost, and not its next victim."

Tsuzuki leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. Was it selfish to wish the ghost had attacked someone else?

"Yes. Now stand up. We have to solve this case," Hisoka said.

"Hisoka, don't act so nonchalant about this. You could have died." Tsuzuki didn't need to have empathy to feel Hisoka's irritation.

"What's done is done. Now we just need to lure the ghost out and then get rid of it."

Tsuzuki sprang to his feet and grabbed Hisoka's arm, stopping him from leaving. "I am not using you as bait."

Hisoka ripped his arm out of Tsuzuki's grip. "I don't need you to treat me like a child. If it were the other way around, you'd say just leave it, you'll survive."

"But it isn't the other way around!" Tsuzuki shouted. "I'm the adult here so let me handle things!"

Hisoka didn't answer this, looking as if the words had been pulled from his mouth. Finally, he spoke. "You aren't my father, we're partners. How am I supposed to trust you if you don't even trust me?" Hisoka snarled before storming off back to the room.

Tsuzuki scrubbed a hand over his face. Hisoka could be so frustrating at times. Why couldn't he just accept Tsuzuki's help and protections? Tsuzuki shook his head and took one last look at the train car. The door was still open, with the wind whipping around in the car. Tsuzuki shut it, blocking out the light. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. But a look around the cabin didn't reveal anyone lurking in the shadows.

He had to find this ghost before Hisoka did something stupid. He would not let his partner be used for anything, no matter the cost.