A/N: Today's theme song is "Build a Bridge" by Limp Bizkit. Also, I'm coming down with a bit of chest congestion, so my rush of updates may stall here, but who knows? Just a heads-up.

Chapter 7: Moving On

By the next morning the inn was in chaos, not from a high number of guests, buy from the police asking everyone everything they could think of about the victim of the recent murder. I got ground to dust pretty much. After all, a foreigner comes to town the same day she vanishes, was alone unattended on the same floor, and is large enough a person to have gotten the body onto the roof. Once I was done I got some coffee going and supplied it to co-workers that were waiting for their own turn. On my rounds I couldn't help but notice Yukiko looking exhausted.

"Are you okay, Yukiko?"

"Oh I'm fine, Neir-san. Just a bit tired. Why of all times does this have to happen."

"Well make sure you don't work too hard." naturally I was concerned, "While I'm here would you like some coffee?"

"Sure thanks."

"I'll get you some fruit on the way home. Bananas and oranges are good for restoring stamina and I still have a fair amount of the money I brought from home."

"I can't ask you to do that. We're supposed to be taking care of you, not the other way around."

I laughed, "We'll I can't have you folks dropping like flies now can I? I'm used to it. I've spent most of my life taking care of people."

Some cops were approaching to ask more questions but I intercepted, "Haven't you asked enough questions? She's just been through her mother collapsing and had to adjust to running the place. I'm pretty tapped out too, trying to adjust to a new country, a new school, and a new job all at the same time while this is going on. Can you come back some other day? Perhaps you can just stick to examining her room and the people you want to ask more thing can stop by he station on a a slow day?"

The guy in charge was that Detective Dojima fellow, and thankfully he was a reasonable sort of fellow, "I apologize for their behavior, we're pretty much done for now, so we'll let you kids get to school. We'll be in touch though."

Sure enough, by the time we'd seen all the police out it was almost time to go to school. After changing quickly, we walked to school, bumping into a crashed Yosuke again, helping him out of the trash can he had wound up in. Yukiko gave me a look that said, "Please don't talk about it with anyone." So I didn't bring it up. Other than that and a lot of gossip about the murder, the morning went smoothly. Then we got into our last class, held by a certain special someone dear to all our hearts.

"Be quiet you idiots! You guys ARE in high school aren't you? Can't you shut up during class? Don't you have any any sense?" the lord almighty of moronic pencil-pushers, Mr. Morooka ladies and gentlemen! Let's have a big hand for King Moron everybody, "First of all, my job is to waste my precious time teaching you assholes philosophy, and since I'm so nice I'll straighten up your rotten attitudes while I'm at it! Aren't you honored? And I'll be especially hard on any of you morons that're curious about the murder! Got it? Now get your books out!"

I was so tempted...I actually had to sit on my hands to keep myself from raising my hand and asking about the murder. Damn you Morooka and your involuntary knack for giving me chances to mock you! Such mastery over stupidity surely posed a threat to my very existence. I was fortunate, I already had my book out to the page written on the board. If I'd moved my hands to get my book, surely my willpower would have given way. (A/N: You didn't make fun of the teacher. *beeping noise* Your Intelligence has gone up. Lol.)

"Why are you sitting on your hands?" Chie whispered.

"Oh no reason. Just fighting the urge to annoy him."

"You're so weird."

I grinned, "I prefer 'budding comedic genius' thank you very much."

"No, you're just weird."

I stuck my tongue out at her only to have her responding in kind. Morooka noticed, "Satonaka, Neir, stop acting lie five year olds and pay attention. Neir, stop warming you hands with your ass."

I nodded and obliged, trying my best not to make a snide remark. After class, Chie turned in her seat and stood up, a teasing grin on her face, "You sure are in a good mood today Neir-san. Something happen?"

I laughed lightly, "No. It's just Mr. Morooka."

"Hmm?"

"He's such an buffoon it's hard not to laugh hysterically at him. I mean really? How ludicrously pissed off can one man possibly be?"

She thought about it for a second and smiled, "Looking at it that way I guess he is kinda funny." she fought back a chuckle, "Great, now I'm not gonna be able to sit through his class with a straight face, thanks a lot."

"My pleasure."

Yosuke made his way over and greeted me with a smile of his own, "Hey, Neir-san. Have you gotten used to Inaba yet?"

"Yeah, I'm from a small town too after all. Though I've lived in the big city once or twice too."

"I guess you wouldn't have much trouble settling in anywhere then. Not much to get used to anyway. You know what the town specialty is? Grilled steak! Like that's anything special right?"

I nodded.

"Anyway. Since you helped me out yesterday, how about I treat you? I know this place you can get steak real cheap."

"Um-
Chie interrupted, "Hey what about me? You broke my copy of Trial of the Dragon. I know I got another, but still."

"You always jump in when I mention food, why should I treat you? Like you said, you got another copy."

"You broke something I lent you, you owe me." Chie looked over to Yukiko, who was getting her books together, "Right Yukiko? Don't you think he should treat us?"

Finished, Yukiko stood up, "No...I'll pass. I don't wanna gain any more weight." I suddenly recalled I'd said eating out at the wrong places caused a lot of weight gain, "Besides, I need to help out at the inn today anyway."

Yosuke seemed impressed, "Wow, Yukiko-san. You're training to be manager already?"

She looked down suddenly a flash of a pained expression I'd seen before crossed her face but seen looked away to conceal it, "No, it's not like that. I'm just helping out when it gets busy, that's all."

I was a bit shell-shocked. She hadn't said a word about her mother collapsing to her friends. Clearly she didn't want to worry them, but besides maybe Miku-san, I didn't know of her talking to anyone about it. She was going through something, I knew that already, and if she wasn't going to seek out someone to help her, "I'll have to pass too, Yosuke, they'll be needing me at the inn as well. Maybe some other time?"

Yukiko whipped around, "No, you don't have too. Relax, you should enjoy yourself since you've been working so hard lately. You haven't even really gotten the chance to get settled in yet."

My usual frown flipped to a smile, "Now if I did that, you'd never get any free time. Call me a martyr if you like, but I can't let others suffer and just relax."

"Somebody's got a crush!" Chie teased me.

I took on a heroic pose, "No, it's called a hero complex. I must defend the innocent! For I am the mighty Bald Man!"

The group had a good chuckle at that, then Chie gave a thumbs up and looked to Yukiko, "Can I help? I know I'm not training for it or anything, but I can help clean. Yosuke'll help too."

"What? Not that I mind helping a friend, but don't sign me on without permission!"

Yukiko looked a little panicked, then accepted it, "Okay, thanks I guess"

Not long after the whole group was busy at the inn. I hadn't intended to get the others involved and risk exposing something Yukiko wanted to keep secret, but everything went well. The cops didn't show up again, nobody happen to talk about the fact the announcer was a guest there, and through 'sheer coincidence" neither of them saw Yukiko doing managerial work. It probably helped that me, Chie, and Yosuke were on cleaning duty. The extra help made everything run far smoother. Even though I found myself working even harder than usual keeping the two volunteers in the dark about everything.

At around four, Yosuke got a call from someone, "Oh, Saki-senpai? What's wrong? Oh, I decided to help out a friend at their job since they were understaffed. Did you need something? You sure? Okay then, talk to you tomorrow."

"Who was that, your girlfriend?" I wondered.

Chie laughed, "He wishes! That was Saki Konishi. Her family runs a liquor store in the shopping district. Yosuke's had a crush on her for a while!"

Yosuke blushed a little, "It's not like that! She works part time at Junes and I met her since my dad runs the place. She treats me like her brother."

Chie grinned that mischievous smile again. "Ohhh, you don't want her treating you like a brother, huh? Oh, I get it, that's how it is: The daughter of a local family-run liquor store and the scion of the invading chain... the flame of forbidden love!"

" The tom-boy with a tenancy to tease when something bugs her and the boy she described as a scion provoking that by having a crush... the fires of a secret passion!"

Chie's jaw hit the floor, "What?!? I don't have a crush on Yosuke! Don't be stupid!"

"Well you don't have to put it that way you know. I'm standing right here." Yosuke chuckled, feigning an emotional wound.

"Anyway." Chie changed the topic, "I have just the thing to fix your broken heart, Yosuke."

"What? A little alone time with a certain tom-boy?" I teased.

Chie shot me a burning gaze "No! Not that! Have you guys ever heard of the Midnight Channel?"

"You believe in a silly urban legend like that?" Yosuke assumed I was in the dark so he elaborated, "Supposedly you look into a turned off TV at midnight on a rainy day and you see your soul-mate. It's stupid."

"Well then if it's so stupid you wouldn't mind trying it." Chie dared.

I decided to let them try it. After all, what was the harm in it? I had other things on my mind, making sure there would be no more deaths was one of them, another being my troubled taishou. I found her neatening up the lobby, specifically wiping down the front desk, as she thought deeply about something. So deeply in fact that she didn't even notice me walk up beside her, grab a broom and start the sweeping. She had that same expression on her face that she'd had that night her mother collapsed. Such a lonely look on her face. I closed my eyes and thought back. A flash of velvet, a piano that my hands yearned to play, a tune not expressed. I hummed, the tune in my head like something from a dream.

"What's that song? Yukiko asked suddenly, "It sounds so lonely."

I opened my eyes and turned to look her in the face, "I'm not sure, it just came to mind. I think you might be inspiring the writer in me or something."

My eyes met hers for an instant and she looked at her feet, "You think I'm lonely?"

"You look lonely."

She blocked me off again, changing the topic without even the slightly subtlety, "I'm glad to hear you've gotten used to Inaba."

"You're avoiding the subject."

"What subject. I'm not lonely." She smiled a fake smile that felt like a thousand knives cutting into the very core of my being, "I have my mother and my father, everyone at the inn treats me so well. I've got Chie at school."

"That doesn't mean you aren't lonely. All the people in the world could be with you and you could still be lonely."

She started walking faster, "I'm fine, Neir-san, you don't need to worry about me. You should have just gone to dinner with Chie and Yosuke, you deserve time with your friends."

Well that probably hadn't come out right, but it still stung a little, "You're my friend. What's a bit of steak if you need some support at the inn? If you won't talk to me about what's bothering you I can at least help out with that much. It's really busy now after all. Even without the cops coming in and out."

"I don't want you to put yourself out because..."

"You don't have to put yourself out either. I don't want you killing yourself with work because I went for some stupid meal. That'd be just plain rude of me."

She laughed, a real laugh...well a small subdued giggle at least. Sure it was rimmed with a detectable urge to cry, but I would take want I could get, "Thanks Neir-san. I'm glad to have you as a friend. Just promise me you won't worry so much. You're starting to act like my dad did when I was little. Can you make me that promise?"

"Sure thing, Taishou-san." she wasn't going to let me help with hat was really bothering her, but maybe I could ease the pain a little.

When my shift was finally over a few hours later and the two volunteers had both gone home, I had a chance to relax and just think about things alone in my room. Which was actually a bad thing. With everything I had on my mind lately, anything distracting was a godsend. I thought about what might be bothering Yukiko and found myself admiring her sheer willpower. The simple fact she could hide away her emotions so well by pure natural talent was amazing. Ever since I met her though I knew she was the type to try and deal with her own problems, and not be a burden on anyone. I could tell she wanted help. That loneliness she was feeling was a familiar thing to me.

That tune came into my head again. Needling at me, but as I dwelled on it...I noticed it was only a piece of a full composition. It needed something else. The song sounded lonely sure, partly because there was an instrument missing. Velvet...a piano...this song was important...connected to my future somehow. I thought about it, thought about the feelings it was trying to convey, but nothing came to mind. I hummed the tune over and over until I gave up and went back downstairs. I looked out the window on the stairs and sighed. It was raining again just like Chie had said it would. I'd wanted to get some air...

It was late, the staff was working on getting everything wrapped up and put away for the night. Even though I had had already put in my share of work and was not in my uniform anymore, no one seemed to care when I lent a hand. Most of them probably were too busy wondering if I was the killer, or some (like Miku-san and Mr. Amagi) probably could tell I was in a mood where I needed to move my hands and work off some stress. When everything was done, it was even later, and still raining.

I was tempted to go for a short walk outside anyway when some humming caught my ear. It sounded similar to the tune I had been humming earlier, but was different enough to almost be a separate song. It was lonely and melancholy. I walked quietly towards the source and found it in a small area behind the front desk, The room I had found her in that night. The room looked like a family room, but combined with an office. Pictures of old people in kimonos were on the far wall, relatives I assume. Yukiko was there, humming as she looked over the guest list at the table that served as a desk. She looked like she felt out of place and she abruptly stood up and moved to another seat on a small couch facing the chair she had been in. I guessed she had been sitting in her mom's chair where the woman did her work. The lonely humming got a bit more active, agitated but somehow not in an angry way. It was more of a desperate way. I hummed the tune stuck in my head and realized. That tune on the piano in my mind was lonely not because it was missing a piece, but because it was longing. The tune was calling out for someone to hear it. It was...

I dashed up the stairs and grabbed a piece of paper, my inspiration kindled. Words flowed from my hand onto the paper through the divine medium of the pen. I finally understood a piece of that damn tune!

Then the Midnight Channel flipped on. I could barely make it out, but there was a girl there, in our school uniform with long curly hair. I couldn't make out the color, but the more important fact is it looked like she was arguing with someone. The killer had struck again, and I couldn't due anything about it. With no idea who it was or where they had been thrown in, I was helpless. I could only hope that girl could hold out until I figured it out.

Next Chapter: Well, That Could Have Gone Better...