I'm being ambitious. Trying a new theory. Meanwhile, enjoy some moment of ShiroKuro and the other rivalry pair.
Thank you for reading and review. Appreciate it :). Enjoy!
Chapter 7: Ghost Talk
Fushimi found himself awake on a bed in a small cozy home. Was he dead? Where's Misaki?
His face turned and was shocked to see the last person he had expected. He was leaning against the chair lazily with a cigarette on his mouth.
"Oh you're awake." He said.
"Suoh Mikoto..." Fushimi almost jumped at the sight of him but he ended greeting with his could-not-be-bothered attitude. If he did not remember wrongly, he was still alive. Fushimi was disappointed. He tore his gaze away as he felt tears welling up his eyes. He wanted to see Misaki badly so he could apologize to him.
"You're feeling regret. One won't feel it until he lose it. That was how I feel when I lost him." Suoh took a puff on a cigarette while he confided with him. They had more than enough time here to talk. To Fushimi it would be hell being stuck with a man he was afraid of.
"That man you've tried to avenge isn't that simple as he seems." Fushimi would try to provoke him and see how he would react. Much to his surprise, Suoh was unfazed.
"I know. I always known that he is a King. Picked by the slate way earlier than me. Did you think the Dresden Slate didn't tell me things when it called for me? Except it didn't tell me about Munakata. It's teasing us."
"Why?" Fushimi sat up on the bed looking down at his palm.
"The slate made an exception so I can. Anyone who can't be my clansman will be burnt into crisp so the godly stone aren't stupid when that guy offered himself during the ritual so it happened."
"The Dresden Slate wanted him intact so it kept him alive." Fushimi finished for him. "And you suffered the consequence without complaint. You don't really care huh?"
"As long as he's happy. That's all matter. He gave me everything I had wanted. Friends, family, happiness. Yes, I actually cared." Suoh scoffed. He could not help it when he finally left HOMRA as fate dictated. The slate would eventually take him away from him as punishment. He pretended not knowing but the truth was he was denying it. He wanted to see how the Slate will react so he took the route of destruction when his Weismann level had exceeded the limit after keeping in control he should not had for too long despite Munakata's desperate plea.
"And I ended up here, imprisoned with no way out." Suoh glanced around and forced a laugh.
"Am I being imprisoned here?" Fushimi realized in horror scratching his scarred insignia.
"I wonder about it." Suoh started scanning the younger boy. "Depending on your will to live, you might be able to get out, Fushimi." Suoh seemed confident when he said that.
"At this rate, Munakata will fall before the rest." Suoh showed Fushimi the image of Munakata undressing him helping him changed out of his funeral outfit underneath their feet. Fushimi was a little taken aback by the phenomenon. He averted his eyes from what he was not interested to see. His boss did care for that man despite all the cursing and swearing he could hear as if it was being broadcasted. He should have gotten a maid to do that for him.
"Suoh, you better behave yourself. I'm not your nanny." Munakata obviously felt some challenge after a tiring day helping him to change out of his outfit and clean his body. His limp body just would not stay in the position he wanted such as sitting up on the bed or lying sideway.
"I'm tired of having to investigate a deactivated Ruseimaru "Shooting Star" which was activated bypassing my authorisation, listening to Isana Yashiro and now I have to deal with you." He continued to comment after finally managing to put on a new yukata on him and tightened the belt around his waist.
"Shut up, Munakata, you're annoying!" Suoh merely attempted to provoke him not expecting any reply in return. Muankata on the other hand seemed to be stiffened by the words. He was glancing around as though he heard him and he almost dropped his tea cup he just picked up to drink after he was done changing for Suoh. Was that an illusion? He must be talking too much about unnatural being to be hearing one.
"Stop being arrogant, Suoh Mikoto. I won't be taken in by you." He took a sip of his tea to assure himself that it was his imagination.
"You're just being wishy washy." Suoh shouted down from his location. Fushimi did a facepalm. He could not believe he was witnessing this. Maybe he really was dead.
"Go and die, Suoh!" Munakata gave him a kick on his face once more and he was witnessed by the incoming right hand man of Suoh and Anna, Kusanagi who just arrived. Munakata was a little surprised. He thought they had left in separate ways after the discussion with Isana Yashiro.
"I know you and my King has a long history and even if you want to settle personal score, you shouldn't do that on a defenseless man." Munakata removed his feet from Suoh's face and straightened his uniform as though nothing happened. Now Kusanagi was worried what that calculative Blue King would do to his best friend when he was not around.
"Have you not taught any manners to knock the door when you come in? Or the guys from HOMRA are just lacking of manners." Muanakata asked as a matter of curiosity. He would not expect Suoh to teach them any manners other than to charge right in.
"I have knocked on the door but you didn't hear me. You can check with Seri-chan, she escorted me here." Kusanagi raised his hand claiming that he was innocent.
"Don't worry I'll do anything but to kill him, Kusanagi-kun." Munakata assured him. Kusanagi sighed and handed him a cigarette which Munakata rejected him once more. It was not appropriate to smoke even in his office where there was no CCTV installed.
"What business do you have with me, adviser of HOMRA?" Munakata cut into the chase.
"Can you tell me about the sixth King, the undead Purple King and what does he got to do with Mikoto's condition?"
Munakata signaled Kusanagi to sit on the sofa not far from Suoh and they would discuss what they should do next and whether HOMRA should be involved.
"Suoh Mikoto's soul is imprisoned." Munakata began as Awashima brought in some tea for the both of them. Awashima frowned at the red clansman and was troubled by the fact that her captain trusted him more than her. She left after handling a cup of tea to Kusanagi with a special red bean topping.
Kusanagi gave Munakata a funny look at how gross his tea looked while his seemed normal. Munakata dared him to drink which Kusanagi finished in one gulp. He did it to please his lady.
"Awashima-kun, anything on the purple clan and their clansman?" To win a battle, they needed to know their enemy.
"Nothing of threat to report, sir. The purple clansman were all picked up from dump. They were abandoned by the society. From what we perceived they were all weak and disabled. The power is enough for them to get by in day to day without being bullied."
"The Purple King was said to be awakened that day when the crater was created at a very young age according to Isana Yashiro reading from the report Kokujouji Daikaku had left for him. He is able to conceal this fact really well that even though His Excellency sensed his awakening, he couldn't locate that person. It totally fit the bill of what he told Isana-kun." Munakata pinched his chin in deep thought. He eyed Kusanagi thinking about the guys at HOMRA.
"Was he the King who landed Mikoto in his condition?" Kusanagi asked once more. Kusanagi despite his intelligence was unable to keep up with Munakata or Isana Yashiro. As expected, the Kings were of another level. If they were to fight, it was best of their interest to not interfere but he needed to know in order to advise Anna who was still rather young.
"We'll make contact with the slate to release Suoh and we have no choice but to rely on Isana-kun if Isana-kun is right that his soul was imprisoned." Munakata repeated himself. He did not feel like answering that. He should be able to deduce himself.
"What will Kushina-kun do?"
"We'll cooperate with you." Kusanagi decided. Anna would want to save Mikoto who was held in custody by the Dresden Slate as punishment for defying his destiny. Munakata smiled seemingly expecting his answer as Anna's adviser.
"Well, I don't mind you changing your mind after hearing what I have to share about the sixth King. Our priority is dealing with the Colourless King, but if the Purple King decide to interfere, I'll not show him any mercy but I wouldn't accept if HOMRA will interfere with us when I try to deal with the Purple King."
"You seem to be quite sure that we'll obstruct you." Kusanagi said with a sarcastic laugh.
"Who knows considering the relationship HOMRA has with the undead King." Munakata eyed him with a eerie smile in response. Both men were practically ignoring Awashima who ended up leaving the room where Zenjou gave her a pat on her shoulder. They were curious about their conversation but they had to trust their own King.
Kusanagi's eyes widened upon hearing the name of the undead Purple King, both Munakata and Isana Yashiro were trying to discuss in discreet.
"You got to be kidding me. He can't be the sixth King. Not him. He's..." Even Kusanagi could lose control.
"Sometimes, the truth tend to be cruel, Kusanagi-kun or san." He recalled Kusanagi being older than himself.
Kusanagi just could not believe that the carefree young man who was powerless was the menacing sixth King who had ambushed them earlier. Probably it was the doing of the Dresden Slate. He was up and active somewhere even though Suoh Mikoto had burnt his body into nothingness.
Shiro laid back on his bed in the hospital room. It was still his bed back in the dorm felt more comfortable.
"Let's go back when everything is settled." Kuroh said as he shut the door close. Both Kusuhara and Neko headed back to the hotel and rest. He was a little worried as Neko did not seem to be herself. He did not know what he had told Neko to upset her to the extent that she took off crying.
"As expected from Kuroh, you read my mind. I can't wait to go back but I can't leave here for the jail in Scepter 4 is waiting for me." Shiro justified. "Unless he show up and clarify the situation, our dear sixth King." Shiro explained. That was the problem when the inflexible man like Munakata was in charge. While he held the authority to command him as the First King, Munakata had the say if he would acquit him from the crime as the Captain of the special police force. Besides, Adolf K. Weismann was officially known Silver King among the Clans not Isana Yashiro.
"I'm still Isana Yashiro after all." Shiro said forcing a smile.
"Totsuka Tatara." Kuroh said taking a seat by his side. He had heard from Kusuhara about him. He could not believe that a King could become another clan clansman after he was called by the slate."
"This doesn't add up. He could be burnt into crisp like the people who doesn't qualify to become the Red Clansman." Kuroh did not understand. That was really harsh test for people who wished to join the Red Clan. Unlike the others, one could be burnt by the flame from the Red King if he or she failed to clear the test.
Shiro raised up a distinct fang tooth necklace belonging to the Purple King. He sort of "stolen" it from him to prove to himself that their conversation was not a dream. The fang tooth was a insignia belonging to the Purple Clan.
"Kuroh, no matter what happen, can you promise me that you'll not betray me?" Shiro was sorry but he was feeling uneasy. He thought he would be alright alone but he could not help but to rely on Kuroh. He pulled Kuroh's body towards his and leaned his face on his shoulder. Kuroh blushed at his sudden action as he sat down by his bed allowing him to pull him close.
"What if he had forgotten about it?" Shiro suggested. He had read up on his past from Lieutenant's report. Totsuka Tatara had been a King at a young age at 9. He was only found at the age of 14 as he revealed his sword of Damocles for some reason. The men Lieutenant had sent out had forgotten their mission and this had happened not once but at least twice and a strain was said to be involved.
"What if there is some power which allowed him to erase his memories and allowed him to reject the call from the slate and became a normal human." Shiro had been trying to avert his eyes from her naked body but somehow a mark on her right shoulder blade got him curious and he had not been able to find out why until today. She might betray him when the time came and he would not be able to stop her as he was the one who accepted her before he did.
"Neko is one of his clansman and naturally she should return to him." Kuroh's eyes widened when Shiro said that to him in the most neutral tone.
The powerful strain girl who had been naive and ignorant creating mess out of everything and even made a fool out of him was really more than what she seemed. The result was, they were targeted by JUNGLE for their experiment. It was just luck that kept them away from being hunted.
Kusuhara Takeru was reading his PDA while waiting for his female companion in the room shared by the 4 of them. He would watch out for Neko as requested by Kuroh. Kusuhara stared at the door of the bathroom with lights on. Shiro was just have to too direct talking about it. Even he thought it was too much to be doing that to a girl. Of all men, he should know better on dedicacy.
Neko sat naked by the mirror. She was not one who would be concerned by her indecency. She was taught by both Kuroh and Shiro not to show her body to anyone. Especially after puberty. She would cause the males to err. The mirror fogged as Neko wiped it to show her her reflection. She was crestfallen. Neko was not alone before she met Shiro. She released her power and revealed a insignia which had a mark of a fang tooth on her shoulder blade.
"Maybe Neko should return to your Master. I want all the cards open when I challenge him later."
"Before Shiro, Wagahai had a contract with a lonely big brother I met in the see-saw in a park when I first run away . He is one of the people who didn't reject my existence and accepted me for who I'm." Neko met a young boy probably a middle school boy when she first ran away being forced to face the truth that she was not the daughter of a couple she had rewritten their memories of pretending to be their child since she was rescued in the Kagutsu Crater incident. He had offered his hand and Neko had took it.
Neko was a purple clansman. Her insignia was on her shoulder blade. They met Suoh Mikoto when the purple King was 14. Her King broke down and Neko decided to grant him his wish. A purple Sword of Damocles appeared in the sky when they were found by the Gold clan reminding her only friend he was a King and he should shoulder the responsibilities a King should. Neko used her magic to affect their memories so that they would leave them alone.
"I erase his memory so that he can remain by the lion senpai's side. He admired him and wanted to be his friend. In the end, I lost my first friend." Neko murmured to herself.
"I sure didn't expect anything to happen to my first friend." Neko broke into tears and sobbed in her palm. Unknowingly she was embroiled in the incidents since encountering Shiro and Kuroh relating to her friend's death. She did not even bother to find out the name of the guy who Shiro was accused for his murder.
"I'm sorry, Tatara, I'm so sorry. I should have remain by your side if I know this will happen."
