This chapter is an expository chapter, and therefore a bit shorter than the norm. But fear not: I'm already working on chapter 8! This is in response to all the support I'm getting from you guys. There will also be more Gareki/Yogi in the next chapter!

Also, you should know that I'm headed out of the country for a few weeks. I'll still be working on 'Aloft' so I don't expect any major delays; I just wanted to give you the head's up.

Oh, and thanks to Tsugumi for pointing out a continuity error. I've now corrected it. Please let me know if you guys find others.

I love you all. –A.

Finally, there's a covert shoutout to mizamiko here (if you're there).


Several minutes elapsed while Hirato's eyes remained narrowed at Akari and his mind whirled in a mad attempt to plan his next move. Truth be told, he'd expected Azana to call eventually. The man was the mayor's deputy; there was nowhere for him to hide, not in Chicago anyway. Furthermore, the self-absorbed city administrator would be loathe relinquish the considerable political capital he'd amassed. Anonymity would seem abhorrent in the extreme. He'd never run off to the East Coast or anything of the sort. And given that Hirato had a knack for seeing clients through impossible situations (both in the courtroom and under the table), it was only a matter of time before the metro area's most wanted fugitive contacted the metro area's most talented defense lawyer.

Thus, without very much effort on Hirato's part, the pieces fell neatly into place. Knight takes queen. Check.

Only mildly disconcerted to find himself thinking in theatrical chess metaphors, he resumed his conversation. "If you were protecting yourself, why didn't you turn yourself in? Or call an ambulance, at the very least?"

"I-I-I got scared," the voice on the other end of the line stammered, too terrified to take note of the malice sharpening Hirato's tone. "You know this city practically worships Assistant DA Dezart."

"Does it?" The brunet brushed imaginary lint off his shirt and examined his fingernails, relishing the return of his usual bravado. "I hadn't noticed."

Azana made a noise somewhere between a strangled yelp and a whine. "Chicago PD has no respect for City Hall; I thought I was finished if I came into police custody."

You are finished. "And what, praytell, did you hope to accomplish by fleeing?"

"I wasn't thinking. I panicked."

"Clearly," the lawyer droned, intimating the he was incurably bored.

"Why on earth would I want the Assistant DA dead? I'd been acquitted!" The words became dire.

"Irrelevant," Hirato responded flatly. So very irrelevant. "If you want my help, you'd better do precisely as I say."

The Deputy Mayor let out a grateful sigh, "Anything."

"Turn yourself in." In fairness, it was the most reasonable course of action. Remaining at large risked incurring the wrath of Chicago's finest. That being said, Azana was terribly well-connected, and certainly Mayor Palnedo could pull some strings to have charges dropped. Nevertheless, it was in the interests of all involved parties to ensure that everything was above board, so to speak. Hirato, for one, was not prepared to let Azana's fate fall into hands other than his own. "Be sure to apologize profusely and publicly. I want to see you on the 6PM news, weepy and penitent. Say that you'd never take the law into your own hands, but you'd been looking into corruption in the DA's Office and feared for your life."

"O-okay," Azana sounded unsure. "Are you sure this will work?"

"Trust me." A dark delight inflected Hirato's lilt. "The city loves a scandal."

He ended the call and waited patiently until a cadre of doctors and nurses strode out of Akari's room before striding in, deliberate, purposeful steps echoing across tiled floor like some hellish metronome. This menacing affect was terribly efficacious; most people found it chilling, in fact. Akari, on the other hand, merely raised an indignant brow.

"Tell me, my dear DA," he simpered, all sickle-sharp smiles and feigned politesse, "What were you doing following alleged criminals home at 2AM?"

The DA in question only glared, too parched to speak. "Go away," he managed creakily.

"Not a chance." Akari's inquisitor walked to his bedside and poured water into a glass, holding it before him. "You're going to answer me."

Doubtful incarnadine irises leveled on the offered cup before turning to the brunet's face.

"It's not poisoned," Hirato huffed.

The blond nodded and plucked the glass from the other's graceful fingers before drinking gratefully and clearing his throat. "Thanks," he whispered, expending his limited reserves of energy. Several long inhales later, he asked "How did you know?"

"Azana called."

"Of course he did. I expected you'd defend him." So much bitterness manifested in Akari's acid murmur that Hirato wondered where he got the sudden vigor.

Had he not been long inured to vitriol, the brunet might have been ostensibly discomposed. Instead, he leaned over the other man so that they were but centimeters apart. Akari blinked and shrank back as far as the pillows would permit. "I know talking is tough right now, so shut up and listen. Don't ever do something like that again."

"Goodness, Hirato. I didn't know you cared," the blond spat viciously.

The defense attorney let out a sarcastic bark, dismissing the spiteful comment at once. Acknowledging it would obstruct his quest for information. "I'll ask again: Why were you following Azana?"

Akari's irritated stare faltered under the other man's persistence, and coupled with the morphine flooding his bloodstream, he could only sigh in defeat, comportment atypically pliant, accommodating. "Someone needed to. It's illegal for the police to do it."

"You aren't a superhero, you know."

"I wouldn't have to moonlight if you weren't so efficient at keeping criminals out of jail."

He hadn't meant to, but Hirato did visibly bristle then. Feelings of anger and vengefulness towards Azana were subsumed under all-too-familiar guilt. For a moment, he was rendered silent, and when at last he spoke, his tone retained none of its earlier strength. "You think I don't know that?" he asked solemnly, leaning against the bed rail, arms crossed over his chest in a posture of unconscious defensiveness. "That I'm responsible for your injuries?"

As expected, Akari requited forthwith, tone full of drug-addled contrition and clemency. "I'm sorry." His hand reached out and feebly curled around Hirato's elbow. "That was a low blow."

"Despite the mistakes I've made with respect to you, and all that's happened since, some things haven't changed. I'd never have wanted this. I'd rather it were—" He shook his head, dislodging the ill-timed divulgence from his cognizance. "What I mean is that you're a pain, and the worst opponent anyone could meet, but that doesn't mean I'd want you gone."

Akari offered a weak chuckle. "Well, you do love a challenge."

"Indeed."

"I was following Azana," the Assistant DA confessed. "I caught sight of him on my way home and made a detour." He paused as if vacillating about whether or not he ought to continue. "I didn't have a good reason, really. I was fearful he'd hurt someone."

"That's called stalking; it's illegal for a reason. And he did hurt someone, you idiot," Hirato said, the tiniest resurgence of playfulness imbuing his baritone. "You count too."

The quiet stretched between them, not as strained as moments earlier, but still tense, uncomfortable. Perhaps that is why Akari saw fit to break it: "Hirato?"

"Hmmm?"

"You're not going to do anything immensely stupid, are you?"

"Define immensely stupid."

"Entertaining fantasies of revenge, for example."

Hirato's lips quirked, concealing myriad sentiments just roiling beneath the surface of his façade. "Become a vigilante? Jeopardize my career? For you? I made that choice years ago."

Akari peered at him, penetrating gaze seeing far too much. "Yes, you did." So why are you lying to me now?


Having a nearly-incapacitated lover was rather wonderful, Hirato thought bemusedly as he watched the afternoon sun play across Akari's fine skin. He was hard pressed to pinpoint exactly when he'd started thinking of the sleeping blond as his paramour, but he guessed it was around the time said lover lost consciousness. Or perhaps he'd always considered Akari as such; he'd not bestowed that honorific upon another, after all. At any rate, the prosecutor had been given so many pain medications that intermittent bouts of wakefulness only lasted fifteen to twenty minutes. Eva had been terribly disappointed to travel to the Southside only to find Akari dozing while Hirato kept watchful vigil from his bedside perch.

"I like him much better when he's asleep," he said to her, over-bright amethysts full of mirth. "Or when that clever mouth is otherwise preoccupied."

"You're such a boor," she replied. "I wonder why I agreed to help you at all."

He stood abruptly and walked forward, slipping his arms around her waist and squeezing tightly enough to convey the depth of his gratitude.

Eva's tinkling laugh filled the room. "I think I like you better when Akari's around. Who knew you could be so sweet?" She released him and winked.

"I really appreciate this, Eva."

"You can thank me by taking me out to lunch; I'm starving."

He nodded and slipped into his coat (ever mindful of the marks on his neck and wrists), and after tossing a final glance at Akari, he led her out the door. They crossed the University's immaculate, gothic-inspired quads and ambled down 57th Street in quietude, the rhythmic crunching of now-hardened snow trailing in their wake. A sudden gale cut through, prompting Hirato to draw Eva closer as harried students flitted past, clearly eager to return to their dormitories and the warmth. The two shuffled along in a halting, crouched huddle until arriving at their destination—a small, dimly-lit restaurant, worn wooden tables and graffitied walls betraying its popularity with coeds and locals.

"I'll let you in on a secret," Hirato said mischievously, settling himself into a corner booth. "This place is by far my favorite restaurant in all of Chicago."

Eva sent him an incredulous look before glancing again at her menu. "Yes, I see why. None of the five-star dining establishments could compete with a place that serves a 'garbage burger'."

He laughed. "It's a damn good burger. And the Mexicana is worth a trip from Loop."

Halfway into her (admittedly delicious) garbage burger, Eva articulated what was likely foremost in her thoughts. "So, what's this grand plan of yours?"

He smiled the devil's smile, mind reeling with the sheer genius of this latest ploy. "To get him to move in with me, at least for a few weeks. I'll do the rest."

The blue-eyed beauty nearly choked. "What?"

"You heard me."

She shook her head roughly and threw her hands up to demonstrate the futility of his aims. "Impossible. Akari would rather live in Hell."

"That's where you come in," Hirato said slyly. "He trusts you, right? Convince him it's in his best interests."

"How can it possibly be in his best interests?" she inquired, frustration evident. "I get the distinct feeling that you're not telling me everything." He could see her brilliant intellect working around the problem, examining it from all angles. They may not always agree, but Eva definitely shared his analytical prowess. Like him, his colleague appreciated a difficult quandary. The current dilemma would prove extraordinarily delicate; one ill-conceived turn and Akari would intuit deceit.

"It's complicated."

"Good thing I'm not daft."

Yes, it is a good thing. He dropped his voice. "I've convinced Azana to turn himself in and—"

"You did? When did you even talk to that bas—"

"Are you going to let me finish?" he interrupted, brow arched high. She stopped talking and gestured for him to carry on. "Azana will turn himself in, but that doesn't mean Akari's out of danger. All it means is that the mayor's people will find low-level thugs to finish the job."

"Do you really think so?" Eva pondered aloud. "I mean, we've long known that City Hall is unscrupulous; they're our most lucrative clients. But coming after an Assistant District Attorney seems hazardous for Palnedo. Akari is almost as beloved as the mayor himself."

"What's worse: Having your subordinate arrested for attempted murder or having his victim testify? If Azana is prosecuted, he might deal for a reduced sentence, laying bare all of Palnedo's corruption." He paused. "At that point, even I won't be able to keep the mayor out of jail."

"If that's the case, Akari should be under continual police surveillance," she stated, alarm making teal eyes widen. "I'll call my brother to see if they can keep some officers on him when he's released from the hospital."

"That's a great idea," Hirato agreed. "But make sure Jiki keeps Akari's location limited to people he's vetted; we don't know how much of city administration we can trust. And he should probably have them watch my penthouse instead. No one will look for the Assistant District Attorney there."

"I suppose opportunity for seduction has nothing to do with your new-found altruism?"

Another soft chuckle. "I don't pretend to be a good man, but you needn't worry too much. I'd be staggered if he could be persuaded by seduction alone. He'll need to be certain I've changed."

"Have you?"

"I want to."

Eva's aquamarine gaze searched Hirato for any trace of duplicity. Finding none, she nodded her assent. "It will keep him safe, I suppose. At least from Palnedo and company."

"I'm so glad we agree!" Hirato exclaimed in feigned elation.

"We don't. Fuck with him, and I will make your life a living hell." She was deadly serious; that he did not doubt.

"Understood. So, will you call Jiki and plan for Akari's release? You might want to tell him to relieve the cops stationed at the hospital too. They look exhausted."

"I will, but be aware that your machinations may fail regardless of my assistance. Akari's no fool, you know. And he knows you, how you work."

"I'll have to put my trust in your considerable skills," he responded. "And Jiki's."

She took several sips of her cocoa in reflection. "Are you going to counsel Azana?"

"Yes."

"In order to throw the case?"

"Yes." Even Hirato was surprised by the vehement growl in his voice.

"You'll lose everything if Bizante finds out."

"I know," he conceded. "Don't tell Akari; he'd be furious at my adulterating his precious justice."


Liner Notes:

(1) The restaurant that Hirato and Eva go to is a place called The Medici on 57th Street; locals refer to it as 'the Med'. It's a restaurant/bakery and the Mexicana hot chocolate there is truly a thing of wonder. It's not a very expensive or fancy restaurant (as you no doubt guessed), but it has a lot of character, and it is undoubtedly a local favorite.

(2) Chicago politics are strange. Sometimes, city administrators are widely known to be corrupt and maintain their office anyway (like Palnedo). Chicago politics are machine politics, and corruption is not nearly as egregious a sin as street crime, at least not until it turns violent. Keep that in mind for the rest of this story.