Chapter 9

Okay, thanks for the reviews, I hope you'll like this chapter. Here will be an OC character but not really important. And you'll know who his Tsuzuki's ancient boss!

IMPORTANT: Now the story is complete, most of people didn't liked chapter 12 but READ THE EPILOGUE if you want to know how it really end.

Daisuke and his two partners were standing silent and nervous. Their boss, Oriya was really angry. He had been called yesterday by one of his old friend, Muraki, an opera director, who just had problems with a 'phantom'. Oriya had sent men to investigate, but three of them had been killed and two of them had been knocked out by behind. After this, Oriya had suspected one of his ancient employees, Tsuzuki, to be the phantom.

"This asshole is still alive!"

"Boss, what make you think it's him?" Asked Daisuke

"He is the only one who can stay in the same place since so much time without being catch by the police. Beside, the men I sent to investigate are dead, and they weren't the type to be killed easily. It can only be him…If it's the case, then I will kill this freak personally! I want this inspector Kurosaki, this singer Maria, and Tatsumi! This fucking jerk lied to us, catch them all…Now!"

The three men get away quickly. Daisuke resumed the situation to his new partners, Koichi and Genma.

"The Boss wants this guy Tsuzuki dead. He asked three guys to capture Hisoka Kurosaki and make Maria Wong talk. I think the error they made was to attack them when they were around the opera, under Tsuzuki's sight. We are going to wait for them at their home."

The two guys nodded. Daisuke was quite proud. He already had a quite high rank in Oriya's organisation, but if he accomplished this mission well, he would be one of the most important men in the mafia. He smirked; it wouldn't be a simple singer and a little inspector who would stop him! Tatsumi however, would be more complicated.

Daisuke believed, rightly, that Tsuzuki and Tatsumi would certainly try to save them. They wouldn't be only useful to give information; their two preys would be hostages. Muraki had told them that the phantom had interest in Maria and Hisoka. Maybe it could work.

Some times later, the three men were finally at their destination: Hisoka's house. They ignored that he had been attacked by their now dead comrades, and that Tsuzuki was now having him by his side. They searched for him and Maria Wong until the next morning, without any result. The three men were in a bar, Koichi was talking at the phone. Daisuke was now angry and tired.

"Fuck! Where are they? If the Boss learns…"

"Well we better find a clue or something."

"Hey guys, I have something!"

Daisuke and Genma turned to Koichi.

"I just talked to a friend of mine. He works as a spy at the police station, and he told me that Kurosaki and Wong had disappeared. They may have been kidnapped by the phantom."

They all turned to each other. Now time to report, and find a plan to capture those two.

At the opera, while almost everyone was worrying about Hisoka and Maria, the two 'kidnapped' were talking with Tatsumi. He was telling them a lot about his past in the mafia with Tsuzuki. The only thing he didn't tell was that Tsuzuki had some powers. He was just talking about 'special abilities'.

"So what were those abilities you are talking about?"

"Well Hisoka I can't told, it is Tsuzuki's responsibility."

Tatsumi was a little worried. If this boy didn't accept Tsuzuki, what would happen? Tsuzuki would certainly go mad, and when he was mad, it was really dangerous.

"All I can say is that he suffered about it. But you will learn the rest from him."

Hisoka nodded. He was feeling sleepy and soon, he just fell asleep.

Maria smiled. She was glad to see that he was better. She didn't really know about Tsuzuki's power, but she was already having some suspicions. She looked at Tatsumi, and her heart suddenly aches from his speed. She blushed. Since she had been with this man, she was feeing more and more comfortable with him, even if she was here, under the opera, in danger because mafia wanted them. Of course she was frightened, but with Tatsumi, she was feeling more and more in security. She then stood and sighed. She wanted some food and she had to stop dreaming. This man was really older than her, and he surely would never like her as much as she did.

Tatsumi looked at her while she was walking, and couldn't help but observe her curves. She was thin and wasn't proportioned like a top model, but she was still beautiful. He quite fell like an old pervert looking at a girl younger than him, but he simply couldn't help. He knew now why Tsuzuki wanted to protect her. All the women they meet, him and Tsuzuki, were corrupted, and having this young girl so nice and innocent, it was refreshing after a world of crimes.

As he thought about it, he remembered how he had been so worried for her every time that people were talking about firing her, or when Tsuzuki was taking her away.

He remembered how he had been so angry each time he heard Miss Tsubaki talk about her, or when the two men came to her room to make her talk. It was what he feared: he had fallen in love with her, with a girl who was barely a woman.

When she came back, he smiled at her, and then they barely talk, until Hisoka woke up. The conversation about the mafia started up again.

While they were talking, someone was coming back. Tsuzuki had been out all the day, without his mask of course. He had followed the men who were charged to take Hisoka and Maria. It was ironical, to think that they were looking for him, while in fact, he was just behind them! What he learned was very interesting.

It had been hard to avoid the police, but he still managed it well. When he was finally here, Tatsumi was talking about Oriya.

"I know he has friend everywhere, maybe he know someone here in this opera who told him about the situation."

"It's sure. Or else, how would they know about the fact that Maria was protected by me, or that Hisoka's presence was important to me."

They all turned their head toward Tsuzuki who just entered the room. He was wearing normal clothes, and he wasn't having his mask. Hisoka again was stunned at how normal he looked. He walked toward them.

"I followed them. It's seems that Oriya wants Maria and Hisoka to be brought to him. We should set a plan. But first, there is something I want you to watch, Hisoka."

Hisoka frowned; Tsuzuki waved his hand as an indication for the young man to follow him. Hisoka turned to Tatsumi who nodded in approval, and then he walked with Tsuzuki. The man was going in a little comfy room, where they would be alone.

Tsuzuki stopped and turned toward Hisoka, his calm mask suddenly fell and the young inspector looked at him a little worried. The phantom would never had let himself reveal his real face, the one full of worries, of despair and pain, in front of anyone. But this time, it was Hisoka, and he wanted the boy to know him. To see what he was for real.

"Now…What Tatsumi told you Hisoka? Did he tell why I am a monster?"

Hisoka opened to answer, totally confused, when he was suddenly interrupted by an unbelievable sight. A vase here had been raised in the air by an invisible hand and thrown on the floor. The sound was quite loud, and Hisoka remained silent totally stunned by what he just saw. Tsuzuki turned toward him with a sad grin.

"This is what I am able to do! See!"

Some stuff that was in the room began to fly and crash without anyone to throw them. Hisoka was breathless. Tsuzuki snarled. It was an error! Hisoka was going to reject him and run away. There was no way he would let that happens!

In a blink, he was in front of Hisoka, and he grabbed his shoulders. His smirk was bigger, and full of frustration.

"See? I can run faster with this power, I can moves things, and I can even set fire. See, I am a monster, am I not? They all hated me, everyone, and it is still the same situation!"

Hisoka opened his mouth but nothing came out of it. His eyes were still wide with surprise, but Tsuzuki couldn't know what he was feeling, and it was really, really frustrating.

"TALK! Say it, say that I am a monster. I have always been surrounded by death, I have lived like a dead being, always alone and in the dark!"

He then laughed madly, making Hisoka's blood stop in his veins. Tsuzuki was now frightening him, and not only because of his power A part of him was accepting quite easily what he just seen, because he already had seen a lot from him. Still, it was impressive, and Tsuzuki's behaviour was not helping much.

"I can tell what's going to happens then. You will try to run away, and I will keep you here and everything will be wonderful! I won't be alone anymore!"

He laughed even more. His grip on Hisoka's shoulders tightened painfully, and before Hisoka could defend himself, Tsuzuki had hit him behind his neck, making him vanish.

Hisoka woke bent to a chair like the first time he woke up. Except that he was still in the tiny room. He wondered where Maria and Tatsumi were, but especially, he wondered where Tsuzuki was. Why did he have to be always like this? He tried to think. This power…

He heard footsteps and tensed. He saw Tsuzuki entering, he was apparently a little angry.

"Tatsumi and Maria won't come; he is out, investigating, and for Maria, I closed this part of the lair. You are alone with the monster."

The phantom cut the ropes, releasing Hisoka from their grip. He young inspector knew that it was his chance, Tsuzuki was silent, and maybe he would listen to him. He tried to find something. He was quite panicking, but a voice in his head was ordering him to be calm. So with all his will, he finally found his words.

"I won't try to run…"

Tsuzuki looked at Hisoka, really confused. Then he smiled sadly, and continued to talk before Hisoka could say anything else.

"You are lying. I know how horrible I am by keeping you with me by force, but I don't have the choice, and you don't have it too. Tatsumi suffered by trying to stop my bloodlust, now Hisoka, it's your turn. You can stop this if you stay with me. If you don't…"

"There is no need to threaten me Tsuzuki!"

Tsuzuki stopped; the look in Hisoka's eyes had become more confident, like the time they confronted about Watari.

"I don't think you are a monster, this is special, but…It's not a reason to hate you…I mean, it's just what you did with it which is wrong…Beside, I can't reject you when I owe you my life."

It was difficult for Hisoka to push away the fear, and the instinctive side of him that was screaming against Tsuzuki. He tried to make the voice that was whispering how it was painful for Tsuzuki, how it was useless to be cruel with him, because he was not responsible. This voice was stronger than the other.

Tsuzuki was totally speechless. He wanted to believe him so much! A part of him was still very wary of the others, but another was just desperate for love. He sighed and finally decided himself.

"We will continue to play. This time, I'll ask a question and you'll answer. First, why aren't panicking about what you see?"

Hisoka sighed and answered.

"Well, it's incredible but…Everything in this case had been incredible, so I think that in a way, I was prepared to it."

"Why don't you fear me?"

"I fear you a little, but you saved my life, and you are trying to protect Maria and me. So I am beginning to fear you less."

"Did you still want to send me in jail?"

Hisoka was silent for a moment. He hadn't thought about it, with everything that happened! Some days ago, it was his only objective, but now, he was beginning to feel different about this man. Tsuzuki had protected him; they had talk about fighting together, and most of all he was feeling sorry for him. The man was scary, but he knew, with what he guessed and what he had seen and heard, that Tsuzuki was not just a sadist, and that he had never been happy. Of course, he still had a grudge for the man who had been hanged, and what he had done to Watari, but would have he been better if he had been in his situation?

"I don't know…You still have done awful things…I would like to know about you, tell me about your life, please. Tell me too, why you hanged a man."

Tsuzuki hesitated but finally, he decided himself. He told Hisoka the big lines, not every details. Hisoka listened, stunned. All the terrible phantom wanted was human contact and love! He now understood the assault on the roof, and every other time when Tsuzuki had kissed him. He needed this. Hisoka had felt quite dirty, but again, he was wondering what he would have done if he had been so alone.

For the hanged man, Tsuzuki explained that he had seen him without his mask, and that he had tried to catch him. He didn't really had the choice. Beside, after years in the mafia, old habits die hard.

Tsuzuki was looking at the floor. He decided to ask his last question.

"If we get out of this alive…Could I stay with you?"

"If you still want it, yes."

Tsuzuki smiled, knowing that Hisoka was saying the truth. He walked toward him and hugged him. For the first time, Hisoka returned the gesture. Tsuzuki was feeling so happy for once, it was the first time that someone was holding him like this, without being disgusted or obliged. For Hisoka, he had decided, he would try to let Tsuzuki free. Was it Stockholm's syndrome?

He was thinking, when suddenly, they heard Maria's scream. They both gasped, and ran toward her. She was holding a bleeding and panting Tatsumi. Tsuzuki reached them in no time, followed by Hisoka.

"Tsuzuki…Oriya's men…They are here, in the opera…They have followed me…They are going to came here…"

Tsuzuki frowned and turned toward Hisoka.

"Are you ready to work with me?"

Hisoka nodded.

Yes no lemon, but I don't want it to be unrealistic. For Maria/Tatsumi, well I liked the idea. More action in the next chapter, please review and tell me if it's crappie or not.