He wondered if this was a dead end anyway. He had no interest whatsoever in the secrets Izaya had weaseled out of important people. It was Shinra's hint that influenced him and today's unexpected glimmer of hope sealed the deal. Shizuo gritted his teeth as if he was about to fight. It was a matter of getting into Izaya's mind. And if he managed that, he might never find his way back. But that was a price he was willing to pay.
Shizuo rubbed the bridge of his nose and frowned at the monitor. There was the possibility of a random password but gut feeling told him otherwise. He was used to trusting his instinct and currently he had nothing left. Shizuo tried the next obvious option, Izaya's birthday. Tiny 2D Izaya shook his head and shrugged. 'Wrong again! You make me so sad.'
For the next couple of hours Shizuo typed all sorts of combinations of phone numbers, post codes, town names. None satisfied Chibi Izaya who swung the disproportionate scythe around, pulled a vending machine out of nowhere and sat on it drinking juice, juggled bits of sushi that he gobbled right away. Shizuo took a break because he was without clues. It was pushing on midnight when his cell rang and scared him greatly, much to his annoyance.
"Shizuo-kun! I just dropped by the bar but you weren't around. So I was wondering-"
"I'm busy, Shinra. Want something?"
"Where are you? I was thinking we could go out bowling or something."
Shizuo tried 'Dollars'. The icon wrapped itself in black and yellow police tape and wiggled worm-like.
"Can't do. I'm at Izaya's place."
"You mean your new apartment? Since it's yours now."
Shizuo was at a loss but the doctor might help him.
"Izaya's place is Izaya's place. I don't suppose you'd have any idea of what his password might be?"
"Hmm…so you took my advice? Can't say that I know but how about his screen name?"
Shizuo sighed.
"I don't know that either."
A brief silence.
"Ha. Sorry, I really can't say."
Shizuo lit a cigarette and took his eyes from the skating mini Izaya that seemed to think that it was Christmas time.
"Isn't there a way of accessing the stuff in the computer without getting the password?"
"You could get a hacker but word would spread very fast that Izaya's computers are in your possession. Not to mention Izaya was very good, I doubt anyone could hack it."
"Right."
Shizuo was loath to let other people intrude on this matter.
"But you know, Shizuo-kun? If Izaya left you everything then he expects you to figure it out."
"Huh?"
"In other words, you probably know the password already. I doubt it has anything to do with his net persona or his information dealings."
Shizuo glanced at the monitor again where icon was back to eating sushi this time atop a vending machine.
"Nothing comes to mind."
"You guys do go a way back, don't you? Try to remember your high school days."
Shizuo nodded. He was not particular good with phones anymore than he was with computers, especially when each new generation of cells was more confusing than the previous and he often forgot that the person on the other side could not see him which made gestures rather useless.
"'kay, thanks."
He hanged down the phone and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Shizuo was drawing a complete blank. He took a look at the scrapbook, wondering briefly if he would ever be able to open it without wincing, and introduced the captions. There was no result. Chibi Izaya was still not happy. Shizuo tried their high school name. Nothing. Shizuo got up and paced up and down. He felt like having a drink but that would make it even worse. Frustration filled him. At length he opted for a different approach.
'Heiwajima Shizuo'. 'Sorry, but no.'
Shizuo sighed. He tried variations of his name without of course forgetting 'Shizu-chan' but that was not it as well. Against his better judgment Shizuo was disappointed. And firmly back to square one. Shizuo tried to focus. The answer could be very obvious but clearly not obvious enough. This was a test and Shizuo was doing very poorly. Which, now that he thought about it, was their old pattern at school. Izaya aced every single subject, Shizuo barely made it without flunking. It was exceedingly annoying. Shizuo was remembering the many times in which Izaya had waltzed his way to a perfect score when little Izaya pranced to a locker and mused in comic concentration. Suddenly Shizuo was on his feet, a long slumbering memory stirring bits of light into the present.
Shizuo took a deep breath. Then he introduced Izaya's school locker combination, a number that he knew because Izaya had told it himself and that he could still recall because it was a numerical translation of 'Izaya outruns the Shinkansen.' The screen grew black then suddenly the icon reappeared jumping up and down, did a silly dance and then raced a bullet train. And then Izaya, the real one, was waving at Shizuo through the monitor.
"Correct, Shizu-chan! It took you four hours, thirty minutes and twenty seconds to get it. You still needed some help, though. Which reminds me you can download Chibi Izaya to your cell phone. But on a more serious note, congratulations. If you're seeing this then I must be dead. I always wanted to say that. Unfortunately, or not, it also happens to be the truth."
Shizuo hardly heard the words themselves. It had been so long since he actually heard Izaya's voice apart from dreams that he simply let the familiar mocking lilt to wash over him.
"On my right, which would be your left, are a couple of folders. Click on any of them to dissolve the government, ruin a few majors companies, you name it. Most of Tokyo's secrets at the tips of your fingertips. Literally so."
It was very normal to speak to a video feed, at this point:
"Don't care about that."
"But I bet you don't really care about that. On my left, which would be your right, are a few folders of a personal nature. Now, Shizu-chan, there must be something you want. Namely, you want to know. Welcome to my world. Information is everything."