Nanako preferred to go out at night, when the shadows were most welcoming and the laws most lax. Alas, there were times when she needed to brave the light of day.

Her basket was heavy in her hand as she put a carton of cherry tomatoes in, eyes scanning over the rest of the produce to make sure there was nothing else she wanted before leaving the aisle.

She looked in her basket to make sure she had everything she needed- a package of lean beef, rice, a half dozen different vegetables and a few other things- before heading to the check out.

The boy behind the register stiffened when she looked at him, but she ignored his discomfort as she put her items on the counter.

"D-Do you have a bonus card with us?"

Nanako's eyes rose from where she'd been putting a carton of eggs on the counter, "No."

The boy, and he was a boy, probably still in high school if she had to guess, nodded a little too quickly and started ringing up her items. When he was done, she handed him the amount she owed, took her single paper bag full of groceries and left.

She'd only gotten a block or so when her PDA went off in her pocket. The name on the screen made her frown but she picked it up anyway.

"Hello?"

"Ah, Chisaka-san, so lovely to hear your voice."

"Fujikawa," she acknowledged.

"How's your schedule look this weekend?"

"A little busy, but I have time on Saturday."

"Excellent," he purred, and she could see his creepy smirk through the phone, "How would you like to meet a friend of mine?"

This is how it always went. It was too risky to openly order a hit over the phone, or at least she would not risk it and strictly enforced that rule on her clients. So instead, they'd asked if her schedule was open, if she was already scheduled for another job, and then if she would like to meet a friend of theirs's, which meant go to the client to receive the information regarding her next target.

"That can be arranged," she conceded, waiting patiently at a street corner for the light to change.

"Lovely, when should I expect you?"

"Tomorrow night," was all she replied, ending the call right after. She slipped the PDA back into her pocket with a sigh. She hated going to yakuza dens, it always made her jittery. But she refused to have them send the target's information directly to her, in case she was ever taken into custody. If she was found with information regarding a number of what had been declared natural deaths, she knew anyone with half a brain cell would make the connection.

So instead, a few nights before the hit she went to the client, received a folder with information she burned after reading and a disposable cell phone with only their number programmed into it, and that was the extent of their contact save for the untraceable wire transfer she would receive after confirmation of death. It was simple really.

She bit the inside of her cheek as she walked, mind lingering on her situation with HOMRA. While she didn't think the two she encountered had seen her, she didn't know for sure. The one with the bat turned around, but she'd assumed she'd obscured his view fast enough.

She might have just been being paranoid, but in the last two days since the club hit, she thought the Red Clan had become more active along their east border, closest to the strip club.

She was just being paranoid. Besides, none of them had really seen her face. And she was being careful about wondering into their territory. That's probably why she was as surprised as she was when she heard a familiar voice drift around the corner she was just about to take, five blocks from HOMRA territory and not much farther from her home. Nanako's steps paused. She recognized that voice from the night in the alley, belonging to the boy with the beanie. Yata Misaki, she remembered the boy in his dream calling him that. And, she now realized, was known as Yatagarasu, vanguard of HOMRA.

"Oi, we heard there's a strain hanging around the yakuza, carrying out hits for the bosses."

"Do you have any idea how many strains work as mercenaries? It could be anyone!"

"Yeah, but this one's special," a smooth voice she didn't recognize spoke up, "this one traps you in a nightmare."

Nanako froze. How did they know that? Despite being a strain, she put an active effort into avoiding anyone or anything related to the Slates. She knew HOMRA's influence ran deep, especially in their own part of the city, but how the hell did they find her so fast? Her incident with the two HOMRA scouts had been less than three weeks ago. As far as she knew, no other members had spotted her. There's no way they should have been able to find out even that much about her in such a short amount of time.

"I-I, no, I don't know anything about that."

"Oh? You don't sound so sure about that."

"Please, I can't say anything-"

"So, you do know something."

"No! I really don't know anything for sure, only rumors."

"I love rumors, why don't you tell me?"

"Only the bosses actually see her! She comes in once to pick up information about the people they want taken out, then sends a picture when it's done."

"Interesting. Anything else?"

"A-Apparently it's not actually her powers that kill, it's the heart attack brought on by the panic her illusions cause."

"So she what, scares them to death?"

"Exactly. I've seen what people look like when she doesn't kill them too. They're alive but it's like- like their bodies are empty."

Nanako swallowed thickly, thinking of the dozens of pairs of lifeless eyes she'd looked into the times when their hearts hadn't stopped, when she'd just robbed them of their sanity and left their minds hollow.

"This is all a bit concerning," the unknown voice drawled, "does this mysterious woman have a name?"

"I don't know her name, I swear! I just know that some people call her the Karito."

"The Reaper? How terrifying."

The voice trailed off after that, and the next voice to reach her ears was the skater's.

"Kusanagi-san, what do you want to do with him?"

"Eh? Let him go, I think he's learned his lesson about getting too close to our territory, and besides he gave us good information."

She heard scuffling, and a second later a man came running around the corner, barely avoiding knocking into her.

She heard footsteps as the two HOMRA members left, presumably back to their base. Nanako counted to 100 in her head before rounding the corner, letting out a breath of relief when they were out of sight.

A few meters ahead, she could see a narrow alley, and assumed that was where they'd conducted their short interrogation. She'd heard them walk away, but she still approached the alley with caution, shifting the weight of her groceries in her arms. Upon peering around the corner, she let out a sigh as she stepped into the narrow passage. Telltale scorch marks marred the brick walls, and Nanako frowned. This was exactly why she didn't want to fuck with the Red Clan- they were always more informed than you thought and as dangerous as you expected.

Her head tipped back, her eyes closing in irritation, "God, I'm such an idiot. Always leaping without fucking looking."

"That so?"

Nanako spun, and froze at the sight of a tall, handsome blond wearing dark sunglasses smiling dangerously at her. He fingered a lighter in his right hand, the slight movement making her nervous.

"Who are you?" she hissed.

The blond smirked, and suddenly a half dozen fireballs jumped out of the small flame and came hurtling towards her. Her groceries scattered across the alley floor as she jumped back. She was so focused on the attack coming at her from the front, she let her rear-guard slip.

She saw a shadow rise behind her out the corner of her eye, and she whipped around. Above her and hurtling towards her at an incredible speed, was the beanie wearing skater she'd trapped just a few weeks ago. His bat glinted in the light that made it down between the buildings, and as they locked eyes she could see his thoughts clear as day. Recognition, followed by surprise, followed even faster by burning rage.

She raised her arm, pushing energy to her hand, but he was on her before she had a chance. Nanako could only freeze, tensing her body in preparation for the hit.

"God damn it."

Her world went black.

Nanako jerked awake, immediately aware she was in a bad situation. Her coat and knives were gone, and she was sitting in a hard-wooden chair, her wrists tied together behind her, and each of her legs tethered to a leg of the chair. Her eyes were uncovered and her mouth wasn't gagged, but her main focus was on the pulsing agony in her skull. It felt like she'd been hit by a bus, and she made a mental note to be warier of bats the next time she encountered one.

"I see you're awake."

Her head snapped up, looking at the three men in front of her. Her eyes swept across the room quickly, realizing she was in what seemed to be a storage room, though only a handful of crates cluttered the otherwise empty room. She noticed scorch marks on the floor, and she swallowed thickly.

"Oi."

Her red eyes snapped up, once more taking in her captors. The one scowling at her was the brat Yata who'd hit her so hard, and she recognized the blond next to him as the one who had distracted her so his clansman could get close enough. Both eyed her suspiciously, bodies tense and ready to jump if she moved. The third man, another blond, was much calmer. His brown eyes smiled at her, despite the neutral expression he wore.

"Rumor is you've been causing trouble in our territory," the tall blond looked down at her, "and we don't take well to people causing trouble."

Nanako pressed her lips together.

"You."

Nanako went rigid as a familiar metal bat swung an inch short of her chin, eyes looking at the short brunette. His eyes spit fire at her, but she made sure to keep her face blank.

"You fucked with my head," he growled, teeth grinding together so hard she could hear it, "now I'm gonna fuck with you."

"Easy Yata-chan," the other blond soothed, and the chestnut-haired teen calmed down, lowering his bat.

"Whatever," he bit.

"Yata? As in Yatagarasu, HOMRA's vanguard?" she asked. The pride that filled his face was as palpable as it was immediate, and despite the situation she couldn't help but poke fun at him, "I assumed you'd be taller."

"What did you say?" he seethed.

His attempt to launch himself at her was interrupted by the tall blond in sun glasses, "You really shouldn't provoke him like that."

She sneered, "I've never been good at taking orders."

"Easy now, if you're not careful around a flame you might just get burned," he glared, taking a familiar lighter out of his pocket.

"Neh, neh, Kusanagi-san, we should hear her out first, don't you think?"

Nanako looked at the cheery blond smiling at 'Kusanagi', not trusting his sunny disposition for a second. If she was correct, then this 'Kusanagi' was Kusanagi Izumo, second in command and the clan's staff.

"Ah, alright," Kusanagi sighed, putting his lighter back in his pocket, "Now, you attacked two of our boys for no reason. You're either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid for going after members of HOMRA."

"Believe me, I wouldn't have touched them if I knew they were from a clan," she spat, putting particular venom behind the word 'clan'.

"Oh? Not a fan?" Kusanagi asked.

"Clans are more powerful than they should be and more trouble than they're worth," she huffed, tugging at the rope binding her wrists tightly.

"You do realize the situation you're in, no?" Kusanagi asked, one blond brow raising in question.

But instead of straightening out at the reminder she was at the mercy of the clan she was so freely dismissing, the black-haired woman's face got even more hostile, "There's nothing you can do to me that will be worse than the hell I'll send you to if I get out of these ropes."

Yata roared, dropping his bat in favor of jumping the strain with his fists. Tatara reached for the enraged brunette, but before he could do anything Yata had already dug his fist into the girl's cheek.

Nanako didn't make a sound as the shock from the punch made the pounding in her head almost unbearable and her teeth sunk into her cheek, filling her mouth with the coppery taste of her blood. When the pain lessened, she opened her eyes, glaring daggers at the brunette.

"You hit like a woman, Yata Misaki," she spit out the blood sitting on her tongue, finding her mark on the toe of his sneaker.

Yata froze, his face growing redder as he seethed. He bent and retrieved his bat, taking a step forward, but a hand on his chest made him pause.

"Get out of the way, Totsuka-san."

"Just hold on a second," he replied firmly, and after a second Yata straightened, although none of the anger left his face.

"Are you determined to be a pain in the ass or something?" Kusanagi muttered.

Any further talk was cut off by the door opening, and Nanako shuddered as a heavy presence filled the room. Her eyes swung up, and her breath hitched as a tall red-head entered the room. She didn't have to guess who he was, the amount of power rolling off of him was unmistakable. His hair and eyes matched the stories, but they failed to mention how much heat radiated off him, his entrance immediately raising the temperature of the room by a few degrees.

Nanako stiffened as he made a beeline for her, her heart hammering in her chest by the time he stopped just a few steps shy of her knees. His face as he looked down on her was apathetic, but his eyes burned with slight irritation. Despite every nerve in her body screaming in protest, she met his eye and refused to look away.

"She hasn't said much save for doing a wonderful job of pissing off Yata," Izumo chuckled, surprised the girl was brave enough, or stupid enough, to hold Mikoto's eye so long. Her face had gone smooth, all previous attitude gone. Mikoto was regarding her blankly, taking a long drag of his cigarette.

"Why did you attack members of HOMRA?"

His voice was deep and rough, like he didn't use it very often. It made her back snap straight, fear creeping into her for the first time. She didn't want to give up information on her client, she couldn't. If they found out she had given information to HOMRA, they'd never hire her again. And god damn it, they were one of her best customers.

Mikoto saw her flinch for less than a second, so slightly that if he hadn't been looking right at her he'd have missed it. Her dark red eyes were blank, giving away nothing.

He frowned, the action making Nanako clench her fists behind the chair as the temperature in the room spiked instantly. His eyes showed clear irritation now, and slowly he took one of his hands out of his pocket. Sparks began to crackle around his fingers, and Nanako made a decision. She had other clients, she'd pick up a few extra jobs here and there. Either way, it wasn't worth dying here, burned alive by the Red King.

"Why did you attack members of HOMRA?" he asked again, and for the first time Nanako broke his gaze, eyes locked on the sight of the flames now circling around his wrist.

"The man your men were about to beat the shit out of was an important associate of one of my best clients," her eyes went back to his, "It was a business decision really. Nothing personal."

His eyes narrowed, "It was a bad business decision."

To the surprise of everyone in the room, she let out a quiet but noticeable snort of amusement, "Yes, I realize that now."

Izumo actually let out a short chuckle at that. The balls on this kid were incredible. His eyes slid over to Mikoto, who's hand still burned steadily. Slowly, Mikoto brought his hand up till it was eye-level with the girl, the ravenette instinctually leaning back in her chair to avoid the heat.

"Who's your client?"

"Mori Hayate."

Mikoto's eyebrows rose slightly in surprise, and Kusanagi let out a low whistle.

"Mori's a big name in the yakuza. A real piece of work too," Izumo drawled.

Nanako pursed her lips slightly, pushing down the urge to roll her eyes, "He's a scum bag."

"You don't sound very fond of him," Tatara finally piped up, "why go through all this for him?"

"Like I said," she shrugged the best she could with her hands tied, "he's one of my best clients. I might not like him, but I can talk to him for as long as it takes to collect a client file, which isn't long."

"He's not an easy man to find," Mikoto cut in, eyes taking on a gleam she immediately decided she didn't like.

"You see him often?" he asked, and Nanako hesitated before nodding.

A smirk curled his lips, and at the same time the flames went out in his hand.

"You owe us," he stated bluntly, and Nanako flinched.

"And unless you want to burn, you're going to pay us back."

Tatara cut her free, and Nanako rubbed her tender wrists as she listened to the blond chat freely.

"I'm happy you'll be working with us. Mori's been using our land to get drugs to schools for a while now. Thing is, we can't seem to find him. It's really been eating at King, a lot of neighborhood kids have ended up ODing recently because of it."

Yeah, that sounded like Mori, she thought bitterly.

"Well, it's not like I have much of a choice," she grumbled. She spotted her coat and knives sitting on one of the crates across from her, and she reached it in just a few long strides. She resecured her knives first, one in the holster on her right wrist, another in her boot, two in the inside pockets of her jacket, and one longer dagger in the waistband of her jeans at the small of her back. As she picked up her long coat, shaking it out, she didn't realize Mikoto's eyes had zeroed in on the hilt of the tanto in her jeans. The intricate gold detailing on the handle was a dead giveaway.

"You serve the Gold King?"

Nanako paused in shrugging into her coat, but finished pulling it on after a moment.

"Only members of the Usagi have blades like that," Mikoto further pressed, and he heard her huff before she turned on him, face blank except for an annoyed tick in her jaw.

"I am no Usagi," she grit, "the one this knife belonged to didn't need it anymore, so I relieved him of it."

"You stole it," Izumo chuckled, giving the girl a small smile.

Nanako shrugged. The gold clansmen whose knife she'd took was one of the men who had tried to block her escape from the hospital. She'd taken his mind in anger, leaving the man a breathing corpse. She wasn't lying when she said he didn't need it anymore.

"Call it what you want," she shrugged.

When she pushed open the door, Nanako paused as a dozen sets of eyes immediately turned to burn spitefully into her. She raised a brow at the open hostility, turning and giving the Red King an unimpressed look.

"I can already tell this is going to go great," she drawled sarcastically, and Mikoto ignored her as he went and took a seat at the bar. Yata shot her a vicious look for antagonizing his king, but Nanako ignored him.

"Everyone," Tatara called cheerily, bringing everyone's attention to him, "our new friend here is going to be helping us for a while! So no fighting, or…"

Nanako blinked when he paused and looked at her, "What's your name?"

The ravenette just gave him a dry look, lips remaining sealed. That is, until she felt a tug on her coat, and looked down to see a pair of wide red eyes, like hers but brighter and kinder, staring up at her.

"Mizuchi," she said quietly, and Nanako stilled instantly at the mention of his name, "hurt you too."

Nanako dropped into a crouch, bringing herself eye level with the light girl, "You were taken by Mizuchi Kōshi?"

The little girl nodded, and Nanako's breath hitched. She knew immediately the white-haired girl was a strain, there was no other way she could have known about Nanako's previous affiliation. The girl was so young, and Mizuchi had been dead for years already. She had to have been so young when he hurt her. The thought made Nanako's chest ache in a way it hadn't in a while.

"I'm sorry," Nanako held out her hand, and the little white-haired girl slipped her smaller hand into hers, "that he hurt you."

"I'm sorry too," she whispered back, gifting the dark-haired strain with a small but genuine smile.

"What's your name?" Nanako asked.

"Kushina Anna."

Nanako gave Anna's hand a gentle squeeze, "I'm Chisaka Nanako."

The room had gone quiet as the two strains leaned in close and spoke, surprise hitting them when Anna not only took the girl's hand, but when the previously hostile woman softened noticeably and introduced herself.

Mikoto especially eyed her with a new interest. Anna had said the girl had been taken by Mizuchi at one time, and the red-head knew what a sick bastard the man had been. If he had hurt her half as bad as he had Anna, then Chisaka's attitude at least made some sense.

"So, your name's Chisaka Nanako?" Izumo called from his spot behind the bar.

Nanako stiffened instantly, rising back to her feet with a dark look on her face. She leveled him with a glare,

"Don't use my name too lightly. You'll attract the wrong kind of people."

Nanako smoothed her coat, heading for the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Mikoto called.

Nanako turned, face twisted in annoyance, "If you didn't want me to leave, you should have left me tied up. Now, I have a business meeting, and I'm already late."

"Nanako."

Said girl froze, looking back over her shoulder at Anna.

"You'll come back, right?"

Nanako's face didn't change, but her eyes softened, "Yes. I don't have much of a choice really."

Here's part two! I would love to hear everyone's thoughts!