Knissomancy


Poised and unaffected by the suspicion of meek gazes to observe, Neirah slid her sapphire eyes over the sight of metal sheets rolling down over storefronts for the night. It was closing time for the mall around her, for most shops, at least. She could tell that she made most business owners uncomfortable by the way their skittering gazes retreated as soon as she locked her focussed sights on them. Sometimes she felt like they lowered their shades as soon as they heard the rhythmic clicking of her heels against the linoleum. It made her consider that her reputation might have relentlessly preceded her good intentions.

It was a pitiful sight, but one she wasn't interested in as she calmly passed by them. The only stall she was wouldn't close for something so ridiculous. After watching another woman lock her storefront with fumbling fingers, she redirected her eyes towards the sight of smoke swirling from the shop at the end of the hall. Royal coloured curtains spilled out from the opening, making the gateway look flamboyant compared to the metallic sheets around it. The LED glow of vending machines lighting up the dark chamber across the hall made the entire shop look mysterious. Neirah could already smell the incense burning, the woodsy aroma beckoning her through the passage that might as well have delivered her to another world entirely. But that was fine. She was used to slipping between worlds, so the novelty had long since eroded.

"Well, well, well." Alluring green eyes peeked through the swirling haze and scrutinized the woman to step into her midst. "Our proud hunter returns, just as I predicted." After gently blowing the smoke that she held behind plum-painted lips, a nearly sinister smile curled them to one side. "How was Nagasaki, Tsuki-chan?"

As soon as Neirah stepped through the entryway, her stony expression warmed with fond sentiment to the smooth instigation of her informant. "It was lovely. Thank you for asking." She could see the subtlety of the woman's scan checking to see if Neirah had come to her alone, and Neirah's attentive senses didn't miss the look of disappointment flashing in her eyes. "I'm sorry to disappoint, Kamiya-san. I'm here for work."

The woman snapped her attention towards Neirah like the mere insinuation was insulting. "Maki," she corrected sternly. "I'm beginning to understand what your king has to suffer through on a regular basis." She closed her eyes and flopped a graceful palm to one side of her exasperated sigh. "It's a wonder that beautiful beast puts up with you at all." Maki drew her cigarette holder to her mouth, sucking on the jade mouthpiece before exhaling a relieving breath of the filtered toxin. When she finished, she used the elegant stick as a pointer to indicate her interest in Neirah's modified attire. "Mm, I see you got new boots," Maki teased friskily. She had known the moment she heard Neirah's confident strides clatter more shrilly against the mall tiles, her steps singing in a different key. Leaning her chin in the palm that she propped on her desk by her elbow, her lips twisted into a casual smile. "Poor Yata-chan must be thrilled."

Without interrupting her fluid approach, Neirah stepped forward and sat on the shopkeeper's desk, stretching one of her legs out high above their heads before folding it over the other. When she tipped her head back, the ends of her hair dusted the rosehips speckling the surface of the desk. "Do you like them? Dewa-kun picked them out for me before my trip."

A gentle moan reverberated between the ladies before Maki spoke again. "He always did have an eye for fine wares~"

Neirah turned her impatient pout over her shoulder, and as anticipated, she met the cunning smirk of her host watching her from behind. "Stop that," she growled sullenly. "It's bad enough living with Tat-chan. I don't need it from you too."

Maki laid her hands down against her desk by Neirah's side with a soft whine. "Tsuki-chaaan~ You can't make me wait forever!"

After rotating, Neirah popped off her friend's desk and leaned her weighted bust against the purpleheart surface of the wood stained with the scent of incense that soaked into the grain on a nightly basis. "Did I not just say I was here for work?"

Maki shimmied closer, meeting Neirah nearly nose-to-nose over the desk. "It will take ten minutes, I promise."

Lowering her voice to a near-whisper, Neirah gently shook her head. "I don't need you to read my love fortune," she reiterated firmly under her breath. "And if you don't stop asking, I'm going to stop bringing Tat-chan with me when I visit."

Maki fled backwards, spreading her fingers so her long acrylic nails could splay between her breasts over her heart. "You wouldn't dare keep my darling Totsuka from me."

A wicked smirk brightened Neirah's playful expression as she screwed her face up into a delicate little knot. "I would and will if you don't stop shipping me with my friends. Don't think that I don't know you two are in league with each other." Neirah turned and waved her arms high in the air. "Conspiracies! I get it from all sides!"

Maki straightened with a subtle exhalation, leaning on her elbow before returning her extended cigarette to her tinted lips. "Oh please, I don't have to read your palm to know that you're curious, and what woman wouldn't be? You're strange, but not that strange."

"Flattered," Neirah cooed upon swaying her head to the other side. She smiled to consider how Tatara classified her brand of unusual as interesting instead. "Tat-chan says it nicer, and he's the only one I need. We're going to be together forever, so there's no room for anyone else. Besides, Onii-san won't let me date until I'm thirty. You know that."

Maki seemed interested again as she leaned forward in her seat. "You're not even remotely interested in anything more? You're content going through your entire life with no one to kiss, no one to squeeze."

A rebellious Neirah snorted curtly and tossed her nose up into the air. "First of all, I have plenty of kisses in my life."

The fortune-teller flopped her cigarette holder out with a disapproving hiss, raising her forefinger from the stem to point at her guest. "Those don't count. Those are for luck, and if you can breathe through it, it's no good."

"Disgusting," Neirah droned.

"I can't believe you're almost nineteen years old and you've never had a proper kiss."

"My kisses are proper."

Maki clicked her tongue and slowly shook her head. "You sad, sad, child."

"And-!" Despite Neirah's growing impatience, her cheeks still dusted just to consider Maki's insinuation. "I have plenty to squeeze in the wintertime."

The enraged Maki slapped her hand onto the top of her desk in outrage. "I will not have you falling head-over-heels for Kamamoto! My cards won't allow it!"

A triumphant beam lit up Neirah's face as she teased her informant into a frenzy. "If they're tools for reading my fate, then they don't have a say in the matter. Besides, I thought you liked Ri-chan?"

After tossing her cigarette into the ashtray between them, Maki growled lightly and captured Neirah's hand between hers, her frantic gaze beginning to scan the intricate patterns etched into her handprint. "I do, but he's too soft for you. You need yourself a man who can walk on the wild side with the frisky little beastie you've become."

"First of all, I'm quite civilized when I care to be." Quickly jerking her palm away from Maki's clutches, Neirah could hardly stifle her laughter. "Secondly, I am literally surrounded by men who can light themselves on fire. How much wilder can you get?"

The mistress looked insulted as Neirah continued to demean her skilled trade. "I don't think you're taking this seriously, young lady."

"You're right. I'm not." Neirah climbed to her feet with a weary sigh. "I appreciate the thought, but I'm happy with the way things are," she admitted tenderly. "Tat-chan and I are happy together. If one of us settled into a relationship, everything would change."

Maki raised both sets of fingers to her face, intertwining them with a deep furrow in her brow as she analyzed Neirah's fleeting gaze. "And that frightens you, doesn't it?" She watched the hesitancy flash over Neirah's expression for a moment before continuing. "Let's be serious now. You're no good with change, Tsukiyo. It scares you to think that anyone else could mean more to you than Totsuka does. You're afraid that some strong, handsome prince is going to sweep you off your feet, stand by your side as you face tribulations together, forcibly break down all the walls that you've put up to keep them out." After filling her voice with certainty, her focussed leer tapered incredulously to scrutinize the way Neirah's expression softened. "You're worried that Okazaki was right. That you're taking the easy way out, and someday, Totsuka will no longer be everything you need."

Despite their alliance, Neirah felt attacked by the honied words sliding off Maki's tongue, and a part of her worried that there was some mystical truth in her prediction outside of what Neirah willed. Something deep inside her heart wanted to press Gin's involvement. After being reminded that he still hadn't contacted her, she considered asking Maki for her help in that regard, but the woman was already too distracted by other trivialities.

"You don't want me to read your love fortune, because you don't want things to change."

Neirah's mousy voice was weak with uncertainty as Maki's emerald eyes pierced her. "I came here for information-"

"I know."

"And I-"

"How is Fushimi-san?"

Neirah's alert expression startled as Maki derailed their tangent altogether like she'd been satisfied with what she'd surfaced during the visit.

Surrendering that Neirah wasn't going to budge, Maki sighed and picked up her jade flute once more. "He and Yata-chan visited the other day, and he looked paler than usual. I sense a great disturbance within him, but he resists me even more passionately than you do." After sucking a settling inhale of her smoke, Maki seemed to soften. "That man is far too complicated for even me to read, but you've always kept a careful eye on him, haven't you?"

Neirah considered the concern on Maki's face for a moment. It was true. She'd always tried to weave herself into Saruhiko's life, if not just so that he felt like somebody cared. But he remained adamant about keeping her out, so she didn't outwardly persist. Even if she wasn't sure of the reason the man kept checking his shadow for demons, she didn't feel like that was any of Maki's business. Saruhiko was a member of HOMRA, and if he needed someone to care, he had his clan. "Sorry, Kamiya-san, but I really don't know anything," she surrendered. "You know how he is. Maybe you could ask Yata next time you see him."

"I could only imagine," she groaned. "And three hours later, we might manage to get through the pleasantries." Maki sighed, closing her eyes as she spat out a harsh puff of smoke. "Though, I suppose he's come a long way from where he started. But you know he's completely oblivious when it comes to that man," she derided. "Even more so than you about your love life."

"I don't think that's true." Neirah could feel the pressure of Maki's eyes that were locking on her consideration as she spoke. "They've been together for a long time, so assuming that Yata doesn't notice these things just because he doesn't say anything is unfair. It's not how they communicate." She returned her humble expression to where Maki's deriding appearance noted that Neirah was giving the ginger vanguard far too much credit. "Maybe he just doesn't want to see it because he doesn't want things to change. And maybe I can sympathize with that."

A knowing smile twisted Maki's lips as she reached into the front of her dress and slipped a piece of paper from beneath the silky material. "Give my regards to Kusanagi-chan," she purred. "That king of yours is taking a big bite out of the city with this one. Selling Strain abilities isn't something just anyone could pull off. I hate to imagine what those poor kids are going through."

"I'm surprised that the Blue King wasn't on this long before now," Neirah muttered impatiently. "He's all high and mighty about his purpose when he derides ours, but here we are cleaning up his mess."

"Now, now, be fair, Tsuki-chan. He's still learning. It's not his fault he can't be as great and wonderful as our dear HOMRA," she teased. "And you forget, Suoh-kun wouldn't have noticed either if it weren't for Fushimi and Kusanagi. Now that was a match written in the stars."

A low growl rattled in the back of Neirah's throat as she tucked the information retrieved into her shirtfront against the mark on her breast. "I want to say something cheeky right now, but you're absolutely right," she surrendered. "Fushimi-san is a genius, and when you add that level of intelligence to Kusanagi-san's tact, I feel like there's no hole in HOMRA's radar."

"Mm, jealous?" When Neirah threw her head over her shoulder with a dim scoff, Maki smiled knowingly and closed her eyes. "You're the shadow of a kingly flame," she calmly refuted. "Nothing should bring you more honour than knowing that."

Neirah smiled humbly to herself as she watched the smoke of the incense weave through the air. "Can a flame cast a shadow? It glows on all sides. So, wouldn't any shadow it cast just vanish?"

"You're still here, aren't you?"

When Neirah turned away, Maki's pleasant expression faltered as she observed the woman through a spiral of smoky incense, and soon, she almost looked sad. Neirah hadn't noticed, though. She was too busy pulling out her PDA to contact Izumo when she saw that she had a couple of missed messages, one of which made her chuckle.

"You know, it would do you well to keep your ringer on, Tsuki-chan," she teased. "One day, an important call is going to fade into the night because you couldn't be bothered with modern technology."

"Uck, you sound like Onii-san," Neirah groaned upon scanning the messages. "With the way Chitose messages me, the thing would never stop fussing in my jacket." She quickly studied the text, groaning again when her scroll was interrupted by the image Masaomi sent of Misaki, roughing up a defenceless Saburōta. "Well, don't just send me pictures, you fool! Do something!" She banished her mobile with a bitter growl. "Sorry, Kamiya-san, but I have to go. Yata is assaulting my Wolf-kun and Dewa would rather send me pictures than interfere."

Maki replaced her pleasant demeanour and offered the woman a light laugh. "Your wolf, how quaint."

Neirah threw her defiant pout over her shoulder with a slight flush in her cheeks to scorn her insinuation. "I already told you to stop."

"Ah, but what love fortune is more interesting than that of a woman surrounded by the most wonderful men in this city?" she sang. "I envy you, truthfully. If only all of us could be so blessed."

Neirah didn't seem convinced, and she found it quite ironic that anyone could consider a rumoured cursed woman to be blessed. "Then maybe you'd like to go knock all their heads together to get them to settle down. Believe me. They're not nearly as dreamy as you make them out to be."

"Denial, denial, denial. It sounds to me like you need to change your perspective so you can appreciate what you so ungratefully take for granted." She laid one hand against her cheek as the other waved to dismiss Neirah's company. "Very well. Go protect your pet. And don't come back here until you're ready to submit to my curiosity."

A sly expression stole Neirah's face. "I'll send Chitose next time."

At first, Maki looked like she wanted to wrinkle her nose, but soon after, she laid both hands against her cheek with a happy sigh. "You say that like it's a threat, but you know Chitose can't go anywhere without Dewa-kun."

"Well, it's up to perspective whether you want to see it as a threat or promise."

"And Tsuki-chan!"

The tone of Maki's voice startled Neirah into turning to glance her way one last time before departing. "Hm? What is it?"

"Some free advice, because we're friends." There was a desperate crease in Maki's brow even as she kept a tender smile on her face. "Don't keep him waiting forever," she nearly whispered.

Immediately, Neirah's face burst with vivid colour as her guilt took hold of her temperature. She hated the vague ambiguity of Maki's declaration, but it was all a part of her trade. The frustrating portion was that she felt like the expression on the woman's face didn't match her words. "You mean Wolf-kun?" Maki didn't reply. Instead, the woman just closed her eyes over her smile and lowered her head. It was that mystery that caused Neirah's stomach to churn. She thought about the woman's abilities and considered that maybe her fate had already been prodded by her keen interest. But if that was the case, she wasn't sure that the woman's expression was comforting.

For some reason, her heart was feeling heavy as she exited the mall back into the bustling downtown streets. A sense of foreboding washed over her to notice the shift in her friend's demeanour, and she couldn't help but feel Maki spoke those words when she did because there was a duality in their meaning that she could conceal behind Neirah's concern for her friend back at HOMRA.

Her feet began to drag as her distracted thoughts wandered, and she immediately yelped when she bumped square into somebody on passing through the busy intersection. There were times when she was still clumsy, or certainly less than elegant. "Ah, sorry," she muttered in a friendly tone. She gave her head a gentle rub to ease the pain of her smacking her forehead into her victim's chin. "That was clumsy."

"Tsukiyo?"

Neirah's heart palpitated to the sound of the familiar humble address, and she immediately opened her eyes to stare up into a familiar face. "Tanaka?"

"Oi, long time no see!" Haru devilishly sniggered as he reached out and slipped his free hand through the ends of her hair. "Shit, you cut your hair. Never thought I'd see the day."

"And you coloured yours again, I see," she teased. "Brown looks good on you."

"You think so?" The smart-alecky red clansmen released her hair to touch his shaggy, side-swept bangs. "This is actually my natural hair colour if you can believe it. It finally grew out. The upkeep for blonde really sucked when you got roots as dark as mine."

Neirah wasn't sure which of them was most surprised when she laughed. Their introductions had been rocky, at best, and they saw each other few and far between clashes. He didn't spend much time at Izumo's bar, so she could only imagine how startling it was for him to watch her change in leaps and bounds. "You're terribly high-maintenance, aren't you?"

With an entertained snort, Haru raised his second hand to flash her the groceries he'd just picked up. "Tell me about it. This is my first trip to the store in years that I didn't come back with dye."

"You live around here?" She checked the bustling street around her curiously. "I never knew that. So that's why you're the one who keeps up with Kamiya-san for Kusanagi-san."

Haru reached into his bag and pulled a soda from the six-pack he'd toted, popping the tab with a hiss before taking a swig of the refreshment. "Well, ya never cared to ask before, did you?"

Bitter, as usual. Neirah smiled fondly with reminiscence. "That was pretty rude of me, wasn't it?" she murmured. "I'm sorry about that."

Haru gagged on the carbonation he'd inhaled with his shock for her statement and immediately started hacking to banish the tickle in his lungs. "Whoa, what the hell?!" He coughed some more, rubbing the spittle from his face before turning to watch where she began to depart. "Did you just apologize to me?"

Neirah's smile broadened as she raised her hand in parting, waving towards him without reconnecting their gazes. "Take care, Tanaka. By the looks of things, we'll be coming together real soon, so we'll catch up then."

Haru blinked a couple of times, completely bewildered by her sentiment. "Shit, was that really Tsukiyo?" He flinched when his PDA started to clamour in his pocket, and he threw his head from one side to the other to try and figure out how he was going to answer it with both hands full. Finally, he freed up one hand by combining his burdens so he could answer the call.

"Tanaka.

Hey! What's up, Chitose? You lookin' to-

Eh? Tsukiyo? Shit, actually, I just ran into her on my way home.

Ah… maybe? I dunno, should I've asked her?" Haru's expression began to dampen hesitantly as the voice on the other line grew aggressively defensive. "Ah… hah, of course not literally. Nope. Not even a little contact. You know me." He raised his drink back to his lips to take a nervous sip, but he spit it out the moment Yō spoke through the line.

"Pft! What!? No, I wasn't lookin' at her ass! I don't feel like dyin' today!" He paused for a moment, rolling his gaze skyward as he continued to listen to his friend prattle on the other line, and soon, he slowly tipped his chin back over his shoulder to steal a peek. Then, just as he caught the disappearance of luscious hips swaying through the crowd, he snapped back to attention. "No! I already told you I didn't feel like dying! She's not even here anymore, jeez!" He crumpled the can in his hand and tossed it over his head as he continued on his way. "Besides, it's not like you're anyone to talk.

Yeah right, put Dewa on the phone!

Yeah… Yeah, that's what I thought.

Fuckin' creep… I'll see you later."


"Say you're sorry!"

"What?! No way!" Misaki turned and threw up his nose, folding his arms over his chest to completely deny Saburōta's baying. "It's not my fault you're clumsy."

"Clumsy!?" Saburōta howled. "You threw me across the floor, and I got a sliver! Now when I take it out, it's gonna get infected, and it'll be all your fault!"

"Are you seriously complaining about something that insignificant?" Masaomi grumbled. "How exactly did you pass Mikoto-san's test?"

"The same way he passes every other test," Yō grumbled nearby. "He cheats."

Saburōta looked utterly mortified when Yō and Masaomi did no more than raise their palms to clap even though they were sitting back-to-back. Their timing was uncanny, and it made Saburōta feel uneasy. "Oi, whatever happened to it's the thought that counts? He did it on purpose! That's like the difference between first and second-degree murder!"

"Y' know, it probably wouldn't get infected if you idiots did a better job at keeping this place clean," Izumo calmly interjected. "Now settle down and stop being so damn loud."

Saburōta whirled to face the bartender with hurt on his expression. "It's not about the sliver. It's about malicious intent!"

"Consider it a blood pact, then," Izumo sassed. "Think of how many times Yata-chan's made Kamamoto bleed all over that floor. I guess this kind of makes you blood-brothers now."

That didn't seem to help Saburōta's worry in the slightest. "How can you all say these things so casually?" he hissed out meekly.

"D'awe, who's a beautiful sweetie? You are! Yes, you are!"

He was moments from being relieved that moderation had arrived when he heard the front doorbell chime, but before Saburōta could ask Neirah for her assistance in exacting his revenge, his brow was knotting beneath his cap. "Hold on, what's this?" His confused prattling summoned the attention of their remainder when Neirah stepped into the doorway, baby-talking next to Kōsuke. "E-eh?!" When Kōsuke turned to face Neirah lingering in the entrance, Saburōta's jaw dropped. "H-hey guys," he instigated flatly. "You uh… what ch'ya up to?"

Kōsuke tilted to face Saburōta with a confused look on his face. "Why do you say it like that?"

Poking his forefingers together sheepishly, Saburōta advanced. "I've just never seen you two hang out before. And now Onē-san's callin' you-" He visibly cringed. "…sweetie."

Before Kōsuke could speak, Neirah's voice raised on the opposing side of him. "What? We spend time together!" Neirah passionately contested. It hurt Saburōta's pride to realize that her first instinct wasn't to deny calling Kōsuke by such a silly pet name, much less beautiful.

"Ah, well sure, but I-"

"I have literally never seen you two hang out," Masaomi firmly refuted with a disbelieving look on his face.

"That's not true!" Neirah called past Kōsuke's blockade. "There was that one time… ah… You know! Where were we now…?"

The entire room startled when Kōsuke sighed and stepped left to reveal that Neirah was trying to coax a small retriever puppy through HOMRA's front door, causing suspicions to fade. "I found a puppy," Kōsuke murmured. "I think that's who Nē-san's referring to."

"Wait, you think!?" Saburōta clamoured.

Saburōta grunted when Yō flopped his elbow on top of the man's hood, tapping the ashes from his cigarette as he observed the way Neirah snuggled up to the fluffy addition. The effort caused Saburōta to sneeze. "Shit, why the hell didn't I think of that?"

"Nuh-uh," Izumo thundered flatly. He slammed his arms across his chest to mark the X of his denial. "Neirah, take that thing outside this instant or so help me."

Neirah tilted her curious pout towards her superior. "You mean Fujishima? But he's one of us?"

From where Misaki sat across from Izumo at the bar, he chuckled lowly to the sound of the barkeep striking his brow with his open palm. "Good one, Tsukiyo," he teased. As she approached with the pup in her arms, he carefully observed the way it seemed to delight in her presence as she stroked its dirty, matted fur. "But are you sure it's okay to bring it in here? I mean, what if it's got fleas or some shit like that?"

"Nonsense!" Neirah countered defensively. "Fujishima found it tangled in some twine. It has cuts on its little paws and everything."

"I have a cut on my paw!" From where he still lingered under Yō's arm, Saburōta thrust out his finger towards the maternal woman. "See?! It might even be infected too!"

"It's a fucking sliver," Misaki growled. "Just burn it out with your flames."

"You're missing the point!"

Suddenly, the dog in Neirah's arms turned to face where Misaki was reaching to pet it and let out a shrill bark that had everyone stirring to attention. It was loud and angry, but overall, not too threatening as it snapped at Misaki's fingers. "Dude, what the hell?!" Misaki snapped back. "I was just tryin' to see if you were okay n' shit!"

"It looks like he doesn't like you," Tatara sang. He watched the dog squirm a bit before it finally forced Neirah to set it down on the floor to trounce around. "Maybe he didn't like it when you yelled at Bandō."

"It's just a fucking dog!" Misaki raged. "What the hell does he know!?"

From where she'd sat on the couch next to Mikoto, Anna quietly slipped from her seat, crouching with her hand outstretched. The canine approached her cautiously. The look in its dark beady eyes didn't seem intimidated by Anna, but the beast at her back was another story entirely. "It's okay," Anna whispered. "You're safe here."

When Mikoto noticed that the dog wasn't paying Anna's patient dedication much mind, he leaned forward in his seat and commanded obedience. "You heard her. Don't be so ungrateful."

The expressions observing the situation dropped as the pup pinched its tail between its legs and sunk into the floorboards in fear. "That seemed a little counterproductive," Neirah cooed.

Despite the meek trembling of the creature, Mikoto served his purpose because the animal didn't dare flee again as Anna approached. She quietly stroked its matted fur, watching cautiously as the tail between the dog's legs tried to wag clumsily beneath its body. "She's afraid of Mikoto."

"Big surprise there," Izumo instigated dryly.

"This child is lost." Anna gently scooped their furry guest up into her arms, walking her over to where Kōsuke was lingering next to Neirah's side. "It would be wrong to keep her here."

"I could have told you that." Izumo watched Kōsuke receive Anna's gesture, but he recognized the caring look on the man's face when their gazes connected. "Don't give me that look," he threatened. "The last thing we need here is another bitch with an attitude problem."

Just as Kōsuke was about to speak up, Misaki slunk around his shoulder, trying to stealthily stroke the animal's soft fur. The entire bar echoed with sounds of the puppy's displeasure as she began to snap at Misaki's fingers again.

"What the fuck is your problem!?" Misaki thundered. "I just wanna fucking pet you."

"He really doesn't like you, Yata-chan," Tatara musically repeated.

"Yeah, you said that!"

"It's a she," Kōsuke rumbled softly. He flinched the moment Neirah reached around him into his arms to peel the frightened stray out of his grasp.

"Does it matter?" she cooed. "If she has nowhere to go, maybe she can stay with Tat-chan and I. Seeing as Onii-chan has a heart of stone." She nuzzled the puppy spiritedly, encouraging a sweet yip from the excited creature's muzzle. She could sympathize with the animal. She was a frightened stray too, once. "At least until she finds her place."

"Totsuka can hardly manage himself much less another living being," Izumo instigated dryly. "He'd probably start off strong, but you know how he is."

"And what about me?!" Neirah commanded sternly. "I said Tat-chan and I!"

"Both of you spend more time here than at home," Izumo reasoned. "Don't think I don't know where this is going. Fujishima found it so he can take it home himself."

"But my parents are allergic."

Izumo's expression dimmed. "There's always an excuse with you…"

Tatara smiled brightly and slipped towards Neirah, giving the pup's chin an affectionate rub. "And I guess it's out of the question sending him home with Yata-chan and Fushimi-san."

Misaki knotted up his face as he approached, trying to sneak his fingers against the dog in place of Tatara's. The dog picked up on his deception right away, turning to chomp baby puppy teeth into the top of Misaki's hand. "Ow! That little bastard bit me!"

"Good!" Saburōta snapped intolerantly. "I hope it gets infected too!"

"Fuck, you're petty!"

"And you're bleeding. Score one for Bandō."

Misaki whirled his fiery gaze to meet the sight of Saburōta's instigating. Before anyone could interject, he flew across the bar and crashed into the man mercilessly. "That's it! You're dead!"

Even as her wolf begged for moderation in the confrontation he'd summoned, Neirah was too busy distracting herself with the snuggly beast. "Don't worry," she whispered. "You get used to them after a while. They're not all that bad."

"He needs a bath, for sure," Tatara hummed thoughtfully. "And then we should get him some food. I wonder what we have that we can make up for him during his stay. I should go see!"

From the corner of the bar, Saruhiko watched through a displeased expression, his fist wringing against the table as he watched his fellow clansmen fuss over the tender creature. They teased Kōsuke for being soft, but they were no better, no matter how tough they acted.

He couldn't help but relate to the pup's inauguration. New members were found, they were pitied, and they were welcomed. By association, they were all the same. Dogs. Pitiful beings that weren't strong enough to face fate on their own, so they were taken in by the pity of someone capable of holding the leash, giving them power only to boast it over their heads.

His deep blue gaze swept across the bar, watching Misaki banter with their allies as he staved off his exhaustion. They were no different, once, reject pups that nobody else wanted. Take my hand, tell me your secrets. He watched it happen every day. They were closer with each passing moon, and he hated it. He didn't understand the premise of comradery's illusion. Even as Misaki smiled, he smiled because Mikoto allowed it. Their freedom was the price of the power they received to wield for their king's purpose. If he went to war, so did they. Nothing was their own anymore, just like the pup scrambling against the stainless-steel sink in the bar's kitchen, trying desperately to escape the hiss of spraying water. He pitied the dog because he understood it. He comprehended that suffocating notion of people acting like they knew what was best for you.

With a bitter sneer, Saruhiko turned his wild eyes over his shoulder, scouring the shadows like he'd heard something mocking his suffering. After a cursory examination, he surrendered that it was all in his head, but when he redirected his weighted gaze back towards the bar, he'd nearly yelped in alarm.

Neirah's once pleasant demeanour seemed to fade since the distraction of their newest addition shifted through the rooms. She watched the panic leap to the surface of her flinty companion's face for a fleeting moment before it vanished again to the sound of him impatiently clicking his tongue. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"Who said anything about being startled?"

Neirah let a gentle smile tug her lips up to one side. "Nobody, I suppose. Unless there's somebody else here with us."

Saruhiko's breathing hastened almost incomprehensibly as he cut his icy glower her way. She obviously hadn't meant anything by it, but his guilty conscience was staggering. "What do you want, Tsukiyo?"

"I don't know why you ask such redundant questions, Fushimi-san," she teased. "What I want doesn't matter much when it comes to you, does it?"

Guilty thoughts made the weight of her words strike him harder than he expected, causing his heart to knock against his chest until it hurt. "Just go away," he susurrated intolerantly.

"I will," she prompted softly. "I'll be stopping by the Shinjuku building on the way home." Even after announcing that she'd leave, she waited until he tilted his suspicious gaze her way before she continued. "If anyone is looking for me."

The pressure was building again as he met the intensity of her eyes with his own, hating the way he felt obligated to accept her invitation just to prove that he was sharp enough to have caught her meaning. Every time he thought about her, he came to the same conclusion. She was an unnecessary complication, which might have been why he took so much pleasure in watching her leave. Unfortunately, he didn't want to admit that she was capable of exciting him in any way, which was probably why he slowly climbed to his feet moments after she left to chase after her. If she wanted to persist, so would he, and he would prove that he would rather die than welcome her into his life.

Tsk.

"Oi! Saruhiko! Where're you off too this late?" Misaki's smile was broad and excited as he approached with water splatters on his shirt, and before Saruhiko could stop him from ruining the comforting moment, Misaki continued. "Kusanagi-san says the dog can stay until Fujishima finds the owner. We could use your help comin' up with names and stuff to call it while it's here."

"Call it Kēji. Then at least it had some warning…"

After perking to try and catch his companion's mumble, Misaki's expression humbled curiously to Saruhiko's swift reproach trailing off. "Kenji? That's kinda a weird name for a girl dog, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he groaned incoherently. At least his daft cohort offered him an opportunity to correct himself without causing a scene. "Call it Hana then."

Misaki threw his hand up into the air with a delighted cheer. "Like a flower? That's a perfect name, Saru! Thanks! I knew you were the best person to ask!"

"Sure…" His expression darkened as he approached the storefront like it was a doorway to escape. 'And why am I suddenly thinking about flowers?'

Misaki watched Saruhiko slowly saunter towards the door, his expression fading dismally. "Wait, you're still leaving? Here, I'll come with you!"

"No." Saruhiko stopped, adjusting his tone to detour his friend from giving chase when he knew that Misaki had no place where Saruhiko was going. "You stay and help with Hana. I'm just going to be at home playing games." He was only half lying. He would be somewhere playing games.

"Oh, okay," Misaki casually dismissed. "But don't worry! I'll tell everyone it was your idea to call her Hana! Mikoto-san wanted to call her Chūkaryōri. Totsuka wasn't having any of it, though. Especially when Fujishima was washing her in the kitchen sink. And Kusanagi-san-"

"Yata?"

"Hm, what is it?"

"Stop talking."

Misaki stood in the centre of the room, staring after Saruhiko as he departed. In a fit of struggling, he'd lost his hat to Hana. Which seemed to bother him less and less as he considered the way his friend was acting recently. Saruhiko seemed tired, and Misaki knew that he wasn't eating right. He understood that Saruhiko didn't like to talk about things that bothered him, claiming that they were tedious and irrelevant. Still, Misaki wondered how long he was going to respect those boundaries. He supposed his biggest concern was not knowing how long was too long before it was too late. "Okay," he humbly conceded long after his friend had physically departed. "I'll… see you at home."


Don't keep him waiting forever.

Foreboding sensations began to stir in her core again as Neirah considered the kind warning uttered behind violet lips earlier that evening. It seemed strange that Maki had mentioned something like that shortly after inquiring about Saruhiko's condition. But she couldn't understand being of any use to him. She supposed that it wasn't impossible that he was waiting for someone to listen, to hear things that he couldn't say. Considering that the very essence of their relationship was reading between the lines, that shouldn't have surprised her. Neirah was still doubtful, though, so all she could do is approach the situation in a way she wished she had from the beginning, just like Nagasaki had inspired.

The wind was growing colder as fall approached, and the breeze was refreshing as she stood on top of the world. The observation deck was technically closed to visitors at that time of night, not that it had ever stopped her before. And from what she sensed at her back in the next instant, it hadn't stopped Saruhiko either. Nothing about him generally intimidated her; in fact, there were times when she found his silent company refreshing. Even as he stood quietly at the mouth of the deck stairs watching her at the building's edge, she felt comfortable. His hands were in his pockets, and hers were ringing the icy railing in front of her. Worlds apart, yet somehow connected.

She'd given him a choice. This is where I'll be, so come find me. And he did. All that was left was to see which of them would break the silence first. It was something she found particularly difficult when the silence was so easy. Change was hard.

"I wish I could help you."

When Neirah spoke over the sound of the light breeze, Saruhiko's expression paled, and his heart started making that fluttering fuss against his chest again. He battled rage as he watched the wind carry her hair around her shoulders. He would never admit it, but he preferred it the way she'd styled it upon her return.

"But it seems all I'm good for is burning things." Neirah turned her gaze over her shoulder just as Saruhiko's brow creased with thought, realizing that maybe she wasn't talking about his disenchantment with their clan. "I should have paid more attention in school. Then maybe I wouldn't be so lost when you and Kusanagi-san start to go off about digital footprints and all that nonsense." Her fleeting gaze dropped, her heart in her throat as she tried to make light of her weaknesses. "I never really used to take that address seriously. Hunter… assassin. I kept telling myself I was better than that, yet here I am." After digging in her cleavage for a moment, she gently pulled out the folded note Maki had passed off to her earlier. "You were right, Fushimi-san. Nothing changed."

After taking the hint of her holding out the paper, he gently stepped forward to claim it before the wind stole the information she was sharing. It was warm, but he tried not to linger on that notion too passionately.

"And I'm not satisfied."

Saruhiko snapped his gaze from the paper to where Neirah frowned at the horizon.

"This life is comfortable, but when I came back ready to spill the secrets of my heart, I expected something to change. Anything. But it didn't." Her voice lowered until Saruhiko had to focus intently just to catch her cadences, and to his surprise, he did. "In a way, it feels like everyone is patting me on the head and reminding me that they told me everything would be okay. Now I'm second-guessing whether or not they're showing me the smiles in their hearts or just the ones on the mask they put on to make me feel better." Her gaze nervously tapered as she considered her inner turmoil. She had always been a little unhinged, but she never thought she was damaged enough that her clan would fear her instability.

"I love this place," she surrendered quietly. "But I can't help feeling like something is wrong. When I was contemplating my trip and feeling lost, Yata was the only one who tried to stop me from leaving. Does that mean… if I never came back, HOMRA would have stayed the same? Am I really… just another flame?"

Her tone lowered as she groaned her displeasure. "But then King-sama led us to war just because some goon hit me. He wouldn't have done that if he didn't care, right?" She sighed softly and laid her head in her hands, watching the stars spot the late-night skyscape. "Still, I understand what you mean now."

Like she hadn't just spilled her heart to him, Saruhiko choked down his welling sentiment and held out the slip of parchment that he'd taken a moment to consider. "What the hell is this?"

"Kusanagi-san said it would mean more to you than him," she reassured. "So, I'm giving it to you instead."

It was hard enough for Saruhiko to focus before she started confusing him with her soppy stories and secret codes. "Yeah? Well, I could have done without the life story that came with it."

If she'd said it once, she'd said it a hundred times. "I can appreciate an honest man," she murmured fondly. "That's probably why I enjoy your company so much, even if you can't stand mine."

Tsk. He hoped that the paper in his hand would be legible by the time his palm finished wringing the life out of it. He stuffed the note in his pocket with a bitter growl, staring at his feet as his impatience erupted. "Knock it off with that crap already," he commanded frigidly. "Do you think I'd be standing here if I hated you? Why would I waste my time?" He straightened to lock his eyes on her bewilderment at the building's edge. "You didn't tell me that I was coming here for information. I came here because I wanted to. I'm still here because that's what I want. If I wanted to leave, I'd leave. That's it." Maybe Mikoto could hold power over his head, but not Neirah. Neirah didn't intimidate him in the slightest. She had no control over his actions.

His teeth ground around his sentiment as he diverted his gaze out over the city before them. "Do you have any idea what's even written here?" he scolded. "It's the key to flushing those bastards out and crushing their operation, something that even the Blue Clan hasn't caught wind of yet. I'm gonna destroy it from the inside out because of this. Information that you brought me." He rolled his eyes with a derisive snort. "And yet you have the audacity to stand here wallowing in self-pity claiming that you're absolutely useless. How annoying."

Saruhiko threw his head to one side, refusing to look at her as his thoughts came flooding to the surface. He was tired and unable to filter his fragments. "You say you're just another flame, well, maybe to a king, that's all we are. Or even more, if he's the flame, we might just be embers- insignificant little specs of dust in his eyes." But what did that make them to each other? He understood her seamlessly as he watched the smiles exchange between their friends. He didn't know how they could be that happy all the time, how they could care so much. It only made sense that it was a charade, and a part of him felt attached to the keen woman for picking up on the same notion.

"You're constantly telling Yata that we're friends," he instigated dryly. "I would never consider you one. But here I am." He turned away with a flustered sigh. "So, which one of us is the fool?"

She slowly watched him return down the stairs and leave the way he'd come. When Maki has told her that she was the shadow of a flame, she never thought she might mean that nothing would be different without her. If she asked Tatara, she knew that he would say that meant she was special and defied everything just to be the anomaly, but it was hard to know which story to believe. Neirah was a recovering cynic battling an optimist, and somewhere in between, that was where Saruhiko came in. She would never give up on the day they could finally work together because she knew that if they ever could, nothing would be able to stop them, not even fate.

Neirah smiled mildly, turning to face the horizon after he'd departed. "I guess it's me…"