The second that Izaya had crashed onto the ground of the hotel, he felt a sudden burst of fear overtake him. He scrambled up and found that he and Celty were surrounded by seven girls, all of them vampires, and all of them grinning with their sharp teeth on display.
Izaya felt a sudden desire emerge from deep within his soul. I have to protect her! Protect Celty! His body changed along with his fierce thoughts, and he was on all fours in wolf form. His hackles were raised and his teeth bared in a protective snarl.
"Aww! The little puppy thinks he can protect her! How cute!" The vampire that had forced them inside cooed in a mocking tone. The other girls laughed at her words.
Izaya snapped his teeth in a threatening manner. "Get near either of us and I'll show you just how dangerous I can be!"
Celty was up on her feet mere seconds after Izaya, and quickly stood protectively at his side. In her hands formed her scythe, which she was prepared to swing at any of them if they dared to try and hurt either of them.
The stand-off between them lasted only a few moments before a loud voice echoed throughout the love hotel. "What the hell is going on here?"
The vampires, the werewolf, and the Dullahan all swiveled their heads to the stairs, where an older woman stood. She had on a mighty fur coat, jewelry everywhere, with a face full of makeup and a cigarette held delicately in her spindly fingers. Her red eyes sent a fierce glare towards the vampires.
"M-Madame!" The nearest vampire, a girl with short blonde hair exclaimed. "W-we weren't doing anything!"
Celty, still holding her scythe close, was quick to point at the vampire with the inky black hair. She said that she was going to suck my friend's blood and then she dragged us in here!
The Madame's eyes quickly landed on her. "Yua! I've told you a thousand times not to try and scare our otherworldly guests!"
"Awww, come on Madame! We were just having a little fun!" Yua whined like a child as she glanced back at Izaya. "It's so hard to resist with the werewolves, especially the newer ones! They always think the feud is a real thing!"
The older woman scoffed and cuffed the woman over the head. "And you're only ruining our image more by scaring any poor werewolf that walks through the door!" She pointed upstairs. "Go get our guests food right away! Apologize first!"
Yua quickly bowed her head to Izaya and Celty. "I'm sorry for my behavior!" She squeaked and then hurried up the stairs before the older woman could yell at her more.
"The rest of you, go back to what you were doing before I make you clean this whole place top to bottom for encouraging her!" The Madame yelled, which quickly sent all the other vampires scurrying away.
As soon as the mischievous vampires had all scattered, the Madame's angry expression melted into a pleasant one. "I am so sorry about that, young vampires tend to be a little… Mischievous. It's okay, little wolf, you can change back now."
Izaya flicked his tail at the nickname and waited for a few suspicious moments before he changed back into his human form. Celty seemed to agree that the danger was gone, so she let her scythe vanish into the shadows.
The Madame looked Izaya up and down. "Oh my, what a handsome little werewolf. You can have one of my girls at a discount if you would like. Think of it as an apology for the scare, and a benefit of your looks~"
Izaya's face turned a bright shade of red as he stuttered out several words that didn't make sense. "I- I- Um… I'm not here for any of your girls, we- we are here for-"
"Oh~ I see. You and this lovely lady here want a room for yourself! Now that's a union I would like to see!" She visibly swooned at the thought.
Celty, who had been snickering at Izaya's predicament just moments before, was so embarrassed that the puff of smoke from her neck nearly sent the helmet flying off her head. WHAT?! No! We're friends-
"She has a boyfriend!"
He's not even my type!
"And she's not mine either!"
The Madame chuckled. "Ah I see! You swing for the other team then, little wolf? I'm sorry, I don't have any guys here for you."
Izaya's face turned an even deeper shade of red if that was possible. "I… I'm not here for anything like that! I'm here for business reasons, it's very important so I would appreciate it if you would let me speak!"
The older vampire and Celty both seemed to notice how he avoided what The Madame had just said, but neither of them brought it up, which he was very thankful for. He had more important things to worry about.
The Madame took a drag of her cigarette and then motioned to the werewolf. "Go ahead then, I am listening."
With her full attention, Izaya and Celty recounted the tale of the missing werewolves to the vampire. They explained how the informant had gotten the bite, and then the strange disappearances that had been continuing to happen. As Izaya went into detail about the obvious cover up of scents and camera footage, her face went from flirtatious to concerned.
The other vampire girls, who had been avoiding the area, soon grew too invested in the story and joined in. They sat on the furniture and listened in, their faces just as concerned as the woman who ran the building.
"...And that's why we came here. Her scent ends right in front of the cameras on the side of your building that faces the bay. I was hoping that we could take a look at the cameras and see if my packmate, or any of the others, may have shown up on it as well." Izaya finished his tale with a pleading tone in his voice.
The older vampire's face remained pinched as she took another drag of her cigarette. "That is deeply worrying…" She muttered to herself. There was silence in the hotel for a few moments before she looked at them both. "How old do you think I am, little wolf?"
Izaya tilted his head. "Vampires are immortal, aren't they? So I'm guessing you're pretty old."
She chuckles and nods her head. "Precisely. I don't remember my exact age, but I am over three hundred. I've seen the persecution of our kind many times. I remember when the werewolves all had to go into hiding around one hundred years ago. There was a good stretch of time where we thought that maybe you had all been killed."
The Madame shuddered at the memories. "I don't want to see that happen again. Not to werewolves, vampires, or any of the otherworlders."
With a wave of her hand, she beckoned for Izaya and Celty to follow her upstairs. The friends sent a gleeful look at each other and did just as The Madame requested. She took them all the way up to the third floor.
It looked like the third floor was where all the girls lived. There was a nice kitchen and a living room, as well as several nice rooms. There were no windows, but there were clocks. The girl who had frightened them, Yua, was by the fridge. When Izaya looked inside, he noticed several bags of blood.
"Ah… So all the girls here are vampires?" He asked curiously, trying to recall what Jinsei had told them. "Does that mean you are a clan?"
The Madame led them to her office while she made a happy noise. "Well, well, it seems you're also an educated little wolf." She nodded her head. "Yes we are. Most of the clan members have been here for over fifty years except Yua, she was bitten only a few years ago."
Celty looked between the two of them and tilted her helmet. I don't understand… What's a clan? Is that like how werewolves have packs?
The older vampire hummed. "Sort of. Almost all werewolves tend to belong to a pack, but vampires come and go from clans as they please. Sometimes a clan can be as close as werewolves in a pack, but other times it's just for business."
"As you know, going out in the sun kills vampires. So the daytime is out for us. We have less time to find a meal, so when we are in clans it ups our chances, especially if people in our clan have good connections."
She motioned to the building around them. "The night life is when vampires thrive. Night clubs, bars, love hotels... That is why I started a brothel. People come in for a good time, and my girls can get some blood without raising any flags."
So you bite your clients? Doesn't that raise any flags? Celty questioned her again. She couldn't help but be curious now that she knew other supernatural creatures existed. Izaya shared her curiosity, so he listened intently.
"Nope. Just like werewolves have their own special powers, so do vampires. We have the power to erase memories." She tapped one spindly finger against her head. "We can't erase strong memories, like people you care about or things you remember strongly, but we can erase small things. We bite them, drink the blood, and then make them forget."
Izaya hummed in admiration. "I see… So that means your bites don't turn people into vampires like werewolves do."
The Madame shook her head. "Nope. We can choose when to turn someone. I can't speak for the lone vampires, but most clans have rules about who you can turn and who you can't."
She sat down in the plush desk chair and typed speedily on the computer. "Do you know what day your packmate went missing, little wolf?"
Izaya nodded and told her the date, and the estimated time that Bashira likely was taken. The vampire typed on the screen for a while longer and then scrolled through her videos on the camera feed. After a few seconds, she froze. "What the…"
"What is it?" Izaya moved to stand behind her and looked at the screen, his heart instantly filling with dread at what he saw. The footage for the day Bashira went missing was completely erased, as if it had never existed.
The werewolf let out a frustrated growl. "Damn it!" He clenched his fists so tight that he could feel his nails cutting into his palms, and let out a frustrated growl. "That was my only lead, and now I have nothing! I thought I could find her!"
Izaya, we can still try to find her... Celty tried to comfort him.
The informant broker sighed and shook his head. "How am I supposed to do that without a lead? I was too late, Celty… She's gone, just like the others…"
The vampire watched their exchange quietly, and then shook her head. "Don't you dare give up, little wolf. I saw the passion in your eyes as you were telling your story. You want to find the missing werewolves, and now I do too."
She's right, Izaya! Celty quickly added her own opinion. We can find Bashira, we can find all of them! We just have to change our strategy, and not give up! That's what they want us to do!
Izaya's downtrodden expression remained for a few moments before he became determined once more. "Celty, you're a genius!" He exclaimed. "They are being careful, yes. But is it because they are smart enough for that or is it because they know we're onto them?"
He hummed thoughtfully. "I'm afraid I may have to wait until another wolf goes missing before I can see where exactly they go. But that doesn't mean I can't work on other things too." He looked at the vampire. "Madame, if I can fix your cameras so they can't hack in as easily, can I come back and occasionally check the footage?"
The Madame looked at him with pride. "Of course, little wolf. You and your friend are welcome to come over anytime, whether it is business or otherwise." She winked, and then typed something on the computer. "I will ask the other clans in the area to keep an eye out too."
You think they will help? Celty asked curiously.
The vampire nodded her head. "Maybe not all of them, but I know that most clans still remember the importance of all supernaturals protecting each other."
Izaya gave another smile that showed off his canines. "Thank you so much, Madame. That means a lot." He looked towards Celty. "As for you and me, I think it would be best if we backed up but remained vigilant."
I think so too. If it looks like we gave up, whoever is doing this might get reckless and slip up. The courier gave him a hopeful thumbs up.
After a moment of silence, Izaya awkwardly shuffled his feet. "But that doesn't mean we have to pretend to not be friends… Doing this investigating with you has been fun. We should try to hang out sometime!"
Celty loomed ecstatic. Yes! I would love to! Maybe we can rope Shinra into watching some alien movies with us! I just found out about this american show called The X-Files!
Izaya chuckled at her sudden excitement and smiled. He didn't know it in that moment, but his fondness for Celty had manifested into something more. She was no longer just a friend, she was something more.
After cheering Izaya up, they did a little more planning. Izaya promised to come back in a few days and fix their cameras as well as update a few things, the vampire told them about the clans that would most likely speak to them too, and they exchanged numbers so they would be able to contact each other easily.
It seemed like everything was ready to go. The Dullahan and the werewolf said goodbye to their new vampire friends as they opened the door to the love hotel-
SLAM!
Izaya was suddenly thrown backwards as something heavy crashed into his body. The vampires let out a cry of surprise as he landed on Yua and sent her and the tray she was holding to the ground with a loud clatter.
The informant felt his head spin in shock as he forced himself to shake off the surprise. He was quick, and instinctively shifted into his wolf form as he jumped to his feet.
When he looked up, he found that there was a large brown werewolf standing in the doorway. He stalked forward and took up the entire doorway with his hackles raised, bared teeth, and a growl that echoed through the whole hotel.
The werewolf threw itself forward and snapped its jaws with intent to bite at Izaya's beck, but Izaya was faster than him. He dodged the gleaming teeth and threw his body weight into the wolf's side, sending the creature tumbling backwards and into the lobby chairs, which couldn't handle the sudden force and topped over each other.
The large wolf quickly regained his footing and charged again. Izaya tried to dodge once more, but the werewolf was prepared for such a move. He moved the same way as Izaya and lunged, sinking his teeth into Izaya's shoulder.
"Argh!" The black wolf let out a yelp as he wrenched himself out of the grip, feeling his skin tear and the blood soak his fur. "Alright! That's it!"
He let the wolf charge again and faked a dodge. When the wolf tried to meet the dodge once more, Izaya ducked and let his teeth sink into the wolf's back leg. Just like how he did with Shiro, he pulled the limb with him until the wolf lost his balance and crashed to the ground.
As soon as he hit the ground, Celty's black shadows wrapped around him and trapped him on the ground. The wolf snarled and struggled, but his teeth and claws were no match for the power of a Dullahan.
Once she was sure that the wolf was trapped, the Dullahan hurried over to Izaya and knelt down at his side. Are you okay?! Celty asked him worriedly, her hand hovering over the bloody bite on his shoulder.
Izaya kept his paw raised off the ground to make sure that the injured limb didn't have any weight on it. "Ah… I will be fine…" He said after moving the shoulder a little bit. "It hurts, but it wasn't that bad of a bite."
The black werewolf limped over to the trapped supernatural and bared his teeth. "Alright, stranger. I'm not in the mood for games. Who are you, and why did you attack me?!"
A million ideas ran through Izaya's mind. Was it a friend of the werewolf that bit him? Was it someone helping with the disappearances? Who could it be?
"Don't act like you don't know, Orihara!" The brown wolf snarled, and the familiar voice made both Celty and Izaya freeze in shock. Wait a second…
"Tom?!"
Izaya lowered his snout to the ground so he could look the werewolf in the eye. Those eyes, the fur color, there was no doubt in his mind. The werewolf who just attacked him was Tom, Shizuo's senpai.
"What in the… You're a werewolf?!" Izaya exclaimed in disbelief.
Tom stopped his struggles and showed his sharp teeth. "I could ask you the same question, Orihara."
Izaya barely noticed the hostility in the tone, too focused on the fact that the debt collector was not just an average human. "I… I've been a werewolf for a month and a half now…" He awkwardly admitted.
"Did you get bit or did you turn yourself into a werewolf on purpose?!" Tom asked with a growl.
What?! On purpose? Why would Izaya get himself bit on purpose? Celty questioned in confusion.
Tom looked at her as if she were daft. "Why else would he do it? To hurt people!" He glared at Izaya again. "You vanish for the month transformation and the first fucking thing you do is mess with Shizuo's head!"
Izaya tilted his head with an incredulous look in his red eyes. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"You know damn well what I'm talking about! You waltz around Ikebukuro to taunt him, and as soon as he comes after you, you act like you don't want to fight him! And then you drive around with Celty just to hurt him more!" Tom turned to snarl at the Dullahan. "Why are you letting him do this?"
Celty looked just as bewildered as Izaya. Tom, he's not doing anything for once! He wasn't even trying to mess with Shizuo!
"Lies!" Tom thrashed against the bondage that kept him against the floor.
Izaya hopped to his paws. "No, it's true!" The black wolf hurriedly insisted. "Tom-san, I told Shizu-chan that I didn't want to fight because I really didn't!"
The debt collector narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but seemed to notice the genuine feeling in Izaya's tone. He stayed silent, and waited to hear what the informant would say next.
"That day, I had been distracted talking to my pack. When he threw that thing at me, it scared me really bad. I started to change, and my wolf side was telling me to attack and to… to bite. It was terrifying… So, I ran."
Tom's suspicion melted away a little bit as he recalled that day. It seemed he believed Izaya's story, but he still seemed confused. "But you hate Shizuo, wouldn't you want to bite him? To make him suffer?"
"I don't hate Shizuo! At least, not anymore. I've had time to grow up a little, and now I understand that my hatred was from jealousy… I wanted the friendships he had, but I never tried to work for it," He shook his fur and sat down."Even if I still hated him, I still wouldn't bite him."
"Why?" Tom's interrogation continued.
Izaya didn't even have to think hard about that. "Because I would never willingly change someone from human to supernatural… And because my bite was an unwilling one. I remember how terrified I felt… How scared a first transformation was when I was all alone." He shuddered in fear. "I would never want to put someone through that."
Tom's gaze softened, showing a level of understanding that only another werewolf would understand. Izaya knew he would get it. They both had teeth that could change a person with the simplest of bites, and that power was sometimes hard to control.
"And… As for me and Celty riding together, that was just a coincidence."
The brown wolf looks towards the Dullahan, who nods her helmet in agreement with what the informant says.
Me and Izaya are investigating the werewolf disappearances.Tom froze, but Celty continued without noticing. One of his packmates went missing and so we were trying to see if we could find any clues about where she and the other missing ones are.
Any anger in Tom's expression faded away, and was replaced with fear and concern. "Wait… W-werewolves are going missing?" He questioned in shock.
Izaya tilted his head to the side. "Dozens have disappeared, how did you not know? All the packs have been buzzing about it."
Tom's ears flattened slightly. "Oh I- I don't…." He cleared his throat and let out a weak huff. "I don't belong to a pack…"
The informant was surprised. He had never met a lone wolf before, those were very rare. The grey wolf who had taught him to heal told him that packs were important because of their powers, they were stronger when they were together. Lone wolves struggled more, and in a time where werewolves were going missing…
"I see…" Izaya wasn't sure what else he could say. He couldn't imagine being without a pack. He turned and let his tongue run along the injury, cleaning the blood from his fur. "Well… Yeah, werewolves have been going missing. I don't know who is doing it, but someone is trying really hard to make it so I don't find anything."
Celty nodded. We came to the love hotel to check their cameras, since we didn't get a clear view on the ones Izaya hacked. But whoever is doing this got rid of the footage before we got here. They are being very thorough.
Tom's hackles raised for a moment, but Izaya knew that it was out of worry rather than anger. He turned his head and glanced up at the black werewolf. "I… I'm sorry for attacking you…" He managed to admit. "I thought you were going to try and hurt Shizuo. I know he can take care of himself, but… He's my honorary packmate, I had to make sure you weren't planning anything."
"Oh…" Izaya whispered, his eyes wide at the mention of those words.
Celty looked between the two of them, once again out of the loop. I'm confused… What does he mean by honorary packmate?
The Madame was the one who answered. "Well, werewolves belong to packs, as you know. Humans or other supernaturals cannot be pack members. But, if a werewolf cares deeply about someone, it forms a bond that is referred to as becoming an honorary pack member."
She looked towards the werewolves to confirm, and both of them nodded their heads in agreement with what the love hotel owner had said.
"Honorary pack members are under the protection of the wolf or wolf pack that they bond with," Izaya explained further. "A wolf pack will be able to tell if you are one or not, and they tend to leave honorary packmates alone because messing with them is trouble."
Tom snorted from his trapped position. "Not that it does any good with Shizuo. Humans still mess with him, and he gets in enough trouble on his own. But, I guess that's just how it is in Ikebukuro."
He turned his brown eyes to Izaya. "Do you mean it? You'll really leave Shizuo alone? You won't try to mess with him anymore?"
"I do, I promise." Izaya gave his fur one last lick, the blood finally gone. "And I'm not doing that just because he's your packmate. I didn't want to fight him anymore anyways… I'm.. I'm done hurting people."
Tom seemed to search his expression for any sign that the black wolf could be lying. He seemed satisfied with what he saw, and inclined his head. "I believe you." He motioned his snout towards Celty. "It's kind of hard not to when Celty is here to vouch for you. I see why you made her an honorary packmate."
The Dullahan froze, her helmet turning to face Izaya. Wait… Really? She questioned him in disbelief. You care about me that much?
Izaya's fur seemed to ruffle as he grew bashful, shuffling his paws. "I- Yeah… It happened a few minutes ago. I was going to tell you but then all of this happened and, you know…"
Celty made an excited squealing noise as she knelt down and hugged the wolf tightly, letting her helmet rest in the thick, warm fur. Izaya, I'm so happy! I'm proud to be your pack mate! Thank you, thank you!
As Tom watched the two supernaturals embrace, any doubt that he had about how genuine the informant were being was fully vanquished as he watched the two embrace, and saw the black wolf, unable to hide how happy Celty's acceptance made him, let his tail wag back and forth like an excited puppy.
Wow… The debt collector thought, his heart lighter than it had been moments before. Maybe I was wrong, maybe Izaya really had changed…
After Celty quadruple checked that Tom wasn't planning to jump Izaya the second he was freed, she let her shadows dissipate and allowed the brown wolf to awkwardly climb to his feet. He hissed in pain at the bite on his back foot, surprised by just how strong Izaya actually had been in the fight.
Izaya looked momentarily surprised by the sight of him limping, as if he had forgotten how he had injured Tom. "Oh, here, let me help you." He lowered his paw over the bite, leaned his head back, and then let out a chilling howl. Tom watched in awe as a white glow surrounded his wound, and then it slowly healed, leaving nothing behind.
With a dropped jaw, Tom lifted his newly healed paw and stared in disbelief. "No way… How did- How did you do that?"
"Oh my~" The Madame said with a wide grin. "It has been centuries since I have seen a wolf using the moon's gift. Today has been an interesting day indeed."
Izaya let his paw scrape against the ground. "All werewolves have the ability to heal, it's just that not many know about it anymore. Having to hide amongst humans, and having so many of us killed, eventually made us forget," He explained, recalling that the grey wolf had told him.
Tom lifted his paw and sniffed it. "I had no idea…" He looked towards Izaya and tilted his head. "Do you think… Do you think you could teach me to do that?"
Izaya's tail wagged once more and he eagerly nodded his head. "Of course I can! The more wolves that know about the ability, the better." He hissed in pain as his injured shoulder twinged. "Ah… But it may have to wait until my shoulder gets fixed up."
Do you want me to take you to your packmates so they can heal you? Celty asked him, still fretting over the werewolf's injury.
Izaya quickly shook his head. "No, no I can't. Mizuki and Shiro are the only ones who know how to heal right now, and they are with Sayuri. Our pack leader doesn't want her to be alone now that Bashira is gone, just in case those kidnappers try to get her too. I don't need to trouble them."
Shinra, then? We don't have to tell him about you being a werewolf yet, but he can wrap the bite until your friends are able to heal you.
The informant looked thankful and allowed himself to return to human form, and Tom followed him soon after. Those red eyes looked into the debt collector's brown ones, and a smile formed on his face.
"Would you like to come with us, Tom-san?"
Tom felt a warm feeling erupt in his chest. Despite having only known Izaya and his status as a werewolf for a few days, he felt a kinship with the man. He was confused. Is this what having a pack is like? He wouldn't know… Maybe… Maybe I could find out?
But the hopeful thought was instantly tarnished by fear. He didn't fear Izaya, he feared packs in general. He had been alone almost all his life. Relying on a pack was a foreign idea, and one he wasn't sure he was ready to consider yet.
"Eh… You guys go ahead. I think I need to stay here and clean up the mess I made." He shuffled his feet awkwardly. "But… Well, it was nice to talk to you two. I'll try to help with the missing werewolves, and with Shizuo."
Izaya's face betrayed his confusion, and his cheeks were dusted with blush. "W-what do you mean?"
Tom shrugged awkwardly. "Well, you know I can't let Shizuo keep on hating you when you're trying to do better. I can't guarantee how much I can help, but I can still try to put in a good for you with him."
The informant gave him another smile, and then waved his hand in a dismissal. "Don't worry about it, Tom-san. It was my behavior that made Shizuo hate me, it's my responsibility to fix that. Thank you for the offer, though."
Tom nodded, and watched as the werewolf and Dullahan departed. He heard the whinnying of the motorcycle as they took off, and finally the debt collector was able to relax. He profusely apologized to the vampires, and began to help clean up the mess he made of the lobby.
The Madame waved away his apologies, and helped him with his cleaning. After they remained silent for a while, she seemed to find the right time to speak. "So, you're a packless wolf?" She questioned him.
"I… Yes. My mother and father are both werewolves, they never joined a pack, even after I was born."
The Madame made a curious noise. "I see, so you're a natural born werewolf, not a bitten one."
Tom nodded. "Exactly. And after they passed, I never got the courage to join one." He set the coffee table up the right way once more. "It was hard to when it felt like I would be an outsider, or surrounded by strangers."
The older vampire hummed thoughtfully as she looked towards the door to the love hotel. "Well… It must feel nice to know that those aren't your only options anymore, right?"
Tom followed her gaze, recalling the werewolf informant and his honorary Dullahan packmate, and let a small grin appear on his face. "Yes… It does feel nice."
"Wow! Talk about an awful bite!" Shinra exclaimed as he disinfected the wound, which garnered a hiss of pain from Izaya. "That must have been a big dog! What was it? German Shepherd? Great Dane?"
The shirtless Izaya made a dismissive noise and waved his uninjured arm. "I don't know what kind of dog it was, I was kind of focused on getting its teeth out of my skin before it could do any real damage." He flippantly answered.
It hurt both Izaya and Celty to lie to the underground doctor. They both cared about him, but that was why they couldn't say anything. For Izaya, it was to keep Shinra safe. He didn't know if the mysterious kidnapper would be cruel enough to target loved ones, especially if they figured out exactly who Izaya and Celty were.
He knew that Celty hated lying to her beloved, but she agreed that it was the safest for now. They wanted to wait until the right time to reveal everything, and make sure Izaya's pack was okay with the underground doctor knowing.
They had little doubt that Jinsei would say no, considering that Shinra already held knowledge about the supernatural thanks to his infatuation with Celty. But letting humans know about the supernaturals in the world was something that couldn't be done lightly. So, just to be safe, they kept their mouths shut.
[Like we said, Shinra, it was just a big attack dog that caught Izaya while we were investigating the place. It's a good thing it was on a chain, or else it probably would have chased us all the way back!]
Izaya snickered at the cover up story that they had come up with. "That is something I've never understood. Why pay a bunch of money to train a scary guard dog if you're just going to chain them up where they can't reach a criminal. It makes no sense!"
Celty's shoulders shook with laughter. [You shouldn't complain about it considering that chain is what saved you from becoming a chew toy, Izaya!]
The informant huffed and pouted. "Whatever… But I'm still right and you know it, Celty!"
Shinra allowed himself a small chuckle as he looked towards his only friend, his gaze as inquisitive as always. "You know Orihara-kun, you sure seem different these days…"
"Oh?" Izaya casually replied, having been prepared for such an observation. "What do you mean, Shinra?"
The doctor finished the stitches into the wound and grabbed some bandages. "I don't know… Well, you and my beloved Celty are getting along better, and you seem like you are… Well… You seem like you're happier?"
Izaya tilted his head in thought and admiration. Shinra always seemed to catch what others didn't. He was right, Izaya had been feeling a lot happier since becoming a werewolf. He had a pack, he had a true family, and he had great friends.
"Yes, well…" He allowed himself to give the underground doctor a small smile. "Let's just say that my month away helped me grow up, and made me learn to appreciate the people I have in my life."
Shinra's response was a wide smile of his own. "I'm glad." He cut the bandages off and taped it off. "Celty told me about the X-Files idea! It would be nice to have someone else there, because I don't understand those shows half the time!"
"Oh well I wouldn't want to impose-"
"Nonsense! Maybe you can help explain those convoluted plots to me with that fancy brain of yours!" Shinra's smile turned into a bashful one. "And also, I miss hanging out like we did in school... "
Guilt quickly pooled in Izaya's chest. He couldn't help but feel bad at Shinra's hopeful tone. He knew it was true, he hadn't been a very good friend. His jealousy and cruel behavior always made that impossible. He wanted to be someone that Shinra could rely on and enjoy spending time with, he wanted to be a true friend. He was going to make up for lost time, starting right away.
"I miss it too…" He quietly admitted, and smiled once more. "Alright then, let's do it!"
Shinra's face instantly brightened with happiness. "Awesome! Thank you, Orihara-kun!"
"Please, Shinra, we've been friends forever. Just call me Izaya."
This only made the underground doctor even happier. "Okay then… Izaya." He knelt down and grabbed the bloodied shirt Izaya had been wearing. "Hang on, I'll put this in the wash and grab you a shirt to borrow, be right back!"
Izaya let the doctor scurry down the hallway, and rubbed his injured shoulder lightly. It felt better already, but perhaps that was just from his good mood.
He couldn't help but feel happy. Despite the dead end when it came to the cameras, he had befriended some vampires, gained a new pack member with Celty, became tentative acquaintances with Tom, and had begun to patch things up with his best friend. It had been an eventful, exhausting day, but he was glad it was ending on a high note.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
That voice sent Izaya's heart rate skyrocketing. He jolted to his feet and turned to the front door.
Standing in the doorway, with a face twisted with intense rage, was none other than the very person he didn't want to see. Heiwajima Shizuo.
Oh shit...