"A Dream Weaver?"
Izaya watched from where stood by the counter as Jinsei bustled around the kitchen, busy creating a large breakfast for their small pack. Always a light sleeper, Izaya awoke to the sound easily.
Jinsei didn't seem to mind the company, as he was eager to talk to Izaya about the strange ability he had witnessed the informant use the day before. He walked over and placed a cutting board with scallions and a knife in front of Izaya before he returned to his pan of sizzling fish.
"Yes, that's what it's called. It's… Well, it's something that doesn't happen often." Jinsei flipped the fish over in the pan. "You know how our powers come from the moon, yes?"
Izaya nodded his head as he finished chopping the scallions. "I remember, the grey wolf that taught me and the others healing said that she watched over us, and that we were the moon's children… But I thought healing was our only power?"
Jinsei finished the fish and took the pan off the heat. "Well, I'm not too sure about that. Most otherworlders have several powers at their disposal. But many of ours were forgotten as time went past, such as healing. But Dream Weavers… That is hard to forget."
Izaya moved to grab plates from the cupboards, helping to plate the large breakfast. His curiosity was brimming at this point, so he hurried to finish his task as fast as possible. "But what is a Dream Weaver?"
"Well, it's exactly what it sounds like. It's the ability to access dreams and to help people fall asleep. Last night, I watched you use those powers to help Sayuri. She was having a nightmare, you went right over to her and changed it into a good dream, she slept peacefully the rest of the night."
The informant frowned, scrunching up his nose in thought. "I… I did?" He looked towards Sayuri, who was still slumbering with a content expression on her face. "I don't even remember doing that…"
His elderly pack leader let out an amused chuckle. "I'm not surprised, you were almost completely asleep when you did it. It must have been on instinct." He finished setting out the steaming breakfast and looked towards Izaya with a smile. "But don't worry, I can help you learn to use it."
"You're a Dream Weaver too?" Izaya excitedly questioned.
Jinsei laughed again and shook his head. "Oh no, no. Dream Weavers are rare, there's one every generation or few generations. I was never lucky enough to be chosen, but my wife was…"
This was the first time Izaya had heard of Jinsei's wife, the man had never even mentioned being married. He wore a wedding ring, but Izaya never said anything out of respect for his pack leader. "Oh… She was?"
Jinsei nodded. "It was a long, long time ago. I was a young man when I joined her pack to be with her. She was not shy about her ability, she loved it. There was a time before I left the pack that we had many young pups, and they all had awful nightmares. She always made sure their dreams were good before sleeping herself."
His face was bright as he remembered his wife, and he looked at Izaya with a happy expression. "I know she is looking down on us from paradise and is very happy. She had expressed to me that she wanted to live to meet the next Dream Weaver of our pack, but she was not so lucky."
His pack leader's happy expression fell, and Izaya felt his own mood dampen as well. "Y-you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Jinsei…" He carefully said, his hand on the old man's shoulder.
Jinsei sighed and shook his head. "No, no. All the others know the story, it is only right that you do as well. You are one of us."
"Back when wolves still roamed this country, our pack lived out in the countryside. The farmers had started to try to kill our kind, and we were trying to fight back. I had an idea, I wanted to attack the cattle and damage the fields. I thought we could send a message and they would leave us alone…" He sighed and shook his head. "Our pack leader said no, but I was a reckless and stubborn pup."
He looked down at the breakfast plates and closed his eyes. "Me and Aika, my wife, we did it together. We thought we'd won, but our tracks led the farmers right to our hideout. They killed so many of us… I had just about escaped, but when I turned around I saw Aika was still in the den, she was trying to save the kids but… They…" He winced at the memory that hit him. "Those farmers killed her, and then the pups too…"
Izaya shuddered at the thought. He was reminded of the man's reaction to Bashira's disappearance. He had been utterly destroyed, which was why he had been so adamant on having the pack stay at his apartment. After living through such a tragedy, the possibility of losing any of his packmates must be a grim reminder of that time.
It took the old man at least a minute to gather his wits once more. When he opened his eyes, Izaya could see the misty texture of them. "A-after that, I was forced to leave the pack. I mourned her, and then ran to Tokyo. I decided I would start my own pack, and I would do what Aika had done. I would protect my pack no matter what, even if it meant my death."
The informant broker squeezed the old man's shoulder, reminding him that he was still there. "Thank you for telling me, Jinsei." He gave the best supportive grin he could. "I'll be happy if I can be half the Dream Weaver that Aika-san was."
Jinsei smiled at him, his eyes crinkling upward with glee. "Thank you, Izaya. My methods may be a little old fashioned, considering it was over a hundred years ago, but I will do my best to teach you until we can meet the other packs and see if anyone else has a Dream Weaver."
"The other packs? Are we going to meet with them and-" Izaya suddenly froze. "Wait… One hundred years?! How old are you?!"
The old man just smirked and shrugged his shoulders. "Vampires aren't the only ones with longer lifespans, pup." He walked around the counter and clapped his hands. "Alright, everybody up!"
As the pack started to rise, Izaya found himself left in awe. Shiro and Mizuki had taught him a lot about the new world he was a part of, but when he looked at the pack leader, he realized that there was still so much he had to learn.
Izaya didn't venture outside of the apartment very much for about a week, none of the pack did. Jinsei closed down the bookstore with a promise to still pay Shiro and Mizuki their usual wages, Yuina managed to work from the apartment, Eiji didn't have a job to worry about. Izaya didn't have to worry about Shiki, as the man was satisfied with Izaya's reports about the camera footage.
They spent the week relaxing as much as they could. Shiro and Mizuki would walk Sayuri to her classes, and they'd spend the rest of the day relaxing. Izaya helped Yuina with her editing, which the young woman was very appreciative about. Eiji, upon discovering that Izaya barely knew how to cook, made it his mission to teach him.
The only person who knew exactly where he had vanished was Celty, who immediately understood and merely asked to meet the pack before they all separated again. Jinsei eagerly agreed and even tried to make an Irish meal for her before Izaya awkwardly explained her lack of a head.
As the sun rose into the sky, Izaya found himself standing outside of Russian Sushi with his eye on the clock, waiting for Celty to arrive so she could finally meet the pack.
Okay so Yuina is the editor, Eiji does his own thing, Jinsei runs the bookstore and… This is too much to remember! Izaya, I'm gonna mess it all up! Celty frantically fretted next to the werewolf, who was happily eating his fatty tuna from a takeout box.
He quickly set down the piece he was about to eat, and gently patted her shoulder. "Celty, it's okay. I promise they'll love you, they're all so excited to meet you! Especially Jinsei and Yuina, both of them love mythology! When I told them you were a Dullahan they almost fainted from happiness!"
Celty's shoulders shook with laughter, before she froze up again. I don't know… This is the first time I'm going to meet a group of people… People like me, supernatural creatures. What if I'm not good enough for them?
"You don't have to be 'good enough'. My pack doesn't care about that, they want to meet you for you, nothing else!" Izaya gave a mischievous grin and wiggled his fingers. "And if any of them hurt your feelings, I'll put them to sleep and give them nightmares!"
The Dullahan laughed again, and this time she remained relaxed even after her laughter had ended. The informant was relieved, he didn't want his friend to worry too much about the meeting, he knew his pack would love her.
As the breeze blew against the two of them, Izaya's sensitive nose caught the scent of someone familiar. He turned around just in time to see Tom and Shizuo approaching them. Instead of the usual angry expression that Shizuo wore when he saw Izaya, he seemed relaxed and welcoming.
"Hi Shizu-chan, hi Tom!" Izaya cheerfully called with a wave.
Shizuo stopped a few feet in front of them, and nodded his head. "Good to see you guys." He looked towards Izaya and tilted his head slightly. "If it weren't for Celty, I would have thought you disappeared again, Izzy."
"Ah, well, you know…" Izaya blushed and shoved his hands in his pockets with a shrug. "It's been a rough week, still no sign of the missing people."
The blonde man's expression turned sour. "That's not good…" He looked back at Tom and shook his head. "I haven't seen anything either. I mean, there have been suspicious people, but none of them knew anything about the missing persons."
"Well, I still appreciate the help searching, Shizu-chan!" He gave the blonde a grin. "Remind me to treat you to some dessert or whatever protozoans like to eat as thanks."
Tom momentarily looked nervous about Izaya's teasing, but when Shizuo chuckled in response he quickly calmed down. Izaya knew that the man felt guilty about hiding his werewolf status from Shizuo, especially now that he knew others around Shizuo were keeping the same secrets.
"So where are you two headed?" Shizuo questioned the duo.
[I'm going to meet Izaya's friends!] Celty excitedly said, so fast that Izaya bet she had already been planning to gush about it. [They knew I helped him search and they wanted to thank me, and one of Izaya's friends runs an antique bookstore! He knows about Dullahans, Shizuo! Maybe he knows more about my kind!]
At the mention of Jinsei and his knowledge of mythical creatures, Shizuo's face broke out into a huge grin. "That sounds awesome! That's very nice of you, Izzy."
Izaya blushed again at the nickname, which caused a similar pink hue to appear on Shizuo's cheeks. There was a moment of awkward silence with both Tom and Celty glancing between them curiously.
Before anyone could say anything, a high pitched squeal interrupted all their thoughts. Both Izaya and Tom, with their sensitive hearing, quickly covered their ears and looked around for the painful sound.
Coming out of Russian Sushi was none other than the Van Gang, with a very starstruck looking Erika in the front. She sprinted forward and hugged both Izaya and Shizuo, forcing the already blushing men closer to each other.
"I knew it! I knew it!" Erika exclaimed with glee. "Everyone said you two would always hate each other, but I never gave up! I knew that love would prevail!"
Shizuo's face turned an ever deeper shade of red as he wrenched himself out of the fanatic hold. "What the hell are you talking about?! Me and the flea?! Are you an idiot or something?!"
Erika's grip on Izaya tightened further to make up for losing Shizuo. "Ahh! Do you see that, Iza-Iza! Your tsundere boyfriend is acting like he doesn't like you, but the blush on his face shows I'm right! And one night underneath the fireworks you will confess your love to each other and have deep, passionate-"
"OH-KAY. That's enough!" Kadota's voice cut through the woman's squeals. He managed to free Izaya from her clutches. "Erika, just because Izaya and Shizuo aren't fighting anymore doesn't mean they are… I-It just means they're both adult enough to learn to get along!"
Erika giggled and pointed at both of them. "Dotachin, how can you say that when you see their faces? They're both so blushy~ It's true love, I know it is!"
Izaya blush only got worse, and he cursed Erika for making a scene in such a public place. His hands itched with the desire to call on his Dream Weaver powers and knock the girl out, just long enough to make his pounding heart calm down.
Thankfully, Saburo came to their rescue once more. He placed his hands on the woman's shoulders and steered her away. "Maybe they're blushing because you made a gigantic scene! Now come on, let's go back to the van before you get so loud that people in Hokkaido can hear it!"
Kadota waited until the squealing woman was at a distance before turning to Izaya and Shizuo. "Sorry about that… Ever since the rumors started spreading, she's been a maniac." He turned towards Izaya specifically. "Is it true, are you done fighting?"
Izaya knew the reason that Kadota turned to him was because Izaya was at fault for all of it, but he ignored the suspicions, he knew he deserved them. "It's true. My month away gave me quite the reality check. I'm done messing with people, I have people I care about now. I want to be someone they can be proud of."
The beanie clad man looked briefly surprised by Izaya's genuine response. He stared at the informant for a few moments, gauging the truth in his words, and then a satisfied smile appeared on his face. "Must have been quite the adventure. I'd love to hear about it sometime."
"I wouldn't mind sharing the story sometime," Izaya easily responded.
Looking even happier, Kadota nodded his head. "I'll hold you to that." He turned towards where his group had hurried off and gave a wave. "Goodbye, see you guys later."
Once the commotion had died down, and the people on the streets stopped staring, the group of four found themselves falling into an awkward silence once more. None of them knew exactly what to say, and it seemed like Tom and Celty were more focused on what Izaya or Shizuo may do.
Eventually, Shizuo cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair. "So… Um… I was thinking it was kind of enjoyable when we hung out at Russian Sushi. Maybe we could do something like that again…?"
Izaya felt the butterflies in his stomach flutter as his smile returned. "I… Y-yes. I would like that very much, Shizu-chan."
Shizuo's nervous expression relaxed and his shoulders slumped with obvious relief. "Good. I-I would like that too." He smiled slightly, and looked back at Tom. "W-well I have go back to work. I'll text you, okay?"
"O-okay…" Izaya stuttered out as he watched Shizuo walk away, his heart pounding against his chest, and feelings he had buried a long time ago suddenly resurfacing. He didn't know where this new friendship with Shizuo would go, but he had secret hopes…
He let out a soft sigh and looked towards Celty. The helmet watched him peculiarly, and despite the fact that his friend didn't have a face, Izaya somehow knew exactly what her expression would have been.
"Celty..."
So…. You and Shizuo, huh?
"Time to go!" Izaya quickly exclaimed, and hurried towards the direction of Jinsei's apartment with a giggling Celty trailing behind.
As soon as Celty walked through the doors to the apartment, she discovered that her worries about being shunned were unfounded. The group of werewolves eagerly welcomed her inside with an air of familiarity, as if they had known her all her life and weren't meeting her for the very first time.
Izaya took her hand and led her to the living room where everyone was waiting. "Everyone, this is my friend, Celty Sturluson." He motioned to the werewolves. "Celty, this is my pack. Jinsei, Shiro, Mizuki, Sayuri, Eiji, and Yuina."
With a shaky hand, Celty gave the group an awkward wave. Um… Hello! It's… It's nice to meet you all! T-thank you for letting me come and meet you...
Jinsei seemed to recognize that she was nervous. He gave her a comforting grin and moved forward and bowed to her, the excitement in his eyes reminding Celty more of a puppy than an old werewolf. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Celty-san! I've never met a Dullahan before, but I am overjoyed we got to meet today! I am even happier to call you an honorary pack member!"
Celty felt her black smoke puff up in her version of a blush. Well, I'm thankful that you all trusted me enough to let me come meet you! In a moment of bravery, she reached up and pulled her helmet off, letting all the werewolves see her headless form.
The werewolves didn't look at her with fear, but instead with awe. Unlike humans, their awe faded away quickly, but the kindness they showed her remained just as prevalent. The young editor, Yuina, looked at her with a glimmer of excitement in her eyes.
"Celty-san! You're so beautiful!" She exclaimed as she closed her laptop and reached into her bag, pulling out a worn, tattered sketchbook. Her pencil furiously ran across the page, with her dark eyes glowing with determination.
The Dullahan watched her curiously while Izaya leaned closer to her. "Yuina is a manga editor, but what she really wants to do is make her own manga. She always carries around a sketchbook, just in case she gets inspired."
Celty felt her heart soar as she realized what Izaya was implying, that Yuina had been inspired by her. She found the bravery to leave the informants side and walk over to the young woman. She sat down next to her so she could watch as the woman sketched out a drawing of the Dullahan.
It was rough and quickly drawn, but Celty was amazing by just how good it looked. Once she set the pencil down, Yuina looked up at her hopefully. The Dullahan quickly gave her two thumbs up. It's amazing! One of the best drawings that I've seen!
"Really?" Yuina queried with a hopeful glance at her, but she quickly faltered and shook her head. "No… You're just saying that…"
Celty waved her hands. No I'm not, I'm telling the truth! It looks exactly like me, you even got all the helmet markings right! You're going to be a great manga writer some day!
The young woman with ginger hair, who Izaya had called Sayuri, leaned over the side of the couch and gave Yuina a smile. "She's right, Yuina. Your drawings have always been amazing, I bet your manga will be more popular than One Piece!"
To the Dullahan's curiosity, Sayuri's proximity to Yuina made the editor's cheeks turn bright pink with blush. It reminded her of the way Izaya and Shizuo interacted with each other now that they were no longer enemies.
Sayuri looked up at Celty and gave the woman a smile, but the Dullahan could see the sadness hidden inside her eyes. "Um… Izzy told me about how you helped him search for my sister." She bowed slightly, her messy ginger locks falling in her face. "Thank you…"
Of course, Sayuri-chan. I'm just sorry that we weren't able to find her. But don't worry, we'll keep searching! Celty promised, clenching her fists in a show of determination.
The young werewolf's smile faltered the slightest bit. "Thank you, Celty… I… I don't think you'll find her, but thank you for continuing to look…" Her eyebrows furrowed, and she hugged herself tightly. "I… Izzy… Can you help me go back to sleep? After you left, the nightmares came back…"
Celty looked up at Izaya, who was standing between Shiro and Mizuki. His expression instantly became a concerned one. "Sayuri-chan, I think it would be better to wait until it's night time, that way your sleep schedule stays on track."
The ginger werewolf's expression grew frustrated for the slightest moment before she sighed and nodded. "I guess you're right…"
Yuina looked up at the college student and placed her hand on hers. "How about you show me that anime you said you found a few weeks ago? I've been waiting to watch it with you since you mentioned it."
Sayuri seemed to realize that Yuina was just trying to help her cheer up, but she still nodded and stood up. "Okay. I'll go get my laptop, I have the episodes downloaded onto it already." She left down the hall, and disappeared into a room.
Celty looked towards where she had disappeared and then walked over to the informant. Izaya… What did she mean by you helping her go back to sleep?
Izaya exchanged a worried glance with Mizuki and Shiro. "Well… Ever since we found out I was a Dream Weaver, Sayuri has been asking me to help her sleep. It started off innocent enough, but she's been asking a lot. I think she's trying to use it to avoid the pain she feels from losing Bashira."
"It's not healthy for her to sleep so much, so we're trying to do what we can until it's actually time to sleep. Izaya can help with her nightmares then, but her wanting to sleep the rest of the day…" Mizuki frowned and shook her head. "It worries me…"
Sayuri returned to the living room with her laptop, and they quickly changed the conversation. The young woman didn't seem to mind. She sat on the couch with Yuina, who set the laptop on both their laps, and gave each of them a headphone. With Sayuri being comforted by the editor, Celty felt comfortable enough to go meet the others.
Eiji was in the kitchen, a large pot sitting on the stove and steam exiting from under the pot lid. He looked up as they arrived and grinned. "Izzy! You're just in time, I need you to cook the beef for the stew, just like I taught you, okay?"
Next to her, Izaya sniffed the air and made a happy noise. "That smells good, Eiji. Did you use garlic and rosemary this time?" He asked as he crossed over to the pan.
"Yes! I also added a bit of red wine, to help all the flavors," The man eagerly explained as he added slices of celery to the pot.
Celty looked between the two werewolves curiously. Is it ever annoying to have such a good sense of smell? She asked.
Izaya was extremely focused on cutting the beef, so it was Eiji who answered. "Well, yes, especially when you live in a city. There's a lot of smells, and often a lot of bad smells, so it can be very overwhelming. But the pros outweigh the cons, at least in my opinion."
Eiji pointed to the pot. "It definitely helps with cooking, and with tracking people down. Everyone has their own distinct scent, and once you know it, it's easy to recognize people just by their smell."
Oh! That's how you knew that Shizuo was coming! Right, Izaya? The informant nodded, and Celty couldn't stop herself from asking more. What does Shizuo smell like?
Izaya's cheeks turned the slightest hue of red. "W-well… It's weird. He smokes so much, it's hard to smell anything else. But underneath that is milk and strawberries.
And me? Celty pointed at herself.
Eiji and Izaya both sniffed the air. Eiji looked curious at the scent he caught, while Izaya nodded as though he was reconfirming what he already knew.
"You smell like fresh rain, and a forest breeze. It's a very fresh scent, and it's always there," Izaya explained as he finished cutting the beef and added it to the pan. "I couldn't be sure, but I think it's related to you being a Dullahan."
In the corner of her field of vision, she saw Jinsei approach. "Exactly, Izaya-kun. A lot of supernatural creatures have a distinct smell. With werewolves you will often be able to tell what pack they belong to by their smell, vampires usually smell like blood, and selkies often smell like the ocean."
Wow… Do any other otherworlders smell as good as werewolves do? Celty questioned as she looked towards the wise Jinsei.
Eiji made a triumphant noise as he leaned back. "Vampires have good noses, and so do selkies, but nobody is as close as us! We have the best noses of all the supernaturals on Earth!" He confidently declared. "And my sense of smell is even better! That's why I make the food, I'm the best chef in the pack!"
Izaya's eyes gleamed mischievously. "That may be true… But are you sure there's nothing wrong with your nose, Eiji?"
"Erm… No?"
"Oh, you sure?" Izaya questioned again. "Because… Your shirt is kind of getting lit on fire."
Eiji, who had been leaning against the stove, yelped in surprise and jumped away from the flame. The back of his shirt was burned black and smoking slightly. He looked up and Izaya and growled. "What the hell?! Why didn't you say anything?!"
Izaya smirked playfully and shrugged. "Well, I thought that mister chef would be focusing on the food instead of bragging about our almighty noses!"
In a burst of bright light, Celty had to hurriedly dodge as Eiji and Izaya shifted forms at the same time. The informant hurriedly scrambled away and toward the living with Eiji on his heels, their claws scratching against the hardwood floors. There was a crashing noise that made Celty flinch, but none of the werewolves even batted an eye.
Jinsei let out a chuckle as he moved to take over the cooking. "Don't worry, Celty-san. Eiji and Izaya are just roughhousing, they'll calm down eventually." He added the cuts of beef to the large pot and turned the fire to a simmer. "Usually I'd be a little more annoyed, but with the disappearances happening, I'm glad they are taking the time to have fun and not worry."
Celty listened to the crashing for a moment longer before she walked up to Jinsei. Do you think Sayuri is right? Is… Is there no way we're going to find Bashira? She asked, hating that she would dampen the mood but unable to stop the question.
Jinsei stirred the stew a little as a frown emerged on his face. "I... Well… It's just…" He sighed and shook his head. "Dozens of werewolves have disappeared, Celty-san, and none of them have been found. As much as I wish we could find her, I'd be a fool to ignore the fact that nobody has ever been found."
"You and Izaya have already discovered more than anyone else has." Celty turned and found Shiro leaning against the island, his arm wrapped around Mizuki. "We know it's malicious now, considering the bastard doing this is erasing camera footage."
Mizuki nodded. "But the best we can do for now and stay safe and stay together. Whoever is doing this will have more trouble if none of us are alone…"
Jinsei turned towards the conversation and reached out, taking Celty's hand. "That includes you, Celty. I know you can more than handle yourself, but I still want you to be careful. If this kidnapper gets any suspicions that you are in our pack, he may try to get information from you. I don't know if they'd be foolish enough to try that, but it doesn't hurt to be cautious."
The rough housing behind them ended as Eiji and Izaya returned to the conversation. The informant let out a growl and crossed his arms. "I don't care if Celty can handle herself. If anyone tries to hurt her, I'll make them wish they were never born."
She was briefly surprised by the protective gleam in the wolves' eyes. She looked around at all of them, including Sayuri and Yuina. I don't… I don't understand. You just met me today! I'm not even a werewolf, why would you all risk yourselves for me?
Yuina scoffed from her seat on the couch. "Well that's easy to answer, Celty-san. It's because you're our packmate!"
Shiro nodded in agreement as he reached out and ruffled Izaya's hair. "Honorary pack members may not be werewolves, but you're still just just as important as any other pack member. Werewolves stick together no matter what, and that includes honorary pack members."
Mizuki nodded in agreement. "A pack is a family, and you're part of that family!" She smiled widely, showing off her sharp canines. "So don't worry, Celty! We're all here for you, no matter what!"
Celty felt her heart soar, and spent the rest of the day in bliss. The pack ate dinner as Sayuri introduced them to all the anime that she had been showing Yuina. They sat together on the floor to watch, all of them relaxed and enjoying each other's company.
As she sat there, with Izaya at her side and the other werewolves surrounding them, Celty marveled at how much it felt like she belonged. She had her beloved Shinra, and an amazing pack of werewolves who accepted her unconditionally, and she would never get over how happy it made her.
Celty became a regular visitor to the pack, and blended in with them easily. Jinsei found as many books as he could about Irish Mythology and poured over them with her, Yuina enjoyed drawing her and her motorcycle, and she even managed to bully Eiji into helping her learn how to cook.
Meanwhile, Izaya found himself growing even closer to Shizuo. After Shizuo's offer to meet again, they had another get together at Russian Sushi. It happened a few more times before they ended up going somewhere else to avoid Erika.
Shizuo found them a cafe, one that served pastries that weren't too sweet so that Izaya would enjoy them too. They at first were awkward and unsure of what to speak about other than their jobs, but eventually were able to find conversations about shows and books and their mutual love of Ikebukuro.
Before Izaya knew it, two months had passed since he had returned, and his life had almost completely changed for the better. Then, Shizuo had cone something that Izaya had not been prepared for.
They had met up at a cafe, where Izaya had tried to show Shizuo some of his favorite books. The blonde had done his best to follow along, but they soon found themselves off topic and joking around about their high school fights.
After a long coffee date, they lost track of time and left the cafe as the clouds in the sky began to send rain down on the city. Luckily, Izaya had brought an umbrella, which Shizuo offered to hold as they walked back towards the debt collector's apartment.
"...And then I tried to throw the fridge at him! Broke tons of bones, and Kasuka just watched me do it while he finished eating my pudding. I was hurt so bad, and I wouldn't even talk to him at the hospital for days, all because of the damn pudding!"
Next to him, Izaya giggled in amusement as he wiped tears from his eyes. "Seriously?! The first time you used your strength was because of pudding?" He snorted and laughed harder. "Who knew that all you needed to unlock your powers was for your brother to steal your pudding! If I go to your apartment and steal your milk, will you go Super Saiyan?"
Shizuo snickered and shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe I could, but I would prefer to not have more crazy powers, the strength is hard enough to handle as it is. My temper sure doesn't help, makes it so a lot of people don't believe I hate violence."
"Well, I certainly didn't help," Izaya admitted,"I practically tormented you ever since high school, and it wasn't fair. I'm… I'm so sorry."
The debt collector sighed and elbowed Izaya slightly. "Oi, you already apologized to me twenty times already, you can stop." He kept his eyes forward as they walked down an alleyway to take a shortcut. "I didn't help either, the first thing I said to you was that you pissed me off."
"Let's just agree that we were both assholes to each other," Izaya placated.
Shizuo hummed and nodded. "Yes, that sounds good… But you were a little bit more of one."
Izaya rolled his eyes. "Well I already knew that, protozoan." He chuckled and shoved his hands in his pockets. "At least we got over it, and now we can be friends."
"Yeah…."
They walked in silence for a while before Shizuo suddenly stopped. Izaya slowed his steps and turned to face him with a tilt of his head. "Shizu-chan? Is everything okay?" He asked as he walked closer.
Shizuo's cheeks were red with blush as he looked towards the raven. He walked up until they were close and reached his hand out, placing it on Izaya's cheek. He leaned forward and their lips connected in a gentle kiss.
Izaya couldn't stop the gasp that escaped him as they shared the kiss, the connection sending sparks of happiness through him. The kiss was too short, and moments later they pulled away.
When the informant looked into Shizuo's eyes, he found the brown eyes were filled with barely hidden fear. It seemed like Shizuo was afraid of what Izaya would say or how he would react, and was waiting to see what would happen.
"S-Shizuo… I…." Izaya's mouth froze before he could speak anymore as his eyes glanced upward, the clouds parted the slightest bit and revealed what was behind them…
The full moon…
He should have said something, he should have said anything so that Shizuo knew Izaya wasn't running because he hated what just occurred… But… He panicked.
Izaya spun around and sprinted away without even looking back at the man who had just kissed him. He didn't even know where he was going, he just ran and took as many turns as he could to try and get away before Shizuo saw what he would turn into.
Eventually his transformation took over and he fell to the ground. The white glow surrounded his body as his form changed. When it vanished, his human form was no more, and a black wolf had taken its place.
Izaya panted heavily as he stood in the middle of the darkened alleyway. He lowered his head and slammed his paw against the ground. Damn it! What's wrong with me?! I've been a werewolf for three months, why wasn't I watching the time?!
Heavy footsteps caught his attention, and Izaya looked up just in time to see Shizuo skid to a stop at the end of the alleyway. His chest was heaving, his clothing soaked as he looked around frantically. "Izaya?!" He called, his voice cracking. "IZAYA!"
The blonde seemed to suddenly give up. He leaned against the building and slid to the floor, bringing his legs to his chest and resting his forehead on his knees. His shoulders shook slightly, but he didn't move other than that.
Izaya felt horrible guilt wrenching at his heart. He flattened his ears and tucked his tail in between his legs as he slunk forward and sat by the blonde. He let out a small whimper, pressing his cold nose against the blonde head.
Shizuo jolted at the touch and looked up. "Huh?" He glanced at Izaya, and the informant could see the red rims around his eyes. "A… A dog?"
Izaya whimpered again and leaned forward, licking at the man's cheek as the shaky hand began to scratch behind his flattened ears. He felt horrible, the man was completely crushed and Izaya couldn't do anything…
Eventually, Shizuo sighed and leaned forward, hugging the werewolf with one arm. "I'm so stupid… What was I thinking?" He croaked,"I'm a dumb brute, why would Izaya ever want to be with me?"
You're wrong Shizuo, you're wrong. I'm right here… He whimpered again and nuzzled against the blonde. I love you, Shizu-chan, I swear I do… Please… Please don't give up just yet, give me time…
Eventually, Shizuo let out a weak sigh and removed himself from the hug. He turned and walked back the way he came. Izaya quickly got to his paws and followed after him, his claws clicking against the cement.
At the sound of the claws, Shizuo turned around and stopped at the sight of him. "No… No, dog. You have to… Stay. Stay here." He turned around and wrapped his arms around himself. "Stay. I… I need to be alone right now."
Izaya watched him go as he let out a loud whimper, but the blonde didn't turn back. He was helpless, he couldn't call for the blonde, he could tell him he felt the same way, all he could do was wait until morning and hope Shizuo would let him explain.
With his head lowered, Izaya wandered down the alleyways in a daze, unsure of where he was going. He just needed to walk, to get away from the guilt that was plaguing his mind. If he had just kept track of the time, if they had left sooner, if he had answered faster…
"Izaya?"
The black wolf's ears rose and he turned his head, his red eyes landing on the form of a large brown wolf sitting underneath the metal awning of one of the buildings. He sniffed the air, and recognized the scent immediately. "Tom? What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here?" Tom challenged him with a flick of his tail. "You have a pack, shouldn't you be with them?"
Izaya moved underneath the awning and shook his fur, sending water droplets all over. "I lost track of time… I- I was with Shizu-chan and then…" He flattened his ears and let out a whine. "I messed up bad."
Tom's eyes instantly glowed protectively. "What did you do?"
"It was… Shizu-chan… He- He kissed me, Tom!" Izaya exclaimed,"I- I was so shocked, I didn't know what to do. But then the moon, it came up, and I panicked… I ran away, and then I transformed."
The werewolf by him let out a hiss. "Oh no… That's awful…" He licked at his wet chest fur to fix it for a moment. "I knew he was planning to confess, but I didn't think he'd be bold enough to kiss you."
"You knew?" Izaya exclaimed.
Tom chuckled. "Of course I did! Shizuo may act like a big tough guy, but he gets super anxious when it comes to romance. He's asked me for dating advice for years, which I always find funny considering I don't care much for romance. But still, I gave the best advice I could."
He turned to Izaya and fixed him with a hard stare. "Listen, Izaya, he was terrified that you would reject him. I understand why you ran, it's not your fault. But, you need to talk to him as soon as possible. He's going to be crushed."
Believe me, he is, I know… Izaya sighed and lowered his head. "I will, Tom. As soon as the moon is down and I'm human again, I'm going to find him and make sure he knows that I feel the same way."
Tom looked proud, and wagged his tail. "So you do return his feelings?"
Izaya would have blushed if he was human. "Of course I do, how could I not?" He scratched his side. "If I'm honest, I think I've been harboring feelings for him for a long, long time…"
The debt collector listened quietly, but he never got to reply. A high pitch, terrified howl made both werewolves jump to their paws and swivel their heads towards where the sound came from.
"What was that?!" Tom exclaimed, his hackles raised.
Izaya's ears swiveled around as he stepped into the rain. "It sounded like a werewolf... " His heart skipped a beat. "Tom! What if it's the kidnappers?! They could be in danger!"
Tom's teeth instantly appeared as he let out a snarl. "Then let's go!"
The frantic howls continued as the two werewolves sprinted out from under the awning and followed the terrified sound in search of the danger. They ran around four corners before skidding to a stop at the sight of two humans bent over a large trash can.
"What the hell is taking you so long, Hachiro?! Get the stupid thing before something catches us!" The taller male said, in a gruff voice that Izaya recognized. His heart skipped a beat, it was the man from the bay… The day he got bit!
The smaller man let out an angry noise. "You try it then, asshole! I'm trying to not get fucking bit!"
"Use the goddamn catch pole!"
"It doesn't reach, Kenta, what do you want me to do?!"
The tall man, Kenta, groaned and stalked forward. "Fine, give it to me! My arms are longer, I'll catch the stupid thing!"
Izaya had enough of watching. As Hachiro handed the taller man the catch pole, Izaya jumped out of their hiding spot and sprinted forward with a loud snarl. His teeth clamped around the metal pole as he kept running, yanking Kenta off his feet.
"SHIT! The thing has a pack!" Hachiro cried out.
Kenta lost a grip of the pole, which Izaya hurriedly threw further down the alleyway. The man's angry black eyes glared at Izaya, a sneer on his yellowed teeth. "Ya shouldn't have shown yourself, freak! Now we're gonna take you and your little friend!"
"Over our dead bodies!" Izaya heard Tom yell as he ran around the corner and rammed into the back of Hachiro's knees. The heavy man crashed to the ground, his forehead cracking against the cement floor.
Hachiro cried out as Tom's claws raked across his body. "Ahh! Kenta! Shoot it! Shoot it!" He yelped.
Izaya knew exactly what they were talking about, the tranquilizer used on the wolf that had bitten him. As Kenta pulled out the dart gun, Izaya quickly copied Tom's move and ran to ram the man's knees.
At the last second, Kenta spun around and shot the dart towards Izaya. The wolf yelped and threw himself to the side, rolling over several times while the dart clattered uselessly against the floor.
"Shit!" Kenta exclaimed as he fumbled, trying to get another dart to put into the gun. But he was too slow.
Tom charged forward, with his huge paws hitting the man's back and knocking him onto his stomach. Izaya quickly moved forward and grabbed the gun from the man's clutches and sank his teeth into the weak material as hard as he could. The long barrel was bent, making the gun unusable.
"Fuck! I'm not dying here! Not like this!" Hachiro cried as he scrambled to his feet and ran away, not even looking back to see if Kenta was following. He slipped in the rain and fell again, before finally managing to scramble upwards and waddle away.
Kenta growled and spun around, his boot kicking Tom in the chest. There was a crack and Tom yelped, stumbling backwards. As the man climbed up, Izaya quickly moved in front of Tom and released a protective growl.
The lanky man glared at them with disgust. "You think you've won, you filthy monsters? Well, enjoy it while you can. We'll find you, all of you, and you'll get the treatment you deserve!" He turned around and ran after Hachiro without another word.
Izaya watched them go with his hackles raised and his growl echoing until he heard their footsteps no longer. He sighed in relief and turned to look at the brown wolf. "Are you okay?" He asked between pants.
Tom tried to take a deep breath, only to wince in pain. "Ahh… I think… I think they broke my rib…" He looked at Izaya with flattened ears. "C-can you heal it?"
The werewolf nodded and placed his nose on the wolf's chest, allowing his magic to heal the wound with a gentle howl. When Tom's breathing was no longer hitched, he pulled away. "It's not completely healed, but I don't have enough energy to fix the rest…"
"It's fine, it can wait until we're all safe. That's more important."
The informant nodded and looked towards the dumpster. Though the heavy rain made it hard to hear, Izaya could hear gentle whimpers.
He lowered his large form to the ground and looked under the dumpster. Far underneath the dumpster, pressed against the building's wall, Izaya was able to see a dark grey wolf pup that was shuddering in fear.
"Hey... " Izaya whispered in a gentle voice. "Are you okay?"
The pup's wide brown eyes watched Izaya carefully as he gave the slightest nod of his head. Izaya let his eyes crinkle up in a smile and wagged his tail. "Good, I'm glad. My name is Izaya, and this is my friend Tom, what's your name?"
Looking between the two of them, the pup's shaking began to calm down. "H-Hashim…"
Izaya's red eyes lit up with recognition. "Oh… I know you, you're friends with Dotachin- er… Kadota and his friends, aren't you? Erika, Walker, Saburo, Kaztano?"
Hashim's brown eyes grew hopeful. "Y-you know them? Can you take me to them?" His ears lowered against his head. "P-please? I… I'm so scared…"
Izaya recognized that feeling, and let out a sad sigh. "Oh… Is this your first time changing?"
The young boy nodded his head. "I- I got bit by a dog, and then tonight I changed into this… The mean guys tried to take me… I- I wanna go home…"
The informant knew that going home wasn't possible, not for a month, but he needed to comfort the pup the best he could. "It's okay, Hashim. I can't take you home until you are human again, but I can take you to my pack. Would you like that? They are all wolves too, they'll keep you safe from the bad men."
Hashim looked between the two of them. "W-will you stay too?"
"Do you want us to stay?" Tom asked.
Hashim quickly nodded. "You saved me, I wanna stay with you guys. I don't wanna be afraid…"
Izaya felt himself grow protective once more and backed up a little. "We'll stay, Hashim, we promise. And if anyone tries to hurt us on our way, we'll scare them away, they won't hurt you anymore."
Hashim took a few deep breaths before he slowly crawled out from underneath the dumpster and into the rain. He was the size of a wolf pup, with big awkward paws. He looked between them, his legs shook, and then he fell over in a dead faint.
Tom jumped in surprise, and then let out a sad sigh. "Oh, the poor thing… He was so scared…" He looked down the alleyway, at the broken gun and the catch pole. "What should we do with those?"
Izaya looked up and flattened his ears. "We can't take them with us, if anyone sees them it'll be a dead giveaway. The catch pole is worthless, but the dart and gun aren't. Let's hide them somewhere, we can come back and get them later, or Celty can so our human faces are still unknown."
Tom hid the dart and gun near the awning where they first met that night, shoved behind one of the vending machines in the alleyway. When he returned, he gave Izaya a nervous glance. "S-so… We're going to your pack?"
"It's the safest place for a pup, especially if those guys try to find us during the month." He nuzzled the brown wolf comfortingly, careful around the still injured wrist. "I know you're a lone wolf, you don't have to come if you don't want."
Tom seemed to consider it for a moment, but then he sighed and shook his head. "No, no, I'm coming. I promised the kid I would stay with him, I can't take that back now." He twitched his ears against the raindrops. "Lead the way, Izzy."
Izaya nodded and knelt down, gently picking up the pup with his jaws. Once he had a good grip on the unconscious pup, he nodded at Tom and the two wolves began their journey. Neither of them let their guard down, they had to protect the pup, they had to protect each other from the danger they had just faced, until they found the safety of their pack.