A.N. (11/21/21) - Seems like my release rate's different from usual. Probably cause I'm working on Argus Magus again.
DNAngel (11) - Home Visit
"I'll be gone again tonight."
"I know," Nagi nodded. "Have a nice night, Hiwatari."
Hiwatari paused on the way out. "...and you as well, Kujikawa."
Nagi waited a few seconds, then he got up from the couch and began making his way upstairs. He searched along the corridor until he found a room that Nagi assumed was Hiwatari's office. Rattling the doorknob, he frowned as he realized that the door was locked shut.
Taking a guess at Hiwatari's personality, it was reasonable to assume that Nagi wouldn't find the key somewhere in the house. No, most likely it was on Hiwatari's person, making it impossible for him to unlock the door. After all, it wasn't like he had any skills in breaking into places he wasn't allowed to.
Nagi rolled his eyes. Seriously, did people forget why he was arrested in the first place?
Taking out two paper clips and bending them into the proper shape, Nagi inserted them into the doorknob with one acting as the tension and the other pressing the inner mechanism pins. Although he had some prior experience, he wasn't exactly proficient with the skill. So it still took him a few minutes to finally get a result.
There was a small click, and the door swung open.
He gave out a sigh of relief. "Those days of practicing last month never really paid off until now. I'm just glad that I managed to find another way into the Kirijo facility. I doubt I would have had the opportunity to spend this long to open any of their doors."
If he was going to find anything, he needed to find something related to the Second Hand of Time. That was his immediate concern, and while it would be nice to learn about the Dark Hour or the Hikari family, he needed to solve his current problem first.
Entering the room, he gazed around and took in the sight. Furniture, desk, rows of bookshelves, weird-looking chair. On the desk was a computer, but when Nagi rattled the mouse, the screen flickered on and asked for a password. Giving up on that, he noticed that there was a book placed on the side of the desk.
Picking it up, he opened it to where a bookmark was placed. Inside was an image of a crystal artwork with lines of words next to it.
"This is it." His eyes widened. "The Second Hand of Time."
Reading the description, Nagi's heart sank as he realized that there wasn't anything new. Most of the things written down were stuff that he already researched earlier today. The only thing that stood out to him was a small line that stated that the artwork was supposedly 'sealed' several centuries ago. Sighing, his eyes trailed to the bookmark that fell on the desk.
Blinking, he picked it up and turned it over. "Isn't this a map?"
It was a diagram showing the layout of the town. Labeled at the top of the map was a location marked with the word 'Freedert'.
"This location," Nagi found a nearby piece of paper and began sketching the map. "I better compare this to a modern map to figure out where exactly this is."
Once he was done, Nagi began putting back everything in their former place before exiting the room. He didn't want to risk staying too long, in fear of accidentally leaving a trace behind or staying long enough for Hiwatari to catch him in the act.
Locking the door on the way out, he sighed as he went to bed.
"Guess I'm going exploring this weekend."
}-{
The week slowly passed as Nagi got used to going to his new school. As the school festival drew closer, the entire class began to invest more time in preparing for their upcoming play.
Today was the day that they would be trying on their costumes for the first time.
"Hold still, Kujikawa-san." His classmate, a girl whose name eluded him, held his face in her hands. "You don't need as much make-up as the others. But a feminine touch would make you fit your role better."
"Do we seriously have to wear dresses now though?" He looked down at himself at the simple garb he wore depicting him as Village Girl No. 1. "Granted, at least it's not that frilly compared to Niwa. But it's only a practice session, can't we go without them just today?"
"Nope," she replied. "We want to see what everyone looks like in costume first in case we need to make any last-minute changes." She moved back. "Alright, it looks like we're done for now. You can go out and wait with the rest of the actors."
He grumbled. "My face feels weird."
"Get used to it. Now you know how us women feel."
Should that really be something a middle school girl can say?
Exiting the dressing room, he found himself standing next to Hiwatari, who was also dressed for his role. He gave the other boy a glance over before hiding his snicker.
"So, how does it feel to be dressed as Dark?"
Yes, thanks to the modification to the script done by the girls of their class, their play was changed from the normal story of Ice and Snow to one having characters based on more recent celebrity figures. This meant that while Elliot's role wouldn't change that much, the person playing as him would sport the appearance of the phantom thief Dark instead.
And since Hiwatari was playing as the main protagonist of the play, that meant he was currently sporting the appearance of his archenemy.
Hiwatari smiled. "It's interesting, that's all I can say. Although, I have to admit that you look quite cute as a girl, Kujikawa-san."
Nagi grumbled. "At least I'm not wearing frills. Did you see what Niwa was like yesterday?"
Clear amusement flickered across the other boy's face. "Yes, his face was almost as red as his hair. It seems that he's quite the hit amongst our other classmates though."
Well, even Nagi had to admit that Daisuke was cute as a girl. His natural submissive personality plus his embarrassed expression was a powerful combo.
The doors opened as Saehara walked into the room with a disappointed expression on his face. "Practice is canceled. It seems that Daisuke has a cold, so he won't be able to make it to class."
Nagi gave out a sigh of relief. "You hear that, Hiwatari? Lucky us, huh?"
He turned to face the other boy, only to freeze as he saw a contemplative look on his face. The other boy looked up and smirked as he noticed Nagi staring at him.
Turning to Saehara, he spoke. "Why not have Kujikawa substitute Niwa for today?"
"What?"
To his horror, Saehara seemed to consider it. "You know, that's not a bad idea. Since he doesn't have that many lines, it wouldn't hurt to have him read Daisuke's lines for today. After all, we can't have everyone fall behind on practice, even if one of our main performers isn't here."
"W-Wait, are you serious?!" Nagi's eyes widened. "Are you seriously asking me to…"
"Kujikawa-san," Saehara clamped a hand on his shoulder. "How would you like to perform as the heroine Freedert?"
"I absolutely refuse!"
"Kujikawa," Hiwatari's voice interrupted him. "Think about it, if you don't take the role, who do you think will most likely do so instead?"
"Huh?" At his words, Nagi only gave a blank look. What exactly was he trying to say? According to Saehara, it was likely that they would have one of their classmates' substitute so that everyone could practice anyway. Since most of them already had their roles, it was only the ones who didn't have much of a part to play that would most likely replace Daisuke. But other than Nagi, who only had one or two lines, the only other person who didn't contribute as much would be Saehara, who was acting as the director of the play.
And suddenly, Nagi realized what Hiwatari was implying.
He shuddered as the thought of Saehara wearing a frilly dress passed through his mind. No, that image would certainly cause everyone to scratch out their eyes in sheer horror.
Ugh, even he wouldn't want to subject his classmates to that.
"Fine," Nagi bit out. "I'll do it, just give me the damn script to read while I talk."
Saehara gave a shout of triumph. "That's the spirit! I'll tell everyone the news and we can begin immediately."
As Saehara ran off, Nagi threw Hiwatari a dark look. "What's with that smirk on your face?"
Hiwatari just continued to smile. "Nothing, it seems that you're fitting well with your new classmates."
"Haha…" Nagi rolled his eyes. "And I suppose I have to thank you for that?"
"You're the one who accepted playing the role. It's not my fault that you couldn't say no." His smile faded as a contemplative look covered his face. "But hearing that Niwa's not here today, maybe I should visit him after school. If you're not busy today, would you like to accompany me?"
"Excuse me?"
Suddenly, Nagi was alert with suspicion. The sudden offer was something he wasn't expecting, and he didn't know what Hiwatari was thinking.
"You're on friendly terms with Niwa, are you not?" Hiwatari tilted his head. "The two of us can check on him after school."
Nagi tried to spot any hint in Hiwatari's eyes that indicated he was up to something. After all, there was no way he was supposed to know that Nagi had already been to Daisuke's house before. Was this a test to see if Nagi would react to his offer?
"...I don't see why not. We can both walk together once class ends."
Hiwatari nodded. "Then I'll wait for you once practice is over."
And quickly, Nagi recalled that he promised to act as Freedert for the rest of today. Meaning the moment he entered class, the female students in charge of dress-up were waiting for him. The smiles they had on their faces looked like evil grins to Nagi's eyes.
Damn you, Hiwatari.
On the bright side, apparently he was considered 'pretty' enough to pass as the heroine. One of the benefits of being reborn into a shoujo setting meant that he had a sort of bishounen-looking appearance, not that it did anything for his self-esteem.
Plus…
Why does this dress have so many damn frills?!
Needless to say, Nagi was in low spirits by the time classes were over.
}-{
Nagi glared at Hiwatari walking next to him. "Why is it that even though your face isn't emoting anything, I can tell you're laughing on the inside?"
"I have no idea what you are talking about."
Hearing Hiwatari's response, he rolled his eyes. "Anyway, it looks like we're here."
They walked up to the doorsteps of Daisuke's house. Pressing the doorbell, the two boys waited.
Opening the doors, Daisuke's mother appeared at the entrance. "Who is it?"
Nagi saw the moment recognition filled her eyes as she saw both him and Hiwatari. He could only guess at what she was thinking at that moment, seeing him appearing next to a member of their rival house standing together on their doorsteps.
He gave a bright smile. "You must be Niwa's mother. Nice to meet you, my name is Nagi Kujikawa. Standing next to me is Hiwatari, the two of us are classmates of your son. We heard that he was sick today, so we decided to visit."
Play along, pretend this is our first meeting.
She got the message and smiled back. "Nice to meet you both. But unfortunately, Daisuke is asleep at the moment. So I'm afraid you'll have to come back another time…"
"Now, now." Her husband appeared from behind her. "Emiko, it wouldn't be nice to drive away his friends. They can come on in." He turned to look at Hiwatari. "You must be Satoshi, you can find Daisuke in his room."
Both parents shared a look, an unspoken conversation passing between them. Emiko sighed before she moved aside. "Well, let's get you two inside then."
As the two stepped inside, Nagi caught Hiwatari's attention. "You can talk to Daisuke first. I'll just wait downstairs."
Hiwatari furrowed his eyebrows. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'll come up in a second."
Hiwatari had a look of confusion but didn't say anything else. Instead, he began heading upstairs without him, leaving Nagi alone with Daisuke's parents.
Once Hiwatari was gone, the smile dropped from Emiko's face. "What are you doing here? Not just that, but why did you come here with him of all people?! Do you know who he is?"
"Are you worried because he's the Police Commander of the Azumano Dark Task Force?"
"What?" Emiko shook her head. "Are you saying you know nothing about the Hikari family…"
"I think we should cut this conversation off here," Kosuke interrupted. "It looks like Hiwatari is just here to visit Daisuke, he's not here to make trouble. Whatever his ancestry or job title, right now he's just a concerned classmate."
Nagi was led to the living room, and Emiko left to do something in another room while Kosuke sat across from the younger man.
"So, Kujikawa-san."
"It's fine if you call me Nagi," he replied. "Kujikawa is a bit long to say."
"Then Nagi," Kosuke smiled. "I'm curious, we've been discussing some private matters for a while now. But judging by your expression, you seemed to somewhat follow along with what we were saying. I'm not certain, but… you have a certain understanding as to our situation, don't you?"
Nagi nodded hesitantly. "I don't know a lot. I know that Hiwatari used to belong to the Hikari family and that they're a line of talented artists. I know that Dark steals a lot of their stuff since most of the artworks that are publicly listed as stolen by him carry the Hikari brand. But other than that, I don't know much."
That wasn't even a lie either. Several decades later, Nagi's knowledge of the series amounted only to that much. The only thing he kept quiet about was his knowledge of the fact that he knew about the Black Wings, and that the two families inherited the artwork spirits Dark and Krad.
"Erm, sir?"
"Please, call me Kousuke."
"Why is it that Dark only steals Hikari artworks?"
"The artworks that Dark steals aren't just limited to the Hikari brand," he corrected Nagi. "The ones we do steal, we take care of them and put them to rest. I'm sure you're aware that certain artworks contain magical powers, and that sometimes they cause trouble to those around them."
The memory of the incident occurring last week came back to him. A snowy landscape, the demon known as Jacky, and his escape from Daisuke's painting. Everything that's happened to him was due to the influence of the Second Hand of Time.
"I've been researching this past week about the Second Hand of Time," Nagi began. "But there's something I'm curious about. A while ago, Dark mentioned something about how I knew the Second Hand of Time's name. He said that because of something like public perception, I was able to somehow just know the name without having heard it before. What exactly did he mean by that?"
It took Kosuke a second to respond.
"While most artworks naturally have the ability to give birth to their own magical abilities after a period of time, most of the Hikari artworks are already born with their own power. One of the main reasons for that is recognition."
The older man sighed. "Humans are more than what is observable in the physical realm. A person is not only composed of their body, but their mind and soul as well. The thoughts that make up who you are, that is a form of energy in their own right. People don't realize that their emotions, like love and hate, have magic powers."
He looked up. "Recognition is important in magic for a reason. When so many people band their thoughts together and direct them towards an idea, that gives a concept power. For a magically inclined family like the Hikari, their reputation as artists is what makes them special. They can direct that flow of power towards their creations, and give birth to magical artworks."
Hearing his words, Nagi thought about what the older man said.
To his understanding, the reason that Hikari artworks were so powerful was that they carried the Hikari brand. And because they were a family that used magic, they could direct some kind of energy derived from emotions and thought and infuse that into their works.
So how did that link to his earlier question?
"Think about it," Kosuke saw the confused look on Nagi's face. "Names have power, especially family names. To summarize everything I've said, energy is made up of thoughts. And recognition plays a big role in how thought energy is handled. By combining those two ideas together, that is the formula for how a person can achieve magic. So what do you think that means for you."
Even as he tried to think, Nagi couldn't figure out what the other man was trying to tell him. Before he could say anything else, he heard someone coming downstairs.
Hiwatari entered the room. "We're done. Let's go."
"Huh?" Nagi blinked in surprise. "Shouldn't I say hello to Daisuke first?"
"He's busy," Hiwatari replied. "It seems that he can't take any more visitors. We should head back for today."
Still confused at Hiwatari's strange behavior, Nagi didn't complain and got up without a word. Turning to Kosuke, he bowed. "It was nice to meet you."
"Please, the pleasure was all mine." Kosuke smiled. "You know, the two of you can come back here anytime. Watching this animosity between our two families… I want you to know that it's alright to gaze at the light. I don't like how this conflict of ours forces children like you to get involved in the sins of those before you."
At his words, Hiwatari visibly flinched. "You don't know anything."
"Well, maybe not." Kosuke agreed. "But as a nosy father, I'd like it if the two of you kept being friends with Daisuke. I don't want the mistakes of the past to define your current relationship. Who is to say that a Niwa can't be friends with a Hikari?"
"I don't care about Niwa," Hiwatari said. Without warning, he grabbed Nagi's hand and ignored his startled cry. "I just want Dark. Let's go, Nagi."
"W-Wait, you don't have to drag me!"
A second later, the door shut as the two left the house. Still gazing at where they were, Kosuke gave out a heavy sigh.
"It seems Dark is all everyone cares about nowadays."
I think I'm going to switch to a sort of weekly update from now on, it's taking a bit more effort to churn out a couple of thousand words per chapter compared to before.
It's really hard trying to balance between a school life setting with a supernatural genre type of story. Timeline-wise, the last few chapters mainly occurred over the course of only two days. But due to the number of things that occurred, it feels like it's a lot longer.
The next chapter will probably be an interlude one going from the point of view of characters other than Nagi.