A/N: Welcome back to the Redux edition of Another: The Call For Blood! Yes, I know, it's been a while, but if I'm being perfectly honest, completely lost my drive to write for this and other stories thanks to a new addiction...Zelda. So yeah, expect a story at some point for that franchise. Anyways, enjoy the updated take on Chapter 4 - Heart Attack.
Chapter 4 - Heart Attack
"Son of a bitch, that's ripe!" Adam groaned, as he felt his spine pop as he twisted his upper body to the side. "Tonight, fuck the patrol. I'm going straight to bed when I get in. Makes my back feel like a fucking Jenga tower, but it's comfier than that damn chair." He continued, before he looked to his clock, only to do a double-take. "Shit! I slept in!" He thought, before quickly throwing on a clean uniform. After quickly making sure his Hidden Blades were secured under his sleeve, the young Assassin grabbed his bag, before taking a running leap out of his open window. Shooting out his grapple, he flew up to the rooftops, and took off in a sprint...
Eventually, his lungs burning, Adam managed to make it through the gates of the school, but his gaze was immediately drawn to a police cruiser in the parking lot. "Probably here about Sanae. Either to talk to Takeru or..." He thought as he ran up the stairs to the third floor, only for his inner monologue to be interrupted by his near-colliding with Kouichi, who had stepped out into the corridor.
"Speak of the devil..." He thought, as he stepped to the side to allow the boy to walk past him, before he entered the classroom, and dumped his bag at his table. As he went to sit down, he heard a voice call out, "Adam!" Looking up, he saw Izumi waving at him from her desk, where she was sitting with Yukari, Takako, Yumi, Kazami, Teshigawara and Mochizuki. Picking up his chair, he walked down to the group, spinning the chair round to face them, before he sat down.
"What's up?" He asked. "Yukari said you wanted to talk to me?" Izumi asked in reply, making Adam shoot a smile to the girl in question, before he nodded. "Yeah, I do. I want to know what your game plan for the Calamity is now. Clearly, the countermeasure that was in place failed, since Sakakibara broke the rules, and 'cause of that, two people are dead." He stated, making Izumi sigh.
"I can't deny you have a point. I took a similar train of thought, and I have an idea. Only problem is, you might not like it." The Head of Countermeasures said, making Adam raise an eyebrow. "Go on..." He said, before Izumi leant forward and said, quietly enough that none of the other students could hear; "We make Sakakibara 'non-existent' as well."
As Izumi sat back, Adam looked to the rest of the Group. "I'm guessing you've already told them?" He asked, causing Izumi to nod. "What if it doesn't work?" He asked. "Best we can hope for is that it does." Izumi explained, causing Adam to sigh deeply, before he nodded.
"Alright. Let's do it." He stated, getting a smile from his friends. "Okay, spread the word. From now on, he doesn't exist. I'll find Kubodera and Miss Mikami, and let them know." Izumi ordered, before the Countermeasures Group got to their feet, and began to spread throughout the classroom...
Deciding to head up the back of the class, Adam approached a small group of his classmates, one that consisted of two boys; Kenzou Kawahori and Takeru Mizuno, and a pair of girls, San Watanabe and Sayuri Kakinuma.
"Oh, look, guys, it's Akazawa's lapdog." Kawahori stated, causing the other three at the table to look round at the approaching Adam, who looked to Kenzou with a scowl. "We gonna have a problem, Kawahori?" He asked, causing the boy in question to shrug. "Not sure. Just wondering how you were only here two days before being given power over us by Akazawa." Kenzou stated, before San looked to him with a scowl. "Kawahori, enough. Izumi clearly trusts him to do his job." She said, only for Adam to raise a hand to stop her. "It's alright, San. I can fight my own battles." He said, causing the girl to look to him, but she nodded when she saw him smile.
"Alright, Kenzou, tell me; Considering the fact that the Countermeasures Group are working to keep your ass alive, care to explain why you seem to be resistant to our efforts?" He asked, before Kenzou sighed, and rose to his feet to lock eyes with Adam. "I'm not resisting them. I'm just resisting you, asshole." He stated bluntly, jabbing his finger into the middle of Adam's chest. Due to being caught off guard by this, Adam was sent back slightly, the act of which drew the attention of the rest of the class.
"What's going on over here?" Takako demanded, walking over to the bickering pair. "Nothing. This prick's just trying to lord it over us again." Kawahori spat, making Adam smirk. "That true?" Takako asked of Adam, who shrugged. "Was gonna tell them about the new countermeasure, but Kawahori seems to have a problem with me being in the Group." The Assassin replied, before Kenzou laughed.
"Yeah, I got a problem with it. We don't even know this guy, and all of a sudden, we're supposed to obey him? I don't think so." He spat, jabbing his finger into Adam's chest again. Luckily, Adam was prepared for it this time, so he wasn't pushed back. However, his face darkened at Kenzou's actions. "That's enough..." He heard Mizuno say, as he placed a hand on Kenzou's shoulder to placate him, but Kenzou threw his hand off.
"Come on, man, stick up for yourself for once!" He yelled, before gesturing to Adam. "This guy's all talk. He just looks intimidating. Why else do you think Izumi wanted him in the group?" He continued, before Adam sighed.
"How about the fact Izumi trusts me to help? Maybe if you weren't such an 'asshole' yourself, you'd be in my position instead." The Assassin shot back, causing Kenzou to scowl, before he shocked the entire class by swinging his fist round in an attempt to punch Adam. Luckily, Adam had foreseen this coming, and in a flash, he had grabbed Kawahori's fist in his hand, then forced his attacker to the floor by twisting his arm behind his back.
"Adam!" Yukari called out, going to approach her friend, but a stern look from Adam made her step back. Looking back down to the pinned Kawahori, Adam cracked his neck, then began to speak.
"While you're down there, Kawahori, pay attention. Now, you can hate me, or whatever you want, but mark my words: If you ever swing at me again, I don't care about my obligations to the Countermeasures Group. I will lay your ass out. And second; All I was going to say was that there's now another 'non-existent' in the class. I trust you all know who I'm on about." He stated, looking round the class, who slowly nodded. "And you, Kawahori?" He asked, looking back down to the other boy, who glared at him, before nodding himself.
"Good." Adam said, releasing Kenzou's arm, just in time for the classroom door to open. Silently, the class returned to their seats, just as Kubodera, Mikami and Izumi re-entered the room. Noticing that the auburn-haired girl had looked to him as she sat down, Adam smiled to her, before subtly pointing his finger towards Kenzou. The silent message was clear; We've got an issue. Looking in the specified direction, Izumi nodded to him, with him clearly understanding her meaning; I'll talk to him. Good work.
Cracking his neck, Adam pulled his textbooks out of his bag, whilst Kubodera turned back to start the lesson...
At the end of the school day...
"So, you think this countermeasure will work, Izumi?" Adam asked, as he turned to lean his back against the railing. After school had let out for the day, instead of going straight home, the Countermeasures Group had elected to spend some time up on the school roof. 'Strategizing', Izumi had called it. Well, all of them except for Mochizuki. He had decided to head home with a good friend of his, Ikuo Takabayashi.
"I...don't know, Adam. Like I said this morning, all we can do is hope it works." Izumi stated, which made Adam smirk, as he turned to look out over Yomiyama. "Never been one to put much faith in 'hope'." He said, which drew Takako's attention. "What do you mean by that, Adam?" The bespectacled girl asked, getting a coy smirk from Adam, as he dropped his bag to the floor. "Simply put, Sugiura, if you want the results you wish for..." He started, as he rolled up his shirt sleeves...
"You gotta be willing to get your hands dirty by taking action."
With that, the young boy pushed himself up onto the railing, shocking all the others present.
"Adam, are you crazy? Get down from there!" Izumi yelled, causing the boy in question to smirk. "Izumi, relax." He said. "Balance is my middle name." Turning his back to his classmates, the boy bent his knees, before launching himself into a backflip, landing square on his feet in front of Kazami. "See?" He asked, spreading his arms wide, only to be sent staggering with a hard slap to his cheek, courtesy of Izumi.
"That hurt." He said, rubbing his now-throbbing cheek, as he looked back to Izumi, who was glaring daggers at him. "Are you insane! What if you had fallen off?" She demanded, causing Adam to smirk. "Trust me, I'd have been fine. I was putting more of my weight towards the roof, rather than away from it." He explained, which made Izumi sigh.
"As impressive as that is, just...don't take unnecessary risks like that, especially given our current situation. Okay?" The auburn-haired girl asked, getting a salute from Adam. "Yes, ma'am." He replied in a sarcastic tone, which drew a small laugh from the rest of the Group, before Kazami cleared his throat.
"Well, if we're done here, should we start heading home? Unless Robertson has any other stunts he wants to pull off?" Kazami asked, causing the Assassin in question to laugh. "Nah, not right now. Maybe another time." He said while picking up his bag. "Alright. Then let's get going." Izumi stated, before leading the rest of the Group out of the school...
A couple days later...
"And...leap!" Adam said to himself, as he took a running jump to clear the gap between the two rooftops, only to come to a stop when he saw something down on the street. Kneeling down, the young Assassin saw that it was Izumi and Yumi, the pair of whom seemed to be having a conversation. "Well, I'm not missing out on this!" He said, before standing back up. Holding his foot out over the edge of the rooftop, he allowed himself to drop to the ground of the alley below, landing in a crouch to absorb the impact. "Yep. Legs'll be feeling that later." He groaned to himself, before straightening up and exiting the alley.
"Izumi! Yumi!" He called out, drawing the attention of the two girls. "Adam! Good morning. How are you today?" Yumi asked, getting a smile from Adam in response. "Not bad." He stated, even as his inner monologue went, "Except for the fact my fucking legs are on FIRE!"
"Adam, while we've got you, could I ask you a quick question?" Izumi asked. "Sure, fire away." Adam answered with a shrug.
"If the countermeasure we put into place fails, and the Calamity ends up continuing..." Izumi started, causing Adam to nod. "Go on." He said. "If something happens to me, could you continue to lead the Group in my place?" Izumi finished, making Adam widen his eyes.
"Why me? Why not Takako? Or Yumi?" He asked, after gesturing to the third member of their trio, who smiled. "If it came down to it, Adam, I'd follow you. I saw how you handled Kawahori a couple days ago. You've committed, despite having little to no care about the job at the start." The brown-haired girl said, drawing the attention of the other two.
"And you asked 'Why not Takako'?" Izumi questioned to Adam, who nodded. "Well, don't tell anyone, but Takako's not exactly in the best mental place to lead the Group. The responsibility, along with the stress of the Calamity, would be too much for her to handle." Izumi stated, which made Adam nod in understanding.
"Alright, Izumi, listen to me..." He started, placing his hands on his friend's shoulders, and looking her dead in the eyes. "So long as I'm around, I swear to you, nothing will happen to you. But if it does, I'll take your place. You have my word." He continued, making the 'Head of Countermeasures' widen her eyes, which quickly began to water over with tears. "Thank you, Adam." She said, before surprising him with a hug. "It means a lot." Looking to Yumi, who was smiling, Adam raised a hand and patted Izumi on the back.
"Now..." He said, as Izumi pulled back from the hug. "Enough of all this depressing talk. God knows we're under enough pressure as it is." Nodding, Izumi looked to Yumi, who smiled at her. "Yeah, I can agree with that." She said, before jerking her head down the road. "Shall we?" She asked, causing Adam to smile and gesture for her to take the lead. "Lead on, Boss." He said, before he and Yumi began to follow Izumi towards the school...
Later, at the end of the school day...
"Finally!" Adam said, pushing himself off the wall as the Countermeasures Group exited from the building. "Sorry, kept you waiting?" Izumi asked, getting a shrug from Adam. "Couple of minutes, that's all." He replied, before his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Hey, Teshigawara." He stated, drawing the attention of the class jock, who asked, "Yeah?", in response. "Where's Mochizuki at?" Adam asked. "Oh, that. He left with Takabayashi." Naoya clarified, causing Izumi to look to him. "Again?" She asked in an exasperated tone, even as Adam smirked. "Look, Akazawa, according to Yuuya, Takabayashi's been reluctant to follow the countermeasures we've put into place. He's trying to talk him round." Naoya clarified, causing Adam to nod in understanding. "Sounds fair. Ikuo's always struck me as a tad sensitive." He said, getting a smile from Naoya, as Izumi rounded on him.
"And what if Takabayashi decides to break the countermeasure?" She demanded, only to tense when Adam clasped her by the shoulders, to the shock of the majority of the Group. "When that happens, if that happens, we'll deal with it. Alright?" He asked, causing his friend hesitate, before she nodded. "Good, now, if Mochizuki has headed home, I suggest we do the same." He continued, as he looked round the other members of the group. "Anyone against the idea?" He asked, only to receive multiple shakes of the head from the Group. "Good." He said, before gesturing out the school gates...
"Then let's get going."
A few minutes later...
"So, care to explain how you managed to calm Izumi down back there?" Yukari asked, as Adam fell to the back of the group to talk to her and Yumi, getting a shrug from the boy in question. "It's because of how much trust she has in you." Yumi piped up, making Adam & Yukari look to her. Adam, in particular, shot her a warning look.
"What does that mean?" Yukari asked, making Adam sigh, before he looked to her. "I'll explain later, okay? Just..." He started, shooting a brief glance to Izumi. "Not now, okay?" Looking to Izumi as well, Yukari nodded, then the trio of them fell silent again. That was, at least, until the entire Group halted when the ringing sound of a phone rang out.
"Whose is that?" Kazami asked, only for Naoya to raise his hand, which had his phone clasped in its grip. "It's mine. And its from Mochizuki." He said, causing the Group to adopt confused looks, as he answered the call. "Mochizuki, what's up?" He asked, placing the phone to his ear. "Wait, Yuuya, hang on. What's wrong with Takabayashi? And did you say Sakakibara's there as well?" He asked in a panicked voice, which made the Group look to each other, worry evident on each of their faces. "Shit. Yuuya, we'll be there as fast as we can." Naoya said, before hanging up.
"He said they're at the waterfront over there." He continued, pointing to a bridge a fair distance away. "And that something's wrong with Takabayashi." Immediately, Adam's eyes went to Izumi, whose face had widened in panic. "Akazawa, what do we do?" Kazami demanded, catching Izumi off guard. "I...uh..." She stammered, before Adam sighed and stepped forward. "Fuck it, time to exercise that power she gave me as her 'Enforcer' and successor." He thought.
"I'll tell you what you do, Kazami; You lot run like hell. I can get there faster than the rest of you. If I go now, it'll take a minute, tops." He stated, drawing confused looks from his companions. "How do you figure that? You'll be going the same way we will, won't you?" Takako asked, making Adam shake his head. "Not exactly. Look, I'll explain later, but for now, go!" He replied, making his friends hesitate slightly, before Izumi nodded. "Alright, we'll catch you later. Just, stay safe, alright?" She asked, getting a smile and nod from Adam. "Always am, Izumi." He replied, as the Group started to run off in the direction of the bridge, except for Yukari, who hesitated slightly, but Adam stated, "Go.", and the bespectacled girl nodded and ran to catch up with the others. Now, Adam was left alone.
"That was too close. But I can't stall any longer." The young Assassin thought, as he fiddled with the mechanism of his Blade, before aiming up at the rooftops. Clenching his fist, he fired his grapple up to the nearest roof, and after rolling to his feet on the tiles above, he cracked his neck. "Time to move." With that, he took off in a sprint across the rooftops.
Back with the Countermeasures Group...
"Sakuragi, you okay?" Yumi asked of her friend, as they attempted to keep up with the others. "Hmm? Oh, I'm just wondering; What do you think Adam meant by him not going the same way as us?" Yukari replied, getting a shrug from Yumi. "Beats me." She said, just before she collided into Teshigawara's back.
"Why'd you stop?" She demanded, and sure enough, the entirety of the Group had came to a stop. "You hear that?" Naoya asked, causing Yumi and Yukari to listen intently to their surroundings.
"Is that...footsteps?" Izumi asked. "Sounds like it. And whoever they belong to, they're fast. But where are they coming from?" Takako stated in response, just as the sound grew louder. "Could it be..." Kazami started, looking upwards, "Above us?"
Just in time, everybody else present looked up to see a black shape leap across the gap between two buildings, silhouetted against the sun. "Holy shit, they might actually make it." Yukari thought, unknowingly sharing the same sentiment as her companions. However, the shadowy individual had misjudged the distance of their leap, and would have fallen to the ground below, if not for them reaching out and grabbing the edge of their target rooftop to save themselves. As the Countermeasures Group watched, the shadowed figure pulled themself up onto the rooftop and disappeared, but in doing so, those watching had seen their face.
"Adam?" asked Izumi, more to the Group than anyone else. "Seems so. And if it was, he was right when he said that he'd beat us there." replied Junta, only for Naoya to speak up. "Who cares? Let's go!" He stated, leading the rest of them back down the street...
Over at the waterfront...
"Yuuya!" Adam called out, drawing the young man's attention, along with that of the other boy present, as he landed in front of them. "Adam!" Mochizuki replied, as the Countermeasures 'Enforcer' ran over to him, kneeling next to the writhing Takabayashi.
"What's wrong with him?" Adam asked, as Takabayashi looked to him, gasping for breath. "His heart's weak. He went into an attack!" Yuuya explained, causing Adam to widen his eyes. "Shit..." he breathed, looking back down to Ikuo, who, despite his pain, managed to reach up and pull him closer to him.
"Help...me..." the sickly boy said, before Adam felt his body go limp, and the hand gripping him fell to the floor. Closing his eyes, the Assassin took a deep breath, then looked to Yuuya and shook his head. Immediately, Yuuya's eyes glistened with tears, as he looked to the body of his friend.
"I'm sorry." Adam said, placing a hand on Yuuya's shoulder. Remaining silent, the other boy nodded slowly, as tears began running down his face. At that moment, they heard the sound of footfalls, as the rest of the Countermeasures Group ran up. Immediately, Izumi's eyes locked onto the body of Takabayashi.
"What happened?"asked Izumi, as Adam rose to his feet. "Heart attack." He explained, before moving to stop her as she went to move closer. "There's nothing we can do, Izumi. He's..." He began to say, only to surprise himself by cutting himself off. "When did I care so much? Could I be beginning to...care about them all?" He thought to himself, before regaining his composure. "He's gone." He finished, releasing his friend, who was drawn into an embrace by Takako, as he stepped back to beside Yuuya.
"May I?" He asked, gesturing to Takabayashi's body. Nodding, Yuuya, along with the rest of the Group, watched as Adam knelt down and spoke to the body.
"Fear not the darkness, my friend, but welcome its embrace." He recited, before reaching forward and closing Ikuo's eyes. "Requiescat in pace." Straightening back up, he looked round the group, making sure to pay Sakakibara, who was standing off to the side, no mind.
"Someone needs to call his family." stated the Assassin, getting a nod from Yuuya, as he slowly stood up as well, pulling his phone out of his pocket as he did so. "I'll do it." He said, pressing the call button, and placing the phone to his ear.
"We'll also need the police down here, to report this." continued Adam, as he looked to Izumi, who already had her phone in her hand. "On it." She said, as she started her own call...
A few minutes later...
"This Calamity's really starting to piss me off." spat Adam, as he pushed himself off the wall, and the rest of the Group looked to him. Almost all those who had watched as Ikuo's body was taken away had remained to answer the questions from the police, but afterwards, Kouichi had left the rest of them behind, due to them ignoring him.
"Adam, hold on. We can't be so quick to put this down to the Calamity. Takabayashi always had a weak heart, you know that." Izumi explained, which made Adam shrug. "Fair play, but me? It seems a bit too convenient." He said, fixing her with a look.
"Just to be safe, we should keep the new countermeasure in place." After this statement from Adam, Izumi nodded, before she stood up. "I need to get home. The rest of you, take care, okay?" She asked, getting nods from the rest of the Group, before she, Takako, Junta & Yumi left.
"We should get going as well." piped up Naoya, as he, Yuuya and Kazami stood up themselves. "See you guys tomorrow?" Adam asked, holding out a fist. "Sure thing, man." replied Teshigawara, bumping fists with him, before leading his two friends away. Now, the only two left were Adam and Yukari.
"I should get going, myself." Yukari said, looking to her watch. Nodding, Adam said, "I'll walk you.", which made her look to him. "Shouldn't you be heading home? It's getting late." She asked, which only made Adam smirk. "I'm Scottish, Yukari. A late night is nothing new to me." He said, before gesturing up the road. "Shall we?" He asked. Hesitantly, Yukari nodded.
"Let's." She said, leading her friend away from the scene...
20 minutes later...
"And this is where we part." said Adam, as he and Yukari reached the latter's front door. "Thank you, Adam." The young woman said quietly, looking to him as he bowed to her, and turned to leave. "Wait." She stated, reaching out and taking his hand. "Hmm?" Adam replied, looking back to her.
"Adam, when we split up to assist Mochizuki earlier, did you run over the rooftops?" asked the bespectacled girl, which made Adam's eyes widen slightly. "How did you know?" He questioned, causing Yukari to smile. "You leapt over the rest of us, but you nearly didn't make it. While you pulled yourself up, we saw your face." She explained, making Adam nod.
"What I want to ask if; How did you get up on the rooftops in the first place?" asked Yukari, which made Adam's understanding smile to falter. Looking down, the Assassin said, almost too quiet for Yukari to hear, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Yukari. And trust me, it's better that way." This caught Yukari off guard, and she tilted her head to the side.
Instead of saying anything, Adam looked down to their conjoined hands. Following his gaze, Yukari's face quickly flushed bright red, and she released her grip, letting Adam's hand fall. "I-I'm sorry!" She said, getting a small smile from Adam. "It's fine. Just..." He started, before sighing and looking away from her. "I'll see you tomorrow." He stated, which made Yukari hesitate before nodding.
"Stay safe, okay?" She asked, making Adam smirk, unbeknownst to Yukari, only for him to nod and run off. Once he had left her sight, Yukari looked down to the ground, and thought to herself for a few seconds, before she came to a decision, and entered her house, closing the door behind her.
As for Adam, after he exited Yukari's street, he slowed his run down to a slow walk, but the conversation he had just had kept weighing heavily on his mind. Coming to a stop, he looked round the surrounding street, then down at his hand, before silently flicking his right wrist to activate his Hidden Blade.
"Should I...tell them?" He thought to himself, before sighing and relaxing, the Blade sliding back into its mechanism. "One day. Just not today." He said, to no one in particular, following it up with, "They've got enough shit to deal with, without learning their classmate is a killer." As he went to take a step forward, he stopped at the sound of a branch snapping. Looking round slightly, he scowled.
"I fucking hate being stalked." He growled under his breath, quickly fiddling with the mechanism of his Blade, switching it to his grapple. Aiming up, he fired the spike up to the rooftops, and a second afterwards, he was up on the tiles.
"Ahh, I can breathe again." He thought, noticing that, down on the ground, there had been a barely noticeable force pressing down on him. "Safe bet it's the Calamity." His inner monologue continued, before he smirked. "Try and tail me now, asshole." He said, before taking off across the rooftops in a sprint...
Back down on the street...
"Shit." The shadowy man growled, before he reached to the walkie on his belt. "Lost him, ma'am." He said into it, only for an exasperated groan to come from the other end. "How the fuck did you lose him? You're supposed to be stealth agents, best in the Order!" The voice demanded, causing the soldier to pale.
"Apologies, ma'am..." He started, "But so far as we were told, we were tracking a simple Assassin. Not one as high-profile as the 'Shadow'. This is above our pay grade." He said, causing a tense few seconds to pass, during which he thought that he'd overstepped a boundary, before the device buzzed back to life.
"Fine. Return to base. We'll see how he handles being tailed by someone with his own skill set." It said, causing the soldier to confusedly ask, "M-ma'am?" He asked, before it buzzed again. "That's right..." It started...
"Next time, I'm the one who'll be tailing him."
At Adam's house...
"Ahh, thank fuck!" Adam groaned, collapsing onto his bed after clambering through his window. "Next time I get followed, I'm killing the fucker." Pushing himself up to a sitting position, the young Assassin looked to his desk, where the file on the Calamity was laying open. Standing up, he walked over to the desk, placing his bag to one side, and looked to the file, which was open on the '1998 - Victims' page. Picking up his pen, he hesitated, before writing the following under Sanae's name;
"Ikuo Takabayashi, died of a heart attack on June 6th. Member of Class 3-3."
After writing this, Adam hesitated again, before continuing to write;
"Heart condition was already present. Unclear if Calamity is to blame."
Placing his pen down, Adam pressed his fists into the wood of the desk, closed his eyes, and let out a deep breath. Shooting a glance to his clock, he saw that it was very late on in the evening. Debating internally for a few seconds, he came to a decision.
"I need to get out for a bit."
Walking over to his wardrobe, he pushed on the back panel to reveal his robes. Just as he reached to throw them on, he paused when he heard the sound of his front door being knocked. "For fuck..." He groaned, closing the wardrobe, before he exited his room and walked over to his front door, opening it to reveal...
"Yukari? What are you doing here?" He asked, standing aside to allow his friend entry. "I...I didn't feel too safe being on my own, not after all that's happened." She replied, which drew Adam's attention to her causal clothes, as well as the bag on her back.
"I'm sorry to ask this out of the blue, Adam, but...could I stay here for a while?" She asked, which caught Adam off guard. "S-sure." He said, as he shut the door, noticing that this made Yukari smile. "One question, though; Why come to me before anyone else?" He asked, which made Yukari look at her feet, her face blushing bright red.
"I feel safest around you." She said, which made Adam blush himself. "Oh, I had no idea." He replied, before composing himself and nodding to the bathroom door. "You can get ready in there. Feel free to take as long as you need. I swear, no harm will come to you here." Nodding, Yukari slid her bag off of her shoulder as she walked over to the door, only to look back to him.
"Thank you." She said, causing Adam to bow his head. "My pleasure." He replied, getting a smile from his new housemate, who entered the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
"Well, I was going to patrol, but seems that plan's been shot in the ass. Ach well..." Adam thought, as he entered his room, smiling when he heard the sound of his shower starting. "Maybe this won't be so bad. Safety in numbers, after all." He continued, mulling to himself as he pulled a spare duvet out from under his bed, before he walked over to his wardrobe, opening it to reveal his robes.
"Not today." He said quietly, before looking to a small rack on the wall of the wardrobe, where a selection of knives were situated. Shooting a look to the bathroom door, Adam quickly pulled one knife free, making sure to pick up its sheath as well. Sliding the blade into its leather home and making sure it was buckled tight, he tossed it onto the spare duvet, before taking a small packet of his throwing knifes from the wardrobe.
"That should be enough." He said, closing the secret panel of the wardrobe, before shutting the main door itself, just as the shower turned off. Quickly, he shoved the throwing knives into his pocket, just as the bathroom door opened, revealing Yukari in a pink nightdress. At the sight of this, Adam's face blushed brightly. "She's...kinda cute." He thought, before composing himself. "No. Remember your training." He said internally, before forcing a smile onto his face. "Just getting a spare cover." He said, holding up the duvet he had retrieved, before dropping it onto the couch.
"You hungry?" He asked, getting a nod from Yukari. "Yeah. Ran most of the way here." She replied, which made Adam smirk. "Alright, let's see what I can cook up. Just one thing..." he said, before picking up the sheathed knife.
"I won't always be around to protect you, so it would make me feel better if you took this." He explained, tossing the knife up in a flip, only to catch it by the sheathed blade and hold the handle out to her. "O-okay, but why?" Yukari asked, even as she took the knife from him. "In case you get jumped. Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it." Adam replied, watching as she secured the knife in her bag.
"I don't know how to use it, you know." She stated, which made Adam smirk. "I'll teach you. My mother taught me some ways to defend myself." He replied, making her raise an eyebrow. "Don't worry 'bout it. I'm not going to make you kill anyone. Just a few ways to defend yourself if it comes to it." He said, attempting to quell her fears. After a few seconds, Yukari nodded.
"Alright, I'll see what I can cook up. While you wait..." He started, gesturing towards his room, "You can set your stuff in the room. I'll sleep on the couch." At this, Yukari looked to him with widened eyes. "Adam, I can't..." She started to protest, only for Adam to hold up a hand, cutting her off.
"Yukari, I am not having my guest sleep on the couch. Besides, I've slept in worse places than a couch." He stated, which made Yukari nod hesitantly, before she picked up her bag, and walked towards the room, as Adam headed into the kitchen. Just as she reached the door, she paused and turned back to face him.
"What 'worse places' have you slept in?" She asked, which made her friend's head poke back out from the kitchen. Smiling, he said, "Try the branch of a tree, or on the rocky floor of a cave during a rainstorm." Returning the smile, Yukari opened the door, and entered the room. As it closed behind her, Adam's smile fell.
"That was a bit too close." He thought, before he cracked his neck. "Well, better get to work!" He said, pulling a knife from a small wooden block...
An hour later...
"God, this is amazing, Adam!" Yukari stated, getting a smirk from Adam, as she swallowed a piece of fried chicken. "I'm glad you like it. In fact, I've set aside half for lunch tomorrow. You want some, just bring me your bento box after we're finished." The young Assassin replied, causing the young woman to nod enthusiastically. "Sure!" She said, before she continued to eat. Taking her lead, Adam joined her in silence for a few seconds, before...
"So, you think Takabayashi's death might have been down to the Calamity?" Yukari asked, which made Adam look to her, one eyebrow raised. "Your file on the Calamity. You left it open." She explained, which made Adam nod in understanding. "Beats me." He stated with a shrug. "Regardless, we're down another life. Doesn't it just seem too convenient to you?" He asked, which made Yukari nod after a second of contemplation. "I suppose you have a point. Given how much is in that file, I'm not surprised you're hesitant to accept the 'accident' explanation." She said, which made Adam smirk.
"You're a bit too curious for your own good, Sakuragi." He said playfully, which made Yukari blush. "It's in my nature." She replied. "Fair play." Adam said in response, before noticing the clock on his wall. "It's getting late." He stated, rising to his feet and picking up his empty plate. "You done?" He asked, pointing to Yukari's plate, which still had some scraps of chicken left on it.
"Yeah, I'm done. Your cooking was too good, I couldn't eat it all." She said, passing the plate to him, which made Adam's face heat up. "Alright, then." He said, before entering the kitchen and placing the plates in the sink. "I'll get them tomorrow." He reasoned, before walking back out to the living room, where he saw Yukari was missing from the table.
Smirking, the Assassin walked over to the bedroom, where he saw Yukari getting comfortable in the bed. "Lunchbox is over there." She said, pointing to the desk. Following it with his eyes, Adam saw her bento box laying there. Picking it up, he looked back to his new roommate, and bowed his head.
"Goodnight, Yukari." He said, getting a small smile from the girl, who went to speak as he moved to leave. "Y-you could always sleep in here too, Adam." She said, which admittedly made Adam blush, before he smirked. "Nah, I'm good with the couch. But I appreciate the offer." He replied, which made Yukari's smile falter slightly.
"Dammit! So close..." The bespectacled girl thought, unbeknownst to Adam, before she composed herself and smiled to Adam. "Goodnight, Adam." She said, getting a nod from the young man, who left the room, closing the door behind him. Releasing a deep sigh, Yukari took off her glasses, placing then on the bedside table. Turning off the lamp, the young woman turned around, and allowed herself to fall asleep...
A/N: And I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Definitely feel like this is one of the better chapters I've written for this story so far. As always, I'll see you in the next Redux chapter, Chapter 5 - Blade.