Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)
Summary:
Have you ever heard of Dark Magic? What do you know about them? Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquarter who solves her case based on logic & facts. However, her world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. What happens when the two meet? ShizNat Rated T for now.
Natsuki stepped off the steps and darkness completely surrounded her. This sudden darkness caught her unprepared. It was not something a city dweller like her was familiar with. Everywhere you go in the city, there was light. Light from buildings, streetlights and cars. But here, there was nothing except the light from the Moon. Natsuki waited for a while for her eyes to adjust to the darkness.
In the dark, when you couldn't see clearly, the other senses heightened. And the next thing that Natsuki noticed was the smell in the air. It wasn't something pleasant. There was a sourish pungent smell, as if something was rotting.
After the smell, next came the temperature. Natsuki rubbed her hands up and down her arms trying to warm herself up. It was definitely colder here. She could feel the coldness slowly seeping through her cotton shirt, leaving her shivering slightly despite the long sleeve shirt.
Once Natsuki's eyes adapted to the darkness, she glanced around, taking in the surrounding. While it was definitely dark, but once her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could roughly make up her surrounding. Bushes and grass, as tall as an adult male, covered the place. It wasn't so bad that she couldn't make out anything. At least she could make out some fade outline. Though using a handphone to light up the place would have been better. But Shizuru had warned her earlier on that unnecessary usage would only attract trouble for herself. Natsuki had the same conclusion as her. They couldn't be sure who or what might be lurking around and the light would only highlight her location, possibly putting herself in unnecessary danger.
With the little moonlight, she could roughly see the path ahead of her. And if she needed to head North, towards the hut which the two them agreed to meet, then she would have to cut through the tall patches of grass in front of her.
Natsuki stretched out her hands and parted the tall grass so that she could enter. Natsuki slowly entered the grass field and moved North. She kept her hands stretched out at chest level, pushing away the leaves that might swipe at her as she moved forward. As she moved past the grass, she could hear the rustle of leaves. The sound sounded rather loud in the silent night.
Occasionally Natsuki would puffed her breaths into her hands, trying to warm it. It was the start of summer now. Yet it felt very cold here. She wondered how Shizuru survived in this low temperature for six years. Was that why Shizuru's skin always felt cool to the touch? Any warmth could be stripped away in this cold temperature.
Natsuki slowly made her way forward. There were patches of tall grass, as tall as an adult male, growing all over the place. And occasionally there was trees growing in the midst of the tall bushes. And as she walked she could hear creatures scuttling around in the dark. And she saw something long slithered across the path in front of her just now. It looked like many creatures made their home here.
She trudged on for about thirty more minutes when she suddenly heard some murmuring. Natsuki immediately crouched down in mid steps and moved quickly behind a tall bush as her right hand quickly moved to her waistband where her gun was. But then Natsuki hesitated.
Does this situation call for a gun?
But this was not the usual situations she faced!
Why would she hear voices in the middle of nowhere and in the middle of the night?
The hair on her hands immediately stood on ends and goosebumps appeared all over body. Natsuki swallowed slowly and looked left and right. Nothing.
Next, Natsuki hated this but she had to do it. She took a deep breath and turned slowly to look behind her. Nothing! Natsuki gave a huge sigh of relief and said a silent prayer as she gave her heart a little pat. As a police officer, she had been to numerous tense situation with innocent people being held hostage. But this was a totally different kind of situation! And this tense and hairising situation was likely going to send her to her early death. If this wasn't such a tense situation, Natsuki would have most likely rolled her eyes.
Natsuki frowned as raised her head in silent, all alert so as to verify if what she heard earlier on was a mistake.
Then the sound came again. Definitely a voice! And it was coming from the front, 2 O'Clock position.
Natsuki debated for a while, wondering if she should venture forth and find out what the sound was all about. Natsuki took a few seconds to decide. In order to meet Shizuru at the small wooden house, she would have to travel north. And the sound was coming in the direction of the north as well. If she was careful enough, she might be able to find out what's happening without being discovered.
Natsuki crouched her body and silently made her way towards the source, making sure to make as little sound as possible. Her movement slowed as she inched forward, hoping to avoid stepping on any dried leaves or twits on the ground. She glanced around and saw a tree a few metres away. That should work well for a cover at night.
What would have been cover in a matter of seconds took Natsuki minutes to cover the distance to the tree. Once she reached her destination, Natsuki slowly inched her head out from behind the tree.
And just a few meters away from her was a small open area. She couldn't get a clear view what was happening because of the tall grass but she could see some fire flickering of which she assumed to be candles placed on the ground. Then came some movement not far from the candles. It was a man. He seemed to be moving around in circles, circling the candles and he seemed to be holding joss sticks in his hands. Natsuki wasn't sure but it looked like burning joss sticks. Then the sound came again. This time it was loud and clear. The sound came from the man and he was chanting. After a few rounds of chanting, he kneeled on the floor at the same spot and kowtow a few times. He repeated this for a few times.
Natsuki retreated back behind the tree and frown. For someone to be praying and chanting in the middle of the night and in a place well know to be a dumping ground for dead bodies, it was quite obvious that the man was up to no good. It was clearly Black Magic.
It was just her luck to chance upon Black Magic.
Natsuki stood very still behind the tree, not daring to make much movements, waiting for the man to be done and gone. But the temperature was getting lower and Natsuki was shivering slightly from the cold. Even her long sleeve shirt did not help much in keeping her warm in this temperature. Her legs were going numb from standing. Natsuki did not dare to move. She had thought of moving away from here and took a detour to reach the small hut. But she rejected the idea. To do that she would have to move away from tree and walk either in front or behind this open area and there was a chance of her catching the attention of this suspicious man. Furthermore, there was hardly anything that she could seek cover without exposing herself. There was of course patches of tall grass but it was not sufficient to block all of her. If anyone tried to look carefully, they could easily spot her. And not to mention the noise she could make by trying to take a detour. After weighing the pros and cons, Natsuki decided to wait until the man finished.
Natsuki tried to stand very still at the start but as time went by, she started to fidget. Her toes were numb and it felt like thousands of ants were biting her toes. Painful yet itchy. It was just as bad as the marching parade where she had to stood still for hours when she was a police cadet. She tried to curl and move her toes to get some circulation back to her feet.
It took another thirty minutes of chanting and kowtowing before the man stood up and took a spade and digged into the ground. He threw something into the ground before before using the spade to cover the hole again. And then the man looked left and right and then left and right again before placing something into the hole and covered it up again. Then the man left.
Natsuki let out a sigh of relief. Finally she can move on from this spot. Natsuki straightened and moved out. But the moment she stepped out, Natsuki quickly crouch down, panic flashing across her face as she hid herself behind the tall grass.
That man returned!
It looked like the man was being very cautious. He came back here again to check if anyone discovered his activity. He walked around the area, inspecting to see if anyone has disturbed his stuff.
Natsuki crouched on all four, nearly lying flat on the ground. Her heart pounding and she held her breath. That was a surprise! Natsuki did not expect the man to return back after a few minutes. He must be a very careful person and whatever he had buried there must be very important to him! The man circled around the place again.
Suddenly the man turned sharply at Natsuki's direction.
"Who's there! Come out!"
Natsuki cursed silently. Her hands went straight to the gun at her waist.
"Come out now!"
Her jaw tightened as her mind raced to find possible solutions to this predicament.
After a quick internal debate, Natsuki decided to stay put. The enemy was in the open and she was in the dark. She had the advantage. There was no use exposing herself to the man.
"Don't make me repeat my instructions!" The man said as he took out an army knife from his pocket and approached the area where Natsuki was.
Natsuki tightened her grip on the gun.
The man slowly approached the thick tree Natsuki was at. His knife glittering under the moonlight.
Suddenly, there was a rustling sound and something small and dark scuttled across the man's feet, causing him to quickly stumbled backwards, swishing the army knife in the empty air.
The man cursed and wiped his sweaty palms on his pants. He cursed and then breathed a sigh of relief as he turned away from Natsuki's hiding place.
It seemed that the sudden appearance of the small dark creature convinced the man that it was the one causing his suspicion just now.
The man looked around the area again and loitered around for another 15 minutes before leaving.
After another 10 minutes, Natsuki slowly raised her head and peeped out of the tall grass. The coast seemed clear. But Natsuki decided to wait a while longer. She was worried that the man would return again. Her limbs were going numb from the inactivity but Natsuki did not dare to move. The whole surrounding was foreign to her and she would rather adopt the wait and see attitude rather than jumping into the unknown.
Natsuki waited for another 30 minutes before standing up from her spot and headed north. Her limbs were already cold and numb from the inactivity.
Natsuki wiped the cold sweat off her forehead and moved through the tall grasses, using them as cover. It would be safer than walking blindly in the open and be caught in a dangerous situation. Natsuki thought.
As Natsuki moved further up north, the temperature got even colder. And the floor became slightly muddy compared to the solid ground she was walking on earlier.
If Natsuki had visited this place during the day time, she would be able to see that there was a slightly red tint to the plants here and the ground was reddish brown instead of the usual soil colour.
Too many dead bodies were dumped here and their blood had dyed the ground red or absorbed by the plants around here, giving them the slightly reddish tint to it.
Natsuki found her trudging up a gentle slope. But as she walked up, she tripped over something on the ground. In quick reflex, Natsuki stretches out her hands to break her fall and then there was a slight grunt.
Picking herself up, Natsuki looked at her now muddy hand and jeans. Disgusted, Natsuki took out a tissue from her pocket and tried to clean herself.
But something white, reflecting the moonlight, caught Natsuki's attention. Natsuki walked towards it and bend down to take a closer look.
Under the moonlight, Natsuki was able to roughly make out the shape of the object. It was round and off white and half buried into the ground. It looked like she had tripped over this. Curious, she took a stick and dug around the spherical object.
The more she dug the more alarmed she was.
First came the round top. Then two holes at the upper half of the object. And when she dug deeper, she saw a small triangular hole followed by a full set of teeth.
It was a human skull!
While Shizuru had told her about this place as a dumping ground for dead bodies, she hadn't completely believed it. While she believed that corpse were dumped here but may not be at a large scale. At the back of her mind, she still believed that they, the police, would have caught wind of this place and managed it rather that allowing this place to turn into a dumpster for dead bodies.
Natsuki wanted to dug further. But she also knew about the importance of keeping the crime scene intact and threw the wooden stick away.
She straightened up and looked around, taking in the surrounding, memorising the location of the skull. She would need to make sure the police could find this human skull later on.
With that, Natsuki continued her journey. But in about 5 metre from where she found the skull, she paused. There was a strong smell of rotting meat. The stench was so great that Natsuki had to use her sleeves to cover her nose and breathe through her mouth. She wanted to puke.
That smell wasn't unfamiliar to her. In the few years she had been a cop, she had seen and smell corpse in various decomposed state.
The strong stench indicated that a corpse was nearby.
Natsuki paused in mid-step and with a deep breath, she changed direction and moved toward the source of the smell.
The pungent smell became stronger.
Natsuki parted the tall grass and saw a body lying on the floor. It was dark but with the moonlight, she could see the rough outline of the body. It looked to be a bloated human body, in the initial stage of decomposition.
Natsuki moved forward but her shoes came into contact with something. She bent down to examine the items, careful not to move them.
They were half-burnt incense and ashes on the ground. Looks like someone might have conducted some form of ritual here.
Natsuki debated for a while wondering if she should venture closer to the body to examine it too. Whoever conducted the rituals might have tempered with the body too.
After a brief debate, Natsuki decided otherwise. It was too dark for her to see anything clearly. And if she was not careful, she could destroy evidence that could be useful to the police. The police needed the crime scene to be intact.
Natsuki took out her mobile phone to report her discovery. Her phone in her hand, ready to press her thumb on the home button to unlock the phone. But she paused, her thumb frozen in mid action. Her grip on the phone tightened, her fingers paled from the pressure she exerted. But her thumb did not move. She stood motionless.
A few second later, Natsuki pressed her thumb to the home screen, hard. The phone lit up and unlocked, brightening up the whole place.
But Natsuki stared at the phone screen, motionless once again, her emerald eyes vacant. She didn't move.
A few second later, the brightness dimmed and the screen turned black. Turning the whole surrounding into darkness once again.
But Natsuki remained motionless like a statue.
Then suddenly in a flash, she moved her thumb, quickly swiping it down against the home button, unlocking the phone. Her thumb lifted up ready to press the call function but once again paused in mid-air.
Her jaw tightened.
Abruptly Natsuki snapped her phone shut and turned sharply, walking away from the corpse. Her steps and heart heavy with each step she took.
A few more steps and she paused, then did a hundred and eighty degree turn, facing the corpse.
But she didn't move.
"Shit!" Natsuki cursed beneath her breath as she combed her fingers through her hair. "This is so f**k up!" Natsuki gave a frustrated groan and turned away from the corpse.
Natsuki bunched up her fingers and stuff them into her pockets and walked away hurriedly. Worried that any delay would cause her to change her mind.
Her feet picked up pace as walk turned into a jog towards her destination. Huffing and puffing she ran. Thoughts ran through her mind
She had vowed to uphold justice and fairness in the conduct of her duty as a police officer.
But she had turned away from an injustice, being bias, favouring one party over another.
She had wanted to call the police to notify them of her discovery. But she hesitated then. Because she realised she would not be able to explain how she came about her discovery. Any explanation she gave would involve Shizuru.
But she did not want Shizuru to be caught in the middle of this investigation. Shizuru would not be able to explain this mess.
Gosh… Natsuki thought as she panted.
What was she doing!?
Natsuki asked herself repeatedly as she ran. The moment she turned her back to the corpse, she had prioritised Shizuru's safety before her own responsibility as a police officer.
She had taken her vow to uphold justice and fairness seriously when she decided to become a police officer. But now because of Shizuru, she had walked away from a crime scene. The murderer might never be caught because of her action.
In a burst of frustration and anger, Natsuki quickened her jog to a sprint and not before long, she was standing in front of tree, breathing heavily as she laid her hands against the tree. She groaned as she turned and laid her back against the tree and slided down to sit on the grass, panting.
She was sure that throughout her journey to the meeting point, she would have come across more corpse if she had taken the time to explore and see.
But she didn't. She didn't know what she should do.
She bunched up her fist and hit the floor hard, cursing beneath her breath.
Anger and frustration swelled within her as different voices warred within her.
Part of her was condemning herself for choosing to protect Shizuru from this mess and not reporting the unnatural deaths to the police.
Yet another part of her felt that Shizuru should be kept away from this because Shizuru had done nothing wrong. And she won't be able to explain the many corpses in this place.
Natsuki bit her fingernails as thoughts swirled within her.
Sweats were trickling down her face despite the cold temperature. Her shirt was plastered to her skin.
"You are going to catch a cold if you sit there."
Natsuki looked up with a slightly disoriented and blank look on her face, her mind still preoccupied with thoughts.
"Ara… why the confused look on your face?" Shizuru bend down to gently wiped a dirt off Natsuki's face.
"Shizuru?"
Amused, Shizuru cup Natsuki's face and asked, "Has the short trip done something to your brain?"
Natsuki gave Shizuru the blank look again and it took a while before Shizuru's words sank in.
Natsuki rolled her eyes and gave Shizuru's hands a gentle swap before standing up. "I am not going addle in the brain."
Shizuru chuckled and reached out her hand to pull Natsuki up. "Glad to know you are fine."
Shizuru watched quietly as Natsuki moved to hit the dust off her jeans before asking, "So what is your decision?"
The question had Natsuki stopping in mid action.
"It looks like you have stumbled onto something interesting along the way." Shizuru noticed the pause but continued without waiting for a reply from Natsuki.
Natsuki looked up to give Shizuru a surprise look.
"No need to look so surprise. You were running. Something must have happened to cause you to rush through the place. Come… showed me what you saw."
Shizuru seemed to know what she was thinking about without having her to say it out.
"You seem to know what I am thinking."
But Shizuru smiled and shook her head. "Black Magicians can't read minds and so do I."
Natsuki fell in step with Shizuru, guiding her to the location which she first saw the corpse.
The journey took them longer the second time round as the two of them slowly made their way there. As they walked, Natsuki couldn't help but glanced at Shizuru.
Shizuru looked so elegant despite this setting.
Her lips were curled in a gentle smile as her ruby colour eyes looked ahead, confidently maneuvering around the uneven floor and wild surrounding. Her slightly wavy hair falling around her face, gently swaying with the breeze, giving people the impression that she was out for an evening stroll around the park rather than venturing around a dumpster for corpse. Her floral blouse with dark pants and flats made a huge contrast with the surrounding.
Shizuru looked too elegant to be traveling in an overgrown field filled with corpse. Yet something about her seemed to fit right in in this untamed environment. There seemed to be something wild and dangerous lying beneath the surface.
Yet Shizuru seemed to exude confidence and elegance that made her so attractive.
But Natsuki suspected that beneath this elegant and confident facade, something dangerous might be lurking. Natsuki had caught glimpses of it at the elderly care home. But this slightly dangerous side of hers only enhanced Shizuru attractiveness.
"Ara… Am I so beautiful that Natsuki wants to stare at me for so long?" Shizuru teased.
"Ba… Baka!" Natsuki blushed furiously and turned her head away.
Shizuru smiled and walked on. Shizuru had excellent eyesight even in the dark, something she developed, having stayed here for many years.
"Come hold on to me. I may just trip and fall." With that Shizuru reached out her hand to grab hold of Natsuki's hand.
It really felt nice to hold on to Natsuki's hand.
Shizuru thought as she intertwined her fingers with Natsuki's.
Shizuru made a silent note to herself that she should hold Natsuki's hand whenever possible in the future.
"Ne… Shizuru… how was it like to live in this place?"
Right after she asked that question, Natsuki regretted it immediately because there was silence. Her question must have put Shizuru in a difficult position, making her recalled all the unpleasant experience.
"Hmm… I would say it is cold. Just like now. And the air." Shizuru paused to take in a deep breath. "It smells bad as usual. Just worse during the summer because the temperature is slightly higher and the corpse tends to rot faster. The place seemed darker then and scarier. Perhaps it is because I was young. But slowly I grew used to it. It wasn't that bad." Shizuru cocked her head as she recalled, "I spent most of my time practicing Black Magic, interacting with the dead, not the usual thing young children do. But like this place, it was horrible at first. But slowly you get used to it and it becomes part of you."
Shizuru stopped in mid track and sniffed the air. "I can smell the dead. There is a corpse nearby."
Natsuki tried sniffing the air too but it was the same as any other places. "You can smell it?"
"I guess it was something I picked up or developed while I was growing up here. The body parts of the corpse can be used for various Black Magic spells and are highly sought after by Black Magicians. This is especially so when more and more people are choosing cremation rather than burial. Corpses are harder to find nowadays. So I slowly learn how to identify the smell in the air to quickly find corpses that were dumped around this place before some other Black Magicians got hold of it. Here follow me."
Shizuru led Natsuki down a narrow path. And as they walked, the stench grew stronger and it was clear to everyone that a corpse was nearby.
Given the stench, Natsuki estimated that the victim might be dead for more than a week.
Shizuru took out her handphone and turned on the torchlight, using it to point something out to Natsuki.
"Someone was here and has made full use of the corpse." Shizuru pointed to the burnt joss sticks on the floor, surrounded by ashes.
Then Shizuru slowly moved the lights onto the corpse three feet away. It wasn't a pleasant sight. The body had already turned black and was bloated to one and a half times the normal size. Dark brown liquid had pooled beneath it and white maggots could be seen swimming in it. Flies were swarming around the body with some flying into the nostrils and mouths to lay they eggs and feast on the rotten meat. The buzzing sound was loud and clear in the silent night. A few animals were seen scuttling or slithering off into the distance when the torch light shone on them.
Shizuru moved to stand next to the corpse, totally oblivious to the stench and crawling maggots.
"Did you see his chin?" Shizuru found a stick and used it to tilt the corpse's chin up.
Even thought it was well into the decomposition state, Natsuki could still see the badly charred skin.
"One of the most basic thing that a Black Magician must learn is to create 缘油 [缘 (yuan): fate or relation; 油(you): oil]. To put it simply, 缘油 is a form of potion aims at improving relationships. You can find many bottles of 缘油 on the market but those are not the kind of 缘油 made by Black Magic. Those 缘油 that you can buy off the shelves are made from animal fats or plant extracts, not as potent and effective as the ones made by Black Magicians. Black Magicians made 缘油 from corpses. Grab the corpse by the hair and tilt his head back, exposing his chin. And then light a red candle beneath the chin. Let the heat build up beneath the chin and allow the human fats to melt. Collect it and cast a few spells and it could be used. Cast one spell and it could be used to improve your general relationships with people around you, making you well-liked by them. Another spell will turn it into a love potion, one that could enslave the victim to the castor, forever a sex slave."
"Do you do that?"
"Harvest and create 缘油?" Shizuru looked up from the corpse to look at Natsuki. There was a pause and then Shizuru replied, "Yes I do. I am a Black Magician."
Natsuki frowned.
"How old were you then?"
"13? Maybe 14? I can't quite remember. Time passed by very quickly then when you spent most of you time learning Black Magic." Her eyes pensive as she recalled her days here. "I still remember the feeling of harvesting 缘油 for the first time. It was a male corpse then and he has been dead for a few days and rotting. The stench was unbelievable. I remember the feeling of slipping my hand underneath his head, fingers brushing through the coarse and sticky hair as I tilted his head back. His skin cold to the touch. I guess he might have died from a broken neck. Because I felt the friction of broken bones rubbing against broken bones as I tried to expose his chin. It was my first time and I really took very long to collect all the melted fats. And when I was done collecting the fats, I rushed to a corner and emptied all my stomach content. The whole experience was really unforgettable. But after that first time, things got easier."
Shizuru removed the stick from the chin and poked it into the corpse's mouth.
"It is hard to find a decent corpse nowadays. And when a Black Magician finds one, he is sure to make good use of one." Shizuru took out the stick and gesture towards it. " His tongue is gone. Whoever harvested the fats, took the tongue as well. The bible states that tongue is the root of all evil which defiles the body. And it parallels in Black Magic. Dry the tongue and grind it into power and it can be used as a catalyst for certain spells."
Shizuru withdrew the stick and threw it a distance away and turned to look at the surrounding. "I think you might have stumbled upon a few of this corpse earlier on. Many corpses have been dumped or scattered around this place and quickly picked up by Black Magicians keen to harvest ingredients from the corpses. Most of these corpses you see here will most likely have their chins charred and tongues missing. And this is the place I grew up with and Black Magic is what I do." Shizuru took a deep breath and turned to look at Natsuki straight in the eyes. "Does this scare you? To know this is the kind of person I am."
"I don't know." Natsuki shook her head. To be honest, she was confused now.
"Come, tell me what you see during your journey and I shall show you what else there is to Black Magic."
Natsuki brought Shizuru to where she found the skull and the corpse. And true to what Shizuru said, the corpse had a charred chin and missing tongue.
"There was a man conducting a ritual earlier on here." Natsuki said when she brought Shizuru to where she first saw the man.
There was burnt incense and joss sticks on the ground. And directly opposite these was a young sapling buried on the ground. There was a layer of freshly dug earth covering the seedling. It looked like he was praying to the young sapling earlier on.
"Was he praying to the tree?" Shizuru asked
"He was. I think he buried something in the ground."
Shizuru took a pen knife from her pocket and bent down to gently unearth the ground and remove the sapling to reveal what was hidden by the man.
The young sapling was planted above a bundle. The bundle was wrapped in a red cloth. Shizuru unwrapped the bundle to reveal a rope-like item. It was cream white in colour with reddish tinge to it.
"What is this?" Natsuki asked as she positioned her handphone torchlight to get a clearer look at the strange item.
"Umbilical cord."
"That is gross. Umbilical cord? What is it doing here?"
"Remember I told you about Xiao Gui?" At Natsuki's nod, Shizuru continued, "This is another method to create one. This umbilical cord must have belonged to a newborn baby and that guy could have stolen it for his Black Magic. That guy intends to harm that baby and use the baby's soul as the Xiao Gui. After planting this sapling, the guy would have to come back every night for a fortnight to water and fertilise the sapling and pray and repeat the ritual he carried out just now. He has to do this for three months. After which he has to come back once every fortnight for two months. Throughout the whole time, the baby will be plighted with frequent and prolonged illnesses. Then the Black Magician will wait for the third year. When the third year arrives, he will return to this place and chop down the tree and carve the tree trunk into a shape of a baby. Then he would cast another spell that will suck the soul of the baby into the wooden doll. Once it is done, he would have a Xiao Gui that would do this bidding."
There was a moment of silence.
"And the baby will die on his third year?" Natsuki's face was expressionless as she asked this.
"Yes. The tree acts as a medium that 'sucks in' and contain the child's lifeforce. The child will be born weak and his health will deteriorate until the third year when he dies."
"And the parents won't know what kills their child?"
"No they won't."
Natsuki tightened her fist. How she wished that guy was here so she could plowed her fists into his body.
Silence returned once again.
"Is there some way we can stop this from happening?" Natsuki looked up at Shizuru, pleading Shizuru for help.
Shizuru nodded and took out the bundle and laid it aside. And as replacement, Shizuru took a stone, of similar size and weight as the bundle and put it in. But before she planted back the tree, Shizuru threw a yellow talisman on top of the stone and then gently returned the sapling back to the original position.
Seeing the questioning look on Natsuki's face, Shizuru explained, "I took out the umbilical cord. So there is no way he could harm that child again. But at the same time, I return the whole place to its original position so he would not guess that we have disrupted his ritual. If he knows we have removed the bundle, it is likely that he would obtain another umbilical cord and replace the first one."
"And the talisman?"
"Something that would teach him a lesson."
"Teach him a lesson?" Natsuki raised her eyebrows.
"On the last day of the third year, the talisman will catch fire, burning the whole tree, causing some damage to his ability as a Black Magician."
Natsuki nodded her head, in total approval. That guy should not go scot-free. As a policeman, Natsuki hoped that things can be handled through the proper channels, but recently Natsuki came to realise that there were things that cannot be done through that manner.
Natsuki knew it isn't right but she felt a sense of satisfaction knowing that that Black Magician's effort and hard work is going to be naught.
Shizuru gave the ground one last pat before standing up. She didn't tell Natsuki is that had she seen it in the past, she would have ignored it. Such activity was part of being a Black Magician. But when Natsuki came into her life, Shizuru somehow felt that she might want to earn some good karma for both of them, if not, then something good for their relationship perhaps. She intervened because Natsuki asked her to.
"Now that we have seen what we can see for night, i think it is time for us to head back." Shizuru said as she led Natsuki back to the starting point where the cab dropped them.
And occasionally along the way Natsuki could smell stench of rotting meat and she would paused. This was another corpse, another undiscovered death and another unresolved homicide case.
But when they reached the place, instead of an empty spot vacated by the cab, Natsuki saw a black Mercedes stationed there. And Mikoto was standing next to it awaiting them.
Seeing the surprise look on Natsuki's face, Shizuru explained, "I called Mikoto earlier so she could pick us up. It is unlikely for us to get any cab here nor call for a cab to answer our booking so far off from the city."
Sometimes, Natsuki could only marvel at Shizuru's foresight and consideration.
"Shizuru-sama, Natsuki-sama." Mikoto greeted them and opened the car door to the backseat for them.
"Thank you!" Natsuki said as she bent to move in but stopped suddenly and straightened. "Erm… please just call me Natsuki or Natsuki-san. Or Kaga." Natsuki stretched her cheek.
To be honest, she wasn't comfortable in having someone calling her -sama. The title just didn't fit her.
Mikoto glanced at Shizuru and agreed to Natsuki's request only after Shizuru gave a nod.
"Hai Natsuki-san."
"Thank you." Natsuki nodded her head and quickly went into the backseat while Mikoto took the passenger-seat.
"Send Natsuki to her home first." Shizuru told the chauffeur.
The whole journey back to Natsuki was covered in silence. It was silent throughout because Natsuki didn't know what to say to Shizuru. While Shizuru seemed to be in deep thoughts.
And when they arrived at the destination, Natsuki opened the door herself before Mikoto could do it for her.
Natsuki got off the car.
But before she could bid a goodbye to Shizuru, Shizuru called out to her, breaking the silence, "Ne Natsuki, please consider carefully. Personally, I wish you would stay away from all this. This is not something normal human being should know of, let alone meddle in. Remember, my hands are not clean." Shizuru said as she raised her hands which still had traces of the dirt from replanting of the sapling just now. "I hope this is the last goodbye, Natsuki. And thank you."
As if on cue, Mikoto shut the car door and got back to her seat and the car drove off, without giving Natsuki a chance to say anything.
"Wow! Babe! What happen to you?" Mai asked when she saw Natsuki strode into the office with her jacket sling over one of her shoulder. "Are you sure you came to the right place? It looks like you belong to the zoo instead, together with the Panda."
Natsuki rolled her eyes at Mai, giving her the 'get real look'.
"Your dark eye circle is bad." Mai commented. "Spend the night playing game again?"
"Was thinking of something."
Mai frowned. "But there isn't any major case that is of any cause for worry." Then slowly, Mai's face cleared. "Ooooh….hoho…" Mai wriggled her eyerbows at Natsuki. "Don't tell me you were pinning for some guy? Come'on Ice Princess, tell me who caught your eyes. Maybe I could give you some advice." Mai grinned.
Natsuki rolled her eyes and hit Mai with the files that Natsuki now held in her hand.
"Ouch… Meanie." Mai scrunched her face at Natsuki as she took the files and walked towards Captain Kaiji Sakomizu's office.
"I am getting him to sign this documents." Natsuki waved the files at Mai and knocked at Sakomizu's office door.
Natsuki entered upon approval.
"Good afternoon Captain. Lt Kuga reporting Sir." Sakomizu gave a nod in acknowledgement. "Here are the files to be signed."
Natsuki passed the stack of files over to Sakomizu and watched as he signed the documents.
Natsuki chewed on her lips, a hesitant look on her face.
It wasn't long before Sakomizu finished signing off all the document and returned all the files back to Natsuki.
But Natsuki held the file and stood there.
Sakomizu raised an eyebrow, "Is there anything else?"
There was an internal struggle before Natsuki bit her teeth and spoke, "Sir! I received some information from my informer regarding the issue of missing people."
"Missing people?" Sakomizu frowned.
"Hai. My informer is in need of money recently and so he tried to sell any information that might be of relevance. He told me that there is a dumping ground for human corpses located about 10km away from the city. It used to be a quarry or some mining ground."
"A dumping ground for corpse? And in such a short distance from the city?"
"Hai. He suggested for us to look into that area if we want to locate the missing people. Though they are likely dead."
"Hmmm… I see…" There was a brief moment of silence as Sakomizu digested the information.
"Alright. That place is beyond the city and this kind of case is also not under our jurisdiction. So we are not able to investigate in this. But what I can do is to pass this information to the relevant departments that are in charge of this and hopefully they could investigate into that place."
"Thank you sir!" Natsuki stood up and gave a salute before leaving the office.
The door closed and there was an unreadable expression on Sakomizu's face as he stared at the door. He frowned as he tapped his fingers on the table as if contemplating a serious question.
After a while, he sighed and took out a key from his pocket and unlocked the bottom drawer at his table and took out a Nokia 3310 old handphone. He unlocked the phone and pressed out a series of number that wasn't recorded in the phone.
"Someone reported the place…"
Natsuki let out a breath the moment she stepped out of the office. The deed has been done.
By informing her superior about the "discovery" of the abandoned quarry, she had done the best she could for those that were deceased. Yet not getting Shizuru involved. She would consider Shizuru to be her unofficial "informer".
After parting way with Shizuru the day before, she had spent the whole of yesterday thinking about Shizuru. In fact Natsuki felt bad for Shizuru, for what she saw yesterday night was just a small fragment of what Shizuru saw and experienced while she was staying here. What kind of life did she have when she was young?
She was not going to part way with Shizuru. Natsuki decided.
It didn't matter that Shizuru knew about Black Magic. Shizuru had never seek to harm her with it. So there was no reason for them to stop being friends.
In fact with that decision made, Natsuki felt lighter, as if weight has been lifted from her shoulders. Now the next step was to meetup with Shizuru and shared with her her decision. And she couldn't wait to see Shizuru.
The good thing about this job is that they could leave any time after 4pm if there wasn't any case on their hand. And for their team, they had more or less tidied up the existing cases and what's left was to type out and submit a report. And so by 4pm, Natsuki was already on her bike ready to speed off to see Shizuru.
She was in such a rush that she didn't realise that she could have messaged Shizuru first instead of traveling all the way down to find her. And because of it, Natsuki ended up visiting a few places first before she was alerted by the other student council members that Shizuru was at the Theatre Centre. Natsuki scratched her nose and gave a sheepish smile before turning her bike in that direction.
Natsuki's bike screeched to a halt outside the Theatre Centre and took off her helmet, her hair cascading down, catching the attention of the passerby.
And it was just then that Shizuru stepped out of the building with her rest of the council members who were trailing after her, listening to her instructions.
"Shizuru!" Normally Natsuki would have waited for everyone to leave first before approaching Shizuru. But today she was so glad that she found Shizuru that in the end she called out to Shizuru, forgetting everyone else that was around.
Everyone's attention turned to Natsuki.
Realising her abruptness, Natsuki blushed. This sudden attention made Natsuki realised that she had called out to Shizuru, disrupting her conversation with her fellow council members. If she could, she would want to do a facepalm. Such an embarrassing thing to do in the middle of the road.
There was a surprise look on Shizuru's face when she saw Natsuki and this look of surprise was immediately followed by a smile.
Yukino observed this changed in expression on Shizuru's face. Though not obvious, Yukino could detect the subtle change. And to be honest, Yukino was surprised by the change of expression. It was rare to see this genuine smile from Shizuru. And Yukino couldn't help but wondered about the relationship between Shizuru and Natsuki as she glanced between the two of them.
And… apparently, Shizuru wasn't the only one who was happy to see Natsuki. Yukino thought as she glanced sideway at Takeda who was standing next to her. Yukino sighed inwardly. She really hoped she was thinking too much. Her clan would be the first to be implicated if there was any clashes between the two major clans, Fujino and Masashi.
Obviously, Takeda couldn't quite control the excitement of seeing Natsuki too. When Natsuki left the university after closing the case, Takeda wasn't able to see her again and he didn't know how he could contact Natsuki. And he had no plans of getting Natsuki's contact number from Shizuru. There was no way he was going to beg her for Natsuki's contact number. It was bad enough that Shizuru won the presidential seat over him and he had to work under a woman.
His family had always warned him about Fujino Shizuru and praised her talent and skills in front of him. To Takeda, Fujino would be liked the kid next door who did everything better. But he had never seen Shizuru in action before and he had always suspected that all these praises were for nothing. Rumor about Fujino Shizuru had been blown out of proportion and she was definitely not what the rumored claimed to be. And he had always suspected that Shizuru got to this presidential position just because she was a Fujino, not her ability. He believed that if they were to duel one to one, he was definitely not going to lose to her. What Shizuru can do, he can do better.
Shizuru stopped in mid-track and dismissed her fellow council members.
Takeda frowned and opened his mouth to speak.
But Shizuru injected, "Masashi-san, thank you and I look forward to your report tomorrow. See you." With that few sentences, Shizuru effectively ended all hopes for Takeda to approach Natsuki.
Shizuru nodded to the rest and turned to walk towards Natsuki, a smile on her lips.
Takeda clenched his fist.
Just wait and see Fujino Shizuru. One day I will show you that I am much capable than you and I will let you know that what you currently own, belongs to me, Masashi Takeda.
Shizuru's steps were light as she walked towards Natsuki, her light brown hair swaying lightly behind her. Her lips curled up in an attractive manner as she smiled at Natsuki and her red eyes glittering under the evening sun, making her looked captivating to Natsuki.
Sensing Shizuru's joy, Natsuki knew she made the right decision. And in response to Shizuru's smile, Natsuki grinned at her and said, "Are you free for dinner tonight?"
Shizuru's smile widened. "Sure! My pleasure."
Natsuki handed Shizuru a helmet and once she was ready, Natsuki gunned the bike and rode off.
This was the first time Shizuru wore a helmet and rode on the bike. Lucky for her, she was wearing a pair of jeans today. She paused for a moment, wondering where she should grip to steady herself. This was the first time she rode a bike. Then suddenly she grinned and leaned forward and placed her arms around Natsuki and gripped her waist tight.
Natsuki immediately went rigid the moment she felt Shizuru hugged her from the back.
"Ara, is everything alright?" Shizuru teased
"Noth… nothing. I will start the bike now. Hang on tight." Natsuki squirmed slightly before tapping down the face shield of the helmet and gunned the engine and moved off.
The familiar feel of the wind rushing towards her and yet the unfamiliar feel of having Shizuru riding behind her. It wasn't that Natsuki never had a pavillion rider. In fact Mai frequently sat on her bike but it felt really different with Shizuru. This warmth behind her while the cool wind rushing at her. This sense of fullness and joy. And somehow, she felt that her heart was beating a little too fast.
The journey took about 15 minutes. But when when Natsuki stopped her bike, there wasn't any movement behind her.
"Shizuru?" Natsuki turned over to look at Shizuru, only to see her eyes slowly opened. And that was when Natsuki noticed the dark bruises beneath her eyes.
"Ara…" Shizuru stretched and moved her arms over Natsuki's shoulders and laid her head on her shoulder. "Natsuki's skills are so good that I didn't realise that I was on the bike."
Natsuki squirmed for a little bit at this sudden close contact. For some reason, Shizuru felt different today. Natsuki could not quite put a finger as to what was different about Shizuru. Perhaps… more affectionate?
Natsuki cleared her throat and said, "You look tired. Maybe we should have a takeaway instead? We could buy back to your place."
Shizuru cocked her head and thought about it. "That sounds good!"
That took another 40 minutes before the two of them bought all the food and returned to Shizuru's dormitory.
"Man, this place feels nostalgic!" Natsuki exclaimed as she stepped into the dorm which she stayed for a few weeks.
Natsuki placed their food on the zataku table and sat down on the floor.
"The food is really good!" Natsuki sighed as she finished the last bit of her food. "I am feeling so satisfied now." She stretched and collapsed onto the floor. "I don't feel like moving anymore."
"It is getting quite late. Do you want to stay the night here?" Shizuru casually brought up the topic when they were about to finish their food.
"Hmmm..." Natsuki looked up and paused in the midst of pouring the last bit of mayonnaise onto the pizza. "What did you say?"
Shizuru chuckled. "I don't understand how you can stay so trim and fit despite all this mayo." Shizuru commented. "I was asking if you want to stay over tonight since it is getting late. I still have your toothbrush. You can borrow some of my clothes to wear tonight if you want to."
Natsuki stuff the last slice of pizza into her mouth as she contemplated Shizuru's question.
"Sure! That would be nice. I didn't get much sleep the night before and I feel too lazy to travel the distance after this sumptuous meal."
"I will get the clothes for you." Shizuru replied as she got up to get the clothes for Natsuki. "You can shower first."
Natsuki accepted the clothes and went to shower.
Alone now, Shizuru took her mug of camomile tea and stood next to the window, staring into the night.
She had to admit that she was surprised to see Natsuki. Even though she hoped that Natsuki would find her again, she never held high hopes for it. She was even prepared that Natsuki will just disappear from her life after that night at the quarry. So she never expected Natsuki to turn up so suddenly, let alone so quickly. But regardless, she was glad Natsuki came to find her again.
Ne… Natsuki,since you decided to enter into my life, I would never let you go. I gave you the opportunity to choose and you choose to stay in my life. Now the door is shut and I will hold you tight.
Shizuru's eyes darkened.
Natsuki was hers now and for her to protect. And first thing she was going to do was to find out who is the mastermind behind all these incidents the past few months. A series of events have occurred recently, one after another, with Natsuki as the center, drawing Natsuki closer and closer into the realm of Black Magic. And for what reason? There was no reason to drag Natsuki into all these.
But whoever that person is, I will definitely have to thank him for bringing Natsuki into my life. Shizuru's eyes glowed red, the colour of blood. A dangerous smile pulled at her lips. But whoever he is or whatever plans he has, he better be prepared. For he will be dead soon. I am not one to accept people's meddling.
Omaka 1
Author-san raised her hand and waved in the air, trying go get Shizuru's attention.
Author san: hai hai… Shizuru-chan! Shizuru-chan! I have a question!
Shizuru: I will answer your question if I can.
Author-san: It is easy to tell if someone is skinny or fat by looking at the person. But how do you know Natsuki is trim and fit? It is hard to tell by looking at her.
A wicked smile on Shizuru's lips: Of course you can't tell by looking. You have to TOUCH to know. I slided my fingers over her body and I could feel the muscles.
Author-san blushed: tou… tou… touch?
Shizuru licked her lips and her eyes darkened: yes… touch.
Author-san's eyes widened.
In Author-san's mind: a scene of Natsuki naked and trembling under Shizuru's touch.
A loud 'pop' sound as Author-san's head became overheated. She fainted and collapsed onto the floor, blood gushing from her nose.
Shizuru looked at Natsuki, a puzzled look on her face: Ara… did I say something wrong?
Natsuki rolled her eyes: stop giving people the wrong impression
Natsuki bend down to check on author. Thank goodness she was still breathing. Otherwise there won't be next chapter.
Shizuru: but it is true! I held and touched your waist earlier on during the bike trip to buy our dinner!
A/N:
OMG... It took me so long to write it. Well I hope to publish this before Christmas. But apparently it didn't happen.
Sigh... So many things have happened and I am so busy with my life that I have little time for other things. But oh well... Hope you like this Chapter.