*Author's Notes: Countries in Gaea are used for cities, and the title
comes from Lauryn Hill's Lost Ones song which I believe pertains to this
story. One of my goals in this story is to incorporate all of my favorite
Dilandau quotes somehow in the story. In this chapter I have done three:
"Yattekuru ja nai ka (Not bad at all)," "Tanoshii da ne (This is going to
be fun)," and part of "Yoku mo...yoku mo boku no utsukushii kao.. (How dare
you...how dare you hurt my beatiful face)." Other Japanese I used (Michi
used a little too much I think) that may be less known is at the end of
this chapter. Enjoy! ^_^
Lost Ones
Chapter 1: Dilandau In The Day
Michi G.
Nothing could be better. The sky had a perfect balance of clouds and blue within it, the air was warm and the breeze was cool, and the sandbox was free of anyone else. Dilandau, with his yellow bucket and blue shovel, didn't need anything more. He loved it when his parents brought him to that playground--it was his favorite spot in the world. As he made a hole in the soft substance, he glanced over to his parents sitting on a bench. Their eyes met his, and they smiled at him. Dilandau smiled back and pointed to the hole he was making. His father nodded and gave him a thumbs- up. Dilandau then looked over to the swings where Allen was pushing Celena. Dilandau chuckled to himself, finding it funny someone as old as his brother was doing that. Having viewed enough of his surroundings, Dilandau went back to digging his hole.
Years could have gone by and Dilandau wouldn't have noticed as long as he worked on his hole. Now that he had finished, he examined the dark earth he had uncovered at the bottom. Perhaps it were merely his child view of things, but it seemed to him that the hole was deep enough to hold someone in. However, the person would have to be as wide as his shoe. Dilandau stared down in the hole, pondering what he would do with his creation.
"I like your hole."
Dilandau blinked and looked up to see a girl that seemed to be the same age as he was. "Arigatou," he said, staring at the strange girl.
The girl smiled. "Can I play with you?" she asked.
Dilandau looked at her for a long time, noticing that she had gentle, pleasing eyes. They were sort of like looking at water. "Yeah, he said. He smiled as she sat across from him on the other side of his hole. She couldn't possibly be a mean person, he thought.
"Here," Dilandau said, handing her his shovel. "You should dig a hole. It's fun."
"Hontou?" The girl looked down at his hole as if admiring it.
"Uhn."
The girl looked back at him with another smile. "Anata..." she said.
"Huh?" Dilandau said.
"You're a really nice person, ne?"
Dilandau tilted his head a little. "I think..." No one had ever said that to him, but no one had ever said he was mean either.
"Always be like that," the girl said. "Never change."
"Huh?"
"Oniichan!"
Dilandau looked in the direction of Celena's voice. Allen and she were standing by their parents, waiting for Dilandau to come. He waved at them to indicate he was coming and turned back to the little girl.
"Ee?" Dilandau only saw his blue shovel across from him. He didn't even see footprints that showed the girl had ever been there.
"Dare--"
"Dilandau! Hayaku!" Celena's voice echoed in his head...
***
Dilandau's eyes focused on a white ceiling. He turned in his bed, his ruby eyes meeting with the thin stream of light peeking from the curtains. He rolled over to the other side of his bed, staring at his door.
"Yume...ka?" Dilandau murmured. He frowned and rubbed his eyes. Would he ever stop dreaming about that moment in his childhood? It was bad enough thinking about when he was small and weaker without having to thinking about his deceased parents.
Dilandau rose from his bed and glanced at the clock on the stand next to his bed. It was a few minutes past ten o'clock. That was a little earlier than Dilandau liked to be up, but it just gave him more time for his daily activities. Summer vacation was well almost over by now. Two weeks remained before school would start, and Dilandau was quite used to the routine he had developed. It involved him leaving the house every day with his crew and coming back home as late as six in the morning. Allen didn't like it, but it wasn't as if Dilandau cared what his older brother liked.
"Ah, I hate mornings," Dilandau said, drawing back the curtains. He glowered at all of the sunshine pouring into his room and eyes. He stayed like this for a long time before his lips twisted into a grin. "Shikashi, it's another day to cause hell." He chuckled at the thought of that.
***
Dilandau jingled his car keys in his hand as he headed down the steep wooden stairs. He had managed to get his restricted license at fifteen. Restricted--that was laughable for Dilandau. Did they really expect him to abide by the 6:00 P.M. driving curfew? If he had he would have only managed to do a fourth of the trouble he had stirred up. Once it got dark, the real fun started.
"Dilandau!"
Almost out the kitchen door, Dilandau was stopped by Allen's voice. "Nan da?" He held the keys tighter in his hand until the metal began to dig into his skin.
"I need you to do a favor for your sister."
Dilandau slowly turned around to see Allen and Celena standing by the kitchen table. He wasn't surprised he didn't notice they were there; he hardly looked at the two. Allen was frowning at him, and Celena looked worried as she often did. Dilandau, for the moment, kept his cool.
"What exactly is this favor?" he asked evenly.
"Drive Celena to her class," Allen said, well prepared for Dilandau's reaction.
"Drive her where??" For the year Dilandau had his car, none of his family members had even been allowed to look inside it.
"Celena's taking a writing class at the Youth Center," Allen explained. "I would take her, but I'm already late for an appointment."
"Youth Center?? That's in the next town!" That would delay his plans for the day for at least an hour.
Allen glanced at his watch. "Stop making such a big deal out of it," he said. "I know you and your buddies travel around all the time."
"Allen!" Dilandau took a second or two to compose himself. "You said that this car was mine, and I would decide who does and doesn't ride in it!"
"Celena's your sister for God's sake!"
"And?"
Allen ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Listen, I don't have time to argue with you," he said. He started for the kitchen door. "Take Celena to her class or I'll sell your car."
Dilandau tried to say something in protest, but Allen closed the door before he could. He stood there in the kitchen in outraged shock, listening to Allen's car starting up and pulling out the driveway. When everything was silent except for the ticking of the kitchen clock, Dilandau turned to his sister still standing quietly next to the table. He glared at her, not only annoyed with her sudden activity he would have to drive her to, but her great resemblance to him. When she looked as she did, eyes filled with guilt and lips in a pitiful pout, Dilandau hated that he was one of the unlucky people born as twins. He wasn't sure which was worse: having a girl twin or having a twin of the same sex. A girl twin made him have no doubts what he'd look like in drag (a disgusting thought to Dilandau) and a male twin would vex him if he were like Celena and provoke him if he were like himself. The thought that a female twin was less annoying than a male one, calmed him enough that he stopped glaring at Celena.
"Yoku mo... Allen..." Dilandau said, narrowing his eyes as if his brother were there. He headed for the door. "He'll pay for this later."
"O...oniich--"
"Hayaku!" Dilandau snapped, throwing open the door. He didn't wait for Celena to reply before exiting the house.
Celena quickly followed him, aware that her older brother (by a minute) would leave her if she kept him waiting. As Dilandau constantly reminded his family and others who kept him waiting: "I hate waiting." Though her brother had changed a great deal in the past years, she wasn't sure if his lack of patience was a new thing.
"Ano..." Celena said once she was buckled up in Dilandau's car, "ari...arigatou..."
The engine made a soft roar as Dilandau turned the key in the ignition. "Hmph," he said, eyes never meeting hers, "What are you thanking me for?"
"I know you didn't want to take me--"
"Sou." Celena jerked forward as Dilandau backed roughly out of the driveway. "So shut up and enjoy the last time I ever give you a ride."
Celena nodded and looked down at the gray-carpeted floor. Now that she was finally able to look inside Dilandau's car, she noticed how clean it was. She knew her brother wasn't a stranger to parties, yet there were no beer bottles, empty cigarette cartons, dirty clothes, or any other kind of litter that suggested Dilandau did anything he wasn't supposed to do. Celena lifted her head when Dilandau turned on his music, and she ceased all thoughts of his neat car.
The car was now cluttered with the sound of heavy metal music: screaming guitars and booming drum beats. Celena glanced at Dilandau to see if the sound actually pleased him, but his usual frown was set in his features. Celena fixed her eyes on the window ahead, trying her best not to let the loud music bother her.
Later, when Celena noticed how fast the sights of Zaibach, their hometown, were passing by, she realized Dilandau was driving moderately fast. She checked the speedometer behind the steering wheel and saw her brother going about sixty miles per hour. At this rate, they passed a speed limit sign in no time, revealing the speed to be forty-five miles per hour. Celena was slightly worried, especially since Dilandau didn't seem like he was keeping a constant speed. In fact, when Celena looked at his speedometer again, it read Dilandau's speed to be sixty-five. She pressed her lips firmly together and lightly gripped the seat belt across her chest. However, she calmed as she saw a red light at the next intersection.
Dilandau paid no heed to the red light which was obvious by his lack of deceleration. Celena gasped, realizing he were gong to keep going straight through. Her brother went through the intersection as if it were nothing. Two cars stopped to prevent a crash, and all the cars effected by Dilandau's driving honked their horns. When they were in the clear, but still hearing the bitter sounds of the other cars, Celena let out a relieved breath. Dilandau's frown melted into a grin.
He let out a short chuckle. "Zama miro," he said in response to the angry drivers. Though his voice was barely heard over the still going music, his laughter was clear as if the car were silent.
"Dilandau! Abunai desu!" Celena said.
"Uruse! Who asked for your opinion?" Dilandau glared at her once and that was enough to make her drop her head a second time.
He put his eyes back on the road again and only slowed to make a right turn. *Allen...* he thought. *This is all of your fault. If you hadn't thrown your own responsibility on me, I wouldn't have ever needed to drive Celena anywhere! Shoushite I wouldn't have to hear her damn complaints!*
Dilandau did start to drive better when they drove past the sign indicating they were now in Asturia city limits. He knew that cops there just waited for someone like him to make a driving mistake, so they could revoke his license. Dilandau would never let that happen. He'd let his house be burned down before he was without a license. Then again, even if he didn't have a license he would drive. There was no way he would depend on Allen or Celena (by some miracle she received a license, Dilandau thought).
Celena realized that, upon seeing the Palas Youth Center's brick roof down the next street, Dilandau's insane driving had cut their trip time by at least twenty minutes. She was grateful she wouldn't have to feel like she was invading Dilandau's personal space for much longer, but gave a shiver thinking how Dilandau would drive if he were on the interstate.
Dilandau stopped his car in front of the building. "Get out," he said, staring ahead of him.
Celena fumbled to get her seat belt unbuckled and opened her car door. "Ari... arigatou, Dilan..."
Dilandau gripped the steering wheel tighter, enough to signal Celena that he was getting aggravated with her. He barely waited for her to close the door behind her before he drove off. Celena watched his red car disappear in the distance, sad with the thought that was the most time they spent together in the last two months.
***
Gatty's dark azure car was already at their headquarters when Dilandau parked at his usual spot. Yes, Dilandau and his gang had headquarters. It was the Vione restaurant, just off Main Street. Why was the Vione good location? The Vione was known for attracting shady characters and even employing some. It was a place the police would like to shut down, but couldn't find anything on the restaurant to manage that. It was somewhat of a delinquent haven; how many times had Dilandau and the others hid there to stay away from the police? As about as many times as Dilandau had been pulled over or stopped by the police. He knew that he looked like trouble, and the police knew it too. It was just too bad the cops could never get enough evidence on him to lock him up.
Dilandau nodded to the "host" at the door sitting on a stool, leering at all who approached the Vione. The man grinned and nodded in return to Dilandau. He entered the Vione; a few at the tables he passed called out to him, and Dilandau simply grinned in response. Finally he reached his own circular booth near the back window where his crew was eagerly awaiting him.
"All right, let's begin," Dilandau said once he arrived at the table.
The six boys rose and shared the grin with their leader. "Hai, Dilandau-san," they said. They sat down again as Dilandau took his seat near the center of the booth.
"Shesta?"
Shesta waited for Dilandau to give a nod as well before speaking. "The first activity on our list is to glue shut the mailboxes on Simmons Street," he reported from a printed list.
Dilandau snorted. "Who came up with that?" he asked.
"It was me," Miguel replied. He took a bottle of glue from his pocket. "Yesterday I stole this extra-strength glue because they card you, you know, and I found out just how powerful this stuff really is."
"And so you thought we should shut people's mailboxes with it?"
"Hai, Dilandau-san."
"Have you tried it out yet?"
"Hai, on an old woman's mailbox on my street. She had to take an ax to it!" Dilandau grinned and the other five snickered.
"Approved; next?"
"At the pet shop--"
"Ah, Dilandau," someone said, cutting Shesta off.
Dilandau saw the head "chef" approaching him with a parcel in hand. "This came in for you today," he said. He laid it on the table in front of Dilandau.
"Ah, what is it this time, Dilandau-san?" Gatty asked as his leader grasped the box.
"Saa?" Dilandau shrugged. In truth he had forgotten what it was he had ordered; after all, he had been involved in so much as of late.
Dilandau ripped open the box and dug around for the item or items inside. As his fingers touched something and he was able to get a feel for it, he grinned in recognition. The others watched him patiently, waiting for him to explain his grin.
"I had forgotten about these," Dilandau said, pulling out a plastic- looking book. It was about as thick as a real one, with its third dimensions, but it looked much heavier.
"That can't possibly be a real book," Dallet commented.
"It's our second activity for the day," Dilandau chuckled. His response was received by six looks of confusion.
"Look here."
They watched as Dilandau opened the book, revealing it to be some kind of sound system. Two speakers lined the inside and in between was a small screen above two lines of buttons. Now they all had a better idea of what the item was, but none of them understood what they would be using it for.
"A...ano...Dilandau-san..." Shesta began before Dilandau raised his hand to silence him.
"Remember in the seventh grade when we were kicked out of the public library?" Dilandau asked, pulling the other "books" from the box.
"The librarian claimed we were too loud," Viole recalled.
"Why were we there again?" Guimel asked, frowning at the memory of being treated like riffraff.
"We had a project or something to do," Gatty answered. He now joined the others in a frown. "We weren't even as half as bad then as we are now."
Dilandau finished emptying the box. "I'm glad you're all having fun strolling down memory lane," he said, thin brow raised. His friends apologized, and Dilandau waved it off. "I've been wanting to do something to that library for some time. My first thought was to set a book on fire and put it back on the shelf, but to get away with arson like that is tricky. Plus, the library's not important enough for me to risk that. Finally, I settled on a loud disturbance that will take the librarians a while to correct."
"In disturbance you mean the 'books,'" Viole said.
"What else?" Dilandau picked up one of the items again and pointed to the inside. "Now if you press this button you can set the radio to go off at a certain time." He paused in his lecture as he showed them what to do. "So we will synchronize all of these for a specific time, put them on shelves in the library, and wait for the music to go off."
Shesta immediately began crossing out what had previously been the second activity and added the new one. The others laughed and praised Dilandau's good plan. Dilandau lightly grinned, thinking the morning and afternoon couldn't produce as many results as the evening. Their night schedule was definitely his preference.
***
Dilandau had to give Miguel credit for not only a clever way to upset people, but choosing an appropriate location for their plan. Simmons Street had well known basketball court that most kids would use within the city limits. It was the perfect excuse to be on the street and seem perfectly innocent. Of course, gluing shut mailboxes in broad daylight was risky, but Dilandau rather liked the challenge. Though he liked it when it got dark, the day wasn't without its appeal. That's the main reason Dilandau conducted during the day as well; he loved the challenge.
"Oi, here comes someone else," Miguel said, spinning a basketball on his finger. They all watched attentively as their plan gained another victim.
A middle-aged woman about two houses from the basketball court casually walked to her mailbox. Expecting nothing to be out of the ordinary, she pulled back the lid with little effort. However, her little effort wasn't enough to get her mailbox open. She tried again with greater force and still was unable to open it. The Ryuugekitai, as Dilandau decided he and his friends should be known, began to snicker at the woman's plight. She started to tug at the lid furiously and smacked the black box a few times in frustration. The seven boys had a good laugh before the woman gave up and went back into her house. Another person, a man who had previously learned his mailbox wasn't going to open for him, came out promptly with crowbar in hand. It seemed things were really going to get interesting.
"If he uses that will the glue still hold?" Shesta wondered, leaning against the fence that enclosed the basketball court.
"It glued a bowling ball to a window," Miguel said. He paused for a moment, laughing at the man trying to levy open the lid with crowbar. "It should hold."
"Even if it doesn't, it will be very amusing," Dilandau came in. The man wasn't taking any heed to what would happen if he finally succeeded in getting the mailbox open.
"It is kinda hot today," Gatty said. "Maybe the heat will cause the glue to loose its effect."
"Or fuse it with the metal even better," Dallet commented. He received a glare from Gatty and matched the look evenly.
Either Gatty was correct or Miguel overestimated the power of the glue because the man succeeded in opening the mailbox with the crowbar. However, his actions were indeed done as Dilandau had noticed, and the teenager was correct in his hypothesis of what would happen because of the man's actions. As soon as the lid popped open, the man went flying, crowbar in hand, onto the street. The crowbar dropped out of his hand as he landed and he lied on his back moaning. Another man who had just then stepped out to get his mail rushed out to aid the fallen man. The Ryuugekitai were cracking up.
"What an idiot!" Viole said. He had sat down on the ground a minute ago so that he wouldn't fall over in laughter.
The crowbar man stood, with help from his neighbor. The two of them glanced at the laughing boys some houses down at the basketball court and said something to each other. The look was taken no heed by Dilandau and his crew. The crowbar man and his neighbor went to inspect the mailbox and pulled out a strange card that was taped on the inside. It was the text- less card of the Ryuugekitai; two years ago Dilandau and the others decided to leave their mark whenever they could or felt it was necessary. The red and black picture was well known after they had put it as graffiti on the statue in front of City Hall. The graffiti had been removed by now (that was well over a year ago), but the uproar the action brought was enough to make them infamous. Only a few linked the Ryuugekitai to the symbol; most linked the symbol to a nameless gang that plagued the city.
"'It's...that...group...of...vandals,'" Guimel said, squinting as he read the man's lips from afar. He grinned in pride of the label as well as his ability to read lips from that far of a distance. Dilandau giggled in the demented manner that was uniquely his. "Yattekuru ja nai ka," he said.
Miguel smirked to the others as if Dilandau were directly complimenting his genius. All but Shesta, who was glancing at his watch, glared at Miguel. Dilandau didn't notice; his attention was on the disturbed people. Before any of the Ryuugekitai could act on their dislike of Miguel's high-and-mighty attitude, Shesta cleared his throat. Odd as it were, that gripped Dilandau's attention.
"If we want to still do the library prank, we should get going now," Shesta said. "Today the library is closing early."
"Hmph, I guess we better go then," Dilandau said.
"Demo--" Miguel began. He cut himself off as Viole grabbed the ball from his hands.
"You heard Dilandau-san," Viole said. The light smile on his face caused a frown on Miguel's face. However, he didn't have any more time to dispute the matter; the other Ryuugekitai were leaving, and he would have to follow.
***
Having six boys at your disposal was easier than having an odd number of henchmen. Dilandau split the Ryuugekitai into three groups of two, as he often did, and assigned them to a different area in the library. Gatty and Dallet were setting up in the reference area, Miguel and Viole were in the fiction section, and Guimel and Shesta were in the children's section. Dilandau couldn't have picked a better day. A woman was reading to several children in the "pit" surrounded by the shelves of books. The interruption caused by the loud music would be an amusing sight, Dilandau thought. The number present in the rest of the library was considerable as well; Dilandau guessed that to be because of the library's early closing. Still, he wondered why so many people used the library, especially since it was summer. This was his second time visiting the library in his whole life.
Dilandau, sitting at a table in the center of the library, constantly glanced over the book he held so that he could monitor the Ryuugekitai. They had set the radios to turn to the heavy rock station twenty minutes after they entered the library. All seemed to be going according to plan, except for the distraction Gatty and Dallet were having. He frowned; what the hell were they doing?
"Dallet, we don't have time to mess around!" Gatty called up to his friend on the tall ladder. They had to still place three more "books" on the shelves. "We only have ten minutes left!"
"Will you get a grip?" Dallet said, grinning at something afar. "We're supposed to remain inconspicuous. Not only are you drawing more attention to us, there are people watching us right now."
"More like at you," Gatty grumbled. "And it's you making them stare!"
Three girls two shelves away were giggling and making flirtatious glances at Dallet who returned them just as eagerly. Not only was Gatty upset at his lack of priority, but he was also angry that Dallet's womanizing would get them caught. If they were caught, it would ruin Dilandau's plan; if Dilandau's plan were ruined--a slap would be a light consequence. Not that Dallet's behavior was surprising, Gatty thought with a sour attitude, but he definitely wasn't going to endure Dilandau's wrath because of Dallet's actions. The straw blond decided to take matters in his own hands. Gatty casually strolled over to the girls that were distracting Dallet from his duty. "Excuse me," he said more politely than if expressing his true feelings, "but I noticed you three were eyeing that guy over there."
"Mochiron!" one of them said. "He's so cute!" The other two nodded and giggled in agreement.
"Well, I'm glad you think so," Gatty said, smirking. "Shikashi, zan'nen da; he's my boyfriend."
"Boyfriend??" It was amazing how three people could speak together like that without having planned it. Needless to say, the three girls began to retreat to the other side of the library.
"Should have known someone that pretty was gay..." the first girl grumbled.
"Yeah, " the second girl said as she went away with the other two, "but now that I think about it, he did look a little gay at first..."
Gatty was more satisfied with lowering himself to do that with the girls' last comments. He went back to Dallet, who was descending the ladder, with a much better attitude than before. Dallet looked ready to pounce on him.
"What the hell did you say to them?" Dallet demanded.
Gatty smiled at Dallet's scowling face. "What does it matter? We haven't finished our job yet."
Dallet stepped forward so that he was in Gatty's face. "Tell me, damnit!"
"I said I was your boyfriend," Gatty said offhandly. He started pushing the ladder toward the next assigned spot in the library.
Dallet starting sputtering to repeat what Gatty had said, making Gatty smirk at him. He held back his laughter while Dallet turned red and balled up his fists.
"Boyfriend!!" Dallet glanced around to see if anyone had heard him and then lowered his voice. "Omae, why'd you say something like that for??"
"Come on, Dallet, I know you've wished for the day I'd return your affection for me," Gatty jeered. When Dallet starting fuming again with a redder face, the only way Gatty could get him over the "boyfriend" thing was to remind him once again that they were running out of time. A reminder that Dilandau was watching them also helped Dallet get back on task.
Five minutes before the music would go off, all but Gatty and Dallet had joined Dilandau. However, they seemed to be finishing up, so Dilandau held back his anger for the moment.
"Hmph, Dallet and Gatty aren't finished yet?" Viole mused. "That's mildly surprising."
"We have four minutes and forty-six seconds left," Shesta reported.
"Whatever the problem was, Gatty took care of it," Miguel said, having seen part of what had happened.
By this time they had expected Dilandau to say something, but he remained silent, hands folded in front of him. It wasn't a mystery why he was acting this way, but it was a mystery what he would do when the last two Ryuugekitai arrived (yes, some kind of physical punishment from Dilandau, but of what nature). With Dilandau in such a calm angry, the other four were more uneasy than they were when Dilandau was yelling and slapping at will.
"T...Two minutes...left..." Shesta said, swallowing as he said that.
Gatty and Dallet came to the table a few seconds later. The two seats on both sides of Dilandau were empty; from there were seven additional chairs around the wooden table. Gatty sat to the curve on Dilandau's right where Miguel and Shesta were seated, while Dallet sat to the curve to his leader's left where Guimel and Viole were seated. Neither was brave enough to sit directly across Dilandau. The Ryuugekitai expected Dilandau to say something now that they were all assembled, but still he were silent. No one more than Gatty and Dallet were nervous.
"We have--"
"Mou ii, Shesta," Dilandau said. The Ryuugekitai let out a breath, hearing Dilandau's voice at last.
The calm displease on Dilandau's face gradually turned into a wicked grin. He monitored his watch closely as they drew near to the last few seconds. While four of the Ryuugekitai were rid of any tension, the two who were tardy were even more nervous. Dilandau hadn't mentioned the fact they weren't timely, and they all knew (the hard way) that Dilandau absolutely hated to be kept waiting. Since their leader hadn't reprimanded them now, he was going to get Dallet and Miguel later. Unfortunately for them they hadn't gotten on Dilandau's bad side at the hours nearer to the end of the night instead of closer to the beginning of the night; otherwise Dilandau would have gotten them on the following morning where Dilandau was at a low (as low as someone with as much energy as him could get). At night Dilandau was at his high and didn't come down until he finally decided to travel home. Lenient Dilandau at night? A thing rarely seen. Gatty glared across at Dallet who adverted his eyes to avoid the other's stare.
Despite the less than perfect manner the plan was set up, its execution went perfectly. People jumped and stared incredulously as the library was overtaken by horribly loud music. All the "books" had been set to the maximum volume and had quite a bit static to go along with it. Many quickly exited the library to escape the sound, including the children present. Several of the young ones were crying from the excessive noise and were making their guided exit from the library difficult. The librarians began scrambling around, shouting for something--it was hard to hear with all the noise going on. And all the noise of the books in combination made it difficult to determine the exact source of the disturbance.
This was the kind of prank that really amused Dilandau. Loud noise, confusion, people fleeing as if in pain (or truly in pain)--all the things that were related to chaos. The delight he was experiencing was apparent by his maniacal laughter (just below the volume of the music) and the evil glee reflecting in his crimson eyes. Most people would have been unsettled by the teenager's sinister manner, but the Ryuugekitai was completely encouraged by it. They joined Dilandau in the merriment, though none of them could be as pleased as Dilandau himself. For the moment Gatty and Dallet forget they were on slightly bad terms with Dilandau and were enjoying themselves as if nothing were different. When they pulled pranks such as this that was the norm.
"Did you disable the ladders in some way?" Dilandau asked, his projective voice rising over the noise.
"We unscrewed the wheels on them!" Miguel answered.
"Dallet?"
"Hai, us too!"
"Good," Dilandau said at regular volume, "you two managed to do something during your time of fooling around."
No one knew what he said, except Guimel who was good at reading lips. He smirked and looked to Dallet. Dallet frowned, realizing Guimel knew something he didn't, but of course he couldn't say anything at the moment. Dilandau was relish the moment again, commenting in his louder voice how nice it was to be in a library with so little people. However, the Ryuugekitai was soon brought to the library's attention.
"You kids!" a man said, pointing at them. "Do you have any idea where all this racket's coming from??
Dilandau cupped his hand around his ear. "Nani??" he said. "Are you talking to me??" The Ryuugekitai exploded with laughter.
"Why you little--"
"Someone unscrewed the wheels to the ladders!" another man said, rushing over to the other man. "We can't check the higher shelves!!"
"What the hell is going on??" More laughter from the seven boys caused the first man to glance at them again. "You kids know something don't you??"
"Us??" Dilandau said, loosening his tight expression so he had the appearance of innocent shock. "Masaka!" The man wasn't convinced, especially by the Ryuugekitai's laughter that followed Dilandau's claim.
"If you kids did this, I'll have you arrested!"
"Ah, I can't stand all this noise," Dilandau said, somehow managing a sigh in such a loud voice. "Let's go guys!"
"Yeah, my ears hurt!" Viole said, holding onto them as if he were in pain.
"This library is the nosiest library I've ever been to!" Miguel said. He rose with the others as they began to leave. "I'm never coming back!"
"Grr!!" The first man had an idea the seven were in on the prank somehow, but he had no proof, so he let them leave for the exit as they pleased.
Dilandau and his buddies continued to laugh and poke fun at the library as they left. A flustered librarian stood at the desk near the doors the seven were approaching. She glared at them and had a sudden flashback. Her cheeks reddened and she pointed at them furiously.
"You're those punks I threw out of here about three years ago!" she shrieked quite well over the music. This just caused more laughter from the boys.
Dilandau narrowed his eyes as he grinned at the old lady. "And?" he said.
The woman shook with anger as Dilandau and the others departed from the library. From outside, where many of those who had retreated the library were gathered, it sounded as if the library was having a concert. Several people who passed by the institute stared at the library as if it was a flashy porn store. Dilandau and his crew went on their merry way, hands clean as always.
"Well, I guess we've worked up an appetite," Dilandau said, standing on the sidewalk not far from the library. "Let's take a break to eat and then start our nightly activities." He was met by nothing but enthusiastic consent.
Dilandau grinned to himself as the Ryuugekitai argued over where to eat; the teenager's mind was already set on the darker hours. "Tanoshii da ne..." he said in anticipation.
**Owari
Abunai desu--That's dangerous!
Uruse--Shut up (Ruder than some other forms of shut up)
Shikashi--However/But
Shoushite--And so/Then
Zama miro--Kiss my ass!/Serves you right!/That's what you get!/Take that!
Zan'nen da--That's too bad (Sometimes used for I'm sorry)
Coming soon--Dilandau In The Night! See some of Dilandau's activities at night and what he decides to do to Gatty and Dallet for making him wait. And just how does Allen feel about his little brother staying out to odd hours of the night? Bear with me as I strive to get this next chapter up!
Lost Ones
Chapter 1: Dilandau In The Day
Michi G.
Nothing could be better. The sky had a perfect balance of clouds and blue within it, the air was warm and the breeze was cool, and the sandbox was free of anyone else. Dilandau, with his yellow bucket and blue shovel, didn't need anything more. He loved it when his parents brought him to that playground--it was his favorite spot in the world. As he made a hole in the soft substance, he glanced over to his parents sitting on a bench. Their eyes met his, and they smiled at him. Dilandau smiled back and pointed to the hole he was making. His father nodded and gave him a thumbs- up. Dilandau then looked over to the swings where Allen was pushing Celena. Dilandau chuckled to himself, finding it funny someone as old as his brother was doing that. Having viewed enough of his surroundings, Dilandau went back to digging his hole.
Years could have gone by and Dilandau wouldn't have noticed as long as he worked on his hole. Now that he had finished, he examined the dark earth he had uncovered at the bottom. Perhaps it were merely his child view of things, but it seemed to him that the hole was deep enough to hold someone in. However, the person would have to be as wide as his shoe. Dilandau stared down in the hole, pondering what he would do with his creation.
"I like your hole."
Dilandau blinked and looked up to see a girl that seemed to be the same age as he was. "Arigatou," he said, staring at the strange girl.
The girl smiled. "Can I play with you?" she asked.
Dilandau looked at her for a long time, noticing that she had gentle, pleasing eyes. They were sort of like looking at water. "Yeah, he said. He smiled as she sat across from him on the other side of his hole. She couldn't possibly be a mean person, he thought.
"Here," Dilandau said, handing her his shovel. "You should dig a hole. It's fun."
"Hontou?" The girl looked down at his hole as if admiring it.
"Uhn."
The girl looked back at him with another smile. "Anata..." she said.
"Huh?" Dilandau said.
"You're a really nice person, ne?"
Dilandau tilted his head a little. "I think..." No one had ever said that to him, but no one had ever said he was mean either.
"Always be like that," the girl said. "Never change."
"Huh?"
"Oniichan!"
Dilandau looked in the direction of Celena's voice. Allen and she were standing by their parents, waiting for Dilandau to come. He waved at them to indicate he was coming and turned back to the little girl.
"Ee?" Dilandau only saw his blue shovel across from him. He didn't even see footprints that showed the girl had ever been there.
"Dare--"
"Dilandau! Hayaku!" Celena's voice echoed in his head...
***
Dilandau's eyes focused on a white ceiling. He turned in his bed, his ruby eyes meeting with the thin stream of light peeking from the curtains. He rolled over to the other side of his bed, staring at his door.
"Yume...ka?" Dilandau murmured. He frowned and rubbed his eyes. Would he ever stop dreaming about that moment in his childhood? It was bad enough thinking about when he was small and weaker without having to thinking about his deceased parents.
Dilandau rose from his bed and glanced at the clock on the stand next to his bed. It was a few minutes past ten o'clock. That was a little earlier than Dilandau liked to be up, but it just gave him more time for his daily activities. Summer vacation was well almost over by now. Two weeks remained before school would start, and Dilandau was quite used to the routine he had developed. It involved him leaving the house every day with his crew and coming back home as late as six in the morning. Allen didn't like it, but it wasn't as if Dilandau cared what his older brother liked.
"Ah, I hate mornings," Dilandau said, drawing back the curtains. He glowered at all of the sunshine pouring into his room and eyes. He stayed like this for a long time before his lips twisted into a grin. "Shikashi, it's another day to cause hell." He chuckled at the thought of that.
***
Dilandau jingled his car keys in his hand as he headed down the steep wooden stairs. He had managed to get his restricted license at fifteen. Restricted--that was laughable for Dilandau. Did they really expect him to abide by the 6:00 P.M. driving curfew? If he had he would have only managed to do a fourth of the trouble he had stirred up. Once it got dark, the real fun started.
"Dilandau!"
Almost out the kitchen door, Dilandau was stopped by Allen's voice. "Nan da?" He held the keys tighter in his hand until the metal began to dig into his skin.
"I need you to do a favor for your sister."
Dilandau slowly turned around to see Allen and Celena standing by the kitchen table. He wasn't surprised he didn't notice they were there; he hardly looked at the two. Allen was frowning at him, and Celena looked worried as she often did. Dilandau, for the moment, kept his cool.
"What exactly is this favor?" he asked evenly.
"Drive Celena to her class," Allen said, well prepared for Dilandau's reaction.
"Drive her where??" For the year Dilandau had his car, none of his family members had even been allowed to look inside it.
"Celena's taking a writing class at the Youth Center," Allen explained. "I would take her, but I'm already late for an appointment."
"Youth Center?? That's in the next town!" That would delay his plans for the day for at least an hour.
Allen glanced at his watch. "Stop making such a big deal out of it," he said. "I know you and your buddies travel around all the time."
"Allen!" Dilandau took a second or two to compose himself. "You said that this car was mine, and I would decide who does and doesn't ride in it!"
"Celena's your sister for God's sake!"
"And?"
Allen ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Listen, I don't have time to argue with you," he said. He started for the kitchen door. "Take Celena to her class or I'll sell your car."
Dilandau tried to say something in protest, but Allen closed the door before he could. He stood there in the kitchen in outraged shock, listening to Allen's car starting up and pulling out the driveway. When everything was silent except for the ticking of the kitchen clock, Dilandau turned to his sister still standing quietly next to the table. He glared at her, not only annoyed with her sudden activity he would have to drive her to, but her great resemblance to him. When she looked as she did, eyes filled with guilt and lips in a pitiful pout, Dilandau hated that he was one of the unlucky people born as twins. He wasn't sure which was worse: having a girl twin or having a twin of the same sex. A girl twin made him have no doubts what he'd look like in drag (a disgusting thought to Dilandau) and a male twin would vex him if he were like Celena and provoke him if he were like himself. The thought that a female twin was less annoying than a male one, calmed him enough that he stopped glaring at Celena.
"Yoku mo... Allen..." Dilandau said, narrowing his eyes as if his brother were there. He headed for the door. "He'll pay for this later."
"O...oniich--"
"Hayaku!" Dilandau snapped, throwing open the door. He didn't wait for Celena to reply before exiting the house.
Celena quickly followed him, aware that her older brother (by a minute) would leave her if she kept him waiting. As Dilandau constantly reminded his family and others who kept him waiting: "I hate waiting." Though her brother had changed a great deal in the past years, she wasn't sure if his lack of patience was a new thing.
"Ano..." Celena said once she was buckled up in Dilandau's car, "ari...arigatou..."
The engine made a soft roar as Dilandau turned the key in the ignition. "Hmph," he said, eyes never meeting hers, "What are you thanking me for?"
"I know you didn't want to take me--"
"Sou." Celena jerked forward as Dilandau backed roughly out of the driveway. "So shut up and enjoy the last time I ever give you a ride."
Celena nodded and looked down at the gray-carpeted floor. Now that she was finally able to look inside Dilandau's car, she noticed how clean it was. She knew her brother wasn't a stranger to parties, yet there were no beer bottles, empty cigarette cartons, dirty clothes, or any other kind of litter that suggested Dilandau did anything he wasn't supposed to do. Celena lifted her head when Dilandau turned on his music, and she ceased all thoughts of his neat car.
The car was now cluttered with the sound of heavy metal music: screaming guitars and booming drum beats. Celena glanced at Dilandau to see if the sound actually pleased him, but his usual frown was set in his features. Celena fixed her eyes on the window ahead, trying her best not to let the loud music bother her.
Later, when Celena noticed how fast the sights of Zaibach, their hometown, were passing by, she realized Dilandau was driving moderately fast. She checked the speedometer behind the steering wheel and saw her brother going about sixty miles per hour. At this rate, they passed a speed limit sign in no time, revealing the speed to be forty-five miles per hour. Celena was slightly worried, especially since Dilandau didn't seem like he was keeping a constant speed. In fact, when Celena looked at his speedometer again, it read Dilandau's speed to be sixty-five. She pressed her lips firmly together and lightly gripped the seat belt across her chest. However, she calmed as she saw a red light at the next intersection.
Dilandau paid no heed to the red light which was obvious by his lack of deceleration. Celena gasped, realizing he were gong to keep going straight through. Her brother went through the intersection as if it were nothing. Two cars stopped to prevent a crash, and all the cars effected by Dilandau's driving honked their horns. When they were in the clear, but still hearing the bitter sounds of the other cars, Celena let out a relieved breath. Dilandau's frown melted into a grin.
He let out a short chuckle. "Zama miro," he said in response to the angry drivers. Though his voice was barely heard over the still going music, his laughter was clear as if the car were silent.
"Dilandau! Abunai desu!" Celena said.
"Uruse! Who asked for your opinion?" Dilandau glared at her once and that was enough to make her drop her head a second time.
He put his eyes back on the road again and only slowed to make a right turn. *Allen...* he thought. *This is all of your fault. If you hadn't thrown your own responsibility on me, I wouldn't have ever needed to drive Celena anywhere! Shoushite I wouldn't have to hear her damn complaints!*
Dilandau did start to drive better when they drove past the sign indicating they were now in Asturia city limits. He knew that cops there just waited for someone like him to make a driving mistake, so they could revoke his license. Dilandau would never let that happen. He'd let his house be burned down before he was without a license. Then again, even if he didn't have a license he would drive. There was no way he would depend on Allen or Celena (by some miracle she received a license, Dilandau thought).
Celena realized that, upon seeing the Palas Youth Center's brick roof down the next street, Dilandau's insane driving had cut their trip time by at least twenty minutes. She was grateful she wouldn't have to feel like she was invading Dilandau's personal space for much longer, but gave a shiver thinking how Dilandau would drive if he were on the interstate.
Dilandau stopped his car in front of the building. "Get out," he said, staring ahead of him.
Celena fumbled to get her seat belt unbuckled and opened her car door. "Ari... arigatou, Dilan..."
Dilandau gripped the steering wheel tighter, enough to signal Celena that he was getting aggravated with her. He barely waited for her to close the door behind her before he drove off. Celena watched his red car disappear in the distance, sad with the thought that was the most time they spent together in the last two months.
***
Gatty's dark azure car was already at their headquarters when Dilandau parked at his usual spot. Yes, Dilandau and his gang had headquarters. It was the Vione restaurant, just off Main Street. Why was the Vione good location? The Vione was known for attracting shady characters and even employing some. It was a place the police would like to shut down, but couldn't find anything on the restaurant to manage that. It was somewhat of a delinquent haven; how many times had Dilandau and the others hid there to stay away from the police? As about as many times as Dilandau had been pulled over or stopped by the police. He knew that he looked like trouble, and the police knew it too. It was just too bad the cops could never get enough evidence on him to lock him up.
Dilandau nodded to the "host" at the door sitting on a stool, leering at all who approached the Vione. The man grinned and nodded in return to Dilandau. He entered the Vione; a few at the tables he passed called out to him, and Dilandau simply grinned in response. Finally he reached his own circular booth near the back window where his crew was eagerly awaiting him.
"All right, let's begin," Dilandau said once he arrived at the table.
The six boys rose and shared the grin with their leader. "Hai, Dilandau-san," they said. They sat down again as Dilandau took his seat near the center of the booth.
"Shesta?"
Shesta waited for Dilandau to give a nod as well before speaking. "The first activity on our list is to glue shut the mailboxes on Simmons Street," he reported from a printed list.
Dilandau snorted. "Who came up with that?" he asked.
"It was me," Miguel replied. He took a bottle of glue from his pocket. "Yesterday I stole this extra-strength glue because they card you, you know, and I found out just how powerful this stuff really is."
"And so you thought we should shut people's mailboxes with it?"
"Hai, Dilandau-san."
"Have you tried it out yet?"
"Hai, on an old woman's mailbox on my street. She had to take an ax to it!" Dilandau grinned and the other five snickered.
"Approved; next?"
"At the pet shop--"
"Ah, Dilandau," someone said, cutting Shesta off.
Dilandau saw the head "chef" approaching him with a parcel in hand. "This came in for you today," he said. He laid it on the table in front of Dilandau.
"Ah, what is it this time, Dilandau-san?" Gatty asked as his leader grasped the box.
"Saa?" Dilandau shrugged. In truth he had forgotten what it was he had ordered; after all, he had been involved in so much as of late.
Dilandau ripped open the box and dug around for the item or items inside. As his fingers touched something and he was able to get a feel for it, he grinned in recognition. The others watched him patiently, waiting for him to explain his grin.
"I had forgotten about these," Dilandau said, pulling out a plastic- looking book. It was about as thick as a real one, with its third dimensions, but it looked much heavier.
"That can't possibly be a real book," Dallet commented.
"It's our second activity for the day," Dilandau chuckled. His response was received by six looks of confusion.
"Look here."
They watched as Dilandau opened the book, revealing it to be some kind of sound system. Two speakers lined the inside and in between was a small screen above two lines of buttons. Now they all had a better idea of what the item was, but none of them understood what they would be using it for.
"A...ano...Dilandau-san..." Shesta began before Dilandau raised his hand to silence him.
"Remember in the seventh grade when we were kicked out of the public library?" Dilandau asked, pulling the other "books" from the box.
"The librarian claimed we were too loud," Viole recalled.
"Why were we there again?" Guimel asked, frowning at the memory of being treated like riffraff.
"We had a project or something to do," Gatty answered. He now joined the others in a frown. "We weren't even as half as bad then as we are now."
Dilandau finished emptying the box. "I'm glad you're all having fun strolling down memory lane," he said, thin brow raised. His friends apologized, and Dilandau waved it off. "I've been wanting to do something to that library for some time. My first thought was to set a book on fire and put it back on the shelf, but to get away with arson like that is tricky. Plus, the library's not important enough for me to risk that. Finally, I settled on a loud disturbance that will take the librarians a while to correct."
"In disturbance you mean the 'books,'" Viole said.
"What else?" Dilandau picked up one of the items again and pointed to the inside. "Now if you press this button you can set the radio to go off at a certain time." He paused in his lecture as he showed them what to do. "So we will synchronize all of these for a specific time, put them on shelves in the library, and wait for the music to go off."
Shesta immediately began crossing out what had previously been the second activity and added the new one. The others laughed and praised Dilandau's good plan. Dilandau lightly grinned, thinking the morning and afternoon couldn't produce as many results as the evening. Their night schedule was definitely his preference.
***
Dilandau had to give Miguel credit for not only a clever way to upset people, but choosing an appropriate location for their plan. Simmons Street had well known basketball court that most kids would use within the city limits. It was the perfect excuse to be on the street and seem perfectly innocent. Of course, gluing shut mailboxes in broad daylight was risky, but Dilandau rather liked the challenge. Though he liked it when it got dark, the day wasn't without its appeal. That's the main reason Dilandau conducted during the day as well; he loved the challenge.
"Oi, here comes someone else," Miguel said, spinning a basketball on his finger. They all watched attentively as their plan gained another victim.
A middle-aged woman about two houses from the basketball court casually walked to her mailbox. Expecting nothing to be out of the ordinary, she pulled back the lid with little effort. However, her little effort wasn't enough to get her mailbox open. She tried again with greater force and still was unable to open it. The Ryuugekitai, as Dilandau decided he and his friends should be known, began to snicker at the woman's plight. She started to tug at the lid furiously and smacked the black box a few times in frustration. The seven boys had a good laugh before the woman gave up and went back into her house. Another person, a man who had previously learned his mailbox wasn't going to open for him, came out promptly with crowbar in hand. It seemed things were really going to get interesting.
"If he uses that will the glue still hold?" Shesta wondered, leaning against the fence that enclosed the basketball court.
"It glued a bowling ball to a window," Miguel said. He paused for a moment, laughing at the man trying to levy open the lid with crowbar. "It should hold."
"Even if it doesn't, it will be very amusing," Dilandau came in. The man wasn't taking any heed to what would happen if he finally succeeded in getting the mailbox open.
"It is kinda hot today," Gatty said. "Maybe the heat will cause the glue to loose its effect."
"Or fuse it with the metal even better," Dallet commented. He received a glare from Gatty and matched the look evenly.
Either Gatty was correct or Miguel overestimated the power of the glue because the man succeeded in opening the mailbox with the crowbar. However, his actions were indeed done as Dilandau had noticed, and the teenager was correct in his hypothesis of what would happen because of the man's actions. As soon as the lid popped open, the man went flying, crowbar in hand, onto the street. The crowbar dropped out of his hand as he landed and he lied on his back moaning. Another man who had just then stepped out to get his mail rushed out to aid the fallen man. The Ryuugekitai were cracking up.
"What an idiot!" Viole said. He had sat down on the ground a minute ago so that he wouldn't fall over in laughter.
The crowbar man stood, with help from his neighbor. The two of them glanced at the laughing boys some houses down at the basketball court and said something to each other. The look was taken no heed by Dilandau and his crew. The crowbar man and his neighbor went to inspect the mailbox and pulled out a strange card that was taped on the inside. It was the text- less card of the Ryuugekitai; two years ago Dilandau and the others decided to leave their mark whenever they could or felt it was necessary. The red and black picture was well known after they had put it as graffiti on the statue in front of City Hall. The graffiti had been removed by now (that was well over a year ago), but the uproar the action brought was enough to make them infamous. Only a few linked the Ryuugekitai to the symbol; most linked the symbol to a nameless gang that plagued the city.
"'It's...that...group...of...vandals,'" Guimel said, squinting as he read the man's lips from afar. He grinned in pride of the label as well as his ability to read lips from that far of a distance. Dilandau giggled in the demented manner that was uniquely his. "Yattekuru ja nai ka," he said.
Miguel smirked to the others as if Dilandau were directly complimenting his genius. All but Shesta, who was glancing at his watch, glared at Miguel. Dilandau didn't notice; his attention was on the disturbed people. Before any of the Ryuugekitai could act on their dislike of Miguel's high-and-mighty attitude, Shesta cleared his throat. Odd as it were, that gripped Dilandau's attention.
"If we want to still do the library prank, we should get going now," Shesta said. "Today the library is closing early."
"Hmph, I guess we better go then," Dilandau said.
"Demo--" Miguel began. He cut himself off as Viole grabbed the ball from his hands.
"You heard Dilandau-san," Viole said. The light smile on his face caused a frown on Miguel's face. However, he didn't have any more time to dispute the matter; the other Ryuugekitai were leaving, and he would have to follow.
***
Having six boys at your disposal was easier than having an odd number of henchmen. Dilandau split the Ryuugekitai into three groups of two, as he often did, and assigned them to a different area in the library. Gatty and Dallet were setting up in the reference area, Miguel and Viole were in the fiction section, and Guimel and Shesta were in the children's section. Dilandau couldn't have picked a better day. A woman was reading to several children in the "pit" surrounded by the shelves of books. The interruption caused by the loud music would be an amusing sight, Dilandau thought. The number present in the rest of the library was considerable as well; Dilandau guessed that to be because of the library's early closing. Still, he wondered why so many people used the library, especially since it was summer. This was his second time visiting the library in his whole life.
Dilandau, sitting at a table in the center of the library, constantly glanced over the book he held so that he could monitor the Ryuugekitai. They had set the radios to turn to the heavy rock station twenty minutes after they entered the library. All seemed to be going according to plan, except for the distraction Gatty and Dallet were having. He frowned; what the hell were they doing?
"Dallet, we don't have time to mess around!" Gatty called up to his friend on the tall ladder. They had to still place three more "books" on the shelves. "We only have ten minutes left!"
"Will you get a grip?" Dallet said, grinning at something afar. "We're supposed to remain inconspicuous. Not only are you drawing more attention to us, there are people watching us right now."
"More like at you," Gatty grumbled. "And it's you making them stare!"
Three girls two shelves away were giggling and making flirtatious glances at Dallet who returned them just as eagerly. Not only was Gatty upset at his lack of priority, but he was also angry that Dallet's womanizing would get them caught. If they were caught, it would ruin Dilandau's plan; if Dilandau's plan were ruined--a slap would be a light consequence. Not that Dallet's behavior was surprising, Gatty thought with a sour attitude, but he definitely wasn't going to endure Dilandau's wrath because of Dallet's actions. The straw blond decided to take matters in his own hands. Gatty casually strolled over to the girls that were distracting Dallet from his duty. "Excuse me," he said more politely than if expressing his true feelings, "but I noticed you three were eyeing that guy over there."
"Mochiron!" one of them said. "He's so cute!" The other two nodded and giggled in agreement.
"Well, I'm glad you think so," Gatty said, smirking. "Shikashi, zan'nen da; he's my boyfriend."
"Boyfriend??" It was amazing how three people could speak together like that without having planned it. Needless to say, the three girls began to retreat to the other side of the library.
"Should have known someone that pretty was gay..." the first girl grumbled.
"Yeah, " the second girl said as she went away with the other two, "but now that I think about it, he did look a little gay at first..."
Gatty was more satisfied with lowering himself to do that with the girls' last comments. He went back to Dallet, who was descending the ladder, with a much better attitude than before. Dallet looked ready to pounce on him.
"What the hell did you say to them?" Dallet demanded.
Gatty smiled at Dallet's scowling face. "What does it matter? We haven't finished our job yet."
Dallet stepped forward so that he was in Gatty's face. "Tell me, damnit!"
"I said I was your boyfriend," Gatty said offhandly. He started pushing the ladder toward the next assigned spot in the library.
Dallet starting sputtering to repeat what Gatty had said, making Gatty smirk at him. He held back his laughter while Dallet turned red and balled up his fists.
"Boyfriend!!" Dallet glanced around to see if anyone had heard him and then lowered his voice. "Omae, why'd you say something like that for??"
"Come on, Dallet, I know you've wished for the day I'd return your affection for me," Gatty jeered. When Dallet starting fuming again with a redder face, the only way Gatty could get him over the "boyfriend" thing was to remind him once again that they were running out of time. A reminder that Dilandau was watching them also helped Dallet get back on task.
Five minutes before the music would go off, all but Gatty and Dallet had joined Dilandau. However, they seemed to be finishing up, so Dilandau held back his anger for the moment.
"Hmph, Dallet and Gatty aren't finished yet?" Viole mused. "That's mildly surprising."
"We have four minutes and forty-six seconds left," Shesta reported.
"Whatever the problem was, Gatty took care of it," Miguel said, having seen part of what had happened.
By this time they had expected Dilandau to say something, but he remained silent, hands folded in front of him. It wasn't a mystery why he was acting this way, but it was a mystery what he would do when the last two Ryuugekitai arrived (yes, some kind of physical punishment from Dilandau, but of what nature). With Dilandau in such a calm angry, the other four were more uneasy than they were when Dilandau was yelling and slapping at will.
"T...Two minutes...left..." Shesta said, swallowing as he said that.
Gatty and Dallet came to the table a few seconds later. The two seats on both sides of Dilandau were empty; from there were seven additional chairs around the wooden table. Gatty sat to the curve on Dilandau's right where Miguel and Shesta were seated, while Dallet sat to the curve to his leader's left where Guimel and Viole were seated. Neither was brave enough to sit directly across Dilandau. The Ryuugekitai expected Dilandau to say something now that they were all assembled, but still he were silent. No one more than Gatty and Dallet were nervous.
"We have--"
"Mou ii, Shesta," Dilandau said. The Ryuugekitai let out a breath, hearing Dilandau's voice at last.
The calm displease on Dilandau's face gradually turned into a wicked grin. He monitored his watch closely as they drew near to the last few seconds. While four of the Ryuugekitai were rid of any tension, the two who were tardy were even more nervous. Dilandau hadn't mentioned the fact they weren't timely, and they all knew (the hard way) that Dilandau absolutely hated to be kept waiting. Since their leader hadn't reprimanded them now, he was going to get Dallet and Miguel later. Unfortunately for them they hadn't gotten on Dilandau's bad side at the hours nearer to the end of the night instead of closer to the beginning of the night; otherwise Dilandau would have gotten them on the following morning where Dilandau was at a low (as low as someone with as much energy as him could get). At night Dilandau was at his high and didn't come down until he finally decided to travel home. Lenient Dilandau at night? A thing rarely seen. Gatty glared across at Dallet who adverted his eyes to avoid the other's stare.
Despite the less than perfect manner the plan was set up, its execution went perfectly. People jumped and stared incredulously as the library was overtaken by horribly loud music. All the "books" had been set to the maximum volume and had quite a bit static to go along with it. Many quickly exited the library to escape the sound, including the children present. Several of the young ones were crying from the excessive noise and were making their guided exit from the library difficult. The librarians began scrambling around, shouting for something--it was hard to hear with all the noise going on. And all the noise of the books in combination made it difficult to determine the exact source of the disturbance.
This was the kind of prank that really amused Dilandau. Loud noise, confusion, people fleeing as if in pain (or truly in pain)--all the things that were related to chaos. The delight he was experiencing was apparent by his maniacal laughter (just below the volume of the music) and the evil glee reflecting in his crimson eyes. Most people would have been unsettled by the teenager's sinister manner, but the Ryuugekitai was completely encouraged by it. They joined Dilandau in the merriment, though none of them could be as pleased as Dilandau himself. For the moment Gatty and Dallet forget they were on slightly bad terms with Dilandau and were enjoying themselves as if nothing were different. When they pulled pranks such as this that was the norm.
"Did you disable the ladders in some way?" Dilandau asked, his projective voice rising over the noise.
"We unscrewed the wheels on them!" Miguel answered.
"Dallet?"
"Hai, us too!"
"Good," Dilandau said at regular volume, "you two managed to do something during your time of fooling around."
No one knew what he said, except Guimel who was good at reading lips. He smirked and looked to Dallet. Dallet frowned, realizing Guimel knew something he didn't, but of course he couldn't say anything at the moment. Dilandau was relish the moment again, commenting in his louder voice how nice it was to be in a library with so little people. However, the Ryuugekitai was soon brought to the library's attention.
"You kids!" a man said, pointing at them. "Do you have any idea where all this racket's coming from??
Dilandau cupped his hand around his ear. "Nani??" he said. "Are you talking to me??" The Ryuugekitai exploded with laughter.
"Why you little--"
"Someone unscrewed the wheels to the ladders!" another man said, rushing over to the other man. "We can't check the higher shelves!!"
"What the hell is going on??" More laughter from the seven boys caused the first man to glance at them again. "You kids know something don't you??"
"Us??" Dilandau said, loosening his tight expression so he had the appearance of innocent shock. "Masaka!" The man wasn't convinced, especially by the Ryuugekitai's laughter that followed Dilandau's claim.
"If you kids did this, I'll have you arrested!"
"Ah, I can't stand all this noise," Dilandau said, somehow managing a sigh in such a loud voice. "Let's go guys!"
"Yeah, my ears hurt!" Viole said, holding onto them as if he were in pain.
"This library is the nosiest library I've ever been to!" Miguel said. He rose with the others as they began to leave. "I'm never coming back!"
"Grr!!" The first man had an idea the seven were in on the prank somehow, but he had no proof, so he let them leave for the exit as they pleased.
Dilandau and his buddies continued to laugh and poke fun at the library as they left. A flustered librarian stood at the desk near the doors the seven were approaching. She glared at them and had a sudden flashback. Her cheeks reddened and she pointed at them furiously.
"You're those punks I threw out of here about three years ago!" she shrieked quite well over the music. This just caused more laughter from the boys.
Dilandau narrowed his eyes as he grinned at the old lady. "And?" he said.
The woman shook with anger as Dilandau and the others departed from the library. From outside, where many of those who had retreated the library were gathered, it sounded as if the library was having a concert. Several people who passed by the institute stared at the library as if it was a flashy porn store. Dilandau and his crew went on their merry way, hands clean as always.
"Well, I guess we've worked up an appetite," Dilandau said, standing on the sidewalk not far from the library. "Let's take a break to eat and then start our nightly activities." He was met by nothing but enthusiastic consent.
Dilandau grinned to himself as the Ryuugekitai argued over where to eat; the teenager's mind was already set on the darker hours. "Tanoshii da ne..." he said in anticipation.
**Owari
Abunai desu--That's dangerous!
Uruse--Shut up (Ruder than some other forms of shut up)
Shikashi--However/But
Shoushite--And so/Then
Zama miro--Kiss my ass!/Serves you right!/That's what you get!/Take that!
Zan'nen da--That's too bad (Sometimes used for I'm sorry)
Coming soon--Dilandau In The Night! See some of Dilandau's activities at night and what he decides to do to Gatty and Dallet for making him wait. And just how does Allen feel about his little brother staying out to odd hours of the night? Bear with me as I strive to get this next chapter up!