VI.
Urd mumbled incoherently, tossing about slightly as the morning light pierced through her eyelids, forcing her awake. Groggily, she sat up. Confused, she glanced around wildly until she saw a familiar figure leaning against the railing. She sighed in relief then. She had come to depend on him, as he symbolized something that one could always count on.
She stood and walked towards him.
"I see you watching them," She said.
He glanced questioningly at her.
"The mountains," She clarified. "You're always looking at them; at pictures, at your climbing gear." She leaned against the railing as well. "They're your passion, I can tell."
"The mountains are my life." He agreed.
A few heartbeats of understanding silence.
".but my home is here," He finished.
Urd said nothing, but her eyes were bright from unshed tears, as he turned and sauntered back to his tent.
"You can keep the arrow," Urd said. "And save me the unnecessary pain. I remember everything now."
Belldandy lowered her arm, the Arrow of Lost Memory disappearing.
"I was worried about you."
"I know."
"Skuld failed at her first task," Belldandy said after a while. "It's time we left."
Urd continued to evade her sister's gaze.
"Urd.we don't belong here," She reminded her gently.
"I know," Urd said softly.
"Urd."
"He gives up mountains for her, you know?" Urd said. "Mine won't even give up a stupid bird." Urd angrily wiped at the tears that were steadily finding their way down her cheeks.
Silence.
Belldandy sighed. Then she smiled, saying, "Well, it would be a shame to waste our time here, what with the race being tomorrow and all. Keichi would hate to miss it. I suppose we can give Skuld one more day to work things out."
"I'll see you tomorrow.after the race." Belldandy retrieved her broom and flew off.
"Thank you," Urd said.
* * *
Normal? Who was she kidding? Yoriko still couldn't seem to face Aoi. With that in mind, she headed towards the room that served as a storage area for the station's paperwork. No one ever went there.
She slammed the door open, her started scream mingling with Skuld's. Skuld fell off the stool she'd been standing on, landing heavily on the floor.
"Owowowowow." She muttered.
"Oh!" Yoriko exclaimed.
"WAAAH! I'm sorry!" Skuld scrambled to stand up and immediately bowed. "It's just that I've made such as mess of things, I figured the least I could do was fix the files."
Yoriko pushed up her glasses, then she grinned, closing the door behind her.
"Hey, let's see if I can dig up some new gossip here," She said cheerfully.
"Wha.?" Skuld uttered, dumbfounded.
Yoriko began to pick up the files Skuld had dropped. "I might find some good stuff for our website here."
"Oh, Ok." Skuld shrugged. She placed her stool back in an upright position, and was about to stand on it when she realized that Yoriko had suddenly become very quiet.
"It's Aoi's file." She whispered. "I really shouldn't.but."
Skuld climbed back down.
Yoriko shook her head. "I can't."
Skuld made up her mind then. Taking Yoriko's hand, she laid her free hand on the folder.
"I'll show you." Skuld said. "Then it would be me who."
"YORIKO! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE! I SAW YOU COME IN!" Aoi barged inside, toppling against them. They all landed in a heap on the floor, Skuld's energy surrounding them.
"This can't be good!" Skuld wailed.
"What the.what are you doing with my file?!"
"Hey, what's with the light?!"
"Hang on.!!!"
* * *
"Honestly, Aoi, you're being such a jerk!" The petite policewoman scolded.
Aoi batted his eyelashes. "Moi?" He laughed then. "C'mon, Hitomi, how can I take this seriously? It's not me!" He stood up, swaying his hips so the skirts would swish. "Heavens, it's not even my color!"
His male friends laughed.
Hitomi, Reiko, and the other female officers stood with their arms folded.
"Aw, c'mon, girls!" Aoi said. "No pervert can resist me!"
"You aren't taking this seriously at all," Reiko muttered.
"Well, excuse me, but it's hard to take 12 tons of skirt seriously," Aoi said in disgust.
"Worried about your manhood?" Reiko said sweetly.
"Not at all!" Aoi said indignantly. "Although, I think my hair may be out of place. Should I tie it back or maybe try a bun."
"Oh, no, no, no!" Hirosuke said. "Curls are just the thing these days, you know!"
"You think so?" Aoi said, eyes wide in interest.
Hitomi sighed. "This could've been such a worthwhile project. It would be so much easier to handle perverts this way."
"Oh, please, any more of this and I'll be a pervert!" Aoi scoffed. His companions nodded in agreement. "Sorry, but this style is just NOT Aoi Futaba!"
Hitomi's lips trembled. Silently, she turned back towards her desk.
"Nice going, hotshot," Reiko sneered. "The project was her idea you know."
Aoi flushed. He glanced guiltily at Hitomi, then shrugged. "Then they should've chosen a more believable target," He said evenly. "Face it. I can never pull off being a girl."
"Oh, yeah? Well, you sure are acting like one," Reiko stated, leaving their group in a huff.
"Ah, what does she not?"
"Yeah, Futaba, drop the skirt and let's shoot some hoops!"
"Maybe later." Aoi said absently, fingering his skirt. "I uh, may as well get used to this type of clothing."
* * *
Aoi sighed. It was just too ridiculous. And damn painful. How did women bear high heels? Wobbling uncontrollably, he saw the front steps of the station loom before him.
Losing his nerver, he kicked off his pretty shoes and rummaged in his backpack for his trusty rubbershoes.
Small, delicate hands picked up the discarded shoes.
"I'm sorry, I know this has been really difficult for you," Hitomi said shyly as she handed him the annoying footwear.
"Oh, no, really, I think it's a wonderful idea.it's just that.it's not for me, Hitomi. I just don't feel comfortable in women's clothing. I." At the sight of her sudden, downcast expression, he sighed. "I.just need time to get used to it," He conceded. Her bright smile encouraged him further. "Um.just give me some time.I'll get this right, I promise!" He forced himself to squelch the lingering doubts within him.
"That's great! Th.thank you! You know, it meant the world to me to know that the great Aoi Futaba, the most popular and competent member of our force was chosen for this project!" She said, bubbling with happiness. "I just knew it would be a success!"
Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. Blushing a little, she bowed and walked away.
Aoi watched her for a moment, then turned and strode off as well, whistling as he proceeded down the road back to his house.
* * *
"Hitomi was raped yesterday afternoon."
Beautiful, innocent Hitomi. The youngest and most idealistic among them. The young, bright Hitomi had been assaulted, brutalized.
No one deserved that. No woman that young deserved that. No matter what her faults where, and truthfully, Hitomi had so little.
Now she was no more than a shell of her former self. Traumatized and badly beaten, she refused to move or speak. Her bright eyes were listless and no trace of a smile touched her lips.
He had taken their Hitomi.so very near the station, just in the alley a few blocks down.
* * *
"Shit. Shit. SHIT!" Aoi raged, downing another bottle of liquor and smashing it against the wall.
"Dammit. Fuck." Aoi crumpled, fell on his knees, burying his face in his hands.
Hitomi.Hitomi.
.forgive me.
If I had taken you more seriously, if I had taken my job more seriously instead of giving into my stupid pride.
It should've been me. He should've gone after me and left you alone.
.but I wasn't convincing enough. I couldn't.no, I just wouldn't play the part.
It should've been me.
Aoi grabbed the clothes he'd carelessly tossed about the night before.
"When I heard the great Aoi Futaba would be handling it, I just knew the project would succeed."
And so it will, little Hitomi.
I swear it.
* * *
It took only a couple of days. Then the famed Aoi Futaba was no more. In his place was a woman so perfect, no stranger could resist.
The perpetrator was caught and put to justice. Aoi continued on with Hitomi's project.
The perverts, peeping toms, and brutal criminals against women were revealed, one by one, taken in by Aoi's charm and brought to jail shortly thereafter.
Aoi couldn't let go. In a month's time, he had completely lost himself and requested transfer to another district.
But the memory of Hitomi would stay with him forever.
* * *
Hitomi.
"NOOOO!!!!" Aoi screamed, blocking the memories from his mind.
And that was perhaps what saved them, dangerously linked as they were when Skuld's power went awry.
Yoriko and Skuld remained too stunned to speak, much less move. Aoi hugged his knees, rocking back and forth as he trembled uncontrollably.
"Nobody deserved that.it was my fault.I could never be happy, knowing that she lives in a private hell because of me."
"Oh, God, I remember her so clearly now." Aoi's face turned deathly pale. Clamping his hand against his mouth, he stood and rushed out of the room.
A few moments later, Yoriko quietly left as well.
Skuld spent the rest of the day sitting amidst files and paperwork, unable to do much except stare blankly across the room.
* * *
"Are you feeling all right, Keichi?" Belldandy said worriedly as Keichi parked his motorcycle. "You've been quiet since yesterday."
He smiled weakly at her. "I'm fine. Well, maybe just a little tired. A lot of participants wanted their bikes tuned up. Then there's been some sabotage and more repairs. Others are shopping for new parts.Daimaru and Sena have earned a lot from this race."
"I'm glad," Belldandy said as they advanced towards the Traffic Department. "They're very nice."
"Yeah, but I don't see why Sena was so worried about Ken's lunch," Keichi complained. "We'd be doing them a bigger favor by staying at the garage and helping them out."
She chuckled softly at that. "I think they just wanted some time along together." She smiled cheerfully. "Besides, I wanted to see where are friends are working."
"Yeah, you're right."
"Keichi.?" She said, noticing the sad note to his tone. Before she could continue prying him, however, they had reached their destination. The din that reached beyond the closed door fairly shook the walls. "Um."
His thoughts echoed her own. "Is this the right.?"
The door opened then, and a rather frustrated Miyuki stepped out. She blinked upon seeing them, and immediately slammed the door shut behind her.
"Hi, um." She flushed. "Sorry, we're not usually like this.it's just that it's lunch time, and."
"There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Miyuki," Belldandy said kindly. "We just dropped by to give Ken his lunch. Sena made it especially for him, you see."
"Oh, well, why don't you come in, then?" Miyuki said. "Just, um, give, give me a moment.!" She poked her head in the doorway.
"We have visitors!" She proclaimed loudly.
If their curiosity wasn't enough to quiet them down, Belldandy's beauty, grace, and sweet nature certainly drew attention. Especially from the male species.
Once she'd handed Nakajima his lunch, Miyuki began showing the visitors around, introducing them.
"Cool it, guys," Nakajima said to his fellow male officers. "She's obviously taken."
"By that shrimp?"
Keichi felt an invisible arrow strike him from behind.
"Hey, that guy's very good with motorcycles. He's been in some races and I've seen him working around the Zapper. He knows his stuff."
The resounding "ooh" meant that Keichi was now held in high regard by other officers like Nakajima, who spent their days riding on the station's white motorcycles.
"Yeah, but is he good enough to beat the White Hawk of the Bokuto Station?"
"I've heard some friends talk about this guy after they've had repairs done at the Zapper. He's got quite a reputation."
"Care to take a bet and make this race more exciting for us mere spectators?"
"You're on! 10,000 yen on Nakajima!"
"12 on the new guy!"
Nakajima an Keichi assessed each other. They had not really considered themselves competition up to that point. They both looked at Miyuki and Belldandy (who, of course, remain completely innocent and unaware of the whole matter), then simultaneously turned back to what each considered his "main" competition.
The stakes were on; in more ways than one.
For the Bokuto officers, it was the thrill of gambling money.
For our two heroes, it was the thought of winning for love.
For Yoriko, it was not worth arguing about. The fact that she did not bet on either one was not lost on Aoi, who felt his already heavy heart snap in two.
A Yoriko who did not join in the schemes and games of her fellow officers; in fact, a Yoriko who was not at the center of it all, was not the one he'd come to love.
What had he done?
What could he do?
Urd mumbled incoherently, tossing about slightly as the morning light pierced through her eyelids, forcing her awake. Groggily, she sat up. Confused, she glanced around wildly until she saw a familiar figure leaning against the railing. She sighed in relief then. She had come to depend on him, as he symbolized something that one could always count on.
She stood and walked towards him.
"I see you watching them," She said.
He glanced questioningly at her.
"The mountains," She clarified. "You're always looking at them; at pictures, at your climbing gear." She leaned against the railing as well. "They're your passion, I can tell."
"The mountains are my life." He agreed.
A few heartbeats of understanding silence.
".but my home is here," He finished.
Urd said nothing, but her eyes were bright from unshed tears, as he turned and sauntered back to his tent.
"You can keep the arrow," Urd said. "And save me the unnecessary pain. I remember everything now."
Belldandy lowered her arm, the Arrow of Lost Memory disappearing.
"I was worried about you."
"I know."
"Skuld failed at her first task," Belldandy said after a while. "It's time we left."
Urd continued to evade her sister's gaze.
"Urd.we don't belong here," She reminded her gently.
"I know," Urd said softly.
"Urd."
"He gives up mountains for her, you know?" Urd said. "Mine won't even give up a stupid bird." Urd angrily wiped at the tears that were steadily finding their way down her cheeks.
Silence.
Belldandy sighed. Then she smiled, saying, "Well, it would be a shame to waste our time here, what with the race being tomorrow and all. Keichi would hate to miss it. I suppose we can give Skuld one more day to work things out."
"I'll see you tomorrow.after the race." Belldandy retrieved her broom and flew off.
"Thank you," Urd said.
* * *
Normal? Who was she kidding? Yoriko still couldn't seem to face Aoi. With that in mind, she headed towards the room that served as a storage area for the station's paperwork. No one ever went there.
She slammed the door open, her started scream mingling with Skuld's. Skuld fell off the stool she'd been standing on, landing heavily on the floor.
"Owowowowow." She muttered.
"Oh!" Yoriko exclaimed.
"WAAAH! I'm sorry!" Skuld scrambled to stand up and immediately bowed. "It's just that I've made such as mess of things, I figured the least I could do was fix the files."
Yoriko pushed up her glasses, then she grinned, closing the door behind her.
"Hey, let's see if I can dig up some new gossip here," She said cheerfully.
"Wha.?" Skuld uttered, dumbfounded.
Yoriko began to pick up the files Skuld had dropped. "I might find some good stuff for our website here."
"Oh, Ok." Skuld shrugged. She placed her stool back in an upright position, and was about to stand on it when she realized that Yoriko had suddenly become very quiet.
"It's Aoi's file." She whispered. "I really shouldn't.but."
Skuld climbed back down.
Yoriko shook her head. "I can't."
Skuld made up her mind then. Taking Yoriko's hand, she laid her free hand on the folder.
"I'll show you." Skuld said. "Then it would be me who."
"YORIKO! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE! I SAW YOU COME IN!" Aoi barged inside, toppling against them. They all landed in a heap on the floor, Skuld's energy surrounding them.
"This can't be good!" Skuld wailed.
"What the.what are you doing with my file?!"
"Hey, what's with the light?!"
"Hang on.!!!"
* * *
"Honestly, Aoi, you're being such a jerk!" The petite policewoman scolded.
Aoi batted his eyelashes. "Moi?" He laughed then. "C'mon, Hitomi, how can I take this seriously? It's not me!" He stood up, swaying his hips so the skirts would swish. "Heavens, it's not even my color!"
His male friends laughed.
Hitomi, Reiko, and the other female officers stood with their arms folded.
"Aw, c'mon, girls!" Aoi said. "No pervert can resist me!"
"You aren't taking this seriously at all," Reiko muttered.
"Well, excuse me, but it's hard to take 12 tons of skirt seriously," Aoi said in disgust.
"Worried about your manhood?" Reiko said sweetly.
"Not at all!" Aoi said indignantly. "Although, I think my hair may be out of place. Should I tie it back or maybe try a bun."
"Oh, no, no, no!" Hirosuke said. "Curls are just the thing these days, you know!"
"You think so?" Aoi said, eyes wide in interest.
Hitomi sighed. "This could've been such a worthwhile project. It would be so much easier to handle perverts this way."
"Oh, please, any more of this and I'll be a pervert!" Aoi scoffed. His companions nodded in agreement. "Sorry, but this style is just NOT Aoi Futaba!"
Hitomi's lips trembled. Silently, she turned back towards her desk.
"Nice going, hotshot," Reiko sneered. "The project was her idea you know."
Aoi flushed. He glanced guiltily at Hitomi, then shrugged. "Then they should've chosen a more believable target," He said evenly. "Face it. I can never pull off being a girl."
"Oh, yeah? Well, you sure are acting like one," Reiko stated, leaving their group in a huff.
"Ah, what does she not?"
"Yeah, Futaba, drop the skirt and let's shoot some hoops!"
"Maybe later." Aoi said absently, fingering his skirt. "I uh, may as well get used to this type of clothing."
* * *
Aoi sighed. It was just too ridiculous. And damn painful. How did women bear high heels? Wobbling uncontrollably, he saw the front steps of the station loom before him.
Losing his nerver, he kicked off his pretty shoes and rummaged in his backpack for his trusty rubbershoes.
Small, delicate hands picked up the discarded shoes.
"I'm sorry, I know this has been really difficult for you," Hitomi said shyly as she handed him the annoying footwear.
"Oh, no, really, I think it's a wonderful idea.it's just that.it's not for me, Hitomi. I just don't feel comfortable in women's clothing. I." At the sight of her sudden, downcast expression, he sighed. "I.just need time to get used to it," He conceded. Her bright smile encouraged him further. "Um.just give me some time.I'll get this right, I promise!" He forced himself to squelch the lingering doubts within him.
"That's great! Th.thank you! You know, it meant the world to me to know that the great Aoi Futaba, the most popular and competent member of our force was chosen for this project!" She said, bubbling with happiness. "I just knew it would be a success!"
Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. Blushing a little, she bowed and walked away.
Aoi watched her for a moment, then turned and strode off as well, whistling as he proceeded down the road back to his house.
* * *
"Hitomi was raped yesterday afternoon."
Beautiful, innocent Hitomi. The youngest and most idealistic among them. The young, bright Hitomi had been assaulted, brutalized.
No one deserved that. No woman that young deserved that. No matter what her faults where, and truthfully, Hitomi had so little.
Now she was no more than a shell of her former self. Traumatized and badly beaten, she refused to move or speak. Her bright eyes were listless and no trace of a smile touched her lips.
He had taken their Hitomi.so very near the station, just in the alley a few blocks down.
* * *
"Shit. Shit. SHIT!" Aoi raged, downing another bottle of liquor and smashing it against the wall.
"Dammit. Fuck." Aoi crumpled, fell on his knees, burying his face in his hands.
Hitomi.Hitomi.
.forgive me.
If I had taken you more seriously, if I had taken my job more seriously instead of giving into my stupid pride.
It should've been me. He should've gone after me and left you alone.
.but I wasn't convincing enough. I couldn't.no, I just wouldn't play the part.
It should've been me.
Aoi grabbed the clothes he'd carelessly tossed about the night before.
"When I heard the great Aoi Futaba would be handling it, I just knew the project would succeed."
And so it will, little Hitomi.
I swear it.
* * *
It took only a couple of days. Then the famed Aoi Futaba was no more. In his place was a woman so perfect, no stranger could resist.
The perpetrator was caught and put to justice. Aoi continued on with Hitomi's project.
The perverts, peeping toms, and brutal criminals against women were revealed, one by one, taken in by Aoi's charm and brought to jail shortly thereafter.
Aoi couldn't let go. In a month's time, he had completely lost himself and requested transfer to another district.
But the memory of Hitomi would stay with him forever.
* * *
Hitomi.
"NOOOO!!!!" Aoi screamed, blocking the memories from his mind.
And that was perhaps what saved them, dangerously linked as they were when Skuld's power went awry.
Yoriko and Skuld remained too stunned to speak, much less move. Aoi hugged his knees, rocking back and forth as he trembled uncontrollably.
"Nobody deserved that.it was my fault.I could never be happy, knowing that she lives in a private hell because of me."
"Oh, God, I remember her so clearly now." Aoi's face turned deathly pale. Clamping his hand against his mouth, he stood and rushed out of the room.
A few moments later, Yoriko quietly left as well.
Skuld spent the rest of the day sitting amidst files and paperwork, unable to do much except stare blankly across the room.
* * *
"Are you feeling all right, Keichi?" Belldandy said worriedly as Keichi parked his motorcycle. "You've been quiet since yesterday."
He smiled weakly at her. "I'm fine. Well, maybe just a little tired. A lot of participants wanted their bikes tuned up. Then there's been some sabotage and more repairs. Others are shopping for new parts.Daimaru and Sena have earned a lot from this race."
"I'm glad," Belldandy said as they advanced towards the Traffic Department. "They're very nice."
"Yeah, but I don't see why Sena was so worried about Ken's lunch," Keichi complained. "We'd be doing them a bigger favor by staying at the garage and helping them out."
She chuckled softly at that. "I think they just wanted some time along together." She smiled cheerfully. "Besides, I wanted to see where are friends are working."
"Yeah, you're right."
"Keichi.?" She said, noticing the sad note to his tone. Before she could continue prying him, however, they had reached their destination. The din that reached beyond the closed door fairly shook the walls. "Um."
His thoughts echoed her own. "Is this the right.?"
The door opened then, and a rather frustrated Miyuki stepped out. She blinked upon seeing them, and immediately slammed the door shut behind her.
"Hi, um." She flushed. "Sorry, we're not usually like this.it's just that it's lunch time, and."
"There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Miyuki," Belldandy said kindly. "We just dropped by to give Ken his lunch. Sena made it especially for him, you see."
"Oh, well, why don't you come in, then?" Miyuki said. "Just, um, give, give me a moment.!" She poked her head in the doorway.
"We have visitors!" She proclaimed loudly.
If their curiosity wasn't enough to quiet them down, Belldandy's beauty, grace, and sweet nature certainly drew attention. Especially from the male species.
Once she'd handed Nakajima his lunch, Miyuki began showing the visitors around, introducing them.
"Cool it, guys," Nakajima said to his fellow male officers. "She's obviously taken."
"By that shrimp?"
Keichi felt an invisible arrow strike him from behind.
"Hey, that guy's very good with motorcycles. He's been in some races and I've seen him working around the Zapper. He knows his stuff."
The resounding "ooh" meant that Keichi was now held in high regard by other officers like Nakajima, who spent their days riding on the station's white motorcycles.
"Yeah, but is he good enough to beat the White Hawk of the Bokuto Station?"
"I've heard some friends talk about this guy after they've had repairs done at the Zapper. He's got quite a reputation."
"Care to take a bet and make this race more exciting for us mere spectators?"
"You're on! 10,000 yen on Nakajima!"
"12 on the new guy!"
Nakajima an Keichi assessed each other. They had not really considered themselves competition up to that point. They both looked at Miyuki and Belldandy (who, of course, remain completely innocent and unaware of the whole matter), then simultaneously turned back to what each considered his "main" competition.
The stakes were on; in more ways than one.
For the Bokuto officers, it was the thrill of gambling money.
For our two heroes, it was the thought of winning for love.
For Yoriko, it was not worth arguing about. The fact that she did not bet on either one was not lost on Aoi, who felt his already heavy heart snap in two.
A Yoriko who did not join in the schemes and games of her fellow officers; in fact, a Yoriko who was not at the center of it all, was not the one he'd come to love.
What had he done?
What could he do?