Author's notes: Not too yaoitic yet. Sorry. I'm in a WAFFy mood. And Hisoka
really was exhausted, at that. Can't have him faint or anything. :)
Also, I'd appreciate some comments on my Watari. I had some problems with writing him in this chapter. He's just one those characters that work so well on the screen and in manga pictures, but seem to lose something when reduced to words.
Chapter Eight: Proof
Hisoka stares at me, as if I've just grown wings.
"How are you feeling?" I ask to avoid an uncomfortable silence, and dig my spoon into the cake once more. Mmm... caramel sauce.
"Okay. Tired," he replies in a sleepy voice and looks around, as if searching for something.
I take the plastic plate with the cake on it in my hand and move to the floor. I pat the futon Hisoka's sitting on. "Lie down, then. Or if you're hungry, I ordered some food."
"You ordered dessert. I ordered food," Watari says behind me. I turn around to look at him and he gives me a cheerful Watari wink, then turns to Hisoka. "Sleep might do you good, bon."
Hisoka sits up straight, obviously collecting himself. "I know how Mrs Harvey died, Watari-san. And the medical record makes sense now too... but we have to find Mr. Harvey, right now! He is... he saw what happened, just like me..." Hisoka stops and rubs his temple, looking really tired.
"But what about the killer? The woman? Shouldn't we find her first?" Watari asks, knitting his eyebrows.
Hisoka shakes his head. "No. Find Mr. Harvey. He knows who the killer is."
Watari is still not satisfied. "So who *is* the killer? Did you see her? And how exactly Mrs. Harvey died, if she was strangled, but the medical record of her suicide was correct?"
"Watari," I interrupt quietly, "can't you see he's exhausted? Why not do as Hisoka says and go find Mr. Harvey, and let him get some rest?"
Watari glances at me. "You're right, Tsuzuki. I guess I got carried away." He beams at Hisoka, and ruffles his hair. "Good work, bon. You take a nice long nap now, okay?"
"Don't have to tell me twice," Hisoka mutters, and yawns.
Watari stands up and dusts off his knees. "I'd better let Tatsumi know before doing anything." He smiles at me. "He was not too happy when he found out that I got someone from the Western Department to perform exorcism on you without his approval. Konoe-kacho is going to give us the third degree for all the improvisation we've been doing on this case. But that spell turned out quite right, wouldn't you say, Tsuzuki?"
"I'm here to prove it," I smile back at him and put another spoonful of cake in my mouth. "Where did that beard guy go, by the way? I thought he wanted to hear what Hisoka had to say."
Watari has turned his attention to his beloved laptop. "Allendorf's gone to talk to his superiors. I said I'll meet him with Tatsumi tomorrow morning."
"And what about Hisoka and me?"
Watari doesn't look at me, but he smiles a crooked smile as he types on. "You sit back, get some rest and don't get possessed."
"Sounds fair enough," I say to Hisoka.
He opens his mouth, then closes it again, and looks down at the remains of the cake to avoid my eyes.
"I saved some for you, too," I tell him, and take a big spoonful of cake. "You could use something to eat, I suppose."
"I'm okay," he mutters, trying to straighten the covers on the futon.
"As your partner, I'm concerned about your energy levels," I state, half joking, and move the spoon closer to his face. "Come on, say ah!"
His cheeks turn pink. "I said I don't need it!"
"Just one whimsy little spoonful? It can't hurt you..."
Hisoka sighs overdramatically, shrugs and looks at anything but me. "Okay. Fine. If that'll get you to let me sleep."
I nod approvingly and feed him the cake. He gets his mouth full, and after gulping down most of the cake, makes a face. "Ugh. Was that pure sugar or something? I mean, who eats caramel chocolate *custard* cake?" he complains, but licks his lips, anyway.
I chuckle. He's acting like a kid who's being forced to finish his veggies at the dinner table.
"Another bite?" I offer.
"No. I got enough sugar to last me a lifetime, thank you." Oh, but he is cute when he's pouting like that.
I take the covers from his hands and move them out of the way. "In that case, I'm tucking you in."
Hisoka's eyes are suspicious as he lies down. He looks like he expects me to explode any second as I pull the covers over him.
I remember what Watari told me when I woke up. *This isn't the first time you woke up, Tsuzuki. We had to knock you unconscious, because it turns out you weren't quite yourself...*
I just bet that's it. I attacked Hisoka, although I don't remember a thing about it, and now he's afraid I'm going to do it again. I wish I could remember. Watari didn't go into detail, and I got the feeling that he actually didn't know. It doesn't feel right to have this black hole in my memory. The last thing I remember thinking is, 'how come I'm making Hisoka feel uncomfortable?' Then, nothing until I opened my eyes to see a strange bearded man who grinned in a way that was downright scary.
There must have been something else than just a plain attack. Hisoka isn't afraid of *me*. And, well, I've been possessed before. He sure wasn't afraid to confront me then. It's the fact that I don't know what wrong I've done to him, unaware of it or not, that makes me feel guilty now.
Hisoka still hasn't closed his eyes, although I can tell he's dying to. He's waiting to see what I'm going to do.
I sit on the floor next to him and pull my knees up, then rest my hands on them.
"I'm not going to do anything weird, Hisoka. Go to sleep."
"You wouldn't be able to keep that promise if she came back," Hisoka says, his voice almost too low for me to hear. I scuttle closer to hear him, and he withdraws slightly, pulling the cover up to his nose like a shield.
"She's gone. That guy from Western Department knew what he was doing." I can't quite keep the pain out of my voice. "It's just me, Hisoka."
"I *know*," he says, his voice slightly irritated. "I know it but it doesn't help. It's irrational, Tsuzuki." He pauses, then continues, his voice low again. "You scared the hell out of me. You know?"
"No. I don't. The last thing I remember is you giving me a hug, and I didn't want you to let go." He blushes at that, but I'm just trying to be as honest as I can. "I'm not going to ask you what happened, because obviously you're trying to forget it. But I still wish I knew."
Hisoka looks like he can hardly keep his eyelids open. "I wasn't afraid of the ghost. What scared me was that I thought it was you."
"What?" I stare at him, not believing my ears. "I would never attack you! Not for any reason!"
Hisoka forces his eyes open and gives me a very serious look. "Then prove it to me. Give me your hand."
I'm not following him. "What? My hand? Why?"
"So that I can feel you."
Oh. now I understand. My feelings won't lie. It makes me surprised to say the least, but immensely happy when I understand what he's asking. Hisoka hates to be touched, he hates it when other people's emotions wash over him. And now he actually *wants* to feel mine.
I reach out my hand and place it on the cover, next to his face. He looks at it like it's an animal that might bite, then hesitantly takes it and places it on his cheek, holding it there. He sighs; like the touch of butterfly wings on my skin, and my heart skips a beat.
"Hisoka," I can't help murmuring, my voice heavy with emotion.
"Shhh. Be quiet." His voice is merely a whisper, and his eyes are closed. "I know. I know it's you." He draws in a deep breath, and relaxes, slowly letting sleep overtake him.
I can't resist the temptation, and move my fingers down his cheek to his slightly parted lips. I stop for a moment, but he doesn't seem to protest; his breathing is regular now, he's already asleep. He must have been so exhausted, poor Hisoka. The hand that has been holding my hand in place drops on the mattress. I run the backs of my fingers over his nose, his lips, his chin. He's so beautiful now, so inviting. He won't wake up if I steal just one little kiss.
"Tsuzuki!" a voice hisses behind me, and I almost jump out of my skin.
Watari is wagging his finger at me. "Tsk tsk. No taking advantage of partners while they're asleep."
I entirely forgot that he was in the room!
Watari smiles so widely that his eyes crinkle up. "Just kidding. But he really needs his sleep, and I've got orders from Tatsumi, so if you'd step this way."
I stand up, and find it hard to drag my eyes off my sleeping partner. "I'm coming."
"Today?" Watari raises an eyebrow, then taps me on my shoulder. "Heck, I know you're smitten, but you still have a job."
"But didn't you just say -"
Watari shrugs apologetically. "That's what *I* said. That's not what Tatsumi says. He says that we need to find Professor Harvey because it turned out, as they investigated it, that he has murdered certain Miss Rachel Clifford." He sighs. "So I'm off to join their team, as soon as I finish writing my report to the Western Department."
"Who is Miss Clifford?" I ask, and run a hand through my hair. "Looks like I have a lot of catching up to do."
"It's just an educated guess, but I bet Miss Clifford is the one who killed Mrs. Harvey. She certainly had a motive. She was Professor Harvey's mistress for six years." Watari slaps me on the back and laughs. "But don't worry about catching up to things, we'll have plenty of time while we both write our reports!"
My heart sinks. "Reports? Why me? It's not fair, I've only just been freed from the possession of an avenging ghost!"
"You try telling Tatsumi that. Or Konoe-kacho." Watari winks, then cheerfully flips open his laptop. "Which would be a waste of time, trust me. I only barely managed to get Hisoka off the paperwork hook. We might as well get started!"
I slump down on the chair and let my head drop on the table. "I *hate* paperwork! Stupid Tatsumi, does he *know* how I absolutely loathe making reports to kacho?"
"Yes?" Watari beams at me across the table.
"I didn't want you to answer that," I mutter, and bravely sit up to start writing.
Also, I'd appreciate some comments on my Watari. I had some problems with writing him in this chapter. He's just one those characters that work so well on the screen and in manga pictures, but seem to lose something when reduced to words.
Chapter Eight: Proof
Hisoka stares at me, as if I've just grown wings.
"How are you feeling?" I ask to avoid an uncomfortable silence, and dig my spoon into the cake once more. Mmm... caramel sauce.
"Okay. Tired," he replies in a sleepy voice and looks around, as if searching for something.
I take the plastic plate with the cake on it in my hand and move to the floor. I pat the futon Hisoka's sitting on. "Lie down, then. Or if you're hungry, I ordered some food."
"You ordered dessert. I ordered food," Watari says behind me. I turn around to look at him and he gives me a cheerful Watari wink, then turns to Hisoka. "Sleep might do you good, bon."
Hisoka sits up straight, obviously collecting himself. "I know how Mrs Harvey died, Watari-san. And the medical record makes sense now too... but we have to find Mr. Harvey, right now! He is... he saw what happened, just like me..." Hisoka stops and rubs his temple, looking really tired.
"But what about the killer? The woman? Shouldn't we find her first?" Watari asks, knitting his eyebrows.
Hisoka shakes his head. "No. Find Mr. Harvey. He knows who the killer is."
Watari is still not satisfied. "So who *is* the killer? Did you see her? And how exactly Mrs. Harvey died, if she was strangled, but the medical record of her suicide was correct?"
"Watari," I interrupt quietly, "can't you see he's exhausted? Why not do as Hisoka says and go find Mr. Harvey, and let him get some rest?"
Watari glances at me. "You're right, Tsuzuki. I guess I got carried away." He beams at Hisoka, and ruffles his hair. "Good work, bon. You take a nice long nap now, okay?"
"Don't have to tell me twice," Hisoka mutters, and yawns.
Watari stands up and dusts off his knees. "I'd better let Tatsumi know before doing anything." He smiles at me. "He was not too happy when he found out that I got someone from the Western Department to perform exorcism on you without his approval. Konoe-kacho is going to give us the third degree for all the improvisation we've been doing on this case. But that spell turned out quite right, wouldn't you say, Tsuzuki?"
"I'm here to prove it," I smile back at him and put another spoonful of cake in my mouth. "Where did that beard guy go, by the way? I thought he wanted to hear what Hisoka had to say."
Watari has turned his attention to his beloved laptop. "Allendorf's gone to talk to his superiors. I said I'll meet him with Tatsumi tomorrow morning."
"And what about Hisoka and me?"
Watari doesn't look at me, but he smiles a crooked smile as he types on. "You sit back, get some rest and don't get possessed."
"Sounds fair enough," I say to Hisoka.
He opens his mouth, then closes it again, and looks down at the remains of the cake to avoid my eyes.
"I saved some for you, too," I tell him, and take a big spoonful of cake. "You could use something to eat, I suppose."
"I'm okay," he mutters, trying to straighten the covers on the futon.
"As your partner, I'm concerned about your energy levels," I state, half joking, and move the spoon closer to his face. "Come on, say ah!"
His cheeks turn pink. "I said I don't need it!"
"Just one whimsy little spoonful? It can't hurt you..."
Hisoka sighs overdramatically, shrugs and looks at anything but me. "Okay. Fine. If that'll get you to let me sleep."
I nod approvingly and feed him the cake. He gets his mouth full, and after gulping down most of the cake, makes a face. "Ugh. Was that pure sugar or something? I mean, who eats caramel chocolate *custard* cake?" he complains, but licks his lips, anyway.
I chuckle. He's acting like a kid who's being forced to finish his veggies at the dinner table.
"Another bite?" I offer.
"No. I got enough sugar to last me a lifetime, thank you." Oh, but he is cute when he's pouting like that.
I take the covers from his hands and move them out of the way. "In that case, I'm tucking you in."
Hisoka's eyes are suspicious as he lies down. He looks like he expects me to explode any second as I pull the covers over him.
I remember what Watari told me when I woke up. *This isn't the first time you woke up, Tsuzuki. We had to knock you unconscious, because it turns out you weren't quite yourself...*
I just bet that's it. I attacked Hisoka, although I don't remember a thing about it, and now he's afraid I'm going to do it again. I wish I could remember. Watari didn't go into detail, and I got the feeling that he actually didn't know. It doesn't feel right to have this black hole in my memory. The last thing I remember thinking is, 'how come I'm making Hisoka feel uncomfortable?' Then, nothing until I opened my eyes to see a strange bearded man who grinned in a way that was downright scary.
There must have been something else than just a plain attack. Hisoka isn't afraid of *me*. And, well, I've been possessed before. He sure wasn't afraid to confront me then. It's the fact that I don't know what wrong I've done to him, unaware of it or not, that makes me feel guilty now.
Hisoka still hasn't closed his eyes, although I can tell he's dying to. He's waiting to see what I'm going to do.
I sit on the floor next to him and pull my knees up, then rest my hands on them.
"I'm not going to do anything weird, Hisoka. Go to sleep."
"You wouldn't be able to keep that promise if she came back," Hisoka says, his voice almost too low for me to hear. I scuttle closer to hear him, and he withdraws slightly, pulling the cover up to his nose like a shield.
"She's gone. That guy from Western Department knew what he was doing." I can't quite keep the pain out of my voice. "It's just me, Hisoka."
"I *know*," he says, his voice slightly irritated. "I know it but it doesn't help. It's irrational, Tsuzuki." He pauses, then continues, his voice low again. "You scared the hell out of me. You know?"
"No. I don't. The last thing I remember is you giving me a hug, and I didn't want you to let go." He blushes at that, but I'm just trying to be as honest as I can. "I'm not going to ask you what happened, because obviously you're trying to forget it. But I still wish I knew."
Hisoka looks like he can hardly keep his eyelids open. "I wasn't afraid of the ghost. What scared me was that I thought it was you."
"What?" I stare at him, not believing my ears. "I would never attack you! Not for any reason!"
Hisoka forces his eyes open and gives me a very serious look. "Then prove it to me. Give me your hand."
I'm not following him. "What? My hand? Why?"
"So that I can feel you."
Oh. now I understand. My feelings won't lie. It makes me surprised to say the least, but immensely happy when I understand what he's asking. Hisoka hates to be touched, he hates it when other people's emotions wash over him. And now he actually *wants* to feel mine.
I reach out my hand and place it on the cover, next to his face. He looks at it like it's an animal that might bite, then hesitantly takes it and places it on his cheek, holding it there. He sighs; like the touch of butterfly wings on my skin, and my heart skips a beat.
"Hisoka," I can't help murmuring, my voice heavy with emotion.
"Shhh. Be quiet." His voice is merely a whisper, and his eyes are closed. "I know. I know it's you." He draws in a deep breath, and relaxes, slowly letting sleep overtake him.
I can't resist the temptation, and move my fingers down his cheek to his slightly parted lips. I stop for a moment, but he doesn't seem to protest; his breathing is regular now, he's already asleep. He must have been so exhausted, poor Hisoka. The hand that has been holding my hand in place drops on the mattress. I run the backs of my fingers over his nose, his lips, his chin. He's so beautiful now, so inviting. He won't wake up if I steal just one little kiss.
"Tsuzuki!" a voice hisses behind me, and I almost jump out of my skin.
Watari is wagging his finger at me. "Tsk tsk. No taking advantage of partners while they're asleep."
I entirely forgot that he was in the room!
Watari smiles so widely that his eyes crinkle up. "Just kidding. But he really needs his sleep, and I've got orders from Tatsumi, so if you'd step this way."
I stand up, and find it hard to drag my eyes off my sleeping partner. "I'm coming."
"Today?" Watari raises an eyebrow, then taps me on my shoulder. "Heck, I know you're smitten, but you still have a job."
"But didn't you just say -"
Watari shrugs apologetically. "That's what *I* said. That's not what Tatsumi says. He says that we need to find Professor Harvey because it turned out, as they investigated it, that he has murdered certain Miss Rachel Clifford." He sighs. "So I'm off to join their team, as soon as I finish writing my report to the Western Department."
"Who is Miss Clifford?" I ask, and run a hand through my hair. "Looks like I have a lot of catching up to do."
"It's just an educated guess, but I bet Miss Clifford is the one who killed Mrs. Harvey. She certainly had a motive. She was Professor Harvey's mistress for six years." Watari slaps me on the back and laughs. "But don't worry about catching up to things, we'll have plenty of time while we both write our reports!"
My heart sinks. "Reports? Why me? It's not fair, I've only just been freed from the possession of an avenging ghost!"
"You try telling Tatsumi that. Or Konoe-kacho." Watari winks, then cheerfully flips open his laptop. "Which would be a waste of time, trust me. I only barely managed to get Hisoka off the paperwork hook. We might as well get started!"
I slump down on the chair and let my head drop on the table. "I *hate* paperwork! Stupid Tatsumi, does he *know* how I absolutely loathe making reports to kacho?"
"Yes?" Watari beams at me across the table.
"I didn't want you to answer that," I mutter, and bravely sit up to start writing.