Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and all characters within are NOT mine.
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Thank you so much and so sorry I haven't gotten to you, for the past couple of days the network has been such down in my dorm. The whole building didn't have internet, and they were going from building to building turning it back on as people got live updates for recent viruses which have been hitting the school
Fanart is also being put on hold for now while I get Photoshop hooked up to my dorm computer, as I have recently reformatted it.
Geuna~
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Title: Red As Blood
Part Three of the "White As Snow, Black As Night" Series
Author: Lady Geuna
- Rating: PG-13 - Pairings: -- Kyou/Haru, one-sided Shigure/Hatori!???? 0_o'
- Genre: Drama/Humor
Full Summary: Clubbing? Dancing!? Haru drags Kyou into some places and situations he's never been before, and as the elders Sohma's rush in before he and Haru cause any more trouble then they have, they also get dragged down as well…
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Red As Blood: "No one likes to share the love…"
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For some reason it felt like the club was getting hotter and hotter, though outside it was still probably freezing... which was normal considering it was February. But it felt like summer in that room packed side to side with people dancing. The smell of sweat was more pronounced around him now, and Kyou could feel it soaking into the cloth of his shirt where the duct tape was keeping him insulated. It was almost maddeningly uncomfortable, but he wasn't one to loudly fret about those things when he was honestly (stubbornly) trying to hide it. Though with the now flaring blue strobes and clusters of people around him, he figured he'd hardly be noticed.
It felt like hours had gone by since they first started dancing. And strangely, Kyou had enjoying himself! To think, he was actually having a good time! With Haru! Though the inclination to kill him once sprang up a few times... But Haru was actually truly innocent about it all, and hadn't moved his hands at all during the past… however long they'd been doing this, and Kyou had long since removed his arms from their rather disgustingly (shiver) feminine position around Haru's neck. He'd since produced a new inches of distance between their bodies, and kept his hands firmly on Haru's wrists. It looked like on oddly strange position compared to all the other people, who had been (and still where) clinging to each other, or otherwise had their hands flung into the air. And Haru had been resting his hands upon his waist, but having Kyou's hands there over his insured a lack of movement of… touching… he didn't like touching, still. He couldn't get used to it, he wasn't familiar with it, and he wasn't about to let this touch go any farther than he would allow. Haru didn't have any objections to this and neither had tried to communicate.
Kyou hadn't had any trouble with the women around him, either, as the few that did bump into him couldn't nearly touch him enough to cause him to transform. One even rubbed her body against Haru, but the cow had remained remarkably oblivious, and she left in near tears, furious. Kyou was internally pleased by this… he wasn't sure why, but he was. Even if they were getting along like friends, Kyou started to realize how territorial he was about it. He hadn't had a friend like this in a long time… It was a logical reaction, right?
Of course it was!!!
And before moving on, Kyou would have wanted something made very clear...
Kyou did realize something after a while after dancing with Haru...
He couldn't dance.... AT ALL.
It wasn't just the fact that he didn't want to dance, that's beside the point. It was simply physically impossible.
Sure, he caught on, performed the barest of basics (these were just the basics, right...?), but beyond that he'd slammed his foot onto Haru's... ten times, take or give a few. And it was on accident… seriously!
Kyou could honestly say he didn't have much by ways of "rhythm"... Actually, he didn't have ANY rhythm. He couldn't really catch onto it by himself, but this wasn't so bad, because his "teacher" was very persistent... and Haru had enough rhythm for the both of them... Where did the cow learn to dance like that!?
Yeah, he'd gotten through it without too much trouble.
That was until Kyou decided to do something very stupid... he decided to take a break...
~~~~ Ten Minutes Previous... ~~~~
"Haru!" The boy didn't hear him over the music, so Kyou cupped his hands and yelled closer to Haru's ear. "HARU! I'M TAKING A TIME OUT!"
Haru started, pulling back. It would seem that the oushi had been in the mist of thinking. He looked at Kyou irritated expression in confusion. "What?" Kyou heard Haru's mouth move but didn't actually hear him. Why did they make clubs this LOUD? It was as though the music had changed and gotten louder, and even the lights had changed.
Kyou yelled again. "I'm gonna... look around."
"We shouldn't separate."
Kyou snorted, taking his hands from Haru's wrists and scanned around for an opening in the crowd. This wasn't going to be easy... "Sure, but if I don't get a drink of water soon I'm not going to be the one regretting it." He brandished his fist to accent the point, and Haru only slumped his shoulders as though he were sighing deeply. It was hard to see his face in the lighting, but he looked almost disappointed...
"Okay, okay... Get back soon, okay? Don't get lost."
~~~~ Present time... ~~~~
At the time he'd thought, 'Haru's telling me not to get lost??? Whata joke!"
Of course he didn't get LOST.
He just lost Haru.... not himself… understand? Big difference!
'Yeah, yeah, brilliant move Kyou! Absolutely BRILLIANT!'
Kyou was presently walking carefully along the cement wall, "Mission Impossible" style, trying as best he could not to touch ANYONE and cursing himself for his own stupidity. After all, why didn't he just demand that Haru come with him? But nooo, of course he didn't think of that. OF COURSE!
Even as he moved flat again the wall he still ended up making physical contact with people, but it was hardly enough to make him transform. It still nearly gave him a heart attack though whenever it came close... and it came close quite often compared to when he was with Haru.
He'd gone up to the second and third floors immediately when he realized his situation… and he'd realized his situation when he found out how difficult it was to navigate through the crowd. Kyou figured he'd be able to spot Haru from up there, but he was DEAD wrong. It was impossible to tell one head from the other. Sure, Haru had a very... unique hairstyle... and color, but how the hell was he supposed to tell with the lighting flashing like it was! It was also nearly impossible to get a good place to stand at the railing because it was so crowded, and no one seemed willing to move, and Kyou wasn't about to start a fight in a place like this (though he REALLY wanted to).
He tried walking along the wall to catch sight of Haru through the crowd, but more likely than not he was still somewhere in the middle of the dance floor, and Kyou wasn't going to navigate his way through THAT again.
And through all of this, Kyou knew that he was still tired, still sweating, and dammit, he was THIRSTY!!!
But it was just when he'd broken though an annoying cluster of people along the wall when he saw it. The bar… It seemed that one large section of the back wall was clear of people. A set of metal railing blocked off the dancers from the area, and just beyond the railing the floor level sank down about foot. The bar counter sat in the shadows of the second floor overhang, badly lit by lamp and neon lights. As he watched it became nearly deserted as a group of smiling and laughing men and women pulled themselves up a small opening in the railing and back up to the dance floor, taking a set of drinks with them.
Maybe Kyou had lost Haru, but at least he'd be able to get something to drink! At least something seemed to be looking up! But it was hardly enough to make Kyou smile or feel much relief. Either way, the chance to get a cool drink and be free (at least for a little bit) of the hordes of dancing people was too tempting for Kyou to pass up.
He swiftly made his way along the wall until be reached the outermost edge of the railing, grabbed hold of it (ugh, it was sticky…), and the successfully leaped over it to the cement floor there. The dance floor (or at least sections of it) had been wood, though this area seemed very… dead. Not alive like everything else in the place, probably because the strobes were mostly coming from someplace right above the overhang, and they didn't shine down where the bar was.
Walking forward, Kyou could only see two people there. Two boys sitting on stools to the left side of the bar, chatting to themselves.
One looked… creepy, like he was going for an almost vampiric look. His skin was as pale as Haru's (though it might have been make-up), and he wore solid black from head to toe, complete with a turtleneck, chains, leather pants, gloves, and his black hair sleeked back with something so that it looked like thick tar.
The other boy wasn't nearly as gothic, with cropped blonde hair and a short-sleeved red shirt. Various plastic bracelets reached up halfway to his elbows, and there were at least five piercing per ear. He looked like most of the people Kyou saw around the club, so he wasn't at all surprised or impressed (not that he was easily impressed by anyone...).
'Yup,' he thought sarcastically, 'these where Haru's sort of people...'
Satisfied that the bar didn't have any other people (and no GIRLS), Kyou sat down on a stool about two seats from the "Goth boy" (what else was he supposed to refer to him as?). He didn't want to seem afraid of them, but hell, he didn't want to sit by them, either.
Besides, Kyou, AFRAID??? Of THEM???
Pffh! Yeah right! These just weren't his sort of people, and they probably smelled funky, too....
Making sure not making any sudden movements, Kyou got comfortable in the padded stool... Hey... it really was sorta nice... comfortable... And the counter was glossy and clean, too, except for some sort of crumb mess a few feet away by the other two people who were had an empty bowl in front of them.
Kyou leaned over it on his elbows, looking around at the large assortment of liquor bottles that were carefully stacked against the far wall, reflected by a mirror (Kyou could just see a bit of his own reflection in the space between the bottles). The bartender --who happened to be a woman (1), to his displeasure-- stood by a computer and cash register a few feet to his left, and upon his arrival she smiled at him and asked from where she as standing, "Can I get you anything?" Surprisingly, she could talk normally and Kyou could still hear her.
Nodding stiffly Kyou shifted his eyes for a moment before answering, "Water," quickly, then looked anywhere but the girl.
The bar lady nodded and took out a glass from below the counter and began whipping it off for good measure with a cloth. Kyou watched her closely as she did everything, making sure not to be noticed. After adding a few ice cubes she took a fountain tab and filled the glass with fresh water.
When she saw Kyou fishing around for yen in his pockets she waved him off, walking up and setting the glass down in front of him on a napkin. "Water's free."
With another stiff nod he took the glass and the bartender went back to her computer. Kyou was feeling tense and he didn't really know why. Maybe because Haru wasn't around to take his mind of the big crowd just looming behind him. But all of that was pretty far away now, if not a few feet, and he was alone now, wasn't he? But then...
'Aw, crap...'
Instead if going unnoticed like he'd hoped, out of the corner of his eyes Kyou noticed that the Goth guy was looking at him... So was the blonde... What were THEY looking at!?
"Oi (Hey)," one of them called over to him.
Kyou ignored him, hoping that he would just go away... He carelessly took a gulp of his water, relishing it as it washed down his dry throat. He couldn't help but smiling then in satisfaction, even though the glass was filled to the brim with large ice cubs. Kyou would have to wait until it melted before he got another good drink, but it didn't matter.
His previous hopes were dashed then when the Goth guy stood and went to take the seat to his immediate right. "I haven't seen you 'round here. You new?"
Kyou snapped his head to the side and glared at him, making the guy jump a little, but also grin for some reason. "What," Kyou spanned, annoyed.
The guy grinned some more (Kami-sama he hated smiling people acting all freaking '"tra-la-la"). "Gomen. Akai and I," he jutted at thumb at his blonde companion, "come around here all the time, and I sure haven't seen you around."
Kyou snorted, setting his water down on the bar counter. "No, I don't come here. It's too loud, and… it smells." 'People smell,' he though, was considering saying it aloud. 'They really, seriously do, and more often than not in a devastatingly bad way. Dammit, where's HARU!'
Trying to distract himself from his unwelcome company Kyou looked around the counter again, and then his eyes landed on the woman who had served him his drink. The bar lady was looking annoyed for some reason, Kyou saw. He was constantly looking at her watch, before finally he took a key, turned off the register and grabbed her jacket from under the counter. She was gone soon after, from out from around the counter to a room in the back right along-side the bar and a hallway guarded by what looked like a bouncer like the one he'd seen in the front of the building.
When the door snapped shut behind her the Goth's little blonde friend decided to goin in, standing up to sit next to him friend...
'Great...'
"They're switching off for the evening," the Goth explained, conversationally. "It's the same every night, though that one, I've noticed, is always really eager to get off her shift. Doesn't wait for nobody, you know?"
"They don't get tips here," the blonde, Akai, said.
Kyou didn't give any sort of response, shaking his glass a bit before taking another drink, finishing off the last of the water present, then set it down again to let the ice melt.
Them the Goth asked a question that puzzled him.
"Ever had a vodka mixer?"
Kyou looked up, starring at him. "What?"
He grinned, tapping the rim of a glass with the tip of a gloved finger. Kyou hadn't noticed the drink before, but it was in a very small glass. "Hard vodka mixer on the rocks. Ever had one?"
'A… what? What the was that? Why would it have rocks?' "No."
"Oh... well, here!" He pushed the glass toward Kyou.
Kyou gave him a sharp look. Hadn't these idiots gotten a clue to just GO AWAY. "What?"
"Have mine! I don't really want it anymore anyway. Had something else already. Besides, you look like you could loosen up. Why so tense?"
"Pffh... Thanks, but I. don't. drink. Now go away."
Neither seemed to take his demand into account, and Akai decided to speak up. "Don't drink...? Or never drank before?"
Kyou fidgeted. Well… no, he'd never drunk before, or at least not actual liquor. As for sake, only the tip of his tongue ever touched the stuff before he'd gagged and refused anymore. The stuff smelled foul, anyway.
The blonde seemed to have taken his silence for a "no". "Wow, never…? You don't look that young…"
Kyou snorted. "I did feel like it. So just shove off."
"Oooh," the Goth grinned, "testy…." Then he pushed the drink closer so that the cold, sweat-beaded glass touched his hand. "Come ooon, I bet you're curious, aren't you? Just a little?
He was, actually…
Very curious.
Curiosity killed the cat, after all.
What would Haru say…
'Are you chicken, Kyou-kun? You'll regret life if you don't live a little and try something new for once.'
Kyou growled to himself and the quiet, calm voice in his head. Stupid, manipulative HARU…
"And the ice is melting, it's watered down," he continued, "it won't be that bad. Just get you a little buzzed."
Akai grinned. "That parts always fun, too!"
Being "buzzed" didn't seem all that bad…
Slowly, Kyou reached out and took the glass into his hand, ignoring the other two boys as they grinned winningly, and for now pushing away the fact that he didn't want these people near him to begin with. "I'm just curious," he growled, "so don't go sh-"
"Whoa, whoa!" The Goth waved his hand, he and his friend laughing. "Calm down, man, really!"
Kyou shrugged, bringing the glass to his mouth before a hand stopped him, and he looked to the Goth in annoyance. "WHAT?"
"Don't drink it so slowly," the boy said pointedly. "You'll gag, trust me. You need to take it all down as once, as much as you can. In one gulp, you know? And be sure not to take any air with you."
Kyou starred at him, then at the glass, then collected everything the Goth said in his mind and took it all into account. After counting to three, Kyou did as instructed, knocking back the contents of the glass in one fatal gulp.
Oh, SHIT! It BURNED!
Kyou's eyes widened in momentary panic as the liquid burned him all the way from his throat to his stomach. He'd been holding his breath the second after he drank the stuff, but now his lungs heaved and Kyou was coughing violently, and hand over his mouth. Damn it was bitter, too!
The two boys laughed, the Goth slapping him on the back with a pitying look. "Sorry, didn't think you couldn't take it..."
"It burns!"
"Yeah, it does, but that's supposed to be the best part."
HOW was that supposed to be the best part!?
He desperately tried to get more water from his glass, a few ice cubes falling to the floor, and in the end he actually resorted to crunching one with his teeth, but anything to get that burning feel to go away!
The Goth was still grinning at him... as was Akai, what was with them?
"I'm Kuroi," the Goth said, smirking.
The other guy (the blonde) smirked as well with an almost identical look. "I'm Akai, of course."
He didn't know what brought him to respond, but he said, "Hi..." 'Why are they introducing themselves...? I don't want to talk to them!'
A moment later a new girl came from the back room looking like she'd just come from the cold and situated herself behind the counter. Before she could do anything Kyou viciously stuck out his empty glass at her and glared, trying to control his urge to cough again. "Water," he demanded, "… just water. More water."
Kyou hardly noticed the odd, warm feeling rising from his gut.... of how his anxiety about missing a certain cow was drifting away... Hmmm....
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"Akito-san will be very displeased if he finds out...."
"It's not all my fault! I just planted the idea, I didn't think Kyou would agree!"
"And what gave you this stupid idea?"
"Who knows where these ideas come from, Ha-san. They just appear!" ^__^
"I should have known... They're in public, Shigure, and of all places one of those-"
Shigure pouted. "But Ha-saaan, I just wanted them to spend more quality time together..."
"This isn't what I would call 'quality time'..." Hatori had managed to park his car two blocks away in a parking garage, and now finally they made it to the club. Hatori grunted quietly at the mass of people who were crowded around the entrance of the club just behind the velvet barrier chain... "Low class..."
Shigure grinned. "You should've let me tell Aya-san and-"
"Iie." He stepped out of the car and started striding to the entrance before Shigure even had a chance to respond. When he heard that Shigure had managed to catch up, he continued, "It seems that you think you're going to get something out of this?" He glanced back at the inu, who had put on some of the only clothes that he had that weren't of the kimono sort, a black sweater, his suit pants and the corresponding dress shoes. "We get in, we find them, we leave. Don't touch anyone, don't breath on anyone, don't let them breath on you, and don't take any drinks... You're worse when you're drunk."
"What do you mean worse-?"
"Excuse me." Hatori had cut directly to the front of the line, where a very tall though bulky looking man stood. His bald, smooth scalp was tattooed, giving a rather macho sort of air that Hatori didn't find intimidating in the least. The man wore a thick leather jacket to protect him from the cold, and a tag around his neck indicated he worked for the place. "We need to enter immediately for an emergency situation."
Shigure seemed to be suppressing a groan. How was talking like that supposed to help them get in a club like this...?
The guard seemed to be thinking along the same lines, snorting loudly and taking in Hatori's very formal looking suit. "And who do you think you are? The Prime Minister?"
Hatori didn't even blink, then fished out a card from his pocket, his medical license (yes, doctors or any sort of medical person should have one of these...). "We were called here due to an injury. Someone fell from a dance platform and hit his head. And unless you want this place to be sued and shut down, I suggest you let us through."
Shigure was for some reason chuckling very darkly, muttering so only Hatori could hear, "Oh Ha-san, you're just an old, sly dog, too..." Sniff. "Aya-san would be so proud..."
The man gave Shigure a look, then starred at the card for a few seconds. The line in front of him was looking reckless... "I haven't been called on any of this-"
"There's no time," Hatori said, deadpan, with an air of authority that would shatter most anyone's resolve. "I suggest you let us through immediately."
"But-But you're not even dressed for this sort of thing... You're a bit to formal for this, uh, doctor..." He handed back Hatori's card, which he pocketed immediately.
"Do you seriously expect medical personnel to conform to any sort of 'dress code' while there's an emergency?"
Shigure stepped forward excitedly, "Yeah! And we were interrupted in the middle one hot dinner date, mind yo-OOF!!" He doubled over when an elbow hit him sharply in the gut. "Ha-san... hidoi (mean)..."
The man quickly undid the chain with his key, untying it from the handles and them holding the door open for the two to pass. "Please, sirs, go ahead..."
Now, either he believe them, or he just wanted them out of the way, but for Hatori, it didn't matter anymore. Nodding, Hatori stepped forward, frowning when Shigure came up to his side and latched onto his arm, winking back at the man. "We'll be sure to have fun after we complete our business here..."
"Good luck, sirs," the man called, looking at them oddly.
Shigure giggled. "Aya-san is really missing out, this is fun. Ne, Ha-san?"
"I'm going to kill you, Shigure."
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Haru was having a great time, surely.
He would be having a better time if Kyou hadn't backed out of dancing.
And of course now... he was a bit worried.
"Kyou!" Haru's voice was drowned out completely though it didn't stop him from trying. Unsurprisingly he remained ignored by everyone close enough to hear.
The neko had slipped away for longer than Haru had thought he would. Much longer. Sure, Kyou might've left altogether, but he hadn't seemed angry enough earlier when he left Haru on the dance floor to have just left.
On the other hand, he might've run into a girl, or someone tried hugging him, and he transformed. Kyou would never forgive him if something like that happened.
It was when he was about to become really panicked that Haru caught sight of the bar. And there, a familiar flash of orange hair caught his eye. "Kyou?" He came closer, and for some reason he didn't feel as relieved as he should've been to find Kyou... or perhaps it was Kyou's company.
There were two other boys there about their age, one with black hair and the other a blonde (probably bleached), and both far from being unattractive. Kyou was laughing with them, it seemed, sitting between the two. Seriously, laughing his head off...
Kyou had leaned over one of them, raising a hand toward a particularly drunken looking individual in the next seat. He used his index figure, pushing at the guy's forehead, and laughed hysterically when he toppled over onto the floor like a sack of brick. "HAHAHA, you're so weak!"
The other two laughed with him. And Haru suddenly noted that one had an arm around Kyou waist, holding him so he wouldn't fall over while knocking over the other guy. When Kyou himself seemed to notice this, he frowned, but the other guy then leaned in, whispering something in his ear, a bit too close... making Kyou laugh even harder then before, the arm and momentary discomfort forgotten after he whacked the boy in the head. The black haired boy didn't seem that affected by the hit (he didn't even let go), or maybe Kyou hadn't hit him as hard as he seemed to…
This didn't look right at all...
Haru didn't act all at once. He felt very… jealous, he supposed, but he'd promised himself to not think that way about Kyou, for Kyou's sake… but at the moment it was very hard. Kyou always said he didn't like to be touched and he'd respect that, but now these two people hanging all over him… Even though Kyou was raising his voice to them, he wasn't doing anything otherwise…
It was when the blonde stood --trying to usher Kyou along with him to dance-- that Haru had enough.
Haru strode up there as quickly and carefully as he could manage without running into anyone female and soon he was standing before the three, just as Kyou was raising a glass to his mouth, chuckling, without any indication that he'd noticed him. The first thing Haru did was grab the arm that was holding the drink, stopping Kyou so that he looked up, a bit dazed. "Kyou?"
"Haru!" Kyou grinned, twirling around on his stool to face him, looking both delighted and frustrated. "Where've you been, you stupid cow?"
The Goth looking guy didn't seem to appreciate Haru's sudden appearance at all, forcing a smile. "Who's this, neko-chan?"
Kyou glared at the guy, but not as intensely as Haru would have expected, poking him in the chest hard enough to make him wince. He said darkly, "don't call me that..." Then he went on with an exaggerated stage whisper, "Besides, that was supposed to be a' secret, you know!? Himitsu daaa! (It's a seeecret!)"
Haru detached the drink from Kyou hand, frowning. "How many drinks have you had?" Haru didn't think Kyou was the type to drink anything.
Kyou waved him off, looking like a frustrated child who was being told, 'It's way past you're bedtime, time for bed!' "Just two! Only two!" Kyou laughed again, throwing his head back, then glared. "WHAT!? You say live a little, I live a little, now what!?" The look cracked in a matter of seconds and he was laughing again, kicking his legs and looking completely ridiculous and unlike himself. The blonde grinned at him, or more correctly, grinned at Kyou's exposed neck, an odd glint in his eye. The other Goth-boy was still eyeing Haru with the same negative look he'd given him when Haru first showed up on the scene.
"You're a friend, then," the Goth asked, his voice not sounding at all pleased. "I'm Kuroi... This is Akai." He gestured at the other boy, who looked drunk himself, and was ignoring everyone but Kyou at the moment, whispering to the cat so Haru couldn't hear. "And you are...?"
Haru narrowed his eyes, not feeling inclined at all to give his name. "I came here with, Kyou..." Suspiciously he sniffed at Kyou's drink. He didn't smell anything off beyond water... just plain water... Not that he knew what to look for or smell for otherwise. Haru rarely drank while he was out. It needed his focus in order to watch from bumping into women. But he knew Kyou, he wasn't the type to not realize that fact, nor was he the type to get wasted over one and a half drinks…
But he was drinking water now, anyway, though he surely looked drunk at some level at the moment...
"Kyou…?" He ignored the other two and tried to get his friend to look him in the eye. "Kyou, can you understand me."
"They just wouldn't go away," Kyou said, exasperated. "Kept bugging-and bugging and bugging- like YOU do all the time! Though you'd want me to LIVE a lill', eh!? ALWAYS TEASING ME, DAMMIT!!!"
For some reason that made Haru tense, lips pressed together in a tight line… Kyou didn't start drinking because of Haru's teasing, did he? Kyou wasn't supposed to take him seriously…
The Goth --Kuroi or whatever-- still had his arm around Kyou (to "hold him up"), and that was making Haru uneasy, and the Darkness in the back of his mind grow just a little bit more in strength... The other, Akai, was grinning, and was practically nuzzling Kyou's neck. Kyou himself looked to be very drowsy and partially unaware all at once, as though he were zoning out, mumbling something under his breath before growling at Akai and elbowing him, and muttering, "Jackass."
The answer to what was going on was very simple, obvious, and any idiot could put this two and two together.
"You put something in his drink," Haru said flatly, stilling holding the glass firmly in one hand, eyes shifting between the two strangers and Kyou.
Kuroi shrugged. "Look, me and my friend here are just having a little fun..."
"You put something in his drink," he repeated again, as though Kuroi hadn't heard him.
"Look... we have the same stuff in ours." He lifted a drink off the table and waves it before taking a light sip. "Akai and I just wanted him to loosen up, that's all. Lower his inhibitions a bit. He's too tense, ya know? Didn't expect him to be so sensitive to it. Now that he's believing he's a cat and all..."
Akai giggled then, a hand roaming around the edge of Kyou's shirt, though unable to go anywhere due to the duct tape.... "Kitty's seeensitive-URG!" He whimpered as Kyou had carelessly gripped Akai's wrist and wrenched it at in odd angle before letting go, wagging a finger.
"No touchy," Kyou hissed, then pocked Aki hard in the forehead so he toppled back.
Kuroi smirked at his partner's antics, then continued carelessly, "You're his date today or something? Because he didn't seem to happy when he was here before, but he's in a good mood now. And it's not like we're going to do anything he won't lik-" He went silent instantly as the glass in Haru's hand suddenly went flying, crashing into the bar area and smashing to the glass shelf. Glass flew everywhere, and the bar lady screamed and ducked for cover as a chain reaction of shattering glass took place.
"Now look what you did," Kyou sighed, rolling his eyes, head lolling back in exasperation and drug-induced fatigue.
"What!? What did we do," Kuroi cried, confused and panicked.
He never got a chance to stand from his seat before Haru pounced.
"SHINEEEE (DIIIIIE)!!!"
Kyou saw Akai's expression of pure horror as he watched as his partner was tackled and thrown over the crazed pale guy's should like a rage doll.
He continued to gap like that until Kyou grunted and tapped him on the shoulder. Akai turned, what he saw was a rather… giddy… giddy-looking redhead. Yes, Kyou was feeling giddy. Very giddy. And snarling. "Don't think I didn't know," he slurred, poking the blonde hard in the chest again, knocking the boy to the ground.
Kyou seemed totally oblivious of Haru's merciless beating of the Goth kid, or the crowd that was beginning to gather at the sight of the beating, or the bar lady as she made a swift escape, OR the bounces who were shoving their way through the room toward them.
"I knew the whoooole damn time, blonde," the neko went on, standing with a surprising amount of coordination…
(The thing is, the drug was supposed to be something to relax you… but it was going through the red-head's system rapidly, and in the most unpredictable way…)
"H-HUH!?"
"This," Kyou said, pointedly taking a fist full of the boy's shirt, red eyes flashing demonically, "is for being a shirt grabbing, perverted, molesting, ECHII, pretty boy sonofab*tch…" Oh, he sounded so calm, too…
Much like his friend, Akai didn't have time to even scream…
(A/N: Yes, Kyou's been pegged an "uke" by me… but he's not your average uke, as well as he will go down fighting that fact biting and clawing to the end. (GRIN) Who hates me right now?)
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"Come on, open your shirt, Ha-san!"
"Iie (no)."
"But you look like a stiff! I'm not having my boyfri-"
"If you finish that sentence, I'll never speak to you again."
"And you're sweating all over! Pit stains are only attractive with muscle shirts! It's unattractive and unhealthy looking on a dress shirt, Tori-san!"
Hatori raised an eyebrow at Shigure before looking elsewhere, watching where he was going and who was near him. "And why are you do insistent about by personal hygiene?"
Shigure gave a wide grin. "It's my law. Aaalways say what's most likely to get the clothes off faster!"
"Baka..."
Shigure had been pestering him since they entered the club. It was unsurprising (even to Shigure himself) how easily he forgot their mission in the first place... But who could blame him! ^_^ After all, Hatori was still so young and cute! And then...
And then Shigure spotted something.
"Ne, Tori-san, what's that?"
A laugh could be heard over the pounding music. "AHAHAHAHA!!! Take THAT!!!"
That was followed by a screech of pain and terror.
Oooh yes, this sounded familiar.
Quickly Shigure spotted an empty table, and taking the opportunity he carefully climbed up so he could see over the crowd. Of course, his suspicions were proven correct.
From the looks of it, Haru was busy throttling this dark-haired kid while another lay unconscious across the bar counter. All this he did with one hand (only Black Haru could do all that with one hand…) and in his other hand he gripped a liquor bottle, from which he took a swig from ever once in a while, screaming something that Shigure couldn't catch over the music. Kyou wasn't with him, however.
No, Kyou was standing in the middle of a ring of people there at the edge of the dance floor, circling while in a fighting stance, a wide grin on his face. He was... oh dear...
"What do you see," Hatori called up to him, having to cup his hands to his mouth to he heard.
Shigure grimace, then laughed nervously. "Would you believe Haru is trying to kill some kid and Kyou is standing off against the bouncer?"
Within a few seconds, Hatori had climbed onto the table as well. When he got a good look at the scene, he curses to himself. "Chi (shit)... This is going to be more difficult than I assumed."
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Haru cackled, then took another long swig from his bottle. His reveled as the liquid burned his throat all the way to the pit of his stomach, making sure to take two huge gulps this time before stopping. The alcohol only fueled Black Haru's present thoughts, emotions, and twisted his rage into something completely different but not by far.
'Someone wanted to touch Kyou.'
'Someone wanted to take Kyou...'
'HA! Like hell! No one touched Kyou, no one!'
'Can't have that...'
Okay, maybe that wasn't all of Black Haru speaking.
Maybe he was a little drunk.
Maybe he was about to be banned from the club and every club life.
But he didn't care!
HE HAD A RIGHT TO HIS TERRITORY! And for once, White Haru had let it happen. He didn't just Black Out, he'd given the green light to beat the crap out of this scum, ALL WAS WELL!!! "HAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Nooo, Haru didn't like to share...
At that moment Kyou had managed to host the bouncer over his back, throwing him a fairly good distance. The man was sent flying over the bar counter, landing in a heap on the cement floor right next to the first bouncer who had tried to take down Kyou. It must had hurt considering the concrete and broken glass.
Ya know? For being drugged, drunk, or even stoned off his ass (Haru had no idea which) Kyou's wasn't showing it. Whatever he'd ingested HAD lowered him inhibition, and it sure has hell made him impressionable, and yeah, maybe it had made him more than a little relaxed. But whatever it was seemed to be going though his system FAST. It had to be, considering the way he was kicking ass left and right.
Kyou laughed, letting out what Haru would consider a "cute" warrior cry of victory ("BANZAI! VICTORY!! EAT THAT YOU $#%$%@$!!!") before going over to the counter and leaning over until he was practically lying flat on his stomach across the surface, legs dangling up behind him.
It was a nice view, to say the least.
"Don't any of you guys have any fight in you," Kyou screamed to the man he'd just thrown, who remained still and silent in his unconsciousness. That didn't seem to stop Kyou from bragging to him. "HUH!? DON'T YOU!? YOU SUCK!!" Kyou laughed to himself, again, until the laugher faded ever so lightly and he sighed to himself, going quiet.
It was like he was going through massive mood swings of rage and mellow silence. Black Haru wondered if that's what it was like with him…? Ah, who give a s***.
"Neee, Haru," Kyou yawned, looking at Haru sleeping through half lidded eyes. He looked... CUTE... Yes, he looked CUTE, dammit! And sexy. "Haru, no more fighting today, I'm getting sleepy... Arms.., gettin' sort of heavy." His head thudded down on the counter as he let out another yawn and letting out a light curse.
So... very... sexy...
Kyou didn't know what he was doing at all. All he knew was that his chest felt oddly warm, like his lungs were on fire or something, a faint prickly heat. For some reason he was feeling the same sensation in his head, too.
If he could've used any sort of his common sense at that moment, he would've actually realized the fact that one shot of... whatever it was, COULDN'T 'VE gotten him like this. He didn't like feeling so.... "woozy"... or so relaxed. More relaxed then he should have felt...
Haru, on the other hand, was just out of his mind at the moment. Kyou just knew it, and Kyou LOVED it! Watching Haru scream, curse, and fight was actually an exhilarating thing to watch.
Just beating the crap out of people was fun for some reason, even though half of them weren't even worth Kyou's time and effort, and every time he had to fight Kyou felt himself becoming more and more exhausted. And to think before he was feeling so nice…
But he didn't CARE! Ha! He didn't even care about that little voice in the back of his head that was screaming, "What the HELL was in that drink!!?!?"
And at that moment Haru was tugging him upward, lifting him from under his arms until his feet were firmly standing on the bar counter. But Kyou didn't feel like getting up, so if Haru wanted to use up his energy and hold him up, than so be it. For the moment he simply let Haru hold up his limp, lazy body until he decided he didn't want to risk Haru dropping him to the floor... Black Haru didn't have a history of because that carefully about his physical well being. "Can't I get a moment's rest, kisama-oushi," he said with a lack of the usual fire and rage.
Wait, was he angry again…? Angry thoughts… Why, he had angry thoughts, but he's body wasn't responding to it....
Heeh, at least this was working wonders for his blood pressure.
While Kyou glared as fiercely as possible, Haru smirked, throwing his bottle aside, letting it crash to the floor in front of the counter and shatter. Before Kyou could scold him for making a mess, Haru proceeded to flick off his audience, who cheered in response. What was so great about that? Kyou could do that… which finger was that finger again…? Huh…
"Can't touch this," Haru screamed.
Kyou was about to snort and say something regarding Haru's rather open display of stupidity, when Haru suddenly pinwheeled his arm around and smack him right in the-
THWACK!
The sheer force of the hit would have sent Kyou sailing right off the counter had Haru not steadied him with an arm around the waist.
Had he been of the right mind the sheer shock of the experience would have sent him jumping ten feet into the air and shrieked so loud the whole room would hear him even over the music, sending a cold shiver down their spines.
Black Haru grinned, leering at Kyou, though didn't both to remove his hand from his…, then bellowed to the crowd, "Can't HAVE this!!!"
Kyou's eyes bulged right out of his skull, mind screaming, 'WTF!? This was DEFINIATLY goes-this-this… WHAT WAS THIS!!?'
He was out of it. SO very out of it that not only didn't Kyou think to beat the crap out of the other boy, but he also didn't notice that Haru had practically hefted him off his feet. Kyou was being half carried half dragged off the counter, a screaming crowd in front of them, though he could no longer tell if they were pleased at Haru's spectacle or enraged.
Kyou also didn't notice that Haru --while on his way to being totally wasted-- was too uncoordinated and slipped on his decent, tripping over the prone bodies on the floor, slipping on the broken glass and spilt liquor. Both Kyou and Haru went down hard.
It was somewhere along here that Kyou blacked out after an explosive blow to the top of his head, skull connecting harshly with the concrete floor.
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"I don't believe this," Hatori said.
"I know... Who knew Haru had it in him-"
GLARE. "What else did you tell him, Shigure..."
"Nothing, I swear! You know his Black side when it's out of control, I have no control over that! Oh… LOOK!"
From the angle at which they were watching and because the crowd had moved in toward the bar their view of the scene was obstructed somewhat.
But it wasn't hard to miss Haru as he slowly revealed himself. Only his head was visible to them, but it had to be him, the way it was illuminated a brilliant white under the fluorescent light of the bar.
Shigure could just make out an unconscious Kyou, slung over the cow shoulders as he made a quick exit around the side of the bar to the right, disappearing from view.
"He's moving," Shigure said, following Haru's movements as far as he could, trying to figure out where they had gone to. They seemed to have left the crowd, but that could only mean…
Haru just took them to the back rooms. (4)
Shigure might have been a dog in both the figurative and literal sense most of the time, but he wasn't (though he didn't like to show otherwise) stupid, nor was he (humorlessly) cruel (though sometimes it was just too FUN to resist). Because in Haru and Kyou's conditions at the moment, if either of them did ANYTHING while not in their right minds, Kyou would surely never forgive Haru or himself.
And the lovely image he had of cat and cow together would be washed down the drain.
Reacting instantly, knowing he had to do something, get to them, for Haru and Kyou would never hear him even if he tried calling, Shigure jumped down from the table, ready to follow after the two boys.
This had been a very... very bad move.
The table he and Hatori were standing on was the sort that was one circular disk on a metal cylinder pole, one end attached to the bottom of the table and the other end attached to the cement floor with large bolts.
Somehow as Shigure relieved that table of his weight, it snapped under Hatori from where he still at one edge. Just… broke… There was the groaning sound of warping. aged wood, which could barely be heard over all the noise in the room. Then a sudden deafening SNAP! as the now obviously wooden pole holding up the table snapped, sending two empty classes, a light candle, a rain of food crumbs, and Hatori himself headfirst toward the wooden portion of the dance floor.
The really surprising thing was that even while Hatori fell, he did it with style. He didn't flail or pinwheel his arms, no! He held them carefully at his sides, preparing for impact. His eyes weren't wide in horror or fear, they were wide and focused ahead of him, seeing what he was going to hit, all the time preparing himself. He didn't even make a sound (not that he would've been able to hear, anyway).
Shigure didn't really see what happened after that, it was really, really dark, after all, but the table was broken and on it's side, and there was-
*POOF!*
A puff of colored smoke…
'Aw, shoot...'
Shigure hurried over to the other side of the table, and sure enough, there was a girl laying nearly facedown on the floor, cursing and rubbing her neck. And my, with her short skirt, Shigure got a really good view of-NO! No, back to the business at hand!!!
Lying near the girl was a pile of clothes...
"What the hell," the girl cried, looking over then. She noticed the clothes, then she noticed Shigure as he hurried over.
"Oh, sorry miss, that was my fault, these are mine!" He grabbed up the clothes, being very careful as he lifted them to hide the little seahorse that now lay nested in the fabric, and no doubt suffocating to death.
Without another word he was off again, moving along the wall as to lower the risk of touching anyone, heading to where he last saw Kyou and Haru.
The bar...
He got there in record time, jumping over the railing and the two teens that seemed to have been the focus of Black Haru's rage a moment ago.
There at the counter (to his great luck) he found an abandoned glass of some sort of drink. He emptied it right their on the countertop and grabbed a salt container he saw which was at one point being used for martinis (3). Taking these supplies he RAN to find the men's room.
He had, after all, never known Hatori to be much of an exhibitionist.
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To be continued in... Red As Blood: "The Psychology of Color"
1) I think most bartenders at clubs are girls... I don't know why, but they are. Maybe it's a trust thing or something?
3) Urgh, it's true. Either they line the rims of martinis with salt or sugar... though I will have no idea what that tastes like for another year and 22 days.
4) A "back room", as I call it, is a private room. It's a room that people (or couples) can get and it's usually first come-first serve. The lighting is usually very… romantic… ~_~ Where couples go to have "alone" time and do what they will… anything that they will… (blush) Though I would like to note again I DO NOT DO LEMONS!!! Please don't expect smut from this!
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This, and I say again, THIS is NOT a cliffie... Just think about it, of aaaaall the places where I COULD have stopped in this fic (where some authors would slip this into two parts just to tease) I did NOT!
I could have stopped when Kyou was left alone with those two creeps... I could have stopped RIGHT after Hatori and Shigure got in there.... but no... I could even have stopped after Black Haru pounce, but I DID NOT!
Anyways… I CAN'T BELIEVE I WROTE THAT!!! (BLUSH) I've never, ever posted a couple-based fic before, so this is very weird for me.
I have no idea when the next part will be out, but I've been mega-busy with school. College is a pain, and I really wanna keep up my GPA.
Fanart will have to come later, as I don't have the correct version of Photoshop handy. And, if you haven't gotten a response, if you want to me emailed for an update, just ask! And if you would like to receive fanart, also ask. And that you to all who like the first installment of fanart showing Kyou character design for this story, -^__^-
Review is you can! ^__~ And Happy B-Day to me and best friend, Gitta! We're 20 and 19 as of September 14th and 13th!
Geuna~
PS :
And I would like an opinion. Is anyone interested in a installment to tell of the events between "Black As Pitch" and "Red As Blood" when Kyou and Haru are getting to know each other on a lighter more casual note, like their moments during the school days, or being at Shigure's house. I'm not sure when it would be posted, sorta like a prequel to the others fics, but still. The thought
is funny... Black Haru having temper tantrums whenever someone insults his hair and Kyou newer reaction to it... Hana-chan getting waves and freaking out Kyou.... Shigure bugging them NONE-STOP about how Kyou makes such a sweet housewife... (snorts) He forgets that dogs don't have nine lives like SOME people.
And on THAT note, I would like to say that Kyou is the "girl" or the relationship, only because Haru acted first… But as you can see, Kyou sure doesn't act like it. Even when knocked up with something he's beating the crap out of people for fun... but... what does the next part have for us!? WE SHALL SEE!!! HAHAHA!!!
