DISCLAIMER: Sorry for the hang up! Still not mine!

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Sorry about the major delay on this one, guys! I've been spending some time in hell, fairly literally, and didn't have time to proof/HTML this thing until today. Hope no one forgot about this story in the meantime, and hope you'll forgive me for leaving you hanging!

A few of you said the last bit of 22 was a cliffhanger. Well... it wasn't. I left it hanging, not to be resolved in this chapter. Just hold your horses, you'll find out what's going on soon. And these next chapters are somewhat confusing. Questions that get brought up don't necessarily get answered in the same chapter, some things that seem to be resolved really aren't...

~Kaze-chan disappears for an hour~

~Kaze-chan returns~

EDDIE IZZAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRD!

~grins~ Sorry, Eddie Izzard was just on. Wah ha HAAAAAAA! Yes, sliiiiiiiight obsession. I really need to find out when Dressed to Kill STARTS once so I cna tape it and watch the entire thing. Already got Glorious, although I lent it to a friend back in MAY and he kept it all through summer and then gave it to his girlfriend to return which she hasn't but they both got hooked so it's cool but I wanna see it again and chant along with the Grim Reaper lawnmower segment and I need to stop this sentence! Ahh, Mouse could sympathize... "Le singe est sssss...... Le singe est disparu." Okay, stopping ^^;;;

Time for thank you's!

Draconsis, no, the cops aren't anyone's reincarnations. They're just cops ^_^ I like 'em. They're showing up again.

Evil Hunter, rantress extraordinaire! You wanna see Miboshi? Well, hang on, I said all the seishi, didn't I? Just got other things to get to!

~grins~ Kris-chan, you probably know several things I could say right now, so just fill in the blank. I'll get back to you with that beta soon! Working on it now! ^_^ And seriously, you WOULD need a lot of gel, and don't deny it! It's gotta be immoble!

Keimei, that thug was a lackey, pure and simple. Disgusting-looking nameless lackey who was instructed to bring Risako to Akihiko. But our female redhead's a bit tougher than she looks ^__^ My girls can't be helpless flowers, I absolutely forbid it! Gah! That would make me sick!

Chibigreen, that quote MADE MY DAY. Also made a lot of my friends' days. Thank you sooooo much! And yes, of course she can ~grins~ She also knows how to manipulate and torture him (when you consider who he was and what his precarnation acted like, it's not hard to figure out what she does...)

Skittles - yep, it was "that talk," although the talk was about the possibility of that happening. I'm avoiding revealing that answer as long as possible - and people're gonna hurt me for that, but tough, I'm the all-powerful author! ^_^ And Bendy Straws! Sweet! And pairings, too, will also be put off to a later date ^_^

Elwing Silme ~grins~ Remember, in the series, Tokaki and Subaru were a good seventy years older than the Suzaku boys. Here, it's only thirty or so years. For me it's actually somewhat easier to reconcile, as I can also picture them middle-aged, not as old as they were in the show (but unfortunately not as young, either ~sobs~). Actually, you weren't the only one to think something was left out - Ara-chan did too, when she read it. But neither of us could figure out what it was, so it got left as-is. And the Big Meeting WILL happen! ^_^ No worries!

Sano. ~THWACKS~ if you really did that, I'd get to sashimi you ^_^ And of course Ryobe can't think before he acts! He wouldn't be Ryobe then! ^_^ And I would tell you, but she's not exactly telling -me-, although I suspect it involves him sleeping on the couch for a long time. Remember, that's a verrrrrrrrrrrrry big torture for him! ^_^

Flying heart, of COURSE Miyazaki is amazing! He's my favorite filmmaker. I'm trying to hunt down everything of his - unfortunately I've only seen Mononoke, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi (aka Spirited Away), and half or so of Totoro. I'm working on it, though! And the Reijirou/Risako-Reijirou/Anyone else thing is going to get more confusing, not less - and I'm gonna have to run from people with weapons, but what the hell, life is spicy that way! ^^ Actually, the table of characters wasn't my idea. Someone requested it on chapter 20 I think and I just got around to putting it up on 22. And yes, smack the wits INTO the younger brother. I wish you luck!

Hotohori Fan, cliffhangers are a godsend ~grins~ I honestly admit that I employ them to keep people reading. A lot of professional authors do that, and it works - a lot of times I can hardly put the book down! (Faulkner's a different story altogether.) Hope you still like this!

Okay, NOTE THIS. I did NOT copy any of this or any of what's coming up from Mouse-chan, and she will verify it. We compared story notes one day back in January I think and realized we just happened to have a lot of the same ideas. I've had this fic planned for months - it's just getting it down that's the problem.

And cultural note, because I make a very bad reference to this in this chapter. There was a famous comic in Japan with the last name of Enomoto, Enomoto Ken'ichi. He was basically the reason that comedy didn't die out after WWII; I think he died around 1970. He's still famous, I think kinda like Bing Crosby or John Belushi (we all know their names, after all). I just make a bad reference to him and don't want anyone to get confused. Oh well, have fun!



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Riiiiiiiiiiiing. Riiiiiiiiiiiing. Riiiiiii- "Stereo Music, may I help you?"

"Hey Reijirou, glad I got you at last."

"Risako?" He set down the catalog he'd been idly leafing through, turning the rest of his attention to the phone. "Why are you calling me here?"

"Well, I tried your home and they said you were at work, and if I wait any longer it'll be too late."

"WHO IS IT?" Kadiri yelled from the back. Yelling was the only way to be heard in the front from there, and vice versa.

"IT'S RISAKO!" he yelled back, making sure the phone was covered. "Sorry. Kadiri. Too late for what?"

"For tonight!" Reijirou could practically hear the sugar in her voice. "Chomei-kun is giving a party tonight, but my parents made me promise not to go anywhere alone, so will you take me pleeeeaaaaaaase? You don't have to stay, but I need an escort."

"What? That thug was arrested two days ago and we haven't seen anything from any of them since then, Ashitare or lackeys."

From her tone, Risako was rolling her eyes. "Tell that to my parents. And I suppose they have a point, and no one should really be going around alone anyway, just in case something does happen. But anyway, can you do it? You're at the top of their list of Trusted Bodyguards," she added helpfully.

He sighed, knowing he couldn't say no. She, like most females, could turn on the five-year-old charm at any instant, and he'd have another Naora on his hands. "Sure, what time do you need me to pick you up?"

"YAAAAAAY! Hey Mom, he'll do it!" she called away from the phone. "Can you be here at 6:30? That should be enough time."

"I don't have the car today."

"Okay, make it 6:15 then. Thanks Reijirou, you're the best." Click.

"Well good bye to you too," he told the buzzing receiver as he set it in the cradle again.

Kadiri pushed her way out of the back, kicking the door open with her foot as her hands were somewhat occupied with a tall stack of heavy cardboard boxes. Reijirou ran around the counter and took them from her, holding them as easily as if they were tissue paper. "Thanks," Kadiri panted, swiping a stay piece of hair from her eyes. "What was the phone call about? Oh, set those over here." She took Reijirou by the shoulders and spun him around, then pushed-slash-guided him to where she wanted the boxes.

He set them down, next to the Imported section, and rotated his right arm. It was giving him some trouble, and he was thinking of seeing Murai about it before it got too bad. "The Daishis got paranoid and made Risako promise not to go anywhere alone, which hasn't been a problem so far, but apparently one of her friends is having a party tonight and she doesn't have anyone to take her. And also apparently I'm at the top of a very short list."

"Yeah, no wonder, you two are practically going steady. Who better to protect the damsel in distress than the knight in shining armor?" Kadiri replied with a wicked grin.

Reijirou sighed in exasperation, shaking his head. "Why does everyone insist on putting us together? Isn't it possible for a guy and a girl to be friends nowadays?"

"Not the way you two act." Kadiri laughed and ducked a swipe. "And it's so easy to bait you like that. You, the social butterfly, are afraid of romantic commitment."

Reijirou snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "At least I get out. Hey, wanna come? I don't think there'll be anyone there I know, I could use some company."

Kadiri took a step back and shook her head. "Oh no. I still remember what happened the last time you dragged me out for an 'introduce me to the world' session. Chaos, cursing, and clobbering, remember?"

"By the way, where is Soi today?"

"Suezo has her and Hotohori today, thank god. After a day like yesterday…" she groaned.

Reijirou didn't have to ask what the groan was about. He'd been there, and on the subsequent clean-up crew, after Amiboshi and Suboshi between them had managed to take apart three of the wire-frame CD display cases. They hadn't bothered to explain how the cases came apart to the new clerk, who was also working at the time.

"And I couldn't come with you anyway, I already have plans. Oh, you shut up!" Kadiri chucked a pencil at him as Reijirou went into a dramatic swoon and faint over the news that she was actually going to do something.

Reijirou grinned up at her from the floor, rubbing his nose where the eraser had hit it. "Amazing, you're getting out! Pray tell what happy circumstance merits this break from traditional behavior."

"Now that is none of your damn business," Kadiri told him firmly, turning away and walking in the direction of the back room.

"It IS my business! I saw you blush just now!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"DID NOT!"

"DID TOO!"

"DID NOT!"

"AH-HAH! You ARE blushing!" Reijirou crowed triumphantly. He'd seen it plain as day when she turned to scream her last retort at him. "TELL already!"

"All right, all right, if it'll make you shut up all right!" Kadiri groaned, pressing the heels of her hands to her cheeks and shaking her head. "I swear, you're the most dense, most annoying, most irritating-"

"You forgot charming, handsome, superiOW!"

Kadiri grabbed another CD and prepared to use it as more ammunition if necessary. "And you can't laugh. You can't tease me. Promise that or not only will I not tell you, I'll make sure this gets stuffed up your nose." She waved the CD threateningly.

Reijirou didn't really feel like having enlarged nostrils at the party, and Kadiri could be downright dangerous when she wanted to be. He forced back the laughter and managed to put on a straight face. "I promise."

"All right." She still held the CD poised to throw, and Reijirou prepared to do some major laughter hiding. "I'm going out with Keisuke tonight."

Blink…… blink. "You're what?"

"Are you deaf or something? I said I'm going out with Keisuke tonight. He asked me last week and I said yes."

"You're going out with Keisuke…"

"Yes, dolt."

"Ohhhhhhh, this is perfect."

"NE! You take that look off your face RIGHT NOW or I'll-"

"I only said I wouldn't tease you! I never said I wouldn't tease the two of you together! OW!"



~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~




"She's going out with Keisuke tonight?!" Risako asked as they walked, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Yeah, it shocked me too. I don't know if it's a date or a just-friends type of thing, but still. How much farther is it?"

"Not much. Why, is mister superstar track runner getting tiiiiiiiired?" Risako grinned and ducked Reijirou's attempt to grab her shirtsleeve, darting ahead and laughing. He wasn't about to let her get away with that, so he sped up, keeping an eye on her through the crowd, tracking her progress. Pedestrian traffic got in his way, though, and he spent the last six blocks of the trip trying to catch her, as she could slip through the spaces in the crowd better.

By the time he finally pushed his way past the last slow walkers, Risako had come to a stop at the entrance to the parking lot of an apartment building he'd seen before, but never entered. It was one of the buildings that screamed College Kids Live Here, what with the parking lot only a fourth full of cars that might possibly be more run-down than his (a dazzling feat in and of itself) and trash cans placed out for collecting that seemed to be full of nothing but instant ramen packages. Reijirou'd never had reason to enter a college student's apartment before as most of his friends were younger than him, and he found himself getting a little apprehensive - what would be going on in there tonight? He just prayed to Suzaku that nothing illegal would happen; he and Risako were in enough trouble with the police as it was.

"So who is this Chomei guy anyway?" Reijirou asked as they wound their way through the strangely empty parking lot.

"Jukodo Chomei. He's a year ahead of us, I got to know him through some extracurricular stuff at school. Soccer, mostly, he was our manager. He goes to Seinan, and he's majoring in some sort of business thing. Too much math for me." She paused by the door into the building, studying the list of names and apartment numbers. "Where is he, where is- ah." She located the nameplate that spelled out his name and pressed the corresponding button next to it.

A couple of seconds later there came a squall of static from the substandard speaker. When the noise cleared, there could distinctly be heard the sounds of music in the background and lots of talking. "Who is it?" It was definitely a male voice.

"It's Risako, I'm coming up!"

"Hey, Risako-san! Yeah, come up, we're all waiting." A general unintelligible chorus from the background talkers seemed to support his point.

"Well, I'll take off now, have a good time," Reijirou called as he started to head back through the parking lot.

Risako spun, looking hurt. "I invite you to a party and you're not gonna even go in? Come on, it's Friday night, we don't have classes tomorrow, is it gonna kill you to at least meet these people? I think you'd like them, if you give them a chance."

"But I've got stuff to do-"

Risako darted forward and grabbed his sleeve before he could blink. "No arguments!" He yelped as she pulled him towards the shabby door inside.

A minute later they were standing in the hallway Chomei's apartment was on, fading carpet beneath their feet, dull paint on the walls. Risako was knocking with one hand and holding Reijirou in place with the other. He was normally up for anything like this, but for some reason he just didn't want to be there at that party. There was just something… not quite right he was feeling…

The door swung open abruptly and light and music poured out into the hall, startling him and making Risako grin. "Chomei-kun!"

"Risako-san!" Chomei was taller than Reijirou by a good four inches and also had a bulkier build, but not by much - most soccer players tended to be lithe rather than excessively muscular. He couldn't tell what color hair or eyes Chomei had as the light from the apartment was most definitely stronger than the light from the hall and threw him into relief, but he could tell he had relatively short hair. Shorter than Reijirou's own, but not by much - it was like Taka's almost. "And who's this?" Chomei asked, turning to Reijirou.

"Oh, Reijirou, this is Jukodo Chomei. Chomei, this is Enomoto Reijirou."

"Enomoto?" Chomei's eyes brightened. "Hey, are you-"

"No I'm not related to Enomoto Ken'ichi," he replied automatically, and with a great deal of emphasis.

Chomei just watched him for a minute before speaking again. "I was going to ask if you were related to Chiaki, but… never mind."

"Oh. Heh." Reijirou grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. "Gomen. I get that question a lot, though. Just because we have the same last name doesn't make us related. Yeah, Chiaki's my sister."

"Nice, I had her in one of my classes once, forget which one though… But what are we standing around here for, come in!"



~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~




One hour later found Reijirou sprawled by himself on the couch in the main room of Chomei's apartment, a soda in his hand (avoiding the alcohol that was inevitably making the rounds), wondering when he could leave. Not until Risako did; his sense of duty and honor would drive him crazy if he left her in other hands, saying it was his responsibility and he'd said yes and- Damn, it was annoying to have a conscience.

He didn't really fit in with this group either, which was surprising him. He'd been somewhat of a chameleon in high school, able to show up anywhere and make friends and feel at ease - but maybe that was because he'd been popular. He hated to use the term popular, but he'd definitely been well known and somewhat influential in his class; most people knew who he was and he could talk to almost anyone. But the group at this party seemed to be made of Soccer People, which in a way made sense but didn't help his situation any. Risako had been claimed by a group of girls who he vaguely remembered being on the soccer team in high school, and sat with them still, happily gabbing away about who-knew-what. There were also a surprisingly few number of people for a party: fifteen at the most. The guys had all gathered together in Chomei's room and were actively discussing something he hadn't been able to understand even when he had been able to hear them. And the other group of girls, the larger group, was talking about Girl Topics: makeup, hair, clothing, boyfriends, and the like. His patience was worn thin enough as it was without having to listen to them.

Something clambered over the back of the couch and dropped with a dull whuff of air beside him, flattening the foamy cushions. "Not having fun?" Chomei asked, leaning forward to grab an unopened soda from the damaged coffee table in front of them.

For some reason, picking the non-alcoholic choice raised him in Reijirou's regards. "Not really. I don't know anyone except Risako, and now you. I'm only here because… something bad happened and her parents don't want her going around alone. And if I leave before she does my conscience'll kill me."

Chomei laughed a little, nodding his head. "The Daishis get some strange ideas sometimes, all three of them."

"Oh, you've met them?"

He nodded. "They used to come to all the games. They were never the loudest or most obsessive parents, but somehow you could tell they were the most proud. We talked afterwards a few times, they're good people."

"Yeah, they are."

"So." Chomei popped the tab on the soda, but didn't drink immediately. "What're you majoring in?"

Reijirou shrugged, fiddling with the pop-tab he'd pulled off the can. "Don't know. I'm still surprised I even got in, let me get over that shock before you make me think about the rest of my life." He saw Chomei grin out of the corner of his eye. "You're in business?"

"Unfortunately." He made an expressive face and set the drink down again, still untasted. "My father wants me to help him out at work after I get out of school, but it's not what I want."

Reijirou frowned slightly. He'd thought they were past the be-just-like-me era of fathers, but apparently not entirely. "What would you be doing instead?"

"I don't really know… art or something, maybe…" Chomei was interrupted by a burst of giggling from the Girly Group, who he glanced at before shaking his head and settling on the couch again. "At least I got out of my home, I'd go crazy if I was still there. Do you have your own place?" he asked, a genuinely interested look in his eyes.

"Nah, I live at home. It saves money and I have access to a car and phone and free food. And my family gets along pretty well, Chiaki still lives there too."

"Must be nice to have such a good family. We're well enough off, but close-knit's something you could never call us." Chomei turned to look at Reijirou seriously. "That's why friends are so important to me."

Huh? "…Right."

"You know, we should do something together, just the two of us. I'm always ready to make new friends."

Am I mistaken or am I… getting hit on? "That's good, I guess."

"So, what about it? We could go see a film, get a bite, whatever you want."

Help. Save me. Now. "Uh, maybe later, when I'm not so busy with school and work and stuff…" He started to get up, but Chomei grabbed his wrist and pulled him to sit down again. It was like he didn't even think about it, he just did it.

"You work? Cool, where?"

He was faaaaaaaaar too interested for Reijirou's comfort. "Nowhere important."

Chomei grinned, an impish grin that would have seemed right on Risako, maybe, but definitely not him in that situation. "I could just get Risako-san to tell me, might as well save me the trouble and do it yourself."

Heeeeeeeellllllllllllllllllpppppp! "At a music store." Risako, help me, NOW! GET HIM AWAY!

"Cool! I'm always up for finding a new music store." He gave Reijirou a significant look that made the younger boy want to hide under the couch. "Especially one with cute help."

"'xcusemeIgottagoaskRisakosomething," he blabbered before boosting himself over the back of the couch, tumbling off, and taking off in a run towards the room her group had occupied - the mini-kitchen. Chomei was left on the couch with a classic "what did I do?" look on his face.

Reijirou burst through the door to the mini-kitchen and saw… not what he wanted. The other three girls Risako had been talking to were still perched on the counter at various intervals, but Risako herself was nowhere to be seen. The other three looked at him strangely as he stood there, breathing slightly heavily, one hand gripping the door handle, the other braced against the frame, leaning into the room with a look of desperation on his face. "Where's Risako?" he asked helplessly.

"She went to the bathroom…" the blonde said cautiously. She didn't even get to finish before Reijirou dashed away, leaving the door swinging in his wake.

He located the bathroom and pounded at the door, really not caring about the dent he put in the wood. He could barely hear the sound of running water over the music in the background and the typical party chatter. "Risako, open up!"

A second passed in sheer agony where he was sure that at any moment Chomei was going to come looking for him, but before the fear could root too deep the door opened and Risako leaned out. "Reijirou? What is it?"

He wasted no words, just pushed her back into the small room and practically dove in himself, closing the door hurriedly.

"Reijirou! What the hell are you doing?! Do you know how many rumors you just started?!" Risako demanded.

"I don't care! In fact maybe it'd be better if they did start." He paced the narrow room restlessly and wildly as best he could.

"Better for who, you or me?" she replied darkly, sitting on the sink counter with a huff.

He didn't catch the warning note in her voice. "Me." He spun to face her, a pleading look on his face. "Risako, I don't care what you do, but keep him away from me!"

That threw her for a loop. "Him? What him?" Her voice lost all maliciousness, went to merely puzzled and agonizingly curious.

"Him! Your friend! Chomei! Damnit, he was hitting on me!"

A teasing grin stretched across her face as she understood at last. "Oh, should I have warned you he was gay, then?"

"YES!!"

She laughed and stood, quite calm and in control now. "Calm down. I'll tell him to back off. I could tell him you have a significant other, too."

"But I don't!"

"But he doesn't know that," she replied reasonably. "And if you're this adamant about it, then a white lie can help a lot. Now, OUT!"

"But Risako-"

"Out!" She opened the door and shoved him out, making him rebound off the wall across the hall as she stepped out calmly and shut the door again. "And don't start freaking out again. I promise, I'll make him leave you alone."

"Risako, can we just get out of here?" he begged.

She shook her head. "Not if you want this finished."

The bathroom was located on a small hallway that connected the main room with Chomei's bedroom, the door of which was mostly closed. Unfortunately, there was no door between the hallway and the main room, and from the right position everything in the hallway was easily seen. And the couch was in the right position. Out of the corner of his eye, Reijirou saw Chomei's face brighten when he magically appeared out of the bathroom (Chomei didn't seem to notice that he'd been pushed, though), and the older boy had set down his drink, stood, and was weaving his way around the furniture before Reijirou even knew what was going on. "Risako, he's coming, let's get out already."

"Don't worry! He won't do anything!"

"How can you be so sure?!"

Risako seemed to be keeping tabs on Chomei out of the corner of her eye, and she didn't act like she'd heard his question. He was about to desperately repeat it when she grabbed the front of his shirt in both hands, hauled him down to her level, and kissed him full on the mouth.

He was a little too stunned to do anything to stop her.

After about ten seconds she pulled back, letting him stand up straight again but not letting go of his shirt. He could only stare at her in shock, but she was giving him a look that seemed to say she thought of him as more than just a friend…

Unknown to him, but very apparent to her, Chomei was standing at the entrance to the hall, a stricken look on his face. Somehow he'd been so sure that Reijirou was like him, for some reason he'd just been sure… He watched Reijirou, all hopes dashed, trying to see the expression on his strangely beautiful face. His vision was blocked by Reijirou's own hair, though, and so he glanced at Risako, who definitely looked lovey-dovey.

"Wanna get out of here?" she asked, softly, that smile still on her face. Reijirou just nodded. "Come on then, let's go."

Chomei stepped out of the way, still watching in shock, as the two of them walked down the hall, going past him as if he wasn't even there, watching each other. The main door to the apartment opened onto the main room, and that's where they went. He scrambled after them, still trying to catch a glimpse of Reijirou's face.

Reijirou was still in a daze. He opened the door in a daze, let Risako go through in a daze, went through himself in a daze, and closed it in a daze. With the last click of the door shutting, the sweet sappy look on Risako's face was replaced with the utmost in mischief and triumph. "Toldja."

"The… the hell?!"

She just grinned innocently. "You said 'I don't care what you do,' so I took you at your word! And you're a horrible actor. Calm down, you're gonna make me get annoyed, which is not good after I just did you a favor."

"But you just kissed me!"

"I didn't think most guys had problems with that," she drawled sarcastically.

The door bursting open interrupted their almost-argument, and they both turned to look at it. Chomei stood there, watching them, a strange expression on his face. Reijirou hurriedly ducked over to the side and let Risako take care of saying goodbye for them both.

She smiled at Chomei, just a normal, friendly smile. "Thanks for inviting me, Chomei-kun, I had fun. But I should probably be getting back, Mom and Dad are getting paranoid."

"Okay…" he replied, looking at Reijirou, who determinedly was attempting to look casual. "Maybe we could do something together later, the… three of us."

As Reijirou was very likely to burst out with something radically inappropriate at that, Risako forestalled the explosion by answering for them both. "Yeah, we'll work it out."

There was the soft noise of air displacement next to his shoulder, the one away from the door, and while Risako had Chomei engaged he glanced over to see what it was. Soi stood there, arms crossed, a pout on her face that would be funny at any time his nerves weren't destroyed. She was also grumbling under her breath. "I go to check on her, make sure she's all right, and she's sitting there getting all sugary-sweet with Keisuke of all people!"

Reijirou checked, making sure that Chomei was still distracted, then spoke in a voice only loud enough to let Soi hear. "You're the one who was obsessed with a man to the point of killing and you get disgusted by a little talking?"

She looked distinctly discomforted and shot him a glare to hide it. "Well… it's not the same thing."

"Oh no, not at all," he replied, his overly nice tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Shut up," she snapped, looking away from him to hide the fact she was blushing, exactly as Kadiri had. She finally noticed the dismal surroundings, taking in the low light, the bad carpet, the narrowness of the hall, barely wide enough for two people to walk down shoulder to shoulder. "I take it this place isn't in the best of condition."

"Nope," he replied, still softly.

He glanced up again when he heard Risako's voice say his name. "What was that?"

"I said we'd get in touch about doing something," she repeated, being careful not to make any overt reactions to Soi's sudden appearance.

"Maybe tomorrow, all right?" As much as he wanted to hate him, Reijirou could almost pity Chomei when he saw the look the older boy was wearing, like a kid whose puppy just got ran over. After all, it wasn't Chomei's fault that Reijirou wasn't interested in him like that, just as it wasn't Reijirou's fault that Chomei was.

"Yeah, maybe. We'll let you know." He barely managed to finish his sentence before Soi let out a shriek that curdled both his and Risako's blood.

"WHAT THE HELL IS HE DOING HERE?!?!?!"



~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~




"Tetsuya, I'm serious! It's Tomo! We have Tomo!"

"You've gotta be lying, there's no way we could have missed him this long!"

"I'M NOT!" Reijirou yelled into the receiver of the pay phone whose booth he and Risako were stuffed in, sharing the receiver, with Soi hanging around outside and still looking miffed. "SOI says it's him! She'd know! She and the twins would know better than anyone!" He cast a glance at the seishi in question, then lowered his voice to protect his life. "And boy does she look pissed. I don't think she's ever forgiven him for rivaling her for Nakago."

Tetsuya sighed. "Sounds like you have the right person then… Can you try and explain again why we didn't know this before?"

Risako huffed and tilted the receiver in her direction. "One, his hair isn't three feet long now. Two, he's not wearing that god-awful makeup or those weird clothes. Three, he acts normal now. And no he doesn't seem homicidal. He isn't, I've known him three years!"

"Then why didn't you see this before?"

"Do you really want me to bash you over the head with that list next time I see you?"

"Tetsuya," Reijirou broke in, yanking the receiver back, "can you and Yui help us get everyone together for tomorrow? The sooner we get him summoned, the better."

"Sure, we'll help," the older man replied. "And I have a piece of good news. Daisuke is working tomorrow, as is Keisuke. We could do another joint summoning, close up shop for the afternoon and bring Daisuke to… Where's this one gonna happen?"

Risako pulled the speaking end of the receiver back to her. "How about at my place? I still have the books there, and Chomei-kun won't be too surprised if I ask him to come over; he has before."

"Are you sure? What about your family?"

"Don't worry," she said firmly. "I guarantee there won't be a problem."

"Okay, if you're sure… See you tomorrow, two o'clock fine with you?"

"Perfect. See you then. Say hi to Yui."

"Bye."

"Bye Tetsuya," Reijirou answered, hanging up the receiver then shooting Risako a curious look. "They still don't know about your parents?"

She shrugged as well as she could in the cramped space. "There never seemed to be a good time to mention it. Although word might have gotten around since at least three seishi have seen them and talked to them."

"Gesshin knows for sure. Well, any way it happens tomorrow's gonna be interesting." Reijirou suddenly became aware of just how small the space they were occupying was and how close the two of them had to stand, and he abruptly whirled and exited in a hurry.

Risako followed, closing the door to the booth with a perplexed expression on her face. "What is it?"

"Nothing. Ready to go, Soi?" he asked, turning to the seishi who was still looking ticked.

Before she could answer Risako had grabbed his wrist and pulled him around to face him again, a determined look on her face. "Yes there damn well is something, now tell me or I'm gonna have to torture it out of you."

"Look, don't push it." He yanked out of her grasp and began walking back in the direction of the Daishi apartment, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "It's nothing."

"It's that kiss, isn't it?"

"Kiss?" Soi inquired, looking up with more interest than she had showed in anything in the last fifteen minutes.

He groaned. "Oh now look what you did. The gossip circle's gonna be running at top level now."

"It's nothing to be ashamed of. It got Chomei off your back, didn't it?"

"What kiss?" Soi interrupted again.

Risako briefly summed up. "Chomei was hitting on Reijirou, and Reijirou asked me to do whatever it took to get Chomei away from him, and so I kissed him when Chomei could see us. There, that's all."

"Hmm, Kadiri'll be interested in this…"

"What did I tell you about the gossip circle?" Reijirou muttered darkly.

"Fine." Risako had had enough. If he was going to make that big a deal out of it then she wasn't going to bother with him. "I've had enough. I'm going home." She whirled and marched past Reijirou, completely annoyed and ready to hit him if he said just one more thing.

There was a scrambling of footsteps behind her and then it was Reijirou's turn to grab her arm and make her face him. "Not by yourself, I promised your parents."

She wrenched away, feeling like she was teetering on the border of killing him in anger or having the worst crying fit she ever had in her life. "Oh, so that's how it is," she said acidly. "Duty. Responsibility. Your conscience will drive you crazy if you let me out of your sight. I can take care of myself thank you so fucking much!" She spun again and ran, leaving him staring after her in shock.

A moment passed in almost complete silence where he couldn't think, couldn't even hear himself breathe. "For someone whose past life lived as a woman for several years, you still have a lot to learn about them," Soi said calmly behind him.



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AUTHOR'S NOTES II: Yeah, people either love me or hate me now. Probably hate me ~ducks pokey weapons~ And yeah, I screwed with the poor boy's head even more - believe it or not, this is light for me. Seriously. I've been known to kill pregnant character's lovers before. ~shrugs~ Occupational hazard. I do torture if it fits the story, I do good stuff if it fits the story. I'm just strange.

Seriously, how many people wanna hurt me now, and why exactly? I have this bizarre curiousity to know now! ^_^ Jaaa!