VERY IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE!!! ^-^
Ok, Please read this.
I have a very important question to make to all of you. When I first started writing this, I had a clear idea of what I was going to do; I still do. But now I'm not so sure I should do it. The thing is, in a few chapters, there'll be a turn on this story. Make that a BIG turn. I'm not making it up as I go, I had a plan. I'm afraid once I get to the 'turn' part, you'll hate it so much you'll never want to set eyes on the story again. Now don't worry, no one dies (they're already dead, nehe); and in the end it'll be a happy ending; I'm a sucker for happy endings, sorry.
The problem is that I didn't really hint on it. I was too careful to keep it a surprise- without contradicting myself, of course- and now I wonder if it wasn't a mistake.
I've thought about this a lot. Even when I think that I should not let myself be led by the nose by reviewers, I am thankful for all the time all of you invested on reading this and reviewing it. I can't just do something without caring what you think.
With this I ain't implying I wont do it if you ask me not to do it. I am writing this for myself yes, but also for you- that's the fun part- and I wouldn't have started it if I didn't think you'd like it.
I'm just warning you and asking you not to kill me when the time comes.
Ok, enough from me *-*
Enjoy!
A DEVIL'S THRILL
"Dammit!" Hisoka hissed through gritted teeth. Twenty minutes of fallowing Oriya gone down the drain!
The man had proved too fast for him. He could have flown over the guy's head, but Hisoka feared that the second he took his eyes away from him he'd lose his trail.
It hadn't mattered in the end. Oriya had proven to be as sneaky as hell and now the young shinigami was left standing on the corner where he'd lost him, feeling dread and uncertainty sweep him over.
He was being paranoid, Hisoka repeated to himself over and over again. There was nothing certain about Muraki still being alive. Yes, someone had pulled him out of the fire, but by the time that had happened, the guy could have already been turned into toast. He was just assuming the worst because seeing Oriya had stirred up all those unpleasant memories of their last encounter.
It was just when he'd finally decided that continuing the search would be a waste of his time that Hisoka noticed where he was. It wasn't just the familiar street; that could have been a coincidence. But Hisoka begun mentally going through the streets they'd walked, noticing with alarm that if Oriya kept going in the direction he'd been going...
It couldn't be! Why would he be going there?!
There was only a small chance that the swordsman would be actually going where he thought he was; but Hisoka would not wait to find out.
Tired and out of breath, the young shinigami begun running as if his life depended on it. A few students with Hijiri's school uniform passed him by, confirming that he hadn't made a mistake about Oriya's possible destination.
Just a few blocks away from the school, Hisoka saw the long haired man turning around the corner.
'I was right!' he thought, willing himself not to pass out from the lack of air 'But why?! Hijiri doesn't know him! Unless...'
---------------
The silver eye saw the couple go their separate ways. His feverish mind couldn't decide if he wanted to follow the boy, that looked so much like his doll, or the object of his obsessions and the cause of his ruin.
He was nothing now. Just a withered shell; his mind was gone. Whatever remained of his soul was too confused and wounded to make sense of anything. But he could still remember him.
The boy would have been fun, maybe. Maybe he didn't care about having fun when he could be with him; the one that made sense in his deluded thoughts.
He'd lost everything. His reason for living- and for killing- had died in that fire the way he should have. Time had lost it's meaning, and Muraki couldn't really know how long it had been since he'd last seen Tsusuki; but seeing him now made him feel alive again. He was drawn to the shinigami; that same need to be near the man, to take him and make him his was renewed with just one glance.
Tsusuki was lost in thought; nothing deep, just thinking about what he'd order for dinner, mind you. Of course, that meant thinking about dinner in general, which inevitably led to thinking about Hijiri. And that always ended up making him think of Hisoka and...And suddenly he was to weary to think about dinner. 'Live a little!' Tsusuki thought. 'Decide what you'll order when you get to the table!'
Hands buried deep on his black trench coat's pockets, the shinigami walked somewhat cheerily through the crowd. It was just a few hours to his date and he thought it useless to go back to Meifu, so he'd walk around a while, enjoy the beautiful day.
He frowned a little when he remembered his meeting with Hijiri. Should he be upset that the young man had practically had a fit when he saw him on the school grounds? If theirs had been a normal relationship, Tsusuki guessed he would be angry. But considering that Hijiri was right in what he'd said, plus the fact that his own reasons for being with the young man could be considered questionable, he didn't make much of it.
Everything would work itself out eventually; Tsusuki figured. Hijiri was such a sweet person, so loving; Surely he would fall in love with the young man soon enough.
Something he caught from the corner of his eye made his attention divert from his mental ramblings. He was now going through an alley, and he was sure he saw someone following him.
What made his heart go all the way up to his throat was that the flash of a person he'd seen was mostly dressed in white.
--------------
From a distance, Hisoka could see Oriya going inside the school yard. He was about to go after him when he saw a group of people, dressed in the school uniform, walking in the direction opposite to him on the other side of the street. One of them he knew all too well, and Hisoka sighed, relieved, when he saw that Hijiri wasn't in any danger. Still, he had to tell him to get the hell out of there just in case.
"Hijiri!" He called.
The fiddler looked at him curiously and waved. After saying good bye to whoever he was with, Hijiri crossed the street to meet him with a smile.
"Hisoka-kun! What brings you here?"
Hisoka leaned down, supporting himself with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
"Something's wrong...you...*pant*, get out of...*pant*...here. "
Hijiri eyed him curiously.
"Is it a case? Is that why you're here? I thought it was too early for Tsusuki to be out of the office...Now I get it, you're working!" he said cheerfully. Hisoka's face drained of all colour. "I was really surprised to see him, you can imagine that it made me a little nervous..."
"What?!" Hisoka finally yelled. Hijiri jumped a few feet back, startled.
"I...I said that I was surprised when..."
"No! Before that!"
"Tsusuki was here..." Hijiri frowned. "You didn't know that?"
Hisoka grabbed the young man's shoulders and shook him a little.
"What direction did he took?! Did you see where he was going?!"
Without hesitation and realising Hisoka was worried, which probably meant business, Hijiri pointed in the direction he'd seen Tsusuki leave. Hisoka took into the skies immediately, while Hijiri made his search on the ground.
------------------------------
Tsusuki was frozen in place. He couldn't see anything but a shadow; hear anything but the thumping of his heart, but something inside him just KNEW it. And the oldest of shinigamis; master of 12 powerful shikigamis and possessor of more power than most shinigamis could only dream off, was using all his power of concentration to keep control of his bladder.
"This isn't happening, this isn't happening, this isn't happening!"
Though he couldn't see him, Tsusuki knew Muraki wasn't hiding from him; the good doctor was playing with him. And Tsusuki was giving him the satisfaction of seeing him in absolute panic; but of course he couldn't do anything about it. It's not like he could say, 'Oh, I'm panicking and he likes it, I better stop.' Right?
Taking a deep breath, Tsusuki took a step forward and tried to sound like he was not a step away from crying.
"Who's there?" he called out while thinking, 'Please don't answer; please, don't answer.'
Taking a few more steps towards the direction of the shadow, he realised he should probably just run the hell away from that alley; get himself out of there and go somewhere safe. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. As scared as he was, he wouldn't be able to ever set foot on the land of the living again if he had to wonder if Muraki would be waiting for him each time.
"C'mon, I know you're there..." he whispered as he approached the garbage container that the owner of the shadow seemed to be using to conceal himself.
With one jump he was in front of the owner of the shadow.
A plastic bag?
Tsusuki was about to let out a nervous laugh of relief when his breath caught on his throat. Before he had time to react, someone had come from behind him and seized his neck with one hand and his arms with the other, pressing his face into the nearest wall and pressing themselves against him.
"You're getting careless in your old age, Tsusuki." the familiar voice sulkily whispered in his ear. Tsusuki had to refrain himself from lurching when the hand on his throat started caressing him and Muraki begun nibbling his ear. "God, I've missed you."
He wanted to push the man away from him, but fear had took over him and his limbs didn't seem to be reacting to his wishes. With tears forming in his eyes, he could only manage to whisper a futile plea.
"Please, let me go..."
Muraki pushed him hard against the brick wall, drawing blood from his abused cheek.
"You still think you're better than me, don't you?!" he hissed. "After all that's happened; after all you've done, you still believe you're a good person, don't you?"
Tsusuki closed his eyes, fighting back the tears.
"No, no I don't...I...please, just...let go of me..."
"We're the same, you and I," Muraki continued, this time with affection in his voice. "Both murderers, using others' lives to go on living. And now, both of us should be dead, want to be dead, but someone wouldn't let us. Isn't that true?" Tsusuki didn't want to hear this. It wasn't true. This man was mad, he had to remember that! "I'm so proud of you." Muraki continued, "I must say that, though you weren't very original while finding your doll, he's still beautiful. No need to look for something original when you can find perfection, ne? I was surprised when I saw you both. Surprised and a little jealous, I must admit. But I can't come between a man and his doll, can I?"
"He's not...not a doll..." Tsusuki said, somewhat dully. His sanity was threatening to leave him and he had to use all his strength not to loose it again. Not again.
Muraki let go of his grasp, backing away slightly. Tsusuki wasn't ready for what he saw when he turned around. Muraki's body was a ruin. Half his face, where the artificial eye used to be, was covered in bandages. But Tsusuki could still get a glimpse of the scorched skin. There were just a few strands of the once beautiful silver hair that were visible through the bandages, now devoid of all life. But what impressed him the most was that Muraki looked broken.
Tsusuki's legs betrayed him, and he slid to the floor, staring fixedly at his nightmare gone real.
"You hate him, don't you?" Muraki whispered without looking at him, then snorted. "Not really hate him; you can't really hate him because he loves you. But you can't forgive him." Suddenly he raised an eyebrow and looked at him in surprise. "That's why, isn't it? That's why you got yourself a doll that looks so much like him. To punish him for making you stay."
Tsusuki put his hands to his ears. He saw flashes of Hisoka pleading him to stay; crying that he didn't want to be left alone, that he needed him and he felt like screaming.
The tight grasp he'd tried to keep of reality begun loosing it's strength; tears begun streaming freely down his face. It wasn't true!
Detachedly he noticed Muraki was no longer there. It didn't matter. It wasn't that mad man the one he should be afraid of. He was the real monster.
-----------------------
Hisoka's skin was practically burning. There was no doubt in his mind now. Muraki was close.
As reluctant as he was, he knew the best shot at finding Tsusuki was to follow the link he had with Muraki. He just prayed that Tsusuki was ok and that he had kicked the psycho's ass.
-----------------
Oriya was getting desperate. Muraki had disappeared a few days before and he had started loosing hope of ever seeing him again when the doctor had called him to tell him he'd found Tsusuki.
After months of trying to lure his friend back into the land of the living, the stupid shinigami had to reappear to ruin everything. He'd pleaded to his friend to tell him where he was, so he could stop anyone who may try to hurt him any further, as he knew it would happen, but now he found the school yard empty.
Familiar as he was with the streets- you had to be if you were in his line of work-, Oriya begun running in his head all the possible places where Muraki would make his move. It had to be a place with few, if no people; where he could ambush the shinigami. Remembering a few dark, secluded alleys a few blocks away, the swordman didn't waste any time getting there. There was a big chance that he was wrong, so he better rule out the possibility as soon as he could so he could look somewhere else.
Before he could even get to the first alley, his eyes caught the sight of the doctor, walking unsteadily in his direction.
Rushing by his side, Oriya scanned his friend's body for any injuries. Relieved to find him unharmed, he caught his friend in his arms.
"Thank god you're ok!" Muraki didn't look at him, nor did he answer; he looked absent. But Oriya was already used to that. He encircled his friend's waist to support him and smiled brightly at him. "Let me take you home, ok?"
Muraki nodded distantly.
-----------------------
Tsusuki was staring blankly into the void. Everything around him didn't make any sense now. His mind was numb and his surroundings seemed to be further and further away every moment that passed.
Hisoka didn't want to believe his eyes. His chest hurt at the sight. Tsusuki's expression was completely blank. His hands were still covering his ears and he was rocking back and forward slightly.
The young shinigami took a deep breath and kneeled next to his partner. He gently took his hands away from his ears, noticing the nasty cut on his cheek. He pulled the older man into his arms, soothingly stroking his back in circles.
"Shhhh, It's over. He's gone." He said, trying to keep the worry out of his voice and at the same time convey as much affection as he could. Tsusuki leaned into the embrace, burying his face on the younger man's chest.
Hijiri watched the scene from a distance with a smile on his face.
TBC
Wow, I do update fast, ne?
Next update wont get here for a few days though. Maybe Wednesday, maybe Friday. But the story would probably be finished by next weekend.
*clears her throat and stands in front of everyone on the table, scanning the faces around her with glee.*
Konnie-chan: *in la la land* 33 reviews! A new record!! Thank you all so much for coming...Ok, who wants cake?
*sound of everyone raising their hands desperately*
Everyone: ME! Me! I want cake!
KC: Ok, ok. Everything has to be done in order or no one gets cake. Watari, please serve the drinks.
*chibi Watari jumps up and down in delight while everyone looks at Konnie-chan as if she's lost her mind*
KC: First two slices of lemon pie and a glass of tasty lemonade to Miyahara Yuuki, that was sadly left out of last chapter's prizes because stupid FF.net took too long in posting the chappy.
*chibi Watari hands MY the glass and proceeds with the rest.*
KC: Now Sei-chan cookies and a slice of strawberry cake with whipped cream and a glass of lemonade to Aikawa Fuuko. The answer was Giussepe Tartini *_~
Next we have...*looks at her looooong list* Madiha. You get a slice of chocolate cake and a Hisoka plushie for being your first time reviewing.
Hisoka:*crying* Stop giving me away!
KC:*pats Hisoka* Enough from you, angst boy. Ok...
Miko, here you have a slice of chocolate cake too. And Muraki wasn't invited because last time I threw a party he started sexually harassing my guests. The man can't seem to get enough!
*Miko stares at her cake suspiciously*
KC: Don't worry, Tsusuki didn't bake it.
*everyone sighs in relief and they start eating their cakes.*
Tsusuki: Hey! *shimmering eyes*
KC: Next we have Dib...Dib *big, watering eyes* You...*sniff* you gave ME a candy? *snif*...Waaaaaaaah! Thank you! No one gives me candy! Here, you can have two slices of strawberry cake!
Serenity...
Serenity...
*glares* Serenity stop groping Hijiri!!
Hijiri: "..."
KC: Here you go Serenity. A slice of lemon pie for you and one chocolate cake for ripping your review method to do the thank you list *grins*(Just this time though, cuz I had to celebrate the new record with all of you ^-^)
More strawberry cake to dodger-chan. Patience is a virtue, dear. Nehehe.
And last but not least, Nakkie, you get Oriya cookies and a slice of lemon pie. *pouts* What do you mean it's getting interesting NOW? *sniff* How mean.
Tatsumi: And may I know who's paying for all this food?
*Konnie-chan jumps under the table and hides*
Inu-Tsusuki: Well, not me. I didn't get any cake!
Ja ne! *-*
Ok, Please read this.
I have a very important question to make to all of you. When I first started writing this, I had a clear idea of what I was going to do; I still do. But now I'm not so sure I should do it. The thing is, in a few chapters, there'll be a turn on this story. Make that a BIG turn. I'm not making it up as I go, I had a plan. I'm afraid once I get to the 'turn' part, you'll hate it so much you'll never want to set eyes on the story again. Now don't worry, no one dies (they're already dead, nehe); and in the end it'll be a happy ending; I'm a sucker for happy endings, sorry.
The problem is that I didn't really hint on it. I was too careful to keep it a surprise- without contradicting myself, of course- and now I wonder if it wasn't a mistake.
I've thought about this a lot. Even when I think that I should not let myself be led by the nose by reviewers, I am thankful for all the time all of you invested on reading this and reviewing it. I can't just do something without caring what you think.
With this I ain't implying I wont do it if you ask me not to do it. I am writing this for myself yes, but also for you- that's the fun part- and I wouldn't have started it if I didn't think you'd like it.
I'm just warning you and asking you not to kill me when the time comes.
Ok, enough from me *-*
Enjoy!
A DEVIL'S THRILL
"Dammit!" Hisoka hissed through gritted teeth. Twenty minutes of fallowing Oriya gone down the drain!
The man had proved too fast for him. He could have flown over the guy's head, but Hisoka feared that the second he took his eyes away from him he'd lose his trail.
It hadn't mattered in the end. Oriya had proven to be as sneaky as hell and now the young shinigami was left standing on the corner where he'd lost him, feeling dread and uncertainty sweep him over.
He was being paranoid, Hisoka repeated to himself over and over again. There was nothing certain about Muraki still being alive. Yes, someone had pulled him out of the fire, but by the time that had happened, the guy could have already been turned into toast. He was just assuming the worst because seeing Oriya had stirred up all those unpleasant memories of their last encounter.
It was just when he'd finally decided that continuing the search would be a waste of his time that Hisoka noticed where he was. It wasn't just the familiar street; that could have been a coincidence. But Hisoka begun mentally going through the streets they'd walked, noticing with alarm that if Oriya kept going in the direction he'd been going...
It couldn't be! Why would he be going there?!
There was only a small chance that the swordsman would be actually going where he thought he was; but Hisoka would not wait to find out.
Tired and out of breath, the young shinigami begun running as if his life depended on it. A few students with Hijiri's school uniform passed him by, confirming that he hadn't made a mistake about Oriya's possible destination.
Just a few blocks away from the school, Hisoka saw the long haired man turning around the corner.
'I was right!' he thought, willing himself not to pass out from the lack of air 'But why?! Hijiri doesn't know him! Unless...'
---------------
The silver eye saw the couple go their separate ways. His feverish mind couldn't decide if he wanted to follow the boy, that looked so much like his doll, or the object of his obsessions and the cause of his ruin.
He was nothing now. Just a withered shell; his mind was gone. Whatever remained of his soul was too confused and wounded to make sense of anything. But he could still remember him.
The boy would have been fun, maybe. Maybe he didn't care about having fun when he could be with him; the one that made sense in his deluded thoughts.
He'd lost everything. His reason for living- and for killing- had died in that fire the way he should have. Time had lost it's meaning, and Muraki couldn't really know how long it had been since he'd last seen Tsusuki; but seeing him now made him feel alive again. He was drawn to the shinigami; that same need to be near the man, to take him and make him his was renewed with just one glance.
Tsusuki was lost in thought; nothing deep, just thinking about what he'd order for dinner, mind you. Of course, that meant thinking about dinner in general, which inevitably led to thinking about Hijiri. And that always ended up making him think of Hisoka and...And suddenly he was to weary to think about dinner. 'Live a little!' Tsusuki thought. 'Decide what you'll order when you get to the table!'
Hands buried deep on his black trench coat's pockets, the shinigami walked somewhat cheerily through the crowd. It was just a few hours to his date and he thought it useless to go back to Meifu, so he'd walk around a while, enjoy the beautiful day.
He frowned a little when he remembered his meeting with Hijiri. Should he be upset that the young man had practically had a fit when he saw him on the school grounds? If theirs had been a normal relationship, Tsusuki guessed he would be angry. But considering that Hijiri was right in what he'd said, plus the fact that his own reasons for being with the young man could be considered questionable, he didn't make much of it.
Everything would work itself out eventually; Tsusuki figured. Hijiri was such a sweet person, so loving; Surely he would fall in love with the young man soon enough.
Something he caught from the corner of his eye made his attention divert from his mental ramblings. He was now going through an alley, and he was sure he saw someone following him.
What made his heart go all the way up to his throat was that the flash of a person he'd seen was mostly dressed in white.
--------------
From a distance, Hisoka could see Oriya going inside the school yard. He was about to go after him when he saw a group of people, dressed in the school uniform, walking in the direction opposite to him on the other side of the street. One of them he knew all too well, and Hisoka sighed, relieved, when he saw that Hijiri wasn't in any danger. Still, he had to tell him to get the hell out of there just in case.
"Hijiri!" He called.
The fiddler looked at him curiously and waved. After saying good bye to whoever he was with, Hijiri crossed the street to meet him with a smile.
"Hisoka-kun! What brings you here?"
Hisoka leaned down, supporting himself with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
"Something's wrong...you...*pant*, get out of...*pant*...here. "
Hijiri eyed him curiously.
"Is it a case? Is that why you're here? I thought it was too early for Tsusuki to be out of the office...Now I get it, you're working!" he said cheerfully. Hisoka's face drained of all colour. "I was really surprised to see him, you can imagine that it made me a little nervous..."
"What?!" Hisoka finally yelled. Hijiri jumped a few feet back, startled.
"I...I said that I was surprised when..."
"No! Before that!"
"Tsusuki was here..." Hijiri frowned. "You didn't know that?"
Hisoka grabbed the young man's shoulders and shook him a little.
"What direction did he took?! Did you see where he was going?!"
Without hesitation and realising Hisoka was worried, which probably meant business, Hijiri pointed in the direction he'd seen Tsusuki leave. Hisoka took into the skies immediately, while Hijiri made his search on the ground.
------------------------------
Tsusuki was frozen in place. He couldn't see anything but a shadow; hear anything but the thumping of his heart, but something inside him just KNEW it. And the oldest of shinigamis; master of 12 powerful shikigamis and possessor of more power than most shinigamis could only dream off, was using all his power of concentration to keep control of his bladder.
"This isn't happening, this isn't happening, this isn't happening!"
Though he couldn't see him, Tsusuki knew Muraki wasn't hiding from him; the good doctor was playing with him. And Tsusuki was giving him the satisfaction of seeing him in absolute panic; but of course he couldn't do anything about it. It's not like he could say, 'Oh, I'm panicking and he likes it, I better stop.' Right?
Taking a deep breath, Tsusuki took a step forward and tried to sound like he was not a step away from crying.
"Who's there?" he called out while thinking, 'Please don't answer; please, don't answer.'
Taking a few more steps towards the direction of the shadow, he realised he should probably just run the hell away from that alley; get himself out of there and go somewhere safe. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. As scared as he was, he wouldn't be able to ever set foot on the land of the living again if he had to wonder if Muraki would be waiting for him each time.
"C'mon, I know you're there..." he whispered as he approached the garbage container that the owner of the shadow seemed to be using to conceal himself.
With one jump he was in front of the owner of the shadow.
A plastic bag?
Tsusuki was about to let out a nervous laugh of relief when his breath caught on his throat. Before he had time to react, someone had come from behind him and seized his neck with one hand and his arms with the other, pressing his face into the nearest wall and pressing themselves against him.
"You're getting careless in your old age, Tsusuki." the familiar voice sulkily whispered in his ear. Tsusuki had to refrain himself from lurching when the hand on his throat started caressing him and Muraki begun nibbling his ear. "God, I've missed you."
He wanted to push the man away from him, but fear had took over him and his limbs didn't seem to be reacting to his wishes. With tears forming in his eyes, he could only manage to whisper a futile plea.
"Please, let me go..."
Muraki pushed him hard against the brick wall, drawing blood from his abused cheek.
"You still think you're better than me, don't you?!" he hissed. "After all that's happened; after all you've done, you still believe you're a good person, don't you?"
Tsusuki closed his eyes, fighting back the tears.
"No, no I don't...I...please, just...let go of me..."
"We're the same, you and I," Muraki continued, this time with affection in his voice. "Both murderers, using others' lives to go on living. And now, both of us should be dead, want to be dead, but someone wouldn't let us. Isn't that true?" Tsusuki didn't want to hear this. It wasn't true. This man was mad, he had to remember that! "I'm so proud of you." Muraki continued, "I must say that, though you weren't very original while finding your doll, he's still beautiful. No need to look for something original when you can find perfection, ne? I was surprised when I saw you both. Surprised and a little jealous, I must admit. But I can't come between a man and his doll, can I?"
"He's not...not a doll..." Tsusuki said, somewhat dully. His sanity was threatening to leave him and he had to use all his strength not to loose it again. Not again.
Muraki let go of his grasp, backing away slightly. Tsusuki wasn't ready for what he saw when he turned around. Muraki's body was a ruin. Half his face, where the artificial eye used to be, was covered in bandages. But Tsusuki could still get a glimpse of the scorched skin. There were just a few strands of the once beautiful silver hair that were visible through the bandages, now devoid of all life. But what impressed him the most was that Muraki looked broken.
Tsusuki's legs betrayed him, and he slid to the floor, staring fixedly at his nightmare gone real.
"You hate him, don't you?" Muraki whispered without looking at him, then snorted. "Not really hate him; you can't really hate him because he loves you. But you can't forgive him." Suddenly he raised an eyebrow and looked at him in surprise. "That's why, isn't it? That's why you got yourself a doll that looks so much like him. To punish him for making you stay."
Tsusuki put his hands to his ears. He saw flashes of Hisoka pleading him to stay; crying that he didn't want to be left alone, that he needed him and he felt like screaming.
The tight grasp he'd tried to keep of reality begun loosing it's strength; tears begun streaming freely down his face. It wasn't true!
Detachedly he noticed Muraki was no longer there. It didn't matter. It wasn't that mad man the one he should be afraid of. He was the real monster.
-----------------------
Hisoka's skin was practically burning. There was no doubt in his mind now. Muraki was close.
As reluctant as he was, he knew the best shot at finding Tsusuki was to follow the link he had with Muraki. He just prayed that Tsusuki was ok and that he had kicked the psycho's ass.
-----------------
Oriya was getting desperate. Muraki had disappeared a few days before and he had started loosing hope of ever seeing him again when the doctor had called him to tell him he'd found Tsusuki.
After months of trying to lure his friend back into the land of the living, the stupid shinigami had to reappear to ruin everything. He'd pleaded to his friend to tell him where he was, so he could stop anyone who may try to hurt him any further, as he knew it would happen, but now he found the school yard empty.
Familiar as he was with the streets- you had to be if you were in his line of work-, Oriya begun running in his head all the possible places where Muraki would make his move. It had to be a place with few, if no people; where he could ambush the shinigami. Remembering a few dark, secluded alleys a few blocks away, the swordman didn't waste any time getting there. There was a big chance that he was wrong, so he better rule out the possibility as soon as he could so he could look somewhere else.
Before he could even get to the first alley, his eyes caught the sight of the doctor, walking unsteadily in his direction.
Rushing by his side, Oriya scanned his friend's body for any injuries. Relieved to find him unharmed, he caught his friend in his arms.
"Thank god you're ok!" Muraki didn't look at him, nor did he answer; he looked absent. But Oriya was already used to that. He encircled his friend's waist to support him and smiled brightly at him. "Let me take you home, ok?"
Muraki nodded distantly.
-----------------------
Tsusuki was staring blankly into the void. Everything around him didn't make any sense now. His mind was numb and his surroundings seemed to be further and further away every moment that passed.
Hisoka didn't want to believe his eyes. His chest hurt at the sight. Tsusuki's expression was completely blank. His hands were still covering his ears and he was rocking back and forward slightly.
The young shinigami took a deep breath and kneeled next to his partner. He gently took his hands away from his ears, noticing the nasty cut on his cheek. He pulled the older man into his arms, soothingly stroking his back in circles.
"Shhhh, It's over. He's gone." He said, trying to keep the worry out of his voice and at the same time convey as much affection as he could. Tsusuki leaned into the embrace, burying his face on the younger man's chest.
Hijiri watched the scene from a distance with a smile on his face.
TBC
Wow, I do update fast, ne?
Next update wont get here for a few days though. Maybe Wednesday, maybe Friday. But the story would probably be finished by next weekend.
*clears her throat and stands in front of everyone on the table, scanning the faces around her with glee.*
Konnie-chan: *in la la land* 33 reviews! A new record!! Thank you all so much for coming...Ok, who wants cake?
*sound of everyone raising their hands desperately*
Everyone: ME! Me! I want cake!
KC: Ok, ok. Everything has to be done in order or no one gets cake. Watari, please serve the drinks.
*chibi Watari jumps up and down in delight while everyone looks at Konnie-chan as if she's lost her mind*
KC: First two slices of lemon pie and a glass of tasty lemonade to Miyahara Yuuki, that was sadly left out of last chapter's prizes because stupid FF.net took too long in posting the chappy.
*chibi Watari hands MY the glass and proceeds with the rest.*
KC: Now Sei-chan cookies and a slice of strawberry cake with whipped cream and a glass of lemonade to Aikawa Fuuko. The answer was Giussepe Tartini *_~
Next we have...*looks at her looooong list* Madiha. You get a slice of chocolate cake and a Hisoka plushie for being your first time reviewing.
Hisoka:*crying* Stop giving me away!
KC:*pats Hisoka* Enough from you, angst boy. Ok...
Miko, here you have a slice of chocolate cake too. And Muraki wasn't invited because last time I threw a party he started sexually harassing my guests. The man can't seem to get enough!
*Miko stares at her cake suspiciously*
KC: Don't worry, Tsusuki didn't bake it.
*everyone sighs in relief and they start eating their cakes.*
Tsusuki: Hey! *shimmering eyes*
KC: Next we have Dib...Dib *big, watering eyes* You...*sniff* you gave ME a candy? *snif*...Waaaaaaaah! Thank you! No one gives me candy! Here, you can have two slices of strawberry cake!
Serenity...
Serenity...
*glares* Serenity stop groping Hijiri!!
Hijiri: "..."
KC: Here you go Serenity. A slice of lemon pie for you and one chocolate cake for ripping your review method to do the thank you list *grins*(Just this time though, cuz I had to celebrate the new record with all of you ^-^)
More strawberry cake to dodger-chan. Patience is a virtue, dear. Nehehe.
And last but not least, Nakkie, you get Oriya cookies and a slice of lemon pie. *pouts* What do you mean it's getting interesting NOW? *sniff* How mean.
Tatsumi: And may I know who's paying for all this food?
*Konnie-chan jumps under the table and hides*
Inu-Tsusuki: Well, not me. I didn't get any cake!
Ja ne! *-*