(A/N: Sorry about the delay for this chapter. O__o;;; I have been insanely busy. but anyways...
Thankies for the reviews! ^O^
Neko-jin: I tried to update as soon as possible, but this was "as soon as possible". -__- Sigh. Life sucks. I'll try to be quicker with the next update, k? ^^
cc: I'm glad you like the story. "Dawn of Terror" is actually complete (otherwise, I would not be able to write this). FF.net deleted it because of a "rating conflict". i'm re-posting it, but I haven't got around to finishing uploading it yet (me sho slooooow). If you really want to check out the completed form, it's on my website (http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/angelblooddarkside/frames.htm)
Desi: Yesh, pity Kai. Pity boyfriend-con-clut (XD I luff that!). And mwha! I purposely left Kevin out of that chapter. I couldn't find anything to do with him. o_O;;;; But never fear, he makes his return this chapter! You love my writing? Wow. I'm flattered. o_o I really enjoyed writting Kai's part and the terrorist bombing too. ^_^ I'm glad you enjoyed it. Maybe I will make Max dance on the table next time he gets drunk...would sure prove amusing. And don't worry about Kevin and Rei dying yet. i'm not there yet...I've got plans for them, oh yes...*ebil smirk*
Now! On with the fic!)
"And No Birds Sang"
Chapter 8: Chance Meeting
Rei's eyes fluttered open. The lights in the room spun, gradually coming into focus. His head throbbed and he felt sick. Wave after wave of nausea rushed over him. Something warm was lying against his left side. He shuddered, the rest of him being cold.
Slowly, he sat up. The blood rushed back and forth between his ears and the sickness crept upwards from the pit of his stomach. He clapped a hand to his mouth in an effort to control the urge to retch. He glanced down at the floor.
Mari was lying there, comatose, blood oozing lazily from her lip, her eye. A tooth was embedded in her lip and he fought the urge to be sick.
Faintly, he heard a click and turned about. The door, which had been closed previously, swung open and somebody walked in. It took Rei a moment to re-focus his eyes on the newcomer.
It was a man. He was tall, about six feet, with silver hair and strange grey-blue eyes that surveyed the scene with steel icyiness. His arms were folded over his chest. He might have been twenty, or slightly older. Rei couldn't be sure.
He glared down at Rei. "Who are you?" he asked at last, his voice colder than his eyes.
Rei shivered. "I...uh..."
He found no suitable explanation. The stranger sighed, then looked to Mari. "Stupid wench," he muttered, getting down on his knees to wipe some of the blood away. Green eyes flickered open, still unfocussed with unconciousness. "Jin..." she murmured, sounding far away and small.
The silver-haired man scooped her up off the floor. "What happened?" he asked, his voice loosing it's icy tone and becoming warm and gentle in quality.
Mari didn't reply. The man, Jin, sighed and rolled his eyes. Rei caught sight of the fangs. Jin was a neko-jin too! The silver-haired man was speaking again. "Mari-chan, do you know what happened?"
Mari still didn't reply. Instead, she looked up at him and said, "You smell like smoke."
Jin stiffened and quickly set the woozy girl on the ground. "Can you walk? Can you see? Good. Let's leave."
His manner had been abruptly changed once more, becoming brisk and business-like. Rei watched in curiousity. Jin turned on him suddenly. "You. What happened here?"
Rei shook his head. "I...I don't know."
"Hn."
Mari glanced over at him for the first time and blinked. "Oh...Rei..," she said softly, as if remembering something important.
Jin glanced between the two of them, but nothing more was said. The man placed a hand on her back. "Let's go," he said sternly, guiding her toward the door.
"No!" she shrieked suddenly, lunging at Rei. "Rei! I can't leave you!"
Jin hissed and swore under his breath. Rei swallowed nervously. Mari had grabbed his wrist and was rubbing his hand against her face. "You're coming too, Rei-chan. I won't leave you behind, not again. I won't."
Jin's eyes narrowed, almost jealously. He turned away from the scene abruptly. "Let's go."
His voice was dark, angry. Mari didn't seem to notice and gladly led Rei out of the room.
~*~*~*~*
Morning sunlight streamed in through the windows. The smell of coffee and cooking bacon took over the entire household. Judy stirred awake, blonde strands of hair falling into her eyes. She yawned and sat up, throwing away the warm covers. She shivered as the cold of the morning air washed over her.
She padded downstairs, wrapping her housecoat more tightly about her. She wandered into the kitchen, her bare feet slapping at the cold floorstones. Emily didn't look up from her cooking and didn't reply when Judy said, "Good morning."
The blonde woman sat down, shivering still. Silence owned the kitchen, even when Emily practically threw a plate of eggs onto the table with a loud crash.
Judy looked at the fiery red-head funny. Emily huffed and re-adjusted her glasses. "Is there something the matter?" Judy asked carefully.
Emily wiped her hands on her apron. "I'd think you'd know, Miss Judy. Something here is entirely amiss. Those three boys - they;ve gone and got themselves into trouble again!"
The maid shook a wooden spoon angrily. "They've gone, vanished into thin air!"
She threw up her hands in exasperation, emphasising her point. Judy raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, vanished?"
Emily shook her head. "I mean exactly what I say! They're not here - they're gone!"
The next thing she knew was that Judy was racing out of the kitchen, knocking over her coffee cup in the process. Emily blinked. The only sound in the kitchen was the steady drip-drip-drip of the coffee running off the edge of the table.
~*~*~*~*
It was a bright and sunny day. A soft breeze was blowing the falling leaves about and the scent of autumn spiced the air. People were out and about. Hiwatari Kai was currently seated on a park bench, hands stuffed into the pockets of his over coat. He glared out at the world, lost deep in thought.
Presently, somebody sat down beside him. He shifted over slightly, not even giving the newcomer a sideways glance. A long time passed, only the rustling of leaves making a sound. The person beside him spoke, never turning to look at him. His voice was steady and calm. "You are Hiwatari Kai?"
"Hn."
The stranger seemed to consider this answer for a little while. "You know a Kon Rei?"
Kai, surprised by the question, glanced up at the stranger. He was a man of about twenty, with silver hair and grey-blue eyes. He was staring straight ahead. Kai stared at him for a moment more. He turned his head and looked at him. "I know where he is."
Kai didn't answer him, but instead, studied the man's face, his eyes. He found that he could trust this person. "Yes, I know a Kon Rei," the bluenette said at last.
The man smiled, almost bitterly. Wordlessly, he handed Kai a slip of paper and rose from his seat. "Meet me there at nine o'clock tonight," he said as Kai unfolded the paper.
On it was written an address. Kai glanced up at the man, just as a particularly strong breeze sprung up. The wind gusted by, dragging with it swilring leaves. The man walked away. Kai folded up the slip of paper and put it in his pocket. Then, he got up and left, heading in the opposite direction of the man.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Judy flung open the door to Max's room frantically. Her heart got stuck in her throat. The bed was made - it hadn't been slept in and Max was nowhere to be found.
She stumbled backwards out of the room. She felt tears prick her eyes. Max....Max was gone...gone....
Her knees gave out and she fell down, a hand clapped to her mouth. She was shaking.
There was a clatter of footsteps on stairs, but she barely heard it over the blood rushing through her ears. Emily's hands were on her shoulders, her faint voice trying to reach her, but she couldn't hear her...
Stupidly, she let herself be helped up, then guided back to her room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Max sighed and hung up the phone. Tyson looked worriedly at his companion. "Now answer?" he asked.
Max shook his head. "No. The line must be out or something."
The blond clenched his fists. "How am I supposed to let Mom know I'm okay?"
Tyson wrapped an arm about Max's shoulders. "Hey, hey. It's okay. We'll get to her eventually, okay? Just be patient."
Max nodded into the bluenette's comforting shoulder. "Okay..."
It was then Fernando walked into the bedroom. "Oy, you two! Diego's got breakfast on the table, if you want to eat. If you don't, I suppose that's alright too."
He withdrew from the room. Tyson looked about. "Hey...where's Kevin?"
Max glanced up. "What? You mean he's not here?"
Tyson shook his head. Max frowned. "Oh no..."
~*~*~*~*~*
The three teenagers smirked down at him. "So, what ya gonna do now?"
"Yeah, cat-boy?"
"Aww, not talking, eh? Whatsa matter? Cat got your tongue?"
Kevin squirmed against his bonds, making a muffled noise through the gag. The three teenagers laughed cruelly. The leader, a blond, looked back at him. "Oh, you're really gonna get it, kitty-cat."
"Leave him alone," a fourth voice interrupted.
The three teens and Kevin all glanced left. A man with silver hair and grey-blue eyes was sitting on the lowest stairs of the apartment building they were next to. The blond kid sneered in contempt. "Oh, yeah? You gonna make us?"
The man shut his eyes and smirked. "You scum aren't worth my time. Get lost."
The blond kid clenched his fists in anger. His two comrades, a boy with blue hair and a girl with green hair, took up fighting stances behind him. The blond kid started to yell. "Well, come on! show us what you're made of! Come on! Or are ya scared of us?"
Grey-blue eyes re-opened, narrowed into angry slits and a low hiss was emitted from a fang-bearing mouth. Kevin's eyes widened in recognition. /A neko-jin.../
The blond kid smirked. "Huh. Another kitty-cat for us to play with. You ain't worth OUR time."
It was over in a second, before anything really happened. The man was upon the blond boy, knife in hand, pressed over the boy's throat. The slitted eyes stared down into fearful blue ones. "Get out of here. Tell your friends. Koneko is a word to be feared."
The boy nodded fearfully and the silver-ahired man let him up. The boy got to his feet, helped up by his buddies. He wiped a hand across his face and spat. Then, he turned and fled.
The silver-ahired neko-jin turned to Kevin. He smiled gently and got down, untying the small boy. "Hey there. You all right?"
Kevin nodded numbly, feeling the circulation start to come back into his limbs. The man smiled. "Good."
Kevin looked up at him, admiration shining in his eyes. Here was a neko-jin who couldn't be beat! His lips formed the words effortlessly. "Who are you?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
[A/N: Duhn duhn duhn. Another chapter done. ^^;;; R&R please? I think I finally have a direction for this...]
Thankies for the reviews! ^O^
Neko-jin: I tried to update as soon as possible, but this was "as soon as possible". -__- Sigh. Life sucks. I'll try to be quicker with the next update, k? ^^
cc: I'm glad you like the story. "Dawn of Terror" is actually complete (otherwise, I would not be able to write this). FF.net deleted it because of a "rating conflict". i'm re-posting it, but I haven't got around to finishing uploading it yet (me sho slooooow). If you really want to check out the completed form, it's on my website (http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/angelblooddarkside/frames.htm)
Desi: Yesh, pity Kai. Pity boyfriend-con-clut (XD I luff that!). And mwha! I purposely left Kevin out of that chapter. I couldn't find anything to do with him. o_O;;;; But never fear, he makes his return this chapter! You love my writing? Wow. I'm flattered. o_o I really enjoyed writting Kai's part and the terrorist bombing too. ^_^ I'm glad you enjoyed it. Maybe I will make Max dance on the table next time he gets drunk...would sure prove amusing. And don't worry about Kevin and Rei dying yet. i'm not there yet...I've got plans for them, oh yes...*ebil smirk*
Now! On with the fic!)
"And No Birds Sang"
Chapter 8: Chance Meeting
Rei's eyes fluttered open. The lights in the room spun, gradually coming into focus. His head throbbed and he felt sick. Wave after wave of nausea rushed over him. Something warm was lying against his left side. He shuddered, the rest of him being cold.
Slowly, he sat up. The blood rushed back and forth between his ears and the sickness crept upwards from the pit of his stomach. He clapped a hand to his mouth in an effort to control the urge to retch. He glanced down at the floor.
Mari was lying there, comatose, blood oozing lazily from her lip, her eye. A tooth was embedded in her lip and he fought the urge to be sick.
Faintly, he heard a click and turned about. The door, which had been closed previously, swung open and somebody walked in. It took Rei a moment to re-focus his eyes on the newcomer.
It was a man. He was tall, about six feet, with silver hair and strange grey-blue eyes that surveyed the scene with steel icyiness. His arms were folded over his chest. He might have been twenty, or slightly older. Rei couldn't be sure.
He glared down at Rei. "Who are you?" he asked at last, his voice colder than his eyes.
Rei shivered. "I...uh..."
He found no suitable explanation. The stranger sighed, then looked to Mari. "Stupid wench," he muttered, getting down on his knees to wipe some of the blood away. Green eyes flickered open, still unfocussed with unconciousness. "Jin..." she murmured, sounding far away and small.
The silver-haired man scooped her up off the floor. "What happened?" he asked, his voice loosing it's icy tone and becoming warm and gentle in quality.
Mari didn't reply. The man, Jin, sighed and rolled his eyes. Rei caught sight of the fangs. Jin was a neko-jin too! The silver-haired man was speaking again. "Mari-chan, do you know what happened?"
Mari still didn't reply. Instead, she looked up at him and said, "You smell like smoke."
Jin stiffened and quickly set the woozy girl on the ground. "Can you walk? Can you see? Good. Let's leave."
His manner had been abruptly changed once more, becoming brisk and business-like. Rei watched in curiousity. Jin turned on him suddenly. "You. What happened here?"
Rei shook his head. "I...I don't know."
"Hn."
Mari glanced over at him for the first time and blinked. "Oh...Rei..," she said softly, as if remembering something important.
Jin glanced between the two of them, but nothing more was said. The man placed a hand on her back. "Let's go," he said sternly, guiding her toward the door.
"No!" she shrieked suddenly, lunging at Rei. "Rei! I can't leave you!"
Jin hissed and swore under his breath. Rei swallowed nervously. Mari had grabbed his wrist and was rubbing his hand against her face. "You're coming too, Rei-chan. I won't leave you behind, not again. I won't."
Jin's eyes narrowed, almost jealously. He turned away from the scene abruptly. "Let's go."
His voice was dark, angry. Mari didn't seem to notice and gladly led Rei out of the room.
~*~*~*~*
Morning sunlight streamed in through the windows. The smell of coffee and cooking bacon took over the entire household. Judy stirred awake, blonde strands of hair falling into her eyes. She yawned and sat up, throwing away the warm covers. She shivered as the cold of the morning air washed over her.
She padded downstairs, wrapping her housecoat more tightly about her. She wandered into the kitchen, her bare feet slapping at the cold floorstones. Emily didn't look up from her cooking and didn't reply when Judy said, "Good morning."
The blonde woman sat down, shivering still. Silence owned the kitchen, even when Emily practically threw a plate of eggs onto the table with a loud crash.
Judy looked at the fiery red-head funny. Emily huffed and re-adjusted her glasses. "Is there something the matter?" Judy asked carefully.
Emily wiped her hands on her apron. "I'd think you'd know, Miss Judy. Something here is entirely amiss. Those three boys - they;ve gone and got themselves into trouble again!"
The maid shook a wooden spoon angrily. "They've gone, vanished into thin air!"
She threw up her hands in exasperation, emphasising her point. Judy raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, vanished?"
Emily shook her head. "I mean exactly what I say! They're not here - they're gone!"
The next thing she knew was that Judy was racing out of the kitchen, knocking over her coffee cup in the process. Emily blinked. The only sound in the kitchen was the steady drip-drip-drip of the coffee running off the edge of the table.
~*~*~*~*
It was a bright and sunny day. A soft breeze was blowing the falling leaves about and the scent of autumn spiced the air. People were out and about. Hiwatari Kai was currently seated on a park bench, hands stuffed into the pockets of his over coat. He glared out at the world, lost deep in thought.
Presently, somebody sat down beside him. He shifted over slightly, not even giving the newcomer a sideways glance. A long time passed, only the rustling of leaves making a sound. The person beside him spoke, never turning to look at him. His voice was steady and calm. "You are Hiwatari Kai?"
"Hn."
The stranger seemed to consider this answer for a little while. "You know a Kon Rei?"
Kai, surprised by the question, glanced up at the stranger. He was a man of about twenty, with silver hair and grey-blue eyes. He was staring straight ahead. Kai stared at him for a moment more. He turned his head and looked at him. "I know where he is."
Kai didn't answer him, but instead, studied the man's face, his eyes. He found that he could trust this person. "Yes, I know a Kon Rei," the bluenette said at last.
The man smiled, almost bitterly. Wordlessly, he handed Kai a slip of paper and rose from his seat. "Meet me there at nine o'clock tonight," he said as Kai unfolded the paper.
On it was written an address. Kai glanced up at the man, just as a particularly strong breeze sprung up. The wind gusted by, dragging with it swilring leaves. The man walked away. Kai folded up the slip of paper and put it in his pocket. Then, he got up and left, heading in the opposite direction of the man.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Judy flung open the door to Max's room frantically. Her heart got stuck in her throat. The bed was made - it hadn't been slept in and Max was nowhere to be found.
She stumbled backwards out of the room. She felt tears prick her eyes. Max....Max was gone...gone....
Her knees gave out and she fell down, a hand clapped to her mouth. She was shaking.
There was a clatter of footsteps on stairs, but she barely heard it over the blood rushing through her ears. Emily's hands were on her shoulders, her faint voice trying to reach her, but she couldn't hear her...
Stupidly, she let herself be helped up, then guided back to her room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Max sighed and hung up the phone. Tyson looked worriedly at his companion. "Now answer?" he asked.
Max shook his head. "No. The line must be out or something."
The blond clenched his fists. "How am I supposed to let Mom know I'm okay?"
Tyson wrapped an arm about Max's shoulders. "Hey, hey. It's okay. We'll get to her eventually, okay? Just be patient."
Max nodded into the bluenette's comforting shoulder. "Okay..."
It was then Fernando walked into the bedroom. "Oy, you two! Diego's got breakfast on the table, if you want to eat. If you don't, I suppose that's alright too."
He withdrew from the room. Tyson looked about. "Hey...where's Kevin?"
Max glanced up. "What? You mean he's not here?"
Tyson shook his head. Max frowned. "Oh no..."
~*~*~*~*~*
The three teenagers smirked down at him. "So, what ya gonna do now?"
"Yeah, cat-boy?"
"Aww, not talking, eh? Whatsa matter? Cat got your tongue?"
Kevin squirmed against his bonds, making a muffled noise through the gag. The three teenagers laughed cruelly. The leader, a blond, looked back at him. "Oh, you're really gonna get it, kitty-cat."
"Leave him alone," a fourth voice interrupted.
The three teens and Kevin all glanced left. A man with silver hair and grey-blue eyes was sitting on the lowest stairs of the apartment building they were next to. The blond kid sneered in contempt. "Oh, yeah? You gonna make us?"
The man shut his eyes and smirked. "You scum aren't worth my time. Get lost."
The blond kid clenched his fists in anger. His two comrades, a boy with blue hair and a girl with green hair, took up fighting stances behind him. The blond kid started to yell. "Well, come on! show us what you're made of! Come on! Or are ya scared of us?"
Grey-blue eyes re-opened, narrowed into angry slits and a low hiss was emitted from a fang-bearing mouth. Kevin's eyes widened in recognition. /A neko-jin.../
The blond kid smirked. "Huh. Another kitty-cat for us to play with. You ain't worth OUR time."
It was over in a second, before anything really happened. The man was upon the blond boy, knife in hand, pressed over the boy's throat. The slitted eyes stared down into fearful blue ones. "Get out of here. Tell your friends. Koneko is a word to be feared."
The boy nodded fearfully and the silver-ahired man let him up. The boy got to his feet, helped up by his buddies. He wiped a hand across his face and spat. Then, he turned and fled.
The silver-ahired neko-jin turned to Kevin. He smiled gently and got down, untying the small boy. "Hey there. You all right?"
Kevin nodded numbly, feeling the circulation start to come back into his limbs. The man smiled. "Good."
Kevin looked up at him, admiration shining in his eyes. Here was a neko-jin who couldn't be beat! His lips formed the words effortlessly. "Who are you?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
[A/N: Duhn duhn duhn. Another chapter done. ^^;;; R&R please? I think I finally have a direction for this...]