Chapter 12

Aya

Chewable or liquid? Personally, I feel like vomiting at just the thought of chewable medicine. Always so disgustingly flavored, and you can depend upon the fact that some will likely be stuck in your teeth so you'll be tasting it all day long!. . . On the other hand, I knew that a great deal of people hated liquid Pepto Bismol more than I hate Takatoris and that's a lot of hate to have just over a medicine. . . Then again, Youji wasn't even sick! . . . So which one?

With a sigh, I shook my head. I did not like this plan. I needed to be out long enough for the killer to act but I still needed to be back in time to save him! I was waiting for Omi and Ken's signal but what if I did not get back in time? Or what if the killer had caught on to Omika and figured the two of them to be even gayer than we were! That was a very probable possibility. . .

With a mental sigh I decided to, as Youji would have put it, fuck it and go back to the hotel room. . . With the medicine of course, I decided to go for the chewable kind. If nothing else, I could be amused by the look on Youji's face as he gnawed upon the nasty pink tablets. . .

The drive was only a few minutes long but it felt like an eternity. Either we had a very slow acting killer or something had happened to Ken and Omi! As I pulled up in front of the hotel, I quickly tossed the keys upon the leather upholstery of the driver's seat, not having enough patience to wait for a valet.

Heading through the lobby and to the elevator I muttered curses to myself as the numbers lit up for every floor that the damned thing stopped at. "Hurry up!" I growled at it."

"What's the rush Yuki?" Turning around I saw Seiko in his hunter green uniform. He had been pushing an empty tray, obviously heading back from doing whatever is it that people of his position do.

"Uhm, Shuichi's sick so I had to go get him some medicine," my faint smile was plastered one with much difficulty.

"He's sick you say? Too much fun at Great Kyoto yesterday?"

"No, he ate something bad." God damned elevator hurry up!

"Food poisoning?!" Passing a glance at the other man, I was perplexed to see a look of knowing horror upon his face. . . He knew something.

"Yeah. .. A new chef or something?" Doing my best to sound casual, I rang the witness for clues.

"N-no, not at all. . . I- I just hate to think that our hotel would make such a terrible mistake-" Seiko's ramblings were interrupted by a ding. "Well the elevators here. I hope that Shuichi gets well soon, take care Yuki." With that, he hurried off at a greater speed than he had originally had come with.

The urge to follow the man and to return to Youji fought viciously with one another but in the end, Youji won out. His welfare was far more important to me than a potential suspect was. It isn't morally right to value one life over another, but it is human. Right now Youji's life was a thousand times more important to me than the lives of other victims, both past and future.

The ride up was slow and uneventful. My heart was pounding loudly in my ears and I could feel my pulse in my fingertips. Anxiety washed over me, expecting him to be gone when I arrived, hoping he wasn't . However, the rational, mission part of me wanted him to have been abducted so that this job could be completed. . .

As soon as the twin silver doors opened once again I was out and running for our room. My unsteady hands were almost incapable of getting the keycard into the slot. Eventually I managed to swipe it and the door was no longer an obstacle.

The room was empty.

Youji

As I came to there was a slight ringing in my ears. Groaning I forced my eyes open, but as I was met with a great brightness I closed them again rapidly. Counting to ten I carefully lifted my lids to look at the surrounding area. This room was an empty hall, the kind that large hotels rented out for meetings or weird anime conventions. Without any events going on currently, the room was barren and the white walls were staring at me.

As I tried to stand up, I became aware of the fact that I was tied down to a chair both by my feet and waist. Behind me, my wrists were tied roughly as well. All and all I'd say that it was safe to suffice that I was not going anywhere.

"Don't pull too hard or you'll get a bad rope burn." Looking up I stared into the hateful eyes of the killer. They were lowered upon me with a look as though to say I was the scum of the earth. How could anyone hate people so fully just for liking their own gender?

"Doushite?" I asked with confusion, needless to say I was a little terrified. Perhaps it was the gun in the killer's hand or maybe the fact that I was tied down in an empty room with no one to hear me scream. . .

"Why?" They sneered as though the question were completely preposterous and the answer obvious.

"People like you make me sick. Not only is it disgusting and unnatural but you ruin lives!. . . I was once part of a happy family. A mother, a father, two children. . .Things were perfect until a faggot like you showed up!"

"So you're just going to shoot me now because you're home is broken?"

"No. . . I killed the others that way but that's not satisfying." They snickered with a sneer as they told me this. "I'm going to wait for your lover to return. He can watch as I shoot you, over and over. I'm going to make people like you suffer!"

Aya

"Why the hell weren't you watching him!" My words were harsh as I shouted at Ken, my firsts were folded in the collar of his shirt as I slammed him up against the wall.

"Aya-kun! Stop!" Omi was pulling at me roughly, urging me to let go. "Calm down!" Hn, easier said than done Takatori. How the hell was I supposed to relax when the person that means everything do me is in direct danger of dying? Especially when it could have been prevented, had the two idiots been doing their job properly.

"Aya just listen!" Angrily I let go of Ken, his body sliding to a sitting position upon the floor as he rubbed his, most likely, throbbing head.

"Itai. . ." Siberian murmured for a moment before focusing angry teal eyes back up at me. "Aya! Don't blame us! The killer put Youji on a cart after they knocked him out and everything was dark so we couldn't see where the camera was going! It got jostled around a lot and we were trying to get the picture back when you came in-

"Bingo!" Omi said as the image flickered on the screen of the laptop. The room was white, obviously not a guest room. . . The killer was only visible from the waist down, making identifying them impossible.

"Dammit, how are we supposed to figure out where the hell that is! There are hundreds of rooms here." My voice was growling. However, the fact that the image kept moving ever so slightly up and down assured me that he was still breathing. We had a chance.

"Wait a sec. What's that?" The object on the screen that Ken had been pointing too was a small pink piece of litter in a corner of the room. "Zoom in on that-"

As Omi rapidly slammed his fingers upon the keyboard, the little pink slip came more into focus. Upon the top of the page, there were words that were very difficult to make out.

"Sho. .. Jo. .. C. .. "

"Shoujo-con!" The youngest assassin cried triumphantly. "That room is on the third floor!"

"Let's go!"

With that, the three of us were off and running towards the stairs, we couldn't wait for the elevator.

"Hey Omi," Ken's voice frustrated me. This was not the time to be asking questions.

"Nani?"

"How did you know where the shoujo-con room was?"

"I. .. Uh. . ."

Youji

"Hmm, you're koibito still hasn't returned I see. . ." The killer absently murmured as they watched the vacant screen that lead to our bedroom. There were a few similar screens and upon them were scenes of other gay couples. Some were involved others just sitting there, also a few empty screens indicating that the men had left for the evening. . .

"Well if he waits too long I may just have to kill you anyway." Their lips curled into a cruel smile.

Aya. . . I was scarred for both him and myself. He had a long pointy stick, this psycho had a gun! That gun could kill both of us before Aya could even draw his sword. . . I could kill that damned chibi for making such a terrible plan, why weren't they here already?

"You can't kill every gay man in the world you know," I began just saying whatever bullshit came to mind, anything to buy me more time.

"Oh but I can have fun trying."

"You'll never get away with this!"

"There have been twelve deaths here in six separate cases. . . I have yet to be questioned once. I think that you are wrong Shuichi, I can and will get away with this. . ." Suddenly there was a loud crack as a door was being broken in. That that noise was soon followed by the quick footfalls of feet running. . .

All three of the other assassins, fully decked out in their gear. Aya's sword was drawn and gleaming in the bright light of the high wattage bulbs of the room. My God, he looked sexy in mission mode!

Aya

"Iya, that is where you are wrong."

"Am I?" Finally, the killer turned to face me and I was shocked at what met my eyes.

"You're. . ."

"Don't move any closer!" The girl screamed at us as she pointed a gun at Youji's head. "If you do your lover dies!" Obviously, she was surprised to see us, especially Ken and Omika who, thank God, was dressed like a boy again.

"Youji!" I didn't realize that the cry had been mine until the girl looked at me oddly. I could care less what she or my other two teammates thought now. The man that I loved. . . Yes, somewhere in my frenzied and frightened thoughts I had realized that my feelings were not just wantonness or an infatuation. . . I loved the idiot through and through. If he were to die now, so would I.

"Stop!" She cried as I began to take a step forward.

"Why are you doing this?!" I demanded of her with infuriation. This girl was no more than sixteen, how could someone so young be filled with so much prejudiced hate?

"Hmph. . . It's always the ones you'd least suspect isn't it? You, whoever you really are, were too busy looking at the obvious, so were the police. . . I had a happy life! My father loved my mother! Until one day, when one of you limp wristed fruits came along to tear that all apart! Now he lost his job and works at a fucking hotel. . . . And my mother, she's with some abusive bastard just because she can't support my sister and me! It's all because of people like you!" Tears of rage were streaming down her face as she finally admitted her justification.

"I'm sorry about your family," calmly I forced myself to reason things. Not only because she was a child, albeit a severely in need of mental help child, but she also had a gun pointed towards my beloved's head. "I lost mine too. . . But you can't make a scapegoat for your misfortune."

Slowly I tried to work my way forward, if I could just get that gun pointed away from him.

"No! People like you hurt everyone! If you're not breaking up other people's families, you're ruining your own! My grandfather had a heart attack when he found out!. . . Don't you dare try to justify your disgusting. . ."

"Please put the gun down. . That man isn't even gay." Please God, not Youji. He had taken my place first now I take his.

"My dad wasn't gay to begin with either until the right man came along. . . It's obvious that he loves you even if he isn't a faggot." Her words were coming as growls and in her emotional outburst, the gun had been brought back down to her side.

"Youji-kun. . ." I heard Omi's desperate whimper behind me. Both of my teammates were at a loss as well.

Not knowing what else to do I decided to bluff. "Are you kidding? . . That man hates me!. . ."

"You're a terrible liar," she sneered as she brought the gun back up. K'so. . . "Which one of you shall go first," the girl's lips curled upwards as she looked between the two of us. "Well ladies first, and from what I saw that would be you, Yuki, if that even is your real name."

Without warning the gun was turned upon me, so I did the only thing that I could do. . .

Youji

"Ayaaaa!" The idiot had run right into the shot, it hit him right over the left side of his chest. . . where his heart was.

Being the skillful man that he was Aya was not knocked off balance but charged the girl before she ever had the chance to cock the gun again.

It was all a blur as Omi came to quickly untie me and Ken ran over to restrain the girl that Aya was currently holding down as she thrashed back and forth violently.

Finally, as the last bonds were loosened from me I rushed over to Aya's collapsed form. The red haired assassin was clutching at where he had been shot, there was a grimace of his face as his breaths were panted.

"Aya!" I called out desperately kneeling beside him. Dear God no!. . .Frantically I began to tear at his jacket to find the wound and to try to stop the bleeding fast. "Aya don't die on me!. . I. .. "

"Youji. . ." He murmured softly. No.

"Aya you just can't!" The last buckles were being undone.

"Youji. . ."

Finally, I had the jacked open and the shirt beneath tugged up. I was shocked at what I found. "Aya. . ." The skin where he'd been his was a deep dark purple and red, very bruised. . . But very un bloody as well.

"Aya?"

Much to my ecstatic surprise, he began to fumble in his jacket pocket and pulled out the deformed piece of metal that had once been a golden engagement ring. He let out a small laugh and a weak smile. "Marry me all over again?"

"Oh God Aya!" I drew him in close to him in a tight embrace trying to hide the tears of joy that I was now crying. I had been so scared. "Aya I lo-"

There was the loud cock of a gun before a familiar voice rang out. "Sorry but I have to end this happy reunion. Drop your weapons!"

Aya

"Seiko?" I was not sure whose lips it came from first, Youji's or mine.

"I said drop your weapons!" Youji was unarmed and I had lost my katana somewhere along the line so that only left Ken and Omi. Both of the younger assassins complied, however I was sure that Omi still had darts somewhere on him. As soon as we were all free of weapons, the hotel employee began again.

"I'm sorry about this," he said. "But I can't let my daughter be killed or go to prison. . ." His eyes were tearful and full of guilt. There was also there a father's love, able to forgive any sin. "I am the one to blame. . . If I hadn't broken up our family none of this would have ever happened."

It came back to me then what Youji had said about Seiko being gay and that was why they'd divorced. . . Now the picture was becoming clearer as I recalled the detached look our culprit had had when we saw her at Great Kyoto. . . The last pieces of the puzzle were fitting in.

"Don't blame yourself," Omi tried to assure the man. He had always had a talent for dealing with some of our more out of control cases.

"It's all his fault!" The girl cried viciously from where she was now tired up, we had used the rope from the chair to bound her wrists and ankles together, making her look much like dying fish thrashing upon the floor.

"How long have you been covering up for your daughter's crimes?!" I, however, was not so forgiving.

"I only found out recently when the police came to question me about the murders," he admitted. The criminals who have enough conscience to feel bad for their deeds always feel the need to confess. "She's been helping me with my rounds here, delivering food service orders because I was having trouble keeping up. . . I didn't know that she'd been poisoning some of them!"

"What about the elevator?!" Youji was the one to ask that as he stood up, Seiko's gun following his every move. "A little girl wouldn't know how to do that."

"That was my doing. . . Before working here, I was a mechanical engineer. . . I wanted to throw people off my daughter's trail. . . I'm so sorry."

"By helping your daughter you are just as guilty as she." My words were ice and laced with rage.

"I'm so sorry. . I'm a failure. . . Forgive me!" With the full weight of his sins dawning upon him, the man collapsed to his knees, dropping the gun and began to weep.

Moving swiftly Youji got the gun away from him. Seiko was like a rag doll, lifeless and limp as we bound him. . .

Looking over at Youji I nodded. "Mission complete."

Youji



There, the last of our bags had been dragged down, where were the speedy bellhops now? Deciding not to stay another night the four of us were checking out. Well just Aya and me, the other two had left sooner but well. . . I'm slow.

Taking Aya's keycard and fishing my own out from my pocket, I strolled up the main desk to check out.

"How was your stay Mr. Fujudou?" The same old man that had checked us in asked as he ran the cards back into the computer.

"It was a blissful get away for me and my love muffin," I grinned as I affectionately patted my little redhead's butt. Hmm, one would never stop to think that Mr. Stoic himself could manage some of the cutest facial expressions when embarrassed. Right now the look was anger as his eyes lowered at me and lips pursed, the only thing that gave him away was the flattering splash of pink upon his cheeks.

"If that's all we will be leaving. . ." Aya muttered as we both turned to walk away.

"Wait a moment; you forgot to pay the bill!" The man was good-natured despite the fact that it looked like we were trying to foot the check off on someone else.

"No, our stay here was free. Ayame Junko said so, because of our terrible accident with the elevator," I tried to clear the problem up quickly. Right about now I was tired of this hotel and even more tired of this mission. Having come to terms with my love for Aya I wanted to set things straight and I couldn't really do that until we were alone.

"Yes, that is correct." The little male Momoe nodded affirmatively. "However your stay does not include the many movies you rented. Your total comes to. . ."

Aya

Upon hearing the large figure that the man stated I began to feel as though I were in shock. There had to be an extra digit in there somewhere, perhaps they forgot to put in the decimal separating bills from change. "Are you sure that's right?"

"Yes sir, it is."

"My God how much porn did you rent?!?!" I could care less who was starring at us in the lobby as I yelled at my now ex-husband. It wasn't that expensive to rent one of the movies. I am sure Kritiker would not be pleased to hear about this, most likely, it would be pulled from our paychecks and I couldn't afford to waste money on the idiot's curiosity.

"Anou. . . Um, Yuki I forgot my card. . . "He opened an empty leather wallet from which a little white bug flew out. No card and no. . . "And I spent all of my cash at Great Kyoto. Do you think that you could cover me?" With great embarrassment, he tried to grin charmingly. Youji!. . .

Youji

"You owe me." Ah, the sound of my lovely's voice once again, those were the first words that he had spoken to me ever since our departure from the hotel. I guess that I deserved it but c'mon, I had promised to reimburse him in full.

"I'm sorry Aya! I will pay you back, I promise! I just didn't have the money with me. . ."

"It's not the money." His lips pursed further until it looked like he had just sucked a lemon. My God but Aya could be prissy. . . Then again, it was kind of kawaii.

"Huh?" Well Mr. Scrooge didn't care about the money. "Then exactly what the hell is your problem?!"

"Tch." His gaze fixated me with the shi-ne glare for a moment before rolling his eyes. "I can't believe I had to pay that much for your stupid porn."

"Aya, no one would've known that it was porn until you blurted it out."

Needing to have the last word he merely scoffed, "It's the principal not the purpose," before turning back to the window and leaving me in silence once again.

"Hn. . . Baka." I muttered before choosing to ignore my traveling companion for the time being, he was not fun when he was acting like this. . . I suppose that the car is not the best place for resolving feelings anyway. If I really got into telling him how I felt we'd probably end up having a wreck and I have a sneaking suspicion that the redhead wouldn't been too keen on that. . . Call it a hunch.

"Hey Aya. . ." I began, deciding to try to apologize. In a relationship with two stubborn men, you would not get anywhere unless one was willing to take his lumps and pretend to be wrong. . . I say pretend because I know that I'm right. Aya just won't ever comply with me.

"Aya?" I ventured again when I got not so much as a 'hn' in response. Looking over I noticed that he was sleeping soundly; his forehead leaned against the window, leaving a little smudge. Aww, my little lover was so kawaii. Besides the tension was less when he was unconscious, thank God.