7. Ritualistic Killing
It was a bitter night and an uninhibited chill coerced the wind into becoming a merciless tempest. The full moon shone brightly overhead, illuminating three figures with an icy hue as they searched silently within the confines of police tape. The trio treaded the alleyway in silence, the tall buildings creating a wind tunnel as Hisoka pulled the collar of his coat up around his neck.
The teenager wore jeans and a long sleeved gray button down shirt that he did not bother to tuck into his waistband, while Tsuzuki donned his customary dress pants and white dress shirt with a dark tie. They both opted for trench coats.
The angel that lingered by the older man's side wore khaki corduroys with a narrow brown belt and tan work boots. Warming his torso was a short puffy white jacket with faux fur lining around the neck, which covered a fitted ribbed white sweater. The exaggerated size of the fluffy jacket effectively thinned his already slim legs. White gloved hands were shoved deep inside the white jacket as the angel wondered around curiously behind Tsuzuki.
This had been the first probable lead they got since they had started the case.
From the quick brief they received, they knew that two women had been murdered in a ritualistic manner. It had been done with the help of an invoked occult spirit, whom they concluded was an angelic prince of love known as Donquel.
Ingethel absentmindedly stroked the imitation fur of his neckline as he continued to quietly converse with Tsuzuki.
"...The Council is upset that the investigation is progressing at a slow pace, but they will not condemn you for it." Ingethel said sincerely, trying to reassure the purple-eyed Shinigami.
"They're not mad?" Tsuzuki inquired suspiciously, hope glimmering behind his skeptical gaze.
"They were the ones guarding Semyaza, and now he too has eluded their grasp." Ingethel managed meekly in a worried tone as his visage visibly depressed.
"Oh." Tsuzuki supplied in understanding. His features wilted into a sorrowful expression at the implications of that fact. After all, that's why they were here now, investigating what was considered a ritualistic murder connected to the rouge pair of fallen angels.
Watching the pair through various momentary side-glances, the Empath sensed something he longed for from his partner. Hisoka observed the synchrony between Tsuzuki's expressions to the emotions that drifted trough the boy's purposefully declining shields.
Sincerity.
The boy felt an urgent ache surface within him, before quickly denying it vacancy in his mind and snuffing it out with vicious indifference.
'God forbid he could ever be that honest with me and explain what the Hell is going on between us.' He thought bitterly, keeping his thoughts shielded against the angel.
Shaking his head to disperse the unwelcome thoughts, Hisoka ignored the rest of Tsuzuki and Ingethel's conversation, opting instead to get actual work done.
The Empath closed his eyes and let his body relax while his posture slouched in meditation. His head dipped gracefully as his chin gently came to rest in front of his collarbone. He concentrated his thoughts and stretched his mind across the entire scene before them.
"An invocation occurred here." He said quietly, as if only to confirm his findings to himself, though Tsuzuki and Ingethel were instantly interested. The pair slowly approached the boy as he continued.
"A spirit was summoned by an angel." He muttered still entranced as his slender form swayed slightly with the cold breeze.
Ingethel appeared shocked at the boy's revelation, worry slowly corrupting his angelic features, as if a fact that he feared had been confirmed.
"Azazel." Tsuzuki hissed with distant eyes laced in anger.
"I... I'm not sure..." Hisoka trailed off as he attempted to stretch his mind further. Ingethel's expression suddenly twisted in perplexity. "...These emotions... longing... desperation." He commented thoughtfully, his eyes shut tightly against distraction.
The Empath drowned his mind in the crime scene, attempting to pick up any trace of a lingering essence. It was futile though as the only mental residue he could pick up was that of the victims. He decided against pursuing their minds as the police recorded their blood alcohol level to be at a dangerous level. He shifted his mind slightly around the women and chanced upon an extremely faint celestial energy.
Hisoka concentrated on the precise location he had pinpointed as the origin of the invocation. Slowly, he channeled his psychic energy attempting to grasp any remnant of what had occurred. He was not about to come out of this empty handed.
With that thought, a faint agitated moan passed his lips as he quickly pushed his mind hard into the exact locality. His psyche was suddenly engulfed in a flash of harsh light that his mind's eye squinted against. When he recovered within his mind once more, he found himself caught in a post-cognitive experience, watching as the events of earlier that night unfolded in chaotic distortion before him.
'...I invoke thee, Donquel...' An enraged voice came form an imposing, blonde angel.
'Azazel?' Hisoka queried as he viewed the scene before him from in back of the invoker.
'...Produce before me the women I desire...'
Hisoka watched as an angelic spirit came forth.
'...Bring me those favored by angel master Semyaza!'
A large burst of unbearable light illuminated the entire scene, effectively blinding the youth as the angel turned slightly to regard his voyeur. Hisoka's concentration suddenly wavered as he sheltered his eyes tightly against the light by tucking his face in the nook of the inside of his elbow. An excruciating pain tore its way through the Empath's vulnerable mind.
Attempting to recover from the powerful force to his head, Hisoka grew all the more annoyed as he suddenly felt a strong wave of unshielded worry emanate from his partner and crash into his entranced mind.
The Empath tried to regain his concentration over the difficulty of the mingling emotions. Just as he was focusing his mind back into the trance, he was soon bombarded by several consecutive harsh waves of the previous emotion that he could discern belonged to Tsuzuki.
'What the Hell is wrong with him!?' Hisoka spat out in his mind's voice, mentally grasping his arms around his body and squeezing tightly.
'He knows better then to let he shields down while I'm like this!' He mentally hissed between grit teeth as the pain of the in his head became more intense. Strong arms encircled his physical body tightly, and Hisoka slowly began pull his mind from his empathic trance.
The draining experience was effectively throwing his empathy off balance. He was unsure if emotions were his or not as they all came together to form a numbing pain that pulsed through his weary brain. As he attempted to escape the confines of his mind, he was mentally floored on his way by several emotions he was sure were not his own; Guilt, desperation, fear, need, desolation, all laced with panic. They were so clear and intense that Hisoka was positive the emotions had to come from physical contact.
He became puzzled when he heard his name distantly whispered. "Hisoka." He found the voice strangely soothing as it called him back to reality. 'It's Tsuzuki.' He calmly deduced; the mere mention of the name seemed comforting, and he greedily accepted all the relief he could from his current state of mental trauma. Gradually releasing the intense energy needed for his entrancement, Hisoka heard his name again, louder this time. "Hisoka!" The concerned voice screamed in panic as he felt himself being lightly shaken.
The youth's body lay limp in Tsuzuki's intense embrace as he cried his partner's name repeatedly.
'What the Hell went wrong!?' Tsuzuki fearfully questioned himself as he gazed expectantly at the boy in his arms. He recalled the events of several minutes ago and remembered Hisoka following a spiritual trail, and all of a sudden his body was thrown violently by an unseen force. He now possessed a wounded partner in his arms that did not seem to have the energy to break free of his own self-induced trance. 'You should have known better then to let him mingle with the celestial power of an angel!' Tsuzuki mentally scolded himself.
"Hisoka!" Tsuzuki shouted anxiously for what seemed like the hundredth time as Ingethel kept a good distance from the intense emotional display.
Instantly, Green eyes shot open and stared up shocked into a pair of worried violet. Tsuzuki stared down at his partner; a new and completely different volley of emotions flooded into his mind as a vibrant shade of vermillion washed across his adolescent features.
Quickly pushing himself out of the older man's embrace, he landed in a disorganized heap onto the hard ground. Hisoka sat supporting himself with an elbow on the cold asphalt of the alley clutching his forehead in his right hand, eyes wide as he attempted to discern why he had just awoken in his partner's arms. Suddenly, he noticed an iron-like taste in his mouth that he realized had been present since he had regained consciousness.
The hand that had been comforting the dull ache in his head slowly made its way down his face and stopped abruptly at his nose were he felt a still fresh hot liquid spilling forth.
Eying the burgundy liquid on his fingertips in a mix of horror and confusion, Hisoka turned to his partner, eyes pleading silently for an explanation.
However, Tsuzuki did not notice the wordless request. His head hung in defeat, unwilling to face any more rejection from his partner. Hisoka felt a chill of abandonment run down the curve of his delicate spin as Tsuzuki reinforced his mental shields.
Suddenly, another voice broke through Hisoka's contemplation. "Kurosaki-kun! Are you alright?" The angel made his way to the youth's side in an elegant manner, kneeling beside him.
Hisoka quickly regained his composure as he suddenly realized there were more people present then just himself and Tsuzuki. He regretfully removed his eyes from his partner to regard worried angel. "I'm fine." He said, his voice slightly strained from weariness, or so he tried to convince himself.
"Whoever evoked Donquel also cast a cover spell." Defeat was present in his young voice. "I can't trace them." Hisoka said quietly as his gaze fell to the ground, rubbing the still flowing blood from his nose with the back of his pale hand.
Observing his partner once again, Tsuzuki hesitantly produced a handkerchief from his trench coat pocket and offered it formally to his partner. The boy declined the white cloth, turning his head away from his Tsuzuki in an apathetic manner. He was not about to let Tsuzuki know how severe his head injury was. Though, somehow Hisoka could tell his partner was aware of the gravity of his condition.
'Why won't he let me help him?' Tsuzuki thought in frustration. He knew his partner was is more pain then he was admitting to and he could not understand the boy's motives for keeping that obvious fact a secret.
However, instead of making him apprehensive, Hisoka's acerbic attitude was beginning to anger Tsuzuki. Though, before his head could make sense of the negative emotion or why he only recently began feeling this way, it was banished to the back of his mind like many other unfriendly emotions before it.
Seemingly being the only one still concerned about the case, Ingethel stood rigid with fear from the boy's the most recent discovery.
To Be Concluded...
Now, now, Tsuzuki, pent up rage is never a good thing.
Anyways, let me know if I should continue the story or trash this idea.
By the way, did anyone get CLAMP's Tokyo Babylon from TokyoPop?
It was a bitter night and an uninhibited chill coerced the wind into becoming a merciless tempest. The full moon shone brightly overhead, illuminating three figures with an icy hue as they searched silently within the confines of police tape. The trio treaded the alleyway in silence, the tall buildings creating a wind tunnel as Hisoka pulled the collar of his coat up around his neck.
The teenager wore jeans and a long sleeved gray button down shirt that he did not bother to tuck into his waistband, while Tsuzuki donned his customary dress pants and white dress shirt with a dark tie. They both opted for trench coats.
The angel that lingered by the older man's side wore khaki corduroys with a narrow brown belt and tan work boots. Warming his torso was a short puffy white jacket with faux fur lining around the neck, which covered a fitted ribbed white sweater. The exaggerated size of the fluffy jacket effectively thinned his already slim legs. White gloved hands were shoved deep inside the white jacket as the angel wondered around curiously behind Tsuzuki.
This had been the first probable lead they got since they had started the case.
From the quick brief they received, they knew that two women had been murdered in a ritualistic manner. It had been done with the help of an invoked occult spirit, whom they concluded was an angelic prince of love known as Donquel.
Ingethel absentmindedly stroked the imitation fur of his neckline as he continued to quietly converse with Tsuzuki.
"...The Council is upset that the investigation is progressing at a slow pace, but they will not condemn you for it." Ingethel said sincerely, trying to reassure the purple-eyed Shinigami.
"They're not mad?" Tsuzuki inquired suspiciously, hope glimmering behind his skeptical gaze.
"They were the ones guarding Semyaza, and now he too has eluded their grasp." Ingethel managed meekly in a worried tone as his visage visibly depressed.
"Oh." Tsuzuki supplied in understanding. His features wilted into a sorrowful expression at the implications of that fact. After all, that's why they were here now, investigating what was considered a ritualistic murder connected to the rouge pair of fallen angels.
Watching the pair through various momentary side-glances, the Empath sensed something he longed for from his partner. Hisoka observed the synchrony between Tsuzuki's expressions to the emotions that drifted trough the boy's purposefully declining shields.
Sincerity.
The boy felt an urgent ache surface within him, before quickly denying it vacancy in his mind and snuffing it out with vicious indifference.
'God forbid he could ever be that honest with me and explain what the Hell is going on between us.' He thought bitterly, keeping his thoughts shielded against the angel.
Shaking his head to disperse the unwelcome thoughts, Hisoka ignored the rest of Tsuzuki and Ingethel's conversation, opting instead to get actual work done.
The Empath closed his eyes and let his body relax while his posture slouched in meditation. His head dipped gracefully as his chin gently came to rest in front of his collarbone. He concentrated his thoughts and stretched his mind across the entire scene before them.
"An invocation occurred here." He said quietly, as if only to confirm his findings to himself, though Tsuzuki and Ingethel were instantly interested. The pair slowly approached the boy as he continued.
"A spirit was summoned by an angel." He muttered still entranced as his slender form swayed slightly with the cold breeze.
Ingethel appeared shocked at the boy's revelation, worry slowly corrupting his angelic features, as if a fact that he feared had been confirmed.
"Azazel." Tsuzuki hissed with distant eyes laced in anger.
"I... I'm not sure..." Hisoka trailed off as he attempted to stretch his mind further. Ingethel's expression suddenly twisted in perplexity. "...These emotions... longing... desperation." He commented thoughtfully, his eyes shut tightly against distraction.
The Empath drowned his mind in the crime scene, attempting to pick up any trace of a lingering essence. It was futile though as the only mental residue he could pick up was that of the victims. He decided against pursuing their minds as the police recorded their blood alcohol level to be at a dangerous level. He shifted his mind slightly around the women and chanced upon an extremely faint celestial energy.
Hisoka concentrated on the precise location he had pinpointed as the origin of the invocation. Slowly, he channeled his psychic energy attempting to grasp any remnant of what had occurred. He was not about to come out of this empty handed.
With that thought, a faint agitated moan passed his lips as he quickly pushed his mind hard into the exact locality. His psyche was suddenly engulfed in a flash of harsh light that his mind's eye squinted against. When he recovered within his mind once more, he found himself caught in a post-cognitive experience, watching as the events of earlier that night unfolded in chaotic distortion before him.
'...I invoke thee, Donquel...' An enraged voice came form an imposing, blonde angel.
'Azazel?' Hisoka queried as he viewed the scene before him from in back of the invoker.
'...Produce before me the women I desire...'
Hisoka watched as an angelic spirit came forth.
'...Bring me those favored by angel master Semyaza!'
A large burst of unbearable light illuminated the entire scene, effectively blinding the youth as the angel turned slightly to regard his voyeur. Hisoka's concentration suddenly wavered as he sheltered his eyes tightly against the light by tucking his face in the nook of the inside of his elbow. An excruciating pain tore its way through the Empath's vulnerable mind.
Attempting to recover from the powerful force to his head, Hisoka grew all the more annoyed as he suddenly felt a strong wave of unshielded worry emanate from his partner and crash into his entranced mind.
The Empath tried to regain his concentration over the difficulty of the mingling emotions. Just as he was focusing his mind back into the trance, he was soon bombarded by several consecutive harsh waves of the previous emotion that he could discern belonged to Tsuzuki.
'What the Hell is wrong with him!?' Hisoka spat out in his mind's voice, mentally grasping his arms around his body and squeezing tightly.
'He knows better then to let he shields down while I'm like this!' He mentally hissed between grit teeth as the pain of the in his head became more intense. Strong arms encircled his physical body tightly, and Hisoka slowly began pull his mind from his empathic trance.
The draining experience was effectively throwing his empathy off balance. He was unsure if emotions were his or not as they all came together to form a numbing pain that pulsed through his weary brain. As he attempted to escape the confines of his mind, he was mentally floored on his way by several emotions he was sure were not his own; Guilt, desperation, fear, need, desolation, all laced with panic. They were so clear and intense that Hisoka was positive the emotions had to come from physical contact.
He became puzzled when he heard his name distantly whispered. "Hisoka." He found the voice strangely soothing as it called him back to reality. 'It's Tsuzuki.' He calmly deduced; the mere mention of the name seemed comforting, and he greedily accepted all the relief he could from his current state of mental trauma. Gradually releasing the intense energy needed for his entrancement, Hisoka heard his name again, louder this time. "Hisoka!" The concerned voice screamed in panic as he felt himself being lightly shaken.
The youth's body lay limp in Tsuzuki's intense embrace as he cried his partner's name repeatedly.
'What the Hell went wrong!?' Tsuzuki fearfully questioned himself as he gazed expectantly at the boy in his arms. He recalled the events of several minutes ago and remembered Hisoka following a spiritual trail, and all of a sudden his body was thrown violently by an unseen force. He now possessed a wounded partner in his arms that did not seem to have the energy to break free of his own self-induced trance. 'You should have known better then to let him mingle with the celestial power of an angel!' Tsuzuki mentally scolded himself.
"Hisoka!" Tsuzuki shouted anxiously for what seemed like the hundredth time as Ingethel kept a good distance from the intense emotional display.
Instantly, Green eyes shot open and stared up shocked into a pair of worried violet. Tsuzuki stared down at his partner; a new and completely different volley of emotions flooded into his mind as a vibrant shade of vermillion washed across his adolescent features.
Quickly pushing himself out of the older man's embrace, he landed in a disorganized heap onto the hard ground. Hisoka sat supporting himself with an elbow on the cold asphalt of the alley clutching his forehead in his right hand, eyes wide as he attempted to discern why he had just awoken in his partner's arms. Suddenly, he noticed an iron-like taste in his mouth that he realized had been present since he had regained consciousness.
The hand that had been comforting the dull ache in his head slowly made its way down his face and stopped abruptly at his nose were he felt a still fresh hot liquid spilling forth.
Eying the burgundy liquid on his fingertips in a mix of horror and confusion, Hisoka turned to his partner, eyes pleading silently for an explanation.
However, Tsuzuki did not notice the wordless request. His head hung in defeat, unwilling to face any more rejection from his partner. Hisoka felt a chill of abandonment run down the curve of his delicate spin as Tsuzuki reinforced his mental shields.
Suddenly, another voice broke through Hisoka's contemplation. "Kurosaki-kun! Are you alright?" The angel made his way to the youth's side in an elegant manner, kneeling beside him.
Hisoka quickly regained his composure as he suddenly realized there were more people present then just himself and Tsuzuki. He regretfully removed his eyes from his partner to regard worried angel. "I'm fine." He said, his voice slightly strained from weariness, or so he tried to convince himself.
"Whoever evoked Donquel also cast a cover spell." Defeat was present in his young voice. "I can't trace them." Hisoka said quietly as his gaze fell to the ground, rubbing the still flowing blood from his nose with the back of his pale hand.
Observing his partner once again, Tsuzuki hesitantly produced a handkerchief from his trench coat pocket and offered it formally to his partner. The boy declined the white cloth, turning his head away from his Tsuzuki in an apathetic manner. He was not about to let Tsuzuki know how severe his head injury was. Though, somehow Hisoka could tell his partner was aware of the gravity of his condition.
'Why won't he let me help him?' Tsuzuki thought in frustration. He knew his partner was is more pain then he was admitting to and he could not understand the boy's motives for keeping that obvious fact a secret.
However, instead of making him apprehensive, Hisoka's acerbic attitude was beginning to anger Tsuzuki. Though, before his head could make sense of the negative emotion or why he only recently began feeling this way, it was banished to the back of his mind like many other unfriendly emotions before it.
Seemingly being the only one still concerned about the case, Ingethel stood rigid with fear from the boy's the most recent discovery.
To Be Concluded...
Now, now, Tsuzuki, pent up rage is never a good thing.
Anyways, let me know if I should continue the story or trash this idea.
By the way, did anyone get CLAMP's Tokyo Babylon from TokyoPop?