:waves: Hi everybody! Well, it's finally done. After 17 months, Left in the Dark has finally reached its conclusion.
If you hadn't noticed, I bumped the rating up one for language, tobacco use, and some obscene verbal harassment by Sato, who you will meet later. I just don't want the administrators to eat me, or remove the story. :sweatdrops:
Anyway, I'm really excited about this. Really, I had the sneaking suspicion that this would never reach an ending and would just be one of those stories that was cut off in the middle and never finished. However, thanks to ideas and support from you guys, that won't be happening.
In truth, the biggest reason it took me so long to update this story all the time was because I was afraid of disappointing you guys. I'd never done a fic like this before, and I wasn't sure what would please the fans. Because of this, I got nervous and stopped updating. :bows: Please forgive me. I hope you guys do enjoy the way it turned out.
Also, I'd like to give an author's response to RIKA.
I'm sorry that this was shorter than you wished, but really, I believe this is for the best. Thanks to Ao-Senshi and karislight, I was able to come up with a decent ending, which I wasn't able to do before. If I were to make this story any longer, it would become too drawn out and inevitably pointless.
One main rule to live by when writing a story is to tell what needs to be told, then stop. Don't keep going when there is nothing left to say, and that is what I'm going to do. So, forgive me, but I will not be making it any longer.
Now, enough with this. On with the story!
Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, and this will be the last time I have to say this. Are you satisfied now, corporate America :shakes fist:
The kid with black hair removed the cigarette from his lips, leaned forward to see the picture more carefully, and raised an eyebrow. "You call this an artist's depiction?" he asked, looking up at Ryo, who was holding the picture at arm's length.
"Yes," replied Ryo bluntly, "So have you seen him?"
A kid with a mohawk, who was standing with the black-haired kid, leaned forward to get a better look. "Dude," he said, pointing at it with his lighter. "That's a stick figure with a pitchfork and devil horns."
Grimacing, Ryo looked at the paper himself. Before he'd left Rika's house the previous day, he'd convinced her to tell him what her attacker looked like. He'd had to pry it out of her, but eventually he'd gotten all the physical description he needed. Unfortunately, Ryo wasn't exactly an artist, and could only draw a stick figure. Adding to that, he couldn't help but throw in evil eyes, devil horns, fangs, a pitchfork, and a devil's tail. In short, a five-year-old could have done a better job.
As a vein throbbed in Ryo's temple, he crumpled the paper up in one hand and shoved it in his pocket.
"Good call," said Black Hair, taking a drag from his cigarette.
"What if I just…described him to you guys? Would that work?" asked Ryo. He would have to head for school soon, and he was hoping to get some leads on where to find this guy before then. He wanted to find him as soon as possible.
"Maybe." Said Mohawk in a disinterested voice.
"All right," said Ryo, looking down at the ground, trying to focus on the description Rika had given him. "Long, greasy, stringy black hair, wears all black. Has a leather jacket and a spiked bracelet. Hangs out around here after dark…"
"Ah," said Black Hair, snapping his fingers. "You're looking for Sato. Yeah, we know him." He leaned around the corner, nodding at something down the street. The three were downtown, on the same street where Rika had been attacked. "He comes down here to get these," said Black Hair, flicking his cigarette for emphasis. "He'll usually hang around in one of the alleyways for a while. He's probably due for another pack today as a matter of fact."
"Do you know him well?" asked Ryo. Both the boys shook their heads.
"Saburo-kun here," said Mohawk, gesturing at his friend with an elbow, "just sells him his cancer."
Ryo looked at his watch and groaned to himself. He had to get going soon.
"Well, if you see him…tell him to stick around. I have some business with him." With that, Ryo took off jogging down the street. Then, he turned the corner and was gone. Saburo and Mohawk watched him go, and then looked at each other.
"You gonna do it?" asked Mohawk, leaning back against the smoke stained wall. Saburo shrugged to himself.
"Eh, why not?" he said, dropping his cigarette and grinding it beneath his heel. "We'll get a good story from Sato afterwards, so I might as well."
A few hours later, Ryo sat in class, inattentive as ever. When he wasn't tapping his pencil on the desk, he was chewing on the eraser, both sighs of obvious distraction. He was looking out the window, glaring, thinking of what he would do to this, "Sato" when he got his hands on him. Some of his classmates gave him strange looks, but otherwise ignored the boy.
This is how it had been for most of the day. Even his friends had noticed it. Takato and Jeri had questioned him about the strange behavior, only to receive a distracted, "I'm fine," in return. Henry was the only one who hadn't said anything to him.
As the minute and second hands on the clock clicked into position, the bell rang loudly, signaling that the weekend had begun.
"Remember," said the teacher as the students began to collect their things. "You have a test over English verbs on Monday. I suggest studying your text from pages 73 through…where are you going Akiyama-san? You have to write down the assignment before you-Get back here Akiyama-san!"
Ryo strode out of the school's double doors, walking with purpose. By his stance, one could immediately tell that he was a man on a mission. His eyes, narrowed in concentration, and his rigid steps could have told you that. He bumped kids to the side as he went, receiving many disgruntled looks and shouts as a result. However, Ryo really couldn't have cared less.
After a bit, he was out of the crowd and walking along the sidewalk, unaccompanied by anyone else. He knew he couldn't go downtown yet. After all, Sato probably wasn't going to be there until dusk, if he was even going to be there at all. Still, he didn't want to go home, and he could only think of only one other place where he could go.
'Might as well go there,' he thought to himself, shoving his hands in his pockets. 'Take the long way, maybe get rid of some of this damned stress and get away from other people.'
"Ryo!" someone called out.
'Damnit,' Ryo thought, mentally snapping his fingers.
For a moment, Ryo paused, listening to the footsteps coming up behind him. However, he quickly started walking again, hastening his pace. Whoever it was, he didn't want to talk to them. Unfortunately, they were still able to catch up.
"Ryo," Henry repeated, slowing from a run when he reached said boy. "What going on?"
Ryo blinked, a little surprised by the abrupt question. "What?" he asked, turning to look at the younger boy. "Nothing's going on."
"You've been acting weird today," Henry commented, his eyes narrowed with suspicion. "You're still acting distant…but you've been acting angry and anxious too. We've all noticed it, even Kazu and Kenta."
"So?" Ryo replied simply.
"I want to know what's going on with you."
Ryo looked over and the boy and narrowed his eyes, studying him critically. Henry looked back at him with the same look, his eyes urging Ryo to answer the question. Ryo, of course, was hesitant. 'He'll try to stop me,' he thought, eying Henry intensely. 'But then again…he won't be able to or anything…'
"I'm going after him." Ryo finally said, turning his eyes away from Henry and toward the sky.
"Who?" asked the Henry, raising his eyebrow suspiciously.
"The guy who attacked Rika." Ryo clenched his fists inside his pockets. "I'm going after him tonight. I know exactly where to find him. I'm going to make him pay for what he did to her." Hearing this, the usually quiet Henry couldn't keep his mouth shut.
"No way Ryo," he said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. Ryo shrugged it away. "Doing that won't help Rika. If you get hurt, it'll just make it even worse."
Ryo snorted and shook his head. "That's not the point." He said, taking his hands out of his pockets and looking at his palms. "Rika…she's different. Maybe he didn't kill her, but he still took the life right out of her. She use to be really fiery, you know. Rika isn't Rika anymore. He has to pay for that."
"Ryo, she'll be fine on her own. She will get better."
Ryo stopped walking suddenly, his eyes now trained on the ground. Henry stopped as well, looking back at his silent friend. "Prove that to me." Ryo said after a moment.
They stayed still for a time, the shadows on the ground slowly lengthening. "I'm not going to be able to change your mind, am I?" asked Henry, hooking his thumbs in his pockets.
Slowly, a smirk spread across Ryo's face. "Not a chance," he said. He began walking again, strolling past Henry. As he turned the corner, he turned and gave Henry a wave. He said nothing; no "See you", no "Catch you later", nothing. He would have said it, but for some reason he felt like he'd better not. With that simple motion, he disappeared.
For a moment, Henry wasn't sure what to do. He knew he was should chase after Ryo and try to stop him. However, he also knew that that wouldn't work. Ryo was as stubborn and bull-headed as Rika, and had already made up his mind. He was on the path of no return now.
Henry massaged his forehead and, with a sigh, turned and began walking in the direction of his house. He'd being praying for Ryo's safety all night now. So much for his homework.
"Rika?" said Ryo as he slid the door to Rika's room closed behind him. She remained silent, as had become normal for her. However, she did shift slightly, so he knew she was awake. "Rika…" he said, kneeling down at her side. "I need to tell you something."
No response.
"I…I found out some stuff about that guy, the one who attacked you. His name's Sato, and he usually hangs out where he attacked you."
Rika shivered slightly, almost unnoticeably. However, she didn't speak.
"You don't have to be afraid of him anymore Rika," he said gently. He took her hand in both of his, holding it tightly. He could tell she disapproved as she tried to pull it away, but he refused to let go. "I'm going to take care of him. I'm going to make him pay for what he did to you."
He smiled kindly at her, though he knew all too well that with her eyes closed, she couldn't see it. 'Maybe you'll go back to being normal if I do this.' He thought to himself. 'Maybe, if what your afraid of is gone, you'll change back.' It was a long shot definitely, but it could happen. It could.
Rika remained silent and still, her face slightly twisted in annoyance. Obviously, she still wasn't too happy about him holding her hand. Ryo, who couldn't give up his old antics, gently kissed her hand. Immediately, he saw her tense up, and he couldn't help but snicker.
"See you sweetheart." He said, standing up and heading for the door. "When I get back, I'm gonna tell you all about China, all right?" With that, he slid the door open and closed, and was gone.
As soon as Ryo footsteps faded away into nothingness, Rika opened her eyes. 'He's going to do what?' she thought to herself, sitting up. Slowly, she looked down at her hand. She could still feel where he'd kissed it. Suave bastard. Then, her eyes turned to the doorway where he had been only moments before.
'So…' she thought to herself. 'He's going to go avenge me? He's as strong as I am, and I got beaten. He might not even survive.'
She continued to stare at the door for several minutes. What would happen if he didn't? What would she do? No matter how thickheaded he was, she still really cared about him. What would she do if he was to die, and she knew she could have stopped it?
She put her hand to her chest, glaring at the floor. "Stupid Ryo."
Though Ryo didn't know it, this evening was just the like one when Rika was attacked. The sun was just beginning to set behind the tall buildings on the west side of town, sending the main street into darkness. People were beginning to leave, the crowd thinning out until it was non-existent. He was left alone on the street with nothing but the garbage and the distant sound of a car alarm to keep him company.
Ryo paused at the mouth of the street. 'He should be here,' Ryo thought to himself, slowly walking forward. As he passed each alleyway, he leaned forward and gazed into its dark depths, searching for any movement.
As he went, he tried to imagine what this Sato guy would seem like in person. Of course, his first thought that came to mind was "the devil incarnate", but somehow that struck him as being improbable. What he did know was that this guy was willing to stab a person in a dark alley, and was just as inclined to leave them there. Basically, that meant he had to watch his back.
Then, finally, Ryo caught sight of what he'd been looking for. Down one of the darker, filthier alleys, he saw a red dot floating several feet off the ground; a cigarette.
"Hey," called Ryo, not daring to step into the alley. He wasn't exactly nocturnal, so it occurred to him that doing so would probably be a bad idea.
The little red dot bobbed slightly, and Ryo could faintly see the dark outline of a head turn in his direction.
"I'm guessing you're Sato." Ryo said, trying to keep his voice level and calm. He couldn't let Sato hear the nervousness in his voice. If he did, it was already over.
"Who wants to know?" came a smooth voice. There was a quiet shuffling sound as he pulled his lighter out of his pocket, flicking it on and lighting the end of his dying cigarette. His dark eyes and greasy strands of black hair came into view, and Ryo was immediately certain that this was him. He was exactly as Rika had described him.
"No one of importance," said Ryo, trying to sound disinterested as well as confident. He heard Sato snap the lighter shut with a click and a "humph".
"Saburo and Udo said someone wanted to see me tonight," said Sato. Ryo listened as footsteps echoed against the walls of the alleyway, coming closer with each stride. "But if you're not gonna tell me what you want, I'm out of here. I don't have time to waste with you."
"Patience, patience," said Ryo, sounding strangely like some sort of yakuza member. "I just want to ask you something,"
"Spit it out then," said Sato. Obviously, he wasn't one for said patience.
"A girl was sent to the hospital a few weeks ago," said Ryo, now attempting to keep the anger out of his voice. He already knew Sato was the one, he could feel it. Still, he had to make sure.
"Happens all the time." Said Sato irritably. "What's it got to do with me?"
"Well, she was found in a pile of garbage around here somewhere. She'd been stabbed or something. She barely made it out alive. I heard it might have been you who did it."
Sato paused for a minute, obviously thinking. He took another drag from his cigarette, rolling his eyes to look up at the sky. "Oh!" he said, snapping his fingers. "That's right. That redheaded broad. Didn't know she survived that."
"So it was you," said Ryo, his eyes narrowing and a strange smile spreading across his face. It held an odd mix of anger, vengeance, and wickedness. "In that case…" That's when his resolve finally broke and he sent his fist right at Sato. Unprepared for the blow, the boy took it squarely in the cheek, stumbling backwards. He doubled over, holding his wounded face, his cigarette dropping to the ground.
"I get it," he said after a few moments, slowly looking up at Ryo. Even in the little light available, Ryo could see the bruise beginning to form on the boy's face. "You're her bitch or something, right?" Ryo delivered a quick kick to his stomach in response.
"I'm here to get revenge," he said dryly, his mask of friendliness long gone. "You've destroyed her, and you're going to pay,"
Sato snickered evilly. "Kid, let me give you a piece of advice." He said, standing up straight. He threw off his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of the shirt underneath. "Never fight with a guy that has nothing to lose." And the fists flew.
"Not bad," remarked Sato, wiping blood from his lip. Both he and Ryo were breathing heavily, worn after only a few minutes time. Blood was dripping from a cut on Ryo's forehead, and he was pretty battered, but he had sufficed well besides. Sato was in the same condition, much to Ryo's anger. "You're fun kid," he said, only fueling Ryo's rage. "But I'm getting bored, so we're going to have to wrap this up."
Ryo bared his teeth, much like an enraged animal. Then again, the description fit him rather well. He charged the careless Sato, dead set on wiping the smirk off of his face, and then his face right off his head. Unfortunately, in his rage, he didn't see Sato reach into his pocket and pull something out.
As Ryo charged, Sato dodged to the side gracefully, and then swung a fist around Ryo's back and into his shoulder. Ryo noticed that, for some reason, it hurt a lot more than it should have. Also, it didn't hurt the way a fist should. It was cold, and it stung terribly. It took a minute for him to realize what had happened; he'd been stabbed.
Quickly, he dove backwards, shouting as the metal was yanked from his shoulder. Blood spilled from the wound, the coppery smell making him sick. He stumbled, doing his best to clamp a hand over the wound and slow the bleeding. Before him, Sato held the blade up, giving him a triumphant grin.
"It was fun kid, but I'm afraid I can't go easy on you. Your little friend didn't know my name, see. She couldn't prove anything. But if I let you go, I'll have the police after me again. Can't have that…"
Ryo's eyes widened with horror, looking over his shoulder. He could run, that was for sure, but how far could he possibly get? Just as he was thinking this, Sato was suddenly before him, moving with cat-like grace. He delivered a well-placed punch to Ryo ribs, sending the boy to his knees.
"Night kid," said Sato simply. Ryo jumped backwards attempting to avoid the inevitable blow. However, he knew he'd never would. He wouldn't be able to move fast enough.
He'd been cocky coming down here. He'd thought for sure he could come back from this the victor, but apparently he'd overestimated himself. Now, not only was Rika not avenged, but he'd be dead to boot. He shut his eyes, bracing himself.
'Forgive me Rika,' he prayed in his last moments.
Then, two shouts brought his attention back to the outside world. One was Sato's. It was filled with shock and pain. The other was…
'No fricken' way,' thought Ryo, looking up. A certain redheaded girl was behind Sato, the heal of her foot digging into the back of his head.
"Pick on someone your own size you ass!" she screamed, grabbing his neck and slamming him backwards into the ground. Sato struggled to get up, and obviously would have done so, if Rika hadn't hit just the right spot on his neck. Slowly, Sato's body went limp, and his head fell back onto the concrete.
Slowly, Rika stood, breathing hard. She hadn't done much, but her body was still weak, and this had been a real strain. She kicked Sato in the side, though it wasn't as hard as she would have hoped.
"That's what you get, bastard," she said, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. Said orbs slowly turned to look down at Ryo, who was gapping at her in disbelief. Rika was…Rika. She was herself again, the annoyance and all. He could tell by the look presently on her face.
"What are you staring at?" she barked, crossing her arms over her chest. "I just had the element of surprise this time. His ass was mine from the beginning, so don't look surprised." She turned to walk away, calling over her shoulder. "Now, stop catching flies and come on. We can call the police at the payphone down the street. Besides, you said you were going to tell me about your trip to China."
And…cut! That's a wrap!
Sorry if the ending was abrupt, but I'm rather happy with this ending. This chapter had a somewhat cute moment, but no cheesy make-out scene. I never really liked the cheesy make-out scenes, no offense to those of you that do. I just think that if someone can portray love, it's much better than if they have to say it, so that's what I shoot for in my writing. Did I do it well, or do I need to improve.
Also, I'm sorry I deprived you of most of the fight scene. See...I'm just...bad at fight scenes and whatnot. Plus, that part seemed a little pointless to many anyway. :sweatdrops:
Well, here we are, the ending. We've reached the light at the end of the tunnel, and it's time to say goodbye to this fic. Despite the hardships of this fic, I believe it turned out good, and I'm happy about it. Sure, it could have been better, just like everything else. Still, it wasn't horrible (I hope), and that's a good thing.
Now, for the dedications. Like with my other two fics, I'm dedicating this to everyone who has reviewed my story.
red rose
SMtogether
EvilQueen
DarkIcedPrincess
jessica
darkmizuki1
Bboyz
MakinoRuki
Violeteyesrika
KristiexxNguyen
RikaTabithaStarr
AkikoDove
surfergurl16
RyukiTJHA
GTKari-123
LuzrGurl13
rikagirls
alexian-goddess
Telly
Ao-Senshi
SilverRainbow223
Mah-Xien
Rika the fire heart
Hikari-Kawaii
Absolute-Darkness
RyukiObessed
karislight
karika88
RIKA
lxlriotgirlx
PERSON
:blinks: Wow. This list is the longest so far. Well, thanks to all you guys for all the support and help you gave me, even to those who didn't like it. Also, if you review this chapter, add your name to the list. :smiles:
Bye bye everybody! Keep reading, writing, and reviewing:hops on her magic carpet and flies away:
Sincerely,
Animeangelash