Angelic Layer - Tampered Mind

In the Night

Oujirou draped his blue coat over the couch in his living room as he walked back to his office. In the blackness of the room, a blue light could be seen, blinking on and off on a laptop computer-like device. Oujirou groaned in irritation as he collapsed in the chair in front of the device. Pushing a button on the screen of the device, the light stopped blinking and a female voice came up, along with the Angelic Layer logo. "Linking contact, please stand by."

Oujirou yawned and stretched his arms out towards the ceiling, trying to get the sleepiness out of them. Then setting them back in his lap, the screen on the device in front of him suddenly changed to Ichirou's face.

"I thought I told you to come to the lab! Oh well, its about time you got home anyway. How was the romantic car ride with your dear Misaki?" Ichirou said with a teasing smile on his face.

"Too short," Oujirou stated plainly, then continued, "So, what was this information about the girl who injured Misaki? Wasn't that already taken care of?"

"Well, apparently, our little cheater is angry about me taking her card away from her. I got a letter from her in the form of a threat," Ichirou just gave Oujirou his usual serious look, that of a slightly crazy, yet nerdy man.

"Ah, and you think this might have something to do with Misaki? But you said you had a way of making sure it would never happen again?" Oujirou asked, trying to read his step-brother's mind.

"Well, to put it plainly…she's threatened to 'finish what she's started' and then plans to kidnap you so that I have to 'pay up,' as she put it. As for making sure it will never happen again…well, that's to make sure it never happens again with anyone else," Ichirou said. It was obvious to Oujirou that Ichirou had been practicing reciting the information he had just heard, but he didn't comment on it.

"Okay. Then I need call Misaki. We'll, be over at your place shortly."

"I'll be here," Ichirou said with a nod and the screen went back to a navy blue.

"Transmission terminated," The female voice said emotionlessly.

Oujirou picked up his cell phone and dialed Misaki's number as he walked back to the living room and picked his coat back off the couch.

"Hello?" A female voice came over the phone. It had to be Shouko.

"Oh, hello, Miss Shouko. Its Oujirou," He started silently praying that Shouko wouldn't hang up on him and that Misaki would still be awake.

"Oujirou? You drove Misaki home an hour ago. Is everything all right?"

"Oh, yes, Miss Shouko…well…actually, no, not really," Oujirou felt odd. He didn't really know how to tell Misaki's Aunt that someone she considered to be like her daughter, was being hunted by a mere girl who wanted revenge.

"What? What do you mean? Are you okay or not?"

"Yes, Miss Shouko. I'm okay, but I just got off the phone with my step-brother. He thinks…well…Misaki is in danger. He wants us to stay at his home for the night," Oujirou got in his car and started the engine. Then started towards Misaki's house, still holding his cell phone to his ear. As he pressed his foot against the gas petal, it suddenly occurred to him exactly how stupid the stuff he was saying sounded.

"What do you mean, 'Misaki is in danger'? And what's this 'wants us to stay'?"

"I know this is sudden, Miss Shouko, but I really need to get Misaki away from danger. And that means getting her out of your house for the most part. If you wish to, you can come with her when I pick her up from your house. Please, Miss Shouko. I promise I'll explain everything when we get to my step-brother's house," Oujirou sped off to Misaki's house, constantly changing lanes and going past other cars to lose anyone who might possibly be following him.

There was a pause on the phone, then… "Okay, Oujirou. She's in the bath at the moment. I'll get her out and we'll meet you outside when you get here," Shouko's voice was reluctant, but compliant.

"Thank you, Miss Shouko. I'll be there in about thirty minutes."

"Bye," With that Shouko hung up the phone, not even waiting for a reply.

"Well, that went better than I thought it would," Oujirou said as he pressed the off button on his own phone.

Twenty-five minutes later, Oujirou pulled up to Misaki's house. He got out of his car, locking it. When he knocked on the door to where Misaki lived, he didn't have to wait long before Shouko answered. Misaki was ready when he got there for the second time that night. Oujirou ignored Shouko's glare, directed at him when Misaki gave him a loving smile.

"I'm very sorry about this, Miss Shouko," Oujirou said at last, with an apologetic look on his face.

"Never mind that…lets just go. Its getting late…I want for me and Misaki to be safe and asleep very soon," Shouko said more out of exasperation than understanding. This resulted in Misaki giving Oujirou a half encouraging, half apologetic look. Oujirou answered Misaki's expression with a smile. With that, Misaki, Shouko, and Oujirou got in his car and they started off towards Ichirou's house—Shouko having reluctantly agreed to letting Misaki sit next to Oujirou in the front of the car.

"So this girl that's trying to hurt Misaki now…is the same girl that hurt her before? But why would a girl at her age do that?" Shouko frowned as she said this, challenging Oujirou's view of the situation.

"I really don't have an answer for you, Miss Shouko," Oujirou said calmly as he turned the steering wheel to make the car turn on an exit off the freeway. "However, I trust the information that my brother gives me. So when he told me that she might be injured or—I…I took it seriously." He voice cracked as he got to the end of what he was saying. Somehow it hurt to say it out loud. He hated that anyone might want to hurt another person. But when it came to Misaki…Oujirou felt like a part of him died every time someone did something that hurt her. Silence fell between the occupants of the car, two hours slowly passing, and Misaki fell asleep on Oujirou's shoulder as he drove. Oujirou blinked as his tired eyes looked at the red traffic light. He looked down at his watch and yawned. He groaned sleepily as the numbers 12:37a.m. shown back at him. He smiled, though, when he felt Misaki's head resting on his shoulder. 'It should only be a few minutes away from here,' Oujirou thought as he turned the car onto a main road. He drove the rest of the way to his step-brother's house, feeling too tired to want to talk to his brother when he got there. As he pulled the car up into Ichirou's driveway, he pulled the key out of the ignition and gently reached behind him to wake up Shouko, careful not to wake Misaki.

"Miss Shouko." Oujirou said in a whisper as he shook her gently, "Miss Shouko, we have arrived."

Shouko slowly opened her eyes and nodded groggily.

"Why don't you go out and tell my brother that we're here, while I carry Misaki inside."

Shouko stared for a moment, her brain needing a few seconds to comprehend what he was saying, then nodded and got out of the car. Oujirou put his car keys in his pocket, opening his own car door, and taking Misaki out of the car as gently as he could. Then with Misaki in his arms, he pressed the auto-lock in his car with his knee and nudged the door closed with his hip. As he walked up to Ichirou's front door, he saw that Shouko was already making her way inside and Ichirou was holding the front door open for Oujirou. Oujirou's arms were getting too tired to carry Misaki—even as small as she was—so he leaned her against his chest to take some of the strain off of his arms.

"Right…and they say you two haven't made your relationship public yet. All they have to do is look at the right moment," Ichirou said with a teasing grin on his face as he leaned against the front door frame, arms folded, looking at Oujirou and Misaki.

"Brother, they're tired and so am I. Is it possible to just sleep tonight and talk in the morning?" Oujirou asked breathlessly as he struggled to support Misaki's weight. Ichirou merely smiled at Oujirou's dedication and love for Misaki. As soon as Oujirou had gotten inside, Ichirou closed and locked the door, turning around to watch his brother collapse onto a nearby couch with Misaki leaning against his chest. His arms gently hugged her waste and his eyes closed from utter exhaustion. Ichirou just continued smiling at the two as he pulled a blanket off of a nearby chair and draped it over his step-brother and Misaki. "Yes," He whispered, still smiling, "it can wait until tomorrow."


Okay, sorry…a little short for one chapter, I know. Hopefully it was good, though. Thanks for everyone's reviews on previous chapters, all have been a great help and are greatly appreciated. :)