A/N: All italics are meant to be Kazahaya's letter.

Chapter Two: The Letter

Rikuo looked at the envelope in his hand. Neatly written on the front was his name. It was light, maybe only a couple of sheets of paper.

"What is this?" He asked aloud to himself. Kakei and Saiga had left immediately after Kakei had given Rikuo the letter, obviously thinking he needed to be alone to read the contents.

So he was alone in his room, staring at an envelope. He was a little wary to open it, knowing that anything Kakei wouldn't tell him was bound to be bad. Why didn't Kazahaya want to see him? Rikuo knew that his coworker didn't like him very much, but Kazahaya was still courteous. No doubt Kazahaya would stay in with Rikuo until the taller boy felt good enough to stand. Had Rikuo done something to Kazahaya to make him feel unsafe? 'Well, if these questions don't kill me, the apprehension will,' Rikuo thought.

He breathed deeply and ripped off the side of the envelope, opened it slightly, and tapped the other side with his fingertips. A small, folded piece of paper fell out and landed on his lap. For a second, he stared at the letter, not wanting to read the news inside, but not wanting live in ignorance either. Once more, he breathed deeply, closed his eyes, and picked up the paper. With his eyes still closed, he unfolded it, and spread it flat against his legs. Then he lifted it again, held it in front of his face, and opened his eyes.

He read:

Dear Rikuo, wait, that sounds stupid. Um... can I just say... "Rikuo?" Nah, but "Dear Rikuo" sounds sappy, and I'm not being sappy here!

Rikuo sighed and thought, 'It's just like Kazahaya to write down all of his thoughts in a letter.'

Anyway, Kakei-san told me to write you a letter, telling you what happened to us out at that house. He would have rather made me stay and tell you in person, but, something came up, something I need to deal with.

I hope you're feeling better.

So, let me start at the beginning.

We left the store after closing time, like we usually do when we go on these jobs. You were dressed in a simple black jacket with two white stripes down the sleeves. You had on a pair of dark blue jeans, and basic black shoes. If you're wondering why I'm telling you what you were wearing, feel safe in knowing that Kakei-san told me to do it, to try and help refresh your memory. I wonder why Kakei-san thought you'd lost your memory?

Rikuo brought his hands up to his eyes and rubbed them. Was the entire letter going to be

this way? He continued:

I was wearing a light blue button-up shirt and my heavy jacket over it. I had blue jeans on, too, and my sneakers. It wasn't particularly cold out, but it was chilly, considering the sun had just set over the horizon. The house we were supposed to go to was just out of the city, and we estimated that it would take about an hour to get there. From the picture Kakei-san gave us, it looked like a really creepy house. Really old, and really creepy. I don't like ghosts, you know that, so on the way up there you were constantly teasing me, telling me not to be scared, because you were there, but then turning it around by saying, "I don't know what I can do against a ghost though." Stupid you.

Anyway, the house was old, made in the traditional Japanese style, like the house we visited when we were trying to find that haunted book. It was bigger than that though, it had an almost Western feel to it. The paint was chipping off, and the deck looked none too sturdy. I know you couldn't do anything against ghosts, but I felt safe with you none the less.

Rikuo's eyes opened a little to that very un-Kazahaya-like comment. Although, he couldn't blame the little rat for feeling safe with him, after all, Rikuo was constantly saving him from certain death.

When we arrived at the house, I suddenly felt very cold, as if the house itself was forcing a chill down my spine. I could feel an evil aura coming out of it, and I almost grabbed your arm. I didn't like that feeling, it was ominous. But when I looked at you, your face was...inquisitive. Almost as if you could feel what I was feeling, but didn't quite know what it was. It was uncomfortable to feel the way I did and then to look at you and see you being so calm, like nothing was wrong. Undoubtedly, I squirmed about a bit. If you were in the right state of mind, you probably would have teased me.

We walked up to the gate and stopped near the lock. I knew it would be no problem for you, with your power and all. But you didn't snap the lock, as I had expected. You just stood there, looking at the house, like you were in a trance. I hated it. It scared me. I wanted to take you by the shoulders and shake you awake. I wanted to wake you up so bad, if you got caught in a trance like that so easily, what would happen to me? And why wasn't I feeling that way. That's usually the way it happens. Maybe that's what scared me, because it should've been me.

Luckily, you snapped out of the spell, and then looked at me. That kinda freaked me out too. You weren't looking at me with the usual look, the one I've gotten accustomed to. This one was different. It was... I don't know. It was different and that's all that mattered. I looked down at the lock, not finding the power to look back into your eyes. I wished to all that was good and powerful that you would stop looking at me like that, so we could get on with our mission. I heard a snap, and realized that I had closed my eyes. When I opened them again, the lock was broken and laying on the ground, and you were walking away from me. I screamed out to you, and you turned around, waiting for me to catch up. You said something like...

"Well, if you're going to stand about with your eyes closed..." But I didn't listen to the rest.

We continued to walk toward the house, all the while, the ominous feeling I felt inside was growing.

A/N: Hmm... what's going to happen next? If you leave plenty of reviews, I'll post the next chapter, because, of course, I've already finished this fic. Just waiting for reviews...