Part 6

Aya Fujimiya had never been so grateful for the floor length leather coat that he had chosen as part of his mission gear as he was now. Ken, upon seeing it, growled. "Off."

"No." Aya said, clutching it tighter to him.

"It's not fair," Ken said turning, "if I can't wear a coat like that then neither can you, back me up here, Yohji."

He turned to the lanky blonde, he was wearing his own floor length coat with the white stripes down the sleeves, "what?" He said turning, "I wasn't listening."

"Either you both take those coats off or I'm going Siberian on you." Ken said crossing his arms, "it's not fair if I have to go out in skin tight kevlar that leaves less than nothing to the imagination and you two get to wear overcoats."

Aya frowned. "I have another coat." He said. "You can borrow it."

"Aya," Ken protested, "your shoulders are like half the width of mine, any coat I borrow won't fit, take the coats off, the sooner we go out the sooner we can come back and put on just about every item of clothing that we own." He looked himself up and down, "together."

Yohji looked at him, "that sounds like a plan, I feel naked in this stuff."

"You feel naked?" Aya asked, aghast, "you go out in less than that most nights."

"I have my entire midriff on display here, White Wing." He said the new code name rather sarcastically.

"Maybe Kritiker is trying to get you shot in the stomach." Ken said with a smile. "Now let's go, we can pick up drive through on the way back."

A sudden burst of inspiration hit Aya, "what about Omi?" he asked, "he's not to get out of bed except for direst emergency for the next two days, and Nagi's as bad, someone has to stay to look after them."

"I took care of it." Ken said darkly.

"you didn't." Yohji asked, "you didn't ask Ouka and Sakura to babysit did you?"

"No." Ken answered, "I didn't think of that, I asked Naru."

"You asked Naru, Pawn of Crashers, the man most likely to blow up Tokyo to babysit?" Aya asked.

"Yes." Ken answered. "He has a key, he'll be here any time now. Come on."

"I better stay behind, just in case." Aya said. "There might not be a flower shop to come back to otherwise."

"Fujimiya Aya," Ken said crossing his arms, "I know that you outrank me, but if I'm going out dressed like this with some brass knuckles instead of my bugnuks, you can go out dressed as scantily as I am with your boken."

"Well in that case, I'll keep an eye on the chibis." Yohji said.

"Both of you, outside now."

"Mr Wayne," Crawford said, extending his hand to shake it, "I'm Brad Crawford, I've looked forward for a long time to meeting you."

"No," Bruce answered, "believe me, the pleasure is mine, and is this your associate."

"Yes," Crawford said gesturing to the German behind him who was cleaning his nails in a bored fashion. "That's Schuldig."

"An unusual name." Dick said from where he was leaning against the wall trying to look ominous, "German for guilty isn't it."

"His parents were hippies." Crawford stammered.

"Born again Christians." Schuldig added.

"German born again Christian hippies." Crawford amended, trying to smooth over that, "with strange taste in names." He hoped that had done it, "aren't you going to introduce me to your companions."

"Certainly." Bruce said, he was wearing a perfectly cut designer suit, and Takatori's secretary was practically hanging off him. "This is Dick Grayson," he gestured with his head to the young man in jeans at the window, "and this is Tim Drake, they are my wards."

"I understand completely." Crawford said, "I adopted a young boy myself."

"Ah, yes," Bruce said, "I have heard Mr Takatori speak of him, he suggested that he and Tim might become acquaintances."

"Schuldig," Crawford said, "will you take Mr Drake to the Koneko where Nagi's staying, so they can be friends."

"Hello Tim," Schuldig said to the boy, "I'm Schuldig, I'm going to take you to meet Nagi, and his friend Omi, if that's all right, Mr Wayne." Bruce nodded.

"Make sure you phone ahead to let them know." Crawford said, "it's dark out."

"All right this is, sure you are." Tim said.

Schuldig just looked at him, trying to decipher what he had said.

"His japanese is rubbish." Dick said from the window.

"It's like talking to Yoda." Schuldig added. "Well come along little Jedi," he opened the door.

"Jedi?" Tim asked. "I know not this word, my help appreciated."

Schuldig just rolled his eyes.

Aya ran after the yakuza he had come across selling drugs. "Damn you, stop where you are!"

"No," the man shouted back, "you're Weiss, you'll kill me."

"No, I won't." Aya hollered, "I might give you a kicking for making me run, but I won't kill you, I promise."

"I don't believe you." The yakuza said, jumping over a low fence and forcing Aya to come after him.

"Shi ne." Aya murmured.

"See," the yakuza said, "you just threatened to kill me."

A dark shadow with a white tabard jumped down from a nearby fire escape. "Is there a problem here, White Wing?" Knight asked, grabbing the yakuza by the collar and then sitting on him.

"Yes," Aya said in a bad temper. "Look at me, I'm out and about in a full length cat suit, I have a white swoosh on my chest that suggests that I'm sponsored by Right Guard, and bad guys keep running from me thinking I'm going to kill them."

"You do have that reputation." The yakuza yelped as Aya zip stripped him around a lamp post with the note saying "arrest me."

"Let's get out of here, Knight." Aya said, "I need a drink."

"Dressed like this?" Knight asked, "where can we get in?"

Aya thought about it and then took his cell phone from his utility belt and flipped it open. "White Spider, it's me. I don't know about you, but I want a drink, I've met up with Knight, where can you recommend? We'll leave White Tiger chasing down the lowlifes, and you, Knight and me can go drinking." There was a short pause. "Yeah, I'll ask them."

"What about Feathers?" The Yakuza suggested.

"Mind your own business." Knight told the man, "and look at the way we're dressed, we'll never get into Feathers."

"Scythe." Aya said, "where is that?"

"Roppongi," the yakuza supplied helpfully.

"Will you shut up." Aya glared at him.

Knight reached into his utility belt, where it was under his tabard, and pulled out a roll of duct tape, tearing off a strip he put it over the man's mouth. "So, is your car anywhere around here?"

"It's not far, even though someone," Aya glared at the gagged Yakuza, "made me run after him. Call in the rest of Crashers, we're going drinking, if White Tiger is so adamant that we're going to go out at night chasing down the miscellaneous low lives of Tokyo he can bloody well do it on his own."

Schuldig looked at the young man who opened the door to the Koneko, he was sandy haired with a large cap that fell over his forehead, he was wearing a lime green sweater and a pair of oversized dungarees. "Is this the Koneko no sumu ie?" He asked, he had no idea who this young man was, when Omi had answered the phone he hadn't suggested anything about someone being there.

"You must be Shoe dig," the man said, "Omi said you'd be coming."

"Schuldig." He corrected.

"I'm Naru, I'm just looking after them this evening, the rest of them have gone out drinking." He looked at the dark haired youth behind him, "you must be Tim-kun, come on in, we're having tacos."

"Octopus?" Schuldig said pulling a face, "I'm going back to the hotel, if that's the case, call me when he's ready to go." He made a quick exit.

"Understand I do not." Tim said, "my Japanese good not, my shotakon japanese better if nagi talk to I."

Naru blinked. "Did you just say Shotakon?"

Tim nodded. "Right word was Hirofumi san said."

"What's the word in English?" Naru said, as he led Tim into the flower shop.

"Boss, Mr Wayne is my boss." Tim told him.

"Shacho," Naru said, "the word you want is Shacho, not Shotakon."

"What does that mean?" Tim asked. "everyone laughed when I said it."

"That really doesn't surprise me, lets just say it's not something you want to advertise even if it is true."

Author's Note

Sorry about the wait