Reconstruction

By: Aviantei

Chapter Ten

Rest

Goro sat in Shizume City Park, taking a quick breather. While the trip to Ashinaka Gakuen hadn't been exactly exhausting, the photographer had suddenly remembered that he had been given a second assignment for the day that he had been neglecting. The result had been running around for the past hour or so, until by pure luck he had been able to come across his "target" of sorts and set the camera lens to shuttering almost nonstop.

It was moments like this that Goro could begin to brag about his camera for hours. Even though both he and his subject were in motion for most of the time—which was why he was so tired—all of the images had come out crystal clear. Not only was the subject in focus, the background was in detail, so much that you could probably track the boy's path across the city if you knew the locations well enough. Not to mention the battery was almost invincible, which was required when you were like Goro and had a camera on and in your hands for almost every waking second of your life. More of Setsuko's handiwork that the photographer would have to pay back at some point in the future.

But for now Goro was content to flip through his spoils for the day, an interesting array of subjects in the pictures. There were the large, seemingly never-ending sections of his work—Suoh Mikoto's grave, the boy—with mixtures of crowded streets, random street performers, even mere scenery shots, not to mention the few unknowingly taken pictures of Yukizome Kukuri that would need to be separated out before the end of the day when Goro would submit his assignments. It was an arduous process, but he didn't mind in the slightest.

At the end of the gallery stored in his camera were the last of Goro's efforts for his second job. The target had finally come to rest, and Goro had been able to be pickier about his shots as he wasn't running anymore. The fact that he had spent a good chunk of his afternoon on following a person could probably mark the photographer as a stalker if it weren't just business to him. Although he had to admit, maybe some of his interest in the boy he had captured crying in the middle of the trees with the occasional spark flying off his skin was slowly becoming less than professional. But Goro had been hired with his client knowing exactly what kind of person he was, so they wouldn't really care if that was the case.

"Hm, I have to admit that it's a bit clever to be hiding away in a place like that and not get caught," Goro muttered to himself. If he had the time, the photographer would have liked to follow the boy some more, maybe see just how he survived after barricading himself inside the park like this, but time wasn't something he had. There was the main job he relied on to do still, and there was no way he could get away with ditching that on personal interest, the employer in understanding or no.

Geeze, being an adult sure is a drag sometimes. Maybe I was too hasty in wanting to be in charge of my own decisions. Goro stood up and stretched, taking a picture of the sky in the process. Checking the time again, he headed towards the park's exit, wondering just how much of a pain in the ass it would be to properly get a cab at this hour.

"There ain't no rest for the wicked, right?" he said, dropping the phrase in English. "And hind sight's always twenty-twenty, the youth want to grow up too quickly, we easily become disillusioned with our futures, and all that junk. Man, philosophy sure is some boring stuff." Goro laughed, holding out his camera to take a picture of himself. Looking at the result, he frowned and deleted the image immediately, scoffing.

Self-portraits are disgusting. Just how fuckin' egotistical can an artist get, thinking they're the best part of the world to recreate when there's so many other things out there that are worth their attention?

Goro shoved his camera into his bag without even bothering to turn off the power.

Eri had never been so grateful to see Urumana-san in her life, albeit she had only known him for a short period of time. She felt more pathetic than anything, mostly because the woman could only view herself as a liability in the situation they had just gone through. Not only could she not fight, she had to be protected, couldn't react fast enough so had to be dragged around, and ran even slower than Hitomi did with a gashing injury in her side that Eri had been the indirect cause of by telling her sister not to defend herself. While that call had been in the better interest, Eri still had an impending sense of guilt weighing down on her that didn't dissipate even after they had safely escaped from Fushimi and the group that had appeared outside the building.

Eri pursed her lips. The fact that SCEPTER4 was involved made it obvious that the Strain they were looking for was involved in something bigger than possibly handing them information. Especially since there had been a group in pursuit of them, meaning someone was either after herself and Hitomi, the Strain, or Yata, or maybe even all of them. What had started as a simple trip to try and find Ruyaki was now going to cause far more trouble than Eri had bargained for.

But she didn't have the time to focus on that now. Urumana-san had led them to an apartment complex, which they were now standing outside of. Eri wanted to object, mainly because Hitomi was getting worse and worse and should be resting not making social calls. It didn't help that Eri had yet to show her "voice" to the guide, meaning she couldn't object, especially when the man in question was busy with the intercom system by the door.

"What the hell are we here for?" Yata asked, fed up himself. Hitomi was leaning against the wall, and her eyes flicked to Urumana at the same time Eri's did. Eri couldn't see the man's expression, but his tone of voice made it seem like he was completely unaffected by the other male's annoyance.

"Well, Hitomi-chan obviously needs some help so I figured I'd provide it for you," Urumana said. There was a response on the other end of the intercom that Eri couldn't hear and Urumana returned his attention to the device. "Hey, Suga-chan, it's Nezuto. I've got someone that could use your help out here so could you let us in, pretty please?"

There was no verbal response, just the buzzer as the door unlocked. Urumana opened the door, gesturing inside. "Ladies first," he said. Hitomi scoffed and stumbled through the entrance, Eri racing after her to provide support. Yata continued to glare at Urumana as he reluctantly followed suit, the door closing as they all entered, Urumana leading the trio towards an elevator.

They gathered inside, Urumana hitting a button that wasn't for the top floor but close enough. Hitomi was leaving a trail of blood drops in their wake, probably enough to leave small stains on the carpet in the lobby. Yata was still fingering his bat, tense. Eri felt bad for the HOMRA member, especially since even with her sense of direction she was sure Urumana had dragged them in the opposite direction of the bar that was the teenager's base.

The elevator signaled its arrival, and the group exited with the same amount of tension and silence as they had going in. Urumana walked up to the door on the opposite end of the hallway, opening the door without even knocking first. Eri threw up a silent prayer that his actions were acceptable and they weren't about to incredibly offend someone that could help Hitomi out.

Continuing on, Urumana strode into the living room after discarding his shoes at the entrance. Eri helped Hitomi out of her boots and then removed her own flats, Yata kicking off his tennis shoes without a care. The HOMRA member helped Hitomi the rest of the way to the couch, getting blood over the dark brown surface and leaving a stain on his own white shirt.

"Hey, Nezu-yan, please refrain from bringing enough kids to form the protagonists of some anime into my living room when you know I have work to do," a voice commented. It sounded more bored than annoyed, though, which didn't do much for Eri's nerves. A person strode into the room, carrying what appeared to be an industrial size first aid kit in their hands.

Urumana only chuckled, that same laugh that could somehow soothe Eri's nerves despite the situation. Yes, she was definitely grateful the man had arrived to help them. "Come on, Suga-chan, it's not like they're all hurt," he protested. "Only Hitomi-chan there needs bandaged up, and I know you can handle something like that, simple. And besides, if you weren't going to help me, you know I wouldn't have ended up here in the first place!"

There was a heavy sigh as the med kit was placed on the couch beside Hitomi, who was fighting to keep her eyelids stay open. "Yeah, I know." The person glanced over their shoulder to Yata and Eri, causing the woman to jump. "I'm Sugawara Yuuka, a doctor. Since you're friends of Nezu-yan's I have no choice but to help you out." Even though the name indicated Sugawara was female, looking at her face you wouldn't have been able to tell which gender was correct. Without missing a beat, the doctor turned back to Hitomi and started assessing her wounds.

"This woman is Eri-chan," Urumana introduced, gesturing to the woman in question. Eri felt the need to bow even though Sugawara's back was turned. "She's mute. Judging by her actions, she says it's nice to meet you." Eri gave a grateful nod to Urumana, who smiled. "The one you're taking care of is Hitomi-chan, and you can't blame her for not introducing herself, either. And the young gentleman I haven't had the pleasure of being introduced to yet is…"

"Yata," the boy in question grumbled, folding his arms across his chest. He turned his gaze to Eri. "Hey, Hayatama-san, you sure we can trust this guy? If you ask me, he seems kind of fishy dragging us off to one of his friends without warning." Eri felt her stomach start to flip at the thought. Although she and Hitomi had put their trust into Urumana, there was no guarantee they were safe. After all, Sugawara was someone who was casually treating wounds on her living room couch without asking any questions of where they came from.

Urumana didn't seem to be insulted by this accusation, still only laughing. Yata's frown grew deeper as he glared across the room. "Ah, you're the cautious type. I expected as much," he said. "If you're that worried, you could always take me captive. Although I don't think Suga-chan would appreciate having a hostage situation in her living room when we're already imposing on her like this."

"Just for that, you can expect to pay a little bit extra for giving them stupid ideas, Nezu-yan," Sugawara said, still tending to Hitomi.

"Eh, you're gonna make me pay for this? I thought this could count as one of your special favors, Suga-chan…"

"Keep complaining and I'll double the price."

Urumana grimaced, although he tried to revert his expression back to a smile soon enough. "And there you have it," he said, as if that solved everything. "If you can't trust me, at least let me pick up the bill and see if that helps your worries out any. Suga-chan's treatments are special, so they're not cheap." Eri attempted to protest, trying to use sign language even though there was no interpreter. Urumana raised his eyebrows at her. "I'm sorry, Eri-chan, I can't understand what you're saying… But really, it's okay. I wouldn't want someone like Yatagarasu-kun getting a bad impression of me."

Yatagarasu…?

Eri looked to Yata, who had a satisfied smile on his face. "So you actually know about me then?" he said. "Then you understand that this won't go well if your friend over there tries anything funny, right?"

"Of course, of course. I really only have the best intentions in bringing you all here. Eri-chan and Hitomi-chan have entrusted me as their guide right now, so it wouldn't do me any good to just go and drag them somewhere unsafe. Suga-chan is someone I would trust with my life, so there's nowhere else I could possibly bring you all when I found you in a situation like that."

Yata's posture seemed to finally relax, and Eri let herself have a sigh of relief. In situations where she couldn't speak, it was hard to keep everything stable. The fact that Hitomi was currently unable to translate didn't make it any easier. At least for the time being, while they were relying on Sugawara, it would be best to avoid any incidents.

"Speaking of that, who the hell were those—hey, what do you think you're doing?!" Yata suddenly shouted, his face lighting up. Eri looked to Sugawara, who seemed to be the target of his outburst.

Sugawara was in the middle of pulling up Hitomi's shirt, revealing a nasty reddened gash in the girl's side. Eri felt a surge of guilt; she had been the one to stop Hitomi from properly defending herself, so if anyone was to blame—no, it had been the man from SCEPTER4 that had done the damage. The feelings beginning to belly up inside Eri overshadowed any sense of modesty she could have on her sister's behalf.

Hitomi and Sugawara wore matching unconcerned expressions, both directed at Yata, whose face was bordering the brilliant red of his aura. "I'm tending to her wounds, Yatagarasu-tan," Sugawara informed, completing the act of removing Hitomi's top, showing off her black lace bra. Yata looked as if he were about to faint. "If you can't handle a little blood, I suggest leaving the room."

To Eri, it didn't look like just a little blood, but she could still stomach it. Yata frowned, muttering, "It's not the blood." Still he did turn to face the other way, adding a strange echo to his voice as he spoke. Hitomi shrugged to Sugawara, wincing all the way, and the doctor set to work. "But anyway, what the hell was with those guys from earlier? They just stormed us out of nowhere!"

"Fuck that, what was with that SCEPTER4 asshole?" Even raising her voice seemed to put Hitomi in pain, and Eri tried her best to not look too concerned, though she was probably failing. "I'm okay, Nee-san, calm down. I'm just pissed at that Saru guy or whatever his name was. I mean, he was all Misaki this, Mi-sa-ki that. Then he goes off on me for fighting me whenever he attacked us! Ugh, I shoulda bashed his pretty boy face in!"

Hitomi looked raring to get up the next instant, which was the point Sugawara pushed a swab covered with antiseptic a little too hard into the girl's side.

"Well, I do believe the people that attacked you were a part of Yggdrasil," Urumana said, a hand on his chin. He looked between the parties in the room, contemplative. "What they want with all of you is just a guess, but given their modus operandi, I'm assuming they were trying to recruit at least one of you."

Eri could feel her eyes widen, Mie-chan almost mirroring the action. Her lips parted, and it was all she could do to stay silent. Hitomi was equally in shock, leaving Yata to be the first to speak. "Wait, wait, you mean the Knowledge Tree? Those guys were Green Clansmen?"

"Well, if they were trying to recruit us, they were doing an awful job of it," Hitomi grumbled, chewing on her lip. It was a sure sign that she wanted a cigarette but couldn't exactly do so in the moment. "You don't just attack people and be like, hey join my group! That's just shitty thinking."

That was true, but… That's it! Eri waved a hand to catch Hitomi's attention. What if they were trying to save us? she signed.

"Huh, what do you mean by that?"

I mean that we were in trouble there, Eri signed, not bothering to wait for Hitomi to translate. That SCEPTER 4 member was about to overwhelm us. Maybe there's some reason they had to take a seemingly antagonistic approach to us, but if that smoke bomb was theirs, they saved your life, Hitomi-chan.

Hitomi scoffed. "Yeah, or they were trying to ambush us," she muttered. Eri couldn't argue that point. "And even though they did save me, I'm not gonna be in debt to them or anything. If they try that, I'll kick their asses twice as hard."

"Regardless," Sugawara interrupted, "you can't deny they have an interest in you." By this point she was expertly winding bandages around Hitomi's stomach, securing the wound in safe packaging. "And if any of the Clans has an interest in you, you should stay on your toes."

Eri raised an eyebrow, and signed to Hitomi, Ask how she knows about the Clans.

"I can understand you perfectly fine, Eri-pon," Sugawara said for herself. Um, is that supposed to be a nickname? Eri thought, not signing out the words. "And, as to answer your question, I am an underground doctor. You pick up on plenty of things that way." She fastened her handiwork together, nodding her approval. "Make sure you can move alright, Hi-chan."

Hitomi bristled at her own nickname, standing and stretching out. "Well, considering I'm another Clansmen, they were probably after me," Yata spoke up. "Sorry for dragging you guys into this. Geeze, why now of all times…"

After a few movements that put Eri's flexibility to shame, Hitomi scooped up her shirt. "Whatever, they didn't look so tough," she dismissed with a heavy exhale in her words. Eri didn't feel similarly reassured, but she was just glad Hitomi was okay. "By the way, it's safe to look," she added, and Yata snuck a peek over his shoulder. "But you still haven't answered my question about your friend there, Misaki-chan." Locking eyes with the boy, Eri nodded.

"Well, he's not exactly my friend…" Yata tried to brush it off, but Eri could see it. There was a sort of anguish left over from the encounter, as deep as Eri's loss of Ruyaki. It was a good thing Hitomi couldn't read people all that well, or she would have started something over it. "I mean, he was, but… Listen, long story short, he used to be part of HOMRA and defected to SCEPTER4 a long time ago. He's a damn monkey, and that's all there is to it."

The entire room seemed to have a collective understanding that that wasn't all there was to it, but no one said anything.

"A clan jumper, huh," Urumana said, looking almost sad. "Still, what matters the most is that you're all safe. Though I'm curious as to what you all were doing there. It was on the news, didn't you see?"

Eri nodded her approval to Hitomi, who said, "That's why we went there. We think it might have something to do with Ruyaki, so we were going to check and see if we could find the person responsible. Still, they were gone, so we're stuck again."

"Ah, yeah, that," Sugawara said. She pulled out a small notebook from her pocket, flipping through the pages. "Someone went to the hospital, right? They might have seen something. If I were you, I'd talk to them next." For the first time, the doctor smiled, the slightest upturn of the lips that hardly reached her eyes. "Ah, of course, I'll be adding that bit of advice onto your tab, Nezu-yan."

Urumana laughed, a breathy, less than amused sound. "Yeah, I figured," he said, sounding like he had just been run over. He managed to brighten up as he faced the other three in the room. "Well, as you can see, I'm in need of some funds at the moment. If you need a guide on your trip, I'd be more than happy to escort you."

[Author's Notes]

No matter how many fics I write, there's something generally refreshing about hitting that chapter ten point. So *tosses some confetti into the air* for Reconstruction!

Thanks go out to all the readers of this fic, just for being here. You are awesome.

Meanwhile, Goro is stalking Konde while Eri and co. head out for some well deserved treatment. Sugawara Yuuka is on the scene!

As mentioned last update, I'm going to be updating my fics in cycles this year, so it'll be a few months before chapter eleven is published - but it is coming! I hope to see you there, so please look forward to it!

-Avi

[01.21.2019]

OC Guide

Relatives of the former Colorless King's vessel:

Fuba Hitomi, Hayatama Eri, Fuba Ruyaki (Missing)

Unnamed Group:

Nagana, Tarashi, Fukune, Three unidentified combatants (two male, one female)

Captives:

Yamano Anso, Hisa

Strains:

Masaka, Nakahara Minenai, Momoko, Yoshiro, Sato Takehiko, Sato Ayaka, Ayumu

Unaligned:

Urumana Nezuto (Guide), Newa Konde (Strain), Meiri (Hospitalized), Fujioka Goro (Photographer), Sugawara Yuuka (Underground Doctor)