Here's an update for you! I'm sorry that this took longer than I thought it would; I had writer's block and I wasn't sure how I wanted to continue this without it seeming too forced-and I hope it doesn't sound forced!

As always, thank you to my friend for beta reading this for me as I go!

Things should get interesting soon.

The Scout Captain hummed to himself as he walked inside the mess hall, his blood red eyes scanning the area in search for a mop of brown hair or the black smoke of his companion, but to no avail. His eyes landed on several different groups of his humans as they sat and talked, eating whatever food that was in front of them—if you could classify what slop they were eating as food; Izaya would never subject his body to whatever that was. He did a quick once-over before he turned out quickly to leave, silently cursing at the fact that Namie 'forgot' to place his phone inside the pockets of his jacket. He should really do something to warn the woman about her job security in retaliation—just to scare her of course. Where would he be without his beloved secretary?

Izaya hummed once more, his thoughts wandering off toward his bespectacled friend. "Ah, if I was a hopeless puppet of a human where would I be?" His question was rhetorical, he knew there were only a handful of places that the man would be; all of them involved his Dullahan. The sun felt warm on his face as he stepped outside, the wind blowing just slightly as if it was attempting to cool off all the people that it met. His eyes scanned the humans he passed as he started along the sidewalk, none of them seemingly acknowledging his existence.

A small smirk crossed his features as he started his leisurely pace toward his friend's most probable location. Maybe he could do something to mess with the doctor out of spite for making him go all the way to his apartment instead of somewhere that was a bit more convenient for the raven, but that would be saved for a later date. Izaya chuckled as he started to skip, his mind focusing on the task at hand; finding Shinra—or Celty, then by extension he would find Shinra. How should he bring up the topic of Dotachin and his gang as volunteers; he was their mutual friend after all.

After a couple of minutes, he came to a stop at a crosswalk and his eyes fixated on the buildings around him that stood tall with the sunlight reflecting off the glass. What did Dotachin and the others hope to accomplish if they completed their training? What part of the military did they want to get into? His eyes softened for a fraction of a second as he followed the crowd through the streets. He had to focus on one thing at a time; there was no use working himself up over something that he didn't have the proper information for yet.

He twirled once as he walked, making sure not to bump into any of his humans and chuckled to himself. It didn't take long for his trained ears to pick up some tidbits of conversations that were never meant for him. Each human seemed to carry this air of positivity as they spoke to one another about trivial matters such as who they were into and what they were going to do later that evening—apparently enka had become popular. His eyes scanned the crowd once more, lingering on the faces of random individuals for mere seconds before he focused his gaze straight ahead. They all seemed so happy, each person with a smile on their face with looks that truly showed how naive they were to their surroundings and the impending danger that they were in; even if they were inside Wall Sunshine, the innermost wall.

It only took a couple of more minutes of walking for Izaya to stop in front of the apartment building of his best, and only, friend. It was a tall building, about 21 meters tall; which was nothing compared to the 50-meter walls that surrounded the area, protecting them from the Titans. His eyes landed on the windows above him, the glare from the sun at just the right angle in order to bother his eyes if stared upon for too long. Blinking, the raven made his way inside and started up the stairs toward the 4th floor; Izaya wasn't one to stand in an elevator and wait if it would just be faster to do the work himself, after all. Plus, the small workout that the stairs would bring him would help ease his anxious heart, even if he refused to admit it to himself.

Izaya made it to his friend's door in a matter of minutes, the numbers 542 shining with the metallic sheen that contrasted the painted black of the door as he approached. Letting out a breath he wasn't aware that he was holding, Izaya knocked on the door thrice; his ears picking up movement from the other side. It didn't take long for the raven to guess who was at the door before it opened, revealing his bespectacled friend who wore his cheery smile. "Izaya! You're back already?"

The raven nodded toward his friend as he entered the apartment, leaving his shoes by the door. "Shinra," He spared his friend a quick glance, noticing his white lab coat, his brown eyes shining with curiosity. He quickly ventured deeper into the apartment, scanning the clean interior and the half-closed curtains blocking the sunlight. "I just arrived a couple of hours ago." He paused his movements for a fraction of a second before he perched himself on the couch, his back facing Shinra. "Is the Dullahan around? I have something to discuss with both of you."

"Celty?" Shinra blinked, coming around to face Izaya, sitting on the couch next to him. "I think she'll be back shortly; she just went on a supply run." The brunet watched his ruby-eyed friend hum in acknowledgment before he continued. "Why? What's up?"

Izaya waved his hand dismissively at Shinra, smirking to himself. "I'll wait until she arrives. It's something I believe that you two will find most…intriguing."

Shinra stared at his friend for a moment, unsure how to interpret the smirk painting on his face; with Izaya, it could mean a plethora of different things. Nodding slightly, he tilted his head at his friend, his glasses catching the sunlight just slightly, causing a small glare. "Would you like something to drink then? A shower, perhaps?"

"It seems you know me too well," Izaya stated as he stretched his arms over his head, hearing his joints pop at the motion. "I assume that you've got a spare change of clothes for me from last time I was here?" The raven didn't wait for his friend to respond as he stood up and made his way toward the one room shower, secretly glad that Shinra had offered. The need for one had almost slipped his mind with the new information he had gathered from the training grounds.

Shinra smiled to himself as he watched Izaya walk away, a small hint of fondness in his features. It wasn't odd for his friend to show up unannounced, but it was concerning how out of it the man had seemed. While most people wouldn't notice it, there was this stiffness in the other's shoulders and a strange emotion in his eyes that he was sure Izaya couldn't hide even if he tried—and if Shinra was honest with himself, it worried him slightly. The bespectacled male shook his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts as he heard a door latch shut followed by the sound of running water. Hopefully, Izaya would relax a bit after a shower, but maybe he should make some tea as well; just in case.

The brunet smiled as he left the couch, making his way toward the kitchen with ease. He fished out his teapot and filled it with water before setting it on the stovetop. It would only take a couple of minutes for the water to come to a boil before he could put the tea in the steep; it was plenty of time to let his mind wander a semi-simpler time—one where he wouldn't silently worry about Izaya's wellbeing every day. One where him, Izaya, Celty, and the others would spend their lunches together and talk about whatever happenings they found interesting—or whatever Izaya wanted to talk about, to be honest; he always seemed to lead the conversations. Shinra chuckled to himself as his mind switch over to the love of his life; his Dullahan.

His head shot up as he heard a door opening, head turning in the direction of the noise out of pure instinct. A woman with a yellow helmet walked into the kitchen, dressed in a skintight black biker suit; the sight made his face light up with pure joy. Her hands typed quickly on her phone; helmet tilted down to show her undivided attention to the device as she padded toward the man. "Celty!" Shina jumped to her, arms wrapping around her waist. "I missed you!"

[I see that we have a guest today.]

The bespectacled man blinked at the illuminated screen that the woman held in front of his face, the black text staring at him. "That's right, I almost forgot. Once I saw you my mind just—" Shinra didn't get to finish his sentence due to the hands shoving him away and the high-pitched screech of the teapot that sat on the stove, indicating that the water was ready. Sighing, the man turned around to pour the scalding water into the cups he had laid out just moments earlier.

Celty tilted her helmet as she watched Shinra as if to indicate that she was thinking. Shinra never drank tea, at least he didn't drink it often. She quickly turned her helmet to the direction of their shower, as if she had just noticed the sound of water running. So, they needed a shower? Why would they come here for a shower when all the apartments had one? The woman's shoulders stiffened ever so slightly as if she had just put two and two together. Her hands shaking as she quickly typed her message before shoving it back into Shinra's face. [Izaya's here?!]

"Izaya? Oh yeah, he showed up a little while ago, said that he had something to talk to us about." Shinra paused his movements for a split second, the two cups in his hands as he turned around. He blinked at Celty for a moment, the steam from both cups fogging up his glasses slightly. He gave her a small smile before making his way back into the living room, placing the two cups down on the table. "He seemed tense, so I'm hoping a shower and some tea will help him calm his nerves."

Celty nodded, following the man before she sat down on the couch. Both her hands reached for her helmet, taking it off with one swift motion before placing it beside her. Black smoke flowed out of her neck, her shoulders relaxing slightly before she took out her phone once more, her fingers tapping the surface with practiced grace. [Do you think any survived this time?]

"I doubt it, but I don't think that's why he was so tense."

[What do you think it could be?]

"I'm not quite sure, but whatever it is I'm not sure if it's good or bad." Shina sat next to Celty on the couch with a sigh. "I'm not quite sure what to think, especially with him."

[It's Izaya… It can't be too bad.]

"I see Celty came home. Did he fill you in?" The two figures on the couch jumped slightly, both startled by the sudden words being spoken. They both turned in the direction of Izaya, who stood in the hallway dressed in his spare clothes that Shinra kept in hand (his usual black shirt and jeans) and a towel loosely around his neck to catch the falling droplets of water that fell from his hair. "Or has he been trying to get you into bed during the entirety of my shower?"

"I have not—this time." Shinra stated. "Unless my dearest Celty would like to discuss tha—"

Izaya smirked as he watched his friend fall off the couch, the woman in question being the cause. Watching the scene in front of him was probably the most satisfying thing he had seen the past several days. The raven moved toward the lounge chair that sat across from the couch, his eyes finally landing on the two cups of tea. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from forming the smile that threatened to tug at his lips; Shinra noticed his tense posture earlier it had seemed. Even if Izaya refused to say it out loud, he was glad to have Shinra as his friend—and he refused to say it out loud.

The Scout Captain gracefully reached his arm out to grasp the cup on the table, feeling the heat of the liquid through the porcelain. He let his body relax into the chair as he leaned back, watching his friend climb his way back onto the couch. "So, guess who I discovered join the volunteers today."

The question itself caused Shinra to blink at his friend, confusion written all over his face. "Why would that be important? We both know there have been plenty of volunteers from our wall in the past. Plus, we both know I don't' care about humans. I only care about Celty."

[Maybe it's someone you know?]

Izaya chuckled to himself as he watched Shinra shake his head, easily dismissing the subject. He knew that Shinra purposely omitted the fact he cares about him, but it was a fact that didn't need to be said out loud; it was as if it was an unspoken rule to never allude or discuss their friendship. "Oh, trust me, you might find this intriguing." He paused, taking a small sip of his tea. He could feel the heat make its way down his throat, leaving an unpleasant burn in its wake. "Dotachin."

Shinra paused mid-conversation with Celty to look at Izaya. "Kadota? Our Kadota is a volunteer? Doesn't that mean the others followed him?"

"Yes, they all seemed to be eager to try out the maneuver gear while I was there. They haven't changed a bit, now that I think about it." The raven paused once more, taking a sip of his tea as if to feign relaxation before speaking. "Though, they were talking to a few others from our wall. I couldn't quite place them if I am honest."

"You? Not being able to place someone?" Shinra raised a brow at his friend, skepticism on his face. "That's quite rare. Are you sure they were from our wall, then? Maybe you're losing your touch."

[Shinra!] Celty typed, shoving the phone in his face. [It's Izaya you're talking to. We both know that's not possible!]

The raven chuckled once more before speaking. "Thank you for your faith in my abilities, Celty." He took another sip of his tea, his throat used to the oncoming burn that was going to be followed by the 'not-yet-cooled' liquid. "They were talking to some humans named Tom Tanaka, Kasuka Heiwajima, and Shizuo Heiwajima."

"Wait, did you say Shizuo Heiwajima?"

Izaya hummed in reply before sipping his tea. "Yes. I take it you know him?"

"Yes, remember that friend I wanted to introduce you to before our wall was breached? That's him!" Shinra exclaimed, his eyes shining at the familiar name. "I can't believe he volunteered! I wonder what he's going to do! With his strength, he could do anything!"

"His strength?"

"Yeah! He has inhuman strength. I've actually watched him pull up a street sign as if it weighed as much as a flower!" Shinra paused for a moment, his eyes landing on Izaya's intrigued face. "He's got quite the temper, though."

"So, you're friends with a monster." The statement wasn't as much as an insult as he would have liked it to sound; the two of them knowing the only true monsters Izaya believed in were the ones outside the walls. "Well, if you wish, you can introduce us tomorrow on the training grounds. I'm sure your friend would be delighted to see you."

(╬◣Д◢)! ! . . . ╮(╯▽╰)╭

"You seem quite excited. Does this beast mean that much to you?"

"Of course! Shizuo was my first friend, after all."

Izaya hummed in acknowledgment as the two continued their leisurely pace. It was a quarter past two, lunch already eaten and settled in the stomachs of the friends as they continued down the sidewalk toward the training grounds. Very few people littered the pathway, all too engrossed in their own world to pay attention to the duo. They were close to the grounds, the grunts and moans of pain only increasing in volume with each step they took. The raven glanced over at his friend, who had his never fading smile on his face.

Izaya let his gaze linger on his friend a little longer than necessary, taking his time on him as if he were some antique that needed an appraisal. Shinra wore his long, white lab coat, the white of the fabric catching the sunlight to reflect almost blindingly back. Like Namie's the day before, the coat had the image of a cat's head in both black and yellow on the left breast and on the center of his back; the indicator that he was a part of the scientific unit. From the angle Izaya was at, his friend's glasses sent a small glare as the sun hit their faces—it made him curse the three centimeters in height difference that they had. His gaze was focused in front of him, the prospect of seeing his long-lost friend seemingly overriding his thought process as he unconsciously picked up the pace of his stride.

What was it about this apparent beast that had his friend so excited? Shinra had never expressed such happiness to another human before; excluding himself and Celty because he was a god and she was a Dullahan. Could it be that Shizuo wasn't classified as human; that would make sense with how Shinra had mentioned this 'inhuman strength' the day before. He was broken out of his thoughts by the high-pitched sound of Shinra whistling and the stench of sweat in the air. His eyes glanced over the grounds in front of him, groups of his humans fighting one another with Akabayashi in the middle of them. "Looks like class is in session."

He watched Shinra nod in agreement as they made way their closer. Izaya's ruby gaze scanned the crowd sitting down, easily spotting that none of them were Kadota or his group; in fact, these humans were crying. It seems that Akabayashi had worked them hard enough to where they were bruised, and their egos diminished. It was pathetic to the raven; how could some humans give up so easily after a few hard days of training and work? Did they expect this to be easy, for it to come naturally as if this profession was made for them?

"You call that a punch? Hit him harder." It was Akabayashi's voice that rang loud, but not loud enough to be considered yelling. In fact, Izaya wasn't sure he's ever heard the man yell in the past ten years he's known him.

"Do you see them?" Shinra questioned, his brown eyes trained on the grounds in front of him as if he's searching as well, but with no luck.

"Yes, actually."

"Where at?"

Izaya pointed toward the far end of the grounds by the maneuver gear training section. There were seven people there, one in the training course and the rest surrounding that person. He was too far away for the raven to guess who it was, but he couldn't miss the tall blonde man even if he tried to; he stuck out like a sore thumb. "It seems they wanted to test out their balance." There was soon a loud thudding sound, followed by a grunt of pain. He wasn't sure if the moan was carried from the other side of the grounds or if it was from the hand-to-hand trainees, but it didn't matter either way. "Though, it seems that they're not quite as graceful as they should be."

Shinra let his gaze follow his friend's, his smile never leaving his face. In fact, Izaya could wear the grin only widened. "Let's go!"

The raven watched as his friend grabbed the arm of his favorite (and quite frankly iconic) jacket, pulling him along as he went. It was as if Shinra was afraid that he would leave him in favor of doing something else, but that wasn't quite the case. In fact, Izaya was intrigued and curious about this beast named Shizuo Heiwajima. "You know, I'm not going anywhere."

Shinra merely shrugged in response as if the statement wasn't worth the use of his vocal cords. In fact, the brunet thought a more important use for them was to bring attention to himself as they approached the group. "Shizuo! Kadota!"

The two men jumped at the mention of their names, their gazes leaving their friend to look over at the raven and brunet. "Shinra?"

As the two approached, Kadota's eyes widened a bit more in surprise. "Izaya?"

"Dotachin." The raven felt a smirk spread across his face as he maintained eye contact with Kadota, who only gave him a pointed look at the nickname. He could feel everyone's eyes on him as he spoke. "You really should learn to listen to Erika occasionally. I believe she told you that she saw me yesterday, quite loudly I might add."

Izaya switched his gaze over toward Shizuo, ignoring the voice of Erika as she berated Kadota for ignoring her the day before. The man's golden eyes locked onto his ruby ones for a split second before he switched over to the person laying on the ground. Being up close helped determine that it was, in fact, Walker, face first in the dirt. "For someone blessed with the kitsune no me look, you're not graceful." Walked hummed, looking up at Izaya from his position. "Do you need some help? Additional training, perhaps?"

Walker nodded, his smile never fading as he stood up and started to unfasten himself from the gear that was holding him. "That would be appreciated. We don't know if there's a trick to it or not!" The raven chuckled as the blonde man handed him the belt, the weight heavy in his hands. It seemed that the man didn't bother questioning him, in fact, he seemed overly delighted to have some more insight on the machinery.

"If anyone should show us how to use it, it should be Shinra. He's got the only rank here." It was a deep voice that spoke, causing the raven to look over to see Shizuo's scowl. "Not this flea."

"Shizuo," That was Shinra's voice speaking; Izaya could tell even as his eyes never left the blonde's. "Trust me when I say that he should be the one to show you. I actually have no idea how those things work. Well, I do in theory, but I've never been able to use it."

"You're kidding me."

"Nope!"

"It's ok, Shizuo. If anyone knows how to do something, it's Izaya."

"Shinra," That was Kadota, his voice almost an octave lower than Shinra's, but not quite the growl that Shizuo's seemed to be. Izaya made quick work of attaching the belt to his person as the man continued. "It's been ten years. Where have you two been?"

The sound of Erika squealing rang through the air, followed by a whoosh as Izaya was lifted off the ground by the gear, his body balanced in place as if he weighed nothing; and they were pretty sure it weighed nothing. The raven hung there for a few minutes, letting the others watch and focus on the thin wires connecting him to the practice station. "It works best if you have great leg strength, coupled with spatial recognition abilities, as well as the mental strength," Shinra stated, pushing his glasses up slightly. "At least, that's what I've read."

"Why do we need mental strength for this?" It was a new voice to the raven, causing him to move his gaze to that direction. It came from the brown-haired Heiwajima, his voice monotone and his expression unchanging as he watched Izaya; in some way, it reminded him of Namie. What was his name, Kasuka?

"So you don't die," Izaya stated, eyes flickering with amusement as a few faces paled. The raven lowered himself to the ground, detaching the belt from his person as he spoke. "You won't make it five minutes outside these walls if you can't keep a level head." The belt fell heavy in his hands, his eyes never leaving the stoic man as he continued. "If one cannot stay upright, they will be dismissed. The military has no use for humans who cannot control themselves. Do you wish to try? Do you think you will fare better than your peers, or are you scared of the outcome?" He let his eyes scan everyone else, his voice casual as if he were discussing what to have for dinner. "I can guarantee you will die outside these walls in some fashion; the chance doubled if you cannot keep some form of calm."

The raven heard a growl coming from the taller blonde; the one he classified as a beat. The low registered sound caused him to turn around, his gaze easily meeting the golden one directed at him in the form of glare. He watched the dreadlocked man place a hand on his shoulder as if to hold him back from whatever he wanted to do. "Are you threatening us, flea?"

"Down, beast. I am merely being realistic." Izaya stated, holding his hand up in dismissal as he handed the belt to Erika.

"I'm not a fucking beast."

Izaya watched Shizuo's hands twitch as if they unconsciously attempted to fist themselves into tension and look for the relief of a punch. He gave him his best smile, the attempt not quite reaching his eyes as he stepped forward. "Oh, but you are. You see, I know about you; about your strength. I'm quite interested in why they let a beast like you join the training." By now, their faces were centimeters apart, his smirk never leaving his lips. "Are my humans asking to die?"

"Izaya." That was Shinra, his voice barely audible from the growl that Shizuo was emitting. The sound caused Izaya to back up from Shizuo a few paces, but slow enough so the blonde didn't confuse this action as retreating. "We should go. They're trying to train after all, and I'm not wanting to deal with the issue of their tools breaking because of you."

"It would do them a service if I'm honest." The raven dismissed but nodded over toward the brunet as if a silent agreement to leave. He still had to discuss some things with Shiki and experiments to observe. He could always come back here later and watch his humans struggle to do basic things.

"We'll come by later this week to see how far you've progressed in your training if you guys are still here." Shinra stated, smiling over at his friends before he signaled for Izaya to follow him.

Izaya didn't hesitate to follow Shinra, in fact, he had already started the slow padding up to the brunet as he was talking. They made a few yards in distance before the raven turned around, the group still looking at this. He let his voice ring loud to cover what little distance there was between the two groups; just to make sure that the object of his attention would hear. "See you later, Shizu-chan."

Also, as a side note, I made a Tumblr so I can update people and browse random Shizaya things as I write. I'm not sure how much I'll use it other than post when I update something, but please feel free to ask me anything on there!