TWEWY: A Fall Into Honor:
This story is about how Joshua became the Composer. The story is from Joshua's point of view, and others if the story needs to. This is a prequel of the game The World Ends With You. TWEWY is made by Square Enix. And I own the OCs. This is a FAN FICTION and not the real prequel. Enjoy! =3
EeveeGen9988: Hey, everyone! We finally arrived at Day 3! Yay! Plus, I just need to type up the next chapter from paper to computer then I'm done doing it for who knows how long! Yay!
And here's something that blew my mind yesterday (Feb 27th 2016), I noticed a fanfic had over 900 chapters! O_O That's so amazing! Hopefully this story won't be over 900 chapters =3
Week 2, day 3:
Chapter 48: My Lovely Chrysanthemum…
"I don't see how you hold Megumi Kitanaji to be responsible enough," said Kazumasa as he stood in front of her desk, frowning. "He clearly wants power, Diana. Ever since he's become a Reaper, it's been listed in his File. You have to understand this."
Her incandescent lilac eyes merely stayed on him, still pools of calm. It seemed to deter her Conductor as he gripped his traditional cane harder.
"Power…" she murmured as she gathered her hands together. "You express it in manner to it being depraved… Kazumasa… Or, you may believe power is corrupt by the one who wields it…" She inhaled softly before she added, "By that, you deem Mr. Kitanaji the unethical one…"
The fawn coloured haired man grunted, his midnight blue eyes gleamed with disapproval. "Mr. Kitanaji… he would use power that may rip the Game from the seams to get what he wants," he grumbled as he dared to lock his eyes with hers. "And to send him in when he has hewn enough tensions…?"
"'Am I a fool?', you mean to ask?"
He right away frowned, making a sound of being displeased. Diana simply gazed at him, waiting for him to respond when she knew he wouldn't.
After listening to the offbeat rhythm her Conductor's heart created for a few seconds, she decided to fill the silence. "You may believe he may exploit his onuses for a medal, a crown… however, he has bestowed us vantage." she mused aloofly as she closed her eyes. "Indeed… a contribution in light of these epochs…"
"Vantage…" she heard Kazumasa echo in deride. "He twisted customs! Stole valuable Player Files to read them out to Mr. Kiryu and Mr. Ki… What vantage do you speak of?"
She simply handed him the 4 Reaper Files. "Trust… Once it has planted the seeds, manipulation to how the plant thrives determines resolution, Kazumasa…" Without a word he took them with care, pressing them under his right arm. "Like a baby, your own child, the fruit of your loins…" she continued on soothingly, bringing together her hands again as she rested them on her desk. "Like a plant… you mold it to your standards… then you wait to see if it survives…"
"And Ms. Kurokiku?" he asked as he furrowed his light eyebrows. "Why did you ask of me to choose her instead of the more suitable Officer Reapers?"
All she did was smile gently. "Distraction, Kazumasa, can be a key as well."
"They tore his bandages!?" snarled Joshua with disbelief as he stared at Ayumu's gross looking wound, his body already preparing to chuck out everything. "And here I thought after nearly freezing them they'd stay away from you, Izo!"
Izo snorted, his maroon eyes glittered coldly, "I didn't manufacture any ice!" He grumpily glared at Joshua after adjusting his cracked glasses. "Surcease your tactless averments upon this superstitious event!"
After waking up, Joshua had no trouble finding Izo and Ayumu. Mayu seemed frightened of the idea of spending time with them, but as shy as she was she made no complaints of coming. The only trouble was finding out that Ayumu's bandages were tampered with because of Ryou and Sora messing with Ayumu. That made Joshua more furious of their existence in the Reaper's Game.
"I do not partake in witchcraft, dammit!" snarled Izo finally as he let out a low growl. "How long do I have to edify you to this!?"
"Actually," Joshua turned to Ayumu as he spoke, "it wouldn't be witchcraft… Being a witch means you're a girl, so… technically, Izo, it would be wizardcraft for magic. Although… wizardcraft isn't a real word if I remember correctly, so it would be magic. And from what you've told me already-"
Before Joshua could stop him, Izo lunged forward and grabbed a fistful of Ayumu's blond, golden tipped hair and tugged it hard upward. "Shut up, Blind Brat!" snapped Izo as Ayumu's head was tipped backward forcefully.
"Stop trying to tear out my brother's hair!" Joshua exclaimed in fury, as he tried to pry Izo's hands away from the captured blond locks. "You're hurting him!"
Ayumu did nothing to stop his Partner, he blinked as he spoke emotionless, "He's not hurting me. I feel no pain, Josh."
"When you get your emotions back, and feel the work of ripped out hair, you'll understand, Ayu!" Joshua tried his best to separate Izo's hands from Ayumu's hair, but Izo simply tightened his grip. If Joshua tried to remove Izo's hands now, Ayumu would gain an early bald spot. So he gave up feeling bitter about the whole situation.
"I'm not a girl," Ayumu replied, "We both know that." This caused Joshua to sigh, but he still kept throwing dirty looks at Izo.
The walking freezer snorted when their glares met, then he glared at Ayumu briefly before letting go.
Joshua could only wonder if Izo was silently warning Ayumu of his poor position at the moment, or… His heart sank and he bit his lip. 'Was Izo reminding me of yesterday?' Even with his memories suffering from what Leiko did to him, he still felt guilty for it.
Pulling out the aloof poet's hair must have dampened Izo's respect for him quite a bit. But he did wonder one thing as Izo brushed aside his longer fringe, only for it to drift back to its initial spot. Why did it bother Izo so much? Of course, anyone would dislike having their hair torn out. But from how Izo acted it seemed like something else. Whether it was dissatisfaction of his appearance being tampered with or horrible memories, he was sure Izo would suffer in silence rather than open up to him for the reason why no one should mess with his dark blue hair.
"Hmph, morning rituals tend to be… unique… for different people, especially yours apparently…"
At the sound of her voice, rage shimmered his blood and he twisted his face into a glare. Slowly he turned around to face the Gamermaster who stood a fair distance from them. Her ghostly, sickening appearance made him clench his fists and curl his lip as he watched her cautiously. Of course, she donned that apathetic mask that was her own face Joshua hated to see. It couldn't even compare to Ayumu's face. Why? The reason it couldn't compare to Ayumu's was because Joshua already knew the difference between them! Ayumu didn't have a choice!
Mayu let out a whimper before she hid behind him for cover. Joshua didn't shrug her off to persuade her to show herself, he knew his Partner should hide from the Gamemaster from what the sickingly pale female displayed yesterday.
"Just give us the damn mission and go away!" yelled Joshua harshly as the GM shielded herself from the sun with deft adjustments to her parasol's position.
"Haste is a bitter risk," she huffed, sounding slightly irritated. "Frisking for false judgment, which all ends from the dawn, to the dusk, to the misc." She held her head up regally. "I must admit, that ordering me around will not soothe the time I use with all of you…"
"Just go… go away!" spat Joshua as he shook his fist at her.
"Hmph." Her pale fuchsia eyes glinted slightly; she adjusted her chain-adorned parasol as she narrowed her eyes. "Yesterday you were testing your luck, but today you've wasted every speck you owe…" She closed her parasol up in a swift motion before reopening it. As soon as she wasn't in the sun, she suddenly disappeared when Joshua blinked.
"Where'd she go!?" Joshua glanced around in confusion, looking to his friends for help. He was so sure she was there a second ago, so he blamed his eyes' need to blink every few seconds.
Izo crouched on the spot slightly; he drew his hand under his bangs and lifted them up. He seemed to skim around the area with his sharp maroon eyes. "Tsk, how should I cognize?" he growled as he turned his head while searching.
"Well, I'm sure you didn't blink at the worst possible time, Izo!" spat Joshua just as he turned to lock eyes with his Partner to check up on her, when he saw how scared she was he softened his eyes when he murmured, "Keep a lookout for her, I don't know where she went…"
Mayu gave quick nods with her eyes flashing fearfully.
Suddenly his gut cried out, it felt like his hair on his body shot up as a bad feeling waved over him. He turned around only to cringe backwards as Leiko's parasol tip was thrust into his vision, causing him to momentarily close his eyes tightly shut to brace himself for that weird sensation…
It never came.
"Hmph, a warning, Yoshiya."
He opened his eyes to glare at the brown haired girl dressed in style of gothic punk. Her lips were pursed and her eyes narrowed. She kept her grip steady as she held her parasol, its tip almost touching the point his heart thumped in. But he didn't lower his guard; she could very well jab him at any time. So he stayed stiff and unmoving, fearing that any slight movement he made would inadvertently let him get poked by that creepy parasol. He would very much like to get poked in the chest by a sharp looking sword than Leiko's parasol! Until she drew it back to protect herself from the sun, he was on edge.
Joshua let out a sigh of relief, swiping a hand across his forehead to wipe away the cold gross sweat that was produced. 'That… that was so, so very close!' he thought as he closed his lavender eyes again. 'I'd hate to experience being poked by that evil umbrella again!'
"Feh, how is being perforated by that parasol going to cultivate Aleck to not disfavor you?" queried Izo coldly as he crossed his arms.
Leiko turned to him, adjusting her parasol.
Izo obviously disliked her, from how he scowled and his poor body posture he held in her presence could easily be grasped. How Leiko responded to such indecency might be somewhat akin to what she dealt to Joshua yesterday… So he prayed that Izo was smart enough to tell when he should stop talking to the GM…
Instead of lunging and jabbing Izo in the chest like he imagined she would, she was kept silent for a while without waver. This unsettled Joshua, Leiko's back was to him and he couldn't tell what she was expressing to Izo. Despite how Izo was a jerk, Joshua worried for him. He was still his friend, regardless of any actions he's done or words he had spoken to convince Joshua otherwise.
Soon she started up a soft hum, "Hmm… so you're the Izo Shuuito that I've read all about… Not omitting ventures for elegiac sentences, I see…"
'Huh?' Joshua was puzzled. 'A complement!?' Why did she sound so… sweet and kind suddenly!? Her missing standoffish demeanor somewhat stupefied him as he watched her closely.
After a few seconds she walked over to be beside him, close enough that personal space didn't matter anymore. In response Izo started to shuffle away growling, but she shadowed his every move. From the looks of it, Izo was definitely crabby about her following him. However, what really stood out the most was how Joshua noticed Izo was trying his best to not face her.
'Aha! I see what he's doing!' Joshua continued to gawk as he felt uneasiness grip him. 'He's trying not to give her a clear position to hit him! Kudos to you, Izo! Kudos!' All he hoped was Izo wouldn't mess up his tactic.
"Surcease pursuing me, witch!" snapped Izo as he finally turned around and began to make a break for it.
Instead of giving chase, she walked forward while smirking. She cocked her parasol ever so slightly.
Joshua saw something rise out of the ground from Izo's shadow, or was it actually Izo's shadow? Whatever it was, it took the form of shadowy tentacles that grabbed Izo's ankles and yanked on them hard. Abruptly the poet fell.
Izo let out a cry of pain when he collided with the ground, and his glasses had fallen off as well sadly. Leiko continued to advance as Izo blindly pawed at the ground for his glasses.
"Run, Izo, run!" shouted Joshua as Izo finally found his glasses and put them on. "Don't let that evil umbrella be near you!" Joshua started to run over to help his dark blue haired ally, knowing Mayu and Ayumu would be alright on their own (sort of). But when he was almost at Izo's side, he felt something snag his ankles. He didn't trip like Izo (luckily) but he couldn't move his feet, the shadows around his ankles clung to them firmly. He soon let out hisses of discomfort as his ankles prickled and stung, and he gritted his teeth to bear with the pain he felt. All he could do was helplessly watch as Izo received the same fate as him.
Izo tried to move with no avail, yet Joshua saw Leiko had already arrived to be with Izo again. It would seem escape was fleeting for the both of them…
With an irate growl, Izo glowered at Leiko, "I know you did this! Liberate me!"
"Hmph, you'll run away." She pursed her lips.
"He has a reason to!" spat Joshua harshly as Leiko gazed at him from the corner of her eye.
"Kindly seal your lips, Yoshiya," she said in annoyance, she tapped a finger on her parasol's handle. "I do not accept snarls…"
Joshua understood what she meant, even though he rather yell his head off at her. Yet... experiencing that fake haze of bliss wasn't appealing to him in the slightest… He pressed his lips together firmly, setting his burning glare on her as he threw insults at her in his mind. He despised the fact that he had to obey her commands like this; he wasn't a dog or a servant!
"Now then," she said dully as her fingers traced Izo's cheek, he grimaced and made an ugly scowl at her as he tried to sway his body away from her. "Izo Shuuito… a child who was undesirable… and a child who was unwanted…"
Izo slapped her hand away, his maroon eyes burning with ire. "Don't adjoin me!" he snarled as he tried to move his legs.
She simply pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. "One who hates contact and attraction… due to the fact it was neglected from your life until Genji Shuuito took you away from that orphanage. …Petty, petty that is one of the habits you grew into and is the reason you shot down the love females have for you…"
Again she reached towards him, but he slapped the hand away again. It seemed he had slapped harder this time, because Joshua clearly heard it and Leiko scowled as she withdrew her wounded hand.
"I do not crave the toxin of love!" snarled Izo bitterly as he frowned deeply at her, he tsked as he turned his head away with disgust etching into his hardened expression. "It is a fathomless blight that withers the nous, the soul to the threshold to one's end! Alas, it e'er pollutes perpetually… feh!"
The air was filled with dead silence; Joshua couldn't help but be surprised.
Was that the true reason Izo broke any girls' heart? Because he thought it would destroy him in the end? It was true, that love was a double-sided coin; one side with promises of hope and bliss; the other crumbled the very person to desperation and lugubriousness… Love was a powerful emotion, that's for sure. It could send you to the clouds or to the grave…
'D-Does… Does Izo… not want to fall in love?' he thought with bewilderment as he attempted to free himself with no detection. 'Is he forcing himself to hate it in order to protect himself? And to think, I might have thought he did it to hurt his admirers!? But-' His thoughts were interrupted by slow claps.
Leiko balanced her parasol between her right arm and armpit as she clapped lightly, her face was blank as her pale eyes never left Izo. "True poetry…" she remarked as her black lips curved into a smirk. "To commit oneself to its charming art…. to empathize its beauts… A fille of any would ne'er balk such contrives of a stunner such as yourself, Izo."
In response, Izo let out a snort, grimacing, as he didn't spare her a glare. It was as though Izo knew a girl such as Leiko deserved no attention.
Joshua could only laugh on the inside, 'There's no way Izo would let her use that evil umbrella on him! It's as though he trained himself to be immune to any sort of flirts or advances.'
Leiko circled Izo to be in his range of vision, but he simply shifted his body the best he could away from her. Before Izo could turn away his head, Leiko grabbed his chin with her pasty fingers, letting her black claws (as Joshua liked to call them) dig into his skin. "Cold as winter… you distance yourself… because of the reminder you see everyday…"
Izo let out a growl of anger, he made a move to latch onto her hand but Leiko dug her claws deeper into his chin. For a few seconds Leiko moved her parasol to accommodate the sunlight exposure before her voice grew low and alluring in a way, "Oh, you sure are hefty work-"
"Not. Interested!" hissed Izo as he darkly glowered at her, it sounded like he was clenching his teeth together. "Sheath. Your. Foul. Claws. From. My. FACE DAMMIT!" His voice rung through the Scramble Crossing, and Joshua could only widen his eyes as Leiko retracted her hand from the frosty poet.
The ashen blond was awed that Izo actually managed to stop Leiko from touching his face, along with how Leiko didn't even resort to her evil umbrella yet. A brief surge of relief and triumph made him smirk smugly at the GM. 'Way to go, Izo! Teach her to not toy around with you!' Instead of seeing Leiko retreat from her strive like he expected her to, he saw her smirk.
With a sway of her hips on the spot, she sauntered around Izo a bit. Izo held his grumpy glare the whole time as she hummed sweetly, "Thin patience… you deem for love to be scrapped from your life… so you taught yourself to reject every stipple that presents itself to you…" As she passed him she touched his right cheek, letting her fingers slide across his skin as she passed him to under his chin then halted. Joshua saw her fuchsia eyes meet Izo's maroon. "Although… your strength-" Izo snorted and his eyes became slits. "…Is it… potent… to flout the emotion that you've left to dry and wither… in lieu to flourish…?"
At once Izo opened his mouth, eyes glittering reddish in the sunlight. But his breath hitched, unable to respond.
Leiko had jabbed him lightly with her parasol, straight on the spot his heart would be.
"Izo!" Joshua yelled out in dismay, he cursed himself for not noticing Leiko was readying to shrike the walking freezer sooner! He attempted to move, finding his feet had struggled lightly against the shadows that soon melded back into his normal shadow. Glancing down to check that his shadow was following his every movement like it did normally, he soon moved his gaze back to see Izo was freed as well.
'Does… No… She did it!' he cried out in his mind, glowering at the pasty woman. 'Her abilities have to be aligned with controlling shadows! That's how she disappeared! She used the shadows to travel around with no detection, silent and subtle as darkness! But… what about…' Along with his realization, his head throbbed from recalling yesterday's event with Leiko. 'Never mind! I have to help Izo!'
Before he could advance, Izo dipped his head before he grabbed the chalky-skinned hand that was posed below his chin... Yet… Izo did it with such grace and his handling was delicate… Joshua felt so baffled by Izo's odd behavior. 'Wha… What is he doing!?'
Slowly Izo brought the GM's hand up before planting a soft kiss on the back of it. Then he tilted his head down and gazed into Leiko's eyes. His face that usually was taut somehow softened as a rare smile graced his lips. His eyes no longer were maroon slits, they were half-lidded and Joshua thought for a second they had a rosy tint sheening in them.
Right away Joshua's stomach clenched uneasily. 'What the…?' he gave Izo a concerned glance. 'W-What's wrong with him? What did she do to him!?'
His mind whirled as Leiko turned, giving him an expression of neutrality with a grip of her smirk still on. Without a second thought, Joshua glared at her, taking a furious step forward as he asked in a low dangerous tone, "What have you done?" he lashed his hand in front of him in a half-circle. "What did you do to Izo!?"
"Hmph, you shouldn't be asking about this," she said flatly, slipping her hand out of Izo's grip easily. "When you, Yoshiya, have already experienced your session."
Slowly Izo glided to her side. Without acknowledging the conversation focusing on him, he turned to Leiko and wrapped his left arm around her back then fluently twisted her body for her to face him. He craned his head down to gaze at Leiko's face, soon lifting his right hand to stroke away stray brown bangs that rested on her face.
"Tu as des beauz yeux…" Izo whispered lovingly as he rested his forehead against hers gently, his eyes never left Leiko's.
Joshua's face screwed up puzzled, unable to understand Izo's fluent French. He couldn't tell what was happening to Izo, but it disturbed him greatly.
The normally frosty and grouchy teenager was so… lovey-dovey… that it made Joshua cringe every second internally. It was creepy rather than confusing now. Although… the valentino braided haired girl didn't bat a single eye as Izo intertwined their right hands and now placed his left on her hip. Suddenly he began to move both of them around in an excellently practiced waltz, humming contently with a warm smile.
That smile… that smile felt out of place… To Joshua, even though Izo was smiling happily, that smile shouldn't have existed. An uncommon smile that Izo now possessed… felt entirely fake to Joshua.
Izo occasionally twirled Leiko around, making her skirt ruffle in the breeze and chains collided with each other. He would pause every so often, gazing fondly at her silently, then continue their dance.
Very soon Izo began to laugh jovially as he twirled Leiko again, "My lady I perchance a glimpse…" he pulled her back. "Is fair, is rare, as I no longer glare…" For a while he gazed at her with his drooped maroon eyes before leading the waltz again. "With eyes of petals... With skin as snow…" he dipped her as he murmured blithely, "Who in the world would know you as our foe?"
Leiko, as Joshua watched, merely gazed back at Izo blankly.
"I cannot stop the gasp!" he laughed as he pulled them up and continued on, "Fluttering of my beating soul! You are the one who grazed me last!" He stopped the waltz. He gathered Leiko's hands and held them smiling as he quietly whispered, "Alas, hast I hate…?" there was a pause before he exclaimed, "No! Adore you instead at this rate!" Izo gazed at Leiko fondly. "I do not see anyone but you…" he let go of her hands and wrapped his arms around her. "As your name relates to not the rose… but the chrysanthemum…" He closed his eyes. "Lovelier, lovelier than the rose…" he sighed before drawing her closer, soon murmuring gently, "A beautiful chrysanthemum…"
His right hand slowly rose up and traced her braids. "You are lovely, so very lovely, my lady…" His hand soon strayed to her face, stroking her cheek lightly. "With a glance I see you, my chrysanthemum... the lovely flower to let my heart sing…" Finally he dipped his head, Joshua managed to hear him whisper lovingly, "My love, only for you… only for you true…"
After that he fell silent, continuing to stroke her cheek gingerly.
Joshua couldn't help but gape at him. 'That… that was beautiful…' That poem was far different from Izo's usual ones, this one spoke true passion; true emotion… All Joshua could say was that Izo outdone himself.
But… actually hearing Izo laugh… not of disdain, not of crudeness, not of bitterness, but of joy… It was strange… hearing Izo laugh like this. Or, even hearing Izo laugh at all… Joshua couldn't tell if he could get used to hearing Izo laugh like that… or, at all…
Suddenly Izo tipped his head slightly one way, he murmured lovingly as he leaned in, "Mon Coeur bat pour toi…" his hand drifted down slowly and clasped onto Leiko's. "Mon Coeur bat pour toi…"
Joshua frowned as he watched. 'What is he doing?'
For some reason Izo was breathing deeply now. When Izo leaned closer to Leiko's face, the ashen blond eventually realized what was happening. 'Oh no… Is he…?'
Before he could finish his thoughts, Izo closed his eyes gradually and placed his lips on the Gamemaster's softly.
Right away Joshua panicked and sharply turned away. 'He KISSED HER! GAH! I've seen this in MOVIES… but this is TOO much!' He felt his blush deepen when he turned back briefly.
Izo now pulled away before resting his forehead against the brown haired girl with black highlights, he closed his eyes panting softly as he whispered gently, "Mademoiselle, je bous trouve absolument charmante…"
Joshua noticed that Leiko pursed her black lips with a scowl of annoyance.
At once he glared at her. 'What the hell!? She was toying with him!? Wh-Why would she do that!? That hag! I hope I wasn't all lovey-dovey with her like Izo!' Soon Leiko's eyes flickered to the dropped parasol. Joshua suddenly realized ever since Izo was jabbed by it, he must've knocked it out of Leiko's hands. But how he didn't notice before escaped him…
"Izo," at Leiko's firm tone Izo drew back his head to look down at her. "Kindly retrieve my parasol."
Without any hesitation, Izo detached himself from the embrace smiling and humming happily. "Anything for my chrysanthemum…" he purred as he strode to the dropped item.
As he passed Joshua, Joshua saw to his shock that Izo's eyes were dimmer than normal! And instead of the sunlight reflecting in his cold gaze was that tinge of rosy pink!
When he returned, he dropped to one knee and held the closed parasol in offering to Leiko. Instead of taking it, she smirked as she reached to place her hand on his forehead. She brushed her fingers under his bangs and lifted them up, then rubbed her thumb along Izo's exposed forehead.
"Poor Izo…" her voice dropped into a whisper, and Joshua couldn't make out what she was saying.
He didn't want to leave his friend alone with Leiko when she was playing with his feelings so he marched over, unable to hear what she was whispering to him. Whatever it was, when Joshua joined the two, he thought he saw Izo's eyes brighten up and sharpen a bit, but when Leiko brushed a finger under his chin his eyes faded to dim and fondness. "But, none of that matters now…" Izo smiled and nodded. "Protect me from the sun."
Joshua had to leap back as Izo complied; he opened up the parasol and held it at a certain angle so Leiko was under complete shade.
"I'll make you happy, my chrysanthemum…" purred the (happy?) poet as he stood beside her, holding the uncanny evil umbrella with chains that rattled slightly. "Anything you desire, my darling…"
She smirked before patting his cheek. "Perfect."
Right away Izo's smile grew wider, his eyes clouded with bliss.
When Leiko turned to Joshua, she pursed her lips. "Even one who shoves away love, can be a sucker for it." she mused flatly as she began to pet Izo's head, who at once shut his eyes as his face grew more relaxed. "He had a far more potent reaction then you did, Yoshiya. As expected, since he… hasn't experienced the emotion before."
"Stop toying with his emotions!" spat Joshua sharply as he glared at her furiously. "I've seen enough of this already! Returned him to normal!"
Leiko lifted her head up. "I won't. Not when I have the choice to do so if I so wish." She smirked as she lifted her thin-gloved hand up near Izo. "How do you feel about me, Izo?"
The dark blue haired teen took her hand with his able one and kissed the back of it. "I love you, only you…" he said kissing more. "Only you, my chrysanthemum… I care for no one but you…"
She kept staring at Joshua and twitched her shoulder towards Izo. "See?"
Joshua wrinkled his nose. "No, I don't." he hissed sternly as Izo let go of her hand. "All I see is you've turned our walking freezer into an affectionate zombie!"
"Which is… differing… from the effects you portrayed, Yoshiya." she mused as her pale eyes glinted; she raised her head in a regal manner. "You showed mint obedience… being a valet upon my wishes… While Izo here, craved for love… utilizing every tactic in order to attain contact and exhibit philia to me." Her tone grew shrill as a cruel laugh escape her lips, "He FELL for me!" She smirked as she explained, with her voice slowly slipping back to its dull, disinterested tone, "How quotidian… Men are soft touch, easily quarry to charms of ladies… If you can flip them around, you have succeeded in making them your HOUNDS…" She pursed, as she narrowed her eyes. "Despicable… that's what men are."
After a few seconds, she turned to Izo and spoke with irritation, "Vanquish the graffiti wallowing fiends…" she eyed Joshua after a second. "That is your mission."
Izo right away moved the parasol to his left hand and reached out his right. Right away Leiko shook his hand, digging her black claws in. But Izo didn't seem to feel the pain, Joshua could only guess his mind was too occupied and clouded to notice.
She took her parasol from Izo before turning to the ashen blond, twitching her shoulder slightly as she offered her hand.
'How fun! My turn…' he thought with a shake of his head. 'I bet by the end of the week my hand will have scars…' Sighing, he reached for her sunless exposed hand, keeping a dirty glare as he gritted his teeth. This time, he promised himself, he wouldn't give her the satisfaction of seeing him withe in agony. He would show her he was no fool!
As soon as their hands clasped each other, Leiko's claws dug into the back of his hand, and the searing pain returned. His knees nearly buckled, but he forced himself to stand tall and strong before the unnerving GM. He repeated in his head that this intolerable pain was nothing but a prick, like a needle that people used for vaccine shots. Joshua kept his eyes open, glaring at the shorter girl until she retracted her claws and hand from his.
"Hmph." She twirled her parasol before turning her head away. "I guess the Kiryu breed has adapted since yesterday."
"Shut up and go away!" spat Joshua as his lavender eyes glazed with frustration. "I've had enough of you, Gamemaster!"
"But she has yet to brand us with the timer."
Joshua spun around, flinching when he saw Ayumu staring back blankly. "Ayumu!? How'd you get here!?"
"Mayu guided me here just now." Joshua's Partner hid behind Ayumu, shaking like a leaf. "Izo sounded enamored with Leiko…"
Joshua let out a sigh, plopping his hand onto his half-brother's blond, golden tipped hair. "Ho boy… he's been whispering sweet nothings of French (I think) to her."
"Ah." Ayumu tilted his head. "Did they suck at each other's faces then?"
Groaning, Joshua facepalmed. 'Oh Ayumu… When will you drop saying that?'
Ever since they watched a movie at Joshua's houses when he was 7 (and Ayumu was 6 and a half) that featured the main characters kissing at the end, Ayumu never understood the term of kissing due to only hearing the movie. Joshua rewinded the movie so they could watch the part again then tried to explain it to his naïve half-brother, but all he got from him was that when people who weren't family loved each other, they would 'suck at each others faces'… He wished Ayumu would use 'kissing' instead of that definition… it was embarrassing when he would say it out loud around people.
"Yeah…" Joshua ruffled Ayumu's hair. "They kissed…"
"Okay." Ayumu nodded. "On the lips… or did he kiss her cheek?"
"Lips." Joshua rolled his eyes.
"So they sucked at each others faces?"
"Ayumu! It's kissing for both occasions!" he practically cried out in frustration and shook Ayumu. "Say 'kissing' already!" Sadly, Ayumu thought 'sucking each other's faces' meant kissing on the lips while anywhere else was a mere kiss… There was one thing for certain, Joshua noted when he stopped to gaze into his younger half-brother's eyes, Ayumu would have trouble finding a girlfriend at this rate. Of course, since he and Auntie Chise lived with each other alone at that time, it was no wonder Ayumu had trouble understanding the concept of kissing people on the lips… Joshua however, always saw his mother peck at his father's lips, but his father never seemed to like it.
"Hmph, as much as brotherly love is pure, your Partner and half-bred brother have yet to accept my mission." Leiko said with no interest as she eyed them boredly.
Joshua let out a sigh as she passed him, moving away from the GM before she had the idea to use her evil umbrella on him as well if he didn't this time. But that didn't kill the aversion he felt towards her as she shook hands with Ayumu. Despite how Ayumu felt that she was one they shouldn't dislike for what actions she did, his blood boiled at the memory that she clawed at Ayumu's nose yesterday.
Once they were done, Joshua grabbed Ayumu's hand before Leiko could do anything else and yanked his half-brother over to safety. He glared at Leiko as he shielded Ayumu from her view. "Not a step closer, not another action to him other than ACCEPTING THE MISSION!" he snarled as he didn't let go of Ayumu, he stomped before he roared, "GOT IT!? DO YOU HEARD ME!? LEAVE MY HALF-BROHTER ALONE!"
Leiko pursed, scowling at him. "Hmph."
Nodding, Joshua didn't budge to give Leiko another opportunity to harass his half-brother anymore. Yet when Mayu screamed out, thrashing and sobbing when it was her turn to accept the mission, his heart felt like it was being ripped slowly in half. His instincts told him to tear Leiko away and punch her until she was erased, but seeing what Leiko did to him when he tried to intervene with her yesterday as she was wounding Ayumu... Joshua rooted himself where he stood instead.
He clenched his hand hard, not the one holding firmly to Ayumu's arm, as he watched Leiko give out Mayu's timer. After the GM was done with Mayu, Joshua saw they had 2 hours and 56 minutes.
"Hmph, farewell…" She began to amble away, twirling her parasol for a few seconds as she headed in the same direction she went yesterday: Statue of Hachiko.
Chains from her gothic punk ensemble and the evil umbrella rattled throughout the entire time, echoing even when she sank down slowly into her shadow.
Then, she was gone.
To be continued… hope you enjoyed the chapter =3