Shizuo is not the kind of person you can shock easily. Being able to lift entire refrigerators before he even reached the double digits, he's gotten used to seeing, hearing about, or even being a part of strange shit... still, every now and then, something happens that leaves even him speechless.

It had started with Celty getting back to him, letting him know she and Shinra were on their way. There had been a short game of Charades where he'd tried to communicate that to the girl, but after several failed attempts, he eventually just gives up and takes a shower; Celty and Shinra arrive about thirty minutes later, Shizuo letting them in as soon as he hears the knock.

The moment she sees Shinra, her face turns the same shade of white that it had when she'd noticed the guards in the airport, the girl immediately running into the bathroom and slamming the door shut behind her. When five minutes pass and she still hasn't come back out, Shizuo goes to open the door - only it won't budge. He yanks on the handle, but all he manages to do is pull it right out of the socket; confused, he stares down at the knob in his hand before looking over to Celty and Shinra. "I... can't open it?"

"That's... interesting..." Shinra says, his glance moving from the knob in Shizuo's hand to the hole in the door it had come out of, the look in his eyes one of both wonder and curiosity.

"Why the fuck can't I open it? It makes no fucking sense!"

"Don't look at me, I don't know the answer to that either." Shinra goes over to the door and kneels down, peeking in through the hole. There aren't any windows in Shizuo's bathroom, but he still can't see the girl; it's possible she's managed to find an angle to sit where she can be out of view, but something tells him that Ocam's Razor most likely isn't going to apply in this particular situation. He switches from Japanese to English, hoping his accent isn't so atrocious that the girl wouldn't be able to understand him (it's been a while since he's practiced.) "Hello! My name is Shinra. I'm sorry I scared you... will you please come out?"

Silence.

"My friends want me to help you. Can you trust them?"

There's another moment of silence before the door slowly squeaks open, the girl warily poking her head out. She seems to hesitate when she sees Shinra, her eyes glued to his labcoat; noticing that, he takes it off and lays it on Shizuo's futon. Almost immediately, the girl relaxes. "Well, that answers that question."

[Do you think she was experimented on or something?]

"It's definitely a possibility." Shinra grabs his medical kit from where he set it on the floor, taking out his stethescope and a thermometer before motioning for the girl to sit on the futon. She does as she's told, patiently letting him take her temperature and check her breathing and heartbeat despite how obviously scared she still is. "You're brave." He tells her, scribbling her vitals down on a piece of notebook paper before turning to Shizuo. "I may need your help with the next part."

"Why?"

"I want to take a blood sample."

"Again, why?"

"We don't know where she came from or how she got here. The chances that she might have been exposed to a virus or infection aren't exactly the lowest."

"Yeah, I guess you're right..."

"I often am." He digs through his kit until he finds bandages, syringes, and a rubber tie. When he turns back to the girl with them in hand, her eyes widen and she begins to shake her head vigorously. "I'm sorry, I wouldn't do this if I didn't think it were necessary." He says, motioning for Shizuo to grab her before she can bolt into the bathroom again. The blonde goes to do so, his fingers miliseconds away from wrapping around her tiny wrist...

*WHAM!*

Shizuo's back hits the wall, the impact strong enough to knock the wind right out of him. Dazed, he slides to the floor and tries to process what has just happened - he hadn't seen the girl move or felt her touch him, yet somehow she'd managed to send him flying. "What the hell?"

"She's telekinetic!" Shinra blurts out, unable to contain his excitement. "Telekinetic! Amazing! Absolutely amazing!"

[You're going to scare her even more if you keep on like that!]

"Wait, you're saying she flung me across the room with her goddamn mind?" Shizuo asks, incredulous.

"Yes! Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying!"

"Holy fuck." Shizuo still can't quite believe it. Turning his attention back to the girl, he notices blood trickling from her nose. "Oh, shit..." He picks himself up off the ground and grabs some toilet paper from the bathroom, holding it out to her; she snatches it from his hand and backs up, wiping her face while watching him warily. "Her nose is bleeding."

"Mental strain, most likely. I guess we're going to have to wait on those blood tests." Shinra puts the syringes and other supplies back into his medical kit. "Other than that and her size, she seems mostly healthy... just make sure she stays hydrated and gets plenty of protein."

"Can do."

"Then I guess we shall be on our way!" He picks up his lab coat and slings it over his arm. "Ready, my love?" He asks Celty.

Ignoring him, she places two plastic shopping bags in front of the girl. [These are for you. I'll come visit again soon, alright?] The girl nods, Celty waving goodbye to both her and Shizuo before following Shinra out the door.

"Well, guess it's just you and me now, kid. I guess I should probably feed you, huh? Not that you can understand what I'm saying or anything." Shizuo says, scratching his head. All the girl does is blink up at him. "Yeah, I think we're gonna get along great." He chuckles to himself, going into the kitchen so he can figure out what to do for dinner.

Around the same time, Shinjuku...

Izaya relaxes as he sinks into the warm water, closing his eyes as he lets all of the tension leave his body. Baths are one of the few of life's little pleasures he doesn't mind indulging in on a regular basis; sometimes he'll even add bubbles or Epsom salt, though more often than not he doesn't care enough to actually use anything other than simple shampoo and body wash. He sniffles, feeling what at first he assumes to be his nose running; it isn't until he goes to wipe his face off that he realizes it's blood, not snot. "What the hell?" He frowns, staring down at the red-stained tissue. He hasn't had a bloody nose since he was in middle school, and he can't think of a single reason why he should have one now.

Maybe it's stress?

Sighing, he tilts his head back and pinches his nose, staying like that until the blood has had enough time to finish clotting. Crumpling up the dirty kleenex and tossing it into the waste basket, Izaya pauses when he notices the notification light on his phone blinking; making sure both of his hands are completely dry before even trying to touch its screen, he picks up his phone from its spot on the back of the toilet and curiously opens a new message from a number he doesn't recognize.

'hello, sexy'

He raises an eyebrow in amusement, typing up a response to his mystery texter. 'Oopsie~! I think you have the wrong number, friend~!'

'what are you wearing right now?'

'Oh, dear. Did my text not send? I said that you have the wrong number. Are you absolutely sure you put it in correctly?'

'what color underwear do you have on?'

'You do understand what 'wrong number' means, don't you? Who exactly do you think this is?'

'i don't think, i know :)'

'I highly doubt that, friend.'

'it's true, though. i know who you are'

'Alright, then what's my name?'

'izaya orihara :)'

That is not the answer he wanted, not in the slightest. '...Who is this?'

'i like to think ur not wearing anything at all. are you, izaya orihara?'

Suddenly painfully aware of his own nakedness, Izaya doesn't feel so relaxed anymore. He pulls the plug to start draining the tub, grabbing his towel off the rack so he can hastily dry himself off and get dressed. When he gets back to his phone, he's a little disturbed to find that he has several missed messages, all from the same mystery number.

'orihara-kun?'

'hello?'

'u still there?'

'did i make you uncomfortable?'

'i'd like to think i did'

'i bet you make the cutest faces when you're uncomfortable :)'

Izaya might have just gotten out of the bath, but he's already starting to feel like he needs a shower. 'If this is a joke, it isn't very funny.'

'r u a virgin?'

Instead of dignifying the mystery texter with a response, Izaya decides it's best to just shut off his phone. Whoever they are, they're obviously trying to get under his skin... and he doesn't plan on giving them the satisfaction of knowing they've succeeded. Humming the theme song to some anime he can't remember the name of, he wanders into his kitchen to find something to eat for dinner.