Disclaimer: I do not own the anime, manga, novels, and most importantly the characters of K. K is officially owned by GoRa/GoHands.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE: HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016! Yes, I didn't disappear. I would never do that to you guys. I'm deeply sorry for the wait. I've been stressing out a lot on my 1st semester in college and my pre-nursing studies so I've been too busy to finish this chapter even though I had this draft 3/4 done for 5 months already.
Anyways, this is just a little story I wanted to give to try and quench your guys' thirst for the next chapter. I haven't had the motivation the work on the next chapters but after K Project Season 2 has ended I've been inspired again with the additional content the season provided. So, hope you enjoy this original short story! It takes place quite some time before Tatara's death.
K: Preserving the Blaze of Your Red
BY: TCOOKIES777
Chapter 14.5: Slumber Party
The bells of HOMRA's bar rung as a couple of men strolled in, hauling along tools like plywood and hammers. They were sweaty and out of breath despite the thick layers of clothing they had on to battle the chill of the storm that was beginning to brew.
"Ah, Shohei, did you and Eric finish boarding up the windows on the outside?" Izumo asked from behind the counter as he packed bottles of liquor into cardboard boxes. Yata was beside him helping wrap up the alcohol and stemware in styrofoam. He handed them to Kamamoto and Izumo to organize and pack. "Anna, could you go check on Mikoto for me? I don't think he can find the supplies I asked him to get by himself..." Obediently, Anna put away the broom she'd been sweeping the floor with and ran upstairs.
Shohei tugged his gloves off and tossed a water bottle to Eric before grabbing one for himself. "Yeah, we finished, and just in time too; it's getting pretty windy now."
"Then you wanna help us with the windows here?" Tatara asked with a wry smile on his face, holding a hammer loosely in his hands. Bandō and Dewa were boarding up the windows alongside him diligently. They all appeared exhausted from the duty they were tasked with.
"You're still not done?" Shōhei collapsed into a chair for a break.
Tatara sat back on his haunches, wiping the sheen of sweat from his forehead. "Well, this is more tiring than I thought it would be! It's like working out but with a hammer."
"That's why I offered you to help me with the liquor." Izumo commented. "I've never even seen you go to the gym before. Back in school it seems you weren't the most athletic student either."
"But, you see, I thought this would be more fun." Tatara leaned forward to tap away at the nail Dewa was holding against the plywood. "And I've tried going to the gym once but then I stopped after thinking that there's not much use to it if HOMRA's got my back, right King?"
"Huh, sure." Mikoto trekked down the stairs, holding a box of perishable food with Anna trailing after him juggling some flashlights.
"Oh, good, you found the emergency supplies." Izumo began marking the boxes of liquor. "It's been a while since I last documented their expiration dates though so—"
"I'll do it!" Tatara dropped the hammer and joined the king and the princess at the coffee table where they were laying out the supplies.
They sorted through the food, throwing away whatever item had already expired into a trash bag and making notes on the ledger for the items that could still be used. Luck was on their side as it seemed most of the food, excluding the canned goods, still had a few months before it would go bad. They organized the good food into boxes according to type, such as: cans, juice boxes, bottled water, etc.
"Chicken noodle soup?" Anna said aloud in her soft voice as she held up the can with interest.
"Oh, nice find!" Tatara leaned over her shoulder to marvel at the picture of the soup displayed on the can's label. "That tastes pretty good—especially when you have a cold!"
"Ah, my mom used to give me that when I was sick." Kamamoto said. "Brings back memories..."
"I think we all had that at some point when we were kids." Bandō added in.
"Definitely takes me back to my younger years." Yata said.
Eric looked at him. "You don't look a day over eighty, old geezer."
"What?!" Yata glared at him in fury. "I'm not even twenty yet!"
Glancing at the can, Shōhei took off his cap to run a hand through his hair. He whistled lowly. "Heh, this was the only thing my pops could make properly. It kinda made being sick worth it, don't you think so? I sort of want to get sick and have someone make me that, just to experience it all over again."
"What are you—kids?" Izumo sighed as he put away the boxes underneath the counter. "You guys make me feel old."
"Well, Kusanagi-san isn't really the type to coddle much I guess." Bandō laughed lightly.
Chitose shook his head. "Unless it's with women, of course."
"What women?" Fujishima asked out of pure curiosity, ignorant of the fact that there weren't really any women at all.
A hand suddenly gripped Fujishima's head in response and a tight voice muttered from behind, "Is it that entertaining to gossip about my love life?"
"Just a couple of years away from hitting your thirties and you're still a bachelor, Kusanagi-san." Chitose commented as he came out of the storage room with Eric. "Your biological clock is ticking, you know. It's about time you find a girl who can make you some chicken noodle soup when you can't care for yourself. And don't tell me you expect Anna to do it…. Though, she would make an excellent housewife now that I think—"
"Chitose, I see you've finished checking the inventory back there." The bartender smiled threateningly at him. "But why don't you go back in and check again?"
"Everything?!"
"Everything."
"So, Anna, how about you?" Tatara turned back to the young girl who was still staring at the can's label, as if she was mesmerized by the nutritional facts. "You've tried chicken noodle soup before, right? I mean, if King has then surely you too."
Everyone else except Izumo couldn't help but be surprised upon hearing that their King had eaten the soup when he was younger. Somehow, it was difficult to imagine him as a little boy bedridden and eating something so ordinary as chicken noodle soup.
Anna pulled her stare away from the canned good and blinked up at Tatara. "Eh?"
"Hm? You mean… you've never had it?" His amber eyes had widened in disbelief. He caught Izumo giving him a sharp look and then Tatara paused, remembering that Anna wasn't able to spend much time with her parents due to her time forcefully spent at the Center. It was hard for him to not cringe at how inconsiderate he had spoken.
"Oh, no… I have." Anna said distractedly, slowly setting the can down into the appropriate box. She did not stop staring at it though. "My papa… whenever I wasn't at the Center but got very sick, he would run to the store for this. If it wasn't Mizuchi asking that I be sent in, then my parents never took me to the hospital unless it was absolutely necessary. So whenever I had a cold or fever while on leave, Papa would get chicken noodle soup… and hold my hand while Mama spoon-fed me as I rested in bed."
It took a moment for Tatara to find the right words to respond with. Then he said gently, "That sounds like a lovely memory to treasure, Anna-chan."
Anna clenched her hands on her lap before nodding. "Yes…"
"And what about you, Totsuka-san?" Yata said from behind their couch. His eyes were glossy with unshed tears but nobody mentioned the vanguard's deep sympathy for the little girl.
"Me?" Tatara went back to sorting through the food, helping Mikoto who'd been confused over two cans. "Well, I've only ever had it once or twice. And, uh, my mom wasn't exactly there to feed me and my dad… he was.. too busy." He then smiled in a manner indicating that that was all he would say. Even so, that didn't stop Anna from staring at him, tipping her head to the side in curiosity as she observed the truth he didn't want to share.
It took an hour more to get all the windows boarded up completely, the food organized and inventoried, and the blankets and emergency equipment stocked by the side. By the time everything was prepared, it was dark and the bar was ready for the fierce storm kicking up. Everyone had gathered upstairs for further protection, just in case the situation got seriously bad. Since Anna's room had the largest space available, they set everything and themselves up in there.
"What I wouldn't give for some loud rock music to drown out that banging sound downstairs." Yata muttered as he sat on the floor playing cards with the guys.
"That's probably the wind." Izumo said from his corner, flicking a lighter on and off. "It gets dangerously gusty during a storm as intense as this. I hope you guys boarded the windows on the outside well."
"Don't worry!" Shōhei didn't look up from his cards. "Eric and I did it so we made sure your bar wouldn't be harmed. Once this storm blows over, you can go out and see how excellent our workmanship is. Hey, Fujishima, gold—woah!"
Everything went pitch black as the lights went out. The men gasped in surprise at the sudden darkness that rendered them blind. Izumo's voice silenced them all in an attempt to calm them down. "Now, now, the power just went out. Something like that usually happens during a storm, you know. Honestly, you guys act like this is your first time experiencing this sort of thing. All we need is the box of flashlights we brought up. Chitose, pass them over will you?"
"Right..." There was the sound of shuffling and muffled movements, and then, "Um… I can't find the box."
A chorus of groans followed after.
"What do you mean you can't find them? You were the one who brought them up here."
"Well, it's not like I have night vision! But I'm pretty sure I put it somewhere between Yata and I."
"Mikoto—don't even think of using your flames when you can't see who or what you may burn in this enclosed space." Izumo spoke warningly.
Someone sighed, and then Anna's sweet voice piped up. "I can find them."
"Eh? You sure, Anna?" Izumo asked. Concern was laced in his voice. "You could trip over someone or something and hurt yourself."
"If it's Anna, and she has her marbles with her, then I think she'll be able to find them." Tatara said into the dark. "Besides, better to let a person as small as her go than someone big and fall on another—now that would really hurt."
"If you're looking for someone small, then why not let chihuaha here find the box?" Eric's voice spoke up quietly.
"Hey!" Yata's sharp voice echoed into the dark room, "I understood that!"
"Because I wasn't speaking English."
"Well, I did say I placed it between me and you." Chitose spoke up again. "So, maybe—"
"Found it." Anna's soft voice cut through. Something clicked and Anna appeared behind Yata's shoulder with a beam of light aimed up at her face. The angle at which she held the light casted eerie shadows across her face. Yata jumped, screaming at the little girl's sudden appearance by him. "Shit, Anna! Why do you always do that?!"
"Do what?" She blinked her eyes innocently at him, though the action only flickered more shadows upon her face.
"N-Nothing!" It was still dark so nobody but Anna could see the vanguard's embarrassed, flushed face as he accepted a flashlight from her. She went on to roll flashlights to everyone, and the room began filling with more beams of light.
"Well, it'd be too troublesome to play cards like this." Kamamoto munched on a bag of chips he'd seemingly pulled from thin air. "So, what should we do now?"
"Actually, there's not much we can do but wait." Bandō said as he laid onto his back with arms crossed behind his head. "The storm is jacking up most signals, making it hard to get a line through, and that makes our PDAs pretty much useless. And I reckon this storm will last the night. Not much to do but wait it out."
Dewa sighed, "If only downstairs is safe enough, then we could watch some of Totsuka-san's videos."
A minute of silence ticked by slowly as everyone contemplated their lack of entertainment. None of them seemed to mind the storm crashing down upon them but there were a few that wanted to do something as a distraction to the wind howling. A certain vanguard refused to admit this himself.
"…. Well, how about playing Mafia?" Kamamoto suggested out of the blue.
"Are you serious?"
"Hm, actually that's not a bad idea." Tatara agreed. "You don't really need cards for that, as long as you know your role. How about it?"
Izumo started collecting the cards from everyone. "It's something to pass the time at least. Does everyone know how to play though?"
"Ah! You're playing Kusanagi-san?" Tatara said excitedly. Glee was written all over the kouhai's face since the bartender rarely participated in juvenile activities like these.
"I'll be narrator since it's more fun for me to observe." Izumo answered as he shuffled the deck. "How about you, King?"
"No, thanks." Mikoto mumbled from the couch by Anna's canopy bed.
"King just doesn't know how to play." Tatara revealed the truth. "It's okay, I'll explain the rules! So there's a killer and we need to find out who it is. There are several main roles such as the killer, the cop, and the angel. The King card is the killer, Queen is the angel, and Jack is the cop. If you receive any other card then you're a civilian. First, everyone closes their eyes and the narrator asks the killer to 'wake up' and choose someone to kill. Then, the killer closes his eyes with everyone else and then the angel awakens and chooses someone to save. After that, the cop chooses someone to 'investigate' and everyone needs to decide on who to arrest after they all wake up. If you're arrested but you're not the killer then you're out of the game."
"Ehhh, that sucks." Dewa muttered.
"Oh! Also, if the person chosen by the angel was also the same person chosen to die by the killer then they're revived and get to stay in the game. But if you were killed and the angel didn't choose you then you're dead and out. Now, shall we begin?"
"If Anna is the cop then that killer is screwed!" Yata grinned with vigor. "And if she's the Angel then no one will die!"
"Here, King, take a card and pass it around." Izumo handed the deck to his friend who reluctantly did as told once he noticed Anna looking hopefully to him. "You can look at your card to see what your role is but make sure not to let anyone else see."
Mikoto glanced at his card before dropping it to his lap. "How do you play again?"
"You do know that when I explained the first time it was for your sake?" His fellow executive said exasperatedly. "You'll learn once we start playing..."
It took a minute for the deck to get around everyone but eventually they were all ready, glaring at one another suspiciously with their cards faced down. Everyone, that is, except Anna who stared at Mikoto, who already had his eyes closed as if he'd gone to sleep.
"All right, everyone knows who they are?" Izumo peered around to make sure they were ready. "Okay, everyone close your eyes… uh, just like King here.. well done, King…. Hm, let's see, it's a nice day and we're all at the bar enjoying some drinks and.. killer, open your eyes and kill someone."
Everyone held their breaths and strained their ears to try to hear the killer move and distinguish where that person may be but it remained absolutely silent.
"Okay, killer closes his eyes now." Izumo ordered. "Angel, wake up and choose someone you'd like to save."
Silence.
"Everyone wake up." Izumo continued narrating. "Unfortunately, as we drank… someone slipped a pill into Bandō's drink and he collapsed to the floor. His mouth was foaming like he was a rabid dog—"
"Okay! Okay, someone murdered me, I think we get it. End of story." Bandō cut in.
"Hey, let him tell the story." Dewa said. "Besides, dead people can't talk."
Chitose tipped a brow at his friend. "I wouldn't have expected you to be so into this."
"Can I continue my story or not?" The bartender demanded. "Anyways, everyone, close your eyes. Cop, choose someone to investigate…. All right, everyone, open your eyes—"
"I'm going to sleep." Mikoto yawned.
"No, King!" Tatara insisted. "You can nap after we find out who the killer is!"
"Fujishima," Izumo spoke with emphasis, "has been accused of murdering Bandō. Who votes on arresting him?"
"Whaaaat?!" The animal-lover looked on in shock as more than half the people in the group raised their hands to vote him off. "I didn't do anything—I swear!"
Yata narrowed his eyes at him. "So says the killer!"
"It's always the ones who seem innocent." Eric piped in quietly.
"So says the quiet one!" Fujishima retorted back.
"Everyone, close your eyes—sorry, Fujishima, the Angel didn't pick you so you're out." Izumo went on with the game. "Killer, kill someone…. Close your eyes. Angel, choose who to save…. Again?! Are you sure? Well, okay then, I guess. Cop, who do you wanna investigate? …. Okay, everyone wake up. Sadly, a customer brought a dog in and it bit Eric who died from rabies. The suspect is Shōhei. What do you guys say?"
"Psst! Fujishima, who is the killer?" Chitose whispered not so discreetly.
"I'm dead, man, sorry. Dead men don't speak." Fujishima responded, though he didn't seem that apologetic.
"Well, you got rid of the 'innocent one' and the 'quiet one'… though, that makes me wonder what you think Anna is…" Izumo mumbled. "Shōhei and Bandō are also dead. Hm, I wonder who's next on the list?"
The next round had Dewa killed and Chitose accused as suspect. Once Chitose was accused, everyone else's hands shot up immediately to vote him off. Kamamoto got kicked out afterwards. Now, that left off Mikoto, Tatara, Anna, and Yata.
"Whoever the killer is, surprisingly they haven't gotten the cop yet, and the cop hasn't been accused either." Izumo announced.
Throughout the entire game, Anna had stayed silent the whole time. She'd still been staring at Mikoto, who was simply slouched in the chair, flicking his card between fingers.
"Final round!" Izumo sliced his hand forward as a display of seriousness before realizing no one could have seen his action since they were aiming their flashlights upwards. The light beams had only given off just enough illumination to make everyone's faces partially visible. "The cop really needs to step up their game since this is the last chance to catch the killer. All right, everyone but killer, close your eyes. Killer, choose who to kill…." Anna jolted at the abrupt burst of laughter that erupted from the bartender's mouth. "Really? That's your pick? Well, I gotta say, I shouldn't be so surprised. Okay, Angel… well, I'm not even gonna bother since I know who you plan to save. Everyone can open their eyes now."
"I can't believe the killer was… well, you-know-who!" Chitose murmured over to Dewa who quietly nodded in agreement.
Shōhei sighed. "Honestly, we should have seen it coming, ya know?"
"Yeah," Bandō whispered in, "and I can't believe the cop hasn't caught on at this point."
"That's because the cop is in denial." Eric rolled his eyes.
"So," Izumo cleared his throat to get the room's full attention, "Poor Totsuka-san here was sitting on the stool chatting with the bartender when—suddenly—there was a banging sound of a gun going off and Tatara dropped to the floor, dead with a bullet in his chest."
"Wow, my death sounds the most gruesome!" Tatara noted with a wry smile. "It kinda scares me..."
"Ah, you're really into detailing our deaths, Kusanagi-san." Kamamoto chuckled nervously.
"This is it, cop. Who do you arrest?" Izumo stared critically at the boisterous, young man who was in the middle of swishing his head side to side, studying both the princess and her King.
"Ehh! Yata was the cop?!" Kamamoto exclaimed in surprise.
"Yep," Dewa sighed, resting his chin against arm. "That would explain why most of us here have been murdered."
"Hey, can you guys just shut up—I'm trying to concentrate!" Yata screeched at them, raising his fist threateningly, though his Aura didn't appear. He turned back to scrutinizing the two people remaining in the game. One of them had to be the Angel since Izumo had still asked for that player to pick someone to save. And the other had to be the killer since Kamamoto was just killed. But who? Who could the killer be?! "This is a lot harder than I thought…."
"Nah, it's just because you have a pea-sized brain." Eric snickered.
Someone piped in, "C'mon, Yata, it's obviously Anna who's the killer."
"No, no, it couldn't be dear Anna-chan." Tatara waved off the accusation. "I'd say the killer is Mikoto!"
"You'd betray your own King?" Izumo looked taken aback by his fellow executive's decision.
Tatara met his senpai's gaze with wide eyes. "Well, you can't expect me to betray my princess!"
"But look at that face! She's definitely the killer!" Someone commented. "Choose Anna, Yata! It's her!"
"Yes! Look at that face, Yata!" Tatara raised his clenched fists with determination. "Those big, beady eyes the color of wine! That pale skin! That look on her face that… well, no one could ever read! How could a cold beauty like her be the killer?!"
"Her being a cold beauty and us being unable to read her face is exactly why she could be the killer, ya know." Izumo commented.
"It's the King, Yata!"
"No, it's definitely Anna!"
"King!"
"Anna would never hurt someone!" Tatara insisted.
"It's a game, Totsuka-san..." Bandō reminded him.
Izumo shook his head at the silly bickering amongst the clan. "Well, now that you've all gone and confused him, let's see what conclusion our cop has come to. Who do you choose to arrest, Yata?"
"Uh.. uhh… I..." Yata sucked in a breath as he squinted his eyes, looking back and forth between the clan's princess and the clan's King. He truly didn't want to pick Mikoto, as much as possible. Doing so felt like an act of betrayal in itself. But, at the same time, he didn't want to accuse Anna because he somehow felt that it would hurt her feelings. Oh, the decision! How could a decision be so simple and yet so complicated?!
"If Anna was the Angel then at least one person should've been revived at some point in the game…. But the Angel couldn't save anyone so that could only mean…." He grasped the beanie he'd been wearing and tugged it off, hugging it to his chest. Then, he looked in apology towards the person he chose to arrest.
"I… I am so sorry about this—please don't take it to heart but… I choose to arrest you, Anna, as the killer."
Anna finally turned away from Mikoto to blink at the vanguard who looked so ashamed, as if he had just stolen candy from a baby and regretted it. She tilted her head at the young man, finally speaking, "Misaki? Misaki, I'm not the killer."
"She's right." Izumo shrugged. "Anna was the angel this entire time."
"WHAT?!" Yata fumbled with his flashlight for a moment, flickering his ray of light all over the room. Everyone glimpsed his shocked face with his jaw dropped down. "No! No, that can't be right!"
"It's true." Izumo, the game's Narrator, explained. "Anna was the Angel but, for every round, she just kept choosing to save King no matter who else was chosen to be murdered. Though, I thought she would've at least saved Totsuka from being murdered."
At that, Anna turned a gaze to Tatara who caught the silent apology she was trying to convey in her eyes. He raised his hands to reassure her, chuckling wryly, "It's fine, Anna-chan! I know you only have eyes for King here."
"WAIT." Yata cut in. His voice sounded like understanding was starting to dawn on him. "But if Anna's the Angel then.. that means that King… was the killer?!"
"Hm?" Mikoto grunted, flicking his golden eyes open as if he had just awoken from a nap.
"King," Tatara grasped his chest as if he really had just been shot. "Somehow, my heart hurts knowing you killed me."
"Hey, at least you were killed off last." Bandō offered. "I was the first to die."
"But.. but I was so sure it was Anna!" Yata tried to reason. "I mean, King didn't even know how to play in the beginning! And it looked like he was sleeping this whole time. I—I just thought that the killer wouldn't dare to kill him off."
"Look on the bright side, Yata," The look on Eric's face was one of mock sympathy, "you used your head at least. We'll give you credit for that."
The young vanguard was still too devastated to even pay much mind to the English man's usual teasing. "I… I was so close!"
"Actually, not really." Izumo said in a blunt manner. "You accused practically everyone and locked away so many innocent people."
"Don't worry, Misaki." Anna reached over to touch his hand. "It's just a game. And I'm all right—no hard feelings… It's just a game, Misaki."
"Ah, yeah..." Yata muttered, pressing his face into his arms as he rocked back and forth to comfort himself. A few seconds after, he popped his face back up looking all rejuvenated. "Yeah! It's just a game!"
"And we spent quite some time on it too." Izumo commented whilst shuffling the cards together and sliding them back into a deck. Yawning in response, Mikoto slouched farther down the couch, still looking absolutely bored or tired.
Shōhei nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it took our minds off the storm. Though it still seems to be raging on without any improvement."
"Hm, it should be near dinner time I think." Izumo said just as a deafening crack echoed upon them like a firecracker. There was the sound of someone yelping softly and the thud of a flashlight dropping onto the hardwood floor. The light equipment rolled to the center of the clan's huddled circle, stopping just as the ray of light flickered out.
"What was that?"
"It's just thunder."
"Great. The wind is moaning like a freaking banshee and now we have thunder."
"A-A-A-A-An—"
"Yata, don't tell me you're scared of a little thunder."
"And I thought ghosts would be your worst nightmare."
Yata's beam of light flashed violently across his face as he held his flashlight with a trembling hand. "Anna is… is gone!" He pointed a shaky finger to where the young girl had just been sitting. Everyone followed to where he directed, only to discover that he was indeed correct. Where the little girl had been was now just empty space. She'd vanished into thin air.
"Oh, you're right." Bandō mused. "But where could she have gone? She was just there."
"Sh—she must've been taken by a g-g-g-g-g-g-ghost!" Yata stuttered out that last word as he swung his flashlight around in terror, smacking an unsuspecting Kamamoto in his pudgy face.
"Y-Yata-san, I'm sure she's around here somewhere." Rubbing his hurt nose, Kamamoto tried to comfort his friend. He paused before speaking up again, this time, hesitantly. "Though… maybe that ghost from my old room followed us here…." As the chubby clansman finished speaking, another round of thunder boomed from the pitch black skies. It sounded as if the earth itself was in a fury, roaring like a mad beast. That same soft yelp from earlier right when Anna disappeared caught the attention of the men.
"Yata," Izumo sighed tiredly, "really, there's no need to be so scared. There's no such thing as ghosts."
"Th-th-that wasn't me!" Trembling completely in obvious terror, Yata clutched onto Kamamoto for dear life. His knuckled were bleached white from how hard he was gripping onto the clansman's jacket.
"Oi.. what are you doing there?" Mikoto suddenly asked from his seat by the young girl's canopy bed.
"Err.. pr-preparing to burn this ghost to ashes and save Anna, Mikoto-san!" Yata excused himself but didn't let go of Kamamoto.
"He wasn't talking to you, Yata."
"Then who else was he talking to?!"
"Uh…"
"Oh… oh shit—IS IT THE GHOST?" Yata looked like he was going to faint any moment by now. "MIKOTO-SAN CAN SPEAK WITH GHOSTS?!"
Tatara rubbed the back of his neck in befuddlement. "No way, there must be some other reason..."
Ignoring the ruckus his clansmen were making, Mikoto continued staring at the bottom of the canopy bed. No one could see what their King was looking at, save for the pitch black darkness that was the underside of the bed.
"SHIT! THERE'S A MONSTER UNDER ANNA'S BED." Yata screeched, shaking Kamamoto back and forth violently by the front of his jacket. "IT TOOK HER. IT TOOK ANNA."
"Mi-Misaki?" A sweet, shy voice emanated from underneath the bed.
"YOU MONSTER. TRYING TO IMITATE ANNA, HUH? WELL, YOU CAN'T FOOL YATAGARASU!"
With a raised brow, Mikoto twisted his head to peer at Yata as if he was the abnormal one here. "The hell are you talking about?"
"Hold on, hold on." Izumo held the tensed vanguard back, glancing over to Tatara. "Check it out, will you? Before Yata here dives in under a lady's bed and gets lost..."
"Ah, me? Okay, okay..." Tatara grabbed the flashlight Anna had dropped as he slid onto his stomach to take a closer look at where the small voice had come from. The other men leaned back, holding their breaths in anticipation as they watched the young executive scoot closer to the edge of the bed's underside. Finally, Tatara clicked on the flashlight and grinned in relief at what he saw. "Anna-chan, what are you doing under the bed?"
"Hiding." A soft voice whispered in response.
"But why?"
"Because."
"Because..?"
"Because… it's scary." She spoke meekly. "The thunder is scary."
"Is Anna-chan scared?" Tatara spoke softly in return, as if if he spoke too loudly then he might frighten the little girl even more. Thankfully, everyone else was remaining respectfully silent.
There was the soft sound of shifting: the only indication of her confirmation.
"Anna," Tatara set the flashlight on the ground, facing it near her and not at her lest the light be blinding. Still splayed on his stomach, he stretched his arms out towards the girl hiding under the bed. "Anna, c'mere. It's all right, you're safe."
There was some shuffling for a moment and then another small yelp when the crashing sound of thunder interrupted the moment.
"I.. I'm fine here." Anna squeaked out.
"It's just thunder." Mikoto leaned forward from the chair to get closer to the bed. "Why don't you just come out already?"
"I… can't." Truth be told, Anna really wanted to come out. She did! But her body refused to move even an inch. And she was shaking so hard her teeth were chattering and she had to hug herself tight to keep it together. Perhaps it was because of the cold. At least, Anna wanted to blame it on so. But there was another reason as to why she hated the sound of thunder so much.
"Why can't you, Anna?" Tatara asked.
Izumo grabbed his shoulder and looked at him, silently telling the man not to press the girl any further. But Tatara shook his head, staring back at the bartender hard, insisting that he wanted Anna to speak up—to say what she wanted to say and not hold back.
"W-When I was in the Center…"
As soon as Anna mentioned a keyword from her past, it was as if everyone in the room held their breaths and leaned just slightly more towards her. It wasn't often that Anna spoke up much. It also especially wasn't often that Anna spoke of her history before her time in HOMRA. The other men knew bits and pieces, here and there. But King, Izumo, nor Tatara never revealed the full story. It was never their story to tell in the first place.
"What about the Center, Anna?" Izumo asked tenderly.
"Mizuchi.. he—he kept me in this room. And it was… really bare. The walls were so white it was almost glaring to the eyes. The ground was cement so my bare feet were always cold. There wasn't much furniture either… just a small play table and chair in one corner and a bed in the other. And…."
"And?" Mikoto pressed her on.
"And then there was this window." She paused for a frightened moment in response to another crack of thunder. And then, "It was too small for even me to crawl through but it was big enough for me to see just a hint of the sky. Most days, I was grateful for it. Some days… some days, I hated it."
"Why?"
She shrugged but her eyes reflected a certain sadness. "I thought maybe Mizuchi had purposely placed that window so high up it was impossible to reach, and made it so small so it was impossible for me to escape. Maybe he did all that just to mess with me. But what I hated the most... was that on stormy nights like this one, I was all alone in that room. And every time I heard the thunder, I thought I was surely going to die—that… that a monster was coming to eat me."
"Thunder can't be a monster." Mikoto simply said but in a tone that was a tad bit gentler than usual.
Anna dipped her head down to hide the red flush in her cheeks. "It's silly—I know."
"No way!" Yata immediately said. "I mean, at least you have a reason to be afraid of thunder; it's loud and catches you off guard. Me? I.. I'm afraid of g-ghosts.." He said his last sentence with difficulty, his cheeks becoming pink to match Anna's.
"When I was little, I used to be scared of sudden earthquakes." Izumo offered a comforting smile to Anna. "I was worried that my home and this bar would be destroyed… all those precious memories."
Someone coughed from the darkness and said, "Kusanagi-san, I never took you as the sentimental kind of man."
"I'm scared of spiders!" Dewa said before Izumo could retort back. Several other people followed him up with comments of their own silly phobias. They wanted to relate to Anna. They wanted her to know that it's ok to be afraid of things because not everything can be controlled or go the way that is expected.
"What is… what is Tatara afraid of?" Anna asked, peering questioningly at the man still sprawled out before her.
There was a pregnant pause—perhaps in thought or hesitance, and then he said in a light-hearted voice, "Maybe I'll tell you if you come out." He studied Anna's face as it transformed into one of reluctance so he flicked his outstretched hands to her for encouragement. "It's all right, Anna, I got you. Let's all be scared together." And then he grinned upon seeing Anna start to scoot towards him inch by inch. As she pulled herself out of the darkness of her bed, Tatara murmured more words of encouragement and comfort to coax her out. Finally, the tips of her small fingers brushed against his and he took her fully by the hands, gently tugging her towards him.
As she crawled onto his lap, she fisted her hands tightly onto his white long-sleeved shirt in reaction to another clap of thunder. Pressing her face to his shoulder, she whispered, "I'm still scared."
"Hm, then let's talk about something to distract you!" Shohei suggested. "If we talk loudly enough and get excited then it'll be easier to forget about the storm!"
"Then… how about…." Tatara drawled out as he pondered over what would be an interesting topic for conversation. "Ah! How about you, King? What do you fear?"
"Hah? Mikoto-san doesn't fear anything of course!" Yata crowed, "right, Mikoto-san?"
"Who knows…" Mikoto's baritone voice rumbled out deeply as he got up from the chair only to walk forward and pitch himself onto Anna's bed, partially curling up in the center on his side.
"King," The bartender said in a chastising tone, "that's not your bed!"
But then Anna clambered out of Totsuka's lap and threw herself onto her bed as well, finding herself facing her King's broad back. The men, still on the floor, watched on in bewilderment as the little girl, seemingly unsatisfied, got off the bed to switch over to the other side so that she would face Mikoto's front. Mikoto, lying his head on a bicep, didn't even peek open an eye when Anna snuggled right up to his chest.
"Ehh," Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Totsuka stared at the two with interest, "that looks really warm & comfortable… I want to join in too!" The young man said gleefully and, before anyone else could say anything, he shot up from the ground and slid onto the bed to settle beside Anna who was now being cuddled from both sides.
"Oi, oi" Izumo sighed in exasperation, "what are you doing? That's… never mind. I guess it's not so unusual for you two."
"Kusanagi-san!" Yata exclaimed. Everyone could practically see the blush on his face just by the tone of his voice. "H-How could you just let th.. two guys… on—on a girl's b-b-bed!"
Izumo shrugged helplessly in response. "Well, Anna always naps with either Totsuka-san or King so it wouldn't make much of a difference now."
"You've probably just never been on a girl's bed before." Eric stated the truth.
"Oh, yeah?! I bet neither have you!" There was the sound of Yata standing up indignantly, gripping his flashlight tightly.
"You wanna bet?" Eric smirked, looking on at the vanguard in mock pity.
"Gh!" Yata just stood there for several beats. He squeezed his eyes tightly, as if reconsidering the decision, but then, in a flash, he jumped onto the bed and landed right beside Tatara. "THERE! HA! I WON THE BET!"
"Tch." For several seconds, Eric glared at the vanguard from his position on the cold hardwood floor before scrambling up and throwing himself onto the foot part of the mattress. He had his face buried into the baby pink sheets so that it'd be difficult to see the reddening of his own ears.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" Yata said defiantly.
"That's what I should be asking!" Izumo was now beginning to sound hysterical. It was now becoming almost scandalous.
"Ahh, it looks like they're on top of a marshmallow." Kamamoto commented beside him and Izumo could almost hear the drool building within the large man's mouth. Izumo's mouth dropped and he gaped when the large man himself shifted onto his feet and climbed onto the bed as well, curling himself into a ball in the space between Yata and Eric. How was there even space for several grown men to begin with?!
"Hey, fatty, my legs are cramping up now!" Yata could barely even kick at Kamamoto's form.
"Do you want to switch with me, Yata?" Tatara asked, peering over his shoulder to peer at the younger man. "You'll probably have more space on the bed if you're beside Anna instead."
"O-o-o-on the b-b-b-bed?" The tips of Yata's ears started to tinge pink again. "W-w-with… Ann-Anna?"
"Something wrong with that?"
"N-N-N-N-N-NO!" Yata kicked even harder at Kamamoto, though this time out of instinct. "I'M FINE."
"Eh, that looks fun!" Shōhei mused. He nabbed Bandō by the collar and pulled his childhood friend along, giddily saying, "Let's join too, San-chan!" There were more 'oofs' and protesting grunts as the bed's space began to fill with more of the grown men.
"Ah, to lie on a beautiful girl's bed! This is surely every man's dream."
"Do you have to make it sound so perverted, Chitose?"
"You think it's perverted but here I am pressed up against Masaomi!"
"Yō, it's not as if I like having you breathe down the back of my neck, you know."
"Try folding in your legs like this, Dewa. It's more compact that way."
"Ah, you're right, Kōsuke! How'd you know this position would work better?"
"I watch cats and dogs."
"Oh…"
"What is this, Tetris?" Izumo muttered from the cold floor. He remained by himself unlike the others who had somehow managed to compress themselves atop of the bed so they'd all fit in, though there were several pairs of feet dangling off the edges.
"Come join us, Kusanagi-san!" A hand popped out from the sea of bodies and waved invitingly, accompanied by Tatara's voice.
"Please tell me Anna is still alive somewhere in there." The bartender took his shades off to pinch the bridge of his nose. This was absolutely ridiculous. Izumo was just glad that Tatara didn't have his camera on him to record this moment. It was too ridiculous to be recorded onto tape and viewed for nostalgia.
"Izumo?" A soft voice called out to him in answer but the man could practically hear the unspoken question within.
He frowned for a few seconds but then released a heavy sigh. "Fine." He shuffled to the bed filled with men and studied them all for a moment before deciding on squeezing into a spot beside his King. "But if I'm even close to toppling off then we're all getting down from here."
"Yay!" Tatara laughed from the opposite side. "Now the puzzle is complete!"
"Seriously, nobody move though 'cause we're really packed in here." Someone commented from the bottom side.
"Are you comfortable, Anna?" Izumo fought the urge to raise his head up to see for his own eyes that the little girl wasn't being crushed by the grown men all around her.
"It's warm." He heard her soft voice again, though he could not see her. "It's really warm with everyone… and pretty."
Pretty? The bartender was confused at her last comment. Then he remembered that, both as a Strain and being able to identify only the color Red, Anna's eyes allowed her to clearly see the Auras of her King and fellow clansmen. He wondered how everything looked to her right now then with everyone pressed up all around her. Was it like lying down on a blob of glowing strawberry jelly? He smiled wryly at the strange thought.
Thinking to himself made Izumo realize that it'd been silent for some time besides the sound of someone shifting slightly every once in a while. Slowly, because he somehow felt that even the slightest movement would disturb the peaceful mood, he turned his head and risked a look at the King beside him. Although there wasn't much light to see clearly, with his shades off, Izumo was close enough to Mikoto to notice how pale the man's skin was compared to back when they were just high schoolers playing Kick-the-Can. He wasn't sure if his friend was sleeping but the King's eyes remained close even as Izumo studied lines that weren't there before his birth as the Red King.
After he studied his King's face a few seconds longer, Izumo realized that the King actually wasn't sleeping like he'd believed. He didn't know this because of his powers. He knew this because although Mikoto was his King, he was first and foremost, his best friend. If Mikoto had been asleep, his form would've been tenser, breathing heavy, and brows furrowed because of the nightmares he often suffered from.
Izumo sighed aloud and then tried to suck it back in when he realized he had momentarily broken the utter silence that had settled. He frowned then. It was completely silent. He strained his eyes to glance at the window from the very corner and then stopped upon remembering it'd been boarded up as well for protection.
He waited for a few more minutes before finally giving in. "Guys? I think the storm is over."
No response.
Izumo licked his lips before daring to speak again but louder. "Hey, guys? Anna, I—"
"Shh," Tatara's voice gently intercepted the bartender. "She's asleep."
"Oh... what about everyone else?" Izumo kept his voice down to a whisper.
"Nah, we're not sleepy but it's actually quite nice staying like this." One of the men murmured from the corner.
"Mikoto-san?" Izumo cringed at how loud the vanguard's voice was despite the young man's efforts to be quiet.
"He's asleep too." Tatara answered back.
Blinking in surprise, Izumo couldn't help but ask his friend, "You sure? How do you know?"
Izumo could practically feel Tatara smile when he responded with, "Because Anna is beside him."
Almost on instinct, Izumo twisted his head again to study his King. He looked so… peaceful. It was nice to see his best friend like this for once. After all, he worried for him immensely. He didn't say it often because telling his King to be more careful would be the same as talking to someone who wasn't there. His friend would nod or grunt but not listen to him. After all, why listen to someone who didn't share the same burden? However, Izumo was sure that Mikoto didn't miss the looks of worry that would cross the bartender's face when he thought no one was looking.
Even so, with Anna at his side…. Yes, with Anna beside him, then Mikoto would be in good hands. They'd be each other's pillar because while Anna needed Mikoto, Mikoto needed Anna even more. And if Anna would stay by his side, Izumo knew his friend's flame would keep on burning.
Smiling, Izumo relaxed back into the soft pink duvet of the princess's bed and closed his eyes to rest.
"Hey…" Someone mumbled, "did anyone notice that Anna slept through the thunder?"
It's because, Izumo thought to himself, it's really… warm.
It wouldn't be long for the men and Anna to wake up later in the morning with the birds chirping a song and the wafting scent of chicken noodle soup that was being prepared by a certain bartender.
I know my last chapter was the most M-rated chapter thus far but I promise no future chapter will ever get as sexual as it did in Chapter 14. Though, I mean, this is an M-rated fanfic so you guys shouldn't be so surprised. Surprisingly, even though I didn't get any reviews after posting Chapter 14 I did receive a HUGE surge of followers, so I guess it's a good thing I added some sexual themes in the previous chapter? At least for me, as a fanfic writer, it's a good thing... Again, I'm not encouraging rape or anything of the sort.
Also, what did you guys think of K Project Season 2 finale? Honestly, I thought it was really rushed and right from the 1st episode I knew the season would end with everyone without powers from the Slate. I hope there's a season 3 but with the way things ended, probably not. I WILL add new elements based off the content Season 2 provided so you can expect there will be references or even cameo appearances with Sukuna, Nagare, Iwa, Douhan, and Kotosaka.
The next chapter, Chapter 15, will continue with where we left off from Chapter 14.
THANKS FOR READING! STAY TUNED FOR MORE K: Preserving the Blaze of Your Red.