Chapter 3.5: We Were, At One Time

Flashback: Raira Days

Mifumi was walking home from school one day when someone stepped in front of her. She looked up and saw one of the boys from Miharu's school grinning. "Hey there, kid." he said. "You're Miharu's sister?"

"... Who are you?" she asked, clinging to her bag.

"Oh I'm just a friend, is all~" he grinned. "Here, why don't you come with me?"

"No."

"You little brat, just come here!" he grabbed her arm and Mifumi was about to scream when a trash can flew past her, knocking the guy back from her and causing him to fall on his back, a shadowy figure jumping down from the tree and landing next to the boy, slamming its foot into the boy's stomach.

"Bastard." Mifumi looked up to see Ayumi Ryugazaki, the girl in the class above her who was constantly warding off bullies for her. "Mifumi, are you okay?"

"A-ayumi-san..." she sniffled as two others walked over.

"Nice shot by the way, Shizuo." Ayumi said to the boy, his blonde hair making him stand out to Mifumi. "Sorry to have pulled you from your date with Chie."

"It's fine." he mumbled, the brunette clinging to his arm smiling. "Picking on girls is a shitty thing to do." he added, glaring at the boy who was out cold on the concrete.

"Mifumi~" Chieko hugged onto the girl with a smile. "How are you my dear~?" she was nuzzling Mifumi and calming her down as only Chieko and Miharu could. By being as cheerful and uplifting as possible. "Did the scary boy hurt you~? Does Ayu-chan need to go beat his face in more~?"

"N-no, it's alright." Mifumi stated, face red. "I-I'm very sorry for your date with Shizuo-san being interrupted." she bowed her head, her inconspicuous side twin tails swaying in the breeze a little.

"Haha, silly Mifumi~" Chieko grinned. "It's fine~ Besides Shizuo would have gotten involved anyway, had he noticed first." she pointed out. "You ARE friends with Kasuka-kun, remember?"

"... I-i suppose..." she mumbled, face red. "Thank you, Shizuo-san." she bowed her head to the blonde.

"Stop that." he mumbled, embarrassed that the middle school girl was freaking out so much. "Anyway, we're gonna go." he added.

"Have fun~" Chieko waved at her friends before heading off on the remainder of her date with Shizuo. Mifumi got up and headed off again after politely declining Ayumi's offer to walk her home. Ayumi sighed, leaning back against a wall, hearing someone flicking a knife around, the almost inaudible noises of the blade opening and closing coming to her ears. She knew that sound.

"What do you want, Izaya?"

"Ohh, you knew I was here?" he asked, walking out in his school uniform, grinning. "Congrats, princess, you're getting much more adept at your craft~ However, that temper of yours is pretty volatile, for a girl~" he added, laughing as he put his knife away. "You should head home, before someone decides that you'll be a useful bait~"

"Anyone who tries to use me as bait is going to get their face torn off." she stated as he leaned against the wall with her and pulled his phone out.

"Oooh, terrifying~" he laughed. "You're being taught pretty well, aren't you~? By that big brother of yours~" he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close after a boy walking by stared at her. "But you've got a huge bust for a girl your age, and you're attracting all sorts of trouble~" he got a slap to the face for pulling her closer, letting go to rub his cheek.

"Do that again and I'll break your nose."

"Ahaha, you're definitely volatile~" he grinned, still rubbing the side of his face she'd slapped. "But at least your brothers know I won't hurt you per say~" he chuckled. "After all that IS what your mother paid me for~"

"Mother did no such thing."

"Oh, you knew? Damn." he got off the wall and did a spin. "Well, I'm gonna go-"

"If you bother Chieko and Shizuo, I will not hesitate to cut your hand off." she stated as he turned to walk away. "Moreover if you go to bother Mifumi, I'll stab you in the knee."

"Oooh, and so the protectiveness emerges." he turned back to her, smirking at her glare. "Mmmm, fine, I'll stay with you since you asked so nicely, Princess~" he went to lean back against the wall with her. "But not for too long, kay~?" he laughed. "I have other ladies to tend to tonight~" he pulled her close, catching her fist as it flew at him, making her gasp as he closed the gap between them, pressing their lips together. Ayumi's eyes went wide and her face flushed, immediately though she bit Izaya's lip and he removed himself from her, checking for blood and finding a small drop where she'd managed to puncture his skin with her canine tooth. "Haha, that your first?" he asked, seeing her trembling. "Mmm, first kisses are pretty sweet from girls your age..." he licked his lips. "That's all for today~" he hurried off, leaving Ayumi to crumple and fall to a sitting position, the girl covering her lips and cursing under her breath at the boy.

"Bastard..." she mumbled, feeling tears sting her eyes. "You always toy with people... I shouldn't even like you." she hid her face and sat there for a minute before getting up and heading home. She hated it when Izaya toyed with her heart, and she was sure he knew exactly what he was doing to her. But all the same, Izaya Orihara was a family contact... he was supposed to be a "friend" so her mother had said. But after developing a crush on him when they'd first met, Ayumi was the constant subject of Izaya's teasing and it drove her nuts. She hated Izaya's methods... but he still made her heart race. She hated it.

Mifumi was ecstatic when she checked her ranking in the online contest. She was getting 2nd place as things stood on the new Web Idol BBS that was taking over japan. She was going to enter into Raira as a 1st year soon but she had wanted to do something new. As a result, she had been introduced to this site by Chieko and Miharu, who both suggested that it would be good for the girl. She was about to head home when she heard a few people scream and panic, turning to see a telephone post being pulled from the ground. There was only one person that could be. She hurried over to where it was happening, but the crowd was too large for her to get through. She could, however, hear Shizuo screaming and what sounded like some punks trying to fight him, only to be scared to death after he pulled the phone post up. The fight was obviously going his way when she heard a blood curdling scream from someone, seeing Ayumi pushing her way through the crowd. She hurried after her friend, wondering what was wrong.

Chieko had been with Shizuo and they were walking home when someone she'd rejected over 6 months prior came at her with a knife. Shizuo, of course, protected her as he always did. But something went wrong. Shizuo was so much angrier than normal, she didn't know what to do to calm him down. He picked up a stop sign and swung it at the guys before throwing it aside to pick up something else... unfortunately, him throwing the sign aside was something she didn't notice until it hit her... the sign cut her side open, causing her to fall back and look down, seeing blood staining her Raira uniform. A girl behind her screamed and she was unable to keep herself sitting upright, seeing Shizuo turn to her and drop what he was doing. He looked like he would cry.

"Chie!" Ayumi made it to the front of the crowd, pushing people away from her friend and grabbing her school bag, pulling out what looked like a first aid kit, the first year high school girl hurrying to close up her friend's side as best she could. She managed to get the gauze and clean Chieko's wounds, the smiling girl hardly flinching at the antiseptics. She was trembling though. "Chie, don't die..."

"I won't, silly Ayu." the girl chuckled, leaning against Shizuo's arm as he got to her side and held her as gently as possible, apologizing in short bursts to her. "Ahh, don't cry, Shizuo." she smiled. "I'll be okay... I promise..." she was pale though, and her wound was still bleeding, though thanks to Ayumi not nearly as badly as it had been. "It's not your fault, Shizuo... it's not your fault..." she whispered, feeling light headed.

"Chie, I... I..." the guys he'd been fighting were about to go after him when Ayumi stood up. "Chie..."

"Shizuo. Don't let anyone touch Chieko unless its the paramedics..." the girl stated, taking off her glasses and her coat. "Keep her safe..." The boy just nodded, apologizing to Chieko as she lay there, the girl telling him it was okay. He was too distraught at this second to be angry, which was good... Ayumi however, was as hot tempered as she'd ever been. She looked around, someone with a baseball bat coming at her, missing his swing as she moved to his left, striking him in the stomach with her elbow and stealing his weapon, being sure to whack him in the chest hard enough to send him barreling into the street. "You punks are gonna have one hell of a day now." she stated. "Dragons don't take kindly to invasions of territory." she added before charging the crowd, knocking the wind out of each and fracturing at least one bone a person before they all ran as fast as they could, screaming curses and crying out in fear. She turned back to Chieko and Shizuo as they got into the ambulance. "Shizuo." he looked up at her. "She'll be okay... just trust her." she said as the paramedics closed the doors. As the crowd dispersed, she noticed Mifumi. The girl was trembling. But Kasuka had found her so she had someone to lean on. That was good. Ayumi was about to head out when she noticed Izaya standing nearby, her glare hardening when she saw him. She picked up her things, told Kasuka to take Mifumi home, then left. Izaya followed her. She stopped under a tree, letting him catch up.

"What's up, Princess?" he asked, grinning. She kicked him in the stomach and made him land against the wall, coughing a little. "Geez you're still mad?"

"YOU BASTARD!" she punched the wall next to his head, causing herself to bleed a little but also fracturing the brick. "YOU SET SHIZUO UP FOR THAT FIGHT! YOU KNEW!" she screamed. But she was trembling and not looking right at him, tears starting to stream down her cheeks. "It's your fault... that Chieko got hurt..." she stated. He did not deny it. "... It's your fault she might die..." she stated, her anger fading externally in exchange for sorrow. "If she dies, know that I'll kill you... I'll rip you apart and there will be no traces of you left." she stated sternly, removing her hand from the wall, letting it fall limp to her side. "... If you EVER hurt someone I care about... if you ever are even partially responsible for something happening to someone I hold dear ever again, I will end your pathetic existence, Izaya Orihara." she stated, turning away and heading home. He just stared after her, sighing once she was out of range.

"Man, you're so weird." he chuckled. "Oh, Ayumi... you never said you hate me..." he giggled. "I expected you to want to cut all ties, but I guess you're too smart for that..." he got off the wall and poked at where she'd kicked him, flinching a bit. "And you're so scary when you're angry~ Not like the mousy little girl who panics when I tease you..." he smiled and headed home. "Ahh, this is why I find you so much more appealing than anyone else~" he laughed. But he paused as he stopped at a corner. "Now I wonder if I will ever gain your forgiveness?" he laughed at the thought. "It'll probably take a decade or so? Maybe sooner." he told himself. "After all, you've not technically rejected my form of love~"

Kasuka stayed at home with Mifumi, seeing as Miharu was out tonight. The girl was pretty much crying on his shoulder the whole time... she was wrapped around him pretty tight and she seemed scared to let go. So he stayed there, having informed his family and Shizuo of the situation. Mifumi was so fragile to him as things stood, but now... now he thought she might break if he touched her. So he ever so gently pat her head, the girl slowing her sobs and looking up at him. "It's okay." he stated, the girl starting to cry a little again.

"Kasuka-kun..."

"It's okay, Mifumi..." he just pet her head.

Chieko awoke to her father at her bedside. "... Where's Shizuo?"

"Chie, um..." her father turned to the door where Chieko's step mother was. "I wasn't around when she did it, but... she told Shizuo to go home..." he looked worried. "I'm sorry dear, I wish I could have stopped her." Chieko sat up. Her step mother opened the door but was immediately stopped by Chieko's words.

"Don't you DARE come near me, you bitch." she spat. Even her father had never seen his little girl so angry. "How dare you tell Shizuo off."

"That is no way to talk to your mother!"

"You AREN'T my mother!" she threw her apple sauce container from her dinner tray at the woman's face. "You will NEVER be my mother! So get out and STAY out!" she stated. The woman walked out in indignation, and Chie's father sighed, but stayed at Chieko's side. "... I'm sorry, father..."

"It's fine, Chie." he smiled. "She had no right to send your boyfriend away." he pet her head. "Go back to sleep." he added, letting her rest as he went to call a janitor to clean up the apple sauce, apologizing to anyone who'd heard for the disturbance.

Ayumi ended up wandering and eating at Russia Sushi, spilling her guts about the incident to Izaya's friend Kadota and apologizing profusely afterwords. "Easy, kid." he tousled her hair. "Don't get so worked up... Izaya's an asshole, I know." he began. "But... you can't help who you end up liking, right? Your heart just tells you what it wants."

"... I guess." she muttered, eating some salmon nigiri with mayonnaise and onions. Simon brought her a plate with everything she ordered on a regular basis, the girl thanking him before eating. "... It just pisses me off..."

"That's normal." Kadota said, finishing his plate and drinking some tea. "But seriously, Izaya's always an asshole... so either you gotta get over him or you gotta get back at him, you know?"

"... I can't do either." she shook her head. "... I'm too much of a weakling." she finished her plate and looked at her tea. "... How can I still like him, even after today?"

"That's your decision." he stated. "If you still like him, even after all the bad shit, then you're still gonna like him no matter what." he replied. "So... if anything, maybe take a break from Ikebukuro..." he sighed. "And stay away from Shinjuku too."

"... Right." she paid out her tab and turned to Kadota. "Thanks, Dotachin~"

"H-hey, who told you about that?!" he exclaimed as she ran out. He grumbled and sighed. "Weird kid." he told himself before paying his tab and heading out, only to run into Izaya. "What're you doing here?"

"Mmm, keeping an eye on the little Princess over there." he said, grinning. "Are you trying to muscle in on my girl, Dotachin?"

"Shut up, you're causing her hell. That's not cool to mess with a kid's heart." he smacked Izaya's shoulder. "She's a wreck over you. Give the kid a break."

"Mmm, is she?" he asked. "Ahh, well I hope she doesn't tell her brother that..." he added before going into Russia Sushi and getting his to go order.

Two days later, Ayumi left Ikebukuro to go and attend the rest of high school in Hokkaido, living with her grandmother and grandfather. She made sure to get a job and attended many of her faction meetings with her brother to associate herself with the underground. She didn't care what it meant for her... she was not going to chance being powerless... never again. She soon became her faction's most infamous member, the Dragon Princess of Hokkaido. Even Izaya Orihara would come to know of her once more. But regarding a mysterious message about the untimely deaths of her parents, she would have to return to Ikebukuro again. To ask Izaya for information she herself could not come by.

Chieko was moved to another hospital for more intensive care and rehabilitation a month after her step mother turned Shizuo away. She had lost her cellphone when she was injured, and she didn't want to be a bother to Shizuo, so she didn't call or email. She wanted to see him in person, and would accept no other way. Then one day, her step mother died in a car crash, and her father was, albeit upset that he'd lost a second wife, glad that his little girl wasn't so angry anymore. But work in this new prefecture was much better for him, so they stayed there after Chieko finished her rehab, the girl getting a job before telling her father that she wanted to go back to Ikebukuro one day. He agreed that she should, and so their agreement was made.

After the end of her middle school year, Mifumi had to move from Ikebukuro and had to say goodbye to her friends. She told Kasuka to stay in touch after her last day of school, since they'd gotten closer after Chieko's incident. After his brother graduated, Kasuka was approached by a talent scout. He contacted Mifumi and told her, the girl very happy for her friend. And soon, Yuuhei Hanejima was famous... Mifumi feeling left in the dust. But after her sister got a job in Ikebukuro, she had an opportunity again. An opportunity to see the boy she held in such high regard.

(Well here's another chapter ; v ;''' Ahaha
Nothing but flashbacks~ Sorry about that.

Next time, see Izaya and Ayumi's relationship develop~

-Winter Cheshire)