Rori's Corner: I support the year 1800, oho~
Heh. Long time no see, everyone :3 It's time to set the plot in motion~
Yah, I prolly lost all of my readers. But 's okay. I'll win you guys back ~ I'm a confident prince, I know. Time for your...monthly feed of NightSmex addiction bby~
Taint Me a Fusion
Chapter 4: Paint the Picture
"All the right moves in all the right faces,
So yeah, we're going down
They'll be the King of Hearts,
And you're the Queen of Spades
Then we'll fight for you like we were your soldiers"
"You verify that the drug abusers did not administer any negative substances into your bloodstream?"
"...How many times do I have to tell you that I'm. Perfectly. Fine?" Gokudera snapped one third of the investigation in. The detective with the black-rimmed spectacles gathered up his evidence again, scrolling down the words casually as if used to such attitude from all his other witnesses. The irritated teen and the man were in a cellar-like vicinity, barricaded in by stone bricks on three sides with a barred exit in the front. A flimsy sheen of light filtered in the equally barred window, sheltering some decencies of comfort into the impatient witness. The detective tapped his ball-point pen on the wooden table, an act of evaluation taking over his calm mind. A steady moment later, his intelligent blue eyes roved up the papers to meet curiously agitated emerald.
"Are you inevitably sure - "
"Gamma!" snarled Gokudera, stomping a foot on the stone floor as he glared witheringly at the nonchalant man leaning on the exit door. "How the hell did this guy get his job?"
The steel-eyed man clicked his tongue, arms crossed and body leaning against the barred frame with his lips curled in amusement. He glanced at the annoyed inquirer before turning on the steadfast detective, leather boots click-clacking on the stone floor. Patting a hand on the shoulder of the latter, Gamma said easily, "Allow me to handle this..." He looked over to chance the curious eyebrow of the silver-haired teen and resumed his attention on the man seated, smirking slightly. "I'll manage this rascal of a witness. Consider yourself dismissed, Detective Sergio."
Uneasily, the man stirred, standing up and keeping a wary eye on the witness across from him, who looked like he had something to say about being named a rascal. "If you say so, Gamma. I shall reserve the information, if you don't mind," he spoke, gesturing at the papers.
"It'll be fine," replied the taller male. Leaning down to whisper into the detective's ears despite Gokudera's obvious intentions to eavesdrop, he told the attentive man, "Keep them, because I have my own ways to deal with this kid."
Detective Sergio raised both eyebrows, whispering back in a curious voice, "I'll trust you on this, I suppose. The Narcotics department's head seems intent on this case, so I reckon you'd not be wanting to make any mistakes."
"Naturally," Gamma concurred in a louder voice, straightening his posture just as the detective stood to his full height. The former went over to unlock the cell's door, guiding the intelligence agent out while saying, "You have that ongoing case with the homicidal incident, correct?"
"Yes," the grave voice of Detective Sergio answered. "Rather unfortunate for me to have landed on this crime. The syndicates were quick on the escape, though I doubt they were involved with the murder itself." There was a pause, and footsteps resounded around the corner; then, the man's voice faded.
Gokudera scowled bitterly by himself, wondering if he'd have enough time to bolt out the cell and escape. However, not an unjust second later, his self-proclaimed nemesis returned from his prior act of courtesy, cobalt-blue concealing any emotion, though something flickered when he clashed eyes with him. The jade irises of the teen narrowed in suspicion, and he stood up from his seat. Wasting no time in a venomous staring contest, Gokudera started, "If you think you're going to - "
"Brat, I've enough of your foolishness," Gamma interrupted, this time with his tone seeping firm hostility. Adjusting his tie, he motioned with his other hand at the door, making a mocking sweep of his arm and a bow, imitating a butler. "Now, shall we head back for a private interrogation?"
"Are you – " beeping – "serious? I'm not going to tell you anything!"
Gamma looked down at the furious boy, sympathy nonexistent in his mature, cold eyes. "I can care less."
Gokudera gaped, staring at the back of the man as he left him in the cell.
//Night.//Smex.//
The black-tinted BMV slid into the parking lane, wheels rolling steadily to a halt before the engine stopped running. The driver seat's door unlocked and swung open, introducing the freshly clipped agent of the Narcotics department, blond hair slicked back like usual. He stepped out, shutting the door gently, and then headed to the backseat. As if in hesitation, he stood still for a few seconds, deliberating in his mind as he peered into the dark window. Seeing the obvious struggling teen who was intentionally vibrating the vehicle with his resistance, the blond sighed, brows knitting and hand running through his gelled hair in aggravation. One short interval later, a certain silver-haired lad protruded from the backseat, lips snarled and eyes ablaze with retribution.
"Yo," Gamma greeted casually, looking down at him.
Gokudera glared up, palms clenching into fists. "You bastard, strapping me with seat-belts."
Waving a nonchalant hand as if to dismiss such unlikely claims, the elder male headed for the apartment with a hand in his pants pocket, strides easily carrying him to the sliding doors. When he heard no footfalls following from behind, he turned around, an eyebrow raised in question. Gokudera had a pointed expression, eyes boldly leering at him and chin tilted up in prominence. Thinking that the boy had some sort of integrity left, Gamma said bluntly, "If you have something to say, enlighten me."
The lad straightened up, still keeping the ongoing eye contact. Gokudera hissed, "I'm only going to give you the basic info."
Gamma gazed at him with interest, surprised that the teen was willing to comply, albeit the limitations (as those could be arranged to meet with the preferences of a formal interrogation), so soon without external force to persuade him in the matter. Perhaps this was a ruse performed by the rebel, but he was already hooked to what the lad could possibly offer on the whereabouts of the Impero, the single cruelest gang dealing in drugs of the current black market. "Oh?" he prompted, eying the latter for any misgivings.
Gritting his teeth, Gokudera crossed his arms and stared intently at the man across from him, mind doing rapid calculations and premonitions. He wasn't lying when he offered to provide information on the earlier incident, but he also wasn't dense to give it away for free. It seemed like the Narcs agent was expecting something from him as well, by the way those cool, evaluating eyes were positioned on his face. Concealing all suspicious emotions, he tried a serious, austere tone when he spoke, "I met this girl in downtown – "
"Downtown?" Gamma interrupted, scoffing.
Immediately Gokudera lost his calm, teeth baring in an irritated notion as he snapped, "Well, it's not like I know anywhere else, bastard."
"You know what you were getting yourself into. Kids like you shouldn't wander around that area freely," reprimanded the older male, providing his statement support with his prominent voice. Already anticipating what reaction the all bark and bite teen would give, he shook his head and said dismissively, "Well, carry on."
"You're freakin' delirious if you think I'm letting this one go."
"I'm perfectly sane, for your information," replied Gamma.
A gritting of teeth. "So, I met this girl, and she said she was going to fill me in on...what downtown is like," Gokudera lied, eyes betraying nothing. He didn't want the narcotics agent to know that he had prompted the girl into feeding him info about him. That would be humiliating to admit and most likely amusing to the man.
Gamma tapped his foot, reining in excitement as he glanced around to reassure that no ears besides his were listening to this. When he found it satisfactory, he refocused his attention on the still clearly ticked off teen. He gave an easy smirk, but his frown conflicted with the comforting tactic. "What was that girl like?" he asked. A beat of silence answered him; then, the boy forced himself to reply.
"A redhead."
"That can't be the only area you've noticed about her."
Gokudera flared up, "Well, sir, I can't remember anything else."
Letting out a quiet snort in disbelief, Gamma prompted again, "So? What did she say?" However, he didn't hear a reply. As soon as the words left his mouth, his sleek mobile started ringing a familiar tune. Averting the latter's eyes while noticing the relief in his posture, Gamma unlocked his cellphone and answered the call.
"Hey, vice chief from division one of the narcotics department here. Is this agent Gamma?" It was a cheery and lax voice; nevertheless, a certain firmness was found in the caller's tone.
"Who's that - "
"Gamma reporting. Is something the matter, vice chief?" he replied, ignoring the curiosity of the younger male.
"Don't ignore me, oi!"
A chuckle came through the intercom. "Yeah, the agents on standby from division two have informed us of another Impero encounter." The voice hardened at the mention of the malicious organization. "It seems you are the person from division one closest to the site, so we want you to investigate this in further detail."
"Where is this place, exactly?" Gamma inquired, throat constricting and mind wheeling.
"Uptown, Bigerio's supermarket. Seems like the syndicates are plotting something again."
Frowning, Gamma said tersely, "Is the police going to be involved?"
A pause. "I would like to say fifty-fifty, but I doubt it. They're going to be involved, I'm sure."
The undercover agent chuckled. "We'll beat the chase, don't worry. I'll contact you later, vice chief." Just when he was about to terminate the connection, the same voice called out in a hasty tone.
"Wait, Gamma. Chief says he wants you to use our one-time informer on this case."
"Our one-time informer...?" he questioned, frowning. Which informer was the vice chief referring? The only informer he knew of was the very irritable, foul-tempered teen who was rather unwillingly aiding the narcs department. The man couldn't be serious about using him, could he? Apparently he was, Gamma was unfortunate to note.
"The victim of the recent crime scene."
"...Got it." He pressed the disconnection and stowed the mobile into his pocket, all the while ignoring the irritably curious gaze following his every move. Brushing a hand through his blonde hair, Gamma finally turned on the lad, looking down at him from his height. Gokudera crossed his arms in anticipation. "Let's go," the older male ordered abruptly, striding away from the condo and towards the awaiting vehicle, swiftly brushing past the silver-haired latter.
Gokudera scowled, displeased. "The hell are you going?"
"We," the man corrected from the driver's seat, the black-tinted window rolling down to reveal the side view of his face. He glanced at the unmoving teen, already feeling patience dissipating. "Get in. We have a mission to bust."
The minor stood in front of the backseat door, though he remained still, hesitant. There was an edge to his voice, "What did the guy say?"
"Brat," Gamma sighed impatiently. "We're dealing with the Impero, a wild group of nutcase drug dealers. Don't you have revenge to take?"
That hit the mark. Gokudera slammed the door open, jumping into the backseat with a jingle of noises. "Why didn't you say so earlier?" he accused, glaring.
Gamma swerved the car around a bend, teeth gritted in anticipation and concentration. He decided not to answer.
//Page.//Break.//
Bigerio's supermarket was flowing with mothers and their children, a few teenagers, and some other customers. Rows of vegetables, fruits, an assortment of noodles and pasta, and various foods lined the store, and employers in uniform shirts walked around. A silver-haired teen with his hair tied back in a low ponytail stood in a lax posture in front of a magazine holder. He was frowning, finger thumbing through a book, letting out a disgruntled noise whenever he spotted an uprising rock star by the name of "Belphegor" appearing on a page. "Che, the hell's this crap," the lad muttered, stowing it back into the stand and reaching for another. Just when he was about to take a magazine, he froze, emerald irises widening slightly.
A gun was jabbing into his back.
"Hey, don't move. We've got a word with you from boss," a scratchy, youthful voice told him. Someone else was beside him, a calm presence.
The calculative voice murmured so that only the victim could hear, "It's best not to resist. As you can see, we can open fire at any second."
"Chikusa," the former voice spoke up, a grin traceable in his tone, "let's hurry up. We can't let the camera catch us." He prodded the machine, noting with satisfaction that the silver-haired teen was shivering slightly. "We won't harm you as long as - "
"Move, Ken!" Chikusa shouted in warning, but it was too late; Gokudera had dropped down on one knee and lashed out with his leg, perfectly catching the spiky blond by surprise and forcing him to lose balance. Ken fell with a thump, head connecting solidly with a grocery row and consequently making canned fish clatter onto the floor. By now, people were aware of the sudden noise, each curiously looking around for the commotion. Wasting no time, Gokudera immediately grabbed glasses-boy by his arm just as he was reaching for his weapon. Chikusa struggled, grunting in protest.
A crowd was gathering, and the two clerks along with the employers hurried over to try to stop the intrusion. However, a tall blond stepped into the ring, bearing a badge for all to see with his impressive stature, and with one look at the emblem, the supermarket personnel backed away, glancing at each other nervously. Gamma gently brushed a grandmother aside as he strode over, parting the audience. "Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Drugs present, all onlookers please move elsewhere," he declared. With hush whispers, the women and children took a step back, but curious customers remained at a good distance, peering over others' shoulders.
Dreading the appearance of a narcs agent, Chikusa stopped resisting and attempted to run, pulling his white beanie lower over his head, but he wasn't a few steps away when he saw two figures arrive from the backdoor of the supermarket. Ken, who was rubbing his head and trying to get his bearings back, slowly stood up from the aisle of seasoned food. The glasses-wearing male glanced at him in the corner of his eyes, saw that the reckless blond was all right, and took a cautious step back himself, feeling the approaching danger tingling his spine.
A tall, dark-haired man wearing a black work suit strode across the tiled floor to reach the commotion, steely cobalt eyes narrowed and perceptive with his thin lips omitting any emotion. He had prominent, oriental features, both intimidating and attractive, and his posture was straight like a ruler. Alongside him was a shorter male, a redhead with unique, vermillion irises. He was a few steps behind the taller lad. He was not as blank and expressionless as the other, but still vaguely indifferent. They were approaching Chikusa, and the latter hastily turned around for another exit route.
He found none: the silver-haired teen was leaning against an aisle, jade eyes glistening with venom, and beside him was the tall blond, whose lips were curled in a pleased smirk.
Chikusa cursed.
"Got nowhere to go, huh," Gokudera sneered, crossing his arms. He was still not satisfied by the little revenge he'd attained from the prior threat performed by the two rascals. He wanted to punch the scarred blond into a bloody pulp and beat the glasses-guy into unconsciousness, but it didn't seem like Gamma would let him. The silver-haired teen scowled. Since when did he care about what other people think? If he wanted to, he would get into a fight. Who gives a damn about some guy's opinion?
But wait, Gamma wasn't just "some guy." He was actually useful in saving his ass not once, but twice. Keeping this thought in mind, Gokudera willed himself a little integrity for the man.
Seeing what the target was about to do, Gamma took a threatening step, saying in a careful voice, "If I were you, I wouldn't do that."
Chikusa let himself a small smile, hands deep in his pants pockets, feeling for the yo-yos he knew he would find. He would be better dead than brought alive, interrogated by these puppet narcotic specialists, and then brutally killed by the Impero later. The Impero...he shivered slightly at the mention of that name. He retrieved the spiked children's toy, feeling the transparent string with the tip of his finger, not saying a word. The two figures were a few feet behind him now, and he could feel the curious glare of the teenager and the tense one from the elder male. He would make this quick.
"What is that guy doing?" one of the clerks shouted, shouldering his way through the audience that had gathered once more. Ken was groaning in pain, ambling closer to his partner in crime, not noticing the mere distance between him and the petite redhead.
"Chikusa, run," grunted the blond. His friend ignored him, concentrating on his mockingly innocent toys. Ken tried to say something, but suddenly tendrils of smoke drifted from Chikusa's figure. A smog began to enfold the supermarket, and then shrill cries and screams erupted as the customers made for a run to escape. "Chikusa, you - " the blond stopped, coughing, and tried to cover his mouth from the smoke. He winced, grabbing his partner by the arm and dragging him toward the backdoor. But the guy wouldn't budge. Straining his eyes, he saw metal rings winding their way around Chikusa's body, leaving only his head and feet visible. Ken tugged at the steel, shaking his head left and right viciously.
"Oi, stay back, Hayato."
"I'm not just going to stay here and watch!"
"At least cover your mouth, idiot. Don't inhale the smoke."
"I know that."
Ken struggled against the smog, refusing to open up his lungs, and only years of training saved his breath. He was pulling the rigid, metal-encased Chikusa by the chains, but he didn't go far, because right at that moment the smoke dispersed, leaving him and his imprisoned friend in the clear. Like a deer caught in headlights, he stared with wide eyes in bewilderment. Then, slowly, a strained grin enveloped him. "H-heh, catch me if you can, turds!" he snickered, feigning bravado as he tried to run with his friend an extra weight holding him down. He could see the two unfamiliar figures before him, but he only noticed them when a foot stuck out and he tripped forward, landing flat on the floor with his face pressed against the tiles.
His nose would have a hard time recovering.
"Division two of the narcotics department reporting to duty," an audible voice murmured. The redhead was looming over Ken, vermillion eyes betraying nothing. He toed the boy on the floor with a sneaker, ignoring the indignant grunt of the latter. From beside the redhead appeared a chilly presence, a tall dark-haired man. A cold smile traced his lips.
"Hibari Kyoya and Kozato Enma," Gamma pronounced slowly, an eyebrow raised.
Gokudera eyed the two arrivals curiously. "Who are they?" he asked.
Hibari glanced at him boredly, then looked down at the victim trapped in his ring of chains. He smirked in satisfaction, saying almost conversationally, "This is my forty-fourth score, Kozato. You are rather idle these past weeks."
The redhead crouched down, observing the two faces of the Impero agents. "I never said I was entering this competition." There was a barely noticeable frown on his lips.
"Hey," Gokudera muttered, nudging Gamma with his elbow, "who are those two?"
The blond replied without returning the look, "The second division of the narcotics department, agents Hibari and Enma."
Rori's Corner: Uhm, longarse gap in between updates. But it's all gud. Yes, fast moving plot. And yeahhh, HAPPY BELATED B-DAY Hibari~ Buon Compleanno! I had you all action-nized for this...belated present. If you can call it one.
Anywaii, enjoyed? No? Yes? Prolly no, but don't say that~ feed my ego.