The Shiro Kaze hotel was imposing. It was a dark, plain gray that no one would describe as dull. Imposing lion/dragon gargoyles guarded the gates and two hide-and-seek, nearly naked women framed the double doors. Thick, lush green grass covered the lawn, looking as if it hadn't been cut in centuries. It looked like the evil boss's estate in some old, supernatural cult flick.

The driveway into the estate split into two different roads. One curved around the side of the mansion and towards the back. The other went right up to the doors, a circular dive that enclosed a simple yet elegant fountain spewing crystal water. Engraved in almost cursive kanji, the words Shiro Kaze lay in stone.

Yohji parked the Sven in front of the doors and got out. Omi followed behind him, having woken up ten minutes prior. Ken stayed in the car with the still unconscious Aya. Yohji was starting to get worried about that; even with the worst injuries Aya was usually awake and snapping at them after a couple of hours.

"Hey, Yohji?" asked Omi.

"Yeah?"

Omi blinked his blue eyes up at the building. "How do you think Aya knows about this place?" Omi looked up at Yohji. "I mean, I know we don't know a whole lot about his past but this just…oh, I don't know."

"I know what ya mean, chibi," agreed Yohji. "Doesn't seem like Aya's style."

"Yes."

They both looked again at the evil-boss-hideout that was supposed to be a hotel. It didn't seem quite as imposing as before, but that might have just been the fact that the sun was coming up over the horizon. It cast long shadows over the wild grass and illuminated the almost ancient looking designs that covered the walls.

Scratch that, still looked pretty evil.

Yohji steeled himself against whatever they would find inside (he half expected some sacrificial ritual) and began forward. It took him a second to realize his were the only footsteps that echoed in the courtyard. He looked back to find Omi stock still watching the car.

"Come on, Omi," called Yohji. "They'll both be fine. We need to get a room."

Omi jerked his gaze up to Yohji before nodding and following after him.

The doors were stiff and hard to move and Yohji's head was starting to ache a little by the time he got them open. Inside was a huge empty room that looked like a medieval ballroom. The walls were covered in dark ceiling-to-floor tapestries. The floor was polished marble. Yohji was almost surprised to find modern electric lights in the room, though a number of those lights hung in a chandelier from the ceiling.

To the right of the doors was a small—in comparison to the room—front desk, behind which stood a man in his late thirties, maybe forties, wearing a dark pinstriped suit. His black auburn hair was combed back but a small lock fell onto his forehead to hang over his bored brown eyes. He looked not uncomfortable, but not happy with wearing the suit.

Omi made a beeline for the desk. Yohji followed at a slower pace, still trying to take in the entire room and failing miserably. Just half the room was bigger than the Koneko!

"Were here for a room," said Omi up ahead.

The man behind the counter just watched him silent.

Not about to look intimidated—being it was enough thank you—Yohji step up to the counter and said, "We were told to ask for…" Oh, crap! What was that name Aya had mentioned? Fonda? Ronda? Ronda…Sori? Sorna?

"Honda Sora's room," said Omi. Yohji cast a sheepish glance in his direction but Omi wasn't paying him any mind.

"Who sent you here?" inquired the desk clerk. He had a deep almost gravely baritone voice that so did not match the body.

"Um. Fujimiya," answered Omi. Yohji bet he wasn't sure whether Aya had used his sister's name or his real one here, and had decided to stick with the family name. Hopefully the guy would recognize the name.

And recognize it he did. His whole face lit up, his eyes brightened, a smile curved over his lips and in a surprised, happy voice much more human than the one he had used before he said, "Really?"

"Uh, yeah," said Yohji, slightly take aback by the man's reaction.

He was still smiling when he said, "Follow the driveway around back. The suit is up the stairs and to the left. The door will be unlocked with the keys on the coffee table. The owner isn't expected to be back for another couple of days so it's yours until then." He gave them another grin and then spun around. "Now if you'll excuse me I need to go do something. If you have any questions just pick up the phone and dial star zero one."

He slipped through a door behind the desk and disappeared. Yohji hadn't even seen a door there and was surprised that when the door closed again he could only barely see the outline of it in the wall. It looked just like the rest of the stone wall.

"Yohji, did he just disappear through a wall?"

"Yeah. Weird even for us, huh?"

"Does this mean we have a place to stay?"

"Looks like it. Also looks like that guy knew Aya."

Omi just hn'ed, doing a very good impression of Aya, and walked rather dazedly out the door, which still stood as open as Yohji had left it. Guess the wind couldn't budge it an inch.

When they open the car doors Ken didn't even move from his twisted position in the front seat where he watched Aya intently. The redhead still lay there oblivious but in a different position from when they had left.

"Ken?" said Omi.

"He woke up, just for a little bit. Moved around a bit, saw the house-thing and I think he mumbled 'good' before he was out again," said Ken. He looked up and turned forward in his seat. "So, we got a place to stay."

"Yup," said Yohji. "Seems Aya's pretty popular 'round here. He's even got an admirer."

Ken looked at him in confusion and Omi just frowned.

Crawford sat stiffly in the passenger seat of his car, trying to keep his head as still as possible. He still hadn't recovered from the vision, even having needed help getting out of the apartment and into the car. His headache flared to life whenever something jolted the car.

That 'something' was mainly Schuldich. Normally he would have never let Schuldich drive—he tended to get lost in other drivers heads and crash, or end up driving too fast—but Farfarello and Nagi couldn't drive and he was in no shape to. Surprisingly Schuldich seemed to be driving very carefully, even a little below the speed limit.

Actually, Schuldich had been subdued since the incident two days ago. Nagi had come running to Crawford, panicked, saying he had found Schuldich crumpled on the floor, trembling, and he couldn't get him to respond. When Crawford saw him he was still on the ground eye's squeezed shut, flinching away from Farfarello's touch. He was mumbling under his breath 'stop it, stop' over and over again.

"Schuldich? Can you hear me?" Crawford kept his voice low.

"Bradley?" It wasn't more than a whisper.

"Nagi, go get one of Farfarello's tranquilizers."

They had had to use two to get Schuldich unconscious, granted they weren't the strongest that they could have used, but one should have been enough to knock a small horse under. When Schuldich had woken up only two hours later his shields were nearly gone and using his powers turned him incoherent.

Crawford was beginning to think that it was all a lot more connected then he had thought it was. Schuldich's power, the two attacks on both Schuldich and Nagi, Crawford's own visions. Something had changed and whatever it was it was effecting his visions. It was almost as if…

Focused eyes. The car with four men inside, driving in front of her, slower than the rest. She pressed down hard on the gas.

"Drive faster," said Crawford the instant he came out of the vision.

"What?" said Schuldich.

"Drive faster," Crawford repeated, opening his eyes to see headlights approaching in the side mirror.

Crawford saw Schuldich's gaze rest on him for a second before it was back on the road. "Why?" he asked.

The whole car jerked with the impact. Nagi cried out in the back seat and Schuldich nearly went through the glass windshield. Farfarello calmly turned around to see the car behind them, the front fender bent and dented. Crawford knew the left rear light of their own car was shattered and dark.

"That's why," he said through gritted teeth as pain sparked like fireworks in his head.

Review and return.

01/29/06 6:56