Disclaimer: Not mine.

Thank you a thousand times for the lovely reviews. Knowing somebody out there enjoys reading what my brain cooks up makes me very, very happy (and it's always good to know you're not alone with those ideas on the planet ^^). Thank you very much and I hope you enjoy the next chapter as well!


Six

Bright red liquid was dripping down the lockers, forming dark puddles on the floor. Tezuka's stomach twisted.

For a moment all noises faded and nothing but the carnage in front of him existed. He never even noticed a girl push past him, bolting for the next toilet, heard neither Fuji's soft gasp nor the teachers' frantic orders for all students to clear the area.

It wasn't only blood. There were ... things mixed in there, pieces of flesh, something that looked like it once had been collar, patches of fur, muscle and organs that had never been supposed to see daylight. One of the lockers had been wrenched open violently - the metal was twisted and bent, the books inside torn, loose pages scattered on the floor, drenched in red.

And balanced precariously on the door of said locker was a cat's severed head.

Tezuka's heart missed a beat.

There was still blood dripping from it, almost brown by now, mingling with other hideous fluids and patches of fur. The black fur was damp, rotten and had been torn away at places, revealing greyish skin or dark red flesh and muscle. He couldn't see it clearly, but there were bugs moving beneath the skin. The few flies that had survived the icy season up to now started attacking the raw flesh with vigour.

He only dimly heard the sobs and screeches or saw the green-tinted faces. An ear seemed to be missing from the head and one of the eyeballs had popped out and was dangling downward, attached to the head by just strands of nerves and blood vessels.

An unbearable stench attacked his senses. Tezuka felt his insides churn, just as his mind made a far more horrid observation.

The locker was Fuji's.

Within a split second his mind raced through thousands of possibilities – was this on purpose, what was the motive, was there a motive, how was Fuji feeling – he hadn't actually paid the least bit of attention to Fuji's reaction ever since he'd laid eyes on this scene of carnage. Guilt welled up on his chest, blurring with confusion and a foreign sensation of helplessness – yet before he could turn to at least look at his friend, the locker's door moved.

Metal groaned, gravity pulled and with a thick, wet thud the head hit the floor. Foul liquids scattered, the smell worsened drastically - somebody screamed and one of the teachers looked about to be sick, yet Tezuka barely noticed what happened around him.

Horror bound his eyes to now unrecognizable lump of fur, flesh and bones. His entire body had frozen and all he could do was watch that one eyeball roll away from the head's remains, leaving a trail of rust-coloured liquid.

The pupil was gold.

Something in the back of Tezuka's mind clicked. Unconsciously his eyes glanced back toward the lockers, but before he realized just what he was looking for he reminded himself to keep his act together – and help Fuji.

He'd been staring for far too long already.

Tezuka snapped into action, turned on his heel and took one look at his friend's widened eyes and paper-white complexion. Decisively he grasped Fuji's upper arm and proceeded to drag him away from the gory spectacle.

Fuji stumbled, barely even aware of the tight grip Tezuka had on his arm, unable to tear his eyes away. The scene had been burned onto the back of his eyelids, before Tezuka had finally steered him out of the corridor and into an empty classroom.

With a flinch Fuji returned to the here and now when Tezuka loudly shut the door behind them. The world was spinning and only when Tezuka's fingers tightened to a painful degree, Fuji remembered how to breathe.

"Sit down." Tezuka ordered, pushing Fuji onto the next best chair.

He had to take a deep breath to calm himself and disperse the last vestiges of the putrid smell from his nose. Fuji turned shaken eyes up to meet Tezuka's, while Tezuka searched for the right words.

"Are you okay?" Tezuka inquired, eyeing his friend critically.

Fuji flexed his fingers, stifled a cough and sighed. "I guess."

There was no need to mention that both of them had been shocked by the sight and Tezuka almost regretted asking. But when the silence stretched out and his mind began replaying the images, he posed the next question that came to his mind.

"Do you ... know who might have done this?" Tezuka asked hesitatingly. The wheels in his mind had started moving – but they brought naught but new confusion. And while he wasn't sure whether it was due to the stench a very odd, dreary sensation lingered in his stomach.

Fuji kept his eyes down and shook his head. "I wish I knew, but..."

A knock on the door interrupted them.

Not even five seconds later one of the school's veteran teachers pocked his white-haired head into the room. "Fuji-kun, Tezuka-kun, can I bother you for a moment?"

Tezuka glanced at Fuji before turning back to his teacher, who looked not the slightest disturbed for what was happening just a few metres down the corridor. "It's okay, Tanuma-sensei."

Tanuma stepped into the room and Tezuka caught sight of Kikumaru lingering behind him, anxiously glancing inside. Fuji was about to wave him inside as well, but then Oishi appeared beside his doubles partner and with a few whispered words pulled him away.

Meanwhile Tanuma closed the door.

"Are you two feeling alright?" He asked and Tezuka appreciated the collected tone very much. Unlike his younger colleagues guarding the scene outside Tanuma appeared not out of his depth.

"I guess we're okay." Fuji replied on behalf of them both.

Their teacher had already expected that answer. "That's good, but in case that changes you need to inform me or anybody else of the staff immediately." He paused. "Now, does either of you have an idea who did this?"

Tezuka merely shook his head and Fuji said: "No."

Tanuma frowned. "Then let me change my question - is there anybody you would suspect? Perhaps somebody with a grudge or any other reason."

"No." Fuji shook his head. "I don't even know why..."

Tanuma pressed his lips together. "I see ... but if you suspect this is just a prank gone wrong, please tell me so." He sighed and glanced over to the window. "Unless it's a prank we'll have to call the police in on this."

Tezuka nodded. Prank or not, the consequences of this were going to be ugly.

Not that whoever did this deserved any less. Deep in his chest Tezuka could sense anger bubbling; anger at this senseless act of cruelty. Yet the anger was almost drowned by his confusion. Who had done this and why?

For a split second he saw the scene again. The severed head of a black cat on top of Fuji's locker. One eyeball dangling down, a rotten smell and fur, organs and many, many sickening things on the floor.

Now that he was breathing fresh air, he realized that the scene had been off.

Ice flooded his veins and he barely even heard the rest of Fuji's conversation with their teacher.

"They'll probably want to ask you a couple of questions; especially you, Fuji-kun, so I need to know whether you will be at school or at home." Tanuma had turned to the window, before glancing back at Fuji.

Fuji blinked and then smiled faintly. "I'll be here."

Their teacher eyed him critically. "Sure? You're free to take the day off, if you want to, seeing as no one can ask of you to get your books."

With all his might Fuji kept his face from twisting at recalling what fate had befallen his school materials. "Still, with finals ahead, I'd rather not miss class."

"If you say so." Tanuma replied and straightened. "But in case you start feeling sick you should head to the nurse immediately. And the same goes for you, Tezuka-kun."

Tezuka blinked at being abruptly called back to reality.

"I may not be a doctor, but I wouldn't be surprised if quite some of you and your friends suffered a kind of shock. So take it easy today." Tanuma glanced to the door. "I have to get back and take care of things out there, but if something comes up, please contact me."

They nodded and bowed automatically and only when their teacher had left the room, Tezuka and Fuji looked at each other. There were a thousand unanswered questions in Tezuka's mind, yet he wasn't sure if now was the right time to ask them. Maybe it was the pale winter light, but Fuji's face looked as white as the wall.

As if a gust of wind could make him crumble.

For a moment he was back at that house, stumbling into the living room to find Fuji motionless on the floor. He almost reached out for his friend, just to reassure himself, when Fuji's lips formed a faint, faint smile.

Tezuka never got to raise his hand.

"I guess Eiji got his wish at least partially granted." Fuji commented suddenly as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "First period has successfully been stopped from taking place."

A glance at the clock revealed the a mere twenty minutes of first period were left and even though his mind was still in uproar Tezuka sighed and let some of the tension drain from his body.

"Looks like it." He replied. In his mind he was warring with himself. Ought he let this slide, accept Fuji's offer to return to everyday normality and stop wondering about this event? Or should he voice his confusion on the danger of making Fuji confront something possibly harmful?

As the seconds ticked by, Fuji glanced away and Tezuka couldn't help feeling that by allowing Fuji to retreat behind his facade, he was abandoning his friend. There was worry visible in those eyes; worry and something else far more disquieting.

Tezuka pressed his lips together.

He was reluctant to admit it, but there was a good chance Fuji knew more than he let on. There was no proof for his suspicion, other than the fact, that strange things had happened to him and Fuji ever since two days ago.

There should not be a connection between those.

Such thoughts were preposterous, unreasonable, absurd.

Yet in the back of his mind he started doubting his logic.

Fuji had never explained why exactly he had fainted – and while exhaustion made a good reason, considering what had happened one day later put the scene into another perspective. For some strange reason Fuji had known that cat had been about to attack.

... a cat that had worn a green collar, identical to the one late Mori-san's cat had worn.

And...

Tezuka swallowed. The pieces threatened to come together and form one horrid, mind-freezing picture. Instead he turned to Fuji.

"Fuji." He said. "Would ... can I talk to you?"

Fuji tilted his head and Tezuka shook his head. "Somewhere private."

"Sure. Clubhouse perhaps?" Fuji suggested. "Nobody should be there now."

One exit through a back door saved the two of them from many inquiries. While Fuji was quite certain Eiji was beside himself with worry and Oishi probably as well, he had enough on his own mind right now.

Even though there was good chance Tezuka would try to pry those thoughts out of his head, Fuji amended with a half-stifled cough and followed his friend through the snow. With all clubs on hold the caretaker had obviously decided not to shovel off any snow on the sports grounds. It was against regulation, but with the ridiculous amount of snowfall recently it couldn't be helped.

Not that understanding this made the cold soaking through his shoes any warmer.

Temperatures had not risen even though the sun had gone up, as the pale light filtering through the clouds indicated. Their clubhouse was not heated and for a moment Fuji wondered if remaining outside wouldn't be wiser.

Then Tezuka dropped down on a bench, his eyes fixed on the floor and Fuji stopped thinking about the weather.

Tezuka sighed and once more contemplated whether this conversation was necessary. If his suspicions were nothing but rising paranoia, he'd completely ridicule himself in front of Fuji. But... while he'd usually dismiss his suspicion as entirely absurd, the pieces fit. Fit frighteningly well.

"Fuji." Tezuka looked up and caught his friend's eyes. "About this... and yesterday."

Fuji stiffened. Tezuka had caught onto something; his behaviour had given that away. Yet not for the first time Fuji wished he could read his captain better – he had no idea what exactly it was Tezuka wanted to talk about.

"... I know this sounds absurd, so please tell me if I'm seeing things that aren't there." Tezuka took a deep breath. "I don't really know where to start, but ...That cat's head belonged to the cat that attacked us yesterday, no?"

Fuji glanced away. "It might have."

"They had the same collar." Tezuka replied firmly. The collar he'd seen this morning had been tainted dark red by blood, yet he recognized it well enough. "They had the same eyes as well."

The memory of the lone eyeball rolling away from the carnage rose suddenly. Fuji wrapped his arms around himself and frowned "Yes. So maybe it was really the same cat. I still don't know who is responsible, if you want to know that, Tezuka."

Tezuka almost flinched at the defensive edge in Fuji's voice. But not pursuing the subject now meant preferring one of Fuji's facades over the truth – and how often had Tezuka wanted to glimpse underneath that mask.

"Are you certain?" He asked, harsher than he intended. "Those things do not appear logical, but Fuji, please explain one thing to me: If the cat yesterday and today were the same – how come that thing we saw today looked and smelled as if it had been dead for quite some weeks at least? How come that green collar is exactly the same Mori-san's late cat had been wearing?"

Fuji stepped back and with an exhausted sigh plopped down on the bench opposite of Tezuka. He dropped his head in his hands, coughed and Tezuka wanted nothing more than to wrap a blanket around those thin shoulders and ensure his friend things would be alright.

"You shouldn't... be asking this, Tezuka." Fuji muttered. "You really shouldn't."

"Am I not going to like the answer?" Tezuka questioned in response and Fuji wearily lifted his head.

"You're not even going to believe it. Tezuka, trust me, it'd be better if you leave this be. I have a hard time making sense of this... I don't believe half of it myself." Fuji shook his head.

"I guess that might apply." Tezuka admitted, before adding. "Usually. After this scene today... you might just have to tell me to see whether I believe it or not."

"It's better if I don't." Fuji shot back.

Tezuka pursed his lips. "Fuji, I'd like to understand what is going on. Obviously someone or something is targeting you and ..."

The flat reply came instantly. "The cat yesterday meant to injure you."

"One more reason for you to tell me what you think is going on." Tezuka hid a small smile. "If this... person or whatever is going after me as well, I'd like to have at least some kind of an idea."

Fuji gave him a half-hearted glare, before becoming serious once again. "This is going to sound entirely illogical, insane, bizarre. Don't say I didn't warn you."

He swallowed. As a matter of fact he wasn't actually uncomfortable with sharing his thoughts on the events. What made him worry was Tezuka's reaction. Fuji had no way of predicting how Tezuka was going to take his words and he could only pray they wouldn't destroy their tentative friendship.

Tezuka was not known for associating with people who believed in the supernatural or were even vaguely interested in something that had not solid foundation in science.

But then again, he had to tell Tezuka. As things stood right now, he couldn't risk leaving his friend clueless.

Especially when it could cost a life.

"Let me start with confirming your suspicion." Fuji eventually said, flexing his fingers against the cold. "The cat we saw yesterday is the same as the one today. And also identical with Mori-san's cat. As to the how ... there's some power at work here I don't completely understand. But while the cat yesterday wasn't quite real – it wasn't an illusion per se."

He pressed his lips together. "Actually I suspect the cat yesterday was an illusion using the cadaver of Mori-san's cat. I'm not certain, but it fits. If Mori-san's cat died in late autumn, the body would have been rotting slowly due to the early frost this year..."

Tezuka's stomach flip-flopped, but he kept his face straight. "But why did it attack us?"

"I'm not entirely sure. You said the Nakayamas collected a certain kind of objects – some of which supposedly hold a spiritual value." Fuji glanced over at him. "Sometimes spirits attempt to reclaim those objects and according to legend they stop at nothing."

Tezuka tilted his head, not yet certain at how things were connecting. He had long since forgotten the biting air that slowly crept through his clothes.

Fuji sighed and his breath formed a small cloud. "That entire house is protected by several layers of wards designed specifically to keep spirits out. One had been broken. The spirit was attempting to use us to break the second."

All Tezuka could do was blink. He'd accepted Fuji's explanation about the cat. While certainly not in accord with any scientific theory, his friend's words possessed their own logical. And he'd seen that cat himself – even if he'd never heard anything about spirits and wards concerning that house.

"Strange, no?" Fuji asked, sounding almost cheerful. "But it gets even better. The easiest way to get past those wards for a spirit is to be invited in."

Tezuka remembered Fuji starting to wave the cat inside and abruptly stopping. He also remembered more than one text from his literature class that featured demons, devils or other such creatures. Most of them could not cross a threshold without prior invitation.

Was there a grain of truth to those absurd tales after all?

"A second trick to get inside is by obtaining blood of the owner – though nowadays that means something along the lines of the person legally in possession of the key." Fuji smiled darkly. "This is why the cat attacked you."

A shudder ran down Tezuka's spine. He swallowed. "Why... why didn't it attack us on our way home then?"

Fuji shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea. Something might have distracted it."

"And today?" Tezuka inquired, even though his mind was still helplessly lost in the midst of Fuji's explanations.

A frown crossed Fuji's face. "I can't see any objective but making a statement. That spirit drew my blood and if it is indeed as powerful as I fear it is, it might very easily locate me whenever it wishes to."

Tezuka made to reply but Fuji held up a hand. His eyes found Tezuka's. "This means we should keep a distance until all of this has blown over. That ... thing might be trying to locate you through me."

"Do you think it will attack again?" Tezuka eventually asked, feeling atypically faint. He could hear his heart beat echoing in his ears.

Fuji didn't even need to think about his answer. "The moment it finds you it will."

tbc

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