Disclaimer: PoT isn't mine.

Warnings: Gore, blood and violence ahead. If you're sensitive, proceed with caution!

Thank you to everybody who reads and reviews! Reviews make me happy (and help to find spelling/grammar mistakes. Useless information, but thanks to people pointing it out, I eventually learned the difference between loose and lose. ^^;)

lemon-and-chai: Things always get worse before they get better (to quote Hollywood), and the worst is still to come, but it won't be Tezuka getting torn into pieces. As for how exactly Fuji is going to fight it, he has some sort of an idea, though Tezuka is not going to like it. *evil laughter*

Chrysalis441: Fuji's character is wonderfully intriguing, because he has many shades. On one hand, it's easy to write him as vulnerable, considering he is on the petite side. On the other hand, he has been shown as somebody who won't back down, and who knows how to help himself. Thank you for reading and reviewing!

Scarlette Shizuru: Thank you for reading and reviewing. I like to think of Eiji as somebody who is very attuned to his friends' feelings, so he knows when to stop being cheerful – that and I don't like writing out onomatopoesia like "nya". As for the other questions, I hope the following chapter will answer them ^_^

And also a big thank-you to PWNsomeness and Mesonoxian!

Chapter 17

"It's urgent," had been the words to doom Tezuka in the middle of a lesson on history.

Pronounced by lips that ought to have been blue and cold long ago, yet once more Tezuka found himself staring into the face of the deceased Mori. Her silver hair was artfully donned, her coat fashionable and her eyes sparkling with barely-concealed mirth. There was nothing remotely dead about her; and movements that should have been slowed by age and weather conditions flowed with ease.

Tezuka shuddered, his fingers tightening around his pencil. His facial expression remained stoic, but his heart started racing.

What had she come for? What was happening?

His mind urged him to run. But she was blocking the only exit par the windows, and there were twenty pairs of eyes fixed on him, all wondering what his relation to that sweet old lady was, and what had brought her here.

Not a single one of his classmates had any idea of what was going.

His teacher, still busy exchanging polite words with the demon, guessed even less.

Mori's eyes found his, and she smiled. White teeth glittered ominously; the air around him seemed to freeze.

He had to run. Whatever her intentions, nothing good could come of this. He had already hesitated too long. Abruptly he turned to the window, made to stand - even if this was the second floor, he'd take his chances - when the world shifted.

Tezuka lacked Fuji's experience to pinpoint what exactly was happening, but the bright fluorescent lights of the classroom dwindled, as if color had been drained from the world. The chairs, the teacher's clothes, the faces of his classmates, all had faded to shades of grey.

Nothing moved either, and he didn't dare to breathe.

Then he noted a movement in the corner of his eye. Bright red liquid begun trickling down from above; slowly, unhurriedly, but in horrific quantities. Two, three drops turned into rivulets, Tezuka's stomach twisted.

Slowly he tilted his head to gaze above, even though his entire mind was screaming at him not to.

A pair of polished black shoes...

He blinked and the scene switched, ending as abruptly as it had begun. Not even a second seemed to have passed, he was still in his seat; eyes locked with Mori's.

Every hair on his arm was standing. His heart pounded as if about to explode, and the way he was clutching his pencil had nothing to do with mere fear anymore. He was beyond terrified - and the demon smiled sweetly.

"Tezuka-kun," she called out, her voice even and full of concern, and was joined by the teacher.

"You can go Tezuka-kun. Take care of your relatives, I'll inform the office, so you don't have to worry about anything," his teacher nodded at him.

What if he stayed put? What if he refused to leave his seat? What if he shouted out the truth for the world to hear?

Mori's eyes grew smaller, as if reading his thoughts. Something indescribable tickled his senses, faintly, but icy and electric. Nothing more than an invisible feather brushing his skin, yet there was a hint of incredible power, of suffocating, blood-soaked darkness and ancient evil.

Only a wave of a hand would suffice to lay waste to the entire school.

And Tezuka understood.

He might be able to stall, but he could not escape.

And with every second he stalled, chances that the demon might strike directly grew. With a heavy sigh, he pushed back his chair, collected his textbooks and stood. This might be the very last time he saw his classroom, a small voice in the back of his mind told him.

Possibly the last time he laid eyes on his classmates.

A part of him was angry with them for not noticing anything out of the ordinary, for gazing at Mori without any suspicion in their eyes. For letting him walk to what might just be his death without a note of protest.

But he knew he wasn't being fair.

The only person in the entire school that would have known wasn't in his class.

His heart stuttered as he followed Mori obediently out if the door, his hands clenched to stop them from shaking. He felt Oishi's inquisitive gaze boring into his back and for a split second wondered if there was any way to pass a hidden message. Something to make at least one person notice things weren't right.

Though such behavior would be foolish. The consequences of said action alone bode ill, Oishi probably would check up on his own instead of informing the authorities - and even if the authorities got involved, what chance did they stand against a demon?

Better to let nobody notice. At least there'd be no further deaths. None on his conscience at least. And Mori's eyes were watching him much too closely for any form of secret communication to pass unnoticed.

For the first time in his life, Tezuka Kunimitsu found himself unable to do anything but follow.

He swallowed the moment the door behind him closed. His classmates turned back to their lesson, while an icy breeze caressed his cheeks. Tezuka barely even felt it.

Run, his mind whispered once again, and his eyes gazed longingly toward the far end of the corridor. Mori noticed, naturally, and chuckled.

"I suppose you're intelligent enough to understand that that would not be a good idea," almost carelessly she turned from him and proceeded into the other direction, "You wouldn't want any of your friends to get hurt, would you?"

Tezuka saw no need to even reply. He felt frozen stiff, his mind unable to cope with the notion of having gotten caught in such an inescapable situation. His body moved mechanically, merely going through the motions, while the demon seemed to be in a malevolently cheerful mood.

"I don't suppose there is a place where we could talk privately," she added with an air of distraction, "I feel it would benefit both of us to get this resolved as soon as possible. Who knows what further hold ups might result in, after all."

Tezuka remembered a world devoid of color, red liquid dripping from above. The vision had come and gone in the blink of an eye, and he had yet to figure out its meaning.

He squared his shoulders. Even if the question had appeared rhetoric, if a word from him could save a life, he'd do it.

"The student council office," he offered, wondering what madness had possessed him. Inviting outsiders into there was almost deemed a sacrilege, and what he was doing was on an entirely different level altogether.

"There will be nobody around, I presume?" she questioned, one eyebrow raised. Tezuka forced himself to hold her gaze.

"Oh, whatever. It sounds like a well-enough option, so lead the way."

Not for the first time Tezuka found himself wishing there was more space between his classroom and the student council office. On most occasions, the proximity merely meant he got dragged into meetings he barely had anything to do with, or was called on for any emergency jobs.

Today he simply wished for a little more time to think.

Figure out a solution. He was supposed to be good at that. Find a way to get himself out if this situation without endangering anybody else.

At least Fuji wasn't there, this time around.

And while it made Tezuka feel marginally better to know his friend wasn't in danger, he couldn't help the sinking feeling that assaulted his stomach once the door loomed closer. With Fuji he had had at least a friend at his side in this adversary situation.

A friend who understood far more of this obscure world of spirits and demons than Tezuka would have ever dreamed.

Without Fuji, he felt helpless.

Unable to do anything but what the demon demanded. Watch his hands unlock the door to the student council office, even though he knew he should not. Walk straight to his doom, without even daring to make an attempt to get out of it.

Maybe...

"What are you waiting for?" Mori asked, sensing Tezuka's hesitation, and he finally remembered to push the door open, revealing a dimly lit room behind.

With a deep breath, Tezuka entered the room, and Mori followed immediately. He hadn't even turned around, when he already heard the door shut. His feet automatically carried him over to the desk he usually occupied - would he ever sit here again?

Was this it?

Mori smiled darkly. "Allow me to thank you for your cooperation. If only your friend had been a little more helpful, this would have been much easier. But alas, no crying over spilt milk, as they say."

At the mention of his friend, Tezuka's head had shot up. Horror flooded his veins, froze his heart and he couldn't stop the breathless "What did you do?" from escaping his lips.

The demon merely raised one disinterested eyebrow. "Were you too scared to look earlier? But anyhow, I don't mean the one who also goes to this school. I meant the one you dumped the fake on."

Tezuka's brows furrowed. Her words made no sense, but at least Fuji was unharmed. That did not explain, what her cryptic statement concerning a fake meant. His eyes traces the snow-covered twigs of the tree outside, followed them until they became black silhouettes against a darkening, grey sky.

It wasn't logical...

Or was it? Tezuka felt a shudder run down his spine that had nothing to do with the dreary temperatures in the unheated room.

"Now, let's get this over with," Mori abruptly declared.

Tezuka instinctively flinched as the air began to tremble. Like it had happened back in the classroom, a film seeped over the scene, draining away the colors, until the world inside seemed as dead as the frozen landscape outside. Tension made his fingers tingle; he bit his tongue so he made no sound.

Silence settled heavily, Mori's eyes were fixed onto something his eyes couldn't yet make out. But forms started shaping, the air blurring and shifting. He squinted.

Something hit the ground.

The sound was small, barely even there, yet rang out all too clearly to Tezuka. A coppery smell registered with his senses and in the back of his mind the voice that usually reminded him of reason and logic started screaming.

Black dress shoes dangled in the upper part of his vision.

Blood began pooling on the floor underneath them. Tezuka's stomach twisted violently. He stumbled backwards, clutching blindly at the desk as he couldn't stop himself from glancing upwards.

Hung in a web of glittering, silver wires was Hasegawa. Along those razor sharp wires blood trickled, coloring them a brownish red. Hasegawa's face was devoid of color, his clothes torn and if not for the faint rise and fall of his chest Tezuka would have believed him dead.

He felt utterly sick.

Mori smiled darkly. "As I was saying, you could have saved us a lot of trouble. As it is, your friend here out up quite a fight... Not that it made a difference in the end."

She shrugged. Tezuka's fingers gripped the desk so tightly his knuckles turned white. The smell of blood was so thick he could barely breathe, while the demon remained entirely unfazed.

Tezuka could only watch in frozen horror as Mori stepped forward and snapped her fingers. The air around Hasegawa seemed to ripple – Tezuka shuddered – and then Hasegawa's eyelids fluttered. For a second disbelief flooded Tezuka's mind – how could the man still be alive?

Then he had to swallow down the bile rising in the back of his throat.

Hasegawa's face twisted in pain. His lips had begun turning purple, black shadows surrounded his eyes, and blood was dripping down from his lips. Yet his eyes were focused, clear – and terrified.

"Now that everybody is awake and we're all complete," Mori announced cheerfully, "We can settle this."

She approached Hasegawa, passing those wires as if they weren't there. Probably they didn't exist for her; Tezuka thought. This was already defying everything he had ever believed in – seeing laws of nature proved wrong wasn't nearly as shocking as it should have been.

Or maybe he was already far too afraid to register anything anymore.

"Now, Hasegawa-kun, let's continue our discussion. You haven't been that helpful, but I have a feeling with Tezuka-kun here, you'll actually give me a useful answer," she said.

Hasegawa glared at her. Tezuka bit his lower lip.

"You know what I want to know. Where the original to the fake you held is hidden." The demon leaned in closer, "And you know I could find out without you as well, so not giving me an answer is only prolonged suffering for you."

Hasegawa firmly refused to open his mouth. With a small sigh Mori took a step backwards. Threw a glance at Tezuka over her shoulder; one she made sure Hasegawa caught.

"Apparently you don't mind the pain," she told him, "So let's try another spiel. How about I do to Tezuka-kun what I did to you?"

"You wouldn't," Hasegawa replied. His voice was hoarse, but steady.

Mori raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? The boy is worthless without the stone."

Hasegawa lifted his head a little. A fresh trickle of blood ran down the side of his face. "Still, you wouldn't kill him."

A shrug was his answer. "No, probably not. But you know, people say there are things worse than death. And I don't really need him sane or anything."

Tezuka stopped breathing. Ice flooded his veins, and his mind went blank for a moment. White buzzing filled his ears – and there was no name for the horror he felt.

When his heart started beating again, Hasegawa was straining against the wires, mindless of the cuts decorating his arms and legs; of the blood running from his body, of the pain. His eyes were wide open and fierce.

"What do you need that stone for anyways? Aren't you already powerful enough? What do you hope to gain from it?"

Mori smiled darkly. "Really, I thought you'd figure that one out. How about you tell me where the stone is hidden and I give you the answer?"

She chuckled, "And you know, I'd hurry unless you want something irreversible to befall Tezuka-kun. I'm sure his esteemed family would be quite disappointed with you."

Tezuka clutched the desk harder. The wood felt solid under his fingers, like his last tie to a crumbling world. Behind him, the air crackled.

He didn't dare to turn around, but stoically kept his eyes fixed on the disaster in front of him.

Hasegawa's eyes widened. Fear flashed across his face and he bit his lips.

"How…" he stumbled over his words; suddenly there were emotions other than determination and disgust coloring his voice, "How can you do this? No demon I ever heard of is so… so…"

Mori snorted. "Fool," she said, sounding of all things honestly amused.

Hasegawa blinked, and Tezuka wasn't certain, but something appeared different. Something about Hasegawa's statement had struck a chord with the demon.

But there was no time for contemplations, even as realization dawned on Hasegawa's face. "You're no…"

"I'm afraid I have no time for useless conversations, sweetheart," Mori announced, unflappable as before, "Tell me where the stone is."

Something tickled Tezuka's shoulder. He held his breath.

Mori fixed her eyes on Hasegawa's.

"Tell me or Tezuka-kun loses his left arm. And from what I heard, it's quite dear to him."

Whatever Hasegawa saw lurking beside Tezuka made him pale dramatically. Tezuka swallowed. He wouldn't look – wouldn't give in to the fears preying on his mind. Panic wasn't becoming of him. If Hasegawa had to keep the secret – he wasn't going to plead for mercy.

Not when they had already paid so high a price.

But Hasegawa's eyes turned away. To the ground. Defeat colored his voice, when he whispered: "The stone is kept in the study of Tezuka Kunikazu."

His eyes found Tezuka's – and Tezuka felt a tumult dwell in his chest. He wanted to be angry, wanted to be disappointed that Hasegawa had chosen Tezuka's safety over keeping the secret. But Hasegawa's eyes were pleading for understanding, for forgiveness; and Tezuka could deny a man in pain his last lifeline as little, as he could deny his own relief.

He hadn't wanted to imagine how Mori would remove his left arm from his body.

Or the consequences.

He had stopped thinking about consequences the moment he had left his classroom. The moment he had realized that he quite probably wouldn't live to see the sunset.

"Why, thank you very much," Mori told him. "See, it wasn't that difficult. And Tezuka-kun remains unharmed. Easy, wasn't it?"

She turned away from Hasegawa with a self-satisfied chuckle.

"Why…?" Hasegawa gasped, "What are you doing this for? What is your aim?"

"And why do you suppose I would answer those questions?" Mori asked, casting a glance across her shoulder as she approached the desk Tezuka had taken refuge at, "You turned down the deal I offered, so I don't owe you any answers."

She shrugged. "I had to threaten Tezuka-kun here to get you to talk, so unless you have some form of leverage, I'm not interested."

Hasegawa struggled. Blood bubbled on his lips, trickling down his chin. Tezuka wanted to say something. Do something. But he remained frozen in place.

Carelessly she grabbed a water bottle, turned it over and emptied its contents on the floor.

"Anyhow, it was nice of you to finally cooperate," she announced, tossing the bottle away, much to Tezuka's bewilderment, "Though it took a while. But I'm glad you value Tezuka-kun so much."

She tilted her head and a dark smile crossed her lips. Something crackled in the air.

"After all," she whispered malevolently, "It's not as if the same applied in reverse. Tezuka-kun's family stuck you with a fake. Do you really believe they had no idea what would happen?"

Tezuka's heart stopped. Mori chuckled, paying no heed to Hasegawa or Tezuka.

"Oh well, Tezuka-kun, we need to get going." She nodded over to the puddle of water on the floor, mixing with blood.

"Hasegawa-kun… good riddance."

A wave of the hand was all it took.

Tezuka could only stare as the wires started moving – tightening, moving into opposing directions, cutting effortlessly into the flesh between them. There was no scream, only a wet, gargling sound, and Tezuka couldn't look at Hasegawa's face.

Yet the image of a body being cut into pieces burned itself into his retinas, even Mori whisked them away.

Fuji was almost out of the school grounds, his heart pounding louder than his footsteps. His mind filled with horrific images, overflowing with questions and blinded by what-ifs.

He had to get to Tezuka.

Then there were screeching tires and a decisive voice cutting through the haze obstructing his brain.

"Syusuke," his sister was glaring at him from behind the steering wheel of her red convertible, "What on earth are you doing?"

tbc

Thank you for reading and please feel free to share your thoughts and impressions with me! ^_^