The impression passed as soon as it came to him and fascination settled instead.
Hibiya had a kind of quiet charm and self-possession that made him come across as much older. It impressed Shizuo.
"Shizuo-kun, I have been working with the school board to arrange for Izaya to move in with me. Everything is finally ready. But I don't want to disturb his school life. Would you like to remain his roommate? The residence is very large and you would have all the privacy in the world. Just knowing that Izaya is in the same building would make me happier."
Shizuo did not know what to make of this but he could not turn it down.
"Oh, sure. Izaya should be with his family and it'd be great if I could still be with him. I'm new in this school but I already see Izaya as a good friend."
Hibiya gave him a warm smile and poured Izaya another cup of tea. The smell of roses in bloom was in the air.
"That is something I want for Izaya. To have true friends. I can give him all the support as an older brother but friends are so important, especially at Izaya's age."
Shizuo had half forgotten that Izaya and Hibiya were the same age. It was at this point that he realized he could never mention anything about the duels to Izaya's brother. Why it was so Shizuo could not possibly explain but something told him that it would disrupt the family harmony and that was the last thing he wanted.
"Izaya is making more friends."
"I am very glad to hear that. Shizuo-kun what did you think of the play?"
"Didn't make sense to me. Just weird...stuff. I mean, it could mean anything...or nothing..."
Hibiya lifted his cup gracefully. Shizuo expected him to wear a uniform of sorts given his position but the dark purple shirt and white tie were a perfect fit. A combination of style and authority.
"I think that it is the mark of true art. That it can mean so many different things to different people. It makes the work of art open to interpretation and ever evolving. At the same time it makes art alive in each person."
Shizuo felt like a little kid but he was proud that Hibiya even bothered talking to him as if he was a peer of sorts.

"Izaya, how come you never told me you had a brother?"
They were walking back to the dorms. Their new home would be the strange tower Shizuo kept seeing. Shizuo walked a few steps ahead and Izaya followed at a respectful distance.
"You didn't ask, Shizuo-sama. I told you about that my family ran Orihara Academy."
"Yeah but you didn't say it was your brother doing it...I kinda assumed it was some uncle or something like that. I mean, it's a bit weird since he's so young..."
"Onii-sama is very clever. And there are students involved in important positions. Mikage-san runs his own seminary."
"Eh...I guess there's that. I don't think I ever saw this Mikage but Erika said something about him and other people too. Oh well, I just hope there's an elevator at that tower. I'm getting tired of climbing endless flights of stairs."
"No need to worry, Shizuo-sama. There is an elevator."
Shizuo sighed in relief.
"Thank god for that."

Around the same time Kida stopped in front of Mikado's. He almost knocked but at the last moment spun on his heels and left in a hurry. He almost ran into Anri who halted at almost the same spot and almost knocked as well before changing her mind and leaving. And so it comes to be that a collection of 'almost' amounted to fate. Or so Aoba thought as he watched from the scene unfold.
He did knock but without expecting to be admitted.
"I know that you can hear me so I'll just say what I have to say. You're free to stay huddled in your own misery, it'll probably be better for me if you did just that. But I'm sure you've been wondering about it as well, what is the qualification of a duelist. Why do we have these rings, what is the common thread. I think I found it out. It's desire. Wanting something with all your might. If you want something then get your ass out of there and fight. You might find out what I still don't know: what qualification do these black ring duelists possess."
Aoba did not wait to see what effect his words had and silently slipped away.