Hi. Wow, sorry this is so late. I've been working a lot these past two weeks. I'm actually leaving to go overseas pretty soon, and probably will disappear for a while. ^^ So, if anyone reads this a month from now and reviews, and I don't respond, that's why. Thanks to everyone who did read and review! It really meant a lot to me! Wish you all the best! Oh, VioletIsInPain, there is a shout out to your review. I just loved the phrasing of "trolled beyond the grave" so I had to put it in there. Thanks again, everyone.

"Shizu-chan, Your face is going to get stuck that way."

"Huh? Oh..." Shizuo had been staring down at the water, slowly lapping at his bare feet, for the past ten minutes without saying a word. Fall was on its way, but the ocean breeze was still warm enough that it wasn't too cold to be shoeless on the beach. Their flight back to Tokyo didn't leave until early the next morning, so Izaya had immediately opted to take a taxi out to Venice Beach for the evening, and had proceeded to drag Shizuo all up and down the Boardwalk, terribly curious to see what the local people were peddling. He steered clear of the fortune tellers, though. The sun had slowly begun to set as their walk took them to the beach, whereupon Izaya had kicked off his shoes and proceeded to splash about in the water. Shizuo was content to sit in the sand and let the water gently sweep over his toes.

It had not been easy trying to explain to Vincent's granddaughter, Mary, why exactly her invalid grandfather had suddenly vanished from his room. The woman had been completely hysterical, and Shizuo was pretty sure most of Izaya's words were falling on deaf ears. She seemed to think he'd escaped out the window, and Shizuo and Izaya quietly sneaked out the front door as she quite loudly filed a missing person's report to the local police over the phone. Shizuo felt a little sorry for the shock the lady had been through, but in all, he was glad that they were able to help give the tragic story a happy ending of sorts. It made him smile to know that Vincent and Zola would be always be together, without any fear of their war affiliations or past transgressions. Izaya, however, had felt quite differently, and as he drove them back to the airport, he made it quite clear.

"I can't believe we came all this way for nothing!" he vented, as he swerved the vehicle in and out of traffic.

"That was a yield sign..." Shizuo pointed out.

"I yield for no one!" he cried, vehemently. "How could the freaking violin not have a freaking curse? I know the previous owners all died untimely deaths!"

"Coincidence, I guess? Maybe they were driving like you."

"Oh, ha ha!"

"Aren't you at least glad we helped two people find everlasting happiness?" The look Izaya threw him was a mixture of both surprise and disgust. Shizuo just sighed and shook his head. "Never mind... But what did you expect? After all, this is your relative we're talking about! When I told him about the curse, of course he was going to go right along with it! We got trolled."

"We got trolled," Izaya conceded, irritably. "From beyond the grave, no less."

"Doesn't that kind of make it okay, though? I mean, it wasn't like you got trolled by any, old regular human. You got trolled by a powerful, Nazi ghost!"

Izaya sniffed, as he mulled this over in his head. "Your words have placated me," he finally announced. "And I suppose it's nice that in retrospect, for once I wasn't in danger of emanant death at any point in this entire venture."

"Well, except for when we first summoned Zola and he was about to run you through with his sword thingy..."

Izaya's eyes narrowed, and he scowled at him. "Shut up, Shizu-chan."

Shizuo just tried to hide his smirk on the way back to the hotel. Almost as soon as they entered the room, Izaya had flopped on the bed and immediately passed out, with Shizuo following closely behind in the arm chair.

They'd caught the flight to Los Angeles the next morning, and Shizuo found himself deep in thought the majority of the day, until now, as he sat on the beach. He'd watched Izaya stomp about in the surf for a while, and couldn't stop that same, recurring predicament from swirling around in his mind. Izaya... He could be cold and calculating, definitely fell in the category of strange, and his career choice was questionable, at best. But Shizuo seemed to be privy to a side of the informant no one knew; the caring side, the kind side, the side that tried to comfort him every time he was down and worried for him every time he was in danger. The side that would take a bullet for him. And damn! He'd been awfully cute as a little black fox, but now, as he stood in front of Shizuo, staring down at him with his mischievous smile, the setting sun turning the horizon deep hues of purple, pink, and orange from behind, the blonde man couldn't help but feel that, stunning, was more the word for him, now. He felt the same familiar feelings, and no longer felt confused as to what they were. He'd felt enough feelings from Vincent to know that the disquiet plaguing his mind and heart day after day was really love, and not the kind friends shared. He was quickly losing his fear of intimacy as the overwhelming desire to reach out and touch eclipsed it.

"So, what's on your mind?" Izaya pressed, as he stepped into the sand and rolled his pants legs down. Shizuo stood up and did likewise.

"Just thinking... About everything."

"Quite a lot to think about!" Izaya grinned, standing up straight and dusting himself off.

"Well, a lot's happened!" Shizuo defended. "I mean, this past year, it has."

"Indeed!" Izaya affirmed. "Let's see, people getting turned into animals, stopping a serial killer, evil demons stealing body parts, and then we wrapped it all up by reuniting two starcrossed lovers, one of which happened to already be dead. I'd say we've been quite busy!"

Shizuo just chuckled and ruffled Izaya's now ocean sprayed hair, as they began to walk back towards a main road. "You can say that again. I'm about ready for a break!"

"Not sure Tom-san will give you any more time off, Shizu-chan," Izaya smirked. "I seem to have a knack for getting you out of work."

"To do more work."

"Too true. Now, how about you tell me what you were really thinking about."

Shizuo blinked. Damn. His mind reeled, trying to think of an appropriate transition into what he really wanted to say. Izaya seemed content to be patient, and wait for him to perform all the necessary mental acrobatics. "Well, honestly, I guess I was thinking about how much Vincent and Zola liked eachother."

"How creepy it was?"

"No! I mean, no. I thought it was kind of nice, that they both knew what they wanted."

"You sound a little envious!" Izaya pointed out with a smile. "So, you were thinking how nice it was that there were such a pair of love birds? Quite the romantic, Shizu-chan!"

"I was thinking about other stuff, too!" Shizuo quickly added. Why did he feel like he was floundering? Izaya's rust colored eyes boring holes into him was certainly not helping. Dammit! Hadn't he had the upper hand most of the month? When did that change? How could he get it back? "I guess, I was thinking that I understand why Vincent liked Zola so much."

"And why would that be?"

"Well, he liked him because...because..." and then it clicked. Shizuo smiled, showing all of his white teeth, as he looked directly at Izaya, who quickly turned away from the direct gaze. "Because Zola was beautiful, intelligent, mysterious, dangerous, and anybody would find someone like that fascinating. And he only ever showed his real self to Vincent. It was like a secret the two shared. Everyone else probably knew Zola to be a selfish and cold person, but Vincent knew better."

"You think so?" Izaya challenged, still not looking up, but Shizuo could see his cheeks dusting red at the turn the conversation was taking.

"Of course I do. There's just one thing I don't understand."

"What's that?"

Shizuo shrugged and lit a cigarette. "I don't get what Zola saw in a guy like Vincent," he chuckled. Izaya didn't answer, and Shizuo was fine with that. It was an unspoken challenge, in a way, and the blonde man couldn't blame him for not acting upon it. These types of things couldn't be rushed, after all, and the scenery surrounding them made it difficult to feel anxious. The sun finished setting, leaving a bright sky full of stars in its wake. It was a weekday, and the crowds had died down, the beach line practically empty. The only sounds that could be heard were those of distant traffic and the waves gently rolling on the shore. Shizuo looked up as he walked, taking in the expansive, night sky and inhaling deeply. He really needed to go to the beach more often. It was definitely one of his favorites places to be. He could already feel the salty breeze relaxing him, all his worries fading away. So lost was he in his beach reverie, that he hadn't even noticed when Izaya stopped walking. Shizuo turned, and looked at him quizzically, twisting out the cigarette in his hand. The informant stood with his head bowed, his fists clenched, tightly. "Flea?" he questioned, a bit concerned. This new, quieter Izaya that had been popping up a lot in the past month was a little hard to read. "You alright?"

"I know what...," his voice was so quiet, Shizuo could barely hear it.

"What?" It'd been so long since they had spoken, Shizuo wasn't sure what he was referring to.

"I know what Zola saw in Vincent." Shizuo's honey colored eyes widened, and he swallowed the sudden lump of anticipation in his throat. His heart began to race in his chest, almost fearfully, as he waited for what Izaya would say next. "At first, he saw someone he could use, because that's what he did. He'd used people his entire life," he looked off to the side, remorsefully, shoving his hands deep within the pockets of his jacket. "But little by little, he found that he couldn't. He couldn't treat Vincent the same way he'd treated the rest of humanity, because..."

"Because what?" Shizuo murmured, taking a hesitant step back towards where Izaya stood.

"Because Vincent helped him rediscover his," Izaya smiled, as he lifted his gaze, the moonlight casting a warm glow around the tips of his dark hair. His eyes caught all of the lights of the night sky, and they shone, fiercely. It was all Shizuo could do to just breathe, because he found the sight before him truly breathtaking. "And that is something worth dying for."

"You really think so?" Shizuo asked, smiling brilliantly from ear to ear. Izaya mirrored his elated grin, but a familiar slyness was creeping into the corners of it as Shizuo stepped closer.

"You know I'm never wrong, Shizu-chan!" Izaya smirked, hunching his shoulders for a moment, before rolling them out.

"Tch!" Shizuo snorted, but he was still smiling. "You're such a flea!...But I might have to hug you now."

"Ugh, if you must," Izaya sighed, over dramatically, as Shizuo gently folded his strong arms around the smaller man. He could immediately feel Izaya meld against his body, burying his face into his shoulder, and this only made him want to squeeze all the harder as he let his head fall to rest on one of the informant's shoulders. Izaya let out a contented sigh. "You want to know what else, Shizu-chan?" he murmured, his voice muffled against Shizuo's shirt. "Vincent wasn't that bad on the eyes, either."

A low chuckle bubbled up from deep within Shizuo's chest. "Izaya..." he half whispered, gently pushing away so that Izaya could face him again. "I love you. I have for a while, now."

"Good," Izaya affirmed, reaching his hand up to wrap around Shizuo's neck and pull him downward. "Because I think I loved you from the moment I first saw you, and I just didn't realize it-," was all he got out before pressing his lips against the stunned, but completely elated, taller man. Shizuo felt as if his body were on fire and melting to the spot, as if he'd never be able to walk again. It was everything he'd both hoped and feared it would be, and the kiss sent such a shock through his body, he was forced to take a step back. At the loss of contact, Izaya glanced up at him, quizzically, before they both grinned like mad men, and the informant let out a short bark of a laugh, as if he couldn't even believe what he'd just done. Shizuo could barely believe it either, but he wasted no time in returning the gesture, tenfold. Perhaps what he found most unbelievable of all, was the feeling of earnest and fiercely protective love that spread throughout his body, making his heart swell every time he touched Izaya's soft lips with his own. It was something Shizuo would never grow tired of feeling, and he hoped with all of his might that Izaya could feel him returning every ounce of it within his kiss. Izaya let out a contented hum as they parted, once more. He gazed up at Shizuo with lazy, half lidded eyes, and smiled, completely intoxicated. Shizuo hugged him close to his side as they began walking once more, and Izaya let out a loud yawn. "Mush, Shizu-chan!" he commanded, sleepily. "To the hotel!"

"Yup, you're still a flea," Shizuo sighed, shaking his head at the old joke.

"Ah, but I'm your flea, and you're my neanderthal."

"...Yeah..." Shizuo grinned, stupidly, blushing a bit. Izaya saw the look on his face, and smirked.

"So! Shoulder ride?"

Shizuo threw back his head and laughed, but in a few seconds, stopped abruptly. "No," he said, flatly. "...But you may be able to talk me into one of those old, shampoo jobs," he added, as an afterthought. Izaya just chuckled and leaned into him more as they walked. Shizuo couldn't remember every being happier, as he lay in the double bed at the hotel within the airport, lazily flipping channels later that night. He wasn't even paying attention to the scenes that flashed by. There were two beds in the room, but Izaya had fallen asleep curled up against his side. Shizuo looked down every now and then at the quietly sleeping informant, quite buried beneath the plush covers, and smiled, before finally turning the T.V. off and gently pulling the slumbering man into his arms. Izaya stirred, and muttered something about Russia Sushi. Shizuo just rolled his eyes, as he rested his chin on top the dark and soft head of hair beneath it, still smiling. Foxy, flea, informant, Izaya...he had many ways to think of the man whose heart he could feel gently beating against his skin, but a new title had now surfaced in his mind, and it encompassed all the others; his.

A few months later...

"One can never tell what will impress the other kids at school," Izaya smiled his terrible smile, white teeth gleaming against the city lights. He stood, almost cockily, before a teenage girl, who had been crying atop the roof of an abandoned, industrial building in Ikebukuro. "You could dye your hair, and it very well might carry the same weight as jumping off a roof top," he shrugged with a chuckle. "People are wonderfully cruel like that. Fact that you're here tells me your parents don't think much of your social problems, either. No one probably thinks about it, except you, and I know what you're thinking."

"W-what?" the girl sniffed, wiping her eyes, and stepping further away from the edge. Izaya had been babbling a good five minutes, and in her state of confusion, she was beginning to be distracted from her original intention.

"You're thinking that absolutely nothing will ever get better."

"What if it doesn't?" she asked, hesitantly, her voice quivering both from the cold and from fear. She had no idea where this strange man had suddenly appeared from.

"Normally, I can't see the future, I leave that to one of my other good friends, but let me ask you this. How is it that you made up your mind it won't?"

"I'm just tired!" she started crying again. "I'm tired of feeling this way and I want it to stop!"

"Mm-hm..." Izaya nodded in understanding, though it did little to lessen his evil grin. "Yes, god knows no one else on the planet has ever faced such social awkwardness as you. Better jump now, I think they're talking about you in the chat rooms, already!"

"How would you know how bad it is?" she demanded, hotly. "How do you know anything about me?"

"Because I happen to be one of the people leaving com- ACK!" Izaya was abruptly cut off from his grand revelation, and now hung with his feet thrashing wildly in mid air. The girl could only stare in complete shock as yet another, taller and blonde man had appeared, immediately plucking him off the ground. It didn't matter how much the other one kicked and thrashed, the blonde man just heaved a heavy sigh, tucking his sunglasses, which for some reason he was wearing at night, into his front pocket. "Put me down, neanderthal! You're ruining all my fun!"

"Shut up, flea! Look, girl, I don't know what this guy told you, but I'm telling you now to not believe a word of it. You don't have to do whatever he's putting you up to."

"What are you accusing me of, Shizu-chan?"

"I told you to be quiet!" Shizuo yelled, giving him a firm shake. "You were trying to get this poor girl to jump off this building!"

"Gasp! I most certainly was not! Miyu-chan! Was I in any way inducing you to leap to your certain death?"

"...What?..." the girl drawled, in an especially confused way.

"See?" Izaya chirped. "Now put me down! How did you even know I was here?"

"Celty told me."

Izaya rolled his eyes. "Heh! Tattletail!"

"Haven't I told you about a thousand times to stop trolling poor highschoolers?"

"Really, Shizu-chan!" Izaya smirked, still trying to wriggle free, "Such an exaggeration! It was much closer to five hundred! And we've already established that I was clearly not doing that! I've done absolutely no wrong, so if you please-"

"Oh, I don't think so," Shizuo grinned, maniacally, giving him another shake. "You were supposed to cook and do the dishes tonight! Your turn, remember?"

"Ah, Namie-chan can do that!"

"I sent her home! She's not your slave!"

"You're just scared of her! And since you were so dead set against my brilliant idea to just order sushi-"

"We can't eat tuna every other, frickin' night!"

"Says you! It's healthy!"

"Maybe I should just throw you off the building!"

"You both are WEIRD!" the girl cried, interrupting their tirade and stomping her foot. She quickly rushed past them. "I'm going home!" she announced, before disappearing down the stairwell. Shizuo and Izaya both blinked at eachother for a moment, before Shizuo put him down.

"Humph!" he snorted, dusting himself off. "Way to go, Shizu-chan."

"I'm sorry. Did I damage your street cred?"

"I'm sure the web will be atwitter for a day or two."

"Well, you'll enjoy that. You like being the center of attention."

"Not when the spotlight's unflattering!" Izaya smiled, but there was something sinister about it. "Don't worry. I'll find ways for you to make it up to me."

Shizuo just shook his head and started walking. Two seconds later, Izaya had lept onto his back, circling his arms around the blonde man's neck. "Oh, what the hell, Izaya!" Shizuo groaned, as he stumbled forward.

"Step one in making it up to me is carrying me home!"

"How is me carrying you halfway across the city on my back not going to damage your reputation more?"

"Ah, there's hardly anyone out, now, Shizu-chan!" As if to make him eat his words, they both saw a shadow curl in front of them, before retreating to the stairway door. Celty was leaning, casually, against the frame, watching them. "Anyone human!" he quickly amended. Shizuo couldn't help but blush in the ridiculous position she'd caught them in, but Izaya seemed quite at home. That is, until Celty quickly typed something on her screen and held it out to them.

"You are both so cute! Izaya, you look like a baby koala!"

That was enough to eject the informant from his perch with a disgruntled frown. Shizuo just laughed, and wrapped his arm around him good naturedly, drawing him close. "Ah, don't get all bent out of shape!" he chuckled. Izaya tried, feebly, to fend off the hug.

"You both are terribly cruel to me! What is this? Emasculate Izaya Orihara Day?"

Celty's shoulders shook with silent laughter, as she held out her screen to him. "Sorry! You and Shizuo, the way your are now, it's just too funny!"

"You know what's not funny, Celty-san? Tattletailing on me to my boyfriend!" Izaya informed her with an extremely sinister smile. It sent a little shiver down Celty's spine, as she took a step back. Shizuo, quite tickled with the title Izaya had used, saw the look on his face and grabbed him in a bear hug, lifting his feet off the ground.

"You're even cuter when you act all evil and stuff!" he gushed, burying his face in the back of the informant's fur trimmed jacket. Izaya let out a squeak that was most indignant, and Celty started laughing again.

"Shizu-chan, I swear to god, I will cut your throat in your sleep!" he warned, but there was little ill intent behind his words, as he had begun to arch away and giggle when Shizuo began nuzzling under his ear with his nose. "Gaw- you know that tickles! Stop it!" he half wined, half laughed. Celty just shook her head and proceeded to cover where her eyes would be on her helmet when Izaya leaned his head back and let Shizuo gently kiss him for a moment. "Hmmm...Maybe I won't kill you tonight, after all... At least not literally," he smirked, after Shizuo had put him back on his feet. That last comment made Shizuo's face light up like a Christmas tree, of course, and Celty was forced to thrust her handheld in front of them, again.

"Would you two get a room!" she demanded. Izaya and Shizuo both laughed as they walked past her.

"Celty-san doesn't appreciate our smoochies and such, Shizu-chan," the informant tsked with a shrug.

"I appreciate our smoochies and such..." Shizuo yawned, lazily, shoving his hands into his pockets. He looked back over his shoulder. "Hey, Celty, you got errands to run, tonight?"

The black rider gave a nod, summoning her bike from around the corner of the entryway. It gave a loud neigh, as it screeched to a halt at her side. She held her screen out to Shizuo. "Yes. I'll catch you both, later. Shinra's really excited about going out to dinner, tomorrow night. Hope you two can-"

Shizuo didn't have a chance to read the rest, before a blood curdling scream resounded in all of their ears. "What the fuck?" Shizuo yelled, extremely startled. Izaya looked like he'd just stuck his finger in a socket, every hair on his body standing on end. Even Celty shrank a bit at the awful sound. "That sounded kind of close!"

"Quick, Shizu-chan!" Izaya called, already racing down the stairs to see what he could find.

"What are you do-? Argh!" Shizuo groaned, completely exasperated, as he ran after him. Celty took the side of the building down with her motorcycle and reached the road first, with Shizuo and Izaya emerging through the side exit a moment later.

"This way," Izaya commanded, taking off once more, in the direction of a small alley way. The three of them rounded the corner and came to a screeching halt. A large, looming and shadowy figure rose from a crouching position on the ground, staring at them with flashing, round eyes that almost seemed to be positioned in the chest area. Its form vaguely resembled a broad human, with no head, and catching sight of them, began to emit a high pitched wailing sound that almost sounded like a woman screaming. it unfolded a pair of large, moth like wings, and flew off into the night before anyone could get a better look. The girl who'd been on the roof top, Miyu, lay huddled on the ground, and Celty immediately rushed forward to check on her. Izaya and Shizuo quickly followed.

"What the hell...?" Shizuo wondered. "What was that thing? Is she okay?"

Celty looked over her shoulder and nodded. The girl's eyes fluttered open a moment later, and the black rider helped her to her feet. They all blanched a bit when they saw her eyes had turned pitch black. Celty held her screen out to her face. "What happened? Did that thing hurt you?"

The girl stared vacantly without blinking. "S-something bad is going to happen..." she said, quietly.

"What's going to happen?" Izaya asked. "Did it tell you something?"

"It said..." Her voice trailed off as she looked at a floodlight over their heads. "Pretty... I wanna touch it..." she murmured, reaching for the light with her hands. Her skin was quickly turning an odd, brown color, as tiny antennae emerged from her forehead.

"Is she... Is she turning into a bug? Oh, for crying out loud!" Shizuo cried, lighting a cigarette. The flame from his lighter immediately caught the girl's attention, as she stumbled up to him, making feeble grabs at the item still in his hands.

"Can I have that? I would like to have that light!" Her voice was eager in a creepy way. Shizuo frowned, slapping her hands away.

"No! Fuck off!" he growled. He only grew more exasperated when Miyu didn't take the hint. "Why is weird shit always happening around us?"

Izaya laughed loudly at the sight before turning to read the message Celty had waiting for him on her screen. "You don't think it could be aliens, do you?"

"Who can say?" Izaya shrugged. "We certainly can't rule aliens out as a possibility." This made Celty practically quake in fear, and she drew her hands to her chest, glancing about frantically as if an alien would spring at her any moment.

"I'm sure it's not aliens, Celty," Shizuo tried to comfort her, dragging the still babbling girl, who'd attached herself to his leg, with him over to where Celty and Izaya stood. Miyu had now started emitting strange, humming sounds in lieu of talking, and he sighed. "Okay, we need to get bug girl, here, to a hospital. Can you help us take her, Celty?" Celty nodded, albeit hesitantly, and formed two helmets for them with her shadows. "I don't feel comfortable leaving you alone..."

"Ah, Shizu-chan! Whatever it was, it's quite gone for now."

"Well, just head straight home. I'll be back, soon."

"Good! I hope to already have some answers for you as to the identity of our strange, moth man," Izaya sounded completely enthused. Shizuo felt himself deflate at the look on the informant's face.

"Wait...is this gonna be another..."

"Adventure?" Izaya chirped, clapping his hands and rubbing his palms together, eagerly.

"Not quite the way I would put it..." Shizuo sighed, trying to force Miyu's helmet over her new set of antenae.

"Indeed it is, Shizu-chan! And if this moth man is who I think it is, we'll have some great tragedy to prevent in the near future!"

"Why me?" the blonde man moaned.

"Never a dull moment when you're with the great Izaya Orihara, Shizu-chan!" Izaya smirked, standing on his toes and giving Shizuo a quick peck on the lips before he put his own helmet on.

"...But I had plans. You know, you were going to not kill me and stuff, tonight," Shizuo's disappointed voice was muffled through the cover. Izaya gave him a sympathetic smile, patting him on the shoulder.

"Later. Now you be a good neanderthal and see to Miyu-chan. Ta-ta! Don't get turned into a bug!" He gave the blonde man a wave, before running off into the night, back towards their home. Shizuo could help but smile as he watched him leave. He was quickly brought back to the present situation, as Miyu had managed to grab his light from his pocket and was buzzing with anticipation. Shizuo snatched it back and lifted her on to Celty's bike, before positioning himself behind her. Celty revved the engine, and slowly started the bike forward, keeping at low speeds since she now had two passengers. Shizuo was already dreading how the next month wout go. Mothmen with glowing red eyes that could turn other people into bugs? Freakin' fantastic! But even so, his lips still felt warm and tingly where Izaya had just touched them, and he couldn't help but smile. It didn't matter what freaky, supernatural bull shit the world threw at them, they'd get through it, together.

The End