RARARA! VOLUME 1 CHAPTER 7- THE STRANGE DUO PT.3

(Oh my, I apologize for the delay in the warning ~ Please keep note of the dates….. Yeah, this is going back in time. Thank you~)

A complex in Shinjuku. July 12.

"I can't say I expected you here so soon."

An information broker smiles welcoming at two young men seated in front of him. A short bright green eyed man and a tall soft blue eyed man look at him with mild interest. The short man named Hitoshi shrugged.

"If it's a bad thing, it's your fault. I suppose I was waiting for a sign to come back, and then I got one! Izaya-san got stabbed!"

The information broker straightened up. His smile fell as his eyes narrowed sharply. He felt his body tense up.

"Was that world-wide?"

Hitoshi snorted gleefully.

"Don't be so conceited~! You're not that important. Akihiko-kun found out since he has been hooked on Ikebukuro news-also your fault if I may add."

Izaya relaxed a bit but still was tense. He managed a hallow laugh anyways. Hitoshi stretched out before him.

"Well that's gotta be a sign, right? If anything, the untouchable Orihara Izaya got touched! What have we missed?"

It was a rhetorical question. The green eyed man looked at Izaya admirably. His tall friend was silently grinning from ear to ear, looking like an obedient dog next to his companion.

"Are you feeling better?"

The tall young man quipped. His smile never left his face but his tone was one of concern.

"Yeah, he's fine. I'm starting to think he's some sort of god."

Hitoshi mused.

"Oh wait, nevermind, he bled~!"

More laughter. Hitoshi's laughs were soft "huuhuuhuus." His laughter subdued after a while.

"But really, your an idiot Izaya-san. All that money and you didn't even bother hiring a bodyguard."

"I'm considering it..."

Izaya replied flatly.

"Really? Hmmm I could pay one for you if you want. Of course, my obvious choice would be Shizuo-sama but if I did that, I might as well hire an assassin to kill you instead."

Izaya's smile turned bitter but he just took Hitoshi's words as a bad joke. He scoffed.

"I thought being all the way in Romania would make you quit caring after Shizu-chan."

"Oh never~ Shizuo-sama can't be replaced no matter where I go."

Izaya rolled his eyes at Hitoshi's overly sweet sickening smile. Akihiko, on the other hand, looked surprised. His smile simply turned a bit uneasy although it never left his face.

"How did you know we were in Romania...?"

Hitoshi, on the other hand, shrugged the matter off cooly without a second thought.

"Akihiko-kun, don't be silly. He's an information broker. Of course he'd know where we were."

This response made no sense at all to the youngest of the men but he fell silent once again. Relaxed at the calmness of his companion, his smile returned to it's normal cheerfulness. The conversation continued.

"How was Romania anyways? You two lost touch for a while."

"Oh Romania. It was quite lovely. We made a lot of friends."

Akihiko chirped as if he was never uneasy in the first place.

"What kind of friends? More 'lovers'?"

This phrase would sound weird in any given situation. Even so, this made Hitoshi smile sharply. All jokes were now put aside.

"Many."

"Oh, how exciting~!"

Izaya's eyes shone with slight disgust despite what he said. Obviously, what Hitoshi did was something Izaya didn't approve of.

"Hmm... Yes, but we weren't allowed to make 'lovers' out of the common citizens. The police kept tabs on me and Akihiko even after stepping out of Ikebukuro. We weren't allowed to step our of line."

"... ?"

"Hitoshi made 'lovers' out of vampires and all sorts of supernatural creatures!"

Akihiko almost fell out of his chair from excitement in sharing this news. Before Izaya could speak, Hitoshi cut in.

"They're much more attention-craving and less frightened by humans in Romania. Then again, that explains all the folklore and crap revolving around the country."

"I... Didn't know you had it in you, Hitoshi-san."

"I didn't at first... But then Akihiko-kun and I got used to it. We adapted to our environment to apply to our needs. Then later our wants. We're now ready for Ikebukuro to use us. We're now strong enough to handle it."

"I see~"

Izaya's mind roamed, trying to reposition Hitoshi and Akihiko back on the board. Should they be pawns? Higher?

His smile grew as he thought of ways to use the pair before him.

Hitoshi interrupted his thoughts.

"As a child, I was always fascinated by the slasher attacks. You know, Saika. Then you told me recently about the Dollars and Yellow Turbans confrontation and the arrival of Russian assassins and a serial killer named Hollywood."

Hitoshi looked bored and played with a pen he found on the desk.

"Although many might believe I'd take an interest in these various subjects, they may be dully noted but they all have one thing in common; sloppy."

This was Akihiko's time to smile as if he heard this a million times before.

"The only thing that interested me was when you sent us the information over the Slasher attacks. Has Saika miraculously returned?"

"Saika never left. But Hitoshi-san, my my my, weren't you a warped child? Wanting to be stabbed by Saika since you were young."

"... I never wanted to get stabbed by Saika."

"It would slow Hitoshi-san down."

Akihiko added meekly. He was smiling supportively as he patted Hitoshi's back.

"Their arc is too long. Their range is too wide. Their cuts too shallow. Amateur work. It's completely horrible."

Hitoshi smiled ironically.

"I guess Saika was a part of my childhood. My only interest is in confronting Saika... And destroying it."

"For love...?"

Hitoshi now looked up at Izaya with a cat-like gaze.

"Yes. You, if anyone, would know what I'm talking about. The love all three of us feel for humanity."

"Oh~ I hope your not planning to kill me then~"

"If I will, then I'll invite my precious Shizuo-sama to kill you alongside me!"

Akihiko had been silent for a while. At a glance, Izaya suggested that he was just listening to music since the tall young man had oversized headphones and was humming softly to himself. His eyes were sparkling and his soft smile looked secretive. Hitoshi cleared his throat then straightened up.

"You're safe for now, Mr. Information Broker. At least from me. Anyways, if I don't kill you, someone else will. I hope you know that."

Hitoshi gestured Akihiko to stand up. Both men were standing over Izaya. Green eyes and blue eyes stared down at Izaya in the shadows.

"A piece of advice to take to heart; start getting people to actually care for you rather than hold a grudge to you. Believe me, it's all going to catch up to you."

As soon as he finished his last words, Hitoshi had already left the building. Instead of following, Akihiko, still humming softly, stayed behind, his blue eyes still on Izaya.

"... Yes?"

"We don't hate you quite yet, so don't hesitate to ask for help Izaya-san. I'd love to make you happy."

Akihiko bowed politely.

"Thank you for meeting me. I am happy to make a new friend."

It seemed like something rehearsed. He's said it 100 times before. It was hard to take it seriously. His smile might have convinced Izaya if it seemed true. But this young man had been smiling since he had first arrived. Akihiko laughed childishly then scampered after Hitoshi who had long left.

They were peculiar, those two. Izaya couldn't wait to find a place for them on the board. He spun in his chair in silent victory. Things were going to become even more interesting.

Humans never let him down.

Takeshi residence. July 29.

An anchorwoman on tv was making a report on Moon.

An amused young man watched eagerly as his roommate was cooking in the kitchen behind him. He found the aroma pleasant. He was about to tease his roommate of the contents of a jar he had found on the table before him when something caught his attention.

"Once again, a new victim was found late at night. Police investigators are unsure of whether this death is related to the couple found a few days ago. They are trying to find a link to these deaths including a certain severely gruesome death in which the victim was found without a heart. There is little information on this new serial killer, deemed 'Moon', but viewers are warned of any suspicious figure in a hoodie late out at seems to use his knives on victims, though size ranges from each victim. Here are some images of the crime scenes. Those with weak hearts should look away. Now, a certain attack reminds us of an old nightmare revived..."

Akihiko's smile widened when the images popped on the screen. He chuckled as he relaxed on the sofa.

"My my~ how dangerous it is to be out in the streets now. You never know what you might run into~"

"Hmm...? What'd you say Akihiko-kun?"

His roommate called out with irritation.

"Oh nothing, nothing~"

I wonder how long this serial killer will last...

Surely he doesn't think he's the only one?

He's awfully bad at killing...

"Hey Hitoshi-san..."

His shorter roommate looked up from cooking, obviously moments away from murdering him.

"When will we show this Moon how things run in Ikebukuro?"

Hitoshi smiled now as he cleaned his hands.

"Don't worry... Soon."

Akihiko giggled more. His eyes narrowed as his lips curled into a predator's smirk.

"It's sure dangerous for Moon. He better watch out hmm~?"