That Black-Haired Menace

Jumonji Tsubasa stood before her with wide eyes full of concern.

"Oh, welcome back, Tsubasa-kun, but I thought you were staying in Osaka another week?" Sakura asked.

"It was impossible after I heard you were in the hospital! What happened to you?" Tsubasa asked, nearly in hysterics.

"Are you all right? You look don't look well."

Tsubasa shook his head, "I drove all night to get here."

"Jumonji-kun, you didn't need to—"

"The Hell I didn't. What's up with your arm?"

Sakura tilted her head to the side. She shrugged the best she could. "It's nothing. I'll be fine in a week or so."

Rinne peeked his head out from the kitchen, curious about the male voice. The black-haired boy wore a cross around his neck and his black clothes made him look like a preacher or priest of some sort. He seemed very concerned as he discussed Sakura's injury, although she would not give him any clues as to how it occurred. Rinne blinked in sudden realization. 'Of course. Of course she has a boyfriend!' That was a suitable explanation.

Rinne observed the boy for a second too long, because the boy stopped speaking and raised an eyebrow at the other. Rinne did not move to avoid the boy's gaze, since he had no reason too, but Tsubasa became annoyed instantly, glaring slightly before raising a brow to Sakura.

"Who's he?"

Sakura turned to look back at Rinne.

"He's…This is Rinne-kun…" she struggled to look for exactly who Rinne was to her. He wasn't quite her friend, so ordinarily there would be no reason for him to be in her house if he was in some way related to her. She wasn't about to tell Tsubasa about her time in the alleys, so she really had no way of explaining the boy's presence in her home.

Sakura's mother passed in front of her view, handing Rinne his old clothes, folded neatly.

"Now make sure to eat before you take off," Mrs. Mamiya said to him as he thanked her, although he kept his gaze fixed in the general direction of the front door. She knew full well the boy had already finished his meal but this…grim energy that entered the room upon the boys seeing one another, needed to be broken. She followed her daughter and greeted Tsubasa, acting as if she had just noticed him standing in the doorway.

"I thought you were staying in Osaka for another week?" She stalled.

"I heard Sakura was in the hospital, so I had to finish up early. Anyways, who's that guy in your kitchen?"

"Where's your dad?" She stood straighter in an attempt to block the boy's view of the other.

"He stayed back in Osaka a few days longer. He'll come back on the train."

Mrs. Mamiya nodded.

"That kid in your kitchen?" he continued, not at all off put by her distraction.

"A friend of Sakura's," she said finally. "He just needed a place to stay for the night."

"I've never seen him before," the black-haired boy glared at the redhead. Rinne knit his brows in annoyed confusion right back at Tsubasa. There was no reason for the Christian to glare. Yet, Rinne got a strange feeling about the boy. From some innate instinct, Rinne did not like the boy, and this boy did not like him. Rinne tilted his head slightly in further confusion as the boy kept glaring even as Sakura and her mother's looks became worried. The boy—Tsubasa—was doing his best to make Rinne feel unwelcome with the glare, but Rinne knew this wasn't even the boy's home to make the redhead fell unwelcome to.

"Um, Tsubasa-kun," Sakura began as a way to break the silence, "would you like to come in? It's a little rude to loiter in doorways."

Tsubasa blinked back to Sakura's face, and she moved aside to allow him in. He had stopped outwardly glaring at the red-haired boy long enough for Sakura's mother to leave the room. She didn't understand the hostility between the two boys, but she would prefer they settle down.

Rinne excused himself to change in the bathroom, wanting to leave as soon as possible. This gave Tsubasa a moment to sit on the couch and speak privately with the girl.

"What happened to you, and who is" he started calmly, trying to remember the guy's name, "Rinne?"

Sakura groaned inwardly. "I don't want to talk about it right now…how was your trip?" Her smile did nothing to brighten his mood.

"Then when do you want to talk about it? Or are you going to just put it off long enough for me to just assume the worst?" Despite the things being said, his voice was soft—full of concern for the girl.

Sakura sighed. "Tsubasa-kun…it's not really that important."

Tsubasa squinted in obvious irritation.

Sakura put her chin in her good hand. Thinking of the best way to tone down what happened and still have it be the truth.

"You know how I'm always volunteering downtown?"

She didn't give him all the details of the first night, but enough to where he became aware that Rinne wasn't the bad guy in the story. Rinne had come out of the bathroom at some point, but stood out of sight to listen to the rest of the tale. He grit his teeth at every downplay of events she made. Every time she left out the negative role of him or his family ties, Rinne felt his stomach clench. But then, on the second day's telling she…emphasized the good he'd done. He hadn't done anything quite that great—he had thought—since his very own flesh and blood was the reason she was injured in the first place, but the way she went on about how…heroic she thought him, Rinne's heart began to pound. Every bit of it was truth but he couldn't help but think, 'I did all that?'

Unseen to either, Tsubasa wasn't enthralled at all by her telling of the way Rinne had saved her on both occasions. Hell, he was grateful—deep down—but the way Sakura talked about the boy she'd met just two days prior irritated Tsubasa.

Rinne came around the corner just as Sakura finished. He bowed immediately upon entering the room, thanking Sakura for her kindness. Before she could get a word in that he could stay a little longer, he was quickly grabbing his shoes and shutting the door behind him. Tsubasa just watched him go, still training the remnants of a glare on him. Several seconds of silence passed as Sakura just sighed at the awkward departure.

"Mamiya-san."

Sakura glanced back to the black-haired boy.

"You're never going back there," he said firmly.

Sakura slowly shook her head. "I won't. But you can't make that kind of decision for me. I'm—"

"Your parents are sure to agree with me on this too; from now on, if you leave the house without them, I'm coming with you. To and from school, the store, park, anywhere—I want to make sure you're safe."

Sakura bit her lip. "Tsubasa," she dropped the formality, "I understand your concern, but—."

"No." he interrupted, speaking firmly. "I only live two houses down. I can always be there for you," his tone was almost pleading in those last few words, but it didn't matter. Sakura had known since they were kids that Tsubasa had a crush on her. She liked being friends with him, but whenever he asked for more, she always turned him down. She saw through his statements—his overseeing was further than a friend would go to her. It was almost as if he wanted to control her movements. She did not like that one bit.

"Do you hear yourself, Tsubasa? Do you know what you sound like?"

Tsubasa broke away from her gaze, staring down at his feet.

"I know what it sounds like… but if that's what it takes to protect you, then I'll risk sounding like an ass."

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A beautiful young girl slapped a manila folder on a secretary's desk. It was thick with documents and photographs, collected over the night.

The young secretary seemed stunned as she quickly thumbed through the folder.

"I…is this complete?" she asked hesitantly.

The girl smirked. It didn't detract an ounce from her beauty—long black hair, large black eyes, tall, balanced frame—but it added an odd elegance—a prim cruelty.

"Everything we need for our purposes. School records, recent medical records, address, various club activities, a list of family members and possible close friends."

The secretary gawked.

"H-how did you—and in one night?"

The girl smirked again. "I strive to be the best…in everything I do."

She began looking at her nails, well-manicured with black tips. "So, how soon can I transfer to that school?"

The woman hesitated. "I have to prevent Saba—Rokudo-sama from knowing your reasoning so it might take a couple days."

The girl raised her eyebrows. "Then you better get on that. It's not like you have anything better to do."

"Right away, Shima-sama."

The girl rolled her eyes and left the room. The woman let her head fall into her hands for a second. She really couldn't stand that child. She had much preferred the boy as apprentice—but he had decided against that over a year ago, so there was nothing the woman could do about it.

She opened her eyes again and slid the first paper out of the folder.

Age:16.

Blood type: AB.

School: Saikan High.

Siblings: None.

She moved her thumb out of the way to read the name.

Name: Mamiya, Sakura.

Afterwords: Sorry it's been so long between updates. I actually do want to continued this story into completion, even if it takes me until the series is finished! Which, I haven't been keeping up with all the chapters, I think I'm only in the 140's. I'll have to do some serious reading first.