Mikau: Hey there, guys. Today we have lots of updates: Falling in Love Literally, The Healing Process, Mausoleum, and Just Passing Through. There are also two new-ish ones, if you have time. Guide is a short RanKai piece about healing, and Fraud is an AmuAzu piece in which Amuro pretends to be Azusa's fiancé and meets her brother. Before we get started, I just wanted to thank the reviewers from last time: bourbon (Actually, the jealous scene happens in chapter six "The Admission and the Jealous Fit". Look forward to it!), shouldbeworking (I'm excited for his dark side to come out, but I generally take things really slow, so that probably won't happen for a while. ^.^;), Guest (Actually, I liked him when he was the "bad guy" too. ^-^), neonquincy1217 (times two), piggyninja (Huh. I read/watch raw too, but somehow I missed that. What chapter was that in?), and EverThePhantom. I'm so glad that there are people supporting this piece!
Disclaimer: If I owned it, I feel like I'd be difficult for an editor to work with. ^.^;
….
Chapter Four: The Duet and the Rival
In Misa's opinion, the evening was going quite well so far. She had forced Azusa to get up and sing and dance around, showing her friend off most effectively in front of their target. And Misa had seen Amuro eying Azusa, admiring her as she smiled and blushed. Misa could tell that he was interested. She could see him sniffing around, thinking about taking the bait. They'd hook him before too long.
More than just sneaking looks at each other, the two lovebirds-to-be were actually flirting successfully! That was a mega plus in Misa's book, especially since flirting was a complicated foreign language for Azusa and Misa hadn't specifically instructed her to do it. It was just taking place spontaneously! Naturally! For Misa, this was proof that these two were meant to be, and she was going to do her darnedest to get them together. Because Azusa could be a little clueless, so Misa doubted things would happen without her own interference.
The innocent flirting came to an end, and then there was a bit of awkward silence that Misa took it upon herself to break. If she could just keep the conversation flowing between those two, keep them talking and discovering things about one another that they had in common…
Misa decided to try music. They both liked the same stuff, right? Azusa had said that they'd talked about music for a full two hours earlier that week when he'd taken her home; maybe another conversation about music would springboard them into another topic and things would just develop naturally from there.
Misa leaned forward to speak around Azusa, and, with a mischievous pixie's grin, inquired, "Hey, Amu-chan, do you like Super Junior better or Hey! Say! JUMP? Or are you a fan of SMAP or Arashi or…?"
Amuro blinked, wondering why in the world she was asking, what he could have possibly done to give her the impression that he would like any of those crappy Johnnies groups. "…Uh… None of the above?"
Misa blinked, genuine confusion showing plainly on her face. "Then…do you like girls idol groups? I wouldn't have thought…"
"And you would have been right," Amuro snorted lightly. "I don't like idol groups any more than I like boy bands."
Misa's befuddlement quickly changed to a fat cat smirk. "Ooooh. I get it. You're just embarrassed." She shielded her mouth with a hand as she snickered. "Don't worry, Amu-chan. We already know, and we don't think any differently about you because of it…well…not too much, but…"
"I'm sorry. What?" Amuro raised an eyebrow, feeling completely out of the loop.
"What are we talking about?" Satoko asked as she strutted back over after her song finished.
Misa turned to Kujiro, instructing, "Baby, go sing something, okay?"
The dutiful boyfriend immediately acquiesced, and Misa then replied to Satoko. "We're talking about what music Amu-chan likes. Apparently Azu-chan and Amu-chan are big fans of all the same bands, so I was just asking him what groups he likes, but he's playing all coy about it 'cause he's too embarrassed to admit that he likes pop music."
"Oh," Satoko remarked at the exact same time as Amuro.
The two girls turned their attention on the young man in question, looking at him expectantly.
He looked oddly amused for someone about to confess his deepest, darkest secret.
He grinned as he announced, "Well, since you already know, I suppose there's no harm in admitting that I like those bands every bit as much as Azusa-san. Our feelings about them align in every way."
Satoko gave a noncommittal "Hn." while Misa snickered in triumph, "Isn't that such a weird coincidence? It must be destiny."
Meanwhile, Azusa was looking distressed. She pursed her lips as she gripped at the hem of her shorts. "Don't say that," she quietly directed at Amuro.
Misa, thinking Azusa was addressing her, opened her mouth to tease, but Amuro replied first: "Why not? Isn't it true?"
Azusa shifted uncomfortably, keeping her voice low as Kujiro belted enka in the background. "But saying it like that makes it sound like you like those bands."
"I do," he replied instantly. "Every bit as much as you do."
"But you don't," she stressed, anxiety evident in her voice as it rose in volume.
"Of course I do," he laughed good-naturedly, unable to be anything but pleased that she was so concerned for his image. "It's already been established that you and I share feelings on the groups in question. I mean, you told them that we shared tastes in music; what music could you possibly have meant besides pop?"
He cast her a kind look and gave her hand a reassuring pat, letting her know that it was okay. He didn't mind. She should just let it go.
Azusa bit her lip, meeting his gaze and searching his fog grey eyes for a moment before firmly, audibly declaring, "Amuro-san, I don't like pop music any more than you do, so why don't you just tell them that the music we were talking about was punk, rock, and metal?"
Satoko and Misa looked at Azusa in astonishment while Kujiro kept singing enthusiastically about plum blossoms and the full moon even though no one was listening.
Amuro smiled in approbation at Azusa before addressing the other two girls. "Well. There you have it. And she has such good taste too. I was just as floored as you when I found out, but I have to say that I'm really impressed with her. She's a regular connoisseur."
"Oh." Misa blinked a little dumbly. "Rock music. She likes…"
Misa's dumbfounded spell along with the awkward tension Azusa was experiencing only lasted about twenty seconds. After that, Misa shot her friend a chastising look and swatted her lightly on the arm. "You dope. You never told me! All this time you've never said a word. All these years I've spent dragging you to concerts—Exile, Ayu-chan, Perfume, KARA, Katy Perry—and you haven't enjoyed any of it, have you?"
Azusa shrunk a little as she smiled sheepishly. "Misa-chan, we've known each other for six months, not multiple years, and I actually do like Hamasaki Ayumi, so…"
"But still!" Misa snorted, hands going to her hips. "You should have said something. Think of all of that money I made you spend, all of that time waiting in line for tickets to go on sale, time spent at concerts that you could have been using to get out there and meet boys!" Misa bemoaned.
Azusa just laughed, taking her friend by the hand. "Misa-chan, I don't mind. I've never minded. I've always had fun spending that time with you, even though I've never been a big fan of the music."
Misa took Azusa's other hand and gazed at her with watery eyes. "Azu-chan, you are the best person ever." Misa leaned forward to look pointedly at Amuro. "Isn't she the best person ever?"
He obviously had only two choices in the matter: He could either answer, "Yes, absolutely." or he could die a bloody, back alley death execution-style at the hands of Mizutani Misa. Still, Amuro didn't like the thought of being forced to give Azusa a compliment. It left a bad taste in his mouth, and he worried it might come across as insincere.
He smiled pleasantly and replied, "I wouldn't be able to say. I'm not acquainted with every person ever, so I wouldn't be a good judge. What I can tell you is that Azusa-san is the most patient, agreeable, compassionate person that I have ever personally met. She's become somewhat of a standard for the ideal human being to me."
"Stop," Azusa begged, face turning magenta. "You guys shouldn't tease me like that. I'll think you're serious."
Amuro smirked, addressing Misa. "She thinks we're joking. Isn't she cute?"
"Adorable," Misa purred, wearing a giant grin of her own. "I could practically eat her, couldn't you?" she added with a suggestive lilt.
Amuro pretended not to hear. He was not allowing his thoughts to go there.
"Guys!" Azusa protested, growing progressively more purple by the minute.
"But seriously, Azusa-chan," Misa jumped back in in her serious tone of voice. "You should of said something. We could have gone to the concerts you wanted to see too."
"It's really okay, Misa-chan. I don't think you'd like my music," Azusa continued to push away the issue. It had never been a big deal to her.
"Well, you don't like my music, and you still went with me once or twice a month. I don't think I could stand metal, but I could probably go to a rock concert with you sometime. I mean, it's the least I can do. Seriously. My treat."
Azusa thanked Misa profusely for the offer but, in the end, adamantly turned it down, not wanting to inconvenience her friend.
It was then that Misa had an ingenious idea. "I insist. In fact, we should all three go together—you, me, and Amu-chan. How's that sound? That way I can make it up to you for dragging you to pop concerts and you'll also have someone there who actually likes the music that you can be a geek with. What do you say?"
"Oh! That sounds like a lot of fun," Satoko joined in uninvited. "I think it would be great if we all went together. I know that I'd like to go and see what kind of music Toru-san listens to."
Misa inwardly bristled like a cat as she realized her fatal error. Azusa had a rival for Amuro's affections, and Misa had unknowingly let a wolf into the sheep's pen by allowing Satoko to be a fifth wheel to her scheme of getting Amuro and Azusa together. She'd have to be more vigilant in the future.
For now, Misa put on an energetic smile and laughed. "'Toru-san'? Since when is he 'Toru-san'? I didn't know that you two were that close."
"I feel the same way when you call him 'Amu-chan'," Satoko snickered. "But Toru-san and I have gotten closer recently. He was so kind to me today when I almost fainted earlier. He carried me over to a bench and went and got me a bottle of water. Toru-san is my hero," she explained in a stomachache-inducing-ly sweet voice, giving the 'Toru-san' in question a dreamy look.
Misa seemed slightly alarmed at this. She had erred, mistakenly creating openings for the enemy where she had hoped only to further her friend's interests.
Misa shot Amuro a cross look. "You're not actually going to let her call you that, are you?"
Amuro shrugged disinterestedly. "I don't see how I can stop her. I've had no success with you and your 'Amu-chan this' and 'Amu-chan that'. I will say, however, that no one calls me 'Toru', so I can't say that I'll always answer if you address me as such."
"Do most people just use your family name then?" Azusa spoke up out of pure curiosity, cocking her head to the side at him.
She kind of looked like an Afghan.
Gorgeous dogs, Afghans. So graceful and sleek with their long, shiny coats and their gentle dispositions.
He kind of wanted to reach out and pet her hair. He bet it was soft.
"M-Mostly." He forced himself to look away from her. "Among other things. I'm mortified to admit that our Mizutani-san here has got me reacting to 'Amu-chan', so…"
Azusa couldn't help but chuckle softly.
"Please don't laugh at my suffering," Amuro sighed.
"Oh!" Azusa's laughter came to an immediate halt. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"
"—It's fine. I was just giving you trouble," he cut her off before she could spiral into an out of control apology filled with kowtowing and penitent tears.
"Oh." She laughed in relief. "Oh good."
"Azu-chan, Kuro-chan is done singing," Misa informed, and it looked like this was news to Kujiro, but he came back to the couch and sat down beside his darling anyway. "So why don't you sing us some of that music that you like? It'll be an educational experience for us; you know, to prepare us for going to a concert."
"I don't know. I…" Azusa played nervously with a strand of her hair as her friends (Misa and Kujiro, anyway) encouraged her enthusiastically.
Her eyes caught Amuro's, and he smiled at her. "Why not? You have a lovely voice, as I mentioned before. Are you able to sing songs like that? I mean, do you have the range? Some of those songs…the screaming parts might be a little…"
"I can't do them very well," she admitted. "I usually just sing the screaming parts regularly. It sounds a little funny, but…" She bit her lip and cast a nervous glance at the expectant audience of Misa, Kujiro, and Satoko.
Picking up on her stage fright, Amuro gladly offered, "What about if I sing with you?"
"Yes!" Misa decided in Azusa's stead. "She'd love to do a duet with you."
Azusa's cheeks colored, but she nodded hesitantly, meekly replying, "If it's really no trouble. I mean, if you really don't mind…I'd appreciate it."
"Of course," he chuckled amiably, getting up to grab the song list booklet. "What did you want to sing?"
She pursed her lips and thought about it for a minute before asking, "Um…Would you happen to know any songs by American bands?"
He shrugged. He had spent plenty of time in America for training. "Sure. I can sing in English well enough. What did you have in mind?"
"Do you know Rise Against?" She smiled shyly, crossing her fingers.
He blinked and then cracked up because if this girl got any more awesome, he'd have to marry her.
"They're one of my favorites," he informed with a satisfied smirk. "I just saw a concert of theirs a little over two years ago in Chicago."
"I'm sooooo jealous!" Azusa squealed. "I've never been able to see them. Gosh, that would be like a dream."
Her eyes sparkled at the thought, and she just looked so earnest and darling that he couldn't help but say, "I'll have to take you along the next time me and the guys go."
"That would be unbelievably amazing!" she trilled in delight.
When he stopped to think about it later that night, he realized that he had invited her to hang out with the secret police. Which was an amusing thought at first and then terrifying when he considered what all his buddies would tell her, how Hayao would hit on her, and how Yusuke would show her pictures of when Rei was an awkward teenager.
Terrifying.
Amuro also realized that it would be a long time before he saw "the guys" again. Going to that concert had been the exception rather than the rule. He couldn't risk contacting his brothers in arms unless he really, truly needed some manpower to help him with the mission.
He was in the middle of some deep undercover work, and he needed to isolate himself as much as possible in order to maintain his cover…to keep everyone safe. He wouldn't be able to see his friends for a long time. Right now, he didn't have "friends". There was only the mission, the work that needed to be done.
…But that didn't occur to him until later. He was caught up in the moment…in Azusa's glowing smile.
"Which song did you want to do?" he prompted.
She nibbled on her lip as she thought. "Maybe Tragedy + Time? I think everyone would be okay with that. It's not too…" She searched for the best word to describe it.
"Yeah," he agreed with her unvoiced sentiments. He understood what she meant, and he thought Tragedy + Time would be one of the least offensive songs they could sing for their unaccustomed friends. "I think that's a good one to start with. It's a little emotional, though."
He wondered if she would be all right singing it. He could easily imagine it being one of the songs that had given her the strength to go on and keep fighting that she'd listened to during that dark time in her life after she lost her parents. He could almost see her curled up in her room crying with the headphones on.
"Hm?" Azusa's head tilted to the side, not understanding his meaning.
He smiled. She was a tough girl. She'd made it through all that, and she would be all right.
The music started, and their voices meshed rather well. Azusa's pronunciation was definitively that of a Japanese that didn't get much opportunity to actually practice the English she'd learned in school. It was accented, but mostly understandable. At the very least, she knew exactly what she was singing, unlike many of her fellow countrymen.
She sang with conviction and genuine emotion that made Amuro's skin tingle. The connection she felt with the lyrics was palpable when she sang about the pain she felt when she was lying awake alone at night, waiting for tomorrow to come and praying that things would be better when it did. She could relate to having to put on a brave face and fake it in front of others even as she felt like she was dying inside, wishing there was someone there to talk her down.
She had been there.
Furuya Rei had been there.
And sharing in that song with her was exhilarating, experiencing the feelings as they washed over them with the lyrics and the notes. It was breathtaking, absolutely beautiful.
She was beautiful as her eyes blurred with tears and she smiled.
Enomoto Azusa was a survivor. And a thief.
His heart had been right there, securely in his chest not two minutes ago, but now…she'd taken it from him, and he was beginning to think he was going to have a hell of a time getting it back. So much for shaking loose this crush while it was still in its infancy.
Still. Just because he had these feelings, that didn't mean that he had to act on them.
…Easier said than done, but…
The song ended and she beamed at him, wiping away the tears that had gathered at the corners of her eyes. "Thank you so much, Amuro-san! If it's not too much trouble…could we do another one?"
Amuro snuck a quick look at their demanding leader, and Misa nodded vigorously in whole-hearted support of the suggestion.
Amuro chuckled softly. "Of course. Which one did you want to sing next?"
Azusa decided upon Collapse—not exactly a "happier" song, but a less emotional one…unless you were an ardent environmental activist. Azusa sang it with enthusiasm, and Amuro found himself getting swept away with her.
Apparently "Amuro Toru" did karaoke because he was certainly enjoying himself now that there was some decent music. He really was having fun singing with Azusa.
The peanut gallery was quiet as they sang…or maybe Amuro and Azusa were just too caught up in the music to take notice of anything else that was going on.
Amuro saw Satoko try to interrupt once or twice between songs as Azusa asked if they could do this song by this band next? If he had heard of such and such band? If he liked so and so song?
Misa fielded Satoko, giving her a firm "Shush!" and insisting that Azusa be allowed to sing as many songs as her little heart desired because that was what they had all come for in the first place.
Finally, after Azusa and Amuro had sung the two Rise Against songs, Just Melody by UVERworld, and Dir En Grey's Glass Skin, Satoko broke up the party by playfully pretending to pout, "Azusa-chan, you've been hogging Toru-san for the past twenty minutes. I want a turn too!"
"Oh!" Azusa gasped as she came back into awareness of where she was and what she was doing. Ever since the music to Tragedy + Time had begun, she'd been in a bit of a trance where there was just her, Amuro, and the music. She'd completely forgotten about the others watching her and listening in as she enthusiastically sang some of her favorite songs.
"I'm so sorry! I have been hogging the microphone!" She bowed deeply to Satoko, contritely holding out the mic to the other girl.
"Toru-san," Satoko giggled, bouncing up to him and getting in between him and Azusa. "Sing a duet with me!"
Amuro grimaced. "I'm actually feeling a little parched at the moment after singing with Azusa-san for so long. Maybe when I get back. I'm going to step out into the hall and get some water from the fountain." He gave a plausible excuse and then got out of there as quickly as he could before she could pounce upon him, squeeze his arm to her chest in a vice grip, and make him sing with her.
Satoko stuck out her bottom lip and glared at his back as he fled. She wasn't given much time to ruminate, though, because as soon as the door shut behind Amuro, Misa was up on her feet, hands on her hips, scowling.
"So you like Amuro-san too, huh?" Misa cut straight to the chase.
Satoko blinked innocently, looking a little confused at first. She somehow made herself blush as she smiled in embarrassment. "Is it that obvious?"
"Cut the act, sister," Misa snorted, flipping her long, ebony ponytail back over her shoulder. She was shorter than the other two girls by a head, but she somehow managed to look commanding as her personality made up for her physical lack of height. "You're a schemer and a con just like me, so don't try to play me. We're going to be straight with you: we're a coalition whose purpose is to hook Amuro-san up with Azu-chan, and we're gonna take you head on and take you down."
Satoko blinked. "You call him 'Amuro-san' behind his back? What happened to 'Amu-chan'?"
Misa bristled and hissed. "Hey! Pay attention when someone is throwing down the gauntlet in front of you! …And I only call him 'Amu-chan' to his face to annoy him, so there," she added in a huff.
"Fair enough," Satoko chuckled at Misa's outburst. "And you'll forgive me if I don't consider Azusa-chan to be much of a threat. I think my body beats hers hands down, and I'm infinitely more skilled in the art of flirting and manipulation while she's…artless. I'm sorry, but I just can't take a skinny little stick with no experience seriously as my supposed rival. If she's the only thing standing in my way to Toru, I'll be riding him by next Tuesday," Satoko declared haughtily with a prim little laugh.
Misa was so incensed that she began to spit like a cat. She rolled up her sleeves, intending to have a knock-down, drag-out brawl with Satoko right then and there, but her boyfriend gently put a gargantuan hand on her shoulder and held her back.
"Easy, Misa-mi."
Meanwhile, Azusa was about ready to have some very strong words with Satoko herself. It took a lot to get Azusa truly angry, but Satoko had just crossed the line.
She got to her feet and gave her rival a stern look. "Listen, Satoko-chan. I might not be much, but I know that. I don't have your hourglass body or any of your tricks and tactics. I don't have your experience with flirting, and I've never even kissed a guy, but one thing that I do have on my side is honesty."
Misa listened to her friend in surprised admiration. She had never seen Azusa stand up for herself in anything before, and she couldn't help but feel proud of her friend for finally speaking out but still managing to do so in a way that did Azusa credit by staying true to herself. She didn't need Satoko's low blows and catty tone to get her point across.
Satoko, meanwhile, was unimpressed. "Honesty?"
"Honesty," Azusa affirmed. "I'm sorry, Satoko-chan, but I can't believe that your way of doing things is right. Tricking people, pretending to be someone you're not, manipulating the person you want to go out with you…I just can't agree with that. How are you supposed to build a meaningful relationship on that? Where's the trust and supporting one another?"
Satoko looked like she was about to be sick on the purity and idealism coming out of Azusa's mouth.
"Satoko-chan, even if Amuro-san doesn't develop feelings for me, I don't think you have a chance with him using those tactics. Amuro-san is an honest, honorable man who won't be fooled like that," Azusa concluded earnestly.
Satoko gave a snort. "Well. We'll just have to let our little experiment run its course to see which of us comes out the winner, won't we? But I'll tell you this, I'll buy you and your Misa-chan both designer handbags if a beanpole airhead like you can win out against me for a guy."
"I'll look forward to my designer handbag, then," Misa crowed.
Azusa frowned, worried for her coworker. "Satoko-chan, I think you'd better give up before you end up getting hurt. Amuro-san isn't interested in you."
Based on what Amuro had said before when they'd left Satoko on the bench and had gone to the vending machine, the dyed blonde's odds didn't look good. Azusa would hate for Satoko to get so worked up only to get her heart broken.
"We'll see about that," Satoko retorted decidedly, giving her short, layered locks a good shake. They fell back into place looking wispy and wind-blown.
"Well, why don't we just ask and see where you both stand with Amuro-san?" Misa suggested.
"And look stupid? I don't think so." Satoko immediately rejected the proposal.
"Not us personally," Misa revised, casting Kujiro a meaningful glance that he didn't quite get the meaning of. "Baby, I want you to do something for us." She smirked as she detailed the plan to her henchman. "…But whatever you do, just don't let him know that we put you up to this. Okay?"
Kujiro nodded resolutely.
And just at that moment the door opened and in walked the man of the hour.
…
Mikau: I think that went rather well. Hopefully you liked it. ^.^; Updates may be a little slow in the coming weeks until I get out of my funk, so bear with me, but I'll try to have another update in about two weeks. Have a nice day!