- Disclaimer: Matantei Loki Ragnarok belongs to Kinoshita Sakura.
Ah, My Loki-sama!
written by Kurosu
- Chapter Eight.
Mayura rubbed her eyes, all dressed cutely for a nice Saturday morning, entering the kitchen to find just her father and Yamino present. She sat down at the table just as their house caretaker brought a plate of English muffin with a mixture of fruits on the side. She stared at the delicious-looking food, wondering where these had come from, her eyes roamed over to the center of the table where small dishes of various jams were available. She watched her father happily spread the raspberry jam across a slice of bread and eat it.
"Papa! When did we get these?"
He glanced to Yamino, who happily explained, "I received them in the mail this morning, Mayura-san. There was such a good discount on it the other day, I just couldn't help myself!"
"Wow, I didn't know we could do that!"
He nodded, his face eager and bright, "Did you know, Mayura-san, you could practically order anything by mail! They even have mail order pets!"
Daidouji sweatdropped, "Yamino-kun, please don't get carried away."
"Aha," the girl giggled, taking a bit of her breakfast. After a happy tummy of food, she finally asked the unspoken question, "Where are Loki-kun and Narugami-kun?"
"They went for a walk this morning," Yamino explained, clearing some empty plates into the sink.
"Hmm, really?" Mayura crinkled her nose, thinking, because it sounded very suspicious.
Daidouji finished eating, wiped his mouth before speaking, "I have a few clients I have to see today, so you kids behave yourselves. Yamino-kun, when Narugami returns, please tell him to..." he flinched, wondering what chore he could give the boy without wrecking the place, "err, sit. Yes, just sit still... and do nothing."
Yamino and Mayura shared quizzical glances while the man just shook his head and walked out of the kitchen, leaving the two to ponder over the events that had happened during the week.
"Loki, are you serious about this?!" Narugami huffed out as little Loki shoved the swordsman, who was pretty much glued to Mjollnir ever since the recovery of the weapon, to a public phone. The boy, with hands on his waist, glared up at him as if warning him of future consequences if he didn't go through with it.
"I don't have any other choice," he sighed, "This is the only way to convince Mayura-papa of this," he waved his hand in the air, "charade, which I might add, you are involved in too."
"I don't know," the brunette smiled, "I'm actually working hard!"
Loki rolled his eyes, "Destroying the shrine isn't work." He reached up to the phone receiver and handed it to Narugami, "Just make the call, pretend your my dad overseas, say you're delayed and won't be here for another three months. I don't need to be enrolled in any schools here and am very intelligent and self-reliant."
Narugami sighed and accepted the phone, still glaring at the kid, "You know, you really deserve that title of trickster god." He saw Loki shrug, wearing a smug grin, and then pressed the number to the Daidouji house. He coughed, clearing his throat, thinking a deeper voice would fit this father persona. He stiffened when he heard the phone clicking and Yamino's voice greeted him.
Loki tried not to laugh at his friend's sudden serious manner, attempting to fill the role of a profession businessman working overseas, his voice dropping to a deep baritone, "Ahem, I wish to speak to with Daidouji Misao please. This is... Loki's father..."
"Yamino-san," Mayura started, walking down the sidewalk with a bit of a bounce in her step, a bright smile on her face, "you didn't have to come with me."
The young man, smiling nervously, tried not to let the various stares around him bother him, but he wasn't used to so many people watching him so intently. He just didn't realize that being a son of a god would attract this unwelcoming attention, not that he was ashamed of it, but he was always content of being in his father's shadow, to be the quiet wallflower that the other gods overlooked.
"I, um I was planning to do some shopping for dinner tonight," he came up with the lame excuse, which wasn't a bad idea since he didn't have a menu for dinner yet, and Daidouji was going to return late tonight too. Besides, his father wouldn't want to have Mayura unprotected, so this was probably the best method to keep her guarded while they did some quick shopping.
"Where would you like to go first, Mayura-san?"
"Hmm," she slowed down, thinking about it because she really didn't have a particular place in mind. She just wanted to get out of the house for a bit and had hoped that she could show Loki around the neighborhood, her favorite places to go, just spend some time with him.
When she stopped and looked around, she spotted a small store across the street and pointed, "There!" Yamino followed her finger to a tea shop as she continued eagerly, "I bet Loki-sama would love that store!" She grabbed his wrist and hurried across the road, and the young man smiled, thinking that he wasn't the only one who thought of Loki as a priority, and it made him happy that they shared a common interest.
CLICK!
Another photo was taken by the mysterious, stalking boy, but this time, the mortal girl was not with that deceitful god, Loki, but one of his broods. All week he had been tailing the girl, hoping to get her alone, but it was difficult when Loki had clung to her side like a leech, and the times she was at school didn't allow him to get any closer either, but now, it was perfect. Even if it was just Jormungand, he could handle the demi-god.
But now, he had to get rid of the trash can first. He hopped out of the container as if it was the most normal thing on earth to do, ignoring the various questioning looks his way, and carefully stalked the pair a few feet ahead of him. So far, so good, he kept an undetectable distance, but it looked very suspicious to other people, who thought the little boy was following his sister and her boyfriend on a date.
He followed the two right in to the tea shop, and that would be his chance to separate them. He just had to put on a good act, so he messed up his hair a bit, getting it disheveled, and he blinked a few times, getting his eyes moist. He hid behind a display, keeping an eye on Mayura.
"I'll look over here a bit, Yamino-san," she told him and walked to the corner, looking at the pretty display of teapots and teacups. Most were Japanese style, but she found a few rare European sets, and one stood out, a simple porcelain material with a golden filigree design below the rim while green leaves fluttered around the cup. She reached a hand out to pick it up, but the tug on her dress made her stop. She looked down to her side and found a cute boy, around young Loki's age, staring up at her.
"Nee-san," he sniffled, "I can't find my mom! Please help me find her!"
"Aaw, I'll help you for sure!" she patted his head, "What's your name?"
"Higashiyama Kazumi," he grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the store before she could even utter a word to an oblivious Yamino, who was in the middle of deciding which of the new three tea flavors to get. By the time he made the final choice, he bought all three since Loki drank tea like he breathed air, and Daidouji always appreciated them too. He looked around for Mayura, ready to pay for the purchance, but the girl was nowhere to be found.
Shocked, the tea bags dropped from his arms, and he knew it wasn't a good sign.
"Aaw, aren't you two from the Daidouji shrine?" an old woman at the fruit stand asked, patting Loki on his adorable head. She even gave him a bag of oranges for being so cute.
"It's true, isn't it?" another woman asked.
"Ooh, I should stop by there more often!"
"You're so handsome!" a lady complimented Narugami, "I have a daughter about your age!" She handed a pastry to each of the boys, thinking how he would make a wonderful son-in-law.
"Wow, thanks!" Narugami nudged Loki, whispering, "If I knew we'd get free food like this, I'd be out here all the time."
"Oh?" the little god looked at him slyly, "What about a certain promise of making sensei proud?"
"Of course, a god keeps his promises! I can take on as many jobs as I want." He glanced down to his friend, "Unlike someone unwilling to contribute."
Loki ignored his remark as they waved farewell to the kind ladies and continued on their way home, but they didn't get too far when a familiar voice caught their attention. They looked back and saw a panicky Yamino running up to them, and seeing the young man like that, Loki knew what was wrong, but he hadn't felt anything disturbing within their connection, "Where's Mayura?!"
"I'm sorry, Loki-sama," Yamino hung his head low in apology, "We were just in the store together, but when I looked back, she was no long there."
"She couldn't have gone far," Narugami suggested, chewing on the pastry, "Maybe she just went to the next store?"
Yamino looked more trouble than the other two, with the feeling of abandonment lingering in his mind, but he didn't want to believe Mayura was that type of person to have just left him alone like that. She would've said something to him before leaving, so something must've happened to her.
Loki had been quiet, concentrating on his connection with the mortal girl, and even though she was in no immediate danger, he could see the white thread that linked him to her. He started to follow it, leaving the other two to watch him, and quickly trailed after him.
"You guys worry too much," the swordsman sighed, "What if she just wants some alone time?"
"She's not like that," Loki informed him, looking serious and determined to track her down. He never forgot how lonely and sad she looked when they met that first time, and he didn't want to ever see her like that again.
"Huh, sounds like you got to know her very well?" Narugami held Mjollnir behind his neck, across his shoulder, and rested his arms over them, "Even in this short amount of time on Midgard? And besides, how are we going to find her in this big city? Are you following a trail of bread crumbs she left behind?"
Yamino glared at their talkative companion, finding all his chattering very offensive, and he wished he could stuff more pastries into his mouth instead.
"If you must know," Loki began, "I can sense her, whenever she's in trouble."
"Oh, how convenient," he whistled, "So how's she doing now?"
"She's safe, but I don't like this. It's been much too quiet lately." He thought about the past week, having felt something odd in the air, but he couldn't pinpoint the problem. He had remained by Mayura's side as much as he could as a precaution, but everything appeared normal, even his childish ploys to foil Koutaro's invitation wasn't suspected by either.
But if someone had been waiting and plotting, they were very skilled to remain undetected by two and a half gods - considering Yamino was the half of one - for a few days, and today would be a good day as any to put any sort of plan into motion. Whoever had taken the opportunity of the division in the group and isolated Mayura further, and the only type of person that would be as underhanded and practically all-knowing... was a god.
"Keh," he clenched his teeth and broke into a run. Narugami and Yamino, without a clue as what had prompt the god in such haste, hurried after him. "Damn Odin," he cursed, "He better not be behind this!"
"Huh?"
Mayura walked into the empty warehouse, looking about the poorly lit space without a single worry about her own safety or any suspicion on the boy who took her to such an obviously dangerous place.
"Kazumi-kun?" she called out to him, having lost his small form since he led her there.
He had just been right in front of her, very certain his mother had gone this way for some strange reason, and she believed him. What a gullible mortal, and he couldn't understand why Loki had become attached to her. He watched from his lofty position as she moved from one point to another, searching for the missing boy. Not afraid to get dirty, falling on all fours to check behind all nooks and tight spaces, she was quite persistent.
And her curiosity was another matter that he found interesting, like a kitten poking her nose in to all sorts of trouble, even when it was obvious that she ought to turn back. She was going to be Loki's downfall, and he would gladly use her to his advantage against that trickster god, tearing him apart slowly.
"Kazumi-kun?" her tone laced with worry.
He sighed, annoyed with the pitiful emotions she dared to give him, and with a snap of his fingers, the darkness within the warehouse slithered at his command, towards the girl. The shadows wound up her leg and quickly up the rest of her body and around her mouth before she could let out a blood curling scream, because it felt creepy and gross like a snail had crawled up her leg.
"Mayura!"
Loki practically heard her voice screaming in his head. He would be going insane now, if it wasn't for the existence of the white thread that grounded him on the path to her. He took several turns down narrow alley ways, farther and farther away from the bustling streets, but as long as he was getting closer to her, he didn't care.
A few more minutes of running, and they arrived to what appeared to be an old factory, having been abandoned for some months now. The three looked around for anything suspicious, but it was very quiet, only the echoes of the faraway streets lingered in the background. Narugami stepped up to the doors and pressed an ear to it, glancing back to Loki and shaking his head.
"I feel her inside," he stated and shoved he doors aside.
The daylight flooded in to the dark space, and he followed the path of light, and it illuminated on the centerpiece of the room. Dangling from a rope from one of the iron beams, an unconscious Mayura hung as obvious bait. Angry that she was treated that way, a haze of power swirled around Loki, engulfing his small form within it, and in mere seconds, his original form ran forward, intent on saving the girl from a doomed fate.
Notes: Cliffhanger? Not very dramatic, but there's the next chapter for your happy reading! Lol. -kuro.