Sorry this took so long to update. Thanks to all my followers and favoriters and especially my reviewers. If you guys didn't step in I would never update this at all! You inspire and encourage me. Speaking of which, I have a loose idea of how I want this to go but if you guys have any ideas to hesitate to speak up. I want your best ideas so I can try and squeeze them into the fanfic.

The streets of Ikebukuro are dangerous. They hold gangs, intrigue-all sorts of things that are much too dangerous for your average person to face. I'm probably considered one of the more dangerous aspects of Ikebukuro, but aside from myself there are plenty of dangers the average citizen should try to avoid. Most people either join a gang or try to stay as far away as possible from them. For the most part I don't care either way and Izaya hasn't either, but new Izaya might run into some problems with a few dangerous people.

I run through the streets looking for Izaya. I don't want to attract attention by calling his name so I concentrate on scanning the crowd. A few people try to pick a fight with me, but I shove them aside. Where could he be? I hadn't been gone that long had I? No. Definitely not. I stop running and sit down on a park bench. My phone pings and I pick it up.

Looking for someone? the text message reads. I quickly call the number.

"Hello," a flat voice answers.

"IZAYA?! WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU?! WHEN I FIND OUT I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" I scream into my phone. A couple of people give me strange looks.

"….maybe I won't tell you then." It seems more like scared shock then a taunt. I roll my eyes. Dealing with Izaya now is somehow the same while being absolutely different at the exact same time.

I let out a frustrated breath. "Sorry," I mutter, which only makes me angrier. I don't like apologizing. "Now," I take a deep breath to keep my voice from shaking in anger. "Where are you?"

Izaya laughs. "Don't you wish you knew."

I pull the phone away from my ear so hard I almost throw it in the fountain in front of the park bench I'm sitting on. I put the speaker very close to my mouth and roar, "TELL ME RIGHT NOW YOU LITTLE BRAT! I'VE BEEN HALFWAY AROUND THE CITY LOOKING FOR YOU!"

"Only halfway?" the flea asks in mock disappointment. I snarl, gritting my teeth. It's like dealing with Izaya…only he has the sense of humor of a child.

Izaya suddenly screams and I hear a clatter on his end of the phone. What's he gotten himself into now? "WHERE ARE YOU?!" I demand.

"Hello? Is that you, Shizuo?" Shinra's calm voice asks over the line. "I'm still at the house. Where are you? I thought I told you to stay with Izaya."

In the house is he? In the house? After all the time Izaya had never even left the house!

This time I really do throw the phone. Letting out a yell of rage I pick up the park bench I was just sitting on. People start screaming and one teenage kid tries to take a picture on his cell-phone. I hurl the park bench at him and he barely manages to jump out of the way.

I put my sunglasses back on and retrieve my cell phone from the ground. Then I walk back to Shinra's place. The sun is setting so I assume it's been a good hour or so since I started my rampage. I walk along the not-so-quiet streets taking in the city. Ikebukuro is a busy place and it never sleeps. Seriously, if you can't take noise or light you're gonna want some earplugs and heavy curtains while you're trying to sleep.

There's always action in Ikebukuro. Especially with the Yellow Scarves getting all full of themselves.

I make it back to Shinra's house and open the door. Only to find a very interesting scene in the living room.

Shinra is standing near the couch, the light is shining off his glasses so you can't see his eyes, making him much more imposing than usual. I realize what I at first thought was a pillow is actually Izaya. He's hugging his knees against his chest with his head buried in his arms. I shoot Shinra a questioning look.

"Shizuo," he says brightly, ruining the imposing scene. Once his head moves he looks like the same overexcited idiot again. "I'm so glad you're back! Celty was gone by the time I found him talking on her PDA." Shizuo shoots the curled up informant a death glare. "And, well, he kind of freaked out when he saw me." The underground doctor smiled apologetically.

"Huh," I say.

Izaya looks up when he hears my voice and flies across the room to grab me in another bear hug. He buries his head in my chest with a small sob. I awkwardly let my arm drop around his shoulder. Shinra smiles and leaves the room. Honestly I don't think he'd have the smug expression if Izaya were so attached to him. It's actually pretty ironic that Izaya apparently only feels safe around me. I tap the raven's head. He looks up, tears are streaking his face.

"Are-uh-you okay?" I ask haltingly. He nods. "You-uuuer-seem to have recovered well."

"I was so scared," he breathes.

"What?!"

"I didn't think you were coming back." He hiccups. "After I made you so mad."

I catch sight of Shinra's face watching us from the kitchen. He looks like he's watching a television show with a particularly cute ending. I snarl at him and he disappears.

"Did Shinra scare you?" I ask, using a lot of self-control not to add 'somehow' at the end of that question. Izaya doesn't bother to answer, only squeezes me tighter. "I see."

In the end Celty saves me from my awkward position by entering the apartment. Izaya immediately let's of me, and watches Celty walk toward us out of the corner of his eyes. She stops at the counter and picks up her red laptop since Shinra now has the PDA Izaya stole from her.

Celty types out a message and shows it to Izaya, he nods and points at Shinra. She types another message and shows it to me.

[How is everything?]

"It's okay. Depending on what definition you're using," I mutter.

[Izaya looks better.]

I shrug. He looks fine. It's whatever's going on, or not going on, in his head that I'm worried about.

[I was thinking that maybe you should take him back to your place. Izaya's house is out of the question and I don't think he can stay here much longer before he cracks. Izaya doesn't mind me as much anymore, but Shinra is still a major problem.]

No kidding. Then her other implications caught up with me.

"My house, my house? You want me to take him and have him live in my house? With me?"

Celty cocks her helmet to the side. [Yeah. Why not?] It's clear that the dulluhan doesn't understand what she's talking about.

"Can't he just stay here?"

[No. You're taking him home with you tomorrow.]

I let out an angry breath. "Fine. Hey Iz-" I break off when I realize he isn't standing next to me anymore. I turn and see him looking out the window of the apartment. Celty follows my gaze and brightens.

"What?" I ask, confused.

Celty doesn't answer. Instead she goes to the window and looks out of it as well. I join them trying to figure out what they are looking at. The way Izaya has his nose pressed against the glass I figure it must be something pretty interesting. Looking out over the sea of people going about their business I don't notice anything interesting. There isn't a gang confrontation or a robbery going on its just people walking around like sheep.

"What are you guys looking at?"

Celty shoots me a look as though I ruined something extraordinary by asking a stupid question. Izaya, however, doesn't seem to notice.

"Look at all the humans just going about their business. It's fascinating," he says.

Then realization hits me in the head. Of course, his humans! Izaya was always talking about how much he loved them. Maybe this means he's coming back to himself. Suddenly the boring people take on a whole new interest.

"Izaya? Look at me," I demand. He turns his head and shoots me a questioning look. "What comes to your mind? Just spit out the first things that comes to your mind," I say, before he can overthink it.

Izaya cocks his head looking at my face. "Tall?" he asks, trying to gauge my reaction.

I shake my head impatiently. "Do you hate me?" I ask tired of beating around the bush. I'm a very direct person.

Izaya pulls his head back his eyes widening. "Noooooooooooooo…"

"Are you sure?" I ask disappointed.

"Do you…want me to hate you?" he asks in confusion.

Well, yes, because that would mean you're back to normal, but I just shake my head.

"Good. Because I don't." He turns back to the window. "I don't even know why you would think that."

I start banging my head against the glass in frustration.

"Are you okay?" Izaya asks giving me a concerned look. I wave him away and keep banging my head, gently, against the glass, careful not to break it. I want to throw something at him and demand that he hate me and act normally. I can't. The only way to burn through this frustration is banging on the window.

Why

Bang

Won't

Bang

You

Bang

Remember?

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.

Someone taps me on the shoulder. I look up to see Shinra. "What?" I ask shooting him an angry glare.

"I…well, I was thinking…and talking to Celty…and I think her suggestion, sending Izaya to live with you, is a good idea. Do you think you could take him home with you tomorrow?"

"Fine," I say.

"Oh, good!" Shinra claps his hands together.

"I'm going home now," I say, lighting a cigarette. Izaya throws me a frantic glance as I walk towards the door, but I ignore it and walk out the door.

I've barely closed it before I fling it open again on an impulse. "Do you know who I am?" I demand. Izaya whips around surprised to see me back so quickly, but obviously relieved.

"Yes, Father," he says almost sarcastically.

Hoping that it was meant as a joke I continue. "But what's my name, Izaya?" I press.

"Shizu-chan of couse. Ask something harder."

Hearing that I want to do two things: throw the door at him and hug him because as much as the nickname annoys me it means he still remembers some things. I settle for throwing down my cigarette and stamping on it before grinning and leaving the apartment once again.

Maybe things aren't as hopeless as they seem. I just have to take the things Izaya does remember and connect them to the things he doesn't, then maybe his memory will come back and we'll be fighting on the streets again.

Good times.

By the time I get back to the apartment the dog has shredded an old pillow nearly beyond recognition. I clean up the mess, let him out, and feed him some of the food Shinra made me buy for him. To hear him talk about the proper nutrition for a growing puppy you'd think he was a vet now too.

I fall exhausted into bed still in my clothes and fall asleep to the crunching sound of puppy's sharp teeth chewing up his food. Just as I fell into unconsciousness I think, Izaya needs to rename that guy. And I need some earplugs.