A/N: A straightforward chapter, after all the storm and suspense in the previous one lol. It's a pretty looong April 16 evening...
As usual, a big thank you to everyone reading/favouriting/following/reviewing this story! :)
April 16, 2013
The man was busily typing away on his keyboard, paying no attention to his guest seated on his sofa, who left her tea untouched.
She had been in that position for the past thirty minutes, at the very least.
Yet the inconsiderate host had spent those thirty minutes on his computer, ignoring the existence of another person in his apartment.
'...And humming some ridiculous tune, too,' the guest thought to herself bitterly.
To say that Yagiri Namie was pissed off would be an understatement.
Not only did she have to make her own tea, but she also had to suffer her former employer who was the one that called her up and told her that he had found out more about Seiji's death. But when she arrived at his apartment, all the informant did was let her in and that was it. No new information to share, no witty remarks, nothing. Absolutely nothing.
"...If you asked me to make a wasted trip here, I'm leaving."
"Patience is a virtue, my dear Namie," Izaya responded smoothly without directing his attention away from the computer. "And I did not 'ask' you to do anything. You chose to come here of your own accord, did you not?"
Namie's eyes narrowed. "That's because you said you know something about what happened to Seiji. But from the moment I stepped into your apartment till just now, you haven't even said a damn thing. If you were lying to me-"
"Goodness, Namie, are you listening to yourself? When you arrived, I did tell you to make a cup of tea for yourself while you give me time to substantiate my findings. I wouldn't want you to leave in the middle of another of our meetings, you know." His eyes briefly wandered over to where she had been sitting. The smile never left his face. "And do you honestly think I would actually lie to a client? Really, Namie, your two years of experience as an information broker's secretary is as good as nothing. It makes me wonder what you have been doing exactly in the past few years working here."
Honestly? She wouldn't put it past someone like Izaya to get someone's hopes up and then dampen them just to see how they would react. She believed that she was no exception, and was simply another human whose emotions could be played with. He could be horribly twisted that way. Namie understood that, after years of putting up with him and ensuring that he would never be able to see through her.
But then again, it was probably too irrational of her to accuse him of lying at this point in time. While Namie was unquestionably just another human for Izaya to observe, she was also, first and foremost, currently the information broker's client.
And if there was anything Namie had learnt from working for Izaya, it was that informants don't lie to their clients.
Truth lies in information. Therefore informants, who pride themselves on dealing with information, are essentially dealing with the truth. To give false information to people who paid to learn the truth would be to admit that informants are no different from con artists, a grave insult to information brokers everywhere.
Even Izaya himself more or less stayed true to the principles of his profession, Namie once noticed with mild surprise. When he wasn't with a client, the man could fabricate anything out of thin air, just to get a kick out of misleading the humans he claimed to love. But where his reputation as an information broker was concerned, there was simply no room for mistakes. Sure, he might leave out some related bits and pieces of information - for all sorts of strange reasons - but it didn't mean that he was lying, technically speaking.
As strange as it might sound, Izaya did take his job very seriously.
"...Fine, whatever," Namie replied begrudgingly with an audible sigh. "I'll wait. But if you don't give me anything new in the next ten minutes..."
"I assure you, I am nearly done. I just need to do this-" The informant typed a few keys before he finally made a click with his cursor. "-and then I'm almost there. Just give it a minute or two." Then the man leaned back into his swivel chair and spun excitedly before he suddenly suggested, "Ahh, in the meantime, why don't we catch up a bit?"
Namie shot him an incredulous look.
"Hm, let's see... How have you been? Have you been getting enough rest recently?"
Those questions were so ridiculous and unprecedented that Namie couldn't help but say, "Hah?"
"I heard you've been busy nowadays. I take it you've found a new job, then? Congratulations."
"What on earth are you-"
"Or perhaps I should say-" Izaya promptly stopped spinning in his chair and glanced up from his desk, his auburn eyes meeting his former secretary's dark brown ones. "-my condolences."
Namie fell silent.
"You know, Mika-chan was probably the only one in the entire world who could understand what you're going through right now. After all, she was quite enamoured with your brother." The informant watched her like a hawk, his eyes glinting dangerously yet playfully. "But now, not only have you lost your brother, but also a potential sister-in-law. What a tragic outcome."
"..."
"Ah, I'm not saying that she's dead or anything. After all, you did tell your subordinate not to give her a life-threatening wound; just enough to land her in the hospital, didn't you?"
"...! What-"
"Well, what I'm referring to," Izaya continued, pretending to ignore his former secretary, "is you eliminating all of her memories of Yagiri-kun and forcing Shinra to perform another plastic surgery on her. Oh but then you realised that it would be risky to let her loose since she might recover her memories any time, so you sent someone to pose as the Slasher and cut her throat to render her mute. Rather cruel of you to do that, don't you think?"
Namie glared at him. 'How did he know? I made sure to check for any recording devices wherever I went.' Her eyes narrowed to slits. 'More importantly, why is he bringing this up? It's not like it has anything to do with-'
Then it all clicked in her mind.
'...He lied.' Namie was seething. 'He wasn't looking for any information about Seiji's killer at all. He just wanted me to be here so that he could show off and then observe my reaction. The bastard...!'
"...I was a fool to believe you," Namie finally managed to growl out. She quickly got up from her seat and turned to leave.
"Oya? I thought you wanted to know more about the case?"
Izaya sounded so calm Namie became even more convinced that he was screwing with her.
"Like I'd let you waste any more of my time."
"You really aren't a virtuous woman, are you?" Just as Namie was about to open the door, she heard a beep coming from one of the computers on Izaya's desk. "Ah, there we go, there we go." And then the sound of something being moved.
Namie paused in her movements. Cautiously, yet curiously, she turned around, and saw that Izaya had shifted his computer such that its screen directly faced her. The informant had also fallen silent for once, and simply gestured to the screen. Was he...?
'...I shouldn't trust him. I know that. I know that, but...'
But she loved Seiji too much to give up on any lead available, even if it was coming from Izaya.
Namie sighed, and reluctantly released her hold on the door handle before she made her way closer towards Izaya's desk to get a better look of what was displayed on the monitor.
What she saw had her completely taken aback.
There were three pictures, each showing a body draped over a different object. The first had a short-haired lady dangling from a rooftop antenna; the second, a young girl, dressed in a school uniform Namie did not recognise, tangled in telephone lines and hung upside-down on a telephone pole; and the third, a man hanging from the railing surrounding a water tank.
"W...What is...?"
The informant's smirk widened.
"Ne, Namie," Izaya spoke as he continued observing the woman standing before him. "Have you ever heard about this nice, peaceful town called Inaba, I wonder?"
"-a real magnet for all the freaky stuff. How can the people living there experience this on a daily basis and still remain sane, we may never understand. But one thing's for sure, you will never have a day of peace living in exciting, haunted Ikebukuro. You can always count on it for your daily dose of horrifying mysteries."
"Pretty mean, huh?"
The brunet and his companion turned in the direction of the voice, appearing a bit startled to see Shinra back so suddenly.
After his lovely exchange with his dear Celty, Shinra had left the room and prepared the makeshift OR in high spirits before making his way to the two teens in the living room. He was humming quietly to himself a little tune when he noticed that they were paying exceptionally close attention to the television programme that was being broadcasted.
The silver-haired teen visibly relaxed. "Ah...yeah... They said the same thing last year, though."
"Oh, so you live in Ikebukuro too?" asked the unlicensed doctor as he switched the television set off and led the way to the makeshift OR. His patient slowly followed with the younger brunet's help.
"Starting from last year. My friend here just moved a few days ago."
"Wow, it must be really tough for you then, getting caught in a fight on top of a murderer and the Slasher on the loose right after coming here." Although his words sounded like those spoken by someone who was worried about another's welfare, Shinra's tone clearly lacked such concern for the younger brunet behind him.
To his surprise, however, the adolescent simply said, "It's nothing, really. But thanks, Kishitani-sensei."
"Don't mention it," Shinra replied cheerfully, though part of him wondered why he was being thanked. "Oh, right, I don't believe I know your names yet."
"This is Seta Souji," the brunet replied while gesturing to his companion. "I'm Hanamura Yosuke."
Shinra nodded. "Souji-kun and Yosuke-kun, then. Pleased to make your acquaintance."
When they reached the room, the physician asked Yosuke to wait outside before thanking Yosuke for his help, then requested Souji to lie flat on the operating table. The silver-haired adolescent shivered when his bare skin met the cold material.
The underground doctor strapped on a surgical mask and changed his gloves. Then he injected some local anaesthetics into the patient's body before flushing the laceration with saline water. Said patient barely flinched during the treatment.
When preparations were complete, Shinra headed over to the operating table with the sutures in his hands.
"Now, Souji-kun," the doctor spoke, "although I've already administered the anaesthesia, the dosage is very mild, so you might feel a little tingle when I work on your back. But not to worry! It won't last very long."
Souji nodded unhesitatingly, giving Shinra the cue to begin suturing the wound. As expected, the silver-haired adolescent gave a little jolt when the sharp tip of the needle was introduced to his skin, but as the physician continued, he noticed that his patient gradually relaxed and wondered, then, if his patient had somehow grown used to the stinging sensation.
With the wound being rather long, stretching from Souji's right shoulder to his left hip, Shinra took quite a while to finish closing it up. Thankfully, Souji seemed to be a patient fellow with a high tolerance for pain, so he remained perfectly still and silent throughout the rest of the procedure. If Shinra had been any ordinary bystander watching this, he would have applauded the boy for displaying such bravery.
But alas, after meeting a certain blond at a young age...
"-And we're done!" Shinra announced gleefully as he flushed the wound again. "So, how are you feeling?"
"...A bit sore, but I think I'll be okay." Souji slowly shifted until he was sitting upright on the table, then he smiled. "Thank you very much, Kishitani-sensei."
"My pleasure," the unlicensed physician replied as he removed his mask and gloves. Then he opened the door and politely gestured for Yosuke to come in and help his friend out of the makeshift OR.
Shinra waited until the pair was comfortably seated on the sofa before he instructed, "Well, I suppose there's no need for me to say this, but just a precaution: no vigorous exercise until those stitches get removed. I also don't recommend lying on that back for the next few days or so, unless you're keen on provoking your cut and having a few sleepless nights." The doctor's voice carried traces of mild fascination and bemusement as he spoke of the wound. "Showering may be a bit of a hassle for you in your current condition, so soak in a bathtub instead. Just make sure not to get your stitches wet in the next twelve hours."
Souji was busy getting dressed while the doctor spoke, but Shinra could tell that the boy was listening intently, so he continued, "I'll call you back for a follow-up, so leave behind your contact number before you leave. Or you can drop by anytime when you think you don't need the stitches. I'm fine with anything. For now, I'll prescribe you some painkillers, but take them only when it's necessary."
After Souji was done, he nodded in concession.
Shinra then turned to look at the younger brunet. "Now how about you, Yosuke-kun? Do you need me to look at your wound too?"
"Huh? How did you-"
"I'm a doctor, Yosuke-kun," Shinra laughed. "You might not look like you're in pain, but ever since you entered the apartment you've been actively avoiding aggravating that left arm of yours. And there's a tear in your coat, see? There's blood on it."
He had to say, the sight of a confounded Yosuke taking a quick look at his injured limb and then concealing it from view like a kid hiding a present behind his back in order to give the recipient a surprise was rather amusing.
And Shinra was oh so very curious as to what kind of a surprise it would be.
"Oh? You don't want me to treat it?"
"Uh...it's not that..." Yosuke seemed to be struggling with his words.
For some reason, Souji didn't appear at all concerned about his friend's injury, and was, in fact, helping him hide the afflicted arm by shifting a little closer towards him. Although it was done elusively, such a movement wouldn't escape Shinra's eyes, which had been trained to watch and observe.
After years of cohabiting together with Celty, who could not communicate verbally, Shinra had learnt to pick up on each and every movement she made, no matter how subtle they were. While he would admit that he had eyes only for Celty, Shinra would more often than not notice every other person's actions as well, most likely due to the fact that he had grown used to reading Celty's body language, which was, in its own unique way, rather similar to that of humans.
So, the way Shinra saw it, the two young men before him were certainly being very suspicious by trying so hard to cover up just one arm.
'Could it be that it has already fully healed and they don't want me to know that?' That would further substantiate his earlier theory that the two adolescents possessed paranormal bodies that gave them intolerance to pain and speedy healing properties. 'Haha, now that reminds me of a certain idol I treated last year...'
Shinra lightly shook his head. It wasn't the time to be lost in memories.
"Hmm," the doctor started, deciding to feign ignorance. "You really sure you don't want me to have a look? It'd be terrible if you get an infection."
Yosuke waved it off with his unhidden hand. "It's fine, really."
"...Well, if you say so." Shinra shrugged nonchalantly.
He had to admit, he did feel a bit disappointed, but after being denied the opportunity to study a particular ex-bartender's body for years, the underground doctor had grown used to being turned down. Besides, he had already seen Souji's wound and the extent of its recovery. That was thrilling enough. For now.
"Since there's nothing else, I'll go get you the-"
Whizzz... Whizzz...
"-huh?"
Shinra turned towards the direction of the sound. His eyes widened slightly when he saw what was unfolding before him.
The television set in his living room, which he had most definitely switched off before suturing Souji's wound, was somehow whirring to life.
The screen was flickering like a flame dancing in the wind. Strips of static rose from the bottom to the top of the screen, which was beginning to turn a sickly shade of dull yellow.
The two boys suddenly leapt to their feet.
"I-it's...!" Yosuke gasped, a stunned expression painted on his features.
Souji, in contrast, remained silent and composed, although his eyes widened when the television turned itself on.
But Shinra was too mesmerised to pay them much attention, for there, on the screen, was a faint shadow whose shape moved in tandem with the strips of static.
It looked like a human, but its face and attire were masked by what he assumed to be poor signal reception by the television set. And aside from its figure being distorted by the static, the shadow remained completely still, standing - was it even standing? Shinra couldn't tell - in the middle of the screen.
Then the entire screen went blank before it flickered back on. It was so abrupt that nobody in the room could even react to the addition of yet another shadow on the screen. Despite the blurriness, Shinra could tell that it was larger than the first shadow that appeared, and strangely it was...attacking the smaller shadow?
It seemed to be using its fists to land a hit on the other figure, which dodged every incoming attack as if it could read the larger shadow's mind. Or at least, that was how Shinra saw it.
…The reception was becoming so poor the entire screen was starting to be filled with static; part of Shinra wondered if his TV would soon sizzle and go up in smoke.
'...Wait.' The doctor pushed his spectacles up the bridge of his nose and squinted. 'Aren't they...?'
The image chose that moment to disappear.
Before anyone could speak, there was a loud Thump coming from behind them. All three heads turned, only to be greeted by a woman in a familiar rider suit scrambling to type a message on her PDA. A wisp of smoke was swimming wildly above her neck.
[A-a-a-aliek&ns! T-t-thdjdve c#se otb in vks $u!]
"…"
While the two boys remained silent, Shinra was quick to respond. "Ah...hahaha, Celty, dear, please calm dow-"
[Cmal#/?! Thsds /$sr alieh&s w^re tkdla$&g abuti!]
"Celty, this might not be the work of aliens. I mean, well, if they wanted to invade us, they wouldn't want us to know, would they?"
The Dullahan's shoulders rose, and then they fell, as if she had taken a deep breath and released it. Her fingers trembled as they tapped on the screen of her PDA. [B-but...didn't they just use the TV to c-communicate with us?]
'Oh man, she's so adorable...!'
Shinra resisted the urge to say that aloud. "I think if they wanted to establish relations with the human race, they wouldn't do it here of all places, right?"
Celty remained still, appearing to be deep in thought. Subconsciously, her hand rose to where a chin was supposed to lie, but it only felt air. Celty looked around swiftly, and saw the yellow helmet lying on the ground. She must've had knocked it over in her shock earlier, Shinra figured.
As Celty knelt down to pick the fallen object up, she suddenly stiffened.
"Hm? What's wrong, Celty?"
Shinra turned around, and immediately understood.
Souji and Yosuke, whose presence had been completely ignored up till now, were still standing near the sofa, gazing at the Dullahan with widened eyes. Neither said anything as they watched the trail of smoke slither out of Celty's clearly headless neck and dissipate in the air.
There were two young men in his living room staring wordlessly at a headless supernatural creature whom he considered his beloved as if they had been scared stiff. What was an unlicensed doctor to do in such a situation?
"Um," was all that doctor managed to say.
What happened next, however, was even more astonishing.
"...Huh, what do you know," Yosuke finally spoke. He looked at his companion and chuckled as he tossed him a wink. "She really is headless."
"So it seems." Souji nodded with a lighthearted smile on his face.
An awkward silence enveloped the room.
Shinra was the one who broke it.
"...Eh?"
CHATROOM
Bakyura-san has joined the chat.
Bakyura
Holy crap guys,
Bakyura
did you see that?!
Tanaka Tarou
Oh, good evening, Bakyura-san.
Saika
Good evening...
Kyo
Ah, what a wonderful time you chose to join us, Bakyura-san. So late into the night, yet so early into the next day... A time of metamorphosis and transition... There truly is no other time as mysterious and wondrous as midnight where we can all gather to exchange greetings and engage in intriguing conversations which are just as shrouded in mystery and excitement since
Mai
?
Kyo
I hit the word limit.
Kyo
-since we have no knowledge of each other's identity in the real world. Should I wish you a good evening or a good morning, I wonder?
Mai
Good evening.
Bakyura
Oh right I forgot, good evening.
Bakyura
Putting that aside...did you guys see that?
Tanaka Tarou
Huh? See what, exactly?
Bakyura
Man I don't even know how to put this...
Bakyura
Did your TV like, turn itself on just now?
Tanaka Tarou
Ohh, it did, it did!
Kyo
You must be referring to the earlier phenomenon where the beautiful invention of man known as the television set suddenly sprung alive, its screen displaying a rather indistinct image our eyes cannot discern and our minds cannot comprehend.
Kyo
This certainly reminds me of the tale of Frankenstein. A sad tale that was. I do hope you didn't abandon your television set because of what had happened.
Mai
Kyo and I saw it, too.
Saika
Um, me too...
Tanaka Tarou
So the same happened to everyone else? That's strange...
Bakyura
Yeah if it was just me, I would've thought it was just my TV going whacko.
Bakyura
But since everyone else saw the same thing then something's weird going on.
Bakyura
And why would I throw my TV away just because of that? lol
Setton-san has joined the chat.
Tanaka Tarou
Ah, Setton-san, good evening.
Bakyura
Evening!
Saika
Good evening...
Kyo
And yet another unknown creature of the night to join us for this midnight enigma. Salutations, Setton-san. What a crowd we have here, despite the time.
Mai
Good evening.
Setton
G...good evening...
Tanaka Tarou
What's wrong, Setton-san?
Setton
O-oh, it's nothing, really.
Setton
It's been a rather eventful night, so I'm just a little tired.
Tanaka Tarou
I see...
Bakyura
Shouldn't you be getting some rest, then?
Saika
I'm sorry.
Tanaka Tarou
Why are you apologising, Saika-san? lol
Setton
Ah, um, I'll be fine, Bakyura-san. And it's okay, Saika-san. Forget about what I said.
Setton
Oh, right, I just read the chat log. So everyone else saw this "phenomenon" too?
Bakyura
Looks like it.
Kyo
Truly a mystical sight to see, that was. A television set, clearly turned off, awakening by itself... To think that we could bear witness to such a spectacle! It seems that there really are amazing things aside from the Black Bike after all. And all these sightings, taking place in our humble, little Ikebukuro... It makes one wonder if there are similar phenomena in other places we have yet to explore. How little
Kyo
our knowledge must be, then, when the world is so vast and most of its mysteries and wonders are unknown to us!
Mai
Astounding.
Bakyura
Are you sure you're not related to Kanra-san? You really remind me of her, for some reason.
Mai
It's a secret.
Tanaka Tarou
Uh, Mai-san, I don't think he was referring to you lol
Tanaka Tarou
...But now that you mention it, I noticed that Kanra-san isn't here today.
Setton
Hmm...you're right. Maybe she's already asleep?
Bakyura
Maybe she's finally dead.
Tanaka Tarou
B...Bakyura-san, please don't joke about something like that.
Bakyura
Sorry.
Bakyura
Couldn't help myself.
Kyo
Alas, alas.
Kyo
So it seems that even within the confinements of a chatroom, there are people who have such animosity towards Kanra-san. What a pitiful life she must lead, then, to be detested by countless others in the real world. But in my opinion, she certainly deserves it.
Mai
Sad but true.
Bakyura
Woah so you guys hate her too.
Bakyura
Awesome.
Tanaka Tarou
Um... I still don't think Kanra-san is that bad a person to deserve this...
Saika
I agree... She seems helpful.
Kyo
Alas. Still taken in by Kanra-san's sweet words, I see.
Kyo
Such misguided beings you are, Tarou-san and Saika-san...
After the airing of the Midnight Channel earlier, a rather strange commotion broke out in the Kishitani household along the Kawagoe Highway.
It wasn't exactly a 'commotion', in the strict sense of the word, since the only person verbally speaking was the doctor. But with the way the headless person he was talking to flailing about and typing frantically on her PDA, there was no other word Souji could use to describe the scene.
He had to admit it was quite surreal, though, to find out that the Headless Rider was truly headless.
For Celty-san, however, she probably hadn't expected to reveal what lied within the helmet to them in such a manner, so she had promptly retreated into a nearby room and locked the door the moment she broke out of her stupor. Souji and Yosuke were, simply put, very surprised to see that.
Kishitani-sensei had laughed, then. "Isn't she adorable?" he had commented.
Then, as if he could tell they knew something he didn't, the doctor dived straight into a pool of questions about what exactly happened, how such a phenomenon could occur, who the figures being shown on screen were, and so on and so forth. The pair was practically being flooded with his enquiries. Souji could more or less answer them, albeit being very brief and vague with his replies. They knew they weren't being very fair to him like that, especially since he had been so kind to treat Souji's wound.
But more importantly, Shinra had said that he knew who the two people shown on the Midnight Channel might be.
So it was decided that they would return the following day to give a proper and detailed explanation to both Shinra and Celty. They owed the two that much.
In return, Shinra offered to waive off the consultation and treatment fees, as well as tell them everything they needed to know.
"Well," Yosuke finally spoke, after a long moment of silence that had descended when the pair left the doctor's apartment, "we didn't exactly have a choice back there, did we?"
"This arrangement benefits all of us, though," Souji replied, but inwardly he understood Yosuke's reluctance.
After all, how could you just walk up to a complete stranger, say that you could enter TVs and summon Personas, and expect the stranger to believe you weren't a nutcase? Dojima still had some difficulty in believing the existence of the TV world, and he was Souji's biological uncle.
...But then again, Kishitani-sensei lived with someone who had no head. Perhaps that made a whole world of difference.
"Yeah, I guess." Yosuke shrugged. "Anyway I'll go over to Kishitani-sensei's after I visit Harima-chan in the hospital to do the explaining first. Head down there when your lecture's over and sort things out with Kishitani-sensei and Celty-san. We'll see how things go after that."
Souji was fine with the suggested arrangement, except for one tiny detail. "You're going back to the hospital tomorrow?"
"Erm...yeah..." Yosuke tried not to fidget. "You know how we can suddenly call out our Personas in this world now? I was thinking that...maybe Susano-O can heal Harima-chan's wound. I mean…I really don't know what else I can do for her."
Souji had no objections to that, deciding that it might be for the best if he didn't interfere too much. It was, ultimately, something Yosuke had to solve by himself.
"I understand," the leader of the Investigation Team said reassuringly. "Go for it, Yosuke."
Although he couldn't see it, Souji knew that his friend was smiling.
And with that, the pair continued their way back to their apartment, with Yosuke riding Souji's scooter and Souji sitting behind him.
WE ARE S.S.I.D. - ONLINE HEADQUARTERS
No one is online
No one is online
Myriad Truths has logged in
Myriad Truths
It's just as we thought.
Myriad Truths
The Midnight Channel is back.
Myriad Truths
…And there's...something else we need to tell you guys.
Myriad Truths
...
Myriad Truths
Maybe I'll say it only when everybody's online...
Myriad Truths has logged out
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No one is online
…