Four: Urban Fantasy AU

Asahina Hiyori scowled as she surveyed the red-tinted dream world that surrounded her. This was just her luck, wasn't it? She never could start investigating a case without being dragged into the thick of it.

At least the freaky dream world had let her keep her outfit—a pink minidress, matching pumps, and a black leather jacket. Still, she found it a bit weird that it would place her—a twenty-year-old private eye specializing in the supernatural—on the top of a jungle-gym in the middle of a deserted park.

Above her, two crows perched on a wire, letting out low, croaking calls. Hiyori glared at them and wished for a handgun—even if carrying one was illegal in Japan.

The abnormalities in this town had seemed—well, run-of-the-mill wasn't really the right word, but they weren't as actively malicious as the ones in other cases she'd encountered. But apparently they'd decided to get malicious just when she showed up. Typical.

Still, this was her job. The client, a man named Kano, had paid her to figure out what had turned his foster-dad psycho and killed his foster sister, and he was going to get his money's worth if she had anything to do with it.

Besides, coming out here was a nice break from the busier parts of the city—and it had gotten Hibiya all excited.

Hibiya was her assistant-cum-stalkerish-not-so-secret-admirer. She didn't really like the guy, but she kind of felt bad for him. Sometimes. They'd gone to school together. She owed him a couple favors. And he'd needed a job.

And speaking of him, there he was, running across the park with a frantic look on his face.

"Hiyori-chan, we need to get out of here!" he shouted. "This isn't the first loop!"

"Loop?" she asked, confused. "What the heck are you—"

"Look, I think we're in some sorta time-loop," Hibiya said, his tone urgent. "I dreamed this last night and—"

"What's the problem?" Hiyori interrupted. "If we're in a loop, we need to investigate it. Why can't we start here?"

"I—you—" he broke off. "We need to go," he said firmly, grabbing her hand and dragging her off of the jungle gym she'd found herself on when this started.

She followed him, teetering on her high heels. "Hibiya-san, slow down, what are you—"

She stopped, midsentence, as someone started screaming.

Hibiya swore. "Not again!"

Hiyori surveyed the crowd forming nearby. Some of them were yelling, while others pointed upward. She followed their gazes up and saw falling poles.

There was a brief spike of pain in her gut before black swept over everything.

A/N: Sorry for the late update! Hiyori is kind of a great hardboiled detective, isn't she? Everyone is aged up in this AU along with her, so the older members of the Mekakushi-dan are in their mid to late twenties.