Chapter 12: Repercussions

Tatara yawned as he walked out of the bathroom towards the stairs, shaking a few loose droplets of water from his damp hair. HOMRA was still quiet, despite the day almost verging on noon. He was certain most of the members would start to roll out of bed in the next half hour or so, and the silence in the bar would be long gone.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Tatara let out a noise of surprise when he felt something small brush past him. Glancing behind him, he caught sight of Rin climbing the next set of stairs to the second floor. Her hair was completely mussed on one side, although it looked as if she tried to comb it down with her hands, and Tatara could see that her cheeks were tinged a faint pink. She glanced down at him, and upon seeing the smile creeping on his face at her bed head, growled menacingly, "Not a word, Totsuka-san."

He held up his hands in defeat, unable to keep the amused look off his face, and continued down the stairs to the bar. Izumo glanced up at his arrival, a smirk on the older man's face as well. His eyes flicked to the couch for a second, and Tatara followed his gaze to see a familiar leather jacket folded there neatly. Surprised, Tatara turned back only to see the bartender raise an eyebrow and give a small chuckle before disappearing into the kitchen,

The sounds of doors opening and mumbled greetings sounded from the floors above. A rather large thud, followed by some laughter and angry swearing came from his and Misaki's room, and Tatara looked up in time to see Chitose and Shouhei come laughing down the stairs.

"Goddamnit, Chitose, I will fucking kill you-" The shouting was abruptly cut off as their door slammed shut once more.

"Ah, Misaki never has handled his hangovers well," Shouhei managed to say in between his bouts of laughter.

The rest of HOMRA slowly began to make their way down the stairs, many of which were bleary-eyed and irritable. Misaki literally came out of his room with bared teeth, his beanie sitting lopsided on his head as he grumbled under his breath. Bandou appeared at the railing looking just as exhausted as the rest of his comrades, and let out a yawn as he descended the stairs.

"Ne, Chitose, where are the ladies you came home with?" He asked in a tired voice, glancing back up at the stairs to the second floor as if expecting to see the two women to appear.

"Eh?" The brunette leaned back casually against his barstool, a slight smirk on his face as he lit up a cigarette. "Ah, they left earlier this morning."

"Well let's hope neither of them were assassin strains…" Dewa grumbled beside him, grunting when he received a sharp elbow to the ribs.

Misaki, who had thrown himself onto the couch with a huff, barked, "Oi, Kusanagi-san, what's for lunch?"

"How should I know, Yata-san? Tatara's the one who'd apparently decided to take up cooking." Izumo called from the back room, causing Misaki to grumble under his breath and rub his temples.

Tatara, however, stood up in excitement. "Ah, that's right! Tachibana-san and I were going to try to make dinner for tonight!"

"Totsuka-san, you really do have old-man hobbies. First Sevens, then bonsai; now it's that weird old camera of yours and cooking. " Misaki muttered.

Ignoring the commander's words, Tatara climbed the stairs to the second floor and burst into Rin's room.

"Tachibana-san!"

A towel hit him square in the face.

"What the hell, Totsuka-san," Rin shrieked as Tatara peeled the towel off his face. His cheerful mood remained unaffected, despite her balled fists and bright red face. "I could have been naked!"

"Yes, well you weren't-"

He indicated to her jeans and t-shirt, but she cut him off with a stern look. "Not the point. You guys just- ugh, nevermind... What is it?"

Tatara tossed the towel back at her, which she caught deftly with one hand. She cocked an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to continue as she went back to towel-drying her hair. Clapping his hands together, he asked, "Are you still interested in cooking dinner?"

Rin glanced at him from the mirror on her dresser. "Of course! I don't back down on a challenge. I told you, I'd help with dinner if you would help me make my birthday cupcake recipe in a couple weeks." Rin threw her shoulders back proudly and tossed him a grin. "Anna and I can't celebrate without them."

"Right, we'll have to pick up some supplies. Kusanagi's kitchen is rather, well, empty." Tatara said with a laugh. "We can grab the ingredient for the cupcakes as well when we're there."

Rin simply nodded and smiled before returning her attention back to her hair. As Tatara turned to head out of her room, Rin called out to him, "Uh, Totsuka-san, are you sure Kusanagi-san is okay with us taking over his kitchen? Seems a little out of character for him."

"Hai, hai," Tatara waved her off with a smile. "Kusanagi-san's never been that talented in the kitchen. Anyway, I'll go see if King and Anna want to join us too. She'll probably want to pick out some frosting, and we'll need the help carrying all this home."

"Wha-? Ah, wait, Totsu-"

Rin looked as if she wanted to protest, but Tatara ducked out of her room before she could utter another word. He made his way back down to the first floor landing, knocking on the door to his immediate right. After a few seconds, it cracked open.

"Ohayou, Anna," Tatara greeted. "Are you busy?" The little girl shook her head once, her eyes wide as they stared up at the older man, so Tatara continued. "Would you like come with Tachibana-san and I to do some shopping? We're going to try to make something in the kitchen for dinner tonight!"

Anna's eyes widened and her breath hitched for a moment in excitement at the thought. She nodded and then turned slightly to look over her shoulder.

"Mikoto?"

Tatara nudged the door open a little wider and leaned lightly against the frame. "Ah, King, you're welcome to join us."

The Red King looked so relaxed lying across the couch that Tatara almost felt bad for disturbing him. His arms were bent behind his head, and one of his legs dangled off the side of the sofa. Mikoto peered at the two of them from the corner of his eye. Catching sight of Anna's face, he let out a sigh and pushed himself into a sitting position; his elbows rested on his knees while his amber eyes locked on the little girl. After a few seconds, he seemed to soften around the edges and closed his eyes. Pushing himself to his feet, Mikoto strolled lazily to the door, his head bent and his hands in his pocket. When he reached Anna's side, a small smile graced her face and she latched onto the hem of his shirt.

"Hmm, we will need some carrots, onions, cabbage – oh, Kamamoto will not be happy about that – garlic... eh, what else am I forgetting?"

Tatara scanned his list of ingredients, trying to decipher the quick notes he had written about which supplies Izumo already had in the kitchen. He frowned in concentration as he walked, unable to remember if they needed five or six chicken breasts for the recipe.

Suddenly, the collar of his shirt dug into his windpipe as Tatara felt himself jerk backwards.

"Wha-?"

Surprised, his eyes traveled up the length of the arm that had a hold on him, and all of a sudden Tatara found himself looking into the stern gaze of Mikoto Suoh.

"King?"

The redhead let go of the other's shirt and turned away as he began to walk forward. "Baka…watch where you're walking."

Taking a second to look around him, Tatara realized they had reached a cross walk at a busy intersection, and that Mikoto had just held him back from walking into the street. He turned back around to say something, but his words stuck in his throat as he caught sight of the scene in front of him.

Rin had leaned over and murmured to Anna to take her hand as they crossed the street while she checked to make sure there were no distracted drivers heading their way. Tatara watched as the little girl immediately grasped Rin's hand, holding on tightly, and how Rin kept a close eye to keep pedestrians from bumping into her. At the same time, Anna reached out to clasp the hem of Mikoto's shirt in her little fist, causing the redhead to glance down at her touch.

As the three of the made their way across the busy intersection, Tatara couldn't help but smile to himself at the sight. They almost looked like a little famil-

"Oi, Totsuka-san! Will you hurry up? I don't want to have carry all these groceries by myself," Rin called, rubbing her temple and snapping Tatara from his daze. It appeared Misaki wasn't the only one with a short-temper when hungover.

By the time they returned from their shopping in the early evening, those of the HOMRA boys that hadn't abandoned the bar in search of food were ravenous and complained incessantly about how Izumo had nothing to serve them but bar peanuts. When Rin mentioned that her and Tatara had plans to make Yakisoba, the groceries were instantly lifted from their arms and the two of them were practically herded into the kitchen.

Rin and Tatara set to work on the preparation: cubing the chicken, chopping the garlic, cabbage, and carrots, slicing the onion, and preparing the stir-fry. As Tatara began cooking the noodles in a separate pot, Rin flicked through one of the cooking magazines she had grabbed at the store. He didn't mind that she was distracted. It was rather enjoyable for him to glance up and see her sitting on the counter scanning the magazine for new recipes to try. Her eyes would light up whenever she spotted something that sounded particularly delicious, and she would make sure show him until he commented on it.

"Oh, oh! Totsuka-san! We should try this one next! Steamed clams with butter and sake…"

"Tachibana-san, have you ever even tried cooking with clams?"

Rin didn't even look up from the recipe, her eyes hungrily devouring all the information. "No, but I'm sure we could figure it out together."

Tatara smiled. He had never pictured Rin getting so excited over cooking, but, then again, he supposed she hadn't had much money or the opportunity to enjoy it so much in the past.

"Tachibana-san," He asked tentatively. "What did you cook when you lived with Ayami? Did you have someone feeding you?"

Rin shook her head. "No, we didn't." Her eyes remained glued to the page, but Tatara could see that she was no longer absorbing any information. She shrugged, "Just a lot of soup –miso and ginger, stuff like that – and rice. We managed fine."

Tatara nodded his head but said nothing in response. After a few seconds, Rin piped up about another recipe she wished to try – chicken katsu – which successfully changed the subject. Looking up, as if just remembering she was supposed to be in charge of the chicken in the stir-fry, she jumped off the counter.

"Gomen, Totsuka-san!" She cried, hurrying over to take over his spot. Glancing down at the chicken, she mumbled to herself, "I think it's almost-"

"Oi, are you two done yet?"

Misaki appeared at the kitchen entrance, leaning against the doorframe with a sullen look on his face.

Barely sparing him a glance, Rin waved him inside. "Yata-san, come over here. I need you to try this."

Startled, Misaki paused for a moment before tentatively crossing the kitchen to stand in front of her. He shoved his hands deep in his pockets while watched as she spooned a bit of chicken and carrots and then held it in front of him. Her eyes were bright and encouraging.

"Open up."

He leaned back awkwardly at her proximity while a blush began to work its way onto his face, but after a few seconds hesitantly opened his mouth. She watched as his lips closed around the spoon, but Misaki had to look away from her expectant gaze. Suddenly, it began to register that he was tasting food, good food, and he looked over his shoulder at Tatara.

"Totsuka-san, this is really good!"

Tatara nodded his head at Rin and said, "Tachibana's hard work paid off."

Misaki looked back down at the smaller teen, whose eyes were alight with happiness at hearing such praise. He opened his mouth in hopes of forming some sort of compliment when the front door to HOMRA banged open with a loud crash. Forgetting about the food for a moment, the three hurried out into the bar only to have the smiles slip from their faces.

Chitose was leaning against the door of the bar, half-supporting half-carrying a bloodied Dewa. Rushing forward, Misaki hooked Dewa's other arm around his neck and helped Chitose carry him the rest of the way inside.

"Found him in alley right next to Mizutani. I was only inside for maybe 20 minutes, waiting for our order," Chitose grunted as they hauled him to the couch. The rest of HOMRA shifted into defensive mode, locking the doors to the bar and circling their wounded member.

"What the fuck happened?" Shouhei asked, kneeling next to their injured comrade.

A dark look crossed Chitose's face, and for a split second Rin saw his eyes flick to her. "Fucking Niaka. Saw it on the back of their jackets as they took off. "

A ringing began in Rin's ears, as she stood motionless in the middle of the bar, and she could feel Izumo and Tatara's eyes pass over her. Niaka. This was her fault. Had she really expected that her actions would be overlooked? That there would be no repercussions for killing at least ten of their men?

Of course she had.

"C'mon, get him upstairs."

"Grab the first aid kit while you're at it."

"Someone better go tell Mikoto-san about this-"

The bar floor began to clear out. Chitose and Bandou both took the bleeding Dewa off the couch, while Izumo grabbed the first aid kit from the back room. Misaki snatched his bat and skateboard from behind the bar, and took off out the doors with a snarl. Shouhei and Kamamoto followed hot on his heels, and a few seconds later Rin heard the sound of the motorcycle engine roaring to life. She took a few steps to follow them, but Tatara grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Let them handle this, Tachibana-san," He said softly, his gaze averted.

Izumo called down from the first floor landing sounding distracted and frustrated. "Just…wait, Tachibana. Sit at the bar or something with Totsuka 'til we figure this out."

She shrugged out from under Tatara's touch, her hands balled so tightly into fists from their words that her arms shook. She could hear him sigh behind her, and waited for him to turn around. As his footsteps began to fade, Rin turned to watch his back retreat into the kitchen. The moment he was out of sight, she turned sharply on her heel towards the bar. Dewa's swollen, blackened eye and split lip flashed across her vision. It was her fault he was suffering; there was no denying it.

Without thinking, Rin gave a sharp kick to wooden bar, ignoring the protests from the back of her mind warning her of Izumo's wrath. Her shoulders drooped as she laid her head against the cool wood, the guilt welling up quickly inside of her. Everyone else seemed to be doing something to help, and all she could manage was to sit here in silence.

At that though, Rin raised her head from the bar top to stare at the rows and rows of liquor on Izumo's shelves. Glancing at the door to the kitchen and seeing no sign of Tatara, Rin snuck behind the counter. She bypassed the rows of hard alcohol, instead skipping to the cooler stocked with beers from all over Japan. Snatching two of them, she ducked out the side door and into the alleyway hoping that she hadn't been heard.

Rin was actually disgusted with herself. While the rest of HOMRA actually did something about Dewa, she was too busy thinking of herself. And drinking again? Good lord, she thought she had moved past this point months ago, and yet here she was back to her old ways again. Was she really that pathetically selfish?

How disappointing.

Lighting up a cigarette, Rin popped the top of the first bottle open, letting the liquid pour straight down her throat. She had always hated the taste of beer, but she was confident these wouldn't be quite as missed by Izumo.

The sound of the side door opening caused her to glance up at her newest companion, but upon seeing him she turned back to cigarette with a derisive smirk.

"Come to scold me, Totsuka-san?"

The light haired man shook his head and crouched down next to her. "What's the matter, Tachibana-san?"

Rin threw him an 'are you serious?' look. "I don't handle stress well," She said dryly, making sure to blow the smoke away from Tatara's face. "Just be happy I didn't grab something stronger. This won't do much anyway."

"Ah, Tachibana-san, this isn't the first time something like this has happened to us. We all come into HOMRA knowing the dangers. You should have seen how bad Bandou got banged up after Shouhei joined."

Rin had heard once before about when Shouhei went after some gang members for taking some girl, and how Bandou had followed and took a beating with him.

"I'll admit I had some ulterior motives when I first joined…" She sighed, taking another sip of her beer. "Still do, in all honesty." She turned to look Tatara directly in the eye. "I have to get the man who killed my sister, but," She paused and looked away; trying to find the words she wanted to say. "But I really do want to do some good around here. Being a part of HOMRA, it's given me, I don't know… something I want to protect and take care of." Rin met his gaze once more, a sad look in her eyes as she said sardonically, "What a bang up job I've done of that, right?"

Tatara cocked his head. "You did a fine job saving that little girl and her family."

"Yeah, well, no good deed goes unpunished, I guess…" Rin mumbled, scuffing the heel of her sneaker against the pavement.

The two of them were quiet for some time as Rin polished off her first bottle. She paused after she opened the second, staring at it with a troubled look on her face.

"I used to drink a lot after Ayami died."

Tatara didn't move; he simply waited.

"I just felt so…sad, all the time. It never really went away." She continued to stare at the bottle, a crease forming between her eyebrows. "It was awful."

Tatara watched as she put down her cigarette, snubbing it out against the pavement. Her frown deepened.

"I suppose this was just familiar to me," She said, indicating to the beer. She seemed to be arguing with herself, and Tatara could see her bite the inside of her cheek. After another pause, her expression changed and Rin began to push herself to her feet. She kicked the empty bottle to the side of the alley, but grabbed the full one as she stood. Tatara rose to his feet as well.

"Guess I can't rely on this any more." The corner of Rin's mouth was tilted upward, and Tatara felt her press the bottle into his hand. "No use wasting Kusanagi-san's good beer though, eh?" She gave his arm a gentle squeeze in thanks as she headed out the alleyway.

Turning around to watch her retreating back, Tatara called, "Oi, Tachibana-san, where are you going?"

"To find Yata-san," She called back, waving once without turning around. "We'll get those bastards, Totsuka-san!" Tatara watched as she jogged out the alleyway until her blonde hair swished around the corner and out of sight.

"I hope I don't have to leave the bar open every time," A quiet voice remarked from the side entrance.

Tatara glanced back over his shoulder, his brown eyes disapproving as he looked back at Izumo. "Was drinking really the best way to get her to open up?"

Izumo held out his hand for the beer bottle, which Tatara passed over without question. Taking a sip, he replied, "Did you have a better idea? We can't have her bottling her anger up again so soon, and I know you saw the same thing I did when she heard the news."

At Tatara's silence, Izumo added wryly, "Although, I sort of expected you to get her to open up before she stole my booze."

The younger man smiled at this. "Well, like you said, she's not exactly willing to share."

(Ridiculously Long) Author's Note: Sorry you guys had to wait so long for the next chapter! Finals are killer, and I'm kind of stuck in a writer's block at the moment. (I really struggled with this chapter for some reason…) Hopefully you all got the gist of what I was trying to write – how this was less about Rin's story and more about simply getting her to open up a bit more with the group and show that she cares about them. Tatara seems like the type to really care about a person's history and getting them to show their feelings, even if they don't actually want to themselves. Anyway, I might rewrite this again because I'm a little unsatisfied. We will see. I technically should be studying, so it might be a while before that happens.

Thank you once again for your reviews, and also to those of you who kindly let me know how you felt about a possible M-rated chapter in the future. It won't be happening for some chapters, but I'm happy to know in advance that most of my readers are comfortable with it. I will be putting up a cautionary warning note in the previous chapter before it comes, as well as making note of it at the beginning when I post it so that my underage readers/those uncomfortable will skip ahead.

I want to specifically thank my reviewer cyborgSprite for coining the term Mikorin and Yatarin because they just roll off the tongue and make me smile. To anyone who enjoys reading Project [K] OC stories and (gets sick and tired of waiting for me to update), mikotohs has a phenomenal one titled "Burn it Down", which I recommend everyone checking out. She's super talented. I also have been getting a few messages asking me if it was all right for people to draw Rin, and the answer is: of course. I'm totally ok with it as long as just send me a message letting me know that you are doing so (and then you let me see the finished project). Truth be told, it's super flattering as an author to hear that, and since I am incredibly untalented at drawing I'd love to see her drawn to her full potential. I always wished I could draw scenes from the story... If you need a specific description, just PM me and I'll do my best!

But really, thank you to each and every one of you who takes the time to review this, as well as to all of you who follow or favorite it. Means the world. Feel free to follow my tumblr as well: projectkanime. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!

Hugs and Kisses,
K