Between the Lines: The Bifrost is broken

She was close!

He could smell her presence!

Fenrisufr salivated at the thought of her supple flesh filling his mouth, the crunching of her bones between his teeth and the sweet juices he would taste.

He clawed at the dirt. its very presence aggravated him and blocking his way to the prize he deserved!

Any moment now!

But then, something else caught his attention. He grew curious about this source of so much raw power. Turning his nose towards the scent, he veered right.

Behind him, Tessou Tsuzari crawled towards him. Her face was now caked in mud, but she pressed on regardless.

"This is Tsuzari!" She cried into a radio, "I am in hot pursuit of the Intruder. He is heading into district seven! All units be advised, and converge to my location!

Chapter 3: Misaka Mikoto

"Wah! So pretty!"

I was pressed against the glass, watching the little toy band play in the big store window. There was no wind-up key on any of the of the band members. They were all fully automated animatronics. Each figurine was shaped as a certain breed of dog, and they were all playing a rendition of "Silent Night" on tiny toy instruments.

The Underground Shopping-center was full of people. Shoppers of all ages were mingling and enjoying the Christmas spirit. Everywhere I looked, there were couples, groups of friends, even whole families going into the many stores and restaurants that lined this network of underground streets. Sadly, Oni-chan couldn't join us in all the festivities. Instead, he decided to take my little pull-up to his dorm.

"You've got a lot of stuff to get for your dorm," he said, "There's no way you can carry all of that and your luggage at the same time."

"But Oni-chan! You have to come with us!" I protested.

"I'm not big on shopping any way." he said, "This the most that I can do."

"We can just go to your dorm now and come back later."

He shook his head. "By the time we get back here, it's going to be all closed. Trust Kamijou on this. You wouldn't want a share in my misfortunes."

He disappeared into the crowd even as we pleaded for him to stay.

"I should've gone after him," I said mournfully, "I should be walking with him to his dorm."

The little spotted beagle was blowing on his tiny trumpet. Meanwhile, the black Poodle played on her painted double-bass.

"Touma is a nice guy," Index's voice was sorrowful, though she was smiling a small smile. "He sacrifices too much for those he care about." The bulldog tapped away on her tiny keyboards, and the German shepherd beat away on her tiny snare drum.

"I feel like I owe him so much. If only there was something I can do for him."

Index sighed, "You're not the only one who feels like that. There are so many people who are indebted to him. He has never even asked us to pay him back. He overlooks all of our debts to him, because he thinks that helping others is its own reward."

"A-re! It's you!" Two junior high school girls appeared, walking towards us. They were both wearing tan blazers underneath a thick overcoat, dark blue checkered skirt and knee-high socks. One had reddish hair tied with ribbons into twin tails, while the other had shorter brown hair that draped down above her shoulders.

Index blinked. "Short-pants? What are you doing here?"

"Ano-na! When will you stop calling me that?" The short-haired girl growled, "I have a name, you know."

"Humph," Index puffed out her cheeks. "Sorry, I keep forgetting."

"Oh?" The other girl raised an eyebrow. "And who is this young lady?"

"This is Tatsugami Otohime," Index said, smiling, "She is Touma's cousin. She only just arrived today."

"So," The brown-haired girl said, her eyes narrowing at Index. "You can remember the name of someone you just met."

"Actually, I can remember the name of everyone I meet." Index snorted.

"But you can't remember my name?"

"Oh, well," Index shrugged, "You're just a special case."

"Oi! Who do you think you are, talking to my Onee-sama like that?" The twin-tailed girl sneered. "I'll have you know that you are talking to Misaka Mikoto, Ace of Tokiwadai Middle school and the third level five Esper. Show some respect!"

"And who are you?" Index snorted. "I don't think we've ever met."

"I am Shirai Kuroko," the girl sniffed, patting herself on the chest, "I am herald and to the great Railgun of Tokidawai! Everything she knows, I know as well!"

"Misaka?" I said, thinking of that girl earlier, "Is Misaka a common name around here?"

Everyone blinked. "Uh, I don't think so. Why do you ask?"

"Just a few minutes ago," I said, "There was this little girl I saw at a Family restaurant. She was with one of Oni-chan's friend."

Misaka stiffened. "O-oh yeah," her eyes darted this way and that, "She…is my…cousin? Yes, that's right! Cousin! Yes! She's my cousin!"

"WHAT!" Everyone jumped at the sudden outburst. Kuroko grabbed Misaka's collar and shook her vigorously. "You have a relative in this city and you never told me?!"

"Well it just never came up!" Misaka said, looking away. "Besides, I never wanted anyone to know that I have a few relatives living in Academy city."

"A FEW!?" The pigtailed girl screamed, "WHY AM I FINDING OUT ABOUT THIS TODAY?!"

"Crap did I say that out loud?"

"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME? WHAT THE HECK AM I TO YOU ANYWAY?! WE'RE SUPPOSE TO SHARE THESE THINGS WITH EACH OTHER! ONEE-SAMA!"

"Do you think that I would ever introduce to you to them, given your current behavior?" There was a loud smack. Misaka's fist came crashing down hard on Kuroko's head and the latter girl collapsed to the ground.

"So? You're that boy's cousin, huh?" Misaka went on, "I've never met any of his relatives other than his parents."

"Most of us live pretty far from here," I said, "I came from Sapporo province up in Hokkaido."

"Heh? That's actually pretty far from here. Are you visiting for the holidays then?"

"No," I said, "I'm actually moving here. I want to learn how to become an esper."

Misaka grinned. "Are you really? Well, I think you have a steeper hill to climb than rest of the students here. Most espers start their training at a younger age, so you may be at a disadvantage."

"Maybe," I said, "But I'm sure I can bridge the gap in no time. Soon, I may even surpass you!"

"Hah!" Misaka smirked, "You're a thousand years too early to be competing with me! But I like your spunk kid!" She held out a fist, "It's nice to meet you, Tatsugami-San!"

"Delighted!" I smiled and shook her hands. "Please call me Otohime!"

Suddenly, I felt something buzzing in my pocket. I pulled out my phone and answered.

"Hello?"

"Ah Otohime," Oni-chan's voice said, "Is Index there?"

"Yes she's with me," I look at the nun, "Did you want to talk to her?"

"Actually, I need to talk to both of you," he said, "Can you put me on speaker phone?"

I pressed on the speaker button and Oni-chan's voice came blasting out.

"Index? Are you there?"

"Hiyah!" Index cried, Touma?" Her cheeks puffed out in anger, "Geez! Why aren't you back already! We've already finished shopping."

"Sorry! Sorry!" Oni-chan exclaimed, "A client just came for my help, so I'm a little preoccupied at the moment."

Client? His words sparked my curiosity. Oni-chan has a job?

"Anyway," Oni-chan continued, "It looks like you two won't be able to stay at my dorm tonight. I called Kanzaki earlier, so she should be coming to pick you up tonight."

"But it's going to be super crowded." Index said, "There are a lot of girls in the Necessarius dorm room. I don't know if they can fit more people."

Oni-chan let out a long sigh. "Fukuda!"

Kuroko was gesturing for my phone. I nodded and gave it to her.

"Hello, Kamijou-san? Are you there?"

"Huh? Shirai-san?" Touma said the response, "What are you doing here?"

"We've just bumped into one another," Kuroko said. She glanced at Misaka, and a large smile crept up her face.

"Onee-sama is here too, you know?"

"Geh!"

Misaka was looking away when Oni-chan's voice was heard. She jumped when Kuroko singled him out. "Eek!"

And suddenly, it was like a fire had lit inside my chest. What was this girl's relationship to my Onee-chan anyway?

Kuroko went on before anyone else could react. "Anyway, I just wanted to offer some assistance. Our dorm may have any accommodations. I think they can stay at our place."

"O-o-oh really? That sounds great!"

"I may ask our dorm manager for permission, but there are strict rules for visitors" Kuroko said. She glanced at Index pointedly, "I'm sure an outsider without proper identifications would be detained, immediately."

"I see," Oni-chan sighed again, "Otohime? Can you hear me?"

I took back my phone. "I'm here."

"Looks like you and Index will be staying in separate places tonight. Index will go with Kanzaki when she gets here. Meanwhile, you can stay with Shirai-san and Biri—I mean—Misaka tonight."

I could hear sniggering behind me.

"But then I won't be able to stay with you!" I exclaimed, "Oni-chan!"

"I'm sorry your first night couldn't be as perfect as you thought it would be," He said, "It'll just be one night. We can regroup tomorrow."

I sighed. "It can't be helped, could it?"

"Thank you for understanding," Oni-chan said, "Bye."

Hung up.

Shirai-san sighed. "Well, you heard what he said."

"Darn you Kuroko!" Misaka growled, her face totally scarlet.

"Looks like some more trouble for us. I'm worried about what the Dorm manager has to say."

Shirai-san,"I'm sure she won't mind."

"Oni-chan said that he has a client," I said, "I didn't know students could get any part time work or open their own business!"

"We don't," Misaka said simply, "He is a special exemption."

"It's all highly irregular," Kuroko huffed, "He is just a citizen after all. He shouldn't be meddling in these affairs, anyway. If you ask me, I think he should go to prison for vigilantism."

"It couldn't be helped, could it?" Misaka shot back, "After all, Judgement and Anti-skill can't really handle the small cases. Besides, you guys never arrive in time anyway."

"What an Admirable defense?" Kuroko smirked, "I'm sure he is happy to have such an ardent supporter."

"But what does he do?" I asked.

CRASH!

The mall erupted in a cloud of dust.

Suddenly, a large gaping hole had appeared nearby, and large dark shadow clawed out of the ground. The next thing I knew, I was on the ground, staring into those blood-red eyes and gnashing teeth.

Dimly, I could hear a little girl screaming somewhere.