Mr Reaper

by EeveeGen9988

A young Reaper set in his ways has enough of seeing Shibuya being left unprotected from criminals, and finds himself leading those of common interest to take action. If only he knew how one step to betterment would lead to another he would take alone... Written for [Shibuya Operation - Story Storm 2019-present] and [Twelve Shots of Summer 2019].

13. Mr Leader

Mr Reaper

I do not own The World Ends With You, Square Enix does!

Mr Reaper Part 12 was written for Shibuya Operation - Story Storm (SOSS) 2023/24. Previous chapters (Parts 0 and 1) were posted during Twelve Shots of Summer (TSoS) 2019 and Parts 2 to 11 were posted during Shibuya Operation - Story Storm (SOSS) 2019 - 2022.

...

Part 12 - Mr Leader

---

Months Ago...

---

"Let's see…"

"..."

"Where does it start… where does it end…?"

"..."

"With this mess, it's no wonder no one's been able to work on you right. So, that begs the question… what should I do first?"

"..."

"I didn't expect this to be easy, and it's not like I can read you with the state you're in. Hmm… hmm..."

"..."

"If I… stretch it out, perhaps, I can find out what I have to work with? Yeah, that sounds like a brilliant plan. It's good enough to start out with."

"..."

"Oof- I can't believe how fragile you are! It's more than I expected you to be- and I can't let that make you fucking disappear!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"There you are. I'll mark down where it went, and I'll try to be more careful with you this time."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Okay, so it looks like they've screwed up the pieces. I fucking expected it as much with how brittle you are… tangled up and barely behaving right…" A sigh sounded. "Okay, okay… you need to let me stretch you out. Don't squirm. Stay still."

"..."

"Okay- that's great! Good… person. Fuck, I don't even know what gender you are. ...Let me check on this, and I'll get a better idea before I do something I shouldn't to change that."

"..."

"Looks like… you're a male! Yeah, looks like you're a male. So, hah, that's good to know for future reminders."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Fuck, why didn't they just get us to do this? This is worse than I thought. Okay, I need to figure out how to stop everything from breaking off. All of them must have contributed to this, so this is going to be a fucking hassle… ugh."

"..."

"Okay, okay. Got an idea. Going to have to start from the start. It'll be messy, but it's the only way to get things back to normal."

'..."

"...Or, what could be your normal."

"..."

"The last thing I need for you to do right now is to hate me if things go south! I'm walking on glass for you... and if this doesn't go right..."

"..."

A sigh sounded. "Then I've wasted my time for nothing."

"..."

"Okay, uh… okay then- Starting from sixty- maybe forty-seven percent… going towards one-to-zero percent, hopefully not below zero percent."

"..."

"...Hopefully I won't break you down to nothing. Just stay with me, okay?"

"..."

"I'm not going to let you go as you are now. I need you to stay with me, okay?"

"..."

"...Fucking might need to let him know what's going to happen, as much as he expects for me to get this over with."

"..."

"...Stay still already, dammit!"

---

- 1975 -
Present Day

---

The Harrier leaned against the wall and tried to not tap his foot in impatience as him and the kid Reaper continued to wait for the Reaper of the hour. They had only been here for fifteen minutes before the Harrier started to feel both the exhaustion of what transpired and the annoyance that the Posh Bastard had to make himself scarce and hard to find.

Drifting his gaze over to the shorter Reaper, who was currently the only one seated at the middle of the five seats of the long table with his back to the Harrier, Blackie couldn't help but be thankful they were safe in a room and their whereabouts were unknown to Buttercup. Of everything the Harrier expected to happen today, he would have never suspected that he would be almost Erased and voluntarily be asking for the Posh Bastard to ruin his Day by making the devil come right for him.

Lowering his gaze now, he half-closed his eyes and tried to be quiet with his sigh, not wanting to alert the Support Reaper as he stared down while frowning. Now looking at his feet, he couldn't help but feel uneasy as he stood normally as he would, yet it was still horribly wrong with the one thing that should have been with him.

When he came out of the fight with the girl Player, he didn't even think about checking on whether or not he had his shadow back. Just standing here made him almost want to pretend he wasn't even in the room, to be a ghost who happened to be able to be seen by anyone yet still was very much not there. And yet here he was, trying to lay low with his cause and keep WEB in commission… trying to keep his association with them hidden and secret however much he could frame it. But it didn't seem to work on Buttercup, it only resulted in the bully calling the Harrier out as someone who snaked around to hijack other Reapers' hunts for WEB's gain. Already the Harrier knew their interaction was a dumpster fire that was willing to become a wildfire so long as the other Reaper kept his grudge. Even if there was a chance that the other Harrier Reaper was satisfied with getting his Points after the fiasco, the back of the black-hooded Harrier's mind told him nothing was resolved between the two of them. As flawed as the Starved Reaper's line of thinking was when he spat out what should have been nonsense, the repeat of those words would only cause the Harrier further grief if Reapers came to ask him if it was true.

He still had no idea what made the other think that the Harrier was scooping up Points from unsuspecting Reapers for a supply chain... Today was practically the first time he intervened in a long time against another Reaper in their hunting to protect Players, so however the other Vultures saw him, there was a chance that they too shared the same impression after how many times he used to do it when he was downing Wrongdoers. And if he were to be confronted, it would be his choice to do it by his lonesome if he were to keep his image intact. He wouldn't want it any other way, even if Sadist Saiyama of all Reapers suddenly felt the need to shield him from those Vultures' assault.

The Harrier couldn't help but shudder. He bit the inside of his lower lip as he controlled his breathing as well as one could with those toxic thoughts.

Shifting himself closer to the wall and bonsai sitting on the waist-high pedestal-like table at his right flank in the middle of the wall he was on, he tried to match his position with the shadow it gave off. The last thing he wanted in regard to his missing shadow status was having the Posh Bastard becoming known to it. The Harrier already lost his wings to the man, after all... wouldn't it please the Posh Bastard more to know that the Harrier was more vulnerable than before? It was laughable how he knew the Posh Bastard would hone in on it, immediately ooze with haughty enjoyment... know that the Harrier was going to lose everything if he didn't do anything about it. Maybe the Posh Bastard would even say it was a byproduct of how the Harrier shouldn't be resisting the man's attempts to assimilate the Harrier, into becoming a carbon copy of all the Reapers the Posh Bastard had under his control.

With a rough shake of his head, the Harrier told himself that he just had to convince the Posh Bastard nothing was out of sorts to avoid that. How everything was just as it is... and nothing noteworthy has been unveiled to the world.

Blackie inhaled slowly.

It was time for another show… he better make it one to remember.

As the Harrier hardly reacted to the murmur beyond the wall he was situated on, the black-hooded Reaper braced himself for when the click of the door handle sounded and turned rightward as the prim and proper asshole finally entered the room from the other end of the wall. Carefully, the Harrier pivoted, making sure the bonsai and table's shadow were still under his Lygres while he placed a hand on the ivory surface. The fawn-coloured haired man started to scan the room as the Harrier narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips.

When midnight eyes landed on the Support first, the Harrier mentally wished himself good luck before he raised his voice. "Oh, so it would seem you do have time out of your schedule." As expected, the man's eyes flicked away from the younger Reaper. He soon stoically regarded the Harrier now, who shrugged with his arms as he chuckled dryly, "Well then, nice of you to take your time with us, I suppose."

"I was not expecting to see the likes of you when I was informed a Harrier Reaper was requesting my presence," merely returned the Posh Bastard coolly as a smile remained on his lips. "So expect my surprise now that such is the case pertains to you."

The Harrier kept his lips pursed in response as he shook his head lightly. "As much as I would love to ask about the tea party or the masquerade ball you were withdrawn from, I'm not the reason why you're here to see me." Nodding subtly towards Junior, who was currently gazing at the Posh Bastard timidly, the Harrier folded his arms as he sighed, "He is."

As the Posh Bastard took a moment to regard the boy again, the Support Reaper ducked his head shyly and mumbled something. The Harrier then realized that perhaps shifting the spotlight to the shorter Reaper wasn't the best decision, so he ravaged his mind for a possible recovery to salvage the unwanted attention. However, that was when the Posh Bastard broke his concentration.

"Do pardon my lack of understanding," started the man tersely while he was sauntering over to the head of the table nearby the door with his clacking left-held cane. "Would you care to elaborate what the matter at hand is."

As the Posh Bastard carefully and gradually made work of pulling out the chair that was there, he soon situated himself in it slowly. He rested his cane against the chair to the left of him then partially turned his head to the left again as he folded his hands. The lack of regard was almost grating, but Blackie supposed it was a mixed blessing in itself. After all, he could already tell that neither he nor the Posh Bastard were going to enjoy themselves.

He was about to dryly comment upon the fact that the man hadn't even addressed a single individual when he held his tongue. He immediately eyed the kid Reaper as he rethought his response.

The Harrier would be at it all Day with snark and scorn if it weren't for the fact that he was here because of the boy. It suddenly got him dreading the idea of ruining the chance to keep Buttercup off the kid's back because of the Harrier's beef with the Posh Bastard. Usually Blackie wouldn't care about this sort of thing, but the memory of Junior gazing up at him fearfully minutes earlier made his resolve harden.

Just this once, he told himself… Just this once he would restrain himself.

"Well, there's many things I have to bring up with you," started the Harrier coolly, twitching his lips as he set a hand on the pedestal-like table again. "But for today, I'll just settle on the sitch." He raised his arms to be level with his chest as he began to explain, "For your information, this Reaper here has gone on clueless about what he should have been doing last Week."

Why was it so hard to not throw in a quip or two towards the Posh Bastard!? He had to push back the temptation to raise it to the next level with sardonicism as he went on with sternness instead, "He hasn't even gotten a single Point because of it, as seen by Exhibit A-" He disdainfully gestured towards Junior's wings, glad the kid's gaze was focused elsewhere as the Harrier narrowed his eyes at the Posh Bastard. "Self-Eradication process on schedule and on cue!"

Blackie knew he was the only one who had noticed how the Posh Bastard's gaze twitched in irritation. He couldn't help that he'd gotten a reaction out of the Posh Bastard, smirking with an internal chuckle that he was succeeding in tormenting the other. However, he couldn't help but mourn how short the moment was, as the fawn-coloured haired man simply inhaled before he was breathing calmly again, "Before you venture further, would you be more inclined to take a seat?"

At that, the Harrier tried to not stiffen. His eye briefly spotted how his hand still gave off no shade, grimacing at the mistake he was making as he withdrew it. He hoped it didn't look as if he touched a hot surface and recoiled; there was no way for him to check if he accidentally showcased his situation because of the blasted lighting.

Choosing his place here was an strategic undertaking the moment he entered the room, one that he didn't want to lose if he were dumb enough to say yes. By crossing the floor to the table, it would give away everything. By sitting there, the Posh Bastard would immediately notice there were no shadows on the table linked to Blackie's arms. And even when the Harrier declined the offer, he knew it would still look odd if he didn't move around as he usually did.

But as long as the Posh Bastard didn't press the matter, the Harrier would be in the free.

Therefore, while the Harrier stiltedly held his hand in place, he frowned as he closed his eyes. "I'm comfortable here… but thanks."

As the black-hooded Reaper folded his arms, trying to breathe slower and calm his agitation, the Posh Bastard simply shifted before his voice came again. "Of any other room, I find it perplexing... That you would find comfort in standing all Day instead of taking your time to rest, when there are plenty of options you have at your disposal."

...Huh. That came out nicer than the man's usual responses… Of course, there was always a chance that this man was compensating for their unlikely company in the room, so maybe the Harrier wouldn't have as much conflict as he usually did. He wouldn't have thought he'd get a blessing from the fact that the Posh Bastard was walking on the same tightrope as the Harrier right now.

The black-hooded Reaper felt a sneer form on his face as he spoke in a sweeter tone from the reassurance he felt, "Of all the times you've asked me to lower my hood..." He tilted his head as he opened his eyes to slits. "When have I obliged?"

Even if Junior didn't understand the context of the WEB leader's statement, the Posh Bastard's midnight-blue eyes told him all he had to know. If Junior was the line of protection for the Harrier currently, the Posh Bastard wouldn't overstep his boundaries if he wished to save face in light of the same boy as well.

"I simply had the speculation you appeared exhausted," merely breathed the Posh Bastard in response. "Nothing more but humouring that you may not be fond to strain yourself."

...Exhausted?

The Harrier rolled the word around his head, soon blinking when he gaped slightly in a frown. 'He's just trying to get under my skin with false concern so he doesn't have to strain his own neck.' He briefly inhaled before he tried to straighten himself, thinking bitterly, 'Like I'd fall for that trick, you Posh Bastard! You're going to have to get used to your poor head position!'

"Well," he started with a chuckle, gently shaking his head before he tilted it slightly. He raised an eyebrow. "There's no need to make yourself sick about me, so just know that I'm fine where I am."

As the black-hooded Reaper tried to relax again, the Posh Bastard nodded curtly. "Very well then. Continue."

Grateful that was over with, the Harrier nodded. He took a moment to prepare himself before he began again, "Okay then…" He closed his eyes, telling himself to remain steady and not blow it as he let his lips flatten. "As you know, Reapers need Points during their first Week. If they don't, they'll start to expire... because we all know that everything has an expiration date."

For a few seconds, he expected the man to cut in... and yet the Harrier was pleasantly surprised- but moreso baffled that the man was silent. Of all the times he's interacted with the Posh Bastard, never had the Harrier experienced having the stage handed to him and only him. The Posh Bastard usually tried to steal the show with his patronizing shutdowns and ridicule…

This was certainly different.

Quirking an eyebrow up again at this, the Harrier tried to assess what the man was playing at before he decided to go on, "Now, Junior here-" He gestured towards the kid Reaper, but suddenly felt apprehensive that the Posh Bastard was going to actually cut in. It was only until he realized he was still the only one talking that he finished his sentence, "Is fading away, and I'm sure you would never guess why this has been happening."

Instead of looking miffed at the Harrier's delivery, the Posh Bastard's terse words were received instead. "If you would take less pauses in your explanation, I would be grateful." He was now frowning and narrowing his eyes slightly. "I have other matters to attend to, and I am certain this appointment should not take much longer. Lest you continue as you are doing now."

The Harrier frowned at that. 'O-Okay then?' Was the Harrier that easy to get impatient with when the Harrier hardly touched on the issue at hand, or was he actually stalling as the man had said?

...No matter, no matter. The Harrier decided that perhaps he was being too cautious with this and inhaled as he gave a stiff nod to himself. It was time to cut the bullshit before the Posh Bastard dismissed him because nothing was being accomplished.

"For your information, Junior here was set up with a Reaper last Week to learn how to be a Support, but that same Reaper ditched him," the Harrier retorted as he now hardened his expression. He ignored the uneasy look the kid Reaper gave him as he raised a finger in the air, wagging it in frustration. "That same Reaper was a selfish sh...sourpuss who didn't want to train Junior here because he just wanted to get Points! And fast forward to today- that same sourpuss didn't get said Points, so he attacked Pacted Players because he was a sore loser and dragged us into it!"

Just after he said that, the Posh Bastard's demeanour transformed into alert heedfulness. His frown only deepened as his previously clasped hands tensed and his midnight-blue eyes remained on the Harrier. Just watching this unfold made the Harrier know he killed the Posh Bastard's previously uncaring outlook on the situation.

Turning his head away from the odd angle he had it in while regarding the Harrier and Junior, the man breathed out sternly as he stared forward, "This occurred... recently?"

Nodding sharply, the Harrier lolled his eyes as he grumbled, "Yes… in fact it had." He soon blinked, scowling at the man who patiently waited for more, so the Harrier of course obliged. He raised his palms up as he explained irritably, "When I tried to get him to stop, Buttercup started to direct his attacks on to me. When Junior arrived on the scene, Buttercup nearly set Noise on everybody. He was downright delusional!"

Restricting the urge to step forward from the energy itching to make him shift in front of the Posh Bastard, the Harrier tried to anchor himself the best he could to the spot he was in. He bit out unhappily, "As we may know, Noise can't attack Reapers... so we had to do damage control." He soon lowered his hands, narrowing his eyes as he growled irritably, "Junior had to corral a Player away while me and another had to avoid the Noise themselves from activating the fight, because they were high-levelled Noise that required two Pacts to beat from the Noise Symbols I saw! Then Junior and his Player had to keep running around until Buttercup gave up! And from what Junior said, Buttercup just went in for the easy out in the end of Erasing an actual Player without a Partner!"

The Posh Bastard's expression darkened. He was frowning harder as his gaze drifted between the kid Reaper and the Harrier. "...How long ago was this?" the man soon asked grimly.

Blackie would have jumped on to that question had he not stopped to realize he actually had no clue.

He furrowed his eyes, crossing his arms as he tried to figure it out. However, before he could come up with anything, the kid Reaper meekly breathed out, "Th-Thirty minutes ago…" Blinking, the Harrier turned his attention to the shorter Reaper, who was shyly gazing down at the table. "...Y-You said to keep count… but I didn't know when you wanted me to stop."

Widening his eyes at that, the Harrier exhaled in surprise, "...Y-You kept counting all this time?"

When the shorter Reaper gave a tiny nod and kept staring down, the Harrier was soon aware he was laughing before he felt his lips turn upwards. He breathed out breathlessly, "You actually didn't stop counting, even though you were being chased, and kept up with all the craziness going on around us?" Without waiting on Junior, he shook his head briefly before he remarked warmly, "Colour me impressed. That takes guts, Junior…"

The kid Reaper ducked his head in response. "Gee… I-I just didn't want to let you down…"

Blackie was about to continue when the Posh Bastard reminded them where they were and who they were with, as he had just cleared his throat. It wasn't long until the Posh Bastard was speaking again to the Harrier's immediate annoyance, "Are you attempting to insinuate this Harrier Reaper told you to keep count, Support Reaper? For what purpose, might I delve into?"

The Harrier blinked, feeling as if he had cold feet even though the Posh Bastard was directing the stage to the younger now. Uneasiness wormed into his chest as he quietly observed the younger Reaper fidgeting with his hands. "...Wh-When we can attack the Players?"

After a few seconds, the man's heedful gaze drew to the Harrier. "The two of you were intentionally working together today?" The Harrier narrowed his eyes and gave a wary nod. He soon observed the Posh Bastard inhale, shaking his head when he exhaled, "May I ask what may have been the occasion for you two to be working together?"

The Harrier rolled his eyes in response and huffed, "Is it that hard to believe we were working together?"

Immediately, the Posh Bastard made a move to pinch the bridge of his nose. He exhaled again dryly, "When it pertains to you... I can only fabricate such reasons to ascertain why that may be."

"Junior here needed someone to help him out," retorted the Harrier as he scowled again at the man. The black-hooded Reaper tilted his head ever so slightly to the left as he went on with a huff, "If not Buttercup, who would it be?"

It was then that the Posh Bastard folded his hands neatly on the table again, starting to adopt a calm expression that didn't even meet his darkened gaze. He smiled pleasantly towards the both of them before he spoke, "Did you catch his name, by chance?"

Blackie blinked warily, soon cocking his head more as he sighed, "To be quite frank with you, all I know him by is Buttercup and a sourpuss."

The Posh Bastard then faced Junior. "Do you remember his name?" Junior nervously shook his head soundlessly in response, then both him and the Harrier watched as the Posh Bastard suddenly released his hands before pressing them against the table as he faced forward. The chair pushed back as he started to rise, his cane lifting to advocate his new posture after he grabbed it then continued, "In this case, we will have to undergo a thorough sweep of the register of Harrier Reapers until we discover the right Reaper."

Blackie straightaway felt a swell of relief and excitement swoosh through him. He quickly made a grin as he clasped his hands together. "Well then, I suppose that's that."

The Posh Bastard merely raised his right hand, prompting the Harrier into confusion and annoyance when the man spoke again, "I believe you may be wrong in that line of thinking." His left hand guided his cane with ease as he maneuvered away from the table towards the door, stopping close to it with stiltedness as he appeared fixated on something. His silence lasted for a while until he pivoted awkwardly to eventually face the Harrier again but with a wariness. "Identifying this Harrier Reaper is the last subject we have yet to close... But nonetheless, it holds great urgency."

"Meaning…?" The Harrier frowned and quirked an eyebrow.

Turning his head to the youngest in the room, holding his gaze on the bashful boy for a few seconds, the finely-dressed man soon waddled with his cane back to the end of the table. The Harrier from his angle could see the man lean slightly before a drawer was pulled out, lowering his right hand into the hidden compartment before pulling out an envelope, a sheet of paper, and a pen that he placed on the table one at a time with one-handed difficulty.

Tilting his head more at that, the Harrier silently watched as the Posh Bastard transferred his cane into his right hand before he started writing with the other as he faced the paper, as the man paid them no mind anymore. It wasn't inviting enough to lower his guard as the Harrier crossed his arms, curious yet cautious about what the Posh Bastard could be writing. After a minute passed by, though, the man had to sit back down in order to use both of his hands to neatly fold the page and deposit it into the envelope before he got to his feet again and held the cane. The very sight of the man withdrawing a stamp from his dress pants pockets he used to seal it made the Harrier groan from how meticulous the man was being with whatever the contents of the letter he wrote held.

After he gave a quick scribble across the front of the envelope, transferring his left hand back to the cane, the Posh Bastard straightened as he grasped the envelope with his other one. He gazed directly at the shorter Reaper as he lifted it. "Deliver this to the DATA Sector."

The red-hooded Reaper immediately flinched and tensed up in his seat as he kept gazing back at the Posh Bastard. The Harrier could only watch the interaction with guarded interest until Junior ducked his head left to twist it towards the black-hooded Reaper with an uneasy frown. The Harrier could almost share the younger's feelings about being sent out at a time like this given the circumstances as he mentally sighed, pursing his lips when he spoke up, "What does this have to do with Buttercup?"

In response, the Posh Bastard inhaled quietly before he explained, "It will be a suitable experiment for this Support Reaper, seeing as he already knows how to listen to orders from Reapers above him."

"Experiment?" echoed the Harrier warily, frowning hard as he shook his head. "I don't see how important it is to test Junior when there's bigger fish to fry."

"Oh, be assured," said the Posh Bastard politely, his smile becoming firmer as his eyes flashed. "This has much merit and significance." Turning to the kid Reaper again, he held out the envelope as he went on, "As I was mentioning, I wish for you to take this message to the DATA Sector. But, while you are doing so, keep count for how long it takes you."

The shorter Reaper slowly got to his feet and walked beside the table to take the offered envelope. The Harrier could feel the kid's face screwing up in confusion while he timidly regarded the Posh Bastard as he breathed, "Gee… I guess I could do that." After a heartbeat, the Support added shyly, "I-Is there anything else I need to know?"

As the Posh Bastard whisked his emptied hand away, the man mused thoughtfully, "I do suppose that once you accomplish the task, return to this room, knock, then wait for me to confirm you may enter. When doing so, keep counting until you step inside."

The smaller Reaper gave a tiny nod before he turned his body around to look at the Harrier again. That earned a blink of surprise from the older Reaper; it was almost as if the kid was looking to him for permission. Pondering on the fact made the Harrier feel somewhat weird and uncomfortable that this Support Reaper was relying on him, yet on the other hand, he couldn't help but feel oddly pleased he had that honour.

He knew the kid was nervous, but he didn't expect for the Support to be this clingy in the current circumstances. What did the kid think the Harrier could do for him? What was so special about him?

Whatever the case was, the Harrier reluctantly accepted that he was delaying the order given by the Posh Bastard. He forced down his obvious misgivings about the matter as he nodded curtly for the kid's sake. Once he had, the kid pivoted away and darted for the door, hurrying to open it before disappearing into the corridor as it closed behind him.

Now that it was just him and the Posh Bastard, the Harrier felt as if a weight was lifted off of his mind. Therefore, he didn't waste any time in crossing his arms and scoffed coldly, "...What are you playing at?"

The Posh Bastard's formal smile fell. "I cannot fathom what you are speaking of."

"Cut the shit," growled the Harrier. He sniffed before he glowered and crossed his arms. "You deliberately sent Junior away so you could have your way with me without harming your public image- what else do you think you're trying to pull!?"

"Oh, that is not my intention. I assure you," said the Posh Bastard as he was returning the pen to the drawer. He quietly closed it as he went on coolly, "I am merely testing what you taught him."

"Taught him?" The Harrier shook his head in disbelief then laughed, soon growling with scorn as he regarded the other, "I gave him a tip to kick his Reaperhood off the right way, so don't fall deeply for your mental delusion that I'm doing this for my own gain. Which, by the way, is the dirty trick you adore brandishing."

Smiling again as he moved to sit back down, the Posh Bastard regarded the Harrier with a grim pleasantness as he calmly replied, "You are aware that boy is a Support Reaper, correct?"

"I'm not blind," retorted the Harrier tersely as the man was putting his cane off to the side. Blackie unfolded his arms to clench his right hand in the air as he went on warily, "What's so important about that? That I shouldn't be nudging the misguided in the right direction? That I'm colour blind?"

"To be completely outright," started the cream-and-gold-suited man when he clasped his hands; his fauxly inviting, warm voice was laced with poison as he blinked his sharp midnight-blue eyes. "Teaching a Reaper how to do their duties is the last thing I expected of you to be doing these Days."

The Harrier opened his mouth yet he discovered quickly he didn't even have anything to counter that claim. His chariness simmered as he rotated his palm down and up as he sighed, "...So what? Unlike you, I at least knew to lend a hand to Junior when you didn't even take the time to check up on his training." He frowned with disgruntlement while he growled, "You're just as responsible for causing this to happen as that shitty Harrier was, yet here I am spelling it out for you…"

When the Posh Bastard said nothing, it left the Harrier the opportunity to continue with his sneering. "Don't you see how wrong this is? That the very man who is supposed to be 'leading us' is the last to know when one of his own is throttling each other? That one who doesn't know better doesn't know anything because no one thought to make sure he finished his training? Or the fact that Junior's been wandering around Shibuya thinking he was hungry when in actuality he was starting to break down to nothing!?"

Throwing his arms sharply above his head, whipping them stiffly in the Posh Bastard's direction, the Harrier snarled harshly, "You're just shit at your job! That's what!"

As the Posh Bastard coldly stared at him, pursing his lips as he seemed to be trying to control his breathing, he soon exhaled slowly before he sounded calm. "As I was explaining-" The Harrier huffed at that. "- you took on an endeavour that is delightfully surprising for someone such as yourself. However, that does not grant you anything short of the fact that you were doing it incorrectly."

"Excuse me!?" hissed out the Harrier incredulously. He shook his head roughly before he spat indignantly, "Just because you hate me does not constitute that what you may uppity believe is the right way to train a Reaper! Or how my way is wrong because I was the one taking the reins and incentive to do the right thing yet again!"

"That is not what I was pertaining to," stiffly returned the Posh Bastard with a sniff then explained coolly, "What I intend to purport is that a Support Reaper cannot be a Support Reaper if a Harrier Reaper is the one to guide them."

"What are you talking about?" grumbled the Harrier as he mentally took a step back. He charily eyed the man as he scoffed, "For your information, I am as much certified to show Junior what to do as another Support can. In fact- the one who ditched Junior was a Harrier, so don't excuse my lack of understanding for what you're doing with the stupidity you're trying to prove to me!"

Shifting his hands, adjusting his hold, the Posh Bastard gave him an unamused look. "When you are teaching him how a Harrier Reaper would act?"

Upon hearing those words, the Harrier's next words dwindled on his tongue. He irritably wrinkled his nose, feeling his face contort as he leered at the Posh Bastard, his previous anger simmering before ebbing slightly enough for the Harrier to frown in confusion. He wanted to say something, anything about what he was told entailed, yet he remained silent as he tried to debunk that statement.

Yet before the Harrier could recollect himself and create a response pertaining to that, the Posh Bastard lifted a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. He breathed out through it before he spoke again, "If I must remind you, when you first became a Reaper... we made you and trained you to be a Harrier Reaper, as you henceforth are now."

"What does that have to do with anything?" asked the Harrier in a huff of annoyance. He crossed his arms again as he mumbled, "I've seen how Supports act, and I know some Supports… so don't think I'm stupid about what they do for their existences."

The Posh Bastard's gaze narrowed. "Despite how your intelligence says otherwise, the fact remains that you were never a Support Reaper."

"So you're saying that because I skipped that part of your hierarchy, I'm unfit to show a Support how to eat?" asked the Harrier in deride. He snorted before he grumbled on, "That isn't a dandy excuse to throw around, especially when I believe I was doing the best that I could for Junior's interests here."

"How could you know how to train a Support Reaper when you never were a Support Reaper? Is that not an indication of your ability to properly go through the process is nothing but a skew for the system?" continued the Posh Bastard aloofly as he frowned and promptly lowered his hand. His eyes darkened when he sighed afterwards, "What more do I need to imply for you to understand what I am aiming at in this discussion?"

The Harrier felt his frown tighten. "So you wanted me to ignore Junior and let him fade because I wasn't a Support?" He scoffed right after he had spoken, closing his eyes, "That's just insensitive nonsense!"

"Then what do Support Reapers do, Harrier Reaper?"

The Harrier grimaced in annoyance, but gritted his teeth as he spoke up and faked cheerfulness, "That's easy!" He relaxed his arms, pausing momentarily before he gone on to explain, "They make Walls to impede the Players' progress-" A nod. "They make up Wall Objectives to try and test the Players' ability or knowledge in order to accomplish little errands, deliver items, or even show their worth with a fight or more-" Another nod. What did the Posh Bastard expect? "They are set up at certain Routes on certain Days, depending on the rotation the Gamemaster has set up for the Week's Round." Another nod. See? Easy! "And they can wander around Shibuya to see if Harriers need them for Erasure Assists, via Wall formation or any other shit for giggles needs..."

"Excellent answers…" When the Posh Bastard nodded once more, he then curled his lips into a pleasant smile. "However, it has not escaped my notice that they all stem from your observance, rather than your knowledge." Blinking and starting at that, the Harrier furrowed his eyebrows in puzzlement and annoyance before the Posh Bastard added mildly, "What of their other duties?"

...Other duties?

The Harrier's mind, after a heartbeat, went blank. It offered him no assistance when he all but dumbly stared at the Posh Bastard.

"Uh… heh-" He grimaced, slowly gathering his thoughts and stuffing them back into his head. He found himself to be chuckling oddly while he shook a finger at the other man and matter-of-factly spoke, "Eheh… that's pretty cute of you to bring up. Seeing that they have a Day off when they're not out and about in the field…"

A long-suffering sigh came from the Posh Bastard, "You have no idea, do you?"

"Hey!" cried the Harrier as he glared at the man in frustration, raising a hand in the air and pointed it at the other. "I'm not the one sprouting nonsense about these mythical duties you seem determined to flaunt about to screw with me!"

"In that case, you only have the surface level knowledge of what being a Support Reaper entails," stated the man in mock disappointment. He soon sighed out again as he closed his eyes, "A foresight we failed to acknowledge, it seems…"

Blackie chose to fold his arms and grumbled, "Great work… you managed to surpass my ability to know what Supports do…" He gave an eye-roll as he shook his head. "You got me…" When the Posh Bastard gave him a stern look, the Harrier scoffed before he growled waspishly, "Aren't you happy?"

The Posh Bastard inhaled quietly before he coolly spoke, "If I may, considering as the Reaper chosen to mentor the Support Reaper you brought up before me today is not only no longer fit to do so, and has abandoned his duties for uncouth ventures…" He had a pregnant pause, stoically maintaining his gaze towards the Harrier before he simply put in, "It now falls upon me to manage the affair and set up a new Reaper with the Support Reaper."

Blackie nodded, soon cocking his head as he smirked. "Oh, so is that all you were aggravatingly trying to tell me? That my Support duty knowledge sucks and the fact that Junior needs a new tutor? Well then-" He made a move to stretch, hardly having moments to stop himself before he blew his cover with his MIA shadow status. He settled for a recovery arm shrug instead as he mused, "If that's all that needs to be discussed, I suppose all that needs to be accomplished is to wait for Junior to return so we can all return to our Day's agendas."

"It would," agreed the Posh Bastard. "However, I was about to implore that you would take on the mantle of training the Support Reaper."

Stiffening instantly, feeling his eyes go wide, the Harrier couldn't help but stare at the Posh Bastard in shock. It was only until life returned to his appendages after a moment that he threw his arms forward stiffly whilst exclaiming angrily, "You just fucking told me I wasn't suitable to do so! What are you yammering on about now!?"

"Oh, I just had a thought since you took the initiative to help him that you would be open to the idea," 'innocently' returned the Posh Bastard as he blinked, tilted his head, and smiled nicely. "He already has been listening to your instructions, not to mention he appeared to be more receptive to attaining your permittance to enact the delivery than my own…"

Scoffing out laughter, the Harrier immediately raised a finger and shook it. "No, no, no, no, no-" He sharply swung it towards the Posh Bastard as he spat, "Don't you dare tell me what to do!" He smacked his palm over his chest and left it resting there as he grounded out bitterly, "I am never going to do anything you tell me to do, which is a common fact you appear to have forgotten in the last few minutes we've uttered words to each other!"

"I am only making a request seeing as you already have made a remarkable impression on the young boy." The Posh Bastard looked pleased with himself- how disgusting!- and soon folded his hands in relaxation as he sweetened his barbed tone. "To think you made a positive impact on another is astounding by itself... but to know that you actively pushed to aid one in need is-"

"Oh, so you're just throwing back my previous supporting evidence to spite me!" snapped the Harrier in revulsion, shaking his head and wrinkling his nose as he yelled out furiously, "Trying to attack me so I'll keel over and bend to your will- but I want you to know that-"

A knock sounded.

The air supporting his words started to still, making the Harrier stiffen as he kept gaping and widened his eyes in appall. He whipped his head to the doorway, warily waiting on Junior to disrupt the tense air with his presence when nothing happened. Blinking and closing his mouth to frown, the Harrier crossed his arms and knitted his eyebrows before he remembered the Posh Bastard instructed the kid to wait on them…

"...Just seconds ago you were adamant on the conception of showing the Support Reaper how to do his duties wrong, just to lend support to him when no one else came forth," stated the Posh Bastard softly with mellowness. His midnight-blue eyes didn't stray to the door as they remained on the Harrier, who soon blinked and cautiously flickered his gaze to the Posh Bastard again. "What made you change your mind so quickly? That you know you do not grasp all of the Support Reaper duties?" He paused briefly before speaking firmly, "What does it matter if I assign you to train him now than a few minutes ago when you were advocating for a fellow Reaper?"

Feeling his face contort, narrowing his eyes to slits, the Harrier hissed out lowly, "Why do you care...? This changes nothing...!"

"I only am trying to make a decision for a Support Reaper's best interests when I perceive them," returned the Posh Bastard shallowly. His face twisted with a smirk as he spoke slowly and pleasantly, "I would advise this only because I know you already care about the boy's wellbeing. Not only that, but I can recognize that you are making an effort for yourself to behave yourself responsibly and respectfuller than you usually are in my presence. I do not only believe it would be good for the boy's sake but your own as well, seeing as you have shown better improvement of your overall attitude regarding today's affair you have brought to my attention willingly."

As his stomach churned from hearing that, the Harrier opened his mouth as he struggled to come up with something to combat those claims. However, before he could speak, the Posh Bastard beat him to it. "I was informed you personally summoned me when we both know you have not set a foot in the River since months aforehand, just to report a Reaper that had wronged another… We both know if the Support Reaper was a missing variable in all of this, then this event would cease to have even occurred. Do you really want to decline my request when you are the only one who knows who the perpetrator was who impacted the Support Reaper and now yourself? Your willingness to protect has opened itself up to our discussion, thus, I thank you for bringing this upon yourself. To prove that if I set the Support Reaper up with another, they would not know who to avoid if that Harrier Reaper shows himself to do further damage."

The Posh Bastard smiled as satisfaction entered his condescending gaze. "Are you certain you want to let another take over from what you hardly accomplished, when the one at large could dismantle the very goal you pushed to have in our meeting today?"

"...Y-You're blackmailing me," breathed out the Harrier dazedly as he shook his head. His mind whirled, going numb at the thoughts manifesting from the Posh Bastard's planted disturbances he was shoving into the Harrier. Of all the Underground residents he knew, outside of Andy and Jimmy, the only other person he let himself get close to was the exact same man in front of him. It was a no-brainer that he shouldn't have allowed for himself to share his insecurities so voluntarily when he was doing nothing but try to impress the Posh Bastard in his early Days of living in the Underground. It was doing him nothing but compromising his ability to combat it as the man knew what to say at this exact moment to get under the Harrier's own skin. He made the mistake of trusting the Posh Bastard and now he was facing the consequences.

He even felt a shudder go through his body from how hijacked it felt, hating how it was betraying him at this very moment…

Another knock sounded.

"If you see this as blackmail," returned the Posh Bastard coolly; his smile tightening. "Then I would only assume you have been deceiving me and yourself if this has all been an act for your worthwhile pleasures."

"N-No!" the Harrier protested with an unsteady shake of his head. He felt sick to his stomach as he gasped out, "I-I can't believe you would accuse me of that!"

"Then is that true?" asked the man uncaringly. "That you would not want for anyone else to train him, in the case that he would not have sustainable protection with the one I may assign to train him?" The Posh Bastard pursed his lips afterward as the Harrier shallowly breathed in and tried to recompose himself instead of flailing on the spot. He felt so small… loathing how the sensation he resented was returning to him at this moment while the Posh Bastard was peeling at his defences faster and faster, leaving him shivering in fear… "Because you would like to postulate you are the only competent Reaper to accomplish it without any incidents to arise?"

The Harrier narrowed his eyes to slits after he heard that, trying to not choke from his struggle to breathe as he tried to control it. First things first: If he wanted to respond without being reckless, he had to regain his cool and try not to panic or lash out from hearing all of these attacks on him. Nonetheless, he felt guilty that he did feel this way to some degree, that he couldn't imagine himself walking out on the Support only to find out Junior would be gone in the next moment. It was childish, stupid, and non-sensible… that his mind would land on such conclusions and refuse to let them go as it stubbornly wanted to wiggle its way out of this bind the Posh Bastard caught the Harrier in…

Blackmailing and guilt-tripping him… when it was just supposed to be a one Day push to help out the kid Reaper…

It reminded the Harrier of that Woman… that Scumbag…

Upon hearing the door creak open, the Harrier found himself jolting and soon watched the Posh Bastard move out of the way of the swinging door to let the Support Reaper in.

He instantly felt uncomfortable, maybe even naked, as he saw Junior blink and was panting once the door closed while the kid Reaper breathed out with a perky grin, "Eight minutes!" He then trotted forward a few steps, appearing proud of himself even as he nervously, almost feverishly, chuckled, "I-I got lost for a bit, but asked a Reaper for directions… I hope I didn't keep you two for long…"

"Do not fret, I believe the timing was satisfactory," said the Posh Bastard politely as he sauntered back to the head of the table. The kid Reaper puffed his chest out in response, lighting up while the Posh Bastard went on calmly as he was seating himself and setting his cane aside again, "I was not certain you were aware, but one of the duties Support Reapers have is to ferry messages between Reapers. Although, this occasionally would be the case for Officer Reapers needing to inform each other of their Day-to-Day expenditures."

The kid Reaper frowned, bashfully clasping his hands as he murmured, "Gee... " He was still panting- the Support probably ran all the way back without stopping- and continued with little gasps, "I sure didn't… but thank you for telling me!" The boy blinked for a while then turned his attention to the Harrier with a shaky beam. "D-Did I do good, Mister?" He tucked his head in as he said sheepishly, "I-I didn't know if you heard my first knock, so I did another one just in case."

Cringing internally the moment the kid said that, the Harrier couldn't help but panic and feel woozy the longer he gazed back at the black-haired boy. He might have thought the brown eyes became dark chocolate again, yet he mentally shook himself and tried to focus on Junior.

"Y-Yeah…" he managed to let out. His lips loosely, crookedly turned upward as he chuckled awkwardly, "Y-You did, heh."

Something occurred to him when he realized the Posh Bastard was intently watching the exchange, feeling something clutch his heart unforgivingly at how the knowing look in the Posh Bastard's gaze told him everything. The Harrier was a pushover for the kid after all… Just the way the kid's eyes sparkled made his heart throb and cry out in vexed frustration that the Posh Bastard was correct in outright bringing out the truth that the Harrier didn't want this kid to get hurt…

Kids were kids… what made this one different?

He just met this kid yesterday. What the fuck was wrong with him?

"While you were absent, we were discussing your apparent lack of knowledge surrounding your duties as a Support Reaper," explained the Posh bastard, which finally brought the Harrier back to the present as he snapped his attention to the man and grimaced. When the kid Reaper turned with an uneasy frown, the Harrier took the moment to try and appear more composed than he actually felt on the inside. "As that is a verily appalling consequence from your neglected observance, action will be taken to reassign you for this Week in response to the ill situation you have found yourself in."

The kid Reaper sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Gee… I guess that makes sense."

Upon receiving a sharp look from the Posh Bastard, the Harrier felt like he swallowed a stone when the man nodded then went on meaningfully, "You had arrived just as we were discussing options. But now that you are here, perhaps you may apply your opinion on the matter."

Blackie couldn't help but feel small when the shorter Reaper's face blanched from what the Harrier could see of Junior's expression. "O-Options?"

The Posh Bastard nodded. "Who should mentor you." The first thing Junior did was turn his head back to the Harrier, blinking in confusion as the fawn-coloured haired man continued, "I know of how this Reaper took it upon himself to demonstrate a few tips on how to Erase a Player, however, it may be more appropriate to set you up with another Support Reaper. That all depends on your preference and the ability of the slated Reaper to give you a proper education on what you are required to do in your time here in the Underground." The man's midnight-blue gaze gained an inquisitive light in them. "Unless you are promoted to a Harrier Reaper, perhaps even an Officer Reaper one Day, if you make a name for yourself to receive my apt notice to consider it."

Suddenly, the kid adopted a thoughtful look… tinged with disappointment? Oh no… why was the kid looking miserable about the facts delivered to him? The Harrier couldn't help but try to steer away from these thoughts, hating how he was being affected by something so meaningless… However, his thoughts seemed to be only scolding him as his heart twisted and his mind whirled as he was almost hypersensitive to the fact that this Support Reaper may have expected for things to remain the same.

The Harrier sighed sombrely, crossing his arms as he murmured, "Look, all he's trying to say is that I don't have the exact qualifications for someone to train you... which is what you need right now to be the best Support you can be."

"Oh," meekly breathed the shorter Reaper as he lowered his head. He clasped his hands and shuffled his feet slightly. "R-Right."

Frowning, the Harrier caught the Posh Bastard's gaze. He narrowed his eyes from under his black hood as he felt the silent question sear him again when the Posh Bastard moved his eyes between the Harrier and the kid Reaper occasionally.

At that moment, something inside the Harrier crawled its way up and settled in his chest, causing him to curl his lips and seize it.

"Although, that doesn't have to mean I can't," said the Harrier wryly. He congratulated himself on not sounding uncertain of himself, despite knowing it will reel itself back when he was done with the conversation. Upon watching the shorter Reaper's head whip up and small brown eyes widen with surprise, the Harrier placed a hand on his chest and grinned as he went on confidently, "I might not be the best to train you, but I can certainly make do with the punches and kicks if I can just get a to-do list."

Raising his sharpening and glinting gaze to meet the Posh Bastard's, he narrowed his eyes to slits and smiled darkly. "Which, I am certain, can be arranged without much issue." Even if he was intentionally taking the bait- biting down hard to almost break his pearly-whites- recesses of worthlessness echoing, taunting, and warning him to bail-

The kid needed him.

...Fuck the Posh Bastard, though. Pushing the Harrier to accept this through these unruly means to foster the selfishness the Harrier had was utterly disgusting… But it still hit the Harrier hard, right through the place it hurt most. He'll accept curtailing his dignity for now if it meant the kid would be safe…

After everything was back to normal, no more exceptions.

"I believe that turns around the current dilemma, yes," commented the midnight-blue eyed man tersely, blinking as his smile subtly became tighter. "I will supply you the details at a later time… before the next Day starts, at most. Ensure you make your location known and clear so a Support Reaper can locate you easily, Harrier Reaper."

"Splendid!" chirped the black-hooded Reaper as he clapped his hands into being clasped together. He nodded a few times for pleasant effect before adding brightly to nail it on its head, "Glad this got sorted out smoothly then."

"Indeed," agreed the Posh Bastard coolly as he nodded back. However, his eyes maintained their coldness as he moved to stand after retrieving his cane again. "Unless there are other transgressions you wish to bring up... I believe it may be best to adjourn this appointment and now return to our duties."

The Harrier remained silent, sticking to his spot stubbornly as he watched the man hobble towards the door. Once the Posh Bastard was gone, the Harrier was safe to walk around freely without worrying about his lack of shadow having to be brought up.

When the door finally clicked closed, the Harrier mentally sighed in relief finally. However, he kept his concentration on the kid Reaper, who was still gazing back at him but with a beam of true delight now.

"You're going to continue teaching me then!" piped the shorter male as his eyes were glittering happily. It made the Harrier both queasy from what he had chosen to do and content at what he had done at the same time. "G-Gee, for a second I thought you were going to tell me I was going to have someone else show me what to do."

Whoa- this was the most excitable he'd seen the kid since… hmm, nevermind. This was the most he'd seen the kid get excitable. He would have thought the thirteen-year-old, with the collectedness he held this whole time, wouldn't be bursting with energy and vigour as he was now. Didn't kids smooth themselves out to control their behaviour and emotions better by this age? Or was the Harrier so used to his perception of himself by that age that he thought it was the status quo? Hmm… maybe? Maybe no? Either way, he was a little proud of himself that Junior wasn't sulking right now about the decision the Harrier veered him away from.

When his mind went back to the kid, the boy was rubbing his hands together instead of uncomfortably clutching them near his abdomen… Good, that meant the kid wasn't being shy and nervous about what would happen. Although, he'd never seen someone rub their hands together this much from sheer happiness before.

Once the black-haired boy stopped moving his hands, he chuckled sheepishly as he scratch the back of his head. "S-Sorry… When I get really happy about something, my hands can get clammy and I can't help but rub them together."

Okay then, maybe staring at the kid too much made the boy think the Harrier was weirded out by that. By all means, the Harrier didn't want to give off that sort of vibe to the kid after accidentally saying his thoughts aloud. So, in order to fix that, he shook his head and replied mildly with his own chuckle, "No, no… I get it. I'm just glad everything went okay."

"Do they usually don't?" asked the boy suddenly with surprise, instantly causing the Harrier to panic inside. "W-Was it because you didn't know if you could keep training me?"

...Man, the kid alternated through being receptive and oblivious so much it was making the Harrier's head spin. He faintly felt that the kid was acting, but that couldn't be right. Therefore, he decided to ignore the odd signs he was receiving from this to focus on the other facets of the situation.

"Um, sure…" he said while snaking his hand into his hood and gripping on to his nape to give it a harmless squeeze. "I never was a Support Reaper, which begged the question of how I could teach you to be one."

"Gee, you must have been…" As the red-hooded Reaper's words slurred, he grimaced before tilting his head curiously. "Oh gee, I don't know how to say it, but how come you weren't a Support Reaper then?"

"Oh, well, you see…" he started uneasily, soon hearing a knock and jolted. With a quick glance to the door and the kid, he spoke more, "This room could be booked for another party, so how about I let you know once we're further along on the go so we don't make them wait?"

The shorter Reaper soon smiled and nodded, following after him as the Harrier apologized 'sincerely' to the awaiting Officers for taking up their time then led the way down the cement corridor. As soon as they were nearing the end of it, the Harrier then replied, "I guess… when I finished my Game Week, the Po-Conductor must have thought I had a lot of potential. Nowadays, I wonder if this was what he was bargaining for."

When the kid gave him an odd look, the Harrier pretended he hadn't seen it and kept his stride strong through the hallway. He hoped it was because of his attempts to not insult the Posh Bastard in front of the Support.

However, as the Harrier turned into and entered the main hallway to the Lounge, when he approached the Elevator, he quickly realized the shorter Reaper had stopped. He halted to turn back, knitting his eyebrows until it occurred to him this was where they had to part ways. He noticed that the kid looked uneasy as he watched the Harrier.

"You don't sleep in the Barracks?" asked the kid almost worriedly, biting his lip as the Harrier nodded. The taller Reaper walked back and looked down at the Support as he frowned back up.

"No, I don't," he replied as he idly readjusted a knapsack strap. "I room with a Reaper friend of mine outside of the River."

"Gee, you must be lucky, Mister… I guess we'll see each other again tomorrow then." The kid Reaper didn't do much else but lower his shoulders as he turned away, seemingly crestfallen for some reason. He didn't even start to walk off as he began to quiver, causing the Harrier to frown as well. It didn't make any sense for the younger to act fearful of sleeping there… but as a thought hit him, the Harrier felt his expression tighten and was ill to his stomach from his epiphany.

Of course the kid would be scared when he was in the right place for Buttercup to target him.

If the Support slept in the Barracks like other Reapers, he definitely would be vulnerable to Buttercup. All Harriers and Supports shared the same quarters unless they had personal lodgings, so it wouldn't be surprising, if he assumed correctly, that Buttercup stuck with the Barracks for his sleep.

The Harrier felt increasingly unnerved at the fact when pondering more and more about the likelihood that the Support would face. It wouldn't be logical to hope that his future trainee would be safe in his sleep. The only way he could see for the Support to survive the night would be if the Harrier took him back to Jimmy's…

But his WEB Reapers frequented Jimmy's home. And if Buttercup wasn't pinpointed by tomorrow… it wouldn't take long for the kid to realize the whole picture of what the Harrier was doing. Even the Harrier knew he couldn't hide WEB's existence from the kid unless there was careful planning and masterful spinning of lies, and it wasn't like the Harrier could wait a Day to get WEB to agree to keep everything under wraps if the Support was attacked already. He couldn't even trust that the Reapers settled in the Barracks could defend the Support if they didn't have a clue about the threat in store.

It was downright dangerous, but the Harrier had to take the risk if it meant protecting the shorter Reaper. He couldn't hide WEB from the Support, he told himself uneasily, but if the kid was okay, what did it matter in the end? It would be easier to lie about Junior's involvement to WEB; the pressure of the group's size and his situation would likely keep the Support's mouth shut.

Mentally nodding despite his other misgivings, the Harrier steeled himself as he grimly spoke to the red-hooded Reaper, "You don't have to sleep there." That made the Support turn his head in surprise as the Harrier added in hush, "But only if you promise me something first, and this isn't something you shouldn't take lightly."

When the smaller Reaper hesitated on his response, the Harrier patiently waited while furtively checking for listeners. He didn't like the fact that he had to talk about it here, yet he didn't want to look suspicious leading Junior away to somewhere private to get a quick reply only to leave the place just as quickly. It would make the Vultures question it as much as him being called Mr Reaper by that outspoken Player, so he could only hope that the Support would be discreet once he agreed…

Or if he agreed.

"Mmm, I guess I can," said the younger with a bemused tilt of his head. Although, his brown eyes looked desperate and shined with a bit of hope.

"You mustn't say anything about what you hear from it, or where the place is no matter what," the Harrier strictly told him as he pursed his lips. "I can bet that if you do, my roommate may not want you staying there, to put it gently."

The other Reaper took a moment before nodding, leaving the Harrier to turn to the Elevator and activate it for himself.

---

By the time they had gotten to the Scramble Crossing, a Pact had apparently gotten to their Mission Objective which carried the rest of the Players home to victory. The Harrier wasn't pleased they lost Junior's opportunity for Points to the Posh Bastard, yet he told himself he'd snag a Processed Dead or something for the Support Reaper tomorrow as he led the way back to Jimmy's place.

His companion by every means was shocked by the fact that the Harrier ran a secret organization so much so that the Harrier had to constantly stop and give him warnings to stay quiet during their walk. One part of the Harrier was worried at first that Junior would be revolted and privy enough to sprint the other way to report him, but maybe their time together and the warning the Harrier gave earlier was successful in having the Support refrain from doing so. It was a breath of relief in itself that the Harrier had enough time to come up with a cover story for the kid and why he may be with the Support for the Week to give to WEB that by the time that they approached their destination, the kid eagerly told him he was just thankful about the Harrier's kindness and that he wouldn't say a word to anyone.

Another part of the Harrier felt disgusted he was making Junior compliant with their illegal practices for his own protection, yet it was muffled fast by a voice saying the Harrier had to. WEB was his other priority, after all.

But as the Harrier was about to go up the stairs to unlock the door to the eggshell-coloured building for his new trainee, stomps alerted him to the fact that the Sadist was just arriving as well.

The Harrier grimaced, loathing every second he took to pivot to regard the huge man. And when he had, the Harrier immediately zoned in how one of Sadist Saiyama's tattered sleeves were gone. The right one appeared to have been torn off, the Harrier noted, so he decided that must have been the source of the Ex-Army Man's frustration oozing from his burdened frown and darkened eyes.

"Finally came to terms that your duds are ancient?" asked the Harrier dryly in amusement. It earned a look from the kid as Sadist Saiyama all but rolled his eyes and grumbled under his breath. "I mean, it must be terrible dragging your sleeves along for this long, and your brittle bones might snap if you don't get a real coat."

...See? He cared. Cared that the sticky, rundown uniform was still smelling and maybe was starting to make itself known to the Sadist that he couldn't hug the past to his fragile form for much longer. If the Officer was going to continue in the long run up here, he'd have to ditch the mouldy cloth already.

"Pah, was an accident with the door when leaving the River," grumbled the murky eyed man as he huffed out a sigh. He shook his head before crossing his arms. "I keep telling the people I know to be careful and knock before they enter, yet one of them decided to just disregard the fact and open the door during a snack run. Smacked me and knocked me off balance when I was in the middle of my last explanation I was having with the rest of the group I work with." He then shrugged with another huff, "Then the doorknob fished my sleeve and was gone the next."

As much as the WEB leader loved to hear about the Old Man's daily rituals and every second he snorted, huffed, grunted, or growled at people, he wasn't that interested to know the man's business. Instead, he decided to focus on what truly mattered right now and narrowed his eyes to slits. "...Group?"

"Is it that hard to believe I belong somewhere when working as an Officer, or do you think I slink off everyday to sit in someone else's house for the heck of it?" growled the man gruffly with a snort.

The Harrier rolled his eyes as he muttered blandly, "I don't know, wouldn't the Barracks count as a shabby enough place for yourself to reside in?" He couldn't ignore the fact that Junior was tilting his head back awkwardly as the Support continued trying to gawk up at the large Reaper, almost ready to topple backwards from how far his head was leaning. He mentally tried to stifle his frustration that he was being forced into pleasantries again as he added stiffly, "You practically ignore the luxury you have at your fingertips."

As the Sadist shook his head in annoyance, his head soon came to a stop when his gaze fell on to his silent observer. "Who's the kid?"

"New member," replied the Harrier curtly, not missing a beat to make the lie as authentic as possible. It was the best deterrent for WEB if they refused to let the kid stay, he believed, and he knew it would become easier to spew out without fail if he started saying it aloud now. He drifted his gaze to said Reaper, who then glanced at him nervously with a frown as he returned to his regular posture. It wasn't hard to read the unsaid question, so the Harrier mentally sighed as he gestured to the Old Man. "And that's Sadist Saiyama, an old Reaper who works with us."

"Gee, I thought only Harrier and Support Reapers were in…" The shorter Reaper was twisting his head again to hopefully get a good look at the Officer Reaper's face before giving up to glance back at the Harrier. "W…E…B…" he whispered carefully.

'Unfortunately, he is.'

The black-hooded Reaper flashed a smile as he murmured as nicely as he could, "Just one Officer is enough for us. We don't want too many tucked into our folds, or someone we know might get suspicious."

Junior started before trying to look at Sadist Saiyama's face again. "Oh! So you're like a spy?"

Sadist Saiyama's features contorted when the kid said that; the side of his right eye that was watching the Harrier flashed with annoyance as wariness filled them. The black-hooded Reaper merely gave a nod, waving a hand Junior's way and 'gleefully' chirped, "Yup! That."

As the Support Reaper's gaze instantly was filled with awe and admiration, the Harrier couldn't shrug away the disappointment that the kid was figuratively and literally looking up to one who was still not trustworthy.

Perhaps, as Junior said, Sadist might be playing the spy card for them, yet the Harrier still had to keep up with his good graces with the Old Man so the other members of WEB wouldn't catch on and cause a fuss that the Harrier just didn't trust the Sadist. As the Officer was months into being in their group, WEB Reapers would probably would see their leader as the bad guy for still doubting the 'clean' Sadist Saiyama. However, as far as they were concerned, nothing bad had happened and the Sadist still hadn't displayed a single sign of turning traitor…

Even so, the Harrier couldn't help but keep his vigilance strong and steady… even if the man had his uses as an Officer.

He couldn't help but keep thinking back on what the Old Man said the moment he earned his keep after killing that insufferable smallfry… Why would the man show mercy to a Wrongdoer who had his ass handed to him by those he should have never thought of joining? It was his fault for getting tangled with the likes of a street gang, so why would the Sadist go for an easy target and pretend it was for 'mercy'? All the Harrier got was that the Sadist might still change his heart any Day now, as that type of weakness to feign empathy or sympathy to a Wrongdoer flashed 'suspicious' and 'not fully committed' clearly in the Harrier's face.

...For now, the kid Reaper could enjoy the afterglow of meeting this Officer. However, when the time came that the Officer abandoned ship for homeland, or River if he were to be exact, the Harrier would shut down the Old Man's existence himself. He would only hope that Junior and WEB wouldn't get in his way and accept the betrayal that Blackie saw coming a mile away…

"Just so you don't get confused, my actual name is Iwao Saiyama," explained the Officer in a… kindly tone? As kindhearted as a gruff, gritty and deep-sounding voiced man might sound? Who knows. The Old Man groaned as he leaned down, resting his weight on his knees in his crouch as the kid Reaper finally got a chance to meet the technically oldest member of the WEB Reapers face-to-face. "Kids your age wouldn't have known the exact details, but I was part of the War. Lived and died fighting for our country, literally."

"Wow," breathed the Support in awe as he gaped. "Then does that mean anyone from Japan can be in the Underground?"

Briefly, the Harrier paid attention purely from his curiosity's sake. ...Only his curiosity's sake. "It only happened to me on our soil when I got struck down, so that made it easier for the Composer to pull any who were killed back to Shibuya for another shot at living a better existence after it. The specific circumstances that people come here is if they recently had ties for residing in Shibuya, so the Composer made an exception when it came to the Wars out of the goodness of Their heart." The Sadist paused for a second before his expression grew mournful. "But for me, I came here when my family was planning on moving here, and the War changed my wife and I's plans to instead hold out until the end of it. And yet here I am before I even knew what Shibuya was like."

"Oh gee… that's so sad..." mumbled Junior with a frown, lowering his head as he sighed.

Having heard enough of this, the Harrier brought his hand to his throat as he cleared it. He withdrew it as the Officer and Support gave him their attention. "Even though the elements won't kill us anymore, might we go inside and continue our conversation there? It is a chillier Day today." As he was speaking, the Sadist rose to stand at his full height again and became stoic once more while Junior nodded with a frightened look.

"So we can't freeze?" asked the younger Reaper. At the Harrier's nod, Junior adopted a curious expression and chuckled sheepishly, "G-Gee, I kind of miss the idea of getting that cold, though."

"Because it makes us feel more alive than we aren't?" asked the Harrier knowingly, this time having his turn of getting a nod back. He sighed, crossing his arms as he murmured, "I know it's hard, but you'll get used to it eventually."

The kid Reaper gave an unsure yet reassured nod this time in response.

When the Harrier glanced back at the Sadist, the man had already climbed the stairs and made a move to pound against the door, not sparing a glance as he lumbered in after he was granted entry. The Support followed suit up the stairs and before the Harrier went, he took a moment to dwell on the fact that the kid would settle in nicely with the WEB Reapers at this rate once he explained the cover story.

However, just as he was about to head up to join Junior, the Harrier was aware of movement from nearby.

The Harrier felt his hairs on his nape stand up and immediately went up the steps in strides until he got to the landing. He soon gazed at Junior, who was peeking out at him in confusion from the other side of the door. "I'll be in after a second, got to handle something."

"O-Okay?" said the youngest WEB Reaper before the Harrier shut the door without delay and swiftly strode down the stairwell.

The Harrier pulled into the streets and kept to the sidewalks, mindfully not letting himself drift close to the road and stuffed his hands into his pockets. He tried to maintain a somewhat casual gait while concentrating on the distance between himself and the Reaper who must have been following him. He didn't know if it was Buttercup or some other privy Reaper who might uncover WEB's location when he could hardly pick apart who was friend and who was foe with his sharpened instincts. Either way, he couldn't walk too fast or too slow or he would look suspicious.

Just as he 'conveniently' stopped to 'catch his breath', going so far as to stretch his arms out fully above his head and hold it while groaning contently, he heeded the incoming Reaper. He tried to be as patient as he could.

The moment another Reaper joined him, the Harrier pretended he was startled and jerked away from them ever so much. He promptly released his arms, forcing his body into a stilled image of 'flailing' before relaxing and resting a hand on his heart for 'relief'. "...You scared me," he mumbled as he narrowed his eyes, taking to scrutinizing their appearance and made a note of how it was a Support Reaper.

"Uh…" He slowly but cautiously crossed his arms, keeping his black hood towards them as he soon asked, "Can I help you… or…?"

Wordlessly, they pulled out an large envelope from their beige shoulder strap haversack and offered it to him. Getting an idea for what it was about, he frowned yet nodded before taking it, receiving a nod in return before the Support promptly made their departure. He merely watched them leave, waiting a minute or two just to make sure they weren't waiting around for him themselves before he read the front of the envelope.

For the wingless Harrier Reaper with the ochre knapsack and black hoodie

...The Posh Bastard still couldn't even bother to be creative without the Harrier's name. Well then, the Harrier decided he wouldn't make an effort to find out the other's name. The Posh Bastard could suck it.

Sliding his bag off his back, he didn't want to read the contents of the message until he was alone. After all, if the rest of WEB saw him enter with a letter from the Posh Bastard himself, he knew they would start to ask questions and probably wouldn't trust him as much anymore. Therefore, he had to keep this as a need-to-know basis. The only ones who knew what the contents would hold was the Posh Bastard, Junior, and the Harrier himself.

And the Harrier wanted to keep it that way.

Deeming it was safe to return to Jimmy's place, he slung his ochre knapsack back on and calmly ventured forth.

As soon as he knocked on Jimmy's door, knowing it wouldn't be a problem after how soon the Sadist was let in, and shifted as he waited, the Harrier frowned when he felt agitated movement from the grannyflat's inside. He could only come up with so many ideas on why such was the case before he was welcomed in by the still grumpy Sadist.

Shouldering his way past the Goliath, he could only widen his eyes in dismay as all eyes focused on him before a Reaper cried out, "There you are!"

"Who's the kid!?" yelled another.

"You went to the Posh Bastard today!?" screamed Sadorume in frustration.

...Oh dear. He forgot he told Jimmy he wanted all of WEB to meet today at the grannyflat again.

Grimacing as everyone seemed to be rounding on him, the Harrier raised his hands defencively while trying to hold back the distance between them. "With good reason," he simply said to hopefully pacify them before he panicked as WEB Reapers started to hurry over.

They cornered him between the door and the Sadist, who was watching him with an unreadable expression, and acknowledged such wasn't entirely the case when he still had wiggle room to move. "Okay, okay-" he said grumpily, grimacing more as he gestured for them to hold still. "If everyone could convene to the living room, I'll explain everything."

Luckily, that was enough to ward them off this time. This allowed for him to exhale a sigh of relief before he went to join them after taking off his Lygres, to leave them amongst the multitudes of other footwear that the shoe shelf couldn't contain.

As he treaded towards the open-walled kitchen, since the seats of the living room were filled and the lights were so brilliant they wouldn't not cast shadows, he slid behind the dark-surfaced kitchen island and settled himself to watch them from it so it wouldn't be as noticeable. Another thing to make them panic about would be to give the unfortunate news that he was without a shadow, which wasn't knowledge he'd bring himself to share so willingly if it was the one thing between him and surviving Erasure, so he prayed that they wouldn't notice it.

Casting his gaze and meeting many perturbed eyes based on how much heat was scorching his body, he inhaled to brace himself before he spoke, "How did you learn of the meeting with the Conductor?"

...He wasn't going to reveal anything until he knew who leaked the information.

When a hand rose, his earlier frustration sank when it was the kid Reaper. "Gee, I didn't know I wasn't supposed to talk about it, Mister," said Junior as he hung his head. "Someone asked how my Day went."

Inhaling again but in a strained fashion this time, the Harrier shook his head and murmured, "Don't worry, people were bound to find out eventually, Junior."

The kid nodded yet kept his head low. It may have also been the fact that Reapers kept sending cursory glances to the young Support, therefore, the Harrier knew it was best to get them off the kid's back first and foremost.

"This is…" While the Harrier knew still having no name for the kid wasn't flattering, he knew if the kid wanted to introduce himself he would. "This is our newest member! Junior!" When gasps of various emotions echoed through the room, the Harrier kept his gaze on the Support as he went on as collectedly as he could, "I met him yesterday, and I wasn't too sure how comfortable he would be with us. So... I did a test run with him today."

"And how did he do?" asked Itoh curiously as he crossed his arms. "You said your part in the plan didn't involve finding more Reapers, so it was a surprise when he told us you were teaching him how to Erase a Player."

Dammit… that just confirmed the fact that the Harrier should have went in to defuse the situation before it started.

The Harrier quickly picked up his composure again as he cleared his throat and closed his eyes, raising a finger up. "Junior's a fairly new Reaper. His…" When he cracked open an eyelid to look at Junior, the kid sheepishly nodded a little. The Harrier nodded back before continuing grimly, "His trainer ditched him, so I'm now in charge of his training… as a Support and as a WEB Reaper. And he will be staying at the house until an issue is sorted out." He hardened his eyes as his tone became stern.

A squawk of shock was released from a Reaper before an uproar from others followed after. It was the kind of reaction he expected from sane people, so the Harrier was glad his Reapers cared as much as he did about the matter. Jimmy, on the other hand, gave him a quizzical look.

He wasn't certain if he should explain the reason to Jimmy yet, but he supposed he couldn't keep the New Zealander in the dark forever. For now, though, it wasn't the time for that.

The Harrier soon watched as Jimmy merely scowled while he crossed his arms and cocked his head. "Is that why you went to see the stink fulla, Bro? I ow didn't think you'd even yack with the Posh Bastard when you hate him to the days." Junior looked at the lanky Support when he said that, soon passing a confused yet shocked look to the Harrier, which stung more than the black-hooded Reaper wanted it to.

"Look, while that was partly the reason why we had to, me and Junior ran into some unforeseen difficulty while we were out and about today," started the Harrier as he leaned his forearms against the island's counter. He was certainly glad that the surface was dark and mottled enough that the various chromosome shades would shield his missing shadow for now. "A Reaper was attacking a Pact when he shouldn't have, so it was best to break up the dispute since we were right near the action."

"A Reaper was attacking a Pact on Day 1?" commented a female Support Reaper as the other WEB Reapers were murmuring and mumbling to themselves. She shook her head before she went on in fraught, "But we're not supposed to be doing that! It's against Reaper Policies!"

"Which," the Harrier pointedly said as he raised a finger up and hovered it. "Is why we stepped in."

"And that had to do with meetin' the stink fulla too?" asked Jimmy flatly. His storm-grey eyes were unamused as he gave an expectant look to the Harrier.

"I will be getting to that shortly, Jimmy, don't worry," said the Harrier before he put his hand back down. He took a moment before he went on sternly, "Now, I tried to reason with him, but it didn't go as planned and me and Junior got attacked along with the Pact. We got separated then managed to regroup before the Players got hurt, then Buttercup took the easy out by Erasing an unPacted Player in the end.

"...Hold on," he said after a second and squinted, pushing himself off the counter in surprise and glanced around the mumbling small congregation. When he realized they were missing dark dirty blonde hair from the masses, he cocked his head with worry. "Where's Andy?"

Jimmy gave a helpful shrug. "Hasn't popped over yet. Don't think she's the type to stay somewhere and read a book, Bro."

The Harrier furrowed his eyebrows at that. 'Yeah… sounds about right. Hopefully she's getting wasted somewhere after what she said she wanted to do.'

Blackie dwelled on the thought for a while before he soon remembered he still had an audience. He cleared his throat awkwardly before speaking again, "I'll fill her in when she returns home." He shifted to get comfortable again before he explained more, "Anyway, we didn't see him loafing around, but it would have been too risky to let him go like that so me and Junior thought the best bet was to report him. And if we wanted results, it had to be from contacting the Conductor himself."

He clapped his hands into being clasped in front of him as he observed the mixed responses waving and weaving through the crowd. He pretended the majority of them weren't eyeing him warily when he soon heard a Reaper speak up, "You could have just asked us to give him hell for you."

"Ooh!" said the Reaper's companion as they excitedly clenched their hands and held them close to their shoulders. "That sounded not half bad. Makes us sound like one of those Yakuza members."

"Oh yeah, you're right!" returned the Reaper as he sounded excited… Oh no.

The Harrier shook his head wildly, widening his eyes as he cried out, "We are not the Yakuza- so how about you stop that right there." When he saw the two of them slump after speaking, he inhaled briskly before he went on sternly, "Remember: We are not the bad guys here, so I don't even want another comparison between us and them from any of you!"

Not to mention, going after the Yakuza wouldn't bode well for the rest of the Underground. Once any of those thugs caught wind of hoodie-wearers were sniping them off the street, they would turn their heads to Reapers and the Posh Bastard would definitely notice WEB's activity. WEB would only be endangering themselves and the rest of the Reapers and the Harrier could already imagine the repercussions of such a mistake. The last thing he wanted was for them to be seeing themselves as a gang or the Yakuza themselves…

The less WEB was associated with them, the better.

"I mean, it wouldn't be a mare to take care of that angus, eh?" asked Jimmy thoughtfully as heads turned to him now. The Harrier focused on how the copper-haired Reaper blinked his grey eyes right back at him. "Do you know what he looked like? Sounded? A name, Bro?"

'...This is oddly reminding me of the Posh Bastard's questions,' he thought drearily as he sighed. The Harrier soon tilted his head as he answered coolly, "He wears the usual Harrier uniform and that's about it." Pausing momentarily, he soon half-closed his eyes. "We already discussed pinpointing the Reaper with the Conductor, so there is no need to deal with him ourselves. Don't even think about it."

"That doesn't mean we can't mess with him," insisted the Reaper who started the current topic, sharing looks with the Reapers nearby him. His hood shifted back towards the Harrier when he spoke again, "If he's going to mess with you and Junior, then he's going to have to mess with the rest of us. We are in this together, right?"

As murmurs of agreement passed to each other, the Harrier couldn't decide if he was impressed with their loyalty to each other or very worried about what they supposedly wanted to do.

"Buttercup was Starving when I encountered him, and he doesn't believe I've given up on Wrongdoers," the Harrier then said mindfully, gripping his chin with a hand as he felt everyone adjust themselves after he had spoken. "And that could potentially impact our cause if he keeps running his mouth about me having a connection to Wrongdoers still... Therefore, if he links me to you guys-" He raised a finger in the air, tipping his head up as he breathed, "We'll still need to be careful to not reveal ourselves."

"If he knows what we do, doesn't that mean he could snitch on us?" asked another Reaper, earning commotive gasps from the crowd. She stood up as she added in worry, "Why can't we just show him not to mess with us a little bit?"

"I already tried to give him that impression for myself, but it appears to have had no effect," replied the Harrier sadly, shaking his head as he crossed his arms. "And if anyone tries to mess with him now, he could very well track any of us down and uncover where our current location is out of spite. Then we all know what may occur if he does snitch on us."

The Reaper seemed discouraged enough to sit back down, hanging her head as the Harrier chose to continue seriously, "With that said, I implore each and every one of you to heed your surroundings and any persons in your vicinity even moreso because we don't know which Harrier is him yet. Everyone will have to for the time being until we have the confirmation that Buttercup has been identified and dealt with by the Conductor, as well as after this passes." He lifted his palms up and sighed, "I know it's easy to become comfortable with not being aware of our surroundings after managing to not be uncovered thus far... However, we can't allow ourselves to do so if we want to not be flushed out from the only safe place we have. Once the Conductor is in the know, there's very little we can do to wiggle and squirm our way out from his radar. It would appear suspicious if we tried looking for another hideout, especially when the Conductor wants Jimmy to receive his permission before Jimmy suddenly decides to move location out of the blue, so I wouldn't put it past the Conductor to be sniffing each and every one of us out once words get out about WEB's haunt."

He clapped his hands together and exhaled matter-of-factly, "So basically... we would be toast if we even think of screwing with Buttercup, my fellow Reapers. We must not act rashly or Buttercup may still be feeling sore about our exchange to focus on us, and potentially hurt us and WEB for all it stands for. As well, I must remind you we could be crippling and exposing ourselves if the Conductor notices some of his Reapers are not acting in their interest and straying from the path by searching and trying to trip up Buttercup for 'no good reason'. Your cover of me will be ripped away and WEB will be dismantled before we see daybreak again, so we must remain discreet, cover our eyes, and not interfere in any way whatsoever to maintain our mien and objective. I need to remain as a good-standing Reaper so the Conductor won't suspect I am in charge of our operations." He shook his head with a sad sigh, "And if I stick one foot out of line, he will connect the dots and WEB will be history."

Pausing to study their reactions, when he received no complaints, he was pleased and content. "Thank you, that will be all," he said calmly, nodding as he finished, "Let us all now return to our businesses."

As his WEB Reapers started to animate themselves and disperse, he tried to hold himself together instead of slouching in relief that they left the topic alone. He couldn't understand why his Reapers were so keen on attacking Buttercup when they weren't the victims, so were they that protective of him and WEB that they would immediately fight tooth and nail against the perpetrator? They needed the point-blank perspective of the repercussions they would face to deter them from acting rashly, he mused to himself as he watched them talk amongst themselves, because running in blindly would prematurely deliver them the end of their operation.

This is why you needed to use your head; without it you wouldn't have much to go for and you would definitely be a goner. Although, how the majority of them jumped on the boat for blood concerned him, especially when Jimmy wasn't opposed to it if he was actively vouching for it as well.

The Harrier concentrated on the New Zealander inconspicuously with as little hood disturbance as possible. Jimmy usually wasn't all too eager to hurt someone else, which brought to light a newfangled caution inside the Harrier. It could be dangerous if his friend inspired more followers on that line of thinking, so he knew he would have to have a word with the Support to discourage this from arising in the future…

Junior, on the other hand, was by himself figuratively as he shot timid glances the Harrier's way, not vocal or eager to jump on the train the others were hyping about riding on. The kid may have been here for less than half an hour, but the Harrier wanted to make sure that the other WEB Reapers wouldn't force the idea into Junior's head and encourage him to follow suit. It made the Harrier glad that he was going to be Junior's trainer, he could at least veer Junior away from thinking he had to get revenge on Buttercup.

After all, Junior was still a kid… or rather, young teenager, that is... so he would be as impressionable as he already was this morning. The Harrier would ensure the kid had his head on straight...

Blinking as he was aware of eyes burning into him, he resisted the instinct to twitch in order to remain motionless. Under his hood, he carefully tried to locate who it was until his gaze fell on to the Sadist. He seemed pretty good at blending and fading into the crowd despite his size, as he still hadn't spoken nor did he lose that odd look he wore on his face. It beat him whatever the man was thinking, but it kind of put the Harrier on edge if it would cripple him necessarily.

The Harrier had half a mind to approach the Officer when an uneven round of knocks broke his concentration, alerting him to the fact that his friend had returned. With resignation that he couldn't determine what the Sadist's deal was right now, he merely navigated around and nearly tripped over the pile of shoes as he went to the door. He hoped whatever it was wasn't important nor was going to complicate things.

Upon opening the door, Andy's face was flushed when the Harrier set his eyes on her once he unveiled her. She was breathing deeply and unsteadily with her whole body following the motions, looking almost haggard for absolutely no reason. He had to suppress his amusement as he simply sighed in disappointment, "You couldn't have arrived sooner?"

"Excuse meh?" she breathed out in annoyance, crossing her arms as she pushed past. She waited for him to secure the door before grumbling, "Aah was doin' stuff folr mai healrth and saneitee."

She didn't sound nor look drunk, so she definitely hadn't gone to a izakaya. Not to mention, the Mission was already over, so all the Harrier figured was that she must have been Recruiting more Wrongdoers instead of going straight to Jimmy's. He couldn't fault her for that, but why didn't she listen to him about relaxing?

"Well then, my friend," he started curtly with a grumble. "You missed out on a very important meeting."

He couldn't help but scowl fully when she had the audacity to raise her dark eyebrows. It was frustrating that she was freely gallivanting out there with her gun flailing in the air while he was busy holding off spite-fuelled Reapers who wanted to get revenge for him, but he tried to put down those emotions for the moment. He knew if he riled her up now, it wouldn't help him when he drew her aside to refresh her on what the issue was that they were facing now. He'd only be making her more angry than he was already.

He shook his head ultimately in his decision before leaning closer to her. "Just come with me and I'll say my piece. You have to hear this..."

Withdrawing from her side, he padded off and went around the shoes again into the halfway while wordlessly acknowledging she was travelling right behind him. He felt his unease inch in from the corner of his mind as he braced himself for the talk they were going to have.

---

"Are ya crazee!?" she spat as she jerked violently on the edge of Jimmy's bed then leant forward promptly to growl, "Why wourdn't we give him shit folr halrmin' ya!?"

As he quietly made note of how Andy's aggression uncannily aligned with the other WEB Reapers', he deliberately released a gradual exhale. He let himself hold on to it from where he stood in front of her in the middle of the room until he had no more air to provide it.

"I already had to convince them not to, Andy, please don't make me repeat the whole spiel to you too," he groaned wearily and clenched his eyes shut. He pressed a few of his fingers to his forehead. "You need to trust me that the moment we go local, into the headlights, spotlights- every fucking thing we built WEB upon will fly out of control and we will no longer have WEB for our cause. Without the smokescreen, the Posh Bastard will shut us down for good!"

"Aah know that," she hissed out vexedly, clenching her hands tightly. The Harrier even heard her skin strain from it while they were turning white. "But tuh know that rletarrd had the barls tuh ray a hand on ya-" She slammed her hands down on the bed and kept them embedded in the mattress. "Eis jus' burlshit!"

"Look, as much as I want to go for a Round Two, we need to focus on the welfare and survival of WEB and our cause," he insisted coldly as he snapped his eyes open to glower at her. He thumped a hand to his chest as he snarled angrily, "It's not just about you and me anymore, we have a liaison to take care of. And if it goes to shit, we're dragging them under the water, through the mud with us if we go down that damn route!"

Andy released a growl of frustration while the Harrier crossed his arms, sighing irritably, "Once we rope ourselves into screwing with Buttercup, we're stuck under the radar forever. Do you really want our cause to die here and now?"

"This eis why eit's so stupid!" she huffed and grumbled as she folded her arms and let her hands hover almost on her lap. She tilted her chin down and exhaled harshly, "Aah jus' hate how yer're not botherrin' tuh do aneethin' when ya have the chance tuh chase him off folr good! He hult ya forl damn sake- and that makes meh madder than a snake who caint poison his pley forl the life of him 'cause he didn't have venom tuh begin with!"

"He was attacking the Players, and I happened to try and stop him," he growled back as he tensed. "It was an occupational hazard that I was willing to face if it meant I was fighting a wrong, Andy!" When she petulantly huffed at that, he gritted his teeth and frowned. "And it doesn't matter right now when we have bigger fish to fry."

Letting his gaze wander to the door on his right, he soon grumbled, "As much as I hate to admit it, the Posh Bastard has everything covered for us. So is it so bad for us to not look a gift horse in the mouth?"

"So eit's a brriliant thin'?" Andy asked tersely, raising an eyebrow sharply.

The Harrier pointed at her, flashing a smirk as he chuckled, "The one person we need to tiptoe around is sweeping the tracks he's trying to find without knowing it." He then drew his finger and pressed it to his temple cheekily. "Self-sabotage at its finest, Andy. What's not to love?"

He then whisked his finger back into the air and bobbed it knowingly. "By tricking him into thinking I'm clean, doing what a good Reaper citizen would do, he is doing the work for us without a damn clue. His foolish trust in those who stand in line makes it plausible and possible that his focus is drawn elsewhere, therefore distracting him from conjuring the thought that he's being played by me. I gave him a false security blanket by doing the thing any other Reaper would do, so he's doing what he usually does-" He then held his hand still. "And WEB doesn't get hurt and can chow down on their popcorn and laugh on the sidelines at him. Hook, line, and…" He dropped the gesture to swing an arm debonairly across his front, grinning widely. "Sinker!"

"How are ya prlayin' him eif yer're doin' the light thin'?" Andy asked as her face screwed up.

"Simple," he chirped as a laugh bubbled from his chest, placing a hand on it. "Normality is the least you can expect. The more normality you experience, the more afoot troubles are noticed." He then scowled as he growled, "If I let our Reapers loose on Buttercup now, it breaks the illusion of the scene the Posh Bastard is spectating."

He crossed his arms shortly after, ruminating his mind to prepare his next part of his explanation before he gave it. "You see, an outcast like me has no reason to be associating with you after the big, fat failure of our petition. And, with his knowledge that I finally gave up on my 'crazy' venture, and has settled down to be a Harrier like every other Vulture months ago, minus the Erasing part... why the fuck are 'random' Reapers going after Buttercup when there's 'no reason to'?" He then unwound his arms and raised a finger smartly. "What other reason are Vultures bullying the Reaper that wronged Junior and attacked me than them being organized? That they're under my command? That Mr Reaper isn't a single person? Or that I could potentially be Mr Reaper himself?" He slid a finger through the air, across his throat as he spat, "Congratulations- he will fuck WEB over!"

The dirty blonde grimaced painfully at that. "...Aah see."

Blackie then closed his eyes, shaking his head as he spoke again, "I get and appreciate that our Reapers are quick to defend me and Junior, but the last thing we want is getting another party involved out of the blue. WEB needs to be careful, and that is one thing that can't change, Andy." He then raised a palm up with a sigh, "Our Reapers need to understand that, so damn help me ensure it."

"Why wourdn't Aah?" Andy asked with a snicker afterward. He opened his eyes to see her wolfishly grinning back at him as she shook her head. "Now that ya patted eit down forl meh, eit makes sense!"

"Of course it does, why didn't they get it at first?" he asked gruffly before rolling his eyes. "At least you're not trying to convince me otherwise."

"Heh, werl," she started with a bashful chirp then kicked her legs lightly as she happily went on, "Ya know bettarr than meh, and Aah'm fine with that. Eif Aah'm ein charlge, Aah wourdn't know not tuh do that. Ya may think tuuh much, but Aah've come tuh undarrstand that eis what we need." She gave a thumbs up, her tenor voice spirited when she piped, "That's why yer're ourr readerr!"

When he blinked at that and smiled warmly back, he rubbed his nape as he quietly replied, "I'm not the only one who got us here, Andy. Take credit for yourself as well."

"But Mr Leaper was yer eidea tuh begin with..." she returned softly, lowering her arm slowly as her eyebrows knitted.

"And you, my friend, started us off," he returned mildly as he shifted his arm back to stretch a finger onto his other palm. He planted another down on his palm again as he continued, "You try to keep me up when I'm down and conflicted and uncertain." He extended another but slower this time as he chuckled breathily, "Not to mention... you're encouraging everyone else by having them follow in your example."

By her bemused cock of her head, he murmured, "Of everyone here, you get the most kills and find many Wrongdoers to aid those who are struggling and to maintain our smokescreen." He opened his arms wide as he started to amble over to her. "When we first met, you struggled so much to speak to me without your whiteboard-" He stopped by the bed, scowling as he stiffly pointed at her. "Which you fucking should still have."

She gave a shy shrug. "Eh, do ya realree need tuh comprain about that light now?"

After he slipped off and dropped his knapsack at the base of the bed frame, the Harrier twisted slightly on the spot as he moved to sit down on the edge beside her. He turned his eyes right and kept his gaze on Andy as he breathed while watching her medium-sized wings from the corner of his eye, "Large wings traded for a pretty good reduction in size…" Blackie paused briefly before he decided to nudge her shoulder lightheartedly with his hand, giving a heartfelt smile as he felt his words wouldn't be enough in this instance despite her not seeing it. "So I have to say, you have gotten a lot better and grown into your own pretty nicely." He raised his head up as he sighed out, "I bet if I vanished right now, you would carry on everything without me."

Just as he was about to bring his hand back to himself, he felt her fingers shift to gingerly touch his wrist. He almost jerked away from the surprise of it, but instead blinked at the heat on his skin when she spoke with a small, odd giggle, "Then ya wourdn't be herre." Her eyes flickered to his hood as she heartily laughed, "And eif ya welen't herre, then-"

Her voice died, making him blink in confusion as she sucked in a sharp breath. His body knew what was happening before he did when he flinched involuntarily right as she abruptly snatched his wrist, grimacing as Andy waved it to and fro whilst staring at the bed with haunted eyes. As he let her do this, he tried to figure out what Andy was thinking when it occurred to him what may have been the matter.

The Harrier immediately spoke in fret, "I-I can explain-"

"Ya don't have a shadow!" she hissed in alarm as she smacked his hand to the bed. It instantly annoyed him as she tried to lift it- as it ached- while squinting hard at the mattress.

He roughly tore his arm from her finally, hugging it close to his upper torso as he shot a scowl at Andy. "Be glad you're the only one who noticed. I was about to bring it up."

"Horee shit!" she cried out in appall, slapping her hands to her cheeks. "Why ein tarlnation don't ya have-"

He sharply leaned towards her to none-too-gently press his hands over her mouth, narrowing his eyes to slits as he hissed, "Inside voices!" He glared her down for a moment then growled, "I don't want our Reapers to know this!"

"Whub?" Andy's voice came out muffled, hinting for him to remove his hands. After he had, he carefully watched as she spat out before retorting tetchily, "Ya got ten seconds tuh exprain this shit!"

"I don't know!" he hissed while he pulled his body back, folding his arms loosely as he sighed defeatedly, "I seriously don't know… Yet I know I should know, yet I don't know-"

"Ohkay," Andy sharply said before sighing as well, "Ya don't have one now…" She scratched her head noncommittally as she mumbled on, "And Aah don't know why, so this eis jus' stupid… Ugh-" She then exhaled harshly before her shoulders drooped. "Got nothin'."

The Harrier half-closed his eyes and smiled bitterly. "Confusing, isn't it?"

Andy silently gave a nod before she pursed her lips, knitting her eyebrows. "...Shit."

The male Harrier simply said nothing, knowing that he wouldn't give a coherent response over the established fact that they both couldn't figure this puzzle out.

He leaned to his left against the headboard and sighed, tracing one of his kneecaps while pondering over what he could say when he didn't even know where to start. Originally, he thought telling his friend about this could spark a brainstorm that would award a solution, however, such was far from the case. While he knew about how a Reaper's shadow aided them, his knowledge couldn't supply possibilities of what to do in his current dilemma. Andy didn't look into the subject as much as he had in following his curiosity, so it was apparent the only thing they knew was that it was unaccounted for.

The Harrier soon pressed his face into his hands and half-cried into them with frustration, "First I lose my wings-" He mumbled feeling even more disheartened a second later, "Now how the fuck is my existence getting any better…?"

"No crue," Andy hummed absently.

He heaved out a heavy groan before breathing, "No one can find out about this, Andy... I swear, I can't handle another damn sleight against me! If all the Vultures and our Reapers knew then me- their leader- is fucked!" He laughed bitterly afterward and felt his chest twinge, "A load of shit is going to be plowed my way and next I'll lose my voice as I suffocate in my misfortune… Gods, what am I going to do!?"

Andy simply kept frowning at him. "Not shore."

Blackie chuckled humourlessly at that, certain his eyes were welling up as he breathed out weakly, "I'm fucked…" He felt the ends of his lips loosely curl upward and snorted out a half-baked laugh as warmth and wetness touched his cheeks and hands. "Don't even bother with relying on me, I'll probably be gone by the light of tomorrow! Because that's the worthless shit I-"

The door was thrown open suddenly, jolting the Harrier. His hands fell as he widened his eyes and whipped his head towards it. 'What the fuck!?'

"Are you seriously going to whine about this, boy?" growled the Sadist as he reared his broad, ugly face to the Harrier while stomping in. It instantly sobered the Harrier in the meanwhile as he scrambled to sit up tall, glowering at the man as the Officer closed the door with a single backwards shove of his hand. "That's just pathetic."

"Who invited you in here!?" demanded the Harrier as he narrowed his eyes to slits. He gritted his teeth, clenching his hands as he spat angrily, "Were you fucking spying on us!?"

"So what if I was? I can't help it if I was standing out there, getting tired of hearing you yammer on and on like you lost your brain!" growled the Sadist with an eye-roll. That made the Harrier scoff sharply as the man marched to the centre of the room and swivelled to face him and Andy. From there he harrumphed, curling his lips in disgust as he sneered. "So tell me, Scamp... why you can't just slap a band-aid on it and call it a Day?"

"How much did you hear?" the Harrier frigidly asked, feeling himself stiffen involuntarily. When he didn't receive a response right away, he harshly growled out, "Answer me…"

The Ex-Army Man had the nerve to shrug before he huffed heftily, "Enough to know you have a problem you would rather panic about than fix."

"For your information," the Harrier started as he shoved himself off the bed, catching his footing well enough to not stumble too much. He smacked a hand to his chest once he faced the other properly and spat out ill-temperedly, "You aren't a part of this- so would you fucking let yourself out already!?"

"Complain, complain then…" groused Sadist Saiyama with another eye-roll, crossing his arms in a semblance of calm. "I'm not going to." He sniffed before leaning towards the Harrier as he narrowed his eyes. "Because if the world won't play to your tune, you're just going to get louder and become a fucking pest unless you get what you want. Your words are nothing but white noise to me, so it would be wise for you to stop your yammering before I make you."

The Harrier sneered at that, shaking his head as he wrinkled his nose before he growled in contempt, "I asked you a question…" When the large man grunted at that, the Harrier hissed out lowly, "What… did… you… hear!?"

"To start, your conversations aren't as private as you may believe them to be," responded the Sadist flatly with a humourless chuckle, shaking his great head before he whipped it down to stare at the Harrier again. "But you probably just want the facts, so I'll just tell you that it was two minutes."

"Okay then," said the Harrier coolly, keeping his gaze narrowed as he tilted his head warily. "Since you're being nice for some reason, how about you tell me why you were at the door." He tilted his head the other way as he crossed his arms. "Or you can leave now to save yourself from wasting my time because I don't really give a damn about what you'll say."

The murky-eyed man didn't react to that other than wrinkling his nose, silently glaring down at the Harrier before he growled gruffly, "Okay fine. Whatever I tell you will fall on deaf ears."

"Ah- ah- that depends on your excuse," sweetly returned the Harrier as sickly as he could. He smirked as he gave a short, harsh string of laughter while he went on frostily, "Because between you and me, I know you have a motive for being here. So until you confirm what that is, you're never going to stop walking on thin ice if I have anything to say about it."

"Then how does wanting to talk to you about something only to see your shadow is MIA work for you?" asked the Sadist half-cheekily as he pointed towards the Harrier's feet, causing the Harrier to start and look down immediately. He bristled as he threw a dirty look back up. "You must think you're smart… believing no one knows you're walking around like that, pretending as if everything is fine and wonderful," the Sadist grumbled on grumpily as he soon sighed before shaking his head. "If the 'senile old man' can see it, who else do you think you can deceive? There's not much you can do if you can't even make a shadow now."

The black-hooded Reaper fumed after the Sadist said that, simply glaring up at the burly Officer while trying to formulate a witty comeback. '...Why are you fucking around with me?'

Andy shifted from behind him, pushing her hands against the mattress while tangling one hand into the blanket she was half sitting on. "Eif yer're herre, do ya know aneethin'?" she asked seriously.

The Harrier whipped his head back to her. "Andy!" He scowled as he grumbled, ignoring her stern eyebrow raise, "I don't care about what he thinks… so could you just help me shoo him off!?"

Andy shifted with a shrug of her shoulders only to glance intently at the older Reaper. After meeting her molten gaze, the Sadist grunted, "Since you asked, why not." The Harrier returned to focusing his energy on trying to send a silent message with his body to the Officer that he wasn't welcome here, as the man crossed his arms and smacked his lips before growling deeply, "A Reaper without a shadow is pretty much roadkill."

Blackie bristled again at that. "I'll allow you to say your piece if you actually stop screwing with us."

"You don't think so?" then said the Sadist with a cock of his head, half-closing his murky eyes as he sneered. "Because if you care about remaining the leader of your troupe of idiots, then you best hear me out before you can't."

"My Reapers are not idiots!" spat the Harrier as he lashed an arm in front of himself. He soon twisted it backwards to Andy, who looked equally offended. "Our Reapers have done Shibuya a great service-"

"That's not the point," growled the Sadist before he sighed, shaking his head. "A Reaper's shadow, when sent out, carries half of their Composition-" He undid his arms to whisk a hand in front of himself. "Eh… life force, or something like that." Upon dropping his arm, he then continued as he lumbered forward, "So after they're done using their shadow, a Reaper needs to pull it back or they'll be left without an idea of where it could be until-"

The Sadist halted and shoved a palm right for the Harrier, causing the male to flinch backwards before he was staring at the hand that was an inch from his hood. "Poof." The Sadist withdrew his hand promptly, leaving the Harrier to seethe as the large Reaper's eyes grew hard and relentless. "No more bellyacher."

As the Harrier tried to recollect his thoughts after nearly having that grimy hand latch on to his face, his friend spoke up in horror, "He's gonna vaneish!?"

"Andy, don't be gullible. The Old Man is just trying to screw with us so he can heckle us all he wants with his bluffs," said the Harrier with annoyance as he flickered his gaze to the Officer then the ground. For a moment, just seeing how he lacked a dark fuzziness beneath him almost broke his cool, yet he tore his gaze away before those thoughts would dwell for much longer. He clenched his hands as he hissed indignantly, "I'm not going to vanish because I'm missing my damn shadow, Old Man!"

The Sadist jabbed a sausage thumb into his chest. "Unlike you, I know someone who literally controls shadows." He frowned deeper as he went on, leaving his thumb where it was as if the pain receptor in his brain wasn't connecting his nerves correctly, "I was going to suggest that I could bring you over to see her, but I know for a fact you're just going to haplessly yell my ear off before you can even think about it."

"Well I have news for you," huffed the Harrier hotly as he shook his head, clenching his fists again as he growled, "I don't care about what your friend thinks, nor do I want to go the mile of making it known I have a problem to go see said person."

"You see?" The Sadist waved his hand towards the Harrier's head then down to his feet. "I got you figured out already… and I even know how this is going to go when your presence is missed."

Blackie spitted at that, shaking his head again before he coolly snorted, "I don't need you acting like a saint when I got myself covered." He pivoted away from the man, starting forward towards the bed as he grumbled, "You got no shit on me since I didn't yell, Old Man."

"The longer you ignore this, the more in danger you will be," said the Sadist in a strange tone. It made the Harrier halt in his tracks, twisting his head back curiously to see if he could identify what that emotion pertained to. "I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but with your shadow carrying half of you, literally half of you…" The man soon sighed wearily with a serious frown, "The moment it's gone... poof. You're gone too."

At those words, a shiver shot straight through the Harrier's body. It caused him to tense up and remain rigid as he pondered the information. "...G-Gone?" he found himself saying weakly, shaking his head before presenting his gaze forward again. "Y-You're joking…"

"If I was, do you think I'd string you along for this long?" asked the man solemnly, allowing for the Harrier to regard the sentence. He tried to make sense of it, yet the Old Man sighed again before the Harrier could, "When a Soul has lost too much of its Composition, the Soul is no longer capable of maintaining its stitches keeping it together. It can't keep a person around when it loses a certain percentage of its mass... and do you think the poor individual is aware of how their Composition's faring?"

When the Harrier turned around to stare at the Old Man properly, wanting to answer even if all he could do was divert the conversation to something else, the Old Man went on wearily, "No one has a conscious understanding of the status of their Composition. But for your sake, without your other half, there's no saving you…"

Feeling himself gulp as he internally started to squirm at those haunting words, the Harrier tried to chuckle in a hopefully undaunted manner as he spoke with a grimace, "That would be the case, if it wasn't for the fact that Reapers can reconstruct themselves with the aid of their Points."

Sadist Saiyama raised an eyebrow at once. "Oh? So you do know about that."

"What's that supposed to mean? I can do it any time I want to," retorted the Harrier as he threw a hardened glare back. He frowned tightly as he huffed, "I was fucking trained to be a Harrier as you were once, so don't try to be mouthy with me, Old Man."

"Well, you should be pleased to know that knowing about that might be your saving grace since every Reaper learns how to do it," returned the Sadist while crossing his arms, adopting a mindful look on his face. "But being able to ReProcess your own Soul when you're in the middle of being broken down to be repurposed is not what it cracks up to be. It only works if the one Erased was Erased, not the other way around."

"Meanin'…?" Andy breathed quietly from the bed, gaining the attention of the Harrier from how weird that tone was coming from her. He shed a glance to her and raised his eyebrows as he studied her bewildered, unnerved expression.

"I'll make it simple." The Sadist closed his eyes. "If your shadow goes, you go… but that doesn't mean all the pieces will return to the box they came from. An unattached shadow has no physical ties until the Reaper yanks it back and relinks themselves to it. So if you break the shadow, the Composition in said shadow has nothing to go back to."

The Harrier slowly blinked, feeling almost as if the world was suddenly pausing as his thoughts started to thrash and churn in his mind. 'He… he can't be serious…' he thought numbly, not sure if he was ready to puke or should be gasping for air. The Harrier felt his mouth peel open as he gazed uneasily up at the man. 'It must be a lie meant to spook me- which means he's a fool to think I'm going to keel over because he's telling me…'

He forced out a laugh, "Hah, and the next thing you'll tell me is if I get Erased, my shadow will walk on without me!"

"Actually, you should be lucky to know a shadow will always follow after their owner no matter what," said the Sadist flatly, causing the Harrier to momentarily feel a spell of vertigo flush over him. "A person can block out a shadow from the sun if they stand in the shade, but the person still remains. When the person walks out, if they get hit by a car, do you think the shadow watches the person die? No. The damn shadow ripples across the pavement as the poor person lands, cracks their neck, and dies."

"Th-Then how does that explain a shadow causing the person to die if it's destroyed?" shakily asked the Harrier, receiving an annoyed look from the Old Man. "I-If a shadow usually follows after them?"

He didn't mean to sound pathetic, nor did he want to believe the Sadist… but this was turning out to sound more serious the more information he was fed. It was utterly ridiculous, but the thought of it being true turned his stomach. He didn't want to vanish without warning… he hated how easily he was letting himself hear out the man when it could be lies and bluffs!

The Harrier couldn't help how sweat rolled down to his chin as he swallowed thickly. Would Erasing himself right now solve the problem?

"Do you really think a man without a shadow was there to begin with?" then asked the Old Man with a sniff. "If there's no shadow, why would there be something attached to nothing?"

'G-Good p-point… actually,' thought the Harrier uneasily as he unconsciously drew his hands closer to him, staring down at them faintly. It was a moment later that he peeked through his fingers to take a horrid glimpse at his feet.

As it was before, his feet were standing perfectly still and keeping him standing up, with no degree of change in the shades on the carpet. No pool of darkness to mark where he was… just carpet with socks lingering on them with his appendages attached. 'Light can only pass through an object or thing that's actually there… s-since said object or thing is blocking its path to hitting the ground... I-It begs the question of why I haven't just evanesced yet. O-Or am I actually imagining myself being here in the middle of being broken down for recycling to spare myself the agony by pacifying it with a daymare? O-Or maybe I'm just a stupid shit failing to conform to-'

The man soon pointed at the Harrier and inhaled. "So basically... go find your shadow, link yourself to it, then you have nothing to worry about. You should have known better than to have lost it." His sombre expression was taut as his murky gaze narrowed.

Summoning every ounce of self-control he had probably stored away for later use, the Harrier tried his best to stop himself from quivering in front of the Old Man. The black-hooded Reaper looked up at the Officer while pretending his vision wasn't swimming.

"Y-Yeah, s-sure…" mumbled the Harrier with a poor excuse for a laugh that was meant to cover up his unsettlement. He was already grabbing his nape and squeezing it from the inside of his hood as he tried another, "I-It's no sweat then! Just get it back, no problemo…"

The Sadist was staring at him for a while, causing the Harrier to accidentally squeeze his nape harder as he felt more sweat roll down the sides of his face.

"...Unless you have no idea where it is," the Sadist mused haltingly as his gaze darkened for some reason, frowning deeper as the Harrier wondered if he was still breathing. "For crying sour milk… you don't have an idea where it is…" he groused as his serious face filled with realization.

"U-Uh, thank you for the observation," quietly said the Harrier. He felt as if his voice was getting smaller, or even perhaps his surroundings were dancing in his gaze as he breathed on, "B-But I clearly know where…"

He blinked suddenly, unsure of how many fingers he had on his hands as he came up dry on the numbers on the top of his head. As weird as that was, he decided to check for himself and brought his right out so he could hold his hands close to his face. Huh… he could have sworn he had twelve toes… why were they on his hand? And why was the ceiling so close to the ground? Man… the blanket tasted terrible… why couldn't he just eat the ceiling?

His mind cleared as something was shaking his shoulder, blinking dazedly before he identified that Andy was hovering over him. "...peak tuh meh!? Herlo!?"

"H-Hi…?" he breathed out experimentally, wondering what Andy was fussing about as she drew him close without warning and squeezed him hard. "An-Andy!?" he gasped out when she didn't let go, writhing in her hold as he cried out while freaking out, "Let go of me!"

Sensations rolled in, causing him to panic as he remained trapped and started to feel sick to his stomach. He suddenly was tugged away then gasped in and out unsteadily when the Sadist snapped, "GET AWAY- you're only going to trigger another of them!"

As the Harrier faintly felt himself being planted further away, he caught Andy's gaze- flashing as if someone had just struck her clean across the face. The Harrier wondered immediately in anger if the Sadist hurt his friend when the Sadist released him, who gave the Harrier a weary look before sighing, "This isn't good… you're already experiencing the early side-effects."

"Oh, so I suppose these supposed side-effects are not worth our notice if they're easily forgotten then," coolly noted the Harrier as he felt his hammering heart start to slow down. Soon he offered a sigh as he gave a pointed look to the Sadist, "What are they?"

The Sadist maneuvered himself to stand by the wall then swung around to face the Harrier. "When Reapers detach themselves from their shadows during battle, it is for a small duration." He crossed his arms, lowering his head slightly as he growled, "You hardly feel the reconnection once you're finished, so it's not a matter of concern unless it has failed."

Blackie quietly frowned. "And when we send them out… we don't feel them detaching from us." Upon getting a nod, the Harrier raised a palm up. "We know how to do it, can consciously control the enactment-" He then lowered his arm gradually. "But are you trying to surmise that I sent it out without thinking about it?"

"I hadn't, but now that you've brought that up…" Sadist Saiyama's murky gaze darkened again, frowning hard as he directed his stern eyes at the Harrier. "When did you notice it was gone? What were you doing before it happened? When it happened?"

"The important questions then," commented the Harrier as he sucked in a breath, holding it as he tossed around the questions in his head for a while before exhaling. He brought his hand up to cradle his chin, pursing his lips as he knitted his eyebrows. "In the middle of battle, I was about to send it out when I realized it wasn't there."

"How much into the battle?" asked the Sadist, earning a thoughtful blink from the Harrier. The Sadist grumbled on after a long pause while frowning, "...Wait, which battle are you talking about?"

"Which battle!?" repeated the Harrier in scorn, widening his eyes briefly then narrowing them as he spat out, "Today's battle!" He raised his hands high in the air, wildly waving them as he went on intensely, "Buttercup- the Players- the Noise- I got attacked today because I was defending the Pact from him!" He dropped his arms fleetingly after that delivery then jabbed a finger towards the Officer. "Were you hard of hearing when I literally went over this with our Reapers!?"

"You said attacked, not battled," flatly responded the Sadist, causing the Harrier to stiffen and widen his eyes. The Sadist shook his head, soon frowning deeper as he growled out, "What were you fighting? You're dancing around the topic, bringing Noise into the conversation without any context whatsoever- so don't blame me for not understanding what you're rambling on about!"

"In that case, I'll just retract my comment and will say me and Buttercup had a nice mano-a-mano then tried to protect the Players when he flipped out the Taot Paper!" he growled out with annoyance, shaking his head before holding his chin up. He kept his gaze towards the ceiling as he huffed harshly, "Happy now?"

"Don't try me- you mentioned Noise!" snarled the Sadist crabbily whilst clenching his hands. He glowered hard as he spat, "You're hiding something- lying through your teeth!" The Old Man violently jabbed a finger towards the Harrier and snarled out again, "Whatever it is, spit it out, Scamp!"

"Why should I when I don't know what happened!?" countered the Harrier in disdain, stepping back as he glowered at the Sadist grimly. "Don't you dare-"

"Do you have any idea how inconsistent your testimony is?" asked the Sadist icily. "How much you're squirming… how much you're trying to play off something as meaningless when you're trying to smother it right before my eyes?"

"I, am, not!" The Harrier shook his head roughly. "Why are you so fixated on trying to grill me until you've suffocated me!?"

"You wouldn't be so frantic right now if you weren't lying to me," grunted the Officer in a scoff, his face becoming grimmer. "You're purposefully avoiding what happened with the Taot Paper!"

"Because it makes no sense!" spat the Harrier back.

"What doesn't make sense about Taot Paper!?" groused the Old Man. "You use it all the time, Scamp!"

"It's not about the stupid Taot Paper!" he snapped, shaking his head before he scoffed coldly, "I've had enough of this topic, so how about we-"

"Then is it about the Noise from the Taot Paper!?" The Sadist drew himself forward abruptly, stalking closer to the Harrier as he sneered. "Did he summon them from the Taot Paper!? Did he not summon them from the Taot Paper!? Make up your mind on what information you're telling me because you're giving me no damn context about what the problem was!"

His blood felt like it was boiling over as he soon found himself meeting the Sadist head on with a short dart forward becoming a few hurried stomps, halting inches between himself and the Sadist he glared up at. The Harrier yelled out furiously, "Why I was dragged into fighting the Noise, Old Man- why I was fucking dragged into fighting the Noise, Old Man!"

For a few seconds, there was finally silence within the heated, electrified air around him and the Sadist.

The Harrier held his expression tight, feeling his facial muscles ache in pain the longer he leered up at the Sadist, whose face was slowly transforming into a baffled, frowning gape. His wide eyes provided nothing to suggest what he was thinking, leaving the Harrier to spit irritably as he soon grounded out with a sneer, "I was dragged into the Noise's Plane… and I got attacked by them…" He wrinkled his nose and finished with gritted teeth, "What don't you get about that?"

"I heard you." The murky-eyed man regained his grumpy disposition as he finally narrowed his eyes and frowned deeper. In return, the Harrier slowly started to release his expression to merely harden his gaze, soon feeling his contorted face relax slightly.

"So you lied about only having fought once, huh?" the Officer continued in a calmer note. He began stepping back, returning the Harrier his personal space whilst the Old Man grunted out, sounding unimpressed, "Why were you trying to hide that fact when it is just as important as when you fought the other Harrier Reaper?"

Blackie scoffed and whipped his head away. He tried to not peek at the Sadist with the side of his vision as he mumbled out tersely, "Noise don't drag Reapers into the Inter-Planes…" He shrugged his shoulders, wanting to appear unfazed. "Explain that."

Sadist Saiyama merely grunted softly, "You're right."

The Harrier blinked in surprise. "Wait, what?"

"What are you confused about that for? When a Player is made into a Reaper, their reconfigured Frequency should repel Noise from even starting a fight…" The Officer then crossed his arms and knitted his grizzled eyebrows. "It stops the Noise from even being able to tug you out of the Underground..." After he closed his murky-green eyes, the man sighed unhappily, "That's not normal."

"Yes!" cried out the Harrier gleefully as he threw up his arms, relief cascading on him as he breathed happily, "Why do you think I didn't want to talk about it?"

"Don't tell me you didn't want to talk about it with the because you were ashamed of having been spat back into scuffling with the Noise," snorted the Sadist with unamusement, causing the Harrier to bristle; the joy inside him killed by that dismissive remark. The Old Man slowly opened his eyes and flatly went on, "Anything, no matter what it is, isn't unimportant when it's not normal."

In response, the Harrier narrowed his gaze and gritted his teeth. The Sadist sniffed at that, shaking his head before he grumbled in annoyance, "For someone who acts like he's godsent, you shouldn't be stupid about this. Face the damn music. Noise aren't supposed to be able to fight Reapers, and you omitting that fact is only asking for Erasure." The man snorted throatily before he growled out lowly, "You need to be serious about this, or you'll get nowhere with your fucking problem, Scamp!"

The Harrier raised his head while inhaling sharply, lowering it as he sighed out, "It shouldn't have even happened." He shifted slightly with unease. "So do you really expect that I want others to know that happened?"

"If you care about your survival," returned the Officer gruffly, his eyes hardening. "You shouldn't ignore diddly-squat that's damn unnatural."

"Look, if you haven't noticed, I now have a reputation to uphold," said the Harrier quietly as he placed a hand on his chest. He tried to lock his gaze with the Sadist's murky-green the best he could- under a hood, no less- as he went on sternly, "I need to keep the association between Mr Reaper and myself as far as possible or we're screwed."

He lifted his hand slightly before thumping his chest, leaving his hand there again as he shook his head before breathing out sternly, "Once the other Vultures find out about this, or if I am to be frank, if in the case they learn Mr Reaper isn't even real… all of us will be compromised. I can't let those Vultures know because of me having a vulnerability now from a stupid shortcoming-" He narrowed his eyes, frowning harder. "I don't even know for sure when they may put the pieces together, but what I do know is that in our world of ours, the strong thrive in the spotlight and the weak are shoved aside. Vultures who see Mr Reaper as a joke will only create arrogant assumptions that what WEB works to achieve, and what we do, is all but a game they were meant to be entertained by.

"A strong persona is to be intimidated, and if that persona has their shortcomings, Vultures will only wish to exploit those shortcomings from the person who created it. They would go straight after WEB Reapers and get the Posh Bastard to punish us if I eat the dust." He grimaced at the thought before trying to school his expression, shifting before he crossed his arms and lowered his hardening gaze. "Who would care about the underlings if they could end everything at its source? It's a no-brainer this needs to be taken care of, so the less WEB knows about the shortcoming, the better it is for them and the cause overall."

For some reason, when the Harrier lifted his head to see how the Sadist would react to that, he noted with surprise that the Sadist had a pensive, darkened expression with his eyebrows curled almost over the tops of his own eyes. It was as if the Officer Reaper was lost for words, like the Harrier's speech broke through to him finally and the Old Man couldn't figure out a way to process what was going on… Or, perhaps, the man was lost in his thoughts, trapped while they were ambushing him as if the Harrier's words sparked something that had been long forgotten.

As he drew his gaze to see what Andy thought of this, her expression was downcast as she watched him, not even offering anything as she simply remained silent. Pensive may have been an easy label to give her as well. Usually, Andy was always vocal, so upon realizing that she hadn't even uttered a word in quite frankly a long time, it made the Harrier blink in confusion and he wondered why she wasn't eager to partake in the discussion now than she had been before.

"Then you need to figure out how to fix your shortcoming."

Whipping his head back in shock, the Harrier soon resigned to listen to the older man. "So basically, you were attacked by Noise… then that's when you realized your shadow wasn't there?" The Harrier narrowed his eyes and gave a stiff nod, allowing the man to speak seeing as he appeared to know more than the Harrier could right now. Once the Old Man started to dwindle in providing new information, the Harrier told himself he'll step back in and give a comment to keep this from being an one-sided speaking to. "If you were fighting Noise, why weren't you using your shadow to aid yourself from the start?"

The Harrier held his tongue, simply for the effect that he was mulling the Old Man's words over, when really he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. Nothing but uncomfortable with the idea of if or how he could even talk about the interactions he had with the female Player, or how he was pretty much chaperoning and guarding her until she realized she could fight without her Partner for no reason.

Confusion on top of confusion… What did he do to be stuck in a position like this?

Judging by the frustration that was being drawn on to Sadist Saiyama's unamused expression, the Harrier supposed pretending he couldn't understand his own native tongue wouldn't do him any favours.

"...The Player wouldn't attack them," he started quietly, hating how his voice was wavering. He tried to make himself sound less pathetic while continuing his explanation, "When the Noise took me to the Inter-Plane, they dragged the Player I was trying to encourage to leave with her Partner there as well."

"That Player's Partner would have backed her up," the Sadist began to say when the Harrier shook his head wildly to stop him.

The Harrier didn't inhale before he spoke again, understandably feeling lightheaded as he breathed out uneasily, "Sh-She was alone." He swallowed, feeling as if a painful lump had just lodged itself into his throat. One that had to be gotten rid of to ensure he could actually talk instead of choking himself up in front of the Old Man. "H-Her Partner didn't get pulled in. He was with Junior, and Junior and the other Player were being chased around by Buttercup…"

"What do you mean he wasn't brought to the Inter-Plane!?" boomed the Sadist immediately, causing the Harrier to flinch- to his dismay- because of that. He watched the Sadist frown hard as he growled gruffly, "Pacts are supposed to remain together when a Noise initiates an attack on them!"

"But he wasn't there- I swear!" insisted the Harrier in frustration as he unhooked his arms and waved a hand in front of him as he went on with annoyance, "She was." He started to gesture with both of his hands stiltedly as he gritted his teeth and grumbled, "Don't ask how I know. She was on her side of the Inter-Plane, and I was on the other. She hadn't even fought or encountered any Noise yet, so I had to do the work for her. It wasn't until the orange Crocodile wouldn't let go of me and was slowly submitting me my undue fate that she helped me finish them off, and-"

"Players need their Partners to fight Noise. Why would you think a lone Player could attack a Noise, let alone get away from that one, unless you were having a daymare!?" demanded the Sadist with an unimpressed snort. That immediately sparked ire inside the Harrier as the man shook his head and growled out strictly, "Before I let you continue on with this, how do I know if you haven't been stringing me along this whole time with lies to avoid telling me what really happened?" He sharply raised a bushy eyebrow. "Well?"

The Harrier hardened his gaze and snapped harshly, "I'm not lying!" He shook his head roughly before snarling angrily, "For your information, I've been humouring your insistence on finding out what happened to me! And if what intel I do have isn't up to par with your standards, then I'm sorry for even contributing to your intrusion on me and Andy!"

"What you're telling me is baloney that you're trying to make realistic!" retorted the grizzled Ex-Army Man in frustration. "Don't blame me for having a damn opinion!"

"Then wouldn't you like to know what it feels like being ripped forcefully off the cement and dumped into a hellhole!?" spat the Harrier furiously, sharpening his gaze as he raised his voice. "It feels like my guts are being tugged out of my body without them even breaking the skin, pushed through a tunnel so thin it feels like my bones are breaking at separate times just to ensure I can fit through, to be careened to be spat out on the other side crumpled uselessly, only to be trapped with angry purple-and-blue-tailed Peacocks and a hungry orange Crocodile who don't know their brains to their stomachs with the sole intent to destroy and eat whatever is not part of their biology!" He sharply poked a finger up and spat, "Then I have to coach a naive Player in order to fight Noise to save my ass just to have her topple me the moment we get out of there and comment on my face!"

His voice had been shrill by the end of his shouting- when did he start shouting!?- and his vocal cords and throat suffered because of that. They ached rawfully, was in excruciating pain, making him feel the need to cup a hand near it as if that would instantly soothe it and make it feel normal again.

He wildly flickered his gaze to the Sadist whilst breathing harshly and wheezing, only to widen his eyes at the surprised expression the Old Man had. However, before he could try to decipher why the Officer was acting like that, something hooked on to his shoulders roughly. Seconds later, he was violently spun rightward to Andy's horrified- no, livid face.

"Ya showed ya fuckin' face tuh herr!?" she roared murderously and made him feel faint when it occurred to him he did just say that. Her amber-brown were molten lava- pools of fury, vats of incredulous dismay that clued him in on and reminded him about how bad of a doozy that really, really was...

He opened his mouth and closed it thoughtlessly- probably like a braindead koi, no doubt- as Andy went in for a Round Two to scream like a banshee. "YA NEVARR DO THAT FORL ANEEBODY! WHY THE FUCK DID YA SHOW HERR YA FACE!?"

"It wasn't my fault!" he began awkwardly in protest as he frowned anxiously. "When we got out of the Inter-Planes, it's like she was placed on top of me-"

"YA CAINT JUS' ON A FLRY DECIDE TUH FRASH YA FACE TUH A PRLAYERR 'CAUSE SHE BOWLED YA OVERR!" she continued seethingly as she tightened her grip and continued burning holes into his cornea. He had to wonder if she dislodged his hood enough that she was actually trapping him in her crazed, murderous gaze for once. "WHY WOURD YA DO THAT!?"

"I didn't fucking plan it on a whim!" he yelled back in frustration. "And why do you care, Andy!? Why are you so angry about nothing when it was an accident!?"

"EIT'S NOT NOTHIN', ASSHORE!"

Just as he opened and closed his mouth again, wondering bemusedly why Andy was behaving this crazy all of a sudden about this, the Harrier could feel footfalls before the knock even sounded. "Hey, are you blokes all good in there?" Jimmy's voice was blatantly filled with worry.

Andy's intense expression momentarily fell, her gaze flicking past the Harrier's head towards the door. She opened her mouth to speak when the Sadist beat her to it. "Pay them no mind, Carlistein. Be glad we're not in the Realground, or imagine the noise complaints you would be getting."

Jimmy's voice came again. "...Just checkin' on you... since we can ow hear Annee screamin' from the living room."

The Sadist snorted before raising his voice again. "Then go back and pull yourselves to the Realground. There's going to be a lot more melodrama coming along shortly, so it's best for you to do that unless you enjoy shouting matches."

For a while it was silent, then Jimmy sighed drearily, "...I'll let the other blokes know then."

The Harrier couldn't help but snap his attention to the Sadist, blinking in awe at the Old Man. 'I didn't think it was possible to end a conversation that quickly. …Or do I usually draw things out longer than they should be?'

As Andy focused on him again, her vice grip made it painful when the Harrier raised his hands and began to speak, "F-First off, once again, i-it was an accident."

"No shit," Andy growled frostily. She promptly let him go, backing away with a few steps before jabbing a finger towards him. "Fix eit!"

"Fix what!?" he growled back in vexation. "Fix the fact she got a peek at me!? Fix the fact that you're angry for no reason!?"

Her scowl became a deadly glower, turning her gaze to slits as she crossed her arms crookedly. "Fix… eit…"

"Oh for fuck's sake, who shitted in your coffee already!?" he snapped as he glared back. "I don't want people seeing my face, that's a fact, but why are you acting like you're on your period over it!? It's not like you were when you died anyway!" He threw up his hands defencively. "So how does her seeing me then forgetting about it magically make the Posh Bastard have an epiphany over WEB's existence!?"

When she didn't speak, the Harrier grumpily chose to use the time to drive his point further. He shook his head as he huffed, "If the Player's the problem, then you got nothing to worry about. I think amongst the best outcomes, that Player is dimwitted enough to not last until Day 3 at most." He crossed his arms and tapped one of his feet peevedly when Andy still kept her slitted glare on him intact, sighing eventually as he grumbled, "It's plain and simple, so why are you still giving me that look, Andy? Why are you so pissed off?"

"That's not enouf," she bit back with a snort. She shook her head a while before she added crossly, "Yer're sayin' we need tuh be carlfurl, but now ya thlowin' eit out the window!"

"What do you mean I'm not being careful over nothing noteworthy? What do you want me to do about it then?" he hissed out coldly, hardening his gaze as he frowned hard while Andy raised an annoyed eyebrow at him. "Oh come on, Andy- What's your problem!?" he groaned in frustration as he wrinkled his nose. "What do you suppose I should do since you clearly know all the answers?"

"Ya think tuuh much, so think, dammit!" she retorted harshly as she whipped around the other way and started to stalk off a little bit. She halted rigidly when she passed by the invisible line Sadist Saiyama marked the middle of the room of with his body to reach the other end of the bed before growling out, "Eit's not jus' about yer face-" She swung back and spat, "She carled ya Mrr Leaperr- and ya did nothin' tuh stop herr!"

Straightaway, the Harrier froze, widening his eyes in appall. "Y-You were watching us?"

Andy's tight expression was wiped away and replaced with renewed lividness, not providing him a single sign she was ashamed from being caught red-handed. Her blazing eyes merely welled up as she snarled, "Ya didn't do aneethin'!" She whipped her hand through the air sharply. "Ya jus' warked off and ret herr be, takin' that nobodee with ya tuh the Liverr, then the two of you gone back home rike eit was nothin'!"

"Were you going to hide this from me!?" angrily asked the Harrier in disbelief, shaking his head as he aloofly growled, "Pretending you saw fucking nothing just so that you can harp on me later about the stupid fact she saw my stupid face instead!?"

Andy was about to speak, but the Harrier didn't want her to. He stalked forward quickly, bunching his hands into fists as he went on harshly, "You came home late because you didn't want to face me, didn't you!?"

"Ya don't jus' make these mistakes!" she cried out in upset frustration as he stood in front of her again, this time bristling as she added desperately in coldness, "Aah know ya… Aah know ya, and ya wourdn't jus' reave this be tuh festerr!"

"For your information, I don't like how you're telling me what I would or should do!" he snapped back loudly, hardening his gaze, feeling them darken as he yelled out harshly, "This is completely unacceptable... You're not my mother!" He shook his head roughly, breathing unsteadily as he yelled louder, livider as he threw his head back distraughtly, "Don't make this happen to me, Andy… don't you fucking dare put me through my damn life again!"

Andy's face was pale with shock, all signs of anger evaporated as the Harrier inhaled and exhaled shuddery air, his own anger sinking enough for him to realize he was quivering as he lowered his head. His face was wet, warm- oh no, why was he fucking crying right now!? He widened his eyes, soon aware of how a breeze was ticking his neck-

He numbly registered the fact that his hood had slipped off at some point, yet his anger still held true. It flickered within him, restricting his body's ability and putting his thought of immediately fixing that on hold. He all but narrowed his eyes at Andy icily, pursing his lips as he raggedly breathed in and out, too furious to care about that right now-

That is, until he realized Andy wasn't the only one staring at him.

It felt as if lightning shot through his nerves again, reconnecting every part of his body to cringe, jerk, and pivot sharply in horror at the Sadist. He slapped his hands over his face as he roared out in dread, "DON'T LOOK AT ME!"

"Cut it out, Scamp. You make it so easy not to when you turned to me," supplied the Sadist in a huff with a roll of his eyes. "Why are you acting like I haven't seen your face before? I literally pinned you to the wall after I found you unconscious in the streets months ago when me and Oshiro asked you about-"

"Shut up!" he shouted out shrilly, backing away unsteadily as he growled out from behind his hands, "Don't look at me!" He wasn't certain why he hadn't thought of just covering his face with his hood again yet, but his train of thought died when his one of his legs caught the side of the bed. It caused him toppled onto it with an oof.

Upon feeling his back contact the mattress, he grimaced and glowered into his hands at the same time as the Old Man all but sighed, "Stop acting like your face has any merit from not being seen, it's starting to get ridiculous."

"Eugh-" The Harrier pulled at his face distressfully. "Just don't look!"

"For your information-" The Harrier growled out at that, annoyed the Old Man had the balls to say that to him. "Your face is nothing special."

Hastily tugging the hood over his face, the Harrier shot up to sit and threw an outraged glare back at the man. "Shut up!"

"What?" the Officer intoned flatly, raising an eyebrow as he grunted out gruffly, "You think it looks like shit? You don't like your hair colour?"

"I choose to not answer your fucking questions because I fucking WANT YOU TO LEAVE!" roared the Harrier louder. He irritably started adjusting the black fabric and tugging it harder over his terse, taut expression. "I DON'T CARE ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK, JUST LEAVE ME BE!"

As the Harrier held his hood, trying to regain control over his breathing as his throat ached horribly again, the black-hooded Reaper heard a sigh come from the Sadist soon. "Alright, fine," grunted the Sadist with an eye-roll, shaking his head as he peeled himself from the wall and started to stomp to the door. Just before he left, when the Harrier took in the other through his dying anger, the behemoth halted to growl, "You shouldn't be ashamed of it, anyway… The poor soul who Processed you wouldn't have given you a crappy nose job, so why not rethink your stubbornness over hiding your face. Food for thought."

With that, the man left finally.

Breathing out heftily, the Harrier didn't relax as he fiddled with his hood as he sat on the mattress still. He was trying to quickly tuck his stupid strands of stray hair in when Andy glanced at him with an unreadable look. "Ya know... yer face ain't ugree."

"Oh really?" he coolly replied as he closed his eyes, feeling disgruntled as he grumbled, "I haven't the thought to check in months, so it's not like it matters…"

"Weilrd how Aah know what ya rook rike now," she added with a titter. She smiled slightly, though maybe it was an uncomfortable one, as she breathed out more, "Ya arlways einsisted on not takin' eit off even when we welre Paltnerrs…"

"Because I'd rather have someone not look me in the eye and smugly tell me I'm being an idiot for playing the Game and not being a hero," mumbled the Harrier sardonically as he scowled. After a few seconds, he huffed as he went on dismally, "It was easier that way… Maybe easier now so I don't have any awkward encounters with any person I used to know if they end up on our turf."

Andy's gaze held a sliver of light in them as she frowned. "Did ya do nothin' tuh that girr 'cause ya knew herr?"

Whipping his body to face her abruptly, he narrowed his gaze to slits. "No, because I was doing a right by saving her. What reason was there to do anything? She's in a Pact, and on Day 1, Pacted Players are untouchable…" He raised a finger. "Not to mention, we are not supposed to mess with innocents."

"Unress they'rre Paltnerred tuh a Wlon'doerr," Andy added in tune with him as she crossed her arms, scrunching her expression. She kept her darkened gaze on him. "Are ya shore she ain't a Wlon'doerr?"

"Are you suggesting I should Erase her if she was? When I'm an 'upstanding Reaper' of the Underground now?" The Harrier sighed afterward, shaking his head as he internally squirmed at the thought. "I'd just blow my cover."

"Aah mean, eit wourd sorlve ya plobrem, light?" she replied with a shrug. "No witnesses…"

The Harrier huffed unhappily, "I may not know her, but you are right…" He knitted his eyebrows as he mused coolly, "If she is someone's target, it would be simple to off her and continue on our merry crusade." He smirked slightly at that silly thought. "Heh, now that would be convenient."

"Got a name tuh shoot?" Andy hummed as she ambled closer. She soon seated herself beside him as she leaned against his shoulder briefly, probably for better access of viewing the Notebook she had withdrawn from her brown shoulderstrap bag to hand to him. He'd talk to her about breaking the rule of removing the Notebook from the grannyflat later. "We shourd learee wrlite down desliptions so we know who eis who…"

"Duly noted. I'll pencil that thought in and make it work," he hummed as he opened it to the current Week they had names logged on, soon pursing his lips. "Without a label on her, looks-wise would be very helpful right now."

"Then why don't ya git eit then shoot?" she asked curtly, suddenly stealing the book from him swiftly, to his disgruntlement. She quickly put in, "Gimme a pen, Aah need tuh put ein some of mai new additions."

"Gladly," he said with a tut as he promptly fished in his pockets promptly, brandishing the instrument of ink and offering it in his ginger grasp. He said nothing when she tore it away unnecessarily rougher than she should have. Andy was Andy, after all.

As his friend began scribbling away on a new page, he sighed quietly, "I suppose… tomorrow I could take a gander for a name and go from there in case she is one."

Andy sniffed, "Quickerr eif ya jus' off herr."

The Harrier's eye twitched at that. "Remember that I'm not supposed to and I have to stay 'clean'. But if her name matches up, then we can discuss it if you want a whack with her."

"She used ourr purlsona's name on ya, she saw yer face-" Andy halted briefly to blow a raspberry before waving her hand with the pen down dismissively. "Eit's tuuh dangerrous tuh eignorre tuuh ron'. Jus' off herr and be done."

"Did you listen to a single word I said?" he asked incredulously with annoyance, wrinkling his nose as he growled, "She's innocent until guilty-" He waved his hand across his front. "Simple as that."

"So yer're gonna Elase herr?" Andy asked warily as she quirked an eyebrow. "Or are ya scalred?"

The Harrier had to stop himself from responding right away, feeling an uncomfortable amount of uncertainty clutch his heart that left him hesitating. It wasn't about being scared, it was about not straying from his script in the operation. What didn't Andy get about that? Why was she convinced he had to do it?

Andy readjusted herself to face him, tossing the notebook over her shoulder to the side for it to land on the bed. She gave him a meaningful look. "Aah know ya don't want tuh do eit, but ya need tuh think about what ya said ealrlierr." The Harrier inhaled a stifled breath of air and clenched his eyes shut at that, shaking his head yet Andy continued in her serious tone, "Ya don't want WEB fucked overr, don't want tuh not be complomised… but yer're wirlin' tuh ret a pottentiarl hazalrd go?"

She rested her elbows on her thighs, resting her weight on them as she sighed, "Don't rie tuh meh." She clasped her hands over the gap between her legs, tucking in her chin lightly. "Eif WEB's surlvivarl and werlfarre eis eimpolrtant overrarl… aneethin' tuh complomise eit needs tuh be dearlt with. Eit's not about what ya want, eit's whatt ya need tuh do. Ya made eit yer plobrem when ya didn't dearl with eit."

When the Harrier didn't reply to that, trying to not let himself recklessly blurt out the fraught that he felt itching and scratching to claw its way out from his skin and mouth, Andy added quietly, "Ya carre about us, don't ya? About our cause? Yer dleam?" She leaned closer to him, coming close to resting against his shoulder as she breathed out softer, "Our wolrk?"

The Harrier all but bowed his head, releasing a reluctant, shaky breath. "...I do." He shook his head gently, aware of how close his friend was, feeling the sparse contact radiate heat where it nearly touched him. "But… it doesn't feel right to me. To hurt an innocent to save my own skin."

His eyebrows tugged together as he pursed his lips, grimacing as he breathed out uneasily, "It was our shtick, remember?" He inhaled unsteadily before he exhaled more to get his pained words out, "I got the Wrongdoers, you had the leftovers because it would work out better that way…" He frowned tightly. "Why has that changed?"

"Ya became ourr lreaderr," Andy returned, raising her shoulders slightly. "Eit's what ya thought wourd worlk best eif the Counducterr wasn't gonna ret up folr Recluitment."

Soon, he felt her arm slither from his shoulder to the other; her hand perching itself on the left side of his neck as she drew him closer. He uncomfortably noted this gesture was different than usual, trying to piece together what sort of meaning it had as Andy sighed next to him, "Eif that Prlayer eis as dimwitted as ya say she eis, how do ya know eif ya can contlorl what comes flom herr rlips? She can mightee werl yammerr on about ya within earrshot of otherr Leaperrs... notice ya and singil ya out as Mrr Leaperr again and again…" Andy paused for a bit, wetting her lips before she breathed out worriedly, "And WEB, as ya said, eis fucked overr. No more of ourr wolrk wirl be done eif they pay attention tuh that- eif ya ret herr complomise ya." She whispered her last sentence; a wispy sound escaping each word straight into his ear.

Quietly, to himself, he couldn't help but resign himself to agree with his friend. As much as he hated it… Andy was right. He wanted innocents to be out of their work as much as possible whenever their Reapers dealt with Wrongdoers, but if he let a loose cannon out and disregarded her because she was a part of the untargeted, because he had to keep to his role… that innocent could dismantle everything.

Buttercup wasn't their main concern right now… making sure WEB didn't engage Buttercup was the last thing he wanted… but ensuring his identity and the ploy of Mr Reaper wasn't compromised was his priority. That was what he told the rest of WEB. It was the key piece to ensuring their work would keep burning alive.

That Player wasn't an exception… She was a wayward, uncontrolled variable in the grand scheme of things. Who knew what she may or may not do without proper intervention? Anything that wasn't planned could very well kick their asses later. Screw- no, fuck them over. Loose threads, as he reminded himself, could unravel everything if a person comes across them and tugs.

…And a flicker of a flame was easier to extinguish than a wildfire.

If he strayed from his established path, could he play it off as him entering Point Starvation? A lapse of thinking clearly? For those viewing his activities from the outside, wouldn't they wonder why he was doing that?

His head was spinning; the room was spinning. He couldn't handle the thought of anything going wrong because he broke his own formation…

Andy squeezed his forearm; her molten eyes pinned him down intently. It was the only thing that steadied his whirling thoughts.

…But wasn't Andy right? He just had to do it then everything would go back normal? It was just one Player, after all.

One Player that would screw him over if he didn't do it to her first.

Lowering his head, staring into his lap, he loosely gave an unwell smile. "...I may have another appointment to attend to this Week, b-but I think I can squeeze this in easily."

His heart twisted during, even after he uttered those toxic, sickening words, even when Andy released a sigh of relief…

"A-After all… the show must go on."

He wanted to puke.

---

Months Ago...

---

"So, you really think you're a hotshot, huh?"

The young Reaper paused in his steps while on his way to the Barracks, blinking in confusion when he turned in the direction the voice came from. There was another Harrier Reaper standing in the corridor heading towards the Lounge, their mustard-coloured hood facing him as the other male approached. The first thing the Harrier did was try to bow in greeting, but the sharp tsk from the other Reaper made him halt in the middle of it.

"Don't bother with the pleasantries, I just wanted a good look at the Conductor's newest star player," huffed the Harrier Reaper as they stomped over, making the young Reaper slowly rise from his bow with a frown. He backed up and raised his hands uneasily when the other abruptly entered his persona bubble. Just as they thrust their hooded head towards the younger's, the younger Reaper heart seized as he instinctively jerked his head back. "You think you're special, don't you? Cozying up with the Conductor because he's giving you attention?"

"I-I… I-I don't know what you're talking about," said the young Reaper nervously, feeling himself quiver as his eyes darted towards the ground. "I-I'm nobody special-"

"The way you constantly strut as if you're aristocratic, pretending you're pure-" Without warning, the younger Reaper stumbled out of the way of the other Reaper's hand that tried to clutch the front of his favourite hoodie. His tattooed wings flapped unhelpfully behind him as the younger Reaper frantically tried to maintain distance between himself and the unhappy Reaper, but the other wouldn't stop pursuing him. "You're just a rookie, yet you think you have the Conductor around your finger!" the male spat in frustration. "This is- what? Your second Day?"

"N-No, it's actually my third." The younger quivered, biting his lip in worry. He soon shook his head, not knowing what else to do. "I'm sorry if I caused you any problems in some way, I just don't want to give you any trouble-"

"Ooh- would you lookie here!" contemptfully sang the aggressive Reaper as they suddenly sprinted for him. It gave him little time to react before he tried to jolt away, only for his back to meet the wall and gasped in pain when the pressure on his wings started him. Before he knew it, the other Reaper finally took a fistful of the Harrier's hoodie and shoved him against the wall to his dismay, crying out in pain when the pressure unpleasantly pressed his wings forward and splayed them out like a butterfly's. "He even decorated them with his personal touch!" proclaimed the Reaper in a crow before their other hand reached for the younger's right wing. "I know when he chooses favourites is when he plants diamonds into the design- Why wouldn't he choose those blasted diamonds after how he put them into Walls!?"

The flash of their hidden gaze only gave a precursor of how enraged they were, yet the younger Reaper couldn't help but squirm in apprehension. Before he knew it, he was wincing and gasping out when fingers curled mercilessly into the middle gaps that had stylized, spiraled diamonds. "How about we fix your wings so no one knows you're one of his favourites!? It'll be easier for you!"

"N-No-" the young Reaper wailed in horror. He tried to swing an arm up to grab the other Reaper's wrist to stop the fingers trying to clamp on to the diamond design. "St-Stop it! Don't-"

"You won't be so bad off once the Reaper birth dazzlement for him wears off-" continued the Reaper manically. "Don't think your admiration of him was genuine, now… He must have always planted Imprints into us to ensure we commit to becoming his peasants because once it wears off! Shit hits you like bricks that he doesn't deserve our devotion! He'll mould you into his perfect, loyal subject before you even know it-"

"L-Let go of m-me!" begged the younger Reaper miserably as his panicked attempts to protect himself were failing to keep the hand from trying to tug at the diamond webbed spirals. Warm tears were gushing down his cheeks already as he pleaded harder, "P-Please don't ruin them! Don't!"

"You'll thank me later!" spat the Reaper.

Despite more desperate words forming in his mouth, he knew he couldn't fend the other off. All the Harrier-in-training could do was brace himself, not knowing how much pain he would be in once they-

The building pressure and the force pinning him to the wall disappeared, leaving the Harrier-in-training seconds to maneuver himself to land in the least awkwardest way possible. Once he was on his hands and knees, his wings aching as he felt dazed, it took him a moment to even rip his gaze from the ground as he saw a dark dirty blonde fighting to keep his attacker down.

All the black-hooded Reaper could do was stare at the fight fearfully, feeling his chest heave for oxygen in agony as insults were thrown and the crazed Harrier tried to claw at the other's wings now. The Reaper couldn't understand why this was happening or why this started to as his body locked up. He clenched his eyes closed, willing for himself to pretend this was just a daymare. That this was a nightmare.

But it wasn't. If it was, why was a Reaper assessing him and asking faintly in his awareness if he was alright? Why were the two fighters being separated and wrestled by two Reapers each? Why were they yelling about a Reaper starving? Why were they giving him pitiful looks?

Why was he so pathetic to not have prevented this?

When he caught molten eyes, he couldn't help but wonder why she smiled at him; even the wink she sent his way.

That… that was his last Partner. Why did Number Six look so pleased with herself? Why did she go out of her way to save him when he couldn't save his other Partners?

The young Reaper couldn't control his wings from curling around him, brushing the Reaper nearby him away as he felt so small.

He couldn't even solve his own problems… Why did the Conductor think he could be trusted to be a Harrier Reaper if he didn't have anything to show for it?

All he could do was sob raggedly into the ground.

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To be continued... hope you enjoyed the chapter! =D

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EeveeGen9988: Man, it sure has been a long time since I last posted. I'm really sorry for the long wait, I had a lot of stuff happen in between edits that I had to handle in the last year, but now I'm starting to get time to get back into the editor seat to continue working on the chapters you have been waiting for. Adult life has been a whirlwind lately, so I hope I don't lose out on sharing more on the story that I've been working on for years now. Although, with my current studies, it might take a while until Part 13 comes out. But progress IS being made! =D

Despite how long it's been, I'm happy with how things turned out. I've gotten miles ahead on writing (which includes a lot of drafts nearing the endgame of the story, to be exact), so I got a lot of content to go through as well as to filter out the errors, but I hope to get them out speedier than I have in the past in the next coming years. (Although, I can't quite say for certain when I'll be able to get out all of the chapters) While I wish I could just post the drafts as they are right now, I don't think you want to read unedited chapters even though I am happy with how they are so far. Regardless of that, I'm really excited for when I do get the other chapters out. It's going to be a real treat to know what you guys think of what happens next! =D

I hope everyone has been doing well since you last read the story! And guess what? You've unlocked yet another thing to check out down below! ;D

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NEW REPORT THREAD HAS BEEN [SUCCESSFULLY] CREATED

THREAD_TYPE = [PRIVATE]=[HM to ?]

DATE_OF_CREATION = 11/45/33/AM/WED/17/SEP/1975

ENTRY_NO = 349724

LOG_NAME = SD

DOCUMENT_ALIAS = Secret Documents - Entry 349724

ENTRY_GAME_SEQ = DAY/01/SEP/17/1975

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- The Continued Case of Mr Reaper -
Secret Document of Hiraku Maeda

One of the hottest topics still circulating the Underground right now is who Mr Reaper is, as we discussed over these last months. From what I know, there's still been no word of who this is and the murders of the Realground continue as we speak. Their dastardly ploy hasn't escaped the notice of us Angels, but the clear inaction of the Composer has been worrying. I've been asked questions about if there were indications pointing to why, but from what I've observed, it seems like the Conductor, who had been put in charge since the beginning of the serial murderer's plight, is acting as proxy and is still championed to lead the charge.

I know that I'm supposed to not be subjective in these reports, but the thing about me is I have this ability where if I feel something isn't right, I feel buzzed from it and can't ignore the feeling. I can't intervene on the matter, yet I feel as if the Composer is letting the situation unfold. It doesn't make sense, but maybe the Composer has a reason?

Anyways, something new happened that i caught from taking a break from manning my post as the parlour owner. I thought I felt the words, the name, be uttered aloud by a Player. This development gripped me and I haven't been able to shake off the potential lead that's now in the minds of Reapers.

There were doubts befoee, but now Reapers have reason to know that Mr Reaper, the myth that they thought pf iy as, was no joke. I sensed the Player was new, so there wasn't a reason for them to know about the information from prior Rounds. So now, I guess you can say I can affirm that Mr Reaper is real.

It's only a matter of time before I can be led to the culprit. I believe the unrest Angels have can end, I just need to stick my nose into this occurrence, as much as that scares me.

- Hiraku Maeda